Hi Breano
Yes, that’s right. It means “a word” but you can use it for a few words/brief speech
一言で言うと = If I put it in one word ~
一言言ってもいいですか？ = Can I say something? / Can I say a few words?
一言、スピーチをお願いします。= Could you give a brief speech?
Good evening Maggie. I have doubts about some phrases.
1) Does the 政府役人 part of the sentence 政府役人の豪邸が略奪された make sense? I searched but couldn’t find anything on the subject.
2) What is the function of として in words like 突如として? From what I researched, 突如として and 突如 have the same meaning.
Oh okay, because with what I was trying to do (彼に声を出して読めながら) whatever is being read is the subject, not who’s being read to. I was thinking the opposite for some reason, oops
1) 今、彼に（or と）話しているところです/ところだ
= I am just talking to/with him./ I am in the middle of talking to him right now./ I am in the process of talking to/with him now.
It is emphasizing the ongoing process or being in the middle of the action
2) 今、彼に（or と）話しています。/いる
= I am talking to/with him now.
It simply states the fact that talking is happening without emphasizing the ongoing action.
You are right. どの means “which” but どの (dono) can be used as “which” or “any/every,” depending on the context.
Ex. どの国もインフレに苦しんでいる。 Every country is suffering from inflation.
Ex. このレストランは、どの料理も美味しい。Every dish at this restaurant is delicious
こんにちは先生。
Since potential verb form is the same as passive verb form, how would you make a both potential and passive verb?
Example sentence: He can’t be stopped.
Something like 止められることをできない?? Seems weird. How do you do it?
こんにちは、Terry
I would say it is not common to use passive form + できない because it looks/sounds confusing.
He can’t be stopped. : The most natural way to say this in Japanese is to say would be
“I/We can’t stop him.”
→彼を止められない or 彼を止めることはできない (Nobody can stop him.”誰も彼を止められない・誰も彼を止めることはできない)
If you want to use a passive form, it is a less direct but you say
彼は止めらることはない
Good evening Maggie. I discovered the following phrase 三角形で、先がとても鋭利な形状だ。and I had some doubts.
1) Does this sentence make sense grammatically?
2) I translated this sentence as: It has a triangular shape and the ends are quite sharp. Is this translation correct?
This is probably a silly question, but why is 「に」 used to mark the location of of an object with 居る and 在る rather than say 「で」? I’ve read that for some other similarly confusing verbs (such as 住む and 泊まる) that the location should be considered a destination (which doesn’t really make sense to me even in those cases) but I haven’t seen any clarification on these existential verbs.
こんにちは、クリス
Good question.
As you know
You use 「で」 to indicate the location where some action occurs.
You use 「に」 to indicate the location where something/someone exists (with verbs like 「いる」/「ある」) and also location of state.
「住む」 and 「泊まる」 are not action verbs. They describe a state (living/staying). Therefore, you use the particle 「に」 with these verbs.
I was having trouble understanding what 言う辺り means in this sentence from a popular light novel- なんでもないことのように言うあたりが、とても思いつきの噓に思えずロレンスはか固唾を飲んでしまったが、ハッとしてホロの口元に目をやった
Hi Maggie Sensei, I’ve been studying Japanese for 3 years now. My current book at school is TRY N2 (although I don’t feel at all I am N2, not even N3).
I have a question regarding the structure of Japanese grammar. Basically TRY and also other books I have seen don’t really teach you grammar as in western languages. Rather, it is full of this forms (e.g. niyotte, nitotte, nitaishite, monda, bakarida, etc.) that sound very much like idiomatic expressions to me.
So far everything looks very random, which makes it also more difficult to learn and memorize.
Are those “expressions” qualified collectively somehow? And is there any actual classification/categorization or any booklet summarizing them in a structured way (e.g. by topic, use, scope) to make it easier to memorize?
Hi Kuki
First of all, I apologize. I have to admit, my site is pretty random 😆, but I believe there are many excellent Japanese learning sites that provide good classification and categorization in a structured way.
I think many of them are categorized by JLPT level. So, JLPT websites or textbooks might offer better categorization.
Learning Japanese grammar could be quite different from learning Western languages. In Western languages, grammar is often taught separately from vocabulary and expressions, focusing on things like tense and conjugation, conditional forms at different levels. But with Japanese, especially in JLPT study materials, the focus is not just on grammar but also on using expressions effectively.
I understand it could be confusing, but I believe that if you already know the basic grammar, all you need to do is to build complicated sentences and increase your range of expressions, which would help.
Hi thank you for your kind reply. Just to be clear, I wasn’t referring to your site but to the textbooks, I find them pretty random, which is surprising for a textbook imho!
Good evening Maggie. I was looking at the definition of 風格 and came across the following definition: 味わい。趣。
Can you tell me what it means? I’m trying to find out but I’m not having any success.
風格
If you are talking about a person,
あの人は風格がある
He/She has a presence. (to have dignified presence)
You can also describe classy buildings, houses, area, streets with 風格
味わいがある/趣がある
You don’t usually use these words to describe a person.
味わいがある = the place has got a style
趣がある = quaint
Hi Tiana
I see your confusion.
When you simply describe someone’s action to take or bring something, you use
持っていく to take something with you
and
持ってくる to bring something with you
However, the English translation can change depending on the speaker’s point of view.
For example, you are invited to a party and telling the host that you are going to get some wine and take it to the party.
You say
ワインを持って行きますね
It actually means “I will take some with with me (and go to your party.)”
But the most common English translation will be
“I will bring some wine (with me). ”
It is based on the listener’s (the host’s) point of view.
It is similar to “come” and “go”
If someone calls you, you say
I am coming.
to come is 来ます but the most natural Japanese translation will be 行きます
Hello there Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been using your lessons for awhile now and had a question about this sentence. Or rather, I suppose I wanted to make sure I am reading it correctly.
[ケンシくんが好きっていうもののことは･･････]
A character is ruminating on another character and I was a bit confused seeing もののこと back to back here, but after reading your lesson もの is making the previous phrase a noun and then のこと is now modifying that noun, right?
So it becomes “About what I like about Kenshi-kun” or since the sentence trails off “What I like about Kenshi-kun is…”
Please correct me if I’m mistaken, and thank you for all the lessons!
Hello かえで
It is a little hard to interpret the sentence without knowing the context but the literal translation is
“About the thing(s) Kenshi-kun likes….”
This interpretation only works if this speaker is talking about something that Kenshi likes.
Hi, Maggie sensei, hope everything is going well. In an essay, I’ve accross this sentence, 夢を求めて狂っても。Could you please explain me why も has been used in the
Hi Mojo 元気？
夢を求めて狂っても
〜ても means “even if/even though/although”
You don’t usually leave the sentence with ても unless there is a sentence before that sentence or omitted the following part on purpose when it is obvious.
For example 夢を求めて狂っても（それでも夢を求める）
Even if I go mad seeking for the dream, I still go for it.
thus you can show your strong will emphasizing what comes before ても
入れる = いれる = transitive verb
So if the speaker had someone (Ex. their child) go to the school
入れてよかった = いれてよかった
I’m glad I enrolled my child in that school
There are many differences but here’s the confusing difference.
だけ is just/ only
ばかり = on going action/ emphasizing the quantity or frequency of the activity.
Ex.マギーは肉だけ食べる。
= Maggie eats nothing but meat
Ex.マギーは肉ばかり食べる。
= Maggie mainly eats meat. It suggests a focus on meat but doesn’t necessarily mean she eats nothing else.
Ex. このサイトの先生は犬だけだ。
The teachers on this site are only dogs.
Ex. このサイトの先生は犬ばかりだ。
The teachers on this site are mainly dogs.
It implies that while dogs are the majority or main focus, there might be other animals (such as cats, mice, etc.) also serving as teachers on the site.
Maggie Sensei, あけましておめでとうございます。(.. if it is not too late to say this).
Would you be interested in reading about some of my most recent language learning experiences in Japan? I think you will find it interesting. I don’t think it would be appropriate to post it here. I could send to your email address (which I already have), if that is OK. Then you can read at your leisure, whenever you have some time.
just found out this website, i think is really wholesome that youve been doing this for so long , you can tell when someone puts love in what they do. thanks for your work, ill check some of your lessons.
Good evening Maggie. I came across the following phrase: 幽閉 – ある場所に閉じこめて外に出さないこと。and I had some doubts.
1) In this sentence, is 外に read as ほかに or そとに?
2) When do I use 外に (ほかに) instead of 外に (そとに)? Can you give me an example?
3) I searched the internet and discovered on a website the following word 外に出さない. Is this an expression?
The meaning of 幽閉/閉じ込めること is confinement/lock ~ in
外に出さない = そとにださない = Not let that person outside
It is not a set expression but 外 means outside so you can figure out the meaning.
ほか: When you use this word as “others/another”, you use the kanji 他
You read 外, ほか in expressions like
Thanks for the lesson. I have some questions.
What is the difference between するとしても したとしても ?
For example,
年内に新しい機種が出るとしても今の機種とそんなに違いはないだろう。
Does this sentence mean “a new model hasn’t/will or come(s) out yet”
年内に新しい機種が出たとしても今の機種とそんなに違いはないだろう。
and this sentence mean “a new model already has come out” ? if that is so, what is the difference when it comes to hypothetical situations (としても）? Is it interchangeable ?
Good question. I should have explained the nuance difference in the lessons.
You can sometime use the past tense and the present tense with としても
The mean the same but the nuance difference is
when you focus on the event itself, releasing a new model (the anticipation of a future event that hasn’t happened yet) you use 出る
when you focus on the state/situation (right) after they released a new model, you use 出た
Good afternoon Maggie. I have some questions that I would like you to answer.
1) In the sentence この問題が解けなかったら、罰ゲームが待っていますよ！, the verb 解けなかったら is derived from 解ける or解く? I’m having trouble figuring this out.
2) In the sentence もうお利口さんにしないとお仕置きしますよ。, what is the function of しない? I researched and I think it has the function of: to serve as; to act as; to work as; , but I’m not sure and would like confirmation.
The translation could be the same in English but the difference is
A: It simply states that you are going to be home late tonight.
B: It indicates the process of becoming late. For example, if you have a lot of tasks to do, you might end up being late as a result of those circumstances.
どういたしまして
Yes it may sound subtle.
It might be just easy to think
→ the basic idea of なる expresses the change and the result. A →B
For example you usually get to home around six. But you have many things to do and it will be late.
your regular time to go home (around six) A →do this and that →It will be late. B
Happy New Year Maggie Sensei! Thanks for all you do for us!
I hope this is the year we all finally achieve our New Year’s resolutions! (Mine is learning Japanese…and then becoming a host for a kids TV show that teaches English! Dream big! XD)
1) The following sentences are correct: 私は、ひどく残酷な決断を迫られました。 and あなたはすべてを見つけるでしょう：家畜、野生または固有種。
2) What is the function of 何 in the following sentence 脳の病気は何の前触れもなく起こることが多い。?
Hi Leandro
1) The first sentence is OK.
I am not sure what you are trying to see with あなたはすべてを見つけるでしょう：家畜、野生または固有種。
2) That 何の = noun means “any”
So the literal meaning is “without any warning/sign”
Good evening Maggie. I would like to clear up some doubts about the following sentences.
1) In the sentence 経験不足が相まって、就職は非常に困難だ。, 相まって was translated as due or because, but shouldn’t its meaning be coupled with or together? Why was it translated as due?
2) In the sentence 交渉が成立するという前提で話を進めます。, what is the function of the particle で in this sentence?
3) In the sentence ランサー源頼光は道徳心を以て、夏休みの風紀の乱れを監視する。, what is the function and meaning of を以て in this sentence?
4) Is the following sentence: それってすごく矛盾した状況じゃない？ correct? And why put した after 矛盾? And it shouldn’t be それら because the translation was: They’re really contradicting circumstances, aren’t they? ?
Hi Pedro
1) 相まって means “two or more elements interact, and as a result, it leads to some negative consequences.
So because of one reason which is not written in your sentence and 経験不足, it is difficult to get a job.
2) This で indicates the condition by which something is done
Ex. ~という条件で
3) 以て(or 以って⇨I think 以って is more common) means “with”
It indicates the method. Ex.誠意を以って対処します。
4) Yes. If you rephrase it in a little more formal way, ⇨それはとても矛盾している状況ではないですか？
I think the translation is “Isn’t it a very contradictory situation?”
こんばんはマギ一先生、
Does it sound weird to use different tenses in one sentence?
Ex. trying to say: We went to the movies and shopping [and stuff], now we’re going to eat dinner.
That から is a reason, so. (It implies the nuance “Since I have done things I wanted to do” + Now I am going to eat something)
You can replace し with から to emphasize the reason.
Since your original sentence may look like just listing three actions, it will be more clear to use から.
However you can just use し in casual conversation.
Good evening Maggie. I came across the following sentence: 俺が逆らうと、兄貴はよく脇をこしょばしてきました。
I had some doubts. Shouldn’t it be こしょばくして? Or is it okay to use it the way it was written in the sentence?
My other doubt is that I would like to know what the function of きました is in this sentence.
Just wanted to point out a small oversight. (Sorry if it’s already been mentioned, I didn’t have time to read all the comments)
You write,
>>First make a past tense and delete た ( = ta) ・だ ( = da) and switch with ちゃう ( = chau) / ちゃった ( = chatta)<<
Since ちゃう is a contraction of 〜てしまう it would make sense to think of making the conjunctive form and delete the て/で instead of making the past tense.
Thus one can go from 食べてしまう to 食べちゃう and see the logic behind the contraction.
Thank you for all you do Maggie sensei! This has been a huge help for me as I am preparing for a school trip to japan in 2025!
Thank you very much!
Hi Auger
Thank you for your message.
I’m happy to hear this site has been helpful. Good luck preparing for your 2025 school trip.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Your website was brought to my attention from the Learn Japanese reddit and I love your website. I am a beginner and have a question.
On your “About Us” page you introduce yourself, but I noticed the use of へ was stated as “ye” for introducation. This is new to me as I learn grammar and other things about japanese.
If you have an article about the use of particles regarding this I’m sorry, so I was curious why it is “ye”. I’d like to understand better!
ありがとうございます！
Hi Opal
Thank you for your comment. And I am sorry.
I should have typed “e” instead of “ye” to avoid the confusion. I’ll fix it.
へ is pronounced as “e” when it is used to indicate the direction or destination of an action.
Ex. へや = heya = room
Ex. とうきょうへいきます = Toukyou e ikimasu.= I am going to Tokyo.
I guess I used “ye” in About Us and maybe in some of my old lessons to distinguish the hiragana え ( = e) .
I now stick to the romaji “e” for へ. It is much more common than “ye”.
There are two other particles that you pronounce differently.
は and を
は = ha →(particle for topic) You pronounce it wa
を = wo →(particle for object) You pronounce it “o” (I use the romaji “wo”)
Good evening Maggie. I would like to know if the following sentence is correct: 中世時代に、騎士道の訓練の第一段階として、騎士の従者をする若者.
Hi Pedro
Is it some kind of description? Then yes, it is correct.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I have a question :
I have seen this sentence: ごはんを食べたり、お茶を飲んだりしてもよかったです
What does てもよかったです mean here in this context ?
Good Maggie. I found the following sentence: 勇者や救世主だって世界のせいで闇堕ちすることだってあるのです. I would like to know if there should be が in place of the second だって or if the phrase is right.
Hi Mutuio
闇堕ちすることだってあるのです can be rephrased
闇堕ちすることがあるのです or 闇堕ちすることもあるのです
Hello Maggiesensei,
Thank you for the great lesson. I’m currently trying to translate Saori Hayamis Yume no Hate made, but I’m struggling with two lines and was hoping you could help me.
寂しい人ほど 優しさを持ち
優しい人ほど 強さを秘めている
Am I right in the assumption that this is a shortening for the ば～ほど〜 grammar point? So those two lines would translate to
The lonlier a person is, the more kindness they hold
The kinder a person is, the more strength they’re hiding
Good evening maggie. The following sentence makes sense: 魔獣と交わることで根源を模索する魔術師もいたのかどうか
I was in doubt after seeing this sentence because I don’t know if it should be かどうか or か at the end.
Hello Matheus,
I wouldn’t leave this sentence with どうか
いたのかどうか+ わからない/不明である
If you want to show your surprised feelings
いたのか… works.
If you meant “I wonder if there was a magician ~” then, you can say いたのだろうか.
Good evening Maggie. I came across a sentence and didn’t understand part of it. The sentence is as follows: 明治時代の終わりにかけて英語亡国論を唱える人たちがいた.
I didn’t understand the part: 英語亡国論. Can you explain this part to me?
When I put it on Google Translate, it was translated as: theory of the exile of the English language, but I don’t understand how it got to that translation.
Hi Thiago
英語 = English language
亡国 = collapse of a country →国がなくなる / 滅びる こと the country will perish/be ruined
論 = theory
the theory that the English language would lead to the collapse of the country.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
What is the purpose of って in this sentence?
雨上がりの空って綺麗ですよね
Thank you!
You have the question: 日本に来たのはこれで何回目ですか？
Answer 1: これで３回目です。
It is a simple substitution Q: 何回目→A: ３回目, and this is how people talk, even at airport immigration, and in other languages. In other words, drop the topic/subject and substitute the question word with the answer.
Grammatically, would a more complete answer be:
A2: 日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。
How about
A3: 私の日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。
The reason why I ask is that I found this sentence on the internet:
私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3番目です。
Even with the minor change of subject (‘number of visits’ instead of ‘number of times’), would a Japanese person ever say something like this? Especially ‘私にとって’ seems to be an unnecessarily complicated answer to a simple question.
Thanks in advance,
Michael (different ‘Michael’ from the other person below)
私の日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。→Not natural
It will be more natural to omit the subject in conversation but if you include the subject it will be
A: 私が日本に来たのはこれで3回目です。 not 私の〜
The sentence you found on the internet
私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3番目です。should be 3回目.
B: 私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3回目です
A and B are grammatically correct but as you said it is an unnecessarily complicated answer to a simple question.
Also you don’t repeat the same words when it is obvious what you are talking about.
So the most natural way to answer the question will be これで3回目です。
Yes, I will be going to Japan next month, for 6 weeks. This time, I will mainly visit Okayama-ken, Shikoku, and Nara-ken.
My vocabulary is still too small, and I don’t get enough practice speaking. However, I’m getting better at improvising, rather than staying in a safe zone of scripted dialog (questions and answers). Also, for practical purposes, a person really does not need to speak complex, grammatically complete sentences. When I go to a restaurant or hotel or train station or konbini etc., it is obvious why I am there. If you know the key words, that is often enough.
Most people realize that you can’t speak much of the local language, and they almost automatically simplify. And, if I go somewhere, such as restaurant, especially when it isn’t very busy the staff are are quick to give some guidance with procedures (how to use tablet to place order), and so on.
So, sometimes it is stressful and embarrassing, with all the mistakes I make, but it is still an adventure.
Great!
You have a great attitude. I can already tell that you’re going to have an amazing time in Japan. Six weeks in Okayama, Shikoku, and Nara will be fantastic. And if you ever encounter any problems, just drop me a line.
I hope your next adventure will be fulfilling.
Good afternoon Maggie. I looked up the definition of 後半 and got 前後二つに分けた、あとのほうの半分。
I didn’t understand the 前後二つに分けた part. Can you explain each part to me?
Hi Mario
If it is talking about the story (books, movies, etc.) 前後二つに分けた divided into two parts, the first part and the second(later) part
Thank you for this helpful article!
There is a very small typo in the romanization of one of the examples. The kana is fine!
→* 楽しみ = たのしみ = tanoshimi = pleasure
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
I had a question regarding the “determine” use of という in these sentences:
A.)冬に北海道に行ってみればどんなに寒いかということがわかるだろう。
If you go to Hokkaido in the winter, you will see how cold it is there.
B.)S子供に会えないということがどれだけ辛いかあなたにはわかりません。
You have no idea how hard it is not to be able to see your own child.
C.)できないとわかっていてもまずやってみるということが大切です。
Even if you know you can’t do it is important to at least try once.
a.) What does “determine” mean here?
b.) Could の be used in place of こと here? I know that often の can replace nouns, but I also know that というのは and ということは are different grammars. When can you use の in place of こと?
Because I heard these two kinds of sentences are equivalent:
彼がパーティーに来なかったということは知っている
彼がパーティーに来なかったというのは知っている
“I know that he didn’t come to the party”
Are there other examples where you can do this replacement?
As in, perhaps these two are these equivalent?:
まだ分からないということが嫌だ
まだ分からないというのが嫌だ
“I hate the fact that I don’t know yet”
Again, thank you so much, this is tricky grammar for me and helped a lot =)
Good night Maggie. Can you tell me if the following sentence sounds natural in Japanese: 聖女様が中傷や殲滅なんてする訳ない+Extras?
Hi Mutuio
I guess for a dramatic games or anime, yes. (or 聖女様が中傷したりや殲滅なんてする訳ない)
中傷 means “slander” (to damage someone’s reputation).
殲滅 annihilation (in other word 皆殺し）
Is that what you wanted to say?
Hello Maggie,
どうよ?
I’m trying to understand what she says here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g5jNuGxyz4
あんたみたいに用意周到な男が失敗するなんて**おにょウケる**んですけど
せっかく言い訳あるなら聞いてあげようってのに
“It’s so funny to me that a man as well-prepared as you would fail.
If you have an excuse, I’d listen to it.”
The word in **___** is not understandable at all to me. Is おにょける a slang used by young people? I know ウケるんです means “it’s funny” but おにょウケるんです ?
Thank you Sensei!
Hi Gaspatcher
Is it from ポケモン?
I think the character meant to say “鬼ウケル” but it came out おにょウケる” in a cute way.
鬼(original meaning is “demon”) is a slang word it means “very/extremely” like メチャ.
Ok I think that’s the case. I can’t follow kids slang, it’s too complicated haha!
☺️
Yes its from ポケモン. Sorry, I didn’t see your question.
OK 👍
It does sound kind of cute おにょウケる 😆
Hi, Maggie-Sensei!
When まで means “until ~ does something,” does the verb before まで always have to be in present tense regardless of whether the overall sentence is past tense?
For example, given
“He wandered the hills and plains until he reached Shagri-La.”
a. シャングリ・ラにたどり着くまで、野山をさまよった。
b. シャングリ・ラにたどり着いたまで、野山をさまよった。
which option is correct?
Good night Maggie. I found the following sentence: 特定の人種や民族を支持するという話ではありません。
I would like to understand the function of という話. I looked it up on a few sites and I still don’t understand.
Hi Luigi
The literal meaning of 〜という話 is “the story of ~”, quoting what comes before (民族を支持する）
But you would just translate it “about”
It is not (a story) about supporting specific races or ethnicities.
Thanks
Hello Maggie-sensei,
How are you? Not much a question this time, but rather to be sure of something:
「頑張ってはいるんだが」
Is the particle は used to emphasize 頑張って in 頑張っている? (1)
Or is it an expression 頑張ってはいる like 頑張って入る? (2)
I think it’s more (1) but I wanted to be sure. Does that mean we can add は whenever we want if we want to emphasize a particular word?
Here is the sentence in its context:
[A] 分かってくれるよね？
[B] ええっと……
[B] それが……完璧に理解するのは難しいんだ……
[B] 頑張ってはいるんだが
I think your comment is cut in half haha.
But yeah, I had this intuition it was a は for emphasizing!
Vて+は+いる: I’ve never seen this structure before (I think). So you can put a は between the てverb and いる, good to know!
ごめんなさい。You are right. My previous comment was cut in half.
Yes, Vて+は+いる is a very common expression especially when you make an excuse like my example sentence that I added in my previous message. 😆
Yes, Vては+ いるのですが(formal) /いるのですけれども(polite) / いるのですが/いるけれども(casual) /いるんだけれども (casual)
Or sometimes you finish the sentence Vてはいます. In this case you can tell there is some kind of problem.
Ex. A: 日本語の勉強していないの？
B: やってはいます。
In this case, the speaker
FYI The similar expression is
VことはVっています/いる （が・けれども/のですが..）
頑張ることは頑張っているのですが = I do try hard but ~
Bonjour Blue
Thank you for spotting the mistake.
Originally I wrote a sentence, 明日、私は<荷物が届くので>出かけられません。 but I changed my mind and made it easier deleting 荷物が届くので part. Apparently I forgot to erase とどくので.
Thanks for the answer Maggie, but I thought the “what” was the function of なんたる, because when I looked it up, I found that なんたる means What (something) is like.
If I understood your lesson correctly, the function of か in this sentence would be to make the sentence have an interrogative tone, like: What is a king is like?
OK, I will try answering you in English.
Yes, なんたる means “what” ( I thought that what I meant by “que” in my previous message. 😅) and it has mainly two ways of using.
１） What ~! (interjection/exclamatory words) : Expressing one’s emotion
The same as なんて but it is more formal
なんてことだ = It’s unbelievable /Oh My God!! (Expressing one’s surprise)
→なんたることか！
2)The one you asked me is “what” as a relative pronoun
Nounはなんたるか = What ~ is / What ~ means
王とはなんであるか（ということ）を指導する
To teach what the king is (or what the king is supposed to be)
礼儀とはなんたるかを教えてあげなくてはいけない。
= We have to teach them what the manner is.
Hello Maggie-sensei ^^
I’d like to ask, how would you rate the politeness between (for example) やめないか vs. やめて? Or are they used in different contexts? Thank you!
やめないか has two meanings.
1) Stop it! (Command form. Telling someone to stop in a strong way expressing one’s angry feelings.): Male speech/pretty rough
Compare to やめて, it sounds much stronger.
2) Why don’t we stop? : Male speech/rough
I believe it roughly translates to: ‘What should I buy so I can read this?’
I know ‘えば’ can mean ‘if’ or ‘when,’ , but it doesn’t seem to fit those translations. I think it may be used to express the idea of ‘should.’ Perhaps it’s a shortened form of ‘買えばいい’, but I’m not sure.
Thank you in advance.
Hello luno. I’m good. Lunoも元気？
何を買えば is a condition for the following sentence 読める to be able to read
What should I buy to (in order to) read this?
Hello Maggie (again),
I’m trying to understand this sentence but it’s all mixed up in my head (I mean I understand the meaning but I couldn’t rewrite this because I don’t understand the grammar)
「毎日お前と会えることが十分に価値のあることだ」
毎日お前と会えることが : Seeing you everyday…
Until here it’s okay… and after that it’s the circus, all the words and particles are mixed up!
十分に価値のある : I thought the expression was 価値は十分にある
〜のある : what is 〜のある? Is it the same as 〜がある? 価値 is a noun here, so の can’t be a nominalizer
あること : why is it あること and not ことある? or ことがある?
Maybe it’s just some expressions or vocabulary I lack. Thank you again Sensei!
My question is about the よう (hence the lesson) in this sentence:
「文芸部に入部するようお前が説得してくれて本当に良かったと思ってるんだ」
“I’m really happy that you convinced me to join the club.”
Your lesson mentions the use of よう〜 (ような or ように) but not よう alone. I thought maybe it was some kind of contraction in casual speech but even the notion of similarity (as, like) of よう does not appear here is not obvious to me. “You convinced me like to join the club” makes no sense. So what is the purpose of よう here?
Hi Gaspatcher
This よう belongs to the usage
→the other usages of よう ( = you) besides the meaning of “as/like”
(From my lesson)
1) ように ( = youni) = to do something ~ in order to do ~ / so that ~ / in such a way ~
(to intend to make things work as you hope)
★verb (→the result you hope, your goal/non-volitional verb/ verb potential form ) ように ( = youni) + verb (what to do/what you did/ to hope, to wish)
⬇️
Your sentence 文芸部に入部するよう means “to join the literary club” with the purpose or intention of doing so. It describes the result or goal that “you” (the listener or someone mentioned in the conversation) hoped or intended to achieve thinking of the speaker.
And, Yes, in casual conversation, you can omit に and just say よう in this usage.
Do you know anyway to view your tweets without [log in to twitter?]
When I search google I can only see your old tweets
いつも ども ありがとう。
Hi soleyman
I checked it myself with other browser. You are right. Unless you don’t log in, you can’t see other people’s tweets.
(FYI Patreon ありがとうx 10 tier members can get Monthly Tweets (PDF file with all my tweets lessons with an audio file every month.)
Hello Maggie,
Sorry for spamming, I’m on a rampage of questions haha!
You said in your lesson “to give a reason” is のせいで but here it’s なせいで
でもわたしが自分勝手なせいで……
どれほど酷い人間なのかを見せてしまった
I noticed several times that な is replacing の. Is it the same case here? When do I know when to use な or の after a noun?
Good question. I have been thinking about making more detailed lesson on せいで and おかげで.
I mainly introduced the usage of Noun + の + せいで in this lesson.
But you can use せいで with verbs and adjectives as well.
verb (present/past tense, etc.) + せいで
i-adjective + せいで （→past tense i-adjective 〜かった＋せいで）
na-adjective + せいで (→past tense na-adjective + だったせいで）
noun + の + せいで (→past tense noun + だったせいで）
自分勝手/勝手 is actually na-adjective 自分勝手な（人・人間）
→自分勝手なせいで
How are you doing? I don’t know how is your summer in Japan but here in Europe, it’s a burning hell! I would like to go to Sweden for some days to get some fresh air! It’s not much, but I noticed lately I’m reading faster (I can “cut” the words faster in-live instead of reading the whole line then process to cut each word to have the sentence makes sense), so I wanted to share that with you (even though this is a little improvement)
Now question time to my sensei. In the sentence 「全部俺に教えてくれれば！」, I understand he says “If only you told me everything” but in the official translation he says “All you had to do was tell me!”
I understand sometimes the translation adapts to the language, but I would like to know the literal translation of the Japanese version.
To give you some context,
お前の毎日が少しでも良くなるように、どんな小さな努力でもしたのに！
そのための友達だろ！
全部俺に教えてくれれば！
Thank you Maggie!
Hi Gaspatcher
First of all, I am happy to hear that you can read faster now. It is an important skill to understand the context without reading every single word.
It has been very hot in Japan, too.Going to Sweden sounds like a great idea.
The translation is correct.
If only you told me everything/All you had to do was tell me!
Or you can say “If you had told me everything.”
I think you know but the speaker added the sentence last but 全部俺に教えてくれれば is a condition
The right order is ~れば〜のに
So let me rephrase it for you to see the structure better.
全部俺に教えてくれればお前の毎日が少しでも良くなるように、どんな小さな努力でもしたのに！
If you had told me everything, I would have made even a small effort to make your everyday life a little better!
Thank you so much! Makes more sense now! I didn’t understand why there was a condition and he stops like that… With the restructuration, it’s much more understandable. Is this order natural when speaking? Or is it because he speaks out words without structuring them before, but the listener can still understand (not me)
My original question actually was for the 全部. Was it the subject All (you had to do) or the object (tell everything). It seems both are acceptable, so again, we can understand this sentence in many ways, daro?
If only you told me everything! (object) 全部(を)?
All you had to do was tell me! (subject) 全部(は)?
Maybe I’m too focused on the details, but that kind of stuff bothers me hahaha!
1) Is this order natural when speaking?
Using the inversion method allows for changing the order of sentences, adding important information at the end to leave a stronger impression. You usually use this method in writing （especially lyrics)
In spoken language, people use the inversion method not just to create an impact but also when they just add something important.
2) 全部 is an object. 全部 ( = 全てのことを)教えてくれれば
Thank youuuu!
You’re welcome! ☺️
Hello Maggie,
I couldn’t find a lesson about that but what does the 分 mean after a verb?
なんで他の人が頑張った分をわたしが無駄遣いしてしまうの？
Is it to show some extent or something like that?
This 分 indicate the “portion” or “share” of effort that other people have put in.
Hi again, Gaspatcher
This 分 indicate the “portion” or “share” of effort that other people have put in. z
The literal translation is “Why do I end up wasting the portion of effort that other people have put in?” which means, “Why do I end up wasting other people’s efforts?”
Thank you Maggie! You’re always so kind!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello Maggie sensei. Your lessons are amazing, you put so much work into them!
As a teacher of English, I totally agree that textbooks are full of boring grammar rules. Making a lesson interesting is what all schools around the world should do. I wonder when they will realise and change methods? I’m so glad your site exists! It helped me a lot in the past and it’s helping me now too. THANK YOU for everything!! ^__^
Hi madridimi
Thank you so much for your comment. Your kind words made my day. I am sure you are an amazing English teacher. Rest assured, I will do my best to keep making more Japanese lessons that will help you in your journey to learn Japanese.
Love,
Maggie
Hello Maggie,
I have a really hard time to understand the structure of this sentence:
「完璧に無価値なわたしがやるようなことなんて何もないもん」
I understand that:
– 完璧に is an adverb with に modifying a な-adjective: perfectly
– 無価値な is a noun becoming an adjective with the な-particle: worthlessness -> worthless
– やるようなことなんて何もない: ような modifies ことなんて何もない with なんて emphasizing the negative sentence
– もん gives a childish way of expressing her feelings
So I see many different translations, which is the correct one:
“There’s absolutely nothing to do, for someone as perfectly worthless as me.”
“There’s absolutely nothing, someone as perfectly worthless as me, could do.”
“There’s absolutely no way there’s anything someone as perfectly worthless as I am could do, right?”
If you need context, she says before
「なんで毎朝学校に遅刻してるか分かる？」- Do you know why I’m (always) late to school every morning?
「いつも、ベッドから起き上がる理由を見つけられないから」- Because, every time, I can’t find a reason to get out of bed.
「完璧に無価値なわたしがやるようなことなんて何もないもん」- ???
I think the first one is the closest translation for the sentence.
If you interpret やること as something you could do then the second translation works too.
The nuance difference is
やることがない can be translated “There is nothing to do” , “There is nothing I could do.” , “There is nothing I want to do” ,etc.
Since the subject has a description, 完璧に無価値な, so judging from the context, I think “There is nothing I could do.” may sound more natural.
Good afternoon Maggie. I would like to know the meaning of やろ in the following sentence: これ絶対今年のfesでやる気やろと思ってたのに……ｗ
Is this an expression attached to やる気 or does it have a standalone meaning?
Hi Mario,
やろ is a very casual speech and it is originally from Kansai dialect.
It means だろう
やる気やろと思ってた ←やる気(なん)だろうと思っていたのに
おはようMaggie Sensei, お久しぶりですよ!
I’m so happy to see your lessons are still on the first page when I have a question related to Japanese!
My question is about the particle は and を. In a visual novel, a character is asking:
今日モニカの手伝いはしないのかよ？
I saw that to say “to help ~” it’s more 手伝いをする and not 手伝いはする. What is the difference between both? Is it because we just want to say 手伝いする with は emphasizing 手伝い?
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
手伝いをする 手伝い (help) + を (=object marker) + する ( = to do ) = to help
You can also just say 手伝う
手伝いはする As you say you use は has a couple of functions, topic, showing the contrast, emphasizing what comes before.
It depends on the context but from just that sentence, it could be just bringing up a topic.
(I think you wrote the same message twice. I erased one of them.)
It depends on the context but from just that sentence, it could be just bringing up a topic. > OK makes sense, because the speaker wants to confirm what she’s doing today. “Aren’t you going to help Monika today?”, maybe that’s why は is used here, to introduce the new topic. What was said before was:
でも、お前はどうなんだよ
今日モニカの手伝いはしないのかよ？
(I think you wrote the same message twice. I erased one of them.) > Yeah I wanted to delete it myself, but I couldn’t, thank you!
I’m not sure if this is the same use of でいい, but I have a big problem with sentences like this one:
ここ万博会場でいいんですよね？
Context: a man looking for the world fair venue finds himself in an odd place, so he’s trying to make sure. I think this should mean “Are you sure this is the world fair venue?” or “This is the world fair venue, right?”, but I can’t understand why.
I’m guessing there’s a は omitted here: “ここは万博会場…”, so according to this lesson, shouldn’t it mean “It’s fine for this place to be the world fair venue, isn’t it?” ?
Couldn’t it just be “ここは万博会場ですよね？”
I understand how でいい works, when it follows a simple noun (like in this lesson’s examples) or it’s a part of a verb (～ていい/～でいい), but I guess here it follows an “A is B” sentence and I can’t wrap my head around it.
Ah OK. The usage of でいい in this lesson is mainly to express one’s preference.
でいい in your example sentence ここ万博会場でいいんですよね？ is used when you confirm something checking something is OK/right/correct.
You can rephrase it ここは、万博会場ということでいいですか？ ( = 合っていますか？ )
The literal translation “Is it right that this place is Expo site? ” →Is this Expo site, right? Am I correct?”
It’s very hard to find something about this, because if you try to look up “でいい”, all you get are preferences and asking for permission, so your reply was a huge help.
Good question. You change the way you read 中 depending on the word.
今年中 = ことしじゅう = kotoshijuu
明日中 = あしたじゅう = ashitajuu /あすじゅう = asujuu
***
一日中 = いちにちじゅう = ichinenjuu
一年中 = いちねんじゅう = ichinennuu
but you read ちゅう = chuu in the following words.
今月中 = こんげつちゅう = kongetsuchuu
今週中 = こんしゅうちゅう = konshuuchuu
***
午前中 =ごぜんちゅう = gozenchuu
I explained the usage of としても in my として lesson. Link is here.
However, I haven’t made the lesson on the usage of としても・としたって of hypothetical (in the meaning of “even if”) yet. Maybe I should add it to a request lesson.
Good afternoon Maggie. I would like you to translate the following sentence: 間隔が狭いところは人が集まるのを避けるべきです。
I translate as: You should avoid gathering people when the gap is narrow. But I’m not sure if it’s right.
Hi Mario
I wonder what kind of place they are talking about with 間隔が狭い in the context but you should change the subject. Not “you” but “people”. Your translation means “人を集める”
People should avoid gathering in a narrow (spaced) area.
a few days ago I left a comment in the discussion dedicated to hazu (maybe my comment got lost because I didn’t get the answer, so I’ll rewrite it here if I don’t disturb)
Is the following sentence correct? Xのものだったはずの帽子…
why instead of はずだった is written だったはず ? I’m confused
—–
but there is some problem with the blog? I can’t send comments normally…the error message often comes out
Hi floccio
I’m so sorry that I haven’t answered your question. I remembered that I saw your message but it slipped my mind while answering to other person’s question.
I wonder why you get the error message often. 🤔
(If you leave a comment for the first time, I have to approve it before it appears on the blog. So until I approve your comment, you won’t see it. Even if it’s your second time commenting, but you use a different email address, I still need to approve it before it becomes visible.)
Anyway, let me answer your question here.
X のものだったはずの帽子 = the hat which was supposed to belong to X
I guess you can use はずだった if you finish the sentence with it.
それはXの帽子のはずだった。
It was supposed to be X’s hat.
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and I don’t understand a part of it.
The sentence is as follows: どんな理由からにしろ何も言わずに仕事を辞めるのは無責任すぎる。
I don’t understand the following part: どんな理由からにしろ. Can you explain each part of that part?
Hi Patrick
Sure. First ~にしろ means にしても →(more conversational) でも (even though/even if/regardless )
どんな理由からにしろ →どんな理由でも for whatever reason
Thanks for the reply Maggie. But what about the から? Does it have a function or do you think it was a mistake and that I should remove it?
~という理由から仕事を辞めた
Since 理由 already has a meaning of “reason”, it may look redundant but から indicates a reason.
You can also say ~という理由で仕事を辞めた
And if you want to rephrase it with にしろ
どんな理由にしろ〜 as well.
Hello maggie sensei,
Thank you as always.
I have a question
How do you say “risky choice in Japanese”
There are some option I have thought as below
1. 際どい選択肢
２．危険な選択肢
３．リスクがある選択肢
４．危うい選択肢
Or do you have any other idea to answer the question?
Hi Nanpa
They are all good but I would change 4 to 危ない
And you say 選択肢 when you have options. You can just say 選択.
Hi Nanpa
They are all good but I would change 4 to 危ない
And you say 選択肢 when you have options. You can just say 選択.
(Or if you are talking about decision 決断)
こんにちは、マギー先生!
単語の質問があります。(時々、辞書が全然役に立たないなぁ^^;）
__ “To have a cow” is an expression that means “to become very angry.”
こんにちは、Sora!
どれでも大丈夫です。
もとの英語が”expression”だから「表現」でもいいと思います。
Ex. 〜という表現があります。
Ex. 〜という表現の意味は〜です。
不自然ではありません。表現の代わりに「言い回し」も使います。
元の英語とは少し違いますが、
もし idiomという言い方にするならば慣用句
to have a cowはことわざではないのでこの場合は使いませんが、proverbならば諺（ことわざ）を使います。
ありがとうございました！
could i ask a question?
Is the following sentence correct? Xのものだったはずの帽子…
why instead of はずだった is written だったはず ?
I’m confused
hello sensei, i found your grammar lesson on internet , and i have 1 question related to this blog post
Hope you can explains to me what does this character mean ? いやー、乗ってきた。
Context: MC is eating lunch at school together with his big sisters, at their class (they went to a same school, but his big sisters are 1 year older than him). Both of them want to feed MC with the side dishes from their bento box.
Note: the 3rd big sister of MC is a class rep with serious + tsundere personality, while the 4th one is mischievous (like to tease other people)
彰吾 (MC)「あ、あーん……むぐっ」
三空 (3rd Big sister)「……ど、どうかしら」
彰吾「はむ……むぐっ……うん。そりゃもう……三空ねぇの卵焼きは絶品だよ」
三空「そ、そう。それなら良かったわ。よく噛んで食べなさい？」
詩桜 (4th Big sister)「んっふふー、みーちゃん嬉しそうな顔しちゃって」
三空「何をニヤニヤしてるのよ。別にいいでしょう？」
詩桜「やっぱみーちゃんも、したかったんじゃん」
三空「だ、だったらどうだって言うの」
女子生徒Ｃ「へぇー、三空ちゃんも弟さんの前だとあんな感じなんだ」
女子生徒Ｄ「ねっ、結構可愛いよね」
三空「～～っ！」
詩桜「くふふっ、赤くなってる。いやー、たーのしいねぇ？」
三空「人をからかって楽しむんじゃありません！ もう！」
詩桜「いやー、乗ってきた。次は、これ行ってみよう、あーん」(>> I don’t understand this part)
I watched a video by Miku Real Japanese, but i am still a bit confused on the difference between “Mitaina” and “ttekanji” (and “mitainakanji”). She Said they are interchangeable, except you can use “ttekanji” to quotes what you just said, similar to “she was like…”in English. Could you maybe simply the differences and nuances of “mitaina”, “ttekanji”, and “Mitainakanji”?
Are you talking about the usage when you finish the sentence with みたいな/ って感じ/みたいな感じ？
They are all very conversational and not much difference.
But let me give you one super conversational example.
For example when you express your opinion, 「それは違うな」That is not true, That is wrong
A) それは違うなって感じ
B) それは違うなみたいな…
C) それは違うなみたいな感じ
They are all ambiguous expressions but the level of ambiguousness is
B>C>A
That means みたいな is a softer way to express one’s opinion because you leave the sentence unfinished.
C is a kind of combination of A and B
But over all, it depends on the context and the speaker’s conversational habit.
I was in the midst of translating Yotsuba! and came across this sentence
“いつものこ事だから心配しなくても…”
The translation seems to be “This always happens, you don’t have to worry.” My question is, does it still directly translate to “even if you don’t worry,” or is the “いい” after implied and is this form common?
It is pretty common to leave the sentence unfinished when you avoid straightforward expression or when it is something obvious.
The whole sentence should be
いつものことだから心配しなくても（いいよ)
So you are right. They omitted the last part, いい (いいよ） and the translation is correct.
I have a question about the verb tetsudau 手伝う.
If I want to say: Thank you very much helping me. I need to make sure to add -kurete.
手 て 伝 つだ ってくれてありがとう ございます.
Or another example:
Thank you for teaching me Japanese.
日本語を教えてくれてありがとう.
But if I was talking to someone about my husband and want to say “My husband helps me a lot with the chores around the house.”
Or
“My husband tries to help me and teach me Japanese when he has time.”
How do I construct these sentences and do I still need to add kureru?
Thank you so much.
Hi Mini House
You can express your appreciation with くれる
So if you meant to say your husband did something “for you”, you use くれる
“My husband helps me a lot with the chores around the house.”
→主人が家事をよく手伝ってくれる
“My husband tries to help me and teach me Japanese when he has time.”
主人が時間がある時は、手伝ってくれるし、日本語を教えてくれる
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and didn’t understand a part of it. The sentence is as follows: 今度の台風では最悪の事態は避けられたにしても、被害は甚大だ。
I didn’t understand the role of the で particle in this sentence.
Hi Satorou
で in that sentence means “in” (in this typhoon)
By attaching は, you show the contrast. We could avoid the worst case in this typhoon (but maybe not in other typhoons (in the past or in the future)
Hello,
I’m trying to say “Even though I’ve studied for so long, I’m still not good at all.” Which one of these, if any, would be correct?
In that case it will be more natural just to use のに
こんなに長い間、勉強したのに全く上手にならない。
（ 長い間”を”→長い間）
For example if you compare two people and show the contrast, you can use 対して
Aさんは長い間勉強したのに対してAさんは全く勉強していなかった。
While A has been studying for a long time, A hasn’t studied at all.
Hello Maggie!
Your lessons are great as always, but I have a question about のに in the meaning of “would have… / could have…”
Does the verb have to be in the casual (た) form of past tense or I can also use the polite form (い)ました+のに?
For example:
日本にいたら、チケットの数枚を買いましたのに。
I think it would be better to point it out in the article, it might help someone else.
Hi Maggie-sensei.
Sorry to bother you but I think there might be a problem with the comments on your website. For example, I left a comment on your latest lesson 2 days ago but I do not see my comment. I know that you replied to it because it said so in the “Recent comments” section but when I look I don’t see your reply either. When I look at Maggie’s Room, the latest post I can see is Mini House on May 19, but I know someone else made a post since then but I can’t see it either.
It had been the case for a few weeks now. I checked on a different computer and on my phone and I can’t see it either. I’m wondering if something happened? I’m not sure if this message will be posted once I press submit or if I will see your reply but I wanted to let you know in case you know what is happening.
Hello Luna
Thank you for informing me about the commenting issues. It appears that there may be a glitch of some sort. The site has experienced some problems in the past few months, so it could be related to that. I apologize for any inconvenience caused. I hope you can read this comment.
***
Update:
I tried something. Your comment should appear now. Let me know if it doesn’t.
I can see all the comments now! You fixed it!
Thank you! :)
やった〜！！(*^^*)
Thank YOU for telling me about the comments, too!!
Hello maggie sensei.
Please can you tell me the difference between nichi and hi as i saw they can both mean “day”?thank you
Hello Yenicall
OK,
にち (= nichi) is a counter for days
From 2 ~ 10 days you use the special counter (2 days = ふつか, 3 days みっか = mikka, etc) but after 11 days, you say number + にち ( = nichi)
11にち ( 11 days)
12にち ( 12 days)
19にち ( 10 days)
ひ (= hi) is used to refer to a day
It is a nice day today
今日はいい日です。
= きょうはいいひです。
= Kyou wa ii hi desu.
(You can’t say にち= nichi)
what is there are living things in an inanimate object? like if there are people on a cover of a magazine or animals in a photo. would you use いる or ある or some other verb?
Thank you for all your wonderful lessons as always.
I am struggling with a few phrases and jut wanted to check if they sound correct and natural in Japanese?
The more Japanese I study, the more confused I get.
日本語勉強すればするほど、わからなくなる。
Is your baby sleeping well?
赤ちゃんよく寝ますか？
Our little baby really does not like wearing his shoes.
あかちゃんわほんとに靴がはいるきらいいです。
I guess all children develop differently.
子どものはそれぞれは立つ違うと思います。
Hello Mini House
１）日本語勉強すればするほど、わからなくなる。
Missing a particle after 日本語
Two possibilities
日本語を (object marker) or if it is a topic 日本語は
２）赤ちゃんよく寝ますか？
For conversation, you can say that. For writing add a particle
→赤ちゃんは、よく寝ますか？
いつもありがとうございます。
Is this sentence correct? I want to say: My name is House. I am very sorry I am late. I am here to pick up my daughter.
こんにちは。ハウスともうします。遅くなりました、申し訳ありません。娘大迎欲しいです。
And also, how do I say: “I would like to pick up my daughter earlier today at 1 PM.”
Thank you very much.
Hi Mini
元気でしたか？
OK, let me help you.
こんにちは。ハウスともうします。遅くなりました、申し訳ありません。娘大迎欲しいです。
→こんにちは、ハウスともうします。遅くなって申し訳ありません。娘を迎（むか）えにきました。
I would like to pick up my daughter earlier today at 1 PM.”
→今日は、早めに１時に娘を迎えに行きたいのですが。
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my questions, Maggie-sensei.
That helped a lot – I very much appreciate it – thank you!
You’re very welcome ❤️
Hello maggie sensei,
Can you please tell me how the “masen ka” form used to make invitations should be translate? I get a little bit confused. For exemple in the following sentence: bangohan o tabemasen ka? I have seen some explanations telling it can be translated as “won’t you eat?” And some instead translating it as ” would you like to eat?”. What is the correct translation?
Also what is the différence between “masen ka” and “mashou ka”? Thanks in advance
Hi Yenicall
I already answered your question. Please check your previous comment.
Hello maggie sensei,
I am confused about the use and translation of “masen ka” when making an invitation. For exemple in the following sentence : bangohan o tabemasen ka? I’ve seen some translating it as won’t you eat? And some translating it as will you (like to) eat? What is the correct translation?
Also can you tell me the difference between mashou, mashou ka and masen ka when used to make invitations? Thank you in advance
Hello Yenicall
OK, many people (especially when they have started to learn Japanese) seem to have a problem understanding the nuance difference between mashou, mashou ka masen ka, so I will make a lesson sometime.
1) masen ka?
Ex. Tabemasen ka? = It could be 1) You are not going to eat? or 2) Would you like to eat? (invitation) (invitation) depending on the context and the intonation.
For example someone wouldn’t eat something, you ask これ、食べませんか？ = Kore tabemasen ka? = You are not going to eat this?
But if you offer some food to someone, you also say これ、食べませんか？ = Kore tabemasen ka? = Would you like to eat this?
2) mashou
It means Let’s ~
So imagine the food is already served in front of you and you tell someone at the table,
So, Ex. さあ、食べましょう！ ＝Saa, tabemashou! = Let’s eat.
3) mashou ka?
Again it changes the meaning depending on the context
(1) Do you want me to do something for you?
Ex. 手伝いましょうか？ = Tetsudaimashou ka? = Do you need my help? / May I help you?
(2) Shall we do ~ ?
Ex. そろそろいきましょうか？ = Sorosoro ikimashou ka? = Shall we go now? (But you may see the translation Let’s go)
If I say “A half hearted man” would it be correct.
Hello ホットサンド
Yes you can translate that.
中途半端男 It refers to a man who lacks dedication to a task, or who does things in a half-hearted or incomplete way.
Thank you for featuring my pets and thank you for the nice lesson! It made me smile. I hope you have a wonderful day!
Good afternoon Maggie. I had some doubts about a phrase I found. The sentence is as follows: 発言の自由は政府支配の新しい触手によって年々むしばまれつつある。
1 – What is the function of つつある?
2 – Is 発言 only for written things? or just for spoken things?
3 – What does むしばむ mean?
4 – This word is not in the sentence, but I would like to know the meaning of: がっつく. I had a little trouble understanding.
Hi Sora
1. Verb+ つつある = (literal expression) be in the process of doing something (expressing the on-going change)
2. 発言 is for spoken thing
3. むしばむ = to erode (passive form) むしばまれる to be eroded （To be affected by something negative)
4. がっつく = eating like a pig. It can be used to express someone greedy
Thanks for the reply Maggie. But I was left with a doubt. What is the difference between Verb + ている and Verb + つつある.
Hi Sora
つつある focusing on the process of doing something (on-going change) towards completion. It is used in a formal speech or writing.
Ex. 戦争が終わりつつある。The war is coming to an end
If you just express what one is doing or the current state, you use ている
Ex. テレビがついている = The TV is on. (current state/condition) →You can’t say テレビがつきつつある
Ex. 手紙を書いている = I am writing a letter. (The action is happening right now and it focusing on the current action) →You can’t say 書きつつある
Thank you so much!
Would you know how to pronounce katakana when there is a vowel used instead of the nobasu?
For example: ケアウホウ
It is a name of a town/beach in hawaii
In this case ホウ is used instead of ホー
In these cases, would one pronounce the vowel? Like ホ・ウ (ho-u)
It depends on the word and it could be very different from the original sound.
As you said, the original “ho” could be closer to ホー but ケアウホウ （Bay = 湾(わん）) is commonly used for the bay.
The thing is you don’t always pronounce the Japanese vowels あいうえお/アイウエオ when they are combined with consonants
Ex. ほうりつ (法律） houritsu = law ➡️Actual pronunciation is hōritsu (ō = stretching “o” sounds)
I see! If I understand, even with ホウ the same rule applies and one would say this like hō (stretched)
So even in katakana, generally whether a nobasu or vowel is used (ホー/ホウ) this just means the consonants are both being stretched. And it would be read as (hō).
And whether it shows up with ー or ウ in the name is more just a written formality.
Thanks just surprised me when I saw the vowel instead of the nobasu.
As I usually see in katakana the nobasu used to imply stretching the vowel (ニューヨーク/フィジー）
Likewise in hiragana the vowel is used instead as you say. (ほうりつ/りょこう）
So when I saw ホウ instead of ホー I wasn’t sure if that had meant to pronounce the vowel! (笑）
Thank you very much for your explanation! If not mistaken I think I got it now and was just overthinking it.
So even in katakana, generally whether a nobasu or vowel is used (ホー/ホウ) this just means the consonants are both being stretched. And it would be read as (hō).
→That’s right.
So you know how to write katakana for the well-known things, places, countries, people’s names such as ニューヨーク、フィジー, ヨークシャ(ー）, ドーナツ,etc. However if you hear uncommon names, it is very natural to get confused whether you stretch the vowel or use the vowels. :)
1) Is the following sentence correct/natural?
What is the difference betw と する and に する
「貨物船」とは、貨物 を 輸送 する 船舶です。
Kamotsusen is a vessel that carries cargo
ライオン は にく を えさ と する。
Lions feed on meat
鯨くじら は プランクトン を えさ と する。
Whales feed on plankton
パンダ は ささ を えさ に する。
Pandas feed on bamboo grass
2) As for Hen is it pronounce as medori or mendori or ..,?
( google translate = mesudori )
雄鶏 おんどり Rooster
雌鶏 めんどり Hen
Thanks
Hi soleyman
1) You can say both えさとする and えさにする
にする is more conversational and とする is more formal.
2) 雌鶏 can be read めどり or めんどり. (Originally めどり but I would say it is more common to say めんどり in conversation.)
Good morning Maggie. I would like her help to understand the following sentence: 泥棒は盗むのが商売 、たとえそれが人の心だとしてもね。
I understand the たとえ~ても structure, but why use とする?
Hi Berserk
たとえ〜ても and たとえ〜としても mean the same. としても emphasizes hypothetical situation more.
Thanks for the lesson!
In these sentences:
日曜日は何もしないで過ごしました
昨日の夜は、一睡もしないでゲームをしていた。
Why is it しないで and not しなくて ? It’s not telling someone not to do something, it’s talking about yourself so I’m confused.
Hi Evon
何も is used in a negative sentence.
何も美味しくない Nothing is delicious.
何 in that sentence is actually an object so you use an object marker を
何を食べますか？ What would you like to eat?
魚を食べます I will have fish.
And
何を〜ても is a sentence pattern and it means “whatever you do ~ = everything one does ~ is ~ ”
何をしても面白い Whatever someone does is funny = Everything someone does is funny
何を読んでもつまらない Whatever I read is boring. = Everything I read is boring.
If you want to say this sentence without a verb, you can use 何でも
何でも美味しい
Hello maggie. I found this sentence: 中止命令に従わない場合は、5万円以下の罰金が科せられます。
The translation read: In case of non-compliance with the suspension order, a fine of up to 50,000 yen will be imposed.
I would like to know why 科せられます is in potential form and not just passive and negative.
Hello Leonardo
科せられます is a passive form.
The basic form is 科す or 科する
The passive form is either 科される or 科せられる
Hi there,
There is an anime is currently airing, its name is “推しの子 (Oshi no Ko)” and I translated it as “kid of my favorite idol” cuz the anime is about an idol named “Hoshino Ai”. But someone says it’s not true as it may be translated to one of those:
– the kid you support
– the kid who is a fan
– or the child of a fan
which is correct?
thank you.
Ah OK, it could be confusing because the literal meaning of the title can be “the kid you support” ( = the idol herself = “My favorite idol” ) but if the story is about the child whose mother is your favorite idol then your translation is right.
kid of my fav/ a child of my fav.
If you are focusing the idol herself you can still say 推しの子 so “My favorite idol” works.
I read the story but it is complicated, huh? The main character reincarnated as a child of his favorite idol.
The following two have different meanings
the kid who is a fan = ファンの子 ( A child who is your fan)
the child of a fan = ファンの子 (A child of your fan)
Hi everyone! Sorry that the site has been down and some of your recent comments were gone. I think I answered all your questions but if you haven’t read them yet, please ask me the questions again. I’ll be happy to answer your questions. Have a great weekend! いい週末を！🐶
Welcome back!
I had a question about the word 感じ, and I saw your answer. I learned something very interesting from your answer. First, this is what you said:
The reason why I asked you to reply in Japanese is that I want to stop learning Japanese by using English. I am trying to connect Japanese language direct to the world and direct to my own thoughts/impressions etc., without English getting in the way.
This is where the 「直接的な言い方を和らげる」 is important. In fact, a scientist was explaining a procedure to some students. I forgot to take that into account. In trying to make sense of what he said, I was putting myself in the position of the listener, and that was my mistake. When I put myself in the position of the scientist, talking to students, then I got closer to what I would be thinking/feeling (感じ?!) in that situation. When I did that, then the purpose of 「こんな感じで」starts to make more sense at a more intuitive level .. without the English translation.
I think that answers your last question?
私の日本語の説明で理解してもらえればうれしいです。
Good afternoon Maggie. I found the following sentence and had difficulty getting a part of it and would like your help if possible.
The sentence is as follows: それは氷のような砂糖菓子。
触れれば冷たさに指先が凍り、
舐めれば甘さに舌が痺れゆく。
まさに至宝と慕うにふさわしい―――
I can’t understand the part: 痺れゆく. Can you explain to me?
Hi Matheus
痺れゆく is a written language and it means 痺れていく going numb
thank you
どういたしまして 😊
Hi Matheus
痺れゆく is a written language and it means 痺れていく going numb
(ていく→ゆく） expresses the change, getting, going, becoming ~
No problem, Luna!
Yes, you can use 距離 in that context. 長距離（長い距離を）走る = to run a long distance
FYI 隔たり is often use to express a gap/difference
二人の意見には大きな隔たりがある
There is a wide gap in the opinions between the those two.
Hi! Maggie sensei, I’m wondering about this sentence…..
会いたかった なあ Does this mean “I’ve been wanting to meet you for long time”? and still looking forward to see you, right? Also what is the meaning of なあ? Someone told me that it’s like to show strong feeling of really wanted to meet. Is it? or actually it’s just suffix of the sentence, no emotional.
Hi Luck
会いたかったなあ I wish I could have seen you/him/her/them.
So you wanted to see someone but you missed the chance/you couldn’t.
By attaching な/なあ you can add the feelings (in this case regret)
Please check my lesson on な/なあ. Link is this https://bit.ly/3TOe1BD
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and would like to know if it is grammatically correct. The sentence is as follows: 私はこの怪物の弱点をついに見つけました。その神経もいつも以上に高ぶっております。
Hello Pedro
The first sentence is correct but the second sentence is not natural.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I have a simple question. If my dog is 7 years old, I can say 犬は七歳です, right? But what if my dog is only 7 months old? Do I say 犬は七月歳です?
こんにちは、Luna
7 months old is just 7ヶ月
You can also add 生後=せいご before 7ヶ月
（生後=せいご）7ヶ月
Is the (noun)し(verb) construction common? I’ve come across the phrase 愛し創り上げる, which contextually I’m assuming means “lovingly create”/”create with love”, but I’m a bit confused about the grammar here.
It is hard to tell you by just the phrase without knowing the context but
愛し（あいし） in that sentence means “愛して” love (something/someone) and create ~
I think you know connecting verbs with te-form but you can also connect the verb with masu-stem
愛します→(masu-stem) delete ます 愛し
So it happened to be “し” but if it is a different verb, for example
食べて寝る = eat and sleep
食べ寝る (the masu-stem of 食べます is 食べ)
Hi Maggie, What is the difference between 角かど and 角かく ?
Got the following example sentences from websites; all of them is かど right??
とおり の 角 に たって いた。
I stood at the corner of the street
角 に おおきな 目印 が あります。
There is a big sign at the corner
角 で ひだり に 曲まがる。
Turn left at the corner
すいぎゅう は おおきな 角 を もって いる。
Buffaloes have big horns
すぐ 角、あかい の みせ です。
It’s the red shop just at the corner
Thank you せんせい
ps google translate it as tsuno
Hi soleyman!
角 = かど = corner
角 = つの = horn
So from your example sentence only
すいぎゅう は おおきな 角 を もって いる。
Buffaloes have big horns
is ”つの = horn”
Do you know if there is a difference between using に and で with the verb 保存する？
I would’ve guessed で、 but when I looked up native example sentences on Weblio, I saw examples using both に and で!
例 ファイルをディスクに保存する。
冷暗所で保存して下さい。
I can understand why に would be used. に often implies a destination or directionality. Basically, 「ディスクに保存する」implies that the disk is the destination of the file, or that the file is being moved to the disk in order to save it.
But で also makes sense, as it marks the location of an action such as in a 冷暗ところ。
Does this mean that both of these particles are interchangeable, and I can use either one?
Can 「冷暗所で保存して下さい」 also be 「冷暗所に保存して下さい」？
If so, is there a difference in nuance? For example, do these two sentences
画像をスマホに保存
画像をスマホで保存
mean the exact same thing?
ありがとうございます！
Sora
Hi Sora
Good. You figure out the function of に.
冷暗所（れいあんしょ）に保存して下さい
冷暗所で保存してください。
You can use them both. The difference is
に implies the object you put in 冷暗所 is somewhere else but you move it/them into the cold and dark place (ex. refrigerator)
And you use で when you indicate the place where you keep/conserve something.
画像をスマホに保存 (the file was somewhere else or even in the same cellphone, from where the pictures are to the file in the cellphone)
画像をスマホで保存 (You save the pictures “with” (tool) your cellphone.)
なるほど！とても分かりやすい説明です！
いつもありがとう、マギー先生！
どういたしまして💖
Hello sensei,
i must admit i forget the basic counting in japanese, can you please check whether it is right or not?
so in here you cannot use another form? you cannot use 個? i hear that 個 can be used to anything.
You can not use 個 with everything.
You use it with small items and if it is something small but is obviously long, you use 本
So 鉛筆一個, 箸一個、車一個 are not natural.
thank you very much sensei
No problem! :)
Hello Sensei,
Thank you as always
Can you please check this sentence?
I see how He is an inspiration to you. Your mindset towards life are really similar with him.
あなたは彼に霊感されることを私が理解しました。あなたと彼の人生に対する考え方がよく酷似していいます。
Hello ビーフレンダン
霊感 is something more spiritual (Ex. being psychic)
How about 彼がどれだけあなたに刺激を与えているのか (or 刺激を与える存在なのか) わかります。
We just say インスピレーション as well.
→（あなたが）どれだけ彼からインスピレーションを受けているかわかります。
The second sentence is fine but I would change よく酷似 (よく & 酷似 are redundant) to よく似ています。
Hello sensei,
i agree with you and want to add some point.
if i change 霊感 with 触発 will it be correct ?
あなたは彼に触発されることを私が理解しました
Yes, it sounds more literal but you can say 触発
But I would say あなたが彼に触発された （or if it is still going on →されている）ことがわかります。
Thank you very much sensei, love
🐶💖💖💖
Sorry Maggie. I forgot to put the phrase. The phrase is this: ガキはガキらしくよ、ニカーッと笑っていこうや。
Good night Maggie teacher
I would like to clear up some doubts regarding the following sentence:
Why is らしく in adverbial form? and why is よ in the middle of the sentence and not at the end? What is the function of the や at the end of the sentence?
This is a rough male speech
1) It is similar to さ・さあ (子供は子供らしくさあ） →rough ガキはガキらしくよ・よう
2) The last や is another rough way to say よ (→This よ is to encourage someone to do something. It is not rough like the one in 1).
笑っていこうよ →(rough) 笑っていこうよ
Good morning Maggie, I found a phrase and would like to understand something.
The sentence is as follows: あれもこれも、色々と興味深いものが目の前に現れる。
I would like to know the role of と (after 色々) in this sentence?
Hello Jack
色々と This と has a function as an adverb and it modifies a verb, 色々と現れる
Hello Maggie-sensei.
Could you tell me what じゃんじゃんやっちゃう means?
I see じゃんじゃん means continuously, but I’m not sure what this expression means.
Hi Miki
じゃんじゃん is onomatopoeia to express doing something heavily, vigorously, keep doing something a lot.
じゃんじゃんやっちゃう = Keep doing something more and more
じゃんじゃん飲んで = Keep drinking a lot!
Hello Sensei,
My previous post got deleted by the maintenance
I need your help to check the sentence
My locker is far away from my English classes. That is the reason why I carry all my books with me. Is it going to rain hard or just a drizzle?
私のロッカーは英語の教室まで遠く離れています。すべての本を持ち歩いているのはその理由があるからです。今日は大雨が降るのかそれとも小雨が降るのでしょうか？
Hi Alex
Sorry. I answered your question but the message was gone.
すべての本を持ち歩いているのはその理由があるからです。
→だからすべての本を持ち歩いています
you are the best, please help me again to check the sentences in the future.
thanks a lot
🐶💖💖💖
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and would like to know if it is right.
The phrase is this: 私たちはこれまで明日のことを皆はなしてきたから、さて、現実に戻って、今日のことを話そう
I had doubts if the kanji 皆 should be removed or if it is fulfilling some function
Hello i will answer on maggie sensei behalf.
it has function as adverb, it can mean
1. everyone 2. All
just translate it one by one
私たちはこれまで明日のことを皆はなしてきたから、
Because we all have talked the matter about tomorrow until now,
さて、現実に戻って、今日のことを話そう
for now, let’s go back to reality and talk about today
in sentence one you can see i translate 皆 as “all” and 私たち as “we”
@ビーフレンダン
Thank you for helping Brock.
Hi Sensei !
Thank you so much for everything you do for us, I’m studying and hope I’ll pass the JLPT this year and your website is so useful, I feel so grateful for everything you put here!
Best regards from France !
Hi Magou
Thank YOU for your kind message.
JLPTがんばってくださいね。私もレッスンがんばって作ります。😊
So… shorter form ため is more formal than ために, right? But can I use both forms in ALL examples above? How big is the difference between formal and less formal version? Will I sound weird if I use only ため in informal situation or conversely?
As I wrote in this lesson you san use either ため or ために in the examples of the usage 2) Expressing a reason/cause
If you are writing to your friends, ため is just fine but in conversation, it might sound slightly unnatural.
渋滞のため、着くのが遅くなりそうです。(formal conversation/ writing (formal and informal) )
渋滞のために、遅くなるよ。(informal)
Japanese has been an interest of mine for some time and while some may suspect it is my interest in Japanese media, like anime and manga, which sparked my interest. Such interests came later to me in life while my interest in the language was pre-existing.
It wasn’t until an old friend of mine suggested an educational video game series called “Learn Japanese to Survive” that I really started picking up the basics of the language and encouraged me to practice outside of the game. Now I feel like I have all of the Hiragana characters memories though my Katakana and Kanji could use some work. Though I am able to recognize some Kanji characters as well.
Besides Japanese, I’ve also enrolled in a beginner’s Spanish course as well so I feel confident that I could potentially read and write in that language at an early early level too. However, when it comes to speaking and hearing, as well as writing or reading for the case of Japanese, I feel slow.
It took me awhile before I feel like I could say I achieved mastery in the English language, my native tongue, and even then I still am prone to forgetfulness of certain grammar rules. Like those matter anymore in English speaking countries. lol The reason I believe for my difficulties in learning English and other languages like Spanish and Japanese is because I was a special needs student. I am a slow learner. So I guess I am writing this message to you to ask… do you know anyone willing to work with me in one-on-one sessions until I could attend a fluent level? I don’t have much money so my budget is limited, but I would forever be appreciative of you if you could point me in the direction of someone who could help teach me.
ありがとう
Hi Aliyah
It is a great idea to work on your speaking and taking a class on line. That way you can improve your Japanese. There are many Japanese on-line schools. Google “On line Japanese lesson”. The price is not that expensive, I believe. I hope it fits your budget.
And if you still can’t find a good teacher, write to me
through an email on the following page. http://142.93.68.150/about-us/
Hi Maggie-sensei! I thought this lesson was a bit difficult! Is it right to say that you would use てある only if you are currently seeing/experiencing the subject? For example, if I say: 壁にポスターが飾ってある,then I am probably looking at the poster on the wall right now. If the poster was in a different house, I would probably say 飾っている , right?
Another question, I sometimes hear ておる／ております Is it something completely different?
Hello ルナ
Maybe the English translation might have confused you for the example sentence.
Even if you are not looking at the poster right now, you can still describe the wall, 飾ってある
Here’s the difference
Ex. 壁にポスターが飾ってある (Describing the current state of the wall. Someone put the poster on the wall in the past and you are looking at the result.)
Ex. 壁にポスターを飾っている (The subject is a person (or a store) Someone is putting the poster on the wall (either right now or routine work, they usually put the poster on the wall.)
ておる is a humble expression of Vている
Ex. 鍵を預かっています。 ( We keep your key.)
→鍵をお預かりしております。
Hi ルナ again
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見ていた > Focuses on me who saw cats at the cafe.
→Right. The speaker was looking at many cats.
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見てあった > Focuses on the cats that I was able to see by going to the cafe.
→This sentence is not correct.
For example if someone who works there placed lots of toys for cats for the customers and the cats ahead of time and you describe the state, you can say
猫カフェには、猫のためにたくさんのおもちゃが置いてあった。
Ok. Would you say that てある is mostly used to describe inanimate objects?
Would this be correct: 猫を撫でてので、服に毛が付けってある
I’m sorry for so many questions D:
In that case you say
猫を撫でたので、服に毛がついた
As I wrote in the lesson, you intentionally do something and leave it
For example if you are looking at the clothes and there is a name tag on it (someone put the name tag on it and leave it for some reason) you say
服に名札がつけてある
So if you looking up the sky and it is cloudy, you say (1) but you won’t probably say (2)
If you see the sky is getting really dark and it looks like it’s gonna rain any minute, you say (2) because 降り出す has a meaning of “It is about to rain”
2.
(3) 「街灯にぶつかりそうになった女性」
(4) 「街灯にぶつかりそうになる女性」
If you are describing what has just happened more vividly, I would say (3) is more natural.
Thank you.
When you want to cheer up someone, you say 元気を出して、so if I wanted to say you make the “genki” come out of me, it’s still wrong to say 元気を出されます ?
出される is a passive form so you can’t use it in this case.
Though 元気にしてくれる/元気をくれる are much more natural, if you want to use the causative form
出される should be 出させる
（私の）元気を出させます/出させてくれます
1. The newspaper has several pages. The front page is called 一面 and ３面 technically means “the third page” but it refers to the social news page.
So you probably got the article from 日経新聞 but it refers to the section called きょうのことば where they explained a trend word of the day on the third page.
2. 勢 means “companies, entities, group” so 海外勢 means “foreign companies” in this context.
先生すごい
優しいだけではなく賢いです。
ありがとうございます
いえいえ、日本の新聞で勉強をしているビーフレンダンが賢いのですよ〜😉
Hello! About this sentence:
彼が私のこと好きかどうかわからなくなってきた
I asked a similar question the other day, but I’m still confused about the use of きた in sentences such as these. Why is it わからなくなってきた and not わからなくなった or わからなくなっていた?
Hi ルナ
Yes you can say わからなくなった/わからなくなっていた
but the nuance changes. The English translation could be the same so let me explain the difference.
１）わからなくなってきた Focusing on the moment when she is speaking.
Describing the change from the certain moment in the past to the present moment. She thought he had liked her but she is getting confused and losing the confidence.
The change is happening now.
2) わからなくなった I don’t know his feelings anymore.
English translation is “present tense” but she’s already done defying her feelings.
3) わからくなっていた is describing the state (not the change) in the past.
So again, you can use all of them but it depends on how you want to express it. (focusing on the change from the past up to now, the change in the past, the state on the present moment, etc.)
FYI
I have a lesson on
ていく てくる So please check the lesson when you have time.
Link: Click here
させた I let my daughter do whatever she wanted. (Talking about the specific time in the past.
させてきた is I have been letting my daughter. (Expressing the duration of time from some time in the past up to the moment when they are talking.)
I have a question sort of related to shopping, but hard to categorise.
I left a clothes shop the other day and as I was exiting, the alarm went off.
I waited politely for someone to come and check, but I didn’t know how to say:
“Your store alarms went off.’
Or
“I am not sure why… but your store alarms went off?”
When you want to tell them the alarm goes off even though you paid
すみません、アラームが鳴ったんですが…
= Sumimasen. Alarm ga nattan desu ga…
= Excuse me. The alarm went off..
You can add
このまま出てもいいですか？
= Kono mama dete mo ii desu ka?
= Can I just leave?
Good night Maggie. I have doubts about two sentences and I would like you to answer these doubts.
The first sentence is: アラビア語を独習したいのですが良い参考書を教えてください。I would like to know the が function in this sentence.
The second sentence is: 台湾はグルメも良し、観光も良し、ショッピングも良しと、魅力たっぷりの観光地だ。I would like to know the function of と in this sentence.
Hi Mutuio
1) が has many different functions but this が is just to connect the sentence. “so”/”and”
You often leave the sentence with が without finishing it.
Vたいのですが + (what should I do/Do you have any advice?/ Can you help me?, etc.)
2) と in that sentence is to give examples and quote them.
I think you know the pattern AというB B which is A
You sometimes omit という/といった
〜ショッピングもよしと（いった(ように）)、魅力たっぷりの〜
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I love your posts very-very much, thank you for your work!
My question is about this example: 彼女はまだ２０歳にはなっていないはずだ
I didn’t know we can use wa twice in one sentence – it’s like we have two topics of the sentence. Could you elaborate on that please? Are there any tips/rules for using wa multiple times in a sentence?
You are right. You tend to avoid using the same particle because repeating the same particle may look/sound confusing.
彼女はまだ２０歳にはなっていないはずだ
You can say
彼女はまだ２０歳になっていないはずだ as well but the nuance changes a little.
彼女は this は is a topic marker
20歳には→ this は is to show the contrast. (showing the contrast of 20 years old and other ages. For example, maybe she is close to 20, like 19 years old but not she hasn’t turned 20 yet.)
So even if there are two は, it won’t be confusing.
I will show you another example.
この会社は、給料はいいが、仕事が多い。
= This company offers good salary but gave us a lot of work.
まんざらでもない is a vague Japanese expression and it means “not so bad/ not totally bad and actually something is good” ./someone seems kind of satisfied or happy with something.
女の子の服もまんざらじゃなさそうだし
I don’t know the situation but
It seems like the girl’s outfits are not so bad.or The person who is wearing girl’s outfits seems to like wearing them.
Ah, thank you much sensei
The reason i got confused is because in some site i found an explanation that say まんざら＝必ずしも。
The scene is the tomboy girl is trying the dress, She is usually using boy clothes and when she tried to try skirt, She said to herself (女の子の服もまんざらじゃなさそうだし)
ありがとうございます。
まんざら is not exactly the same as 必ずしも.
You often use まんざらじゃない/ まんざらでもない in the situation like you expect someone would be unhappy with something but actually they actually kind of like it.
So in your example sentence, you assume the girl would hate that skirt because she was complaining or she usually hates wearing a skirt.
But once she puts it on, she looks rather happy with it. Though she is not saying anything, you can see she is thinking “Hey, this is not that bad. I actually like it.”
right, really appreciate for the help
My pleasure! :)
Maggie-sensei,
Happy New Year! 今年もよろしくお願いします。
I find your blog extremely helpful and one of the most useful out there. Thank you for all your work and effort.
I wondered if you could create a lesson on
こじんめんだん at Japanese kindergartens. It’s something that I am really struggling with.
Any phrases/vocabulary similar to the below would be super appreciated!
*My child has been toilet-trained.
*She goes to the potty by herself at home, but cannot go by herself outside the house.
*She speaks English at home and can only say a few single Japanese words.
*How is she doing at school.
*Ways to talk about one’s child: She is stubborn/independent/sociable/scared of strangers/quiet/very active at home.
*She holds food in her mouth./ I am worried about choking hazards.
and so on.
Thank you so much.
Hi Mini
I’m happy to hear you find this site useful.
OK, let me help you.
*My child has been toilet-trained.
うちの子*は、トイレのしつけができています。/オムツがとれました。
= Uchi no ko wa toire no shitsuke ga dekite imasu./ omutsu ga toremashita.
*She goes to the potty by herself at home, but cannot go by herself outside the house.
家では一人でトイレに行けますが、家の外では一人で行けません。
Ie dewa hitori de toire ni ikemaseuga, ie no soto dewa hitori de ikemasen.
*She speaks English at home and can only say a few single Japanese words.
家では英語を話していますので1) 日本語は一言、二言しか話しません。/ 2) 日本語はほとんど話せません。(2) She barely speaks Japanese.)
= Iedewa eigo wo shnashite imasu node 1) nihongo wa hitokoto futakoto shika hanasemasen / 2) Nihongo ưa Hotondo hanasemasen .
*How is she doing at school?
娘は、幼稚園ではどんな感じですか？/ちゃんとやっていますか？
= Musume wa youchien de wa donna kanji desu ka? / Chanto yatte imasu ka?
*Ways to talk about one’s child: 1) She is stubborn/2) independent/3) sociable/4 ) scared of strangers/ 5) quiet/ 6) very active at home.
*She holds food in her mouth./ I am worried about choking hazards.
and so on.
口の中に食べ物を入れます。/喉につかえないか心配です。（窒息（ちそうく）しないか心配です）
= Kuchi no naka ni tabemono wo iremasu / Nodo ni tsukaenai ka shinpai desu. (Or Chissoku shinai ka shinpai desu)
Hello,
What should I answer to this message?
“フォロバ頂きありがとうございます”
Thanks!
Hi Topaz
So this person followed you first and you follow him/her back, right?
Did you say thank you for following before? If not, you can say
こちらこそフォローありがとうございます。And you can continue これからもよろしくお願いします。
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply.
This is very helpful.
Huge fan of your blog – thank you!
You’re very welcome,Mini.
こじんめんだん、がんばって！
Hello! I have a question about one grammar aspect, because my 先生 told me one thing and my workbook keeps mistaking those two (well, maybe the workbook is wrong)
「思っていたより」と 「期待していたより」の違いはなんですか。
先生 told me that 「思っていたより」is used when the outcome is better than expected, for example このケーキは思っていたよりおいしかった。 (You expected it to taste bad)
And 「期待していたより」is used when the outcome is worse than you expected, for example 試験の点数は期待していたより悪かった。
Is this right? Because when I searched in the internet, the opinions vary a lot and I don’t know anymore :((
Hi Alioth
Very good questions.
Technically
思う = to think
期待する = to expect
And they both can be translated “to think” but 期待する means “to hope” and it is used for something one is looking forward to.
So your teacher is right. The outcome should be good when you use 期待したより ~
You can say このケーキは思っていたよりおいしかった/おいしくなかった。 but it sound unnatural to say このケーキは期待していたよりおいしかった。
If it is a negative sentence, you can say
このケーキは期待していたよりおいしくなかった
I will give you other verbs that are often used in this pattern.
予想する = to fore
想像する= imagine
考える = to think (logically)
Among these verbs, only 期待する is used is used when the outcome is good.
新年明けましておめでとうマギー先生！
No matter how many years pass, I always find myself visiting and revisiting your blog posts😂 Your quality is unrivaled.
I have a vocab question: how do you say the word “interchangeable” in Japanese?
e.g
”Jealous” and “envious” mean the exact same thing. They are interchangeable.
”Wanna” is interchangeable with “want to,” with the former being more casual.
I typically wouldn’t want to bother you with words I can just look up in the dictionary, but I just can’t seem to find it.
On jisho, 「同意語」and 「同義語」show up, but being interchangeable is a bit different from being synonyms. For example, “while” and “during” are synonyms, but they aren’t interchangeable.
e.g
While I was sleeping, an earthquake happened.
During I was sleeping, an earthquake happened. ❌
The word that always comes up on DeepL is 「互換性」
e.g
”Wanna “は “want to “と互換性があります。
However, when I look up example sentences, it’s used with computers and devices and is translated as “compatible.”
Thank you as always!
Hi Sora
I’m happy to hear you have been visiting this site for many years. :)
OK, the most common way to say “A and B are interchangeable” in Japanese is
AはBに言い換えることができます
（You also say 置き換えることができる)
Oh, I see! It’s been driving me crazy, so thank you so much!!
Anytime! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei, Happy New Year and Wish you be Blessed with Good Health and Fortune
This the first question on this year.
1. What is the meaning of 僻む(ひがむ）
2. What is the meaning of 振り回す in the sentence (彼女はいつも友達に振り回されていてイライラする)
3. Are they have a same meaning : 取り繕う・決め込む・偽装
Thank you very much
Happy New Year! 明けましておめでとうございます！ いい年になりますように🙏
1. to have an inferiority complex feeling jealous of someone.
2. 振り回す to involve someone into something for one’s own convenience in a selfish manner.
For example, her friend says, “Let’s go out tomorrow and do something.” And though you were busy you arranged your schedule to go out with her. Then she said she changed her mind and she doesn’t want to go out anymore. So you rearrange your schedule. Then she said you should meet her somewhere instead. In this kind of situation you are 振り回されている.
3. No, they are different.
取り繕う to mend something/keep up with lies
決め込む persist in doing something/make up one’s mind
偽装 disguise
3.
sensei thank to explain in detailed manner. 改めてあけましておめでとうございます。
どういたしまして❤️
みなさん、明けましておめでとうございます！
今年もよろしくお願いします！
Happy New Year, everyone! 🐶
Happy new year sensei
Happy New Year, Emerald❤️
Hello Maggie sensei! I was reading a book and came across this sentence: “ぼうっと、その場に立ちすくんだ” and I can’t figure out what the use of んだ is for here! I hope you can help me understand.
Hi, Maggie!
First of all, thank you very much for the lesson. It was incredibly helpful. ^^
About にしては, apart from what it was explained in the lesson, my textbook says it can also appear in the form それにしては. However, I’m having a hard time trying to find helpful examples taken from real and daily-life Japanese that show me how is それにしては used. The very few ones I could find were kind of stiff sentences that, although they show the idea of the meaning of それにしては at some extent, they were a bit artificial. So, if you could please give me some examples of how それにしては is used in daily life, I’d appreciate a lot.
You state something first. (Or someone states something)
You use それにしては ( = even so, in spite of, although) when you hear/see something is different from your expectation.
今日は、平日だけど、それにしては人が多いね。
The speaker thinks there are fewer people on weekdays
→Though it’s a weekday, there are unexpectedly many people today.
毎日、がんばって節電しているが、それにしては電気代が高い。
The speaker had expected lower electric bill because they have been saving electricity.
I have been trying to save electricity but still electric bill is high.
A: 「👨のうちはお金持ちなんだって」
= I heard 👨’s family is rich.
B: 「それにしては毎日、コンビニで安いパンばかり買っているよ。」
= But he buys cheap bread at a convenience store every day.
B thinks if 👨 is rich, he wouldn’t buy cheap bread every day at a convenience store. (Different from B’s expectation)
A: 「一度も海外に行ったことがありません。」
= I have never been abroad
B: 「それにしては英語がうまいね。」
= But your English is great.
B thinks if A has never been abroad, A’s English skill is so-so.
Thank you very much for answering me and for your examples and explanations! They have been super helpful in order to understand better the usage of それにしては. ^^
I’m confused to this sentence translation.
” 結婚するなら絶対にお金持ちというわけではない。
It is not necessarily true that I would only marry a rich man. ” I get it as “It is not needed to be rich when getting married” . How about this 僕は絶対にお金持ちと結婚するとういわけではない。
And also. Just right now saw this phrase
はいでは今日も授業をやっていきます
I was watching the video about grammar:)
In videos like that there are a lot ていく
説明していきます・～見ていきます
書いていきます
Hi, Maggie, thank you!!
I have one question.
I sometimes see it in different videos. For example, a girl comes to the cafe, and orders food. She shows what she orders, for example, a cake. Then says about this cake “食べていきます”. What kind of idea of ていく is that?
Also, i often hear something like 説明していきます、見ていきます in the situations like the above one.
what does it mean?
食べていきます = I will eat (and leave the restaurant)
It implies the speaker goes somewhere after they eat.
So you can’t use this expression when you eat at home.
説明していきます/見ていきます
In this case, it doesn’t imply any movement.
You use ていきます when you express the process of explaining/seeing something.
If you just say 説明します/見ます, it could be just one time action.
By using Vていきます, you can express what you are going to do (for a certain period of time).
こんにちは、ルナ
的と上の使い方は違いますが、（健康上の理由 (x健康的な理由）, 健康的な生活 ( X 健康上の生活））
以下のような場合は、同じ意味です。形だけ注意が必要です。
理論上は、可能だ。 = 理論的には可能だ。 = It is possible in theory/Theoretically possible
技術上、難しい = 技術的に難しい Technically difficult
技術上の問題 = 技術的な問題 = Technical problem
Finally, I can again visit Japan. Since my first visit there has been a question that I have been wondering about. How would a Japanese person ask for their room key?
I knew only about 73 Japanese words (and numbers) on my first trip. I asked reception how to ask for my key and was told that just saying the room number was OK. So, 363 = san roku san. And, yes, it worked. I always got my room key. In one case, in Kansai, the receptionist replied to “363” with “363で”.
I want to do better this time. I notice that you use 号室. So, it would be better to say:
363号室おねがいします, or
363号室のかぎおねがいします.
Using overly polite language (in any language) sometimes creates complications for me, but would
“363号室のかぎ呉れてもらえますおねがいします” be OK? That’s not something I would want to say 3 times a day for a week.
Thanks again for your comments. Yes, I am curious about how I will manage this time with my Japanese language “skills”. My biggest problem now is not being able to practice speaking, except to myself.
For example, with “号室” I of course pronounce it “Gō shitsu”. Native speakers say something that sounds like “Gō sts” to me. It is all part of the fun of learning a language.
I have one more question (if you don’t mind), which I will post somewhere else.
I went to 4 different hotels. Three of them gave me a key card. I never had to ask for a room key. At the 4th hotel the reception staff recognized me after 2 days and usually gave me my room key even before I asked for it.
Sometimes, speaking Japanese can be very easy.
Hi Michael
😆 Too bad that you couldn’t get to use Japanese at the hotels.
I hope you got to speak Japanese while you were in Japan. Are you still in Japan?
Hello Maggie,
I am no longer in Japan, unfortunately.
There were a lot of opportunities to speak Japanese, and to make a lot of mistakes.
Most of my day to day practical dealings were in Japanese — hotels, restaurants and so on. Probably as a result of my listening practice (watching TV) my passive comprehension was quite good, within the limits of my vocabulary. I could understand some things even when I wasn’t paying 100% attention. Also, all your examples in your lessons taught me to not depend on knowing just a few fixed sentences.
This made daily life feel more normal, because I could understand more of what was going on around me. And this meant more freedom in what I could do (not limited to tourist-friendly English) and also resulted in some more human interactions.
On the other hand, the complication was that my passive comprehension was a lot quicker than my ability to speak (it took more time to remember words), so my speaking speed was always lagging behind what I could understand. It was frustrating, but just a matter of needing more practice talking in the real world.
My concerns about not being understood were completely unfounded. It was obvious that my ‘accent’ (in other words, my sloppy pronunciation) sometimes confused a Japanese listener. It was actually better for me to speak slowly and clearly.
Michael
Thank you for sharing your precious experiences in Japan.
I am glad to hear you got to interact with Japanese people and use Japanese.
I do believe all your experiences will motivate you to learn Japanese more. 😉
Hello Alexa,
This たら means “if”. (conditional)
I assume they were talking about something and this person is saying he/she would do that if he/she thinks that is right.
Hello. May I ask if we can use the たい form of a verb with ために when we want to express the cause. For example, would the following sentence be correct in Japanese:ゆかさんは大学に入りたいために、毎日勉強しています。
You don’t use たいために. You say 入るため. If you want to use たい, you can say 入りたいので/ 入りたいから
One exception: There is an expression to emphasize the desire
入りたいがために. You see this form more in written forms.
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have ２ question about this lesson
in this lesson, sensei wrote that
X 山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をくれた。→wrong!
we are all agree that くれる is use for “family group or very close friends”
but today, my Japanese co-worker asked me that
このかばん、誰が買ってくれた？
I just don’t understand that why he used “くれた” instead of “あげた”、he’s not in my “family group”, and he also don’t really know that the one bought me a bag is one of my family or not?
I got confused about this example too:
“= Can you give the sweets to my son?
You can also say
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？”
isn’t it should be translate to “can I received the sweets from my son”?
because in ~もらう grammar, the one go with に・から is the one we received things from?
Hello ルアン
山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をくれた
In this case, if the two parties, 山田さん and 加藤さん are not related to the speaker, it sounds unnatural.
You say 誰が買ってくれた？ (Who bought the bag for you?) or 誰に買ってもらったの？ (Who did you get the bag from?) to someone who is close to you based on the idea or assumption that someone else bought the bag for you. (In this case, the giver could be your family , customers, friends, etc.)
This phrase only works with someone close to you, equal to you or superior (who has been working more than you have or for the same period of time.)
Thank you so much maggie sensei
Can you explain this for me too?
“= Can you give the sweets to my son?
You can also say
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？”
isn’t it should be translate to “can I received the sweets from my son”?
because in ~もらう grammar, the one go with に・から is the one we received things from?
It’s written in this lesson too
If the sentence is
そのお菓子は (or を） 息子にもらった
Then, it could be I received this snack for my son (from someone) or I received the snack from my son.
However, そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ is a request.
If you are asking your son to give you the snack, you wouldn’t say 息子に
You are obviously asking the listener so it won’t be translated can I received the sweets from my son”?
Good night Maggie. Can you tell me the function of 間に in this sentence: 主神ゼウスと人間の娘との間に生まれた半神半人の英雄。I couldn’t understand that word even after reading your explanation you made.
Could you also tell me the function of the も particle in this sentence: これは相当な手練れ。我が愛馬にも匹敵する怪物女王。
Hello Leonarudo
This 間 means “between”
Here is the basic structure of this sentence.
~はAとBの間に生まれた
= ~ was born between A and B
~ is demigod hero who was born between zeus and human.
***
これは相当な手練れ。我が愛馬にも匹敵する怪物女王。
我が愛馬に匹敵する to be equal to my horse/to be a match for my horse
By adding も you can add the nuance of “even”
我が愛馬にも匹敵する to be even equal to my horse//to be even a match for my horse
Hi Maggie Sensei! I love your use of example sentences for teaching, I find it super helpful :)
One question: is it possible to attach がち to a negative verb/adjective ending? Like, in order to say things like “I don’t tend to forget people’s names,” could we say “人の名前を忘れないがち”？
You don’t use the negative form with がち so you don’t say X 忘れないがち
忘れがち = tend to forget people’s name
The opposite will be “tend to remember people’s name” but it sounds unnatural even in English because you are supposed to remember people’s name.
So you just say
人の名前をよく覚えている。
If it is the context such as “You tend to remember things (which you don’t need to remember/in the way you are not supposed to), you can use 覚えがち
Ex. 人の名前を間違って覚えがちだ。
Hi, 先生！I’ve come back to this post a couple times, but I just can’t figure out which meaning of 限る is being used in this:
「俺、絶対に結婚遅いタイプだわー。…え？そういう奴に限って？んなわけねーし！」
This line is from a game I log into from time to time to practice Japanese. When you click on the character on the home screen, they talk. In this particular example, I guess the “…” represents the character listening to our response, which is apparently 「そういうやつに限って」.
But I’m confused. If I were to reconstruct the conversation, it would be:
Character: 俺、絶対に結婚遅いタイプだわー。
I’m totally the type to get married late.
Me: そういう奴に限りますね。
Yeah, you’re limited to that type of person (?????)
Character: んなわけねーし。
No way/Of course not.
That’s not a conversation that makes very much sense to me. Basically the character says something, I agree, then he suddenly says the opposite? I’m definitely missing something here…
I added a little note for you.
★Talking about opposite characteristics of what people would think, assume. (You may think A is ~ but actually it/he/she is quite opposite)
Ex. 威張っている人に限って気が弱い。
= Those who are arrogant tend to be cowards.
そういうやつに限って is the same usage of this one.
The speaker didn’t finish the sentence but
そういうやつに限って結婚が早いかもしれない*…んなわけないし
The one who says “I am getting married later in life” tends to get married (early)…. No, I’ll take it back. There is no way.
Technically the negative form is
大きめではない/大きめじゃない
少なめではない/少なめじゃない
but it is rare to use these forms. You just use the opposite words, 小さめ, 多め
The only case that you use the negative forms will be when you deny what someone just said.
Ex. 「ご飯、少なめでいい？」 Would small serving of rice be OK with you?
「少なめじゃなくて普通にもって」 Serve me regular portion not small portion.
Could you please explain the second example under 3) Conditional sentences?
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
I think I understand the first example, but in this one it looks like たりする means something similar to かもしれない
In fact if I hadn’t seen your translation I would’ve completely misinterpreted the meaning of the sentence, as I was thinking of something along the lines “but he actually happens to be serious, you know”.
You can rephrase the sentence with かもしれない → まじめかもしれない
The nuance difference is, たりする is more vague compare to かもしれない
You bring up some possibilities more softly with たりする avoiding direct expression
People tend to think shallow looking guys are not serious. But they could be serious. (there are cases such as they are serious.)
Hi maggie sensei. I saw a sentence that had the word また別 and I saw that it translates as another or different in some sites. I would like to know what the difference between this word and 別, 区別 or 違い.
Ah OK, so it was the same as my example sentence. :)
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「つく」. It goes like this:
このスイッチを押すと電気がつく。
And was translated as: The light comes on when you press this switch.
I have two questions. The first one is: I would like to know why 電気 was translated as light and the second one is what’s the meaning of オマケつき.
Hello Maggie sensei! Thank you very much for your thorough explanation.
However, I have come across a sentence in which instead of ことがありません, they use ことがありませんでした. The sentence is 日本に来る前に海を見たことがありませんでした。日本に来て、初めて見ました。In my opinion, following this lesson I would have opted for ことがありません. The past tense is already used in 見た. However, according to the key, it’s wrong. Could you please explain it?
Hello Sky
You can decide which tense to use depending on the time which you focus on.
日本に来る前 = before I came to Japan. This is the past. When are talking about your past experience in the past you use the past tense 見たことがありませんでした。
If you are talking about your experience up to now.
I have never seen the ocean (→I haven’t seen the ocean up to now.)
The focus time is “now” so you say 海を見たことがありません。
自身 = oneself
Ex. 私/自分自身のための作品 = the artwork for myself/oneself
自ら = 自分から何かをする = to do something voluntarily, to do something personally
Ex. 自ら手伝う= to help someone voluntarily
Hello Maggie-sensei 😊
I have a little question. I reviewed this grammar point with the book “新完全マスター文法 日本語能力試験Ｎ３”. The book talks about another function of -ていく and -てくる but I don’t quite understand it because there is only two examples. The function is “A movement or shift occurring after an action” and the examples are “出かけるとき、天気予報を見てきました” and “荷物はここに預けていこう”. My question is fuzzy, but I don’t really understand the difference with the function of doing something and coming back, and doing an action without coming back. If you can enlighten me. お願いします🤗
You connect two actions with te-form.
You do A and then do B.
If the verb B is 行く or 来る,
you do something (A) and you go somewhere or you come somewhere.
(You can rephrase them with から）
1) 出かけるとき、天気予報を見てきました （←天気予報を見てからきました）
I checked the weather report (action A) when I left the house and came here*(acton B)
(*wherever the speaker is now.)
2) 荷物はここに預けていこう (←荷物をここに預けてからいこう）
I will leave your bag (action A) here and go somewhere (action B).
So these two examples happened to have verbs, 行く/来る but you can use other verbs.
I had lunch and went out →昼ごはんを食べて出かけた。(←昼ごはんを食べてから出かけた)
We talked about it and then decided. →よく話し合って決めた。(←よく話し合ってから決めた）
Thank you very much for your quick response 😊. It’s clear to me now, I didn’t realize that in this case -て was only used to connect 2 actions. Thanks for the explanation and additional examples 😁.
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「のに」. It goes like this:
これは練習、マスターと僕の戦いの為のなのに本気にな落ち込む。
I have two questions. The first one is about what is the difference between ための and ために, the second is if the な (after 本気に) and the 、 have some function inside that sentence or you can remove them without having any problem.
1) There is a hidden noun after 為の
マスターと僕の戦いのための（練習 or もの）なのに
Since the word 練習 is already mentioned, you don’t have to say 練習 again and just say ための
(You can sometimes rephrase it with もの as well)
You often omit the noun and just use の
(Check my の lesson if you want to learn more. The link is here.)
So though you use の instead of the nouns 練習/もの, ための is considered as a noun so you use なのに
Noun + なのに
2) Is it one phrase? There is no space between 本気にな and 落ち込む？
If so, I think it is a typo. 本気に落ち込む （本気に is an adverb which modifies the following verb, 落ち込む)
I couldn’t understand the difference between たらすぐに vs 次第
and ofcourse i came across another similar grammer
するとすぐに and~か~ないかのうちに
so please teach us the difference between this four
As for the difference between すぐに and たらすぐに
I explained in this lesson so please read the note. (Basically they means the same, as soon as but 次第 is more formal and たらすぐに is more conversational. But there are cases that you can not rephrase たらすぐ with 次第. Read Note. 2)
するとすぐに vs たらすぐに
Are very similar as well and they can be interchangeable.
As soon as he got home, he went out.
彼は家に着くとすぐに出かけた
= 彼は家に着いたらすぐに出かけた
The difference:
１）verb dictionary form + とすぐに →focusing on the action itself
2) Vたらすぐに →focusing of the completion of the action
You can not use 1) when you tell someone what to do
Ex. 家に着いたらすぐに電話をください。 = Call me as soon as you get home.
→X You can’t say 家につくとすぐに電話をください。
You use 1) when you talk about the past or daily routine.
~か~ないかのうちに is used when two actions are happening almost the same time.
家につくかつかないかのうちに can be right before you get home.
So you can’t say
家につくかつかないかのうちに電話をください。either.
Something was puzzling me about という, and I thought that Maggie Sensei would have the answer.
A beginner in any language first learns words and some stand-alone sentences. But, in daily life, people have conversations. They say things in response to what someone else has said, and often speak in half sentences. While watching TV I have recently noticed that という can be the first word that a person uses when saying something. This did not make sense to me, considering that a beginner learns to use という for quotes, definitions and so on, where という is in the middle of a sentence.
But, you give some examples in “(2) To summarize /boil down something” which fits what was puzzling me:
A: 「大きな台風が近づいています。」
B: 「ということは、明日は誰も学校に来ないということですね。」
という is being used to connect the meanings of two sentences/phrases, and in this case there are two different speakers and B is replying to and completing/modifying the thought of A.
Unfortunately, I still cannot translate spoken Japanese quickly enough to always be able to connect a series of spoken sentences. But, I’m always learning something, so there is progress.
Yes, you do start the sentence with ということは when you summarize what you just heard/read in conversation.
Another colloquial/casual way to say ということは is
ってことは>..(てことは…)
You may not learn this in the textbooks but you use/hear this a lot in conversation. 😉
Textbooks (and web resources) have their uses, for explaining the basic rules. Also, most language learning resources seem to focus on JLPT levels and .. JLPT4-5の問題点は、語彙の多くが観光客にとって役に立たないことです. But that is a different story. :-)
It’s probably impossible to learn how to speak from reading a book of rules. Especially because I am teaching myself, I occasionally am victim of what I learned first, since I don’t have anyone to warn me about complications. という was one example of this.
An even bigger problem for me was the particle けど. You wrote about it, saying “I think many of you know the usage of けど ( = kedo) as “but”.” Exactly. That was my problem. When listening to real conversations, I got the impression that ですけど was the most frequent way in which people end their sentences. They couldn’t always mean “but”. And once again your examples gave me a deeper insight into how the Japanese language works in practice.
相手をする means “to associate with someone/ to deal with someone/ to keep someone’s company/to play with someone”
So it depends on the context but it means
If you don’t accept it, I won’t hang out with you anymore, OK?
so the general meaning of 相手をする would be hang out and depending on the context you use the words you put as a translation, right?
the context of the phrase would be a boy challenges a girl to a competition, she accepted and arrogantly said that she would easily defeat him. after losing to him, he asks her to admit defeat and apologizes and if she doesn’t, he won’t partner up with her anymore.
してもいい is much more common
してよい is more literal and you usually see this form in written form.
Also してよいな is a bit dramatic expression and is used for a speech of an old male character in the story/anime/movie.
I have a doubt, i recently discovered this expression という感じ
which is very similar to かんな、こんな感じ、こういう感じ、そういう感じ。
so iwant to know what is the difference between という感じ and こう/そう/ああいう感じ
and こんな感じvsこんな vs このような/こういう感じ
sorry for lots of questions at once🙏
It is confusing me and hloding back to learn new grammer.
Once again sorry sensei for lots of question these past few days.
I’am thankful that i found a wonderful teacher like you💖🙏
~という感じ
と is used when you quote something
Ex. もう食べられないという感じだった。
= It was like “I can’t eat anymore.”
1) (casual) こんな→こういう→(more formal) このような感じ like this (referring something/someone right in front of you.)
2) (casual)そんな→そういう→(more formal)そのような感じ like that (referring something/someone a little bit farther than こういう)
3) (casual)あんな→ああいう→(more formal)あのような感じ like that (referring something/someone far from you.)
Hi sensei, i want to know what is the difference between そう and 感じ in the sense of looks like and seems like and i which situation we will use
優しい感じ
優しそう both translate as looks kind
I wouldn’t say there is much difference between 優しい感じの人 and 優しそうな人. You can both translate them “ a person who looks sweet”.
感じ: It is based on one’s feelings/impressions that one gets from that person./ sweetish person
そう:how the person looks / how one sees that person.
😄 Hi, Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for this really useful lesson!!💗
I read a verse of a song that says:
「新ネタ仕入れたなんてね したり顔でtalkin’ talkin’… 」
The final 「なんで」 means anything in particular o is it just used to emphasize the sentence?
Also, in the phrase「あの子のアレコレ気になって センシティブな顔なんだって」… How is 「なんだって」used in this context?
Thanks in advance 💖.
1) This なんて is quoting what comes before, 「新ネタ仕入れた」. ~なんて（言って） Saying things like ~
2) In this case なんだって is quoting the reason.
I heard/He/She/Someone told me the reason why ~ is ~
So you heard the reason why someone has a sensitive face. And tell someone that reason why.
Ooh, I see. 「なんて」 is quoting what comes before.
Thank you very much for the explanation💗.
Regarding to “あの子のアレコレ気になって センシティブな顔なんだって”, what would be the correct way to translate it?
Now I think of it なんだって has another usage. When you make your point or explain something or giving a reason in a strong way about oneself. “I am telling you ~”
It depends on the context and it is kind of hard to tell which one by reading just one line.
I don’t do the translation here but if it is quoting,
“I heard ~ has a sensitive face because ~ can’t help thinking about her/him.”
If that person is explaining the reason himself/herself then
“I have a sensitive face because I can’t help thinking about her/him, OK?”
About ながら, can you use it in a sentence that mixes a verb of human/animate being action (歩く) and an intransitive verb of non-human action (付く)? Like this one:
道を歩きながら電気が付いた。
While walking in the street the lights came on (by themselves).
Maggie Sensei,
Another excellent article!
I was hoping you might be able to help clarify something though.
There seems to be disagreement about using 〜ない with ようになる.
My teacher and the book we are using (みんなの日本語) agree with you that なくなる should be used instead.
However there are quite a few examples online of なにようになる.
My wife (native Japanese) and several online teachers agree ないようになる can be used.
The opinions range from “ないようになる is not used very much” to “they mean the same thing”.
One person said “なくなる emphasizes the consequences of the change but ないようになる emphasizes the process of change”.
My wife thinks ないようになる might be used in a museum exhibit explanation.
Good question. I would say なくなる is much more common and it sounds more natural in many cases but you are right. I think I will add that information because some people do say that.
The difference between なくなる and ないようになる depends on the context but I agree with what you read. (consequences of the change and process of change)
Let’s compare the following two sentence.
With past tense
A ) （それ以来）彼は無駄なことをしなくなった。 (focusing on the consequences/results)
B ) （それ以来）彼は無駄なことをしないようになった。 (focusing on the process of how one became. )
Another difference is Vないようになった tends to describe slow change.
Vなくなった is used when the change could happened right after some incidence.
I appreciate your additional information and examples. I suppose it’s due to the subtlety and uncommonness of the usage of ないようになる that my teacher and book say to just use なくなる.
Note: I noticed a typo in my 1st message and also one in your reply.
Mine: “However there are quite a few examples online of な[に]ようになる.”
Should be “…… examples online of な[い]ようになる.”
Yours: “The difference between なくなる and ないように{する} depends on the context…..”
Should be “The difference between なくなる and ないように{なる} depends on the context….”
I only mention them because I’m concerned they might confuse a future reader. I don’t know how these things work but if possible can you edit the posts?
Thank you again for your reply and all your detailed explanations,
-N
Thank you for spotting the typo. 🙏
I guess a lot of teachers/textbooks avoid teaching ないようになる because it may sound unnatural or less common but you are right. Some readers might get confused when they hear/see it somewhere. I should have mentioned. So thank you for your good question!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「方」. It goes like this:
1) 在り方 means “way of being”, “the way something is supposed to be”
心の在り方 the way you set your mind
2) と is to quote in this case 償い
償いというものは→(shorter way) 償いとは
3) で
See the pattern how you make a negative form of a noun
noun + です
→noun + ではない
こんにちはアンドレアス
〜もないのに is a very common patter なんの理由もないのに / 証拠もないのに
You can also say がないのに ,”there is no ~ “, but when you add the nuance of “not to even” or “any”, you use も
用がない not to have particular reasons
用もない not have any particular reasons
どこの誰が is an expression which means “someone/anybody” ( or “whoever” “no matter who”)
ささやいたって is a conditional ささやいても
あれば corresponds to 秘密のサイン
I don’t do the translation here but the idea is,
No matter what anyone whispers, there is nothing that scares us if we have our secret sign.
Hey Sensei, I was wondering if you could help me with this, because I can’t find much of any information about this but, how do you express looking or seeming without the nuance of hearsay or conjecture. For example, “old-sounding music” would usually be translated as something along the lines of “古そうな音楽”, but doesn’t that have the nuance of guessing or conjecture based on personal opinion? What I want to express in “old sounding music” would be music that sounds old because you know the styles that old music used, so what you’re stating is essentially a fact. Would そう still be what you use, our would it be something like “古く聞こえる音楽”? Or something else entirely (maybe involving ふう)? What about 見える, can you use く and に forms to express appearance? Sorry if this is hard to read, thanks a bunch :)
Yes, you can say 古く聞こえる音楽 (the music that sounds old) but you can also just say 古い音楽 as your opinion. There is an expression, 古くさい音楽 which sounds negative.
You don’t use 見える for music.
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「なんて」. It goes like this:
まだです！私が一度も勝てないなんてコト。。。話してる途中で歌やめる。
I have two questions. The first one is about what is the function of なんて and コト in this sentence and the second is if you should always put で after 途中. I’ve seen two sentences that are like that and I’m not sure if it’s a rule or not.
Hello iwawee
This ん is a part of a verb.
がんばります is a verb which means “to do one’s best, to try hard”.
FYI if you want to add ん like I explained in this lesson, it will be
がんばります→dictionary form がんばる
→がんばるんです
It is a verb, 堪る = たまる = がまんする = to put up with
You usually use it in a negative form or with か to express one’s feelings of resistance.
I have a lesson on たまらない and I explained the usage of たまるか there so please go check if you want to learn more.
Link is here.
As always, thank you for your lessons. I’m suppose to have an N2 level but I still have doubts when it comes to けど😅.
Can you use it with ますform?
For example: 食べられますけど、あまり好きじゃありません。
Or 行きませんでしたけど、行きたかったです。
Thanks again!
Since けど is a casual form, if you want to use the polite form with the following verbs
食べられますけれども or 食べれますが+ あまり好きじゃありません。
行きませんでしたけれども or 行きませんでしたが+ 行きたかったです。
might be more natural but yes, people do use masu-form with けど in conversation.
maggie sensei, i love you but this is impossible for me to read lol. i always have o copy and paste it and then reformat it because my brain refuses to process the information lo;. but anyways, thank you for your lessons.
Sorry to hear it is impossible for you to read this lesson. 😢
If you try to learn the whole lesson at once, it might be hard.
I hope you can come back here just to get a piece of information. 😉
Hello! I am studying for N3 and one question says: 一度にバナナを20本も食べられる( ). The answer is わけがない but another choice is ことがない. Why is ことがない wrong? Don’t they both mean “There’s no way I can eat 20 bananas”?
Hello ヘイリー
Yes, the correct answer is わけがない
わけがない is used with something extreme for that person. “There is no way to do something”
ことがない also negates what one would do/can do. but it’s based on the idea that doing something is not so extreme (you can see that from the opposite sentence.)
家族で外食をすることがない。⇄家族で外食をすることがある。
一人で焼肉を食べることがない。⇄一人で焼肉を食べることがある
Eating 20 bananas at once is something extreme and there is no way to do that so you use わけがない
Check the translation difference in the following three sentences.
A 一度にバナナを20本も食べられることがある means I sometimes can eat 20 bananas at once.
B 一度にバナナを20本も食べられることがない (this sentence itself is not so natural but..) it means I sometimes can’t eat 20 bananas at once.
A and B: You think eating 20 bananas is
C 一度にバナナを20本も食べられるわけがない means “There is no way that I can eat 20 bananas at once”
Oh, I was under the impression that ことがない meant never because of the examples like: “彼は疲れることがない”. So I was thinking it would mean: “I can never eat 20 bananas at once,” (一度にバナナを２０本も食べられることがない). So does ことがない actually imply that there are a few times that he is tired (first sentence)?
In that case, you don’t use the potential form 食べられる
If you want to use こと, you use the dictionary form + ことはない
→ 一度にバナナを２０本食べることはない He is not going to eat 20 bananas at once or There is no way for him to eat 20 bananas at once.
Hi Maggie先生！
I often heard this ては used in songs and always struggled to translate it, so finding this old lesson was a lifesaver!
I have something I want clarified:
I know that ては contracts to ちゃ and では contracts to じゃ.
However, we only use these contractions with usage 3 (describing an unfavorable result)
触れてはダメ –> 触れちゃだめ ✓
子供では無理 –> 子供じゃ無理 ✓
and usage 1 (repetitive actions),
食べては寝の生活 –> 食べちゃ寝の生活 ✓
彼はテレビをつけては消す –> 彼はテレビをつけちゃ消す ✓
right?
Am I right in assuming that these contractions can’t be used with usage 2 (whenever ~) or usage 4 (giving suggestions)
日本に来ては○○する –> 日本に来ちゃ○○する ✗
彼に任せてはどうですか –> 彼に任せちゃどうですか ✗
In these lyrics “dog eat dog world”だと言う聞かせ someone said it means I tell myself it is a dog eat dog world. I am not understanding why it means that. I thought it was “I hear [someone] say this” or “it is said/we are told”.
I think there is a typo in your sentence
言う聞かせ→言い聞かせ
1) (someone)に言い聞かせる = to tell(or persuade) someone that ~ / to do ~
2) (自分に)言い聞かせる = “to tell oneself ~ ”
So the translation is right. I tell myself it is a dog eat dog world.
can you explain ~たりしてはいけません as it i can not find the answer any where, i really do appreciate the help if you can ease my stress on finding the answer.
~ みたい means “like” / “as” ~
ついでみたいな (adjective) + noun = something like ついで
ついでみたいに (adverb ) + verb = to do something as ついで
And the interpretation of ついで changes depends on the context so please check the lesson.
Which is shown to translate to:
That’s a tight schedule.
Do you mind explaining what is 的 used for in this sentence? I’m having trouble understanding the use of 的 in this example. Seems like スケジュール的 is not used as an adjective here. スケジュール的 also feels weird to be an adjective.
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have questions regarding these lines, they are from a song:
1- 吐き出すルールは君が決めた
2- 吐き出すルールあなたが決めた
my translation was like this:
1- Rules of spitting out are what you have decided
2- Spit out the rules you have decided.
My questions are:
1- for the part (Hakidasu ruuru) in both of them, is the verb (Hakidasu) a transitive verb? I mean, could I say it is like (Imperative form) for giving commands which it means in this case (you spit out)
OR
is it considered a name (because it came at first), which it means (spitting out)?
2- Are they actually the same thing and have the same translation, and I just mistranslated?
Hi Katsu,
The literal meaning is “As for the spitting out rule is what you have decided” but
You decided the spitting rule. might be more natural.
And 1) and 2) are the same thing but 2) doesn’t have は so it sounds like a poetic expression or slogan.
I see, So it is considered a name in both 1 and 2.
Does it have a deep meaning or anything in Japanese?
Because I find it kinda hard to link its meaning with other lines.
Sorry, what do you mean by “a name”?
Anyway it is hard to interpret the meaning from just two lines but
吐き出す also means “Getting something out of one’s system/letting it out” and it could be one’s feelings (sadness, anger, etc.) or something
You made the rules of getting out of my (or your) feelings.
This is my guess but the reason why the writer changes the way of saying 君が決めた/あなたが決めた is probably because it sounds more interesting than just repeating the same phrase twice.
I mean using (spitting out) and not the verb (spit out).
Someone who translated this song said it’s a dialogue between a boy and a girl and the lines with (kimi) is for the boy when he talks to the girl, while the lines with (anata) is for the girl.
Anyway, thank you so much for clarifying, it was very helpful!
Ah yes, two people’s dialogue makes more sense.
Two people are kind of blaming each other who made the rule.
Anyway, I’m glad to hear it is more clear now.
Hello Maggie-sensei
I’ve turned into the dark side of male speech ごめんね Σ(°△°|||)
You said in your lesson we could turn ない to ねえ in male speech. But I’ve seen some using ん like すまん or 使わん (instead of すまない and 使わない). Is it the same ねえ or is it used for particular cases?
Also I’ve seen the suffix っタレ(or ったれ) which was translated as Sauce, which makes no sense to me. (for context: 動画っタレ用の宣材撮っないと) I suppose it is not a good word…
〜ねえ sounds more rough than ~ん.
It depends on the intonation and as you said, すまん is mainly for male speech but ない →〜ん is also a dialect in many regions in Japan (Chubu area, Kansai area, etc.) and both men and women use.
知らない→知らん
できない→できん
~ったれ is derogatory. You add this suffix to point out someone’s weakness or negative aspect. You have to be careful because it will insult people.
hello Maggie,
I’m a little confused on something.
in the first example 「今まで僕みたいなかわいい先生いた？」
why is : “noun + mitai な + adjective” used here? reading the post and following the rules of construction I thought it was supposed to be:
“noun + mitai に + adjective?” Am I seeing this wrong?
Hi!
I was wondering, in these song lyrics, what is the purpose of ような?
ねぇ どっかに置いてきたような
事が一つ二つ浮いているけど
I know that song lyrics can be very poetic and bend normal linguistic rules, but I’m really struggling to understand what it means. From my understanding this means “Wherever you left it/those things behind, it/they are resurfacing one by one” but my japanese isn’t very good so I could definitely be misunderstanding the whole sentence lol.
Thanks!
This ような modifies 事（こと）
どっかに置いてきたようなこと (things that I left behind somewhere) = subject
一つ二つ A few (A couple of ) ＋ どっかに置いてきたようなこと (things that I left behind somewhere) will be the subject
And the main verb 浮いている （the literal meaning is “floating/resurfacing” but this is a very literal/poetic expressions.
You said in your lesson
連用形 = renyoukei (verbs with nominal ending) and add そう=sou
but it seems it is the same as ____ (polite form stem verb i.e. by removing ます)そう or are there some exceptions I don’t know?
In your examples:
•する → し + そう = しそう, so from します
•降る → ふり +そう=降りそう so from 降ります
•泣く→ 泣き + そう= 泣きそう so from 泣きます
•死ぬ → 死に =しに + そう= 死にそう so from 死にます
•起きる → 起き+そう= 起きそう so from 起きます
•来る → 来 +そう= 来そう so from 来ます
Is the rule ます-stem form + そう correct, or the nominal ending verbs are different sometimes from the ます-stem form? If yes, what verbs could that be?
I usually use the term masu-stem when I explain ”How to form” but I guess I used the term 連用形 in this lesson for some reason.
Yes, they are the same. :)
Ex. する
1) make masu-form →します
2) delete ます →masu-stem し
3) attach そう →しそう
But as I mentioned in this lesson, そう can be used with other verb forms such as potential forms. (Also ~てしまう/ (casual ) ちゃう ：落ちてしまいそう （落ちちゃいそう）. )
Thank you very much for these informative answers! I have a question regarding these uses with a teacher. How would I adapt these for remote one on one lessons with a teacher? I just don’t want to be rude, but also want to be attentive. Perhaps there’s a lesson here that I missed on this, but also the proper words to say beside はい when communicating that I understand what my teacher is saying. He used to speak entirely in Japanese with me, but now has gradually been sneaking more and more English in there and I think it’s because I’m not good with these sorts of situations 😅
You can use all these phrases with your on-line teacher but let me know if there are any specific phrases that you want to use in the class. I will help you.
Also I covered some class room Japanese in 学校 lesson. Link is here.
Sorry for bothering… again! (￣ ￣|||)
I really don’t know the grammar about this one and I couldn’t find an explanation in your lesson:【あの事故と結ばれでもしたんだろう】I suppose the でも here should be “even though” so I tried to translate it as: “I guess it was even though it was linked to that accident” but it makes no sense.
I found on a website the same construction for another sentence 英語の勉強でもするか which they have translate as “I might as well study English.” and the explanation is “でも here works to make your words less direct. It’s like “I think I will study something, let’s see…ok, English.” Also it’s not a question to someone. You say it to yourself.”
Is there some kind of construction based on 〜でもする/〜でもした where it is not conditional form?
Your questions are always welcome. 😊
I guess I didn’t cover the usage in this lesson.
I don’t know the context of your example sentence (事故と結ばれる. Not 事故で？) but you use でも when you guess or imagine why something happened/why someone did/will do something or possible outcome.
So you bring up some possible cause/ outcome/results that you can think of with でも
When you use it with a verb,
verb masu-stem / noun* + でも＋したんだろう/したのかもしれない/したのだろうか..
You are not 100% sure but it could be ~ or something.
Another example, you have friends. They are usually very close but you can sense there is something wrong between them.
So you are not sure why exactly they are not talking to each other but you assume they got fight or something. In this case you use でも
喧嘩(けんか）でもしたんだろう。
Maybe they got fight or something.
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Aaah, it’s not the て-form verb +も but really the word でも (“but”) attached to the masu-stem verb?
So for example 遊びでも (masu-stem+でも) and 遊んでも (て-form verb+も) mean different things?
So in my case, I would have said 遊びでもしたんだろう (maybe they played or something) and not 遊んでもしたんだろう?
I think I got confused with ても/でも for conditional form and でも for “but”.
For my sentence, I don’t know exactly the origin, I retranscripted from ear so I’m not sure it’s correct. Maybe it’s 事故で actually if it makes more sense. The context is really “Maybe it was linked to that accident” when someone saw some event occurring before him.
おはよう、Gaspatcher
Ah, OK. If the context is
“Maybe it was linked to that accident” then 事故と is correct.
(If two people get connected to each other through the accident, 事故で ☺️）
And yes, for this usage you say 遊びでも not 遊んでも (遊んでも is different form. Ex. 遊んでもいいですか？ = to ask for the permission, etc.)
~でもしたんだろう
I added this in my previous comment but you can use a noun with でも so when you use a verb する, it will be easier to think
noun (遊び・喧嘩） + でも＋ したんだろう
And with a verb
verb masu stem (including auxiliary verb)
So I wouldn’t go too far here but
食べ＋でもしたんだろう
食べ＋られ(passive)/させられ(passive causative) ＋でもしたんだろう
Hello Maggie Sensei
,
Gaspatcher here again! I have a question about【どうすれば良いか】which I found to be translated as “What should I do?” But a native also translate this as “How should I do it?” The meaning is different because the first one, you don’t know what to do and the second one, you know what but you don’t know how.
I think the second makes more sense “how should I do it?” because I would have translated the first meaning as 何をすれば良いか？ Am I missing something here?
I think it is more a question about どう rather than 良い but I didn’t find any lesson about the use of どう (that’s why I asked here)
ありがとうございました、先生
How have you been? Good question!
The meaning of どう can be “how” or “what” depending on the context.
But the most natural translation for どうしたらいい？ is “What should I do?/What do you think I should do?”
You also say
何をしたらいい？ but the nuance difference is どう is used when you want to know “how” to deal with the situation and 何 is used when you want to know exactly what to do (actions).
And どう can be used as “how”
どう行ったらいいですか？ = How can I get there?
どうやったらいいですか？ = How should I do it?
(If you say どうしたらいいですか？, it may sound confusing because it also means “What should I do?” so it will be more clear to say どうやったらいいですか？)
Let’s me add one more example with どう
When you are lost and don’t know what to do, you say
どうしよう
どうしたらいいんだろう…
(What should I do../I don’t know what to do..)
As always, thanks for the amazing lesson! I’m so used to using ら抜き言葉 in my speech that I often find myself forgetting to put it back when I’m writing in formal Japanese!
You hinted at something in this article that I had a lot of trouble with when I first learned potential forms: when to use the potential transitive vs normal intransitive verbs.
For example, in English, I would usually say something like “I can’t find my keys.” but I rarely hear 「鍵を(が)見つけられない。」 in daily life. Instead I often hear 「鍵が見つからない。」. This is often the case with sentences like with other transitivity pairs like 開く・開ける or 入る・入れる.
Do you know of any situations where the potential transitive form is preferred?
Thanks so much!
As you said, we hear 見つからない/開かない more in conversation.
They simply describe the state or situation and you use this form when you are focusing on the object.
You use potential transitive form when you focus on the person and their capability.
The key is gone/missing = 鍵が見つからない (focusing on the key or the situation where you lost your key.)
I can’t find my key./ I am not capable to find my key. = 鍵を見つけられない。 (focusing on one’s capability)
ドアが開かない = The door won’t open. / The door is locked. (focusing on the door or the state)
ドアを（が）開けられない = I can not open the door. (focusing on the person who can not open the door. )
Hi Sensei,
Thank you very much for your lessons.
I want to ask a question
ある日、西岡君に「なぜそんなに成績がいいの」と聞いてみたことがある。
Here , what does”聞いてみたことがある” means
and also the meaning of “なぜそんなに”
When you talk about one’s experience, (have done something) you use
verb past tense + ことがある (Check this lesson for more details.)
So 聞いたことがある means “I have asked Nishioka-kun”(the translation could be just “I asked Nishiokakun one day.”
なぜ = why
そんなに = so / such (emphasis)
Thanks Sensei for this explanation. I understand the difference now with 安くない and 安くはない.
Sorry, I’m very pernickety (that’s my default) but what is the difference then with 安くはない (showing contrast) and それほど安くない? From my knowledge, それほど〜 tends also to show some contrast (it’s not that cheap).
And can we mix up both and have それほど安くはない – what would that mean then?
おはよう Gaspatcher
それほど安くはない/安くない It was not that cheap.
Yes, you can use それほど and は together. Actually it is a very common pattern.
But as you said since それほど already adds the emphasis, you can omit は as well.
Can’t find anything about this, hope you could help: I’ve searched all over the internet and it seems the expression “to take care of” is 大事を取る with the を particle.
However, I found this sentence in a video game: 「大事に取っておいたんだけどなあ」 (“I took care of it and kept it (alive) you know, but…”) but I can’t find anything about 大事に取る with に particle and its meaning. Is it the same? Is there a subtle nuance between these 2 expressions? My issue is, when I type this on Google, all the searches land to the を particle. (・・;)ゞ
Hello Gaspatcher
大事を取る is an idiomatic expression so you use the particle を. You rarely use the particle を with 大事 except for this expression. (The original meaning is “to deal with the difficult situation”
but it means “to take care of oneself” but you use it when you want to be cautious and rest just in case.
For example, when you don’t feel good, you naturally worry that you may get worse the next day.
So 今日は、大事を取って休みます。 = I will rest and take care of myself (I don’t want to take any chance to get worse going out/working).
The sentence you heard in a video game,
大事に取っておいた This 大事に is an adverb (carefully) and this is pretty common way to use 大事に
大事に〜をとっておく = keep ~ close to one’s heart / to keep something carefully
I would like to ask about the usage of か in the middle of a sentence.
I often see this kind of sentence, and I always interpret the sentence with か as ‘question or doubt about xx’ ex : I wonder if …., I guess …, maybe xx
I wonder if this is the right way to interpret the particle in this type of situation?
Also this sentence
それを考慮してか、盛大に料理を食べていたのである。
Can we ignore the か here, and interpret it as ‘intention’?
I’m sorry to bother you
/(__)\
Good question.
Let me rephrase the first part
それを考慮したからなのか(どうかわからないが)、 I’m not sure if it is because S took that into consideration but ~
それを考慮したのだろうか Maybe it’s because S took that into consideration
So you bring up the possible reason why the speaker thinks the following part （盛大に料理を食べていた） happened.
Your assumption + （な）のか + consequence/result/phenomenon
I am not sure but maybe ~/it could be why ~
For example you go to a cake shop where there is usually a long line to buy their popular sweets.
But you see from a distance that there is nobody around the store.
You think, the store might be closed. That is why nobody is there.
今日は休みなのか人が誰もいない。
ほどなる
So you can rephrase it like that!
As always, there is no subject mentioned in Japanese sentence sometimes, making it feels like groping in the dark with a candle. But I think I understand now.
説明ありがとうございます!!
I know sometimes interpreting the sentence without subject could be hard.
If you get confused again, just ask me. We can figure it out together. 😉
（Note for you:ほどなる→I think you meant なるほど）
こんにちはMaggie先生、
はじめまして、私はキルタナと申します。
Could you please explain the below expressions related to ~ばかりに
1)ちょっと大工の経験があるばかりに,いろいろな仕事を頼まれてしまう。
2)山頂から一目日の出を見たいばかりに、暗いうちに山小屋を出て2時間も走いたのだ。
These ばかりに is the same usage of 5) giving a reason (the following sentence is something unfavorable or something one doesn’t want to do)
1)ちょっと大工の経験があるばかりに,いろいろな仕事を頼まれてしまう。
Just because I have some experience of being a carpenter (reason) I get asked to do many things (probably fixing something or building something)
Since this sentence has しまう, the speaker doesn’t want to do that kind of work.
2) This ばかりに also gives a reason but also expressing one’s strong desires to see the sunrise.
Just because I wanted to see the sunrise ~~~→I ended up doing ~ (I think 走いた is a typo. Maybe 歩いた？ Ended up walking for two hours.)
Hi Maggie Sensei
Thank you so much for your explanation. I am able to get it now.
And Sorry, in the second sentence its “歩いた” I typed wrongly.
Thank you once again. _(_^_)_
sensei i have one doubt about this
How can we differentiate betwwen(OR) and (EVEN) in the context of Noun+でも.please explain how we can understand whether the speaker is using でも as even or or?
and,
why でも has different meaning like but and or . Is it just a random or have some logical sense.
As always thanks for doing great work 🙏
Hi, Hritesh
Noun + でも in the usage of “even” and “or”
You can tell by the context. I will show you one example.
AでもBでも = either A or B (bring up more than two thins)
「りんごでもバナナでもいいです。」
Either 🍎 or 🍌 is fine with me.
~でも+ verb potential form : even
小さい子供でもできる
Even small children can do this.
Not just でも but also many Japanese particles, conjunctions have many different meanings.
For example, から = from, because, made of/from ~ , etc
Hello Maggie-sensei,
You said in your lesson that 〜ように+ 見える = it looks like〜
How about the following construction where ように is after 見える and there is also the は particle? Why?
そんなふうには 見えない あきらめるようには
Can this は be dropped?
I would translate this as: “It doesn’t seem that way, for you to give up”. Is it correct?
OK, when you use the negative form of ようにみえる, you often add the particle は to emphasize.
そんなふうにはみえない
But yes, you can drop は
→そんなふうにみえない
そんなふうには 見えない あきらめるようには
Yes, your translation is correct. This is a literal expression
Instead of just saying あきらめるようには見えない, you say そんなふうには見えない to intrigue the curiosity of the readers or listeners.
Good question.
As you said, the translation will be the same, “Please wait here.” but the nuance difference is
ここで待っていてください
It will take certain period of time and stay here and wait. (focusing on the state of waiting)
ここで待ってください
Focusing on the location where the listener waits = “here”.
Sensei says that the typical construction is SV(O)N, but can the N be at the beginning of the sentence.
I got to this:
隠し通路 七番街スラムまでつながってるの (The secret passage that leads to Sector 7 slums)
which I thought would be rather:
七番街スラムまでつながってる隠し通路の with the noun at the end.
Is it a special form of speech? e.g emphasizing the “secret passage”?
Hello Gaspatcher
It will be easier to see the structure of this sentence by adding a topic particle は after 隠し通路
隠し通路は、七番街スラムまでつながってるの
The secret passage leads to Sector 7 ~
Thanks Maggie-sensei (you answer really quickly!),
It’s coming from this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o52IqteZ3pY&t=920s
around 15:22
She’s saying this without any particle? Is it because it is casual speech?
But is it okay then to put the noun at the beginning?
Aaaah ok I understand now the difference! Thank you Sensei(つ✧ω✧)つ
This is actually the omission of the は particle in casual speech, and it is not a noun modification, it’s a statement!
隠し通路は、 七番街スラムまでつながってるの (This secret passage connects to ~)
If we wanted to have a statement without a verb, that would be just like in your lesson
七番街スラムまでつながってる隠し通路の (The secret passage connecting to ~)
Thank you, I think I understand the slight difference!
In English we use a change of voice (more emphatic, raised tone) to show the emphasis of a word in a sentence. I’ve found it difficult listening to Japanese without that mode of expression. Reading your article and talking to my my English speaking Japanese friend I have come to think thatモ may accomplish the same function as raising the tone in English. A simple sentence like “I want to drink tea” can have the four possible accents. I or WANT or DRINK or TEA . In Japanese, if I understand correctly, you could accomplish the same communication using 私もorスープもor たべたいも。is that correct? If it is I think it may really help improve my listening skills.
It is a little different but you do raise tone when you want to emphasize in Japanese as well.
But you are right. You cam emphasize with も as I explained in this lesson
number + counter も emphasizes the number
私も Me too/ I also
スープも soup also
X You can’t say たべたいも
Yes, that’s right. You can also say “なんだか” when you are not sure why
Ex. なんか悲しい = Nandaka kanashii
Ex. なんだか悲しい = Nandaka kanashii
= I don’t know why but I am sad. / I am kind of sad.
They mean almost the same.
マギー先生、
I hope you can help me clear up some of my confusion. In this article you use the following example
「これは僕んじゃない」
This makes sense to me but I’ve seen some Japanese people use something like
「これは私のものではありません」which I think could be made more casual by writing 「これは僕のものじゃない。」Is that right? Maybe you could help me write it more casually but my main confusion is what purpose 「もの」is serving in this sentence? It seems to pop up in ways that I don’t really expect it to and it is always confusing to me. Any help you could give me would be much appreciated.
これは私のものではありません。This is not mine.
(もの = thing/object/stuff/item: It refers to the thing in front of you. Instead of saying what it is, you can rephrase it with もの)
For example, you are looking at a bag.
You can say either
これは私・僕のバッグではありません。
or
これは私・僕のものではありません。
Casual speech
→Drop もの
これは私・僕のではありません。This is not mine.
→More casual
これは私・僕んではありません。
Ah! I was confused as I thought もの was being used as a particle somehow and not as the noun “thing”. The order it appears in the sentence was very confusing to me.
Do これは僕のものではありません and これは僕んじゃない have the exact same sort of meaning besides the first one being more formal? Does もの add additional emphasis on the object?
Does もの add additional emphasis on the object?
→Right but I think the idea is the same in English
これは僕のかばんではありません。”This is not my bag.”
これは僕のものではありません。”This is not my stuff.”
これは僕のではありません。/(Casual) これは、僕んではない “This is not mine.”
I’m hoping you can help me with this. In this lesson, you use the example:
「これは僕んじゃない」
I’ve seen other Japanese people write something like
「これは私のものではありません」which I THINK could be written more casually as something like 「これは僕のものじゃない」。Is that right? Or maybe you could show me a proper way to write it less formally, but my main issue is that I don’t know what the purpose of もの is in this sentence. I’m having a hard time understanding it and it seems to confuse me whenever it pops up because it is not used how I expect it to be.
Thank you for this lesson it really helped a lot, but I’m confused in how んです and のです work. Is it that I must first be questioned to use it and can’t use it to explain a statement I made?
例えば: お腹すいた〜
今日は早起きのです。
でも、朝ご飯を作るのが面倒くさいです。
I’m hungry.
(because) I woke up early today.
but I can’t be bothered to make breakfast.
Would be incorrect? As It was corrected to 「今日は早起きです」
Hello Young
I am not sure if I understand your question well but you don’t have to use のです/んです in your example sentence. You can just say
今日は早起きしました。
今日は朝早く起きました。
If you want to emphasize the fact you got up early or add some explanatory tone (You got up early + So/That is why~/Then something happened..etc. ) you use のです/んです
Hi マギー先生
Sometimes こと still confuses me a bit, what does 「気持ちのいいことじゃないことも」mean here in this sentence- “けど、私がどんな話をしてもスライムさんは面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた。話が進むにつれていつの間にか、これまでため込んでいた愚痴や村の子供のことなど聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないことも結構言ったのに。”
I am trying to understand a use of ちゃう. I’ve heard 「聞いちゃいねえ」and it was translated as “they’re not listening”. I don’t know how a negative construction would happen, but my prediction would be 「聞ってなちゃう」. Could you help clear this up?
I have a question that I’d love some help with. It is this particular sentence:
“物語という物語の探求”
Sadly I don’t have much more context to go with it, as that is the full sentence and it’s just listed as someone’s hobby. It is about someone who reads a lot, so I don’t think it’s trying to say that “he’s on a quest to find a book called ‘monogatari'”, though.
I’m guessing the use of という here is the one you have written in (7), “When you repeat something” … so I suppose it’s trying to emphasize 物語, but even knowing that I’m not sure how to interpret this sentence?
My first guess it’s supposed to be something like ‘the story to end all stories/the ultimate story’, like he’s hoping to find the best story ever? Otherwise I’m not sure how else I could take it, and it’s so hard with the lack of context other than knowing this is a person who loves to read….
I think this sentence is using
AというA expression which means “the whole/ all sorts of/everything”
Ex. 犬という犬が好きです = I like all the dogs.
So pursue 物語という物語 = 全ての物語 = all the stories/all sorts of stories
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am copying a question by Victor Hugo posted on June 19th, 2020 for which I do not see a reply. Would you be able to answer it as I have the same question. Thank you very much.
Hi Meggie Sensei! How are you?
I’ve been wondering how to construct a sentence with the たりたりする structure but in negative tense. For example: I don’t gamble, I don’t drink and I don’t smoke (among other things).
Should I conjugate just the final する into しない -> ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。?
Should I conjugate all the verbs into past negative and keep する in affirmative tense -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコを吸わなかったりする?
Should I conjugate the first two verbs into past negative, the final verb into past and する into しない -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない?
Hi Dorina,
I guess I didn’t read his comment. I will repost this answer.
How to connect verb negative form with たり depends on the sentence but when you describe someone’s personality,
the basic form is
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）しない
You also can add は after the last たり
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）はしない
(Using negative form with the last verb)
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。 (correct)
or adding は
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりはしない。 (emphasis)
The following two sentences are unnatural.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない (Double negative so very confusing anyway. You can just say したり〜したり〜する)
All these habits are negative.
If you say なかったり〜なかったり.. it sounds like this person is supposed to gamble/drink/smoke but he/she doesn’t do that.
But it is possible to use this form if you change the sentence a little.
(Let’s say this person has bad habits and gamble, drink or smoke all the time but ) There are some days that he/she doesn’t gamble/drink/smoke.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする日もあります。
Hello! I have a question in regards to first person pronouns. My friend is gender fluid, and I know some people who are gender neutral. In these circumstances, how would someone go about choosing pronouns? Would someone switch between pronouns? Or would they permanently stick with 私 even in more casual situations? Would 自分 be viable even though it’s pretty distant sounding and self focused?
As I wrote in the lesson, 私 is gender free so it might sound a little formal but both women and men can use. 自分 is also neutral.
But actually you often drop the first pronoun in conversation unless you emphasize “I”. So if you use 私/自分 for all your sentences, it may sound unnatural anyway.
I don’t know if I have covered that in some lesson but
遠慮する means “to refrain from ~”
ご遠慮ください。
ご遠慮いただけませんか？
ご遠慮いただけますでしょうか？
All these expressions are very polite and it means “We kindly ask you to refrain from ~ ” = “Please do not do ~ ”
So for example if you tell someone not to smoke, you say
たばこを吸うのをやめてください。
たばこを吸わないでください。
たばこを吸わないでいただけませんか？ (polite)
In more formal way you say
たばこはご遠慮いただけませんか？
Would you please refrain from smoking?
を (wo) is an object marker.
大学前 (daigakumae) is a location where you get off the bus so it can’t be a direct object.
It might be easier for you to see with this sentence.
私は大学前でバスを降ります。
Watashi wa daigakumae de basu wo orimasu.
バス (basu) is an object of your action (get off)
The main action is 降ります (=orimasu).
Where you are going to get off (action)? →大学前 (daigakumae)
So you use で (de) location marker where you do some actions
Hello Maggie-sensei 😁,
I have a quick question about ように expressing a request. I study N3 grammar with the book 新完全マスター日本語能力試験. In the book it is written that to express a request or a demand we can use よう, ように or ようにと but it is not specified if there is a difference between the 3 options or if they are similar 🤔. Here are the examples given with each option;
– 今週中にご返信くださいますよう、お願い申し上げます。
– 雑誌を買ってくるように頼まれた。
– 電車の中では携帯電話で話さないようにと注意された。
If you could enlighten me please 😅. Thank you in advance 😊.
Technically they are the same and interchangeable but
1) 今週中にご返信くださいますよう、お願い申し上げます。
Vますよう、お願いします・お願いいたします・お願い申し上げます (Formal)
Though よう is more common, you can also say Vようにお願いします
The difference is subtle. に adds emphasis of the favor so it sounds slightly stronger.
You can’t use ようにとお願いします because と is to quote what someone said and 〜お願いします is one’s direct request.
2) 雑誌を買ってくるように頼まれた。
You can also say よう and ようにと
Again, に adds more emphasis and と is to quote what someone told you.
３）話さないようにと注意された。
You can also say 話さないよう
In this case ようにと is more natural than 話さないように because it is quoting what someone told you.
I have 2 questions:
1-In the second line, I read that sometimes (wa) comes at end of the sentences and it may mean (conclusion, decision, opinion) or adds feminine flavour. Is (wa) in this line like what I read OR it is related to the next line same as the one in your lesson?
2-I tried to translate these lines but not sure about which sentences are connected or which ones are separated. For example, is line 1 related to line 2&3? the same thing with line 4, is it the continuing of line 3? I’m really confused. Sorry for writing a lot!
So I can say:
What our sparks (which nobody knows and nobody can name (or call)) illuminated a little was the dried soil, the charred rubble
and for sure the days when you smiled.
Is it good enough?
Hello Marie
Ah, OK, によって is more limited compared to ために but you can use both ために/によって
↓
A (cause/reason) + ために/によって + B (result） what happened/what will happen
Let’s rephrase some of my example sentences with によって
Your explanation and examples on 〜し and the difference between it to 〜くて・〜で has been the most comprehensible and exhaustive one I could find after reading through so many articles and forums! The comment thread of questions and answers here has been super helpful as well. Thank you very much for such a fantastic write up!
Hello sensei
か is used when a sentence has question word and か どうか is where no question word in a sentence is it right?
And in front of か / どうか
How to choose we have to use negative verb or positive verb in front of か/ どうか
For example
でんしゃに わすれもの がある か どうか、 or でんしゃに わすれ ものが ないか どうか ?
おしえて いただ けません か 先生 、 おねが いします。
Verbs: Usually “affirmative form” first and the negative form follows/affirmative form + どうか
行くか行かないか
行くかどうか
Adjectives: positive adjective first and its opposite adjective or negative form follows./positive adjective + どうか
好きか嫌いか
好きかどうか
As for your two example sentences, you can say both.
The nuance difference is
でんしゃにわすれものがあるかどうか
The speaker thinks it is possible that he/she left something in the train
でんしゃにわすれものがないかどうか
The speaker thinks there isn’t but want to make sure if there is nothing left.
こんにちはマギー先生！
Based on this lesson, I was trying to construct a sentence saying “Just because I’m a girl, doesn’t mean I have to (be the one to) do the cleaning” (or any other household chores, etc).
So this was my attempt:
女の子だからと言って掃除しないとわけじゃないもん。
Does that look right? Is there a way I can make it more contextually accurate or perhaps sound more natural?
have to do the cleaning = 掃除(を)しなくてはいけない/しなければいけない
so just change that part.
It has two negative form (いけない/じゃない) so it might be a little confusing but
女の子だからと言って掃除しなければいけないわけじゃないもん
Ah, I see. Looks like I left out the いけない part in my sentence.
Is there any particular difference between ～ないといけない and ～なければいけない? There are also the ones with ～ならない, I’ve often wondered if there are nuances to them or they’re all interchangeable.
その前に書いてある文章が「その」の意味に関係します。
例えば、Aさんは勉強をしないという話をしていたら
Aさんをその（勉強する）気にさせる = to motivate A/ to make A to feel like studying / to lead A to study
という意味になります。
Aさんは、お母さんを手伝わないという話だったら
Aさんをその（お母さんを手伝う）気にさせる = to make A to help his/her mother/ to lead A to help his/her mother
Maggie先生,
In your example
日本には行かないことになりました。
= I ended up not going to Japan.
Note: The reason why the speaker is not going to Japan is not necessarily the speaker’s decision. Maybe something happened. We can’t tell the reason from this sentence.
Q: Can I assume that because your note is about the speaker’s future reason why she can’t go that it can be translated as both past and future?
日本には行かないことになりました。
= I ended up not going to Japan.
OR
= (Its been decided/ It ends up) that I won’t go to Japan.
The later translation will be more accurate to interpret this sentence.
→ (Its been decided/ It ends up) that I won’t go to Japan.
Maybe I should add that in the note.
Wow thank you for responding Maggie and thank you for clarification. I’ve been a fan of your help for many years. Thanks for all you have done to explain where the books haven’t!
OK, let me add a few example sentences.
それを = sore wo
Ex. みんなでがんばったのにそれを時間の無駄なんて言わないで。
= Minna de ganbatta noni sore wo jikan no muda nante iwanai de.
We all tried so hard. Don’t even say it was waste of time.
Ex A: .「今、無事に家に着きました。」
= Ima, buji ni ie ni tsukimashita.
= I got home safely now.
B: 「それを聞いて安心しました。長旅お疲れ様でした。」
= Sore wo kiite anshin shimashita. Nagatabi otsukare sama deshita.
= I am relieved to hear that. It was a long trip. Have a good rest.
Hello Maggie. Your lessons are always very helpful, thank you very much
Ｉ feel that I am missing something about this lesson on 感じ.
I see in many occasions that the word 感じ is used also to say something like “how is it going” or something like that,
for example i found sentences like:
テストの結果はどんな感じ?
or
私が教えたギターは 今どんな感じ？ (this is a song by Aimyon called Futari no sekai)
is here どんな感じ used to say ‘how did it go’ or ‘how are you going along’ ?
maybe i can understand if i read a japanese sentence, but i am not sure how to use it,
For example asking a friend that has just moved in a new home, “how are you doing in your new home?” can i say: 新しい家はどんな感じ?
or if a friend tried to pass the JLPT N3 exam can i ask
日本語能力試験どんな感じ? to say “how did it go ?”
I don’t understrand if there is a rule or a particular nuance.
OK, I was going to add the information eventually but let me answer your question here for now.
テストの結果はどんな感じ?
私が教えたギターは 今どんな感じ？
You also use 感じ ( = kanji) when you talk about the progress/status
As you said the translation will be “How did it go”or “How are you going along”
Or “How is it going? “ but it might be easier to think this 感じ means “like”
How is/was ~ like?
What is ~ like?
How are you doing in your new home?
But I guess you can say
新しい家はどんな感じ?
But the listeners might interpret your question →What’s it like your new house?
If you want to ask this question with 感じ, you can say for example
新しい家での生活はどんな感じ?
日本語能力試験どんな感じ?
how did it go
I would say 日本語能力試験はどうだった？ is more common and natural but in conversation, yeah but sure. You can say
試験どんな感じだった?
Hi there,
I searched about the word “motaneba / 持たねば”, but didn’t find what I was looking for. My question: is motaneba the construction of (motanakereba / 持たなければ)?
And if this is the case, does it mean: (If you don’t have)?
Thanks.
Hi Katsu
Vねば is a literal expression of Vなければ
Vなければいけない = have to/must do something
Vねば (ならない/いけない）
You sometimes drop ならない/いけない
So 持たねば = have to have ~
Sorry, I did a mistake. I meant: is motaneba the contraction (not construction) of motanakereba? any way,
By the letter V beside the words, you mean “verb”?
Also I thought (nakereba) is the form of negative and this is why I said (if you don’t have) because “eba” is used for conditional form, right?
So in general, can we say (motaneba) also means (unless)?
It is not contraction but as I said in my previous message もたねば(ならない）(motaneba (naranai)) is an literal/old way to say もたなければならない/いけない(motanakereba/ikenai)
Ex.しなければいけない = shinakereba ikenai = have to do something →literal/old way せねばならない ( = seneba naranai)
Originally this ば (=ba) is conditional. If you don’t do something, it is not good.
So, you can interpret, unless you do something, it is not good. But it means “have to do something/must do something”
Ex.もっとがんばらなくてはいけない →もっとがんばらなくては (I have to try harder)
→(more literal) もっとがんばらねばならない→もっとがんばらねば
I got it, thank you so much for the detailed answer!!
Anytime! :)
Itsumo doori, subarashii ressun 🤩, Sensei hontouni arigatou! (I was looking for a long time for some site that would explain this type of expression)
PS.even if it has nothing to do with this lesson, can I ask a question?
In the sentence you wrote (この寺の修復にはあと５年はかかるとのこと。随分、気の長い話だ) what does it mean “とのこと”? could you explain it to me please?
Hello Luli
Thank you for your kind message.
〜とのこと means ということです/ということだ
You use this when you tell someone what you heard/read. In this case, quoting この寺の修復にはあと５年はかかる
Hi Jimmi
彼に気を使う = to pay attention to his needs/worry about his feelings.
彼に気を使わない = not to pay attention to his needs./not to worry about his feelings. Therefore you can take it easy.→You can be yourself.
The nuance difference is
気を使わないから I don’t worry about his feelings/I don’t pay attention to his needs.
気を使わなくていいから = I don’t have to worry about his feelings/I don’t have to pay attention to his needs.
Hi, Maggie sensei.
In the following text, is it a double negative, or are they separate sentences? They are lyrics, so I’m confused.
Don’t Say 声にならない
胸を締め付けて 痛いだけ
頑なな想い 溶かすことできたなら
どうせ 手に入らない
期待してたわけじゃないけど
Also, 手に入らない refers to “想いを溶かすことできる”?
And 声にならない is used to describe 胸?
Thanks a Lot.
I think “Don’t say” and 声にならない are two different sentences so it is not a double negative.
You insert English phrases here and there so that the lyrics sound somehow cool.
手に入らない probably means the person she loves or love from the person who she likes.
I think 声にならない expresses her feelings (頑なな想い）
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your lessons! I can’t express my gratitude enough!!
I was wondering about the different between Verb+Kiru and verb+ageru and verb+owaru
I know they all mean to “finish doing something” but are there any other nuances?
Hello FluffyBooks,
OK, the nuance difference among Verb+Kiru/verb+ageru /verb+owaru are
verb+owaru = just expressing you have done something/you finish something
Ex. 食べ終わる = finish eating (focusing on the action)
Verb+Kiru = There is certain amount/quantity of something and you have cleared them.
Ex. 食べ切る (You finished eating all the food that you were supposed to eat.)
verb+ageru = You complete some work after putting time and energy.
Maggie-sensei, thanks for the lesson!
I was revising it recently and I got reminded of とする, not related to your lesson because it explains well how it is used after volational, but often I see it used after a noun or in news like someone declared something “政府は、25年までに年間死者数を2000人以下とする目標を掲げている。” or “「重点を国内対策に移す準備を始める」とする”
I believe there is no major translation change when it appears, but i would like to understand the nuance of とする when following a noun.
I hope it was not difficult to understand what I mean, and I hope it’s not a burden too!
(25年までに年間死者数を2000人以下)とする目標
This とする means “ということにする
と = to quote
いうことにする →こととする (formal): to be decided/ to set （ことに決める/ことに設定する, etc.)
You often use this pattern in formal writing.
Your article on this topic is super helpful and insightful, thank you!
However, I’m not sure I can put a site as a reference when writing a report about this topic so could you maybe recommend any books in either English or Japanese with similar information about sa and mi prefixes?
Your article on this topic is super helpful and insightful, thank you!
However, I’m not sure I can put a site as a reference when writing a report about this topic so could you maybe recommend any books in either English or Japanese with similar information about sa and mi prefixes?
All my lessons are original and I don’t use any reference book. Therefore I can’t give you the source book but I am sure there are many grammar books which explain this subject.
Is it for your school project? I have seen some people use this site as a reference in their school report, though.
Sensei, happy new year!
I have a question about this sentence. 「彼、バキバキだね」. May I ask why was it written in Katakana? I thought it was 擬態語.
Have a good day!
Happy New Year!!
OK, as I mentioned at the beginning of this lesson, you are supposed to write 擬態語 in hiragana but actually you see them both written in hiragana and katakana in modern Japanese.
You tend to write colloquial / relatively new 擬態語 in katakana. バキバキ is one of them.
Hi Wendy
I think you posted the same question here twice. (Please note that you can’t get any notification when I reply to you)
Please check below your previous question. I left a comment.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
How are you doing?
Your site is so helpful, thank you for every lesson!
I was watching an anime (Your Lie in April), and came across this sentence:
逆境でこそそいつが本物かどうか分かる。
Could you please help me translate what the でこそ means here?
I know you went over it in this lesson but I find it a little bit hard to understand, does the で show reason and the こそ emphasizes the noun?
OK, this で means “in/at” so “to be IN adversity/ in the hard time”
And こそ emphasizes “being in adversity”
So you can tell if that person is a real deal in adversity (because people tend to show who they are/true self in a hard time.)
Please check the last line,
“henji ga kiita” first.
Was it “kiita” or “kita”? Can you give me the kanji 聞いた 来た 効いた because the translation changes depends on this.
Also I don’t see Japanese line for
“let’s go with Pete! “
I’m curious about something from the anime title この醜くも美しい世界
More specifically, the くも. Is this the same as くても with the て being dropped, or is this just も after the adverbial form of 醜い. Has this been covered before?
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for the wonderful lesson! It is extremely helpful.
I have a minor question.
In one of the sentences, it says:
それでこそ私の息子だ。
I was just a little confused because the dad is speaking, and so I thought he would use 俺 or 僕. Is it normal to use 私?
Both men and women can use 私
It may sound a little formal for a dad talk but when you want to make it sound a bit dramatic, 私 fits.
And of course, if the dad talks in a bit more rough way, he uses 俺
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I hope you are doing well! This lesson was wonderful as always!
I just have a question about 割と.
I know you already mentioned this in the comments but I still do not understand when it is not permissible to use 割と instead of 割に.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I have been loving your lessons so far and cannot thank you enough for making them, my Japanese has improved so much with this site!
I just have a small question about one of the sentences:
本当！昨日なんか窓が凍ってたもん。
I simply do not understand the use of もん in this sentence, could you please briefly explain it to me?
First thank you so much for your kind words. I am very happy to hear your Japanese has improved a lot.
もん is a casual suffix and it is originally from もの and you use it to give a reason or express your feelings such as surprise or irritation.
昨日なんか窓が凍ってたもの。(It sounds slightly feminine ) →(casual) 〜凍ってたもん
In this case, talking about the cold weather giving an example with surprised feelings.
I learn so much through your lesson posts! Thank you so much for this! I have a question…I actually found your page when I was googling about something else, but I came across this sentece:
「辞書」がより一般的だと思います
^ this was someone’s response to whether we use 辞書more or 辞典. The translation from Google was:
“I think “辞書” is more common.”
I feel like のほうが should have been used in this instance? Does this mean that when you put the particle が right after an object (辞書 in this case), it changes things?
Thank you so much in advance for your help!! I see that you respond so diligently and thoroughly to everyone’s questions, and I truly cannot thank you enough for your dedication to your readers <3
Hi Maggie-sensei! Have you ever heard the song “Picnic” by Radwimps? I think it’s wonderful, but have never been able to full get the sense of the last line, a line the singer repeats many times! The lines are as follows:
それなら refers to the previous sentence(s) (We are the lights which can’t reach the miracle ) and it means “If so../If that is the case”
いっそ僕ら We’d rather / Maybe we should ~ / Why don’t we ~ ?
それならいっそ僕ら is unfinished sentence. The listener has to guess what he wants to do with her.
(For example, leave the lights behind them, etc.)
I like Radwimps but I have never heard this song. It is a theme song for トイレのピエタ which deals with love and life and death. So I assume the meaning of the last line is very deep.
Hi Maggie! I know this lesson it’s not about this but is it true that 「よう」also means “Hello/Hi”? I mean in real life, not dramas or anime…
Say “Hello” in a casual way is kind of difficult in japanese I think 🤔😂
Hola David,
よう is a rough casual male speech and it is like “ YO!” / Hey” /sup? = “What’s up?” in English.
A short form is just よっ！ This sounds slightly cuter.
Not just a casual greeting but you also use よう/ようよう (Hey! Listen to me!) when you threaten people, too.
Either way, it sound rough so I rarely hear that in real life but I guess it depends on your circumstances. 😆
How are you? Everything going well for you I hope!
I came across a phrase today that I’d never seen involving もらう:
この幸せなもらわれっ子のお犬様め。
It’s being said by a cat who is having a fight with a dog.
I get the feeling he’s being rude (because he’s quite a rude cat and he’s talking about a dog).
The もらわれっ子 bit – is this a derogatory phrase? Kind of like an unwanted adopted child?
Hi Peter,
Haha I thought you are talking about me. U^ェ^U
Right もらわれっ子 means a adopted kid (the formal word is 養子（ようし) an adopted child/person)
And you are right. Though it sounds a little cute, it could be used as a derogatory term.
Sorry lOra
I can see you wrote the same message a few times. The site has been acting up. You might have had a trouble accessing the comment section.
Anyway this “to” is used to quote, saying ~ .
In this case, it quotes 諦めるな ( = akirameru na = Don’t give up)
~ pointed the direction towards ~ saying “Don’t give up” with a laugh.
Right 地味 (= じみ = jimi) means “simple/plain)
You use て/で when you connect words or give a reason. So it is up to what follows but
地味でつまらない = jimi de tsumaranai = plain and boring
そのシャツは、地味であまり着ていない = Sono shatsu wa jimi de amari kiteinai = I don’t wear that shirt so much because it was (too) plain for me.
Hajimemashite, Maggie-sensei. I’m Henry. Perhaps, this issue has been addressed here but I’ve been unable to find an answer yet.
I’ve recently come across another example of how wakenai is used and I’m a little confused, because, apparently, it can also mean “it’s really easy” as in フランス語を話す彼にとってわけないことだ。
The question is: how to differentiate between the two meanings? Could, for example, “試験に合格するわけないだろう” mean “There’s no way I’ll pass the exam” or “Of course, I will pass the exam (it’s super easy)”. If so, how to tell which meaning is implied here? Is it the intonation or something else that helps to differentiate those two meanings?
Hajimemashite!
OK, わけない(訳無い) is an expression which means “easy” and different from わけがない
Nは、わけない・わけないことだ・です = ~ is easy
Vするのはわけない・わけないことだ ・です= Doing something is easy
When I was watching a short video in Japanese, I heard a girl say |書いてた|
(she was texting her friend). I was surprised because I thought it would be |書いた|.
Could you explain the difference between |書いてた| and |書いた|, please?
OK, 書いた is “He wrote the message” It just describes one time action in the past, “He wrote ~”
書いてた is like “He did write the message” (emphasizing the action of writing and the action affects the current state = she can see the outcome, the message appeared on the phone.)
Oh, I see! It is used quite often in every day conversations, isn’t it? (e.g. 怒っていたから手紙をくしゃくしゃした).
Thank you for helping out, dear Maggie!
You are very welcome, Rapuntsel. :)
Hello Maggie Sensei, I hope you are doing well. I loved this lesson and it was super helpful! Thank you so much!!
I was just slightly confused about one of the verbs you used, “前にする”. I searched this up but I could not find much about it. Is it a common verb? Is it slang?
Hi Maggie-sensei🌻
I have a weird question and it’s a bit off-topic. I hope you don’t mind!
Let’s say that we’re close friends. We were having a talk but you were a bit too fast for me to catch what you were saying. I would want to say something like 「ごめん、聞こえなかったよ。もう一度言ってくれる？」, right?
But if I had only said 「ごめん、聞こえなかったよ」 would you still understand what I mean?😅
Hello Andrew
The difference between
1) 痛くなりませんでした and 2) 痛くなくなりました is
1) It didn’t hurt before but you expect it will hurt later. But after taking the medicine, it didn’t hurt after all.
2) It hurt before. But after taking the medicine, the pain was gone. 〜なる/~なくなる express the change.
(FYI I have a lesson on なる The link is here.)
Even though my studies have progressed considerably, sometimes something as basic as 今 would still trip me up; particularly with sentences that use 今から／今まで, as my brain would translate it as “from now”/”until now” in its literal sense. 今まの今まで「今の今まで」知りませんでした！;p
Hey, Maggie. Thanks for doing these, your posts are always my go to when I don’t understand something. In this case I was checking if there was some hidden meaning of も that was confusing me, but turns out the dialogue I was reading was just poorly written!
Anyways, as for using も to emphasize a quality, I think there is a pretty good English translation using “whole”.
E.g.
１年で１０kgも太った。
I gained a whole 10 kg in one year.
もう２時間も待った。
I’ve already waited 2 whole hours.
もう彼女に三日も会っていない。
I haven’t seen her (or my girlfriend) for three whole days.
I think this one is often overlooked because も is so strongly associated in people’s minds with also/too/even. It’s often a good way to translate the emphasized amount, so just wanted to share!
That たり has a function of giving some examples, “doing this and that and etc.”
I eat sprinkling parsley and so on/and stuff. (It implies the speaker eat with something else, too.)
1/ 3ヶ月間日本語を勉強している。
2/ 3ヶ月日本語を勉強している。
Is there any difference between these two sentences? Why do we need to use “間” when “3ヶ月” is already the duration of month? Can I omit it? I don’t really get how it works tho..
Hello Mimi
For your example sentences, you can use both 3ヶ月・3ヶ月間 and they mean the same.
I have been studying Japanese for three months.
You can omit 間 and just say ヶ月.
The nuance difference is you tend to use 〜間 when you are constantly doing something during certain period of time or stress the time period more. And ヶ月 is just mentioning the period of time.
I was wondering if you would be able to make an extension of this lesson about vocabulary relating to the coronavirus pandemic 😅 I know it has been a while since it started, but I still struggle with the relevant words. Thank you so much as always, I have been following all your lessons for years.
Hi,
Can you please translate this line, it’s from a song:
(諦観 それも今となりゃ野暮か)
I searched everywhere about (narya) but didn’t find anything. Does it come from naru+ ya OR nari+ya?
Hi
I don’t do the translation here but
今となりゃ is a casual contraction of 今となれば = 今となっては at this point/ something is no longer ~ / Something used to be ~ but it has become ~at this point
I explained the usage of りゃ in this lesson. Link is here.
この場合は、英語の翻訳は同じなのですが、動作の視点が微妙に違います。
(In this case, the English translation could be the same but the point of view of the action is slightly different.)
行くついで 買い物に行く途中 on your way
行ったついで もう買い物に来ていてそこからクリーニング屋に行く
Hello Vivi,
You mean if you can use
〜と〜たら？
Yes. Let me fix your sentence a little.
勉強を（途中で）諦めてもいいからと諦めたらきっと後悔するだろうね。（するんだろうね = more casual)
or instead of saying 諦める, you can also say やめる
勉強をやめてもいいからとやめたら
“けっこう笑ってたいんだ。” I heard someone says this when he was telling a very funny story. I guess he means that “That kind of makes me want to laugh” (?). I’m sure he was not talking about the song’s name so I really want to know the meaning and how it forms like that. Like て form + たい? That’s so strange..
Hi Mimi,
けっこう笑ってたいんだ。
I really need to see the scene to answer your question but that phrase means,
I want to laugh. I am the person who wants to laugh.
or if the person is talking about other people,
He/She wants to laugh.
OK. Let me add one more grammatical point.
笑ってたいんだ is a casual contraction of 笑っていたいんだ
Vていたい and Vたい are slightly different.
Vていたい = keep doing something/ to be in the state for a long time
So 笑ってたい is “want to keep laughing/ to be in the situation where one can laugh often”
Hey, Maggie-sensei! I thought I had a pretty good grasp on くらい, but then I came across this sentence:
言葉にならないくらいです。
I understand this means something to the effect of “(I’m so happy) I can’t put it into words,” but I don’t really understand くらい’s purpose here. Help me, Maggie-sensei!
I want to ask about the difference between “Xが好きになる” and “Xを好きになる”。Is there any difference in meaning/nuance between these two when using different particles?
I even saw “XがYを好きになる”, I’m so confused, keep wondering if it was “X likes Y” or “Y likes X”???
I’ve already searched it up on Google but there is no answer 🥺.
The difference is subtle but while Xを好きになる is “I will like X”
“X”が好きになる = You emphasize X. = to come to like “X” (anybody/anything else but X)
“Xを好きになる” = The message, “to come to like X” is important.
Thanks for all of your helpful articles! Even something as simple as 今 can be used in so many ways!!
I have a question about 今や. I have seen this used a lot in novels, but I have never really understood the nuance to it. From what I’ve seen, it emphasizes the present instead of the past, but is there a specific meaning to it different from your examples in this article like 今は?
I look forward to your response. Thanks as always!
Thank YOU for everything, too, JP!
Ah, good question.
今や is an expression to stress “今” to show the contrast to the past.
For example, you are talking about someone who used to be an ordinary person like any other people but he/she became a big star.
昔は、ありきたりの人だったが、今は大スターだ。
→emphasize the contrast
昔はありきたりの人だったが今や大スターだ。(You also say 今では）
Maggie sensei, I heard someone said “忘れんなよ” before, and I’ve asked my friend who is also studying Japanese and she told me that it was like a shorten form/colloquial of “忘れないよ”. But my thought is a bit different. I have read somewhere that “してるの?” = “してんの?”, so my guess “忘れんなよ” = “忘れるなよ” 🤔🤔 I’m not sure which one is correct…
Maggie-sensei, I have a stupid question about this sentence.
Ex. 宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃなかったよ。= The medicine I saw on the commercial is not this one.
Can I say “宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃないよ” instead? What is the difference between them?
Actually the way how tenses work in Japanese hurts my head so bad. T_T It is so hard to comprehend. By the way, I have one more (kind of related) question:
“庭はきれい” – The garden is beautiful [present, like right now it’s still beautiful]
“庭はきれいだった” – The garden was beautiful [past, right now it’s not beautiful anymore].
But can I use “庭はきれいだった” when I want to tell someone that I don’t know how the garden looks like right now, the last time I visited it, it was beautiful? Does past tense always indicate that the event/state {has been completed/no longer in that condition} anymore?
It is not a stupid question. It is a good question. 😉
You can also say “宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃないよ“
The nuance difference is when you focus on the time when you saw the medicine in the advertisement, これじゃなかった. (It was not the same one that I saw in the advertisement. When you focus on the current time looking at the medicine comparing what you saw in the advertisement, これじゃないよ. (This is different from what I saw in the advertisement.)
Your second question
Basically you use present tense 1) when you describe what is happening right now or 2) when you talk about the definition or concept of something.
For example, you are telling your friend how beautiful the garden is.
庭はきれいだよ。 = the garden is beautiful.
It implies the garden is always beautiful or famous for their beautiful garden.
And when you describe how beautiful the garden was when you actually saw it,
庭がきれいだったよ/庭はきれいだったよ。= The garden was beautiful
(When you stress the garden, you use the particle が)
Again, you are focusing on the time you saw the garden.
Actually I’m still new to Japanese, I’ve learned Japanese for 3 months by self-study. That’s why I’m so grateful for what sensei have done so far. Every lesson was made with so much efforts! On my learning process, I come across many difficulties and I have many questions, which I don’t think that anyone out there would talk about it. But whenever I look it up on Google, Maggie sensei’s site always has full explanation for everything!!! 🙏
I’m not good at English so I will stop here. Thank you so much sensei. 🥰
Hi Maggie Sensei! I hope you’re ok! I wanna ask you about だった as “because”… It’s always used when there is something previous? For example in the example sentence said: 「だって、おなかすいたんだもん。」But there is “something previous”: 「さっき食べたばかりじゃない。」In this case it’s a reply. Would be right start a conversation with だって? For example: 「あのさ、だって日本に行きたい、よく日本語の勉強するよ」It’s that ok? I think with から would be ok but I wanna know with だって. Same example but with から: 「あのさ、日本に行きたいから、よく日本語の勉強するよ」
Hello David,
元気？
だった→You mean the usage of だって?
You don’t say 「あのさ、だって日本に行きたい、よく日本語の勉強するよ」
As you said, から works
あのさ、日本に行きたいから ~
よく日本語の勉強をするよ is a bit unnatural. I would say もっと日本語の勉強をするよ。・日本語をがんばるよ。
You can’t connect “reason” and “outcome/decision” with だって. You say something first and then explain the reason why starting with だって.
いつもありがとうございます！💐わかった！
But in your final example would be ok if you omit から and say: もっと日本語の勉強をがんばるよ。だって日本に行きたい。? Use だって and から at the same time isn’t like I’m saying because two times?
Also I feel a bit confused with “日本語の勉強をがんばる”, because I thought that がんばる was an intransitive verb and you couldn’t use を… 😓😹
You can say だって日本に行きたい。but you are explaining the reason why you will study Japanese more so
だって~から/だって〜し/ だって〜もの(ore more casual もん） are more natural in conversation.
だって日本に行きたいから。/ だって日本に行きたいし/だって日本に行きたいもの（casual もん）
As for がんばる, yes it is 自動詞 but you can use it as 他動詞 as well in conversation.
Noun をがんばる
Ex.仕事をがんばる
You can also say もっと上達するようにがんばるよ。
Hi, Maggie! First of all, thank you so much for the lesson! It is very helpful.
I have only one doubt about せっかく. How do you use the patterns せっかく～ても／せっかく～でも? Could you please give me an example sentence with せっかく～ても and another with せっかく～でも?
In what they differ from sentences with just ～ても／～でも meaning “although, even though”?
OK,
せっかくいい天気でも忙しくてどこにもいけない。
Though it is a nice weather, I am so busy that I can’t go anywhere.
せっかくの休みでも家族の世話をしなくてはいけない。
Though it is my day-off, I have to take care of my family.
Thank you very much for the sentences! They helped me a lot :)
My pleasure! :)
Which of the categories of sentences on this page do these sentences belong to? Is this the same use as せっかくの?
In other words, can I say せっかくのいい会社に入ってもすぐに辞めてしまう人が多い?
Thank you.
Hi Maggie Sensei, I’ve been reading up on the も particle recently and I saw something interesting. It said that (for example) the sentence
小林さんも水を飲みました。
is in reality
小林さんは小林さんも水を飲みました。
In other words, the topic-marking は isn’t replaced by も, it is actually still there but it’s unnatural to say it. What are your thoughts on this and are there any articles written in Japanese about this?
No problem.
You may sometime get confused when you read a long complicated sentence but please remember the rule.
But if you ever get confused again, I am always here for you. 😉
I was looking for a certain grammar point and of course I come back to Maggie Sensei :)
I didn’t know about Hachikou! Very cool story. My dad knew all about it though, which is weird… He’s an old American and not very “cultural”. We had 2 Akita’s when I was very little and now I know why!
Hi Peter,
How have you been?
ナナはどうだったのだ means “How was Nana?”
ナナはどうだった？・(polite) どうでしたか？ = How was Nana?
↓ (stronger, seeking explanation)
ナナはどうだったの？ (casual speech) / どうだったのですか？ (polite speech)
↓
Male speech
ナナはどうだったのだ
It sounds bossy and a bit dramatic.
I’ve been good, thanks for asking.
Hope everything is good your end :)
Thanks for the explanation. Could I ask something else…?
I read ages ago that ~のだ can be used a kind of command form (usually used in films and books for dramatic uses), but I forgot until you said “a bit dramatic” above. Is that what ~のだ means here…?
And is 「勝手に何言ってんだよ、悟!」 similar?
In English we’d say “What are you saying Satoru!?” – grammatically it’s a question, but we don’t really mean it as a question. By saying this, we would really mean “Don’t say that Satoru!” – a kind of dramatic command.
「勝手に何言ってんだよ、悟!」 is not a command. As you said,
What are you saying Satoru!
何Vてんだよ (male speech) /何Vてんの(both men and women use) / 何 Vてんのよ(female speech) express the speaker’s feelings such as frustration or annoyed feelings. You usually use this pattern when you complain or talk back.
The usage of command with のだ/んだ is like
Ex. もうやめるのだ！ Stop it already!
Sometimes you attach ぞ
Ex. がんばって勉強するんだぞ。 Study hard, OK?
And yes, it is a rough male speech and it’s for dramatic uses.
Thank you Maggie Sensei! You answered my question well. (◍•ᴗ•◍) I understand better now.
Good question.
行く
いく is more common and conversational
ゆく was used in old days. You still use it mainly in written form as a poetic or literal expressions so that you hear that in lyrics.
Hello Maggie Sensei, I love your lessons so much. They have been extremely helpful!!
I was slightly confused about this sentence:
このうちのきれいさは、うちと比べ物にならない。
What does this mean? Does it mean that our house is so clean this house is nothing compared to it, so this house is not as clean as ours? Or does it mean this house is so clean that our house is incomparable to it, so this house is cleaner than ours?
The later interpretation is right. This house is so clean that I can’t even compare my house with this house. (This house is much cleaner than my house.)
Original sentence こんな建物を昔に作ってしまうなんて →作っちゃうなんて
作る means “to build” but by adding しまう・ちゃう you add the meaning of “accomplish of a task (of building this kind of architecture”
Hi Maggie Sensei! How would I form a sentence using “after” as in “I woke up after my children” (i.e. in the sense of later than)? I’m a little stuck on which construction is most appropriate here.
Hi Sensei! It looks like ~ni yotte can sometimes mean “because”. In these cases, how does it differ from ~kara, which I know can also mean “because”? Thank you!
It is true. You use から to indicate the reason/cause.
The difference is から is more conversational and より is more formal
The train is delayed due to an accident
事故により電車が遅れています。(formal/literal)
事故があったから電車が遅れています。(more conversational)
So you use より for the announcement of the trains because it is more formal.
But when you tell someone that the train is delayed because of an accident in conversation, you use から
Hello. Thank you very much telling about the differences が/を with きっかけ。But i have one question. In my textbook there is a example: いつたばこをおやめになったのですか。and answer: 彼女にやめると言われたのがきっかけなんです。So they are asking “when/いつ” ,but the answer is “がきっかけ”、not ” をきっかけ”.why?thank you for your answer
OK, actually your sentence doesn’t have で and に and it ends with 〜(なん)です
but you can rephrase it.
The reason why I quit smoking was because she told me to quit.
→たばこをやめたのは、彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）からです。
いつ？
→彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）のをきっかけにたばこをやめた。
The time when I quit smoking was when she told me to quit.
→たばこをやめたのは、彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）時です。
なぜ？ Why?
→彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた） のがきっかけでたばこをやめた。
I am trying to understand the need of form causative passive when we already have the causative form.
example sentence, I was taught that for causative sentence, it carry different nuance of which particle (に or を) we will attach to the “victim” (pardon me for the lack of better term)
彼らは彼にアメリカへ行かせた。==> They let him to go to America
彼らは彼をアメリカへ行かせた。==> They made him to go to America (and he has no say against it).
My question is, how is causative form with を different from causative passive? Is it to convey the level of obedience of the “victim” ?
彼は彼らにアメリカへ行かせられた。==> He was forced by them to go to America ( no room of negotiation).
Also, is the use case of causative passive is only to say “Someone forced/made someone to do something?”
Hello ユフィ
Yes, you use causative passive form to convey the level of obedience or express annoyed feelings that you are forced to do something that you don’t want to do and it is only used to say “Someone forced/made someone to do something?”
So, if you want to change this sentence 彼らは彼にアメリカへ行かせた。 from his point of view, you can say for example
彼は、彼らにアメリカに行かせてもらった。
to show his appreciation.
I came across this sentence today and I think it is related to ~ちゃう but just wanted to make sure:
いくら共働きだからって、子供めんどくさいから田舎に転校させちゃえってならないよな、普通。
“No matter how much they both work together, it doesn’t mean they should send a troublesome child to another school in the country.”
I’ve also never seen ~だからって – is this a casual form of ~からと言って?
Hi Rina,
First do you know this form?
Vないといけない = have to do something
Ex. もっと勉強しないといけない = I have to study more.
Ex. この本を読まないといけない = I have to read a book.
Vて（で）おかないといけない = have to be done doing something/have to finish doing something (as a preparation)
So
Ex. 読んでおかないといけない。 = I have to finish reading the book ahead of time.
1 is right and 2 is wrong, but why is 1 right? I think they should both be wrong because using an action verb, you cannot use ば or と and have volition of the speaker, and there is volition of the speaker here for both ば and と? (Unless 貸 is not an action verb is it a state verb?)
Hi Mark,
I am sure you do this but when you read a long sentence, find the main verb and subject and put ( ) the rest.
The only word which has が is 資格試験 so the subject is 資格試験 and the main verb is あるわけではない
(医者や学校の先生のように評論家になるための) 資格試験があるわけではない。
Hello Maggie Sensei,
thank you for your answer. Yes I know about the main verb and subject.
But someone said that the rest in brackets () = (医者や学校の先生のように評論家
do not go with the main verb あるわけではない.
They said that (医者や学校の先生( do NOT go with the main verb, meaning they NEED a test, and the 評論家 does not need a test/
So my question is do all 3 of them do not need a test in this sentence, or does the Critic only does not need a test? This was my question originally, how can I tell from what’s in the brackets ()?
So only doctor and school teachers need a test but not critic.
医者や学校の先生になるためには資格試験があります。
でも、評論家になるにはそんな資格試験はありません。
to be a doctor or school teacher you need qualification test.
But to be a critic, there is no qualification test.
Hello Maggies Sensei,
I think my problem is not understanding the right meaning of のように
I thought it meant:
Like a doctor and teacher you do not need an exam for a critic. ( All 3 do not need exams ) But this is wrong right?
Is this correct meaning of のように:
There are no qualification exams to become a critic “LIKE” doctors and school teachers.
Is this correct?
I always thought のように means exactly the same, or in the same way/
There are no qualification exams to become a critic “LIKE” doctors and school teachers.
Right.
医者や学校の先生のように評論家になるための資格試験がある
There is a test to become a critic just like a doctor and teacher.
By adding わけではない, you can negate this sentence.
It is not that ~
You use 〜かというと to bring up some question, in this case “whether this fish is representative fish for Japan or not” and answer in the same sentence. (in this case, しっくりこなくても仕方ない = We can’t really say that . ）
It is a little formal but you hear it in conversation as well.
The similar expression is
〜かと言われると/言われたら・ 〜かと聞かれたら When you say/you ask me / When it comes to
Ex. A) 「その店はおいしくないの？ 」
B ) 「おいしくないかと言われると・聞かれたら、そうだね。おいしくないかなあ。」
Maggie Sensei Konnichiwa! I think your site is one of the most clear I`ve seen so far! If possibile, I`d like to ask: what`s the difference between tame ni, no ni or just ni? Thank you!
A lot of expressions with に/のに can be replaced with ために
（The difference is ために emphasize the reason more than に)
友達に会いに日本に来た。
=友達に会うために日本に来た。
I came to Japan to see my friend.
I use this textbook to teach Japanese./ I need this textbook to teach Japanese.
この本は日本語を教えるのに使います/必要です
= この本は日本語を教えるために使います。/必要です
I saved up $ 3,000 in order to go to Japan.
日本に行くのに3,000ドル貯金をしました。
= 日本に行くために3,000ドル貯金をしました。
However, you can’t replace the specific usages of ために with に・のに
someoneのために + do something
家族旅行のために会社から休みを取った。
(X に・のに）
Cause
台風のため、電車が遅れた。
(X に・のに）
You tend to use に・のに
when you use something for something
(の)に使います。
you need something to do something
~ (の)に必要です
Ah, I guess I haven’t made a lesson on 〜に・のに yet.
I will add it to the list for the future lessons. :)
So are there two different imperative verb conjugations in Japanese then? Because on Jisho.org, I’ve noticed that they list 行け (affirmative) and 行くな (negative) as the imperative forms of 行く.
The imperative form of 行く is 行け
The imperative form of 行っている is 行っていろ
So if the verb is compound verb, you make an imperative form with the second verb
Hey there, I was studying this grammar point by a N3 a book called TRY! and in it there are some exercises where they ask the student to choose between niyotte and niyoru. When should I choose one your the other? I noticed that at the end of sentences only niyoru can be used, however in the book there are exercices where the placemment of the structure is mid sentence …
Hi Wendy
You can also say
アランが言うとおり、幽霊なんていないのかもしれないね。
When it modifies a noun in this case とおり, you can change が to の
I explained in this lesson. Please check.
How to modify a noun. Click this link.
Hello Maggie sensei🌻, I wanna ask you about Watashi, Boku and Ore🙏. I understand that Watashi it’s the safe option most of the time (with older people, not close relationship, stranger, etc), but I wanna know your opinion about 2 examples that makes me think a lot (I’m in my 20’s just in case that age were important):
1st example: Talking with older people, they are the age of my parents and they treat me like a son, we are close.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi: could be ok but maybe a bit cold if we have a close relationship?
Boku: in this case to me sounds ok if they treat me like a son? but doesn’t sound like a teenager? I’m a young adult but it’s not a good idea sound like a teenager when you are a responsible adult
Ore: I don’t know in this case, maybe rude because they are older? or maybe ok if you wanna show yourself like an adult?
2nd example: Couple relationship or date with a girl.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi: Weird if she’s your girlfriend or it’s a date?
Boku: Not so ok because you sound like a teenager?
1st example
Watashi:
→If you know them well and they treat like their son, it is too formal to use 私
Boku:
→ For your age, it is the safest and the most natural way to call yourself.
Ore:
→You are right. It sounds a bit rude and rough. Unless you have a very close relationship. It doesn’t show yourself like an adult.
2nd example: Couple relationship or date with a girl.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi:
→Right Too formal.
Boku: Not so ok because you sound like a teenager?
→ぼく is not necessary just for teenagers. You can use ぼく
Ore:
→This depends on your personality. If you are calling yourself おれ in daily life and the girl think it is natural, it is acceptable. Some girls don’t care but some do so there is a fine line.
But the thing is you often omit the first pronoun and the second pronoun in conversation so unless you focus on yourself, you don’t use ぼく、おれ、わたし in conversation.
You: 昨日は、疲（つか）れて1日寝（ね）てたよ。
(I was really tired yesterday and slept all day yesterday.)
The girl : なんで疲れてたの？
(How come you were so tired?)
You: その前の日、徹夜(てつや）で勉強してたからさあ。
(Because I was studying all night the day before so…)
Thank you as always Maggie sensei🌻, it’s a deep topic and closely related to culture in my opinion, so unless you’re native japanese it’s not easy to fully understand, also there are many many opinions when native japanese people explain these words. Finally I would like to ask your opinion about a 3rd example:
It’s an informal situation, but it’s the first time that I meet that person, and he or she is the same age or younger than me, could be a friend of a friend or something like that, in that situation which word would be better if I have to use “I”? and also in a situation like that, should I use formal style like masu form and desu, or informal style? Thank you for the advice about omitting pronouns too 🌻🌻
ておいた did something ahead of time for future use. /prepared something for future use
ていた was/were doing something (Just action)
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいた
I prepared the dinner for my children before we/I went out.
You can imagine from the sentence that the writer prepared dinner and left it on the table so that his/her children can eat right away when they get home.
（Someone は）出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っていた。
Someone was cooking dinner for children before she/he went out.
It focuses on the action, cooking for children. It doesn’t matter if the children ate the dinner that time or later.
In this sentence, 「若い男は急いで立ち上がり、二、三の言葉をどもってたちまち行ってしまった」, is the 「しまった」the same as what you’ve written about here? Is it just emphasising the completeness of 「行く」?
行ってしまった: The usage of this てしまった is the completion of action 行く but it also involves the writer’s surprised feelings for something unexpected. (The person was gone in a minute)
Hmm but did you read this lesson?
I think I covered the same usage of はず in this lesson.
1 いないはずです
I explained the usage of はず in the example sentences
verb (plain negative form ) + はず ( = hazu) + だ ( = da)/ です ( = desu)
to expect something/someone doesn’t do something/isn’t ~
Ex. マギーは今、家にいないはずだ。
= Maggie shouldn’t be home now./ Maggie is not supposed to be home now.
It is the same pattern.
I added two example sentences but when you connect na-adjctive with とか,
→ na-adjctive + だ ＋ とか
You need だ when you quote 〜と言う but you tend to omit だ in casual conversation.
Maggie-sensei! Please, Could you make a lesson about when to use 動詞＋場合・名詞の場合?
For example… I having lots of trouble finding the reason of next sentence is right… “地震の場合、エレベーターが使用禁止” or “遅刻する場合、お知らせください” but next isn’t right “地震が起こる場合、…” or “地震が起きた場合、…”
Thank you sooooo much! I promise to pay you an extra large coffee!
Ah OK, that し is a verb, する
発見をする = to discover
(masu-form) 発見をします
You attach the suffix づらい with masu-stem and expresses, hard to do ~ / difficult do do ~
発見をしづらい
masu form します
→masu-stem (delte ます）し ＋づらい (hard to do) ⇨しづらい
Another example
見る to see →(masu form) 見ます
→(masu-stem) 見
→attach づらい
→見づらい hard to see
Is といって working as と言う or 居る. To my thinking I think it is working as the first one, but if it so, why not use という。Is it because て is helping with the continuation of the sentence?
I feel like when I see ても I’m still often confused about its usage. Like recently I saw:
空腹のせいで部活で負けられても困りますから。
Which should express the idea “(I gave you the meal) because I wouldn’t like it if games were lost in club due to an empty stomach. ” But I have no idea how ても is supposed to fit in here. Could you possibly clue me in here?
Actually you can rephrase the sentence
空腹のせいで部活で負けられては困りますから。
If you(they) lose the game/match in the club activity, I would be in trouble.
And emphasize “losing the game” you change は to も
So it would be easier to think it is a function of も to emphasize the meaning.
Hi sensei, I have a question. In this sentence “決められなくない?” is not included は/も, but is it still part of this grammar? and therefore the meaning is “it’s not that I can’t decide (I can decide)”?
I don’t know the context but if it clear what you are talking about, you can omit the object and the particle.
The meaning is, “Isn’t it hard to decide/pick?”/”Don’t you think it is hard to decide/pick?” (the speaker is seeking an agreement from a listener.)
(things that you want an agreement from the listener) ＋ ない？
こんにちはマギー先生！！I am a new member〜
Can you tell me how to read the lessons in order? Should I study according to the date of lessons?
Sorry, my English is not good…
And thank you ^^
こんにちは、奈々生
Welcome to my site.
There is no right order to study this site. I believe all my readers have different levels and interests. I have been trying to cover lots of information in one lesson targeting all different levels.
One lesson is pretty long so you can get the information you like and move on to the different lesson.
You can use the JLPT level tag if you are focusing on grammar.
Oh no…
I just realized my main lesson index has been inactivated. I fixed it now so you can go through the list.
Hi Maggie Sensei 😊, after my last question in the lesson about atatakai, I was thinking why in the sentence that you fixed for me I have to use との, but finally I can understand after read this lesson! But I wanna ask you something, in that question you gave me the next suggestion: マギーには、いつも私との温かい家庭があります。My question is, when we are using との, could the order of the words be changed without changing the meaning of the sentence? For example, if I change the order and write itsumo after “watashi to no” and not before, it’s still ok? Example: マギーには、私とのいつも温かい家庭があります。
Yes, you can say that but the meaning changes slightly.
マギーには、いつも私との温かい家庭があります。 いつも modifies 家庭があります (Maggie always has a warm family)
マギーには、私とのいつも温かい家庭があります。いつも modifies 温かい家庭 always-warm family
マギー先生こんにちは👋
In this song, Blue-Fujifabric, there’s this part that confuses me a bit
「まとめた言葉 単純なのにな
いつも上手く言えないのはなんでだろう」
What does the な after なのに means? To me it sounds like it doesn’t add anything because i can’t understand it, but i know i’m most likely wrong. Is it another structure? Or something related to のに？
Hi Glens
OK, for example let compare the following sentences.
「このレッスンにくるたびに私に会えますね。」 You get to see me every time you visit this site.
たびに every time when you do something
「このレッスンにくると私に会えますね。」 You get to see me when you visit this site.
と when you do something
たびに implies the repetitive actions. visiting my site over and over.
と can be just once and it could be used when you are just talking about the possibility.
First as I explained in the lesson
Vて（で）くる/ Vて（で）いく
express the movement / change coming toward you (てくる） and going away from you (ていく）
飛んでいく tondeiku = to fly away from where you are/ to rush to somewhere
飛んでくる tondekuru = something/someone is flying towards you
Vて（で）きそう/V（で）ていきそう
By adding そう you can express
as if something is flying away from where you/something is about to fly away (飛んでいきそう = tondeikisou )
as if someone is rushing towards you （飛んできそう = tondekisou)
言ってくる to come to someone and say something
conditional form with ば →言ってくれば If you come to tell me
（You also use the conditional form with たら →言ってきたら)
言ってくれる to say something for the speaker/writer
conditional form with ば → 言ってくれれば If you say something for me
（（You also use the conditional form with たら →言ってくれたら)
If you want to learn more about the conditional form check my ば lesson.
I’m so, so thankful for this! Your detailed explanation about the levels of politieness and giving context is a lifesaver. I think this is the best post on the internet about this subject. Thank you again!
Hi Maggie sensei!
I noticed in casual conversations, people will often use もう at the end of sentences. For example, if two friends are joking around and one of them goes “やめて、もう！！”
Does this もう have the same meaning, like “quit it already!!” or is it a different grammar form?
Hi Maggie! When I read your example “温かい家庭” I start to think if 家庭 should be use with ある or いる? For example: “マギーのために私といつも温かい家庭ある”, it’s that phrase ok? make sense? and it’s ok ある in this case and not いる? It’s a bit confuse to me because the translation of 家庭 in the dictionary is like home or family, and home sounds like a not living thing (ある) but I wonder if family could be like a living thing maybe (いる), 家庭 it’s a bit confuse to me but an interesting word
Hi David,
Ah you are right.家庭 can be translated family/home but here’s the rule
家庭 → ある (You treat it as a group/idea of home)
家族 → いる (You treat the word as people/group of people)
So basically I have a warm family in Japanese
私には温かい家庭があります。
私には優しい家族がいます。
マギーのために私といつも温かい家庭ある
→Can you give me the English or Spanish translation?
The basic rule is you use で with actions/ “action + で” (Ex. dancing, singing on the state) → butai de odoru / butai de utau
tatteru is just standing still and there is no motion/action. In that case you use “ni”
Ex. Someone wa soko ni iru = Someone is there.
Ex. Watashi wa soko ni nemasu. I will sleep there.
Ex. isu ni suwaru = to sit in a chair
This lesson is very informative, but I read that もん is childish/only used by children. Is this true or is that a different use of the word もん than in this lesson? Thanks!
Oh also, if もん is childish, is writing the full thing out like もの or ものです considered not childish? Thanks! (Sorry I forgot to add this to the original comment)
Ex. 空手部に入れてほしかったらもっと練習しなさい。
I should have add the literal translation.
I translated,
= If you want to join our Karate club, you have to practice more. (= 空手部に入りたかったら〜）
But the literal translation is “If you want us to let you join our Karate club”
入れる=いれる= to let someone in ~
入れる = はいれる = to be able to enter /join ~
入る = はいる = to enter, to join
I’m reading a new book and the story is talking about a child on a school trip buying お土産 for his parents. He wants to buy 油取り紙 for his mother (written as おかあさん in the book).
The school trip is cut short and the child hasn’t yet bought 油取り紙, but now the word おばさん (in hiragana) is used.
I always knew “おばさん” as “aunt”, but can it be used to mean “mum” informally?
The same occurs for おとうさん. This changes to おじさん in the same section.
Can おじさん ever be used for “dad”?
Hello Peter,
おじさん・おばさん can’t be used for one’s own father/mother. But when children refer to someone’s father/mother, they might call them おじさん・おばさん
Maybe the speaker has changed in the story?
For example: おかあさんに、油取り紙を買わなければいけない。 (Talking about the writer’s mother)
「おばさんに油取り紙を買ったの？」(the writer’s friend asked the writer)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I had a question about the difference between まで, でも, and さえ.
I have some samples from my book, but it looks like they all can be interchanged:
でも and さえ can be interchangeable in some cases but I would say さえ emphasizes what comes before more than でも.
子供でさえできる＞子供でもできる
I won’t explain the whole difference here because it is going to be too long
でも – そんなことは子供でも知っている。
You can use さえ but まで is not natural.
If the sentence is like 大人から子供まで知っている曲 from adults to a children, you can use まで
でも – 妹は初めて会った人とでもすぐ仲良くなる。
You can use さえ or まで
まで – こどもまでわかってるよ
Actually さえ・でも will be more natural but they are interchangeable.
まで – 会ったことがない人にまで年賀状を出した
You can use でも/まで
さえ – そんなことは子供さえ知っている
You can use で
まで is not natural
さえ – 毎朝電車で会う、名前さえ知らない人を好きになった
You can’t use でも/まで
Mark
I’ve been answering your questions every day and it is great that you have been studying so hard.
Though I’d love to answer all your questions, allow me to take a break for several days.
Hello Maggie Sensei,]
thanks for your help, no problem, don’t worry I will not ask too many questions form now on.
I found a yahoo board that has answered my question about さえ and でも
I understand the statement above means its better to do it yourself than to ask someone for help BUT what does the 遠慮しながら at the beginning of the sentence do? It can be used without it as in:
Hi Mark
遠慮しながら means “in an apologetic way, reluctantly, with hesitation, in a reserved way”
It would be like this..
ごめんなさい、忙しいかったらいいんだけど、もしよかったら〜してくれる？
人に人に手伝いを頼むくらいなら、自分でやったしまったほうがいい just means you’d rather do something by yourself without asking someone.
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
東京に来たついでにディズニーランドにも行きたい。
せっかく東京に来たのだからディズニーランドにも行きたい。
They both can be translated → “I want to go to Disneyland taking advantage the opportunity of being in Tokyo”
but せっかく expresses stronger feelings and adds the nuance of “Since I came all the way to Tokyo/After all the trouble coming to Tokyo ”
And ついでに could be just on a whim. Since I am happened to be close to Disneyland, I want to go there.
Hello Maggie Sensei, just wanted to confirm the above statement. My stab at it: The guys order was taken first. (passive)
Can I expand it to this, does it have the same meaning/syntax as:
(unknown waitress or 私？) は 彼らに先に注文された。
The waitress took the order from them.
彼ら は (unknown waitress or 私？) に先に注文した。
They gave their order to the waitress
The unknown waitress means it is a hidden person, it does not always mean 私 correct? Unless I am a waiter/waitress then I guess it can apply to 私,. amirite?
I am trying to figure out the 行かれますか phrase. I am guessing this is passive honorific form?
amirite?
Also the general meaning is confusing, is it: Anyone can go there, but only people working here can enter the inside part.
What does this part mean: とちらへ行かれますか
Does とちらへ mean any person or any choice of 2 or more things?
As I wrote in the lesson 行かれる is an honorific form of 行く = to go
Some customer was about to get in the staff only section and a salesperson stopped him/her saying
“Where are you going?” politely.
* 付き is usually used in written form and it is too formal. I would use ために・ので
* 欠勤 is for work.
欠席 is for missing the classes.
* deliver → You mean “to submit”?
If so, ⇨提出
*some absences in our student’s group
You wanted to say a few students were absent?
同級生 is classmate.
ゼミ生 a student who belonged to a seminar but you belong to the same seminar, you can say for example
ゼミで欠席者*が数名いた為(or ので) 、研究論文を提出するのに時間がかかってしまいました。
(or 欠席する人が）
If you couldn’t make it time to the fixed date
研究論文を（期日までに）終えることができませんでした。
その時、十人ほどの集団が入ってきて、レストランは満員になった。
彼らはこの店によく来るらしく、メニューを見ないでどんどん注文をし始めた。
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can you explain what does the -らしく means at the end of the sentence? What significance does it add to the sentence than without it?
He is there seeing them come in so why even use this?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
らしく It seems like they come to the place many times.
It will be more clear to have that part because you rarely order things without checking the menu.
People generally check the menu before they order something.
So the speaker is assuming they must be the regular customers who have been there many times.
Hi Jon
I think I covered some examples but yes, you use とか with verbs to soften your sentence or avoid straight forward speech in colloquial usage.
I am sure you don’t learn this type of speech in the textbooks but you hear them in casual conversation.
Ex. 休みの日はどこかに行くとかしないの？
うん、海に行くとかするよ。
I can’t think of adjective usage at the moment other than listing adjectives
美味しいとかまずいとかいわないで。
But if I think of any, I will add them here.
I got this answer wrong, I chose a.
来月国から両親が______。
a. 見えます
b. 参ります
c. おいでです
Why is the answer not a.
Maybe my meaning is misunderstood. Is this the correct meaning of it:
Next month, my parents are coming from their country to visit me.
So coming in 敬語 is いらっしゃいました, おいでになります, or 見えました.
So again why is the answer まいります(参ります)?
Thank you for explaining this. However, I’m confused about this spot:
→けんかをきっかけに二人は口をきかなくなった。
= Kenka wo kikkake ni futari wa kuchi wo kikanakunatta. The nuance difference between に ( = ni ) and が ( = ga) here is
で ( = de) focusing on the cause, fight
に ( = ni) focusing on the time when they got into the fight So if I try to translate the sentences literally:
You say difference between に and が, but explain で and に instead in an article about が vs を きっかけ. Is it a typo? I really want to understand the difference.
Hello Angel
You can judge the meaning in the context.
「死んだお父さんに怒られる」とか「冥利が悪い」と抵抗したが、— the person who say these is the writer’s mother.
年にしては* 好奇心も旺盛な人だから
You don’t say 子供にしては・子供のわりに好奇心が旺盛である because it is common to be curious about many things when you are a child or young.
So in this case the writer think her mother’s age is not young (=old)
She had a great deal of curiosity for her age /She had a great deal of curiosity regardless of her age. = She is not young but she is curious about many things.
Hello Maggie Sensei
according to definition from the book I am studying (新完全マスター N3):
~によって:「~が違えば・・・。」・・・は一定でないことを表す文(さまざま・変えるなど)。
「~によっては・・・」の・・・は、いろいろな場合のうちの一つ例を言う文。
“Means to change state or behaviour depending on something, or according to something. Expresses variety, and is commonly used with さまざまだ and 変える. etc. The term ~によっては…pinpoints one outcome from a range of possible outcomes.”
Now, I have seen sample sentences that do not make sense for the ~によっては part ( choosing one out of many )
The following sentences I understand, it is choosing one ( or a few) days that they person works till midnight. and says that some words could me misunderstood when giving thanks.
1. 私の帰宅時間は毎日違う。日によっては夜中になることもある。
2. 感謝の言葉でも、言い方によっては悪い意味に聞こえることもある。
Although the following 2 sentences do not follow the rule. Can you explain why the bottom 2 sample sentences use ~によっては instead of ~によって? ( there should be only 1 choice out of many, but there is not )
1) 母は、父がこの時計を大切に使っていたことを思い出し mother is rememebering >、
2) 「この時計はまだ動くんだって伝えたかった のかも知らないね。」
伝えたかった is what father wanted to say
伝えたかったのかもしれない probably the father wanted to say
Mother is assuming what father wanted to say
3) と言って笑いました (mother said that laughing)
I am wondering if you can explain the causative verb満足させる here. What is being forced to whom? Or what is being forced onto what, who is forcing someone to do something etc.?
Thx in advance
asakura
させられる/させられた/させれない/させられなかった
These could be both the causative potential and the causative passive so you can say
(1) マギーはマックスに野菜を食べさせられなかった。
But the listener/reader might get confused. You can use it when the context is clear.
For example
マックスは野菜嫌いで絶対に野菜を食べようとしません。
マギーも美味しい野菜を買って食べさせようとしましたが、結局、マックスに野菜を食べさせられませんでした。
As for (2)
(2) マックスはマギーに野菜を食べさせられなかった。
I think 99 pct of people would think → Max couldn’t make Maggie eat vegetable.
So I wouldn’t use it.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
あれ、この上着はちょっと大きすぎる。昨日買う前に
a 着てみたほうがいい
b 着てみたらいい
c 着てみてよかった
d 着てみればよかった
I chose ‘a’ but it was wrong. Why is ‘d’ right and the others wrong? I cannot find the difference between たら and ば and ほうがいい anywhere on your website. please make it.
昨日 is a key word
着てみたほうがいい means “One should try it on/It will be bette to try it on”
So this person bought a jacket (since it says この上着） so it should express one’s regret.
~ みればよかった
In the following sentence I chose b, したら but it was wrong, the correct answer is a するなら. Can anyone explain what is the difference between them, I know they both mean something that did not occur and for なら you are trying to influence someone to do something, but that is NOT the case here.
Also what does this sentence mean, I don’t get the かっこう part?
いいレストランで食事を
a するなら
b したら
、そんなかっこうではだめだろう。
Can you make a page that explains the differences between たら、なら, ば、etc.
No where on your website you explain when to use one or the other, I have to read the whole section and then try to guess the differences between them.
Hey Maggie sensei,
according to my book, answer b is correct, can you explain why b is correct and a is not correct?
As far as I know という means と言う ( was said ) so isn’t that the same as って( I heard)？
ねえ、この記事見て。昨日のスケート大会、大木選手が：
a. 優勝したという
or
b. 優勝したんだって
Yes, as I explained in this lesson you finish the sentence with って to tell someone what you heard.
という usually modifies a noun. ~という話
It is only used to quote in a formal sentence.
They say ~ / I heard : 日本では玄関で靴を脱ぐという。
Hello Maggie, ok I understand your point but why is the following a formal sentence?
彼の話では、これはこの地方の伝統的な：
a 料理だと聞いた
b 料理だと言った
c 料理だと言われている
d 料理だという
In my book it says d is correct 料理だという. I thought という is only used in formal settings, this is something she heard from a guy, this is not formal correct? I chose b, but it was wrong, why is b wrong?
Yes, using という at the end of a sentence is for writing. You rarely use it for conversation.
In conversation, you say これはこの地方の伝統的な料理だって。
(I know you have many questions but as I told you before I can only answer one or two simple questions a day if it is related to my lessons. So please wait for the other questions.お願いします。🙏)
One of the characters in an RPG I play has this voice clip that sounds to my ears like “いいかん” — I was wondering if you thought this would mean “いいかの” or “いいかな”. Also, if you combine the か and の particles, it has to be ～のか, right?
I wish I could hear what it says so that I could help you.
Is that OK? in Japanese is
いいかな？
いいかの？ an old man’s speech. (You hear that in anime/game)
いいか？ male speech/rough
いいのか？ male speech/rough/(The speaker is more uncertain)
If you find a youtube clip with that phrase, let me know.
I wanted to confirm the meaning of 電話に出られるわけではありません and expand it out so I know all of the people involved.
Is these 2 sentences the correct meanings: (and are they the same)
彼は私に電話に出るわけではありません- My friend does not have to keep calling me.
私は彼に電話に出られるわけではありません – I am the person who is receiving the call from you, so you do not have to keep doing it.
Are the 2 sentences above equivalent, same?
Why do Japanese sentences always leave out the important parts like who is speaking to who, why can’t they put everyone in the sentence so its easier to read and understand?
だろう and という
He is saying: “I heard that the price will not go much”
だろう means to wonder, and という means だそうだ (I heard it from someone/somewhere)
Is my understanding correct?
Why do they need a だろう then?
Why is he saying he heard that the price will go up from someone, and he also wonders?
Hi Mark
だろう in that sentence doesn’t mean “wonder”
It shows the assumption/guess for the future. (I think) It will ~ (in this case, the assumption is “the price of the land won’t go up”)
This was a great explanation, but how do you decline it? So if someone says 食べていい？or 食べてもいいですか？ and I want to tell them that they may not eat, how do I say that. I have seen some people say that you would say 食べてはいけない but that seems too harsh because you are telling them that they must not eat. So how would I say, “you may not eat” or “please do not eat” or just simply “no” in response to てもいい? Thanks!
Hello Sean
You may not eat/Please do not eat.
You can say
食べないでください。
If you are talking to family/close friends
だめ！ /だめです No, you may not!
For example, if you meant to say “Not yet” you can say
いえ、まだです。
まだ食べないでください。
Or give a reason first and say no.
（Reason ので）食べないでください。
I just want you to check my translation:
A: I have to take the Shinkansen at 5, it looks like I will be late, hurry up!
B: If you do not have time, let me clean up ( prepare for future?) hurry up and leave?
So my question is, is B saying I will clean and not go, you go ahead? Or is B saying I will clean and also go with you?
So according to the book, the correct answer is c, so my question is why is it c?
According to my book, から and ことから cannot have any hope or intention, but the above sentence say 帰りたい so that means hope right?
Is the から part of のだから instead? Definitions are below:
Here are the definitions of my book:
~から。。。~ことから・・・ : Because of something factual~, … results. or I conclude that…. Not used when a speaker is expressing hope or intention or trying to induce another person to an action. XことからY X=原因 cause/理由reason/根拠basisになって, Y(結果) Because of~; From the fact that~ Often used in writing/Business presentations/News/News papers… 名 + から 普通形(ナ形だ-な/-である・名だ-である) + ことから
~の だから。。。 : のだから is used to express the speaker’s strong opinion. …is the natural consequence of ~. Means that one fact naturally follows from another, and the other person is assumed to know this. …is the speaker expressing a judgement, hope or intention, or trying to induce another person to an action. AのだからB Aだから,当然B 話す人も聞く人も理由を知っている。 Since~;Because of~; Used in casual conversation 普通形(ナ形だ-な・名だ-な) + の だから
The explanation of ~から。。。~ことから/のだから in your textbook is fine.
As you know, から has different functions but there are cases that you can use から to express the reason for your desire.
喉が渇いたから何か飲みたい。 I’m getting thirsty so I want to drink something.
眠いからもう寝たい。 I’m sleepy so I want to go to bed already
疲れたから帰りたい。 I’m tired so I want to go home.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I am having trouble figuring who the subjects are in the following passage:
1. 若い人にとって、知らない人に声をかけるのは少し緊張します。
Is my understanding correct:
According to young people it is stressful to talk to a stranger.
2. 人に席を譲ろのは少し勇気がいります。
Is my understanding correct:
In order to give up your seat to another person takes courage.
3.「どうぞ」と声を掛けた時に、感謝のことばと笑顔が返ってくれば、つぎもまた譲ろうという気持ちになります。
Is my understanding correct:
The young person says dozo: then if he gets in return a thank you or a smile, then the young person would get a feeling of offering a seat in the future?
Who says どうぞ, the young person giving up the seat?
Also the 感謝のことばと笑顔 is this from the other person ( not young person, but the person who is being offered the seat??
Who is being offered the seat, the reader?
If the reader is offered a seat, 「その必要はない
What is it referring toその必要はない? 感謝 と笑顔？or 譲？ I am lost here.
Also who is referred to by 素直に座り、笑って「ありがとう」と答えてあげて欲しい。?
OK, I know you have many questions and I’d love to help you all but as I said I can handle 1~2 simple questions a day. お願いします🙏
1) According to によれば →For young people にとって
2) typo 譲るのは：It takes courages to ~
3) Your translation is right. (It doesn’t say young people in Japanese, though)
the person who offers the seat says どうぞ
And 感謝のことばと笑顔 = from the person who is offered the seat
4) Talking to the reader: If you are offered the seat, just sit there, smile and says thank you
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I always follow your lessons, they are very useful. But this time there is a phrase that I don’t know how to translate, so I was wondering if you could help me. This is the verse of the song:
For 1 I chose a, but it was wrong, why is a wrong and b is right?
It is だから, so I got my license so now I bought a car, why is this wrong?
2. 先生、すみません。風をひいて______、今日は休ませてください。
a. しまったので、b. しまったんですから
For 2, I chose b, but it was wrong, why is b wrong and a right?
I am sick so can I take a holiday today, why is using だから wrong in this instance? Is it because ので is more polite?
1. The key word is やっと = finally , at last
You don’t say “finally I want to buy”
2. 風邪をひいてしまったので Because I got a cold
in this case ので gives a reason why the speaker want to be absent.
風邪をひいてしまったんですから
→If it is 風邪をひいてしまったから then, it is correct. から is more casual than ので but it also gives a reason.
しまったんですから ・ しまったのですから has more explanatory tone and it often leads the outcome, result
Hello Maggie Sensei,
ペットはいつまでも小さな子供のような純粋な心のままで、
飼う人を慕ってくる。
I had a question about the above statement, does it mean the pet loves its owner, or does it mean the owner loves its pet?
Thank you Maggie Sensei,
これが人間の子供なら、大きくらるにつれてだんだん親に反抗することもある。
親が思うように育たないこともある。
Does the above mean that as the kids get bigger, they will rebel against their parents and what does this part mean exactly:親が思うように育たないこともある。
Hi Mark
Does the above mean that as the kids get bigger, they will rebel against their parents?
→Yes, you are right.
親が思うように育たないこともある。
〜こともある sometimes ~
Sometime they don’t grow as the parents expect.
ではなく No, he/she is not a junior high school student. (negating “he/she is not a junior high school student”)
というより mean “or rather” so it is a wrong answer.
For example, if you are assuming
彼は中学生というより高校生に見えた。
He looks like a high school student rather than a junior high student.
Then you can use というより
Hello Maggie Sensei,
In the book I have it has 2 meanings of そう
様態 and 伝聞。
The examples they give are:
遅刻してしまいそうだ
様態 – Mode, Manner
My questions for this one is how did they change しまう to しまい?
しまいます is the verk, then you take off the mas and then you get しまい。
Then add そう but if you do it this way, isn’t the meaning that you get a feeling for yourself? Is that what Mode. Manner is? 自の気持ち = 様態?
待たされてしまったそうです。
伝聞 – Reported speech
I don’t understand why is this reported speech, (or hearsay) the meaning is:
I was told to wait( feeling bad ) but why is there a そう here? It means I heard that I was told to wait. Or does it mean I heard that I was GOIN to wait, something that will happen in the future?
You can tell by the verb form
verb dictionary form/past tense (しまう・しまった） + そうだ = 伝言(Report speech) I heard ~
verb masu-stem （しまい） + そうだ = will going to get /about to do ~ (talking about the possibility)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I wanted to confirm if this is the use of Passive for annoyance:
1. 自分が怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。
Does it mean, “The mad feelings that made me annoyed came to my eyes?”
What do eyes have to do with feeling mad?
2. この前上司から「余裕を持って来るように」
Also for this one, does it mean the Boss wants this person to make a SURPLUS of money, the boss is saying please make a lot of surplus money?
3. 怒られないで済む
Also does this passive mean I was not mad and it finished? I was not mad anymore?
Hi Mark
1) Yes. It is for annoyance.
2) I think you missed the verb
Is it 言われた or 怒られた？
言われた I was told (It is simply a passive form) / 怒られた I got scolded. (It is just a passive form but since 怒られる means to get scolded, it implies some negative feelings, fear, annoyance,etc.)
3) I can get away without been scolded. (check this lesson if you want to learn the usage of 済む）
In your explanation above you said:
” Usually we give the reason for something, and then continue on with the sentence and explain the result.”
What is the reason in the above sentence and what is the result?
Thx in advance.
から gives a reason why
As I wrote in the lesson, からだ in the second sentence explain the reason for the first sentence.
The write thinks 資源が少ないことは必ずしもマイナスではない why? Because 日本において〜育ったとも
いえるから
Hello Maggie Sensei,
真面目に働き、技術力を高め、よい製品を作ることが、日本が利益を得るためには必要なのである。
I am a bit confused of what the ために is used for, is it used for:
1. 真面目に働き、技術力を高め、よい製品を作ることが
or
2. 日本が利益を得る
for the result to be:
必要なのである。
?
or is it for both of them (1 and 2)?
Hello Sensei,
I wanted to ask what is the correct sentence:
a.子供の頃兄によく意地悪をされた
b. 子供の頃兄によく意地悪をもらった
The correct answer is a, but why is it a?
If it is a, then it means that my older brother was a mean person.
But if you say b, it means that I received the bad treatment, so why isn’t b the correct answer?
Also for:
c. 私も海に遊びに行く仲間に入れて欲しかった。
d. 私も海に遊びに行く仲間に出して欲しかった。
The入れて is for what part of the sentence? 海に、or 仲間に?
How can I tell which noun the 入れて would be part of in Japanese sentences?
I believe the correct answer is c, but why?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
a) and b)
Have you studied causative/passive causative form?
So 意地悪をされる is a passive causative
noun +を + もらう to receive something （意地悪 is something you don’t もらう）
verb-te form ~て+ もらう to have someone does something for you (usually something favorable)
Vされる / with suru verb Noun + をされる = passive causative (someone makes you something (unfavorable)/someone does something unpleasant to you
c) and d)
仲間に入れる is an idiom = to include /have someone in some group ・to take a person into a group as a member
Hello Maggie sensei,
here is the complete text:
First Part:
He is waiting at a bus stop because he has to go to work, but it really is Sunday, and the bus schedule is for the weekdays. He says if he keeps waiting there, he will be late for work about 2 hours. So it is his fault for thinking he has to go to work.
このままでは二時間近く遅刻してしまいそうだ。この前上司から「余裕を持って来るように。」と言われたばかりなのに。ちょっとも進歩しない。ああ、自分が怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。
I just do not know what 怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。Did he realize why he is mad/angry with himself?
Also what does the teacher / boss mean by: 余裕を持って来るように。
Second Part:
駅で大事なことに気が付いた。今日は日曜日だったのだ。目覚まし時計が鳴らなかったのも、バスが平日の時刻表どうりに来なかったのも、今日は日曜日だからだったのだ。よかった。怒られないで済む。
So the last part: 怒られないで済む。In this context does it mean he did not have to get mad/angry with himself?
Yes, so the following verb is 言われた so it shows annoyance. (I was told (something negative))
怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。means the speaker can picture himself /herself being scolded by his/her boss.
余裕をもってくる to be at the office earlier with plenty of time.
怒られないで済む: I think I already explained but the speaker is glad because he/she found out it was Sunday so he/she can get away from the situation to get scolded by his/her boss/
こんにちは先生！
I have a question about ていただきありがとうございます and てくださりありがとうございます. If I am thanking the other person for doing something, shouldn’t 作ってくださだて/作ってくださりありがとうございます be used only? In 作っていただいて, doesn’t いただいて focus on me recieving the favour? From what I understand, the て form of the word must be the action performed by the person who I am thanking. I am a little confused here. I have also seen an expression thanking the interviewer saying 面接のお時間をいただきありがとうございます. Here too I don’t understand why いただき is used. I thought くださりshould be used. Can they be used interchangeably? Can you please help?
Thankyou for answering! Like you said, いただく is used when I am receiving and くださる when someone is giving. When I thank them for giving me their time, shouldn’t くださり be used since the focus is on their action of giving me time? If I say お時間をいただきありがとうございます, it seems like I am thanking them for me recieving their time which doesn’t seem right. I might be wrong here. Can please clarify?
Here’s the literal meaning
お時間をいただき 〜 focusing on receiving their time (I thank you for the time I receive from you./I appreciate the fact that I receive your time.
お時間をくださり 〜 focusing on their action of giving me time (I thank you for giving me your time)
The direct translation is
Though she worries so much about what other people think (A), she’d never let anyone see the real her.(B)
So it shows the contrast between A and B.
Something happened (A) and one’s face is turning red gradually
You are looking at the change/or feeling the change up to the current moment.
While the point of view is “now” for なってきた
「顔が赤くなっていった」 describes the change looking back the past.
①パーテイーでは食べきれないほどたくさん料理が出た。
②夏の暑さを忘れてしまうほど部屋の中は涼し。
Sensei, could you please help me translate these sentences? I was also having problem in understanding the purpose of hodo in these sentences.
They served more food that we could eat at the party.
ほど describes the amount (abundance) of the food.
(Typo 涼しい） It is so cool in the room that I could forget about the summer heat.
ほど describes how cool the room temperature is.
When you use 一方で and 対して in the context of making contrasts
When you compare two people/things/events
From my example sentences:
マギー先生は好きなものしか食べなかったのに対してクッキー先生はなんでも食べる。
You can use 一方 the sentence structure changes a little
→マギー先生は好きなものしか食べなかったが、一方、クッキー先生はなんでも食べる。
(You can’t say 食べなかった一方）
But you don’t use 対して when you talking about the different aspects of one person/thing/event
彼は、日本語学校に通っている一方でYouTuberとしても活躍している。
Talking about the different things that he does.
In this case you can’t use 対して
大学生活は楽しい一方で大変でもある。
Talking about the different aspects of one’s college life.
In this case you can’t use 対して
Hello again,
Sorry. I don’t usually proofread many sentences here but I’ll do it just for today.😉
But I am not going to explain the details, the difference between うちに/ 間に/間,etc. this time because it will be too long.
Hope you understand.
1. 失業しているうちに日本語を勉強しました。(Not natural)
→失業しているうちに日本語を勉強したら？ (Giving advice) →But since 失業 is a negative word, taking advantage of losing a job sounds still a little unnatural. 失業して時間があるうちに〜 might work.
→失業している時に日本語を勉強しました。
2. 日本に住んでいるうちに日本の文化を分かるようになった。。(Not natural)
→日本に住んでいるときに日本の文化が分かるようになった。
→Talking to someone. 日本に住んでいるうちに日本の文化が分かるようになりますよ。
3. 派遣契約中の間他の仕事を探していました。(Not natural)
There are 中 and 間 in this sentence.
→派遣で働いている間、他の仕事を探していました。
In control, take advantage of the time:
4. 定義会議の間に要件を収集しました。
→ 間に is fine but word choices, 定義会議?? 要件??
5. 仕事の間に東北地方太平洋沖地震が行ってしまいました。
→ 仕事をしていた時に〜地震があった。 is better.
（間 is a long time. 地震 happens in a moment）
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I tried to make Japanese sentences using:
間、間に、間に、うちに、うちに
that is related to my Japanese job in Japan.
Unfortunately I cannot make them properly.
定義会議 is a regular meeting I have with my Japanese colleagues and I get their requests: 要件. I guess I used the wrong words. How can I learn to use proper words. The examples on your website do not relate to working in a Japanese company using Business Japanese, what can I do?
Thanks for your help
OK, I got it now. There is a meeting called 要件定義会議 for IT companies.
I am sorry that my site doesn’t cover business related lessons.
But I believe there are many business sites where you can learn proper words. You can use Google search and find the words you want.
お仕事がんばってください。
Hello Sensei,
I have failed N3 JLPT 2 times already so I still have to use your site to pass the N3, then N2, then N1.
Thanks for your continued help
My pleasure. :)
Hello Sensei,
I had a question regarding these below 2 sentences:
1. 私が旅行で留守の間に、庭に草がたくさん生えてしまった。
2. 私が旅行で留守の間、うちの犬の世話をお願いできないでしょうか。
For 1, can’t we also use 間 instead of 間に. During the entire time I was away on vacation, the weeds grew in the garden?
Also for 2, shouldn’t we use 間に because it is something we cannot control. We have no control to find someone to take care of the dog while we are on vacation?
間 is used for on-going actions during a certain period of time
１）生えてしまった is a result
So if you change to 私が旅行で留守の間、庭に草がどんどん生え続けていた。・生えていた, 間 works.
2) If someone is constantly taking care of a dog, you use 間
It will be more clear if you make a statement.
友達が留守の間、犬の世話をした・していた。
Hi Mark,
You use ながら when you do two things at the same time.
カンさんはピアノを弾きながら歌を歌う
Kan sings while playing the piano.
→カンさんはピアノを弾きながら歌を歌うのが上手です。
Kan is good at singing while playing the piano.
As I explained in this lesson, たびに means “every time/whenever ” so it will be strange to say
Every time Kan plays the piano, he/she sings.
It sounds like his/her strange habit.
たびに works for example,
Every time Kan plays the piano, something happens.
Ex. カンさんがピアノを弾くたびに、猫がやってくる。
= Every time / Whenever Kan plays the piano, his/her cat comes to him/her.
I have found an example of the use of the use of なんて in a textbook, and it seems to be used to change completely the meaning of the phrase (from positive to negative), so I think it doesn’t fit any of the examples above:
歌いたくない人に歌わせるなんて。
From the context (the situation is a karaoke) I guess this means:
I don’t want to force to sing to anyone who doesn’t want to sing.
Is that right?
Without using なんて , could it be written like this?
Sometimes you leave the sentence unfinished with なんて to express your strong feelings such as disbelief, surprise, admiration, etc.
In this case the words like ひどい ( = awful) / ありえない ( There is no way) / 意地悪な人だろう ( What a mean person), etc. will follow.
歌いたくない人に歌わせるなんて
= How dare you to make someone sing (even though they don’t want to sing.)
You do say 冷蔵庫に入れてあるビールはもう冷えていますか？ (It must be a typo : 控えて→冷えて) but the key word to solve the question is “さっき” a little while ago.
You can say さっき入れておいたビール because 入れておく is an action (you put the beer in the fridge and left it there to drink it later) but 入れてある just describes the state of beer in the fridge so you can’t use it with さっき.
I just have one small question – I have seen a lot written about the difference between when to use いけない and ならない in terms of the various nuances of obligation. But so far, I cannot find any good explanation about the difference between when to use ~なければ and ~なくては. Is there a nuance I am missing, or are they interchangeable and equal formality level?
こんにちは JJ
OK, you know the nuance difference between いけない and ならない already.
なければ and なくては are basically the same.
Personally I use なければ for slightly stronger obligation and なくては to show one’s strong will.
Hi and thanks for this fast reply. The whole sentence is
一人一人ができることをやればいいじない？アメリカがどうより
The context is that everyone should give his best when preventing pollution. However, earlier, the character who says this found out that America is the country which causes most of the pollution on earth.
OK, that どう is like どうのこうの・ああだこうだ and you use it when you express how people complain/bitch about something. nagging saying blah-blah-blah
So アメリカがどうより means “instead of accusing/complaining America did this and that, “
Aaaaah, I just noticed you posted this! I don’t know if you remember my name/profile picture from when I requested this topic back in March (or at least, the それぞれ and counter+当たり part) but thank you so much for actually making a lesson! You are absolutely the best Japanese teacher on the Internet!!! (sorry JapanesePod101 lol).
Yes, this lesson is for you. I added a little message to you in the comment section of te-iru lesson but was not sure if you read it.
Um.. I am not a teacher for JapanesePod 101 (you might have misunderstood by the advertisement) 😉 but thank you for your message. :)
Haha, I was saying that you are *better* than JapanesePod101 lol. It’s become somewhat of a trend lately to say that honestly. I think their ratings dropped or something because I see a lot of people saying that XD
Hello again o▽o
So… There is this sentence I can’t put my finger on the meaning of: きみは家族のためとかそういうのばかりですよ！
The context is that the person saying this is trying to encourage someone to stop refraining from doing stuff they like.
Does the sentence mean “You keep doing things like this because of family or other stuff”, or maybe “You keep doing things like this in the name of the family”… or does it mean something else entirely?
This is basically someone who keeps putting others’ wishes (specially those of his family) before his own, so much that one wonders if his ego is just super low or if he’s indecisive.
After the speaker tells him the sentence I wrote, they say: “We’re grateful for you but we want to know the real you! Don’t give up on the things you want!”
Aっぽい: someone/something/some situation has certain quality of A
Noun + っぽい = ~ ish/~ like
~ は大人っぽい /大人っぽい + noun
~ は子供っぽい /子供っぽい + noun
~ は春っぽい /春っぽい + noun
It expresses noun which has qualities/characteristic of 大人(adult) ・子供 (children) ・春 (spring)
“A + かのように(Noun/na-adj) であるかのように + verb” means “as if” / A behave like B but actually A is not B.
彼は、なんでも知っているかのように話していた。
He was talking as if he knew everything (But actually he didn’t)
彼女は、まるでお金持ちでるかのようにふるまっている。
= She behaves like a rich person (but she is not (rich))
こんにちは！
I just search for のに usage and saw this website, I think I must include you as one of my senseis now.
Anyway, 質問があります。 i saw one of the comments about なければいいのに。you said that it means *you shouldn’t eat* but なければならないはなければなりませんでしょ？meaning, *must* so 食べなければならない means you must it?
こんにちは、Ran
食べなければならない = 食べなければいけない = I must eat/ You must eat / ~ must eat
Now 〜ばいいのに changes the meaning
If someone is reluctant to eat something, you tell them
食べればいいのに or 食べたらいいのに = You should eat./Why don’t you eat this. (But the listener wouldn’t eat.)
but if someone is eating something that they shouldn’t (Ex. they are on diet, etc.) you say
食べなければいいのに = You really shouldn’t eat that.
ありがとうございます！
I just started studying N3 now and upon checking all the grammar patterns, I saw this ～ばいい so i will be studying that. and thank you for explaining that to me.
こんにちは先生！！素晴らしいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございます！
「置きに」と「毎に」について質問があるけど、
I was about to ask the same as Harinさん, but then read the comment and your response and it became clear as water, but then another question came to my mind.
When it’s a short action every x days/weeks/months/years, 毎に and 置きに have a clear difference as you explained, but what happens when the action’s duration is similar to the interval? Do 毎に and 置きに become equivalent?
For example, if you’re doing some workout where you rest during 1 minute for every 30 seconds round:
Would「一分毎に三十秒の運動です」 imply that the minute of 一分毎に starts after we’ve finished the workout, thus being equivalent to ｢一分おきに三十秒の運動です」? Or would it mean that the minute includes the 30 seconds of workout, thus getting only 30 seconds of rest? What would happen if the workout is one minute or greater :o?
こんな細か過ぎてすみません、先生 (m;_ _)m、そんなことを考えることは楽しいけどwww
Oh and another question (^^;), how formal or casual are 直後、直前 and 寸前？本で読んだからわからないｗｗ
Hello Orti,
面白い質問ですね。
In that case,
３０秒ごとに運動する
or
３０秒おきに運動するの方
might be more natural.
Generally speaking when the unit you use is small or short, like 秒, 分, 時間 (second(s) /minute(s)/hour(s)), おき and ごと are interchangeable but if it gets longer such as 日・週間・年 (day(s)/ week(s) / year(s)) the meaning change.
But some cases are very complicated and confusing even for native speakers.
直前 ・ 直後 ・ 寸前
You use them in conversation but they are not neither formal nor too casual.
旅行に行く直前に飛行機がキャンセルになった。
旅行の直前まで飛行機が出るかどうかわからない。
向こうから車が出てくる寸前でブレーキをかけた。
久しぶり、先生！
Thank you so much for this amazing lesson! It’s splendid as always :D
I’ve always struggled with the “for each x, then y” structure. I’m definitely gonna have to study this one a lot!
A little question, I’m not entirely sure, but I kinda remember a friend once telling me that we can also use おき, at least for time. Is it correct to say, for example:「脚が弱過ぎて、山を登るとき十分おき休憩しないと死にそうになっちゃう」as「…十分当たり/につき休憩…」？
or 「五秒おき文句言ってんだよ、メンドクセ～」?
Is it common or formal? Does it have other uses?
Sorry for asking so many questions m（＿ ＿）m
I hope you have a great day! And as always, 心の中から感謝してます！
PS: I think there was a liiiittle romaji missing here
Ex.「大阪は各家庭にたこ焼き*器があるって聞いたけど本当？」
= Oosaka wa kaku katei ni takoyaki ga <– takoyaki ki?
Orti!!!💕 コメント久しぶりですね。😀
First of all, thank you so much for spotting the typo. I fixed it.
OK, I covered おき in this lesson. →時の日本語 but you need に after おき
number+ counter おきに + do something/something happens
十分おき→十分おきに休憩しないと…
五秒おき→（なに）五秒おきに（文句言ってんだよ）
You can not rephrase it with 当たり in these sentences.
As I mentioned in the lesson when you use 当たり means “per” and number + counter follows.
* number + counter + 当たり/あたり ( = atari) + number + counter
Or when it modifies a noun,
* number + counter + 当たりの + noun
So, you can’t say 十分当たりに休憩する but you can say
１時間当たり10分休む You rest 10 minutes every one hour/per hour
Affirmative form:
You get some information (知る・知った）and you have been knowing the fact /having the information since that moment, so you can say 知っている。
●—————————————————————>
↑知った 知っている
The dot above is the point where someone got some information.
The negative form is tricky.
Since one gets the information instantaneously, you can’t describe the state with 知っていない
You only can talk about whether one knows the fact or not. 知っている (knowing something) or not (知らない）
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I thought i understood the しか~ない pattern but today i came across this sentence which has me stumped.
彼は勉強するしか能のない人間。
I understand it means “he only knows how to study”. but I don’t understand why; that 能のない is very confusing to me, and feels very different from the examples here.
I’ve come across より twice recently where I couldn’t quite work out the meaning – thanks to your post (thanks as always!) I managed to work out that the first one means “from ~”:
大公代理オルウィナ様よりのお召しである。
The second one I’m struggling with though…
言い終わるより前に、….
I know it means “Before I could finish speaking, …” but I’m not sure what function より means here. Is ~より前に basically the same as ~前に?
大公代理オルウィナ様よりのお召しである
You are right. It means “from”
The second one is like comparative sentence.
AはBよりうまく日本語を話す。 = A speaks Japanese better than B.
AはBより早く家に着いた。 = A got home earlier than B.
Bが〜を言い終わるより前に = B does/did something before A finishes/finished saying something = A does/did something faster than A fishes/finished saying something.
I saw the sentence: 彼は映画評論家なので、仕事がてらよくアジアの映画を見ることがあるそうだ。
I didn’t quite get the relation between よく and ことがある, since ことがある means “sometimes” and よく “often”. 時々 and ことがある seems to work fine, since they both mean “sometimes”. Could you please help me on this one?
As I mentioned in the beginning of this lesson, I focused on the usage of ことがある in the meaning of “sometimes ~ happens/sometimes one does something” but there are a couple of different usages of ことがある
Ex. to have something/things (to)~ /there is/are things to ~ “
V+こと: こと makes a verb into a noun.
The sentence you saw よく〜を見ることがある belongs to this one.
Ex. 話したいことがある・あります
Ex. 年末はいっぱいやることがあります。
In this usage, you can say “frequently” “always” “every day”
いつもやることがたくさんあります。
一緒に暮らしていて毎日、よく話すことがありますね。
Thanks for the great lesson! Just a question: I was doing some more reading regarding だって 、and I saw a very similar grammar point 、「たって」。It seems that these mesanings are the same, and maybe even when だって is in the middle of a sentence it is the exact same as when you use たって with a noun (it becomes だって）。Are these two grammar points the exact same or is there a bit of a difference? Thank you so much!
Actually there are a couple of usages of たって but you are probably talking about
verb past tense + って. or i-adjective く + たって
If so, you are right. It is the same as だって and it means Vても (even doing something)
Ex. どれだけ食べたって太らない = どれだけ食べても太らない = No matter how much one eats, one doesn’t get fat.
Ex. 今は、彼女に何を言ったって無駄だ。 = 今は、彼女に何をいっても無駄だ。= It’s no use telling her anything now.
Ex. どんなに美味しくたって高ければいらない。 = どんなに美味しくても高ければいらない。 = No matter how delicious it is, if it is expensive, I am not going to buy.
Hey, Maggie-sensei, A great lesson to learn. I’ve even drawn a diagram using a time scale for the difference between intransitive verb, ている, てある and ておく.
Have a little question regarding this sentence:
明日は１日留守にするから猫に水と餌を置いておかないと。
As far as I understand, an ending “いけない/ならない” is missing. So that the grammatically proper constrution would be e.g.
“〜猫に水と餌を置いておかないといけない。”
Is it normal to drop the ending in such way?
Right. It is missing いけない・ならない
You often drop いけない・ならない in conversation.
Also in more casual conversation, it changes
〜ておく→とく
〜ておかなくてはいけない・ならない→とかなくちゃ・とかなきゃ
Right. という and からといって are different. But といって and からといって are similar. = Though ~,
I will make a lesson on it for you sometime so please wait.
As for more usage of って, you may want to check my って lesson. The link is here.
Hello Sensei! Thanks for this helpful article as always :D
This isn’t exactly about ‘nara’ but it could be… So there’s a sentence that I thought I understood at first, but then I noticed one of the words wasn’t the word I thought it was and that messed the meaning up. Now the more I try to make sense of it the more lost I get and it’s gotten to the point where I’m rechecking every single word’s meaning, nara included;; Even though it’s such a simple sentence..!
Would you please translate it for me? It’s:
> やる気なら世間知らずさ
It is from the lyrics of STELLA TRAIL?
The sentence やる気なら世間知らず doesn’t really make sense so I understand you have a trouble translating it.
Lyrics and poems are hard to translate because you have to read between the lines or interpret the meaning of the word in your way.
Since I don’t do the translation here, you can interpret the line on your own but
When it comes to my motivation (level),I am (still) naive/immature.
So it somehow connects to the following line is 毎日が生まれたて I reborn every day.
It is :D
That translation does sound very correct except the character singing this is like the God of motivation ;O; I can’t see him telling others they’re naive either
Since the sentence before it has “The world” in it, could we look at the lit translation of the word and possibly get… “If you still have a lot of excitement you haven’t seen (enough of) the world yet”?? Because in my language there’s an adjective for people translating to them ‘not having seen the world’, which means that they’re naive.
Could this pass as a correct translation? Thanks in advance
The word 世間知らず itself means “naive/lack of experiences” and it doesn’t mean “not have seen the world”. → That would be 世界を知らない. But as I said, the readers can choose the meaning.
Though the word 世間知らず is negative, you can take it more positively and interpret as “pure” or as you said, “not have seen the world yet”, if you want. 😉
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
I learned ている form years ago but had also noticed some uses in daily use that my Genki textbook just hadn’t covered. This article answered a lot of the questions that I had never been able to verbalize, so thank you so much!
But of course, now I have a few more questions.
Point Three says that ている form can be used to “talk about something that frequently happens or one’s habitual actions.” But isn’t that basically the same as the basic present/future tense, AKA dictionary form?
毎日、新聞を読んでいる。
毎日、新聞を読みます。
毎日、新聞を読む。
Don’t those three sentences mean the exact same thing, “I read the newspaper everyday”? If not, what is the difference?
Also, Point Four states that another use is “to describe some continuous action or events, to have done/ have been doing, what you have been doing,” which can be summarized as “ている form can be used to describe future perfect tense.” And that makes sense for continuous actions.
３年間、日本語を勉強している。
I have been studying Japanese for three years.
But I do not understand the purpose of ている form in the following example for past experiences you gave:-
彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
She has been to Okinawa FIVE times already.
Why not use 「5回も行きました」or「5回も行ったことがあります」?
And finally, one of the things that I had noticed whenever I hear natives speak but didn’t see addressed in this article is that ている form can also express future continuous tense? I’m not completely sure but for example:-
待っている – am waiting / will be waiting
To give context, here is a sentence that I just now made up:-
自分でしてよ。俺はここで待ってる。
Do it yourself! I’ll be waiting here.
Notice how “I *am* waiting here” wouldn’t make sense in context. Here’s another example context:-
明日の大会に参加しています。
I will be participating in tomorrow’s tournament.
お前はどんな気持ちを持っても、俺は計画を続いている。
No matter how you feel, I’m continuing with the plan.
I suppose in that first case “I *am* participating” would also make sense. However, in the second case, “I’m continuing” means “I *will be* continuing with the plan,” not “I am continuing with the plan right in this moment.”
So? Am I right to notice that ている is BOTH present continuous and future continuous tense? Or have I been translating those sentences wrong?
Sorry for what is definitely a complicated question >_<
いつもありがとうございます！
You are right 1) and 2) both describe one’s habitual actions but
1) ている・でいる describes the actions or it gives the image of reading papers more vividly.
The same thing you can say about 3).
While 4) is just a fact and 5) is talking about one’s experiences, 3) focusing on her actions, going to Okinawa back and force.
ここで待ちます。= I will wait here.
ここで待っています。= I will be waiting here. It gives the listener the image of you waiting more.
明日の大会に参加しています。
If you simply express your decision/what you are going to do tomorrow,
参加します
But if someone asks 明日の今頃は何をしている？
参加しています works
お前はどんな気持ちを持っても、俺は計画を続いている。
This one doesn’t sound natural. If you focus on expressing what you have decided, お前がどう感じても、俺はこの計画を続ける is more natural.
But if you are talking about what you will be doing in certain period of time, 続けている works
As for the difference between ている・ います（いる） I explained more details in this tense lesson.
****
I forgot to tell you.
I made your request lesson. It should be released in May.
Very interesting post!
A question arised to me. What’s the difference between:
彼がどこに住んでいるのかさえわからない.
And
彼がどこに住んでいるかさえわからない.
This question came to my mind since for examplo I’m used to say 行くかどうか instead of 行くのかどうか. I know の is used to turn verbs into noun, but why is it required here? And why is not joint to the verb in the かどうか expression?
Sorry if it is a basic question. I do really appreciate your help.
Hello Nood,
I know this lesson is long but it doesn’t mean you have to learn everything. Just get some information you need and come back here again if you want. 😉
if i want to say:
even though emily is my best friend, i dont only play with her (i also play with other people). For example, I also hang out with maria and tom often afterschool.
can i say:
emilyさんが私の親友ですけど、 emilyさんだけと遊びません。たとえば、ほうかごmariaさんとtomとよく遊びます。
Hi Victor
OK, so there are two verbs in humble form.
参りました = まいりました = humble way to say 来ました
伺った = うかがった = humble way to to stop by, to visit たずねる
So if you rephrase it
ちょうどこの辺に来たので (I just happened to come to / be in this area so )
(the listenerのいるところを）たずねた (I visited you / where the listener is)
You use the past tense 参った・来た because the speaker is already in the area.
Ah OK,
If you use さすが as a quote you can say さすがじゃない
(to make it clear I will put ” ” and other examples)
さすがですね。
→”さすが”なんてとんでもないです。
→”さすが”なんてことないです。
→”さすが”じゃないですよ。
You add は to show the contrast.
A lot of time, the following sentence say something contradicted or negative.
For example,
日本語の勉強をしています。 I am studying Japanese. / I have been studying Japanese.
日本語の勉強をしてはいますが、あまり自信がありません。= I have been studying Japanese but I am not so confident.
Yes, you can attach の at the end.
いるの？ あるの？
While it could just add the casual tone, you can emphasize the question expressing your feelings such as surprise, frustration, doubts by attaching の
This lesson is really helpful, I regularly need to remind these differences.
Thanks a lot!
One thing is unclear though:
Why the bath is considered as a thing “to touch” (熱いお風呂) while the blanket – as a whole (暖かい毛布)? The logic tells me that お風呂 should be 暑い, as it is felt with the whole body.
Going further, how a warm, not hot, bath should be referred to: 温かい or 暖かい? Or, maybe even 温い?
Good question.
This is an old lesson but I think I should add more explanation, huh?
For climate : 暖かい (warm)
For something you touch: 温かい (warm)
When you describe one’s clothes (including a blanket) it is customary to use 暖かい. I guess it is because your skin touches it but actually you are covered by the clothes/blanket and feel warm.
But when you are talking about shower/bath, though you are soaking in the bath, you think it is something you touch.
And 暑い is just for climate.
1) You are talking about what you need to do from now. (focusing on the future action)
2) You are talking about what you have done and future. (focusing on the current status)
^^^
Can you explain the difference more? What do you mean by (in 2) ‘ what you have done & future’? What is the ‘future’? What is the ‘current status’?
If i was prompted with the question: 友達と一緒に楽しむために、何をする？
Can i say something like:
友達と楽しむために、別にすることはありません。
親友が＿＿＿さんと言うかわいい人で、ただ一緒に時間を過ごすことが好きです。
＿＿＿さんといると、何でもたのしいです。
I am trying to say something along the lines of：
To have fun with my friend(s), there is nothing in particular that we do.
My best friend is a cute person called ___, and we just like spending time with each other.
Everything is fun when I am with ____.
Is that alright to say??
(and also, if I am talking to a superior such as a teacher, is 別に too casual a word?)
I would say
友達と楽しむために、別にすることはありません。
→友達と楽しい時間を過ごすために特別なことはしなくでもいいです。
別にすることはありません。means “We have nothing to do.”
→私の親友は〜という人で、一緒に時間を過ごすだけで楽しいです。
〜さんといると何でもたのしいです。 is fine but you can also say 何をやっても楽しいです。
特別なことをしません。→In that case 特別なことはしません。is better.
The rest is fine. (To be honest, the question is grammatically correct but a little unnatural.)
What do you do for fun? 友達と何をして過ごすのが楽しいですか？
Hello 高校三年生！
nothing is boring
The literal translation is つまらないものはなにもない = tsumaranai mono wa nani mo nai
But it will be more natural to say
なんでもたのしい = nandemo tanoshii = everything is fun.
Hello Ari,
A) 来週のイベントはキャンセルされた
The next week event was cancelled.
B) 来週のイベントはキャンセルすることになった
The next week event was cancelled after all.(It implies they ended up cancelling the event. )
The translation could be the same, “The next week event was cancelled.” but while A) simply states the fact B) implies that people who were organizing the even was wondering whether they were going to have the even or not and decided not to have the event.
With する verbs, do both ～することになる and ～になる have the same nuance?
Like would 来週のイベントはキャンセルになった have the same meaning as B above?
If yes, how do you know whether or not you should use ～することになる or ～になる?
The difference is subtle but
キャンセルになった means “The next week event turned out to be cancelled.”
It is just focusing on the result. ことになった implies the process of cancelling the event more.
Basically ことにする and 決める both mean “to decide” and they mean the same.
While ことにする can be used when you decide something minor and serious, you don’t use 決める so much when you decide something minor or less serious.
決める sounds heavier/more serious and you use it when you determined to do something with stronger will.
So if you are talking about something minor or casual, 決める may sound unnatural.
Thanks for the quick reply! I have one more question if you don’t mind.
If I was trying to decide something ALL day, and I finally decided, would that matter? For example, if I was deciding whether or not to go to a party all day, would I use ことにする even if I was thinking about it all day? I hope my question makes sense.
来年の計画が全く変わってきます。
The plans will change
変わってくる is used to describe the gradual change or the change that affects you. If you just say 変わる it doesn’t involve the speaker and just state the fact that the plans will change.
I have a question.
I came across this sentence in my book (赤いTシャツを着ています) the book says it’s a 結果の状態a result state!. I don’t see any result and why it’s ているwhen the subject is intentionally wearing a red t-shirt? Am I missing sth ?
Hello, great article. I have a chunk of lyrics I try to understand, can you please, emphasize what role given なら has here? I know context is everything, but it is from a song. Can’t really guess, should I treat it as “if” here. Thank you so much!!!
I came up with such an interpretation. Surely you can translate it better, but it’s not the case, I want to understand it as japanese do. I think なら is used as “trust” here. What do you think?
Strongly I vowed, I won’t break this vow – I trust in this feeling, which Here I have, I think so.
Good question. Basically they are the same but
行くまえに focusing on the order of two actions, 1) buying a bag 2) going to Paris.
Maybe you didn’t take the bag with you when you went to Paris.
行くとき（に） the action of buying the bag has stronger connection to the trip to Paris than 行くまえに.
I bought a bag and took it to Paris./ I bought a bag in order to take it to Paris.
So, we can translate「パリへ行くとき、かばんを買いました。」into “I bought a bag, just before going to Paris.” or “…, on the way to Paris.”?
If,I understand correctly,「~るとき…」made a continuity between the two actions; and「~まえに,…」no continuity.
The difference is the same between「~たとき、…」and「~あとで、…」？
Yes, that’s right.
And the difference between たとき and たあと is .
パリに行ったときにかばんを買いました you bought a bag in Paris or could be right before the trip/on the way to Paris
パリに行ったあとでかばんを買いました。 you bought a bag after you went to Paris and came back home.
「気合い薬」はないので、多分、彼女さんは、本当の薬のことではなく「気合いをいれなくてはいけない = I have to psyche myself up」というmetaphorの意味で使ったと思います。
その人によって気合いを入れるものは違うので、例えばお酒を飲んで気合いをいれる人もいるし、音楽を聞いたり、ライブに行くことが「気合い薬」になる人もいますね。
Hello Maggie Sensei, I hope you ok! I have a question 🙏 Can be たら used when something will happen 100% sure in the future?
For example:
“I wanna be your teacher when we meet again” (I’m 100% sure we will meet again)… that sentence in japanese can be また会ったら(あなたの)先生になりたい?
To me また会うとき(あなたの)先生になりたい sounds better if you wanna express something 100% sure, because I feel like また会ったら(あなたの)先生になりたい sounds like it’s not completely sure that we will meet again, and I’m saying just in case that we meet again I wanna be your teacher (please tell if I’m right or wrong with that interpretation)
My intention is “I’m 100% sure we will meet again and I will be your teacher if you want”, so please tell me if in this case it’s better また会うとき(あなたの)先生になりたい
Hello David,
たら can’t be 100 %. 時 has more possibility but you example sentence is not natural because you can’t be a teacher right away when you see someone.
For example, when I see you again, I will teach you English.
（今度）また会ったら日本語を教えます。
（今度）また会った時に日本語を教えます。
Both of them are not 100 pct sure but 時 has more possibility to see that person.
You use the past tense even when you are talking about future.
V past tense + とき: action is completed (So you are talking about something that happens after you see someone)
In this case, 会ったときに is more natural because 1) You see someone (action is completed) and then teach that person Japanese.
V present tense + とき: action is not complete. When I go see you,
Ex. また会う時に、本を持っていくね。
= I will take a book when I see you.
(You take a book with you before you see someone.)
But if you want to give that book to that person, the action should be completed so you say
また会ったときに本を渡すね。
= I will give you the book when I see you again.
Maggie Sensei, I was thinking, if I wanna express something 100% sure or close to 100% (it’s almost sure we will meet again), maybe is better if I say と? For example in the previous situation… また会うとダビッドの先生になりたい? Can be that sentence correct?
Sorry. また会うとダビッドの先生になりたい doesn’t make sense.
As I said the following sentence, 先生になりたい (I want to become a teacher) doesn’t work with “when” とき、たら、と
Can you omit the する from “Volitional form + とする” at the end of a sentence in writing? Or does “Volitional form + と” mean something else?
I’m reading a book about bicycle sports and there’s a sentence that says –
3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと。
I was wondering if this sentence is “Volitional form + とする” without する at the end, or is Volitional form + と something different here?
Hi Milk,
You don’t usually end the sentence with volitional form + と like that but it is probably “inversion”
If the previous sentence is like describing what they did, you add more detailed information.
For example
彼らは、がんばっていた。3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと。
They tried really hard. In order to ~
なるほど！
So then does this form of volitional form + と at the end always mean “inversion”? Why does volitional form + と here add more information, is there any alternative forms to use that can mean “inversion”?
OK, now it is more clear.
If you connect two sentences, it will be like this. クライマ―のトップを競る巻島と東堂は、ライバル同士、3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと一つの約束をしていた。
It is kind of long. So in order to emphasize what kind of promise they made, the writer divided the sentence into two sentences like that.
First mentioning the fact that they promised. And then explain what kind of promise they made by just using quoting part.
As I said before, you don’t leave sentence with a particle unless the previous sentence indicates what you are talking about.
I’ll show you another example.
彼は、私に大事な話があると言った。
→彼は、私に言った。
大事な話があると。
It has a dramatic effect.
Ah I understand well now! Thank you very much for explaining this
マギー先生！ありがとうございました。
よかった〜☺️
ご説明ありがとう、 Maggie先生。聞きたいことがあるんです。
I want to ask you about 「～ようで」. Is the usage of 「～ようで」is same with [ように] and「ようだ」?
There’s a sentences;
あの人と話をすると、妹ち話しているようで、嬉しいです。
Could you tell me what’s the meaning?
Hi Manami,
妹ち話しているようで→(typo)妹と話しているようで It is like talking with my little sister
Vようで/Nのようで gives a reason for the following part, in this case, 嬉しいです ( I am happy)
You may not translate “because” and just translate as “and” in many cases but the literal translation is,
I feel happy when I talk with her because it feels like talking with my little sister.
in the spot where you put you can also use it with auxiliary verbs were you referring to よりけり？ in the first place im not to knowledgeable on grammar but i couldn’t understand how the examples used an auxiliary verb after searching a lot up
thank you for clearing up the confusion. i learned a lot while trying to figure it out so its all good! thank you for your wonderful lessons Maggie sensei
this is the first time I’m going to ask. But i have been reading a lot on this page. I’d like to support the page but I cannot provide for now. 😅 but I will, and everytime I visit the page, once I become a technical intern.
So here’s my question
いぬがいますからおとこのこがきのうえにいます。
いぬがいますからおとこのこはきのうえにいます。
those are the sentences that we’re trying to understand. What particle should be used, should it be は or が？
I’m aware that there’s a better sentence structure like おとこはいぬがいますからきのうえにいます。But with the two sentences provided, can you please explain the difference between them?
And also , I’ve been reading comments a while ago. I’m seeing the word “contrast” when you explain “は”. What does it mean? can you please give me an example of this sentence? Thank you so much!!!
First let me change the first part
いぬがいますから→いぬがいるから
いぬがいるから、おとこのこはきのうえにいます。 is more natural than おとこのこがきのうえにいます。
And you are right おとこのこは、いぬがいるからきのうえにいます is even more natural.
The key to figure out which particle to use in this sentence is
when you see a boy on the tree for the first time, you tell someone the informstion
おとこのこがきのうえにいます。 = There is a boy on the tree!
You don’t know who the boy is but you are describing what you see.
But you and the listener know who the boy is or you mentioned the boy before, you say
そのおとこのこは、きのうえにいます。= That boy is on the tree.
Now adding the reason, いぬがいるから, the speaker specifies which boy they are talking about so it will be more natural to use は
You can use this idea for object.
You see an apple on the table, you say
テーブルの上にりんごがあります。
But if you are talking about the specific apple,
そのりんごはテーブルの上にあります。
は is a topic marker so you use は when you introduce, bring up a topic.
You also use は when you show the contrast.
For example, the apple is on the table but an orange is under the table.
りんごはテーブルの上にありますが、オレンジはテーブルの下にあります。
I am American but she is Japanese.
私はアメリカ人ですが、彼女は日本人です。
I’ve been looking for an answer to something for a while, but I haven’t found it yet, so I think it’s best to ask you here: what is it called when a common verb (like 見る or 来る) is used (usually following て form) to modify the meaning?
Thanks again for all the effort you put into your lessons!
Are negative forms common? In English (at least in the UK) we like to say “it is not [too] difficult to ~”. Would that be similar in Japanese?
Eg would it sound natural to say “Hiragana wa yominikukunai desu ?”
Hi Maggie, my name’s Maggie. Thank you for your easy-to-understand lessons.
I have a question. I came across the sentence もうすぐ分かるようになるよ. Would it still be natural to also say もうすぐ分かるよ?
2) もうすぐ分かるよ
You will find it out/figure it out/understand soon.
The nuance difference is while 1) implies there is a process to come to understand something, you use 2) when you find out/figure out/understand ~instantly.
Thank you soo much! I appreciate your reply. May I ask you another question? I don’t really understand ようにならない. Is it possible for you to provide some example sentences?
OK,
ようにならない will not be ~ / will not be able to ~
→人生、思ったようにならない。
= じんせい、おもったようにならない。
= Life doesn’t go as planned.
どれだけ勉強しても英語が話せるようにならない
=どれだけべんきょうしてもえいごがはなせるようにならない。
= No matter how much I studied, I won’t be able to speak English.(My English can’t get any better.)
Yes I like it a lot! I started watching it with a friend and we always laugh super hard at it! But also the themes in the anime are very real and it gets quite deep/sad sometimes too. Do you like it?
That’s fine I will check that lesson out! If I don’t understand it still I will ask, thank you!
I found this sentence in a novel: “無意味で美しい行為ほど、純粋な祈りがあるだろうか”. Do I translate it right into; “Can there be more pure prayer than meaningless, beautiful act?”
Hello Maggie. I have two kinda stupid questions. What’s the difference between saying これでよかった？ and これでよい？
And then what’s the difference between …てよかった and …て嬉しい? Do both translate to “I’m glad …”?
Hello Meg,
They are not stupid questions at all.
これでよかった？ the past tense (For example, 1) you already bought something and show it to someone, Do you like it? Are you happy with this one? 2) You decided something and ask someone if it was OK with him/her.
これでいい？ （You usually say いい in conversation) 1) You are showing something to someone now and asking that person, Is this OK? / Do you like this one? 2) You are deciding what to do and ask someone if that idea is OK. )
Vてよかった I am happy/glad that I did ~. (You are talking about your own action.)
Vて嬉しい I am happy that someone did/does something for you / I am happy that something happened to you.
Okay, this is probably a stupid question, but when propositioning something, the か can be used by women and men alike, right? I’m asking because in another lesson I read just asking a question by [something something]か was described as sounding blunt maleish lol
Hello Maggie sensei.
Thank you for the lesson
I have a question, 素直にそう思えるほどの良い表情だ。
How do you translate that? My translation would be ‘have such a nice expression that (someone) seem to be unaffected.’
Hodo has a lot of used/way to be use that I’m confused, which part of hodo in your lesson does this sentence belong to sensei?
And that Sunaoni can also mean honest, I sometimes feel puzzled which meaning to use on some kanji..
If this sentence also has よう、そう、らしい, along with that omoeru, then I’m dead..
Hi Niko
The usage of ほど is to do something like ~ / to be as (like)~ / to be almost ~
素直にそう思えるほどの良い表情だ。
→素直にそう思えるほどの modifies 良い表情 (good expression)
そう (so, that way) refers to the previous sentence.
The literal translation is
Someone’s facial expression is so good to the extent of making me genuinely think that way.
I went through the whole lesson again, but I’m still confused about how some verbs (especially those related to weather conditions) when attached to てくる mean that the change will begin in the present and continue to the future.
For example:
1) 雨が降てくる = It will rain.
2) 暑くなってくる = It will get hotter.
Normally てくる implies that the change already started in the past, will pass through me and continue to the future. But the ideia changes with those verbs.
Especially when I replace the examples with their いく versions.
3) 雨が降っていく
4) 暑くなっていく
Besides, I’m having trouble on how to identify if a verb implies a change from the past with てきた or if I’m talking about a change that will start in the present.
雨が降ってきた ＝It started to rain (I just noticed)
I mean, Why could it not be “The rain has been falling for a while, reached me and continues”?
As in 雨が強くなってきた = The rain was getting stronger (Change started in the past).
Hi Victor
Since I already wrote the difference between 暑くなってくる 暑くなっていく, I won’t explain here.
雨が降ってくる・暑くなってくる
The difference is 雨が降ってくる is instantaneous change*. (The change starts now)
暑くなる is continuous change. (the change starts in the past) So the translation will change.
It started to rain 雨が降ってきた (It was not raining before but all of a sudden, it started to rain)
It is getting hotter. 暑くなってきた (The temperature changes gradually and it doesn’t change from 0℃ to 40℃)
* But of course, it goes through some process before it rains. When water droplets grow and get too heavy, they fall and the people start to feel the rain. If it is easier for you to think that way.
雨が強くなってきた。 The rain is getting stronger. The premise is it has been already raining because it says 強くなってきた ( Getting stronger)
As for いく, you don’t say
3) 雨が降っていく
I guess it because the rain falls from the sky to the ground (towards people) and it doesn’t pass by the ground/people.)
I just wrote in my previous comment.
→You don’t say 雨が降っていく I guess it because the rain falls from the sky to the ground (towards people) and it doesn’t pass by the ground/people.)
ていく is used when some movement goes away from you.
Meanwhile the rain falls vertically and once it hits the ground/you, it can’t move away. That’s why you don’t say 降っていく
宿題をしません means ~ doesn’t do one’s homework
学校へ行きません means ~ doesn’t go to the school.
宿題をして(学校へ) いきません。
You don’t go to the school in the state of having finished your homework.
You go to the school without doing your homework. (= 宿題をしないで学校に行く）
Another example
朝ごはんを食べて学校に行く = to go to the school after having breakfast.
朝ごはんを食べないで学校に行く = to go to the school without having breakfast.
You can rephrase it,
→朝ごはんを食べて学校に行かない = no to go to the school in the state of having breakfast = go to school without having breakfast.
Hello Bere,
It is a conditional sentence so you use ば.
How much it should rain to get back tomorrow.
If it is hard to understand why it is a conditional sentence, let’s change the sentence a little.
たくさん雨がふれば明日を取り戻すだろう If it rains a lot, I will get back tomorrow.
kureteyaru is a very rough way to say “to give” (= ageru). You use that when you are looking down on someone.
It means the same as “Sonna me de mitemo nani mo agenai yo.”
英語で言いたいこと：
– You probably can’t get a job while you haven’t renewed your visa.
– Do they mean the same except for the fact that 間 is more commonly used in talking to people rather than 限り？
-「間」sounds more of “neutral” compared to「限り」 which is usually used for negative situations (I’ve only seen negative examples for 限り which is why I’m assuming it’s for negative sentences, but I might be wrong lol)
First I would add は to show the contrast.
As you said we may translate them the same way but what you focus on is different.
間 indicates the time period (while)
限り indicates the condition “as long as/as far as / unless +certain condition”
So compare to 間, 限り show the stricter condition.
And you can use 限り in an affirmative sentence,
こんにちは先生 I have a question, in the 聞くpart; in minna no nihongo ask/listen kenjougo form is 伺います, is it any different from 拝聴する? and which one is used often?
Thank you for your lessons it’s extremely helpful!
Ah, good question. I should have added 伺う as well. (I will do that later)
拝聴する has a meaning of to listen to someone attentively, respectfully, humbly.
As for my example sentence, you use 拝聴 more than 伺う when you are talking about lectures.(Also 伺う means “to visit” so you can avoid the confusion.)
But it is very common to use 伺う when you just listen to what someone said.
What would be the difference in 京都のよう{な|に}古い街に憧れます。if I use な or に?
I’m having a bit of trouble when よう is followed by noun-phrases (as it is the case of the above sentence). I can’t really understand the difference is nuances.
In this case 京都のよう modifies a noun, (古い)街 = old (town) so you use な
So you have to figure out what the main verb (in this case 憧れる=long for) and figure out if what comes before よう modifies that verb or a noun in that sentence.
You can’t 憧れる just 京都のよう(like Kyoto) so you can guess that doesn’t modify a verb, 憧れる.
But instead of the verb, couldn`t ように be modifying the i-adjective (古い) by itself?
I was thinking something like this:
When you use に you put emphasis on your attraction to old cities and you just use Kyoto as an example of an old city. This would translate as “I admire old cities like Kyoto for example.
When you use な you put emphasis on old cities you admire that resemble Kyoto. This would translate as “I admire old cities that resemble Kyoto.”
Hi Kat,
That よう is the same as みたい. It seems like ~
I can’t tell from the sentence what そんなこと means but the writer was talking about some possibility, one will be able to do something in future, right?.
I was glad that it seemed like that one can do such a thing/such a thing was feasible…
積極的 is often mistranslated in English to “aggressive”, as in angry or pushy.
I think “assertive” is a much better match, considering the way it’s used in Japanese.
The first sentence is OK but the second sentence should be
3) 彼は漫画を読んでさえいれば退屈しないようだ
The difference between 1) and 3)
さえ emphasize what comes before. So 1) is emphasizing “漫画” (not other books but it has to be a comic book) 3) is emphasizing 漫画を読んでいる (reading a comic book) (not other activities but reading a comic book.)
Maggie sensei, i really love your site. It is so useful.
I have a job interview and a written test in a Japanese company in 3 months so I am wondering whether you give online classes or not?
I am a dog angel so I don’t give a lesson on line but my human pet, Yukari does.
Since she has been busy she doesn’t put the information on the site.
If you are interested, reach her through About Us page. If her schedule fits yours, she can help you.
Good luck on your job interview! :)
も・てまで Not want to do something/not worth doing even doing something (negative feelings)
２０万円出してまで旅行に行く必要はない。
２０万円も出して旅行に行く必要はない。
２０万円出してまであんなところに行きたいの？
てでも/でも
Even doing something, even ~ much + expressing one’s strong desire/strong will to do something
２０万円出してでも旅行に行きたい。（xまで）
２０万円出しても旅行に行きたい。
ツアー代が２０万円でも旅行に行きたい。
Thank you for another very informative lesson! I would like to ask, is 間いたら an entirely different thing? I am also confused on how to read it as I have found varying roumaji on different sites and dictionaries.
Hello maggie sensei. I dont know where to ask this but i’ve seen zettai used as an adverb with and without ni. like 絶対食べます・絶対に食べます. any difference within the 2? from my understanding zettai is already an adverb so is it fine to just use it as is without adding ni?
Hello sensei, want to ask you
Ex ふろ に はいって くれ。Please take a bath.
What does くれ means?
Is it mean like くれる, the speaker will be happy/glad if listener took a bath?
Hello,
Vてくれ is a rough way to ask someone to do something for you.
The politeness level
→Vていただけませんか？
→Vてくれませんか？
more casual→Vてくれる？
more casual→Vてくれ (male speech/rough)
As I explained in this lesson, ておく expresses the completion of action (having done)
Vておいて means
Though you have done something, ~ (something contradicted)
Despite the fact that you are the one who stole his account ~
Thank you for sharing all of these lessons with us! Your teaching is easy to understand and is a really big help on my journey to learning the Japanese language.
I have a question in regards to the usage of ”でも” in this sentence:
一旦公園にでもいくか
I’m not sure how to translate this, can you help me?
I guess I will go to the park once or something.
As it said in this lesson, by adding でも make the sentence sounds softer and implies there are some other choices, in this case, going somewhere else or spending time in some other ways.
We have the structure:
adjective + 間 + は
For i-adjectives we have ex: 子 供 が 小 さ い 間 は,
but if it is an adjective-na can we use the particle な before 間?
Just noticed this was posted a long time ago and glad that it’s still effective. A bit off-topic, but I noticed that if you translated that “I was fined”, it becomes 罰金を「科せられる」. I know that it’s original form is 科す, but I’m a bit confused on how this was conjugated in the first place. I was expecting something like 科される which is normally the passive form. I tried searching my dictionary but the only 「科せ〜」 was potential and imperative form.
The verb 「科する」 has two passive forms depending on the conjugation types.
科せられる and 科される
irregular conjugation of s-stem verbs and godan verb conjugation
OK, バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買いたい shows the speaker’s desire to buy chocolate at supermarket. (Not other places)
バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買って済ませたい 済ます means “to manage to do things in a easier way”/”avoid all the troubles” so the speaker wants to avoid all the trouble buying fancy chocolates or going to the nice chocolate stores. Buying chocolate at a supermarket is easy and cheap. 😉
Hello! I have a quick question. I studied Japanese in college for several years, and it was never properly explained to me the difference in meaning between something like “よく和食を食べる人がある” and “よく和食を食べるという人がある”
Can you please enlighten me? I feel like I’m just not grasping something incredibly simple about the slight difference in purpose and meaning here.
OK, first the verb should be いる not ある
(You use いる. Noun がいる・ある いる for living things, people, animal/ ある for object in general.)
In this case という is to quote
よく和食を食べる人がいる There are people who eat Japanese food.
よく和食を食べるという人がいる There are people who say that they eat Japanese food.
Thank you! I actually know the difference between iru and aru. It’s not a mistake I usually make. I must not have been thinking very much when I wrote those example sentences. Kind of embarrassing actually haha
Anyways, thank you for the explanation! I think the fact I see it frequently without kanji really throws me sometimes, since I forget that’s the verb being used technically. I’ll keep practicing!
効く = the air conditioner works
Ex. このエアコンはよく効く = This air conditioner works well. (talking about how it works)
効いている = the air conditioner is working (talking about the current state)
Ex. この部屋はエアコンがよく効いている。= The air conditioner is working well (which means the room temperature is nice and cool) in this room.
Maggie Sensei, 「こといます」is an incorrect grammar? I heard a person in a gameplay say 「自分の声がアニメキャラみたいと思ったこといますか」, I’m completely sure that he said that, but I don’t know if he is a native japanese speaker so maybe he just was wrong using an incorrect grammar and correct in that case would be ありますか not いますか?
Hello David,
Yes, こといます is wrong and you don’t say 思ったこといますか
The only possibility that I can think of is…that person said
自分の声がアニメキャラみたいと思った人（ひと）いますか
Then it is a correct expression.
Thank you for your answer 💛💛🧡🧡🧡, I realised that he study japanese but is not a native speaker so maybe he just made a mistake using iru instead of aru, because in the subtitles he put “Have you ever thought that your voice sounds like an anime character?”. Thank you for make things clear, that situation confused me but it’s useful to learn!
This one post on “-tte” unlocked so many mysteries I’ve encountered trying to understand many of the lines in so many J-dramas and anime at my elementary level of Japanese. Thank you so much, Maggie-sensei! Enjoy your coffee!
This is only my first lesson so this question may have already have been answered, but I am confused about how some sentences have the quote then といっています。 But another would have quote then といます。 I am confused about what the いって that is between とandいます？
Ah…I just re-read a question of mine from a while ago regarding the difference between 断って来た and 断った and you mentioned that there can be an emotional element in this usage of て来た.
I wonder if maybe that’s the answer to this one too? :D
Hello Peter,
First 続けば is intransitive verb, If something continues, and 続ければ is transitive verb, if I/we/you continue or keep doing something” so I think you meant 続ければ
続けていけば and 続ければ
→続ける and 続けていく
断って来た involves one’s emotion element but in this case but not in this case.
They mean the same but the subtle nuance difference is 続けていく is used when you continue what you have been doing/you are going to do constantly in future/keep doing for a long time.
Many thanks, and yes you are correct! I meant 続ければ :D
So, 続ければ would mean “if I/we/you continue”, but perhaps for something over a shorter time?
続ければ: “If I carry on eating the rest of this meal then I’ll get too full”.
続けていけば: “If I continue studying Japanese then maybe one day I’ll be good at it”.
このまま食べ続ければお腹がいっぱいになる (You use 食べ続けていけば if there are so many things to eat and it will take a long time or このまま甘いものを食べ続けていけば糖尿病になる。 If I constantly keep eating sweet, I will get diabetes in future.
勉強し続けていけばいつか日本語が上手くなる。
Hello, JP Arcilla
理由 is more general.
As I wrote in the lesson きっかけ means “original motive, something that triggers an incident”
Since the translation can be the same, reason, but the answer is a key to figure out the difference.
ずっと日本に行きたいと思っていた。I have been wanting to go to Japan for a long time.
can’t be きっかけ
子供の頃、〜というアニメを見た can be either 理由 or きっかけ
It makes sense, since it feels like きっかけ is more of a “trigger”. Lastly, 「彼女と喧嘩をしてしまったが、仲直りするきっかけが欲しい 」is translated as i want an opportunity to make up with my girlfriend.
If I wanted to say “I will USE this opportunity to make up with my girlfriend”, would it be okay to say
・仲直りするきっかけを掴む
・これから仲直りきっかけがあれば絶対掴むよ
Sorry if I’m asking detailed questions, I just want to make sure I understand the concept and flexibility of the word itself.
Hello,
You don’t say きっかけを掴む like チャンスを掴む
If you want to use the word きっかけ in that sentence,
これをきっかけに彼女と仲直りしたい。
or use the word 機会・チャンス
今後、仲直りする機会 ( or チャンス）があれば絶対に逃さないよ。
A question regarding this sentence…
スマホは便利なことは便利なのですが、そのせいで最近本を読まなくなりました。
What does 読まなくなりました mean here exactly? I’m trying to figure out specifically what the nai stem of a verb + kunarimashita translates as. Does it mean “don’t read anymore”?
Thank you for your help in advance Maggie Sensei/Yukari, and as always thank you for the lessons.
読まなくなりました
読む negative form 読まない→読まなくなる (express the change) come not to read ~
It is a negative form of 読むようになりました ( = come to read books/ start to read books)
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you for this very helpful post. I was wondering, how would you describe someone’s personality “on the inside,” as in describing a personality that may contradict that person’s appearance.
First のように is used with a noun
noun + のように Ex.犬のように = like a dog
verb + かのように Ex. 私のことを知っているかのように = as if ~ knows about me
When you use ように with a verb, you can use ように instead of かのように but the nuance difference is
verb + ように 歌うように like singing
verb + かのように 歌うかのように as if one sings
Hi! Sorry to bother you with this question.
I don’t understand the structure for 幼い頃、父に死なれて母と途方に暮れた at all.
Specifically the 父に死なれて part. I feel like it says “I was dead by my father” (but I know it doesn’t.)
Could you please explain it, thank you!
Also thank you for all of your lessons <3
OK
父が死んだ My father died
When the incident affects the speaker negatively you use the passive form →父に死なれた
幼い頃、父が死んだ
幼い頃、父に死なれた
The translation is still the same “When I was a child, my father died ” but while 死んだ states just the fact,
the passive form,死なれた, expresses the speaker’s shocked feelings more.
Hello マギー先生
I was wondering if the causative form can be used for
“accidentally made”, for example –
“When the milk expired, I threw it away in the sink and made the sink smell.”
I didn’t force for the sink to smell, but accidentally made it smell, can causative be used here? Can causative + ちゃう be used?
Is there any examples of “accidentally made/forced”?
For that particular example sentence, “made ~ smell” you can just use ちゃう・しまう 臭くなってしまった(casual ちゃった） instead of using させる but yes, you can use
causative + ちゃう・してしまう
親を心配させる to make one’s parents worry (about ~)
→親を心配させてしまう・心配させちゃう
Hello again, Bere.
It depends.
The basic difference is
ある to be
なる to become (or “to be” which expresses the change. It was someone else but hope ~ will be ~ )
What is the context of the sentence?
For example, you have a crush on some hair stylist at a hair salon. You don’t know who would be your hair stylist today. Then say “今日も（担当は）あの人であるように・ありますように! (I hope he/she will be (my hair stylist) for today again.
If you want to use なる, you have to change a little bit
今日も（担当は）あの人になるように！・なりますように。(なる = ended up having that person as my stylist)
Hello Bere,
ために is more natural and common. However, you can use ように if やせる expresses the state/condition.
A: やせるために運動しています。in order to lose weight
B: やせるように運動しています。in order to be in the condition/state of being slim.
I have a question about using なんて in combination with a conditional clause.
In your example sentence:
受験勉強なんてなければいいのに
I am under the impression that 受験勉強 is a noun and not a verb, so I understand up to the point after なんて is attached. Why does なければ come right after なんて, and why is it that and not しなければ for example? (like if it was 受験勉強する/をする)
I also found another sentence online similar to that one:
お金が必要なければ、使わないでおけばいい,
where the verb is usually expressed as 必要がある, but the が is dropped in the conditional.
I feel as if there is something implied that I just may not be knowledgeable of yet. Sorry if this question is confusing. Thank you for the help!
Hello! Maggie-sensei I love your website and dog! 💖💖
Thank you so much for looking into a detailed look into はずだった^^. I’ve struggling, I do mean ~struggled~ with the meaning of it.
May I ask if it’s possible that the speaker who says はずだった say it without a regretful or unsatisfied tone?
I came across a dialogue bubble containing the words はずだった and 代わりに in the same bubble and thought to myself if the character “really” feels regret? I’m unsure about that.
Thank you, I look forward to more of your content:)
Hello Darlene
はずだった is used when something you were expected didn’t happen so a lot of time, it involves the speaker’s feelings, such as “It’s too bad”/ “I am disappointed” but I guess it is possible to use はずだった without the feelings of regret if the event has nothing to do with you and you just state the fact.
Ex. 建設工事は４月に完成するはずだったが６月に延期になったみたいだ。
The construction projects was supposed to be completed in April but it seems like they got postponed ’til June.
In this case, if the writer/speaker has nothing to do with the construction projects and just state the fact, it doesn’t involved any feelings.
Gotcha, I understand it’s common that the speaker will feel something while saying any sentence that includes “はずだった”. Thank you for your clarification.
If it’s not too much trouble, may I ask for your help on that said dialogue I’ve been struggling with? >//<
Here it is: "ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ"
It contains 代わりに and はずだった which throws me off from the thinking that the character is feeling regret since they said 代わりに.
It probably doesn't make any sense without context, huh?
“ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ”
Let me rephrase this sentence to understand the meaning better.
ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活を、（ユリの代わりに）君が果たしてくれなきゃ
I believe the speaker was supposed to get married to Yuri but something happened and he couldn’t marry her.
So the speaker is asking the listener to marry him, “Instead of Yuri, you should carry out/fullfill my new married life.
Since there is のに, it doesn’t express so much of regrets here.
You’re so incredible!!❤️ I understand the rephrase better. ┌|o^▽^o|┘♪
Oh gosh, I made a mistake >\\<
The piece of dialogue was actually written this way: "ユリと叶えるはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ" with the "叶える" instead of "叶う" but when it's rephrased, it produces the same meaning, right?
OK, that makes more sense.
叶える(かなえる） to make ~ come true / to realize one’s hope (transitive verb)
叶う(かなう） one’s wish/dream comes true (intransitive verb)
叶える involves’s speaker’s will.
I see (・_・;) what you mean.
So the rephrase or meaning would be different if it comes from the way this is written?
“ユリと叶えるはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ” where the phrase “はずだった” will openly show the speaker’s regret since it uses “叶える” but not so much or none at all if it uses “代わりに” too.
I’m so sorry to keep bothering you with this!
～♡•́ ‿ ,•̀
I would say no feeling of regrets in this case. Because this person is asking the listener to marry him. 😉
Lmao, that’s right. ☺️ Thank you so very much for your help, I really appreciate it, you’re an awesome teacher! (*＾3＾)/～♡🙏
You’re very welcome and thank YOU for your nice words!
Hi Maggie-san
Is it ok to rephrase this:
新聞は毎朝６：００までには配達されるはずなのに今日はまだ来ていない
Hello Spencer,
No, you can’t.
When you connect two sentences, the first sentence can’t finish with だった
You need some conjunction (in this case なのに) or finish the sentence once and start with conjunction, such as しかし
Also but だった is a past tense. 毎朝 means “every morning” so you have to use the present tense.
If you are talking about the past, you can use だった but you still need conjunction.
As always, thank you so much 🙏, I have one question… Can I say 「おかし食べながらテレビ見たい」, “I want to watch TV while I’m eating snacks”, It’s that ok? Can I use たい form in the main action in the same sentence with ながら?
ありがとうございました。質問があります🙏、Can I use「て形 + みて(い)た」? いいですか?、Is that ok? 例えば、「食べてみてた」like “I was trying to eat”. Or「それ見つけてみてた」”I was trying to find that”.正解ですか?。Can be use it like that? Or also with てみてる? like 「食べてみてる」”I have been trying to eat”?
Hello David,
~てみる・みた usually describes one time action but I guess for example, if there are many sample foods and someone was trying to taste everything, you may say
すべての試食品を食べてみていた
Thank you very much! My native language is スペイン語, and sometimes when I wanna express my ideas in Japanese, I don’t know if the way that I’m using sound wrong or not, in my language sound pretty well in that way haha
Maggie先生、こんにちは！Thank you so much for your blog! This slang page has been particularly helpful for me who is mostly using Twitter to practice Japanese. ^^ I hope it’s ok to ask questions here!
On Twitter, I’ve been seeing 「妄想話」come up frequently (eg.「〜妄想話したいけどTLは汚したくない！」) and I’ve seen it translate to “delusion,” but I was wondering if it’s slang? From what I’ve seen, I’m guessing it might be similar to “spamming,” but I wanted to ask in case.
Also, for アルファツイッタラー and ツイドル, I’m wondering if there is an instagram equivalent? Would it be「アルファインスタラ」and 「インスタアイドル」, or something else entirely?
こんにちは、 coco,
妄想 itself is not slang.
妄想話をする means to talk about my fantasy
So if you like some idol, you fantasize for example what if you get go out with him/her, etc.
You say インスタアイドル but for some reason, I rarely hear アルファインスタラ but some say アルファインスタグラマー
Hello, Maggie. I spent several hours and couldn’t find the answer myself, please help.
What is the difference between ように when I want to say “like;as” and “in order to”?
For example:
彼女は歌うように話す。Might be translated as both “In order to sign, she speaks” and “She talks like singing”.
I was told that I need to use まるで （彼女はまるで歌うように話す）for the 2nd case, but why? Wasn’t it just an additional in the note above: “まるで ( = marude) is often used with よう( = you) to add the meaning of “just“”as if“”?
The overall question is difference between like and in order to with ように.
ように means
1) to do ~ in order to ~ (purpose)
2) to do like ~
彼女は歌うように話す。 is the second one.”to talk like singing”
まるで adds the meaning of “as if”
The usage 1) in order to:
“In order to sing, she speaks” doesn’t make sense.
But if you change the subject a little, it may work.
For example, she has been refusing to sing.
Ex. 彼女が歌うように（彼女と）話してみる。
I will talk to her in order her to sing.
Yes. I checked the lyrics. The previous line has a key.
I don’t translate the whole thing but the rough idea is,
I hope “the first world I see and the first voice that I hear when I wake up” is you.
Hello again, Maggie-Sensei :)
I have some questions regarding ということ
I have seen a question regarding this in the comments but I did not understand it properly.
1)明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人ですか (Can I also use ということで instead?)
2) When do I have to use this in combination and when not: –ということは …..ということです?
3) Is there a difference between 明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人ですか
AND:
明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人だということです?
Basically, when do I have to use this grammar without ということですin the end and when with ということです in the end
1） No, you can’t use ということで
While you use ということは for both statement or questions, you don’t use ということで in a question.
ということは that means…（summarize what other people or yourself said)
ということで that’s why/ so/therefore (what you are going to do)
So if you change the sentence a little, you can use ということで
明日は誰もきません。ということで私一人で過ごすことにしました。
Nobody is coming tomorrow. Therefore/So I decided to spend the time by myself.
2) For example, when you explain or give a definition of verbs.
生きるということは自分自身を高めるということです。
理解するということはわかるということです。
But you don’t have to use という
生きることは自分自身を高めることです。
理解することはわかることです。
By using という, it adds more explanatory tone.
So unless you are explaining the deep meaning or giving some definition, it may sound too dramatic.
3) I think you meant to say 私、一人だということですか？
(1) A 明日は誰も来ません。B ということは私、一人ですか
(2) A 明日は誰も来ません。B ということは私、一人だということですか？
They both mean the same but you can express more feelings (such as surprise) more with ということ
Regarding your examples in:
1) Can I also use それで or だから as a conjunction instead?
2) If that is the case, can I also use というものはor のは instead of ということは
3) But I heard also that the ということ at the end is also used, when you want to confirm sth, for example: 部長に30分ほど遅れると伝えてください ANSWER: はい、わかりました。30分ほど遅れるということですね without the ということは at the beginning of the sentence. What is the difference here compared with your examples?
And
I have also a question to というのが
このエアコンは、もともと業務用で、パワーがあるので、広い部屋でも短時間での温度調節が可能というのが最大の長所です. What does it mean here? is the “NO” particle a substitute for エアコン or is it something differen?
I am really sorry for so many questions but I do really struggle with them and really appreciate your efforts!
Happy new year by the way :)
AがBです A should be a noun. (Explain the functions first) and in the next line この機能が最大の長所です。
AのがBです When A is a verb or adjective add の to nominalize. ~可能なのが最大の長所です。
AというのがBです When A is a relatively long sentence which ends with a verb or adjective, you can quote with というの 〜〜可能というのが最大の長所です。
Hi sensei . I do have a question. 質問があるんですが、can I use toka to assume something about myself?. Like, I’m not sure why I said/ did such a thing .
Hi Aya,
I am not sure what you meant by “to assume something about myself” but
I’m not sure why I said/ did such a thing
You don’t use “toka” in this sentence.
The natural way to say that will be
Ex. どうしてあんなことを言ってしまったのかわからない。
Hi maggie sensei.
I was trying to remember why I hated some movie I watched before, but I don’t remember. So I made some assumptions on what possibly made me hate/ dislike it. (i don’t remember why I hated that movie. Maybe because I was young when I first watched it or maybe it’s actually a bad movie. ) I hope you get what I’m trying to say . I know my explanation is bad . 😓😓😓 by young , I mean I couldn’t understand it’s plot or wasn’t my cup of tea .
Btw, happy new year . 😄
It depends.
For example,
If you say
これからだんだん寒くなってくるね。
You are talking about future from now. Maybe the change has started but you are thinking about future.
But if you say
だんだん寒くなってきたね。
The change has started in past and it affects the present.
I knew that sometimes with time expressions, you have to use は instead of に or omitting a particle completely, and I have been, for the most part, able to accurately choose which one to use.
However, I’ve been having a lot of trouble explaining to my friends/students why, for example, you have to say 来週はいそがしいです and not 来週忙しいです. I spent literally the last three days scouring the internet, but you’re the first to address and explain this little weird grammar structure, so thank you for being such a great virtual teacher! I know where to refer my friends to next time they ask ;)
Thank you again, Maggie-Sensei. It is my second lesson here and I am already considering patreon.
But I have a question: Is there a difference between って、だって, and if there is, what is the difference?
Ex: (hearsay)
—来ないって
—元気なんだって 元気だって (and what is the difference between them here?)
By the way:
(元気って Is this also possible? Or do I need always “da” because it is a Na-Adjective?)
Thank you in advance!
おはよう、Sam!
When you quote what you heard you say
na-adjective: 元気なんだって (more polite 元気なんですって）
noun: 犬なんだって (more polite 犬なんですって）
verb : 来ないんだって (more polite 来ないんですって）
These are very casual speech but in conversation, you sometime omit なん
元気だって
犬だって
来ないって
The meaning is the same.
なんだって is more explanatory and you say that when you give some new information expressing your feelings (such as surprised feelings) more.
As for the usage ん, if you want to learn more, please check my how to use ん lesson.
1)So the meaning of って andだって is the same and there are no differences between them in meaning or nuance?
2) What is the difference between って、だって and だそうです except the formality?
3）Can I use this form 元気って or do I need “Da” because it is a NA-adjective?
１） They mean the same.
I heard he is not coming today.
今日、彼は、来ないって
今日、彼は来ないんだって
But as I mentioned in my previous comment, 来ないんだって is more explanatory.
２） verbって/na-adjective or noun だって＋ the following verbs vary 言っていた・聞いた・伝えて欲しい
３）It depends what comes after.
You can quote ~ 元気
マギーは元気って聞いたよ。 (It could be Maggie’s cheerful personality or physical or mental state)
マギーは元気だって聞いたよ。(talking about Maggie’s physical or mental state)
But you can’t give this information to someone
マギーは元気って (You may hear that in super casual conversation but I would say だって）
マギーは元気だって。is more natural
Thank you so much, Maggie-Sensei! I really appreciate it :)
Anytime, Sam! ☺️
hi Maggie sensei, thank you for the support you provide for the people learning japanese.
the difference between もう and まだ ususally seems pretty clear to me, axcept for the もう一回 or もう一度 situation.
I really don’t get why this is the sentence used for ‘once again’.
in this case もう is only translatable with ‘again’ but this is supposed to be a translation more fitting the word まだ.
can you clarify this doubt of mine? I could’t find an explanation anywhere online.
as I’m italian, I’m not english mother tongue, so maybe I’m missing something about the english words ‘yet/again’.
Hello Maggie Sensei, sorry for my late comment. I just want to know why there’s a use of もう even though it’s not properly necessary(in my opinion) for the sentence like this:
-お母さん、もう遊びに行ってもいいですか？
At this point, what would happen to the meaning of this sentence if we didn’t add もう or vice versa.
Hello Siren
OK, you say
お母さん、遊びに行ってもいいですか？
when you simply asking your mother for permission to go out to play.
By adding もう implies that you have been waiting to go out to play for a long time.
Maybe your mother told you to finish your homework or help her before you go out. And when you finish what you need to do, you ask your mother お母さん、もう遊びに行ってもいいですか？ Can I go out to play now?
So the nuance changes with or without もう
青い目をした女の子
青い目をしている女の子
They mean the same and the English translation is the same. A girl with blue eyes.
But generally している describes the state more vividly compared to した.
When you are talking about someone as a topic, you use は
彼は、青い目をしている。
As for him, he has blue eyes.
You use が only when you emphasize what comes before in this case.
For example, the listener wasn’t sure who has blue eyes.
The listener: 誰が青い目をしているって言った？ Aさんが青い目をしているの？
You: 違うよ。Bさんが青い目をしているんだよ。
Maggie先生、thank you so much for all the great lessons!
って and と is a grammar form I have been familiar with for a while now, but I decided to revisit this lesson because there’s a particular usage of って I’ve been noticing that I haven’t found directly addressed anywhere.
Sometimes, in casual speech, I notice that people end sentences in って without actually quoting anything, or repeating anything.
For example, Hanako says to Nene 「そんな顔すんなって！」He is telling her not to make such a face in an encouraging tone. But why the って? He isn’t relaying information somebody else told him to tell Nene, and it is the first time he is saying that.
In another example between a husband and a wife, the husband says to his upset wife 「僕の心の中には君しかいないって！」Again, he isn’t quoting or repeating himself, and he isn’t showing frustration here because he says this with a smile on his face.
I’m not sure exactly, but I think this って is just used for emphasis? Or is there some slight meaning that I am not picking up on. Perhaps Hanako and the husband in this case are rehashing something they’ve said in a previous, unheard conversation or something? Please let me know!
In this lesson, there is a part
Also we finish the sentence with って in casual conversation when repeat or stress our own quote showing our frustration.
Maybe I will add more explanation.
Just like an English expression, “I am telling you”, you use って when you emphasize what you are saying.(not necessary frustration or repeating but making your point or showing your strong feelings)
「そんな顔すんなって！」 I’m telling you, don’t make that face.
僕の心の中には君しかいないって！ I’m telling you, I only have you in my heart.
Interesting question.
You can say all of the followings.
1) なんであやまったんだよ (= Nande ayamattan dayo)
2) なんであやまってるんだよ ( = Nande ayamatterundayo)
3) なんであやまるんだよ ( = Nande ayamarun dayo)
The nuance difference is
1) Why did you apologize?
2) Why are you apologizing (now)?
3) Why do you apologize? (Accusing the idea of apologizing.It could refer to the past, present or future.)
Are all of those the more ‘casual’/informal ways of saying it? Because I thought present progressive should be something ending with ‘iru’ or ‘imasu’?
Like ‘ayamatte iru?’ Or is that incorrect?
Your sentence in the question ‘Nande ayamarun dayo? is a casual/male speech so I used the same rough and casual forms for the other two examples.
If you want to say that in polite say,
1) なぜあやまったのですか？ ( = Naze ayamatta no desu ka?)
2) なぜあやまっているのですか？ ( = Naze ayamatte irunodesu ka?)
3) なぜあやまるのですか？ ( = Naze ayamaru no desu ka?)
Hi Maggie Sensei! Thank you so much for this. I just have a question about this sentence from a manga.
‘別にやってもいいけど’
(A character says this after being suggested to that she join a game her friends are playing)
It translates to something like ‘I don’t mind playing’, but I don’t really understand the grammar here, like using 別に and でもいい in the same sentence. Could you possible please explain this a bit further? What would the literal translation be? Sorry if this is a dumb question.
Hello Ash ☆彡
Right the meaning is “I don’t mind playing it. ”
別に means “not really”/ “not specially” but it conveys the feelings such as “I don’t care whether I do play it or not. /It is not a big deal./ Whatever..”
〜たい： The speaker wants to do something
Ex. 手伝いたい = I want to help/I would like to help
~てほしい: The speaker wants someone to do something
Ex. 手伝ってほしい = I want you (or someone) to help me.
〜てほしい You simply express your desire for someone to do something
〜てもらいたい It involves stronger feelings of desire for someone to do something for you.
〜ていただきたい The idea is the same as もらいたい but it sounds more polite.
がんばってほしい I want them (you) to try harder.
がんばってもらいたい = I want them (you) to try harder for me.
(more polite) がんばっていただきたい= I would like them (you) to try harder for me.
笑ってしまう→笑っちゃう It means “can’t help laughing”
You can’t control your emotion and cant help laughing. But 笑っちゃう is also used for self-deprecation. You laugh at yourself because you are or the situation is so bad.
Thank you Maggie-Sensei for all your efforts. To my question:
来月、大学を卒業するって考えただけでなんか、悲しくなってきた
For what is って used here and is it here an abbreviation of と、という、ということと聞いた、といっている or something else?
Is the って hier a fact or something else?
And has でも （お茶でも飲もうか）the same meaning as なんか （お茶なんか飲もうか） and is it interchangeable?
Hello Maggie sensei !
In a light novel, I came across this.
パッと見た感じ、クールな印象を受けるその美女は、無表情にこちらを見ていた。
I don’t really understand the パッと見た感じ part, could you please explain ?
Hi, Maggie,
I came across the phrase “どうとでもなる / どうにでもなる” which is something along the lines of “X is possible doing anything”(?) and in that lieu “don’t worry about it”.
Can you please explain how となる / になる are used here with どう and if that translation’s train of thought is correct?
Thank you.
I’m reading something where a character is thinking to himself about what to do on his day off, and he thinks 「なんかメシでも買って・・・」 but I can’t figure out if I should read that as “I could buy rice or something” or “I could do something like buy rice” or something else entirely. Can you help, please?
Maggie Sensei, I believe many teachers mentioned that we don’t use と at the end of a sentence… but I hear this phrase a lot in drama and anime “なんだと！？” . Would this be an exception to that rule? Thank you!
Ah, OK, right. It is an expression to show your disbelief or surprised feelings for what you just heard.
It is like “What? You just said ~ ? ” (No way! / I can’t believe it.)
Polite form
ですって？ (なんですって？ ）
casual form
だって？ （なんだって？）
rough male speech
だと？ （なんだと？）
Quite the late question but How do I say “To everyone who has followed me until now, thank you!”? Kind of like addressing your followers as a whole. I was thinking along the lines of “今までのフォロしてくれった人に、感謝してます!” but I feel like the grammar might be off or there might be a more concise way of saying it haha. Would love to hear a reply soon.
Q what is the interrogative form of 第? is 第 何?
Some might say 第何番目 but you can simply ask 何番目
Technically 第 and 番目 both indicate the order so you are not supposed to use them together.
Ex. 第二番目→二番目(When you simply count the number) ・第二番 (You use it for something more official)
*
〜番目・〜目
the meaning is the same.
But after 番目
Number + 番目＋（の+noun)
Number + counter + 目＋（の+noun)
右から2番目の人 = 右から2人目の人
The second person from the right
The slight difference is you tend to use 番目 when there are multiple things, people or orders.
So it sounds a little strange if you say
２回目の結婚 is more natural than ２番目の結婚
Thanks as always for your wonderful site. just got curious but when can you omit suru at the end of the second tari?
like from your examples
今日は、雨が降ったりやんだりだ。
忙しい日は、食べたり食べなかったりです。
also in the same case, i did a little searching but seems like when omitting the suru in the second tari, i noticed people used で to connect a second clause in the sentence. or if used with node, you add na, like ~たりなので. is that right?
Ah, OK, as you say the basic patten is
A たり B たり する・している
You can say
今日は、雨が降ったり病んだりしている。
忙しい日は、食べたり食べなかったりしている
But sometimes you end with だ・です omitting ている
~ たり（している+noun) だ・です
＠先生 In few of your sentences why is ておいた used instead of ておいていた.
E.g. in your sentence 出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいた
In this sentence since you are showing the relation of you had prepared food before you went. So, why ていた used as in 作っておいていた, as ていた also has perfect reading.
Also, does Verbておく take ている and ていた? like 食べておいていた, 食べておいている
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいている
Unless you are talking about your routine, (you do that every day) you don’t say 作っておいている
〜ておく to prepare the dinner and leave it
いる describes the state
so it is kind of redundant.
For the same reason
食べておいていた
食べておいている
are not natural.
ねえ~、先生. So, this ておく being redundant with ている and ていた applies to all in general ?
E.g. I want to say that I am standing in line at the station (to avoid the future problem of brikg late to work or lets say otherwise I will not be able to catch the train to office)
So, in this case, will ておく function with ている? And the verb 立つ become 立っておいている?or will it be unnatural and redundant in this case as well?
Thanks a lot ! sensei ! :) Studying by myself gets a bit tricky. This ている/ていた with different aspects confuses me a lot, but thanks to your replies I am able to understand this concept, rather than using hit and try method.
No problem! If you get confused, you can ask me a question, anytime! ☺️
@先生 一つも問題がある.
かね is just to express opinion or doubt about something. ね of Confirmation is also used like I assume xyz, can you confirm it format.
先生は僕にかねとね(of confirmation)の違いって教えてください
ありがとうございます
Ah.. OK, as you said かね is used when you ask a question or express your doubts when you talk to someone younger (ex. children) or your subordinators.
ここはどこですか？
→ここはどこかね？ (male speech)
お母さんは元気？
お母さんは元気かね？ (male speech)
こんなので書けるのかなあ。(expressing your doubt)
こんなので書けるのかねえ。(I guess older women also say that)
Hi Maggie, I was wondering if you can expand on the use of といえば. I recently saw a video and they used the examples:
“もみじといえば、もみじまんじゅう。
もみじまんじゅうは、広島の名物です。”
So I understand that maple trees and Momiji manjū are related because the manjū is shaped like a maple leaf in Hiroshima. But what exactly is the sentence trying to do here? When I try to find a translation of といえば what I get is “speaking of”. I think in English it would be weird to say “Speaking of maple leaves, Momiji manjū.” The listener would be left thinking “…what about it??”
Correct me if I’m wrong, but is what they are saying (implied): “When I think of maple trees, I think of Momiji manjū.”?
といえば has a meaning of “Speaking of ~” but it is also used when you mention something typical or typical image that you associate with certain place, person, etc.
When I think of ~ / When it comes to ~ , the first thing that comes to my mind is ~
Or I always associate Y with X.
It’s been probably 2 years since I’ve been visiting your websites for reviewing my Japanese. I just have 1 slight question that’s a bit off-topic from the lesson. Could you differentiate つらい・きつい・苦しい and would you mind giving some concrete examples?
Also, if I were to say something like “wearing this mask is such a bothersome, like im having a hard time because it’s hot”, which of those words would best fit in this situation?
Hello,
They are sometimes interchangeable but you tend to use
つらい for something mental
きつい for something physical / It also means “tight”
苦しい for something physical and mental
仕事がきつくて辛い = It’s painful because the work is hard.
スケジュールがきつい = the schedule is tight.
wearing this mask is such a bothersome = マスクをつけるのはめんどくさい
but if it’s hard to breathe with a mask on, マスクは息苦しい ( = マスクをして息をするのは苦しい)
I’ve come across this lyric:
怠いくらいの快晴だ
which is officially translated as “It’s weather that makes you lazy” and I wanted to see exactly what that くらい means, so I was reading your lesson here (which is awesome by the way) trying to find what category it fits in. Is it the second to last category that you wrote? I mean, can I think of it as “It’s such a weather that it makes you lazy”? Can it be used like this too?
You can categorized in “degree” or “So ~ that ~ would”. but you can just add it “It is like ~”
adjective + くらいの + noun
You describe the nouns by using a little extreme adjective and express the quality or characteristic of the noun.
Cake is sweet anyway so you just say 甘いケーキ
But you can describe it with a little extreme expression such as
めまいがするぐらい甘いケーキ
The cake is so sweet that you would feel dizzy if you eat it.
I directed a question on Quora to your answer here regarding “ni totte”. Your pages are wonderful. Here is the link to my answer which is directly linked to your page here.
こんにちは、Ｓ。ABINAYA！
英語で説明しますね。
There is a difference between 「はず」 and 「わけ」 （Ex. you can use 「はず」when you are talking about future but you can’t use 「わけ」,etc.）
But 「はずがない」 and 「わけがない」 are interchangeable.
The slight difference is はずがない is more subjective and わけがない is more objective.
So you tend to use はずがない more when you have some specific reasons.
Maggie 先生, ありがとう My doubt regarding からね/てね has been solved because of your lesson ! :).
先生 can you please tell the difference between the Seeking Agreement ね Like いいね, かわいいね and でしょう used for seeking agreement when having rising intonation e.g. かわいいでしょう, which has similar meaning like ね i.e. cute isn’t it?
If the answer is too big for your comment could you please consider it for a separate lesson, as there are hardly detailed answers on this topic お願いいたします.
As I wrote in this lesson, いいね and かわいいね belong to the usage 1) to express one’s opinion. You say them even when you are not seeking for the listener’s agreement.
On the other hand you use でしょう, いいでしょう/ かわいいでしょう when seek approval in a strong way.
Please imagine, if you see someone has something nice or cute, you react saying
いいね or かわいいね to give that person your opinion but you don’t say いいでしょう・かわいいでしょう。
When you brag something you have, you show it to someone and say
いいでしょう
かわいいでしょう
Don’t you think this is nice/cute?
＠先生 ありがとう for replying. I just wanted to ask is it also something related to the fact that;
The person who uses でしょう, either does not have shared knowledge about that thing and seeks agreement E.g. A wants B to go to Japan with him, as he is his best friend. However, A does not have any shared knowledge of B wanting to go to Japan, So Can A say, 私と一緒に日本に行きますでしょう i.e. use Agreement でしょう
and/or
When he has a shared knowledge his focus is not on that shared knowledge, just like in your example when A already knew that the Dog was cute prior to their encounter, and then says to B when both see that Dog この犬がかわいいでしょう.
If A wants to ask if B wants to go to Japan with A,
私と一緒に日本に行きませんか？ Would you like to go to Japan with me?
私と一緒に日本に行きましょう！ Let’s go to Japan together./ Why don’t you go to Japan with me?
@先生 ありがとう! Your quick reply, always helps me in progressing faster !
どういたしまして☺️
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I have stumbled upon って particle, but every time its use seems too daunting for me. Could you please explain to me the meaning of って in these 4 sentences below?
1)じゃ今夜は一緒にくらぶに行くってことで。
2)家に来たら料理作ってあげるって誘って。
3)幼稚園の時から一緒だった子が高校から別々だなんて寂しくってー。
4) カワイイ子の友達はカワイイってホントだねー。
HI Maggie, I have a question about the causative form. So far, I understand that we can use it to talk about being made to do something or letting someone do something.
But, I came across an example in a manga I’m reading where the speaker uses the causative to say that he has to do something.
台風が来る前に展示物の搬入を終わらせて帰らないと
I would translate this as having to finish the transport of the exhibition goods. Is this a different use of the causative??
I am having a hard time trying to understand what the gentleman in this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbnv4GE4XZk&t=614s&ab_channel=%E9%BE%8D%E3%81%8C%E5%A6%82%E3%81%8F%E3%82%B9%E3%82%BF%E3%82%B8%E3%82%AA%E5%85%AC%E5%BC%8F) says at 7:09, how does the “to ittara” make any sense here? [If you need context, you wouldn’t have to go beyond, 6:50] I understand what each word individually means but the whole sentence together just doesn’t make sense (nareteiru to ittara okashii n desu kedo). Also while you’re at it, can you please explain what he means by the word Mawasu at 7:02 means? Does it figuratively mean to attempt something new? Thank you in advance :)
慣れてるといったらおかしいんですけど
The literal meaning is
It might sound strange if I say “We got used to it/We are familiar with each other” but..
と is to quote
いったら If I say
“慣れてる” (nareteru): What you are quoting
You use this pattern
~といったら〜
for example
といったら嘘になる
I’d be lying if I said ~
回す means “to manage to do multiple things” but in this case he probably meant for shooting (カメラを回す）
So, if I want to say 書いたり in keigo, would it be 書きになったりする?
Is なさったりform just for suru verbs?
And can’t we use tari form with the “passive” form?
Thank you a lot.
Hi maggie sensei. from what i understand Verb plus ki ga suru means” to feel like doing something” as well. is there any difference with that and verb + ki ni naru?
Hi Bee,
One way to connect more than two verbs with と is use the te-form (Ex. 食べて・飲んで）or masu-stem （make a masu-form and delete masu (Ex. 食べます→食べ・ 飲みます→飲み) and finish with verb と・ないと
粉にドライイーストを入れて、よく混ぜて、しばらくおくとふくらんできます。(connecting with te-form)
粉にドライイーストを入れ、よく混ぜ、しばらくおくつとふくらんできます。 (connecting with masu-stem)
粉にドライイーストを入れて、よく混ぜて、しばらくおかないとふくらみません。(connecting with te-form)
粉にドライイーストを入れ、よく混ぜ、しばらくおかないとふくらみません。(connecting with masu-stem)
I get the feeling しだい means something like “subsequent (to)”. It works for most its uses.
Kuukou ni tsuki shidai denwa shimasu.
Subsequent to arriving at the airport, call me.
Shinjiru ka shinjinai ka wa anata shidai da.
It is subsequent to whether you believe or not.
Not how you should translate it because no one speaks like that in English, but veiwing しだい as “subsequent” might help some people understand the expression and unify all its uses into one clarifying word.
I think it is an old style of Japanese.
In old writings, you add に to から to give a reason.
But you don’t use that form in current conversational Japanese.
When you talk about the past in an affirmative form, you use the past tense.
昨日は、１０時間も寝たから元気なはずだ。
When you use a negative form, you can say
３時間しか寝ていなかったから (when you are talking about the third person.)
３時間しか寝なかったから元気じゃない (When you are talking about yourself)
But when you haven’t done something (in this case, you haven’t slept enough) in past and emphasizes that it affects the current situation/condition, you can also use ていない
寝ていないから
I’ll show you other example
宿題をがんばってやったから早く学校に行きたい。 （affirmative form: Only past tense works)
宿題をやらなかったから学校に行きたくない(negative form: past tense)
宿題をやっていないから学校に行きたくない。(negative form: ていない present perfect simple)
Altogether she was what you would have called provoking, you know; but satisfactory, too. Oh, perfectly satisfactory.
I am having difficulty figuring out why the translator decided to use 気を揉ませる plus な
When I parse the sentence out, to me, it seems that he decided to use that verb in the causative form to mean:
altogether I want to say this woman was the kind that made one worry, you know(な）（meaning she was provoking, therefore, made whomever looked at her worry)
Would my assumptions be right regarding 気を揉ませる and な？
私にとって、もし ”に” を使えば、英語でーIt took 4 years for this bridge to be built(in order to be built) という意味だと思います。 そして、もし ”を” を使えば、英語でーthe building of this bridge took 4 years.
しかし、正しい答えは”に”だけと書いてあります。。。どうして”を”は使えない？何か特別な説明がありますか。それともある理由で”を”は使えない？
In a year rocked by uncertainty, one thing has always remained certain – Maggie Sensei’s informative and helpful lessons. I’m genuinely thankful for this site.
Hi Maggie, I have a question regarding negating ておく phrases. Does it make a difference if I negate the てform verb instead of おく？as in the following sentence, is there any difference in meaning?
汚い服をテーブルの上に置いておかないで
汚い服をテーブルの上に置わないでおいて
Also. In general, when you negate a ておく phrase, what does it mean? Does it mean ‘In preparation for somethin (in the future), don’t do this?’
Hi Ed,
The second sentence should be 置かないでおいて
Since the verb is 置く, it may sound redundant but
置いておかないで Don’t put the dirty clothes on the table and leave them there.
The speaker is not happy that the clothes are left on the table for a long time.
置かないでおいて Don’t put the dirty clothes on the table.
The speaker is asking not to put the dirty clothes on the table.
Thank you for the explanation. Could you also explain the use of negative ておく? Like when someone uses ておかない or ないでおく what does that imply? Is it something like “Don’t do this, so in the future it’ll be easier for me/us?’ or ‘in preparation for the future, don’t do this?’
@Sensei There is one big query that I have I posted the same on JSE. I have been stuck on this topic for 3-4 months now. Could you please help me by providing me the answer over here, or I think you can make it as a separate post.
The question pertains to when can an action verb/durative verb (E.g. 食べる, 作る) have Perfect tense meaning when using ている. Link is attached below
We know that there are two type of verb one is action verb and the other are state-change verbs. Wherein, state change verb like 死ぬ have Perfect tense when using ている. Similarly Action Verbs also have this Perfect Tense, apart from Continuous Tense e.g. 食べている can mean both I am eating and I have eaten. So, my question revolves around when to use when, and how to figure out that the Action Verb e.g. 食べている is giving a continuous tense and when it is giving a Perfect tense.
I would say it is rare to use 食べている as a Perfect tense but let me see.
When to use 食べている
1) I am eating/ I am making (right now)
Ex. 「今、何をしていますか？」 What are you doing now?
「朝ごはんを食べています。」I am eating breakfast (now).
middle of the action, what is happening right now.
2) I have been eating (present perfect progressive）
(1) some action is still going on (You emphasis on the duration of an action)
Ex. 朝からおやつをずっと食べています。
= I have been eating snack since this morning.
You started eating in the morning and you are still eating.
(2) expressing one’s routine/habit
It can be translated with simple present tense in English.
Ex. 毎日、朝ごはんにシリアルを食べています。
= I have been eating cereal for breakfast every day.
Or I eat cereal for breakfast every day.
Ex.「Coco２番のカレーを、食べたことがありますか？」
= Have you ever had Coconiban’s curry?
「日本に行く度に食べていますよ。」
= I eat ( their curry ) every time when I go to Japan.
Now, if you focus on one’s experiences whether you have done something or not,
Vたことがある
Ex. はい、食べたことがあります。
= Yes, I have had (their curry).
Or use simple past test : 食べました
Ex. はい、去年食べました。
= Yes, I had (their curry) last year.
(3) when you indicate the state (You finish eating something )
I think this is the usage you are talking about but it is similar to 食事を済ませている ( = to finish eating)
Ex. 朝ごはんはもう食べましたか？
= Did you already have breakfast?
A: はい、もう食べました。(past tense) I had breakfast already. (The action of eating is done)
B: はい、もう食べています (Yes i have finish eating breakfast) : talking about the state not the action.
You decide which one to use depending on what you want to emphasize. (completing of the action or one’s state)
People usually ask if you have finished eating (completing action) so A is much more common than B.
Thank you for this! I’m a US engineer working at a Japanese company and this is really useful. Something I didn’t see listed here, at internal Skype meetings we always use 失礼します(しつれいします) when ending the meeting before dropping the call.
When I literally translate it, to me it is as if it were saying: And even though the alley was very narrow, in regard to the houses on the other side they had aa degree of having the form of illusion, outside the door the fog was very dense.
But I read it fast is as if there should be から after 戸外は霧が濃密であった。or somewhere. Or is it that であった. is working as the reason for not being able to see the houses.
Hello qwert,
It is from A Christmas Carol,right?
The original English is
The fog came pouring in at every chink and keyhole, and was so dense without, that although the court was of the narrowest, the houses opposite were mere phantoms.
The basic structure of the Japanese translation is
~たほど〜であった
The fog was so dense outside (1) that the houses in the opposite side looked liked phantoms/illusion. (2)
(1) gives a reason for the following sentence (2)
And (2) is expressing the degree of having the illusions.
Thanks for the explanation. I thought that the sentence needed から for reason because when I read it fast, it was as if something was not right. I don’t know how to explain it. And I was mentally rewriting it as:
ことがある is talking about one’s experiences.
Ex.アンナさんは老人ホームでボランティアをしたことがあります。
Anna has worked at a nursing home. (She has an experience of working at a nursing home)
Now こと is used to nominalize a verb
So Anna talked about the followings,
1) ボランティアをして経験したこと things that Anna experienced through her volunteer work at a nursing home
2) 感じたこと things that she felt there = How she felt there.
Is it the same( こと)that means experiencing something like ( ことがある)
In the (経験したことかんじたこと)part ?
If it is why is it now using “ が” and “ある”
I’m not sure if this koto is a nomilized or not, and the nominalizing koto is confusing too
Hello Maggie-sensei.
Thank you for the lesson.
Only skim through it, but I think I know the gist of it (maybe XP)
My question is : 手札は少しでも多くでもあったほうがいいのだ。
In this case, でも here means something like, even a little or more should be better to have?
The book I’m reading at the moment refers to お母ちゃん but I’m fairly sure he’s using it to refer to his wife. Is お母ちゃん sometimes used for wife rather than mum?
I know in English we sometimes say “Mum” or “Dad” when talking to your wife or husband but that is old-fashioned and/or regional.
The person relating his story is from 焼津市, 静岡県 if that helps?
Yes, if you have a child/children, it is common to refer to your wife,お母さん・ お母ちゃん
and also refer to your husband, お父さん・お父ちゃん.
お母ちゃん・お父ちゃん sound friendly and it may sound a little old fashioned.
Hi maggie sensei .
My question might be stupid; I’m still upper beginner 😅.
I read your lesson on ばかりlast week. Yesterday i was trying to make a dialogue in Japanese.
I said (おばあさんを迎えに行くばかりだ). I have prepared everything for the trip and the only thing left is to pick up my grandmother.
Is this correct?
Good question!
Yes, your sentence is correct.And if it is writing, there is no problem.
If you actually want to say that, the listener know that you finish preparing something.
You did this and that so the only thing left is to pick up your grandma.
あとは、おばあさんを迎えに行くばかりですね。
In conversation, you hear more あとは、おばあさんを行くだけだね
That pattern is slightly formal so in conversation, あとはおばあさんを
Hi, Maggie-sensei. I’ve started learning Japanese recently, and your website has really been a haven for someone who’s struggling to get through all this subtle aspects of the language. Thank you for that very much!
Anyway, not so long ago I’ve come across a sentence, which I generally understand, but the usage of ておく is still a mystery to me. Could you please explain this one?
Thank YOU for visiting my site to study Japanese!
It means “I appreciate your advice.(implying I may not change what I am going to do but thank you for your advice anyway)
When someone is trying to give you a gift and you think it is too much to receive it, you also say
気持ちだけはありがたくうけとっておきます。= I appreciate your kindness. (But I won’t take anything else from you.)
うけとっておく →(polite)いただいておく The literal translation is “I will receive ~ for now.”
You say them both.
The difference is:
と when you do something, something usually (automatically) happens
ば adds more hypothetical nuance “If you hold ~”
Hello Nyad
It is based on the sound
Some Japanese words can be typed in numbers.
3 = san + 9 = kyuu = san kyuu = It sounds like “Thank you”
+ 7 = nana = na = Thank you na!
Or use the part of the sound
3 = sa(n) + 1 = i(chi ) + 5 = go→ko + 0 = o = o = sa i ko o
Hello Ben,
I’m glad to hear you like my explanations.
Yes, you use 熱い for fire.
But if you are in a nice and warm room around the fireplace, you can describe the fire as 暖かい as well.
I have a question regarding てくださる and ていただく. If I want to thank my teacher for telling me about a book, which would be the correct way of saying it-
この本について教えてくださってありがとうございました。Or
この本について教えていただいてありがとうございました。
Since the teacher’s action is the focus here, I thought てくださって would be correct. But I am not sure.
Can you please help me?
Yes, you are right.
It should be この本について教えてくださってありがとうございました。
いただく focuses on you who receive someone’s favor.
くださる focuses on someone who does/did something for you.
Hello maggie sensei! thank you for doing this kind of lessons which as you said we can’t find in any kind of books. I am sure many people appreciate your lessons!
Just a question, I’ve noticed people omit “ai” for for negative words kinda like what happens to janai -> jan. one recent example I saw is 風邪ひかない-> 風邪ひかん。is this just a colloquial thing of shortening words?
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I’m getting confused between the use of ために and ように. Since they both are used as “in order to” or “to aim for”.
大学に合格できる……………一生懸命勉強しています。(ように、ために) which one is suitable for the blank?
3) If /because ~ + unfavorable result / to give one’s negative comments or express one’s negative opinion towards the topics.
verb te-form Vて ( = te) + は ( = wa).
If I wanted to say, “If I don’t make this video, I’ll be in trouble.”
Can I say 「動画を作らなくては困ります。」
Or does this grammar point ONLY work with the positive tense? Would I have to say,「動画をパスしては困ります」?
Hiクリシュナ
You can say 「動画を作らなくては困ります。」 but for that particular sentence, it will sound more natural if you separate the subject.the one who make a video and the one who gets in trouble.
Ex. If you don’t make a video, I will be in trouble.
I don’t exactly understand what you meant by パス but you can use it in an affirmative form.
動画を作っては困ります。 Again, the subject should be different. If you make a video, I will be in trouble.
Ahhhhhh, 分かりました！ And the は shows that 「不本意」is the subject of the phrase.
Thank you so much, maggie 先生！
質問に答えてくれてありがとうございます！
どういたしまして❤️
Hi Maggie-sensei. I want to ask how to use “te okimashita” and “te arimashita” I think the usage is different from the present tense “te oku/te aru” I am really confused on how to use them in a sentence
te okimashita You did something (as a preparation)
te arimashita someone did something (as a preparation)
夕ご飯を作っておきました。
I prepared the dinner ahead of time
夕ご飯が作ってありました
Someone made dinner ahead of time.
present tense
夕ご飯を作っておく・おきます You are talking about future. I will prepare the dinner and leave it.
夕ご飯が作ってある You are looking at the dinner which someone prepared ahead of time.
Hi Maggie, I’ve come accros a sentence and I can’t really understand what’s this you to for?
よほど怠けてない限り頭を拳銃でぶら抜かれようと心臓をナイワで刺されようと死神は死なない。
(It’s obviously from death note ☺️)
Thank you in advance 😊
Probably you don’t understand the usage ようと, right?
（たとえ） 〜ようと means No matter how/what or Even if ~
頭を拳銃でぶら抜かれようと Even if his head were shot through
心臓をナイフで刺されようと Even if his heart were stabbed with a knife
And these two sentence modify the main sentence, 死神は死なない。
よほど怠けてない限り = unless being too lazy
こんにちは！！
Could you please explain me what’s the difference between 「部屋を掃除している」and 「部屋を掃除しているところ」
I don’t really get the difference between them
Thank you so much
They both can be translated
“I am cleaning the room (now)” but difference is
If 部屋を掃除している doesn’t have a word such as 今 (= ima = now), it can be “I have been cleaning the room for certain period of time. or I clean the room regularly.
Talking about one’s habitual action/routine:
Ex. 私は（いつも）部屋を掃除している。 = I (always) clean the room.
Ex. 私は、部屋を掃除しているが、弟は部屋を掃除しない。= I clean my room but my little brother don’t clean his room.
部屋を掃除しているところ means “I am middle of cleaning the room.” and focuses on the current moment.
Dear Maggie Sensei
Congratulations on a brilliant, informative website.
May I ask a question in relation to the following sentence which appears on this page.
Why is it Kanojo mo, and not kanojo o
Kanojo mo issho ni kitai you na kao wo shite ita.
Apologies if this has been asked before but there are too many to look through.
Thanks in advance.
も here means “also” “too”
For example, imagine this conversation.
You: “I am going to Tokyo tomorrow.”
= 「明日、東京に行くよ。 」
= Ashita Toukyou ni ikuyo.
She : “I want to go there with you,(too).”
= 「私も一緒に行きたい！」
= Watashi mo issho ni ikitai!
You use the particle も (= mo) because she “also” wants to go to Tokyo.
Now, she is not actually saying that but you can tell she really wants to go to Tokyo with you.
When you get to Tokyo, you are remembering her and say
Ex. 彼女も一緒に来たいような顔をしていた。
= Kanojo mo issho ni kitai you na kao wo shiteita.
= She looked like she wanted to come with me.
You don’t use を (= wo) because を (= wo) is an object marker and 彼女( = kanojo) is a subject in that sentence.
This site is so useful! I am learning so many conversational expressions that I can use with my language exchange partners. Thank you for your time and effort! :)
I was just wondering how often よう appears on its own, as it does near the end of this sentence I came across:
なるべく考えないように勤め、表面には喜びを一杯に表して、お母ちゃんが不安にならないよう気を配った。
I always expect -に or -な after よう, but I guess it’s fine without. Does it change the meaning much? I’m assuming the end part means “took care not to make mum uneasy”?
Hello,
You sometimes drop に and just say よう
Basically ように modifies a verb so when you list a few verbs,
In this case, there are three verbs,
ように do A , B and ~ よう C.
The last よう modifies the verb C
A（努める）, B（表す） and C（気を配る）.
And the last part means “I was careful/paid attention tying not to make my mum uneasy.”
The thing is that children are having break from school due to Corona and this article says that teacher have been going to houses giving classes, but then it mentions about the teacher giving classes to other children after returning home at the school.
So that would mean that the teacher goes home and after it he or she teaches children at school?
Hi dizzt,
the teacher is giving classes not to other children.
The teacher is giving classes to these children ( = このような子供たち) after other students left the school and go home.
Hi sensei. Wonderful and detailed explanation. May I know why does the furi in “ame ga furi hajimete” not conjugated? We can just remove -masu from furimasu and apply to this sentence? And do you cover any topic with combination of two action verbs apart from -te iku/kuru? for eg. mitts yukkuri shimasu, yonde yarimasu, oshiete moraimasu. Thank you in advance!!
When you combine two verbs,
Ex. furu + hajimeru
You change the first verb to masu-form
→furimasu
And then delete “masu”
→furi
This is called “masu-stem”
So verb masu-stem + hajimeru
You just conjugate the second verb, hajimeru
Other examples
1) kaku = to write + 2) kaeru = to change / to do something again
Change the first verb kaku to masu-stem “kaki” and add the second verb “kaeru”
kakikaeru = to rewrite
the past tense will be kaikkaeta
te form will be kaikaete
***
yukkuri is an adverb so you don’t have to change it but again when you conjugate you change the second verb “suru” or “yaru”
→(past tense) “shita” →yukkuri shita
→(te-form) “shite”→ yukkuri shite ~
yondeyaru/oshiete morau / oshiete ageru
You use the first verb into te-form and attach the second verb.
You just conjugate the second verb, yaru/morau/ageru
Hi,i told someone in Japanese, that i didn’t eat anything today ,and he told me “食べな or maybe 食べなあ” so may u plz help me to understand what he meant?does he mean Eat or Don’t eat??
That suffix な is for a male speech when you tell someone what to do.
食べなさい Eat! →食べな ( male speech/a bit rough) Eat!
I explained in my male speech lesson. Click this link.
こんにちは、S. Abinaya
くらい・ぐらい are the same and they are interchangeable.
As for the difference between くらい/ほど
When it is used as “about/approximately”
ほど is more formal than くらい
Ex. ５分くらい・ぐらい
Ex. ５分ほど
But some of the specific usages such as
食べれば食べるほど、太る
The more you eat, the fatter you become
マギーほどかわいい犬はいない。
There is no dog as cute as Maggie.
you can’t use くらい
こんにちは、Tarun
They both mean “complain about” but
ついて is just talking about something negative about one’s parents.
対して is stronger. It is similar to “against” in English.
Hi Jen
Since you are talking about someone’s personality I would say
最初は、先生はかっこいいと思ったけど
彼は怠け者に違いない is more natural.
If you are less sure,
彼は多分、怠け者かもしれない。 works as well.
Usually the negative form of noun+だ・です is noun+ ではない・じゃない
But the negative form of はず is special and you use はずがない・はずはない as its negative form.
彼は時間通りに来るはずだ。
He should be here on time.
When you deny the possibility strongly you use はずはない・はずがない
彼が時間通りに来るはずはない・はずがない
There is no way that he would be here on time.
You don’t say 来るはずじゃない
You use はずではない・はずじゃない はずではなかった・はずじゃなかった when things don’t/didn’t work out as one has expected.
Sensei, sorry to bother you again. I have this question:
Aa man tells aa woman:
３回くしゃみをして お大事にって 言われないと 妖精になるんだ この辺の言いい伝えさ
She answers:
ならないわよ だってもう妖精ようせいだもの
That ならない, does it have anything to do with なら?
Personally I think it does not, but maybe it does. To me, when I translate it, it is as if she were saying: It cannot be helped
OK, you can pay attention to the previous sentence.
妖精になるんだ the verb in the sentence is
（〜に）なる to be, to become
妖精になるのです→妖精になるのだ→(casual) 妖精になるんだ to become a fairy
the negative form of なる is ならない not become
I’m not going to be/become a fairy (even I sneeze three times) because I’m already a fairy.
This と is a little different from the one I explained in this lesson but you sometimes use と with other particle. にと・へと・かと・でと, etc.
へ is a direction marker. You can say this without と
生活空間を地下へ(or に）移す~
You see へと in more written form/formal speech.
It might be easier to think this way.
←生活空間を地下へと（Ex. (いうように)場所を）移す
Other example
マギーに買ったプレゼント
マギーにと買ったプレゼント (more literal)
←マギーに（どうかと思って）買ったプレゼント
In my opinion, I think he uses it to summarize with aa conclusion. I mean she is the leader of the terrorist group, that is her name and the reason of the group. But then is it necessary to use わけ in there. What would happen if I omitted? Why not only トゥインクル・マリア・マードックってだ。?
For example, in the first one, in my opinion I think the guy uses it to expect agreement from the other guy he is having dinner with: 食料に不自由しなくなってな (Food has not become inconvience, な, or there is not poverty of food, な). That is how I see it, but on the other hand, why would he expect agreement from the other person if that person doesn’t now about the 海ネズミ and it is the first time he is eating it (that is what makes me doubt).
In the second one, the same guy, to me, sounds as if he is expecting agreement because he is explaining about how things while in 位相差空間 do not have any effect where they are, but they can see it. So he uses な to say, don’t you think so?. But again I am not sure
こんにちは先生！I am actually confused how ところで is used. Could you please give more example and explanation? ありがとうございます！Also, I also encounter ところだから in my book, can you also please explain during when it is used?
I listed two usages of ところで
1) Indicating the location / time / situation / When it fills certain conditions~
2) even if
Which usage do you have a problem understanding? Or if you are talking about some other usage that you have seen, give me an example first. I will explain.
ところだから
から give a reason for the following part.
今、食べたところ = I just ate
Ex. (When someone offers you something to eat)
今、食べたところだからいらないです。 = I just ate so I don’t want it.
The first usage of ところで indicating the location/time/situation/when it fills certain conditions.. What are those certain conditions? and how do I know if I’ll use ところで? :)
すみません先生、I think you comment has been cut but I appreciate the detailed explanation. ありがとうございます先生！
Oops. Sorry. I thought I deleted the last two lines but I guess I forgot to do so.
Hello Maggie-sensei, I just read the lesson and, if I’m not mistaken, (te) shimau is the same meaning as chau but it’s the formal version of it? Because I don’t see the pattern and I’ve been wondering about this.
Hmm I think I explained the pattern in this lesson.
てしまう→(casual form) ちゃう
食べてしまう finish eating
→食べちゃう （casual) finish eating
And they mean the same. I probably don’t understand your question. What pattern you don’t exactly understand?
What I mean is, are there specific situations where using te shimau is more appropriate? Or are they both interchangeable? Because I do see them both being used often and I don’t really notice the difference, like I don’t notice that the other one is more ‘formal’.
I see. They are interchangeable but as I said, ちゃう is more casual.
But it is possible that some people use both patterns when they talk.
For example, when you repeat too many chau in one sentence, it sounds too much so you may mix with しまう
Can you use it like this: 子供の時、父にピアノを習わせられました。 病気でもピアノのクラスに行かなければなりませんでした。
What I want to say is “I had to go to piano class even if I was sick!” The context is sort of like being forced to go to piano class and trying to emphasize that I still had to do classes regardless of my health.
1) 雨が降ってきた= ame ga futte kita
2) 雨が降り始めた = ame ga furihajimeta
They mean the same, “it started raining/it started to rain” but the nuance difference is
1) It could be more subjective and conversational than 2).
The speaker is outside and see/feel the rain started to fall.
Also you are focusing on the moment when it started to rain.
2) could be more objective.
So for example, in the news or weather report, you use 降り始めた
Ex. 昨夜から降り始めた雨は~
Also while 1) is focusing on the moment when it started to rain, you use 降り始めた to describe the duration of rain.
It could be still raining now.
Hi maggie sensei, thanks again for your wonderful lesson, Can u perhaps do a lesson on ての ? Imabi’s site is too confusing with its deep analysis, perhaps you can clear things up if it is in your convenience? Also ての vs masu- form for nomilisation of a verb, thank you very much. I love your site way more, because it gives me easier understanding, unlike somethings… ==
unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything regarding this other than 1 site, Sorry for requesting such a hard task, I understand that you are very busy. :)
First time commenter. Please be gentle XD I have been stalking your website from time to time looking for wisdome when needed :)
I have been watching some YouTube videos about ～に対して and came across this sentence:
今回の選挙は定数5人に対して、立候補者は15名でした。
It was put under the section of ratios. Because the video was in Japanese and without translation I am not exactly sure how I would translate it. To be honest, I am not really sure I get it. That’s why I need help of the great Maggie sensei!
あとから is similar to あとで
It means “later”/”after finishing something”
あとから電話します。
= I will call you later.
あとから文句を言う。
= to complain later (after something is over)
Hi, could someone explain the difference between ことになるand ことになっている.
I understand that one of the meanings of this grammar structure is that something has been decided, but I don’t understand the nuance between these two structures.
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになっている。
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
I couldn’t tell you the difference between the sentences. Literally – It has been decided that I will be going to Tokyo next Friday for business – perhaps by the person’s superiors.
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになっている。 Already decided
I am supposed to go to Tokyo on business next Friday.
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
It hasn’t decided. You are talking about the possibility.
For example, if you don’t finish your work today, you may end up going to Tokyo next Friday.
もし今日、仕事を終わらせることができなければ、来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
1) Yes. The original usage of すぎる is to express unfavorable state.
高すぎる
ひどすぎる
However, like some of my example sentences, you see/hear a lot in conversation with positive meaning.
すごすぎる
かわいすぎる
楽しすぎる
安全すぎる is rare and it would be wrong in your exam but you do hear that expression when you take being safe is something negative.
日本は安全すぎるから海外でスリに遭う人が多い。
It implies being in a safe country makes you careless.
Good day, Maggie!
I am confused about the usage of と＋の, especially in these two cases (the first one is from a song, the second one is from a book, so they might not be good examples):
「今ここに誓おう あなたとの世界を
これから未来を 失わないために」
「どうして彼との間に何か違うことがある日は、こうして雨が降るのだろう」.
I understand more basic structures like 学校の先生との会話, but, in those two examples, I don’t even know if that’s the same usage.
Could you clear up what’s happening in those two sentences, please?
Wow, such a fast reply!
Thank you so much for it, you really helped me. :3
I had already seen the lesson you linked, but I was still confused with the usage (as in what kind of の it was) and was thinking about where to post this comment, so I ended up posting it here.
You cleared up any questions I had with the first one, I didn’t know you could omit other things with と (I had thought it was only with 思う/考える).
With the second one, aside from the use of との, I think why I don’t get it is because of my lack of understanding of 間, or, in particular, if I could say 彼と私の間 instead of 私と彼の間 or 私と彼との間 (I have only seen 間 being used as between in the form of ＡとＢの間).
I simply love your work, I spent the entire summer using your website as my no.1 go-to 教科書。You are one of the best teachers I’ve ever had, and you don’t even know me xD
I was watching a video and came across the phrases “あそんでいきたい” and “あそんでいきましょう”. It was a gaming video, a first-person Disneyland simulator, if it helps. The phrase was said before the gamer entered the first ride.
So, I’m sensing this has something to do with the grammar rule described above. My first thought was that in these phrases, あそんで and あそびに would be interchangeable but it doesn’t completely make sense to me… They have to be different, right?
I understand “あそびに” as a description of いく. Like, the whole purpose of いく is あそびに, and there is equal importance placed on both parts.
Whereas, あそんでいく simply highlights the direction of あそぶ、you have to いく if you want to あそぶ. So because you あそびたい、 you いく since the place where you あそぶ is far from you. You あそんでいく。
If you were already IN Disneyland and had just finished, would you say something like “またあそんできたい”?
1) How best to distinguish the difference between てくれた and just a ~させた sentence?
Is my understanding of the following correct?
先生は私に日本語を話させました。
The teacher let/made me speak in Japanese.
先生は私に日本語を話させてくれました
The teacher lets**/allows me to speak in Japanese.
2) Can you have a negative causative sentence like the following?
先生は私に英語を話させてくれませんでした。
The teacher does not allow me to speak in English.
先生は私に英語を話させませんでした。
The teacher did not let me speak in English.
3) にor を？
I read in the Genki that verbs such as “to go”, “to return”, “to sit” use the に particle, so in the causative sentence, it takes on a “を”. Does that sound right to you? I am still trying to wrap my head around this concept…
The examples below – have I used the right particles or are they written correctly?
先生は私をトイレに行かせました。
The teacher made/let me go to the bathroom.
お父さんは私をイトクラブに行かせませんでした。
My father does not let me go to the Night Club
1) Yes, your interpretation is right.
させた forced someone to do something
させてくれた someone allow/let you do something for your sake
２)
先生は私をトイレに行かせました。
お父さんは私をナイトクラブに行かせませんでした。
They are both correct.
Though you can use に in the causative sentence (Ex. 私に行かせた) you avoid using the same particles in one sentence. (You are already using に as a direction marker,トイレに・ナイトクラブに）
Oh sorry. For some reason, I must have erased my answer for 2) by accident.
2) You can use causative form in a negative sentence.
I would change the particle を to で to make them sound more natural, though.
A:先生は私に英語で話させてくれませんでした。
The teacher does not allow me to speak in English.
B: 先生は私に英語で話させませんでした。
The teacher did not let me speak in English.
**if the verb takes on the “に” particle に行く、に帰る、にくる…
==>Action Tellerは Action Doerを non-object に action。 (And as you mentioned before, avoid using the same particles in one sentence)…
部長は部下を休ませました。 Good.
But if you add 仕事, it changes
部長は部下に仕事を休ませました。
Hello Maggie Sensei.
So it really depends on whether the sentence itself has a direct object mentioned in it or not to determine which particular to use, does it?
Using previous examples:
部長は部下を休ませました。 (Teller は Doer (not direct object) を action)
But if you add 仕事, it changes
部長は部下に仕事を休ませました。(Tellerは Does に direct object を action)
Just another example – where there are irregular verbs such as
迎えに来る
*部長は部下を空港に迎えに来させます。<– Think this one is obvious because there is a place and we cannot have two "に" in the sentence.
**部長は部下を迎えに来させます。<– This one I am not sure now.. my guess is it is "部下を" because there is no direct object and the boss is making the subordinate go pick him up.
What are your thoughts on the last two examples?
That’s right.
And the all of your sentences are right. :)
Thank you, Maggie Sensei.
You are a legend!
本当にありがとうございました！
You’re welcome!
これからもがんばってくださいね。☺️
Hello Maggie Sensei.
It is possible to structure a sentence of something like:
“I wanted my parents to let me learn how to swim” ..
Would/could it look like this:
私は両親に泳ぎ方を習わせてくれてほしかったです。
It will be better to use もらう
両親に泳ぎ方を習わせてもらいたかったです。
Thank you Maggie Sensei.
How would I say “Despite I am a full-time work, up until recently, I was not allowed to live by myself. I want to say “up until recently” because for the longest time up until a point recently, I was not allowed doing this. But this has recently changed now.
Is this correct? –> 会社員なのに、最近まで、両親は一人暮らしをさせてくれませんでした。
Hi Jen,
Yes, it’s perfect!
Hi Maggie Sensei.
Thank you for your previous response.
I am just trying to get my head around forming causative-passive forms.
So for 歌う–> 歌わせられる and 歌わされる mean the same thing?
And using either is OK ?
Is there anything different in written form or speech form?
Hello again, Maggie Sensei.
Just thinking of more examples:
So, if I want to say my parents forced me to learn the piano, it could be either the following:
They mean the same. Shorter version is more conversational.
Some textbooks/teachers don’t teach the shorter version because it is more conversational (or it is considered to be a dialect in certain area).
But you do hear a lot in conversation so I think it is useful to learn that form as well.
Thank you Maggie Sensei for explaining this. I really really appreciate it!
I really love your way of explaining things. You give us all the different or potential contexts to use the grammar and a bit of background on how the grammar or word is formed. It really helps me understand the grammar point better.
本当にありがとうございました！
You are very very welcome! 🐶 💕
hi Sensei, I have a question
when there are 2 verbs (the first of which is “masu”) how does it translate?
For example “選びには選んだ”how do you translate?
１）選びに選んだ(＋noun) : (something that was ) carefully chosen/selected
Ex.選びに選んだワイン singled out wine
２）選ぶには選んだが＋〜 : I had no choices and picked one (but~)/ You choose something reluctantly but
Ex.たくさんあるワインから選ぶには選んだがそれが一番いいものかはわからない。
I picked one wine (among many) but not sure if it is the best one.
First
1)Let me change a little. 期待 is used when you expect something positive.
あの映画は思ったとおり面白くなかった。
That movie was not interesting as I thought it would be.
Before you saw the movie, you thought it would be interesting and you were right. It was not interesting.
2. あの映画は期待していた(ほど)面白くなかった.
That movie was not as interesting as I was expecting it to be.
Before you saw the movie, you thought it was interesting. (but it was not)
Hi Maggie, thank you for the lesson! I have a question about using さえ with verbs. What’s the difference between using the ます form (minus ます)+さえすれば and the て form +さえいれば?
For example, in the lesson you used:
１日動かずに寝てさえいたら治るでしょう。
Can you use 寝さえしたら instead? What would be the difference?
In one of my Japanese textbooks, I see:
まじめに勉強してさえいれば試験は大丈夫。
(As long as you study seriously, you’ll do okay on the exam.)
Why isn’t it 勉強しさえすれば? If it’s 勉強してさえいれば then shouldn’t it translate to “As long as you are studyING seriously, you’ll do okay on the exam”?
I understand the difference between 寝ます/寝ている, and 勉強します/勉強している, but for some reason using them with さえ is confusing to me. You explained it a little bit with your 宿題をやりさえすればいい/宿題をやってさえいたらいい example but I still don’t understand.
Also, you used two examples of さえ+くれる
彼は私の方を見てさえくれない。
and
あなたが側にいてくれさえしたら私は幸せです。
Can you say 見てくれさえしない and 側にいてさえくれたら instead? Would there be any difference?
I’m sorry for such detailed questions…but if you can help me understand, I would really appreciate it!
OK, you say you know the difference but let me explain:
The dictionary form is one time action or just focusing on what one does.
Vている describe on-going action (is doing ~ ) or state (have been doing something)
寝る = to go to bed, to sleep
寝ている = to be sleeping
勉強する = to study
勉強している =to be studying, has been studying
見る = to watch, see, look
見ている = to be watching, seeing, looking/ has been watching, seeing, looking
It is possible to use both form depending on your perspective.
１日動かずに寝ている to be in the state of sleeping all day long
Since there is a word, １日, 寝ている is better.
If someone keeps working without sleeping or has a problem sleeping, then you can say
少し寝さえすれば治ります。
まじめに勉強してさえいれば試験は大丈夫。
勉強している here implies, “keep constantly studying”
If you are talking about simply whether you study or not , it is possible to say 勉強しさせすれば
For example, you never study but only if you study, you would pass the exam.
彼は私の方を見てさえくれない。
In this example, 見る is one time action.
But for example, if you are talking about “to look at someone for a long time” you can say 見ていて
Hello アレハンドロ,
OK, focus on the function of the particle に and を and think without ところ first.
に indicates certain time
を object marker
Ex. 遊んでいる時に、友達のお母さんがやってきた。
= When I was playing, my friend’s mother came over.
(You can’t use を here)
Ex. 友達のお母さんは私が遊んでいるのを見た。
My friend’s mother saw me playing.
You use を here because 私が遊んでいるの is an object of the action of 見る
Now make this sentence into a passive form.
Ex. 遊んでいるのを友達のお母さんに見られた。
見られる is a passive form but still 私が遊んでいるの is an object of the action 見る
If you understand the difference between this に and を, add ところ
学校を休んで遊んでいる（ ）友達のお母さんに見られた
What the friend’s mother saw was “me playing” (“object”) so you use ところを
Hello Sensei, by the way, thank you for the lesson. I loved it :)
Sensei do you have a Telegram group or something like that, so we can asking questions directly to you sensei?
I’m happy to hear you liked this lesson.
Sorry I don’t have a Telegram group.
But if it is not too personal, feel free to use Maggie’s Room or any comment section. :)
So when using “てある” it is about the state of something being done… and we don’t emphasis on who did it or how it has been done… Hence, in the sentence (for example)
“昨日、家に帰ったら、晩ご飯が作ってありました。” there is no person (for focus on the person who did it) ?
Thank you for explaining the difference, Maggie Sensei.
I am studying using the Genki Textbook and our teachers mainly focus on the “〜が〜てある・あります” form. There is no mention of the “~ を~てある・あります” form. Hence, it is very interesting to learn there is that subtle difference between the two. Thank you again!
You use kanji not just for nouns. You use them for adjectives, verbs, adverbs…
And you use kanji, hiragana or katakana for your name.
FYI Her real name is in kanji 光（ひかる=hikaru). She uses katakana for her stage name.
Hi Jake,
駅に着いたら、When we get to the station
In that case, たら is more natural because they both know that they are going to get to the station for sure.
駅に着いたなら means “If we get to the station” and it sounds like they are not sure if they would get to the station or not.
The first question:
I read somewhere that you can make a negative sentence with そうだ and a
い-Adjective 2 ways:
1. Change そうだ/です to そうじゃない/ではない
Ex. そのケーキは美味しそうじゃない。
2. Change い-adj. to negative → replace い with さ → add そうだ
Ex. そのケーキは美味しくなさそうだ。
First of all, is this even right? Second of all, is there a difference in nuance? If so, what is it?
The second question:
What is the difference between そう and よう?
Yes, you can say both
1) そのケーキは美味しそうじゃない。
2) そのケーキは美味しくなさそうだ。
They mean the same (The cake doesn’t look delicious) but 1) is more straightforward so it sounds stronger.
You don’t say “お言葉に甘えてどうもありがとうございます” because the person who お言葉に甘える is the speaker so you can’t say
thank you for “taking up on your kind offer.”
You say,
お言葉に甘えます。
お言葉に甘えさせていただきます。
and then add ありがとうございます。 or よろしくお願いします・いたします。
This really was a life saver!!!!! Thank you so much for all the information that you’ve provided here.
It would be a great help if you could tell me how to say ‘clean and devein the shrimps’.
Hi! I’m trying to do some digging into a phrase that my friend has on a sticker they bought.
It reads 「政府の犬め」with a picture of a dog
The only translation I can find is simply ‘government dog’ but didn’t know if the -me particle possibly changed the meaning it. Online searching lead me here 😅
That め is different from the one that I explained in this lesson.
As you say the translation is “You are a government dog!”
(この）＋noun(usually a bad word)+め is a strong way to curse or insult someone.
And unfortunately, “dog” is a derogatory term to refer to someone who does everything for their boss if it is used like that.
I’m having a little trouble with the last set of examples you provided. (The “From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions” examples.) Is it right to assume that ていく/ていた here conveys a more factual point of view and that てくる/てきた is more to express the opinions/feelings of the speaker? Thanks in advance!
P.S. I just wanted to say how much your website has helped me with learning Japanese. Without you I would have had WAY more trouble with learning Japanese! I really like the way you explain things and of course the cute pictures at the start of every lesson! <3
Thank you for your nice message! I’m grateful to hear my lessons help you learn Japanese.
Q: Is it right to assume that ていく/ていった here conveys a more factual point of view and that てくる/てきた is more to express the opinions/feelings of the speaker?
→They both could be based on factual point of view or one’s feelings/opinions.
Someoneのことが好きになっていく・いった
Someoneのことが好きになってくる・きた
They both express your feelings but the way you see the flow of your feelings is different and 好きになっていく・いった is not necessary conveying a more factual point of view.
Also,
空が明るくなっていく
空が明るくなってきた。
They are both based on what you see.
– この仕事は彼女に合っています。
There is not much difference and they are interchangeable in conversation but I think it is similar to the difference between “suitable”and “to be suited”.
向いています to be suitable for ~ 合っています to suit ~to
あの靴は君の足に結構合うかも。
Yes, you can use it to refer to size.
on the book that im using, there seems to be a difference hoshigaru and hoshigatteiru. and Verb stem tagaru and verb stem tagatte iru.
tagaru – habits/disposition; tagatte iru – desire hope. Iunderstand the differences in english but when it comes to the japanese examples. it is very confusing.
When you use present tense, you usually express one’s habit, tendency, routine or what that person usually does.
And ~teiru (present progressive tense) expresses the current state.(right now/ has been wanted to have something.)
So hoshigaru
Ex. いつもマギーはお菓子を欲しがる。= Itsumo A wa okashi wo hoshigaru. = Maggie always asks for snacks.
Ex. 子供は人のおもちゃを欲しがる。= Kodomo wa hito no omocha wo hoshigaru. = Children tend to want someone else’s toy.
hoshigatteiru
Ex. マギーはお菓子を欲しがっている。= Maggie wa okashi wo hoshigatte iru. = Describing the current state
What will be the difference between
これからテクストを読んでください and これからのテクストを読んでください
As in both the sentences whether から affects 読んでください or テクスト, the effect is the same. As per my little understanding of Grammar, first would be more like general informative i.e. From now on please read the texts. Whereas, 2nd could be more specific to the texts the person is receiving i.e. the texts that you are receiving from now please read them (It is not inculcating that the person was not reading earlier texts, whereas as per me the 2nd one could imply that, but I do not know for sure).
Hi Phillips,
First when you say テキスト (not テクスト）, it means “a textbook” in Japanese.
So これからテキスト (not テクスト）を読んでください。= Please read a textbook now)
The second one is strange. You don’t say これからのテキスト.
If you want to tell someone who hasn’t read a textbook before to read a textbook from now on you say
これからは、テキスト読んでください。
By adding は, you can express the contrast (before and future)
1. Eg. 電話での問い合わせは大変だ and 電話で問い合わせするのは大変だ
“Noun + Particle + の + Noun” is slightly more formal so you use this form more in a written form. So you use 電話で問い合わせするのは〜 more in conversation.
2. E.g. 窓からの景色がきれいです and 窓から見える景色がきれいです
The listeners/readers can visualize what the speaker/writer says more vividly with a verb.
@Maggie Sensei 本当にありがとう! I got most of it I just wanted to ask, do both of these arrangements (2 above examples) have same nuance, when used, apart from being used in formal and the 2nd example being vivid in description, or there is more nuance to both of them. ありがとう先生
Thank you for the lesson! But I’m wondering, if I wanted to express my feelings in a pondering way, like in a journal and to myself, like “Today I feel/I’m feeling weird… ” would it be the same as this lesson or different?
There are many ways to express one’s feelings but you can use many of them in this lesson when you write a journal or talking to yourself.
Today I feel/I’m feeling weird… will be for example
今日は、なんか変な気分だ。
I need to say this, THANK YOU. I can’t count how many times I ended on your website while searching for something. Furthermore, your explanations are complete and easy to understand.
I will probably try to use patreon for the first time in my life, as I really feel in debt haha.
In that case,
彼女はすしを食べたがります
彼女はすしを食べたがっています
are more natural.
But in the situation that she has never tried sushi before and keeps saying “I want to try sushi!” “I want to try sushi!” then, it might be possible to say 食べてみたがります. B sounds strange anyway. It sounds like trying to want to eat sushi.
Thank you very much for your quick reply, Maggie-sensei. It’s hard to know what sounds natural when you’re not a native speaker! I think the rule of thumb I need to follow is to just keep it simple :-)
(Also, if at all possible, would you be able to remove my last name from the previous comment? It was an auto-fill accident! I’m happy to re-post my original comment again for the benefit of others’ learning.)
Hello Maggie, thank you for this nice explanation. I found a usage of the particle も that I can not seem to find anywhere in grammar explanations. Could you be so kind as to enlighten me?
(From the book キラキラ共和国 – 小川糸)
ミツローさんもミツローさんで、揺れているのかもしれない。
Ah OK,
You sometimes repeat the same subject twice to emphasize the contrast.
YはYで
The translation changes depending on the context but sometimes you translate it, “in one’s own way”
Hi Maggie, I have a question. Recently my leg hurts and it’s a big problem because I have to walk all the time in the workplace. My boss asked me if I’m okay, so I replied that everything’s fine and I said “気にしなでください”. He responded using “気になる”. I’m not so sure about his behavior towards me. If I’m just and employee for him or he likes me. Is this a clue or maybe it means nothing?
Ex.水がない = There is no water. /I don’t have water.
Adding もう,
Ex. もう水がない = There was water before but it’s gone now/water is already gone.
Ex. もう半分ない (The literal meaning “there isn’t the half glass of water already) the glass was full before but the half of the water is gone.
I’m sorry if this is a bit off topic , I just want to ask about the breakdown and deep explanation of how anata no inai sekai turned into “a world without you” in english.
1) is better.
しないで in the condition of not having studied
勉強しなくて、試験に落ちた makes sense. Because you didn’t study, you failed the exam.
Or add も
勉強しなくても、試験に受かった Even though I didn’t study, I passed the exam.
Is 分かりました used, instead of 分かっています when talking about the present or past event in relation to present (wherein the focus is on present), even though it is a punctual/instant-state change/ stative verb, as when ている extends to it 分かる, it becomes from “to understand” to “to know”, wherein it starts acting like verb 知る? Which is an exception to this rule of ている (in case of perfectual aspect)
本当にありがとう Maggie sensei for your quick response to queries, as these responses to my queries become a bigger part of my learning !!
(I erased one of your comments)
分かっています: You understood something in one point and have known that since then. So it will be strange to say that when someone just explained something. It sounds like “I already knew that.”
You understood something right after someone explained so you say 分かりました。
However Maggiesensei here I am not using the adverb もう, but 今 to say, Now, I know (Eng) and Now, I have known/understood it (literal)! So, will it still take 分かりました? ありがとう！！！
Also that’s the point. You use 今 which indicates particular moment. When you use the verb わかる, there is a moment which you understood something.
I hope sometime there is a moment you truly understand the difference..
ありがとう 先生、私は今先生の答えが分かりました. The point is when I speak about the that I understood, I am not referring to the current state but the point back in time when I understood it (i.e. focus on past and not on present).
よかった！ :)
What’s the difference between “おばあちゃんが死んじゃった。” and “（私は）おばあちゃんに死なれた。”? Doesn’t the second one work both as a simple statement and as a sentence with that nuance that I’m sorry about that?
Thank you for the detailed lesson! However, I am still having trouble with a translation where ほど is used after an adjective: “眩しい程の暗闇の中で”What is the ほど doing to the ‘dazzling’? Does it mean that it is incomparable? Or Is it more like “a darkness like that”? Thank you in advance!
“the darkness” never dazzles so it must be from some lyrics.😉
眩しい程の暗闇 dazzling darkness
The literal meaning with 程 is “the darkness is so bright that it was almost dazzling”
So it is not actually dazzling but it is so bright as if it was dazzling.
The problem that I am facing is with verbs that can take both に and で, for the purpose of indicating a place/action just like 寝る. E.g. let us take 座る as an example, and the two sentences be 私は車の中で座っている and 車の中に座っている. Now, this was my original problem. I asked someone about it, and he said that, に座っている is more natural, whereas, で座っている is unnatural.
After not being satisfied by the reasoning I looked up upon your blog .In your blog is concerned it was stated that で was used to emphasize the focus of the action, whereas, に was to show the focus on the place. Thereafter, I pondered that, since the verb of 座る can be seen from two perspectives (i.e. both as focus on action and place). E.g. What are you doing in the park, could be answered 公園で座っている, whereas, where are you, could be answered as 公園に座っている. However, I was unsure, so I looked it up at Japanese Stackexchange. Therein I found differing answers, so I was not able to figure it out whether it was right or wrong. Further, the same situation is arising with similar verbs which have the applicability of both で and に. Could you really help me with this one and similar situations!? By giving the difference along with nuances and examples!? As these type of verbs usually have both directional focus as well as focus on action. I am linking below the answers that I found on JSE.
Moving ahead, I tried to apply the logic of focus on action and focus on place on different examples used in this blog. However, I got even more confused, when I tried to apply that logic, especially with どこ sentences, as both seemed same to me and I was not able to differentiate the nuance.
Especially with this 売っている = utte iru = to be sold
“Ex.どこに売っていますか？
= Doko ni utte imasuka?
= Where do they sell it?
or
Ex.どこで売っていますか？
= Doko de utte imasuka?”
both of them seemed same to me as in both the sentences the focus was felt on the action. I was not able to differentiate between the focus of place from that of action over here. So, could you please explain the nuance and how to differentiate in these type of sentences!? As, to be sold (and a few more examples that you cited, seemed action focused and not place focused) and I was not able to understand why に could have been used.
Also I was not able to find the relation between focus on action and place present in the following sentence
“But when you say 広がる = hirogaru = to expand, spread, you can use both
Ex. 鳥インフルエンザは世界中に/で広がりました.”
Could you please answer this as well?
I know this question is quite big to answer, but could you spare some time, as I am unable to understand this and have been working upon it since 1 week!.
Hi,
Well, so many quetsions and I can’t answer all the details in this comment section so let me answer what I can for now.
The basic difference is:
車（の座席）に座っています。/ 公園に座っている foucsing on where you are
車で座っています / 公園で座っている focusing on what you do (sitting down) in the car/the park.
When you are taking a walk with your friend. You got tired and you are looking for somewhere to sit.
「疲れたね。どこか座るところないかな？」
「あそこのベンチに座ろうよ。」
One hour has passed and you got bored.
「まず、ベンチで座わってばかりではつまらないからどこか行こうよ。」
= Just sitting down in the bench is boring. Let’s go somewhere.
A.どこに売っていますか？ (focusing on the location)
B.どこで売っていますか？(focusing on the action of selling)
Apart from the difference in the parenthesis, the nuance difference is
A: The speaker wants to know particular place. It could be just one store.
B: It could be many stores where you can buy the stuff.
Ex. 鳥インフルエンザは世界中に/で広がりました.”
This に indicates the direction (starting from certain place and spread over the world)
で is location (where this happened.)
You say 彼女は部屋の中で泣いている (where she is crying) but you don’t say 部屋の中に泣いている。
ありがとう @maggiesensei, I got most of it, but wouldn’t the last sentence, be grammatical, if the person wants to emphasize that he is crying at some place. E.g. If A asks, where are you crying I want to come to you. Won’t the reply by B, “部屋の中に泣いている”, be grammatical, as the focus of the sentence has shifted to place, and is not on action?
On similar, I would like to ask, will 大学の食堂に朝ごはんを食べます, be grammatical, if My mother asks me, “you did not have your breakfast, where will you eat it”? As in this sentence, the focus is more on place than on action.
ありがとう Maggie sensei, I got most of what you replied. An answer to these above two question would really help me out.
でも, I am explaining the state that I have understood it now, meaning to say, though that act happened in the past, I am relating it to the present showing the state that I have understood it now and, not that I am not saying that, I understood (focusing in the past), and だから、「今、分かっている」を使った. I hope it is right !! But thanks a lot !!
Though you want to express your current state, you don’t say 今、わかっている
You only use the past tense. 今、わかりました。
You use わかっています when someone tells you some information that you already knew. それは、わかっています。= I know that.
If you feel like learning more about わかる in future, this is the link.
And you are very welcome. :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a question. Could you please help me.
(1) Is it correct that we just use かもしれませんto express the low possibility. If the possibility is high, we will change into でしょう.
(2) And is it correct that かもしれませんis used together with worrying about something bad only. If no worry, is it OK to use かもしれません sensei?
For example,
My textbook says
明日雨が降らないかもしれません. Is not correct
So, I’m confusing if the followings are correct or not.
明日お金がたくさんもらうかもしれません。
来年合格できるかもしれません。
1) It is hard to answer it’s low possibility or not because everything is relative and some used it when something is likely to happen.
Ex. 明日行くかもしれない (That person might have made up his/her mind 90 pct.)
でしょう is a tricky word. You see Japanese people translate “will happen” with でしょう but unless you are a weather reporter, you don’t use でしょう so much.
X 明日行くでしょう。
You can just say 多分、行くと思います。／多分行きます。
2) Not necessary true.
明日行くかもしれない
彼がくるかもしれない。
晴れるかもしれない。
Let me just tweak a little
明日お金が、たくさんもらえるかもしれません。
来年は合格できるかもしれません。 OK
明日雨が降らないかもしれません
→明日、雨は降らないかもしれません。 is fine. But the weather reporters don’t say that. I wonder if that what your textbook meant..
They say 降らないでしょう。
Thanks a lot for helping me.
That’s really a big challenge to understand かもしれない・だろう・でしょう・よう・らしい@@
I will learn one by one, day by day. If anything I would like to ask my kind teacher, that’s Maggie sensei !!!!
Hi Maggie先生,
I had a question about this connected to the Japanese course I’m taking right now. The instructor had us watch a video which said that while the format for this is generally “short form + んです,” for nouns and な adjectives it is instead “なんです.” The video also may have implied that this was only for when these things are in present affirmative tense, but I was unsure. Could you help clear this up?
(Sorry if you mentioned it in your article, I tried to read it as best as I could but I may have missed something.)
Ah, OK,
when you want to use it in past tense, you say
だったんです
Ex. 美味しかったんです。= Oishikattandesu. = It was actually delicious.
Ex. 実は、それは犬だったんです。= Jitsu wa sore wa inu dattandesu.= Actually it was a dog.
When you want to use a negative form you say
~ではないんです/(more casual) じゃないんです
犬ではないんです。= Inu dewa nain desu. = It is not a dog.
adjective ないんです
高くないんです。= Takakunain desu. = It is not expensive.
Hi Maggie !
Thank you always for your valuable study notes !
By the way, you gave me the motivation to try doing also my own site for sharing my knowledge !
May I have your opinion or feedback about it ^^? This is named “JLPTMatome” (https://jlptmatome.com)
こんにちは先生
I have a question about the particle がwith ある。From what I know, ある takes が particle (…がある。) . However, I have seen に being used in place of it as well. For example- 選択接続詞とは前の内容とあとの内容が選択関係にある。
Here meaning seems to be the same as when が is used, but I don’t know why に is being used here. It might be that I am not understanding the meaning of に here. Can you please help?
〜がある There are/is something (This が shows the existence of object/event)
Ex. 机の上にかぎがある
= There is a key on the table.
So here you are talking about the existence and location of the key.
This が is a subject marker of what exists.
Your example sentence に describes where or in what kind of state something locates
somethingにある
to be in certain state/condition/relationship
Somethingは、〜関係にある =
Somethingは、〜状況（じょうきょう）にある
Somethingは、〜状態（じょうたい）にある
This lesson was really helpful!
I recently started a Twitter account and started a project involving some translating (with a couple other international users) and we’ve received a few offers of help from friendly Japanese users. 🙇♀️
I was wondering, in the case that people do offer you help and say things like 力になれたら嬉しいです！, what would be a good way to respond? 今までは「ありがとうございます」とか「嬉しいです」とか言ったことあるんですが。How might I say “Any help would be greatly appreciated” or “Just your reaching out/support/willingness is a great help to me” Or maybe “Your feelings of support really reached me?”
もしよければ教えてください！
Sorry, I forgot to add this in my comment earlier! I was actually also wondering how I might thank someone for looking out for me or showing care (like お心遣いありがとうございます ), but in a slightly more casual setting. :)
I’ve been coming and going about a year now here in your website which is very helpful by the way. I just have a question with regards to this lesson. What would be the difference between:
朝ご飯を食べないでくる
朝ご飯を食べてこない
Both would mean that they don’t eat breakfast right, but is there a difference in nuance?
I would like to double-check what って means here at the beginning of the sentence:
なんでスマホの目覚まし鳴らなかったの？４回も鳴るようにセットしてたのに。ってもしかしてまた止めちゃった？
I’ve already read your comment to another fellow learner about it being place at the start of a sentence. You said it can mean “but”, “anyway”, “then” dejpending on the context.
Therefore, would it be right to say it means “then I must have turned it off”?
Ohayo, Maggie-sensei! I have a question on ordering from a restaurant. For example, if I’m looking to buy one set of dango, would it be: “Dango hitotsu, onegai shimasu”? And would it be the same for other numbers, or does vocabulary change as the numbers increase? I’m sorry if my question is a bit odd, I’m still learning the basics. ^^;
Haha, actually it’s a good question.
One dango is 団子一本ください。（ Dango ippon kudasai.) 🍡
When you want a pack of dango (several dangos are in one package) you point the package and say
これ、ひとつください。（= Kore hitotsu kudasai.)
or
おだんご、１パックください。
これ、１パックください。
You’re welcome!
Let me add one more.
For example if the package has five dangos, you can say
Ex. この5本入りの（だんご）、一つください。= kono gohon iri no (dango) hitotsu kudasai.
Thank you for your reply. I checked the About US but I couldn’t find an mail address of Yukari Sensei so I don’t know how to reach her. Can you please provide an email address through which I can contact her? Thank you in advance
Hello Sensei!
Could you, perhaps, help me understand the subtle difference between 間に, うちに, ながら and ところ? It’s hard for me to wrap my head around it, especially around ところ. From what I gather:
A間にB – action or state B finishes before A does;
AうちにB – similar to 間に, but A being unfinished is the condition for B;
AながらB – basically like 間に, but A is much less important, it’s more like some background information;
Aところ(some particle)B – unlike earlier, A can be in the past tense and is more like “In the moment of A”, kind of locking A in time, which allows “Aところ” to be used gramatically as a noun of sorts (hence the possibility of other particles following it).
Do I understand those points correctly? Neither Shin Kanzen nor the dictionaries of Japanese grammar by Makino and Tsuitsui help. Maybe you would be able to?
I can only imagine how much work you put into this whole site and, believe, I am truly thankful for all you have done so far, as it has helped me tremendously, but unfortunately, not this time.
こんにちは、マギー先生！^ – ^
I’ve been study to pass the JLPT N2 for a while, and you and your website are helping me a lot in my journey. About this topic, I am really struggling to understand the verb (present, past and present continuous)+次第です. For example:このたび担当が替わりましたので、あいさつに伺った次第です。I can’t really understand if “次第” in that sentence means “I am the new person in charge, SO I’m here to greet you” or is just because of the “ので” in the sentence. I don’t know if the expression 次第 means “so” and I can’t help but stay struggling about this.
If you, god Maggie, could help me, I would be so happy T^T
OK, it will be easier for you to think this pattern
reason + ので (that’s why/so) + consequence ( what you did/what you are doing)+ 次第 ＋ です。
reason: 担当が替わった The person in charge has changed lately
ので = that’s why/so
consequence あいさつに伺った次第です = I came here to greet you (You don’t translate this 次第 but it has a function to explain the circumstances.)
For example when you describe
Ex. 父は、遅く帰ることが多い。
= ちちは、おそくかえることがおおい。
= My dad often comes back home late.
(Regular statement: As for my dad, he often comes back home late.: Focusing on the fact that he comes back home late.)
Ex. 父は、遅く帰ることは多いが、いつも遊んでくれる。
= ちちは、おそくかえることはおおいが、いつもあそんでくれる。
= My dad often comes back home late but he always play with us/me.
You use は to show the contrast. So you bring up the fact that he comes back home late and then bring up other fact to show the contrast.
Ex. 父は、最近遊んでくれないし、遅く帰ることも多い。
= ちちは、さいきんあそんでくれないし、おそくかえることもおおい。
= My dad doesn’t play with us/me lately and (on top of that) he often comes back home late.
This も has a function of adding more information. “also” / ” on top of ~”
or only with「~ということになる」.
I don’t see name with it on this lesson.
When you use it with a noun
noun + ということになる
中止ということになる （Not 中止ことになる）
Ok,
Thank you very much ^^
No problem! :)
In the book I’m reading I came across the line「なんとか場を和ませようと、～～～」, but I’m not quite sure how to translate it since it’s using the causative form and the volitional form.
In your examples it seems that the よう always comes along as part of a phrase such as ようとする or ようと思う, but that doesn’t seem to be the case here.
Hi Bere,
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) Aに言われた通りに do something
2) Aに言われるまま do something
The translation is could be the same
to do something as A said
but A) You control the situation following A’s instructions.
B) You don’t control the situation just following what A said without thinking.
I have a question about the ば~ほど~ structure.
The way you taught it, the correct way to say “The older the whiskey, the more expensive it is” is:
__ウィスキーは古ければ古いほど高いです。
However, the way Coto Academy on YouTube taught it is :
__ウィスキーは古いほど高いです。
If I plug both those sentences into an online translator, I get the same translation, so they must both be correct. So what’s the difference? Is one more casual than the other?
〜ければ〜ほど〜
In this sentence pattern you repeat the same word, so even if you omit the first part, the listener would know the meaning.
So you can see them both.
And the 女ですよ thing is just a thing my friends and I do as a meme (in response to a character named Elfman always yelling『男だ!!』), and we end emails like that sometimes so I kind of added it without noticing ^_^” Sorry if that confused you!
こんばんは、マギー先生。
I have read this post at least twenty times in the last couple of years. On today’s read-through, I was finally able to recognize what everything means without having to look at your translation. I am now confident that if something throws the word よう at my face, I will know what it means.
However, I am still not sure when to use particular cases of よう *myself*。
Like, I am likely to say 忘れないように気をつけてください, using the fourth case of よう (-> in order to A, B). But I have trouble knowing when to use よう over other grammatical structures in the other cases.
Why would I use 疲れたような顔 to mean a tired (looking) face over 疲れたそうな顔, or even just 疲れた顔? When do I use よう over そう, or nothing at all?
Also, why would I say ようになる over just になる? ラーメンが好きようになった just seems like a longer way of saying ラーメンが好きになった.
Finally, is the following excerpt from my notes correct:
【★ Adjective ような Noun:
You don’t say 忙しいような人, we would just use そう. ような only comes after an adjective when quoting】
Thank you so much!
P.S. Is it weird that I never get an email alert when you reply to my comment? I always just kinda have to reload the page..
Hi
There is no notification for the comment so you just have to come back here. (^_−)−☆
OK, there are many questions but let me answer brifly.
1)
A) 疲れたような顔
B) 疲れたそうな顔 (wrong)
C) 疲れた顔 (tired face)
The translation of A) and B) are the same, tired face but the difference is
A) Maybe that person is not actually tired but the speaker is assuming that the person is tired. (Looks tired)
B) is more direct. That person has a tired face.
2)
ラーメンが好きになった. (Correct)
ラーメンが好きようになった (It is grammatically wrong)
If it is a verb, you can say Vようになった.
好き means “to like” and you might think it is a verb but actually it is an i-adjective.
3) Yes, your note is correct. You don’t say 忙しいような人. You say 忙しい人・忙しそうな人
Sorry if somebody already asked this. This is a partial quote from Madoka Magica I’m confused about: “避けようのない滅び。(さけようのないほろび）”
Question 1: What is ~よう doing here and what does it mean in this context?
Question 2 and 2.5: What does “~you no nai” mean? Would it be the same as saying “~nai you ni?”
Ah that よう is different from the one I explained in this lesson.
Vようがない = There is no way that one can do something
避けようがない= You can’t avoid
When it modifies a noun 避けようがない+ noun or 避けようのない+ noun = unavoidable + noun
Other example
わからない →(stronger) わかりようがない・わかりようのない
わかりようがない・わかりようのない問題 = The question/issue/problem that there is no way that one would know
Hi Maggie Sensei!! Thanks for your valuable lessons. I was analyzing DOKOROKA and came with a question from the examples you gave:
彼女は料理ができないどころか卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
In this example, it’s quite clear to me she can’t cook, from the negative form 料理ができない. However, in the next example it’s not so clear:
夫は手伝ってくれるどころか手伝って欲しいときにはどこかにでかけてしまう
My husband is hardly helpful. Whenever I need his help he just disappears
In this sentence, 手伝ってくれるどころか is positive, so I would assume that he actually helps her, but in the translation it says he doesn’t. Wouldn’t it be more appropriate “Tetsudattekurenai”? Why do we have in both sentences a negative meaning but only in the first one we have a negative verb on the first part of the sentence?
Would it be the same for ぴくぴく –> ぴくっと~ like a single wince/twitch when you hear/see something that disturbs you. しくしくとなく–> しくっと or ひくひく –> ひくっと~ when you’re trying to stop from crying or the first ひく before you really ひくひく?
You usually repeat the word to describe the state condition or constant movement. And you use single word to describe the one time movement/action.
魚がぴくぴく動いている (The fish is twitching-constant movement) →ぴくっと動いた。(Just one time)
But it doesn’t work with any words. You don’t say しくっとなく→しくしく泣く I guess it is because しくしく means “weeping” is not one time action.
Hello, Maggie sensei. Thanks for the lesson. I have a question. How does “ga” work in these sentences? I’m confused about the use.
飲み会に行ったら彼女が怒るかもしれない。
= If I go to the drinking party, my girlfriend might be upset
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
The guy who looks shallow could be actually very serious, you know.
You can use は as well but the change the nuance a little.
That が emphasizes what comes before.
飲み会に行ったら彼女が怒るかもしれない。Emphasizing 彼女 (My girlfriend)
彼女は怒るかもしれない focusing on the state “She may get angry”
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
Emphasizing チャラくみえる人
When you state some commonsense or talk about the definition, you tend to use は
チャラくみえる人は、実はまじめだ。(focusing on what comes after 実はまじめだ）
I’ve been a bit puzzled about the different uses of ‘morau’. I understand the one you explained in this lesson but I’ve heard it being used in other ways.
For example in this sentence what is the actual purpose or meaning?
今週限りで会社を辞めてもらいたい。
konshuu kagiri de kaisha o yamete moraitai.
In this case it doesn’t really mean receiving something from someone. And how do I know if ‘kureru’ is not a better use for this example instead of moraitai?
Ah OK.
As you said, もらう・もらった is used when you receive something or someone does/did something for you or when you ask for a favor.
I covered the second usage in my “How to make a request” lesson. Click this link
If you still have a doubt after the lesson, let me know.
I’ve read the page on the ‘How to make a request’ lesson and I think I’m understanding it better now.
I was watching anime and I came across an example which I was wondering about?
It went like this:
S: ‘Mom why did you give me so many green peas?’
M: ‘It’s not good to be picky about your food’
Suki kirai te youku nai to omotte
M: ‘I thought this might be a good chance to get you over that’
Kono kikai ni kokufuku shite moraitaina~tte
In this case, is it because the mother is requesting her son to not be picky about food? Or wishes he would not be picky about food? Because technically the translation ‘might be a good chance to help you get over that’ isn’t really a reques/wish to my understanding?
First the mother’s quote is unfinished. You sometimes leave the sentence unfinished on purpose to make it sound vague or soft to avoid confrontation
この機会に克服してもらいたいなって(思ったからグリーンピースをいれたの (=omotta kara guriin piisu wo ireta no))
So in this case, is it not a direct request but expressing her “wish” that she wanted her son to like green pees.
I still don’t understand 100% but I think I’m getting the general idea of it!
Also I didn’t know that was an indicator of an unfinished sentence, I learned something again. Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Hi Maggie,
Thanks for this lesson! For some reason I really struggle with でも when it’s not the “but” meaning :)
Hi Maggie. I was wondering what is ”し” doing next to “熱く”? ”熱い” doesn’t end with ”くし” like ”うつくし”. I’m talking about this phrase that I discovered in an 80’s japanese pop song:
”熱くしながら” = while feeling warm
Maybe it’s some outdated form considering the period were the lyrics come from? Or is there a shinagara form that isn’t metioned in this post?
Ah, OK, it is not an out-dated form.
See this pattern?
(noun/person + を ) adjective + する = to make (something/someone) + adjective
Ex. 胸を熱くする
This する changes to し when it is attached to ながら
(noun/person + を ) adjective + し＋ながら
= While making (something/someone) + adjective
Ex. 胸を熱くしながら
Ex.胸を熱くする= to make one’s heart warm = to feel warm
(This reply system is very strange… I actually wrote a longer reply clarifying that I didn't understand the context that I'm talking about here in *, but the bot detected that I repeated too much words! Just wondering, but is it possible to fix this?)
Hi Yu,
First, I am sorry but I don’t do the translation. If I do that, I have to do for everybody. Thank you for your understanding. :)
I made an example sentence with 胸 but it could be anything. You have to read the sentence which comes before.
Anyway if you know more about “adjective + する”, check this lesson.
I was thinking you were actually refering to the song ”君に胸キュン” by Yellow Magic Orchestra were I got the lyrics from. It’s a popular 80’s song in Japan and so I think you know it too.
Just a bit of digression on my side. ^^’
Ah then the subject of what they are making hot is “まなざしのボルテージ” (literal translation is “the voltage of my gaze”
Yellow Magic Orchestra is so-called legend of Japanese music history. (^_−)−☆
So you using ”胸” in your example was pure coincidence? ヾ( ﾟ∀ﾟ)ﾉ ☆ー( -∀・)
I have to also ask though if the entire sentence translates to “Making the voltage of my gaze warm.”? I mean, where’s the “while” meaning in the sentence.
Sorry for asking too may questions. ^^’
Right. When you hear 〜を熱くする, you can automatically link the image of 胸/心/気持ち or 目. (^_−)−☆
〜ながら means “to do something (A) (while) doing something (B) ”
(B)(while) making the voltage of my gaze hot”
I don’t interpret the lyrics but it either goes to the motion or action in the previous line or the following line.
Thank you very much!
How would you say ‘ extra 1/2/3 more patties’?
Hello sensei! I would just like to ask if it is necessary to put に after 半? I’ve read a book and it just says “６時半起きました”
Thank you in advance for the reply 😊❤️
Dear Maggie 先生 could you maybe explain the difference between the sentence “吟遊詩人が村に来てるって？” and “吟遊詩人が村に来てる?”? What does the って change in the first one?
Thank you very much for all the hard work you put into creating all those detailed explanations!
Hello Simon,
1) 吟遊詩人が村に来てる? Is a/the bard is in the village? (Just making sure if a/the bard is in the village.)
2) 吟遊詩人が村に来てるって？ I heard a/the bard is in the village, is that right?
1) checking the information is right.
2) checking the information you heard is right.
What does it mean when you end a sentence with a verb in ば conditional form?
An example situation I’ve heard it used in is someone handing someone else their umbrella and saying「使えば」.
And I’m like “tsukaeba… nani?” To me, that sentence just means “if you use it.” If you use it… what? Unless it’s supposed to be short for 『使えばいい』, in which case the sentence would be “It’s fine if you use it” or “You can use it.”
But this doesn’t even work for all instances. For example, there is a song lyric that goes
声色ヒソめ噂すれば
And I’m pretty sure that’s the both the beginning and end of the sentence because the next line is 扉をノックした 後ろ振り返らずにね。And the line before it is おうまが時だけ、笑いだす。
When I try to translate it I get “those (expletive) whispers, if you make a rumor,” which of course, makes no sense.
Is there some grammatical structure at work here that I don’t know about?
Hello あの女(Wow, that sounds very rude..but it’s your name so…)
As I explained in this lesson, there are many usages of ば
「使えば」 This ば is the usage I explained in this lesson
3) giving someone a suggestion/ an advice. (Why don’t you do ~ ?/ I think you should do ~.)
この傘を使えば？ （Or この傘をつかったら？）= Why don’t you use this umbrella?
噂をすれば is from an proverb
噂をすれば影=speak of the devil So when you talk about someone, that person shows up (conditional)
So I guess when the speaker was talking about someone, that person knocked the door so don’t turn around.
Hello Peter,
元気でしたか？
なんだかちょっと怖いけれど、トリナが会うというなら自分も行かなければ。
This ば is the usage 7) V negative form + ば ( = ba) + いけない ( = ikenai)/ ならない ( = naranai) = have to do / must to do ~
自分も行かなければ（いけない） = I have to go too. / I should go too.
You sometimes drop いけない
Though there are cases they are not interchangeable, your example sentences mean the same and they are interchangeable.
田中さんが結婚したことを知っていますか。= 田中さんが結婚したのを知っていますか。
二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できることを知っていますか。=二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できるのを知っていますか。
Maggie先生、ご説明してくださってありがとうございました！I was wondering about 既読スルー. Basically, I understand this as the equivalent of the English slang expression “left on read” but I heard there’s another way to say this in Japanese that’s made up of four kanji? Something like 〜無視? I’ve seen my friends use it but I can’t remember it!
Again, thank you for all the work you put into your lessons!
For the sentence pattern V-ない ようにand V dic form ように, everywhere I have seen when there is third person instructing something, they have used passive form. But can we also form sentence without applying passive form.?
Exp. この仕事を今日中やるように頼まれました。
Could it be 彼は私に今日中仕事をやるように頼めます。
It’s possible to use ように to give an instruction.
Let me fix your sentences a little to make it sound more natural.
この仕事を今日中にやるように頼まれました。
or (私は）彼に今日中にこの仕事をやるように頼まれました。
→彼は私*に今日中にこの仕事をやるように頼んだ。
(You usually use passive form when you talk about yourself so this sentence itself is possible but it will be more natural to use the third person instead of 私)
Hi Me,
解凍後= かいとうご = kaitou go
There are exceptions but you usually read it ご(=go) if it is in a compound word.
食後 =しょくご = shokugo = after meal
放課後=ほうかご= houkago= after school
And if a verb past tense + 後 or noun + の+ 後, you read it あと= ato
食事をした後= しょくじをしたあと= shokuji wo shita ato = after having a meal
放課の後= houka no ato
As always, thank you for your wonderful lessons! They are really useful to help me fill the gaps of my grammar knowledge!
I have a question about 見ての通り! This was the first time I’ve seen this expression so I was bit confused. I always thought that の is used to connect two nouns. A few days after I read your lesson, I encountered the phrase やってみての感想 in real life.
My question is, does verb-ての make up a different grammar point or are there only certain phrases that use this form? I’ve tried looking this up online, but couldn’t find any concrete explanations.
Hi J
First Vての通り pattern is very limited. 見ての通り・知っての通り are two main ones.
Vての+ noun is different from these usage.
Vての means “Vてからの〜” (~ that after you have done ~ )
やってみての感想 = You do something and then give a feedback.
勝ってみてのお楽しみ = You win first and then you get some reward.
Another common usage is something/someone あっての~ : Something/someone is essential for ~ / ~ wouldn’t exist without something/someone
Ex. このサイトはみなさんあってのサイトです。
Ex. 仕事あっての人生
Ex. 夢あっての人生
In the casual second sentence ない is used, but in the first sentence ある(あります) is used. Can it be used ある in the second sentence and ない in the first sentence?
Ah, it was confusing huh?
Yes, you can also say なんか手伝うことある？ They mean the same.
ありますか？ →ある？
ないですか？ →ない？
Maybe I should change the example sentence but they mean the same.
時間厳守 means “時間を守る” so you use it to be very punctual for one specific event.
Ex. 会議は8時に始まります。時間厳守してください。
If you want to describe one’s personality you say
彼は時間に厳しい
Thank you very much 先生！:) I need it for my interview and I’m having a hard time in constructing long sentences.
I see. Good luck!! うまくいきますように！ がんばってね。
Thanks for this wonderful lesson. This word is kinda new to me so it’s a little bit hard to absorb as it has different meanings depending to the context but I’ve found it very useful. I think I’m going to read this lesson everyday so I can use it properly!
Hi Mya
Verb + ために／ので = ~ because ~ (giving a reason)
寝坊をしたので遅刻をしました。
寝坊をしたために遅刻をしました。
They both mean the same “I got late because I overslept.” ので is a little bit more polite than ために because it softens the fact.
ために emphasize the reason more.
1) While you can use ために with a noun (noun + の＋ために）, you can’t use ので with a noun.
2) When you use ために to do something for someone, you can’t use ので
Myaのために説明します。 (X ので）
Thank you so much for putting this site together – it has been a real help to me! I even managed to use this yoyaku page to make a reservation :)
I was wondering if you would be able to help me with changing the date of the reservation (because of the coronavirus situation, I can’t get into Japan at all!) please? For example, I would like to tell them that:
Because of the Coronavirus situation, I can’t make the reservation in August. Can I change my reservation to October instead please?
Does the following lines in Japanese work if I called them? How about if I wrote to them – would it need to be more formal?
コロナウイルスの状況のため、8月に予約をキャンセルするがありますか。予約を10月に変更できますか？
Sorry for such a long message –I tried to piece together information from your responses to the various posts but it’s really not easy trying to get a message in Japanese.
I really appreciate your help on this!!よろしくお願いいたします。
Good to hear you have been using this lesson.
Your sentences are fine except
８月に予約をキャンセルするがあります
You need to cancel your reservation for August, right? If so, you say
８月の予約をキャンセルしなくてはいけません。
Thanks very much Maggie-sensei. I am really hoping that things will settle down soon!
I managed to hear back from the restaurant (via email).. they said to me “明日変更の日程を送します”. There is no pronoun involved here but I’m assuming that they’re waiting for me to get back to them with the revised schedule?
More generally, when there is no pronoun in a Japanese sentence, is there any rule/way to tell what the pronoun refers to? [Sorry – I feel really silly asking this.]
Thank you again!
Hi Tania
I know you omit pronoun so it might be hard to understand.
That means “They are going to send you the revised schedule tomorrow.”
Hello! A saying I’ve heard recently that I don’t fully understand is いくらなんでも. Would you mind elaborating on that a little? Thank you!
いくらなんでも means “Whatever circumstances might be” and you say that to emphasize your feelings of disbelief (usually negative)
For example, A did something mean to B. B got angry and did something horrible to A in revenge.
You what happened between A and B and B’s feelings. Still, you think B is going too far, then you say to B,
いくらなんでもひどすぎる。
いくらなんでもやりすぎだ。
You are going too far.
I’ve been wondering how to construct a sentence with the たりたりする structure but in negative tense. For example: I don’t gamble, I don’t drink and I don’t smoke (among other things).
Should I conjugate just the final する into しない -> ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。?
Should I conjugate all the verbs into past negative and keep する in affirmative tense -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコを吸わなかったりする?
Should I conjugate the first two verbs into past negative, the final verb into past and する into しない -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない?
Dear Victor
I am so sorry for this late reply. Someone informed me that I haven’t replied to your question.
How to connect verb negative form with たり depends on the sentence but when you describe someone’s personality,
the basic form is
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）しない
You also can add は after the last たり
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）はしない
(Using negative form with the last verb)
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。 (correct)
or adding は
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりはしない。 (emphasis)
The following two sentences are unnatural.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない (Double negative so very confusing anyway. You can just say したり〜したり〜する)
All these habits are negative.
If you say なかったり〜なかったり.. it sounds like this person is supposed to gamble/drink/smoke but he/she doesn’t do that.
But it is possible to use this form if you change the sentence a little.
(Let’s say this person has bad habits and gamble, drink or smoke all the time but ) There are some days that he/she doesn’t gamble/drink/smoke.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする日もあります。
Hi,
First, thank you very much for your lessons, it’s helped me a lot to understand japanese.
So, I have a question: for reply at 「~のですか」,「~のです」is used.
And「~からです」is used too, but why choose 「~からです」instead「~のです」?
I suppose「~ので、…」can be used as well.
Ex. Q: どうして今年は日本に行かないの？ = Why don’t you go to Japan this year?
1) 忙しいからです。focusing on the reason why you don’t go to Japan.
２） 忙しいのです / (casual) 忙しいんだ。 focusing on your feelings more.
3) 忙しいので (polite) You leave the sentence unfinished on purpose (忙しいので（行けません。）） to make it sound softer. Compared to 2), ので sounds more polite.
I read that 「~ので」is more objective,「~から」is more subjective.
So, can I say 「~のだ」is more subjective than「~から」?
Subjective ＞「~のだ」＞「~から」＞「~ので」＞Objective
Maybe, it’s too reductive.
the translation and the situation are the same so it might be a little hard to judge whether it is subjective or objective.
As I said から make the reason clearer so it sounds stronger.
事故による渋滞（じゅうたい） traffic jam caused by an accident
事故によって渋滞した。 There was a heavy traffic jam due to an accident
事故により渋滞した。 There was a heavy traffic jam due to an accident
お目にかかる mea “to see someone (superior)”. It is 謙譲語 (kenjoubo), humble expression. I think I covered in my 謙譲語 lesson. Click this link.
I don’t know why the translations says “いたい= pathetic” though.
Hi Maggie sensei! I’ve been using your website for japanese grammar and it’s really helpful. However I still don’t quite understand the kagiri thing and there was a sentence I heard when I was watching anime and I don’t get the use of kagiri here?
‘Soredemo yurusareru kagiri soba ni itai to omotte ita’
of which the translation was:
But still, I wanted to stay close to her as long as possibl.
This “yurusareru” is a passive form of “許す= yurusu so it means “to be allowed, to be permitted”
限り= kagiri means “as long as”
So the literal translation is “As long as I am allowed” →”As long as you allow me”
→So the translation “As long as possible” is right.
あいつ= that person, he/she (rough/male speech)
お前 = you (rough/male speech)
思っている= thinking
ような= like
The last part is missing but it means
He (or She) not what you thought he(or she) was
Hello Maggie Sensei, I tried to translate a sentence with より, so I found here. All these examples are really informative, but they don’t seem to strictly match the pattern of より in this sentence.
The first part is missing so I don’t know what it is talking about. Are they talking about the body weight? What is the subject of 増えた？
Anyway, より少ない here means
1kgより少ない = means “less than 1kg”
Hi Maggie Sensei! I just want to know, when you use 〜ため to mean “because” in a sentence like 「パスポートの期限が切れていたために飛行機に乗れなかった。」, what’s the difference between replacing that ため with から or ので to also mean “because”?
You can say 言ったこと as well.
言うこと what he says/said (You use this form when this person is always saying, said in past, or will say in future) It will be easier to think 言うこと as a noun. (the things he says)
言ったこと what he said (in the particular time)
Hi Maggie sensei! I can’t figure out what だけで means in some of your example sentences like 「メールを見なかっただけで無視をしたんじゃないよ」or 「彼はうちが貧しいだけで心は貧しいわけではない」or 「あの子はかわいいだけで中身がない」. Could you mind explaining why there’s a で and what it means with だけで？
寒い日は鍋に限る
can i translate this as “As for cold days, it is limited to nabe” or “cold days are limited to hotpot”
similarly,
このゲームの購入は、お一人様１個に限ります
can i flip the translation as
“As for purchasing this game, nothing is better than one game for one person”
For the first two usages outlined, it seems confusing to me to distinguish between “Limited to ~” and “Nothing is better than ~” because they seem mechanically the same, that is, it has “Noun + ni + kagiru”
on a slightly unrelated note
女の子が泣いていたらただ黙って話を聞いてあげるに限る。
i’m tripped up by ただ黙って in this sentence. does that part mean “Just be quiet”?
As in, “If girl is crying, just be quiet, and it is best to listen to her 話”?
Thank you for these nuanced lessons, even if they feel overwhelming at times :)
このゲームの購入は、お一人様１個に限ります (This 限る means “limited” / You often see this person お一人様+ number+counter)
So the literal translation will be
As for this game, it is limited to purchase one per person.
The second question
女の子が泣いていたらただ黙って話を聞いてあげるに限る。
たた黙って = just being quiet + modifies a verb 聞いてあげる = to listen
If a girl is crying, it is the best to listen to her being quiet.
Yes. I will show you how to use the form.
好きなものばかり食べないで野菜も食べなさい。
= Don’t just eat things you like and eat some vegetable.
(general advice)
好きなものばかり食べていないで野菜も食べなさい。
（to a person who is actually eating)
Hello Maggie sensei!
I came across this sentence and got the meaning all wrong. 初めて会ったひとに聞きたくても聞けないことは何ですか。
Mi first impression was something like “what would you not ask a person you just met”, but apparently it’s completely the opposite. Could you explain how to use this pattern: 聞きたくても聞けない？Thank you very much!
OK, here is the pattern
Vたくても Vない(negative potential form)= Even if ~ wants to do ~ , ~ can’t.
聞きたくても聞けない = Even if you want to ask (Even if you are so curious to know), you can’t ask (because it is not polite).
Another example with this pattern.
When someone asks you to go somewhere with them. You really want to go but you can’t, you say
行きたくても行けない
(Or 行きたいけど行けない)
I’m reading a new book about the 第五福竜丸 fishing boat which is really interesting, but I saw a bit of speech that I have no idea about at all.
I’m not sure if it’s relevant to this なあ topic at all (apologies if not)…
The crew are checking each other after they were rained on by a mysterious substance, and one says:
「そろそろ指をけずらにゃんなあ、大石」
I’m not sure if the にゃ is なければ and なあ is ね, but that doesn’t really make sense to me, so I’m very confused! :D
そろそろ指をけずらにゃんなあ
Or it could be
けずらにゃ（いかん）なあ。or けずらにゃなあ。(without ん）
As you guessed, Vにゃ（いかん） is a dialect or casual contraction that elderly men use which means Vなければいけない (= have to do ~). It is similar to なきゃなあ (=なければいけないなあ）
I was hoping it was で. Otherwise, it sounds like you were reading some horror. 😁
How to intepret this sentence ?
覚えてきた
This sentence was to a girl who was remembering something. Also when u state that when a change is moving towards a speaker, you use てきた, how is お腹がすいてくる coming towards your perspective?
I don’t know the context but 覚えてきた is to learn/memorize something and (physically) comes back to the place..
For example, imagine you didn’t know how to read hiragana and your teacher said try to learn how to read them and come back the class.
You studied hard at home and learned how to read them and go back to the class. Then you say ひらがなを覚えてきました。
Thank You for the reply, also can i ask whats the 腹が立ってくる have to do with coming to the perspective of the speaker ? Also, what about 遊びに来た and 遊んできた. いつもありがとうございます
腹が立ってくる the emotion is happening (in yourself) You are talking about your emtoion.
遊びに来た Someone comes to your house to hang out or play with you.
遊んで来た You went out to hang out with someone/play with someone and came back home.
Not comfortable to talk about other sites so I will just talk about my site, OK?
I think it depends on the verbs and how you translate the Japanese sentences but for example
The movie has already finished showing
その映画（の上映）はもう終わっている。
As I wrote in this lesson,
Max先生の話を聞いていますか？
It could be interpreted differently depending on the situation.
So there are cases that you can use ている as “have done”
hi again maggie sensei, as im a foreigner i want to ask something, does anybody care about kenjōgou and sonkeigo in japan now. Or maybe now teineigo is enough? thank you
Hi Theo
So you want to know the difference between
1) ご連絡します。= Gorenrakushimasu.
2) ご連絡いたします。= Gorenrakuitashimasu ?
2) is more polite.
You use kenjougo and sonkeigo more in formal situation (business, etc.)
Even if you don’t have to use it, it is good to know in some point. 😉
Wow, this is something probably even textbooks don’t teach. Thank you so much!
On that note, I have a small question. A song I like has this line:
「知ってるくせに、知らんぷりはして」
Would I translate this as “Even though I know, I’m acting like I don’t”? Also, why is it 知らんinstead of しらない?
Thank you!!
P.S. Can you make a lesson about alternative negative forms like ぬ and ず, and what makes them different from ない？Thank you again! Love your work, been following you for years.
Can confirm that they don’t teach this at school or in textbooks. JLPT N2 passer here, and made it all the way to some N1 classes, and I’ve never heard of this grammar tidbit until I came across it on a Youtube comment saying something about 飲みっぷり. Thanks for your blog Maggie-sensei, they’re better than all the textbooks and classes I’ve attended. Very detailed yet easy to understand. Keep up the good work! :)
To Sora’s question, colloquial Nihongo has a lot of shortened words like 知らん, I guess because they’re easier to say. Like saying “何やってんの?” instead of saying the entire “何やっているの?” because it’s two syllables less. Same with 分からん or 分かんね. And those are just the easy ones! Don’t worry, as you get exposed to more native speaker dialogues, you’ll get the hang of it. ;)
Thank you for your comment.
I am very happy to hear you can still learn something from this lesson.
Yes, there are lots of shortened forms in Japanese.
I think I have a couple of lessons but here is one of them. てる→てん
こんにちは、マギー先生！いつもありがとう！
I’m having a lot of trouble understanding how to use 「ところを」。If it’s not too much trouble, do you think you could explain it in a different way, with maybe a shorter sentence?
Also, in いつもは1800円のところを木曜日は1000円で映画を観ることができます, where can I pause? After the particle?
こんにちは、Sora!
Ah that usage of ところ is different from what I covered here.
Vところ also means “although, whereas”
“Whereas it’s usually 1,800 yen, you can see a movie for 1,000 yen on Thursday. “
The mean the same, “Where are you going?” but いらっしゃる is more polite than 行かれる
(Also when you use 行かれる・いらっしゃる, you might want to use どちらへ instead of どこへ. It sounds more polite.)
Thanks, im currently finishing minna no nihongo 2 which should cover until n4 right? my kanji game is weakk thoughh, can you recommend any book that is good for foreigners? im still 16 and i want to speak and read japanese i think its really interesting. Thank you very much!
There are many kanji books or apps out there. I would work on vocabulary and kanji at the same time.
How about getting a book on JLPTN4 Vocabulary book? (For example, JLPT N４語彙マスター, etc. )
Also if you use Twitter, follow me. I am tweeting kanji4Day often.
Wow, it’s the second time I come across your website while looking for an answer. The first time I did find the answer, This time, however, I didn’t really find the answer to what I was looking for but maybe you can help me out!
It depends on the verb but ています describes the verb/situation more vividly.
毎朝7時に起きます。 habitual I get up at seven every morning. (Yo me levanto a las siete cada mañana)
毎朝7時に起きています。habitual also but it is focusing on the state of being awake. I am awake at 7:00 every morning. (Estoy despierta a las siete cada mañana)
~ を売ります。 talking about one’s occupation. Yo vendo ~
~ を売っています。Also 1) talking about one’s occupation but it expresses the verb more vividly 2) What the speaker is doing right now. (Maybe doing something else usually but right now, selling ~ ) (Estoy vendiendo)
I have another lesson explaining the tenses if you want to learn more. Click here
Cool! There’s a lot of information there! I like the fact that you explain a lot and not just the basics.
So I read it and I think it’s very similar to Spanish. Let me see if I got it right, please:
Imagine that before the coronavirus/quarantine, I used to say:
“毎朝7時に起きます” (In Spanish: Me levanto a las 7 todas las mañanas)
But now, with the coronavirus, I say:
“今、毎朝8時に起きています”. (Ahora me estoy levantando a las 8 todas las mañanas).
What do you think? haha.
By the way, I didn’t expect an answer with Spanish translation. It was such a bonus thing. Way to go! :)
改めましてこんばんは。先にツイッターで質問しているAn Asian Polyglotです。先生と話した後、ちょっと忙しくなって、結局遅くなって、ごめんなさい。それでは、先の質問を複写します：
「ば」についての質問がありますが。「金持ちであればいいのに。」という文は不自然ですか。「私が鳥であればいいのに」は？先生のサイトによると、自分の意志を表す時は、「たら…のに」を使うことです。しかし、インターネットでは、こんな文もやや多いです。それに、普通は前半と後半の主語が違うと、意志や希望などを表すのも大丈夫でしょう。では、あの…自分の欲望を表す時、「ば…のに」は絶対におかしいのですか。特に以上の二つの文と言えば？
その上、自分の要求について話す時は、どんな文が自然ですか。教えてください。
こんにちは先生、I am having a doubt in the following sentence:
ここに車を止めてもいいですか。in this sentence why に is used and why でis not used? Because of で is used to indicate the place where the action occurs, で is not used? Or any other reasons why でis not used?
こんにちは、S. Abinaya
As I explained in the lesson,
に indicates one point or one specific place, で indicates “through out the place/ area.
When you park a car, you park in a specific parking spot not in the whole area.
In the example 「ご飯を食べながらテレビを観る」, is there an implication that the second action is happening while the first action is happening, and it is subordinate to the first action?
What I mean is, there is a slight difference in emphasis between:
“When I am eating, I watch TV.” (eating is the main action, watching TV is secondary)
vs
“When watching TV, I eat.” (TV is my main activity, the eating is secondary).
And besides, I didn’t know that the context in the lyrics was to make >somethingnot being< warm. So that's why I wasn't aware of the ”し” after ”熱く” being a modified ”する” as in the example that you gave:
仕事をする→仕事をしながら
Those are just my after thoughts ^^'. And besides, I apologise if you don't accept such requests.
Hello Maggie sensei !
There are two sentences where I am not sure of understanding demo correctly
「とりあえず，先生と基礎練習でもしかない」 and 「２秒でも早く寝ってください」
Can you help, please ?
Hi ピエール！
とりあえず先生と基礎練習でもやるしかない
There is no choice but doing the basics (basic practice/exercises) with my teacher for now.
This でも brings up an example what you can do for now.
２秒でも早く寝てください
Please go to bed as soon as possible. (literal translation “even two seconds earlier” This でも means “even”)
Maggie sensei, I have a question regarding this lesson. 済ませる is causative verb, and causative means ~ to force, allow, make someone do something, like 薬を飲ませた.
In one of the sentence above:
– もう、支払いは、済ませたから出ようよ。
もう、支払いは、済ませたから出ようよ。
This simply means “I finished paying” not “to be forced to pay”
済ませる・済ます are transitive verbs “somethingを済ます”
and 済む is intransitive verb “somethingが済む”
The causative form is 済まさせる passive 済まさせられる but I think it is rarely used.
こんにちは！
First of all thank you for your page, it’s very helpful.
Secondly, I apologize if the question has been asked but I don’t seem to find it.
When studying Japanese one of the problems I encounter is to know if the grammar or vocabulary is commonly used and in which context (formal, informal).
For example with ば〜ほど, is something people use in casual speech? So if I want to say “the more I think about it the angrier I get” is there a more casual way of saying it or do people say 考えれば考えるほど怒る？
Thanks in advanced and sorry for the long thread
Another great content. Thank you for this lesson. I just have a question about the 「のに」as “in order to”. From what was written above, i saw the sentence :
「旅行に行くのに５万円必要だ」
Would it be possible for you to differentiate the following sentences:
Hey Maggie Sensei. I came across this phrase.
そんな言い訳するくらいなら食べなきゃいいのに。
Which was translated as. If you’re going to make excuses just don’t eat it at all.
I’m confused because I thought 食べなきゃ is short for must eat. So thinking about it, should it be ” Even though you should eat” The combination of なきゃ+ いいのに is throwing me of. Could you help clear this up?
OK first
When you express your desire that someone should do something but they don’t in reality, you say
~たら・ばいいのに
Ex. 食べたらいいのに / 食べればいいのに = You really should eat ~ (But they don’t eat)
And when you express your desire that someone shouldn’t do something but they do in reality, you say
Hello ~
It’s the first time I write a comment, and want to say that I really love your work and blog. ♡
Also I want to ask if you can do one post about 数学, how to pronounce it because so far I didn’t find much info.
About add, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions and decimal point.
Thank you so much!
Take care.
Hello Ana,
数学=すうがく=suugaku
I made a mini lesson on Twitter/Facebook or Pateron but I haven’t posted it here.
Since I can’t give you a link here (I don’t remember when I posted..) here is the basic vocabulary.
＊ 計算 = けいさん = keisan = calculation
* 足し算 = たしざん = tashizan = addition
→ 1 + 2 = 3
= 1 足す 2 は、3 = いちたすには、さん
= ichi tasu ni wa san
* 引き算 = ひきざん = hikizan = subtraction
→ 4 – 3 = 1
= 4 引く 3 は、1 = よんひくさんは、いち
= yon hiku san wa ichi
* 割り算 = わりざん= warizan = division
→ 6 ÷ 2 = 3
= 6 割る 2 は、3 = ろくわるには、さん
= roku waru ni wa san
* 掛け算 = かけざん = kakezan = multiplication
→ 2 x 3 = 6
= 2 掛ける 3 は、6 = にかけるさんは、ろく
= ni kakeru san wa roku
I saw 鈴木降様 / 鈴木降さん used in my new book today and wondered what the 降 meant.
I’m guessing that it means “The Younger Mr Suzuki” because the writer is talking about attending a memorial service for the deceased 鈴木様, and on arrival he met Mr Suzuki’s eldest son.
Is that correct? I can’t find a reference to using 降 anywhere when referring to people…
Hello Peter
How are you doing?
OK, 隆 is たかし (Takashi). It is one of the common male’s first names.
鈴木= Family name so 鈴木降様 or 鈴木降さん means “Mr. Takashi Suzuki”
I found out about your website yesterday, and I am 100% in love with it. This is probably the best of the best that I have ever come across when it comes to teaching Japanese. The amount and depth of the knowledge you have, the simple and easy-to-understand way you write, the contexts and examples you create, everything is just PERFECT!
I’ve been reading tons of your lessons now that I am learning by myself.
I thank you for that.
However, you made a mistake. You are not adorable. Please modify that example.
Haha, kidding.
Really enjoying your lessons!
Thanks from Argentina!
おはよう先生!
It isn’t linked to this lesson, but while reading a manga, I came upon this sentence
“あのＪＫについていけるか”, which I would personally translate as “Can they keep up with that JK ?”. The thing is, in the context of the manga, the JK is the one having trouble following the others, and what I don’t understand is why the character uses に instead of が ?
宜しくお願いします
Hi ピエール！
You are right. If she is the one who has a trouble following them, it should be あのJKがついていけるか
It is hard to answer without knowing the context but the only possibility that I can think of is you sometimes say
(Someoneには）ついていけない to a person who is too slow, airhead, scatterbrain, etc.
First, i would like to thank you for explaining this topic this thorough. I’m new to your website and I’ve found it quite helpful.
I’ve got one problem understanding the following sentence 繰り返し何度も零してしまう. It is a part of a song. Here is the context:
春になって 桜が咲いて
いつかが 見えなくなって
「もういいかい？」
繰り返し何度も零してしまう
Is he expressing his feeling of regret or frustration or something like that?
どうもありがとうございます！
Maggie 先生!
I love your site, every time I have a question about something I come here bcos for me this is the most helpful site!
Thank you so much for your effort!
I thought that I was understanding everything about ようbut at the very end of this lesson I found this and then I found myself puzzled again x. X….
“どうですか？わかったような気がしてきましたか？”
Is it possible to use ように here? (I mean instead of ような)
As far I understood this is what I got:
–> ような needs a noun before and after it (like a ‘noun’ sandwich 🤣)
–>ように has a verb/adjective just after it (or as I saw in one of your comments modifies noun)
I also noticed ように can have a verb before and after without using の (like a ‘verb’ sandwich 🤣) [無視されているように感じる]
But in the last phrase that I quoted it’s verb+ような+verb and I don’t understand then… What is the real difference between using ような and ように 😢… Please! Help! 😣
Hello ジェシ
Welcome back to this site! 😊
Right.
ような + noun
ように +verb
ような actually modifies “気” which is a noun not the following verb, する (= suru)
(わかったような）気 (noun) ＋が ( particle) ＋する(verb)
Hi Peter,
とんでもない is an expression but it is originally from 途でもない and 途 means “the principle of the thing/reason” →not rational So it would fit the pattern, “Not even rational” →No way!
I’ve visited this site specifically this webpage many times and found it very useful in my studies. I’m just curious, is there a difference in nuance in the following sentences:
ーのどが渇いた感じだ。
ーのどが渇いた「って」感じだ。
ーのどが渇いた感じ「がする」。
Just added 「」 so that it’s easier to see what I added from the first sentence.
First when you simply want to say I am thirsty, you just say のどが乾いた。You don’t say 1) 2) 3) They are not natural.
When you describe the state of your body, health condition, etc., “My throat feels dry ” ” you use 3)
1) and 2) are used when you mention something first and “It is like being thirsty” and the difference between 1) and 2) is 2) is more casual than 1)
If the following letter is の, yes, you can say 対すん＋の
I can’t think of a good example sentence because 対する is kind of formal verb but let me explain with 反対する
反対する 反対するの→反対すんの
You can use
verb plain form + しかない
待つしかない = You just need to wait (You can’t do anything else)
When the following verb is できない you use こと
verb plain form + こと＋しか
待つことしかできない “the all you can do is to wait (There is no choice) “
済ます・済ませる: They mean the same.
〜せる is more common but I will show you other examples.
泣く→causative form 泣かせる the verb which already has a causative meaning →泣かす
寝る→causative form 寝かせる the verb which already has a causative meaning →→寝かす
Hello! Your explanations are very good, thank you so much.
I have a question.
I found this sentence on a YouTube video:
先生にもっと勉強するよう言われました.
I’m not sure it is correct and maybe I didn’t understand it.
よう is not followed by に or な here.
Can you help me understand it?
ありがとうございます
Ok, thank you! (⌒‿⌒) It would be nice if, for example, we could pay 2 dollars for the files of all the sentences of a lesson / page. It would be appreciated. Have a nice day!
OK!
But just so you know, you can sigh up for Patreon even just for a month ($2.00/month) and quit in a month.
Hi, Maggie-sensei, I hope you’re doing great!
About this lesson, I wanted to know if there’s a difference between using ことができます and 可能形？
Thanks very much in advance. I’m always a fan of your great lessons!
Hello, sensei! I’ve found your blog because I was looking for something… This section is really well-made, thank you! :D If what I understood is correct, is “そりゃそうだわなー” a female sentence? Or can it be used by a male?
Hello Chewy
Ah, this し is masu-stem of the verb 繁栄する
When you connect verbs, to do something and then do something, you can use te-form or masu-stem. This し is the later.
masu-stem is more formal than te-form.
繁栄する
masu form 繁栄します
masu stem 繁栄し
You really don’t have to be my Patron just for one audio file.
I was just saying that I currently offer the audio files just on my Patrons to be fair for my supporters. They support me so I support them. :)
Hello Hazel,
I have been offering audio files for my Patreon since 2018.
→ Patreon.
If you are my Patron, you can make a request to make a new audio file.
A: Erm, that tunic…
B: This? I bought it from Treger’s master. The body width wasn’t sufficient, so he cut the hem and widened the chest area for me.
I still get a bit stuck sometimes on who does what, but the て貰った says to me that the action of widening the chest was done for B (not by B), presumably by the person she bought it from (so, トレガーの旦那).
HI, Peter,
元気？
This させてもらった doesn’t specify who fixed the tunic but B took the liberty of doing or having someone do so.
“I took the liberty of cutting (or having someone cutting the hem) and widening the chest area (after B bought it from トレガー”
Right, so might the following translation be more accurate?
“The body width wasn’t sufficient, so I had the hem cut and the chest area widened.” (by some unspecified individual, which may even have been herself)
マギー先生、今日は❣️
もう一度のmattiaです。すみませ〜ん😅
I have a quick question in regard to ようにする。
I tried to find a lesson that explains the difference between ようにする (anticipated by the verb in its infinitive form) and ようとする (anticipated by the volitive form).
For instance, I know that
肉だけじゃなくて、野菜も食べるようにしています。
Means: I’ll try to eat vegetables too and not only meat.
でも。。。
There is this construct in Japanese: 〜ようとする that I thought it means “try to…”
So, I’m a little bit confused.
E.g.: ドアを開けようとしていました。
The sentence above is “I tried to open the door” right?
So what is the difference between the two?
V+ようとする
V (volitive form)+(よ)うにする
If there’s a lesson about it would you mind address me to it? And sorry if I couldn’t see it.
Hi Betty,
OK, I’ll show you the variations.
If someone calles your company and wants to talks to her husband and you transfer the phone call you say
I’ll put you through to YOUR husband:
少々お待ちください。ご主人におつなぎいたします。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Goshujin ni otsunagi itashimasu.
If her husband is close to you, you say,
少々お待ちください。ご主人に代わります。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Goshujin ni kawarimasu.
And if someone calls your house and wants to talk to your husband, you say
少々お待ちください。主人に代わります。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Shujin ni kawarimasu.
Hey Maggie! I have a question for you, I don’t really know if this is the right lesson to write this to you, but I could definitely use some help :)
I came across this sentence recently and it’s giving me some headache.
残りの人生は実に楽しくすごしており、夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。
Can you please try to help me with this grammar conundrum?
OK, let’s make this sentence into two sentences.
A: 残りの人生は実に楽しくすごしている。= I’m really enjoying the rest of the life (or my life).
＋そして = and
B: 夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。 (literal translation) It turned out to be so rich to the extent that I didn’t even imagine.
Now in order to put the sentence A and B together into one sentence, you have to change the main verb “いる” in the sentence A.
One way to do is to use te-form 〜すごしていて夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。
Another more literal way to connect them is to use the masu stem.
But you don’t make masu-stem from います. X 〜すごして「い」夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。(wrong)
This is irregular one.
いる changes to the formal version おる→おり
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I believe that I have heard ひょっとして、ひょっとしたらandひょっとすると used before, but what’s the difference and when would you use each one respectively in conversation?
Hello,
ひょっとして・ひょっとしたら・ひょっとすると and also もしかして・もしかしたら・もしかすると add the meaning of “I could be wrong but, ~ by any chance
You start the sentence with it when you tell someone your assumption.
マギーは忙しいかもしれない。= Maggie might be busy.
ひょっとして忙しいのかもしれない。= I could be wrong but maybe Maggie is busy.
My homework has two example sentences that have confused me, and I was hoping you could help me? Even though these sentences describe the past, the text uses ですinstead of でした。I can’t figure out why…
The sentences are here:
私は小さい時よく食べたものはチョコレートやアイスクリームです。
When I was small, the things that I often ate are(were?) chocolate and ice cream.
あまり食べなかったものは野菜です。
The thing that I hardly ate is(was?) vegetables.
As an English speaker, I would want to include the version in the parenthesis, but is it more natural to use です in Japanese here?
This web page was published in 2017, but I’d be grateful if you can help me. ;;u;;
Hi Rachel
The literal translation is:
私は小さい時よく食べたものはチョコレートやアイスクリームです。
When I was small, the things that I often ate “ARE” chocolate and ice cream.
あまり食べなかったものは野菜です。
The thing that I hardly ate “IS” vegetables.
Let me write questions, too.
小さい頃によく食べたものはなんですか？
= What are the things you used to eat when you were small.
あまり食べなかったものはなんですか？
= What are the things that you didn’t eat so much?
When you describe something that you did in past, you can use です
Ex.これは去年買った時計です。
= This is the watch that I bought last year.
Ex. 彼にもらった時計はこれです。
= The watch that I got from him is this one.
I think you understand why you use です here because you are talking about the object, a watch, which is in front of you.
You can use the same idea when you describe something intangible, such as memories, idea, issue, etc.
Hi vos
You have to check the meaning of these three verbs first
目が回る = literal meaning “feeling dizzy” →目が回るほど = as I feel dizzy
The common expression is 目が回るほど忙しい = very busy (like you feel dizzy)
息が止まる= stop breezing →息が止まるほど = breathtaking
震える = shaking, shivering →震えるほど = something gives the shivers (could be positive or negative)
Hello Peter
I think the sentence should be 行っちまいなよ
Yes, 行っちまう is a contraction of 行ってしまう
It is a rough male speech so you should avoid using it but I bet you see that a lot in manga or TV drama.
行っちまいな is a command form (行ってしまいなさい）
Other example
I know this might be an old post, but this website has been really helpful for my Japanese studies. I was just curious about one thing though.
–> こんなに忙しい「のに」、友達の家なんかに行って遊んでいる時間はない
Why was のに used here? From one of the previous lessons discussed here, I assumed that のに is used to show contradiction like “Even though I studied, I failed”, but I don’t see the contradiction in this sentence though. Could you elaborate?
I’m glad to hear you found this site helpful.
That example sentence こんなに忙しいのに、〜遊んでいる時間はない might be easy to understand if I change the sentence a little.
忙しいのに友達の家に遊びに行く・行った
In this case you give two contradicted facts.
being busy ⇄going out
So even if this speaker didn’t go visit the friend, there is still contradicted elements.
Also のに has a function to emphasize what comes before.
I am SO busy that I don’t have time to go visit my friend.
Hi Maggie sensei!
I noticed that in many of your examples, you used ~なきゃ／なくちゃ and then put いけない in parentheses afterwards. My Japanese friend always uses the いけない after she says なきゃ. Is the いけない optional? And if it is, does using it make the sentence more formal? Thank you for the great lesson as always!
Maggie-sensei,
I also can use the conditional と with てる forms, I mean, in present progressive?
Because I faced this sentence:
「話してると怒られる」
There are two girls at school, and the principal is making a speech, then one of the girls calls the other, and she replied with that.
Maggie-sensei, 最近はどうですか?
I recently was watching an anime and faced this sentence:
「こけしに当たるなんてなかなかないからね。」
I understand the meaning as “It’s not easy to get hit by a Kokeshi.”
But I do not understand properly the work of から after なかなかない.
Could you clear me up?
Thanks in advance =)
I mean the previous sentences to know the context but I found it out by myself.
So kokeshi doll was falling from the sky and they were talking about that, right?
In this case the usage of からね is very conversational.
You usually use kara to give a reason with から
(reason)から+ consequences/what you think/what you do…
You omit the following part on purpose and the listener can read between the lines.
Because it is rare that kokeshi hit my head, it is… （Ex. 面白いね。/ なんかいいことがあるかもしれないよ, etc.)
Probably the closes translation in English is “so”
「人生でこけしに当たるなんてなかなかないからね。」
“It is very rare that kokeshi hit one’s head in our life, so…”
Q: Am I right in thinking that the -ておいて part indicates that T asked R in advance, and the -てくれ part indicates that R is doing something for T?
→Yes, you got that right!
Welcome back!
Yes, verb1 + ば + verb2 + ほど
You use the same verb. (If it is suru-verb, 勉強する、料理する etc, you can just repeat する and as your example sentence, if the verb has くれる／あげる or other auxiliary verbs, etc, you can just repeat the dictionary form of くれる／あげる,etc. in verb 2)
Hello maggie sensei!
I don’t know if this place for it, but I went accross this while reading “そんな指図されにゃいかんのだ”, and I can’t seem to understand this されにゃいかん part, can you help me ?
Thank you for the answer. However, I have but one last question. Isn’t なければいけない “have to do” rather than “don’t have to do” ? Isn’t the character saying he has to do it ? Sorry for bothering you so long 😅
なければいけない itself means “have to do something” but by adding のか you make a question but at the same time you can express your strong feelings of disagreement.
The same idea in English.
I don’t have to do ~: なくてもいい
Why do I have to do that? = (どうして/なぜ）〜なければいけないのですか？ / 〜のか (more rough)
Hello, maggie sensei 😊
Just a slight question, but while reading ４月は君の嘘，a character uses 見てみなよ，which is an imperative negative, as an imperative positive. Could you please explain ?
Vてみて(よ)→(male speech, rough speech ) Vてみな(よ)
The translation could be “Why don’t you V?” but it is actually not an imperative negative. It is an affirmative form.
Vてみる= try to do something/ give it a try ~ ing
So 見てみなよ = (Why don’t you take a look at something) = Take a look at something.
こんにちはマギー先生! ちょっと質問があります。
I just noticed that you used “ですし” in an example where I guessed that it’s because it’s polite form. Is it also acceptable to use ~ますし? Although I don’t think there is such a pattern. I’m just curious how you say a polite form of verb using し。🙂
When you connect two verbs, you use the plain form before し and finish the sentence with です・ます
Ex. お金も欲しいし時間も欲しいです。
Ex. 休日は、掃除もするし洗濯もします。
But in formal conversation you connect です・ます＋し
Ex. お金も欲しいですし時間も欲しいです。
Ex. 休日は、掃除もしますし洗濯もします。
Hey Maggie, 元気ですか ?
Could you help me with this sentence? I didn’t get the usage of the に particle here:
食べ始めてすぐ、「お母さん、おかわりちょうだい」と言ってご飯のお茶碗をお母さんに出しました。
Note: Is the son who are speaking.
Is the mom receiving the rice? Or is she giving the rice?
はい、元気ですよ〜♫
食べ始めてすぐ、「お母さん、おかわりちょうだい」と言ってご飯のお茶碗をお母さんに出しました。
The speaker (son/daughter) is talking to his/her mother and passing the (empty) rice bowl to his/her mother asking for another helping.
Hi sensei,
I watched a movie and this line came out:
裁判に勝ってるかも知れないね
I assume it means: “we probably can win the trial.”
Why the sentence use the particle に instead of を or other particles?
Thank you
hmm…i’ve always wondered why plain past tense i.e ta-form is always used to form the meaning “if” or “when” for this grammar tara. I’m not quite sure on the tenses….for example:
“もしぶかつに遅れたら….”
Directly translating would be like “if I had been late to club activity”, which suggest the future?? Also can you please tell me how you know when tara means “when” or “if” in a particular sentence? Thankyou :3
Hi again,
もしぶかつに遅れたら….”
You use past tense with たら but it could mean both “If I had been late /I were late” or “If I am late” depending on the context.
遅れたらみんなに迷惑をかけるだろう。I may/might trouble everyone. (talking about the possibility in future)
遅れたら迷惑をかけたかもしれない。I would have troubled everyone. (talking about hypothetical situation that didn’t happen in past.)
Basically, if you are talking about something likely to happen, the better translation will be “when” and if you are talking about hypothetical situation, “if” is better.
I am curious…why can と mean both “if~” and “when~”. Since it’s a conditional it’s all about when conditions are met and the subsequent events occuring after, but i’m confused why it can be “when” as well as “if”.
Some of the translations could be either “when” or “if” depending on your interpretation.
When you do something and automatically happens something, probably the translation “when” works better but when you are talking about more hypothetical situations or less possibilities, “if” would be better.
Thank you for this excellent lesson. I was aware of the verb 済む, but there are many expressions and meanings featured here that I was not aware of. Much appreciated!
I come across this phrase ～なくとも. How is it different from ～なくても? I googled and found answers that they are similar but the former is more or writing. In that case, can we replace V+ても with V+とも? i.e. 質問しとも
You mean the usage of suggesting/giving some advice?
As I explained
You can use both Verb+ ては or Verb+たら
Why don’t you do something?
This usage works with verbs not with adjectives.
“すみません、水をもらっていいですか？”
It is casual but many young people say that. Some older people think this もらっていいですか is a bit condescending so you can say that at a coffee shop but be careful who you use it with.
To make is sound more polite, you say
すみません、お水(を)いただけますか？
or just すみません、お水、お願いします。is good enough.
“注文お願いします。” You are asking the waiters if you can order or not, right? Then, yes, you can say that.
You can also say 注文いいですか？
ご返事お待ちしております。→お返事お待ちしております。どうぞよろしくお願いします( or more polite お願いいたします。）
Is this really correct? I learned the teshimau and chau Form as meaning “accidentally/unintentionally did …” and I cant find the kind of grammar form you describe here anywhere else. Or maybe theyre formed the same way but have different meanings depending on context? Very confusing xD
You mean you just saw the usage “accidentally/unintentionally did …” but not the other usages, such as “finish doing something” or “to do something completely”, etc?
I don’t check other resources but yes, there are more usages of chau. It could be negative, positive or neutral depending on the context.
宿題やっちゃった。(positive expressing satisfaction, joy, relief.)
Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。(negative, anger, frustration)
お茶をこぼしちゃった。(did something accidentally. negative)
電車がいっちゃった (negative, the train is gone, Oh well..)
皿を洗っちゃいましょう。(neutral. Let’s finish some work) ,etc.
Thanks for the fast reply. Yes thats what I meant, but now that I read this lesson I will look out for the differences in meaning.
Its still a little confusing though as according to this lesson the sentence
“Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。”
could also mean Thomas finished eating my meal, right? Maybe you offered it to me before ;D. So I guess its highly dependant on context and maybe the way its said?
“Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。”
For this particular example sentence, it delivers negative meaning. Because the meal was MINE. 😛
But yes, it’s all depending on the context. If you say
ごはんはもう食べちゃった “I already finish eating.”
It is not positive or negative. Just expressing the completion of action.
No, it’s not.
The reasons are:
1) AところにB
The doer of the action of A and B should be different.
2) 昨日から〜探している that means you have been looking for a book since yesterday not in the middle of action.
Hi ! I really like your lessons and there is something I would like to ask you about this one .
In the sentence
“Watashi ni kare ga iru koto wo tomodachi wa mada shiranai” from this lesson, why does “ni” go after “watashi” instead of “wa ” ? Thanks for everything up to this point !
I was just wondering since I know 最中 means “In the middle of-” and 中 means currently doing in some cases so would something like “I should be asleep but..” Look like this? 僕は寝中のはずだがー
hello sensei.
i just learn about tokoro from shinkanzen master and confused by tokoro + particle.
And i came here to learn more.
i’m really sorry but i’m still confused between tokoro de and tokoro ni.
i’m trying to understand from this example :
駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った
i’m thinking why it isn’t using tokoroni. in my viewpoint, it’s 2 action that happened on the same time. so, i think why it’s using tokoro de ?
as you have already wrote that tokoro de used when it fulfill some condition. i don’t understand what condition on this example that fulfilled ?
i’ve already asked my friend about this, and he asked to read again about difference ni and de ? but i don’t still understand…
Hi Michael C,
Ex. 駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った。
Action 1: finish buying a cake (the action of buying some cakes is completed. → the condition of buying some cakes is fulfilled.)
Action 2: met her
So Action 1 and 2 are not happening at the same time.
When Action 1 is just finished, Action B happened.
If when you are buying some cake, she popped in the store you say
ケーキを買っているところに彼女がきた。
Action 1 : buying some cakes
Action 2 : She is entering the store.
Action 1 and 2 are happening at the same time.
Hello!
Thanks for your lessons they’re always amazing!
I have a question regarding this topic
So I have this sentence: 試験に受かろうと、勉強しました。
Here the volitional form + と is used as (for) ?
Like I studied to pass the exam?
I didn’t find anything explaining this so would you please explain this grammar point for me?
Thanks
First of all, I love your lessons! They’ve helped me a lot.
I know this lesson isn’t about it, but I wanted to ask a question about と phrases 「-ないとわからない」is this a kind of set phrase? Instead of translating it like “if you don’t do X you won’t know” you said “until you do X you won’t know”
Is this a common/appropriate way to translate “until you do X you won’t know”? Or just for certain situations?
Every time I read something or try writing in Japanese I learn something new :)
Good for you! Keep practicing! 😉
Your lessons are really helpful! I hope you continue teaching us. I just came here in Japan last January 24 and I’ll be living here for a year. I’m lucky that I get to work here in this country without any JLPT qualifications but I really want to learn. this website is really helping me Thank you so much Maggie sensei!
What a wonderful refresher on のに! I love using your blog as a great resource to help me recall grammar. I can tell you take a lot of time out to plan these and it’s very much appreciated!
I think the first is intransitive and the last is transitive, but what is the middle? Is it the same as the first? Thank you, sorry if this is a bit off topic.
Sorry. I don’t do the translation in the comment section. Also I need to know more context but
Just assuming from the sentence, “It’s probably just one-to-one after all.”
Sorry. Maybe I made you misunderstand. As I wrote in the description in Maggie’s Room, I don’t do the translation on this site.
Though I would like to help everybody here (on this site), if I do the translation for one person, it will lead to many people.
Hope you understand.
OK, first, the kanji 折りながら must be a typo.
See the difference of kanji?
折る= oru = to fold
祈る= inoru = to pray, to wish for something
the main action of this sentence is 自室へと向かった and 祈りながら (wishing) describes how this person goes to his/her room.
I head towards my room wishing that Mel was back.
「～ように」 is used with non-volitional verb and 「～ために」 is used with volitional verb so I would say 疲れないように is more natural but yes,
チョコを食べる is a good idea.
You can also say 疲れをとるためにチョコを食べます。 ☺️
Sorry for asking you a question that is a little unrelated to this double negative lesson, but in Japanese we can conjugate a verb to the negative either in the polite form (ません) or casual form (ない), so is it possible in a slightly formal conversation to end a verb in (ないです) and it still be considered polite or even correct?
For example, instead of saying (今日は眠りません)
could I say (今日は眠らないです)?
両親は学校で何が起きたのか話したがっていた。
My parents want to talk about what happened at school.
子供が見たがっていたアニメ映画。
The anime movie that my*(or the) children wanted to see.
彼はいつも私の給料の額を知りたがった。
He always wanted to know how much my salary is.
The tense in the sentences show that the state in the past.
It indicates the emotion such as curiosity or eagerness that someone had for a certain period of time in past.
先生、
正しいですか。
Corona virusという感染は発症しないかな。I wonder/I fear that it should not outbreak.
coronovirusの問題は解決しないのかな。
looking at the way it is spreading, I doubt whether it would get resolved . it shows my frustration.
Can かな be used with passive form ?
小説を書きましたが、
この本は、読まれるかな。
は上記の文章にくらべて、自然な文章だとおもいますか。
どちらがいいとおもいますか。
I didn’t receive much formal education in Japanese, but as I tried to converse with a Japanese friend, I used something like 邪魔しちゃってごめん, but I don’t know why it sounded so right to me. I couldn’t quite find specific examples differentiating しちゃった、しちゃって and so on and would appreciate an explanation.
邪魔しちゃってごめん is a very natural conversational phrase.
邪魔しちゃった originally →邪魔（を）してしまった。(jama (wo) shite shimatta) I bothered/disturbed/interrupt you. (It’s a finishing sentence.)
邪魔しちゃってoriginally →邪魔を（を）してしまって ( jama (wo) shite shimatte)
This て has a function to give a reason for the following ごめん (Sorry) →Sorry for bothering/disturbing/interrupting you.
I see. I was wondering if there are any differences between みたいな and って 感じ at the end of the sentence. And when they are used both one after the other みたいな って 感じ?
I’ve never steadily kept up with the content on this website but find myself returning from time to time because it’s rich in information, and only now have I realized that Maggie Sensei was recruited to Doggy Heaven. Despite the delay, I still want to offer my condolences for your loss. A great teacher, and I’m sure an even greater family member.
Recently I started watching Japanese shows with subtitles to pick up some conversational phrases and patterns, and immediately got confused with a number of sentence finals that don’t change the meaning as it is but, maybe, add some nuances, I don’t know…
Here I mean tte kanji, mitai na, toka, teka, etc.
In the Internet I found the speaker uses tte kanji when they don’t want to be conclusive, like “I feel that way. Am I right?” I also read “mitai na” is also a softener at the end of the sentence. Are they kind of the same?
I also came across sentences with both of them one after the other: “… mitai na tte kanji”…
e.g. 店員みたいなって感じる…
Yes, 感じ is one of very common way to finish the sentence in a vague way among young people.
When you want to avoid using the straightforward statement, you add 感じ
Hello Maggie 先生!
I love your blog! And thanks to it I’ve learned a lot! I know I can always come here to find my answers.
But this time I couldn’t figure out by myself just by reading the blog.
I tried to look for some comments here to find some opinions and differences but still I don’t get it. Would you be so kind and please, please help me? 😭
So far I found that:
たり: is used to give several examples/express repeated actions or conditions/or some types of activities.
While
し: is used to give multiple reasons.
But still that was not enough nor clear for me.
I have an specific example I would like you to help me.
For an interview I need to say: my hobbies are: learning languages, watch series and read about cultures.
My example would be like this :
私の趣味は言語を学んだり、テレビ番組を見たり、文化のついてを読んだりしています。
Or
私の趣味は言語を学ぶし、テレビ番組を見るし、文化のついてを読むしています
Hello ジェシ
If you simply list up some of the examples of what you do for fun, I do A, B and such, たり is more natural to use than し
私の趣味は言語を学んだり、テレビ番組を見たり、文化のついての（or 文化に関する）本を読んだりしています。（Perfect)
As you wrote, し gives multiple “reasons” or emphasize your activities.
There is a nuance difference between ことがある and こともある
As I wrote in the note も ( = mo) adds the nuance of “even” or “also”
They both mean “It sometimes happens” but by using も, you emphasizes what comes before more.
Ex. 職場で誰とも話さないことがある。
= There are times when I don’t speak to anybody at work.
You give another example when you don’t want to deal with other people first and then continue with こともある
Ex. 職場で誰とも話さないこともある。
= There are times when I even don’t speak to anybody at work.
= Sometimes I also don’t speak to anybody at work.
I have been reading a lot of dialogues in Japanese to improve my level recently, and came across one where two colleagues are discussing their daily routines. It’s like, “what do you do during the lunch break?”/“what do you do in the evening?” and so on. Every response ends with よ, e.g. 晩ご飯をたべてテレビを見るよ, etc. I was a bit confused to see so many よ’s but there was a footnote explaining that it makes this conversation sound really natural. Is it indeed so?
Also, I read when we are talking about someone’s emotional state we should do it indirectly, e.g.(私は)幸せです but (彼女は)幸せそうです. However, in manga there was a wedding scene where guests were gossiping about the bride, like “Is she happy with him?” – “幸せ?” (without そう). And in your example I noticed “マギーは幸せですよ” without そう, too.
I would really appreciate your help with this somewhat daunting stuff.
Thank you for your hard work to make learning Japanese easy and fun!
Dear Rapunzel
晩ご飯をたべてテレビを見るよ
This よ has a function of
★ Telling someone what you are going to do/ did to get the listener’s attention.
And the footnote explanation is right. It is makes the conversation more natural.
Of course, you can just say テレビを見る・ テレビを見ます to tell the listener what you are going to do when you just want to express what you are going to do. It doesn’t matter if the listener is paying attention to you or not.
よ makes one’s speech a little more friendly. (particularly this case.)
Someoneは幸せですよ。・だよ is a kind of set phrase. Maybe “lucky” or “one happy person/dog” is a better translation.
I think you are happy. = I think you are very lucky, Maggie. / I think you are one happy dog, Maggie.
When you are define someone’s state of happiness, you just skip そう
You use そう when you assume someone’s happiness. She looks happy.
So if I happen to answer somebody’s questions about my typical daily routine, it would be more natural to add よ at the end of each response to make it sound more friendly? I mean,
e.g. 休憩時間はいつも何をするの? What do you usually do during the break?
弁当を食べて音楽を聴くよ。I have lunch and listen to music.
夜わ? What about the evenings?
晩ごはんを食べてテレビを見るよ。I have dinner and watch TV.
Could you give more examples of assuming assuming vs stating one’s emotional state, please? It would be really helpful because I have not a similar concept in my mother tongue.
That’s possible. But to make it sound more natural, you may want to avoid repeating the same suffix.
I will give you another very conversational dialogue pattern using たり tari / かな kana
Ex. お弁当を食べたり音楽を聴いたりかな。
Ex.夜は？
晩御飯を食べてからテレビを観るよ。
Thank you for the pattern you gave me! Well, is it not very natural to repeat the same suffix?
e.g. 朝何をするの? … よ。
休憩時間は? … よ。
夜は? … よ。 I also wonder if repeating よ‘s doesn’t annoy the listener.
I haven’t grasped assuming vs defining somebody else’s emotional states yet -> 幸せ vs 幸せそう, 悲しい vs 悲しいそう. Could you explain this in a little more detail, please?
Hello Rapunzel,
Some people might just repeat the same suffix twice or so but it sounds(or looks) robotic and you are right the listener might get annoyed hearing the repetition of the same pattern. (You can say that with any suffix or sentence pattern.)
I may have to repeat the same explanation but
A ) Someoneは、幸せだね。 = You are in the state of happiness = “Someoneは幸せな人だね。” = You are one happy person.
B ) Someoneは、幸せそうだね。= You look happy. (Assuming this person is happy by the way this person behaves or situations)
Of course, you are talking about someone else is happy or not so you both assume someone’s condition but A) is your opinion based on what you have been observing that person. B) is just describing what you assume by how someone looks or behaves. Thus A) sounds much more assertive.
Thanks Maggie Sensei, your lessons great as always! do you have online class in Telegram or something?
今日は雨が降るかもしれない。（ = Kyou wa amega furu kamo shiremasen.) It might rain today. (Just talking about the possibility. )
雨が降りそうです。( = ame ga furisou desu.) It looks like a rain. (It is about to rain) The speaker is judging/assuming the change of the weather from the sky.
You can’t use そうです for your own action.
来年は日本に行くかもしれない。(= rainen wa nihon ni iku kamo shirenai.) I might go to Japan next year.
X 日本に行きそう (= nihon ni ikisou) wrong
Sensei the rule in conjugating (group 2)Verb in passive form is only delete masu and rare ? Tatoeba homemasu Will become homeraremasu.im right sensei ?
Yes, homemasu →homerareru
And if you are just talking about Group2 verbs, this rule applies. る ⇒ -られる
For other group verbs, it might be easy to make nai-form. Check my 受け身 lesson if you want to learn more.
So if I understand everything correctly when it’s about me (私は・私に) させる means I am forcing the person to do something and させられる means I am being forced. Is There ever a situation in which that isn’t true?
Also, if I want to say John made Susie clean her room which is better?
1) スージーさんはジョンさんに部屋を掃除させられました。
2)ジョンさんはスージーさんを部屋が掃除させました。
It’s really hard to know when to use the passive form since in English we rarely use it when speaking and therefore it’s not how I think and because of that I forget this grammar exists haha.
verb plain dictionary form + とする( = to suru) is used for a hypothetical sentence. (= moshi ~ dattara/tara/ to shitara)
If we suppose / Let’s say for argument’s sake that ~
I wonder if you have certain book about this learning for sale? Honestly, i’d rather to read a book instead of staring at the “bright” screen monitor.
<3
I know staring at the bright screen monitor is a pain, huh?
I’ve been working on e-book but when I got the book done, will consider publishing a paper book. (^_−)−☆
It looks like modifying a noun but actually not.
寒くて modifies 泳ぐどころではない
忙しくて modifies 旅行どころではない
て indicates the cause/reason and following sentence shows the (possible) consequences/result.
Because it’s cold (reason) → there is no way to swim (consequence)
Because I am busy(reason) →there is no way that I can travel.(consequence)
Hey Maggie! This has mostly demystified my confusion on the use of まま. However, I’m still a little shakey about it with adjectives in different situations. The one example I have right now is a simple sentence:
目を閉じたらいつもそこにはあなたがやさしいままでいるんだ。
So far I have it to:
When I close my eyes you are always there still kind(tender, graceful? Not sure which would be better but oh well.)
But to me there is something in my stomach that makes it feel off like it’s wrong. Like i’m still understanding まま incorrectly.
Hello Maggie sensei. I saw this sentence: “Mada, nanika kakushite iru na!”. I guess it means “there’s still something hidden!”, but why the comma right after “mada”? Is it just a mistake?
Also, thank you for all your amazing hard work and many useful examples!
“Mada, nanika kakushite iru na!”. = You are still hiding something.
Actually you don’t need a comma after “mada” but I think it’s just writing style. Probably the writer wants to emphasize “mada”.
私 は 「べあとりつ」（BEATRIZ）です。The meanig of my name, from Greek origins, is “blessed with happiness” or “blessing of joy”. I wanted a Japanese name where the Kanji has the same meaning of the original greek word. I’ve found 「惠喜」 or 「恵喜」that reads 「けいけ」, but I’m not so sure if it is the right one. Is there a more appropriate way of writing my name in Kanji? Or is there a Kanji combination with more proximity to the real name pronunciation with a beautiful meaning?
I’m sorry, I do know I’m asking many questions, but your lessons are SO MUCH GREATER than any japanese class I’ve been to, here in Brazil, that I couldn’t help it! (I’m learning japanese for quite a while, but although I’m confident enough to speak it, I’m not that sure about my writing skills just yet).
ところで、my brother’s name is “Andre”, means “strong/healty/manly man”. When he saw me looking for my name he asked me about his, and after a day worth of research, I found 「雄人 」. Is that correct? And what is the sound of this name (what’s it written in hiragana)? Is there a better choice for him?
Oh, Gosh, sorry, I’m on full rant-mode here!!
お手数ですが、よろしくお願いします.
I still have other questions, but I’ll stop myself short at this point.
You have a lovely name, Beatriz!
Some foreign name can be converted in kanji but べあとりつ with that meaning, “blessing of joy” is hard.
You may want to just have a Japanese name with the meaning.
恵喜 = けいき may sound better but it sounds like a boy’s name.
If you prefer a girl’s name, reverse the kanji
喜恵 よしえ
Or change the first letter 喜 joy to 幸 happiness
幸恵 (さちえ／ゆきえ） That is pretty common girl’s name.
As for your brother,
The common way of reading the name 雄人 is either まさと or ゆうと
It is very “manly” name which represent a strong man.
Hope it helps!
I’m happy to hear you learn something from my site.
日本語、楽しんでがんばってくださいね〜！
Thank you for making this lesson easy to understand Maggie 先生！
I would like to ask something although this is a different one.
So I translated “安定した収入があるとも限らない” which is written in the manga that I’m currently reading and I wonder how it turned out like this..
– You don’t always have a stable income –
Your translation is OK!
とも限らない：The usage is almost the same as とは限らない but とも限らない implies there are some cases that might happen (It is not always true).
You may not be able to tell the difference well by the English translation because it’s the same but compare to とは限らない, it denies the possibility more softly.
次第に 先生に親しくなるのです describe the state how you are getting closer to the teacher naturally.
When you want to get closer with someone intentionally, 次第に is unnatural.
How about just 先生と親しくなるためです。
Thank you for taking the time to write this blog it’s been very helpful in my 日本語 journey.
I’m struggling to understand the “attend” meaning of 出る. In all the other cases the meaning is linked to exiting/coming out, but in this case it’s the opposite. How does it work?
I was wondering, for example- If me and a friend are working at a new place together-
I say to my friend「この仕事は私にとって難しい。」
how would i say-
“how is it for you?”
and
“I don’t know how it is for you (though).”
Hey Maggie Sensei, I was reading One Piece and came across this sentence from Luffy. He says, 船から落ちなきゃいいじゃないか！In English it says, “I’ll be fine as long as I don’t fall off the boat”. My mind wants to make it “I have to fall off the boat” I guess I’m a little confused about when なきゃ becomes “As long I don’t x” I hope this makes sense!
The English translation is correct.
I’ll be fine as long as I don’t fall off the boat”
Vなければいけない (casual Vなきゃいけない) means “have to do ~ ” but
Vなければいい (casual Vなきゃいい) means “It’s OK as long as one doesn’t do ~ ”
OK, the basic structure of this sentence is
~なければいい
Happy New year!
Good question.
When you quote what someone has said, you can use 言った・言いました or 言っていました・言っていた but 言っていました・言っていた
The difference is,
A) 昨日、おごってくれるって言ったよね。
= You told me yesterday that you were going to treat me, didn’t you?
* You focus on the action, saying something, more. / someone said something in particular time.
In novels, you use this form a lot.
” ~~~~” he said 「~~~~」彼は言った。
Then she said ” ~~~~ ” すると彼女は言った。「~~~~」
B) おごってくれるって言ってたよね。
= You were saying that you were going to treat me, weren’t you?
* You focus on what someone said more.
When you simply quote what someone said in conversation, this form is much more common.
You use 言ってた・言っていました 1) when someone said more than once/said something repeatedly. 2) to describe what someone said more vividly.
So
秘書の加藤さんが言っていました
in this case, there is no specific time mentioned and 加藤さん might have repeatedly mentioned it or
happy new year dear Maggie Sensei and Yukari Sensei :)
thank you so much for the past years. I still read your lessons and looking forward to the future ones.
how have you been? as for me, i’ve been trying to make lyric videos for the past months. for some reason, i feel a sense of fulfillment whenever i complete a video. just in case you are curious, the name of my channel is Project 9:10 (with three dots as my profile photo). i still can’t translate on my own so i copy the translations of others/music video, but when i feel like i’m not convinced with the translation, i try to translate it, or maybe guesslate? on my own.
i also feel happy when people make comments, though there are times i’m having a hard time understanding those… haha…
ずっと本を読んでいた is “on-going actions during a certain period of time” so you use あいだ
For example, if you try to read a book or finish reading a book while you were on the train, you can say
電車に乗っている間に本を一冊、読んでしまおう。
電車に乗っている間に本を一冊、読み終えた。
Dear Maggie sensei, maybe it could be noted that it should be possible to add は/が afterwards?
If that’s true, but I believe I did hear 「まだできるかどうかは分からないよ」in an anime, also found used of both through Google. I think it’s not obvious you can actually attach these particles to a sentence
It is used for emphasis?
Thank you!
Hi NoxArt!
まだできるかどうかは分からないよ
It is used for emphasis?
→Yes, you can use か・かどうか before は・が and in this case for emphasis.
There are cases that you use with other particles.
It depends on whether we can finish it by tomorrow or not.
明日までにできるかどうかによる。
I also want you to ask Maggie whether she is at home now or not
マギーが今、家にいるかも聞いてほしい。, etc.
Hello マギー先生！
Thank you for this lesson.
I have a question,
Why do we have to put this (なの)か with 思う? I thought whatever is before the か has to be asking some sort of indirect question, “whether ~ or not”, or contrast?
最初、マギー先生は人間なのかと思った。
I thought Maggie Sensei was a human being at first.
You add の (or なの） when you emphasize the meaning or feelings.
You can say
マギー先生は人間かと思った。
or
今日は晴れるのかと思った。
Compared to “かと思った” which could be just expressing the fact that one thought so, “(な)のかと思った” emphasizes the meaning and expressed surprised feelings more.
When you have some time, check my “How to use ん” lesson. I explained the function of の there.
Sorry マギー先生、
I didn’t quite word my question right,
I was wondering what does かと思った mean exactly?
Why do these two sentences need this か with 思う, and do they make sense without it or are these two sentences more natural sounding with this か? The sentence before 思った doesn’t sound like its questioning so i don’t know why we need か there.
Thank you though i will also check out that lesson, i haven’t gotten ん/の down yet.
If you simply thought I was a human, you say
マギー先生は人間だと思った。／（more casual) マギー先生は人間と思った。
I thought Maggie Sensei was a human.
In this case the speaker is not questioning the fact.
If you questioned whether I was a human or not or simply embed the question, you use か
Let’s quote what comes before.
「マギー先生は人間なのだろうか？」と思った。
「マギー先生は人間なのかな？」と思った。
→I thought if Maggie Sensei was a human or not?
→I was wondering if Maggie Sensei was a human.
It depends on where you want to use this phrase. In the literature, it works.
In conversation, you may not use the word 大食漢 so often. (There is a cute word, 食いしん坊）
How about →彼はよく食べるので肉を大盛りにしてください。
生卵が苦手なのでもう少し長く料理してください。
→The first part is OK. もう少し長い時間 is not natural.
It depends on how you cook, if it is a boiled egg, もう少し茹でてください。, if it is a fried egg, もう少し火を通してください。・よく焼いてください。
I hope you don’t mind question no.8７on this page (you work too hard ^-^)
I’m kind of a bad student XD. But i was wondering if my way of breaking down the explanations is not a good way.
E.g:
～なければ＋いけない/ならない
I explain it to myself as: [if the action is not ”able” to be done]+[“it” won’t proceed/become] .
Which when rephrased becomes “must do” etc.
I think “able”, because i think of the 得る sound. Lol I don’t exactly know why…
With today, i was kind of wondering if the same sort of thought process is possible with your lesson here on:
～ 無く＋ちゃ
～ 無き＋ゃ
Hi Shaun!
Oh is it the 87th question? I had no idea. 😁
～なければ＋いけない/ならない
the first part なければ [if the action is not ”able” to be done] is actually [if the action is not done]
As for なくちゃ・なきゃ,
無く＋ちゃ is kind of make sense but the second one ～ 無き＋ゃ, I wonder how you interpret this little ゃ
Vなくてはならない →なくちゃ Vなければならない →なきゃ
It might be easier to think that this type of casual contraction is similar to “gotta” in English. It is easier to say that way in spoken Japanese.
Again, New Year is coming, but I’m still alone.
But it doesn’t matter because I have family.
2/ 女の命。誰とも付き合ったことがない.
未来を見ると広い川、長い道のようなたびだった。
I want to say
My fate is that I was born as a girl. I even have not dated with anyone else.
Looking into the future, what I saw is like the wide river and a long road.
1. が、→でも
ぜんぜん問題にならない。→The Japanese is perfect but 問題になる sounds too serious. How about 全然（ぜんぜん） or 全く（まったく）気にならない。
2. There are many ways of saying “life” in Japanese. When you say 命 it means the life whether you are alive or not (=dead).
My fate is that I was born as a girl. = 女としての人生 or 女／女性として生まれた運命
未来を見ると is fine but how about to peek, 未来を覗いてみると長い道のようなたびだった。 or 長い道のりだった
As for なんでも・なんにでも ( = nan demo & nanni demo) , is different from 誰でも＆誰にも
nan ni demo can be used in an affirmative sentence
(この接着剤はなんにでも使えます。= kono secchakuzai wa nan ni demo tsukaemasu.= This glue can be used for anything.)
But “何も” ( nani mo) is used in a negative sentence.
彼は何もわからない。
= Kare wa nani mo wakaranai.
= He doesn’t get anything.
I’m reading a novel and came upon this sentence: “無の境地を悟ることによって、神や宇宙という非人間的な存在に、彼らが限りなく近づこうとしているのなら。”
I was trying to find out how the “no nara’ affects the sentence. Usually nara means “if”, but I reading this lesson, I noticed that you said it is used to express trust on an ability.
I translated this sentence as “By realising the state of nothingness, they may be able to get as close as possible to the inhuman existence of God and the universe.” Would that work? Or it’s completely incorrect?
You sometimes leave a sentence unfinished and this is one of the example.
The meaning of this なら is “If”. You might want to check the previous sentence/context.
(Ex. What is going to happen) + If(They are trying to approac—by ) ~ 無の境地を悟ることによって、神や宇宙という非人間的な存在に、彼らが限りなく近づこうとしているのなら。
Can you use ‘kamo/kamoshirenai’ to be elusive and playful? For example can you use it in circumstances, when it is obvious you have an opinion/intention/additional information but you don’t give it away. In English this might be common amongst close friends/lovers that are being playful or alternatively someone you were being very rude to.
e.g Did you go to the party yesterday.
I *might* have (gone to the party).
(Obviously the second speaker knows but they aren’t saying)
or Will you make me a cup of tea?
I might (do).
(Again the speaker is being elusive and perhaps playful)
Yes, you can
In conversation you can just say ~かも
Did you go to the party yesterday？ →行ったかも
However,
Will you make me a cup of tea?
I might (do). In this case 淹れるかも..is a bit strange.
But
If you do something (under certain condition), I might do so.
works
(under certain condition Ex. そのケーキをくれたら) 淹れてあげるかも..
I have a question about the use of のに in the sentence below! I originally wrote
しまったのは but my Japanese friend corrected me. In the example below is ‘noni’ used just to reinforce the regret of Dave for leaving his phone in the convenience store?
First 携帯（けいたい）を忘れてしまったのに気がつきました
This のに is different from the one I explained in this lesson (→although, though, even if)
の is for nominalization (to make a noun from a verb, in this case “(the fact) that I have forgotten/have left (my cellphone)” )
に is for an indirect object marker. I realized, notice ~に気がつく
The basic pattern is
Noun/ verb noun form (Verb+(こと or の）） + に+ 気がつく
Ex. 彼に気がつく to realized his presence.
Ex. 彼がいないことに気がつく。
= 彼がいないのに気がつく = to realized that he isn’t there.
I have been working on making an e-book or PDF book. :)
There are more than 250 lessons so it will take a little more time. Will let everyone know when it is ready. :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
how does にとって work in にとって代わる? I ran into it in a quote 「いつか奴らに取って代わる…いつか…。」(given translation is “One day I will replace them completely, one day…”). The idea that Xにとって means “from the viewpoint of X / for X” does not make much sense to me here.
Thank you
取って代わる is a verb which means, to replace/to take the place of 〜 so it is different from ~にとって
There are many compound verbs in Japanese and 取って代わる (取る＋代わる） is one of them.
is a difficult concept to remember >_<
So this sentence "応援する気持ちにならないことはない" means "it’s not that I don’t feel like supporting (that is, I support him)" or am I wrong?
I prefer to view たら as meaning something like “it is the case that…” a certain action happened/took place instead of inherently meaning “if” because in some cases “if” doesn’t make sense. I think “it is the case that…” better encapsulates both cases when たらmeans “if” and when it means “after, when” and so confusion with this conjugation goes away.
Hello Maggie-sensei. Thank you for all of your lessons.
I have a question about the words used with 気味. In your lesson and other websites, it says that 気味 is used with a limited number of words about medical conditions (風邪気味 or 太り気味) and feelings (緊張気味 or 焦り気味).
However, I came across this sentence in a book I was reading: 「俺の話に被り気味に言った。」
Why doesn’t the author use ように instead of 気味 here? Is it because the author is trying to emphasize the speakers feelings? If you could explain why 気味 is used in this situation, it would be very helpful.
Thanks for always answering my questions quickly! I appreciate it a lot.
I was reading a visual novel when, suddenly, an incomprehensible sentence popped up: “また仕方もしれぬものを…”.
It was a conversation between person A and person B.
A was saying the gun invented by B was a failure and, then, he says that, but “もしれぬ” is confusing me. It may be possible the real meaning is “Another useless thing…” or “Another thing that may be useless…”? Is it a fusion between “仕方ない” and “かもしれない”?
Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei.
For some reason, I was assuming it was “かもしれない”… *facepalm*. Your answer makes sense with the following part of the conversation between A and B. I didn’t know that しれぬ was しらない. I have learnt something new.
I’m very confused regarding the gendered speech. When speaking with friends, would it ever be appropriate for a female to use more masculine speech? Especially said in a friendly/familiar manner? Would it really be alarming or off-putting for a woman to use masculine grammar (excluding rude masculine words, of course)?
Hello,
I have a question concerning this sentence:
このサイトに毎日来たら、１年後には日本語がかなり上達しているはずです
Why did you use the form “joutatsu shite iru” instead of “joutatsu suru” at the end of it? I thought the meaning was supposed to be “your Japanese will get better”.
I’d be really grateful for the reply :)
Hi Maggie sensei! I’m a new learner here but I’ve been studying Japanese for almost two years.
I have a doubt with one of example sentences:
働けるうちにできるだけ働いて [のんびりとした 老後]を過ごしたい。
The words のびりとした老後、 what do they mean?
のんびりとした+ noun = relaxing, peaceful, laid back + noun
老後 means The life after you get older (老いる= おいる= to get older = 年をとる →年をとってから = After you get older )
The main meaning of やっぱり／やはり is as one has expected or the way it is (the situation or state hasn’t changed) but yes, you can use it as “so that’s it!” and sometimes “so it turns out that…”
Thank you so much for the lesson senseii…. I prefer your grammar lessons than other text book hehe. But sensei can you please give the lesson about writing letters and postcard in Japanese? Both in formal and informal way,because it’s really confusing. Thank you so much for your hard work senseii.. Sending you so much love.
Thank YOU for visiting this site!
Actually some other people asked me to make a lesson about writing letters in past.
I guess I can introduce a simple way to write a letter/postcard in future. :)
Missa sensei do you have online group chat such as Telegram group or Line Group for japanese lesson? if you have one of them, i would like to join the group. :)
Hello Maggie先生,
Thank you so much for being awesome. There are practically no websites on this subject but of course you do! ♡♡♡ I am having a little trouble breaking down the differences between:
I can understand your simple sentence explanations.
* 飲み会でふるまう = to behave in a drinking party
飲み会でのふるまい= behavior at a drinking party
but the example sentence is where I get confused…
Ex. 昨夜の飲み会でのふるまいは誰にも知られたくない。
= I don’t want anybody know how I behaved at the drinking party last night.
would the example sentence of just で be:
昨夜の飲み会でふるまったことは誰にも知られたくない
If that is true does that mean
is 1) just another way to say V+ことが・は？
での is really messing with me….
日本語で従業を取りたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
(I want to take a class in Japan?)
日本語での従業を受けたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
I see your confusion.
Ex. 昨夜の飲み会でのふるまいは誰にも知られたくない。
I usually try to use more natural English translation so I translated “how I behaved” but actually the literal translation is
I don’t want anybody know “my behavior at a drinking party”
Your sentence, 昨夜の飲み会でふるまったことは誰にも知られたくない is grammatically correct but it’s not natural.
You say 飲み会でのふるまい more.
日本語で授業を取りたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
is more natural but if you emphasize 日本語 more, you attach の （日本語での）
Thanks so much for your help! I understand better now. It’s hard to judge what structure I should pick when speaking but your explanations always help! Thanks a bunch!!
Let me change a little to sound more natural.
１）息子は部屋を掃除さえしなかった。 OK
２）息子は掃除をやることさえすればいい。 掃除さえすればいい is more natural.
３）息子は部屋さえすればいい。 →You need a verb. 部屋さえ掃除すればいい
４）部屋を掃除してさえしたらいいのに。 部屋を (or 部屋の) 掃除さえしたら (or すれば） いいのに
Hi Dub
This ほど expresses the degree of his ignorance.
ほど refers to “不思議に思われる”
so the literal meaning of 不思議に思われるほど is “to the extent that one wonders why”
→ curiously (enough)/ surprisingly (he didn’t know anything)
Hi Maggie 先生, I don’t know if you answer questions here anymore, but here I go anyways.
So I saw this comment on a youtube video:
上手くなった気になれる
I think it might mean “I am interested in how you got so good”, but the なれるmakes me think that it might mean another thing. Could you help me out? Thanks!!
1) You generally use 〜に （いる／ある ）, 日本にいる／日本にある (~ is in Japan/ ~ exists in Japan) when you talk about the existence of something and you use で when you talk about some actions or describe some state such as 不評である (being unpopular／being unfavorably received) ／人気がある (being popular)
2)
〜に対して＋verb/adjective
~に対しての／対する+ noun
若い人の間には政治に対しての/ 対する不信感がある。
In this case 対しての／対する modifies the following noun, 不信感
親は子供に対して責任がある。
Parents are responsible for children.
Here 対して doesn’t modify a noun, 責任. It modifies a verb （責任が）ある
If you rephrase it and make it modify the noun, 責任, you say
親は子供に対する／対しての責任がある。
Parents have a responsibility for children.
Hi Maggie San. I am watching and reading 千と千尋の神隠し. In the film, 千尋 says ‘前の方が、いいもん’。I like my old school….She has just seen her new school and in a depressed way says.. 前の方が、いいもん。I’m just wondering what number this phrase would come under in your excellent lesson! Thanks! Ashley
Ah, OK I don’t think I explain the usage of the suffix もん in this lesson.
~もん is a suffix that children or girls use o express some reason (Because ~ / ‘Cause ~ ) or stress the feelings.
(だって)〜もん = (I did it /I think that way ) because ~
I’m still a bit confused as to the difference between んです、のです and から。I kind of get that んです either adds a bit more explanation to the question and that から is more direct. Unless that’s all it is? I think my confusion lies with when someone asks a question like (this is an example in my textbook): どうして彼と別れたんでか。and the answer is: 彼、ぜんぜんおふろに入らないんです。Couldn’t the response be “ぜんぜんおふろにはりませんでしたから”?
1) どうして彼と別れましたか？ No emotion
2) どうして彼と別れたんですか？ It involves the speaker’s feelings. (curiosity, accusing tone, etc)
全然お風呂に入らないです。 Just a fact (No emotion)
全然お風呂に入らないんです。It involves the speaker’s feelings. (I don’t know what to do, I am puzzled. What can I do for this situation, etc.)
Thank you! I never realized you replied and came back to read the lesson again, lol! So could the usage of んです be up to the speaker? Or is it common courtesy to always use it? Thank you once again.
Hi Alexa,
Sorry. This comment section doesn’t have a notification function.
Yes, it is up to the speaker. If you want to add some explanatory tone, you use んです for your statement.
忙しかったんです。giving a reason why
忙しかったです。simple statement
But since it sometimes involves accusation tone, it might sound impolite to use んですか
どうして会社にきませんか？
どうして会社にこないんですか？(sounds stronger)
I was going through “Genki” and thought there had to be more to “nara” than was being explained and…wow… I’m adding this site to my bookmarks. Thank you for the explanations
Ah, good. I didn’t cover that usage here.
When someone’s behavior or what they said affects your emotion, (could be negative or positive) you can express your feelings of surprise, annoyance, anger or joy with てきた
断った doesn’t involve any emotion.
断ってきた implies rejection triggered one’s emotion, such as anger (How dare you to turn me down), surprise (I didn’t expect this.)
I will show you another example.
彼がそんなことを言った。 He said such a thing. (Just stating what happened.)
彼がそんなことを言ってきた。 expressing the speaker’s surprised feelings (or joy, anger depending on the context.)
As for the kanji question, you see both kanji and hiragana but I would say hiragana is more common.
I am also confused when I see the phrase 言ってきた.
Am I right to say that it means said to me, just like メールを送ってきた (mail sent to me)?
Other times I see people explain it as ‘has been saying for some time till now’. But based on the context/scenario, it does not feel right.
言ってきた・送ってきた
It depends on the context but it is often used when some action is one way and the recipient of the action (the speaker) is annoyed, confused or frustrated.
I was just thinking, is it wrong to interpret the two examples as follow?
Ex. 息子は最近、宿題をしていきません。
He does homework and not take it to school.
Ex. 最近、宿題をしてこない生徒が多いです。
Many students do homework and not come to school.
Hi Chang,
Ex. 息子は最近、宿題をしていきません
can’t be interpret “He does homework and not take it to school.”
If you want to say that, you say 息子は宿題をしても学校に持っていきません。
Also
Ex. 最近、宿題をしてこない生徒が多いです。
can’t be interpreted as “Many students do homework and not come to school.”
宿題をしてこない生徒 means the students who come to school without doing their homework.
HI Maggie-sensei, thank you for your reply. There is no REPLY button next to your thread so I have to reply here.
I have another question. I always see phrase like this 〜を紹介していきます especially in Youtube where the uploader does an unboxing video for example. I googled to find which usage of ていく it falls under and found this website https://eigobu.jp/magazine/shiteikimasu
Based on the explanation, it says that it can be used to mean
1) これから新たに〜する予定だ
2) これからも継続して〜する予定だ
I supposed 〜を紹介していきます falls under explanation 1) これから新たに〜する予定だ but the writer also mentions 「将来的にある動作を継続して行う」という意味が根本になります。.
I felt strange because doing an introduction only lasts for the duration of the video and is not something that will be done continuously into the future. Unless 「将来的にある動作を継続して行う」という意味が根本になります。 applies to explanation 2) これからも継続して〜する予定だ only?
OK, it depends on the context but
紹介していきます can be 将来的にある動作を継続して行う I will keep introducing you something (in future)
But as in your example sentence, you can use it when you keep doing something even in a short period of time.
I’ll introduce something “one by one” /”one after another”
ここにあるものどんどん食べていきます。 = I am going to all the food here one by one.
Hello, Maggie. I’m wondering why あの子が可愛くなってくる isn’t translated as “she will get cuter”. But 暑くなってくる is translated as “it will get hotter”. What’s the difference? Or is it a typo?
You can also say 可愛くなってきている for “getting cuter”, but you can say 可愛くなってくるね when you describe the change as if it is happening right now
But you don’t say 暑くなってくる for the current change. You say 暑くなってきた／きました。
Interesting lesson. But you shouldn’t feed a cat like you feed a dog. Food must always be available to cats because they take more than ten meals a day :)
“Instead of” → You mean “in spite of”? (Instead of in Japanese is 代わりに）
できないくせにできるなんていわないほうがいいよ。
The literal translation is “Though you can’t do it” but in this case the most natural translation is
If you can’t do something, you shouldn’t say you can do it.
おはよう先生！
I would like to ask you about this sentence:
“あんなののどこがいいんだか”
I have trouble understanding the double no and the use of doko in this sentence
(The character basically says that she doesn’t see what is good in an other character). Could you please help me ?
Hello Magie 先生. To get the meaning “we will pretend as if”, is the verb preceding ことにするalways negative past? And you said it can be present/past i beleieve. Is that the case, or can it only be a plain past form that precedes ことにする? Because all the examples sentences were in a negative past form.
Good question.
Sorry it was confusing.
What I meant was “present progressive.” and not simple present tense (I will fix the context.) and you can use both affirmative and negative form.
毎日勉強していることにしよう。(present progressive form)
X Not simple present form 勉強することにしよう that means “I decided to study every day.”
with past affirmative form
お皿を洗ったことにして。
Let’s just pretend that I washed the dishes.
How come it’s かんがえってるんだよ when all the examples above it would make it seem like it should be かんがえてんだよ?
It seems like it should follow the rule (ている＋suffix/だ/です) ->（てん+suffix/だ/です)
Hi
Good question.
When you use the suffix よ
you can say both 考えてるんだよ or 考えてんだよ。
The nuance difference is てる emphasize て”い”る (I AM THINKING) more.
（I will add 考えてんだよ later in this lesson.)
Oh, sorry, I copy-pasted an incomplete phrase. The full sentence goes like this: 私にしておくといい.
I’m wondering if it means “I’m telling you to ignore me” or something
Hi, I still need to know more context what are they talking about in the previous sentence?
Anyway assuming from just that sentence, “You (or They) should leave it to me/ It is the best that I should be whatever they were talking about in the previous )
Sorry. Still not enough information…
But first you have to know when to use
(someone)にする →しておく
1) to pick someone/ to choose someone
2) to do something to someone
I assume 1) has more possibility there. You should pick me/You should choose me (as ~ depending on the context)
Sorry sensei, the latest reply cannot be replied to, so I’m replying to the previous one.
I think “choose me” makes sense! The text is from a character profile in a game character popularity contest. Thank you for the explanation, sensei <3
Ｈｅｌｌｏ, マギー先生
This is my first post ever on your site and I have to first thank you for all your hard work !
I have a question for when ように refers to something you wish for. There is a similar grammar rule ~といい
I am a little confused as when to use which.
Are they interchangeable?
こんにちは、りさ！
The English translation is the same but here are the nuance difference.
1) I hope my father gets better soon.
父の病気が早く治りますように is expressing one’s prayer.
(Wishing my father’s quick recovery)
父の病気が早く治るといいね
You are talking to someone else. And it should be the mutual wish between the speaker and the listener.
2) 明日がいいお天気になりますように (The same as the above example, it expresses your wish. It doesn’t matter if you have a listener or not. You could be just talking to yourself.
明日がいいお天気になるといいのですが
You say this when you have a listener.
Leaving the sentence unfinished like this （〜が） has two functions.
1) polite (when you are talking to someone superior and you finish the sentence with が)
２） が means “but” so it implies Ex. I don’t know. /I’m afraid it may rain (expressing uncertainty /worries)
I can’t tell the exact meaning by just that sentence and I also don’t do the translation here but
友達に頼まれてついてきた子 means “the the girl or the boy who followed us(?) who was asked by her/his friend”
I just wanted to say thank you for all of these amazing lessons for so many years. I’ve earned so much from you and now I live in Japan! You helped me get here and help me continue on my way to fluency.
Can ながら be used with a passive verb?
To say you do something while receiving some action.
For example “while being scolded, I let my mind wander”
Or is there some other grammar for this?
To blanch 湯どうしする= yudoushi suru
To sear 強火でさっと焼く = tsuyobi de satto yaku
To julienne 千切りにする = sengiri ni suru
To drizzle （〜に）たらす = ( ~ ni ) tarasu
To marinate 漬ける・マリネする = tsukeru/ marine suru
To whip （しっかり）泡立てる = (shikkari) awadateru
To whisk 泡立てる = awadateru
To poach 熱湯の中に入れる・熱湯でゆでる = nettou no naka ni ireru / nettou de yuderu
To braise 蒸し煮する = mushini suru
Dressing/ to dress If you meant to put dressing sauce on something ドレッシングをかける = doresshingu wo kakeru
To deglaze （鍋・フライパンに） 〜を入れてソースを作る = ( nabe/ furaipan ni) ~ wo irete soosu wo tsukuru
Hello sensei!
Recently I heard in an online ad that says “shichau nakara”
I searched and I found that nakara (not nagara) means similar to -nai.
Does that mean “[something] shichau nakara” means “not do [something]”? Thank you!
Hi Dwi
Is it from my Twitter word today?
財布がすっからかん You are emphasizing the state of 財布
If you are giving a general idea, (the usual state of one’s wallet, 私の財布はいつもすっからかんです。）
こんにちは！
予定: You are just talking about your plans for the next year. planning to go back to country next year.
ことになりました You are talking about the result of some process. In this case, it implies there are some kind of stories behind and as a result, you decide to go back home.
関心が高まってきている people are getting more interested in that matter.
It expresses the change.
Before “no interest” →(is changing) →people are having more and more interest.
The change is coming towards you.Therefore you use kite iru.
Sensei. What is the difference between the following?
月がきれい
月はきれい
I’m always confused about the particle “ga” in this context. But when we tell something about what we see or what has happened/is happening, do we use が?
Hi Dwi,
When you talk about the general idea that the moon is beautiful, you say 月はきれい
When you talk about the moon you are looking at now and emphasize the fact how beautiful “the moon” is, you say 月がきれい
I understand this lesson but I don’t like this. I don’t think people should lower themselves or self-deprecate. People should be proud of who they are and what they can do and have self-confidence. People shouldn’t brag, but they shouldn’t lower themselves or speak badly of their friends/family either.
For example, if I created something nice and someone tells me: Luna-san jouzu desu ne! I will reply: Arigatou! Sugoku ganbatta!
Because I put a lot of effort in it and I don’t want to deny my efforts, you know? I think you can accept a compliment politely without bragging or being arrogant.
粗茶ですが、どうぞ!
If the tea is not really bad, why say that? To me, it sounds impolite and unrespectful to tell your friends you’re serving them bad tea. If I like my friends I want to give them the best tea and I want them to know I’m giving them good things because I love them.
Also, if a rich person has a really big house and a really cool car and they say: “no it’s not that big/good, this is nothing.” isn’t that arrogant? Like he’s so rich and cool that something like that is nothing to him because he can buy an even better one? Or: your bag looks really nice! “No, it’s not that great!” To me, saying that this super expensive and beautiful bag is not great actually sounds more like bragging because it’s like you’re saying: nah, to someone like me, this is nothing (I’m worth so much more than you). I know that’s not what they mean but it kinda sounds like that?
I’m sorry, I don’t mean to critique! I know it’s a cultural thing but this might be the thing about Japan that I dislike the most. Everyone shouldn’t be afraid to show they are proud or happy about something/someone.
I totally understand you. It is very natural that you feel that way.
It is probably my fault if you misunderstand Japanese culture from this lesson.
The old customs remain in our modern language.
Using the humble expression doesn’t really mean we feel very low.
However, I don’t deny that being humble/modest is still considered to be virtue in Japan and being too proud or brag what you have in public may make others uncomfortable in certain situations.
In a lot of cases, it is just formality and show the respects to others.
I understand, thank you for replying!
It still feels a little weird to do it since everyone knows that you are being humble/modest on purpose. But when you say it’s just a formality, it actually makes more sense to me like this. Thanks!
thank you for this awesome lesson! Now what exactly would be the difference in meaning between なんとよむんですか and なんとよみますか? And is one of them more common? I already understand that ん often indicates reason, assumption (when asking) or emphasis, but I don’t quite see why it would be neccessary when asking how to read something.
Thank you for this information. I’m wondering if there are times when gochisosama deshita is more appropriate than oishi katta desu, or vice versa? And if you can say both or if you should pick one over the other. Thank you.
When someone treats you,
“Gochisousama deshita” is better than just saying “Oishikatta desu”.
Or you can say both
Gochisou sama deshita & Oishikatta desu.
Hi エマ！
Technically if the following verb is past tense, the previous verb can be present tense.
For example
怒っているように見える／見えた
怒ったいるように感じる／思える／聞こえる or
怒ったいるように感じる／思える／聞こえる 感じた／思えた／聞こえた
But actually some people use past tense for both in conversation.
怒っていたように見えた／感じた／思えた／聞こえた
返事してくれてありがとうございました‼️
So for example, if I went to the gym and got very tired, but I wanted to make a joke, could I say:
何もしなかかったように感じるよ！
“ I feel like I didn’t do anything!”
( sorry I couldn’t think of a better example!)
Hmm
If you didn’t do anything, you don’t feel it so you can’t use 感じる.
It might work with 感じない
It’s more complicated but for example なにもしなかったように全く疲れを感じない
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I love your site and visit it often. You provide the greatest sentence samples and I often add them to my Anki deck because I can picture myself saying them. I also get a real chuckle out of some of the sentences. I can tell you put a lot of thought into your pages and I am truly grateful for this site and all I have learned from it so far. Your a super cool person. ちょうかっこいい
So, for some reason I find my mind has a really hard time accepting ADJ+がる. I understand the use of using appearance adjectives with がる to say things like “I feel pretty”(Wait! can I say 私はきれいがっている?) but I don’t understand how it works with feeling adjectives…恥ずかしがる vs はずかしい both mean to be embarrassed. If I say 彼は恥ずかしいです, why/when should I use 恥ずかしがる?
Also, do people actually say things like 面白がる、楽しがる、すきがる？I only ever hear こわがる. That being said is using そうだ more common way to say for Japanese people? like はずかしそうだ vs はずかしがる。Or うれしがった vs うれしそうだった。
People always think I speak weird Japanese so I’m trying to speak more naturally.
If you could possibly help me, I would greatly appreciate it.
Again thanks for such a wonderful site. I think you should make a textbook but like a grammar dictionary kind. Anyways I love your website! Thanks for all your hard work.
Dear CB Awesome,
It is a great way to picture yourself using the Japanese you just learned.
OK, you can’t use がる with any adjectives or verbs. I gave you the most common ones in this lesson.
You can express your feelings with 恥ずかしい I am embarrassed. But you can’t say other people’s feelings. 彼は恥ずかしい. Instead you assume his feelings by his behavior or face expressions. Then you say 恥ずかしがっている
You say 面白がる but not 楽しがる／好きがる. When you assume other people’s feelings, you use 楽しそう／楽しそうにしている／好きみたい,etc. instead.
When you are not sure if people say certain expression or not, try using Google or Twitter and search the word and find out if people do use it or not and how they use it. (or ask me here.)
Thank you for all your compliments. When I make a textbook, I hope you will be the first person to get it.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Thanks for such the speedy reply! I think I’m starting to get the picture. It’s good to know you can’t use it with every adj and verb. I guess we don’t use そうだ to assume people’s feelings.
I use your site and weblio a lot for example sentences mainly because in the past when I used other websites the sentences turned out to be kind of weird according to my Japanese coworkers (I do ask them for help a lot but I try not to be too bothersome). Your website is a guarantee that the sentences are natural. I’ve been searching for other resources and found WWWJDIC and it seems pretty good but unfortunately resources are pretty slim for us Japanese learners which is why your site is so fabulous! It’s dependable. Thanks so much for everything you do for us!
Weblio has many example sentences and it’s highly recommended. But you are right. If you just use some of the example sentences in daily conversation, you may sound strange.
I suggest Twitter because you can actually see how people use the words. Some of the expressions are extremely casual and they could be rude if you use them to someone superior. Try to watch Japanese TV shows too to learn natural Japanese if you have a chance.
If you don’t want to bother your coworker, I am always here for you. 😉
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I have a question.
DBJG says that なら can’t be use if we can’t check the condition right now (even hypothetically). Thus they mark:
明日雨が降るなら試合はないでしょう。
as unacceptable because “one can never tell whether it’s true or not that it will rain tomorrow”.
But that statement contradicts your example
明日雨ならいきません。
I’m confused… -_-
Hello,
Hmm? DBJG is a book?
Anyway I can just explain my example sentence. Whether you go or not depends on your will.
Even if you are not certain whether it rains or not, you can say
明日雨なら as a condition (in case of rain/ If it rains)
+ what you are/not going to do.
家にいます。
出かけません, etc.
Yes, “A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar”.
Thank you for replying!
That’s what I thought actually, that it has something to do with main clause, not the reason clause. I guess authors have made a mistake…
Though one japanese person I asked said that while example sentence (from the book) sounds unnatural, he has nothing against
“明日雨なら、試合はない.”
So the presence/absense of a verb makes so much difference?
日本語は難しい…
OK, I just talked about my example sentence 明日雨なら+ what you are going to do (your will) in my previous comment and didn’t actually mentioned that example.
I agree with your friend, “明日雨なら、試合はないです or 試合はありません。/試合は中止です” is acceptable in conversation but
the example sentence 明日雨が降るなら試合はないでしょう。doesn’t sound natural. I guess it’s because the following sentence ないでしょう is assumption. If I think of better reason, I will let you know. :)
Hello Maggie senei! How about make a subjunctive mood in Japanese, for example: If he had known your phone number yesterday, he would have called you.
Thank you!
Hello trang,
There are a few ways but たら is more natural than なら but
Ex. もし彼が(＊あなたの）電話番号を知っていたら電話をかけてきたと思うよ。(casual)
(* あなた: I wrote あなた here but you may want to avoid using it. Instead use the person’s name.)
If I had known his phone number, I would have called him.
もし彼の電話番号を知っていたら、電話をかけたのに （or 電話したのに）
To express one’s regret, you can use のに
（Check my のに lesson)
Sensei. How does は work in the following sentences?
体調にはお気をつけください.
And why does the particle は in the sentence below mean “in”?
プラハはおいしいベジタリアン料理も簡単に見つかって、いつもお腹いっぱいだった = it’s easy finding good vegetarian food in Prague, and I was always full.
Yes, you can say I guess it was a typo but you can say both
私は彼と近所の人の関係を気にしていた。
私は彼と近所の人との関係を気にしていた。
Or you can also say 私は彼の近所の人との関係を気にしていた。
What is the difference between, for example, こういうandこんな？
Eg. こんな人vsそういう人。
Perhaps this has been explained elsewhere. If so, please direct me to it.
Thank you.
May i use し and のに in one sentence?
Foe example:
私はもう若くないし、頭が良くないし、もう可愛くないのに、Keanu reeves はまだ私の愛を追いかけているよ。。。(hahaha…. you wish 😂😂😂😂)
Although i am not young anymore, not smart, and not pretty anymore, but keanu reeves is still chasing my love (ignore my super high confidence 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂)
🤣 Love your example sentence! It seems like Keanu is really into you. 💕
You can use し and のに in one sentence.
Just one small change that I would suggest to make this sentence look more natural.
頭はよくないし (That implies some other stuff is good but not smart.)
The rest is fine.
1. You should study Japanese.(It implies you don’t have but it will be better to study Japanese for example to improve your Japanese.)
2. You must study Japanese. / You’d better study Japanese.
While 5) is talking about present or near future, 2 could be just for future in general. )
3. You can study Japanese./Why don’t you study Japanese?/I think you should study Japanese. (Giving some ideas.)
4. One is supposed to study Japanese. (The speaker is guessing what the listener would do.)
5. You have to study Japanese (Usually talking about what one have to do now because there is no choice.)
That にも is “even I” but にも means “I also / I ~ as well”
Let me break it down.
The particle に here is for ability, what one is able to do.
まだ私に読める漢字は少ない。
There are still a very few kanji that I can read.
読める is a potential form of 読む
You
この漢字は私には、読めない。
I can’t read this kanji. (by using は, you show the contrast. Maybe other people can but I can’t)
この漢字は私にも読める。(Even I can read this kanji)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much! Your explanations are detailed and easy to understand.
By the way, is there any difference between 2 sentence:
# 食べるわけがない。
#食べられるわけがない。
I would be so so grateful if you could help me!
Thank you so much !!!!
Hi, Thaoha,
食べるわけがない。
There is no way that someone will eat ~
食べられるわけがない。
There is no way that I/We/You can eat / There is no way that something is edible.
hello,
Thanks for all your great explanations :)
I have a question though,
I came across this sentence, I know the meaning, but I struggle a bit to understand how it articulates altogether.
Can you check if I’m correct and maybe give some explanations if I miss the point ^^’
しばらくここでの生活を楽しみたくなってきました。
so first there’s
楽しみたくなる which I translate(may be wrong) by “I get the urge to enjoy”
then they add てきた
楽しみたくなってきました
which I guess would mean “I have been getting more and more the urge to enjoy(this place’s lifestyle) until now.”
First page of yours that I’ve read. Took a while, since I’m a beginner. SUPERB article, awesome wealth of examples! So I must say thanks!
You’re awesome! I love the power of suggestion… so many elaborations of how to use particles are demonstrated here, too.
Warm regards from CT, USA.
Yes, you can say that.
There are a few ways to say that
“Watashi wa Saimon wo aishite iru. ” is good but you may see that more in written form.
In conversation you can just say
Ahh I got it.
It simply modifies a noun 作り笑い
When you modify a noun
verb + noun
Let’s me rephrase it.
相手に気に入られようとして作り笑いをする
When you describe what 作り笑い is
the verb in this sentence is する
so 相手に気に入られようとして”する”+作り笑い
If you change the sentence for example
Jeremyに食べてもらおうとしておにぎりを作る。
→Describes おにぎり 🍙 a rice ball
Jeremyに食べてもらおうとして作るおにぎり
So going back to your original question
今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする
The sentence itself is unnatural but if it has a noun at the end of the sentence, it is possible to say that.
今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする”田舎での生活”
The life in the country
Oh, I think I understand now. The verb (する・作る）describes what action is done to the noun, and ようとして describes the intention behind it.
So if I’m understanding correctly, and don’t mind my garbled translation, 「Jeremyに食べてもらおうとして作るおにぎり」 pretty much means “the rice ball I made [with the intention of having Jeremy eat it] for Jeremy to eat”.
Thank you very much for your explanation!
That’s right! You got it. 👏
こんにちは、マギー先生！
いつも日本語を分かりやすくて教えてくださってありがとうございます！
I’ve come across a different usage of ~し that I’m not sure how I should interpret and I was hoping you could help me. Here’s an example:
“自由を求めし者 変わり果てて
理想を追いし者に憧れていた”
Here, the ~し comes directly after the stem of a verb and I’m wondering what it means exactly?
Hello Maggie sensei!
Wonderful lesson, it cleared a lot of things up with me, especially with all the examples you’re giving.
What I found from another source (which I feel you’ve also implied here) is that し states a reason while also implying other reasons, while から does not have that quality.
I was wondering if you replace the last し in a row with から, if you still have the *implying more* function or if the から makes that nuance disappear. Like in the following example you gave:
Good question.
The nuance difference between the following sentences are
お金はないし、暇もないし、(…) この夏は旅行に行くのはやめよう。 It implying there might be some other reasons why you gave up the trip this summer. (You often use this pattern in conversation ~ し ~ し.. when you are thinking about the reason)
お金はないし、暇もないから、この夏は旅行に行くのはやめよう。It gives two specific reason why you gave up the trip this summer.
Here’s the basic rule.
A = B A is B
AはBです。 (Emphasizing B / or Showing the contrast.)
AがBです。 (Emphasizing A)
A does B
AはBします。(Emphasizing B / or Showing the contrast.)
AがBします。(Emphasizing A)
YouTubeチャネル登録者は20万人を超えました (Emphasizing20万人を超えました or it implies the writer has other activities but as of youtube channel, he/she got ~ subscribers.)
YouTubeチャネル登録者が20万人を超えました (Emphasizing YouTubeチャネル登録者）
I need help with this sentence. It has から in it. Usually it helps me when I break japanese sentences down, but in this example I don’t know how から is working here.
この辺りは治安も悪くないけど、あの辺りは治安が良くないからね。
This area doesn’t have bad public safety, but that area does. (translation given)
this+neighborhoodはpublic safety+ not bad + but that neighborhoodはp.s.+not good+ から (why?)
Hello david,
for better understanding of part. から, which implies the reason:
この辺りは治安も悪くないけど、あの辺りは治安が良くないからね。
This area is quite safe, cuz the other one is not safe, you know.
(The unsafeness of one area makes that the other one is safe)
治安がいい=safe (ex. country, area) / good (ex. neighborhood)
治安が悪い=not safe/dangerous (ex. country, area) / bad (ex. neighborhood)
(Thank you for helping him, 天人）
It depends on the previous sentence or context but for example if someone is telling you that he/she just moved from “that area” to “this area” or wants to move from “that area” to “this area”.
And you, as a listener, respond to that person.
I understand why you moved/want to move because this area is relatively safe but that area is dangerous.
So this から gives a reason why the writer/speakers agrees with the previous sentence.
(1) to think one did something / thought one had done something (but it was different in reality) / one meant to do/be ~ (but it turned out to be different.)
Because for me they mean the same thing…
Can I just join these two as only one topic?
It is the usage 2) to show the contrast
The same idea of my example sentence
Ex. 父は物静かだったのに対して母はいつも口うるさい。
= Chichi wa monoshizuka datta noni taishite haha wa kuchiurusai.
= While my father was very quiet, my mom is always nagging.
姉= quiet
兄 = active
They have two different personality and to show the contrast, you use 対して
このレッスンありがとうございました！めっちゃ分かりやすいで便利だと思います。質問一つだけあります！what does it mean when “なのに” is at the beginning of the sentence? A friend told me:… しかもあなたはすごく優しいです。なのに僕を選んでくれてありがとう。please I hope you to respond me and thank you 先生！
Ah, I see this is a tricky one.
なのに in that sentence means ~ なのに ”regardless (previous sentence)/but / yet”
So the previous sentence express how great you are. You are ~ and also very sweet.
By using なのに in the following sentence, the readers can tell this writer thinks he doesn’t deserve this person.
I am not that good/I am not as good as you are/I don’t deserve you but you chose me. Thank you.
Thank you Maggie sensei for yet another super useful lesson! I was thinking about this sentence from the lesson:
Ex. なぜか好きな人に冷たくしてしまう。 = Naze ka sukina hito ni tsumetaku shite shimau. = I don’t know why but I tend to turn the cold shoulder to people I like.
Would it be wrong to use ‘naru’ instead? ( = なぜか好きな人に冷たくなってしまう)。
To me, 冷たくなってしまう sounds more like it’s a natural/spontaneous/ inevitable process (it just happens, he/she has no choice), while 冷たくしてしまう sounds more like it’s an action that he/she chooses to do (she ‘makes herself’ cold).
I guess it is possible if you see your attitude objectively but I would still use 冷たくしてしまう because it is your own attitude that you control or you lose control.
冷たくなる is intransitive verb and it means “something turns cold.
手が冷たくなる One’s hands turn cold. →(adding your feelings.) 手が冷たくなってしまう。
お茶が冷たくなる tea gets cold→(adding your feelings.) お茶が冷たくなってしまう。
私は彼に冷たくなる is not natural because the subject is 私. You are talking about your own feelings/attitude.
If you (intentionally) make something cold you say 冷たくする
冷たくする is a transitive verb. To make something cold.
好きな人に冷たくする to treat someone you like in a cold way.
By changing the sentence to 冷たくしてしまう, you can add the feelings that You don’t really want to treat him coldly but you lose control and you ended up treating him coldly.
Hello Maggie-sensei, does Vてはいけません falls under usage 5) Though you can’t expect good results, you will give it a try anyway.?
Because together with Vてはいられない and Vないではいられない, you listed them right below usage 5. But their usages seem to be slightly different from 5 especially Vてはいけませ which can mean prohibition/obligation/permission.
Maggie-sensei, thank you. I have a few more questions regarding this lesson if you could help to answer.
In one of your example sentences, there is a 彼への気持ちを書いては消し、(書いては消し..) 結局、メールを出さなかった. 消し is 連用形 if I remember correctly. Is using this form only for writing or can it be used for conversation as well? I was taught to use て form when joining sentences so the above would become something like 彼への気持ちを書いては消して、結局、メールを出さなかった.
I would like to ask can の be attached directly after te-form of a verb like in your example 食べては寝ての生活? I came across a few other examples like 知っての通りbut I have never learnt this grammar in school nor able to find explanation on the internet.
Hello Chang,
technically, if you want to combine a verb with noun you can use:
1) 動詞＋て形＋の助詞＋名詞 or
2) 動詞＋る／た／ている形＋名詞
I believe the meaning between 1) and 2) will be the same, and also 1) and 2) are interchangeable.
I actually have another question about a sentence from the lesson above:
Ex. 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる。= Since I live alone, I am apt to eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
Could you comment on the meaning of と in this sentence? I checked your lesson ( = ~ to & ~ naito) but I’m still not sure about this sentence. As you know, even the English translation ‘since’ is a bit ambiguous as it can mean ‘starting from (time)’ or ‘because’. Thank you so much!
Hi Davide,
OK, と here indicates “condition”.
So think 一人暮らし as condition (under the condition of “living alone”)
一人暮らし is a noun so you add + だと (If you use a verb form 一人暮らしすると = If you live on your own）
一人暮らしだと
+ You write in the following sentence what is likely to happen/what happens/ what is happening
1) what is like
2) general idea what will happen
3) your guess, what is likely to happen
一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる。
= Since I live alone, I am apt to eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
My translation here is for the speaker’s current feelings(1)
But if the writer is imagining how it will be if he/she lives alone, the translation is
If I live alone, I will eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
And if the writer is talking about the general idea,
If you (people in general) live alone, you are apt to eat ~
I didn’t know that と could be used for conditions that are real for the speaker at the moment of speaking, interesting! So if I understand correctly, when this person says 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる, he is already living alone, right?
I wish grammar books explained the ‘what is happening’ usage of と more in detail (I think they focus on the other usages). As always, your help really makes a difference. Thanks for taking the time to answer!
So if I understand correctly, when this person says 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる, he is already living alone, right?
→Yes, that is what I meant in my example sentence.
I translated the sentence with “since”, but the translation varies depending on the sentence.
一人暮らしだと寂しい could be “Living alone is lonely.”
一人暮らしだと寂しいんじゃない？ “Are you feeling lonely living alone?”
Hmmm, quite interesting.
And how much would the meaning be effected, if we change だと into は?
“AはB” also describes point 1) “what is like”.
一人暮らしだと寂しい vs 一人暮らしは寂しい.
@天人
It is hard to show your the difference with English translation because both could be translated “Living alone is lonely.”
As you know, AはB → A = B (definition)
一人暮らしは寂しい.
一人暮らし = 寂しい (talking about the quality of 一人暮らし）
It shows one’s stronger opinion.
一人暮らしだと寂しい It is based on the condition
If a person lives alone, it is lonely.
Or Since I am in the state of living alone, I am lonely.
“It shows one’s stronger opinion.” – that’s the key to understand the difference. Well done! Thanks Maggie!
Good question! 波が寄せて返す is an expression and 返す here means “波が返ること”.
返す is usually used as a transitive verb, “to return something, to give something back” but there are some expressions that you use as an intransitive verb which means “返る = to return”
@天人 thanks for the info. i assume u r also a japanese learner? did u learn 1) 動詞＋て形＋の助詞＋名詞 from school or any japanese language books because i have only learnt 2) 動詞＋る／た／ている形＋名詞 which is 名詞修飾.
＠Chang,
your assumption is correct. I came across this pattern in the past (probably playing some Japanese RPGs) and made some recherché about it, because it was a very interesting and rare one. I had no Japanese at school. Maggie is my first and my best Teacher <3
@天人 in that case, when you first came across it, did you managed to find any explanation for it? i tried googling but just can’t find any reference whether for foreign learners nor native japanese
Off topic, is ちゃ w/ small ” ゃ” regarded as 1 Japanese Syllable, I don’t mean the 1 word aspect, as for purposes of word counting, as with あ, い, う, そ, ひ etc? Do you understand?
Hi Sats
From this explanation below?
You use the particle は ( = wa) , that means you show the contrast with other time period.
You use a particle は as a topic marker
わたしはマギーです。
And also when you show the contrast emphasizing what comes before.(contrast here means to compare, brings up the difference)
(いつもはひまですが、)明日は忙しいです。(emphasizing 明日 and showing the contrast of いつも and 明日)
うちは is the same thing.
お金があるうちは毎日、飲み歩いていた
お金があるとき (= going out for a drink every day) vs お金がないとき ( not going out for a drink every day. : It is not stated but it implies in the sentence.)
Showing the contrast of お金があるとき (when one has money) and お金がないとき* (when one doesn’t have money).
(*It is not mentioned in the sentence but the readers can tell what you
haha, I tried translating “There are no good excuses (to not like Maggie)!” in my head and then was like “huh, it just continues on to the next question…” before it hit me haha.
Also, thank you for indicating which sentences are male/female speech! It’s still a little exhausting for me to translate anime so it’s really handy to have an idea about who would be saying that kind of a sentence :)
Good, I should cover those, huh?
serves (how many people) number + 人分 (= ninbun)
set aside 置いておく
For blender and mixer I already covered in this lesson 台所 lesson.
→ミキサー
let rest = 寝かせる= neakaseru / 寝かせておく= nekasete ku
Fold in （切るように）混ぜ込む (= kiru you ni) mazekomu ・切るようにさっくり混ぜる ( = kiru you ni sakkuri mazeru)
But you can’t use verb potential form with とって
私にとって言えない (wrong)
私にとってできない(wrong)
子供にもとってできない(wrong)
＊＊＊＊
When you do something in a group, you use で
You can use と as well. Here’s a nuance difference.
家族と行く to go “with family”
家族で行く to go in a group as a family.
Wow I needed this – especially 15 through 18. I’ve been watching little witch academia and had no male characters to help me pick up on the differences. Hmmmm… time to find a show with both sexes I think
I always search for things I don’t understand from my books, like grammars, expressions, etc. and most of the time like 80%, I always find my answers here in your website. I passed N5 last year and N4 this year, Now I am going for N3 this December 1, 2019, I am sure I will be using your website most of the time. Thank you very much and all this detailed informative lessons.
Also, the first comment I read here is from year 2011, now is 2019. I am sure another person will find this very useful in the future. Once again, Thank you very much Maggie Sensei. Have a great day ahead. ：－）
Thank you for your comment. It means a lot to me.
I am so happy to hear you have been using this site.
Yeah, I can’t believe it has been 10 years since I started this site.
I really hope you pass N3. I am sure you will!!!
これからもがんばって勉強してくださいね！ 応援しています！ 💕
Hello Ku,
痩せようと思う implies that the speaker as a plan/idea/thought of loosing weight/become thin, however he or she hasn’t took any actions to realize it yet.
Thank you!! I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me to understand にとって without your website. I didn’t even know it was used like a particle until I saw the link for it here.
Hi Maggie-Sensei! I’ve been reading your posts for a long time (three years!) but this is the first time I’ve ever posted a comment ^^
Anyway, I have a question concerning this ば form.
So, when we have ない, it’s ば form is なければ. It’s pretty easy to understand, and I can say things like 「食べなければ、おなかがいたいよ！」to my younger sister meaning “If you don’t eat, your stomach will hurt.” Say my younger sister gets all fired up to eat now, and she turns to her friends she was playing with and says 「食べなければなりません」, expressing that she has to eat. I have heard that this なければなりません／なければいけません form can be shortened to just なきゃ or なくちゃ, so my sister could’ve just have easily said 「たべなきゃ」to her friends.
Now this is where my question comes in:
Is なきゃ／なくちゃ only used to express things that we have to do, or are they generally accepted as a short, casual form of なければ？
For example, in Yonezu Kenshi’s song “Lemon,” he sings 「あなたがいなきゃえいえんに暗いまま。」At first I was translating it as “You have to be here, it will continue to be dark forever” but then realized that it would make more sense if it was “If you are not here, it will continue to be dark forever.” Am I correct to assume that his lyrics would mean the same thing if he’d said 「あなたがいなければ、えいえんに暗いまま」 or 「あなたがいなくちゃ永遠に暗いまま」?
I apologize for this long-winded question and thank you for any answer you provide!
Thank you for reading my lessons for three years!
“If you don’t eat, your stomach will hurt.”
Almost, you say 何か食べないとお腹が痛くなるよ(onakga ga igaku naruyo) 。The second part should be いたくなるよ instead of いたいよ。
And if you want to use the casual contraction
何か食べなきゃお腹痛くなるよ。
Yes, 〜なければ→なきゃ／なくちゃ
あなたがいなきゃ = If you are not here
I have a lesson on なくちゃ／なきゃ where I explain all about the usage. Please go check it. :)
ただいま！ I had a great time! My omiyage for you is a big smile for you!
In this case ところに and ところで both indicate the time not the place but
ところに You focus on the moment, right after we finish eating, something happened, in this case “he came”
ところで after completing some action, you do something, in this case, “we met him”
Hello Brett,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
First please notice the difference between やめろ and やめる.
The direct translation of やめろというのに is “Although I said stop!”. This imperative form (in combination with this pattern) is very emphatic, expressing strong will by a command.
The やめるように in やめるように言うのに無理にやった doesn’t imply this nuance; it sounds more like an advise, showing what somebody said to someone => 患者さんにタバコをやめるように言うのに、彼が吸っていては説得力がない.
The imperative form in combination with という should be interpreted as a strong advise/command or strongly insisting on something, showing also frustration of the speaker. Check the examples below.
1. 私にどうしろっていうんだ！？=> What do you want me to do!? / Tell me what to do! / What the hell should I do!?
2. 夫が離婚しろと言うのに… => Though my husband insist on divorcing…
3. 多くの大人が勉強しろと言うのにはきっと、とても大事な理由があるはずだ。 Many adults have surely an important reason behind insisting others on studying.
4. だから行かないように言ったのに！ What’s why I told you not to go (there), but you didn’t listen!
Thank you 天人！ That did clarify things. You’re very thorough. Sorry for not saying so earlier. I didn’t get an email notification that someone responded
I was reading your post and I came across these two statements, which I haven’t been able to understand them well when I try to compare them with the translations you always give after each japanese statement.
For example:
1.
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
as:
I saw him off without knowing what to say.
I’ve broken this sentence down and this is my result.
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
him to what (と) say if good not know (まま) see off.
Literally: To him if I what I said good, not know, in that condition, saw him off.
2.
地のままの自分でいればいい。
You should be just the way you are.
Lit.: earth, in that condition’s yourself で you existing if, ok.
Are my literal translations OK?
地のまま is something that I cannot quite grasp: as earth, in condition of earth (something like that)
Hello David,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
1)
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
彼に = him
なんと = what
と言ったらいいか = should (I) say
わからないまま = not knowing / without knowing (expresses the state of not knowing something / or leave something as it is, without knowing / acknowledging)
見送った saw off
2)
地のままの自分でいればいい。
地 = one’s true nature (地 has many meanings in fact and in this case it means one’s true nature / the way something or somebody is; 地のまま＝有りのまま)
のまま= the way something is / the state or condition in which something is / being~ / as~
~自分でいればいい = ~ should I (myself) be
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence in a song recently including 「なんて」and I’m a bit unsure as to how I should translate it. It goes like this:
“突然鳴り出した電話の相手がまさか君だったなんて
もう忘れたハズなのにね”
It’s about whether it’s in a positive or negative way he’s implying it. Should I interpret it as something like “I can’t believe that you would suddenly call me” or “There is no way you would suddenly call me”. The second sentence 「もう忘れた。。。」is only there for context.
Hello Sebastian,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
In this sentence なんて is connected with まさか and it expresses strong surprise. The sentence is unfinished for purpose, like very often in Japanese. After なんて you can expect something like 「思いもしなかった！」 for example.
Your interpretation is correct. The context is positive; the person thought, that he/she already forgot about him/her, but surprisingly that was not the case.
One question though: I was trying, as an exercise, to translate some lyrics recently and can’t seem to confidently get the sense of how mama is used in this context.
Maggie Sensei How to convey message to your Japanese supervisers? For example If I want to convey that ,” XXXsan asked to call back. .” how to say this?
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
There are a couple of ways to say that but
XX様（or さん）よりお電話があり折り返しお電話くださいとのことです。
= xx sama ( or ~ san) yori odenwa ga ari orikaeshi odenwa kudasai tono kot odesu.
Thank you for this lesson! You always help me a lot preparing for the JLPT N4 in December.
I still have some troubles with the difference between たところ and たばかり. I thought I got it from your explanation but this sentence from a sample JLPT test still confuses me:
“生まれたばかりの子牛が立ち上がり、歩こうとしている。”
Why do I need to use ばかり here? The sentence doesn’t involve any negative emotion and I think that it’s about an event that really happened just a minute ago.
Is it because it’s about a general event?
I really cannot tell.
Hi Shiro,
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
I see. Good question.
今、日本に帰ってきたばかりです。
今、日本に帰ってきたところです。
They mean the same. I just came back to Japan.
The other difference between ばかり and ところ that I didn’t mention in the lesson is while you focus on the moment of just did something with ばかり, you use ところ when you focusing on the moment for the next movement/action.
今、会議が始まったところです。またあとから電話します。
Since
生まれたばかりです。is just focusing on the moment of birth, it will be unnatural to use ところ.
What’s the difference between using V+きる versus V+とおす when talking about doing something to completion? It seems they have a similar meaning, but the sense I get is that V+とおす expresses that an action is continuous until it is completed while the other just emphasizes it is don’t until the end. Would they be interchangeable sometimes then?
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
They are similar but とおす requires more will/determination and has a meaning of “to go through something until completion” so you can’t use it with some actions that you can easily do, X飲みとおす・X食べとおす。
守り通す focusing on the process of protecting something
守り切る focusing on the completion of action, protecting.
Hello Maggie sensei!
First of thank you so much for your lessons, they are very complete, interesting and easy to understand! I really appreciate the time you spend on them and answering people’s questions.
I do have a question of my own :
前の駅で降りていたら、動いていた。= If we had been getting off at the previous station, it was working ?
What is the function of the progressive past here?
Can I say If i had gotten off at the previous station it would be working (as in I would be on my way right now).
I am not a native English speaker so I hope my question makes sense.
Thank you again for your time!
前の駅で降りていたら、動いていた。= If we had been getting off at the previous station, it was working ?
→ I don’t quite get the part 動いていた (it means “moving”) What was moving???
Did you want to try to make a sentence with counterfactual conditional？
If so, for example
前の駅で降りていたら、事故に巻き込まれなかったのに。
If I had gotten off at the previous station, I wouldn’t have involved in the accident. (But actually I did.)
THANK YOU!!! じゃない had me so confused for the longest time. I went over this lesson 3 times trying to understand it. Although じゃない doesn’t make verbs or い adjectives negative, んじゃない (when it’s not part of a question) does!
There are a few things I’m still wondering tho. Consider the two sentences from above.
きれいじゃない(ですか)！
=Someone/something is beautiful! /Oh that’s beautiful!
野球じゃない(ですか)！
=Oh, it’s baseball!
Do we need the exclamation mark to let the reader know that they’re not negative sentences? “きれいじゃない。” would only mean “It’s not beautiful” right? The sentence その服、いいじゃない。Doesn’t use an exclamation mark, but we know that it can’t be negative so there’s no issue there. Basically I’m wondering if we just rely on context when interpreting them.
Also, with
その服、いいじゃない。
even though this sentence isn’t a question, would we still read じゃない with rising intonation like we would if it were a question?
One more thing!!! If I were speaking informally would it be unnatural to use じゃないですか to avoid the rougher じゃないか? I’m not sure if it’d be awkward to just use one polite form verb when the rest are all plain.
Hi Brett
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
Even with negative phrase you sometimes use exclamation mark so it is the same thing.
Usually you can tell if it’s a negative phrase or not by the context.
You use negative phrase when someone asks whether it is a baseball or not/ something is beautiful or not.
きれいじゃない？ Isn’t it beautiful?
きれいじゃない！ No, it is not beautiful.
あれ、野球？ Is that a baseball?
野球じゃない。No, it’s not a baseball.
その服、いいじゃない。
expresses one’s opinion but as you say if you raise the intonation, you ask for someone’s agreement.
いいじゃないか is male speech and it may sound a little rough.
Maggie-sensei, hello and thank you for your hard work on this site. Asking a question for the first time.
You previously said in the comments section that we should use Noun + の+ように+Adj + Noun = works as an adjective, as in彼は、ガラスのように繊細な心を持っている。
I got confused, because in Minna no Nihongo they give examples using the pattern Noun + の+ような+Adj + Noun (IMCのような大きい会社; 彼のような面白い人と友達になりたい) and Noun + の+ように+Verb + Noun (「トトロ」のように子供と一緒に楽しめる映画が好き). I don’t understand what particle I should use and why, could you please shed some light on this a little bit more?
In: スコティッシュフォールドのような可愛い猫が飼いたいです。Can I use both に and な?
And:
スコティッシュフォールドのように座れる猫が飼いたいです。
モデルのように歩く女性は上品です。Is it correct to always use に in such cases both with potential and non-potential Verbs?
I hope my questions make sense.
Hi エナ！
Sorry for the late reply. I just came back from the trip.
The difference is ように modifies a noun and ような modifies (an adjective) + noun
1) ガラスのように繊細な心
2) ガラスのような繊細な心
They are both fine.
1) ガラスのように modifies 繊細
2) ガラスのような modifies “繊細な心”
If you are still around to answer questions…
How would you say “I think I am all paid up.” as in “I don’t think I owe any more money.” Is there a Japanese equivalent of “paid up” or “caught up”? Also, I assume (like in English), it would be different for a bank/business to tell you, “You are paid in full.”
Thanks in advance, I am having a hard time looking this one up.
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
paid up in Japanese is 支払いが済む= しはらいがすむ= shiharai ga sumu / noun form 支払済 しはらいずみ shiharaizumi
I think I am all paid up = もう支払いは済んでいると思います。= Mou shiharai wa sunde iru to omoimasu.
You are paid in full. 全額支払っています。( zengaku shiharatte imasu.) ／全額支払い済みです。(Zengaku shiharaizumi desu.)
こんにちはMaggie先生。
I would like to ask you a question.
怒った顔までかわいいね。
can でも be used instead of まで?
likewise,
子供でもこの問題ができる。
子供までこの問題ができる。
can まで be used instead of でも。
宜しくお願いします。
怒った顔までかわいいね。
You can say 怒った顔でもかわいいね but まで emphasize the extreme example (in this case 怒った顔） more.
I would say for this particular sentence, まで is more natural.
子供でもこの問題ができる。
子供までこの問題ができる。
でも is more natural in this case because まで indicates the range (from ~ up to child)
Great lesson as always. I just have a question about だけ in general.
I was talking to someone (messaging) telling them they reply really quickly to me. Then they said
暇なだけだよ
I’d never seen this form used before so I was wondering what the difference is between
Hi Cake,
The translation is
暇なだけ= I just have nothing to do. That’s all.
In this case, 暇な is na-adjective so when you use だけ,
~な＋だけ and you don’t say 暇だけ
きれいな きれいなだけ Ex. この料理は見かけがきれいなだけで美味しくない。= This dish just looks beautiful but not delicious.
if it’s i-adjective
い＋だけ
Ex. 辛いだけ= tsurai dake dayo = It just painful
hello sensei, thank you so much for the lesson
however i met some kind of sentence like this
なんか ざんげ室にいるみたい
could i change nanka into nante?
if cant why is that so?
also is 私 seems to be at before なんか ? cause i found this sentence on anime
Hello Melon,
In this case なんか means “for some reason/somehow” and you can’t change なんか with なんて。
私 is omitted but it it the feelings of the speaker. ((私)、なんかざんげ室にいるみたい。）
コンビニに買い物に行きます。
to go to the convenience store for shopping.
(focusing on going to the convenience to buy something)
コンビニで買い物をして行きます。
I will do some shopping at the convenience store and then go (somewhere)
You spend some time at the convenience store and then leave there.
(focusing on doing shopping)
I’ve come across your site quite often while studying Japanese over the last few years and it’s always been a great help! I have a pretty specific question which I was hoping you could answer this time.
In the Radwimps song [リユニオン], there is a line that goes “青春の日々なんか どんなかは知らないけど”.
In this case, what would be the meaning of the sentence and why usage of なんか is this? Thank you!
こんにちは、Lucas!
Ah, I should have covered that usage of よう.
This よう expresses the degree of the state of someone/something
変わりよう = how much something/someone has changed.
The way my hometown changes.
How much my hometown changes.
Hello maggie sensei. I’m looking for a graveyard shift right now, and i have to call this certain company. I am so nervous on how to start a phone conversation asking for an opening of the job since i am not really that good in nihongo. I hope you could give me an advice?
OK,
First こんにちは／おはようございます (greeting)
Your nameと申します。= ~ to moushimasu.
夜勤（やきん）／深夜（しんや）の仕事を探しています。ただいま、求人をされていますか？
= yakin/ shinya no shigoto wo sagashite imasu. tadaima kyuujin wo sarete imasuka?
どうもありがとうございます。Whenever I am looking for some grammar issue, sooner or later I end up reading an article on your page. Your lessons are so informative and helpful!
こんにちは！
This example sentence has two key expressions to solve the problem.
混ぜるだけ just mix (implies the salad is easy) and だれでも ( anybody)
失敗のしようがない implies something is so easy that there is no way that you can fail.
失敗できない “can’t afford to fail” (for certain reason)
Ex. 一度試験に失敗しているのでもう失敗できない。= Since I already failed the exam once, I can’t afford to fail it again.
Thanks, it makes more sense now but, “失敗できないデートの時は是非Tokyo Q シティガイドをご覧ください”
I found this sentence in the dictionary. In this case it cannot be understood as “can’t afford to” right? If so, does the “can’t afford to” meaning only applies with people?
Hello! I’m sorry – I know this is an old post, but I was wondering if you could tell me how to type the hiragana/katakana so that it’s squished to the left like some twitter users do? For example, if I want to type チュウ but small and squished to the left, what do I do? I tried looking in the suggestion box when I typed it but couldn’t find anything. Thank you!! Your site is super super helpful and I refer to it often!!
Hello,
You mean you want to use halfwidth-kana? (半角= hankaku)
I did a little research and it says
if you are Windows user use F8 key and if use Mac, Control + ;
But it depends on the system. https://mupon.net/mac-katakana/
Check this link. It is all written in Japanese but you get the idea.
Also there is a site that convert 全角 to 半角
Yes!! Thank you so much! I didn’t know what it was called in Japanese so everytime I tried to search it on google by just describing it I got unrelated pages. 助けてくれて本当にありがとうございます！！wめっちゃ役に立ちます^_^
I had a question about some of the questions you answered in the comments,
A comment from Miburi asked if it was possible to use そうwith past tense on 痩せたそう, and you responded with –
” “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight” is 痩せたみたい
そう is only used to describe the current or sometime future condition.”
but a comment from Orti also asked if you could use そう with verbs in the past tense and you responded with –
” Yes you can use そう with a past tense.
運転手は酔っていたそうだ。”
i was wondering why you could say 酔っていたそう but not 痩せたそう
If you have heard some information which happened in past, you can use そう with past tense.
I heard you have lost weight. 痩せたみたいだね。／I heard the driver was drunk. 運転手は酔っていたそうだ。
Miburi’s question was,“Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight”. That was from speaker’s point of view so 痩せたみたいだね is more natural.
Hello, I got problem translating this sentence 「追いかけては来ないでしょう」
From this song https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/izone/buenosaires.html
Does this 「追いかけては来ない」match with ては’s 3rd usage ? (3) If /because ~ + unfavorable result / to give one’s negative comments or express one’s negative opinion towards the topics.)
If it is, what does it mean when it’s translated ? I think it means “nothing comes when (someone)chase”
Hello,
It means nobody would follow us/chase after us.
It will be easier to think this way,
追いかける
te form + くる to come and do something/ come doing something
追いかけてくる coming after us
You add は to show the contrast. (Maybe they look for us but they are probably not going to come after us.)
追いかけてはこない
Thank you so much maggie sensei, whenever I search the grammar points in the internet. I search different websites, and this website always hit the right points, also colorful distinction for explanation. I also use that In my notes.
I may not be good at reading native material now, but slowly I learn japanese grammar correctly. This website is a great help.
I wanted to say thank you very much for this extremely helpful page – I’ve used it a number of times to call restaurants in Japan for reservations, and it’s made things so much easier!
I was wondering if you could help me with the following – I would like to change the number of people for a restaurant reservation because of a change in plans. For example, I would like to say to them:
I am sorry but circumstances changed and I would like to change my reservation at XXX on 5 July, 7pm. Could I change my reservation from 2 people to 1 person?
Would it be possible to help me to express the above in Japanese please?
I’m happy to hear you have been using this lesson to make a reservation.
Is it an email message?
It is going to be a long sentence but
７月５日の7時に２名で予約した(your name)ですが、一人都合が悪くなったので人数を２名から１名に変更していただけますでしょうか？
= Shichigatsu itsuka no shiji ni nimei de yoyaku shita (your name) desu ga, hitori tsugou ga waruku natta node ninzuu wo nimei kara ichimei ni henkou shite itadakemasu deshouka?
It will be a LINE message (the chef kindly added me to his account), so I think it’s ok to have a long message!
Out of curiosity, if I wanted to change via a phone-call, is it ok to simply use the second part of the sentence that you’ve written or should I express it in a different way?
That is, can I just say on the phone:
申し訳ありませんが、一人都合が悪くなったので人数を２名から１名に変更していただけますでしょうか？
７月５日の7時に２名で予約した(your name)です。
= Shichigatsu itsuka no shichiji ni nimei de yoyaku shita (your name) desu.
(They will say お待ちください。確認いたします。= Omachi kudasai. Kakunin itashimasu. = Please hold the line. We will check your reservation.)
Then they will probably repeat your reservation. Ex. ７月５日の7時に２名でご予約をいただいた(your name) 様ですね。= Shichigatsu itsuka no shichiji ni nimei de goyoyaku wo itadaita (your name) sama desune.)
Then you say,
はい。申し訳ありませんが人数を一人に変更していただけますか？
= Hai. Moushiwake arimasen ga ninzuu wo hitori ni henkou shite itadakemasu ka?
Many of the onomotopoeia and mimetic words that I do remember are due to familiarization through reading manga. But when I find these words in pure text I’m often left to guess their meaning.
I think I’ll draw the pictures to go along with these words to help me memorize them better. Thank you very much for this lesson!
Hello 先生！Thank you for this incredibly useful lesson! I’m going to Japan in July on vacation so I’m trying to get used to keigo, baito keigo and all the expressions used in shops! :D
I have been thinking about a sentence from the lesson, there are two things I don’t understand:
S. Ex. 有料でお好きなトッピングを追加頂けます。
1) The patterns that I’m used to are:
-te itadakemasu
-noun wo itadakemasu
but this seems different:
トッピングを 追加 頂けます。
nounA wo nounB itadakemasu.
Maybe there is a ‘hidden’ して (追加して頂けますで) ?
2) In terms of meaning, it also seems strange, but I cannot explain clearly beacause I’m not sure about 1). But basically if I say for example お金を貸して頂けませんか? the person humbly receiving the favour and the person doing the action (lending money) are two different people. This also happens in S. Ex. ポテトかサラダからお選び頂けます。from this lessson. But in お好きなトッピングを追加頂けます。 it seems that the person humbly receiving the favour (= the store clerk) is also the person doing the action (adding the toppings).
About the word ~sura that you’ve said similar to ~sae.
I’ve tried to study that word next, but can’t get the difference between ~de sura and ~sura(only).
Can you lightly explain and with some examples, it would really help me.
Thank you
Hi Leo
ですら すら
You add で when you emphasize what comes before, EVEN ~ ,but basically the meaning is the same and a lot of time, they are interchangeable.
However you don’t use ですら after another particle
Ex. 彼はそのことを私にすら言わなかった。
Xですら
Ex. 家族にすら冷たい。
Xですら
Because if there are more than two particles, it gets confusing.
Also for example, when you use after verb+こと ~（し）ない, you don’t use ですら
Hello Peter,
も has various function
1) also, and Ex. 私も行きます。 Ex. 父も母も出かけています。
2) emphasis which I explained in this lesson
ホッとしたのも束の間/喜んだのも束の間
ホットしたけれどもそれは短い間のことだった。
(the literal translation) I was relieved but that was a very short period of time. (It didn’t last long.)
も can be used in the meaning of 3) but, however, even though~
Ex. がんばって勉強するも試験に落ちた。 ( = がんばって勉強したけれども試験に落ちた）
Though I studied hard, I failed the exam.
I’m the absolute worst when it comes to remembering these (they all sound the same and their meanings sound unclear) so thanks a lot for making this beast of a lesson!
I have now added everything on this list to my anki, it along with other resources like onomatopedia helped a lot! Especially the ones with sample sentences. I’m finally not completely lost when people use these words. I even guessed the meaning of ”ボソリ” when reading something because it resembled ぼそぼそ I had learned and I had a whole buncha other り ending adverbs.
おはよう、Davide!!
Oh you are right. Thank you for spotting the typo. I must have added shirt later. I fixed the mistakes. Thank you!
And you can ask me questions ANYTIME!! Please don’t limit yourself. (^_−)−☆
They could mean the same depending on the intonation but, compared to 〜ないことはない, わけではない sounds milder and explanatory.
It doesn’t mean the curry here is bad.
We use わけではない ( = wakede wa nai) when we deny something “partially” but not “totally”.
Check this lesson. Click here.
OK, let me fix a few things first.
1) 家に帰ると、友達が待っていた。
2) 家に帰ったら、友達が待っていた。
Almost the same but 2) たら shows surprised feelings.
So と is just a condition. You came back home and your friend was there.
But たら can be used when you didn’t expect your friend to come expressing your surprised feelings.
Hi Cake,
To be honest, I don’t quite get why your teacher corrected it.
Though ものだという＋noun (Ex. 〜ものだという考え方がある） is common we see ものだという。pattern as well.
You should ask your teacher first.
Thank you so much for making this lesson. I’ve been waiting for this one for a while! I’ve been on this journey for six years and still learning new things thanks to you!
I have a question about some of these words. You said at the beginning of the lesson that this lesson will only cover words that repeat, but is there a big difference between words like: ぐるぐる回る / ぐるっと回る and にこにこ笑う / にっこり笑う ?
Hi Jackie,
Aかどうか means “Whether A or not”
予約が取れたかどうか = whether I got a reservation or not
Other examples.
試験に受かるかどうかわからない。= I don’t know whether I will (would) pass the exam or not.
past tense
試験に受かったかどうかわからない。= I don’t know whether I passed the exam or not.
Hello maggie sensei! I’m grateful w ur blog, it hv became my main reference for grammar now.
I hv a question here. If we are using toka to soften the speech, when should we put it? After noun? Before noun? After subject? Or before it? Thank u in advance! Hv a good day maggie sensei
You use を when you specifically want something and で is also used as a condition or state
a) You :「ツインルームをお願いします。」 “I want a twin room” →You want specifically a twin room.
b) You :「和室(or 畳) の部屋でお願いします。」 You want a room which is Japanese style. “Japanese style room” is a condition of your room. If you want specifically a Japanese-styled room, you can say 和室をお願いします。
***
Another example:
Ex.
「コーヒーお願いします。」
「ホットですか？アイスですか？ 」 Hot coffee or Iced coffee?
「アイスお願いします。」 In conversation you tend to omit を
or
「アイスでお願いします。」 literal translation: a coffee which is served cold. (state)
As for ために、 my textbook says that never use ために to try to induce another person to an action. It means I can not use tameni to end a sentence with ください。
Hello Ed
That’s a very brutal speech (Especially てめえ・だろうが）
持っていけばいいではないですか。
→持っていけばいいじゃない
→drop い from 持っていけば (This is another casual contraction) 持ってけばいいじゃないか。
→けば→きゃ
→持ってきゃいいじゃないか。
→more brutal 持ってきゃいいだろうが。
That was from the translation of a novel of Agatha Christie, right?
Connecting things with や four times like that is not that common and many Japanese people would avoid it.
But I guess it’s acceptable as a style of literature.
しまったんですから works for example when someones accuses you, “Why didn’t/don’t you come to school?”
Then you say 風邪をひいてしまったんですからしかたがありません。／どうしようもありません。(You sound a little angry.)
I had/have a cold. It cannot be helped./ How could I go. I have no choice, right?”
You explain the reason showing your irritating feelings so it sounds rude towards the teacher.
しまって is used when you talk about the consequence in the following sentence.
I think your second sentence has a typo. (てくだい and いくダサい: ダサい is slang for “lame/dorky” lol )
Can you check the original sentences first before I answer?
Woman are always right !!!
You are right for (2), that is a typo. The correct one is ください。
Thanks Maggie sensei
Haha I wonder if it includes female doggies.
車の免許が取れたから/ので車を買いたい。
車の免許が取れたから/ので車を買ってください。
Yes, they both work.
(I changed 車の免許を to 免許が because 取れた is a potential form so が will be a little more natural.)
Maggie 先生,
When students walk into the 職員室, WHAT do they say?
1.) 失礼します
2.) 名前 & 何年ー何組
3.) something ???????? 先生の名前お願いします.
Everyday, week after week, I hear the same thing but I canNOT understand the 3rd sentence *cry* I’ve asked my Japanese friends and they have NO idea what I’m talking about or can’t remember it…. I’ve heard this thousands of times but still cannot hear it…..
To me, it sounds like… “だれ-だれ先生, いいよっがてきました”？ But those are not words hahahaha….
I already know: “だれ-だれ先生,いらっしゃいますか?” but they are saying something different….
マギー先生,
*cry*ありがとうございました！D;
You’re absolutely right! “sensei ni you ga atte kimashita” <– this must be what they're saying!
I listened to them SUPER closely today at school (haha) And I could hear "~YOU GA atte kimashita"this time!!!
It makes total sense now! :D After all these years, the mystery is finally solved THANKS TO YOU!
I can't thank you enough D,x You're the BEST!
お世話になります！
<3
~Ali
I have a job interview on Wednesday and have been using this as reference for study. I am so nervous I could die. Thank you for all your amazing work. I hope if I have question’s it’s okay to ask you.
I get that adding の indicates the reason for something but then what would be the difference between のだ and のだから? When would you use the latter over the former?
から gives a reason clearly. You use のだ to stress the meaning or explain the reason in more subtle way.
And you finish the sentence with のだ・んだ but you don’t with のだから・んだから
So you give a reason with のだから for the following sentence.
せっかく東京に来たのだから観光していこう。
Since we are in Tokyo (reason) let’s do some sightseeing.
先生は忙しいのです。The teacher is busy. (explain the current state of the teacher.)
先生は忙しいのだからじゃまをしてはいけません。Since the teacher is busy, you shouldn’t bother him/her.
So you never finish a sentence with のだから・んだから?
What’s the reason for this? I remember writing a sentence that ended in んだから but it got corrected to のだ and I didn’t understand why.
On second thought, you do finish a sentence with のだから when you make your point, show your frustration
From my previous example sentence, if someone keeps bugging the teacher, they say
先生は、忙しいんだから
The difference is,
It sounds stronger than 先生は、今忙しいのです。and though you finish the sentence with から, the listener can read between the lines. 先生は、忙しいんだから（今はだめですよ。・あとにしてください。）
Hey Maggie. Much love for all of the info that you put out for all of us learners here. Thank youuuuuu!
Got some tiny questions. Why is there no past tense positive for i-adj? Also, there is no negative for plain style na-adjectives; why is that? Cause then you give the polite -masu form for all tenses.
Hmm you are not talking about suru/naru and just asking the conjugation of adjective here?
If so the past tense of i-adjective is
i→katta
ookii big →ookikatta was/were big
(polite) attach “desu” →ookikatta desu.
And the negative form of na-adjective is
benri(na) convenient → benridewanai / benrijanai not convenient
(polite) attach “desu” →benridewanai desu/ benrijanai desu.
Hello Maggie sensei ! I have quite an unusual question here
I was reading a manga (an ecchi manga, so it has jokes with people misunderstanding other people with sexual meaning and so on)
Could 手を出す imply something sexual or something ? It seemed like there was a joke, but even with the english translation i didn’t understand it, below is the link to the chapter since i believe reading it will be simpler for you
What I don’t understand is almost at the end
Thank you in advance if you help me with my unusual question !
This may sound like a dumb question, but what’s the difference between ～てある and the passive form in terms of use and meaning? I feel like they sound similar to one another in their meaning.
eg. クロッケはじゃが芋で作ってある。
クロッケはじゃが芋で作られた。
Neither require the person doing the making is necessary to be expressed. How do I know when to use one versus the other?
Hello,
Actually neither one sounds natural. You just say コロッケはじゃがいもで作る。
I guess it’s because we expect you to make korokke with potatoes.
Let me change the example sentence a little.
夕食にコロッケが作ってある。 Someone or you made korokke for dinner (The dinner is all set. The preparation is done.)
(Focusing on the state)
このコロッケはおからで作られている。 This korokke is made of tofu refuse.
(Focusing on the ingredients)
Hi maggie ,
Thanks for your awesome articles. I’ve just found your site recently and i’ve learned a lot of things which i wont be able to learn it in my school .
Keep doing good work xD
Hi maggie！First of all thank you so much for all the explanations you do. One question in this regard. I’ve heard before that either しか or たけ is used in the following regards:
– 1 is used for whenever there are many students in a class, for example, and only one traveled on golden week.So out of all students, only one traveled.
– 2 is when it’s only one traveled, regardless of how many there were.
Not sure if I make sense. Would love to hear back from you.
There’s this question that I really need help with. In 新完全マスターN2文法、in the lesson about につれて、に従って、there’s this explanation
“につれての後には自然に起こる変化を表す文が来て、意志的な行為を表す文は来ない.”
What does this 意志的な行為 really mean here? Does it mean saying “学校に行きます” “よく遊びよう” “食事をしました。”etc? What kind of sentence does it say not to use after につれて here?
意思的な行為を表す文 Your interpretation is right. 学校に行きます。よく遊ぼう、食事をしました they all involve your will to do something.
日が経つにつれて(as time passes) ＋だんだん寒くなってきた。(you can’t control the temperature or weather) / 彼の気持ちがわかってきた。(I come to understand his feelings) the emotions.feelings that you can’t control.
試験が近くにつれて (As the exams get closer) + 緊張してきた (getting nervous: uncontrollable feelings)
These are tricky cases. :)
Technically you are not supposed to use volitional verbs but I guess even if the verb in the following sentence involves one’s will, when you just state the fact and not involving the writer/speaker’s will, there are cases that you can use them.
Wow O.o! so tricky. Thank you so much for pointing it out to me.
Only trouble you with 2 more examples, please?? 😭🙏
1. 町の発展につれて、店がたくさん開かれた。
(is this technically correct, the 2nd phrase is not 意志的な行為 right?)
2. ホワイト・デイの贈り物の範囲が広がるにしたがって、他業種の多くの企業がその日のために新商品の開発を始めました。
(is this sentence with にしたがって technically correct? I’m not sure cause in the explanation in the book, they only mention not using 意志的な行為 after につれて、while with にしたがって、they only say “.. の後には自然な変化を表す文が来ることが多い.”
I am so grateful for your help.. Yesterday I felt like my brain will explode from trying to figure these grammar out 🤯
1. That’s right. The 2nd phrase is not 意志的な行為
2. ~ につれて/にしたがい are almost the same. They will not ask you the difference between つれて and したがい in the exam.
~ につれて/にしたがい (1) + ~ (2)
Along with (1), ~ (2)
And as your textbook says, you describe what happens in (2)
The whole sentence in in your example sentence 他業種の多くの企業がその日のために新商品の開発を始めた is a sort of the change which was caused by (1)
ありがとうございました!
本当に勉強になりました。<3 <3 <3
どういたしまして 💗
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a question regarding によって and ため when they express the reason.
Are they interchangeable?
May I ask a question? I’ve noticed that in your example sentence 彼女には美的感覚が全くない there is no -na connecting 美的 to 感覚. I suppose that’s because 美的感覚can be considered one large word, right?
But then, I’ve also found this sentence in my texbook: そこまでやるのは自殺的行為だ。In his case, 自殺的行為 doesn’t seem to be ‘one large word’ as I can’t find it in a dictionary. So, is it sometimes possible to omit -na?
I guess some people say 美的な感覚・自殺的な行為 but 美的感覚・自殺的行為 are much more common.
So when you check the meaning in the dictionary and can’t find the definition, you may want to separate the words (Ex. 美的＋感覚・自殺的+ 行為） and figure out the meaning.
You will see a lot of words with 的 in a compound words without using な
知的好奇心 intellectual curiosity
具体的対策 a concrete measure
客観的意見 objective opinion, etc.
Now that’s a cool lesson, thank you for that Maggie! ^^
I have also a couple of different expressions with それ, which I can share with you (with others). That might be useful, I think.
Maybe you could make a little update with 1-2 examples and explanation to that lesson?
Yes, you can use たびに with わけではない
かせを引くたびに彼に世話をされるわけではない。
→ かせ→かぜ
The last part will be more natural 彼に世話をしてもらうわけではない or 彼が世話をしてくれるわけではない than using passive form される
Your book is right.
新しい発見がある is actually not a state. Since it uses the verb ある, it might look confusing but
Every time I read books, I discover something new.
I will make a lesson for you sometime. Please wait. :)
So I’d like to confirm my understanding about Aたびに、B
Since A and B is not allowed to be a state, then
(1)友達の活躍を聞くたびにうれしい。Will be incorrect because うれしい is a state.
But
(2) 友達の活躍を聞くたびにうれしく思う。Will be OK
If something wrong, please teach me again. And thank you so much Maggie sensei !!!
Good, I was going to tell you about expressing the feeling part.
You are right. 1) is not right but 2) is right. You can also say うれしくなる become happy (It is sort of the state with you can say that with the verb 思う／なる ）
Regarding the application of ～たて as a verb suffix, you write
”It won’t work with all the verbs but I will show you the common ones ”
Could you please elaborate more on that? What verbs and why? Could you please provide examples for verbs that cannot be conjugated with “-tate” as a suffix and only “bakari” can be applied? Thank you!
Very nice. Far beyond my level, I am afraid. For example, you, as most people do, write gochisousan but I noticed that some write it Gochisōsan (with a long mark over the o instead of an extra u. So what exactly is the pronunciation? Thanks. We have been enjoying the very good Japanese TV series of the same name on Lithuanian television, but I see it is now available online with insightful English subtitles. There are also a couple of good Japanese restaurants in the country and we would like to compliment the chefs in their native tongue.
Hello Arturas,
I don’t use long sound symbol here and type exactly the same way as romaji spelling but the pronunciation is “Gochisōsama” / “Gochisōsan” strech “o” sound lightly.
I think they use Osaka dialect in the the TV show, “Gochisōsan”. Enjoy the show! :)
I think this question is somewhat related to this lesson, if I switch 誰 with any other noun, would the same rules still apply?
e.g.
1.大人にも難しいです。
2.大人でも難しいです。
The first one with にも was what I used when I wanted to say something is difficult even for adults, then I came across a sentence by a native Japanese speaker using でも (the second one), which I assume is the correct way of saying it. But I’m still confused, is the first one strictly wrong? What would be the correct way of using にも in this case?
The basic difference is
noun にも〜 = ~ for/to noun,too
noun でも 〜 = ~ even for ~
1.大人にも難しいです。
2.大人でも難しいです。
Though some people say 1) 大人にも難しい
2) 大人でも難しい is much more common
The nuance difference is
2) means “It is difficult even for adults.”
1) is “It is difficult for adults,too.”
***
I will show you other examples.
Let’s compare the following sentences.
→私にもできることがある。
There is something that I can do, too.
→私でもできることがある。
There is something that even I can do.
You said “Nemu yo” so I was wondering what you meant because you don’t say “nemu yo”
If you meant “nete yo” (or male speech “nero yo”), it means “Go to bed!” and the speaker is telling the listener to go to sleep.
But if you say “nemui yo” That means “I am sleepy!” and the speaker is just expressing how sleepy he/she is and not telling the listener to do anything.
Hi! Maggie sensei ✨
I found your explanation really easy to understand! But I have a question: when it comes to nouns the way they are used was different, so then when I use わけではない I can only put noun+という＋わけではない but with わけがない you could also use noun+である／の＋わけがないbit not with わけではない ?
OK, for example
Ex. 1 彼女が美人というわけではない
= (She) is not particularly beautiful
Let’s change のわけがない
Ex. 2 彼女が美人のわけがない
Ex. 1) denying the possibility partially (not everything) “not particularly/especially beautiful”
Ex. 2) means “There is NO WAY that she is beautiful. She is far from beautiful.” It negates completely.
I would say everything but if you don’t have so much time to study, you can learn kanji and vocabulary when you study sentence patterns or reading.
がんばって！
That も means “also”
Yes, you sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with も
Ex. これください。あっ、それも。 Please give me this one. Oh, that one,to.
Ex. A: 「田中君のことが好き」 I like Tanaka-kun
B: 「私も！」
As for your example sentence
Example: お父さんとお母さんが好きです。黄色も
I like Dad and Mom. And yellow, too.
Just context-wise unnatural but
お母さんが好き。お父さんも！ is possible IN CONVERSATION.
Hi Megu,
It is a conversational expression but let me explain.
わたしは先輩がわたしの特別だって決めました
→わたしは「先輩がわたしの特別(な人・存在)だ」ということを決めました
If this person is talking to her senpai (senpai is one’s senior who entered the school/company earlier than the speaker)
I decided that you are special.(It may sound too dramatic but she is saying “I hereby declare that I like you!” )
Hello Sensei
In the sentence below, which particle should be used here- ni or de?
Jimusho de shorui o dashimashita.
Jimusho ni shorui o dashimashita.
I want to say- “I submitted the documents at the office”. I can’t clearly understand which one should be used. One of the examples above uses dashimasu in a similar sense. However, here, when i say “submit the document”, it seems like “submit” is the action taking place at the office (place). Can you please explain the reason for the answer?
Thanks
When you are talking about
どこに書類をだしましたか？
= Doko ni shorui wo dashimashita ka?
= Where did you submit your documents?
You say
事務所に書類を出しました。
（じむしょにしょるいをだしました。）
You submitted the documents to the office.
but under certain condition, both of them are possible.
Let’s change the sentence a little.
どこの事務所で出しましたか？
In which office, did you submit the documents?
名古屋の事務所で書類を出しました。
（なごやのじむしょでしょるいをだしました。）
= Nagoya no jimusho de shorui wo dashimashita.
= I submitted the documents in the office in Nagoya.
(As you said で indicated where the action, submitting, took a place.)
@maggiesensei is it because we are considering the office as an entity as in itself i.e. to say, when we are using “to” we are comprehending that, we are not basically giving (inside the office to someone, but to the office itself). As, if the context had another intent (like giving it to someone) I think that で could have been use; e.g. 私は会社で山口さんに手紙をあげた This is what my reasoning is, I need your help vide your response, as I am unable to figure out whether it is apt or not!
You want to say “Max is rude to everyone except Mary (He is only polite to Mary)?
Maryにだけ礼儀正しいね。
= Mary ni dake reigi tadashii ne.
Maryにだけ丁寧（ていねい）だね。
= Mary ni dake teinei dane.
If you want to use しか
Maryにしか礼儀正しくない。
Maryにしか丁寧ではない。
Hmm I wonder if this is what you are asking but, you sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with だけ in casual conversation.
Ex.
A: 「いつ洗濯するの？」 =When do you do your laundry?
B: 「日曜だけ。」 Just Sunday
***
C: 「マギーだけを愛してる」 I only love you Maggie.
Maggie: 「本当に私だけ？」 Just me? Sure?
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei!
I love all your lessons and they help me a lot! I want to ask you, is there a specific name for words such as “fuwa fuwa” or “peko peko”? Do you have any lessons on it?
Thank you!
Those are called 擬音語（ぎおんご）/ 擬態語（ぎたいご）
I don’t have a lesson here but I once in a while teach those on Twitter. (Actually I just taught fuwafuwa today) 😊
Search on Twitter typing the word
“Onomato4Day” +maggiesensei. You will see the past tweets.
（dokoroka -> dokorodehanaku: onaji?) → No, you can’t say どころではなく
“咳が出るので風邪かなと思っていたが、ただの風邪どころではなく、肺炎だった。”
（dokorodehanaku -> dokoroka: onaji?)
Yes, You can say ただの風邪どころか肺炎だった。
“休日なのでちょっとは道がこむだろうと思っていたが、ちょっとどころではなかった。”
（dokorodehanakatta -> dokoroka: onaji?)
No, you can’t use どころか
When you use どころか, you have to explain how it was.
Ex.ちょっとどころかすごく混んでいた・車が渋滞で全く動かなかった。
So, it will work if it’s just 勝たない？ Is there a general rule to distinguish between when one can be used and the other cannot?
Thanks!
On second thought I guess it is possible to say 勝てないどころではなく but the listener might be confused.
There are a couple of possibilities but you have to change the sentence a little.
勝つどころか一点も入れられないだろう。
勝つどころではなく一点も入れられないだろう。”
Talking about the past
勝てなかったどころではなく一点も入れられなかった。
“勝てる is a potential form so if you say 勝てないどころではなく, it sounds like “Not being able to lose”
Sorry for troubling you again. I still don’t quite get it, why would it sound like “not being able to lose”? Why the confusion here?
I don’t know how far I can explain here but
1)勝てないどころか一点も入れられないだろう。
(勝てないどころではなく）
Not jut we can’t win (we will lose). We won’t be able to score even one point.
(Unfavorable result A + unfavorable resultB )
Responding to the idea, “We may lose this game.” /“We can’t win this game.”
2) 勝てる(or 勝つ）どころか一点も入れられないだろう。
(勝てないどころではなく）
We won’t be able to score one point let alone winning the game.
(desirable result C + unfavorable result D )
Responding to the idea, “We can win!” / “ We want to win” / “Are we going to win?”
So you can say 勝てないどころか, some listener might think why you use unfavorable result in C)
I kinda get it now! Just want to clarify one point though. So you mean either どころか or どころではなく will be a little confusing when used in this context right? (because originally my question was about why dokorodehanaku can’t be used, and the examples you gave me was of dokoroka, so I want to clarify again!)
Thank you so much!
Sorry. I forgot to include ではなく (I just added it in my previous email)
わかりました！ありがとうございました、先生 <3
どういたしまして、Trang! 💕
マギー先生 こんにちは、こんばんはo((*^▽^*))o
いつも役に立つレッスンを作ってくださりありがとうございます。
１つ質問させてください。
彼女は料理ができないどころか、卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
どうして 「料理ができるどころか」ではないの？
英語訳は being able to cook なのに？
なんか。。おかしい質問ですよね ｗｗｗ
Yes, that’s right.
Actually お任せください has two meanings.
1) You can count on me./ You can leave it to me/ I will take care of it.(in this case her)
2) I know everything about it.(her) I am an expert on ~ .
Only to make this idiot-proof: When this friend of hers knows what I feel for that girl and wrote me “あやみ姫のことはお任せください” (Ayami is the girl’s last name), she basically said that she wants to help me with her? Like “when it comes to her, just leave it to me”?
It’s not that I wouldn’t believe you or wanted to ask the same thing over and over again – I just want to make sure that I understand her right, as this sounds a little too good to be true …
お助けありがとうございます！
ラルフ
Hi Ralph
It depends on the previous conversation.
For example, if you tell her “I need your help. I really like her” Then, お任せください means “I will help you with her.”
Or as another possibility is, if she knows you like her, お任せください also means “I will take care of her (for you). So don’t worry.”
Well, there was no real previous conversation. I wrote that friend of hers in oder to promise her my support in an important matter for her. She thanked me, said that my support was important for her, and then she wrote that sentence about あやみ姫.
OK, then she meant “I will take care of her. (Don’t worry.)”
そうですか。ありがとうございます。
I think it’s interesting that one word or term can have so many different – yet similar – meanings …
どういたしまして！
あやみ姫とうまくいくことを願っています😉
本当にありがとうございます！😊
U^ェ^U 💕💕
Oh no, there so many structures to learn…
This is so difficult for me to understand…
私はちょっと頭が悪いんだけど…
Maggie Sensei can you please help me?
I’ve learned that らしい can be translated as “It looks like” but in a way that someone told me about this and I’m just passing this information.
And I also learn that そう can mean “it looks/ it seems” but in a way that I look someting and take a conclusion about it.
Is it everything that I said right?
If it’s possible can you please give a brief explanation about the differences between らしい, そう, みたい and っぽい?
This is so amazing, thank you. I have recently decided to try and seriously perfect my understanding of the language and this website clarifies plenty of what I am not understanding.
This lesson is really long, and I have a lot of questions. Can you please answer me?
1) can I say
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったって instead of あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったと言う
and
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないって instead of 動物好きの人に悪い人はいないと言う
informally?
2) can I say
あなたが好きだ気持 instead of あなたが好きだという気持
何が起こるかわからない恐怖 instead of 何が起こるかわからないという恐怖
物が豊富にある生活 instead of 物が豊富にあるという生活
大もうけできる話 instead of 大もうけできるという話 ??
3) I’m sorry but I didn’t understand the part of というと which says “Bring up something and continue something which always happens”
Hi Eliza
You can say in casual speech
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったって
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないって
But these could sound a little too light (I mean when you tell someone what you heard.)
But the closest ones to という are
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったんだって
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないんだって
These sounds slightly more explanatory.
2) あなたが好きだ気持 →あなたが好きな気持ち
The rest are fine.
という add more serious tone, though.
3)
• このところ休日というといつも仕事だ。
So in this sentence, you bring up the topics, which is 休日 and tell the listener what always happens in 休日
A.メガネをかける人 = a person who wears glasses
B.メガネををかけた人 = wore glasses
C.メガネをかけている人= is wearing/wears glasses
D.メガネをかけていた人= was wearing glasses
BとC、だいたい意味は同じですか？
その人がメガネをすでにかけているように感じますけれど…
E. 結婚する人 = a person to marry or a person who is going to get married ?
F. 結婚した人 = a person who already got married
G. 結婚している人 = a person who is married
H. 結婚していた人 = a person was (once) married (no longer)?
こんにちは、Sassy
A: correct. (Indicates the habitual action so a person who usually wears glasses. )
B is “a person who is wearing glasses” (describing the current state) so B & C are the same “A person who is wearing the glasses” but C also means “A person who is putting on the glasses now” as well.
Hi Maggie, I am so sorry for bothering you again, but can you please explain these questions?
Is it always necessary to put なら or たら before or after ついて or ついてに?
If it’s not necessary, what’s the nuance that なら and たら give to the sentence?
(As I my understanding for なら and たら, they mean “if”)
Does it sound natural to not use なら and たら in the examples showed before?
You often use なら・たら when you use ついでに but it is possible to use without using them.
The nuance difference is
1) 出かけるなら・出かけるんだったらついでにパン買ってきて。 If you are going out ~ (The speaker is not 100 pct sure that the listener is going out yet.)
2) 出かけるついでにパン買ってきて。 Since you are going out (the speaker is sure that the listener is going out. )
You also use なら・たら even if you know the listener is going out for sure just to make the sentence sounds a little softer.
古そうです The speaker is judging （You are right the speaker is just looking at the apple and saying it looks old.)
古いようです Either the speaker is judging, heard the information from someone else or tasted it and assuming it’s old.
Hi Maggie-Sensei, I have three questions. I tried composing a sentence about some examples of Canadian sweets using とか, but I wonder if I did it correctly.
1) Can とか and や be used if we list more than two nouns or adjectives, or are they only used after two instances?
2) Can additional particles like も come after とか as in my above sentence?
3) If I’m writing to a penpal I have spoken to in years, and want to be polite and write formally, should I use や instead? If I’m talking to people I don’t know on the street (of any age) would I use とか or would it be too casual with strangers?
1) Usually you list two things. AとかB（とかC） / AやB（やC)
You see some people connect three things in casual speech/writing but if it is more than four, I think it is too much.
What you can do is to connect with “、” and you can add など ( = etc)
AやB、D、E＋（など）の〜
AとかB、D、E＋（など）の〜
２）If you want to add も
「Butter tarts」とか「BeaverTails」、「Nanaimo bars」、「tiger tail ice cream」などのお菓子もあります。
3) や is more formal than とか.
Unless you are in formal business situation, you can use とか when you talk to a stranger.
Can you please explain me these two examples from the last topic, which are:
Ex. あんなに冷たい人だとは思わなかった。
= Annani tsumetai hito dato wa omowanakatta.
=I had no idea he/she was such a cold hearted person.
Ex. あんなに雨が降るとは思わなかった。
= Annani ame ga furu to wa omowanakatta.
= I didn’t think it would rain that much.
My question is, why you use the particle は in these sentences?
I understand that は indicates the topic of the sentence but, can I just say あんなに冷たい人だと思わなかった and あんなに雨が降ると思わなかった ?
Again thank you so much for this great lesson and know that I have two notebooks only with your lessons! They are really helping me!
Wow! You have two notebooks with my lessons? I’m impressed!!
You can say と思わなかった but by adding は （とは） you stress what comes before so that you can express your surprised feelings more.
Yes, I have two notebooks. I already filled one (wich has 100 sheets), and I am finishing the second notebook (wich has 200 sheets). Soon I will start to fill the third notebook.
I am reading asahi, and came across this sentence. How does the last part translate?
「そんな勘違いをしてしまった人がいるほどの超絶技巧だ」 from the full context:
本物の金魚を樹脂で固めるなんて、けしからん――。かつて、そんな勘違いをしてしまった人がいるほどの超絶技巧だ
Hi Claus
I don’t do the translation here but it roughly means,
The craftsmanship was so amazing that some people mistook (the artwork with the real goldfish.)
Is a) is possible if I want to focus on the action (wake) I did in yesterday.
And for this sentence
2/私がこの５年間で（1. 作った ２．作っていた）作品の展覧会がひらられます。
My understanding is
If I use 作った, I am focusing on the action (create) I did in 5 years
And if I use 作っていた, I am focusing on the already-completed product.
1.昨日１２時すぎまで起きていた。
You can’t say 起きた
起きた means “got up” and it’s a one-time action.
So it is possible to say
１２時に起きた。
朝遅く起きた。
起きていた means “to be awake” and describe the state of being awake so you can say
１２時過ぎまで起きていた／遅くまで起きていた／朝まで起きていた。
2. I think the most natural answer will be 1. 作った because the particle で after ５年間
５年間”で”作った作品 the piece/pieces of artwork that I made/finished making in these five years.
(focusing on how long it took to finish the artwork.)
５年間作っていた作品 the piece/pieces of artwork that I have been making for five years.
(focusing on the artwork which I have been making for five years.)
Then I think I can answer in the following ways:
(1) あきらめないよ！
（２）あきらめるわけではない
（３）あきらめるわけがない
All of the above sentences deny the thing that I quit learning.
But is it the level of denying is strongest in (3), is normal in (1) and is slight in (2) .
これ、詳しく説明にくいかもしれないけど…
それら例文で「が/を」の代わりに「も」は「勉強」と「彼」に付いている理由を説明してもらえませんか？
This may be difficult to fully explain but, could you explain why in these sentences the partical も is attached to 彼 and 勉強 instead of say が or を?
「彼も謝った」は英語で「He’s also apologised」だから、リスナーも謝ったという意味ですか？そうでなければ、教えて下さい。よろしくお願いします。
Since「彼も謝った」means 「he also apologised」, does that imply the listener has also apologised? If not, please tell.
Thank you.
Konnichiwa sensei,
Ogenki desu Ka.
First of all thank you for your hard work. :)
So my doubt is,
Can we use the volitional form with seniors, in formal situations?
漢字がよく書けている。(Let me add よく to make it sound more natural) →OK or 書けるようになった
ケーキができていた。→ OK
If I just see the sentence, 赤ちゃんが立てている。, I would say it is not natural but if you add some context ,I guess it is possible.
Still （一人で）立てるようになった/ 立てるようになっている is more common.
おはようございます、マギー先生！
Your site is always very useful. I was doing my homework and wondered if you’ve already covered the 助詞+の topic, and sure enough, here it is!
An example sentence from my homework has got me confused though, I’m hoping you can help explain it. The following is how the sentence is formatted:
あれ（は の）吉田さん（が の）描いた絵です。
We’re supposed to circle the correct particles in similarly formatted questions. The example sentence already have the answers circled in:
あれ（’は’ の）吉田さん（’が’ ’の’）描いた絵です。(just in case it isn’t clear, the particles が and の in the second set of parentheses are both individually circled).
What confused me is the がの combination, as I thought that が/は/に/を cannot precede の?
Or am I misunderstanding it as an example that the sentence can possibly be written as 吉田さんが描いた絵です or 吉田さんの描いた絵です? However, this seems unlikely considering that the exercise was given just after learning the use of 助詞+の, so it’s probably meant to be read as 吉田さんがの描いた絵です. If this is correct, what is the difference with 吉田さんが描いた絵, and what could the の in the example sentence is supposed to refer to?
の explains what comes after.
~の君 = You who is ~ / does ~
So the literal translation is
You who may stay in the state without noticing.
It means you will probably not notice/realize/know*
(*depending on the context)
It actually is, from a disbanded indies Visual Kei band called SectMateria.
Yes, it is a very literal expression so you don’t hear that in conversation. 😊
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I had a question regarding these two tenses of くる
あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now and maybe in future as well)
景気がよくなってきています。
The economy has been getting better. (until now)
For some reason I thought きています would indicate (it has been but also in the future)and くるwould be until now… And if it is until now would you not just say
あの子はだんだん可愛くなってきたね。
I guess I am just confused on when you would use てきています vs てくる.
Thank you in advance.
Hi
景気がよくなってきています。
It could be talking about future but it is just focusing on the current state. The point of view is “now” and the describing the change up to now.
こんにちは先生！
There are things I want to ask.
I am a bit confused about ‘ほどの…’
1. 目に見えないほど小さいダイヤの指輪を買った。
Is it possible to shorten the following sentence? Modifying the ring.
1. 目に見えないほどの指輪を買った。
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどのお土産を持って帰ってきた。
Would it be alright to drop the ‘の’?
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどお土産を持って帰ってきた。
3. If i want to say, ‘that person has countless/so many cars’ using ほど expression.
3. あの方は、数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。Should i add ‘の’ to modify the car ?
or just
3. あの方は、車の数が数え切れないほど多いです。
Would you mind to take a look at the following sentence, I wonder if I make any mistakes.
Is it possible to shorten the following sentence? Modifying the ring.
1. 目に見えないほどの指輪を買った。
It is possible but it is more clear with 小さい.
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどお土産を持って帰ってきた。
→Yes.
3. あの方は、数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。Should i add ‘の’ to modify the car ?
The original sentence itself is not natural.
Let me change the sentences a little first. Personは〜があります。→placeには〜があります。 or personは〜を持っています。
あの家には数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。
あの方は数え切れないほど車を持っています。
車の数が数え切れないほど多いです。
Not natural.
4. 三時間ほどずっと働いていたので、体がいつでも倒れるほど疲れています。
→今にも倒れそうなぐらい疲れています。
If you want to use ほど
今にも倒れそうなほど、働きました。
As I understand, with intransitive verbs doesn’t matter who is doing the action because the focus is in the state. But with transitive verbs, who do the action is important…
**
But, I have questions…
Instead of あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートが出る, can I say あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートを出す ?
Because in this sentence, who is providing the dessert is the restarant… So, the restaurant is doing the action, right?
**
And talking about feelings/ emotions/ opinions…
Instead of 停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出ている, can I say 停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出している ?
***
Talking about ‘to stick out’:
Instead of 白線から前に出てはいけません, can I say 白線から前に出していけません ?
Instead of 車の窓から手を出してはいけません, can I say 車の窓から手を出てはいけません ?
あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートを出す Yes
There is a nuance difference but you can say that.
***
停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出している ? No
***
白線から前に出していけません ? No. Unless you are talking about particular thing, Ex. one’s feet or bag, 足/かばんを白線から前に出してはいけません。 In this case they are talking about a person, so you can’t say that.
***
For the same reason,
you can’t say
車の窓から手を出てはいけません ?
It is a part of your body so you use 出す
Let me tell you one last time.
白線から出る You are talking about oneself so you use intransitive form. Someone crosses the line.
白線から足を出す You are talking about your feet-foot. Someone let one’s foot cross the line.（object is one’s foot)
Longtime reader, first time poster! Thank you for all your hard work.
Though I have to admit, I’m one of the women who uses masculine words; not to make a point or because of anime, but because my personality has always been very 男っぽい and so it really does feel more natural for me.
All that said, I only use them with my Japanese husband and very close friends; when I’m talking to anyone else, I use proper feminine Japanese (^^)
Hi Naka!
I’m happy to hear you have been reading my lessons for a long time. Also thank you for your first comment.
Haha, so you can switch your way of speaking depending on who you talk to. That’s the next level!! Good for you! :)
My apologies in advance.
Since I’m not sure in which article I should ask, I’m going to ask here.
I’m kind of confused with the usage of ある/いる＋の
I’m having this problem to translate informal verbal conversation.
“Do even you remember where the chamber is?”
I used this in reflex of my brain.
「室はどこにあるか、覚えてる？」
Then after a while I felt odd, and thought of other sentences, that maybe I should use のas well. And it became,
「室はどこにあるのか、覚えてる？」
But after reading some articles about usage of のandこと, it even confused me and made me created other confusing options, such as:
「室はどこにあること、覚えてる？」
「室はどこにあるのこと、覚えてる？」
Would you mind to tell me which/what is the right one and why?
Thank you!
Thank you very much for your reply ;w;
That was really a great help. Your explanation is so easy to understand. I will take a note and will not forget this also.
Let change 涙が出ると to 泣くと which sounds more natural.（Especially when you are talking about someone else.)
あなたが泣くと悲しくなるよ If you cry, I (naturally) feel sad.
あなたが泣けば悲しくなる If you cry, I will feel sad. (hypothetical)
涙が出ればそばにいてふいてよ/涙が出るとふいてよ。
Not natural
Hmm I guess you could say
涙が出たら or 私が泣いたらそばにいて拭いてよ。
Hello, doesn’t really have anything to do with the subject i would like some help.
この文と大体同じ意味の文があります is supposed to mean “There is a sentence that means basically the same thing as this sentence”, but why use と in this sentence ? Souldn’t it be は ?
Your sentences are all good!
If you want to make it sound more natural, you could add more information to だから食べたい時は
Ex. だから外食するときは / だから外で食べたいときは (When I want to eat out) because you assume that you could eat at home when you want to eat. 😉
Other than that, they are all very natural.
Hello,
I am sorry but both sentences are not natural.
The verb tense in the following sentences can’t be simple past tense in this case.
ていた is better because it describes the state after the action or what has been happening.
窓の外を見たら、大勢の人が殺されていた。
窓の外を見たら、彼が大勢の人を殺していた。
When I looked out the windows, I saw* ~~
(There isn’t a verb to see (見る) in Japanese sentence but you describe what you saw by ていた)
If you use the simple past tense
窓の外を見たら、大勢の人が殺された。
窓の外を見たら、彼は大勢の人を殺した。
It sounds like the action of looking out the window 窓の外を見た caused people’s death or him killing people.
when I closed my eyes, I saw you were here.
目を閉じたら、ここにあなたがいていた！
Is it OK or I need to change to いた。
Hello
You can’t say いていた. It’s いた
But I think it would be more natural to say
When I opened my eyes, you were there.
目を開けたら、そこにあなたがいた。
Hello, Maggie.
I had a question regarding using ように before 聞こえるor 見える.
I thought it was needed but I heard this… 100パーセント外国人に聞こえます。 When watching a video of someone saying to not do something or you’d sound 100% like a foreigner. I do not see ように used here so can you omit it and it will be fine?
Thank you
You’re very welcome!
Yes, it’s Osaka/Kansai dialect but people in other area also use it jokingly. (A lot of comedians are from Kansai area so it is one of well-known expressions.)
Oh no, you had a fight with your friend? Then don’t tell me who said what.
(1) 私は結婚している = talking about the current state. I am married.
(2) 私は結婚した = I got married. It just tells the fact that this person got married in certain time. It doesn’t mean “I already divorced.”
If you say 私は結婚していた。then it means this person got divorced or husband/wife passed away.
I just started a job at a hotel in Australia looking for the opportunity to converse with Japanese guests. It was very hard to find a site with useful Japanese phrases for someone who WORKS at a hotel.
This page was fantastic. Extremely helpful! Thank you!!
isn’t it that kagiri and youdewa somewhere have same nuance?
例えば、
練習のやり方を変えない限り、優勝はむりだとコーチに言われた。
締め切りを守れないようじゃ、漫画家としてやっていけないよ。
can’t they be used interchangeably?
They could be interchangeable but ようでは involves the speaker’s feelings/emotions towards the target person more.
練習のやり方を変えないようでは、優勝は無理だとコーチに言われた。
締め切りを守れないようじゃ、漫画家としてやっていけないよ。
Thank you very much for this lesson Maggie 先生, it’s really detailed, thank you!
however, I am a little confused .. What’s the difference between N + の こ と and に つ い て? both mean “about” right?
OK, I guess I explained のこと as “things about something/someone” and the word “about” made you confused.
What I meant by “things about” is not “on the particular subject = ついて”
You can say
野球のことはいつでも私に聞いてください。
(or 野球に関することならいつでも私に聞いてください。)
“Ask me anything about baseball/ anything related to baseball.)
but 野球についていつでも私に聞いてください is not quite natural.
You can say 彼は野球について詳しい。・野球についてよく知っている。 He knows a lot about baseball.
この本は野球について書かれている。= This book is about baseball. (with the specific theme)
You say
彼は私のことが好きみたいだ。He seems to like me.
But you can’t say
彼は私について好きみたいだ。
Here’s a confusing example.
彼は私についてなにも知らない。
彼は私のことをなにも知らない。
These two sentences can be translated “He doesn’t know anything about me.”
The difference is
私について is more specific: what I did/ my background/my history, etc.
私のことを is more general, who I am (Ex. it could be what I did/background as well but it is more about my personality,)
Hi Maggie sensei!, please help me. How should I say this in japanese ” Igraduated in ~~university major in finance and pursue another units for teaching program ” arigatou gozaimasu sensei!
I don’t do the translation in the comment section but
The basic pattern is
university name 大学（department name 学部）卒業 (graduated)
or
university name 大学（department name 学部） 専攻:+ what you majored in 卒業 (graduated)
* additional information in your case→pursue another units for teaching program
Maybe the system is different but →Does that mean you have a teacher’s license?
We need another 18 units (if your not a 4 yr graduate of education) that covers all the major subjects of teaching for us to qualify in taking licensure exam in teacher. It is actually” certificate in teaching program”. Sumimasen sensei, im not good in english >.< Anyways, thank you very much for prompt response. You are an angel 😇 i'll check the link about job hunting . ありがとうございます😊😊😊
Hi Maggie sensei, and thank you for the lesson.
服を買うのにあれこれ迷いました。
Could you please explain the use of のに in this sentence?
both “even though” and “in order to” seem not to fit.
ie:
even though i buy clothes i was undecided between this and that.
in order to buy clothes i was undecided between this and that.
(1) 子供は泣いているばかりです。 talking about the particular time when the child keeps crying.
(2) 子供は泣いてばかりいる。 The child always cries.
(3) 彼女の幸せを祈るばかりです
I just wish her happiness.
(4) 彼女の幸せを祈ってばかりいる。
The only thing I do is praying for her happiness. / I have been constantly praying for her happiness.
Maggie sensei, I find that there is case that ～ているところに and ～るところ both mention the same thing (though they have a different grammar), and would like to ask you.
(1) 彼に話すところです。
This sentence grammar is るところ and it shows the meaning ” I am about to talk to him”.
(2) 彼に話そうとおもっちいるところ。
The grammar is ているところ but
Also means ” I was about to talk to him”
Or
彼に話そうとしているところ
The grammar is also ているところbut
Also means “I was about to talk to him”.
I think the translation is the same.
But are they different?
I’m sorry for my typo in (1) and I’d like to correct it.ごめんなさい！
ーーーーー
(2) 彼に話そうと思っているところ。
The grammar is ているところ but
Also means ” I was about to talk to him”
1) 話すところ I am about to talk.
2) 話そうとしているところ
These two mean the same. 2) is a volitional form so the literal translation would be
I am about to try to talk.
話そうと思っているところ is still thinking.
I am thinking about talking to him.
Yes, as I wrote in my previous comment,
ところに when (Right in the time I was writing an email, that person showed up)
間に while I was waiting (it implies this person has been waiting for certain period of time. While I was writing and email, that person showed up.)
Hi Eliza,
First 作ってみる not 作てみる
For example, you found an recipe which looks good and want to make that food.
美味しそうだから作ってみます。/ 作ってみる= It looks delicious so I will give it a try and make it. (You are talking about future.)
美味しそうだから作ってみました。/ 作ってみた = It looked delicious so I gave it a try and made it. (You actually made it.)
美味しそうだから作ってみようとした means you tried but you didn’t make it for some reason.
美味しそうだから作ってみようとしたけれども材料がなかった。= It looked so delicious that I was going to make it but I didn’t because I didn’t have ingredients.
When someone is trying to make it, you can say
妹はまだ小さいのに料理を作ろうとしている。My younger sister is still small but she is trying to cook something.
Hi Maggie 先生！
I understand how to use のだ、but I find it hard to understand the nuances when it’s だけどvsんだけど and でしょう(か)vsんでしょう(か)。Can you help me?
1 行きたいんだけど今日は忙しい。= (It’s that) I want to go, but I’m busy today ←？
2 行きたいけど今日は忙しい。= I want to go, but I’m busy today
3 このうち、好きなものはないんだけど、選ぼうとしたらあれ。= ？
4 このうち、好きなものはないけど、選ぼうとしたらあれ。= Even though I don’t like anything here, if I had to pick, I would pick that one.
5 AとBは違うでしょう？=A and B are probably different, right?/Yes, A and B are different, aren’t they? (a little like 「だよね？」?)
6 AとBは違うんでしょう？=A and B are two different things, right? ←？
7 AとBは違うでしょうか？=Could/might A and B be different? ←？
8 AとBは違うんでしょうか？= Could it be that A and B are different? ←？
んだけど／んでしょう（か） sounds stronger so that you can emphasize your feelings more with “ん”
1) & 2) →行きたいんだけど shows your desire more. 行きたいけど is just a statement.
3) & 4) →ないんだけど emphasizes the part 好きなものはない. NOTHING I like here BUT
5) & 6) 6) expresses more accusing tone. So you have to be careful when you ask a question like this with ん. The person who you asked might feel you are angry.
7 & 8) 8) express your surprised feelings. This is something unexpected. I thought A and B were different but is is possible that I am wrong????
Hi Eliza,
The biggest difference is you always use やすい／にくい combining with other verb and
you don’t use 簡単／難しい in a compound words.
~するのは／verb dictionary form + のが簡単です。= Doing something is easy.
~するのは／verb dictionary form + のが難しいです。= Doing something is difficult/hard.
Also when you talk about the characteristic of things/people, you rarely use 簡単／難しい
Easy to break = breakable
壊れやすい (You don’t say 壊れるのが簡単）
Hard to break = durable
壊れにくい (You don’t say 壊れるのが難しい）
Easy to talk to (Friendly personality)
話しやすい (You don’t say 話すのが簡単）
Thank you for this very useful lesson!! I love your explanations. It’s always very clear and there are a lot of details. Thanks for the effort you put into this website. I’m grateful.
Ex. 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた。 = It stopped raining while I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop.
My question is, why did you use やんでいた instead of just やんだ? I know that -ていた can be a past continuos (was stopping), a past perfect (had stopped), or express ‘result’ in the past (was over, or, for example, 落ちていた ‘was on the floor’), but none of these usages seem to make sense here…
I have also found the following sentence in my textbook:
ウトウトしている間に、テレビの番組は終わっていた。’While I was dozing, the TV program ended’.
Similarly, I don’t understand why they used 終わっていた instead of 終わった …
Thanks for the quick reply! I’m still not 100% sure. Please let me ask one more question and try to explain:
1) Can I say 雨がやんでいる to mean “The rain has stopped” = “There is a state of no-rain right now” ? If this is true, is it correct to say that 雨がやんでいた has exacltly the same function as 雨がやんでいる, except that the time of reference is in the past?
2) Based on my understanding of the grammar, the sentence 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた means “While I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop, the rain was already over”. In other words, while I was having a cup of tea, there was already a state of no-rain. In other words, the rain had stopped before I entered the shop, or, at the very least, before I started drinking the tea.
Contrary to my understanding of grammar, it seems to me that 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた actually describes a passage from a state of rain to a state of no-rain (During that interval of time while I was drinking the tea, the rain stopped. In other words, “It stopped raining while I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop.”, as you translated ).
Also, I have no problems with 8時にはもう家に帰っていた/ いました。(from the lesson you linked). This sentence makes perfect sense to me.
Sorry for nitpicking but I would really like to understand, if possible…
1) You are right.
You say 雨がやんでいる describe the current state when you just realized it has stopped raining.
やんでいた You don’t know when it stopped raining but in some point in past it stopped raining.
2) 〜間に雨がやんでいた
= The rain stopped while you were doing something. Not before you entered the coffee shop.
I might be easier if I can draw a picture but I can’t post it here.
You know what, let me make a little note with picture for you on Patreon page. Is that OK?
Hi Sensei! I have a question
if Gachi is used primarily for negative things, then how can we say “to tend to ~ / to be inclined to ~” for something positive? (like to give an example if I wanted to say “I tend to like long series”, how should this be said? )
Hello Maggie! I really appreciate your site. Thank goodness I’ve found this site. Btw, I have a question. I was having a conversation with a guy one day when he told me, “おれと結婚すんじゃね”. Now, I’m a little confused after reading this. Especially the “すんじゃね” part. He’s from Kobe, so he speaks Kansai-ben. Please help me. I would appreciate your response. Thank you so much! 😊
Maggie Sensei, thanks for your effort. Just few suggestions. Can you please state at the beginning of the lesson the main uses of the pattern you are going to discuss? Like, for example, you can briefly mention the places where the pattern can be used.
Thanks for your suggestion.
Someone asked me once to write all the summary in the beginning and I did once. And it got too long so…. It is actually hard to make everybody happy….Maybe I can try in some mini lessons.
Anyway I appreciate your feedback. ☺️
Hello,
Good question.
As I wrote in the lesson 子供っぽい means “childish” and it sounds negative.(one’s behavior is immature/Something, for example clothes, looks too cute)
For positive / neutral / negative usage, you can use ようだ
（まるで）子供のようだ・です
Hello Maggie sensei,
I am quite not convinced with the answer of 天人.
Could you help me it. I want to understand the nuance difference of たすぐ後、and かと思うと、in this example
彼が出かけたすぐ後に、電話があったみたいだ。
Thanks Maggie sensei as always.
It’s great to know that a lot of people is willing to help in Maggie sensei site also:)
In this case you simply express what happened after action/event A.
1) He left
2) Someone called him
と思うと/思ったら is also used when something happened right after the first action/event but you can’t say
彼が出かけたと思ったら電話があったみたいだ。(wrong)
You usually use かと思うと・かと思ったら to show the contrast. Thus action/event A and B are often something contradicted/opposite/ unexpected.
Just when I thought ~ , something contradicte/unexpected happened.
For example,
Ex. 彼は出かけたと思ったらすぐに帰ってきた。
1) He left
but
2) He came back right after he left home.
Ex. 今、雨が降ったと思ったらすぐに太陽が出てきた。
1) It was just rainnnig
but
2) It clears up soon.
Ex. さっきまで泣いていたと思ったらすぐに笑う
1) He/She was crying just now
but immediately
2) He/She smiles again.
to express one’s emotions change easily.
**
Yes, 天人 is great!! 😊
Thank you for great lesson!
I dont know why even though I am studying the intermediate Japanese, I even forget the very basic grammar. But thanks Maggie sensei for this site, I can review any grammar any time.
Could you tell me the nuance difference for the followings :
(1) 彼が出かけたすぐ後に、電話があったみたいだ。
And if I write it with かと思うと。
(2) 彼が出かけたかと思うと、電話があった.
I feel the meanings are the same, but…if the same, why Japanese needs 1 more grammar かと思うと。。。。
Hello Frozenheart,
here’s the answer to your question.
出かけたすぐ後に – something happens right after something was done – the speaker is more specific about occurrence of the happenings. The particle に sets a specific point in time, which means that less time could have passed between the first and the second part of the sentence.
出かけたかと思うと – something happens no sooner than / as soon as something was done – the speaker is less specific occurrence of the happenings. The part. か＋とおもうと implies more uncertainty, which means that more time could have passed between the first and the second part of the sentence.
There are also more patterns, which are associated to that one, like: ～たとたんに、か～ないかのうちに、がはやいか、そばから、なり or や否や.
インタネットで調べてみたらそれらの違いがわかるだろう。
You can use to express “I wish …” but it is only for the future wish, isn’t it?
If I want to say “I wish I shouldn’t have said something”, can I use たら？
そんなことを言わなかったらよかったのに。
I’m sorry for my typo in my comment.
I would like to correct it.
Maggie sensei,
We can useよう to express “I wish …” but it is only for the future wish, isn’t it?
If I want to say “I wish I shouldn’t have said something”, can I use たら？
そんなことを言わなかったらよかったのに。
Hello!
Future wish?? Sorry. I don’t quite get it.
“I wish I should have/I shouldn’t have done ~ ” is to express one’s regrets for the past event which you did or didn’t do.
So “I wish I shouldn’t have said something” will be
なにも言わなければよかった。
You use のに when you talk to someone else.
You shouldn’t have said anything = なにも言わなければよかったのに。
Right. It could be annoying but it depends on who you are talking to.
A lot of Japanese people don’t know all of these words. But it should be OK for young Japanese people who use Twitter a lot.
First
~たらいいじゃない？ means “Why don’t you do ~?”
That means “You should do ~”
やめるのを(A) やめたら(B) いいじゃない =the literal meaning is Why don’t you stop (B) quitting/resigning (A) = You should stop (B) quitting/resigning (A)
That means “You should continue whatever you have been doing./ or keep your job)
I have a question about “ようとしない”. In my text book it says this expression is used to indicate present continuous, but I don’t really get the example sentences like for instance 彼は、自分のことは何も言おうとしない。This sentences is translated with: He doesn’t seem to talk about himself.
I don’t really understand how the expression “ようとしない” is used. Could you explain it?
I have a lesson how to use volitional form (Click here.)
I explained ようとする in 8) in that lesson.
~ようとしない is a negative form but basically the idea is the same.
try not to do something/ not willing do something.
彼は、自分のことは何も言おうとしない。 could be translated “He is not willing to talk about himself. “
For example,
From the picture,
忘れもしないけど（どうして昨日、あんなこと言ったの？）
You can’t say 忘れさえしないけど..
But the sentence like
1) 彼は皿洗いもしない。
you can say
2) 彼は皿洗いすらしない。
and the translation could be the same, He doesn’t even wash the dishes but the difference is 2) sounds stronger
1) the speaker think 皿洗い is important.
2) He doesn’t do many things and NOT even washing the dishes. The speaker thinks 皿洗い is something easy to do and he doesn’t even do that.
Thank you very much. taihen benkyuu narimashita. Every time i search nihongo topics, I always check if you have that lesson first before i open other websites … :-)..
Konnichiwa sensei,
Thank you for you efforts and lessons.
The explanation of Aida and Aida ni is amazing.
But I have a small doubt related to conjugation.
Can we use i-adjective and na-adjective before Aida and Aida ni?
Hi Maggie!
Small question(s) to that.
You said “If not clear, you use うちは”.
When would it be not clear? ２，３文例をおねがいします。
あと、”子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない” => can this also be translated as ” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?
子供が小さいうちは・間は〜
The translation is the same. They both express certain period of time but technically 間は is used when the speaker has certain idea of the period of time when the child is still young. (Ex. 0 year ~ 5 year’s old )
朝8時から夕方5時の間は、水道が使えません。
（You don’t use うちは because it is clear the beginning/finishing time.）
Ex.温かいうちに食べてください。
Please eat/help yourself while it’s hot.
(It is not clear when it cools down so you don’t use 間に）
You also use うちに when you expect some kind of change.
Ex. 寒くならないうちに洗濯をしよう。
Perfect! Very well explained.
Thanks to you, Maggie, I can learn always something new. I’m proud you are my 先生 : )
There’s also a second question you didn’t probably notice.
“あと、”子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない” => can this also be translated as ” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?”
Sorry, 天人. I must have missed the question.
子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない
” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?”
Hahaha 😂 possible but grammatically it should be 子供は小さい間は、仕事に行くことができない。 but everybody can assume the speaker is not children.
私たちが着くと講演はもう始まっていた -> In this sentence, ていた expressess a state that began before the と clause.
彼女が入ってきた時、私たちは食事を終えていました。->Here as well, ていた/ていました expressess a state that began before the 時 clause.
喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた -> In this sentence, ていた expresses a state that began during the 間に clause.
I just find this different use of ていた a bit strange… But, maybe I should just accept that the combination 間に + ていた has this meaning you explained. After all, there are many things I find strange about Japanese 😂😂😂
As for the picture, I’m not sure it’s still useful in the light of what I just said, but if it is, please post it!
Oh great! I think you got the idea!!
So the difference is whether you see/describe the event/action as one point or a line
one point (→ 始まった・終えた・やんだ)
a line (→ 始まっていた・終えていた・やんでいた）. state
Basically you use とか with noun or noun form of verbs.
When you list up multiple things,
I had sushi, hamburger and etc.
You can say
すしとかハンバーガーを食べた。
But you can’t use し
X すしし、ハンバーガーを食べた(wrong)
When you list up some quality of thing/person
Maggie is cute and sweet, you connect with し but not とか
マギーはかわいいし優しい。
Xマギーはかわいいとか優しい (wrong)
When you talk about what you do/did, you use し
I went to Tokyo and had sukiyaki.
東京に行ったしすきやきも食べた。
X 東京に行ったとか京都も行った。(wrong)
とか is used to list nouns and verbs in the dictionary form.
While し is used to list adjectives and verbs (actions).
And both have the nuance of “there is something more that are not listed”.
Also し has the nuance of “not only, but also”
I think you got the general idea.
This may confuse you a little but there are exceptions.
You can use とか with adjectives when you quote
The nuance difference is
かわいいとかきれいとか言われる。 (People tell me I’m cute, beautiful and so on.)
かわいいし、きれいだと言われる。(People tell me I’m cute and also beautiful.)
OK! Thank you for your reply! And I’m so sorry to bother you with so many questions.
But, anyway, thank you for this lesson! =)
Not at all!!
I’m always here for you! ☺️
hello maggie-sensei! I have a good grasp on how くらい works but I saw the following sentence “この勢いに負けないくらい私も頑張るぞ～” and can’t quite figure out the usage of くらい if I were to translate that sentence. The context is that another person achieved something and this person said that. Thank you in advance!
Hello, rubemar junior,
負ける means “to lose”
負けないくらい is “(adjective) enough so that one won’t lose” →as good as ~ / as much as ~ / as (adjective) as ~~ and this くらい expresses the amount/degree of this power.
So I will try as hard as this power/energy.
1. 飲んだはずのミルク”は” → 飲んだはずのミルク”が” is better but the sentence itself sounds a bit mysterious. Is that what you meant?
The milk that I thought I drank is still in the fridge.
2. 飲まれた (passive form “The mill that was drunk”) is not natural.
3. It is not natural to use “the watch which was supposed to be expensive has now become cheaper”
高価な時計が今は安くなっている。 will work.
If you want to use はず, how about the sentence like
高価なはずの時計がすぐに壊れた。
(1) “謙虚げ” is not so common, it will be better 謙虚そうにみえる
You do say 自慢げ but you may want to add more context (Ex. the way she talk about herself/her family,etc.)
彼女は謙虚そうにみえるけど(or が）、自分のことを話す時はいつも自慢げだ。
(2) Good. Just the last part, 彼女の目は、そうは言っていませんでした。
If you say 別のこと, it means some other thing.
That’s の has a function of emphasis and this form is often used when teachers or parents tell small children to do/not to do something as an imperative form.
It is possible for men (teacher/father) to use this form but you are right, women tend to use it more than men.
FYI, you also use の at the end of the sentence to make your point.
だから、後でやるって言ってるの！ I am telling you that I am going to do that later! (this speech pattern is for children or women)
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me correct mistake
I’m still confused about Verb before ように in the usage of “When you warn someone to do something or give someone an order.” And “When you wish for something”
So I have 2 quetions:
1, Is this correct if I use V in potential form in below examples?
Yes, you can say that. The nuance changes a little.
終えておくように = Finish your work (complete your work by the time I come back)
終えられるように = You have to be ready to be able to finish your work by the time I come back.
Ex2. Ex. ２、３日安静にしているように（してください。*）Keep quiet in bed
➡️ ２、３日安静にすることができる just expresses some possibility “to be able to stay in bed quietly.”
As for your question,
When you pray/wish for something you finish the sentence with
masu-form + ように
仕事を早く終えるように。 (giving an instruction)
仕事が早く終わりますように。(expressing one’s desire)
２、３日安静にしているように (giving an instruction)
2,3日安静にしていられますように。(wishing)
I came across this sentence “お金は貸金庫に預けられて。それを奪い返すなんて。”
Which translate apparently to “Now that the money is in a safe-deposit box, there’s no way I can steal it back.” (it’s from a drama, I am not planning a burglary )
I don’t get why, as 奪い返す in this form simply mean “to get back” or “steal back”. I don’t get where the “no way” come from. Could this be due to なんて?
Hello,
You sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with なんて to express one’s emotions.
In this case, assuming from the translation, the following part would be
それを奪い返すなんて “できない／できるわけがない／絶対、無理だ。”.
Hi Maggie sensei!
I hope you don’t mind me asking a question on an old lesson! But I was wondering can you say 気がする without the ような in front of it? I’ve been watching a lesson on youtube and they are giving examples without it.
Thanks for all your great lessons! You are an awesome sensei!
This has me a bit confused:
“…you can’t use it with any adjectives / verbs / nouns.”
But you just gave several examples of it with adj/verbs/nouns :-P
Perhaps you meant “many”?
Moving on…
“While you use ～そう ( = sou) for things, weather, climate, events, atmosphere, etc, you usually use ～げ ( = ge) to describe someone’s emotion, feelings or state. ”
So while we can’t use 寒げ to say it looks cold outside, can we still use it for emotion/feelings?
例: 彼女は寒げだ。(she looks cold i.e. unfeeling/indifferent)
Perhaps it should be 冷たげ instead? Or in this case are we restricted to using ～そう only? But whichever I use it sounds like she’s feeling cold instead of seeming indifferent. Maybe I’m using the wrong adjective.
Hello! ☺️
Sorry to make you confused. What I meant was “You can’t use it with all the adjectives / verbs / nouns.” Only certain adjectives / verbs / nouns and I showed you the common ones in this lesson.
(I fixed the explanation.)
As for your second question,
you say 冷たげ or 冷たそう for one’s personality.
Thanks for this lesson. I have a couple of curious things I wanted to ask. Since, the pattern for using this grammar is always せっかく(=sekkaku) + reason + （だ）から, does this mean that we must always add ん (or の) to the end of the verb?
So for example, せっかく大阪まで来たんだから京都まで行こうよ。
We cannot say せっかく大阪まで来ただから京都まで行こうよ since “来ただ” is wrong grammar, right? Or we can simply remove だ altogether and say せっかく大阪まで来たから京都まで行こうよ。
Secondly, in the example sentence せっかくこうしてみんなが集まったのだからお酒でも飲みに行こうよ。
I am a bit confused about the particle でも after 酒…
From what I understand the particle I usually use would be を.
As in, 酒を飲みに行こう
What is the purpose of でも here?
来たのだから /来たんだから sounds more explanatory emphasizing the reason why you should go to Kyoto.
お酒でも
This でも has a function to soften the speech.
お酒を飲みに行こう = Let’s have Sake. (specifically sake)
お酒でも飲みに行こう doesn’t specify what you drink. Sake and such/ something like sake
I’m currently stuck trying to figure out whether “スリルさえ味方にして魂が求めるまま!” is “A friend makes the soul desire even a thrill!” or if まま changes the connotation a bit, especially being connected to 求める!
Hello, Maggie-sensei! Thank you for this and all of your other lessons, and especially for responding to user questions.
I recently came across this following sentiment:
彼は怒ってるくらいでちょうどいい
I am wondering if this くらい is being used similar to verb A + くらいなら verb Bの方がいい (better for him to be angry than to be ), or if it’s くらい in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)?
I’m an aspiring translator who has been learning Japanese for ten years, but Maggie-sensei’s posts are a resource I always come back to. (就職できると、パトロンになるつもりですよ。約束します！)
Q: I am wondering if this くらい is being used similar to verb A + くらいなら verb Bの方がいい (better for him to be angry than to be ), or if it’s くらい in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)?
→The later. in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)
I can’t imagine the context but for example, it matches to his personality or something.
I think what you don’t get is the expression 今日になっても
In Japanese, when the certain time comes, there is an expression
(time related word)+ になる
明日になる
３時になる
来年になる
The literal meaning is the time (day/time/year 日付／時間／年が) turn(ed) （になる）
So this sentence’s literal meaning is
今日になってもまだ息子から連絡がない。
Although/Even though the day/date turned today, I haven’t heard anything from my son.
→I haven’t heard from my son until today.
Ahh now I see the problem. You are right.Sorry. I will change the translation.
It might be unnatural English sentence but it means “My son has not contacted me even today.”
(→ I can’t believe it’s today and he still hasn’t contacted me.)
My girlfriend wrote this to me, and it seems like a different use of のに than you’ve discussed：
わかった。なにも変わらないのに話す必要はないね。
I think this means, “If nothing will change, there’s no point in talking。”
But it seems like から or 変らなかったら or something would fit better. Is のに acting like から in this sentence?
のに means “though/even though” but in this case, “anyway” works.
Here’s the nuance difference:
変わらなかったら If nothings changes (after trying something)
変わらないから We don’t need to talk because nothing will change. (to give a reason why there is no need to talk)
変わらないのに We don’t need to talk. Nothing will change anyway.
I hope you are not fighting with your girlfriend. 😉
Hello, 元気？
(Small mistake: だれが→だれか）
They are both possible but B1 is more natural.
The difference is the speaker is more certain in B1.
B1: I think someone is in the classroom.
B2: I’m not sure but it is possible that someone is in the classroom.
はい、元気です。
Thank you for helping me that point.
Could you show me more about the case that only よう is possible but そう is impossible please !
I am unable to categorize them.
Another very useful lesson, thanks a lot Maggie-sensei! With this lesson alone under my belt, I understand anime a lot better!
May I aks a question about one of your example sentences? It’s
Ex. 俺、そんなことやってねえし。(I didn’t do such a thing)
From my understanding, やってねえし is from やってないし, with し being used emphatically and やって(い)ない being the negative form of やっている. But, why is the non-past tense used here, if the action is about the past?
Hello @Davide Bordoni,
～ている／～ていない have many meanings. In this case – depending on context – the speaker might refer to his/her habits (he/she generally doesn’t do such kind of things) or the speaker uses ～ていない as 現在完了形, which is in English translated as: “haven’t done something yet”. More probably he refers to the first aspect.
Good!
埋まる is to be filled by itself (You don’t control)
When you control something, you use ために but you have to use 埋まる
It might be easier to think
埋めるために in order to
埋まるために so that (as a result) focusing on the consequence
You said that saying 彼は優しいような人ですis wrong, while 彼は優しそうです is right. I’m trying to understand, and hopefully I’ve come to the right conclusion!
Is it because it’s actually not a conjecture like 「あの男の人が友達の仕事を手伝ったって聞いた。彼は優しいようだ」or 「Sallyが来てDaveは嬉しいようだ」but is instead trying to use this pattern:
「夢」のような「話」
「猫」のような「かわいい動物」
and therefore, because you can’t say that a person/noun “is like” an adjective,「優しい」ような「人」doesn’t make sense?
So I can’t say something like 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱいようなオレンジでした (because ex. I saw her wrinkling her face as she ate) BUT I can say 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱいようでした or 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱそうでした (because ex. I saw how green the orange looked)?
Hi again,
Sorry. I don’t have much time right now so I will make it short.
They both don’t sound natural.
病気になったら〜 is better for the same reason that I wrote (3) x 3時になればおやつを食べよう
帰ります express one’s will.
医者になったら〜 is better
医者になれば you have to express what kind of outcomes you will have
医者になれば多くの人が救える
買うなら／買ったら both could be translated “If you buy a new camera/When you buy a new camera” but
買うなら focusing on the time when someone buys a camera – before buying the camera
買ったら focusing on the time when someone already bought a camera – after buying new camera
So in order to figure out which one to use, you have to pay attention to what comes after.
見せてください means “Show it (the new camera) to me”, so you can only show the camera after buying it (買ったら）
If you talk to someone who is thinking about buying a camera (before buying a camera, you use 買うなら）
(suggestion or giving a condition when someone buy a new camera)
Ex. 新しいカメラを買うなら〇〇カメラ店で買った方がいいですよ。
Ex. 新しいカメラを買うなら私の携帯も買って。
The tense is different.
行くなら= dictionary form + なら talking about future
Vているなら = If you are in the state,
(1) 答えを知っているのなら教えてよ。
If you already know the answer, let me know.
(知っている is the state of knowing the answer.)
答えを知ったら教えてよ。
is grammatically wrong. 知る is one of the irregular verbs.
答えがわかったら教えてよ。 = If you find out what the answer is, let me know.
As for the verb 知る, I am going to make a lesson in near future so please wait.
Thank you for the reply sensei :)
So I understood we can combine さえ and も to make them stronger.
But I am still confused of the difference in nuance of using only も and only さえ when each of them is used alone, like 走ることもできる・走ることさえできる.
走ることもできる ~ can also run. (It is simply listing what ~ can do. ~ can do one thing and also run.
走ることさえできる. ~ can even run. (So on top of being able to do something else or other good features, ~ can even run.)
I have one more question related to っぱなし
Is there any category of verb which is not OK for っぱなし？
As I review your lesson, I find 降りますis not OK.
But still I can not have an overview image of this type of verb which is not OK.
Ah, you must have seen my reply to someone who asked me if we can say 降りっぱなし below.
(My reply: It is one of the example sentences in a published textbook and people do say that in conversation. (However, I might say 最近は雨が降ってばかりいる.)
The most common verbs are the ones with physical actions or state.
開ける
つける
行く
立つ
座る
食べる, etc.
Sorry, I just have a small question.
The most common verbs that Maggie sense taught me like 開ける、つける、etc are the verb normally impossible to go with っぱなし、are n’t hey?
ありがとうございました！
Maggie sensei, you know at first I think ppanashi is easy to understand. But after thinking it over, I find it’s quite hard for me. Want to share it with you.
About the verb like 脱ぎます、食べます, I find it’s still hard for me to imagine the situation when those verbs go with っぱなし。
（１）靴を脱ぎっぱなし.
~っぱなし is leave something ~(in a certain state) .
So when reading this sentence, the first thing coming into my mind is
“Some one leaves the state of not wearing for a while”
= He does not wear shoes for a while @@
The meaning “Some one takes off shoes and leaves it on the floor”, especially “to leave it on the floor’ is hard to imagine (to me).
(2) 食べっぱなし
Similarly, I apply the meaning of っぱなし to this sentence, and it comes as”
” I keep eating eating without stopping”
It’s hard for me to reach the meaning of “Maggie ate some food and left the bowl without putting away” .
Please do some magic to my case, Maggie sensei !!!!
OK, let me explain again.
ぱなし is not quite keep doing some actions. After doing something, you leave the way it is.
（１）靴を脱ぎっぱなし.
You take off your shoes and leave them without putting them away. (You know you have to take off your shoes when you enter the house, right?)
(2) 食べっぱなし
After you finish eating, you don’t put the plates away, wash the dishes leaving the mess on the table.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for ppanashi lesson. Really useful
I am making a sentence by myself. Could you check if I am abusing ppanashi :)
君のことが思い出しっぱなし。
I want to say I keep missing you (can not stop).
Is it OK to use っぱなし？
Besides,
Is っぱんし here replaceable with まま？
君のことが思い出しまま。
Hello,
First the particle is を
君のことを思い出す
Though some people say 思い出しっぱなし in very casual conversation, you don’t usually use ぱなし or まま with 思い出す。
思い出してばかり is more natural.
Hello!
I am working on a translation project for my friends and I just discovered your website. It is so very helpful!
There are so many little parts of speaking a language that they don’t teach you in school, so it’s easy to become lost when you’re reading “real”, informal text.
Your explanations have saved me several times. I am learning so much! Thank you for the time and effort you have put into making these lessons.
心からありがとうございます！m(_ _)m
Maggie sensei, can I use ではないと instead of でないと when the precedent word is a ナ形容詞 or a 名詞?
Like, is「りっぱな刀ではないとあの人を倒せません」gramatically correct?
Moreover, is the comma that may comes after と purely optional?
My first impression is
でないと・じゃないと is more natural but I guess it is possible. When you emphasize what comes before, in this case, りっぱな刀, you use では
You can write it with 点(comma) or without 点
わけではない & とは限らない are very similar and they can be interchangeable
高い料理がすべて美味しい（という）わけではない
= 高い料理がすべて美味しいとは限らない。
You can’t use とは限らない in the usage 2) and 3)
2) When you deny some expected reason subtly.
~マギーが悪いわけではない (It is denying it is not Maggie’s fault)
3) When you want to explain a reason subtly : It is not like~
Ex. マギーのことが嫌いになったわけではないよ。 (The speaker is denying it is not because he doesn’t like Maggie.)
If you use とは限らない、it changes the nuance.
マギーが悪いとは限らない (It is based on the idea that Maggie’s fault but it could be not true.)
マギーのことが嫌いになったとは限らない (It is based on the idea that the person doesn’t like Maggie but it could be not true.)
Ah, sensei,
While reviewing the ppoi grammar, I found 1 question I raised before but still Maggie sensei ignored me (crying …).
Please don’t ignore me this time :)
If I did something bad, please forgive me , hahahaha
————-
My next question is can we describe a person as animal-like (means this person is aggressive, easy-to-fight, etc) by あの人は動物っぽい.
Or, someone is dog-like (It’s just a question for the lesson,please forgive me if you dont feel comfortable with this example) by 犬っぽい。
I understand in colloquial language, it’s OK to use. But… Is it grammatically correct?
I am so sorry that I didn’t answer your question. I didn’t meant to ignore you. ごめんね！
I remember I read your comment but I guess I was going to answer you later after fetching a ball or something.
Yes, you say/hear that 動物っぽい・犬っぽい in conversation.
Ex. 動物っぽい動き
Ex. 行動が犬っぽい
(However, 動物みたい・犬のようだ might be better when you speak with your real human Japanese teacher in your class.)
I wouldn’t say “strong” pink. It is rather slightly pink but it depends on what you describe and what comes after ピンクっぽい
For example ピンクっぽい赤、ピンクっぽい肌,etc.
I think the idea is the same as “pinkish” in English.
Hello Maggie Sensei. It is always a pleasure to read your posts, totemo omoshiroi desu!
I have a doubt: here you showed the grammar of “koto ga aru” related to experience.
Please, could you explain when it is used in the way of “sometimes”, expressing occasion and do on?
If so, am I asking too much for explaining the difference between “koto ga aru” and “koto mo aru”?
Thanks!
TomRibas
I have seen the expression 楽しみに quite a few times when someone says they are looking forward to something. I am curious that in your example sentence, you also use 楽しみ, but you leave out the に.
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
I am looking forward to the date next week.
What is the difference between having the に and leaving it out?
Hi Dennis,
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
In this 楽しみ is a noun so you don’t use に
When you translate they are both “to look forward to ~” but here is the grammatical difference
楽しみ ( = noun) + だ／です
楽しみに ( = adverb) + verb (Ex. 楽しみにしています／楽しみにしてください。）
What is the difference between “Hazunanoni” and “Hazudatta”
To be more specific, what is the difference between
(1) ここに財布を置いておいたはずなのに。。。。
And
(2) ここに財布を置くはずだった。。。
先生
Thank you so very much. Textbooks/Online blogs all explain ~すぎる very well and I understand it clearly, but they never include an example with ~する. This has been very very helpful. Thank you again!
Ex. 彼のこと、どれだけ／どれほど／どれくらい好きなの？
= How much do you like him?
(They are interchangeable: だけ/ぐらい sounds a little more casual than ほど）
You don’t use どれほど when you talk about time/amount, quantity
Ex. How long you have been waiting? (Asking about the time)
= どれぐらい待っていますか？／待ってるの？ （Xどれほど）
(Pouring some beer)
Ex. ビール、どれだけ／どれくらいいる？
= How much beer do you want?（Xどれほど）
Hello,
せっかく彼に会いに彼の家まで来たのに外出中だった。is OK. By using せっかく, you can express the nuance of “all the way / spending all your time”
but 彼に会いに彼の家まで来たあげく、外出中だった。 needs more context.
You use あげく in the context of after all the work, you ended up being in certain situation, but if you just read the first sentence, 彼に会いに彼の家まで来た is just one time action and you can’t tell why it is a big deal.
Also there are some exceptions but you usually use あげく when the subject in the first and the second sentence are the same.
彼に会いに彼の家まで来た (The subject is a writer/speaker)
外出中だった (The subject is 彼）
Happy New Year!!
You can use べきだった for someone else, too.
もっと彼女に優しくしてあげるべきだったね。
You should have been nicer to her.
彼はもっと努力をするべきだったと思う。
He should have tried harder.
Maggie san, thank you so much for the lyrics and the excellent explanation. I was looking for this song just after I saw the movie (filmed in 2011) and it made me cry.
What a great song and a great movie as well!
Hello Jessica,
You say gochisousama deshita to the person who treated you, cooked for you.
It is not mandatory but you can also say gochisousama to the people who work for the restaurants/coffee shop.
I have a question about “what a” part of the lesson. You mad these examples:
Nante tsumranai hon nandarou.
Nante tabekata wo surun desu ka!
Kare wa nante uta ga umain darou!
Nante utsukushii inu nan deshou.
Nante subarashii sensei nandeshou!
Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan darou to omoimashita.
What’s the rule about the verb? Should I always use “darou/deshou”?
(plus, why “surun desu ka” that time?, and why do you put “nan” in front of the verb?)
I explain better, would those sentences be correct if I’d written them like this:
Nante tsumranai hon desu.
Nante tabekata wo surun desu!
Kare wa nante uta ga umain desu!
Nante utsukushii inu desu.
Nante subarashii sensei desu!
Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan desu to omoimashita.
Nante ~ darou/deshou is a bit dramatic way to express your strong emotions.(Ex. when you are moved, surprised, angry, etc.)
you can also use the pattern
Nante ~ da!
Ex. Nante hito deshou (polite/sounds a bit feminine)
→(more casual) Nante hito darou!
→(more casual) Nante hito da!
The following sentences are not natural because you don’t finish this patter with です
X Nante tsumranai hon desu.
X Nante tabekata wo surun desu!
X Kare wa nante uta ga umain desu!
X Nante utsukushii inu desu.
X Nante subarashii sensei desu!
X Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan desu to omoimashita.
Ah maybe it was confusing to put surun desu ka there but the difference between “darou” and “surun desu ka” is
Ex. なんて食べ方をするんだろう (You are talking to yourself)
Ex. なんて食べ方をするんですか! (You are complaining to someone with accusing tone. )
Thank you so much for your lesson, Maggie sensei. マギー先生のウェブサイトは、僕の日本語の勉強の一番の行き先です。(You are my no.1 destination in learning Japanese–did I say it right?)
I’m reading 「ノルウェーの森」to learn Japanese, and I came across the construction “adverb (ending in と) + する”. I’d like to understand what it means and what’s going on in terms of grammar. Here are some examples:
１：”のっぺりとした”空港
２：それらはあまりにも”くっきりとしている”ので、手を伸ばせば一つ一つ指でなぞれそうな気がするくらいだ。（Your lessons on “くらい” and “potential form+そう” helped me understand the second part.）
３：”さらりとした”手触りのまっすぐな綺麗な髪
It seems like adverb+suru means “being something”. I assume のっぺりとした ＝ being smooth, and くっきりとしている = being clear. Is that right?
Thank you so much!
いつもこのサイトを使ってくれてありがとう！
（You can also say 日本語の勉強をするときは、真っ先にこのサイトに来ます。）
のっぺり・くっきり・さらり are mimetic words. You modify a noun with these mimetic words with とした
(onomatopoeia or mimetic words) と + した + noun
You use this form to describe the condition of the noun which comes after.
のっぺりと
FYI When you modify a verb,
(onomatopoeia or mimetic words) と + verb
Ex. くっきりと線を描く to draw a line clearly.
Ex. さらりと言う to say things without hesitation/nonchalantly
Hi maggi sensei, if I were to want to say, learning/studying Japanese is a little difficult but I think it’s fun, would the following be correct? (Please go easy on me I haven’t learnt kanji yet)
Nihongo wo benkyou wa chotto muzukashii desu kedo tanoshii to omoimasu!
先生、授業をありがとうございます。
I came across a sentence that goes like “あたたかくしていきましょう” and I guess this means “let’s keep warm” but how is it different from “あたたかくしましょ”？
and can this be used for any kind of sentence for example “頑張って行きましょう” instead of “頑張りましょう”？
There are two interpretation of that kind of あたたかくして行く
1) to go somewhere keeping warm (Put some warm clothes and go out somewhere)
2) to spend the time keeping warm (So you are not actually going anywhere) *the same as がんばっていきましょう
I believe it is the same thing in English.
Let’s get going doing our best/keeping warm.
Hi Maggie sensei! Thanks for the lesson :) I came here because I had questions from an answer you wrote me and I was hoping I’d find the answer here! I didn’t but I have another question instead if you don’t mind!! 😖
Passive form means something is being done to the speaker but I also read in your lesson that it can also indicate negative (or happy?) feelings (I never knew!! 😖 )? I will borrow one of your examples : 上司の家に招待された。= I was invited to my boss’ house. If you heard that hoe would you know if the person was happy about it, unhappy about it or just saying they were invited to their boss’ house?
Thank you so much for your help always and merry christmas!! 😘
Hi Eva,
上司の家に招待された。
could be
1) neutral: just telling the fact that the speaker was invited to her/hi boss’ house.
(It is what I meant in the example sentence.)
If the speaker likes the boss
2) positive (expressing his/her happy feelings)
If the speaker doesn’t like the boss,
3) negative (expressing his/her annoyance.)
You can tell by the context or tone of his/her voice.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me correct mistake
I’m still confused in choosing tense in using “がする”😅
I make some sentences:
1, どこかでねこの鳴き声がしているの?
(Situation :
While having dinner with my family, I hear cat’s sound somewhere and I ask my family members)
2, このお菓子はお茶の味がしているの?
(Situation :
My brother directly gives me candies not made from tea and I eat it right after he’s giving then I asked him how taste I feel)
3, 先日 Công Anh (my little brother’s name)くん がくれたお菓子は, お茶の味が していたの? / したの？
(Situation :
My brother gave me candies not made from tea 2 weeks ago but I just ate it yesterday then today I messaged to him about how taste I feel)
4, この料理は, 食べると吐き気がするよ。
(Situation :
We are chatting in company about a cuisine and I’m telling to others that each time I eat that cuisine, I feel nausea)
Dear Maggie 先生、
Firstly, thanh you so much for your soon reply as always 😚😘
Actually my sentence no. 2 and no. 3 is the nearly same but I only see your correction for no.3
My no. 2 is asking for using “がしている”
Can you help me check it again 🙂
2, このお菓子はお茶の味がしているね。
(Situation :
My brother directly gives me candies not made from tea and I eat it right after he’s giving then I told him how taste I feel)
If my sentence is unatural, please help me give another sentence if “がしている” is used in daily life
Hi, I had a question about the usage of し in 何しに! I’m not sure if this is the place to ask it (sorry if you have an article that explains this already — I had a look and I couldn’t find anything) but this is the article that popped up on google so I’ll give it a shot.
I don’t think I’ve really come across 何しに before this.
I came across this sentence in a manga [ええ…⁉︎何でベランダ⁉︎ 何しに⁉︎何で⁉︎], where someone had previously unexpectedly appeared on their veranda. The reason for the confusion is self evident so I figured the sentence was shortened; either left incomplete or maybe slang.
My first impression was a vague feeling of に being kind of an ‘in the direction of’ usage [why (were they THERE (aka the veranda) / what (were they doing THERE)] but that didn’t fit quite right?
Then I remembered 為に being roughly ~ for what reason, and the に had a similar feeling. So that lead me to thinking it might have a ‘for what’ kind of quality, with an emphasis on purpose instead of direction. Kind of a: WHY?! are they there vs a why are they THERE?!
The し would be a conjunction of する, I’m assuming, but I have no idea how that fits into it. Is it just that 何する needs to be conjugated before using a に particle on the end? I’m not sure how する leads to しに at all.
Is it because it’s past tense? する -> した -> dropping the た so as to add the に -> しに. Why would the た be dropped, if that’s the case?
Would 何したに not work? Is it because た wouldn’t be used at the end of the sentence if it was left in there? What about する + に in other tenses?
After some googling, I learnt that 何しに is usually used with 行く and 来る which kind of makes sense in a ‘for what reason did you come to Japan’ etc way, if the に is a little of both direction and purpose? That’s all I could find on しに.
I still don’t understand how it works, or in what other situations しに is relevant 😓 I feel like I’m missing something really simple here but I’m not sure what.
Sorry for rambling, I just wanted to explain my reasoning behind my utter confusion haha. I’d really appreciate it if you could help me out. Thank you for reading!
Let me break it down.
*なに・何 = what
You drop an object marker, を, after なに in casual conversation.
(→なにを・何を）
*し is a masu-stem of a verb する
*に is a particle to indicate one’s purpose
So the whole phrase is
何(を)しに（ベランダに来たの？）
You can also figure it out from the possible answer why that person came to the balcony.
(somethingを） verb masu-stem + に＋来た= I came (here) to do something
電話をかけに来た。I came here to make a phone call.
あなたに会いに来た。 I came here to see you.
たばこを吸いに来た。 I came here to smoke.
hah, Everytime i look for a Japanese language construct that’s giving me trouble and i look it up I’m always hoping i end up in your page, and it often happens!
so, after this lesson I’m pretty sure i understand what i was looking for, but i feel this has a nuanca that is not covered:
鬼太郎いくら夏休みだからってたまには妖怪ポストぐらい見たらどうだい
which i interpret as
“kitaro, however much it’s summer holiday, how about you just look at the yokai post?”
similar expressions appear often in kitaro often with some kind of mocking or scolding tone
That usage of くらい／ぐらい is “at least” or “even” in this lesson.
いくら〜だからって = Even though
Kitaro, even though it’s summer vacation, you should at least check youkai mail box.
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくれました。
The honorific form is
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくださった。
Maggie Sensei taught me Japanese.
(From your point of view.)
マギー先生が外国の学生に日本語を教えてあげました。
あげました can be used for the third person but the you can’t use keigo there.
If the speaker/writer teaches someone superior something, you can use kenjougo, さしあげる
I just posted 謙譲語／敬語 lessons so hopefully you can learn something from those lessons as well.
教えてもらう。→honorific form 教えていただく
If you are talking to a teacher directly,
〜先生、日本語を教えてくださり言葉にできないほど感謝しております。
（connecting masu-stem looks more formal than connecting with te-form.)
Or when you express your gratitude,
〜先生に日本語を教えていただき、言葉にできないほど感謝しております。
Thank you for the nice example sentence. I feel flattered.
Thank you Maggie sensei !!!!
I will read your 謙譲語／敬語 lessons :)
どういたしまして！ U^ェ^U
Hi, Maggie Sensei.
Thank you very much for all your lessons!
I read that ありたい can be used as hoshii. What’s the difference?
In the sentence:生まれながら に そういう人間で ありたかった. かんぜんに人ごとだ how can it be translated?
Thank you.
Hello Bere,
First here is the difference between たい and ほしい
* verb+たい = The speaker/writer wants to do something
* someone に verbて+ほしい = The speaker/writer wants someone to do something.
So
* 〜でありたい = The speaker/writer wants to be ~
* Someone に〜であってほしい = The speaker/writer wants someone to be ~
So 生まれながら に そういう人間で ありたかった means
I’ve wanted (Or I’ve been wanting) to be that kind of person since I was born.
Hi!
Thank you for another great lesson!
For the sake of learning and wanting to understand the subject to the roots, I wanted to clear up something.
Technically, could the sentence:
もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
also translate into:
(I /he/she) might be forced to marry (him/her) by her.?
As in not to be forced to marry her, but rather forced to marry someone by her?
Since に is used to indicate by whom the action is performed, in the case of using the potential form(if I understood correctly).
Thank you so much in advance for your help!
Wishing you and Maggie above a wonderful day!
Valentina
Hi i just want to clear also if this sentence really means to force him to do this work or to make him do this work? Since it is in a “semasu” form? Thanks.
I am learning the 2 phrases, てならない and てたまらない.
After going through examples of each of them, I feel that てならない only uses to show your feeling, not physical condition. While てたまらない can be used for physical condition also.
But….you know I ‘m not sure of my thinking :))
Could you help me this?
My question is about なかなか but examples don’t include なかなか。（Crying…)
I want to ask if なかかな goes with verb, the verb should be non-volitional verb. Is it true?
Hello, Maggie Sensei. Ohisashiburi Desu 🌸
Sensei, I Usually Hear/Read The Sentence: “一応聞いとけ” Or “一応聞いておけ”, But Cannot Figure Out What Does “一応” Stand For In This Context? Does It Mean: (For Now)→(Listen For Now)??
Onegai Shimasu! ✨
This was very useful, I have a question though, besides sounding rude is there any reason to not use this speech? And is there polite male speech? Thank you.
Generally speaking, male speech is rough so you should avoid using it unless you are talking to your close friends.
Though there are super casual “polite form” です→っす （そうです→そうっす）, I believe there is no proper polite male speech form.
Hi Maggie Sensei, thanks for another great lesson, this helped a lot! However I just had a question with something that I am writing for homework, does this sentence make sense? 空港で、自分でチェックインすることに緊張しました。Thank you!!
hello maggie-sensei, first of all, thanks for the lesson!
I have a question, I see those kind of numbers (２０万６７００円) on news web easy quite often. How do I count those? Thank you!
２０万６７００円
You write 二十万六千七百/ 20万６千７百 but it will be easier to read with fewer kanji for shopping. So, you just use the first kanji 万 and type out the rest with number and add 円.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me for my below question
Regarding how to say to give / receive objects “を + あげる / くれる / もらう”、FOR THIRD PARTY: A (giver) and B (receiver)
1, あげる
as in your note : ok to say A gives B sth
2, くれる
as in your note : ok to say A gives B sth (B must be my family, sweethearts or pets)
3, もらう
You don’t make note but through ex5, I understand that it’s ok to say B receives sth from A, regardless B has close relation with me or not, for example : Suzuki san receives a lot of flowers from Ken san
Do I understand it right? 😊
subject+ に + Verb potential form + わけがない／はずがない／っこない
Subjectが＋ Verb potential form + わけがない／はずがない is OK as well but since there is ”が” in わけ”が”／はず”が”, it looks/sounds more natural with に
Also you say
object＋が＋わかる as well
答えがわかる
日本語がわかる
So if you say
彼がわかる
It could be “He understands” or “Someone can tell who he is” So it is confusing.
いい加減にしろ is an expression. “Gimme a break! / That’s enough!”
ふざけないで “Stop fooling around. ”
いい加減にしろ is much stronger than ふざけないで
****
お前はもう死んでいる You are already dead. (in the state of dead)
お前はもう死んだ You already died.
You probably translate in the same way.”You are already dead” but as you said 死んでいる expresses the state do it sounds like the person died physically but for some reason, his/her sprits are alive.
死んだ is “died” simple past tense. It is like “You died. Period!”
(1) When you make your point. (When you are against some people’s opinion.)
(2) It sounds explanatory. You say this and explain why you don’t think so.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
First of all, thank you so much for your explanation!!
I can quickly undertand it 😊
But I still have difficult with difference between ね and のです / んです
For example
Q1,
ね : to tell someone what you are going to do / express your will, your attention (usage no. 4)
Vs
のです : to introduce some topics (usage no. 5)
Here is ex in “のです lesson”
来週, 日本に行くんだけど, 何を持っていたらいい?
➡️ if I use ね in usage no.4
⏩ 来週, 日本に行くね, 何を持っていたらいい?
How is the difference here 🤓
And then
Q2,
ね : express your opinion or making point (usage no. 1)
Vs
のです : to state your opinion clearly or bring up sth important (usage no. 6)
I’m sorry I cannot give any example in Q2. Both of them are used to express speaker’s opinion but how is nuance behind them 🤪
I hope Maggie 先生 can understand my poor decription and find the way to help me.
I’m very worried about wrong making sentence because wrong understand suffix
Q1:
来週, 日本に行くね, 何を持っていたらいい? doesn’t sound natural.
You have to finish a sentence with ね and can’t connect two sentence with ね.
While 行くんだけど gives a reason for the following question, if you ね doesn’t require any suggestions.
Q2. I think I get your question.
そんなことをされたら困りますね。
そんなことをされたら困るのです（困るんです）
They both make your point.
The difference is ね is to tell “someone” your opinion/feelings.
のです is to explain your situation/feelings.
For all the examples in this lesson which have だって, are they actually the same as usage 1 in another lesson How to use だって ( = datte)?
“1) to quote what someone says: When you quote what you have heard* When you quote what you have heard”
Another question is what is the difference between Noun + って vs Noun + だって?
Is the former used when you want to talk about the noun and the latter used when you want to quote the noun?
I guess what I’m really asking is how can you say something like “I just finished doing X, so I’m going to do Z now.” It seems to me that usually there are almost always two different subjects in sentences with ところ. In your example for instance, (私が）宿題をし終えたところで休もうと思っていたら電話がかかってきた. So now you have watashi and denwa as two subjects. But can you use only one subject? Like 私がケーキを買ったところで（私が今）映画館に向かっている – I just bought cake, now I’m going to the movie theater. I think ところだが might work better here, am I wrong?
And yes, I actually meant to write 休もう, that was a mistake.
Maggie sensei,
First of all thank you very much for your lessons, they are very helpful!
I have a doubt when it comes to (not) using the ば in the past, you say you can`t use it unless is a regret or is not true but I read:
ビールを３本飲めばよっぱらいました meaning something that always happens, as opposed to ビールを３本飲んだらよっぱらいました somenthing that only happened once.
is it the first one incorrect?
Thank you very much!
I guess I didn’t cover the usage.
True. There are cases that you use ば when you talk about one’s habit in past. Whenever ~ someone does/did something./ One used to do something.
あの頃は彼と会えば(or 会うと）いつも喧嘩をしていた。
We used to fight whenever we get together that time.
As for the sentence “ビールを３本飲めばよっぱらいました”, it may work with more context. (Just that sentence may sound a little unnatural.)
Ex.昔は/前は/若い頃は、ビールを３本飲めば酔っ払って騒いでいました。(but not anymore.)
The basic pattern:
〜ば〜していた/ 〜ば〜したものだった (the following verb describe the state. )
I raised this question because I was reading about られる.
It says there are four usages, 受身形, 可能形, 尊敬語 and 自発.
Initially, I thought all verbs in 受身形 can also mean 自発. But according to your explanation, it seems that is not the case. Besides 考えられる and 思われる, are there other 自発形 verbs that have the same pattern as 受身形? Is 言われる considered 自発?
I also always encounter the three verbs above in ている form. What is the difference between 考えられる・思われる・言われる and 考えられている・思われている・言われている?
In passive, using your example, 私は彼に変な人だと思われた, there is someone, 彼, who does the thinking. In 自発, 今年の冬は厳しいと思われる, who thought that this year is cold? Me or everyone in general?
How do you determine whether a verb like 思われる in a sentence is 自発形 or 受身形?
偲（しの）ばれる
思い出される
案（あん）じられる
惜（お）しまれる
are considered to be 自発形
I think 言われる is categorized into 受身形, passive form. It could show one’s annoyance (1) or to introduce general ideas (2)
1) Aさんに太っていると言われた
= I was told by A that I am fat.
2) 日本人は感情を表にあまり出さないと言われる。
= People said (It is said) that Japanese people don’t show much emotion.
考えられる・思われる・言われる
考えられている・思われている・言われている
られる to be thought/considered / to be said
〜ている has been considered / has been said
Vている = the state in certain period of time.:
私は彼に変な人だと思われた,
There are two people in this sentence. the speaker, “I” and the third person, “He”
The speaker was thought to be a strange person by him.
今年の冬は厳しいと思われる,
people in general think this winter will be harsh.
The speaker is introducing what they heard (general idea/news)
As for your last question,
Q:How do you determine whether a verb like 思われる in a sentence is 自発形 or 受身形?
If the speaker introduce a general idea, 自発
I wish I could give you the whole explanation here but the comment section is very limited so I will stop right here. 😉
Some of 自発形 verbs have the same pattern as 受身形
Ex. 考えられる・思われる
〜と考えられる/思われる= It is believed that ~ / It is thought that ~
〜が思い出される= 〜comes to one’s mind
You use it when you describe something objectively. When you get the feelings/something happens “naturally” without any control.
Ex. 私は今年の冬は厳しいと思う。= I think this winter will be severe. (The subject is clear.)
Ex. 今年の冬は厳しいと思われる。= It is thought that this winter will be severe. (The subject is not clear.)
You use passive form with 思う
Ex. 私は彼に変な人だと思われた。
= I was thought to be a strange person by him.
(He thought I was a strange person.)
In this case the subject and object are clear. (He/I)
Other than the ones with (ら）れる,
聞こえる
わかる
見える
are also has a meaning of 自発
You don’t do anything but you hear/understand/see things naturally without any control.
May I ask ２more questionｓ of using って for indirect speech.
(1) Is that we always need to change the です・ますof somebody’s quote to the casual form (ending with る・た・ない） then add って？
For example
A: 彼氏と別れました。
Is it possible to make an indirect speech like
Indirect speech : A さんは彼氏と別れましたって言いました。
Or we always need to change the quote to casual form
A さんは彼氏と別れたって言いました。
(2) I want to ask the same thing with とのこと。
とのこと is used for indirect speech to the superior.
But can we say
A さんは彼氏と別れましたとのこと
Or we need to change the quote to casual form as always.
Though we sometimes see masu-form in quotes in stories, you don’t have to use masu-form.
It will be more natural to say Aさんは彼氏と別れたと言いました。or 言っていました。（言っていました describes the situation better.)
I change って→と because って is casual and ました is formal
If you want to use って the rest of the sentence should be casual as well.
Aさんは彼氏とわかれたって言ってたよ。
While completing some exercises in a textbook, I got these two sentences wrong.
1. ７時になれば帰ります！
2. このドアが開けば入りませんか？
I think I understand why you can you “ba” in these two sentences, but can you please explain why exactly these two sentences are wrong? I know you covered a lot of examples in your lesson, but I think i’m still not 100% sure I’m getting it when it comes to these two sentences.
1. ７時になれば(X) 帰ります (Y)→ ７時になったら帰ります。／７時に帰ります。
７時になれば sounds like the person is waiting until it turns 7:00 to come home or not sure if it turns seven.
In this case, you can use ば if the following sentence (Y) has a potential verb.
７時になれば(or なったら）帰れます。 I can go home when it turns 7:00.
2. このドアが開けば入りませんか？
That means, they are in front of a closed door and they are not sure if the door will open or not. If it opens, he/she wants to go inside with the listener.
If you are sure the door will open, you use 開いたら = When the door opens,
Hello maggie sensei,
Thank you very much for the lesson. It is very useful for everbody who wants to learn Japanese.
Could you please check which version among the sentences I`ve written below is correct ?
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuruno wo onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuru koto wo onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuru you ni onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okutte kudasai tte iu onegai wo shimashita.
Hi Burak
You want to say
Tanaka-san asked me to send him/her an email?
If so, you write from your point of view so instead of “onegai shimashita” you use “tanomaremashita or passive form of onegai shimashita.
Takahashisan ni meeru wo okuru you tanomaremashita.
Thank you very much for your reply Maggie sensei,
Yes, that is what I want to say. How would you rebuild this
sentence with `tte iu`
I always hear this speech pattern, they use this especially reporting
a speech.
…tte iu hanashi wo shita
…tte iu onegai …
Because I”m a new learner of Japanese I can”t hear exactly what they say but
I guess it is used very often.
Sorry for bothering with my questions
I would like to ask one more question
Can I say : ”Watashi wa tanakasan ni meeru wo okuru no wo onegai shimashita” If I`m who asks for sending email.
When you ask someone to do something, the most natural patten is using よう
ようにお願いする・頼む
= you ni onegai suru/ tanomu
So, Watashi wa Tanaka san ni meeru wo okuru you ni tanonda.(onegai shita)
As it is shown in the example sentence, you usually use 「～ようになっている」 to explain how things work and 「～ことになっている」 for rules.
Ex. 本は１週間以内に返すことになっています。 = You are supposed to return the book (rules.)
I have one more question regarding this subject: Well, the girl I love wrote me “aishiteru” on a photo of the two of us. (Also, she only used my first name without “San” or anything like it.) Now of course you can’t read her mind, but as far as I know, this is something serious, isn’t it? So she probably wouldn’t say something that strong if she doesn’t mean it, right? (She’s an all-Japanese girl, with me being her only Western contact.)
I have a question regarding いる vs. ある – so it says in the blog that the former is used for people and animals while the latter is used for events, objects, etc.
But what about the book 吾輩は猫である？ (Wagahai-Wa Neko de Aru)
I personally haven’t read it yet, since I’m a beginner to Japanese, but I understand that the honorifics used by the speaker imply high social stature (like nobility) despite the narrator being a mere cat—but I digress.
(1) & (2)
Japanese sentences are OK but your example sentences are very dramatic. What happened? 😂
(3) ~ (5) are not natural with まま
I can’t picture the situation.
(3) バス is the subject of your sentence. But holding her hand is the speaker/writer.
(4) 降ろしたまま is not natural. 降ろしている間、居眠りをしていた might work.
(5) 働いたまま is not natural.
Thank you very much for this lesson, I think I understood it!!
But still, I want to ask for confimation.
In several songs now I’ve heard かい being used. But, it was always at the complete end of the sentence and only written in hiragana. It were phrases like “なんてありきたりかい？” and “深く眠れるかい？”. Is this the same expression as in this lesson? So the translation would be “Is it worth it that it came to this?” or “Would it be worth it to be sleeping deeply”?
Ah that かい is a suffix and it is different from this 甲斐
You attach it to the end of a sentence to make a question. It is a casual male speech. You may see/hear it in lyrics, writing or anime a lot but it is a bit corny expression in real conversation.
A1. I am not using it.
A2. I will not use it. / I don’t use it.
You use present tense 使います・使いません・使う・使わない
when you 1) talk about future 2) one’s habitual action
The question is “Are you using ~” so you have to match the answer. I am not using it which is A1.
Maggie先生〜
I think I remember hearing people start off saying “わざわざ…” and the other person will just start responding back without the person finishing their sentence. Is it common to just say “わざわざ” without intending to finish the sentence?
Ah, yes,
For example, when you want to say
Ex. 今日はわざわざ来てくれてありがとう。
You say
Ex. 今日はわざわざ….
then the listener can tell what comes after so he/she responds without hearing the rest.
You sometimes don’t finish the sentence in Japanese especially when you use a set phrase.
Other example
When you are about to leave someone’s house, you just say
Ex. もう、そろそろ
instead of saying the whole phrase,
Ex. もう、そろそろ行かないといけません。
If you use みたい in the past tense does that mean the the “similarity” no longer is true? In other words, if you say, “かわいかったみたい”, then the person is no longer cute today?
かわいかったみたい。= I heard she/he used to be cute. It states how cute that person used to be in past and it doesn’t mention the current state.
It changes the nuance depending on the particle as well.
If you say Ex. 彼女は昔もかわいかったみたい。It means she is cute now, too.
But if you say 彼女は昔はかわいかったみたい。 It insinuates she is no longer cute.
こんにちは🌞マッギ先生,
I am always confused by the subject and object use in Japanese as I also need to consider the particle and verb as well, just like in these two sentences:
1)女子学生に宿題を見せてもらう
2)男子学生が宿題を見せてあげる
why に is used but not がin (1)? and have you written any article for this topic? Thank you very much indeed!
本当にありがとうございました😊
Now I have a clear understanding about this topic. But I have a question of another topic 通じてand通して, hope Maggie sensei could teach me too 🙏🏾
The textbook says they share the same meaning but they cannot be used interchangeably sometimes, like:
私は、共通の友人を通じて妻と知り合いました。
The textbook suggests “通じて“ as the answer only. I am confused.
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you very much for the lessons!! May I ask you a question? In your example above, “おたくのお子さんは何かお稽古ごとをさせていますか？” means “Do you make your children take any lessons?”. However, I learnt from another sensei that “watashi wa kato-san ni unten saseru” means “I make/let kato san drive”. In your example, “your children” is in front of は, but in his example “I” is in front of は. I am sure both examples are correct, but why the difference? In one example, the “weaker” person is in front of wa, but in the other example, the “stronger” one is in front of wa.
Hi Kahloon
Right, Someoneに〜をさせる (あなたは、お子さんに何かお稽古事をさせていますか） is the correct form.
If you study for the JLPT exam, you stick to the form.
But in conversation, when you talk about something in this case your children, you introduce the topic with は
As for your children, do you make them take any lesson?
I will show you other simple example.
You say
あなたは朝食をもう食べましたか？
Did you already have breakfast?
You use を for breakfast because it’s an object of an action, eating.
But when you present breakfast as a topics, you change the particle with は
朝食はもう食べましたか？
(literal translation) As for breakfast, did you already have?
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you very much for the lessons!! May I ask you a question?
So far, my understanding is that, using the passive form, sometimes imply negative feeling (e.g. 甥にカメラを壊された。), and sometimes not (e.g. 上司の家に招待された。). My question is, when someone uses passive form in a blurred situation, how do we know whether he/she has bad feeling? For example, if someone says “本を友達に借られました。”(my booked was borrowed by a friend.). How do i know whether she has bad feeling lending a book to a friend? She might not like it, but doesn’t know how to reject. Or, she might be very willing to do so. How do I know/guess?
It’s all depends on the context. Either way, I wouldn’t say 本を友達に借りられました for your own book because you control your books to lend but if you are talking about the library book,
誰かに読みたかった本を借りられました。
it shows annoyance. You wanted to borrow a book but someone else took it.
Thank you for this lesson!
I have been learning Japanese on and off for years and always felt uncomfortable withあなた。
My question is : how do you address someone you don’t know at all ?
If you don’t know the name, title, position…
For example, if you meet someone and they ask you what your job is ; how would you say “and you ?” just ”あなたは？”
or if you find something and ask the person near to the objet ” is this yours” woudl you say “これは、あなたのですか？”
If you don’t know the name, just skip the subject,
What is your name? お名前は？
What do you do? お仕事は何をされているのですか？ / お仕事は？
And instead of saying “あなたは？” you repeat the question (or a part of the question) usually pointing the person with your hand (palm up)
お仕事は？
お名前は？
何をされているのですか？
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I want to know more the use of ‘anata’ between husband and wife,
is it only applies when ‘anata’ used as a calling from the wife?
Is the nuance of intimacy (maried couple) lose when ‘anata’ is in other forms like ‘anata-wa’ or ‘anata-no’?
The one I introduced as wife’s speech is kind of typical/stereotyped ones that you hear in a drama/anime.
Sometimes people jokingly say that with sweet and sexy voice in an exaggerate way.
Technically あなた is a gender free word so both husband and wife can use.
And it is not just for a married couple.
Sensei, I want to ask a question regarding this topic. I found a Japanese says in a video “こういうマークシートになっていて。。。” when she is showing a mark sheet for boat race betting and then she continues to explain further explanation about how to register in it. Why she use になっていて while it is not a “changing to something” event？
(At a restaurant) 全部で3千円です。/3千円でございます→全部で３千円になります。 That’ll be 3,000 yen in total
(At a hotel) こちらが、お部屋の鍵です/鍵でございます。→こちらがお部屋の鍵になります。 = This is your room key
(At a hotel) お部屋は１０階にあります/１０階にございます。→お部屋は１０階になります。 = Your room is on the 10th floor.
Some people would think this usage of なります is grammatically wrong since it doesn’t have a meaning of change,
it is a quite common usage in conversation.
Ah, I see. But I still think B is unnatural.
〜しておく is used when you intentionally do something ahead of time.
される is a passive form so using them together is unnatural.
You can use both ながら & つつ while doing something / even though (+ something contradicted)
つつ is a bit more formal than ながら. Also the usage of つつ is more limited. Ex. 残念ながら〜 X残念つつ
You can use たら for “if”/”after” and also “when”
The speaker believes something is likely to happen./ The speaker is not sure if something will happen.
来年になったら日本語が話せるようになると思う。I think I will be able to speak in next year.
４月になったら日本語が話せるようになるかな。 I wonder if I will be able to speak Japanese in April.
One more thing maggie sensei..
Can I use you ni twice, in one sentence? like.
Watashi wa hana you ni kirei you no naritai.
I used the noun+ youni+ adjective and the youni +narimasu
And also, can I use the ~te kuru conjugation at the end of this(your) example 最近、納豆が美味しいと思えるようになった..so instead ofようになった it becomes ようになってきた?
Because it has a feeling of when and a subjecive display of thought.
I’m really sorry for barging you with so many questions.
Thank you for all your wonderful lessons.
Yes, you can say ようになってきた. :)
Sorry. Just saw your question.
Watashi wa hana you ni kirei you no naritai.
should be
Watashi wa hana no you ni kirei ni naritai.
We tend to avoid using the same particle in one sentence if it is possible but you can use double “ni” in this sentence.
Also what’s the difference if I used -te kudasai or just the te-form straightly here in this sentence, instead of placing ように first.
帰ってくるまでに仕事を終えておくように
. Does placing ように makes it more polite?
This was really helpful, thanks so much! But I just wanted to confirm something, so if you wanted to say for example ‘it is not too hot’, would you have to change the adjective あつい into the negative あつくない before adding すぎません? So would you say あつすぎません or あつくなすぎません? Or is that not how you would say it in the first place? Thank you!!
あつい is a regular adjective (I mean the affirmative form doesn’t end with ない) so, what you do is
1) drop い →あつ
2) Add すぎない→あつすぎない (Not too hot)
masu form すぎません→あつすぎません
Thanks for making this lesson. It’s so great.
This is the topic which is not easily to digest ….
I have a question.
After reading and think, my understanding is
Vてあげる、Vてくれる、Vてもらう are giving and receiving centering on “私”.
Those grammar can be giving, can be receiving but they are centering on “watashi” like” do favor to “watashi”, “watashi” have SO do some favor, “watashi” received favor someone did.
If I want to say
(1) Mr A did some favor to Ms . B, can I use てあげる。
Mr A はMrBに掃除してあげる
(2) Mr B received a favor (掃除） from Mr B. can I use てもらう
Mr B は MrAに掃除してもらった。
(3) Mr B have Mr A do favor (掃除） for him
Mr B は MrA に掃除してもらう。
くれる／あげる／もらう is based on the speaker’s point of view.
You can also describe the third person does something for the other third person from their point of view.
Hi Kaminari,
Do you want to say,
“When I go on a picnic, I will take an umbrella.” or “Whenever I go on a picnic, I take an umbrella with me.”
Then, you should say
ピクニックに行くときは傘を持っていきます。
出かければ is used for more
If I go on a picnic, + you expect something will happen. /Someone will do something.
ピクニックに出かければ彼が喜びます。
If I go on a picnic, he will be happy.
Could you give me some examples to distinguish them?
Is that 苦味 is used for the taste of medicine?
What is 苦さ used for?
(2) Attach み ( = mi) suffix to certain verbs.
As in the lesson, 楽しみ is a noun by adding みto the verb 楽しむ。
Why it is not the noun by adding み to the adj 楽しい。
I mean it makes me confused for 2 ways of using a verb to make a noun and using an adj to make a noun. Why don’t we unify them as one way to make a noun, using an adj and make 2 nouns, with さ and with み。
Hi again,
OK, I only have a few minutes now so let me make my answer short here.
（１） Yes, you can use 苦味 for the taste of medicine.
苦味／苦さ they both could be simply “bitterness” in English but the difference is
basically 苦味 is a quality of bitterness which some food/drink (or medicine as you asked) has and 苦さ is degree of bitterness.
Q:Why don’t we unify them as one way to make a noun, using an adj and make 2 nouns, with さ and with み。
I think that’s the beauty of learning language. 😉
But you are not the only person who feel that way.
Now young people create their own new words attaching the suffix み to anything.
Thanks Maggie sensei for sparing every minute for my question.
I just leave a message here and wait for you….
(1) For 苦味／苦さ, I understand the 苦味 is a quality of bitterness which some food/drink (or medicine) .
I still not understand 苦さ. Could you please give me more example sentence?
If possible, please give me some examples with 辛さ・辛味. Really appreciate that.
(2) Absolutely agree !That is language:)
But…to remember the rule, my brain can not input many ways. So, if I just remember one way of making a noun, by using an adj to make 2 nouns, in さ and み, is it still OK sensei?
In fact , I see regardless of the way I use (using an adj たのしいto make noun, or using verb 楽しむto make noun), what I have is the same 楽しみ
この二つのコーヒーの苦さを比べてみる。
= I will compare the bitterness level of these two kinds of coffee.
彼は失恋の苦さをまだ知らない。
= He doesn’t know the bitterness of broken heart yet.
(X 苦味）
この店のカレーはこれらの３つの辛さから選ぶことができる。
We can choose the spice level among these three at this restaurant.
辛さは控(ひか）えめでお願いします。
Can this dish be prepared with a low level of spiciness?
(2) Don’t think too much. A lot of people start learning from ” ~ さ” form first.
And then when you hear/ see the word which finishes with み, then you can start using them.
Thank you so much for explaining every way of using bakari as I’m always confusing myself on how to use T_T Japanese has so much nuances that can’t really differentiate with English!
The examples are also very useful, thank you so much!
Don’t worry. The more you study, the more questions you should have.
Basically (1) and (2) are the same.
If anything, (1) is “reading action” and (2) is “to read” so, if you translate the difference, it would be something like,
(1) He didn’t even try reading my letter.
(2) He didn’t even read my letter.
はずなんだ？
You have seen how to use はずです。はずだ
はずなんだ is used when you show your strong emotion or frustration because something was supposed to work in certain way but it didn’t work or someone is supposed to do something but they don’t.
Can it be excitation, maybe ? It comes from a game I’m playing, and I don’t think frustration would fit the context.
I also have another question which isn’t related to this article ( sorry )
Can どかな ( meaning “could be”) be spelled どうかな instead ? I saw it like that in the same game, and from the look of the official translation, I think it should be どかな.
I have been wondering why it doesn’t sound natural. It could be the verb form.
When you use a potential form verb (or a verb which has a potential meaning)
Aに（~が）わかりっこない = There is no way that A (can) understand(s)~
The main subject is A not a noun which comes after が.
(The noun which comes after が is an object.)
On the other hand
Aに（Bが）負けっこない = There is no way that B loses A
The main subject is B, the one which comes after B.
So you can use whether が or は after B.
When you use verb potential form (or verb which has a potential meaning) Vっこない sounds unnatural to use が
Ex. 彼にそんなことができるはずがない わけがない
→彼にそんなことはできっこない。 (The main subject is 彼)
→(Not natural) 彼にそんなことができっこない (そんなこと is not the subject)
Ex. 彼にその曲が歌えるはずがない わけがない
→彼にその曲は歌えっこない
→(Not natural) 彼にその曲が歌えっこない。
I guess both っこない and が emphasize the meaning so it may sound too much emphasis.
他に理由が見つかったらまたコメントいれておきますね。
Thanks for another great lesson, Maggie sensei.
I have a problem with verb tense that I hope you will help me with: In the lightnovels I’ve been reading the narrators’s sentences often switch between past tense and present tense. Is there a clear rule for this?
I found this word in a song “誰かが描いていったかべの落書きの花”
Does 描いていった mean “have been drawn ?” or long drawn ago.
If it is what’s the difference between ていった and てきた。
I’m sorry for I being hard to understand.
I’ve read your article many times though.
Thanks a lot
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your wonderful instruction. I’ve been struggling with this ん sound forever but this lesson has helped me a lot.
I have questions that need further explain: In a manga I read the main character said this:
“待って 覚えらんね” (after he’s been nagged by his friends to go buy them drinks: “I want Coke”, “I want orange juice” v.v…). I think this sentence meaning is: “Wait, I can’t remember all the types of drinks you guys want” (Because after that he had to write down the name of those drinks then went to buy them) . But does this mean られ changes to らん？I don’t see this type of change mentioned in this lesson.
And then there is this sentence:
“女が絡まれてんのを見てとっとととんずらか？”
What’s the meaning/function of this ん in 絡まれてんの? Is it shortened from ている ? If so, what is the rule for these ん’s changes, because I thought ん is only the shortened form of の.
Again, thanks a lot for all the efforts you’ve put in these lessons.
Hello Maggie sensei, thank for your detailed explanation.
My question is what is “relative clause” form of the sentences with “desu”
For example : “This book explains `what relative clasue is` ”
Thank you for advance.
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question. You mentioned 服を着た犬 can be used as an adjective clause and on the other hand, 服を着ている is used to describe condition.
What is the difference? If I saw a dog wearing clothes walked past, do I say 服を着た犬を見かけた or 服を着ている犬を見かけた?
The translation could be the same.
Maybe it will be easier to understand the difference if I translated as follows.
服を来た犬 = a dressed dog / 服を着ている犬 a dog who is wearing clothes
Yes, they are very similar and the difference is very subtle. (Just 着ている is focusing on the current state and 着た is “a dog in clothes.” ) so I guess they are interchangeable.
As for the past tense, 服を着ている犬を見かけた is more natural.
I read over and over your lesson then 1 more question comes out.
If べき is used for telling what should be done from your point of view,
then what to use for telling what should be done from regulation point of view, such as
(1) as the national law, people under 18 years should not drink alcohol
Or
(2) As the company rule, people should were uniform.
I have a question about べき。 Could you help me as you always do !
If べき is more about obligation, then I don’t know what the obligation in this sentence.
あんな人とは別れるべきだ。
Since breaking up with him is the choice of the one person, not an obligation, isn’t it?
Right. You can decide whether you break up with someone or not.
If your friend is going out with a bad person. How would you feel? You think your friend should break up with that person, right?
When you strongly think that someone should do something if possible, you can use べき.
First, you don’t need to say “she is not the sun” because it is too obvious.
A person can’t be 太陽っぽい. Instead you can use みたい
She is like the sun. (It implies she is a warm and bright person.) 彼女は太陽みたいな人だ。・お日様みたいな人だ。
But… why is that sensei.
As my understanding, we can describe 1 大人 with children characteristic by 子供っぽい。Why we can not describe 1 person with Sun-like characteristic (warm and bright) by 太陽っぽい。
My sensei answers that 太陽 and 人 are not related.
But I still can not figure out what noun is not related to what noun. Like children and an adult are also not related, aren’t hey?
But , it there are some exception nouns, could you please teach me !
My next question is can we describe a person as animal-like (means this person is aggressive, easy-to-fight, etc) by あの人は動物っぽい.
Or, someone is dog-like (It’s just a question for the lesson,please forgive me if you dont feel comfortable with this example) by 犬っぽい。
As many of English words with “ish” is coined words, you can create your own words with っぽい in colloquial Japanese. In that sense,
太陽っぽい人が好き
might be acceptable.
In fact, っぽい is one of the overused words among young Japanese people and they attach っぽい to anything.
Ex. 明日みんなで集まるっぽい。(It seems like/I heard that we all get together tomorrow.)
Ex. なんか違うっぽい。(It looks different somehow.)
But not in your Japanese class. 😉
If you just say あの人は太陽っぽい, it sounds confusing to other people. The image you get from the sun is hot or warm or bright but it is too vague.
I really enjoy learning japanese, and very curious if I heard something new everytime a native speaker talk.
Regarding this topic, sometimes I heard Japanese said:
.〜わけと。
for example: 『良い旨味が出てくるわけと。』
can you explain what that person mean?
You sometimes leave a sentence unfinished on purpose.
In this case, leaving a sentence with と
（Finishing a sentence わけと is not that common but you sometimes leave a sentence with と.)
So instead of saying 良い旨味が出てくるわけだ／です。 you say, 『良い旨味が出てくるわけと。』
That is how you get good taste out of it.
Hi 天人！
元気だった？
As I mentioned, it is not that common to leave the sentence with わけと but yes, when you finish a sentence with ~と,
思う / ということだ, etc. could be omitted.
It depends on the context.
Other examples of leaving the sentence with と
Ex. さあ、もう寝よっと。(volitional form) expressing what you are going to do.
Ex. (Giving some instructions) ここを押すと、こうなると..(いうことです。）
Ex. (Confirming something) 明日からもう彼ははこないと..(いうことですか？/ と言っているのですか？）
This is an awesome lesson, but I just had one question:
What exactly does the “って” in
“日本語って難しいよね”
mean exactly? I’ve seen it elsewhere but from what I can tell, it turns whatever it’s attached to into the subject. Is that a good way to think about it?
So in this case, かのように was reduced to かに ?
When you say doubt in this case, かのように would mean “as if”, meanwhile のように would just mean like ?
ありがとうございます!
When you talk about your own regret, you don’t use のに.
〜神戸にすればよかった。(Your own regret) I should have studied in Kobe. (The tones goes down)
〜神戸にすればよかったのに (Talking about someone else) You should have studied in Kobe.
Hi Bere,
I don’t do the translation here. Also it is hard to tell by just the sentence but is it a typo?
流すところだったん →流すところだった
I guess the person denying something saying “That is not possible/I don’t have something./ It can’t be true (depending on the context)” and 流す means he/she doesn’t try to answer the former question seriously. ところだった means “almost/was about to do something”
So he/she almost didn’t try to answer the question seriously denying the possibility laughing.
You are right.
“desu/da” also means “to be” in English.
The difference is when you are talking about the existence /location of something/someone, you use iru and aru.
Ex. He is at home = Kare wa ie ni iru/imasu.
Ex. There is a dog in the park = Kouen ni inu ga iru/imasu.
Ex. There is a bag on the desk/ = Tsukue no ue ni kaban ga aru/arimasu.
Ex. The bag is in the room. = Kaban wa heya ni aru/arimasu.
When you express, some quality, nationality, occupation you use, da/desu.
X = Y
Ex. Watashi wa Maggie da/desu. = I am Maggie.
Ex. Kare wa nihonjin da/desu. = He is Japanese.
Ex. Kore wa watashi no kasa desu. = This is my umbrella.
毎日の朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことになっています。
(It becomes my habit (a rule) that I will read Maggie sensei site every morning). I write the English here for worrying of my bad Japanese , ひひ）
だから、毎日質問が来ているです。。。
で、毎日私からのコメントを見えますね。ごめん、先生。
Today, my question is about this sentence
彼に限ってそんなことをするわけがない。
= Kare ni kagitte sonna koto wo suru wake ga nai.
= He is the last person who would do such a thing.
Hi
彼に限ってそんなことをするわけがない。 means “There is no way that he would do such a thing.”
Maybe other people would do but not him.
So it doesn’t mean 彼以外に他の人がそんなことをするわけがない because that means he would do that but not other people.
OK, let me help your Japanese sentences a little.
毎日の朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことになっています。
→毎朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことにしています。or 読むようになりました。
だから、毎日質問が来ているです。。。→I guess it’s OK…How about 毎日、質問が出てきます。
で、毎日私からのコメントを見えますね。→だから毎日、私からのコメントがあります。
Aさんに限り／限って〜Vない
That would be the last thing that A would do.
A won’t do such a thing.
When you use (someoneに）限り／限って in a negative sentence, it means “someone” is the last person who would do that.
今日に限ってかなり飲んだ
It is an affirmative sentence. 限って modifies 今日 and it means “limited to /Only ~”
→Just today
I see why you asked me.
When you tell someone what you are going to do (action) you say ~します not しています
楽しみにしている is an expression which describe the state of being expecting something fun and 楽しみにする is not an action.
So you don’t say 楽しみにします
But don’t think about it too much. This is just an expression.
Hi. I’ve been visiting this site for quite some time now. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate these lessons and how much I find them helpful!
Thank you so much for your hard work.
Sending my love from Slovenia to you and to Maggie above*
母にキャンプに行かせられた。
= I was forced to go camping by my mother.
(My mother made me go camping.)
So it shows the emotion that “I didn’t want to go but there was no choice. ”
If you are allowed to do something by someone, you say
母に行かせてもらった。
Hello,
明日は、実家に行くことになっているんだ。
= I am supposed to go visit my parents.
You are focusing on your plans.
You have made the plans before and you are telling someone what you are planning to do tomorrow.
明日は、実家に行くことになりました。
= I decided to go visit my parents.
You are focusing on your decision.
Before, when I read your lesson about 受身, I found a very very great way to change Verb dictionary form to 受身form. That is changing to verb dictionary form to ない、then add れる。
For example, いくｰ>いかない →いかれる。
Which is
very easy to remember.
I’d like to ask whether I can apply this rule to form the causative. In detail, changing the verb dictionary to ない、then add せる。
For ex, いく －＞いかないー＞いかせる。
I wonder if this rule is also possible to apply without no exception.
I just have a question about this sentence.
一応そういういことにしておきましょう。
It translates to “Let’s just say that you don’t for now.” I can see how that sentence contains the words “for now” and “that”. But I am at a lost how you get “let’s just say you don’t”. Is the にして here the same one as your [にしては & わりに] lesson? And for the おきましょう verb I think it is the verb おく, right? But I just don’t understand how it translates to that in English.
Also, in 例の仕事はもうできた？ I tried to look up 例 but it only means “example”. Does it always mean “that” in such sentences?
One sentence makes me headache again. Could you please help me.
先生( ~) その話し方は失礼だ。
1. にとって 2. に対して
私にとって、Both (1) and (2) sound correct because.
– If (1), then the sentence means “From sensei’s point of view, that way of talking is impolite.
-> Sensei thinks that this way of talking is impolite
– If (2), then the sentence means “That way of talking against sensei is impolite” ->
But I check my book, and it says only に対して is correct.
Why (1) can not be used here sensei?
先生に対してその話し方は失礼だ。
The way you* talk to the teacher is rude.
I can see how you took the sentence, the way you talk is rude for the teacher but it is still not natural.
It will be easier to see the usage of 対して if you change the sentence a little.
Aは、Bに失礼な話し方をする。
= A talks to B in a rude manner.
You see two parties, A and B in this sentence.
As I explained in the lesson, you use 対して to make the target of action clear
the action goes to the teacher/ or one’s attitude towards/against the teacher.
You use にとって when focus on how someone perceive someone’s action/events.
Just would like to confirm my understanding.
In this sentence, if I want to use に対して, then I should say
あの人は先生に失礼な話し方をする
My second question is if I want to focus on the noun “話し方”、and I want to describe that noun (話し方) is rude (失礼）, may I use に対するin this case
先生に対するその話し方は失礼です。
I feel some thing is not right here, but I dont know it @@
My next concern is にとって in this sentence in the test.
the test only gives me 2 options to choose 1. にとって ２．に対して, for this one
先生( ~) その話し方は失礼だ。
1. にとって ２．に対して
I don’t know why (1)にとって is not the correct answer.
先生にとってその話し方は失礼だ
= In sensei’s perception, that way of talking is rude
The meaning sounds OK. But why only に対してis suitable makes me headache.
Q1) In this sentence, if I want to use に対して, then I should say
あの人は先生に失礼な話し方をする
→No, no. That is not what I meant. I just rephrase it to show you the meaning.
If that confuses you more, how about this
AさんはBに対して失礼だ
The attitude of A towards B is rude. – A is rude to B.
You don’t use とって
AさんはBにとって失礼だ
****
Your interpretation,
先生にとってその話し方は失礼だ
= In sensei’s perception, that way of talking is rude
The meaning sounds OK.→Not quite.
You can’t see if it is rude or not from the teacher’s point of view and also “Someoneにとって+ adjective” is not natural.
(Ex. X彼女にとって犬は好きだ X父にとってスマホは便利だ x彼にとってその服は大きい）
If you attach a noun, it is possible.
So if we translate as your interpretation, you could say
(それは）先生にとっては失礼な話し方だったようだ。
= I assume it was a rude way of talking for the teacher.
It’s not that I understand them all but the feeling is better now.
Thank you sensei ^^
Good, at lease you feel better. (^_−)−☆
Maggie sensei,
I read over the grammar にとって again but it’s still headache.
If “Someone にとって＋adj” is not natural, why this sentence is OK sensei (crying …)
Ex. Silver先生にとって日本語は難しくない。
= Japanese is not hard for Silver Sensei.
Thanks sensei as always
Ah, good point. I shouldn’t have brought that pattern up because there are cases that you say にとって+ adjective.
But 先生にその話し方はとって失礼だ still doesn’t sound right. I may have to repeat the same thing again and again but
話し方 means how someone talk to the teacher. So you see the two people in the sentence. One person talks to the teacher in a rude way.
When some action is done against someone, you use 対して
Thank you sensei :)))))
I understand them now .
Thanks sensei for every little bit thing you did to help me study
I have a question related to 間にand うちに.
They sound the same. Are they interchangeable?
If they can not, in which case we can only use 間に, and which case we can only use うちに
Ah, something has come into my mind. We also have 最中に with respect to “During” meaning.
そうですね、「〜たら」と「ば」 は同じように使えることもあるのですが、その二つの例文を比べると「ば」の方が仮定の気持ちが強いです。
「卒業したら〜たい」 When I graduate from the Japanese school, I would like to study ~
「卒業すれば」 If I graduate from the university, ~ (It sounds more hypothetical. The speaker is not 100% sure if he/she would graduate)
The 「Ｖタ形ら」 pattern is used to express that a certain action will be done or that a certain situation will arise upon the completion or occurrence of a matter, action, or state that the speaker is certain will happen.百パーセントで起こるという事です。
The 「条件形, or conditional form, the 「〜ば」 part of the sentence describes the requirements needed for an event or occurrence to manifest itself.
Your interpretation is right except the part 百パーセントで起こるという事です。
I think you said 100% because I said “When the speaker is not 100 pct sure.” in the explanation of ~ば but you use たら when you are not 100% sure either.
For that particular example sentences たら in 卒業したら, is the completion of “finishing the school (graduation)”
マギー先生
もう少し考えたいですが、説明して下さって有難うございます。
勇士
はい、また考えて悩んでわからなくなったらいつでもきてください。
分かりました！
Just an interesting note…
「失礼ですが、どちら様でしょうか？」
If you merely say 失礼ですが, the person will immediately identify himself.
It’s like magic!
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I always enjoy learning Japanese by reading your articles as I love dogs so much. Thank you for your hard work.
I’m preparing for my N3 test and the textbook I bought said “訳がない“ and “っこない” share the same meaning. But when I did some exercises, I found they couldn’t be used interchangeably. Could you explain the differences in their usage? Thank you so much!!
There is no way that I can do such a thing.
そんなことできるわけない conversational そんなんことできっこない
They mean the same.
You often use っこない with verbs in potential form.
And also while わけがない is used with adjectives or の+ noun , you can’t use っこない with adjective or の+ noun
私の服が高いわけがない。 There is no way that my clothes are expensive.
X You can’t use っこない。
彼が兄のわけがない。There is no way that he is my big brother.
X You can’t use っこない
Hi Maggie-sensei! I just want to ask, what should I say when I want to say that someone has allowed me to do something? For example, to be forced to get married is 結婚させられた。But if I want to say that I was allowed to get married, what should I say?
I also want to ask, what should I use when I want to tell someone not to use keigo with me because it makes me feel old?
Hello, Maggie-sensei!一人で日本語を習うから、時々マギー先生の便利な記事を読む。ありがとうその記事を :)
では、今漫画が訳したに「怖がられそう」を見つけた。怖がるは「to scare」、られ（る）は potential or passive voiceそして「そう」！
全部の言葉は「マスク外したら怖がられそう？」
So, “if you had taken your mask out it would have been scary?”
The person who takes off the mask is the listener, “you”?
If so,I think you got the meaning.
“If you had taken off your mask, they (people around you or particular people depending on the content) would be very scared.
Hello Maggie I have a question, I was confused alittle about には but you explained it earlier
Can you please explain the difference of this to me
日本に山がある
日本にある山がある
and what is the best way to translate this:
たくさん休みがある５月が好すき
冷蔵庫がある台所
I understand Ga is marking subject of Refrigerator and saying it exists, but how exactly is it saying that its “In The Kitchen” is what confuses me, I know its modifying the noun but….it doesn’t translate this way in my western head
Hi there,
“There are mountains in Japan?”
The most natural way to say is
日本には山がある。 This には has a function to bring up a topic: As for ~
As for Japan, there are mountains (in it)”
日本に山がある is just a factual thing. 日本には is more explanatory. You bring up a topic, 日本 and explain what they have in Japan.
たくさん休みがある５月が好き (I fixed the typo)
I love May which has lots of holidays.
冷蔵庫がある台所
The kitchen which has a refrigerator.
If you want to learn more about how to modify a noun, check this lesson. →Click this link.
Thank you for the great lesson.
I just have one small point to confirm.
らしい is used for indirect information. And よう is used for the fact based on our assumption.But they are all guess, right.
For the information I get from my friends, other people, it’s clear to be らしい。
However, for many cases, it’s hard to distinguish what is assumption and what is indirect information. Actually, when we get indirect information then we will make an assumption…
But my question is will I get any trouble if I used らしい and よう not cleverly? I mean, for example.
When getting up in the morning, I see the road is wet. Then I make a guess “Seem that It rained last night”. Is it possible if I use both らしい and よう
昨日の晩、雨がふったらしい。
昨日の晩、雨が降ったようです。
But sensei, will I cause some troubles if I use Rashii.
昨日の晩、雨がふったらしい。
Because when I am in a conversion, I can not quickly decide what is subjective and what is objective information….
And,in the case I get information from my friends (my friend tells me “It rained yesterday”, but then I use this information to make my own judgment, what to use, らしい or よう。
Sorry if I am making thing complicated….
But it’s really a headache.
昨日は、雨が降ったらしい。 I heard /Someone told me/ I read (somewhere) that it rained yesterday.
(based on the information that the speaker has heard/seen.)
昨日は、雨が降ったようだ。It seems like it rained last night.
(1) first hand experience. Based on what you have seen.
(2) Like らしい, it could be based on what the speaker has heard/seen but the speaker uses ようだ when they are more certain about it.
Let’s change the tense a little.
When you are talking about the future weather, you can use both らしい and ようだ. ようだ is used when the speaker is more certain.
明日は雨が降るらしい。
I heard it’s going to rain tomorrow.
Based on what the speaker has heard/seen.
明日は雨が降るようだ。
Apparently it is going to rain tomorrow.(based on more reliable information or the speaker’s experience/knowledge)
***
So if you ever get confused which one to use, I would suggest to use らしい when you heard the information from someone. And use ようだ for your first hand experience.
Don’t know how to express my thanks to you and your site now…
Lots of thanks Maggie sensei.
Lucky that I’ve found you!
I feel flattered but I am sure there are so many great sites out there. :)
Dear Maggie Sensei, I have a question. if ら し い is like an iAdj, why do I have to write マ リ ア ら し い 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。 and not マ リ ア ら し く て 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。?
can I join it to an iAdj without modifying it?
Thank you for another great lesson. I also read the こそ lesson and I am wondering, is さえ sometimes interchangeable with こそ since they both add emphasis? I know さえ means “even”, but it can also be for emphasis like in –
この問題さえ解けたら１００点だったのに。
What would be the difference between these 2 sentences?
1. この問題さえ解けたら１００点だったのに。
2. この問題こそ解けたら１００点だったのに。
And I just have another question about this intro..
「あ～このレポートさえ終われば外で遊べるんだけど….」
“Ahh, all I have to do is to finish this report and I can go out and play but….”
I thought that we use 終える to say “to finish something”, and 終わる is only used when something ends (e.g. a lesson, a song). So for this lesson I thought we would use 終える becacuse the speaker is the one completing the report.
I also noticed (from your examples) that unlike こそ, when you use さえ with verbs, it always has to be placed in between 2 verbs, right?
So either [te-form verb]+[さえ]+[verb] or… [verb stem]+[さえ]+[verb]. And then when you don’t really have any particular verb to place after the [さえ] you just simply default to using the verb いる, right?
Right. I am not going to repeat what I wrote in the lessons here but さえ is also used for conditional form.
VさえVば
そのことを知ってさえいれば
If only I had known that
Actually the usage of でしょう is kind of limited.
You use it when you predict something, forecast the weather or it is used in the written form.
はず is based on one’s strong belief.
For example the weather reporter says
明日は雨が降るでしょう。= It will rain tomorrow.
But they will never say 明日は雨が降るはずです。in the weather forecast. It sounds like “I believe it is going to rain tomorrow.”
Always appreciate the lessons, so much more useful than standard textbooks.
I was just wondering if there was a casual way of saying don’t have to do.
For example if you’ve had a busy week but finally have the day off is しなくちゃ事がなくて嬉しい correct? I cant help but feel there must be a more natural way of saying it.
Thank you!
しなくちゃ事がなくて嬉しい →Technically しなきゃいけないことがなくて嬉しい
But it is a direct translation and it doesn’t sound natural. I would say
(忙しかったけど）やっと休むことができてうれしい。
= (I have been busy but) I am happy that I can finally get some rest.
マギー先生、レッスンはいつもありがとうございます。
ちょっと質問がある:
How often do we use ‘tte’ to replace the ‘ha’ particle in day to day conversation? I hear it quite a bit, but i’m unsure of whether I’m misinterpreting it or not
In 「 私はもうすこし ( 日本語がかんたんな本) がいいです。」the relative clause is the one inside () or should I include もう少し? I was told that the relative clause is only 日本語がかんたんな and it modifies 本 but I thought a clause should have a verb?
Hi Shin
もうすこし modifies かんたんな →もうすこし簡単な a little easier
You may understand better if you translate it literally in English.
I prefer a book “which Japanese is a little easier”
This is one of my favorite lessons of yours. Getting food is something I always have trouble with when I travel, and I love eating out, so… But I have never seen anyone give so much detail about “what will happen when you go to [insert place]” as you. I like that you always think of as many situations as possible. Thank you so much!
Thanks Maggie I love your work! Whenever I am looking for an answer and I Google it I always end up on your site and I love the way you present the information and the quirkiness of the site with the 犬と猫。I am just 18 months into my 日本語journey but loving it! どもありがとございいます。
Thank YOU so much for visiting this site.
I am happy to hear you are enjoying your 日本語 journey!
The key to improve Japanese or any languages is to enjoy studying it.
がんばって！
Just wanted to say how much this helped me. :D I thought that a singer was saying “頑張って見る” and that didn’t make any sense to me. Now I learned about the ~てみる, it makes sense lol
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Sorry if you explained it already, but I still just don’t get why for this sentence it had to be 間に and not 間.
留守をしている間に宅急便が来た。
I know you said its because the 宅急便が来た is just a one time action, a one time thing. But then I get confused when in these example sentences, it is alright to use 間.
Hello. Is your heart still frozen? 😉
りんごやオレンジが好きです。
や is “A, B and etc. ” so it implies there are other things you like.
If it is limited to two things, you use と
A and B. (Nothing else) →AとB.
A or B. (Choose from one of them) A か B
A and B and etc.(+ something else) →AやB / (more conversational) Aとか*B (* とか also implies “things like ~)
Hi Maggie-sensei, would like to ask does the きて in this sentence 急に、彼女が昨日はどこに行ったか聞いてきて、焦りまくった。means the physical motion come? because the english translation is My girlfriend asked instead of My girlfriend came and asked.
Ahhh good question. I made a lesson on てくる／ていく but I guess I didn’t cover the usage. I should add one.
てくる／てきた is not always someone/something comes to you.
When their actions (coming towards you and ) affects you, you use てくる
1) Someoneが、〜か聞いてきた Someone asked me if ~
2) Someoneが、〜と言ってきた。 Someone said to me ~
3) Someoneが、怒ってきた。Some got mad at me.
So if you just say 聞いた/言った／怒った it is a factual thing. But by using てくる／てきた, you can tell the speaker/write is affected by their actions.
… I don’t understand how can bakari mean only/just if most of the translated sentences don’t include the word only or just???? Explain?? Like these sentences make no sense to me :
Hi Anon,
Though my English translation does’t have the word, just/only, the sentence emphasize the meaning.
Let me add “just” in the translation for you.
同じ間違いばかりしている。
Just making the same mistake over and over.
(emphasizing the repetition of making the same mistakes)
* 時間ばかりかかる仕事 = The work which just taking a lot of time.
Hi Maggie! I found this sentence o a JLPT test page but I don’t understand the meaning of ものか here: あの人には分からないのだろう、今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものか。Thanks and keep up the hard work!
This is an inverted sentence.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものかあの人には分からないのだろう。
So this もの is nominalizing what comes before.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういもの （= 今の生活の安定が危ういものだということ/今の生活の安定が危ういということ =） “(the fact that) how unstable the current life is”
+ あの人には分からないのだろう。 = He/She probably doesn’t know / He/She may not know.
Hello Miriam,
let’s make a little change in the order structure of this sentence, then you will understand the meaning of ものか easier.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものか、あの人には分からないのだろう。
The pattern 「いかに／どんなに～～～ものか」 puts more emphasis (and feelings of the speaker) in the sentence. In this case the speaker is concerned, because somebody doesn’t realize, how much his/her current stability in life is in danger.
Here’s an example I found in the Internet:
こんな気持ちがどんなに淋しいものか、あの人だけにもっとわかってほしい
1) Tabako wa karada ni warui kara MOU yameyou.
2) Tabako wa karada ni warui kara yameyou.
Yes, 1) emphasizes one’s stronger feelings.
When you add もう (= mou), you can add the feelings such as “I had enough” / I have been smoking but it is time to quit smoking NOW.”
Thanks for the lesson.
Actually, you teach the rule for forming passive voice by changing the Verb to ない then add れ, is much much much easier to remember than the other rules.
For your reference, I had learnt the rule of forming passive voice which was so complicated to remember like below
Group 1: like いきます。
– Look at き, the sound is “k”. Passive voice is use the “k” sound plus “a” -> か。Finally, the passive is 行かれる。
Like 飲みます。
Look at ’み”。The sound is “m”. Passive voice is using the “m” sound _ “a”,
Finally passive voice is 飲まれます。
I have learnt new thing that なら is also used for Conditional sentence “If”.
I also remembered that I had learnt と・ば・たら also are used for Conditional Sentence . So dizzy now !
Could you please explain the difference of conditional sentences of と・ば・たら・なら ！
There are so many usages of と・ば・たら・なら so I can’t explain the whole difference here but たら is the most general conditional form and you can replace と・ば・なら with たら in many cases.
I have all the lessons so I suggest that you go through them one by one to see the difference.
こんいちは Maggie 先生😀
I have 3 questions for below situation:
Last week my friend went to Japan for business.
He knows that I like Japanese lipstick so he bought a lipstick for me (I didn’t ask him to buy, he vouluntarily bought it for me)
1, I want to tell my mom that :
I was bought a Japanese lipstick by my friend
—–> Can I say this?
(1) 私は友達に日本のリップスティック”が”買われてもらいました
*😜 I want to stress on “I was bought” to imply that something like I am a special friend with him so he is interested in me then bought it for me 😊 rather than saying
(2) 友達が私に日本のリップスティックを買えってくれました ーーー> I feel (2) stresses on “my friend did” rather than “I am a special friend with him”
If my 日本語の sentence is wrong, please kindly teach me how to say it correctly
2, This sentence makes me confused that how can listener know well that
I asked him to buy
or he vouluntarily bought it for me?
(3) 私は友達に日本のリップスティックを買えってもらいました
3, In all (1)(2)(3), I finish by ました to show my respect attitude to my mom, not to my friend. Did I do it correctly?
Again, if you say 日本のリップスティック, it could be just a lipstick which is made in Japan. You can buy them anywhere in the world.
But if you say 私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。, it implies he bought a lipstick in Japan and brought it back to you.
(🤤Please help me delete my comment under your reply on Aug 29, 2018 at 12:55AM. I was mis-press reply button)
I just want to confirm to be sure that I could understand your meant correctly
1, I should say that
友達が日本で口紅を買って来てくれました。
To stress that I don’t ask him but because I’m a special friend with him, he voluntarily bought then brought lipstick from Japan for me.
Besides that, I still wait for your help for question 2&3 😁
🔴Q2, If I say this sentence with another friend (A san) who doesn’t know him:
私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
—>
how can A san differentiate 2 below cases
(A) ➡️I knew he would go to Japan in advance so I asked him to help me buy a lipstick in Japan first, ▶️ he agreed then ▶️ I sent money to him ▶️ he helped me bought it
In this case, I wasn’t presented a gift
(B) ➡️ I hadn’t known that he went to Japan until he gave me a lipstick and told me about buying it in Japan
In this case, I was presented a gift
🔴Q3, In all sentence, I finish by ました to show my respect attitude to my mom, not to my friend. Did I do it correctly?
*私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
*友達が日本で口紅を買って来てくれました。
⭕But if the person who bought lipstick for me is my boss 🤣 and I told it to my younger brother, can I say
私は課長に日本でリップスティックを買ってきていただいたよ。
(I use いただくto show my respect to my boss and
Use short form in past tense of いただく+ よ ➡️ to show that I don’t need to use 敬語 / 尊敬語 with my younger brother)
Q2.私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
This sentence sounds like you asked him to buy a lipstick from Japan for you.
In case of (B) You can say 友達が日本からリップスティックを買ってきてくれました。
But this could be either you asked him to buy you a lipstick beforehand and he bought it for you
or he bought you a lipstick voluntarily
You can also say 友達が日本で買ったリップスティックをくれました。He gave me a lipstick which he bought in Japan. (This won’t imply that you asked him.)
Q3: You usually use casual form when you talk to your own mother but it is possible to use ました form.
私は課長に日本でリップスティックを買ってきていただいたよ。
That’s fine. But again, when you are talking to your younger brother, you can stick to the casual form, too.
課長に日本で口紅を買ってもらっちゃった。
Dear Maggie 先生、
I can completely understand your explanation now 😀
Thank you so much for your help!!
I wish you good health and happy time
Thanks to my younger brother, I have been known your website
I always feel your great enthusiasm and your kind heart in each lesson
頑張り続けてください💪💪
We love you always 💖❤🌷🌹🌸
Hi Sarang
I’m happy to hear you understood. Please say hello to your younger brother!
Big hug for both of you💕
すばらしいレっスンをつかられて、ありがとうございました!
There is a part where you say
“Note: You also use お嬢様 ( = ojousama ) to”..?
and then you stop right there. I’m really curious, is there anything you forgot to put after that “to”?
Thanks again!
“ことがある is focusing on one’s experience /whether you have done something or not/ whether something has happened or not.” Isn’t this is for [~ta koto ga aru] ? If yes, i already understood for this one. ^ ^
From your example :
“時々、何もかも忘れてどこか遠くへ行きたくなることがある。”
こんにちは勇士！
「さ」のレッスンはまだありません。そのうち作りますね。
There are a couple of functions of さ but when you tell someone what you heard, you can add さ as a suffix. The nuance difference is very subtle.
For example when you tell someone “Maggie Sensei is busy.”
I heard Maggie Sensei is busy.
マギー先生は忙しいんだって。
マギー先生は忙しいんだってさ。 by just adding さ, you can express “Oh well…/ that’s how it works/ We can’t do anything about it/ whatever” type of feelings.
For these 2 example sentences, are there any previous lessons that I can look at to understand them better?
一晩中こそ、勉強してはいないが長い時間がんばって勉強した。
今でこそ笑っていられるが当時は毎日悩んでいました。
For the 1st sentence, I don’t understand why it is 勉強してはいない instead of 勉強していない.
And for the 2nd one, I think I just have not learned いられる? I tried to look up this word but can’t find anything.
~ してはいない
You add は to emphasize what comes before (一晩中勉強していない ”I didn’t study all night long”) to show the contrast.
So you pick up one example and deny it by using は
Let’s make it more simple.
日本に行ったことがない。I have never been to Japan.
日本には行ったことがない. The same translation, “I have never been to Japan.” but it implies I have been to other places but Japan.
いられる is a potential form of いる
笑っている= to be in the state of laughing/smiling → to be smiling/to be laughing
笑っていられる = to be able to be in the state of of laughing/smiling → to be able to smile/laugh
This really helps. Looks like I learned something new and important! Looks like the ている form is actually made of 2 parts that can be broken down. I had always thought that the ている form of verbs cannot be broken down, as in, it is one single form (piece of grammar) just like:
the past tense form した
the negative form しない
the polite form します
But it looks like ている is actually made of 1.) the ~て form, and 2.) いる
Is this いる the same いる as the verb “to exist”?
〜ている
This いる is “to be (in the state)” and describe some condition/ state
hello Maggie Sensei 😀
詳しく日本語を教えてくれていつもありがとうございます😄😄
質問がありますが、、
how to answer お疲れ様 correctly?
Hi Lee,
Basically you don’t have to say anything but…
If you are working with someone and they tell you お疲れ様, you can also say お疲れ様. You say that almost immediately when someone tells you.
Or you can say
Name (san) こそ、お疲れさ様でした。
Ex. Leeこそお疲れ様！ (Between friends)
Ex. Leeさんこそお疲れ様でした。(a little more formal)
If you leave earlier than other people, you say
お先に失礼します。
If you are working and someone shows appreciation for your work, saying お疲れ様です。
You can say something like
いいえ No problem. (This is nothing)
とんでもないです (formal) Not at all
I have a question about this sentence.
今から、「薔薇」という漢字を書く練習をしてきます！じゃあね！
I don’t understand why 〜てきます is added to the sentence. I have read your lesson about 〜ていく＋〜てくる.
But why not just say 「薔薇」という漢字を書く練習をします? I don’t see how 〜てくる adds anything to it.
Unless… I can only guess that you are implying “I will practice writing the kanji and then come back”?
Of course you can say 書く練習をします。but what I meant was I will practice writing the kanji and will be back to this site.
You often use that form when you talk to someone on blog, twitter, Facebook…etc.
Thanks for making this lesson.
I know you have overcome a lot of uncomfortable feeling to teach this male speech (coz it’s quite rough for a woman).
May I ask a question, that this is the conversation style typical of male when a man talk to a man.
How about the style when a man talk to a woman?
Do they still use this style, or if not, which style will be suitable?
It depends on the person and the relationship with the listener.
It could be more rough when a man talks to a man but some don’t change the way they talk when they talk to women.
Hi! I thought you could also use aida to mean “the other day / that time” (when you don’t remember exactly when it was, it was a while ago etc.) For example:
The other day, I saw a black cat , or That time, I saw a black cat.
Kono aida, kuro neko wo mita.
Hi Luna,
Yes, you are right.
この間 = このあいだ = kono aida = the other day
Ex. Thank you for the other day. = この間はありがとう。= Kono aida wa arigatou!
Ex. I went to the zoo the other day. = この間、動物園に行った。= Kono aida doubutsuen ni itta.
I found this example sentence interesting.
彼は、私の気持を知っているくせに無視をする。
At first I thought I understood it perfectly, but I really didn’t until I read your English translation. Then I got it.
My translation before I read yours was “He knows how I am feeling (maybe sick/unhappy) but he ignores it”.
I didn’t know it means “He knows how I feel ABOUT HIM, but he still ignores ME”
There is nothing in the sentence that indicates this, so I find it interesting that a Japanese person would naturally understand it because that is their native language/culture/mindset.
This is one of those things that I can only learn from coming across it in real life or your blog.
You said that そう ( = sou) and らしい ( = rashii) are only used for things you have heard.
But in my 初級日本語文法総まとめ２０ポイント book, there’s this sentence:
田中さんは出かけたらしいです。留守番電話になっていましたから。
So does rashii have another use that’s similar to you/mitai? If it does, is there any difference between rashii and you? (I read from your blog that mitai is more colloquial than you)
2nd question is “Is rashii in this sentence natural? Like this use of rashii, is it common among native Japanese people?
田中さんは出かけたらしいです。留守番電話になっていましたから。
Yes, it is a natural sentence and it is very common.
And yes, as I said, you use らしい based on the information of what you have heard/seen/read.
You can say
田中さんは出かけたようです。／出かけたみたいです。instead of 出かけたらしいです。
The meaning is the same.
A comprehensive and well written lesson! I have now grasp the basics of dekiru!
A note for the beginner who isn’t a genius. I consider myself intermediate (but no where near fluent) and this was a lot to grasp. Make sure you focus on the dekiru verb when you feel overwhelmed with the context because there is a lot of context (very useful for the intermediate learner, might I add).
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei
I love your post about wakamono kotoba and very interesting topic.
I would like to take this topic for my essay, especially about tameguchi.
May i request reference (books or ebook, journal, article) for this topic?
Tons! I can’t give you all the list here but check my other colloquial Japanese lessons. (For example here)
And I think I specify if the sentence is not neutral.
I was focusing on the honorific expressions with 様 (さま） in this lesson but
There is other meaning of 様(さま） which means
ありさま・様子（ようす） state/ condition of things/people.
こんにちは、ギレルモ！
You are right. 走ってった is a casual contraction of 走っていった
You often drop い in casual speech/writing.
(The person) ran towards the building (and disappeared from the speaker/writer’s view.)
If you want to learn more of this, I have a lesson here. → Click here
(nick name) と読んでください。 Different kanji 呼んでください
お子供が１人います。→ You don’t add お for your own child. 子供が一人います。
お仕事は(work)でした。→ Again you don’t use お here.
It depends on what kind of 仕事 you meant.
But (work) の仕事をしていました。
Ex. 経理の仕事をしていました。
Yes. They are correct. (To be honest, the first sentence has two 年 expression so it could be confusing.)
You can put the two sentences together.
Ex. 2008年から2013年の３年間日本で検査梱包の仕事をしていました。
As for your 自己紹介, you can include that information but it is up to you. I think your resume says whether you are single or married.
Is there any format when writing a jikoshoukai for job interview?
If it does have, what should be the content of it that makes a jikoshoukai have impact to the employer.
I am very sorry if I have so many questions..
I think the one you wrote is good enough for your personal information but for job interview, you should talk about how much you are interested in that job and how you can serve for the company explaining your job experiences, skills, abilities and etc.
Have you checked my job hunting lesson?
Hi Maggie sensei,
Please let me make question about adding がるto adj to make a verb.
Is the verb formed by adj + がる only used for third person?
For example
If something is scaring, it is “Something がこわい”
If he’s scared of scaring thing, is it “彼はこわいものを怖がる？
If I’m sacred of his scaring thing, is it “彼のこわいものを怖がる, too?
Is it possible to use ところ for things that happen elsewhere while you’re doing something unrelated in a another place?
E.g.
Last night, while eating dinner with my friends, I got fined for a parking violation.
夕べ友達と晩ご飯を食べていたところ、駐車違反で罰金を科せられました。
Of course, the traffic cop didn’t come to find me at the table to hand me the fine personally, instead I found the ticket on my windscreen after dinner ended.
Sorry for the ultra late reply, thanks for the answer!
I must admit I was unsure it would come out right, when I reread the sentence it sounded like the cop came to me at the restaurant to issue the fine :-P
Though I suppose, it could be read that way as well if someone didn’t get the context?
I don’t think anybody would think the police comes to you and charge the fine at the table from that sentence unless you say レストランで食事をしていたところ警官がきて駐車違反の罰金を払わされた。 (^_−)−☆
Uh-oh… 実話でしたか？
それは残念！
Thanks, I get it now. I just mixed myself up with so many usages of たまる. So when I say たまるか (NOT たまらない), I have to use the -te form for the verb.
Thanks very much for the example sentences. I just want to ask about the last example
– そんなこと言われたらたまらない
It means “After such a thing was said to me, I couldn’t stand it”. (Perhaps what was said was really mean.)
Am I right?
================================
Oh… I just have one last thing to ask… hope I am not being too fussy. I also read your lesson about というと.
You used this example sentence above – 一度、失敗したからと言って、諦めてたまりますか。
It took me a while to fully understand this sentence, but I believe the “と言って” in this sentence is basically explained in your というと lesson, right? If that is the case, then I think I get how it all works… Is it common to see this grammar used like that?
Hi Dennis,
Sorry. I should have added the note for the last example sentence.
そんなこと言われたらたまらない
could be positive or negative.
Either “I couldn’t stand it”(negative) or “I would be thrilled (It would be so nice)” (positive)
~からといって means “though” “even if/even though”
I don’t think if I’ve ever covered that here..(sorry. I made many lessons so..) but
（だ）からといって + contradicted fact
Ex. 日曜日だからといって休んでいることはできない。
= Though it is Sunday, I can’t just rest.
A quick question about another word sometimes used as “and”. I saw on a menu for a lunch set the following sentence (when talking about the included drink):-
ホットまたはアイス…
Obviously また is being used as and here (can’t remember rest of sentence but it’s saying hot and ice coffee both ok for set drink).
Why is また being used here and when else is it used to mean “and”?
Someoneに言う To tell someone
This に is an object marker (indirect object)
I don’t do the translation here but it means,
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology decided to tell all the schools in Japan that the students* can go home leaving their textbooks at school*.
* parts are not in the textbook but you can assume from the context.
Thank you very much for responding awesome page and awesome work you are really skilled at teaching.
I’ve been using a Japanese News app is where I got that from
Your lesson is nice with lots of example and exception. Thanks!
But I have a confusion when に go with some adjective like くわしい。
東京に詳しい。
I choose 東京が詳しい and it’s wrong .(crying)
How does にfunction here?
There are many usages of に such as to indicate location, indirect object, direction, etc.
And one of the usages is to show one’s ability with specific adjectives.
Aは、東京に詳しい A knows a lot about Tokyo.
Aは、コンピューターに詳しい。 A knows a lot about computer.
Aは、車に詳しい。 A knows a lot about cars.
You can also use 明るい
Ex. このことには明るい。 = To know a lot about this matter.
私は、コンピューターに弱い。= I am not good at using a computer.
私は、数字に弱い = I am not good at numbers.
Note:
It is not actually one’s ability but 弱い also means “to have a soft spot for ~”
私は、子供に弱い (= 子供に甘い）= I have a soft spot for children.
It is confusing if you say 月 because 月 also means “the moon”
If you add some words such as “this month” or “last month”, the listener will understand better.
“this month” 今月はよかった。/ “last month” 先月はよかったです。
this lesson is just wordless!
totemo sugoi!desuyo! maggie sensei!
itsumo watashi ni nihongo o oshiete kurete hontouni arigatou gozaimasu!
nihongo ga donnani muzukashickutemo watashi ga settai ni ganbarimasu!
kono lesson no uta no kashi no youni ne.
From now on, i will eat many snacks
This sentence express the speaker’s will/ The speaker decides to eat lots of snacks from now on. Is that right?
If so,I would just say
これからお菓子をたくさん食べよう。
or 食べる (Your sentence No.3) works as well.
1.今から軽食をたくさん食べていく。
Sounds like you are going somewhere but you are going to have lots of snacks NOW and head to that place.
2.軽食をたくさん食べていく。
The same as 1. but it doesn’t specify when you are going to eat lots of snacks.
It could be tomorrow or next week.
For example, you are going somewhere where you can’t get any food. You might be hungry so you are saying (When I go there) I will eat a lots of snacks before I go there.
@天人
Hi again, :)
Right. You do use ～ていく in the context of 動作が継続していること or 変化していること (not 方向性) but
The Rarow’s example 軽食をたくさん食べていく。 doesn’t sound like either one.
Maybe the combination of the word 軽食 and 食べる
今から軽食をたくさん食べていく。2.軽食をたくさん食べていく。
All these いく sound like 行く（方向性） to native ears.
But let’s say you are having 焼肉 and say
I am going to eat just expensive meat now. Then you can say
これから高い肉だけ食べていく！
(decision/what you are going to do now)
Hello Maggie-sensei. Thank you for a very informative lesson! I have come across this sentence when reading a manga, and I’m sure it’s pretty basic but I am not quite sure how to translate it….
The sentence is
田中さんと山下は「大学の友達」でいいんだよね？
I don’t understand the compromise theory in this case, because he is asking something pretty general.
I thought the translation might be something like
Is it right that Tanaka-san and Yamashita are “friends from University”?
I don’t think I understand the でいい in this case…
Sorry if it’s a weird question…
I have a confusing about のに. Would you mind answering me?
If I want to say ” sorry, though you are a good girl, I can not love you”
Am I correct to say it with のに
あなたはとっても親切な人なのに恋人になるのができないです。ごめん！
Or is けど more suitable?
あなたはとっても親切な人なけれども、恋人になるのができないです。ごめん！
But I am not confident in the phrase I use also “恋人になるのができないです”. It must be so strange !!!
１）I would use けど for that sentence.
(A person’s name)はいい子だけど、
２）I am a bit confused because the English translation is I can not love you (好きになれない) but your Japanese sentence means
“I can’t be your boyfriend”. If that is what you meant
恋人になるのができないです。 should be 恋人・彼氏（カレシ）になることはできないです。
But more natural way to say that is 付き合うことはできない。
I feel like there is a never ending supply of these great lessons. How many of these lessons are there in total? :)
I have a question about なんか usage. I am a little confused about two different usages of なんか.
Meaning #1. Somehow, for some reason
(来月、大学を卒業するって考えただけでなんか、悲しくなってきた。)
Meaning #2. Kind of, a little bit
(なんか、気持ち悪くなってきた。)
How do I know when a sentence means #1, and when it means #2? Is “context” the only way to determine the meaning? If so, that’s なんか難しい for me.
For example, for the sentence below, it could either mean “Today I am tired for some reason”, or “Today I am a bit tired”.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I’m reading manga and came across よく whose meaning I’m not sure of and was wondering if you could help.
Person B is asking person A for some tips in leading a group of people particularly problematic people. The next conversation follows:
A: しかしな
俺は何もしてないぞ
B: それでよくみんなをうまいこと扱えますね
Half of me is leaning towards gratitude while the other is leaning towards disbelief, could you shine some light on this?
For that particular case, it express surprised feelings/disbelief. (The usage 6) in my lesson)
B was surprised how well A manages people based on what A says, (I am not doing anything).
I hope you can help me with this one, I read a sentence a fellow student made and wondered if I could phrase it better. Her sentence went like this:
友達のためにケーキを作っています。明日会います。(a picture of a cake baking in the oven was included)
My attempt was this:
明日友達に会うので、ケーキを作ってあげています。
Now here’s where I’m uncertain, is it even possible to use あげて+います like that? Should it have been 作っていてあげます instead? Or are they both wrong and the あげて does not belong there at all?
Though 間に(あいだに） is more general, you use 間（ま）に in set phrases.
鬼の居ぬ間に洗濯= おにのいぬまにせんたく is one of them. It is a proverb and if you rephrase it in modern Japanese,
鬼のいない間（あいだ）に洗濯をする
I will give you a few more set expressions that you use 間（ま）に
あっと言う間に = あっというまに quickly, fast, Before I knew it
いつの間に（か） = いつのまにか Before I knew it
知らぬ間に = しらぬまに ( = 知らない間に= しらないあいだに） Before I knew it
1) during this time
2) between the previous mentioned distance
2) the other day (You are right. It doesn’t coincide the literal meaning. It’s an idiomatic experssion.)
Hi Maggie!
I’m just wondering about the difference between 受身＋たい VS ～てほしい.
EX) 『おはようのちゅーは？』って言われたい VS 『おはようのちゅーは？』って言ってほしい.
The second one sounds more soften than the first one, I think and the translation in English seems to be the same (“I want you to say”), hmmm…
平気やでッ～～！
Thank you for your help, Maggie. Just a small additional question.
It is natural in 日本語 to use ～言われたい during a conversation towards your 話の相手（例えば「ご主人さまと言われたい！」とかと言いたい時に＾＾）? Because in English if I used “I want to be said” then this would sound ちっと変.
つまり、受身の希望形・願望形はどんな時に使うのん？
Thank you very much again!
And thank you for the 平気=>元気 correction!
(Although it means “all right; fine; OK; okay” according to kotobank.jp this belongs to the follow context: いつもと気持ちや態度が変わらないこと。また、そのさま／気にかけないこと／心配しなくともよいこと／落ち着いていること。また、そのさま／平静 – so generally mental calmness/peace, indeed. I thought that colloquially you can also use it instead of 元気)
No problem.
Right. 平気 has various functions but for example, if something happens to you and someone worries about you, you could say 平気だよ。(I’m fine. / I can deal with that.)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I am just a tiny bit confused about one thing.
彼は年のわりに元気だ。
We cannot use にしては for the above sentence, right? Because as you said it’s not specific. It could be: old, young,etc.so you can’t use にしては ( = ni shitewa) .
But for this nexe sentence, how come you could use にしては?
Hi Dennis, 元気？
How come you could use にしては?
私にしては最近、日本語がんばってるよ。
As I explained in the lesson,
The word which comes before にしては ( = ni shitewa) should give the speaker and listener some specific or typical idea of the quality.
For this reason you can’t use general nouns unless you give specifics about that noun.
私にしては
→The speaker knows well about him/herself so has specific idea. We can assume that the speaker tends to give up on something or not a hard worker.
I understand that since the speaker knows well about himself, he can say 私にしては.
But I assume that the listener also needs to have some idea of the speaker’s character?
Along this line… would it be correct to use にしては after any noun, as long as both the speaker and the listener has some knowledge of that noun? For example:
彼の車にしては、速かった。
For his car, that was fast. (Both the speaker and listner knows well about the car)
彼の料理にしては、まずい。
For his cooking, that was bad. (They both know his cooking is normally good)
病気になりました You got sick??? If so, I hope you feel better soon.
私にしては: If you are talking to your friend or family, it is possible that the listener know the speaker’s personality but actually the speaker could be just talking to him/herself or write about him/herself.
The listeners/readers can assume the speaker/writer’s personality by the state.
The same thing you can tell by
彼の車にしては、速かった。
彼の料理にしては、まずい。
They are the speaker/writer’s opinion. The listener/reader can just assume “his car must be slow/his cooking is usually good but not this time.”
(Sorry. I am a little confused.
もしよかったら ( = If you can) :Do you want to know the difference between ありがとう and ありがとうございました？
Since you finished the sentence, レッスンが私の勉強にすごく役立ってます which means “The lesson was very useful”, maybe you are talking about my ありがとう lesson…)
Thank you for all your “thank you”! :)
Yes, you say 前日 = ぜんじつ= the day before.
Ex. パーティーの前日は準備が大変です。
= パーティーのぜんじつはじゅんびがたいへんです。
= Paatii no zenjitsu wa junbi ga taihen desu.
= There are lots of things to do the day before the party.
Hi Maggie-sensei, I would like to ask for this sentence 日本へ何度か行っていますか？, which of your explanations does it falls under? I suppose it is not progressive so that leaves ‘Talking about / describing present habitual actions or continuous actions’.
I am working in a kaigo facility and my workmate will be leaving at the end of the month.
I want to hand over a gift to her on her last day of her duty and i am wondering what should i say to her. Can i use お世話になりました to her even though she is the one who is leaving? What appropriate phrase whould i tell her instead? Thank you in advance!
どうしてだろう人は人を傷つけ大切なものをなくしてく is my favourite phrase!
Thank you for nice Japanese lessons. These lessons really help me improved not only Japanese but knowing Japanese cultures too!
Bella again :))
Thanks for your hard work making this lesson.
I have a question about past continuous tense and present continuous tense. Would you mind answering me.
Thank for your clear explanation . I know the new thing.
————————————–
“2) When you describe some action that has been completed already
When you focus on the state after the action, you use
〜ていた／～ていました ( = ~ teita / ~ te imashita)
—————————————
Then, my confusion is if I want to focus on describing the state that my wallet has been dropped (from yesterday until the time I talk about the state), which one should I use?
財布が落ちていた
or 財布が落ちている。
Since ているalso can describe the state resulting from an action, they lead to my confusion.
And if I want to focus on the state that I wear glasses (from ten years ago, until the time I talk about it), which one should I use?
めがねをかけていた
or めがねをかけている。
Then, could you please explain more why we should use it.
Many thanks for the lesson, Maggie sensei. Love you!
OK, the two of your example verbs are not actual “action” so it won’t apply the rule.
財布が落ちていた = You are describing the sate in the past. (You found the wallet on the ground in past.)
財布が落ちている = You are describing the current state. (The wallet is in front of you.)
Do you know the difference between 落ちる and 落とす
落ちる is intransitive verb (to fall) and 落とす is transitive verb (to drop something) which is considered to be an action.
As I said “some action”/ “after the action” in 2), 落ちている is not actually an action.
It is confusing, right. 落ちている is a result of someone dropped something but it simply describe the state of the wallet. (It is on the ground)
Check this lesson. Click the link. (Read No. 5)
If you want to focus on the state that you have been wearing the glasses for 10 years until the time you talk about it,
めがねをかけている is better.
Thanks for your patience answering my question!
So, the rule here will not apply for intransitive verb. I noted it now. Thank you :)))
Actually, I still am in the dark of some specific verbs…. I know I’ve asked too much. So I just write the question down here, please help me when you have time (I can wait :)))
I also feel difficulty to decide past continuous or present continuous for some specific verbs like 知る、似る。Whether 知っていた and 似ていた are used?
Since the followings also mean “I known it already” @@
これを知っていた
これを知っている。
The same thing will happen with 似る。
AはBと似ている。
A はBと似ていた。
The state of A is same as B regardless of present or past.
知っていた = I already knew / I used to know / Someone knew about something (You are recalling the moment when you found out someone knew something)
知っている = I know / Someone knows ~
AはBと似ている = A is similar to B / A looks like A
AはBと似ていた= A was similar to B / A looked like A (You are recalling the similarity between A and B)
楽にわかります。
Hmm I would say わかりやすい is more natural. I guess it’s because わかる is something you do in your head and you tend to use 楽に (easily) for more physical tasks.
I loved reading your website! It’s incredibly detailed and love the added touches for fonts and emoticons! ^_^
I have one question! My boyfriend of 5 years and I love to call each other “my love” how would we say that in Japanese? Is there such a word/phrase for it?
Example:
Me) Thank you for doing that for us!
BF) You’re welcome, my love!
Would it be “watashi no ai” or “watashi no koi”? Or what would it be? Thank you in advance! <3
Thank you for visiting my site. I am glad to hear you like reading my site.
I am afraid to say you don’t use the terms of endearment such as “my love” / “babe/baby”/”sweetie” /”honey” in Japanese.
People might refer to one’s partner ハニー ( = honey) and ダーリン (darling) but they don’t say 私の愛・恋 ( = watasi no ai / koi).
You might see 私の愛しい人 (= watashi no itoshii hito) for my loved one in the literature but I doubt people use it verbally.
So if you want to express your love, I guess you say
ありがとう！ or どういたしまして and add (name/ nickname)+ 大好き! / 好きだよ💕
How sad it sounds, but Maggie’s right.
I don’t know, if you know, that あなた might also be translated as “dear”.
According kotobank.jp =>２ 妻が夫に対して、軽い敬意や親しみをこめていう。
However, I doubt that noways it’s commonly used among young people. Maybe in dramas, literature, etc…
Hi 天人!
I know… We have to create new words!
I might have mentioned in my あなた lesson but you might hear that usage in drama or animations but it is a bit old fashioned.
ア is more natural. The key is the word いつのまにか
You use いつの間にか + something changes /you happen to do something
You can’t control the change / situation / action.
寝ていた “I was asleep” （describing one’s state)
寝た “I slept” (You can control your action)
***
You say 知っていますか but you don’t say 知りますか？
知る is a special verb which applies the following rules.
Do you know ~ ? 知っていますか？（X 知りません）
I know ~ 知っています
I don’t know 知りません (X 知っていません）
First, I just added the negative form information.
I see your confusion.
じゃ is a casual contraction of では but 今日でなくてもいい is much more common in conversation.
Unless you want to show the contrast.
Ex. 今日やらないといけませんか？
= Do we have to do it today?
You can simply say,
今日でなくてもいい・今日じゃなくてもいい。
(You don’t have to do it today.)
But when you emphasize the word “today” (implying there is other conditions)
今日ではなくてもいいです。(でも明日は絶対にやってください。）
Thanks a lot for your site! It’s great to learn the real life Japanese.
I have a question about this lesson. Would you mind answering it?
For the sentence, “I am here on business”, you teach use to use “仕事で来ます”。
Is it possible to say “仕事に来ます”
If possible, then what is the difference of them?
Many thanks for your prompt answer. I really appreciate your reply!
I think I quite get your point.
I do apologize for my continuous confusing but could you help me one more !
Now I understand the で indicates the reason. So, I wonder if my understanding is correct or not.
If somebody asks “どうして日本に来たんですか” -> why question
Then we answer “勉強で来ました” (and avoid “勉強に来ました”）
If sbd asks “日本に何をしに来ましたか？” -> what question
Then we answer “勉強にきました” = I came here to study.
Do we need to avoid 勉強で来ました (because the question is what question, not why question)? Or both are OK?
Lots of thanks and lots of love !
The way you answer each and each question from learner is great.
At first, I will apply what you’ve taught me.
(Though I still feel the difficulty with ~できます・~にきます….)
Japanese is so difficult because the exception case happens regardless of the defined grammar rule.
Thanks again for your site. You are star, Maggie sensei.
Hi Bella,
I guess you have to learn many patterns including all the exceptions. :)
Thank YOU for your nice words!
I am always here for you! がんばって！ 😀
Thank you so much for your reply.
そうですね、Ｎ１頑張っておりますが、準備がぜんぜん足りない感じがします。先生が教えたとおりにいろいろな記事を読んで下ります。頑張ります！！では、語彙に関してはＭａｇｇｉｅ先生に質問してもいいでしょか。語彙の使い方を説明していただけますでしょか。たとえば、はなはだ、すこぶる、いたって、ごく”などの英語の意味は一緒になりますが日本語で使うシナリオは違いますね。いつもそういう質問に失敗される人が多いと思います。
I know this post is fairly old but I hope it’s still okay to ask questions?
I seem to remember reading somewhere that あんた is used mainly by women, do you know if this is correct?
Hi Lune,
You can ask questions for all my lessons.
It doesn’t matter how old they are. :)
あんた is for both men and women. It is fairly casual and it could sound pretty rude to many situations so be careful when to use.
Hi, Maggie Sensei. Does 相手 always mean contender (as in your example)? I found the next expression: aite no hito 相手の人 and “aite wa mono suki” What does it mean? Thank you very much!
Hello Bere,
相手 has many meanings depending on the context. We have:
1) a companion; a partner（仲間）
2) an opponent; a rival（勝負の）
3) the person one is speaking to; one’s party
Therefore 相手の人 means generally a person other than oneself => “one’s partner”.
Thanks for another lesson Maggie-sensei. It looks like という is used for so many things. It must be SO common in Japanese.
I just want to ask about one of the example sentences.
• 明日が試験だというのに何も勉強していない。
• Even though tomorrow is exam, I have not studied anything.
I often see sentences like these and it confuses me. They use the continuous tense rather than past tense.
Shouldn’t it be 勉強していなかった or 勉強しなかった, rather than 勉強していない?
We are talking about the past here (I haven’t studied), so shouldn’t we use past tense?
Hello Dennis,
we can consider that the ～ていないpattern refers to the present perfect tense in English. As you already know, the present perfect is used to indicate a link between the present and the past (=> because something happened/occurred in the past, we can experience now the result of that).
Here’s an example:
お母さん：「朝ごはんもう食べた？」
①子供：「まだ食べていない」 (= “No, I haven’t yet” => we can assume that the speaker just woke up and will soon eat his breakfast).
②子供：「まだ食べない」(=”I’m not going to eat yet” => this implies the will of the speaker and tells us that the speaker is – probably – not hungry. He will eat his breakfast later).
Hi はる
ねんのために英語で答えますね。
1 is not natural. 2 is better.
You can also say 幸子さんは明るいだけではなく親切な人でした。
(The first part 明るいだけではなく, doesn’t have to be past tense.)
(Note for you:If you are talking about your own question, ご質問→質問: Just say 質問してもいいですか？（more polite よろしいですか）
Hi, Maggie. I’ve come across this: sayonara, mada deatte sura inai. Since this seems to be the most relates lesson, and as I think there is more to this than only “sae” but I’m not sure, I wanted to ask you whether this usage has some other meaning. Thank you very much in advance and sorry for the inconvenientes.
Hello Alraisen,
すら implies much stronger negative feelings, than さえ. The meaning the same. Depending on context we have: even; if only; if just; as long as; the only thing needed.
1) な、なに？こんな簡単な漢字すら読めないっていうかよ = Wha, what? Don’t say you cannot read even that easy kanjis!
2) さようなら、まだ出会ってすらいない（のに） = Farewell (though) we haven’t even met yet.
Hi! I’m struggling to understand translate this phrase:
これから稽古だったり、いろいろなことが始まっていくんだっていう感じがより高まりました。
This is one of the answers to a question about how they felt after wearing their performance costume for the first time, for context!
I noticed that the the beginning part, これから稽古だったり, is a noun + だったり form- but there’s only one. You did mention that this is pretty colloquial, though! So, is this why it’s a bit difficult for me to understand or is there something I’m missing?
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and I hope you’re doing well!!
Sensei!
Now I’m working at a restaurant and have a job in the kitchen. Could you help me listing some vocabularies so that I can communicate well with the other staff? Like phrases they use, indgredients name, the norm or the culture there…
Please :D
You use 割る・割れる for something fragile, such as dishes, glasses, mirrors, etc.
壊す・壊れる is for machines- computers, watches, TV and etc. or toys and so on.
二つの文章の違いは、ばかりが何にかかるかの(What ばかり modifies) 違いです。
1) action: 甘いものを食べる just “eating sweets”
2) noun: 甘いものばかり食べる eating just “sweets”
と／たら／ば the translation could be the same If you ~, you will but
食べると Just eating sweets makes you fat. (と naturally, automatically →That the way your body system works)
You can replace と with たら but it sounds a little more hypothetical
食べたら If you eat just sweets, you will gain weight.
食べたら is hypothetical
食べれば is also possible.
Just you tend to use ば for something more positive
Hi Rarow,
Nice try,
どう感じてるかわかってくれさえすればいいのに。
is fine.
You could shorten it in a couple of ways but how about
気持ちをわかってくれさえしたら..
どう感じているか→気持ち
くれさえすればいいのに→くれさえしたら (It is unfinished sentence but you often finish the sentence like this and the readers can read between the lines.)
In casual speech you can attach a suffix, な（あ）
気持ちをわかってくれさえしたらなあ。
The usage 6)
6) to start a conversation with なんか ( = nanka) putting your thoughts together.
In my なんか lesson, Conchita was saying
「てか、なんか、最近忙しいんだよね。」
= Teka, nanka, saikin isogashiin dayone.
= I don’t know why but I’ve been busy, you know.
てか is another casual form of っていうか
You often say ってか・てかなんか together when you put your thoughts together, “you know” “Like~”, etc.
It is a very casual speech.
1. OK, you are right. A/B/D could be the answers but you have to pay attention to the form.
Since it modifies a noun, 質問, it should be
A 商品に関する質問
B 商品について”の”質問
D 商品に対して”の”質問
B and D needs “の”. Therefore the correct answer is A.
(If there is an option 対する, →対する質問)
2. The same rule applies to this question.
Your word choice is good.
The main verb of this sentence is 高まっている.
So what comes in the parenthesis should modify the subject “（市民の）不満” which is a noun.
A 向かって should used as an adverb. →When someone does something towards someone, 向かって Ex. Aに向かってボールを投げる
However, 市長に向かって”の”市民の不満 doesn’t sound natural.
This is a bit difficult but “〜に向けられた+ noun” sounds better than 向かっての/向けた because 不満 is one’s feelings and you can’t actively control.
So as I mentioned above, 対する is the answer.
When you solve this type of questions with multiple possible words, check if it has の or not.
Verb dictionary form （関する/対する past tense） + noun
対して/ 関して/ 向けて/ とって+ の + noun
So what your basically saying is verb or い-adjective + じゃない has the same meaning as ね？meaning isn’t it? However I thought お前のせいじゃない means it’s not your fault. In your example みんな、お前のせいじゃない you translated as Its all your fault! but wouldn’t mean Everybody its not your fault. I’m confused about that. Can you please help me?
Hi Jimmy
Thank you for spotting the mistake.
It was an old lesson but I have never noticed it. You are right.
みんな、お前のせいじゃない measn “It is not all your fault.” Sorry to make you confused. :)
(This みんな doesn’t mean “everybody”. It means “everything”)
Dear Maggie Sensei!
I’m a little confused about the particle を when using the passive form.
For example, in the sentence you provided
「ずっと 欲しかったドレスを他の人に買われてしまった。」
Why is the particle used を and not は? Is it because the dress is something *I* wanted and not a random statement?
Also, I learnt that
私は人にXをされました
And in this case X is something I own or something related to me, and someone is doing something to my X(foot, etc). However in some cases I read the X belongs to the person doing the passive statement, like a statement i read beforehand 「ユニフォームは手を突っ込まれやすい」in this case the hand belongs to the other party.
Is there any way to understand it better?
Thank you very much!
It is possible to use “は” when you show the contrast or emphasize the particular dress.
ずっと 欲しかったドレスは、他の人に買われてしまった implies,
Someone bought the particular dress that I wanted but other dresses are available/I bought other dresses.
**
「ユニフォームは手を突っ込まれやすい」
→It may be easier to think ユニフォームに手を突っ込まれやすい
Let me change the example a little.
ポケットに手を突っ込む
to stick/thrust one’s hand into one’s pocket.
passive form
ポケットに手を突っ込まれる
+ やすい
ポケットに手を突っ込みやすい
+ やすい (passive form)
ポケットに手を突っ込まれやすい
So 手 is an object of one’s action, sticking/thrusting, so you use を.
If it is a passive form, 手 is other people’s hand but it is still an object of an action so you use を
Thank you very much for your response! I now understand the explanation for the dress part, but I’m still unclear about the second part.
I do understand the X は passive + やすい but I’m not sure about the を in the use of passive sentences, as in does the word before を belong to the subject or the person performing the action, or does it depend on the context?
I’m sorry for disturbing you so much, and thank you for your explanation!
OK, for example
When you compare the following two sentences,
財布をとられた →（私は）財布を取られた →I had my wallet stolen. You are talking about what happened to 私
財布がとられた→ My wallet was stolen You are talking about what happened to 財布
If my interpretation is correct, it says something like
“Since there’s a common opinion that the people who insist they’re not “bad” tend to be the “bad” ones, you have to be really careful (i.e.it implies that there’s a lot of such people out there?)”
I’m not 100% sure what part of the setence “は一般論としてある点は” refers to.
Hi Maggie!
This time I need some of your help ^ ^
It’s about 動詞ル形＋だけ＋動詞テ形
Could you please explain this pattern (when is it used and what does it imply [the nuance]) with some examples?
As far as I remember, you’ve mentioned that it stresses the meaning of the verb…
I found this one on the Internet「誘うだけ誘ってプランを具体化させない」and I think it means the speaker will not let realize/materialize someone’s plan of inviting someone somewhere.
Maybe a good translation of 動詞ル形＋だけ＋動詞テ形 would be “if it comes to~~” What do you think?
I found also 「聞くだけ聞いてみたら？」 which means: “it doesn’t hurt to ask”
Is this the same kind of usage of this pattern?
誘うだけ誘ってプランを具体化させない
All he/she does is asking out (and suggesting something) and never carries out the plans.
or He/She just asks out someone and doesn’t carry out the plans.
For example a boy asks a girl out.
“I know a good Italian restaurant. Do you want to go there with me?”
The girl says yes but the boy never carries out the plan, making a reservation, setting the time and going to the restaurant with the girl.
So VだけVて〜 implies “just do something and wouldn’t do something.”
Ex.言いたいことだけ言って帰ってきた。
= I just said things I needed to say and came home.
Implies the speaker just said whatever things he/she needed to say and didn’t listen to others and left the place and came home.
***
You use this form for a suggestion or asking someone to do something
「聞くだけ聞いてみたら？」
The closest translation is “It never hurts to ask.” = Just ask. You won’t lose anything.
You can use this form to ask for a favor.
私の話を聞くだけ聞いて
Just hear me out! / Please just listen to me. (implies “You don’t need to do anything else. Just listen and decide what to do.)
「私は一時間も待ったよ。」 is simply state “I waited ONE hour.”
「私なんか一時間も待ったよ。」 by using なんか、you emphasize what comes before or giving an example,
→In MY case, it took me ONE hour to get in the restaurant.
I see, it indeed sounds a bit unnatural. I thought that in cases where the verbs have different tenses, we wouldn’t be able to use the te-form.
Thank you very much
When you connect two verbs you use te-form.
買って帰る →past tense 買って帰った
読んで捨てる→past tense 読んで捨てた
作って食べる→past tense 作って食べた
The same rule applies when you modify a noun.
Ex. 一度読んで捨てた新聞
一度読んで捨てた modifies 新聞
The newspaper which I read once and threw away.
You use this in a sentence like
一度読んで捨てた新聞をまた拾って読んだ。
Hi Maggie,
I have read all the article, but I couldn’t find an answer to my question.
What’s the meaning of ほど in this sentence?
事務所との約束が守られるほど芸能界は甘くはなかった。
I really can’t figure it out!
Could you please help me?
OK, the simple form is easier to understand.
AはBほど甘くない
A is not as sweet as B.
Ex. りんごはいちごほど甘くない
Apples are not as sweet as strawberries.
事務所との約束が守られるほど芸能界は甘くはなかった。
I don’t know the context but
The subject is 芸能界 so
芸能界は〜ほど甘くはなかった。
= The show business was not easy as the promises with the entertainment companies would be kept.
In other word, The show business was tough. The promises with the entertainment company wouldn’t be kept.
Oh my god, thank you very much for answering my question.
This is in board terms the context. A guy from a model agency made a promise to a model but in the end he broke it. That sentence is from a thought of the model.
You don’t say なかなか問題（もんだい）はありませんでした。
If you say that, you are expecting to have a problem but it is hard to have a problem.
So it should be
問題は特（とくに）にありませんでした。
There was no particular problem
たった、８ヶ月でこのブログが終わりだなんて誰が信じると思うの？
“Who would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months.”
Hi Maggie,
I have a question about this sentence. I don’t understand why it means the English sentence above.
When I read it, I can only understand the sentence as:
“Who do you think would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months?”
Kind of like the speaker is playing a prank on the readers, to see who would fall for this prank and believe it.
Because in my mind the と思うの part means “… do you think… ?”
And then 誰が信じると思うの means “who do you think would believe… ?”
If I wanted to say “Who would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months.”
then I would translate it as –
たった、８ヶ月でこのブログが終わりだなんて誰が信じる？
I feel this is another one of those subtle Japanese nuances that is hard for a foreigner like me to understand.
誰がVerbと思う？ is a set phrase (Who would do ~ / Nobody would do ~
Ex. そんなこと誰がやると思う？
= Who would do such a thing? )
but you can say 誰が信じる？/ 誰が信じるっていうの？ （誰も信じないよ／信じやしないよ）
Maybe it will be easier to think this 思う is like “guess”
Guess who would believe it. (Nobody would.)
Guess who would do such a thing. (Nobody would.)
Ahh I see your point now.
You are right. More accurately the closest translation would be
“Who do you think would believe such a thing?”
誰がそんなこと信じると思うの？
Hmm there could be many ways to say that but how about
ずっと短い付き合いばかりしてきた”あの” 君（あなた）が結婚したがっているのなら、僕も成長する時なのかもしれない。
(I translated the speaker is a man following your translation)
Note: You add “あの” to emphasize the surprised feelings. That person who used to ~
Hello Vit,
If you just tell the fact, you say 検討しました
When you explain the reason or stress the meaning, you use の.
I have a lesson on の・ん usage. Click this link.
だろうか is more literal and かな is much more conversational.
I wonder if he would do such a thing.
彼はそんなことやるかな？ (casual)
彼がそんなことをやるだろうか。(sounds more literal)
I wonder if it is going to be a nice weather tomorrow.
明日は晴れるかな？ You can use both to ask yourself (talking to yourself) or ask someone else.
明日は晴れるだろうか。 You say that only when you talk to yourself, expressing your doubt.
I just came back from doing a homestay while going to a language school in Tokyo. I have a question about something my family used to say a lot using the ba conjugation. They would say it like a “what if” statement. For example, one day we were talking about getting haircuts, and the mom asked (sorry I don’t have a Japanese keyboard downloaded on my PC) “Nihon de kami wo kireba?” Which I thought meant something like “What if you got your hair cut in Japan?” It sounded like it was a joke, because the family would laugh after they said it. Do you know of a use of ba like this? Thanks in advance!
Hope you had a nice time in Japan.
日本で髪を切れば？
(Nihon de kami wo kireba?)
That “ば” is
3) giving someone a suggestion/ an advice. (Why don’t you do ~ ?/ I think you should do ~.)
So it means “Why don’t you get your haircut in Japan?/ You should get your haircut in Japan.”
Oh sorry. I misread your question.
You are right したら and とって are similar
大きすぎる親の期待は、子供にしたら苦痛だ。
大きすぎる親の期待は、子供にとって苦痛だ。
The translation is the same but you use したら (or してみたら） when you put yourself in the children’s feet, assuming their feelings and sympathizing them. とって: You conclude your opinion (maybe you assume their feelings, maybe you get the information somewhere else)
Hi, I’ve something of an urgent request. I live one rail stop from a co-worker who will not hear of me leaving a bar before he has become too wobbly to support himself. I like a drink myself, but I’ve come to dread the ride home because of my senpai’s constant need to debark early in order to relieve himself—occasionally in terribly inappropriate places.
I am always drunk when I attempt the following conversation, but I assure you my Japanese is little better when I’m sober: all I know I’ve picked up from variety shows, so my vocabulary is limited; my particle selection is practically random; I have no formal training so I have no business breaking rules that I don’t even know yet in order to speak informally; and I have little sense for ordering phrases so that they make the best, er, sense.
Anyway, this is what I try to say after we have argued for ten minutes about when I will be allowed to pay the tab:
I think I could be more assertive—or at least make my もんだい better-understood—if my Japanese weren’t so godawful. Help me Maggie-sensei, you’re my only hope.
Q；why do you use ではなく and not ではない? What is the difference?
I am sorry. I don’t quite get your question.
人間だけではない instead of 人間だけではなく？ I used なく to connect the sentence.
Anyway, this sentence is from
日本の暑い夏は人間(にとって）だけではなくペットにとっても大変な季節だ
2) Thank you! It should be “A hard time for “her.”
I fixed it.
こんにちは、先生！このレッソンを書いてありがとう! I have a quick question about the particular meaning of the following phrases:
“お酒を飲まないでは/ 飲まずにはいられない。”
Does this have any negative connotations or express any sense of either “I can’t help drinking alcohol (because I like it so much)” or “I can’t help drinking alcohol (because I have a drinking problem)”? Or does it only mean “I can’t help drinking alcohol”, with any extra information about why the speaker feels that way being inferred through context or other info?
It depends on the context.
When you use it negatively:
It means either the speaker has a drinking problem or some shocking thing happened to the speaker and he/she needs to drink alcohol to forget about the problem, distract oneself.
When you use it positively:
When the speaker heard a good news, he/she wants to drink to celebrate it.
As usual, I came here looking for some more information when I wasn’t sure somewhere else :) So I am listening to an audio course and it has said:
tte can mean speaking of; it can substitute for wa as a topic marker, but only if the
predicate expresses the speaker’s emotive evaluation/judgement; e.g., you can say, Keikosan tte hen na hito desu, but you cannot say, Keikosan tte sensei desu.
You have also given the example of
マギーって (→は)かわいいね = You are so cute, Maggie!
But there is also
今日って (→は)日曜日？= Is it Sunday today?
The second example sounds more factual rather than just your own judgement/feeling, so I’m not sure I understand when it can/cannot be used now.
When you check something, you can also use って even for factual things.
That means it is not natural to say 今日って日曜日です。= Kyou tte nichiyoubi desu.
But when you are not sure what day is today, you can say 今日って日曜日？
Also as you said, you can’t say けいこさんって先生です。( = Keiko santte sensei desu.) but you can say
けいこさんって先生？= Keiko san tte sensei? = Is Keiko teacher?
於大の方 (Odai no kata)
お市の方 (Oichi no kata)
北の方 (Kita no kata)
Yes, の方 is an honorific expressions like sama.
We stil use ~の方 to refer to a person.
そちらの方・その方 That person
あちらの方・あの方 That person over there
こちらの方・この方 This person
待っていらっしゃる方 a person who has been waiting, etc.
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
宿題は、まだやっていません。 I haven’t done my homework yet. (The key is I have not finished my homework yet.)
宿題は、まだやりません。I am not going to to my homework yet. (I am showing my will/ I decided not going to do my homework yet.)
So まだやっていません is wether you have done/finish doing something that you are supposed to do.
まだやりません is used when you express your will. :you decide not to do something yet.
Hi, I’m rather confused about でしょう vs ようです。Can you please show me the difference between these two? Isn’t it true that both can be used to make uncertain judgement on the current situation?
Sorry, one more question. What about かもしれません? Is there any difference between かもしれません and ようです ? (when used to make a judgement on the current situation), Is かもしれません dramatic too?
Hello!
Haha I can’t just teach you all the JLPT N3 grammar and kanji in the comment section.
You should get textbooks and ask me question if you have some doubt in Maggie’s Room.
My site is not to study JLPT test but I just classified some of my grammar lesson by its JLPT level. If you click the tag, JLPT N3, you can see those lessons. There are many good site out there just to teach JLPT Japanese. Google with “JLPT N3 kanji list”.
No. 最高のレベルをためした is the literal translation but
“to do one’s level best / to do one’s best” is an idiom so the most natural translation is 精一杯(せいいっぱい）がんばる。・最善（さいぜん）をつくす
あなたの予測は真実になった
I guess that is possible but what kind of prediction came true?
Hi sensei .genki desu ka??. ということだand とのことだ。。。how we will use it ??
Thanks so much for your website, it’s been super helpful! I have a question regarding this sentence – 状況や場面を回想で語ると、どうしても説明的で嘘くさくなってしまう気がしたんです。May I know what does 嘘 in this context mean? Does the meaning lean towards more of “contrived”?
こんばんは！
〜に対して is often used in documents, books, news or formal speech but like some example sentences,
私に対して冷たい
彼女に対して優しい／厳しい, etc. are very common in daily conversation.
This is very interesting. How would you write “Laughing Creek.” The idea being the creek is personified. I would like to bring to mind a mountain stream. Would “笑う磎” be correct?
こんばんは先生！
Thank you so much for your answers and for adding a note for me
As for 2. Haha it makes sense now.^^
As for 3. I’m confused about how to use the particle の in this lesson.
Because in this sentence “地震に対しての/対する 備え” the particleの comes after に対して, but not after に対する. This point really confuses me. Why in some examples に対するis followed by の like “家族に 対して/対するの思い”
and some other examples like are not?
I can’t specify all the example sentences which one is formal and which one can be used for conversational.
But you know.. if it deals with country, politics, earthquakes and stuff, it is formal.
Many of my examples in
* to have some feelings + over / towards / on + something /someone
are pretty conversational
and the most of my example sentences in
* to do some actions + towards / on / against / to + something /someone
Omg thank you so much for this <3 You are definitely the best one in the world <3 All those explanations whithout exception are the best <3 Some offtopic: How Can I get better at knowing what japanese people are saying? I mean I can't figure out if they are saying something like:
し or ち、ほうがいい or ほうばいい or even ほうだいい(This one doesn't even exist and just like in those examples if I really think I heard this one then I will torture myself searching for it, until I realize that it doesn't exist and that person didn't actually said that) So…
I will become better just with knowing more vocabulary/grammar or I will need something more/else?
1. “対する/対しての”
I’m confused. What is the difference between them and “～に対して”
I’d really appreciate it if you could include more examples for “対する/対しての” section.
1) I added the note for you.
They mean the same.
As for 2. I knew someone would ask…haha. From a native point of view, 地震に対する備えは十分ですか？” sounds slightly more natural because ~ that is why I didn’t include 対しての but yes, there are people who use 地震に対しての備えは十分ですか。so I added 対しての
2.”に対して ( = ni taishite) can be used when it modify a verb”
Can you please explain more about modifying a verb, with an example?
Is there a lesson on modifying verbs here?
Thank you so much and I appreciate your efforts always.^^
1. Yes
2. Yes. To be more precise, verb and adjective
Ex. Aは、 Bに対して抗議（こうぎ）した。
= A protest against B
→Against B, A does “protesting” (verb)
Ex. AはBに対して優（やさ）しい。
= A is nice to/towards B.
→Towards B, A is sweet (adjective)
こんにちは先生！How are you today?
Thank you for your explanation. The most important thing is that it can be used in daily conversation or between friends. I thought it was only used formally in news, books, etc.
Yes てください ( = te kudasai) form of ご覧になる ( = goran ni naru) is
ご覧になってください。= Goran ni natte kudasai.
But the shorten version ご覧ください ( = goran kudasai) is more common because it sounds “simpler”. :)
I’m not sure if this is correct, but I learnt that there is a slight difference
ご覧ください is from the お/ご +verb stem + ください pattern, which suggests that the action will benefit the person doing it
E.g. メニューをご覧ください – please take a look at the menu (so that you can choose your food etc)
And ご覧になってください is an honorific verb inside the てください pattern, which does not have the connotation of “doing something for your benefit”
E.g. 私たちをおまちになってください – please wait for us (I couldn’t think of a good example using ご覧)
I just had a brief read of the new Keigo lesson. So my understanding is that ご覧になってください is using a double honorific. I am coming to realise that “ご覧ください” is definitely more common. But for service people, using double honorific is sometimes ok. I have heard both used so all and all, it is good to know both are correct statements. Thank you!
That’s right. ご覧になってください is commonly used among service people. However, ご覧ください is much more common.
In my personal opinion, though you describe someone who is superior is looking at something, you say ご覧になっている but I would use ご覧ください.
日本語は受け身なので英語の訳と違うような印象を受けるかもしれませんが、「煙たがられる」には「嫌がられる」／「敬遠される」という意味があります。
「あの先生は生徒に煙たがられている」
= 生徒はあの先生を嫌がっている
= 生徒はあの先生に嫌な思いをさせられている
The students get annoyed by the teacher.
Shouldn’t this sentence use instead 教えてあげます of 教えてくれます?
I thought if you are speaking, and you give something to someone (or do something for someone), you always use あげます because くれます is reserved for when you are the receiver.
Good question. It is because I am not neither a hamster nor turtle. I am talking about they give the readers lessons.
If I am talking about myself, it sounds a bit arrogant but I could say 日本語を教えてあげます。
You can use くれる if the receiver is the one you are talking to.
↓
Someone (the third person) が (listener/readerに） Vてくれるよ・くれますよ
= “Someone does something for you＊” (you = the listener/reader) ＊or someone who you can related to.
**
As for あげる, the speaker has to be yourself.
Aがみんなに日本語を教えてあげる (Not natural)
Nice follow up as always, 天人！
Toshokan de odoru. 💃 (to dance in the library)
Toshokan de hirune suru. 😪💤 (to take a nap in the library)
Toshokan ni inu ga iru. 🐶 (There is a dog in the library.)
Toshokaan ni neko mo iru. 🐱 (There is also a cat in the library.)
いもうとは日本にいます She is in Japan. Just talking about where she is right now.
いもうとは日本に行っています。She has gone to Japan. (But the speaker expect her to be back sometime)
Hi Kuroineko! はい、元気でしたよ。Kuroinekoも元気でしたか？
1. You can say こと
Basically they mean the same. (The nuance difference is こと could be used for just factual thing. (What happened to Max) and 話 could be there is a little story for that incident.)
2. The same in English, “these” few days.
ここ measn 1) here 2) these + time related words
Ex. ここ10年 (These ten years)
Ex. ここ数ヶ月 these few months, etc.
3. Yes
4. お役・役 is a noun. The literal meaning is “everybody’s service”
So this の has a function like apostrophe
Hi Maggie sensei! I just found this website and I think it’s awesome! I would be grateful if you could answer me a question. I don’t understand the expression どんな心持ちで in this sentence, why is it used together with どちらかというと. The full sentence is: どちらかというと、どんな心持ちで勉強や仕事をしていたほうが幸せだろうか
Thank you so much!
PS どちらかというと is an expression, which means “would rather”, “if I had to say then” “… if anything …”
今はどちらかというと仕事に行くよりこの一日を友達と一緒に過ごしたいけど。
I would rather spend the day together with my friends, than go to the work today.
Thanks but I understand the meaning, what I don’t understand is the full meaning of the sentence combining those two words. “If anything, I wonder how happy it is to be studying and working with what kind of feelings”? If you know the meaning, could you please help me? Thank you^^
Well, I don’t do the translation here but it roughly means
If anything, I wonder what kind of mindset should I have when I study or work to make me happy.
I have one question Maggie Sensei, what does ということat the end of a sentence mean?I don’t quite understand its usage in this context: 字面にするとうまく伝わらないかもしれませんが、身振りよろしく歌にのせて返したということ。Thanks for your attention. I’m looking forward to your reply ^^
maggie sensei!
なでなで
I’m trying to construct:
“Apparently, I’m not very good at [particles].” or,
“It’s seems that [particles] are not my strong point/specialty”
(ie. my Japanese exams/essays always come back with excessive particle error corrections – so this is me commenting on my own situation…)
So normally I would think, 助詞は私の得意じゃないらしい。
but a native told me that I cannot use ~らしい to talk about myself. (Is that true?)
So then can I use, 助詞は私の得意じゃないみたい。?
Or is there some other device to convey “It seems that…/Apparently…” about something about myself? Or, is this just an odd sentence that one wouldn’t find in Japanese?
Another example, Maggie-sensei is such a great teacher and so you receive a lot of positive feedback. So how would you, Maggie-sensei, say “[Apparently I’m]/[I seem to be] very popular” ?
Hi squidlydeux
Thank you for なでなで my head 🐶
First
助詞は私の得意じゃない → 私は助詞が得意じゃない
Or 私は助詞に弱い/ 助詞が苦手 is better. (There is also an expression that ~ は私の得意分野じゃない）
Your friend is right. You don’t use らしい when you talk about yourself.
However there are cases that you use らしい for yourself 1) when you see yourself objectively
2) When you are not aware of it but according to other people, 〜
Maggie sensei,
Konnichiwa🙌
I’m so happy finally I found the place to learn japanese.
But I’m a little bit regret, why now I found your site😓.
I want to ask you, I saw a part time recruitment at a cafe. I want to apply that job. They ask to call them first. How to call and tell them that I want to have an interview, I really want to work there. I’m worry about my japanese and afraid they get not good impression from my Japanese😟.
Thank you so much for helping.
You can call them avoiding their busy hours and say
お忙しいところ恐れいります。
= Oisogashii tokoro moushiwake arimasen.
（It literally means I am sorry to bother you in your busy time)
先日、そちらで求人*募集を拝見してお電話いたしました。 ( * アルバイト= part time job You can change it depending on your job)
= Senjitsu, sochira de kyuujin boshuu wo haiken shite odenwa itashimashita.
= I saw your HR ad there the other day.
ご担当者様はいらっしゃいますでしょうか？
= Gotantousha sama wa irasshaimasu de shouka?
= May I speak to the person in charge?
If the person who answers the phone deals with it, you can continue
応募方法を教えていただけますでしょうか？
= Oubo houhou wo oshiete itadakemasu deshouka?
= Could you tell me how to apply the job?
Can you explain the difference between 上手 (じょうず) which I was taught at school and 上手い (うまい) which I haven’t seen before? Other than that one is a na and one an i-adjective.
It seems to me that うまい has wider uses, whereas じょうず only means ‘to be good at’, so would you tend to use うまい more commonly?
上手（じょうず）/ 上手（うま）い means “good at” / “to do something well”/ “skillful”/ to handle/manage something well” and they can be interchangeable in many sentences.
Ex. She is good at cooking.
→彼女は料理が上手（じょうず）だ。
→彼女は料理が上手（うま）い。
If you hear someone is singing well, you can say
You sing very well!
→歌が上手（じょうず）だね。→上手（じょうず）!
→歌が上手（うま）いね。→上手（うま）い!
I can’t explain well.
→上手（じょうず）に説明できない ○
→上手（うま）く説明できない。◎
I think your interpretation is right. There is a subtle nuance difference between jouzu and umai in certain cases.
上手（じょうず） might sound a bit condescending if you use it to someone professional or experienced.
Hi, Maggie. So, I was hearing a song (Summer Mermaid, by Misako Uno) and this comes out: どうぞ はじめて
Sノリ王子と
シュワシュワ 出逢いに(ラブ)乾杯
Could you, if possible, tell me what means Sノリ王子と, i found this tricky and confuse. Thank you in advance.
I am sorry. I wish I could help you but I have no idea.
“S” could be an initial of her prince and follows のり as a part of his name. In other word, there is no such a word, Sノリ王子 in Japanese. It is a coined word.
Hi Alex!
I checked that song and I think – like Maggie said – Sノリ王子 refers to a person and has rather nothing to do with the ノリ slang word.
It might refer to Nissy.
Wow. Yeah, it could be. Thank you 天人. I was thinking that could be S (sea) nori (weed). So, seaweed as Snori. Seaweed Prince. Ok, that’s ridiculous, but…hahaha.
Yes, as you say without ところ you just convey the facts/thoughts. I wouldn’t say the speaker is less interested.
By using ところ, you can simply emphasize you are in middle of doing something or about to do something and you want the listener to understand you are trying to call or what you are about to do is more important.
もう閉まっている感じがする” ,感じ actually means “sense/impression” so the literal mean is ” I get the sense / impression from the store that it is closed.” which you don’t say.
If the speaker is not in front of the store you can’t get the impression. You use 気がする instead when you “feel”
Also if you are in front of the store and you are guessing the store is closed, It seems like it’s closed, you say
もう閉まっているようだ/みたいだ。
OK, it is possible to use とか with Vたい when you list up someone’s quotes.
Ex. 彼はいつも私に会いたいとか一緒にいたいとか言っている。
He always tells me that he wants to see me or he wants to be with me and so on.
Ex. 子供達は夏になるとプールに行きたいとかキャンプに行きたいとかうるさい。
= My children bothers me in summer saying they want to go to the swimming pool or go camping and so on.
As for your friend’s line, I need to know more context but from just that line but it sounds like one of the colloquial usages.
It sounds like you have been telling your friend that you want to see her/him.
And your friend quote it
いつも会いたいと言ってくれて嬉しいな。
↓
(to make it sound softer) colloquial Japanese
いつも会いたいとか言ってくれて嬉しいな。
↓
いつも会いたいとか嬉しいな。
Hi, is there any difference between using just ato or ato with a particle (atode/atoni)? Can they be used with unchanged meaning in all grammatical structure? Arigatou gozaimasu.
When you simply talking about ” ~ more + time related words”, you don’t need a particle.
Ex. Ten more minutes →後10分
後で・後に
1) 〜A〜 後で 〜B〜
2) 〜A〜 後に 〜B〜
the grammatical structure is the same but the relations between the event/action A and B are slightly different.
It is a bit complicated and changes the nuance difference depending on the sentences but the general idea is
1) focusing on the order of action/events
2) focusing on the time when you finish doing A (A happens).
Hi, Maggie先生！
質問があります！「〜てない）」と「〜なかった」となんの違いがありますか？例えば「まだ見てない」と「まだ見なかった」、同じ意味なんですか？”I haven’t seen it yet”と言いたいですけど。。。「〜ていない、〜てない」のformがpast tenseにもなるのがまだわかりにくいですね！
あと、この例文：「湿気のため夏が嫌になる」って、literary formですか？conversational speechでは「湿気のため夏が嫌になっている」とか「湿気のため夏が嫌になって」？I thought タメ口 just used all verbs by their plain forms, but I guess that’s not the case? I want to say “I become not fond of summer because of the humidity” （not “I’m not fond of summer because of the humidity right now”).
Hi Rachel,
まだ見ていない= I haven’t seen ~ yet.
You don’t say まだ見なかった
but you can say just 見なかった which means “ I didn’t see ~ “ and you are talking about the past.
Ex. あの映画見た？ Did you see the movie?
また見ていない I haven’t seen the movie yet.
If you say 見なかった, it means you had a chance to see it but you decided not to see it for some reason.
湿気のため夏が嫌になる
No it is not literal. You can say that casually.
Thank you, 先生！
Let me see if I got it right: the difference is kind of like
（まだ）見てない = “I haven’t seen it (yet)” or “I couldn’t see it (yet)”
見なかった = “I didn’t see it” = simply factual, or because of an implied reason, etc.
見てなかった* = I wasn’t seeing it
*Can I add まだ here in the third sentence and say まだ見てなかった to mean “I wasn’t able to see it up to now/until now”?
Ex. 「まだ見てなかった写真」 “The picture I wasn’t able to see up to now”
Thank you again, Maggie! Your replies are always so quick and helpful. We all appreciate what you do for us!!
“wasn’t able to see” →Your translation may work but to be more accurate, you can also use the potential form 見られなかった・見ることができなかった写真Ah So まだ見ていなかった写真 could be just “the picture that I haven’t seen yet”.
つい is an adverb and it modifies a verb and it is pretty flexible.
彼女の前でつい他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。
You can say
彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいってつい言っちゃった。(right before the main verb)
つい彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。 (When you emphasize the fact that you had no intension to do that, you place it at the beginning of the sentence)
Right the meaning is the same.
As I wrote in the note, if you start the sentence with つい, the listener can tell the speaker did something without intention right away.
Helo sensei….how are you..?? I have joined the classes for n3 level….I have a Mondai..ano sono and kono. How we will use when we talk….can u plz explain it briefly 🍦🍦
OK, in that case, 予測が真実になった might sound a bit too serious.
How about
友達の予想通りになった。= Tomodachi no yosou doori ni natta.
友達の言った通りになった。= Tomodachi no itta toori ni natta.
The similar sentence to yours,
友達の予想が本当になった。instead of 真実になる
Hello teacher..how are you…..1 of July jlpt 4 exam is going to held in delhi…..I am preparing very hard…so if you have any important kanji or grammar or suggestions…plz let me know….I learnt lots of things from….for that thank u very much…..
Hello! How have you been?
Did you try the sample test? At this point, you can set the time and do the sample exam and see how you do it. がんばって！ You can do it!
Hi Maggie Sensei! I heard someone use ありがたいね as thank you, and the internet said that it’s an old fashioned and informal way to say thank you. Is this true? What’s the difference between ありがたい and ありがとう?
I see. The way you use ありがとう and ありがたい are a little different.
When you simply want to say “Thank you!” to someone, you say ありがとう. Not ありがたい.
While you say ありがとう to people who did/does something for you, ありがたい is used to show your appreciation to the situation, circumstances, things or event that help you.
As I wrote in the beginning of the lesson, が ( = ga) shows a strong preference/desire
So when you choose one particular thing.
“I like this one/ I prefer this one.” and not other things, you say これがいい
And when you don’t have a strong preference/desire and you pick one thing and think “This will do./ This one is OK.” You say これでいい (It also implies “Maybe this one is not the best one but I would just fine with this one.”)
マギー先生へ、
どうもありがとうございます！しかし『もんだ』などについて質問がまたありますが…
Is it true that you can sound whiny but cute when using もんだ, for example when you tell someone you’re sad or upset? Not because of them necessarily, but can you say 『悲しいもんだ』when you want them to feel sorry for you?
I’m a young female who would like to know how to sound cute and even somewhat childish, but I don’t want to overdo it.
前もってお願いします！
I think I have covered the usage of もん in a couple of other lessons. (For example 理由 lesson, etc.)
〜もん is used to make your point. (kind of childish but young women use it too.)
だって〜もん Because ~
It is a kind of cute way to give a reason.
Ex だって悲しんだもん ‘Cause I’m sad.
「実際の表現の最初の文字を使った方がいいかな」
I don’t know how to say it with this kind of expression, because it’s kinda a recursive question hahah. I tried to say that I didn’t know anything about the 「＊＊＊の＊のじも。。。」expression structure
PS: Mini Lessons Index Page is not working :'(
(btw, この文脈の「work」ってどう言いますか？)
Main Lesson Indexのしたのリンクのことですか？
だったら
Mini Lesson Index Pageのリンクが開きません／開かない
When my site was hacked, I deleted the page along with 124 mini lessons.
But I will eventually put some of them back with the index page.
待っててね。
Hi Maggie-sensei
I am confused as to the difference between よう and みたい.
I was reading some example sentences, and I saw these:
彼は学生のような雰囲気ですね。
学生みたいです。
In the first one, it seems to me that it is uncertain whether the person is a student or not, only that he gives off a student-like atmosphere. However, which the second one, I read that it is implied that he only LOOKS like a student, but isn’t.
もう売り切れみたい。
However, with this sentence, it supposedly means that it may or may not be sold out. I do not understand how, in the first example, みたい can mean that he only looks like and is not (which is different from よう), but in the second example, みたい means the same thing as よう.
Where did you see these example sentences? I thought I gave you these example sentence and looked for them but I can’t…
Maybe you saw them somewhere else. Anyway,
学生みたいです。You are right. You can’t tell just by this sentence whether it means 1) He looks like a student or 2) I heard he is a student.
もう売り切れみたい。could also mean 1) It looks like something is sold out.(the speaker’s judges from what he/she saw. 2) I heard it’s sold out.
I saw this word in a song and I was puzzled because it didn’t make sense to me. Now I see what it means but I was wondering if you know the etimology of this なりjust to have a better understanding of it. Thanks.
Indeed. And なり itself is an abbreviation of にてあり or にあり, used in 平安時代. Later it changed into にてぁ=>んでぁ=> ぢゃ and eventually become だ(だ・である is one of なり many meanings).
にて changed into で, although にて is still used in formal language even in these days.
1) 気がすむ means “to be satisfied” but in this case it is sarcastic.→ How much is enough for you to make you satisfied?
どれだけ~ だ！ shows the speaker feels angry.
It could be translated in many ways but for example
* Enough with making fun of him/her and me?
* Are you satisfied looking down on her/him and me this much?
2) AとB means “A and B”!
AやB means “A and B and etc.”
マギー先生！こんばんは＾＾ I hope you are fine and always happy. I can’t believe I’m posting another comment after 4 years!! I’m glad that I knew this site for more than 8 years now. Wow time sure flies! Maggie is the cutest dog ever and will always be in our hearts. Btw, did u get another dog? sorry as I don’t know much about it…
Please help me with
these following questions:
1. “Ex. 今、何をしているの？”
you said it can mean “What do you do in general in your life now?”
this situation is when two people didn’t meet for a long time?
shouldn’t he or she use 最近？ I’m confused
2. In “You can also talk about past experiences.
Ex. 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。”
why not use past form“行った” instead? why ている？ the action is already done and it’s in the past..
1. Ex. 今、何をしているの？”
this situation is when two people didn’t meet for a long time? Right. It is one of those typical phrases to catch up with people who you haven’t seen for a while.
I guess you can say 最近、何をしているの？ as well but while 今なにをしているの usually asking for someone’s c current job 最近、何をしているの？ means “what you have been doing lately?” (Current activities/Not necessary one’s job)
2. It maybe easier to think in English.
5回も行った She went to Okinawa five times.
5回も行っている She has been to Okinawa five times.
***
I am gone physically but Yukari has a doggie, Cookie. He has been teaching here as a lazy assistant teacher. :)
こんにち先生！
Thank you for your answers. It helped me like usual^^
So another usage of the particle も is to stress the meaning. so 大丈夫も is used to stress “It’s ok”?
も is according to what I know means also.
Is there other usages for it?
I’m still confused about the ending of verbs ～いる。as in 食べている
Is there a lesson on it?
Umm, hi here, a frantic japanese student approaching a Noken exam. I’m only going to add to the pile of positive comments at this point, but I still wanted to thank you for such an wonderful page. It’s amazing how complete your lessons are, so much so that lately if I have any doubts I’ll come to your page right away.
However, one doubt here: what’s the difference between koto ni suru and furi wo suru?
Thank you, Maggie sensei
Hi Alraisen
As you can see in this lesson, one of the meanings of ことにする is “to pretend”/
When you catch someone is doing something and pretend not to see that, you can say both
見なかったことにする and 見なかったふりをする (pretend not to see)
But you use ふりをする when you describe that moment or one’s behaviors. (acting as if ~ )
For example, you are talking to a Japanese people and they use big words and you don’t understand at all but you keep nodding pretending you understand them. That is わかったふりをする not わかったことにする.
Ex. 彼はいつもわかったふりをする。
= He always prentend to understand ( = act as if he understands)
X 彼はいつもわかったことにする
I was reviewing this again, and I came across something curious.
目に見えないほど小さいダイヤの指輪を買った
The diamond was so small it is like you cannot see it with you eyes.
Why do we say 目に見えない? Shouldn’t it be 目で見えない? Because we are saying “you cannot see it BY looking”. I understand the particle で would be use for situations when you want to say “by…”. For example, “by car” – 車で.
So when we want to say “too small to see by sight/eye” (目に見えない)… why do we use the particle に?
Hi Dennis, Hi Maggie!
a very good question, indeed.
I understand the difference as follows:
目で見える indicates means of action (= can see / is able to see !with! one’s eyes). It stresses more the fact that something can be seen.
目に・から見える refers to a location (eyes / sight), where something becomes visible (= to be visible). It stresses more this location, rather than the action itself.
人の目に見えない = Something is beyond one’s vision / something is not visible to one’s eyes.
人の目で見えない = Something cannot be seen with one’s eyes.
We never really covered passive or causative verb forms in Japanese at school, so causative is next on my to do list!
But I got myself in a muddle because I vaguely remember studying transitive and intransitive verbs, and my understanding was:
Transitive – someone actively does something to an object (I/he/she closes the door, ドアを閉める)
Intransitive – the action happens, there isn’t a direct object (the door closes, ドアが閉まる).
Any magic tips on learning all the intransitive verbs would be appreciated!
Ukemi passive form at least has much easier rules on how to form it, but the use of it sounded a bit like intransitive verbs to me, and I’ve been struggling to see the difference in when you use each of them. Obviously my English grammar isn’t good enough :'( I think I’m getting there, though.
I’ve read online that passive is used when there’s clearly an active agent causing the action (even if the agent isn’t explicitly stated). Intransitive doesn’t show that information
e.g. passive ドアが閉められる – the door is closed (was done by someone)
intransitive ドアが閉まる could mean it happened by itself.
or passive – the trees were moved by the breeze
intransitive – the trees were moving in the breeze (could mean it wasn’t the breeze that made them move in the first place)
Another example I saw was
e.g. passive 教えられた gives a sense that someone is actively teaching,
intransitive 教わった would be more used if you learned something from TV or a book.
One thing I have picked up is that English passive is made by a form of ‘to be’ and then the past tense of the verb.
Anyway I had a couple of notes on your actual lesson, sensei!
* One is, is よぶ = to call/to invite a ‘group 2’ verb, because it looks like it conjugates the same as ‘group 1’, but you have listed it as group 2?
* The other is, is it necessary to change group 2 verbs to their negative form? Because it seems like you are adding ‘nai’ just to take it straight back off again. But I don’t know if you just said that because it’s easier to give the same rule for both groups of verbs.
Sorry for the very long message, my brain hurts now :)
Your interpretation of all the example sentences in the comment is right.
Using passive form sometimes involves the speaker’s feelings as well.
閉められた could be just describing how the door is closed or the speaker shows some emotions such as annoyance.
Thanks for the notes. I will take a look at them when I have more time. :)
1. I guess you use kanji in old saying but if it is not something tangible you use hiragana in general.
2. ~か(どうか） whether ~ or not (In this case “to check well whether you leave something or not.)
3. このごろ／最近 can be interchangeable
You can use both このごろ/最近 for some ongoing actions.
But to describe one time action/event in the past, you can’t use このごろ
Ex. 最近事故があった。(There was an accident recently.)
X この頃、事故があった。
You can also use この前 here but
最近 recently この前 the other day
Omg, thank you! I’m starting a job as a receptionist, and we have quite a few Japanese customers. I wanted to find the proper keigo to greet them etc and this page is a huge help ;u; (now to Learn all of this during my next day off XD)
Thank you again!
Hi Maggie!
Is 「と言う」 and 「って言う」 formal/literary, or is it also used in everyday conversation? For example, if I want to tell my friends, “They say that Americans smile more than others” would saying 「アメリカ人は他のひとよりもっと笑うっていう」 be okay? Or should I add a の at the end? Would that change the meaning because of the emphasis?
1. 時間がすぎるの（は）早いね。
の is to nominalize a verb, すぎる
すぎる = to pass
すぎるの = passing
In conversation you often skip particle (は）
2. When you have had enough. (To express one’s annoying feelings.)
Give me a break/That’s enough.
For example someone is keep bothering you, doing something annoying, etc., you say いい加減にして
3. Yes. When you stress your feelings, you start the sentence with もう
4. 世界 / 世の中 are both translated as “world” but they are slightly different in Japanese.
For the world in global meaning, you use 世界 and you use 世の中 to refer to the world where you actually live / one’s environment.
1.「なんかねえ、いろいろあってね。」
Since its in the past, why not あったね?
Im confused
2.「なんかなあ。」this is male speach?
Thisなあ is also used when we wish something or envy someone?
Is there a lesson on it? Im still confused about its function.
Thanks in advance
1. If the speaker and the listener are sharing the same memories, they could say いろいろあったね = We have been through many things. (Many things happened to us.)
You know the function of て right?
Vて = and / because
This いろいろあってね implies いろいろあって(+ what happened / how the speaker felt Ex. 大変だった）
Ex. いろいろあって大変だったんだよね→いろいろあってね。
1. Unfinished sentences in Japanese are very common. It’s because the speaker wants you to read between the lines, as Maggie many times mentioned. Of course the sentence, although the ～て form, implies the past.
なんかねえ、いろいろあってね。=> Well, many things happened, you know (the speaker lets the sentence unfinished because he/she doesn’t want to talk what happened and at the same time he/she doesn’t want to say directly “I don’t want to talk about that” because that might hurt your feelings).
2. Part. な has many functions. Besides prohibition, seeking confirmation, admiration or emotional expressions, it implies also pure emphasis.
In this sentence part. な you can translate as: well…; you know…
And yes, な is normally male speech, but it’s not a rule.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Can I ask a stupid question? When you say ‘出ていった’, is the ‘いった’ part from 行く / 行った? Just asking because you wrote it in kanji further up and then hiragana in that example, so I wasn’t sure if it was just pronounced the same but not the same kanji. Hope that makes sense!
マギー先生！こんばんは!^^
As always, your lessons are great and it benefit many people.
I have two questions:
1. “Making your point. (conversational)
Ex. 私だってがんばっているんですけど。
My question is what is~だって？私だって？I always hear it but I dont know its function.
2. My second question is けど used when we want that we are the best? Be arrogant?
Or its used when we dont have much confidence in what we do?
Or both?
Thank you so much in advance.
1. Ah I haven’t made a lesson on だって yet? Maybe I should make one soon.
Anyway だって means 1) to give a reason “because”. (I mentioned this usage in my 理由lesson.)
2) even/ also / to emphasize what comes before in this case 私
私だってがんばっているんですけど。 implies “It may not appear that I try hard but I do try hard, too, you know.”
2. Not necessary being arrogant. It is just to make your point. So even if you don’t have any confidence, you try to make someone understand that you ARE trying hard.
Hello sensei ,
thank you so much for the information
I just want to ask you that is there should include the information of family members and their professional qualifications etc??
Hi Maggie, I’m confused on how to make a sentence using ageru. The sentence is something like, “Thank you for everyone’s help in giving Tom a birthday poster.” Or “Thank you to everyone who helped to give Tom a birthday poster.”
Even though I (the speaker) am not close with “everyone” or “Tom” since it’s more as a charitable group effort, so I am really confused on how to word such a long sentence too. I tried using your sentences as reference and I tried to make my own:
“皆さんが、トムにお誕生日ポスターを手伝ってあげたの、本当にありがとう！”
Was this a correct way to do it? Thank you for your help! Your website has helped me so much!
* Aさんが＋（〜を）+ ( Vて ) ＋くれる (polite くださる）A-san does something for you./A-san gives something to you (your familly)
All of these form have to have “you / the writer / the speaker ” as a receiver or giver
(When you use ていた, etc to describer the situaion. you can talk about other people.
Ex. BさんはAさんからVてもらっていた。)
So you can not use the pattern with “everyone” and “Tom” unless Tom is your family or someone really close to you.
Thank you so much for your help and your fast reply!!! I understand the context better but i’m still a little confused on why there is an * next to いただき*
Also if I wanted to make the sentence you provided into a more friendly way (since we’re all around the same age), could I say (?):
みなさん、Aさんにポスターを贈るのに協力もらう、ありがとう！
Sorry for so many questions. I want to make sure I fully understand 😊
Hi Maggie-sensei. Thank you for your wonderful lessons. They’re always very informative and easy to follow. I have a question concerning the 「〜ては」form.
I came across these lyrics in a song:
どうしようもないことを
人のせいにしては
受け入れてるフリをしていたんだ
ずっと
I don’t really understand the 「人のせいにしては」part and I’ve been trying to translate it into English in a way that makes sense. Does the「〜ては」in this instance indicate a repeated action? Would the translation be something like this?:
“I always went back and forth
between blaming others for what I had no control over
and pretending to be accepting.”
Is this correct? Sorry to ask such a random question, but I’m really curious about this grammatical form lol. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Yes, this indicates the habitual/repetitive behavior.
I think your translation is good.
So this person has been pretending to accept things that he/she can’t control over blaming on others.
“Note : You also use non-volitional verb + てみる ( = temiru) in a conditional form but I will concentrate volitional verb in this lesson.”
うーん, 気になった！
マギー先生、can you give an example of 〜てみる using a non-volitional verb?
I tried to make a sentence in the conditional form but can’t seem to find any that makes sense.
E.g. 疲れてみたら… If you are going to try (and see what happens when you) get tired? Er…
Am I misunderstanding what you meant with the conditional form ?
Haha I don’t remember well what I meant but sorry for the confusion.
It is rare and conversational so you don’t have to worry about it.
I think what I meant was some intransitive non-volitional verbs such as 助かる／広まる／こわれる, etc.
When you find out something after something happens
Ex. ケータイが壊れてみてどれだけ便利だったか気がついた。
I found out how convenient to have a cellphone after it broke.
こっちが＋ 気を使っていれば when I concern about your feelings /下手にでれば when I behave modestly / 黙っていれば when I keep my mouth shut (condition) ＋ いい気になって (you take an advantage/ get full of yourself/ behave arrogantly)
Ah, much clearer now.
I appreciate these lessons. Although I have no problem in the vocabulary department, I’ve too long neglected the grammatical quirks and nuances of the language; a lot is clicking into place now, reading your lessons.
Maggie Sensei, Konnichiwa, shitsumon ga arundesu ga ii desu ka.
自分の考えで この パターン は （N は、～に、～を、PV ）わるい場合で
使うんです。例えば、 私は弟にカメラをこわされました。I had my camera broken by my brother. いいことだったら、例えば my camera was repaired by my brother. 私は弟にカメラを なおされました。この ぶん は だめ ですね。
”～してもらいます”のほうがいいです。－＞私は弟にカメラをなおしてもらいました。
どうしてこちらの例文は OKですか。”わたしは先生に漢字をなおされました。”
my kanji was corrected by the teacher. でも こちら の 例文 は だめだといいます。 my camera was repaired by my brother—私は弟にカメラを なおされました。
First let’s take a look at the meaning of 直す
1) カメラを直す to fix
2) 漢字を直す to correct kanji
When someone fix your camera, you usually appreciate that person so you don’t use a passive causative form.
As you say 直してもらう Someone fixes your camera for your favor.
Now as for 2) is tricky.
If you feel grateful for the teacher who correct your kanji mistake, you can also say
先生に漢字を直してもらった。
But if you feel disappointed, annoyed or any kind of negative feelings, you say
わたしは先生に漢字をなおされました。
What usage would のに fall under in a sentence like “ネクタイを結ぶのに手間取ってしまって”? It seems like it’s used like ‘because’ in some sentences. Is it like a negative version of だから？
日本で、トムがラーメンを食べた （Nihon de Tom ga ramen wo tabeta）
→日本で、トムはラーメンを食べた (Nihon de Tom wa ramen wo tabeta) is more natural.
If Tom doesn’t eat ramen but IN Japan, he ate raman. (Emphasizing “in Japan” to show the contrast), you can also say
日本ではトムはラーメンを食べた。
( Nihon dewa Tomu wa ramen wo tabeta)
Oh i got it! I am still confuse when to use wa or ga. Beacuse i start to talking about Tom, so i should use wa as topic marker, is that right?
And i haven’t learned about “dewa” yet but i understand what are you meaning ^ ^. Is the “dewa” here same or different with your lesson about “tewa/dewa”? (I have not read that yet ^ ^”)
The difference between “wa” and “ga” is complicated but the simple rule is
~ wa ~ desu. (emphasize what comes after “wa”)
~ ga ~ desu. (emphasizes what comes before “ga”)
In your example sentence, you don’t need to stress “Tom”. What Tom did in Japan is more important so you use “wa”
***
Now “wa” has another function which shows the contrast.
And you can combine with other particle. de wa / ni wa / e wa, etc.
Maybe not other countries but “in Japan” he ate ramen.
ほどよい and ちょうどいい both mean “just right”.
They could be interchangeable in some cases but when you are talking about the size or something fits someone perfectly, you use ちょうどいい.
ほどよい is often used when the speaker feels comfortable. So when you are talking about the shoe size, you don’t say
この靴のサイズはほどよい→ちょうどいい
Also when you are talking about some timing,
ちょうどいい時に彼が来た。
He showed up in the right time/timing.
You don’t say ほどよいときに
Hey, just a slight correction, you wrote ‘喜び = よろこび = yorokobijoy’, and the ‘joy’ probably shouldn’t be there
Thanks for the lesson though, I really appreciate you doing this <3
I came across this lesson while looking for an explanation for why the main character 藤沼悟 of Erased said “ほら やっぱり…関わるんじゃなかった…” when he crashed into something after he said earlier “関わりたくないけど…探すしかない”. In the English subtitles, it showed the translation as “I shouldn’t have gotten involved” but the sentence actually looks like it says “I didn’t get involved” or based on this lesson “Because I didn’t get involved.” Either translation confuses me because I don’t know how it means “I shouldn’t have”
So I’m guessing it’s the past tense of the command form? But I didn’t see it included in the lesson, and since you cant command someone not to do something in the past tense I guess it instead becomes you shouldn’t have like the character is scolding himself? Your clarification would really help me, thank you.
So you want to say thank you to someone who has been taking care of A-chan?
Then I suppose A-chan is your child, younger brother/sister.
You can say
Aちゃんが(いつも) お世話になっています。 = A chan ga (itsumo) osewa ninatte imasu.
こんにちは！
Thank you for taking the time to post all these lessons. They help a lot.
I do have a question:
For example in this dialogue I’m looking at a couple of bags with a friend.
A: Cさんの鞄はどれですか。
B: くまモンの鞄のはずです。
Is it possible to leave out the 鞄 and just say くまモンののはずです or would that sound really weird?
Thanks in advance 先生！
くまモンの鞄のはずです。 is OK but くまモンののはずです is not natural. I would avoid using two の
Also you wanted to say “It must be the one with kumamon’s picture?”
くまモンの鞄に違いない。
→くまもんのに違いない。
work.
although/even though V+ のに
The verb which comes before can be dictionary form, past tense, progressive form, past progressive form
読むのに／読んだのに／読んでいるのに／読んでいたのに
negative form
読まないのに／読まなかったのに／読んでいないのに／読んでいなかったのに
Plus other 助動詞 (auxiliary verb)
Ex. 読みたいのに／読みたくないのに／読むことになっているのに etc.
in order to ~/ to do something : The verb which comes from のに is more limited.
読むのに
(negative form)
読まないのに
You can also tell by what kind of sentence follows.
この本を読むのに5時間かかった。(It took me five hours to read a book)
うちの子は、漫画は読むのに小説は読まない。(My child read a comic book but not a novel. Showing the contrast)
First “yasashii” has two kanji 易しい and 優しい. The later means “sweet/kind/nice (personality, tone, etc)”
Now 簡単 and 易しい both mean “easy” and sometime they are interchangeable.
テストは簡単だった / 易しかった。
= The test was easy.
The difference 簡単 means “simple”
For example when you are tired and no energy to cook, you say
Ex. なにか簡単なものを作ります。
= I will make something simple.
If you say 易しいものを作ります it means I will make something easy to make. and you are talking about the procedure of cooking is easy.
The meaning is the same but the point of view is slightly different.
お言葉に甘えていただきます is showing some respect to the person who serves you food/gives you a gift
But 遠慮なくいただきます refers to your own action, taking, eating the food. I will do something without reservation. (Allow me to eat/take this gift)
できなくなる means “to become unable to ~ “”won’t be able to ~”
You used to be able do do something but under certain circumstances, you won’t be able to do that anymore.
Ex. ８月から忙しくなるので、日本語の勉強ができなくなる。
I will be busier from August so I won’t be able to study Japanese.
Hi Maggie! Thanks for all your fantastic lessons! I have a question about まくる。 Can I use it in a negative sense such as like this: 働きまくらないで?
I think I’d like to say something like this to my workmates: “Don’t work TOO hard”. I usually said 頑張りすぎしないで but まくる seems like fun vocabulary to use here :) Is it appropriate?
Hi Dave,
Good question. Someone asked me the difference between まくる and すぎる but you use すぎる for to do something too much/overdo something
“Don’t work TOO hard”. will be 働きすぎないで
In a recondite point of the Mexican southwest there is child (me) who wants to thank you for such fascinating lessons, I love them! I’ve learned a lot and I’ll keep on doing it. I appreciate it a lot ¡Saluditos!
これ持ってっちゃって is a very conversational expression and it came from これ持っていってしまって
If you just want someone to take something, you say
＊ これ持っていって (casual 持ってって）
= Take it/them with you.
持っていく = to take something with you
持っていってしまう (持ってっちゃう） involves the speaker’s feelings and しまう（ちゃう） means to finish something.
Ex. 持っていってしまって（casual 持ってっちゃって) Take everything/ the rest with you. (So that I don’t have to take care of the rest anymore/ Something has been here for certain period of time and I don’t need it.)
1) ~ ようと〜ようと （どっちでも・どちらでも）同じこと
Whether you try to do A or B, it’s the same difference.
So combine the two sentences.
逃げようと諦めようとどっちでも同じこと。
Whether you try to escape or give up, it is the same difference.
2) 皆私たちのことは覚えていますよ、いくら忘れようとしても。
That is called 倒置法 (touchihou) inversion
いくら忘れようとしても、皆私たちのことは覚えていますよ。
This ようとしても Even if you try to forget us , everybody will remember us.
When there is “ようと～ようと”, it means “whether/or”? And can I use as many “ようと” verbs in series to say “whether, or, or, or, etc.”?
But when there is only one “ようと” it means “try to”, sort of like “て+みる” （for example: “この玉を避けてみる/この玉を避けようと”）?
Or is it a set phrase together ”ようとしても”
Could I do “てみるしても”?
Like we usually say,
昔の人々にこのような家を作られている。
昔の人々にこのような家が作られている。
Which one is correct?
As the house marks an object , as taught by you earlier we could use the をparticle with the objects in the passive too. But why I got my sentence corrected by saying がis appropriate here?
You say 2) but not 1) because it is talking about the houses.
If you use を, the action of building the houses somehow affected to someone.
So it may work in the situation like there are many strange looking houses in one village and people who live there are complaining about the houses.
Then they say We got theses houses built by people who used to live here long time ago (and it is very annoying.)
I did not ask the original question but I have the same question.
Can I confirm that we can use が or を to mark the object in passive sentences?
And if we use を it implies some negative nuance?
ケーキが食べられた (it is a neutral sentence)
ケーキを食べられた (it implies someone is unhappy because the cake was eaten)
Spencer
Hello Spencer,
Yes, you can say both
ケーキが食べられた
ケーキを食べられた
When you focus on the fact that the cake is gone, you use が. It could be your cake or someone’s cake.
You use を when someone ate your cake.
They both could be negative but が expresses one’s shock /surprised feelings and you are right を implies you are not happy because the cake belonged to you.
What is the difference between verb+makuru and verb+sugiru?
Interesting… Two other people asked me the same question.
I will repost my answer here.
Verb+ すぎる ( = sugiru) means “to do something too much”
Verb + まくる ( = makuru) doesn’t mean “too much /excessibly” and it just focus on the amount, intensity or repetitive actions.
Ex. 食べすぎる = tabesugiru = to eat too much
Ex. 食べまくる = tabemakuru = to eat a lot / to eat and eat / keep eating. 😊
Also, while you use adjetives with すぎる (Ex. 大きすぎる = ooki sugiru), you don’t use adjetives with まくる ( = makuru)
Hi,I am reading a book concerning Jesus. But I found some sentences with
物となるand 物とする :”それはあなたがたの喜びが満ち満ちたものとなるためです。I translated : I want that your happiness will become full
Why it puts 物とbefore なる？
There is another sentence:
主は 彼らとともに 働き、みことばに 伴うしるしをもって、みことばを 確かなものとされた。
God working with them, and confirming the word with signs that followed (the word).In this case use 物とするIs it an old way to say or there is a grammar explanation?
Thanks for your delights
Maria
And 説明させていただきます means “allow me to explain it” just like 一言言わせていただきます = allow me to say one thing / let me say one thing.
ヨロシク
Thank you for helping, 天人！ ☺️
Thankyou very much for the explanation maggie sensei and 天人!
😊💕
Dear Maggiesensei,
Thank you for the lesson. I have a question. Can I say Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekiteiru instead of Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekita?
If I can’t, why? Isn’t dekiru a ‘state’ verb like kowareru, oreru?
If I can, then what’s the difference between the two sentences?
I would be really grateful for your help. I’m stuck wondering why some verbs can be conjugated in the present continuous tense while others can’t (wakaru, aru..)
駅前に新しいデパートができている。
Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekiteiru.
It is possible.
The difference between できている and できた is
できた ( = dekita) They finished the construction.
できている ( = dekiteiru) They are still working on the department building.
Kon’nichiwa Maggie Sensei (^_^ Thank You For The Lesson…. ♡♡♡♡
Sensei, I Have A Question Couldn’t Find Any Satisfyin’ Answer Of It, What Is The Exact Point For Usin’ The Adverb “Zuruzuru To” In This Context:
“Zuruzuru To Juu Nen….”
ずるずる と 10年….
….?
Onegai Shimasu!
Thank you for taking the time to teach us some Japanese which’s really useful.
A lot of the advanced grammar that you choose to teach are used more than the others so congrauts for your good grammar choices!! I consume Japanese for almost all my free time and I often encounter them so I recommend people to learn them well.
First of all, I’m big fan of your lessons! It’s been an immense help to me in my quest to learn Japanese.
I’ve a question which I’m not sure is strictly related to this topic.
Please consider the following sentence:
熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし…
I understand this to roughly mean “I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously.” (side note: is zealous too strong a word here for “熱心”?)
I note the “わけ” in it but it ends with “である” instead of “でない”
Does that mean the sentence is saying “visiting/praying at the shrine zealously” *is* the reason? So I assume it should be “It’s because I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously,”?
〜わけであるから sounds more formal and explanatory than 〜から.
わけである can be used when you simply explain some fact / some situation
To understand more clearly I need to know the sentence before/after 熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし…
As for the sentence, although there is a し in it, it only listed one reason. It was one of the other things that struck to me as odd, and I simply assumed that whatever other reasons there were, they’ve been omitted, though I have no idea if that makes grammatical sense since I’ve only ever seen し used to list more than one thing.
Here it is in full:
熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし、信仰を集めれば願い事を叶えなえられる。
From context, I had already hazarded a guess that the first part is the reason for the second. But I had no idea what the わけである part meant (until I Iooked it up on your site).
Your explanation has helped clear it up for me.
ありがとうございました、マギー先生!
OK, now it is clear. It is a reason as you already figured out.
As for the usage し, it implies that there are other reasons or emphasizes the sentence.
Whoops, sorry about the copypasta typo: should’ve been ” 叶えられる”, but I’m sure you already guessed that.
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Could you please clarify something for me?
You can’t use とか with people right? As in, when someone asked for example “Who could I ask to help me with x?” you couldn’t say something like “AさんとかBさんとかを頼んで” if you wanted to answer “Ask someone like A-san or B-san”, is that correct? Or is that maybe possible?
Yes, you can use とか with people.
Ex. Aさんとか言う人から電話がありましたよ。
As for your example sentence, AさんとかBさん（とか） it is very conversational but you can use とか as well.
“Ask someone like A-san or B-san”, I would use the suggestion form with とか
AさんとかBさん（とか）に頼んで・聞いてみたら？
Thank you so much for this lesson. I usually study using the minna no nihongo textbooks but whenever I encounter something that isn’t clear your blog NEVER fails to help me.
I want to learn how to give directions in relation to using the train for example: take the yamanote line/ change trains at~to the ~ line/ get off at~/~ station is the first stop. Is there already a lesson like this one? I already searched but maybe I missed it. If not I’d be supper thankful if you could cover this topic. Thank you Maggie Sensei!!
Hi Maggie sensei! It’s me again! I had a quick question :)
Can you use the ように meaning ‘to hope for’ with a verb not in です/ます form? For example, 風邪を引かないように instead of 風邪を引きませんように?
Thanks so much :)
Hello Maggie sensei!! I’m sorry- you meant you can also say 風邪を引かないように, right? In your answer you said you can also say風邪を引きませんように, so I wasn’t too sure…
Ooops! Sorry. Yes, I meant you also say 風邪を引かないように
Okay! Thanks so much!! :D
🐶💕💕
Thank you. The examples made verb + ところ easy to understand.
Hi Maggie,
thank you for this site.
I have still some problems in using ban and banme.
In your examples:
My grades are the second best in class. KURASU de niban no seiseki datta.
vs.
I am the fourth tallest person in class. Boku wa kurasu de yonbanme ni se ga takai.
How can i transform the first sentence to express i am the second best pupil in class, just as the second sentence? Do i have to use “nibanme” then?
Ah OK, here is the basic formation
~ banme no + noun
~ banme ni + adjective
~ banme ni + (noun + no/ga) adjective + noun
So if you want to say “I am the second best student in the class.”, you say
クラスで２番目に成績が( or の） いい生徒だ。
(Kurasu de nibanme ni seiseki ga( or no) ii seito da)
I love your website Maggie sensei！ It cover so many topic not covered by other website. It’s really helpful. I wish you well and always healthy. お世話になりました！
I came here looking for a bit of information on using ‘目’ as a counter and now I have a lot to read through! But I only got a few sentences in before I got confused why 一本目 (and not 一つ目) was used to say ‘first street’, but now I understand ‘本’ is used to count long, cylindrical objects. I had only seen this used before for bottles, etc., but I guess it is used for streets as well.
My question really is – as there are so many different counters in Japanese – would a Japanese speaker understand what I meant if I said, for example, 一つ目の道?
I am trying to learn the correct counters to use, and I already know that people are counted differently, but wow there are so many! For once, English is actually easier to learn ;) I think I will have to draw a wall chart with pictures and the counters used for them :)
Yes, you use 本 as a counter for streets. (Streets are long, right? 😉）
And yes! Japanese people do understand if you say 一つ目の道. The counter of 一つ、二つ are general way to count things.
I also have a basic counter lesson with a little quiz here. 数字
1. If you say 熱は下がりますよ, it implies other symptoms may remains but the fever will drop.
So by using も, it implies the main concern, the fever, will also be gone with other problems.
2. They mean the same.
3. You mean compare to たら、と、なら？
Hmm I think I covered some in the lesson. I will add it when I think of more.
4. which express regret and wish more?which is better? What situations we never use-ば instead of のに？
Sorry but I don’t quite get your question.
For example if you are talking to someone,
行けばいいのに You should go. (knowing that the person won’t be able to go)
行ったらよかったのに You should have gone.
They both express one’s wish (even if the speaker knows it won’t come true) and not regrets.
Hello, I have a little question. So you know the difference between, Kunyomi and Onyomi. So I saw,{[彼女の顔を見ると心臓がドキドキとする(します)]}”かのじょのかおをみるとしんぞうがドキドキとする(します)。” When I read it I notice it had,しんぞう instead ofこころ. Kokoro means heart in kunyomi and shinsou means hot in oyomi.. So I didn’t know why they used Shinsou instead of Kokoro? (and the sentence means “When I see her face, my heart starts pounding like crazy.”)
hi maggie-sensei
ではない and じゃない are basically the same but what about でない? It’s not that common but I’ve seen it used sometimes, what’s the difference between でない and ではない?
i.e
嫌ではないです
嫌でないです(?)
thank you :)
Hi maggie sensei, may I ask,, a Japanese called me ojama mushi .. I’m living in his house though..
is that rude or something? though he treats me well in the house…
As I mentioned in the lesson, it usually use it as a third wheel. Two people go out on a date and if someone else joins them, then that person is お邪魔虫. ,
It is a kind of cute word. I bet he uses it as a joke.
Hey Maggie Sensei, I was just at my friends house and they were telling their daughter to go to bed and she keep saying 邪魔邪魔！
Does that mean like “you guys are ruining my fun!”?
Oops sorry. I missed that part.
But the meaning is the same or “You are in my way.”/”Stay away. I am in the middle of doing something.”
I don’t know how old the daughter is but she could be just mimicking her mom (I assume her mom tells her many times.)
Hello teacher…..how are you??what is the diffrance between tetsudai and tasukeru ….I mean how I will say. I need help or can i help you.or I am helping he /she please make me understand..😊😊😊😊😊
助ける ( = たすける = tasukeru ) and 手伝う ( = てつだう = tetsudau) are both translated “help” but while “tetsudau” is to give a hand and something minor and 助ける ( = tasukeru ) is for something more serious.
So if you are walking a street and someone is trying to rob your bag, you scream “助けて = Tasukete!” not “手伝って = tetsudatte!”
Hi sensei
What does も mean in this sentence?
先輩に見られるのも先輩を見るのも
Does it mean also or not even? I’m not sure if it means senpai and anon seeing each other or not seeing each other
Hi Romi,
It’s unfinished sentence.
も means “both””also” in an affirmative sentence and “neither” in a negative sentence (or the following verb has a negative meaning such as いやだ=I don’t like, I mind).
Let’s put one possible word after the sentence,
先輩に見られるのも先輩を見るのも（辛い= つらい = hard）
Both being seen by senpai and looking at senpai is hard.
Hi,
Do you have any kanji book? Three or five kanji per day and test yourself on the weekend.
Try not to remember many kanji at a time. It’s overwhelming.
こんにちは！
なぜ・どうして why (どうして is a little more conversational. Also なんで is very conversational)
Ex. なぜ/どうして食べないのですか？
= Naze/ Doushite tabenai no desu ka?
= Why don’t you eat?
どうやって how
Ex.(これは）どうやって食べるのですか？
= (Kore wa) Douyatte taberu no desu ka?
= How do I eat (this)?
Vているところ ( = te iru tokoro) emphasizes “right in the middle” of doing something”.
Vています = teimasu is used to state what someone is doing or does usually.
Ex. 彼はこの会社で働いています。
= Kare wa kono kaisha de hataraite imasu.
= He works for this company.
(It states what he does for living.)
Ex.彼はお風呂に入っています。
= Kare wa ofuro ni haitte imasu.
= He is taking bath (now)
→彼はお風呂に入っているところです。
= Kare wa ofuro ni haitte iru tokoro desu.
= He is taking bath. (the translation is the same as above but it emphasizes “He is in the middle of taking bath).
I’ve been searching everywhere online for the meaning of たりして that’s closest to what I have in the Try! N3 book. It says here that “たりして is used when you gently say that another person’s appearance is different from normal, or when you gently give an instruction.” I have no idea what that means, or how a sentence like that would sound in English. The sample sentences are:
1) どうしたの？着物着たりして。どこか行くの？
2) 彼女、急に泣いたりして、どうしたんだろう？
3) バスの窓から手をだしたりしてはいけませにょ。
While I do know what all the sentences mean, I can’t figure how たりして makes it different from using the normal plain forms of the verbs. I hope you can enlighten me on this! Thank you so much in advance! (Love you and your website! I’ve always wanted a Frenchie!)
OK, when you see someone in Kimono and find it unusual, you say
どうしたの？ 着物を着ているけれども、どこか行くの？
It could sound more serious and the listener can take there is something wrong with wearing kimono.
This particular sentence is not that strong but by adding たりして makes the phrase soften. (In English “like / ~ and such” “~ you know”)
→ どうしたの？着物着たりして。どこか行くの？
Also
2) 彼女、急に泣いたりして、どうしたんだろう？
sounds more subtle than 急に泣いて which focuses on the fact she cried more.
3) バスの窓から手をだしたりしてはいけませんよ。
This たりして means “and such”
If you say 手を出してはいけませんよ, you focus on just one action.
出したり implies there are other actions that shouldn’t be done.
Oooh my gosh you are amazing. That clarifies things a LOT for me. Thank you SO much. Just another question, based on your explanation, does the kimono sentence sound something like this in English?
What’s up? You’re wearing a kimono and stuff.. Going somewhere?
and stuff/ and such..
Though the speaker is just talking about one thing “kimono”, it sounds more subtle.
There are many expressions like this in Japanese. You’ll see. :)
Thank you so much! It makes so much sense to me now!! :D
どういたしまして💕
Hi, Sniff-sensei, Maggie-sensei! Could you help me out with this question? Which particles can be used in a relative clause? This might sound weird but I’m having trouble. I believe this example is valid:
“その犬と見つけてしまった魚が好き”
It could translate both to “I like the fish that I accidentally found with that dog” or “I like that dog and the fish that I accidentally found”, no?
This one as well:
“あなたも笑っているときを楽しむ”
It could translate as “I enjoy when you are also laughing” or “You also enjoy the time when you’re laughing”, no?
Pardon my clumsy examples but I think you can understand my doubt.
If と and も both can be used inside relative clauses, is there a hint to find out how it’s being used in the sentence?
Thank you very much for all your lessons!, they are very in-depth.
But why? I still don’t understand. I guess in the first case, if I wanted to say that I like both “that dog” and “the fish that I found out”, I could say “見つけた魚とその犬が好き”. But what about the second case? Since the sentence I wrote is not natural, I think there is no point asking further about it, but do you have an example where も is being used in a relative cause? Or it can’t be used in a relative clause?
Maybe the sentence itself is difficult to understand.
But I guess 見つけた魚とその犬が好き can be I like the fish I found and the dog.
It will be more clear if you say
見つけた魚もその犬も好き
I like both the fish that I found and the dog.
**
You can use も in a relative clause.
彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。
= I bought the ice cream which he also likes.
But couldn’t the sentence 彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。 also mean “he also bought an ice cream he likes”, depending on the context? I just want to make sure, even though that might be obvious. Thank you for your patience.
Ahh OK, that’s right. It could also mean “He also bought his favorite ice cream!
Let me add the subject to make it clear
“私は”彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。
OK, I will give you more examples with も
（私は）マギー先生も持っているドレスがほしい。
= I want a dress which Maggie Sensei also has.
（私は）父もよく行っていた店に立ち寄った。
= I stopped by the store where my father also used to go.
hi sensei
the boyfriend first asked if she was really listening to him and she said she was. Then he said this
だってすごくどうでもよさそう. 君は余裕ある. うふふ
Then she says those sentences
余裕なんてない. どうでもよくなんかないよ
is it a bit clearer now?
Hello sensei!
I have a question about the function of なんか and なんて in these sentences. I’ll explain the context briefly.
A girl is talking to her boyfriend over the phone. He then tells her that her voice sounds too quiet and monotonous and says that she sounds like she doesn’t care about what he’s saying. Btw he’s not angry, he’s just teasing her and being playful. Then we see her, she looks pretty happy and nervous and she replies to him by saying these sentences. I translated them like this:
余裕なんてない (I’m not calm at all)
どうでもよくなんかないよ! (There’s no way that I don’t care!)
I think なんか and なんて are used to emphasize the negative sentences even more, is it right? Or is she trying to belittle the words that come before なんか and なんて? Or do なんか and なんて have another function here? My doubt is over the fact that she says these sentences while being happy indeed, so I know she’s not emphasizing negative feelings (like disgust).
Thanks!
余裕なんてない
In this case, there is no negative meaning but it emphasizes what comes before, 余裕
The literal translation →There is no such a thing as 余裕
余裕がない
= I am too preoccupied with something/ too busy and there is no “headspace” to think about other things.
どうでもよくなんかない This なんか emphasizes どうでもいい
I don’t know the context but the person who the speaker must have said
どうでもいい = I don’t care.
or
どうでもいいと思っているんでしょ = I bet you don’t care.
So the speaker strongly negate what he/she just heard.
That is not the case!
Sensei sorry to bother one more time, it’s the last one
You said 余裕 would be “headspace” right? Looking on a dictionary I knew that 余裕 refers to “space” or margin/resource, but when it comes to emotions, does it mean something like “composure” ? The dictionary says that, and in the context I showed I think it means lack of composure (since she looks flustered) rather than lack of headspace to think about sth?/
lack of composure means “落ち着きがない・冷静さを欠く”
It’s true that the original translation, “I am not calm” fits that translation better.
I think it is the result of someone is 余裕がない.
If you are too preoccupied with something and can’t think of other things/deals with other things, they may ends up losing composure.
What a wonderful lesson as always, my brain is swimming with phrases I need to learn now!
I had a thought, if you got there early and couldn’t check in yet, so asked:
(それでは)荷物をチェックインまで預かって頂けますか？
and then you come back later, how do you say something like… I left my luggage with you, can I have it back please?
Asking because when I have done this in England, they usually have a locked room that they put your bag in, so you have to ask for the staff to get it back for you.
On the other hand, when I have been to Spain, the hotels often just have a downstairs room that you can leave your bag in, so you just go there to fetch it yourself when you are ready.
Which is more likely in Japan?
It depends on the hotel but they usually give you 預かり証= あずかりしょう = a luggage ticket for your bag.
So you go to the same counter where you left the bag and show the tag to them and say
預けた荷物お願いします。
= あずけたにもつおねがいします。
= Can I have my bag back?
If they don’t give you any ticket, you go to the reception and ask
チェックアウトの時に荷物を預かって頂きましたがどこで引き取ればいいですか？
= チェックアウトのときににもつをあずかっていただきましたがどこでひきとればいいですか？
= I asked you to keep my bag when I checked out. Where can I pick it up?
Hi. Thank you for all your effort. I’ve learned a lot. I found the next sentence in a song: “boku wa kimi wo omou shika nai”.
Then, the verb can be before ” shika” and “nai” in every sentence or just in certain cases?
It would be the same as boku wa kimi shika omoimasen? Thanks.
I just thought of a phrase that I *always* have to use in English, which is when the server comes and asks what your order is, I have to say “Sorry, I haven’t decided yet!” :)
Would that be ok to say as すみません, まだ決めていません or is there a better way of saying it?
After that, how would I say “Please could I have a little more time?” or maybe “Could I order drinks first?”
My complete guess would be 先に飲み物を注文してもいいですか but I am guessing!
I would definitely need these!!
You can say
すみません, まだ決めていません or まだ（なんにしようか）考えています。
but people usually just say まだです。
“Please could I have a little more time?”
すみません、もう少し（or ちょっと）時間ください。
ローマ字は希望する方も多いのでやめません。
漢字が読める人にとっては邪魔かもしれませんが、ひらがなを読まない人もきてくれています。
Also it is a lot of work for me to add furigana.
Sorry that I can’t make everybody happy. 😢
Thank you so much 先生！
i understand now and i hope u can do my point 3 if u can think of more. I’d really appreciate it.
I will try to check のに soon after i can fully understand -ba
To be honest, Japanese language has so many (if) so many (must) so i feel so confused and when you want to talk to someone which one to use is difficult I think.
Right. It is complicated. As I wrote, たら is less restricted so it should cover a lot of the situations.
As for 3, yes, I will add more inf. when I think of more. :)
How do I tell someone what subject(s) I studied in college? Specifically, I majored in Math Education (how to teach math effectively to young students).
Hi, Maggie sensei, i have just discovered this site and i love it so far.
Keep up the good work !!!
Also, could i just ask a question cause previously i have been using another site and now i am not so sure whether that site is reliable .
Could i ask some questions to check my previous site reliability, please.
the particle の is used when there is any degree of doubt
彼女は忙しくないのですか?
and it also demonstrates the interest of the speaker even in the affirmative such as
パーティに行かないんですか?
And could i ask cause the site translates
1)いいんじゃない！as That`s great!
and in your site , you have written
1)いいじゃない as I think it’s good!,
could your usage without の means that the speaker has greater confidence in his statement.
Also, would it be possible for いいんじゃない? to mean
Isn`t that great?
If so what would the intonation be like to carry out the respective meanings?
cause i have been hearing this いいんじゃない form in 乃木坂工事中。So i have been really curious about the differences.
Sorry, if i had made any mistakes as i have been self studying for about 3 months now
Thanks so much for reading my comment :)
Sensei, i copied the wrong question for “and it also demonstrates the interest of the speaker even in the affirmative such as”, i meant to type this 彼氏は行くんですか? instead of パーティに行かないんですか?, as this one would establish more of the speaker`s surprise
(oops, i replied to the wrong section, I am really bad with computers )
A million thank for replying :)
This has been really helpful! :)
Also,
I really love how your explanations are so concise and well packed.
And, i feel extremely heartened when i think about the amount of time and dedication that you have spent in writing this blog.
Please keep up the good work!!!
I love your site :)
先生ありがとう！^^
Thank you so much it cleared up my confusion.
Yes, please make a lesson on だって and 間・間に I really need them
I have other questions please.
1.What to use in Japanese to show we have a strong will to do something? Is there a grammar point with this function?
2. Since けど is not used to show arrogance, what can we use instead?
By the way, can I make some suggestions?
1. To edit our comments after “post”
2. Ability to search for our own comments in this site because it’s more convenient this way.
1.You can use present tense with a word like 絶対に／きっと to show your strong will.
絶対に行きます。／行く
きっと勝ちます。／勝つ
And you can attach some casual suffix.
絶対に行くよ。
きっと勝つぞ（ぞ is for a male speech)
2. You could show “arrogance” with your intonation.
I don’t know about arrogance but if
〜って言っているじゃないですか。／〜って言っているじゃない。/ (male speech)
express one’s annoyed feelings more.
3. There seems to be a plug in to allow you to edit/search your comments.
I will tell our web developer to have that plug-in. The problem is I used to have tons of plug-ins and got hacked the webpage from some of the plug-ins. So we have been very cautions.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for your great lessons! ^-^ I have been reading along silently for a while, but today I got a bit confused, so I hope you can help me out.
It’s probably a stupid question, but isn’t the expression “verb＋ことができる” the verb in noun form plus ができる? Because I accidentally wrote “verb+のができる” in my grammar exercise and it was (of course) wrong according to the answer sheet. But isn’t の also a very common way of converting a verb into a noun? Is it just that verb+ことができる is a set expression or is there a reason behind not using verb+のができる as well? Like, maybe using のができる gives it a completely different meaning? (Or did I just not find any examples with の in them? :D)
Thank you so much and thanks again for the effort you put into your lessons!
ありがとうございます～ o(^▽^)o
Hi タニヤ！
Good question.
verb+ の / verb + こと both are used for nominalization and there are lots of cases that you can use them both but there are exception.
verb + ことができる is one of them
You don’t say verb+ のができる
Other patterns that you can’t use の
* Vことがある/ない
* Vことにする
* Vことになる
You can’t use Verb の＋が＋ある
Someone asked me to make a lesson on の and こと just recently and I added it to the request lesson.
Thank you so much for your nice encouragement. これからもがんばってレッスンを作ります！
Hello Sensei!
Thank you so much for your answer! ^_^ 教えてくれてありがとうございました!
(And sorry for my late reply, somehow I thought I would get a notification … (o_o); ごめんなさい～)
Together with the other examples you gave, I am getting the feeling the reason might be that you cannot use two particles at the same time. And “の” plus が or に would end up squishing two particles together. I did not even think about this before …
Anyways, thanks again and I am looking forward to the next lessons! :)
Hi Maggie Sensei, wow what an in depth lesson! I am trying to work through slowly and I am a bit confused on the use of 思える or 感じる.
Ex 1. 彼と話すといつも批判されているように思える。
Ex 2. 無視されているように感じる。
So I think I understand 思う to think -> 思える to seem (it seems / I feel like…).
But I thought 感じる was used to mean ‘feel’ when you’re talking about the senses (e.g. I felt a cold wind blow), whereas your example is that you feel ignored. So am I right that 感じる is also used with emotions?
e.g. 私はしあわせに感じる – I feel happy
So in the second sentence, it is the emotional feeling of being ignored.
If I used 感じる in the first sentence, would that make sense?
彼と話すといつも批判されているように感じる
Excellent question! But hard to answer because the translation could be the same. :)
The basic difference is
思う = to think (with your brain)
感じる = to feel / to sense (with your body/heart)
思える = to be able to think → Something makes me think / It seems like (judging from your experience/what you see/hear but you still use your brain to judge) However, you sometimes use it when you “feel” something as well.
= Teachers don’t necessarily know all the answers./ It is not always true that all the teachers know the answers.
If わけ means reason* and logically わけではない means it is not the reason why*, I don’t see how “it is not necesarily” or “it is not always true that” relates to “it is not the reason why”. I simply don’t see it. I would appreciate an explanation to better understand what’s going on. It may be that わけ is not being properly translated into English and some important understanding of the word is being left out…
I see your confusions.
I added some words in the beginning.
The main meaning of 訳 is reason(s)
It also means “judgement from what you read/heard. / meaning / case”
So it may be easier for you to think
わけではない is “It doesn’t mean / It can’t be based on what you read/heard” → It is not always true ~ / It is not necessary true.
Hope it helps…
There are many more expressions with わけ. I will make more lessons in future.
Thanks for replying.
I’m very inquisitive. I need to understand what I’m saying instead of repeating words tht don’t seem to make sense in my mind.
わけ seems to be a very challenging word and it may bee partly because just like it happens with many other Japanese words and expressions we receive simplified translations that leave out the essential idea behind words which then ends up hindering proper comprehension of the Japanese language.
I looked up and found the verb 訳する (yakusuru) which means “to tranlate”, “to interpret”, so I conclude that the actual meaning of わけ is essentially “translation” and “interpretation” and not “reason”. Perhaps “reason” is a re-interpretation of the original meaning behind わけ but not the original meaning itself. If I think of わけ as meaning translation or interpretation the sentence above seems to make more sense and from that it can be accomodated it to make more sense in English.
“It does not translate to teachers knowing everything”.
At least in my mind that is what I think is being actually said and from there one can accomodate it to make it sound more natural in English, “It doesn’t mean that…”.
No problem. (I deleted the same message.)
The verb 訳する means “to translate old Japanese (古語） or foreign languages (外国語)”.
But I think it is a good idea to figure out by the meaning of kanji 訳 （reason, meaning, interpretation)
Under the point 3. I understand you´re explaining the sentence construction with verb+ みたい ( = mitai) + に+ verb / adjective / adverb + verb , so now there are missing now examples for the construction
verb+ みたい ( = mitai) + に+ adjective / adverb + verb
… or such sentences are not actually common?
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question with regards to ukemi. I came across this sentence.
私は時々「水」の代わりに「冷や」という言葉を使いますが、頼んだ人は私が日本語を話していることに気づかず、水をもらえません。Why is 頼んだ and not 頼まれた? Is this due to viewpoint? I mean if I am at the scene, from my viewpoint, shouldn’t the writer who places order be 頼んだ人 and the waiter who takes order be 頼まれた人?
Hello！
Yes, the person who ordered water is 私 so you have to describe it from the speaker’s point of view and it is strange to to see the waiter’s point of view.
(私が)水を頼んだ人
= The person I ordered water.
Customer ordered water to waiter.
From customer point of view, waiter is 頼んだ人.
From waiter point of view, customer is 頼まれた人.
From my point of view as a 3rd party, customer is 頼んだ人 and waiter is 頼まれた人
Is my understanding correct?
Just
From waiter point of view, customer is 頼まれた人.
It depends on the particle.
私（waiter)が注文(order)を頼まれた人 = The customer who I got the order from (from a waiter’s point of view)
他のお客さん(other customer)に注文（order)を頼まれた人 = the waiter who got the order from other customer (from the speaker, the third person’s point of view)
Hi Maggie sensei, I have read that past tense だったら is actually the short form of だったとしたら. Is that true? In that case, what is the difference between past tense だったとしたら and present tense だとしたら?
だったら・だとしたら both talk about the hypothetical situation but you can’t use としたら for the case 2)
１） hypothetical
それが本当だったら大変だ。
それが本当だとしたら大変だ。
としたら sounds slightly more formal and adds more hypothetical nuance.
（だ）としたら If it were the case / (The speaker doesn’t that is the case but for the argument sake) Let’s say if it were (You are talking about counterfactual thing)
2) You can use Xだったら・たら+ Y pattern when you simply talk about what is going to happen if X happens.
明日晴れだったら海に行きます。 / 明日晴れたら海に行きます。
明日晴れだとしたら海に行きます。/ 明日晴れたとしたら海に行きます。(not natural)
***
~たら The speaker think it may happen
そうだったら
If so, If it is true/ If that’s the case (talking about the current situation)
としたら: The speaker think it is not going to happen
そうだとしたら
(Let’s say) If it were true (talking about the current situation)
そうだったとしたら
(Let’s say)If it had been true (talking about the past event)
Maggie sensei, thank you for your explanation. If だったら and だとしたら are different,then だったら is not a contracted form of だとしたら? I read that this was the case from not just one, two websites so I thought it was correct..
OK I added the number in my previous sentence.
As I said some of the sentences in the usage 1) can be translated the same so some might interpret だったら is a contracted form.
But the original form is different.
Thanks for the lesson Maggie-sensei!
I have a question about the use of そんなの (sonnano). I’ve read it’s used to talk about something undesirable or when you want to look down on it. Is this always the case? This word was used in a manga I read. If you don’t mind, I’ll tell you. Boy and girl like each other, but boy is open about his feelings while girl is still in denial. They will spend 3 days together for a school camp, so the girls tells him “Are you sure you will be able to control yourself?” boy gets worried since girl keeps teasing him about it and says “I’ll make sure I do, I was thinking I needed it to control myself around you, regardless. I don’t want to be hated by you”. Then the girl replies with べつにそんなの. Was her reply kind of rude? I mean, both べつに and そんなの are used to express indiference and lack of concern/interest, so I don’t know how to understand that reply… What would be the best way to translate it? Thank you in advance :)
As I wrote in the lesson あんな・こんな・こんな could be both negative or positive but it expresses speaker’s emotion.
If she finishes the sentence with
べつにそんなの
or
べつにそんなこと…
I need to read the scene but I think she is showing her interest.
She is denying what the boy just said “I don’t want you to be hated by you. (君にきらわれたくない？）” in a subtle way.
The translation could be,
I wouldn’t say that’s true.(implying she likes him)
May I inquire the meaning of “わけでもない”？I am sorry but when I googled it, it only showed me this page. If you have discussed this previously in another post, do kindly share the link with me. Would appreciate it very much
Hi Maggie Sensei!
If I said 「優しかったり楽しかったり感じがあります」, how would this sound to a native speaker? Would it be annoying, too colloquial, etc? If so, is there a better or a more polite way I could say this in Japanese?
Also I heard someone use 「adj-たりとか、adj-たりとか~」. How does this sound to native speakers?
Thank you!!
Hi Maggie!
I recently heard the form ~ようとするand learned that it also has the meaning of “to try to”. Is there a difference between using ようとする and ようにする?
Hi Maggie Sensei, thank you for this lesson, I had only seen になる before, so it is interesting to see the difference :)
From your examples, can となる only be used with nouns? You have given a lot of examples of na-adjectives and said that you wouldn’t use とwith any of them. It also says “Note : i-adjective” but I don’t see any examples of them, so I’m not sure if the last few sentences have disappeared! :)
Oh, I see. I didn’t finish the note. I just added more information.
Since this is a lesson on となる and になる, I didn’t include i-adjective.
i-adjective will be くなる.
You might already checked the lesson but please refer to my latest lesson, Adjective + する・なる
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am a bit confused on one of the examples, as the romaji doesn’t seem to match the hiragana so I’m not sure which is correct?
待ち合わせ時間を一時間遅くしてくれない？
= Machiawase jikan wo ichijikan osoku shite moratta.
My vague understanding of the grammar is that ~shite kurenai would be correct, as this is asking someone to do something for you (whereas shite moratta would be saying someone has already done it for you…right?)
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I came here to understand why bakari was being used with de and though I noticed that in all the example os the section named below use bakari accompanying de, I became confused when I noticed it appears in other sections as well. Why and when is de used? De is always giving me a headache.
First as you can see in the lesson you don’t always use で with ばかり
〜ばかりの
〜ばかりに
As for the usage in the example sentences for
●adjective + ばかり =just (negative meaning)
~ばかりで
This で is a conjunctive form of an auxiliary verb だ
Let’s forget about ばかりで now.
When you connect two sentences, instead of saying そして ( = and) you can connect them by changing the first verb into this form.
Ex. これは私の本です ＋ あれはマギーの本です。
= Kore wa watashi no hon desu + Are wa Maggie no hon desu.
= This is my book. + That is Maggie’s book.
→これは私の本であれはマギーの本です。
= Kore wa watashi no hon de are wa Maggie no hon desu.
= This is my book and that is Maggie’s book.
Now, you can connect two sentences ばかり＋だ・です(polite form) by changing だ・です into で
Thank you sensei….how are you ….I am very confused in causative form…like. how I use it ..when to force some or to make some on…please make it clear sensei…..arigatou
Your lessons are amazing, probably the best free resource that exists. Next I get paid I will definitely begin joining your patreon. Have you ever considered putting all your lessons into a book?
I know a lot of people will just study on their phones, but I own many books for studying Japanese and not many reach this level of detail and example and it’s always nice to have a physical copy you can look at outside or anywhere, planes and such. I think it would sell exceptionally well.
My weakest point is making my own sentences despite being able to play games, watch Japanese let’s players on Youtube, and read a lot of things in Japanese. It’s very frustrating and makes me feel mute haha. Though each time I read one of your lessons, I definitely see an improvement, and especially with my listening skills since most books don’t cover casual or conversational speech.
Thank you so much for your nice comment! Your message motivated me to make more and more lessons!
You are like me. I prefer paper books as well. :)
Actually I have been working on my e-book but all my lessons are really long so I got stuck with the size problem.
でもがんばってみますね！Kも日本語がんばって！ わからないことがあったらいつでも相談してください。
次のレッスンもうすぐアップできます。もう少し待ってくださいね。
Hello!
In your example sentence 「しまった、家に忘れてきちゃった！ 」, what is the meaning of 忘れてくる?
Also would it be correct to say 「○○を忘れてちゃった」 instead of 「○○を忘れてた」?
本当にありがとうございます！
忘れる = 1) to forget something 2) to leave something somewhere by accident
The most natural way to say “Oops, “I left it home” is 家に忘れてきた・きちゃった because the speaker came to where he/she is from home and realized she/he left it home.
忘れる is just that moment when you left something home, 忘れてくる means you left something somewhere and came to where you are.
家に忘れてた only works when you talk about the state in the past. So it is not natural in this case.
might/ may / it is possible ~ in Japanese is
V / noun / adjective かも~しれない
I might go = 行くかもしれない = Iku kamo shirenai
It might be big = 大きいかもしれない = ookii kamo shirenai
It might be a dog = 犬かもしれない= Inu kamo shirenai
this しれない doesn’t have a negative meaning.
You sometimes use ~ない in an affirmative meaning.
Do you want to eat? = 食べない？ = Tabenai ?
Do you want to go there with me? = 一緒にそこに行かない？ = Issho ni soko ni ikanai?
What I find strange with ~かもしれない is we were taught:
~でしょう/だろう is used to say something is likely or probably the case
あの人は日本人でしょう – that person is probably Japanese
~かもしれません/かもしれない is used when you are less certain, like there is (almost) no way of knowing
あの人は日本人かもしれません – that person may be Japanese
So I find it strange that you use ~かもしれない with regards to something you yourself are thinking of doing, because surely you should be more sure about what you are going to do! That’s just my thought :)
Hi Cindy
You can think かもしれない as “might” in that case.
まだ使うかもしれないからとっておこう。 I am going to keep it because I still might use it in future.
日本に行くかもしれない I might go to Japan.
It is not certain but there is a possibility that you might do something.
This was so helpful! I learnt so much and understand this verb way better now. Thank you!! (I noticed one typo in the romaji: “→濃すぎる = こすぎる ( = yosugiru) too good ” – should that be kosugiru?)
taste, smell, sight, sound & touch are classified as 普通名詞 (common noun)
I am not sure if I answer your question but 普通名詞 has concrete nouns and abstract nouns but you don’t actually need to classified them in Japanese.
Also it depends what word you use for those senses.
For example smell can be 嗅覚 (kyuukaku) as a sense but you also translate the word as 匂い (nioi) or 香り ( =kaori). The latter ones （匂い・香り) are originally from verbs 匂う/ 香る so they can be classified as 転成名詞
Hello Maggie-sensei
I’m new to your site but not new to studying Japanese, and I must say you’re awesome for making the lessons fun and enjoyable! They’re also really easy to understand and make me persevere in learning!
I have a question though if it’s okay, regarding the ‘mo’ particle, like in your example above:
言い訳なんか聞きたくもない
If the ‘mo’ is removed and becomes
言い訳なんか聞きたくない
Does the context change? Because I think it’s still the same or does it just add nuance to the expression? Truth is I’m still quite confused with how the ‘mo’s particle is used.
Thanks in advance!
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can I use 〜たり〜たりする also with the verbs いる and ある？
ex.週末は映画館に行ったり家にいたりします。
机の上に本があったり、ペンがあったりします。
I think the second one is uncorrect, but I wanted to ask. Thank you very much!
Thank you sensei….i have an another question..what is difference between Tara….ba…and to ….i want some good example ….if it is possible sensei.my n4 1st semester has completed….😊😊😊😊😊😊and this for you 🍰🍰🍰🍰
You can find all my lesson through Index.
But I put the links to my previous comment. Just click the word たら／と／ないと
And as I told you, I haven’t made a lesson on ば yet.
Hi there! Genki datta?
整理する= せいりする= seiri suru = to organize something, to put something in order.
部屋を整理する=へやをせいりする = heya wo seiri suru = organize one’s room
考えを整理する= かんがえをせいりする= kangae wo seiri suru = organize one’s thoughts.
Arigatou gozaimasu sensei.no you didn’t send any link ….pls send sensei the easy one July 1st my jlpt 4 exam is in 1st July….I really want to cover all the sillaybus….but this topic is little complicated…..and I have almost learned all the jlpt 4 kanji….plz suggest me anything better for me…..I whoul be heighly obliged you… highly obliged you….👦👦👦👦
Good evening sensei…..how are you…..I checked your lesson about causative verb….and yes I understood it…..thanks a lot …..sensai what is the diffrance between kaemasu and torikaemasu….pls make it clear sensai
It depends on kanji. Kaeru has many different kanji.
変える, 替える、換える, etc. (Check my facebook lesson to see all the difference.)
But for example,
Ex.AとBを替えてください。 / 取り替えてください。
= A to B wo kaete kudasai/ torikaete kudasai.
= Please exchange A with B.
the meaning is the same.
But while 替える is used when it simply means “change to something”, 取り替える means “switch A and B”
You can say “All the best to you” in many ways.
うまくいきますように (literal meaning I hope things go well) / 幸運を祈ります (こううんをいのります） (幸運 = Good luck)/ 成功を祈ります（せいこうをいのります） (成功 = success)
Helo sensei….I go through your all lesson. Very very useful..how can i say that I am not ready for teacing or studying or playing..and for rescue my fat I use to up and down stairs pls.teach me.sensai…☺☺🌷🌷🌷🌷
I am not ready for Ving
The basic patter is
まだV(する）・ noun+ の準備ができていません。
= Mada V(suru) / noun+ の junbi ga dekite imasen.
But you can just say まだ〜できません。( = mada ~ dekimasen.)
まだ教えることができません。( = mada oshieru koto ga dekimasen.)
for rescue my fat I use to up and down stairs
You mean “to lose fat”?
脂肪を減らすために階段を(or の）上り下りしています。
= Shibou wo herasu tame ni kaidan wo / no nobori ori shiteimasu.
Thank you so much for all the detailed explanations of this and many more topics, it really helps me to understand crucial grammar points much easier.
I finally have a general understanding of when to use the ～てある grammar.
But I still don’t get the difference between ～てある and ～てあった.
Sure, I know the latter one is in the past tense but I struggle to understand when to use ～てある and when to use ～てあった.
お茶が作ってある。The tea has been prepared. (to mean: someone prepared the tea in the past and now that I see the result, I can talk about it.)
お茶が作ってあった。The tea has been prepared. (but that action has also taken place in the past)
I’m not entirely sure but, when I’m talking about something I noticed in the past, could I use ～てあった？
昨日、お茶が作ってあった。Yesterday, the tea has been prepared.
I’d be glad to hear from you soon, Maggie先生
よろしくお願いします。
I think your interpretation is right. Let me add one thing.
お茶がつくってある You are looking at the tea which someone prepared.
お茶がつくってあった You are talking about the tea which someone prepared. The tea doesn’t have to be in front of you.
thank you for taking the time explaining that to me. It’s actually not that hard to understand but the more time I spent on this grammar point the more I got confused… By now I’m used to the ～てある grammar point.
In your example of the differences between ている anてある you give the example of:
電気をつけている家 “the house with the lights on”.
Why does this use the transitive verb and not the intransitive verb, in other words, why isn’t it:
電気がついている家?
電気をつけている家 “the house with the lights on”
You can’t tell by the translation but there is a hidden subject.
(家の人が）電気をつけている家
Therefore it’s a transitive verb.
Someone turns the light on
(Someoneが）電気をつける (transitive verb)
Someone keeps the light on
(Someoneが）電気をつけている (transitive verb)
電気がついている is intransitive verb.
You just describe the state of the house.
3 dec 2017 jlpt n5… i have cleared now i am preparing for n4 Sensai plz help me out as much as possible…..and yes you have good knowledge in your language grammer……plz keep it up sensai….we need your kind of sensai
You’re welcome!
“for me”: It depends on the verb or context but “watashi no tameni” may work for many situations.
Ex. The cake you bought for me. = 私のために買ってくれたケーキ = Watashi no tame ni katte kureta kee-ki
Wow thank u very very much sensei….you are so good ..I really apriciate your knowledge. You are a nice person as well…Now a days no one gives a single minute to anyone.and you always sort out my problems….I always pray for you ☺☺☺☺☺☺☺
Thank u sensei……do u have any lesson on honorific expression….it comes in jlpt 4…..it is very important…..and I am very thankful to you that you are helping me a lot…..my ぎりのちちwa Japanese guide desu….wherever you want to visit India plz let me know….and yes I heard from him that japnese people are very helpful….and after your support I saw it it’s really true….🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
Thank u sensei..he is working from 25 years as a japnese tour guide he knows all prefecture nihongo….even all the history of India and Japan as well….and he studied by himself without any help just books nd all….
とくに (特に）= especially/ particularly (It modifies a verb or an adjective )
Maggieは特にきれいです。
= Especially Maggie is beautiful.
（日本の食べ物はみんな好きですが）特にすしが好きです。
(Nihon no tabemono wa minna suki desu ga) toku ni sushi ga suki desu.
(I love all the Japanese food but )I especially like sushi.
とくべつ（な）(特別な） = special （It modifies a noun)
今日は特別な日です。
= Kyou wa tokubetsu na hi desu.
= It is a special day today.
* 働く = はたらく = hataraku = means “to work” in general.
* 勤める = つとめる = tsutomeru = means you are hired by a company/bank/store/restauran,etc. and you work for them.
So you can say
今日はよく働きました。
= Kyou wa yoku hatarakimashita.
= I worked a lot today.
but you can’t say
今日はよく勤めました。
= Kyou wa yoku tsutomemashita.
Also when you want to say “I work for ABC company” you say
Thank u so much sensei……this is very helpful….🍫🍫🍫🍫……I studied today….Nikki. gatai and zurai…nikui i know how to use but gatai and zurai don’t know how to use….Please make it clear sensei
にくい／づらい (nikui/zurai)
The translation could be the same 見にくい／見づらい hard to see
something is physically hard to use/realize にくい ( = nikui)
Something is psychologically hard to do/use づらい ( = zurai)
The usage of がたい is more limited.
You use with non-action verbs.
忘れる ( =wasureru) to forget →忘れがたい ( = wasuregatai) hard to forget
信じる ( = shinjiru) to believe →信じがたい ( = shinjigatai) hard to believe
Hi sensei….o genki de irrashaimasuka?? Th and for you previous reply….my todays shitsumon is how to say….”I went to doctor and showed my eyes…means how i say to someone that I have shown my eyes to doctor….pls make it clear…
Ohayou!!
Hai, genki desu. Saurabh mo genki desu ka?
The direct translation is
医者に行って目を見せた。
= Isha ni itte me wo miseta.
But it will be more natural to say
I went to the doctor and had them/him/her examine my eyes.
医者に行って目を診てもらった。
= Isha ni itte me wo mite moratta.
The kanji for “miru” 見る = to see/look/watch 診る （medically)
こんばんは 先生, My name is Joy and I have a few question about Japanese <3 .So i'am self teaching myself which is difficult. I was wondering if you have any tips on how to learn in a better style.
Also, Is "私は….とおいます" – "I understand that…" Is that the proper way to say it? also what if i added"それわちがいます"- You're wrong. Which would be all together, "私はそれわちがいますとおいます" Would that make sense?
Hi Joy!
I know many people who have been studying on their own and their Japanese is amazing!
Get a proper text book you like to begin with.
OK, what you probably want to say is
私は〜とおもいます。= I think ~
それわちがいます→You have to use は for the particle. It is pronounced “wa = わ” but you write with は
All together 私は、それはちがうとおもいます。= I think it’s wrong.
I didn’t get the last part of the sentence “まっすぐ行って、三つ目の信号を左に曲がって下さい。そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった角にあります。” I don’t understand the connection between 角にあります with the た form that comes before. It looks like the “そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった” part is being used as an adjective for 角, but this doesn’t make sense to me…
Could you help me?
P.S.: I’m from Brazil!
Seu site parece ser muito bom para quem quer realmente aprender japonês! ;-)
Sorry to hear that you can’t sleep anymore. :)
Actually I have been working on the lesson since last year. It is going to be a long lesson so please wait patiently.
Arigato Maggie Sensei. I am having a difficult time saying today’s date because everything seams to be backwards. For instance today’s (year, month, ordinal number day?)
二千十八
年
ニ
月
十二
日
(月)
Thank you.
Hello maggie sensei
is there a difference between ( tsuite kuru) and ( tsukete kuru)? I know it has to do with transitive and instransitive verbs.. but here they have the same meaning so I got confused….
Hello,
thanks for all your lessons! Would you mind explaining the word muku (向く)? I have seen it in many sentences like your expression of the day 気が向いたらいつでも遊びに来て. But also when I hit the sentences search on Jisho it looks like there are many different meanings and possible use cases for this word.
Would it be correct to say the difference of using the adverbial form of an adjective and that of ~そう is as follows:
悲しく笑う – to smile sadly
悲しそうに笑う – to smile seemingly sadly
悲しくなる – to become sad
悲しそうになる – to seem to become sad (or maybe a slightly different sense, like to become what seems to be sad?)
Also, is it possible to use hearsay ~そう as an adjective? As in:
面白いそうな映画 – the movie that I heard is good
面白いそうな映画を見たい – I want to watch the movie that I heard is good.
悲しく笑う – to smile sadly → OK
悲しそうに笑う – to smile seemingly sadly→ OK
悲しくなる – to become sad→ OK
悲しそうになる – to seem to become sad (or maybe a slightly different sense, like to become what seems to be sad?→ That’s right! )
Also, is it possible to use hearsay ~そう as an adjective? As in:
面白いそうな映画 – the movie that I heard is good → The meaning changes but you say 面白そうな映画 (The movie which looks interesting) the speaker thinks the movie is interesting.
面白いという映画 / その映画は面白いらしい ( I heard that movie is interesting.)
面白いそうな映画を見たい – I want to watch the movie that I heard is good.→ 面白いという 面白そうな映画
So
面白いそう→面白そう Looks/ Sounds interesting
面白いらしい I heard it’s interesing
For some reason 面白いらしい映画をみたい doesn’t sound natural, though. I would say 面白いという・言われる映画を観たい。
Hey Maggie! Ignacio here. I was looking for the etimology of ダサイ, its origin, and found out that you made a post of the word long time ago. Where does it come from?
Thanks!
One of the theories is from an old expression だしゃ which refer to a person from the country.
This word has spread and became very popular when a comedian, Tamori, mock on Saitama prefecture as ダ埼玉= da saitama making a pun.
@Ignacio, I remember someone explaining it on TV (it might have also been Tamori) that it comes from 「だって、埼玉だもん」. I can’t really say if that’s true or not, or if it was just his play on the word.
彼は私を助けてくれるはず。I believe he will help me. (expressing the speaker’s strong belief or expectation)
彼は私を助けてくれることになっている。He is supposed to help me. (We can tell there was some kind of arrangement/ the speaker has talked to him and he agrees to help the speaker.)
2) verb past tense + はずです = the speaker is guessing something and is pretty sure about it.
verb past tense + ことになっている = People say ~ / People believe ~ but it didn’t actually happen.
彼はもう帰ったはずです I believe / I am sure he went home already. (the speaker believes he went home.)
彼はもう帰ったことになっている People think he went home already but he hasn’t.
マギー先生、いつも日本語を教えて下さってありがとうございます！
Your posts are always easy to understand and very relevant. I learn so much about Japanese as a language as well as the culture.
I feel okay with deprecating myself and my own achievements etc, but I feel a bit uncomfortable saying that my family members are no good. I always feel so awkward in those situations – I don’t brag about my family but I also don’t want to put them down (even if they’re not there to hear the conversation).
In Australia we tend to be self-deprecating and don’t like people who brag, but even so I occasionally find the Japanese level of humbleness to be challenging! It is hard to know what people are really thinking sometimes :O
こちらこそ、このサイトで勉強してくれてありがとう、Sally!!
Sallyは、なにも失礼なことを言っていませんよ。
It is very interesting to know other countries’ culture. I didn’t know Australian people tend to be self-deprecating.
As I wrote in the note in the lesson, you don’t have to change anything.
The thing is what you say and what you think are not always the same and listeners do know what you really mean.
Also things are changing in Japan and you see a lot of parents who brag about their children, too.
Hi! First of all thank you for all your lessons. I’ve learned a lot with you. I want to ask if in the sentences 痛いくらい 想い溢れて and 痛いくらい君があふれている “kurai”. is really necessary or what would it be translated?? Thank you
後 and もっと are both translated “more” but they are different.
もっと modifies a verb or adjecitve.
Ex. I want to eat more. = もっと食（た）べたい (x あと）
Ex. I wish I could have more money = もっとお金があればいいのに。(xあと）
Ex. A is more interesting than B. = Aの方がBよりもっと面白い。(X あと）
Ex. I like him more than Ken. = Ken より彼の方がもっと好きだ。（Xあと）
あと modifies a noun in the following cases.
Ex. I need 100 yen more = あと100円必要です。(xもっと）
Ex. I have one more hour. = あと１時間あります。(xもっと）
Hello Sensei. Actually, I want to ask this question on lesson about “wo” particle, but I can’t find it, or I just didn’t try hard enough to find it, so I post it here.
Few days ago, I watched Sukiyaki song on YouTube. Its first line is the one that was triggered my interest. It said “Ue wo muitte, arukou” and it was translated as “I look up as I walk”.
Why did it use “wo”, instead of “ni”? Particle “ni” is used for showing direction, right? For example, “mae ni”, “soko ni” and other. And, particle “wo”, if I’m not mistaken, is used for direct object of the verb or something that the subject is going through. Should it be, “Ue ni muitte, arukou.”?
Thank you.
Sorry! I don’t have a lesson on を “yet”.
(I should add it to the list, huh?)
As you said を is an object marker but it is also used as a direction marker with some verbs such as 向く or 見る
direction of action + を + verb
上を見る to look up
右を見る to look right
上を向く to look / face up
東の方を向く to face east
Thank you very much Sensei! I think I can grasp what that lyric is trying to say. The main character look up, as there were something on this “up”, right? Maybe, it is related to the chorus, “shiawase wa kumo no ue ni”.
Japanese is really interesting. Make me want to know more about it. Thank you. Got another great lesson from here!
Hi Tony
コメントありがとう！
英語よく分かるんじゃないですか！
I would change a little
すごいですね。
英語よくわかるじゃないですか。(1) or 英語、上手じゃないですか。(2)
Note: Both (1)(2) express your surprised feelings (You didn’t know that person could speak English so well.)
So if you simply want to compliment someone’s English, you say
なるほうど.
This has been really helpful!
Also,
I really love how your explanations are so concise and well packed.
i feel so touched in thinking about amount of time and dedication to do this, so please keep up the good work!!!
And a million thanks for replying to my question :)
I’ve been looking for jobs located in Japan online and the requirement is knowing how to speak business Japanese. I’m wondering if 丁寧語 is sufficient as many young Japanese people don’t know how to speak 尊敬語 or 謙譲語 as well. Is business Japanese really required? Do young Japanese people use 敬語 during working hours? I really want to work for a Japanese company someday. Hope you can answer my question.
Hi Lea,
It depends on what kind of workplace you apply for.
I’d say, if you speak 丁寧語, you would be fine in a general work place.
Using the right 敬語 is difficult for even native speakers. So as I mentioned in my shopping lesson, young people tend to use the wrong keigo.
However, f your job requires talking to or dealing with the customers/clients/other company, some basic 尊敬語・謙譲語 will be necessary.
If you have to write emails/letters, you will need another level of 敬語 and formal business terms.
Thank you for spotting it*. Though it is said in the newspaper, I think it is redundant. It will be better just to say 第４４代 or ４４代目. I will fix it and add some note.
(There are cases that you use 第 and 目 together, though and it is listed in the dictionary.)
この建物は、想像していたほど大きくなかった。
You imagined the building was big but it was not as big as you had imagined.
→When the fact is different from what you have imagined.
この建物は、想像していた通り大きかった・大きくなかった。
The building was as big as you had imagined/The building was small* was you had imagined. (*not big)
→When the fact is the same as you have imagined.
Hello maggi sensei! I am not sure how to comment here. I had a question regarding the use of hodo :
届かない光へと
手を伸ばしてしまうほど
待ち続けてた、
恋い焦がれてた…
この空を
What is the significance of hodo here? Like, is it saying the ‘the amount i reached out, was the amount i kept waiting’? I am really confused….Thank you in advance!
Imagine, it keeps raining and you miss the blue sky a lot. This ほど describes how much you have missed the sky. As you reach out your hand towards the light which you can’t even reach.
When do we use ~し〜し vs 〜たり〜たり? I read that they can both be used when expressing multiple verbs/ adjectives/ nouns in a sentence without any particular order. Any guidance would be much appreciated!
Regarding the sentence :
“休みの日は、洗濯をしたり掃除をしたり忙しい。
I do laundry or cleaning and etc on my day off.”
Yes, I agree tari is the best for giving multiple examples here.
But, if I want to say and imply that “I was so busy on my day off. Because I did the laundry, I did the cleaning, etc” (Reason). May I use し to express that imply?
If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you a question on that matter, though this thread is rather old.
What is the difference between “osewa wo suru” and “mendou wo miru”? If I want to tell a girl that I always want to take care of her, which of these two would be appropriate? Or maybe none of these would be appropriate?
Maggie sensei thank you for yet another helpful lesson. I received a gift coupon from a friend. She provided me the gift code and instructed me to call the salon to book an appointment before going and so I did. I thought that setting the appointment will go smoothly as I only have to provide my name, gift code and ask for the available date to go. Unfortunately, it didnt go as I thought. I know a fair amount of Japanese but if Keigo is used I often don’t understand most of the words. The person on the other line ended up saying communication ga torinikui. How should I convey that I have a coupon from a friend that I can use in your salon. I have the gift code and other details in Japanese. Sorry for such a long post.
It is always hard to communicate over the phone.
I will give you some phrases that you can use to make an appointment.
すみません、友人からそちらのお店のギフトクーポンをもらったのですが、(date 日) の(time 時)にシャンプーカット/パーマ (depending on what you want) の予約できますか？
= Sumimasen, yuujin kara sochirano omise no gifuto kuupon wo morattano desuga,(date ~ nichi) no ( ~ ji) ni shampoo katto/paama no yoyaku dekimasu ka?
= Excuse me. I got a gift coupon from my friend for your shop. Could I make a reservation on ~~ for shampoo & cut / perm.
And if the gift coupon has a number,
ギフトクーポンのコードをお伝えします。(And give them the code) ~~~~~
Gifuto kuupon no koodo wo otsutae shimasu. ~~~
Sensei, I’ve got a question! is this any different than “shite itadakemasen ka?”
This one got me a little bit confused since it seems like both of them are the ways of asking someone for a favor..
Hi Sofia,
First, let’s compare the following examples.
shite kureru? = Can you do ~ for me?
↓ more polite
shite itadakemasuka? = Could you do ~ for me? (polite)
shite kite kureru? = Can you go somewhere and do something for me?
↓ more polite
Shite kite itadakemasu ka? = Could you go somewhere and do something for me?
***
If you want to learn more about asking for a favor go check this lesson.
買わせておいて sounds a little stronger. It implies, She put me in the situation (forcing me to buy the bag for her).
買わせて is focusing on the one time action but おいて implies the event put the speaker into the state for the certain period of time.
Hello, Maggie-sensei! Since I discovered this site about a month ago, I’ve been resorting to your lessons quite a lot. They’re really helpful, the best extra for the Japanese classes I’m taking!
You might remember from a little question about the usage of って in a certain statement… and well, since that time I’ve been doing just fine without needing to ask. But recently I stumbled upon a sentence I can’t really get the gist of it on my own. So, I hope you could help me again:
It goes like this: “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”, and to put you in context, this line is said by a somewhat tomboyish girl that went to a rock concert for her first time and now wants to learn to play the guitar so she’s got in touch with a private music teacher.
I have many doubts here. The first one is about せっかく (the topic of this very lesson). As you explained, せっかく implies that an effort has been done, but do “going out to a concert” or “setting up a date” really count as an effort? And even if they count, which word in English would take the role of せっかく here?
Second doubt is about that し at the end of the first sentence. I checked out the lesson [http://142.93.68.150/2014/07/10/how-to-use-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%97-shi/] and I’ve narrowed its meaning to two possibilities: that し is used either to make your point, or to give a reason (just like から). Last use kinda fits with the second structure you showed us in this lesson (“When you want to take advantage the opportunity”), but given that exclamation point, I’m not sure this is the true option.
Next doubt is about 気になってる, which I presume is 気になる + ている. I can’t conclude nothing about about its meaning, though… After reading the lesson about this idiom [http://142.93.68.150/2011/10/20/request-%E6%B0%97%E3%81%AB%E3%81%99%E3%82%8B-vs-%E6%B0%97%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8B-kinisuru-vs-kininaru/], I primarily thought that it meant “to be interested”… but given that kinda gloomy nuance that せっかく has, I’ve started to think that it really means “to be bothered”. I just don’t know anymore.
And the final doubt is about the ending of the second sentence (…思って！). I start sweating every time I see a sentence ending with a verb/adjective in the て-form, I never get it, and I always get lost: Is it a command/request? Is it an unfinished sentence? And if so, what could be the following remark?
And that’s all.. sorry if it is a very long question and my explanations aren’t that good. You helped me lots the first time I asked, so if it’s not too much of hassle, would you do it again? ;)
Thank you very much! I think I’m starting to understand those lines now. However, I still have some minor doubts remaining:
Why is there a exclamation mark and not a comma in the middle? From my point of view, if you want to add a stop between the two statements, “せっかく気になってるし、やってみようと思って！” feels better than “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”. With that exclamation point in the middle, it seems like the two sentences are independent from each other.
And does that せっかく still have that “took the trouble of” nuance? I mean, could “せっかく気になってるし…” mean “Since they took the trouble of making me interested…”?
And finally, it’s not a doubt, but I gotta say it again: unfinished sentences always leave me confused. I really don’t get what purpose could be behind that. Probably it’s not the same in Japanese, but when somebody leaves a sentence unfinished in English, I find it kind of rude.
You are totally right. It should be せっかく気になっているし、やってみようと思って is more natural.
I wouldn’t put an exclamation mark after し and cut the sentence like that.
It is a writer’s style and younger people tend to use more exclamation marks but it is still not natural.
I have a lesson of ambiguity in Japanese language. (Check this link)
It is a cultural thing that you read between lines.
For example, if you want to ask your boss a day-off,
休みをとらせてください。/ 休みをとりたいです。 sound a bit too straight and strong.
Instead, if you say 休みをとりたいのですが… sounds more humble and polite.
Thank you again for answering!
I’ve just read the aimai lesson (thank you for that link too!). I liked it, I’ve learned a few things that I think they’re gonna help me… but I’ll probably still have some difficulties from time to time, since I have always had trouble reading between lines.
Just one more thing… I’ve been told that, sometimes, when Japanese people leave their sentences unfinished ending with the て-form, it’s because they’re kind of “answering” a previous statement.
For example, in the sentence we’ve been dealing with: before the girl says her line “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”, a friend asked her “本当に始めるの！？”. So, could that “思って” actually be “思って始める”?
Would that theory be correct?
I would say the part which is not mentioned is いる to describe the current state.
思って（いるの）I am thinking about doing it (because ~)
思って始めます。sounds a little unnatural.
思って＋verb is usually used with a past tense.
Ex. 面白いと思って始めた。I thought it was interesting and that’s why I started.
I don’t know why but I cant reply to your last comment, so I’ll say it here:
It took me time, but I think I’m starting to understand the whole picture. Still, I feel like I have to do more practice on casual/conversational Japanese…
Anyway, thank you so much for all your answers!!
Good!!
Casual/Conversational Japanese could be harder in fact. There are some colloquial Japanese lesson here so check them out!
がんばって！
Hi Maggie Sensei,
May I know the difference between “itamae” and “taisho”?
板前 ( = itamae) means “(Japanese restaurant’s) chef” as an occupation.
大将( = taishou) originally means military “General” and it refers to owner of the restaurant or chief of chef.
常連客 (jourenkyaku), regular customers who go to the restaurant often and know the owner/chef well, you can address him “大将（たいしょう)” but you never address the chef, 板前 ( = itamae).
The question for today is, why used Steiner言わせぬ instead of 言わぬ?
シナ
誰ずら？このブリキのおもちゃみたいなのは
スタイナー
ええい、忘れたとは言わせぬぞ！
マーカス
忘れたっスか？プルート隊の隊長っス
Maybe this (～とは言わせない) is a special pattern?
It sounds like “don’t tell me you forgot it!” or better “how dare you forget me!”
Could you tell me, what it literary means? (Maybe => I will not let you say “I forgot”?)
明けましておめでとう！！ ２０１８年もいい年にしましょう！
Yes, your translation is right.
Here’s the difference
言わぬ = 言わない = I won’t say ~
言わせぬ = 言わせない = “I won’t let you say ~” → Don’t tell me ~ “
I think I got the picture… Let’s change 言う into some different verb.
Would this sentence be OK?
まったそのようなばかげた考えを思いつかせぬぞ！ (Please, don’t came up with such ridiculous ideas again!)
(I noticed it a few seconds after I posted this ^ ^)
Thank you very much for clarifying this as well.
Have a great day, Maggie!
どういたしまして！ Enjoy FF! :)
hi sensei.
With the で and に, are they interchangable in a conversation, but they create a slightly different image.
プールで泳ぐ : you would imagine a person swimming in a pool.
プールに行って泳ぐ : you would imagine a person going to the pool to swim.
As I explained in the lesson, there are some confusing cases where you wonder which one to use. However
プールで泳ぐ you can’t say プールに泳ぐ
You do the action, swimming, in the swimming pool.
If you put something into a swimming pool, you say プールに入れる
Your example プールに行って〜
This に is a direction marker. ~に行く to go to ~
Hello!! I was doing a homestay in Japan and trying to clean up a small corner of the kitchen because I spilled shoyu,and the host dad said in english “make me come” when he wanted to go in the space where I was at and clean it for me. Is that because he was thinking 来させて, which would more naturally translate to “let me go”? Thank you!
Ah OK, it’s because the idea of Japanese “come and go” are different from English “come and go”.
As you guessed what your host father meant was “Let me take care of it.” (so please move and make a space for me.)
Maggie sensei ga nihongo o oshiete kuremashita.
Maggie is the subject so you need a subject marker, “ga”
Maggie sensei ni nihongo o oshiete morau.
The subject is a speaker not Maggie.
the particle “ni” has many meanings. One of them is “to” and it also means “from”
this “ni” means “from”.
Tasukete kurete arigatou gozaimasu!”ga”to “wa* no tsukai kata wa yoku wakarimasen.subject an topic seem the same to me lol in this case there is a difference though.
The difference between “ga” and “wa” is very complicated but if you are just talking about what Maggie does
Maggie sensei wa nihongo wo oshiete imasu. = Maggie teaches Japanese.
If you emphasizes who teaches Japanese, use “ga”
Maggie sensei ga nihongo wo oshiete kuremashita.
1.”マジ卍” I heard this is very rude to say when we talk to people (daily conversation) among friends, family, etc. Is it true? Also is it true this word is for teenagers only?
2. “よく（ぞ）この仕事を引き受けてくれました。” I thought ぞ is a male limited suffix? Is it another type of ぞ？ I’m confused
3. ” よくもまあこの寒い中、コートも着ないで歩けるね。”
寒い中= Originally it had particles but they were omitted?
What is this ね at the end of the sentence?
4. “自分で言うのもなんだけど、 僕は、頭がいいだけじゃなくてかっこいいよね”. What is the function of のも here? Double particles? btw, is there a lesson on double particles?
1. Not rude but this slang word could be out of date by the end of this year. Yes, it is mainly for teenagers so I bet many Japanese people have never heard that word.
2. That is not just for men. Women can use it, too.
ぞ is a literal suffix to emphasize the meaning so it may sound a bit dramatic.
3. We say 寒い中, 暑い中 as 雨の中
I guess it will be easier for you to think 寒い天気の中
4. I think I explain this before (maybe some other people…) の is a particle to nominalize the verb which comes before in this case 言う
言う to say 言うの saying
も is a particle to stress the meaning.
Man.. I feel just weird. I’ve been going to school in Japan for almost a year now… and I had no idea how to say this until today…. my school can be a pain in the ass… making me look all gaijinish.
Hey Maggie Sensei :)
I’m new to your (excellent) website and currently going through many of your grammatical explanations.
What absolutely confuses me about the use of ~ことにする though is the fact that I learned “決める” first and don’t understand why we need ことにする at all if we already have the word “to decide”. So what would be the difference between:
“[…] と決めた” and
“[…] ことにした” ?
That’s also my biggest problem in Japanese. There are so many words and expressions that (on paper) have the same meaning if I look them up, so I get confused about whether it’s better to use expression A or B. Did you already cover this kind of problem in one of your guides or plan on doing some guide about how to deal with seemingly identical expressions? Or is it just a matter of getting used to and learning it by context?
Thank you very much in advance and keep up the good work!
I understand your problems. That is why people here, Twitter, Facebook ask me all the difference/which one to use all the time.
The best way to learn the difference is to use Google and type the word to see how/when the word is used.
I know it depends on the context and intonation and sometimes they are interchangeable but 決める is much stronger than ことにする. For example if you decided to go to Tokyo
東京に行くことに決めた
東京に行くことにした。
If you say 決めた, it sounds like going to Tokyo is a big deal and you can assume that the speaker has gone through some kind of process and finally decided to go to Tokyo.
ことにした also means “make up one’s mind” but it could be just “I am going to Tokyo.” and it could be more casual.
So if you decide something in a meeting having some presentation, discussion, paper work, etc, you use 決める
Thank you! I see the sarcasm there. So, よく is from いい.
The か is still a bit confusing to me. I understand that it is used to put a stress on some emotion, but I don’t understand it’s grammatical function. Does it have some kind of counterpart in English? Like maybe “Such a thing I can do… not” or something like that. It helps me when I try to translate as literally as possible.
I am sorry, you made a whole lesson about this topic and I still don’t quite get it completely… :/
First, I will make よく lesson for you soon.
There are a few different usages.
**
As for か, the translation changes depending on the context or you don’t actually translate it so it is hard to give you the equivalent English words.
The example sentences in my previous comments
そんなことできるものか
If you are talking to someone: I bet you can’t do that./You are nog going to make it, I am sure. → So I guess you can express もんか with “I bet/ I am sure”
If you are talking about yourself: There is no way that I can do that./YOU can’t do that. →” There is no way” expresses もんか
They both express the speaker’s strong opinion.
Thank you, sensei. Thats the confusing thing though – そんなことできるものか sound to me like “I bet you CAN do that”. Otherwise it would have been できない. Again, in my head ;)
Looking forward to the よく lesson! :)
OK,
There is no way that I can do it.
そんなことできるか！ (rough/male speech)
そんなことできるものですか。
そんなことできるもんか。(casual)
All of these of a sentence implies the meaning “できるわけがない = There is no way that I can do it”
So grammatically it might be easier for you to think bring up the topics first and negate the possibility.
Do you think I can do it? No way! → There is no way that I can do it.
Anyway か has many functions. “or” “asking question” “express one’s strong feelings (usually talking back the listener, deny what the listener has just said.”
Will add it on the request lesson ,too.
Asking and then negating it actually does help to understand it better, thank you! How about this one (not sure though if this is the right place to post this question, but since it has もの in it…):
欲しいものなど もう何もない
君のほかに大切なものなど
It is from a song. The last sentence is really confusing. The official translation is “there is nothing more important than you”. So I can see “important thing” there (大切なもの), but where is this negation “there is nothing”? To me this sentence sounds literally “Besides you [there are] important things ans so on”. It is like the author is saying “you are not that important, because besides you there are also other important things” which I know is very wrong…
You’re very welcome!
OK, your new question…
君のほかに大切なものなど（何もない）
The last part 何もない is omitted because it is repeated.
As you said など has a meaning of “and so on””and etc.” but there is a usage
A などない = There is no such a thing as A
Aaahhhhh I get it now!!!! :) Thank you, I have finally found my peace with this song hehe.
Oh, one last thing: would it be possible for you to add a few audio recordings so that we could hear the intonation in your もの/もん example sentences? I wonder if the か at the end is pronounced like a question, or an exclamation… :)
OK, just added one audio file.
Thank you, that really did help a lot! I think I will stick with “you think I will cry? No way/as if!”
You’re welcome! :)
We can use どっかに旅行する to mean “to travel to somewhere”
How can we say to travel around somewhere. Like “I want to travel around South Africa” as opposed to just traveling to a single place in South Africa.
In that case could we use を?
like 南アフリカを旅行したい ? ?
I think that’s how it can be used for other verbs like walking. eg. 待ちを歩いてた.
Maggie, hellooooo~! *hugs*
Christmas is just around the corner, so here are my wishes for you! Please be healthy, happy every day, keep supporting us with your knowledge about Japan’s culture and Japanese language and may all your dreams come true!
And here’s also my little request for you.
During playing Final fantasy IX <3 I come across an expression「かたじけない」, which also means「 ありがとう」. Could you tell us something about it? When is it used and who normally uses it?
Also you can add to "How do you response when someone says thank you to you":
1. 礼には及ばない
2. なんのなんの
Merry Christmas!!
Thank you for your nice Christmas wishes for me. I hope you have wonderful Christmas holidays, too!!
かたじけない Thank you
It is a typical samurai warrior’s speech.
You hear this only in Samurai drama, animations or games or when you talk like samurai jokingly.
I may add some of the expressions to say You’re welcome in future.
Great page :) whenever I need to clarify some grammar point, I end up here.
However, I find the format of posts rather unclear. Posts get very long, and it takes a while to e.g. find specific forms or usages.
I think it would be a good idea to hide example sentences, so that they do not show unless one clicks on them. Subtopics etc. would also be very very helpful.
First thank you so much for your feedback. I really appreciate it.
I understand your point. All of my lessons are very long with lots of example sentences.
I am afraid I can’t have that function, hiding the example sentences, at the moment.
There could be some plug-in but if I do have one, I am sure some people who want to read the whole lesson without clicking the each subtopic or print out the lesson would complain. It is hard to satisfy everybody.
But if you just want to read the grammatical points, I guess there are tons of GREAT sites so please use mine just as a reference. I hope people who visit here learn Japanese through example sentences and find out the rules on their own.
Anyway, thank you for your visit! :)
Hi Maggie sensei! Thank you so much for all your detailed and helpful posts!
I was wondering how to order ice-cream. Such as when you can customize how many/which flavours you want, the size, and in a cup or cone. For example: “Medium size please, with vanilla and matcha in a cone”
Hello,
I was trying to figure out how to say “dogs that don’t have wings” in Japanese, and I thought it would be 翼がない犬. However, Google Translate (which I know is not very reliable) gave me 翼のない犬, and I also know of a few other examples where の is used instead of が here (for example, 君のいる町, 名前のない怪物, etc). If it’s not too much trouble, could you please explain to me why の is used instead of が here, and whether that applies to other verbs in addition to いる and ある?
Hello Maggie-sensei!! I just stumbled upon your post and it’s extremely useful! I appreciate how you outline everything so carefully :) Thank you so much! By the way, I’m looking into applying for Animation industry in Japan and looking for further advises if you have any? Some people said a rirekisho is not needed, and some said during the interview they tend to be less formal and it’s more of showing around the company. So I’m getting a bit confused. I’m planning to go Japan soon to apply and attend the interviews in person so it would be a great help if I could get more information :) Thank you!
Hello 愛紗! Welcome to our site!
You are talking about working for Japanese company in Japan as a full time employee, right? If so,I can’t imagine Japanese companies would hire someone without rirekisho or any formal interviews. They have to sponsor your working visa. In order to get a working visa, you have to have proper academic background or career for the specific job.
The good news is the Japanese government has just changed the law and make it easier for foreign students who study in Japanese university or senmon gakkou (vocational school) to work in Japan. Check this article.
You add it in front of some word and make it sound polite. The kanji is 御 (ご/ お/おん = go / o / on) It has three ways of reading. (You can just write in hiragana as well.)
meiwaku → (polite) gomeiwaku
kake te → It is hard to tell by romaji but is it right after “gomeiwaku”? If so it should be “o kakeshite”
renraku →(polite) gorenraku
Arigatou Gozaimasu, Too Understood Sensei. But I Got One More Question Please:
I Noticed In A Some Dictionnary A Word “Sama” In The End Of A Defined Term.
Ex: (…Ni Natte Iru Sama)
What’s That Word Sensei?
Sou Desu Ka, Mata Arigatou Gozaimasu Sensei. Kansha Shitemasu.
_Jitsuwa, Watashi No Nihongo Ha Yoku Natta Sou Deshite, Saikou No Sensei To Iu Anata No Tetsudai Ha Tottemo Yaku Ni Tatta N Desu. Ichiban Saito Ni Kimattemasu.
<3
どういたしまして！
うれしいメッセージありがとう！ これからもにほんご、たのしくつづけてくださいね。
= You’re very welcome! Thank you for your nice message. I hope you keep studying Japanese with fun!
Hai Yes I Do! Our Most Japanese Helpful Sensei!!
*-* <3
thankyou this is what i needed.
I have to admit there really is ALOT to absorb, but it’s good. so i will practice these examples for as long as it takes.
I take my hat off to the masters of second language.
OMG! It’s really helpful. I couldn’t understand the meaning no matter how I read the dictionary again and again. Your explanation is so clear. Thank you. You saved me.
Wow, just… wow! They don’t make lessons as good and complete as this one in my Japanese class!
It has been really helpful! Now I understand a lot of transcript interviews better! However, despite this wholesome lesson, there’s one line in one interview that it’s still giving me troubles. I hope you could help me with that.
It’s this one (to put you in context, it’s a fight promoter talking about women in MMA):「女の人もあんなに強くて戦えるって…！」, but then continues: 「総合格闘技って男性のスポーツだと思ってました…！」
I’m pretty sure the って from the second sentence [総合格闘技って—] is used as a topic marker and it’s interchangeable with は… But I don’t know about the って from the first sentence [—戦えるって].
My first guess was that it was used in the “I heard…/They say…” sense, and thus the first line would mean something like “I heard that women are strong and able to fight too (like men are)”. However, that doesn’t connect very well with the second line, I feel that an adversative conjunction like しかし or でも is lacking (in order to say “BUT I used to think that MMA was a sport for males” ).
I can’t think of any other satisfactory meanings for that って from the first sentence, though. Would you help me, Maggie-sensei?
Oh, yup, it surely helped me! I think I have finally understood the meaning of that って from the 1st line that was giving me so much trouble. Heh, Japanese people sure love to leave their sentences open…
Once again, thanks for the lesson, for the help, and for the fast reply too! マギー先生すごいな～!
Hello Maggie sensei! I’m trying to read manga and was wondering if you could help me understand this one sentence?
For context, person A says to person B:
「これは君だからこそできる仕事だからな」
「頼んだぜ」
At which point, person B has a nostalgic flashback after which she thinks to herself:
「これは私だからこそできる仕事。。。か」
「フフ。。。」
「こんなの別に一撃じゃなくても倒せるじゃないですか」
Something about that last sentence’s structure is really confusing me, can you help?
Yeah, it’s a fantasy world and person A is trying to persuade person B to use her powers to kill some monsters in one hit while person B doesn’t want anything to do with them because of how disgusting they are.
I would like to know if there is any difference in nunace between てくれる and てもらうsince most answers about it are ambiguous and contradict each other or some don’t mantion any difference between them so it would be importat to clarify any difference that may exist between the two.
Some say てもらう implies you asked a person to do something for you. How true is that? Could you explain, please?
1) 友達が教科書を貸してくれた。
2) 友達に教科書を貸してもらった。
The nuance difference.
1) implies “My friend is so nice and she lent me her textbook for me.” / My friend lent me a book and helped me. (She is really nice/I appreciate it.)
Focusing on “my friend” who lent me a book.
2) implies “I was so lucky. I got my friend lend me her textbook.”
Focusing on “I (myself)”
Q: てもらう implies you asked a person to do something for you. How true is that?
It will be easier to understand with more context.
教科書を忘れたが、友達が貸してくれた。
I forgot my textbook but my friend lent me hers.
教科書を忘れたので、友達に貸してもらった。
Since I forgot my textbook, I had my friend lend me hers ( = I asked my friend to lend me hers.)
Maggie Sensei, I like your blog sooo much. Very simple, practical, easy to understand, plus there are dozen of cuteness from your dog and cat <3
Your blog actually helped me with my work (^O^)
Hope you will continue this amazing work you do.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I was having trouble translating a line from this song (https://www5.atwiki.jp/hmiku/pages/31606.html)
愛しているのは行為だよ
Literally, I would think it is “Loving is an act.” But that doesn’t make any sense.
I thought also that it might be something like, “I still love (you),” since 愛している is in the progressive form, and then 行為 would be highlighting the fact that it is something the speaker still does? I also thought that maybe it means something like, “It’s an act of love,” but then I feel like I’m forcing an English idiom onto the sentence. What does this actually mean, and how did you figure it out?
“To love someone/Loving something” is (or means) an action.
愛している is the state of loving someone.
It is a line from a song, They play with words. That is why a lot of phrases are not grammatically correct.
So, do you think it’s best to just translate it literally as “Loving is an act,” then?
Also, could you tell me how 愛しているのは行為だよ is grammatically incorrect? I mean, I don’t understand what it means, but I can’t figure out how it’s incorrect either.
Thank you!
You can translate love is an action.
FYI the word 行為 literally means ” behave /what you do” and it is different from a word 行動, action.
The lyrics can be interpreted in many ways. The writer knows the real intention and listener can interpret as they like.
Hello Maggie!
Long time no see, hope you’re doing well as always :)
This time I brought with me a simple question. During playing the Japanese version of Final Fantasy IX I came across the following expression:「ただでは済まさんからなっ！！」Here is a wider context:
「何を言うか、貴様～ッ！
自分は姫さまのことを案じておったのだっ！！
貴様らが誘拐などという不届きなことを企むから、
このようなことになったのだぞっ！！
姫さまに万が一のことがあったら、ただでは済まさんからなっ！！」
I’d like to know, which expression is stronger 1. ただでは済まない or 2. ただではおかない?
The meaning of both of them is the same, right Maggie?
First
ただでは済まさんからな
ただではおかんからな。
mean almost the same. They both involves the speaker’s will.
ただでは済まない You can’t get away with it. /You are going to get it. / You are going to pay for it.
(The speaker is talking about what the listener’s going to get.)
ただではおかない I won’t let you get away with it. (It involves the speaker’s will.)
In that sense, I think おかない sounds a little stronger.
There’s this sentence I’m reading with an odd form:
“なんて言ってはいるけど…”
I thought it might be something like “I don’t know how I’m saying this but…”.
It’s the は in the middle that throws me off. I was wondering how you’d translate this.
マギー先生
先ず、レッスンを教えるのはありがとうございます。
いつも、便利です。
疑問があります、ネガティヴ+っぱなしできますか？
たとえば。。。
野菜を食べないっぱなし（に）出かけないで下さい。
野菜を食べないっぱなし（で）でかけないでください。
It is like “please, don’t leave without eating your vegetables”
I am not sure about particles either, so i apologize for any mistake in my japanese
I know I can use “zu”
野菜を食べずに出かけないで下さい, I am just wondering if above are correct.
I have a question regarding the differences between 「～という意味」and 「～の意味」 when they are used in explanatory contexts. I have several reference books which use both of these, but I am unsure of the specific conditions that require the use of one or the other.
From my understanding, the former is for defining something, whereas the latter is used to elaborate on what the concept is about/indicate what it represents.
Ex.
赤というのは、「血のような色」という意味だ。
Red is a color that looks like blood. [“means” – definition]
赤は、「危険」の意味だ。
Red represents “danger”. [“has the meaning of” – elaboration/representation]
Would this be an accurate way of interpreting it?
Any additional information would be greatly appreciated!
The main difference is
という意味= It means ~
の意味 = the meaning of ~
***
Red represents “danger”. I would say 赤は「危険」を意味する。(or simply use other verb 赤は「危険」を表す）
If you want to use ”〜の意味” You can say for example
Ex. 赤は「危険」の意味で使われる。
While ことができる means “to be able to do something” (describing the current ability) ようになる means “to become ~ “/ “to come to ~” and describes certain changes.
1) 彼は日本語を話すことができる。= He can speak Japanese.
2) 彼は日本語が話せるようになった。 = He came to be able to speak Japanese. (He couldn’t speak Japanese before.)
3) 彼は少しずつ日本語を話すようになった。= He has started to speak Japanese. (He didn’t speak Japanese before but now he has started speak Japanese.)
ようにする・てみる
ようにする = try to do something usually for something which requires efforts ) てみる (to give it a try, to do something as a trial, it could be just one time)
毎日、5時に起きるようにしている。I try to get up at five every morning.
明日は、５時に起きてみる。I will give it a try to get up at five.
ようにする means “to try to do something” or if you want to talking about some state, “to make sure to”. It depends on the context.
Getting up at five in the morning is kind of hard. But if the speaker is trying hard to get up at five every morning, 毎朝、５時に起きるようにしている。 (You make it habit getting up at five. )
Please check my てみる lesson.
Hope you get the general usage of てみる to see the difference.
this was one of the most difficult topics for me so far. I had to read it many times to understand it fully, and I am sure I will do it again one day :)
A small question regarding one of your examples:
マギー先生に怒られないように宿題をしないと…
I have to do my homework so that Maggie Sensei won’t get mad at me.
Why is it しない? Shouldn’t it be something like しなきゃいけない? The sentence you gave in my opinion sounds like “I WON’T do my homework so that Maggie Sensei won’t get mad at me.” Could you please explain? Thank you very much in advance!
Ah because my translation is “come to like” so you can’t tell exact meaning.
思える is a potential form of 思う
So technically “I have come to be able to think Natto is delicious” (前は、納豆は美味しいと思わなかったけれども今は、そう思う。I didn’t think Natto is a delicious food but now I do.)
You can also say
納豆が美味しいと感じるようになった。
= I have come to be able to feel
Thank you for your quick response! I think because I haven’t had much practice with potential form, it isn’t always obvious to me that I should use it (if it isn’t obvious from the English sentence!) so I go back to using plain form because that feels more natural to me
e.g. I would say “I have come to like” not “I have come to be able to like”.
Hello Maggie Sensei! Is there any other grammar with a similar meaning to panashi? Like for the example “to leave the light on”, are there other ways to say that?
Thank you!
I found the phrase 笑いあうin a book. In the context, I believe the townspeople are smiling to each other as they say “Oh, little Kiki’s caught her foot again.”
thank you for the great lesson! :) I was wondering how do you build a zuni/naide sentence with words which are verbs in English but adjectives in Japanese, for example, 好き.
Like, how would you say “I can’t stop loving cooking”. 料理すろのが好き…しゃないで?? I’m totally lost, please help :)
Hi Alina
to love = 愛する works “V+ずにはいられない” pattern.
“I can’t stop loving you ” is （あなたのことを）愛さずにはいられない
If you use “愛する” “料理/(料理をするの)を愛さずにはいられない”
However as you said 好き is an adjective in Japanese so you can’t say 好きないで・好きずにはいられない
If you want o use 好き you have to add になる
〜を好きにならずにはいられない = can’t stop loving 〜
〜を好きにならないで+ V = to do something without loving/liking
Thank you for this lesson. It was really helpful! May I know if I can say “最近は雨が降りっぱなしだな。”as in, “it has been raining for quite a while/kept on raining these days”?
こんにちは 、マギせんせい.
in みんなの日本語初級第14課会話, the women speak to the taxi driver 「花屋の前で止めてください」.
Why not using 「に」? Because in 練習b, the car park attendant use 「あそこに車を止めてください。」
I’m confusing about this. lol
As I wrote in the example sentences, you can say both （location) に／で車を止める
If you do “an action of parking” in front of the flower shop, you use で. We can assume there is enough space in front of the flower shop.
But if you try to park in particular “spot” (let’ say you are aiming the spot), you use に.
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Hi Maggie sensei ( o’y’o ) ! ( I’ve seen on several online lesson page ) To _KO / SO / A / DO we can add _KO / NO / RE / U / ITSU / NNA / CHIRA . Actually , the presentation is not as that in textbooks . They go the lesson details long and eventually they say > . ( Things like that ) . It:s something I dreamed ?(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
They say ＜＜ Actually , some other demonstrative pronouns still exist which are used for people and have to do with direction ＞＞( Things like that ) . It’s something I’ve dreamed ?
You just start a sentence with
fortunately 幸いにも( = saiwai nimo) ・ありがたいことに (= arigatai kotoni) 、運よく (= un yoku)
unfortunately 残念ながら ( = zannen nagara), 運の悪いことに（= un no warui kotoni)
and continue the sentence
Ex. 幸いにも日曜日でも店は開いていた。
= Saiwai nimo nichiyoubi demo mise wa aite ita.
= Fortunately the store was open even on Sunday.
Ex. あいにく予約(よやく）はいっぱいだった。
= Unfortunately it is all booked up.
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Hi Maggie sensei ! I want to go directly to the link of your lesson for は particle .Thank you !
Hello Alina,
this 「って」is an emphatic and colloquial equivalent of 「は」; it is used as a topic marker.
EX. あの人って、どう見ても、怪しいじゃん。 That guy is strange, no matter how you look at it. Don’t you think so?
話しています。 I have been talking to him. or I am talking to him.
話しているところ I am talking to him right now./ I am middle of talking to him.
ところ emphasizes when I am middle of talking to him. and it sounds more explanatory.
So when you just describe someone is talking to someone, you say
Ex. マギーは彼と話しています。
But if you need to explain something. (Ex. どうしてマギーは忙しいのですか？ =Why is Maggie busy? /あの件はどうなりましたか？= How is that matter going?)
Hi Lucas
Thank you for your suggestion. Though my lessons are not to study for JLPT, I have never clasified by its level.
But I will try to add more tags based on the level in future. :)
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Hi Maggie sensei ! ( I really want to be able to master everything as helpful and accurate as so called “prepositions” ) Nice Maggie sensei , how to say properly ” _ACROSS eg: _A RIVER ” and ” _AROUND eg: _JULY ” / ” _AROUND eg: _A TREE ” / ” _AROUND eg: _A COUNTRY ” in japanese ? I especially need the pattern for each of them that Maggie sensei will show ! Maggie’s wonderful !(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧( i’ll go them one by one ) (About the remark for ACROSS )Oh yeah ! I’ve understood ! Please show me it with ” TO WALK ACROSS THE RIVER ” (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Thank you ! ( New point ) Maggie sensei ! I’ve heard that there are some more demonstratives other than “_KO _NO _RE _U _ITSU _NNA _CHIRA and which seem to have to do with direction ー which they are ? Thank you ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
Hello,
I am sorry. I don’t quite get this part.
_KO _NO _RE _U _ITSU _NNA _CHIRA
こんばんはマッギー先生🤗
Long time no see 😊😉 I was woundering if this 載れちゃすいそー is also a construction of 〜ちゃう?? But would is the いそー standing for? Would you mind helping me ??
Oh 🤦♀️sorry I’ve forgotten something i wanted to ask you about this word 王道 I have seen it quite a lot and it seems to have lots of meanings which confuse me especially when it’s just used like a expression. Could you maybe try to explain it to me ?
よろしくお願いします
王道 the literal meaning is “Royal Road” and it also means “easy way”
Ex. 学問に王道なし (proverb) There is no royal road to learning.( = There are no shortcuts in learning)
However, it is sometimes misused when you want to say
It is such a cliché
in daily conversation.
あ！わあ〜 ありがとございます 😊😉that really cleared things up a little bit for me😉 Thanks for the great explanation 👍
You’re welcome, Chii❤️
Hello! In conversations between friends, should I speak using the ちゃ and じゃ form? If so, could you give me more examples? Thank you!! I have trouble telling if I’m speaking too casually or too formally.
There is no rule that you should use ちゃ／じゃ form with your friends. Sometimes we use that form simply because it is easier to pronounce that way.
There are many causal speech forms but ちゃ／じゃ are pretty safe to use.
Under the sub-topic “past tense + なら”, for hypothetical statements, you give the example:
– 彼のことが嫌いなら３年も付き合わないです。
– If I didn’t like him, I wouldn’t have gone out with him for three years.
The condition is present tense.
My guess would have been this meant:
– If I don’t like him, I wont go out with him for three years.
So my question(s); is this a typo or do な adjectives follow a different pattern? And why is the second halve of the sentence in present tense? The action is (and would have been) completed already.
彼のことが嫌いなら３年も付き合わないです。
From this sentence, we can assume she has actually gone out with him for three years.
To be make it more clear, you can rephrase it as
彼のことが嫌いなら３年間も付き合っていないです。
I’m sorry, I kind of get why the second part would be present tense, but I still don’t understand why the hypothetical condition is not in the past tense here. The other two examples you give are past tense
– もし父がここにいたなら…
– もしも祖父が生きていたなら…
Why is this one different?
Hi Jay,
Sorry for the late reply. Just found your message.
Ahhhh, now I see your confusion. My mistake. That sentence was under “the verb + past tense” place.
Sorry to make you confused.
I see you removed the example, but of course I’m still wondering about it :D
The guy isn’t 嫌い, so could you still phrase this as 「嫌いなら。。。ない」?
What about
「嫌いだったなら付き合っていない」？
This would have been my first guess.
Is it okay to insert だった after nouns and なadjectives in cases like this?
Also (perhaps a bit off-topic), coming back to the second halve being present tense; does it imply they are still going out?
What if they are no longer together?
Something like 「嫌いだったなら付き合わなかった」 perhaps?
Thanks again!
@天人
Thank you for your helping as always!
@Jay
嫌い／好き are verbs in English translation so I had that example sentence there without thinking too much.
I shouldn’t have given you the example with other verbs and also it is a bit conversational.
Just for your reference. (I wouldn’t go any further.)
Ex. 彼のことが嫌いなら（ば）３年も付き合わないです。
= If I didn’t like him, I wouldn’t have gone out with him for three years.
It could mean either “they are still dating.” or “talking about their past but focusing on the reason”
past tense 〜だった + (の）+ なら expresses one’s stronger feelings or is used in more dramatic cases.
For these particular sentences, 嫌いだった doesn’t sound natural. Maybe it is because of the context or the second sentence could still mean the present.
For example,
そんなに彼のことが嫌いだったのなら別れれば/別れたらよかったのに。
works. (If you hated him that much, you should have broken up with him.)
Now let’s change 嫌い to 好き
1) 彼が好きならそう言えばいいのに。(S1 & S2 current situation)
If you like him so much, you should say so.
2) 彼が好きならそう言えばよかったのに。(S1 could be present or past/ S2 is past)
If you like/liked him so much, you should have said so.
3) X(not natural) 彼が好きだったならそう言えばよかったのに
Anyway, if you want to express clearly, present or past, たら is better.
Hello Jay,
「なら」 cannot appear after a past tense. Therefore ～た＋なら is grammatically wrong.
The most natural way to describe a past condition, whose result influences the present, is: ～たら… ～ない（だろう）／～てない（だろう） or ~なら…～ない（だろう）／~ていない（だろう）.
Using なら sounds more like: “if it is the case that…”, than just a simply “if”. Also, ～たら has less restrictions, than なら.
ヨロシク
(Somehow I can’t reply to your later answers, no button, so I’ll just reply to this earlier post.)
Thank you both for your answers.
I haven’t yet read up on たら. That lesson is currently waiting in my other tab for me to read it :)
But before I do that, just to check I’ve got this right;
when you’re making a counterfactual/hypothetical statement with なら and are not using a verb, you can just trust the context to make this clear?
おいしくないなら食べなかった
If it wasn’t tasty (it was) I wouldn’t have eaten it.
彼が好きならそう言う
If I liked him (I don’t) I would say so.
Or, theoretically: If I like him I will say so. (Which doesn’t make much sense.)
Thanks again for your help.
I’m off learning about たら.
おいしくないなら食べなかった alone doesn’t sound natural. For example if you add こんなに the person is eating something right now and shows his/her regret. If you change it to あんなに then we know the person is recalling the taste so we can tell it is something that happened in past.
こんな/あんなににおいしいしくないなら食べなかった
I wouldn’t have eaten it if I were this/that bad.
なら emphasizes what comes before.
*こんな・あんなに美味しくないんだったら食べなかった is more common
彼が好きならそう言う
If I liked him (I don’t) I would say so.
or
It could be the person hasn’t had the feelings for him yet but thinking about the possibility.
If I like him, I will say so.
(You can also say→彼が好きだったら言う）
So it all depends on the context.
Ah, yes of course, なら stresses what comes before. I should have kept that in mind.
Thank you for help.
I’ve got a feeling we will meet again in the たら comment section :D
In an anime setting in Hokkaido 1988, a 10 years old girl find it weird that her male classmate use 「じゃん」 and thought that he was trying to act like a city boy or something. Nowaday, is it still that way? Considered that you said it’s use has spread to other areas.
Also, I also heard a man abbreviate further to 邪魔すんじゃねえ.
Did you already make a lesson about changing 「る」to「ん」?
I assume it’s just male’s speech. Is there anymore thing to it?
Thank you in advance. I am going to study in Kyoto next year. Your website is very helpful. I visited it every now and then.
1) It’s possible. Some people still may pretend to be they are from Yokohama area and use じゃん jokingly.
2) Yes, I do have a lesson on ん. Click this link. →When and How to use ん
Wow! How exciting that you are going to study in Kyoto. Kyoto is such a nice city!!
(｡ŏ﹏ŏ) Hi Maggie sensei ! How curious is ” _ miteminufuri ” vocabulary construction ! Is this construction unique among all vocabularies or it has some cousins who are constructed just the same way ？ Thank you ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
ლ(´ڡ`ლ)Hi Maggie sensei ❣ I’m curious about the suffix “_mi” and its meaning . Is it productive with vocabularies ? Please cite some examples ❣ Thank you ❣(´-﹏-`；)
Hello Sensei!
I have read many many thread or post on Japanese conditional;
but indeed it seems to me that the most used conditional is something else.
In Japanese to make a conditional clause you have to modify the sentence which express the condition:
お金があればいいね
If I had money, it would be good, huh?
the conditional clause here is ” いいね” but to make it conditional we have to modify “お金がある” in “お金があれば”.
So what if we do not want to express explicitly the condition?
Conditional also stand on his own.
for example what about this conversation:
A: “Hey do you like sushi??”
B: “Yes! I would eat it every day!”
Here there is a stand alone conditional “I would eat sushi every day” (maybe some condition is implicit);
anyway how do we express this in Japanese ??
:-D
ほどではありません。(polite) ／〜ほどではない
= ~ hodo dewa arimasen /~ hodo de wa mao/
The romaji is written as mao instead of nai.~
(thanks for the lesson btw, just came across this in my textbook and I felt like I’m getting way more confused over this then I should be, this helps.~ <3 )
Hello Maggie 先生!
I’ve read through your lesson and your additional explanation in the comments. However I still cannot understand the usage of the particle に in the following sentence (the first に) : 20歳未満の人に禁止されているものも自由に買えるのが不思議だと外国人はよく言う。
Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your hard work! Your explanations have saved me many times :)
I have one question please.
I am confused about adjectives and talking about personality.
I am shy.
Watashi wa hazukashii. / Watashi wa hazukashigariya.
Hazukashii is an adjective. But Hazukashigariya is a noun.
I don’t understand the grammar for (Subject-object marker- noun)
Is this strange? Is there a difference in the nuance?
(and not, for example. Kanajo wa akarui. But not, kanojo ha akaruigariya).
Thank you very much!
Hi Rho-chan
Ah, those are special words.
はずかしい = hazukashii means “to be embarrassed”
はずかしがり/はずかしがりや= hazukashigari / hazukashigariya= describes shy person.
You don’t say あかるがりや ( =akarugariya) “gari” only works with certain words.
Please go check my garu-gari lesson.
You use は when you talk about something and は has a function as a topic indicator.
You bring up a topic with は to show “I am talking about these flowers.”
So it won’t sound natural in English but it means
→ As for these flowers, who did you receive (them) from?”
The answers can be either
Karlからこの花をもらいました。
I got these flowers from Karl.
or
この花は、Karlからもらいました。
As for these flowers, I got (them) from Karl.
So you make it clear what you are talking about by using は in Japanese.
Maggie-sensei, I’m sorry to trouble you with another question. I first need to write an email to my friend’s aunt who will show me around during my visit to Japan, but I wonder how I should open it? Would including something like 貴重なお時間をありがとうございました and 迷惑をかけてすみません。to convey that I’m sorry to trouble her and to thank her for making the time to see me.
貴重なお時間をありがとうございました may sound too formal for your friend’s aunt.
迷惑をかけてすみません is used when you actually cause some problems.
How about 今日はお忙しい中、すみません/ ありがとうございます。 = Kyou wa oisogashii naka sumimasen/ arigatou gozaimasu. before she shows you around.
(すみません conveys your feelings of “Sorry for to trouble you./ ありがとう simply expresses your appreciation.)
Maggie-san, thank you for your lessons. Your site is very helpful and it’s fun to learn using it. I appreciate your time.
I had a question about itadakimasu and gochisosama deshta. What if you’re eating by yourself in a restaurant? Do you say them to the waiter who brings your food or only if you’re in a kind of restaurant where you interact with a chef? Thank you!
Hi Ami,
I am glad you enjoy learning Japanese.
OK, you don’t have to say anything to the waiters or chefs at all. However, as you said, if they are friendly, it would be nice to say “gochisousama(deshita)” or “oishikatta desu.” to them when you leave.
You don’t usually say “itadakimasu” when you eat by yourself.
こんにちはマギー先生！
I have a small question: you mention that というcan be used as a relative pronoun. However, I was wondering when/in what situation you would use という?
because couldn’t you also write this example:
マギーは結婚したという噂がある
withoutというas
マギーが結婚した噂がある。 ？
So I was wondering if you could explain WHEN you would need to take the extra step and add という。
Sorry if I worded this in a confusing way, I tried my best!
ありがとうございます！
2) is quoting what kind of rumor there is. Let me rephrase it so that you can see what kind of emotion is behind it.
「マギーが結婚したよ/ マギーは結婚したんだって/ マギーが結婚したらしいよ, etc.」という噂がある
2) sounds more explanatory and emphasizes what comes before.
You use it when you expresses emotions such as your surprised feelings or when you think the listeners/readers don’t know that information.
1 more question maggie sensei.. I got lost in the difference of this 2 sentences that I made.. it goes like this..
“Kore ga yaru shika nai” & “Kore deshika yaranai” and is it right that I putted de in here? ..
Leo
I wonder if you meant these two sentences.
これをやるしかない？= Kore wo yaru shikanai = There is no choice. I have to do this. (Obligation/You are under pressure)
これだけしかやらない = Kore dake shika yaranai = I only do this.(Nothing else) (You do just one thing. You decide on your own)
Your sentences
Kore ga yarushika nai. = これがやるしかない = You use が after これ. That mean “これ” is a subject. “This one” should do. There is no choice. (That means you refers to someone with これ which is pretty rude.)
Kore deshika yaranai” これでしかやらない Since you put で after これ, it means “with this” “method”. I only do it using this.
こんにちはMaggie せんせい、
I am working at Reservation Department Hotel industry.
May you assist me the lesson in Hiragana please?
There would be highly appreciated with your kind assistance.
Umm I am not quite sure how I could help you but there is a hotel lesson (I am sorry but I don’t just type in hiragana because the lesson will be too long) Please go check the lesson. :)
this help me a lot sensei! i work as interperter here in the philippines,
thank you for all the hardship!
sensei can you provide also the vocabulary for benefits and commonly used
phrases in employment. ex. salary , benefits, wages, taxes. thanks a lot in advance
Hello rommel niemes,
I am glad to hear you found this lesson helpful.
I don’t cover the phrases but there are vocabulary regarding, salary, bonus, etc right below アルバイト. Please check again. :)
Hey,
just wanted to say thank you for all your lessons. Almost every time I looks for something that I don’t understand one of the first results on Google is your page where I always find an answer.
ありがとうございました
If someone says “昼ぶり” does that mean “I haven’t seen you since noon?” In the past I have only seen ぶり used after specific measurements of time like days, weeks, years, etc so I wasn’t sure.
It’s very conversational but it means “I haven’t seen you (Or It has been) since noon (or day time)”
You are right. You usually say “time period word” + ぶり
Thank you for your quick reply. Also, thank you so much for making this website! This is my first time leaving a comment but I have used it many times before and it was very helpful.
There’s a question like this:
「マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートを………..」
Amongst the options, あげました and いただきました confused me. Because i think both can be the answers.
マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートをあげました
Mike san GAVE chocolate to ami san
マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートをいただきました
Mike san RECEIVED chocolate from ami san
But i was wrong, the answer was あげました only.
How come?
Can’t “もらう / いただく” be used for ‘third person’ from ‘third person?
I thought “もらう / いただく”is a neutral one, any subjects can use it
You can say
AはBに〜をもらう
AはBに〜をあげる
but it will be unnatural to use honorific/humble expression for the third person unless they are your family or someone you emphasize with.
So i don’t have to use honorific expression to someone older than me yet not personally close?
For example, let’s say i have a neighbor, named A, who is 50 years older than me. I’m not personally close to A yet i know A and respect A.
One day i saw A gave chocolate to B. (Let’s sayB is also my neighbor, 40 years older than me, not personally close as well yet i respect)
If i want to say B received chocolate from A, i don’t have to use honorific expression (itadaita)?
Just say moratta / moraimashita is enough?
Because i thought honorifics is used for someone older or someone you respect for… No matter how close or not you are to that person….
Sorry for asking always 😁
Thank you thank you in advance…..🙏
Actually I want to ask the difference of grammar, but it’s about love expression so I hope it’s not really out of context.
Usually I found either 君が好き or 君を好きになった, but recently I found this sentence 超美少女が好きになったのは、超能力者。 I take it’s 超能力者 who fell in love with 超美少女 rather than the other but it might be because of the comma that I’m not really sure.
And when I searched for other examples, looks like (object) が好きになる is used but not as frequently as (object )が好き or (object)を好きになる, did I guess it right? But aren’t their meanings all the same ?
Good question.
Aが好きになったのは、B
The one who A fell in love with is B.
Aが好きになったのはB
The one who fell in love with A is B.
As you said, comma is a key to tell which one is which.
**
First ~が好き and ~が好きになる are different.
~が好き I like/love ~
~が好きになる I come to like ~
As for these two
~が好きになる
~を好きになる
I can’t tell which one we use more but が is a topic marker and を is an object marker. Therefore, while が emphasizes who you like and を is used when you state the fact you like someone.
***I just realised the expression could have different meanings depending on the context. The meaning I was talking about is “Isn’t it fine?” and the like. For example, when someone tells you to change out of your pajamas, and you say “Isn’t it fine? It’s Saturday!”
OK, you have to focus on the verb 思う which expresses one’s opinion and everybody (at least in Japan) knows that Mt.Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. It’s a well known fact.
So it is not natural to use 高い.
Meanwhile, きれい is a personal opinion so you can say 富士山ぐらいきれいな山はないと思う。
Hello, 先生. I’m trying to understand something in the sentence 「とっても強い家であったため建つまでに長い時間がかかりました。」
I don’t really understand why they use 「であった」here just before ため. I’d also asked on a different post why a sentence had left out the particle に after よう and I’m wondering if the same thing applies here — you can leave out the に after ため and it still holds the same meaning.
であった implies here the past tense (=the house was).
ため implies the reason (=therefore).
It was a very solid house. Therefore it took a long time to build it (lit. before it was built).
And yes, the に part. in ために emphasizes the meaning and sounds more polite. There is a rule in Japanese. The longer the sentence, the more polite it is.
I have seen that you have giving us lot of inputs on vocabulary. Can you also train us in challenging the Dokkai portions of JLPT N1. Am unsure where am I going wrong and score so less.
Hi Viji
Wow! You have been studying for JLPT N1?
それでは、日本語で書きますね。このサイトのレッスンはすべてオリジナルです。JLPT N1の読解の教材は、JLPTの過去問や、新聞のコラム、エッセイなどを使いますが、他の人が書いたものをここで使うのは難しいです。点数が低い理由がわからないとのことですが、１）語彙 ２）出てくる文法 に問題がなければ、内容は理解していますか？
質問に対して、ぴったりの答えが書かれている場所を探すコツがあります。JLPT用のテキスト等を使っていると思いますが、それ以外にネット等でいろいろな日本語で書かれた文章を練習して読んでみてください。
So I was trying to translate this song (full lyrics here: http://vocadb.net/S/87131) and the first couple of lines didn’t make much sense to me. There seem to be a lot of inferred particles or something, because there seem to be a bunch of unrelated sentence fragments. In any case, the use ofなら confused me as well. It doesn’t seem to be any of the ones you wrote about on this page, which all still seem to have a sense of “if.”
触媒（カタリスト） Ocean of foliage
産み落ちた過ち故 佇む静寂なら縛り付け
罪の十字
“A catalyst (from) an ocean of foliage; because it was an error that I was born, in the still silence, a cross of sin is tied to me.” is what I could get from it.
I thought, perhaps, it was more for emphasizing topics: “Concerning the still silence,” which is where I got “in” from (since usually if you’re talking about silence, you’re talking doing something in silence). But I don’t know if that’s correct, since, if what I have is correct, ならwouldn’t be marking a topic.
Basically, what I’m asking is, how would you translate なら in this context?
(sorry if I posted this already); I noticed that my comment had disappeared, so I thought it was a technical glitch, but just now I notice the “awaiting moderation” thing at the top. So sorry if this is a repeat!)
Sorry, I can’t help you the lyrics here.
As I explained in the lesson, なら is usually conditional, “if ~ / in case ~ “or “If you are talking about ~, it’s ~ “(emphasis) but it just doesn’t fit in the lyrics.
Poem and lyrics are hard to translated because you have to interpret the writer’s intention in the first place.
It could be if the person is just standing still (without accepting his sin or making any excuses), he will be crucified.
Oh, okay. I took 佇む as just modifying 静寂, but if you take it also as an action of the speaker like that, then it makes more sense.
Could you please help me with another question on the same song? It has, I think, some inferred particles, and I’m not sure what to connect and what not to connect. (You’re definitely right about songs! Translating them is very confusing (^^ゞ )
罪に塗れる 封印されし刃金の魔剣
今粉の砂炭 蘇る刻が来り
“Smeared with sin, the magic blade of pressed steel is now the particles of Satan (possibly ash? 砂炭 is just phonetic; you probably assumed that but it took me a while to figure out so I thought I’d put it in (^～^)). The time for rebirth has come. ”
That’s how I translated it, but I’m not sure if 今粉の砂炭 goes with the above line, especially since I assumed both a particle and the main verb for my translation. Is it okay if I do that, or is that wrong?
Sorry to bother you again, and thanks for helping!
I think you got the meaning right.
(p.s. There was a space between 今粉の砂炭and 蘇る刻が来:
今粉の砂炭 蘇る刻が来り. Don’t how much that matters, but somehow it got deleted! Oops.)
Okay, thanks! :)
You’re welcome! :)
This is a small question, but I saw the sentence 「狼に捕まらないよう気をつけなさい。」and I was just wondering why they left out the particle 「に」? Does it make a difference?
Hi,Maggie!
I have just read through your lessons but now I am a bit confused about the negative part…
I have never heard of the conjugation でなくなる etc.
I have alwazs learned にならない or くならない
Is it that this version,explained in your lesson,is rare or am I wrong?
Oh, I see your confusion.
I added the special negative form section later to answer some of the questions but the basic negative form part was missing. I will fix it later.
Anyway you are right, the basic negative form is にならない／くならない
Just give me a couple of days to add more information. :)
こんにちはマギー先生！
Recently I’ve been seeing the expression “というように” a lot.
For instance: 「猿も木から落ちるというように、誰でもミスをすることはあります。」In this case In this situation I think the というように means “that is to say”, however, in other situations I’m very confused about why you would need to use it.
Would you be able to provide some examples of when and why someoney would useというように?
I will try to help you. The other usage, referring to the first one, is “to give an impression of/that… / as if… / as much as…”.
This expression is quite similar to と言わんばかり／とばかり.
1) というように
分かったというようにうなずき始める。
=> To start nodding in understanding/agreement.
信じられないというように鼻をならす。
=> To give a snort of disbelief.
彼女は、この話はもうよそうというように言って、 いきなり慌てて部屋を出て行ってしまった。
=> She said it in a way, like she wanted to get off the subject and then –
without warning – she just left the room in hurry.
2) と言わんばかり
知っていると言わんばかりの口調で言う。
=> To say with a tone of understanding/knowing.
賛成だと言わんばかりに頷く。
=> To nod as much as to say “OK, I agree”.
「かわいそうな人」といわんばかりに人を見る。
=> To look at someone with pity (lit. as much as to say, poor him/her).
PS. Regarding 「猿も木から落ちるというように、誰でもミスをすることはあります。」 a very fine translation would be “Everyone makes sometimes mistakes, just like monkeys fall from trees sometimes as well” or “Everyone makes sometimes mistakes, just like the old maxim says 「猿も木から落ちる」”.
I was wondering whether というように can be replaced with というふうに, such as in the examples below:
リンゴは 1 ポンドいくつというように売られている.
自動鉋盤で2.5～3.65ミリというように木取りの仕上がりの寸法を決める。
分かったというようにうなずき始める。
Your help is much appreciated! Thank you!
There are some cases that you can use both ふう and よう but I wouldn’t use ふうに for the first two sentences.
ふうに means “in the way that~” and 1) and 2) have concrete price.
As for the third sentence, you got it from ALC? The sentence itself is a bit unnatural unless the person nods a lot.
説明してくれてありがとうございました！Just to clarify though: というように is pretty much only translated as “as much as” in situations where numbers are involved, right?
I ask because I found these examples and was trying to wrap my head around it.
It depends on the context but というように means “as if” / “like”/ “such as”
Actually it doesn’t matter if it involves numbers or not.
For example when you explain something, you give a concrete example and quote with というように.
1) リンゴは 1 ポンドいくつというように売られている.
So in this sentence, it explains how they sell the apples.
2)自動鉋盤で2.5～3.65ミリというように木取りの仕上がりの寸法を決める。
It explains how they decide the size of the wooden frame work.
こんばんは！Maggie、先生。
I’m just wondering, what does the “死んでしまったら” means？
In the sentence もしあなたが死んでしまったら生きていけない。I get the part of 死ぬ
which means to die。I’ve searched it in the Index main lesson 2 page, but with no luck of finding it XD.
Maggie sensei, I really love your lessons they helped me learning Japanese in more fun ways better than my grammar books and Japanese classes.
Anyway, could you please explain about the differences between 「気をつけて」and 「注意して」?? Normally if I want to say please be careful on the way I used 「気をつけて」、but what about 「途中で注意して下さい」?
気をつけて/注意して They both mean “carefully” in English and they could be interchangeable
You tell someone who is careless and keep making mistakes,
これからもっと気をつけてください。
これからもっと注意してください。
The diference
注意してV paying attentions, with attention
気をつけてV taking care of, being careful
You say to someone “to take care of oneself”
気をつけてね= Take care! / Take care of yourself.
You never say 注意してね
何かしら→(casual) なんかしら = something
何かあるだろ→なんかしらあんだろ = You must have something.
You add かしら with なに、だれ、どこ and add the nuance of assumption.
誰かしら somebody or other 誰かがきっと
どこかしら somewhere or other どこかきっと
なにかしら something or other なにかきっと
Hi Maggie先生, when I write my Western name in katakana, I have been putting my surname first. I also introduce myself by my surname in a formal or business setting. However, I have noticed that in certain letters or on business cards, Western names are written in katakana with the first name first. Which way round is it for Western names?
Hi JJ
We tend to adapt Western name order in business letters.
So “first name” + “surname”
***
However, when Japanese people make business cards in kanji and romaji,
since kanji order is “surname” + “first name”, romaji also use this order.
彼は彼女との距離を起き、彼女の感情の変化を観察することで彼女自身の気持ちを認識させる。
Does it translate to “He distances himself from her to confirm her feelings to him by observing the changes in her mood.” or “He distances himself from her and by observing the changes in her mood makes her recognize her own feelings”? I’m having trouble understanding the object of 認識させる. And how will the translation change if instead of 認識させる it ends with 認識する？
Hi
It is hard to tell by just one sentence and the key can be hidden in the previous sentence but
I would use 認識する・ or 認識しようとする in that sentence.
Unless the object of 認識する is 彼自身 himself. “let himself recognize her feelings”
Ah, OK then the object is 雪乃
So he is trying to make her realize her own feelings towards him by keeping a distance from her and observing the change of her feelings.
Thank you so much for your useful lessons ^^
I am currently studying 受け身・使役・使役受け身 and stumbled across an issue common to both, and am struggling to unravel the differences.
1. 受け身
自然にそのような気持ちになると言いたいとき：自発を表す文
例：この写真を見ると、昔のことが思い出された。
Here, why can you not use 思い出している？I don’t understand why it is in passive form… I read your passive form lesson and it mentioned this kind of form when expressing negative emotions, but surely this sentence is positive? THe other sentences in my book are also positively inclined, such as 歌には何とも言えない優しいさが感じられる。
By seeing the beautiful flowers, the tourists were allowed? to have fun?
I know this form is meant to express feelings that are occuring, but what is the difference in using this v something like ている？
Also how would you translate 彼の行動人がっかりられた(I was made to feel disappointed by him)・がっかりさせた(I was forced to feel disappointed by him? ・がっかりさせられた(I was made †o feel disappointed by him? the same translation as the first one?)？
Sorry for all of the questions but I am having a very hard time keeping this all straight…
1. First, 思い出される is not a passive form so it has nothing to do with positive or negative.
You use れる・られる for 1) honorific 2) potential and 3) 自発, spontaneous form as well and 思い出される (to come into one’s mind) is spontaneous form.
思い出される to come into one’s mind
思われる to seems / to appear / to think
感じられる to feel （Note: It also has a potential form. to be able to feel)
悔（く）やまれる to regret
案じられる to be anxious
見える・聞こえる are also spontaneous forms.
All these are spontaneous forms.
You can rephrase it with 思い出す
この写真を見ると昔のことが思い出される。
→この写真を見ると昔のことを思い出す。
And 感じる
この歌には何とも言えない優しさが感じられる。
→の歌には何とも言えない優しさを感じる。
You can’t tell the big difference between these sentences but particle changes, が＆を.
Technically 自発 verbs are used to when you do something naturally without any control. (spontaneously)
You can see the difference more with
見る and 見える
You see things / look at something/someone with your will →見る Ex. 先生を見る = to look at the teacher.
You see things naturally without any control →見える Ex. 山が見える = You see the mountain.
2. Not “allowed.” The flowers are the cause of the joy of the tourists.
The beautiful flowers make the tourist happy.
→The beautiful flowers please the tourist.
彼の行動人がっかりられた →I think this sentence has typos…
彼の行動は私をがっかりさせた。 (causative)
His behavior made me disappointed. (So his behavior is the cause of my disappointment.)
→passive causative (from my point of view)
(私は）彼の行動にがっかりさせられた
= I was disappointed by his behavior.
The translation can be the same because passive form is sometimes not natural in English.
Thanks for this lesson, even though it’s aimed at intermediate/advanced level, I thought it was very easy to understand (being a beginner and self-learner) and very helpful for day-to-day situations. After learning new topics, I usually try to make my own sentences, to see if I grasped the grammar. So, could you please tell me if this makes any sense? どんなに頼んでもパーティーに来はしない。(You can beg all you want, there’s no way I’m going to the party.) Thank you, I love your website!
Thank you so much for your reply.
そうですね、Ｎ１頑張っておりますが、準備がぜんぜん足りない感じがします。先生が教えたとおりにいろいろな記事を読んでおります。頑張ります！！では、語彙に関してはＭａｇｇｉｅ先生に質問してもいいでしょか。語彙の使い方を説明していただけますでしょか。たとえば、はなはだ、すこぶる、いたって、ごく”などの英語の意味は一緒になりますが日本語で使うシナリオは違いますね。いつもそういう質問に失敗する人が多いと思います。
I once made a blunder. I replied with “しょうがないね。” to someone who forgot an appointment with me. I meant that sometimes these things can’t be helped (a.k.a sh*t happens) and in no way intended to offend her.
But she took it to mean “お前はしょうがない”. But good thing she understood what I meant eventually.
Another thing though, what if you are actually mad because of the huge inconvenience/pain that someone caused? I just can’t bring myself to say “大丈夫です” or “気にしないでください” if I don’t really mean it. Where I come from, just because someone apologizes doesn’t mean that all is forgiven — or is this expected in Japan? (I mean, saying ”大丈夫です” when you are actually mad)
I will be introducing myself at a professor from kyoto university. How do i make a proper introduction to him and thank him for coming all the way here.
Also i want to say that i don’t really use keigo with my friends so i just want to say sorry if i offended him in any way.
私は友達と敬語を表する必要はなかったからあなたにどこかで無礼であれば 本当にもしわけありませんでした。
Is this correct?
＠Emu
無言フォローすみません。 /無言フォローごめんなさい。
It is a Twitter formality. Some people say something before they follow someone else on Twitter.
Like フォローさせてください。Let me follow you (on Twitter).
or フォローしてもいいですか？ Can I follow you(on Twitter)? (asking for their permission)
If you just follow someone without saying anything, it’s called 無言フォロー
So, people who don’t want to trouble asking every time they follow someone, they write in their profile,
“Sorry but I will just follow people without asking them if I can follow them or not”
20↑ means that person is over 20 years old and if he/she is under 20 years old, 20↓
Hi Chiaki! はじめまして！
When someone says 呼びタメ大歓迎, you can say for example,
わかりました。それでは、これから〜と呼びますね。
わかりました。それでは、これから〜と呼ばせてね。
= OK, then let me call you ” ~ ” from now on.
Thank you so much for always making useful lesson.
1. You say that we can’t say
胃の働くこと ( or 働くの) が悪い
why it so? the construction of the sentence is
辞書形 + ことが + Adjectiv
Thank you so much for always making useful lesson.
1. You say that we can’t say
胃の働くこと ( or 働くの) が悪い
why it so? the construction of the sentence is
辞書形 + ことが + Adjective
in my text book, there is a 文法 with this construction
辞書形 + ことが + 「好き。できます」
(本を読むことが好きです)
(アニメを見ることが好きです)
(日本語を話すことができます)
the question about 辞書形 + ことが
so is it work only for (好き and 出来る) only?
2. You say that “We can’t make a noun form with all the verbs.”
so how to know that the verb can be transform to this form or not?
#Sorry for my bad English.
#if there are un-Understand-able of my english please tell me, I would like to know the answer of my Question, thanks
#Thank you so much for all lesson, I’v read all and its so useful for me :)
I wrote 作らせられる for making causative passive form of 作るbut a japanese friend said that it’s not correct. It should be 作らされる.
I just found out from your site that -saseru or -aseru has shorter version, and that is -sasu or -su.
My question is if i’m still using 作らせられる, would that be considered as something incorrect?
Because i was taught that RU verbs such as kaeru, shiru, tsukuru, etc has causative passive as 作らせられる.
Maggie先生お久しぶりですね。I want to ask you about how to greet 社長 when we meet for the first time since the last interview.Although I started working since last week,we haven’t met yet because he’s gone back to Japan.I also want to know how to answer if asked about the “How’s working here?” or “How am I doing in this job?”And also give some advice you think suitable for this situation,too.I’m sorry to bother you with such urgent questions frequently.You’re the only one I can turn to for such important questions.Thank you in advance for your constant help! :-)
You caught me the right before my vacation. :)
It depends on what you want to tell the company president. If you want to say thank you for hiring me, then
採用（さいよう）ありがとうございました。and if he asks you how you are doing, you just tell him what you think but may something positive.
毎日、充実しております。
= Mainichi, juujitsu shite orimasu.
= I’ve been having fulfilling days.
仕事が、とても面白いです。
= Shigoto ga totemo omoshiroi desu.
= The work is very interesting.
Or まだいろいろ慣れないことがありますが一生懸命お役に立てるように努力いたします。
= Mada iroiro narenai koto ga arimasu ga isshoukenmei oyaku ni tateru you ni doryoku itashimasu.
= I haven’t get used to many things but I will do my best to serve this company.
THANK YOU SO MUCH for this lesson! I have been wondering SO LONG why so many sentences end with “kedo” for no apparent reason (since the usual “but/however” meaning didn’t make sense in those contexts). I cannot thank you enough for clearing up my confusion!!!!
thanks for this lesson Maggie sensei ! You know, I visit your website almost every day, it’s excellent !
ありがとうございます ！
あのう… May I ask you some help ? I’ve started to tweet in Japanese and communicate with Japanese people. Even though I make some mistakes, I enjoy it a lot !
Well, I was talking about Ainu language with one of my followers and told her I discovered that people thanks to Murakami’s books.
her answer was as follows :
“村上春樹を読んでるのね！アイヌ語は文字で残らない言語だから、むずかしい。ルーさんが興味を持ってるのがすごいよ.”
I understand it, except for the first part : is she saying she’s glad to hear I read Murakami or does that mean she’s reading Murakami’s novels too ? Or maybe is she correcting me ? Would you mind helping me ? ^^
I’m really to bother you, that’s okay if you have no time to answer !
Again, thanks for your website ! ^^
Hi ルー
I’m happy to hear you visit here almost every day!
I don’t do the translation here but just this time. :)
She is impressed to hear you read Haruki Murakami’s novels and you are interested in Ainu language.
It is a difficult language because there is no existence of written record.
ainutopic.ninjal.ac.jp no =an ne -e an nw qar Puffi qo-nw-noqa-so(browser App Apple y-qor e anainutopic iOS y-qy-qar=an (desk top version =e-as-qay ne rw-we wa
Maggie as-pe se-qor an❤️ I’m happy to hear you visit here almost every day!
I don’t do the translation here but just this time. :)
She is impressed to hear you read Haruki Murakami’s novels and you are interested in Ainu language.
A -nw-p -qw-shyshアイヌ語は文字で残らない言語だから !s(h)o-mo e-ne qw=qw-ny qw=ram-w=a-hy TAN👇 orwsh-po qw=nw
It is a difficult language ysay-qa ne 📝 because there is no existence of written record.
qw-sw ne wa a-qan-na -qar wa yn-qar ram-ma qan-na qy-ary-qy-qy yan
Hi sensei!
Tks for the lesson, but I haven’t found out things I need.
At class, my teacher gave me a grammar be like:
〜ことになりました・名詞になりました
And she said that this structure means: the decision’s been made by the whole group, such as: where to party, school rule,… and not personal. If you wanna say the decision of personal, use にします.
Would you mind explaining it in more detail?
ありがとうございます
I find the song in this lesson really amazing and can’t get it out of my head :)
Could you please write the lyrics and the translation of it starting from “chiisana you de…”? I would really like to understand it to the end :) Thanks!!
話 means “talk/story/topic/issue/matter…etc.”
大きな話 = big thing (= big deal / big issue) / big business…(You have to change the translation depending on the context)
「ぱなし」はなしって話です
= “「ぱなし」はなし ” という話です。
って is a casual contraction of という
~ はなし = You use this form when you want to wrap up the conversation. No more~ / I had enough with ~ / You shouldn’t ~ anymore.
It depends on the intonation and I can’t attach a sound file here but
You usually say まぁねぇ when you reluctantly say your opinion/agree with the listener or put your thoughts together.
I really like your lessons and greatly appreciate the effort you put into preparing these.
I have a question regarding じゃない here. You give an example: あら、マギーじゃない！- how do you differentiate it from the negative? To me the sentence looks like: “This is not Maggie! / You are not Maggie!” Would the intonation be different in speech than the negative? The written language doesn’t use commas for this (and why not)?
something finishes (intransitive verb) /* sometimes you use it as a transitive verb to finish something (transitive verb)
→ 終わる ( = owaru ) → 終わってしまう ( = owatte shimau) →chau form:終わっちゃう ( = owacchau)
Konnichiwa, Rodney
That is an honorific expression.
The passive form and honorific form such as ~reru, rareru are the same so you have to interpret by the context.
agree with Alain, each research for japanese grammar -good and usefull- explanations on google, always back my eyes to your site, your work is very precious for lot of japanese learners there’s no doubt!
1) ~が傷つけることになるか心配だ worry that ~ will end up hurting her (worry about the consequences)
2) 〜が傷つけることにならないか心配だ。worry that ~ may end up hurting her (worry about the possibilities more)
Hello maggie!
I have a question regarding a certain song’s lyrics http://www.project-imas.com/wiki/Radio_Happy
The line “聴かせてシンガロング･ナウ” is translated as “listen and sing-along now”, but isn’t it “let me hear/listen to your sing-along now”?
待たす ( = matasu) (shorter version) The verb form already has causative nuance “to make someone wait” →待たされる (= matasareru)
***
変な人だと思われなくない
= Hen na hito dato omowaretakunai
Check my 受け身 lesson.
This type of passive form expresses one’s negative feelings. (fear, annoyance or disappointment)
Yes, you can say 美味しいものだけを食べたい
As I mentioned in my previous comment, you tend to drop certain particles in conversation but it is originally 美味しいものだけを食べたい
When you use だけ with a particle, you have to be careful where to put a particle.
クラッシック（音楽）を聞く = to listen to the classical music.
You only listed to the classical music
クラッシック（音楽）だけを聞きます。
(In conversation, you sometimes drop the particle を
クラッシック（音楽）だけ聞きます。）
***
英語がわかります or 英語はわかります (when you show the contrast)
You don’t say あの人は英語がだけ分かります
The position of が is wrong.
The possible positions are
あの人だけが英語がわかります。Just that person understand English/ Only that person does understand English.
あの人は英語だけがわかります。He/She understand only English
あの人は英語がわかるだけです。He/She is just understand English.
Many thanks for this lesson, Maggie-Sensei! Very informative and helpful as usual.
I have a question regarding the term “volitional” that you used in your explanation:
## So verb (volitional) + ことにしている ( = koto ni shiteiru) is used when you make a habit of doing something.
Ex. たくさん食べた次の日はダイエットをすることにしている。
verb (volitional verb) + ようにする ( = you ni suru) / ようにしている ( = you ni shiteiru)
これからもっと気をつけるようにします。##
I thought that “volitional verb” in Japanese means the “う” or “よう” form. Eg: しよう (for する) and つけよう (for つける). But in your example sentences, the dictionary form of the verb and not the volitional form of the verb is used?
What I meant by “volitional verb” is not a “volitional form” ~う・よう
ダイエットをする →ダイエットをすることにしている
食べる→食べることにしている
運動をする→運動をすることにしている
電話をする→電話をすることにしている
These verbs requires the doer’s will. You do all the action intentionally)
But for example, you can’t controle verbs such as ある, 雨が降る、出会う, with your will.
You don’t say
X電話があるようにしている。
X雨が降るようにしている
Xいい人に出会うようにしている
This has me wondering (heh) how would you express something like “I wonder if I should do X or X?”
Thank you for this site btw. I recently got back into studying after losing motivation and almost stopping. This site has actually helped motivate me again.
Hello Maggie!
What’s the correct translation for
“脚見せを意識して前側が短い仕様になってますよん”?
I interpreted it as “Keeping in mind that the legs should show, she “short front”(of the dress) has been chosen” but I’m having doubts about how to properly translate “短い仕様になってますよん”. Maybe it’s “has been cut short”? Or “decided to go with the short front”? Please help!
Hi Beginner
仕様 means “way you do something or function/ specification”
~ 仕様になっている is to have a function/specification of ~ . You usually use it to describe a machine but in this case, it just means,
The front part of the dress is short in order to show my legs.
OK, I will give you the common patterns for both, ままに and ままで
Vままに＋する/ままに＋しておく to leave certain state the way it is.
A lot of them are set phrases but
Ex. 言われるままにする ( = iwareru mamani suru) to do just as someone tells you to do.
Ex. 欲しいままにする (= hoshii mama ni suru) to have one’s own way
Ex. 意のままにする ( = i no mama ni suru9 to do as one likes
Ex. そのままにしておく ( = sono mama ni suru) to leave something the way it is.
~ ままで＋いる remain ~
Vままで＋do something
Ex. 黙ったままでいる (= damatta mama de iru) to remain silent
Ex. お金を机の上に出したままでいる ( = Okane wo tsukue no ue ni dashita mama de iru) to leave the money on the table.
はい、元気”で”やっていますよ。😉
Here’s the difference.
お金を机の上に出したままでいる you leave the money and forget to put it back.
お金を机の上に出しておいている You leave the money on the table intentionally.
先生 から返事を貰って本当にありがとうございます｡申し込んだ仕事は日本へ 働きたい人たち のために仕事を捜すサービス 代理店でN5とN4の試験を受けようとしている 生徒たちに日本語を教えるのです。でも そのほかに 生徒たちといっしょに日本へ 行ってそちらのtraining centre に1ヶ月とか 3ヶ月とか サポートして欲しいと 言われましたので 自分も今までには 海外へ 行ったことは 一度もないので どうすれば 信頼できるように 見えますのか 知りたいです｡特には その仕事を 任せられたら 力を入れていて 頑張りますのを 伝えたいです。どんなものを 準備していると 知らせたら 宜しいでしょうか？日本のことはアニメとかドラマとかいつも見てるですけど 本当の日常生活に 住もうとは 一度も 考えなかったので 実は 少し怖いですよ｡それでも 諦めずに 頑張って見たいです。偶然に 先生のページを見て とてもよかったと思うわよ。私のような 多くの人たちが 居るのを 見て 私も 頑張ったら できると 思います。私たちのために こんなところを 創造して 本当にありがとうございます。I really admire the efforts you put in to explain things easier for us.It’s very kind of you to post those valuable and helpful lessons.Thank you so much！
Maggie sensei, i’m sorry for posting here but, i din’t find anywhere on the site about making adverbs in japanese. Well i want to say pharses with adverbs in japanese Like:
The tap water i going out little -> 蛇口の水は弱くて出ている。
The car is moving slowly -> 車は遅くに動いている。
Can you tell me if this pharses are right or not ? Please teach me use adverbs in japanese! Thank you i love your website
It’s 謙譲語(kenjougo) an honorific expression and make yourself sound humble when you talk to someone superior or customers.
te-iru (dictionary form) →(polite) te-imasu →(very polite) te-orimasu
Hi maggie sensei !
First of all thank you for your great lesson !
But actually I have a question, it’s about a sentence that I’ve heard in a song.
It says : “確証ないほど拡散する”
So I wanted to know what it really means ?
Thanks !
@マエル
I just wrote to someone yesterday but I don’t do the translation here (especially lyrics.) but just this once.
It’s 欅坂46’s song, right?
拡散する means “to spread” (in this case the gossip, rumors (from the previous lyrics))
So the rumor/gossip spreads to the extent that you can’t prove if they are true or not.
→the gossip/rumor spread so much that you can’t even know if they are true or not.)
voilà!
Maggie sensei🤚, Since we use iku and kuru when actions are happening towards us or away from us, what if I am the action doer, and am doing the action towards someone else? For example if my mother had asked me when ill be back home, and i want to say “Ill return within an hour” will the Kaeru action be used with kuru Because it is happening towards my mother?
Sorry for any trouble.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I was having trouble with this line in a song:
その腕で抱き締めてもくれやしない
My best guess would be, “Those arms would never embrace me.”
However, literally it would be “Even if those arms embraced me, doing that favor is really not.”
The first part seems to me to imply that the embracing happens, which then the second part would negate in my interpretation, which doesn’t really make any sense.
Is my interpretation completely wrong, or is that kind of conditional okay in Japanese?
Thank you!
Okay, thanks. I didn’t think the subject was the arms, I just was rewording it so it sounded better in English.
How did you get the “don’t even” out of that construction? What in the grammar tipped you off to use those words and give that meaning?
Thanks!
I actually have one more question, about a couple of lines (from this song, btw: http://vocaloidlyrics.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%8F%8D%E8%8A%BB%E3%81%AE%E5%8D%B0%E8%B1%A1_(Hansuu_no_Inshou) ), if you don’t mind. I really don’t know what to make of them.
本当は噛み締めてなんかいやしない
明日の日付も今日も飲み込んじまえ
咀嚼の時間も 緊急停車にも気付きはしない
“I really didn’t understand it, but tomorrow and today, I understood completely. When I understood, I hadn’t realized (that I understood it(?)) when we came to an emergency stop” is my best guess at what these mean.
I’m really confused about what they’re talking about here, especially because all words for understand also mean “chew,” which really confused me.
Thank you again for your help, sorry to bother you again!
I understood completely. When I understood, I hadn’t realized (that I understood it(?)) when we came to an emergency stop” is my best guess at what these mean.
→ ??? I am confused with your question.
Anyway I don’t do the translation here. (If I do, I have to do for everybody) ごめんね。
What I could tell you is it’s all metaphor and you have to interpret the lyrics yourself.
Sorry if my question was confusing. I guess what I was asking was if my interpretation was correct, and if there is any special meaning to the fact that “chew” is used so many times (I understand if it’s just a metaphor; I was just thinking that maybe there is some cultural/grammatical significance to this that I wasn’t grasping).
I understand completely that you can’t translate; I wasn’t looking for a translation.
Thanks.
Yes,噛みしめる is a metaphor.
You often use it “to think/reflect well on what someone says or what you read” “digest””to feel something with your heart”, etc.
So as 飲み込む = swallow
Maggie Sensei, Thank you for your lessons. Please don’t tire making japanese lessons. I see your lessons very helpful since I am studying for my JLPT exams. In fact,I am making your site my default site.
Hi Jodel,
Thank you so much for your nice message. I am happy to hear you find my lessons helpful.
Don’t worry! I’ll never get tired of making lessons! :)
Good evening. I just found this site because I was so frustrated that I could never understand this concept.
Your explanation was wonderful and now I’m just frustrated that I didn’t find it sooner! Thank you!
先生がみんなすべての答えを知っているわけではない。
Why did it has minna and subete adjectives for kotae, i am thinking that “minna” means all in japanese, and “subete” is means all too. Is it redundant?
こんにちは、Yunkekakugo
You are right. すべて and みんな both mean “all” but in this case, what modifies is different.
先生がみんな = all the teachers (modifies teachers)
すべての答え= all the answers (modifies answers)
Hi fivebx
I added the link to my そう lesson. Did you check that lesson?
It is going to be complicated to show all the difference here but
adjective + そう = to look + adjective
おいしそう= looks delicious
You can’t say おいしいよう to describe something looks delicious.
Then you use it with a verb
while そう can be used only for the future.
よう can be used for the past event.
Hello, in the sentence “就職したら、スーツやジャケットのよう_社会人らしい服装をしたほうがいい” would it be に or な and what is it modifying? Also in the sentence “田中さんはアメリカ人みたいに英語が上手ですね” why is it に if 英語 comes after it?
Thank you!
Maggie, could you please explain this to me.
「日本語で読めるようにしないと。」The しないと part is really confusing me. I think it says something like “I have to read it in Japanese” but I don’t know if that is correct or why it would be.
〜しないと
Vしないといけない・ならない = have to do something.
You often omit the last part いけない・ならない and leave the sentence unfinished on purpose.
If you are talking to yourself,
I have to be able to read it in Japanese.
If you are talking to someone else,
You have to be able to read it in Japanese.
I’m sorry for commenting on this rather old article, but there is something I would like to learn from you.
There is this Japanese girl I have deep feelings for. Ich know that she also likes me a lot, but I can’t figure out how much exactly. However, I am confident, so I want to propose my love to her. Should I say “(name) wo aishiteru yo”, or is it too heavy? If so, were I to use “(Name) ga daisuki da yo” instead? Doesn’t it make a difference if I left out the “ga” before her name (I’ve also read that several times)?
If “koibito”, by the way, is definitely related to a mutual feeling, this makes me even more confident – I’ve called her “watashi no koibito” several times, and she didn’t object that. However, maybe it’s only because I’m a gaijin …
It’s true. “Aishite imasu” is deeper than “daisuki dayo”. The middle one is “~ no koto ga suki desu.”
It may sound strange but “Boku wa ~ no koto ga suki desu.” sounds deeper than “daisuki”.
FYI “koibito” is fine but you use “kanojo” more often in Japanese. “Boku no kanojo ni natte kudasai.” = Please be my girlfriend.
Hello Shehab Eldin,
you can also use follow pattern: ～（という）理由は～（だ）からです in order to describe / show the reason, why something is like it is.
1. 彼は、なぜ一人でその取り憑かれた部屋に入っていたかという理由は未だに明らかではない。
2. 人が彼女のことを「不思議ちゃん」と呼ばれる理由は～からである。
Most natural / common pattern implying why ! I ! did something is, as Maggie said,（な）のはreason (だ）からです。
Thank you for this lesson! I find it easy to understand, especially your explanation for 気味. I do wonder why many books and websites give the meaning of 気味 as “tend to” / “seems like”.
Hello Maggie. I’m a little confused by your reply. Yes, I read in the lesson that verb masu stem + がち = tend to do something. What I meant in my first comment is that many websites and books also translate verb masu stem + 気味 = tend to / seems like. That makes it difficult to understand the difference between がちand 気味. Do you mean in your reply that 気味 also means “tend to”?
Sorry. I was just talking about がち not 気味. I didn’t read your question well and got confused why you asked me.. lol
I don’t know how other sites or book explain. It could be just a translation problem and certain cases, you may able to use “tend to! but when you describe the current condition “slightly/a bit ~” would fit better, I think.
Te+oku reminds me a little bit of the English expression “to set out to do something”. While the English expression may not necessarily focus on future use it still can be used implying that sometimes.
Hello,
I’ve been learning Japanese for a while, but there are still simple things that are confusing to me.
Which particle should I use in a sentence “it’s hot in Japan?”
Your sentence: お姉さんに駅まで送ってくれる.・お姉さんにプールに行くように誘ってくれる.
You don’t use someone+に＋Vくれる
You have to use （The subject は） ＋ someone+に ＋ Vてもらう or Soomeoneが＋Vてくれる
→（私は）お姉さんに駅まで送ってもらう I got my sister take me to the station.
You can also say お姉さんが（私を）駅まで送ってくれる。 My sister will take me to the station for me.
I was invited / asked by my sister to go to the swimming pool?
（私は）お姉さんにプールに誘ってもらった。
お姉さんが（私を）プールに誘ってくれた。
My sister invited/asked me to go to the swimming pool.(And I am happy about that.)
Hi, MAK
It must be a part of some casual conversation.
Since I don’t know the context, I can’t tell what the friend can see but, translation-wise, yes, your are right and
you can rephrase 見える友達がいるから or 友達に、見える人いるから。
Hey Ms. Maggie. How are you doing? I am really grateful in learning Japanese, and your website made me more passionate about Japanese language and Japan in general. I have a blog that talks about Japanese language and culture. Please check it out, and tell me what do you think.
こんにちは、Jay! Thank you for visiting my site. I just visited your site as well. You have a really nice blog!
I am happy that you are interested in Japanese culture and sharing your insights with people.
Allow me to give you one little suggestion.
I am a queen of typos. So your is a minor but…
That’s fine!! I completely understand! I hope we can do it in the future!! Will you please tell your friends and family in Japan about my blog? It would really help me out! I am planning to do a Japanese version of either Yahoo! Japan or Ameba
d(^_^o)
I am grateful to know your site Maggie sensor it’s help me a lot.
＠Lhea
And I am grateful to know we help your Japanese. :)
Maggie先生! Please teach me how to use relative clauses in japanese with い and な adjectives.
I tried to wrote some pharses.
どのおまちゃが新しいですか 新しいのはこのおまちゃです
Hi Maggie. My text book shows the tari form of the verb okoru (to happen) as okitari which does not appear to be correct. However when I put the Japanese sentence using okitari into a translator, it comes up as correct. Why is it not okattari? Love your site. Greetings from Australia
In my textbook there’s this phrase ”学生たちは静かに勉強しています。” which I interpret as the students are studying quietly. I tried googling for the usage of the に here but can’t seem to find a suitable meaning. What is it? 静か is not really a location or thing isn’t it?
Could I also check that for i-adj, the に is not required? In my textbook there is this phrase called “ラジオの音を小さくしました。” I assume that it is an i-adj that’s why you don’t use 小さくにしました。
Hello Maggie Sensei😄😊
I don’t know if it’s too late or not but I’m soooo happpy to found out your page and really exciting to learn each of your lesson.
Thank you for your hardworking, this page so incredible 😆
話した時間違っていたばかりで(特に尊敬語の使った時），なんか勉強のやる気が減らしちゃったけどMaggie先生のページ見つけたら解りやすくて，面白いから勉強のやる気が戻りますよ~
これからもよろしくお願いします😘
There is one place I always in into when I need to understand japanese grammar. That’s Maggie sensei’s site. Maggie sensei’s is awesome Sensitive makes a great effort to make manyxampke sentences. Couldn’t Thank enough!
First if you write something you use kanji 書く and if you draw something you use the kanji 描く
You can usually tell the meaning by the context.
Let’s see..
Ex. 1) これは私が描いているペンです。
= This is a pen that I am drawing with./ I have been drawing with.
Ex. 2) これは私が描いているペンです。
= This is a pen that I have been drawing.
You may hear 1) but it is not clear even for native speakers.
So you may change the verb 使っている and say
これは私が使っているペンです
今、使っているペン
When you are talking about the finished picture.
Ex.3) これは私が描いたペンです。
= this is the pen I draw a picture with.
= this is a pen that I drew.
If you are talking about a pen, you need a word picture
Ex. これは私がこの絵を描いたペンです。
= This is a pen that I drew this picture with.
Hi Maggie,
a further query on iru/aru.
When talking of bacteria, viruses, or bugs/insects, etc., which do I use? I know that plants are considered ‘inanimate’ because they don’t move, but germs or creepy-crawlies?
Many, many thanks.
＠Ted
Interesting questions. As long as they are alive, technically you use いる
微生物(biseibutsu) a microbe
虫 (mushi) insects/bugs
→いる
However, you sometimes use ある (in this case “to exist”) for
バクテリア (vacteria)
ウイルス(virus)
菌 (きん) (germ)
Hello yuuna,
置いておく implies leaving something in a certain state.
That’s why Maggie used this pattern. It sounds just more natural and adds this nuance.
フッフッフ is another way of laughing. Usually when you are up to something.
Your translation is correct.
よう is It seems like/ It looks like
ね in that sentence is a suffix for a female speech. The meaning there is “I guess..”
Check this lesson : How to use ね
Yukari-sensei,
(I didn’t want to ask Maggie-sensei this question, because… well, you’ll see.)
I recently saw a post that a writer incorrectly wrote “Watashi wa inu wo motte imasu. Anata wa arimasu ka?” of course intending to mean “I have a dog. Do you have one?” Couldn’t this be completely correct if, say, the conversation were about taxidermy (剥製術)? Or stuffed (toy) animals for that matter. Then with the living-いるvs non-living-ある thing – if someone said “犬がある”, would a native Japanese automatically think that there’s a dead animal somewhere?
Hello, squidlydeux.
Haha, thank you for being sensitive. :)
Right. If you have a dog as a pet, you say 犬を飼っています。( = Inu wo katte imasu.)
But if you are talking about stuffed animals or some kind of figure collections, you say 犬を持っている。
I don’t think we automatically think there is a dead animal when we hear 犬がある. We just think it’s wrong Japanese. :)
They both mean “There is no way that you would understand how I feel” but たまるもんですか expresses stronger feelings.
It depends on the context but when you use わかりはしない, it sounds like you have already given up.
@Maggi-sensei:
How do I say “Money can buy anything, even happiness” in Japanese?
Is there any idiom that reflects this kind of sentiment/nuance in Japanese?
Hi John,
You can say “愛があればなんでも買える。幸せさえも。”
It is not an idiom but the the common phrase we have has an opposite idea.
愛でお金は買えない。= You can’t buy love with money.
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
Can you please help me? I’m trying to read a manga and I’m having hard time understanding the hodo in this sentence:
「このまま見逃すほど甘くはないですよ？」
If it helps, there’s a battle going on and the person saying this has been ignored this whole time, until she brings out a huge weapon and says this line to the enemy.
ほど in that sentence modifies “このまま見逃す” = to over look like this. (Probably “to let you go without catching you.” in this case.)
So the rough idea is
I am not as sweet as just letting you go like that.”
“Nian Nian先生みたいな小さくてかわいい先生は今までいませんでしたね。”
As I wrote, it means we have never had this little and cute teacher like Nian Nian Sense (until now).
(But now we do!)
I see! But what if there hasn’t been any teacher who’s little and cute like Nian Nian sensei instead (we still don’t have one now), do we say: “Nian Nian先生みたいな小さくてかわいい先生は今までいません。”?
I see your confusion now
Since we already had Nian Nian Sensei in this lesson, “we still don’t have one” context doesn’t work but
When you describe the state as present perfect you say
We haven’t had ~ until now (but we now have one) ~みたいな〜は今までいません
When you describe the state as past you say
We hadn’t had ~ until now ~みたいな〜は今までいなかった
To answer your question, let me change the example sentence.
***
In this blog, we have never had a guest teacher of elephant.
象の先生は今までいません。
In Japanese negation sentences you will find very often the は particle.
There’s no direct translation for the は used here.
The difference is, that は puts more emphasis in the sentence and implies also contrast.
彼のことをほってはおけない = (I can do many things, but) I cannot leave him alone.
Hope it helps ^ ^
ご参考になれば幸いです。
PS. Maggie, I’m waiting for the holy grail of all of your lessons, which is the legendary は vs が lesson ^ ^
Yes シロ, without は the sentence is correct as well.
The ways of expressing yourself in Japanese is that, what I love the most. The other parts are dialects and Classical Japanese（古語）.
hai maggie sensei.
i have troble to understand the meaning of these sentence. just like u wrote above.
tsukareta you na kao wo shiteiru. and
Maggie wa marude dareka ni koi wo shita you na me wo shiteita
thing that i’m wondering is i can’t understand how to translate
kao wo shite iru and me wo shite iru. while the meaning of kao is face and me is eyes. and shite iru is to know (if i wasn’t wrong) if i translate it, it would be to know the face. and to know the eyes. but your translate is diffrent. so o get confuse to translate it. please help me out.
First “to know” is 知る (= shiru) / 知っている (= shitte iru) not している (=shiteiru)
The expressions that I used in the examples sentences are
Also you may want to know this expression.
Subjectは+ adjective + body part + をしている
Maggieはきれいな目をしている
= Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru.
= Maggie has beautiful eyes.
( = マギーの目はきれいだ = Maggie no me wa kirei da)
so is that mean
Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru. and
Maggie no me wa kirei da
in english has the same meaning as “maggie has beatiful eyes”??
sorry for too much question. i just sleepless when thingking about something ^=^!! and i just started to learn japanese.
They could be translated the same but to be precise,
1) Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru.
Maggie has beautiful eyes.
2) Maggie no me wa kire da.
Maggie’s eyes are beautiful.
owhhh!! u realy light me up !! arigato gozaimashita sishou !!
@budi
Anytime! :)
From Maggie Shishou 🤣
I was reading in your lessons ^_^. I found it very good, informative, colorful and easy to understand. I wanted to thank you for all the time and the efforts. The world is a good place, because of people like you. I am living and working in Japan. Thus, I am trying to learn more.
1. Please explain the difference between “dekiru dake” and “dekiru made”.
I understand “dekiru dake” means “as much as possible” but, since I think of “dake” to mean “only,” I mistakenly think of “dekiru dake” as “do only what you can”. It’s hard for me to shake this!
I think “dekiru made” means “do only what you can” but I think of “made” as “until,” so my intution is to (incorrectly) translate “dekiru made” as “do as much as you can” (like, “do until your stopping point”).
2. Is there a nmenonic for remembering the difference in usage?
3. There is a typo in this example — it’s missing the “e” in dekite: Ano futari wa dkite iru mitaida.
What happens is that the song is about two people (I did not put the complete lyrics) so I assumed that supporting each other was just something between them.
こんにちはマギー先生👩🏫
I have a problem understanding this sentence can you plea help me 😊🤗also I am not sure where the あれかgoes maybe at the beginning or at the end what would me more sense? Also is the nai form plus to = have to or something else
あれか仲直りさせないと。
仲直りさせないとあれか。
Sorry i now it’s hard because it’s not so clear but please try you would help me a lot thank you 😊
Hi Chii!
仲直りさせないと = to make some (or to let someone, depending from the context) fixed up a quarrel / to make someone make up with someone.
EX. 僕はその二人を仲直りさせようとしたけど・・・。
The あれか part is unclear for me, I need a wider context.
The position of あれか, at the end,
仲直りしないとあれか。 sounds more natural.
As 天人 says, it depends on the context but you sometimes say あれか to make your speech vague on purpose to avoid saying いけない・だめ・まずい (not good)
Or only the speaker knows what is going to happen (some bad consequences such as divorce, etc. ) or just looking for the right word.
Thank you both for your help 😊🤗👍😉 now I have an idea what it can mean than you both your explanations are so great they helped me a lot 😊👍🤗😉 as for the あれか I would say it stands for いけない in this situation also I would choose it because the pattern ない+と+ いけない I think I haven’t seen it some were before. 🤔 I hope I get it right 😊🤗
I’m playing the Japanese version of Final Fantasy III on my PSP.
In the early part of the game (right now I’m before the final boss fight) the 光の戦士たち were captured by the bahamur dragon at Dragon’s Peak and sent back into his nest. They found there a guy called デッシュ, which apparently was the one who they were searching for.
Now it comes my 気になる part. The moment デッシュ saw them, he started the conversation with: 「ハハハ！すべて見物させてもらったよ。おまえたちもドジだねえ～！ドラゴンにさらわれてザマないな！」.
I want just to make sure that I understand 「見物させてもらったよ」 correctly. Two translation-possibilities, where only one is correct.
1. Ironically speaking, the party received a favour from the Dragon of sightseeing his nest; デッシュ describes the situation from the party’s perspective, that’s why he uses ～てもらう.
– However this point does not explain, why ！～させて！もらう was used here…
2. デッシュ allowed himself to watch (to observe) the whole spectacle, where the dragon captured the party, etc.
– This explains, why ～させてもらう was used.
In your opinion, Maggie, which point is correct, No. 1 or No. 2?
My bonus question is regarding ドラゴンにさらわれてザマないな！
I’d translated it as: What a pity you let yourself get caught by that dragon!” or “You let yourself get caught by that dragon! Shame on you!” or “Ow boy, that’s really bad, you let yourself get caught by that dragon!”
Which translation of ザマないな would fit here the most?
よろしくお願いします！
PS Now I found out the best way to learn Japanese; since I noticed I understand over 90% from the dialogues, I became suddenly able to play J-RPG games. 素晴らしいことじゃないか！さあ、次はファイナルファンタジー IXだわい！よーし！
全て見物させてもらったよ
I saw everything.
As you said 1) 見物 in that sentence doesn’t mean “sightseeing” . When you witness or see/watch the fight and as “an entertainment” , you also use 見物
You can not exactly translate the nuance in English but 見物させてもらったよ just means “I saw / I have seen”. You use passive causative form when you look down on someone to show you are superior to others.
Ex. 全部聞かせてもらったよ。
= I have heard everything. / I heard everything.
If you need to translate “させてもらう” part in English somehow, it could be
I took the liberty of watching the whole thing.
but he uses his politeness as sarcasm.
bonus question:
I would say the first one
You can also translate “How pathetic” instead of “pity”
Thank you very much Maggie for your help!
Thanks to you, I learned something new today.
Yesterday I completed FF III! But I’m gonna spend a few days to make my save file a perfect one.
FF IX is awaiting…!＊ワクワク＊
Maggie sensei, I have a question about a sentence from your answer.
The sentence
全部聞かせてもらったよ. ( I have heard everything/ I heard everything)
Does it literally mean “ (Someone lets me heard everything) because it is a causative verb?
Hi Khan
聞かせる A lets B hear everything.
聞かせてもらう B got hear everything thanks to A.
But this is an expression you use when B heard something without A’s intention.
B takes liberty of hearing the story from A.
I see.
So does the sentence in this situation have the same usage, Maggie sensei.
A crimnial kidnaps a friend of a police that he hates. Then he tortures him. Before the police friend have any serious injuries. The police arrives. It was very lucky for him to be able to find the criminal hideout. He then handcuff the crimmial easily without using too much streghth. The crimminal surrenders and tell him to throw him back in jail. The police then stare at the criminal and say
” I was thinking about it, but before that…”
“君が言ってたことをそのまま俺もやらせてもらうよ”
After he says this sentence, he starts to punch the criminal face over and over.
Does this sentence means “I will do what you have said, too”?
The police takes the liberty of doing what the criminal have said.
Yes. I will take the liberty of doing what you have said, too.
Maggie, hello.
You are the cutest dog (except for mine).
I once heard this in an anime (進撃の巨人): エレンを傷つけたりしないよ
Eren wo kizutsuketari shinai yo
And this was translated as ‘I wouldn’t hurt Eren’
So tari can be used to express that someone would do something.?
Hi Robert!
In this case ～たり implies other possibilities beside those, which were mentioned.
So basically it means that the speaker would never do something bad to Ellen, like hurting her in any way.
～たりalso it adds lots of emphasis.
A good translation, which shows the ～たり part, would be: “I would n e v e r hurt Ellen!”
And yes, it can express an action towards another person => EX. 人に嫌がることをさせたり笑いものにするのが好き、だという人が、残念ながら、いる。
Hmm I don’t do the translation but the idea is
Unfortunately there are people who like forcing other people do things they dislike or laugh at them.
Thanks for answering Sensei!
So … even if we take into account that the song is about two people “We laughed and cried with many people. We would also support each other “(The two persons only)” would be incorrect?
hi magie sensei !!
i just lernd the material to day !! n i quite don’t understand about this
verb+ mitai+ na+ noun!! like this exmple
Dezunii ni iru to otogibanashi no sekai ni iru mitai na kibun ni nareru.
can u explain me about kibun ni nareru?? i can’t understand when i tried to translate it without seeing the meaning!! so please for help
and please this one!!
yume no naka demo hataraiteiru mitai na ki ni naru.
why it use “ki ni naru”?
Hi budi,
〜気になる ( ki ni naru) has many meanings but in this case it means “to feel like +Ving”
〜気分になる ( kibun ni naru) as well. (気分になれる is a potential form so it means ”to be able to feel like ~” )
oww!! kibun ni naru is potensial form?? how do we form like that?? i only know the potensial form just to add eru n rareru!! do u have lesson about this?? and can u explain me more abot adverb !!
Oji mitai ni jiyuu ni ikitai.
Konpyuutaa mitai ni seikaku ni keisan dekinai.
i’m wondering, why it use ni after jiyuu and seikaku??
OK, you can make an adjective or an adverb with certain nouns by adding な / に
自由 = jiyuu = (noun) freedom
1) ＋な
自由な = free (adjective) free
2) +に
自由に= jiyuu ni = (adverb) freely
正確 = seikaku = (noun) accuracy
1) ＋な
正確な = seikaku na = accurate
2) +に
正確に= seikaku ni = (adverb) accurately
aaah!! thank u so much for explaination!! i really appreciate ur reaply!! i’ve studied about japan’s language on many site !! but only u the one who would like to answer my question!! arigatou maggie sansei
@budi
どういたしまして、budi! :)
Maggie Sensei,
Just wanted to say thanks for making this lesson for me :)
Maggie sensei, can I know how verbs can be joined with nouns? I read this before from a Japanese textbook but I forgot the proper conjugation。I think it was 行くバス。In other words, is there a general rule around this grammar type?
And as usual, thank you for constantly teaching us new stuff! :D
Hi Banana
行くバス
It must be a part of a sentence
For example “学校へ行くバス” a bus which goes to the school.
そのバスは学校へ行く That bus goes to the school
→describe the bus
学校へ行くバス
Check this lesson. How to modify a noun.
なさそう = it seems like there isn’t
For example you are looking for something and can’t seem to find it.
You say
ここにはなさそうだ。
= It seems like it is not here.
Ex. マギーはお金がなさそうだ。
= It seems like Maggie doesn’t have any money.
It’s me again 😊 I have trouble understanding this sentence can you please help me 😊😉🤗
ていうかテレビだったら見てるだけでいいから楽だし。
I am interested in the meaning of だったら and also the combination of だけでいいから gives me problems. Also I wanted to ask what だけで means I’ve come across it many times now and still don’t really understand it’s meaning 🤔
Hi Chii
Vだけでいい= just doing something is good enough/ just need to do something. That’s all
見てるだけでいい = just watching is good enough. You don’t need to do anything./ You just need to watch it, that’s all.
Noun + だったら is a casual way to show the topics. (= テレビは）
As for ~
First of all, this website is great to learn japanese ! This lesson seems quite easy to understand ! どうもありがとう !
I just want to check if I got it. For example, if I want to say “Please refrain to eat with a fork”, should I write フォークで食べるのは避けて下さい ?
Yes, I read your explanation regarding the difference between に and へ in one of your older comments. I’m just confused with the addition of と after へ. What purpose does と serve? It’s not a quote in the sentence right?
Ah, OK,
That と has a function to express “in such a manner” / “in the way” and describes the way how things work/ how someone does things and modifies the verb which comes after, in this case 広がった.
It would be easier to think と（いうように）
“〜へ….(a) “というように広がった。
(the part (a) describes how it expanded.)
I have some trouble understanding this sentence 😓 I would really appreciate your help 😉😊
ちょ肉球がじゃまで押しにく …
First I don’t really understand the ちょ at the beginning I thought it could be a other writing style of the ちょう which stand for ちょっとin kansai Ben and also i don’t really understand the じゃま or 邪魔 in this case and also the ending is totally confusing for me 😓😅
Hello Chii!!
ちょ is a slang expression of ちょっと which means “kind of/ a little” You see that a lot on the comment section of Niconico douga. チョ！, ちょ etc.
Did you find the sentence with a cat or dog picture?
~がじゃま in that sentence means “to make it hard to do something with ~”
So it means
It is kinda hard to type with my paws.
Yes I found this sentence with a cat picture 😊😉 thank you so much 😊 👍😊😉 put can you please explain me the 押しにく at the end is it kind of an adverb or is it a negative form 😅 That’s what’s bothering me 😓 But thank you so much for the explanation of ちょ and じゃま 🤗👍😊😉
Hello maggie sensei
Thank you very much for the lesson, it was very useful. I have some questions.
1. so are verbs like 走り続ける made the same way? As in 走るー＞走りますー＞走り＋続ける?
2. if that is the case when should i make it a verb like 走り続ける and when should i add する in the end?
3. would 眠る事ができない be correct? i know its simpler to say 眠れない but i just wanted to know if its wrong or not
4.so 書き is not valid on its own but if its combined with other nouns it can form words? Are there many other instances like that? can every verb be turned into a noun like that?
5. difference between わけがない and わけない? if there is a lesson just link me there
6. difference between 忘れはしない and 忘れやしない?
7. and finally is っこない exactly the same as はしない in meaning?
6. They mean the same but while you use 忘れはしない for yourself or someone else to express your strong will not to forget, you tend to use 忘れやしない for someone else and it has a connotation of looking down on that person a little.
彼はあのことを忘れやしない。He is not going to forget about that. (It implies he should let it go but he wouldn’t)
7. っこない is a casual form. Basically they mean the same. Also it is similar to わけはない
I have seen a lot on Japanese sweets packages but I don’t really understand what they want to express 🤔🤷♀️ And what this ほど is used for. I had the idea that it maybe can have like a sense of “amazingly tasty” or “it’s so delicious to chew”. Does this make sense? I am so confused please help me😓🙏
噛むほどうまい is actually
噛めば噛むほどうまい. So the first part (噛めば） is missing.
The more you chew, the more flavor comes out or you get
The more you chew, the more tasty it gets.
This was a great post, thanks! (Sorry, I’m 7 years late) The 記念切手 got me really excited, but I’m wondering, do they still sell it, considering that most of them were released years ago?
Thanks for any help!
Hi Lindy,
Every year, they sell different 記念切手. If you want old ones, you can buy them on some auction sites.
They were selling Ghibli stamps last year.
Hello Yan!
ほど used in this sentence implies “the more… the…”.
So according some scientific studies a negative correlation was found between drinking coffee and getting freckles (= the more coffee you drink, the less you are prone to getting freckles [lit. the harder freckles you can get]).
You can say 飲めば飲むほど,too.
Here’s the difference:
1) verbばverbほど〜
飲めば飲むほど the more you drink, the more ~
2) Noun ほど〜
飲む人ほど(* 飲む modifies a noun 人） People who drink ~ (talking about the tendency/possibility.)
Ex. 練習すればするほど上手になります。
= The more you practice, the better you will become
Ex. 練習する人ほど上手になります。
= People who study more tend to be able to do better.
I have problems to fully understand どんなに used in this particular expression with ても because I relate どんな with “way, method, manner” because of the よう abbreviated in the expression, but the english equivalent requieres “how much” which I think it is not implied in どんなに. Could it be that どんなに is implying the manner in which you do somehting, “it doesn’t matter how you do it” instead of “how much you do it”?
If you could help me get a better understanding of this I would appreaciate it.
Thanks for the lesson.
Hey Maggie,
I want to thank you for all your great lesson on this awesome language 😊😘
I wanted to give you something back for your hard work 😉 I tried my best to make some summary sheets for this lesson and wanted to ask if you can please take a look on them😊😉 if you like them or you find them useful, maybe you can share it with all the other Japanese learners here to 😊 how can I send them to you ?
Hi Maggie sensei!
Sorry to add more troublesome question…
It has been 8 months since I came in Tokyo and I indeed noticed that なかなか is quite often used both in casual and in formal situations. Even in TV I heard it a lot of times. Since many adverbs of this kind is actually used too, I was trying to do quite a “degree list” of the most used ones.
Yes なかなか can be used both in formal and casual way.
As for your degree list,
ものすごく is very casual. It is the same level as 非常に.
よっぽど and 大いに、大分 are bit different in the usagewise. (For example, you don’t say よっぽど美しい/おいしい 大分美しい/おいしい as a compliment. )]If you say 十分にきれい。You are beautiful enough.
You use 十分に when you are talking about amount.
Ex. 十分食べた= I had enough.
Hi Maggie, congratulations on your website! The passion for the Japanese language is very clear in your work! Great job!
I hope you can help me with the following request. I am trying to find an expression to thank my son’s teachers for the past (and future) guidance and help in his sport (jiu jitsu).
I found Itsuno osewa ni narimasu/narmashita and
Domo arigato gozaimashita
Could I use any of the two expressions? Or do you have a better phrase that expresses gratitude on a more apropriate way?
Hello Maggie Sensai, thank you for all the examples in this lesson. I think I have grasped the ideas of when or how to use たら. However, I have a question about the following sentence:
もしそうだったらわたし
Is it different in meanings from this:
もしわたしがそうだったら
I read somewhere that the second sentence means “If I were like that…”
Thank you 天人 and Maggie Sensai. That was why I asked in the first place, 😅because the entire sentence is
もしそうだったらわたし、つごうわるいな。
My original attempt to translate the above is:
If that’s the case, to me it’s inconvenient, hmmmm.
What do you think?
＠Presto
Ah, OK, the whole sentence makes more sense.
You sometimes switch the word order or drop a particle in conversation.
The whole sentence is
もしそうだったら、わたしは都合が悪いな。
If that’s the case, it is not good for me ( I am not available)
Wonderful! ありがとうございます、マギー先生❣
@Presto
どういたしまして！
＠天人
Thank you for helping Presto! ❤️
I would like to download the audio fragments in order to make a wonderful compilation of phrases. They’re so useful and your voice is so clear and beautiful, is that possible? Thank you for this wonderful site
Hi Claudia, Thank you for visiting this site!
I am not sure if you can download the audio fragments from this site right now…
But I will record more phrases and think about the ways to download the sound files somehow. :)
Hi there!
Regarding the question: “Does it need to have a “toiukimochi\toiukanji” after “verb+teagetai”?” The answer is yes. In this case the という part has the function of describing what (kind of) feeling does the speaker mean, namely the feeling (or desire) to help someone (手伝ってあげたい).
The pattern ～てあげたい (like Maggie mentioned) is used here because the person, who the speaker is talking to, is:
1) the source of the action
2) the action is toward others (me or other people are the receivers of that action).
Just think like I’d talking to you and come to the conclusion, that you have got no urge to help other people (or particularly me) at all. You are the source of the action, and the action is toward others, therefore you have to use ～てあげたい and because I’m describing, what kind of action I mean, I use という気持ち.
To be absolutely clear ” therefore you have to use ” => “therefore I have to use”. I, because I am sending the communicate (my opinion) to you.
It’s a bit confusing, but no panic. After 5 years of regular contact with 日本語you gonna get used to it!
Hi, Presto,
It means He just talking about that.
Let me break it down.
そればかり繰り返し言っています。
そればかり = just that matter
繰り返し repeatedly
言っています is saying/ has been saying
From just that sentence, I can’t see the “regret” part.
hi Maggie sensei ..
I’m happy you’re back with new lessons..
in these examples,
Ex. 離れていると会いたさが増す。
Ex. 木々の緑の深みがましてきた。
why did you say増す( masu ) instead of ( fueru )?
don’t they have the same meaning of increasing ?
You don’t say 会いたさが増える・深みが増える
Of course, there are exceptions but general difference is you tend to use 増す for something you can’t count, degree, amount, strength, something intangible which you can express with an adjective
You use 増える for something countable, tangible, 数が増える・人数が増える・人が増える
Hello, マギー先生！私が中国人です。
It’s my first time to read this blog, I think it’s awesome! It can teach me lots of command used of Japanese so I love this blog so much!
Hope you–マギー先生,can post more blogs about japanese lessons!
I will follow this blog, 頑張ります！
Thank you for the lesson. I had so much question about ように。Some question have been answered after reading your lesson above. Which is stated as point 1.
1. いつだって泳げなくても 飛びこめるように
The ように above should be: I wish I can jump/dive in.（Just learned from your lesson, thank you very much) :D
However, I have a question regarding below two sentences.
HI Maggie先生、Thank you for the post. I’ve been searching the explanation for the particle end with し。Your explanation is very in detail and clear. I’ve learned a lot today. ありがとうございました。
先生、you are amazing! Your lessons are really good and easy to understand. Even I could clatify the things that I could not understand in my Japanese classes nor at school.
Thank you so much 先生。
And another thing I should say, your web site is really cool♡ because there are pets ♡ i love them
I came across the word わざと and was wondering if it has the same meaning as わざわざ?
By the way, I found your website quite a while ago and I just wanted to thank you for the amazing lessons you put up! On a side note sorry for asking a question on such an old lesson haha! :p
Hello, Banana!
Thank YOU for visiting my site!
わざと and わざわざ are different. わざと means “(to do something) on purpose/ intentionally ”
Ex. わざとぶつかった。= to bump into someone on purpose.
I want to ask about “いつものように” and “いつもみたいに”, is there any exact difference between these two? Because I just found a question “彼らはいつも _______ ソファーの上でレコードをきいていた” and rather than “みたいに” it said the right answer is “のように”.
A lot of time ように and みたいに are replaceable. However, I agree with the answer.
いつもみたいに〜きいていた。doesn’t sound natural. Maybe it’s because the word いつも is an adverb.
Though some people might say that in colloquial conversation,
” いつものように + verb ” is more proper.
I’m native Japanese, and my local hairstylist said she was having difficulty communicating with overseas customers who visits her salon. This post was also perfect for the Japanese speakers. I would like to say thank you in behalf of her!
I understood your explanation. I should use the form てはいけない in te first person instead beki, but i wish to know if its ok use the form ばいい with first person.
Hi,can you help me?
What does 写真 シェアされました mean? I’d say its “the picture was shared,published”. Is this line in the passive voice? 写真にシェアされました sounds like “something was shared by the picture” and 写真は自分にシェアされました “the picture was shared by me”. These last 2 lines seem to be in the causative-passive form,yet I’m unsure about the first one.
Hi David,
You sometimes drop a particle. I don’t know the context but from just that the line, I think it means 写真はシェアされました。 The picture was shared. (passive form) (It doesn’t say by whom)
You got the point Julia.
This 「様に」 has no direct translation. It expresses hoping or wishing for something. In this case a desire for experiencing pain while doing something god doesn’t want you to know about : ))
“Do it harder, till it hurts!” would be the best translation, I guess.
But I can’t decide what to do with 味あう. I mean, maybe it’s something like “It would be nice to taste each other”, so the “you ni” part is connected only with the “味あう” and has nothing to do with the “もっと激しさを痛い程” part. Or it’s more likely that “you ni” refers to the whole sentence?
It’s from the lyrics of one of BUCK-TICK songs, right?
~ように means 1) “in order to / to ~ ” 2) like ~
The literal translation is
Like enjoying the passion (or intensity) so much that it hurts
Well, Maggie took some trouble and fished up the whole context.
I just took a shortcut and listened to my エッチマインド when I saw “a poetry full of darkness and eroticism”.
味あう is just an unorthodox variant of 味わう.
Context is always the key.
Have a good day!
＠Julia
You’re welcome!
@天人
lol You did a great job there!
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
I still can’t grasp the meaning of -te shimau completely because I can’t fully understand the difference of -te shimau when used compared to normal ones. Like for example, if I use -te shimau when asking for permission, what would the difference be when I use -te mo ii?
Does sentences with -te shimau generally mean they’re negative?
My native Japanese teacher can’t explain the meaning of te-shimau as well ;-;
Thanks in advance !!
You mean the difference between てもいい？ and しまってもいい？ like these?
1) これ食べてもいいですか？
2) これ食べてしまってもいいですか？
1) is simply asking for a permission for an action of eating. “Can I eat this?”. You say that before you eat something.
2) is asking for a permission for eating the whole thing. It implies you eat the last piece of something. You say that either before you eat something or when you are already eating. “Can I finish this?”
So while Vてもいいですか is just asking someone if you can do something or not and you don’t need to fish doing / complete something,
Vてしまってもいいですか？ implies if you can finish doing something.
私をリストに加えてほしいです。(= Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete hoshii desu.)
私をリストに加えてくれない？ ( = Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete kurenai?) (casual)
→(more polite) 私をリストに加えて頂けないでしょうか？ （= Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete itadake nai de shouka?)
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Sorry this isn’t related to this lesson, but I have a general translation question I would like your help with!
So I’m trying to translate this song (full lyrics here: http://vocaloidlyrics.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%8F%8D%E8%8A%BB%E3%81%AE%E5%8D%B0%E8%B1%A1_(Hansuu_no_Inshou) )
and I came across this line:寝台列車も星と日付と共倒れ
What I could get out of it was: “Even the sleeper car falls together with the stars and the date.”
That doesn’t really make sense; I was wondering if “As the stars fall, and the date changes, the sleeper car falls out of use” would be correct for that. It seems a bit too interpretive to me, but it was the only thing that made sense to me.
What would you think is most likely the intended meaning of that phrase?
Thank you!
The literal meaning is your first translation. “Even the sleeper car falls together with the stars and the date.”
But your interpretation is correct. :)
I have another question on the same song, if you don’t mind.
I was torn between interpretations of this lyric:
看守が微笑む偶然を寝そべり待ちぼうけ
Lying on the ground, I wait in vain for the chance (for/when) the jailer smiles.
Lying on the ground, I wait in vain for the jailer to smile by chance/coincidentally.
For my first interpretation, I’m not sure if the person is waiting for the jailer to smile, as in their chance/opportunity is in itself the jailer smiling, or if they are waiting for a chance when the jailer smiles, like they want to do something and they think their best bet is the moment he smiles.
Yet I found in examples that 偶然 almost always means simply “by chance;” yet it definitely seems like 看守が微笑む is the attributive phrase and 偶然 is being used completely as a noun here; but I found almost no examples of its usage as a noun, which really threw me.
Anyways, which one of the three options do you think it is? Or is it none of those and I’m just totally wrong? (Hopefully not!)
Thank you, again, for your help!
＠Holly Werb
You can’t find any examples because you don’t say 偶然を待ちぼうけ It is another original expression.
The person is waiting for the chance when the jailer smiles. So the first interpretation is right.
Okay, I was wondering why I wasn’t seeing any examples. Thank you!
You’re welcome! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I have yet another question, if you don’t mind, on the same song. This song is proving very hard to translate! O~O
本当は思ってなんかいやしない
Literally, this would be something like “In truth, I thought and something did not (emphatically) exist. ” That, of course, makes no sense, but I’m unsure as to what it really means.
Possibly – “In reality, what we had thought of didn’t exist.” Or maybe “Really, we did not think (with なんか being an example of tmesis – though I’m not sure if that exists in Japanese)” Though I don’t think it’s either of those…
Anyways, thank you so much for helping me again!
@Holly Werb
Hello,
~なんていやしない is a casual way to negate something strongly. It means the same as “思ってなんていない。”
It means
The person is not really thinks so.
Hi Presto
I think there is a typo in your sentence. くるいそって→くるいそうって
Let me rephrase this
幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか。
→幸せで気がくるいそうって、こんな状態をいうのかしら。
幸せで気が狂いそう = (to feel like) going crazy because one is really happy
こんな状態= this kind of state/condition
〜を = object marker
いう = to indicate/ to mean
~のかしら (female speech) = I wonder
Now put them together since I don’t do the translation. 😉
You’re absolutely right, Maggie Sensai!!! There was a typo right there 😁 どうもありがうとございました‼
Here is my attempt to translate. Please let me know if I’m far off.
I’m so happy that I feel that I’m going crazy. I wonder if my condition indicates that.
But this doesn’t sound like natural English, so if I can rephrase it, I’d say “I’m so happy that I feel that my condition indicates that I’m going crazy.” This still sounds cumbersome, to be honest… Sigh.
@Presto
OK, it basically means
I wonder this is what it’s like to go crazy with happiness.
Ahhh…. That’s so much better, Maggie Sensai! You’re the best!!! I’ve been reading your various posts, and they are real treasures to me!! Thanks a million!
@Presto
Good, problem solved! :)
I am happy to hear you have been reading my lessons!
Hello there!
Long time no see, Maggie ^ ^ (although I’m almost everyday here to check your comments and learn – thanks to that – something new).
I’ve got an additional question regarding this post.
So here we go!
「幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか。」
Could you tell me, Maggie, how strong the meaning would change, if we use instead of ～のことをいうのだろうか just ～なのだろうか or ～のことだろうか.
In other words, why was here used ～をいう?
1), 2) and 3) mean the same.
The nuance difference:
2) & 3)
2) sounds slightly stronger than 3) and you can express your feelings more with なの
3) In this case, いう means “to call something as ~ ” /”to describe something as ~””
Now, let’s rephrase the sentences a little to understand these better. (I will add one more pattern.)
A) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことです。
Simply stating the fact. A is B.
B) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことなのです。
By adding な, you can emphasize the meaning of A)
C) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいいます。
The direct translation
→We call this kind of condition “going crazy with happiness”
D) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのです。
The meaning is the same as C) but it sounds more explanatory.
I’m doing fine, thank you for asking.
While I was preparing my breakfast I had an enlightenment regarding my yesterday’s question.
I realized that this をいう has the meaning of “to be called”, therefore 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか = I’m wondering if this [referring to a certain state/condition] is what is called to feel like going crazy with happiness.
Shortly after that I run quick on maggiesensei.com to check, if you answered my question, and I saw, what I wanted to see ^w^
みんなの質問に答えて、みんなを幸せにしてくれてありがとうございます！
@天人
元気でよかった！
Good! That’s why it is important to prepare your breakfast! (^_−)−☆
Maggie-sensei,
My textbook has numbered lessons but also has numbered sub-lessons. How would I say, “Lesson 4, section 3”? I know lesson 4 is “daiyonka”, but I don’t know how to deal with the other part.
Arigatoo!
いつも= always (いつも is a noun but it works as an adverb as well)
みたいに= as / like
→いつもみたいに = as always / like you always do
ぼんぼんってして →ぼんぼん= onomatopoeia to modifies a verb, する, but in colloquial conversation you can think ぼんぼんってする as a verb.
It depends on the context but it could mean “pat on my head” You also say ポンポンする
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。 You are already in the bed or telling someone that you saw someone made a bed for you.
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあるよ。 You are not in the bed yet. You are looking at the clean bed.
I wonder if teatta shall be used only if the speaker is enjoying \ doing something through whatever was done by others,
or if might be also used if the speaker is attempting to say he enjoyed\ did something through what other people have done.
料理作ってある
The food was prepared (it wasn’t eaten yet)
料理作ってあった
The food was prepared
Shall I say this only if I\someone is eating it right now?
Or if someone ate it as well?
Please correct me:
10年前あそこに車を停める。 The car was parked 10 years ago and its still there.
10年前あそこに車を停めてあった。When the speaker saw the car,it has been parked there for 10 years already.
The current state of that car is unknown.
The speaker is aware of something through whatever was done by others.
As you say we can usually tell the speaker enjoys the state/enjoyed doing something but てあった doesn’t always mean that the speaker enjoyed doing something or not.
It could just describe some state which has done by others.
Ex. 家に帰ったら料理が作ってあったけれどもお腹がいっぱいだったから食べなかった。
= Ie ni kaettara ryouri ga tsukutte atta keredomo onaka ga ippai datta kara tabenakatta.
= When I got home, I saw the food prepared for me but I didn’t eat it because I was full.
(the speaker is aware of what has been done for him/her but we can’t tell he/she enjoyed the fact.)
More extreme example
Ex. テーブルに離婚届が置いてあった。
= Teiburu ni Rikon todoke ga oite atta.
= a divorce paper was on the table.(the wife/husband put the divorce paper and left it on the table on purpose)
10年前あそこに車を停める。 The car was parked 10 years ago and its still there.
→it should be 10年前からあそこに車が停めてある。
10年前あそこに車を停めてあった。When the speaker saw the car,it has been parked there for 10 years already.
The current state of that car is unknown.
→Correct.
こんにちは、Róbert!
Someone else was asking me the same question on FB but I don’t know if there is one in English.
It’s all in Japanese but how about http://thesaurus.weblio.jp/
If you turn nemuru on its side it looks like a bed and a sheet with a persons head touching the sheet and the body as it floats and the mountains in the back ground and left to right turning into hills and then to the winding river as if the person has returned to the earth and its nature and the physics of motion and the change from being to the condition of not being.
Wonderful website and truly helpful lessons! After I finished basic Japanese grammar I was stuck for quite a while, not knowing how to continue developing my knowledge. It’s really difficult to transition from purely academic level to more colloquial expressions. Your amazing blog is really helping me with that. Thank you so much for your hard work and dedication.
Thank you for adding the part about the negative. I had been searching online everywhere for the negative form but nobody has it but you!
So since なります means to become (polite), can I also use なりません to mean the negative form?
For example… 面白くなりません, will that mean to become not interesting?
Hi Yan!
Basically when you judge from the appearance/what you see, you use そう and when you judge things by having observed them or gathering information, you use よう.
彼、優しそうな人です。 He looks sweet. (The speaker/writer is judging him by his appearance.)
彼、優しいような人です。→It should be 彼は、優しい人のようです。(According to what the speaker/writer has been observing, he seems like a nice person.)
雨が降りそうです。It looks like rain. /It is about to rain.
雨が降るようです。It will probably rain. / It is likely to rain.
There is one more
雨が降るそうです。( I heard it will rain.)
The verb “あげる/to give” itself shows one’s willingness (to give something for someone/ Verb causative form て＋あげる。 = to let someone do something) so it will be strange to say あげさせられた.
先生が質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Teacher let someone ask lots of questions.
According to your lesson I guess this line would actually mean “Teacher let ME ask many queries” .
However 先生が誰かに質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Sounds more like “Sensei let someone do many questions as a favor for me”(For this case I’d use 聞かせてあげてくれた instead,though)
than “Sensei let someone do many questions”. I think “sensei let someone do many queries” would be 先生が\は誰かに質問をたくさん聞かせてあげた。
I’m a bit confused on せてくれる\せてあげる.
I took the “kureru,morau and ageru” lesson from you already,so I know that shitekureru and shitemoraeru\morau means “to do for me\to do as a favor to me”,whereas shiteageru means “to do (something) as a favor to somebody else”.
Yet I found on another website that together with させて\せて, both kureru and ageru becomes “allow to do”.
“Causative verb: Context will usually tell you what is being meant, but for our purposes we will assume that when the verb is used with 「あげる」 and 「くれる」（ください） it means “to let someone do” while it means, “to make someone do” when used without these”.
There an example on that site
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Teacher let (someone) ask lots of questions.
Is this wrong?
According to your lesson I guess this line would mean “Teacher let ME ask many queries”.
For “teacher let someone ask lots of questions” I’d use 聞かせてあげた instead.
As like 内緒の話聞かせてあげる。
I’ll let you hear a secret story\I’ll tell you a secret story
@Vinicius
Right.
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
means “The teacher let someone ask many questions.”
If the speaker is talking about the teacher, it could be
“The teacher let me ask many questions.” as well. It could be just the speaker when she/he asked the questions
(You can also say
先生は生徒に/私に質問をたくさんさせてくれた。
= The teacher let the students/me ask many questions.
***
For “teacher let someone ask lots of questions” I’d use 聞かせてあげた instead.
→You can’t use あげる when you are talking about the other people. You use あげる/あげた when you talk about yourself.
Thankyou.
So it’s not possible to use the-tai ending? Maybe that would just complicate things?
I’m thinking of other verbs like…
I want you to make him go..
i want you to make me happy…
or even
I want to be taken
I want to be told
I want to be cured
also, what’s the difference between wanting and needing?
The basic difference between たい and ほしい is
you use たい to express your own desire and
食べたい = I want to eat.
買いたい = I want to buy
You can’t use Vたい to express the third person’s desire because you don’t know how much other people want to do.
X 彼はアイスクリームを食べたい
X 彼は車を買いたい。
Now when you want someone to do something you can say either ほしい or たい
Someone に食べてほしい = I want someone to eat.
Someone に買ってほしい = I want someone to buy
Causative
Someone AにSomeoneBを家に帰らせてほしい = I want A to make B go home.
Someoneに食べてもらいたい = I would like someone to eat ~ .
someoneに買ってもらいたい。 = I would like someone to buy ~ .
Causative
Someone AにSomeoneBを家に帰らせてもらいたい = I would like A to make B go home.
てもらいたい sounds more polite and expresses the speaker’s request.
@Yuna
If you are talking about a small space such as a bed or a sofa,somewhere special or unusual, you use に because you are focusing on the place.
So if you are simply talking about sleeping in a room, you use 部屋で寝る
Ex.Talking to a child who falls a sleep in a living room
部屋で寝なさい。= Go sleep in a room.
(focusing on the action of sleeping)
It will be strange to say 部屋に寝なさい。
Exception, if you are talking about special room and focusing on the place, it is possible to use に
Really enjoyed reading this one. I’ve known about み and さ but never really thought about there being a difference between the two.
I just wanted to let you know I spotted a typo in the article earlier that might make things a little confusing for beginners who might not have Kana memorized quite yet:
“You can’t say X 美しみ= = utsukuMISHI”
はじめまして、インドネシアから来ました。
別のことですが、
お聞きところがありますが、宜しいでしょうか。
Written Warning is given up to twice every15days since the obligation is not fulfilled。
義務が果たせない時からの１５日間に2回まで警告された場合、書面での警告は与えられる」正しいでしょうか。
教えて頂けませんか。御願いします。
Hello Maggie it is me! I came and checked out your lesson!
I was wondering, but when you said がる makes the adjective into a verb- it’s not really a direct translation into a verb, so how would we know if we’re not native speakers?
Eg you said: かわいい: cute
かわいがる: to dote on someone, to be affectionate.
But that’s not really making ‘cute’ into a verb, because the verb version would be ‘to be cute’, so I was wondering how to know what they meant?
Thank you :) :) :)
@Jasumine
I know some of the verbs have different meaning but you can still related to かわいい and かわいがる
You think someone is cute → to treat that person with affection. How’s that. (^_−)−☆
In one of my favorite Japanese dramas, long vacation, sena-kun says to minami when she asks him to marry her (they have just met): “kanbenshite kudasai!” 😊
勘弁して has a couple of meanings
“I am sorry / Please forgive me” or “Give a break / Spare me / Are you kidding me?”
In that case, she meant the later. “Oh please, give me a break..”
I really wanted to travel to japan, but someone stole my passport. And i dont know why he really like to steal everything from me. He got money so he can litteraly get everything he wants but he was not contented.
Thank you again for another lesson! Since finishing みんなの日本語上級1+2, this side became so incredibly useful to me. All the example sentences alone are priceless. Thank you so much!!!
I have a question. I noticed that the lyrics of the original キャプテン翼 theme, also includes a さsuffix. But I dont understand why.
(そんときおれがスーパーヒーローさ.)
こんにちは、Pascal! わあ、上級の２も終わりましたか？
すごいですね！
There are various usages of さ suffix but that one is for a casual male speech. It is like “なんだよ”
Basic patterns:
noun + さ スーパーヒーローさ。
verb + さ 明日行くのさ。
@orbert
I am not sure what you meant “pinecake”. All this time I thought it was a Japanese English.
“Pinecake” as in ”pineapple cake”? If so パインケーキ or パイナップルケーキ
Or you meant “pancake” パンケーキ?
And “just come from” means you used to live there but left there just recently?
私が書いた”pinecake”は、私がこの間まで住んでいた祖母の家のです。
Or if your gradma used to make “pinecake” then,
Yes, yes thanks. Sorry for not being exact, but I had been sure, that there existed such a word as pinecake. I’m not a native speaker so I can be wrong about the grammer and some words sometimes.
I’ve just found a sentence that sais:
何も私にそれをあきらめるように強制することができない
(nanimo watashi ni sore wo akirameru you ni kyousei suru koto ga dekinai)
-> Nothing can force me to give it up.
So, you can say it with ように and with こと also.
Thanks Maggie, you are the best (and cutest)
I appriciate your lessons so much, you help me a lot, so that’s why I’ve decided since you seem like you like wasting your time on us, I have a question.
So I’ve just come across this verb 強いる (shiiru), wich means: to force someone, And I’d like to ask you if there is an opportunity to say that someone forces someone to do something with this verb.
Like: マッギを眠らせた。[Maggi wo nemuraseta] (I’ve forced Maggie to sleep)
and then, マッギにねむることをしいた。
thanks for your answer in advance. :D
Hi robert,
Good question. You also use 強いる to make /force someone do something.
The difference:
You usually use it with a noun or nominalized verb.
Also 強いる is much stronger than させる.
Someoneにお酒を飲ませる
→stronger
Someoneにお酒を強いる
or お酒を飲むことを強いる
Another difference:
Someoneにお酒を飲ませた= It is clear that you made that person drink alcohol.
Someoneにお酒を強いた。／お酒を飲むことを強いた。 You forced someone to drink but the person may not drink alcohol.
It focuses on your action, trying to make someone drink alcohol.
As for your sentence, 眠る is fall asleep so 寝る is better.
So マギーを寝させた
マギーに寝ることを強いた might work out.
Sorry to hear you are still confused. I hope you get everything clear one day.
******
I deleted my previous comment once to add some information.
お茶を飲みながら楽しみで日本語会話をしましょう
there’s nothing wrong by putting tanoshimi de in the above sentence if you want to, yet, once again, it will be not natural in nihongo, they said
→ I would say it is wrong.
***
楽しんで is translated “with fun”, but actually 楽しむ is a verb and its te-form is 楽しんで
I think you are familiar with this pattern.
Vて (or で）+ do something
= to do something V-ing. (describing how you do something)
楽しんでテニスをする to play tennis *having fun
楽しんで勉強する to study *having fun
楽しんで日本語で会話する to talk in Japanese *having fun
*it can be translated as “with fun”.
**
楽しみで+do something
means, “to do something for one’s pleasure”
You wanted to say “Let’s talk in Japanese having fun (→with fun) “ not “ for your pleasure”
Also as I said in the lesson, 〜み expresses one’s subjective feelings, so you don’t use
~みで〜しましょう！pattern.
I know it may sound complicated but once you know the rules, it shouldn’t be so difficult.
hi, i have a question that’s confusing me from yesterday morning.
I wrote:
Sumimasen…. Mata kikitai 😁
I wrote お茶を飲みながら楽しみで日本語会話をしましょう
Let’s make conversation with fun while having a tea
And it’s incorrect, my friend said.
The correct one, he said:
お茶を飲みながら楽しんで日本語会話をしましょう
Why?
How do you translate the above sentence using tanoshimi de?
Actually i already asked 15 people on facebook about this problem. Since yesterday morning till now.
7 nihonjin, 3 indonesiajin, 5 japanese community on fb.
Still i don’t get the red line. Indeed, some nihonjin said that tanoshimi de has a nuance more to interest or hobby or for fun or for pleasure. Sort of. That’s why it’s not natural in nihongo, they said.
But there’s nothing wrong by putting tanoshimi de in the above sentence if you want to, yet, once again, it will be not natural in nihongo, they said
Okay… At first i get the point why it sounds not natural if i use tanoshimi de in the sentence, because it would mean:
Let’s have a conversation for pleasure or for fun while having tea
But then after an hour, i changed my mind. It seems like There’s nothing wrong by saying let’s have a conversation for fun or for pleasure.
Right?
Or you have another translation or extra explanation (you will be the 16th person :D) that can make me
“Aha!! That’s the keyword for tanoshimi de”
“Aha!! That’s why it’s not natural!”
Ah, one more….
Do you have a fb messenger? Or an email?
I have to rethink 1000 times to post a question on your fb post.
I’m just scared that if i posted it, it’ll offend my nihonjin friends for asking the same question to you.
No, I am not using FB messenger anymore. I once activated and got too many questions.
Don’t worry about your Japanese friends. You don’t have to use the same name here and also I doubt your friends will come to this site. 😉
Konnichiha Maggie Sensei, O~Hisashi Buri Deshou Ne
_Sensei, I Found Some Sentences End Up With Something Like (~To Kita Mon Da), But I Don’t Know What It Exactly Means Or Used For? O~Negai Shimasu…
There are a lot of colloquial ways of using 的.
In general, the most proper translation of 的 is “~ wise” or “~ ly” but you have to pick the right translation depending on the context.
気持ち的なこと = mental things / 頭的なこと= logical things
But to translate them more naturally, it will be something like
I can’t catch up with many things somehow, mentally and also logically.
How can I reassure my girlfriends mother that i will look after/take care if her when she moves to my country? I also want to tell her not to worry but i dont know if that translates well.
Nanimo shinpai shinaide kochira ni kite kudasai.
Kochira dewa watashi ni subete makasete kudasai.
(Please do not worry about anything and come here. You can rely on me once you come here.)
There are expressions that
watashi ga osewa wo sasete itadakimasu. ( I will take care of you)
Watashi ni mendou wo misasete kudasai. (Let me take care of you)
But these expressions are for someone weak (physically, financially)
* 彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってもらう？＝彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってさせる？
→？？？You are asking someone to give you some snack?
Yes,it was supposed to mean “can you make them give me their snacks?”
I got anything you on your previous message,yet I’m still trying to figure out how to use もらってもらう propely. Its the kind of thing I’ve never heard nor read before.
Whereas
俺に本をもらえる？ is Will you give me a book (as a favor to me)
Seems like 俺に\から本をもらってもらう？
means”will you take this book from me as a favor”?
誰もいらないのなら彼にもらってもらいます
->ね、これもらってもらう？うん、もらってあげるよ。
I wonder if that’s the right way of using もらってもらう？
It is hard to translate poetry from a few lines but I think the subject of the first line is the person who the speaker want to look at.
So until you crumble down and break into pieces, I would love to keep looking at you staying here for good
Sensei, thank you for the explanation. I have a question. In your post, koibito= loved one, boyfriend or girlfriend. so, if a woman say, “aitsu wa watashi no koibito” what does exactly she mean? Is she refer to “he is my boyfriend” or “he is my beloved”? The situation is, she doesn’t know exactly whether the guy loves her or not. But, sure she knows her own feeling, how deeply in love she is with him. And, they never officially going out. I am so confused. Please help me, sensei
And Maggie-sensei, sorry for the bad grammar. English isn’t my first language. So you might be confused to understand what i meant. What i really wanted to ask is, can we use 恋人 to describe someone relationship other than lovers/boyfriend?
Because in a light novel i have been read, the main lead guy is called as the second lead female’s ‘yuujin and koibito’ by the narrator. But from the story, we can exactly tell that the main lead guy is in love with another woman.
Of course this second lead female is deeply in love with the main lead guy. So, can we interpret the ‘koibito’ that’s used by narrator as a beloved?
My answer is the same.
恋人= one’s loved one/boyfriend/girlfriend/significant other
nothing else.
yuujin no koibito means “my friend’s loved one”
I don’t know the story so I can’t give you more information but you may find some hidden facts while the story develops.
Maggie Sensei, arigatou gozaimasu!
Yes, in fact it really sounds strange that “suki” can be stronger than “daisuki” … Is there any explanation for that? Is it because of that “koto” expression … On the other hand, that could be used with “daisuki” as well, couldn’t it. So I really have no clue …
I guess it’s because ” 好き ( = suki)” already have a meaning of “I love you” besides “I like something”, you don’t need to add “dai”. Also we say “daisuki” too casually when you talk about food, games, things or some preferences, etc.
Of course, 大好き ( = daisuki) can sounds much stronger than 好き ( = suki) depends on how you deliver the speech.
Maggie sensei , i’d like to know what is the difference between vstem+上げる and vstem+終わる?
I’m still confuse how and in what condition i should use them .
V+終わる = You use it when you finish doing something./Something finishes
V+上がる When you “complete” some work./to finish “up” something
For example, when you are writing a book and finish writing.
書き終わる= It simply means you finish writing.
書き上げる = It also means “you finish writing” but it implies you have worked so hard writing the book or you “finally” complete your work.
Oh good. I thought you said you didn’t get anything from my reply. Whew… 😀
1) “can you make them give me their snacks?”
If you want to use もらう, then
彼らから(私に）おやつをもらってもらえる？
(You can say 彼らに but we tend to avoid the same particle, in this case に)
You can also avoid two もらう and say
彼らに私におやつをくれないか頼（たの）んでくれない？
2) 俺に本をもらえる？ is Will you give me a book (as a favor to me)
Seems like 俺に\から本をもらってもらう？
means”will you take this book from me as a favor”?
↓
If a speaker asks someone to give him the book, then
(俺に）その本もらえる？is possible. (You tend to drop 俺に)
But again, 俺にその本、くれない？ is more natural.
BTW, you know 俺 is a male speech and it sounds a bit rough, right?
3) 誰もいらないのなら彼にもらってもらいます
->ね、これもらってもらう？うん、もらってあげるよ。
I wonder if that’s the right way of using もらってもらう？
↓
Do you want to say “Let’s do that. Let’s have him receive the book.” then
I would say, そうしよう。もらってもらおう。(Let’s do that. Let’s have him receive the book.)
I made this lesson long time ago. Now I think of it, I shouldn’t have included もらってもらう here. It depends on your level but it may have just confused you. Sorry.
ね、 この本もらってもらう？
“can you take this book from me as a favor for myself?”
うん、もらってあげる
“yes,I’ll take it as a favor”
If the lines above are wrong (they likely are) then should I think of morattemorau as a “make someone else take a thing that belongs to the speaker or listener”? Like as 取ってさせる?
この本は誰も要らないなら彼にもらってもらう｜取ってさせる
if no one wants this book then I’ll make him\ allow him to own it (as a favor for me).
hai maggie sensei
i’ve read ur web n saved ur article in my phone, and ur article helps me a lot!! but i have a qustion about how to use wo particle like this sntence
Ima wa sukina koto wo kodomo ni sasete okimasu.
= I will let my children do whatever they like now.
or
hana wo mizu ni tsukeru
= to put flowers in water.
i tottaly don’t understand it!! would u explain it?? hhh:$
could you write the name of the lesson please?? cuz i think it’s really important,! i had seen many words like this then it made me confuse, but with ur explain i got hint to understand but i want to make sure!! so can u show me wich lesseon is? cuz u know !u have a lot article and it’s difficult to find it hehe!! help me pleas!!
Ah, sorry. Maybe you can’t see it but I added the link in my previous comment under “lesson”. If you click “lesson”, it jumps to the lesson.)
The title of the lesson is
How to use （〜して）あげる＋くれる＋もらう = (~shite) Ageru＋Kureru＋Morau
I tried to use this on Lang-8 in:
今朝、日本の旅の切符を買っておきました。
But the Japanese speakers there corrected this to simply 買いました. Did I use ておくincorrectly, or why is it inappropriate here?
It depends on the context.
If you are just talking about an action, 買いました will be more natural.
But you can say that in the situations like
It will be hard to get an air ticket for summer so you bought a ticket in advance.
Ex.夏は飛行機の予約が混み合うので、今朝、日本行きの航空券を買っておきました。
The price of airfare will go up soon so you bought a ticket in advance.
I would like to ask you about some patterns that make a verb-ending modifier clause into a noun itself. For example:
午前8時から営業しているはずの銀行に行ってきます。
I’m going to the bank it’s supposed to be open from 8 AM.
そちらの使わないで見ているだけのパソコンは妹のです。
The PC I’m not using but I’m just looking that is over there is my syster’s PC.
Are those sentences grammatically correct? (I don’t even dare to expect them to be “natural” for a native speaker). Is の correct after “noun-transforming” particle like はず、つもり、予定、だけ and so on? About べき、does it need の too if it modifies a noun?
I really like all your lessons and the way you explain them~
Everytime I don’t know how to use something or I need to learn something new I always come to your site because your examples and explanations are really good and clear. Thank you so much and please keep it up!~ ♥
こんにちは、Pascal!
Haha a great question!
You can call someone else’s pet without さん、ちゃん、君 but many people use ちゃん. (And some use 君 for male dogs.
People used to call me Maggie / Maggie-chan and Maggie Sensei (^_−)−☆
話そう
This そう is different. It is a volitional form of verb.
1) Let’s do ~ ‘when you are talking to others”
2) I am going to do ~ / I will do ~ ( showing your will)
行く iku → 行こう ikou
聞く kiku → 聞こう kikou
する suru → しよう shiyou
and
話す hanasu → 話そう hanasou
I’m really happy this website is back up!! I’ve always used it to look up small things I didn’t understand in Japanese and now that I’ve decided to properly learn the language, this website is a big help! Thank you so much for everything you’ve done, and I hope I could proudly come back here in a few years and tell you that I can speak Japanese thanks to you!
Thank you for your nice comment, QC!
I’m glad we are back as well so that we can make more lessons for you!!
Looking forward to seeing your progress in a few years or even in a few months!!
Hi, your blog is one of the most awesome things and the most useful when it comes to studying Japanese :D
Can you please explain to me what is the difference between こっそり and ひそかに?
（私は）猫に死なれた – I got died by a cat/ I was died by a cat
（私は）雨に降られた – I got rained by the rain
（私は）赤ちゃんに泣かれた the baby cried (and let me nervous) / I got cried by the baby.
@Lucas
If you translated them in English, they don’t sound natural but I think you got the idea.
猫に死なれた= My cat died (and I am very sad/ It was a painful)
雨に振られた= I got rained on.
赤ちゃんに泣かれた= The baby cried and that makes me nervous/ I was/am in a trouble.
How do you say in japanese a sentence like: “I will get up from the chair that I have been sitting on”
So my question is; how can you make completely sure where the noun after the verb comes from, I mean where it would belong, if it was inside of a regular sentence, for example with the particle “de” you can indicate that something is utilised to do something, but when you put the noun wich has originally the particle “de” after the verb how can you let the one you’re speaking to know that the noun refers to the object you use?
Thanks for any answer (because I’ve been looking for this for months) in advance
I just don’t know exactly the mean among these words, I only know the sittuations from you to use them, could you show me the nearest means ? Thank you so much :D
こんにちはマギー先生
I have confusing doubts about the usage of ん to substitute the ない negative form
I have come across some cases that I identified it was the negative version only using ん:
ボクは学生じゃん。。。/ instead of じゃない
わからん。。。/instead of わからない
I have also came across a phrase where I can’t tell if it is negative or not:
お前に捕まえられんのか?。I guess it is the る becoming ん, so would you (japanes人) translate it as “to be captured by you” or “not to be captured by you”?
Though we hear じゃん a lot in conversation, (especially younger generation) it is originally from Kanto area’s dialect.It is a suffix that you use instead of じゃない. (As じゃない, it is used to make your point or express your opinion)
これ、おいしいね。This is delicious, isn’t it?
これ、おいしくない？ Isn’t it delicious?
これ、おいしいじゃない。This is delicious, isn’t it?
→これ、おいしいじゃん。(casual)
So as わからん／しらん／〜られん are all from dialect. (These are use among older generations as well.)
ない→ん
わからない→わからん
しらない→しらん
できない→dできん
oh my godi’m sooo gld that you are finally here …i missed you ..i have been checking the site , waiting for along time to be back so ありがとうございました..i like the new design too..
* 宿題をやっていた= I have been doing my homework./ I was doing my homework. (describe what you were doing.)
→Casual contraction (skipping い)
宿題をやってた (grammatically wrong but we use this form a lot in conversation)
If you want to learn more about this form, go check this lesson. (Casual contraction)
* 宿題をやった = I did my homework/ I finished my homework/ I have done my homework. (completion of the action)
Hi Maggie先生,
Your site is back up, よかった！
Never realised how many times I check your lessons until they were no longer there.
Anyway, my question:
Omitting and contracting things is quite common in casual speech, so just saying
-なきゃ without ならない makes sense.
But I think I also heard the polite -なければ, meaning to say “have to”, without any follow-up, which seems casual to me.
Is this natural, or did I perhaps simply misheard/misinterpret?
OK, you mean like a finishing a sentence with なければ?
If so, I wouldn’t say “casual” but you leave the sentence without finishing on purpose.
So instead of saying なければいけない you just omit いけない. The listener can tell what the speaker means.
もういかなければ (I have to go now)
(casual もういかなくちゃ／もういかなきゃ）
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am confused with this two. What is the difference? look similar to me except one uses て while the other use plain form.
verb て(=te)(で(~de)) form +ばかり(=bakari)
4) only do/does / doing something / always do/does/doing something
遊んでばかりいてはいけません。
You can’t just play all the time.
verb plain form + ばかり(=bakari)
(1) do nothing but…, all you do is ~
人に頼るばかりの人生ではいけない。
We shouldn’t just depend on someone in life.
I’m 4 days late! But I am forever thankful and indebted to you for this site and your willingness to teach Japanese to us!! Thank you! m(_ _)m…… Also I’m glad your site is back I’ve missed it so much! Lol <3
Hello,Maggie
the design looks very nice and happily you’re back!!
I could still learn japanese in a fun way now ~~~
btw, Today its my birthday , can i receive your blessings,Maggie-sama? lol hehehe
お誕生日おめでとう、SY!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Thank YOU for visiting my site on your birthday!
Hope this special day will bring you a lot of happiness, joy and love!
これからもよろしくね！
I have a question about a phrase I’ve seen some times… “x shiyou ka na… nante”. Based on context I’d assume it’s somewhat along the lines of “I guess maybe I should give x a try or something” or “I’ll try x, I guess”, but I don’t entirely get how the “nante” at the end works here. Is it thrown on to make the the statement even more noncommittal than the “ka na” already made it?
Is it thrown on to make the the statement even more noncommittal than the “ka na” already made it?
Exactly!! And your translation is right.
By adding ”…なんて(ね）” at the end, you can make your speech make sound less serious.
It could also add the nuance, “I am just kidding”/ “Haha”.
All these are the same group. You use them when you avoid sounding too assertive and add “vaguity”.
So as you said, “or something” or ” I guess I am going to give it a try..” is very close to the nuance.
I have a question about this sentence:
(あいつはyou lie – I included this for context; “you lie” was in English)
誰に落雷されたのか
I’m mostly confused because according to the definition of 落雷, with する it means either “to strike (lightning)” or “to be struck by lightning.” I thought “to be struck by lightning” was more probable here, and then there would basically be a double passive; canceling those out it would mean: “Who struck (him) with lightning?” But if you take it through the other definition, it would mean: “Who was struck with lightning?”
I can’t decide which one it is! Please help!
Thank you!
落雷 means “thunderbolt”
You don’t usually say Someoneに落雷された because you can’t control thunder.
However there is an expression in Japanese
雷を落とす= to scold someone in a harsh way/ to speak someone in an angry way / to give someone hell/ to chew someone out
誰に雷を落とされた= passive form (You do say this expression)
→誰に落雷された=unusual expression but you can figure out the meaning (Who chewed him out that much?)
Hi Sensei Maggie, I am so happy to have discovered your site! I will be travelling to Japan in two months and I don’t have much time to learn Japanese. I bought some books and downloaded some applications, but I am still not satisfied. Your site is great!
Can I ask you a question?
How can I order food for my wife in a restaurant? In all the books, I only learned how to order food for myself. Thank you and kindest regards! – Pat :zzzz2:
Hello Pat!
How exciting! You will be in Japan in two months. That will be an ideal season to travel around Japan.
OK, the simple way to order for two people is,
1) first place your order
Put your finger to your chest and say
私は〜 = Watashi wa (food name) (or male speech ぼくは〜= Boku wa ~ )
and then point at your wife with your hand and say
(そして）つまには〜おねがいします。
= (Soshite) Tsuma niwa ~ onegai shimasu.
= (and) For my wife, ~~ please.
or
(そして）かのじょには〜おねがいします。
= (Soshite) Kanojo niwa ~ onegai shimasu.
= (and) For her, ~~ please.
***
Variation
Ex. わたしは、コーヒーで、かのじょはこうちゃをおねがいします。
= Watashi wa koohii de, kanojo wa koucha wo onegai shimasu.
= I will have a coffee and she will have a blacktea, please.
2) More simple way
Order two meals at the same time.
AとBおねがいします。
= A to B onegai shimasu.
And when they bring the plates, they will ask which one is for whome.
You point at the plate for yourself and say
わたしは、これです。
= Watashiwa, kore desu.
= This one is mine.
or point at the plate for your wife and indicate your wife.
これはこちらにおねがいします。
= Kore wa kochira ni onegai shimasu.
= This one should be here, please.
さすが、マギー先生！
昔々, I had a Japanese girlfriend who would often tell me
「ね、なんか食べさして」 which I have come to find out is a form of “食べさせて”
I always took it to mean “feed me” and we would happily go off to eat somewhere, but according to the passive pattern it means “let me eat something”. Is this the same as “feed me”?
In another example,
「パパ、本を聞かせてちょうだい」= Papa, read me a book [let me be read to](aloud)
マギー先生は「ゆかり先生、ちょっとナデナデさせてちょうだい」を頼んだことがありますか
Maggie-sensei, have you ever asked Yukari sensei to pet you a little bit?
Ah, good 〰 I thought I was the only one who thought that “if a woman uses male speech, it sounds horrible.” There was a girl who I knew when I studied abroad in Japan who insisted on calling herself “Bokukko-Kun” and talked very masculine, despite being the cutest, littlest girl I’ve ever met! Many of the students in our program were “dedicated to japan” (for lack of better words) because of Anime, and like to embody Anime stereotypes …needless to say, they weren’t very professional, even when talking to the principal!
Hi Ymir,
Yes, there are girls/women who intentionally use this male speech to create their own “character” or to try to make them sound “strong/rough”.
Boys/Men also have a risk to use Japanese that they learned in anime.
Hello Maggie Sensei:
I was having trouble translating these lines:
いずれそうなる運命 でもいっか
多目的なようで 罪なようで そういうものです
I thought it was:
Someday fate will catch up to me (Literally, I took it as: “Someday, fake will become like that.”)
But that’s okay.
Using multipurpose and sinful methods I get by (Literally, I thought this meant: “By means of multipurpose ways, and by means of sinful ways – there are such things.”)
Mostly I’m unsure about the last line. The only example I could find for なようで was translated “seems like,” but that didn’t seem to fit here.
Please help!
Thank you!
Hello, Smoothie Made of Fruit
(Your name makes me want to drink smoothie.. :)
いずれそうなる運命 means
It meant to be like that (anyway).
I don’t know the context so I can’t answer it but the sentences are very casually written.
Nなようで means
It seems like ~
But since it is not a formal sentences, you can translate
It is like ~
そういうものです = something like that.
I’d translate 「いずれそうなる運命でもいっか。」as: ”Let it happen as it’s doomed to happen, though.” / “It is doomed to happen, I don’t care.” / “Fate, it’s just the way it has to happen” and 「多目的なようで 罪なようで そういうものです」 as: “It’s like something with many purposes, something like a sin”.
Without the full context it’s a bit hard to match the words. However, this should help you, I hope.
So do you think “Someday fate will catch up to me” is an okay translation for that line? I thought it meant that the person was doomed to a certain fate, and tried to convey that.
So, I’m assuming, for the next line でis used just to connect nouns, not as “by means of”? That would make more sense.
As for more context, this is from a song, and it doesn’t really have too much more context ( sorry!) which is one of the reasons I couldn’t figure it out. But if you’re interested, the line before it is: クックークックアドゥールドゥードゥー(the song is called Toriatama, so I thought these were just bird sounds). The line after is 知ったこっちゃない 微妙な感じばっかり (I translated this as: “But that’s not something I’d know about. I really don’t know how to feel.)
＠Smoothie Made Of Fruit
the person was doomed to a certain fate, and tried to convey that.
→Yes, you got the idea.
でis used just to connect nouns, not as “by means of”?
→Yes. Exactly. It means “and”
You got the lyrics from one of 初音ミク songs? I checked the whole lyrics but a lot of the phrases don’t make a sense. They just play with the sound or expresses random feelings.
知ったこっちゃない 微妙な感じばっかり I guess your translation is fine except
知ったこっちゃない
→知ったことではない= I don’t care/ It is none of my business.
@Maggie Sensei
Yes, the song is a vocaloid song, sung by Kagamine Rin/ Len.
I will change my translation for 知ったことではない, then.
It’s good to know that you thought a lot of it didn’t make sense, also. I was worried because so many of the lyrics seemed so random; I was concerned that I was way off with the translation, especially with all the casual language!
Thank you for all your help! !happyface!
Konbanha Sensei;
I Just Want To Know What Are The Words (Nanza & Nanzo)? I Used To Hear In Anime
Does They Have Any Relations With (Nante/Nanka)?
Hmmm what could it be??? Maybe you heard the word なんぞ (Nanzo)?
If so it is originally an old literal expression of など but you use it as なんて/なんか.(I said it was a literal expression but you hear that in quite rough male speech to emphasize what comes before.)
お前なんぞに負けるものか。＝ お前なんかに負けるものか
I will never lose to you
(The speaker belittles the listener)
It is possible to use なんぞ in the meaning of “,etc.” instead of など but it is old fashioned.
And you have to be careful when you use it because as I mentioned in my previous comment, it has a function to belittle what you are talking about.
Maggie sensei こんにちは！
I’m sorry to bother you one more time…
I was wondering what are the differences among あ/そ/こ/どれぐらい/ほど/だけ?
失礼だとしたら、すみませんでした！
お願いいたします！
Hi Daniele,
To be honest the difference is a bit complicated. I don’t know how much I can explain in this comment section but…
the translation could be the same, this much, that much, that much (when you refer to something far / talk about the past) and in some cases they are interchangeable.
When you are talking about the vague degree/amount of something.
(Please tell me how much money it will cost me (more or less)/ About this much.)
どれぐらいお金がかかるか教えてください。 これぐらいかかります。
どれだけお金がかかるか教えてください。 これだけかかります。(more conversational)
どれほどお金がかかるか教えてください。△ これほどかかります。△ (You may hear people say these and they may sound polite but I would say you use ぐらい・だけ more)
1) あれぐらい・それぐらい・ これぐらい・ どれぐらい
*talking about the amount
As in my example sentences you can use it for something tangible.
Ex. 砂糖をどれだけいれますか？How much sugar…
Ex. 砂糖は、これだけ入れてください。this much sugar…
and also something intangible
Ex. 私も勉強をあれぐらいやらないといけない。
= I should study that much.
2) あれだけ・それだけ・ これだけ・ どれだけ
(1) “only” or “just”
Just this much/ that much/ that much (further than それだけ）
I just have this much money.
お金がこれだけしかない。
えっ？それだけしかないの？
What? That’s all you have?
If you are looking at the sugar bag which is far from you or recalling certain time in the past.
彼、お金、あれだけしかないんだって。
= I heard he just has that much money.
(2) emphasizing the amount.
Although I told him this/that much, he just doesn’t get it.
彼は、これだけ私が言ってもわからない。 Refering to the event which happened just recently.
あなたが、それだけ言ってもわからないの? The listener just heard what happened.
あれだけ言ってもわからない。 Recalling the past event.
Sometimes they are interchangeable with ほど
あれだけ・ほど言ってもわからないなんて
I can’t believe they don’t understand me even though I told them that much.
3) あれほど・それほど・ これほど・ どれほど
It indicates the degrees.
あれほどの人はいない There is nobody like that person. (He/She is great.)
それほどでもないです It is not that big deal. (You can’t replace it with ぐらい/だけ）
I have a lesson on ほど so please check that lesson to know the functions more.
Maggie sensei, I found this article of yours when I stumbled into this sentence in an article when reading japanese stuff on the web. As there are various possibilities of how to use the たり form, I read your article and now I understand basically how it works. However, I still wanted to make sure if I assumed correctly how it was used on these senteces. Could you help me? お願いします！
in the sentence of the middle, it’s used to give an etc. to the number of functions you could have and in the following phrase, to emphasize that they are not looking for assistants?
Hello Maggie-sensei, what is the best way or common ways Japanese uses to ask the other party to repeat what he/she just said if I couldn’t catch it?
Based on what I learned in school, I would have said: もう一度言ってください.
But I assume, as with most cases, a native would say it differently.
May I know what is a PHS phone? See it mentioned quite often on company’s websites.
Hello, changkh
Q:What is the best way or common ways Japanese uses to ask the other party to repeat what he/she just said if I couldn’t catch it?
Are you talknig to someone on the phone, as I wrote
お電話が遠いのですがもう一度お願いいたします。
(The connection seems to be bad. Could you repeat what you said again?)
Or
すみません、よく聞き取れなかったのでもう一度お願いできますか？
***
PHS? I haven’t heard of it for a long time. It is a kind of old fashioned movile phone.
I think there are still a couple of companies selling them but very few.
is this correct?
“光栄いやっ” is iya~tsu the opposite form of chatta?
im writing a comic and only know a little japanese ive been using google translate as practice so i dont know if everything is accurate. i want my character to express informally that they are flattered by a compliment.
Is “光栄いやっ” a correct phrase?
I wonder how you got いやっ on Google..
いやっ means “No way!” “Never”(female or children speech for strong negation.)
So you don’t say 光栄いやっ It just doesn’t make any sense.
I am flattered in Japanese is
光栄です。= Kouei desu.
More casual/male speech a little rough
それは光栄だ (= Sore wa kouei da)
Another variation,
If the character just got some compliment, he/she can also say
お世辞でもうれしいな (casual)
(= Oseji demo ureshii na)
(I know you are trying to be nice but) I am flattered
I see. I just want to know that whether it’s same as I love you or stay in love with you. I found the sentence when I was listening to Misato Aki’s song. The lyrics is “さよならの向こう側で、キミを大好きなまま”
@Riesya
The meaning of きみを大好きなまま is “stay (or keep) loving you”
The previous line of the song is
キミを待っている I will wait for you.
So キミを大好きなまま modifies that line.
I will wait for you loving you.
I know prob 500 Japanese words n i know all the main particles but i still have problems with は an が
i can do small talk lol……
日本語で話せません。
日本語は話せません。
both are correct?
Both are correct, however: 日本語は話せません is more natural and it implies contrast, so you can translate this like: “(as for Japanese) I don’t speak Japanese… (however I speak for example English very well)”. That’s the aspect of contrast which part. は implies here.
Don’t worry, after 5 years of learning Japanese the problem, whether to choose は or が will disappear.
助けてくれてありがとうございます！分かりやすいです。
ahh ok so itd be like
speaker A:日本語で話せる？
speaker B:いいえ、日本語は話せないんです。英語を使ってくれますか？
(sorry) for so many questions
@天人
Thank you for helping Rodney
＠Rodney
Here is the nuance difference.
日本語を話す to speak Japanese ( focusing on the language, Japanese.)
日本語で話す to communicate in Japanese. / to talk in Japanese
日本語で話せる？
Can we talk in Japanese?
日本語を話せる？
Can you speak Japanese?
speaker B: 英語を使ってくれますか？→ more natural ways to say that is…英語で話してくれますか？/ 英語でもいいですか？/ 英語でいいでsか？
I am Sorry to bother, but I really want to sincerely apologize for not being able to finish a project(work related) I’ve promised my Japanese friend and his family. I know this my sound silly but I truly feel bad for the fact I cannot manage to keep this promise. I want them to know how sorry I am and how bad i feel that I cannot say in person.
I used to stay in Japan for High school and have adopted the sincerity of how Japanese people treat others’ feeling with care, just haven’t been confronted with this kind of situation before so I don’t really know how to fix this.
Please if you don’t mind helping me out, Thank you very much in advance.
Hello Yo,
Are you thinking about writing a letter to them?
I am not sure what kind of project but if you tell them why you didn’t do it and show your sincerity, I am sure they will forgive you.
If you haven’t talked to then for a long time.
For example you can start…
ご無沙汰（ぶさた）しています。 Long time no see.
お元気でいらっしゃいますか？ How have you been?
今日は、ずっと謝（あやま）らなければいけないと思っていることがあったので手紙を書きます。
I am writing to you today because there is something that I have wanted to apologized to you for a long time
====
あの時（とき）約束（やくそく）をした〜〜〜をすることができなくて本当にごめんなさい。
= I am so sorry that I couldn’t keep my promise doing ~~~ that time.
first of all thank you for your amazing and useful web-site! ^_^
Me and my wife are just back from Japan (we wish we could go back today!) and are planning to print a “celebrative” photobook.
We would like to entitle it “Jan and Maggie’s travel to Japan” (yeah, you share the same name! :D ).
Is it correct to write:
ヤン の マギー と 日本 で 旅行
Hello Jan! I hope you and your wife, Maggie (what a lovely name she has! (^з<) ) had a good time in Japan.
ヤン の マギー と 日本 で 旅行
→Grammatically ヤンとマギーの日本での旅行
But I would title
ヤンとマギーの日本旅行
(BTW Is your name pronounced as ヤン （yan)?)
the pattern ～てきた implies here that a change has happened. In English you can translate ～てきた as: “started to”.
Both sentences are correct from the grammatical point of view, however 「やっと勉強する気になってきた」 is more specific, it gives us more information. 詳しくはこちらへ => http://142.93.68.150/2010/03/13/requested-lesson-「〜ていく＋〜てくる」teiku-tekuru/
Q: Can I also use any verbs in front of that grammar pattern or only suru verbs?
A: There’s no limitation. However, the sentence must be logical of course.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for the lesson. I have a question about another useage of hodo.
I was searching around how to say ‘I’m not good enough to..’ and found this grammar pattern that you didn’t mention. Is this correct?
My Japanese is not good enough to speak to you.
あなた話せるほど日本語が上手じゃないのです。
If that is possible, can I also say things like these using the grammar pattern above?
I can’t run fast enough to catch up with you.
I’m not good enough for you.
I’ve had enough of eating sushi. I ate too much.
I can’t get enough of Maggie Sensei’s lessons :)
This product’s quality is good enough for me.
Brilliant – was just about to ask exactly the same question.
I came across:
厄介者の養い子に余分を取っておくほど伯母は優しくない。
Which I think means:
“Aunty is not kind enough to set aside extra for the troublesome foster-child.”
What about when you’re at the post office to receive mail or a parcel/package? In Australia there are PO Boxes or Post Office Boxes which you rent from the post office and they deliver your mail and your packages there. And then you collect everything from the box. If the packages are too large to fit in the box then a note or card is left advising that there is a package to collect and you take the note to the front counter to collect the package over the counter. Post office boxes are usually outside the post office so that they can be accessed 24/7. Most post offices also offer early collection before the post office opens where you can ring the doorbell near the PO Boxes. The postal worker will open the top half of the door and hand your package out this way. Is there anything like that in Japan?
For example, when you get a 不在票 delivery notice, you can choose to pick the package/letter at the post office nearby instead of asking them to redeliver to your house.
As for PO Boxes(私書箱=ししょばこ) , it is difficult to have your PO box at the post office unless you own a company or receive a lot of letters regularly.
You have to use a private company to have the PO box service. (It is a bit pricey…)
Hi Maggie!
Sorry that this isn’t exactly related to this specific lesson; I was going to ask this question on another lesson but I’ve had a problem with my screen tuning blue on your website.
Anyways, how would you translate these lines?
数の暴力
言っちゃってよ そこもっと 精神性のショートショート
I was thinking it was: “It’s just the tyranny of the masses, that I unfortunately said that. It’s a more spiritual short short (circuit).”
My problem was mainly how to translate the そこもっと. I translated そこ as that, which my dictionary said was technically correct, but I’m not sure if what I have is the intended meaning?
Thank you.
It’s from a song. Actually, I’m trying to translate it for my Youtube channel – is it okay if I post that line that you translated? I’ll give you credit, of course.
Okay, that makes more sense! For future reference, how could you tell that もっと went with 言っちゃって?
Of course you can use the line I helped. (I don’t do the translation so you don’t need to give me any credit. You may want to have someone to help the other lines..I don’t understand what you meant by 精神性〜〜 part. )
You sometimes reverse the order of words in Japanese, which is called 倒置（とうち= inversion) (Especially in lyrics, story, poem, etc.)
Okay, thank you!
I had thought that the 精神性 part meant that the person had a spiritual short circuit, as in there is something wrong with their spirituality. Does that sound correct to you?
I completed JLPT 5 last week
And I think we learned that form a little in class
If I remember correctly it’s used to make contrasts
But I guess I will stick to を until I better understand the concept so I won’t get confused. I am going to Japan in 2 weeks for a program and I can’t wait to test my Japanese skills
I have revised a lot of my lessons from your website and it really helped me so 本当に ありがとう ございます マッギョ先生 :D <3
And sorry for commenting too much haha
I realized i was supposed to used ga but before i learned ga i always put o wakaru,bad habit.
Ah,i forgot about nante>_< Thank you for your help! 感謝している。
この映画は観るべきです。
this は is a topic marker and introducing a topic, “as for “
You use this pattern when you emphasize what comes before, in this case “this movie”
***
Other example:
この映画を観たい = I want to see this movie.
この映画は観たい (stronger feeling/emphasizing this movie) = I’d love to see this movie.
(This movie is special. Showing the contrast)
人参（にんじん）を食べない= I don’t eat carrots.
人参（にんじん）は食べない = I don’t eat carrots. (Emphasizing carrots/ the speaker eats everything but carrots.)
@天人
I’m getting confused now hhh
Is their a difference in terms of meaning between ( you ni ) and ( you )? I saw an axample with ( you ni):
戻りましたら折り返しお電話する様に伝えます
and what do you mean by using (to)? do you mean like ( 自分のもの素晴らしい旅行の話をしてくれるよう と 頼んだ。)?
Is there a difference between ( you/ ni ) and ( to )?
As I said, …よう without に doesn’t change the meaning.
When you use 敬語 together with よう then it sounds just better when よう is used without に – but that’s my personal opinion.
Normally the full form of the pattern is …ようにと… The particle と describes the subject’s wish – as an advice – towards his interlocutor. However very often と is simply omitted.
Therefore,
…してくれるように頼んだ。 => Most natural
…してくれるように、と頼んだ。 => Natural.
…してくれるよう、と頼んだ。 => It is acceptable, but very rarely used.
I got it now..
actually, I’ve never heard of ( you nito ) before even in most formal Japanese dramas hhhh.. I’m familiar with ( you ni ) from maggaie sensei’s lessons.. that’s why I wanted to make sure..
Hi Yuuki
I understand your sentence but
食べすぎる ( = tabesugiru) means “to eat too much” and you say that when you can’t control your appetite.
It will be more natural to use volitional verbs with べきじゃなかった
暖かい言葉ありがとうございます。
One of my principles of life’s philosophy is: “Knowledge without sharing it with others is a useless knowledge.”
That’s why I’m trying to help as much as I can.
Getting straight to the answer,
～てくれる implies a favor which the speaker received.
～たり implies that the speaker is grateful for many things, and one of these is the translation stuff.
と should be here translated as “for”. It stands for an explanation for what kind of fact is the speaker grateful.
その件では通訳してくれたりと 大変 お世話になりました = I’d really like to thank you for helping me out with the translations (etc).
———-
I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you and Maggie and everyone here, who visits – let’s say – our website a Happy and Prosperous New Year, hoping that everyone will have many blessings in the year to come. May all your dreams come true!
Hi. I was wondering what is the most natural way to say “follow me back please” is on instagram and twitter. I have seen this sentence “フォローしてください” but i’m not sure if it means the same thing.
Hi, Lucy,
フォローしてください= Please follow me.
does work. FYI, there is a slang expression. フォロバ= follow back
フォロバしてください = Please follow me back.
So you can say,
よかったらフォロバしてください。
Hi Maggie sensei I’ve just started studying for the N3 test using the So-matome books and already hit a roadblock on the first grammar point. I hope you can help.
So I think understand the basics of the られる form, but what the textbook is trying to teaching me is confusing me. The explanation they use for the られる form says “When you mention a fact without a subject, the passive form is often used” 「主語を表さないで事実を述べるとき、よく受身形を使う」. Here are a few examples.
本には、くわしい説明は書かれていません。
There is no detailed explanation in this book.
入学しは、このホールて行われます。
The entrance ceremony will take place in this hall.
これは、世界で一番大きいダイヤモンドだと言われています。
This is said to be the biggest diamond in the world.
昔は、その考えが正しいと思われていた。
The idea used to be considered correct.
Is this a different grammar point using られる or am i just not fully understanding the the られる form?
Hello Colette,
in this case it’s just like in English.
The passive form is very often used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action. Also a statement in passive – as you already know – sounds more polite and formal.
Hello Sarah,
normally in department stores you probably don’t see that people use any special words of thankfulness and gratitude, and I would stick to it. A simple どうも is good enough.
Observe the people and do like they do.
What do people do or how do they react, when a sweet Japanese girl greets them with a いらっしゃいませ♪ ? Well, they do nothing, they imply just ignore </3. There are different customs in different countries, you know.
I would – for example – ask for her phone number, cuz that's my lovely custom, hohoho ^ ^
Thank you ＠天人さん for helping everybody while I was gone.
Sarah, as 天人 said, many people don’t usually say anything when they receive their change/receipt back. Some nod lightly or greet with their eyes with a subtle smile.
If they wrap something nicely or help you a lot, then you say ありがとう.
Hi Maggie Sensei! Thank you for all your lessons! When you use adjective + 限り and you wanted to make it past tense, you would say, for instance “うれしい限りだった” right?
Another question that I tried to ask before but I’m not sure if my comment ever went through:
What’s the difference between V+きる/V+きれない and V+おわる? I know V+きる has a meaning “to have successfully done/completely finished doing something” like I saw in that lesson, but so does V+おわる. Can you explain how they differ? Thanks!
Sorry for the late reply, Shi.
Your comment went through. I couldn’t activate your comment because I was away from home.
うれしい限りだった →Yes, you use adjective+限り＋だった for the past tense.
V 終わる is focusing on the action, finish doing something.
V きる is finish doing something with all your energy, power or focusing on completion until the last part of it.
For example
食べ終わる = finish eating. (simply you finish the action of eating.)
食べ切る = You focus on what you are eating. It is usually use for large portion. When you finish eating until the last piece, you say 食べ切る。
Hello Kibounokata,
Nowadays ～ぬ is used as 終止形 of ～ず.
In Modern Japanese 助詞「ぬ」 or 「ん」 implies negation just like ～ない.
If you want to imply importance or if the sentence should sound formal, then you can use ～ぬ.
Therefore it’s very often used in combination with ～てはならない／～なければならない, and works only with verbs.
EX. 明日は会社に八時までに行かねばならぬ／ならん。
EX. そんなことさせるわけにはいかぬ／いかん。
In Classical Japanese ～ぬ has 3 meaning, but I think you are asking about modern usage.
Well Understood Ten’nin-San!
_I Was Considering That (~N) Was A Wrong Spelling Of (~Nu), But Sounded Correct To Use Instead Of (~Nai, ~Nu). Arigatou Gozaimashita !happyface! & I Hope Maggie-Sensei Is Pretty-Well Recently…
Hi Maggie Sensei! I really like all your lessons, they’re very helpful. I have a question– what’s the difference between “V+きる”/”V+きれない” and “V+おわる”? Don’t they both have a meaning of “to end/finish”? Maybe they aren’t exactly the same but what’s the main difference between them?
Thank you for these lessons! I’ve been randomly searching for sites on how to use “dake” because I can’t really depend only on our school sensei. I have to do self study too, Glad i’ve found a nice reliable Japanese lesson site!
I just want to ask if this sentence is correct and acceptable:
女優が好きからだけだよ
Hihi Maggie 先生、
I often hear Japanese adding “なになに~いいじゃないかなぁと思う” or “なになに~じゃないかなぁと思う” when they are interviewed on the Youtube?.
1. What is the meaning behind adding じゃないかなぁ to the ending part of the sentence?
2. Is there a difference between “~じゃないかなぁ” and “~んじゃない”？
I am so sorry. I just read your question dated December 17th. I must have been gone for vacation then.
~じゃないかなあと思う = I wonder if it could be ~ You are not sure. It sounds more uncertain than じゃない.
2. ~（ん）じゃない？ is used when you express your opinion.
Ex. 1) 彼は忙しいんじゃないかなあと思う。 I think he could be busy. (I am not sure) Expressing your assumption in a mild way.
Ex. 2) 彼は忙しいんじゃない？ He is busy, isn’t he? / I think he is busy. You are giving someone your opinion for them. You are more certain than 1)
I have a lesson on じゃない？. Please go check it. → Click this link.
Thank you so much for such a useful lesson.
I would like to ask you about a rule I read through Internet. That is,
as opposed to ばかり, ところ couldn’t be placed before a 名詞. For example:
彼にもらったばかりのプレゼントを開けました。
I opened the present I just received from him.
What about:
彼にもらったところのプレゼントを開けました。
Could it work as other formal nouns which modifies verbs,
like つもり、予定 and so on?
Thanks again and please, forgive me for such a trivial question.
Hello Daniele!
「彼にもらったところのプレゼントを開けました」 sounds unnatural to me.
You cannot use ところ for 連体修飾 because ところ is used as a metaphor for specifying a period of time when something is going to happen, is happening, or just happened.
The main difference between ～たばかり and ～たところ is that ～たところ is used for events that happened seconds or minutes ago (objectively a moment ago).
～たばかり is used for events that happed relatively (subjectively) not long ago. This pattern can be used for events that happened even over a year ago, but the speaker’s memories are still fresh (for example when we are talking about a war that ended a few years ago).
Also ばかり implies very often some negative emotions =>「彼からもらったばかりのプレゼントが盗まれた」.
Pure theoretically the pattern 動詞＋ところ＋の＋名詞＋を＋動詞 can be used => 高田が会社を出ようとしているところの後を追った (I caught up Takato while was leaving his office).
As for つもり, it can be used as 連体修飾, EX. 家に帰った時、食べるつもりのケーキが食べられてしまったことに気付いた。
So,send a mail my e-mail, if you want to help me. What I am need is practising Japanese with someone.
@Ofiris
日本語の資格？ それは誰にもありますよ。
おれのメル友になれ → 私だからいいけど（笑）日本の女の子の友達欲しかったら男言葉は知らない人に使うと乱暴に聞こえるからちょっと気をつけた方がいいかもしれませんよ。
I don’t know well but some of my students use “Hello Talk”, etc to make Japanese friends.
To communicate with me, follow me on Twitter. We can chat there.
Hello bill21,
任せる(=makaseru) / 任す(=makasu) mean the same. (任す＝makasu is more literal (or slightly old))
Some verbs have two forms like these.
愛する ( = aisuru) ・愛す(=aisu) to love
求める ( = motomeru ) ・求む (= motomu) to need, etc.
Hi, Maggie sensei! Excelent post!
I was wondering if I can use “ご無沙汰しています” with someone who I haven’t messaged (long distance friendship) in a long time. And also, how do I ask the person if he/she has been doing well? Is “元気でしたか” appropriate?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Kaede,
そんな噂（うわさ）もあるけれど = Sonna uwasa mo aru keredo
This も is not “about”. “also”
There is also a such a rumor.
Or simply emphasizing what comes before. uwasa
Hi sensei, sort of a question about a sentence I saw while reading.
だから、雑談はおろか、本当なら、リサを見かけたところで無視を決め込んだってよかったのだ。
Am I correct to assume that the って here refers to the というのは outlined in the lesson? It seems to be the only feasible option given that って is immediately followed by an adjective（よっかた）。
Thanks for the lessons, they have been of great helps.
So, as far as I understand you use 番目 to say that something is e.g. the first in or from something.
So when I want to say, give me the book from the bookshelf I would have to use that.
But if I just say I am reading the first book, I use number+counter+目. Furthermore counting from 10 upwards I have to use 番目 since 目 is only for the numbers 1-9 (I read this on another website).
But what if my word doesn´t have its own counter, like child?
As in the example below I just use what´s most associated with this word, so 一人目の子?
2. In this sentece(from the very first examples above): そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった角にあります
Why is 一本目 translated as second street and not first street here?
Hi Michael,
number+counter+目 Furthermore counting from 10 upwards I have to use 番目 since 目 is only for the numbers 1-9 (I read this on another website).
→ You can use whatever number.
１冊目の本〜１００冊目の本〜冊目
１台目の車〜５０台目の車, etc.
I think what you read is general counter, 一つ = ひとつ= hitotsu、二つ = ふたつ= futatsu 、三つ =みっつ= mittsu….九つ = ここのつ= kokonotsu、十 = とう= tou
You count children with 一人= hitori, 二人= futari…
So as you said, the first child is 一人目の子供/ 一人目の子
2. Or really? Then it is a mistake. 一本目= should be the first street.
このクマ？ Is this the bear you are talking about? / ” This is it?”
The actual meaning of 色使い is “use of color” but as you translated the color is just fine.
とか here is the usage 4). (and so on, stuff) It is just a soft way to say I like its color
mōichido kimi to aetara
shiranai yōna…
Shiranai mama
waratte īdesu ka
in this context, what would “yona” and “mama” mean? i understand “shiranai” means to not know something, but how do yona and mama affect that negative verb?
@aureal
Is it from some lyrics? It is hard to tell you the exact translation from that but
知らないような means “as if not knowing/ It is like I don’t know ~ ” / (feel) like not knowing”
知らないままに without knowing
yeah, this is the song. that was one of the only pages i could find. i get the meaning of it, i just wanted to understand how it was being used in that particular scenario.
Maggie Sensei, can you please explain to me the usage of ってわけ。I tried looking for a clear explanation online but to no avail. I know it’s the shortened for of ～というわけ。But I’m confused as to how you properly use it. I often hear it being used at the end of the sentence. Can you give examples? Thanks in advance.
You are right. ってわけ is a casual form of 〜というわけです・〜というわけだ。
You use it when you casually explain
* why/how something happened
* why/how someone does/did something.
* how things work
and conclude with ってわけ = That’s why.
* sentence ってわけ = ~~~ That’s why./ That means ~ /It’s because ~~.
Ex. 彼女、失恋したみたい。だから髪を切ったってわけ。
= かのじょ、しつれんしたみたい。だからかみをきったってわけ。
= I heard she had a broken heart. That’s why she had her hair cut, you know.
Ex. 隣の家族は東京に引っ越したよ。つまりもう誰もあの部屋には住んでいないってわけ。
= となりのかぞくはとうきょうにひっこしたよ。つまりもうだれもあのへやにはすんでいないってわけ。
= The next door family moved to Tokyo. That means nobody is living in that room, you know.
Ex. A: どうして彼はツアーで日本に行くのかな？
= I wonder why he is going to Japan in a group tour.
B: ツアーの方が安かったってわけ。
= It’s because group tour is cheaper. That’s why.
Hi! I have a question: What does “koko toka” (こことか) mean? Google translator gives me a nonsensical answer and I already search the internet but nothing. Help me, please :c
Hi Hitomi,
The literal meaning is
ここ – here
とか = and etc.
But it is hard to say without knowing the context.
Ex.
A: 〜はどこにあるかな？ = I wonder where X is…
B: こことか、あそことか探した？ Did you look here or there and so on?
Woah, very good! Besides being rude, I feel that I’ll sound more naturally from a native speaker perspective, by using some of the male speech in casual conversations. Because of the animes, I always wanted to know where that “~ee” form came from, such as “sugoi” becoming “sugee” (I thought it was some kind of regional variation lol). Now I managed to understand it. Thank you sooo much, Maggie Sensei!
Hello Maggie sensei, i fully understand TARA, but i don’t Quite understand NARA. They both mean “IF” but can you give me some brief explanation and few sentence examples of how to use NARA? thank you
This phrase is the extraction of a video, and indeed “they” are the three protagonists.
If you really believe that I did well, then as if I could cry for the T-T emosion
“They tried to see where she was pointing” is better?
@Kaede
There is not connotaton of “try to” in the sentence. Just the last と… implies there is something in that direction where she was pointing at. So you can just translate it with “when” as well.
When they looked at the direction where she was pointing….
Hello there, Maggie-sensei!
I’m learning Japanese, as most of your readers do, I suppose ))
I have a question. I’ve read that with such words as 好き 嫌い 上手 下手 が must be used. But in your example you use を 「初めて人を好きになりました。」
Is it also OK to use を in such cases?
Hi Eugene,
Yes,好き、嫌い、上手、下手 are adjectives so you say ~が(or は）好き、嫌い、上手、下手
But when it is use with になる (verb) you can both use が好きになる・を好きになる・が嫌いになる・を嫌いになる、
（As for 上手 and 下手, が上手になる、が下手になる）
Also when you modify a noun you can use を as well.
彼女を好きな人
彼女が好きな人
にんじんが嫌いな人
にんじんを嫌いな人
When it is modify a verb (to use 上手 and 下手 as adverbs) you use を
漢字を上手に書く
絵を下手に描く
Hi Maggie :)
There is something I don’t understand – using TE IKEMASEN with NAGARA – because I have seen examples of this in both ways and can’t be sure which one is better.
Example 1. Arukinagara tabako wo sutte wa ikemasen.
I understand this one.
BUT
Example 2. Terebi wo minagara, benkyou shinai de kudasai.
Example 3. Toshokan de, ongaku wo kikinagara, benkyou shinai de kudasai.
Why?? Why is it not ‘Benkyou shinagara, terebi o minaide kudasai’ (and same for example 3)??
It is driving me crazy, haha
Because it’s the first part of the sentence what’s not allowed.
テレビを観ながら勉強してはいけません。
= terebi o minagara benkyou shite wa ikemasen.
テレビを観ながら勉強しないでください。
= Terebi o minagara benkou shinai de kudasai.
Q* Because it’s the first part of the sentence what’s not allowed.
What is not allowed is not just the first part (watching TV) but the whole action, which is
“to study watching TV” = テレビを観ながら勉強する = terebi o minagara benkyou suru.
Of course the main action is “to study” and the speaker wants to say not to study in certain condition.
If you say
勉強しながらテレビを観ないでください。
= Benkyou shinagara terebi o minai de kudasai.
The main action is テレビを観る, watching TV.
So it means “Do not watch TV while you are studying.” and it changes the nuance.
Good day! I was looking for an explanation of Facebook word for “followers”: フォロー中. After your article I guess it the meaning of 中 is “under specific conditions”, am I right?
I’m following you is フォローしています。or フォロー中です。
フォローしました is I followed you/ I just followed you. (focusing on the action of clicking the follow rather than the state of following.)
Hello Sensei! I’m glad the site is healthy again! :-D
I have a question
Through the lesson, the sentence “誰に聞いても何も教えてくれない。” is translated as “No matter who I ask, nobody tells me anything.”
Could it also mean “No matter who you ask, noone will tell you” ? As a warning or in a sarcastic manner.
Thanks you for the awesome lesson! :) :-P
Dear Sensei, I am confused with the certain examples which has the ‘da’ affixed to ” to iu noni”..Can you enlighten me on this? Any difference even if it is without the ‘da’?
I wonder if you could help me with a book (A dictionary of basic Japanese grammar) that I am reading. For ある, it says “When ある is used to express the idea of having and the object is animate, that object must be someone who maintains a very close relationship with the possessor, such as a family member, a relative or a friend. Thus, (4) is acceptable, but (5) is odd.
(4) 私には子供が三人ある
…”
Whenever I use ある in this way, I am corrected and told to use いる instead which makes sense to me.
Even in the いる section of the same book is the sentence 「私には子供が三人いる」.
Do you think the use of ある is just very very rare or maybe it has become outdated since the books publication?
Or do you think the book wrong? I am quite confused by it…
Thank you for your help! Also love your website it has been very helpful :)!
Hi Maggie!
One thing about your research.
Uncle Google sometimes doesn’t count correctly at fist glance.
“Ex. （〜には）子供がない・子供がない~ 1,510,000 ー 子供がいない 716,000
Ex. (~には）男兄弟がない・男兄弟がない~ 84,100 ー 男兄弟がいない 18,800”
“子供がない” = 16件 (Just tip “子供がない” scroll down, click 次へ and then you will see only 16件 instead of 1 980 000).
“男兄弟がない” = 29件
But is it ある because it’s considered food, or because it’s not living? I think what I’m trying to get at is, does ある imply that something is dead (or that it was once a living thing) where otherwise いる would be used? Here’s an odd example – If my grandmother had died and someone asked “Where’s Grandma(‘s body)?” would (could) I say something like “隣の部屋にある” (she’s in the next room)?
I’ve probably annoyed you much too long, so I’ll stop here – but that’s what you get when you give such great explanations. Thanks for always entertaining my weird questions as though they are as important to you as they are to me. You both do such great and wonderful work on this site. I really appreciate it. Thanks!
When someone you know or loving pets die and talk about their body, you use いる
おばあちゃんは隣の部屋にいる and treat them as if they are alive with respect. If you say ある, it sounds really cold and you may offend their family.
Now, if you treat them as a dead body you say 死体 (dead body: sounds very cold if you use it for someone you know. You hear that on news), then you use ある (We say 死体を発見した= We found a dead body more though) but when you use ご遺体 (goitai: more polite than 死体), you use 置かれる / 安置する or we even use 眠っている /横たわっている (sleeping/lying)
I you found a dead animal , just saying (animal) がある is strange.
You say あそこに死んだ(animal) がいる
or
(animal) の死体がある
I should stop here before Maggie reads this comment…
Good day/afternoon/evening/night Maggie sensei!
I have this question that what is 与えることだけはできたらしいさ in English?
I know that 与える means ‘to give’, ことだけ could mean ‘only thing’ but I have no idea how to translate this できたらしい.
I would be very happy if you could help me :D
With greetings, Karin.
Thank you so much, I love all your lessons! They are so fun and easy to understand, so many great examples. Everytime my textbook confuses me I come to your site & things start to make sense. Thank you!
Konnichiha, Maggie-Sensei, Mata Watakushi Desu
Actually I’m Confused Between (Towa) & (Nante/Da Nante), They Sounded Kind Of Similar To Me!
*Could You Please Show Me In Which Circumstances We Use Each One Of Them?
*Besides, Is It True That: (Towa) Is A Collocial Abbreviation To (To iu No Ha)?
* Does (To iu No Ha) = (To iu Koto/Mono Ha)?
*Moreover, Putting (No/N/Nano/Nan) Right Before (Towa) Makes Sense? Ex: “Subarashii Ninja Seifuku Ga Oru N Towa Na!”
Ohayou!
I’m sorry… I just told other visitors but I can only deal with one or two simple questions here.
Luckily I already have lessons on two subjects so please check the links.
Q1* Could You Please Show Me In Which Circumstances We Use Each One Of Them?
* とは：
When you explain something/talk about the definition.
人生とは何かを考える
= Jinsei towa nani ka wo kangaeru.
= To think what the life is.
「難解」とは「難しい」ということです。
= “Nankai” to wa “muzukashii toiu koto desu.
= “難解: Nankai” means “difficult”.
When you quote what you just heard.
全部お金を使ってしまったとはどういうこと？
= Zenbu okane wo tsukatte shimatta towa douiu koto?
= What do you mean you spent all the money??
As Always, You Gave Me What I’ve Been Exactly Looking For Dear Sensei, Though I Found Many English Sentences Haven’t Mentioned Me An Exact [Translation] To (To Ha) & (To iu No Ha), However You Show Me A Way To Deal With The Both.
_TASUKARIMASHITA! Arigatou Gozaimasu Maggie-Sensei, O Deha !happyface! !formingheart3!
I have question about anime title, forgive me if it’s not suitable for this lesson. I know the premises of this anime, but I don’t watch it, so may be I have misunderstanding here. The title is 進撃の巨人 or “attack on titan”. If I’m following this lesson correctly, the main noun is 巨人 (titan) not 進撃 (attack), so the literal meaning is either “the attacked/assaulted titan” or “the attacking/assaulting titan”. Using the same word, “attack on titan” should be 巨人の進撃, or to make it clearer 巨人への進撃. I know it’s just a title, so the translation can be influenced by many factor, such as to make target language’s speaker easy to understand.
こんにちは、Kamal.
You are not alone. Obviously many Japanese people question the meaning of the title 進撃の巨人 and wonder why 巨人 and 進撃 are reversed. (As you said, 巨人の進撃 looks/sounds grammatically more clear. )
Since I have never read the story I can’t tell you the real intention but according to what I have researched, the interpretation of the title changes by the point of view and the episode. If the title is 巨人の進撃, you imagines a lot of Titans are attacking.
Some said 巨人 refers to Eren himself. He becomes a Titan.
Anyway, they decided to have that title to make the story more mysterious. Maybe we can tell the real intention while reading the story.
Hi Sensei! Thank goodness you are back! Was checking out ur site today but it was down. T-T
Great to see you again!
Sensei, I need help with this word – tachidomari. I cant seem to conjugate it from tachidomaru and it ended up differently. Please help! Thanks for all your help ;)
Hi Anna,
Sorry. The site has been down… It has been on and off…
Anyway,
立ち止まり = たちどまり= tachidomari is a conjugation from a verb
立ち止まる= たちどまる= stand still, stop (walking or doing something what you have been doing once)
Do you have an example sentence where you saw the word? If it is used with other verb, it works like this.
You can use this form as te-form. Stop walking/Stand still/ Stop what you have been doing once and then…..
立ち止まり( = tachidomari)+ Verb = to do something standing still/ stop walking/stop doing what you have been doing.
(It is similar to 立ち止まって( = tachidomatte ) )
ずっと働き続けてきたが、たまには立ち止まり（立ち止まって）人生について考えることも必要だと思った。
= Zutto hataraite kita ga, tama niwa tachidomari (or tachidomatte) jinsei ni tsuite kangaeru koto mo hitsuyou da to omotta.
= I have been working all my life but I came to think that it is necessary to stop working and think about my life once.
Yes, it is the same as tachidomatte.
He stopped (walking) and ~
So you can connect sentences using masu-stem like te-form.
He was surprised to know the fact.
↓
彼はそのことを知って驚いた。
= Kare wa sono koto wo shitte odoroita.
彼はそのことを知り驚いた。
= Kare wa sono koto wo shiri odoroita.
Many learners get confused with this form.
Will add it to the lesson list. :)
That would be great!! Thanks a million, Sensei. Thanks for being so patient and helpful. :cryingboy:
@Anna
You’re welcome, Anna! :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Now I understand the difference between あげます and くれます, I only have one question regarding もらいます.
(I’m sorry if someone has already asked that, there are so many comments that I couldn’t read all of them.)
I know where the position of わたし should be in senteces using あげます and くれます.
I’m just not sure where わたし can be if I say もらいます.
I know it can be in the beginning, eg. I received money from my mother: 私は母からお金をもらいました。
But if I want to say: “My mother received flowers from me”, can is say: 母は私に花をもらいました。?
Hi Berry. Sorry. I found your four messages. They went to SPAM folder for some reason. I erased the other three messages.
Q: I know it can be in the beginning, eg. I received money from my mother: 私は母からお金をもらいました。
But if I want to say: “My mother received flowers from me”, can is say: 母は私に花をもらいました。?
Yes, technically you can say 母は私に(or から）花をもらいました。
Since the speaker is a giver, it will be more natural to say 私は母に花をあげました。
But if the third person gave flowers to the speaker’s mother, you can say
母は、〜に花をもらいました。
(I will post the same Q&A in Maggie’s room in case you check there.)
Hello Ralph,
You can use the word
着方=きかた=kikata =the way you wear
Ex. 浴衣の着方はこれで合っていますか？
= ゆかたのきかたはこれであっていますか？
= Yukata no kikata wa kore de atte imasu ka?
But i think it can also mean:
“it’s not his dictionary?” (Questioning….Maybe he stole it).
My question is how to distinguish or how do we know that the sentence is affirmative/negative meaning if “janai ka” can act affirmative and negative as well? Especially if noun is put before janai ka?
Konnichiha Maggie-Sensei
_I’ve Been Stuck In This Matter About (Te) Form:
As We Know That When There’s A Couple Of Linked Verbs Or Events In A Sentence We Have To Conjugate Them Into A (Te) Form Except The Last Verb/Noun/Adj/Event…etc, But I Just Want To Figure Out This Difference Between The Two Sentences:
Ex:
– I Want To Ride A Bike.
– I Want To Go To Japan.
– I Want To Be A Writer.
_Alright When We Link Them As One Sentence, Become:
(Jitensha Ni Notte, Nippon Ni Itte, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
OR
(Jitensha Ni Noritakute, Nippon Ni Ikitakute, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
When you continue the three sentences, I would use し instead of て
自転車に乗りたいし、日本に行きたいし、作家（さっか）にもなりたい。
(Jitensha Ni Notte, Nippon Ni Itte, Sakka Ni Naritai.)
It means “I ride a bike and go to Japan and want to be a writer.”
(Jitensha Ni Noritakute, Nippon Ni Ikitakute, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
is not natural.
Jitensha ni noritaku te = this “te” gives a reason. I want to ride a bike and do something in order to ride a bike.
In the usage 1), I showed the examples of showing the contrast cleary or two contradicted facts.
2) contains, more subtle usages. Ex. マギーですけど… (It doesn’t show any contrast.) , showing more emotions, colloquial usages, etc.
Maggie desu kedo.
This kedo doesn’t have a function to show the contrast or lead to something contradicting.
You add it to either emphasize the feelings or soften the speech.
They both could be translated as “to do something like/as〜” but と同じように means “to do something in the same way as ~”, ” or “to do something “just” like ~ ” (the similarity is stronger than のように)
(1) 彼は、犬のように歌います。
(2) 彼は、犬と同じように歌います。
(1) is OK (even though singing like a dog is a bit challenging. :D)
As for (2) if the sentence would be good if he sings just like certain singer. (He is copying the way that person sings.)
Ex. プロの歌手と同じように歌うのは難しい
= It is difficult to sing in the same way as a professional singers.
この料理の味は、鶏肉のようなのかどうかまだわからない。
Let me change the first part because you don’t say 料理 tastes like 鶏肉.
この肉は鶏肉のような味がする。
This meat tastes like chicken.
Hello Sensei! Would you mind explaining to me the usage of Japanese verb stem form? I watched an anime and I heard they use the word tabe. Please help!
Hi Sensei..Good to hear from you:) . Nope, I was thinking of how to use verb stem for daily conversations coz I have heard in the anime using the word tabe in their conversations…Was wondering how to use and the function of it~ Thanks :)
Yes yes! He was saying about dating a girl and mention about “Burger o tabe”. Can you enlighten me on this? I read somewhere that renyoukei form can be used on its own but more to literary and writing type. But some sites wrote that it can’t be used alone as well.
@Anna
OK, お+ verb stem = is a gentle command form.
Note: It doesn’t work with all the verbs.
(It is usually used when older people tell younger people or children what to do or what not to do)
Burger otabe = Eat a burger. (command form)
Mizu wo onomi = Drink water.
Odamari = Shut up/ Keep your month shut. (It sounds more gentle than だまりなさい)
Arigatou gozaimasu. … it is wonderful…It removed many confusionS related to its usages….. regards
Hello Maggie!
During my journey with 日本語 I came across a very interesting archaic causative pattern; it’s …をして～しめる.
I’d like you to check, if the sentences are correctly translated.
1. わが意思を、速やかに民をして知らしめよ。 => Inform the nation about our intension as soon as possible!
2. 自らをして悟らしめよ。 => Enlighten me / us! (Make me /us understand!)
The 3rd sentence is a ことわざ, and here I need also your help, please.
3. 死せる孔明、生ける仲達をして走らしむ。
「AをしてBせしめる」means「AにBさせる」
1. OK
2. I think it means “Enlighten yourself.”
3. It is an old saying.
孔明 is dead but he made 仲達 who is still alive run (away).
There is a little history behind this saying but basically it means
an influential person still influences people even if they are dead.
As always I’m grateful for your help, Maggieさん :qq:
No, I’m not studying 漢文, but you are right, this pattern derives from 漢文訓読調.
Now I can continue my journey. Maybe some day it leads me to China (to 漢文).
Who knows, who knows…
the weather forcast said its going to rain tomorrow,so how about we go a place wheres there no rain.__….Hmmmmm._.._like my apartment or the movie theaters?
Correct in hiragana please.Im sure my Japanese is incorrect. (Thanks for all your lessons)
雨がないとかの→雨（あめ）が降（ふ）らない場所に（or へ）行（い）ってはどうですか？
Since you used とか, you can also say 場所とかに（or へ）行（い）ってはどうですか？
Note: 行ってはどうですか？means “Why don’t you go to ~ ?” and the speaker is not involved.
But the second speaker suggested his/her apartment. So
行きませんか？ / (casual) 行かない？ would be better.
え～と、私のアパートとか、映画とかはどうだ？
→ １）え〜と is used when you are thinking. If you suggest some idea, you say それなら (then)
２）どうだ？ is a male speech and sounds blunt. The first speaker used どうですか？ so you should use
どうですか？ or どう？(less casual)
嫌い is an adverb so you say
〜が嫌い
~は嫌い (*when you show the contrast)
So if you want to use 嫌い in the example sentence, you say
母は私が一日中ゲームするの”が”(“は”*) 嫌いだ
But since 母は is a subject and I used a subject marker,”は”, I used a verb, 嫌う on purpose.
Japanese people tend to avoid having two subject markers in one sentence.
お久しぶりです。
I have a question but not sure where to put it. Because the sentence contains させる, so I post it here.
I came across this sentence in Hiragana Times.
応募数の多い場合は抽選。結果は発送をもってかえさせていただきます。
The English text was:
Winners will be selected by lottery and receive gifts directly.
I do not understand the second sentence 結果は発送をもってかえさせていただきます in particular, the words をもって and かえさせていただきます. I do know させていただきます but not かえ. And I am not sure if it should be かえる or かえす since it is not written in kanji.
Hi Chang,
Vさせていただきます is a polite way to say “to take the liberty of doing something”
In this case the verb is 代える →代えさせていただきます
When a company gives away prizes, they usually announce the names of the winners on their homepage, in newspaper,
or magazines. But instead of doing that , they will show the result by sending the prize to the winners directly.
結果は発送をもって（当選の発表ということに）代えさせていただきます。
The direct translation is
As for the result, we take the liberty of substituting the mean of showing the result for sending the prize to the winners.
〜をもって with 〜 / by mean of ~
代える= change/ substitute
Hi and thank you for the lesson. I recently came across ように in a song and it kind of stumped me a little. The line in particular is 「乙女の剣(つるぎ)を
この生命(いのち) 燃え尽きるように」. What is the translation of this line and how is the youni being used?
Maggie-sensei, thank you so much for this explanation! I’ve been struggling with this word in a text I’m translating and thought I was completely lost. However, by some magic power I have found this post and I’m eternally grateful! !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART!
Thank you for the lesson! I just wanted to know, would it be more common to use (as a young girl toward her boyfriend in public) 「ねえ、私のこと大好き？」as opposed to 「ねえ、私のこと愛してる？」?
Maggie 先生! Thank you for your various lessons – I’m heading to Japan soon and am very excited and very thankful for your useful phrases. I have a question to ask – I will be using the Kansai One Pass while in Kansai, which is refundable with a handling fee. I intend to ask for a refund when I leave Kansai but am not sure how I should do this. Is it okay to take the card to the ticket station and say “返品がしたいです”? Thank you again for your help!
Hi Nicole,
Wow, you are coming to Japan. How exciting!
Kansai One Pass is relatively a new pass.
Here is the details of the pass. You can check the locations where you can get/refund the pass.
You tell them,
デポジットの返金お願いします。(Depozitto no henkin onegai shimasu.)
They will charge 手数料（てすうりょう）handling fee from the deposit.
Hi, Maggie-sensei! Sorry to bother you!
I have a line that I’m trying to make sense of with ‘yori’, but it’s difficult for me because I think it may be in slang.
The line is :
前からカワイかったのに、よりカワイくなったって。
Actually, there are a number of things I don’t understand about this!
First of all, my understanding is something like “Even though I used to be cute, there was a time I was not.” Although I think I might be completely wrong.
I don’t think I’ve seen the construction of ‘maekara’ before. Does this mean ‘before what you see in front of you’?
And why do they put the ‘yori’ comparative before the negative form of ‘was not cute’ without a subject and action? This sentence is confusing me a lot. I would appreciate any help you can give.
That’s right. The speaker is a very egotistical person who is talking about herself. Thank you for showing me this new form of ‘yori’. I will definitely remember it.
I appreciate your time to answer all these questions! Thank you for helping me understand the beautiful language of Japanese better.
Maggie-sensei! I love your lessons and all the time you take to help explain things. Thank you very much for all your work and effort! Perhaps you can help me with a sentence. I’m trying to translate it, but I’m not sure how accurate it is.
ひとりぐらい増えても構いません。
I’m wondering why the ‘gurai’ word is used with a noun (hitori). I understand the sentence to mean something like “It doesn’t matter that I’m alone more often”, but I’m not sure why ‘gurai’ is used in conjunction with ‘hitori’.
ひとりぐらい増えても構いません。
→It will be easier to think this sentence as a conditional
（人数は）ひとりぐらい（なら）増えても構いません。
(Literal translation)ひとりぐらい（なら）= If just one person, 増えても構いません。= it doesn’t matter if we have more.
(You can increase the number of people, if it is just one person or so. It doesn’t matter.)
→I don’t mind (It doesn’t matter) if we have one more person.
Oh, I think I understand now. It’s very tricky, but I’ll keep trying to learn. Thank you very much for your help!
Is this kind of sentence construction considered very ‘casual’? The context of where this is from is from dialogue, so maybe it is different from how it would be in print.
Maggie-sensei, just want to say that your explanations stand out among a lot of other websites out there. You almost always consider every possible edge case and capture every nuance!
In this particular sentence, can ほど also be used to say something like:
Thanks so much for replying! Just registered as a patron on your Patreon. You are awesome :)
Dear wireman,
Oh, that was you!
Thank you sooo much for your support!
Please feel free to ask me question on Patreon as well. :)
Looking forward to making more lesson there,too.
Hello Maggie!
I always love reading your lessons!
How often in real life do people use ‘あたし’? When I type in Japanese, I usually refer to myself as ‘わたし’ in hiragana over kanji because I’ve heard it’s more casual when I write my blog or talk to my friends. I heard that some girls use ‘ぼく’ as well, but I’m not sure sometimes because non-native Japanese speakers confuse anime and real life a lot. I want to learn how to speak as casually and candidly as possible towards my friends.
Hi Sharlz
I’m happy to hear you read my lessons. :)
People who use あたし do exist but compare to わたし, it is still rare. (You may think it is just for young people but certain people in an older age group use it as well.)
And as you said there are girls who prefer to call themselves ぼく.
If you have a strong policy to create your image, you can use it.
However, if you overuse あたし・ぼく, it gets annoying for many people.
I have seen many Japanese learners try to use わよ・そうよ type of speech intentionally to make themselves sound more feminine but it gives the listener/readers of feeling of 違和感 (いわかん), the feeling that something is wrong.
I would stick to 私. By using the suffix, such as 〜の makes your speech sounds pretty casual yet neutral and friendly.
Your post was great as always! ^^
I have only one question: can I use volitional form (-tai) before -nara?
For example I would like to say to a friend: “if you want to see a good movie, you should watch this.”
Is it okay to say: “何か楽しい映画を見たいなら、この映画を見たほうがいいと思います” ?
すごく早いお返事ありがとうございます！ !niconico!
And your example sentences are great, too, now I could learn the word “snack” in Japanese! And its kanji combination makes a lot of sense! ^^
I’ll keep learning, thanks a lot! :purple: :w:
Konbanha Gozaimasu, Maggie-Sensei!
_I’ve Been Learning Japanese For About Two Years, But Still Don’t Know What Really The Verb “Infinitive-Form” Is Used For? I Mean Sometimes Finds That It Mentions To Past Events, & Usually Followed By Another Verb In Events-Linked Phrase (Especially In Anime). Confused About It, I Really Need A Specific Usage, Onegai Shimasu!
:kkk:
Ahh Etto.
_Thanks Alot For This Worthy Explanation, But.. My Fault Hehe, I Know That Casual-Form Of The Verb, But I Wanted Exactly To Know About This Form, Example:
Suru________Sh(i).
Naru________Nar(i).
Shinu_______Shin(i).
Aru_________Ar(i)… “Neko Ga Ari Desu” Though: Aru = Ari [Or Any Difference?]
_Well, This Form Isn’t Used Too Much, But It Does Change The Context?!
Hmm? I thought you wanted to know the usage of infinitive form.
You want to know when to use ます form?
する→します
なる→なります
しぬ→しにます
ある→あります
If so it is a polite form of the dictionary form.
You can use that form for something habitual and also near future. (What you are going do do.)
Or verbs such as あります／います describe a current state.
And you can check my tense lesson.
BTW you don’t say ねこがあります (cat is a living thing so you say ねこがいます)
Sugoi! Arigatou, Maggie Sensei! Saikou Deshou Anata Ha !happyface!
Hhhh I Was About To Correct The Typo For “Ga Aru” Into “Ga Iru” But Was Too Late After Putting The Comment!
!nemui! Mata Arigatou Gozaimashita Sensei !!
@Kibounokata
You’re welcome! :)
Hi Maggie!
I found this site accidentally while searching how can I translate “ついでに”.
Actually I am studying English in Australia.
So your explanation is very useful for me too.
I’m looking forward to next update!
Take care♪
I’d like to ask you about location particle when switching from transitive to intransitive verbs.
For example, I know that, if I’m in the act of opening the window in the room, I’ll say:
私は部屋で窓を開けています。
since in the room the action is taking place. But, if I want to describe the current state of the window, then there’s not “such an action” but “an existence instead”, I’m naturally prone (but maybe I’m wrong!) to say:
Hello, Maggie sensei. What does も mean in the following sentence? It goes before a verb, doesn’t it? And after を. I’m a bit confused about its placement.
このオレはいずれ火影の名を受け継いで、先代のどの火影をも超えてやるんだ！
Hi OKちゃん
The potential director already knows your name but you haven’t see that director yet?
If so the third one doesn’t work.
And the keigo level depend on how high his position is.
〜です。よろしくお願いします。(polite) I think this is sufficient.
~ と申します。よろしくお願い致します。(very polite) If you are not comfortable, use this form.
Yo, Maggie sense
I find your blog by accident, and actually I really love it, I learned many kanji here, but please continue learning. My best regards..
Could someone please tell me what つい means in that example:
レッスンを作っているとつい時間を忘れがちになります。
Thank you very much Maggie sensei. Your lessons were too hard for me when I began learning Japanese, but now I really appreciate the numerous examples you provide.
Hello Vincent,
in this sentence つい implies unintentionality (pattern つい～がちになる tells us, that the action [= the tendency to forget about time] has been done unconsciously). It is good not to translate つい in this case. Let’s say that adds more emphasis to ～がちになる.
Hi Vincent,
I know my lessons can be really difficult for the beginners but I am glad you still come here.
つい means “without intention/ unconsciously / happen to do something,etc”
Or when you do something and get too involved and can’t control it.
When I make lessons, I am apt to forget about time. (I get too involved with making lessons and forget the truck of time and can’t control it.)
Ex.つい食べ過ぎる = I tend to eat too much. (Once I start to eat, I keep eating.I can’t control it. )
Hi, firstly I wanna thank you for all those lessond you have made so far, it is incredibly helpful. !JYANE!
In one book of japanese grammar I found written that the same thing as conditional ba+yokatta/ii can also be expressed using conditional tara+ii/yokatta but so far I have not seen the second possibility so often, so I wanna ask if it is better to stick with conditional ba?
So if I get it right, for example if I wanted to say “If only I had told my mother” it would be: お母さんに言ったらよかった ＝お母さんに言えばよかった and “If only I could swim” would be : 泳げたらいいな＝泳げればいいな? Thanks in advance.
Thnc Maggie sense I for replying I want to thank your lesson make my Japanese improve a lot, I read a lot of japanese book but your explanation is awesome you are awesome thnx
Well i have a problem my comments dissapear haha you may see the same question million time
Sensei 問題してもいいですか。
作っていくIts mean we will go nd make something or we will make something
作ってくる means to makee something nd come or to come nd makes something
Please help me I am confused
Yes, I found four comments in the SPAM file. If one comment doen’t go through, it is probably because it goes to the SPAM file. Don’t worry. I always check SPAM file.
作っていく = to make something and go somewhere with what you made.
作ってくる= to make something and come to where the speaker was/is with what they made.
(Note for you: 問題してもいいですか？= You mean “Can I ask you a question? Then you say 質問してもいいですか？）
I have a probleme I am confused
私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている
Its means I have been teaching japanese on Maggie sense I site from 7 years ago
私は7年間マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えた
Mean also I havr been teaching Japanese on Maggie sense I site from 7 years ago
Is it right nd I f am wrong correct for me nd tell me the difference please sensei お願いします
Hi, hibabekha!
As I explained in Verb Tense Part 1,
私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている
means ” I have been teaching Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.”
It implies “I am still teaching here on this site.” (ongoing action)
私は7年間マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えた
means
1) I taught Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.
(Talking about the fact in the past. I don’t teach there anymore.)
2) I have taught Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.
(Talking about my experience until the moment. But unlike the sentence, 私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている, it doesn’t imply “ongoing action”. I am looking back my experience of teaching Japanese on this site. )
Hi Maggie! Your article about the particle “shi” was quite illuminating! I found your site via a Google search looking for an explanation of “shi”, and I will definitely be going through your blog for more.
I really appreciate how approachable and fun your explanations are, and how you give so much detail and nuance without ever being too dense.
Anyway, keep up the good work マギー先生！
Regards,
Jack Wolfe
First, I would just like to give huge props for putting out such amazing content as you do and taking your free time to teach others, huge respect!
Regarding my question, as I’ve understood “も” can be used to to “emphasize” hence some meanings will translate to “even” in english.
For instance as in this lesson:
一問も答えない => not answer even one question
and my question here is, “でも” also has the nuance of “even” and can also be used in the same fashion to emphasize, right?
So how would this sentence differ from the one above: 一問でも答えない
In a case like this, which of “も” and “でも” has a deeper emphasize? or is the meaning even the same to begin with?
If I get to guess, “でも” sounds more negative in my ears, more like not answer EVEN ONE while “も” sounds more like not answer ONE, but I don’t know :3
Sorry for asking of so much without being able to give much back but I would really appreciate some more deeper comparison of “も” and “でも” when it comes to emphasizing. よろしく！〜 !DANCING! !beermug!
Though I am aware of some grammar points where only “も” is allowed to emphasize if I’ve understood things right, words like より(も) 幸いに(も) and so on..
Thanks again for your awesomeness, your lessons have really helped me throughout my studies! :D
I’m sorry for sending multiple comments, it’s just for some reason when I commented and hit the “post” comment button the site would just go blank for me so I never knew if my comments made it through or not :3
Anyways thank you again, I think I get the difference now !happyface! Have a good day! !DANCING!
You’re very welcome, William.
Oh please don’t apologize. The comment filter doesn’t work properly sometime and one of your message went to a Spam folder for some reason. That happens a lot here.
Anyway, have a good day! :)
Sorry for yet another post (I can’t modify my posted message! Do delete my previous posts if it is taking up space!)
I think I somewhat understand it after looking at the posts a couple of times.
The gist of it isn’t really about the particle に or the change in verb form. It is about the speaker/listeners’ perspective. Do correct me if i am wrong on this.
For example, it would be odd just to say “そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか” (can you receive that sweet from my son) since it would be rude to reject a gift when someone offers it to you in Japanese culture, let alone of a children. (It is okay to reject once or twice, however, to initiate this kind of question would probably means that “my son” has been rejected at least dozen times).
Because of this, whenever this question is initiated, it can only be perceived as “can i receive that sweet from my son” since the other option, “can you receive that sweet from my son” is literally not possible due to the norms Japanese shares.
Sorry for the additional post as I just stumbled across a similar question.
I still can’t understand why it would differ so much just because the form of the verb changes. I am betting that the gist of it lies within the particle “に”. But even if the “に” here is “のために”, under what circumstances should we see the “に” here as “のために”?
MagggieSensei !CHECKHEART! :purple: ,
Thank you so much! !heart3! !formingheart3! I am learning something new again today because of your good deed! :tulip2: Please keep up your awesome work, we people are so lucky to have an awesome person like u in this world! !happyface! Thank you!!! boucingheart! :w:
Hello! This isn’t the right spot to post this, but I couldn’t find a post for it, so I’ll just ask here if that’s okay. :)
I was just wondering if there are rules about when to use kun-yomi or on-yomi or if it’s okay to use either?
Like 剣: is it okay to use つるぎ or ケン interchangeably?
Thanks so much!! :D
I have a bit of trouble with morau
I know that the meaning is “having someone doing something for me”
But somehow i cannot understans this prase : a bad guy asks to his victim to tell him what he knows : “Kikasetemorauka?”
it ithis verb , kiku that amkes everything bad :((((
i assume it is used in the “to hear” meaning right?
I cannot figure things out :cryingboy: with kureru and ageru it is easier but with morau i get confused^^
In this it would mean : “i would like to receive the favor from you that you let me hear you????” Basivally i don’t know who would let the other hear him…The locutor, the interlocutor?
Sorry for the confuse answer and i would like to says that your site is the best i have found to learn very usefull things in japanese!!
Thank you again for all your hard work on it!!! :-D
Sorry for the double message but here is another example : “言わせてもらうけど。
Apparently it would mean “let me tell you something” but i just cannot comprhend it 申し訳ありません !
Hello rysper!
Regarding your first question, I think it should be 「聞かせてもらおうか」 instead of 「聞かせてもらうか」. In this case it means “Let me hear it!” The sentence should be understood as follows: The bad guy receives a favour from his victim of letting him hear about something.
The same scenario goes to: 「見せてもらおうか！」 which means “Show me!”, as in 「キサマの本当の力、見せてもらおうか！」.
Regarding your second question, 言わせてもらうけど means “Let me tell you something…”. So basically you receive the permission from your 相手 that allows you to say something to her/him.
The same scenario goes to: 「私の立場から言わせてもらえば…」 which means “if you allow me to show you my point of view”.
I can see what you mean but even with that it is a bit hard for me to “understand ” it
I think it is because with morau, the point of you is on me or someone close to me and feels a bit bizarre, whereas with kureru it is on the interlocutor and feels more “natural”.. so if i write “misetekureru(ka)” i can understand it a bit better than with “misetemorau(ka)” beacause with saying “show me”, the point on view is on the interlocutor and feels right..the translation “i would like you to show me” (the point of you is on me) doesn’t appear in my head naturally^^
So when the verb is more complicated like kikasete (in this case”to have the permission to hear”) i completely lose it^^
Just a little thing : why did you use the o form in this : 「聞かせてもらおうか」
Generally してもらう means have someone do something.
And させてもらう means let someone do something (in the context of receiving a permission to do something).
From the context you will learn who receives the favour.
友達に空港へ連れてってもらいました。 => The Speaker received the favour of taking him to the airport from his friend.
マギー先生にrysperのエッセーを訂正してもらいます。=> You will receive from Maggie the favour of revising your essay.
聞かせてもらおうか sounds to me more natural in this case / context (=> a bad guy asks to his victim to tell him what he know).
Well, to be honest, these constructions are relatively easy. But I found on the Internet a nice pattern-combo, look:
ありがたく使わせてもらわせてもらうことにしました。 *mind blowing*
Hi rysper, 天人さん is already helping you but just let me add something that I didn’t mention in my lesson.
You use あげる(→やる）・くれる・もらう for something favorable in general.
But you sometimes you them negatively.
＊あげる(→usually with a casual form やる）
Ex. ぼこぼこにしてやる (threat)
= I will beat you up.
＊くれる
Ex. よくもこんなことをしてくれたね。（くれたな）(sarcasm)
= How could you do that to me.
＊もらう
Ex. 借りは返してもらう。(challenge/ command)
= I will have you pay me back what you owe me.
Now your question, you usually use
Someoneに〜をVてもらう = to have someone do something favorable for the speaker
Ex. マギーにこの文を訳してもらう。 I will have Maggie translate this sentence.
Ex. マギーにこの文を訳してもらおうか。Should we ask Maggie to translate this sentence? /Let’s ask Maggie to translate this sentence, shall we?
However, you sometimes use Vてもらう/ Vて+ もらおうか/(politer) Vて+ もらいましょうか when you challenge someone to do something.→It may sound polite but actually a speaker is telling a listener to do something.
聞かせてもらおうか (Talking to a listener directly)
= Let me hear your story / Let me hear you
= I will have you tell me something.
This could also mean
= Tell me / Explain ( ~ ) to me. (command)
やってもらおうか (Talking to a listener directly)
= I will challenge you to do ~ .
→Do ~ (command)
***
Vてもらう・もらいます means “to have someone do something favorable for you”
or to ask someone a permission to do something
→ Allow me to do something/ Let me do ~
But you also use Vてもらう・もらいます when you express your strong will regardless what one’s listener think.
→I’ll take the liberty to do something
言わせてもらうけど= Let me tell you something (and tell the listener your point)
You use this phrase when you make your point or talk back to someone.
Sorry! You mean this sentence?
ありがたく使わせてもらわせてもらうことにしました。
I would say this sentence is redundant.
ありがたく使わせてもらうことにしました。is more natural.
この見事な説明Hyakkaiありがとうご!!! !happyface!
If i try to put in application all (but i still have a lot of work to do), 英語にしてもらってみようか means : “can you try to translate (this) in english for me?” And if the meaning is to be “offensive, negative” it becomes : “i will have you try to translate (this) in english for me”. (the 2nd example could apply to the first but i chosed it here because it sounded more “rude”^^).
Thank you for the precision Maggie sensei!, i had noticed that in animes people often say “bad” things to others using kureru/ageru/moreru and i felt it was to be even more “rude” since usually you use them to add a “thankfull” nuance to your phrase.
Unfortunately i couldn’t translate ありがたく使わせてもらうことにしました :cryingboy: the とにしました preturbed me i know that it means “to choose to do something” but here it is bizarre^^
I won’t take anymore place in this page and i’m sorry to have taken that lot so far!!
again, ありがとうございました!!
＠rysper
Hi rysper,
I am getting confused which question is to whom so I will just answer your second question.
使わせてもらうことにしました。
使わせてもらう = The literal meaning is “to allow myself to use ~ ” but it is a humble way to say 使う
〜ことにしました means “to decided to do something”
So 使わせてもらうことにしました。means
I decided to use it with appreciation.
Hi Maggie sensei !greenapple! .
I would like to ask you the differences in usage and nuances between を通して and を通じて.
Thank you so much for your time and patience.
Diana.
Good morning Maggie sensei. I have a question about what’s the difference between いろいろ
and さまざま because in the dictionary both can be translated as “various”. Thanks in advance.
Hi Maggie sensei, could you translate me this sentence? I don’t understand very well the meaning of もったいない here: もったいないと思うとなかなか捨てられない.
Thank you very much for your attention.
Your lessons are very useful, thank you for posting so frequently. I have one question. I have seen this sentence written in this two different ways: 雨が降る and 雨は降る. I would like to know what’s the difference between them or which one is the correct one. Thank you.
How would you say an agent caused something to happen rather than forced me to do something? I was trying to say that a product made my skin peel, but from what I understand the endings here would mean “the product made peel my skin,” which is pretty gory.
Hello Saugiu
In that case in stead of using a causative verb, you can just use (cause + Noun+Adj+の＋で・せいで・V+ たら, etc.）to indicate the cause.
Ex. この製品で皮が剥けた。
Ex. この製品のせいで皮が剥けた。（stronger than で)
Ex. この製品を使っていたら皮が剥けた。
so i started reading the この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！ light novel for practice and it said in a sentence : あなたはつい先ほど、不幸にも亡くなりました.
so i understand the meaning is something like : unfortunately you died just a while ago
question 1. why does the author use both tsui and saki hodo? dont they have the same meaning or am i missing something? is it like an expression?
question 2. is there a lesson on the particle ni mo here? i dont really understand the exact meaning of the sentence(didnt find a lesson just for that one by searching “ni mo” on the site)
question 3. this isnt really important but on the 亡 kanji there was furigana saying it is read as na, is there some reason it was added? usually kanji dont have furigana in light novels unless they are names or they want them to be read specifically.
after some searching regarding my second question i found out nimo means either also or its used for emphasis. So does the nimo in the sentence just emphasize 不幸？
another update regarding question 3
i found more words with furigana, i guess light novels do have furigana for some words after all.
i guess the harder ones
Q1: つい means “just” and 先ほど means “a little while ago”. So that つい is used to emphasize 先ほど
You often use them together.
The casual way: ついさっき (just now)
Q2, Q3, I guess you figured out the answer yourself.
In the sentence format where A makes B do X, it’s
A wa B (ni/wo*) [causative verb]
For example A wa B ni nattou wo tabesasemasu.
I’ve learned that the particle used (ni/wo) depends on whether the verb is transitive or intransitive.
Benkyou wo shimasu for example seems to count as transitive as benkyou is the object, which we can tell because of the particle wo after benkyou, while shimasu is the transitive verb, as seen in the example:
Seito ni benkyou (wo) saseru.
But if the “wo” is removed, does it still work that way, or “benkyou shimasu” becomes a verb instead of just the shimasu, which means it becomes an intransitive verb, and the particle used after B becomes wo instead of ni?
The example seems to imply that the wo can be removed without consequence, which means “Seito ni benkyou sareru” is correct and “Seito wo benkyou sareru” is wrong, but I have to ask this to make sure.
Hello Verdusk,
Great question.
I should add more explanation. But I’ve been thinking about renewing the whole lesson. So please wait.
****
to make students study
* Seito ni benkyou wo saseru (benkyou is an object of an action, verb: suru)
* Seito wo benkyou saseru (seito is an object, verb: benkyou-suru )
are grammatically correct.
benkyou suru is a special verb. It is a transitive verb
Ex. Nihongo wo benkyo suru
Note: * Seito wo benkyou saseru
When it is obvious what to study for the speaker or listener, you sometimes say
*Seito ni ( ~~ wo ) benkyou saseru.
omitting ( ~~ wo)
Thank you so much for this comprehensive article! I’m just about to go for my first dye session in a Japanese salon and was so anxious that I wouldn’t be able to communicate what I want clearly and end up with blue hair. I’m feeling much more equipped after reading this page – you are a lifesaver!
Hi, Maggie-sensei, you’ve got quite detailed lessons here, thank you very much. I came across phrase “スキあい” in manga I’m reading now and I suspect that it has nothing to be with love (it has been used in child’s play). Am I right or not? What does it mean?
Sorry, that’s it – the whole sentence Maybe the story can help? The highschool boy and girl are standing really close to each other face to face, the boy is going to say something but that girl’s little brother suddenly jumps on him shouting スキあい.
I see.
Can you check if it is スキあり not スキあい.
If it is スキあり(隙あり） it totally makes sense.
It means “chink in one’s armor (armour)” which we say when we attack someone when you find their weak spot that shows and opening for attack.
Thank you very much, Maggie! It makes sense! Font is styled to look like handwriting, so for me last symbol looked totally like い! But now I see that 2nd stroke much longer (sigh).
I’ve actually been dying to know how you say things in Japanese like “Class 1-2” and “1st Years”, but I haven’t been able to find any reliable sources. Tasketekudasai!
Konnichiwa, Caity
1st year is as I wrote in the lesson, you say 一年生（いちねんせい）
Class 1 is 一組（いちくみ）Class 2 二組(にくみ）
Class 1 of first year is 一年一組 = 1年２組 = いちねんにくみ= ichinen nikumi
I didn’t notice you wrote how to say 1st year in the lesson (oops). Arigato Maggie Sensei!
@Caity
You’re welcome, Caity! :)
Maggie-sensei こんにちは！
Thanks for all the useful lessons you posted so far!
I’d like to ask, if it’s not of too much trouble, if it’s correct to say (among all the available ways…I would like to use ぐらいの+Noun):
ここから美術館まで３０分ぐらいの道はそちらですか
when asking “The way crossing which from here to the art museum needs about 30 minutes, is over there?”.
Then if I need to say “From here to the art museum there are more than ３０ minutes”, which one I should use in 以上も and 以上に?
when asking “The way crossing which from here to the art museum needs about 30 minutes, is over there?”.
→Hmm it is grammatically correct but somehow it doesn’t sound natural because you usually ask
* how long does it take to the museum
* how long does it take to the museum if you take this street
* which way is the shortest to go to the museum.
The second question
ここから美術館まで３０分以上かかります。
If the speaker thinks 30 minutes is way too long to take, you say
30分以上もかかります。
Hi Maggie Sensei thanks for another awesome lesson. I would appreciate if you could answer me one question: I understand that ほしがる is used when referring a third person, but I don’t see why they use ほしい in this sentence: 当時の我が家はお金に余裕がなかったこともあり、子供がほしいものがあってもなかなか買い与えてもらうことができませんでした。
Thanks in advance.
Hi Diana,
The writer’s family was poor and they couldn’t afford to buy things that the children wanted back then.
子供が欲しいものがあっても= Even though children wanted something (the direct translation: there were something that children wanted)
So the subject for 欲しい is the writer’s children
Hi Maggie sensei thank you for your fast response.
So we don’t refer to the writer’s children as third person?
The same happens in this sentence, it seems more general:彼女がほしいもの人気ランキング
I am a uni student in Brisbane and find there are quite a lot of Japanese students here as well, most of them speak English but some do not.
Unfortunately when everyone is in the library studying for exams and tests sometimes people forget how loud they are being. It’s easy to remind the English speaking students though not so easy to remind the Japanese speaking students that don’t speak all that much English.
I was wondering if you would be able to help me out with some very polite ways of asking if the girls would please be able to speak a little bit quieter because I am trying to study.
I am asking you because I do not want to google translate something as it could come across as rude and I do not wish to be rude in any way! Any other helpful things to say in this situation would be much appreciated as well.
Domo arigatou!
I am very sorry to hear the Japanese students are too loud.
Please be able to speak a little bit quieter because I am trying to study.
is
勉強したいのでもう少し静かにしていただけますか？
= Benkyou shitai node mou sukoshi shizuka ni shite itadakemasu ka?
You can add すみません ( = sumimasen) / ごめんなさい( = gomennasai) when you talk to them.
I have a somewhat difficult grammar problem in a message I want to send. I want to write a sentence like “this is the thing that you said was [something] / that you called [something]”. Basically, using something specific said by a specific person as a descriptive clause.
I have a question. When you say :
いい天気でよかった。could it also means “I was glad/it was good that the weather was nice.” I am asking that because I am trying to understand why あのホテルは静かでよかった。translates into “I liked that hotel because it was quiet”.
I guess the tense of the verbs depends on the context. Like, for 犬でよかった。it is obvious you would never say “It was good that I was a dog.”
いい天気でよかった could be “I’m/I was glad it was nice weather.” but you usually include time related word which represents past such as “昨日・あの日は、先週の日曜日は, etc.”
あのホテルは静かでよかった obviously indicates the past because it uses “あのホテル” looking back the past.
As for the verb tense, you may want to check my tense lessons. Part 1 Part 2
You don’t usually say anything to that phrase.
If someone is visiting your house and says “お邪魔しました” when they leave, you say “お気をつけて。Take care (casual 気をつけて）/ またどうぞいらしてください。Please come again. (more casual またいつでも来て＝You can come anytime.,etc.)
If it is an office, you can say “お疲れ様でした。(Otsukare sama deshita )”, “お気をつけて (= Oki wo tsukete)”,etc.
Thank you so much for this site Maggie Sensei. You’re the best! I hope I’m not too late to ask a small question related to this lesson. You say that the meaning of もう changes depending on whether the sentence is affirmative or negative right? I was wondering, what about when you use もう with certain “negative-like” affirmative verbs . I mean verbs like やめる, 諦める, ほうっておく. Those verbs usually mean that the subject is stopping or not doing an action or something, right? So how should I understand a line like “私はそれをもうやめる”? Does it mean “I’m going to stop doing that already”, or “I’m going not going to do that anymore”?
Sorry if that’s a stupid question, but I wonder how a naive speaker like you understands it.
Hello OHMaster,
Great question! やめる can be “stop doing something” or “will not do something what you have been doing” so the translation could be both.
私はそれをもうやめる”= “I am going to stop doing that now.” and also “I am not going to do that anymore.”
私はもう諦めます= I will give up now. / (It has a connotation of “I will not do that anymore.”)
私は彼をもうほうっておきます。= I will leave him now. / I won’t take care of him anymore or I will not worry about him anymore.
Hello, Maggie-san. Your website is awesome and I’ve always like it very much. !niconico!
may I know does “と言うわけで” is the same meaning with “だから” and how can it be used in a sentence? If you dont mind, can you give example with some sentences?
Sorry for my ignorance and thank you for reply !happyface!
Hello ファイズ！ I’m glad to hear you like our site. :)
と言うわけで means “So”/”That’s why”/”For this reason” . だから is more conversational and と言うわけで is more explanatory.
You say something(reason) and then continue with と言うわけで and conclude your sentence or summarize what you just said. (results, consequences, what you are going to do)
While you use だから to react what you have just heard
だから遅れたの？＝ That’s why you were late?
というわけで遅れたの？ is not natural.
You usually use と言うわけで for your own speech.
Ex. 今日の会議は中止になりました。と言うわけで、今日はもうみなさん、お帰りください。
= Today’s meeting has been cancelled. So you all may go home now.
Ex. この店は来月から閉まります。と言うわけで今日からセールを始めます。
= This store will be closed from next month. So we will start sales from today.
こんにちは！はじめまして？
So, I’m in my very beginner’s lessons and I found myself caught up by this note I saw a guy at work write:
共有フォルダの資料等で理論容積を確認し回答しであげて下さい。
I can understand almost all of it after a good look at it, except the part after the “answer” part. I know the end is “kudasai”, but I get nothing off of “しであげて”. Help?
Hola Daniela,
It depends on the context.
なんだそりゃ What is that?/ What are you talking about? / No kidding
いーじゃないの
1) When you try to convince the listener it is not a big deal, Hey, it’s not a biggie. / C’mon, it’s OK.
2) When you see something that impresses me. “That’s not bad / That’s good!”
When you
Hello, Maggie & Yukari sensei! Thanks for making another really interesting Lesson. I have a question on もう: It seems like it always appears at the beginnig of a sentence (eg. もうこの暑さには、耐えられない) but is it possible (especially in casual speech) that it appears halfway through the sentence to emphasize the second half of the sentence? eg. この暑さ、もう耐えられないわ
You are right. The translation could be the same but what you focus on is slightly different.
そこにいたの focusing on the continuous action from the past to the present. You have been there the whole time.
そこにいるの focusing on the current state. ‘You are (still) there”
Hi Maggie..
Gohan o tabe nagara terebi o Mimasu..Can we say it – I am having food while watching TV. Or I am watching Tv while having food. Is it one and the same thing?
If I am not right. Can you please explain..
Hello Maggie! I’m commenting here because I dont know where also to contact you but I’m starting a blog with Japanese lessons in Portuguese and I want to know if I can translate to Portuguese some of your lessons, it would be great. Of course all the credits is gonna be given to your site. よろしくお願いします !JYANE!
Maggie Sensei’s site has been translated, French, Spanish, Turkish, German, Russian and Polish.
If it is just a couple of lessons and add the link to the original lesson, I think why not. :)
You can post a link to the original lesson using the comment section. People who speak Portuguese will love to read the translation. :)
I’ve found that many Japanese twitter users use a similar format to their name (not their twitter handle). For example they may put their nickname then @ and what seems random numbers and words.
For example あずーる@3日目東セ-17b. What do these mean?
As its not the twitter handle they didn’t need to make it unique in order to not have the same as another persons..
Heres another example わざきた【C90三日目東セ04a】.
Abou the つcounter, does the japanese still use these readings after 11 or in modern japanese they just say the number itself? 11つ=とおあまりひとつ 12つ=とおあまりふたつ 20つ=はたち 21つ=はたちあまりひとつ 30=みそじ 40=よそじ 50=いそじ 60=むそじ 70=ななそじ 80=やそじ 90=ここのそじ 100=もも 200=ふたお 300= みお 400=よお 500=いお 600=むお 700=ななお 800=やお 900=ここのお 1000=ち
maggie i need help with my 聞き取り. i have been using tv and youtube to train my listening comprehension since when i started studying japanese(its been almost 1 year) and its still bad. some japanese speak too fast. do you kwow any good website to help with it?
Hey Maggie! I just found about your website! Its impressing how you’ve doing this for such a long time! I hope you keep up the great work! I’m gonna follow every post from now on! :grin:
Thank you for your explanations. I have read both your lessons on shi & tali. Are they pretty much interchangable? I’ve noticed that tali is used with verbs more. but it seems that both can be used to list examples. Can you go over the differences for me? Thank you.
A lot of time they are not interchangeable.
You don’t use たり when you show the contrast (2) , give a reason (3) or make your point in a colloquial usage. (4)
While you use し when you add more information/facts,
〜（１）し（２）し..
On top of (1), ＋(2)
I would like to ask an out-of-topic question, I just started learning basic Nihon go.
I once read that we can say “あなたが好きです ~ anata ga suki desu” to say “I like you”.
The question is, the above clause is a shortened clause, isn’t it? And the complete clause is “私はあなたが好きです ~ Watashi wa anata ga suki desu”, is that correct?
Thanks for the answers!
Yes,that’s right.
“私はあなたが好きです ~ Watashi wa anata ga suki desu”
私= watashi = I
は= wa = particle (topic marker)
We tend to omit the subject in Japanese.
→あなたが好きです。= Anata ga suki desu.
They mean the same and I guess people use them both forms.
However, I would use 2) form. It is a set phrase.
からいいようなものの／からよかったものの／からいいものの
（から give a reason) and 1) somehow sounds unnatural.
I could be wrong but people use てよかったものの because we mix the form with
~てよかった
(I’m glad that ~ )
(雨が降らなくてよかった）I am glad it didn’t rain.
For that reason, the difference between 1) and 2) is 1) is more conversational than 2)
(FYI I don’t know if I will post it here but I am working on yokatta lesson right now.)
ありがとう、マギー！
I’m very happy that you are always there for me \^o^/
Thank you so much once again and till next time ^o^
＠天人
どういたしまして!
Have a great day! :)
hello Maggie sensei..
recently I added you in Twitter.. I’m the one who guessed those Japanese-English sentences..I’m so happy to be with you boucingheart!
about this lesson, I’m sure it was posted before, is there any changes in this one.. cause I already have that printed??
and my name in katakana is read like : Ruwaida it’s an arabic name… do you think it can be turned into kanji.. my name is log and hard..
Hi Roro,
Oh you followed me on Twitter? よろしくね！:)
Ah, OK, here’s what happened.
I usually check the lessons one more time before I release them. But somehow I accidentally published this lesson right after I made it without checking the spelling and etc.
So I unpublished it again to check. So I doubt there will be a major change in future.
Ruwaida.
Hmm let me think. How about 瑠愛多
RU: 瑠 beautiful jewelry. It is one of common kanji for name with ru
WAI : Instead of “wai” you could use the sound “AI” 愛 love
TA : da 多(=ta/da) a lot
beautiful jewelry+ a lot of love
Hey, I just coincidentally found your blog by googling while trying to find out what “なーんてな” means. I heard that in an anime, where one particular character likes to fool people by playing dead and afterwards says “なーんてな, 死んだふり”, and since I heard that I’m trying to find a proper translation to that “なーんてな”-part but I just can’t find one no matter what I try – Google Translate obviously didn’t give me anything. Do you maybe know how to translate that word? Nothing comes before it, the entire sentence is only those 2 words.
It’s depends on the subject so I will give you two possibilities.
Negative
a) 学生じゃないんだ
(To tell you the truth) I am not a student. (Telling a secret)
Oh, so you are not a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she is (or they are) not a student(s) (showing your surprised feelings)
b) 学生なんじゃない
He/She is a student, isn’t he/she? / They are students, aren’t they?
I guess he/she (they) is (are) student. (when you assume something) showing your uncertain feelings.
Past
c) 学生だったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I was a student. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you were a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she was (or they were) a student(s) (showing your surprised feelings)
d) 学生なんだった
??
I wouldn’t use noun+なんだった
Past-negative
e)学生じゃなかったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I was not a student. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you were not a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she was (or they were) not a student(s) . (showing your surprised feelings)
f) 学生なんじゃなかった
??
I would say 学生じゃなかった。
*******
Negative
a) 飲まないんだ
(To tell you the truth) I don’t drink. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you don’t drink (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she doesn’t (or they don’t ) drink. (showing your surprised feelings)
b) 飲むんじゃない
He/She drinks, doesn’t he/she? / They drink, don’t they?
I guess he/she drinks (they drink) (when you assume something) showing your uncertain feelings.
Past
c) 飲んだんだ
(To tell you the truth) I drank. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you drank. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she/they drank. (showing your surprised feelings)
d) 飲むんだった
I should have drunk (showing your regret feelings)
Past-negative
e) 飲まなかったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I didn’t drink. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you/ he/she/they didn’t drink (showing your surprised feelings)
f) 飲むんじゃな かった
I shouldn’t have drunk. (showing your regret feelings.)
Hello again!
Maggie, I need your help to verify the difference between ～終わる and ～終える. Using a few Japanese web sites I’ve tried to figure out it by myself. I came to follow conclusions.
1. there’s no difference in the meaning between this two patterns
2. the nuance is
～終える implies that because of certain circumstances the speaker was (in a way) forced to finish a certain action. It can also imply, that the finishing of the action was connected with efforts or that the speaker had no other choice, but to finish his action faster then expected (then it normally would take).
～終わる implies that finishing of the action was a result of normal course of things, because with the passage of time every action reaches its final stage.
EX.
すしを食べ終わった => implies that the speaker ate his sushi as a normal course of things. He was hungry, ate his sushi and now he’s full.
すしを食べ終えた => implies that the speaker had to do some extra actions (it wasn’t just a normal course of things) to finish his sushi. It might imply he did some efforts (for example although he was full he forced himself to eat everything what was on his plate) or he was in hurry and had to finished eating faster then normal, because his bus leaves soon.
Hi, 天人さん
One of your comment was in the pending file but all other comments worked.
I deleted two of them. Will answer this question in Maggie’s room. :)
I noticed you can not post a comment there sometime. If that happens, you can post a question anywhere.
For Example:
“He Went” (Kare Ha Itta).
“He Also Went” (Kare Mo Itta).
**Between The Two Sentences, When We Put (Mo), Logically We Have To Omit (Ha) Particle.
But As You Thought Us That It’s Possible To Put (Tte) Instead Of (Ha)
So In This Case, Is It True:
“He Also Went” (Kare -Tte- Mo Itta).
Or We Have To Omit That (Tte) As The Case Of (Ha) ?
!koujichuu! [Kodokomo] [kodomo] dake de dekakeru ごめんなさい。その日だけは忙しいです。」
[ !koujichuu! missing !koujichuu! gomennasai ] Sono hi dake wa isogashii desu.
Ex. メールを見なかっただけで無視をしたんじゃないよ。
= Mairu wo minakatta dakede !koujichuu! [de] !koujichuu! mushi wo shitan ja nai yo.
Kare to wa ie ga !koujichuu! chikakatta [chikatta] dake desu
Maggie, I’ve got two more quick questions for you :pika:
1. About とか and やら.
My book says 『「ＡやらＢやら」はＡ、Ｂを例示して「Ａ、Ｂ、その他いろいろある」という意味を表す並立助詞の用法です。ほぼ同義文型に「～とか～とか」がありますが、これは全体の中から代表例を選ぶ点に重点があります。』
Q: This これは is linked to 「ＡやらＢやら」 or to 「～とか～とか」?
2. About やいなや.
One of my book says that: 「自分のことには使えない」, but I found many examples in an online English-Japanese sentence dictionary, like:
私が乗り込むやいなや、汽車は動き出した。
私がそうするやいなや雨が降り出した。
私は家に着くやいなや寝た。
Thank you very much for the additional info. That was very helpful :purple:
And how about this sentence → 私はお金をもらうや否や貯金します。
This was considered as the wrong one.
Maybe in the second part of the sentence must be something which cannot be controlled by the speaker?
ササと / サッサと・さっさと is a mimetic word to describe some quick movement.
To do something quickly = ささと・ササと / サッサと・さっさと〜する
So in this case, you emphasize the word 早く (fast).
Maggie sensei!
Can you explain 立ちいる気がない
Its from this anime, i think it’s translated as “i didn’t mean to pry”
The full sentence was 「別に立ち入る気がないんでせけど」
Can i use (verb plain form)気がある to modify 気?
Hello Maggie! ゲンキ？
I came across an interesting usage of ～よう.
According to kotobank: 「話し手の推量や想像を表す。また，婉曲表現をつくる。」.
So now I’m wondering about the difference between 動詞の未然形＋よう and 動詞の原型＋ようだ, for example:
いまは雲が多いが，午後には晴れよう。
いまは雲が多いが，午後には晴れるようだ。
景気も来年あたりには好転しよう。
景気も来年あたりには好転するようだ。
動詞の原型＋よう can imply both 話し手の推量や想像 and 婉曲. So where’s the difference? – if there is a difference.
I would be grateful if you could explain me this.
OK, you use
１）動詞の原型＋ようだ
both in written form and conversation a lot.
You see
２）未然形＋よう
mostly in written form (or you may hear some dramatic scene in a story where a king, profet, etc predicts future or tells what is going to happen.).
In my personal opinion, 1) is used when you are less uncertain compared to ２）
I was looking for the lyrics to a Righteous Brothers song called “Bring Back That Loving Feeling” (maybe you’ve heard it). I found the translation below, but I’m not sure if the translation makes sense in Japanese.
Can you do a quick read and let me know if it is accurate?
This article was very informative, and I was wondering if there was anything else you thought would be vital for a foreign exchange student in Japan to have mastered before going. I was recommended here by some other exchange students, but your website is massive and I want to master the essentials before I go. ありがとうございます！
Hi Micah,
Welcome to our site.
I know there are lots of lessons here but you can go to the index page and pick whatever lesson you feel like checking. I can’t tell you what to study because I don’t know your interests and level.
But you may want to go through the time related lesson, numbers, Typical questions from Japanese people, shopping lesson, restaurant, fast food Japanese.etc.
You can replace だけ with だけしか in a negative sentence.
There are all the colors but this one.
この色だけない。
この色だけしかない。
But you can’t use だけしか in an affirmative sentence.
There is no other colors but this one.
この色だけある。
X この色だけしかある。
Ex. Connerだけを愛している。
You can’t say
X Connerだけしかを愛している。
hi maggie sensei
I tried to respond to my other post but it wouldn’t work. I’m a boy and my name in katakana would be ケイン
any interesting suggestions you could give to me to convert my name into kanji
?
Oh, sorry. You are a boy. And it reads kein. I searched it and they got the similar one but how about
華音(ke-in)
華 means brilliant
音 is the same as I have suggested before. You usually read “ね(=ne)” but “いん” is possible for names.
@Michael
I’m sorry but I don’t understand your question well but
When you refer to the classes in school,
the first class１時間目
the second class ２時間目
the sixth class ６時間目
If you say I have three classes today, you say
今日はクラス（授業）が３つある
いただきます
nounをいただきます。
= I will receive/eat something
When you eat something/when you receive something from someone.
Ex. いただきます。
Ex. 遠慮なくいただきます。
= Enryo naku itadakimasu.
Ex. お電話をいただけますか？
= Odenwa wo itadakemasuka?
= Could I have a phone call from you?
〜させていただきます
= to do something for you (Allow me to do something for you.)
Ex.明日、お電話をさせていただきます。
= I will give you a call tomorrow.
***
申し上げる is a modest way to say 言う
お願い申し上げます。
= Onegai moushiagemasu.
= I’d like to ask / Please ~
You often see it in formal letter.
心よりお喜び申し上げます。= Kokoro yoro oyorokobi moushiagemasu. = I am very delighted to hear the news.
御礼申し上げます。= Orei moushiagemasu = I’d love to express my gratitude.
Maggie-sensei! Shouldn’t くる be and いく be switched in this part of your post?
Ex.マギー、ドッグフードがないから買って :i: くる :i: ね。
=Maggie, doggu fuudo ga nai kara katte kuru ne.
= Maggie, there is no dog food left so I will go get some and come back (home).
(The speaker is with Maggie right now and leave the house to get dog food.)
Ex.マギー、ドッグフードがないから買って :i: いく :i: ね。
=Maggie, doggu fuudo ga nai kara katte iku ne.
= Maggie, there is no dog food left so I will get it and come to your house.
(The speaker is not with Maggie right now and will bring her dog food.)
OK, here is the situation.
買ってくる = Maggie and the speaker(X) are togehter. →X will go get dog food and comes back to Maggie with dog food.
Vてくる= the speaker or a doer will come back where they originally are.
買っていく = Maggie and the speaker (X) are in difference places. →X will go get dog food and goes to where Maggie is.
Vていく= the speaker or a doer will move from one place to the other place.
I’ve been using and reading your lessons since I began to study further the Japanese language. There’s something I need to ask and hopefully you could answer this.
There’s a grammar 必要がある so from what I can understand based on the pattern itself it’s “there is a need to VERB” or “need to VERB”. Then I remembered having a previous lesson with なければならない and なければいけない which have similar meanings.
From what I learned, なければならない is used when you have to do something even if you don’t want to, and なければいけない is used to express that you have to do something no matter what. So now, what does 必要がある mean?
Furthermore, if turned negative it becomes 必要はない translating to “There is no need” or “You don’t need to~” depending on the context. Then there’s なくてもいい which from what I learned from my language class was “You don’t need to~”. I also wanted to know the difference between the two.
I hope you could provide me some insight and better explanation about these. I really wanted to learn more about Japanese and even grammar books like Genki doesn’t cover much of this.
Hello Maggie Yukari, congratulation for your website, its really usefull.
I want to ask you a question:
What the diference with “you ni” and “hodo”?? They both mean “as/like”, but can’t get the difference between the two of them, how and when to use them.
Hi Rey-kun!
Here is one of the differences
Rey-kun no you ni nihonogo ga hanasenai. = I can’t speak Japanese like Rey-kun.
Rey-kun hodo (jouzu ni) nihongo ga hanasenai. = I can’t speak Japanese (as well) as Rey-kun
So “like X does” = youni , “as (adjective as) X” (you are talking about degree) = hodo
Please check “hodo” lesson to see the usage of hodo.
I see Thank you very much, i see it more clearly now.
Actually i have review your “Hodo” lesson 2 times if i have a question i will ask you again.
Great site, keep it up, and thank you very much
hi maggie sensei,
i was wondering what site you used to find kanji for hanko for tourists?
my name is Kane, and i was interested in seeing what cool kanji combinations it would suggest for my name.
what would be a good kanji combination for my name
thanks
There are few sites to see kanji hanko for foreign people. I can not promote other business sites but use Japanese google with a search word “外国人判子”
Let me see,
Are you a girl? If so, how about 香音 かね
か＝香 (aroma)
ね= 音 (tone/sound)
I’m wondering, will Japanese use a double negative but the sentence will still be negative? Like with slang?
For example, “I don’t got no time!” meaning “I don’t have any time (for this)!”
Thank you so much for this lesson! I have an N3 grammar book which I was studying, I came across this grammar point and it mentioned the different particles but offered no explanation. Your lessons have saved me for the 100th time, Maggie-sensei! They are easy to follow and I have learnt so much thanks to you. boucingheart! !Anapple!
I have a problem about how to use To iu koto da and To iu imi da, if I’m right the meaning of these mean “mean” right?
and I have seen a lots of Japanese Animation and Series use Dou iu koto da and Dou iu imu da to describe “what does it mean ? so is that different to use it?”
But you sometimes distinguish the usages as follows.
1) asking for why it happened. (process / background)
2) asking for the real intention of what someone has just said.
I don’t understand the meaning of all kakeru in this example :r:
and can I apply ( color+ migakatta ) to other colors like: akamigakatta = reddish :r:
Ex. 根元から毛先にかけて白から青みがかったグレーのグラデーションでお願いします。
= Nemoto kara kesaki ni kakete shiro kara aomi gakatta guree no guradeeshon de onegai shimasu.
= I’d like to have a white to blue-gray gradient coloring going from the roots to the ends”
I didn’t know where to say this, but I really want to thank you for this website and all of the work and effort you put into it.
I’ve been using this site off and on for at least a year now, so I felt it needed to be said.
Wow, there were great many expressions that were new for me, thanks a lot! !happyface!
I have only one question which I haven’t found the answer for in the post.
If I would like to say, for example, that “The package is going to arrive on the 4th day”, do I need to put に after 四日目, like there is “on” in the English version: “on the 4th day”, or not?
I have learnt that when a time expression contains any number, we usually put に after it, but I’m not sure here.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I am really confused about particles.
1. Is there any difference in unsing “に” and “によって”?
2. At the very beginning I was tought that the particle “を” becomes “が”,
e.g. お寺を建てた !to right! お寺が建てられた
But in your sentence it doesn’t happen:
ゴミを月曜日に出したら、近所の人に注意をされた。
Is it so because bad (or in some cases good) feelings are connected with that situation? For example like here: 私は先生に作文をほめられてうれしかったです and 大切な洋服を弟に汚されてしまいました (additionally emphasized by しまう?). And also like here, when someone is negatively affected by an action: となりの人にたばこを吸われて、気分が悪くなりました.
But even if I am right, I don’t understand why in one book is that sentence wrong: 私の背中は後ろの人に押されました。 Would it be correct with を insteas of は? 私の背中を後ろの人に押されました。
3. You wrote: マギーは猫steじめられました
Is it the same to use は instead of が or are there any particular situation where we cannot change it?
4. The last one, I don’t understand that sentence: かわいがっていた猫に死なれて、とてもさびしかった。
I know it’s a lot of questions but I hope you will help me :-D
Thanks!
Hello マギー, long to no see, how have you been?
Today during my grammar studies I came across a very interesting construction, namely 動詞…や…動詞の.
I’ve got a few question regarding this topic, because the explanation in my book still leaves some doubts, which only you can dispel :)
1. This pattern combines sometimes with imperative form of a verb (EX. 飲めや歌えの忘年会) and sometimes with the dictionary form (EX. 殴るや蹴るの暴行). The question is, if the are any rules, or can I combine them as I want?
2. My book says that this pattern 「慣用語を作りますが、そのまま語彙として覚えた方がいいでしょう。」 but gives only a few examples, such as 食うや食わずの／飲めや騒げの／一度や二度の／殴るや蹴るの. Could you make up more examples for me, please?
3. Please check my translations.
飲めや歌えの忘年会 a drink-and-sing-till-you-gonna-fall-down-year-end party (hmm, or maybe just “a hardcore year-end party”?)
食うや食わずの生活 living on the verge of poverty
殴るや蹴るの暴行 an act of violence where someone gets hit and kicked (hmm, I think this needs a correction, because it’s too long…)
!! If you have a translation that fits better than mine, then please correct it. !!
4. あの日は飲めや歌えの忘年会になってね、大変な盛り上がりようだったよ。 「大変な盛り上がりようだった」 = it seemed it was something really big! (=the party was really lively) という翻訳、合ってるかな。
Thank you very much Maggie! :qq:
This pattern is now marked as completed. Today I also completed が故に、もの故に and 故あって.
I hope you are proud of me ^^v
またね～ :maggie-small:
How do I ask “May I know who you would like to speak to?”
A superior told me 誰としゃべるですか? or something along the lines, or would 話す be a better verb to use?
Hello! First off, I just want to say thanks for creating this website because it’s been super helpful and goes into a good amount of detail! I have been having trouble with causative tense lately in Japanese. I can’t figure out if I’m using it correctly in a few sentences I’ve come up with for practice…can you help out? am I using the correct particles for these?
克哉に寂しさを感じさせないで。
Don’t make Katsuya feel lonely.
母に私は英語を勉強させられています。
My mom is making me study English.
たくやに私は歌わされちゃったんだ。
Takuya forced me to sing.
克哉を探させてください。
Please let me look for Katsuya.
帰る前に、ワンちゃんを見させてください。
Please let me see the dog before I leave.
たくやは私に彰に話させてくれた。
Takuya let me talk to Akira.
Thank you for another really helpful lesson, Maggie Sensei! If convenient, could you please consider teaching us how to use さらに in a future lesson? Have looked it up myself online but still find it quite confusing because it looks like there are quite a few meanings and ways to use the word. I feel like I could learn it a lot better if Maggie Sensei taught it because you always lay down the rules in a clear, concise way. Thank you so much for considering!
Thank you for your wonderful site, I have learned a lot and also many things have been clarified :)
マギー先生におかげで色々なことを分かれるようになりました！ :D
ぜひこのサイトを読んで勉強つづけます！
I have tried to create some sentences using “hazu” but I’m not sure if they are correct… Could you please help me correct this one?
I was trying to say: “If you leave the window open, it is sure that I won’t be able to sleep” (because my husband likes to sleep next to an open window, but the noise of the street disturbs me, so I always tell him this. In the end he always closes it :grin: )
My version was: 窓をあけておいたら私が寝られないはずです。
こんにちは、Berry!
“If you leave the window open, it is sure that I won’t be able to sleep”
In this case, I wouldn’t use はず
won’t be able to ~ できなくなる／~なくなる／〜できない
窓を開けておいたら＊寝られなくなる。
＊You can also say
窓を開けっ放しにしておいたら
窓を開けたままにしておいたら
はず is used when you expect someone/something to happen/ something should happen
For example, you couldn’t sleep for some reason and found out the windows were open. Then you can say
窓が開いていた。これでは、寝られないはずだ。
= The windows were open. No wonder I couldn’t sleep.
Thank you for your quick reply! !heart3!
It sounds so clear and simple when you explain it!
It seems I still need some time to get the hang of the use of “hazu”! ^^;
I even made a 4 page long note and summary out of this lesson for personal use, but I’m sure my brain needs time to process it…
I’ll keep trying! :grin:
hello maggie-sensei,
sorry to trouble you, but, could you help me translate this:
– ひとりきりじゃ気付けなかった (Hitorikiri ja kizukenakatta)
– お伽話なんかじゃ (otogibanashi nanka ja)
are jya (じゃ) on there is the same like janai (じゃない)?
Hello, Sensei.
I love your site so much because it is very useful not only for me but for everyone who want to learn Japanese. :grin:
Thanks so much for your effort. !CHECKHEART!
Chan
I am currently self-studying for JLPT N2 and would just like to say your website has helped a great deal in helping me refresh concepts! Really appreciate it (:
I really need your help and I hope you will give me your guidance.
I’ve been reading an interview from a Japanese music magazine (or rather it’s a dialogue between two musicians from two different bands), and it was more or less OK until I stumbled upon this really difficult passage near the end.
So the person from YMO (more experienced) is talking to the person from BUCK-TICK about the complex interaction between musicians and their audiences, and here’s what he says to him at one point (I have made each sentence a separate paragraph to make it clearer for myself):
For some reason, the first 5 sentences just do not make any sense to me. :-(
At first I thought that maybe it’s one of those cases in colloquial speech where じゃない actually has a positive meaning, but after re-reading your lesson on わけじゃない, I realized I must be wrong and here it actually means the things that indeed WON’T be done and said.
Then I thought that perhaps I’ve got something wrong in the first sentence because of the passive voices and what does what to what. Or maybe I’m misreading the “一人歩きする” part (does the “ensuing independence of the brand” have negative implications in terms of being overwhelming and “dictating its own terms” to the musicians – or, on the contrary, positive ones likes being able to do what you want?)
I can see that the whole thing is somehow summed up in the 5th sentence which looks really important, but I can’t understand it at all because the structure is a bit unusual, and I don’t understand how “huge misunderstanding” and “ヒットでする” (“to be a success”??) correlate to each other.
Anyway, for some reason, nothing in this passage adds up AT ALL. :-(
So… could you please kindly explain the first 5 sentences to me? Or at least the gist of it, so that I can see the point he’s making?
I have done all the research I could do by myself, dictionary- and grammarwise, and I’m just desperate.
Hello Anna,
I don’t do the translation but will help you some part of the gist.
The more Buck-Tick has becomes popular, the more the “brand” of the band spreads by itself. As a result people see them with the “brand” image which could be different from their intention.
For example if they get their hair cut short or when they do something different from the brand image, people get upset saying Buck-Tick should be like that,etc even if that is what the band really wants to do.
But it is a fact that all these huge misunderstandings create the smash hits as well as a phenomenon.
Yes, I know that doing translations is hard work, I’m sorry for coming out of the blue with this big chunk of text – but I was translating this interview for myself and other fans of the band, which is my hobby and my main way of studying Japanese – and I got terribly stuck. The problem is, I had nobody else to ask since my Japanese is entirely self-taught, and colloquial speech is the most problematic point for me since it’s not covered in any books, so…
Thank you again for answering!
No problem.
I could see you have been trying hard translating so I wanted to help you a little.
It is a great way to study Japanese from what you are interested in. :)
I’ve just finished 2 lessons today, and I really want to thank you for teaching us boucingheart! I’ve been studying Japanese since I was 12 because I love the language a lot, and until now I’m still learning and your site is really a great help! Your teaching strategy is so easy to understand, and not to mention, it’s very enjoying! I really love your site and finding it has been one of the best things that has happened to me this year! ^_____^ I want to be confident with my Japanese, and I know I will be, soon, with the your help :) Thank you so much! よろしくおねがいします！ :purple: I will try to make more time to visit your site and learn with you !formingheart3!
Hello Dani,
Awww that is soooo sweet! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy learning Japanese.
It is just amazing that you have been studying since you were 12. The secret of improving languages is to enjoy learning them. So I can guarantee your Japanese is great and you still want to keep learning.
これからもがんばってくださいね！私達もみなさんに喜んでもらえるようなレッスンこれからもがんばって作ります。:)
Thank you so much for your reply, Maggie-sensei & Yukari-san !happyface! I agree! I really enjoy learning Japanese, but there are times when I can’t help but think that it’s really hard to master it 私これからもがんばっています！本当にありがとうございます！ !heart3!
Thank you for your support! !heart3! これからお世話になります !greenapple!
Hi Maggie sensei,
This is a great lesson. (thumbs up). :uparrow:
この例文を添削していただけませんか？
I go into a shop and want to take a look at something. (e.g. a toy)
Level of politeness (Extremely to appropriately – top down)
これ、見せて いただけませんか？
これ、見せて くださいませんか？
Extremely polite. Probably not appropriate
if we consider “buyer / client” is “king”.
Anyway, it is always good to be polite.
Never goes wrong.
これ、見せて もれえませんか？
Could I take a look at this?
Very polite – consider the shop owner’s feeling.
Literally, could I “receive” a “take a look service”
at this product?
これ、見せて くれませんか？
Could I take a look a this ?
Very polite but less polite than もれえませんか
Literally, could you “give me”
a “take a look service” at this product?
これ、見せて もらえますか？
Could I take a look at this ?
Polite.
これ、見せて くれますか？
Could I take a look at this ?
Polite but less polite than もらえますか.
これ、見せて ください。
Could I take a look at this.
Acceptable polite is you are talking
to the shop owner. Well, probably quite common
for buyer ( the one who pays) to say this.
これ、見せて くれられませんか？ should be 見せてくれませんか？
これ、見せて くれられますか？ should be 見せてくれますか？
Please go check my latest lesson. I explained the difference of all the forms.
hello Maggie sensei ^^
can you tell me the difference among these in terms of the meaning ( to change), I always get confused and don’t know which one to choose:
変わる 換わる 代わる 替わる
I’m now studying kanji level 1.. it is sooooo hard and confusing and rarely used I think.. I sometimes I wonder if Japanese people know them all hhhhh.. Japanese people are indeed smart, that’s why I love them boucingheart!
The best way to figure out the difference is to search those words on the Internet and compare the usages.
(v.i) 変わる → (v.t.) 変える transform, change into something completely different
Ex. 彼は変わってしまった。= He has changed. (to someone different)
Ex. 髪型を変える= to change one’s hair style.
(v.i) 代わる → (v.t.) 代える substitute
Ex. マギー先生は忙しいので今日のレッスンはマックス先生が代わります。
= Maggie is busy today so Max will substitute today’s lesson.
The difference between 替わる,替える & 換わる,換える is very vague and sometimes they are interchangeable.
(v.i) 替わる →(v.t.) 替える exchange, to succeed, to switch
(v.i) 換わる → (v.t.) 換える exchange, interchange, to replace
Technically you use 替わる,替える when you exchange something with something new.
I have been studying Japanese for more than 5 years now (and I’m still afraid to write in Japanese because of the mistake I would make …), and I just beeing introduced to your website by a friend very recently. I found it soooo helpful ! Thank you for your hard work !
I just had a quick question about interviews in Japan.
Would it be considered unapropriate or too cocky to ask “what would be the reason you would not take me for this job ? (もし、御社に入社させていただけませんの理由はその理由を教えていただけませんか？)”
I usually ask this question (in western job interview) in order to being able to clarify some weak points they wouldn’t get as much as I wanted to.
Hi サブリア
Feel free to practice your Japanese here. Making mistakes is the best way to learn languages.
Would it be considered unapropriate or too cocky to ask “what would be the reason you would not take me for this job ? (もし、御社に入社させていただけませんの理由はその理由を教えていただけませんか？)”
The polite way to ask the question is
お差し支えなければ、御社に採用していただけない理由を教えて頂けないでしょうか？
It depends on the company or interviewers but I’d say it still sounds demanding or pushy for traditional Japanese companies.
Ex. Vて ( = te) いただけますか？ ( = itadakemasu ka) is more polite than
!koujichuu! Vて ( = te) + いただけますか？ ( = itadakemasu ka?) !koujichuu!
I am just kidding. You can talk to me casually.—–>nihongo onegaishimasu :cryingboy:
casual talk = tameguchi desu ka ??
Ashita made ni [ressunn] [ressun] wo mittsu tsukutte kurenai
I am just kidding. You can talk to me casually.
—–>nihongo onegaishimasu :cryingboy:
casual talk = tameguchi desu ka ??
I meant to say, 気さくに話しかけてね。or
Casual speech is カジュアルな話し方/くだけた話し方.
タメ語 tamego belongs to Casual speech but it is considered to be really casual.
Thanks for the lesson, there are indeed some new aspects to けど. :test:
So I’ve learned that generally you use けど when you leave something unsaid, which would be to direct if you’d spell it out. But contrasting 2 of your sentences, I wonder what is left unsaid in the second one.
1.ちょっと寒いんだけど。 As you said, the speaker implies he wants something done about it.
2.ちょっと、美味しいんだけど！ So what’s implied with this sentence? Your translation sounds like: It’s soo delicious (but I didn’t expect it, I thought it would be bad). Is my interpretation correct? Couldn’t it also mean something like: It’s very delicious, but I don’t want to eat right now?
I’m asking because, if I just want to express my feelings, it seems kind of strange to me to add a けど, as it sounds like I would hold something back, which could lead to misinterpretations. Or is this けど really just an emphasis without any hidden implications?
1. Your interpretation is right.
2. In this colloquial usage, the speaker doesn’t imply anything. It is one way to express your feelings.
But you are right. The intonation is very important.
If you say 美味しいんだけど with no smile, the listener would think “But what? Something wrong??”
I recently got handed down a katana that came from Japan during ww2. I do not have social media but I was wandering if I could get your email and send you a picture of the kanji and you could possibly translate it thanks!
@Matt
Sorry. I don’t use email to accept questions or do translation.
If you tentatively make a Twitter account send me a picture.
Usually they use an old writing style in katana. If so I don’t think I can read it. You have to ask an expert.
I was looking up a kanji for middle (naka) that’s how I came here. Your site is very helpful.
From reading one of your first sentences,
Is it okay to say “ibara no naka ni yuri” is this the correct translation of saying “lily among thorns”?
If it’s wrong, could you please correct sentence so I could understand it better. Thank you.
Hi Lily, Welcome to our site.
lily among thorns is
Ibara no naka no yuri
It is possible to say Ibara no naka ni yuri,too if it is a title or something.
But to be precise,
You usually use “ni” with a verb of existence such as “iru” (=There is/are)
Ibara no naka ni yuri (ga aru)
こんばんはー！(*^_^*)
With regard to the colloquial usage of けど in order to soften sentences, does that mean that it can be added behind any sentence? For example, if I say “食べたことないですけどね”, does that make sense?
Thank you in advance!
Lots of love,
りん
こんばんは、りん！
I wouldn’t say “any sentences” (for example imperative form won’t work with けど) but regular declarative sentences should work with けど. And yes you can say “食べたことないですけどね”.
I am sorry too.
You can say
こちらこそごめんなさい。(= Kochira koso gomen nasai) (neutral both men and women can use)
私こそごめんなさい。 (= Watashi koso gomen nasai) (female)
僕こそごめん （= Boku koso gomen) (male)
If you are talking about raising price, you use 上がる(= agaru)
値段が上がる = nedan ga agaru.
上る（のぼる）= noboru is used when you are talking about “amount up ~~”
Ex. 損失は１~~円に上る= Sonshitsu wa juuokuen ni noboru = The loss amounts up ~~ yen.
Or when someone/something physically goes up high place.
1) when the amount sums up
あなたのことが好きです。
The literal meaning “I like (all) things about you” but it means “I like/love you”
あなたには日本語の一番難しいのことは？ →日本語で一番難しいことは（なんですか）？is more natural.
(You don’t actually need to say あなた but if you want, あなたが日本語で一番難しいと思うことは何ですか？”
Hi Maggie-sensei! Thanks for the explanations regarding そう.
I have a question: what about te-form + そう？
Does it have the meaning of “It looks like it is engaged in that particular activity/state”?
For example, パンを買ってそうだ。 Does it mean, “It looks like (they are) currently buying bread”?
Any clarification would be appreciated.
Thanks!
Hi Jeremy
I think what you meant is this pattern.
〜ていそう
→casual contraction てそう
OK, パンを買っている＋そうだ。→パンを買っていそうだ→(casual contraction) パンを買ってそうだ
Ex. 彼女はお弁当は作らずに毎日パンを買って（い）そうだ。
She appears to be a person who buys bread everyday without making boxed lunch.
If you want to say
“It looks like (they are) currently buying bread”?
パンを買っているみたいだ。・パンを買っているようだ。
I just found your website! Thank you so much for all the lessons! (*^▽^*)
Maggie-sensei, I was wondering if you could give me tips on looking for internships in Japan? At the moment I’m in my second year of artschool (I study 2d animation) and next year I will have to do an internship. I would absolutely love to do an internship in Japan in the animation industry if possible.
My japanese languange skills are at beginner level. Would you still recommend me to use the Japanese format for my resume? And if so, would it be better to submit it in japanese or in english? I’m afraid that if I fill it in in Japanese it will create the impression that my Japanese is better than it actually is.
Hi Kani,
Welcome to our site!
It depends on the company where you want to work. Some companies requires Japanese resume but for example if you work for a language school, English resume is just enough. But if you want to work for an animation industry, I’d say you should prepare Japanese resume.
The best thing is to ask them the format of your resume.
Happy Mother’s day to your mother dear Maggie sensei and Ma’am Yukari. I hope your mothers and you are having a good time tonight. Thank you so much for being born !JYANE!
Hi Ali,
The imperative form of “te miru” is “te miro” and “te miyo”. “te miyo” is an old form so you may hear/see it in historical stories, Samurai drama, etc.
hello Maggie sensei^^
I missed you :w:
in this sentence:
Kono hen de tsuki goman en gurai de ii appato wa arimasuka?
why did you say ( kono hen de) instead of( kono hen ni) since we are taking about location?
Hi Roro! 久しぶり！！
Ah good question.
You are right. When you talk about location, you should say この辺”に” ~ ありますか？ but this で is to indicate a condition, around here.
Ex. 月１０万円でいい物件はありますか？
= Tsuki juuman en de ii bukken wa arimasuka?
Ex. 駅の近くでいい物件はありますか？
= Eki no chikaku de ii bukken wa arimasu ka?
Ex. 築１０年でいい物件はありますか？
= Chiku juunen de ii bukken wa arimasu ka?
It’s a relief to know -au doesn’t have any weird conjugations; just a compound verb like ugokihajimeru and others, I assume. Whew!
Okay, so using “phrase” + toki when I want to speak about a certain occurrence is better in this case- “phrase” + koto ga aru is a bit long, and “phrase” + no is more explanatory, and “phrase” + nara is referring to something that happens after so that doesn’t work either… And teineigo definitely makes more sense by shortening the sentence.
Thank you sensei!
What I’ve noticed is Yappari is used SO much by Japanese people. It’s like a special word that defies the usual translation rules and has it’s own usage style.
You can use 久しぶりに in a negative sentence only when you haven’t done something for the first time in a long time.
Ex. 久しぶりに仕事をしなかった。
= Hisashiburi ni shigoto wo shinakatta.
= I didn’t work for the first time in a long time.
But if you haven’ done for a long time, you say
*ずっと〜していない
= Zutto ~ shite inai
*長い間〜していない
= Nagai aida ~ shite inai
*しばらく〜していない
= Shibaraku ~ shite inai
“I haven’t used Japanese in a long time”
= ずっと/長い間/ しばらく日本語の勉強をしていない。(or 日本語を勉強していない）
= Zutto / Nagaiaida / Shibaraku nihongo no benkyou wo shiteinai. (or nihongo wo benkyou shiteinai)
1) I haven’t used Japanese in a long time.
= 長い間、日本語を使っていない。
(Focusing the time when you haven’t studied Japanese.)
the listeners/readers think the speaker/writer hasn’t studied Japanese for a long time up to now.
2) I used Japanese for the first time in a long time.
久しぶりに日本語を使った。
(Focusing on the fact that you used Japanese.)
Konbanwa Maggie Sensei,
Kono kotoba au wa, teinei gokei ga nandesuka? Tatoeba, hanasu ga hanashiau wo nattanara, teinei wo imasutai to hanashiaimasu itte mo ii desuka?
Eigo de,
Good evening Sensei,
About au, what is it’s polite form? For example, after hanasu becomes hanashiau if I want to be polite, should I say hanashiaimasu?
Also, if anything I say in Japanese has incorrect grammar or something, please correct me! ^^ I really need to get better I think…
Arigato gozaimasu!!! !Anapple! !greenapple! !greenapple!
A lot of sites which require us to set a password or username using alphabet and numbers for security reason.
For example, if you want to register your username, “April”, I am sure it is already taken. So you just mix it up with other alphabet or numbers.
boucingheart! thanky for help . I m in process of translation selected part of ” Hotaru no hikari ” as my base for cach up possibility for speaking . Yoroshikugozaimasu !
こんにちはマッギ先生、
この授業をありがとうございます！！！
ほとんど分かってきましたけど、まだ二つの問題があります。
『Aという人 は Bという人 に 食べさせる』と『Aという人 は Bという人 を 食べさせる』はどう違いますか？私には、両方を英語に訳すと『A let/made B eat』と言います。
二つ目は、『犬を散歩させる』と『犬に散歩をさせる』どう違いますか？『take the dog for a walk』という意味として両方使えますか？最初の文の方がいい気がしますけど、理由は分からないです！
よろしくお願いします。
I don’t get why you dont use tearu for when you are wearing things,the verbs of wearing are obviously transitive and you put clothes on on purpose and keep wearing them.
I have been watching anime lately and I notice some characters like to use the word ” korosareru ” when they are in trouble. As I know, causative passive is the subject being forced to do something. How is that applicable to korosareru???
Hi Anne,
OK 殺す= korosu = to kill →passive form 殺される= korosareru= I will be killed (→They are (or He/She is) going to kill me!)
If you want to learn more about passive form, check my passive form lesson.
Thanks Sensei! I figured out the mistake. The causative passive form for korosu is actually korosaserareru. You have pointed it out. Thanks again. But there is another case though. I learned that serareru can be colloquial which is sareru~ But I cant seem to find the word korosasareru on the net which I think might be wrong. Please help ;(
But Sensei is there any colloquial form for “korosaserareru”? As said, I read some verbs were shorten from serareru to sareru for godan verbs though. For example kakaserareru become kakasareru. Can korosaserareru becomes korosasareru?
@anne
OK, in that case, you could day 殺さされる = korosasareru as a colloquial shorten version. :)
「にしては」のレッスンを待っていましたよ。ワクワクしてます~
ひとつが気になりましたけど
どうして「私にしては最近、日本語がんばってるよ。」は言えますけど、「私は日本語の先生にしては漢字をよく忘れる。」は不自然ですか？
I’m not sure what you mean by seeing yourself objectively in the first sentence. What makes the second sentence subjective compared to the first one?
説明ありがとうございました！そうだとって思っていましたけど確認したかったです
One more thing; does 「質問のところですが、あとからみんなから質問くるかなあって思っていました。」 mean something like “Although I’m already getting questions, I thought people would start asking them later.”?
there is one of the という variants i see a lot(TV,internet,interviews,books) but i never understand the meaning. how to use “ということで”?. sometimes i see ということで in the middle of a phrase and sometimes solely.
こんにちは、Danny G!
日本語で書くのは初めて？よく書けていますよ。
Both 「〜（たく）て仕方ない」and「ずにはいられない」are used to describe one’s crave.
Let’s compare the following sentences.
Ex. A; 彼に会いたくて仕方ない。
I want to see him badly.
Ex. B: 彼に会わずにはいられない。
I can’t help seeing him.
A and B both express one’s strong feelings for him.
But A implies the speaker hasn’t seen him so that she is missing him badly.
And B implies no matter how often she sees him, she wants to see him again.
The main difference is,
〜（たく）て仕方ない ＝to want to do something badly
(focusing on one’s desire to do something)
You may not be doing it now /You haven’t done it but you want to do it badly.
ずにはいられない = can’t help doing something
You are doing something because you can’t help it.
(You may not want to do it but you can’t help doing it.)
***
Also while ずにはいられない express when you can’t control your feelings, 〜（たく）て仕方ない is based on your will. (willing to do something badly)
So you can say,
彼のことを考えずにはいられない
I can’t help thinking about him. (You can’t control your feeling)
but
彼のことを考えたくて仕方ない (strange)
= I want to think about him badly.
なるほど。 ニュアンスが少しわかりにくいですね。では、日本語で『I can’t help but eat pizza』を伝えたい場合は、『ピザを食べずにはいられない』を使えばいいですか。 そして、『I can’t help but want to become a doctor』なら、『医者になりたくて仕方ない』を日本語に訳してもいいでしょう? こんな感じはどうですか。
そうですね。英語の”I can’t help but eat pizza”のときは「ピザを食べずにはいられない」で “I have a craving for a pizza. “のときは「ピザを食べたくて仕方ない。」と考えたらどうでしょう。
“I can’t help but want to become a doctor” (If the feeling is kind of out of control) =文法的には「医者になりたくて仕方ない」と考えていいと思います。
ただ、医者になるのは大変なので”〜たくて仕方ない”という言葉を使うにはちょっと重いかもしれませんね。
O-V ni naru is more polite than reru/rareru form
And you don’t get keigo reru-rareru and passive reru-rareru if you pay attention to the context and particles.
この本はAによって書かれた。
= Kono hon wa A ni yotte kakareta.
= This book was written by A.
Aさんがこの本を書かれた。
= A san ga kono hon wo kakareta.
= A -san wrote this book.
Konnichiha.
Do you have a lesson which shows different ways on how to express “during” or “when” situations.
Sample:
when i went to hokkaido, i visited a hot spring. or
while i was riding the train, i saw fuji san.
and a lot more variations/tenses which can be categorized under such situations..
arigatou maggie sensei!
i always visit your site, as it is wakariyasui.. boucingheart! !DANCING!
Thanks maggie sensei for the quick response.
But would it be okay with you if you could answer this last question that i have..
What is the difference with these following expressions and in what situations are they used?
I am really confused and i cannot proceed.. Thank you in advance for your time and effort.
– aida ( soujishiteru aida)
– aida ni ( benyoushiteiru aidani)
– aidajuu (notteiru aidajuu)
– saichuu ( uketeiru saichuu ni)
– tochuu (kaeru tochuu ni)
– and lastly, toki and toki ni…
As you can tell by the length of my lessons, it is impossible to explain the whole difference and usages in this comment section but I will just give you one example each, OK?
間（に）aida (ni) = while / during
souji shiteiru aida (ni) = while S is cleaning
Ex. ははが、いえのそうじをしているあいだ、そとにでかけた。
= Haha ga ie no souji wo shite iru aida, soto ni dekaketa.
= I went out while my mother was cleaning the house.
間に aida ni
You often omit the particle “ni” but when you emphasize the meaning you use “ni”
Ex. ははが、いえのそうじをしているあいだに、そとにでかけることにしよう。
= Haha ga, ie no souji wo shite iru aida ni, soto ni dekakeru koto ni shiyou.
= I guess I am going out while my mother is cleaning the house.
間中 aidajuu = during the whole time/ when some action has been taken a place the whole time.
Ex. 彼は、タクシーに乗っているあいだじゅう、ずっとしゃべっていた。
= Kare wa, takushii ni notte iru aidajuu, zutto shabette ita.
= He was talking the whole time when he was on the taxi.
最中 saichuu = in the middle of some action/during some action
Ex. 試験（しけん）を受けている最中（さいちゅう）にベルが鳴った。
= Shiken wo ukete iru saichuu ni beru ga natta.
= The bell rang right during the exam.
途中= tochuu = on the way
Ex. 帰る途中にラーメン屋に寄った。
= Kaeru tochuu ni raamen ya ni yotta.
= I stopped by a ramen shop on the way home.
とき = when
困った時は言ってください。
= Komatta toki wa itte kudasai.
= Let me know when you are in trouble.
このカップは日本に去年行ったときに買いました。
= Kono kappu wa nihon ni kyonen itta toki ni kaimashita.
= I bought this cup when I went to Japan last year.
Good day!
My apologies for the very late response.
Thank you very much for your effort. This is a great help and now i also understand each expressions better.
You are the best!
Thank you!
Sincerely,
geler
@geler
You’re very welcome, geler! :)
Sensei could you explain how to ask a station master/someone if certain trains/bus are covered by a travel pass?
For example,
Will this bus that go to Motosuko lake fee is covered by Fuji-Hakone pass?
Thank you for your time! !heart3! !heartsippai! !heart3!
Hi Jane,
There are many ways to ask that question but
first
富士箱根周遊券= Fuji Hakone Shuuyuuken = Fuji Hakone pass
本栖湖= Motosuko (Lake)
~ 行きのバス=~ iki no basu = a bus that goes to ~
使えますか？= Tsukaemasu ka? = Can I use
乗れますか？ = Noremasu ka? = Can I get on
Basic pattern:
(destination ) iki no basu wa ( Pass ) ga tsukaemasu ka? (Can I/we use ~ pass for the bus to (destination) )
(destination ) iki no basu wa ( Pass ) de noremasu ka? (Can I/we get on a bus that goes to (destination)
Motosuko iki no basu wa Fuji-Hakone shuuyuuken de noremasu ka?
Motosuko iki no basu wa FUji-Hankone shuuyuuken ga tsukaemasu ka?
how do i use the word “感じ”? i know it means “feeling” but sometimes i feel like this word its in the phrase just to make the phrase bigger, because i dont see the word “feeling” fitting in most of the phrases i read. :cryingboy: !cryingboy!
I think the “like and “something” meaning fit the phrases i saw.
one more doubt, lets say i do something or i say something to some person and this person says to me 「感じ!!!」, what it means?
Maggie-Sensei, can you explain how the movie Warui Natsu Hodo Yoku Nemuru uses hodo? Your post seems exhaustive, and maybe it’s my yoku-nai nihongo, but I don’t see a use that fits it. Arigatoo!
Hi Kristi,
I should have covered the usage.
When speaker express their opinion how things works or gives some stereotyped phenomenon/person.
adjective + noun+ ほど ~
= the more noun gets (adjective) ~ (what likely to be/happens)
悪い奴ほどよく眠る
= Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru.
= The bad guy sleeps better.(The bad guys sleep better) (The worse guy you are, the better you sleep.)
Konbanwa Maggie-Sensei,
Teru ga teku mitai, toku no “slang” ga “verbs ending with de in their te form” de tsukaemasuka?
-I’ll write this in English too, since my Japanese is horrible !shoshinsha!
Like teru and teku, can the toku slang be used with verbs ending in de when conjugated to that form? Then, would it be used like
“He reads in preparation Kare ga yonde oku Kare ga yondoku”
Arigato gozaimasu sensei!
The paper just came in the mail asking if I want to renew my contract. I LOVE my location but it would be great to find a better ventilated room. I know its a long shot but do you know anything about JikoBukken? Are they really hard to come by in nice areas? There doesnt seem to be much information on them in central Tokyo
Jiko Bukken is a place where someone was murdered, committed suicide or other incident happened.
People avoid this type of places so usually they are cheaper.
If you find a cheap place for the location, you could ask the real estate agents if that place is not such a place.
Good luck on finding a nice place!
There is a suffix ~め
noun + め
It is a male speech and as you said it is pretty rude and it is often used to curse someone/something or show your anger or frustration.
Ex. このバカめ！
I wouldn’t use the kanji 目 for that usage. You usually use hiragana.
先生、助けてください！
I am teaching senior Japanese for the first time, and one of the sections in the textbook is about using そうな and そうに, and I am struggling to explain the difference to them.
It has been a few years since I have used my Japanese, so getting it all back is difficult!
そうな modifies a noun and is used as an adjective.
（かばんから）落ちそうな財布
a wallet which is almost falling from a bag.落ちそうな modifies 財布（さいふ）
泣きそうな顔
almost crying face
泣きそうな modifies 顔（かお）face
そうに modifies a verb and it is used as an adverb
美味しそうに食べる
to eat something happily
美味しそうに modifies a verb, 食べる
It is often use with a verb ~なる
〜そうになる = to become/ come to almost ~
Thank you so much for compiling this! I came across the expression どごの馬の骨 in a comic today and had no idea what it meant. Now not only do I know but I found a big list of other cool expressions to learn. Thanks again! :)
Hello s,
All your comments were in Pending Files. I erased other comments as you wrote.
I have to authorized your comments first. I assume it should appear from the second time.
Hello Milky Show!
ありがとうなんだよ: I don’t think it is common. (Personally I have never heard/seen people using it.)
But ありがとよ/ ありがとな is a male speech and it is pretty rough.
If you were resigning from a position at a place of business, what phrase would be more appropriate in thanking your employer for taking care of you during your time with the company?
Either you say thank you or say sorry for all the troubles.
長い間お休みを頂き有り難うございました。
= Nagai aida oyasumi wo itadaki arigatou gozaimashita.
= Thank you for giving me a long vacation.
長い間、お休みを取らせて頂き、ご迷惑をおかけいたしました。
= Nagai aida, oyasumi wo torasete itadaki, gomeiwaku wo okake itashimashita.
= Sorry for all the trouble during my absence.
And then you can continue
今日からまたよろしくお願いいたします。
= Kyou kara mata yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
There isn’t equivalent translation in English but it means,
(= Thank you in advance for letting me work from today.)
Konbanwa Maggie-Sensei,
Watashi wa, kono tatoede wakatte imasu kara, moshi “ikareru” no imi ga “crazy” desu, dou ga kore hatarakimasu ka?
Ex. どこへ行かれるんですか？
Haha, you know the word いかれる crazy?
OK, this 行かれる in the example sentence is a polite form of 行く＝いく= iku = to go
どこへ行きますか？
= Doko ye ikimasuka?
→どこへ行くんですか？
= Doko ye ikun desu ka?
→(polite) どこへ行かれるんですか？
= Doko ye ikarerun desu ka?
Hi Edu,
Thank YOU for the nice comment.
I don’t have a lesson on しまう but please check ちゃう・ちゃった lesson. It is a casual form of しまう. I explained some of the usages of しまう there.
This function of に is to indicate the source, “from”
Ex. 誰からその時計をもらったの？
= Dare kara sono tokei wo moratta no?
= (Lit) From whom did you receive the watch?
= Who gave you the watch?
→You can say
誰にその時計をもらったの？
= Dare ni sono tokei wo moratta no?
Ex. 父から時計をもらった。
= Chichi kara tokei wo moratta.
= I received the watch from my father.
→You can also say
父に時計をもらった。
= Chichi ni tokei wo moratta.
You often see this type of に with passive form, and the verbs such as 習う／教えてもらう
Ex. マギー先生から日本語を教えてもらった。
＝ Maggie sensei ni nihongo wo oshiete moratta.
Ex. マギー先生に日本語を教えてもらった。
＝ Maggie sensei ni nihongo wo oshiete moratta.
Thanks to this site that im learning japanese much easier than before. :) thank you so much sensei!
As for this lesson. just want to ask something about this no. 2 meaning of tsuite which it also means to accompany, to come with something extra, to be attached, right?
Where is the tsuite action in this example?
母がずっとついて看病をしてくれた。
= Haha ga zutto tsuite kanbyou wo shite kureta.
= My mother was taking care of me the whole time.
gomen ne… im kinda slow on this! hehehe thank you in advance. !heart3! !heart3! !heart3!
Thank you for another great lesson, besides grammar I love your casualspeechlessons best. I’ve been working on honorifics lately and whats left then is to learn how to talk dirty. I hope you do a lesson on that too sometime… :)
Some typos, funnily all extra syllables. You have to contract your romaji too, you know!
“Mou sanjuppunb mo matteru…” “sanjuppun”
“Dare no koto wo, kanngaete iru no?” “kangaete”
“Ato wa katazuketetoku kara.” “katazuketoku”
And some questions:
1. まあ、寝せとこうかな。What kind of contraction is that? 寝させとこう (寝させておこう) I would understand, so is 寝せる the “さ抜き言葉” of 寝させる?
2. I recently saw 出てけば translated as “Go!”. Is this a contracted ba-form, and if so, I still don’t get the translation?
3. Concerning contracted -ba forms, I often hear it for 一段 verbs (z.B 見れば–>見りゃ), and in some expressions (そうすれば–>そうすりゃ; そういえば–>そういや), but I wonder, can you use them for all 五段 verbs as well? If so, what would the forms be for 買う、帰る、待つ、話す、書く、泳ぐ、飲む、遊ぶ?
Thank you so much for spotting the typos. I fixed them.
1. 寝せておく is more colloquial way to say 寝させておく/寝かせておく。
(I added the information in the lesson.)
2. 出てけば is contraction of 出ていけば
This ば is a suggestion. (出てけば（いいじゃない）⇦出ていけば（いいではないですか））
Why don’t you leave.
3. OK, these sound really casual but
買う→買や
帰る→帰りゃ
待つ→待ちゃ
書く→書きゃ
泳ぐ→泳ぎゃ
飲む→のみゃあ
遊ぶ→遊びゃ
Thanks For Lesson #Maggie_Sensei !CHECKHEART!
But I’ve Got A Mark; While I’ve Been Watching Anime, I Used To Hear Sentence Like:
(“N Na” Koto / “N Na” Mono), And I Thought If “N Na” Could Be A Kind Of Abbreviation Of (Anna)
Is It A Way Of Sense ?!
Hi ruchi,
なかなかどうして is an expression and it stresses the meaning of “なかなか”
You use this expression when someone/something is better than what you have expected.
Ex. 彼は歌は下手だと思っていたらなかなかどうして上手だった。
= Kare wa uta wa heta dato omotte itara nakanaka doushite jouzu datta.
= I thought he was a bad singer but he was pretty good in fact.
まずは「(she) lived as beautiful as (she was) sad」という意味だと思いましたけれど、このページを読んだときに「(she) lived so beautifully that it was sad」だと決めました。どちらが正しいですか？
このレスの第一文章にその構文を使ってみました。それは正しかったですか？
Apologies for all the above as I’m sure it’s not half as comprehensible as it was in my head.
あぁ、そこにも「ほど」が要ります。「思ったほど理解しやすいではない」とか。
I thought it might be “Unexpectedly, the world I’m looking out over/ Is so beautiful I become quiet.” But that’s filling in a lot of words that don’t seem to be there. And I’m not sure about the first part; looking out over the world would make sense, but isn’t 見渡す modifying 世界?
Anyways, please help! I would really appreciate it! :)
@Smoothie Made of Fruits
The subject of the sentence is 世界 and ふいに見渡す modifies 世界
The word ふいに means unexpectedly but it has more meanings “suddenly, casually, unintentionally, happened to ~ etc.”
So you can choose your own words to translate but to get a general idea, it will be something like “the world I suddenly look around is beautifully quiet.”
So in this case, you wouldn’t even translate the くらい? Does it just mean “so” in this case, like “so beautifully quiet” and not “so beautiful that I was quiet”? How can you tell which way it is being used?
And, if you don’t mind, could you help me with these, too?
君が唄う その愛を
この手に広げて
(these are the lines after the other ones, by the way)
I’m confused about the space. I couldn’t find anything about that; I assumed it was just used to indicate that the 君が唄う was part of a different thought than the rest. So I thought it meant, “As you sing, I broaden that love with this hand.” But if the space didn’t mean it was a separate thought, then it could “You sing of that love.”
Basically, I’m asking: What is the significance of the space?
Sorry for all the questions, but I really need help and I can’t find anything about this on the internet!
With くらい, how could you tell that in that sentence, it meant “so beautifully quiet” and not “so beautiful that I/it was quiet?”
@Smoothie Made of Fruits
美しいくらいに is just an expression to describe something (which you usually don’t describe the word, 美しい in this case 静けさ) is beautiful.
So I would just translate is “beautifully”
And also, do you think the “その愛を” is the direct object for “君が唄う” before it or “この手に広げて” after it? And how can you tell which one?
Thanks!
@Smoothie Made of Fruit
Here is the structure
(君が唄う）その愛をこの手に広げる
君が唄う modifying その愛 The love you sing
The object of the verb 広げる is その愛
Okay, I understand now. Thank you! :D
I just wanted to say, your website is awesome! There aren’t many active Japanese language bloggers that I’ve seen lately, and I love your style! You have yourself a new fan :)
Hi maggie sensei, i am only a begginner,a new student in japanese school.can you please help me/teach me how to introduce myself in proper way. My sensei gave me a notes,but some of those are different from the web that i searched. Please help. Thanks!
Hi, there are so many ways of introducing yourself.
Follow some of the basic form and make a couple of sentences. I can check them for you.
Ex. わたしは（name)です。I am ~
(Place)にすんでいます。 I live in ~
まだにほんごをべんきょうしはじめたばかりです。= I just started to study Japanese.
しゅみは〜です。= I like doing ~ (talking about your interests)
~~~etc.
and finish the introduction
よろしくおねがいします。
彼は、私のお父さんと同じくらい（ぐらい）の背丈です。
I misunderstood this one. Without reading the translation and with my poor Japanese I thought it said “he is may father and the about the same height as me”.
I’ve just stumbled upon your website… It’s a real gem! Thank you so much for your time and effort, these lessons are so helpful!
I have a question; it’s about this sentence:
“このふんわり具合 …… なかなかですね。”
There is no adjective between なかなか and ですね, and the dictionary says ふんわり is an adverb. How should I take なかなか then?
“このふんわり具合 …… なかなかですね。”
So the speaker must be talking about something fluffy (hair, pillow, etc.) or soft (sponge cake,etc.)
ふんわりぐあい means “fluffiness” “softness” of something. なかなかですね there means “quite something/pretty good”
入居申込書 = !koujichuu! [nyuukyok] nyuukyo !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [moushikomi] moushikomisho= application to rent a property.
この辺で[月]５万円位でいいアパートはありますか？
= Kono hen de [tsuki] goman en gurai de ii appato wa arimasuka?
Do you have any good apartments under 50,000 yen [a month] around here?
設備 = !koujichuu! [setubi] setsubi = facility
Can it ever take the opposite meaning? I mean, this happens with slang sometimes, right – for instance saying – that’s so bad! – i.e. to mean good?
On a recent pop video in YouTube, someone posted a comment: “衣装ダサい（褒め言葉”
An opposite meaning would make better sense? – I thought the bit in brackets pointed to that too. Plus, the outfits were cool (well, that’s what I thought //0//…
What do you think? When I tried to search on ‘dasai’ used positively,… I came up with nothing so, wasn’t sure…
A word ヤバい is yes. You can use it in a positive way and negative way.
Unless it has (褒め言葉) or (いい意味で）etc, we take ダサい as a negative word.
However, sometimes you combine with other positive word to create another slang.
ダサい dorky ＋かわいい cute, adorable ＝ダサかわいい。adorkable
ダサい+ かっこいい cool ＝ダサかっこいい dorky but cool
I have the following sentence that uses “のに” and not sure which category it belongs to.
Basically, this article is about Japanese are strict in following rules.
@Ken
そこまで「きまり」を守らなくてもいい のに
This のに is to express one’s feeling. The closest category will be
→to complain to someone or give someone a suggestion：
So the speaker is saying “(I think) They don’t have to obey the rules that much.”
I found your blog through and I hope you still check messages on older entries. :) First of all thank you for writing this. It was really interesting!
Now I have some questions. I’ve seen many Japanese users on twitter ask for retweets. At least I think that’s what they did. Are their specific hashtags for that? I saw several longer phrases but I’m not exactly sure what they mean. Isn’t it impolite to ask others to share your tweets?
Also, is it impolite to follow someone without writing them a message? I often silently follow users without “asking if I may”. But when Japanese people follow me, it seems like they often also tweet me something like “I have the priviledge of following you now”.
Hi Anshie,
Yes, I do read all the comments no matter how old the lesson is.
If you want people to retweet, you can use “拡散希望= kakusan kibou” (Check the lesson again.)
Or you can also say,
RTしてね
***
Q: Is it impolite to follow someone without writing them a message?
I don’t think so because if you don’t want others to follow you, they can lock their account.
But if that person doesn’t have many followers, it is nice to say hello and tell them you are going to follow them.
You can follow me anytime without saying anything. :)
I was wondering, when I describe my own personality in Japanese culture, what are the acceptable words to use.
For example, if I meet someone and I describe myself as 穏やかて優しい would that sound arrogant?
Hi Teo,
Right, I think it is the same in English. You don’t usually introduce yourself, “I am a sweet person.”
But there is a trick word.
You can say jokingly 自分で言うのもなんですが、穏やかで優しい方（ほう）だと思います。
あなた（or his name)がいなくなって*から１年経ちます。
= Anata (or his name) ga inaku natte kara ichinen tachimasu.
いなくなってから means “since you are gone”. You can use this line for someone who passed away.
There are many ways to say “passed away”
亡くなってから
= Nakunatte kara
(In my opinion, it is too direct)
You can also say,
この世から旅立ってから
= Kono yo kara tabidatte kara
If you don’t come back to the school and it is your last day, you can say お世話になりました。
But you can say この学期(がっき=term) では、お世話になりました。また来学期(らいがっき= next term) もよろしくお願いします。
Thank you very much.
I could have sworn that I replied back in March, but came back for a refresher since I left one of my schools today. Now I’m going home to sob into my pillow
:zzzz2:
The translation is the same, “It’s still hot so please don’t touch it” but to be more precise,
まだ熱いから触らないように（して下さい。）It’s still hot so try not to touch it. (while you are there, don’t touch it/ stay away from it.)
まだ熱いから触らないで下さい。? It’s still hot so don’t touch it. (Just talking about that moment.)
oh yes.. I remembered that I studied ( kawari ni) before :)
your sentence is much easier to understand than mine
My problem is I forget to use such easy words but I recognize them quickly.. I guess it is because I know so many word that I even forget the easiest ones….
but still you didn’t answer my question. is it right to say okashii tokoro instead of okashi na tokoro?
マギ先生 こんにちは
Hope you can help me with use of とき, mostly I don’t understand the difference between 1st two
Ex. 部屋を出るとき電気を消します
部屋に入ったとき電気をつけます
去年日本へ行ったとき京都へ行きました
1) 部屋を出るとき電気を消します I turn off the light when I leave a(the) room.
2) 部屋に入ったとき電気をつけます I will turn on the light when/once/ if I enter a(the) room.
I don’t know if I understand your question but the tense of the verbs in 1) and 2) are different.
1) says what you do habitually when you leave a room.
2) says I don’t know when but when I enter the room, I will turn on the light.
FYI I have been working on the lesson on “when”
2) 去年日本へ行ったとき京都へ行きました isn’t so difficult.
It simply state what you did when you went to Japan.
I got this sentence from Doraemon. Nobita is asking a lot of questions so Doraemon says this to him.
いっぺんに (all at once)
聞かれても (guessing it’s ask in this sentence and it’s in te-form passive. If Doraemon is the passive subject then he’s the one being asked all at once.)
困るな (guessing Doraemon is just saying な at the end of the sentence and it’s not conjugated as 困るな.)
I don’t understand what role ても plays in this sentence. My Japanese friend can’t explain it to me. I understand that the basic idea is that Doraemon doesn’t want Nobita to ask so many questions at once because it’s bothering him. But I kind of wish I could break it down to a rough translation to understand how everything is interacting.
＠Zack
It roughly means,
Even if you ask me all the questions at once, I can’t answer them right away.
So the function of this ても is “even if”
困る means ”to be in trouble”/ “to be puzzled”/ It is annoying” (depending on the context.)
The other point of this sentence is 聞かれる is a passive form. As I explained in my passive form lesson, passive form sometimes shows negative connotation.
So Doraemon was not happy to be asked many questions all at once.
Thank you very much! I think what my problem is is that I try to translate directly into English a lot of the time. So I would have translated this to something like, “Even if you are asking me (all the questions) at once, I will be bothered.” Which just sounds kind of weird because the second part isn’t something unexpected.
You’re welcome. Yes, the direct translation is “I will be bothered” but as you said, it is not natural.
A lot of time, you don’t translate 困る with its literal meaning, “to be bothered”
You just have to translate the sentence depending on the context.
It is difficult/hard for me to do ~ = (there is no way that)I can do ~ / I can’t do ~ / I don’t want to do that. /I won’t do ~ .
Hi, I came across your website because I am trying to understand the different usages of “ても”. I have noticed that you’ve already covered ”てもいい”. Also, I noticed on the comment you mentioned ”ても” can mean “even if” depending on the context. Can you give another example for that? One more thing, I am checking out these lyrics to a song…and I have noticed the usage of ”ても”; however, I don’t think its context. How is this ”ても” used in these lyrics? It’s below. Thanks.
どんなに笑っても
ここに君はいない
この笑顔 この涙も意味ない
どんな遠くても
ねぇ 迎えにきて
電話じゃ ものたりない
@TekAnn
This is how it works
どんなに〜ても
No matter how ~ it is/you do/did
どんなに笑っても
No matter how much I laugh/smile
どんなに遠くても
No matter how far it is
マギー先生、ご機嫌はいかが。
Thank you very much for this lesson, this grammar was totally new to me. I love grammarlessons. Thats why I tested your explanations on a hundred or so sentences, and could translate all of them. Which officially makes this lesson a great one. !happyface!
私の見る限りでは、二三の誤りだけです。
“Tadasih ikemen ni kaigiru.” “tadashi” “kagiru”
“Ex. 日本人だからと日本語を教えられるとは限らない。
= Nihonjin dakara nihongo wo oshierareru towa kagiranai.” There’s a “と” thats not in the romaji
“= Just because being rich doesn’t mean being generous.” Now thats difficult english grammar. You either need a subject (just because you’re rich doesn’t mean you’re generous), or omit “just because”.
Since you didn’t cover na-adjectives+kagiri, I tried to search for combinations of -na+kagiri, but they seem to be rare, I could only find a few examples like 必要な限り(as long as necessary), 可能な限り (as much as possible), お金持ちな限り (as long as you are rich). I’m wondering, could one use other na-adjectives or nouns in this way and would “as … as” be the general translation pattern for these cases?
こんにちは！ 早速、スペルチェックしてくれてありがとう！！！(As for the English translation, “it” was missing as a subject.)
You can say 必要な限り, 可能な限り お金持ちな限り
You also say
必要である限り
可能である限り
お金持ちである限り
I wouldn’t say na-adjecitve + 限り is rare compared to i-adjecitve+限り
元気な限り
静かな限り
好きな限り
You can also use with katakana word
ハッピーな限り…etc.
(事前のご苦労様です→I know you meant “Thank you for your work in advance but “よろしくお願いします” is more natural.)
Maggie sensei, I would like to ask about 3 verbs: 来る, 行く and 思う.
Your example 毎週金曜日にドッグフードを買いに行きます。/ 買いに行っています。translates as I go buy dog food every Friday.
That means 来ている and 行っている are coming and going respectively, right?
If I am not wrong, 来ている・行っている also means to come/go and then be there? In fact, I’ve seen this context being used much more like in drama.
Correct me if I am wrong. For example, 先に行っています means I will go and be there first rather than I am going first.
Second question regarding 思う.
If I want to say “I think I want to…”, for Japanese, is it more natural to use …と思う or …と思ってる?
I see both used equally much so I am not sure what is the subtle difference.
Or are they exactly like English where we say “I think I want to go Japan” versus “I am thinking of going to Japan”.
It depends on the context but
来ている means “to come (as one’s habitual action) / to have come/ someone came to the place and he/she is there (in that place) ” and 行く・行っている means ” to go (as one’s habitual action) / to have gone/someone has gone from that place”
And 先に行っています means I will go and be there first or I will go ahead and leave earlier than you. (The speaker involves the listener.)
You also say 先に行きます。for that situation but to be more precise, it means “I will go ahead and leave.” (the speakers just states his/her action.)
***
1) 私は日本に行きたいと思う I want to go to Japan. Expressing the present feeling
2-a) 私は日本に行きたいと思っている I have been thinking about going to Japan
or
2-b) 私は日本に行きたいと考えている I have been thinking about going to Japan
本当にありがとう。先生!^^
But which do you think is better to use when it’s about visiting a particular place for many times?
~ている?
~た?
Cookie-chan!! I think I saw”Cookie” in one of the lessons but I can’t remember where exactly. I hope to meet him again as I keep on checking lessons from this site.
Hi sensei,
I am always bothered by this question: does the “も” particle here also suggests a meaning of “as well” or “too” in English? Or is it just one of those words that is a little difficult to translate? If not, can you briefly explain why it is used here?
By the way, I’ve seen some native Japanese speaker say 例文も添えていただけるとありがたいです。But isn’t there “no reference” to another subject, so it should just be 例文を…? And is 例文も一緒に添えていただけるとありがたいです correct as well?
Hi Newbie,
First I have a lesson on some usage of も. Check this lesson.
One of the main meaning of も is “as well”/ “also, / ~,too”
例文を添えてください。= Please give me example sentences.
Let’s say the Japanese person asks a meaning of one word.
例文も添えてください。= (Please explain how to use the word) And give me some example sentences also.
Hi sensei,
Could you explain the difference between お金を持ってない and お金を持たなかった, and which is more commonly used. Are the translated as “I haven’t brought money” or “I don’t have money now” and “I didn’t bring money”? Thanks in advance!
So お金を持っていない means “I don’t have money with me now.”
お金を持たなかった means “I didn’t carry money with me. (Maybe the speaker has a credit card or he/she always goes out with someone who has money but it is his/her decision not to carry money with him/her when he/she goes out.) “
I have a question regarding your examples:
今、宿題やっているのだけれど難しすぎて…
今、宿題やってんだけど難しすぎて…
Am I right to say やっているのだけれど contracts to やってんのだけれど contracts to やってんんだけれど and finally contracts to やってんだけれど?
何やってんだよ is commonly heard in drama/anime and I believe it is from 何やっているのだよ.
What I don’t understand is, if いる shortens to ん and の to ん as well, there will be double んん. So since double んん sounds like ん, one is omitted.
I can only think of this reasoning unless the whole いるの can also be contracted to ん in speech?
I see. I am currently working on a lesson on this subject but
the contraction goes like this.
やっているのだけれど
→(dropping い) やってるのだけれど
→(の changes to ん ) やってるんだけれど
→(dropping る) やってんだけれど
→(けれど →けど）やってんだけど
らしい= something/someone is like what the speaker expect
めく= something is getting certain state (It is becoming like ~ = “〜らしくなる”)
っぽい= ~ ish : Similar to らしい but more conversational
EX. 春らしい日 vs 春めいた日 vs 春っぽい日.
春っぽい日 is very conversational. Spring-ish day
春らしい日 springlike When you see/feel something that represents spring, such as flowers, air, weather,etc.
春めいた日 to describe a day which is in the process of getting spring
***
to miss
You have to change depending on the context
I miss you.
1) 彼がいなくて寂しい (You are talking about his presence. expressing one’s loneliness)
2) 彼が恋しい (You are attracted to him and miss his presence badly.)
3) 彼に会いたい (I want to see him. While 1) expresses one’s loneliness, you focus on wanting to see him more.)
But for example, if I miss you because you haven’t come here for a long time,
I can’t say 天人さんがいなくて寂しい・寂しかった
You have to add more information
天人さんがこのサイトにずっと来なくて寂しかった。
If this site hasn’t uploaded for a long time, some might say (hopefully)
“Yachiji ni natte mo shigoto ga yamazumi da.” “hachiji”
“明日 ( = ashita) tommrrow” “tomorrow” (your version sounds like dog language :-P )
“Ex. 明日は、釣りに行きます。
= Ashita wa, tsuri ni ikimasu.” this example is twice, the first one should be without “は”
And I have some questions about some sentences:
1. Ex. この旅行は出発の２ヶ月前に申し込んで下さい。
= Kono ryokou wa shuppatsu no nikagetsu mae ni moushikonde kudasai.
= Please apply for this trip two months before the departure date.
If I would have translated this sentence into Japanese, I would have written: この旅行の出発は2ヶ月前に申し込んで下さい。 So, in my sentence の would be used to modify 出発. But I don’t quite understand its function in your sentence. It kind of sounds like a relative clause, in which の replaces the が, but I don’t know. So what kind of の is 出発の２ヶ月?
2.明日から夏休みが始まります。 Can you use は after 明日 in this sentence or do you have to use から?
I think it is because 最近 & 気に入っていない together doesn’t sound natural.
You can say 最近、映画が好きじゃない／好きではない。
Also you can say
最近、映画が面白くない
(I don’t find movies (in general) are not interesting.)
Also you use 気に入らない when you don’t like specific movie
“I don’t like this movie” (something bothering me.)
この映画は気に入らない
and if you are talking about recent movies in general, you can say
OK, I may repeat the same thing but 気に入る is usually used when you like something specific and it sounds unnatural to say I like movies in general = 映画（というもの）が気に入っている
but you can say “I like this (specific) movie” この映画が気に入っている.
Also though we use the pattern 最近〜ていない I haven’t doing something lately (Ex. 最近、日本語の勉強をしていない）because 気に入る is not an active verb.
You don’t say 最近〜気に入っていない
皆は、今年は豆まきをしましたか？私は、ジャーキーを [nagete][投げて]もらった方が嬉しいんだけど…(=Mina wa kotoshi wa mamemaki wo shimashitaka? Watashi wa jaakii wo !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [maite] [nagete] moratta houga ureshiindakedo..)
Thank you, zoheb for checking the spelling as always. Really appreciate it!
ジャーキー= jaakii is a dog treat which came from beef(or chicken/pork) jerky for dogs. :)
Thanks for this site. I truly goldmine for japanese.
“Koto” and “naru” are very difficult concepts for westerners. Another example is this sentence I’ve read on News in Slow Japanese:
この駅は、１９４７年に開業し、７０年近く無人駅として 使われていましたが、３年前に廃駅となること が 決まりました。
I do understand the sentence but the subtility of that part is a bit difficult to grasp: “廃駅となること が 決まりました”. It’s been decided to close the station but why using a noun “廃駅” instead of a verbe?
Thanks for your reply.
I had to read again the whole lesson to understand. I get now it’s a fix set and I think the “koto” in the middle didn’t help.
One last thing though.What would be the most accurate translation:
It’s been decided to close the station (transitive)
or
The closure of the station has been decided (intransitive)
I would choose the first one but Japanese is soo tricky… :-D :-D
Thanks again for your answer.
I understand the usage but I think it is going to take me some times to use it or feel confortable with it.
As for the koto part, I know it’s used to make verbs into nouns but as why now it is needed in the sentence, I am not too sure it would come naturally to me when speaking but I’ll get used to it:
[noun + to naru] + koto + GA + intransitive verb
been decided the thing of to become the closure
とっても変ですね (笑)
Sorry I didn’t finish the previous sentence.
I will give you some examples.
1) 彼がリーダになることが決まった。
= It has been decided that he will be a leader.
（The subject is “彼がリーダーになること” Becoming a leader” So the literal translation is
“His becoming a leader” has been decided” )
The speaker is just telling the fact.
2) 彼をリーダーにすることが決まった。
= It has been decided to make him a leader.
From this sentence, we can tell the speaker (or someone) was trying to make him a leader.
3) 彼はリーダになることに( or を) 決めた。
= He has decided to be a leader.
It was his decision.
Now you can say the same thing.
* 廃駅となることが決まった。
The subject is “the station will be closed” so the most accurate translation is
The closure of the station has been decided.
The speaker is just telling the fact of closure of the station.
6) 廃駅とすることに決まった。
Someone decided to close the station.
Yes!!!!! This is what I was talking about on Twitter!!! You’re so awesome!! Lol is っぽい the only suffix that does this kind of modifying? Thanks again! いつもありがとう！
Yay! Problem solved!
We also use ~気味(gimi) / 、～がかった(=gakkatta)
Ex. 赤みがかった(akami gakatta) reddish
Ex. 風邪気味=kazegimi = I have a light cold.
Ex. 遅れ気味= latish (running late)
家に帰ったらメールするな。
Q：When I get home, don’t text (me),” if the context allows for it?
Situation-wise, it sounds a bit strange, but I guess it is possible. Or “When you get home, don’t text me (anymore).”
When I get home, don’t text (me),”→ I would say “俺（僕）が家にいる時はメールするな。”/ 家にはメールするな。 Don’t text me when I am home.
Sorry. I didn’t see the comment. (Thank you 天人さん for answering the question)
As 天人さん says, the translation changes depending on the context.
Verb +してたんじゃないのかなって+(思う）
I think if X has been doing something/was doing something
If you mean しってたんじゃないのかな(=Shittetan ja nai no kana), I think if X has known (already) /new.
Sometimes when I’m coming home from Tokyo, the local train waits at a station for the rapid or commuter rapid train. What do you call this in Japanese and what does the conductor announce to the passengers? They say it so fast, I can’t understand the words
＠アル
Hi アル！
I know the announcement at the station is very fast and hard to hear.
I hope I got your question but you want to know what the announcement says when a local train has to wait for the rapid train passes at the station?
If so, they are probably saying something like
特急列車通過待ちをいたします
= Tokyuu ressha tsuukamachi wo itashimasu.
I know this post is old, but I have a question! In your post, you note that Godiva is for big clients. Should it not be given to a boyfriend then? Is it too formal? What would you recommend?
I said Godiva is for 本命 (the person you really like) (or big clients) so of course you can give it to your boyfriend along with other fancy chocolates.
Or you can make your own chocolates. 手作りチョコ(=tezukuri choko) handmade chocolates.
Hello, hello~ !ohisama!
Maggie, please tell me, if we can use 「ってゆーか」 in the context of: “by the way”?
For example Speaker B asks Speaker A about something. Speaker A answers that he doesn’t know the answer and then he adds “By the way, who are you?” because he doesn’t know speaker B.
こんにちは！元気でしたか？
ってゆーか／てか／つーか
are all very conversational expressions and people (young people) use pretty randomly.
It is supposed to be used when you mention something related to your previous sentence but some people just use it as “By the way”.
Another question. 女の子 means “a girl”. (I don’t know, how to put my thoughts in words…) how old max. can be a 女の子? If a girl is – let’s say – 18 yo, can we say to her 女の子?
Haha there isn’t a specific rule but generally speaking, 女の子 is from a baby to…..early 20s.
女子 might be more common for 20s~ 30s.
I am 女の子 forever, though. :)
First the formality is different.
んじゃないんですか polite
んじゃないか / んじゃないのか rough/male speech (It sounds strong) You use this tone when you accuse someone / make your point in a strong way.
When it is used as a question.
Ex. 1) それは間違いなんじゃないですか？
Ex. 2) それは間違いなんじゃないか？
It depends on the context but you sometimes add の when you are not sure or emphasize the meaning.
Ex. 3) それは間違いなんじゃないのか？
質問があります。
I like to practice reading and listening to anime songs, and when I was “studying” a son called pray from the anime Gintama I found this.
責める雨の音 悲しくなるなら
優しい君の盾になる
I think it means something like
“If the sound of the blamed rain becomes sad, it will become the shield of the gentle you”
but in other sites I found a translation like this one
“Condemn the sound of the rain, if you become sad, it will become your shield of kindness”
And I couldn’t fully understand, if it is possible to use なら in the second sentence and that the first sentence become the consequence like in this song example?
責める雨の音 悲しくなるなら (blame the rain if it becomes sad or )
優しい君の盾になる (If it becomes sad it will become your shield)
or neither is correct? xp.
And of course thank you for all your effort and this amazing lesson it helped me a lot.
Eres la mejor マギー。
OK, I won’t do the translation here but will try to help you to understand the structure.
The basic idea is
（君がもし）悲しくなるなら（僕は）君の盾になる
= If you feel sad, I will be a shield for you.
責める雨の音 is in the same
So the direct translation is not natural but here is the whole structure
If you feel sad (with the sounds of the aggressive rain) , I will protect you (, my sweet girl), becoming a shield for you.
なるほど
I’ve been studying japanese for 1 year so it still confuses me a lot when subjects like 僕 or 君 are missing in the sentence, and when I saw this sentence rewriten,
（君がもし）悲しくなるなら（僕は）君の盾になる
I realized, that I was just making up wrong grammar constructions,
まだまだ 頑張らなければなりません。
Good day to you, Maggie-sensei! I was reading this and noticed that most of the time なんて would replace は or other particles, but what if なんて comes after particles?
I read a line that says
見せ掛けは何て綺麗で 吐き気がする世界だろう。
Would that means that the なんて is emphasizing on 綺麗, or is it actually 見せ掛け? I am confused as how I should go for this… I asked various friends and they’re giving different answers for it >_< I wonder if it would be "Such a sickening world because the fakes are so beautiful" or "Such a sickening world because the beauties are so fake"?
Thank you in advance. I hope you'll have a good day!
見せ掛けは何て綺麗で 吐き気がする世界だろう。
People give you different answers because there are two possibilities.
１）なんて just modifies 綺麗（きれい) → “Such a beautiful sickening world”(beautiful modifies sickening world)
２）It modifies 綺麗 and 吐き気がする Such a “beautiful and sickening” world.
Well, i understand that if you put a verb in potential form + ようにる it means that you become able to do something.
But what if the verb is in dictionary form + ようになる?
For example:
1. 新聞を読めるようになりました。
2. 新聞を読むようになりました。
In the 1st sentence i think it means: “i became able to read newspaper”.
But what would be the meaning of the 2nd sentence?
I’m not sure but i think it means: “I didn’t read the newspaper in the past, but i read it now in the present”.
Is this correct or not?
I’m not sure but i think it means: “I didn’t read the newspaper in the past, but i read it now in the present”.
Is this correct or not?
→Yes, you are right. :)
Hi sensei,
How can ask if the sentence in the quotation marks is correct? For example, I want to ask if the sentence: “the apple is red” is correct or not, is it 「りんごは赤いです」という正しいですか or「りんごは赤いです」という言葉は正しいですか。And does it also work if I say I have heard that “the apple is red” by saying「りんごは赤いです」という句を聞いています。
Sorry if this is confusing(*_*)
Hi maggie sensei, I want to better understand the sentence, “ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？”
I just started studying Japanese so please excuse me for any dumb questions. xD
What exactly does しましたが mean? Or what verb or form does it derive from? And what is the difference between using the term, 発行 and つくりwhen asking for them to make you a card?
Hi Louisa,
Sure.
ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？
ネットで on net
登録しましたが(touroku shimashitaga) I have registered but..( 〜しました= have done/ did)
カード(kaado) shop card
を(wo) an object marker
発行する(hakkou suru) issue, make (You can also say 作って頂けますか？）
〜して頂けますか？(=Shite itadakemasuka) Polite form to ask someone for a favor, Could you?
Hi Louisa,
You can say ありがとう but in some occasion, ありがとう may sound like you are aware of your beauty. :)
So, how about just saying そうですか？or tell them how much you like the outfits (if you like them). いいですね。/ 色がいいですね。/ かわいいですね。/ デザインがいいですね。or デザインが気に入りました。etc.
Maggie-sensei,
how would you say “It’s been X minutes/hours/days/weeks/months/years since”.
As in, for example, “It’s been 6 months since I last went swimming.”
On that note, how would you say “several” or “a few” minutes/hours/days etc. instead of using an exact number?
And is there a way to simply say, “It’s been a while since [I last did something]”?
Sorry for using English–I’ve only been learning Japanese for around three months.
Thank you as always for your help!! boucingheart!
Hi Louisa,
Can I take a picture with you?
= 一緒に写真を撮ってもいいですか？
= Issho ni shashin wo totte mo ii desuka?
(more casual)
一緒に写真を撮ってもいい？
= Issho ni shashin wo totte mo ii?
Hello! It’s a bit late, but happy new year! Anyway, thanks for the lesson. Today a have specific questions. I read the sentence 自分の顔に対する捉え方は他の人のと比べれば全く違うという結果を出すとよく聞くね
And I can understand most of it. I am just having a hard time understanding the 対する捉え方 part?
I know the general meaning of both words, I just don’t understand how they’re being used here.
捉え方 means “the way to grasp something”, “the way to perceive something”, right? I guess my problem is mostly with 対する and how it is being used here.
Happy New Year, reid!
捉え方 means “the way to grasp something”, “the way to perceive something”, right?
→Yes.
対する has a various meanings. on, against, about,
In this case 自分の顔に対する捉え方 is just “how you see your own face””the way you see your own face”
!greenapple!
So how many stereotypes does Google assume about the Japanese language? because I’m using Google for some weapon chants in some stories and I don’t know how to correctly translate them from English to Japanese (not caligraphy) Plz reply ASAP..
Hi Crystal Rianna
So how many stereotypes does Google assume about the Japanese language? →I am sorry. I don’t know.
But what I can say is not to trust Google Translate. It sometimes works OK but they are not good at translating long complicated sentences.
Hi sensei,
I dont understand what you mean by “some compound words will be used with で”.
So “これはアメリカで大人気です” is correct and not “これはアメリカに大人気です” even though there is no “action”?
And can I also say アメリカでは大人気です
Thanks in advance!
Hi Bob,
You usually use に with a verb ある
Ex. ここに鍵（かぎ）がある There is a key here.
But you use a particle で with some idiomatic compound words such as 人気ある（人気がある/ 人気ある) even if it is not an action.
And yes, you can say アメリカでは大人気です
は adds the meaning of contrast.
“some compound words will be used with で”.
means to use ある in
I’m confused sensei!
What’s the difference between “毎日、ご飯を食べる” and “毎日、ご飯を食べている”? (since 毎日 is a time phrase so should we use ている?) or does the second sentence imply that before I don’t eat breakfast everyday but now I do?
Also, in the lesson, you said: “子供達は今、ゲームで遊んでいる”. Why is it not 子供達は今、ゲーム”を”遊んでいる?
Sorry for the long questions!
毎日、ご飯を食べる
毎日、ご飯を食べている
They both mean the same and describes the daily habitual action.
As I explained in the lesson, you can describe the actions with 〜ている ( = ~ te iru) / 〜ています ( = ~ te imasu) more vividly than 〜る(=ru)/〜ます(=masu) .
So for example, if a mother worries about her child who lives far away and asks if they eat everyday, it will be more natural to say
毎日、きちんとご飯を食べていますか？ (continuous actions/habitual action)
than
毎日、きちんと食べますか？
ゲームで遊ぶ
Unlike English we say play “with” something. =〜で遊ぶ
So you don’t use an object marker,を.
Happy New Year, Rin!
I guess I made too many lessons here so the site is getting heavier. We have to fix the major problem sometime soon but I am happy to be able to make lessons again.
今年もよろしくね！
I was wondering what the difference between using
Okureru and osoi is when being late? Initially I thought osokunatte was used for objects only but I have heard people scold others for being late using osoi.
Hi nicole
osoi is an adjective and it means “slow”/ “late”
Ex. Osoi kuruma = slow car
Ex. Watashi wa aruku no ga osoi.
= I walk slowly.
(The directly translation is “my walking is slow.”
Now okureru means “to be late”
Ex. Kurasu ni okueru.
= To be late to the class.
Ex. Jikan ni okureru.
= To be late (in time).
” I am sorry I am late” in Japanese is “Osoku natte gomennasai.”
If you apologize for walking slowly, you say
Aruku no ga osokute gomennasai.
Hi Maggie, first off, thank you so much for all your wonderful lessons! They have been so helpful. C:
I have a question regarding point cards. What if you already registered for a point card online but now you want to have them make you a physical card in store? For example, Club Animate allows you to do that.
How do I ask for a physical card without confusing them with registering for a new card? Keep in mind, I’ll be pointing to a barcode on my cellphone as proof of my registration.
You can show that and tell them,
ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？
= Netto de touroku shimashitaga, kaado wo hakkou shite itadakemasu ka?
= I registered this on net but could you make a card please?
Konnichiha Maggie_Sensei
It’s me again, arigatou gozaimasu for responsing my prev question back there, but sensei i still have some issues about those, heard them from anime and couldn’t recognize them:
“Bunkatte Hoshii”
“kou nara koto nozonde ita ka o shiranai n da”
“anata o tairu” “watashitachi o taiou tte hoshii”
“this last sentence it’s sounded like about “dependence” …
Hi,Ōsama,
First I am sorry but I don’t do the translation here. (If I do, I have to translate for everybody…)
I can explain the structure but can you post them in Japanese?
Maybe they are typos..but some of the phrases don’t make any sense.
I Am Sorry Sensei, I know it’s kind of nonsense, because i tried so hard to get these words from their voices but unfortunately the words aren’t clear (expectable from jp anime).
_About thie sentence:
“mina no chikara ga oboeta osare(ba)” Sensei is it true that in some cases when two verbs are linked in one sentence, the first verb congigated to “past form” ?
Hi sensei,
I am just wondering is it possible to just take the “る” form of a verb and add a noun to make it a new noun, because I just heard the word “帰る場所”? But what I have learned is always to add こと after the verb to make a noun.
I have also noticed that some verbs can just take the “ます” stem to form a noun such as たべもの? Does it work for all verbs as well?
Sorry for the long questions!
But it is all right to say nani ga mondai desu ka?
Im so confused! IF nani ka = “something” but nani ga = “what”, how will nanika mondai ga aru be translated into english?
Will it be translated as “Is there something/some problem?” Won’t “nani ga” be better translated as “What problem is there”? Sensei, Oshiete kudasai!!
Many thanks for your prompt answer. I really appreciate your reply!
I think I quite get your point.
I do apologize for my continuous confusing but could you help me one more !
Now I understand the で indicates the reason. So, I wonder if my understanding is correct or not.
If somebody asks “どうして日本に来たんですか” -> why question
Then we answer “勉強で来ました” (and avoid “勉強に来ました”）
If sbd asks “日本に何をしに来ましたか？” -> what question
Then we answer “勉強にきました” = I came here to study.
Do we need to avoid 勉強で来ました (because the question is what question, not why question)? Or both are OK?
ごめんなさいMaggie sensei.
This is my mistake in posting comment. I posted it in the wrong position.
I posted my reply again in our conversation already. Please help me !
Maggie sensei..
I have a long list of request lessons..If possible:
tsui
naosara尚更/ issou 一層
irassharu
V-te irareru
ja
ka
nomi (only)
X ni taishite,
wake when it comes in the end of the sentence
and I want to know the difference between tabemono and taberumono >> I find them both translated to food when watching dramas!!
Also, the meaning of sore ni taishite??
that’s all maggie sensei..
Iknow I’m asking too much.. but I’m asking you because you’re my number one teacher
thank you boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
OK, will try to explain some of your questions here.
* irassharu
is an honorific way of saying iru
Ex. 明日は家にいますか？
= Ashita wa ie ni imasu ka?
= Are you home tomorrow?
→(polite)明日は家にいらっしゃいますか？
= Ashita wa ie ni irasshai masu ka?
Ex. 普段は何をしていますか？
= Fudan wa nani wo shite imasu ka?
= What do you usually do?
→(polite) 普段は、何をされていますか？
= Fudan wa, nani wo sarete imasuka?
or
普段は、何をしていらっしゃいますか？
= Fudan wa, nani wo shite irasshaimasu ka?
*ja = casual contraction of では
Ex. 今日はお休みではないですか？
= Kyou wa oyasumi de wa nai desu ka?
= Isn’t it a day-off today?
→(casual) 今日はお休みじゃない？
= Kyou wa oyasumi janai?
*nomi (only): literal / formal
だけ(= dake) is more common in conversation
Ex. 女性のみ
= Josei nomi
= Only women
Ex. ほとんどの飲み物は３００円ですが、ビールのみ６００円です。
= Hotondo no nominono wa sanbyaku en desu ga, biiru nomi roppyakuen desu.
= Almost all the drinks cost 300 yen but only beer costs 600 yen.
* X ni taishite= against/ towards ~/ in contrast with
Ex. 彼は私に対して冷たい。
= Kare wa watashi ni taishite tsumetai.
= He is cold towards me.
Sore ni taishite = in contrast with that/ by contrast
Ex. 兄は、運動神経がいいですが、それに対して私はスポーツが大嫌いです。
= Ani wa, undoushinkei ga ii desu ga, sore ni taishite watashi wa supootu ga daikirai desu.
= My older brother is very athletic. By contrast, I hate sports.
*wake when it comes in the end of the sentence
Usually you say “wake desu/ wake da” but you omit desu/da in conversation.
You use “wake” when you explain how things work or when you give a reason.
That is why ~~
~ to iu wake desu/da – It is because ~
* I want to know the difference between tabemono and taberumono >> I find them both translated to food when watching dramas!!
When you talk about food in general, you use “tabemono”
But you use taberu mono, for example
Ex. Do you have anything to eat?
= Nanka taberu mono aru?
Is there a difference between “nani ga mondai ga arimasu ka” and “nani ka mondai ga arimasu ka” and which would sound more natural for Japanese?
ありがとうございます!
Sorry to disturb again, but I still dont really get the difference between chotto mattete and chotto matte if both of them means please wait :/
Please help senseiiii
@A
The translation is the same. “Wait/Just a moment” but while
Matte = Wait (this moment)
Matte ite = Stay waiting (the speaker tells the listener to wait for certain period of time)
Hi sensei,
I have often hear this when watching anime:”chotto mattete”. Is this the shorten form of matte ite, if so, then when it is translated into English will the meaning be more like “stay/be waitING” or more like “stay/be HERE waitING” as “ite/iru” could also be interpreted as to exist or to be or the meaning could be both?
Thanks in advance!!
Hi A,
We often drop い(=i) in conversation
ちょっとまっていて = Chotto matte ite
→ちょっとまってて = Chotto mattete
It means “Please wait” / Just a minute” / “Please wait for me (a little)”/”Stay here and wait for me.” /
The literal meaning of matteiru is “to be in the state of waiting.”
What exactly do you use なっている and なっていた for regarding the usage of state for ている? Haven’t seen it used much so I’m not exactly sure how to use them in sentences.
Seemed to me that なっていた could have been replaced with なった. But obviously I’m wrong so any help on that light is appreciated.
The tenses are different.
なっている describes the current state or how things are supposed to work.
Facebookで話題になっている Everybody is talking about it on Facebook.(current state)
毎年、１２月に同窓会をすることになっている。We always have a class reunion every December. (talking about something habitual)
次の月曜日には病院に行くことになっている. I am supposed to go to the hospital next Monday. (What you are supposed to do (future)
なっていた You were supposed to do/something was supposed to happen in past but you didn’t/it didn’t happen.
Ex. 今日、彼に会うことになっていた = I was supposed to see him today. (But I didn’t see him.)
なった has become/ describing some decision/ result
Ex. 明日、彼に会うことになった。(talking about what you are supposed to do in future.)
= I decided to see him tomorrow.
We got the same message from you so I deleted one of them.
Hello, Thanks for your reply (And sorry for the double post, website seemed to have trouble for me)
I now understand the usage of it on how things are supposed to work. It’s usage of current state still confuses me though. I’m quite slow in this regard though so if it would be possible whenever you have time to explain it a bit further, It would be appreciated. As I’m not sure how Facebookで話題になっている translates into that.
Thanks for taking your time. Strangely the link takes me to a No Page found though.
@Gallus
Sorry. Try again. It should work now.
Hi sensei! I really like your lessons, they’re really helpful.
I just have a question.
I heard someone say 苦いの嫌い。
Why did they use の instead of が? Is it because it’s a short form of 苦いの者が嫌い or 苦いの食べ物が嫌い?
Hi Lisa,
Glad to hear you like my lessons.
苦いの嫌い
is a colloquial expression.
The whole sentence is
苦い食べ物は嫌いです。
↓
Now instead of saying 食べ物, you can just say の (things) in conversation.
苦いのは嫌いです。
↓
Also you often omit particle. And you don’t say です。
苦いの嫌い
This lesson will help you understand how to use の.
こんにちは、マギー先生！質問があります。手伝ってくれますか。
日本語が上手ではないのにupper levelの文法をまた習いたいです。しかし本当に難しいですよ。
ところで ところに（へ） ところを as for me seems pretty similar to ～たら/～と if-grammar (I might be wrong, but most sentences you translated as ‘when’, so…)
So, if I’m right, and it has the same meaning as ～たら/～と I want to now what is nuance between them?
よろしくお願いします。
I learnt 「たら」 but it feels like I need to review it /cries
Sorry, I forgot to add few more questions:
☆た+ ところで even if / although / even though / no matter how ~(the result won’t be desirable anyway)
and のに means the same or?
☆Also, do we always need to use such words as 今 ちょうど with ところ or sentence is correct even w/o them?
Thanks in advance boucingheart!
☆た+ ところで and のに are different.
のに is used when you actually did something but you don’t get the expected result.
たところで is used for hypothetical situation.
Ex. 一生懸命勉強したのに試験に受からなかった。
= Isshoukenmei benkyou shita noni shiken ni ukaranakatta.
= Even though I studied so hard I didn’t pass the exam.
Ex. 一生懸命勉強したところで試験には受からない(だろう）
= Even if I study so hard, I am not going to pass the exam.
☆Not necessary 今ちょうど but we use ~ ところです with some time related word.
今（ちょうど）出たところです。
さっき出たところです。
５分前に出たところです。
Thank you very much for explaining this to me!!!
I think I live in your site, ahahahaha.
But Japanese has so much similar grammar, that I start to think I’ll never master it, pfff.
@ chaos_prinz
You’re welcome.
If you try to understand the whole difference and details, it will stress you out. Take baby steps.
Hi Maggie
What would be the difference between these two sentences?
一生懸命勉強したところで試験には受からない(だろう）
一生懸命勉強しても試験には受からない(だろう）
Hi Cake
I would say the same.
したところで = しても or したとしても
They both lead the contradicted result.
I was wondering, since the the combination of a verb+na could mean both an expression of emotion or a negative command, how do know what is meant. Is there maybe a difference in pronunciation if I say for instance: “今食べるな。”, so that you would know whether I meant: “Don’t eat now!” or “I’m goin to eat now!”? I don’t want to sound like ordering people around when I just want to express my feelings…
Haha good question.
今、食べるな
could mean
1) Don’t eat now.
2) I am going to eat now, OK? (male speech)
and the intonation is different.
It is too bad that I can’t attach a sound file here but 1) you stress “食べる” more. and you say 2) more softly.
i’ve never heard of 住まい or お住まい before, ちょっと説明してくれませんか？(´･ω･`)
i also have learned こう、そう、ああ and どう before(ex: こういう、こうして- this way). They’re used to describe things in an abstract way right? can you please tell me about more of its uses or just examples 先生? (´ω`)
住まい means where you live/ a house/housing/dwelling.
So “Where do you live?” in Japanese is どこに住んでいますか？= Doko ni sunde imasu ka? But you can also ask
お住まいはどちらですか？= Osumai wa dochira desuka?. It sounds more polite.
Yes, こう, そう、ああ means this way, that way
どうやるんですか？ = How do you do that?
こうやってください。= Do this way, please.
こういう・そういう・ああいう also means “this kind of/that kind of/ such a ”
こういう本がほしい= Koiuiu hon ga hoshii = I would like this kind of book. / a book like this.
Hi yzr!
この、その、あの just indicates an item/person depending on the distance from the speaker.
こんな、そんな、あんな involves more emotions.
こういう、そういう、ああいう means like this, like that, like that one (physically or mentally far from the speakers) or such ~
Ex.こういうやり方 = such a way to deal with things
Thank you for that lesson, but to make things clearer, if I wanted to say I like ALL the things about someone/something would it be something like subete or zenbou no koto? Thanks
Sorry,I just wanted to ask the difference between these 2 sentences regarding the use of koto:
1)kimi ga suki desu
2)kimi no koto ga suki desu
Does koto here means all the things about you or just things/thoughts about you? Thanks in advance!!
おもいしろかった!!! !riceball! !riceball! !purplecandy! !purplecandy!
Tetsudatte kurete arigatou Magi sensei, but
sensei why don’t give this lesson through video it would be awesome and i’m no one who watch it
おもしろかった haip chigaimashita gomen2 :)
Ohhh its okay sensei :) !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE!
Sensei i have a request can u make a lesson about onomatopoeia japanese? :)
I know you said that you can’t just add 的 to any nouns. How about する-nouns? Are they usually used with 的？ I noticed a bunch of your examples were する-nouns.
Hi アル？
Hmmm…You mean like a noun such as 開放(+する）、実践(+する）、行動(+する）?
It may work with some of them but not all of them.
勉強(+する）料理（＋する）旅行(+する) ，They all won’t work with 的
Maggie-sensei, I could understand pretty much everything :kanpai1:, but not that “We sometimes describe things in an extreme way” part. I wasn’t able to see the pattern on the examples like:
言葉にできないほど美しい景色だ。
この漫画は、飽きるほど読んだ。
I always look for patterns on the structure to make my studies easy, but I’m cracking my head trying to figure that one.
Ex.彼のことが死ぬほど好きです。
= Kare no koto ga shinuhodo suki desu.
= I love him so much I would die for him. / I love him to death.
You don’t actually die but to express how much you love him in an exaggerate way you use 程.
言葉にできないほど= You may able to express the beauty of the scenery.
飽きるほど= If you get really tired of reading something, you wouldn’t keep reading but you do.
So you bring up some extreme/exaggerate example to show the degree of things.
Do you work for a hotel?
If you are talking to a customer,
ご予約番号は６７８９５６です。ホテルにチェックインされる際、こちらの番号をお伝え下さい。
(arrive = ご到着されたら but check-in チェックイン is more natural.)
No, I’m telling their confirmation number to my japanese friends who are coming in Rome. And maybe they don’t know what the confirmation number is meant for. So I wanted to tell them what they are supposed to do with it. !AHOUSE!
Thank you so much Maggie sensei !greenapple! !Anapple!
@LyraGuilia
Prego! Hope you have a great time with your Japanese friends in Rome.
Hi Maggie sensei,
Your lesson about hodo is very useful. Thank you very much. However, I found a sentence like this and can’t tell what type of this “hodo” in the sentence.
Please help me to clarify it. It seems they omitted the “fukamareba”…
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
(The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance)
Hi, sorry for the late reply. I was on the short winter vacation.
You posted the same questions a couple of time and 天人さん was trying to help you. Did you read his comment?
(@ 天人 Than, you for your help! I can always rely on you when I am away. :) )
OK
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
(The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance)
You are right. It is omitted 深まれば
人は知識が深まれば深まるほど~~
Sometimes we omit the 〜ば because it looks/sounds repetitive.
Pls help me to clarify the use of hodo in the below sentene. It seems they left the “fukamareba” off…thank you very much. Triet Dao
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance.
Hello Triet Dao.
There’s a long and a short version of the ～ば…ほど construction.
Long: （ゲームは）難しければ、難しいほど面白い。 ==> Used in conversations & texts; sounds more formal.
Short: （ゲームは）難しいほど面白い。 ==> Usually used in conversations; sounds more casual.
Hi Maggie sensei, pls help me to clarify the “hodo” in this sentence. It seems they left the “fukamareba” off. Thank you very much. Triet Dao
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance.
番 is used when you simply count a number from the top.
号 is more limited. You use 号 for the issue, edition, address of an apartment/house, etc.
So imagewise, if are counting many people/things and put the order, you use 番
And if you count the order of something special, (invention, address of your house/apartment, model number)
Also you use it for a model name.
アポロ１３号= Apollo 13
So if I make/have a rocket, a bus, a special car I will name it マギー号
“それから一本目の道…
soko kara ipponme no michi…” :rrrr: sore or soko?
I have a question concerning the counters in combination with these forms. The first one seem clear enough, its always number+counter+目のnoun:
1. １０００人目のお客様
Now, lets try the same example using the other forms, I guess it is:
2. １０００番目のお客様 – If this is correct, 人 is missing, which means you can’t use counters with 番目, right?
3. 第１０００人のお客様 – If this is correct, 目 is missing, but could you add it after 人?
Also, some of your examples for 第 don’t have a counter, (第２ボタン, 第二子) so could I omit the counter in this case, ie 第１０００お客様?
And lastly, you gave these examples:
日本で2番目に高い山は北岳です。
AKBは「クラスで１０番目に可愛い女の子」を集めたとしている。
I am puzzled about the に after 第目, I was expecting a の. Does it have something to do with the adjectives that are following?
Yeah i like to learn from the beginning of your lesson because i like it boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
Is there any equivalent to following english sentence when saying bye to someone who you met for the first time, and not sure when will you meet him again – “It as nice meeting you. Good bye.”
Can someone here explain the usage of も in this sentence:
春も、ゆうべの雨や風で、残りなく洗われてしまった
I know what the sentence means, I just don’t fully understand how も is used here.
It’s from the old novel Musashi, so it could be literary or outdated usage of it.
Sorry for the late reply. I was away for a week. off. :)
No, I don’t have “when” lesson. But someone else asked me to make a lesson so I will add it on the list.
In some novel MC comes to a shop hoping to sell some remnants of a monster. He stays in a queque and sees another guest selling the same thing. Now it’s his turn.
‘おう。魔物の素材を持ってきたんだが買い取ってくれ。’
1) What が means here? Could it be interpreted like ‘though’? So it’d be something like:
‘Hi. I’ve brought some monster parts (=even though you probably don’t need them anymore, I made efforts to come here, so…), but buy them, will you?’
2) Is there some general rule how んだ interacts with が?
お母さんはお父さんがいない方が食事のよういがらくでいい、なんていっていました。
How is なんてused in this context? Does it mean “Mom says that it is a lot easier and better to prepare meals when dad is not here”, where emphasis is placed on how much easier it is to prepare meals?
もちろんこれはじょうだんで、本当はずいぶんさびしがっているんです。
Does “がっているんです” mean show signs of? Do you mind explaining?
お父さんが電話をかけてくると喜ぶのでわかります。
If I were to say this in English a bit literally, can I say “It can be understood because whenever dad calls, mom is happy”?
1) お母さんはお父さんがいない方が食事のよういがらくでいい、なんていっていました。
This なんて means “(to say something like) ~~~” but it involves some feelings of a little surprise or jokingly accusing in this case.
2) 寂しがる to feel lonely. I have がり、がる lesson. So please go check.
I had a lesson with my Japanese teacher from italki on the 22nd of November. Today I had a Japanese friend check my notes to make sure my conjugations were correct and the example sentences I used for the different ways ちゃう/ちゃった were also correct.
I was wondering if you would be able to confirm some things for me. :3
・～でしまいます（じゃう） isn’t really used and can sound awkward and it’s sounds more natural to go with the original ます ending of the verb.
・～でしまいます(じゃう） includes a feeling of going against one’s own will.
Hi 184.
Well I don’t know what you wrote in your note but
・～でしまいます（じゃう） isn’t really used and can sound awkward and it’s sounds more natural to go with the original ます ending of the verb.
→It depends on the context.
We do say
Ex. そんなことをしたら死んでしまいますよ。
(casual) そんなことをしたら死んじゃうよ。
when you give an advice.
・～でしまいます(じゃう） includes a feeling of going against one’s own will.
こんにちは！
ありのまま VS あるがまま
To be honest, you already found all the sites and I don’t think I can give you further/different opinion on this topics.
These people already gave thoughts and explained well.
My first impression is just ありのまま is more conversational than あるがまま and あるがまま tends to be used in more literal expression.
1) ありのままの自分
2) あるがままの自分 (sounds more literal)
So they mean the same (at least to me) but if anything 1) the way I am (including your life style, they way you look, they way you should be.
ありのまま話して下さい。(conversational)
あるがまま話して下さい。It sounds more dramatic. You don’t usually hear this in conversation.
Since あるがまま is more literal, you see in proverbs, old sayings more.
物事はあるがままがに受け入れる
sounds more deeper than ありのままに受け入れる
Also I get the impression they are a lot of time interchangeable but
ありのまま the current state, situation,
あるがまま is more refer to the essence of things/people.
@Veron
OK, I won’t do the translation here but I will break it down.
嫌になる means “to fed up with something””to be sick of something”
嫌になるほど=to the extent of being sick of something
Thanks for this wonderful explanation, Maggie-sensei. Though I still feel like I have to re-read it a couple of times before really grasping it :cryingboy:
Anyways, if it’s not too much to ask, I was wondering what it does mean in this case? “（あ、いや…帰るんじゃなくて…）今からちょっとな！” the context is just someone else asking him 家帰るのか？
Hi, Kano!
So someone asking that person if he is going back home now.
The speaker doesn’t want to tell that person what he is going to do/where he is going,
(Ah, no I am not going home) I have something to do.
So in this case, ちょっとな(male speech)
“Konnsaato ga hachiji kara nara maniaun dakedo.” “konsaato”
Thank you for this lesson, it’s another piece of the puzzle regarding conditional sentences. I’ve been trying to fully understand them for a year now, they remain quite difficult.
To summarize your lesson and what I already knew, I understand that なら often stands after nouns and pronouns, and since its the short form of ならば and can be replaced with (の)だたら, in this function it’s basically not very different from -ba and -tara conditionals.
The second and main function are time-reversed conditionals, which means, when the contitional part follows the conclusion in time or both happen at the same time, which is often the case in suggestions, advices, decisions etc. You cannot use to, -ba and -tara conditionals in this case as they require the condition to happen before the conclusion. Therefore, the nara-conditional is mostly used for imperativ clauses.
So now that I know when I have to use nara and when I can optionally can use it, I’m having difficulties to understand when I absolutely cannot use it. For example, I found these sentences, of which my grammar says, you cannot use the nara conditional for them:
1. これをなくしたら大変です。
2. 私が行けばあなたも行きますか。
But “あなたが行くなら私も行きます。” works fine. So what are the restrictions for using nara. Does it have something to do with the subject in the sentence or can’t you use it in questions?
Hello Zetsuboumanadeshi,
the key is to understand how ～たら works.
If you look close, you will find out, that it’s combined with 過去の助動詞「た」＋仮定を表す助動詞「ら」.
Now the conclusion.
～た implies that the action is already completed (has been done already).
～ら implies a conditional statement, a supposition that if something occurs, then something else will happen （仮定の条件 => if）.
Therefore,
これをなくしたら大変です。
If we lose this, we gonna have troubles. ==> ～たら implies what is going to happen, when something is lost.
これをなくするなら大変です。
Since you lose this, you gonna have trouble ==> Sounds strange, isn’t it? So, なくするなら implies that the speaker has a will to lose something. Something is not lost, yet, but it will be lost.
私が行けばあなたも行きます。 ==> ～ば indicates a conditional statement “supposing A is going to happen”. The usage of this pattern is more restricted then なら or ～たら. For example you cannot use ～ば implying speakers volition, requests if ～ば doesn’t combine with a verb of state（状態性の動詞）.
EX それについて何か分からなければ、私に遠慮なく聞いてください。 ○
EX 風邪を引けば、外に出ないでください。 Ｘ
EX 熱が出れば、この薬を飲んでくださいね。 Ｘ
あなたが行くなら私も行きます ==> なら indicates also conditional statement “since A is going to happen”. Someone shows a will to go somewhere （あなたが行くなら） and the result is, that the speaker is also going somewhere（私も行きます）.
One more thing about “2. 私が行けばあなたも行きますか。”
In fact, I didn’t notice the か particle hidden there… sometimes my mind makes auto corrections or auto semi-corrections.
～ば is a pure condition-consequence case, therefore you cannot use it in a interrogative sentences.
In other words, by using ～ば you just state a clear cause and effect relationship.
よく読まなければ、分からない。
この本、読みたければ、貸してあげるよ。
静かでなければ、勉強できんない。
私が行けばあなたも行きますか。==> 私が行ったらあなたも行きますか。 or 私が行くならあなたも行くわよね or 私が行くならあなたも行くべきかと。
Thank you sempai 天人 for your answers. It helps a lot, even though I think you are not totally right and we still have to rely on Maggie Senseis judgement, as it’s really difficult for a nonnative speaker.
Concerning the first sentence “これをなくしたら大変です。”, I understand that nara is more a factual conditional than a time conditional, like “if that is the case…; if we assume that…”, so you don’t use it for time related conditions, right? However, you can say “雨なら行きません。” or “雨がふるなら行きません。”(?? don’t know about that one). The focus may not on the time it starts raining, but on the decision, not to go. Nevertheless, the condition can have a time related fact in the future, that may or may not come true. But thats also the case in my sentence: “If (I, you) loose it…” I can’t see any structural difference between the conditions, so if I would say: “If I loose this, I won’t go!” it probably could be the nara conditional?
If so, the reason why you can’t use nara in that sentence may rather be the conclusion “…I/you will be in trouble.” But I don’t understand why. Let me quote my grammar on the nara conditional:
“In other words, S1 is an assumption that is based on something/somebody other than the speaker, and S2 is the speaker’s evaluation or judgement based on that assumption.”
Well, S1 “I I/you/we loose it” is a assumption not necessarily based on the speaker, and S2 “I/you/we will be in trouble” is an evaluation and judgement based on that assumption. So I don’t understand why I can’t use nara in this case.
Concerning Sentence 2 “私が行けばあなたも行きますか。” That is in fact a correct sentence according to my grammar. So you actually can use the -ba conditional in questions. But you can’t use nara here, and I don’t know why. If you are right and the same sentence formed into a statement” 私が行くならあなたも行くわよね” is correct, it would mean that it nara won’t work with questions. But I’ve never read that anywhere, so again we need Maggie Sensei to help us.
Magiiiiie, I know that this is pretty dry stuff, but we need your expertise here. Those damn grammarbooks just won’t do it…
@天人
Thank you for your help as always!!
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
Sorry I have been really busy making new lessons. I will have more time on the weekend. But I think 天人先輩 explained to you really well.
He is better than me. :)
Well, I have to correct myself.
“私が行けばあなたも行きますか。” ==> I haven’t seen ～ば used in such kind of sentences. However the sentence is… correct.
As for interrogative sentences, ～ば appears very oft when the speaker asks for directions:
どう／何／どこ／どの／どうやって／なんで＋動詞－ばいいですか
or in questions like:
私たちはこのバスに乗ればXXXに行けますか。
どの道を行けばXXXへ出ますか
日本に行けば、マギー先生に会えますか。
Another important thing is that ～ば appears in sentences with a good result.
In “これをなくするなら大変です。” the result would be bad.
I found something interesting for you. http://www.google.com ==> tip: ” 「～と、～たら、～ば、～なら」の使い分けについて ” and go on the first result. The web-page should be “jigou.hqwy.com/jpk/jap/….” There’s a .doc file that explains everything very well.
ご参考に。
@天人
がんばって調べて答えてくれてありがとう！！頼りになる先輩ですね、天人さんは。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Sorry for the late reply.
Since 天人さん already explained and gave you a great link, what I can do here is to show you a little pattern.
S1: action/when something happens →S2 : expected consequence (what is going to happen)
EX1) これをなくしたら (S1) 大変です( S2)。
Ex.2) このボタンを押したら (S1) 音楽がなります( S2)。
Ex.3) 私が呼んだら (S1) すぐに来てね ( S2)。
Ex. 4) 雨が降ったら (S1) 道が混む (S2)。
Ex. 5) 彼が来たら (S1) 一緒に行きましょう (S2)。
(This たら is not “if”/ When (or Once) he comes, let’s go out together.)
The question is if we say
3) 私が行くなら（S1)あなたも行きますか (S2)？
or not.
They all means “If I go..” in English but while 1) and 2) gives a condition with ば and たら, なら has a nuance of assumption. Therefore it is not natural to assume your own action, 私が行く.
As you said, if the subject is someone else, you can use なら
*4) あなたが行くなら(S1) 私も行きます(S2)。
@ 天人
Thank you very much again for your help. Also for clearing up the -ba conditional, so I needn’t bother Maggie Sensei too much when she puts out a lesson on that. :) I’ve downloaded the document, it will take me some time to translate though as I’m only 2 years and ~600 kanji into Japanese and therefore am still lacking significant kanji- and vocabularyknowledge to read original texts. But it will be a good practice.
@ :maggie-small:
Thank you so much, your example sentences and explanations totally nailed it. Thanks to your combined efforts I think I really understand now and my main problems regarding the conditionals are finally solved. I’m so happy, I could bite you… !niconico! !DANCING!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Well…I prefer you lick me.. :)
Can i use お先に or お先にどうぞ！when i open the door for someone? just like the “ladies first” kind of thing.
@Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Hmmm
verb+たり+verb+たり+することなどをします
First the form is not natural because it has two different verb forms,
verb + たり form and Verb (する）こと
Also it sounds redundant because たり already has a connotation of “Doing A and B and etc” and など also means “-and etc.”
However, I would say if you don’t use V+こと form , it is possible to use たり with など in conversation.
I know this song♪
They are trying to express how big their dream is.
So I would like to have so many fun things, having an eraser as big as the size of he Himalaya Mountains and a pen as big as the size of missile.
Which part is confusing?
料理の腕がある = good at cooking
間違えられる= to be mistaken (people think she is a pro even if she is not.)
ほど = as (to the extent)
She cooks so well that some people think she is a professional chef (even if she is not.)
why all male speeches are rough? i’m a man but i dont want to sound rough.i dont know how things work very well in japan but where i live is quite wrong to be rough with other people. so how should i use じゃない and んじゃない and other possible words without being rough?
@Ivan
Why all male speeches are rough? It is a cultural thing from old days. Men also avoid using it when they talk to someone superior.
じゃない・んじゃない itself is not rough and you can use it. Just some usage such as adding か？ in the end sounds rough.
Ex. それは違うんじゃない？ = Sore wa chigaun janai? = I think it’s wrong/different/you are not right. (neutral)
Ex. それは違うんじゃないか？= Sore wa chigaun janai ka? = rough/male speech
OK, here is the difference
〜なのですか(nano desu ka)？ polite/formal
〜なの (= nano)? casual (It is safe to use between friends.)
〜なのか(nano ka) ？ casual/rough/male speech (Since it sounds very strong, you have to be careful who you use it with.)
**
さ(=sa)・さあ(=saa) is a casual suffix.
1) Just fill the time when you think what to say
あのさあ、この間借りた本さあ、持ってくるの忘れちゃった。
= Ano saa, kono aida karita hon saa, motte kuru no wasurechatta.
= You know…the book I borrowed from you the other day? I forgot to bring it today.
2) to express your opinion./ to make your point.
まあ、いいさ。(male speech)
Maa, iisa.
= Never mind.
You may hear this usage a lot in anime, manga or drama but it could sound snobbish.
Isshou no uchi, ichido wa faasuto [kursau]—-> kurasu ni notte mitai naa
[ホホバ]オイルは敏感肌の人でも使えるオイルみたいです。
[Hohoba] oiru wa binkan hada no hito demo tsukaeru oiru mitai desu.
I heard [Jojoba] oil can be used by even those who have sensitive skin.
!koujichuu! why jojoba = Hohoba —> ホホバ !koujichuu! why not [ジョジョバ] 教えて下さい !happyface! !happyface!
Hi,
Why do we use wo in kaze wo hiku but ga in zutsuu ga suru? Is it right to say kaze ga hiku? And if possible, could you make a lesson on the difference between ha, ga, and wa?
Thanks in advance
I think someone else has just asked me the usage of ~ga suru.
Sometimes we use ~ ga suru to express one’s feelings or symptoms.
zutsuu ga suru = to have a headache
Ki a suru = to feel like ~
memai ga suru = to feel dizzy
And the difference between “wa” and “ga” is on the request list. Please wait patiently. It will take a lot of time to make that lesson.
I know SOOOOO MANY people have asked me to make a lesson on that subject but I have been procrastinating.
It used to be my final goal…but I have started to work on it. :D
Thanks! This lesson helped me understand this subject better. I just have one last doubt. If I am not mistaken, there is another expression that is similar to mitai: “something” ni mieru.
Is there any difference between mitai and ni mieru?
Hi reid,
As you see, there are many usages of みたい but one of the usages of みたい ( = mitai) is similar to にみえる(=mieru) but they are slightly different.
マギーはきれいみたい= I heard Maggie is beautiful
マギーはきれいにみえる= Maggie looks beautiful (to me).
**
マギーは豚みたい。= Maggie looks like a pig./ Maggie is like a pig./ Maggie behaves like a pig. (It could be my appearance but it also involves my behavior, the way I sound, etc.)
マギーは豚にみえる= Maggie looks like a pig. (It is only used to express how the speaker sees me.)
Sometimes we use them both.
〜みたいにみえる instead of saying ようにみえる = Looks like ~ / Seems like ~
彼女の隣にいるとお父さんみたいにみえるよ。
= You looks like her father if you are next to her.
Hello :)
I came across this page while looking for an explanation of a specific construct, but saw that it wasn’t actually explained here… the use of ほど as a subject marker in lines like (x)ほど(y) to mean, to my understanding, “that which is x are/do y, unlike that which is not x”.
The specific constructs in question used “(qualifier)人ほど(statement)”, as in the proverb 下手な職人ほど道具に難癖をつけたがる, which I take it differs slightly in meaning from the variant 下手な職人は道具に難癖を付ける by emphasizing that “while 下手な職人 do this, those that are not 下手な職人 do not do this”.
I would greatly appreciate a proper explanation, though.
@FJ
下手な職人ほど道具に難癖をつけたがる
The translation is ”A bad workman always blames his tools.” but this is the pattern
~人ほど〜したがる
The more you are ~, the more you tend to be/do ~
The more the person is ~, the more he/she tends to be/do ~
That’s what was confusing me… whether the meaning is supposed to be “a bad workman always blames his tools (unlike a good workman)”, “the worse a workman you are, the more you blame your tools” or something like “the worse a workman you are, the more likely you are to blame your tools”/”most bad workmen blame their tools (but not all)”
But there’s no REAL difference between ほど and は in this construct?
(also, the 〜したがる root doesn’t really have aything to do with the construct, does it? The meaning is the same if it’s 〜する or something else?)
1) 〜人は〜したがる
2) 〜人ほど〜したがる
Yes, the meaning are the same. は also has a function to show the contrast.
While は is just A = B, ほど emphasizes the meaning “the more~ ” more than ”は” and you see all the degrees/levels in your head.
Ex. excellent workman→ good workman→ so-so workman→ bad workman
So the more you move forward the direction of →, the more you want to do something
***
したがる・する the translation is the same but したがる involves the desire to do something more.
I have a がる lesson.
Wow this word has a lot of usage! I only knew “looks like~” and “to want to try something” like 行ってみたい. Thanks for the lesson I really enjoyed it :) very useful information!
I have a question I would like to ask. I have read that, usually, てくれる expresses the idea of a spontaneous favour done to you whether or not you requested for it previously, correct?
Can I use てくれる in the negative form to express that I would love that a specific person did a favour to me, but that may never happen? This is the sentence I have in mind: “He will never hug me”.
My attempts.
彼は決して抱きしめてくれない。
Or 彼に決して抱きしめられてくれない。 (I get the impression this one sounds awful >.<)
I have only seen てくれない used for questions but never for negative statements so it is worth asking.
Hi Sensei,
Your lesson really make my learning become more interesting..
Sensei, can you explain Rentaikei + と・・・言う ? I can’t really understand the usage of this..
You’re welcome.
The lesson on は and が is already on the request list. Since it is a complicated theme, it will take a long time to make it but please wait patiently.
= If you are going to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
Note: You can’t replace 行くなら ( = ikunara) with 行ったら ( = ittara) here.
Why 行ったら can’t be used here? Is it because it would change the meaning? I was thought that verbs ending with “tara” are conditional, so I don’t see the difference clearly here.
And in this case b) マギーが出かけたら私も行きます。 you said it means going out after Maggie leaves, so could I replace it with “出かけたあとで” ?
もし冬に日本に行くなら、コートを持っていった方がいいよ。
“If you are going to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
As I said you can replace 行くなら with 行くのだったら/ 行くんだったら
行ったら won’t work with this type of suggestion.
It sounds like this.
↓
When you go to Japan in winter/ When you get to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
The suggestion of taking a coat should be given before the listener goes to Japan.
日本に行ったら: When the listener gets to Japan or is already in Japan. So the suggestion should be something they can do when they get to Japan.
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I still have doubts about this case.
I clearly understand why you can’t use 行ったら without もし here.
But we have もし in the beginning, and もし + condition + たら is “if” construction so it can be translated the same as with 行くなら except there would be no emphasis on winter or am wrong here?
Or もし here only makes condition less certain?
Thanks!
Ahh I should have explained better.
You can’t use たら there because of the following sentence
持っていった方がいい is something you do before the trip.
You can say もし行ったら but the following sentence should be something you do when you get to Japan.
もし日本に行ったらお土産を買ってきてね。
= If you go to Japan, buy me some gift.
Now I get it, thank you Maggie!
And for all useful lessons!
By the way, I noticed that comments in long answer chains have not “reply” button starting from 5th answer.
You’re very welcome, GrumpyCat.
I guess the current comments plug-in doesn’t allow you to have a long conversation. If that happens to you, just post as a new comment. I read all the comments anyway. :)
First of all, thanks for the great lesson!
Would it still be correct if someone asked me “gohan wo tabemasitaka?” and I replied with “iie, mada tabemasen.” Does this still have the same meaning of “mada tabete imasen”?
sorry to disturb again,
so should the “correct” question be be asked:
1)gohan wo tabemasitaka /tabemasuka
2)gohan wo tabete imasuka
3)gohan wo tabete imasitaka
4)or just gohan wo tabemasenka (but I remembered the fourth one also have a sense of inviting someone?)
Hello, I have heard people using te aru in anime, but the meaning is totally different because it is referring to the future (or one’s intention I am not sure)
Here are some examples:
Sono jidai ore ga kaetearuyo.
Orega hokage ni nattekara, hyuugawo kaetearuyo.
Keep in mind all of these actions have not happend yet. They are both referring to the future.
Thank you in advance :)
@Justin
ちゃ is a casual way to say 〜しては
Ex. そんなことをしてはいけません。
= You shouldn’t do such a thing.
→(casual contraction)
Ex. そんなことをしちゃいけません。
= Sonna koto wo shicha ikemasen.
Hi Maggie sensei~!
I’m confused with some of my friends’ twitter names. Some of them go like this name@11/07ニコクロ or name@12/26西川口
I’m assuming the latter part is where they are? like Nishi kawaguchi
@yzr
Hi yzr
There are a lot of expressions with 気
OK, will add 気がする on the request lesson. It is not that complicated so I might just post it on Facebook page. :)
FYI I have a lesson no 気になる・気にする
@yzr
~がする in 味がする/ 匂いがする？
味がする= tastes ~
Ex. It tastes strange. = 変な味がする
匂いがする= smells ~
Ex. It smells good. = いい匂いがする
i mean the use of ～がする in general! lol
@yzr
One of the usage of (~が）する is to express one’s body’s symptoms.
Other examples
めまいがする= to feel dizzy
頭痛がする= to have a headache
吐き気がする= to feel sick / nausea
Are you Chinese or Indian? 😂 Looks like you are asking people for big favor (like making classes based on your demand) as if people exist for you? Just post your darn questions here and don’t expect Maggie sensei can make a lesson like a snap of fingers! Lol lol 😁
No worries. That’s why I am here for. 😊 (Though I only have “paws” so that I can’t snap my fingers..)
hi 先生！ :grin: :grin:
can you please tell me/explain about しては or してから or something like that because i see it quite often and i also saw my japanese friend using it too.
thank you!! ^^
oh and some people say 決めるか or 行くか(any verb+か) instead 決めようか or 行こうか。example like バイト決めるか or 学校いくか。is there a slight difference in meaning/context? ^^
and how to say “it was (so) embarassing”, “i was so embarassed”,”i am/he/she is so embarassing”, “you/he embarassed me” or something like that because something embarassing happened? :D
That kind of か is a male speech and kind of rough and ようか is much more polite.
***
“it was (so) embarassing”, それは（とても）恥ずかしいことでした／ことだった (= Sore wa (totemo) hazukashii koto deshita/kotodatta)
“i was so embarassed”, （私は）とても恥ずかしかった。／恥ずかしかったです。(=(watashi wa) totemo hazukashikatta/ hazukashikatta desu.
i am/he/she is so embarassing”, ~はとても恥ずかしい人だ。／人です。= ~ wa totemo hazukashii hitoda/ hitodesu.
you/he embarassed me ~は私に恥ずかしい思いをさせた／させました。= ~ wa watashi ni hazukashii omoi wo saseta/ sasemashita.
Hi Maggie!
Hmmm as for “you/he embarrassed me” how about => …は私を恥ずかしくさせた
I know it sounds a bit strange, but maybe it’s OK (/natural). How do you think, Maggie?
＠天人
彼は私を恥ずかしくさせた….It is possible and some people say that but not natural.
あなた／彼に恥ずかしい思いをさせられた is more natural.
Also in conversation, we just say
あなた／彼が〜をしたから／〜して恥ずかしかった
Got it!
Thank you very much for clarifying this!
@天人
どういたしまして♪
マギーお姫様、 :tulip3:
お久しぶりだね。前より少ないタイポが見当たりました。お見事ね。
“A wa, B yori uta ga umail.” “umai”
1. Can you explain the change of verbtenses in your sentence: “Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki de itta hou ga hayaku tsuku.” Why is it “itta”?
2. I found this sentence “遅くなっても何もないよりはまし。” It looks quite complicated, is there an easier way to say “Better…than…”, such as “Better late than never”, “Better safe than sorry”, “Better fat than stupid”? !niconico!
I am very fortunate to have zoheb and you to find the typos. :)
Typo見つけの王子様です！
1. 新幹線で行くより飛行機で行った方がはやい。
= Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki itta hou ga hayai.
You can also say
新幹線で行くより飛行機で行く方がはやい。
= Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki iku hou ga hayai.
We often use ~た(=ta) form to indicate the completion of the action. (have done/ have gone..)
自分でやる方がいい。
= Jibun de yaru hou ga ii.
= It will be better to do all by myself.
↓
自分でやった方がいい。
= Jibun de yatta hou ga ii
2.
Better ~ than ~
If you compare two nouns, you can say
A yori B no hou ga mashi.
(Note: This word まし(=mashi) is negative so be careful when you use it. You can use it for your own action but do not use it for someone. )
The basic pattern is:
adjective
~て（で）も〜〜方がいい（or まし)
~ te (de) mo ~~~ hou ga ii (or mashi)
Verb
~するよりも〜方がいい（or まし)
~ Suru yori mo ~ hou ga ii (or mashi)
〜しないよりも〜した/するがいい（or まし)
~ shinai yori mo ~ shita /suru hou ga ii (or mashi)
遅くなっても = Even ( I give you the present) this late
better safe than sorry. We have an idiom so it sounds more complicated 備えあれば憂いなし (=Sonae areba urei nashi)
another awesome lesson from maggie sensei! !niconico! !niconico!
but i have question.
in your example above, ケチャップ下さい or フォーク（を）もう一本下さい
why dont we use onegaishimasu here? can we replace it?
Hi feris,
ケチャップ下さい or フォーク（を）もう一本下さい
Yes, you can replace 下さい with お願いします。(=onegai shimasu.)
Here’s the difference.
〜下さい=kudasai = Please give me ~
お願いします。= onegai shimasu. = ~~~ please.
Hello! I’m living in Japan and seeing someone. When I asked about our relationship status they said 微妙な関係だ. In English they said “it’s a gray relationship.” I’m not sure how I feel about the translation or meaning of this phrase. The Japanese person holds my hand and kisses me in public. They tell me all the time “好き、めっちゃ好き、大好き”. I don’t what the feeling behind 微妙 is. Is it bad in this situation? Could I look at this as just dating? Not ready for a relationship? Is this like セフレ？ I just don’t fully understand and we have a bit of a language barrier.
Hi Amanda,
Who said 微妙な関係だ? The guys you have been dating?
If you ask them “私達の関係ってどんな関係？” = What is our relationship? and they answer that, they don’t want to make any commitments so your relationship doesn’t sound exclusive.
I am sure they do have feelings for you. But a man who says 好き、めっちゃ好き、大好き and describes the relationship, 微妙…It is dubious.
If you are looking for the real relationship, you should tell them. 真剣なお付き合いがしたい。
という is one of the most confusing pieces of grammar for me. I have two questions regarding this
It seems when you’re modifying a noun with a clause with という. It seems you could just put the relative clause before the noun instead.
*From one of your examples*
何が起こるかわからないという恐怖 Is there a difference using 何が起こるかわからない恐怖
Second question if possible. The usage “That means” I’m not sure of the grammar pattern here. It seems that you could put ということは at the start for “This/That means that” or putting it after a clause to mean “Sentence means that” And than at the end of sentence 2 I see ということです like in example ということは、明日は誰も学校に来ないということですね。 But in the example before it has no ということです and it’s just あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。 Which I assume is just casual のです at the end. So how’s it work exactly?
Sorry for the long questions. I seem to ask a lot of questions and I apologize for doing so. Not many people to discuss these problems with. Thanks in advance.
Hello Shen,
It seems you could just put the relative clause before the noun instead.
True. It is a subtle difference but
The difference between
何が起こるかわからないという恐怖 and 何が起こるかわからない恐怖 is
~という is more explanatory it describes 恐怖 more vividly.
2) Oh sorry. It is an old lesson but I think I didn’t give you any example sentence for ということは(=That means..)
I will add some later.
It is a very conversational usage but when someone tells you something and when you summarize what you just hear, you start with ということは
Thank you for taking the time to answer. Much appreciated. Thanks once again.
@Shen
どういたしまして❤
Hello, I apologize for posting again but after thinking about it a bit I was still slightly confused.
If ということは is basically shortening what was said before and than S2 talks about what that means…. Why is ということです used at the end? I see ということです used at the end without ということは at the start and sometimes as you posted ということは is at the start without ということです at the end
Example: 明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。
Does that mean you can’t go to the party tomorrow? The end being the shortened version I assume of ということ without ということは at the start…
And than as was posted before without ということです あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。
So basically what determines what is left out and what is used?
Sorry for being a bother. Thanks in advance.
@Shen
Hi Shen,
You can say
ということは(1) 〜〜〜ということ(2) です。
(1) summarizing what the speaker just said/heard
(2) The speaker is concluding something.
****
OK, I will make a dialogue.
A: 「明日は、とても忙しいです。」
B: 「((明日はとても忙しい）ということは、) 明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。」（Assuming A can’t go to the party based on the fact A is busy.)
A: 「Bさん、明日は夜まで仕事をして下さい。」
B: 「((明日は夜まで仕事がある）ということは、)明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。」(Assuming A can’t go to the party based on the fact that B has to work tomorrow evening.)
*****
ということです あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。
I will check your previous comment later but you can’t start the sentence with ということです
ということです should come to the end of a sentence to conclude something.
Hello, thanks for the reply. あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。 was actually my example . The ということです was not part of it. May have looked that way :p It was just showing the lack of it at the sentence.
I think I may be over thinking it or making it more difficult than it should be.
From reading a lot of examples and wondering a bit I’m going to guess that ということです used without ということは is basically just going “so you mean that” or “so that means” skipping the introduction of what you’re talking about. And used together it goes “Judging from the fact A, B”
Could be wrong as usual. I’m quite slow with this apparently.
@Shen
I think you got the idea. :)
Nice! Alright I want to thank you for taking up your time. I’m going to go hide now in embarrassment
I found your lessons very useful for a beginner like me. :-D
Thank you so much. Hope to hear something from you sensei. boucingheart! boucingheart!
I had a question about
when you did something / while doing something + something happened (result, consequences)
usage of ところ
コミックコンに着いて、入ったところ思ったよりたくさんの人がビルの中にいました。 (I think that is how it’s used here)
But it seems like たら is better used here with the past form for something happened and than a result you didn’t expect. コミックコンに着いて入ったら、思ったよりたくさんの人がビルの中にいました。?
Is there a difference between the two? Whenever you have time.
But as far as I know, the verb means ‘to pray’ in general and a praying gesture in particular. And here is my question: does it assume that the subject clasps his hands, when he’s asking for a favor, like could often be seen in anime?
Yes, it means “He said ~ in a begging manner”
拝む means “to pray/worship ~ ” but in this case just means “to say something begging”
And when you 拝む, you don’t necessary “clap your hands”. You don’t need to translate this part but when we beg for something, we put our hands/palms together.
in the examples: Dochira mo suki desu / Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen..
can I say demo instead of mo..like : Dochira demo suki desu/ dochira demo suki dewa arimasen?
I wonder if you can you make a similar lesson about denying 2 option or more using demo…like this sentence:
彼の考え方は具体的でも抽象的でもなかった。
Lately I studied this sentence ,and made me confused .. I always use demo in positive situation like >> dochi demo ii yo..
I know that demo is used like any , even or even if
Your question seemed very easy to answer at first but it is actually very deep.
どちらも好きです。= Dochira mo suki desu.
どちらも好きではありません。 = Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen.
You can’t replace も(=mo) with でも (=demo)
****
While も emphasize the meaning, でも has a connotation of “Even”
どちらもいいです。= Dochira mo ii desu. = Both of them are good.
どちらでもいいです。= Dochira demo ii desu. = Either one is fine.
*****
~でも〜でもない
OK, I will add it to the request lesson list. :)
@Roro
but I still can say: dochira demo ii desu if I want to emphasize on one of them, righ???
→”Dochira demo ii” means “which ever” (It doesn’t matter) and so you are not emphasizing neither one.
“Dochira mo ii” means you like both of them.
****
Again, you can’t say
dochira demo suki dewa arimasen
You have to say ”Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen.” = I don’t like any of them.
Hi Veron,
Yes.
Ex. 母が送ってくれたシャツ= The shirt that my mother sent to me.
Ex. いつも友達が貸してくれる自転車が壊れた。= The bicycle that my friend always lends to me got broken.
exactly! I had this doubt, but I do not have it now with your help…
Again, thanks a lot! !BOO!! !BOO!!
@Veron
OK, problem solved! :)
Hello! Where can I ask questions or request help with translations? Do you have an e-mail for that purpose? Or is it okay to ask questions that are not relevant to the lesson topic here in the comment section?
Niku yori sakana no hou ga suki desu.
= I like fish more than !koujichuu! !koujichuu! fish. meat
佐藤さんは田中さんよりもケチだ。
= Satou-san wa [tanaka] Yamada-san yori mo kechi da.
Ex. 去年より日本語が上手になりましたね。
= Kyone [kyonen]yori nihongo ga jouzu ni narimashitane.
Ex. あの子は、私よりも足が長い。
= Anoko wa, watashi yori mo ashi ga nagai.
= [why not “that kid”]!koujichuu! !koujichuu! [She] has longer legs than I.
Thank you zoheb boucingheart!
いつも本当にありがとう！
I really appreciate it!
I fixed all the typos.
あの子 is not necessary “that child/kid”. You can refer to a young girl (or sometimes a boy). But I changed あの子 to 彼女 to avoid the confusion.
Hi Veron,
なさる(=nasaru) is an honorific way to say する(=suru) verb
I don’t quite get your example sentence but for example
どんなことをしているのですか？
= Donna koto wo shite iru no desuka?
= What do you do? / what do you do for a living?
→(more polite)
どんなことをなさっているのですか？
= Donna koto wo nasatte iru nodesuka?
I hear that ている has a usage of experience where you’ve done something before.[As if it doesn’t have many usages to begin with] Seems like たことがある also has that same sort of nuance.
本を書いている (Example I used)
本を書いたことがある
Both seem to mean “I have written a book”
Is there any major difference I should know about? Thanks for your time.
You are right. You use 〜ている to have experiences as well.
Let’s compare the following two sentences.
a) 彼は日本について多くの本を書いている作家です。
b) 彼は日本について多くの本を書いたことがある作家です。
They both could mean the same “He is a writer who has written many books on Japan.”
But the difference is
a) He has been writing many books on Japan and he is still writing a book on Japan.
b) This sentence just focuses on his past experiences. He have written many books on Japan but he may writes about something else or he stops writing now.
Yes and No. I wouldn’t say b) has nothing to do with the present because that experience made the present state.
a) whether focusing on something that started in the past and continues in the present or one’s experiences up to the present.
b) one’s experiences
The idea is the same in English, “have done something”
= Kyouto no hou ga Osaka yori mo Nagoya kara chikai desu.
= Kyoto is closer to Osaka from Nagoya.
Shouldn’t it be “Kyouto is closer THAN Osaka from Nagoya”? Because from my perspective “Kyoto is closer to Osaka from Nagoya” would be something like this 京都は名古屋から大坂にもっと近い
Am I missing something? hahaha.
Also I found a small typo: “Furansu ryouri yori mo izakaya de nanka karuku trabenai?”
Hello, could you Dear Maggie Sensei perhaps please explain this one:
what is the origin of the “ん” in “真ん中”.
You say “真” has three different KUN readings, but if they were different readings, then the “ん” would be included in the “真” itself and not added after it.
I thought that the “ん” is a remaining part of “の”, as in “真の中”. But I am wrong.
What on earth is this “ん”. Could you perhaps look at it in 日本語源大辞典? I have no access to the book. I would be so grateful.
Maggie先生、質問がありますけど。「学生は学校に通う」から「school is attended by students」の文を作りたいですが、インターネットで「通われる」と書いたら「学校に通われる学生」という文がでてきます。この文は「students attendend by school」って意味ではありませんね。じゃ、どんな意味ですか？「学校は学生に通われる」の文は正解ではないですか？
First, the passive form for 学生は学校に通う is not natural.
But if you really want to make a passive form, for example,
Many students go to this school.
passive tense
→This school is attended by many students.
この学校は多くの生徒に通われています。
But I would stick to
多くの生徒がこの学校に通っています。form.
Does the word まま basically mean “condition/state”? Whether or not translating it as “condition/state” may be suitable I get the impression that that is its literal meaning.
Thank you so much for letting Misty and Minky teach on your site! I actually think Minky ate Misty’s snack, rather than hiding it. ゆかりは”マギー先生、あってこその私です”と言いました。 私もミスティーとミンキーに同じ気持ちがありますね。 !CHECKHEART!
Hi Palidor!
Hahaha, so you think Minky sensei is guilty, huh?
Thank YOU for introducing use Misty and Minky Sensei! They have been a great help!
ありがとう！！！
“You want to bring something like wine or chips to the part” “party”
“Kore oishisou dakara moratta ikimasu.” “moratte”
“お弁当を作ってきて下さい。(=Ensoku ni obentou wo tukutte kite kudasai.)
Please make lunch and bring it.” “Ensoku ni” is missing or to much
“Maggie ga kyoushitu kara deteiku” “kyoushitsu”
“Maggie ga kyoushitu kara dete kuru” “kyoushitsu”
“Whenever my mom goes out, she gets lots of pocket tissues and bring them back home.” “brings” (and where is the lesson about pocket tissues, I can’t find it :cryingboy: )
“Ex. 暑くなってくる (=atsuku natte kuru)
It will get hotter.(until now)” it should be “from now on”, right?
This lesson is reeeeeeeeeeeealy difficult, I read all the comments and still don’t get it. I’ve got two big problems:
1. So te-kuru/iki can mean basically three things: 1. movement of the subject 2. movement of the object in relation to the subject 3. movement of time in realtion to the subject. But how do you know which one is meant, if the verb isn’t a motion verb? You gave the example:
• 宿題をしていく(=shukudai wo shiteiku) to do homework and go (to school)
• 宿題をしてくる(=shukudai wo shitekuru) to do homework and come (to school )
but couln’t it also mean: to do homework in the future? Especially if you don’t write いく or くる in kanji?
And what about: お茶をのんでいってください。 Does this describe the movement of the objekt (Please drink tea!) or the subject (Please drink tea and go!). And then お茶をのんできました。 Does it mean “I drank tea.” or “I drank tea and than came here” or “I have started/getting used to drink tea.”
2. Concerning the time meaning, you say that te-kuru could mean both past or/and future. But how do you know what is meant? だんだん切望してくる! So will I get desperate or did I already get desperate? Also, if you add the continous form, does that change the meaning? Then there are eight formes and I don’t know which means what. So what would be the differences between:
彼女は可愛くなって~ /暑くなって~
~ kuru
~ kite iru
~ kita
~ kite ita
~ iku
~ itte iru
~ itta
~ itte ita
• 宿題をしていく ( = shukudai wo shiteiku) to do homework and go (to school)
• 宿題をしてくる ( = shukudai wo shitekuru) to do homework and come (to school )
As for the tense, you use 宿題をしていく/ 宿題をしてくる to describe one’s habitual actions or future.
And what about: お茶をのんでいってください。
When you say this line to someone, you want them to stop by your house and have some tea before they go somewhere.
お茶をのんできました。I already had tea and came here.
2.
First you don’t say 切望してくる.
How about
だんだん焦ってくる
I am getting desperate. / I have become desperate
For the rest of the questions, I think I already explained the differences in the lesson. But I will add more explanation when I have more time.
“Shukudai wa itsumo tomodachi ni yatte morau nante hito ga imaseu ga jibun de yatte kudasai.” “imasu”
“Kugatsu ni nattara suzushiku narunante terebi de itte igata shinjirarenasi.” “itaga” “shinjirarenai”
In your examples なんて always replaces は or を after a noun. I was wondering if なんて can be used with other particles like に、で、から、まで、より、しか、し etc. and what the word order would be.
Hello, Maggie sensei,
I hope you find my question.
I’m really confused how to use っぽい with verbs.
Because in your example sentences the ending is always different 行くっぽい (basic form) 怒りっぽい 忘れっぽい (i-form), so there isn’t a rule which form of verb to use? And is the meaning somehow changed by the form of verb in the end?
I hope you understand my question and thank you for your reply boucingheart!
Hi sabi,
Actually the correct way of using ぽい with a verb is
verb
*忘れる→(masu form) 忘れます→delete ます and add っぽい→ 忘れっぽい
*怒る→(masu form) 怒ります→delete ます and add っぽい→ 怒りっぽい
*飽きる→(masu form)飽きます→delete ます and add っぽい→飽きっぽい
However, in colloquial usage, you just add っぽい after a dictionary form.
する＋っぽい
した＋っぽい
It is grammatically wrong. Only for conversation.
I got it!! Thank you so much for your kind explain !heartsippai! !heartsippai!
And, Maggie sensei, I tried to look on your website for some lesson about differences in usage of よう/みたい、そう、らしい and っぽい (or at least some of them )
Especially らしい is confusing with よう/みたい and そう.. well, back to topic, I couldn’t find any lesson about this, so can I ask if there is some? If not, it would be nice if you could do a lesson about this if you want to.
I believe this grammar may be confusing for more people.
Anyway, thank you for all the lessons you did until now, they are so helpful !formingheart3! !formingheart3!
I always go here for the help when I’m lost in classes, Magie sensei is the best one, thank you !JYANE! !JYANE!
Good to hear you got it.
I made lessons on らしい、よう and そう but not みたい yet. Will make a lesson if I have a chance.
Thank you for your nice words! これからもがんばります！
It’s so great, everytime I have a problem, I look at your site and you already made a lesson about it. I’m still having some questions though…
1. Today I got into some quarrel with my real life Sensei. I do that from time to time, 石頭 だから:P . Have a look at this sentence: 男性が亡くなっていた場所の近くにはスズメバチの巣があったため、警察は蜂に刺されて亡くなったと考えています。
First, does スズメバチ really just mean “wasp” or couldn’t it also mean “hornet”?
Second, she says that this “ため” cannot ever be exchanged with “から”. I did not quite understand why. Since the sentence is from a newspaper, から surely is to casual for that occasion, but if used in a normal conversation, would から still be totally wrong?
2. The difference between から and ので – we agree that node is more polite and objective. I learned from other sites, that から emphasizes the reason and indicates, that the given reason is the only reason (this and only this is why…), while ので emphasizes the result and states just one reason among possible others. My teacher could not confirm this, so whats your opinon about that?
3. Concerning sentences like: お金もっていないから買えません。 I found this site that says, you cannot use から in sentences like this, because Japanese people would never talk like that. http://www.learn-japanese-adventure.com/te-form-cause-reason.html According to this site, you have to use the te-form if the result is a state or a potential form. However, you use から all the time under exactly those conditions, so I’m quite puzzled who is right.
4. Another lesson on that site says, that noun + で can only be used if the result is inevitable. So 雨天でびしょぬれになった。 would be correct, while 雨天で一晩中古い映画を見ました。 would be wrong, because that would be a choice. Do you agree with that?
5. Is なぜなら as formal as なぜならば? Because in the Tanaka Corpus, which holds many example sentences, there are a lot of quite casual sentences with なせなら, so I thought you could use it in normal conversations, i.E. あいつのことを好きなやつは誰もいない。なぜなら奴はいつも自分のことを自画自賛ばかりしているからだ。
Hi, Thank you for spotting the typo as always. I fixed it.
1. スズメバチ means either “wasp” or “hornet”.
For that particular sentence, I think ため is more natural. Maybe it is because as you said it is news and also the verb, 考えられています is objective
The main idea of this sentence is,
(reason) ため〜と考えられています。
=It is considered to be ~~~ because ~~~~
But in daily conversation, if someone interviews the police man,
「どうしてその人はスズメバチに刺されて亡くなったと思いますか？」
The police man would say
「近くにスズメバチの巣があったからです。」
↓
The police man: 近くにスズメバチの巣があったからその人はスズメバチに刺されて死んだと思いました。 (subjective opinion based on the fact.)
2. Yes and No.
I agree the most to the information you wrote but at the same time, there are cases you just switch から with ので to add the politeness.
3. Actually we do talk like that in conversation.
The pattern お金もっていないから買えません。, お金がないから買えない。携帯が壊れているから電話をかけられませんでした。instead of saying お金を持っていなくて買えません／お金がなくて買えない／携帯が壊れていて電話をかけられませんでした。
4.
* 雨天でびしょぬれになった。（cause)
* 体育祭は、雨天で中止になった。（cause)
Because of ~, it resulted ~
雨天で一晩中古い映画を見ました。 Because it rained you deiced to watch a movie all night long？
It is not natural.
The action, watching old movies all night long is not caused by the rainy weather. It was your choice.
5. As I mentioned in the lesson, we do use なぜなら in literal form and it is not so common to use it in conversation.
OK, in a movie or drama, you may hear that.
Ex. 私がどうして君にその事実を隠していたかわかるかね？なぜならば君が犯人だからだ！
It sounds too dramatic to use in daily conversation.
*****
I think you should talk to your Japanese teacher to discuss the 1 and 2 questions more. Please be nice to her.
And ask the site owner about No. 3, 4.
I can try to answer questions if it is something from my site but I am not so comfortable answering for other sites. They are all great and they know much more than I. :)
Thanks for the lesson! It is fairly difficult at first, but I don’t have any questions about it for now.
But I do have questions about other stuff again! hahaha.
I was studying a test my teacher gave me, and now I have 2 problems I am not really sure about.
I am supposed to choose the correct order for 4 options to make the complete sentence.
1 – the sentence is 会社へは何で行っていますか. I understand this sentence, but at first I was a bit confused because of that は. Usually I would have just said “会社へ/に何で行っていますか”
would it be wrong to say it without the は? Why do I need to use the は in this case?
2- This one seemed way more confusing to me. I am not even sure this is right.
This is the first sentence: 私はこの本を買います。アンナさんはどんな本がいいですか, then I have to complete the reply, and it goes like this : 私はもう少し__ __ __ __ がいいです and there are 4 options to choose the order: 1-本 2-かんたんな 3-が and 4-日本語
So I am not sure about this. It seems like that が should be a の or something like that. Nothing I make sounds right in that sentence. How would it be? Is one of the options wrong? Is there an extra が that shouldn’t be there?
Hi reid,
1. Yes, you can say 会社へ（に）何で行っていますか” / 何で会社へ（に）行っていますか？ without using は.
When you show the contrast, you use the particle は.
So the speaker wants to know what kind of transportation the listener uses especially when he/she goes to work.
Since you emphasize “to work”, you tend to start the sentence with 会社へは
2. I see.
If there are just two words
もう少し＋(adjective）+(noun)がいいです。
→もう少し簡単な本がいいです。
But since there are が and 日本語、
clause ＋noun がいいです。
So the clause has to modify a noun which comes after.
Therefore,
日本語がかんたんな本がいいです。
OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH! Thanks! I got too focused on the が itself and forgot to read it as a whole. 日本語がかんたんな本がいいです = A book with simple japanese would be okay for me.
So 日本語がかんたんな is adding that “simple japanese” characteristic to 本, right?
It feels like it was right in front of me and I didn’t see it.
Could you also say “簡単な日本語の本がいいです”? Because that’s the one of the ways I was thinking about. I think that is what made me not see how it worked with が, I was just looking at it in one way, but there is always more than one way, hahaha
“(fermented soybeans” “)” is missing
“Though I can’t eat Natt,…” “Natto”
“Although you didn’t cause an acciden,…” “accident”
And some questions:
1. 今でこそ笑っていられるが当時は毎日悩んでいました。 Could you explain why “今で” instead of just “今”?
2. 彼らは結婚こそしていないがもう１０年も一緒に住んでいる。 Would it be possible to place “こそ” behind “していない”?
3. 努力してこそ、結果がついてくる。 This is the only example for Verb+ こそ, however, it’s the te-form and therefore is identical to the V-te+ こそ meaning, isn’t it? Can you think of an example of Verb+ こそ without the te-form?
Thank you for the correction, I too really appreciate it. I read the monka/monda lesson of yours, but I can’t figure out why it’s necessary here and what function it has. And why is わけではない not appropriate in my sentence?
Ahh, now I understand the もの. I thought you just add こそ to a nown in a normal sentence, but in some cases you have to repeat the noun. What I wanted to say was:
“Although it’s not like I understand all of it, this lesson is really one I’ve been
eagerly awaiting.”
And what I really wanted to say was: マギー先生ばかりでなくゆかり先生のことも大好きです。 !formingheart3!
@Zetsubomanadeshi
“Although it’s not like I understand all of it,
全部わかるわけではない OK
this lesson is really one I’ve been eagerly awaiting.”
このレッスンこそ、ずっと待ち望んでいたものです。
But when we put these two sentence together, it doesn’t sound natural.
I think it is because you can’t tell you wouldn’t understand all of it before you read my lesson.
How about switching the sentence?
このレッスンこそ、ずっと待ち望んでいたものです。といっても全部わかるわけではないですが….
And Yukari is thrilled to read your message! ❤
こんにちは、マギー先生！
質問があります。
「Over the past few days」または「During the past few days」ってどう書きますか？
「数日前中」っていいですか？
Imade koso waratte irareru ga touji wa mainichi !damedame! !damedame! [nayannde] [nayande] imashita.
Doryoku shite koso, kekka ga tsuite kuru.
= Only when you make efforts, !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [do] !koujichuu! you get good results. Only when you make efforts, you get good results/good results will come.
Fan no ouen ga atte koso ima no !koujichuu! [watashitatachi] [watashitachi] ga arimasu
Hi Joanne,
1) 明日は晴れますように = Ashita wa haremasu youni. ( I hope the weather is nice tomorrow.)
2) 明日は晴れたらいいな = Ashita wa haretara iina. (It would be nice if the weather is nice tomorrow. )
Yes, they mean the same but “youni” shows your stronger desire.
With other verbs is the same?
It hasn’t a special implication (just a normal negation)?
It is no longer used?
If still used… what kind of situations would be used?
Sorry for so many questions, I do not understand much, this part is new to me…
Sorry for the late reply.
No, we don’t use that form in conversation anymore.
But we hear/see it when we quote an old saying. We usually use 来ない=konai = not to come now. (~ず form is 来ず=kozu)
来らず= きたらず(= kitarazu) is from a verb 来る= きたる (= kitaru) which is an old form for 来る=kuru
A good example of きたらず(= kitarazu) is a みくじ=mikuji= fortune slip, oracle slip that you draw in shrines.
待ち人来らず= まちびときたらず = your future girlfriend/boyfriend/spouse or someone who you have waiting won’t show up.
Thanks a lot… I understood perfectly.
it is very reassuring to have someone to consult… !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE!
@Veron
Good!! You’re very welcome, Veron! :)
Dear Maggie-sensei,
The last couple of weeks, I’ve been searching high and low for this use of たり+たら. I’ve been chatting with a couple of Japanese friends via text and one of them texted me, “私の英語が変だったり、間違ってたら、自然な英語に直してくれない？”
In the beginning, I thought it was a typo with the use of double たら. However, when I conversed with my other friend using a similar sentence, just swapping 英語 with 日本語 and using “間違ってたら、変だったら”, she told me that it would’ve been better had I written “間違ってたり、変だったら”.
I would like to ask if this is a colloquial thing or something? Because I really don’t get it and I can’t seem to find it on the Internet either.. I would appreciate an explanation very, very much. (:
I hope my explanation of my situation isn’t confusing.
Maggie-sensei, I truly enjoy reading your posts, and many of them are very helpful and well written with plenty of examples. I’m a beginner still, so please bear with me.
About たり, what does と思ったり usually mean? Does it mean “also thought” or does it imply assumption or emphasis?
Hi Presto!
Glad to hear you enjoy reading my posts.
If they use 思ったり solely without any v+たり
Ex. ~~と思ったり….
It is a colloquial usage (like No.6)
We leave the sentence unfinished with たり on purpose.
It sounds softer than 〜と思う
〜と思う= I think ~~~ (Showing one’s strong opinion)
〜と思ったり= Sometimes I think…./ (I could be wrong but) I could be ~~ , It is possible ~~ (Expressing the possibility)
So happy to see your website! You see, I was writing an anime fanfiction, and I’m trying to learn more japanese. What does this phrase mean in japanese: “Complete my heart/Complete this heart of mine” ?
@Margaux0615
Hi!
What does this phrase mean in japanese: “Complete my heart/Complete this heart of mine” ?
You mean how to say that line in Japanese?
There is no direct translation.
You could translate it literally but it sounds unnatural.
You could say You can fill my heart. あなたは私の心を満たしてくれます。
Hello, maggie sensei! This is my first time replying to one of your lessons !niconico! !niconico! I had watched this drama called 明日、ママがいない and heard this phrase ちょっと離してよ！ have you ever done a lesson on 離す？ I don’t understand it really. :cryingboy:
Hi. Rules are quite helpful. I was not quite sure how to translate Joaquin into Katakana though. Pronounced sort of like Wakkin It has oa in it so ー should fit in there somewhere
ツ
Before ap, ip, up, op, ck, ot, it, ic,tt
None of that isn’t there though. But it sounds like a ツ should be there. Help would be appreciated.
Seems hard to convert words that don’t sound as they are written.
“Kore, tabenakukte mo ii desu ka?” “tabenakute”
“Donnani ayamatta mo …” “ayamatte”
ちょっと説明してもらってもかまいませんか。
1. “Kanojo wa darega mite mo shufu datta.
She is obviously an ( a) housewife. (as anyone can see)” Why “datta” if she still “is” a houswife?
2. “何をやっても妻に怒られる。
No matter what I do, I make my wife angry.” I’m having problems with 怒る, it’s intransitiv or transitiv, so it’s a bit confusing:
彼は怒っている- He is angry.
彼を怒らせる – I make him angry.
彼に怒らせられる- I am made angry by him.
彼を怒っている – I scold him. or: I am angry at him. (?)
彼に怒られる – I am scolded by him. or: I am angered by him. (??) but your translation is: i make him angry (but why, isn’t it passive??? 絶望した~)
3. I read the following sentence: スズメバチを見つけても、手などを動かして蜂を遠くへ行かせようとしてください。
I don’t quite understand the “temo” here. “Even if, no matter what, whatever” etc. make no real sense to me, as it is a general advice, isn’t it?
Thank you always for spotting the typo. I fixed them.
1. Oh that was my mistake. I changed it to the present tense to avoid the confusion.
But if you see her in past and describe how she was, you can say 主婦だった = She was a housewife…
2. We tend to use passive form in Japanese but sometimes the direct translation is not natural in English.
（私は）マギーに怒られた＞マギーは私を怒った
The nuance is different but it won’t sound natural to say
I was reprimanded by Maggie.
It is more natural to translate in English,
Maggie got mad at me.
3. I would use たら in that sentence.
スズメバチを見つけたら = If / When you see ~
It depends on the context but ても there means “Even if”
Hey, I’m trying to translate a blog post from Japanese but I got stuck at “まんま体験版”. Is this likely to be まま as well? And if so, how does it work in this case?
However, I have been struggling with this which has made me a bit discouraged about still learning Japanese beacause I have found no one who could answer my question.
My problem is particle に in the passive voice. に is used to express the agent in the passive voice, the origin of the action, the performer, right?, however, this contrasts with its directional meaning (to/towards/for) and this, let’s call it, contradiction in meaning makes understanding particle に very difficult for me in the passive voice.
Why is a particle that indicates direction or target such as に used to indicate the origin of an action (the agent) in the passive voice? It makes no sense in my head because the performer (agent) is not supposed to be the target of the action but the one that performs the action, the origin.
I don’t know if I have exposed my problem clearly, but I hope you can help me solve this puzzle.
hello! I have another question. It’s something that came up during my japanese class. My teacher couldn’t explain very well, so I have to ask to you. hahaha.
Anyways here the example:
まどが開けてあります. I asked my teacher if there was any difference between that and まどが開いてあります, and why or when to use that instead of まどが開けています.
OK,
*開く＝あく= intransitive verb The window opens
*開ける=あける= transitive verb Someone opens the window.
まどが開いてあります is grammatically wrong.
”開（あ）く→開（あ）いて” is an intransitive verb so it should be まどが開いています。(The window is open.) Describing the state of the window which is open.
Vてあります is used when someone intentionally leave something in certain state and you use it with transitive verb. 開ける（あける）
まどが開けてあります。= when you describe the state where you or someone left the window open (on purpose).
or
まどを開けています。= Someone leaves the window open/ someone opens window.
FYI I have a lesson on 開く. So please go check the lesson.
揚げる deep fry (with lots of oil) 炒める fry or saute (less oil than 揚げる)
焼く toast, broil, bake..(general)
水を沸かす= to boil water
沸騰させる= to heat/bring ~ to boil
揚げる deep fry (with lots of oil) 炒める fry or saute (less oil than 揚げる)
焼く toast, broil, bake..(general)
水を沸かす= to boil water
沸騰させる= to heat/bring ~ to boil
こんにちは、先生 !MUSIC!
i always wonder about stem verbs that are combined such as 降り注ぐ、響きあう、塗りつぶす、食べ比べる、抱きしめる、消え去る、舞い落ちる、辿り着く、付け加える、切り替える、待ち焦げれる、繰り寄せる、飛び立つ、鳴り響く、振り向ける、失い進む。
i mean how do you make them or how do you use them(their rules probably??)
i hope you get what i mean lol. if it’s possible, please make a little lesson about it, maybe? thank you^^
こんにちは、yzr!
First, I have a lesson on ~合う.
Other than 合う, there are not so many compound words. It will be easier for you to separate two parts and figure out the meaning.
I will show you how.
抱きしめる→抱く(to hold)/ 抱いて(hold and ) ＋締める(tighten ) →抱きしめる= to hold someone/something tightly.
舞い落ちる→舞う(to dance) 舞って(dance and) ＋落ちる( fall) →舞い落ちる = something falls as if dancing.
塗りつぶす→塗る(to paint) 塗って(paint and) ＋つぶす(mash)→ 塗りつぶす→paint out/black out
Other words 押しつぶす=push and smash = smash/crush
!damedame! “Nagai aida, ano boro apaato de seikatu wo shiteita.” “seikatsu”
!damedame! “Toyota de tsutomete mou gonen ijyou tattta.” “ijou tatta”
!damedame! “Kono erebeetaa ni nannin kurai hairimasu ka?” “erebeeta”
!damedame! “Eki no baiten de utte imasu.
They sell it (them) at the store at the kiosk in the station.” either “store” or “kiosk” (?)
!damedame! “When something is aiming in some direction we use に and で indicate the place where it happens.” There is something missing in this sentence and I don’t quite understand it, maybe “to indicate”?
!damedame! “Ex.携帯を電車の中で落としてしまった。
= Keitai wo Toukyou eki de otoshite shimatta.” “densha no naka” instead of “Tokyou eki”
!damedame! “You dropped it somewhere on the train and you focus on where this action of dropping happened more than the
place where you actually dropped.” no need for a paragraph
!damedame! “「マギーどこで何をやってるの？」
= Maggie doko de nani wo yatte iru no?” “yatteru”
And can you explain this “で” in a sentence I found in a Japanese course: アメリカではボストンも古い町です。 I don’t see an action, so why not “に”?
OK, then this では is “for” (For the ” U.S.” ）
京都 and 奈良 are much older than Boston. But Boston is considered to be an old town in the U.S.
So actually this 古い町です。means
アメリカではボストンも古い町として見なされています・古い町の中に含まれます。古い町と考えられています、古い町としてとらえれています。
→So in the U.S.
(The action here is “to think”)
That is why you use で.
なるほど。 And they don’t even bother to explain this in the course. That’s why I only take lessons at your site now. (Well, thats a lie, but lets pretend !happyface! )
「わ・わよ」はかわいらしさを強調する言葉ですが、逆にちょっと年配の人が使うこともありますよ。
それから男女が使う「わ」のカジュアルな使い方の一つで”make your point”というものもあります。これは少し強く聞こえるので家族やよく知っている友達の間で使います。また関西地方などで使う「わ」もあります。
しらんわ！
When it is used with a volitional verb, it means “to try to do”.
You use it with a non-volitional verb + a conditional particle, such as みる＋と、みれ＋ば
one some action has finished/ done (→some condition is fulfilled , something happens/ the state will change. you will realize something/ you end up realize something
Maggie先生、こんにちは！
May I ask how strong is the word “恋人” ?
On my Twitter bio, I wrote “私の恋人→ XXX (It’s a Japanese Celebrity Name Here)”
A Japanese user who I followed then tweeted “XXXくんの恋人？ . . . ”
Was it wrong for me to joke about it in my bio? (Cause it’s kinda common in western terms do so)
So is 恋人 a strong word? Cause I think she got offended T_T
Thanks!
こんにちは！
Oh don’t worry! She just reacted because she is jealous.
恋人 is an exclusive relationship.
She would still react if you change it to ~君の彼女（カノジョ）~’s girlfriend.
Thanks for the lesson! I never had any trouble understanding “yo” in context, but it is good to know it has a lot of different naunces. Great lesson, as usual.
Thank you! I was wondering which kanji it was. :)
Sorry sensei, just one other question…
When people say things like 迷って I’ve noticed sometimes people say 迷っちゃう or something similar? Is this just a quirk or is it just a thing people do?
Hi, I was wondering if the よう used here is the same 何のようだ よう used? I was searching up よう in the dictionary because I wanted to confirm 何のようだ meant ‘what do you want’, but I couldn’t find it. Just wondering if you could give me more info on the よう that means want?
Thanks!
Hi Sammy
何の用だよう！= Nan no you da you!
It means “What do you want? / What has brought you here?”
So the first you is 用 (business)
The second よう is the suffix よ (Please refer to my latest lesson for all the usage of this suffix.)
“Kyou wa hajimete no ressunn desuga, ganbarimasu.” “ressun”
“行き (= iki sae)” “行きさえ”
“しさえ (= shisase)” “shisae”
“Amari ni ie ga chirakatteite…” kanji says 部屋, so: “Amarini heya ga chirakatteite…”
“Ex. パーティーには顔さえ、だしてくれればいいです。
= Paatii niwa kao sae, dashite kurereba ii desu.” I don’t know about comma in Japanese, but this one seems problematic.
“Jugyou ni mainichi shusseki sase…” “sae”
“= Mikisaa sae areba daredemo kantan ni tsukuremasu.
= All you need is a blender. Anybody can make it easily.” Ok now I’m splitting hairs, but just because I’m curious, you have the word ミキサー for mixer and ブレンダー for blender and 混合機 for both mixer and blender, and yet you use ミキサー for blender too it seems… 絶望した! :)
And one question about V+ かさえ(=ka sae): In your examples, it’s always V+の+かさえ or Adj.+の+かさえ, so I wonder whether the の is always required.
1. Concerning the form 書かす. You said that only some verbs have short forms like 書かす. Most of these Verbs like 泣かす, 飲ます, 待たす seem to be regular vocabulary and can be found in any dictionary, but I can’t find 書かす in any regular reference book or website. Is this form really grammatically correct, like JLPT proof, or is it just conversational or slang?
2. In the case of 待たせる and 待たす, I noticed that the short form is mostly used in passive voice (though it could be the irregular causative-passive form of 待つ too, which then seems to be prefered to the regular causative-passive), while the regular causative form is mostly used in active voice. i.E.
“彼は私に待たされる。 He was kept waiting.” seems to be prefered to “彼は私に待たせられた。”
“私は彼を待たせた。 I made him wait.” I don’t think I ever saw “私は彼を待たした。”
Is my observation correct that the short and regular causative forms are used differently and are not always interchangeable?
3. Can you combine the potential form with passive, causative or causative-passive? It does not make much sense in my language, but in english some people think it would be possible to say things like: “He made me able to swim.” or “I was made being able to swim.” In my understanding, this is terrible english and nobody would talk like that, but it seems gramatically possible. Also, my learning programm, which recognizes conjugations, says that 泳げさせられる is a correct potential-causative-passive verb. (It does not recognize 書かす though. :) )So, is that really possible in Japanese?
マギー先生、Minkyに教えさせてくれてありがとうございます！ I noticed in a typo of Minky’s name in a few places – it is written as “Minty.” It’s kind of cute though, like a combination of “Minky” and “Misty”! MinkyとMistyは姉妹なのに、たぶんそれがあまり好きじゃないですよ。 (Although they are sisters, they probably wouldn’t like that!)
小さな間違いを見つけたと思います：Note: i-adjective + だ ( = da ) ・です (= desu ) + よ ( = yo ) is neutral.
Should that be “na-adjective”?
マギー先生、私は質問がありますよ。 この文は“バッグが開いていますよ”, “あく”を使っています。 “あく”と“ひらく”の違いは何ですか。いつどっちがどっちかを使いますか。(Maggie Sensei, I have a question. In this sentence, you use “aku”. What’s the difference between “aku” and hiraku”? When do you use one or the other?)
Ah, okay. Thank you Maggie! I felt kind of weird using “よ” in two consecutive sentences, but I see why it’s more appropriate.
:maggie-small: :purple:
Some typos:
“Maggie hodo no ii onna a sousou inai.” wa
“Kare bodo hidoi hito wa imasen.” hodo
“Sakuwa wa dorehodo nondaka kioku ni nai.” sakuya
Some questions:
1. I’ve been tought to use ほど in negative comparisons as you explained in the first section: A wa B hodo ~ nai. But I was wondering whether you could use より instead ほど in this case to, like in normal comparisons.
2. Same question for the 思ったほど ~ない form. Because I’ve heard this one with より: 思ってたより少ないな。
3. あの人のことを好きになれば好きになるほど、心が痛い。
In the “verb + ば + verb + ほど” section, why is 好きになる repeated as a whole in this case? Isn’t grammatically just なる the verb and 好きに an adverb or a noun? Is it because it’s an expression or are verbmodifiers like adverbs repeated too?
Hi, manadeshi!
Thank you for spotting the typos again. :D
1. OK, here is the difference.
1) AはBより ~
You usually compare A and B
2) AはBほど〜ではない
The difference:
(1) We tend to use より more when we compare two things.
(2) ほど is talking about the degrees.
(3) AさんはBさんほど背が高くない
= A is not as tall as B
You can’t say
AさんはBさんより背が高くない。
You don’t usually use より in a negative sentence.
(Actually I am making a lesson on より(-yori) so I will cover that difference.)
3. You can also say 好きになればなるほど
If it is a compound verb, 好きに＋なる, you can skip the first part.
Ex. 勉強をすればするほど、わからなくなる。
But if it is one simple verb, you repeat it twice.
I’ve been using Japanese Twitter for a while now and noticed nearly everybody in this cyber space has “(Name) @ (Something)” as their display name. This “something” could be anything from a place to a random saying or phrase. What does it mean? It seems like only the trendiest Twitter users seem to have it.
I want to get it too for my Twitter handle, but I can’t seem to understand the nuances of what can or can’t go behind the @.
Hi Pika!
There is no rules for handle name. Only you can create your name.
You wrote here with your name or nickname Pika. If you like it, you can use it as a part of your name.Pikachan, Pika4twitter, etc.
Twitter is totally anonymous. You can have a creative name or just make a Twitter name based on the words you like. What if your favorite word?
“Boku mo nihongo no sensei ni nau!” !damedame! !damedame! !damedame! “naru” (now we know why he never became sensei :) )
“Kokokor” “Kokoro” (2 times!)
“perapeara” “perapera”
Hello, the river puppy,
Oh wow! REALLY complicated.
I kind of understand up to ないって言う but 言い訳がないのはずが~ part doesn’t make sense. I even don’t understand the English sentence.
このレッスンを理解できないわけではない I wouldn’t say I don’t understand this lesson.
“このレッスンを理解できないわけではない”と言う訳がない = There is no way that I say “I wouldn’t say I don’t understand this lesson.”
I think this is as far as you can go.
Hello Maggie :)
I am currently studying Translation and Interpreting and I was curious if I could translate your lessons into German (for free of course) because I need a little bit practice :)
Feel free to contact me if you’re interested. I couldn’t find another way to contact you, but I think it’s fine here as well.
Hello! Thanks for this lesson. I didn’t even know you could use a double negative like this.
I have another off-topic question. I am trying to write and I am not too sure, it feels like something is off about it.
古い機種だから、両親と話すことばかり使ってるんだ。
I want to say “It is an old model I use to talk with my parents”. I also originally wanted to say “I use to receive calls from my parents”, but how do I say “to receive calls”?
Thanks again! And sorry for asking off-topic things so often, I don’t know anyone else to ask, hahahaha.
Hi reid,
古い機種だから、両親と話すことばかり使ってるんだ。
I have to confirm two things.
1) 古い機種だから= You used だから= because
2) ばかり= just, only
But I don’t see the translation in the English sentence.
When I saw this sentence, I thought you wanted to say “Since it is an old model, I just use it to receive calls from my parents.”
If so,
古い機種だから両親から電話を受けるときだけに使っているんだ。
I see. I used だから mainly because I was going for a less literal translation, hahaha. So without it would it be:
両親から電話を受けるときだけに使ってる機種だ ?
Also, I kinda wanted to use ばかり to practice, how could I use it in this case? I have even studied the lesson you made already, but I am not sure now, haha.
Yes,両親から電話を受けるときだけに使ってる機種だ will be natural.
だけ and ばかり both mean “only/just” but there is a difference.
If you use ばかり, it sounds like “the only thing you do is or you are always using the old phone to talk to your parents.” But what you wanted to say is “I only use the old phone” so だけ is better.
OOHHH that’s true! I forgot about that detail. Something so simple and I forgot, hahaha.
Hi
「そんな大きなスイカ一人で食べられないでしょ。」 Aさん–>Bさん
= You know you are not going to be able to eat a watermelon that big by yourself, right?
Can the same sentence 「そんな大きなスイカ一人で食べられないでしょ。」 be used if i want to say [You know I’m not going to be able to eat a watermelon that big by myself, right]
Hello Maggie sensei,
I am Krishna das Mukherjee,from india. I want to study in japnese language, I allredy start it but face a problem in kanji. so if you teach me? great for me.
Hi, Kirishna,
If you use Twitter, follow me on Twitter. I have been tweeting kanji once in a while.
But the best way to learn kanji is to get a kanji book and study constantly. I know it is a pain but it is so much fun to be able to read Japanese. And I believe you can do it.
Thank you so much for explaining them to me, haha, my interpretations were totally wrong in the first place. Oh, sorry for the typo for だという.
My questions for today are:
1.
便利なはずのスマホが時々すごく不便に感じる
Smartphone is supposed to be convenient, but I sometime feel it is very inconvenient to use.
(from hazu lesson)
If I understand this correctly:
“1. No it won’t be the same. If you say プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介が、”プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介” will be a subject.”
Then
便利なはずのスマホが時々すごく不便に感じる would give a thought:
“sometimes I feel that the smart phone which is supposed to be convenient, is very inconvenient”
Though,
Smartphone is supposed to be convenient, but I sometime feel it is very inconvenient to use. – Would be natural in English. Did I get it right?
——-
2.
事になった – it has been decided that.
How about
事に決まった and事に決めた?
決まる – instransitive
決める – transitive
But when they are used with 事に, i don’t know when
事に決まった or 事に決めた is preferred over 事になった.
——–
thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
1. Yes, you got it right.
2. OK the translation of 〜ことにきまった / 〜ことになった could be both “has been decided” but the difference is
You use ことになった when you describe some situation/state has turned out to be ~
Ex. 大変なことになった。= It turned out to be a big trouble.
You use 決まった when there are people behind and they decide something.
And as you said 決める intransitive and 決まる transitive so
Personが〜を決める ( Person decides ~ )
~が決まる (~ is decided)
Good day dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for clarifying them to me.
My questions for today are:
1.
こんなにも喜んでくれる方がいる
i am not really sure where こんなにも applies to:
does こんなにも apply to 喜んでくれる方 =
a. there are people this much delighted.
Or こんなにも to いる:
b. there are many (this many) delighted people
——–
2.
[I don’t know if he will “still” go.]
I would like to translate this sentence in Japanese but I think if I will use:
まだ彼が行くか分からない – this would mean
[I “still” don’t know if he will go]
So I would like to ask for dear Maggie sensei’s version.
——–
3.
What would be the difference between 時 and たら if they are both translated as “when”. I just made these sentences:
I think the missing verb for 『先輩として、恥ずかしくないように！』is 頑張る but I would like to ask what could be the other verbs that could fit in this sentence.
———-
3. でもありました = this is derived from である which is the ancient from of です and not from で+(も)+ ある. Is my observation ok?
—-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
Hello, おはよう！！
1. Yes. 久々に東京に行った。 = 久しぶりに東京に行った。
To be precise, 久々 is slightly stronger. While you use 久しぶり even if it is not actually a long time ago, you use 久々 when you did/do something for the first time in a really long time.
2. OK, for example, 先輩として、恥ずかしくないようにする。or ふるまう
3. Yes. But である is not “ancient form”. It is just a literal form and we do use it when we write.
obakasan000
One suggestion. Why don’t you use Maggie’s room when you have a question? All your questions are really good so that other people can learn from your questions. (If it is related to the lesson, you can keep using the comment section of each lesson.) :D
Thanks for this great lesson, it’s old, but soooo important. The various uses of という where a big mystery for me for quite some time, and you unraveled them all, thats amazing.
Since it’s such a long lesson, I found some typos that have been hiding for half a decade. Not anymore! :i:
“会議が(or は）中止となった(=Kaigi ga/wa chuushi to natta)
:u:
会議が(or は）中止になったというメールを受け取った。(=Kaigi ga/wa chuushi ni natta toiu meiru wo uketotta.” These two sentences should have the same partikel for didactic reasons (“to natta” or “ni natta”).
“tugikonde” “tsugikonde”
“mannshitu” “manshitsu”
“Iza toiu toki wa dewa shitene.” “Iza toiu toki wa denwa shitene.”
“benkyou busoku” not a real typo, but the space should be removed because it’s a compound word which changes the usual pronunciation of 不足.
“kyuujitu” “kyuujitsu”
And one tiny question: is the だ before というのに obligatory or can it be omitted? i.E. 明日が試験というのに何も勉強していない。
Thank you my spell check angel!
I haven’t checked this lesson for five years.
I should change the format as well when I have time.
いつもありがとう！
As for your question,
明日が試験というのに is possible.
だ emphasizes the fact more.
It’s being translated as “Pardon for the interruption, you guys,” or something like that. And I’m just wondering if that is correct.
Doesn’t it have to be お邪魔します、お前たち for it to be translated like that? Because, if it’s 邪魔するぞ、then it’s somehow a reproach rather than a polite “excuse me,” is it?
The speech 邪魔するぞ、お前たち is very rough. I think you probably saw it in animation or something.
~ぞ suffix and お前(達）are considered to be very strong/rude expression.
So you don’t use お邪魔します＋お前たち together because お邪魔します is a polite expression.
Hello, Maggie!
Another great lesson, thank you very much.
Just out of curiosity, are there in Japanese triple negative?
I think not. At least I haven’t seen one.
Ok, that’s a tricky one!
Hmmm, let me see…
４重否定は全くできなく(1)はない(2) わけではない(３) と言わない(４）方がいい 。 =
It’s better not to say that it’s not that [/it doesn’t mean that] you can possibly use quadra negation. 翻訳、合ってる？
@____@
@天人
Haha, yes, you got it.
But it gives me a headache now.
“ahita” should be “ashita”
“hirogaranaimasen” should be “hirogarimasen”
“Kaze wo hikanai you (ki wo tsukete ne)” should be “Kaze wo hikanai you ni (ki wo tsukete ne).”
“albe” should be “able”
お尻に噛み付かないようにさっさと誤字を直してね。 !niconico!
Also, I have a question about one example: “いつになったら日本語がきちんと話せるようになるんだろう。”
Again, I’m having trouble understanding the conditional part “なったら”, because I can’t think of a way to translate it meaningfully.
Since I’m thoroughly reading and re-reading a lot of your old lessons I could do some proof-reading if you like. I just didn’t want to spam the comments on every lesson. And I feel a bit awkward correcting a sensei, as do I now when I have to say that the translation for 溺れている you wanted to write was “drowning”… But don’t worry, just now I had to look up how to spell “thoroughly” and “awkward” myself, hope I got it right.
Maggie-sensei, I always find your pages in google when I’m trying to puzzle out a phrase I didn’t learn in my few JP language classes! Your lessons are so helpful… I find myself on this site so often that I thought I’d give you a big ありがとうございます！
hello maggie sensei :w:
can you make a lesson for:
1- the different usage of kakeru/kakaru ? by now I know the most common ones but lately I came across a korean movie named in Japanese (海にかかる霧）. I know the overall meaning is like the see overwhelmed by fog something like that,.. but I don’t know the exact meaning in Japanese.
2- tsui= by accident
3- making nouns from adjectives and verbs
4- I want to know the difference among : manabu/ benkyou suru/ narau/ osowaru?
1. Ah, OK..
かかる is an intransitive verb
霧がかかる so the fog/mist covers the air →It describes the state of being foggy
Ex. 月に雲がかかる clouds is covering the moon
かける is a transitive verb
2. 3. 4 つい: OK, will add them in the list. I can’t promise that I will make all the lessons but will try to make some for you in future.
Please wait patiently.
ahha.. now I understand !JYANE!
thank you maggie sensei..
bty, there is something I want to ask you privately.. and don’t know how I should ask tell.. do you an email?
You’re welcome, Roro.
Well, I can’t give you my personal email here… If I do, some people may start to use it to ask me Japanese questions or ask me to translate something.
You don’t need to give me all the details here but can you just tell me what it is about?
I always read people’s comments before I release them. So if it is something personal, just add “Confidential”. I will not post it. So don’t worry.
And if I think I can help you, I will email you using your email address that you left when you left a comment.
(But please know that I don’t do translation or writing letters, thesis..)
1. I often see “Verb+tokoro da” accompanied by the adverbs まさに and ちょうど. These adverbs are as often combined with the “Verb-Volitional+to suru/shite iru/shite ita” expression, and it seems to mean the same thing. So is there a difference between:
まさに/ちょうど食べる(食べた)ところだ。
まさに/ちょうど食べようとしている(いた。)
2. Also, what puzzles me is the second meaning of “V-Volitional+to suru” as “trying”, because in these sentences are to my understanding no connotations of “trying”. However, you gave the example: 父は、どろぼうが家に入ろうとしているところを見つけて捕まえた。 In this sentence, “V-Volitional+to shite iru” actually means “trying”, so I was wandering whether one can combine these forms like this:
食べるところだ。 – I was just about to eat.
ちょうど食べようとしている。 – I was just about to eat.
ちょうど食べようとしているところだ。 – I was just about to try to eat.
3. I saw some sentences with “Verb+tokoro datta/deshita”. Is that also correct?
Thank you for spotting the typo again. I really appreciate it!!
1.
a) まさに/ちょうど食べる(食べた)ところだ。
b) まさに/ちょうど食べようとしている(いた。)
The translation is the same but you use ところ when you describe the state more vividly.
2. Right ~しようとしている means “to try to do something” but sometimes the translation is not natural.
Because you don’t actually “try” when you eat something.
食べようとしている ＝”I am about to eat or I am going to eat now” is more natural.
3. Ah, yes. I didn’t cover that, huh? Maybe I should add that information later.
~ ところだった/でした is used when you had some risk and it almost affected you but nothing happened/you managed to avoid it after all.
OH! I already studied this lesson, and I even commented on it! I completely forgot, hahaha. But it was nice to study it again. In any case, I am still note sure about this sentence:
税金は高いとか、大都市は汚いとか、そんな悩みがたくさんあるんだ
It seems like there isn’t anything wrong… Guess I am just not sure if とか is the best choice here.
Yes, I made it. Thanks for confirming it is correct! I guess I was just unsure if it was okay to use toka here. When I showed it to a japanese friend of mine she replaced toka with shi like this:
税金は高いし、大都市は汚いし
So I was unsure if it was because toka was incorrect or just her personal preference, hahaha.
When you list out things you can also use し
You use し when you simply connect more than two things or when you emphasize the reason more.
税金は高いし、大都市は汚いし+result/ what you are going to do/conculusion
Since your sentence simply giving some examples of your concerns, とか works fine.
The sentence is very conversational but very natural.
漢字を勉強していたところに頭痛がしました！ lol see I remembered how to say headache!!! But as far as the rest of the sentence I seek your guidance and correction haha (I hope it’s grammatically correct) !happyface!
Hi Courtney! Good now you remember how to say 頭痛がする
Just one thing. 頭痛がする is a state so it will be more natural to say
漢字の勉強をしたところ、頭痛がしてきました。(getting a headache)
lol studying Japanese will never give me a headache, I love it too much!! Thank you! I can always count on you! so してきました is the present perfect continuous conjugation of する right? So your sentence would be translated as…”I have been getting a headache when studying kanji.” right? Thank you in advance!
Yes, してきている means “has been getting something” and your translation is right.
The present perfect continuous conjugation of する is している but when you describe gradual change you use してきている.
And I know you always love studying Japanese!
Ok! thank you! I will work harder at studying verb conjugations. :grin:
Hello! Thanks for this lesson. It is a bit complicated in some parts, but I can understand it.
I have a couple of questions:
In this sentence, 駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った I am trying to use the other forms of tokoro to understand them better.
So by ところで you’re indicating that you met her after buying cake.
If you use ところに you’re indicating that you met her while buying cake. Both happened at the same time.
And if you use ところを you’re focusing on the action of buying cake? I don’t really get the difference here. And depending on the context it can mean that it is something unusual to meet her while buying the cake?
And the second question:
Is there any difference between 今、彼に話しているところです。 and 今、彼に話している。 ?
Hello reid,
OK, I have to slightly change the sentences to explain.
1) ケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った。
I saw her right after I bought cake.
(Focusing on the situation.)
2) ケーキを買っているところに(へ）彼女がやって来た。
She showed up when I am buying cake.
(Two actions are happening at the same time.)
(Focusing on the time)
3) ケーキを買っているところを彼女に見られた。
She saw me buying cake.
(focusing on the action)
＊＊＊
While 今、彼に話している。is just describing the action, 今、彼に話しているところです。describes the action more vividly and also has more explanatory tone.
So if someone asks you to give them updates on some issue,
今、彼に話しているところです。sounds more convincing than 今、彼に話しています。
@reid
I changed the sentence because you can’t say
駅の近くでケーキを買った<ところに> or<ところ>を 彼女に偶然会った
Why… ところに（or へ） You might say “But two actions are happening at the same time…” but the subject is the same “I” (I bought cake and I met her)
You usually have different subjects for two actions.
And you use an object marker, を in ところを. That means you have to have some action to be an object.
〜ところを見られた= I was seen ~ = She saw me buying
***
As for とか I have a lesson so please go check that lesson.
Thanks for the lesson, however, I am still having this question in my mind. From all the literal meanings of 合う, which one conveys the sense of mutuality or doing something together when attached to the stem or a verb?
I mean there must be a reason why 合う is used here to convey this meaning and it must necessarily be connected to one of its literal meanings.
Hello sensei! Thank you so much for all the lessons! I had a question…
I was taught いる is for living things and ある is for non-living, but then how come いらない can be used for anything?
E.g I heard people say 心配いらない and 傘はいらない?
Hi sensei! Your lessons are great! They really help me out. :)
I just had two questions about particles…
I heard someone say サッカーって楽しい and I was wondering why they said って instead of は?
And I also heard みんなでやろう and I was wondering why they said で instead of と?
Sorry for all the questions. :o
Hi sensei, thanks again for the great lesson! I was also wondering like the person below me the difference between は and が?
I often see が used when I thought が should be used, and vice versa. If you could clear this up for me, that’d be great!
Hi Maggie sensei! I have a friend lives in Japan, and she sent me an email the other day saying
‘友達と会うのが楽しみです!!
Sarah にまた会いたいです.’
Why did she use のが after 会う?
And why did she use に after my name? I thought に was only for location and time?
Hi sensei, this isn’t part of the lesson but I couldn’t find a lesson on this…
I don’t understand the difference between using は or が? I know one is the subject marker and one is the topic marker, but if you could explain it in a bit more detail that’d be great! TT.TT
@Sam
Haha, I have been avoiding making the lesson on that subject because it is very complicated.
But it is on the request list so eventually I will make a lesson. Please wait patiently.
For now,
when you focus on what comes after, you use は and when you focus on what comes before, you use が
Ex. 私はマギーです。
= Watashi wa Maggie desu.
= I am Maggie.
Who is Maggie?
Ex. 私がマギーです。
= Watashi ga Maggie desu.
= I AM Maggie.
***
When you show the contrast, you use は
Ex. Aさんは日本人ですが、Bさんはアメリカ人です。
= A-san wa nihonjin desuga, B-san wa amerikajin desu.
= A is Japanese but B is American.
Hi sensei! I still don’t really understand the difference between 旅 and 旅行! TT.TT
Don’t they both mean the same thing? And if they both mean the same thing, why does 旅行 exist and why is it used more commonly? I’m sorry, please explain it again!
Maggie,thank you for this. Watashi wa Nihonjin hanbun. Nihonjin to amerikajin demo nihongo chouto hanashimasu. I work in a dunkin donuts in America and sometimes when a Japanese customer comes in I try to speak Japanese. This lesson is exactly what I was looking for. My goal is to learn enough Japanese to work in a Japanese restaurant in the area.
Thank you for your comment! I am very happy to hear you found this lesson useful.
I hope you can find a nice job in Japan.
(Note for you: Watashi wa Nihonjin hanbun. Nihonjin to amerikajin →How about saying “Watashi wa nihonjin to amerikajin no half desu. )
Thank you for another very informative lesson. As usual, the most easy sentences leave me in despair. 私の下手な日本語によって絶望した!! I had to laugh a bit reading this sentence: “Hai, sukoshi nara hanasemasu.” I can’t even grammatically understand that one… !cryingboy! Could you tell me, what the “nara” is for? Also in this one: “Sashimi igai nara nandemo suki desu.” I only guess it’s optional as I learned these sentences without “nara”, but I really would like to know its use.
Also, some more typos: look for “nihonji”, and the answer “Machi ga kirei desu.” is double.
First thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them.
nara is used when you give certain condition.
So sukoshi nara hanasemasu. means,
(I don’t speak Japanese fluently but) if it is a little, I can speak.
Giving the condition of the speaker’s speaking ability which is “a little”
“Sashimi igai nara nandemo suki desu.
I eat anything but Sashimi. (If it is not Sashimi)
(In this case, the condition is “besides Sashimi)
Note for you:
お箸は使えないのにヌンチャクは自由自在に操る →haha! Is it true?
Just I don’t get the part 生身のもの????
私の下手な日本語によって絶望した →(to sound more natural) 自分の下手な日本語に絶望した。(→But it is not true!!! Your Japanese IS good!)
See how bad my Japanese is? I even have to explain my jokes.
生身のもの is supposed to mean “living creature(s)”, according to weblio. I wanted to say “living things” and I thought that 生き物 or 生物 were not quite fitting.
And yes, I practiced kung-fu and nunchaku for a few years, but nowadays the only thing I would hit is my own head. That’s why these days I’m rather using words than weapons, yet still I keep hitting myself…
Thanks for the explanation of the sentences. I know the conditionals, I just didn’t think they would apply here, especially to the first one. Because we would never say “If its a little, I can speak it.” Sounds strange as “little” it’s not really a condition, it’s an adverb. It’s like “I only can run slowly” –> “If it’s slow, I can run it”. Thats makes no sense. And in the sashimi sentence, “以外” already kind of markes the condition, so the conditional seems not necessary. I guess thats my problem, i didn’t expect conditionals, because both sentences seem to work without them.
Oh wow. You do practice kung-fu! かっこいい！
Will make なら lesson for you sometime. There are many usages. But at this point, just think the usage there is to emphasize the word which comes before なら
Ex. 明日なら行けます。
= If it is tomorrow, I can make it.
= I can make it TOMORROW (Not other day.)
is it —>[doko or nani]/[what or where]
Q: 日本の[どこ]が気に入りましたか？
→Ahhh good point! You are right.どこ can be “where/what”. Since I already explained “where”, I wanted to give an example of “what” but it is confusing, huh?I changed the question.
I made this lesson a few years ago and I know I should add more information but I have been procrastinating. Sorry.
There are two forms for certain verbs.
飲む→(causative form) 飲ませる or 飲ます
→(passive causative) 飲まされる／飲ませられる
書く→(causative form) 書かせる or 書かす
→(passive causative)書かされる or 書かせられる
泣く→(causative form)泣かせる or 泣かす
→(passive causative)泣かされる／泣かせられる
So both 泣かされた／泣かせられた are fine.
Hello there!
Thanks a lot for this very useful article. I’d love to translate it to french on my blog. Would you give me the authorization to do that? I’ll OF COURSE put a link to your website and explaining that I just did the translation, and didn’t write the content. Would you mind? boucingheart!
For these questions there wasn’t a translation added does the first set of questions mean “How long have you lived in Japan?” and the second set mean “Where have you been in Japan?”
Oh! You added a translation for each variation. Sorry to cause you so much trouble! Thank you so much as always you are the best! Sometimes I feel like I’m annoying because I ask so many questions up here and on twitter lol :) thanks again
食べたっていい:
You can also say 食べてもいいじゃない、食べたらいいじゃない(more conditional) 、食べてくればいいじゃない(=go eat something)
As for the difference between ikinari/kyuuni/totsuzen, you asked the same question in my 是非 lesson and I already answered it. So please go check the answer.
A) そのうち行きます。= I will go there sometime (soon).
B ) そのうち行くかもしれません。= I might go there sometime (soon).
C) そのうち行きたくなるかもしれません。= I might want to go there sometime (soon).
D)行きたくない。
Hi Maggie-sensei! Thanks for all the great lessons!
I have a quick off-topic question about one of the example sentences:
“Kinou, mata ano mise ni itte ne, oishii biiru wo nonde kita yo.”
What is the meaning or nuance of ~tekuru form (nonde kita) here? I went through the examples in the ~tekuru/iku lesson but couldn’t find something that matched.
I thought “nonde kita” -> “it became that I drank” or “I ended up drinking” maybe?
It is a good question.
As I explained in my ~tekuru / te iku lesson,
• 買ってくる(=katte kuru) to buy something and bring it to the place where speaker is.
That kind of ~ tekuru is used when speaker goes to somewhere to do something and comes back to the place where they are.
But this “nonde kita” means “went out for a drink (and came back where the speaker is)”.
Also “~tekita” has a function to describe one’s experiences more vividly.
¥
So, if you say “biiru wo nonda”, you are just talking about the action
but if you say “biiru wo nonde kita! you are talking about your experience more vividly.
Hi sensei! This isn’t to do with this lesson but I just had a question…
Sometimes I see in anime the word 嫌い but the romaji will be ぎらい instead of きらい? And they pronounce it ぎらい?
Or instead of 魂 it’ll be pronounced だましい？
Why do they do that?
That sometimes happens in a compound word.
For example when you read the kanji 魂 alone, you read it “たましい”
But when it is a part of a word,
Ex. 野球魂= やきゅうだましい = baseball spirit
彼は人間が嫌いです
= かれはにんげんがきらいです。
彼は人間嫌いです
= かれはにんげんぎらいです。
Note: 人間嫌い= Misanthrope = A person who hate people.
Hi Maggie sensei, for this sentence “watashi ga rensai no geemu wo sasete moratte imasu.” Would the proper translation be…” I was allowed to have the game series”, “I was asked to have the game series” or “I was able to have the game series” thanks in advance!
I don’t understand well how the game site works but if the writer is a creator of a game,
Sasete moratteiru is a humble way to say “to do something” but when you translate it, just “I am the one who has been creating a series of the game.”
OH! Thank you! I have always seen ね more like something instictive, but it is good to know exactly how it is used.
I have a question. In this sentence “昔はねえ、子供は外でもっと遊んでいたものなんだよ”, why do you use “もの”? Is it necessary or could have used the same sentence without the use of もの? I have seen other sentences like that, but I don’t really understand how もの is used in that case.
Just came across your site and thought you might know of a superstition where children who loose their milk teeth throw the teeth over the house. I can’t remember if this is because it makes the new teeth grow strong. Do you know this superstition? I want to confirm it before I put it on the site. I’ve put a few on the site already but could only think of one that was good luck. Do you have any suggestions on any other ones I could add?
Hi Laoise! Welcome to our site!
Yes, when a child loses a baby tooth we throw them.
Throw an upper baby tooth over the roof and throw lower milk teeth towards under the floor hoping the permanent teeth grow in the right direction.
Ahhh good question! I have to make another lesson on よ ( = yo) sometime.
(Oh wait.. I did explain in my female speech lesson lesson.)
I won’t go too far here but…
As I explained ね(=ne) expresses your will,
*よ ( =yo) is used when you tell some information that the listener doesn’t know or should know.
Ex. 電車は遅れているみたいですよ。
= Densha wa okurete iru mitai desuyo.
= I heard the train is late.
You use ね, when you want agreement from the listener.
Ex. 財布を落としましたよ。
= Saifu wo otoshimashitayo.
= You dropped your wallet.
X Since the listener doesn’t know the fact, you don’t use ね (=ne)
You use よ if the speaker’s action is related to the listener.
In that case you can change ね to よ.
Also ます・です+ よ is safe to use but if you use “verb plain form + よ” may sound either slightly blunt or for a male speech.
来年、日本に行きますよ。
→(nuance) You should know this information.
着いたら電話するよ
今日は私（僕）がおごるよ。
The actions, ‘calling/treating” related to the listener so you can use よ but in these two cases, よ sound a bit blunt. (male talk)
Is it the same when you make your point? For example, what’s the difference between私はそうは思いませんね and 私はそうは思いませんよ. Or, for example, if someone asks you コーヒーが好き？is it better to reply “あまり好きじゃないね” or “あまり好きじゃないよ” ?
よろしく！
@Lollo
Hello Lollo,
It depends on the intonation but the basic difference is if you involve the listener or not.
そうは思いませんね・あまり好きじゃないね。: You are just making your point/expressing your opinion.
そうは思いませんよ・あまり好きじゃないよ Telling the listener your opinion or feelings.
I am making a new lesson on the suffix よ. Will try to include the sentence to explain so please wait.
Good day dear Maggie sensei. Thank you so much for answering my question and for sharing a trivia about the blog. I hope that your site will last for many many many more years and that your future puppies will continue your legacy..
My question for today is:
勉強してきた– have/has/had been studying.
(focusing on the length of the action) according to dear maggie sensei.
And if I will try to convert this verb into its potential form, it would be something like:
勉強してこれらた=
And the thought would be something like:
have/has/had been (staying in the state of [being able to study])
is my observation somewhat ok?
recently, I have been seeing てこれらた often, so I thought i need to clarify if my understanding is correct.
———–
Thank you so much dear Maggie sensei in advance. .n_n.
Changing the subject, coinciding with the start of the Hello! Project concerts, I’ve introduced the new members of Hello! Project in this blog,
and today is finally the last
I would like to ask if is there by any chance that
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが…
is a variation of:
ハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介[を]ブログで始めた[ん]ですが… ?
I often see this structure where in the [verb] comes first, then [noun+ですが] followed by the rest of the sentence but, the English translation looks like as if it is based on the [noun+を+verb+んですが]…
Though sometimes I think maybe the meaning of
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが is somewhat like:
[Regarding about the new members’introduction that I have started in this blog] – where in the role of ですがis to give an [introducing-nuance] by placing the [noun] before ですが, but i am not really sure..
But if dear maggie sensei thinks that the english translation is quite incorrect in the first place..i would like to ask for dear Maggie sensei’s English version..
——-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
[Regarding about the new members’introduction that I have started in this blog] – where in the role of ですがis to give an [introducing-nuance] by placing the [noun] before ですが, but i am not really sure..
Your translation is right.
The direct translation is something like “(as for) the introduction of new members for Hello! Project which I started on my blog…”
So ((Subjet)+ verb (私がブログで始めた)）modifies the following noun, “新メンバーの紹介”.
But I guess they choose the most natural translation, I’ve introduced the new members of Hello! Project in this blog,and…
I just wanted to ask what is the meaning and role of this word on each line ’cause I can’t seem to make out the meaning of it using its usual use as ‘to do’ with する. And what would be its english translation for you.
Hi aiji, ohayou!!
OK, When we describe some typical color, you say 青い空 or 青い色の車
you see “color + した” in poetic expressions or when things have unusual color. 青い色をしたお酒
Hi, your site is great! I just had a question. Do you always have to use particle が when followed by あります or います? Because I heard someone say まだ時間はあるよ and I was wondering why he said は instead?
Hi Jessie,
We also use は for あります or います。
The most standard way to say is まだ時間があります。
まだ時間はあります。
It depends on the situation and what in the speaker’s mind but when you show the contrast we use は.
Usually you use は when you emphasize what comes before, in this case 時間.
++++
For example,
You see Tanaka-san.
田中さんがいます。 = Tanaka-san is here (there) / There is Tanaka-san.
(You are just talking about Tanaka-san.)
Now you are supposed to meet Tanaka-san and Kato-san but you only see Tanaka-san.
田中さんはいます。（でも加藤さんはいません。） = There is Tanaka san but Kato-san is not here yet.
I am sure I have use the word “kekkou” a lot in the example sentences but I don’t have a particular lesson on the word.
What part is difficult for you? I can help you here.
Thanks for the quick and detailed explanation! I knew that -mi meant beauty but does the -Re add anything to the meaning of the name Remi? I heard some Japanese make up names.
鈴 just means “bell” so if the following kanji is 美, it could mean “beautiful sound of the bell.”
FYI
礼= politeness
玲= symbolize the beauty of jewel, a precious stone
澪= a pole standing in water to show the ship’s way
It is a complicated kanji so I didn’t write in my previous comment but
麗 = graceful, lovely is also a beautiful kanji to use for a name.
We are supposed to read the kanji “rei” but we can use these kanji for re sound for names.
hello! I just have a small question. It is about どれ, どっち and どちら. I can’t quite remember their specific uses. Is there a lesson about them already? Can you explain the differences?
Hello reid.
The difference between どれ、どっち、どちら
どっち(colloquial) / どれ (standard) / どちら(more polite)
(どれ can be used to pick one among two or more things but どっち and どちら are usually used to pick one from two things/people.)
So when you are talking about people and ask “Which one is your brother?” どちら is much more polite than どっち.
Hi Maggie,
I am Japanese Canadian. We named our daughter Remi with the desire for it to mean beautiful. What would your translation of Remi be, and how would you write it using kanji? I know it as 鈴実. But is there an easier way to write the first character? Thank you!
Hi Philip,
Your daughter must be a beautiful girl.
the meaning of 鈴実? 鈴=bell 実=real, honest, truth, full filled, fruits
If you want the meaning of “beauty” you can switch the second kanji to 美(=mi)
I checked other options of the name Remi. It won’t be easier but…
礼美
怜美
玲海
澪美
Depending how you read it, it’s either “in ones heart” or “double (lovers) suicide”?! boucingheart! Along with the variation 無理心中 “forced double suicide” this is a common word and even a JLPT N1 term! I was wondering, is this a common phenomenon in Japan? Because I never heard of something like that before, and I can’t even imagine how a forced double suicide works…
夜中に心中のことを考えていましたか？（笑）
It is a very sad phenomenon but we sometimes hear 無理心中・一家心中 (a suicide of an entire family） on the news…
OK, now it is 昼間, daytime so let’s think about something more uplifting! :)
ホテルで働く人はホテルの店員ではなくスタッフです。
The one who works at the reception is called 受付(うけつけ）or レセプション。bellboy is ベルボーイ、doorman is ドアマン. But when you talk to them, you don’t use their job title.
When you refer to them (to someone else) you add ~の方(=no kata) Ex.受付の方(Uketsuke no kata) , スタッフの方(=Sutaffu no kata), etc.
If you stay at a traditional Japanese hotel, the main hostess is called 女将さん(=okamisan) and the maids care called 仲居さん(=Nakaisan)
Okay, thank you for the information. I’ll be staying in a hotel, not a ryokan. I realize that my question was a bit ambiguous. What I meant by title was not their specific job title, but whether there are words equivalent to “sir” or “ma’am” that would serve as a polite way to address the staff. Thank you again!
@Palidor
We don’t have equivalent terms for “sir” or “ma’am” in Japanese. (Except Japanese ryokan. We address 女将さん=okamisan But since you are not staying in 旅館, just stick to the polite form.)
FYI You might already check this lesson but I have this lesson. ホテルの日本語
Okay, thank you! :grin: Yes, I did read that lesson, and I’ll be sure to read it again before my trip. I’m determined to speak Japanese as much as I can, though I must admit that I feel rather nervous about it.
Thanks for thiss:) i have my answers on my homework;)
Thank you for another lesson, a lot of usefull variations and vocabulary. By the way, a friend of mine who doesn’t speak Japanese wanted to be a good tourist and learned some of these phrases. But everytime he proudly asked someone “toire wa doko desu ka”, the surprised Japanese people showered him in questions, compliments and remarks and anything but directions, of which he of course understood none. He always had to find the toilet on his own…
Anyhow, I have some minor questions.
1. In the sentence “Meiji jinguu ni iku niwa kono michi de atte imasu ka?”, could you explain the grammatical funktion of “niwa”? I never get used to particles after verbs.
2. I often hear the 聞いてみて expression in this connection, like in 交番で聞いてみてください。 Its often translated as “go ask and see” which I find strange, as I would think its “try asking”. So which translation is correct? And I always wondered, why do I have to “try” and not just ask right away, as in 聞いてください. Is みて a necessary part of this expression?
Also, I found some typos. Look for “arimsauka” ,”dokon”, “eki no eki”, “Dochira ye” and “Where would like to go?” that could use a subject. And “3階” could also be “sangai”, right?
Hi there,
Ohhh your friend should have said, “ところでトイレはどこですか？”(By the way, where is the restroom?) / すみません、トイレの場所を聞いていたのですが….(Sorry. I was asking where the bathroom is..) After hearing all the compliments.
1) This niwa means “in order to”
”Meiji Jinguu ni iku niwa ” = In order to go to Meiji Jinguu
2. The literal translation is “to try / give it a try” but ~てみて is a suggestion and it has a function to soften the command form.
聞いてください = Go ask (sounds stronger) → (Sounds much softer) 聞いてみてください。
Thank you for spotting the typo. I will fix it. ありがとう！
Hi Hugo,
Here is the thing. When you are talking to the boss or someone related to the boss and talk about when your boss invited you to his house, you have to use the honorific expression.
＊Expressing your gratitude towards your boss,
Ex. 本日は、ご招待を頂き有り難うございました。
Ex. 本日は、お招き頂き有り難うございます。
*Talking about the time when your boss invited you to someone superior or related to the boss.
Ex.先日、〜課長（部長）ご招待頂きご自宅にお邪魔しました。etc.
However, if you are simply talking about factual thing, you don’t need to use polite form.
I wouldn’t say “goshuusama no koto de gozaimasu”
If you want a polite form for “goshuusama deshtia”, you say “(誠に)ご愁傷様でございます。(makoto ni) goshuushousama de gozaimasu”
I’m so glad to have found your site! It’s very informative and I have learned a lot from you. !heart3!
So say that someone you met online (but haven’t met in person) tells you “あなたのことが気になるよ”. To my understanding “気になる” could also mean “I like you” or “I’m curious/interested about/in you”. Is that right?
Then I want to ask this person, “Why are you interested in me?” Previously you went over the phrase “どうして私のことが好きなの？” but what are some other ways to ask this question without using the word “好き”? I think “好き” is too strong a word to use in this case.
Would any of these phrases work?
何故私のことが気になるの？
私のどかが気になるの？
私のことをどう思う？
What would sound more natural? I also don’t want to sound too direct or rude.
Hi Sofia,
I am glad that you found my site as well. :)
As you said the feeling of 好き is stronger than 気になる
So when someone says あなたのことが気になります and if you say “どうして私のことが好きなの？”, the person might feel pressured so you should avoid using the word 好き
And if you want to know the reason,
何故私のことが気になるの？ →OK or どうして私のことが気になるの？
私のどかが気になるの？ →私のどこが気になるの？
私のことをどう思う？→A bit straight forward but OK
Or if you feel happy, just tell him 私のことが気になると聞いて嬉しいです。without asking a question.
Hello, Maggie-sensei. I have a question related to ‘dewa arimasen’. What are the differences between the following four sentences and when (in what situation) should I use each one? Thank you very much!!!
– ペンではありません。
– ペンじゃありません。
– ペンではない。
– ペンじゃない。
hi
i was wondering if kurai could be used to say ‘this school has about 800 students’ and if so how would that sentence look? im really struggling on where to sentence layout.
arigatou gozaimasu. :-D
Thank you… the google translator says: Kanojo wa itsumo kanojo no kusuri o torimasu for she always takes her medicine. I guess that is not correct. :grin: I am glad I check here first and now know the correct way to say take you medicine. Thanks you site is wonderful. I have learned a lot from your lessons. boucingheart! :uparrow:
can I use some of the words in WhatsApp, LINE and in other chat applications ??
and about ( omaera no ~ sarase ), can I use anata/anatatachi instead? because you taught us that ( omaera) is to be used with close friends and not polite to use.
and can I request a lesson about how to use: Verb in masu form+genai
ex: yurugenai = stable, not shaky)
and another lesson about uchi ni.
ex: chikai uchi ni, = soon.
ex: wasurenai uchi ni= before I forget
Hi Roro,
Though there is a trend to use ~を晒せ hashtag but 晒せ is actually a very rough expression. So even if you say あなた, it still sounds blunt.
教えて is friendlier and polite.
OK, I will add うち on my request list. Please wait patiently.
good morning sir 天人 . Thank you so much for answering them for me and telling me bonus infos..
.n_n. you are really smart as always.
my question for today are:
Q1
さて、今日は何をして遊ぼうかな… (from かな lesson)
Hmm…what should I play with today.
I would like to ask, what is the difference between して遊ぶ and the plain 遊ぶ?
——–
Q2
サグラダファミリアは建築家ガウディーによって設計されました。
SagradaFamilia was designed by an architect, Gaudi.
(from受身 lesson)
によって= depeding
Would there be a big difference if によって is removed?
Or is it customary to add よって to に in passive type sentences and I don’t have to translate it to (depending to/in etc.)?
————-
もう-1) already, anymore 2) soon, shortly 3) more, further, other, again 4) interjection used to strengthen expression of an emotion (often exasperation)
I would like to confirm if the もう that is included in these sentences are the もう that = interjection used to strengthen expression of an emotion (often exasperation)…? looks like it is customary to add もう before you list bad things about you/your family when you/your family is being praised..
———-
Q4
[she wants him to go to japan]
If I will try translate this using 欲しい, please help me fill in the blanks…
彼女[?]彼[?]日本に行くって欲しい..
if the format is wrong, I would like to ask for dear maggie’s version or sir 天人’s version using
欲しい.
—–
Q6
お茶も出さないで申し訳ございません。 (from 謙遜 lesson)
“I am sorry that we didn’t even serve you a cup of tea.”
i would like to ask, would there be a big difference [in nuance] if I will turn出さないで into出さなくて?
お茶も出さなくて申し訳ございません。
———–
Q7
順位だけが全てではありませんが、
努力してきたその過程も含め
今回1位という結果が出たこと。
Ranking isn’t everything、
But including the course of our hard work
It resulted in this 1st place。
i would like to ask if the interpretation of the translator is right?
my interpretation, though, it is kinda vague is:
including the course where we have been working so hard at leads to..
it brought our song into number 1 spot…
my english is also not good so i am not really sure if i was able to present my interpretation exactly as i thought, but please bear with me if i got these all wrong sir 天人..
——-
thank you much in advance dear maggie sensei and sir 天人..
hope you are having a great time dear maggie sensei..
oh speaking of which, the anniversary is drawing near. .n_n.
Answer nr 1
～して遊ぼう。 is a fixed construction which implies “to do something for fun” / “to amuse oneself”, like in: 雨降りには何をして遊ぶか。
何を遊ぶ means just: “what do (/ does someone) play”.
Answer nr 2
The fixed construction によって ～られた is used in sentences, where “designed by / created by / made by / discovered by” appears. It implies that someone important has done something important for the world.
Answer nr 3
Yes, this もう used here implies strong emotions.
もう has 2 meanings in this case:
1. ある感情や感動が高まったときに用いられる。
2. やや非難・叱責の気持ちをこめていう。
Answer nr 4.
彼女が彼に日本に行って欲しい… or …行ってもらいたい。
行くって欲しい sounds strange and it’s incorrect.
Here って implies a quotation and 行く verb doesn’t imply volition.
Answer nr 5.
Well, there’s no question 5…
Answer nr 6.
～くて申し訳ございません。
～で申し訳ございません。
Both constructions are correct.
However ～くて implies a reason and it’s more natural to use it with ごめんあさい、すみなせん、よかった etc.
～くて申し訳ございません。 I’m terribly sorry that…; I…. so / and I’m sorry (for that).
～で申し訳ございません。 I…. , I’m sorry.
Answer nr 7.
Both interpretations are correct.
This してきた implies that this 努力 has taken a really long and hard time (=have been working on so hard).
The first interpretation doesn’t show us this nuance.
Good day sir 天人
Thank you so much for answering..i really appreciate it
haha, sorry for not having number 5.. .n_n.
My questions for today are:
——
Q1
辛い時も優しい言葉をかけてくれる家族みんな
(to my family who comforts me during tough times)
(“thank you” is the last line of this paragraph)
If I will assume that it is the [emphasizing も], is it interchangeable with に?
辛い時に優しい言葉をかけてくれる家族みんな
If so, what would be the basic difference?
I have read before that 時に has emphasize more the time and if there is only 時, there is no emphasis. But how about the [emphasizing も]
——
Q2
1.[名詞]を[場所]に/で忘れた
2.[名詞]を[場所]に/で忘れてきた
I left [noun] at [somewhere]
I would like to ask what rule for てきた should I apply for 忘れてきた?
———-
Q3
I would like to ask if I got these right.
聞いてくる人 could mean:
a. a person that comes to ask (a person that approaches someone to ask)
b. a person that comes to listen (a person that approaches someone to listen)
—–
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人.
Answer nr 1
If you put に instead of も then the meaning will change a bit.
に will imply that you are grateful only for that (= that all members of your familiy supported you in your hard times, and only in hard times).
も will imply that you are grateful to your family for supporting you in good times as well as in bad / hard times. も implies therefore “even, also, …, too”. It sounds better because it puts more emphases.
Answer nr 2
We use …に何かを忘れる, not で.
忘れた vs 忘れてきた
Meaning is the same. 強いていえば、you can translate 「忘れてきた」 as: “left”
私は鍵をどこに忘れてきたかな～。 = I wonder where I left my keys.
鍵を忘れてきた。 = I left my keys.
鍵を忘れた。 = I forgot my keys.
すみません、宿題を忘れました。 = I’m sorry, I forgot to do my homework.
すみません、宿題をどこかに忘れてきた。 = I’m sorry, I left my homework somewhere.
Answer nr 3
Both answers are correct. It depends on the context.
Most natural, I’d say, is “to ask”, rather than “to listen”.
Good day dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人
Belated happy anniversary.. if my memory is right, august 5 is the date?
Thank you so much for regularly answering my questions, I am really grateful to you and to sir 天人..
My question for today is:
I don’t know if this is the right question in order to understand this sentence but I will try my best.
this was the first time I saw 言ってる becomes 言ってられる (I think that
られる here is probably the passive form of 言ってる
I would like to ask why 言われない has not been used?
Is it because アリーナ has been previously mentioned in 『アリーナやドームでライブができるようになりたい！』と書いた後
so 言ってられない is appropriate?
——-
thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人.. .n_n.
@obakasan000
Awwwww how sweet of you to remember the anniversary. It is August 6th but it is Japan time so August 5th may work for some other country. Arigatou for all your support. I started this blog in 2009. That means it’s 6th year anniversary.
OK, let me see your question.
The English site translated her sentence pretty accurately.
That られる is not a passive form. It is a potential form but depending on the sentence, you translate with “should”.
言ってられない
言っている = to be saying, have been saying
言っていられない= can’t be saying, can’t say → shouldn’t say
(casual contraction)
→言ってられない
Ex. 両親のおかげでこうやって生活していられる= Thanks to my parents, I can live like this.
Ex. こんなことやっていられない →こんなことやってられない = It is not the time to do such a thing/ (I shouldn’t be doing this.)
Dear Maggie-sensei.
I came across an expression when I was reading a novel but I can’t figure out by myself.
The expression is なんかもいたりして
I’ll give you the complete sentence and my interpretation about it.
And when I have the first class of the new school term, I just end up listening to my colleages(classmates) bragging about exaggerated stories of their trips. Between them, a story from a guy who traveled abroad (NANKA MO ITARI SHITE?), I always find myself in the side of those who just end up listening that kind of stories.
I know there might be some incongruences in my “translation”, but more than considering it as such, I would prefer call it “adaptation”. But anyway….
I understand the concept of almost everything, but I don’t really know what’s the usage of NANKA MO ITARI SHITE.
If you note something important to point out in my “adaptation-interpretation” please tell me, after all I’m just learning.
And of course, I hope you can help me about that expression.
Thanks in advance.
Note: English is not my first language so forgive my possible mistakes.
中に海外旅行になったヤツなんかもいたりして… = Between them there was for example a guy, who managed to go aboard (lit. a guy, who was on a foreign/international travel), and so on…
I said “cannot express” but I can read and understand (most part of the times) :)
Honestly, that was difficult to express.
I already understand why I couldn’t figure out first time when I read it.
Basically I just was mistaking いたる(至る) and いる (two very differents verbs in every aspect).
In this case itarishite is from IRU. (To exist)
For itaru, I should have used ittari, right? (according to the rules of the conjugation for tari-form)
Anyway, that’s why it didn’t make sense to me.
Tari is a form we used to list two actions or two states (or maybe more) but there are some cases when you can list just one action. Just like my example, right?
But when you use tari to list just one action, in this case there is no need to list more because they have similars “usages/characteristics”(in meaning or what they imply)
For example:
新聞を読んだりして友達が来るのを待っていた。
I was waiting my friend to come doing things like reading a newspaper (and stuff*)
What can the subject of this sentence do while he is waiting for his friend?
A lot of stuff, in this case he just say that he was reading a newspaper but he could have done more stuff, like watch TV, drink water, have a light meal, go to the toilet, etc…And even he could have done just one thing: read the newspaper…
where all the examples I gave are the “stuff” placed in the context, obviously they are different in meanings but they are things you can do while waiting for someone and therefore they have some things in common but since if not really neccesary to explain all the things you do, you just say “I was waiting for him while reading a newspaper and stuff like that”.
Maybe I just misunderstand something or maybe not…In any case I understand more than before and I know what my mistake was.
If something is wrong with what I have just say, I’ll appreciate all the suggestion/explanation you can do.
About your message.
The explanation about the “nanka” and the particule “mo” is an easy matter. I think I have no problem with grasp the concept about them.
About the question: Is this really 登校目? I think it should be 登校日.
Yes, you’re right. That was a typo.
And about your japanese explanation.
I understood everything…..except for the last expressión
他に同類の事柄がなおあることを暗示する。
I just figured the meaning by context but I don’t know how to put that into english
こんにちは！
Q. For itaru, I should have used ittari, right? (according to the rules of the conjugation for tari-form)
A: itattari （至ったり）
Q. Tari is a form we used to list two actions or two states (or maybe more) but there are some cases when you can list just one action. Just like my example, right?
A. Indeed. Sometime the speaker just wants that other examples are implied in supposition. We can translate this as: “etc / and so on / and other stuff”. This other examples belong to the same group（同類の事柄）.
This other stuff in your example 「新聞を読んだりして友達が来るのを待っていた。」 would – most natural – be: watching TV. I think drinking water, having a meal or going to the toilet doesn’t fit in this group much. You have to image the most natural things that you do, when you are waiting for someone. You have to do something, that makes the time run much faster. You have to kill the time somehow, so you’re watching TV. Drinking water is a bit… strange.
Q. I just figured the meaning by context but I don’t know how to put that into English Especcially that “nao aru koto”. Could you please give me some details about that.
A. ～がなおある = there are more / still / further…; yet there are…
～ことを暗示する = it implies that…
他に同類の事柄がなおあることを暗示する。= It implies, that there are still other things, which belongs to the same group.
こんにちは！ocd!
返事が遅れてごめんなさい。今、旅行中でWiFiがつながりません。
今日は長い日本語の文章、よく書けていますよ。U^ェ^U
直すところあまりないですが、ちょっと気になるところだけお手伝いしますね。（→犯人を見つける技術について書かれていました。/→not sure but you meanあの技術について是非調べてみたいです。?）後半は本当によく書けています。
韓国語も難しそうですが、日本語みたいにきっと上達も早いと思います。がんばってくださいね。
こんにちは！わあぁ、そんな早い返事をすると期待しなかったよ。今度は私がごめんねと言う番ね。ごめんなさい、返事が遅れて。
旅行はどうだった？
そんないい言葉はありがとう。マギー先生はすごく優しいなぁ。
あの文章は「I would like to be examined by that technique」と言いたかった。
Hello Miss Maggie and Yukari.
I’ve been into this nonsense adventure for five years now (with two continuous years without attending formal classes).
I must thank you both from the bottom of my heart because I’ve learned more with you than with anyone else (and it’s been only 30 minutes since I visited your site for the first time!)
Thank you for making look the study of the Japanese language as something as normal as breathing
I miss those days when I’ve had just started! The illusions I had about starting this life proyect.
Your explanations are clear and concise and I appreciate much that. I feel like I’ve lose so much time and now I hope to be able to go forward without hesitating anymore.
I wish to be as good as you Maggie 先生, someday
So that I can if possible, help fellow Japanese learners to be better regardless of their level of English (I’m a native Spanish speaker)
本当にありがとうございます！
これからもずっと、応援します。 !heartsippai!
@ブルーナイト
Sorry for the late reply. I’m on vacation now.Thank you for your nice message!
When we make a lesson, we think of all of you hoping you enjoy learning Japanese. So we are VERY happy to hear you get to learn something from our lessons. We hope you keep studying Japanese with fun! これからもまたこのサイトに来てくださいね。
Maggie-senseiへ、
I love all the lessons on here, they are extremely useful and well written. I have a question though !DANCING!
Can ～て(い)ない have a で attached after the ない to have a similar meaning to the soft imperative (1st base verb)ないで [e.g. 怒らないで]? If so, does the ～てform(い)ない one imply a progressive action over the other, (1st base verb)ないで one?
Hopefully you can understand my question (I didn’t word it very well) ahah
Thanks in advance !JYANE!
First, ありがとう！for your nice message.
Q：Can ～て(い)ない have a で attached after the ない to have a similar meaning to the soft imperative (1st base verb)ないで [e.g. 怒らないで]?
→Yes
If so, does the ～てform(い)ない one imply a progressive action over the other, (1st base verb)ないで one?
→Yes
1) 怒らないで Don’t get mad
2) 怒っていないで・怒ってないで(casual) Don’t stay mad (focusing on the state/condition)
I realized that instead of ある、 you have used あった in this sentence, 今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。But the way i intepreted it, it is no different than ある.
We all know that ある is the present form as such, we can understand that the Bed has been already made for today (Since the state is there after bed making). Hence, what i could interpret it my way is that the state may no longer be there when we use あった instead (It could be there somebody went to the bed and we do not know or such).
May I know why is that so? Would appreciate it if you can show me an example in both its present tense and past tense may help me to understand better in this matter.
Hi Kelvin,
I think it is related my verb tense lessons (Part 1, Part 2)
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。
You are already in the bed or telling someone that you saw someone made a bed for you.
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあるよ。
You are not in the bed yet. You are looking at the clean bed.
Ex. H. 「お部屋は禁煙フロアーで宜しかったでしょうか？」
= Oheya wa kinen [n] furoaa de yoroshikatta deshouka?
Ex. H. 「お部屋に御案内致します。」
= Oheya ni goan [n]nai itashimasu.
Ex. 「シャツをクリーニングを出したいのですがいつ出来ますか？」
= Shatsu wo kuri [i]iningu wo dashitai no desu ga itsu dekimasu ka?
Ex. H. 「タクシーをお呼び [致]しましょうか？」
= Takushii wo oyobi itashimasu ka. [mase or masen or masu]
Ex. H. 「いってらっしゃい[ませ]」
= Itterasshai[mase].
= It literally means “Please go.” but it means “Have a nice day.”
Ex. H. 「お気をつけていってらっしゃい[ませ]。」
= Okiwo tsukete itte rasshai[masen]. [thug life :xd]
I don’t know if they want to think themselves higher than others.
Compared to 僕 (=boku) 俺 (=ore) sounds more blunt and “macho”.
If you use it, people would think you learned Japanese wrongly from anime or something.
If you are interested in “female speech”, go check this lesson → female speech lesson
こんばんは、マギー先生!
Thank you for always help me! ありがとうございます!!
I hope you will help me now, too.
A Japanese said that: 2日前ですか！ペーチ来てたので見逃しました。楽しいイベントみたかった、ざんねん.
I would answer that : お気の毒に。とても楽しかったですよ~
10月にアニメコンベンションがありますできたら来てくださいね. きっと気に入ると思います.
Is this sentence correct?
I would say that: What a pity! It was fun. There will be an anime convention in October, so come if you can. I’m sure you would enjoy it.
おはよう、Fando!
お気の毒に。とても楽しかったですよ~
→I think お気の毒に is too strong for this. How about それは残念でしたね。
10月にアニメコンベンションがありますできたら来てくださいね. きっと気に入ると思います.
→10月にアニメコンベンションがあります。できたら（As I explained in the lesson, if you want to show your friend your enthusiasm you can also say よかったら是非）来てくださいね。
気に入る is OK but for event, きっと楽しいと思います。is more natural.
I’ve been chatting with a friend that I met while studying abroad in Japan, and he recently sent me a message with a verb that I cannot seem to figure out. I haven’t had any luck looking it up either. He said, “レイチェルと新宿で会った時のことを思い出すと、早くそっちに行きたくなるよ”
The part I am having trouble understanding is 行きたくなる, but if you don’t mind, a full translation would be helpful just to make sure I read it correctly. Thanks for your help! Your lessons are so helpful!
Hi Rachel,
Basically he is saying “I want to go there soon (to see you) when I remember the time I met you in Shinjuku.”
So 行きたい= I want to go/ I would like to go →行きたくなる shows the changes of his feelings. →He wants to see you sooner.
Why is that? It should mean “he is very stupid”, is it not?
Second question) Can I instead write
わんわんホテルは新しくなくて豪華じゃな。あのホテルはどころではない。
Third question) If someone say 「わんわんホテルどころではない」, without any context, can I deduce anything from that sentence, like わんわんホテル is inferior or superior than the one speaker has in mind?
よろしくおねがいします (I wanted to say “thank you in advance”, is there any phrase more specific?)
(わんわん is a dog’s bark, right? It would be weird to stay at “arf arf hotel”. >_<
1) That’s the tricky part of ~どころではない
どころではない could be 1) Far from ~ (negating ) “far from stupid! 2) beyond ~ (beyond stupid. Not just stupid. Really stupid) You always have to read what comes after that sentence (Ex. すごく頭がいい・Ex. 本当にばかだ or example stroesi how smart/stupid he is.）and figure out the context.
2) Hmm I think you meant 新しくないし豪華ではない・or 豪華でもない。(or colloquial 豪華じゃない）
And are you comparing わんわんホテル with “that hotel(あのホテル）？ If so, あのホテルどころではない
3) this questions is related to my answer to your first question. You really have to know the context. It may sound confusing but usually we can tell in conversation because both speakers and listeners know what they are talking about.
* Yes, よろしくお願いします is Thank you in advance.
* Yes, わんわん means Arf Arf. I am a dog so there is nothing weird to stay at Arf Arf Hotel. :)
Sensei thx for this lesson XD
But i’d like to ask something, can i translate zehi as ‘make sure’? So ‘zehi kite kudasai ne’ means ‘pls make sure to come’… because that words keep pop up in my head haha
Hi feris!
There are a few ways to translate the sentence with 是非.
As long as that “make sure” involves the speaker’s willingness to invite someone, yes.
Ah you say “janai ka” (blunt expression) when you ask a question or tell people your opinion.
Ex. いいじゃないか = It is nice, isn’t it?
Ex. 明日は雨が降るんじゃないか？= Isn’t going to rain tomorrow? (I think it is going to rain tomorrow. Am I right?)
no I’m confused because of the other definition of ”Ka” than using it as a question marker so I’m asking to help understand why there was a other definition to it
Almost all the particles have several different functions/definitions.
か as well has a a few different functions, more than just a question marker.
This か is to stress your speech. There are other usages of か
Ex. 何回も言ったじゃないですか。
Ex. 何回も言ったじゃないか。(Male speech/ rough)
I told you many times! (making your point)
To understand that other definition of ”Ka” what does ”Konna kachi kata ga aru ka yo” from Bleach said By Ichigo to Ulquiorra mean? because I don’t know what this really means.
Hello Daniel,
The sentence-ending particle combination かよ has 2 meanings:
1. Expressing doubt in a stronger way than 「か」 alone.
2. Expressing irony.
Konna kachi kata ga aru ka yo = こんな勝ち方があるかよ = Is this what you call a win?! / This is not the way you can win a battle!! (The speaker refuses to win a battle this way).
@Daniel
Sorry!I’m in vacación Noé and i can’t access Internet often. Thank you @天人 for helping Daniel!
As always your lessons do not disappoint! Courtney has leveled up! :uparrow: :up!!: マギーせんせい、ありがとうございました！！！
Hey Maggie-Sensei, I have one question. Are there instances where you can say na instead of a negative form, like for example :
馬鹿するな！ Baka suru na! Don’t be an idiot!
Is that only for don’t or can it be used as a negative form as well? Thank you!
First,
you don’t say, 馬鹿するな
→You usually say, 馬鹿なことをするな (= Don’t do stupid things) or ばかばかしいことをするな
Hmmm I am not sure if I understand your question here..
You want to know if the suffix な is only for “Don’t do ~”? If so, we use な when we express our desire 〜たい＋な
Ex. 日本に行きたいな。
= I would like to go to Japan (talking to yourself)
元気なの？→元気？／元気ですか？
（You use なの when you haven’t heard from someone for a long time and worry about that person whether they are doing all right.)
そちらの天気はいかがなの？→いかがですか？ is more natural
ここはすごく暑く死ぬって思うんだよ→ここはすごく暑くて死にそうです。
地獄に住んでいるでしょうか。→地獄に住んでいるみたいです。
とにかく、レッスンは便利で教えてくれてありがとう！→It will be better to separate into two sentences to make it sounds more natural. とにかく、このレッスンは便利です。教えてくれてありがとう。
直してくれてありがとう！
To not be mistaken, from here on I’ll use English.
There are so many grammar points in Japanese that I messed up all of them lol.
About that sentence, I wanted to say: Whatever lesson you make, it’s always very interesting, useful and easy to understand. But the corrected sentence looks much better.
BTW, about this 死にそう, if I want to say: I’m going to melt; or I’m gonna to fall asleep; do I make it the same way as 死にそう?
あいにく一つ見つけ出しました。絶望したー。 A “tokoro” where there should be a “dokoro”. !damedame!
I wanted my first comment to be positive, but here I go again…
What I wanted to say was: you’re amazing. Best Japanese learning site on the web, hands down. I’ve been reading a gazillion books and sites, but thanks to you, I’m finally getting somewhere. I’m from Germany btw., and you have no idea how boring German textbooks on japanese are. And you won’t find any spoken Japanese in it, you can easily go up the JLPT ladder without understanding a word in an anime. Thanks to you, thats changing now.
Anyhow, since I’m German, I always want to know every detail. So, I hope you don’t mind my questions on minor things. Like this:
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
In the first sentence, you use a verb transformed into a noun, in the second a negative verb. I always wonder whats the difference in meaning, when and why do you use こと instead of for example 日本語は書けないどころか話せません。
Also, I’m confused with the wordorder. If I wantet to say: “Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!” Would that be これは鳥どころか鶏じゃありません。 or the other way around. And, if I wanted to say the positive version: “Thats not just a bird, thats a chicken!”, would the order be the same? Because the order changes in English and German, wich makes it confusing and I too tired to find the solution in your examples. It’s 5am here but I can’t just stop in the middle of a lesson, can I.!sleepy!
And thirdly, I noticed that you omit the “する” in what I would think are suru-verbs. Would it also be correct if you added a “する” like this:
今、忙しくて旅行(する)どころではない。?
Hello! Zetsuboumanadeshi!
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it! だから、絶望しないで〜〜！！
So happy to read your nice message. ありがとう！
OK, let me see your questions.
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
OK, as you noticed, there are two ways of saying “can do ~ / to be able to do~”
Verb+ことができる
Verb +れる／られる／える etc.
To be able to write = 書ける or 書くことができる
to be able to read = 読める or 読むことができる
They mean the same.
**
Word order:
“Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!”
→それはにわとりどころか鳥ではありません。
Positive version
“Thats not just a bird, thats a chicken!”,
それは鳥どころかにわとりです。
(But it may look hard to understand because readers don’t think “chicken” is something good.”
It will be easier to understand if you add ただの(= just)
それはただの鳥どころか「にわとり」です。
or without using どころ
それはただの鳥ではなく「にわとり」です。
Hope you get to sleep well tonight.
＊＊
You can say 旅行するどころではない but I’d say 旅行どころではない is more common.
Google Search result 旅行するどころではない hits just 8 while 旅行どころではない hits 7410 sites.
OK, let me see your questions.
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
OK, as you noticed, there are two ways of saying “can do ~ / to be able to do~”
Verb+ことができる
Verb +れる／られる／える etc.
To be able to write = 書ける or 書くことができる
to be able to read = 読める or 読むことができる
They mean the same.
**
Word order:
“Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!” Would that be これは鳥どころか鶏じゃありません。
Hi Magggie sense. Hajimemashite.
I’m Japanese and I study English.
It’s very easy to understand even for me, who’s Japanese. This blog will help not only the people who are learning Japanese but also Japanese who are learning English.
I always look forward to your uploading! Thank you!!!
もし英語で間違っている部分があったら訂正してください…泣
I’ve been wondering for a while now how to say,” just in case.” So tatoeba kumotteiru hiniha “ichiou kasawo motte tsurete okimasu” tte ittemo iidesuka?
Thank you very much!! your site is indeed a great help!! Im just so happy to learn and be able to read japanese word and somehow use it!!! By the way how can i say ‘goodluck to me” in a nice way .. you are awesome!!!!
Hi Kurizu!
I’m happy to hear this site helps you.
Sorry, I don’t quite understand your question. When do you use “good luck to me”?
Do you mean “Wish me luck”?
@Pete
思えば遠くへ来たもんだ
Yes, this もんだ is recalling the past.
You got the meaning right.
(Now I think of it) I have come very far from my hometown for 40 years.
Thanks for the lesson! I have never heard of this expression before, but I understand it now. It is just a bit confusing because it uses the negative form, so it sounds like it means the exact opposite of what it means.
For example: あの店は高いどころじゃない。 here you say the store is so expensive that it is beyond expensive, but at fist I had to read it a few more times to understand it completely, because to me it sounded like the sentence means the store is not expensive at all.
Thinking about that created a doubt in my mind. How do I say the opposite of どころじゃない。?
Using the same sentence as an example, how do I say the store is really cheap? Could I use あの店は安いどころじゃない。? And is there a way to change the meaning and say that the store is far from expensive but meaning that the store is cheap?
Example:
Q:Is this store expensive?
A: No, this store is far from expensive. (meaning that the store is really cheap)
I see. Because it says ~ない, you automatically think this sentence is a negative sentence.
If that store is not expensive, you say
あの店は高くない。 = That store is not expensive.
あの店は全く（全然）高くない。= That store is not expensive at all.
あの店は高いどころじゃない= That store is beyond expensive. → Really expensive.
Yes, you want to describe a really cheap store you can say
あの店は安いどころじゃない。
That store is REALLY cheap. (Just saying “cheap” is not good enough)
Hi Maggie. Relationship troubles! How do I say and write to my long-time middle-aged Japanese girlfriend “I’m really sorry that I let you down so badly” followed by “I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me.”
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! CW
Hi Cabin,
Uh-oh…relationship problem….
“I’m really sorry that I let you down so badly”
to let someone down in Japanese is がっかりさせる・失望（しつぼう）させる
So the translation will be
がっかりさせてしまって本当にごめんなさい。
失望させてしまって本当にごめんなさい。
This kind of message is very sensitive.
But personally if you use the word such as がっかり or 失望(=disappointment) , it may sound strong.
Here are other options…
もし傷つけてしまったらごめんなさい。
( I am sorry if I hurt you.)
Or I assume you already wrote a sentence that you can’t be with that lady anymore. If so, I would avoid using these negative terms and just say 本当にごめんなさい。
good day dear Maggie sensei.
はい, 元気です. Thank you so much for always answering my questions .n_n.
My questions for today are:
Q1
マギー先生の教え[?]分かる為に犬語の勉強をしなくてもいいというのは嬉しいです.
I am happy that I don’t need to study dog language in order to understand maggiesensei’s teachings.
I would like to ask what is applicable for phrases like:
分かる為に
分かるのに
分かるように
[を] or [が]
—–
Q2
全曲フル尺での
パフォーマンスっていうのも、
なかなかレアだったなぁ…
(my understanding is different from the given translation)
My understanding is:
[Performances where all [of our] songs are sung in full (full length) are pretty rare]
My assumption is that this is really [というのは] but [というのも]has emphasis power, while having explanatory tone because of [というの] format..
is my observation correct?
———-
Q3
フルで聴くのは久々な曲とかも
あったでしょ？！
The translation given is:
I’m sure that there were songs
That you haven’t heard fully for a while？！
I would like to ask for とかも…
isit [かもしれない] and the [と] before it, is the [と] that
quotes?
orとかも is really a separate word that does not included in the dictionary?
——-
Q4
たり + して
「休日は、食べたり寝たりして過ごしています。」
(got this from たり lesson)
I spend my days off eating, sleeping and etc.
疲れてるんだけど忙しい時、どーやって疲れを癒したりリフレッシュしてますか？
If my understanding is correct, then i can translate this is as:
When you are tired but busy, how do you do things like [relieving] stress and [refreshing] yourself?
——-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei .n_n.
Q1 I wouldn’t say all the Japanese people know the right stroke order of all the kanji but usually we follow the right stroke order when we write our names.
Q2 I think it should be 誰だろうな・誰かな = Who could it be?
Q3 っこ is a kind of cute (girly) way to say “to do something each other”
good day dear Maggie sensei.
thank you so much for answering .n_n.
oh, sorry for my wrong example..
my questions for today are:
Q1
i would like to ask what is the long version of
やめんか, i think, the root verb is やめる (to stop)..
例:
男: かわいいな (teasing)
女: やめんか..
———–
Q2
鳥取には、なかなかこれなかった分、
初めましての方がたくさんいらっしゃいましたー
Translation given:
Since we haven’t been able to come to Tottori,
there were a lot of people we met for the first time
(many people came for the first time)
I would like to ask for [なかなかこれなかった分]..
なかなか-1) very, considerably,
これなかった- was not able to come (my guess is that [ら] is omitted)
分-part
I would like to ask if the interpretation of the translator was correct?
鳥取には、なかなかこれなかった分 = Since we haven’t been able to come to Tottori
——
Q3
Please correct me if I got this wrong..
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかなと心配していました。
I was afraid Maggie Sensei’s site would be gone.
(got this from かな lesson)
のかな – stresses the doubt / uncertainty..
so if i will remove the のかな, would it show less emotion?
(the speaker is more worried, in the のかな sentence..)
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなると心配していました。
Did I get it right?
Or, if the translation would be totally different, please let me know..
—-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei… .n_n.
Hello Obakasan,
Maggie Sensei is on vacation, therefore I shall answer your questions.
1.
やめんか（い）＝やめないか = Would you stop it? やめんなや＝やめるなよ！ = Stop it now!!! It’s Kansai dialekt.
2.
This translation is correct. 「来れる」 = 「来られる」. It is calleg ら抜き言葉.
食べられる=食べれる
見られる=見れる
It’s very important to know, that you can use ら抜き言葉 ONLY with the potencial （可能） meaning of （ら）れる. In 尊敬 and 受身 meaning of （ら）れる you cannot use ら抜き言葉.
Also 分 implies 物事の状態／様子／程度 therefore we can translate it as: because, since, etc. It’s rarely used, often with この、その、あの; in this case it implies: as affairs / matters now stand; as the case /matter, situation now stands; as things are / go, stand now, etc.
3.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなると心配していました。 => Speaker is more or less (I’d say more) sure that Maggie Sensei’s site will disappear one day and he’s afraid of that.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるかなと心配していました。 => Speaker is less sure that Maggie Sensei’s site will disappear. He’s just wondering and at the same time he’s afraid of that.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのではないかと心配していました。==> Speaker supposes that Maggie Sensei’s site might disappear one day and he’s afraid of that.
ご参考になれば幸いです。
i wonder if husbands refer to their wives or fathers to their children as きみ？or if family members are using it to each other as well? :)) and i wonder how fine or okay it is to refer to your wife as おまえ lol
Yes. There are husbands who refer to their wife as きみ. But usually fathers call their children with their name or お兄ちゃん、お姉ちゃん、if they are older brother/sister.
It depends on the family but usually husbands refer to their wife お母さん in front of children.
(I mentioned it in my family related lessons.)
Though it sounds pretty blunt, there are affectionate husbands or boyfriends who call their wife お前
Hello! :) Thank you so much for your lessons! They’re always so detailed and I learn a lot.
Although I’ve read this one as well, I came across a sentence which I can’t totally get the meaning of ばっかり. The sentence is ‘将来、デビューしたいけど、もしできなくても悲観ばっかりはしないです’. Does it mean something like ‘I want to debut in the future but, if I’m not able to, I won’t be disappointed.’?
Thank you so much! ^^
Hi Aida,
We don’t usually say 悲観ばっかりする・しない
I think he meant “悲観的（な気持ちばかり）になる・ならない”
So basically he is saying “将来、デビューしたいけど、もしできなくても(Though he would love to make a debut in future) もしできなくても(=even if he can’t)
悲観的（な気持ちばかり）にならない He won’t just stay pessimistic
(Hm, seems like the previous comment didn’t get transmitted properly. Re-sending.)
このレッスンをありがとうございました!!
私にとって、これは大切なレッスンなんです!!
I’m on an intensive Japanese language course now and was just introduced to “transitive verbs” and “intransitive verbs” yesterday. The learning progress had been smooth sailing until this point and I was a bit stumped by yesterday’s class. But as is always, when in doubt, refer to MaggieSensei.com ;)
The way you explained it was very intuitive and logical. It makes sense now :) Only managed to read half of the lesson right now but will finish this for sure.
Hello Jane!
コメント、うれしく読みました。
Ohh transitive verbs and intransitive verbs are difficult, huh?
But hope you enjoy learning Japanese in your intensive course.
You are always welcome to practice Japanese in this comment sections. I will check your sentences.
がんばって！
It is nice/good to do something
The translation could be the same as
~no ga ii
~no wa ii
but 〜もいい(=mo ii) is more subtle than ~がいい(-ga ii) or 〜はいい(=wa ii) and more suggestive.
Ex. たまには温泉に行くのもいいですね。
= Tamani wa onsen ni iku no mo iidesune.
= It is nice to go visit hot springs once in a while.
Ex. 京都に行くのもいいですね。
= Kyouto ni iku no mo iidesune.
= Visiting Kyoto would be nice,too.
こんばんは、マギー先生! Thank you for this lesson, it was very useful! ありがとうございます!!
I would like to ask a question. A Japanese boy asked that—-> ハンガリーの方……日本在住ですか?
It’s not clear for me, I’m a beginner. T_T and I don’t know how should I answer.
Could you please help me? Thank you for your help in advance.
こんにちは、Fando!
ハンガリーの方ですか？ (Hangarii no kata desu ka) means “Are you Hungarian?”
(方 is more polite than 人）
If you are, you can say
はい、そうです。(=Hai soudesu) Yes, I am.
If you are not,
いいえ、ちがいます。(=Iie chigaimasu.) No I am not.
If you want to tell that person what your nationality is,
いいえ、〜〜人です。
Ex. いいえ、ルーマニア人です。
= Iie, Ruumania jin desu.
= No, I am Romanian.
日本在住ですか？= Is a formal way to say “日本に住んでいますか？= Nihon ni sunde imasu ka” It means “Do you live in Japan?”
If you do,
はい、日本に住んでいます。
= Hai, nihon ni sunde imasu.
If you don’t
いいえ、〜〜に住んでいます。
= Iie, ~~~ ni sunde imasu.
= No, I live in ~~
Oh, I get it. Are there many of verbs with two forms like 飲む? And is there any difference, like one is more polite or something?
I really wish japanese didn’t have so many of these little details, and exceptions and tricks that confuse so easily. Well, I guess that is part of what makes the language so interesting.
Hello Maggie-sensei~! I’ve been using this site for reference for a while, but looking at this lesson, I couldn’t answer the question I had. :cryingboy:
Can you tell me if 「食べてみ」 and 「クリックしてみ」, or other verbs like that are just a shortened/colloquial form of ～てみる? Thank you so much for your reply, I appreciate it~! !heartsippai!
This is the conversation:
A: 私はあなたを愛し、私は不注意な男です。時々私は結果を考えずに物事を行います。私はちょうど恐れてあなたを失います..
B: そんなもんです
I cannot understand what the B mean by that. Thank You
Oh is it?
I don’t notice it because i still can’t read japanese languange correctly
i just used google translate to read that, and i find difficulties knowing the B mean
Thank You BTW for giving me the information
So from the context, what is B thinking by “That’s the way it goes.”
From my translation, A is loving B and don’t want to lose B, but he seems to be reckless person. is that correct?
@Human
Your translation is more or less correct. Except the part “I do things without thinking well”
Yes, that sentence sounds like someone tried to translate it with Google translation or something.
＠Human
Hello Human!
そんなもんです / “そんなものです” means “That’s the way it goes.”
I would like to ask you about the function of も in the following sentence
“特に何の反応もない…”
For context, the person heard something loud coming from a locker, thinking that something is in there and shook it, then the sentence pops up)
What exactly does the も do in the sentence? I don’t think the function described in this lesson is the one, since there is no “number”
My translation is “nothing (no response) in particular”, but I think I completely ignored the も
I would also like to ask another function of も, which I read from another website (but can only recall a little bit of the information) that it “compares”
I think the も in Danny G’s question (topmost) has the same function, in that it compares everyone in the world (only a few goes to church on Sunday mornings and others don’t). Is this correct? If not, can you tell me if も even “compares”?
I would be really grateful if you can help me, and thank you for the great lesson :-P
@Nazaka
Hi Nazaka
Ah I should have added this usage, huh?
You use も in the following cases to emphasize.
There is NO ~~
→何も〜ない
→何の〜もない
NOBODY does ~ / There is NOBODY
→誰も〜ない
ANY ~ isn’t/doesn’t ~
→どの〜も〜ない
→どこの〜も〜ない
Any ~ is/does ~
→どの〜も〜
→どこの〜も〜
I just added the information in the lesson now.
As for your other question, I will get back to you later. I gotta go now. Sorry!
OK, I am back and read your question again but I don’t understand what you meant by も as comparison.
If you find an example sentence, please let me know.
マギー先生！久しぶりだね！お元気ですか？何かあった？「かんぺきな計算で作られた楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない愛してる。」 I would translate it in which way? “In a paradise made by perfect calculation, the only thing that isn’t a lie is love.” or “In a paradise of perfect calculation has been made, the only thing that is true is love.” I think that the first way sounds more natural. どう思う? ありがとう ございます！
Perfumeの歌で勉強しているの？
Lyrics are hard to interpret but this is what I think…
Maybe you should separate it into two
1) かんぺきな計算で作られた楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない
2) 愛してる
1) かんぺきな計算で造られた楽園
OK, here you see a passive form 造られた which modifies 楽園
The paradise (which is) made with perfect calculation.
Now you see the whole sentence
(かんぺきな計算で作られた)楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない
で here is a location marker.
There is one thing which is not false (in the paradise (which is)made…..)
and continue, rephrasing what is not false…the feeling of love
Difficult datta :cryingboy: :cryingboy:
It’s useful, but too much to memorize but I see this word too much in the JLPT N4 exercises. Thank you for this lesson!
Hell Angelina,
Don’t cry!!!!!!!
And don’t give up! !nemui!
You don’t need to memorize anything. Feel free to practice making sentence using なかなか here. I will check it for you.
Hello!
You use ~というの？（more casual: 〜っていうの）when you accuse /complain/ showing strong emotions towards the listener. (How could I ~? implying it is difficult to do so. )
It looks like a question but it is actually you just want to vent out your emotion.
So it sounds much stronger than regular question form.
こんにちはMaggie先生！
I love your website! I have a question: I wanted to create a twitter account to practice my Japanese but can I use the casual form in my tweets or is it going to seem rude?
Thank you!
こんにちは、Jade!
Twitter is a great to way to practice Japanese.
Can I use the casual form in my tweets or is it going to seem rude?
Being casual and being blunt are different.
Being casual and friendly is good on Twitter. It all depends on who you talk to.
Observe what kind of Japanese the people you follow use. Talk to them “desu” form first and then when you get to know them better, switch to more casual Japanese.
If you talk to them super formal Japanese to begin with, it may be hard to change. So I would say aim between casual and formal.
If you make an account, tweet to me in Japanese. I can always practice with you. :)
hi maggie sensei, this is a very helpful lesson of yours. i’ve been wondering what’s the perfect way of requesting someone to take my photo. i came up with this sentence:
Shashin wo totte moratte ii desu ka?
i patterned it based on what you just taught us. im not sure if i got it right because i’m not really good in understanding/composing japanese sentences. please help. !cryingboy!
Hello bimbolera,
Shashin wo totte moratte ii desu ka?
As long as you know what I wrote in the remarks,you can say that.
(→Though we hear this usage a lot in conversation (especially among young people), this expression may offend some people because it sounds a bit condescending.)
I will show you some ways to ask that question in Japanese.
写真を撮って頂いてもよろしいでしょうか？ (Very polite)
= Shashin wo totte itadaite mo yoroshii deshouka?
写真を撮って頂けますか？ (polite)
= Shashin wo totte itadakemasu ka?
写真を撮ってくれますか？(standard)
=Shashin wo totte kuremasu ka?
写真を撮ってもらえますか？ (conversational but polite enough )
= Shashin wo totte moraemasuka?
arigatou gozaimasu maggie-sensei! !heartsippai! i adore your blog. i’ve been following it on bloglovin’. looking forward to more of your lessons. yoku gambattane! :k:
いもうとは日本に行っています。
means
My sister is in Japan now. (implying she doesn’t live where the speaker lives.)
If you say “She is going to Japan” it means future so いもうとは日本にいきます。
This case is not so complicated but ている can be used for various verb tenses and you have to figure it out by context or time related word.
Go check verb tense lesson.
Good evening Sensei! ^^ Thank you for this post. It’s so useful! And you’re a very great teacher.^^
I have a question. I would like to say to a boy: “Your smile is so cute.” Could you please tell me that if this sentence correct? -> 笑顔はめっちゃ可愛いです! Thank you for your help in advance. ありがとうございます ^^
Oh, thanks for the quick reply! Sometimes I get a bit confused about the use of は and が, is there a lesson about that in this site? If not, could you make one in the future?
@reid
You’re welcome!
It’s already on the request lessons. :)
I couldn’t find it, maybe it was the way I searched for it , sorry for bothering so much, but could you link the lesson here?
@reid
Oh sorry.. “It’s on the request list” means I haven’t made the lesson yet but I will in future.
Actually that will be my final goal…
It is going to be a very tough lesson for me to make. There is even a book on the difference between が and は
Oh, I see. I didn’t know it was such an extensive topic. Thank you again.
Hii~ I love this site, you’re so great!
Let me ask a question. How should I say ” Come to Hungary! I’m sure you would like my country.”
Thank you for your help in advance! ^.^
Hello Maggie!
Even after your lesson I still couldn’t figure out this sentence:
好きなことばっかり書いているブログですが、私のブログブログもよろしくお願いします。
Even though this lesson was really helpfull! :k:
So 好きなことばかり書く= sukina koto bakari kaku = to write only what you like
ばっかり is a casual way to say ばかり
So the person says he/she just writes what he/she likes on his/her blog.
But he/she wants you to visit.
(Trying to say: Actually, Maggie-sensei, textbooks have been getting more colloquial. I studied Japanese for the first time perhaps ten years ago, and then we were not taught なきゃ / なくちゃ, but in my Genki II textbook this year we were taught these forms! 不適切な言葉遣いがありましたら、申し訳ありません。)
oops, that should say 教えませんが、not 教えますが. In my defense, I usually use plain forms as conjunctions, but I was trying to be a bit more polite for Maggie-sensei.
１０年ぐらい前に初めて日本語を勉強した時には、「なきゃ」「なくちゃ」は習いませんでしたが、
（If you want to use “were not taught” →教えられませんでした (Passive form) but 教えてもらえませんでした is more natural)
今年の「元気2」という教科書では、〜を教えてあります。
(If you want to use には
今年の「元気2」という教科書には〜〜があります。or 書いてあります）
びっくりします is fine. But you were surprised so びっくりしました/ 驚きました may be better.)
Arigatou ! Yes, it is from a lyrics:
Ima, tada shiritai no eien ja nai
kono mama zutto mite itai kedo
sono sora ippai no kami hikouki kurai ni natte
hitotsu dake mitsukete
So, basically, the GURAI here marks the amount of the airplane he/she wants to become?
OK,let me try again. I am still not sure what this lyrics means but
“gurai” there modifies “kami hikouki” (paper plane).
Becoming (like) a paper airplane (in the sky)
“Sora ippai no kamihikouki” could be wither the sky is filled with paper planes or a big paper airplane which covers the sky fully.
Not negative or positive.
If someone is talking to oneself, it simply means “I have to do it / I gotta do it”
If that person is talking to someone else, やらなきゃいけないでしょ= You have to do it.
So I was looking up the usages of ~ている and stumbled upon this awesome website! Thank you very much.
I still don’t understand what is the distinctive difference between the habits/facts/general actions for which we can use both ～る/う and ~ている, and for those we can only use ～る/う?
You said we only use ～る/う form “When you talk about something in general or about something that happens all the time.” But is not this the case for all habitual actions?
What is the difference between the cat example (うちの猫は兄が呼ぶと死んだふりをする/ します) and going to a university everyday, for example? Why could not we use ～ている form for the cat example?
Hello Mohamed
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site and はじめまして！
Generally speaking, as I explained in the lesson,
*When you are just talking about the present situation, 今 ( = ima), now, 現在 ( = genzai) present time, not the regular activity or routine, you don’t use 〜る( = ru) / ～ます ( = masu) form. Instead, you use 〜ている ( = ~ teiru) / 〜ています ( = ~ teimasu) form.
今、大学に通っています
But When you talk about something in general or about something that happens all the time, you use る・う form.
Ex. 日本人は主食に米を食べる。/ 食べます。
Ex. うちの猫は兄が呼ぶと死んだふりをする/ します
But if you add certain time related word, you use ている form.
こんにちは、マギー先生！ありがとう、このレッスンを教えてくれて。長いものだったけど確かに便利よ。新用法はFuture Progressive 〜ている・〜ていますなどが知ったし。(I wanted to say: I learned a lot of new usages, such as Future Progressive)
Sorry but I don’t do the translation here but I can help you correct your translation if it is a short one.
Also I am not sure if it is a part of a sentence.
↓
1) Does it end like that? ~釣ってきたり。 or continues…釣ってきたり、…?
OK, I will show you the structure of the sentence.
Someone is working out (and building his/her body) + so (~から giving a reason) + what to to (giving an example) → he/she (sometimes) goes fishing and etc.
2) It seems like unfinished sentence. Is it from AKB song?
If so…
Even that flower has a secret such as…(giving an example) (if you see the back side of flower), you may find ….and……etc.
1.It end like this ~釣ってきたり。 so i don’t understand this sentence
2.Yes , it from AKB48’s song
I think Japanese language is very difficult to understand and i’m not good at Japanese but when i read your blog that make me understand in Japanese such as grammar,vocabulary and etc. better than before.
Thank you very much
@LTP
Just keep practicing your Japanese. Keep reading, writing, listening…and make a lot of mistakes.
And more importantly enjoy studying! :D
It end like this 身体を鍛えている から 魚も釣ってきたり。
身体を鍛えている から 魚も釣ってきたり。= Because he is building his body so he (can)goes fishing and etc. << Right?
Sorry i'm not good at Japanese language. :cryingboy:
Yes, it from AKB48's song
＠LTP
Good job! You figured it out! :D
Maggie sensei, Yukari sensei – you are absolute saints. Thanks for another really helpful lesson on how to use a common phrase that isn’t usually covered in textbooks and thanks for taking the time out to answer questions so patiently in the comments section. Reading those are always helpful as well. The comments section is like the Bonus Round of each class with you two! :D
!happyface! Yeah, I’ve learnt two new Japanese grammar,today, thanks for the lesson, maggie-sensei !DANCING! maggie sensei wa sugokute atama ga ii inu da :)
konnichiha
first, I want to say that you’re my number one teacher.. Every day, I take new lesson to study and I have all your lessons printed and review them from time to time. I still have so much to study from this site.
I have question.. it’s related to passive verbs, though:
Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita. (shouldn’t the meaning be everyone were turned off by him(
so why we didn’t say: minna ha kare ni donbiki saremashita??
what I know so far is like :
The cake was eaten by him= keeki ha kare ni taberaremashita.
thank you my # 1 teacher.. !MUSIC! :yy:
why don’t you teach us in Saudi Arabia.. they need someone qualified like you.. shall you come if there was any teaching opportunity.. I’m really looking to meeting you in person boucingheart!
Konnichiwa Roro! I am very happy to hear you have been studying hard from this site.
Q: Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita. (shouldn’t the meaning be everyone were turned off by him(
Ah good point! Yes, that is a direct translation.
Passive sentence is hard to translate. (Especially this word, ドン引きされる）
Since the subject of this sentence is “kare= he”, it may be more natural to translate He turned off everyone.
***
Passive form lesson is coming soon!
I mentioned the translation problem in that lesson.
***
Awww how sweet… Thank you for your nice message.
I am sure there are many good Japanese teachers in your country. I am doing this for fun. :D
So, in that case, if I say: (minna ha kare ni donbiki sareta) , is it right?
I know that particle ni comes after the doer, correct me if I’m wrong.
passive is fine with me.. but sometimes I find the opposite of what I’ve already studied :((
sigh~unfortunately, we don’t have teachers.. even if someone is willing to teach, they won’t allow her since none has official teaching certificate. :cryingfirl:
A did something strange and that creeped B out. (A’s behavior/what A said made B feel uncomfortable)
= A turned B off (←B was turned off by A)
= A creeped B out (←B was creeped out by A)
Trust me. The simple passive tense is much easier to understand. This particular slang word is more complicated. :)
Thank YOU for introducing us Frisky Sensei, Jane!
Frisky Sensei is a really sweet teacher. Though she was REALLY sleepy, she worked hard so hard for us.
Please give a big hug to Frisky-sensei!
Hello! I have another question. I asked my teacher how to use なぜなら in a sentence, but he could not answer at the time. It happens I guess, so I have to ask you, hahaha.
It is used solely as a reply to a question? Or you can use it to explain things without a question?
Hello reid,
なぜなら means “because” and you use it to give a reason why.
なぜなら〜（だ）からです・だ
You can use it to explain things without a question.
Ex. 彼は最近とても忙しい。なぜなら試験の準備があるからだ。
= He has been very busy lately. It is because he has to prepare for the exams.
So you bring up a state and explain the reason later.
Ex. 水を大切にしなくてはいけません。なぜなら今年は雨が少ないからです。
= We have to use water carefully. It’s because there has been little rain this year.
You can give someone a reason answering their question.
「なぜ、彼は戦わないのですか？」
= Why won’t he fight?
「なぜなら、彼は戦いを好まないからです。」
= Because he doesn’t like fighting.
You may see/hear this type of usage in literature, drama or movie. (It sounds a bit too dramatic)
なぜなら is used in a formal / literal sentences.
In daily conversation, we don’t use it so much.
Ex. 「マギー、どうして食べないの？」
= How come you don’t eat, Maggie?
I wouldn’t say
「なぜならお腹がすいていないからです。」
= Because I am hungry.
I would say
「だってお腹がすいていないもん。」
（もん is a casual way to say から)
good day dear maggie sensei.
thank you so much for explaining them to me.
ah, yes.. for me i believe, your guide is really based on practical usage so i am really grateful to be given a chance to study them.
———–
for 諦めないで = I normally hear/see 諦めず in songs with no follow-up sentence and the translation is always [don’t give up] so I thought 諦めず + [に] (another variation of 諦めず) is applicable. But then thank you so much for telling me that 諦めず is not supposed to mean [don’t give up]
———-
for んじゃない = i was just confused in this sentence I got from [私+自分] lesson
そんなの自分(←あなた)が悪いんじゃない
It’s your (own) fault!
though there is んじゃない, there is no [?] question mark/かと思う/かな, in the end so i assumed the speaker is just making his point.
Same with:
愛ってそんな崇拝的じゃないんじゃない = Love isn’t something to worship that much
sorry for almost regularly asking for んじゃない.. even now, i am still confused when a complete sentence ends up with the plain [んじゃない] which is not accompanied with question mark [?] or かと思う or かな..
but then, based on Japanese understanding what would be the possible meaning of
その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。 (giving that is there no context).
———
The questions for today are:
Q1
「実は今回集まってもらったのには別の理由があります」
i just saw it when was watching hello station # 120, this was the first time i saw のには so i would like to ask if it is [のに+は]? i can’t find it in the dictionary..
———
Q2
i just noticed that Japanese people combine 漢字 with katakana / English words to produce compound words. But then, i do not know if I will stick to 音読み all the way.
Please help me to fill the pronunciation of 漢字 for the compound words
Ex:
新メンバー = new member
[新] + メンバー = しん
Just incase, for some compound words, I will put the Japanese and English version of the sentence from which I got the compound word.
1.
受URL : application URL
[受] + URL=???
2.
大ホール :
[大] + ホール =???
3.
両A面:
[両] + A + [面] =????
両A面「Wonderful World／Ça va ? Ça va ?」
double A side「Wonderful World／Ça va ? Ça va ?」
4.
フル尺 =
フル + [尺] =????
全曲フル尺での
All the songs were sung in full so…
5.
CD付
CD + [付] =????
劇中歌が全て収録されたCD付だよ
There’s an included CD that has recordings of all the songs we sang in the play！
6.
笑 = laughs / LOL (though it is not a compound, it seems pretty common)
笑 =?????
——–
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei. .n_n.
i really owe you a lot….
Good day dear Maggie sensei. Thank you so much for answering them for me.
Belated happy father’s day to your Maggie sensei’s papa and mam yukari’s お父さん. Hope you all had a good time yesterday.
My questions for today are:
——
Q1
てくる
based on the [てくる and ていく] lesson, noun+を+してくる would be mean
to do [something/noun] and come somewhere else
ex.
宿題をしてくる= to do homework and come somewhere else
(come to school with their home homework done)
but how about if the format is [noun+してくる] where in the noun is not an object but
serves as a part of the verb.
Ex. i could not find a simple example so I just type the main verb.
活動してきた and 紹介してきた
Does this format also give a meaning of:
to do [something/noun] and come somewhere else
or i should use the [time-related] meaning for [noun+してくる]?
—————
2Q
I was able to read the lesson about 中 but i would like to ask for this specific
format.
plain verb + 中で
[日本語の勉強をする中で] ?
if the plain verb should be inている-form first before i can add中で, please
disregard the first format..and:
ている-form + 中で
[日本語の勉強をしている中で] ?
To be honest the exact phrase was:
活動してきた中で, but since i don’t know the exact meaning of 活動してきた,
i cannot finish the sentence
Aちゃんが研修生として活動してきた中で感じていた胸の内を語ってるところがありましたね
研修生として= as a trainee
感じていた胸の内を語ってるところがありましたね =
there was a part where Aちゃん talked about the her feelings as a trainee during…
活動してきた中で = ?
—————-
Q3
[たり] though I was able to check the lesson aboutたり, i would like to confirm something:
悔しさがあったりする= ある in たり form?
do you think this it needs to be rephrased or i can translate it as
[to have frustrations]?
the whole sentence is:
きっと、他の子にも他の子なりの、悩みや、悔しさがあったりするんだろうな～。
also I would like to ask what would be the meaning of
Noun + にも + noun + なり like in 他の子にも他の子なり?
is this a set of expression?
——————
Q4
ところ
彼女に枕を貰ったところで, 今寝ます.
Does this mean:
a. i “just” got pillow from her, [so/and] I am going to sleep now.
b. i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.
Hi there,
Thank you for your father’s day wish! Hope you had a nice father’s day,too.
Q1. Q2.
It will be better to think 活動する and 紹介する are verbs not a noun plus verb, suru.
活動をする → 活動する
紹介をする→紹介する
勉強をする→勉強する
and ~してきた there means “has/have been doing something until now/ had been doing something in certain period of time in past
While 〜ている is focusing on the current action or action which has been done and it affects the current state, してきた focuses on the length of the action that someone has been doing.
活動してきた= has/have/had been doing some activities
紹介してきた= has/have/had been introducing
勉強してきた= has/have/had been studying
活動してきた中で = while she has been doing the activities
Q3. 悔しさがあったりする= ある in たり form?
Yes. It means there are cases that other children have their own 悔しさ
~にも〜なりの〜
yes, it is a set expression.
〜なりの means “one’s own”
By using にも together you can express the nuance of “even for ~, there is one’s own ~ ”
Q4.
It should be
a. i “just” got pillow from her, [so/and] I am going to sleep now.
If there is no 今, it could mean “I will go to bed when I receive a pillow from her.”
But it is a strange sentence.
Good day dear maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for clarifying those things to me and for greeting me..
Oh just a follow-up question.
Q1
Then, if i want to produce the thought
[i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.]
Then it would be something like:
[彼女に貰ったところの枕で, 今寝ます]?
Or no need for の?
————–
Q2
他人が羨ましいなと思う立場にいる人でも…
[Even people who are in the [position/situation] where they think other people envy them]
Was I able to get the thought from the noun-clause?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei…
＠obakasan000
Hello! Genki?
Q1.[i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.]
ばかり(-bakari) is better.
→彼女にもらったばかりの枕で今から寝ます。
(If you want to say, “I just got a pillow from her” then you can say 今、彼女に枕をもらったところです。)
Q2. 他人が羨ましいなと思う立場にいる人でも…
Your translation is correct up to here.
↓
Even people who are in the position where
where they think other people envy them]
→where other people envy
羨ましいと思う= envy
Hallo~ boucingheart!
Could you may do an updated version of your slang lessons?
I wanna start to be more casual/slangly with my frends since they always ”complain” about my stiff/over polite way of speech.. but i am not sure what is still common and what is not O.O
Maggie Sensei, if I want use きる to define a noun, does it have to be in the た-form?
In my Japanese books, the examples are using た-form when it comes to define a noun, like 疲れきった顔, 安心しきった表情, etc
Can I use る-form? And if I can, is there any difference?
It’s already 2015 but I hope you can reply me as soon as possible ;w;
Thanks!
疲れきった顔
安心しきった表情
疲れきった and 安心しきった : They both used as an adjective to describe the following noun.
You can’t say 疲れ切る顔／安心しきる表情
Because when you describe the expression, you usually use the tense, （present perfect or past tense in English?) (completely) “(have been) tired/relaxed” ”
Hello, Maggie-sensei! How are you doing? ^_^ It’s me again, Ritsuko!
Thank you so much for conducting this lesson, since I have been talking lately with a lot of Japanese people, and they often use “~kana” in some conversations. Just like this one, I’ve been talking about actors with this Japanese girl, and there is a portion where she said, “あれ”, then followed this sentence:
“神木くんとまた映画出るんだったかな？？”
I was a little puzzled what this sentence may mean, so I’m asking for your help. ^.^
Hello Ritsuko! I’m good! Thank you for asking!
As I explained かな means “I wonder”
She is talking about some actor right? So “神木くんとまた映画出るんだったかな？？” means “I wonder if he/she will appear in the movie again with 神木くん”
1) The trivial memories come back to use more.
(←The more boring the memories are, the more you remember)
2) Not sure if this 殺す literally means to kill someone or kill certain memories. But the pattern is the same as 1)
Let say 殺したい記憶 means 忘れたい記憶
The more you want to delete the memory, the more it comes back to you.
Hello, Sandra.
That を is an object marker.
In lyrics or poems, they often switch the order of words.
That is called 倒置法(=touchihou), inversion of the word order in a sentence.
Let me show you what I am talking about.
The original sentence was
涙の空を(1) 覚えているかな(2) ？
→ 覚えているかな (Do you remember?) then follow (object) 涙の空を the teary sky
This is the same word order in English. Do you remember(2) the teary sky (1)? but in Japanese it is a reversed order.
The same pattern in the following sentences. (I won’t translate but will how you how they switch the word order.)
Original sentence 笑顔の訳を忘れないでね。
→忘れないでね、笑顔の訳を。
Original sentence あなたの残像をいつまでも追いかけている
→いつまでも追いかけているあなたの残像を
The only confusing part is the second line because it doesn’t have a main verb.
傷付かない強さ(B)よりも、傷付けない優しさ(A) を。
It could be Have A instead of B (more than B)
The first time I was learning japanese, my teacher told me to always use the particle が for things like “好き”, and to use で when talking about a language, like in “I speak english”.
Now I am having classes to improve my kanji and the books have examples of cases using the を particle, and the teacher said it is okay.
So I am confused, which is more correct to use? And is it common to use を in those cases?
Hello reid,
Though が好き is much more common, there are cases that you use を
When it modifies a noun.
Ex. 日本が/を好きな人 a person who likes Japan
Ex. こんな映画を/が好きな人はいない。Nobody would like such a movie.
Ex.この本が好きです。 I like this book (Xを is strange.)
Ex.あなたが好きです。I love you. (Xを is not natural)
And when you talk about something in English, you say で but when you speak English in general, you use を
私は英語を話す I speak English
私は英語で話す I speak in English
It all depends on the example sentences that your Japanese teacher taught. But I guess your teacher wanted to teach you the most common way to use the particles or didn’t want to confuse you teaching other possibilities.
やっほマギー＾ ＾ お久しぶりですね！
Maggie, I found in my grammar book (ばかりに lesson) an idiom and I don’t know, if I translate it correctly.
男の風上にも置けない奴 （in: 出世したいばかりに、恋人を裏切り、社長令嬢と結婚するなんて男の風上にも置けない奴だ。）
I think 男の風上にも置けない奴 = He doesn’t desire to be called a man / It’s a shame to called him a man / He is not to be treated as a man / He is just a disgrace to the man.
Which translation fits here (in this sentence) the best, in your opinion?
「…の風上にも置けない…」の２～３文を作ってくださいませんか。
I used to use uchi(うち) sorry for the terrible hiragana and no kanji, I’m still learning. Anyway, I used to use uchi, but I started using jibun instead because it’s technically gender-neutral but used more by men and I find it suits me. I only use that informally and just use watakushi or watashi in formal situations. Is my usage correct?
Basically if you and people around you are fine you calling yourself 自分,then fine.
In Kansai area, some women address themselves うち but in general, when you use うち, it refers to your family or home/house.
And as I mentioned in my lesson, 自分 sounds a bit distant and in some cases it sounds like military speech.
But if nobody has told you anything then that’s fine.
Haha, don’t worry about all the kanji so much.
But it will help if you recognize some of them, such as 方面=houmen= For (destination) / ~ 線(=sen) ~ Line, etc.
がんばって！
Konnichiwa :k: !
I just wanted to ask what you should say when leaving a restaurant, something in the line of “Have a nice day”. I´ve heard people say “otsukaresama”, but i thought that was for coworkers only.
Konnichiwa, Cristina!
You are right. Otsukare sama is strange.
If you are a customer, you just tell them “ごちそうさまでした=Gochisou sama deshita.” / “美味しかったです= Oishikatta desu= It was delicious” / If you want to come again, “また来ます= Mata kimasu.” I will be back. But we don’t usually say Have a nice day = いい日を過ごして下さい。
I’m Jill from Vietnam. And I’m working for a resort as receptionist. Most of our guests at this period from Japan, so can you teach me some Japanese sentences which we can use for my work.
good day dear maggie sensei.
thank you much so much for explaining their differences.
recently whenever i have time, i randomly read comments on facebook and i happen to see a sentence that goes like this:
Q1
1. Aさんは喜んだことでしょう。
this was the first time i saw こと in this usage.
i would like to ask what is the purpose of こと here?
or is it a shortcut for喜んだことがあるでしょう。
[a-san experienced being happy]?
if this is out of context then, i will just forget about it.
2. 人混みに出る時はマスクを着用すること。
3. 帰宅したら手洗いとうがいをすること。
(got these from [風邪 （＝kaze) cold related Lesson)
i would like also to ask what is the role of こと at the end of the sentences?
————–
Q2
i was able to read all the lessons about the tenses but i would like to clarify something for
たいと思う。
please correct me if I got these all wrong.
i just based my observation on all the examples i have seen so far.
1. 私は日本に行きたいと思います。
I would like to go to japan.
2.私は日本に行きたいと思っています。
I would like to go to japan.
though they have the same translation [2] implies that the speaker has been thinking/planning to go to japan (within a certain period of time).
———–
Q3
can I use「諦めず」＋「に」to say:
[do not give up.]?
———-
Q4
i was able to read the lesson about [になる vs となる] but i am not really sure
if i can apply it with出会う.
1.彼女に出会う
2.彼女と出会う
i would like to ask what is the difference between the two?
————
Q5
彼女に早く寝ろと言った。
I told her to sleep early.
Though寝ろ is a command form, it does not necessarily mean that i commanded her to sleep early, but it could also mean that i politely told/asked her to go to bed early. and if was to put 寝てor 寝て下さい before と言った, i would be needing to use「」but the meaning would slightly change because it would become:
彼女に「早く寝て下さい」と言った。= a direct quote.
————-
Q6
1. 海外にはよく行きますか?
(got this from 頻度(=hindo) Frequency)
2. 近所の人には自分から声をかけましょう。
(got this from [私＋自分= watashi + jibun lesson]).
3. 軽過ぎる男には要注意！
(got this from [karui/charai] lesson)
4. 風邪の初期には生姜湯が効きます。
(got this from [風邪 （＝kaze) cold related Lesson)
5. 7時には帰って下さい.
(got this from dictionary.)
には makes the sentence a bit more softer, but it only applies with sentence [1] which the format is [location/name] に/へ [motion verb].
from [2] to [5] は stressed the word before に.
1. an expensive book is in the library.
(telling the location of the高い本)
2. there is an expensive book in the library.
(telling that 高い本 is the thing/one that exists in the library)
3. in the library, there is an expensive book.
(the library has an expensive book.)
in #[3], 図書館 has been stressed out.
—————-
Q8
1. その新曲は可愛いじゃないか
2. その新曲は可愛いんじゃない？
3. その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。
1. the new song is really cute (amazed)
2. the new song is cute, don’t you think? (opinion with tag question)
but [3], without a context, could be translated as
a. the new song is not cute (opinion with explanatory tone).
b. the new song is really cute (when you make your point).
————
Q9
このラスイチのお菓子は、広島名物、「紅葉まんじゅう！」です！
誰が「遠慮のかたまり」を食べたって？当ててみて！
(got this from enryo no katamari)
i would like to ask what is the missing word after [食べたって?] or [って?] is another way to ask?
———
Though寝ろ is a command form, it does not necessarily mean that i commanded her to sleep early, but it could also mean that i politely told/asked her to go to bed early.
→But we can assume he used a strong command form.
The neutral way to say
Someone told her to go to bed early will be 彼女に早く寝るように言った。
As you said, you could use “direct quote”, 彼女に「早く寝て下さい」と言った。= a direct quote.
But you could also say 彼女に早く寝なさいと言った。/ 早く寝てと言った。
Q6) Wow! You really are studying really hard using my lessons. :)
1. location marker に + は to show the contrast (stressed the word before)
2. Object marker に+ は to show the contrast (stressed the word before)
3. For (purpose)
4. by the time
Q.7) You got them right.
Q. 8)
1. Right. But please note that it is a male speech so it sounds a bit rough.
2. Right.
The problem is 3.
a) We don’t say その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。when you want to say “the new song is not cute” We say その新曲はかわいくない
b) the new song is really cute (when you make your point). It should be 2) その新曲は可愛じゃない。
Hello :tulip3:
I’ve just found you blog and it looks totally 面白い!
Now it’s almost midnight so I go to sleep soon, but I will definitely go back to you tomorrow :-D
Have a nice day
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Im beginner, and im working for a hotel as a receptionist. Can you teach me some sentences for check in and check out at the hotel?
Thanks & Best regards,
Yes, I got your comment yesterday.
Are there any particular phrases that you really need to know? I can include them in the lesson. (If they are not so general, I will teach them here in the comment section.)
Hello Maggie-sensei! How are you? I hope you are fine.
I just have a question about “toka” usage.
I’m just having a hard time understanding how “toka” is used in this sentence:
日本に旅行とか行くの？
How was is used in this kind of sentence?
Hello, Ritsuko!! I’m good! Thank you for asking! :)
日本に旅行とか行くの？
This とか has is the usage that I explained in 4)
Do you sometimes go to Japan or something?
4) To avoid sounding assertive (colloquial) : ~ or something
This とか (=toka) doesn’t have any specific meaning but has functions as a way to soften the tone of one’s speech in some cases.
By adding とか (=toka), you can express something not too directly.
So the speaker could have asked
旅行に行くの？
but by using とか, it soften the question.
It is a very colloquial usage.
Young people especially tend to use this kind of とか (=toka).
oooooh! I see! That’s why. Thank you so much for all the help Maggie-sensei!
Honestly, ever since I knew about your site, I have been improving on self-studying about the Japanese language! I have been taking notes all the time! I hope you’ll love and continue what you’re doing! I’m very glad!! Thank you so much Maggie-sensei!
こんにちは、Lava!
いい質問ですね。まず
「彼女は結婚式で私をブライズメードにさせてくださって光栄に思います」
の文章ですが、言い直すと
彼女は私をブライドメイドにさせた（ことを光栄に思う）
となるので「彼女が私を無理にブライドメイドにした=She forced me to be her braidmaid 」というニュアンスが入ります。
ですから、「彼女が私にブライドメイドをさせてくださったことを光栄に思います。」
ただ、もう少し自然な日本語では「彼女が私をブライドメイドに選んで下さったことを光栄に思います。」の方がいいかもしれませんね。
＊＊＊
「に」と「を」ですが、
I made him clean the room
私は彼に部屋の掃除をさせる
(主語：私）
He was forced to clean the room by me.
彼は私に部屋の掃除をさせられる
（主語：彼）
この例をみてわかる様に「に」は行為をさせる人、させられる人、両方に使います。
(As you can see, you use “に” for someone who makes you do something and someone who is forced to do something.)
I made HIM clean the room.
He was forced to clean the room BY ME.
「を」は、「させる・させられる」行為に使います。
(「を」is used for t what you made someone do/ what someone made you do)
Thank you very much for this lesson, Maggie!
Also we can sometimes see べし which is the 終止形 of べき used in Classical Japanese (in fact the verb べし has 6 different meanings in Classical Japanese, in Modern Japanese there’s only one meaning).
EX) もっと日本語を勉強すべし。（＝もっと日本語を勉強すべき。）
The negative form of classical べし in 未然形 is べからず.
EX) 公園の掲示に「芝生に入るべからず」と書いてあった。（＝公園の掲示に「芝生に入るべきではない」と書いてあった。）
In the middle of the sentence べからざる is used as the 連体形 of べし.
EX) 許すべからざる行動。（＝許すべきではない行動）
Hello 123,
OK, the difference between もらう(=morau) and 受け取る(=uketoru)
1) 誕生日に毎年、彼からバラの花をもらう
= Tanjoubi ni maitoshi kara bara no hana wo morau
= I get roses from my boyfriend (or him) every year on my birthday.
Focusing on the fact that I got a favor from him.
2) 花屋からそのバラの花を受け取る
= Hanaya kara sono bara no hana wo uketoru
= I received those roses.
I simply receive them as an action from the flower shop or a delivery person.
(When someone hand out something and you receive it/them, you use 受け取る=uketoru)
3) 結婚したとき叔父からお祝い金をもらった。
= Kekkon shita toki oji kara oiwaikin wo moratta.
= When I got married, ←I got some gift-money from my uncle(←my uncle gave me some gift-money. )
Focusing on the fact that I got a favor from my uncle.
4) 父は、年金を受け取っている。
= Chichi wa, nenkin wo uketotte iru.
= My father has been receiving pension.
Just focusing on the fact that he is getting pension. Government pays him money and he accepts/takes it.
I think お土産 is not considered as Ateji. It is Jukujikun I think. “Jukujikun are when the standard kanji for a word are related to the meaning, but not the sound”. But Ateji “principally refer to kanji used phonetically to represent native or borrowed words without regard to the underlying meaning of the characters”.
@Aidin
Wow! You are very good! I checked it and there seems to have two theories. (土産 could be 当て字 or 熟字訓）
Also there a fine line between 当て字 and 熟字訓. We mix them up sometime or some consider 熟字訓 a part of 当て字.
According to the etymology dictionary, 土産 was originally from all different words. I can’t copy and paste here so please go check the site.
Anyway thank you for your comment.
I am sorry but I can’t go too deep in this lesson. :)
Unlike many textbook Japanese, we often skip the subject in natural Japanese so it is hard for you to determine the subject in some short example sentences.
Only the speaker/writer can decide. In this lesson it’s me. :)
That “you” is “you in general” so you can be replaced with “we”
あんな派手な結婚式をする べきではありませんでした。
I meant to write the example to show the regrets of the speaker so I used “we” as a subject. But it could be “I”
You can say
このソフトをよく使っていた
アニメを観たりマギー先生のサイトも使って日本語を勉強します。
When you want to emphasize the object and show the contrast you use は
1. このソフトはよく使っていた。(emphasizing このソフト/ Maybe not other software but I used to use “THIS SOFTWARE” ）
2. 日本語は~勉強します。(emphasizing 日本語/ I may use other method when I study some other language but, this is how I study JAPANESE. )
So は has a function to show contrast and you can use it as an object marker.
I will show you other example.
私は甘いものを食べます。
= I eat sweets (in general)
私は甘いものは食べます。
= I eat SWEETS (but maybe not something else.)
Ex. アニメを観ます。(I watch animations)
Ex. アニメは観ます。(I watch animations but maybe not other stuff.)
「〜たり」は受身形でどうやって使いますか？
例文を作ってみたんですが、どうですか？
「彼女は中学校の頃に殴られたり、押されたり、仲間はずれされたりしてしょっちゅう苛められた。」
She was bullied often in middle school; she was often hit, pushed and left out by others.
I tried to type this out in Japanese to practice a bit, hopefully it makes sense. I’m just not sure what ままでいたい is doing in this sentence. Thank you for your time.
こんにちは、Danny G!
ままでいる= to stay in certain state (intentionally) It involves the intention of the subject.
ままである= to remain in certain state : To see the state objectively.
Ex. 部屋は掃除されないままであった。
= The room remained uncleaned. (You are talking about the room.)
Ex. 部屋を掃除しないままでいた。
= Someone left the room uncleaned. (intentionally)
Ahhhh. So the で here is just です in て form? Still not sure what the translation of the sentence would be though. Something like “I want the promise to remain unmade”? Or something like that?
ありがとうございます
Alright. Thank you so much for helping me. まま seems to be the hardest piece of grammar for me to understand. Sorry for bothering you Thanks again!
@Danny G
You’re welcome!
Don’t think it is too hard. If you know it means “to remain/stay in certain state” you can eventually figure it out.
You may want to know the difference of usage between~ている and ~てある.
If you want to know more, check
How to use てある
How to use ている
I took your advice and read your
How to use てある
How to use ている
Posts. Yet something is confusing me, maybe I’ve just read it wrong? According to this above post
ままでいる= to stay in certain state (intentionally) It involves the intention of the subject.
ままである= to remain in certain state : To see the state objectively.
Yet in the てある post. There’s two examples that contradict this.
電気がついている
= Denki ga tsuite iru
= The light is on.
(You are just describing the current state.)
電気がつけてある
= Denki ga tsukete aru
= The light is on. (Someone turned on the light on purpose)
So which one is intentional and otherwise? Seems てある is intentional and the other is just stating the state it’s in. Am I confused? Thanks again!
I am sorry. Maybe sending you to tearu and teiru lesson confused you more.
I know why you got confused. While ~ままでいる usually involves intention of the subject, the subject of ている could be “people” or “things/condition”.
You always have to pay attention to the subjects.
It could be really hard to know if there is someone behind the sentence but
電気がつけてある(someone left the light on intentionally) =someoneが電気をつけておいてある
電気がついている(just the state/ subject is “light”) The light is on
If we go into the difference between these type of ている, it may confuse you more so let’s go back to your original question.
約束をしないままでいる
the subject is the speaker and it involved the speaker’s intention so you use ままでいる
Hello Akatsuki
Ah, OK, Maybe you can’t see the function of でも from the translation.
Can you tell the difference in the following sentences?
1) 日本語を教えます。
2) 日本語でも教えます。
While 1) is very specific. →I will teach Japanese. 2) is more vague. →I will do something like teaching Japanese. →I guess I will teach Japanese or something like that.
1) Aをする= to do A (specific)
2) Aでもする= to do something like A (less specific/ to do something for example ~ )
Why thank you. I have another question. How do you make passive voice? For instance: Her car is parked in front of the department store.
This conversation could be tapped.
The first, so the～する can be used to make passive form instead of ～される ?
The second, I have seen people using ～ている for passive form. So, could you shed any light on this subject?
@Akatsuki
The passive form of する is される.
What you have seen is されている= has been done.
ありがとう Magie Sensei！I look forward to your next lesson. :)
When you describe what you do in general , to talk about your daily routine, you can use both る and ている
朝食にはいつもパンを食べる／食べます。 （habitual actions/custom )
朝食にはいつもパンを食べている。／食べています。（habitual actions/custom / describing the actions more vividly)
But when you talk about what you do as a job, ている is more natural.
マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている／教えています。（describing what you do for living.)
~ように(=youni)
~ koto ga dekinai you ni?
In order not to do something.
As I explained in the part
★When you warn someone to do something or give someone an order.
and
★When you wish for something
we finish the sentence with ~ように
hi can you please give me a sample in presenting new clothing line in nihonggo? we are having a japanese presentation in class and our group is tasked to present new era of kimonos. It includes the history of kimonos and how we came up with such an idea of revising the kimonos into a fashionable way. Our sensei wants everything in japanese and i am having a trouble in this project. pls reply. i would really appreciate it.
thanks.
Hi jadine
It is hard to help you because I don’t know how you want to present new type of kimono.
新しい時代に融合した着物
新世紀の着物
現代ファッションとしての着物
something like that?
My suggestion : Use Japanese google and go check modern kimono sites and see how they introduce kimono.
Good luck!
How can you say, “I want to wear a yukata,” in the context of talking about yukatas. I’m writing to my Japanese friend in Tokyo, and I want to reply back. Thank you, Kaylie.
＠Kayle
You say 浴衣を着たいです。
If you meant to tell your friend, “I would love to try wearing yukata” you say 浴衣を着てみたいです。= Yukata wo kite mitai desu. (Between friends 浴衣を着てみたいな。= Yukata wo kite mitai na)
Hi Maggie-sensei
I have probably the same problem as 90% of the commenters, but I still can’t tell the difference between “v+teiru” for doing something right now, and “v+teiru” for have done something. How am I supposed to know the difference?
Like:
そんなことはもうわかっています。 if I say そんなことはもうわかった。 what’s the difference?
and the difference between 思ってた and 思った.
思ってた can mean both “was thinking” and “thought” right?
Hi Amanda,
I know many people seem to have a problem with the difference between 〜た and 〜ている,etc so I made verb tense related lessons.
I just released a lesson on verb tense (Verb present tense + future tense) and will release a past tense next week.
I think I covered ている/ ていた in those lessons.
わかっている (わかっています) = I have known that (from certain time in past to present time)
わかった I got that (in particular time)
思っていた= I have been thinking (the whole time) or was thinking (depending on the context)
思った= I thought
You’re welcome!
You may also want to know….
聞く= kiku = to hear (more general)
Ex. うわさを聞く= to hear the rumor
聴く= kiku to listen （to listen to something attentively)
Ex. 音楽を聞く= to listen to the music
Hello yaya!
“Watashi wa kono kanji wo kakinikui desu”
The basic pattern is A is ~ yasui/nikui = Something is easy/difficult to do something
You put “watashi” as a subject so change the subject particle “(watashi) wa” to “(watashi) niwa” which means “for (me)” and put “kanji” as a subject using a particle “wa”
I’ll show you
漢字は書きにくいです。
= Kanji wa kakinikui desu.
= Kanji is difficult to write
+ add “for me” 私には(=watashi niwa)
→私には漢字は書きにくいです。
= Watashi niwa kanji wa kakinikui desu.
You can also say 私にとっては= Watashi ni tottewa for “for me”.
Hello!!
「せっかくだから、他のポストを読まない？」
It’s correct.
But are you talking about some blog and wanted to say “read other posts as well since you are here?” If so
せっかくだから、他のポストも読まない？
（ポスト could be 記事、投稿 depending on what kind of posts..)
Sorry, I accidentally hit a keyboard shortcut that caused the message to be submitted before I was done typing.
ところで、あの…実は…これはNemoじゃありません。Tofu なんです ：）
In any case, thank you so much for this lesson. I learned new things here as always! (eg. 教える & 教えます are used to refer to future actions, and not something you do in general.)
あ〜〜〜NemoとTofu先生のお姉さんのJaneだったのね。わ〜〜〜ごめんなさい。名前変えておきます。
Sorry!!! I must have mixed them up. The realy Nemo-sensei will teach next week. I will fix the name but it will take several hours. Please wait.
Thank you so much for introducing me many nice teachers!! Please apologize Tofu-sensei (such a lovely name..)
I was kind of nervous when my friend told me to call several restaurants to make reservation for our Japan trip next week!
Thank god that I just came across your website before I made the calls :D
Thanks to the lesson above, I’ve made all my reservations successfully.
I would just like to share with you that there’s one thing that I encountered when I called the restaurants.
They would always ask for my phone number, but since I am not going to stay at the hotel / 民宿 / a friend’s place, I really can’t provide a phone number. At that moment, I just told them 連絡先がありません。
Though they still accepted my booking at the end, I wonder for the case of no phone number that I can provide (like not even a hotel number), is there a better way to say it in Japanese?
Hi Winnie!!
You are coming to Japan next week. How exciting!!
If you don’t know where you are going to stay,
Ex. まだ滞在先がわからないので日本での連絡先がないのですが。
Mada taizai saki ga wakaranainode nihon deno rennrakusaki ga nai no desuga.
= I don’t know where I am going to stay yet so I don’t have a contact information.
Ex. まだどこに泊まるかわからないのですが。
= Mada doko ni tomaru ka wakaranai no desuga.
= I still don’t know where I am going to stay. (What should I do..)
Ex. まだ滞在先の予約をしていないのでわかりません。
= Mada taizaisaki no yoyaku wo shiteinai node wakarimasen.
= I haven’t made a reservation of a hotel so I can’t give you the information.
Sometimes they just need your contact information as a formality
Ex.今、住んでいるところの連絡先でいいですか？
= Ima, sunde iru tokoro no renraku saki de iidesuka?
= Will it be OK if I give you where I live right now?
For example if you live in Canada
Ex.まだ、滞在先が決まっていないのでカナダの自宅の電話番号でいいですか？
= Mada, taizaisaki ga kimatte inai node kanada no jitaku no denwabangou de ii desuka?
= I still don’t know where I am staying so will the phone number of my house in Canada be all right?
If they say it is not necessary they say
「では、結構です。」
= Dewa, kekkou desu.
Hope it helps.
Have a nice trip!!
And if you have other questions, please feel free to ask me anytime.
Thank you so much Maggie!! It’s really helpful! I actually tried the first sentence when I had to make another phone call today and the conversation went very well XD (sounds much softer…)
Also I was going to ask what if I need to change the date of reservation…but I just found the answer below!
I bet there must be many people like me struggling at similar situations :D
元気です！使用期限ですね、ありがとうございましたマギー先生！
あともう一つ気になる事があるんですが、「…. Doesn’t count」は日本語で何と言いますか？例えば、”Potatos don’t count as one of your 5 a-day vegetables”, “Watching japanese anime doesn’t count as real study”.
A: I love video games!
B: Like what?
A: Candy crush on my phone!
B: Mobile game’s don’t count (as real video games).
I can’t thank you enough. This is very helpful.
I’m looking forward to your next lesson.
Do you like video games? Or what’s your favorite manga?
ありがとう！
こんばんは先生！お元気ですか？
I hope you are fine and in good health.
By the way, can you please tell me what is the most famous Japanese newspaper that most people like to read? Also, I’d appreciate it if you’d give me a link to read any newspaper online.
I have the following questions:
1.”服のサイズを直すことはできますか？and ” ドイツ語を話すことはできますか？” Why did you use the particle “は” instead of “が”?
2.”抱っこする” as I know this “抱っこ” is a child language. Is it acceptable to use it here? or adults also use it?
3. “しいたけ、まつけ、マシュルーム” They all mean “mushroom” but what is the difference? Does Japan have so many types of mushroom or what? I’m so confused.
Also, can you tell me what is the most common word for “mushroom” that people use?
4. Can you teach me the difference between “ただ”and “だけ”?
They both mean it’s just… But what exactly is the difference?
This is not newspapers but I recommend NHKやさしい日本語
You can hear the news and also study the news with text.
1. You can also say が
You use は when you show the contrast.
You can probably do something else but how about this one? Can you do that?
2. Not really. However sometimes adults say that jokingly. お姫様だっこ = to hold a girl like a princess.
3. They are all different.
椎茸(=shiitake)Lentinula edodes、shiitake mushroom We use this for many different types of Japanese food.
松茸(=matsutake) The very expensive one that we have only in autumn
マッシュルーム(=mushroom) →This is the one is the most universal one.
I can’t post pictures here so Google the image of しいたけ and まつたけ. You will see the difference.
The most common word for mushroom in general is きのこ
4. This is on the request lesson so please wait for the full explanation.
Thanks for the very informative lesson! I do have two questions though:
1. どこかで財布をなくしてしまいました。
Why is the particle で here and not に, since this is referring to the location where you put/left something? I thought this was similar to your example – 傘をどこかに忘れてきました。
2. 向こうに大きな川が見えます。
Here, is the particle に because 向こう, which means over there, connotes a direction? At first I thought it is に because it refers to the existence of the river, but the verb is 見えます and not います, so I’m confused.
1.
〜で財布をなくす = I lost my wallet in ~
〜に財布を忘れる= I left my wallet in ~
なくす is an active verb so we consider it as an action. Therefore we use で
→学校でなくした （Not x学校になくした）
忘れる means to leave something and it is a verb to describe some state. (Same as 置く、置き忘れる） So we use に
→家に忘れる （Not x 家で忘れる）
2. 向こうに大きな川が見えます。
向こうに、connotes a direction? Yes.
Also 見える is a verb to describe some state so you use に
(When you say
向こうにある建物は〜です。it indicates location.)
Hello Palidor,
They mean the same. なんか is a casual form of なにか.
Ex. なにか欲しいものはありますか？
= Nanika hoshii mono wa arimasu ka?
= Is there anything you want?
→Informal
Ex. なんか欲しいものある？
= Nanka hoshii mono aru?
= Anything you want?
Maggie Sensei, should 「せっかく料理を作ったのにお腹が一杯なの？」 be “Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutta noni onaka ga ippai nano?” instead of “Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutte noni onaka ga ippai nano?” in romaji? :)
Hi Maggie! Thanks again for all your great lessons.
I’ve been confused lately about how to use ている、ていた verbs when describing nouns.
For example:
帽子をかぶっていた人を電車で見た。
帽子をかぶっている人を電車で見た。
If I want to say that this person was wearing a hat at the time I saw this person on the train, which is correct?
And what would be the difference of the meaning of the other sentence?
Hi Patrick! おひさしぶり！
a) 帽子をかぶっていた人
b) 帽子をかぶっている人
They are both correct.
The translation could be the same but
a) is close to your English translation, “A person who was wearing a hat at that time” and b) can be translated as “a person wearing a hat”
Usually verb+ていた+noun focuses on the completion of action and ている focuses on the condition.
In this case the verb かぶる(=to wear a hat) is not an active or volitional verb but let see…
1) Someone put on the hat on his/her head. (volitional action)
2) the hat stays in his/her head. (she/he is wearing a hat)
When you see the completion of action and the result (in this case, to put the hat on one’s head and it is on one’s head) you use かぶっていた
and when you just focus on the condition (someone is wearing a hat), you use かぶっている
Hello! Thanks for your lessons, they’re always helpful.
I have two things to say:
1. “to do something only to to succeed”, did you mean “only to not succeed”?
and “Ex. 「せっかく料理を作ったのにお腹が一杯なの？」 = Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutte matte ita noni onaka ga ippai nano?”
hmmm they’re not matching, right?
2. Ex. せっかくレポートを書いたのに提出しなくてもよくなった。
Hmm why is the yoi in negative form? I know the “not having to do something” as nakutemo ii, which would be nakutemo yokatta in past form, so I don’t really understand why it needs to be on negative as well…
返事してくれてありがとう！
Loved the nicknames you came up with! But I was hoping for a word to be added after melody, not to be cut
メロディ〜なにかなにか
Melodychiy for example
I came to find to your website by looking for cute slang for nicknames and I started to like your blog! Thank you so much Maggie Chan!
And can you tell me what’s the best to add for Japanese nickname for example melody-chiy, some cute words that comes after names and becomes a cute nickname! 教えてください！
Hi Melody! Welcome to our site!
I once taught typical nicknames in my “Is it OK to use あなた” lesson.
But those are for Japanese names.
Your name, メロディー…. The typical way to make it sound cute is just
メロ(In romaji “mero”),
add リン →メロリン(Merorin)
add っち→メロっち(=Merocchi)
Hello Danny
日曜日の朝に教会に行く人もいる。
emphasize the part 日曜日の朝に教会に行く人
It means “also” or “even”
There are even people who go to church on Sunday morning.
or
There are also people who go to church on Sunday morning.
Hello, 123,
言う(=iu) to say → 言っている(=itteiru) saying
Tanaka san wa nomimono ga hoshiito itteimasu.
When you quote what someone says, you use this pattern.
Tanaka san is saying “I want a drink”
Tanaka san is saying he wants a drink.
So the basic pattern is this
Aさんが〜と言っています
= A san ga ~~ to itte imasu.
= A san says/is saying ~~
When you just quote what A said (in past) you say
Aさんが〜と言いました・言っていました。
=A san ga ~ to iimashita/ itte imashita.
or
Aさんが〜と言った・言っていた
= A san ga ~ to itta / itte ita.
If you want to learn more about how to quote, go check this lesson.
(You posted the same questions twice so I deleted one.)
ありがとう先生！
I understand now. Your explanation is so good.
I have the following questions:
1. “このメニューにはドリンクがついていますか？” I’m a little confused as you translated it as “comes with”
but later you said that “comes with” is ” ついてくる”
Can you please explain the difference? ついてくる/ついている
2. “母がずっとついて看病をしてくれた。” The verb”看病をする” is to take care of a patient. So is the daughter/son sick or something?
2. “ホテルの部屋、アップグレードしてもらっちゃった”！ついてるなあ。
“ついてるなあ” “ついてるねえ”
A. Is it possible to just say “ついている”?
B. Is it right to say “ついてる～” instead? A stretched last letter in this case is ok? I’m confused. When exactly do you use stretched last letter? All verbs apply? or Some of them only?
Thanks in advance.
1. OK,but let’s compare the following two sentences.
a) このメニューにはドリンクがついている
b) このメニューにはドリンクがついてくる
They both “comes with ~ ” and they are interchangeable.
The difference is very subtle. I don’t know if I can explain well but…
Imagewise, ついている is to describe a set menu with a drink, and ついてくる is used when they serve main thing first and then they will serve/give you a drink later.
2. Since it is used くれた so the speaker gets the action from his/her mother.
→My mother took care of me.
3.
A : Yes. But it may sound like ついてる=tsuiteru (omitting い）
B: Yes. We tend to stretch some letter not just the last letter but the middle letter.
こわい→こわ〜い
おいしい→おいし〜い！
こら！→こら〜！
When to use. When you express your emotion
マギーも行く？
行く！・行く〜！
やった！(Yay!) →やった〜！(Yaaaay!)
This will be very helpful because I’m going on exchange to a high school in japan soon and i’ve only been learning adult Japanese (i guess you could call it that)
お久しぶり先生！元気でした？ :n:
I really hope you are doing fine. Thank you always for posting beneficial lessons. Please continue to do that.You’re the best teacher ever. Do you have any new pets?
I have the following questions:
1. “コンサートの券、余ったからあげる！”
I don’t understand “余った” what is the meaning of this verb and its plain form?
Please explain “から” its meaning here is “if”? I don’t understand.
2. “東大に受かったよ。” He means he passed the entrance exam? Also, how to say “I failed the entrance exam for 東大?
3. ” ミトンズ「彼、フのこと好きなんじゃない？」” What is “なん” here and what is its function in grammar?
4. About “ええ” which means “yes” is it formal? more than “はい”？Who uses it females or males?
5. About “あいづち” why is it written like this? is it wrong to write it as “あいずち”？
ＢＴＷ、How to say I’m looking forward to hearing from you?
ありがとう。
1. コンサートの券、余ったからあげる
I have extra concert ticket(s) so I will give it to you.
The plain form of 余った is 余る(=amaru) and it means “to be left over, to be in excess”
So the speaker has extra concert ticket(s) so he/she wants to give it to the listener.
から here is to give a reason = because, since, so.
2. 東大の試験に落ちた(=ochita) (受からなかった=ukaranakatta)
3. なん is a casual contraction of なの(=nano) 好きなのではないですか？→好きなんじゃないですか？→(more casual) 好きなんじゃない？
4. はい is more polite than ええ, but ええ is polite enough when you show you are listening.
5. Ahh good question! Maybe romaji is aizuchi and not aiduchi, it might be confusing.
The origin of the word, 相槌=(aizuchi), is more than two people pound molten metal taking a turn.
相(あい） means “together/ each other”+ 槌(=つち）means hammer.
So since it came from a word, つち=tsuchi, we use づ and not ず
Other example : A new moon, crescent moon is 三日月= みかづき not みかずき because the last kanji is つき
There are exceptions but you always have to pay attention to how you read the individual kanji.
Hi, I stumbled upon your site through google, and after reading this lesson (which is great btw, totally gonna use your site more) I have a question. Maybe you already covered this in a different lesson I don’t know, but anyway what I don’t understand is why you sometimes use “には” istead of ”は”. Like in this example “彼には家庭があります”. I have seen this before too but I never understood what the difference is. Is it used only with いる and ある verbs?
So, what’s the difference between 温和 and 温暖？ 温和 seems to refer more to a person’s gentle nature, but I have seen it used to describe mild climates as well. Thanks in advance for any clarification!
You are right. Sometimes you use 温和 to describe mild climate like 温暖. (In that case, they are the same meaning, mild
But you don’t use 温暖 to describe gentle personality. Just for climate.
Hello, the usage of こと is very complicated and it is on the request lessons. But maybe if you focus on the function of the particles, it will be easier for you to know which one to use.
★wa/ ga = subject marker
Ex. 毎日、勉強することは大切です。
= Mainichi, benkyou suru koto wa taisetsu desu.
= Studying everyday is important.
Ex. 毎日、勉強することが大切です。
= Mainichi, benkyou suru koto ga taisetsu desu.
= Studying everyday is important.
(Emphasizing “studying everyday”)
★wo = object marker (Doing something is an object)
Hi Carmen,
In casual Japanese? There are many ways but if you are talking to your (young) friend, すごくいいね、めちゃ、かわいい！
or (more formal) すごくかわいらしいですね。
You could say 大好き for I really love this! but if it is obvious that you are talking about particular picture or pet/toy, you don’t need to say “this.”
I am shocked how accurate you are and how easy it is to learn from you !! I am french and not native english but it comes so naturally さすがに先生は先生だけあって教育的な考えの所有でございますね。今度の木曜日口頭試験がございます。とくに敬語について実行いたすべきでございますので、すごく緊張いたします。それこそ、こちらのレッスンは最も適切な素材と存じます。。
O|¯|_ 日本語の時間はむずかしいです. Ever since high school telling time in Japanese was the hardest for me, but this lesson actually helped me to better understand it. Thank you!!
I am writing to you to ask you about whether this is believed to be a superstition in Japan..
Several years ago I went to Nara and unfortunately I accidentally stepped on a praying mantis!. I was wondering if there was a superstition related to this and would be grateful if you could let me know as I’m quite superstitious!. -_-; Thank you.
I don’t do the translation but I will help you understand the structure.
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だと決められるほど、問題は単純ではない
“Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da to kimerareru hodo mondai wa tanjyun dewa nai.”
OK, let’s break it down.
1) The main sentence is
問題は単純ではない
mondai wa tanjyun dewa nai
= The issue is not that simple
2) This sentence has 程(=ほど=hodo) “like/as”
It might be easier for you to switch the order of words
問題は~~ほど単純ではない
= Mondai wa ~~ hodo tanjun de wa nai
= The issue is not as easy as ~~
2) Now you just need to figure out the part after “as” (The issue is not as easy as what)
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だと決められる
=Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da to kimerareru
This sentence is kind of long, so let’s break this down as well.
~~だと決められる (passive form)
= ~~ dato kimerareru
= to be determined ~~
this と is to quote something
What is to be determined?
↓
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だ
Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da
Teachers are responsible for all the juvenile delinquency
とても役の立つレッスンありがとうございました！
「きっかり」「ちょうど」に関して質問があるんですが、”Every day at exactly the same time”はなんと言いますか？例えば “You must take this medicine at exactly the same time every day”.
あとは、”Exactly ~days” eg. Exactly 10 daysは「きっかり１０日間・ちょうど１０日間」になりますか？
1. 「~V+かさえ」と「~V+のかさえ」
-親でさえも彼がなにを考えているかわからなかった。（「親でさえも彼がなにを考えているのかわからなかった。」と同じですか？）
彼がどこに住んでいるのかわからない。（「彼がどこに住んでいるかわからない。」と同じですか？）
→はい、意味は同じです。「の」を使うことにより限定的な意味が強まると思います。(By using の, it specifies what you don’t understand more.)
I am currently studying Japanese and supplementing my study with breaking down lines from popular anime. Maggie, I have a question for you. I have extracted this line from an anime:
“持っているなるそう言えばいいでしょう？”
The context is there are two women who are trapped in a room and one girl finds out the other has water. The girl says “If you had water, you could have just said so.”
I understand 持っている means “having,” なる ”become,” そう言えば “if said so,” いいでしょう “good would be.”
Does the なる following 持っている mean “become having”? I was wondering if perhaps in informal speech the に is removed from になる. So instead of 持っているになる, it becomes 持っているなる.
It’s also possible I am not hearing the dialogue correctly. Thank you for your help!
Hi Maggie, thanks a lot for the lesson, that made thing much clearer.
Anyway, I miss the ようにする section, which I think is also quite important, is it already in another lesson?
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei. Thnak you for the lesson. Just want to clarify the usage of gakusei and seito, since both refer to students; as well as sensei and kyoushi. Is kyoushi only used to refer to your profession as a teacher and not in any other situations ?
OK, to be more precise, 学生 is used to refer to college students and 生徒 is for younger students who go to junior high and high school, private institutes.
教師 is usually for teachers who work for school besides 家庭教師(=katei kyoushi) home tutors. 先生 is a more general word for people who teach things.
hello,
i have a little questin. In sentence with combination of people/animals and things (Under tree are cat, dog and books. / for example :-P ) Should I use aru or iru? “KI NO SHITA NEKO TO INU TO HON GA IRU/ARU.”
Thanks. BOB
I see. I’d be so thankful if you make a lesson about Japanese tenses Sensei.
And I hope I can more use Japanese correctly in every situation and condition.
そんなこと待ちきれません。ありがとうございます。
がんばりますね。
Meanwhile, check this lesson V+たことがある(~ takotoga aru)
You can use this tense when you want to say “I have done something/I have ever done/been ~” (present perfect)
おはようございます先生。
We know in English there are about 12-16 tenses and we use each of them depending on the context and the situation are. But I still confuse how to use the Japanese tenses I’ve been learning about Godan Doushi, Ichidan Doushi and Fukisoku Doushi. On the comment section you explained about 食べます what I’m questioning about how many form of a verb in Japanese like: 食べます、行きます、飲みます、歩きます etc and how to use them using the rule of tenses in English language is it different because I still don’t get it how to use them.
I confused when should I use ‘tabete, tabemasu, tabete ita, tabete tabemashita.
教えて下さいよろしくお願いします。
I have been thinking about making a lesson on the tense comparing English.
(But I have no idea how deep I can get…)
Until I make that lesson.. just teach you the gist
*食べる／食べます= I will eat (near future)
*食べた／食べました= I ate / I have already eaten
*食べていた／食べていました= I was eating / I used to eat
*食べている／食べています= I am eating / I eat ((talking about one’s custom, habit) *
But of course, there are more… so please wait patiently until I make this lesson.
Is “mo” always only used to emphasize the amount or can it also mean “more than” or “less than”? Or is it “motto” that is used for that?
Does “mo” always go with the word that precedes it or can it sometimes modify the word that follows it?
Do you also have a lesson on “mou”? Does “mou” always modify the word that follows it or can it also be placed after the word? How do I know whether to use “mo”, “mou” or “motto”?
Hello etoile,
Ah, OK…I think you are talking about the following cases.
Ex. このワインは千円もしません。
= This wine doesn’t cost (even) one thousand yen.
In you rephrase it, it is possible to say
*This wine costs less than 1,000 yen.
But the second translation doesn’t involve any feelings and it just tells the fact that the wine costs less than 1,000 yen.
*****
I can’t think of good examples right now but
も does emphasizes the word that precedes it but the preceded word with も modifies what comes after.
Ex. ５００人も集まった。
= Gohyakunin mo atsumatta.
も emphasizes “500 people” and modifies the following verb, 集まった(=atsumatta)
*****
も, もう, もっと are all different. もっと
I don’t have a lesson on もう(=mou) but will make one for you if I have a chance. (Right now I have a long list of request lessons.)
もう(=mou) = already, expressing the feelings that something is enough
もっと(=motto) =more
You can not replace も with もう・もっと in none of my example sentences.
Hi Ritsuko!
I also explain in my net slang lesson but
あと、タメお願いします!
= Also, talk to me casually. (like friends.)
呼びタメ大歓迎です！
=(Literally) I welcome more casual speech. = I prefer to call each other with first name or talk to each other in a casual way. (like close friends)
Another doubt I have. I found this line in a song:
ありふれた人生を紅く色付ける様な
From I’ve been told that 様な here is used with an emphasizing nuance in a poetic sense. And nothing follows 様な in this line, seems like a separate statement, but for completeness’ sake, here’s the portion of the song:
Thanks!
Sorry to bother you but I still have a doubt
So you say that ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な modifies 恋. Yes, I could understand that, but what about what is in between them, たおやかな?
I mean, I see that both ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な and たおやかな end in な, is possible for two adjectives/clauses ending in な be together before the noun they modify?
Hello sensei!! good lesson, it’s very explicative and even knowing the verb meanings it taught some new things!!
I know with dekiru wo is never used but, with the potential form of a verb I see both “kore wo taberareru” or “kore ga taberareru” (I see it more often with ga). According to my book this is common but it doesn’t mention anything about it being grammatically correct so, when doing an exam, should I avoid it or is it grammatically correct?
arigatou!!
I’ve seen some sentences beginning with “tada de sae”, but “tada” has a lot of different meanings according to my dictionary. Which one would it be when used with “sae”?
Hello, etoile37
ただでさえ = on top of being already something is too ~, something else happens.
Ex. 電気代はただでさえ高いのにまた高くなった。
= Denkidai wa tadade sae takai noni mata takaku natta.
= The electricity is already expensive (and it got worse) and it got raised.
Ex. ただでさえ寒いのに雪が降った。
= Tadade sae samui noni yuki ga futta.
= It was cold enough (and it got worse) and it snowed.
I can not express how grateful I am for this post, it is so fantastic and useful. Next time I go to Japan I will definitely use this!
You are amazing Maggie sensei! boucingheart!
Hi Maggie-Sensei. I’m a little but confused on the conditional part of this lesson. You said “2) conditional さえ～ば (= sae ~ ba) / さえ～たら (= sae ~ tara)
if only, all you have to do is ~ / all I need is to ~ / as long as ~ / if you just ~” but I can’t tell the difference between any of them. How do you tell what type of translation the sentence is?
Note: The difference between ば(=ba) and たら(=tara) is very complicated and I won’t explain the whole difference here.
1) Aさえ～ば(= A sae ~ ba ) + B
2) Aさえ～たら (= A sae ~ tara )+ B
A lot of time the translation is the same ( if only, all you have to do is ~ / all I need is to ~ / as long as ~ / if you just ~ )
Both 1) and 2) gives certain condition (A) to get the result (B)
But, I will show you the basic difference here.
↓
1) Aさえ～ば (= A sae ~ ba)+ B
To make B happen, you only need to fulfill the condition, A
Focusing on the condition, A.
2) Aさえ～たら(= A sae ~ tara) + B
Only when fulfill the condition A, B will happen/You will get the result B
Focusing on the result, what is going to happen after the condition.
Omg,this lesson must have taken you hours I enjoyed reading it a lot!!
What I love the most about japanese language are the proverbs, some are hard to understand at first hehehe but they have a deep meaning! I got a tattoo with a short one (in romaji) and when people reads it they’re always like “oooh, japanese language is so mysterious” lol
Hello Rhi!
Actually it took months to make this lesson.
But if someone like you think it was interesting, it worth spending that much time.
What does your tattoo say?
Wow, that was hard for sure!! Otsukaresama deshita !nemui!
Actually my tattoo is something a japanese friend said once randomly, she said it half kidding and it’s not a real proverb I guess haha but I found it very encouraging. It says “akirame ochitsukazu”, meaning something like “if you give up you’ll never feel at ease” :)
So as you can imagine, when some English speaker reads it, it’s very “fushigi” for that person haha
Hi Maggie, thanks for your great lessons.
The combination:
なんて。。。なんでしょう。
seems to be used for saying
How … !
The final 「なんでしょう」 means anything in particular o is it just used to emphasize the sentence?
Can you use 「なんて」 alone?
Yes, なんて〜でしょう／だろう means “How ~!”/ “What a ~!”
Ex. なんていいお天気なんでしょう。
= How lovely weather it is.
Ex. なんてひどい人なんだろう。
= What an awful person he/she/they are.
Though you see this expression a lot in writing, we just say いい天気だね／いい天気ですね／ひどい！／ひどい人！in real conversation.
I have a question, there was a Japanese thanking me but I don’t know what she was thanking for. If I want to ask her “why did you thanking me?” in nihongo, does this sentence !to right! なぜあなたは私に感謝しましたか？ has the exact meaning?
Whooooaa I was starving for a sae lesson!! Very explicative! Thanks a lot!!
And, only to clarify my head more, can you show me another sentence using the te form with sae? I’ve read the last one “ikite sae ireba” but, can I say for example, “shukudai wo yattesae sureba ii” or does it have to be “yarisae” ? I think the yattesae sounds weird for that sentence, I mean, I see that -te sae more like the -te wa or something like that
Thank you !heart3!
We have a very similar expression in Spain!
When a group of people are eating and there’s only one bit/piece of food left on the plate we call it “el de la vergüenza” or “la de la vergüenza” (“el/la” depends on whether the food noun is masculine or feminine”). It means “the piece/bit of shame” because everyone would be ashamed or embarrassed to eat it. :-D
So when that happens somebody says: “¿Quién quiere el/la de la vergüenza?” (“Who wants the piece/bit of shame?”.
It was great to learn the Japanese equivalent of that expression! Thanks!
Actually I ended up here by accident because I was googling another expression: 可愛いの塊. Does that mean the same, except that it is a cute thing somehow? ?_?
Hello Caucasus,
The subjects of these two sentences are different.
1. people (or a person) who want(s) to talk the most
2. I (And pay attention to the particle “と” = with. → With a person who I want to talk the most)
Kon nichi ha, Maggie sensei!
I know this is an old post, but I have this question about, let’s call it ‘Adjective Verb Agreement’
If an inanimate noun qualifies an otherwise animate subject, will the verb be iru after the subject or aru after the qualifier!
I just found your website a few days ago, and I really like it! It has been very helpful to me, and I love the animals you bring on to give the lessons. This post reminded me of my own sweet kitty Minky, whom I had for more than 15 years. She became an “angel” two weeks ago.
Hello Palidor!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
Sorry to hear about Minky. I am an Angel, too, you know. I will show her around here if I see her around.
She is always welcome to be a guest teacher. (You can send a picture from About Us.)
Hi.
Thanks for this lesson. I heard the pattern “となる” in one of KAMIJO’s songs and felt the need to know about it and now I understand what it means when it should be used thanks to your lesson.
Now, I am curious about this. I know three と particles:
1. と used to express company or an action performed together with someone.
ex: 友達と話した。
2. と equivalent to English “and”.
ex: 紙と鉛筆が必要です。
3. と used for quotation.
ex: 彼はドラゴンボールが好きだと言った。
Unless there is another meaning conveyed by と that I have not yet read about I don’t see how any of the three meanings above can be similar to the meaning conveyed by particle に as it happens in になる. I guess this has to do with etimology (not good with these concepts >.< ). If you could explain I will be deeply thankful.
Hello Ryuusa.
Actually と has a lot of different functions besides 1,2,3.
The common function that と and に have is “result of an action”
〜となる／〜になる = to turn out to be ~
Thank you for doing all this amazing lessons and keeping this site full of information !niconico!
I laughed a lot readind this lesson. You Japanese people are so creative hahaha
You are the best!! !DANCING!
Thank you for teaching us so many useful phrases. I’m a French woman and currently learning Japanese. I often pick up sentences and/or explanations on your blog.
I was looking for some sentences to express how glad I am to have met a Japanese man who became my close friend. It’s not about a love relationship so the vocabulary of this lesson doesn’t fit.
We’re both a little over 40 and never met physically, we exchange e-mails to improve our language skills. I’m looking for sentences such as:I’m glad we got to know each other. I’m happy we can talk freely and understand each other, your friendship and trust are important to me….
I want to send him an handmade card to thank him because he always helps me with Japanese and he also comforted me at a difficult time in my life.
Could you eventually help? Maybe a topic with phrases about friendship would be a good idea
Bonjour Carine! Thank you for visiting our site.
It seems like you found a nice Japanese friend.
First if you want to thank him for supporting you through difficult time and appreciate your friendship you can say something like
いつも日本語を教えてくれて有り難う。そしていつも支えてくれてありがとう。（Nama)のお陰で辛いことも乗り越えてくることができました。心から感謝しています。
=Itsumo nihongo wo oshiete kurete arigatou. Soshite itsumo sasaete kurete arigatou. (Name) no okage de tsurai kotomo norikoete kuru koto ga dekimashita. Kokoro kara kansha shiteimasu.
= Thank you for always teaching me Japanese. And thank you for your support. Thank to (name), I could overcome the hardship. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Hello Maggie Sensei! Ogenki desu ka? Thank you for your wonderful blog!
Like Corine, I am in my 40s and have a Japanese male friend of the same age with whom a correspond from time to time. In my case, we have met in person a few times in Japan and are close enough for public hugging, but it is not a romantic relationship.
He does not speak much English and I am only a beginner at Japanese so we do not write long notes and I always have to use a dictionary, but it is extremely helpful for me to practice reading Japanese characters and understand colloquial phrases (our correspondence is not formal). Sometimes a friend translates, but I would like to be able to express some forms of friendly affection on my own, as that seems more personal.
For instance, it would be nice to express that I miss his company (I am never sure if words such as “aitai” are suited to friendship) or how much I appreciate him as a person/apprecite his correspondence. Also he has some health issues, and I am often at a loss how to express concern and caring in a personal way without being formal. It would be super if you could do a lesson on expressing affection/caring on a friendship level one day!
Hello Em!
Thank you for visiting this site.
I think I got the similar request in past. Was it you? Well, everybody has different type of friendship so it would be hard to make a general friendship lesson but will keep it in mind.
Meanwhile,
it would be nice to express that I miss his company (I am never sure if words such as “aitai” are suited to friendship)
So you want to know some casual expression to tell him you miss him. 会いたい could be too direct. How about
また会えたらうれしいな。 = I will be happy if I get to see you again.(but it has a very light tone)
or how much I appreciate him as a person/apprecite his correspondence.
Your correspondence is by email or letters?
こうやってemail (or 手紙=letter)を書き合えることに感謝しています。
Also he has some health issues, and I am often at a loss how to express concern and caring in a personal way without being formal.
No, it was not me. Perhaps there are many people who have non-romantic close friendships reading your blog! :-D I agree that it is difficult though, as there are many degrees of friendship.
Can you explain 無理はしないでね? Is it a way of saying “take care of yourself?” I love to read your explanations of the differences in saying things in Japanese, it’s very helpful to a beginner.
@EM
Ah, OK,
無理しないでね。/ 無理はしないでね。(a little stronger) means “Take care (not work too hard/try not to do too much )
When tte is added after an imperative like in やめろって, does it always mean that it’s the second time that we ask the person to stop? Or could we add tte the first time we ask the person to stop, just to add force to the command?
This was exactly what I was looking for! (thanks etoile for asking lol).
I was reading something and this person used “adj-tte” even when he wasn’t repeating something he said before, but for the first time so I took it as if it was just to emphasize.
Thanks Maggie sensei for this whole class !
@Lu
Hello, Lu!
You had the same question as etoile?
I guess I should have included that usage in the lesson. :)
Hello,
with the verb “hajimaru”, I have been taught that で始まる = it starts WITH and に始まる = it starts IN, so is it some exception? Because starting is an action itself and I don’t think it aims at any place but it’s true that when I hear “x de hajimaru” I think of “starting with x”, like “r”で始まる名前
So are the particles interchangeable in this kind of case?
Hello,
The particles に and で have different functions.
＊〜で始まる = to start／begin with ~
Ex. 会議は会長のスピーチで始まる。 The meeting will start with the chairman’s speech.
Ex. 0120で始まる電話番号 The telephone number which starts with 0120
＊~に始まる= to start/begin in (from) ~
Ex. 新しい学期は春に始まります。= A new semester starts in spring.
Ex. ４月に始まるクラス= A class which starts from April.
Wow, you’re very thorough! I learnt something like this on another site but they only covered ga ii desu and de ii desu. I never knew there was a demo ii desu! Thanks Maggie Sensei! You’re awesome. Oh, also…I noticed that you wrote this at the end:
So 皆はマギー先生がいい？
= Mina wa Maggie sensei ga ii?
I think the romaji should say minna but I’m probably wrong. Anyway, thanks for teaching, this was an awesome lesson! :}
Hello, my book lists “kaze wo hikiyasui” and I was wondering, if you say you use ga/wa with yasui/nikui (and makes all the sense to me since it becomes a some kind of adjective), is my book wrong using wo? (I sometimes spot fails so I wouldn’t be surprised) Or maybe they’re sometimes switched? Thank you
Hello Lia,
風邪をひく(kazw wo hiku) is an idiom. The original meaning of 引く＝ひく= hiku is “to draw” so you need an object marker を
（FYI We also say 風邪にかかる= Kaze ni kakaru : In this case かかる means “to be infected” so you need a particle for cause, に = ni= by)
Back to your question, you don’t say 風邪がひきやすい but when you show the contrast you can say 風邪はひきやすい(=kaze wa hikiyasui)／風邪はひきにくい(=kaze wa hikinikui)
Ex. 大きな病気にかかることはあるがなぜか風邪はひきにくい。
= Ookina byouki ni kakaru koto wa aru ga naze ka kaze wa hikinikui.
(Showing the contrast between serious disease and cold.)
Haha yep, I see it’s an idiom, I like it, sounds really strange, to draw a cold or to pull a cold. Anyway I read more often “kodomo ga tabeyasui tabemono”, for example, to say that it’s food that a kid can easily eat so, I guess nikui/yasui is not as much an adjective and has a verb part. I’d have said “kodomo ni tabeyasui” but I understand the ga.
thank you!!!
Basically it is possible to use many different particles with V+やすい／にくい depending on the verb and context.
noun が／は／を／に/も/でも, etc… + V+やすい／にくい
子供が食べやすい食べ物= Kodomo ga tabeyasui tabemono
子供が食べやすいように切る= Kodomo ga tabeyasui you ni kiru.
このお菓子は子供に食べやすいように作られています。= Kono okashi wa kodomo ni tabeyasui you ni tsukurarete imasu.
By my unintentional actions I have troubled a young woman. I tried apologizing with words but due to miscommunication and misunderstanding, I made her even more annoyed. She is a Caucasian American married to a Japanese man. I was hoping after some time has passed that I would confront them and perform a dogeza before them to show honor and respect towards them both. Would this be all right to do or unnecessary? And what do I say while performing this act of apology?
Hi Christopher
I don’t know what happened but as you said if you did something unintentionally and they are still angry because of miscommunication, then just apologize sincerely one more time.
In my opinion Dogeza is a very old fashioned and too dramatic. You don’t need to do that.
Hope you make peace with them soon…
I’m trying to start using japanese – japanese dictionaries and I stumbled over this patern a few times, verb + sama. I can’t find any resources online about this kind of patern. Also please can you teach us how to use an online dictionary in japanese?
Ex. ご飯できたら呼んで！ = Gohen dekitara yonde! = Call me when dinner is ready. {Umm…it should be gohan right?} I think it might be a typo, though my Kanji isn’t very good, so I might be wrong. Anyway, thanks for the lesson Maggie-sensei! It’s much better and more detailed than any other {tara} lesson i’ve read! :grin:
Hello Maggie-sensei! Your lessons are very helpful!! Thank you! So I was watching a video of Perfume and they were wishing A~chan happy birthday. They were reading tweets from fans and one of the fans said “A~chan omedetou kekoshite” and they started laughing what is kekoshite? Also someone else said “A~chan ome” which A~chan replied “Ariau(?) omeri” what does that mean? And Nocchi said “Ari” which I just learned (:-D )is a shortened thank you lol
Hello Courtney
The members of Perfume are cute, huh? They also talk in Hiroshima accent.
Do you have a link to that video?
A~chan omedetou kekoshite →It’s 結婚して= kekkon shite = Marry me!
ome = おめでとう = omedetou = Happy Birthday!
“Ariau(?) omeri” →I need to see the video…. Isn’t Ariau(?) ありがとう= Arigatou?
わかりました〜！！
おめ= ome = Casual abbreviation of おめでとう(=omedetou) Congratulations!
あり= ari = Casual abbreviation of ありがとう (= arigatou) Thank you
So おめあり=omeari = Thank you for saying “Congratulation” (In this case “Happy Birthday!” )
ありがとうございました！！… This is off subject but…is it ok to use わくわくする to say “I’m excited!” or is it not used anymore?
＠Courtney
どういたしまして！ And yes we do say わくわくする= to get excited. It is not a slang word.
Thank you sensei! It cleared a lot of confusions (・ω・)ノ
My friend wrote in an email: … 来ればいいのに？ I take this to mean ‘why don’t you come?’ But I’m not sure how to use this structure. I get のに pretty much as a conjunction as you have explained, but not the one n my friends email. Can you help?
こんにちは、ポール！
来ればいいのに means “You should come (anyway)!”
Maybe you turned down your friends’ invitation once, right? So they know you can’t come or it is difficult for you to come but they are trying to convince you again showing their feelings that they really want you to come.
Hello Alex,
She calls you with your first name and drops -kun and -san because she feels close to you. Using san is too formal between friends.
Or she is trying to adjust to your culture, calling each other with one’s first name.
boucingheart! This site is amazing…first lesson I’ve read from it (literally just heard of your website today. Thanks for all the hard work in putting this stuff together, and also for replying to people who post. That’s really nice of you to answer questions like that.
The last sentence is interesting.
でも、本当は私は自分のことを世界で一番可愛いと信じています。
I assume the particle を is used with 信じています and so is the particle と.
i.e. マギー先生を信じてる マギー先生が最高だと信じてる
So it seems special that two particles are tied to the same word cause normally I see each particle is attached to each word in a sentence.
What if the を is replaced with が？
でも、本当は私は自分のことが世界で一番可愛いと信じています。
You use 信じる with both particles, を and と
1) Aを信じる to believe A (noun/nominalized verb) Ex. 噂を信じる=uwasa wo shinjiru= to believe in the rumor
2) Aと信じる to believe that ~~~~ Ex. 彼が日本に来るという噂を信じる= Kare ga nihon ni kuru toiu uwasa wo shinjiru = to believe the rumor that he is coming to Japan.
I can understand the meaning of the sentence but what I am confused about is the use of を.
If I were to just extract the sub clause to a separate sentence by itself – 自分のことを世界で一番可愛い, is this grammatically correct since there is no verb in the sentence.
That is why in the original sentence, I cannot help but feel that both を and と are associated with 信じています, the only verb in the entire sentence.
Hello changkh!
OK the difference between
1) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしています。
And
2) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしました。
1) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしています。 I have been posted various lessons already
2) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしました。 I already posted various lessons already.
Sometimes we translated the same but the difference is しました implies your action has completed. しています means “has been doing the action” and the speaker will keep posting a new lesson.
sensei
sorry,i dont know where i can ask questions :cryingboy: .could you please explain the differences between mada Vte imasen and mada Vmasen ?
thank you. boucingheart!
When your order hasn’t come yet at a restaurant, you say
Ex. 1) 頼んだ料理がまだ来ていません。(= Tanonda ryouri ga mada kite imasen.)
But some people do say
Ex. 2) 頼んだ料理がまだ来ません。(=Tanonda ryouri ga mada kimasen.)
And they both mean “My order hasn’t come yet.” / “My order is not here yet.”
However, technically まだVていません means “hasn’t (haven’t) pp yet”
and まだVせん usually means “will not do something yet.”
Ex. まだ宿題をやっていません。= I haven’t done my homework yet.
Ex. まだ宿題をやりません。= I still won’t/ don’t do my homework. (showing one’s will not to do/ describing one’s current situation)
Ex. 彼はまだ何も食べていません。= He hasn’t eaten anything yet.
Ex. 彼はまだ何も食べません。= He still refuses to eat and won’t eat anything.
Hello John,
I am sorry.. I don’t understand why jonosuke is related to the fact you have been working 6 days a week since October??? 〜之助／〜之介(~ no suke) is a traditional male name. (From Samurai era.) So I thought they combine it with your name ジョン.
Hi! ^_^
Thanks for the lesson!)
But there is one thing that’s not clear to me… For example, I need the say: “In winter, I usually wear a coat and boots.”
What word should I use when I wear different things at the same time?
Would it be correct to say 冬に私はよくコートやブーツをきます? Or I need something else here instead of きます？
ありがとうございます!!
This question has been bothered me for the past few days already.
Japanese is such a crazy language:D But in the good way!
私は何にもかかわらず、日本語が大好き！
@just a novel lover’s
Konnichiwa!
In this case だと is a casual way of saying “(location) では” = in / at ~ (showing the contrast) but it has conditional nuance.
Ex. I can relax at home but I can’t relax outside of my house.
= 家ではリラックスことができるけど、家の外ではリラックスすることができないんだ。
= 家だとリラックスことができるけど、家の外ではリラックスすることができないんだ。
nani nani?
長い付き合いにあるな！
I think it is
長い付き合いになるな
Depends on the context.
It could be
*We have been seeing each other (=dating) for a long time.
*I have known her/him/them for a long time.
*We have been friends for a long time.
Or if the speaker is talking about how long something will take,
*Something will take a long time
There could be other possibilities but I hope one of these fit in the context.
OK, then that means
I am your homeroom teacher. (I am new here but) I have already known some of you who have been taking my martial class for a long time.
hmmm… that could work if the teacher is teaching a second year student
but this is a first year student Maggie-sensei so I don’t think it’s work in here…
hmmm…., aha! sensei, sensei. Can I translate this words 武術の授業を取る奴らとは、長い付き合いにあるな！ to “For you fella’s who take martial arts class, you will have a long relationship with me!” ? so he is telling them in round about manner that he is teaching Martial Arts Class.
Hello Berek,
I think you got the meaning.
America and the other countries think that it is important to teach people, especially young people, not to have the same way of thinking that IS has.
1) 動詞＋てくる
The concept of having to explicitly mention doing something and then come back is rather unique for Japanese language. When I first started learning Japanese, I cannot understand the purpose of having to say ‘go do something and come back’. I have also asked Japanese friends but maybe because it is instilled in them since young, it is hard to explain why the need to include てくる. I mean, what is the difference between トイレ二行ってきます and just トイレに行きます?
So I was thinking, whether you could give some scenarios where it is not correct to include てくる? Maybe I can understand it better that way. I also used to think that てくる is for doing something and coming back in a short while; at most within a day (and is that why they always say 行ってきます！?) In that case, is it alright to say 明日日本に行ってきます? I hear my Japanese friends say something like フランスに行ってきました when they came back from abroad. But overseas trip usually last many days and what if one does not yet know when is the time to return?
2) 〜ていく＋〜てくる
Another user has posted similar question so I will read your lesson on that and see if I can understand better
3) マギーはなんと言いましたか
I am not sure if you have done any lesson on this but I always have a problem understanding the proper use of 言う. Because sometimes they use 言いました, sometimes 言っていました.
1) トイレに行ってきます insinuating that the speaker is going to the bathroom and comes back later.
トイレに行きます just means “I am going to the bathroom.”
明日日本に行きます
I am going to Japan tomorrow. (Just focusing on the trip to Japan. )
明日日本に行ってきます。
I am going to Japan tomorrow. (And eventually I will be back)
It doesn’t matter when the speaker is coming back (short time or long period of time) but the both speaker and listener know the speaker is coming back eventually.
2) Yes, I have a lesson so please read it first.
3) The difference between 言いました/ 言った and 言っていました/ 言っていた
They all could be translated as ”said” but it might be easier to think
言いました/ 言った said (in particular moment in the past)
言っていました/ 言っていた was saying/ had been saying / used to say (either the person was usually saying something or even just one time, describing the situation of saying something more vividly.)
It means “because””so” and you use it when you give a reason.
Ex. 明日は雨なので出かけたくありません。
= Ashita wa ame nanode dekaketaku arimasen.
= Because it is going to rain tomorrow, I don’t want to go out.
Ex. マギーは犬なのでレストランには入れません。
= Maggie wa inu nanode resutoran niwa hairemasen.
na-adjective ~ な+ので
Ex. ひまなのでどこかに行きたい。
= Hima nanode dokoka ni ikitai.
= I am free so I want to go out.
“Denki wo tsukete iru ie” – The house with lights on
Without seeing the translation that you wrote, I’m sure I’d have translated something like “The house that it’s turning the lights on” lol Why the -te iru here? Since it’s transitive and when I see a transitive with -te iru, I understand an ongoing action by the subject, so I don’t get the use of “te iru” there, instead of “denki ga tsukete aru ie” (on purpose) or more stative ” Denki ga tsuite iru ie” , the house with lights on (by themselves). What is the difference?
I’m a crazy commenter, I know. itsumo osewa ni narimasu ne
電気をつけている家 (Denki wo tsukete iru ie) The house with lights on
The literal translation is “The house which is turning the lights on” But since the subject is a house, it will be more natural to translate “The house with lights on” So your interpretation is correct.
Oook, so, I see it’s more up to the context. Sometimes your omitting things confuses me :cryingboy: hahaha. Thinking about it as “The house whose owners have switched the light on” makes much more sense to me, but I guess it’s unnecesary to specify “juumin ga denki wo tsukete iru ie”. I think that I sometimes overexplain things when I’m talking japanese, because I’m afraid of saying something awkward, but then I see you Japanese people are not that strict, and as long as it makes good sense you don’t mind it that much !happyface! So it gives me more confidence. Thanks!!
電気をつけている家 – The house that turns the lights on. (It implies that the house itself turned on the lights. As if the house has its own will – I think that’s a bit strange, don’t you think so Maggie?)
電気が／のついている家 – The house with lights on. (Describing the state)
電気がつけてある家 – The house which someone (on purpose) turned the lights on. (Implying that someone for some purpose turned the lights on)
@天人
Thank you for your follow up as always, 天人さん！
Sensei, even though you say the particle used with “neru” is “de” and it’s the usually used, sometimes it can be switched with “ni” if it refers permanency, right? I’ve heard recently “kokoro ni nete iru”, so I assumed they were trying to say that something was permanently “sleeping” there, on the speaker’s “heart”, giving an idea of permanency. Or maybe is it common to switch these 2 with the -te iru form? Thanks!!
I think what you heard/saw was not 寝る but 眠る=nemuru
“心に寝ている= kokoro ni neteiru” sounds strange. But you can say 心に眠っている
It is a metaphor and it means someone/something(some memory) stays in one’s heart.
to see the difference between 寝る and 眠る check this lesson.
And yes, we say 心に眠っている to indicate the location.
Oh yep, I’ve checked it again and I think they said that. But they were talking really fast and it sounds more like “neru”, it’s strange :/
It’s a metaphor yes, but anyway I think I’ve also heard it with real places when they want to say that something it’s there “hidden/sleeping”, as you mentioned in your neru/nemuru lesson, that “nemureru mori” fairytale, I watched the drama a few years ago and if I still remember well they were always saying “nemureru mori ni nemutte iru”, so I get the point of permanency !JYANE!
If you got the sentence from some youtube video that I can see, I will check it for you.
(And yes, you use に or で with 眠る Ex.ここで眠っているのは誰？ Who is sleeping here? Ex. 〜〜〜ここに眠る= metaphor hic jacet(here lies) —inscription on someone’s tombstone)
Oh, it was a movie but thank you for offering! anyway, after checking it with “open ears” I started to hear it right. Sometimes in movies the words get mixed up, it’s harder to understand than in real life! arigatou gozaimashita!!
@Sarah
I still think 心に寝る is somehow strange but ここに寝る may work.
So there are cases you use に for the verb 寝る. I added the information in the lesson.
But either way, good question, Sarah!And studying Japanese using a movie is tough but very useful and fun!
Hello Eva!
I am not sure if I understand your question but you want to say how to ask
“What did you just say?” If so, 今、何て言いましたか？= Ima nante iimashita ka?
“What was the word for “a car” in Japanese?” = “car”は日本語で何ていいましたか？= “Car” wa nihongo de nante iimashita ka? （more casual “car”は日本語で何て言ったけ？= Car wa nihongo de nante ittakke?”
Hello changkh
Oh this is my very first lesson.
You can replace ってところでしょうか with ということです。(=That means)
You use という（っていう）ところでしょうか when you rephrase something.
Thank you for your quick reply. I knew about your blog some time back but never had time to read through. So I have decided to start reading every lesson from day 1.
I see. This is something new. I always thought ところ is only used to refer to place or location, both physical and abstract.
!damedame!
!DANCING! OhaYÔ!~ !DANCING!
39 for your complete, very flashy (ee, no, no 39 for that !ase! ) and useful lessons.
Y often listen Sashi Buri, isen’t the very casual form for Hisashi Buri? personaly Y prefere it. Sashi Buri Ne,Scar Chain! (Go! Go! Genka-chan!)
Hi Konbanwa!
I am glad you like the smileys and found my lesson useful. I appreciate your feedback. Yes Sashiburi must be a casual form for Hisashiburi.
(Sorry but I got to delete all the F words here. Not coolだよ. )
Wow ! Excellent job here Maggie Sensei ^.^ I’ve been struggling with this word since it conveys so many different nuances but your explanations just made them crystal clear ! And that just gave more interesting insights about the Japanese culture and “indirectness” (or indirect “directness” should I say ^.^)
隅に置けない is an idiom. You use it when you discover someone has some abilities unexpectedly or who you thought they were innocent/immature were actually not.
In this case, the speaker was surprised because they thought ツチオ was a shy person but actually he was dating someone who is out of his league.
They are coined word.
貴公子 is a young noble 貴公子スマイル is like “princely smile”
貴公子系聖女…It is a strange word. Usually 貴公子 is a young man but 聖女 is a holy woman
潔癖気味な女の子 a little fastidious girl
こんにちは、Humberto!
３）の例で「とか」と「かな」を置き換えることができますか？
はい、できます。
意味は大体同じですが、「とか」は、考えられる理由をあげるとき(giving a plausible reason, Ex. It could be because….) 。「かな」はその考えついた理由についてどうかなあと思うときにに使います。（when you wonder that plausible reason)
Dear sensei !DANCING!
If I say: (mada) tabete inai, it means “I haven’t eaten (yet)”, so, if I want to deny that I’ve done something, it would also be “watashi yatte inai!!” It confused me at first, because it sounded like “I’m not doing it!(now)”, but then I realized that “te inai” is somehow like “I haven’t…”. So, is it OK if I say “mada shiranai”, “mada dekinai”, etc? I would be very strange for me if I say, in English, “I haven’t known it yet” Maybe it’s the same with Japanese.
And, “tabete inai” both means “I’m not eating now” and “I haven’t eaten”, right?
Same with -te iru when used to say “have you…?”, if I hear “kare wo koroshite iru” I would probably misunderstand that the speaker’s killing him right now lol
Any advice to help me difference, or is it pure context? Thanks !heart3!
Yes, ~ ている could be “to be doing something” or “to have done”.
Q: Is it OK if I say “mada shiranai”, “mada dekinai”, etc?
Yes. You can say “まだ知らない” “まだ出来ない(or まだ出来ていない）”
FYI you can say 知っている
Ex. I have known him for a long time = 彼をもう長いこと知っています。
Q : And, “tabete inai” both means “I’m not eating now” and “I haven’t eaten”, right?
Yes. that is correct.
Hello, I wanted to make this a new question but as this relates to these posts. Hope I don’t steal the spotlight ;p
I am having trouble with ていません hearing that it can be used as has have not. I saw a few posts explaining this and these two in particular confuse me. Perhaps when you have time you could help?
2. あの映画を見ていませんか
This would be, “Aren’t you watching that movie (now)?”
if you wanted to say “have you seen the movie”, you should put it in past form.
あの映画を観ました？
if you want to say “haven’t you seen the movie yet?” you would use the てない form used for expressing experience.
あの映画を観てないの？
This was from an explanation of あの映画を見ていませんか being aren’t you seeing that move or have you not seen that movie. I myself look at the two examples given and besides the Kanji change I do not see anything changed that would make one different than the other in meaning.
And 今まで、何も気づいていないのは面白いだと思います。 The translation being “I just find it interesting that I haven’t realized anything until now. Being corrected to 気づかなかった. Is there a reason for this? I hear 気づいていない used a lot.
As I mentioned in my lesson ている can describe what is happening/doing right now and also for the past event, have done something.
あの映画を観ていませんか
means
You haven’t seen that movie (yet)?”
As you said it could also mean “You are not seeing that movie right now?” but situation wise, it doesn’t sound natural. (because of the word あの)
As for kanji, you 見る is a general kanji for seeing/ watching something. You use 観る to see a movie, TV, games or shows.
Did you find the example sentence from my lessons? If so from which lesson?
*****
面白いだと思います。
→面白いと思います。
Here are the difference:
気づいていない have not been realized
気づかなかった. didn’t realize / haven’t realized
Since the sentence has 今まで until now,
the person did realized something so you should use the past tense 気づかなかった.
If you use まだ instead of 今まで、you can use 気づいていない
まだ、何も気づいていないは面白いと思います。
Thanks for a quick reply. So it seems to me that ていません used here is just a shortened form or less emphasis form of まだ ていません am I correct in thinking so?
And I think I understand the difference between 気づいていない and 気づかなかった.
The first meaning that I haven’t realized and I still did not realize anything, and the latter being I haven’t realized up until this point.
Am I correct in this thinking? Thanks again.
@Shen
Not shortened word but it will be easier for you to think the sentence by adding まだ.
As I explained in my Japanese tense lessons, Part 1 and Part 2, a lot of Japanese tense can be interpreted by the time related words in the sentence.
So 気づいていない haven’t realized (yet- up to this point)
but 気づかなかった Either “haven’t realized” or “didn’t realize”
And you have to figure it out with the time related words or context in the sentence.
Ohayou, sensei ^^
it’s me asking a question again ^^
from what I learned in this lesson, we can drop all the main verbs when we want to pass along an information, right sensei?
then this sentence that I found 授業の説明もあるって are actually the shortened version from this sentence? 授業の説明もあるって聞いたよ
Sensei, Hello!
I have a question, I’ve heard recently while watching a dorama, a character (a very very informal one) saying the positive version of nakya all the time. When he used it, it was like giving advice or telling “you should…”, so I inferred from that:
ikya > ikereba > ikereba ii > you should go ¿? maybe ¿? Is this used to give advice as well?
Is it some dialect? The city was Tokyo but that character used like some kind of dialect, or he was really really informal, I think
arigatou!
Yes, see my examples
★When you tell other people what to do.
★When you tell other people what to do and the possible consequences.
They all mean “you should” or “I should” (If you are talking to yourself, “I should”/ “We should” and if you are talking to someone else what they should do “You should”)
Ex. もっとがんばらなきゃ！= You should try harder. or I should study harder.
Ex. 勉強しなきゃ! = You should study! or I should study!
I’ve been trying to understand the differences in nuance between ~になる and ~になっている. I know that なる is technically an intransitive verb, and when intransitive verbs are in ている form, the meaning is more like an intransitive state of being, like “The door is open” would be ドアが開いている. Does the same apply to なる as well?
Specifically I’m trying to dissect this sentence from NHK News Web Easy: マラソンのコースになっている銀座では Is it something like “In Ginza, which will be the marathon course,” …what would the change be if it were マラソンのコースになる銀座では? Maybe something like, “In Ginza, which will become the marathon course,” Thank you for your help!
＠Max
Hello Max.
Since it is talking about future Olympics
Both マラソンコースになっている銀座 and マラソンコースになる銀座 can be translated Ginza which will be the marathon course.
But there is a slight nuance difference.
OK, let’s rephrase those sentences and compare them.
A: 銀座はマラソンコースになっている 1) Ginza has been the marathon course (current situation) or 2) Ginza is supposed/planned to be the marathon course (You are talking about the future but the plan has already decided. But when you translate this sentence, it could be the same as B (Ginza will be/become the marathon course) )
B : 銀座はマラソンコースになる Ginza will be/become the marathon course. (talking about future)
Maggie先生、thank you for these lessons. They’re really useful!
質問があります。。。
In this sentence
りんごやオレンジなどが好きです。
Can I take off the が particle or is that incorrect? りんごやオレンジなど好きです。
I’m asking you this because I read somewhere that you can delete the particle after など but I’m not sure about it. I don’t know if this works well with some sentences but with others don’t? Can you please help me to clarify this?
Hello reid!
1) 聞く is the most general kanji and you can write 聞く. But it is more common to use the kanji 聴く for the music.
→When you hear something (naturally/ happened to hear something) you use the kanji, 聞く and when you listen to something/someone carefully, such as music, lecture or some audio books, etc. you use 聴く.
2) など has a meaning of “etc.” and you use と for something specific. Therefore AとBなど sounds a little strange.
I would use AやBなど
I am reading a short story and this paragraph came at the end:
この話は、人に何かをさせるには、力ずくでやるよりも、あいてがその気になるようによく説明するほうが、ききめがあることがおおい、ということをおしえています。
How to explain ように here?
so it become “if I do something like groping a girl breast”?
it’s not a pervert novel sensei, it’s just a romantic comedy kind of novel with some rpg element ^^
no pervert scene as far as I read it right now, just a touching scene (“touching” in something that can make us teary mean not the other meaning ^^) when… it’s a spoiler so I suggest you read it yourself sensei because it’s really a nice novel ^^
I’m from England and I have a Japanese friend that I meet up with when I’m in Japan. We stay in touch between visits via LINE/Facebook/etc. I sometimes ask her ‘genki?’ and she responds ‘hai/iie/guai ga warui’ or whatever. She assumed I was going to visit her for GW this year (because I did last year). When I told her that I couldn’t go this GW, she didn’t respond for a long time and when I asked ‘genki?’ the next day, she just said ‘nantoka’. I’d never heard ‘nantoka’ as a response to ‘genki?’ before, so I wasn’t sure how she was feeling! Is it just a short version of ‘(Maa)Nantoka yatte imasu.’? I’m pretty sure I’ve upset her…
Hello Mariko!
I see your point.
If you just want to say
I have seen this movie already.
この映画はもう見たことがあります。
この映画はもう見ました。
sound more natural.
As you said 見てあります sounds odd because you don’t usually see a movie to prepare yourself.
You usually use てある when you do something intentionally to prepare for something.
So この映画はもう見てあります only works for example you are a judge of some movie contest and you have to see a lot of movies to attend the contest.
Then you can say この映画はもう見てあります。= I have seen this movie already (I am prepared to be a judge for this contest.)
こんばんは！
どんな夢を見てるんでしょうか。= What kind of dream are you having? / I wonder what kind of you are having. / What are you dreaming about?
見ているのでしょうか
（の→ん) 見ているんでしょうか？
Wait a minute, maybe I misunderstood you. (I added some words in my previous comment.)
I think you know but the original color of the buildings are not red. But because of the reflection of the sun light, they turned in red.
なかなかに（中々に）is used in Classical Japanese and it has 2 meanings:
1. something is unfinished / half done / incomplete;
2. on the contrary / rather / all the more.
Hello again.
As 天人さん said なかなかに is a classical Japanese words, and personally I have never used it or heard it in conversation but I found out on Google that there are people who use it as なかなか even in modern days.
なかなかに面白い
なかなかに優秀
Quick question sensei!! When using “noni” to say “in order to; to do something”, is it compulsory to use the “no”? Can I say “neru niwa mada hayai” (to say it’s still early to go to bed) or is it necessary to use “neru noni mada hayai” ? I’ve been wondering if I can’t use the particle “ni” after a verb without nominalization. If it’s possible, what’s the difference with and without the “no”? Makes it a bit confusing with the other meaning of noni for me :/
Hi Sarah
You can say both 寝るにはまだ早い(=Neru niwa mada hayai) and 寝るのにはまだ早い (=neru no niwa mada hayai)
We sometimes omit “の” for that usage when it is used as a subject. And the meaning is the same.
Other example
食べるのには困らない →食べるには困らない
(But のには is more common)
Konbanwa!
The sentence
ルウを散歩させなきゃいけないしな！
Let’s break it down.
First do you understand the meaning of this sentence?
↓
ルウを散歩させなければいけない
It means “I have to walk Ruu”
Now the casual contraction of なければいけない is
なきゃいけない
→ルウを散歩に連れていかなきゃいけない
The meaning is the same, I have to walk Ruu
Now the ending part し implies “also”
I also have to walk Ruu.
And the last casual suffix な is to stress the speaker’s point.
(So your translation “you know” is good.)
ルウを散歩させるしな
just means “I am also going to walk Ruu, you know.” and it doesn’t have a meaning of “must/ have to”.
I see… thank you sensei for helping me, it’s really help on reconstructing my logic
seriously, because I’m asking sensei about this double negative words I rechecked my translation on my favorite’s novel and I found a critical miss (fufufu… now my doubt about his gender are up by 80%)
Hi, maybe a difficult question, maybe not.
When you take the word “hi” 日 and add a “ru” – you get “hiru” 昼.
When you take “evening” “yuugata” 夕方, extract “yuu” and add a “ru” – you get “yoru” 夜. (Or am I making a mistake in this one?)
What does this “ru” mean in itself? Does it have a kanji?
Hello Ross,
ひる=hiru= means “day time/afternoon/noon” And the kanji for ひる=hiru is “昼”
And よる=yoru means “night” and the kanji for よる=yoru is 夜
The word ゆうがた=yuugata means “evening” and we use two kanji 夕(=ゆう=yuu)方(=がた= gata)
So your question
What does this “ru” mean in itself?
It doesn’t mean anything. It is just a part of a word.
And you can’t combine 日(=hi) and る(=ru) and stuff.
Hi again.
頼る = tayoru= means “to depend (on something/someone)
甲斐/かい・がい= kai/gai = means “worth/ effect/use”
頼りがいがある means someone “dependable/ reliable”
Ex. 彼は頼りがいがある人です。= He is a reliable person.
You can also say 頼りになる=tayori ni naru
Ex. 彼は頼りになる人です。= Kare wa tayori ni naru hito desu.
But you can’t say 頼りがある
Other words with 甲斐(がい・かい）
＊やり甲斐(=yarigai)がある= worth doing
＊生き甲斐(=ikigai)がある= something worth living for
It may be easier for you to think the answer for this question first.
このハーブのシャンプーを使ったらここまで見事な髪になります。
= If you use this herb shampoo, your hair will be this beautiful.
So as you can see this たら make this sentence conditional.
Ex. 私もハーブのシャンプーを使ったらここまで見事な髪になりますか？
= If I use herb shampoo, do you think my hair will be this beautiful?
Again, this is a conditional sentence.
So
どんなシャンプーやリンスを使ったら、ここまで見事な髪になるんだろうな…。
means
I wonder what kind of shampoo or conditioners I should use to make my hair this beautiful.
(I wonder what kind of shampoo or conditioner would make my hair this beautiful. )
*****
= どうして日本語はこんなに難しいんだろう
= Doushite nihongo wa konnani muzukashiin darou
= I wonder why Japanese is this difficult.
= どうして日本語はこんなに難しいのかな（あ）
= Doushite nihongo wa konnani muzukashii nokana(a)
＊変に意味がなかなか分かる。→なぜかわからないけれども意味がわかります。（If you want to use なかなか there, このレッスンは”なかなか”わかりやすいです。）
You use a verb with 「なかなか」in a negative sentence なかなか〜ない or 時間がかかる／苦労する etc.
＊そうならいいですね。（that ね is not just for women. Men can use it as well.)
しまった！You’re right, I guess I didn’t have it that clear after all ..thank you so much now I think I got the last part of the lesson! I wasn’t sure how to write the “listening” part, I hope it turned out ok. I vaguely remember my sensei using it sometimes and I hear it often on tv shows and songs, but as far as I can remember this is the first time I’ve come across with a lesson focusing specifically on it. 手伝ってくれてありがとう！
Whew, this is a lot of information, but thank you for the explanation. Maggie sensei, I have a question though. I understand the が and を difference for intransitive and transitive verbs, but I have seen examples that state:
O-mise wa aite imasu (the store is open).
while others state:
O-mise ga aite imasu (the store is open).
Some people say you must use が because it is intransive, but others say it doesn’t matter in this case. I’ve spent hours trying to sort this out, but you’re the one person whose explanations made sense. Tasukete! (sorry for being dramatic).
Sorry for the romanji, I haven’t set up a furigana keyboard on my new computer yet.
Hello Shabaescaba,
OK, the difference between “が” and “は” is very complicated.
The basic rule is
AはBです (focusing on B)
AがBです (focusing on A)
1) When you are talking about general things you use は
*この部屋は寒い= This room is cold.
*彼はリーダーです。= He is a leader.
And you usually use が when you focus on the subject
(どの部屋が寒いのですか？(=Dono heya ga samui no desu ka?)= Which room is cold, you said? ）
→この部屋が寒い= (Kono heya ga samui) THIS ROOM is cold.
(誰がリーダーですか？=(Dare ga riidaa desu ka?) = Who is the leader? ）
→彼がリーダーです。(Kare ga riidaa desu.) = He is the leader. (Emphasizing the subject)
2) は is also used to emphasize what comes after showing the contrast.
1) お店が開いています。O-mise wa aite imasu (the store is open).
2) お店は開いています。O-mise ga aite imasu (the store is open).
Imagine, you are walking and saw some store is open.
If you simply describe what you saw, which one would you use?
The answer is 1) お店が開いています。(=Omise ga aite imasu.)
And imagine, you go to a coffee shop and it was closed. But they have a little store right next to the coffee shop and it was open. Which one would you use?
The answer is 2) お店は開いています。(= Omise wa aite imasu.)
So you use “は” in this case to show some contrast. (The store is open but maybe some other places are not.) Or to emphasize the subject more.
その店は開いていますが、他の店は開いていません。
= Sono mise wa aite imasu ga, hoka no mise wa aite imasen.
= That store is open but other stores are not open.
Aaaah, I see. Arigatou! By the way, do I use “aru” or “iru” if the subject is human? “tomodachi wa warui joutai de aru” or “de iru”? I see with mama you say “mama de itai”, “mama de ireba”, etc using always the iru verb for living things. But with “de aru” I always see aru, even when talking about people. Can I say “warui joutai de iru”? It confuses me a lot usually.
Same with the “ni”, ni aru or ni iru?
And,
*Zutto gakusei no mamadewa irarenai*– here, potential form of iru, maybe?
Even if you are talking about people, when you are talking about someone’s condition, yes, you can use ある.
(If you are talking about the existence or location of people, you use いる)
As for the difference between ままでいる(=mamade iru) and ままである(=mamade aru)
you usually use ままでいる(=mamade iru) when you are talking about people.
Ex. tomodachi no mama de itai. = to want to stay as someone’s friend.
But there are cases that we use mamade aru when we describe people’s condition objectively.
Ex. 危篤状態のままである= kitokujyoutai no mama de aru = to be in critical condition (Seeing the patient condition objectively) Focusing on the condition
Ex. 危篤状態のままでいる= kitokujyoutai no mama de iru =staying in critical condition (Talking about what kind of condition the patient is in right now.) Focusing on the person
Arigatou sensei :3 I think I got it. Then, with aru is objective and with iru is subjective, more personal, right? It sounds like that to my ears too. If you say “kitokujoutai no mama de iru” to me sounds talking about you and your existence, and the way your existence is right now, the way you are carrying in life. But it’s true that saying it with aru it’s like talking about the status. My initial confusion came, I think, from having read “kare wa warui joutai ni aru”, since I thought they were trying to talk about how bad his life was right now subjectively, and seeing it with the aru confused me, but I guess they were focusing on the condition anyway, more than the person itself.
Thanks!!
I hope I did! haha. But it’s a long way until I get the true nuance of the expressions. By the way, then, if I wanna use, for instance the word “tachiba”, like “if you were in my position…?” do I use aru or iru? (apart from tachiba ni tatsu which I often hear) :grin:
@Mel
If you were in my position in Japanese is
もしあなたが私の立場だったら or 立場にいたら
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei
Shitsumon ga arimasu
How would you translate a causative form verb with nasai end?
For example,
If I want to say something like, “complete the translation of that book” and I want to be firm and polite I know I must use nasai at the end of the verb but someone told me that I should use owarasenasai and that made me think a lot but with no results.
So, for my sentence… which one is more suitable?
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarasenasai
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarinasai
And how would you use nasai with causative and passive forms.
Some examples would be good.
Thanks in advance.
Note: Sorry, I cant type in japanese with my celphone at this moment
終わる(=owaru) is a intransitive and a transitive verb
You use it as a transitive verb when you finish something on time or as you planned.
When someome tries to finish something, you use either
1) 終える= oeru
or
2) 終わらせる= owaraseru
So your sentence
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarasenasai →OK
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarinasai→終えなさい(=oenasai) is better
＊＊＊＊＊＊
Q: And how would you use nasai with causative and passive forms?
Some examples would be good.
Let me see….
causative
Ex. 彼に自分の荷物を持たせなさい。
= Kare ni jibun no nimotsu wo motasenasai.
= Make him carry his own luggage.
Ex. もっと子供を遊ばせなさい。
= Motto kodomo wo asobasenasai.
= Let your children play more.
passive form is not that common but
Ex. 親は子供をもっと叱りなさい。そして子供は親にもっと叱られなさい。
= Oyawa kodomo wo motto shikarinasai. Soshite kodomo wa oyani motto shikararenasai.
= Parents should scold children. And children should be scolded by their parents more.
Thanks for your reply and sorry for not giving a response earlier.
I wanted to make sure that I had studied enough to come back here again and ask with more details.
At this very moment, I understand more the usage of this form “causative”. However, there are still several doubts in my mind regarding to this.
According to what I looked up and to your explanation, the causative forms can have the following meanings
– Make/ Have someone do
– Let someone do
I have noticed something peculiar, and it’s that when a verb is intransitive you can turn into a transitive verb by using the causative form, just like “OWARU”.
Why does this happen?
Nevertheless, in the case of owaru, it seems to have the following behavior:
– Owaru: to come to an end
– Owaraseru: to finish something (because someone tries to finish it).
In the example “その本の翻訳を終わらせなさい”
What I meant was “complete/finish the translation of that book.”
But since owaraseru is causative then this makes me feel that the sentence written above says something like:
“Make yourself finish the translation of that book”
But “make someone itself do something” sounds weird to me…It’s kind of implicit.
For example:
私の宿題を終わらせたい = I want to finish my homework.
まず最初に宿題を終わらせなくちゃ = We must finish our homework first
However, to me these sentences are something like:
– I want to make myself finish my homework.
– We must make ourselves finish our homework first
No one says, “I want to make myself do something”, at least in a cases similar to these ones.
However, it looks like In Japanese this is normal.
In the translation, obviously we just ignore the causative part “make ourselves/myself do something” because is implicit.
Why does this happen? I don’t really know what is the reason for this.
Another thing is make me thing a lot is about the real usages of verbs that have both transitive and intransitive forms.
Example: Owaru is both, transitive and intransitive verb.
And both cases the meaning doesn’t change but it’s seem to be that the usage is different according to the form of the verb (vt/vi)
– Owaru transitive form: When finish something on time or as you planned
– Owaru intransitive form: Not sure how to explain the usage with this form.
So, when a verb is transitive you use for some specific cases and when is intransitive you use it for another cases.
Does this always happen with verbs that have these two forms (transitive/intransitive)?
Why?
Q when a verb is intransitive you can turn into a transitive verb by using the causative form, just like “OWARU”.Why does this happen?
Let me see if I understand your question here.
花が咲く(flower blooms) intransitive
→花を咲かせる(transitive verb) to make the flower bloom transitive
（Yes, as you said you can make intransitive verb to transitive verb by using the causative form)
*****
As I said 終える is a very special verb which can be used both for intransitive and transitive.
仕事が終わる (the work finishes) intransitive
仕事を終わる。(you finish working) transitive (This doesn’t have a meaning of causative)
Let’s compare the following examples.
Ex. 1) Freddyの仕事は５時に終わった。(intransitive) (just describing what time your work finished.)
Ex. 2) Freddyは５時に仕事を終わった。 (transitive) (as you planned/just describing what time you finished working.)
(causative)↓
Ex. 3) Freddyは５時に仕事を終えた。(transitive/ causative) (involving your will)
Ex.4) Freddyは５時に仕事を終わらせた。(transitive/ causative)(involving your strong will. implying there is a reason why you finished your work at five.)
I think you should separate 終わる from other verbs.
There are not many verbs which can be used for both intransitive and transitive.
Other verb like 終わる is
Hello maggie sensei
I’ve read the previous comment and your answer helped me as well but, can I use “ni” with aru?
Because, with this stative words, I usually hear de aru or desu, like “kare wa warui joutai de aru/ desu”, but sometimes also “warui joutai ni aru”, and I don’t know what difference they’re trying to point out, since aru is not an action so… maybe trying to empashize the status more than the bad condition? I understand the difference between “warui joutai de kita” and “warui joutai ni kita”, the subtle difference on the focus, but I don’t see that difference between de aru and ni aru …
yoroshiku onegai shimasu!
1) 悪い状態です (= warui joutai desu)
2) 悪い状態である(=warui joutai de aru)
3)悪い状態にある(=warui joutai ni aru
They all mean “to be in the bad condition/status”
But here is the difference
1) and 2) are
A = B
→”the condition is bad” / “It is a bad condition”
and 3)
is A is in B
→Subject is in the bad condition
So as you said, by using に you can emphasize “to be IN the bad state/condition” more.
*******
As for
悪い状態できた(=warui joutai de kita)
悪い状態にきた(=warui joutai ni kita)
you wanted to say
悪い状態になってきた(=warui joutai ni natte kita) ？
If so, you can’t say 悪い状態でなってきた(=warui joutai de natte kita)
The condition is getting “IN” bad status.
If you meant
It has come all the way in bad condition then you say
悪い状態でやってきた(=warui joutai de yatte kita)
this で means “in the condition or with the condition”
Oh yep, sorry, I should have explained that last one better. I meant that someone came in bad status, like he came home sick, or drunk, etc.
Why the yatte? Sometimes I see it (or shite) and I don’t know why hehe
Thank you for the reply, I understand the difference of nuance better now!!
Ok I think I suddenly got it. Maybe that yatte means “he came DOING in a bad condition” ? I am usually a little “slow” with the te form (especially when it’s something like “he came running”, “he went walking”, etc) If it’s not that please correct me cause I’m a mess with the te form looool
やって来る
this やって is not from a verb やる=do. So it doesn’t mean “to come doing something”
You can learn やって来る as a one verb.
“To come all the way”
So while 来る just means “to come”, やって来る(=yattekuru) is usually used when you come from far away.
Can someone translate this for me, I believe it is just a like in Japanese social media but I don’t know.
いいねしました
いいね(=iine) means to click “like” on Facebook.
いいねする(= iine suru)/(polite) いいねします(iine shimasu) is “to LIKE (=click “LIKE” button) someone’s picture or message on Facebook.”
いいねした(=iineshita)/ (polite) いいねしました(=iine shimahsita) is a past tense of “to LIKE” (=clicked “LIKE” button) someone’s picture or message Facebook.
sensei what is the difference between below sentence
こんな優しい人
優しい感じの人
人は優しそう
and another example sentences are
こんな人が悪い
こんな感じの人が悪い
このような人が悪い
and what is nuance when we use 感じ in this sentwnce
こんな優しい人 Such a nice person (You know that person is nice.)
優しい感じの人/優しそう a person who seems/looks nice.(I already explained the nuance difference in my previous comment but these two)
1) こんな人が悪い
2) こんな感じの人が悪い
3) このような人が悪い
The translation is the same. This kind of person is bad.
1) and 3) are the same （こんな is more conversational ） and more specific about the person compared to 2)
2) is more based on one’s impressions.
Maggie Sensei! I love your site so much! I’m learning a lot here about the various usages much better than from formal grammar references. Thank you so much for all your efforts.
I have a huge, huge request. The usages of “koto” and “no”, especially as nominalizers, still stump me and I don’t know how to put them naturally in writing or speech. I understand the -kotogaaru, and how “no” is used as you explained here in the lesson, but the topic marker/nominalizer issue is still very hard to put in active usage. I would give anything for you to put up an explanation for these two constructions, because I’m learning the best from your format: lots of example sentences that point out the subtleties in meaning and multiple usages without all the confusing grammatical jargon. You have no idea how the saseru/saserareru and “wake” lessons cleared up much of the confusion I had.
Hello Enjuchan,
I am very happy to know you are learning a lot here.
Actually the usage of “koto” is on top of the request list.
Please give me some time and I promise that I will make a lesson for you sometime.
Hi sensei, I’m sorry to ask you this kind of question here but truth is, this is a little thing that’s annoying me a lot during my studies. It’s about the na adjectives.
“jibun ga oya ni natte mite hajimete kosodate no taihensa ga wakatta.”
Why the “sa” after taihen? I mean, wasn’t that “sa” only for the I adjectives? Since the na adjectives are also nouns, it confuses me a lot when I look up a word on a dictionary and it defines it as a noun, “inconvenience”, for example. But then I see the word used as a na adjective, meaning “inconvenient”, I guess. So, I can say “fuben na tokoro” as “inconvenient place” or “sonna fuben” as “what an inconvenience” (as a noun), true?
And why the “sa” after some na adjectives? It doesn’t appear in my dictionary so I don’t know about it. Thanks a lot and sorry for all the trouble! !heart3!
Hello Rhi!!
First nominalization with さ(=sa) is not just with i-adjective. It also works with na-adjetive.
Since the na adjectives are also nouns, it confuses me a lot
→na-adjectives are not nouns.
I think it will be easier for you to think the plain form of na-adjecitve is ~ な
*元気な = genkina Ex. 元気な子供= genkina kodomo = a cheerful child
*きれいな=kireina Ex. きれいな絵= kireina e = a beautiful picture
And the way you make a noun from na-adjective is
1) delete な(=na) *元気な = genkina →元気=genki
2) add さ(=sa) 元気さ= genkisa = cheefulness
Oh but then, a word like “shiawase”, that is used as a na adjective “shiawase na hito”, is also the noun for happiness, isn’t it?
Or “fuan”, according to my dictionary it means anxiety and also “fuan na hito/ fuan ni naru” are listed as examples. That’s pretty much what confuses me, in my dictionary almost all na-adjectives are also listed as nouns, and most of them appear with a noun description, so I don’t know well how to treat them. If, for instance, I can add -sou to a noun, so with the shiawase example “shiawasesou” would be correct? Another example, with “kiken = danger, hazard; na adjective and noun”, So is kiken also the noun for “danger”? Or do I have to add -sa to all na adjectives to make their noun form :/
Thank you!! !happyface!
Maybe the dictionary that you use confuses you.
na-adjectives are adjectives. They are not nous.
“shiawase-na” is an adjective and it means “happy” and “shiawase” is a noun and it means “happiness”
“fuan-na” is an adjective “anxious” and “fuan” is a noun “anxiety”
Either na-adj and i-adj modify a noun.
“shiawase-na hito” itself is a noun “a happy person” but
“hito” is a noun and “shiawase-na” is an adj that modifies a noun,”hito”
こんにちは、マギー先生！
多分このレッスンというものがこんなに長くて難しいけどずっと数日勉強していたのにちゃんとわかると疑うんだ。
頭がクラクラする笑
だから疑いを解くように少数質問を聞きたい。
1. a function as relative pronoun
動詞を使えば良い？例文： やってみると怖がる (I’m scared to try )
2. when you determine smth
「難しい」で強調すれば「ということ」か「といもの」を使えばいい？だが「ということ」は「事」のところを使われただけの？
3.when we speak/talk of something
「というと」は「について」とか「にとって」など交換できる？
4.bring up smth and continue smth which always happens
「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」を言いたければ、良い？この場合は「というと」か「～と conditional」のどれを書いた方がいいのがよく分からなかった。
おわりだろう。
相変わらず間違いがあれば、直してください。この文章という文章はがんばって書いたのにたくさん間違ってしまうって思う。
I really want to write complicated sentences but to scared ;;
1. Your sentence 「やってみると怖がる」means “If A tries, A gets scared” and と is a conditional particle. ~すると〜
(If you do something, something will happen)
You wanted to make an example sentence with
AというB?
Then
A could be a verb or adjective but B should be a noun
*怖いという気持ち= the feeling of being scared / that you are scared
*やりたいという気持ち the feelings that you want to do
2. 「難しい」で強調すれば「ということ」か「といもの」を使えばいい？だが「ということ」は「事」のところを使われただけの？
Sorry. I don’t understand your question well.
But when you define something, there are cases that you can use というもの
愛は耐えるということです。
愛は耐えるものです。
However there are a lot of difference between them. It is too complicated to explain the difference here so if I have a chance, I will make a lesson on というもの
3. No, you can’t.
「日本語というとまず何を思い浮かべますか？」
When you hear “Japanese”, what comes to your mind first?
について means “about”
日本についてどう思いますか？
= What do you think about Japan?
にとって means “for”
私にとって日本は特別な国です。
= Japan is a special country for me.
4. 「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」→It won’t work..
But if you always plays games on your day off, then you can say
休日というと家でゲームだ。
（１）多分このレッスンというものがこんなに長くて難しいけどずっと数日勉強していたのにちゃんとわかると疑うんだ。→疑うんだ means “I doubt” You are not sure if you will be able to understand this? If so このレッスンは長くて難しいけどずっと何日も勉強したらわかるのかなあ。
２）だから疑いを解くように少数質問を聞きたい。→疑いを解くために but just say わからないところをはっきりさせるために、少し質問をしたいです。
３）「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」を言いたければ、良い？→「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」と言えばいい？
４）おわりだろう。→これでおわりです。
５）相変わらず。→いつもの通り
６）この文章という文章はがんばって書いたのにたくさん間違ってしまうって思う。→がんばってたくさんの文章を書いたけれどもたくさん間違ってしまったと思います。
長い文章を書くのは大変ですね。でもいつもocdは努力して日本語の文章を書いているし習った言葉を使っていてすごいですよ。
Good job!!!
Hello !JYANE! Amazing lesson Sensei. I love the word. I have a little question:
“Kare yori mo watashi no hou ga nihongo ga umai da nante tondemo nai.”
How many “ga” can I use in the same sentence? I guess it’s because “hou ga” is always using ga but, it sounds a little new to me, I don’t know if it’s fine but I would have say something like “watashi niwa” or “watashi no hou niwa” (I don’t know if hou niwa even exists !gejigeji! )
Can I say something like “watashi ga uta ga heta desu” oooor do I have to say “watashi (ni)wa”? I’ve seen wa, ni, niwa, but I don’t recall having seen ga with that kind of potential/adjective words !ase!
Thank you in advance sensei boucingheart!
Hello Rhi!
彼よりも私の方が日本語がうまいだなんてとんでもない。
“Kare yori mo watashi no hou ga nihongo ga umai da nante tondemo nai.”
Yes, there are two が in the sentence.
Since you need to use が in the following sentences,
1) Aより（も）Bの方が〜 As you said, it is a pattern using が(=ga) here. (You can’t replace this が with には(niwa))
2) 日本語がうまい (=nihongo ga umai)
When you want to emphasize Japanese, you use が(=ga)
If you say 日本語は上手い(=Nihongo wa umai) it shows the contrast so you imply “to be good at Japanese but maybe bad at other languages”. )
Therefore you need two が.
1)
********
“watashi ga uta ga heta desu”
→Usually we say 私は歌が下手です。= Watashi wa uta ga heta desu.
You only use が(=ga) after 私(=watashi) when you try to focus on the subject.
For example, you are telling someone 歌が下手です= Uta ga heta desu = bad at singing.
They will ask you “who doesn’t sing well?” 誰が歌が下手なんですか？= Dare ga uta ga heta nan desu ka?
You can say “私が歌が下手です。= Watashi ga uta ga heta desu. = I am the one who can’t sing well.
It is possible to have more than one が in one sentence if it is necessary.
But we sometimes change the sentence in order to avoid using the same particles.
Ryoukai! !JYANE! I’m finally starting to distinguish the particle difference, but it’s a slow process lol At first I was dealing with the niwa but it finally sounds different to my ears, using the one or the other.
I get that “ga” is used when you want to emphasize the subject, as when asking a question, even if there’s another subject, “uta” in this case, which is unskilled, hence de “uta GA heta”, but since it’s me the subject I’m emphasizing when I answer that question of “dare ga…”, I use it for me too. I don’t think that asking “dare ni wa uta ga heta desu ka?”, would ever sound right to me to ask that, it sounds more like asking for an opinion. It’s very tricky, the japanese grammar
Kedo, Maggie Sensei no okage de yatto wakatte kuru boucingheart! Arigatou gozaimashita :3
It’s true. The difference between “ga” and “wa” is very tricky. But eventually you will know what sounds more natural.
You use には=niwa
1) for ~ Ex. It is difficult for me. = 私には難しいです。＝Watashi niwa muzukashii desu.
2) in (location) Ex. There are many tourists in Kyoto. = 京都には観光客が一杯います。= Kyouto niwa kankoukyaku ga ippai imasu.
Hello Sensei. I have a doubt about “de aru”. I can say “Maggie no kare de aru wake ga nai”, but I can’t say “Maggie no kare DA wake ga nai”, it has to be “kare no wake”, right?
Then, is “de aru” that different from “da”?
Also, If I wanna say it in past tense, “Maggie no kare datta wake ga nai” is correct or should I use “de atta” or something like that? It confuses me that somethimes de aru is used where “da” as a more formal version but also in place of “no”
And, If I say “Kare no yume wa watashi no yume de mo atta” (trying to say “his dream was my dream too”), is it common or sounds too formal? Any more casual way to say it?
Thank you!!
Q : I can say “Maggie no kare de aru wake ga nai”, but I can’t say “Maggie no kare DA wake ga nai”, it has to be “kare no wake”, right?
Yes, that’s right.
As for the difference between だ and である, let’s compare the following sentences.
1)あの犬はマギーの彼だ。
= That dog is Maggie’s boyfriend.
2) あの犬はマギーの彼である。
= That dog is Maggie’s boyfriend.
They both mean the same but 2) has more explanatory tone.
1) だ is an auxiliary verb which comes after a noun, in this case 彼(=kare)
2) で= is a particle and ある is a verb
わけがない won’t come after だ.
Q : Also, If I wanna say it in past tense, “Maggie no kare datta wake ga nai” is correct or should I use “de atta” or something like that?
As I explained in other people’s question, though we hear people use “past tense + わけがない”, it is not so common.
Usually we use “present tense” + わけがなかった／わけがありませんでした。
Um, however, I have a question regarding this sentence:
“ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう。”, since you translated it as “(Since I am here) I might as well buy this too.”, could we use せっかく as the substitute of ついで or not? If so, so what is the difference between ついで in this context and せっかく? Thanks in advance!
こんにちは、Kai!
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう
２）せっかくだからこれも買っちゃおう
The meaning is the same but the feeling is ついでに is much lighter.
せっかく implies the feeling of “after all the trouble/work”. In this case you can imagine someone comes to the store all the way (from far away) and finally got to the store or making time to get to the store so you don’t want to waste the opportunity.
But ついで doesn’t involve this kind of feeling. Since you are just there, you will buy something. That’s all.
I have been your site’s reader for quite a time but it’s my first time leaving a comment here ^^
I just have a small question. Can I use potential verb with ~yasui/nikui? For example, when I want to say something like “It’s easy to see snow in winter”, can I say “yuki ga mirareyasui”? (it does sound strange to be honest T_T).
There isn’t a potential for of ~yasui/nikui but there is a passive form.
So if you say
見られやすい（=mirareyasui) , we automatically think it’s a passive form. “something is easy to be seen”
Ex. 私は３０歳ですが、若く見られやすい。＝I am thirty years old but I look younger.
Will show you other example with a passive form.
*盗む=nusumu=to steal →盗まれやすい= nusumareyasui = easy to be stolen / 盗まれにくい(=nusumare nikui) hard to be stolen
Ex. この自転車は盗まれやすい= Kono jitensha wa nusumare yasui = This bicycle is easy to be stolen.
So if you want to say “It’s easy to see snow in winter”, you just say
雪は冬に見られることが多い。
= Yuki wa fuyu ni mirareru koto ga ooi.
Through your explaining, I understand the meaning of passive form + yasui/nikui, but here come one more question. Even though “yuki ga mirareyasui” here literally means “Snow can easily be seen”, I guess it still can’t be used to express the likeliness of seeing snow in winter, right Sensei? (i’m a little bit confused here )
And a little more, can I say “Yuki wa fuyu ni mirarerukoto ga yasashii”?
Sensei, T-T Can you explain in detail about the time difference for mayonaka and yonaka? I read online that mayonaka should not be used as 12am as in midnight. And there is this word shinya as well.
Sorry I can’t explain from what time to what time is which one but the most general word for the middle of the night is 夜中. Technically 真夜中 is midnight but 深夜(=shinya) and 真夜中(mayonaka) are both used as middle of the night.
For your information, NHK did the survey
夜中= from 23:00 ish~ 2:00 ish
深夜= from 24:00 usg ~ 2:00 ish
Thanks for your reply, Sensei. So basically you mean mayonaka can be used for both midnight and middle of the night? Ok, between mayonaka and yonaka which one is later in the night? Can I just summarized as in mayonaka is 12am and yonaka as in after 12am?
Sorry…I still have difficulty curbing with this issue. Sorry sensei!! (usg and ish??)
真夜中 has a meaning as “midnight” but usually we used it for no specific time and use it as “middle of the night”.
Let me see if I can explain the concept in a more graphic way.
Thank you!! !JYANE! Thank you so much for your patience! Love you so much, Sensei boucingheart!
@Anne
You’re very welcome!
Love you,too!! <3
Thank you so much for this lesson!
I was wondering, would it be an advantage to ask questions for the interviewers??
I wanted to ask “what is your turnover rate?” but perhaps that is too rude for Japan?
Hi Kay,
What is your turnover rate? in Japanese is 御社の離職率はどのぐらいでしょうか？(=Onsha no rishokuritsu wa donogurai deshou ka?)
But I wouldn’t ask that question. They will think you are already thinking about quitting at the interview.
@Maggie
AH! That makes sense now, thank you so much! I’ve been trying to understand songs specifically because they’re challenging, my goal is to see unusual forms of 日本語 to stretch and strengthen how I think about it. Anyway, thank you again for replying and for writing this massively informative article!
Hello Maggie Sensei. I was wondering something about the tai form used on the passive form.
In your sentence “kono okashi, darenimo taberaretakunai”, there’s no wa or ga but, if I wanted to say, for example:
I don’t want you to be kissed by her
What should I use for “anata”? wa or ga?
“anata wa kanojo ni kisu saretakunai” or “anata ga kanojo ni kisu saretakunai”
I mean, who is the subject? Me (because it’s me who doesn’t want) or “anata” (because you would receive the kiss). I don’t know if I am getting my point across but the thing is I don’t know which one of these two phrases is OK:
Watashi wa anata ga kanojo ni kisu saretakunai
Anata wa watashi ga kanojoni kisu saretakunai
Also, is it correct if I say “darenimo kono ringo o taberaretakunai” (meaning I don’t want nobody to eat my apple), or I can’t use ringo as direct object in this sentence? I’ve been told that, when it is a simple passive I can use “tomodachi ni ringo o taberareta” to express that my apple was eaten by my friend (and that kind of annoys me), but maybe if I use the -tai form I have to use it in a different way.
Yes, you can use tai-form with passive form.
And as for the particles, we often omit the particle in conversation.
このお菓子(は・を）、誰にも食べられたくない。
= Kono okashi (wa, wo) , dareni mo taberaretaku nai.
I don’t want you to be kissed by her
The most natural translation will be
あなたが彼女にキスをされてほしくない。
= Anata ga kanojo ni kisu wo sarete hoshiku nai.
If you say
あなたは(or が) 彼女にキスをされたくない
(=Anata wa (or ga)kanojo ni kisu wo saretakunai)
means “You don’t want her to kiss you” and there is no speaker’s feeling there.
If you want to add your feelings there,
私はあなたが彼女に(or から）キスをされるのを見たくない。
= Watashi wa anataga kanojo ni (or kara) kisu wo sareru no wo mitaku nai.
.
＊＊＊＊
誰にもこのりんごを食べられたくない。
= Dareni mo kono ringo wo taberaretakunai.
Thanks a lot that was really helpful!! I have the bad habit of complicating things too much hehehe but I like to cover all the possibilities, I aim to speak my mind as it is, I hate it when I have to spend a while thinking how to say something with other words.
Seriously thanks!!
I guess I just complicated it too much haha. Anyway, the desiderative form in japanese has nothing in common with english, I’d say most of the time a conditional or -temo, ga, etc would be used in the situation I made up in my question. I myself would stick to “anata ga kanojo ni kisu saretara watashi ga… (I would be sad, angry, I don’t know, whatever).
But thank you for answer that tricky question!! You are the best!!
Dear Maggie Sensei,
referring to the previous comment, could you please explain the nuances of kara&dakara? I always thought Kara was a reason and Dakara is to describe the consequences. But we once came up with a tongue twister: kareshi wa karai karashi ga kirai kara, karai karashi wa kirei:) but the Japanese told us it had to be Dakara. I don’t get, we mention the reason why the musturd is good, why Dakara?
Hello Eva.
Good question. I will post the question on FB sometime.
OK, first から(=kara) and だから(=dakara) are both used to give a reason. (because/so…/that’s why)
1) When they are used in the middle of the sentence.
★から(=kara)
＊i-adjective + から
おいしいから
Ex. 美味しいからたくさん食べてしまう。
= Oishii kara takusan tabete shimau.
= It is so delicious that I eat a lot.
＊verb (plain form) + から
:
*走るから(=hashiru kara)
Ex. これから１０km 走るからゴールで待っていて下さい。
= Kore kara jukkiro hashiru kara gooru de matte ite kudasai.
= I will run 10 km no so please wait at the goal
*走ったから(=hashitta kara) past tense
Ex. 10km 走ったから疲れた。
= 10 km hashitta kara tsukareta.
= I ran 10 km so I am tired.
＊verb with other auxiliary verb
Ex.走るだろうから(=hashiru darou) will probably run
Ex.走ったそうだから(= hashitta sou dakara) I heard someone run
★だから(=dakara)
＊na-adjecitve + だから
Ex.しずかな→しずか＋な）
しずかだから
Ex. 図書館は静かだから勉強しやすい。
= Toshokan wa shizuka dakara benkyou shiyasui
= The library is so quiet that I can study well.
*noun + だから
Ex.犬だから = because ~ is a dog
Ex. マギーだから = Because it’s Maggie…
2) Sometimes you can start a sentence with だから(=dakara)
Ex. 明日は雨です。だから野球はしません。
= Ashita wa ame desu. Dakara tenisu wa shimasen.
= It is going to rain tomorrow. That’s why (So) I won’t play tennis.
眉先生ありがとう！眉毛は可愛いよ( ⋂‿⋂’)
マギー先生もありがとう！相変わらずマギー先生のレッスンは便利でわかりやすい。今まで「使い方」について知ったけど「方」のすべての文法を見つけてびっくりした。(this sentence was hard and I’m not sure if I wrote right, wanted to say “~I was surprised to find out that there is whole kata grammar”)
だから今から私の日本語が上手くなっていくように。
先生、ひとつ質問がある。「方」じゃなくて「とき」だ。
よく見た「とき」と「ときに」と「ときは」それぞれずつの使い方がわからない。英語で説明してもいいですか？ よろしくね。
(If there is any mistake, please correct me. Complicated sentences will be the death of me lol)
こんにちは、ocd!! 眉先生かわいい？伝えておきますね。きっと喜ぶと思います。
OK, let me help your sentence first.
*~知ったけど →知っていたけ（れ）ど
*見つけてびっくりした→知ってびっくりした
だから今から私の日本語が上手くなっていくように。
You wanted to say “I hope my Japanese will improve”?
You started the sentence with だから.
だから means “that’s why” / “So..” and it has to explain what you mentioned in the previous sentence.
How about just saying これから（私の）日本語がもっと上手くなりますように。
*********
とき/ときに/ときは
They all mean “when” and it is complicated to explain the difference here but
とき is the most general one.
ときに is used when you specify the time point
ときは is used when you show the contrast.
Ex. 若いときよくこの曲を聴きました。
= When I was young, I used to listen to the song.
adding に to specify the time
Ex. 若いときによくこの曲を聴きました。
(The translation is the same but に specifies the particular time.)
********
Ex. 若いときは好きなことをいっぱいした方がいい。
= When we are young, we should do a lot of fun things.
Showing the contrast ‘the time when we are young” and “the time when we get older”
マギー先生、このレッソンでありがとうございました！
I actually found my way here because I’m trying to make my Japanese learning journey even more fun by attempting to translate songs. (I generally try to avoid pre-existing translations if only because they’re very rarely literal, so they don’t help much.) One in particular has me stumped; the first line goes like this:
どこから来たかなんて / わからないほどの日々で
When I saw hodo I was like “Oh great, that hodo word again…” and eventually found my way here, haha. Admittedly, I’m still not totally clear on the meaning; is he saying he doesn’t get where he came from as much these days (as opposed to the past)? Anyway, I feel like the whole song is probably sung with lots of slang and casual speech, so I’m not able to understand much anyway and there’s not much I can do right now to help that…But I’m glad I found my way here regardless, I learned a lot!
宇宙さんはマギーほど強気ない、そして宇宙さんを奮い立つ。
Hello 宇宙！
Everybody has a different way of learning language. And I agree. You should study Japanese from what you enjoy is the best.
But just remember. Studying Japanese from J-pop or anime songs are sometimes confusing because it is very different from how we talk and order of the words are sometimes different.
So this song is ビバナミダ？
どこから来たなんてわからないほどの日々で
I assume it is missing an adjective such as 忙しい(=isogachii=busy) after ほどの
So the possible meaning is,
I’ve been so busy lately that I don’t even know where I came from,…
Awww what a lovely dog boucingheart!
I love -kata, it’s one of my favourite words in Japanese ever!! Kata kata kata !niconico!
By the way, does this word have a requirement-describing use too? I’ve read, written on some job offering-bulletins (this stuff appears on my books lol) something like
(We are looking for new staff, blahblahblah) Requirements:
Kuruma no unten ga dekiru KATA
Like, you know, describing the way a person has to be in order to get hired !ase!
Hello Rhi,
車の運転ができる方= Kuruma no unten ga dekiru kata = A person (someone)who can drive a car.
Ok, that 方=kata means “a person”. It is a polite way to refer to a (third) person.
Ex. その人 = Sono hito = that person →(polite) その方= sono kata
Ex. 次の人= Tsugi no hito = the next person →(polite)次の方= tsugi no kata
Dear Maggie Sensei: Thank you for this lovely site! I have a question: How would you say “I am grateful for our friendship”? Or is that too direct culturally? Would like to get your opinion :)
Hello R! Thank YOU for visiting this site!
“I am grateful for our friendship”? 私達の友情に感謝しています。= Watashitachi no yuujou ni kansha shiteimasu.
If you want to say more casual way, just say
Thank you for being my friend. = 友達でいてくれてありがとう！= Tomodachi de ite kurete arigatou!
I am glad you are my friend = (your friend name)が友達でよかった！= ~ ga tomodachi de yokatta.
Dear sensei! May I ask something a little out of context? It’s about one of the last sentences of the post, the example with “akirameru”
Kanojo no koto GA akiramekiru koto ga dekinai
I don’t understand well the first ga. I would have write:
Kanojo no koto WO akiramekiru koto ga dekinai
Which is literally, the thing of completely giving up on her is not feasible, isn’t it?
Then, I’m a little confused with the first ga, I’ve tried to figure out but I can’t come up with a clear explanation !gejigeji!
Anyway this lesson was amazing!! Very well explained and useful !niconico!
Thank you always!!
Hello Rhi,
Ahhh good question. I wrote the example sentence without thinking.
But you can say
彼女のことを諦めきることができない。
= Kanojo no koto wo akiramekiru koto ga dekinai.
As you say we usually use を for an object marker.
But sometimes we switch it with が
Ex. アイスクリームが欲しい = Aisukuriimu ga hoshii = I WANT ice cream
Ex. アイスクリームが食べたい= Aisukuriimu ga tabetai = I want to eat ice cream
Actually 好き=suki is an adjective but
Ex. アイスクリームが好きです。= Aisukuriimu ga sukidesu = I like ice cream.
Ex. アイスクリームが食べきれない= Aisukuriimu ga tabekirenai = I can’t finish eating icecream
I liked the lesson but there were some things I didn’t really understand.
The sentences “その話が出たついでに一言、言いたいことがあります。” “ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう。” and “ついでに言っておくとあの件はまだ終わっていないよ。” How understand how 一言 is used in the first sentence,ちゃおう in the second, and how the translation of the 3rd one works. How did the te form get into the sentence? Sorry if I’m asking for too much here. I’ll try to make a few sentences by the way:
１．えっと、新しいノートを買ったついでに、古いノートを借りてくれる？
２．日本語を勉強したついでに教えってあげるよ。
３．日本に行ったついで漢字を学びますか？
４．序でがある、フランスに一緒に行ったらどうですか？
Hello Millz,
*その話が出たついでに一言、言いたいことがあります。
→Q: 一言／ひとこと= literally means “a word” and 一言（ひとこと）言う means “to give a word”
*ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう
〜しちゃう is a very colloquial word and it came from 買ってしまおう. In this case it means “to decide to buy something”
I have a lesson on ちゃう so please check the lesson.
*ついでに言っておくと
OK, it means “Since we are talking about that, let me tell you ~ “/ Speaking of ~ / Let me add something
******
When you use ついでに, the second action should be something you do taking advantage of the first action.
Let’s look at the actions in your example sentences.
1. (1) Buying a notebook / (2) asking someone to borrow an old notebook. (There are different type of activities.)
2. (1)Studying Japanese / (2)teaching Japanese (These two are contradicted actions.)
3. (1)Going to Japan / (2)learning Kanji (This may work/ but learning Kanji is not the main purpose to go to Japan.)
4. (1)? / (2)Going to France (You started the sentence 序でがある= Since I do something/I have a chance to do something. But you are suggesting that someone should go to France together. You should have one subject.)
So I will fix here and there to make them sound more natural.
Don’t give up!
When you make an example sentence with ついで, you have to pick two actions but they are not random.
There is always a main action. (Action A)
You do action B taking advantage of doing the action A.
When you go shopping, you can stop by the post office on the way and buy some stamps.
買い物に行く(A) ついでに郵便局に行って切手を買おう (B)。
I think some of your example sentences would work with たら(=tara)
When/If you do something, do ~ (〜たら〜する）
Ex.日本語を勉強したら（覚えたら）教えてあげるよ。（If I study Japanese, I will teach you)
Ex. 日本に行ったら漢字を学びますか？（勉強しますか？）(If/When you go to Japan, will you study kanji?)
Ah okay so If I said “Since you’re going to get the mail, can you walk the dog on the way?” or “Since you’re doing your laundry, can you do mine too please?” those would work with ついでに, right?
＠Millz
Yes, that’s the idea. :)
Thank you so much Maggie&Yukari for your comment! It is really helpful! Your site generally helps a lot! !niconico! !heart3!
訳は同じですが、「ついでに」の方が話し言葉で「がてら」は書き言葉と考えられています。
どちらもtaking advantage of one action, do something elseという意味になりますが、
ニュアンスの違いはイメージとして
（ついでに：Going for walk →stop by the post office →keep walking
がてら： While going for a walk, stop by the post office)
という感じです。
＊＊＊＊
「がてら」vs「ながら」
「がてら」にtaking advantage of one action, to do something elseという意味があるのに対して「ながら」は単に二つの動作が同時に起こっている時につかいます。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
うわああ、また新しいレッスンし今年は多くのあるんだ。このレッスンは短かったのに1時間ぐらい勉強する事を過ごした。他人とマギー先生のコメントを読み始めたし役に立つんだよ。たくさんインフォを見つけることはできる。
日本語を勉強しているついでに中国語を勉強したいな。
質問ある。（ところで、間違いがあれば直してね）I tried to sound casual ;;
1. Sometimes I see people saying できる while I thought it can be used する. So I’d like to ask what’s the difference, for example if I wanted to say マギー先生は新しいレッスンできた or I should use した？
2. While I was reading kids tales, I often saw ある日 then I also saw ある事柄, so I wonder what does it mean.
1. OK, here is the rule of how/when to use できる
Maggie made a new lesson = マギーは新しいレッスンを作った。・作りました。
Maggie was very busy but she was able to make a lesson = マギーは忙しかったけれども新しいレッスンを作ることが出来た・出来ました。（or say レッスンが作れた・作れました。）
If I say “A new lesson is done!” I say “新しいレッスンが出来た・出来ました。
******
So when something is done/finished/completed, you say 出来た・出来ました
Ex. 料理が出来た・出来ました。(Ryouri ga dekita/dekimashita) =The meal is done. (I finished cooking)
Ex. 宿題が出来た。出来ました。(Shukudai ga dekita/dekimashita) = Homework is done (I finished my homework)
or when you did a good job.
Ex. 試験は出来た？(出来ましたか？）= (Shiken wa dekimashitaka?) = Did you do a good job on the exam?
*勉強する事を過ごした
勉強してすごした。
or Just say このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました。= This lesson was short but it took me about one hour to study.
*日本語を勉強しているついでに中国語を勉強したいな。
Good! How about 日本語を勉強する(plain form)ついでに中国語も(also) 勉強したいな。
*質問ある。
質問がある（あります）
Good! When you asked me a question on Twitter the other day you say 問題がある
When you have a question you say 質問。
問題 means some problem.
Good job, ocd!! Keep writing Japanese!!! だんだん上手になってきていますよ！
役に立った説明してくれて心からありがとう！でもちゃんと分かったらって思う（かなあ）？I am not sure if it’s okay to use kana there or I don’t need to use って思う and just use with kana (I just finished re-reading kana grammar and now I’m conflicted xD)
so my question in this sentence このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました for what stand the second のに？
でもちゃんと分かったらって思う
You wanted to say “But I wish I understood well (properly)”?
Then, it is a bit casual but it makes sense.
But you don’t need かなあ。(かなあ is when you wonder.)
If you want to say “I wonder if I understand well.” then
でもちゃんとわかったかなあ・or 理解したかなあ（って思います。）
このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました
This のに is “though”(even though/even if)
Though this lesson was short, it took me about an hour to study (the whole lesson.)
omfg, I was so sure that bc I wanted to say “I wonder -IF- I understand well” I should use “tara” xD
after this I even went to re-read tara grammar to remind myself how to use it. I completely forgot that tara IS CONDITIONAL
What brings me to, the other day I said [漫画を読んだら〜気づいた] which I assume is wrong I should use [漫画を読んで〜気づいた]? *I noticed smth while I was reading/When I was reading I noticed*
Thanks for all your help, I can’t express with words how much it means for me. !heartsippai!
*AをするついでにBをする ：You do A and then you do B. (The main action is A)
Ex. 買い物に行くついでにクリーニング屋に行く。 (going out for shopping →Going to to the cleaners.) Note: You may go to the cleaners before doing shopping but “going out for shopping” is the main action.)
*AをしがてらBをする ：You do A and B at the same time.
Ex. 練習がてら文章を作ってみて下さい。= Try making a sentence for practice. (練習する/ 文章を作る Two actions are happening at the same time.)
This lesson is quite helpful to me right now, I just stumbled across it while trying to find a way to deal with reservations. It has helped a lot but I’d just like to clarify for my self something.
In the restaurant section it said that I can say “I have a reservation under the name ~~” I wanted to ask how would I say a similar thing in a hotel / Ryokan? I mean to say that if I reserved the hotel online, how would I tell the hotel that? Especially if that was an English booking site such as booking.com or Expedia? Something along “Hello, I’ve made a reservation online on booking.com and here’re the details.”
Thanks ahead, whether answered or not the information here is great help! ^^
Hello Dani! Welcome to this site!
OK, I will give you a couple of phrases that you can use in a hotel.
* “Hello, I’ve made a reservation online on booking.com and here’re the details.”
=こんにちは。Booking.comで予約をいれた(your name) です。(and show them the details)
= Konnichiwa. Booking.com de yoyaku wo ireta (your name) desu. (and show them the details)
*I’ve made a reservation on Internet.
=ネットで予約を入れました。
= Netto de yoyaku wo iremashita.
*I made a reservation net for three night from today.
= ネットで今日から３泊の予約を入れました。
= Netto de kyou kara sanpaku no yoyaku wo iremashita.
Here is the confirmation copy.
=これが確認書のコピーです。
= Kore ga kakuninsho no kopii desu.
Hello, my name is ~~~. I made a reservation on booking com for two night from today.
= こんにちは。(your name) です。Booking.com で今日から２泊の予約を入れました。
= Konnichiwa. (Your name) desu. Booking.com de kyou kara nihaku no yoyaku wo iremashita.
Here’s the reservation confirmation.
=これが予約確認書です。
= Kore ga yoyaku kakunin sho desu.
If you don’t have any reservation but want to ask the availability,
I don’t have a reservation but can is there a room available for tonight?
予約をしていませんが、今日泊まれますか？
= Yoyaku wo shiteimasen ga kyou tomaremasu ka?
If you have more questions, feel free to leave them here anytime. :)
could you please do a lesson about how to tell the contents of a book/a movie? Like how to say “the story is about”, the stars playing in the movie are, the book was adapted to a screen etc. It would be very helpful!
Thank you for your great site!^^
Hi Eva,
Thank you for visiting this site.
As for your request, to be honest, it is hard to make that kind of lesson because every book/movie has different content.
But I can help you a little here.
＊“the story is about”, この物語は〜についての話である。
＊the book was adapted to a screen etc→ 映画「〜」の原作 or Ex. ２０１４年秋に映画化 It was made into a movie in 2014 fall.
If you want to write about a movie, introduce the name of the director or the leading actor(s), ~ 監督 (director’s name) 、主演〜 = Leading actor(s) + name
and roughly introduce what kind of movie it is. 恋愛ドラマ(romance) ホラー映画 (horror) サスペンス(suspense) and then talk about the contents.
Use Japanese google, typing for example 映画作品紹介 and you will see tons of good examples how people write about movies.
and 本紹介 for the books.
!happyface! !happyface! thank u for this lesson maggie-sensei:)
if it were possible could you help me with this, please ?:
そっとるー？
I cant figure out what it means
atte
plumis
Hello pulmita,
I need to know the previous sentence but what I can tell you from just that sentence is it is dialect.
そっとる（ー）？ came from そっている？
And the verb そう has various meanings 沿う、添う
to go along, to shave, something is along ~ , to comply with
Thank you so much for the first lesson of the year! Learning Japanese with you and Maggie Sensei is wonderful. Thank you, thank you, thank you! And thank you also to the guest teachers, they are great. I have a soft spot for Leelu sensei! Kawaii! !formingheart3!
Hello Andrea
Thank you for the nice comment.
It has been pleasure to work with cute guest teachers. Yes, I agree. Leelu sensei is so cute!!!
Please feel free to write in Japanese anytime. I will help you.
またね！
My name is Jodie. The reason I was named that because actress Jodie Foster was famous during the year of my birth and my brother (who thought it up) thinks is an uncommon and unique name. Maybe my family thought I should be one who can pick and do something not everyone else can do. :D
I think if I go to Japan, I’ll still use my katakana full name. However, if I can pick a Japanese name, I’d like to use I usually use for my internet handle name, 青空, which means blue sky. However, my friend said it is not a word that can be used as a name. I wonder if that is true?
Also, if I can pick any name for 上の名前, I’d like to use name with kanji 宮. Like 高宮 or 桜ノ宮. I think the word 宮 is very cool. If else, I think surname with kanji 原 is also cool.
There is actually a name, 青空（Some people raed it as Sora or Harua) Usually it is a boy’s name but who cares.
宮 is a very noble kanji. We link the image of palace or emperor. 高宮, 桜の宮 both sound good.
原 is a pretty common name.
If you want to give yourself a Japanese name for fun, it is the best to choose the kanji you like.
Hi there !JYANE! This one is kinda old but I was just brushing it up a bit and found something that I don’t get well. It’s a general doubt about ni(wa) triggered from something I’ve read in this lesson. I’ll try to make my point across !DANCING!
I can use ni(wa) to target someone, right? Like “for Maggie” = “Maggie ni” (or “Maggie no tame ni” which I know is more polite and structured). Also I’ve read “Maggie ni” (or niwa most of the time) to refer to Maggie’s point of view, her position, you know, like “ni totte”. So I was wondering if I can use just “ni” to say “for Maggie”, meaning both “for her sake, targeting her/something for her” and “from her point of view”.
And here’s comes the problem on the lesson:
On the “monka” part, which I understand well I think, these 2 sentences use “ni” and I just can’t translate:
“Maggie ni sonna koto dekiru mon/mono ka!”
and
“Anata ni watashi no kimochi ga wakaru mon/mono desuka”
I really struggle with NI particle
I hope I’m not bothering, while learning a language it is sooo usual (at least for me) to get stuck into something and rack your brains for little things! :3
Hello again,
Good question!
When you use potential verbs (or verbs which have potential meaning), we sometime use に／にも／には
できる→私に出来ることはありますか？
読める→私に読める本はありますか？
書ける→私に書けない漢字はありません。
わかる→私にはわかりません。
Woooh at last!! Hahaha thank you so much. I suspected something about this usage of ni but of course without confirmation it’s impossible to figure out !JYANE!
Thanx!
Nice lesson Sensei! But I don’t get one thing I’ve seen before and always wondered is it like that: the Wo after nihongo on the last sentence. Also, is chuu used after ‘aida’? I’ve read ‘aidachuu’ as ‘during’,’while’ but I don’t see any diference from aida itself…
Hello Rhi!
Thank you for visiting this site.
OK, let me see your questions…
1) the Wo after nihongo on the last sentence.
You are talking about “を” in the last sentence 日本語を勉強中の人, right?
日本語を勉強する= Nihongo wo benkyou suru
を is an object marker.
You use を before the direct object, 日本語 (Japanese)
The same thing with 日本語を勉強中= studying Japanese (Japanese is a direct object for the verb 勉強 so you need を）
２）Ah,good question. Yes, it is possible. I added some example sentences. Check 4) 〜の間じゅう. It means “the whole time while doing something”
Whoaa nice new examples with aida!! Makes much more sense. It is a little confusing sometimes, seeing that chuu/juu is both used for the middle of an activity and the whole.
Any rule to difference those meanings? I mean, shigotochuu is middle of work, but gozenchuu is all morning, so it confuses me a bit.
About the “wo”, the reason I don’t get it is because I don’t see a verb, I mean, isn’t benkyouchuu a noun? Is chuu added to another noun or is it like some kind of ending to some verbs? b2+chuu and added right to the noun in verbs with suru? !ase! Confusiiiiing :cryingboy:
1) One of the rule is if you see the time related word, 午前、一日、一年 etc. or some words that refer to location 世界、日本、国 it means “the whole”
2) Don’t cry…. Even 勉強 in 勉強中 doesn’t look like a verb, it has the same function of verb.
〜を作成する(to make something) →〜を作成中~
〜を準備する(to prepare something) →~を準備中~
Ooooh nice nice! Yeah really it sounds like using “wo” there, makes a lot of sense, but until now I thought it was extrictly for the verbs !niconico!
Also when it comes to time related I always read juu instead of chuu, and when it comes to an activity I read almost always chuu so I guess I’ll be able to figure out !greenapple!
Hi and thank you for your ever great teaching! It’s been a long while since I’ve visited, but one of my new year’s resolution is to come here as often as possible!
Even your beginners lessons are entertaining! Keep on the great work!
I had a quick pronunciation question (as I am a lowly beginner with little idea of what she is doing). !ase!
I have heard “masu” (apologies–this computer doesn’t have a Japanese keyboard) pronounced with and without the long “u” sound in “su”–an example of w/o would be “arigatou gozaimasu”, and an example of with would be “onegai shimasu”. Similarly, I know that “desu” (such as in “watashi wa….desu”) does not pronounce the “u” sound in the “su” letter, but I am unsure if other verb suffixes (such as V + dasu) also follow this rule.
If that was clear at all, could you please help me with some examples? I would be very much obliged. !greenapple!
I hope I got your question right but
Each hiragana letter has its own sound.
です= で+ す = de+ su
ます= ま+す= ma+ su
However when we pronounce, we don’t enunciate the sound す(=su) and です(=desu) sounds like “des” and ます(=masu) sounds like “mas”
I wish I could add the sound file here but I can’t so please check other lessons that have audio files to check the pronunciation.
I usually hear Nihonjins pronounce the long “SU” at work when they are speaking to customers and on formal setting
I don’t know if it’s a rule or just a cultural thing where in they put stress on “SU” on certain occasions
Some people probably don’t even realise it because it just comes out naturally
Our receptionist would say “ohayougozaimas” to me but would say “ohayougozaimasUー” to an important person
don’t worry about it too much
it could also be just a personal preference
(I hope I wrote this correctly. Sorry for any mistakes. My japanese is very limited at the moment since I just started learning ^^’)
I just would like to say thank you for creating this blog. It is very helpful for my self studies of Japanese. I hope one day I will be a fluent speaker and perhaps move to Japan. I really like the language and culture.
I have a question though.
My real name is Alex and I am not quite sure how to write it in Kanji. All I could find online is アレックス which is a bit too long and well not that interesting to look at. If its possible for you to write it for me in Kanji I would be very happy.
Also, another question. It is regarding writing the は symbol.
When I write it on my phone or ipod I must write it as ‘ha’ but it’s pronunced as ‘wa’. When I write ‘wa’ i get this わ instead of は｡ Why is that? I am using a romaji keyboard. Are they the same or my keyboard has an error? I found this out by an accidental typo… O.o
I am confused a bit…
Thank you for your time.
And once again thank you for creating this blog or I should say ありがとうございます。(*^_^*)
こんにちは、Alex! はじめまして！(Your Japanese is really good. Just one thing. イギリスです。→イギリス人です。I made self-introduction lesson so please check it out. ）
I am VERY happy to hear you think our site helpful. :)
When we write foreign names in kanji, we have to pick kanji by its sound and then pick from its meaning.
It has been a trend for foreign tourists to make a personal seal called 判子(=hanko) and one of the sites used
彼久寿 for your name.
彼=are = that
久=ku = eternal, long lived
寿=su = happiness
Other possibilities
阿礼久寿/阿麗久寿
阿=a= compromising or calling someone in a friendly manner
礼＝rei (The way we read is rei but I guess you can use it as レ for name) = gratitude, politeness
麗= rei = beautiful lovely
****************
As for the letter は or を, you just have to use “ha” or “wo” when you type.
For example if you want to say
I have the same book.
↓
私は同じ本を持っています。
You read （Watashi wa onaji hon wo motte imasu.)
But you type as follows.
watashihaonajihonwomotteimasu.
nice teaching Maggie-Sensei it helps me a lot. if you can would you like to add on how to use Kunyomi and Onyomi reading? sometime it is still confusing :-D
There are so many kanji so I can’t teach you all of them here but
Kanji has kun-reading and on-reading.
For example
kanji 読
kun reading よ（む）= yo (mu)
on reading どく = doku
* Kun reading is used individually with hiragana.
to read 読む = yomu
*But if it is combined with other kanji, we tend to use on-reading.
okay thanks for the explanation. does this rules apply for Name too since name of Japanese people uses kanji i mean do their name only uses Onyomi reading (unless stated by the person him or herself of course) :-D
Happy New Year!!
Your sweet message is the best New Year’s gift for us.
Though we don’t know anybody in person but we feel like we know everybody who visits this site (especially the ones who leave the comments) and we really care about all of you.
We have been learning a lot from your questions,too.
I hope this new year will bring you loooots of happiness.
Thankyou for the onlibne teaching . Has helped me a lot! :) … am studying japanese language for 1 year now and your site is one of my source if I need to seek further understanding about a subject.
Hello Alexandra,
Happy New Year!!! I’m very happy to hear you have been using my site for a year.
I will make more and more lessons for you this year!!
hi, I’d read your post but still I don’t understand how to say “please send me lot of clover too this year” in japanese?…is it 今年もたくさんクロバーをあげてねぇ．
thank you :D
Hello marui,
So the person has sent you clovers before?
Just say 今年もたくさんのクローバーを送って下さいね。
If you want to say くれる
今年もたくさんのクローバーを送ってくれますか？（more casual くれる？）= Could you send me a lot of clovers this year as well?
But the person has never sent you clovers in past and you want to ask if he/she could send you a lot of clovers as well, then
今年は、たくさんのクローバーも送って下さい（ね）。
今年はたくさんのクローバーも送ってくれますか？（more casual くれる？）
My Chinese name in characters is 英柏. What would be the 読み方 and 意味 if there is a valid translation? Or would it be simpler to continue going by my given English name.
こんにちは、英柏！
The possible way to read your name will be えいはく=eihaku or ひではく=hidehaku. (In my opinion, えいはく sounds better but it is up to you.)
The meaning of 英 excellence, superiority, great ability
柏 is a name of a tree, an oak
こんにちは、ocd!
がんばって自己紹介をしましたね。
(このレッスンが便利だったようにこれから日本の友達に作る。→Did you want to say “I would like to make Japanese friends using what I learned in this lesson? If so このレッスンで学んだことを使ってこれから日本の友達を作りたいです。/ If you meant “This lesson was useful to make Japanese friends, say このレッスンは日本の友達を作るのに役立ちます。）
First since you said よろしくお願いします (the polite form) in the last sentence, you should stick to the polite form.
ocdという。→ocdといいます。/ ocdです。
ウクライナに住んでいる。→ウクライナに住んでいます。
会社員。→会社員です。
えと、一番新しい言語を習うのが大好きなし・・・。→えーと is a very casual way to say “well”. I think you don’t need it here. 新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好きです。
９ヶ月、独学で日本語を勉強する。→（You have been studying Japanese on your own for 9 months, right?) ９ヶ月、独学で日本語を勉強しています。(If you say 独学する, it means “I am going to study on my own for 9 months9
って日本に来たい。→You don’t start the sentence with って. I wonder what you wanted to say in the beginning. Maybe “That’s why”? If so, だから But in this case, how about
いつか日本に行ってみたいです。= I would like to go to Japan.
Note for you: 来たい is “want to come” so you should say “want to to go = 行きたい” instead.
将来、是非中国語も勉強したい。→Good. Just make it to polite form.将来、是非、中国語も勉強したいです。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。→Good!!
I was going to make it casual but in the last moment I automatically copied どうぞよろしくお願いします and when I noticed, it was too late, I already posted it ;;
Yeah I’ve been studying Japanese by myself for 9 months.
Really? I remember I saw some tweets where the start with って
Ah, so many mistakes …
独学でそれだけの文章が書けるのは本当にすごいことですよ。１０年以上勉強してもまだまだ間違えます。
I think I told you before but learning from your mistakes is the best way to improve your Japanese.
You don’t start a sentence just with って.
What you saw on Twitter could be っていうか or ってか. It is a casual expression to rephrase what you have just heard or “actually” Or っていうことで、っていうわけで (=That’s why…). They are all very casual. (I made a lesson about it once.)
OK, so you want to make it sound more casual. When you write casual sentence, you want to sound friendly not too blunt.
Finishing です・ます is not necessary too formal but if you want to change some sentences more casual,
いつか日本に行ってみたいです。→いつか日本に行ってみたいな
新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好きです。→新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好き。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。→よろしく！・よろしくね！
I remember but at times I think I’m perfectionist, so…
Thank you very much ;; Really?
I’ll keep it in mind, actually all your lessons I write down to better remember. I’m really happy that you’re teaching us Japanese, doubt that I would have reached so far without you. !heart3!
Hi:D
I’m a big anime fan. An from watching sub and dubbed anime a lot, I can pick up words :) that’s how I know some greetings. Etc..
I really liked your lessons.
Do you do voice lessons.. or anything else besides writing them down?
I was just wondering if you did other stuff besides, blogs, writing the words down etc. I pick up by hearing more then seeing. That’s why I’m curious to know :D
Hello, ChelseyBear!
I do Skype lesson only for certain people but not for public at the moment.
I sometimes give listening practice on Facebook or Twitter using a movie preview or anime. Will try to post the quiz on Maggie’s Room.
Thanks a lot for such a detailed lesson! It’s really helpful!
But I have a question. Lately, I’ve stumbled upon a phrase, that was like that:
左からItem1、Item2、Item3、Item4と高価になっていく。
Could it mean ‘From left (to right) the least expensive Item to the most expensive one’? In other words, could なっていく be used in such a fashion or I’m just making a wrong assumption here?
Hello TWarrior!!
左から〜〜〜〜〜〜と高価になっていく
means
It gets more expensive from the left.
(So Item 1 is the cheapest and Item 4 is the most expensive one.)
It is the same pattern as
(だんだん)〜っていく = It (gradually) gets/grows ~~
Great lesson!! I love how you explain, with a lot of examples. It really really helps to figure out how the japanese language goes !happyface!
I have a grammar book that says that when we pass some order in Indirect speech, we should never use any form of imperative but “you ni”, like direct)”tabete kudasai/tabenasai” to itta —> indirect) “taberu you ni” to itta :idea:
Is it like that? Cause I haven’t been able to comfirm this
Thanks and lots of boucingheart! boucingheart!
Hello Rhi,
Good question!
Though there are some cases you can use the speech the way it is,
父は「早く食べろ！」と言いました。→父は早く食べろと言った。
when we rephrase the sentence in indirect speech, you usually have to change the verb form.
And yes, ~ ように言った・言いました is a very common way to change it to indirect speech.
母は「早く食べなさい」と言いました。→母は早く食べるように言いました。
It is not just imperative form. You may have to summarize the speech changing the verbs, speech form and etc. to make a indirect speech.
But there are cases you can use the quote as the way it is.
Hello! Nice post, really helpful :) Anyway, I have a little doubt: is the particle DE after ‘mama’ optional or is it needed sometimes? I don’t think it fits at all in some sentences but in others I feel like I miss it; like this Frozen song, Ari no Mama De, it makes perfect sense there. Then when should I use it with De? And also, I’ve read ‘de atta’ instead of ‘datta’ for ‘remained x way’. Interchangeable?
Thank you so much!
Hello Rhi! We sometimes omit the particles, but here are some differences.
1) 〜ままで（いてほしい・いる・いたい）to be/remain in certain condition the way it is/ as ~ .) When you are focusing on the condition (to do something remaining in certain condition)
Ex. ありのままでいてほしい。
Ex. その猫は物陰にずっと隠れたままでいた。
2) 〜ままに(some actions, 生きる、生きてゆきたい、行く、行きたい etc.) When you are focusing on what you are going to do/you did as ~
Ex. ありのままに話して下さい。
Ex. 言われるままに行動するのはやめなさい。
As for the lyrics of Frozen, “Let is go” is not ありのままで.
こんにちは先生！
How are you? I hope you are fine and everything is ok. This lesson is very useful, I didn’t know how to use these verbs before. Now it’s getting easier.
I have the following questions.
1. 夕食を食べかけたところに、友達から電話がかかってきた/ ホテルを出たところで急に雨が降りだした。Can you please tell me what is “ところに and ところで” and how to use it?
2. 地下鉄の中で急に一人の男性が歌いだした。 What is “一人の男”? is there any replacement for it?
3. 文句ばかり言っていないで早く仕事をやり始めたらどうなの？ What is “言っていないで” ? Please explain about this form. Why not “言わないで”？I’m confused.
こんにちは、kuroineko! Thank you! I am good! How about you?
1. 夕食を食べかけたところに・ホテルを出たところで They both mean “when”
the difference between ところに and ところで is complicated and it is difficult to explain the whole difference here so I will just explain shortly.
What we need to do is to focus on the particle に and で （When some action/movement (in this case 電話がかかる）is aiming toward certain time period (夕食を食べかけたところ）you use ところに
When some event or actions take place (雨が降る), you use ところで）
If you want to learn more about the difference between に and で、go check this lesson.
2. 一人の男性＝One man
3. You can also say 言わないで (without complaining) but when you describe someone is constantly complaining, ~ている is better.
言っている= have been saying/ to be saying →言っていないで = without being complaining
Hello!!! Merry Xmas!!
I need help with two different subjects. First, There’s this song, Kurage by Kanjani8, that has this phrase: いつも 何を考えてるのか
分からない君の横顔の先に
誰が見えてるんだろう 夏休みが来るんだよ
しばらく会えない日々 想像すると一人へこんだ
Where 分からない君の横顔の先に was translated (into Spanish) as ”I don’t Know, It’s a Part of Your self” and I’ve been trying to understand it but I just Cannot. Is it ”君の横顔の先に” an expression? and that is why I cannot get the literal meaning?
My other question is: What does 卒業らしい mean? This is from the first sentence of Nobuta Wo produce novel. It says: 辻ちゃんと加護ちゃんが卒業らしい。For what I understand is that This kids look like senior students to the narrator. Or it could mean that they act like typical senior students. Am I right?
Thank you so much for making this site and teaching us Japanese even in every bit of detail. I am so grateful and relieved that I found your site! Please keep being this awesome! !JYANE! !niconico! !heartsippai! boucingheart!
元気だよ。
なるほど。教えてくれてありがとう！
もう一度問題がある。「Everything what I was saying to her was ignored」は 「彼女に全部もの言っていたのが無視した。」か「彼女に全部もの言っていたのが無視させれた」の(do I need here no?)どちらが正しいの？受け身についてはレッスンがある？ってぜひ習う。(Can I say this way?:受け身についてはレッスンがあってってぜひ習う)
そして「風邪をひかないように」と「風邪が（を）ひかないで」は違いが何の？アニメに「風邪が（を）ひかないで」を聞いたように物珍しくなった。
めちゃ長い問題。ごめん。 boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
ocdも元気でよかった！
もう一度問題がある。→もう一つ質問がある／あります。
「Everything what I was saying to her was ignored」
（僕が）彼女に言ったことは全部（or 全て）無視された。
If you say “She ignored everything what I said” 彼女は僕の言ったことを全部（or 全て）無視した。
受け身についてはレッスンがある？ってぜひ習う。
→受け身形のレッスンがあれば是非勉強したいです。
(Sorry I only have causative verb lesson. )
「風邪をひかないように」と「風邪が（を）ひかないで」
→We both say 風邪をひかないように／風邪をひかないで (You don’t say 風邪がひかないで）
The difference is
風邪をひかないように（気をつけて）= Be careful not to catch a cold.
風邪をひかないで= Don’t catch a cold.
ありがとうございました。 !happyface!
I noticed that I need pay more attention to what I write
@ocd
どういたしまして❤
Hi!
I just found your blog, and I am making a a gift for my dad, (he speaks japanese and thats why i want to write him in this language) so i would like to know, how do you write “I love you, dad!” in japanese? I saw “i love you, mom”, but i would like to know the dad version:)
Thank your lesson, it very useful to me, but could sensei explain more about Hodo use in this sentence: のみこむのに 苦労した日本語は、佃煮にするほどあった
Domoarigatougozaimasu
It means “there were so many Japanese words (or expressions) that I had difficulties with”
You may have checked the word 佃煮 already but 佃煮 is a name of Japanese food but of course, 佃煮にするほど is an expression when there are so many things.
There are also other expression to describe when there are too many something.
(Ex. 掃いて捨てるほどある(=haite suteru hodo aru) ・星の数ほどある(=hoshi no kazu hodo aru)・）
Thank’s for your Hodo lesson Maggiesensei, could you explain more about Hodo use in this sentence: のみこむのに 苦労した日本語は、佃煮にするほどあった, and what it mean,
Arigatougozaimasu Maggiesensei
Hello リゼット！
I don’t know what you mean by “what did i get on my test?” but yes, I would avoid using もらう with my teacher.
You should use polite form. 頂く
Ex. Could you mark my test? = 試験を採点して頂けますか？
Hi dear maggie-sensei!
i tried to translate a song the other day but when i checked the translation online there were two quite different translations and I’m not sure I understand well which is the right one or how the grammar works.Please help!
ドラマティックさに欠けてる 別れも良しとして バイバイ
1)Our breakup, not as dramatic as expected, concluded with a nonchalant bye-bye.
2)Even an undramatic break-up Is fine BYEBYE
さよならの理由は 幾らもあるのに 咲いた傘の花の数だけ ついた溜息
1)While there are many reasons for our parting, the number of the umbrellas represents the number of my sighs.
2)The reasons for breaking up Were so numerous Just like the number of umbrellas blooming like flowers I heaved a sigh.
(i can’t understand the part with the umbrellas and the sigh)
黄昏 久留米駅から 傾れ込む人の波 波 寄せては帰らず 街 鼓動 前夜
1)At dusk, I let myself dissolve into the waves of people from the Kurume Station.
Not going home, I think about the previous night with a racy heart on the street.
2)Evening From Kurume Station The crowd surged like A wave A wave That I lean into, away from home to The town Its pulse The previous night
(the syntax here is completely different,I’m so confused)
最後に約束してた 中華に連れて行ってちょうだい 言いそびれた そうじゃない 染まった女の弱み
1)You made a promise in the end, so please take her to Chinatown.
You couldn’t bring yourself to say it, huh? Women’s weakness has rubbed off on you
2)In the end we made a promise I’ll have you take her out for Chinese food
Which I missed the chance to say No, that’s not it This is the weakness of a stained woman.
待ち合わせには決まって 遅れて到着の彼が なのに 先に待ってるの 最後まで冷たい人
1)Although he’d always be late for our dates, I always wait there first and stay there until it’s become too cold to bear.
2)He always arrives late When we meet up But He’s waiting there before me Until the end, he’s a cold-hearted person
処方箋代にくれた 煙草 消した後で効くの？
1)Instead of my prescribed medicine, I want some tobacco. Will it sedate me?
2)Cigarettes Given in place of a prescription Will they still be effective after they burn out?
こんにちは先生！私は元気です。Sensei, are you a teacher in real life? Your teaching is amazing. I’m glad that I can study from your site.
Japanese counting system is the most complicated. I’ll try to understand and practice more on this.. I hope I’ll master this someday.
先生！！おひさしぶり！元気でしたか？ :-D
I hope you are doing fine and everything is ok.
I’m so confused about how to count in Japanese. I’m still studying the basics of counting. I didn’t study about how to count thin things and so on. I’ll study them after I’m done with the basics. First of all, I can count until “まん” part, but I amt confused about “おく” I don’t know how to use it… It’s so complicated.. like this following number “150000000”
I need your help to explain to me and give me examples about this counter..
ありがとうせんせい。 :-D
I know it is hard to figure out how to count when the figure has lots of zeros.
If there are 6 zeros, it’s 百万=hyakuman = million
↓
7 zeros,(10,000,000) 1千万=Issen man
8 zeros, (100,000,000)１億=ichi oku
9 zeros, (1,000,000,000) １０億=juu oku
10 zeros, (10,000,000,000) １００億=hyaku oku
11zeros, (100,000,000,000) １０００億=sen oku
12 zeros (1,000,000,000,000) １兆=icchou
Thank you so much for explaining this lesson!! I actually have a Final tomorrow! I’ve been trying to understand って言う・聞く・書く, but it was hard to understand. Thank you for clarifying!!
eight hours a day = １日（に）８時間= Ichinichi (ni) hachijikan
24/7 いつも(=itsumo) / 常に(=tsuneni)
“two days a week/month” = １週間（isshuukan) or １ヶ月（ikkagetsu) (に=ni)二日(=futsuka)
three months a year = １年（に）３ヶ月 (=ichinen (ni) sankagetsu)
「わけがない」と「わけではない」は過去形にできますか。
*since in my textbook it is said that for a verb before わけがない is 普通形、 I suppose I can change it to past tense.
例えば「食べるわけがなかった」、「食べるわけがありませんでした」、「食べるなわけがないでした」。
それとも、『食べたわけがない』ですか。
if it is possible, I suppose it is going to be like this in English?
^it WAS impossible to EAT (this)^
それとも、『食べたわけがなかった』てすか。
Is it used in Japanese?
Although literally in English it is wrong to change the form of a verb after ‘to’ to become like this:
^it WAS impossible to ATE (this)^
I just realized nakunatta and inakunatta come from nai and inai which come from aru and iru.. so thats why objects being gone is nakunatta.. it’s all mkaing sense now……
on another note..
How correct am i in stating this:
kiteru can mean “he has come” (te iru state verb for kuru (to come)) or “he going crazy” or “he’s turning popular” depending on the context and kiteru in all three cases is describing “the current state for a verb that describes a change that is more or less instantaneous” – i.e. turning crazy isn’t a near instantaneous transition but is treated as such when using kiteru, so kiteru describes the current state when thinking in japanese.
hey maggie, i know its kinda late but thank you for taking the time to make this blog.
I’ve recently gotten my heart broken by an ex who was japanese.. and i’d like to know how to tell him that i miss him dearly and im thinking about him, but want to make it really short, sweet but powerful. how would i go on about saying this?
The relationship barely started and tough circumstances ended it.. but we both knew we had strong feelings for eachother, to the point of considering marriage.. but im not so sure anymore about his feeling now..and so i want to ask him if he still does feel the same way, but im not sure how to put it. if you could help me id greatly appreciate it! thanks ~
Hello kitten, thank you for visiting this site.
Hmmm it is a tough request because I don’t know his personality.
But let me give you a couple of example sentences so that you can use a part of them.
（私達が）会わなくなって~ ヶ月（〜年）経ちますね。
= It has been ~ months(~ year(s) since we decided not see each other anymore.
ふっきれたと思ったけれどもやはり(his name)のこと、忘れることができません。
= I thought I was over you but I can not forget about you.
まだ(his name) への(強い)気持ちが強く残っています。
= I still have a (strong) feeling for you.
(His name)は、まだ私に対する気持ちが残っているのかな？
= I wonder if you still have feelings for me…
If you want to make it sound more straightforward, you can tell him
まだ(his name) のことが好きです。
= I still love you.
(His name)が少しでもまだ私に何らかの気持ちがあれば嬉しいです。
= I would be very happy if you have some kind of feelings towards me.
Hey, on one of the examples, the romaji says “sakuya” but the kanji says 昨日 (sometimes sakujitsu, so I can see where the mistake came from), just letting you know.
I was looking up たり with -i adjectives, I don’t understand why it uses する, I wanted to make sure another site wasn’t wrong, apparently it wasn’t, thanks Victor ^_^
Thank you for spotting the mistake, James. I fixed it.
The basic pattern of たり is “〜たり〜たりする” so even with an i-adjective, you usually use with する
Ex. 悲しかったり嬉しかったりする
But there could be a variation
Ex. 悲しかったり嬉しかったり気持ちが揺らぐことがある etc.
And I am sorry. I am not Victor. He has been promoting our site. :)
Hello jehdal
Sorry for the late answer. I guess me and Maggie haven’t noticed your question, because sometimes there are so many of them…
Depending on the context ちょっとどうしちゃったんだよ二人共 could mean: “Hey, what’s going on with you, guys!” / “Hey, what’s wrong with you, guys!” / “Hey, what happened, guys!”
Thank you 天人さん for answering jehdal’s question.
Sorry jehdal! I didn’t notice your question until I saw 天人さん’s comment now.
Good to have have you here, 天人さん！
マギー先生、暖かい言葉ありがとうございます！
I’m always here for you and for those, who loves to learn Japanese.
I check your site almost every day, learning something new; people have many questions and their questions (your answers) are a good source of information in order to improve my Japanese.
Regretfully because of my work I don’t have much time, like before, to learn Japanese. But I try to make up 0,5 – 1 hour/day to spend my free time with my passion.
居てくれてうれしいです。
天人より。
@Hi
I need to know the situation.
If someone share a link to the songs you like, you can say
いい歌を教えてくれてありがとう。
いい曲を教えてくれてありがとう。
If that person shared some songs that they singed/composed/played on net, you can also say
i’m new to japanese and is currently struggling trying to learn it…
however there is one thing that bothers me with that first picture lol
being the beginner that i am, i seriously thought the first picture was meant to be pronounced onamae HA instead of WA.
can you please explain to me why write HA in hiragana and not WA?
i know its a trivial matter but i cant help but be bothered by it
first of all, thanks for the lesson although i’m still not quite sure myself~
is there any section/website that explains the different ways of using “de”, “ni” and “he/e”…
I know that some of the “ni” can be replaced by “he/e” like
(tokyou e ikimasu)(tokyou ni ikimasu)… (kouen no naka de, hito ga imasu)(kouen no naka ni, hito ga imasu)
but other than that I have no idea at all. please help~
Hello seb!
If you are not still sure how/when to use “に and で”, feel free to make a couple of sentences in this comment section. I will check them for you.
I don’t have a lesson on へ vs に.
But to be honest, we use it without thinking the difference but here is the grammatically difference.
to go to Tokyo
1) 東京に行く= Toukyou ni iku (particular point of the place)
2) 東京へ行く = Toukyou ni iku (direction)
to go to the restaurant
3)レストランに行く= resutoran ni iku = to go to the restaurant to eat
4) レストランへ行く= resutoran ye iku = to go to the place
So while へ simply implies “direction”, you use に when refer to the particular place (building) or when you have certain things/plans to do there
Hello Ryan,
I made this lesson long time ago and I am thinking about remaking a new one with more information.
Anyway, you can say
“そちらの８１０の部屋に滞在している〜〜さんにつないで下さい。”
= Sochira no happyaku juu no heya ni taizai shiteiru (your friend’s name) san ni tsunai de kudasai.
or
810号室に泊まっている〜さんにつないで下さい。”
= Happyaku juugou shitsu ni tomatte iru ~~ san ni tsunai de kudasai.
習ってよい means “You may learn” (Giving a permission to learn something)
習うよい is grammatically wrong.
It depends on the context but how about (〜を or ~が)習えてよい(or いい）/ 学べてよい（or いい）?
先生、手伝ってくれてありがとう！
I’m trying to read some Japanese texts everyday (tho I don’t really always understand it), but I’m really bad at hearing… What can I do for better recognizing Japanese sounds?
@ocd
It’s good for you to study Japanese everyday.
As for hearing, besides all the language course listening materials, you can use any Japanese videos using youtube or somehting. Find a drama, anime or anything you like. Some of them have subtitles.
Pick any scene and focus on hearing what they are talking about even just 30 seconds everyday. Try to write down every single word that you hear and check it with the subtitles.
NHK also offers やさしい日本語(I once in a while retweet their tweet) They read a news along the text and you can check the vocabulary as well.
I need to know more context but
if the listener told the speaker was not looking/watching something then it means “I AM looking/watching!”
And if the speaker is complaining that the listener is watching something, “(But) You ARE looking/watching ~!””
It is a male speech and you use “か” in the end when you usually talk back to people or point out something that you don’t like about.
Hajimemaste, onamae susan desu, meggie sensei Can you please teach japanese language in private?
I really want to speak japanese, but sometimes make me confuse.
Maggie sensei Onegai shimasu
Konnichiwa, Susan! Hajimemashite.
I feel flattered to hear you want to take my lesson in private.
Actually several people have been asking me if I could teach them in private but I have to find the time and the way to do so. When I figure it out, I will announce it on the site. Meanwhile please feel free to ask me any questions here.
(Note for you. When you introduce yourself, you say “Watashi no namae wa Susan desu or Watashi wa susan desu. “onamae” is an honorific expression and you use it for other people. )
Could you do a lesson on “texting”? I hear that phone email is used in Japan instead of texting. Here in the U.S., texting is constant for teenagers. I was wondering if a student should say, “tomodachi to keitai meeru o shimasu” to mean “I text with my friends.” Would that sound normal?
ありがとう先生！
Please explain to me how to use “とんでもない”
Also, these forms “すごい＝すげー/すげぇ” ”やばい＝やべ” Can females use this type of verbs “やべ/すげー” or is it only for males? and please correct my spelling.
先生、is it possible to add a highlight feature in the comment section? I think it will be more easier to point out something..
Thanks in advance.
Hi kuroineko,
I don’t think I can add a the highlight feature in the comment section. Sorry.
You say とんでもない when you deny something strongly.
Ex. 冬に海で泳ぐなんてとんでもない。
= There is no way to swim in the ocean in winter.
Ex. 「お母さん、明日の夜、遊びに行ってもいい？」
= Mom, can I go out tomorrow night?
「とんでもないです。」
= No way.
Ex. A「Bさんの日本語は上手ですね。」
= Your Japanese is very good.
B. 「とんでもないです。」
= Tondemo nai
= That’s not true. (being humble)
“すごい＝すげー/すげぇ” ”やばい＝やべ” Can females use this type of verbs “やべ/すげー” or is it only for males?
It is possible but men use it more. If a girl says すげー/すげぇ/やべー, their parents or adults around them are most likely reprove them.
Hi there Maggie sensei!
Thanks for another great lesson! I stumbled upon this website a few months ago and I’m really glad you’ve gone over the uses ’言う’ and some of the ways of using ’かける’; you’ve helped may it much easier for me to understand them-they seem to be used everywhere!
To be honest if there were 2 verbs I could get rid of in Japanese- it would still have to be them.haha!
Though making them clearer has made me hate them a little less now
Hello Will!
Thank you for visiting this site.
I really respect all of you who are trying to learn Japanese. You may hate some of the complicated grammar but I believe you will be able to use them without thinking.
がんばってくださいね！
ありがとう先生！
As for question 3, I mean in this sentence “みんな 真剣な顔して きばっちゃって” what exactly is “ちゃって” and why is it at the end? Is it a complete sentence?
I have two questions:
1. As for “ちゃう” form, can you please tell me which age group can use it?
2. what is the difference between うるさい and だまれ？Please tell me the exact meaning of “うるさい” does it mean “you’re noisy/annoying/ or shut up? I’m confused >_<
どういたしまして。
Ah.. OK, we finish a sentence with ちゃって on purpose in the following cases.
(1) When you point out something.
どうしたの？真面目な顔しちゃって。= What’s wrong? You look very serious. (By using ちゃって it lightens up the seriousness.)
(2) When you explain some reason.
遅れてごめんね。朝寝坊しちゃって。
I’m sorry I’m late. I overslept so…
(anastrophe)
(3) When you describe something.
彼の部屋はいつも散らかっちゃって…
= His room is always messy (so you know)…
Q1) I would say younger people tend to use more than older people. But older people also use it.
Ex. ご迷惑かけちゃってごめんなさい。= I am sorry that I trouble you.
Q2) うるさい is just saying “something is too loud” / “annoying” and だまれ is “Shut up!”
So they are different. If someone listens to the music and it is too loud, you can’t say だまれ because they are not talking. You would say うるさい
When someone complains a lot or talks back to you, you can say both うるさい・だまれ or even both.
Hi, I would like to ask a question. :) How do we use the phrase お世話になっております when talking to a friend’s boss? For example my friend introduced me to his boss, would it be appropriate to answer, 友人がいつもお世話になっております？ Thanks for your reply in advance! :)
Hello, 工藤さん！
Though we don’t usually say お世話になっています towards our friend’s boss (if you are their family, yes) , I guess you can say that if you always hear their boss really takes care of your friend or they work for a small company.
先生!!はい、私も元気です。
Thank you so much for answering my questions. You are the best teacher :-D
However, I know that when talking to yourself, you would use “おう/よう or it depends on the word” at the end. For example, “何をつくろうかな/どうしよう”, but in the case of “宿題をしちゃおっと” is the ending “っと” used to express talking to oneself? and please give me another example for this.
I have the following questions:
1. “だまってもらっちゃおうか？” You want to just take it without asking?
if “黙る” means “to be silent, what exactly is the word for “shut up”? Because usually they would translate this verb as “shut up” I’m confused.
2. To describe what is happening,ちゃって（い）る form
Can you please explain it more and give more examples?
3. How to use “ちゃって” as a connector between sentences. I heard people use it at the end of the sentence and then start a new one ending with “ちゃって” what is this grammar point? is it a connector?
4. 先生、 you mentioned that when men use “ちゃう” form a lot, they would be called “shallow”. Does that mean that men cannot use them? is it only for females to sound cute?
〜っと ending is a very causal way to express your will. It doesn’t matter if other people are listening or not. It is often use when you decide what to do right before you say that.
何をつくろうかなあ→そうだ、今日は天ぷらをつくろう！ I am going to cook Tenpura today.→(casual)今日は天ぷらをつくろっと! Oh maybe I should make a Tenpura today.
Compare to つくろう、つくろっと gives an impression that you just got the idea what to cook.
So when you compare 宿題をやろう・やってしまおう：やっちょう (A) and 宿題をやろうっと・やってしまおっと・（やっちゃおっと）(B), while A shows your will that you are going to do homework in general, you use B, when you were doing/talking about something else and you just remembered you have to do your homework. Oh, I guess I have to finish my homework.
1. Ah… OK, though だまってもらっちゃおうか？” is VERY casual,
“V+てもらおうか/V+てもらいましょうか/V+てもらっちゃおう” are sort of command form.
Do something
It shows the listener owes the speaker to do something. It may sound polite but it sounds very demanding.
だまってもらおうか・だまってもらいましょうか・だまってもらっちゃおうか= I want you to shut up = So it means “Shut up!”
2. For example
Ex. 答えがみえちゃっているんですけど。
= Kotae ga miechatte irunndesukedo.
= I can see the answer. (You are showing the answer)
Ex. ストレスがたまっちゃって…
＝Sutoresu ga tamachatte.
= I am stressed up.
3. I don’t understand your question well.
You mean finish a sentence with ちゃった and then continue with ちゃって？
I can’t think of any example.. Sorry.
4. No. men can use it but overusing ちゃう sounds shallow. That’s all.
Though I probably don’t need it much myself due to such helpful things such as the ピクシブ百科事典 and the ニコニコ大百科 which explains most things, I wonder if it would be useful to cover some more things that those two encyclopedia explain that pop up a lot, such as うぽつ (at the beginning of almost every video) and わこつ (at the beginning of almost every live stream).
If you know enough Japanese, those sites are very useful. It covers much more than my site.
And those slang words are changing everyday.
But thank you for visiting my site anyway. :)
Hello, Commenter!
Ah maybe you are right. You might see the pattern 〜も+V し a lot.
Actually we use various particles with し such as
いろいろな経験がありますし…
この分野での経験はありますし…
but when you want to emphasize that fact that this person ALSO has a lot of experiences, you use も with し.
I got confused in this sentence リュカの寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンで、寝るときは布団をかぶってたんだ
because I don’t really understand で function in that sentence
what I get from that sentence is “Luca sleep-wear are a T-shirt and long pants when its sleeping time he would put on the futon”
@just a novel lover’s
Hi!
That で is simply means “and” （Actually this で is not a particle. te-form of an auxiliary verb. 寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンだ。→te-form and continue the sentence with te-form 寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンで…
Luca’s night clothes and T-shirt and longs pants (Luca sleeps in T-shirt and longs pants) and he used to sleep with his head under the futon.
so で in that sentence not means “method” or “place”, but “and” like と, sensei?
@just a novel lover’s
Yes. で also has a function of giving a reason but in this case it would be more natural to translate “and”.
If it is said
リュカは、Tシャツと長ズボンで寝ます。
(Luca sleeps in T-shirt and long pants.)
Then で means “with”
can you explain to me sensei, why the author use で in that sentence instead of と?
and, hehehe can I ask you about cutting words sensei?
like in this sentence ここでも忍び足で歩いていく。
is it ここで-も忍び足で-歩いて-いく。
or
ここでも-忍び足で-歩いて-いく。?
@just a novel lover’s
That で is actually not a particle. It is te-form of an auxiliary verb.
Ex. 彼は歌が上手だ。そしてギターも上手だ。
(compound sentence)
→彼は歌が上手で、(そして)ギターも上手だ。
He sings well and (also) plays the piano well.
Ex. 彼女は学生です。（そして）勉強が好きです。
↓(compound sentence)
Ex. 彼女は学生でそして）勉強が好きです。
= She is a student and loves studying.
This で is a particle to indicate the location.
By using with も adds the nuance of “also”
ここ+で (location)+も (also)+ verb
If it is said
ここでは, it shows the contrast. Maybe not other places but someone tiptoes here.
ここ+で(location) +は (subject/contrast) + verb
Or depending on the content, it could mean ここ-でも(even)= even here
Maggie-sensei, question!
in this sentence 無い物ねだりをしてもしょうがない、出来る範囲で頑張ろう。
the dictionary that I use said that 無い物ねだり can mean “asking for the moon”, where “the moon” came from? there is no word in that words that have meaning for “moon”
@just a novel lover’s
“asking for the moon” is an English idiom. You can’t reach the moon and the moon is too big to have so it is impossible to get the moon.
So when people wish for what they can’t have, or seek things that they can’t reach, you say 無いものねだり
ah, so it’s english idiom no wonder I cannot “click” it hahaha
Hello~ Maggie Sensei and Moko Sensei~
this lesson is so much fun~
My name is written like this →愛子
ah, by the way Sensei that’s my real name~
愛 is just my ニックネーム！( ´ ▽ ` )
the meaning of my name is Love Child? am i right Sensei? |ω･`)
Hello Ai!
So your real name is 愛子. You have a really nice name!
愛子 literally means “Love Child” as you said but it could mean “a woman with full of love”, “lovely girl”, and etc.
Love your name!
先生！！おひさしぶりです！！元気でしたか？ :-D :-D
I hope you are fine and everything is well. Thank you always for supporting us and helping us to learn this wonderful language.
I have the following questions:
1. 明日までに宿題をしちゃおっと。You said (when talking to yourself), can you please explain this form? (ちゃおっと）？
2. In this sentence”Did you have dinner already?”
How to use “ちゃう” form here?
3. “そんなことをやってもらったら困ります。” what is the meaning of “やってもらったら” here?
わ〜久しぶりですね！はい、元気ですよ。kuroinekoさんも元気でしたか？
OK, let me see your questions…
1. 宿題をしちゃう is a casual form of 宿題をしてしまう(to finish doing my homework/to have my homework done)
This is a very casual speech but when you talk to yourself showing your will, you say
宿題をしてしまおっと = I guess I will finish my homework.
And the casual contraction of してしまう is しちゃう so you can also say
宿題をしちゃおっと
I will show you other examples. りですね！はい、元気ですよ。kuroinekoさんも元気でしたか？
OK, let me see your questions…
1. 宿題をしちゃう is a casual form of 宿題をしてしまう(to finish doing my homework/to have my homework done)
This is a very casual speech but when you talk to yourself showing your will, you say
宿題をしようかな = I guess I am going to do my homework.
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう(to have done something / to finish doing something) form.
↓
宿題をしてしまおうかな = I guess I will have my homework done.
↓
You can also say
宿題をしてしまおっと = I guess I will finish my homework.
And the casual contraction of してしまう is しちゃう so you can also say
宿題をしちゃおっと
You may not learn this in your textbook but we say this often in casual conversation.
Ex. I guess I will go to sleep now.
もう寝ようかな
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう(to have done something / to finish doing something) form.
もう寝てしまおうかな
↓
もう寝ちゃおうかな。
↓ Showing your stronger will in a casual way
もう寝ちゃおっと
Ex. I guess I am going to eat this.
これ食べようかな
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう( to finish eating)
これ食べてしまおうかな。
↓
これ食べちゃおうかな。
↓ Showing your stronger will in a casual way
これ食べちゃおっと
2) Did you have dinner already →もう夕食食べちゃった？
3) We usually use V+てもらう when you receive some favorable action from others.
But we sometimes use V+てもらう for negative situations.
In this case, やってもらったら困る is sarcasm. You insinuate the feeling of “I will be in trouble if you are free to do such a thing.”
Other examples
Ex, そんなところに書いてもらったら困ります。
You shouldn’t write it in such a place. (I will be in trouble.)
4) 忘れてきちゃった is a casual contraction of 忘れてきてしまった= to have left something you need somewhere
OK, I guess that’s all.
Hope I answered your questions.
Um my question isn’t related to this lesson, but I hope it’s not a problem for asking this here. So why that sentence ends in te 思うって form i feel its a silly question, but I can’t find answer to it and I can’t sleep because of that :D Just kidding hehe. Ahh its so hard to absorb so much information, maybe I forgot it somewhere along the way.
I was exploring Maggies site and, wow its just to good to be true..so many information, detailed explanation and those cute pictures and so on.. You really are putting so much effort, time and doing that with passion and love and because of that I’d like to thank from my bottom of the heart for doing this! 「礼」本当にありがとうございます！
1) Asking an agreement from the listener
verb plain form + ね
Ex. 日本に行きたいね。
= Nihon ni ikitaine.
= I’d love to go to Japan. / It would be nice if I could go to Japan. (Don’t you agree?/You,too, right?)
(more polite)
Ex. 日本に行きたいですね。
= Nihon ni ikitai desune
2) Telling someone what you are going to do/ Expressing your will/intention
Ex. 来年、日本に行きますね。
= Rainen nihon ni ikimasu ne.
Ex. 明日、迎えに行くね。
= Ashita mukae ni ikune!
= I will pick you up tomorrow, OK?
3) Asking someone to do something
Ex. 明日、迎えに来てね。
= Ashita mukae ni kitene.
= Pick me up tomorrow, OK?
Ex. 是非、日本に留学してね。
= Zehi nihon ni ryuugaku shitene.
= Please come study in Japan by all means.
4) Telling a story/ To tell someone what happened or explaining why you do something.
verb て form + ね
(1)
A:「どうしてこの店で買わないの？」
= Doushite kono mise de kawanaino?
= Why don’t you buy at this store?
B : 「他の店の方が安いと思ってね。」
= Hoka no mise no hou ga yasui to omotte ne.
(more polite : 思いましてね）
(2)
A : 「ちょっと熱が出てね。明日は会えないよ。」
= Chotto netsu ga dete ne. Ashita wa aenai yo.
= I have a slight fever so I can’t see you tomorrow.
（more polite 出ましてね）
Hello Ereki!
It’s from an AKB song, ハートエレキ, right?
This も means “even if”
But in this case, you can translate it something like…
Whatever word you found in the world must have difference nuance.
Hello Danny G,
わかりやすい = easy to understand →わかりやすくなる=to be easier to understand/to become easier to understand
I have a lesson on やすい・にくい. Check this lesson.
この映画を見れば見るほど怖いだろう
Good!
But to sound more natural,
→この映画を見れば見るほど怖くなる
お願いがあるんですけど。。
あの～日本語が上手になりたいし、日本に参りたいし、あそこで友達をたくさん作りたいし、それから、色々な所にもお訪ねたいし、そして日本の料理をたくさんいただきたいし/
（いただきたいので/ですから/が？）、僕は毎日２か３時間ぐらい日本語を勉強しております。
この文は正しいかどうか知りません。 ちょっと手伝ってくれませんか.
Well I hope I have written it correctly. 良い一日を
１）The way you use し is good but using too many し in one sentence sounds strange. Maybe you should divide them into a couple of sentences.
２）You know the honorific words such as 参る、頂く、おります。very well.
When you write a sentence, you have to stick to the same form. I think balance-wise, you should stick to just regular ます form.
Now I will fix your sentence a little to make it sounds more natural, OK?
僕は日本語が上手になりたいので日本に行きたいです。＊(Adding one sentence so that you can use a couple of し in the next sentence.) 日本ではやりたいことがいっぱいあります。例えば友達をたくさん作りたいし、色々な所を訪ねたいし、日本料理もたくさん食べたいです。
そのために、僕は毎日２、３時間日本語を勉強しています。
どういたしまして！
(Note for you. そんなに自然みたいと思いますよ If you meant my sentences are natural, use とても →とても自然だと思います。
マギー先生をそんなに早く手伝って頂いてありがとうございます。→It means Thank you for helping Maggie Sensei this fast. So just say マギー先生、手伝ってくれてありがとうございます。）
Thank you again for honest corrections. Sorry, I should have left English translations as well. You see I wanted to say that your sentences look or sound so natural to me. And I wanted to emphasize that ”so” by adding そんな. Oh and I wanted to thank for your help and also for replying so fast so I sticked those reasons together. Don’t know if I did it correctly though.
良い一日を Have a wonderful day ^_^
@チャド
どういたしまして、チャド！がんばってくださいね。
I will help your Japanese here anytime.
Wonderful lesson for me, an intermediate Japanese speaker. Really great in-depth look at “seiwa”. Oseiwa ni narimashita. Arigatou gozimashita.
Hello asahara,
OK, when you want to change the date of your reservation from Nov. 1 to Nov. 6th on the phone.
First you say
もしもし、１１月１日の６時に予約をしたAsaharaと申します。
= Moshimoshi. Juuichigatsu tsuitachi ni yoyaku wo shita Asahara to moushiamsu.
= Hello, my name is Asahara and I made a reservation for Nov. 1st
and tell them
= 申し訳ありませんが、予約を１１月６日に変更できますか？
= Moushiwake arimasen ga yoyaku wo juuichigatsu muika ni henkou dekimasu ka?
= I am sorry but I’d like to change my reservation to Nov. 6th.
Hi Maggie-sensei, Moko-sensei! Thank you for another great and informative article, I really learned a lot.
Speaking of names, much to my surprise I discovered my name (Remi) on a list of Japanese baby names for girls not to long ago and was wondering if that name is common and what it typically means. The kanji that I’ve encountered so far is “玲美”.
It’s funny because even though I’m American, my mom named me after a character with the same name from one of the novels that she wrote before I was born. She swears she made the name up herself! lol
Thank you for your input, keep up the good work!:)
Hello Remi,
I really like your name and yes, it could be written
礼美，礼実，鈴実，玲美，玲実，玲未，玲海，玲深，玲並，怜美，怜実，怜未，怜海，伶美…..
The character in your mom’s novel must be a lovely person as you are.
Thank you for the very kind words, Maggie-sensei! I really appreciate that! Thanks again for taking the time to show me the different variations of my name, this is so cool!
!happyface! ohayou maggie-sensei, hajimemashite watashi no namae wa Miftah Riza desu, Indonsia ni sunde imasu^^ yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
kono webusaito ga daisuki desu^^ muryou de nihongo no benkyou ga dekiru you ni narimasu^^
nihongo o oshiete kurete houtou ni arigatou gozaimasu, maggie-sensei.
My name’s Harold and when I went to Japan last year, everyone is calling me Harorudo as my name is written as ハロルド in Japanese. Our sensei taught me that if my name will be written in Kanji, it would be written as 晴道. Pretty much close, eh? The literal meaning would be “sunny road” which I liked because I am quite an optimistic person.
But it sounds like since 気になる has a few different meanings does it make it hard to infer based on the context of the sentence what the usage is for those scenarios?
Hello. What I’m trying to say since 気になる has quite a lot of meanings how does someone figure out if they are curious/interested/annoyed based on what they are trying to say in a sentence?
Thank you so much! Your explanations are detailed and easy to understand. The part where you explained the difference between わけではない and わけがない was invaluable. The textbooks I’m learning from (N3 Kanzen or Sou Matome) do not explain the nuances between the two forms as well as you did. I have been enlightened!
Konbanwa maggie sensei..
Thank you so much for putting a lot of effort on this website. Really luv it so much.
I have a question, i’m not really clear about ‘jibun datte’ wording. This sentence,
= Jibun datte itsumo tabeteru kuseni!
= You always eats sweets, too. (Look who’s talking!)
Can i change to ‘anata mo itsumo tabeteru kuseni’. Is this sentence correct? TQ ^ ^
Hello Diladina! Hajimemashite!
自分だって(=jibun datte) + V
This だって is to emphasize 自分 (in this case “you”= あなた(=anata)) and yes, you can say
自分も食べてるくせに。
or
あなたも食べてるくせに。
It means the same as も but compared to も, だって(=datte) is often used when you complain something.
You can talk about yourself using だって
私も一生懸命がんばっています。
= Watashi mo isshou kenmei ganbatte imasu.
= I am also working hard.
→ 私だって一生懸命がんばっています。
= Watashi datte isshoukenmei ganbatte imasu.
Hi Maggie Sensei
i really like the way you explain everything. I’m just a beginner in learning japanese. I’m a nihonjin but raised in other country so i need to study japanese in order for me to understand of what japanese people are saying. so When i go back there i don’t need to worry about understanding them. n_n)
so i’ll proceed to the next lesson~
はじめまして、Ai!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site. So you are Japanese learning 日本語. Feel free to ask any questions. There is no right order to start this site. Just go to the Index and pick a lesson. Hope you learn a lot!
I don’t understand the “conditional” part of this lesson. What does the use of たり in these sentences mean? How are they different than if you hadn’t used たり?
Ex. チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。 (The guy who looks shallow could be actually very serious, you know.)
Before I saw the translation, I thought that sentence meant “The guy who looks shallow is actually serious and stuff.”
If the translation is “could be” (probaby/maybe), shouldn’t the sentence be something like, 「チャラくみえる人が実はまじめでしょう。」?
Ah OK, ~だったりする implies the possibilities.
So if I rephrase the sentence,
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめなこともある。
= The guy who looks shallow could be actually serious/There is a possibility that shallow looking people turn to be serious
Your translation
「チャラくみえる人が実はまじめでしょう。」→More natural チャラくみえる人が実はまじめです。
means “Shallow looking people are actually serious. ” and the speaker determines their opinion.
Thank you so much! I understand ~だったりする now ^^
But I often have problems with でしょう/だろう… Especially when there is no word like “maybe” or “probably” in the translation
I know Maggie Sensei has very little free time, but If you ever have the opportunity, I would love a lesson on all the nuances of でしょう/だろう!
I see your problem. でしょう／だろう are used when we assume something but we don’t always say “probably”/maybe” in the translation.
For example
It will rain tomorrow. can be translated as 明日は雨が降るでしょう(when you are assuming) ／明日は雨が降ります (when you are certain)
If you want, feel free to make sentences and leave them here. I will check them for you.
Hi Maggie sensei, thanks very much, these are very useful!
I have a question, I went shopping for clothes today and when I went into the fitting room, the 店員さん asked me something which I later figured should be asking me if I wanted to try on the clothes. However I did not catch what she said, would you be able to share what does the 店員さん usually say when we enter the fitting room and how we can respond to that? Thanks!
Hello Valen,
Hmm it is hard to guess what they said but let me try.
If you went to the big store where there are a lot of fitting rooms, they talked to you to check how many items you have.
Then
こちらの１点でよろしかったですか？
= Kochira no itten de yoroshikatta desuka?
= So you have one item, right?
→You can just say はい and if you have more items, you say あとこれも試着したいです。= Ato kore mo shichaku shitaidesu.
They might have double checked the size,
Mサイズでよろしかったですか？
= M saizu de yoroshikatta desuka?
= This is size M, is that all right?
Again if so, you can say はい(=hai) if not, you can ask them ~~~サイズをお願いします。= ~~~ saizu wo onegai shimasu.
Or if they want to see how you look when you try it on, they might ask you
ご試着終わりましたら一度出て見せて頂けますか？
= Goshichaku owarimashitara ichido dete misete itadakemasu ka?
= Could you come out once when you try it on?
If you are already in the fitting room,
they probably asked you
如何ですか？
= Ikaga desuka?
= How is it?
サイズの方は、如何ですか？
= Saizu no hou wa ikaga desuka?
= Does it fit you? / How’s the size?
If it fits you perfectly you can say
ちょうどいいです。
= Choudo iidesu
= Just right.
If not, you can say すこし大きいです(=sukoshi ookii desu, This is a little too big.)・少し小さいです。(=Sukoshi chiisai desu. This is a little too small)
= Ikaga desuka?
= How is it?
僕、お母さんのこと…
= Boku okaasan no koto..
We often leave the sentence unfinished on purpose in Japanese.
So you have to read between the lines.
Usually when you leave the sentence like that it means “I like you.”
僕、お母さんのこと（が好きだ）…
= Boku okaasan no koto (ga sukida)
I love you, Mom.
You did, except I asked to wrong question XD I actually wanted to ask, since you can’t use 行ったらいいのに to talk about yourself, is there another way to say “I should go/It would be good if I went” using the たら form? If not, Is there another way I can say it?
Finally, is there a difference between 行けばいい and 行ったらいい?
I should go is 行かなくてはいけない・行った方がいい （more colloquial 行かなきゃ（いけない））
When you express your regret that you should have gone but you couldn’t
行けばよかった・行ったらよかった
こんにちは、Emma!
I need the whole sentence to understand the context better but
”なくちゃいけない” is a casual contraction of なくてはいけない
It shouldn’t be the state of “ない” so it means “you have to have something/ you can’t omit (skip) it”
Ex.この文章で助詞はなくてはいけません。
= Kono bunshou de joshi wa nakute wa ikemasen.
= You have to have a particle in this sentence.(You can’t skip the particle in this sentence.)
→(casual contraction)
この文章で助詞はなくちゃいけない
= Kono bunshou de joshi wa nakucha ikenai.
If it combines with other verb
Ex. 食べなくちゃいけない= tabenakucha ikenai = have to eat something
Ex. 勉強しなくちゃいけない= benkyou shinakucha ikenai = have to study
And I need to know the previous sentence って is usually used to quote what someone has just said.
Someone said “~~~~~”
→Someoneが〜〜〜って(言っていました。）
こんにちは、Marianne!
1. ばかり and ばかりで ：で has a function of giving a reason so ばかりで is used when you continue the sentence.
→something is too ~ “so”/ “and” + ~~~
(な)のに means “although/though/even if/even though” and you have to give the contradicted result.
If you want to use (な)のに in those sentence,
あのホテルは高いのにサービスは最低だった。
外見がきれいなのに中身がない
2. Isn’t that a good thing, though?→Not necessary. Even if the restaurant serves cheap food, what is the quality of food is bad, the service is horrible or dirty?
3. It is a literal expression but 降り出さないばかり→ない contracted to ん→ 降りださんばかり
あのホテルは高いばかりでサービスは、最低だった。= The hotel is just to
外見がきれいなばかりで中身がない
Hello Lucky,
I am VERY happy to hear you are enjoying my lessons.
“sorry for troubling you but….” in casual way, huh?
There are a couple of ways to say that
I want to tell my friend that I will give her the tickets tomorrow. But we will not be sitting together because seats number are different.
チケットを明日あげよう／チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号は異なりますので、一緒に座らない。
Is this correct??
I will appreciate a lot if you could and help me with this!
Cheers~ :)
1) If you are thinking in your heard, “I will/am going to give this ticket to her tomorrow”, you can say
明日、彼女にチケットをあげよう。
2) When you are telling someone who will give the ticket to her together, “Let’s give this ticket to her”, you can say あげよう.
Other correction :
でも座席番号は異なりますので、一緒に座らない。
First, do you want to talk to this person in casual way?
The first sentence ~あげる is pretty casual so maybe you should stick to the casual speech.
〜ますので is too formal.
The seat number should be different so how about
でも座席番号が離れている*から一緒には座れないの。(girl speech) or 座れないよ(neutral)
(or 座席が続き番号じゃないから）
Thank you for your prompt reply.
So, to put everything together. I can either say:
チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないの。
or
チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないよ。
OK, now I read the whole sentence, I think it will be better to use the particle は instead of を in the first sentence.
How about
チケットは明日あげるね。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないの。or 一緒には座れないよ。
Hello again, Maggie!
I’ve always wondered what 渋い tastes like. Somewhere (perhaps in a dictionary?) I read that 渋い is the taste of unripe persimmon (柿) fruit. Unfortunately, I’ve never had any occasion to taste persimmon fruit, let alone unripe persimmon fruit. Are there other things that taste 渋い? Maybe dry wine or strong black tea?
Hello, Armadillomon!
Good point! If you haven’t had persimmon, it might be hard to imagine the tastes.
渋い is also used to describe the taste of astringent red wine.
このワインは渋い(Kono wain wa shibui) ・渋味があるワイン(=shibumi ga aru wain)
Also strong green tea is often described 渋い
Hello Maggie!
Thank you for this wonderful lesson! You explain things very clearly, but I have one little question. Since 頂く is a more polite form of もらう, why is ～ていただき有り難う correct and ～てもらって有り難う wrong? Isn’t the degree of politeness the only difference between those two expressions? Is there some kind of explanation for this?
A great question.
Hmm I wonder why…let’s figure it out together.
〜くれてありがとう is the most natural way to say “Thank you for doing something (for me.)”
and though some people say that in certain cases in conversation, 〜もらってありがとう doesn’t sound natural.
For example if someone helped you, you say,
Ex. 手伝ってくれてありがとう。
Thank you for helping.
but not
Ex. 手伝ってもらってありがとう。
It is mainly because もらう is used when you receive something (some service). So if you say 手伝ってもらってありがとう。it sounds like
Thank you for getting some help from someone.
****
Now when you use honorific expressions, technically we should use 下さる instead of 頂くbecause 下さる is a polite form of くれる.
But we both use 〜頂きありがとうございます and ~ 〜下さり有り難うございます。nowadays even in business situations.
As you say 頂く is a polite way to say もらう but when you say
Ex. お手伝い頂き有り難うございました。
It means more than receiving something, it shows the respect towards that person’s help.
Hi Marianne,
When you hear/find out something you didn’t expect, you say
~~~とは知らなかった to show your surprise feelings.
So by using とは you can express the feeling “I had no idea””I didn’t think it was coming”
Ex. マギーが犬だったとは… = Maggie is a dog? (I didn’t think it was coming…)
Ex.彼がそんなことをする人だったは意外だ。(=Kare ga sonna koto wo suru hito datta towa igaida) I didn’t expect he would do such a thing.
Sensei, I just learned about adjectives with da shi but cant seem to get the hang of it. Any difference like kirei shi and kirei da shi?
If we were to use da shi to adjectives, how to link more than three adjectives in a sentence and which part i should add in da shi? *headache
Hello Anne,
As I explained in “How to form”, きれい(=kirei) is na-adjective. Therefore you have to say きれいだし(=kireidashi) not きれいし(=kireishi)
Ex. しずか(=shizuka) is na-adjective しずかだ(=shizukada) →しずかだし(=shizukadashi)
申し訳ありません! I overlooked that part. Thank you so much Sensei! I did find a comment regarding this subject online but it didnt mention that na-adjective should be added with da/datta. You have clarified it well in here. Thank you once again and for your prompt reply. I have to admit you are the best Japanese teacher online that one could rely on.
Sensei, I came across the suffix naku from the work wasurenaku and goshinpainaku. Is it a honorific form? I read that wasurenaku is a negative form of the honorific 忘れる but I cant seem to find any sites that support this. Please help.
Hello Anne!
~なく form is a shorter way to say ならないように so it is not a honorific form but just a polite way to say not to forget something.
お忘れにならないようにお願いいたします。(Please do not forget)
→お忘れにならないように
→お忘れなく
Other example
お間違いのないようにお願い致します。(=Please do not make a mistake/mistake something)
→お間違いのないように
→お間違いなく
I’m Looking for an japanese-english dictionary android app which has audio. I’ve spent days looking for one but it’s just impossible for me. Could you please suggest me one??? (I prefer offline dictionary but online one is okie too)
When I first learnt Japanese, my teacher taught me that Gomennasai is a more formal version of Sumimasen. However, it seems (from online resources) that gomennasai is more casual/childish? I recently inconvenienced my dorm manager by forgetting to tell her I was back home so she had to make a call to my room to ask for me. I apologised with Gomennasai and I have been worrying about it ever since because I am afraid it is too casual for the situation. Please help me in this issue. My dorm manager is older than me and we are not well acquainted yet, so in my mother tongue, I feel the need to apologise formally but I am confused about the degrees and nuances in Japanese. Please help to explain this for me!
Thank you very much for your wonderful website. I will be learning a lot from it.
Hello, Hal! Thank you for visiting our site.
Yes, it’s true. Gomennasai is more serious than Sumimasen. (I added the information in the lesson.)
But the way you say is very important,too. If you apologize sincerely, either one works. So I don’t think you offended your dorm manager.
Not just saying ごめんなさい or すみません、I would add 本当に(=hontouni)
Ex. 本当にすみませんでした。
Ex. 本当にごめんなさい。
And follow up saying things like,
これから気をつけます
= Kore kara kiwotukemasu.
= I will be careful from now on.
etc.
You know Facebook has a “Like” button. We called it いいね. So it means “I like you who tries hard tomorrow./ You are great”
明日にもがいているあなたでもいいです。This あなたでもいい means I still like you even + something negative” In this case,
I like you who struggles tomorrow/ Even you struggle tomorrow, you are great”
I’m a male and I’ve taken a liking to someone (a girl xD) and I want to tell her I like her.
I do not want it to be too direct because I don’t want to be too “sudden”. Another way to put it is, I’m trying to be subtle, but I also want to know if that is a bad thing? I’m thinking like this because I do not know how she feels about me. Hehe. >A<
I enjoy talking to her and I want to know more about her. I hope you can help me.
Hi Haru,
So you want to know how to telling someone verbally in a subtle way.
As I wrote in this lesson, telling someone 好きです is very straight forward.
If you keep asking her out, she will get a hint.
Or if you always go out with her in a group, you can tell her
Ex. 今度、二人きりで会えないかなあ。
= Kondo futari kiri de aenai kanaa.
= Is it possible to go out just you and me?
You can give her compliments.
Ex. Aちゃんは本当にかわいいね。
= A chan wa hontou ni kawaiine.
= You are so cute, A-chan.
If you want to tell her your feelings in a subtle way,
Ex.最近、Aちゃんのことが気になってきたんだけど。
= Saikin A chan no koto ga kini natte kitanndakedo…
= I kind of think of you often lately.
Ex. Aちゃんは僕の理想のタイプなんだよね。
= A chan wa boku no riosu no taipu nan dayone.
= You are my ideal type, you know.
If you want to express you feelings a little more strong,
Ex.Aちゃんのことが好きになっちゃったかもしれない。
= A chan no koto ga suki ni nacchatta kamo shirenai.
= I kind of like you. (The direct translation is..I might be in love with you… )
See we have lots of vague ways to confess our love. :)
がんばって！
Ahhh sorry, I think I’m flooding the replies, my 2 previous replies didn’t completely post. ごめなさい m(_ _)m
So copying the contents of my previous replies and editing it:
Uwaa, thank you for the very quick reply. I hope I wasn’t much of a bother! XD
I’m doing my best in regards to the complimenting but there’s still the fear of feelings not going to be reciprocated but I’ll work hard!
Hmm, I forgot to include it in first post but if it’s someone you meet online or through SMS, will the approach be very different? I really am falling for her but I don’t know what to do aside from telling her my feelings.
So you just know her on line?
Then, you can add a sentence like
LineでしかAちゃんのことを知らないけれどももうずっと知っている様な気がします。
= Line de shika A-chan no koto wo shiranai keredomo mou zutto shitte iru you na ki ga shimasu.
= I only know you on LINE but I feel like I have known you for a long time.
But if you haven’t seen her yet, then you should see her in person first and then tell her how you feel.
一度会ってもらえますか？
= Ichido atte moraemasu ka?
= Is it possible to see me in person once?
Good luck!
I forgot about your previous reply, I found the other sentence there:
“Ex.最近、Aちゃんのことが気になってきたんだけど。
= Saikin A chan no koto ga kini natte kitanndakedo…
= I kind of think of you often lately.”
But I will try translating the other one:
Aちゃんのことをもっと知りたい。
A-chan no koto wo motto shiritai. (I want to know more about you.)
I hope I was able to translate it correctly.
Thank you!
@Haru
Perfect!! You got it!! :)
Hello Maggie! Thank you very much for this interesting lesson.
I’m not entirely sure, if I understand を＋動詞～て形＋ある correctly. Does it imply that not someone else but the speaker himself has done some kind of preparations?
1) チケットが買ってある.
The tickets have been / are bought [already] ==> Someone have bought them. It might be the speaker, but we don’t know that exactly. The fact is, that the tickets are bought.
2) チケットを買ってある.
I have bought the tickets ==> The speaker have bought the tickets.
I know that を＋動詞～て形＋ある is 正しい日本語, but for me it sounds a bit strange this combination of を and ～てある.
チケットを買ってある the subject could be a speaker as well.
Ex. もうチケットを買ってあるのですが、行けるかどうかわかりません。
I have already bought a ticket but I don’t know if I can go there or not.
(focusing on the fact that “the speaker has already bought a ticket”)
チケットが買ってあるのですが…
(focusing on the “ticket”)
チケットは買ってあるのですが….
(Showing the contrast. The speaker has bought a ticket but maybe hasn’t bought something else.)
了解です！
So I understand that in を…てある and は／が…てある the result we see could be caused by the speaker (ex. I) as well as by someone else. It depends on the context.
Thank you very much for the quick answer and have a nice day, Maggie <3
お久しぶり、Marianne! はい、元気ですよ！Marianneも元気でしたか？
We often leave the sentence without finishing it on purpose.Sometimes to avoid direct expressions because Japanese people tend to make it sound suggestive.
This て means “and../ so…” The listeners/readers can read between the lines depending on the context.
→私も最近、忘れっぽくなっちゃって(困ってしまいます。）
Suggesting some reason in a subtle way
Ex. 今日、遅く起きちゃって..(I got up late today so…)
Ex. もう宿題終わったので…(I’ve already finished my homework so…)
Ex. 勉強が忙しくて….(I’ve been busy studying so…)
Note for you
I will help your comment just a little to make it sound more natural :)
＊学校は→学校が
＊日本語の勉強のために時間→日本語の勉強のための時間 Note ために+ verb / ための+noun
＊時間が少ない→”時間が少なくなった or 少なくなりました。
＊サイトに行っている go →サイトに来ている o 来ています。(since you are here, “come” is better in Japanese）
At the end of the lesson, you say that you can use てある when you have done some preparation. So… is it like ておく ? Or is there any difference ?
For example :
チケットを買ってある
チケットを買っておく
こんにちは、サーフィー! いい質問ですね。
First
チケットを買ってある = You already bought a ticket and ready (to go see concert, etc.)
チケットを買っておく= You will buy a ticket and be ready. (You don’t have a ticket)
So you have to use the past tense with おく if you want to say “I have bought a ticket.”
EX. 1) チケットを買ってある・あります。
EX. 2) チケットを買っておいた・おきました。
They both means “I (have) bought a ticket for some purpose” and they are almost the same. (てある focuses on the resultant states ておく focuses on the actions (the preparation for future) more )
Other difference between てある and ておく.
1) You can’t make a commando form with ~てある
Ex. チケットを買っておいて(下さい。）
= Please buy a ticket in advance (and be ready)
You can’t use てある here.
2) You can’t use てある when you express what you are going to do.
Ex. チケットを買っておこう・おきます。
= I will go get a ticket. (and be ready)
You can’t use てある
(A little note for you : このレッスンをくれて→You need a verb, このレッスンを”作って”くれて”）
ありがとうございました. For me this is a very confusing form that I can now practice using your helpful examples! I completed Rosetta Stone Japanese and there are 3 different “koto” pattern sentences that they use and don’t explain. I think they are:
1) verb + koto ga dekiru = able to do the verb: inu wa oyogu koto ga dekimasu – the dog is able to swim.
2) thinking about someone/something = subject + no koto wo kangaete imasu – inu no koto wo kangaete imasul- I am thinking about the dog
3) and they use the “life experience” form you describe here.
I was going crazy trying to figure this out! Thanks again!
Hi I’m trying to figure out how to say ” I wore shorts” the context being “it was very warm so I wore shorts” I have all of it up until the wore shorts bit. Also I’m taught by a Japanese man who grew up in japan and is fluent and according to him to wear on the lower body or footwear is はいています, so if you could sete straight that would be a great help.
Thanks Evan
Hi Evan,
You say 履く(=haku) for shorts.
“it was very warm so I wore shorts”
暖かかったからショーツ（we also say 短パン(=tanpan))を履いた。
= Atatakakatta kara shootsu (or tanpan) wo haita.
Q In supermarket, there is zone for taste free sampling food (lady or men give a little free food to customer). Nihongo de nan to iimasu ka.
That section is called 試食コーナー(=shishoku kounaa) and food tasting is called 試食(=shishoku)
Q If they ask the customer to taste, what’ll they say? (Hitokuchi mimasu ka. or tabete mimasu ka.)
I think what you meant is 一口、食べてみますか？(=Hitokuchi tabete mimasuka)
Other typical phrases are,
Ex. もしよろしかったらお味見してみませんか？（Polite)
= Moshi yoroshikattara oajimi shite mimasenka?
= Would like to taste (this)?
Good job on another great lesson! I have 2 questions…
私はなんの苦労もせずに育った。
I’m still having trouble understanding the も particle ;_; It baffles me every time I see it in a sentence without an amount to emphasize (ex. １０００円, 一言, etc.) What does it emphasize here, and in what way (negative/positive)? Also, what does なんの mean?
これからも変わらずにいて下さい。
Again, with the も particle >_< What is the difference between これから & これからも?
*も here emphasizes 苦労(hardship)
*なんの means “any”/ “at all”
なんの苦労もしない (negative sentence)
Not do have any hardship
↓
なんの苦労もせずに
= without having ANY hardship
We often use this pattern なんの〜も〜ない (negative sentence.)
Ex. なんの手伝いもしない = not to help someone at all
Ex. なんの手伝いもせずに話してばかりいる= Just chatting without offering any help/ helping us at all.
****
これから from now on
これからも from now on “as well”
So this も means “as well/again”
これからも変わらずにいて下さい。
Don’t change the way you are/ Stay the way you are from now on as well.
Hi Migi,
Haha I got to see the video to figure it out.
はよはよ means “hurry up!” in Kansai dialect. It is strange because just that part was Kansai dialect but I guess it is kind of catchy.
ありがとうせんせい！That really helped me. But can you please answer question number 2?
About this sentence “漢字を毎日１００字ずつ覚えたらどうかなあ？” what is “ずつ”? What’s its position in a sentence?
I have the following questions:
1. “今日は何も食べないでおこうかな。” what is “おこう”?
2. “今日は一日家にいようかな。” This “いよう” is “いる”?
3. “みんなに日本語を教えることができてうれしいです。” What is the function of “できて” here?
4. “夏休み、どこに行く？海外に行く？” Let’s suppose I want to go abroad. If I answer “海外がいい”, then is it ok? or we have to be more specific?
“Thank you so much in advance.” By the way, how do you translate this sentence into Japanese?
ずつ means “each””per””at a time”
Ex. 漢字を毎日１００字ずつ覚える= to memorize/learn 100 kanji “per” day.
Ex. 一人二個ずつ= two pieces to each
1. 〜でおく= to do/leave something (intentionally) / ~ないでおく= to not to do something (intentionally)./to leave something without doing something
~ でおこう= try/will not to do something (intentionally)/~ないでおこう= try/will not to do something (intentionally).
Go check my lesson ~ておく
2. 家にいる= to stay home (to be home )→いよう= will stay home.
3. できる= to be able to do something できて= (This て has a function of giving a reason) in this case “because I can teach”
4. Yes, you can say 海外がいい or 海外に行きたい
“Thank you so much in advance.”
You can say よろしくお願いします。
Hi Marianne,
Great! I can see you’ve been studying hard!
お腹が一杯で一口も食べられない
で has many functions and one of them is to indicate a reason causally.
You can replace it with なので
お腹が一杯なので一口も食べられない。
= Because I am full I can’t eat another bite.
I would say で is lighter and なので indicates the reason stronger.
That’s why I translated it as “and”
(なので = because ~~ / 〜で = (reason) so../ and…/because )
どういたしまして！（マギー先生のサイトなんていつも使い止みたくもない^^→??? you wanted to say you don’t even want to stop using my site?)
I basically tried to say, “I never want to stop using Maggie Sensei’s site!” with LOTS of emphasis. I guess it didn’t work out like I thought it would, eh? XD 拙い日本語ごめんなさい! >_<
Hi Maggie,
Can you not also say 「ジャギーをくれなかったらいたずらよ！」?
What’s the basic difference between using ~たら and ~と?
Hello Jeff,
Yes, you can also say 「ジャーキーをくれなかったらいたずら”する”よ」
And in this case, the translation is the same
”If you don’t give me “dog treats” or I will play a trick on you!”
But the basic difference between 〜と and 〜たら is…
While 〜と + what is going to happen (a predictable outcome, a consequence)
~たら is more hypothetical. And it sometimes involves hypothetical condition which is impossible or difficult to be fulfilled (or something emotionally hard to imagine).
Hello Marianne!
Yes, there is a difference
Ex. 1) マギーは今日、来ないとのことです。 I heard Maggie was not coming today. (delivering a message)
Ex. 2) マギーは今日、来ないということです。It/That means Maggie is not coming today. (explaining the reason)
I actually meant “informative”… sorry about that T_T
How should I say “Thanks for the useful/informative explanation?”
@Marianne
A lot of people use the word 有益な when they send me a message on Twitter so I have been wondering what word they were trying to say.
有益な is too formal. 役に立つ is more common.
How about just say とても参考になりました。ありがとう（ございました）。
And you are very welcome! :)
“とても参考になりました”? (It very became a reference)? Hmm… does とても meaning anything other than “very”?
@Marianne
参考になる means “to be informative”
So it will sound more natural than saying とても役に立つ情報をありがとう。
Oh, ok! Now I understand… Thanks again, Maggie sensei. You’re the best!
@Marianne
You’re very welcome, Marianne. :)
Is there any difference if I were to replace te-iru with the masu form to express habitual actions? Example:
Hello Anna,
While 2) means”I am studying Japanese (now)”
1) means “I will study Japanese / I am going to study Japanese.” and you are talking about future.
Ex. 私は来年、日本語を勉強します。= I will study Japanese next year.
Ex. 私は日本で日本語を勉強します。 = I will study Japanese in Japan.
Ex. 私はもっと真面目に日本語を勉強します。 = I am going to study Japanese more seriously.
Hi Sensei! Thanks for the reply. But if I were to add in mainichi will these two sentences mean the same as in habitual actions? Can I use either of these to express habitual actions?
1) watashi wa mainichi nihongo o benkyou shiteimasu.
2) watashi wa mainichi nihongo o benkyou shimasu.
Thanks!! I was confused coz I read that te-iru is used for habitual actions and I was thinking whether of using the masu-form instead to indicate that as well. And you have been a great teacher as usual!! Thank you!
@Anna
どういたしまして vUo・ｪ・oU
I’m also learning from your questions.
こんにちはせんせい！
Thank you for your answer, but what’s exactly the position of ” ～としても”? After the verb? ”～にしても” is same? or a different grammar point?
Also, I have the following questions:
1. What is the difference between “もし” and “もしも”?
2. 見てみなさい. What is this verb? I know it’s imperative but I’ve never seen this pattern before.
3. あがれるじょうたいじゃないの分かるでしょう？What is ”あがれる” and What is the meaning of “あがれるじょうたい”?
4. それに 私 この仕事 けっこう 好きかも。”かも” is maybe here? or another meaning?
5. ”するの” what is this grammar point? Please give me examples.
（In some cases you can replace it with にしても but にしても has a meaning of “Even for/as ~ “) Sorry. But it is too complicated to explain the whole difference in this comment section.)
1. もし”も” : “も” emphasizes more.
3. It depends on the previous sentence. If they are talking about going up somewhere, あがれる= to be able to go up somewhere.
4. It is very colloquial way to finish the sentence. We tend to avoid straight expressions in Japanese. So instead of saying 私はこの仕事がけっこう好きです, you add かも at the end and softens the sentence.
5. Ex. これから何をするの？= What are you going to do now? (casual way to say これから何をするのですか？）
Ex. これから勉強をするの。= I will study now. (casual way to say これから勉強をします。 showing your will)
I think it’s あとついて来ないかな.
If so, it meant to say（私・私達の）後をつけて来ないかな。
後を*ついて行く= ato wo* tuite iku = to follow someone
後を*ついて来る =ato wo* tsuite kuru = someone follows you
*Note：We often omit the particle (in this case を(=wo) in casual conversation.
So I wonder if they (he/she/it) follows me/us. （the speaker is nervous / worried.)
I have a question about adjectives. In the above examples, 〜にしている、〜くしている、it seems like the meaning is ‘staying X’, ‘keeping X’. If you want to say that something has been X for a period of time, do you use that pattern? Or do you just use the plain adjective?
For example:
1. Recently it has been hot.
– 最近熱いです
2. That band has been popular for a long time
– そのバンドは長い間人気です
3. since the new school term started, she has been busy
– 新学期が始めてから、忙しいです
4. this trip has been fun
– この旅行は楽しいです
You use ている in the meaning of ‘staying X’, ‘keeping X’, when you think someone keeps that condition.
So for example
3. since the new school term started, she has been busy
– 新学期が始めてから、忙しいです
is more natural.
But if you meant to say
since the new school term started, she has been keeping herself busy.
新学期が始まってから、彼女は忙しくしている。
1, 2, 4
1) 最近暑いです。(Careful with the kanji)
Because you can’t control the heat.
If you want your room always cool with air conditioner, you can say
She keeps her room always cool.
=彼女はいつも部屋を涼しくしている。
2) そのバンドは長い間、人気がある is more natural.
You don’t use 〜にしている、〜くしている
4) this trip has been fun
– この旅行は楽しいです
You don’t use 〜にしている、〜くしている
But if someone/something makes the trip fun, you can.
Thank you. That helps a lot. :-) So that pattern is really about doing something intentionally.
– 静かにしている ＝ staying quiet on purpose
As opposed to it being that way for some time:
– 最近、静かです= Recently it has been quiet
As an english speaker, I tend to want to use a conjugation to show time. ‘has been quiet’, ‘has been hot’, ‘have been busy’. With verbs, those patterns usually translate to ‘ている’. Like: it has been raining = 雨が降っています. But with adjectives, it is just the plain adjective. It’s definitely easier than English, but sometimes it throws me off. Like the other day I wanted to tell my teacher that class has been fun and said ‘楽しかったです’ instead of ‘楽しいです’. So she was wondering why it was not fun anymore. ;-P 恥ずかしかったです。
That’s right.
But the thing is the translation could be the same so you have to know the nuance difference.
Ex. 最近、彼は静かにしている。= He has been very quiet recently. (He has kept himself quiet.)
Ex. 最近、彼は静かだ。= He has been very quiet recently.
***
Thank you for sharing your story.
If you just say 雨が降っています，we automatically think “It is raining NOW.” but if you say “雨がここ２、３日、ずっと降っています。”, it means “It has been raining these few days.”
It is very interesting to compare English and Japanese tense.
Though it is very feminine and I don’t hear people around me use it so much but some people do use it. (Some say older women tend to use and some say Tokyo area people use it more but not sure.)
Sorry but I can’t specify what kind of people use it.
Since we hear this often in anime characters, they sounds a bit dramatic.
Ex. そうかしら。= I wonder if it is true.
Ex. 私にもできるかしら= I wonder if I can do it.
Not just feminine but in my opinion, it gives an impression of being snob when it is used in polite form.
Ex. やっていただけるかしら。= Could you do that for me?
2) ” ～としても” :
(1) when you are talking about hypothetical situation.
Even if ~ / Let’s say ~ / allowing that
Ex. たとえ今から出かけたとしてもとても間に合わない。
= Even if we leave now, I don’t think we can make it anyway.
(2) also as ~
Ex. このケースは眼鏡入れとしても使える。
= You can use this also as a spectacle case.
Ohhhh I’m sorry. That was a mistake. I fixed it.
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I really appreciate it. I made this lesson two years ago and didn’t realize that mistake until now.
And sorry for all the confusions.
I only want to let you know that I’ve improved a lot thanks to your site. Keep up the good work!
＠Steph
ありがとう！！がんばります！！ :)
おはようございます！
I really love your site. There are tons of useful examples. Thank you so much ^^
I’m studying Japanese by Soumatome N3, but the problem is that there’s no explanations, not so many examples. Thus it’s quite difficult for me to master new grammar ><
Could you please give me some examples based on this:
Noun/Verb(te form)+ ばかり/ばかりだ/ばかりのNoun/ばかりで
Thank you :)
こんにちは先生！
It’s much easier to understand now. Learning a new language can be quite difficult without a help from someone. I really appreciate your efforts for everything you did so far. Your site is the best and I mean it. I can find materials here that I couldn’t find in any other site. so こころからありがとうございます (＾▽＾)
I have the following questions:
1. In this sentence “さて、今日は何をして遊ぼうかな…” Why did you add “して”? Is it wrong to just say “さて、今日は何を遊ぼうかな…”?
2. “もう食べていいかな…” Is it wrong to add “も” after “食べて”? I’m confused as this pattern is different..
3. “マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかなと心配していました.” What is the function of “と” here?
4. How do you pronounce the letter “ん” in Japanese? Like “新聞、パン、自分、etc” I don’t think it’s the same as “night, new and so on…
こんにちは！
Glad to know you find some of my lessons help you a little.
1. 何をして this して is する= to do, so 〜をして means “doing”
We use this pattern with 遊ぶ(=asobu)、過ごす(=sugosu), etc.
Ex. 週末は何をして過ごしますか？
= Shuumatsu wa nani wo shite sugoshimasu ka?
= What are you going to be doing this weekend?
2. Yes. It is originally もう食べてもいいかな？ We omit て in conversation.
3. this と has a function of quoting. “マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかな”＋と＋思う・言う・心配する etc.
4. I can’t add the audio file in comment section. Check this lesson Super Basic Words Week 29 has an audio file of 新聞
Also check the audio in Hiragana Chart lesson.
1. Not necessary.
You can put it before the verb.
やっとマギーに会えた
マギーにやっと会えた
2. ただ as in “just”?
Ex. ただ見ているだけです。
= I am just looking.
Ex. 何もできずにただ見ているだけだった。
= I couldn’t do anything but just looking.
Ex. 日本語をうまく話したければただ教科書を読むだけではなくできるだけ日本人と話した方がいいです。
= If you want to speak Japanese well, not just reading your text book but you should talk to Japanese as much as possible.
Can “Aishiteru” use with Family member? Ex. If I want to Post in my mother’s facebook on haha no hi that…Okaasan, itsumademo aishiteru yo., is this phrase can be use to tell mom that I love her?
Or it’s suitable to say “Daisuki” with Family member b’coz I’ve searched in the internet that Aishiteru like a affair word, can’t use with mom or dad or any family members but some websites said that it’s ok to use with family member.
Could you please help to explain the different between “Aishiteru and Daisuki” when using with family member (Dad and Mom)
Hello YuyYou
Daisuki is more common and sound lighter but I am sure your mother will be very happy to see your heartwarming message either way.
Japanese people are not good at expressing our love even towards our family or even our sweethearts.
But I am sure she knows you can express your love openly so that’s perfectly all right.
I think it is very lovely.
In Japan (of course it depends on the family but) grownups don’t express their love towards their parents, children saying “daisuki / Aishiteimasu” verbally in daily life.
But there is love equally in your country. Maybe we express our appreciation here and there, saying ありがとう/感謝しています
Your comment reminded me how important to express our love. ありがとう！
ありがとう先生！＾＾
But in this sentence “宿題をするのを忘れていた。” why the particle ” を” used twice? I’m confused..
Also, I have following questions.
1. お忙しいようですし、そろそろ失礼します。Is it ok to add “し”to “です”？If so, how to pronounce? Silent “です”like usual?
2. “遊びに行きたいし、宿題はしなくてはいけないし、どうしよう。” what is ”なくてはいけない”? And what is “なくてもかまわない？
3. While watching anime or Japanese drama, I noticed that females (Different ages 15+) use the particle “わ” at the end of their sentence or before ”よ”like “いいわよ”. I know it doesn’t have any meaning like “の” and it’s just a female language, but is it really used in real life? Or it’s just anime and drama?
*宿題をする = to do one’s homework : 宿題 is an object so you need an object marker
However, you can also say 宿題する as one verb
（the same thing 勉強をする / 勉強する= to study )
*Vを忘れる= the verb 忘れる needs an object. Therefore you need an object marker,を
1. Yes, you can say ですし. Sorry I can’t post an audio file here but you can pronounce “desu-shi”
2. Vなくてはいけない= have to do
Ex. する→negative form しない→しなくてはいけない = have to do
Ex. 飲む→negative form 飲まない→飲まなくてはいけない = have to drink
Ex. 書く→negative form 書かない→書かなくてはいけない= have to write
なくてもかまわない = no need to do something / it doesn’t matter if S does it/it is ~ or not/ I don’t care without ~
Ex. 明日は教科書を持ってこなくてもかまわないです。
= You don’t need to bring your textbooks tomorrow.
Maggie Sensei and Max Sensei. Thanks for this lesson. It was very helpful. You’re amazing!!!
If possible, you can also teach about the use of ーてある?
Thanks to you I’m more passionate for japanese language.
こんにちは！Thank you so much for answering my questions. It’s much easier to understand now and especially that idiom. I don’t know any Japanese idioms. Can you please make a lesson someday on idioms? I think it’s useful for any learner.
I have the following questions (I Hope I’m not bothering you by my many questions):
1. 何やってんの？and 何してんの？I’m confused, can you please tell me the difference between the verbs “やる”and “して”？Same meaning?
2. Can you provide an example of “忘れて（い）た”? Continued state of forgetting thing is still confusing me..
3. What is “やっと” and how to use it?
4. What is the difference between “オレンジ” and “ミカン”？Are they the same, and which one is usually used?
おはよう！
Hmm idioms are too broad but I have been tweeting idioms sometimes on Twitter. If I can find a good theme, I will make a lesson on some idioms in future.
1.
やってんの is from a verb やる = to do
してんの is from a verb する = to do
They mean the same but やる is more casual.
2. Sure,
1) When you were supposed to do something but you completely forgot about it or doing it.
(Note : the translation could be just “forgot” not “had forgotten” but it expresses you had/had forgotten to do something for a while)
Ex. 花に水をやるのをすっかり忘れていた
= I completely forgot to water my plants.
Ex. 宿題をするのを忘れていた。
= I forgot to do my homework.
2) When you haven’t/hadn’t remembered something/someone for a long time.
→haven’t thought about/remembered something/someone for a while
Ex. 彼のことをずっと忘れていた。
= I haven’t thought about him for a long time.
Ex.朝ご飯を食べることを忘れていた。
= I just remembered I haven’t had breakfast yet.
3. やっと means finally, at last. You use it when some event, someone, something you have been waiting finally happens,comes,arrives.
Ex.やっと日本に来た。
= I finally managed to come to Japan.
Ex. やっとマギーに会えた。
= I finally got to see Maggie.
4.
ミカン（みかん、蜜柑） is Japanese mandarin orange or tangerine. They are much smaller than オレンジ.
オレンジ is a general name for orange that you probably see in your country. We import them from abroad.
こんにちはマギー先生！＾＾
I hope you are fine. Your lessons are great like always. I’m so glad that you made a lesson on “ている” as it’s very helpful and easy to understand.
I have the following questions:
1. “普段、車で会社に通っている”。In this sentence, why did you use the verb “通う” and what is the meaning of this verb? Can we use “行っている”instead?
2. 今、宿題やっているのだけれど難しすぎて… In this sentence, what is “すぎて” and why is it at the end? I’ve never seen “て-form at the end before..
3. 少しでも皆のお役に立ったらうれしいです。What is “少しでも” and how to use it? And what is “立ったら” in the same sentence?
4. What is the difference between the following words “忘れた”、”忘れてた”、”忘れちゃった”？I’m so confused.
Can you please explain them and give me examples.
Thank you so much in advance. You’re a great teacher for all of us.
こんにちは、kuroineko-chan.
I’m good. Thank you for asking.
You got good questions.
1) 通う means “to commute” “to go somewhere back and forth”. While we use 行く when you go somewhere just once, we use 通う for school, office or some place you go daily.
2) We often leave a sentence unfinished on purpose. (The readers/speakers have to read between the lines.)
3) 少しでも = even a little It’s a typical Japanese expression to make yourself humble or modest.
＊役に立つ is an idiom. It means “to be useful, helpful, to serve something”
＊役に立てたら = If S is useful, helpful →casual 役に立ったら
4) 忘れた= I forgot
忘れちゃった= (casual contraction) I forgot (involves some feelings)
忘れて（い）た= I had forgotten (continued state of forgetting) focusing on the state of forgetting
Maggie-sensei! Thank you so much for your lesson! I learned a lot from this!! I have been chatting with a Japanese recently and this is really helpful for me! Thank you very much!!!
いい質問ですね。
1) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
2) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行ったことがある。
They both means “She has been to Okinawa “FIVE” times” and talking about her experiences.
You can use them both but there is a slight nuance difference.
But 1) shows her experiences has certain connection with the present time.
If you talking about the experiences of going to Okinawa as a past event, you use 2)
なるほど、ありがとうマギー先生。:-) その話題はも質問があります。「X never happens」と日本語で言ったらどちらか正しいかな。
例えば：
１。その子供は素直なことがない。
Those children are never obedient
２。その子供は素直にしていない。
Those children are not obedient (right now)
Or Those children are not obedient (generally)
３。Maxは猫を追うことがない。
Max never chases cats
４。Maxは決して猫を追っていない。
Max never chases cats.
In all examples, the statements are meant to be general. Maybe the children are obedient sometimes, and maybe Max has chased a cat once. ;-)
説明してくれた、ありがとう。分かるような気がします。:-) このレッスンを作ってくれてありがとう。今まで「ている」も分かっていると思いましたが。。。違いそうです。;-P
も一つ質問を聞きたいのです。その例えば：Max先生の話を聞いていますか
I would guess there is some nuance like:
– ‘have you heard that story about max sensei (lately/recently)?’ or
– ‘have you been hearing that story about Max sensei’ – like it’s an ongoing issue, people keep talking about it.
Whereas if you said 「Max先生の話を聞きましたか」／‘have you heard that story about Max sensei’, the time is less clear. Maybe it’s recent, maybe it happened a while ago.
Is that correct?
I must say I am really thankful for you making this blog! It has helped really much, love how you always give many example sentences which I can memorize and use later. Plus the slang lessons are great, I have some japanese friends and sometimes it’s hard to understand them because of massive amount of slang they use, uh.
This isn’t really related to this lesson, but I’ve been wondering about one sentence for a few days already and still can’t figure it out. Could you help me?
変換そのままやっちまった
I do understand what そのまま means, but I have no idea what 変換 and やっちまった mean in that context and how can they be related to each other.
Thank you for your nice message! It is so nice to hear this site has help you. A new slang lesson is coming soon!
変換そのままやっちまった
OK, I need to know the context but I think the speaker is talking about 文字変換. When you type Japanese letters, you first type using romaji and then press Enter key to change it to kanji or hiragana. That is called 変換.
Usually when you press Enter key, it shows some candidates of words.
For example,
taichou →（たいちょう）→体調、隊長、退庁、退潮、体長….They are all ”taichou”
そのまま means “the way it is” in this case, without picking the right kanji / leaving the kanji which appeared in the first place./ without checking whether the kanji is right or not
やっちまった is a bit rough colloquial expression of やってしまった （してしまった） to happen to do something without one’s intention
So I think that person happened to send a message without checking the kanji
For example, you meant to say
体長はいかがですか？= How do you feel today? (体長 – physical condition)
But when you typed
→隊長はいかがですか？ = How is the captain?
Hi, you’re website is really helpful!
I’m having a little trouble trying to say “I want to take lots of photos during the trip so that I can show my family”
So far, I have
家族にみせられるようにりょうりょこう中にしゃしんをたくさんとりたいです。
Hello kjh97! Welcome to our site! :)
Your sentence is fine. (I think it is a typo. りょうりょこう中→りょこう中に）
The other natural way to say that sentence is,
Ex. 旅行中（りょこうちゅう）に写真（しゃしん）をたくさん撮（と）って家族（かぞく）に見せたいです。
= I want to take a lot of pictures during the trip to show them to my pictures.
Thank you very much for correction. I don’t very well understand when to use [か] in relative clauses (I hope I’m not mistake this grammar with smth else).But next time for sure I’ll try harder! Thanks again.
使った = used something particular time
使っていた =was using something, or used to do something
Ex. マックスはマギー先生のサイトを使った。
= Max used Maggie Sensei’s site. (just that time.)
Ex. マックスはマギー先生のサイトを2回使った。
= Max used Maggie Sensei’s site twice. (Just those two times.)
***
If you want to describe the way Max used to use Maggie Sensei’s site, you use 使っていた
Ex. マックスは前、マギー先生のサイトを使っていた。
= Max used to use Maggie Sensei’s site.
******
Ex. 1) 昨日の夜、マックスはこのサイトを使っていた。
= Max was using this site last night.
Ex. 2)昨日の夜、マックスはこのサイトを使った。
= Max used this site last night.
The difference : While 2) just expresses one time action, 1) implies Max was continuously using this site.
行った= went somewhere particular time
行っていた= used to go somewhere
Ex.マックスは昨日、東京に行った
= Max went to Tokyo yesterday.
(You can’t say 行っていた）
Ex. マックスは昔は東京によく行っていた。
= Max used to go to Tokyo frequently.
(You can replace it with 行った(ものだ）but 行っていた describes the time Max used to go to Tokyo more.)
Hi, this is the first time I’ve come across a verb like 接せる (せっせる) which seems to have the small つ. (Sorry, don’t know the exact name for that). This must be pretty rare? Thanks
Toby
but there are times i see/hear kedo/keredo + mo. is the “mo” in (kedo/keredo + mo) is the emphasizing “mo” or (kedo/keredo + mo) is just another variation of kedo/keredo?
hi Maggie sensei.. I wanna let you know your lessons are very very useful…
btw, i got a question. how to use noun with的 and noun w/o 的 +ni/. For example
自動的に/自動に
実際的に/実際に
Hello Jim,
First the words you can use with 的 are limited so you can’t add 的 to any words.
And 基本的に(= basically) you can’t make adverbs just deleting 的 and replacing it with に or で
Ex. 基本的に x 基本に／で
Ex.客観的に x 客観に／で
However, we can use certain words without 的
Ex. ファイルを自動的に開く = to open a file automatically
Ex. ファイルを自動で/に開く = to open a file automatically （で is more common)
Ex. ファイルが自動的に／自動に／自動で開く = A file opens automatically
*****
実際的に and 実際に
There are cases you can replace them but there is a difference
実際的には実現が難しい (It is practically difficult to make it come true.
実際には実現が難しい (It is difficult to make it come true in reality.)
実際的に means “practically/ in a practical way”
But 実際に has a meaning of “for real, in fact, actual, in reality” and a lot of time can’t replace it with 実際的に
Ex. 1) ８時に母（はは）に起(お）こしてもらう。
My mother woke me up at 8:00 (for me)
(It shows your appreciation towards your mother.)
Ex. 2) ８時に母（はは）に起（お）こされる。
I was awakened by my mother at 8:00. ( = My mother woke me up at 8:00.)
(It may show your annoying feelings towards your mom. I wanted to sleep more but she woke me up.)
So ~もらう usually implies the feeling of appreciation or happy feeling. Someone does something thinking of you.
But 受け身 can be used in a negative connotation.
Recently I´ve been talking in japanese with a friend on skype and so.
The most natural way to say this is
最近、友達とSkypeで日本語で話したりしています。
Note 1) 最近 or 最近は : We use “は” only when you want to show a contrast.
For example
I used to talk to my friend on the phone but recently I have been talking to him/her on Skype and so.
以前は友達と電話で話していましたが最近はSkypeで話したりしています。(Comparing “before” and “recently”)
Note 2) have been = If the action is still going on, ~たりしています・〜たりしている is better.
I’ve heard that if you borrow an object and it breaks, even if you did not break it (e.g. it was old and stopped working by itself) it is polite to say “kowashite shimaimasita” and apologize. For example, you borrow a heater from your landlord and it stops working. Any thoughts on this? When would it be appropriate, when would it not be appropriate? We don’t want the Japanese person to misunderstand and think that we really broke the thing.
OK, 壊してしまいました（= Kowashite shimaimashita) is when you actually broke something. If you are using some device or machines and it stopped working by itself, you say
thank you very much for your great site.
i am trying to find out the best way to express “please do not bend” on something i am going to mail to Japan but my many reference books don’t list this expression. could you let me know or include this in your post office page?
thank you very much.
Hello Carleton!
”please do not bend” in Japanese is 折り曲げないで下さい。(= Orimagenai de kudasai.) when you tell people not to fold.
But we write 「折曲厳禁」(=orimage genkin), Do not fold, in red ink on the envelope like this.
*悲しい歌 = a sad song = kanashii uta
*悲しき歌=a sad song kanashiki uta
The adjective with き(=ki) is a literal form. You often see it in the lyrics, poem or some classic expressions.
We use ~い （= i) more in conversation.
Also you say
Ex. 私は悲しい(です)。= Watashi wa kanashii desu. = I am dad
but you can’t say
Ex. 私は悲しき(です)。 = Watashi wa kanashiki desu.
It is only used before a noun.
Sensei, you said it is only used before nouns, but I have heard people saying ありがたき to thank someone in historical anime, wich I believe is a variation of ありがたい. iF I am wrong, which process was used to form the word ありがたき?
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. i tried to find an answer to my question in “sorede vs dakara” thread but i think the “kara” that i am being problematic about is not related to it.
kara = “because” and needs “da” before “kara” for na-adjectives and for nouns, to avoid the meaning of “from”.
but i saw an example in dictionary for “kara”
jugyou ga hachiji sanjuppun kara hajimaru kara = the class doesn’t start until 8:30
(the class starts from 8:30)
the second kara was not translated as “because” and it seems that the 2nd “kara” has no equivalent.
i often see/hear this “kara/dakara” ending sentences in anime and it is not being translated as “because”. i had seen a sentence like this in manga too and i checked the translated version to double check and there was no “because” in that specific sentence.
i would like to ask what is the purpose of the “kara/dakara” in this type of sentence if it wasnt meant to give the meaning of “because”?
or the translators just decided to omit the word “because” and it was really there to begin with, in the first place?
The last kara means “because”. It is unfinished sentence.
授業が８時から始まるから行かなくてはいけません。
= Jugyou ga hachiji kara hajimaru kara ikanakutewa ikemasn.
= I have to go because the class starts at 8:00.
But I know what you mean.
We leave the sentence with から(kara)・だから(=dakara) in conversation when you stress out what you want to say or when you make your point.
もうやったから！
= Mou yatta kara!
= I said I did it already!
私が先生に言うから。
= Watashi ga sennsei ni iu kara!
= I will tell about it to the teacher so..
Maggie sensei! Konnichiwa! I’m sorry I’m still a beginner so I can’t really write in japanese. I only remember some hiragana characters for now T_T It’s really hard and confusing! If I want to start learning from your site, from where I should start? Should I memorize all the hiragana and katakana first before learning anything else? Can’t I skip hiragana and katakana first because it’s tougher to remember? Btw, I have a japanese friend and he can’t speak english that’s why my passion to learn japanese is increasing now ^^ I really want to understand and be able to speak better with him in Japanese. I wanted to say “do you only accept girl in your team, xx-kun” so I said to him “xx-kunのチームで女の子だけを受け入れるか”. I wonder if my sentence is correct? To me it sounds so off lol. I can’t read most of katakana and kanji yet so I really rely on Google Translate whenever I want to speak with him. I hope you can help me which lesson from your site I should learn first (as there are too many lessons and idk which one to continue read after “super basic”, “beginners” lesson and so on. Imo it’s easier for us truly beginners to read your lessons if you label/categorize your lesson like “lesson 1”, “lesson 2” until the end so we can know which lesson we should start first then which lesson followed after the first lesson ^^ just my opinion. Thank you so much for your awesome website!!
Hello xx-san!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site. Start learning from hiragana and katakana. There are charts on this site. Some people don’t learn hiragana/katakana first and just read romaji. But eventually you will need them. Also you have to be a friend with kanji. :)
You can study other lessons at the same time.
Don’t be stressed out. Try to learn it with fun.
And thank you for your feedback. It would be nice
I know my lessons are very random and there are not many lessons for people who have just started learning Japanese.
Since all people have different level and interest, I try to include as much information as possible targeting beginners to advanced level.
People come here checking index and learn whatever they are interested in.
If you want to learn basic Japanese first, I would highly recommend to get a proper Japanese textbook first and study basic.
I’d love to help you if you have any questions here.
Now “do you only accept girl in your team, xx-kun” is xx-kunのチームは女の子だけ受け入れるの？ (= xx-kun no team wa onnanoko dake ukeireru no?)
うわああ。。。先生はスペイン語でも話せるのですか？すごいい！ね、先生、「でも」という言葉の使い方を教えて頂けませんか？例えば「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」「でも」の意味合いは’even(a child could do it)’や’even (with this) is also fine’というのはわかるけど、たった今の例はどういう意味なのかしら？
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
1)「写真を撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」
2) 「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」
1) I will believe you if you take the picture.
2) I will believe you if you take the picture or something.
This でも has a function to show some example and make the quote sound softer.
Many people avoid straight expressions in Japan. By using でも, it adds the nuance of “~ or something” / “something like” /”for example” /”like” / “..and etc.”
Ex. お茶はいかがですか？ = Would like a cup of tea?
Ex. お茶でもいかがですか？ = Would like a cup of tea or something? (It implies there are other options. Or it sounds softer.)
Ex. 日本語を勉強してみる？= Do you want to study Japanese?
Ex. 日本語でも勉強してみる？ = Do you want to study Japanese or something?
Ex. サッカーを観ようかな。 = I guess I will watch a soccer game.
Ex. サッカーでも観ようかな。= I guess I will watch a soccer game or something.
Wow, sounds complex. So it’s not just 他に好きして or something like that? :O
Oh, sensei, I remember reading a blog post somewhere saying that the word for “love” doesn’t exist in ancient times in Japan? Is that true? I thought 愛 is an old word because it’s the same as Chinese. Or maybe it’s not used in ancient Japanese era?
1) たり and し：In some cases* the translation might be the same but most of the time し and たり are not replaceable.
As I explained in my たり lesson, we use たり(=tari) when we give examples or express repeated actions/conditions or for the same types of activities.
Ex. 日本語を読んだり書いたりするのは難しい。
= Nihongo wo yondari kaitari suru nowa muzukashii.
= It is difficult to write or to read Japanese.
Ex. 立ったり座ったりする
= Tattari suwattari suru.
= alternate between standing and sitting
→You can’t replace たり with し
Ex. 食べたし飲んだしもう帰ろう。
= Tabetashi nondashi mou kaerou.
= I ate and drank (enough) so I guess I will go home now.
→You can’t replace し with たら
I will add it if I think of some confusing cases.
2) Really? I don’t think I have used Spanish here…but yes, occasionally I tweeted in Spanish or writes comment on Facebook.
And yes, I do speak Spanish. :)
Hey Maggie sensei, sorry I can’t type in Japanese right now, thank you very much for the lesson, I really enjoyed it! Is there maybe some lesson about “node”? I keep running into it and it just isn’t sticking.
Oh! That really helps a lot!! Thank you for including the casual omitting of the reasoning in that lesson for “node”! Thank you so much and enjoy the rest of your day! :D
Thank you very much for this lesson Maggie!
Now I learned, how to use the colloquial し, yeeey!
There’s one thing that I would like to stress.
から／ので shows that there is a strong cause-effect relation between the first and the second part of the sentence (= because).
し shows a very weak cause-effect relation (= so).
There’s also a ～まいし construction which means “It’s not like”, “it isn’t as if”. It implies disparaging / scanting.
EX 君一人が悪いわけではあるまいし、そんなに落ち込むことはないよ。 You’re not the only one at fault, so there’s no need to feel depressed that much!
No~ the comment I wrote just now didn’t get postedT^T is this bug?
Kiryuu is a 3 tailed fox．He’s a thief and a liar because of his past(Abandonned by his father). 三人の家族で住んでる、お母さんと大好きな弟のKaname。
キリュウは私の乙女ゲームのキャラクターでも名前つけるの下手なんだから。そしてカタカナかどうかわからなくて。
星キリュウでいい？
When you are giving a reason and leave the sentence with し, the speaker is just trying to avoid the straight expression so the person is not annoyed.
The colloquial way of finishing the sentence with し is often used jokingly when they want to make their point or talk back to you.
But it all depends on their intonation. :)
(OK,
私恋のことならへんですよ。→Hmmm どうやって言いたいのかなあ。 You wanted to say “My love is strange”? 私の恋は変ですよ。or The way I love people is different? 私の恋し方は変ですよ。
男の誰が一番好きって聞いたら→ 誰が一番好きな男性かって聞かれたら）
Hi maggie sensei, you were such a very good teacher. to be honest with you, whenever i have something i cannot understand, i usually look at your website and read. i learned a lot, and thank you very much. You were such an inspiration to me to strive and study harder especially that December is near. JLPT again. Im planning to take n2 this time. Good luck to me. Thank you so much Maggie sensei.
Hello zai,
Thank you so much for your nice comment. I’m very happy to hear you found my site useful.
Oh great! You are going to take N2 in December.
Good luck! 絶対合格！！！！
こんにちは、メロ！
面白い質問ですね。
初恋の経験にもよりますよ。
苦い経験 implies painful experience. Nothing sweet.
ほろ苦い経験 bittersweet. Not as hard as 苦い経験 but your hurts must have hurt in certain degree.
甘酸っぱい経験 sweet-sour implies some “sweet” experiences
thank you so much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. .n_n. thank so much for helping me realized that focusing too much on songs is not a practical way to learn the grammar.
ちょっと質問があるんですが、
「彼は格好よくない？」と「彼は「格好いいじゃない？」は同じですか？ (Isn’t he cool?!)
「〜じゃない」と代わりに否定形容詞をよく使う友達がいて、「〜じゃない」と同じヌアンスかなと思って。例えば：
このケーキ美味しくない？ (Isn’t this cake tasty?!)
Also, when using んじゃない for giving orders, is it only men that can use it? I was just wondering since I was playing this game and a female character kept using this form to give orders to her sidekicks. Like 「じろじろ見るんじゃないよ！」and「さぼるんじゃないよ」など。
こんにちは、Lava! 彼、格好よくない？ and 彼、格好いいじゃない mean the same. He is cool, isn’t he?
But to be precise, here is the nuance difference.
彼、格好よくない？ （asking for agreement.)
彼、格好いいじゃない。(expressing your opinion.)
*******
このケーキ美味しくない？= I think this cake is delicious. Don’t you agree? / Don’t you think this cake is delicious? = It’s delicious!
Yes, we use this pattern a lot in conversation.
******
「じろじろ見るんじゃないよ！」and「さぼるんじゃないよ」
Good ones! 〜じゃないよ is a rough male speech.
But you do hear mothers say じろじろ見るんじゃありません（よ）。／さぼるんじゃありません（よ）。
good evening dear maggie sensei and everyone. these questions may look like i am not reading the lesson carefully but i just want to clarify something about the examples above.
surunjanai – not doing
shitanjanai – did not do
kyou wa ame ga furun janai ka to omotta – i thought it might rain
is “ka” the one who made it “might rain” and if there wasn’t “ka” like “surunjanai”, it would be “rain will not fall”?
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dear maggie sensei janain janai
would this be mean “it,s dear maggie sensei”
i saw an example and it did not end with question mark also, that is why i think it is not inlined with the (nai + njanai) section
dear maggie sensei janai! – its dear maggie sensei
dear maggie sensei nan janai – it is not dear maggie sensei.
Here we have the 2nd meaning:
Aじゃない（か） = It’s A! / It must be A! （強い肯定の語気）
Aなんじゃないか = It might be A / It could be A
Aじゃないんじゃないか = This isn’t A, right? / This isn’t A, is it? (lit. isn’t that this isn’t A? = this isn’t A, is it?)
～では／じゃかと思った＝ I thought it could / might~
こんなことになるんじゃないかと思ったんだ。 = I thought (one day) this could / might happen / This is what I was afraid of.
~かと思った = I though~ . (part. か implies less confidence)
恥ずかしさで死ぬかと思ったんだ。 = I thought he/she was going to die of embarrassment.
Hello obakasan000,
I have no idea where did you get these kind of sentences. The sentences are – of course – incorrect.
If you really want to learn Japanese, please use appropriate books or Internet websites like maggiesensei.com.
Obakasan000 is learning Japanese through lyrics. That can be very confusing because a lot of sentences in lyrics are not complete and you have to guess who is talking about what…and it is hard to translate just by one line.
Anyway,
The first lyrics that you wrote is from this part, right?
雨が降るわ 終わらない
(心が土砂降りの雨
恋が散るわ 密やかに
誰にも教えない 恋
嗚呼)
This わ is a female speech suffix.
雨が降る(It rains/it is raining) →female speech 雨が降るわ
雨が降るわ 終わらない are two different sentences.
It is raining. I won’t stop raining.
***
So guessing from 1), 2) could also means 準備したわ いい? = I am ready, OK? or I prepared, OK?
But since it lacks of information, I could be wrong.
How’s that, obakasan000?
good evening dear maggie sensei and everyone. question about specific sentence.
kirei datte kotoba mune ni tsukisasatta
is this the shortcut for “kirei da to iu kotoba”?
in case that is correct,
does the “anata wa” has been omitted and – kirei datte kotoba will be = words like “you are beautiful”
or i cannot assume that, and the translation would be – kirei datte kotoba = words which are beautiful
and i need to see 「kirei da」tte kotoba / “kirei da” tte kotoba, in order to get (words like “you are beautiful”)
oh i am terribly sorry for bringing it up for the third time, (i guess the conflict is not yet resolved) T_T.
while i was posting this question i’ve realized, “to negai” was used by the singer and i am wondering my she did not use “to iu negai”?
so sorry dear maggie sensei please don,t get irritated by me T_T.
Hello again,
kirei datte kotoba mune ni tsukisasatta ==> 「綺麗だ」って言葉胸に突き刺さった。＝His “you are beautiful” just stuck in my mind / heart.
I see you like Alas Love – Suzuki Airi. I like it, too.
thank you so much 天人さん, .n_n. wow that’s good to know… to be honest, i really like c-ute especially 矢島舞美様. if it is okay, i would like to ask, do you live in japan?
Unfortunately I don’t live in Japan, I live in Poland – it’s a strange country in Central Europe.
But maybe one day my dream will come true and I will live in Japan.
Who knows, who knows. Life is full of surprises!
おはよう、Lava!
言わんばかり means “as if to say” “as much as to say””as though” (Someone(something) is not actually saying so but you can tell they want to say/do certain things by their behavior/condition )
It is often used with まるで(=marude = as if)
Basic pattern :
（まるで）〜〜〜と言わんばかりのnounで or 言わんばかりに+ main verb
= Someone does/did something (main verb) as if to say ~~~~~~
Ex.母はまるで私のやっていることは全て知っていると言わんばかりの顔で私を見た。
= My mother looked at me as if she knew everything.
Ex. マギー先生は「大丈夫だよ」と言わんばかりにうなずいた。
= Maggie Sensei nodded as if to say “Everything is all right”.
Ex.そのダイヤは「私を買って下さい。」と言わんばかりに輝いていた。
= That diamond was shining as if to say “Buy me!”
Maggie-sensei, thank you for all the help you give!
Could you please explain this use of なきゃ?
It’s from Over the Distance by Hitomi Yaida. I’m trying to translate it, but there are some parts that confuse me.
空で唄えない小鳥の声みたい
こんなに苦しい だけどあなたじゃなきゃ
I get it up to だけど. But the use of なきゃ here is confusing me.
Also a nakya here:
上手く泳げないあの時の未来
どうしても遠い だけどあなたじゃなきゃ意味ない
(In fact, that entire verse confuses me, especially the first bit. Sorry to ask so much, but can you explain how these sentences work?)
Thank you! I have been wondering about that line for a long time. Now it makes sense!
I am still confused about the second verse though
上手く泳げない = Cannot swim well
あの時の未来 = That time in the future (?)
どうしても遠い だけど = even though it is very far
あなたじゃなきゃ意味ない = without you it means nothing
Have I got that right? The reason it is confusing me is the use of 泳ぐ. Is this a metaphorical phrase here, because literally it doesn’t make sense. How would you put it all together?
[Sorry to ask so much. It is just that recently I’ve had a few hits from Japanese people looking up my English translation, and I don’t want them to be learning it wrong because my translation skills are so bad :'( I’ve put the link to it as my URL if anyone wants to check over it]
I think you are doing great.
It is very hard to translate lyrics.
First I will help you line by line
上手く泳げない = Cannot swim well → Right.
あの時の未来 = That time in the future (?) →Your translation means “未来のあの時 “That time in the future” means “the future at that time”
Now if you put these two lines together.
↓
上手く泳げない あの時の未来
You are right. It doesn’t make sense because it is a poetic expression but it means
I couldn’t swim well in “my future” then.
どうしても遠い だけど = even though it is very far →Fine. (It’s far but…)
あなたじゃなきゃ意味ない = without you it means nothing →Fine but that means “あなたがいないと（あなたがいなきゃ）意味がない” the literal meaning is “It has to be you.”
That’s a really big help, thank you so much! I never would have been able to understand it without your explanation. So I will copy this out and read over it a few more times so I properly understand it. Thank you, Maggie-sensei and Yukari-sama!! Finally I know what Hitomi-san is singing about :D
@Silver
どういたしまして！あとはSilverのセンスで訳してみてね。がんばって！:)
great lesson, hontou ni arigatou gozaimasu maggie-sensei.
kono saito de tada de nihongo o oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimasu(=^ㅅ^=)
Analyze “okaerinasai”?
お帰りなさい = okaerinasai = Welcome back home/or where you belong to (company, city, country, etc.)
It may sound a command form.
It is said that originally they used to say
「よくお帰りなさいました」
=yoku okaerinasai mashita.
= I am happy that you came back safely
and shortened the phrase
→お帰りなさい = okaerinasai
Or just say
お帰り= おかえり= okaeri
And the person who just came back home says
ただいま= tadaima
It is also a short way to say
ただいま帰りました。
= Tadaima kaerimashita
= I just got home / I’m back now.
Good morning!
なんて and なんか are different.
Therefore we don’t say,
nanka utsukushii inu nan deshou.
You have to say なんて美しい犬なんでしょう。(=nante utsukushii inu nanndeshou.)
なんか（a casual way to say 何か=nanika) means “somehow” “you can’t explain why but somehow…” “for some reason” “like”or we sometimes use it to emphasizing the word.
So the translation of the song is
なんかしあわせ means (I can’t explain why (I don’t know why)) but I am somehow happy
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. another question again.
zoresore ni egaku omoi
the feelings each and everyone of us sketch
but if that is the message, i think it needs to be “egakareru” to produce “feelings that are being sketched by us”
which is also close to “the feelings each and everyone of us sketch”.
i’ve read that passive form is also the honorific form of the verb. does that mean, “egaku” is considered passive form here because of “ni”? i always see “ni” to be translated as “by” whenever there is passive verb.
or this is another grammatical structure and it would produce phrases like:
the book you read
(anata ni yomu hon)?
the voice he hears
(kare ni kiku koe)?
the friend she wants to marry
(kanojo ni kekkon shitai tomodachi)
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
Hello, before I answer your question, please give me the whole sentence. If it is the only one, give me the line before/after the sentence.
それぞれに描く想い
That will help me to answer better.
…それぞれに描く思い => A desire that each of… draws / A desire for each to draw / All have their desire to draw.
This sentence is out of context. As Maggie said, the rest of this sentence is necessarily to fully understand the whole sentence.
それぞれに is a fixed expression that means: for each / each (それぞれ means severally; respectively ==> 複数の物・人の、ひとつひとつ・ひとりひとり)
anata ni yomu hon => あなたが読む本 = the book you read
kare ni kiku koe => 彼が聞こえる声 = the voice he hears
kanojo ni kekkon shitai tomodachi => 彼女が結婚したがる友達／彼女が結婚したいと思っている友達。 = the friend she wants to marry
goog morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. sorry to bring up this topic for the second time. (so sorry, slow learner):
PUROGURESSHIBU to KONSABATIBU na jibun
KIMI ni ari no mama o suki de ite hoshii to
(which has been rephrased by dear maggi sensei in to “Kimini ari no mama wo suki ni natte hoshii” )
negai wa (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
sekirara (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
myself who’s progressive and conservative
wanting you to love me the way I am…
the wish is (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
frank (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
i’ve read that using the root of the verb is also serves as “te-form” of the verb and in this case “negatte” is the the “te-form” of “negau” and root of “negau” is “negai”. i saw examples like (to+verb te-form+wa) and does that mean the singer just preferred to use “negai wa” instead of “negatte wa”? and if i will combine the words, my guess is it would be like:
myself who’s progressive and conservative, hoping that you would love me just the way i am is a frank thing (to do).
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei. (sorry for having so many questions, please take your time).
@obakasan000
You can combine all that sentences like you did when you translate them.
It is just the style of the lyrics.
Usually
“something” to negau
“something” to negatte + do something
But this person used “negai” which is a noun.
The wish (that I want you to love me the way I am) is frank.
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. n_n. wow that was fast, you are really thoughtful as always.
i can read hiragana but slowly. i prefer to type them as romaji because, our tablet and the computer rental shops around our neighborhood don’t have the file needed to be installed in order to type hiragana, katakana’ kanji. but i copy and paste kanji and hiragana words from dictionary, (specially when the kanji word that i am referring to is something i am not familiar with)
———————-
oh just wondering because, when i started learning japanese, whenever i see katakana, i first think that, that katakana word is referring to a english word but as i read manga, i found out that even kanji and hiragana are being typed as katakana. is there any significant reason for doing
that or the author only wants that, that way?
————————–
oh question again,
そんあことゆ一の?! – sonna koto yuu no.
i tried looking at to “to iu koto” thread but i guess “koto iu” is not related to it.
whenever i try to figure it out, it becomes (that kind of event, say?!) and it doesnt make any sense. T_T.
————————————-
thank you so much again dear maggie sensei. i really appreciate your life changing teachings and i will treasure them. n_n take care and have a nice day.
dear maggie sensei, another questions again,
いつかは見てなさい – watch me someday/some time, based on what i read nasai can only used with root verb and not with te-form, but how about this example? can nasai can also be used with te-form or it just so happened because it is lyrics of a song?
————————-
kono ai ga honmono to wakareba ii no – i want to know if this love is real
kono ai ga honmono to wakaru you ni kisu shite – kiss me so that i know this love is real.
i am wondering if the first line has no been included, will “kono ai ga honmono to wakaru you ni kisu shite” be “kiss me so that you’ll know this love is real.?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei n_n
part 2
———————-
はたして告った(toko)でOKは出るのだろうか – “can it really turn out well if i confess”?. the verb is not in “tara” form but there is “hatashite”, is these correct? the (toko) part is written in katakana and i wasnt able to see the meaning using dictionary. T_T
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なんてったって-no matter what
相手は校内の一- partner, within the school, 1
モテモテ女子- popular girl
我が妻亜衣- my wife ai
please help dear maggie sensei, i cant unite them together
oh this is the second sentence (incase this is just a clause)
そうそうOKは出ないだろう.
—————————–
hontou no jinsei – real life
hitomi no ruby – ruby eyes. but i think ruby no hitomi will also produce
ruby eyes (please correct me if i am wrong).
if that so, then (jinsei no hontou) will also produce real life?
i have seen words like “yoru no nagai” and it has been translated as long nights and “namida no jibun” as own tears. i also saw “himitsu no akko chan. (at first i thought it is “secret akko chan”) but it is “secret of akko chan”
——————————————————
dear maggie sensei, i would like to ask if there is any dictionary exclusive for katakata words only, and if so, what name do you recommend?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and so sorry for unlimited questions.
1) 果たして〜とこ（ろ）で〜だろうか？ = Even if ~, I wonder ~ / it is questionable / I doubt
Even if he confesses his love, I doubt that she would say OK
2) It is just explaining how pouplar Ai is in her school. Giving that reason, even if he confesses his love, Ai wouldn’t say yes that easily.
3) I think they are two different sentences.(1) hontou no..2) hitomi no ruby)
Hirobi mo ruby = eyes like ruby
4) I am sorry but I don’t know if there is any dictionary just for katakana. But why do you need one?
****
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. these are questions i have collected for the past few days. these questions are supposed to be posted in your room but for some reasons i can’t access the room, i am sorry to post these in the wrong thread.
—————————————–
PUROGURESSHIBU to KONSABATIBU na jibun
KIMI ni ari no mama o suki de ite hoshii to
negai wa (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
sekirara (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
myself who’s progressive and conservative
wanting you to love me the way I am…
the wish is (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
frank (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
i cant really figure out lit translation for the second line.
all i can come up with is the “i want you to exist with loving” but i can’t translate the “kimi ni ari no mama”, whenever i try i always end up with “to you/by you/from you, as whole”. i dont know why it became “the way i am “.
oh i always see “to” for quoting with (omou, iu, etc). i really dont know if “to” qouting can be used with out any verb and it will be translated as (“”) and the preeciding words are another sets of senteces/thoughts. i dont think that “to” conditional is applicable because of the words after “to” is noun with adjective without verb.
—————————————
does “desu yo” with (?) give the same thought as (desu yo ne)?
————————————————————-
nande oikaketeirunja = a girl is the one who said this in manga and i am wondering if (ja which is the combination of de, wa) has been used instead of (nda/ndesu) to sound girly? or this is a unfinished sentence?
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sou kantan ni akiramenai- i wont give up that easily (example i saw in a random site).
kuyashii omoi wa sou bijin ni nattekureru – that’s right, these feeling of frustrations will help me to become beautiful. (saw in translation of song). i tried to use google translator but “sou kantan ni” and “sonna kantan ni” both produced “that easily”. i always see “sou” being translated as “that,s right” in songs. is it just safe to think “sou” as “that,s right” and use “sonna (x) ni” for words like (that easily, that beautiful and etc)?
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toka – things like. but how about when it is being used as qouting would it be corrected:
kore o taberu to omou – i am thinking of eating this.
Kore o taberu toka omou – i am thinking of things like eating this.
is that correct?
———————————————-
感動の扉を二人の手で – the door of happiness lies on our hands. this is the fiest time i ever seen “wo” with out a verb and i wonder if (depends/lies) is the cloest translation for this?
1) the 2nd line : 君にありのままを好きになってほしい= Kimini ari no mama wo suki ni natte hoshii = I want you to like the way I am.
ありのまま=arino mama = means “the way it is/the way someone is”
And that と continues to the third line 願い=negai
~と願う= ~ to negau = hoping that (you would like me the way I am)
2) ですよ(=desuyo) and ですよね(=desuyone) are different. (BTW You type hiragana in romaji but can you read hiragana?)
You use ですよね(=desuyone) when you try to confirm something with the listener. It is like a tag question. “Isn’t it?/ Right?)
3) なんで追いかけているんじゃ(=Nande oikakete irunja) is for old guy’s speech. Maybe she was saying that jokingly.
4) kuyashii omoi wa sou bijin ni nattekureru –strange… It should be “kuyashi omoi ga utsukushiku sasete kureru.” is better.
5) そう+ adjective = emphasizing (That much/ that + adjective)
そうです／だ = so
6) That とか is a conversational way of softening the speech.
と思う=to omou →とか思う
7) It is because the verb is omitted in the sentence.
感動の扉を二人の手で開ける／開く
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. it really cleared up my confusion. japanese songs are really tricky but that is also the reason why they are really interesting.
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone and thank you so much for this topic. i’ve been trying to search the exact meaning of 萌え in manga. i often see it by a character 萌え, 萌え while the character smiles. it says that it has related to “to have a crush” or “to have desire for a certain person (without malice)”. but then if 萌え is the only word said, i wonder what would be the literal translation.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
The literal meaning of 萌える is “to sprout”
萌え is doesn’t have an equivalent word in English. Believe me. Many people have attempted to translate on net.
It is so called “otaku” word when you see something/someone (usually anime character) that turn you on.
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. i’ve got a feeling that a thread for this type of question has been already made long time ago but for some reason, i couldn’t find it using the search bar that is why i will post it in “tai vs garu” thread.
few days ago i saw in a random forum that “yasashikunai” and “yasashikuwanai” both technically produce “not gentle”. if that’s true then “yasashikumonai” would be the “not gentle” with emphasizing power. so i am convinced that “naritakunai” “naritakuwanai” and “naritakumonai” will all produce “don’t want to become”.
but how about “dareka mitaku wa ikinai” (i don’t live my life imitating someone else). the “wa” has been placed between adverb (mitaku) and verb (ikinai). does this mean, “yasashikuwanai” and “mitakuwaikinai” are considered as complete and “yasashikunai” and “mitakuikinai” are both shortcuts because (wa) is often omitted?
the forum also says that:
yasashikunai – not gentle, harsh.
yssashikuwanai – not gentle (but not necessarily harsh)
that is kind a vague to me because how can it be applied to “naritakunai” and “mitakuikinai”.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone, and so sorry if i always ask so many questions.
1) Kare wa yasashiku nai : He is not nice. Just telling the fact he is not nice
2) Kare wa yasashiku wa nai : (I don’t think) He is nice. (Denying the part “yasashii” ) So when someone says “He is nice” and you disagree, you say “I don’t agree. (I don’t think so) He is not nice.)
3) Kare wa yasashiku mo nai : He is not even nice.
Usually when you use は(=wa) you show some contrast. For example Kare wa yasashiku wa naiga iji ga warui wake dewa nai.(= I wouldn’t say he is nice but he is not mean either.) So it implies something else.
As for your second sentence, ”dareka mitaku wa ikinai”
This “like” should be “mitai ni”
a) “A” mitai ni ikitakunai. (I don’t want to live like A)
b) “A” mitai ni wa ikitaku nai. (Emphasizing the part “like “A”)
1) If you meant to say “It’s good, isn’t it!” you can say いいですね(=iidesune) or いいじゃないですか (=iijanai desuka)
いいのか(=iinoka) : whether something is good (OK) or not
これでいいのか。= I wonder if it is OK this way.
これでいいのかなあ = (softer)
2) As you said そっか(=sokka) means “I see..” and it is from そうですか (=soudesuka).
そうじゃないですか(=soujanai desu ka) means “Isn’t it true?/Don’t you agree?” so it is different from そっか(=sokka)
It is an old comment but right. Basically you distinguish もの and 物
You use kanji 物 for object/something tangible (It means “things”)
When you are talking about the idea, reason (something intangible) like the ones in this lesson, you use hiragana.
Sensei, I meant the particle と. I mean she could have just as easily written:
このレッスンで練習された「もの」は、「物」に関係があるのですか？
instead of :
このレッスンで練習された「もの」とは、「物」に関係があるのですか？
Why does Jessi feel the need to use と?
前もってお願いします！
Oh sorry. I guess I didn’t read your question well.
Aは、〜です。 = A is ~
When you define what A is, you say とは
This と is to quote
Let me add what has been omitted after と
このレッスンで練習された「もの」と(いう言葉）は、「物」に関係があるのですか？
人生はなんだろう。→人生とはなんだろう
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. yes mam’ n_n. you may call me with that name. you’re so thoughtful explaining all the possible answers. how i wish i could have an internet connection in our home (so that i’ll be always updated). good night dear maggie sensei. n_n
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. i dont if this is the right thread for this question. i am having confusion for this words.
does the same principle (mo as the one that emphasize) also applies in konna ni mo
does that mean konna ni kawaii and konna ni mo kawaii are the same but konna ni mo has emphasazing power
and do these two sentencces have the same exact meaning:
konna ni mo kono omoi (feeling)
konna ni mo omoi
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
こんなに＜こんなにも (こんなにも is stronger. As you said も has a function of emphasizing)
a) 彼の妹がこんなにかわいい女の子だとは知らなかった。
= I didn’t know his sister was this cute.
b) 彼の妹がこんなにもかわいい女の子だとは知らなかった。(stronger)
= I didn’t know his sister was THIS cute.
****
konna ni mo kono omoi (feeling)
konna ni mo omoi
I have to guess what you wanted to say using these words but for example
a sentence like this?
こんなにもこの想いに苦しめられるなんて…
= Konnanimo kono omoi ni kurushimerareru nante…
I had no idea I would suffer from this feeling this much.
If so, your second sentence doesn’t have “この=kono” so it won’t specify the feeling so it won’t be the same.
If you wanted to compare the sentences
Konna ni kono omoi
Konna nimo kono omoi
the the later is stronger. (It emphasizes “this much” more.)
wow. thank you so much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. thank you much for giving examples. n_n. thank you much for creating this friendly and helpful site.
thank you much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. i am really grateful to the two of you. thank you for spending your time, clearing up my confusions. it really means a lot to me. n_n. have a nice day
Kimi no koto ga suki, is used as love/like
can you use this like in english after seeing a girl a couple of times to let a girl know you are interested in seeing her romantically?
or would it come off a little strong
Well Michael, in my opinion you can safely use 君のことが好き（です）.
And after next couple of times you can go to level 2 and say: 大好きです！
Maggie, would you agree with me?
Actually telling someone 好きです(=sukidesu) is very powerful. And if you say 〜のことが好きです。it is considered to be 告白 (confession of your love.)
So in that sense it is strong. But it depends on your relationship. If you want to tell her you really like her, you can say that.
If you are not that ready yet, you can deliver your feelings in a subtle way like.
Ex. ~ といると本当に楽しい。
Or all sorts of compliments will tell her you are interested in her.
Then when you are ready, you can tell her 好きです.
Just for your information, you may think 大好き is “to like/love someone so much” and it is strong but we (especially girls) often say that casually
Ex. あっ、マギーレッスン作ってくれたの？大好き！
= You made a lesson, Maggie? Love you！
good day dear maggie sensei. thank you so much for your explanations. as always, you really are brilliant. oh sorry to bother, it is just that i am wondering what if (verb+hodo+ni) will mean.
i get the idea of:
me wa kuchi hodo ni mono wo ii
(eyes can say things as same level as the mouth)
but i don’t know what will be the meaning if the noun would be replaced with verb
noun+wa+verb+hodo+ni (please give an example|) n_n
but if i just over look it on the existing comments of lesson(s)please correct me and please forgive me.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
Hello obakasanOOO
Aは…動詞＋ほどに… ＝A is so… like… / A is so… that… / A is as much… as…
Examples:
1. 彼は人々が思うほどにそんなに金持ちではない。(He isn’t so rich like people think he is)
2. ジョンは野球をするほどには、サッカーに夢中になりませんでした。 (John wasn’t so absorbed in playing soccer like in basketball)
3. 彼は、想像できないほどの嫌なやつだ。(He is so unpleasant that you cannot even image)
4. これは、期待したほどではない結果です。 (This result is below my expectations [lit. this result is not what I expected)
hi everyone and to dear maggie sensei. thank you so much dear maggie sensei. you really are a sensei. oh by the way, i would like to seek help for some clarifications (if you have sometime). based on the examples given, the usage of tekuru/teiku is divided by 3 categories. (please correct me if i am wrong). for:
a) there is always an object/person to go/come with after a certain verb has been completed.
b) there is a motion verb from one place to another by the subject(without object to go or come with) before tekuru/teiku.
c) both object/person to come/go with and motion are absent.
does that mean,verbs like taberu,kiku-to listen, wakaru, miru, miseru, au and other verbs with au (tsukiau, dakishimeau, wakariau, and etc) will automatically fall for category #3 or is it case-to-case basis?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone…..
～てくる and ～ていく have many meanings. I have listed below every meaning of ～てくる and ～ていく I know. Let this be a (/the best) guide on how to use ～てくる and ～ていく. No division is needed. The best way to fully understand the usage of these forms is to memorize my lovely guide. Here we go!
1. 行って戻る ==> Speaker goes somewhere and will be back soon. Used only use with ～てくる.
– ちょっとトイレへ行ってきます！
2. 順次 ==> Speaker first has to do something and then they can move on. Used with ～てくる and ～ていく.
– 日本へ行く前に、日本語を勉強していきます。(First learn Japanese, then go to Japan)
– よしよし、ルーシー、もう泣くのやめてよ、ママはお菓子をもらってきてあげるからね。 (In this sentence mother says to Lucy [her child] that she will bring her some candies [lit. bring and give her some candies])
3. 変化／継続 ==> a) Shows a change made in past. This change continues to the present. Used with ～てくる. b) Shows a change made in the present. This change will continue to the future. Used only with ～ていく.
– マギー先生のサイトのお陰で、日本語がだんだん楽しく、易しくなってきました。ありがとうマギー＾＾
– マギー先生のサイトがますます面白くなっていくでしょね。ね？
4. 移動の状態 ==> Shows the direction of moving. Used only with special verbs of movement like: 連れる、持つ. ～ていく implies that the speaker takes/carries something away. ～てくる implies that the speaker brings something along.
– 水を 1 杯持って来てくれ (Person X goes from destination A to destination B, takes the glass of water, comes back to destination A and gives the water to person Y)
– 水を 1 杯持って行ってくれ (Person X takes the glass of water away from destination A, because – for example – person Y doesn’t need water now)
5. 方向性 ==> Shows the direction of moving towards the speaker. Used with verbs of movement: 歩く、走る、飛ぶ、逃げる、集まる、引っ越す, etc. Used with ～ていく (something moves away from speaker) and ～てくる (something comes closer to speaker).
– 「A: あ、SUPERMANが飛んできますよ！見てよ」「B: 見てるよ、すごいな！」
– 「A: あ！SUPERMANだ！見て見て」「B: どこどこ？」「A: 遅いよ！もう飛んでいきました」「B: し、しまった・・・」
6. 話者への接近(1) ==> Shows approaching or leaving towards the speaker. Used with verbs like: 出る、入る. Used with ～ていく (away) and ～てくる (closer).
– 先生：授業が終わって、学生たちが出ていきます。(This sentence implies that the students go away from the classroom, where the teacher is)
– 先生：授業が終わって、学生たちが出てきます。(This sentence implies that the teacher is outside the classroom. The students come closer to him)
7. 話者への接近(2) ==> Things or sensations (sounds, smells, etc) approach the speaker. Used only with ～てくる (closer).
「A: あのさー、夜中の１２時になると、この部屋から何か変な泣き声が聞こえてくるらしいね。ここは人が殺された場所という話が・・・」「B: わああ、やめて、怖いのよ。何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？酷いよ ･ﾟ･･ﾟ･(⊃´Д｀泣)･ﾟ･･ﾟ･」
8. 変化の出現 ==> Shows that something (usually a natural phenomena or a psychological or emotional state) has just started. Used only with ～てくる.
– ったく、またこの忌々しい雨が降ってきたかよ！
– 「A：マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・。」「B：なんだって？！絶対にだめだよ！マギーはもう結婚してるって知らないの？」、「A:あ、そう・・・」
Good job, 天人！
（This is a little note for you. Your Japanese is really good! I would change just these.
7 : 何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？ →そんなこと言うの？will be more natural
8 : マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・→someone に恋に落ちる. When you are talking about just that experience, we say 恋に落ちた(past tense). So you may want to say 好きになってきた.
(You can say 恋に落ちてきた when you are talking about your experiences up to now Ex. 今まで何度となく恋に落ちてきた））
Hahaha love your example sentences.
“何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？ →そんなこと言うの？will be more natural” ==> Ah, because 「何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？」 would imply habituation (a habit), right? (= why are you always telling me that?). I thought it would be “why are you tellING me this NOW?”.
マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・ Long time ago the speaker felt in love with Maggie and he still loves herと言う意味で. In 恋に落ちた we don’t know, if the speaker still loves her、ね.
Maggie: I just found this website – it is wonderful! I love Japanese food and the way that your
society looks at politeness as part of a way of life. Appreciation of every grain of rice and every
gesture. Lovely, just lovely.
i have a question, i’ve been reading this book on japanese and there is a sentence : べスは大学を出たらしい and it translates as : beth seems to have graduated from college is the use of rashii correct?
Yes, it is correct.
べスは大学を出たらしい can be translated as,
Beth seems to have graduated from college.
It seems like Beth graduated from college.
I heard that Beth graduated from college.
Hi, fluffymoochicken!
It depends on the context but in this case, I wouldn’t connect two sentences with ”と” .
Just connect with ” 、” (or even with out ” 、” )
Ex.彼らは、「美味しい！」、「甘い！」と言いました。
Hi maggie sensei… first of all thank you very much for making this wonderful lessons… Ive been learning a lot lately and having fun most specially UNDERSTANDING the lesson so easily… I have a request though, could you kindly make a lesson about inside the hospital. The form they use and questionaires and so fort… thank you and more power…
Hi Paul,
Thank you for visiting this site. I am very happy to hear you enjoy studying Japanese.
As for your request, I thought about making a lesson on that theme before but since there are so many medical terms and they are tough, I was reluctant to make one. But I will add it on the request list.
Meanwhile please check this 風邪 lesson where I explained how to express your symptoms.
Hi Blossom,
「（学）という漢字はどう書けばいいのか」
→ Right.
Or we also say,
~ という漢字はどう書いたらいいのですか？
〜という漢字はどう書きますか？
****
「なんとして」
We usually use it with も
なんとしても= anyhow, by any means necessary,whatever it takes
Ex. なんとしても試験に合格しなくてはいけない。
「なんだと」= 何だと What is..
Ex. この言葉の意味はなんだと思いますか？
Ex. これはなんだと思いますか？
Ex. 私のことをなんだと思っているの？
「なんとする」
I wonder where you heard it…. We only hear it in old Japanese.
Ex. 今、やらなくてなんとする= 今、やらなくてどうする！ = We have to do it now!
(correction :
いつも会話に聞いています。→いつも(or I would say よく)会話で聞きます。
しかも→means “on top of that” what did you want to say? I think it is not necessary in this context.)
Great answer Maggie!
Also なんだと ＝なんだって (depending on context) which means “What did you say?”. It’s often used in アニメ.
I don’t think なんとする is 文語 (classical Japanese), because in classical Japanese there’s no する in 終止形 but す. This would change the form to なんとす （＝ なむとす） which means ～てしまおうとする or ～てしまいそうだ. I think なんとする might be some kind of dialect, and it could mean 「どうする（んだよ）」.
@天人 & @Kai
Good follow up information, 天人
As for なんとする，
I bet many Japanese people would say this famous Samurai drama line when they hear this word.
のさばる悪をなんとする。天の裁きは待ってはおれぬ
We also say なんとしよう
この気持ちをなんとしよう。
But it sounds very dramatic and corny.
Kai, are you trying to figure out how to say,
what to do
how to do
and since it is “what”, you think it’s なに／なん?
説明してあげて本当にありがとうございました、マギー先生！！！これでちゃんと理解できたよね！
とりあえず、「「もしも」をたどれば天文学的確率になるんだ」ってもしかして三番目例題と同じかな？翻訳したら、”It will be an astronomical possibility if I trace (would it also be ‘follow’) the “IF”” になるかな？
元気でね、先生！！
Wooow… To think ‘good’ can be used in so many ways @.@… Thank you very much for this lesson, it helped me with Japanese subtitles when I don’t understand why on earth they would put an ‘いい’ seemingly out of nowhere. Speaking of which, is Japanese multimedia usually subtitled? I can’t find any sources of Japanese audio/Japanese subtitled shows or dramas (since I don’t have access to Japanese TV)and when I do find a Japanese movie on my local TV (I’m from Malaysia), they usually have English subtitles instead. Any tips?
★〜ていい？ : verb て form + いい asking for permission
Can I~~
Ex. 質問していい（ですか）？ ＝ Can I ask you a question?
Ex. 食べてもいい（ですか）？= Can I eat?
Ex. 歌ってもいい（ですか）？ = Can I sing?
★~でもいい：noun/pronoun ＋でもいい = compromising :I don’t care/mind even with something/someone
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) 水が飲みたいです。 = I want to drink water. (たい is always used with a verb.)
2) 水が欲しいです。= I want some water. (You are expressing what you want clearly.)
(We use 1) and 2) when you tell people what you want/what you want to do)
3) 水がいいです。= I prefer water. (When someone asks you what you want to drink.)
4) 水でいいです。= (I don’t mind) Water is just fine. (When someone asks you what you want to drink.)
(We use 3) and 4) when someone asks you what you want first.You don’t usually say these when nobody asks you what you want to drink.)
そうなの？’かしら’の使用することは一般的じゃないですか？残念！！もし私が女性になったら、いつも使います！！
XD
Really, it was one of my favourite words, one of the first things I picked up since it sounded so soft and pleasant. XD
Thank you very much for this interesting lesson!
I thought I knew everything about かな（あ） but apparently I didn’t. っかな and ～ないかな (I hope~ ) was quite new for me. I’m very happy that your lessons are so complex.
先生, I’m wondering if there are any differences between だろう （疑問や反語の意）and かな ？
＠天人
I’m glad to know there is still you can learn here. :)
かな VS だろう
There are cases you can replace them and the translation could be the same but there is a subtle difference.
while かな is used when you express your doubt or question, だろう is used when we guess/assume something.
あの人は誰かな = I wonder who that person is.
あの人は誰だろう= I wonder who that person could be.
今、マギーはどうしているのかなって考えていたの。 (You are wondering what I am doing)
今、マギーはどうしているだろうって考えていたの。(you are guessing what I am doing)
彼、私のこと好きじゃないのかな I wonder if he doesn’t like me.
彼、私のこと好きじゃないの(or ん）だろうな… I guess he doesn’t like me.
*ここに座ってもいいかな／だろう？
You can’t say だろう？
*明日、晴れないかな = I hope it is going to be a nice weather tomorrow.
*明日、晴れないだろうな… = I think (assume) it is not going to a nice weather tomorrow.
かわいいかなあ = I wonder if S is cute.
かわいいだろうな = I imagine S is cute.
どのDVDを最初に観ようかな
X You can’t say どのDVDを最初に観ようだろうな。
***
皆で京都に行ったらどうかな？
皆で京都に行ったらどうだろう？
I guess they both suggest the idea of going to Kyoto so the translation is the same but while どうかな simply suggests going to Kyoto, どうだろう gives us impression that the speaker is imagining how it would be going to Kyoto together.
これみっちゃんにできるかな
X You can’t say これみっちゃんにできるかなだろう？
(But you can say これみっちゃんにできるだろうか。）
Good stuff Maggie-Sensei, けど please use the ひらがな of kanji for those of us who are reading 日本語 (にほんご) but have yet to thoroughly master kanji, however; don’t like reading things in romanji as it clutters ones pronunciation and comprehension of the more easily followed words in ひらがな, ね。 ありがとう。
Hello Chase！
Hmmm you are the second person who told me about romaji today.
I know many of you who already know hiragana and kanji feel the same way. However, it is really hard for me to add hiragana at the moment. As you can see all my lessons are very long and I can’t spend more time adding hiragana. And also many people who don’t read hiragana and kanji visit this site so I can’t delete romaji either.
But when I make a lesson targeting upper level learners, I will give it a try not including romaji in future. Thank you for your feedback! :)
Hi I recently discovered your blog. It’s very informative and easy to understand but the Romaji is highly distracting. I suggest to start using Hiragana instead when explaining the pronounciation of the Kanji. Furthermore no Japanese person ever uses Romaji and it only serves as a factor to cripple early students who has yet to learn/write the kana. So please ditch the Romaji next time.
As someone who has been learning Japanese slowly for years, thanks for using romaji so we don’t have to stress over reading hiragana all the time while just trying to learn the topic of the article.
I greatly appreciate the romaji under the kanji. It helps me learn the kanji faster instead of switching between this page and many other websites to look up the meaning over and over again. Everything I need to learn these phrases is on one page. Thank you Maggie Sensei. Your website is thorough and fantastic :)
ありがとう先生。とても便利な表現です。少し聞きたいことがあるんですけど。In English, we’d often answer a questions like ‘Where should we go for lunch’ with something like ‘anywhere is fine’. In Japanese, is it 「どこでもいいですよ」？Grammar ok? Politeness ok?
Or if we want to say either one (of two or more options) is fine with me:「どちらでもいいです」、「どれもいい」
Is the pattern usually どこ／どれ／どちら ＋ でもいい? Or just もいい？ Or either one?
Also, if someone asks a question like 「夏休みはどこに行こうか」and we want to list some possible answers and/or be vague:
「さあ。。イタリアやフランスなどがいい」someplace like italy or france is good
「日帰りはどう？鎌倉か箱根などでいい」how about a day trip? someplace like Kamakura or Hakone would be fine
Can you add など to make it sound less specific?
Thank you!
→ どこでもいい means “wherever” and it implies “I don’t care” so if you are talking to someone superior,
どちらでも結構です(= dochira demo kekkou desu) sounds more polite.
*****
「さあ。。イタリアやフランスなどがいい」
「日帰りはどう？鎌倉か箱根などでいい」
Can you add など to make it sound less specific?
AやBなど means “A and B and etc.”
If you want it sound less specific in conversation, I would use とか
someplace like A or B would be fine = AとかBとか*がいい
イタリアとかフランスとか＊がいい
鎌倉とか箱根とか＊がいい
(Sometimes we skip the second とか in conversation)
Hi, Maggie Sensei! Another great lesson, but there’s another usage of いい that I would like to ask about. What does it mean when は precedes いい？From what I understand, it can mean ‘It’s fine, don’t bother’.
Scenario I encountered:
A: お茶を入れて？それとも水はどうかしら？(Person A is very nervous at this point and is trying to start a conversation with Person B in this context)
B:水はいいから。
(What I’m guessing is that Person B is trying to imply ‘It’s fine, so calm down’ even though いい is used in this context)
Would you mind elaborating? P.S. Is there a lesson concerning the usage of the casual 意向形動詞available?
Your guess is right. お水はいいから means お水はいらないから = “It’s fine. / I’m good. / Don’t worry about water./ I don’t need water now so don’t bother.”
So いい means “good/nice, yes and no” depending on the context.
I will show you some examples.
Ex. 1) 自然はいいね。
= Shizen wa iine.
= I love nature. / Nature is good.
Ex. 2) B: マギー先生、このお菓子食べてもいいですか？(asking for a permission.)
= Maggie sensei, kono okashi tabete mo ii desuka?
= May I eat this snack, Maggie Sensei. ?
Maggie : いいです。
= Iidesu.
= Sure! / Yes!
Note : This いい means “Yes” .
(← 食べてもいいですよ。= Tabete mo iidesuyo= You may eat it.)
☆When you ask someone a permission or request someone to do something and they say いいです/いいですよ/いいよ(more casual) , they mean “Yes, you can. You are allow to do that. /Yes, go ahead”
Now what confuses you is the following one.
Ex. 3) Blossom: マギー先生、このお菓子食べますか。
= Maggie Sensei kono okashi tabemasuka?
= Do you want to eat this snack, Maggie Sensei?
Maggie: いいです。
= Iidesu.
= No thank you.
(Variation : 私はいいです。= Watashi wa ii desu = I am good, No thank you./ 今、いいです。= Ima iidesu. = not now. )
The polite way is : 結構です。= Kekkou desu. = No thank you.
☆This いいです means いらない（です）(= iranai (desu)) “No thank you” and saying “No” to someone’s offer.
So when you offer someone something and they say いいです・いいから、いい, they mean “No thank you”
I will make a short lesson for you in near future.
＊＊＊＊＊
意向形動詞
I might have made a mini lesson on Facebook but I will add it on the request list.
*******
OK, I saw the site and I agree.
その仕事、僕がやってもいいよ
It is not natural to skip も here.
When you give someone a permission, you say
きみがやって・やってもいいよ
~(し)ていいですよ・〜(し)てもいいですよ。
Ex. 食べてもいいよ/ 食べていいよ。
Ex. 質問してもいいですよ。/ 質問していいですよ。
(Note : In my opinion, ていい is more colloquial and you are supposed to use てもいい in your Japanese class.)
When you offer to do something for someone (that what they meant “申し出”) , (Ex. I can do that for you.), you don’t say 〜ていい
Ex. 教えてもいいですよ。I don’t mind teaching. / I could teach (for you) (X 教えていいですよ。）
Ex. 見せてもいいですよ。I don’t mind showing something to you./ I could show something to you.
(X見せていいですよ。）
If you say 教えていいですよ。it sounds like you are giving a permission to someone to teach (“You can teach/ You are allowed to teach.”)
if you say 見せていいですよ。it means “You can show something.” /”You are allow to show something.”
I’m very grateful for your help. This was the only part in 禁止／許可 that I had problems with.
Finally I understood it, ノートダン！Thank you very very much! You are the best! ＼(^o^)／
PS “ていい is more colloquial and you are supposed to use てもいい in your Japanese class” うん、そうだね。でも実は私、日本語学校に通っていません。ずっと一人で勉強していますね（＾ω＾）
Here’s my learning method:
1. Learn the language basics from the Internet.
2. Buy the best available books for the Japanese language proficiency test (up to N1).
3. Use the best Internet websites that will help you to learn Japanese. ==> http://142.93.68.150 <==
4. Learn every day (no excuses) new words, new 漢字's, new expressions, new grammar forms; systematicity is the key.
5. Make notes. The most important grammar information you've read should be in one place. Unfortunately there are no perfect books. So every book, every website will bring you tons of new information.
6. When you reached the N2/N1 level then it's time to read Japanese school books, just like the Japanese do at school (ex. 日本語文型辞典) . Use 100% Japanese dictionaries like http://kotobank.jp/ No English allowed on this level.
7. Buy some Japanese novel books (written in Japanese) and the English version of it. Read them simultaneously.
8. Watch every day for few hours NHK or listen to Japanese Radio or just watch anime if you don't have access to NHK or jap. radio.
9. Stop thinking in your mother language, start thinking in Japanese!
10. Learning Japanese = FUN!!!
And in 5 years you should:
– master over 12000 words;
– master over 2000 漢字's;
– master the Japanese grammar on a higher level than N1;
– have the satisfaction that nothing's impossible.
I am in the middle of my path to master Japanese.
And Japanese is my forth language.
頑張ります！
＠天人
WOOOOW!! I am VERY impressed! Thank you so much for sharing this valuable information.
I bet many people can learn from this list. I like your learning attitude a lot. Not just setting the goal but you actually make a great effort. Haha, thank you for including my site in your list. I feel flattered. :)
I totally agree with No.10. Let’s have lots of fun learning Japanese!
Dear Maggie-Sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson! And for introducing me to such a great and inspirational song!
I’ve been trying to study the song with your translation. However, there are a few points regarding the last sentence that I still don’t understand after much searching. If it’s not too much trouble, could you please explain these for me please?
その人を守れる強さを自分の力に変えて行けるように
1. What does “行ける” mean? Is it just the potential form of “行く”? Or something entirely different?
2. If I had to translate “その人を守れる強さを自分の力に変えて” by myself, it would go along the line of “change the strength to protect that person to my own strength”. Could you tell me where I went wrong here?
3. What would the literal translation for the whole sentence be?
I’m still a beginner so I hope I’m not annoying you too much with these questions.
Thank you!
Anytime, anytime
The space between buildings feels [so] tight (/seems to be [so] tight)
In the setting sun
I’m gonna melt my frustration down
And some day I shall love someone
And I hope, I will be able to
change the strength that protects her
into my own power (/strength).
Thank you so very much for your response, and wonderful interpretation. It’s all clear now.
I’m sorry for the late reply. I kept thinking I’d receive an email notification if I got a reply but apparently not. Lucky for me I checked! =)
Maggie先生,
I love the song! Been replaying it again and again for the past few days!
先生 can you please plain that nanda in the end, cause i’ve seen it while reading manga to practise and i cant really understand what it means
(i didnt read the lesson so if its in there excuse me for asking)
Hello 白虎君!
だから／それで is very often used together with （な）のです（／だ）. This is a fixed construction that shows the reason of something what was mentioned before. だから～なのだ can be translated as: “that’s why~”. For further information please read this article and that one→ http://142.93.68.150/2010/09/08/request-lesson-when-and-how-to-use-んn-のです→んです）/
Ah, human beings are so lazy・・・
This is unrelated to this particular post, but I wanted to ask a certain question about something new I saw. The sentence
まったくもって1ミリたりとも
According to the following news article, it appears that the word 1ミリ, which is supposed to mean “1 millimeter,” has started to be used figuratively in a lot of contexts.
Hi Tosiaki,
I think I taught that word once on Twitter before.
Yes, the direct translation is １ミリも or (stronger) １ミリたりとも “not even 1 millimeter” and we use it when we deny something strongly.
Ex. １ミリたりとも譲れない= it is not negotiable
Though the politicians use it, it is often used in a colloquial way.
Ex. １ミリも知らなかった= didn’t know about something at all.
Ex. １ミリも許せない= can’t allow at all
It’s very interesting, I hadn’t thought of てみる as a way to soften a comment. Similar to English that way.
When talking about something you tried out and found that it was X, the てみる is used to add emphasis/show that the result was different than expected, right? Looking at the examples, it seems like without てみる the meaning is basically the same.
I was also wondering on the example 「彼の家に行ってみると誰もいなかった」could you use the other kind of trying: 彼の家に行こうとしたが誰もいなかった。
Ok? Or does it not work with 「誰もいなかった」because you did actually physically go there / you weren’t stopped from going.
Another example, could you say either:
レストランに行ってみると満室でした when I went to the restaurant, I found it was full
レストランに行こうとしたが満室でした I tried to go to the restaurant, but it was full
Now I will show you the difference between 行ってみると—- and 行こうとすると….
While 行ってみると means you actually went there and found out something, 行こうとすると…means when you are about to leave/when you attempt to go somewhere/whenever you attempt to go somewhere, something happens and you can’t go. So 行ってみると means you actually go somewhere but 行こうとすると means you are not actually in that place. It just focuses on your action trying going somewhere.
So レストランに行こうとしたが満室でした/彼の家に行こうとしたが誰もいなかった。don’t sound natural because the speakers actually went to the restaurant or his house.
〜に行こうとしたら親に止められた。= I was going to go ~ but my parents stopped me.
明らかに説明してくれてありがとう。いまから「て見る」は使いやすくなります。
This is very helpful. Thank you! I’ve always had some trouble with knowing when to use verb-おうとする and when to use てみる. This explanation helps a lot.
I’m new to this site, although I have visited a few times in the past. In most of the sites I have gotten confused reading chats between various people trying to explain to each other slight grammatical nuances.
However I came again today for a better explanation of ageru/kureru/morau endings and I really liked the quality of your lesson! After reading around I also noticed how responsive you are to everyone’s responses. (and how colorful your lessons are) So I decided to post and plan more future visits. :)
I did have a question since I don’t see a lesson for it. I don’t need a full blown explanation but I’ve seen the kakeru paired with several verbs and the meaning has never been consistent. If you could explain it would be greatly appreciated!
Hello nyoro! Welcome to our site!
As for your request, V＋かける, someone else has just asked me to explain the meaning/usage of かける and it is already added to the request list. So I will make a lesson for you. I still have a long list of request but please wait patiently. :)
Maggie Sensei, お元気ですか. I’m new to this site, having only just begun visiting this week; but I have learned plenty. どうもありがとうございます！ However being new also means I haven’t really gotten around to learning how to navigate this website properly and I have a few questions regarding colloquial grammar. I frequently hear in casual speech the ‘te’ form being followed immediately by ‘ます’ or た and ました without any ‘i’ sound. Is it just a result of slurring because it’s easier to say without an ‘i’, or is it a correct construction?
Hello Blossom! はじめまして！Welcome to our site! :)
There is no proper way to use this site. Go to the Index page and find the topics you like and get the information you need from the page you choose.
OK, let me answer your question.
When we talk, we often drop い after て in colloquial Japanese. Or the listener can’t hear the sound of い.
食べています→ 食べてます
食べている→ 食べてる
聞こえていました→ 聞こえてました
聞こえている → 聞こえてる
見ていた → 見てた
住んでいる→住んでる
This is called い抜き言葉(=inuki kotoba) and it is considered to be incorrect grammatically and I bet your Japanese teachers hate it especially when you write without い.
So if you are studying Japanese in a class or you are going to take an exam, do write い.
But it is very important to know how we actually talk in conversation dropping い.
So the removal of the ‘i’ does not change the intended meaning? ‘見てた’ simply means ‘見ていた’ and is NOT just a colloquial ‘見た’, right? Because sometimes I can’t tell the difference when they are used in context. Japanese is spoken very quickly and I get very confused as to when the V+~ている form is used (like in instances of 結婚している and 知っている meaning ‘married’ and ‘know’ and not ‘is getting married’ and ‘knowing’ respectively). Thank you for the explanation and the tip about 抜き言葉 ：）
So the removal of the ‘i’ does not change the intended meaning? ‘見てた’ simply means ‘見ていた’ and is NOT just a colloquial ‘見た’, right?
→Right. 見ていた →見てた
見た (simple past) and 見て(い)た are different.
~ている means “to be ~ ing” (describing what is happening) but you are right. It also used to describe some state of the current condition.
Thank you for the lesson its so good to have you back! The lesson was fun, the only part I did not understand was the みたら. I never understand the たら section ><
Hi John! We are glad to be back here,too!
~たら is conditional.
1) Making an suggestion
~みたら？・〜みたらどうですか？
Do you want to try doing something? / Why don’t you try doing something?/ You should ~
Ex. 行ってみたら？
Ex. 食べてみたらどうですか？
Ex. この映画観てみたらどう？
2) When you report how it goes when you try doing something
Ex. 行ってみたらいい所だった = (I gave it a try and ) I went there and (found out) it was a nice place.
Ex. やってみたら簡単だった = I tried doing that and (found out) it was easy
Ex. 食べてみたら苦かった = (I gave it a try and ) I ate it and (found out) it was bitter.
If you want to learn more about たら、go check this lesson. ~たら
Ex.
ただいま、Lava! またこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
そうですね、英語の訳をみると「〜てみる」も「試す」、「試みる」もto try で違いがわかりにくいですね。
ではここからは他の人のために英語で説明しますね。
1) We use 〜てみる casually in daily conversation with many verbs but we use 試す when we emphasize the actions of testing something.
2) As we saw in the lesson, ～てみる is used with other verbs but 試す can’t be combined with other verbs.
object (noun) を試す
verb かどうか試す, etc.
3) 試す means “to try/ to test / to experiment / to check it out”
〜てみる means “to try doing something to see what happens / how it goes”
But actually you can combine these two.
↓
“試してみる”
試してみる means “to give it a try to see what happens / how it goes”
Let’s compare the following sentences.
Ex. 1) 新しい薬を試す。 = to test a new medicine
Ex. 2) 新しい薬が効くかどうか試す = to test a new medicine to see if it works.”
Ex. 3) 新しい薬が効くかどうか試してみる = to try using a new medicine to see how it works.”
****
試みる to make an attempt / take a shot
Now 試みる is used for something more challenging or formal.
救出を試みる = to attempt rescue someone
犯人の説得を試みる= to attempt to persuade the criminal
このレッスンに関して、加えたいことが四つあります。
一. People often confuse～てみる with ～（よ）うする, so I think a good idea would be to write something about it.
二.～てみる is also sometimes used as an euphemism （間接・椀曲表現）to avoid being too direct. It makes the sentence more polite.
三. There is also a construction such as ～てみろ EX) もういっぺん言ってみろ and it feels like “come on, try to say that again (and you will see what happens)”.
四. There are also some expressions like 言ってみれば (in a matter of speaking)、今となってみれば (looking back today)、考えてみれば (come to think about it) which are a bit different translated than this ～てみる. It’s useful to know their meaning.
Hi Maggie senses
I have a question that I want to ask you. I had read a manga and I found a sentence that I don’t understand. Based on you lesson , does this sentence “ 今度改めてお礼に来てみたら? “ means “ Why don’t we try give him our thanks again the next time we come here ?”
Seconding songbanana – it’s a mark of progress when people stop using 2nd person pronouns in Japanese. It painfully grates on the ears. Next to go is 1st person.
“Anata” just sounds rude or crude to my ears. One notch above kisama.
Just stop using pronouns and learn to use particles and verb endings – that’s where the secret sauce is.
if i start from here i can cover all the lessons right?by clicking “next lesson” i mean,i dont mind if it skips any of the beginners lessons as i already know a bit of the language, i just want to make sure ill cover all the categories (on top of the page)doing this?
＠白虎君
There is no rule where to start but yes, if you keep studying from this lesson, eventually it will cover the whole lessons.
But I would pick the lessons you are interested in from Index.
Sensei,
Many thanks for the clear explanation.
How is Verb(masu form) + たて different from Verb(masu form) + あげる (Ex: 書き上げる、焼き上げる）。
Both mean “just completed” so, am not sure when to use which one!!
Sorry for the late reply. I was resting until I get to Dog Heaven.
OK, while V+たて focuses on the condition or results where something has “just” finished/done
you use V+あげる when you you do something until you complete/finish it.So it usually requires certain effort or time.
Ex. 書き立ての本 = A book that you just finished writing. (Something you have just done/finished)
Ex. 長年かけてやっとこの本を書き上げた = I finally finished writing this book over the years. (to complete something making efforts or spending certain time.)
I wouldn’t say かしら or そうね for old women but they both sound very feminine. I personally don’t use them but you may hear/see people use them in the drama or movie or in manga more often.
And I have a last question; sorry, but it’s the second time my japanese friends correct me when I write わ at the end of a sentence (they tell me not to write it). So is it because it’s not spoken language, or because I can’t use it when I talk with “です・ます” ?
Is it normal to sometimes drop the する verb at the end?
I was reading the lyrics of Kana-Boon’s ないものねだり and there’s a line that says
あっち見たりそっちを見たり美人が好きなのね
did they just decided to drop it, or is it a completely different grammar?
Hello Gabriel,
there many situations where たり is used without する, for example in constructions such as: ～たり～たりです・だ (this one is used especially in idioms: 1-3) or ～たり～たり～(4) or ～たり～なかったたりです・だ (5):
This, of course, doesn’t change the meaning. Notice that in these constructions opposed verbs are used: 行ったり来たり、見えたり見えなかったり. ”あっち見たりそっちを見たり” is also opposed and means: looking here and there / looking here, looking there, looking everywhere.
What’s important, you cannot make constructions such as ～たり～ or ～たりだ (using one ～たり without する):
I love you’re detailed descriptions of various new words and different sentence patterns! You’re lessons have helped me learn a vast amount of Japanese on my own.教えてくれてありがとうよ！
I am so sorry for your loss, Yukari-san! I was so shocked when I found out the news! My thoughts are with you and your family during this difficult loss. Please take all the time you need to heal.
ima made nihongo o oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimashita. Maggie-sensei no koto o watashi wa eien ni wasure-masen. otsukaresama deshita.
部屋が汚くなってきたから彼に掃除をしてもらおう。
Heya ga kitanaku natte kita kara kare ni souji wo shite moraou.
Since the room is getting messier, let’s get him to clean it up.
I do not understand what “kita” (before kara) means in this sentence. Could you please explain it?
Hello Felix.
～てくる has many meanings. In this sentence ～てくる shows that a certain change（変化）has been made in the past and this change is still active (to the present) . The change we are talking about is: clean room ==> messy room.
More information you will find here ==> http://142.93.68.150/2010/03/13/requested-lesson-「〜ていく＋〜てくる」teiku-tekuru/
「～てあげる」は動作をする人が相手のためにある動作をするという意味を表します。
「汚い部屋を掃除してあげる」は I/we will do him a favor and clean up the messy room.
「～てもらう」はある人の動作によって、利益や好意を受けたり、または依頼してある行為をさせるようにしたりする意味を表します。
「汚い部屋を掃除してもらう」は I/we will receive from him the favor of cleaning up the messy room. (If he has made the room messy then now he has to clan it up)
マギーに日本語を教えてあげる。(=I will teach Maggie Japanese => I will do a favor for Maggie)
マギーに日本語を教えてもらう。(=Maggie will teach me Japanese => I will receive a favor from Maggie)
という違いです。
Hello Kebbin.
In this case な is an abbreviated form of である（／だ） used in attributive sentences. The full form of なのは would be: であることは.
Therefore 名詞＋なのは means “The…is…” (1-2); “What [someone]…is…” (3-4); “…that/the fact that…” (5-6), etc.
EX)
1. …について問題なのは… (=The problem about…is…)
2. 一番大切なのは… (=The most important thing is…)
3. 私が心配なのは… (=What I concern is…)
4. あなたに必要なのは休みです (=What you need is a holiday)
5. あなたが優しい人なのは分かっています (=I know that you are a nice person)
6. 私があのレストランを大好きなのは、料理が美味しくて安いからです (=I love that restaurant because they serve delicious and cheap food there = The fact that I love that restaurant is because they serve delicious and cheap food there)
これは、ブタ!の!世界だッ (=It’s the pig!’s! world)
ブタ!なのは!あんただよ (=!The one who is the! pig is you, not me! / You ARE the pig, not me!)
Hello una,
先生 will be back soon, so I will answer your question instead.
ノリ気（乗り気） means “interest; eagerness; enthusiasm” and じゃなかった is its negation in the past. Therefore the speaker wasn’t in the mood for doing something, but he/she (probably) eventually did it. のに expresses feelings like 不平・不満・恨み・非難.
EX) 試験勉強をすることに全く乗り気ではなかったのにな～ (=Though I totally didn’t feel like learning for the exam / Though I really wasn’t thrilled with learning for the exam)
Hello there! I miss you very much too! Please don’t feel sorry that you haven’t answered us, take all the time you need. I’m looking forward to starting my Japanese studies again on May 12th. 体に、くれぐれも、気をつけてください！
Hello Heivia,
like マギー先生 said: “There are people who call themselves 自分(=jibun), but it sounds a little more distant than the other pronouns. It sounds like one is drawing a line between themselves and the listener.”, also I think that, in this case, 自分 is mostly used by males with high ego. Therefore I don’t prefer to use 自分. The most natural way is just to use「私」, if you want to hide your gender on the Internet.
I can’t understand why is it used 思い知らされ in passive form? As far as I can understand here the sound「音」 is making someone to realize something. And even if passive, why not それらの音に?
Thank you in advance!
いつもは車の音や街の音にかき消されてしまう、世界の囁き。それらの音が、世界の中心にあることを思い知らされ、だから、人の世界の不在を強く実感してしまうのだ
思い知らせる means “to give someone a lesson / to show someone something”.
EX)
1. おまえに思い知らせてやろうぜ！ (= I’m gonna teach you a lesson!)
2. 相手チームに思い知らせてやれよ。(= Let’s give them a lesson!)
3. 人に身の程を思い知らせてやる。(= To show someone where his/her place is) [身の程=one’s position/standing/place]
に used here tells us WHO will get the “free” lesson.
を used here tells us WHAT 話し手 will show to his 相手.
思い知らされる means “to made someone something to realize / to be reminded of something / to made someone aware of / to become aware of”.
EX)
1. 自分の力の限界を思い知らされた。(= Someone become aware of his/her own limitations)
“why not それらの音に?” because in this sentence 間接受身 is used: Ｂ が/は ＡにＤをＣされる.
Maggie sensei, your message is wonderful, you’re such a wonderful teacher and you’re so adorable. You’ve taught me so much and have been so inspiring, I’ll miss you!
Hello Jean Christophe,
this ように means “to hope” or “may” like in: 早く良くなりますように。(=I hope you feel better soon) or あなたの夢がかないますように！(=May your dreams come true!).
Therefore the translation of your sentence would be:
I hope her absence will always be painful for me [/ will always cause me pain]… with this hope [in my heart] I’m gonna scratch my almost healed wounds.
I am very sorry for your loss. Maggie was a very cute dog and a great teacher. She will be missed very much. I hope you are doing okay. Please accept my condolences.
Oh no. I will miss Maggie so much. I almost want to cry, she has been the mascot of my learning for some time now. I hope the family and friends of Maggie are okay. I had three dogs pass on at once due to Snailbait poisoning so i know what a loss is like. I still can’t get over it and its been many years. I was in my first year of high school and now im almost 29. R.I.P. Maggie Sensei.
I thank her and the friends and family for so many great lessons. ^_^
Sensei for a moment there I thought I wouldn’t hear more from you. So glad you are still here for all of us. :) Sensei is the angel that keeps on giving. Thanks sensei. :)
こんにちわ先生！I’m in my final year in highschool and I’m totally confused with the indirect/casual speech. Do you have any pointers for me to easily convert a polite sentence to a casual one? Especially ones with ください, and others like that. 助け、ほんとにむずかしい！！！
We will be waiting for you.. I trust that your love and dedication to teach us Japanese will go on forevet…rest well in heaven ..Maggie sensei. .. I shall be waiting for your return..
I am saddened by the death of Maggie-sensei. I’ve just visited the site recently but it seemed to me that she was a very kind person and a wonderful teacher. I find her lessons extremely detailed and useful and it is a shame that she can’t continue her excellent teachings. Hope you rest in peace sensei and will keep on giving blessings to us Japanese learners from above. Thank you!
Maggie sensei, you will be forever missed! Please take care and take your time Yukarisan :) thank you so much for your hard work Maggie, enjoy doggie heaven :*)
I just found this out today and I am very sad to hear the news. Maggie made learning Japanese fun. She was a very cute and pleasant teacher, and very smart as well. Rest in peace, I will miss you a great deal.
数年前このウェブサイトを使って日本語を勉強しました。
今年日本語能力試験を受ける事にして、また勉強が始めましたので久々このウェブサイトを見てみよっと思っていましたが。
I’m so sorry to hear this. I wish you and your family the best.
Please take all the time you need. Like Ralph said we’re not going anywhere.
Dear angel Maggie, thank you for your heartfelt message. I wanna send plenty of positive energy to you as well as your best friend and big sister, Yukari san. You both take all the time that you need, we are not going anywhere ^^/~~☆ With love, Ralph.
I’m so sorry to hear that :'( Thanks for everything , Maggie-sensei! Whenever I had a doubt in Japanese , I knew I’d find the answer here! You’ve always been so helpful !
Rest In Peace <3
OMG! I can’t believe it!
I’m really sorry for your loss, of course I will not forget Maggie-sensei T_T
Thank you so much dear doggie, it was a lot of fun learning japanese with your lessons! Love you!
Great lesson! I do have one question, and I apologize in advance if it was discussed in the article. Can you make chatta or chau negative, and if so how do you form it? Thanks in advance!
thank you for being part of our lives Maggie sensei. I always smile when I see your lessons. you will be greatly missed by all your students. not only for being our cutest teacher, but for helping us to enjoy learning.
thanks to Yukari sensei for sharing Maggie with us. we can all see how special she was and you have our sympathy. we couldn’t ask for better teachers.
I’m so sorry for your loss of Maggiesensei. It’s the equivalent of losing a family member… at least it felt like that when I witnessed the death of my first pet back when I was 10 years old. From what I’ve seen Maggie had one awesome life, not only did she have some amazingly cool parents she lived in Japan, has lot’s and lot’s of lovers all over the world, she was one lucky girl ;) haha. She passed knowing she was loved by so many people out there.
I’m so heartbroken. I’ve loved Maggie-sensei for many years and have always enjoyed her lessons, and I’m just so sad she’s gone now. I’ll miss her pictures and lessons, but I hope she can have fun in Heaven with my own dogs who have also passed!
Maggiesensei has become an icon, a symbol, a visual representation in my Japanese learning. I am sure this is true to a lot of other visitors/students in here. :)
When I stumble across something I learned thanks to Maggiesensei’s lessons I can’t help but remember her cute and hilarious expressions from the lesson descriptions. :) Maggiesensei always made remembering and learning easier, and fun. :)
When I think about our lives and how everyone’s time here on Earth seems to be borrowed for a short while, I wonder about the notion of immortality. I think that some do accomplish to live on beyond their time and extend their existence through people’s memories. That is why I think Maggiesensei will live on, as a lot of us will remember her and her lessons and thank her for years to come for lending her helping paw in the process of something we all yearn for: learning Japanese. :)
I never got to meet Maggiesensei in person but through the numerous pictures and videos from Maggiesensei where she shared time with Yukari-sama and family, I am sure Maggiesensei lived a happy life surrounded by people who gave her lots of love and cared for her and looked for her well-being. Considering how we often see heartless people doing heartless stuff to their pets I believe Maggiesensei was very fortunate to have Yukari-sama for mom, and we are very grateful of that because Yukari-sama shared her a little with us all. :)
Thank you Maggiesensei for everything. We will always remember you. :) My thoughts are with Yukari-sama and famility. Wishing you the strength to walk thought this sad moment. Thank you Maggiesensei.
Maggie-sensei, rest in peace she helped me just yesterday. Her lessons were so helpful I saw she had heart surgery. Even if her lessons won’t be continued, she has helped me a lot. RIP forever Maggie-sensei, nobody will ever be able to replace you.
Discovered this site through Victor, and it quickly became my go-to site for daily or quick and fun lessons on Japanese. Enjoyed all the videos with Maggie, Victor, Yukari and everyone else. It will feel so different without her.
Oh, dear Maggie sensei… I learnt so much from you. Please protect us from dog heaven and take care of yourself too, while you’re there. Maybe you will meet my friend Whisky there… he was a lovely German shepherd and I spent most of my childhood with him. I loved him very much ~ but I have to admit that he didn’t speak Japanese. Say hello if you see him. Andrea remembers him. I think you will be very very missed from everyone here. Thank you for everything you’ve done for us. Much love <3
I just found this site and started reading all the fun articles and now this happens! Really, really sorry to hear about it, one of the saddest experiences to have. Hope you’re alright!
Sensei….my deepest condolences. It’s a great loss to all of us as it was so fun to learn from Maggie.. The best teacher…It’s so hard to believe that maggie is actually gone..
Who’s gonna teach us now and make us laugh..It’s just so sad. I know exactly how you feel..I also lost my precious bird last year.. It was a hard time for me.. But with time, I was able to get used to the fact that I will not see him again.. But I’ll never forget the wonderful times we spent together and how I cared for him until his last moment..
I know it’s a hard time for you now, but I hope you remember the good times you spent together..
Thx Sensei..
goodbye, maggie-sensei and many thanks for all your tireless work. you’ve helped thousands of people and brought joy to them all.
it’s now time to live on in memories. rest in peace.
The ～なり used in 愛おしくなり has the same meaning as ～なって, so 愛おしくなり＝愛おしくなって.
例）
１） 私の子どもはもう大きくなって、暗闇を恐れなくなった。 = 私の子どもはもう大きくなり、暗闇を恐れなくなりました。
２） 返事が遅くなり、申し訳なく存じます。 = 返事が遅くなって、申し訳なく存じます。
So as you can see the meaning is the same. However I think that なり is slightly more formal than なって. In everyday conversation, especially between friends, the ～て form （＝なって） would be used.
As for the translation: I sympathize with him, watching his preparations when he was spreading out his ｗｅｔｓｕｉｔ on the old carpet in the hotel, so [/and] I made him a hot, dark coffee.
However I’m not sure if my translation is correct because 愛おしい can mean: 1. 大事にして、かわいがりたくなるさま。 or 2. かわいそうだ。気の毒だ。 But I know someone, who will solve this problem＾＾
今はマギー先生の番ですよ！
Thanks for all these details, but I thought I learned it until that part :
歌いながら食る is wrong /not natural to say and it should be :
歌ったまま食べる
But I couldn’t understand why.. Cause seems like “ながら” has all the conditions in this 歌いながら食る two actions etc. Why it can’t be ながら there
Btw sorry for my English it’s not my native language.
Hi Mimi
The basic difference between ながら and まま is
ながら “doing some action while doing other action”
まま is “to leave something in certain state”/ “to do something while letting something do something”
歌う is an action that one can control.You can just leave yourself sing on and on
Maggie sensei!
Thank you for replying to my message.
I can now understand that “kurete” is for thanking someone for doing something. Is there other usages for “kurete” besides the purpose of thanking someone?
Thanks in advance.
For example
Ex. 彼が来（き）てくれてよかった。
= I am happy that he came over.
Ex. わかってくれてうれしいです。
= I am glad that you understand ~
Ex. Kさんが家に招待(しょうたい）してくれて美味（おい）しい料理（りょうり）を作（つく）ってくれた。
= K-san invited me over his/her house and cooked me delicious food.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I’ve got a question about ように usage in the following sentence:
わたし達の前から一瞬にして人形が消える。お母さまが、吊るすように摘んで持ち上げたからだ。
Which one of those translation sounds gramatically correct: “Because mother picked it as if hanged up and rased it.” or “Because mother picked and rased it as if hanged up.”? The problem is that I cannot grasp which one of those two verbs 摘んで持ち上げたからだ is the speaker performs “as if hanged up”.
Thank you very much for help.
I can’t picture the mother’s movement either just from the sentence…
But the literal translation is
“Because mother grabbed the doll and raise it (or hold it up) as if it’s hanging (with a string?) “
Thank you, oh, and one last question. Maybe my question will be vague, but like in that sentence, where two verbs is after ように, will it always show likeness(‘as if’) to both of them? Or it solely depends on the context?
Maggie sensei!! おひさしぶりです
This lesson is so informative. Thank you so much.
can you please explain to me what is “kurete”? How to use it and what does it mean? what is the difference between “kureru” and “kurete”?
and if I want to say “Thank you for coming to visit me”
do I say “kite kurete arigatou or kite kureta arigatou? I’m so confused.
thanks in advance^^
こんにちは！お久しぶりですね。
“kureru” is a dictionary form. We use te-form, “kurete” when we continue the sentence or “(doing something) and ~~~~”
Thank you for coming is
来てくれてありがとう= kite kurete arigatou.
A lot of people make the same mistake. (来てくれたありがとう= kite kureta arigatou)
So remember when you want to say
Thank you for doing something, you always use te-form.
手伝ってくれてありがとう= tetsudatte kurete arigatou = Thank you for helping me.
絵を描いてくれてありがとう= E wo kaite kurete arigatou = Thank you for drawing a picture (for me.)
「終える」is simply “to finish”. You have been working on your homework and as a result you have done/finished your homework.
Ex. ２時間机にむかい、宿題をやっと終えることができた。
「終わらせる」is “to make/force something over/finish””to put an end” “make an end”
Ex. 遊びたいので宿題を早く終わらせる
「済ませる」is “to get something done/to complete something” It implies nothing left. It sounds very similar to 終わらせる but usually 済ませる is used for something that you have to do.
Ex. 支払いを済ませる
Ex.. 用を済ませる
Oh wow! Great list!!! (I covered some of them on my Twitter Japanese slang lesson but I have never heard many of them.)
Thank you! I think many people can use your additional list! :)
NKT (長く苦しい戦いだった, used after completing something difficult, especially in a game, and used jokingly after TAS videos)
NDK (ねぇ、どんな気持ち, for example, when someone is hovering over someone else, as if going “heeeey”)
ggrks (ググレカス, go google it you idiot)
I also do wonder if you could cover some words that are difficult to tell apart. If you do a search for them in Japanese, of course you can find multiple answers, but more answers are also great. Examples: 意外 & 案外, 意志 & 意思, 耐える & 堪える, 永遠 & 永久, 歳 & 才, 遺体 & 死体 & 死骸, 使用 & 利用 & 使う, 製作 & 制作 & 作製 & 作成 & 製造 & 造作 & 作る (創る, 造る). Obviously there are many others, but these are the ones I’ve gotten confused about in the past. Also wondering about convering words that you often see Japanese people misuse: 爆笑 (does not mean “burst of laughter”), 確信犯 (does not mean “belief that you definitely did something bad”)
「ありのまま」はthe way you are, being yourself, the way it isという意味です。
よく知っていますね。「Frozen/ アナと雪の女王」の日本語のテーマソング「Let It Go」の日本語タイトルは「ありのままで」ですが、英語のタイトルと少し意味が違いますね。
映画を観ていないのでストーリがわかりませんが、「ありのままで（いさせなさい・いさせよう）」(Let it go and ) Let it be itself, let it be who they areという意味からだと思います。
Hello, I found a sentence with some sort of interesting(at least for me) ばかり usage -「 あたしは、形とばかり並べられた陶器のティーセットに手を伸ばす。」, I understand that the meaning would be something like “the teacups was lined up just for show”, but what is the point of putting と before ばかり in this case, can you please explain this part to me? Thank you very much!
Hello Darkakira,
Yes the meaning is correct. I found it is a bit strange to use と. We usually don’t put と and say ~とばかりに並べられた。I’d just say 形ばかりに並べられた
I guess the writer used と just to emphasize the meaning.
You wanted to tell that person, “I know you are busy but don’t work too hard？” Then how about
忙しいでしょうが、無理をしないでね。
= Isogashii deshou ga muri wo shinai dene.
忙しいとは思いますが、無理をしないでね。
= Isogashii to wa omoimasuga muri wo shinai dene.
Note : 忙しいので= isogashii node means “because you are busy”
〜ので(=node) is used to give a reason for something.
what i mean is that i want to know how to say “hurry up and fall in with me” in both genders in a joke and serious way to say. and actually i cant understand your reply because its in kanji so can you reply me in romanji. thanks a lot again maggi sensei :)
@juno
OK, I will type it again with romaji.
早く、急いで私に恋をして(下さい）
= Hayaku isoi de watashi ni koi wo shite(kudasai)
(kudasai is more polite)
It is supposed to be “jokingly” because the original sentence doesn’t sound “serious”
Marvelous Lesson!!!
This is the pure quintessence of savior-vivre in the context of visiting someone’s house in Japan.
Very interesting lesson with lots of useful expressions and informations about the Japanese mentality.
It’s surely the most comprehensive lesson in the Internet.
I have a question. Can I say 「お疲れ様でした。」 to my teacher after class has ended or is it only the teacher who says can say it? If my teacher says it to us, how should we reply?
お疲れ様でした is a polite expression and you can use it to someone superior. So some people do say お疲れ様でした to one’s teacher after the class but but ありがとうございました is more appropriate.
Very well-explained tutorial. But in terms of usage, can you tell me the difference or when to use ja nai, dewa nai or even ja arimasen? I mean in terms of superior, colleagues or strangers?
As I explained in the lesson じゃない is a casual form of ではない
So the politeness level is
(polite to casual)
ではありません
↓
じゃありません
↓
ではない
↓
じゃない
So if you are talking to someone superior, stick to ではありません but if you are talking to your friends, you can use じゃない
@Alisa
You’re welcome. If people mix casual and polite Japanese, then じゃない is totally safe to use.
If you want to sound yourself more polite, mix it with です form
そうじゃないです。
言ったんじゃないです。etc.
Although it is preferable to refer to someone by their name or title, searching around, I have found some possibilities for second-person pronouns that could be used polite:
あなた様 (anata-sama)
お宅様 (otaku-sama)
For example, one possibility of phrasing Ella’s question of how to say
あなたの言う通りです?
Might be
お宅様のおっしゃる通りですか？ (or お宅様のおっしゃる通りでございますか？)
And どちらさま (dochira-sama) could be used for asking for names:
失礼ですが、どちら様でいらっしゃいますか？
Of course, there’s a billion ways of asking for a person’s name politely, all with different nuances and levels of politeness, but this is one of them…
… I think (I’m fairly sure, but I have only begun to explore the complexities of polite Japanese).
あなた様 is not so common. You may hear that in old samurai drama or when you talk to someone sarcastically because it sounds overly polite.
Compared to あなた様、we hear お宅様 more. Still it is not considered to be a formal way to address people.
お宅様のおっしゃる通りですか？ (or お宅様のおっしゃる通りでございますか？)
I think you meant affirmative sentence not a question. It sounds strange in question.
お宅様のおっしゃる通りです。
But I would just say おっしゃる通りです
Where does omoikitte come into all this? to one’s hearts content right? and harikitte, to go all out, are they specific variations of the same kirenai/ kiru thing?
It will be easier to think
思う＝to concern, to worry, to think about something a lot →思い切る= to stop／finish worrying about something/what is going to happen and just do something.= take risk and do something.
張る = to yank something (such as a string, a rope, etc.) →張り切る= Describe your exciting feelings to do something as if you yank a string (or rope) all the way (completely).
質問があるなんですけど、「。。。ることがある」の例文を作ってみましたが、正しいかどうか分かりません。
「２年前の怪我をした日以来、時々膝は炎症がまた起こって痛くなることがある。」
“Since my injury 2 years ago, sometimes by knees flare up again and become really sore.”って言いたいです。
添削してくださいませんか？
@errolronal
明けましておめでとうございます。:) Thank you for visiting this site!
Hope you come back again.
（A little correction : ありがとうございます。
Kanji 「誤差います」→You can write ”御座います” but we usually use hiragana. 「ございます。」）
The concluding する, can it be any form of する, including the potential form? できる
ハワイに行けば、ゴルフをしたり、海で泳いだり できます。
If I go to Hawaii, I can swim in the ocean, I can play golf and can do other things.
こんにちは、マギー先生!
このレッスンには関係ないんですが、初めてこのサイトを見つけると、すぐ気になります。おもしろいし、分かりやすいし、色んな事を教えてくれてありがとうございます!
実は去年から先生のサイトをよく見ているんですが、先生に「こんにちは。」と言う何て恥ずかしくて、勇気がないんです ^^;
Sorry if I made any grammatical errors orz
@Kai
“早く” is a general word and you can use it in the meaning of “early”/ “quickly”/”fast/now” and さっさと is an onomatopoeia and it describe a quick action and often implies one’s cold-hearted，nonchalant, careless behavior and emotion.
*朝早く起きます。= I wake up early in the morning.（You can’t use さっさと）
*彼は早く走ります= He runs fast. （You can’t use さっさと）
*彼は早く帰った= He left (somewhere) early.
*彼はさっさと帰った = He left quickly (without any hesitation.)
早く起きなさい！= Get up now!
さっさと起きなさい
means the same but さっさと sounds strong and condescending so it is OK to use to describe your actions but avoid using it with someone superior.
マギー先生, thank you for the wonderful breakdown of なければ・なくてはいけない to なきゃ・なくちゃ.
It makes a lot of sense, so in fact, I quite understand it now.
But, I do have a question about the なきゃ when it is なきゃいい. Is it なければいい? or なくていい?
I was reading this manga, and the narration was 変われなきゃいい. I’ve only seen なければ with the negative, so it confuses me with the positive.
Wow this is a really helpful guide to job hunting! I’m still a student so I’ve never hunted for a job before.
I was just wondering, Maggie-sensei, if you know anything about medical jobs (doctors) for foreigners in Japan? I am currently a 4th year medical student in Ireland and it’s my dream to work in Japan. I’ve been studying Japanese for 3 years now too.
Thank you:)
Hi Lava,
I am glad to hear you find this lesson helpful.
OK, what I know is in order to be a doctor in Japan, you have to pass 国家試験(National exam) in Japanese and get a license and it is very difficult to be a doctor in Japan.
However Japanese government has been trying to change the law in past few years and they said we should accept more foreign doctors in future.
I found this article. It might give you an idea.
Thank you!
That exam seems really hard, since I’m aware that the medical terms are not in latin. I hope maybe one day I’ll be able to go.
Thanks for all your help:)
Hello Maggie sensei,
I know my question has not much to do with this lesson, other than the kanji 先 itself. I have a really hard time understanding the overall meaning of the following sentence, especially the last part.
もちろん、民主的な選挙が出来ない国も世界には沢山ありますから、そういう意味では、そこそこ民主的な選挙制度があるだけでも幸せで、そういう意味で、日本の選挙制度も “Better than nothing.”「ないよりはまし」なのかもしれませんがが、都民、国民が「この人にぜひ！」と思えるような人が沢山出てくるような時代は、もう少し先なのでしょうかねぇ
My try at literal translation (sorry that English is not my mother tongue, but hope you get what I mean)
As a matter of course, there are many other countries in the world that do not have democratic electoral system, so in that kind of meaning, having such system is already quite a good thing. One could say that the electoral system in Japan is “Better than nothing”, and there is time when there are a lot of municipal/ national citizens could think (point out) “That guy will win (the election)”, so it’s fairly predictable, isn’t it?
I know it sounds a bit awkward, so could you help me out, sensei?
Thank you for your correction sensei!
Now things are much clearer to me.
Since I had no idea 少し先 means so I just assumed the writer wants to criticize the not-so-democratic of the so-called democratic electoral system, then translated the last part accordingly.
Thank you again for your help.
マギー先生、
ちょっと聞きたいことがありますが。。
「ように」と「ために」はどちら違いますか？
I know that ために sounds more like “for the benefit of”, but my textbook also says that you can only use the particle を with ために.
For example:
自分の店を持つために、貯金していますえ。
自分の店が持てるように、貯金していますえ。(as if ように can only be used with potential verbs)
So.. can’t you say this?:
自分の店を持つように、貯金していますえ。
Because in another textbook I found another example using the particle を
子供が本を読むようにおもしろそうな本を買ってきた。
You are right. 「ように」and「ために」are very similar and you might wonder which one to use.
Usually you use ように with potential verbs or verbs with potential meaning such as わかる
読める、話せる、帰れる、できる、わかる etc＋ように
and you use ために with volitional verbs
読む、話す、帰る、行く、勉強する, etc. + ために
and show your will in order to do something.
Now about the sentence you found
子供が本を読むようにおもしろそうな本を買ってきた。
It is possible to use ように when it has different subjects in one sentence.
Let’s divide this sentence into two parts.
子供が本を読むように= In order my child to read a book (subject : my child)
おもしろそうな本を買ってきた= I bought an interesting book (subject : I )
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Happy Lunar New Year, though I don’t know whether you celebrate it or not :)
I’ve been a follower of your wonderful site for quite a long time, but this is my very 1st comment.
Could you tell me what is the meaning of ようで in the following sentence:
“週末になると、よくフリマが開催されていたりしますが、フリマは、主催者がいるようでいない催し物という感じがするものですが、そんなときには、
“Who’s running the show?”「誰が主催しているの？」
“Nobody’s running the show.”「別に誰というわけじゃないみたい」
なんていうやり取りがるかもしれません。”
I have never seen ようで used in such a way, but I have the feeling that it has a very close meaning to “主催者がいないような”.
Many thanks in advance for your help!
Hello Poriko!
Thank you for your first message on this site!! And Happy Lunar New Year, 2u2!
OK about your question, it is funny because someone has asked a similar question on Twitter today (〜ようで〜ないようで）
Your sentence
主催者がいるようでいない
has a following pattern.
↓
~ようで〜ない
It means
Though it looks like there is an organizer but there isn’t.
↓
It is hard to tell if there is an organizer or not.
It is not clear that if there is an organizer or not
So it means you don’t feel the presence of the organizer in the events like flea markets.
Ahhh, I think I got it, sensei.
So, to put it another way, ようで is a conjunctive form of ようだ, and だ changes to で to link 主催者がいる and いない which both act as adjectives of 催し物.
Does it still work the other way around, sensei? ~主催者がいないようでいる催し物~
What about the difference between them in situations where 誰にも is used with non-negative verbs? e.g. What is the difference (if there is one? I feel like there isn’t really but grammatically I couldn’t explain why) between 誰にもできる and 誰でもできる or 誰にもわかる and 誰でもわかる?
@R.de M.
Hello, R.de M. again! (I just got one comment from you.)
Casher in Japanese is レジ but it is only used in the stores. Do you have a special counter to pay all that? If so we would just say カウンター
Ex. お荷物の超過料金はあちらのカウンターでお支払い下さい。
= Onimotsu no choukaryoukin wa achira no kauntaa de oshiharai kudasai.
= Please pay the excess bag charge at the counter over there
And you if you sell tickets at a counter, you can call it
発券カウンター= hakken kauntaa
このまままっすぐお進み頂き最初のカウンターを左に曲がり入国審査の方にいらして下さい。
= Kono mama massugu osusumi itadaki saisho no kauntaa wo hidari ni magari nyuukoku shinnsa no hou ni irashite kudasai.
Hi Maggie,
Would you know what i the Japanese name of those Origami fortune teller?
I am sure it must come from Japan and has spread worldwide.
Anyone I spoke about it used to play with it when they were little.
I don’t oftenly post comments but I had to say
どうも有り難うございました for this incredible lesson. You gave many many great examples that are going to be more than usefull . Thank you for taking time to do this excellent lesson .
(^o^)/
hello! im a bit confused about when ‘nante’ is at the end of the sentence. like… after a somewhat sentence, he says, なぁんて. is that equivalent to ‘just kidding’ as well? or maybe ‘like this’. eg. watashi mo suki desu, naante.
What do you mean → “other ways I can practice”? You want to find other ways to practice reading Japanese other than DS?
If so, yes, tons! Books, magazines, internet….and MaggieSensei.com. :)
Not all the words but you can say 初カレ(The first boyfriend), colloquial, 初トモ(The first friend), colloquial, 初旅（the first trip).
→なるほど(´・ω・｀)
反対側 means the other side, the opposite side
→っていうか、文の意味は「This is the back of the school building’s opposite side?」ちょっと変かな？それとも「This is the back of the school building」でいいかもね。
校舎 is school building. (I don’t understand 畏. I wonder if it is 裏=ura= behind)
→ああ、漢字を誤解してたかも。だって、裏に見えた場所は[のノベルに]。
教えてくれてありがとうございます(*´▽｀*)
Just in case I made too many mistakes that you can’t understand what I wrote(^◇^;)
Question→Can I add hatsu to anything (hatsukare, hatsutomodachi, hatsutabi etc)?
These days I play/read visual novels on my ds. I get to learn different words kinds of words but sometimes the dictionary doesn’t have the meaning to those words. Could you tell me what 反対側 and 校舎畏 mean? The sentence I found them in was ”ここが反対側の校舎畏かな？”
This lesson was interesting(≧∇≦)b
質問→”初” と何もを付けられるかな（た例えば→初彼、初達、初たび)
この頃ＤＳでビジュアルノベルやってる。色々単語をならってるでもたまに辞書に引けない(?)。反対側と校舎畏ってなんの意味でしょ？The sentence is 「ここは反対厠の校舎畏」。
ありがとうございます。
Not all the words but you can say 初カレ(The first boyfriend), colloquial, 初トモ(The first friend), colloquial, 初旅（the first trip).
反対側 means the other side, the opposite side
校舎 is school building. (I don’t understand 畏. I wonder if it is 裏=ura= behind)
I know this is an old post and I understand the basic meanings for いるとある
but I was trying to translate the phrase 「私は新宿にある」and was confused on what it meant for the にある。
I would be really grateful if you could briefly help explain what にある means. Thank you.
Hi Miburi!
We don’t use ある for people. We are supposed to say 私は新宿にいる／います so 私は新宿にある。doesn’t make any sense.
Unless it is a part of the sentence, for example
私は新宿にあるビルの中にいます。
Where did you see the sentence?
I saw it on a Japanese tv show.
She said ”私は新宿にある北海度に流れ着きました”
How should someone interpret the sentence grammar.
The ある is in reference to the Hokkaido coming to Shinjuku?
Hello Miburi.
First of all, it is 北海道 not 北海度, right?
I can assume the speaker is talking about a place (supposedly a restaurant or bar) in Shinjuku where they serve typical Hokkaido food and place where Hokkaido people hang out.
If so, this ある refers to a place not 私 and it makes sense.
私は＜新宿にある”北海道”＞に流れ着きました。
It is some kind of metaphor.
It means “I drifted to “Hokkaido” which exists in Shinjuku”
ありがとうございました！
漢字が間違いました。はい、「北海道」が書いていました。
Yes, it was a show about a product exhibition of Hokkaido food.
北海道の物産展の所でした。
Ok that makes sense so to break down the sentence from the 私は, since that would not make sense if it was connected.
Sorry for the confusing question, I’ll make sure to provide more detail next time.
@Miburi
どういたしまして！
Now it makes sense!
I am glad we solved the problem!!
Thanks for the lesson~ I noticed this:
[A and B are talking about a book.
A : まだ半分も読み終えていない。
= Mada kono hon hanbun mo yomioete inai.]
There’s some text missing from the Japanese part or there’s some extra in the romanji. :) Not a big deal, but for a real beginner it may be confusing.
This was very useful and detailed. Thank you. I know you covered 重そう which is the adj + ending removed + そう but I was wondering what about if someone says “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight”. I was thinking you could say something like “痩せたみたいです” but is it possible to use そう because its the past tense so I’m not sure if that makes sense.
Hello Miburi!
Good point! “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight” is 痩せたみたい
そう is only used to describe the current or sometime future condition.
If I am working on a diet and I think it may work, I can say 痩せそう。
And if you see someone who looks skinny you can say
細そう
Thank you 先生! You explained it very well. 「細そう」はかなり言いにくいですね。
I was wondering from the comment below, “彼はいつもセーターを着ていそうだ。”
Can we use any action form that’s present tense or future with そう? like くれる＝くれそう
For instance, “it seems like he’s always teaching me English.”
彼はいつも私に英語を教えてくれそうです。 Does that make sense?
Happy New Year! Aki!
1) じゃない is much more casual than ではない
I have a lesson on that theme. Please check じゃない＆んじゃない
2) It depends on the person but generally speaking if you see someone for the first time, it will be safe to address them with family name with さん 渡辺さん
But if that person introduce themselves with their first name, you can call that person first name with さん リオさん
一つ： 「～たことがあった」の形もありますね。 英語なら “there where times when”, “there was a time when”, “one day I ~ed”という意味です。
例）「うち娘はニンジンが嫌いなんだけど、目に見えなかったら食べられるのよ。キャロットケーキを作ったことがあったんだけど、すごく喜んで食べたのよ！」(Our daughter hates carrots, but she can eat them if she can’t see them. !One day I made! a carrot cake, and she happily ate it!)
二つ： 「～たことがある」は話し手の過去の経験を表すことだけでなく、時に「過去の時別なことがあった」という意味を表すこともあります。
例）「5年前にこの地方で大変な山火事が起こったことがあります。」(5 years ago !there was! a terrible forest fire in this area.)
こちらこそ、素晴らしいレッスンをどうもありがとうございました、先生！
実は、勉強ならばどの日でも良いですね、お正月でも＾＾。それに日本語は私の大趣味なので、毎日頑張って勉強していますしね。
役に立つコメントだったので嬉しいです。I will try to post some comments to every of your lessons – as a supplement – if something interesting will come up to my mind or when I will have some questions. I’m very happy that you love to share your knowledge about the Japanese language. I also share my knowledge with some of my friends (友達は日本学科学生です。２、３年生). 私は独習ですので and it is sometimes really hard to see the slight differences between some patterns, especially when you
are not Japanese, although I use good Japanese dictionaries and websites like kotobank.jp or dictionary.goo.ne.jp, but still… ま、ちょっと喋り過ぎちゃったね＾＾とにかく、居てくれてありがとう！
I came across a sentence that just said “Shinji-kun, 手あげて.” I can’t figure out what that’s supposed to mean. Nothing happens involving hands or anything like that so I can’t help but think it’s some idiom?
Hello ジュリアン！
Welcome to this lesson. (You can study any lesson any time. There is no right order here.:)
Though I have made a mini lesson other usage of なんか, you can replace なんて with なんか
1) when you emphasize the word which comes before なんて（=nante) and express your feelings such as surprise (either positive or negative), disgust, admiration, happiness, disbelief, etc.
2) When you look down, belittle someone or something or lack of confidence.
But you use なんか right after a noun and you can’t use なんか after an adjective or verb.
彼が私のことを好きだなんてしらなかった。→ X 好きだなんか
こんなに試験が難しいなんて…→ X 難しいなんか
So
彼のことを忘れるなんてことはできない。
This case なんて comes after a verb 忘れる so you can’t replace なんて with なんか but if you say
彼のことを忘れることなんてできない
なんて comes after a noun (忘れること）
You can replace なんて with なんか
彼のことを忘れることなんかできない。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
I think you have explained everything what could be explained about という in an outstanding way. Great job!
I’ve got two small questions:
1. I’m just wondering about the following grammar construction: ～というはず、 ～というべき、～というともり.
a) In what kind of situations would you use という+はず、という+べき、という＋つもり?
(I’m sure that it is used in quotations: ex.「はい、いいですよ。」というはずがありません。I think, it might be used also in explanation like というわけ. How about other possibilities?)
2. Is there a difference between というと～ 、ということは～ and というわけで～ ?
例）マギー先生: 明子さんの家族は今四人です。
私: というと、赤ちゃんが生まれましたね！
↓
私：ということは、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。
↓
私：というわけで、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。
I think those three expressions can be used interchangeable and the meaning will be still almost the same (= which means / this means / so).
一つ気になることがありますが。先生は私が最後の述べた文章では、「You can’t use というと」と言いましたね。実はこれは「どんな時どう使う」という教科書から取られた例文です(家族の名などをちょっとchangeしたのだけれど). この「というと」という言い回しは相手の言った言葉を受けて、それが自分の思っている内容と同じかどか確かめる時に使うものです。先生が言った通りの”To confirm what other people has just told you.”と同じ意味である。『「というと」の前を省略して接続的に使う場合もある』とある。ならば、「というと、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。」は「明子さんの家族というと、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。」=> 確認 ＝ 正解文章（だと思います）。違うかな？
First of all I wanted to thank you very very much for such wonderful lessons. You made them in a very interesting and easy-to-learn way, which is quite difficult. I am also really impressed how precise your lessons are. Thanks to you my japanese has become much better.
Now, if you allow, I’d like to ask you two questions about わけ.
1. When わけがない cannot be interchanged with はずがない? It’s quite difficult to see the difference between わけがないand はずがない, however there is a difference, which is: 「はずがない」は客観的判断であり、「わけがない」は主観的判断です。
2. What’s the difference between というわけ vs （な）わけ, and when is it necessary to use というわけ instead of （な）わけ?
例）
1. 絶対に嫌だというわけではない。 VS 絶対に嫌なではない。
2. あの二人は仲が悪いというわけではないがよく言い争いをしている。 VS あの二人は仲が悪いわけではないがよく言い争いをしている。
3. そんなに複雑なわけではないがやたら時間がかかる。 VS そんなに複雑（だ）というわけではないがやたら時間がかかる。
I think that 「という」 used in 「というわけ」(depending on context) might also imply hearsay (伝聞) (people say/they say/it seems like). Which means that the speaker doesn’t fully agree with the – let’s call it – general idea of something or second-hand information. This brings me to the conclusion that そんなに複雑なわけではないがやたら時間がかかる means: It is not so complicated, but it takes a lot of time, and そんなに複雑というわけではないがやたら時間がかかる could mean:
1. It is not that they [/people] say it’s so complicated, but it takes a lot of time, or
2. It is not that I say it’s so complicated, but it takes a lot of time.
こんにちは！Tennin!
Thank you for your nice message!
1. わけがない and はずがない ：
Yes わけがない is subjective and はずがない is objective.
Ex. 1) 日曜日なのに銀行が開いているはずがない
Ex. 2) 日曜日なのに銀行が開いているわけがない。
The translation can be the same and we may use them the same way but Ex.1) All the banks are supposed to be closed on Sunday. Ex.2) There is no way that banks are open on Sunday and it express your strong opinion.
2) (A little correction 絶対に嫌なではない。→絶対に嫌なわけではない)
I think your interpretation is correct in certain cases but という is not always for hearsay. We also use it when we explain how things work. The main difference between ~というわけではない and ~わけではない is ~というわけではない is more explanatory.
I have mentioned in my という lesson so please go check.
hi maggie sensei!
Im very confused! Can you tell me whats the difference between ‘baka ni shinai de yo’, ‘baka shinai de yo’ and ‘baka ni shinai da yo’ and ‘baka shinai da yo’ ?? @-@
こんにちは、Aki!
(You have a question? Then 問題 →質問=しつもん=shitsumon is better. 問題 means “a trouble”）
OK, when you make a casual question, you add の at the end.
これは美味しいですか？= Is this delicious?
→(casual) これ美味しいの？= Kore oishii no?
Hi,
this: “It is not considered as kanji so we can’t read this letter alone. ” preoccupies me cause i’ve learned to read it のま and tangorin mentions it too.
Are you positive?
Great site btw.
ありがと
Hello jo,
のま(ノマ） is just a name of this repetition mark.
Because it looks like ノ+マ
I checked Tangorin but I don’t see the example of reading 々 as のま.
They introduce the name of the mark as,
くりかえしkurikaeshi · おなじonaji · おなじくonajiku · のまnoma · どうのじてんdounojiten
Thank you for visiting this site!
Hello sensei, is it possible to explain the terms ‘desutte’? I think I came across this word in your forum but there werent any lessons regarding to it. Can you tell me how to use and the function of desutte? Thank you so much.
I’m at a Japanese elementary school, and before the children say “te wo awasete kudasai”, they usually say another phrase and I can’t quite make it out. It sounds something like “kyuushoku otobansan arigatougozaimasu”. What exactly are they saying?
I’ve been a fan of your site and I’ve just came across this post today. Thank you for all the wonderful lessons!
@ann
Hello Ann!
I guess every school has different version but your listening is very good.
That must be
給食お当番さん有り難うございます。
= Kyuushoku otoubansan arigatou gozaimasu.
給食= kyuushoku = school lunch
当番= touban = turn, duty
（The polite way : お当番さん= otouban san)
給食当番 = Kyuushoku touban = one’s turn to serve school lunches,
or a student who is in charge of helping serve school lunches
Thank you for the nice message!!! Hope you come back here again and again! :)
Usually students take a turn to help serve school lunch.
So other students express their appreciation towards them.
Hello ! I just finished reading your lesson and saw a mistake right here :
” 寝る(=okiru) to sleep
寝ない (=okinai) not to sleep ”
Isn’t it “neru” and “nenai” ?
And by the way, about that part :
“明日、映画でも観に行かない？”
Just wondering, is there any difference between 見に行く and 観に行く ? I’ve always learnt to write it like the first one, so I was a bit surprised !
Thank you for what you do, I love your lessons, there’re really great !
頑張ってね！
こんにちは、サーフィー!
Ooops!! Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them. (I copied and pasted them with my little paws and forgot to changed them. ^；ｪ；^,)
As for 見る vs 観る
Basically you can use 見る
But we use 観る for movies, musicals, arts, plays, arts, something you appreciate, sightseeing, etc.
Hello maggie sensei^^
It’s been a while since I visited your wonderful site.
I have the following question:
1. what is the plain form of “yarareta?
2. what is the meaning of “kanari”? in the first sentence. Also, what is “de” function here?
3. “watashi ga icchatterutte itta no wa” what is “-tte” here? Also, what is the function of “no wa? I don’t understand the combination..
Thanks in advance for your help and your great efforts to help people learn Japanese.
ほんとうにありがとうございます。
1. やられた(=yarareta) やる(=yaru) →passive form やられる(=yarareru) →past tense of passive form やられた(=yarareta)
2. かなり(=kanari) means “very much” “pretty much” “a lot” “really”
“(この暑さ）で” this で(=de) has a function of cause. = by this heat, because of this heat
3. 〜って is a casual way to say “と” It is used when we quote someone’s speech. (Go check this lesson.)
のは(=nowa) →「〜」と言った人は誰ですか？→「〜」って言った人は誰ですか？→「〜」って言ったのは誰ですか？
(If you want to know more about the function of の. Go check this lesson.)
(I’m sorry I have to post this here, since I coulnd’t post in the previous page… my computer freezes whenever I returned to that page :/”)
Maggie-sensei, may I ask something pretty er.. random?
Approximately how many Kanjis I have to know to be able to read Seinen mangas? (The one that doesn’t have Furiganas).
I learned around 500 kanjis (although I only remember around half…) and I can barely read raw Seinen mnagas :/””. I’m curious to know how far am I from reading them without having to find what’s the kanji by searching those kanjis by radical in websites….@@”
Thank you!
We learn at least 1,000 kanji in elementary school. And 2000 kanji by the time when you graduate high school.
That will give you an idea… Ganbatte!
(As for the comment, use Maggie’s Room comment section. That way, you can remember where you have posted your question. :))
☆流行語 : Buzz words, trendy words
★若者言葉 : buzz words which are used among young people
流行語 is not always used by young people. It could be a word or a quote from news, politicians, athletes, comedians,celebrities, etc.
外来語 means Japanese words which originally came from foreign language* terms (*Mainly from Western language.)
先生、返事は遅れてすみませんでした。
やはり若者言葉は特殊の語ですね。先生、若者言葉はいつも変わりますか。若者言葉オンライン事典がありますか。
Nb:sensei iam sorry for my bad japanese
@ageng
日本のGoogleで”若者言葉”を検索するといっぱい出てくると思いますよ。
I came across the verb “kaeri ni/ kaeri michi”. Can all japanese verbs be added with ri at the end just like kaeri? And what does it mean, sensei? Thanks!
@anna
帰る= karu is a verb and it means to go home, to return, to go back
The noun is 帰り= kareri
帰りに= kaeri ni or 帰り道に= kaeri michi ni means “on the way back home” “on one’s way home
Haha Banzai 2u2, Layol!
That と is not a conditional と.
君へとこの手を伸ばした。
is a very poetic expression but へと means “towards” and express some action or feelings goes to some direction.
I´m sorry sensei, because perhaps this is not the post to ask this but I don´t find any information about “ます 形+上げる/上がる”, for example, 書き上がる、作り上げる… I only know the meaning is “to just finish doing + verb” but I don´t understand, for example, which verbs with to use 上げる and which verbs with use 上がる.
Like always, thank you very much in advance, 先生! ^-^
Transitive and intransitive verbs… Thank you Maggie sensei, I don´t know how I couldn´t notice that it was about transitive and intransitive verbs when I read this point of grammar at my book.
This pattern meaning is “just finished doing…”, right? What about たて? Both pattern meanings are very similar, and don´t know very well what´s the difference between them.
Thank you very much, 先生!
I didn´t noticed there was a lesson about 〜たて until you told me, 先生.
I got an idea about 〜たて meaning because an anime called 焼きたてジャパン :) but with your explanation is now completly clear.
As always, thank you very much for your help 先生 and I´m very sorry to answer so late to your last comment.
@Sandra
Good to hear it is clear now. :)
先生、こんにちは。
お元気ですか。
I’d like to thank you for this great lesson.
やっと「はず」の使い方が分かったはずです。(I hope that sentence is correct. If not, how embarrassing…
Ex. 私はその本を読んだつもりです。
= Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda tsumori desu.
= I thought I read the book. (But I could be wrong.)
Ex. 私はその本を読んだはずです。
= Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda hazu desu.
= I must have read that book.(I am pretty sure.)
Note : verb present tense + つもり= (~するつもりです）to be going to do something, will do something
(When you are talking about what you are going to do in near future.)
verb past tense + つもり=(~したつもりです。）is used when you thought you did/have done something.
*****
Ex. 3) 父はまだ若いつもりです。
= Chichi wa mada wakai tsumori desu.
= My father believes he is still young.
Ex.4) 父はまだ若いはずです。
= Chichi wa mada wakai hazu desu.
= I believe my father is still young.
Note : As you can see the subject of Ex.3) is “my father” but the subject of Ex.4) is “I”.
Hey, thanks for posting all this helpful information. I have a fairly specific question regarding the usage of ように見える。
I asked a Japanese friend of mine if I seem like a quiet person and phrased it as “静かなように見える？” and they responded with “(my friend’s name)に比べて静かに見える…”
My question about this exchange is whether the use of 見える specifies the “seemingness” as being specifically a matter of appearance and/or prediction, or can it also carry the sense of “seem” whereby one is stating from experience that doesn’t really relate much to vision.
In other words, does this grammar convey that “I look like I’m quiet compared to my friend” or “I seem more quiet than my friend(based on how much we talk)”, or does it depend on context?
Dear マギー先生、 thank you for all these useful explanations!
I am trying to understand the meaning and structure of the following sentence: 日本語で答えてくれる場合でも、普通の日本人の使わないような、変な日本語で答えられることも多い。
I understand “even where an answer is given in Japanese, a strange form of Japanese is used so that [the language] of ordinary Japanese people is not used”.
Could you please also help me with the following sentence (excerpt from the Japan Times’s Intermediate Japanese Book, regarding American students in Japan who are being asked by Japanese people to converse in English):
In the last section, the part with the negative seems to be the subject of the sentence (there aren’t few Americans who…) but I don’t understand the beginning of that last section. Could you please let me know what it means?
@Yoko
You’re welcome!
And let me see your next question.
First, I think it lacks “の” here.
日本人の友達ができることもある”の”だが、
So you want to know this part, right?
〜というアメリカ人は少なくない
means “There are quite a few American people who….”
自分が利用されているような気持ちがする
modifies “American people”
So
There are quite a few American who feel like they have been/are exploited/used.”
Bless you for posting this stuff, you make it so fun to learn!
Sensei, another great lesson. Thank you very much.
I’m trying to read a children’s version of Momotaro and hataorigumo’s tale and I found lots of sentence with this pattern: ~~~to~~~~verb in the past.
Examples:
Momotaro:
Obaasan ga sentaku wo hajimeru to, ookina momo ga nagaretekite, bikkuri shimashita;
Momotaro to, inu to, saru ga naomo aruite iru to, kondo wa kiji ni deaimashita.
Hataorigumo:
Yosaku-san wa hebi ni chikatzuku to, motte ita kuwa de, kore wo oiharaimashita;
Yosaku ga hataori no koya wo musume ni miseru to, sassoku musume wa wata o tsukatte, hataoriki de orihajimemashita.
According to your lesson, in which category those examples fit in?
-What is likely to happen/what is supposed to happen if/when you do something;
-Unexpected or unknown results.
@Rodrigo
The conditional 〜と has the following pattern.
Sentence A (providing certain condition) + Sentence B (predictable outcome, what is going to happen)
Sentence A somehow causes the following event, action or feelings in Sentence B. (A is a condition for B)
１）A おばあさんが洗濯を始めると(1) B 大きな桃が流れてきてびっくりしました。
Obaasan ga sentaku wo hajimeru to, ookina momo ga nagaretekite, bikkuri shimashita;
C : The old lady started to do the laundry but it is not the condition of the big peach
２）A 桃太郎と犬と 猿がなおも歩いていると(2) B 今度は雉に出会いました。
Momotaro to, inu to, saru ga naomo aruite iru to, kondo wa kiji ni deaimashita.
３）A 与作さんは蛇に近づくと(3) B 持っていた鍬でこれを追い払いました。
Yosaku-san wa hebi ni chikatzuku to, motte ita kuwa de, kore wo oiharaimashita;
４）A 与作が機織りの小屋を娘に見せると(4) B さっそく娘は綿を使って機織り機で織り始めました。
Yosaku ga hataori no koya wo musume ni miseru to, sassoku musume wa wata o tsukatte, hataoriki de orihajimemashita.
When we see these sentences, Sentence A and Sentence B are not necessary related. In other word A is not the condition for B.
4) can be categorized as an unexpected result but the と in 1)~3) is “when”/”as”/”and (then)” and it simply connect two actions or events.
Ex. マギーは本を読む(A) とすぐに眠くなる(B)。(Conditional)
Whenever Maggie reads a book, she gets sleepy.
(A is the condition for B. Reading a book makes Maggie sleepy. )
Ex. マギーは本を読むと眠りについた。(not conditional)
Maggie read a book and fell in sleep.
(Two continuous actions. Maggie read a book (action1) and then she slept (action2)
I work for an airline company. My main job is at the check-in counter. I found your vocabulary list very helpul ^^
I was wondering, how would you say that a flight was cancelled or that they have to take a flight at another airport? (I work at the international airport and sometimes due to the weather the flights departure from the domestic airport).
Thank you sincerely for your help ^^
Hello R.de M.
Oh you are actually working for an airline company. I am very happy to hear my vocab. list is helpful.But I guess my lesson is for the passengers, huh?
Flight cancellation in Japanese is 欠航=kekkou
Ex. お客様の便は悪天候のため*、欠航になりました
= Okyakusama no bin wa akutenkou no tame kekkou ni narimashita.
= Your flight has been cancelled due to the bad weather.
For other reasons
＊悪天候のため
= akutenkou no tame
= for the bad weather
You can switch the reason.
＊ 機材の故障のため
= Kizai no koshou no tame
= for a mechanical reason
******
Q : How would you say that they have to take a flight at another airport
That means they have to go to the domestic airport and take a domestic flight and change the flight somewhere? If so, you can say
Ex. 大変申し訳ございませんが、国内空港よりお乗り継ぎをお願いしております。
= Taihen moushiwake gozaimasen ga kokunani kuukou yori onoritsugi wo onegai shiteorimasu.
= We are very sorry but we ask you to take another domestic connecting flight from the domestic airport.
But of course, you need to add more information, the airport name, what kind of connecting flight they should take and etc.
Feel free to ask me any other sentence patterns if necessary. :)
About the question on taking the flight at another airport, I meant that at our domestic airport we also have international flights but only to neighbouring countries. Sometimes due to the bad weather, international planes (the ones that are not too big) may be able to land at o departure from the domestic airport.
Ah I see. Then how about this?
Ex. (15:30に）成田行きの便が〜〜国内空港から出ますのでそちらの方へ（シャトルバスで）移動下さい。
= (Sanji sanjuppun ni) Narita iki no bin ga ~~ kokunai kuukou kara demasu node sochira no hou ye (shatorubasu de) idou kudasai.
= Please go to ~~ Domestic Airport (by our shuttle bus) where you can take the 15:30h flight to Narita.
Hi Maggie!
A friend of mine always says “ぐち” and says things like ”ぐちばかりでごめんね”
Is this used commonly? I think it sounded to me more harsh, more like “whining” than “complaining”, but I’d like to be able to use it correctly!
Thanks!!!
Patrick
Hello Patrick!
When you look up in a dictionary, 苦情(kujou), 不平(fuhei), 文句(monku) and 愚痴(guchi) might be all “complaints”
(I have a lesson on ぼやく and mentioned all these words so please go check. Click here!)
Actually 愚痴 and ぼやき are very similar.
I don’t know what you meant by “harsh” but 愚痴（ぐち）を言う means “to complain, to whine, to grumble” about something which may not be so important to other people on and on.
How to use :
Ex. ちょっと愚痴っていい？
= Can I whine a bit?
(In casual Japanese)
Ex. ちょっと愚痴ってもいい？
Or as your friend says,
いつも愚痴ってばかりいてごめんね。
I am sorry I always whine/complain.
Ex. いつも愚痴を聞いてくれてありがとう。
= Thank you for always listening to my complaints.
Ex. いつでも愚痴っていいよ。
= Itsudemo guchitte iiyo.
= You can always complain.
Is there any particular way of knowing the formation of different verb using chau~? For example; wakacchatta, barechatta,icchatta, kacchata ( Some with one ‘c’ and some with 2’c’) Confusing~~~
Thank you so much for your consideration. :) It is the part when you add the small tsu that confuses me. I am having problem as to which verb to add small tsu or vice versa.
OK, if you have a problem with って then you might want to review how to make て-form as well. You can always check the verb lists but there is a way to remember the basic ones with a song.
Go google the te-song. You will figure out when you use っ, ん,い and exception in a fun way.
Here is the lyrics. It will be easier to remember with songs. There are a lot of videos on Youtube.
Under the section where you explain ~ないと, you used 美味しい as an example. However, when you write 美味しくない you translate it as ‘not delicious’ but when you add と to it you translate it as ‘if not young.’ I was just wondering if this was a typo. If not, is that just a Japanese expression or something?
~てくる can be translated 1) “to have been ~ ing” 2) “to have+ pp” “3) “be ing” and it changes depending on the sentence.
As for the translation, I am sorry but I don’t do the translation. (So many people have asked me to do the translations so.. Hope you understand..)
But I can help you translating the verb parts. Hope it’s OK with you.
1. has been increasing/ has increased
2. have come to hate~
3. have become extinct
I understand that you are busy and get constantly harassed by people like me to translate sentences so it’s okay! thank you so much for the explanations and making me have a better understanding on this topic. ご迷惑をかけてすみませんでした。
hey Maggie :) I read through this blog again and I just got a little confused. it was described that てきた means has been doing (from a certain point in the past until the present). So, how come in examples like these –> (気温が下がってきた or 雨が止んできた ) the meanings aren’t, “The temperature has been dropping” and “the rain has been stopping”?
@Campbell Carsley
I think your translation would work.
The temperature has been dropping” / “the rain has been stopping”?
But to be more precise,
The temperature has been dropping” = 気温が下がってきている
“The rain has been stopping” = 雨が止んできている
might work better. What do you think?
Thank you for explaining. “The rain has been stopping” might not make sense now that I think about it. It would be “the rain has stopped” which I think in Japanese is 雨が止んだ。
Is it alright if I ask one more question? :)
What is the difference between てくる and stem+始める? Like if I wanted to say, “It has started to increase”, in Japanese would that be 増えてきた or 増え始めた?
I agree. Maybe “The rain has been stopping” sounds strange in English.
We do say “雨がやんできた”. “雨がやんできている” is possible to use as well. (Another way to say this is “小雨になってきた／きている”)
増えてきた and 増え始めた
They can be the same but there is a slight difference.
増えてきた is “It has been increasing”. It focusing the current condition. It is going on right now.
and 増え始めた is “It (has) started to increase. You are talking about the past when it started to increase)
But 増えてきた and 増え始めてきた are the same.
増えてきた ＆増え始めてきた
Still you can not switch each other all the time.
You can describe how things have started to change with ~てくる and ~始める but you can’t use ~てくる when you describe people’s action.
Ex. 赤ちゃんが歩き始める
You can’t use 〜てくる／きた
@ナバ
ナバは女の子なのね。勉強してもいいけど、使わない方がいいよ〜
（A little correction : 使いたいことになった→使いたくなった
If you are a girl, you can use あたし but it sounds childish or shallow who you use it with. I would still avoid using あたし. 私＝わたし sounds better. )
どういたしまして。のだ、んだ are very strong. It is good to study but you should avoid using this form when you talk to people.
（A little correction : 男言葉使えたいだけど→使いたいけど）
ナバは男の人？だったら”あたし”は女性が使いますよ。:)
先生、It’s not related to the lesson above but… I’be been hearing dictionary form of verbs used as commands. Like in Yokai Ningen Bem, I’ve heard them use ”Mou Yamerunda”. The subtitles said it as a command, like- stop, enough, etc… It’s kinda confusing me ヽ(≧Д≦)ノ
お願いいたします。
@ナバ
Hello ナバ！
OK,
You mean “verb dictionary form + んだ”, right?
(Note : ~んだ is originally 〜のだ)
There are a few ways to make a command form (読みなさい！飲みなさい！やめなさい！座りなさい！→(stronger, male, rough) 読め！飲め！やめろ！座れ！
And you can also make a command form with “verb dictionary form＋のだ or んだ
Hello maggie sensei:)
I wish you all success.
I have the following questions:
1. Is -ppoi ending for all ages? Children, teens or adults?
2. I know we can end sentences with “da” instead of “desu”
is it the casual form of “desu”?
Also, is it manly to use “da” at the end of the sentences or is it fine for girls to use it too?
Thanks in advance.
Hello! kuroineko!
1. Depends. The words such as 安っぽい、色っぽい、子供っぽい etc are pretty common all thorough the ages.
But only certain teens use っぽい with verbs.
Ex. 〜したっぽい、やったっぽい etc.
2.だ is not a casual suffix.
1) For writing : You can chose either desu form or da form.
2) For conversation : It sounds rough even for men.
Ex. あそこに見えるのが私の家だ。(If it is in writing, it is totally safe but if you verbally say that it sounds very blunt.)
In order to soften up we often add よ to a noun
私の家だよ。
Thanks again!! First time I’ve heard it, thanks for the new word :D
@イサイ
どういたしまして again.
こんにちは、先生！最近、日本語に訳し方が分からなくて困っている英語の文法がありますが、手伝っていただけませんか？ここから、英語で説明します。The grammar I’m talking about is “I know that” or of the like. I think in Japanese it’s called 接続詞。For example, “I didn’t know that you were moving to Japan!” or “I just realized that you were standing right behind me. You scared me!” I don’t know how to translate that “that” into Japanese correctly.
こんにちは！！
I didn’t know that you were moving to Japan!”
1. 君が日本に引っ越しをするということを知らなかった。
→Correct!! Good job.
You can also use “なんて” if you want to express the surprised feelings.
君が日本に引っ越しをするなんて知らなかった。
“I just realized that you were standing right behind me. You scared me!”
2. 君が真っ直ぐ僕の後ろに立っていたということを気づいたばかりだわ。驚いたよ！
1) 真っ直ぐ→すぐ後ろに
2) Since you use 僕, the speaker is a boy right? Then avoid using だわ suffix because it is for women.
The direct translation is
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたということに今、気がついた。驚いたよ。
But the natural way to say this sentence is
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたとは知らなかった。驚いたよ。
Again you can use なんて to show your surprise.
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたなんて知らなかった。
So overall you can use “ということ” for “that clause” but be careful with the particles.
You have to choose pick the right particle depending on the verb.
~に気がついた
About the baseball manager’s sentence “I can’t help complaining – ぼやきたくなる”, could you explain that pattern a little bit more? Is that always that way when you mean “I can’t help なになに”?
Hi Casiel!
〜たくなる is to feel like doing something, something makes you want to do something，to be tempted to do something
Ex. 食べたくなる = Something makes you want to eat, to be tempted to eat,
Ex. この映画を観ていると日本に行きたくなる= This movie makes me want to go to Japan
Ex. ぼやきたくなる= to feel like grumbling
I translated “I can’t help grumbling! there because there is a sentence before “ぼやきたくないけれども = Though I don’t want”
***
There are several ways to say “can’t help ~”
~(し)たくてたまらなくなる
Ex. 食べたくてたまらなくなる
~(せ)ずにはいられない
Ex. 食べずにはいられない
(Check my latest lesson : ずに）
Hello maggie sensei!
Thank you for your answer and for the examples, but part of the second question has no answer
2. what is “食べていない” and why not “食べなかった”?
@kuroineko
Oh sorry! I missed the question.
食べていない means “I haven’t eaten” and 食べなかった is “I didn’t eat”
今日は何も食べていない= I haven’t eaten anything today.
昨日は何も食べなかった= I didn’t eat anything yesterday.
Hi maggie sensei^^
I want to thank you for your efforts and support to all of us.
I have the following questions:
1. in this sentence “彼はいい歳をしているのに子供っぽい” what is “している” meaning?
2. “私も最近、忘れっぽくなっちゃって。今日、ご飯まだ食べていないよね” what is “も” here?
does it mean “also”?
also, what is “食べていない” and why not “食べた”?
3. (not related). What is “なんと”? and please give me example.
Thanks in advance. ほんとうにありがとうございます。
@kuroineko
Hello kuroineko-san!
1) It is the same as いい歳をして. It is a set phrase. “for one’s age”
2) It could be “also” but it’s an emphasizing in this case.
3) なんと = what, how
Ex. なんというお名前ですか？= What is your name?
Ex. これはなんという本ですか？= What is the name of the book?
Ex. 子供の頃、なんと呼ばれていましたか？= How did people call you when you were a child?
I see… Now is completly clear for me :) どうもありがとうございました、マギー先生！
Sorry, but since I discovered this page, about 2 months ago, I have asked several questions, in different posts. Is there any way for me to find all my questions?
どういたしまして。
And there is no easy way to find your past comments.
But I did the search for you just this time. If you leave a comment or question in different posts in future, please write them down somewhere. :)
こんにちは maggie先生！
This is a great lesson like always.
I have the the following questions:
1. Can you please explain “wasurezu” for me in ” Sorekara doggu fuudo mo wasurezu ni katte kitene.”
and what is the “ni” after “wasurezu”?
2. What is the vocabulary for “beginner level”?
3. what is “watashite”?
Thanks in advance:)
こんにちは！
1. ~ずに is one of the lessons that I am working on right now.
忘れずに is the same as 忘れないで = Don’t forget
~ずに〜する = “to do without doing something.”
Ex. 勉強せずに試験を受ける
= to take exams without preparation.
Ex. 朝食を食べずに出かける。
= To go out without having breakfast.
に here has a function of emphasizing.
2. You mean what is the 初級レベル vocabulary? I have several “Super Basic Words” lessons so please go check them.
3. 渡して=watashite = te form of 渡す= to hand out, hand over = to give something to someone
Can i ask you something? I’ve watched an anime and there was a character who always said something which sounded like ‘majitsuka/ga’ but in her context (I watched with subtitles–such a shame -.-)
it was used like: that’s so weird, so grazy something in this direction.
Is this right? I mean common and right how I understood if yes would it be written with Kata/Hiragana or Kanji? I know majitsuka has also another meaning but i forgot..
And can you tell me what:
I’m (so) bored!
Thats’s so weird/stupid!
Are you kidding me?!
It’s georgious!
You are georgious!
That’s so much fun!
He/She is so much fun!
He/She is so kind.
would be in japanese?
Haha, that’s just some things which popped in my mind where I though I could need it somewhere..
Maybe you know the anime ‘date a live’ there are always 3 girls as nextcharacters and one of them says this always.. it’s the only sentence she says, if she sees something confusing/grazy/weird.
What you have heard must be
まじっすか？= Majissuka? (slang but politer than まじか）
or
まじか？= Majika? (slang/ more rough than まじっすか)
They mean “Are you serious?””No way!” “I can’t believe it”
So it could be “That’s strange (I can’t believe it!)”
OK these are a few ways to say the following sentences but I will give you the casual ones.
I’m (so) bored! = 退屈！= taikutsu
That’s so weird/stupid! = それは変だね= sore wa hen dane
Are you kidding me?! = うそ！= uso! / 本当に？ Hontou ni?
It’s gorgeous! = すてき！ (=suteki) note : this sounds a bit feminine.
You are georgious! = あなたは（or the person’s name) すてきだね。 ＊Be careful when you address someone あなた
That’s so much fun! = それは楽しい！= sore wa tanoshii
He/She is so much fun! = 彼／彼女はとても楽しい= Kare/kanojo wa totemo tanoshii
He/She is so kind. = 彼／彼女はとても優しい (or 親切だ） = Kare/kanojo wa totemo yasashii (or shinsetsu da)
By the question ”Am I cute” for example was with boku, so was this male speach now?
Or female speach, or can both use it?
I just tough when female uses boku it’s very rough or something.. thanks in advance!
no you can’t use this. for a girl it is “nee, watashi, kawaii to omou ?”
or just “ne, watashi, kawaii?”
ikemen is “man who go” so cannot apply for girls.
Sorry…I don’t understand.
Boku is the first pronoun for a man.
Ikemen is not “man who go”. It is a slang word to refer to a cool and cute guy.
So “Am I cute?” = girl says “Watashi kawaii (to omou) ?” and a man says “Boku kakkoii? or Boku ikemen (dato omou)?”
I am sorry for do not fitting in the theme again but..
do you know something of the chances for foreigners living in japan, I mean if i wanna live there.. I heard many times for an foreigner it’s kind of impossible to live there.. is it true?
Yes one reason why i wanna learn japanese is because I wanna live there I am just wondering if it’s still possible..
Thanks in advance!
Of course it is “possible” to live in Japan.
It is true that some foreign people find it difficult to live in Japan for different reasons but at the same time there are many foreign people live here without any problems.
Learning language is very important but more than that, be open minded. And I think we can say that to anybody who live in other countries not just in Japan.
ehrm another question,
I know every language has it’s own system with tense forms, so I would be really happy if yu could give me a overview for japanese tenseforms with an example??
Sorry if i demand too much! >.<
Can I ask how do you answer on questions with because/cause? (is there also a short form in jp?)
Like: Why …?
Because..?
urm i am not good at examples at all..
maybe you can make some? pleaaaaaase!
And could you may make a lesson or give me an example (or both ;)) for if senteces?
Like: If you go to Maggie sensei’s page, you’ll find good stuff for learning Japanese!
If you don’t go, you’ll miss much!
Or like: I could.., if you.. .
How I said not good at examples!
I’m just wonderng how to say sentences like this in japanese.. Thanks in advance!!
Ex. というのは明日は仕事があるからです。= It’s because I have to work tomorrow.
Ex. お腹がすいているから。= Because I am hungry
or
Just
〜（だ）からです。
Ex. 寒いからです。(Because it’s cold.)
(casual)
〜（だ）から。
Ex. 怒っているから。(Because I am angry)
******
If clause : I will just give you a basic pattern for today
★ (もし）〜なら,〜たら
Ex. If you want to see me, come to Japan.
↓
もし私に会いたかったら日本に来て下さい。
もし私に会いたいのなら日本に来て下さい。
Is といった used because they talk about several sports in the first sentence and about several typical japanese things in the second one? Is the only explanation I find, but probably is wrong… Could you explain a little about the use of といった in this kind of sentences?
Hello!
I have a small question and is about ta koto ga aru and ru koto ga aru tatoeba: tabeta koto ga aru or taberu koto ga aru. I know the meaning of ta koto ga aru and ru koto ga aru . My question is about the verb can i use passive or potential form of verb tatoeba: ikenai koto aru toka ijimerareta koto ga aru. I can’t find anything about it in my book’s so please can you anwser to my question? ^_^
@PukiPuki
Hello PukiPuki,
Yes, you can use passive or potential form with 〜たことががある and 〜ることがある
★Potential form :
Ex. チケットを持っていてもコンサート会場に入れないことがあった。
Even though I had a ticket, there was a time when I couldn’t get in the concert hall.
Ex. チケットを持っていてもコンサート会場に入れないことがあります。
It is possible not to be able get in the concert hall even if you have a ticket.
★Passive form :
If someone has stepped on your feet with her high heels before and you are talking about that particular experience, you say
Ex. ハイヒールで足を踏まれたことがある。
But if you are talking about the possibility you say
Ex. ハイヒールで足を踏まれることがある。
Can I ask you something even it didn’t fit the theme?
I’m getting a little confiused about 「」and 【】in which context are they used? I though it is like () if you say something and add in () extra information to that but I see 「」is used very often also by all your sentences in Japanese.. I’ll be really thankful if you could explain?
And I’m really thankful for your lessons I’m German and here it’s really hard to find good daily stuff the difference between male/female/neutral (have you a lesson to neutral too?) speech and
exspacially slang.. thank you very much!! By the way thank your stuff i learn both Japanese and
English ;)
Hello Cho!
Welcome to our site!
「」are single quotation marks and they are used for dialogue or speech
Ex. Maggie said “blah blah blah”
→マギーは「blah blah blah」と言いました。
or highlight of the word.
Ex. I hate “exams”.
私は「試験」が嫌いだ。
【】are not as common as 「」We use them for math,chemistry code, phonetic symbols, explanations, rephrase some word, etc.
As for the neutral speech, though I am a woman, I try to teach you neutral Japanese. But once in a while I include male or female speech. And when I do, I add the remarks “female speech”-“male speech”
I hope I answered your questions.
Schönen Tag noch!
Huh, thank you really much for the fast answer!
That helped me!!
But how is ist for example when you uses in a twitter biography, when you write something about yourself or information?
I just picked the biography from a musician I like:
カノン(アンティック-珈琲店-/AN CAFEベース) 2013年11月6日full album『非可逆ZiprocK』発売。【アプリ】『Pinky☆Distortion』【音楽】『アンティック-珈琲店-』『kanon×kanon』【楽曲提供etc.】LiSA、ave;new、劇団V、KERAソン
How are they used in context like this?
Because it’s no speach, and what are the differences between 「」and 【】?
i know you said【】isn’t common but I saw it much lately.
sorry for annyoing but i do not know who else to ask.
Actually these examples you found with【】are to highlight the genre, some classification.
【アプリ】【音楽】【楽曲提供etc.】
It is just their stile of writing the description. No specific rules.
「」are used for the titles.
We usually use 『』 for the quote in a quote.
(“I heard Maggie said “blahblah” said Yukari = ゆかりは「マギーが『blahblah』って言っているのを聞いたよ。」と言った。
but In your example, they are using them to show the title instead of regular single 「」
I notice you used the word ‘taberete’ in one of your examples. Would you mind explaining about it coz i was searching and referring to a table of japanese verb conjugations online but to no avail regarding to the ‘rete’ ending.
@anna
It is a very casual speech but I fixed it to avoid the confusion.
It is 食べられていいですね(taberarete iidesu ne) but in conversation we often skip いいですね
食べれる is considered to be ら抜き言葉(ranukikotoba, skipping ら in casual converasation) and 食べられる is grammatically correct.
Although “食べれていい” equally appeared on Google as “食べられていい”, I should have avoid using it in the beginners’ lesson.
The basic pattern
食べられていいですね。
→switch the orders
いいですね。食べられて
It is good that you can eat.- I envy you that you can eat.
I just moved to Japan and even though I took Japanese for three years in college, I`ve still had a lot of trouble communicating/understanding others while I`ve been here. I hate relying on other people (like friends and coworkers) to help me with daily life, so I`m trying really hard to study Japanese even more in order to speak like a native Japanese person would as best as I can. I stumbled upon your website while researching a grammer point, and after briefly skimming through the site, I am very happy that I came across it. It seems wonderful and I can`t wait to go through all your lessons and videos when I get home after work. Just wanted to say thanks so much for helping all of us out. It`s really nice to learn all this informal stuff like slang and how to get through an everyday type of activity like signing up for a points card. If only they taught us how to say stuff like this back in school -_-
Hello Naz! Welcome to Japan and our site!
There are many lessons here (I am sorry but I don’t make videos..) so hope you visit here often and enjoy learning Japanese with us.
OK now you live in Japan, your wallet will be full of “point cards” soon. Be careful! :)
I’ve read the usage of -teki comes from the English -tic. Japanese grammar got changed a bit since the influence of Western languages, especially English. 精力的 energetic, 映画的 cinematic, etc…
Sorry to say but that’s completely wrong. Although the genitive in Classical Chinese was 之 zhi, 的 (pronounced “de”, which isn’t で but sort of like “dø;” in old Chinese it was pronounced “dak” or “duhk” and thus became “teki” in Japanese ) was still used as an attributive marker and was passed to Japanese and given a Japanese-style grammar. Basically 的 means “of” and な is what is used in Japanese to attach it to words.
@risu
Thank you for your comment. I don’t know any Chinese so I can’t answer the similarity or difference between Japanese and Chinese but the equivalent English word depends on the words, I think.
~ic/ ish, wise, etc.
Oh my, thank you for clarifying this. I have always wanted to know what this little character meant! Didn’t know how to type it as it’s not part of the syllabaries.
Hello!
I just discovered this blog 2 days ago while googling a more thorough explanation of “~teotsu” and my God, this is fantastic!
I love the adorable dog icon, I love your explanations, I love your lessons. Thank you so much, you cannot imagine how much I appreciate you doing this!
<3
You're amazing!
Hi Vex! Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
Thank you for your nice message. I am VERY happy to hear you like my lessons.
There are many lessons here so please come visit us again.
Wow! I never realized until now how many different uses there were for も! This is definitely a useful lesson to use as a reference during my studies. ありがとうございます、マギー先生!^_^
To the cute kitty: ニャー, ニャー!(Nice to meet you too!)
Hello Josefin,
When you translate them, it could the same but the difference is
Kaze wo hiku = to catch a cold, to have a cold (You are talking about the process of getting a cold)
Kaze desu. = What I (you) have is a cold.(you are talking about the symptoms or the name of the disease you have.)
Hi, Maggie! Congrats on your awesome blog. :) I was reading this entry and I wanted to ask if there is a reason why in Japanese certain words, like certain foods take the prefix o- in polite speech. You mention お野菜 and I’ve also heard お魚 and お肉. But as you say it’s not extensive to other food words, like “banana”, etc. So why do you need the o- prefix for meat, fish, vegetables and some other foods? I read in a grammar book that the o- prefix is used for taboo words with dirty/unhealthy connotations, like お手洗い, which I can understand. Also, to some extent, with food , it could be for aesthetic reasons (i.e. to show refinement), like in English you say “pork stew” (pork being a word of French origin) and not “pig stew” but I’ve also heard お花, as in お花綺麗～！, which I don’t understand, because flowers are something beautiful and have a lovely smell.
Hello Irea1
Thank you for visiting this site!
We don’t put お by its value or aesthetic reasons. It is a technique to make you sound polite when you talk to others.
For example when you refer to the phone call you made you say 電話 but when you refer to the call someone else made it is considered to be polite to say お電話
Women tend to use お more than men. A lot of women say お花 but if a man says “お花がきれい” it sounds a big feminine.
There are no specific rules which word takes お. But usually we don’t put お in front of katakana words.
X おバナナ X おコンピューター x おオレンジ
@Kuroineko
There are some expressions that you always use きらない
入りきらない= hairikiranai = won’t be able to fit, won’t hold
煮え切らない= niekiranai = indecisive
But besides that きらない is usually used to show your will. You won’t complete, do something on purpose
(敢えて)全力を出し切らない
= Aete zenroku wo dashikiranai
= Won’t do one’s best on purpose
全力を出し切れない
= Zenryoku wo dashikirenai
= not be able to do one’s best
maggie sensei arigatou ^^
thank you for explaining this lesson.
i have a question:
i noticed that you wrote “desho” once with ou ending and once without, is there a difference?
thanks in advance
Hello Kuroi Neko-chan,
でしょ is a casual form of でしょう. It is a tag question.
待ちきれない= machikirenai = I can’t wait.
↓
待ちきれないでしょ（う）= Machikirenai desho(u) = You can’t wait, can you? = I bet you can’t wait.
食べきれない(=tabekirenai) = tabekirenai
↓
食べきれないでしょ(う）(=tabekirenai desho(u)) You can’t finish eating, can you? = I bet you can’t finish eating.
@ブレット
Hello ブレット！
I love Golden Eggs. What they repeatedly use is not ~っけ(=kke).
I explained in my 草食系男子(=soushokukei danshi) and 肉食系女子（=nikushokukei joshi) lesson a long time ago but it’s 系=kei = a group, category, family. And yes, the girl in the Gold Eggs overuses it in a funny way. :) ノテ系ってどういう意味系？= Note kei tte douiu imi kei?
Thank you so much for the lessons.
Could you explain the sentence お決まりの方からどうぞ?
I understand “If you’ve decided, from that person please”
Best regards from Spain.
決める means “to decide to buy something” → to know what to buy →to be ready to buy something
So the literal translation is,
“We will attend from that person who have decide to buy something, so please come (to the cashier)”
We use お決まり at the restaurant or fast food as well.
ご注文はお決まりですか？
= Gochuumon wa okimari desu ka?
= Do you know what to order?
@ジャッシンデレラー
こんにちは！ジャッシンデレラー！
I think there are many ways to say “~to make you want to do something” depending on the sentence but you can say
but a lot of time we say it ~したくなる without using a causative verb.
アニメとドラマを見ると日本に行きたくなる
This commercial film makes me want to eat the ice cream.
このCMをみるとアイスクリームが食べたくなる。
This site makes me want to study Japanese.
このサイトに来ると日本語を勉強したくなる。
(A little note for you : 優位木→有意義= yuuigi But you you meant to say “useful” 役に立ちました。is more natural. :) )
From what I read in the lesson, てくる and ていく both deal with the future right?
You said: Verb + ていく(=teiku) From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions
てくる(=tekuru) From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions
In this example:
Ex. 1)あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte kurune.
= She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now)
Ex. 2)あの子はだんだん可愛くなっていくね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte ikune.
= She will be cuter and cuter. (from now on )
Why isn’t なってきた used in the first example? She has been getting cuter and cuter until this point.
I was under the impression that てくる is she will continue to get cuter and cuter in the future and she has been cute this whole time.
While I thought that, ていく meant she will get cuter and cuter in the future, from this point on, and she really hasn’t been cute until now.
So てくる she has been cute and will continue being cute and hasn’t reached her peak of cuteness yet.
While ていく means she will start becoming cute from now on (she really hasn’t been cute until now)
てきた She has become cuter and cuter until now, and we don’t know if she will get any cuter, stay the same etc etc
I added some more information. I made this lesson a long time ago but I guess I wanted to just focus on the difference between 〜てくる and 〜ていく that time in that example.
As you said, ~てくる deals with future time. But we also use it to describe what has been happening or what is happening right now in certain cases.
Thank you so much. I had a few more questions, but I will take a look again at the lesson and see if things become more clear.
I really appreciate the hardwork and details you incorporate into each lesson.
Your numerous examples really, really help with the nuance of many words.
Last time I checked there wasn’t a lesson on -ても。 Is this grammar point on your “requested list”? I read through a lesson on this grammar point, but it was a little confusing, maybe I just need to read the lesson again.
You’re welcome! I was going to go through the lesson again to make sure if everything was clear but I have been verry busy so will do that some other time.
And I will tell 〜ても on the request lesson.
Last but not least thank you for the nice message! :)
thank you so much! that makes a lot more sense now :) when you say habitual, would the English equivalent be ‘has been’. So like 雨が降ってくる could also mean it has been raining but not necessarily raining right now. ずこく役に立つコメントを書いてくれてありがとうございます。本当に感謝しています。
Umm when I said “habitual”, I meant “present tense” can also describe future actions and also habitual actions just like English.
Ex. 1) もうすぐ雨が降ってくる。= It will rain soon. (future)
Ex. 2) 私が海に行くといつも雨が降ってくる= Whenever I go to the beach, it rains. (something habitual)
Note : However with certain verbs and situations, ~くる can be used to describe the action what is happening/has been happening.
From the example sentences in the lesson.
Ex. 1)あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte kurune.
=She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now)
Ex. マギーが好きになってくる／きた
=Maggie ga suki ni natte kuru./kita.
=I’m getting like Maggie/ I’ve come to like Maggie. (until now)
But 降ってくる is just strange to use to describe when it has been raining/it is raining.
Hey maggie! I’m still having a little trouble understanding the てくる and てきた. I can understand ていく fairly easily but it’s the other two I can’t quite seem to grasp. What would be the difference between 雨が降ってくる and 雨が降ってきた. And how come even though the てきた is in its past tense it doesn’t mean ‘had been or was’? One more question :) This is an example situation I made up. A: 最近、上司の性格が変わってくるんだよね。B: お前も気付いていたの？まあねー１週間前ぐらい彼女と別れたんじゃない？A: あっ、そうですね。そういうことかも。。In that example situation, what would be the difference if you used 変わってきた instead? Sorry for the very long comment and lots of questions, it’s just I am really having a hard time working this out. Hope you can answer this for me!
Hello CC!
OK the first question.
1) The difference between A) 雨が降ってくる and B) 雨が降ってきた
They both have a verb くる
Basically 降ってくる is for future or something habitual and 降ってきた is used in the form of present perfect or the past.
A) 雨が降ってくる : It will rain (soon). It is not happening yet. You are talking about future or possibility
B) 雨が降ってきた : It has started to rain. So it is raining now.
This is present perfect but you can also use it when you talk about the past.
昨日、雨が降ってきたときにどこにいましたか？
= Where were you when it started to rain yesterday?
Now your example sentence.
A: 最近、上司の性格が変わってくるんだよね。
For the same reason as above, you can’t use くる here because his personality has been changed and you should say 変わってきたんだよね。
But if the boss always changes his personality when he drinks (habitual actions or behavior)you can use くる
上司はいつもお酒を飲むと性格が変わってくるんだよね。
このサイト本当に役立ってるよ(≧∇≦)
Anyways Is there a tutorial on how/when to use 方法、風、方？Or any other words that mean 「how to」
Example in english→
”I like how you ___”（or I like the way you ____）
”Can you tell me how to do this sum？”
“How is he winning without even trying?!”
”I like how you ___”（or I like the way you ____）
You can use 方 here.
verb + 方
how you do something =〜の やり方=yarikata、し方=shikata
how you play the piano = ピアノの弾き方= Piano no hikikata
how you talk = 話し方= hanashikata
how to do this sum = この合計の出し方= kono goukei no dashikata
******
When you ask a question how people do something,
どうやって(=douyatte)
“How is he winning without even trying?!”
彼はどうやって努力しないで勝っているのだろう？
= Kare douyatte doryoku shinai de katte iru nodarou.
Hi, I love your explanation >.< But I have a question. If you use って in the beginning of a sentence, how would you say it in English? For example,
って、何描いってんの？What does it emphasise?
Hello Hina
Ah, we only start a sentence with って in colloquial conversation but it’s usually ってか、っていうか. (I wrote about it in a couple of lessons. (Ex. 若者言葉 lesson. No. 5)
Your example sentence, って、何描いてんの？
It is not actually emphasizing anything. It means light “but”, “anyway”, “then” depends on the conversation.
“そういうこともあったっけ” is definitely my favorite out of these examples. I had forgotten that you could use it with polite forms, maybe because I neglected to use them… even with my teachers, haha.
はい、今日、朝ご飯を食べたっけ。
→Did you mean to say “Yes, I had breakfast”? Then はい、今日、朝ご飯を食べました。
We use ”っけ” when we are not sure whether we did something or not :)
今日、朝ご飯を食べたっけ？
ありがとう！！こちらこそこれからもよろしくね！
(マッギー先生なんて先生は聞いたことありますよ！→Ahhh, good mistake! なんて〜聞いたこと（は）ない (negative sentence) is fine but since it is an affirmative sentence, how about マギー先生のことよく知っていますよ。）
こんにちはマギー先生、すみませんが “ということだ” について質問があります。。。
“つまり。。。ということだ” どういう意味ですか。I have found a lot of sentences using this pattern. I have found that つまり meaning is “in other words”, but what does ということだ add to the meaning of this pattern? Could it be “in other words, it looks like…”?
For example:
山田さんはまだ来ていませんか。つまり、また遅刻ということですね。
Could I translate as:
“Hasn´t Yamada arrived yet? So/in other words, it looks like he will be late again.”
Hello Sandra!
Yes, we use つまり〜ということだ pattern a lot.
つまり means “in short, on other words, that is to say”, etc and summarize what it is said in the previous statement.
山田さんはまだ来ていませんか。つまり、また遅刻ということですね。
Your translation,
“Hasn´t Yamada arrived yet? So/in other words, it looks like he will be late again.”
is just fine.
Though I would translate,
Mr. Yamada is not here yet? That means he is late again, huh?
So つまり is often translated as “That means””I mean””You mean”
Ex. つまり私がいいたいのは〜ということだ。
What I mean is blah blah blah.
Ex. つまり~ということですか？
So that means blah blah blah?
Oh, I see… “That mean…” Yes, I got it :)
I’m sorry 先生 but there is another sentence I have doubts about.
田中さんから電話があって、少し遅れるということです。
I would translate:
Tanaka called and said that he would be a little late.
That´s what I understand when I read the sentence, so for me it would have the same meaning with 少し遅れるといいました。
I guess here ということです meaning it is what you explained before: “(3) What I know is, I’ve heard that, They say…:” but here, Tanaka called and said it, it´s an information he gave about himself, so it´s not a hearsay, so I don´t understand why is ということです used here.
Sorry 先生 for so long question, and thank you very much in advance!
Yes, your translation is correct.
As you said, ということです has a function to pass the information that you have heard or seen to someone.
It actually means the same as と言いました and we do say
田中さんから電話があって少し遅れると言っていました。
but while と言いました／言っていました just describes the action of “saying something”,ということです focuses on delivering the message and it sounds more formal than と言いました／言っていました. and we use ということです (or とのことです）） much more in business situations.
Oh! Now I understand why it´s used ということです in this sentence! Both sentences I asked you were together at the same point of ということです in my book, and for me had different meanings, so I was very confused, but now I got both of them!
You really helped me a lot, マギー先生.
I love reading your lessons so much!! Thank you! I used to think I was learning Nihongo like a turtle but now I am learning many useful and practical lessons in Nihongo. Arigatou, Maggie Sensei~ > u<
Hello Isay! このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！Thank you for visiting this site.
Learning Japanese like a turtle is good as long as you enjoy learning it. :)
Hope you come back here to learn more!
Wow, you replied so fast! Your site has become one of my relaxation activities after a long day at work. I love it! And yes, I enjoy learning Japanese, each new word I learn is so colorful, especially when I learn more about the kanji that comprise them. But words are weak without regular usage.. your site shows precisely how to do so correctly, so again, thank you!! <3
A great question! You are right 若い人ほど is from “若ければ若いほど”.
Young people tend to wake up late (more than older people).
The younger you are, you tend to wake up late more.
This is a technique that we use to emphasize the word which comes before ほど (in this case 若い) and it often use to bring up the unexpected fact.
You may not expect this but the truth is〜〜〜〜
Ex. （暑いければ）暑いほど、何か熱いものが食べたくなる。
When it gets hotter, we prefer to eat something hot more.
ああ、わかりました (*^^*) 対照的な時に、”は”が使われるんですね。でも、「知る、知っている」と言ったら、たいてい”を”が使われています。hmmm…. I’m still not quite sure when to use the particle か or particle を when saying “know”. I’ll write some example sentences and can you please correct them? (^_^)
eg1. (you don’t know how hungry I am)
君がどれだけ腹減ったか知らないよ
eg2. (do you know how to turn on the tv?)
テレビの付け方を知っている？
eg3. (how do you know where maggie hid her bone?)
なんでマギーがどこに骨を隠したか知ってるの？
最後の例 (I don’t know any shops that fix tv’s not working)
壊れているテレビを直す店のことを知らないんだ
They’re my example sentences, hopefully they aren’t too bad :) thanks for your help!!
Sorry for the confusion.
I am asking the chefs what they would like to drink.
They cannot leave to get their own drink since they have to take care of making customers order, so I (as a server) can get it for them.
Oh, I see. You are so nice! Although it is rare, if it is a cozy and friendly place , there might be a customer who would offer a drink to chef.
You could say
なるほど〜分かりやすく説明してくれてありがとう！添削もありがとう！(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) あっ、もうひとつの質問を聞いてもいいかな？日本語で言い方が分からないので英語で言います。When you want to say a sentence using the verb ‘know’ in Japanese, which particle do you use? Because, I’ve seen the particle は and を and also か being used with the verb ‘to know’ (as in 知ってる) Sorry for the long question, but all I want to know is what particle do Japanese people tend to use when they say 知ってる. thanks in advance :)
@Campbell Carsley
OK, 知る・知っている・（casual contraction 知ってる）
We usually use the particle “を”
〜（〜のこと）を知っている（casual contraction 知ってる）
Ex. マギー先生のサイトを知っていますか？
= Do you know about Maggie Sensei’s site?
Ex. 真実を知りたい。
= I want to know the truth.
Ex. この携帯の使い方を知らない。
= I don’t know how to use this cell phone.
But if you want to show some contrast, you can use は
Ex. Aは知っていますが、Bは知りませんでした。(= I know A but didn’t know about B)
Ex. この携帯の使い方は知らない。( I don’t know how to use this cell phone but I know how to use other cell phone.)
＊〜か知らない ~か知っている = to know whether ~ or not/what, who, which, as to
Ex. 誰が来るか知っていますか？
= Do you know who is coming?
Ex. 何時に会うか知らない。
= I don’t know what time we are supposed to see each other.
Ex. マギーがどこに骨を隠したか知っている。
= I know where Maggie hid her bone.
このレッスンも分かりやすくてありがとうございます！でも、疑問があるんです。例えばですね、I want to know why the resources of our once beautiful have been overusedって英語で言いたいとしたら、日本語で言うと、「なぜ美しかった地球の資源は使い過ぎられたということを知りたいんです」という意味になりますか？その文章で「ということ」をつければいいでしょうか？よろしくお願いします(^_^)
@ミーちゃん
こんにちは、ミーちゃん！
I’m sorry I don’t quite get the situation. You are going to ask chefs what they would like to drink???
Or you want to ask them what kind of drink they would recommend?
“お飲物は如何ですか？ (Onomimono wa ikaga desu ka?) is used when you are the one who serves drinks.
My friend told me that nagara is added to masu form to say “while doing,” instead of changing to nai and then removing it.
Don’t these two examples show pre masu form + nagara instead of nai–> remove nai–>add nagara?
Ex. 子供達は笑いながらゲームで遊んでいた。
Ex. 彼の気持を知りながら無視をしている。
Btw your lessons are so great. マギー先生のサイトを見つけたのが よかった！
You replied to the comment of jolie-san in this lesson that, the translate of –
“Its easy to see winter in Japanese”
雪は冬に降ることが多い
i can’t get the nuance of this stentnec
and can the below sentence is more common than the before one
冬は雪が見やすい.
And i have another doubt that 易い is used as suffix of verb stem as easily
so please tell which is correct one
of ” He climbs tree easily”
彼は簡単に木にのぼる。
彼は木がのぼりやすい。
if both are correct then whats the difference between their nuance.
As always thanks for your amazing service. your lessons helps me a lot to improve japanese.
冬は雪が見やすい or 雪は冬に見やすい doesn’t sound natural because it generally snows in winter.
You use 見やすい in the context such as
この席の方がステージが見やすい。
You can see the stage better in this seat.
You don’t say 彼は木がのぼりやすい。
but you can say この木は登りやすい。This tree is easy to climb.
彼は簡単に木に登れる (potential form is better)
簡単に means “to do something easily/without difficulties”
Hello PukiPuki!! お仕事でいろいろあったみたいですね。(=Oshigoto de iroiro atta mitai desune.)大丈夫！(=Daijoubu!) 明日はきっといい日になりますよ。(=Ashita wa kitto ii hi ni narimasuyo.)
明日は”なんていい日だろう！”って思えます様に。(=Ashita wa “Nante ii hidarou! tte omoe masu you ni!)
Thank you very much for your great site, it’s really thorough and great help when studying Japanese.
However, there’s a small typo in the following example. I hope you could fix it when you’ve time.
Hello James, こんにちは！
このサイトをみつけてくれてうれしいです。
OK, you can’t use 笑う and きれない. Because 笑う is an action that you can’t complete.
If you say 笑いきれない, it means “You have started to laugh and you can’t finish/complete laughing.”
So 彼がお尻から落ちた時、私は笑えなかった。 = I couldn’t laugh when he fell on his butt.
Hmmmmm… I just tried to comment and I don’t think it worked. Thanks for the great lessons. I have to start exploring your archive of lessons they are a great resource.
こんにちはマギー先生！
すみませんが、「の」の使い方について質問があります…
In my text book, I have a sentence to sort properly and the answer the book gives is:
私は少し苦みのあるコーヒーが好きです。
My answer was:
私は少し苦みあるコーヒーのが好きです。
I thought when you use 「の」as nominalizer, always follows a particle. I don’t understand why here it follows 「ある」。
Could you please help me a little?
どうもありがとうございます！
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I don’t understand the last part. Why do you put “datte” in a sentence and how would I go about using it?
If you could explain it like I’m a baby, that’d be helpful since I’m still a beginner at Japanese. I can’t grasp some of these concepts very well and I don’t exactly get what kind of sentence counts as a “summary”.
>”I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.”
I’m not exactly sure what makes this a summary. Does this mean that it’s sort of a conversation wrap up after you’ve explained your story? (or something along the lines of that)
One more thing, I found this usage of “tte” in a song and was just curious how this usage works.
Hello Brad,
OK, for example you are talking to someone about Mr.A. and that person tells you “He hasn’t been home for over month.” and maybe you get some other information about Mr.A from that person.
Now when you see someone else and tell that person what you have just heard about Mr.A.
You say “I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.”
So the information you want to give is
↓
he hasn’t been home for over a month now
= もう一ヶ月も家に帰っていない
= Mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inai
↓
I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.
私は彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないと聞きました。
= Watashi wa Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inai to kikimashita.
↓(More conversational)
彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないって。
= Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inaitte
↓
(Stress the information.)
彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないんだって。
= Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inain datte.
So the function of って here is “passing the information” but as you said, it could be a summary of what you have heard.
*****
Your second question :
いつまでも守っていく
“itsu made mo mamotte iku”
OK, this って is a part of the conjugation of 守る
守っていく
守ってきた
守っていた
守ってあげる etc.
There are many verbs that conjugate with って
to know = 知る = shiru
知っていく= shitteiku
知っていた = shitteita
to cut = 切る = kiru
切っていく = kitte iku
切って下さい = kitte kudasai
You will see this conjugation while studying Japanese grammar.
Hi maggie, first time on your website and it is just so helpful, thanks for your dedicated lessons and taking your time to help out the rest of us who are struggling with this beautiful language! I was wondering, shouldn’t Saki ni itte mattete! be 「先に行って待ってて」instead of 「先に行ってて」. I wish I had the confidence to write this message in japanese but I don’t think I’m quite there yet!:D
Well, I have both of them but the grammar I find there is beginner level and not very useful with the grammar I’m studying now (intermediate). I can find almost everything at どんな時どう使う日本語 but the explanations are very short and sometimes no clear enough.
Anyway, thank you very much Maggie sensei! :) I will continue checking your page everyday.
Oh you have both of them.
OK, I will let you know when I find a good grammar text books.
Anybody who knows good ones, please feel free to write in this comment section for Sandra as well!
You are really very kind, マギー先生！
The truth is I’m studying with 日本語そまとめ for N3 exam by myself and although I have other books, as どんなときどう使う日本語, I can’t find good explanations for the grammar I learn everyday. Perhaps it’s too much ask you for this but, could you recommend me any good grammar book, where I could find more detailed explanations? My mother tongue is Spanish but I manage with english.
Thank you again!
Yes, it works with adjectives.
大きいとしたら
大きいとすれば
大きいとすると
But sorry, it is hard to explain the difference in this comment section. I will add it to the future lesson list.
You’re very welcome. I know there are a lot of usages of ように and you might feel overwhelmed but it is not that bad.
Now keep practicing. If you make example sentences, feel free to post in this comment section. I will check them for you. がんばって！
Ah, yes, って言うか means “in other words/How do I say it” , “But” or sometimes no meaning.
The casual forms are is ってか・つうか.
If you are interested in learning more, I mentioned in the following in this lesson
今日はマギー先生、
I have a question about ように。I’m reading at “Nihongo so matome” several uses for ようにand it says that you can use it when introducing some explanations, whose meaning would be “as”. I give an example from this book:
ここに書いてあるように、今度の木曜日、授業は午前中だけです。
They translate it like: “as is written here, there will be morning classes only next Thursday”.
So here, ように meaning is similar to とうりに、right? Is this use for ように the one you explained before, with the sentence “マギー先生が言ったようにもっと漢字の勉強をすればよかった”?
And the sentence I wrote as example is correctly translated? For me, the correct translation it would be:
“As is written here, next Thursday, there will be classes only in the morning”.
Thank you in advance, 先生、and sorry for a so long question!
こんにちは、Sandra!
Let me see your question here…
Q : So here, ように meaning is similar to とうりに、right?
↓
Yes.
Q : Is this use for ように the one you explained before, with the sentence “マギー先生が言ったようにもっと漢字の勉強をすればよかった”?
↓
That is right.
Q : And the sentence I wrote as example is correctly translated?
there will be morning classes only next Thursday
↓
I see. If this only goes to Thursday, it is wrong but I think this “only” goes to “morning classes”. In that case the translation is correct.
And your translation is also correct.
hey im just asking about your sentence
“Sensei, keiki to iu keiki wa sakki minna tabeta ja nai desu ka”
I understand the majority of this lesson however this sentence still confuses me mainly the “minna tabeta” i read that us “sensei just now didnt everyone eat all the cake”
Hello titi.
Q : This grammar has two meaning ? tendency and similarity ?
Yes. It means “ish” or “~like”
Q It works with verbs and adjectives too ?
Yes, the words that you can use with っぽい are very limited. The one I listed are the common examples. (忘れっぽい、安っぽい.etc)
As I said, young people crate their own words using っぽい but I would say if you overuse it it sounds shallow.
thank you for the lesson maggie sensei!
somehow i wonder is there any relation between ばかり and ばっかり?
Is it the same or like, the former one is more formal while the latter is just the speaking accent?
@Jo
みたいな and みたいに usually come after a noun or a verb
★noun + みたいな+ noun
Ex. お人形みたいな女の子 = Girl who is like a doll
★noun + みたいに+ verb / adjectives
Ex. プロの歌手みたいに歌う = to sing like a professional singer
Ex. 冬みたいに寒い= It’s cold like in winter
★verb + みたいな+ noun
Ex. 日本にいるみたいな気分
= feel like being in Japan
★verb + みたいに+ verb
Ex. 彼はなんでも知っているみたいに話す。
= To talk as if he knew everything
Although it is not so common we hear adj＋みたいな in conversation to quote someone’s speech.
Ex. 北海道はこの夏、雨が多いみたいなことを言っていた。
= I heard something like it rains a lot in Hokkaido this summer.
Ex. 彼は元気みたいなことを言っていた。
= I heard he was doing OK or something like that.
@Jo
I would use そうな instead of ような there.
静かなような住居
↓
静かそうな住居 sounds more natural
便利だったような
↓
便利そうな自転車
It may not apply all the time but we use そうな for something visual and ような is used more for the contents.
(Related lesson : 〜そう）
How would I say something like, I got you? As in I got your back. The best word I could find for this for tsukamaeta, but it seems to be more like I caught you. Great lessons by the way! :) please continue!
Hello Victor!
Right the translation of I got you can be つかまえた but it means “I caught you”
I got your back. = (大丈夫）私がついている more polite : （あなたには） 私がついています
Could I get that in Romanji? I barely started studying hiragana. :) you are right! I got your back is similar to what I’m looking for. I’m meeting my girl at the airport in a couple of days and would really like to surprise her with this.
When we seat customer at a sushi bar, we’re supposed to tell the chef how many people. Example is 二名様です。(when it’s two people) but if one, do we say お一人様です。or 一名様です。and if three do we say 三名様です。or 三人様です。because for four people it is 四人様です。I want to know what to say for up to 8 people because it can get a little confusing..
@ミーちゃん
Hello ミーちゃん！
OK, here you go!
4 people 四人様 = yonin sama / 四名様= yonmei sama
5 people 五人様= gonin sama / 五名様= gomei sama
6 people 六人様= rokunin sama / 六名様= rokumei sama
7 people 七人様= hichinin sama (nananin sama )/ 七名様= shichimei sama (nanamei sama )
8 people 八人様 = hachinin sama / 八名様= hachimei sama
さすがマギー先生！
素晴らしいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございます！元気ですか？
少し質問がありますね
・「－てくる」は、現在形か過去形の方が使ってはいいかどうわかりますか？(I tried to ask “About -てくる、How do you know wether it’s better to use present tense or past tense?”)
・Is 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？ Is 「V+ていく」 similar to 「これからもV．．．」？
こんにちは、Orti! 元気でしたか？
返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
1) てきた can be used to describe what has been happening right now and くる is for the event from now to the future.
So when you are talking about what has been happening, use きた.
お腹がすいてきた／マギーが好きになってきた／腹が立ってきた
and when you simply describe the current condition, say
お腹がすいている／マギーが好きだ／腹が立っている。
2) 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？→Can you give me an example.
When you use 今まで, we use the past tense : 今までOrtiはここにいました。
but 「V+てくる」for the action which will happen now. So they are not the same.
こんにちは、Orti! 元気でしたか？
返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
1) Usually きた is a past tense and describe some past event but てきた can be used to describe what has been happening right now and くる is from now to the future.
So when you are talking about what has been happening, use きた.
お腹がすいてきた／マギーが好きになってきた／腹が立ってきた
and when you simply describe the current condition, say
お腹がすいている／マギーが好きだ／腹が立っている。
2) 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？→Can you give me an example.
When you use 今まで, we use the past tense : 今までOrtiはここにいました。
but 「V+てくる」for the action which will happen now. So they are not the same.
3) Is 「V+ていく」 similar to 「これからもV．．．」
But you can also say これからもV＋ていく,too.
Hi Maggie sensei. This is one useful lesson however, I notice you used to itte imashita and to iimashita for both sentences. Can you tell us when to use these both verbs correctly? I have been reading up on those and each sites explained differently. Thanks alot though!
OK, sorry it took me a while to get back to you.
So you want to know the difference between
1)
Aさんは「〜〜〜」と言いました。（or 言った）A said “~~”
Aさんは〜〜〜と言いました。A said ~~~
2) Aさんは〜〜〜と言っていました。(or 言っていた）A said (that)~~~ / A was saying ~~~
They both quote what A said. The difference :
1:
1) you are just talking about the fact that A said something (It is often used in a writing form, ex.novels.)
2) When you pass on what A said to someone.
or
1) A said something
2) A was saying something (The speaker is describing the condition, the time when A was saying something.)
You can give the listeners stronger impression of the quote with 2)
maggie sensei, i have a similar question as anna-san regarding 言う, 言った, 言ってる and 言ってた.
but it will be a long one. i am not sure if it is ok to post here.
I am confused with the correct tense to use for the word say. There are 言う, 言ってる, 言った, 言ってた. Let’s go through one by one.
言う – I think this is the least used tense for say. If the present tense is to be used, it will most likely be 言ってる rather than 言う. Under what kind of situation would one use 言う?
言ってる – The most common phrase heard in drama will be 何言ってんの and 言ってるでしょ. Is there a time reference as to when one can still use 言ってる; after which the past tense 言った or 言ってた has to be used? For example, 何言ってんの is said right after the other party said something unacceptable. On the other hand, 言ってるでしょ is said with regards to something mentioned some time back.
言ってた/言った – I was taught in school when we quote what a third party said, we must use 言ってた. And 言った is used in like books, etc. So far so good; but only if it was that straightforward. I have seen/heard of 言ってた and 言った being used interchangeably, although majority was still 言ってた.
I guess the best way to make this clear is to use examples. I created some scenarios. Could Maggie sensei please correct them accordingly?
Scenario 1) A and B are talking
01 A: 明日日本に行きます (I will go Japan tomorrow)
02 B: すみません。何と言いましたか (Sorry. What did you say?) [Can B say 何と言っていましたか also?)
03 A: 明日日本に行くと言いました (I said I will go Japan tomorrow) [Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていました?)
04 B: Cさは (What about C-san?)
05 A: 行きません (C-san will not go)
06 B: Cさんは何とお言っていましたか (What did C-san say?) [Can B say Cさんは何とお言いましたか?]
07 A: Cさんは病気だと言っていました (C-san said he is sick) [Can A say Cさんは病気だと言いました?]
08 B: では、明日ゴルフに行きましょう (Let’s go play golf tomorrow)
09 A: 明日日本に行くと言ったでしょう (Didn’t I say I am going to Japan tomorrow) [Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていたでしょう or 明日日本に行くと言ってるでしょう?]
Scenario 2) A and B are meeting at a cafe and C is a waiter. A only speaks Japanese, C only speaks English and B speaks both English and Japanese
01 Waiter C: What would you like to drink?
02 A: 彼は何と言っていましたか (What did he say?) [Is this correct or should A say 彼は何と言いましたか or even 彼は何と言っていまか?
03 B: 彼は何を飲みますかと言っていました (He said what would you like to drink?) [Same as above, should B use と言っていましたか or even と言っていまか?]
04 B: Lemonade, please
05 A: 何と言いましたか (What did you say?) [Can A say 何と言っていましたか?]
06 B: レモネードと言いました (I said Lemonade) [Can B say レモネードと言っていました?]
First I have a lesson on verb tense where I explained the difference of the tenses so please check it or review.
The difference between 言って（い）た/ 言った
言った = Someone said ~ : You use it when you describe someone said something. (focusing on the action on saying something.) / Someone just said something.
言っていた・言ってた = I heard someone was saying : When you recall the moment when someone says something and tell the third person what you heard. / Someone was saying ~ (in past)
(It is more explanatory than 言った)
When you are talking about what you heard in past, you use 言ってた more than 言った。
マギー先生がそう言っていたよ。I heard Maggie Sensei was saying so.
When you are talking to Y and say “But you said ~~”, you could say both
a: でもこの間、そう言ったじゃない。(But you said so the other day.)
b : でもこの間、そう言って（い）たじゃない。(But you were saying so the other day.)
Scenario 1) A and B are talking
01 A: 明日日本に行きます (I will go Japan tomorrow)
02 B: すみません。何と言いましたか (Sorry. What did you say?)
→You can also say 今、何て言いましたか？
[Can B say 何と言っていましたか also?)
→Strange. Because you just heard that.
03 A: 明日日本に行くと言いました (I said I will go Japan tomorrow)
[Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていました?)
→Strange. (If you quote what someone said in past, you can say 言っていました。）
04 B: Cさんは (What about C-san?)
05 A: 行きません (C-san will not go)
06 B: Cさんは何とお言っていましたか (What did C-san say?)
→OK, except you don’t say お言う. The polite form of 言う is おっしゃる
おっしゃっていましたか？
[Can B say Cさんは何とお言いましたか?]
→Cさんは何と、おっしゃっいましたか？
Yes, possible.
07 A: Cさんは病気だと言っていました (C-san said he is sick)
[Can A say Cさんは病気だと言いました?]
→Again, A is telling B what C said in past so 言っていました is better.
However, if the question is
その時、Cさんはなんとおっしゃいましたか？
then you can say 病気だと言いました。
08 B: では、明日ゴルフに行きましょう (Let’s go play golf tomorrow)
09 A: 明日日本に行くと言ったでしょう (Didn’t I say I am going to Japan tomorrow)
[Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていたでしょう
→This conversation just happened so “I just said I am going to Japan tomorrow” is 言ったでしょう is better.
But if this conversation happens a few days later and B asks the same question, A said 言っていたでしょう。
or 明日日本に行くと言ってるでしょう?]
→Means “I am telling you I am going to Japan tomorrow.” So it sounds strange unless B repeats asking A to go play golf and A gets frustrated.
Scenario 2) A and B are meeting at a cafe and C is a waiter. A only speaks Japanese, C only speaks English and B speaks both English and Japanese
01 Waiter C: What would you like to drink?
02 A: 彼は何と言っていましたか (What did he say?)
[Is this correct or should A say 彼は何と言いましたか or even 彼は何と言っていまか?
→If it just happened, I would use 今、何て言いましたか？（今、何て言った？）
But if A asks a few minutes later after the waiter leaves the table, さっき、何て言っていましたか？
03 B: 彼は何を飲みますかと言っていました (He said what would you like to drink?)
[Same as above, should B use と言っていましたか or even と言っていまか?]
→Again, if the conversation happens right after the waiter leaves, you can say 言いました but if A asks after passing some time, 言っていました。
04 B: Lemonade, please
05 A: 何と言いましたか (What did you say?)
[Can A say 何と言っていましたか?]
→I assume A asks right after B says something so 言いましたか？ is better.
06 B: レモネードと言いました (I said Lemonade) [Can B say レモネードと言っていました?]
→For the same reason above, 言いました is better.
Hope this helps.
Thank you Maggie-sensei for painstakingly answering my queries. I hope this would be useful to other learners who had the same difficulty as me.
Sorry, お in scenario 1 line 06 was a typo error.
I am more clear with when one should use 言ってた over 言った or vice versa.
I am less clear when both can be used like in scenario 1 line 06 and 07.
Although A and B is talking about a third party C, 言った can still be used as per your explanation.
@changk
06/07
Ah, OK, it is hard to tell the situation from the script but
If A, B and C are together and B couldn’t catch what C just said for some reason, 何て言いましたか？
If it passes time after C said something (for example next day), 何て言っていましたか？
Maggie-sensei, I was reading this blog and came across this sentence:
Hi changk
Actually you can use them both.
The writer’s husband still insists the creature is Monitor Lizard, so writer used 言っています.
But if the writer brings up the fact as a past event, she can use 言っていました。
言っていました。 usually used with time expression which represents “past” such as 昨日、先週、去年,さっきまで, 今まで、etc.
could you show me list repeatable word and how to use it like “fuka-fuka, sube-sube, fuwa-fuwa etc” ?
Hi Maggie!
I’m not sure is this the right place for lesson request but i will try :)
Now im studying : てたまらない , てならない , てしょうがない and てかなわない can you please explain what is the difference bettewen them because i don’t get ir ><"""
Thank you like always and have a nice vacation!!!!
@PukiPuki
Hi, PukiPuki! Hisashiburi!
You can leave a comment, request or message in any comment section. Right now I’m on vacation but when I come back to Japan, I will add your request to my “to do” list. I have 40 lessons to release but when I have a chance I will make a lesson for you. I might make it on Facebook first. Please wait. I think it’s a nice theme.
Christ, I’ve been using kimi with all the girls I talk to. Thankfully they seem pretty into me and probably give me a huge free pass for being a foreigner, but I feel really dumb right now.
I have to say, the single most unnatural-feeling thing about Japanese is calling someone by their name in a conversation, which is why I avoid it. With girls, because I thought kimi was friendly, yet slightly polite, I’ve been using that. No idea it could come off as snobbish…
I have no idea if you still go back and answer these questions considering it’s a pretty old article by now, but if you do; if a person tells me that I can use their name without an honorific (呼ぶ捨てでもいい, as they put it) d’you think that’s a free pass to call them -chan? Or is that too assuming? I feel like -chan is kinda sexist to use unless you know the person really well. Wrong?
Also, when you talk about “same age” – in Japanese is this super literal? To me same age, unless you’re in school or a work environment, would mean +/- a couple of years, but I’m still new to Japanese. I feel like I’m straddling the line for what I can get away with though, because I can hold a conversation unless we go into deeper subjects, in which case I usually start describing stuff in roundabout ways because I don’t know the word. No English needed, which I’m happy about, but I don’t think not knowing the basic honorific stuff flies at this point.
Hi,Duder!
I’m in vacation right now so I can’t give you a long reply at the moment but the best way to decide how to call your friends is to ask how they want you to call them.
1)何て呼べばいい？(more formal どうやって呼べばいいですか？)
2)ちゃん付けで呼んでもいい？
3) 呼び捨てでもいい？
4)君って呼ばれるのどう思う？
In my opinion, if somoeone keeps calling me with “君” or “あなた”, it could be annoying.
ちゃん is not sexist but it may sound childish. It depends on the age but since it sounds cute, many girls like to be called with “chan” and if you get closer to that person, yobisute gives even closer feeling. But as you said, if you are not so close to that person, it will be awkward.
“The same age”: It is not just the age difference. Even if you have the same age, if you don’t know the person well, it is always safer to be formal at the beginning and change to the casual form little by little.
Japanese people also have difficulty how to address each other when we meet for the first time.
Sorry for the late response. I’m on vacation right now so I won’t be able to give you all the detailed information but you can start super basic words series. All my lessons are random so basically you can start any lessons with “beginners’ tag.
@Linh
OK, nice try!
Let me see. Your sentence :
昼ごはんの果物が食べたのなんですか？
Since you used the subject marker が after, it sounds like “What did the fruit for lunch eat?”
You want to say what kind of fruits did you eat for lunch?
If you want to use の，how about
昼ご飯に食べたのはどんな果物ですか？
I was just wondering Yukari-sensei, if you have anything on OR could possibly explain (thoroughly? :D) the difference between やる and する, because I’ve heard them being used almost interchangeably…
ありがとうね^o^
Hello Daisy! We don’t have the lesson on the difference between やる and する yet. Sure! We will put it on the list. But there are still over 40 lessons to release so please wait, OK? (Or we might post the lesson on Facebook. Do you follow us on Facebook?)
今日は、先生!元気ですか?日本はまだ暑いかな?
このレッスンを作ってくれて有り難うございます!
質問がありますね
なきゃ can stand for なければ or なければならない/いけない. Is なけりゃ completely equivalent to なきゃ or it stands only for なければ？
こんにちは！Orti! はい、日本はまだまだ３７〜３９度の暑い日が続いていいますよ。
なければ has two casual contractions : なきゃ and なけりゃ.
I can’t think of the big difference at the moment but we don’t usually finish the sentence with なけりゃ.
勉強しなくちゃ。
勉強しなけりゃ。(strange)
＊母はキャンプに行かせてくれた。
(=Haha wa kyanpu ni ikasete moratta.)
“My mom let me go camping.” (He is happy to get to go camping.)
→You wrote kureta in kana but moratta in romaji. ( ´ ▽ ` )
Hello Cass!
~ておくね(=te okune) is a casual suffix
V ておく/ V ておきます
to do something done for someone
to do something and leave it
Here is the related lesson. ~shiteoku
Thank you sensei. :D I went through all of them but still there is much reviewing to be done on my part, I have to admit. :) Also, I have some questions written down in a word document which I kind of left hanging until the end, just in case the questions would answer themselves with a following, already existing lesson from sensei. :) So I will be writing some questions for some lessons in the following days. :D
1) So I guessed that kanji out of the blue. XD That was my impression sensei, that if it had a kanji form it wasn’t used very often so sensei didn’t find it necessary to feature it. :) It may be just me wondering about things which may not be very useful. XD But then I have to admit that after climbing that huge wall which comes to be the process of learning kanji, kanji tend to help in remembering words and their pronunciations when you memorize or are able to remember the kanji that form the words. Kanji sometimes help to remember words, right sensei? :)
2) Thank you sensei. The place in which I looked that word up had that word with that kanji, but it didn’t have the definition sensei provided. :)
3) Oh, sensei always seems to kindly correct comments so I thought that one was correct. XD That sentence makes a lot of sense to me. :D And it is a complex sentence I will enjoy studying. :)
1) You have a good point! Maybe I should add kanji in that lesson anyway. You are right. Kanji help many people to remember words.
3) I am usually “strict” correcting sentences but I guess I was “nice” at that time. I should remember there are people who also study in the comment section.
Right sensei. hmm, I still feel kind of guilty of encouraging sensei to go through even more work considering how detailed sensei’s lessons already are. ^^’ I think it is a great idea, maybe if the kanji is not used much in practice, sensei could just mention the kanji in the beginning of the lesson and then go the normal way for the rest of the lesson. I have seen sensei do this before in some lessons, so this idea actually comes from you sensei to be honest. :) Just a suggestion. :)
No, I really appreciate your suggestion. I should have included that information. This lesson came from the Facebook lessons. I thought I included more information but obviously I didn’t include the kanji part. Thank you!!!
Happy to read that, sensei. :) Glad to be of some help, even a little. :D
@NecroMadMat
いつもありがとう！！❤
こちらこそ！：Ｄ
Can you tell me what kind of construction is -てもらっちゃ and it’s translation?
The sentence is 忘れてもらっちゃ 困るよ！ The context is a bullied person that forgot her past and meets with the man that bullied her. He attacks her and when she remembered him this was what he replied, the next sentence is that her father arruined his life.
girl: 久保山君…
man: お～ そうだよ
man: 忘れてもらっちゃ 困るよ！
man: 俺の人生 お前の親父が 全部 狂わせたんだ！
I would like to know if the full sentence is 忘れてもらては or if it’s a construction with しまう or if it’s another shortening.
Thank you in advance and sorry if here is not the place to ask about it. BTW, do you have now a Maggie room?
Hello Ana! Sorry, currently Maggie’s Room is down but will put it back eventually. Meanwhile, feel free to leave a comment or question any comment section or contact me on Facebook or Twitter.
忘れてもらっちゃ困る is a casual contraction and it is from
忘れてもらっては困る
Usually もらう is “to have someone to do something for you” so you could just say
忘れたら困る
or
忘れては困る
But when we use the verb like 困る, we use もらっては to add a feeling of sarcasm and emphasize what action cause the problem.
So the translation is just
“If you forget about it, I will be in trouble” → Don’t forget about it!
*(unfavorable action) （し）てもらっては困る→〜もらっちゃ困る
Ex. こんなところに荷物を置いてもらっちゃ困る。
= Konna tokoro ni nimotsu wo oite moraccha komaru.
= Don’t leave your bags (personal belongings) here.(I will be in trouble.)
Ex. 好きな様にやってもらっても困ります。
= Sukina you ni yatte moratte mo komarimasu.
= You can’t just do anything you want. (I will be in trouble.)
Sensei now that I finished the mini lessons I came back here to review “comprehensively” and, guess what!? I have more questions! XD
1) Does ~tate by any chance have a kanji? For example, the one for “立つ”, maybe?
2) おろす
Likewise, does this verb have a kanji as well? I tried looking up this verb but none of the ones I found gave the meaning of “to start using something new”, so maybe the kanji form (if it has one) would help me differentiate it among the others. :)
3) Sensei, from the comment section:
たては少ない言葉だけと使われたんですか？
Reading sensei’s response to this comment, I kind of get the impression that this sentece means something like: “tate is a “rare” (sukunai?) word but were you able to use it”. Actually I can’t translate this sentece very well, there are some things I don’t get. For example:
a) sukunai kotoba: Does it really mean rare word? Maybe there is something being ommited that I don’t get.
b) tsukawareta: This is the part I get the least. Is this supposed to mean: “were you able to use it?” Or maybe “was it used”?
Maybe if sensei could give me a translation of the sentence it could be enough. XD
You finished all the lessons now. お疲れ様！！ I don’t know how many people have studied all the lessons. I am very impressed!
OK, let me answer your questions.
1) Yes, ~たて has kanji 立て. Some of the ~たて words are more common with hiragana so I didn’t write kanji.
2) orosu = 下ろす/ Oroshitate = 下ろし立て.
3) Actually I didn’t correct the comment but I figured out the meaning.
I think what the person meant was
「〜たて」は「〜ばかり」に比べると使える動詞が少ないと書いてありますが、よく使いますか？
= You wrote the verbs that we use with ~tate are limited compared to “~bakari” but do you use that word often?
I’d just like to tell you how much I love your blog !
I’m going to study in Japan for the following months and to be honest, it really makes me nervous since my japanese level isn’t, well… incredible. But each time I visit your website, it gives me hope and makes me feel like I want to learn everything and start a conversation with any random japanese passing by.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you Maggie Sensei ! You may not realise how much your lessons can mean to someone… I can tell you : a lot.
@Flo
Ohhhhh how sweet….
Your message made my day!
You already have a great attitude to learn other languages. You will learn so many new things while you stay in Japan.
Nobody will bite you so don’t worry. Just relax and enjoy your study in Japan. :)
Yes, “chotto” means “a little” but in this case the most appropriate translation is “(just) for fun” “(Just) as a trial”
we often use ちょっと just to make the sentence lighter.
Sensei, this was a sweet follow up lesson to “~tate”. :D After the “tate” lesson I thought about looking up a previous lesson from sensei in which she touched the usage of “bakari” to review the usage of the word a little, but with this comprehensive lesson that is not necessary anymore, this one is great. XD
I liked the part in the lesson for “to bakari ni”, this pattern may come in handy in the future. :D Hopefully I can use it soon. XD
One question sensei. Is the “n + bakari” pattern colloquial or can it be used in any circumstances without getting a superior stirred up? XD
I am very happy to hear that.
Yes, you have to practice a lot to get familiar with ばかり.
Ah good point. Usually ん is used for a casual contraction but n+bakari is a literal expression. You may not hear often in everyday conversation but you will see in the writing form more.
こんにちは、Fabimaru!
Good! I added adjective + ばかり.
********
As for your question, although they are not exactly the same, they could be interchangeable if you change a little.
1) Oh I see sensei! V+tate is used in special occasions with specific verbs. :) In other cases I will try using “bakari”, it is a safer bet, isn’t it sensei? :) I will do my best to memorize these examples using “tate”.
2) Sensei, dictionaries rarely tell you when a word is used in normal conversation or formal/serious/academic-level-flaunting situations. I am so glad sensei is here to tell me these things, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to tell which word to use in normal conversation. XD Thank you sensei. :) I will memorize these alternatives for daily conversation. :) And I will try to remember the fancy word I used above in case I feel like dropping a bomb to someone someday. XD
Sensei I am trying to get the difference between “V+tate” and “bakari”. I wrote the sentence from Twiter:
この先生の新たなレッスンは読みたてですよね。
“I just read this new lesson from sensei.”.
using this example sentence:
この単語は覚えたてです。
(This is the word I have just learned.) I just learned this word.
Sensei, I have an idea of how v+tate works but I can’t be sure so I ask sensei for confirmation:
1) Does v+tate work as some sort of passive form of verb?
For example, if I take the example above, is it ok to translate “この単語は覚えたてです。” to “This is the word that has been just learned (by me)”
Likewise, this other example from sensei’s lesson:
まだ免許取りたてなので運転に自信がない。
I just got a driver’s license so I am not comfortable driving.
Maybe I could translate this to: “The driver’s license was just gotten so I am not comfortable driving”.
Does this make any sense sensei? XD It is like v+tate focus describing the noun instead of the person who makes the action and thus the person is omitted and kind of left to be understood by analyzing the situation?
2) また後で包括的に復習するつもりですね。
包括的に→Wow! You know a difficult word. But what did you want to say?
Sensei I wanted to say “I am planing to make a comprehensive review later on.” but it seems I got it wrong. XD
Now that I think about it “mata ato de” I think means “again later on” which is not what I wanted to say. ^^’ Also, maybe I should have said “houkatsuteki na fukushuu” instead of “houkatsuteki ni” in order to say “comprehensive review”. But I rather allow sensei to identify all the mistakes there in the sentence and let me know. XD
Hello there!
1) Ummm not because it’s a passive verb or not but like I wrote in the lesson, the verbs you can use with ~たて are much more limited than ばかり.
I wrote the basic ones in the lessons and if it doesn’t work use ばかり.
It may not work to explain 覚えたて but we usually use たて when we emphasize “freshness” or when the condition of something/someone has changed a lot (in a good way when we use it with things.)
2) Ah I see. 包括的に is a big word which we usually see in the news or thesis.
How about 総合的に、広い範囲で、まとめて?
広い範囲で復習します。
まとめて復習します。
Hi Maggie! Welcome BACK! :)
I have a small question what is the difference between ばかり and たて? ばかり is more official or something? Can we use both of them in speaking and writing or maybe not?
Hi PukiPuki! Hisashiburi!
OK, ~
Compare to ばかり, たて is more limited. You can replace たて with ばかり but you can’t always replace ばかり with たて
When you talk about your daily actions, you usually use ばかり not たて.
Ex. I just woke up. 今起きたばかりだ。 not 起きたてだ
Ex. I just came back home. 今、帰ってきたばかりだ。not 帰ってきたてだ。
Ex. I just ate. 今、食べたばかりだ not 食べたてだ。
So たて is used when you describe certain condition more than action itself and we use it when we stress the freshness.
今日は、先生!（^O^）/
このすばらしいレッスンを作ってくれて有り難うございます!!(やっと｢くれて｣を忘れなかった:D)
それぞれの使い方を分かったかどうかチェックしてみます、間違いを訂正してくれますか?
I’ll write my example and what I’m trying to say, here I go!
という：
・Quotation:
・・お母さんは今日遅く帰っていたと言った= Mom said that she was going to come home late.
・Be called:
・・A: あそこに座っている人はなんと言うかな?= What’s the name of the person sitting over there?
B: たけしという教師です= He’s a teacher called Takeshi.
･Define something:
・・その紫色のディスクはDVDといいます= Those violet discs are called DVD
・Emphasize:
・・スペイン語という言語は面白い言語ですね= Spanish is an interesting language
・Numbers:
・・今日の抗議運動は300ぐらいという人が逮捕されてしまった= During today’s protest, 300 people were arrested.
･Something heard somewhere：
・・A: へビーメタルという音楽を聴くと攻撃的になってしまうという= They say that if you listen to heavy metal you become aggressive。
B: そういうことは嘘だ!=That’s a lie!
･As relative pronoun:
・・昨日、誰もいなかったという海辺を見つけた!=Yesterday I found a beach where there wasn’t anyone．
・・ずっと息子を批判しているというのはちょっとひどいだ=It’s a bit severe to be always criticizing your son.
･To repeat something:
・・毎日という毎日は勉強していたというのに失敗してしまった= Despite of having studied every single day, I failed anyways.
・In case of:
･･また遅れてしまうという時は君を待つように電話してね=If you are late,please call me so I will wait for you.
ということ：
･When you determine something:
・・催しを準備するということが難しいです=It’s difficult to organize a festival
･･愛する人が死ぬときまで悲しみということが分からない=You don’t know pain until a beloved person dies.
･･英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語をわかるということがすごく便利です=Even if you don’t like english, it’s very useful to know a language like that. (I wanted to say “it’s very useful to know a language so widely used around the world” but I couldn’t figure ou how)
・To sum up:
・・雨があまり降っているということは今日出かけません=It’s raining too much, so I’m not going out today．
・・A:彼女と話すとずっと気後れしてよく考えられなくてしまう…=When I talk to her I get all nervous and can’t think well…
B:ということは彼女が好きみたいんだね(笑)=So it seems that you like her
・They say…:
・・今彼は病気で寝ているということだから別の日に来た方がいいと思います=They told me that he’s sick and sleeping now, so I think it would be better to come another day.
というと：
･When speaking about something:
･･折り紙作家というと神谷哲史や小松英夫などなどを思い出す=When I hear Origami artist, I remember Kamiya Satoshi, Komatsu Hideo and many more.
･･私の大好きなスポーツというとテコンドーだ=My favourite sport is Taekwondo
･To mention something that always happens:
・・パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう=It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio
･･アメリカといったらマクドナルドだ=If you think in United States, you think in Mc Donald’s
･Ask and answer by yourself：
･･何回も中国語という言語は日本語より便利だと言われたことがあるが、なぜ日本語を勉強しているかというと大好きだから=I’ve been told a lot of times that chinese is more useful than japanese, but I study Japanese because I really like it.
というもの：
･Which is called…:
・・昨日、テルミンというものを始めて見た=Yesterday I saw a theremin for the first time.
･･まだ食べたことがないが、ハイチュウというものは美味しいそうだ=I haven’t tried it, but they say that Hi－Chews are delicious.
・To emphasize:
・・Facebookというものは癖になってしまった=Facebook has become a habit
という訳：
・To explain cause:
・・宿題を終えている間パソコンはとつぜん故障してバックアップがなかったから全てはなくなってしまった。という訳で失敗した。= The computer failed suddenly while I was finishing my homework, as I didn’t have any backup everything was lost. That’s why I failed.
･In a negative sentence:
・・悪い人だという訳ではないが、なぜか彼に信じられない… = I’m not saying he’s a bad person, but for some reason I can’t trust him.
･･あなたができないというわけではないけど…任せてくださいね= I don’t mean that you can’t do it but…please leave it to me.
というのに：
･･毎日練習しているというのにまだサンバを弾けない= Even though I’ve been practising every day, I still can’t play samba.
・・ちょっと冷たいだというのにその中で優しい精神がある= Despite he/she being cold, he/she has a kind heart.
It took me a while to write this down, but I finally made it.(笑)
To finish this loooong comment, I spotted a few minor mistakes:
・「•何故かというと…./どうしてかというと…+reason
B: そういうことは嘘だ!=That’s a lie!
→Good! (But we usually say それは嘘だ）
･As relative pronoun:
・・昨日、誰もいなかったという海辺を見つけた!
→Umm it is possible if someone was talking about the beach before. But if you simply found a beach without people, you can just say “誰もいない海辺を見つけた。”
If you hear someone was talking about the beach and telling you a story, you can use という
Ex. 昨日、サメが出たという海辺を見つけた。
・・ずっと息子を批判しているというのはちょっとひどいだ
→ひどい。
･To repeat something:
・・毎日という毎日は勉強していたというのに失敗してしまった= Despite of having studied every single day, I failed anyways.
→We don’t say 毎日という毎日. But the rest of the sentence is good.
・In case of:
･･また遅れてしまうという時は君を待つように電話してね=If you are late,please call me so I will wait for you.
→遅れるときは電話（or 連絡）してね。待っているから。
ということ：
・・催しを準備するということが難しいです
=催しもの（or we often say イベント)を準備するということは難しいです。
･･愛する人が死ぬときまで悲しみということが分からない
→It’s OK but 愛する人が死ぬ時に初めて悲しみということが分かる is more natural.
･･英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語をわかるということがすごく便利です
→OK, a little correction to make it sound more natural.
英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語がわかるということはすごく便利です
・・雨があまり降っているということは今日出かけません=It’s raining too much, so I’m not going out today．
→あまり is used with a negative sentence. あまり〜ない
今日、出かけません is your will, so 雨がいっぱい（すごく／たくさん）降っているので出かけません is more natural. But you can say 雨がいっぱい（すごく／たくさん）降っているということは今日はキャンプは中止だろう。
・・A:彼女と話すとずっと気後れしてよく考えられなくてしまう…
→Good! Just ずっと →とても （ずっと is used to describe a time duration.)
B:ということは彼女が好きみたいんだね(笑)
→ということは彼女が好きなんだね。
・・今彼は病気で寝ているということだから別の日に来た方がいいと思います
→Perfect! Good job!
：
･･折り紙作家というと神谷哲史や小松英夫などなどを思い出す
→Just one など 神谷哲史や小松英夫などを〜
･･私の大好きなスポーツというとテコンドーだ=My favourite sport is Taekwondo
→OK, but It is more natural to say 私の大好きなスポーツはテコンドーだ。
･To mention something that always happens:
・・パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう
→It doesn’t work in this case. This function of というと is usually used with a noun
･･アメリカといったらマクドナルドだ=If you think in United States, you think in Mc Donald’s
→Perfect!
・・宿題を終えている間パソコンはとつぜん故障してバックアップがなかったから全てはなくなってしまった。という訳で失敗した。
→パソコンは→パソコンが
→バックアップがなかったから→バックアップしていなかったから
→全ては→全て
the rest is perfect!
・・悪い人だという訳ではないが、なぜか彼に信じられない…
→彼は（彼のことは）or 彼を（彼のことを）
･･あなたができないというわけではないけど…任せてくださいね
→OK.
But if you want to make it sound more natural
→あなたにそれができないというわけではないけれど、どうぞ私に任せてください。
･･毎日練習しているというのにまだサンバを弾けない
→サンバが
ちょっと冷たいだというのにその中で優しい精神がある
冷たいだというのに→冷たいというのに
However In this case, we just say 冷たいが
優しい精神がある→気持は優しい
・Given that “パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう” is incorrect, how would you say “It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio”?
・｢ずっと｣と｢いつも｣の違いはどのですか? I’ve been trying to figure out by observing their uses in different examples, but it seems that both ずっと and いつも may be used as “always” or “forever” depending on the context :/
・The か used after 寒い in 「冬に北海道に行ってみればどんなに寒いかということがわかるだろう」 and after 辛い in 「子供に会えないということがどれだけ辛いかあなたにはわかりません」 has similar meaning to the one used in the “self questions-answers” made with というと？？
I mean, is it something like “how it is to be/feel (adjective)” or “how (adjective) it is when(something)” depending on the interrogative word preceding the adjective?? Therefore that question is used as the object of the sentence?
１）Given that “パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう” is incorrect, how would you say “It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio”?
→Just say, パティオをきれいにするといつも雨が降ってしまう
２）｢ずっと｣と｢いつも｣の違いはどのですか? I’ve been trying to figure out by observing their uses in different examples, but it seems that both ずっと and いつも may be used as “always” or “forever” depending on the context :/
いつも is all the time, always and it is often used to describe your habitual actions.
ずっと is as I said, time duration or when you see things will happen continuously for a long time.
Ex. マギーはいつも仕事をしている。= Maggie is always working.
Ex. マギーはずっと仕事をしている。= Maggie has been working for a long time.
Ex. いつもいい友達でいて下さい。= Please always be my good friend.
Ex. ずっといい友達でいて下さい。= Please be my good friend for good. (You are talking about future from now.)
3) I don’t know exactly what your question is but
どんなに寒い”か” = “how cold it is”
どんなに辛い”か”= how hard it is
This か shows interrogative words and has a function to quote a question.
Please let me know how much it costs.
いくら”か”教えて下さい。
First of all, the verb 読み上げる, read out loud, in that situation is a bit not natural.
Read a story to children, 読み聞かせる/読み聞かせをする/ お話を読んで聞かせる
Or Reading something to someone , (someoneにsomething)を読む/声を出して読む is more natural.
So your second sentence, 私に読み上げていたとき、眠ってしまった is better if you change the verb
→彼が私に（somethingを）読み聞かせているときに、眠ってしまった。but it means
I fell asleep when he was reading to me.
I would use 間 ( = during/while) in this sentence because as I explained in this lesson, you use ながら when you describe one person’s actions.
Ex.テレビをみながら眠ってしまった。
= I fell asleep while watching TV. (The subject of two actions, “fell asleep” and watching TV is the speaker/writer “I”)
→彼が（somethingを）声を出して読んでいる間に私は眠ってしまった。
If you want to use just one subject, “I” and use ながら, reading a book to someone usually a positive/favorable action so てもらう works.
彼に（somethingを）読んでもらいながら眠ってしまった。/眠った。
Ooohkay, didn’t know if you could use 読む for reading aloud. When would you use 読み上げる？It’s hard to tell the nuance from the dictionary.
From reading another comment, I wasn’t sure if it could describe both a person’s actions and actions that happen to that person. (先生に怒られながら心をさまよわせていた) Using 間 definitely seems much more straightforward here, gotta read that lesson now.
本当にありがとうございます〜
You use 読み上げる when you read something loud, read out something formal Ex. speech/statement
声明文を読み上げる
Also you can use it when some app. reads out the text.
スマホの音声読み上げ機能
As for the sentence
先生に怒られながら心をさまよわせていた。
Though you see the word 先生 in that sentence, the subject is still the same person, “I”
（私は）先生に怒られる = I got scolded by my teacher
（私は）心をさまよわせる = I let my mind wander
Sensei congratulations on your full comeback! :D I shall bookmark this lesson and attack it once I finish with all the mini lessons in the lesson index! XD
このレッスンを作って有り難うございます、先生!
ご無沙汰でしたね~
Let’s see if I got the ”振り” idea
“Today I met with a friend in the bus after 6 years”=”今日、バスで六年ぶりに友達と合った” ?
先に動画を見た。先生は私が思う人だったら驚いています! 一ヵ年にしかスペイン語を勉強していますか? その場合は、とっても上手くしてるよ!
では、また後ね^^
久しぶりのコメントですね。OK じゃあ、直しますね。
”今日、バスで六年ぶりに友達と合った”
Almost! 合った→会った
Hahaha, you saw the Japanese4Morons’s video? She is Tomokosan and she is not related to us. Sorry! :)
i’ve read this lesson long time ago, and i’m glad to learn how to sound girly! :D
up to now, i always avoid using the だ ending, i really hesitate to use it.
but lately my friend, she use it pretty much in her messages.
so… which kind of だ is girly? should i avoid だ?
can adult female use の often? does it make the sentence stronger or.. what kind of feeling does it bring?
マギー先生 こんにちは (^^)
質問が一つだけあるね。書いた前のコメントで「マギーのassistant」というassistantには日本語で何と言いますか？ by the way, do my sentences make any sense? haha. I meant to ask, how do you say assistant in Japanese as in Maggie’s assistant which you’ve written in an earlier comment? まえもって教えてくれてありがとう！(thanks for replying in advance!) :)
Hello. Thanks for this great grammar point that can make us sound a bit more natural.
However I have a question regarding the connection. It seems that in some example the の directly attaches to the following noun, whereas some other times あの,あれ etc are place in between. Can you tell me more about the necessity to put it and the nuance that it introduces if optional.
例のあの機能がついています VS 今、例の仕事で忙しいんだ or 例の件、どうなった
Thanks in advance
PS: a romaji translation is not correct in this sentance
Ex.例の彼が来るから準備して！
= Rei no anohito ga kuru kara junbi shite!
Hello, Juice.
First, thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
Now about your question, “例のあの機能がついています” is “It has “that” that function.” and it is redundant. I got the phrase from an actual advertisement line.
例の and あの they both are used when we can’t say what it is. It sounds mysterious yet very obvious.
But it gives more impact to draw listeners’ attention.
Please, never close this site down *O* It is such a perfect place for people learning japanese…
Thank you for all the effort you’re putting into it ^-^/
Hi Reiz!
~なんじゃないでしょうか。is a tag question. And it is used to make sure what you think or make your point asking the listener’s opinion.
Although でしょうか is a polite way to make a tag question, なんじゃない is a casual contraction of なのではない
★na- adjective, noun, demonstrative adjective :
Ex. 必要な
= hitsuyouna = necessary
→必要なのではないでしょうか？
= Hitsuyou nanode wa nai deshouka?
= Isn’t it necessary?/ Don’t we need something?
= I think it is necessary.
→必要なんじゃないでしょうか？
私のこと嫌いなのではないでしょうか？
Watashi no koto kirai nano dewa nai deshouka?
= I think you don’t like me, do you?/ I think you don’t like me.
↓
私のこと嫌いなんじゃないでしょうか？
= Watshi no koto kirai nanjanai deshouka?
↓
(More casual)
私のこと嫌いなんじゃない？
= Watashi no koto kirai nanjanai?
先生, I have a question about some variations on the “it looks like…” structure. How should I complete this:
(丁寧体 ／ 普通体)
A) It looks like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそうです。 / 雨が降りそうだ。
* No doubt here… I hope.
B) It doesn’t look like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* I /think/, based on some research, it might be 雨が降りそうもありません。 / 雨が降りそうもない。 Right? But I’m not sure about the も or why it’s there. そうではありません / そうではない would make a lot more sense for a beginner like me =p
C) It looked like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* My guess, based on another comment: 雨が降りそうでした。 / 雨が降りそうだった。
D) It didn’t look like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう____。 / 雨が降りそう____。
* No clue on this one. If the も thing’s right, then, maybe: 雨が降りそうもありませんでした。 / 雨が降りそうもなかった。
A) It looks like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそうです。 / 雨が降りそうだ。
Correct!
B) It doesn’t look like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* I /think/, based on some research, it might be 雨が降りそうもありません。 / 雨が降りそうもない。 Right? But I’m not sure about the も or why it’s there. そうではありません / そうではない would make a lot more sense for a beginner like me =p
It is possible to say 降りそうではありません / 降りそうではない but 降りそうもない／降りそうもありません are more common.
When you use そう in a negative sentence, we often add も to stress the meaning.
そうもありません。そうもない
“も” has a function to emphasizing the phrase. Not even close to ~/ It seems like there is no way ~
We also say
降りそうにありません。／降りそうにない
and
降りそうにもありません。／降りそうにもない (stronger)
C) It looked like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* My guess, based on another comment: 雨が降りそうでした。 / 雨が降りそうだった。
Good!
D) It didn’t look like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう____。 / 雨が降りそう____。
* No clue on this one. If the も thing’s right, then, maybe: 雨が降りそうもありませんでした。 / 雨が降りそうもなかった。
Hi! I ask some jap friends and they don’t know i mean some of them said that is 行かなそう corect and others said that 行かなさそう is correct so it’s quite strange XD Thank you for your quick help! 相変わらず最高！マギー先生
BTW i have small sugestion i think it will be better for us (people who want to learn) if you will put everything i mean how the verb will change or noun it will be easier to learn. Anyway thank you so much!^__^
Yes, because we use 〜なさそう form a lot in conversation.
But when you use ない as an auxiliary verb, “there isn’t, there aren’t , to not to have,” you use なさそう
Ex. 時間がない→ 時間がなさそう (not 時間がなそう）
and when it is used with an adjective, you also use なさそう
Ex. 暑くない→暑くなさそう (not 暑くなそう）
As for your suggestion, I know it would be nice to have a complete conjugation chart here but there are a lot of sites where you can check them out there already so…..
If it’s not used with nouns, then such sentence is incorrect, right?
スイスの銀行 は 世界で いちばん きんじつな ぎんこう じゃない そうです。
What do you mean by “きんじつ”?
You don’t say Noun+ そうだ・そうじゃない but you can use with 助動詞（だ・じゃない）
Noun + だ＋そうだ
Noun + じゃない・ではない＋そうだ
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you very much! Your lessons are the most comprehensive among all the explanations I find online. They’re such a big help! :)
How does this work using the verb ‘kaku’ (to write)? I can imagine ‘kaiteiku’ to mean go and write (start writing something), but I’m pretty confused with ‘kaitekuru’…
Hi Emma! I am very happy to hear you think my lessons are helpful.
Yes, ていく form for “to write” = 書くis “書いていく” and てくる form for “to write” = 書くis “書いてくる
Ex. 作文を家で書いてくる = to write composition at home (and come to the class / to be ready for the class,etc.)
マギーさん、こんにちわ！このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！。ありがとうございました！
とにかく、私は問題を抱えていた。
その例。。。『今日、加藤さんは来ないんじゃないでしょうか？
= I think Kato-san is coming today. Don’t you think so?』と 『マギーは今、家にいないんじゃない？
= I think Maggie is not home. Don’t you think so?』
First example, why it’s not a negative “not coming” just like in the second example “not home” or vice versa, why it’s not “Maggie is at home, don’t you think so?” just like the first example “coming”. I mean both have the same double negative form(来ないんじゃない) and (いないんじゃない) but the two translated differently? 分かりました、マギーさん？^^;
こんにちは！王様！
Ah, thank you for spotting the mistake. You are right.
今日、加藤さんは来ないんじゃないでしょうか？ The translation should mean
“I think Kato-san is not coming today. Don’t you think so?”
I fixed it. ありがとう、王様！
BTW did you think this lesson was interesting? If so, このレッスンは面白いじゃないですか。
このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！means “This lesson is not interesting, don’t you agree?”
Hope you didn’t mean that. :)
Haha, did you think my lesson was interesting? If so, このレッスンは面白いじゃないですか。
このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！means “This lesson is not interesting, don’t you agree?”
Hope you didn’t mean that. lol
1) It is an idiom 恥をかく= to get embarrassed. It simply means “to get” here but to be more precise, かく has many meanings as かける and this one is used when something annoying shows up on surface.
汗をかく = to sweat
いびきをかく = to snore
Oh, I looked 日焼け up and it can also be used as a “suru” verb as well, right sensei. That is a useful word!
@NecroMadMat
That’s right. There is a verb. 日焼けする
Japanese girls hate to get 日焼け.
That makes sense, sensei. :) Sunburn is bad, especially during the night when it deprives of sleep with the red skin and the ardor on the skin.
@NecroMadMat
That’s right. Luckily I am covered with fur so… I don’t need to worry about that. :maggie-small:
lol sensei is lucky. Maybe I’ll let my beard grow to help out the situation. XD
@NecroMadMat
Hahaha, Good luck with that! It may take a little time. !happyface!
Sensei, a couple of questions :)
1) いろいろ大変かと思いますがどうか頑張って下さい。
I know things are tough but please hang in there.
Sensei showed me about “ka” for subordinated clauses. I have the feeling that “ka” in here has that purpose but I am not sure how to think about this sentence in a literal perspective. The one I have is this one”
“I am thinking that “Maybe there are a lot of hardships?” but please somehow do your best.”
Is this ok?
2) 私に何か出来ることありませんか？
Is there anything that I can do (for you)?
I am trying to get a natural feel for the particle “ni” as sometimes it seems to convey the feeling “by” and “to”.
a) Sensei, I know Japanese omits parts of sentences, but if we were to add to this sentence the part “you”, how would the sentence be?
b) Is it ok to add a “ga” after “koto” in the sentence?
1) Sensei I understand that using “ka” as a way to show assumption is like expressing a question to oneself but at the same time sharing it with the person in conversation. I find that interesting. :) It’s kind of different to Spanish and English but conveys the same message. :)
2)
a) Oh, I get it. Since we are kind of bringing the intention to help, out of the blue, we kind of need to “introduce” the idea with “wa”. At least that is how I understand it. XD
b) I have seen that sentence patter before. :) It all makes perfect sense now. Thank you sensei. :)
You are very welcome!
1) Sometimes just one letter could change the whole meaning of the sentence in Japanese. Therefore “か” can be a very powerful letter!!
We will learn how to use it little by little, OK?
Yes sensei. :) Little by little. :) I actually am taking that approach to learning Japanese. XD I am studying little by little without torturing my head with a lot of information, but studying everyday steadily. XD
@NecroMadMat
That is the best way to learn language. !happyface!
I recently came across a sentence as i was randomly googling a japanese verb.
人間は自分が考えるような人間になる
it appears to be the translation of an Earl Nightingale phrase
“we become what we think about”
The thing is, i didnt get the same meaning at all at first from the japanese sentence, i rather understood it as “We(or humans) become self thinking (become like humans thinking by themeselves)
maybe it doesnt make as much sense but thats how i understood it, can sensei please tell me where did i go wrong, its the same with one of your sentences
お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません
i understood it as “There is no way my father would become worried”
I think the commun point is that the ような following a verb is used to compare something with the verb’s object (if it has one) rather than the action itself, should i take this as a rule or am i misunderstanding something here.
Thanks for your time!
おはよう！ライアン！！
Your questions are great!
1) 人間は自分が考えるような人間になる
Ah I see your confusion. If you want to say
“We(or humans) become self thinking (become like humans thinking by themselves)
You have to say
人間は自分で考える(or 考えられる）ような人間になる
See the difference?
自分が考えるような人間 = a person what you think you are going to be
自分で考える（o 考えられる）人間= a person who can think by himself.
2) お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません
Again if you want to say
“There is no way my father would become worried”
You have to say
お父さんが心配するようなことにはなりません。or 心配してしまうようなことになりません。(you have to use the future tense.)
So by just changing some particles or verb form, it can be what you meant.
成程!分かってきたような気がします!有難う ^^
on a side note, if i may, i’d like to add a request of my own to the long request lessons list, i apologize in advance if it was already done before (can’t seem to find it after looking around for a bit)
its about the correct use of the Volitional (Presumptive)form, there are a couple of points that tend to confuse me:
– Is the regular conjugation, for example (行く => 行こう) only used with i/we (as in let’s, shall) and never with other subjetcs? (i know about the volitional+とする/と思う that can mean plan or feel like doing something)
– Are だろう and だろ endings somewhat the same?
– when using だろう/でしょう do we allways express doubt? or does it simply implie a future tense
Thanks for your time, i hope you can someday get around to doing this lesson =)
Best of wishes.
OK, let me see if I can answer your question here…
1) 〜よう as in “let’s, shall”: When you ask someone to do some activity together and end the sentence with よう? Yes, you have to include yourself in a subject, “I” or “We” unless you quote someone’s speech.
彼が明日映画に行こうと誘ってきた。
= He asked me to go see a movie tomorrow.
彼女がもうこの関係はやめようと言った。
= She told me that she wanted to end our relationship.
2) If you want to make an assumption sentence “I think something/someone will ~ ” then you use だろう not だろ
明日は雨だろう=I think it is going to rain tomorrow.
だろ is a rough male speech suffix.
そう言っただろ！= I told you so! (rough)
明日は雨だろ？ = I think it will rain tomorrow. Am I right? (rough)
明日は雨だろ！= I am telling you, it is going to rain tomorrow!(rough)
3) You can use でしょう、だろう as a simple future but it involves some degree of doubts.
But if you are 100 pct sure you will use an assertive form instead of だろう・でしょう
c) 彼は来年は日本に来るでしょう・来年は日本に来るだろう
He will (probably) come to Japan next year. / He may come to Japan next year.
d) 彼は来年日本に来ます。来る
He will come to Japan next year.
You may translate both sentences as “He will come to Japan next year” but d) shows more possibility.
btw, Can you provide more detail regarding use of yoroshiku onegai shimasu. Can Itsumade mo be used, as well as korekara mo? In particular, with teachers, managers or Senior colleagues, can you provide a variety of applications? Itsumade mo yoroshiku! PK
Hum…いつまでも宜しくお願いします。It is possible to say that but it is much more common to say “これからもよろしくお願いします。”
If you want to add the feeling of “for a long time from now.”, you can say
これからもずっとよろしくお願いします。
in business letter, it will be more formal and polite
今後共、宜しくお願い申し上げます。
= Kongotomo yoroshiku onegai moushiagemasu.
or
今後共、末永く宜しくお願い申し上げます。
= Kongotomo suenagaku yoroshiku onegai moushiagemasu.
Thank you so much for this site! Your explanations are perfect. I studied & lived in Japan 20 years ago, and have lost most of my fluency. However, phrases & basic conversation remains, but is jumbled. The expanse of situations you cover has helped me time & again. Taihen kansha shite imasu! (Is it ok to use Taihen instead of totemo, for emphasis, or is the connotation strange?) – PK
Hi, pkbos!
I am very happy to read your comment. ありがとう！！
Yes, you can say 大変感謝しています。= Taihen kansha shiteimasu. It is used in more formal or business situation though.
始めましてマギー先生。何時も楽しいレッスンを作ってくれて本当に有難う御座います
本当は随分昔からこのサイトを時々見に来たがこれは初めてのコメントなのですもっと早く印刷したかったけどいつも後にしようと思う（小心っていうかアバウトな性格っていうやつかな〜 ^^）
兎に角いつもこのサイトで色々な勉強になるのにお礼でも言わないのはちょっと無礼だと思ったから改めて少し遅かったけど本当に有難う御座います
There! This is actually the first time i ever tried to write something in japanese so i hope its not too akward or worst case didnt make any sense, its probably full of mistakes thou ^^
Anyhow i really want to thank you again for the wonderfull work and effort you put into this, i think this is the best website out there when it comes to teaching japanese!
Merci du fond du coeur! =)
@ライアン
Your Japanese is amazing so I will write to you in Japanese.
こんにちは！ライアン！！コメントと〜〜〜ってもうれしかったです！
そして日本語、上手に書けていましたよ。いつでも気軽にコメントして下さい。このサイトは日本語を勉強しているみんなが友達の家に遊びにくる様な気持で来てくれるといいなって思います。これからもよろしくお願いします。
Itadaku is one of those words that sometimes cause me some trouble. I know sensei has a lesson for “itadaku” and I am close to getting there. :) I thought maybe by sensei explaining this sentence to me it would help in having a better understanding going to that lesson.
My doubt regarding “itadaku” is to whom the action is directed, who “receives the action”. I am not sure to which of these two the action is directed, taking the above sentence as subject:
1) Can I receive the filling of this form from you? = Would you fill me this form I require from you? (The attendant kindly asks the costumer to make her the favor of filling the form. Spanish: ¿Podrías llenarme esta forma?)
2) Could you fill this form for your own sake? (Spanish: ¿Podrías llenarte esta forma?)
Which of these two would be the sentence that more or less translates the feeling of the sentence in Japanese, sensei?
Sensei, I may have not explained myself very well, hopefully sensei understood, if that wasn’t the case I could try explaining myself better. :)
Yes, 頂く is used when you receive some action from someone.
In this case, it will be 1) Would you fill out the form for me? So you the speaker receives an action of filling out the form form the customer.
Your Spanish sentence explains better.
So if you ask me to teach you Japanese, how would you ask me politely? Hehehe
Good job! Just change the first part
If you are talking to me and say “Could you teach me Japanese, Maggie Sensei?”
マギー先生、日本語を教えて頂けますでしょうか？
And “I would like Maggie sensei to teach me Japanese” is
マギー先生に日本語を教えて頂きたいです。
No need to apologize. You did very well!
(Ah it will be more natural to use a passive form here : 先生に直されるかどうか緊張しています。）
That definitely seems more natural, sensei. :) I learned a lot. Thank you.
Sensei, may I throw some doubts in here? :)
1) 本製品をお買い上げ頂きまして誠にありがとうございました。
a) Does “honseihin” mean “the authentic product”?
I can find the definition for “seihin” but not when attached with “hon”.
b) Is the literal translation of this sentence: “We are really grateful that you bought the authentic product”?
2) ご足労をおかけ致しました。
Sensei, I have seen “kake” used several times since I started learning Japanese.
a) Does this word, when used with the “i-stem” hold the meaning of “getting into”, “being subject to” X action/verb?
b) Is there a specific kanji version for this word when used in this manner? Or is it intended to be used with Hiragana?
3) そうですか？それではお言葉に甘えて…
“Kotoba ni amaete…”
Is the literal meaning of this phrase something like “I will indulge in your words, I will take advantage of your words” and accept your present then.
4) 何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら。
I don’t know how to thank you.
a) Can the literal meaning of this sentence be something like: “I don’t know how it would be ok for me to say thank you to you.”?
b) “yara” is another way of saying “darou”, right sensei?
5) “When someone does something for you or give you something, you receive it saying,
Ex. 恐れいります”
Sensei, I think I get the words “fear/anxiety/uneasiness” and “enter”. Does it mean “I enter fear/uneasiness as I receive your favor/gift.”, as in “I am uneasy to receive this from you”?
Sensei may have realized by now that I tend to ask a lot for the literal meaning of things in Japanese. I feel like knowing the literal meaning of the pieces which then conform the expressions allow me to have a better understanding of things and hopefull end up allowing me to play with the words in the future. I am sorry if sensei feels thess questions are somewhat annoying.
Great! Someone has been studying.
1) No, 本 mean “this” here. So 本製品 means “this product”
If you want to say “authentic”, you say 本物の
2) This かけ is from a verb かける. The kanji is 掛ける
掛ける is one of the verbs which has a lot of meaning. This case it means “to cause something negative”
迷惑をかける= meiwaku wo kakeru = to trouble someone
苦労をかける= to cause someone hardship
So to cause (かける）”ご足労 = to trouble of going/coming all the way”
3) Yes, that’s right. The literal meaning is “I will allow myself indulge in your words (kindness)”
4) a)+b)
何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら
this やら is the same as のか or as you said だろう and it is unfinished sentence.
何と御礼を申し上げたらいいのかわかりません。/いいのだろう….= 何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら…
And your translation is correct.
“I don’t know how I can express my gratitude. ”
5) You are right. 恐れる means “to be scared” “To be afraid of” but the original kanji is 畏れる(=osoreru) it means “to awe”
So 恐れいる means “to be in awe” いる is to be into that condition deeply.
It is just one dramatic expression.
******
To figure out the meaning by the literal meaning does help understand the words or phrases.
And all your questions are good. Not annoying at all. !happyface!
1) Oh sensei, I get it. It is as in honjitsu = today. I think I got confused because I learned the meaning of “本” with the keyword of “source”, so I felt like the Japanese sentence was a disclaimer of gratitude for buying the “source product” from which people may be making fake copies. XD So wrong. XD
I recall reading sensei’s “honmono” lesson so sensei has just reinforced that lesson for me. Thank you sensei. :)
2) kake:
Sensei, I recall hearing “hanashikakeru”, if I am not mistaken. Does this expression also have a negative connotation to it? Maybe it is has the nuance of “interrupting” what someone is doing by going to talk to them, right?
4) Oh I think I get it. yara = noka. It is a subordinate clause, like sensei teach me before, right? A question about this sensei, is “yara” by any chance a “casual form of “noka” then?
5) Oh, I do am familiar of “iru” sensei. :) I just took a bet it was the “iru” for “enter”. “Iru” for “need” was a runner up, I have to admit. lol The amount of homophone words in Japanese is really challenging, and when they lack the kanji in their written form they sometimes become a guessing game for me. :/
Sensei, I have been thinking that once I finish asking all the doubts I have from sensei’s lessons, sensei could put a disclaimer above her lessons that could read something along the lines of: “In the comment section there will be questions from a student called “NecroMadMat”, chances are your doubts are already covered with his questions because he tends to ask questions about every little detail, including the most obvious questions. Feel free to check his comment before posting.” lol
2) 話しかける : Ah, Now I see your original question. This かける is different from かける in “ご足労をかける”／”迷惑をかける” and it doesn’t not “causing troubles”
As I told you, there are many meanings of かける.
When some action is done towards someone (or something), you use かける
問いかける，笑いかける、訴えかける, etc.
4) Yes. (And I’m sorry. I added a line in my previous comment but as you said it is also equivalent to “だろう”)
Also やら shows one’s feeling of suspicion.
どうなることやら… = I wonder what is going to happen.
いつになることやら…= I wonder when it would happen…
All of your questions are going to be very useful for many people. And you will become very famous here. People will say “Thank you! NecroMadMat!” !happyface!
Got it sensei. :) I will try to do my best to identify what kind of “kakeru” is used in the context of the conversation. :)
“All of your questions are going to be very useful for many people. And you will become very famous here. People will say “Thank you! NecroMadMat!”
Self-esteem to the MAX! XD
Thank you sensei. :)
What kind of grammar would you use to say “I wish (something) was the case (though it’s not)”
I have only learned “I hope” and “(something) was supposed to be the case” so I don’t know how to express my wish for something that is impossible, or unlikely to happen.
(I hope that makes sense u.u)
kawaii maggie-sensei~ it’s peko-chin~~~
your mini lessons are very useful for daily conversation, i love it ♥
for this lesson, if i want to say “i can’t accept your feelings”..
then can i say it like this:
“anata no kimochi ga dekinai yo”?
and how if i want to say “i can only love taller guy”? >.<
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I have a question, How can I express these statements:
” I been thinking about him”
” I also feel the same way about that person”
” please don’t play with my feelings”
Hi SeeSweety!
” I been thinking about him”
彼のことをずっと考えています。= Kare no koto wo zutto kangaete imasu.
” I also feel the same way about that person”
私もあの人に同じ様な気持ちを持っています。= Watashi mo anohito ni onajiyouna kimochi wo motte imasu.
or
私もあの人に同じ様な気持ちを感じています。= Watashi mo anohito ni onajiyouna kimochi wo kanjite imasu.
” please don’t play with my feelings”
私の気持ちを持て遊ばないで下さい。= Watashi no kimochi wo moteasobanaide kudasai. (If you are a woman.)
(If you are a man, you say 僕(=boku) instead of 私(=watashi))
Heya Maggie-sensei, I have a question and I’m sure I’m right about this, but I wanted to run this by you, because I am not 100% sure I am. >.< and I studied myself for years off sites like yours and a couple other genuine sensei's and barely now I am taking free online course at YesJapan and another one via mobile call Human Japanese. But I am still very unsure of my knowledge.
I want to write 'I'm not in love'. I've heard the line said in my favorite BL anime,Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi. But it's different then what I want. There's is more of the freaking out I'm not in love – this is not love, kinda thing.
I get 私は恋をしてないです (I'm not in love) / 'Watashi wa koi o shi tenaidesu'
Watashi as in 'I, myself'
は (Wa) as in the particle that expresses the Listener knows who the speaker is referring to as well as stating you do not like or in this case the speaker is saying he isn't in love.
を (wo) would normally changed to Wa if you wanted to emphasize the fact. But he isn't trying to, because the truth he knows he's in love. Kind of like he's ashamed to admit but ashamed that he can't go out and just say he is, I guess. That's why you put をし meaning to be regrettable or disappointing in the fact.
てな it's used after a phrase right? To modify a noun and い used to express the thoughts and feelings??
I really hope I didn't do to bad and I really hope you can help. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Hi Akemi!
You got more or less except the way you separate the sentence.
私= I = subject
は= subject marker
恋= love = object
を=object marker
してない= shitenai a casual contraction of していない = not doing
です= auxiliary verb
恋をする=the literal translation is “to do love.” here. but it means “to be in love.”
↓
Present progressive form : 恋をしている
↓
the negative form = 恋をしていない
Oh, I see where I went wrong . . . -Sighs- Study is so much easier then putting everything together.
I’m sorry for messing that up and again thank you so very much for helping me, from the bottom of my heart, really. I’ve always wanted to learn but I has a horrible student as a kid.
This is a very nice lesson, however, may I suggest that you perhaps either make a small change to, or, add a note in order to make it easier for your readers regarding お面/マスク?
Unless I’m terribly mistaken, お面 descibes just about any kind of mask that you can put on your face (e.g. a Pikachu-mask, etc.). マスク, on the other hand, seems to only be used for surgical masks.
Anyway, thank you very much for your very useful site. :-)
Thank you for your comment.
Though マスク is not only be used for surgical masks (Ex プロレスラーマスク、キャッチャーマスク, 仮面, etc), it might be confusing so I added a little note.
ありがとう！！ !happyface!
Hi Charles!
OK, to have a secret crush= ひそかに心を寄せる= Hisoka ni kokoro wo yoseru
But in conversation
“You have a secret crush on him, right?” (female speech / between friends)
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼のこと好きなんでしょ！
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare no koto sukinandesho!
or
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼に気があるんでしょ！
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare ni ki ga arun desho!
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼のこと好きなんだろ。(male speech/ Between friends)
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare no koto suki nan daro.
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼に気があるんだろ！
=(Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare ni ki ga arun daro!
1) Is there a difference between using “subeki” and “subeshi”?
2) またどんなことが縁起がよくって、どんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
Sensei, I know “tte” can be used in various contexts. I know it can be used as a substitute for “wa” and “to”. In this specific sentence, what is the usage it has? I feel it is used as a quotation mark and kind of imperative as in “say what is a good thing of good omen”, but of course I can’t be sure.
@NecroMadMat
Hello again,
1) ~すべし is literal and usually used at the end of the sentences of aphoristic imperative.
すべき is much more common to use.
2) Ah, OK, again we add っ before て in casual speech.
There are various ways to say that sentence but
＊どんなことが縁起がよく、そしてどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
＊どんなことが縁起がよく、どんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
＊どんなことが縁起がよくてどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
↓
＊どんなことが縁起がよくってどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？ (the most colloquial)
Oh I understand sensei. :) Those three examples sensei provided really helped me as I am used to seeing sentences constructed in that manner, they really helped me. :)
Sensei, “tte” is a very dynamic particle and it’s dynamism has me clueless at times. lol Right now it stands as one of my deadly adversaries towards Japanese learning, hopefully I’ll make it my ally some day. XD
Thank you Maggiesensei for explaining things so clearly. :)
Good to hear it’s clear now.
Actually small っ is very tricky. It is just one small letter but it is difficult even for many people who have lived in Japan for a long time.
I have a lesson of って when you quote but since I know you have been following the index order, just take a quick peek, OK?
That’s my situation sensei. “tte” is very complicated for me. Sensei I do am following the index but I am ahead of this lesson by now, I mean, I already studied this lesson a while back. :)
The thing is that I write down my doubts in a document and then when some days pass after the last time I asked sensei some questions, I ask once again, as not to overwhelm sensei with all the questions I have piling up in a document. XD
I already read the “tte” lesson as a matter of fact sensei, but even then I am still struggling to differentiate the meaning behind “tte” depending on sentence, and that is why I am treating each sentence case by case. Sorry sensei if I ask again for the meaning of “tte” in the future. “tte” just doesn’t seem to be my friend sometimes.
Thank you sensei, as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
I see. But don’t worry. You can ask me questions as much as you want until you and tte become good friends! !happyface!
Thank you sensei! Maybe if sensei speaks good things about me to “tte” it would want to hangout with me. lol
Toranakuccha, I thought the 未然形 was “nakucha”, can I write it as “nakuccha” as well, sensei? Is there a special rule for when to write and not to write it like this?
@Flora
Hi Flora! Welcome to our site!
こと is used for nominalization.
V + こと→
I like eating = 食べることが好きです。 = Taberu koto ga suki desu.
Practicing is good. = 練習することはいいことです。 = Renshuu suru koto wa ii koto desu.
etc.
But it is deeper than that. Feel free to practice making a sentence using こと here (or Twitter). I can always check it for you.
hi, maggie sensei
nice to meet you in your site,
昨年、一応大学生に卒業したが、日本語を勉強するの機会がほとんどないので、また本を読むと大変だと思うので、Maggie先生のおかげで本当に助かりました。
毎日このサイトを勉強しに見ますよ。
ありがとうございます。
（＾＾）
I was helping about this the other day but you’ve cleared this up a little more easier for me to understand! Thanks!
By the way, I have my own blog which focuses on Asian culture and entertainment such as video games and I wonder if it is possible for you to view it and tell me what you think please: http://nynyonlinex.wordpress.com
So the verbs were 持っていく and 置いていく.
Then shouldn’t it be 「これ持ってっちゃって！」?
As the difference is very subtle when spoken, can one assume that …て(っ)ちゃって is usually from …いく+しまって, in other words, is …ている+しまって ever used?
Hello, I love your page. It took me insanley long to find something on “love”. When I reseached, the results were all confusing and didnt seem right (my instincs kicked in haha) I found a video which helped a little, but your page really broke it down!
I’m actually doing something for a friend and I wanted to know how do you say “I missed you and I love you” But I love you as a confession. In one sentence? Thanx =)
Hi, Twix! I am very happy that you found our site following your instinct!
“I missed you and I love you.”
You can’t say that in one sentence. It will be two sentences but….
The most standard way to say is
あなた(name)が恋しいです。愛しています。
FYI There a couple of ways to say “I miss you” in Japanese.
あなた(name) が側にいないから寂しいです。
= Anataga soba ni inai kara samishii desu.
あなた(name)がいないと寂しいです。
= Anataga inai to samishii desu.
あなた(name)に会えなくて寂しいです。etc.
= Anatani aenakute samishii desu.
And I put あなた for the pronoun, “you” but you can use her/his name.
Thank you so much for doing this im teaching myself japanese and this is invaluable to me ty ty ty ty I noticed here that the first sentence in this example is incorrect the japanese says neko=cat but the english text reads inu=dog
Dear Maggie san:
Folks in Kyoto-shi say kakanaitokyaikemasen (I have to write it). My Genki 1 textbook says the modal is nakyaikemasen without “ito.” Why, and what is “ito,” please.
Hello, Gordon!
I think your host family in Kyoto said
書かないといけません。
= Kakanai to ikemasen.
Not
書かないときゃいけません。
= Kakanai to kya ikemasen.
(This doesn’t make any sense..)
There are a couple of ways to say “You have to do something.”
1) ~ないといけません。(=~ nai to ikemasen.)
→the casual contraction is 〜なくちゃいけません。(= ~ nakucha ikemasen.)
Ex. 書かないといけません。(=kakanai to ikemasen.)→書かなくちゃいけません。(=kakanakucha ikemasen.)
or
2) 〜なければいけません。(= ~ nakereba ikemasen.)
→the casual contraction is ~なきゃいけません。(= nakya ikemasen.)
Ex. 書かなければいけません。(= kakanakereba ikemasen) →書かなきゃいけません。
So both 書かないといけません(=kakanaito ikemasen) and 書かなきゃいけません。(‘=kakanakya ikemasen) works when you want to say “have to write”
Oh, maybe I should add that information, huh?
Here are some of the example sentences. If you want to know more specific example sentences, please let me know.
すみません、予約をキャンセルしたいのですが…
= Sumimasen, yoyaku wo kyanseru shitai no desu ga…
= I’m sorry but I would like to cancel my reservation…
Then they will ask your name or the date/time of your reservation.
You can tell them all the information at the beginning.
As I wrote in the lesson you can tell them your reservation status first.
Ex. 今夜２名で７時から予約を入れている(your name) と申します。
= Konya nimei de hichiji kara yoyaku wo irete iru (your name) to moushimasu.
=I have a reservation for two at 7:00 tonight under the name ~
Ex. 明日から２泊で予約を入れている(your name) と申します。
= Ashita kara nihaku de yoyaku wo irete iru (your name) to moushimasu.
= I have a reservation for two nights from tomorrow under the name ~
申し訳ありませんが、都合により予約をキャンセルしたいのですが…
= Moushiwake arimasen ga tsugou ni yori yoyaku wo kyanseru shitai no desu ga…
= I am sorry but something came up and I would like to cancel my reservation.
If you want to ask if the charges cancellation fee,
キャンセル料はかかりますか？
= Kyanseru ryou wa kakarimasu ka?
= Do you charge cancellation fee?
Once they accept the cancellation, you can tell them
お手数をおかけしました。またよろしくお願いします。
= Otesuu wo okake shimashita. Mata yoroshiku onegai shimasu.
= I am sorry to trouble you. We (or I) would like to come back some other time. (←Maybe some other time) Thank you.
“It is considered to be a dialect in Tokyo (Yokohama) area but it is pretty common among other areas.”
It’s a dialect which originated in Yokohama and have spread to other areas.
When you write “Tokyo (Yokohama)” you make it look like Yokohama is a part of Tokyo.
That is a peculiar way of Naruto speech. Only for that animation.
When he emphasizes what he wants to say he adds だってばよ.
Like “I am telling you!” I said ~”
Hello, NMM!!!
I am very happy to hear that you have been trying to study all my lessons. So you have been following the index order?
Well, I hope you eventually get to this lesson because I made it for you!
OMG I am sorry!! I wrote your name NecroMadMac??? I will fix it when I finish writing this comment. Hehe I am a Mac user so….. Please forgive me.
BTW Your Japanese is just perfect!!!
Yes sensei. I have been following the Main Index and now that I think about it I am kind of scared I may have skipped the newest lessons sensei has created since I started studying a couple of months ago. :S The new lessons are not listed by entry date, right sensei?
Oh sensei prefers Mac! :) I like the style of the Mac OS but I can’t part ways with the number of customization and programs that are available for W7. :)
Sensei, I really appreciate those words. I will keep doing my best to extend my knowledge to different types of sentences and with Maggiesensei’s help I am sure I can do it! Thank you Maggiesensei. :)
Yes, you can do it!! That is why I am here for!
Haha, that’s right. I keep adding lessons so you may miss the new lessons if you follow the index. I am sorry for all the inconvenience.
Thank you for the explanation.
I have a question though.It’s about the negative of ni naru.
we say おいしくなる for ex.But can we say おいしくなくなる。
I just read a sentence in a book which is:
面白くない もの に なってしまた。
Can we say something like:
面白くなく なってしまた。
Thank you.
Wow!!! This is by far the best, most through and easy to understand explanation I’ve seen :D Thank you so much, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this. It has been very helpful, because I have a Japanese test coming up :)
今日は、先生!
Hmm, trying to say this in japanese would take a lot of time, so I’ll have to say it in english (笑)
One thing that kinda shocks me about this part of japanese culture (society in general, actually) is how much importance is given to money and the cost of presents. To me, the feeling that a present carries on it is way more important than the cost of it. Regardless of how expensive, beautiful, useful, delicious, etc. a present could be, if it’s not given from the heart it’s just a hollow thing and over the years you’ll probably not even remember who gave it to you.
I personally think that (at least for me) something as small as a sincere letter or a handmade thing, rather than any expensive gift, can become a real treasure.
I guess I went a bit too far (笑)
In Chile Valentine’s is like what ハリちゃん said. The difference is that it’s during school’s vacations period, so there isn’t any costume between classmates about it
こんにちは！Orti! Thank you for your comment!
Your comment was VERY refreshing. As you said sincere letter, handmade things can show more love than expensive presents.
I guess people start to lose confidence and don’t know how to express one’s love, friendships or gratitude without spending money.
As for me, a romantic poem or one piece of bone would work! :)
Sensei, thanks for your reply, I hadn’t thought about lack of confidence, maybe that’s one big reason.
I guess a sculpted piece of bone would be great!(笑)
Hi, せんせい～
I have a question! I was reading a manga the other day where the man says: 俺の人生の愛 [at least I think so?? This is from memory!]
Is it something like ‘love of my life’? It was on a letter, so in English, it would look something like: “To the love of my life” (like a love letter or a Valentine’s Day card).
Hi Tacti!
俺の人生の愛 sounds a bit strange to address someone because it also means “love in my life” but it is possible to use as “love of my life”.
Check it again if you still have the manga to see if it says 俺の人生の愛 and let me know. !happyface!
How do I say “a person that is loving” or “a person that loves”?
2) 恋人たちの予感
“Expected to be lovers”
How does one say “a premonition of lovers” as in “a premonition that belongs to the lovers”? Do I simply invert the order to “Yokan no koibitotachi”?
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
“Carried out for love”
a) Does this mean “that one loses one’s cool because of love” or that “for the sake of love one lose’s one’s cool”?
b) Could sensei give me another couple of examples that use this no + kara combination?
4) 惚れてしまうやろ〜！」
“(If you are so sweet to me) I will fall in love with you!/I can’t help falling in love with you.”
Sensei I looked up the word “yaro” and found it means “it seems”. Does this mean that the above sentence could be also translated to: “(If you are so sweet to me) it seems I can’t help falling in love with you.”?
5) Sensei some time ago I came across the expression “suki de iru”.
a) Does this expression mean “being in love”?
b) Is it possible to use this (i)stem + de pattern in other sentences like for example: “onaka ga suki de iru”?
6) 暇な時に連絡くれる？
“Can you contact me when you are free?”
How do I say: “Can I contact you some day you may be free?”, “Himana toki ni renraku ageru?”
7) Sensei, for a man, how quick does sensei think we should drop polite speech with a girl when we are getting to know her for:
a) friendship
b) trying to getting things closer to a possible relationship
8) 私（僕）と付き合って下さい。
“Go out with me, please.”
Just to make sure sensei, when we talk about going out in this context we are talking about getting to the beginning of a relationship of some kind, like something before being a couple. In other words, that there would be a mutual understanding that both parties are interested in each other. It doesn’t involve the literal meaning of going out somewhere, like to watch a movie or something, right?
9) 今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！
Now I am even studying the comment section sensei! XD And I used to think some of the lessons from Maggiesensei were long… XD It is all good study though so I am not complaining. :)
Does the above sentence mean “This time it isn’t that long so it is an exemption.”?
これどうやって使うの？
“How do you use this?”
Sensei I don’t recall seeing this “yatte tsukau” pattern before. I guess “yatte” is the -te form of “yaru”. Does this “yatte tsukau” pairing imply something we could translate to “make use” in English.
This has become a long comment. Sorry sensei for so many questions. :/
Good, now you have been studying about “Love” !heart!
OK, let me answer your questions one by one.
1) 愛する人
→It works for both ways but you should clarify who loves who.
私の愛する人= A person who I love
NMMの愛する人 = A person who NMM loves
私を愛する人 = A person who loves me
NMMを愛する人 = A person who loves NMM
2) Actually 恋人たちの予感 can be translated “Expected to be lovers” or “Premonition of lovers.”
And usually the later translation is more common. Since this movie is about two people who we expect them to be a couple, I guess they put that title. 恋人たち(=同士)になる予感 is more accurate title.
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
“Carried awat for love”
a) Does this mean “that one loses one’s cool because of love” or that “for the sake of love one lose’s one’s cool”?
→Could be both.
b) Could sensei give me another couple of examples that use this no + kara combination?
This から is not a particle. It is from a word 空 = から= empty
空騒ぎ ＝から騒ぎ= to make a fuss about nothing
4) This Osaka dialect やろ is equivalent of でしょう／でしょ／ではありませんか and used when you make your point.
So it works as follows :
na-adjective plain form
元気な
delete な→元気
add で→元気で
add いる→元気でいる
6) あげる is used when you do some action for someone’s sake so you can only say
連絡”をして”あげる= himana toki ni renraku wo shite ageru
when you are talking to your big fan or someone who is crazy about you. :)
so 連絡してもいい？ is better.
7)You can always observe how the person addresses you and how she changes the way she talks to you. If you feel it is getting closer, you can adjust to it. If you are talking to the same age people, being overly polite will put some distance between you two. On the contrary, if she is talking to you politely and you keep talking to her too casually, she might think you are shallow.
8) Yes that is right.
But some people say this phrase without knowing that person so well even if they have never dated before.
9) 今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！
Hahaha, you are an ideal student!
Yes, it means
Since it (the translation you asked me) is not that long this time, I will make an exception for you.
これどうやって使うの？
“How do you use this?”
Sensei I don’t recall seeing this “yatte tsukau” pattern before. I guess “yatte” is the -te form of “yaru”. Does this “yatte tsukau” pairing imply something we could translate to “make use” in English.
どうやって means “how”
どうやって払うの？= How do we pay?
どうやって勉強したらいいですか？= How should I study?
どうやって駅に行ったらいいかわからない。= I don’t know how to get to the station.
This has become a long comment. Sorry sensei for so many questions. :/
Oh yeah sensei, I am studying about love everyday, especially when I am studying with the big love sensei gives to her students. XD
1) 愛する人
Sensei I think I got it. But outside of the verb “suru”, when it comes to other verbs, would there be a more marked difference when one uses intransitive and transitive verbs to describe the action of a person?
Like for example, pardon me sensei if this doesn’t make sense, ok?
A) TRAN: watashi wo mitsukeru hito (the person that finds me)
B) INTRAN: mitsukaru hito (the person that is found)
I bet those sentence don’t make any sense but maybe sensei will understand. :)
2) Sensei, 恋人たち(同士)になる予感 is easier for me to understand. :D But I wanted to know how would I be able to say:
“Lover’s premonition”
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
Oh, I completely forgot about that “kara” meaning. ^^’ So the sentence could actually mean: “Love and it’s getting crazy for nothing”, right sensei? :)
4) 元気でいる
So this would mean: “have been fine/have been ok”?
5) Polite vs casual
A) So, is it expected for men to be the ones to drop polite first?
B) If I get this right, once I drop polite she would also drop polite and if she doesn’t it means I am being considered shallow.
C) Are there women that never drop polite in Japan?
6) Dou yatte tsukau: It didn’t occur to me to look for “dou yatte” together, now I found there is a definition for both words put together. ^^’
Thank you sensei, the other questions are clearer than a cleaned piece of glass. :)
Please explain me that as 泣く is a first group verb so its causitive form is 泣かせる。For example,
1)Mother made chid cry.
（母は芯ちゃんを泣かせた）
2)Child was made cried by mother.
（芯ちゃんは母になかされた。）
Same should be applied for 書く as it is also the first group verb.
1)To make children write.
子供を日本語を書かせる。
2)Children were forced to write.
子供は母に日本語を書かされた。
Ohayo Maggie Sensie, Your lesson is very helpful. Domo arigato gozaimasu. Do you have a lesson specifically at a grocery store when you pay at the cashier. They say or ask you so many things once you paid. For example, my bill was 526 yen so I gave them 1,026 yen so I get a full 500 yen back. They said or asked something and i could not understand. They also ask me so many things before they give me plastic bags, is it possible for you to please give me a list of what they actually say versus the questuons they actually want answers..?
Hi Carla!
I don’t have a particular lesson for grocery store.
Usually when you pay money, they repeat
~円お預かり致します。
= ~ en oazukari itahsimasu.
=(The direct translation is ” I have received ~ yen from you.”)
Now let’s see your question :
My bill was 526 yen so I gave them 1,026 yen so I get a full 500 yen back. They said or asked something and i could not understand.
↓
Probably they were just saying how much they have received and how much change they give you.
This is a typical pattern.
~~~円お預かり致しましたので〜円のお返しになります。
= ~~~ en oazukari itashimashita node ~ en no okaeshi ni narimasu.
= Since we have received ~~ yen from you, I will give you ~ yen change.
Ex.１０２６円お預かり致しましたので５百円のお返しになります。
= Sen nijuurokuen oazukari itashimashita node gohyakuen no okaeshi ni narimasu.
= Since we have received 1026 yen from you, I will give you back 5,00 yen change.
If you just give them a bill, they might ask you
Ex. １万円からでよろしかったでしょうか？
= Ichimanen kara de yoroshikatta deshouka?
= (Technically it is a wrong Japanese but they say that because it is written in their manual)
= From 10,000 yen, right?
Or they might check if you want to pay small changes
細かい方、よろしかったでしょうか？
= Komakai hou yoroshikatta deshouka?
= Would like to pay small change?
About a plastic bag, レジ袋= reji bukuro many places charge for a plastic bag now so they ask you if you have your own bag or you need a plastic bag.
It is possible that they are asking you
Ex. 袋は必要ですか？= Fukuro wa hitsuyou desuka?
Ex.袋はお持ちですか？ = Fukuro wa omochi desuka?
Ex.袋は御入用ですか？ = Fukuro wa goiriyou desuka?
Ex.袋はご利用でしょうか？ = Fukuro wa goriyou desuka?
If I think of any other expressions, I will keep adding them here.
Hi sensei. Is it possible that sensei could explain this sentence for me a little? :)
1) また、終わらせないことで相手にどうしたらいいのか言ってもらう時間を与えることがあります。）
I feel it says something like: “Also, by not finishing what you want to express, you give the other party time to decide how to continue (make a follow up, how to proceed). As you can see Maggiesensei, I have a little problem with the “dou shitara ii no ka” in this sentence.
Ohh you are studying one of my first sample lessons…なつかしい！
1) どうしたらいいのか= what to do, what we should do
We sometimes give some time to the listeners to tell us what to do by not finishing the sentence.
So imagine you call me and ask me if Yukari is home. If I say
「Yukari は今、おりません。」
That is the end of the conversation. It may sound a bit strong unless you follow right away「何かご伝言はありませんか？」
But if I say
「Yukariは今、おりませんが….」
This unfinished sentence with “が” implies “What would like to do? What would you want me to do? Would you call her back later?”
Then you can think “Um.. what should I do. I will call her back then.”
Thus I can give you sometime to decide what to do without asking you to call her back.
I got it. I relate these types of sentences to something like: “He is not here now…” with the dots as to allow the other party to finish and unfinished or opened sentence.
What interested me the most from that previous sentence sensei is that I recently became aware of this type of usage of “ka” within a sentence. How should I put it? It is like a question that is not really a question but when you try to explain something. For example a sentence as this “what we need to do is to climb that tree.”
Actually I am not sure if I get the usage of “ka” when applied in this manner, that is why I asked the previous question. ^^’
Sorry for not explaining myself correctly sensei. Is it possible to give some examples of the usage of “ka” in this manner?
That is exactly what I meant and sensei. As expected of sensei she understands even with poor explanations like mine. :) Subordinate clauses is the correct name. :) Thank you sensei for your all your help.
@NecroMadMat
Oh, Greeeeeat!! I’m sorry that I didn’t understand your question in the first place.
Sensei, part two. XD
1) 何時がよろしかったでしょうか？
= What time is good for you?
I could memorize the pattern of using the past tense when making such a question, but I would really like to know the way Japanese people think when making this question, do they really think in past tense when making this question? My guess is that they ask in past tense because they give for certain that the “decision” of what time was already made in the person’s mind so they are asking something like, what did you decide. Is this correct sensei? :)
2) 今、携帯がないので滞在先の”わんわんホテル”の電話番号をお伝えします。」
= I don’t have a cell phone so, here is the phone number of Wanwan hotel where I am staying.
What would be the meaning of “saki” in this sentence?
3) はい、それでは復唱させていただきます。」
= OK, let me repeat your reservation.
Sensei, I give a rough translation to this sentence as “I will receive the chance to be allowed to repeat your order?”. Is it alright?
4) シャンプー＆カットで予約できますか？」
= Shanpuu katto de yoyaku dekimasu ka?
= I would like to make a reservation for a shampoo and a haircut.
When it comes to the character “＆”, doesn’t it have a pronunciation in Japanese? Like “to” for example, sensei?
5) ４：３０ならおとりできますが…」
= Yoji han nara otori dekimasu ga…
= How about 4:30?
Is the “otori” in this sentence a: “honorific (o) + toru (take) conversion to noun “i-stem”. In other words, does the sentence says: If it comes to the 4:30, can you take (my reservation)?
6) 初めてかかられますか？
This sentence if from Maggiesensei’s comments reply. :) Is the kakaremasuka a honorific in this sentence?
In this lesson, I focused on practical Japanese phrases you will hear in Japan more than grammatically correct sentences.
The correct phrase should be
何時がよろしいでしょうか？
As I mentioned in the shopping lesson, よろしかったでしょうか？ is often used in the places like family restaurants, stores etc. (I should have left a note in this lesson,too. Sorry for making you confused.)
It is one of the common phrases which you often hear in service industries. So if you want to memorize it, memorize the よろしいでしょうか？and pay attention what people say when you get here.
2) 先（さき）means “one’s destination, the places where you are going to be.”
滞在先= the places you are going to stay/ you are staying
I will give you other examples.
*宛先= あてさき= (destination) address
*行き先 ＝いきさき= destination, where to go
*連絡先= れんらくさき = contact information （→where/who to contact )
3) Nice try but いただく doesn’t mean “to receive” .
How about
~させていただく= I will allow myself to do something
Let me allow myself to repeat your order.
4) Ah, OK. シャンプ＆ブロー is a typical course menu for the beauty salon so it is customary to read “shanpuu burou” without と(=to)
or シャンプーアンドブロー
シャンプー&ブローお願いします。
= Shanpuu burou onegai shimasu.
but you can say
シャンプーとブローお願いします。
= Shanpuu to burou onegai shimasu.
Usually when you see & mark, we read it as “アンド”
５）おとりできる came from “おとりすることができる” (honorific expression of とることができる）
If 4:30 is OK with you, we could make a reservation for you.
4) Yes. かかられる is an honorific form of かかる
医者にかかる= to consult a doctor, to see a doctor
Hi Mika!
Yes, although してしまい・してしまって are more common, you can say 〜してしまいまして申し訳ございませんでした。
It sounds more formal you usually don’t use it with すみません or ごめんなさい.
Also you can separate the sentence.
〜してしまいました。大変申し訳ございませんでした。・ご迷惑を御かけ致しました。etc.
Hello astro!
Yes, we often omit particles in casual Japanese including よう”に”
うまくいくよう（に）祈っています。
元気になるよう（に）願っています。
試験に受かるよう（に）がんばっています。
But you can’t always omit に
It would sound strange if you omit に for example,
x うまくいきますよう！→うまくいきますように！
X マギー先生のようなりたい。→マギー先生のようになりたい。
I was looking at concise guides like this one, but I found yours to be so well thought out and informative. Thank you for taking the time to write such an excellent guide.
Hello, hariajie! Welcome to our site!
First your example sentences, 雨 won’t work because you can’t predict if rain will stop or not.
(A little correction: 雨が止む＝やむ not 止める）
Now ようになります is talking about the future, “will be, will become”. and ようになっています is Future Perfect, “will have been ~ ”
マギー先生のサイトで毎日勉強すると…..
= If you study with Maggie Sensei’s site everyday
a) １年後には日本語がペラペラに話せるようになります。
b) １年後には日本語がペラペラに話せるようになっています。
We may translate them both in the same say but there is a slight difference as follows.
a) You will be able to speak Japanese fluently in a year.
b) You will have been able to speak Japanese fluently in a year. You are supposed to be able to speak Japanese fluently in a year.
Also ようになっています is used when you describe how things are supposed to work or be.
電気は自然に消えるようになっています。
= The lights should automatically turn off. / The lights are supposed to turn off automatically.
今まで、このブログを知って、悔しいだよ！Maggie先生、質問があるんですが、
だれでも分かる＝anybody can understand it
だれにも分からない＝nobody can understand it
では、not everyone can understand it 日本語でなんと言いますか。
In the Japanese version there is “sama” but in the roomaji it isn’t there. Do they use “sama” in this situation or is it “ohitori desu ka?”
2) 決められましたか？
Sensei, one of the biggest challenges I recognize in my learning at this moment is recognizing with ease the difference between “potential” and “passive” verbs. I was wondering if there is a clear rule that could help me differentiate when a verb is “passive” and when it is used as “potential”. Up until now I try to discern the difference by the context in which the verb is used so I was thinking that maybe there is a rule I haven’t encountered yet.
Thank you sensei. :) And please excuse my apologies for my hunger of knowledge and the constant questions. XD
I need to pay attention the the subject and the object and how the verb is related to them. I will study and practice until I get a hang of it, sensei. :)
Sensei I watched the Japanese Tradition video. Do I really need to do the “maa, maa, maa” and “Oh toh toh toh” chant? XD
My bet is that one doesn’t need to do things 100 percent as it says in the video or do we sensei? But since the video is constantly reminding me that Japan is the “samurai country” I am afraid that if I don’t follow everything through a samurai may appear to put me in line. XD
By the way, sensei, my dream is to someday live in Japan, to try out living in Japan. :) However, beyond language and differences in culture, the is one thing that actually has me worried and makes me think that my experience there could be hard and that would be the fact that I…
don’t like fish. I really have the intention of trying Japanese dishes, that consist of fish, in spite of me disliking it, but I am asking myself, what if I just can’t eat them? I really don’t want to portray myself as someone with a capricious take on food. :/ Of course, none of this is a question for sensei. XD
My question for sensei. Are there any common or traditional Japanese dishes that do not involve fish? :)
Oh that video is a joke video. Everything in the video is so extreme and exaggerated. I would say 5 pct of the video is true. That is why it is funny.
Samurai have disappeared many many years ago so no worries.
You are right. We eat a lot of fish in Japan but you can survive here without eating fish. There are a variety of food in Japan so I am sure you can find something that you would like.
We do have traditional food without fish. Vegetable tempura, sukiyaki, shabushabu, beef bowls, etc.etc.
But one thing that I can advice you is to be open minded.
It would be much more fun to try many different things when you are in other country.
And people would love you if you at least try to adjust Japanese culture.
Sensei, I like the part when they say: “Taishou has a private life, let us not ask about it.”, whilst he is cleaning a knife. XD They convinced me. lol
Oh sensei, with your comment I would like to make sure, isn’t there someone that actually still addresses himself as samurai? I have seen some TV bangumi where some experts of Japanese sword make appearances but maybe they are just experts, right?
Yeah sensei, I’ll take your advice, I’d go open minded, if my plan to go to Japan works. :D I intend to try those fish dishes out, maybe they would make me like fish, right? :) Hopefully. I plan on trying Maggiesensei’s list in this website if I get to try out Japanese food. :D I’ll use it as a guide. :D
But yeah, my fear is to not being able to start liking fish. If for example I visit someone’s house I know that the percentage of having fish when invited to eat over there in Japan is very high, I really wouldn’t like to turn them down. I can learn customs and language but when one can’t eat something it becomes a problem, doesn’t it? Like, if as an example, someone gives Maggiesensei cat food to try. XD
But somehow I think it is great that Japan is a country with a diet based on fish. Girls over there seem to have a very pretty skin because of it. XD I bet Maggiesensei must have a really beautiful skin under all that pretty fur. XD
Sensei, I checked on those dishes you listed and they look delicious. As I suspected, Japanese dishes are very varied. :)
Yes, I love the scene,too!
There must be some groups that they call themselves samurai but it is hard to find them. And it is totally illegal to carry Katana around now. They will be arrested right away.
Haha, as a matter of fact, I can eat cat food without any problems. (That’s why I am fat…)
If you are going to visit Japanese family or eat with Japanese people, just tell them
ごめんなさい。魚はちょっと苦手なので.. 。= Gomennasai. Sakana wa chotto nigate nanode… = I am sorry but I am not a big fan of fish.
They will understand you. There are Japanese people who don’t like fish as well.
I am not sure if you have seen this lesson (B-kyuu gurume) but there are cheap Japanese food as well.
Try them all!
Now I go check if I have a beautiful skin underneath of my fur….
Maggiesensei, about samurai, I learned that they were indeed prohibited to carry a sword in public, got to know it first from an anime. XD
I read that some fish is kind of dangerous for canines so please be careful sensei, ok? :) But I bet Yukarisama takes good care of you sensei. :)
I don’t think sensei looks fat at all. :/ But I guess it is a ladies thing to be overly critical of their weight. XD
Sensei I recall once reading that there was some Japanese talent that didn’t like fish and following a TV program she was critiqued for asking someone what was his/her favorite type of sushi. Can’t remember who she was though. So I guess I am not alone. lol Unfortunately, even here in my country I am an exemption to the norm, actually I don’t think I know someone else who doesn’t like fish like me… lol depressing.
I recall hearing an expression similar to what Maggiesensei wrote once, in a YouTube channel. I will practice it sensei, thank you very much. :)
Yeah sensei, I checked that lesson out. I can actually picture myself ordering different Japanese dishes and sitting there in my apartment saying: “Let me check if I like this one…” and so forth. XD
I wonder if Maggiesensei is intending to get a crazy haircut to check her skin. If that’s the case, please post pictures sensei. XD
@NecroMadMat
Yes, the simulation practice is very important! Be sure to visualize me in the scene and offering you a lot of fish.(・ω<)
Thank you! You are the only one who doesn't think I am not fat. :)
Yukari"sama" always eats delicious sweets in front of me. She is torturing me!
Woot. I will imagine Maggie-taishou serving me dishes. :) Maybe Yukarisama does that so that Maggiesensei can strengthen her will to resist sweets. ;)
@NecroMadMat
And you can say “ちょっと魚が苦手なので..” to me. Before you finish saying that I will eat yours. So no problem!
Oh, so kind sensei. :) Maybe I would invite Maggiesensei whenever I am invited to someone’s house so that Maggiesensei can take care of the fish. XD I guess some may argue that the hosts wouldn’t like it if I invite someone out of the blue like that to someone’s house, but once they see it is Maggiesensei and how cute she is they won’t mind, I bet. lol
@NecroMadMat
Great! Problem solved!! !happyface!
Maggiesensei, these questions attacked me while reading this lesson.
いえ、ちょっと見せて下さい。
No, thank you. Do you mind if I just look around.
1) a) Wouldn’t this sentence be used to ask the store clerk to show you some stuff to buy? Or to let you see the store?
b) I may be confusing the meaning of the words “miseru” and “misaseru” though. :/ Sensei, could you tell me the difference between these two words?
鏡で合わせてみますか？
“Would you like to use a mirror?”
2) Sensei, I am trying to understand the causative usage of the verb “au” in here. Doing so I get this rough translation of the sentence, is it alright:
“Would you like to try making it fit in front of the mirror?”
Or am I completely off, sensei? lol What I am not sure is if what is made to fit in this sentence is the “piece of clothing” in question.
只今、在庫があるか見て参ります。
3) Is mairimasu used as a polite form of kuru, as in “mite kuru”?
この服は細く見える
This dress makes me look fat.
Maggiesensei isn’t this sentence supposed to mean “This dress makes me look thin.”
4) ございます
Can gozaimasu be used as a substitute for “imasu” as well? I have listened to the expression of “de gozaimasu” while a person addresses himself in an anime.
御入学祝い
Do I read this as “gonyuugaku iwai” or “onyuugaku iwai”?
Thank you sensei for your time and as always, no rush. :) Whenever sensei has the time. :)
1) a)
ちょっと見せて下さい
The direct translation is : Will you show me / May I see / Let me see (what you have in this store).
You can use this phrase to ask someone to show something or someplace.
Since you are asking a shop clerk to show you what they have, you can use this phrase.
And yes, you can use this phrase to ask a shop clerk to show you something.
すみません、この帽子を見せて下さい。
= Excuse me. May I see this hat, please? / Could you show me this hat please?
ショーウィンドーにある青いセーターを見せて下さい。
= May I see / Could you show me the blue sweater in the store window please?
見せる vs 見させる
見せる means “to show something to someone”
見させる= could be two things and that is why it is confusing.
1) When it is uses as a causative verb = to make someone see something.
Ex. Aにsomethingを見させた。= I made A see seomething.
2) When it is used as an honorific
Ex. 見させてください。＝Please let me see
******
2) OK, Not bad.
鏡で合わせる is an idiom. You put on the clothes or simply holding the clothes as if you wear them in front of the mirror and see if you like the design, size or color would fit you.
3) Exactly
見てきます→(polite form ) 見て参ります。
4) Ahh, you are right! Thank you for spotting the mistake. I will fix it.
Right ございます can be used to address yourself. Very polite. マギーでございます！= I am Maggie.
Hola NMM!
I think you got it but just in case I will type out the basic forms below.
見る= to see
見せる= to show
見せられる= (passive form) You are forced to see something by someone
見させる = to force someone to see something
*******
When you ask someone to show you something
a) 見せて下さい。
b) 見させて下さい。
The both mean the same thing. Please let me see something/Show something to me.
But b) sounds a bit more humble and polite.
Sensei, seems like one of the things that got me confused is that “miseru” is not an inflection of “miru”, in other words: “miru” =/= “miseru”. “Miseru” is a verb on its own, right?
Sensei, with the first explanation it was clearer than water, with the second explanation it is clearer than air. XD Thank you Maggiesensei. :)
Maggiesensei, “making my life a lot simpler since 2012.” XD
@NecroMadMat
見せる is a one form of 見る but when we translate it look the different words. to see / to show
But you are right. It is easier to think they are different words at the moment.
Good that my explanation cleared things up.
Oh is that so? The plot thickens. lol I’ll follow your advice sensei. :)
Edit: I couldn’t find the reply option to sensei’s last comment, I meant to reply to sensei’s last comment just in case. :)
Your lessons are always so useful <3 Thank you for taking the time and making them!
今年もマギー先生のレッスン、お楽しみにしています！（＾。＾）ｂ
はい、真剣（しんけん）に祈っていてくださいね。 !happyface!
さっき、質問に答えるのを忘れていました。ごめんね。
When you are talking to people, you can say
*みなさん (correct)
*皆様= みなさま (correct) more formal
*********
*みんな (correct) more casual
********
But we don’t say
*みんなさん
*みんなさま
ずっと待ってましたよマギー先生。もうレッスン作りたがっていなかったと思った.
there’s a typo there先生. がるの部分のなかで気味悪いのexample. 近つきたがらないは日本語で書いてあるですがロマ字は近つきたくないと書いてある。すみません上手な日本語で説明したいですけどまだ下手なんです。今年も僕もブログを読んでるみんなさんもきっと先生のレッスンに楽しみがっています
PS. 僕のtypeした日本語にも欠点があるなら教えて頂けないでしょうか先生 >-<
*作りたがっていない→As I mentioned in this lesson, たがる is usually used to describe the third person’s desire. So if you meant to say “I thought you didn’t want to make a lesson anymore” then もうレッスンは作りたくないのかと思っていました。is better.
But I would just say “もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った” I thought you were not going to make a lesson anymore is more natural.
*書いてあるですがロマ字は→書いてありますがローマ字は
*みんなさん→みなさん （Actually many people make this mistake. みんな is not used with さん)
*楽しみがっています→Ahhh too bad. You are trying to use がる here but it doesn’t work here. 楽しみにしています。
*欠点→欠点 is usually used for defects so how about just → 間違い(mistake)?
“もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った” can you please explain me why you use のか?
I will just writte もうレッスンは作らないと思った without のか . That’s why i would like to know why you use it.
Yes, you can say
もうレッスンは作らないと思った。
もうレッスンは作らないかと思った。
もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った。
の is usually used for nominalization. Also のか emphasizes the meaning more.
I will show you more examples when we use のか
(Can you ask where she lives?)
Ex. 彼女がどこに住んでいるか聞いてくれる？
Ex.彼女がどこに住んでいるのか聞いてくれる？
I don’t know how to do this.
Ex. これをどうやってやるかわからない。
Ex. これをどうやってやるのかわからない。
I’m glad to hear that ^^ I’m fine but i have no motivation to learn….><"""
NOKA is like a hidden question. I read and understand examples that you gave but when i see noka plus to omou it’s different from the hidden question. Sorry don’t know how to explain it ><"
Anyway thank you for anwser ^^
@PukiPuki
か／のか can express your emotion (such as surprised feeling, etc.) more.
In this case, it is like “whether ~ or not” and 思う is “to wonder”
So
もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った means
I was wondering if you stopped making lessons.
sensei, sensei
can we translate that sentence to “‘Is she/he not making a lesson anymore?’, was what I thought.”?
Hi Maggiesensei, I made questions for two different lessons today, hopefully I am not asking too much at the same time. There is no need for sensei to answer right away, I can wait. :)
1) 「彼女って血液型ABじゃない？だってちょっと掴みどころがないもの。」
“Her blood type must be AB because she is a bit enigmatic.”
a) I can’t find the “enigmatic” in the sentence. My guess is that “tsukami” (grip) is used as enigmatic by using the logic that something enigmatic is something one person does not have a
“grip” on. Is that right sensei?
b) I wanted to know about “dokoro”. I read it is used for emphasis and negation, right?
2) 型にはまった
Sensei wrote that this expression means “conventional”. “Conventional” in what form sensei?
3) Does the “aishou” have a sentimental connotation or can I use it when referring to friends?
4) あなたの血液型ってA型じゃない？何か細かいから…
“Isn’t your blood type A? You seem somehow meticulous to me.”
Sensei, can I use “nanika” to convey the meaning of “somewhat” as well?
Let me see your questions here…
1) enigmatic = 掴みどころがない ＝つかみどころがない
You use this expression for a mysterious person who you can’t tell what they are thinking about.
つかむ has mainly two meanings, to hold on to something, to grip something or to apprehend, to grasp, to get
It is from つかむところ(=所= place, part) がない There is no place you can grip, hold on to →(changed to) つかみどころがない there is no place to grasp, hard to tell
2) 型 literally means “mold” ,”form” or “pattern”
So imagine people who are fixed in a mold which is made by society or one’s group. They behave, say or think as other people. They do the same routines everyday.
No originality. In that sense, the are conventional. People don’t do things spontaneously.
3) Yes, 相性がいい，悪い is used all the time for any human relationships.
@NecroMadMat
OK, 型にはまる(= conventional, stereotyped, formulaic) is usually used in a negative connotation.
Ex. 型にはまったってはいけない。(Don’t be too conventional. Be unique! )
Ex. 型にはまらずに〜した方がいい。(You should be unconventional (more original) when you do ~ .)
Ex. 型にはまらない方がいい。(=You should be unconventional, You should be unique)
Ex. 彼は型にはまっている。(negative, criticizing)
*型にはまった仕事をする = to do the same routine
*型にはまった教育 = conventional education
*型にはまった物の考え方 = conventional way of thinking
*型にはまらない考え方= unconventional way of thinking, to think out of the box
*型にはまらない方法= unconventional way, a formulaic way, mannerism
*型にはまったもの= cliche
Nice! I get it perfectly now. Thank you Maggiesensei. :D
@NecroMadMad
よかった！！！You are very welcome!!
Maggiesensei, NecroMadMat here reporting for help as always. XD
ああ〜疲れた！温泉にでも行ってゆっくりしたい！
“Oh, I am so tired. I feel like going to hot-spring and just relax!”
I was wondering if there is a special meaning for the particles “ni+demo”. I am reading them as “even to the onsen” but I could be wrong. I can only trust sensei on this one. XD
Also, I found interesting the way the desire of “going to a hot-spring and just relax” is conveyed in the sentence. By putting the “shitai” at the end, does that make the “itte” to have the nuance of “wanting to go” as well, as in “ikitai”?
Hello!!
Q 1) Let’s compare these two sentences.
1) 温泉に行きたい。 = I want to go to hot-spring.
2) 温泉にでも行きたい。= I feel like go to hot-spring. / I would like to go to a place like hot-spring.
Difference 1) While you want to go to a specific place which is 温泉 in the sentence 1), you want to go to a place such as 温泉 in the sentence 2).
Difference 2) Also in the sentence 1) shows your stronger will to go to hot-spring and 2) sounds softer and it suggests that it would be nice if I could go to hot-spring or I feel like going to hot-spring
Q 2) 温泉にでも行ってゆっくりしたい
~たい goes to two verbs “to go (to hot-spring) and “relax”
行きたいそしてゆっくりしたい
When you connect two verbs with たい, you can omit the first one.
Ex. I would like to have lunch with you and talk a lot.
小さな間違いがあるかどうか分かりません。。。
「Ex. この辺においしいラーメン屋があるらしいよ。
= Kono hen ni oishii raamenyasan ga arurashiiyo.
= I heard there is a good ramen shop around here.」
あの｢屋｣の読み方は「やさん」か「や」だけですか？
“What are you going to get as a gift when you come to Japan?”
The “kita toki ni” seems to be in the past, but then I know that in Japanese the “a” form of verbs is used at times without the “past” connotation like for example: “yameta hou ga ii”. Is it a rule to use the “a” form of the verb when talking about something that will be done in the future?
What about when people use the dictionary form with “toki”? I recall that pattern being used, like “kuru toki ni”.
2) 何か却って申し訳ありません。
“Sorry that I (we) ended up making you worry about causing more trouble (bringing us something) by inviting you.”
In this lesson Maggiesensei you provided a lot of examples of how to answer to favors or some situations. :) I wanted to know if it is ok for men to use this expressions. I bet men use them for people they don’t have much confidence with and with superiors but what about people of lower age and friends? Is it ok to use it for all situations?
「どうぞ、手ぶらでいらして下さい。」
“Please do not worry about coming empty-handed. (Just come!)”
I can’t find the definition of the word “irashite”. :/
Sorry for the lengthy post. :/ Thank you Maggiesensei as always. :)
こんにちは！
なるほど！！I am always impressed with your questions.
1) You are right. The past tense of 来る is 来た, so it looks strange, huh?
When you are simply talking about the future, you can use 来る
Ex1) 日本に来る時は言ってね。
= Let me know when you come to Japan.
As you said we can use 来た時 for the real past action.
Ex. 2) 去年、日本に来た時はとても寒かった。
= It was really cold when I visited (came to )Japan last year.
We also use 来た時 for future when you assume some action is completed = will have come
So the translation of
Ex.3) 日本に来たら言ってね。
could be the same as E1) but actually it means “Let me know when you will have arrived in Japan./will have come to Japan.”
And Ex.3 has slightly more possibility of coming to Japan.
So you can use ~た時 when you did something or when will have done something.
2) 却って申し訳ありません。
Is totally OK for men to use.
If you are talking to your friends, you can say
却って気を遣わせちゃって….
却ってごめん。
却って悪かったね/な。
(な suffix is for men.)
3) いらしてください is a contraction form of いらっしゃってください
an honorific form of 来てください
Thank you Maggiesensei. XD It is all clearer now. It is just a matter of practice, practice, practice, to get it down. :) Thank you Maggiesensei for your precious time, as always. ;)
じゃない is a casual form of ではない and as you said, it is used to make a negative form.
Ex. マギーはねこではない→マギーはねこじゃない= Maggie is not a cat.
Ex. この言葉は日本語ではない→この言葉は日本語じゃない。 = This word is not Japanese.
However this じゃない in the example sentence is not for negative sentence.
It means the same as でしょ= desho
まだふられたわけではないでしょ。
and used as a tag question such as “isn’t it?/ don’t you?, etc.” or express your opinion and asking the listener for their agreement.
And it simply stresses the previous part “まだふられたわけではない”
Women use this form often.
Men would say じゃないか= janaika
まだふられたわけではないじゃないか。
It is a great question. If I have a chance, I will make a lesson on じゃない for you.
Thank you Maggiesensei. It makes sense now. XD A lesson about the different ways of ending a sentence in this manner during conversation would be awesome! :D
明けましておめでとうございます！！今年もよろしくお願いします。
School work is more than what I would expect, so I find myself visiting sensei’s class less often… D:
の翻訳ですか？
How about
学校の勉強が思ったより大変なので先生のレッスン（このサイトに）になかなか来れません。
hey maggie ! so yeah just couldn’t understand when to use jibun , like . . . is it equivalent to boku or watashi ? and when can i use it ? please give me simple example. . . I always hear it when Japanese people speak and I know it translate to “myself” i think : |
Hi Brandon!
First we usually use 1st person pronouns such as 私, 僕 to refer to yourself more. When to use jibun? There are times you refers to yourself with 自分 when you see yourself more objectively.
Ex. 自分は日本人です。= I am Japanese
→私（僕）は日本人です。is more common
Ex. これは自分のものです。 = This is mine.
→これは私のものです。is more common
Ex. 自分のせいです。= It’s my fault.
→私のせいです。= Watashi no sei desu.
But as I wrote in the lesson
“it sounds a little more distant than the other pronouns. It sounds like one is drawing a line between themselves and the listener.
Also sometimes it sounds more rigid because it is a typical soldiers’ type of speech.”
I would stick to the regular first pronouns to refer to yourself.
However when you use it to focus on “oneself” , you use 自分
Ex. 自分でやります。 = I will do it myself.
Ex. 自分のために生きたい。= I would like to live for myself.
And as for your other question that you asked me on Twitter,
Q : If i say 自分の家 does that equal my house? or could it also mean one’s house which means could be another person’s house?
It depends on the context but it could be either your own house or another person’s house.
A : 宿題は自分の家でやります。= 私の家(=watashi no ie)
= Shukudai wa jibun no ie de yarimasu.
= I will do my homework at (my own) home.
B : 宿題は自分の家でやりなさい。= あなたの家(=anata no ie)
= Shukudai wa jibun no ie de yarinasai.
= Do your homework at (your own) home
But when you invite someone to your house, we say
今日、私（僕）の家に来ない？
= Kyou watashi (boku) no ie ni konai?
= Do you want to come over my house today?
And usually we don’t say
X 今日、自分の家に来ない？
= Kyou jibun no ie ni konai?
Hi Lodee!
You should have taken off your shoes.
→I would translate that sentence using with のに not はず
靴を脱がなくてはいけなかったのに= Kutsu wo nuganakutewa ikenakatta noni.
But yes, you can use ”はず=hazu” when you blame someone.
靴を脱がなくてはいけないと言ったはずです
= Itta hazu desu.
= I told you that you should have taken off your shoes.
ありがとう、マギー先生！ I will have a look at them! And actually no, I haven't read まめしばレッスン yet :D I am reading (only) a lesson a day because I find it easier to absorb and also for motivation purpose..
Once again, thank you! :D ¡gracias!
@Bearz314熊314
OK, OK One lesson per day is more than enough. Take your time.
And “De nada!” !happyface!
I came across your website after someone posted a reply to my question in italki.com. I am trying to find explaination on いただきます but while reading this article, I have another question.
In this sentence, そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？, on first look, I thought it meant ‘can I receive sweets from your son?’ Am I wrong?
Hi changkh!
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ can’t be “Can I receive sweets from your son?”
If I translate “Can I receive sweets from your son?” in Japanese, it should be
そのお菓子をあなたの息子さん”から”もらえますか？(Or 頂けますか？）
Ah I see your confusion now.
マギーにお菓子をもらった
マギーからお菓子をもらった
both means ” I got snacks from Maggie”
As you said “に” could be “from” however, as for this sentence
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？
we usually refer to other person’s son as 息子さん and refer to your own son as 息子
There are cases that you refer to other person’s son as 息子 in casual conversation but you don’t use ます form.
So the readers naturally think this sentence as “Can I have the snack for my son?”
And even you change 息子 to 息子さん
Can I have the snack from your son?
そのお菓子を（あなたの）息子さんからもらえますか？ is more clear in this case.
If you ask someone to get a snack from their son,
そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらってもらえますか？
thank you for your clarification. now i understand.
can i say that in this case ‘に’ means ‘to’?
for your last sentence, ‘そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらってもらえますか？’, what is the purpose of 2 ‘もらう’? is there any difference just using ‘もらえますか’?
@changkh
Q 1) can i say that in this case ‘に’ means ‘to’?
→Yes.
Q2) ‘そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらって(1) もらえ(2)ますか？’, what is the purpose of 2 ‘もらう’? is there any difference just using ‘もらえますか’?
The first one means “to receive” and the second one is asking the listener for favor, to do something for me. (Ex. やってもらえますか？ Ex. 書いてもらえますか？）
so the に in そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか can act as a のために and the sentence would mean something like “息子のために私がもらえる”
@Snaut
Yes!! :)
Maggie sensei, in this sentence そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか I can’t but think it as “can I get candy from my son” because I was told that にもらえます means “x gave it to y”, how can it be thought as meaning the same as そのお菓子を息子にくれますか？
if it because the に in に can act as a のために how to tell apart the に/から that indicates who gives and に acting as a のために?
@Snaut
If the sentence is
そのお菓子はAさんにもらった
Then it means the speaker received that snack from A.
However, もらえますか means “to be able to receive” (= Can you give that snack to my son)
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか = May I have that snack for my son?
1) そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ May I have that snack for my son?
2) そのお菓子を息子にくれますか？ Can you give that snack to my son?
Technically they means the same but 1) sounds more polite.
How do you say “Sorry the (object) is/are late” in japanese??? Please help it is pretty urgent!
Hello!
Object 遅くなってごめんなさい。
= Object osoku natte gomennasai.
OK, for example, if you give a late Christmas present, you say
Ex. クリスマスプレゼント遅くなって*ごめんなさい。
= Kurisumasu purezento osoku natte gomennasai.
Or *ごめんね(=gomenne) between friends
‘Yappari nihongo wo benkyou suru nara Maggie Sensei no saito dayone.‘
İn this sentence do we know that he/she going to learn from Maggie’s site or he/she just going to learn? Emphasis is on which sentente? On Maggie’s site?
こんにちは！
Wow! You have just started to learn Japanese two weeks ago and you can write all the sentences? Impressive.
‘Yappari nihongo wo benkyou suru nara Maggie Sensei no saito dayone.‘
We can tell from this sentence that the speaker is already studying Japanese from Maggie’s site so that he/she can assure this site is GREAT! :l:
Yappari emphasizing the whole sentence “If you want to study Japanese, it should be Maggie Sensei’s site)
And FYI, one Turkish person has been translating many of my lessons on Facebook. Go check Maggie Sensei Facebook
よいお年をお迎え下さい。
Happy New Year, sensei! my new year resolution is to study all of your lessons^^ wishing you and your family well into the new year and beyond^^
Thank you for your nice message!!!
Hehe I hope you keep up your new year’s resolution.
The same to you! よいお年をお迎え下さい。そして来年がTopさんにとって素晴らしい年となります様に！ !happyface!
I just wanted to say thanks, this page is my hero.
I’m actually a current exchange student in Japan, got here a week ago… And despite having studied Japanese at school, I cannot for the life of me understand the casual talk. This page has everything that’s been confusing me on it all explained, so a big thanks!!
@maggie daisuki (→Haha, What a lovely name you have! :) )
Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I just fixed them.
Wow… I made this lesson three years ago. Time flies.
Anyway 優しいメッセージありがとう！！とってもうれしく読みました！こちらこそこれからも宜しくね！
来年もまたこのサイトに来て下さい。
= Yasashii messeiji arigatou! Tottemo ureshiku yomimashita. Kochirakoso korekara mo yoroshiku ne.
Rainen mo mata kono saito ni kite kudasai. !happyface!
こんばんは！joikoi!
You can’t use くせに when you are talking about yourself, Ex after all that work, although I did this….(+ disappointed result)
○せっかく作ったのに… (x せっかく作ったくせに..)
But sometimes you can use them both and the translation is the same. However, くせに sounds much stronger.
くせに is usually used to accuse someone or look down on someone.
a) 犬のくせに日本語を教えている
b) 犬なのに日本語を教えている
a) sounds much stronger and I would take it as an insult so you have to be careful when to use.
マギー先生～ こんにちは！
i just discovered your site some time ago and it’s a great help to learning japanese ^^
I have some questions about the もらう part..
I’m confused about the difference between に and から used with もらう. Like you stated above, 「私はマギーにお菓子をもらった」 and 「彼からもらいました」。 Is there a difference between usiing に and から for the two sentences? Like, 「私はマギーからお菓子をもらった」？ As far as I noticed in example sentences I see that when it’s something like してもらう or おごってもらう it’s mostly (always?) に. Why is that so?
Also, I have another question about に and から that is, sometimes I hear people saying 「田中さんに聞いて」, in this case can から be used? I always use から in such sentences but I was confused about the に and から usage.
Hope that you can explain this to me! Thank you maggie sensei!
And keep up the good work for the site! I will be back to study again ^^
こんにちは！ yuu!
OK, You can both use ~にもらう&〜からもらう and ~に聞く&〜から聞く
Ex. 誰にもらったの？= 誰からもらったの？
Ex. 田中さんに聞きました。 = 田中さんから聞きました。
If there is a difference, I would say から emphasizes more on “direction” (FROM who)
nai = there is not
node = because/since / so… (giving a reason)
kozeni nai node = Since I don’t have small change so…
We often don’t finish the sentence and let the listener figure out the rest.
But you can also say
ごめんなさい。（or すみません）小銭を持っていません。/ or 小銭がありません。
= Gomennasai (or Sumimasen.) Kozeni wo motte imasen. or Kozeni ga arimasen.
Good question! I used to have the same problem. There are some really help full videos. I’m not sure why, but the way you write and type ki and sa are different than writing. Just keep practing or go on youtube! Wish you the best!
Regarding this lesson, I have 2 questions:
1. I often heard that “monka”, “monda” is associated with female speech, is it true? Is it common for both guys & girls to use “monka”, “monda” this way?
2. Also, what is the level of politeness of “monodesuka”? I mean, the “desu” form is polite, but can I use it with older people without making them feel I’m a little too rude?
Sorry that it took me a while to get back to you. I was on vacation.
1. もんか and もんだ are both for men and women. But since if you finish the sentence with もんか it sounds strong (even for a man) so women should avoid using it verbally.
もんだ will be OK if you add ね, よね or なあ ,etc.
2. ものですか also sound strong and as I wrote, it could be very aggressive so avoid using it with older people or upper level people.
Sensei, I have a question. How do we say “It seemed fun”? Is it “楽しそうだった”? Or is it “楽しかったそう”? I’m not sure both are correct. Please help me! Thank you so much! :D
Love Maggie sensei!
永遠にマッギ先生サイトを祈る！I want to say ” I wish maggiesensei.com stay with us forever” please correct.
Could you also give examples of male voice? because male voices are so tough to understand.
永遠にマッギ先生サイトを祈る！→マギー先生のサイトが永遠に（or ずっと）続きますように。
かな？
ありがとう、Top!
We are sorry. this site is created by Maggie and Yukari and both of us are girls so that we can’t have male voices. I will try to make more listening exercises instead using TV commercials or movie preview on Facebook. ごめんね。
And we love you,too! !CHECKHEART!
まず間違いを見つけてくれてありがとう。早速（さっそく）直しました。
OK first I will correct your sentences.( Just minor things. You did great!)
名詞のために｢～らしい｣を使って正しいですか?
→名詞に｢らしい｣を使っても正しいですか？/Or how about 名詞＋｢らしい｣も正しいですか？
多分ただ曲で使ってもかまいませんでしょう
→？？（Can you give me the translation here? 何を「使ってもかまわないでしょう」といいたいですか？)
**********
Now as for your question, らしい, yes, you can use 名詞+らしい
and you are right, if you say マギーらしい it refers to my personality or what I would do.
I have to send you another related lesson. らしい
BTW I will take vacation from tomorrow so I may not be able to answer your question for a week but will get back to you when I come back.
勉強続けてね！
どうも有り難うございます、先生!
I’ll keep those corrections in mind^^
With 「使ってもかまわないでしょう」 I was trying to say “Maybe it’s ok to use it only in songs” because songs often say things in a way that we wouldn’t really use in our daily life.
I’ll check the らしい lesson!
Have a great time on your vacations, 先生!
Sensei, I forgot to ask about the 2nd PS.
Is it possible to use ～そう with verbs in past? I mean, to tell how you think that something happened.
For example, would 「車で衝突した？酔っていたそう。。。」 make sense?
Assuming that you’ll read this when you come back…
I hope you had had great vacations!
有り難う、先生＾＾
@Orti
Sorry for the late response.
Yes you can use そう with a past tense.
運転手は酔っていたそうだ。
Oh, my doubt was answered on the first paragraphs of らしい lesson xD
Great Lesson! I have two queestions regarding はず. I can always understand the meaning of the sentences that use はず, but when it comes to making up my own’s, I end up getting stuck especially in deciding which verb tenses should be used. So the questions are.
Can you use Verb Past tense + はず + だった (i.e, double past tense)? What would it mean?
The other question was about a situation that occured to me. I slept at my friend’s house and then he told me he had to wake up at 7 am, but it was already 9 and he hadn’t woke up yet. So I thought of the sentence “He should already have woken up”. And when I tried to translate to japanese, I came up with “もう起きたはずなのに”. Is this correct?
Sorry it became a little long, this is the first time I comment on this site but I always follow the posts and it has helped me a lot in my studies!
Q1) It is possible to use double past tense.
V 1 (past / past perfect)+ はず+ だった = When you expected that you have done something/someone has done something.
Ex. 1) お金を持って来たはずだったのに…
I thought I have brought money
The translation could be the same as
Ex. 2) お金を持ってきたはずなのに
But Ex.1) shows slightly more regret than 2)
Q2) That is a tricky one.
How about もう起きていなければいけないはずなのに。He should have been woken up already.
Hello, Maggie! I want so bad to study Japanese and found your site. I don’t know anything about this language yet(I just recognize some words in romanji) and I wanted to start with the first lesson. I thought this would be the one, but it seems too difficult. Do I have to learn the basics from somewhere else or is there another lesson that is meant to be the first one for the beginers? Thanks! :)
Thank you for your message. I am sorry that I haven’t made many lesson targeting real beginner people yet. You can use hiragana, katakana lessons first and go to Super Basic Words series or Daily Basic Phrases to begin with.
Either way, I would use my site as sub-material to learn Japanese. Get a good textbook or go find good site where you can learn basic Japanese.
But feel free to ask me questions here. I can help you anytime.
hi, I like your site a lot, and i have a question!
can you do a bit on baking cake and words and sentences you would use in the kitchen and how to understand recipes from recipe books!
maybe you could just use some japanese recipe for some cake and then go through it line by line and explain and translate the instruction and mention what other words would be used in the kitchen!
Hi Marril! I’m happy to hear you like my site. Right now I have been working on three different lessons and there is a long list of request from people.
Still I found cooking will be an interesting topics because I love eating. I can not use someone’s recipe taking out from a book or Internet for copy right reason. But I could make a very basic and general lesson on how to read basic cooking instructions someday. !happyface!
Hi Orti! Thank you for spotting the mistake and sorry I didn’t put the translation there.
「そんなことをやってもらったら困ります」means
I will be in trouble if you do that.
どういたしましてと同時に有り難うございます ＾＾
would it be a different structure if you wanted to say “you will be in trouble if you do that”? or is it “I will be in trouble…..” just because the subject isn’t mentioned?
I know Japanese is sometimes confusing because we often skip the subject and unlike Spanish, we can’t always tell the subject by the conjugation of the verbs.
But in this case, やってもらう is a key word here. Someone does something for/to me.
And it is not natural to use 困っちゃう if the subject is you unless you add でしょ (aren’t you, won’t you) etc.
You will be in trouble if I do that, won’t you?
私がそんなことしたら困っちゃうでしょ。(casual)
I will be in trouble if you (or someone) do(does) that.
そんなことをされたら／してもらったら／やってもらったら／されたら／困っちゃう
そんなことやってもらったら困っちゃう。
払う and 支払う both mean “to pay” but 支払う is used in more formal situation and used for “fee” or “bills” that you have to pay such as electric/water/gas bills, tax , fine, and etc.
I love your site!
I have a question about this article though.
You explained using になる with な adjectives, but not with い adjectives.
Does that mean we can’t use になる with them?
If so, how do we use?
Substitute い for になる、 for example 珍しになる?
“マレーシア”は毎日暑そうですね。日本はこれからどんどん寒くなるからうらやましいです。
試験、がんばって下さいね！
（勉強のためにコメント少し直しますね〜↓
Ex. よく勉強しましただな→よく勉強しました。大好きけど→大好きだけど ありませんでしょう→Hum how about just saying ありません。）
1) It’s a sound of drum or when things are moving rapidly or to describe some action keeps going.
どんどん暗くなる= It is getting darker and darker.
どんどん時間が過ぎる = The hours go quickly.
2) I envy you./ I’m jealous = うらやましい
九州はいい所ですね。私は名古屋に住んでいます。
２５００円＝にせんごひゃく円ですか →yes
８５００００＝はっじゅごまん円ですか →はちじゅうごまん円
７０００＝ななせん、しちせん →Yes but I think ななせん is more common
４８００＝よんじゅはっひゃくですか →よんせんはっぴゃく
Go check my 数字 lesson, OK?
oh~!I get it!!
しちゃくしてもいいですか
して<—what does shite means?
よく<——Is this mean good/well?
many conversation is added with "koto",how to use koto?
試着する= しちゃくする= shichaku suru is a verb = to try something on
verb てもいいですか？= asking for permission.
Ex. Can I eat? = 食べてもいいですか？= たべてもいいですか？= Tabetemo ii desu ka?
Ex.Can I come in? = 入ってもいいですか？= はいってもいいですか？= Haitte mo ii desu ka?
よく？ I am not sure which phrase but よく means =well, a lot, much or frequently
Ex. よく寝(ね）た。= I slept well.
Ex. よく笑(わら）った。= I laughed a lot.
Ex. よくここに来(き）ますか？= Do you come here often?
こと is used for nominalization (make a verb into a noun. 走る= hashiru = to run →走ること= hashiru koto = running
Or added after the pronoun with の
Ex. Do you like me? = 私のこと好き？= Watashi no koto suki?
Ex.Can I try it on? = 試着してもいいですか? = しちゃくしてもいいですか？= Shichaku shite mo ii desu ka?
When you count certain things such as languages we use カ
１カ国語= one language
２カ国語 = two languages
3カ国語 = three languages
So 何カ国語 means “How many languages”
If you want to ask someone “What language do you speak?” You say “何語を話しますか？= なにごをはなしますか？= Nanigo wo hanashimasu ka?”
Yeah, I think the first part took me three nights or so . I wouldn’t have ever imagined the subtle details you must be aware of while referring to your own or someone’s family.
有り難う!
Your lessons are great! It’s like one can feel your dedication in every one of them, it’s very inspiring.
I couldn’t internalize all the lesson by reading it just once, but soon I’ll surely become an expert of family related words! (笑）
Thank you very much for creating this site, and for always being there to kindly answer any doubt we have, really.
＠Orti
I am sorry. I just read your comment.
Welcome to Family Related Lesson Part 2! I hope you come back here again and again until you get familiar with all the words.
And THANK YOU for always visiting here. It has been a pleasure to answer or read your comments!
I have recently started to study Japanese more seriously and having some hard time, but i accidently found this site and it helped me a lot!
Sensei, I learned a lot with this lesson, I guess I didn’t even know the half of the things you taught us here.
Now it’s time to move to part 2 (^o^)/!
first of all, i love your page, i always read it, and it helps me a LOT! thanks ^^
but i have a quick question about しちゃう.(maybe its a bit silly question ><") at the part "express your emotions", do you use it just with bad things?? like you wrote, when you miss the bus, or you are in trouble, or did something wrong. is it emphasize the emotions just about bad things?
こんにちは！Sacchan! !happyface!
Thank you for your nice comment! I am glad to hear my site helps you.
Oh, it is a good question. No, しちゃう can be used for neutral or positive things as well.
I separated “expressing one’s emotions” and “To finish doing something, to complete some action” but you can express your emotion when someone complete an action.
For example
もう宿題終わっちゃったの？ You are impressed that someone has finished the homework.
これもらっちゃった！= I got this from (someone) (You are happy or bragging.)
試験に受かっちゃった！= I got to pass the exam! (Happy feelings.)
And i have some questions:
1. How to make ~される or ~される form of ~て しまう? Does it change to ~て しまわれる?
2. Could this sentence: 前の人が立って, 映画 が 見えませんでした changed into 受け身? Considering 見える is tadoushi.
Well, I’m still learning Japanese so maybe i’ve made some mistakes. Hope you can explain it clearly.
→Yes, it is correct.
The direct translation is
All the liquor (beer, or any alcoholic beverage) was drunk by my brother. It means, My brother drank all the liquor.
Q2) And i have some questions:
1. How to make ~される or ~される form of ~て しまう?
食べる
→食べさせる to make someone eat
→食べさせられる Someone is forced to eat something
→食べさせられてしまう。Someone has been/was forced to eat something.
Note : 〜てしまう : action is completed/ It implies more emotion (feelings)
Q3) Does it change to ~て しまわれる?
I can’t think of any at the moment.
Q3) . Could this sentence: 前の人が立って, 映画 が 見えませんでした changed into 受け身?
先生こんにちは!
thanks for the nice detailed lesson. however, i dont really get this sentence . もっとわかるように話してください
shouldn’t it mean: if you want me to understand more, please talk? since the motto is in front.
oh and i read from my notes, for ようにone of the example states: 妹は人形のようにかわいいです。shouldn’t it be ような since it has nothing to do with “to do something like”?
Ah, I see.
もっとわかるように話してください。
This わかるように is a bit tricky. わかるように itself means “easily, clearly” like “わかりやすく”
So the direct translation is “Please talk to me more clearly so that I understand you more (better). But since it is redundant, I translated just the way I did in the lesson.
Your sentence
“if you want me to understand more, please talk? ”
will be もしもっとわかってもらいたかったら話してください。It doesn’t mean the same.
The second question :
妹は人形のようにかわいいです。
You can’t change ように to ような here.
But if you can say
妹は人形のような女の子です。
As I explained in the lesson, ような comes before a noun
ような+ noun (女の子）
So possible to say
人形のようなかわいさだ
because かわいさ is a noun (=cuteness)
If this sentence is
もっとわかるようにゆっくり話してください。
You can translate it
Please speak more slowly so that I can understand you more.
@Orti
はい、大体同じように使っています。
But if you want to know the slight difference,
While なければいけない can be used to tell people what to do, なければならない is used when you have to follow certain rules, laws, certain obligations and you can’t know decide whether you do it or not on your own will.
Thanks for your explanation and correction, sensei!
what’s the difference between 設問 and 質問？ they both appear as ‘Question’ in the dictionary :S
えっと。。。 and is there any difference between “なければならない” and “なくてはならない”?
質問・・・question, inquiry , when you ask someone about the things you don’t understand
設問・・・posing a question : when you ask someone a question that you already know the answer. (to test/quiz someone)
So when you have a question for me, 質問があります is better.
“なければならない” and “なくてはならない”
About the same. なければならない is slightly more formal but not much difference.
hi maggie sensei ,since sensei tell me about the full sentence now i understand about the first sentence .and i never saw a sentence have “desu” after ” ka” so i a little confuse in here. thank you.
but the second sentence i still not so sure, 誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？ “って” in here is の . but seem like in “って” lesson don’t mention anything “って” is like の. so it make me confuse . anyway thank you ,maggie sensei.
yes,sensei i already read that って lesson.but i still not clear about the 2 sentence.because don’t have example in question
so 誰が〜を食べたかですって? is stress our own quote showing our frustration ” ってば” ? and we can use
です after か ?
and 誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？is the same ?
@pheaktra
OK,
誰が〜を食べたかですって?
is repeating what other person has just asked.
You can also say
誰が食べたかって？ in a casual situation.
hi maggie sensei i don’t understand this sentence
Q）誰が〜を食べたかですって? why you put です after か ?
A) To make it sound more polite
You can also say
誰が〜を食べたかって？ or 誰が食べたって？in casual conversation.
Q ) what is it full sentence ? is it 誰が〜を食べたかだと聞きました？
「誰が〜を食べたか」と聞いているんですか？
or
誰が食べたのか知りたいのですか？
A) and what is the full sentence of this sentence ?
誰が私のことでぶって言ったって is って here the same as の ?
Yes, the last って is replaced with の to stress your emotion more.
「誰が私のこと（を）でぶ（だ）」って言ったの？
Thank you very much, sensei!, I learned a lot from this lesson! A few days ago I was chatting with a friend and she told me “お母さんに学校まで車で乗せてもらいました。”.Then I got stuck at that part of the conversation because I couldn’t understand it, but now everything is soo clear :D
ね～先生、一つの間違いがあります
ここで：
「山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をあげた。（=Yamada san ga katou san ni okashi wo kureta.)」
I’m not intending to point out every mistake, just trying to help and improve your already awesome site ><
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I really appreciate it! Really!! ありがと〜！！
And I am very happy to hear this lessons helped you understand the conversation with your friend.
今晩は先生！＾＾
えっと。。。 could you please take a look at my exapmples for the exercises to see if they are correct? It would help me a lot
Here I go:
1). ｢お兄さんに洗濯してあげた。｣
. ｢お母さんがいつも洗濯してくれます。｣ That would mean something like “Mom always does(as an act of kindness) the laundry”?
.「私の洗濯機が壊れたので、姉さんに洗濯してもらった」(Assuming that she doesn’t live with me)
2).｢友達に買い物に行ってあげました｣
・「昨日は、私が家でいなくてお母さんが病みましたので隣人が買い物に行ってくれた｣ (I tried to say “As I wasn’t at home and mom was sick,our neighbour went shopping for us”)
.｢弟に買い物に行ってもらった｣
3. ｢お父さんもう仕事でいますけど彼のメールをもらってあげます｣
.｢友達は彼の家で、私がインターネットで書いたケームをもらってくれました｣ (I tried to say “My friend recieved (for me) the game I had bought on internet)
.家でいなかったので、お兄さんにメールをもらってもらった｣
That’s it, thanks in advance, and thank you soooooooooooo much for your hard work!!
As I’m a beginner it took me some time to think how to write 2.2 :S 。 I have a doubt, when you are listing situations like these (I wasn’t home and mother was ill) the tense of the last verb is the one which leads the whole sentence? or you can mix tenses?
In 3 that’s exactly what I was trying to say
So if dad is not at home I could say something like that to the postman?
Hahah and I hadn’t noticed that I had put kaita instead of katta, I always mistake the past form of kau and kaku e_e
I’ll definitely see the Family lesson and remember your corrections!
And once again…有り難う!!
@Orti
Q 1: when you are listing situations like these (I wasn’t home and mother was ill) the tense of the last verb is the one which leads the whole sentence? or you can mix tenses?
Ah, good question! Yes. When you simply list two past actions in one sentence, change the last verb into the past.
For example
I wrote a letter and mailed it.
手紙を書いて、投函した。
or
手紙を書き、投函した。
It was hot and delicious
温かくて美味しかった。
or
温かく美味しかった。
Q 2: So if dad is not at home I could say something like that to the postman?
Yes
****************
Actually you did a good job writing all the sentences with あげる、もらう、くれる
Those are very difficult.
がんばってね！
No. 安心な is psychological thing. Feeling of security. Feeling of relief, to be in peace
Ex. それを聞いて安心しました。= I am relieved to hear that.
安全な means “safe” or physical security, risk-free,
Ex. 安全な場所= safe place
So it is possible to say 安全で安心に暮らす= anzen de anshin ni kurasu= to live safely in peace of mind
すばらしいレッスンをありがとうございました
Thank you for the great lesson!
kono chuko no kuruma wa omotta hodo takaku wa nakatta
this used car was not as expensive as i had =)
Hi! Your site is wonderful! I have a question about おせわになる… I’m writing an open letter/about me to the small town where I will be teaching English for their newspaper and I was wondering if it would be appropriate to close with これからお世話になります or if I should stick to よろしくお願いします. What do you recommend?
Hi!!! Thank you for your comment.
If you are writing to people who you may not see, use よろしくお願いします。
(これからお世話になります。is used when you address people who you actually work with or see in person expecting future help.)
please continue doing this! i think yours is hands down the best website to review conversational japanese. i tend to learn just by repeating what people say, so it’s really useful to have your site provide a written down version of this that also analyses the grammar and everything.
if i can request one thing: it would be cool to have a lesson on words that you can use in business meetings. it’s always hard for me to find the right “tone”. Basically simple stuff like “hey, so we’ll start with the powerpoint now” and “ok, please look at this graph here” and stuff like that. I’m also wondering what level of speech is appropriate when taking business contacts out for drinks: Sure you don’t want to sound too formal, but also not too casual.
…and: You NEED to do a lesson on golf! Seriously! Golf vocabulary and sentences and slang should be your #1 priority! :D
Thank you for your nice comment. !happyface!
So are you a ビジネスマン? If I have a chance, I will make a lesson on business. (Can’t tell you when though..Lots of things on the list. )
Meanwhile, if you have a question, please feel free to leave a comment here or follow me on Twitter or Facebook. I can answer your questions.
It is always safe to use 敬語(keigo) formal languages in business situation unless you are talking to your subordinates or coworkers or someone really close to you.
Even if you avoid sounding too formal you should stick to desu-masu form.
(When you show people graphs)
Ex.こちらのグラフをご覧下さい。= Kochirano gurafu wo goran kudasai. formal
Ex. こちらのグラフを見て下さい。= Kochirano gurafu wo mite kudasai. (polite)
Haha, I have never played golf so I should learn how to play golf first. I wonder if they allow a dog to play golf though….
Thank you Maggie-sensei! That was an excellent lesson as usual. We just learned about “~(verb)ba~hodo” at university so it’s great to be able to consolidate my learning and get to know other ways to use “hodo”. :)
I have a doubt, in the whole conversation of the “A : 「試験なのにどこに出かけるの？」” example, were you using female speech or neutral? It’s just that my intuition tells me that a man wouldn’t speak in that way
Thank you very much for this lesson!
It sounds very soft but it is neutral. If you want to make it sound more “manly” you could say “どこに出かけるんだ？” But it is rough and the listener would feel you are interrogating.
Anyway when ~の is used in a question form both women and men can use.
何をするの？
どうして食べないの？
どこに住んでるの？
But if you used it in an affirmative sentence, の ending sounds very feminine. In other word, men don’t use this form except little boys.
もう食べたくないの。
あなたとは会いたくないの。
名古屋に住んでいるの。
Maggie-sensei, new doubts came to my mind…
How do you use 「事実上」？ I looked up in the dictionary for “actually” because I wanted to ask “Then B sentence is actually femenine?” but I couldn’t figure out how to use it correctly S:
The other doubt is about 「よ」…
It is used at the end of a sentence to add emphasis neutrally, is it right? Are there any cases in which 「よ」 might sound too femenine?
Sorry for making so many questions, sometimes I feel like I’m abusing of your good will ):
@Orti
OK here you go!
1) Exactly B) is for women.
2)事実上 means “practically speaking” For example if a couple lives together for a long time, we say they are 事実上結婚している。(Maybe not legally but they are just the same as a marriage couple.
If you want to say “actually” just say 本当は, 実は、実際は、実際のところ
3) When you are talking to someone and try to involve them, it is neutral
Ex. これおいしいよ！(Asking for agreement from a listener ) neutral
Ex. やってみようよ！/ 今度ドライブに行こうよ！(Asking someone to do something, inviting ) neutral neutral
When you assert things telling people what you think or what you are going to do, it is femenine.
Ex. これ私のよ！(Affirmative sentence. To tell people what you are going to do. ) for women
Ex.明日、学校に行くのよ！(Affirmative sentence to show what you are going to do.) for women
Thank you very much for your lesson!
I’ve become friends with two japanese girls and I was afraid to end up speaking like a girl hahah, but now I will know how to and how not to talk xD
Please please please please please help me!
Maggie…I have this guy friend that told me to figure out what this phrase thingy means! I have searched and searched!
What does “anata niwa unzari shiteiru” mean in English?
Is it even real??? D”’X>
Dear Maggie Sensei, thank you for your lesson! I really appreciate it, and it’s very nice learning with all the bouncy arrows, nice pictures and word colours. Makes learning much more fun!
Hi Jon! はじめまして！Thank you for your comment. I am happy to hear you liked the “bouncy arrows” and stuff. Hope you enjoy learning nihongo with me! !happyface!
It is illegal but I guess many companies still have the age limit. And even if they can’t tell the applicants that they would hire younger people, they would find other excuses not to hire them. That’s a shame…
SSorry maybe this is an old post, but I’m wondering how do you respond when someone compliments you by saying something like “Your hand writting is better than mine!”
@JEss
The most basic response will be
そんなことないですよ。(polite)
そんなことないよ。(Between friends)
You may want to just say ありがとう but since this person is comparing your handwriting and his/hers, if you say ありがとう you give the person impression that you agree that their handwriting is not good.
OK, then “僕が一番好きなのは君の笑顔です。(Boku ga suki nano wa kimi no egao desu.) 君の子供っぽさも好きだ。(Kimi no kodomopposamo suki da) 君のすべてを愛しています。(Kimi no subete wo aishite imasu.)”
You can change 君 to あなた. But it is more common to use the person’s name.
Also the translation changes depending on how close you are to the person.
@Moonn
Are you a girl? If so,
“Thank you! Your feelings make me very happy! Ah, what is it that you love about me?I’m just so curious
ありがとう。あなたの（or the person’s name) 気持ち、とてもうれしいです。ねえ、私のどこが好き？ すごく知りたいです。
= Arigatou. Anata no kimochi totemo ureshii desu. Nee watashi doko ga suki? Sugoku shiritai desu.
I don’t get why you wrote “I’m sorry” in the end. I don’t think you need to apologize… Anyway, I hope this helps.
If you are a boy, just change 私 to 僕
Thank you for this informative explanation of ways to express thanks and appreciation.
I’m an advanced-level student of Japanese. I speak six other languages fluently, I’ve studied comparative linguistics and right now I’m living in Japan, using Japanese daily (speaking, reading, writing).
What I still find VERY confusing, and, with all due respect, your explanation fails to explain (in fact, it glosses right over it) is the fact that most Japanese people do NOT say or write the particle “を” before the phrases “どうもありがとうございます” or “どうもありがとうございました.”
So my question is, and I’ve looked EVERYWHERE for an answer (even a native Japanese speaker/teacher here was unable to answer; alas, she was also not a trained linguist), is:
When should or must one use を immediately preceding either of these phrases and when is it permissible to NOT use this direct object-marking particle?
I added some information. It may not enough for you because I am not a linguistically trained dog :) and this site is just for fun but will keep adding inf whenever I get more examples.
I have a question about verse 22. One can’t tell in English if her grandmother told her to go home because she was upset or for another reason. Does the original give any hints as to why obachaan told Kana to go home?
No, neither original (Japanese) verse doesn’t say the reason. You have to read between the lines.
Obaacgab is not upset. We can tell it is her omoiyari (she cares about her grandchild.)
Of course, obaachan wants her to stay but probably she doesn’t want her grandchild to see her getting weaker or make her feel sad or worry. Actually that is the saddest line in this song. !gejigeji!
Hi, Maggie sensei!
Could you please tell me what っていうことで means here, because, well, even if I know the words I dont fully understand the conversation.
It’s from Saurai Sho’s dart trip in 24h tv of this year. Sakurai-san enters in a tabaco shop and it’s full of manekinekos,so he asks why there are so many manekinekos (it looks like a manekineko shop and not a tabaco shop, lol). So she tells:
瀬戸の友達が
陶器屋さんに行ってて
半端モノいらない？
っていうことで
陶器を受け始めたら
こうなっちゃったんです！！
Hi Ana!
OK, っていうことで here has a function to conclude the previous sentence. →As a result, That’s why, therefore
So in this case,
Reason :His friend who works for a ceramic shop asked him if he wanted the ceramics that they can’t sell.
↓
っていうことで= That’s why, That how I started…, As a result, therefore
↓
Result : He started to take them and ended up like this.
I LOVE this lesson because I eat out a lot and would like to try more local places so this will really come in handy. With that said…ちょっと質問がありますが.
This is off topic but if you were at say a mcdonald’s or burger king type fast food place, what would a typical conversation for placing an order be like there?
Hi ! Remi!! ありがとう！とても楽しい夏休みでしたよ♩
As for your question, I have a restaurant/coffee shop conversation lesson here but since someone else asked me the same thing, I will make a mini lesson sometime. Can you wait?
This is very helpful for learning more natural expressions, I can make myself understood in Japanese but the way I say things is sometimes very unnatural （＞д＜）
I hope this isn’t a daft question, but what is the most natural thing to say when you arrive at an izakaya and you are meeting friends who have already arrived at the table? Or if the reservation is in someone else’s name? I am quite clearly not Japanese, so it might sound a bit weird if I said 予約をした斉藤です (for example)
Also, if you go to a clinic or a health club and you get asked 初めてですか what is the most natural response if you’ve been before?
what is the most natural thing to say when you arrive at an izakaya and you are meeting friends who have already arrived at the table?
「もう友人がこちらで待っていると思うのですが。」
= Mou yuujin ga kochira de matte iru to omounodesu ga.
= I think my friends are waiting for me here.
「もう先に友人が来ていると思うのですが。」
= Mou saki ni yuujin ga kite iruto omouno desuga
= I think my friends are here already.
「すみません。8時の予約で遅く着きました。」
= Sumimasen hachiji no yoyaku de osoku tsukimashita
= I was late for 8:00 reservation.
Then they will ask you your friend’s name and they will say
「先にいらっしゃっています。」
= Saki ni irasshatte imasu.
= They are already here.
「あちらでお待ちです。
= Achira de omachi desu.
= They are waiting for you there.
etc.
Or if the reservation is in someone else’s name?
「~~~の名前で予約が入っていると思うのですが。」
~= ~ no namae de yoyaku ga haitte iruto omou no desu ga.
= I think you have a reservation under …..
「〜〜の名前で予約を入れています。」
= ~ no namae de yoyaku wo irete imasu.
= We have a reservation under (name)
if you go to a clinic or a health club and you get asked 初めてですか what is the most natural response if you’ve been before?
「以前かかったことがあります。」
= Izen kakatta koto ga arimasu.
If you remember when you came, you say
「いえ、3ヶ月前に来たことがあります。/ かかったことがあります。」
= Ie sankagetsu mae ni kita koto ga arimasu. / kakatta koto ga arimasu
(I came here last three months ago.)
「去年の４月頃に来たことがあります。」
= Kyonen no shigatsu goro ni kita koto ga arimasu.
= I came here around April last year.
Then they might ask you if you have their patient registration card.
「診察券はお持ちですか？」
= Shinsatsu ken wa omochi desu ka?
If you do, just show it to them and if you don’t tell them なくしました (=nakushimashita) and they will make you a new card.
If it is a health club
They will ask you
Is it your first time to come here?
「こちらは初めてですか？」
= Kochira wa hajimete desu ka?
「こちらのご利用は初めてですか？」
= Kochira no goriyou ha hajimete desu ka?
「会員さんでいらっしゃったことはありますか？」
=Kaiin san de irasshatta koto wa arimasuka?
= Were you our member before?
etc
And you say
「以前会員でした。」
=Izen kaiin deshita.
= I was a member before.
「以前、来たことがあります。」
= Izen kita koto ga arimasu.
= I have been here before.
面白い、ありがとう！
どの系ですかしら。。。私は肉食系に可能性がありますけど。。。やっぱり草食系かな。。。 But I want to be, at least, moderately successful at work. Don’t really care about love at the moment tho
(can you correct my Japanese if you have some time?)
Thank you ^^
友達に日本語を書かされた-correct for test
友達に日本語を書かせられた-incorret for test
I hope you have time to Answer my questions. BTW i love your videos on Give me a Breakman too. Japanse for morons rock hehe. I am a big moron too HEHE宜しくお願いします
I am not Victor… We are Maggie and Yukari. (Victor is helping us promoting this site.) so I don’t make the videos but will tell him your message. He will like that.
Anyway, when you take an exam, 書かせられる is correct.
書かされる is considered as さ入れ言葉 as I explained in the lesson and grammatically wrong.
Though many of us use it in daily conversation.
Please read “Note” in the lesson. I explained more about this さ入れ言葉
OK, the difference between
閉める(=shimeru) and 閉じる(=tojiru)
First 閉める is transitive verb and 閉じる could be both transitive and intransitive verb.
So you can say
○ドアを閉める = to close the door (as a transitive verb)
○ドアを閉じる = to close the door (as a transitive verb)
But when you use it as an intransitive verb
You can say
○ドアが閉じる = the door closes (an intransitive verb)
but you can’t say
x ドアが閉める
*******
So let’s focus on the cases when you use as a transitive verb
閉じる
閉める
They both means “to close something” but
閉める = shimeru = is used when you close something which was open or loose. (It also has a meaning such as to zip, to fasten (to tighten), to lock)
and 閉じる= tojiru = to close something firmly. to put the curtains together, to block, to end (finish)
There are certain things that you have to use either one
○目を閉じる= me wo tojiru
x 目を閉める= me wo shimeru (wrong)
Sorry for replying late. Thank you so much for the explanation Sensei, i think i get a bit of the grasp of it. Thank you so much for taking quite a time to explain, good luck always :)
Ahh.. Maggie sensei.. But you didn’t teach how to use wakkate kita…!! It doesn’t make sense to understand (and come back?)…
I googled for some examples and I think it means “are you beginning to understand?” Am I right..?
There is something I found out and I was wondering if you could correct me. のです since it’s explanatory…it sounds more, how can I say it?
Ok, example:
暑いです (fact) This sounds kinda cold (no pun intended) it sounds short and abrupt.
暑いのです (explaining) this sounds better and it sounds kind of inviting. Sorry, I really dont know how to explain. There is an ambiguity that can only be felt in the Japanese language that cannot translate well into English.
I once heard the following conversation among two Japanese student when my friends and I were playing tennis with them:
Student 1: 何したの?
Student 2: ボールと行ったんだ。
My friend took the ball and ran away with it. So the 行ったんだ was like, obvious and explanatory, no? ボールと行った sounds just…a bit cold.
Sensei, I would greatly appreciate your insight :) どうもありがとう
I know many Japanese expressions are hard to translate.
It’s not 暑いのです。(or 暑いんです）sounds better or warmer than 暑いです。
When you just state today’s weather, you usually say
今日は暑いです。(It’s your opinion.)
If you want to make it sound more friendly and ask listener’s agreement, you say
今日は暑いですね。
You can’t start a conversation with 今日は暑いのです。It sounds strange.
If you explain why it’s hot, you can use 暑いのです。
For example,
ここは砂漠（さばく）だから暑いのです。
Besides it is explanatory, it is also used when you make your point so that it sounds stronger than 暑いです。
About the conversation you heard :
ボールと行った sounds strange.
Maybe they were saying
ボール持っていっちゃったんだ。
= He was gone with a ball.
Anyway yes, in that case, ~んだ is explanatory. The person was explaining what happened.
And it is not “cold” at all.
I hope I answered your question. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask me anytime. !happyface!
Thanks for the very useful lesson!
My wife is now 8 months pregnant and will soon deliver the baby. The nurse in the clinic said that we should call the clinic and make reservation first once the labor pain starts. Could please teach us common word/conversation to make reservation in the clinic for labor?
First of all, おめでとう！for your coming baby!!! :h:
When the labor pain starts, you call the clinic.
First you tell your name
「もしもしそちらでお世話になっている (your family name) です。」
= Moshimoshi sochira de osewa ni natte iru (your family name) desu.
= Hello, we are your patients at your clinic, name.
「妻の陣痛が始まったみたいです。」
= Tsuma no jintsuu ga hajimarimashita.
= I think my wife is in labor.
If you want to go there right away,
「すぐに伺ってもいいですか？」
= Sugu ni ukagatte mo ii desuka?
= Can we go there right away?
If you don’t know what to do, say
「どうしたらいいでしょうか？」
= Doushitara ii de shouka?
= What should we do?
Then they will give you an instruction what to do.
If you are not in hurry and just want to make an appointment, you say
「診察の予約を取りたい(or したい）のですが。」
= Shinsatsu no yoyaku wo toritai (or shitai )no desuga.
= I would like to make an appointment with a doctor.
If it’s a big hospital and you know the doctor’s name, you can add the name.
「~先生の診察の予約を取りたいのですが。」
= ~ sensei no shinsatsu no yoyaku wo toritai no desuga.
= I would like to make an appointment with Dr. ~
今日、赤ちゃんが生まれた！元気な男の子。
I used the expressions you taught me when make a phone call this morning! It REALLY helped.
どうもありがとうございました！！
@Windra
わ〜〜〜おめでとう！！！Thank you so much for sharing the happiest news! 元気な男の子の赤ちゃんですね。本当によかった！！
Your message made my day! ありがとう！きっとすばらしいパパとママになると思います！
A lot of !heart! for you and your family!
Sensei! I found a really good japanese CM. http://youtu.be/N0E20In7pGo
I would be grateful if you made a lesson about this cm. There are a lot of useful words in it. It would be very good for learning Japanese.
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! m_m
p.s. Also Tsumabuki Satoshi is so cute!
Hi, Margo! I know Tsumabuki-kun, is cute, huh? boucingheart!
I would like to make a lesson on using another commercial film but what happened to me was I made a long lesson based on all the commercial film before but the video was deleted. So that video will be deleted eventually as well. ごめんね！
I know it is a great way to study even without the video. But it would be more fun for many people to watch the video at the same time.
Hope you understand…
分かりました。
Could you please just write in Japanese what they arу saying at these moments? I can’t recognize.
0.44-0.57
1.16-1.24
1.54-1.55
2.14-2.26
@Margo
Please know that I don’t/can’t usually do you this type of favor. (Especially in the comment section.)
But since you insist, I will do it just this time as a special case, OK? And this is as much as I could help you here.
Here you go!
0.44-0.57
一言（ひとこと）で、俺（おれ）は「覚悟（かくご）」ですね。(It was not clear but I think this is what he said.)
ああそれはありますね。
もっとうまくなりたいっていうのはあるんですよ。
自分（じぶん）らしさって何でしょう。
なんでしょう
落（お）ち着（つ）きのなさかな。
Thank you very very much!!!!
お手間をかけさせてしまって申し訳ありません。 ｍ＿ｍ
@Margo
You’re very welcome, Margo!
I have no sentence, but an important question.
The language phenomenom abotu the ra-nuki words and the sa-ire words.
You mentioned it before, that if you attend a Japanese exam (perhaps oral exam), you should avoid using these features.
But what about the official JLPT exam? Do you know something? Beacuase the exam was newly revised due to a better and more natural Japanese, so these two ra-nuki and sa-ire would be included.
I would still avoid ra-nuki and sa-ire on JLPT exam.
You should know the fact that people do use them nowadays but when it comes to exams (→any types!) or serious Japanese class, you’d better avoid using them.
I more or less can guess thanks to the circumstances but I dont know how properly translate it and how they are using -tari suru there.
Thank you so much, Maggie is really cute!
In this case, ~ からだったりして is a colloquial way to say (ひょっとして）~からかもしれない
In that short dialogue, they see someone was calling on Hiro’s cell phone and Hiro wondered it could be Ryoko who is calling.
涼子からだったりして。
Maybe it(the phone call) could be (from) Ryoko.
Compared to 涼子かもしれない(Maybe it is from Ryoko) , 涼子からだったりして has a connotation that “It would be strange/funny if this call is from Ryoko.)”
I understand your explanation and it really suits the circumstances of the conversation but I didnt know this use for -tari suru, it’s usual? I thought -tari suru is for listing activities that doesnt have a continuation or correlation, to mark an action as an example, the repetition of an action or the alternation of states.
So if he didnt just use kamo as the coloquial of kamoshirenai is to give that other connotation?
And why did you put hyotto shite in brackets? it’s because it’s usually obviated or it’s because it’s an alternative?
Sorry for the questions and thank you so much again <3
You are right.
Usually ~たり is used when you list up a couple of actions.
Ex. 寝たり食べたりする = netari tabetari suru = sleeping and eating etc.
〜たりして is a colloquial hypothetical word.
The translation is the same as かもしれない (maybe, may, might) but 〜たりしてinvolves more emotion, it would be surprising (fun, strange, great, awful) if ~ . You leave the sentence unfinished. So the listener has to read between the lines.
Ex. 明日は雨だったりして。
= Ashita wa ame dattari shite.
= It might rain tomorrow.
Ex. 実は、マギー結婚していたりして。
= Jitsu wa Maggie kekkon shite itari shite.
= It would be surprising if Maggie is married.
****
かも／かもしれない is just a statement.
1) 明日は雨かも（しれない）= I think it may rain tomorrow.
2) 明日は雨だったりして = What do you say if it rains tomorrow. (slightly less possibility than (1))
Also ~たりして shows more feelings.
***
Your other question :
（ひょっとして） 〜かもしれない
You add ひょっとして when you emphasizes the presumption/supposition.
a) マギーが来るかもしれない。
Maggie may come.
b) ひょっとしてマギーが来るかもしれない。
Maggie might come.
When you compare a) and b), a) has more possibility than b).
わざわざ and せっかく are very similar.
They are interchangeable in following cases.
a) わざわざ来てくれたのに留守にしていてごめんね。
b) せっかく来てくれたのに留守にしていてごめんね。
I am sorry that I wasn’t home even though you came all the way to visit me.
The difference is せっかく is used in the meaning of “to take advantage of someone’s action.”
When someone serves you a cup of tea, you would say
せっかくですから頂きます。
= I will have this tea since you already made one for me.
You won’t say
わざわざですから頂きます。
When we say
c) せっかく作ってくれたのですから頂きます。
(= Since you did all the work to please me, I want to take advantage of your work and eat it.)
d) わざわざ作ってくれたのですから頂きます。
(= Since you have made all the effort or tried hard to make this, I will eat it.)
わざわざ focuses on all your trouble you went through or money and energy you spent.
せっかく focuses on one’s good intention. Also when you want to take advantage of one’s work.
Konnichiwa Maggie Sensei!
I found your blog after I search “what does agepoyo mean” on google XD
This is so cool! Your explanation is so understandable!
Thank you so much!!! I’m currently watching Arashi Wakuwaku Gakkou and since my Japanese is poor I can’t understand all what those sensei say.. Now I get what agepoyo means, and soon other words (by seeing your blog) (>̯͡.̮<̯͡)
Agepoyo~ \(´▽`)/
Hi Maggie. I know this is two years old but this is very relevant to me as I will go to to the Boston Forum and perhaps the Tokyo Forum. I have been applying for jobs to various agencies in New York City (where I live at the moment) and I have used about 80% of the vocabulary on this page. It is great to read thoroughly and polish my way of writing/talking to employers and recruiters. I do know it is considered rude to ask about wages and etc, but I have encountered many instances that if I do not ask, I would be hired to do a certain job without knowing the very details. In such cases I ask… It’s rather complicated. As for the rirekisho, many large scale Japanese companies have been lenient on what should be on a rirekisho. In some instances 志望動機 is removed or replaced with 大学で学んだこと・専攻内容詳細 (assuming you’re 新卒). I have a phone interview tomorrow so this page will come in handy!!
WOW!! I almost skipped this one as I thought it was just another standard “father-mother-son-daughter” textbook lesson, but I ended up learning over 20 new words & expressions! やっぱりマギー先生のブログは最高!!
Sensei! Good evening!
Could you explain me please, how everyone understands what meaning of the word みんな is implied?
For example, “minna tabeta ja nai desu ka!” you can translate as “But everyone ate it, didn’t they?!”
@b2
Sorry that it too me a long time to answer your question. Now I am back to Japan.
みんな is a casual way of saying 皆(みな）
It could refer to people, things or issues.
So the translation is “everyone””everything” “all”
So みんな食べたじゃないですか。(=Minna tabeta ja nai desu ka) could mean
“But everybody ate it, didn’t they?” or “You ate everything, didn’t you!”
You will know which one by context.
Thank you for your comment! Right now I’m on vacation so that I can not give you the link but I made a mini lesson on yap pari. Please go to “Index for Mini lesson” and find the lesson under ヤ行(yagyou).
great lesson as always..sensei
now i’d like to ask you something about how to say something like, “Good thing I got rid of someone.”
Do I say, “よかった！きみっていない”?
also one more question about the song I’ve listened to many times called, さよならの向こう側 by Koda KUmi.
I was curious about 後姿 見ないで下さい and 後姿 見ないでゆきます
do they both mean please leave..don’t let me see you?
thank you much sensei^^
Hi, I am back! Let me answer your questions.
＊“Good thing I got rid of someone.”
There are many ways of saying this
~ がいなくなってよかった
~がいなくなってせいせいした
If you break up with someone, you say
〜と別れてよかった
〜と別れてせいせいした
If you cut the tie with someone you say
〜と縁（えん）を切（き）ってよかった
〜と縁を切ってせいせいした
Note : “せいせいした” sounds much stronger than よかった
＊後ろ姿を見ないで下さい
It’s a metaphor.
When you break up with someone, some people are reluctant to let someone go and keep thinking about the person or worrying about the person. Ex. What is he/she going to do, what is he/she doing now after we break up, etc. That means “後ろ姿を見る”
後ろ姿を見ないで下さい means “Just let go of me and move on.” and 後姿 見ないでゆきます means “I will just move on without attachment.
Hello,
Thank you for this lesson
I never heard about this word before… it seems “Wazawza” is not often used
I read the lesson and I understood a bit:
わざわざこの授業して来たいただきありがとうございます
I got a question I’m reading “Aishite Night” (manga) and trying to understand a bit it’s
少女漫画, and I noticed something:
In several sentences they add “no” or “no yo” at the end I don’t know why
Thank you for your comments. Right now I’m on vacation and I can’t answer your questions. But I will get back to your questions when I come back to Japan in August! Mattetene!
Thanks so much for this lesson. My Japanese grammar book teaches all kinds of lofty ideas about elevated usage and so on, but doesn’t really go into this kind of colloquial Japanese. It’s nice to be able to watch anime, drama and so on and think ‘ah, I just learned that!’.
こちらこそ！Thank you for your comment!
What you learn from grammar books and teachers are essential. But if you don’t know colloquial Japanese, you won’t be able to understand the real conversation because we don’t always talk like a text book.
また来てね！
How can you translate: ” I wish you could show me some love! I’ve got everything I need except a man. And I’m not one of those women who thinks a man is the answer to everything, but I’m tired of being alone.”
@Alina
Hi, Alina!
First thank you for finding this site! Hope you learn some.
I help people who have a Japanese question here but I don’t usually do translation.
今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！ :)
How would you ask that you would like an order to go? Like, oh this order will be to go. What does it sound like when they ask you will this be carry out?
When they usually ask you
“こちらでお召し上がりですか？それともお持ち帰りですか？
= Kochira de omeshiagari desuka ? Soretomo omochi kaeri desuka?
= Would you like it for here or to go?
If you want to take it home, you say
持ち帰りでお願いします。
= Mochikaeri de onegai shimasu.
If you eat it there, you say
ここで食べます。
= Koko de tabemasu.
Thank you very much!
Just one question: is there any difference between のに and ように as “in order to” use, or can they be interchangeable?
Thanks in advance! ^^
Hi Mimi!
I know the translation for the certain function of のに and ように are both “in order to” but while のに is used to refer to simple procedure, method to do something or how much time it takes, ように is used when people try to make things work as they want so they are not interchangeable.
Ex. このケーキを作るのに卵が何個いりますか？
→can’t say このケーキをつくるように卵が何個いりますか？
But if you try to make a difficult cake,
Ex. こんなケーキが作れるようにがんばります。
(You can’t say こんなケーキが作れるのにがんばります。）
日本語を勉強しるのにlang-8で日記を書く。
I write entries in lang-8 to study japanese, and because I like it a lot.
Some people always correct me with this のに, so I was searching what was the use of のに, thank you very much, now I understand.
Note: Lang-8 is a site where you write entries in one language that you are learning and then native speakers correct that entry, I have learned a lot because of that.
ああ、なるほど！
A) althoughの「のに」
と
B) in order to/to/forの「のに」
の違いがまだよくわからないのですね。
まず、A)の方は、二つの反する意味の文をつなげます。こちらはもうわかっているみたいなのでいいですよね。
B)は通常、何かをする方法、手段、〜をするために何をしなければいけないか。どれだけお金、時間がかかるかという時に使います。
First A) is used to connect two contradicted sentences. I think you already got this one so no problem, right?
B) is usually used to indicate(or suggest) how to do it, what you need to do, how much time/money it takes/costs to do something/to go somewhere.
Ex. いつもは会社に車で行くのに今日は電車で行く。(two contradicted sentences：いつもは車で行く vs 今日は電車で行く)
Ex. 今日は道が混んでいるから会社に行くのに電車で行った方がいいよ。(suggestion: Because the streets are crowded today, you should use the train to go to the office. )
Ex. スプーンを使った方が便利なのにどうして箸（はし）を使うの？(two contradicted sentences：スプーンを使うvs 箸を使う）
Ex. 茶碗蒸（ちゃわんむ）しを食べるのに箸を使うのは難しい。(方法 : It is difficult to use chopsticks to eat “Chawanmushi”)
****
あとは参考までに= Just for your information,
These are grammatical differences :
1) While A) is used with adjectives, nouns or verbs, B) is only used with verbs.
2) A) usually has two contradicted facts or consequences.
3) While A) can be finished with のに without finishing the sentence, we almost never finish the sentence in B)
4) We can use both present tense/past tense in A), we only use present tense in B)
Feel free to make a sentence using the last “noni” here. I can always correct you.
ほとんど使い方は完璧（かんぺき）です。
でも少しだけ勉強のために直しますね。↓
わからなかったのに、わかります！→(to be more clear why don’t you add “before” and “after”) 前はわからなかったのに今はわかります。
このサイトは日本語を勉強するのに、いい勉強になります！→We don’t say 勉強するのにいい勉強になる because it’s redundant. How about something like このサイトは日本語を勉強するのに役に立ちます。
Hi Maggie Sensei, when we see the kanji ‘恐’ how do we know we should read it as ‘oso’ from ‘恐れる’ in kun reading or we should read it as ‘kyuo’ from ‘恐縮ですが’ in on reading?
There are lots of exceptions but the basic rules are :
On reading is usually used when it is used with other kanji as a compoun word. And kun reading is used on its own with hiragana.
kun reading :
*恐れる = osoreru = to be scared
*縮む = chijimu = shrink
a compound word : 恐＋縮
You use on-reading
恐縮 kyoushuku
Hi, katy! I am glad that you checked this lesson.
What do you mean by the second “のに” ＝ふたつめの”のに”
The conditional one? Or the one “in order to”? You didn’t understand well and you want more explanation?
If you have a question, just let me know,OK? I will add some explanation. :grin:
This is so useful (^^)
but I was wondering, how does the nakya/nakucha form conjugate? Are they like na-adjectives or nouns etc? For example, if you were to say “I have to make dinner and/then I have to walk my dog”, would you say:
ご飯を作らなきゃで、犬を散歩させなきゃ
@pudding
Hi, pudding!
OK since なきゃ and なくちゃ is a part of なきゃ／なくちゃいけない, you use いけない part to conjugate.
I have to make dinner and (on top of that) I also have to walk my dog.
You just connect two sentences using し
= ご飯を作らなきゃ(or 作らなくちゃ）いけないし犬も散歩させなきゃ（or 散歩させなくちゃ）いけない。
Dear Maggie-sensei,
since I think you are probably the best person to ask for that translation I ask here right away.
There is a sentence which is simply breaking my neck because I simply have no idea what’s the best way to translate it properly. It’s that one:
”いや、間違ってるのは、今現在俺はこんなことで悩んでいる場合では
ないということだ。”
I think it fits best in this category…does it mean “It’s not wrong that I am worried about such a thing right now” or is it “It’s wrong that it is not that case that I am worried about such a thing right now” …..or something totally different..the more often I try to analyze this sentence in my head the more difficult it turns out…Thanks in advance (_-_)
Hi Doci! You got a complicated sentence, huh?
I would say,
”いや、間違ってるのは、今現在俺はこんなことで悩んでいる場合ではないということだ。”
No, I was wrong. (What I have been doing was wrong.) It is not the right time to worry about such a thing.(Now is not the time to worry about such a thing)
So the speaker realized “現在こんなことで悩んでいること=worrying about such a thing.” is “間違っている=wrong” and “そんなことをしている場合ではない=it is not the time to do so”.
Aah! That makes indeed sense!
I think the real problem was the “場合ではない” thing…I thought I could translate it literally and didn’t know that its like the same like “時ではない” that’s why no matter how I thought about it..it couldnt make sense at all…
Thanks a lot for the quick reply! Helped me a lot!! ;)
I find your lessons incredibly helpful. I was wondering if it’s okay to use あなた in a fan letter? Also I was wondering how to structure a fan letter in Japanese :)
ありがとう！
Hi Catlin
Ummm in a fan letter, it’s probably OK to use あなた. But I would still use their name.
There is no specific structure for a fan letter but for example,
こんにちは！(or はじめまして！）
私は〜の大ファンです。(I am a huge fan of yours.)
or
私は**に住む〜の大ファンです。(I am a huge fan of yours who lives in **) *
~の音楽が大好きです。
~の音楽が大好きでいつも聴いています。
~の音楽はすばらしいです。= Your music is wonderful.
and to finish the letter
これからもがんばってください！
これからも**から応援しています！
etc.
How’s that?
Hi! You mean “~のに”? I might have made a mini lesson on Twitter before but not on this site yet.
OK, I can make a mini lesson sometime. (Maybe on my Facebook!) Will let you know when it’s done in this comment section, OK?
Hi, Jen! I am very happy that you have checked this lesson because I made this for you!
I know, as I wrote in the lessons, this word is tough unless you know when and how to use it. Please read through example sentences again and again until you 把握！！(→You know a great word!)
I really love this lesson, it’s perfect for me as I’m watching a lot of J Drama and listening to J Pop and I am learning way too much male speech without even realising it sometimes… >_<
Also, I have made a few Japanese friends in the last few months and we always enjoy 女子会 so much! I want to use this word with them the next time. ありがとう ^_^
Hi Licia!!
I am so happy to read your nice comment. Thank you! Hope you enjoy 女子会 with your Japanese friends. Hope your J-friends teach you lots of cool Japanese words,too!
また来てね！ :)
Yes, my friends teach me a lot of interesting words… like 猫舌 <– I love this one, there is no translation in English or Italian (my mother-tongue)
I also like oyaji gyagu and dajare, everyone finds this strange! I heard they are usually greeted with "さむい"
And finally I love Samurai のことば! Probably because of Rurouni Kenshin… I love how he always says "ござる" or "拙者 は" <3
I am always asking my 日本人のともだち to teach me Samurai speech or tell me some dajare… So if I can make a request for a lesson, it would be either Samurai words, dajare or Kansaiben (which I love and I find so interesting!)
@Licia
どういたしまして！
Haha, yes, oyaji gyagu is always 寒い！！
And I was surprised to hear you like Samurai languages. Might try to make a mini lesson on Facebook in future.
As for kansaiben, please check ヤンヤンマチコ lesson. I taught some kansaiben there.
Ciao!
‘Nanbyaku hito ga sono saigai de nakunatta’
We don’t say ”Nanbyaku hito” but you could say,
何百人の人(達)がその災害で亡くなった。
= Nanbyakunin no hito(tachi) ga sono saigai de nakunatta.
or
何百人もの人がその災害で亡くなった。
= Nanbyaku nin mono hito ga sono saigai de nakunatta.
(~ もの= emphasizing)
「聞く」is more general. 聴く is mainly used when you listen to something more attentively or intentionally listen to something. Like music, lecture, etc.
音楽を聴く, 講義を聴く
なるほど、有難うございます
@steinier
どういたしまして！
久しぶりだな,マギー先生!
Thanks for this great lesson. It really helped me to understand って a lot better and now I can use it more correctly!
Sorry but I don’t make videos. (Maybe you think I am Victor??? If so I am his dog. :) ) Anyway here is a link for te form.
ima means “now” but imasen has nothing to do with “ima=now” It is a negative form of imasu.
Sensei..I don’t quite get this sentence.
Does it mean, “It’s not like Dad’s gonna worry that much.”??
Ex. お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません。
= Otousan ga shinpai shiteiru youna koto ni wa narimasen.
= It won’t be the way Daddy worries it will be.
よかった！！
You are right. ~ことになる might be difficult. In this case,~ことになる means “to happen”has different meaning “to happen/ to turn out be / to become / to ended up”
Related lesson : ~になる
Thank you for studying with this site!
I just made a mini lesson on kara on Facebook. ~kara
Kara and dakara indicate the reasons for something. (Because ~ , since~ , ~ so, etc.)
The difference between ~から and ~だから are what comes before them
＊~だから is for na-adjective
* 元気（＝げんき）＋だから
Ex. お子さんはいつも元気だからいいですね。
= Okosan wa itsumo genki dakara ii desune.
= You must to be happy because your children are always cheerful.
*静か（=しずか）＋だから
＊~から is for i-adjective or verbs
Ex. 静かだから誰もいないと思った。
= I thought nobody was here because it was so quiet.
*おいしい+ から
Ex. おいしいからもっとちょうだい！
= It’s delicious so give me some more.
*走った＋から
Ex. たくさん走ったから疲れた。= Takusan hashitta kara tsukareta. = I ran a lot so I am tired.
*勉強する+から
Ex. もっと勉強するから自転車を買って！
= Motto benkyou surukara jitensha wo katte!
= I will study more so buy me a bicycle!
Also だから can be used in the beginning of the sentence and gives a reason for the previous sentence.
Ex. 昨日は風邪をひいていました。
= Kinou wa kaze wo hiiteimashita.
= I had cold yesterday.
だから宿題ができませんでした。
= Dakara shukudai ga dekimasen deshita.
= That’s why I couldn’t do any homework.
Note : You can’t start a sentence with から
I explained how to use だから in this lesson,too. Please check it.
Thank you very very much. It really helped me.
You are an amazing teacher. I always study your lessons.
I hope you keep adding more lessons.
When I have a question, I hope you teach me.
Thanks again.
You’re very welcome!
And thank you for studying my lessons! Feel free to ask me a question anytime. You can also follow me on Twitter. People always ask me random questions there.
がんばって！ !happyface!
Hi sensei. I have a suggestion. Why don’t you include a detailed description about Kanji in your site and give an example about each kanji? I think this is a great idea as it will help me and many students in learning kanji.I want to know how to write and when to use them. Can you help me?
I hope to hear from you sensei.
@mil
Thank you for your suggestion. However, but there are a lot of sites where you can learn Kanji already exist. Ex.one. English site.
Google them. I know there are so many kanji but start from first grader kanji.
And if you have a question regarding how to read and stuff, I can always help you on Twitter.
Thank you sensei. I’ll try to study from the site that you gave me.Sensei, are you Japanese?
How do you know so much about this language?
I wish I can have this amount of knowledge you have.
@mil
どういたしまして！And yes, I’m Japanese.
Maggie sensei,
I try to work with Japanese restaurant owners in USA.
How do I address them in Japanese?
How do I explain myself?
For example, I am an independent insurance broker.
ぼくは保険のやるひとじゃない？
I am looking for the lowest premium for customers.
an independent insurance broker is 保険仲立人(=hoken nakadachinin) or 保険ブローカー(=hoken broukaa) in Japanese.
So if you want to introduce yourself, you say “私は保険仲立人or 保険ブローカーです. = (Watashi wa hoken nakadachinin / hoken broukaa desu.)
I will help you find the lowest premium for customers = お客様に一番安い保険料をお探しします。 = Okyaku sama ni ichiban yasui hokenryou wo osagashi shimasu.
OK, first いる→いらっしゃいますか？ unless you know the boss very well or he/she is your close friend.
You can also say ~とお話できますか？= ~ to ohanashi dekimasu ka? = May I talk to ~?
〜はどちらですか？= the literal translation is “Where is ~?” or “Which one is ~”?
Never use the term 親分. It is for Mafia organizations.
社長 means president. Although it is not necessary, many people add さん to show their courtesy. →社長さん
If you want to talk to a manager of the place, 店長=tenchou
Whoaaaa! That was a lot of information. I’m still going to have trouble for a while, remembering which is correct to use in whatever text I’m reading, but at least I know I’ll always have this lesson to refer back to if I ever get stuck.
woo!!
thanks for taking the time to do that! It’s actually really informative. lol.
How would someone say “don’t fall in love with me.” in a joking manner?
@Jill
Hi Jill!
“Don’t fall in love with me!” in a joking manner? The most common joking phrase is 惚れるなよ！= Horerunayo (a male speech)
If you are a man this （俺に）惚れるなよ。(= (Ore ni) Horeru na yo. ) or you can also say 俺を好きになるな。(sounds tough) 僕を好きにならないで(=Boku wo suki ni naranai de)
If you are a woman, 私を好きにならないでね。(=Watashi wo suki ninaranai dene) or if you want to make it sound cuter, 私を好きになっちゃだめよ。(= Watashi wo suki ni naccha dame yo)
Thank you for making this lesson! ~よう is definitely a weak area for me. I can usually understand it when I read it, but for whatever reason, I’m still not used to using it.
Let’s see…
Did I say this right?
最近もう少し日本語の音楽を分かれるようになります。たぶん、もっと日本語の歌うをよく聞くおかげですね。
Lately, I’ve been able to understand a little more Japanese music; probably thanks to listening to more Japanaese songs.
@Kohaku
There are many ways to use よう.
You have to master them one by one. あとは練習（れんしゅう）！！
Good you tried the hard sentence.
~を分かれるようになります。
→~がもう少しわかるようになってきました。
if possible drop me a line I live in Tokyo and many Outhers foreigners need assistence for some applications in city Hall or direct in company .
Thanks
andre
アンドレ コスタ
Dear Maggi Very nice explanations. think this ill help many peoples.
But I d like ask you to write about
profission that foreigners work in Japan like
supermarket.
factory jobs like LCD kensa
Maguro Industry
Recycles jobs
Bus drivers ..
how to work as sagawa or post Ofice tayukubin ?
how to find Farms Jobs in Japan?
How to get jobs at Airport ?
Constructions many profissions
and how to get the above jobs in Japan.
how to write a simples cover letter ?
wishing get the jobs ?
thanks
have a pleasent day
Hi, Andre
Thank you for visiting this site. As for your request, I would like to help people who are interested in working in Japan but it is difficult for me to write all about those different professions you listed and how to apply for those jobs because I need to provide all the information which I don’t have. Hope you understand this site is to help people learn Japanese and I am not able to make a lesson “How to get a job”
However I will work on a lesson about some of the procedure at a ward office or immigration office sometime. !happyface!
@tuti.riswantini
(→a little correction 先生はこのブログとFBをやめるつもりですか？= Sensei wa burogu to FB wo yameru tsumori desu ka?)
Don’t worry! まだやめないよ！Happy April Fool’s Day!
Sensei, hajimemashite. Watashi wa Indonesia kara no Dani desu. Ima daigaku de nihongo no ronbun wo kaiteimasu. Robun no teema wa wake toiu kotodesu. Sorede, kono saito wo mitsukete, hontou ni tasukarimashita. Wake no tsukaikata wa iro-iro de atte, juubun komatte imasu. I’m sorry for my poor japanese. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu….
I love this site ;) Really love how You can explain grammar problems so easily ;) Thx for incredible source! I hope I’ll post next comment in Japanese :)
ありがとうございます!
はじめまして！！Thank you for your nice comment! Hope you come back here again and again!
Feel free to ask a question or leave a comment anytime. I will always help you here.
How can i say it? This lesson is… beautiful, thank you so much Maggie-sensei. And i think there’s a mistake in the artist name (the link to Youtube Jupiter by 平原綾香 Hirahara Ayaka but the title said Jupiter by 平山綾香 Hirayama Ayaka). Thank you so much for the songs :)
Hello maggie and co :)
Would you mind clarifying the sentence どう答えたらいいかわかりません. I don’t quite understand how the individual words add up to mean “I don’t know how to reply”. Thank you for all the time you put into the website — you have at least one person who is determined to learn every last sentence on here!! Well, maybe one day. Thank you!!
Suki
OK the sentence structure is
どう+ verb+たら＋いい＋か＋わからない
= I don’t know how to + verb
Ex. どう勉強したらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to study
Ex. どう歌ったらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to sing
Ex. どう教えたらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to teach
So back to the original sentence
どう答えたらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to answer
→polite form : わかりません
*どう= how
*答えたら
*verb 答える + たら（conditional) = 答えたら
*いい= OK, good
*か = whether (question marker)
*わからない= don’t know
I will make a mini lesson on FaceBook this week for you.
And I am happy to hear you use this site to study Japanese.
Sure!
そんなんないし
そんなん →そんなもの（or そんなプリント）= Such a thing (maybe handout/printed material)
ない→I don’t have/ There isn’t
し: Colloquial suffix to emphasize
So そんなんないし means “(I am telling you) I don’t have such a thing”
This site is wonderful. Thank you for such an incredible resource. I just finished studying Tae Kim’s website, and I was looking for a good site to transition to. I feel your blog will take me a long way. Much appreciation!
Yes, since I wanted to concentrate just ちゃう and ちゃった, I didn’t write about じゃった but maybe I should add the information.
Your sentence is correct
全部飲んじゃった = I drank everything
I just added the information of じゃう／じゃった
明日に読んでしまいます → 明日に読んじゃう！
じゃうpart is correct. And yes, you can use it for the future.
Just 明日”に” is strange. Either 明日(without particle) or 明日までに is better.
明日までに読んでしまいます。→ 明日までに読んじゃう！
Ah Sorry. I mentioned in the example section of っ ending. (next to うざい→うざっ）Will add the original word below きもっ now.
きもっ is from 気持悪い= きもちわるい= kimochi warui = disgusting, gross, yucky
Sorry. I didn’t know until now that you can’t hear the sound with Chrome. (I use Safari so…) It is mp3.
I have been using Quick Time as a sound file format so that iphone, iPad users can hear the sound.
I think it is your Chrome setting. You have to activate the plugin for Quick time. It worked with our Chrome.
(When you visit this site and click the audio, you will see the message up above saying if you want to use Quick Time for this site or not so just click Yes.)
Howdy! Love the site! I have a quick question!
Can you use ちゃう in the emotional sense to express regret for things that are uncontrollable?
For example: 寒くなっちゃった！
@Kenneth
Hi Kenneth!
No I haven’t made the one for 2011. Since they have a couple of words that I have already covered, I decided not to make one. But will keep collecting new slang words!
I knoooow, マルモリ〜〜 is so cute!! !onpu!
Ah, OK, I translated as “what you are thinking about” but it could be also translated as “how you feel about me”
“to think” in Japanese is 考える or 思う.
考える is either to think with your brain or your heart and 思う is often done with your heart. And when you are talking about one’s feelings=気持, we “think” with your heart not your brain.
私はあなたのことを思っています。
私はあなたのことを考えています。
Thus even though the translation is “thinking” it doesn’t mean your logical thinking but your feelings.
わかるかな？
I have a follow-up question: For example 色々 means various, but it’s written “color-color”. Somehow this seems weird, because the meaning of the Kanji 色 has no real connection to the meaning of 色色. Also it’s used twice.
There are a few more of these I know, e.g. 益々 and 元々.
I have two questions:
1) Are these words colloquial? Can I use them in a business negotiation or do they sound childish (double-syllables always sound childish in english, e.g. you could never say “This tree is old-old!”)
2) Are there more of these words that use the same kanji twice? Is there a connection to 擬声語 ?
OK, let me answer your questions.
1) No. They are not colloquial and you can use them in business/formal situations. And they don’t sound childish.
2) There are tons of words with 々
人々 = hitobito = people
日々 ＝hibi = everyday, day by day
年々= nennen= each year, every year
木々 = kibi = trees
別々 = betsubetsu = separately
But they are not necessary onomatopoeic words.
Many of onomatopoeic words are written in hiragana or katakana but you are right. But you are right. There are some onomatopoeic words in kanji with 々
It’s good you try to understand kanji a bit more.
To answer your question about 色色, “形形色色” is a very common Chinese idiom. 形形色色 means all kinds, all shapes, all sizes, all forms, etc. Hope this helps!
@glennliou
Oh, what a coincidence!
I just made a mini lesson on 待ちきれない on Facebook. Check http://tinyurl.com/7xwzhyn and if you have a question, let me know.
マギー先生、ありがとう。From your lesson I understand that the nuance between 寒い and 寒いんだ is that the latter carries an explanatory tone. With that in mind, what’s the difference between 寒いだから and 寒いんだから?
Hello!! Ah, OK, first, you can’t say 寒いだから. It should be 寒いから. And you can also add ん →寒いんだから
The difference between 寒いから and 寒いんだから is the later one is casual yet it emphasize the fact that it is cold more.
This is very interesting because I can’t find an English equivalent so I don’t know how to process it. Basically, in Japanese I can *specially* emphasize the reason for something:
寒い。[It] is cold.
寒いから。Because [it] is cold.
寒いんだから。Because [it] is cold!!!! (Ahh, did I say cold?).
I always assumed 君(kimi) is for men calling women, and 君(kun) is for women calling men. I suppose a man can also call a man 君(kun) if they are close enough? Then, can a man call a woman 君(kun)?
Would kimi and kun both be used on the same level of closeness in relationships?
If a guy calls a female friend kimi(or kun?), does it imply that he likes her, or at least he has good feelings on her?
The reason I asked:
My former Japanese female teacher is only a few years older than me and of course I used to call her by Family name + 先生.
But after she stopped teaching Japanese we became friends so I started calling her Family name + さん. If I start calling her Family name + kun/kimi, would I sound really strange?
(She said she wouldn’t mind if I call her by her First name, but I thought from 先生 to First name is too fast? :P)
These are different :
*君= kimi = you （pronoun)
*君= kun = a friendly honorific for boys or someone inferiror
If you meant to ask if you can call a woman 君(=kimi), the answer is yes.
And if you meant to ask if you can put the honorific 君(=kun) after female name, some men call women with their family name + 君(=kun) Ex. the boss calles the subordinates by their family name with kun.
Q 2) Would kimi and kun both be used on the same level of closeness in relationships?
That depends. But calling someone with 君(= kimi) might sounds snobbish and you may have to be careful when you use it.
君 (= kun) is used among close friends or someone inferior.
Q 3) If a guy calls a female friend kimii(or kun?) does it imply that he likes her, or at least he has good feelings on her?
Again, you don’t usually call your female friend with an honorific, kun.
Calling a female friend with kimi. : Not necessary gives closeness. It might give someone impression that you look down on that person so be careful.
First name with chan gives much closer feelings.
About your situation :
If you have asked her already how to address her and she told you to use her first name, I would start from calling her by her first name + name.
“Inu no kuse ni nihongo ga oshierareru wake ga nai.”
I must disagree, Maggie Sensai is fantastic at teaching me. I have learned quite a bit these last few hours. I have even noticed that when I am reading one of the sentences my mouth just automatically seems to know what sound to make for the next couple of syllables. It is kind of nice. Then I kind freak out thinking my brain was moving faster then my mouth only to find out that what I slipped out was actually correct.
Hi! Thank you for this!
I’m a little confuse:
the estructure ということです can be used to summarize something you just said without meaning somebody else said or I heard
Like このじゅうぎょうで満足していないということです。
That means that you are saying you aren’t satisfied with this situation, emphasizing that, that insatisfaction with the situation is something you mean.
I don’t know if I explain myself well but I hope you can help me m(_ _)m
Ahh, I understand it a lot better now. I can definately see why you answered with question marks the first time. lol
I do have one question though. In casual settings, when a female speaker is asking a question, sometimes I hear her end it in 「の」. When is it appropriate to use it versus leaving it out altogether?
Thanks again! \(^_^)/
@Remi
Hum..I wonder which の you are talking about.
の ending is very common among men as well.
今夜どこに行くの？= Where are you going tonight?
何を食べるの？= What are you going to eat?
これどうやって使うの？= How do you use this?
All of these can be said without の.
Adding の makes the sentence sound a bit stronger.
Just be careful a lot of people make this type of mistakes when they add の
おいしいなの？(wrong) →おいしいの？
かわいいなの？(wrong) →かわいいの？
Actually, that sounds like the の I was talking about. For some reason, I read somewhere that sometimes it’s considered feminine speech when you end certain kinds of questions with の. I must be mistaken.
But anyway, thanks for clearing that up for me. I love the Japanese language and hope that someday I can become fluent. Love your lessons and look forward to the next one!
♥では,また♥
Sorry, I made a typo. Here is what I was really trying to type here: 書いて見よう → 書いてみよう
I hope I got it right this time. Thanks again for your help maggie-sensei, it’s really helpful. ♥
Hi Pavla!
Good question!
~って…
It is a very colloquial speech pattern. When someone tells you something you can’t agree or when something happens you don’t like, you don’t finish a sentence and add って at the end. It gives a feelings of protesting.
Ex. ゴーヤって… Adds a feelings of “Why Goya…It is strange to give me.”
Ex. そんなこと言ったって… (When someone tells you something hard to accept.) Adding a feeling of protesting.
Ex.犬が日本語を教えているって…(What? A dog teaching Japanese?? – It’s strange….) Adding surprising feeling.
thank you for this post.
I just had to explain what the tadashigaki for a
ryoshusho is to my English client and found your website which was incredibly helpful to me.
拝啓先生
I am having some serious trouble understanding the difference between ~とき and ~たら to mean “When…”. Please do give thought to do a lesson on it sometime in the future.
敬具
Hello!! Thank you for visiting this site!
I hope you understand how and when to use たら in this lesson. As you have seen たら is usually used in a conditional sentence.
時 is used as “when” and “if”. I think the later one confuses you more. Will put that on the request list.
Can’t use katakana on my keyboard for some reason, but this is /the/ Hari-chan.
I had a question. In my school, every year they group us up and have us make dance routines. There’s a girl who just transferred from Japan last year and, while I’ve introduced myself, she doesn’t really speak much (but nods or shakes her head) when I say something in Japanese, so I don’t really know how to address her…
Gah, I got off track! Anyway, I wanted to know how I could either explain the dances better (like, “quickly slide back” or “turn to the left”) or ask if she has any ideas. Le help?
It is very nice of you to try to communicate with the Japanese girl in Japanese. I bet she is very happy even if she is not that communicative.
Eventually she will get used to the school and opens up more.
Actually when you teach someone dancing, you just show the movement but here are some example sentences that you may use
見て！Look!
こうして！Do like this
こうやって動（うご）いて！Move like this
わかる？ Do you understand?
右（みぎ）に動(うご）いて Move towards right
左（ひだり）に動いて Move towards left
右（みぎ）にターンして Turn right
左ひだりにターンして Turn left
もっと早（はや）く Do it more quickly
もっと遅(おそ）く Do it more slowly
手（て）をこうやって動かして = Move your hands like this
hajime mashite, maggie-sensei
remi to moushi masu ga.
4 nen kan jibun de benkyou shita kara, nihongo ga hanaseru you ni narimashita. mada shoushinsha keredo mo dekireba watashi wa motto joutatsu
shitai to omoi masu.
ima no nihongo nouryoku wa dou desu ka?
kono burogu de oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimasu.
ganbatte kudasai.
Hello, I have a question! Because ‘saseru’ can mean ‘to make’ or ‘to let,’ sometimes it can be confusing.
「貴方はそんな約束 誰にもさせちゃだめよ」
Does this mean ‘You shouldn’t make anyone make those kinds of promises’ or ‘You shouldn’t let anyone make those kinds of promises with you’ or something different? Thanks!
You are right. させる can be “to make” or “to let”
So, if you hear 「貴方はそんな約束 誰にもさせちゃだめよ」
it could be both 1) ‘You shouldn’t make anyone make those kinds of promises’ and 2) ‘You shouldn’t let anyone make those kinds of promises with you’ .
You have to know the context.
Hi Maggie-Ssensei!
First, I want to say THANK YOU for doing a great job here!
Now my question:
There is:
a) ittara ii noni (Verb in conditional form/tara ii no ni) and
b) iketara ii no ni (Verb in potential form/tara ii no ni)
Whats the difference in usage and meaning of these two? I was told that a) is used only for 3. persons (I wish HE could go…) but I found lots of examples where both a) and b) are used in the same way. Could you please help? Thank you in advance!
Ele
OK, the difference bettween 1) 行ったらいいのに( = ittara ii noni) and 2) 行けたらいいのに ( = Iketara ii noni)?
1) 行ったらいいのに( = ittara ii noni) is a suggestion for other people.
Why don’t you go?
You should go!
(You only use it for the 3rd person. Not yourself)
2) 行けたらいいのに ( = Iketara ii noni)
We say this when there is no (or less) possibility to go.
I wish I could go / I wish (someone) could go
マギー先生、質問を聞き続けてすみません。日本語にはまだ分からないことがたくさんあります。
「～たらいいのに」他人に提案をする表現だと言っていましたが、どうしてこの文章は自分の望みを表現しますか。
JLPTの１級に受かったらいいのに。
= I wish I could pass JLPT Level 1.
このレッスンで説明したように「たら」にはいろいろな使い方があります。
他の人に何か提案するときは You should / Why don’t you ~ という意味で使います。
またPalidorの文章のように自分の望みを言う時にも使います。
たら＋のに
は叶（かな）わない現実を望むとき（wish I could / were…)に使います。
一度、「のに」のレッスンも見てくださいね。リンクはこちら！
マギー先生、返事をありがとうございます。私は「のに」のレッソンを2，3回読んでいましたが、この部分はまだ分かりません。「のに」のレッソンから：
誕生パーティーに行ったらいいのに。
I wish someone would go to the birthday party / You should go to the party.
動詞の形：行くー＞行ったら
自分の望み表現する時、行けるー＞「行けたら」可能形を使いました：誕生パーティーに行けたらいいのに
この文書：
JLPTの１級に受かったらいいのに。
動詞の形：受かるー＞受かったら
どうしてこの文章には可能形を使わないんですか。
“受かる”にはもう可能の意味が入っています。
試験を受ける = to take an exam.
試験に受かる = to pass the exam.
他にも動詞には可能形がないものがいくつかあります。
見える には (to be able to see) の意味が
解けるには (to be able to solve) の意味が動詞に入っています。
ああ、なるほど！やっと分かりました。マギー先生、ありがとうございます！
よかった〜！！ :)
Sensei, one more thing to bother you. I can’t listen to sound clips on iPad & iPhone because flash player cannot be played on both devices. Strangely it works on my Mac. Is there any solution?
@Top
I know….I have an iPhone and iPad,too but they don’t support Flash/ Adove. I found this video
The appr called CloudBrowse. It seems to work… but it changes the fonts. I guess I need more time to do some research…
It used to be free, huh?
I am sure iPad/iPhone will develop something soon to be able to use Flash…(I hope…)
I will let you know whenever I find out a good free appr! ごめんね！
no problem sensei…thank you so much for your great lessons.^^
@Top
I think I just figured out how to make an audio file that you can listen with your iphone or ipad. Check my latest lesson. お開き！and let me know how it works.
extremely useful lesson…can’t wait for the next part of 訳^^
Hi Maggie, thanks for all you lessons- I find them super helpful! I’ve only recently learned about the nuanced of anata (to my horror, ‘cos I’d used it so much), and I was wondering if you could help clear something up? You say it’s OK to use anata in some general statements and questions, but what about something like あなたの言う通りです? (which I think means something like ‘you’re right’ or ‘as you said’. ) Does this count as another situation where you shouldn’t use あなた?
Hi Ella! Thank you for your comment!
OK, let me answer your question : あなたの言う通りですis grammatically correct and we do say that to certain people depending on our relationship but I wouldn’t use あなた for someone superior like your teachers, friends’ parents, etc.
The safest way is to use someone’s name or job title ~さんの言う通りです。or you can say おっしゃる通りです。without any pronouns or name.
Oh thank you for this lesson, it was a life-saver! I always keep confusing the two forms! But I remember seeing わけでもない once, used in the flow of a conversation; is it the same thing that わけではない with a も instead of は, or is it somewhat related to tricky particle でも?
Hi Daeva!
Good to hear this lesson helps you! !happyface!
The English translation for わけではない and わけでもない could be the same but there is a slight nuance difference.
I am not sure if I can answer this in the comment section but,
1) わけではない denies stronger than わけでもない
A) そういうわけではない That is not the reason / That is not the case /
B) そういうわけでもない Not exactly
わけでもない sounds more vague and it implies that could be a part of the reason.
2) However there are cases わけでもない emphasizes more than わけではない like “even”
C) 先生になるわけではない (It doesn’t mean (this person) will become a teacher.)
D) 先生になるわけでもない ((This person) won’t become “even” a teacher)
@michael
Usually 大切な人 refers to one’s significant other, one’s loved one.
But yes, you can refer to your family or friend as 大切な人,too!
Ex. この保険はあなたの大切な人を守ります。
= Kono hoken wa anata no taisetsu na hito wo mamorimasu.
= This insurance will protect someone you care about. (“somone” could be your family)
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question. Are these valid Japanese expressions?
もうラブラブになっちゃって
横隔膜突っ張っちゃって
強烈な味にぶっ飛んで
等身大の裏表
脅迫的に縛っちゃって
網膜の上に貼っちゃって
もうラブラブでいっちゃってよ
会いたいたいない、無い！
It must be some lyrics. 初音ミク？
もうラブラブになっちゃって、means They got lovey dovey.
強烈な味にぶっ飛んで : ぶっ飛ぶ means “to get really surprised with the strong taste (It is a very extreme expression.)
But other words are just play of words so I don’t know if you can learn Japanese from it. But you can see lots of ちゃって from it huh?
Haha, Maggie-sensei, you got it right. It’s the chorus from Ura-Omote Errors. I was trying to clear things up for myself because of all the different contradicting translations and explanations of the lyrics. I always wondered why the composer wrote a lot of ちゃって in there. At least “toushindai no ura-omote” was the only thing I could understand.
なるほど！
わかりやすいし役に立つ！
I have read some people saying “あげまして” instead of あけまして. I don’t think they are native Japanese speakers. Is this an alternate saying or a mistake?
Maggie Sensei,
I wanted to let you know that I LOVE your site and keep coming back for more. I learn so much from you guys so please dont ever stop doing the posts :)
This is the first time I visit your website to learn “How to say Happy New Year in Japanese”. Your lesson is very interesting. Thank you very much for your work. From now on, this website is surely my close friend ;-)
Wish you a Happy New Year,
Yoiotoshii o omukaekudasai!
Arigatou for your comment! Wow! You are 14 years old and learning Japanese? Ganbattene!!! Good luck! Feel free to leave comments or ask questions here anytime!
Thank you for this lesson, and for all your your lessons this past year!
I wonder though if you would mind explaining why the particle も is used in so many of the example sentences for ～納め
I can maybe understand for the marriage examples, but for the sakura example why is it 桜も見納め as opposed to say 桜は見納め?
Hi Jess! A good question!
Usually the particle of も is used when we want to say “also” or “and”
犬も猫も好きです。= I like dogs and cats.
マギーもハワイに行くの？= Is Maggie also going to Hawaii?
★桜も見納め
The も here is an exclamatory particle. You can express your feelings towards cherry blossoms.
It is possible to say 桜は見納めです。”は” is used to distinguish from others so it sounds like something else is still keep going.
桜は見納めです。でも他の花はまだ楽しめます。
マギー先生、thank you very much about the explanation. ^^
Now I understand the differences. Well, I get it when I read these comments, though. :)
Anyway, I’m looking forward for your another lesson! :DDD
omg! i found your site when searching for what ‘ukepi’ means. sugoi!!! you are very detailed in your explainations agepoyo!! thank you! :D i would love more slang lessons onegaishimasu!
Thank you for your comment! There are more slang lessons besides this one. Find them in the index. I will keep making more and more slang lesson! また来てね！ :)
Emphasizing what you are trying to say :
だから何回も言ったでしょ！
ですから何回も申し上げたと思います！
There is no difference. The only difference I can think of is, while you can use ですから with i-adjective, you can’t use だから with i-adjective,
Ex. 暑い → 暑いですから （You can’t say 暑いだから. You have to say 暑いから） 怖い→怖いですから （You can’t say 怖いだから You have to say 怖いから）
今日は寒いですから風邪をひかない様に気をつけて下さい。
→X 今日から寒いだから~
→○今日は寒いから~
@sagi arie
Oh, Hi, sagi!! Thank you for checking the lesson and leaving the comment.
How exciting! You can celebrate New Years and your birthday soon!!!
よいお年を！Sagi!
Hi, mel!
誰も and 誰にも :
They are not the same :
１）When に in 誰にも is an Indirect Object Marker, you can’t switch them.
Indirect Object Marker に:
Ex. Maggieにこれをあげます。= I will give this to Maggie
Ex. Maggieに秘密（ひみつ）を話（はな）す。 = to tell Maggie one’s secret.
→
Ex. これは誰にもあげません。= I won’t give this to anybody. (X これは誰もあげません。This means “Nobody will give this.）
Ex. 誰にも秘密を話しません。= I won’t tell my secret to anybody. （X 誰も秘密を話しません。This means “Nobody tells the secret.）
When 誰も is used as a subject,
Ex. Nobody knows = 誰も知らない= daremo shiranai, you can’t say 誰にも知らない= darenimo shiranai. This doesn’t make any sense.
1) When に in 誰にも is used as emphasizing of 誰も, you can switch them.
Nobody knows what I am thinking about.
a: 誰にも私の考えていることはわからない。＞b : 誰も私の考えていることはわからない。
thanks alot maggie sensei!(:
i am now clearer about those two words. however can i ask from your example,
誰にもわからない
= darenimo wakaranai
= Nobody can get /understand it
does 誰にも知らない= darenimo shiranai.
=nobody can know it?
(or does it make no sense like what you said from the previous comment? sorry im a little confused here! gomenasai!)
once again thanks alot!(:
I assume you already know the difference of the meaning between 知る(= to know, to learn) and わかる (= to understand)
While わかる is an intransitive verb, 知る is a transitive verb and we have to use different particle for each verb.
*(object) がわかる (Note : Occasionally you can say ~をわかる）
*(object) を知る （We never say ~が知る）
We sometimes use に when we want to emphasize the subject.
私は〜がわかる =I understand ~
→subject + には Emphasizing the subject “I” →私には〜がわかる= (emphasizing the subject “I”) ( (Maybe you or other people don’t but ) I understand ~
→subject + にも Adding the nuance of “even” (Even I know ~or Also I know ) →私にも〜がわかる (Even I understand ~ )
Now the verb 知る can’t use with the particle に
*私は〜を知っている。= I know ~ →(negative form) 私は〜を知らない = I don’t know~
So you can’t say 私には〜を知っている or 私に〜を知らない
That is why you can’t say 誰にも知らない。We just say 誰も知らない = Nobody knows.
あっそっか！教えてくれてありがとうございました！有り難いことです。(i backtracked your lessons and found this phrase!^^)ごめんね、i only started learning japanese last year,だから、私の日本語は上手でわない。thankyou so much for your long and detailed explanation! i look forward to your future lessons!(:
@mel
どういたしまして。Hope you keep learning! がんばって！
(a little correction : 上手でわない→上手ではない。）
Could you use tekuru/teiku to say, for example, “are you coming/going to do something”?
So like:
明日にクラブしてくるの？(are you coming clubbing tomorrow?)
hi maggie! great lesson as always. i think the way u teach is perfect pls don’t change. what edo said was absurd (sorry) so pls don’t think you have to do something insane like that u do enuf work as it is.
@edo just use firefox rikaichan (i forgot name -something like this…rikachan?) it lets you read kanji just by scrolling over it. all u mentioned is work u can do to learn better.
maggie gives us enough material as it is.
anyways
good luck edo!
sensei! i just find your blog when i was looking for this expression! it is amazing! i study japanese at school but with you i can learn the real slang! cool! i am very happy! you teach better than my japanese teachers! thank you very very much! yoroshiku!!
See, I always reffered to Valentine’s Day as Singles Awareness Day. XD I wonder how you’d say that in Japanese?
Anywayー
In my small town in アメリカ on ホワイトデー、 all the couples get more でれでれ and clingy, while the singles are left out of everything and get all ツンツン. Though, both men and women give valentines-themed chocolates, candy, and cards mostly as friends. I’ve seen a lot of marriage proposals on Valentines day. Couples going steady, married couples and people in that category give jewelry, but that’s usually men-to-women. (Girls give watches, though, I guess -shrugs-)
I remember in elementary school, we had to decorate shoe boxes and make a card for everyone to put in them (If you made them only for a few people, you wouldn’t be allowed to hand them out).
I heard that on White Day, sometimes they get ribbons in Japan? Or just a rumor?
@ハリちゃん
コメントありがとう！I enjoyed reading it. Loved the idea of shoe boxes! It is always interesting to hear about other country’s culture. Haha! でれでれ vs ツンツン, huh? It is universal but at least Japanese girls have 友チョコ or マイチョコ so that girls have an excuse to buy ourselves chocolates and eat them.
(I have never heard about getting ribbons on White Day.)
My Japanese level is still very low and I am really that I found your webpage !!!!!
It is really a great great great and a big big work you are doing… This website, Facebook, Twitter, different categories, many example, audios, Pictures, different colors, cute icons…. wooooowww amazing !!!!
I would liek to know if it is possible to change a little bit the way how you are wrtting the sentences to make more easy to learn the Japanese sentances and words…
Here an example of what I mean:
I took one of your sentence:
母は元気だから心配ない。
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
It is already a big work by writting in Japanese, then hiragana and finally english, this is good for each level, but I think there are few more things which are missing to make even more effective the learning…
For this sentence:
母は元気だから心配ない。
I think putting spaces for each word will make easy to read and learn each words and later, it will be easy to recognize when the word start and finish…
For somebody who does not read well japanese, it is difficult to know if は元気 is a full word or not… Furthermore, 母 is a kanji which means HAHA (2 syllables), If I use your romanji sentence, it is difficult to make the relation for each Kanji/Hiragan to romanji…
Therefore, putting a space between each words will make easy to differentiate all words…
For these sentences:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
I think it can be really helful to add one more line with the translation of each word in English, like that:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= Mum about good so nothing to worry
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
Like this is easy to know the meaning of each word and also to learn a structure of japanese sentences
In your english sentence, it is perfectly English but in the japanese sentence, there is no “I” which is “watashi”, there is no “my” which is “no”, etc…
If I should translate your English sentence in Japanese, I will say like this:
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
= Watashi no Haha wa genki desu. Dakara shinpai nai
Which is word by word translation but this is not a normal way to write…
Your sentence is more usual:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= Mum about good so nothing to worry
Looks like normal Japanese sentences are very short and straight forward comparing to European sentence structure…
This is why, I think it is really important and really helpful to add this word translation…
I do hope I am not offending you, I just want to learn Japanese and I could see many, many websites which try to teach Japanese but you are the only one who is close to the perfection (to my eyes) and adding that will even help more the learning of Japanese language…
Wow!!! Thank you for the long comment!
I really appreciate your support and feedback for this site.
I just got another request to add one more line just in Hiragana.
To be honest, it is going to be a lot of work for me and I am not sure if I can do that.
Also many people think my lessons are too long and they will be even longer.
But I can see how important for you to learn example sentences word by word so…
If there are many other people who want me to explain word by word as you suggested, I will give it a try in some lessons (not all of them but just the one for the beginners) as a trial.
So anybody who want more lines, feel free to leave a comment here.
Thank you again for your comment! I am very happy that you visit here to learn Japanese!
Many thanks for your time to reply to my message…
Here too I can see how Japanese people are very humble… other people will either not read and delete such message or simply reply… you are not happy of the way I am doing the things, do it yourself… :p
Yes I can understand the people who wants Hiragana only sentences… when I am looking a specific words in my Japanese Jisho, for the Kanji, it is difficult because, we need to know the stroke order to find the good word… when we use electronic jisho, we have either to enter Romanji syllables or write in hiragana to get the kanji and then get the definition…
This is why from my experience, having a space between the words, may help when we are looking into dictionaries, where the word start and finish.
I will say that a sentence including kanji with spaces and romanji sentences should be enough. If there is a kanji we do not understand, we can use the romanji way to enter it into the dictionary to get the definition of the kanji.
Something like: 母, you gave us the romanji HAHA, therefore we can get the Kanji in the dictionary (electronic dictionary of course :p)
But getting only Kanji is difficult as we do not know yet all basic kanjis…
Some people are right some comments in your pages only in good Japanese, I cannot understand
and I am sure it can very very interesting…
Yes you are prefectly right saying that I learn the sentence word by word.
As mentioned in my previous message and as you know the Japanese sentence structure is very different of European sentence structure.
Here your example:
Ichiman en wo hirotte doushitakatte?
What did I do with the 10,000 yen I picked up?
This is a literally translation of Japanese to English. If I want to create my own sentence:
What did I do with the mobile phone I picket up ?
I will translate first the Japanese sentence word by word to know each words, for the ones I do not know, I will look into the dictionary…
I get:
Ichiman = ten thousand
en = yen
wo = about (object marker)
hirotte = pick up
Doushitakatte = What do you do
then in English, it will be:
Ten thousand yen about pick up what do you do
I do not see I, with, etc… Once again I can see how Japanese sentences are straight forward…
Thus to make my Sentence I will do something like this:
Mobile phone about pick up what do you do
Denwa wo hirotte Doushitakatte ?
Is is correct sentence ??
But unfortunately, yes you are right, it is giving much more, much more work to you
I do not think that your lesson are too long as you are giving many examples with different conditions, this is really helpful.
Like the “Anata” lesson, my first time I see such lesson, I never saw it in Lesson book and other websites…
I learnt a lot and now I prefer to say the name of the person + san instead of Anata, I find it more respectful, more polite
Again, thank you so much for your message. I read every single word.
When I first started to make this site, I had no idea which level I should have aimed for. Everybody should have a different level. I assume people who visit this site have been studying basic Japanese with a text book or at school. Also there are a lot of great Japanese teaching sites explaining all the details of the grammar, kanji, letters and everything.
So I wanted our site to be a bit different from others and help people learn “natural” Japanese more than textbook Japanese.
But you are right. Many of the example sentences here must be very confusing for the beginners because they are different from what they have been learning at school. Like skipping personal pronouns or casual contractions, etc.
One thing I can tell you now is, please believe me. All your confusion will be eventually disappeared. If you keep studying, you will be able to separate the sentence without problems and tell which word you have to look up in a dictionary and stuff.
And meanwhile I can always help you here, on Twitter or FB. if you have a question.
Now about your question,
Yes, you can say
Denwa wo hirotte Doushitakatte ?
The problem of translating word by word is a particle
を is not always “about” in English. In English they say”To pick up + object” and there is no translation for を
So it may be different from what you asked me, as I said, if many other people want me to make more beginner friendly lessons, I will give it a try to make a lesson with all the explanation of the words.
Anyway ありがとう again for all your wonderful suggestions!
Makes me think of when you’re on the train in Japan, they say something like あぶないですから、足元を注意してください。or something like that. I think I remember seeing a little Hello Kitty sticker saying something similar in regards to sticking your fingers in the door.
That’s some good info. I’ve been looking for a good phrase for “Oh that’s what that means,” or something. I’ve always been saying ああ、なるほど which maybe sounds like I’m being lectured or something, maybe?
Good! you found the answer from my りゃ（あ）lesson.
欲しければ or 欲しけりゃ means “If you want me to do something”
旅行して欲しけりゃ夏休みにイタリアへ行かない？→(correction) You mean “If you want to go traveling, why don’t you go to Italy”？ Then it will be
旅行したけりゃ夏休みにイタリアに行けば？
If you are asking this person to go to Italy with, you can say
旅行したけりゃ夏休みにイタリアに一緒に行かない？
えと～
私の好きな日本語の言葉は…イギリス。
I know that it’s just the Japanese word for England, but I just like the sound of it. I dunno why. XD
Oh! I also like 水 and 音 because those were the first Japanese words I learned for a haiku in middle school.
おい？Never heard of it. おいら, yes. You may have heard in anime. Takeshi Kitano (aka Beat Takeshi) always refers to himself.
I have never heard of おはん either. It must be a dialect.
おまはん、yes. It is Kyoto dialect but and it is equivalent to おまえさん。In Kyoto, they use はん for さん. And it is used towards someone close to them.
Since はん sounds very soft and gentle, even though they say おまえ、it is not rude or blunt.
お前さん also sound friendly but I don’t know if it is “buddy” or “pal” because older people use it to refer to younger people.
And you are right. 己 can be used as “I” or “you”. You have to be very careful when you address someone with おのれ. It is very aggressive.
I know it is impossible to translate these in Spanish. It is all going to be “tú”
Yes, this form has a future nuance.
We say 任せたよ for future.
The difference between 任せたよ and 任せるよ is very subtle.
I would say 任せたよ involves stronger feeling (Ex. As I told you, I am counting on you to have completed what I asked you for) than 任せるよ( I don’t care much, You just take care of it.)。
The same thing with 頼（たの）んだよ and 頼（たの）むよ = Please do something.Please take care of it/ I depend on you.
頼んだよ emphasizes more than 頼むよ
I have checked if you can donate to Red Cross via PayPal and found this link. http://www.paypal-japan.com/charity/
Oh sorry…It seems to be over… I will let you know if I find it out.
There seem to have a lot of scam so please be careful,though.
Hi, I am a native Japanese speaker and I think your lessons are very interesting and useful even for me.
But I don’t think the word アリ literally came form あり得る/有り得る. This is because in this case the opposite word of アリ is ナシ.
For example, you can say:
スイカに塩をかけるのは，アリですか，ナシですか。
or
スイカに塩をかけるのは，やっぱりナシですか。
If アリ is a short form of 有り得る, how do we explain ナシ? We have 有り得る but don’t have 無し得る.
So, I think it is natural to consider that these アリand ナシ are directly came from classical Japanese words あり and なし, whose modern forms are ある and ない, respectively.
As you know, あり and なし are still often used idiomatically in modern Japanese, and I think アリ (あり) itself can deliver the meaning of possibility just like ある in “そんなことあるかな？”.
Moreover, I think アリ (あり) is not a very rude slang. Indeed, it is not suitable for writing, but you can say “〜という対策もありだと思います” or “社長に直接相談してみることもありだと思います” in your business meeting.
We have to investigate when the expression was coined.
This was a great lesson! I am a member of the Moron Army but I’ve not spent much time on this site. I really should though…this info is so infortmative! Thanks, I WILL be visiting more often =) BTW I think you forgot “ni” in the romanji sentence “Haha wa itsumo watashi ga chanto tabete iru ka ki ni shite iru.”
Sensei!
This is quite sometime already but I want to ask this:
ちゃうやちゃったは「しまう、しまった」
Its short for しまいます＆しまいました
But aren’t they use for time when its like you did something and regret something. Or something like It’s not exactly good thing to do. Isn’t it?
Yes, it is. As I wrote in the lesson, “ちゃった” expresses the feeling of regret for the things you have done.
Please read the part in the lesson,
↓
To express how shocked or full of regret you are,
Ex.「しまった、家に忘れてきちゃった！」~~~
As for the quiz, check May 1st quiz in Maggie’s room on this site.
先生のブローグはとてもべんりです！
みつかってよかったです。
from now i will visit your blog at least once every week.(先生、この文を日本語に訳していただけませんでしょうか？)
先生、もし、間違ったところがあれば直してください。どうぞよろしくおねがいします！＝）
はじめまして、Edwin! は〜い、じゃあちょっと直しますね。
•ブローグ→ブログ
•みつかってよかったです。→ It is grammatically correct but not natural. We use this phrase when you find something you have been looking for.
So （このブログを）みつけることができて(or このブログにであえて）よかったです。or うれしいです。 will be more natural.
あとはよく書けてましたよ！
★from now i will visit your blog at least once every week
→ これから少（すく）なくとも毎週（まいしゅう）１回（かい）はこのブログに来（き）ます。
ありがとう！またいつでもこのブログに来て下さいね！
from now i will visit your blog at least once every week
Great post, I always wondered about the difference between those two — sounds like its pretty subtle in meaning, but the difference is more in usage.
来週に東京に行くので、僕の日本語を気なって来ます。
tried to say: since I am going to Japan next week, I am getting concerned about my Japanese ability.
気is a very interesting word, and one we talk about quite a bit in 合気道 Aikido. In fact, here is a blog post about Ki on aikiweb readers might find useful. http://www.aikiweb.com/language/ki_phrases.html
Thanks again for your lesson. I don’t know how you do it, but keep it up!
Ex. 彼は食(た）べてばかりいる =He is always eating. / He just keeps eating.
Ex. Bruceは勉強（べんきょう）ばかりしている = Bruce is always studying.
Ex. マギーは仕事（しごと）をしないで遊（あそ）んでばかりいる。= Maggie just plays around and she doesn’t work.
Maggie, why not mentioning that famous 落ち from those Japanese comedians? They always ended up saying ダメだこりゃ！ I would like to know about them actually, hah.
@Cygnus
Wow! I’m impressed that you know the line ダメだこりゃ! www
You’re right. It is a famous line of いかりや長介, a leader of a comedian group, ドリフターズ.
It is a kind of old show but it used to be very popular.
There is a series of the skit in their show called,
もしもこんな〜がいたら/あったら What if there is a person like this in ~ / What if there is a place/shop/ like this.
Ex.もしもこんな先生がいたら…Ex. もしもこんな病院があったら
Here’s a link! “もしもシリーズ”
They show a very extreme situational comedy skit. And it always finish with a line of the leader, ダメだこりゃ!
B ; 「見ればわかるでしょ！。」
= Mireba wakaru dewa nai desuka.
= Can’t you tell?/ Isn’t it obvious? (If you see something/somebody you will know what it is/who they are.)
見りゃ(あ）わかるでしょ！(casual)
= Mirya(a) wakaru janai ka.
Haha, I wonder where you saw the line. It is a kind of vulgar. Anyway it must be
熱くなっちまってる with small っ not 熱くなつちまてる
The original line is
熱くなってしまっている = it has become hot
By using ~ってしまう or ~ってしまっている, you can express your feelings of regret or dissatisfaction for the result or certain condition.
So it means “It got hotter than it should be/we expected / It shouldn’t be this hot but it has become hot.)
Now let’s see how they change :
★present tense / future tense : なってしまう →(more vulgar) なっちまう = will be ~ / will turn into ~ / will become / becomes /changes to
★present tense / present progressive form : なってしまっている →(more vulgar) なっちまっている = to be ~ / is being/ is becoming /to have become ~ /to have changed to ~
★past tense / past perfect form : なってしまった→（more vulgar) なっちまった = has become ~ / became ~ / has turned into ~ /turned into / have changed to/ changed to
so なっちまう／なっちまってる／なっちまった are all very casual/vulgar male speech (a bit old fashioned)
I’ve got this phrase from a manga, it’s shounen type. I’m trying to translate it cause this book in my country has too late publishing. Then I gotta face with many strange structures plz help me.
like this one…
熱く”なっち”まってる –> 熱く”なって”しまっている
That means whenever I meet this “なっち” can I always presume it is “なって”,right ? and its measuring like “damn”?
and in まってる the author can leave ”い” anytime isn’t it?
Sensei from this phrase, Does it have some other young men using in real life? or this is a bookish word?
and the last one I know only this word “熱くなっている” form but what’s まう and まってる they’re using only with vulgar expression?
@Nicole Hi, Nicole!
OK, let me answer your questions one by one.
1)That means whenever I meet this “なっち” can I always presume it is “なって”,right ? and its measuring like “damn”? →Yes
2)and in まってる the author can leave ”い” anytime isn’t it?→Yes, we can either leave it or delete it.
3) Does it have some other young men using in real life? or this is a bookish word?→Yes. Not necessary young men.. some older men use it in real life as well. But women don’t use it.
4)まう and まってる they’re using only with vulgar expression?→This suffix is used with なっち and you have to think as a set. And yes, it is a rough expressions.
FYI not just なっちまう you can form this type of phrases with other verbs.
やってしまう→やっちまう→やっちまった
食べてしまう→食べちまう→食べちまった
etc.
あああ～ 分かったね.Then these examples should say like this, right?
やってしまう –> Damn..to do this.(that I don’t want to do.)
やっちまった –> Oop! I did it.
Thank you Maggie Sensei for the wonderful explaining.
@Nicole
Yes, and these expressions implies the feeling of regret.
FYI やっちまえ！is a typical line for Yakuza type of people which means “Kill!” “Beat them up!
and やっちまった is often used now as a joke when you made a mistake.
really cool, yeah that´s right we don´t learn these sentences at the school… Thanx… Jya…
このレーソンは面白いったらありゃしない！Awesome lesson. Have you ever thought about writing some kind of book? I would definitely buy a copy, and probably one for a couple friends of mine learning Japanese too.
詳しい説明ありがとうございます！
Like someone else said, I think learning how to (not) use あなた is kind of a benchmark in learning Japanese. You can tell when people are getting really good because they start using casual speech and stop using あなた all the time like in English :D
I have a question about talking to people your own age or younger. When do I use くん or ちゃん or さん or just their name? When I was a 留学生 most of my friends were studying English so I just used their first names, but I noticed some of my friends referred to each other differently. One guy was always called by his last name, so I started to call him that too. And some of my girl friends were called ちゃん. Are these things just なんとなく? Is it OK to ask people what they want to be called?
Good question! It is important to observe how your Japanese friends call each other. Usually you have to go through a certain process. We don’t usually call someone with chan or kun/ nickname or yobisute when you meet them for the first name. You can gradually change the way you call them but yes, it is totally OK to ask people how to address them.
Ex. 「どう (or なんて) 呼んだらいい？」
Ex. 「マギーちゃんて呼んでもいい？」
Ex. 「みんなに何て呼ばれている？」→「じゃあ私（or 僕）もそうやって呼んでもいい？」
(These examples are very casual)
Hello Maggie sensei! Thank you so much for the great lesson’s; they’re always so insightful and informative. I have a question: if you are the person who is treating someone else, what is a polite and humble way to respond if they say ご馳走様でした to you? Also if you are the one who is again treating the other person, does it appear arrogant to say ご馳走様でした yourself or is it a way of expressing thanks (ie to God/the restaurant etc) at the end of the meal?
よろしくお願いします。
P.S I’m sorry for the long question! m(_ _)m
@Sarah86 Hi, Sarah! It is a really good question! I made this lesson a long time ago so I should add more inf.
If you treat someone, you don’t say 御馳走様でした。to the person you invited. But you can say that to the waiter, chef, restaurant owner when you leave.
★If you invite people, serve food and they say “御馳走様でした。” to you, you say ”
Ex. いえいえ、何のお構いもできませんで…
= Ieie nanno okamai mo dekimasen de.
= Not at all. I couldn’t serve you enough. (humble)
Ex. お口に合いましたか？
= Okuchi ni aimashita ka?
=Did it taste good enough for you?
Ex. お粗末様でした。
= Osomatsu sama deshita.
= It was a poor service/food. (lol!! I know this sounds too humble but our parents generation say that often.)
★If you take someone out and they say 御馳走様でした。to you, you could say
Ex. いえいえ、これ位のもので。お口に合ったらいいのですが..
= Ieie koregurai no mono de… Okuchi ni attara ii no desuga…
=Not at all. This is nothing. Hope this tasted good enough for you. (humble)
Ex. どういたしまして。私も楽しかったです。
= Douitashimashite. Watashi mo tanoshikatta desu.
= It’s my pleasure. I had a good time.
Ex. こちらこそ、お忙しい中、有り難うございました。
= Kochirakoso oisogashii naka arigatougozaimashita.
= ( It’s me who has to say thank you. Even though you were busy you made time for me.) Thank you for your time. (to someone superior)
Ex. どういたしまして。また美味しいもの(を）食べに行きましょう！
= Douitashimashite. mata oishii mono (wo) tabeni ikimashou.
= My pleasure! Let’s go out and eat something delicious again!
Maggie先生, 本当にありがとうございました！You’re the best!! :D Thank you so much for taking the time to give such a detailed response! I will apply what you have taught me. Thank you so much again :) x
I dont think you will get back to me any time soon on ths but if you do thank you soo much. But i was wondering whats the best way to learn all 3 styles of writing? Ive spent roughly 4-8 hours studying and i have one down but the other one im not worried about but kanji is the one i cant get. Any tips?
So I assume you know how to write/read hiranagana now and work for katakana soon.
Kanji look all intimidating but take baby steps unless you are in hurry.
Set a goal how many kanji you will study for certain period of time.
You can get a kanji workbook but I believe there are a lot of free kanji sites out there,too.
More importantly, enjoy learning kanji. :)
Awesome post as always. I read another post about 自分becoming more popular with young people recently, even using the phrase 自分のなかで to say “I” with a real sense of reservation. If I remember right, it had to do with opinions or likes and dislikes, and was a way of de-emphasizing themselves in the conversation. ie 自分の中でにんじんあんまり好きじゃなくて．．．Has this been your experience, recently? I will be visiting my host family at the end of the month and wonder if it will impress them if I throw this in the conversation once in a while…
Ah, like 自分の中で好きな〜, 自分の中でブーム(=マイブーム）、自分の中でホットな~ , etc? You are right. More people have started to say this and I am sure you can impress your host family if you use it once or twice. :)
hello!
thank you for the wonderful lesson- this is so useful.!
i saw a video recently where an idol used this expression
今日のメイク乗り悪いんですけど。。
i think is what she said, so was she saying
“i wasn’t so excited about today’s makeup but….”
(that would make sense w the rest of the video)
?
also you wrote
みんな、ノってる？
could one also write
みんな、ノっている？
without changing the meaning? is the first one just more slangy?
Thank you!
Hello, WATA!!
Ah, OK, メイクのノリがいい／悪い is different from ノリがいい／悪い.
化粧（けしょう）／メイクのノリがいい means make-up goes on smoothly. When you have a nice smooth skin condition, your skin absorbs all the make up cream, lotion, foundation, powder etc. well and you look good after wearing the make-up.
As for your second question,
ノッてる = ノっている
We often omit ”い” in casual Japanese.
Hi, Mweggy!
“誰でも勝つわよ” means “Anyone will/would win”.
Ex. そんな試合、誰でも勝つよ。
= Sonna shiai daredemo katsuyo.
= Anybody would win such a game!
So if you want to say
“I beat anyone! ”
The direct translation is
私は誰にでも勝つ(わよ)！
= Wsatashi wa darenidemo katsu (wayo).
誰にでも = darenidemo
We put the particle に here because “to beat/ to win over someone” is ~に勝つ = ~ ni katsu
But in this case, it is more common to say “I won’t lose to anybody!” = 私は誰にも負けない。= Watashi wa darenimo makenai.
Yes I meant it as “respect”, I thought 尊重 was synonymous with 尊敬… and yes I’ll come back for sure! じゃね,マギー先生! (^-^)/
＠Mweggy
It means “to respect” but 尊重 is usually used for one’s ideas, opinions, thoughts, positions, etc. not people.
あなたの意見(iken =opinion)/ 立場(tachiba= position)/考え (=kanngae= thoughts) を尊重します。
and it also means “to regard, esteem, value”, etc.
OK, will see you in some article comment section again!!
What a great song. It must have been so much work to translate, but I love to learn new words from listening to songs ^^ I’m going to check out more songs from 植村花菜 now!
@Keekii
Isn’t it great??? I love this song. I think she has just released a new song recently. But this one is my favorite!! Will make a lesson if I find an interesting song to learn Japanese again!
♫♪
Hi Maggie! I am Italian, I started studying Japanese 2 years ago and I love it! I have just found your blog and I love it too! It is nice, fun and very useful….Maggie Sensei rules!! ;-) Ciao!
Hello Annarita!! Thank you for comment. I am very happy that you found us in Italy!!
Hope you come back soon again!! Feel free to leave a message or questions here anytime!
Ciao!!
@Haru
どういたしまして。たくさん直しましたがよかったら、間違ったところをメモしておいてね。必（かなら）ず上達（じょうたつ）しますよ。
（I am not sure if you want me to correct this comment as well but…I will do that anyway to help your Japanese….
間違えたがあったですね。→間違えがありましたね。
直ったをありがとう→直してくれてありがとう。
マギー先生がいいね、たすけられました。→マギー先生、てつだってくれてありがとう。
お会いできた→お会いできて）
私もHaruさんと知り合えてうれしいですよ。これからもよろしくね！
hope u can reply asap now.. dont know how to read kanji .. i just know how to right them…^_^very confusing.. nihonggo musukashi desu ne..yorushiku onegaishimasu..
oopps sorry i mean i just know only how to write kanji katakana and hiragana..i cant read kanji but hiragana and katana is not that easy but i can read sometimes..^_^
OK,I can help your Japanese. Are you ready?
•すみまめせん→すみません
•ありはとうね。→ありがとうね。
(I think the first two are typos but…)
•またいきたいんです！→またきたいです。
•行く = いく = to go →行きたい = いきたい = ikitai = to want to go
•来る = くる = to come→来たい= きたい= kitai = to want to come
→so you should use きたい in this case.
•間違えたが会ったら→間違いがあったら The kanji 会う is to meet someone
•治してくださらないんですか？→直してくださいませんか？
•直す= to fix, to correct, to repair
•治す= to heal to cure,
Great tutorial! I have one question, sorry if I missed it somewhere on the page: What if you are addressing a stranger (older)?
For example what if an elderly man dropped something and you want to say “Sir, is this yours?” Would “Kore wa anato no desu ka?” be inappropriate? And what would be the equivalent of “sir”?
@LS
Hi! Good question!!
In that case, we still avoid saying “anata”. So if you want to say “Is this yours? ” will be
「これ(or こちら）落とされませんでしたか？」= Kore (or kochira) otosaremasen deshitaka? = Did you drop this?
or
「これ違いますか？」= Kore chigaimasu ka?
(I know this one phrase may not make sense but we sometimes say this. It came from これはあなたが落とされたものと違いますか？= Kore wa anataga otosareta mono to chigaimasu ka?)
And if you have to talk to some elderly person that you know, you would just use their name, ~ さん
Great lesson, and great website! I learned not to use おまえ the hard way — I tried using おまえ with my ex-girlfriend to sound more casual. She put a stop to that very quick! (I didn’t understand at that time that it was rude, but I found out very fast!)
The personal pronoun I think is sort of a benchmark, huh? Realizing when to use a personal pronoun and when it’s unnecessary is sort of right of passage I think.
Anyway, thanks again for these great lessons. They’re fantastic and amazingly detailed!
@applezoid
Thank you for your comment! Haha, thank you for sharing your experience! おまえ is easier to learn because people will stop you right away. But あなた is the hardest one to tell people not to use in certain occasions. Although people feel awkward, they can’t stop you because we all know you learned “あなた” as a polite form.
Hope you visit this site again! :grin:
It reminds me a bit of the use of “have something to do with…” (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) or asking if an action can correctly fit a situation. Thank you, Maggie Sensei! You’re incredible good at teaching. ありがとうございます。
@Jason
Because 勝たない(= katanai) means “not to win”
and 負けない(= makenai) means “nobody can beat me”
負ける(=makeru)= to lose→ negative form: 負けない(= makenai) = unbeaten, not to lose
勝つ (=katsu) = to beat/to win → negative form: 勝たない(=katanai) = not to win/ to lose
I think I understand. It’s like saying “it loses to no one” So darenimo means nobody in this context. I was thinking it should be ” it beats everyone”. Thanks for your help.
Thank you so much for writing this very informative lesson, Maggie-sensei! I’ve always been confused about when and how to use 「誰でも」and「誰にも」.
A friend recently introduced me to your website and I’m backtracking your lessons bit by bit! I’m self-studying Japanese and I have a long way to go but your lessons are very helpful, informative and very interesting too!
Hello, sonattan!! Thank you for your first comment! I am glad to hear this lesson was helpful.
There are lots of lessons but they are random. Go through the index. Hope you can find some useful lessons for you.
Feel free to ask me any questions here.
I like this lesson. I always felt あなた to be kind of a taboo. ^^ With all the safer alternatives out there, it’s easy to do without it. Except for phrases like the featured mini-dialogue.
Haha, thank you for the kind words Maggie-sensei. I don’t think my Japanese is that good at all. All of your lessons, even the basic ones, teach me something interesting. Thank you. :)
I find it so tough to use 俺… it just feels like a false show of bravado, like swearing or something which I don’t like to do. When I was on exchange though, all the guys I met would only use 俺 and I felt kind of forced to do it. I always tried to avoid using 僕 or 俺 if I could, and I would rush through the word like I didn’t want to say it the times I did use it. Sounding manly in Japanese is too difficult…;;
Thank you for your comment. I’ve always wondered how you all pick 俺 or 僕 which possibly represent two different personalities.
But a lot of time you can just omit the subjects in Japanese. So you can avoid picking one of them.
@キム
OK, おっしゃる is 敬語 (= keigo) an honorific expression for 言う = iu = to say something.
あげる means to give something
あなたにあげる means “(I) will give you”
Actually あげる has more meanings but check this lesson when you are ready.
(くれる & あげる）
(A little correction : カタカナ is hard, huh? My name is マギー and lesson is レッスン）
concerning this phrase:
お前にそんなこと言われたくないわ
I have not yet heard a man end a sentence with わ. However, I’ve only been studying Japanese seriously for about a year and a half. I was just wondering if this was a typo, or if you might be playing a joke on us guys ;)
Good question. Recently I have received a question regarding “わ” ending for men. This person heart many men using this わ ending and got really confused as well.
I will post my answer to that person here.
**********************
The majority of textbooks say “わ” ending as a female speech. But as I mentioned in my female speech lesson, men use わ ending often as well especially in Chubu and also Kansai area. (Actually there are many men who use “wa” ending in other areas as well.)
Ex.あかんわ！= It’s not good! (Osaka area)
Ex.これやるわ！= I will give you this. / I will do it.
Ex.見せるわ！= I will show you.
Ex.もう寝るわ！= I will go to bed now.
Ex.ああ、これだわ！= Oh, This is it!
Ex. これ、僕がやるわ。= I will take care of this.
Ex.明日、試験だから勉強するわ。= I will have an exam tomorrow so will study now.
(Note : お前/あんたに言われたくないわ! is a typical “talking back” phrase for Japanese comedians. And many of Japanese comedians are from Kansai area.)
I understand you don’t want to sound like a woman when you use this ending.
The key is your intonation.
Women say the わ ending with rising tone (or flat) わ↑and men say this with lowered pitch わ↓.
So as long as you don’t say it with rising tone, you are safe.
But わね or わよ, it is only for women.
*******
So I am not playing a joke on you. But be careful with your intonation!
There’s something that is worrying me profoundly as a translator. You have shown us that 別嬪 is an old-fashioned word. I’ve looked up that word in my monolingual and bilingual dictionaries and couldn’t find any reference to it being old-fashioned. How can I know when a word is colloquial/old-fashioned/vulgar when I look it up in the dictionary? Is there any dictionary with this sort of indications (monolingual or bilingual)? It would be very useful.
I don’t want to pester Japanese friends every time I have to find out.
Good question. If it is a very old word, some Japanese dictionaries (for example 広辞苑) indicate it as <文語> and if it is a colloquial word, it says <口語>, and if it is a vulgar word, it says <卑語>.
But you can also use “Google” and check the number of hits and how people use the word and you can judge yourself.
Hi there! Thank you for your nice comment. Me,too! I am happy that you found this site!
I believe learning languages should be fun. And I am doing this for fun as well. (I mean it’s challenging but fun at the same time.)
I can see your Japanese has been improving. It is because you have been studying very hard! これからもがんばってね！
LOL… these cute puppies make me laugh.
Maggie, don’t let marron sit on your hat! Because someday he maybe sits on your head too
MaggieとMarronの性格が真逆ですか。
Hola Pippa!
Thank you for the comment. How interesting. You put lime as well in Mexico?
I will try that!! (Except limes are kind of expensive in Japan….)
We (girls) say that jokingly. It sounds funnier than 自分だってそうじゃない or 自分こそ！
You can also use one’s name,
Ex. Maggieに言われたくないわよ！
Other line you can use is
「よく言うわ！」
In Kansaiben 「よう言うわ！」
Love, you,too! !CHECKHEART!
Thank you for sharing this. I thought it was okay to use ‘anata’ to everyone since it’s considered ‘polite’ than using kimi/omae, but I guess I’m wrong ^^;;
I learned a lot today! (and your site is awesome XD)
Thank you for visiting this site! I think almost all the Japanese learners use あなた thinking it is a polite form.
I just wanted to teach you all a bit deeper than regular classroom Japanese.
Thank you so much for this! I am planning on participating in the Boston Career Forum this November. You have no idea how nervous I was (and still am!)
All of this information is giving me much more confidence in the entire process.
Again, I want to say thank you for all of your hard work! I know this must have taken you forever to complete!
Thank you for your comment! I made this lesson a while ago but I do remember I tried to put lots of information.
Good luck on your job hunting! いいお仕事が見つかります様に！まずは、Relaxしてね！ :)
@Intan
Thank you for visiting this site!
“but i dont love you” – If you are a man, use 僕 (=boku) or 俺(=ore). 俺 is more rough. If you are a girl, use 私(=watashi)
* でも私は (or 僕は）（あなたを／君を）愛していない。
* でも (or 僕は）あなた(or 君）のことなんて好きじゃない。
As I wrote in the earlier comment, it changes slightly depending on your gender.
if you are a girl,
Demo watashi wa anata wo aishite inai.
Demo watashi wa anata ga sukijanai.
Demo watashi wa anata no koto sukijanai.
Demo watashi wa anata no koto aishite inai.
If you are a boy,
Demo boku wa kimi no koto aishite inai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto sukijanai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto sukijanai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto aishite inai.
Hi Manju!
“よちちは”&”よちの” ？ I have never heard of them. If I come across these words, I will let you know. Where did you see them? It would help if you give me the whole sentence.
Hi. sensei. How do you translate this?
If i played basketball(for example when i was a child) I would be very good now!.
using past conditions? which conditional should i use?
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I know this is an old answer, but could you perhaps share the other patterns you mentioned?
I always see the structure “If you were A, B would’ve happened” with なっていた.
For example: “君が生きていたらどうなっていただろうか”
Why can’t I say: “君が生きていたらどうなっただろうか”?
Also, would I say “君が生き残っていたらどうなっていただろうか”? Or would I say “君が生き残ったらどうなっていただろうか”?
And in Ron’s sentence’s case, is it possible to say “バスケットボールをやったら”? Isn’t the verbs’ dictionary form used to express habits? So, if he had made a habit of playing basketball during his child he would be goot at it now. Or could I say “とてもうまくなっただろうに”? Why are both “ていた”?
Which of these sentences is correct, if any?
傘を買ったら雨に降られなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に降られなかったのに
傘を買ったら雨に降られていなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に降られていなかったのに
I gave a lot of examples, but my doubts about all of them are the same one. Thank you very much for your attention in advance. I hope I could express myself well.
I just realized I used the wrong verb. Let me ask again:
Which of these sentences is correct, if any?
傘を買ったら雨に濡れなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れなかったのに
傘を買ったら雨に濡れていなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れていなかったのに
So the following sentence is talking about the past so
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れなかったのに (I wouldn’t have got wet)
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れていなかったのに (describes the state for certain period of time) “I wouldn’t have been getting wet”
work.
Hi エルフ
１) 君が生きていたらどうなっていただろうか
2) 君が生きていたらどうなっただろうか
なっていた describes the state of certain period of time :what would have been happening/ what you would have been
なった describes just one time thing :what would have happened
3) 君が生き残っていたらどうなっていただろうか”
4) 君が生き残ったらどうなっていただろうか”
3) OK
4) A bit unnatural. Maybe it’s because the tense of the following sentence.
For example, 君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか (Talking about future) works
バスケットボールをやったら could be just one time
バスケットボールをやっていたら It describes the certain period of time
Thanks for your reply, Maggie-sensei! I now understand why to use なっていた and not なった.
But I’m still confused… Why is it “傘を買っていたら” and not “傘を買ったら”? And why doesn’t “君が生き残ったら” work for the past?
Aren’t the translations of “傘を買っていたら” and “君が生き残っていたら” “If I had been buying an umbrella” and “If you had been surviving” respectively? Isn’t buying an umbrella a one-time thing, unlike playing basketball?
Does it have anything to do with how ている can express a resultative state of an action?
How would you translate “君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか”? In my understanding, it can only be “if you survive, what will happen?” or “if you survived, what would happen?”.
In other words, there is still a chance that “you” may survive. If there weren’t, because “you” is already dead, I would put it in the past tense like in English, like “if you had survived, what would’ve happened”, right?
That’s why I wonder, if I know for sure that the person didn’t survive or didn’t buy an umbrella, for example, and that things would’ve been different if they had done that, then should I always use “～ていたら”?
I’d be very grateful if you could help me again! Thank you for attention.
I won’t go too deep in this comment section but
1) 買う/買った is one time action.
買っていたら focusing on the state of having an umbrella after buying an umbrella but maybe you should just learn by what tense to use.
There are lots of exceptions but generally speaking
You tend to use Vていたら〜 form for an unreal past condition and its probable result in the past.
日本に行ったらマギーに会いたい。 When I go to Japan, I would like to see Maggie. (talking about the future/ A possible condition and its probable result.)
日本に行っていたらマギーに会えたのに。/ 会ったのに。 If I had gone to Japan, I would have been able to see Maggie/I would have seen Maggie. (an unreal past condition and its probable result in the past.)
2) 君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか 君 is still alive. You won’t probably survive but what if you do…
What would happen if you survived or survive.
君が生き残っていれば/いたら “if you had survived, what would’ve happened” (The person is not alive)
Aaahh, that’s exactly what I wanted to know! Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei! ^^
You said you wouldn’t go into many details and that there are a lot of exceptions. Do you know where I could read more about it? Or what I should search on Google? I tried some things before but couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for. It’s fine even if it’s in Japanese. Thank you very much for explanation, anyway!
One of the exceptions is for example Vてくれたら
If you have told me earlier we could have seen each other.
I guess you could say 早く言ってくれていたら but もっと早く言ってくれたら会えたのに。 is much more common.
Also when you express the regrets with よかった, you use Vたら
行ったらよかった
I should have gone.
食べたらよかった
I should have eaten.
Since I don’t use other sites, I don’t know what sites cover the theme but try using google typing 日本語条件文
Good luck! :)
Ex. A : 「ありがとう！」 Thank you! B : 「こちらこそ！」Me,too.
Ex. A : 「よろしくお願いします。」Nice to meet you!B : 「こちらこそ！」 Nice to meet you,too!
Ex. A : 「会えてうれしいです。」It’s a pleasure to meet you. B : 「こちらこそ！」Likewise
Ex. A: 「御迷惑をおかけいたしました。」I am terribly. B : 「こちらこそ….」Me,too.
So こちら refers to you or your side. So instead of repeating the same thing, you say this to the person.
Is it clear?
OK, first let me help your sentences. ”こちらこそ”の使い方が本当にまだはっきりわかります。→You know clearly how to use”こちらこそ”? Then say, こちらこその使い方はもうはっきりわかります。
もう = already まだ = not yet
“時々返事できる” means “You can answer once in a while.” I assume you sometimes get confused when to use “私も” and ”そう思います”
Then I hope I answered your questions in my last comment.
そう思います is used only when you agree with someone.
私も just means, “me,too”
Try these :
Ex. 私はカレーが好きです。 Which one do you use? ” “私も” or ”そう思います”
Ex. マギーはかわいいです。Which one do you use? ” “私も” or ”そう思います”
If you want, follow me on twitter. We can practice there.
For me, Marron-sensei and Maggie-sensei are both cute! :D
Btw, I have a question. I’m confused with these two words: 点検 and 検問. The dictionary says both mean inspection. But is/are there any difference/s? Like, when it comes to how it’s used or something?
Oh there are very different.
点検 is to check something is functioning properly.
Ex. 車の点検、エンジンの点検
検問 is used when police stop passersby or cars to inspect.
お久しぶりです！！「もう後がない」は、It is now or never.と言う様な、今、このチャンスを逃したら次のチャンスがない、今やらないと一生できないという時に使います。
また、いろいろな方法を試してみて最後に残された方法はこれしかないという時にも使います。at the end of the rope.
Ex. 受験で失敗し続けてもう後がない。
Congratulations on your second year! I have been using these lessons for a few months now as a supplement to my Japanese learning. Many are still over my head but I am learning a lot of wonderful thinks that you couldn’t get in a standard classroom. Thank you for all of your hard work!
~ R
Thanks for the lesson, sensei! I learned something new today. :D
Oh, we put a dash of salt on watermelon, but only when it’s not that sweet. We also put salt on sour mangoes to intensify the sourness. A bit of salt work wonders! :D
Nice examples. Hadn’t even come across that word yet.
The video was pretty tough for me, had to read the transcript and translation a few times to understand how it adds up to that meaning.
sensei, I don’t understand the part about talking with little children. So when adult talking to children, boku and watashi means ‘you’ instead of ‘I’? Very odd.
Thank you for the lesson! I just started following and can’t wait for more! (must also check the archive)
Hi mee! Thank you for visiting this site!
OK, it’s a bit confusing, isn’t it?
When you talk to a boy, you refer to the boy with ぼく and when you talk to a girl, you refer to the girl with わたし instead of using “you”.
Talking to a boy ：”How old are you?” : It should be あなたは何さい（ですか）？ but we say “ぼくは何さい（ですか）？”
Talking to a girl ： “How old are you?” will be “わたしは何さい（ですか）？”
Yes, there are tons of lessons. Hope you find them useful.
@Aki
I love Kansaiben,too! It is fun!
そうそう、関西ではバカはアホって言います。
めちゃくちゃ + adjective = super + adjective
めちゃくちゃ + verb = to do something a lot
Ex. めちゃくちゃ面白い！= It is very funny.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ楽しかった！= It was so much fun.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ食べた！= I ate a lot.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ好き！ = I love you a lot. / I like it a lot.
Ex. めちゃくちゃかわいい！= Super cute!
Ex. めちゃくちゃ歌がうまいね！= You are a very good singer!
In Kansai or some other areas, they say めっちゃ= meccha
Dear How are you.
I d liek ask you to fix on your web page the
google blogger. (share it) becouse have more many outhers way to the people copy and send to friends or outhers blog…
ll be great .. very nice help for the people and hope some outhers brasilian enjoy visit your site :
have you CD translated to romanji ?
how to find out?
Real a great job. God Bless you
thanks a lot see you…..
ひさしぶり！Thank you for your comment. How is your kitty?
Are you still dancing?
Anyway, 男子 is usually read as “danshi” but it is read as “dango” to make a pun.
is it ok for girls to say 「ベタだなあ…」 or is it a bit rough? I know the girl in the video said it, but she could be a rough girl…
Thank you for the lesson! .<
Thank you for all the work you put in your page.
Its like having a Japanese friend to talk to everytime.
I´m studying Japanese for a long and your page makes it much easier to me to understand Japanese better. Thank you so much!!
Great .. ”くれる” is clear now :D plus with a great listening quize, really thanks sensei.
ドッグフード was quite hard to catch hehe specially the part フード。
cc: Sensei, have you explained the use of こと（事） in your website before? i couldn’t understand the use of it until now! it has been bothering me for a long time :/
Thank you so much for correcting senseiii.. seems i really need to work on my poor grammer >< i will make a time for ということ lesson soon inshallah,Seems a long and VALUABLE one.
btw sorry for replying too late, I already put my email account! shouldn't the website send a notification to our e-mails? or we have to check everytime?
@Abdullah
Your grammar is not poor at all. Just need a good practice. That’s all.
I once accept your comment, you can post comment without my authorization. It should appear automatically. But if I answer you back here in the comment. I don’t think you will get a notification by email. So I am afraid you have to come and check to the comment section. Sorry!
Shokran sensei : ) Ok then i’ll check whenever i leave a reply.
@Abdullah
I am always waiting for you here!
wow, thank you sensei, you try to answer my question so fast,i think it may take a few day for you to reply me. yes,it’s my typo. i read it again and again ,but still have alot of typos,and english is not my native language, so some sentence may look so strange. anyway.thank you so much now i know about (お）～ 下さい。is used for asking for a favor.and the last question i ask my teacher he said some verbs they rearly use with られる like いいえ、課長はまだ帰られません。
hello,maggie sensei, i’m new comer here, and i don’t know wether u answer in old leasson or not ,but i have some confuse about 謙譲語 られるand お～に なる。 my textbook said お～に なる have imply the meaning “依頼” ,like “そこに名前をお書きになってください。this sentence i understand, but i read a grammar book it write like this
先生はアメリカの大学で日本語をお教えになります。
先生はアメリカの大学で日本語を教えられます。
both are right ,but it dosen’t imply any meaning of 依頼. so i don’t know when we use られる and お～に なる.
one more 課長はもう帰られましたか。 いいえ、まだお帰りになりません。 can we write いいえ、まだ帰られましせん。or not ?
hope sensei can help me, thanks you. sorry for post alot ,because i see some words i write wrong so i post again.
Hi tyty! You are always welcome to leave a comment or question in my old lessons.
お〜なる is just a polite form and it doesn’t have 依頼 meaning. However if you say
(お）〜下さい。is used for asking for a favor.
Ex. おかけ下さい。= Please sit down.
Ex. お召し上がり下さい。= Please eat.
Ex. お電話下さい。= Please give me a call
The next question :
いいえ、まだ帰られましせん
No. It is not correct. You don’t need “し”. Or is it typo and you wanted to say 帰られません? Then, it is correct.
If you are a woman,
あなたは私があなたのことをどれだけ愛しているかわからない／知らない+ のよ(→you can add accusing feelings.)
If you are a man, you could also say
君は僕が君のことをどれだけ愛しているか（好きか）わからない／知らない+ んだ(→you can add accusing feelings.)
Thanks for your lessons Maggie sensei. They really help me.
Enjoy you vacation and return safely home.
Best regards from Czech Rebublic :) (please excuse my English)
Grace
1) I saw a foreigner on a Japanese show answering a question from a Japanese panellist who told him “So do you think the Japanese are a little picky?”:
言っちゃえば、そうですね。
That means something like: “Well, if I might say so…”. What kind of use is that one?
2) Are 言っちゃった and ばれちゃった always girly? Oooooops, I kind of used them often.
@Cygnus Nazca
Sorry that it took me a long time to answer your question. Now I am back and able to answer your question with time.
1) 言っちゃえば、そうですね。 Maybe he meant to say→ まあ、そう言っちゃえば、そうですね。It means “I would say yes.””Yo diría que sí ” or he might have tried to translate ”to tell you the truth” in casual Japanese. and he meant to say ぶっちゃけそうですね (very casual)
2) Men can say 言っちゃった、ばれちゃった. If you are young, it is totally acceptable. But I would say don’t over use it. Check my reply to @Vanli
So can the “nda/noda” actually be an imperative form? I read young people use it so much it doesn’t really imply a reason (=they overuse it). Is that true?
I miss u soooooo much already >.<…. T___T
no Super Basic Words, no tweets, no homework!!! (yes, I even miss sensei's homework!!)
gahhhh you better be having a lot of fun over there so this all is worth it… and come back soon!!!
<3
Interesting lesson. I think the “prostitute story” will make it easier to remember the expression. Sometimes you need to be able to link a word to something else in order to remember it properly. But I’m a bit confused of who it is that makes these lessons. Has Victor nothing to do with it besides promoting it? And is Maggie and Yukari the same person? Sorry if I’m asking stupid questions, but I couldn’t find any explanation anywhere… But great site ;)
@Keekii
Hi! Thank you for visiting this lesson. All the lessons are created by Yukari. Maggie is Victor’s dog. she wants to help me but she only has paws so it is hard to type. But she gave me a great inspiration. Victor has been helping me promote and proofread the lessons. He is great!
@Mari
Thank you for your suggestion. Since all my lessons are too long already I don’t think I can write all the vocabulary uses in the lesson. But at leas I will try to explain the vocab used in a core sentence.
久しすぎたね、先生：) This lesson was great, I haven’t had the time I used to—I’ve been lurking though：）The part about the prostitutes was funny in a strange way. I love learning about the etymology of words and expressions.
Hi Mari! Thank you for visiting this site! Victor has been helping me a lot to promote this blog but actually Maggie and Yukari are making lessons and Depointless designed the website for us.
We really like it!
I know…it was scary and disgusting but when we do or say 指切り, we almost NEVER think about the origin of the word or we don’t even know how it started. It is just a cute way to make a promise.
You are the ideal visitor of this site! But do come back!
I’m a foodie, too. I’m also interested in Japanese cuisine and it’s one of the reasons why I became interested in learning Japanese. I still have a lot of things to learn though, so I’ll do my best.
Thanks for the lessons, as always. マギー先生のサイトで来た甲斐がありました。^^
@Amelie
Hi, Amelie! Haha, you like food,too, huh? I love people who can enjoy food!
What is your favorite Japanese food? Can you cook any Japanese food?
(Almost! マギー先生のサイトで→マギー先生のサイトに来た甲斐がありました。）
Good that you enjoyed Aki’s video! I bet she will be happy!
There’s a specialty section in grocery stores and supermarkets here in my place which sells Japanese condiments and products. As for the ingredients I can’t find such as adzuki, I try to substitute and use monggo instead. ^^
買い物に行くことが生き甲斐だよ！
I live to go shopping!!!
（特に、最近ね、買い物に全然行かない。。。だってね、貯金をしなきゃ！日本に行きたいよ＞。＜ がんばろ～！）
亀梨くんのビデオがもっと分かるから日本語の勉強で頑張りがいがあるよ～！
The effort put into Japanese study is worth it since I can Understand Kamenashi’s videos better
*買い物に行くことが生き甲斐だよ！→Perfect sentence!!
*亀梨くんのビデオがもっと分かるから→もっと分かる様になったから will be better
*日本語の勉強で→日本語の勉強の
*頑張りがいがあるよ～！→good!!
お買い物楽しいよね。日本に来たら買い物天国（てんごく＝Heaven)だからもうちょっとがまんね！
As for your question, you mean 気合 = 重い？
If so, 気合 is not 重い = heavy nor heavy feelings.
気 is energy for your body and mind or vigor.
気合を入れる or 気合を出す means to stir oneself, to put spirit in oneself
For example when you feel like you are tired or less energy, you can encourage yourself, saying
Ex. さあ、気合を入れてがんばろう！/気合を出してがんばろう！
I will do my best (putting myself more energy/spirit/rolling up my sleeves).
You can also encourage people,
気合入れて(or 出して)がんばって！
Or you often hear coaches cheer athletes (especially in martial art)
“気合だ！！”
Hope I answer your question.
@Cygnus
正確に言うと給与の中に給料が含まれます。給与 = wage in general includes 給料 which is salary that employers pay to employees.
会話では給料でいいですが、書類などフォーマルなものは給与を使います。
(A little correction for you : 作るため→作るのに / かかりますよね→かかりましたよね (past tense)/ 話は変わって→話は変わりますが(formal)／変わるけど(casual))
oh, I found your lessons VERY useful!! Besides, the main subject of the lesson they also teach me words like 家賃, 借りる, etc. So it helps me expand my vocab! Your website is THE BEST!!!
I’m watching Manaberu News now and one of the guests answers the question of the audience. Then Ikegami says じゃあ、もうここからは士田さんにお願いしましょうか。 And he says 分かりました, as if he would take over from that time and be the new show host. Ikegami then says ノリがいいですね.
How would u translate that ノリがいいですね? What does he mean by that? That he has a good sense of humor?
not really… I guess I am not that good at anything to call it “my territory” ._.
but in the house, kitchen is my territory in a way cause I LOVE cooking!! does that count? （笑）
マギー先生は？
I think I’ll pass on anything 踊り! But I’m so glad that now I know what they call it so if I see that anywhere to avoid it!
The 稲荷寿司 sounds like a fantastic idea though!
I love sushi:):)
Thanks for a great lesson!!!
Maggie, do you know what’s the unlucky number for Italians?
17. It’s not easy to infer why. If you write it in roman numerals, it would be XVII, which is an anagram of VIXI, which means “I have lived” (therefore, I’m dead). I’ve read that buildings in Italy don’t have a 17th floor, hotels don’t have a room No. 17 and Alitalia planes don’t feature a 17th row, as you can see here: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:Alitalia-17.jpg
By the way, I talked about the 立て箸 in my speech (Speech Contest 2011 in Chiyoda, Tokyo, before I left Japan).
I just found out that a kind of neta I enjoyed a lot when I was in China (abura bouzu, or escolar in English) isn’t allowed to be served as neta in Japan. I didn’t have any problems after eating it, so I was surprised to read that it can cause digestive problems! :S Anyway, it was tasty!
Hi Jane!
They are all “interest” in English and some Japanese don’t distinguish them but to be more specific,
利子 : interest for your 預金 = bank saving、
利息 : interest for 借入金 貸付金、debt, loan、
金利 : interest rate for your loan, or saving
Some time ago I read the sentence パトカーがいます。Since the car is an object, how can that be? Is it because there are people inside? Does this apply to other objects? Or is it just incorrect?
パトカーがいる is possible if there are policemen inside and we treat パトカー as if a human. (How can I say, personification!?)
For the same reason, we also say in conversation あそこにタクシーがいる only when a taxi driver is in it. If we just see a car and nobody is in it, we say 車がとまっている。
The difference is very subtle but here you go!
節約＝無駄をはぶいて、切り詰めること。=To trim down the cost cutting waste
倹約＝金や物を無駄遣いしないように努めること。= Try not to waste money or things.
@Cygnus
They both are not negative. But you may have to be careful when and how you use it.
Because it may sound that person is cheap. You know what I mean..
They are not exactly the same
For example
ギャーギャー loud compared to ぶつくさ
ねちねち or くどくど is for a long period of time, they complain about the same thing on and on.
@Cygnus
You mean the rest of the old gag lines?
A lot of them are meaningless. You just have to see the old comedy shows.
「おめえに食わせるタンメ ンはない！ 」Pretending a Chinese chef in Jacky Chan movie. “There is no Tanmen (Chinese noodle) for you!” ” I won’t serve any Chinese noodle for a person like you.”
「 欧米か！ 」 means “You are too westernized! ”
「フォ〜！ 」 No meaning （just a sound of calling out)
「グウ〜〜！」 No particular meaning but it comes from “Good! ”
「あると思います！」 “I think it’s possible.”
「トウ〜ス！ 」No meaning (It is from American Football calling out sound)
I think the right term is “transfusion”, blood infusion sounds a little creepy (o_O’).
I found it very surprising that, at a recent interview, the interviewer said to my friend that her blood type wasn’t compatible with the company.
「合わないかな」だって。
You are right. “infusion” is also listed in the dictionary but “transfusion” is more adequate. I will revise it.
そうですね、ある血液型が面接で落とされるという嘘の様な話も以前はよく聞きました。（→そこまで大切なんだろうか。信じられない。or そこまで大切なんて信じられない。）
大好物は普通は食べ物や飲み物だけです。そうですね、もしCDだったら「（歌手の名前）大好き！／この曲大好き！」って言いますね。
one of my favorite はお気に入りの一つ、（とても）気に入ったものの一つ、大好きなものの一つ、気に入ったものの一つ, etc.
This is one of my favorite presents ：これは私がとても気に入ったプレゼントの一つです。
This is one of my favorite journeys of the last 20 years = in this case it will be a bit odd to translate “favorite” for the trip. We would say 楽しい or よかった, 心に残った = memorable, etc.
ここ２０年でとても楽しかった旅の一つです。etc.
★根掘り葉掘り is usually negative and it is used when you pry into the affairs of others. Just say いろいろ
★ご当地キットカットいろいろありますよ！！
★Cyguns : Are you following me on Twitter? If so, you can ask me question on Twitter anytime.
I check Twitter more often.
I don’t use Twitter, I spend too much time already with my blog and Facebook. Plus, by asking questions related to a lesson, they remain in that particular entry. Is it okay for you to answer questions here? You can take your time :-).
I’m a little confused by 今より大人っぽい気がします。はい。 Does that mean that she looked more adult in the previous calendar than in the current calendar? Or compared to NOW in general?
Maybe it’d be useful for the readers to know what お is normally attached to genuinely Japanese words, whereas 御 precedes words of Chinese origin: 漢語. だから「お名前」と読まれるんだ（訓読みだから）。 I believe it’s not correct to add it to katakana. おビル（笑）。
@Cygnus
Oh you are the one!! :)
Thank you sooooo much again for your contribution! We really appreciate it!!!
As for the reading of 御, I also explained in my 御の字 mini lesson!
I will visit your blog,too!!
コメントありがとう！
状況、状態、情報の違いはこちらです！
＊状況 = circumstance, situation
Ex. 社会状況 = social circumstances
＊状態 = condition
Ex.健康状態= condition of health
＊情報= information
Ex. 情報がない = lack of information
yeah I am NOT looking forward to having to learn about trash rules in japan… seems so complicated…
how do foreigners usually learn that stuff?? is it OK to ask a neighbor for a guideline? or is that too much to ask??
sensei, u know how here they say “the fastest way to man’s heart is through his stomach”? I swear, that applies to me too !!!(but I am not a man so it’s kinda scary that it applies to me 0_0 or maybe that saying is just wrong!>..>)
is there a saying like that in japan at all? any sort of “the fastest way to man’s heart …” sayings in japanese language at all?
Thank you for this lesson! This really helped alot because I don’t understand the difference between the 2. Hopefully I’ll use the 2 words correctly next time. =)
@Aki
じゃあ、Akiは枕を持って旅行に行かないとね。でもどこでも寝れるなんて幸せだね〜！
(a little correction ; お風呂に時は寝てるかな？→お風呂に入ると寝てるかな？ 色々な日本人→多くの日本人 お風呂に寝るよ→お風呂で）
日本人は電車の中で寝ているか携帯で遊んでいるかどっちかです。
*raises a hand*I have a question sensei!!
so an average Japanese person, how many kanjis would they know?
and, in everyday life, do most Japanese use kanjis when typing (like on the cell phone and computer) or do they actually hand write a lot?? The non student Japanese people of course^^ Cause when you type kanjis pop up and it’s not that hard, but writing them… ちょっと難しいね・・・
じゃ、やっぱり、二回質問を聞いたね（笑）＾＾；
@Aki
Well, I just checked it.
We are supposed to know at least 1600 kanji by the time when we graduate from junior high school and almost 400 more kanji for high school students. So more or less 2500 kanji you should know, I think.
But it doesn’t mean we all can write kanji. You are right. Since we depend on computer or cellphones too much when we write, we don’t and we tend to forget how to write them. We have a couple of games shows on TV where people compete the knowledge of Kanji. It’s crazy! You will laugh!
今日は、ルナ！！
そう、学校で「〜んです」を勉強しているんですね。
To answer your question, yes, you can say
「日本語が大好きなんです。」
and it is very natural.
The difference between
a) *日本語が大好きなんです。= I love Japanese.
b) *日本語が大好きだからです。= Because I love Japanese.
(→You wrote ですから but It sounds more natural than 日本語が大好きですから）
While a) is a statement b) is giving a clear reason.
wow!!先生、お疲れ様！！m(_ _)m
so are Japanese people more sensitive to pollen than us? Cause where I live it’s country side with a really high concentration of pollen but I don’t know that many people who got trouble with it… but you know when I first moved here I had a terrible pollen allergy for a month or so (runny nose, teary eyes, everything!!) after that never again ^^
and u notice how differnt people sneeze differently? it’s the funniest thing でしょ！！？I think I sneeze くっしゃん and I usually sneeze 2 times, I noticed… what about sensei? :)
You are very lucky that you don’t suffer from pollen allergy anymore. It is just miserable.
くしゃみ? You have seen my superstitious lesson, right? If you sneeze twice, we think someone is talking about you.
はあ〜〜〜っくしょん！
先生、have I told you that you are the best? :)
最近、お元気ですか？
and so, if I am using an adjective then I should use the “-ku” adjective ending right? like in, [暑くなってくる]?
え？？！本当にそう思う？よかったね～！
先生！有り難う！＜３実は、先生のサイトは最高！！＾O＾
あの、これからも、頑張ろう！
マギーが大好きよ！
I love you Maggie!
Te amo Maggie!
Ti amo!
Ich Liebe Dich!
Je t’aime!
Я тебя люблю !
Ja te volim!
我爱你
사랑해
うふ＜３３３
@Aki
わ〜〜〜いっぱいの I love you ありがとう！！
Big love from Maggie boucingheart!
One question,
I was under the impression that “yakubusoku” actually meant that you think your current task is “too easy” for you. Could you please clarify.
Here it seems to mean “maybe to hard for me but I will do my best” as in “yukitodokanu tokoro ga arimasu kamoshirenai goyousha no
hodo…”
Thanks!
Thanks a lot for fulfilling my request! You’ve explained it perfectly, I don’t think I’ll have trouble with this in the future… and if I do, I’ll refer to this lesson again ^^
Oh, Hi, Maggie!!! What a neat site you have! And we have the same name!! :)
Thank you for the feedback!! I am happy to hear my lessons are useful. ありがとう！
thanks for the lesson sensei!
hope you cover something confusing like this again on your next lesson.
I have a lot of confusion about this kind of problem.
like, the difference of this 見る and this 観る..
by the way, I learn 温 kanji lately. but the word is ぬるい not あたたかい. please explain about it sensei! >_<
ぬるい means “lukewarm”. When you expect something hot or cold, and it is not warm or cold enough we say ”ぬるい”
I added the information in the lesson.
More lessons like this are coming!
@Aki
You are asking me if you are 肉食系 or 草食系？
It is hard to tell. I have to know how you approach a boy. What do you think yourself?
We still say ドM & ドS to describe personalities.
ahh you know sensei, a japanese friend once described me as 恥ずかしいな性格＾＾
I am really friendly and open with people, boys and girls both, but if I like a guy I get all 恥ずかしい around him and … *blush*
so I guess I am 草食系? ^^;
oh, and I did a japanese test on S&M once(a friend was translating for me), and I turned out to be 75%ドM so I don’t know if that fits with 草食系 or not….
恥ずかしい性格（→Not 恥ずかしいな性格)!? You mean “You are embarrassing”? But you are shy (= 恥ずかしがり屋）around a boy you like, Cuuuute!
75％ドM, huh? Funny! Yeah, I think you are 草食系 for sure！
what makes me feel donbiki ね？For example, when a guy approaches me and one of the first things he tells me about himself is what kind of car he has, how he organizes great parties at his house, or how I m “special” -__-; that really turns me off!
マギー先生は？＾～＾
I totally agree!!! Also マザコン男 is donbiki for many Japanese girls.
(マザコン男 = A guy who depends on his mother too much (or mother still takes care of him too much) or shows too much love towards his mother in front of one’s girlfriend.)
that too!!! so true! I mean, I don’t want him to disrespect his parents/siblings cause he needs to be a “family guy” in a way but too much attachment is ダメ！
also, if he keeps bringing up his ex girlfriend into our conversation, and especially if he compares me with her (like “oh anna used to do it like this and you do it like that” or “sarah cooked spaghetti a bit different and I liked that”) that’s a TOTAL ABSOLUTE どん引き !!
lol, first of all I m sick and staying in my house all day so with plenty of time on my hands I decided to look at this lesson (don’t get some wrong ideas about me sensei, I m not planning on getting drunk any time soon or anything :)
you know one thing that’s good about drunk salarymen (and drunk people in general in japan maybe) is that they usually take a train ride home! Here people would get into their car (cause almost everybody has a car) and get into a car accident! they would be like a killer on the loose here !!
that’s why our drinking age in the States is so freakin high (you need to be 21 to drink!) Our driving age is 16 (you can actually get a “limited” permit when you are 14) so I guess the thinking is: if they already have a 5 year long driving experience (from 16-21) then they should know by then that drinking&driving is bad so they should be smart enough to not do it.
But there are idiots everywhere….
and I wish our drinking age was lower (for example, 18 like in most of Europe!) but at the same time, I know it would cause chaos because everybody has cars and lots of people would drive drunk…
Laughing makes you live longer, as we’d say :)
I think that was scientifically proven actually….
先生、質問があるよん！From your girl speech lesson I remember you saying that うふふ is kinda cocquetishね？If so, then would a woman use うふふ in front of a guy unless if she does like him? たぶん、変な質問だ、けどcuriousだもん。:)
@Aki
Interesting question! うふふ or うふっ is usually used when girls want them to look/sound cuter, attractive or provocative on purpose. So we can assume the girl has some kind of feeling towards him. (But we do write it to a girl,too.)
m kinda sick today so m staying in and I thought “Let’s look for some good lessons on Maggie sensei’s website!” hehe
“Whenever I hear this line in a divorce interview, I wonder why they apologize for their own divorce…”LOL! could it be cause they are supposed to be 元気 and divorce is not a 元気 topic so they “troubled” people with a non 元気 thing? lol just guessing :)
I love traveling,too!
I have been to Holland, Germany, UK, France, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, the US, Purto Rico, Australia, Hong Kong.
There are so many countries I have never visited in the world…but I tend to go to the same place again and again.
so 小銭 includes 5 yen 20 yen 50 yen coins??
I hate small change -.- like pennys here! they are absolutely worthless and you will probably lose them…. and yeah I know we have a saying “a penny saved is a penny earned” but still…
Maggie sensei, what do you you think of small change? めんどくさいな？ :)
@Aki
小銭 includes 5 yen 20 yen 50 yen or even 100 yen coins.
Yes! I agree! It’s めんどくさい！We have a saying, 一円を笑うものは一円に泣く,too.
Actually I am very good at getting rid of all the coins when I go traveling abroad, though… It is like a game for me.
Oh, thank you! I am looking forward to your next lesson. Meanwhile there is still more than enough for me to explore on your amazing site! Thanks a lot for your work!
@Angel & @Jetta
This is an old comment but I already made a lesson for Jetta years ago.
The difference between neru and nemuru.
Click this link →Click here
I have a question ……not sure if it’s ok to ask here but,
About “deru” “detekuru” “dereru
minna ga deru deshou??….does it mean that everyone is showing up or participating??
OK first of all
*出る= deru = to leave, to come out, to appear, to attend
Ex. 電車が出る= densha ga deru = a train leaves,
Ex. テレビに出る= terebi ni deru = to appear/show up on TV
Ex.この問題は試験に出る= kono mondai wa shiken ni deru = This question will be in the exam.
Now it is hard to translate just one sentence 皆が出るでしょう= Mina ga deru deshou because it needs an object.
But I can assume “Everybody will participate in something or attend something”
Ex.試合に出る=shiai ni deru = participate in game,
Ex.パーティーに出る= Paatii ni deru = to attend the party
Ex.授業に出る= jugyou ni deru = to attend the class
or something.
And
出てくる=detekuru = means to come out from somewhere, to appear from somewhere
and
出れる= to be able to leave
HAHAHA actually the international students at my college (they come from all over the world) tend to tell me that I don’t seem western or American in the way I behave and when it comes to stuff I like :) funny that you said that even though you only know me through the internet!^~^
well sensei, I always tell people I should’ve been born in a different country (Japan >.>) >.<
@Aki
I bet you won’t have much trouble adopting Japanese culture when you come here.
Either way, nationality doesn’t matter. Just be you. Stay wonderful! That matters!
really?? u are 5!!? u look younger ^^ 若くみえる!!
here they say that 1 dog year=7 human years, is it the same in japan?
and some japanese and korean people are the most 年を取らない people I know!!!! but then again, they say I say that cause I can’t tell asian people’s age just like they can’t tell our age… so I don’t know, they just look younger than their real age to me ^^; skin careかな？cause they usually take much better skin care than us…. I m bad at teling age anyway~! when people ask me to guess their age I usually say a few years younger than what I really think, just in case I m totally off xD
Do I look younger? Thank you!!!! I guess everybody wants to look younger. I use special “doggie facial cream” when I sleep :)
Hey, don’t calculate my age in “dog years”! (But, yes, we have the same calculation!)
yeah, Japanese are very humble so it was hard for me at first cause I always had to remember to say “いえいえ、そんなことじゃないよ＾＾；” when I was told I was cute or nicely dressed or that my Japanese is improving and all… always had to remember to be more 奥ゆかしい….
but you know sensei, now I have a reverse problem-now I talk like a Japanese when I m with the Western people here… hahaha it’s driving my friends nuts! when someone tells me “oh cute skirt” I m like “oh no it’s not that great…” and when people say “you look cute” I tend to say “oh no no no I am just average^^;” instead of saying “thank you!” or “I know right!” like “normal” people here do. So yeah some of my friends are wondering what’s wrong with me :)
oh well, しょうがないね～！and I think modesty can go long ways with people, especially when they don’t expect it ^^
@Aki
Your comments are always VERY interesting to read!
As we say,
能ある鷹は爪を隠す。=Nou aru taka wa tsume wo kakusu.) = A clever falcon hides his claws. =Still waters run deep./ He who knows most speaks least.
or
謙遜は美徳= kenson wa bitoku = modesty be a virtue
How do your friend usually react when you give them compliments?
本当なの？I thought my comments were bothersome ^^; I tend to talk too much hehe I am quite, as Japanese would say, キャピキャピギャル＾～＾
so すみません for talking so much m(_ _)m
My friends reactions are something like this:
“You look cute today!”
“thank you! of course I do!” or “Oh yeah, m gonna make all the boys turn around” or “you know me^_~”(=something like of course I do…)
“Your skirt is cute!”
“I know! that’s why I bought it!” or “I figured it would look good on me so I bought it”
“Your kid is really cute/smart”
“Yeah I know right! He/she is the cutest thing! He/she always does well in classes. She’s an excellent student./She is in sports, plays piano, does drama. He is the best in his class at (something).”なんとけなんとけ stuff along those lines^^
“Wow, your house is so nice!”
“I decorated it myself. I got good tastes so I figured I’d do it” or “Yeah my husband/son decorated it/built it. They are so talented and got a great taste when it comes to layouts. They did a great job”
and really, everybody replies like this… yes, I do agree that 謙遜は美徳 ^.^
but I am the annoying one here>.< cause of my answers…. o_o
Maggie, how would you say "patience is a virtue"?
What are you saying? I always enjoy reading your comments!
Hahahaha!!! I love it!! Reading your friends reaction made me laugh so much. You are right. They are so different. Very confident and positive.
Showing how happy we are when we hear nice compliments is sort of important, huh? We should learn from them reactions.
“patience is a virtue”=忍耐（にんたい）は美徳（びとく）or 何事（なにごと）にも忍耐（にんたい）は必要（ひつよう）である。
Ah so 亀 are good luck?!! ^_~ <3
Yeah, we got some superstitions in the US like 13=unlucky, breaking a mirror, "knock on the wood" (to chase evil spirits away), 7=lucky number (I think it comes from the Bible…), 666=Satan, and one that's REALLY REALLY big is the groom shouldn;t see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding ceremony (which is different from Japanでしょう？）
I know that in China 8 is a lucky number too cause they made a big deal with the Olympics and they had to take place on 08/08 of 2008 ^^ and in Korea lucky number is 7 (I guess they got it from the West ^ ^ at least that's what they've told me)
In some places in the Middle East 4 is unlucky number too! Did you know? Also, in most of Eastern Europe even numbers are unlucky because when you go to funerals you buy an even numbers of flowers (2,4,6…) so you don't buy an even number of anything (especially flowers) to people for special occassions, unless if it's a funeral!^^ It's funny cause here (in the US) we like even numbers! We usually go buy dozens so a guy will buy his girl a dozen roses and if you did that to a girl from over there she'd freak out www Also, I think Americans got a special place for number 2 in their hearts (2=couple=love)
Also, the mirror thing probably comes from Eastern Europe cause there most people believe mirrors are a passage to the other world (so even today they cover the mirrors in the house of the person who died so that their soul can move on)
oh, and in some places in Middle East people believe that sleeping with your had towards south or west is bad luck (cause that's the position they put dead people in ) so they try to sleep with their heads towards north, or even better-east! (west=sun goes down=bad; east=sun rises=life=good :) most churched in middle eastern Europe were built so that when you enter them you are moving towards east (=the beginning of life)
Also, in some parts of Middle East red thread means separation/divorce so if you want someone to break up with someone (and trust me, there are people who do this) you put a short piece of red thread under their bed/pillow, in their pocket, or something and let them carry it around. (mean, right?)
one more superstition I can think of, and I think this one is pretty common in Europe (cause my friends from different countries like Russia and the Netherlands both practised it) is to put a knife under your pillow at night to chase away nightmares/bad dreams ^^ (it works ! I've tried it ^~^)
yup, as you can tell I like learning about these things and I m probably more superstitious than an average person here^^ and my mom is Arabic and I've lived in Europe before so I got to learn a bit about some other cultures there ;)
oops~! “most churched in middle eastern Europe were built so that when you enter them you are moving towards east ” I meant to say MEDIEVAL Europe^^; sorry for so many typos, it’s 2:55 AM here …. zzzzz
Wow! I will call you Miss Superstition from now. I had no idea you know this much! I am very impressed. Thank you so much for telling me all about interesting superstitions. I will check under my pillow before I sleep from now on.
But I would feel a bit uncomfortable sleeping on a knife, though…
Yes, 亀 will bring good luck. Also in Hawaii, Honu=ウミガメ brings you happiness, I heard..
Thank you so much for all the insightful lessons.
I’ve started watching Taiga dramas so, in this particular lesson, 有り難き幸せ was just the expression I was looking for. :)
Thank you for visiting this site!
Oh, so you’ve been watching Taiga Drama? 有り難き幸せに存じまする！ is a very typical line to show your appreciation in Samurai dramas.
The language is very different from modern Japanese, huh?
They also say かたじけない！（A humble way to say thank you in old days.)
I still need english subtitles to understand everything in dramas, but I can see the language in Taiga is different and I’m especially enjoying the use honorific and humble verbs. It’s very interesting and getting better with more vocabulary learned each episode.
Btw. I’m also following Victor on Youtube so, 皆様、心からありがとう存じまする。 :D
YES, I do believe in 占い! (but most of people in this country don’t)
I don’t really believe in feng shui, never tried it.. but I believe in horoscope, blood types…
I m a Virgo (Horse in chinese horoscope), O blood type ^^ (Kame kun is B and I heard that in Japan there was a study that said that B type guys and O type girls are the BEST match!!-a japanese friend told me :) デスチニね！？destiny?)
haha, thank you for the lesson!!! question: what about 「うさんくさい」？「怪しい」は違うかな？or are they pretty much the same?
なんか it seems like 「うさんくさい」is mainly used when you hear something “fishy” and 「怪しい」seems to mainly be used when you see something “fishy”…
Good question!
We use うさんくさい is a synonym of 怪しい. And you can use it when you hear or see something fishy. But it is a little bit more negative and you can’t use in certain cases.
For example as I explained in the lesson, when you suspect a couple is dating in secret, you can say
Ex. あの二人は怪しい = ano futari wa ayashii
but you can’t say
あの二人はうさんくさい.
It just means they look strange.
Nice try! OK, I will correct you a little.
外で、いい天気から。（遊んだ）
→いい天気だったから外で遊んだ(の)。
どうして彼のことが好きないよ？
You mean “Why do you like him?” if so
→どうして彼のことが好きなの？
あいつはいい人だ！
When you give a reason,
→（あいつは）いい人だから。
(Remember あいつ is for male speech and it sounds a bit rough. If you use あいつ, いい奴（やつ）だから is more adequate than 人.
the safer way is : (彼は)いい人だから。)
それは、亀くんはあたしの一つの恋だからだよ。
→??? 一つの恋だから？ Can you rephrase it?
for the second one, I meant:
Why don’t you like this guy? he’s a good guy! (and yeah I put あいつ cause I meant it as a reproach from an older brother/friend or something…) and then the answer was supposed to be:
That’s because Kamekun is my only love.
温かいメッセージ嬉しかったです。こちらこそ、日本を離れても日本のことを心配してくれてありがとうございます！！
地震でしばらくレッスンをお休みしましたがこれからもみなさんに楽しいレッスンをがんばって作っていきますね。
また元気になった日本にいつか帰って来て下さい。
Te esperaremos aquí!
Un abrazo muy fuerte,
エーーー？？！そして、”That’s so like Aki”って言ったら、it will sound like “飽きっぽい”?
ダメだね。。。
How would you say “I will never give up!”?
and how would you say “I give up!” for example, when you don’t get something or don’t think you can win a game?
I don’t have a particular lesson on 全然 but I mentioned it in my slang lesson.
全然 (or 全く= mattaku) is usually used in negative sentences. Ex. 全然、英語が話せません。= I don’t speak English at all.
But we use it in affirmative sentences to stress the meaning in modern Japanese.
Ex.これ、全然、イケてる！ = This is really cool!
haha!! Kansai ben rocks :3
I’ll have to be careful with this word though… Don’t want to seem stuck up or something でしょう？:)
and sensei, what do people in other parts of japan think of Kansai people? cause I heard from some Kansai friends that Tokyo people for example are really “proper.” So I was wondering, is there a certain image of Kansai people?
It doesn’t sound stuck up it just sounds funny. We use it jokingly now.
Kansai people are considered to be very warm, funny and friendly. That is why many comedians are from Kansai. On the other hand, imagewise, Tokyo people might be cooler but more distant.
Personally I love Kansai people and kansai dialect!
ahh ok^^
me too!! I really like them :) 好きやねん！あはは、にゃ～！
I just have this tendency of sometimes saying nya to myself when something is cute&funny… I don’t know why… maybe cause it was one of the first japanese words that I learned? hehehe it’s sooooo cuuuuuute <3
毎日このサイトに来ますね～！（笑）at least it feels like it :)
Let me try! Let me try!!
例えば：
一年に何度位家族に合うの？
How many times do you see your family a year?
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNを聞きますか？
How often do you listen to KAT TUN? <3 (don't know if I used the right kind of listen)
@Aki
がんばってるね！
一年に何度位家族に合うの？
Ahhh almost. Just one kanji. 合う→会う
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNを聞きますか？
No grammatical mistake but 頻度 sounds a bit too formal to listen to the music.
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNのコンサートに行きますか？would work though.
Any way you did good job!
last time i was in ibaraki i tried natto daifuku. i liked natto so i thought it was good but obviously most ppl would be afraid of the idea! it was a mame only store.
Sure!
生
★kun reading
1) 生=nama= raw/fresh 生魚= namazakana = raw fish / 生クリーム= fresh cream / 生野菜= namayasai = fresh vegetable/ 生ビール= draft beer
2) 生む(or 産む）= umu = to give birth, produce Ex.かわいい子供を生む(or 産む）= kawaii kodomo wo umu = to give birth to a cute baby
3) 生まれる(or 産まれる）= umareru = to be born Ex. マギーは９月に生まれた。Maggie wa kugatsu ni umareta = Maggie was born in September.
4) 生きる= ikiru = to live, to alive Ex. 生きる喜び= ikiru yorokobi = a pleasure to live
5)生える= haeru = to grow Ex. 木が生える= kiga haeru = the tree grows Ex. 歯が生える= haga haeru = the tooth (teeth) grow(s)
★on reading
6) 生= sei = life Ex. 生活= せいかつ= seikatsu = life Ex. 学生= gakusei = student Ex. 生徒= seito= student, 先生= sensei= teacher
7) 生 = jou Ex. 誕生日= tanjoubi = birthday
8) 生= ki = pure, fresh Ex. 生じょうゆ= kijouyu = pure soy sauce
There are more but I think it should be enough for now.
Every time I hear the Japanese word ‘mame’ the first thing that comes to my mind are beans. lol. Thanks to this lesson, I’ve learned that it’s not just about beans. ^__^
Speaking of beans, I love them – from legumes to those colorful jellybeans! I’d also love to try nattou when I visit Japan someday. :D
Again: Wow! Feel like I’m learning more in a few hours than in the last weeks. Thank you very much for your work!
本当にTwitterのフォローしているデージャです。
And I won’t stop :-)
I join all the comments and…well I really don’t know what else to add to what has been said so far. Sometimes words are hard to find.
Sensei can I point out one little thing about the lesson? It is something that happened right the other day in a forum. It is about: もっと私達に甘えて下さい. Often in Japanese もっと is placed before the noun and we students think it could be used directly with nouns. Some of us (I did the same mistake too) tend to forget that もっと is an adverb and thus refers to the verb and not the noun :)
Quite moving and educational lesson :), very very thank you,love it. The songs,all of them beautiful and encouraging. I wish i could live upto 100 years and have that clear, bright and wise mind as that lady poet Shibata Toyo.
hahaha I actually didn’t realize it was Fool’s Day today until a few hours ago ^^; maybe cause nobody pranked anybody today? haha :)
Sensei, I have a random question ^^ Do you write “Yukari” in hiragana or do you have a kanji for your name?
Yes sensei. There are a lot of people here who love Japan. I donated some money quite a few times through a Japanese supermarket here. The box is always full. I pray for all the victims of this terrible disaster.
THANK YOU!! We hear the news of receiving support from all over the world almost everyday. We are deeply moved.
I am sure Japanese people won’t forget about this kindness and do the same to other countries. After all, we are all connected.
@sven
Hi, thank you for the comment but I am sorry….I am not Victor. :) Maggie and Yukari are making these lessons.
I will forward your message to Victor. :-D
But here is an answer for your question.
下＝した、しも、もと、げ、さがる、さげる、おろす、くださる、くだす、くだる
It is possible to say 山を降りる but 山を下る is more common.
(We also say 下山する= gezan suru)
Hey Yukari *hugs* I am so so sorry for this happening to Japan. The day it happened i was so so sad and started tearing up. It still bothers me and i really wish i could do so much more than watch videos in amazement and disbelief. I really appreciate you taking the time to make this lesson and show us how much you love us even though so much is going on. Its really hard to type this right now. Thank you so much again and you are all in my thoughts each day.
Thank you so much for your warm message. So many people in the world have worried about Japan. And we are very very happy to feel your love.
I don’t have anything to return to you all so what I can do is keep making lessons for everybody.
本当んありがとうございました～助かりました！
日本語が好きです、マーギも好きですよ～
Thank you very much! That was very helpful~ I love Japanese and I love Maggie Sensei as well! Looking forward to more lessons~
@Amelie
Where did you hear about Tashirojima? Actually many people are worried about that island as well.
Seems to be a nice little island with all the nice people. Hope they are all safe,too.
I love your lessons. Although I am a beginner, I have learned a lot just by reading your blog.
I just started about a month ago.
This mini-lesson asked my question too because I had problem understanding irunda as well.
I found some people explain this which is pretty much the same. However, your lesson has more examples and illustrations.
Thanks a lot for putting up all these for Japanese lover, like me. ^-^
I am really happy and felt lucky that I found you and your blog.
Please keep it up.
Thank you for visiting this site and your nice comment!! I am very happy to hear this lesson was useful for you.
Feel free to ask me if you have a question.
I discovered your blog about two months ago and I immediately liked it. I’ve been reading it since then but I was just too shy to leave a comment.
I got worried after hearing the news on the incident last Friday. Even the headlines of the newspaper here in my country (Philippines) are talking about it. This seems to be one of Japan’s most challenging times but I believe you will overcome it. We will always be here to support you through prayers.
BTW, I read your latest post on emergencies but didn’t know where to leave a comment so I decided to write here. Thanks for the great lessons. I always enjoy reading your posts. ^___^
@Amelie
Thank you for your comment and your concern! (Sorry! I just fixed the last post comment section.)
We will keep posting useful Japanese lesson for all of you!
Thank you for visiting this site and leaving a comment! Wow! 14 years?? It is so nice to hear young people like you and your brother are learning Japanese.
Please feel free to ask me any questions using the comment section or twitter (Maggiesensei) gambatte! :)
I know the sakurasakura song!i learned it drg my highschool. I like sakura girl but recently i found another song that i really like which is sakurae by yuzu. Really love that song.
There is 1 traditional song that has seasons in the lyric and family members (haha/ chichi)/tomodachi. I dont really remember the exact lyric but its like “natsu no lalalala hito wa lalala you ni bokuno tomodachi” something like that.
Aaaaahh sou sou. This song!!I remember presenting this song to Japanese students when they came to my school when I was 14. I also hear this song in a drama called Aikurushii.
Hi, Kurosaki!! Thank you for leaving a comment. Yes, as I mentioned in the lesson, schools end and start in spring in Japan.
Hope you come back to this site!
Does japanese see rabbit shadow on moon? Im not familiar with this and my question might sound weird as well. Hehe. The animal they see on moon is not related to the year is it? Like dragon cow tiger and so on…
Umm that will be 両親には厳しさの”き”の字もない。But good point. We don’t use this for something positive.
Like 両親にはやさしさの”や”の字もない。You are very lucky to have sweet parents.
Also we use it instead of “と”=”to” when we quote something.
＊Paris said hello to Maggie = Parisがマギーによろしくと言っていたよ。→Parisがマギーによろしくって言っていたよ。
* Paris said she likes you. = Parisがあなたのこと好きだと言っていたよ。→ Parisがあなたのこと好きだって言っていたよ。
Thank you so much for the lesson Maggie sensei. This is the first lesson i checked out but I’m sure to check out more soon. I want to master this first. hihi ^.^
By the way, do we use mai for counting paper bills too? And what can we use to count coins?
when I first saw “hana yori dango” I thought of that drama :)
that’s SOOO different from here! we sre just generally busy as always at this time of the year no special parties or anything to celebrate spring but no saying goodbyes either in school or at work^^
and the only place that’s got LOTS of cherry blossom trees in the US is (sensei shitteiru kana?)-Washington, DC!! saw them there 3 years ago and loved them^^ the trees were a gift from Japan to US many years ago and they got a festival in DC too! (no sakura kind of food there though)
I don’t like AKB48 much but sensei you know SNSD (Girls’ Generation)? they are from Korea but they sing in Japanese too^^
and yeah I checked out La Carmina’s site after I saw it on here and watched her videos on there^^ she’s so cute and her english is perfect!!
oh and I really like how Japan has something special for every season! autumn-yams and stuff; winter-the beautiful Xmas decorations, fried chicken, love; spring-ohanami, summer-festivals&fireworks
always something going on there! you guys must really like to party :)
少女時代 <3333
mmm haru to aki ^^ spring cause of it's BEAUTIFUL weather (it's warm but not too hot and it's just right ;) and autumn cause it's got pretty colors and I was born in autumn! (september 17^^v) plus, my name sounds like "autumn" in japanese heheh so it matches me well cause of my birthdate :)
I heard that Aki is usually a guys name though… and girl is usually "Akiko" ne?
I have a qustion about ようこそ, i hope it’s ok to ask here.. I heard this word a lot, but never in situation when somebody is welcoming someone in his country.. so would it be ok to greet someone “ようこそ日本へ！” for example?
今日は！thanks for the lesson..
アラシックです〜
あげぽよ!! So this word is famous in japan right now. I know about this word when i watch last week ひみつの嵐ちゃん。I like it when kiritani-san told arashi some young words especially japanese people put other word/character in btw word.. Eg: わたしはきりたにです。 become わばたぶしびはばきばりばたぶにばでばすぶ。something like that..
Haha..thats sound so funny. In my country there is secret languange like that also. Very similar. But teens in my country dont use it anymore. I use it when i was 11 years old which is 12 years ago.
Thanks for the lesson!!
Another great lesson マギー先生：）This may seem random, but do you think I’m a girl by any chance? I know that you didn’t make this lesson just for me, but I just want to let you know that I’m a guy；）Its just that many people assume I’m a girl because, well, I guess ゾモチ sounds a bit girlish. Does it?
Anyway I was wondering if you could make more posts on “rougher” sounding slang and maybe a few focusing on ギャル男 in the future?
@ゾモチ
I didn’t make this lesson just for girls. This is listed as a Gal lingo but actually many boys use it on twitter or blogs.
As for your name, I had no idea but somehow I thought you were a boy anyway.
But OK, I will make a “rough slang words” if I have a chance.
Hi Luma!!! Thank you for the comment!
So you are アラシック！！！嵐の中で誰が一番好きですか？= Arashi no naka de dare ga ichiban suki desu ka?= Who do you like the most in Arashi?
Awesome entry :D I already commented on your video that I’m obsessed with Gyaru culture. So I was already familiar with the word, but haven’t seen the exact meaning anywhere until now. Keep up the good work!
Hahaha! I consider myself Gyaru yet I didn’t know these words at all! I’m following a blog and the person who writes in it kept saying “sagepoyo, ne?” and “it was agepoyo!!!” and I was beginning to wonder what those words meant!
So this lesson came right in time! Thank you so much!
interesting that hiragana is more cute/comical^^ yappari it makes sense ne? the hiragana stroke lines are much softer than katakana^^ katakana is so edgy and sharp ne^^
my best japanese friend told me I m “hazukashi no seikaku” I don’t know if that’s good or bad but she thinks it’s kawaii dakara :)
maggie sensei no ressun agepoyo~~~~!\(^0^)/
maggie sensei no saito にらぶぽよ〜 *doki doki* :)
Egg is such a cute magazine ne^^ and I m not アラシック www but some of them are good looking ^_~
it’s so crazy how fast the slang changes over there though… it doesn’t happen in the States…. we do have lots of abbreviations though!!!^^ does maggie sensei know these? idk, smh, ttyl, ttyt, phat, hbu, smf, pda, tmi?
@Aki
Akipoyoooo~!! ヾ(＠＾▽＾＠)ﾉ
Haha! You can use agepoyo & lovepoyo perfectly now. Oh, you know Egg magazine. Sugoi!!
なに、なに！？idk, smh, ttyl, ttyt, phat, hbu, smf, pda, tmi
(ｏ’д’)ﾝ？？？？？
It’s my turn to study English なう….
okie eigo no ressun nau ne ^^v
idk-I don’t know, smh-shake my head (when you dissapprove of something), ttyl-talk to you later, ttyt-talk to you tomorrow, phat-pretty hot and tremendous (it sounds like FAT so if you meet a guy and he says “you’re fat!” he probably means PHat not fat ^^ take it as a compliment ww), hbu-how ’bout you(u)?, smf-shaking my fist (=threatening), pda-public display of affection (mainly couples kissing and stuff in public.. sometimes it can be too much… chotto ne ^^;), tmi-too much information(usually you say it when someone tells you something gross that you really didn’t need to know for example, if a friend tells me “kyou wa akai no 下着を着ている” soredewa aki says “ano TMI!><" so you use it when people share something way too personal or disturbing or something that makes you feel uncomfortable ne ^^;;)
"akipoyo" hehe I like that word :)
oh, and we use these in everyday speech not just on the Internet^^ and phat is only used by men (girls don’t say it to boys but some girls might call guys “eye candy” or recently I heard a slang “made right” which is like ikemen but to me it’s weird to call a guy “made right” cause we have some type of sandwiches that are called that:) Aki doesn’t generally use those kinds of terms for guys^^(chotto hazukashi ne ^^;) I just think in my head sugoi or kakkoi… un ^ ^
Thank you so much for teaching me all the fun abbreviations. I had no idea…. I thought PDA was a file or something.
Haha Fat and PHat do sound the same. Hope you see a lot of “eye candies” and “made right” at your college.
ありがと！Aki先生！
Great lesson! And now i finally get the difference between 好き and 愛す and 恋する, because i was always wondering… In my language, we also have differents verbs for loving smb deeply (and we rarely use that) like 愛す and loving like 好き, and be in love like 恋する.
Thank you, i feel very enlightened now! ^0^
Yes, and it’s used rarely, usually between people in long-lasting relationships and parents-children, and it seems similar to 愛す from your explanation. Btw, this site is great and i recommend it to all friends who also study Japanese! ^^
Ah, OK…
There are two awards for trendy words in Japan.
1) Main one : General trendy words of the year
I made a lesson in 2009 (boyaku + Ryuukougo lesson )
2) Just for young girls
This lesson is based on the 2nd one and ゲゲゲ is from the first main award.
Gals use peculiar words so they made a new award from last year. It is fairly new.
hi maggie, im so happy i came across your website…very helpful.. i have a new japanese friend and he is learning my local dialect..i want to learn japanese too, so its easy for him to understand…can you please post some helpful phrases for friends who gives special attention to each other? thanks maggie…
Hi, Jing!! Thank you for visiting this site.
OK, I want you to be more specific about “special attentio”, though. Are there any particular phrases that you want to learn?
And do you know any Japanese?
I really like the way you use colorful fonts, cute 絵文字, and highlights. Thank you for such a great explanation about -tara. Now I know how to explain about the verb conjugation in case anyone asks.I mean I can use -tara but I’ forgot the theory. ;)
Hello!! OK, it’s because we use いる for people and we use ある for things.
That is why we say 彼女はいません(=I don’t have a girlfriend) instead of 彼女はありません。
But we don’t say 車はいません. We say 車があります。=We have a car.
wow, tottemo helpful Maggie sensei AS ALWAYS
^ o ^ and this is SO important cause the last thing you want is to go to another country, unintentionally offend people, and not even know it (cause knowing japanese, they probably won’t even react to it they’ll just get offended and be quiet about it…)
and such a loooong lesson… otsukaresama!!
so またの機会に！can that be used for any kind of invitation (like goukon etc) or only for nomikai?
and ごたごた is busy?
and this form of the verb with -reba, like がんばれば nanka “I wish…” ne? I’ve seen it a few times and it seems like it always gives out that kind of feeling ne…
Hi Aki! Yes, you can use またの機会に for any invitations.
ごたごたしていて…: Yes it means you are busy taking care of some problems or troubles. When you have some troubles but you don’t to give others any details, you say ごたごたしていて…
The last question : ?? -reba? I wish? Which verb are you talking about?
thank you~!
ah I was just wondering about that reba ending (it’s called conditional form of the verb ne?) and it’s sometimes used as “If… then…” right?
so I was wondering if you had a lesson on that conditional verb or if you could explain it to me really quick? :) conditional form ga wakaranaiyo ~_~
Oh I see. れば!! It can be used for conditional sentence and also suggestions,etc.
Conditional forms is complicated. But I am working on たら(Remember you asked me before?) right now so will include some more information in that lesson.
待っててね！
ah so if I wanna say someone’s mean but still wanna sound “cute” about it and not sound like I m calling them a total “b*tch” then “ijiwaruchatta ><" ii deshou?
@Aki
Haha If someone is mean to you and you want to say something in a cute way, you say「意地悪！」 ”ijiwaru!”, 「意地悪ね！」 “Ijiwaru ne!” 「意地悪しないで！」”Ijiwaru shinaide!”
And if you were mean to someone and want to apologize for that in a cute way, you say
「意地悪してごめんね。」= Ijiwaru shite gomenne.
ahhh I can never get tired of your lessons, Maggie :)
LOVED her reaction to the card HAHAHAH she ever found out who sent it?
as for the US: I feel like unless if you have a significant other, Valentine’s Day can be kinda depressing (so I like the idea of tomochoco^^) cause seriously Valentine’s stuff is everywhere and it’s all about romance no giri or tomo anything, so unless if you have a significant other it’s kinda like you are being left out oh and it’s mainly guys doing things for girls, I think (here we got this whole idea of a “prince on a white horse” doing stuff for his “princess” so the girl just usually sits back and enjoys it^^) oh and gifts are usually chocolate or something else that’s sweet, roses, maybe underwear….
@Aki
Yes, it is one of the few days that women can take the initiative and men just have to wait patiently for the chocolates from girls.
You should come visit Japan now. You can get all kinds of chocolates from all over the world.
Now the big trend is マイチョコ. Women buy chocolates for themselves. (Needless to say I got some for myself, too!! !CHECKHEART! )
ahahah okie I won’t ever call u “obasan” Maggie^^ besides shujin and uchi no hito, is there a way to call him “honey” or something when you are talking to him? or not really?
oh, and yeah I’ve heard some foreigners say how shujin and kanai are sexist… I’ve even heard foreigners say how attaching chan to a girl’s name is sexist!! I was like give it a break people I think it’s cute >< besides, that's how the language is-period! I got no problem with these words at all^^
thankies Maggie chan~~!
@Aki-chan
Good question. Maybe I should add that information, huh?
Unlike other western languages, Japanese don’t have many terms of endearment. Women sometimes jokingly refer to their husband or boyfriend “ハニー” or “ダーリン” when you talk to someone close. Ex. うちのダーリンがね….
Generally we simply call each other by one’s first name, or あなた (addressing men) 君(addressing women) some rough men old generation address their wife お前.
I wouldn’t think using ちゃん is sexist but I understand what they mean. If my boss calls my male coworker by his family name, Ex. 山田君 and he call me by Maggieちゃん, it gives us impression that my boss treats us differently. But there is no problem calling each other by chan between friends.
オッス Maggie先生:) This was an extremely informative lesson. I couldn’t imagine how much time and effort went into writting this. じゃあ、もうありがとう I look forward to more hefty -not to mention interesting- entries like this;)
If you wouldn’t mind a suggestion, I would really enjoy it if you would dedicate your next entry to slang;) Also I was wondering if you could think of a future posts on affixes, but not the ones like さん and さま that attach to names, but instead the ones like 〜ず、み〜、ect. that work to change the grammar it’s being used with. You know, like grammar suffixes (ex. English affixes ab-, aero-, ect.)
@ゾモチ
ひさしぶり！！
Thank you for all the interesting suggestions. Actually there are tons of requests right now but I will keep them in mind.
Also I myself have tons of ideas for lessons. Feels like we never run out of ideas for the lessons…
また来てね！！
Hey Maggie + Yukari i really like this lesson so far and thought i should come over like always and say hi and give you guys a huge hug for doing this for us! Thank you so much! I help take care of some kids so this lesson will help me out even though i am not a father. ^>^ Take care.
ohhh that’s so different :) here, when parents are old they usually end up moving to a nursing home….
I don’t think I wanna do konkatsu yet (20sai dakedo) demo I need to do shuukatsu soon!!!! so I can find a job in Japan and move there :)
thanks for the lesson and if I got time (all the shukudai these days ~_~) I will watch Ueto Aya’s drama^^
We do have lots of nursing homes as well. A lot of elder people prefer to live in their own house but when they get really old and they need special care=介護=kaigo, they decide to move there. It’s a tough decision.
就活= Shuukatsu ganbattene!
Hi Ms. Maggie Sensei! I have a question! I heard that the eldest son on the family is oblige to take care of his family despite the fact he’s married… that’s why some japanese women prefer to marry younger japanese guys because they are more liberated and they don’t have to carry such tasks.. well what do you think? is it true?
Hi Ms. Maggie Sensei! I just want to ask a question! hope you don’t mind (^_^)
is it true that the eldest son in the family is oblige to take care of his family despite the fact that he’s married? I also heard that some japanese women prefer to marry young japanese guys because they are more liberated… what do you think? o.o
@roulette225
Hi, roulette225!! (Somehow I got two comments from you.) But thank you for always visiting this site!
Yes, as I mentioned in the reply to Aki below, many families still expect their oldest son to take care of the family. And women prefer to marry younger sons. Go check my 婚活 = konkatsu lesson!
yatta ne ;) fix-shite kurete arigatou^^
so what’s 父親参観日 like? do schools organize those? ^^
is adopting/fostering children common in japan or not really?
in a typical japanese family, does 長男 have to take up a lot of responsibility??
tokoro de okaachan is such a KAWAII word ne :) (it kinda makes me wanna have japanese kids so I could be called that ;)
Yay! 1st comment from Aki! Yes, there are 父親参観日 and 母親参観日 at some kindergartens or elementary schools.
Adopting/fostering children are not so common in Japan compared to the U.S.
Things have been changing but I would say 長男 is still expected to have more responsibility. That is why girls prefer to marry 次男.
Haha you will be a cute okaachan!
ahh tanoshikatta^_^ will try and check out the aimai lesson tomorrow^^
toka shinjiki maggie wa kawaii da yo!!! there’s NOTHING busaiku about you :) mou ichido-ARIGATOU SENSEI <3
ganbare ne!
電化製品 hey I recognize the first kanji! it’s from densha=train?
会話 ian’t kai=party kanji? so like a “talk party” heheheh
are… majide? the sale people there are SO polite!! I think it would feel kinda strange at first if people were talking to me in such keigo way! I guess I would have to get used to it ne :)
and they really tell u it looks good on you and ask if the size and color is ok?? heheh yasashi yo^^ here they usually don’t make any comments and u usually have to go find them yourself and call out to them and then ask them….
and it’s nice that they wrap up things, they don’t do that in the States.. not much 試食品 here either…
one more question! (iroiro questions ano gomenne
m(__)m) what’s included in 日常品 ?? I’ve never heard of such a section before!
Maggie sensei makes shopping sound easy :) okie when I go to Japan I’ll make sure I use this lesson^^ arigatou <333
@Aki
Hi Aki!
日常品 is also called 日用品 = nichiyouhin and it includes all kinds of articles for everyday such as detergent, dish soap, toilet paper, kitchen paper, clothes hangers, etc.etc.
@Aki
ぴったりis usually used when something is just the right size or something fits perfectly.
But you can also say when it looks good on you as well.
Also you can use ぴったり for people or intangible things as well.
Ex. 私にぴったりの人を見つけた。= I found a right (perfect) person for me.
Ex. 息がぴっったり= iki ga pittari = to have a perfect harmony, etc.
cute dog! But not as cute as Maggie^~^ ahhh this was a good one^^ cause I m always scared that Japanese might think of me as rude/non considerate cause we usually aren’t as reserved ….
@Aki
Shhhhh! Don’t say that. I know I am beautiful but Cookie will get hurt.
Haha, when you are with Japanese people, just be careful not to eat ”遠慮のかたまり”.
I was looking through your website last night and stumbled across this lesson^^ I always thought that this part of japanese with wearing clothes was SOOO complicated, but now that I read your lesson nanka simple-ppoi ne…. u are such a great sensei Maggie!!! you could make anything seem plain and clear ^_^ arigatou :)
oh and so would it be tsukematsuge o tsukeru/suru then?
恵方巻き wa… oishisou ^O^ maggie sensei is lucky :)
Setsubun is such a cool tradition^^ I admit I m chotto 方向音痴 .__.
日本語を学ぶよい方法はありませんか？
HAAAAAI Maggie Sensei no saito <3 ^O^
oh and "fuku" kanji from "oni wa soto fuku wa uchi" is the same as in fukubukuro ne~ ^^ (recognized it from your fukubukuro lesson :)
otsukaresama!!
u too ^~^ lots and lots of 福 to u too^^
and I already feel SUPER lucky to have u as my sensei, Maggie <3
itsumo tasukete kurete arigatou :)(maybe it doesn't make sense but I wanted to say: thanks for always helping us^^)
気分がいい so 気 like in “genki” ne~ I remember that lesson Maggie sensei taught me^^
mou hontou ni ARGATOU m(_)m Maggie sensei is such a great teacher :)
so how would u say “there are all sorts of lessons on Maggie Sensei’s site!” or would u not use あれこれ for that?^^
and can u please tell me the main uses of the verb “ageru”? cause it can be used in a few ways ne? oshiete kudasai ^ ^
mou ichido, hontou ni arigatou :)
@Aki
Hi, Aki! こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがと〜！
there are all sorts of lessons on Maggie Sensei’s site!” → In this case マギー先生のサイトにはあらゆるレッスンがあります。 will be better.
the verb あげる is difficult. Since I knew you would ask me, I already made this lesson for you a year ago! :)
I left you a youtube message with the same thing before I scrolled down here like a true moron, so if you read that disregaurd this.
In the *to define locations* segment you put socchi for the casual form of so a and do. If this is correct I’m sorry for wasting your time, but if not please edit it so people with less insight don’t learn wrong. Thanks for everything!
It was nothing…I’m sure other people may have spotted it as well and just assumed. I just wanted to make sure if it was correct or not.
Thank you for constantly working hard to help us learn!
eto I feel much smarter now ww I didn’t know this expresion before^^
maggie sensei, could you explain the use of -tara verbs? like shitara, iretara…. Cause I see them once in a while but I don’t quite get when to use them and in what situations to use them @_@
Arigatou ^O^
@Aki
Hi Aki!! Genki? I’m glad to hear you “feel” smarter! :)
As for your request, I got the same request last December and I have been working on it. So it will be done hopefully soon.
I’ve been currently making 5 or 6 lessons simultaneously.
待っててね〜！
haai meccha genki yo ^O^
ah okie patience is a virtue ne :3 tsugino ressun no tanoshimi ~~~
I was supposed to be doing my homework when I read this lesson… Ano shukudai o suru kurai nara nihongo o benkyou shimasu hou ga mashi (??)
I m SO in love with Japanese !!!
・:*:・:┣¨キ(*ﾟДﾟ*)┣¨キ:・:*:・
haha ;)
Hope you have finished your homework.
Good! You made a sentence.
Ano shukudai o suru kurai nara nihongo o benkyou shimasu hou ga mashi
→Almost!!!! shimasu hou ga →shita hou ga
あの宿題をするくらいなら”Maggie先生のサイトで”日本語を勉強した方がまし。(^○^)
Aaa~~ Kore tte totemo omoshiroi ndesu yo~
Atashi, ‘kwsk’ wo chotto gugutte mimashite, kono saito wo mitsukatte… Ima made mita koto ga nakatta no desu ga, sugu ni ki ni ittemasu!
Maggie-sensei mo, Yukari-sensei mo, totemo yomiyasui, tanoshii lessun wo tsukuttemasu ne!
Shashin de me wo hiitemasu shi~
Datte, maggie-sensei no kawaii ga sugimasu wa!
(Basil-sensei mo ^o^)
Minna-san wa jiyuu ni shinpai shiteru kotoba no koto to ka, wakaranai kotoba to ka hanashimasu to, sensei no okage de, maikai rikai ga kimasu! Sonna toko (maa, foramu no soto de ne) aru no ga ureshii desu ^∀^
Kyou kara, dekirudake, chanto lessun wo mi ni ikimasu ^-^
唾が出る this kanji 出る is used in the expressions like “hana ga deru” too ne?^^
ah so ばかり means always?
sensei, hontou ni arigatou !!!! itsumo yasashii da yo!! :) romaji gomenne my computer doesn’t have japanese on it ;; but I promise I know hiragana and katakana ^^ and some kanji ne :)
I remember when my japanese friend brought me natto and I LIKED IT! I really did^^ her face was SO funy she was like “eeeeee u liked it?? I haven’t met a gaijin who does o_O” heheh she was cute :) I wanna try umeboshi>< and okonomiyaki toka takoyaki toka all all I wanna try it all!! but I m on the other side of the Pacific
B kyuu stuff here would be: hamburgers, tacos, enchiladas (and lots of other "mexican" food) toka hot dogs toka corn dogs toka pizza toka "breakfast menus" that include (iri is the word ne?^^) pancakes, waffles, sausage, bacon, omelettes, oh also stuff like chicken (either roast chicken which is like $5 for a whole chicken, or fried chicken buscuit^^) oh CHEESE is meccha meccha popular! stuff like fried cheese sticks and fried cheese balls yeah^^
you ever been in the US?^^
Right 鼻が出る uses the same kanji.
ばかり : Ah I translated as “always” here but it also means “only” or “just”
Ex. 今食べたばかりだ。
= Ima tabeta bakari da.
= I just ate now.
Ex. N.Y.には行ったばかりです。
= N.Y niwa itta bakari desu.
= I just went to N.Y.
Ex. マギーはいつも勉強ばかりしている。
= Maggie wa itsumo benkyou bakari shiteiru.
= Maggie is always studying. (nothing else)
Ex. 彼はAkiにばかり優しい。= Akiにだけ〜
= Kare wa Aki ni bakari yasashii.
= He is sweet only to Aki.
Great! I love people who are willing try different food!
Oh I love tacos and enchilada…Fried cheese sticks & balls?? Yummy! I’d love to try them!
Yes! I have been to the US many times.
okie, then when u come again if u come somewhere close to me (I live in Iowa but Chicago, Minneapolis and some other big cities are kinda close) if we can meet up I’ll treat u a meal, sensei ^^ (I know some good places in most of the major cities dakedo)
“ハンパなくマギー先生のブログが好き” sou sou ^~^
so is 夕食 used more often than “bangohan”?
Sensei, you ever made a lesson on counters? just wondering cause they sometimes confuse me ^^
Hehe Thank you, Aki! :)
晩ごはん is more conversational than 夕食. 夕食 sounds a bit more sophisticated. But they are both equally used.
Yes, I made a lesson on counters. Please check it! 数字 = suuji lesson.
ah sokka sokka
okie I will make sure I check it ^^
hehe(hope this won’t offend u cause I don’t mean to offend :) and maybe this is just me as a really young person that notices it^^ maybe some older American would never notice these things cause they grew up in different times) it’s so easy to tell you are Japanese cause you guys always say stuff like “please check it” please this and that :) we would just be like “go check it out!”/”here” no place for kudasai/please or anything(it might sound kinda commanding ne? but it’s not meant to be so^^ we just don’t take each other too seriously sometimes^^) ahhhh cultures can be so different, ne? :) and that’s why when I hear “please” it sounds SO refreshing to me ^__^ I don’t hear that too often, you know…
Thank you for this lesson I often visit this site and never post in the comments. I just want you and victor to know how much I appreciate the lesson on here and on youtube don’t stop making them please~ I study Japanese in college but it’s these kind of lessons that help me sound more fluent. Thank you :3
Thank you for leaving the comment. Will forward your message to Victor.
So you are studying proper Japanese in college. I will teach you here more casual one. Please feel free to leave any comments and questions here anytime.
I just want to say “thank you” for making and keeping this Site.
You are helping me improving my english and japanese.
I am honestly wishing the “Maggie Sensei”-Team (and Maggie) the very best.
Ohhhh Thank you so much for your nice comment!!
Just to know that someone in Germany has been studying my lessons made my day.
I will try to make more and more lessons!!
Danke schön!
Yukari-sensei, ARIGATOU!!! I loved loved LOVED this lesson, and yes, of course I want more “girls only” lessons ^_~
to answer your question: no, I can’t really think of anything that gives special discounts to women only in the US… we have lots of discounts for “senior” citizens (55 and older, I think…) but I m 20 so I am not gonna profit from that for a while :D
and I LOVE how japanese’s got male and female distinctions :) I wish English had that but it doesn’t really I think (but this might be just me dakedo) when guys use “ore” and “omae” it’s SO セクシ うふふ ^_~
and thank u for all the sound recording sensei! hontou ni tasukari mashite m(_)m
<3 this sooo much!! ^^v
Hello, Aki!! Thank you for your first comment!!
I’m very happy to hear you liked the lesson. I’ve always wondered how you feel about this gender difference. Ever since we, girls, were children, we have been raised to speak proper Japanese.
I mean if a girl talks like a boy, her parents always correct her not to talk like a boy. It’s a pain but I prefer softer Japanese.
Thank you for your information. We do have special discounts for senior citizen as well. But you are right. We have to wait for a while ’til we get the benefit.
Haha, “ore” or “omae” sounds sexy only when cute and sexy guys use it. :)
oh yes! haha that’s EXACTLY the greatest charm some japanese guys have: they can be cute and sexy and manly in their speech all at the same time :3 When a guy speaks English he loses some of that…. Spanish has that male and female distinction in some ways too(and that cute “r” similar to japanese^^) and it’s considered the “language of love” in the Western World, at least :)
I remember when I first watched japanese dramas and didn’t know any japanese I’d pick up words like “ikuzo!” and then my japanese friend was like “no no girls don’t talk like that” heheh ^^;; but then I learned ^^ it’s really fun cause girls can flirt and all by using that “softer Japanese” I love it!! ^o^
nee yukari sensei, how did you learn English?? Cause your English is awesome^^
It is always refreshing to know what other countries’ people feel about Japanese language. Thank you!!
Have fun trying to use “softer Japanese” !
My English!? Hehe…madamada desu. Hope it is good enough to communicate with everybody here.
iie iie your english is very good yo!^^ ma soshite sensei, kore kara tameguchi de ii yo? I feel like I know you (yeah it must sound weird but we just had kind of a joshikai talk about guys hehe) so no need for “desu” and all the keigo ne ^^v
@Aki
“まだまだです” is a kind of set phrase but I got you! Will use タメ口!! ∠(*^ｰ^*)o
Interesting…oops sorry, I dropped in even though I am a man :) Some of those are often hard to understand (we student lack of the natural sounding in our heads) like よ and の. There are many cases that can be ambiguous.
Anyway talking about culture. In my country, Italy, March 8th is officially recognized as “women day”. Usually women get out together as a group and in those days many restaurants won’t let you reserve tables if it is only a group of men (I guess they want to avoid problems LOL). Men as tradition give to women a yellow kinda flower called “mimosa”.
Haha, thank you for stopping by. I made a lesson for men as well to avoid using female speech.
Oh so you are from Italy! Thank you for their cultural information. How cool!!
I love mimosa! I should go to Italy on March 8th!!
Great lesson, I loved it. I have to get some of this phrases in my head and use them regularly.
It was a lot of work…. thank you so much.
Laura T
P.S.: BTW, the 20 to 40 years old….. do they ask your actual age at the movies to get the discount hehehe!!!!
One question.
A guy told me “Kaze ki wo tsukete kudasai ne” and I was wondering if it’s just casual and normal to say that. I don’t think any japanese girl ever said that to me.
Thank you.
風邪に気をつけて下さいね。
= Kaze ni ki wo tsukete kudasaine.
Yes, it is nice and polite. And both men and women can say that.
(Between friends, you just say 風邪に気をつけてね！ = Kaze ni ki wo tsukete ne. or 風邪を引かない様に気をつけてね。= Kaze wo hikanai you ni ki wo tsukete ne.)
Hey Maggie + Yukari sorry i haven’t been on in a while! I have been busy but tonight i thought i would look at the newish lesson and say hi and i hope you guys have a great great year. Matane! ^>^
今日は！今度日本に来たら温泉（おんせん）で卓球（たっきゅう）してみて下さいね。
( A little correction : こんなに勉強になれるなんて→こんなに勉強できるなんて 勉強になりました☆→in this case you used まギー先生から so 教わりました。is better. みんなにびっくりする→??You mean you are going to surprise everyone or you will be surprised with many things?)
また来てね！
男子よりダンス the comparative in Japanese always drives me nuts LOL. Does it mean we love dance more than boys as in girls like dancing more than boys do, or girls like dance more than they like boys?
@ Gianluigi
The later!
Those girls are interested in dancing more than boys. (→Their priority is dancing right now)
Or this is their new year’s resolution so they will work on dancing (forgetting about boys.)
Thanks for the lesson. I watched gokusen!! Great drama. If im not mistaken i didn’t watch the gokusen 1 but i watched the other 2 (kamenashi kazuya’s and haruma miura’s). I love gouksen 3 more :)
Haven’t have the chance to watch gokusen the movie yet.
大坂の名物はたこ焼きで、去年の夏休みに大坂で沢山たこ焼きを食べました。
初めてたこ焼きを食べて美味しすぎて、食べて終わったらもう8個を買いました!!
大坂で毎日たこ焼きを食べました!!☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆
There might be some mistakes here and there. ごめんなさい。でも分かりますか。
How to say 1 box in japanese? 日本語で「1box」は何ですか。
aikawarazu arigatoo.
omoshiroi koto wo takusan naraimashita.
watashino daisuki na iro ha akadesu.
resson no naka de ichiban suki na bubun ha kouhaku no setsumei deshita.
Yes, the video might be too fast. (It simply because I’ve tried to include information for all different levels in one lesson. )
So you are planning to come to Japan? You will learn a lot then.
unrelated to lesson but i got it from your comment:
So, arasa means around thirty(araundo sa-tii?)? Now I understand why Arashi members said Arasa to Rida when he turns 30 that day.
Thanks for the lesson. I love Ueto Aya and watched lots of her dramas. Maybe I should try Konkatsu as well :)
*im using my friend’s laptop so no japanese characters. so lazy to change the setting.
Thanks for the lesson.
I remember one episode from Hammer Session where the teachers call one of their student’s mother a Monster Parent.
Now it makes sense to me. :)
Im excited when i saw that momiji manjyuu!
I had those snacks during my visit to Miyajima
みやじまはすごくきれいだ!!いつかもう一度行くつもりです〜。
私のうちにいつでも「遠慮のかたまり」が絶対にあります。
皆遠慮のかたまりが食べないので大変です。
Even though there is one there to see us eating the last piece.
おかしいですね。
Im not sure if it is universal or not but there is such attitude in my country usually young people.
So to encourage our friends eat the last piece we usually said:
”Who want the last piece? People said that whoever eats the last piece will get VERY kind husband (for girls) and VERY kind wife (for man)” haha
But there is a joke following that. Usually after the person ate the last piece people will add:
”But poor that VERY kind wife/husband because she/he we get fat husband/wife (because you ate the last piece = you ate more than others)” haha
Hi, thanks for the lesson.
Can you tell me how to use おく？ I saw that word in games or comic but i usually don’t use it because I don’t know when or where can I use that word.
「おく」の言葉の使い方を教えてくれませんか？
今、旅行中なのですね。いいな〜楽しんで下さいね。
(A little correction :
猫の額ほど is usually used to describe a size of a land, (Ex. yard,garden) so we usually don’t use it for the size of your bed.
勉強を習いました= 勉強する 習う both mean to learn so it sounds redundant. Just 勉強しました is fine.)
Thank you so much, sensei, for creating this web site. I haven’t been here for a while. Happy New Year and hope you get a ton of subscribers in the new year.
よいお年を。。。^^
oh..just wondering in this case, how come we don’t say 迎えてください??
Thank you, Top-san!! Haha more than having a tons of subscribers, I hope you keep coming to this site! :)
お迎え下さい is more polite but you can say よいお年を迎えて下さい。too.
Same to you, よいお年を
Thank you for everything you have done for all actioneers this year!
Thank you in advance for all your support for this coming year!
I haven’t done a general house cleaning and cooked “Osechi” yet but I have an end of year party with my friends tomorrow night!
Anyway, HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
So guys shouldn’t use ちゃう Or ちゃった Tto much because it will make them seem shallow? So then do they use てしまう And てしまった Instead? Or juts try not to use the whole expression all together too much？
@Vanli
Don’t worry too much. Many guys use it and it is natural. But don’t overused it. チャラ男 = charao (slang for a shallow guy) has image to use this too much so..
It also depends on how you deliver it,too.
Holy crap – that’s a detailed analysis of a Japanese commercial! I’m just letting you know how much I appreciate all the effort that went into this. I’m in the ‘upper-intermediate’ phase where I’m trying to transition into native material, and this is super helpful.
Hi Maggie Sensei. Just to make sure I understood, you can mark the object both with を and は (as usual). But in the case I am talking about 2 third persons? 英語はＸさんがＹさんに任せた方がいいんです and 英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいんです are both correct right? And if instead of んです I want to use I think? I end up with 3 は? 私は英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいと思います…it seems to me too many topic markers :O
Hi! Wow! You made complicated sentences. They both mean the same but nuance is a bit different. When you use “Xさんが” we can assume you are comparing X with other people and more than anybody you think X should take care of it.
私は英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいと思います is grammatically correct.
But you are right. It has too many topic markers so you can omit the subject.(私は）
As for the last question, できる and 作る are not always interchangeable.
友達を作る and 友達ができる are both translated as “to make friends” but できた has more feeling of achievement like “I got a friend”, “I could make a friend!”.
Ex. 小学校に入ったら友達が出来るかなあ。
You can’t replace 出来る with 作る here.
When you made a cake, you will say 出来た！or 作った！and both are translated as I made it but
but again when you say “出来た！” you show more feelings of achievement.
When you say final stage you mean it leaves no more room for improvement? So if I say 先生になる I am simply stating the fact that I am becoming a teacher. After that who knows, I might get a better job if I find it or I might keep this one. Just saying I am gonna be a teacher. 先生となる implies that a teacher is what I want to be. I aim to no further improvement for my job and I am gonna stay in this position because I like it?
There could be more room for improvement, but if the speaker feels that person (including themselves) has achieved something we use となる。
As I wrote in the other comment, it is a bit dramatic expression and used mainly in a written form. (When we talk about weather, we do hear that on the weather report, Ex. 明日は雨となるでしょう。But still not for a daily conversation.)
So if you become a teacher and tell your friend, you will say 先生になりました。
It would sound strange if you say 先生となりました。
But if someone has been working so hard to become a teacher and many things happened in their life, and when finally they have become a teacher,you would write his life saying Ex. “~年**は遂に先生となりました。”
Sorry if my explanation isn’t still clear and makes you more confused. :-P
Another great lesson マギー先生：）But about うっかりミス、it says in my dictionary that it can also mean “an honest mistake” so couldn’t the above caption also b. “Yukari, you’ve made another honest mistake”, but that doesn’t make much sense:/
@ゾモチ
We usually use うっかりミス as careless mistakes.
“honest mistake”means “unintentional” mistake, right?
So either way, Yukari has to pay attention more and shouldn’t make any careless mistakes. Because she always does. :)
Thank you for visiting the site again!
There were some new ones on here I didn’t know before! I’ve also heard these but I don’t know how often they’re used:
マクる: to go to mcdonalds
オケる: to go to karaoke
ハゲる: to go to ハーゲンダッツ(I can’t spell it in English 笑)
マギー先生は聞いたことありますか?
Haha! I have never heard them actually used but ハゲよう！ sounds funny! You can create your own word as well!
Ex. マギる = magiru! = to go visit Maggie Sensei’s site!
Thank you for teaching me new words!
Yay! You guys made it!! :) I only have one question as weird as that sounds. Which would you guys prefer to learn first hiragan or katakana? I feel like learning Kata first is better but i already know a lot of hiragana cause i see it so much. Should i just continue finishing hiragana first? Thanks so much for this lesson as always. -Itsu
Thank you for your comment!!! You must be my Twitter follower, Andini-san! Am I right?
Oh, you have Facebook students? I am working on Katakana chart now. Hope that helps them,too.
BTW your blog is awesome! Everybody, go check her site!!
Maggie-sensei, thank you for the nice words. My blog is in Indonesian, I bet the crowd you sent there got confused. But with so many bells and whistles, it does look good at a glance, doesn’t it?
To me you’re a daily reminder that I still have so much to learn. Thank you for sharing so generously. Big hug from Indonesia.
I will definitely use your site when I want to learn Indonesian language. Learning languages seems like a long long endless journey, huh?
I am still learning a lot,too.
へえ、そうだったんですか。ありがとうございました。たいへん勉強になりました。
By any chance, Maggie-sensei, have you ever explained about the difference between 空が暗い and 空は暗い? Thanking you in advance.
I didn’t quite get the difference between 母になる and 母となる. Is it that the former is just a plain and simple “I will become a mother” as in she may be pregnant and is expecting a baby. And the second is more like “I will become a mother” as in she’s decided on that’s what she wants to become and that’s what she’s working toward that goal?
@ゾモチ
Your interpretation is right.
The translations are the same but if you compare the two sentences,
母になる = natural change.
母となる = ”finally”, We can assume there have been some hardships or she has waited to be a mother for a long time and finally becomes a mother.
So 母となる sounds more dramatic and has feelings that someone has achieved something finally.
In daily conversation we use に more often.
マギー、お母さんになったんだ。
Not X お母さんとなったんだ。(Unless you want it sound very dramatic.)
But if you read my biography, you will see
2010年、マギーは母となった。
すげぇ レッソン Maggie先生! The strange thing is that about a day ago I had visited a thread on a forum I frequent, and the thread maker asked the same exact thing: When to use 〜になる over 〜となる. He got answers but they weren’t definitive and I wondered the same thing. Then I found this. Looks like I got my answer:)
がんばらねば = がんばらなければいけない = I have to do my best!, I have to try hard.
It is a form ~ねば（ならない）which comes from なくてはならない = have to do something.
Ex.
やらなくてはいけない→やらねば（いけない）= I have to do (something.)
勉強しなくてはいけない→勉強せねば（いけない）= I have to study.
こんばんは＼(^o^)／
This is my first time reading Maggie Sensei’s blog and i really like it. The post is full of knowledge and people will not have chance to learn this in class i guess (im not attending any japanese class though. Hehe).
I think there is お稽古事 in my country but its not that popular that your neighbour/friends will ask you about your children’s お稽古事…
My final exam starts this saturday! Reading your blog in between my studies is fun! Keep me awake. Thanks!! Okay i better go now Brain Tumours note is ‘glaring’ at me nowε=ε=ε=ε=ε=ε=┌(;￣◇￣)┘
Wow Maggie/Yukari love this lesson this will really help me memorize hiragana. I have been learning Kata kana first but i already know a lot of hiragana cause i see it a lot. Have you thought about doing a kata kana lesson also? [*^_^*]
*hugs* Thank you so much guys. Today i noticed that Victor/gimmeabreakman liked a video of a girl that was talking about her online resources BUT she didn’t mention this site!! So i made sure and left a comment about your site of course. She also mentioned a book called “Remembering the Kana” by James W. Heisig. I guess in under three hours with the book you can memorize it all? Anyway study hard guys and i hope that helps!
Thank you, Itsumaru!!! You are soooo nice!! They are lots of great learning resources out there. (To be honest, I rarely check them..but..) Hope you all find the right one! がんばって！ A big hug 4U2!
すごい すげえ Blog Maggie先生. Was wondering if you could do more slang. Stuff like very informal grammar contractions/abbreviations things like that. I’ve heard native speakers love to make their speech fluid and easier to say (of course in more casual relaxed speech). Is there a comprehensive list of such grammar?
I would also like to see more advanced grammar lessons overall.
@ 寝ちゃま
Thank you for your feedback. Many people seem to be interested in slangy expressions. I have made lesson on wakamonokotoba, tameguchi, causual contractions/abbreviations (~ ん+なきゃ／なくちゃ+, ちゃう＋ちゃった,etc. ) in past lesson. Please check those and meanwhile I will work on new lessons, OK? Will try to include more advanced grammar as well. Ohhh I will be busier…がんばらねば…
こんにちは、Maggie-sensei, I’ve been lurking your blog for quite some time now>_> And have finally decided to post and say ありがとう for such a すてきな Blog. It has been very helpful and it’s fun too! I was wondering could you try to post more lessons on slang？
More specifically things like slangy grammar contractions (ex. 〜えば becoming 〜や、 見ればー＞みりゃ)?
I also liked the lesson where you used that song “There’s a Goddess in the Toilet”(?) to learn and explain grammar points. You should really do more of those:) Of course, when time permits…
Anyway, keep up the awesome work on the blog;) がんばってよ！
@ゾモチ
Thank you for visiting this site! Also thank you for your first comment! :h: I have posted a couple of lessons of casual contractions ~ ん+なきゃ／なくちゃ+, ちゃう＋ちゃった,etc. But there are more. I will make more lessons in future.
Will find another interesting song to study with,too! Thank you for your feedback and please feel free to leave comments anytime!
(I erased the dates. )
but when it comes to “なら”, I’m actually more confused with “なら”, “と”, “ば”, “たら”… I’m always struggling with when to use which.. Could you talk about that when you are free?
Many Thanks ^^”
先生 I was wondering one thing.
from the line それなら私も連れていって I take it that
連れて is the te form of 連れる but i am wondering what いって is from, i am guessing te form of 入る or am i wrong on both and if not I thought te forms were only used to make compound sentences? I am a bit confused since I am barely starting to learn hope you can help me Thanks.
P.S. I really love your site thanks so much for the lessons. どもありがとうございます (^o^)/
Hello! Thank you for coming to this site!
OK, we also write 連れていって as 連れて行って (not 入って） The basic form is 連れる+行く→連れて行く
→When we ask someone to take somewhere we say, 連れて行って (We often write 行く with hiragana)
Let me show you other examples,
Asking someone
*to go somewhere running →走る＋行く→走って行くく→走っていって
Ex. 急いでいるから走っていって！= Isoside iru kara hashitte itte. = I am in hurry so please go (somewhere) running.
*to go buy something → 買（か）う + 行く→買いに行く→買いにいって
Ex. お弁当を買いにいって！= Obentou wo kaini itte = Go buy my lunch!
@Rafael.
毎日、マギー先生に日本語で書かさせられります。
Hahaha!! Good one!
Almost! →書かされます。
It is difficult. But I can correct you here or on twitter anytime.
勉強にやらせていました。→ If you made someone study 勉強をやらせていました。
If someone made you study →勉強をやらされていました。
so
先生にこれをやらせた。will be 先生にこれをやらされた。
I’m just a little confused. He wrote mainichi, Magii-sensei ni nihongo de kakasaserarerimasu. But you corrected him and said it should be, kakasaremasu? In your lesson didn’t you state they are the same, with kakasaserareru being the colloquial version of kakasareru?
Hello! Oh, you have been checking the comment section? Aren’t all the people who come here great?
Anyway I corrected 日本語で書かさせられ”り”ます。because of “り”. It must be typo, though.
@Lillie Joe
You’re welcome!
88888 on Niconico doga meas “applause” The clapping sound in Japanese is パチパチ=pachipachi and 8 is read hachi or sometimes “pachi” so they “applause” by typing lots of 8.
日本にもう住んでいるのね〜だからこんなに日本語が上手なんですね。マギーもいつかマイカーでブラジル行きたいです！！
ほんと？じゃあ毎日レッスンに来てね！信じま〜す！
(Correction : レッスンにやります。→レッスンやります。もうここに住ます。→住んでいます。I only correct you because I want you to improve. :) )
ありがとう！リオに行ってみたいです！ガイドしてね〜！
(No need to correct so much. You wrote well! If anything…since you are already here in Japan 行く is better than 来る →ブラジルに行って下さい。そうしたら）
Great lesson マギー先生！面白かったですよ～
もうノートに書き終わりました。
本当にありがとうございます～
thanks very much sensei,, its really helpful definitely it was the best explanation of shite ageru/morau/kureru, now i have no doubt to say that i have no more doubts regarding these phrases.
thanks very much
Hope you pardon me for deviating from the intended purpose of these comments, but I could not come up with another way to draw your attention to a what seems like a problem in the contact page.
Ohhhh I didn’t realized that problem. Thank you so much for letting us know. We have been doing some maintenance. Will try to fix it asap.
Thank you!!!
I just spent the last 15 minutes bursting out in laughter thanks to you. Great video. It’s great to see proper, slang Japanese, which is so damn difficult to find.
Also Maggie/Yukari i was wondering if i could say this and be correct. Kore watashi wa no mai”noun”
Can i enter any noun after “mai”? Like for example/Rei no<hehe Kore watashi wa no maikawa! Would that be acceptable?
Yes, you can say “これ、私のマイ+ noun!”
But as I explained in the lesson, usually the noun should be something “special for you” to bring somewhere or personalized. So it will be odd to use some ordinary words.
For example, you can have public slippers but you don’t want to use them and bring your own, they will be マイスリッパ
But everybody supposes to bring their own notebook to the class so it will be strange to say マイノートブック
I love this lesson. I love the kind of japanese that sounds a lot like english those kinds of lessons are a lot of fun and easy to remember. I taught the kids i help watch the first sentence. “Kore watashi no maikaa!” :) They like to say “sonna bakana” also. Thanks for another great lesson guys!
Hi, Danielle! ~なきゃ and ~なくちゃ can be used interchangeably in most cases. Some says they have exactly the same meaning but to be precise, there is a slight difference.
~なきゃ is a bit stronger than ~なくちゃ. If we feel something has to be done urgently or we really feel obliged to do something we tend to use ~なきゃ.
お待たせしました！
There sooo many!
I would avoid using expressions or words which are too dramatic, extreme or comical
I am sure you all know this but don’t use any of ninja anime expressions.
拙者 = sessha
~でござる = ~ de gozaru, etc.
The way old people or villain speak is too extreme.
*~しておろうが = ~ shite orouga
*貴様 = kisama
*汝 = nanji
*お遊びはこれまでだ・・・= Oasobi wa koremade da
*あばよっ！ = Abayo
*さらばじゃ = Sarabaja!
*わし = washi
We don’t use these comical expressions in our everyday conversation:
*ぎゃふん！ =Gyafun
*ヘヘッ、そうこなくっちゃ！！= Hehe soukonakuccha!
*てへっ = Tehe
*でへっ = Deha
*ちィッ！ = Chii
There are too dramatic.
*す…すまん = Su…suman
*ご…ごめん= Go…gomen
You might see a cool character says
*フッ… = Fu…
when he reflects something. We never say that.
The way rich women talk is unrealistic too.
*～ですわ = desuwa..
*〜ざます = zamasu
@Cygunus
Welcome to Maggie’s site and thank you so much for your comment. Some people write 劇ウマ (meaning 劇的に=gekiteki ni = dramatically delicious) instead of 激.
But you are right. 激 is more common so I have changed it. Thank you!
GTO!!! なつかしい！また来てね。
@mongoose
It is possible. Or you can say いつでも御連絡下さい。 instead of ご遠慮なく.
The most common way to say that in business situation is,
もしなにかご不明な点がありましたらお気軽にお問い合わせ下さい。
@gkstr
そうですね、それに今は年中いろいろな野菜や果物がスーパーで買えるから何が旬なのかわかりにくくなりましたね。
(A little correction for you. ほとんどすべての野菜や果物が温室(=onshitsu = greenhouse) で育てることができるからどんな野菜や果物が旬なのかあまりわかりません。）
Thank you for replying to my comment Ms. Maggie Sensei!I have a question though, these “anime slangs” are slangs of what region?
E.G. kansai ben, kyushu ben.. etc?? just curious.
Some of them are from Kansai area. Ex. chauchau, doaho, etc. But anybody from other area should know those words so I would say they are pretty general slang.
Thanks for the info Ms. Maggie sensei!(^_^)
by the way, I found a site that explains anime slang: http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/jslang/jibiki.htm
In reality, Do Japanese people use these words in their everyday conversations?
or its just limited to “anime” only?? o.o
I took a look at the site. They are not just for anime. A lot of them are very useful and we do use the in daily life.
Slang expressions are changing everyday. Some of them have already become old fashioned. Like nobody says choberiba, choberigu anymore.
But I think you found a good site!
Ms. Maggie Sensei, thank you for replying to my comment. I have one question though, you mentioned that 僕=boku is for male talk. but recently, I’ve heard girls used “僕”.. is it alright for girls to use “僕” ??
You might have seen that in manga or lyrics. In reality, here are some young girls who prefer to use boku in their group.
But it is still rare to hear women using boku refering to themselves.
OK, these are the answers from Twitter followers and I post them on twitter after having corrected them. They are so many so you might have confused but the translation is all the same.
I’ll never talk to you again!
↓
*二度と君とは話さない！= Nidoto kimito wa hanasanai.
*二度とお前と話さない！= Nidoto omae to hanasanai (strong)
*俺は君ともうぜったいに話さない！=Ore wa kimito mou zettai ni hanasanai.
*オレはお前と絶対話さないよ。= Ore wa omae to zettai hanasanai yo.
*もう君とは二度と口をききたくない。= Mou kimi towa nido to kuchi wo kikitaku nai.
*もう君と話したくない = Mou kimi to hanashitaku nai.
*お前ともう二度と話したくない！= Omae to mou nido to hanashitakunai. (strong)
*もうお前なんかと喋りたくないわ！= Mou omae nanka to shaberitaku naiwa. (strong)
Don’t ever call me again!
↓
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。= Mou nido to denwa wo kakete konaide.
*俺に電話をするのをやめろ。= Oreni denwa wo suru nowo yamero. (strong)
*もう俺に電話をするな！（or かけるな！）= Mou ore ni denwa wo suruna! (strong)
*僕にもうこれ以上電話するな！= Ore ni mou kore ijyou denwa suruna! (strong)
*二度と僕に電話するな！= Nidoto boku ni denwa suruna! (strong)
*もう僕に連絡するな! = Mou boku ni renraku suruna! (strong)
*二度と電話するな！= Nidoto denwa suruna. (rough)
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。= Mou nidoto denwa wo kakete konaide.
*絶対にもう僕に電話をしないで。= Zettai ni mou boku ni denwa wo shinaide.
*もう電話しないで! =Mou denwa shinaide.
So there are so many ways of saying one phrase.
FYI
僕=boku and 俺=ore are for male talk. 俺=ore is more rough.
君=kimi is not rough. It usually refers to a woman.
I wanted to say “That child is always speaking to me casually so he’ll probably get too used to talking to me causally.” If that even makes sense. I just noticed this sounds confusing
@Tiffany
ひさしぶり！！げんきでしたか？ Dudleyもげんきですか？
Wow you must have been studying hard. I can tell!
(Note for you : にこん→にほん、まいにちで→まいにち べんきょうしますよが→べんきょうしてますよ。)
If you want, follow me on twitter. We have been practicing writing almost everyday!
Without your explanation of the clip, I wouldn’t be able to understand what they’re saying. Even the new uploaded clip, I still have a hard time understanding.
The way they talk is very natural. They don’t talk clearly with full of colloquial expressions so I bet many of older Japanese people wouldn’t understand them either. However this series is very popular and many people go to the theater looking forward to seeing the clip.
Um…the first sentence “あの子は私にタメ口で話してきたから” is grammatically correct if you want to give a reason.
The following sentence needs to be corrected. But I need to know what exactly you want to say. Could you write in English first so that I can correct you.
Hello Maggie sensei! thank you for replying to my comment! actually, I first saw it on ameba PIGG. (virtual game) there was someone typing complicated kanjis (I couldn’t read N1 kanji yet) and then there were a lot of people typing out random numbers.. like 3649 and so on.. I don’t remember the others but perhaps you know some.. I hope you cans share your knowledge on this.
@roulette225
Hum… then they could be some kind of codes for that particular game. Maybe??? Like I said, sorry but I have no idea because 3649 is not common word play.
If I ever find out the meaning, I will let you know.
FYI I found this site for other GOROAWASE =wordplay with numbers
@apple407 www (^O^) Where did you hear that? I am not in pain!
ちちんぶいぶい is a cute magic word for kids who got injured to make the pain go. Like 痛いの痛いの飛んでけ〜！ =Itaino itai no tondekee!!
@roulette225
Sorry! I couldn’t get the meaning of 3469. I did some research but couldn’t find it. Maybe it is not that common. Do you remember when they use it?
Kaomoji are fun.
ヾ(▼ﾍ▼；) → : We use this when someone says something stupid or dangerous, we try to warn or stop them ちょっと、or オイオイ… =”Hey, hey!”
( ￣っ￣) →could be someone sulking (It could be other thing. You can chose depending on your feelings)
(?_?) →When you see ? mark that means confusion. Or when you don’t understand something you can use this facemark.
There are couple of sites where you can see many of them categorized by emotion. Example 1, Example 2
Check them out!
@tarkonis
Sorry I just read your comment. (I was out of town.)
半端ない can be used both negatively and positively. So if you just hear just one line, you don’t know in which way they are extreme. It could be good or bad.
So you have to pay attention to the previous or following context.
So “でも あの３Ｄの連中は 半端じゃないっすよ。” can be “They are extremely wild” or “out of control”
It is fun to learn Japanese from TV dramas like “Gokusen” !
@Top
Good question!!!
~（し）ちゃおっと！ is another casual expression to show your intention to finish doing something.
First, have you ever heard these expressions?
Ex. 食べる→食べよっと I am gonna eat!
Ex. 寝る→寝よっと I am gonna sleep!
Ex. 勉強する→勉強しよっと! I am gonna study!
We say this when we talk to ourselves (in front of others)
When you imply finishing the action, you say ちゃおっと = I’m going to have finished + verb
→これ食べちゃおっと! I am going to finish eating this.
→もう寝ちゃおっと! I am going to sleep now.
→勉強しちゃおっと！ I am going to have finished studying!
It requires your will to do something or finish something so your previous phrase 疲れちゃう won’t work here.
X 疲れちゃおっと I am willing to get tired.
Ex. I said Maria “You should study Japanese more!”
→私はマリアに「もっと勉強しなさい！」と言った。
Ex. I told Maria to study more.
→私はマリアにもっと勉強しなさいと言った。
Ex. Maria said to me, “Maggie, you have to be nice to me!”
→マリアは私に”マギー、もっと私に優しくして！”と言った。
Ex. Maria told me to be nice to her.
→1) マリアは私にもっと優しくしてと言った。
→2) 私はマリアにもっと優しくしてと言われた。(If you have “I” as a subject, you should translated it in a passive form. So you can use 言われた）
So if the subject is a person who says something, ~と言った
If you are told something and make yourself as a subject you can say と言われた。
Can you translate these?
He said I was too strict.
Thank you so much for the correction and clarification, sensei^^
I love it when you include a CM at the end. It’s a nice way to remember new words too^^
@Top-san
Thank you for the comment!
All the words with 的 in this lesson are pretty common. So we use all of them. And there are lots more.. As I wrote in the lesson, you can’t just add 的 to all the nouns. So it will be faster to memorize the words with 的. For example we always use 積極的、消極的 and we don’t usually use just 積極 or 消極 without 的.
”Can you use 好き in this case too?”
魔法好き→It may work for a person who looooves magic like Harry Potter!
~好き=~ zuki is another word which works for certain nouns.
(things you like) + 好き(=zuki)
Ex.子供好き=kodomo zuki = a person who likes children
コーヒー好き=koohii zuki = coffee lover
素敵なレッソン、マッギー先生！
Can I say that?
How do we know which one to use? I guess we have to remember it right? If I didn’t know, I would probably use 魔法的. Can you use 好き in this case too?
こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがとう！！
I tend to upload the lessons in hurry so there must be many typos and mistakes for the first few days. I always appreciate your help!
Thank you so much Maggie-sensei for adding my blog in your Maggie Recommends links! That’s an honor, and for the wrong pronunciations on smart fm goal i will check and fix all the items, i didn’t do that till now cause yesterday i was tired a lil bit after adding these 59 items, that gave me an idea about efforts you make to write and explain all these lessons for us, so Big Thanks for your amazing work! and please don’t forget to say hello to Gimmeabreakman :p
No problem! Otsukaresama for all your work as well!
Oh, you know Victor (Gimmeabreakman)? I work with him so I will tell him you said hello! A bientot !
I know that usually CMS like to play with words and such.
Ex: 0:33 どち？something…I know they use twins to sell products, 2:02 I have no idea what they’re selling メトロが心をつないでいく。？？, 2:33, 2:46, 3:31 I understand what they’re talking most of it, but is that a cell phone CM?, 7:02 they talk really fast, 7:17…
Actually I would love to understand all of them, but I don’t want to bother you too much. You don’t have to explain everything because it might be time consuming.
Generally I find Japanese CM very very interesting in terms of ideas, language, and style^^
So whenever you have time..Maggie-sensei^^
I’ve been excellent, Maggie sensei^^ Just a little bit busy. Now I’m back^^ Thank you for asking.
I have a proposal though. Today I was checking out Japanese commercials, which are all wonderful by the way^^.
There are quite interesting expressions in these CMS that many times I couldn’t quite catch what they say, like this youtube link here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPB55fLQbsM
I don’t know if you’ll be interested in teaching us some of these interesting expressions^^
Ahhh..back to study your lessons now^^
thank you much Maggie-sensei.
I think using Japanese commercials is a very good way to learn Japanese. I have used Boss’ commercials in this blog as well.
As for the link you gave me, is there any specific expression that you want to learn or you didn’t get ? (Give me with the time, Ex. 2:05, etc.)
i am trying to do that :p, it too hard to find place for new Japanese words in my head these days, can i ask you to put my blog in your featured sites ?
@yahiala14
Sorry, I can’t touch this month’s featured sites now but I added your website in our Maggie’s recommendation link and mentioned your smart fm and blog in the lesson.
BTW, I have checked some of the pronunciation of the list you made and found some mistakes.
Ex. 泡立て器→should be “awadateki”. It reads “awadate utsuwa”
and 缶切り→should be “kankiri” but it reads “kansetsu
台所→should be ”daidokoro”It reads kichen etc.
I assume computer reads romaji automatically. It’s fun!
Hi Maggie-sensei^^
I was confused about what you say that you can put を after 結婚 but you don’t include it in this example.
And is this 練習 or 勉強？Can you use any verb to make it a noun?
Note : The same as 勉強 (=benkyou). You can put “を” after 練習 (=benkyou) as an object.
結婚する (=kekkon suru) to get marry
→結婚させる (=kekkon saseru) to make someone marry
→結婚させられる (=kekkon saserareru) to be forced to marry
＊もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
(=Mou sanjussai ninatta node kanojo ni kekkon saserareru kamo shirenai.)
Since she is 30 years old now, I might be forced to marry my girlfriend.
Top-san
お久しぶりです！！How have you been?
Oh, I see your confusion. I should have added the same note to 結婚! 結婚 also can be a noun so we say 結婚をさせる。
I will fix that right now.
Thank you for pointing out!
I always appreciate it!
thank you for all your amazing lessons,that help me a lot to improve my Japanese, i made a goal on smart if someone like to memorize all these words the easy way :p
＠k
Thank you for spotting it. I always appreciate it. But how strange… I noticed it right after I released the lesson and changed it to oven mitt. It is fixed a week ago. Can you still see that????
Anyway, thank you for the comment.
Omg! I want to give a big thanks to Yukari and Maggie! I will cherish this lesson forever! Thank you so much for doing this everyday guys it means a lot to me! Take care. :)
Very nice!! I found this page today, very informative and in easy way . I learned a lot by reading this page, and I haven’t finished yet. I never thought of the actual meaning of arigatou , I never even know there is a kanji for it. thanks!
Hey!
What a great lesson! Simple yet very informative and explanatory. I was kind of busy recently and couldn’t keep up with all of Maggie’s lessons but I’m slowly catching up. I was wathcing all the YT videos though. ^_^
Keep up & Thanks!
今日は！前にtweetしてくれた人かな？YTはgimmeaflakemanがやっているのですが….でもありがとう！
Are you the one who tweeted me before? Many people have got confused but I am not Victor (gimmeaflakeman) but thank you for visiting this site anyway! :)
Thank you for visiting this site! Oh…Please don’t be stressed out. Language is fun to learn and it is only a tool for communication.
You can ask me anything here or follow my twitter. We will practice Japanese together! がんばって！
@apple407
ひさしぶり！日本語のオアシスってなんか素敵（ステキ）♥ ふふ… いっぱい練習（れんしゅう）しましたね。
(A little correction for you: わかいっちゃいます→わかっちゃいます。 わかいっちゃいました→わかっちゃいました。うまく→よく 本当な→本当の）
また来てね！Visit me here again!
Just one more question; Is it grammatically wrong to use the shorter causative, and causative-passive, versions of Godan verbs? Or is it only Ichidan verbs?
＠Sebastian
Let’s take 書く here again.
書く→書かす&書かせる They are both grammatically correct.
書く→書かせられる is grammatically correct. 書かさせられる=kakasaserareru is grammatically wrong (さ入れ言葉）But again many people use it without knowing it is wrong. So I would avoid using it for the exam or in front of a strict Japanese teacher.
Maybe it was a bad idea to mention here but I thought I wanted to introduce all types of Japanese you might hear in Japan.
“Also we say 書かされる(=kakasareru) instead of 書かせられる（=kakaserareru) as
a shorter form.
(Cf. There is also a colloquial form for this. →書かさせられる(=Kakasaserareru) * See the remark below!)”
Is it possible to use this form when conjugating Ichidan verbs. such as 食べる? I was reading “The Handbook of Japanese verns”, but I’m not sure if I can use that form with Ichidan verbs.
Hello! 一段活用 「食べる」の使役の形は、 The causative form of 食べる will be
食べる→食べさせる→食べさせられる
And these are grammatically wrong
×食べさす
×食べさされる
So avoid using them in a class or exams. However, “some” people do use them in a daily conversation.
You still need to submit a resume to apply for a part time job. If you are a student or under 20 years old, your parents needs to sign the resume to approve. The procedure will be more simple (Ex. no paper test and group interview), and they don’t require much qualification or experiences as full time job.
But still they would hire a person with better attitude, nice manner and personality, etc.
It would be definitely plus to know some Japanese unless you work for a foreign company or language school who don’t expect you to speak Japanese.
@saki
よかった〜〜 :h:
I made this lesson for you so hope you come visit this lesson again and again. And please feel free to ask me any questions,OK?
It was much deeper than I thought it would be but actually many people seem to be interested in this subject. So I am glad I made this. :)
Very 分かり易い＆包括的な breakdown of という・ということ。
I think I might have found a small typo(the romaji sentence is also off)
誤：４月というと別れた彼のことを考えてします。
性：４月というと別れた彼のことを考えてしまいます。
or
４月というと別れた彼のことを考えたりします。
I suppose the former is more likely though.
Hello saki!!
I have just uploaded a new lesson about ん for you.
I really hope it helps you to understand when and how to use it.
If you have any questions, ask me anytime.
Thank you so much Maggie sensei! This is very informative!
These という(=toiu) ということ（=toiukoto) are very complicated but the always appear in daily conversation, I am very confused too, お陰さまで now I get a clearer picture on them…
Yet I have another question too:
Apart from という and ということ, “ん” is another topic which I have no way to understand and make use to it, would you mind making a lesson on this topic too?
thank you maggie :)
I had noticed that different counters were used for different things, but i could not work out why. I thought “is there one for fruit? one for non-living things? one for moving things?” now I know, it is shape! wow, I would not have guessed that easily. but now i know ^_^/
@tremault
Thank you for checking the lesson! Actually there are a lot more…It could depend on the shape, the size, where you use them, for what you use them, how they are made, if it is alive or not, etc.
(I will add these to the lesson later…)
Basically you can count fruits or vegetables with 個 = ko or hitotsu, futatsu . . .
To be more specific, if it is something “round” like a ball, you can use “玉”=tama (grapefruit, orange, cabbage, onion, etc.), you use 房=fusa for a bunch of grapes or bananas, but if it is one piece of small fruit or a vegetable such as a strawberry, grape, pea, or cherry, you use 粒=tsubu. You use 束=taba for cauliflower or broccoli. Or bunch of spinach etc.
Non-living things:
Depending on what it is…
•articles, dishes, 品→hin, shina,
•a dish of food→皿=sara,
•a slice of pie, cake→切れ(=kire)
•chopsticks→If you use them to eat 膳=zen, cooking chopsticks→組=kumi,
•Tofu→丁,
•にぎり寿司=nigiri sushi=hand made hand, two pieces of sushi (or sometimes one piece)→貫(=kan),
•swimming pool→面=men,
•accidents, inquiries, phone calls→件=ken.
•For live fish we use 匹=hiki, biki, piki as I mentioned above but if it is for food, 匹 or 尾=o
Moving things : vehicles: Depends on where they are used….
•on the road (cars, motorcycles, trucks ) →台 (dai),
•on the railroad (trains, subways) →両 (ryou),
•fixed on the ground (slides or elevator )→基 (ki)、
•(in the ocean or river) ships→隻 (seki)
Oh my… it looks very complicated! Hope I didn’t scare you here!
You mean I am going to eat now so I will not bothering you (→I won’t visit you)?
then it will be
今から、御飯食べるから （お）邪魔するのやめます。(お)邪魔しません。or（casual) 邪魔するのやめとくよ。(man) ~やめとくわ(women)
Did I answer your question?
Hi! Great lesson–also useful for teachers of Japanese people who are looking for jobs in the US, so we can understand their perspectives. :)
I think one reason Americans (in particular) attach such unsuitable photos is that in the US, it’s totally against the rules to request photos for jobs (other than acting, etc.). It’s so far out of our experience that I guess people just don’t stop to think. I would expect common sense would tell them to use a professional photo, but…I guess not! Things like including your sex (male/female), age, and marital status are illegal, too, so it can lead to some real confusion for both Japanese applicants in the US and American applicants in Japan. It’s good to educate yourself before you apply!
@Clarissa
Thank you for your comment. Very interesting! Asking your sex, age or marital status should be illegal. In that sense, the format of Japanese resume is still way behind.
There are selling many books about how to have a proper job interview. Japanese people depend on this kind of manual too much. It is a part of our culture “We have to follow the way other people do.”
I have also checked your site. Very nice!
It is so nice to get to communicate with a real teacher. You teach Japanese students there. How are they adopting American culture?
@Top-san
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
“neteru hame ni natta” is correct. I must have thought “Um…this sentence is too difficult. I should change it to 寝ていた=neteita. ” and just forgot about fixing the text.
Thank you so much for your nice comment and letting me know your interests. It is very important for me to know what you are interested in. I think studying Japanese from many different sources is a good idea. We don’t always talk formal Japanese which you learn in a textbook (we skip particles, we don’t finish the sentence properly,etc.) and at the same time we don’t always talk like manga characters either. Kansaiben is so much fun to learn. If there is a chance, I would like to make a lesson,too.
As for forming sentences, you have to keep practicing and make lots of mistakes. I can always help you here. Use any comment section. ね！
Hi Maggie sensei^^
thank you for all your wonderful lessons. I have no idea what level I’m in, but I can read all hiragana and katakana and a couple hundreds of Kanji. Not a lot though. My problems are forming sentences especially complex sentences and having no clue which words to use in a sentence. I would also love to be able to read comics with ease, but the problem is when I study Japanese in regular books, they don’t tell me what real Japanese speak. So your website is truly a gem for me because you make it so fun to learn Japanese.
My goal is to learn a lot of Kanji, to know a lot of useful expressions and slangs (especially in maga^^), to be able to understand complex sentences, to learn Kansai-ben too because a lot of entertainment people on TV shows seem to speak that way.
Sorry for going on and on, but thank you and thank God for your website^^
O.O I am so glad that I found this web site! I’ve been wanting to learn Japanese for 10 years, (And to think, I’m only 17 xD) but there aren’t any places around my home to learn it, or any people who speak it… I have a feeling your site will help me out while I wait for college~
If you don’t mind, I do have one question Maggie sensei. How would a teacher say “listen!”? You know, like if some kid was trying to ask a question and kept rambling on (like me xD) and the sensei finally snapped and said “listen!” or “listen to me!”. I don’t know any command tense xD
I am so glad that you found this site,too!
As for your questions, the verb “to listen” is 聞く=kiku. So the command form is 聞いて！=kiite or 聞いて下さい。(=kiite kudasai) (polite) and if it is very strong command 聞け=kike! (mainly used by male teachers)
So “Listen to me!” is “先生(or 私）の言うことを聞きなさい！or 聞け!”(=Sensei (or watashi) no iu koto wo kikinasai or kike!) : Some Japanese teachers call themselves, “sensei” .
we usually say 静かに(して）！(=Shizukani(shite))! or 静かにしなさい!(=Shizuka ni shinasai!)=Be quiet!/Shut up!= instead of saying Listen!.
FYI here are some rules how to make command form.
*to do : する=suru→して!=shite→して下さい。=shite kudasai →(stronger command for men) しろ!=shiro!
*to talk : 話す=hanasu→話して!=hanashite→話して下さい。=Hanashite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 話せ!=hanase!
*to look : 見る=miru→見て!=mite→見て下さい。=mite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 見ろ!=miro!
*to write : 書く=kaku→書いて!=kaite→書いて下さい。=kaite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 書け!=kake!
and so on.
Just in case you don’t understand me… 友達 should mean friends, right? why I read something like he’s friends in Japanese(彼は私の友達です)? Isn’t that wrong? Why is 友達 tomodachi when all the other words are written as tachi with same kanji?
To answer your previous question, I don’t have a favourite snack, all snacks are good:] I am sure Maggie will agree!
You are right! We use 達=tachi for plural. 君達、私達、若者達…etc.
友達 originally meant “friends”, a plural form, long time ago and but it has lost the meaning as plural friends and we use it for both singular or plural friends in modern Japanese.
We occasionally hear 友達たち=tomodachi tachi as a plural form but it is not that common yet.
So if we hear,
彼らは私の友達です。 (They are my friends. )
We know there are more than one friend because of the subject, 彼ら=they.
But if we hear,
明日友達が来ます。
we have no idea how many friends this person would bring.
So you’d better say,
明日、”２、３人”友達が来ます。→a couple of friends
or
明日、”たくさん”友達が来ます。→many friends
Great question, Tiffany. I have never thought about this but it is confusing, huh?
Please wait for the previous question. There are lots of guest teachers but I do remember. :D
Tiffany desu! I won’t be asking questions in Japanese, coz the amount of mistakes I make is embarrassing!:]
My question today is, you wrote おやつ here, and I saw it somewhere in Kanji: 御八つ. Is there a reason why they are written differently? Does that change the context of the sentence?? Can you also write this word in Katakana? And if you do, does it change the meaning?
Lastly, thank you for being so patient with me, answering every of my question in depth, and correcting all my mistake Japanese:]
Good question! We used to write oyatsu as 御(お)八つ. Because we had snack at 八つ時=yatsudoki= at 14:00 in old days. (The common snack time in modern day is around 15:00.)
The meaning is the same but we rarely use kanji now. We also write in katakana, オヤツ=oyatsu and it means the same thing.
Writing words in Katakana makes them look more colloquial.
What kind of おやつ do you like?
I still make tons of English mistakes as you can see. :D I believe we can learn a lot from our mistakes.
I only correct mistakes here for LOVE boucingheart! and I think you have been doing great! !Japanese smile!
@krisna
It is originally from 中途半端ではない=chuuto hanpa de wa nai／半端ではない=hanpa dewa nai
“Hanpanai” no lesson de kuwashiku setsumei shitearu node mazu check shitene. Sokoni nannno koto ba kara kitta kotoba ka setsumei shitearimasu. (Click here→ハンパないレッスン）
Kono lesson wo mita ato ni mada shitsumon ga attara itsudemo kiite kudasaine.
Thank you so very much Maggie sensei^^
I’m speechless…
Yes..I will keep studying these.
I also have many more questions, but I’ll ask you again next time.
Much love and respect^^
@Top
My pleasure! I just added the sound files now.
As for your last question, いいじゃん、now I think of it, there is one more usage that I forgot to write.
We say 〜(れ)ばいいじゃん=~(re)ba iijan when we suggest something.
Ex. 行けばいいじゃん=ikeba iijan=Why don’t you go? I thin you should go!
Ex. 日本語が出来ないならもっと勉強すればいいじゃん=Nihongo ga dekinai nara benkyou sureba iijan=If you are not good at Japanese, why don’t you study more?/I think you should study more.
Either way, they are very casual.
Thank you so much, Maggie sensei^^ It really helps a lot. What if they don’t ask you first and you want to sign up? Could I say, ” すみません、メンバッズカッドをサインしたいんですが…。
If you have time, please make a couple of sound files too. Only if you have time though…お願いします。
Oh one more question. What’s the meaning of いいじゃん！at the end of a sentence? What’s the purpose of using this?
Sorry to bother you with many questions.ごめんなさい。
Thank you so so much again, Maggie sensei..
Oh, I sorry! I should have included that information,
If you want to have a member’s card or “point card” you say,
「すみません。メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）を作りたいんですが。」
=Sumimasen. Menbaazu kaado (or pointo caado) wo tsukuritain desuga.”
Excuse me. I would like to make a member’s card (or point card.)
or
「すみません。メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）を作るにはどうしたらいいですか？」
=Sumimasen. Manbaazu kaado (or pointo caado) wo tsukuru niwa doushitara iidesuka?
=Excuse me. How can I get a member’s card (or point card.)
or
「メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）をまだ持っていないのですが、すぐ、作れますか？」
=Menbaazu kaado (or pointo kaado) wo mada motte inaino desu ga sugu tsukurenasuka?
=I still don’t have a member’s card (or point card). Is it possible for you to make one for me now?
* じゃん(jan) is a very casual ending. ~ではないですか。~ではありませんか。
そうではないですか。Oh that’s right. →そうじゃん。
おいしいですね。It’s delicious, isn’t it?→おいしいじゃん。
いいですね。It’s good, isn’t it? →いいじゃん。
Ex. この車買ったの。(=Kono kuruma katta no) I bought this car.
へえ、いいじゃん。(=Hee iijan!) Oh it looks nice, isn’t it?
So instead of saying いいではないですか！young people (or even older people) say いいじゃん. It sounds light and still emphasizes the quote. in their way.
We hear this ending, じゃん all the time on the street.
Hello!! Thank you for your comment. How to cancel a point card? Usually we don’t cancel it because unlike regular credit card they don’t charge anything and it expires in a year. I just throw them away if I don’t need them anymore. But if you want, say
すみません。これキャンセルしたいんですが..
=Sumimasen kore kyanseru shitain desuga…
=Excuse me but I would like to cancel this.
このカードキャンセルして頂けますか？
=Kono kaado kyanseru shite itadakemasu ka?
=Could you cancel this card, please?
Your 履歴書 advice is fantastic! I filled out a 履歴書 form once a couple of years ago but didn’t understand how to do it properly and it must have looked very strange. I later learnt the correct way of doing it at night school. I’m sure your examples and explanation are going to be really really helpful to people applying for jobs with Japanese companies.
The interview tips are really interesting too! Thank you. :)
@Amanda
今日は！いつもありがとう♥ I will be very happy if this lesson is useful for people who are actually looking for a job in Japan and I hope it won’t scare them away.
OMG. So much useful information. Got my 2 kids in school and I never know what’s going on. This will help me so much to translate their monthly schedules. 3 years in the dark. Cannot wait until August comes to put these words int use.
ありがとう。
Laura T
maggie san, keigo no resson wa subarashii desu. nihongo no benkyo shiteru hitotachi no tameni yakuni tachimasu. kono sito o skutte kurete arigatou gozaimashta.
@Tiffany
Thank you for your comment!
マギーのことすごくすきだよ！Can I say that to a dog…?→Sure you can! It is perfect and I am very happy to hear that!
(Note ; わたしもいぬをかう。→わたしもいぬをかっています。(私も犬を飼っています。）
わたしはよいの所有者じゃない。。→わたしはよい飼い主（かいぬし）じゃない。)
I would looove to see your doggie! Send me a picture if you can! (action@k3.dion.ne.jp) Sometimes I make a guest teacher lesson using my other friends!
I got here because I was searching the difference between “saseru” and “kureru”. I’m afraid I don’t understand the usage of both that well so could you explain the difference please? When would I use each of them?
@Jan
Sorry! I was out of town and just saw your question. “saseru” is to make someone do something. 勉強させる=benkou saseru =to make someone study
くれる=kureru=is to do something for someone. これやってくれる？=Can you do it for me? I made あげる+くれる lesson so please go to that lesson and if you have a question, let me know, OK?
Arigatou Maggie-sensei :)
I thought that might be the case. I was confused by the phrase – ‘to be sucked’, which suggests something else entirely. It’s probably better to say ‘to be in a situation that sucked’
Hi,Leee! アウト＝ダメ＝ヤバイ
In this case, the situation that they might be eaten by sharks sucks. Also physically they will be in trouble, so it is アウト!
We usually use it when there is no way to escape from the trouble or situation.
Also アウト can be used as “out of question”
Good question but I am afraid to say we don’t have many terms of endearment. Instead, for example you call a girl with “chan”, ex. マギーちゃん when you get closer to the girl or when you text, you use ♥ marks more. Some women call their husband with あなた（=anata) with certain intonation.
I guess everything is so subtle in Japan.
should be understood better as: “You can not (do) trust”. Someone who can not be confident or faithful or handle trust is someone who cannot be trusted. But in English this is best rendered “I cannot trust you”. So, “anata/you” is the subject in Japanese, but “I” in English.
わ〜！インドネシアの方なんですね。
今日は！このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！！また来て下さいね。
If you have any questions, please leave them in any comment section and I will correct your Japanese.
(このブログのコメントは日本語でいれてくれたら出来るだけサービスで添削します。
インドネシアの”方”です→”方”は自称敬語(honorific expression for yourself) になるので”者”の方がいいですよ。）
I know of 嘘つき + [something] like 嘘つきあなた but can 嘘つき be used alone? Say, like:
「マギーがミスユニバースで優勝したよ！」
「うそつき！」
Also, since for this situation I quite often heard うそつけ instead, I’d like to know if it is true that it’s a bit more colloquial than うそつき ? I heard it several times said by a MC in Harajuku, so I guess it may not be a form to avoid, but I’d prefer to be sure it’s not kind of vulgar. (some colloquial and slang terms can be used quite carelessly but there are words that should really be avoided, this is why I ask)
Yes! 嘘つき！can be used alone.
Your example sentences are perfect. (Except the fact I did win the contest, ehen!) But if you say 嘘つき！It means “You are a liar”.
嘘！(嘘っ！ウソッ！) is like a reaction word which is used when you are very surprised.
嘘つけ！means “You are lying!” but is sounds stronger like “No shit!”
嘘つけ！or 嘘だろ！are not that colloquial expressions but mainly used by men. As long as you know it is a bit rough but comfortable to use it with your close friends, it is OK to use.
Maggie先生は劇可愛っ！→ウソ！！
こちらこそ、来てくれてありがとう！！
何か質問あったらいつでも聞いてね。ていく – てくるの文章作ったら直します！
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me. I can correct your sentence using ていく – てくる!
Ho, I’ve seen the 「一番好きな言葉は何ですか？」 video on Youtube a while ago, but I didn’t know you at the time! Yeah! There’s Maggie先生 in it！かわいっ！散歩に行きたい！（それは私にテレビ朝日の「ちい散歩」っていう番組を思い出させるよ！この番組は面白いなんですよねぇ！）
One of my favorite words is cited in it and is 木洩れ日… Such a beautiful picture comes in my mind whenever I think of it… ha, that’s nice ＾＾
〜 By the way, since I use a lot more my 携帯 than my パソコン, that’s why I used to talk to you on Twitter instead of here. It’s true there’s a limit about how many characters you can use… and you may prefer your blog to speak with visitors, I understand. But if I have a question about a topic in particular, it’s a bit hard for me to search the entire blog with my 携帯 to see if there’s an entry about my problem, ね？
I mean, if I have trouble saying something, where would it be best to write ? Is there a page on your site where we can ask a question without the need for the comment to be relevant to the article? I’m not sure if what I’ve just said is clear (^_^’)
Maybe a mini-forum could help? Or at least a kind of “question wall”、それはどうですか？ Sorry to ask this here, but since I was commenting, I felt like asking at the same time.
めっちゃマットさん
Thank you for your comment!
Yes! I love the word,木漏れ日 as well. It is a beautiful word!
Great idea to have a Forum or Q&A page!! We will work on it eventually.
But until then, you can ask me questions anytime either on Twitter, Twitter mail, this blog (if you have a random question, just post a question in ANY column. I will read it anyway. And many people do so.) I don’t have any preference either this blog or Twitter.I love to help you all anyway.
If you prefer to use your mobile, please just use Twitter at the moment.
(Note : 面白いなんですよねぇ！→面白いですよねぇ！）
Thank you very much! This was as always a clear and Nice explanation!
May I ask one more thing on this subject?
Since you say they’re used the same way, I’d like to know if there’s a difference between する and やる, ( like usage, meaning, even the slightest difference would help me grasp the true nature of these two verbs. I’ve always had a problem with words meaning the same thing, as I always like to know why there’s two, when there could be one.)
Talking about your site, it is really neat, and the concept of image lesson is a funny idea! Keep it up!
Your help is really appreciated! d(^_^o)
I am now aware that it won’t sound weird of I use the あげる form! That’s a good thing!
Concerning the last paragraph, is it because it is やる used on its own, as a verb, not as a “form coming after a 〜て verb”?
Well, even on its own, やる is still a bit rough, though. But then again, there is this use I hear quite often, ex:
「さあ、やってみよう！」
and many times it is said by young girls. Then I guess this use is ok because of their youth, and accepted between friends as we grow up…
By the way, I’ll take some time to read your entire site, from begginer lessons (we can never learn too much, even the basics), up to the higher levels (I really appreciated some if the colloquial and very polite posts).
As a matter of fact I have created an IRC channel to exchange interesting links, talk about Japanese, and help each other when needed, but it is still a bit young, and I come accross my limits quite often. So be sure the address of your site will be given each time!
Thank you for your time, this kind of site is what makes Internet a great place to discover!
Actually やる has different meanings.
花に水をやる to water flowers
犬にえさをやる to feed a dog
These やる means “to give” and 「さあ、やってみよう！」’s やる means “to do”.
Ex. 1) 何をしているの？=何をやっているの？ What are you doing?
Ex. 2) 宿題をしないといけない＝宿題をやらないといけない。 I have to do my homework.
Ex. 3) これしてくれる？=これやってくれる？=Can you do it for me?
They are all used commonly both by boys and girls.
So only やる that you have to be careful when you use is the one which has a meaning of “to give something to someone” and “to do something for someone”
Those are only for inferiors, people who are younger than you, or someone who is very close to you, like your kids or younger brothers or sisters.
This site is relatively new. I am still doing lots of experiments. But I always try to include information for any levels both colloquial and formal.
I really appreciate your feedback!
I have a question about “〜て やる”. First, is it really less formal than “〜て あげる” ?
I mean, it has always seemed to me that やる was more of a male speech usage and あげる a female one. If it is true, is a boy saying 〜てあげる really sounding “female” or is it just like sentences ending with 〜くださいね。(where it tends to be more used by female, but can be used by male as well) ?
In the end, I’m always puzzled about this case. I never know if using やる won’t make me sound too familiar, while using あげる, too close to a female speech and as a result, weird…
If you could give me a clue, it would be really appreciated!
Thank you very much for your time!
When I made this lesson, I thought I would make a different lesson about やる(=yaru) because this lesson got too long as usual and it completely slipped my mind. Sorry! !gomenchai!
First of all, あげる is a polite form of やる. As you said women should avoid using やる because it sounds very blunt.
On the other hand あげる is just a politer form of やる and it doesn’t sound effeminate at all. So you (boys) can use it anytime.
(But of course, if you want to show yourself tough and macho, you can use やる。）
Let’s compare these together OK?
“I will give it to you”
1)これあげるよ。
2) これやるよ。
They both means the same thing but 1) sounds much nicer.
Men can use 1) & 2) but women shouldn’t use 2)
“I will make it for you!”
3)作ってあげる。
4)作ってやる。
Again, 3) sounds nicer and men can both 3)&4) but women should avoid using 4)
But there is other やる which is not rough.
If you deal with animals or plants, you can use やる anytime and both men and women can use.
敬語って、あたしにとって本当に複雑で紛らわしい（Confusing?)ですね。
そして、私の場合には普通の日本語さえもうよく使えません、
敬語のほうはもっと使えません、だから覚えにくいです…
（I can’t even use the usual Nihongo often、What more with Keigo…)
でもまだ習いたいです。
名詞というか名詞的な用法ですよね。
それはもう知っていることはずのに→（これも惜しい！） 知っているはずなのに or 知っていることなのに。 or 両方使う場合は 知っていることのはずなのに
Maggieもこのサイトで日本語を教え始めてから日本語の奥深さにびっくりです！ :shock:
（Note: 先生に説明してくれて→先生、説明してくれて （先生に説明はexplain to the teacherという意味になります。）
１） 添削をノートしました
２） （何をやめないのかな？気になる）
それは料理です。へへへ
３） ちょっと質問があります。
「ものだ」の前にどうして「の」が入っていますか？
先生のレッスンの例文章には「の」が入っていませんから…
It made me think （どう言いますか？）
その「の」はEmphasisにしていますか？
実は、”〜はずだ” と”〜ものだ”は同じ様な意味になるので１つだけでも意味は十分伝わります。
Ex. わかるはずだ。(He should tell/We expect him to tell) or Ex. わかるものだ。(He supposes to tell) or わからなければいけないものだ。(He should tell)
でもLasySapphireさんが書いてくれた様に”はず＋ものだ”を一緒に使うことももちろん、可能です。
その場合、”はずもの”だとは言わずに”はずのものだ”と”はず”と”もの”の間に”の”を入れます。これは”もの”を名詞として考え
“はず”が名詞を形容するから、”の”がいります。
はず+名詞
Ex. 明日、来るはずの荷物
Ex. わかるはずのこと
I’m so sorry for not replying back sooner ^_^; I just realized that I spelt the name of the game wrong, so that might be why you aren’t able to find information on it (すみません）. It’s お姫さまデビュー (Princess Debut).
To sum it up, it’s about a girl who switches places with a princess who looks exactly like her. The girl then has to dance with all these other princes and socialize with them…so it’s partially a dating sim for girls, too.
I’ve come across a lot of the vocabulary you’ve mentioned already, and that is quite awesome! The only thing I keep tripping on is place names. I know for things such as lake 「湖」 that there’s two ways to pronounce the kanji. When it’s by itself, and when it follows the name of the place. It’s hard, but I think I’ll eventually get the hang of it.
Jackiさん
どういたしまして！The name of the places are sometimes confusing. I checked the game. Looks very cute. I added two more words on the previous vocabulary. If you don’t understand the certain word, please let me know.
Good luck on the games!
maggie san ,I’m not sure how to use ~なんて sometimes .Someone said we can using -nante if someone just kidding.本当ですか？.my BF often said on the final sentence, “~~~なんてねぇ..（笑）”
Does it mean “I’m kidding/just kidding”?
Can u explain me more..ありがとう．＾＾
マリアさん
ああ、そういう「なんて」ね！
You are right! It means, “I’m just kidding” “Just joking!”
We say something and finish with なんて(ね） to show the listeners that we are just kidding.
We also say なんちゃって(=nanchatte) which is more colloquial.
For example you say something a bit shocking as a joke and then you follow it up by saying なんちゃって!
Maggie :「私、近所の猫と付き合うことにしたの。」(Watashi kinjo no neko to tsukiau koto ni shitano) I am going to date a cat in the neighborhood..
You : 「えっ！？」
Maggie : 「なんてね。／なんちゃって！」(I got you! /I am just kidding. /It’s a joke!)
Sometimes we use it to cover up the embarrassment of what you have just said trying to make it sound like a joke even if it’s true.
あなたが好きになったかも…なんて。（なんちゃって）
I think I am falling for you..No, I am just kidding!
Aww Maggie先生 thank you so much for making me your video thumbnail!! \^___^/
It’s actually Gimmeaflakeman’s vid, but we both know who’s the head of the family.
@Bridget Nazis did quite a lot of absurd “research”, this blood type thing would fit into it.
Nevertheless I thought the japanese came up with this, as an equivalent to the western astrology ^__^”
Thank you for this great article and cute pic Maggie先生 !!
Love,
Fina
Fina-chan,
Finaponのコメントありがと〜〜う！！I think I have learned a lot since I wrote this article reading through the comments as well. Ahhh…so many things to learn in this world besides where to dig a hole to hide my bone!
i was just thinking a while ago….i will be missing you, maggie sensei!!!’coz you are a big help to me…and the most saddest thing is leaving us this early….then after reading these comments….it was just for “April fool’s day..hahaha….jozou desu ne.. Anyway just want to say “thank you so much”!!!more power
Haha! Actually I made this lesson two years ago. See how long I have been making lessons since then?
It is not that easy to get rid of me! :)
Love you !CHECKHEART!
お前”んとこ”(=Omae n toko) is an abbreviation form of お前の”ところの” （ところ=所=tokoro=place) referring one’s family, place, home, company where ever you belong to.
あなたのところ(=Anata no tokoro)->more casual あんたのところ(=anna no tokoro) -> あんたんとこ(=antan toko) the place or group you belong to
あいつのところ(=aitsu no tokoro) -> あいつんとこ(=aitsuntoko) the place or group he belongs to
Also we use お前んちの(=Omaenchi) and it came from お前のうちの(=Omae no uchi no) うち=uchi=home and it refers your family or home.
Ex. お前んちのお父さんってどこで働いていたっけ？(=Omaenchi no otousan tet doko de hataraite itakke?) Where does your father work again?
Just wanted to say ありがとう for this post. I’ve been looking over it a few times the past few days, and it’s been very useful for learning new 漢字。I don’t know how you manage to post so many chokfull lesson each day!
If it’s alright, I have a request. I recently imported a game called お姫さまデーブ, and although it’s for children (specifically girls), there’s a good amount of royalty vocabulary that I’m not familiar with. Could you make a lesson that involves something with お姫や王子や王女？ If not, I understand, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt (much) to ask ^^;
こんにちは！Jacki!! Thank you for visiting my site!
Yes, I don’t know how I manage to make these lessons, either! ;-) I mean I am a busy dog. I have to play, hide a bone, eat…etc.
I am not familiar with the game and I couldn’t find any information on the web but I can give you some of the basic vocabulary for today, OK?
お姫様(=ohimesama) /姫(=hime)princess
王子様(=oujisama) / 王子(=ouji)prince
王女様(=oujo sama)/ 王女(=oujo) princess
王様(=ousama )/王(=ou) king
女王様(=jouou sama) /女王(=jouou) queen
お城(=oshiro) a castle/ 城(=shiro)
家来(=kerai)a retainer, servant
騎士(=kishi)a knight
王国(=oukoku) kingdom
舞踏会(=butoukai) dance party, ball
If you have a specific question about certain vocabulary, please do not hesitate to leave a comment and ask me a question.
前向き is usually positive. Ex.彼女はとても前向きな人だ。（＝Kanojo wa tototemo maemuki na hito da.) She is very positive person.
So just saying 考えておきます。or ちょっと考えておきます。may not to have much chance but if someone tells you 前向きに考えておきます。, you can expect more chance.
If someone says「それでは考えておきます。」, we sometimes add「是非、前向きに御検討下さい。」(=zehi maemuki ni gokentou kudasai.) to encourage them to think more seriously to give us more chance.
Comment 有り難う！
This was a great lesson. I couldn’t understand all of the passage the first time but then I went through it bit by bit and it all made sense! This lesson really helped my confidence, so thank you. :) I also like how it is so practical and about every day things.
I have a cold right now… I wish I had some 鼻セレブ tissues. I tried them when I was in Japan and they were heaven for my sore nose!
１）「叱られてきて首になった」というとまず 上司の所に行って (You went to your boss)->叱られて(He reprmimanded you)->（帰って You returned to your place）->首になる (And he fired you) という順序になります。
もし上司の所に行ってそこで首になったのならば 「叱られて首になってしまったから」の方が自然です。
hi Ms. Maggie, i just discover your blog today, and i really love it! i will be visiting here on a daily basis. ive been living in japan with my family for 3 years now but my japanese is not that fluent.. this site will be very helpful for me,even just now that i stated reading, i found words i didnt know the meaning and how to use before.. thank you making this..
こちらにもコメント有り難うございます。日本人でも六曜って言葉を知っている人はあまり多くはありません。六曜の中でも大安や仏滅は知っていても赤口や先負、先勝は知らない人が一杯います。でも手帳やカレンダーにはまだよく書かれていますね。お葬式の儀式は仏教から来ているので中国の影響も多いかもしれません。
もちろん、質問あればいつでもどうぞ！
(Note : そう、覚えたばかり、->You mean you have just remembered that you had an old planner ( with rokuyou)? If so,今、思い出しましたが、家に六曜の書いてある古い手帳がありました。
いまもう少し分かれます。->今は、もう少しわかります。または、わかる様になりました。
帰宅するにー＞帰宅したら
読むつもり。->読んでみます。（調べてみます。）
日本での数か->「数字の意味」のことかな？
よければ、質問があったら又先生に尋ねてもいいんですか？->「よければ」と「あったら」は二つ条件になるので「また質問があったら(わからないことがあったら)また先生に聞いてもいいですか？」で大丈夫！！
ここのブログにコメントを日本語で書いてくれる人は皆、レベル高いですね〜！すごい！すごい！！
I have just found your blog and I must say your work is impressive !
I have been self learning Japanese for a while now but has been having difficulty linking the formal Japanese that I am learning as compared to spoken Japanese in the drama/movie.
度もありがとうございました！
こちらこそ おねがいします。
Japanese you have learned with a text book is very formal. But we don’t always talk like that.
I will try to make lessons mixing both formal and colloquial Japanese.
And please feel free to practice writing in Japanese and I will correct you!
(Note : I think it is typo but ….度もー＞どうも）
Mata kitene!
Youkoso! Welcome to our blog!! I hope you can learn something here. I will make more lessons for beginners as well. Please feel free to leave questions or request anytime.
Please come back here again! Mata kitene!
Thank you for all your nice comments! 有り難うございます！
Hope you come visit me more often here!
If you have a request or questions, please feel free to ask me!
roosterswild-san,
コメント有り難うございます！
ファッション音痴も使えます！あと、よく使うのは、
*メカ音痴＝機械音痴 (a person who is not good at machines.)
*味音痴(Who can’t taste)
とかです。
自分たちでいろいろな言葉を作ることもありますよ。
Ex.芸能音痴(a person who is not familiar with entertainment world.)
I saw the video you made on gimmeaflakeman channel! Maggie stole your ehomaki! More luck for Maggie ahhaha! ^_^ Please enter me in the random draw for the setsubun prizes. Thanks!
Nice one really like to learn more about the Japanese culture, and of courses learning new words is always excelent, so thank you maggie, my favorite sensei. ありがとうご座います
Haha, this is actually a really great way of learning. It is not designed towards beginners however it does break down the sentences and information very well for studdy. After finding this page after your youtube advertisment, im sure i will keep poping back to try and educate myself alittle bit more. ^^ – Jay.
Thank you so much for the very detailed reply! And I’m glad I had not just made a mistake with the grammar – so this ‘さ入れ言葉’ is a well-known phenomenon? I had never heard of this before! It doesn’t really make sense to me though – new speech patterns among young people tend to remove things rather than make the words longer right?! Although I suppose by adding ‘さ’ you don’t have to differentiate between words and only have to worry about conjugating ‘させる’ added to the stem.
And I’m very sorry to make you think so hard in your break between lessons. I have two more very annoying questions through, but they are in no way urgent, so only answer them when you feel like it!
First, I noticed in your ‘いる/ある’ lesson something again that has bothered me for a long time. Why is it sometimes ‘には’ rather than just ‘は’ in a sentence such as ‘マギーには才能が有ります’?
Second, I have been watching Japanese drama for language practice recently, and some of the characters have the annoying habit of adding ‘ちゃった’ to phrases that are not ‘unfortunate’ as I had been lead to believe. Is this common?
ロブタさん
You’re right. We may not know the name as “saire kotoba” but it is a well-known phenomenon.
Many Japanese people use this “sa”ire kotoba without thinking. I said especially among young people but even older people use it as well.
Ex. 読む(=yomu)
“Let me read it!” should be 「読ませて下さい。」(=yomasete kudasai.) But I bet many people say 「読まさせて下さい。」(=yomasasete kudasai.)
Somehow the later sounds even more politer. Anyway, I think it is good to know.
OK!! New questions!
Let’s compare the following two sentences.
1)マギーは才能があります。
2)マギーには才能があります。
Using “には” focuses on “Maggie” more.
In this case, we can think “ni” as a location.
1) Maggie has a talent.
2) “There is a talent IN Maggie.” (Focusing on “the location” which is Maggie.)
Other examples :
3) 九州は温泉が一杯あります。(=Kyuushu wa onsen ga ippai arimasu.)
4) 九州には温泉が一杯あります。(=Kyushuu niwa onsen ga ippai arimasu.)
Both of them mean “There are lots of hot springs in Kyushuu.” and indicate the location, Kyushu, but the 4) emphasizes the location more while 3) could be just a statement or fact. 4) implies slightly more emotional attachment to Kyushuu, I think.
Also compare “ni” and “niwa”
5) 彼に言いたくありません。(=Kare ni iitaku arijmasen.) I don’t want to tell him.
6) 彼には言いたくありません。(=Kare niwa iitaku arimasen.) I don’t want to tell HIM! (because I have a problem with him.)
Again, 6) focuses on 彼 more.
You can try to make sentences using “ni” and “niwa”. I can check them for you.
The second question about “ちゃった”
Yes! “ちゃった” is VERY common in a daily conversation.
It is a colloquial way of saying 〜(し）てしまう。
You’re right. There is a “unfortunate” meaning as follows.
1.このカップを割ってしまいました。I accidentally broke this cup. (Oops! feeling)->colloquial : 割っちゃった。
2.そんなことをやったら死んでしまいますよ。 If you do such a thing you are going to die.-> colloquial : 死んじゃうよ！
3.困ってしまいます。 I will be in trouble ->colloquial :困っちゃう。(Komacchau)
4.困ってしまいました。I am in trouble ->colloquial :困っちゃった。(Komacchatta)
5. ちょっと太ってしまいました。I gained a bit of weight. -> colloquial : ちょっと太っちゃった。（Oh no!)
It also means “some action has completed, done, finished”
6.一人で仕事やっちゃいました。 I have finished work by myself.
7.もう宿題終わっちゃったの？Did you already finish your homework?
8. 簡単に試験に受かっちゃった！I passed the exam easily. (See this is not “unfortunate”!)
Try to change the following sentences using ちゃう
9.これを食べてしまったの（ですか）？ “Did you eat it? (Accusing)
10.これを食べてしまっていい（ですか）？ ”Can I eat it?” (Can I finish eating it?)
11.これを食べてしまいましょうか？ ”Shall we eat this?” (=eat this up? finish it?)
I was just wondering – I know that for normal passive forms of verbs, you change the ending of ~る verbs to られる, so shouldn’t it be the same for passive causative? For example, why does 書く become かかさせられる rather than かかせられる?
Also, in what situation is it OK to use the abbreviated form of the passive causative?
ロブタさん
The normal passive form of 書く is 書かれる (written)
Ex. この手紙は１９００年に書かれました。(This letter was written in 1900.)
And its passive causative form is 書かせられる. But we say 書か”さ”せられる in modern Japanese. Grammatically it is wrong but we use it anyway. It is called さ入れ言葉. Maybe my explanation was not good enough so I added that information in the lesson.
It has been annoyed many Japanese intellectuals as “ranuki kotoba” but I think it will be accepted as formal Japanese sooner or later.
せられる or させられる…Which one do we use more frequently?? It depends on the verbs or people who use it. I would say we still use せられる more…
As for your last question, abbreviated form is more colloquial. Again, it is grammatically wrong but people use it anyway.
You can use the abbreviate form anytime in Japan. But avoid using it in a formal situation or Japanese exam.
Did I answer your questions?
Your questions made me think a lot!
今回の質問で非常に頭を使わされました。Now I have to go play with a new toy!
But thank you so much for your questions! :maggie-small:
Your lessons are so great! I have learnt a lot of colloquial Japanese from them already, and best of all they are fun to read! You are doing a great service to the Japanese-learning community. Please keep up the good work, and I look forward to your next lesson!
(p.s. I just donated, please make sure Maggie gets a nice new toy for Christmas from me!)
Thank you so much for your nice comment and your donation! We really appreciate your support and yes! I will get a new bone for sure!
Yukari and I are now making a new lesson. Please visit here again!
Arigatou!!!
This explains so much! I was always so confused on how a lot of Japanese profiles and such have the blood type yet I don’t even know my own. Thanks for the help! I’m really liking this website!
Before & during the second world war, the Nazis were also obsessed with this “blood type + personality” nonsense, and supposedly did quite a bit of “research” on it.
It’s always important to remember whose side Japan was on during the second world war.
I know that in Japan, people treat it like a horoscope, you know, like, just for fun, but if they knew where most of this “information” on blood types came from, I’m sure they’d be pretty surprised.
Anyway, I refuse to take part in any of their little customs to keep from placing me into any kind of stereotype, be it from my blood type, nationality, or whatever. It’s annoying.
Actually, fureto-san isn’t massively off the mark with his Nazis comment. I heard that the original Japanese blood-type research was a response to a western study which claimed that Asian people were closer to animals because type B is more common in both animals and in Asian people.
It’s obviously nonsense, mind.
The blood-type obsession in Japan is one of my pet hates. It drives me up the wall.
This is the first time I’ve seen your blog, Maggie, and I think I’ll be back. Nice to see lots of Kanji and example sentences and stuff.
I’ll be following on twitter too.
It’s so crazy, I’ve seen people get along great at first but then when they learn each others blood types stop liking each other. PS- Maggiesensei.com is the bomb!
@furetosan
Wow, the ignorance in that comment is so extreme that it doesn’t even warrant a response beyond what I have now written. Also, I ask that you please not pro-create and perpetuate the cycle of ignorance any further than you’ve already taken it.
@Victor
Thanks for this great post man. I’ve been reading a book called “The Japanese have a word for it, but they don’t think you’ll understand.” Kind of a long title I know, but it said that some Japanese take blood type very seriously like you said. I hope they don’t read into my blood type too closely because it won’t be very accurate. I’m type A but completely unorganized in many ways. lol
Anyway, thanks for this insightful language lesson. I’ve still got a ways to go in learning the language, but your work puts me one step closer each time. Thanks. :)
Your website is awesome! Arigatou gozaimasu! :D
Tokoro de atashi no suki na onigiri wa konbu desu yo! (or suki na= ichiban? lol i’m in Japanese 101 in college ;])
Thank you for your comment! Arigatou!
Krisuta san no (ichiban=most) sukina(favorite) onigiri wa konbu? Watashi wa 焼たらこ（Yaki tarako) desu.
Nihongo no benkyou ganbatte ne!
Maggie sensei, you are doing such an amazing job. I’ve just started my beginner 2 Japanese lessons. Can’t say that I can really understand completely your lessons (cose they are really advanced stuff) but seriously, your site is the most useful one I’ve found so far.
Thank you for your nice comment! I have tried to cover all different levels in one lesson. Hope you can use some of the stuff for your study.
If you have any question or request, please do not hesitate to leave a comment.
Please visit me again here!
Matane!
I always watch & love Japanese comedy, and don’t really get everything they say demo it’s still funny :)
This has been really helpful, i always get confused on how to use a word in a sentence so i appreciate all the examples…thanx a lot for the hard work!
“Doumo Arigatou” for your comment!
I will keep adding more words or phrases. There are tons of fun expressions from お笑い!
Japanese comedy could be difficult because of they talk very fast and many of them use Kansaiben.
If you have any questions, please ask me!
Matane!
Thank you!! I really learnt a lot from this lesson. Also, I’d been hearing ウケる a lot recently and didn’t really understand how to use it, but now I do! :)
お笑いは柳原加奈子さんが好きです。日本のコメディアンはすごく面白いと思います。でも、時々話すのが速すぎます。もっと分かるようになりたい！
お久しぶりです！お元気でしたか？Since your Japanese’s comment is just perfect, I will write to you in Japanese.
柳原加奈子さん、私も大好きです！彼女のブティックやコンビニの店員さんのギャクは本当にウケますよね！
お笑いがわかる様になればもう日本語検定１級よりもすごいかも…
Youtubeにもいろいろお笑いの動画がアップされていますね。私の好きな番組は「しゃべくり00７」ですが、見たことあるかな？
お笑い見ていてわからないことあったらいつでも聞いて下さいね。（Also if you don’t understand this comment, please let me know!)
Matane!
That helps a lot, and it confirms that the way I was trying to understand your example sentence is in fact the right one, and not in the extra example I provided.
The trick was in the word ドン引き, then, and not necessarily the “に”.
Thanks for the help, much appreciated. I’m enjoying hearing more about these words that I hear from (for example) my students a ton that I’m not quite 100% on. 微妙 was another one, and I was happy to see it a few posts below.
Sorry! I went out without finishing my last reply …I wrote it in hurry so it may not make sense but I am glad to hear it helped you somehow.
You are right. The trick was in the word DONBIKI. And it complicates more with ~saseru+~ sareru.
In a way, it is funny that I have never imagined myself thinking about this word this seriously before.
But anyway, it is a fun word to remeber. Older generation won’t understand the meaning though.. Matane!
Hello, this is my first time to your site and I’m really appreciating this great information! I will certainly be visiting quite often.
I have a question – reading through some of your examples on how to use this word, I stopped at this one: “彼は皆にドン引きされていた。(=Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita.) He turned everyone off.”
Right now the passive voice is something I’m working at, and I am a little confused as to who is being turned off in this statement. Particularly, I’m having trouble with the “に” particle.
If you had given me the English sentence and asked me to translate it, I probably would have nearly the same example sentence, except I would have switched 皆 and 彼, (皆は彼にドン引きされていた).
Your example sentence sounds to me like “They turned themselves off on him” – of course, I’m not saying that’s wrong, I’m just wondering if my understanding of the word is off. Please help, thanks!
Hi! Nice to hear from a new person!! Great question!
As I mentioned in my saseru+saserareru lesson,it is not so common to use a passive form in English so I translated some sentences in this donbiki lesson not using passive form to make things easy to understand.
“彼は皆にドン引きされていた。(=Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita.) is very hard to translate. If I have to translate the sentence, “He turned everyone off.” into Japanese, it would literally be 彼は皆をドン引きさせた。(He caused everyone’s “donbiki” reaction.)
Situation-wise, it is the same thing as 彼は皆にドン引きされていた. While the first sentence focuses on his action, the second one describes the situation.
If you say 皆は彼にドン引きされていた, that means, “He got turned off by everyone”.
If you think ドン引きされた as “Donbiki reaction wo sareta”, it may be easier to understand.
Hope this helps…
Thank you for your question. I took the both titles from the real movie but you are right. When I posted it, I thought the translation was a bit odd. 約束の犬 itself sounds strange even in Japanese but it should be translated “the dog of promise.” as you said.
And 犬の約束 should be “The dog’s promise.” I think they have change the title just because there is a similar title. 犬と私の１０の約束
Harin-san,
Thank you for visiting ABC lesson as well!
We use もろ to emphasize words. It means “very” “entirely” “totally” or “completely”. But it is a bit different from 超、激。
もろ（or モロ）タイプ is the most common word to use MORO.
Recently I posted a lesson about DONBIKI and you can also say もろ＋引く(HIKU)
Ex. あんなことを言うなんてもろ引いちゃう！ (He really turned me off by saying that.)
Ex. もろわかり =obvious あなたが彼のこと好きってもろわかりだよ。(It is obvious you like him.)
Ex. もろ嘘だってわかるよ。(Moro uso datte wakaru yo) = obviously lie, We can tell it is a lie obviously.
Ex. もろそのもの
When you see a really good copy, you can say “もろ、そのものだね！”（That is exactly the same.)
Ex. もろ＋人の名前
(彼ら）もろジャニーズだ！They look exactly like Janiizu (->Japanese idol singers.)
Ex. もろ見え (to expose something)
ABC lesson might have more colloquial expressions than my Japanese learning site. But if you feel like it, please visit there again.
One last thing,
関わりません。->関係ありません。
構ったら ->？ You mean “if you don’t mind?”
You can ask me from any of my sites!
Matane!
It is not a proper example for this site(!?) but you might see モロ見え (to show or expose something entirely) in the explanation of “adult videos”
銀魂の金縛りのエピソードは見たことありますよ。超笑えますね！！
雨が降って傘を持ってこないのはよくある話なのでドン引きの例はまだまだびっくりとかショックを受ける例の方がいいかと思います。
例えば、かっこいい男の子が雨の日にいつも使っている傘を貸してくれてその傘がピンクのハローキティー柄だったらドン引きでしょ！(For example if some cool guy lends you his umbrella in a rainy day and you find it is a pink Hello Kitty umbrella, you will feel DONBIKI, right?)
As for your questions,
「あったらいつでも」:
あったら ： If there is
いつでも ：anytime
Means if there is anything you don’t understand, please ask me anytime.
「金縛りにあって起きられなかった。」
okirarenakatta : You are right. It means not be able to get up.
I couldn’t get up because of Kanashibari.
そうですね、ドン引きは、「寒い時に外でバスが来るのを待たなきゃいけないの時」よりも〜〜〜〜っと驚く時に使います。特に意外な人が意外な時に意外なことをなんか言ったり、やったりする時によく使いますよ。（igai = unexpected)
金縛り(Kanashibari) ？すごい単語を知っていますねえ。（笑）なるほど！Victorの動画を観たんですね。
金縛りは動きが取れない時、特に朝寝ている時、動けない時に使います。霊に取り憑かれて金縛りにあうと考える人もいます。(We use the word Kanashibari when we can’t move at all. It usually happens in the morning while you are sleeping. Some consider it happens when you are possessed. 動詞は”あう” とか”襲われる”(=osowareru) です。
Ex. 朝、金縛りにあって起きられなかった。(asa kanashibari ni atte okirarenak natta.）
Ex.朝、金縛りに襲われた。（=asa kanashibari ni osowareta.)
Anyway Happy Halloween! 是非、Partyに来て下さい！
返事を日本語で書きましたが、わからないことあったらいつでも聞いてね。（I wrote this comment in Japanese but if there is anything you don’t understand, please don’t hesitate to ask me anytime!)
これからも助手のYukariにはしっかり働いてもらわないと！Yukari! Yukari!! Where are you??????
Tom-san wrote :
Great lesson!
I often feel ドン引き ｗｗｗ
I think what Larry meant is “how can you type if you are a dog?” Because dog’s don’t have fingers.
Larry, don’t be too serious about the dog thing xD
******************
Tom-san,
ん？最初に書いてくれたコメントが消えちゃったかな？ I wonder why but your first comment has disappeared…
Thank you for your comments!
(Now I see what Larry-san meant!) 有り難う！！
また来てね！
Larry-san,
例え私は犬でもどうやって人間を使うか知っています。助手のYukariが全てタイプしています。(=Tatoe watashi wa inu demo douyatte ningen wo tsukauka shitte imasu. Joshu no Yukari ga subete taipu shiteimasu.)
Even if I am a dog, I know how to use people. I have my assistant, Yukari and she types all the lessons for me.
Matane!
We use them both!
Actually I typed them in both ways on purpose so that people can learn them both.
I think I mentioned in other lesson but we tend to use KATAKANA for slang. Also young people mix up with Katakana , Hiragana and Kanji freely. There are no rules for slang or new fun words.
For example, まじで？ マジで？ ->We use them both.
Here are other examples :
ヤバい！ヤバイ！ やばい！（=yabai) (It is another slang. I will make a lesson sometime. It means dangerous, bad or great!)
超美味しい！ チョー美味しい！ (=chou oishii!) Very delicious
微妙！ ビミョ〜！ (=bimyou) (check my bimyou lesson)
Not just slang or new words, sometimes we write regular words in Katakana to make it look more hip!
彼は普通の男の子だよ！(=Kare wa futsuu no otokono ko dayo!)
彼はフツーの男の子だよ！
This must be very confusing for nihongo learners but I think you should know this trend just for your information.
Mikaさん、
今日は！
この場合の「夢」の動詞 は、「見る」です。(=Kono baai no “yume” no doushi wa “miru” desu.)
In this case the verb for yume is “miru”
->夢を見る (=yume wo miru.)
Also there are a lot of verbs for yume, such as 叶える(=kanaeru) to make it come true, 持つ(=motsu) to have,壊す(=kowasu) to ruin,etc. Maybe I will make a lesson someday.
to make (or let) someone dream＝「夢を見させる」(=yume wo misaseru)
通常、夢をみるのはいいことなので、（＝Tsuujyou Yume wo miru no wa iikoto nanode)
させてくれる、させてもらうという形を取ることが多いです。(=”sasete kureru” “sasete morau” toiu katachi wo toru koto ga ooi desu.)
（Usually to dream something is positive so, we use, ”sasete kureru” or “sasete morau” forms.)
*~させてくれる(=~sasete kureru.) to let me dream of something
*〜させてもらう (=~sasete morau.) get to dream of something.
夢を見せてくれた相手にはこう言います。(=Yume wo misete kureta aite niwa, kou iimasu.)
To someone who gives you a chance to dream about something, you say:
Ex. いい夢を見させてくれてありがとう！(=Ii yume wo misasete kurete arigatou)
Ex. いい夢を見させてもらいました。ありがとう！(=Ii yume wo misasete moraimashita. Arigatou.)
「して（来て）くれる」のレッスンをチェックしてみて下さい。(=”~” no ressun wo chekku shitemite kudasai.)
Please check “shitekite kureru lesson”
** makes (or let ) ~ dream は、**は〜に夢を見させてくれる。(= ~ wa 〜 ni yume wo misasete kureru.)
「日本の写真を見るのは私に日本に行くことを夢させます。(Your sentence)
->日本の写真を見ることは私に日本に行く夢を見させてくれます。(=Nihon no shashin wo miru kotowa watashi ni nihon ni iku yume wo misasete kuremasu.)
->(more natural) 日本の写真は私に日本に行く夢を見させてくれます。(=Nihon no shashin wa watashi ni nihon ni iku yume wo misasete kuremasu.)
また挑戦してね！(=Mata chousen shitene!) Try again sometime!
I’m confused… in the romaji is it supposed to say ‘konshuu’?
今週の宿題は何ですか？」(=Kyou no shukudai wa nan desu ka?) “What is this week homework?”
thanks for posting these i really enjoy them, esp. when they supplement what i am learning in class, we just learned some of these words so its like extra review for me ^_^
Sorry! That was a “うっかり” (=ukkari : careless) typo. (I must have changed the original sentence as always! ) I have fixed it now. Arigatou!
I am thrilled to hear that you use this site for your additional study.
学校の勉強もがんばって下さいね！(=Gakkou no benkyou mo ganbatte kudasaine.) Good luck on your study at school as well!
後は完璧！(=Ato wa kanpeki!!) Peeeeerfect!!!すご〜〜〜い！！Mikaさん、やった〜！！
Mikaさんも素晴らしいですよ！このブログではどんなに日本語が上手い人の日本語も間違いがあると直しちゃいますが、また時間がある時にいろいろな表現を使って文章を作ってみて下さいね！またね〜！
Oh this was interesting :o
Is it the same to answer “chotto…” or to answer “bimyou….” ? Like, for exemple :
– Ashita aiteru ?
– Anoo… ashita ha chotto… / – Anoo… bimyou desu…
Laetitia-san,
Hello! It is always nice to hear from you!
– Ashita aiteru ?
– 1) Anoo… ashita ha chotto…
– 2) Anoo… bimyou desu…
They are both very similar and subtle ways to decline but there is a slight difference.
If I ask you out and you say
1) -> I think you have declined for sure. And I wouldn’t ask you why because obviously you don’t want to give me a specific reason.
2) -> I would also take it as “No!” but it gives me an impression that you might be able make it and you are not sure about that yet.
But you are right. If I ask my friends out and they say 1) or 2) , I wouldn’t push you anymore.
You can also use “chotto” and “bimyou” together.
薔薇 most people wouldn’t use that right its very hard to read i like it though!! 憂鬱 ahh that one is hard to read can you read it that small ゆかり先生 people wouldn’t write this right? or do they?? if i saw this i think my head would explode…
Don’t worry! We can read them but if we have to write them, our heads would explode as well!
The more we use a computer or a word processor, the more we forget kanjis.
So that is why Maggie-sensei is GREAT!
There are a couple of popular quiz shows where people compete to read or write kanjis in Japan.
「ヘキサゴン」（=Hexagon) is one of them. You will be surprised to see many of おバカタレント (=Obaka tarento) (a kind of cute way to call “stupid TV personalities” can’t read even easy kanjis. And it is a fun program!
生きていくために仕事を持ってやらせます???????
i know its probably wrong but how would you say in order to survive you must have a job or in this case is forced to have a job???
Nice try!!
In this case, I would say 「生きていくためには(何か）仕事を持たなければいけません。」
I have to have a job in order to survive. It sounds more natural. But good point! させる、させられる needs a cause and it usually should be someone else besides some exceptions.
Keep writing!
Maggie sensei ^__^ Hello ! Thank you for this lesson. I’ve always found interesting the omiyage system. I remember a comic where someone offers a bottle of wine to a co-worker as an omiyage, then the man forget the bottle in the subway, someone find it and offer it to another person as an omiyage, this person offers it to another person, etc… And at the end the bottle of wine is offered to a last person, who is the man that originally forgot it in the subway XD
I don’t remember exactly but isn’t there a way to say “this is a just a little thing, please accept it” or something like that ?
The story about the Obama city is funny ^^ Were the Obama rolls good ?
Salut! Latitia-san!
The comic story is funny! It was a story of “re-gifters”, huh?
That’ right. When we give a gift, we have to give it in a humble way like
これはつまらないものですが、どうぞ！(=Kore wa tsumaranai mono desuga, douzo!) This is a boring stuff but please take it.
大したものではありませんが、どうぞ！(=Taishita mono dewa arimasen ga douzo!) It’s not anything fancy but…
ちょっとしたものですが、どうぞ！(=Chotto shita mono desuga, douzo!) This is a little something but..
ささやかですが、どうぞ！(=Sasayaka desu ga douzo!) This is a small something but..
Even between friends we say,
つまらないものだけど、大したものじゃないけど、ちょっとしたものだけど、ささやかだけど、〜
彼が出ていた後で
Hm, I wanted to say “after he’d left the school” but actually, that’s not very accurate, because after his suicide attempt he just didn’t go back there.
彼は、自殺を図った後で、学校に返りませんでした。
それから、皆は彼の自殺のことを忘れようとしていました。
新しく来た先生は。。。 sounds good, I mean, I wanted to say “substitute teacher” but I didn’t know the right word, but 新しく来た “who newly came” is really very close to it, but it’s also a better translation for “new teacher”.
。。。生徒達に忘れて欲しくありません。
Yes, that’s what I meant!
「青い鳥」は学校のいじめのドラマです。
一人学生が自殺を図りました。
彼が出ていた後で、学校にみんなさんは忘れようします。
しかし、新しい先生は忘れて欲しくないです。
I don’t know how to sum it up better, it’s a very recent drama movie with Abe Hiroshi and Hongo Kanata.
It was very interesting so I enjoyed watching it ^^
彼が出ていた後で、
->彼が出てい”っ”た後
You mean after “he has gone”? Then you can also say “彼が去った後”(=Kare ga satta ato )
If you meant “to graduate” ”彼が卒業した後”=Kare ga sotsugyou shita ato ”彼が卒業した後” or “彼の卒業後”(=Kare no sotsugyou go)
みんなさんは忘れようします。：
みんなさん->みなさん=皆さん(=Minasan) But we don’t say 皆さん when we describe a story. We say 皆(=mina) without “san”. (Minasan is when you talk to or address a group of people.) I would say 皆は（その or 彼の 自殺のことを）忘れようとしていました。(=Mina wa (sono or kare no jisatsu no kotowo ) wasure you to shite imashita.)
新しい先生は忘れて欲しくないです。:
-> 新しい（or 新しく来た）先生は生徒達に(彼の自殺のことを)忘れて欲しくありません。（でした。）(=”Atarashii (or Atarashiku kita) sennsei wa seitotachi ni (kare no jisatu no koto wo) wasurete hoshiku arimasen.)
分かりましたの？
->分かりましたか？
私の一番好きな日本語の言葉は救急車。 It reminds me of world of warcraft, where when a person whines about something bad that happened, someone else will say QQ, or QQ more, or less QQ more pewpew. Because QQ is supposed to look like two eyes crying. When someone says QQ it kind of means, get over it.
How would you say for example “I’m studying medicine.” or “I’m a medicine student.” in Japanese?
A lot of new vocabulary in this lesson, but highly useful and interesting!
I saw the ritual of bowing before the beginning of the class in the drama 青い鳥 and I’ve wondered what the 日直 (also didn’t know that word ^^) was saying, so thanks for this cutural information!
Hello Mika-san
Sorry! I was out of town and I couldn’t answer you back right away.
OK, let me answer your questions:
*to study medicine = 医学を勉強する (=igaku wo benkyo suru.)
*I am studying medicine =私は、医学を勉強しています。(=Watashi wa igaku wo benkyou shiteimaus.)
And I am a medicine student is,
私は、医学部の学生です。(Watashi wa igakubu no gakusei desu.)
ついでに….
*department of pharmacy is 薬学部(=Yakugakubu)
*department of science and engineering is 理工学部（rikou gakubu)
*department of literature is 文学部(=Bungakubu)
青い鳥ってどんなドラマだったかなあ…
Mikaさんの専攻は何？ I am very happy to hear this lesson is useful!
Good point! I didn’t write about this information but if your profession is a teacher, you don’t usually refer yourself as 先生。You address yourself 教師(=kyoushi) becuase “先生” expresses respect and we don’t use honorific expressions to ourselves.
-ご職業は何ですか？(=Goshokugyou wa nan desu ka?) “What is your occupation?”
-教師です。(=kyoushi desu.) “A teacher”
However we do hear people say “学校の先生です。”(=Gakkou no sensei desu.) in our daily conversation.
I will add this information in the lesson.
Arigatou!!
Konnichiha Maggie sensei ! Arigatou as always for this lesson ^^ I remember I saw a drama about school in Japan, I remember this very severe teacher, I think her name was Maya sensei but I’m not sure… Well, it reminds me about it ^^;
Laetitita-san,
今日は！！いつも有り難う！！
The TV drama you saw could be “女王の教室”(=Jouou no kyoushitsu) starring an actress, Miki Maya?
There are a lot of TV-dramas about school life and those are called “学園ドラマ”(=gakuen dorama). For example, the long run series, 「３年B組金八先生」(=Sannen biigumi kinpachi sensei). Have you seen “ごくせん”(=Gokusen) ? While “女王の教室” was very serious, “ごくせん” is fun!
If you have a chance, please watch it!
Hopefully, I phrased it correctly, but if I did not, here is my question in English: When writing after a verb, what is the difference between “koto” and “mono”?
Thank you, and your blog is extremely helpful! Excellent work, Yukari, Victor, and Maggie sensei!
Commentありがとう！
動詞の後に来る「こと」と「もの」の違いについて(=doushi no ato ni kuru “koto” to “mono” no chigai ni tsuite.)
Usually
1) verb+ koto = action
2) verb+mono = things/stuff
食べること(=taberu koto) eating
Ex. 寝る前に食べることはダイエットによくない。(=Neru mae ni taberu koto wa daietto ni yokunai.) Eating before you sleep is not good for your diet.
食べるもの(=taberu mono) things/stuff to eat (food)
Ex. うちには今、何も食べるものがない。(=Uchi niwa ima, nanimo taberu mono ga nai.) There is nothing to eat (no food) in my house right now.
歌うことが好きです。(=Utau koto ga suki desu.) I like to sing/singing. (action)
いじめることはよくない。(=Ijimeru koto wa yokunai.) It is bad to bully someone. (action)
何か、書くものない？(=Nannka kaku mono nai?) Do you have anything to write with? (things)
これは子供が見るものではありません。(=Kore wa kodomo ga miru mono de wa arimasen.) This is not a thing for kids to watch.
How’s that?
pcktbolさんの日本語もちょっと直しますね。
問題が有る If you meant “a question” use 質問 (=shitsumon) . -> 一つ質問があります。(Hitotsu shitumon ga arimasu.) I have a question.
問題(=mondai) means a problem or question for exams or tests.
Hello, Qristina-san!
Thank you for visiting this site!
では、質問に答えますね。(dewa shitsumon ni kotaemasu ne.) Now let me see your questions,
You can say to your teacher,for example,
今日のクラス、とても楽しかったです。(=Kyou no kurasu, totemo tanoshikatta desu.)
有難うございました。(=Arigatou gozaimashita.)
That means you really enjoyed today’s class. Thank you very much.
By adding “mo” after “kyou”
今日のクラスも (=Kyou no kurasu mo)…….
It implies the teacher ALWAYS gives you good lessons and you enjoyed today’s class “AGAIN”.)
今日は一杯、学びました。（勉強しました。）(=Kyou wa ippai manabi mashita or benkyou shimashita.)
有難うございました。(=Arigatou gozaimashita.) “I have learned a lot today. Thank you so much!”
Again, if you add “mo” after “kyou” 今日も(=kyou mo)
今日も一杯、学びました。（勉強しました。）(=Kyou mo ippai manabi mashita or benkyou shimashita.)
It implies ,”again” or “today also! “I have learned a lot today,too. Thank you so much!”
Or if the teacher constantly give you fun lessons, you can say
先生のクラスはいつも本当に楽しいです。(=Sensei no kurasu wa itsumo hontou ni tanoshii desu.)
Your classes are always enjoyable (fun).
You can say “otsukare sama deshita.” to your teacher when she/he leaves or after class,
先生、どうもお疲れ様でした。(=Sensei doumo otsukare sama deshita.)
Thank you so much for all our hard work, (teacher)
(“doumo”(=very) gives more politeness.)
It is very polite and considerate.
お疲れ様です。（でした）(=Otsukare sama desu (deshita)) deshita : past tense.
ご苦労様です。（でした）(=Gokurou sama desu (deshita))
Both mean “Thank you for your hard work!” but the later, Gokurousama, is for when you address someone who work for you, like subordinates, assistants, handy man, delivery man, etc.
お疲れ様です。(=Otsukare sama desu ) is more polite and it is used for someone superior to you.
If you are not sure which to use, just stick to “otsukare sama desu” as many Japanese people do.
Note: But there is a very casual way, ”お疲れさん”(=Otsukare san). You should avoid using it to your teacher.
いつもコメント有り難う！（Itsumo comment arigatou！）
As for your question, when someone leaves saying “Osaki ni”, you say 「お疲れ様でした。」”Otsukare sama deshita.”
疲れる(=tsukareru) “= to get tired”.
It implies “Thank you for your hard work today.”
グルメレポーターやりたいです！！！ヨーロッパの温泉は水着を着るって本当？(Youroppa no onsen wa mizugi wo kirutte hontou?) Is it true they wear swimsuit in Europe?
なんかお洒落ですね。(=nanka oshare desu ne.)
This was a great lesson! Thanks for all your hard work, I really appreciate it.
Please excuse my ignorance, I’m just beginning with Japanese and I can’t read kanji yet. I have a small question; When one says “Tadaima omochi itashimasu” is this the same “tadaima” that one would say upon returning home? Do they have the same literal meaning?
Tadaima “只今” means “(right) now”. When we come back home, we say “Tadaima” to our family that means “只今、帰りました。”(Tadaima kaerimashita.) 帰る(=to return)-> I just came back home “now”. A lot of Japanese say just the first part (=tadaima) without saying ( “kaerimashita.”).
So it is the same meaning of “只今、お持ちします。”(=Tadaima omochi shimashita.)-> I will bring it to you right now.
Laetitia-san,
Furansu go mo Furansu mo daaaaisuki! Maggie no bokokugo wa inu-go desu! Yukari (Maggie no assistant) no bokokugo wa nihongo desu.
Okinasai no video mite kurete arigatou! Ibiki ga sugoi desho!
Thank you for the correction ^^ As I wrote this sentence I knew there was something wrong but couldn’t correct it myself ^^;;
By the way, sorry if my english sounds wrong too, I hope it’s still comprehensible.
Watashi ha futsuka goto ni gurai Maggie sensei no blog o yomimasu. Lesson ha nagai no ni, totemo omoshiroi desu ! Demo, oboeranakya ikenai koto ga takusan aru no de, raishuu, watashi ha benkyouu o sureba ii ! (<– Machigai ga attara, sumimasen ; ; )
Kinou lesson wo keshite shimatta node comment mo kiechatte gomennasai!
(I deleted the lesson yesterday and your comment was gone. I am sorry!)
You made a great sentence. May I correct just a bit?
“Watashi wa futsuka goto ni gurai Maggie sensei…..” -> “Daitai futsuka goto ni”
(Or if you really want to use “gurai” you could say “futsuka gurai goto ni”)
Itsumo kono blog ni kite kurete hontou ni arigatou!! Tottemo ureshii desu!
前のコメント消えちゃってごめんなさい！説明のところ書き直しました。m(_ _)m
As I wrote you in my previous comment, even many many Japanese people get confused with the difference between “gotoni” and “okini”
If you have to do something, (“o” means the day you do and “x” means the day you don’t do, OK?)
futsuka gotoni= xo xo
mikka gotoni = oxx oxx oxx oxx
yokka gotoni =oxxx oxxx oxxx oxxx
And
futsuka oki ni = oxx oxx
mikka oki ni = oxxx oxxx oxxx
yoykka okini = oxxxx oxxxx oxxxx
So technically “mikka goto ni” has the same pace as “futsuka oki” ni.
And “二日おきに” has the same pace as “三日毎に”
“goto” is one unit that the number indicates. Oki’s kanji is 置き. (置く= to place, to put) So you leave the number of the time unit in between.
一日毎に （日毎：higoto) means every day. (But there is a slight nuance difference between 毎日. And some Japanese think it means every other day)
Thank you! Your questions always make me think. I will talk to other Japanese doggies about it.
Arigato!! :maggie-small:
そ〜でした！それを忘れたなんて信じられない！。早速追加しました。(=soudeshita. Sore wo wasureta nante shinjirarenai! Sassoku tsuika shimashita.)
That’s riiiight! I can’t believe I missed that one. I have just added it now.
助かりました。ありがとう！(=Tasukarimashita. Arigatou) Thank you for your help!
Onigiri suki? Watashi mo daaaai suki! (=Do you like riceballs? I love them,too!)
Super riceball-san wa onigiri no naka de nani ga ichiban suki? What is your favorite onigiri?
Hello, Harin-san!
激 and 超 are both use to add the meaning of “super”.
Usually “激” comes before a noun form and “超” comes before adjetive form.
1) Super cheap
People do *激安 (geki yasu) あのカメラは激安だった。(Ano kamera wa gekiyasu datta) That camera was very cheap.
*超安い (chou yasui) あのカメラは超安かった。(Ano kamera wa chou yasukatta.) The same meaning.
2) Super hot/spicy
*激辛(gekikara) このカレーは激辛だ。（Kono karei wa gekikara da.) This curry is super hot.
*超辛い(chou karai) このカレーは超辛い。(Kono karei wa chou karai.) The same meaning.
3) Super crowded
＊激混み(Gekikomi) 今朝の電車は激混みだった。(Kesa no densha wa gekikomi datta.) The train was super crowded this morning.
＊超混んでいる(Chou konde iru.) 今朝の電車は超混んでいた。(Kesa no densha wa chou konde ita.) The same meaning.
HOWEVER, they are both slangs so basically there is no rule. People do say
1-1) 激安い(gekiyasui) 超安 (Chouyasu)
２-1）激辛い (gekikarai) 超辛(choukara)
3-1) 激混んでいる(gekikonde iru) 超混む(choukomu)
If we google “超美味しい” (chouoishii) & “激美味しい” (gekioishii), means “super delicious”,”超美味しい” will get more hits.
Some adjetives and nouns never take 激 or 超, though. So please search the word you want to use with 激 or 超 on Google and check if they use it or not.
Oh, one more thing! Sometimes we use them both,
超激レア (Chou geki rea!) means it is super rare!
超激安 （Chou geki yasu) Super cheap!
超激辛 (Chou geki kara) Super hot
Hello Harin-san!
The line comes from 1)
1)誰が〜を食べたかですって？ (formal-basic)
2)誰が〜を食べたかだって？ (casual)
3)誰が〜を食べたって？ (very casual)
You end the quote with 「って」(The original form is 「と」. 「って」is a casual form.)
Ex. 彼、私のこと好きだって（言ったの。）Kare, watashi no koto sukidatte (ittano.) He said he loves me. (The quote part is “he loves me”)
（「と」is more formal. 彼は私のことを好きだと言いました。(Kare wa watashi no koto wo sukida to iimashita.)
Also
Ex. 彼の名字は”中村さん”って言うみたい。（Kare no myouji wa nakamura san tte iu mitai.) They said his last name is Nakamura. (more polite : 中村さんと言うそうです。(Nakamura san to iu sou desu.))
Can you translate the following sentences using 「って」(casual) or 「と」?
1) Maggie said hello to you.
2) Harin said Maggie is cute.
3) Who said I am fat?
Answers:
1) マギーがあなたによろしくって(言ってました）。（Maggie ga anata ni yoroshikutte) or あなたによろしくと言っていました。(Anata ni yoroshiku to itte imashita.)
２）Harin はマギーのことが可愛いって(言っていました）。（Harin wa Maggie no koto ga kawaiitte!) or 可愛いと言っていました。(Kawaii to itte imashita.)
３）誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？(Dare ga watashi no koto debutte ittatte?) 誰が私のことでぶと言ったの？(Dare ga watashi no koto debu to itta no?)
See you don’t need to finish the sentence when you use 「って」but usually it is natural to finish the sentence when you use 「と」after the quote.
OK, the next question.
私は、いつも「遠慮のかたまり」を食べてしまいます。 : It is correct and as a joke, it is a very cute sentence.
便利？よかった〜！！長くなっちゃったけど１つのレッスンでいろいろなレベル＋目的の友達みんなが勉強できたらなって願っています。
(Benri? Yokatta~! Nagaku nacchatta kedo hitotsu no ressun de iroirona reberu + mokuteki no tomodachi minna ga benkyou dekinatara natte negatte imasu.)
I’m very happy to hear it is useful. It ended up a long lesson but hope all my friends with different levels + purposes of learning Japanese can use my blog to study.
Thank you! Arigatou!! :maggie-small:
こちらこそ、このサイトに来てくれて有り難う！(=Kochirakoso kono saito ni kite kurete arigatou!) Thank you for visiting this site,too!
これらのレッスンが役に立てば嬉しいです。（=Korera no ressun ga yaku ni tateba ureshii desu.) Hope these lesson are useful for you!
“Typo” wo mitsukete kurete arigatou! Sassoku naoshimashita! Thank you for finding the typo. I fixed it right away.
I am very happy to hear you liked the lesson! Please come back again!
One of the examples above was: “昨日、ビクターみたいな人を見たよ。” I was wondering if “昨日、ビクターの様な人を見たよ。” can also be used. Or would the latter be translated as that he/she seemed, as in actions, like Victor an’ not in that he/she actually looked physically like Victor. Or how about “昨日、ビクターの様に見える人を見たよ。” Would this be “grammatically correct” Japanese? Finally, what about ビクターっぽそう, would this be fine as well? As in he seemed Victor-ish.
Thank you, Maggie Sensei. These lessons are really useful! Your master’s videos are extremely helpful as well! Keep up the great work!
*If you say
「彼はVictorみたいな人だ。」or
「彼はVictorの様な人だ。」
I would think that that person has a similar personality or behaves very similar to Victor. But it could be just a physical resemblance in some cases. It is hard to tell by just that sentence.
“昨日、ビクターみたいな人を見たよ。」or “昨日、ビクターの様な人を見たよ。 They mean almost the same thing. Both sentences use the verb “見た” so we can assume that person physically looked like Victor.
If you say 昨日、ビクターみたいな人に会ったよ。then we don’t know if that person physically looked like Victor or personality-wise similar to Victor (or acted like Victor).
*“昨日、ビクターの様に見える人を見たよ。
Um… Maybe it is grammatically correct but it doesn’t sound natural because you use a person and the verb “見る” .
Ex. 「一見、マギーの様に見える犬を見たよ。」（Ikken Maggie no you ni mieru inu wo mitayo.) 「could be possible
but I would say
「一見、マギーの様な（マギーみたいな）犬を見たよ。」(Ikken Maggie no youna (or maggie mitaina) inu wo mitayo. ) .(一見= Ikken = at a glance.)
様に見える (you ni mieru) itself may sound redundant but it is possible to use. 彼は勉強をしている様に見える。(kare wa benkyou wo shiteiru you ni mieru. ) He looks like he is studying.
As for your last question,
ビクターっぽそう : Sorry, but it is not natural especially after a person’s name.
〜そう is usually used with adjective ( 忙しそう、暑そう）& verb (雨がふりそう、彼がやりそうなこと。)
I would say
(subject) はビクターっぽい。
However, as I mentioned in the lesson, young people might say
これ、無理っぽそう。（Kore murippo sou.) This seems to be impossible. (Grammatically incorrect.)
pcktbolさんは日本語をよく知っていますね。がんばって下さいね。（pcktbol-san wa nihongo wo yoku shitte imasu ne. Ganbatte kudasaine.) :grin:
Wow.. another awesome lesson.. my Japanese is coming along slowly but surely.. thanks so much for your lessons.. they are very much appreciated them. I’ve started started learning Hiragana and I found this great site: http://www.umich.edu/~umichjlp/Hiraganapro/index.html I left a comment in youtube but it didn’t post. Hope that link helps someone who’s also learning hiragana
Markshmily-san
Thank YOU for your comment! The site looks very useful! きっと、みなさんのやくにたつとおもいます。Kitto minasan no yaku ni tatsu to omoimasu! (I bet it is very useful for everyone!)
Is there anything different (like a vowel insertion) if the ppoi ending is attached to a word that ends in a consonant? For instance, if I want to say bishounen-like/bishounen-ish?
CuriouserNcuriouserさん
なるほど、いい質問ですよね。(naru hodo, ii shitumon desu yone. ) I see, it is a good question! 「ん」などの子音で終わっても語末は「っぽい」になります”N” nadono shiin de owatte mo gomatsu wa “ppoi” ni narimasu. chotto matte, ima, rei wo kangaeru kara.)。
だから「美少年っぽい」って言います。（Dakara “bishounen-ppoi” tte iimasu. ) Even if it ends with a consonant such as “n”, it ends with “ppoi” , so we say “bisshounen-ppoi”.
ちょっと待って、今、他の例を考えるから。(chotto matte, ima hoka no rei wo kangaeru kara.) Let me see, I will think of other examples..
Just recently (last season) a quite funny j-dorama with ueto aya finished, called “konkatsu”.
it’s a comedy/unrequited love drama with was actually quite fun to watch.
so if you wanna know more about “konkatsu”, that’s a good dorama to watch
Yes! You saw that drama? Ueto Aya-chan and Nakai-kun were in it. So if there are people who want to know more about “Konkatsu”, please watch that show.
There is a tendency to make a TV drama using a new word lately.
「アラフォー」(Ara fou) ＊is another example. （＊「アラフォー」(Ara fou)=Around 40’s. It is about a drama about women who are around 40’s (=40代 yonjyuudai) . We also say アラサー(Ara saa) referring people who are around 30’s =３０代(sanjyuu dai) )
I never realized アラフォー meant around 40 since I always saw the drama’s name in english. That one was interesting. Amami Yuki-san played the role.
Also I remember seeing a drama about woman who wanted to get married but she was 28 or something and everyone was like if you hit 28 then it’s almost hopeless to think to get married. So she didn’t want to reveal her age. I think it was in the late 90s or early 2000s.
Yes, we have expressions like アラフォー (around forty) or アラサー(around thirty). And there used to be a trend which compared women with “Christmas cake” in old days.
(You can’t sell Christmas cakes after December 25th. That means if your age gets the age 26, less people would be interested in you. That is awful isn’t it? But yes, things have changed since then.
Thank you very much Maggie sensei for all these usefull lessons ^__^ I really enjoyed browsing through your blog today and especially liked the last lessons (“ppoi”, “keigo”, “konkatsu”, and the “restaurant” one with the adorable Nina san). Thanks again for all this work, sensei.
Konbanwa, furetosan!
It depends on the context of the complaints.
The precise difference between 苦情 and クレーム is…
-苦情 : It is more emotional. You simply complain about something to improve the situation. And by doing that you want to express your feelings.
-クレーム : You usually require or expect some compensation.
But in a business situation, we tend to use クレーム more.
So in your case, the composition is for クレームに応じて（oujite)くれない ／クレームに対処(taisho)してくれない会社.
“Watashi ni uso wo tsukanai de kudasai” is a great sentense that I would like to learn… but do you pronounce it like: “Watashi ni uso o tsukanai de kudasai or Watashi ni usoo tsukanai de kudasai? love to see a audio file to the sentense!
and Maji is spelled with katakana is it imported from a other country or just a really fresh word?
Konnichiwa! Upon your request, I have just added a new audio file so please check it. Although we write “uso wo tsukanai de” in romaji to distinguish “を” and “お”, the pronunciation is the same. So as you said “usoo tsukanaide” would be more natural Japanese sound.
マジ is not a word from other country. It is a slang.
It came from 真面目に？（＝majime ni? seriously?) We tend to abbreviate the word.
Young people love to use it. I will introduce you some other expressions using MAJI
マジに〜する（majini ~ suru) to do something seriously
マジ本気（maji honki) Seriously
マジギレ(する）majigire suru. =To be snapped (seriously)
超マジ （chou maji) = Very seriously.
They are not bad words but please be careful not to use these term in business situation!
Sweet, I see that all the favorite Japanese words are here!
I have a question though, “zenbu” or “zennbu” (the second n to make the ん character) is written as “zembu” in a Japanese dictionary.
How come? There is no “m” character. And it’s still written as ぜんぶ . I’ve seen this with other words as well, like “kampai” Do you have any idea why?
Hello, TheDutchGaijin-san! Comment arigatou! As for your question,
全部 ぜんぶ 1) zenbu, or 2) zembu
乾杯 かんぱい 1) kanpai or 2) kampai
太田さん おおたさん 1) Outa-san or 2) Ohta-san
1) form is “Romaji” which Japanese people use. 2) form is for non-native people to pronounce Japanese words.
2) form could be easier to read Japanese words with.
See…
Ex. Memphis is “Menfisu” in Romaji. (It’s how Japanese people try to read English words)
Ex. Combat is “Konbatto” in Romaji.
But orthographically they use “m”instead of “n” before “b” or “p” when they spell in English.
So I think you can write in both ways.
How’s that?
また来てね！ Mata kitene! Please visit me again!
I couldn’t help myself since nobody seems to have made a comment on your blog yet so I feel honored to deflower your virgin blog with this disturbing yet slightly amusing message.
I anxiously await for more of your lessons as they are already helpful! Admittedly, I am having trouble with the insane amount of Kanji, and perhaps some furi injections even for the basic stuff would be great?
Hey maggie-sensei,
I kinda got confused while checking the “previous” lessons: sometimes you put an underlined Kanji, and that kind of makes it hard to distinguish visually. Anyhooo, I like the fact that you’ve given some thought to us 中級！
Hi, ffbittencourt-san! Thank you for your comment! I didn’t think the underlined Kanji might confuse you. I will take it in consideration. Please visit again soon!
コメント有り難う！わかりました。これからはアンダーラインには気をつけますね。また来てね！
Komento arigatou! Wakarimashita! korekawra underline wa kiwotsukemasu! Mata kitene!
Hey, Hedgie-san!! Japanese people also have difficulties remembering all the kanjis. Good luck!
漢字は日本人にとってもたくさんあって大変です。がんばってね！ Kanji wa nihonjin ni tottemo takusan atte taihen desu. Ganbattene!
No Comments
Good evening Maggie. I have a question about the kanji 一言
Does this kanji mean both “a word” and “a short phrase”?
Hi Breano
Yes, that’s right. It means “a word” but you can use it for a few words/brief speech
一言で言うと = If I put it in one word ~
一言言ってもいいですか？ = Can I say something? / Can I say a few words?
一言、スピーチをお願いします。= Could you give a brief speech?
マギー先生、レッスンありがとうございます。
見ぬふりできませんから言う. この二つのリンクが使えません：
How to use ~ぶり = buri (久しぶり = ひさしぶり = Hisashiburi)
Check my たい & がる ( = tai & garu) lesson.
一つはGoogleMapsのリンクですね。Sainte-Chapelleはどうしたの？マギ先生いきたいですか？ :D
こんにちはルナ！
リンクのこと教えてくれてありがとう。「 久しぶり」のレッスンリンクは合っていたのですが念の為、もう一度リンク入れ直しました。
「たい＆がる」のリンクがフランスの地図になっていたのは本当に謎です。調べたこともないのですが…
URLを短くするサイトを使っているのですがリンクの文字が足りなくてそのサイトに行ったのかもしれません。
でもフランス行きたいです。😆
面白いですね！
しかし、 たい & がる のリンクまだ直っていませんみたい。
Good evening Maggie. I have doubts about some phrases.
1) Does the 政府役人 part of the sentence 政府役人の豪邸が略奪された make sense? I searched but couldn’t find anything on the subject.
2) What is the function of として in words like 突如として? From what I researched, 突如として and 突如 have the same meaning.
Hi Daniel
1) Yes, it make sense. It is talking about a mansion ( = 豪邸) and the mansion belongs to 政府役人 = 政府の役人 = government official
2) 突如として is an expression, suddenly and you can use it without として
So you are right. They have the same meaning. ~として is a more formal expression.
そうです。分かりましたと思います 😊
Oh okay, because with what I was trying to do (彼に声を出して読めながら) whatever is being read is the subject, not who’s being read to. I was thinking the opposite for some reason, oops
You often omit the subject in Japanese so it must have been confusing. 😉
こんにちはMaggie先生
いい授業にありがとうですが、一つだけ質問があります。
”今、彼に話しているところです”と
”今、彼に話している”
どう違う？同じ意味でしょう？
こんにちは、壱茶
1) 今、彼に（or と）話しているところです/ところだ
= I am just talking to/with him./ I am in the middle of talking to him right now./ I am in the process of talking to/with him now.
It is emphasizing the ongoing process or being in the middle of the action
2) 今、彼に（or と）話しています。/いる
= I am talking to/with him now.
It simply states the fact that talking is happening without emphasizing the ongoing action.
ああなるほど。どうもありがとうございました♡
いつでも質問があったらどうぞ 😘
Good evening Maggie. I would like to know what the function of どの is in the following sentence: どの群れにも必ず黒い羊がいる.
Hi Thiago
That どの means “any” or “every”
(There is always a black sheep) in any flock/every flock
Thanks for the response Maggie. But I still have a doubt. I thought どの meant which or which way. Why was this sentence translated the way you did?
You are right. どの means “which” but どの (dono) can be used as “which” or “any/every,” depending on the context.
Ex. どの国もインフレに苦しんでいる。 Every country is suffering from inflation.
Ex. このレストランは、どの料理も美味しい。Every dish at this restaurant is delicious
こんにちは先生。
Since potential verb form is the same as passive verb form, how would you make a both potential and passive verb?
Example sentence: He can’t be stopped.
Something like 止められることをできない?? Seems weird. How do you do it?
こんにちは、Terry
I would say it is not common to use passive form + できない because it looks/sounds confusing.
He can’t be stopped. : The most natural way to say this in Japanese is to say would be
“I/We can’t stop him.”
→彼を止められない or 彼を止めることはできない (Nobody can stop him.”誰も彼を止められない・誰も彼を止めることはできない)
If you want to use a passive form, it is a less direct but you say
彼は止めらることはない
Indeed it looked and sounded confusing to me ^^; ありがとうございます！
どういたしまして。Good question. It made me think. 😉
Where is the audio clips where I can hear the proper pronunciation?
Hi August
I think put the link below but https://www.patreon.com/posts/audio-file-how-95844000
If you are member of my Patreon, you can access the audio files and get PDF files anytime.
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
In a game, I saw this sentence when characters were arguing;
そんな態度はないでしょう!
Is it the same as point 5 of the lesson, even if there is no こと ?
Hi ルナ
いつも新しいレッスンをチェックしてくれてありがとう。
Yes, it is the same idea. If you rephrase that sentence with Vこと（は）ない
you can say そんな態度をすること（は）ないでしょう
Good evening Maggie. I discovered the following phrase 三角形で、先がとても鋭利な形状だ。and I had some doubts.
1) Does this sentence make sense grammatically?
2) I translated this sentence as: It has a triangular shape and the ends are quite sharp. Is this translation correct?
Hi Lucas,
1) Yes, It makes sense.
2) Whatever thing you are talking about has a triangle form and have sharp tips.
Hi Lucas,
1) Yes, It makes sense.
2) Yes. Or It has a triangle form and have sharp tips.
こんにちは！
This is probably a silly question, but why is 「に」 used to mark the location of of an object with 居る and 在る rather than say 「で」? I’ve read that for some other similarly confusing verbs (such as 住む and 泊まる) that the location should be considered a destination (which doesn’t really make sense to me even in those cases) but I haven’t seen any clarification on these existential verbs.
こんにちは、クリス
Good question.
As you know
You use 「で」 to indicate the location where some action occurs.
You use 「に」 to indicate the location where something/someone exists (with verbs like 「いる」/「ある」) and also location of state.
「住む」 and 「泊まる」 are not action verbs. They describe a state (living/staying). Therefore, you use the particle 「に」 with these verbs.
FYI I have a lesson of に & で
I was having trouble understanding what 言う辺り means in this sentence from a popular light novel- なんでもないことのように言うあたりが、とても思いつきの噓に思えずロレンスはか固唾を飲んでしまったが、ハッとしてホロの口元に目をやった
Thank you in advance
Hi Chris,
言う辺り means the fact/the aspect/the way that [someone] says [something]
Hi Maggie Sensei, I’ve been studying Japanese for 3 years now. My current book at school is TRY N2 (although I don’t feel at all I am N2, not even N3).
I have a question regarding the structure of Japanese grammar. Basically TRY and also other books I have seen don’t really teach you grammar as in western languages. Rather, it is full of this forms (e.g. niyotte, nitotte, nitaishite, monda, bakarida, etc.) that sound very much like idiomatic expressions to me.
So far everything looks very random, which makes it also more difficult to learn and memorize.
Are those “expressions” qualified collectively somehow? And is there any actual classification/categorization or any booklet summarizing them in a structured way (e.g. by topic, use, scope) to make it easier to memorize?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Kuki
First of all, I apologize. I have to admit, my site is pretty random 😆, but I believe there are many excellent Japanese learning sites that provide good classification and categorization in a structured way.
I think many of them are categorized by JLPT level. So, JLPT websites or textbooks might offer better categorization.
Learning Japanese grammar could be quite different from learning Western languages. In Western languages, grammar is often taught separately from vocabulary and expressions, focusing on things like tense and conjugation, conditional forms at different levels. But with Japanese, especially in JLPT study materials, the focus is not just on grammar but also on using expressions effectively.
I understand it could be confusing, but I believe that if you already know the basic grammar, all you need to do is to build complicated sentences and increase your range of expressions, which would help.
Hi thank you for your kind reply. Just to be clear, I wasn’t referring to your site but to the textbooks, I find them pretty random, which is surprising for a textbook imho!
Hi Claudio
I know you weren’t. 😉
Good evening Maggie. I was looking at the definition of 風格 and came across the following definition: 味わい。趣。
Can you tell me what it means? I’m trying to find out but I’m not having any success.
風格
If you are talking about a person,
あの人は風格がある
He/She has a presence. (to have dignified presence)
You can also describe classy buildings, houses, area, streets with 風格
味わいがある/趣がある
You don’t usually use these words to describe a person.
味わいがある = the place has got a style
趣がある = quaint
So, if I understand correctly, 風格 and 味わい have the same meaning, but 風格 refers to people and things while 味わい mainly refers to things.
Hi Pedro
You may encounter some exceptions when using ‘味わいがある’ for people as a metaphor but that’s right.
Hi Maggie先生! Thank you for your explanation!
In the dictionary when I look up 持っていく it means: “to take (something) along; to bring with one”
And 持ってくる means: “to bring; to take (something) along”
Why do they mean the same thing? Can you explain this please?
Thank you!
Hi Tiana
I see your confusion.
When you simply describe someone’s action to take or bring something, you use
持っていく to take something with you
and
持ってくる to bring something with you
However, the English translation can change depending on the speaker’s point of view.
For example, you are invited to a party and telling the host that you are going to get some wine and take it to the party.
You say
ワインを持って行きますね
It actually means “I will take some with with me (and go to your party.)”
But the most common English translation will be
“I will bring some wine (with me). ”
It is based on the listener’s (the host’s) point of view.
It is similar to “come” and “go”
If someone calls you, you say
I am coming.
to come is 来ます but the most natural Japanese translation will be 行きます
Hello there Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been using your lessons for awhile now and had a question about this sentence. Or rather, I suppose I wanted to make sure I am reading it correctly.
[ケンシくんが好きっていうもののことは･･････]
A character is ruminating on another character and I was a bit confused seeing もののこと back to back here, but after reading your lesson もの is making the previous phrase a noun and then のこと is now modifying that noun, right?
So it becomes “About what I like about Kenshi-kun” or since the sentence trails off “What I like about Kenshi-kun is…”
Please correct me if I’m mistaken, and thank you for all the lessons!
Hello かえで
It is a little hard to interpret the sentence without knowing the context but the literal translation is
“About the thing(s) Kenshi-kun likes….”
This interpretation only works if this speaker is talking about something that Kenshi likes.
『甘いものが欲しいときは疲れているんだって。』
^それ、私も聞いたことがあります！ほんとのかな？私いつも甘いものが欲しいんだけど。。。
Note: (Related lesson: How to use がる = garu ) < リンク、使えないです。
ルナ
リンク直しました。教えてくれてありがとう❤️
私も、疲れているときも元気なときも甘い物が欲しいです。😆
ルナ
リンク直しました。教えてくれてありがとう❤️
私も、疲れていなくても甘い物が欲しいです。😆
Hi, Maggie sensei, hope everything is going well. In an essay, I’ve accross this sentence, 夢を求めて狂っても。Could you please explain me why も has been used in the
end of this sentence???
Hi Mojo 元気？
夢を求めて狂っても
〜ても means “even if/even though/although”
You don’t usually leave the sentence with ても unless there is a sentence before that sentence or omitted the following part on purpose when it is obvious.
For example 夢を求めて狂っても（それでも夢を求める）
Even if I go mad seeking for the dream, I still go for it.
thus you can show your strong will emphasizing what comes before ても
Good evening Maggie. I would like to know if the following sentence is grammatically correct: 彼女は亡くなった夫の冷凍精子を用いて受精した。
Hi Bruno
I would say 夫の冷凍精子を用いて→”凍結した夫の精子で”
How would you say your husband is dead?
It depends on the relationship with the speaker/ how formal you want to speak with the person but
ご主人はお亡くなりました。
いい会社に入れてよかった
はいれて？いれて？
If the speaker is talking about oneself, はいれて
I’m glad I got into a good company.
入る = はいる = intransitive verb
→potential form 入れる ＝ はいれる
入れる = いれる = transitive verb
So if the speaker had someone (Ex. their child) go to the school
入れてよかった = いれてよかった
I’m glad I enrolled my child in that school
こんにちは、先生。
Is there a difference between using だけ and ばかり?
こんにちは、Terry
There are many differences but here’s the confusing difference.
だけ is just/ only
ばかり = on going action/ emphasizing the quantity or frequency of the activity.
Ex.マギーは肉だけ食べる。
= Maggie eats nothing but meat
Ex.マギーは肉ばかり食べる。
= Maggie mainly eats meat. It suggests a focus on meat but doesn’t necessarily mean she eats nothing else.
Ex. このサイトの先生は犬だけだ。
The teachers on this site are only dogs.
Ex. このサイトの先生は犬ばかりだ。
The teachers on this site are mainly dogs.
It implies that while dogs are the majority or main focus, there might be other animals (such as cats, mice, etc.) also serving as teachers on the site.
Maggie Sensei, あけましておめでとうございます。(.. if it is not too late to say this).
Would you be interested in reading about some of my most recent language learning experiences in Japan? I think you will find it interesting. I don’t think it would be appropriate to post it here. I could send to your email address (which I already have), if that is OK. Then you can read at your leisure, whenever you have some time.
Michael
Hi Michael
あけましておめでとうございます！
Yes, I’d love to read your experiences. Sent it by email.
楽しみにしています。
Maggie
just found out this website, i think is really wholesome that youve been doing this for so long , you can tell when someone puts love in what they do. thanks for your work, ill check some of your lessons.
Hi Alvaro
Welcome to our site. Hope you can learn something here. ☺️
Good evening Maggie. I came across the following phrase: 幽閉 – ある場所に閉じこめて外に出さないこと。and I had some doubts.
1) In this sentence, is 外に read as ほかに or そとに?
2) When do I use 外に (ほかに) instead of 外に (そとに)? Can you give me an example?
3) I searched the internet and discovered on a website the following word 外に出さない. Is this an expression?
Hi Angelo
The meaning of 幽閉/閉じ込めること is confinement/lock ~ in
外に出さない = そとにださない = Not let that person outside
It is not a set expression but 外 means outside so you can figure out the meaning.
ほか: When you use this word as “others/another”, you use the kanji 他
You read 外, ほか in expressions like
思いの外 = おもいのほか = unexpectedly.
ありがとうございます。日本語の勉強はまだまだ続きます ：’）
いつもルナのことを応援しています！ p(^_^)q
マギー先生は新しレッスンをアップするとき、さっそく読めばいいともいます。時には読んでくるを忘れます。
ルナ
今日は、二つもレッスン読んでくれましたね。
(Note for you: ルナの書いてくれた文章もわかりますが、少しお手伝いしますね。
マギー先生が新しいレッスンをアップしたときに(or アップしたら、) すぐに読めばいいと思います。
時には（すでに）読んだことを忘れます。) ☺️
どのレッスンが読んだことありますを忘れないようにいつもコメント書きたいのですが、時々わすれてしまう。
このレッスン、二度目読んだことです ;o
何回でも読んでください。😉
（Note for you: どのレッスンをよんだか忘れないように〜/このレッスンを読んだのは２度目でした。）
Thanks for the lesson. I have some questions.
What is the difference between するとしても したとしても ?
For example,
年内に新しい機種が出るとしても今の機種とそんなに違いはないだろう。
Does this sentence mean “a new model hasn’t/will or come(s) out yet”
年内に新しい機種が出たとしても今の機種とそんなに違いはないだろう。
and this sentence mean “a new model already has come out” ? if that is so, what is the difference when it comes to hypothetical situations (としても）? Is it interchangeable ?
Hi Kiw
Good question. I should have explained the nuance difference in the lessons.
You can sometime use the past tense and the present tense with としても
The mean the same but the nuance difference is
when you focus on the event itself, releasing a new model (the anticipation of a future event that hasn’t happened yet) you use 出る
when you focus on the state/situation (right) after they released a new model, you use 出た
Good afternoon Maggie. I have some questions that I would like you to answer.
1) In the sentence この問題が解けなかったら、罰ゲームが待っていますよ！, the verb 解けなかったら is derived from 解ける or解く? I’m having trouble figuring this out.
2) In the sentence もうお利口さんにしないとお仕置きしますよ。, what is the function of しない? I researched and I think it has the function of: to serve as; to act as; to work as; , but I’m not sure and would like confirmation.
Hello Matheus,
1) 解けなかったら is from 解ける (to be able to solve)
解ける is a potential form of 解く
問題が解ける/解けない (can solve/can’t solve)
問題を解く/解かない (involves one’s will)
If you use the verb form 解く, the sentence will be
この問題を解かなかったら 〜
2) That する/しない means “to (try) be/act/behave”
お利口さんにする = to be good/behave well
こんにちは先生。
This example sentence:
今日は、帰りは遅くなるよ
Can you explain the difference between this and just saying「今日は、帰りは遅いよ」?
こんにちは、Terry
A 帰りは遅いよ。
B 帰りは遅くなるよ
The translation could be the same in English but the difference is
A: It simply states that you are going to be home late tonight.
B: It indicates the process of becoming late. For example, if you have a lot of tasks to do, you might end up being late as a result of those circumstances.
Hmm, that’s subtle. どうもありがとうござあいます~
どういたしまして
Yes it may sound subtle.
It might be just easy to think
→ the basic idea of なる expresses the change and the result. A →B
For example you usually get to home around six. But you have many things to do and it will be late.
your regular time to go home (around six) A →do this and that →It will be late. B
みなさん、明けましておめでとうございます！
今年もよろしくおねがいします！
Happy New Year, everyone!
Happy New Year Maggie Sensei! Thanks for all you do for us!
I hope this is the year we all finally achieve our New Year’s resolutions! (Mine is learning Japanese…and then becoming a host for a kids TV show that teaches English! Dream big! XD)
Happy New Year, Douglas!
I hope all your dreams come true this year.
いっしょにがんばりましょう！ ٩(^‿^)۶
こんにちは先生！
How would you do “adjective clauses” to describe nouns? My gut is telling me this is wrong…
ex. People who like dogs
犬が好きな人
こんにちは、Terry
Yes, you can say 犬が好きな人
I hope you are 犬が好きな人 😆
もちろんですよ！
良いお年をお迎えください。
よかった 🐶❤️
Terryもどうぞよいお年をお迎えくださいね。
In “信号が赤から青に変わった,” shouldn’t it be “The traffic lights turned from RED to GREEN” and not “from GREEN to RED”? Just making sure I didn’t misunderstand.
Hello Douglas
Yes, you are right. “The traffic lights turned from RED to GREEN”
1) The following sentences are correct: 私は、ひどく残酷な決断を迫られました。 and あなたはすべてを見つけるでしょう：家畜、野生または固有種。
2) What is the function of 何 in the following sentence 脳の病気は何の前触れもなく起こることが多い。?
Hi Leandro
1) The first sentence is OK.
I am not sure what you are trying to see with あなたはすべてを見つけるでしょう：家畜、野生または固有種。
2) That 何の = noun means “any”
So the literal meaning is “without any warning/sign”
Good evening Maggie. I would like to clear up some doubts about the following sentences.
1) In the sentence 経験不足が相まって、就職は非常に困難だ。, 相まって was translated as due or because, but shouldn’t its meaning be coupled with or together? Why was it translated as due?
2) In the sentence 交渉が成立するという前提で話を進めます。, what is the function of the particle で in this sentence?
3) In the sentence ランサー源頼光は道徳心を以て、夏休みの風紀の乱れを監視する。, what is the function and meaning of を以て in this sentence?
4) Is the following sentence: それってすごく矛盾した状況じゃない？ correct? And why put した after 矛盾? And it shouldn’t be それら because the translation was: They’re really contradicting circumstances, aren’t they? ?
Hi Pedro
1) 相まって means “two or more elements interact, and as a result, it leads to some negative consequences.
So because of one reason which is not written in your sentence and 経験不足, it is difficult to get a job.
2) This で indicates the condition by which something is done
Ex. ~という条件で
3) 以て(or 以って⇨I think 以って is more common) means “with”
It indicates the method. Ex.誠意を以って対処します。
4) Yes. If you rephrase it in a little more formal way, ⇨それはとても矛盾している状況ではないですか？
I think the translation is “Isn’t it a very contradictory situation?”
こんばんはマギ一先生、
Does it sound weird to use different tenses in one sentence?
Ex. trying to say: We went to the movies and shopping [and stuff], now we’re going to eat dinner.
映画に見り行ったし、買うものしたし、晩ごはんを食べに行く。
Oops, meant 映画を見に行ったし
こんばんは、Terry
OK, let me correct your sentence to make it sound a little more natural.
映画を見に行ったし(Or 映画は見たし）、買い物もしたから、今から晩ごはんを食べに行こう。
What does the から mean there? “Because” or “from” doesn’t seem to match…? 答えでありがとうございます。
Oh to clarify, the から after 買い物した
Hello again, Terry
That から is a reason, so. (It implies the nuance “Since I have done things I wanted to do” + Now I am going to eat something)
You can replace し with から to emphasize the reason.
Since your original sentence may look like just listing three actions, it will be more clear to use から.
However you can just use し in casual conversation.
映画は見たし、買い物はしたし..(new sentence) ご飯でも食べに行こうかな。ご飯でも食べにいかない？
マギ一先生、
Would it be correct to use なんて sort of like “only”? As in demeaning something as lesser? Examples:
すみません、飲み物は水なんてがあるのです。
Sorry, I only have water to drink. (inferior compared to tea, coffee, etc for a guest)
安くて古いコンピュータなんてがあるから、ゲームをできないんだ。
I can’t play the game because I only have a cheap, old computer.
Is this correct sounding, or is there a better way to get that idea across?
Hi Terry
You don’t say 〜なんてがある
すみません、飲み物は水なんてがあるのです。
→You can say 水しかありません. If you want to add the nuance of demeaning the water,
水ぐらいしかありません。
安くて古いコンピュータなんてがあるから、ゲームをできないんだ。
→安くて古いコンピューターしかないから、ゲームができないんだ。
Oh, is that because なんて replaces particles or you wouldn’t say なんてある either?
Aaah, I had your しか lesson open in another tab but hadn’t read it yet ^^; ありがとうございます！
Right. You don’t say Noun+ なんてある in the meaning of “only have something”
Good. Please check my しか lesson. ☺️
先生こんにちは。
下の文の「上で」の使い方をちょっと解説していただけませんか？
＝＞’’そのような画像は各種報道やインターネット上で公開されていた。’’＜＝
その課には何処でも見つかりませんでした。
僕の理解では手段を表します。
こんにちは、ニクラブス
まず、その文書の”上”は「じょう」と読み、”on” という意味です。
インターネット上(じょう）で →on the Internet
の意味になります。
Good evening Maggie. I came across the following sentence: 俺が逆らうと、兄貴はよく脇をこしょばしてきました。
I had some doubts. Shouldn’t it be こしょばくして? Or is it okay to use it the way it was written in the sentence?
My other doubt is that I would like to know what the function of きました is in this sentence.
Hi Pedro
こしょばす is a dialect and it means くすぐる to tickle
So こしょばしてきました means くすぐってきました
And Vてくる/きます is used when some action is coming towards you.
Hi, thanks for all the good info.
Just wanted to point out a small oversight. (Sorry if it’s already been mentioned, I didn’t have time to read all the comments)
You write,
>>First make a past tense and delete た ( = ta) ・だ ( = da) and switch with ちゃう ( = chau) / ちゃった ( = chatta)<<
Since ちゃう is a contraction of 〜てしまう it would make sense to think of making the conjunctive form and delete the て/で instead of making the past tense.
Thus one can go from 食べてしまう to 食べちゃう and see the logic behind the contraction.
Hi Niwashikun
You are right. You can also make ちゃった form from te-form.
こんにちはマギー先生
「面白い話でした」と「面白かった話です」の違いは何でしょうか？
「面白かった話でした」も言えますか？
こんにちは、らわ！
元気でしたか？ 😀
「面白かった話でした」は、二つ過去形が入っているので「面白い話でした」 の方が、自然でよく使います。
「どれだけ高かったとしてもマギーに会えるなら行くべきだよ。」
ええ、行くならマギー先生と会える？？
いくら行きたいとしても、お金がない；ー；
(Perfect!!)
遊びにきて〜〜 😆
Thank you for all you do Maggie sensei! This has been a huge help for me as I am preparing for a school trip to japan in 2025!
Thank you very much!
Hi Auger
Thank you for your message.
I’m happy to hear this site has been helpful. Good luck preparing for your 2025 school trip.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Your website was brought to my attention from the Learn Japanese reddit and I love your website. I am a beginner and have a question.
On your “About Us” page you introduce yourself, but I noticed the use of へ was stated as “ye” for introducation. This is new to me as I learn grammar and other things about japanese.
If you have an article about the use of particles regarding this I’m sorry, so I was curious why it is “ye”. I’d like to understand better!
ありがとうございます！
Hi Opal
Thank you for your comment. And I am sorry.
I should have typed “e” instead of “ye” to avoid the confusion. I’ll fix it.
へ is pronounced as “e” when it is used to indicate the direction or destination of an action.
Ex. へや = heya = room
Ex. とうきょうへいきます = Toukyou e ikimasu.= I am going to Tokyo.
I guess I used “ye” in About Us and maybe in some of my old lessons to distinguish the hiragana え ( = e) .
I now stick to the romaji “e” for へ. It is much more common than “ye”.
There are two other particles that you pronounce differently.
は and を
は = ha →(particle for topic) You pronounce it wa
を = wo →(particle for object) You pronounce it “o” (I use the romaji “wo”)
Good evening Maggie. I would like to know if the following sentence is correct: 中世時代に、騎士道の訓練の第一段階として、騎士の従者をする若者.
Hi Pedro
Is it some kind of description? Then yes, it is correct.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I have a question :
I have seen this sentence: ごはんを食べたり、お茶を飲んだりしてもよかったです
What does てもよかったです mean here in this context ?
Thank you for your answer.
Best regards.
Léo
Hi Léo,
てもよかったです means “It was OK to do something”
So →It was OK to have a meal, drink tea and etc.
Good Maggie. I found the following sentence: 勇者や救世主だって世界のせいで闇堕ちすることだってあるのです. I would like to know if there should be が in place of the second だって or if the phrase is right.
Hi Mutuio
闇堕ちすることだってあるのです can be rephrased
闇堕ちすることがあるのです or 闇堕ちすることもあるのです
Hello Maggiesensei,
Thank you for the great lesson. I’m currently trying to translate Saori Hayamis Yume no Hate made, but I’m struggling with two lines and was hoping you could help me.
寂しい人ほど 優しさを持ち
優しい人ほど 強さを秘めている
Am I right in the assumption that this is a shortening for the ば～ほど〜 grammar point? So those two lines would translate to
The lonlier a person is, the more kindness they hold
The kinder a person is, the more strength they’re hiding
Thank you in advance.
Hi Liz
Yes, your interpretation is right. ☺️
Thank you very much!
🐶❤️
Good evening maggie. The following sentence makes sense: 魔獣と交わることで根源を模索する魔術師もいたのかどうか
I was in doubt after seeing this sentence because I don’t know if it should be かどうか or か at the end.
Hello Matheus,
I wouldn’t leave this sentence with どうか
いたのかどうか+ わからない/不明である
If you want to show your surprised feelings
いたのか… works.
If you meant “I wonder if there was a magician ~” then, you can say いたのだろうか.
Good evening Maggie. I came across a sentence and didn’t understand part of it. The sentence is as follows: 明治時代の終わりにかけて英語亡国論を唱える人たちがいた.
I didn’t understand the part: 英語亡国論. Can you explain this part to me?
When I put it on Google Translate, it was translated as: theory of the exile of the English language, but I don’t understand how it got to that translation.
Hi Thiago
英語 = English language
亡国 = collapse of a country →国がなくなる / 滅びる こと the country will perish/be ruined
論 = theory
the theory that the English language would lead to the collapse of the country.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
What is the purpose of って in this sentence?
雨上がりの空って綺麗ですよね
Thank you!
Hi ami,
That って is to bring up a topic. You use って instead of は (or というのは)
The same function of the example sentence
Ex. マギーって (→は)かわいいね。
Hello Maggie sensei,
You have the question: 日本に来たのはこれで何回目ですか？
Answer 1: これで３回目です。
It is a simple substitution Q: 何回目→A: ３回目, and this is how people talk, even at airport immigration, and in other languages. In other words, drop the topic/subject and substitute the question word with the answer.
Grammatically, would a more complete answer be:
A2: 日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。
How about
A3: 私の日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。
The reason why I ask is that I found this sentence on the internet:
私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3番目です。
Even with the minor change of subject (‘number of visits’ instead of ‘number of times’), would a Japanese person ever say something like this? Especially ‘私にとって’ seems to be an unnecessarily complicated answer to a simple question.
Thanks in advance,
Michael (different ‘Michael’ from the other person below)
Hi Michael
私の日本に来たのはこれで３回目です。→Not natural
It will be more natural to omit the subject in conversation but if you include the subject it will be
A: 私が日本に来たのはこれで3回目です。 not 私の〜
The sentence you found on the internet
私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3番目です。should be 3回目.
B: 私にとって日本への訪問はこれで3回目です
A and B are grammatically correct but as you said it is an unnecessarily complicated answer to a simple question.
Also you don’t repeat the same words when it is obvious what you are talking about.
So the most natural way to answer the question will be これで3回目です。
Are you planning to come to Japan again? ☺️
Thanks for the reply.
Yes, I will be going to Japan next month, for 6 weeks. This time, I will mainly visit Okayama-ken, Shikoku, and Nara-ken.
My vocabulary is still too small, and I don’t get enough practice speaking. However, I’m getting better at improvising, rather than staying in a safe zone of scripted dialog (questions and answers). Also, for practical purposes, a person really does not need to speak complex, grammatically complete sentences. When I go to a restaurant or hotel or train station or konbini etc., it is obvious why I am there. If you know the key words, that is often enough.
Most people realize that you can’t speak much of the local language, and they almost automatically simplify. And, if I go somewhere, such as restaurant, especially when it isn’t very busy the staff are are quick to give some guidance with procedures (how to use tablet to place order), and so on.
So, sometimes it is stressful and embarrassing, with all the mistakes I make, but it is still an adventure.
Great!
You have a great attitude. I can already tell that you’re going to have an amazing time in Japan. Six weeks in Okayama, Shikoku, and Nara will be fantastic. And if you ever encounter any problems, just drop me a line.
I hope your next adventure will be fulfilling.
:-) Thanks
Michael
🐶❤️❤️❤️
Thank you for the lesson! I have noticed a typo in these sentences:
* 始める & 始める = はじまる & はじめる = hajimeru & hajimaru
= Kaigi no nihiji ga kiettei shita.
Thank you Luna!!
I fixed them. ☺️
Good afternoon Maggie. I looked up the definition of 後半 and got 前後二つに分けた、あとのほうの半分。
I didn’t understand the 前後二つに分けた part. Can you explain each part to me?
Hi Mario
If it is talking about the story (books, movies, etc.) 前後二つに分けた divided into two parts, the first part and the second(later) part
Thank you for this helpful article!
There is a very small typo in the romanization of one of the examples. The kana is fine!
→* 楽しみ = たのしみ = tanoshimi = pleasure
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
= Raishuu no deeto ga tanoshimi ***ta*** → da
Hello Jesse
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. ありがとう！
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I had a question regarding the “determine” use of という in these sentences:
A.)冬に北海道に行ってみればどんなに寒いかということがわかるだろう。
If you go to Hokkaido in the winter, you will see how cold it is there.
B.)S子供に会えないということがどれだけ辛いかあなたにはわかりません。
You have no idea how hard it is not to be able to see your own child.
C.)できないとわかっていてもまずやってみるということが大切です。
Even if you know you can’t do it is important to at least try once.
a.) What does “determine” mean here?
b.) Could の be used in place of こと here? I know that often の can replace nouns, but I also know that というのは and ということは are different grammars. When can you use の in place of こと?
Because I heard these two kinds of sentences are equivalent:
彼がパーティーに来なかったということは知っている
彼がパーティーに来なかったというのは知っている
“I know that he didn’t come to the party”
Are there other examples where you can do this replacement?
As in, perhaps these two are these equivalent?:
まだ分からないということが嫌だ
まだ分からないというのが嫌だ
“I hate the fact that I don’t know yet”
Again, thank you so much, this is tricky grammar for me and helped a lot =)
Hi Silas
Good questions.
a.) What does “determine” mean here?
→I’m sorry. It is an old lesson but I think I meant “define”. Either way, let me revise it and add more explanation later.
Anyway, you use ということ attaching to a phrase and make the phrase into a noun.
b.) Could の be used in place of こと here?
→Yes, you can rephrase the sentences with の in the usage (1)
まだ分からないということが嫌だ OK
まだ分からないというのが嫌だ OK or simply 分からないのが嫌だ
By using という, it adds more explanatory tone.
かわいい犬といえば、マギー先生ですね！
PS, I think there is a typo in both these sentences:
Ex. 安いといえば、このジェケット、いくらだったと思う？
= やすいといえば、このジャケット、いくらだったおおもう？
Hi ルナ！
ありがとう〜❤️🐶
（I fixed the typo. Thank you!!)
Good night Maggie. Can you tell me if the following sentence sounds natural in Japanese: 聖女様が中傷や殲滅なんてする訳ない+Extras?
Hi Mutuio
I guess for a dramatic games or anime, yes. (or 聖女様が中傷したりや殲滅なんてする訳ない)
中傷 means “slander” (to damage someone’s reputation).
殲滅 annihilation (in other word 皆殺し）
Is that what you wanted to say?
Hello Maggie,
どうよ?
I’m trying to understand what she says here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g5jNuGxyz4
あんたみたいに用意周到な男が失敗するなんて**おにょウケる**んですけど
せっかく言い訳あるなら聞いてあげようってのに
“It’s so funny to me that a man as well-prepared as you would fail.
If you have an excuse, I’d listen to it.”
The word in **___** is not understandable at all to me. Is おにょける a slang used by young people? I know ウケるんです means “it’s funny” but おにょウケるんです ?
Thank you Sensei!
Hi Gaspatcher
Is it from ポケモン?
I think the character meant to say “鬼ウケル” but it came out おにょウケる” in a cute way.
鬼(original meaning is “demon”) is a slang word it means “very/extremely” like メチャ.
Ok I think that’s the case. I can’t follow kids slang, it’s too complicated haha!
☺️
Yes its from ポケモン. Sorry, I didn’t see your question.
OK 👍
It does sound kind of cute おにょウケる 😆
Hi, Maggie-Sensei!
When まで means “until ~ does something,” does the verb before まで always have to be in present tense regardless of whether the overall sentence is past tense?
For example, given
“He wandered the hills and plains until he reached Shagri-La.”
a. シャングリ・ラにたどり着くまで、野山をさまよった。
b. シャングリ・ラにたどり着いたまで、野山をさまよった。
which option is correct?
Hi Sora,
The verb before まで should be in present tense.
So
a. シャングリ・ラにたどり着くまで、野山をさまよった。 is correct and you don’t say 着いたまで
Good night Maggie. I found the following sentence: 特定の人種や民族を支持するという話ではありません。
I would like to understand the function of という話. I looked it up on a few sites and I still don’t understand.
Hi Luigi
The literal meaning of 〜という話 is “the story of ~”, quoting what comes before (民族を支持する）
But you would just translate it “about”
It is not (a story) about supporting specific races or ethnicities.
Thanks
Hello Maggie-sensei,
How are you? Not much a question this time, but rather to be sure of something:
「頑張ってはいるんだが」
Is the particle は used to emphasize 頑張って in 頑張っている? (1)
Or is it an expression 頑張ってはいる like 頑張って入る? (2)
I think it’s more (1) but I wanted to be sure. Does that mean we can add は whenever we want if we want to emphasize a particular word?
Here is the sentence in its context:
[A] 分かってくれるよね？
[B] ええっと……
[B] それが……完璧に理解するのは難しいんだ……
[B] 頑張ってはいるんだが
Thank you Sensei!
Hello Gaspatcher
元気？
First this (て）いる is a progressive form and it indicates what someone has been or is doing.
work hard/try hard 頑張る → (have been/to be) working hard/trying hard 頑張っている
You add は between Vて and いる to emphasize the contrast. Vて+は+いる
So that は actually emphasizes “頑張っている”
A) 頑張っているんだが （= 頑張っているのだが・頑張っているのだけれども) + contrasting outcome/contradictory outcome
→B ) (add は） 頑張ってはいるんだが （= 頑張ってはいるのだが/頑張ってはいるのだけれども）+ contrasting outcome/contradictory outcome
B) shows the contrast between the fact 頑張っている and outcome more.
Another example:
Ex. がんばらなくてはいけないとわかっているけれどもできない = I know I have to work hard but I can’t.
→がんばらなくてはいけないとわかってはいるけれどもできない
Ex. A: 来年、日本に行きますか？ = Are you going to Japan next year?
B: 考えてはいるのですが.. = Yeah, I have been thinking about it (but..)
Thank you Maggie.
おかげさまで!
I think your comment is cut in half haha.
But yeah, I had this intuition it was a は for emphasizing!
Vて+は+いる: I’ve never seen this structure before (I think). So you can put a は between the てverb and いる, good to know!
Thank you Sensei!
Hi Gaspatcher.
ごめんなさい。You are right. My previous comment was cut in half.
Yes, Vて+は+いる is a very common expression especially when you make an excuse like my example sentence that I added in my previous message. 😆
Thank you, your explanations are always clear, Sensei!
So in general, we see this structure because of a contrasting outcome
Vて+は+いる+んだが+……
+は +んだけれども+……
+は +のですが+……
+は +のですけれども+……
+は +けれども+……
Yes, Vては+ いるのですが(formal) /いるのですけれども(polite) / いるのですが/いるけれども(casual) /いるんだけれども (casual)
Or sometimes you finish the sentence Vてはいます. In this case you can tell there is some kind of problem.
Ex. A: 日本語の勉強していないの？
B: やってはいます。
In this case, the speaker
FYI The similar expression is
VことはVっています/いる （が・けれども/のですが..）
頑張ることは頑張っているのですが = I do try hard but ~
Link is here
先生、ありがとう！
いいえ、お役に立てたらうれしいです☺️
hello Maggie Sensei…
Thank you for everything…
I think there is a problem in this sentence… (but maybe I’m wrong…)
明日、私は出かけられません。
あした、わたしはとどくのででかけられません。
= Ashita watashi wa dekkakeraremasen.
Why this “todoku no” in kana?
sorry for my broken english… I’m from Belgium and I speak french, but I try to learn Japanese!!! Thank you for all that you learn to me!!!
Bonjour Blue
Thank you for spotting the mistake.
Originally I wrote a sentence, 明日、私は<荷物が届くので>出かけられません。 but I changed my mind and made it easier deleting 荷物が届くので part. Apparently I forgot to erase とどくので.
J’espère que vous comprenez mon explication.
Boa tarde Maggie. eu gostaria de saber a função de か (depois de なんたる) nesta frase: いいでしょう。齢を重ねた私が王とはなんたるかあなた達に指導してさしあげましょう。
Bom dia Pedro
か significa “que”
王とはなにか →(mais formal)王とはなんたるか = que um rei é
(I hope my Portuguese makes sense 😆）
Related lesson ~か/かどうか Click here
Thanks for the answer Maggie, but I thought the “what” was the function of なんたる, because when I looked it up, I found that なんたる means What (something) is like.
If I understood your lesson correctly, the function of か in this sentence would be to make the sentence have an interrogative tone, like: What is a king is like?
OK, I will try answering you in English.
Yes, なんたる means “what” ( I thought that what I meant by “que” in my previous message. 😅) and it has mainly two ways of using.
１） What ~! (interjection/exclamatory words) : Expressing one’s emotion
The same as なんて but it is more formal
なんてことだ = It’s unbelievable /Oh My God!! (Expressing one’s surprise)
→なんたることか！
2)The one you asked me is “what” as a relative pronoun
Nounはなんたるか = What ~ is / What ~ means
王とはなんであるか（ということ）を指導する
To teach what the king is (or what the king is supposed to be)
礼儀とはなんたるかを教えてあげなくてはいけない。
= We have to teach them what the manner is.
Hello Maggie-sensei ^^
I’d like to ask, how would you rate the politeness between (for example) やめないか vs. やめて? Or are they used in different contexts? Thank you!
Hello Ai
やめないか has two meanings.
1) Stop it! (Command form. Telling someone to stop in a strong way expressing one’s angry feelings.): Male speech/pretty rough
Compare to やめて, it sounds much stronger.
2) Why don’t we stop? : Male speech/rough
So て is much more polite than やめないか.
I see, I was under the impression that ~ないか was softer but I wasn’t sure, glad that I decided to ask. Thank you for the answer! ^^
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Hello, Maggie-sensei. How are you?
My question is about: ‘これは何を買えば読めるのでしょうか?’
I believe it roughly translates to: ‘What should I buy so I can read this?’
I know ‘えば’ can mean ‘if’ or ‘when,’ , but it doesn’t seem to fit those translations. I think it may be used to express the idea of ‘should.’ Perhaps it’s a shortened form of ‘買えばいい’, but I’m not sure.
Thank you in advance.
Hello luno. I’m good. Lunoも元気？
何を買えば is a condition for the following sentence 読める to be able to read
What should I buy to (in order to) read this?
Hello Maggie (again),
I’m trying to understand this sentence but it’s all mixed up in my head (I mean I understand the meaning but I couldn’t rewrite this because I don’t understand the grammar)
「毎日お前と会えることが十分に価値のあることだ」
毎日お前と会えることが : Seeing you everyday…
Until here it’s okay… and after that it’s the circus, all the words and particles are mixed up!
十分に価値のある : I thought the expression was 価値は十分にある
〜のある : what is 〜のある? Is it the same as 〜がある? 価値 is a noun here, so の can’t be a nominalizer
あること : why is it あること and not ことある? or ことがある?
Maybe it’s just some expressions or vocabulary I lack. Thank you again Sensei!
おはよう、Gaspatcher
When you modify a noun you can use の as a topic marker as well.
Gaspatcherは漫画を読んだ。
When you talk about the manga which Gaspatcher read, you can say
The manga that Gaspacher read ⬇️
Gaspatcherが読んだ漫画 （X Not “Gaspatcherは読んだ漫画”）
or
Gaspatcherの読んだ漫画
The same idea works for your question.
十分価値がある
When you add こと, you can say either
十分に価値があること
or use の
十分に価値のあること
I have a lesson how to modify a noun. Link is here.
https://maggiesensei.com/2017/02/04/how-to-modify-a-noun-in-japanese/
Thank you!
Your explanations are always well written and clear for my level!
You’re the best sensei!
さすが、マギー先生！
You’re too kind.❤️
Hello Maggie, me again (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)
My question is about the よう (hence the lesson) in this sentence:
「文芸部に入部するようお前が説得してくれて本当に良かったと思ってるんだ」
“I’m really happy that you convinced me to join the club.”
Your lesson mentions the use of よう〜 (ような or ように) but not よう alone. I thought maybe it was some kind of contraction in casual speech but even the notion of similarity (as, like) of よう does not appear here is not obvious to me. “You convinced me like to join the club” makes no sense. So what is the purpose of よう here?
ありがとう!!!
Hi Gaspatcher
This よう belongs to the usage
→the other usages of よう ( = you) besides the meaning of “as/like”
(From my lesson)
1) ように ( = youni) = to do something ~ in order to do ~ / so that ~ / in such a way ~
(to intend to make things work as you hope)
★verb (→the result you hope, your goal/non-volitional verb/ verb potential form ) ように ( = youni) + verb (what to do/what you did/ to hope, to wish)
⬇️
Your sentence 文芸部に入部するよう means “to join the literary club” with the purpose or intention of doing so. It describes the result or goal that “you” (the listener or someone mentioned in the conversation) hoped or intended to achieve thinking of the speaker.
And, Yes, in casual conversation, you can omit に and just say よう in this usage.
****
And thank you so much for the ☕️s!! ❤️
No problem, thank you for helping me improving Sensei!
ありがとう！ 🐶❤️❤️❤️
Hi sensei,
This link does not work anymore https://twitter.com/MaggieSensei
Do you know anyway to view your tweets without [log in to twitter?]
When I search google I can only see your old tweets
いつも ども ありがとう。
Hi soleyman
I checked it myself with other browser. You are right. Unless you don’t log in, you can’t see other people’s tweets.
(FYI Patreon ありがとうx 10 tier members can get Monthly Tweets (PDF file with all my tweets lessons with an audio file every month.)
Hello Maggie,
Sorry for spamming, I’m on a rampage of questions haha!
You said in your lesson “to give a reason” is のせいで but here it’s なせいで
でもわたしが自分勝手なせいで……
どれほど酷い人間なのかを見せてしまった
I noticed several times that な is replacing の. Is it the same case here? When do I know when to use な or の after a noun?
Thank you Maggie!
Hello Gaspatcher
Good question. I have been thinking about making more detailed lesson on せいで and おかげで.
I mainly introduced the usage of Noun + の + せいで in this lesson.
But you can use せいで with verbs and adjectives as well.
verb (present/past tense, etc.) + せいで
i-adjective + せいで （→past tense i-adjective 〜かった＋せいで）
na-adjective + せいで (→past tense na-adjective + だったせいで）
noun + の + せいで (→past tense noun + だったせいで）
自分勝手/勝手 is actually na-adjective 自分勝手な（人・人間）
→自分勝手なせいで
Oh thank you! I thought 自分勝手 was a noun! Makes more sense now!
Thank you!
Anytime! ☺️
Hello Maggie,
How are you doing? I don’t know how is your summer in Japan but here in Europe, it’s a burning hell! I would like to go to Sweden for some days to get some fresh air! It’s not much, but I noticed lately I’m reading faster (I can “cut” the words faster in-live instead of reading the whole line then process to cut each word to have the sentence makes sense), so I wanted to share that with you (even though this is a little improvement)
Now question time to my sensei. In the sentence 「全部俺に教えてくれれば！」, I understand he says “If only you told me everything” but in the official translation he says “All you had to do was tell me!”
I understand sometimes the translation adapts to the language, but I would like to know the literal translation of the Japanese version.
To give you some context,
お前の毎日が少しでも良くなるように、どんな小さな努力でもしたのに！
そのための友達だろ！
全部俺に教えてくれれば！
Thank you Maggie!
Hi Gaspatcher
First of all, I am happy to hear that you can read faster now. It is an important skill to understand the context without reading every single word.
It has been very hot in Japan, too.Going to Sweden sounds like a great idea.
The translation is correct.
If only you told me everything/All you had to do was tell me!
Or you can say “If you had told me everything.”
I think you know but the speaker added the sentence last but 全部俺に教えてくれれば is a condition
The right order is ~れば〜のに
So let me rephrase it for you to see the structure better.
全部俺に教えてくれればお前の毎日が少しでも良くなるように、どんな小さな努力でもしたのに！
If you had told me everything, I would have made even a small effort to make your everyday life a little better!
Thank you so much! Makes more sense now! I didn’t understand why there was a condition and he stops like that… With the restructuration, it’s much more understandable. Is this order natural when speaking? Or is it because he speaks out words without structuring them before, but the listener can still understand (not me)
My original question actually was for the 全部. Was it the subject All (you had to do) or the object (tell everything). It seems both are acceptable, so again, we can understand this sentence in many ways, daro?
If only you told me everything! (object) 全部(を)?
All you had to do was tell me! (subject) 全部(は)?
Maybe I’m too focused on the details, but that kind of stuff bothers me hahaha!
1) Is this order natural when speaking?
Using the inversion method allows for changing the order of sentences, adding important information at the end to leave a stronger impression. You usually use this method in writing （especially lyrics)
In spoken language, people use the inversion method not just to create an impact but also when they just add something important.
2) 全部 is an object. 全部 ( = 全てのことを)教えてくれれば
Thank youuuu!
You’re welcome! ☺️
Hello Maggie,
I couldn’t find a lesson about that but what does the 分 mean after a verb?
なんで他の人が頑張った分をわたしが無駄遣いしてしまうの？
Is it to show some extent or something like that?
Also, I wrote a question in the 〜よう lesson (https://maggiesensei.com/2012/04/03/request-lesson-%E3%82%88%E3%81%86you/) but I’m not sure if it has been approved.
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Hi again, Gaspatcher
This 分 indicate the “portion” or “share” of effort that other people have put in.
Hi again, Gaspatcher
This 分 indicate the “portion” or “share” of effort that other people have put in. z
The literal translation is “Why do I end up wasting the portion of effort that other people have put in?” which means, “Why do I end up wasting other people’s efforts?”
Thank you Maggie! You’re always so kind!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello Maggie sensei. Your lessons are amazing, you put so much work into them!
As a teacher of English, I totally agree that textbooks are full of boring grammar rules. Making a lesson interesting is what all schools around the world should do. I wonder when they will realise and change methods? I’m so glad your site exists! It helped me a lot in the past and it’s helping me now too. THANK YOU for everything!! ^__^
Hi madridimi
Thank you so much for your comment. Your kind words made my day. I am sure you are an amazing English teacher. Rest assured, I will do my best to keep making more Japanese lessons that will help you in your journey to learn Japanese.
Love,
Maggie
Hello Maggie,
I have a really hard time to understand the structure of this sentence:
「完璧に無価値なわたしがやるようなことなんて何もないもん」
I understand that:
– 完璧に is an adverb with に modifying a な-adjective: perfectly
– 無価値な is a noun becoming an adjective with the な-particle: worthlessness -> worthless
– やるようなことなんて何もない: ような modifies ことなんて何もない with なんて emphasizing the negative sentence
– もん gives a childish way of expressing her feelings
So I see many different translations, which is the correct one:
“There’s absolutely nothing to do, for someone as perfectly worthless as me.”
“There’s absolutely nothing, someone as perfectly worthless as me, could do.”
“There’s absolutely no way there’s anything someone as perfectly worthless as I am could do, right?”
If you need context, she says before
「なんで毎朝学校に遅刻してるか分かる？」- Do you know why I’m (always) late to school every morning?
「いつも、ベッドから起き上がる理由を見つけられないから」- Because, every time, I can’t find a reason to get out of bed.
「完璧に無価値なわたしがやるようなことなんて何もないもん」- ???
Thank you sensei!
Hi, Gaspatcher
I think the first one is the closest translation for the sentence.
If you interpret やること as something you could do then the second translation works too.
Thank you Maggie <3
So that was my main problem, the やる can be applied either to the "nothing", or to the "I"? "nothing to do" "nothing I can do"
So does that mean this sentence is ambiguous so we can understand both meanings?
The nuance difference is
やることがない can be translated “There is nothing to do” , “There is nothing I could do.” , “There is nothing I want to do” ,etc.
Since the subject has a description, 完璧に無価値な, so judging from the context, I think “There is nothing I could do.” may sound more natural.
Good afternoon Maggie. I would like to know the meaning of やろ in the following sentence: これ絶対今年のfesでやる気やろと思ってたのに……ｗ
Is this an expression attached to やる気 or does it have a standalone meaning?
Hi Mario,
やろ is a very casual speech and it is originally from Kansai dialect.
It means だろう
やる気やろと思ってた ←やる気(なん)だろうと思っていたのに
おはようMaggie Sensei, お久しぶりですよ!
I’m so happy to see your lessons are still on the first page when I have a question related to Japanese!
My question is about the particle は and を. In a visual novel, a character is asking:
今日モニカの手伝いはしないのかよ？
I saw that to say “to help ~” it’s more 手伝いをする and not 手伝いはする. What is the difference between both? Is it because we just want to say 手伝いする with は emphasizing 手伝い?
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Hi Gaspatcher
手伝いをする 手伝い (help) + を (=object marker) + する ( = to do ) = to help
You can also just say 手伝う
手伝いはする As you say you use は has a couple of functions, topic, showing the contrast, emphasizing what comes before.
It depends on the context but from just that sentence, it could be just bringing up a topic.
(I think you wrote the same message twice. I erased one of them.)
It depends on the context but from just that sentence, it could be just bringing up a topic. > OK makes sense, because the speaker wants to confirm what she’s doing today. “Aren’t you going to help Monika today?”, maybe that’s why は is used here, to introduce the new topic. What was said before was:
でも、お前はどうなんだよ
今日モニカの手伝いはしないのかよ？
(I think you wrote the same message twice. I erased one of them.) > Yeah I wanted to delete it myself, but I couldn’t, thank you!
OK, yes, then it is は to bring up a topic. ☺️
I’m not sure if this is the same use of でいい, but I have a big problem with sentences like this one:
ここ万博会場でいいんですよね？
Context: a man looking for the world fair venue finds himself in an odd place, so he’s trying to make sure. I think this should mean “Are you sure this is the world fair venue?” or “This is the world fair venue, right?”, but I can’t understand why.
I’m guessing there’s a は omitted here: “ここは万博会場…”, so according to this lesson, shouldn’t it mean “It’s fine for this place to be the world fair venue, isn’t it?” ?
Couldn’t it just be “ここは万博会場ですよね？”
I understand how でいい works, when it follows a simple noun (like in this lesson’s examples) or it’s a part of a verb (～ていい/～でいい), but I guess here it follows an “A is B” sentence and I can’t wrap my head around it.
Hi Shin
Ah OK. The usage of でいい in this lesson is mainly to express one’s preference.
でいい in your example sentence ここ万博会場でいいんですよね？ is used when you confirm something checking something is OK/right/correct.
You can rephrase it ここは、万博会場ということでいいですか？ ( = 合っていますか？ )
The literal translation “Is it right that this place is Expo site? ” →Is this Expo site, right? Am I correct?”
Now it all makes perfect sense.
It’s very hard to find something about this, because if you try to look up “でいい”, all you get are preferences and asking for permission, so your reply was a huge help.
Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei!
You’re very welcome, Shin!❤️
今日の夕飯まあまあだったね。。。まあ、次はもっとおいしくしよう。
PS, you forgot a word in this sentence:
= I want to a job like that.
何を作ったのかな〜 😃
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. ありがとう！
Hi Maggie-sensei! I’d like to know why “chuu” in 今年中に新しい車を買いたい。you wrote it as “juu”.
I’m a little confused.
Arigatou gozaimasu!
Hi Jennifer
Good question. You change the way you read 中 depending on the word.
今年中 = ことしじゅう = kotoshijuu
明日中 = あしたじゅう = ashitajuu /あすじゅう = asujuu
***
一日中 = いちにちじゅう = ichinenjuu
一年中 = いちねんじゅう = ichinennuu
but you read ちゅう = chuu in the following words.
今月中 = こんげつちゅう = kongetsuchuu
今週中 = こんしゅうちゅう = konshuuchuu
***
午前中 =ごぜんちゅう = gozenchuu
Hi Sensei! Your site have always been my main source. I wonder if you already made a lesson about としても and としたって 😊?
Hello Mai
I explained the usage of としても in my として lesson. Link is here.
However, I haven’t made the lesson on the usage of としても・としたって of hypothetical (in the meaning of “even if”) yet. Maybe I should add it to a request lesson.
Thank you so much! I appreciate it, and i’m not in a rush so please take as much time as you need😊🤍
🐶❤️❤️
Hello Mai
It took me a long time but I finally made a lesson on としても/としたって
The link is here.
Good afternoon Maggie. I would like you to translate the following sentence: 間隔が狭いところは人が集まるのを避けるべきです。
I translate as: You should avoid gathering people when the gap is narrow. But I’m not sure if it’s right.
Hi Mario
I wonder what kind of place they are talking about with 間隔が狭い in the context but you should change the subject. Not “you” but “people”. Your translation means “人を集める”
People should avoid gathering in a narrow (spaced) area.
a few days ago I left a comment in the discussion dedicated to hazu (maybe my comment got lost because I didn’t get the answer, so I’ll rewrite it here if I don’t disturb)
Is the following sentence correct? Xのものだったはずの帽子…
why instead of はずだった is written だったはず ? I’m confused
—–
but there is some problem with the blog? I can’t send comments normally…the error message often comes out
Hi floccio
I’m so sorry that I haven’t answered your question. I remembered that I saw your message but it slipped my mind while answering to other person’s question.
I wonder why you get the error message often. 🤔
(If you leave a comment for the first time, I have to approve it before it appears on the blog. So until I approve your comment, you won’t see it. Even if it’s your second time commenting, but you use a different email address, I still need to approve it before it becomes visible.)
Anyway, let me answer your question here.
X のものだったはずの帽子 = the hat which was supposed to belong to X
I guess you can use はずだった if you finish the sentence with it.
それはXの帽子のはずだった。
It was supposed to be X’s hat.
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and I don’t understand a part of it.
The sentence is as follows: どんな理由からにしろ何も言わずに仕事を辞めるのは無責任すぎる。
I don’t understand the following part: どんな理由からにしろ. Can you explain each part of that part?
Hi Patrick
Sure. First ~にしろ means にしても →(more conversational) でも (even though/even if/regardless )
どんな理由からにしろ →どんな理由でも for whatever reason
Thanks for the reply Maggie. But what about the から? Does it have a function or do you think it was a mistake and that I should remove it?
~という理由から仕事を辞めた
Since 理由 already has a meaning of “reason”, it may look redundant but から indicates a reason.
You can also say ~という理由で仕事を辞めた
And if you want to rephrase it with にしろ
どんな理由にしろ〜 as well.
Hello maggie sensei,
Thank you as always.
I have a question
How do you say “risky choice in Japanese”
There are some option I have thought as below
1. 際どい選択肢
２．危険な選択肢
３．リスクがある選択肢
４．危うい選択肢
Or do you have any other idea to answer the question?
Hi Nanpa
They are all good but I would change 4 to 危ない
And you say 選択肢 when you have options. You can just say 選択.
Hi Nanpa
They are all good but I would change 4 to 危ない
And you say 選択肢 when you have options. You can just say 選択.
(Or if you are talking about decision 決断)
こんにちは、マギー先生!
単語の質問があります。(時々、辞書が全然役に立たないなぁ^^;）
__ “To have a cow” is an expression that means “to become very angry.”
上の文の “expression” は日本語で何と言うんですか？
「表現」はちょっと違うなぁって思います。「言い回し」や「慣用句」が合っていると思いますが、確信はありません。
マギー先生はどう思いますか？
いつもありがとうございます。
こんにちは、Sora!
どれでも大丈夫です。
もとの英語が”expression”だから「表現」でもいいと思います。
Ex. 〜という表現があります。
Ex. 〜という表現の意味は〜です。
不自然ではありません。表現の代わりに「言い回し」も使います。
元の英語とは少し違いますが、
もし idiomという言い方にするならば慣用句
to have a cowはことわざではないのでこの場合は使いませんが、proverbならば諺（ことわざ）を使います。
ありがとうございました！
could i ask a question?
Is the following sentence correct? Xのものだったはずの帽子…
why instead of はずだった is written だったはず ?
I’m confused
hello sensei, i found your grammar lesson on internet , and i have 1 question related to this blog post
Hope you can explains to me what does this character mean ? いやー、乗ってきた。
Context: MC is eating lunch at school together with his big sisters, at their class (they went to a same school, but his big sisters are 1 year older than him). Both of them want to feed MC with the side dishes from their bento box.
Note: the 3rd big sister of MC is a class rep with serious + tsundere personality, while the 4th one is mischievous (like to tease other people)
彰吾 (MC)「あ、あーん……むぐっ」
三空 (3rd Big sister)「……ど、どうかしら」
彰吾「はむ……むぐっ……うん。そりゃもう……三空ねぇの卵焼きは絶品だよ」
三空「そ、そう。それなら良かったわ。よく噛んで食べなさい？」
詩桜 (4th Big sister)「んっふふー、みーちゃん嬉しそうな顔しちゃって」
三空「何をニヤニヤしてるのよ。別にいいでしょう？」
詩桜「やっぱみーちゃんも、したかったんじゃん」
三空「だ、だったらどうだって言うの」
女子生徒Ｃ「へぇー、三空ちゃんも弟さんの前だとあんな感じなんだ」
女子生徒Ｄ「ねっ、結構可愛いよね」
三空「～～っ！」
詩桜「くふふっ、赤くなってる。いやー、たーのしいねぇ？」
三空「人をからかって楽しむんじゃありません！ もう！」
詩桜「いやー、乗ってきた。次は、これ行ってみよう、あーん」(>> I don’t understand this part)
彰吾「えっ？ は……んむっ！」
三空「彰吾くん、これも食べなさい。ほら」
彰吾「三空ねぇ……あっ、んむっ……」
結局、交互におかずを差し出され、僕はお腹いっぱいにお昼を過ごした。
Hello zeroh4nter
In this case, 詩桜 has started to enjoy the way 三空 reacts. But I would just translate it as “This is getting better!” or something.
I watched a video by Miku Real Japanese, but i am still a bit confused on the difference between “Mitaina” and “ttekanji” (and “mitainakanji”). She Said they are interchangeable, except you can use “ttekanji” to quotes what you just said, similar to “she was like…”in English. Could you maybe simply the differences and nuances of “mitaina”, “ttekanji”, and “Mitainakanji”?
Are you talking about the usage when you finish the sentence with みたいな/ って感じ/みたいな感じ？
They are all very conversational and not much difference.
But let me give you one super conversational example.
For example when you express your opinion, 「それは違うな」That is not true, That is wrong
A) それは違うなって感じ
B) それは違うなみたいな…
C) それは違うなみたいな感じ
They are all ambiguous expressions but the level of ambiguousness is
B>C>A
That means みたいな is a softer way to express one’s opinion because you leave the sentence unfinished.
C is a kind of combination of A and B
But over all, it depends on the context and the speaker’s conversational habit.
Hey Maggie Sensei,
I was in the midst of translating Yotsuba! and came across this sentence
“いつものこ事だから心配しなくても…”
The translation seems to be “This always happens, you don’t have to worry.” My question is, does it still directly translate to “even if you don’t worry,” or is the “いい” after implied and is this form common?
Thank you.
Hello Norbu
It is pretty common to leave the sentence unfinished when you avoid straightforward expression or when it is something obvious.
The whole sentence should be
いつものことだから心配しなくても（いいよ)
So you are right. They omitted the last part, いい (いいよ） and the translation is correct.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you very much as always.
I have a question about the verb tetsudau 手伝う.
If I want to say: Thank you very much helping me. I need to make sure to add -kurete.
手 て 伝 つだ ってくれてありがとう ございます.
Or another example:
Thank you for teaching me Japanese.
日本語を教えてくれてありがとう.
But if I was talking to someone about my husband and want to say “My husband helps me a lot with the chores around the house.”
Or
“My husband tries to help me and teach me Japanese when he has time.”
How do I construct these sentences and do I still need to add kureru?
Thank you so much.
Hi Mini House
You can express your appreciation with くれる
So if you meant to say your husband did something “for you”, you use くれる
“My husband helps me a lot with the chores around the house.”
→主人が家事をよく手伝ってくれる
“My husband tries to help me and teach me Japanese when he has time.”
主人が時間がある時は、手伝ってくれるし、日本語を教えてくれる
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and didn’t understand a part of it. The sentence is as follows: 今度の台風では最悪の事態は避けられたにしても、被害は甚大だ。
I didn’t understand the role of the で particle in this sentence.
Hi Satorou
で in that sentence means “in” (in this typhoon)
By attaching は, you show the contrast. We could avoid the worst case in this typhoon (but maybe not in other typhoons (in the past or in the future)
Hello,
I’m trying to say “Even though I’ve studied for so long, I’m still not good at all.” Which one of these, if any, would be correct?
1) こんな長い間を勉強をした対してに全く上手くならない。
2) こんな長い間を勉強をしたのに対して全く上手くならない。
Thank you.
Hi Mila,
In that case it will be more natural just to use のに
こんなに長い間、勉強したのに全く上手にならない。
（ 長い間”を”→長い間）
For example if you compare two people and show the contrast, you can use 対して
Aさんは長い間勉強したのに対してAさんは全く勉強していなかった。
While A has been studying for a long time, A hasn’t studied at all.
Thank you very much, I understood.
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Hello Maggie!
Your lessons are great as always, but I have a question about のに in the meaning of “would have… / could have…”
Does the verb have to be in the casual (た) form of past tense or I can also use the polite form (い)ました+のに?
For example:
日本にいたら、チケットの数枚を買いましたのに。
I think it would be better to point it out in the article, it might help someone else.
Hello Bogdan
Ah good question.
You can use ました+ のに in formal conversation when you tell someone that you could have done something.
言っていただければチケットを買いましたのに。
If you have told me, I could have bought a ticket for you.
I guess you can say 日本にいたら、チケットの数枚を買いましたのに。 for your own regret but
日本にいたらチケットを数枚買ったのですが… might sound more natural.
Got it, thank you ^^
どういたしまして ☺️
Hi Maggie-sensei.
Sorry to bother you but I think there might be a problem with the comments on your website. For example, I left a comment on your latest lesson 2 days ago but I do not see my comment. I know that you replied to it because it said so in the “Recent comments” section but when I look I don’t see your reply either. When I look at Maggie’s Room, the latest post I can see is Mini House on May 19, but I know someone else made a post since then but I can’t see it either.
It had been the case for a few weeks now. I checked on a different computer and on my phone and I can’t see it either. I’m wondering if something happened? I’m not sure if this message will be posted once I press submit or if I will see your reply but I wanted to let you know in case you know what is happening.
Hello Luna
Thank you for informing me about the commenting issues. It appears that there may be a glitch of some sort. The site has experienced some problems in the past few months, so it could be related to that. I apologize for any inconvenience caused. I hope you can read this comment.
***
Update:
I tried something. Your comment should appear now. Let me know if it doesn’t.
I can see all the comments now! You fixed it!
Thank you! :)
やった〜！！(*^^*)
Thank YOU for telling me about the comments, too!!
日本語をもっと知りたいからには毎日勉強します。だからこそ、マギー先生のサイトに来ます。
このレッスンの長さからして、書くのは時間がかかったでしょうか。そうだったら、よく休んでくださいね。
ありがとう Luna!!❤️
はい、レッスンを作るのに時間がかかったからこそみなさんに最後まで読んでもらいたいです。☺️
Hello maggie sensei.
Please can you tell me the difference between nichi and hi as i saw they can both mean “day”?thank you
Hello Yenicall
OK,
にち (= nichi) is a counter for days
From 2 ~ 10 days you use the special counter (2 days = ふつか, 3 days みっか = mikka, etc) but after 11 days, you say number + にち ( = nichi)
11にち ( 11 days)
12にち ( 12 days)
19にち ( 10 days)
ひ (= hi) is used to refer to a day
It is a nice day today
今日はいい日です。
= きょうはいいひです。
= Kyou wa ii hi desu.
(You can’t say にち= nichi)
what is there are living things in an inanimate object? like if there are people on a cover of a magazine or animals in a photo. would you use いる or ある or some other verb?
Hi coco,
Good question. You use いる for the people or animals in the pictures as well.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you for all your wonderful lessons as always.
I am struggling with a few phrases and jut wanted to check if they sound correct and natural in Japanese?
The more Japanese I study, the more confused I get.
日本語勉強すればするほど、わからなくなる。
Is your baby sleeping well?
赤ちゃんよく寝ますか？
Our little baby really does not like wearing his shoes.
あかちゃんわほんとに靴がはいるきらいいです。
I guess all children develop differently.
子どものはそれぞれは立つ違うと思います。
Hello Mini House
１）日本語勉強すればするほど、わからなくなる。
Missing a particle after 日本語
Two possibilities
日本語を (object marker) or if it is a topic 日本語は
２）赤ちゃんよく寝ますか？
For conversation, you can say that. For writing add a particle
→赤ちゃんは、よく寝ますか？
3) 〜靴をはくのがきらいです。
4) 子供の成長のしかたはみな違うと思います。
文法を学びたいのなら、マギー先生のサイトがいい！マギー先生じゃなきゃダメです。
外のサイトでも必要ない。
こんな感じ？
こんにちは Luna
文法を学びたいのなら、マギー先生のサイトがいい！マギー先生じゃなきゃダメです。→完璧！ 👏 （あと、「文法を学ぶなら〜」とも言えますよ。）
外のサイトでも必要ない。→他のサイトなんて必要ない。
うれしい文章ありがとう😆
Maggie-sensei,
いつもありがとうございます。
Is this sentence correct? I want to say: My name is House. I am very sorry I am late. I am here to pick up my daughter.
こんにちは。ハウスともうします。遅くなりました、申し訳ありません。娘大迎欲しいです。
And also, how do I say: “I would like to pick up my daughter earlier today at 1 PM.”
Thank you very much.
Hi Mini
元気でしたか？
OK, let me help you.
こんにちは。ハウスともうします。遅くなりました、申し訳ありません。娘大迎欲しいです。
→こんにちは、ハウスともうします。遅くなって申し訳ありません。娘を迎（むか）えにきました。
I would like to pick up my daughter earlier today at 1 PM.”
→今日は、早めに１時に娘を迎えに行きたいのですが。
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to my questions, Maggie-sensei.
That helped a lot – I very much appreciate it – thank you!
You’re very welcome ❤️
Hello maggie sensei,
Can you please tell me how the “masen ka” form used to make invitations should be translate? I get a little bit confused. For exemple in the following sentence: bangohan o tabemasen ka? I have seen some explanations telling it can be translated as “won’t you eat?” And some instead translating it as ” would you like to eat?”. What is the correct translation?
Also what is the différence between “masen ka” and “mashou ka”? Thanks in advance
Hi Yenicall
I already answered your question. Please check your previous comment.
何度もコメントを乗せたけど自分のコメントが見えないんです。
見えますか？？これ？？？
おかしいですね。コメントが出ないみたいなのでここに元の文章と私の返事をポストし直しますね。
マギー先生、こんばんは、こんばんは＼(^o^)／
いつも役に立つレッスンを作ってくださりありがとうございます。
１つ質問させてください!
彼女は料理ができないどころか卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
どうして『料理ができるどころか』ではないの？
英語訳は being able to cook なのに？
なんか。。おかしい質問ですよねｗｗｗ
****
こんにちは ユキ （同じ質問が３つあったので２つは消しました。）
最初に質問したときは、承認されるまで自分の質問が見えないと思います。
「彼女は料理ができないどころか」の英語訳は “Far from” being able to cook なので Not just being able to cook という意味です。
原因がわかりました。
最初のコメントは、コメントのずっと下の方にあるDECEMBER 26, 2018 AT 7:29 AM の私のコメントに対しての返事として書いたみたいです。
サイトの右下のRecent comment からユキのコメントをクリックしてみてください。
Hello maggie sensei,
I am confused about the use and translation of “masen ka” when making an invitation. For exemple in the following sentence : bangohan o tabemasen ka? I’ve seen some translating it as won’t you eat? And some translating it as will you (like to) eat? What is the correct translation?
Also can you tell me the difference between mashou, mashou ka and masen ka when used to make invitations? Thank you in advance
Hello Yenicall
OK, many people (especially when they have started to learn Japanese) seem to have a problem understanding the nuance difference between mashou, mashou ka masen ka, so I will make a lesson sometime.
1) masen ka?
Ex. Tabemasen ka? = It could be 1) You are not going to eat? or 2) Would you like to eat? (invitation) (invitation) depending on the context and the intonation.
For example someone wouldn’t eat something, you ask これ、食べませんか？ = Kore tabemasen ka? = You are not going to eat this?
But if you offer some food to someone, you also say これ、食べませんか？ = Kore tabemasen ka? = Would you like to eat this?
2) mashou
It means Let’s ~
So imagine the food is already served in front of you and you tell someone at the table,
So, Ex. さあ、食べましょう！ ＝Saa, tabemashou! = Let’s eat.
3) mashou ka?
Again it changes the meaning depending on the context
(1) Do you want me to do something for you?
Ex. 手伝いましょうか？ = Tetsudaimashou ka? = Do you need my help? / May I help you?
(2) Shall we do ~ ?
Ex. そろそろいきましょうか？ = Sorosoro ikimashou ka? = Shall we go now? (But you may see the translation Let’s go)
コメント乗せたいけど。。見えますか。。これ？？？
自分のコメントを自分が見えないから。。どうかしら？？
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I want to ask you about one word here,
What is the meaning of 中途半端男
If I say “A half hearted man” would it be correct.
Hello ホットサンド
Yes you can translate that.
中途半端男 It refers to a man who lacks dedication to a task, or who does things in a half-hearted or incomplete way.
Thank you for featuring my pets and thank you for the nice lesson! It made me smile. I hope you have a wonderful day!
Thank YOU for introducing me these lovely guest teachers, Luna!
Big hug to Ash Sensei and Calypso Sensei! ❤️
Good afternoon Maggie. I had some doubts about a phrase I found. The sentence is as follows: 発言の自由は政府支配の新しい触手によって年々むしばまれつつある。
1 – What is the function of つつある?
2 – Is 発言 only for written things? or just for spoken things?
3 – What does むしばむ mean?
4 – This word is not in the sentence, but I would like to know the meaning of: がっつく. I had a little trouble understanding.
Hi Sora
1. Verb+ つつある = (literal expression) be in the process of doing something (expressing the on-going change)
2. 発言 is for spoken thing
3. むしばむ = to erode (passive form) むしばまれる to be eroded （To be affected by something negative)
4. がっつく = eating like a pig. It can be used to express someone greedy
Thanks for the reply Maggie. But I was left with a doubt. What is the difference between Verb + ている and Verb + つつある.
Hi Sora
つつある focusing on the process of doing something (on-going change) towards completion. It is used in a formal speech or writing.
Ex. 戦争が終わりつつある。The war is coming to an end
If you just express what one is doing or the current state, you use ている
Ex. テレビがついている = The TV is on. (current state/condition) →You can’t say テレビがつきつつある
Ex. 手紙を書いている = I am writing a letter. (The action is happening right now and it focusing on the current action) →You can’t say 書きつつある
Thank you so much!
Would you know how to pronounce katakana when there is a vowel used instead of the nobasu?
For example: ケアウホウ
It is a name of a town/beach in hawaii
In this case ホウ is used instead of ホー
In these cases, would one pronounce the vowel? Like ホ・ウ (ho-u)
Or still say it like ホー (hoo)
Hello Kelly
It depends on the word and it could be very different from the original sound.
As you said, the original “ho” could be closer to ホー but ケアウホウ （Bay = 湾(わん）) is commonly used for the bay.
The thing is you don’t always pronounce the Japanese vowels あいうえお/アイウエオ when they are combined with consonants
Ex. ほうりつ (法律） houritsu = law ➡️Actual pronunciation is hōritsu (ō = stretching “o” sounds)
I see! If I understand, even with ホウ the same rule applies and one would say this like hō (stretched)
So even in katakana, generally whether a nobasu or vowel is used (ホー/ホウ) this just means the consonants are both being stretched. And it would be read as (hō).
And whether it shows up with ー or ウ in the name is more just a written formality.
Thanks just surprised me when I saw the vowel instead of the nobasu.
As I usually see in katakana the nobasu used to imply stretching the vowel (ニューヨーク/フィジー）
Likewise in hiragana the vowel is used instead as you say. (ほうりつ/りょこう）
So when I saw ホウ instead of ホー I wasn’t sure if that had meant to pronounce the vowel! (笑）
Thank you very much for your explanation! If not mistaken I think I got it now and was just overthinking it.
So even in katakana, generally whether a nobasu or vowel is used (ホー/ホウ) this just means the consonants are both being stretched. And it would be read as (hō).
→That’s right.
So you know how to write katakana for the well-known things, places, countries, people’s names such as ニューヨーク、フィジー, ヨークシャ(ー）, ドーナツ,etc. However if you hear uncommon names, it is very natural to get confused whether you stretch the vowel or use the vowels. :)
Hi sensei
1) Is the following sentence correct/natural?
What is the difference betw と する and に する
「貨物船」とは、貨物 を 輸送 する 船舶です。
Kamotsusen is a vessel that carries cargo
ライオン は にく を えさ と する。
Lions feed on meat
鯨くじら は プランクトン を えさ と する。
Whales feed on plankton
パンダ は ささ を えさ に する。
Pandas feed on bamboo grass
2) As for Hen is it pronounce as medori or mendori or ..,?
( google translate = mesudori )
雄鶏 おんどり Rooster
雌鶏 めんどり Hen
Thanks
Hi soleyman
1) You can say both えさとする and えさにする
にする is more conversational and とする is more formal.
2) 雌鶏 can be read めどり or めんどり. (Originally めどり but I would say it is more common to say めんどり in conversation.)
Good morning Maggie. I would like her help to understand the following sentence: 泥棒は盗むのが商売 、たとえそれが人の心だとしてもね。
I understand the たとえ~ても structure, but why use とする?
Hi Berserk
たとえ〜ても and たとえ〜としても mean the same. としても emphasizes hypothetical situation more.
Thanks for the lesson!
In these sentences:
日曜日は何もしないで過ごしました
昨日の夜は、一睡もしないでゲームをしていた。
Why is it しないで and not しなくて ? It’s not telling someone not to do something, it’s talking about yourself so I’m confused.
Hi Luna
日曜日は何もしないで過ごしました
昨日の夜は、一睡もしないでゲームをしていた。
ないで in these two sentences belong to the usage
2) to do something without doing something
to spend the time without doing anything
to play the game without sleeping
Verb B ないでVerb A = to do A (main action) without doing B
If you give a reason or list up a couple of actions, you can use なくて
お金がなくて困った = I got troubled because I didn’t have money.
Good night Maggie. I would like to know what to put after 精神 in this sentence (が?は?を?): チベットの苦痛に耐えるのは不可能ですがチベットの人々のあがないの精神 見守るべきものです。
I didn’t understand what you meant
Sorry. I might have cut the first part.
You can just use は after 精神
(Sorry the first part of my previous message was missing so it could be confusing.)
Let me answer again.
精神＜は＞見守るべきものです。
Hi Maggie sensei.
I was wondering why in the following sentnce it was used 何 instead of 何も to express everything is delicious (anything is delicious):
あの店なら何を食べても美味しい。
I’m a bit confused.
Thanks in advance.
Hi Evon
何も is used in a negative sentence.
何も美味しくない Nothing is delicious.
何 in that sentence is actually an object so you use an object marker を
何を食べますか？ What would you like to eat?
魚を食べます I will have fish.
And
何を〜ても is a sentence pattern and it means “whatever you do ~ = everything one does ~ is ~ ”
何をしても面白い Whatever someone does is funny = Everything someone does is funny
何を読んでもつまらない Whatever I read is boring. = Everything I read is boring.
If you want to say this sentence without a verb, you can use 何でも
何でも美味しい
Thanks for the lesson. I’ve learned a lot.
Hello hoh
I’m very happy to hear that. :)
Hello maggie. I found this sentence: 中止命令に従わない場合は、5万円以下の罰金が科せられます。
The translation read: In case of non-compliance with the suspension order, a fine of up to 50,000 yen will be imposed.
I would like to know why 科せられます is in potential form and not just passive and negative.
Hello Leonardo
科せられます is a passive form.
The basic form is 科す or 科する
The passive form is either 科される or 科せられる
Hi there,
There is an anime is currently airing, its name is “推しの子 (Oshi no Ko)” and I translated it as “kid of my favorite idol” cuz the anime is about an idol named “Hoshino Ai”. But someone says it’s not true as it may be translated to one of those:
– the kid you support
– the kid who is a fan
– or the child of a fan
which is correct?
thank you.
Hi Katsu
Ah OK, it could be confusing because the literal meaning of the title can be “the kid you support” ( = the idol herself = “My favorite idol” ) but if the story is about the child whose mother is your favorite idol then your translation is right.
kid of my fav/ a child of my fav.
If you are focusing the idol herself you can still say 推しの子 so “My favorite idol” works.
I read the story but it is complicated, huh? The main character reincarnated as a child of his favorite idol.
The following two have different meanings
the kid who is a fan = ファンの子 ( A child who is your fan)
the child of a fan = ファンの子 (A child of your fan)
Ah, yeah, the story is kinda complicated but worth watching. I think it’s gloomy somewhat.
Anyway, thanks for your replay, it really helps :).
No problem. 😊
Hi everyone! Sorry that the site has been down and some of your recent comments were gone. I think I answered all your questions but if you haven’t read them yet, please ask me the questions again. I’ll be happy to answer your questions. Have a great weekend! いい週末を！🐶
Welcome back!
I had a question about the word 感じ, and I saw your answer. I learned something very interesting from your answer. First, this is what you said:
日本語で返事をということなので日本語で答えますね。
そうですね、感じは、気持ちだけではなく、会話で「〜という感じ /(説明）+ こんな感じ」を加えることで直接的な言い方を和らげる時にも使います。
この二つの文章をつなげてみると一領域につき5回各6分露出で写真を撮影して30分(A) という感じで時間の許す限り観測を繰り返します。
最初の部分（A)で手順を説明してそのように観測を繰り返すように説明しています。
..という感じでどうでしょう？
The reason why I asked you to reply in Japanese is that I want to stop learning Japanese by using English. I am trying to connect Japanese language direct to the world and direct to my own thoughts/impressions etc., without English getting in the way.
This is where the 「直接的な言い方を和らげる」 is important. In fact, a scientist was explaining a procedure to some students. I forgot to take that into account. In trying to make sense of what he said, I was putting myself in the position of the listener, and that was my mistake. When I put myself in the position of the scientist, talking to students, then I got closer to what I would be thinking/feeling (感じ?!) in that situation. When I did that, then the purpose of 「こんな感じで」starts to make more sense at a more intuitive level .. without the English translation.
I think that answers your last question?
私の日本語の説明で理解してもらえればうれしいです。
Good afternoon Maggie. I found the following sentence and had difficulty getting a part of it and would like your help if possible.
The sentence is as follows: それは氷のような砂糖菓子。
触れれば冷たさに指先が凍り、
舐めれば甘さに舌が痺れゆく。
まさに至宝と慕うにふさわしい―――
I can’t understand the part: 痺れゆく. Can you explain to me?
Hi Matheus
痺れゆく is a written language and it means 痺れていく going numb
thank you
どういたしまして 😊
Hi Matheus
痺れゆく is a written language and it means 痺れていく going numb
(ていく→ゆく） expresses the change, getting, going, becoming ~
Are both んですか？ and んあんですか？
Accusatory?
Hi Mark
Yes, んですか？ could have an accusing tone or emphasize your surprised feelings.
Ex. 違いますか？
→違うんですか？
(んあんですか→???I think it’s a typo )
Hello Maggie Sensei! What is the origin/etymology of the -ら in -たら?
I think たら came from a classic auxiliary verb たり
ら is a part of the conjugation.
Thank you. I thought 距離 only applied to the distance between two things.
No problem, Luna!
Yes, you can use 距離 in that context. 長距離（長い距離を）走る = to run a long distance
FYI 隔たり is often use to express a gap/difference
二人の意見には大きな隔たりがある
There is a wide gap in the opinions between the those two.
Thanks for the lesson!
Does this sound ok:
警察に犯人の名前を出された。The police made me reveal the name of the culprit.
毎週、プールで長い隔たりを泳がされる。Every week, I am made to swim a long distance at the pool (by a teacher)
HI LUN
1) 出された→言わされた is more natural (made my say)
2) 先生に、毎週プールで長距離（を）泳がされる
Hi! Maggie sensei, I’m wondering about this sentence…..
会いたかった なあ Does this mean “I’ve been wanting to meet you for long time”? and still looking forward to see you, right? Also what is the meaning of なあ? Someone told me that it’s like to show strong feeling of really wanted to meet. Is it? or actually it’s just suffix of the sentence, no emotional.
Hi Luck
会いたかったなあ I wish I could have seen you/him/her/them.
So you wanted to see someone but you missed the chance/you couldn’t.
By attaching な/なあ you can add the feelings (in this case regret)
Please check my lesson on な/なあ. Link is this https://bit.ly/3TOe1BD
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and would like to know if it is grammatically correct. The sentence is as follows: 私はこの怪物の弱点をついに見つけました。その神経もいつも以上に高ぶっております。
Hello Pedro
The first sentence is correct but the second sentence is not natural.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I have a simple question. If my dog is 7 years old, I can say 犬は七歳です, right? But what if my dog is only 7 months old? Do I say 犬は七月歳です?
こんにちは、Luna
7 months old is just 7ヶ月
You can also add 生後=せいご before 7ヶ月
（生後=せいご）7ヶ月
This makes sense! Thanks!
Anytime! :)
サイトの修理のため、1週間前のメッセージが消えてしまいました。全てのメッセージに返事を出しましてがもし読んでいなかったらまたいつでもメッセージを入れてくださいね。
Is the (noun)し(verb) construction common? I’ve come across the phrase 愛し創り上げる, which contextually I’m assuming means “lovingly create”/”create with love”, but I’m a bit confused about the grammar here.
Hello FXJ
It is hard to tell you by just the phrase without knowing the context but
愛し（あいし） in that sentence means “愛して” love (something/someone) and create ~
I think you know connecting verbs with te-form but you can also connect the verb with masu-stem
愛します→(masu-stem) delete ます 愛し
So it happened to be “し” but if it is a different verb, for example
食べて寝る = eat and sleep
食べ寝る (the masu-stem of 食べます is 食べ)
FYI I have a lesson on this usage
https://maggiesensei.com/2020/07/06/connecting-with-masu-stem/
Hi Maggie, What is the difference between 角かど and 角かく ?
Got the following example sentences from websites; all of them is かど right??
とおり の 角 に たって いた。
I stood at the corner of the street
角 に おおきな 目印 が あります。
There is a big sign at the corner
角 で ひだり に 曲まがる。
Turn left at the corner
すいぎゅう は おおきな 角 を もって いる。
Buffaloes have big horns
すぐ 角、あかい の みせ です。
It’s the red shop just at the corner
Thank you せんせい
ps google translate it as tsuno
Hi soleyman!
角 = かど = corner
角 = つの = horn
So from your example sentence only
すいぎゅう は おおきな 角 を もって いる。
Buffaloes have big horns
is ”つの = horn”
すぐ 角、あかい の みせ です。 →I think it missing の （すぐ角のあかいみせです。）
ハロー、マギー先生！
Do you know if there is a difference between using に and で with the verb 保存する？
I would’ve guessed で、 but when I looked up native example sentences on Weblio, I saw examples using both に and で!
例 ファイルをディスクに保存する。
冷暗所で保存して下さい。
I can understand why に would be used. に often implies a destination or directionality. Basically, 「ディスクに保存する」implies that the disk is the destination of the file, or that the file is being moved to the disk in order to save it.
But で also makes sense, as it marks the location of an action such as in a 冷暗ところ。
Does this mean that both of these particles are interchangeable, and I can use either one?
Can 「冷暗所で保存して下さい」 also be 「冷暗所に保存して下さい」？
If so, is there a difference in nuance? For example, do these two sentences
画像をスマホに保存
画像をスマホで保存
mean the exact same thing?
ありがとうございます！
Sora
Hi Sora
Good. You figure out the function of に.
冷暗所（れいあんしょ）に保存して下さい
冷暗所で保存してください。
You can use them both. The difference is
に implies the object you put in 冷暗所 is somewhere else but you move it/them into the cold and dark place (ex. refrigerator)
And you use で when you indicate the place where you keep/conserve something.
画像をスマホに保存 (the file was somewhere else or even in the same cellphone, from where the pictures are to the file in the cellphone)
画像をスマホで保存 (You save the pictures “with” (tool) your cellphone.)
なるほど！とても分かりやすい説明です！
いつもありがとう、マギー先生！
どういたしまして💖
Hello sensei,
i must admit i forget the basic counting in japanese, can you please check whether it is right or not?
鉛筆が9本あります
鉛筆が9個あります
鉛筆が９つあります
鉛筆が1000あります
箸が9膳あります
箸が9個あります
箸が９つあります
箸が1000あります
車が9台あります
車が9個あります
車が９つあります
車が1000あります
Hi Alex
鉛筆 →本
箸 →膳 （ 箸２本で１膳）
車 →台
hello sensei
so in here you cannot use another form? you cannot use 個? i hear that 個 can be used to anything.
You can not use 個 with everything.
You use it with small items and if it is something small but is obviously long, you use 本
So 鉛筆一個, 箸一個、車一個 are not natural.
thank you very much sensei
No problem! :)
Hello Sensei,
Thank you as always
Can you please check this sentence?
I see how He is an inspiration to you. Your mindset towards life are really similar with him.
あなたは彼に霊感されることを私が理解しました。あなたと彼の人生に対する考え方がよく酷似していいます。
Hello ビーフレンダン
霊感 is something more spiritual (Ex. being psychic)
How about 彼がどれだけあなたに刺激を与えているのか (or 刺激を与える存在なのか) わかります。
We just say インスピレーション as well.
→（あなたが）どれだけ彼からインスピレーションを受けているかわかります。
The second sentence is fine but I would change よく酷似 (よく & 酷似 are redundant) to よく似ています。
Hello sensei,
i agree with you and want to add some point.
if i change 霊感 with 触発 will it be correct ?
あなたは彼に触発されることを私が理解しました
Yes, it sounds more literal but you can say 触発
But I would say あなたが彼に触発された （or if it is still going on →されている）ことがわかります。
Thank you very much sensei, love
🐶💖💖💖
Sorry Maggie. I forgot to put the phrase. The phrase is this: ガキはガキらしくよ、ニカーッと笑っていこうや。
Good night Maggie teacher
I would like to clear up some doubts regarding the following sentence:
Why is らしく in adverbial form? and why is よ in the middle of the sentence and not at the end? What is the function of the や at the end of the sentence?
This is a rough male speech
1) It is similar to さ・さあ (子供は子供らしくさあ） →rough ガキはガキらしくよ・よう
2) The last や is another rough way to say よ (→This よ is to encourage someone to do something. It is not rough like the one in 1).
笑っていこうよ →(rough) 笑っていこうよ
マギー先生、こんにちは！
3年前、私初めてで東京にいきました。すごく楽しかったです！
もう一回行こうの予定がありましたが、そのすぐ後はcovid-19の件が始めました。
今の状況はどうですか？観光客などは戻りましたですか？もう安全ですか？
早く行きたいな～
こんにちは ルナ
日本の今ですか？ コロナはまだありますが、他の国と同じぐらい安全だと思います。
海外からの観光客の方々も増えてきています。円が安いからお買い物や食事もお得かもしれませんよ。
Good morning Maggie, I found a phrase and would like to understand something.
The sentence is as follows: あれもこれも、色々と興味深いものが目の前に現れる。
I would like to know the role of と (after 色々) in this sentence?
Hello Jack
色々と This と has a function as an adverb and it modifies a verb, 色々と現れる
Hello Maggie-sensei.
Could you tell me what じゃんじゃんやっちゃう means?
I see じゃんじゃん means continuously, but I’m not sure what this expression means.
Hi Miki
じゃんじゃん is onomatopoeia to express doing something heavily, vigorously, keep doing something a lot.
じゃんじゃんやっちゃう = Keep doing something more and more
じゃんじゃん飲んで = Keep drinking a lot!
Hello Sensei,
My previous post got deleted by the maintenance
I need your help to check the sentence
My locker is far away from my English classes. That is the reason why I carry all my books with me. Is it going to rain hard or just a drizzle?
私のロッカーは英語の教室まで遠く離れています。すべての本を持ち歩いているのはその理由があるからです。今日は大雨が降るのかそれとも小雨が降るのでしょうか？
Hi Alex
Sorry. I answered your question but the message was gone.
すべての本を持ち歩いているのはその理由があるからです。
→だからすべての本を持ち歩いています
今日は大雨が降るのかそれとも小雨が降るのでしょうか？
→OK (Or 大雨（土砂降り）になるのか 〜）
you are the best, please help me again to check the sentences in the future.
thanks a lot
🐶💖💖💖
Good night Maggie. I came across a sentence and would like to know if it is right.
The phrase is this: 私たちはこれまで明日のことを皆はなしてきたから、さて、現実に戻って、今日のことを話そう
I had doubts if the kanji 皆 should be removed or if it is fulfilling some function
Hello i will answer on maggie sensei behalf.
it has function as adverb, it can mean
1. everyone 2. All
just translate it one by one
私たちはこれまで明日のことを皆はなしてきたから、
Because we all have talked the matter about tomorrow until now,
さて、現実に戻って、今日のことを話そう
for now, let’s go back to reality and talk about today
in sentence one you can see i translate 皆 as “all” and 私たち as “we”
@ビーフレンダン
Thank you for helping Brock.
Hi Sensei !
Thank you so much for everything you do for us, I’m studying and hope I’ll pass the JLPT this year and your website is so useful, I feel so grateful for everything you put here!
Best regards from France !
Hi Magou
Thank YOU for your kind message.
JLPTがんばってくださいね。私もレッスンがんばって作ります。😊
So… shorter form ため is more formal than ために, right? But can I use both forms in ALL examples above? How big is the difference between formal and less formal version? Will I sound weird if I use only ため in informal situation or conversely?
Hello Krystian
As I wrote in this lesson you san use either ため or ために in the examples of the usage 2) Expressing a reason/cause
If you are writing to your friends, ため is just fine but in conversation, it might sound slightly unnatural.
渋滞のため、着くのが遅くなりそうです。(formal conversation/ writing (formal and informal) )
渋滞のために、遅くなるよ。(informal)
Ok, thanks a lot, Maggie. :)
Anytime! :)
Hello, maggie sensei
thank you as always.
日本語を英語に翻訳してみますが下記の文章に何か変なところがあったかさっとみっていただけないでしょうか。
イラストはあまり良すぎない限り料金を出しません。
If the illustration is not really good I will not pay the fee.
Hi ビーフレンダン
わかりました。自然な言い方に変えてみましょう。
→イラストがよくなければ料金を払いません。
〜限りは、 as long asという意味になります。
（何か不自然なところがないかさっと*みていただかけないでしょうか？）
FYI さっと quickly / ざっと = roughly
thank you very much sensei
You’re very welcome!
Hello, Maggie.
Japanese has been an interest of mine for some time and while some may suspect it is my interest in Japanese media, like anime and manga, which sparked my interest. Such interests came later to me in life while my interest in the language was pre-existing.
It wasn’t until an old friend of mine suggested an educational video game series called “Learn Japanese to Survive” that I really started picking up the basics of the language and encouraged me to practice outside of the game. Now I feel like I have all of the Hiragana characters memories though my Katakana and Kanji could use some work. Though I am able to recognize some Kanji characters as well.
Besides Japanese, I’ve also enrolled in a beginner’s Spanish course as well so I feel confident that I could potentially read and write in that language at an early early level too. However, when it comes to speaking and hearing, as well as writing or reading for the case of Japanese, I feel slow.
It took me awhile before I feel like I could say I achieved mastery in the English language, my native tongue, and even then I still am prone to forgetfulness of certain grammar rules. Like those matter anymore in English speaking countries. lol The reason I believe for my difficulties in learning English and other languages like Spanish and Japanese is because I was a special needs student. I am a slow learner. So I guess I am writing this message to you to ask… do you know anyone willing to work with me in one-on-one sessions until I could attend a fluent level? I don’t have much money so my budget is limited, but I would forever be appreciative of you if you could point me in the direction of someone who could help teach me.
ありがとう
Hi Aliyah
It is a great idea to work on your speaking and taking a class on line. That way you can improve your Japanese. There are many Japanese on-line schools. Google “On line Japanese lesson”. The price is not that expensive, I believe. I hope it fits your budget.
And if you still can’t find a good teacher, write to me
through an email on the following page.
http://142.93.68.150/about-us/
Hi Maggie-sensei! I thought this lesson was a bit difficult! Is it right to say that you would use てある only if you are currently seeing/experiencing the subject? For example, if I say: 壁にポスターが飾ってある,then I am probably looking at the poster on the wall right now. If the poster was in a different house, I would probably say 飾っている , right?
Another question, I sometimes hear ておる／ております Is it something completely different?
Hello ルナ
Maybe the English translation might have confused you for the example sentence.
Even if you are not looking at the poster right now, you can still describe the wall, 飾ってある
Here’s the difference
Ex. 壁にポスターが飾ってある (Describing the current state of the wall. Someone put the poster on the wall in the past and you are looking at the result.)
Ex. 壁にポスターを飾っている (The subject is a person (or a store) Someone is putting the poster on the wall (either right now or routine work, they usually put the poster on the wall.)
ておる is a humble expression of Vている
Ex. 鍵を預かっています。 ( We keep your key.)
→鍵をお預かりしております。
Thank you for explaining. It is a difficult concept for me. Is this correct：
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見ていた > Focuses on me who saw cats at the cafe.
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見てあった > Focuses on the cats that I was able to see by going to the cafe.
Hi ルナ again
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見ていた > Focuses on me who saw cats at the cafe.
→Right. The speaker was looking at many cats.
猫カフェで、たくさん猫を見てあった > Focuses on the cats that I was able to see by going to the cafe.
→This sentence is not correct.
For example if someone who works there placed lots of toys for cats for the customers and the cats ahead of time and you describe the state, you can say
猫カフェには、猫のためにたくさんのおもちゃが置いてあった。
Ok. Would you say that てある is mostly used to describe inanimate objects?
Would this be correct: 猫を撫でてので、服に毛が付けってある
I’m sorry for so many questions D:
In that case you say
猫を撫でたので、服に毛がついた
As I wrote in the lesson, you intentionally do something and leave it
For example if you are looking at the clothes and there is a name tag on it (someone put the name tag on it and leave it for some reason) you say
服に名札がつけてある
こんにちは、マギー先生
サイトは復旧して戻ってきてくれて良かったです。
少しご質問があります。
1. 「雨が降りそうな天気」と「雨が降りだしそうな天気」、両方の言い方があるのですがどう違いますか
２．「街灯にぶつかりそうになった女性」と「街灯にぶつかりそうになる女性」はどう違いますか
英語で説明しづらい場合は日本語で説明してくれると幸いです。
よろしくお願いします
こんにちはビーフレンダン
サイトがダウンしてしまったせいでいくつかの前のコメントが消えていたらごめんなさい。
１.
(1) 雨が降りそうな天気
(2) 雨が降りだしそうな天気
So if you looking up the sky and it is cloudy, you say (1) but you won’t probably say (2)
If you see the sky is getting really dark and it looks like it’s gonna rain any minute, you say (2) because 降り出す has a meaning of “It is about to rain”
2.
(3) 「街灯にぶつかりそうになった女性」
(4) 「街灯にぶつかりそうになる女性」
If you are describing what has just happened more vividly, I would say (3) is more natural.
承知いたしました。感謝いたします。
お役に立てたらうれしいです。☺️
マギー先生のレッスンはいつも私に元気を出されます。
私も、マギー先生のこと尊敬しています。:)
ルナ
（Note for you: 元気をくれます・元気にしてくれます）
わあ〜うれしい😭
これからもよろしくね。
ルナ、大好き💖
Thank you.
When you want to cheer up someone, you say 元気を出して、so if I wanted to say you make the “genki” come out of me, it’s still wrong to say 元気を出されます ?
出される is a passive form so you can’t use it in this case.
Though 元気にしてくれる/元気をくれる are much more natural, if you want to use the causative form
出される should be 出させる
（私の）元気を出させます/出させてくれます
I see! Thank you!
Hi everyone!
サイトがしばらくダウンしていてご心配をおかけしました。
Now I am back!!
お帰りなさい！ :)
ただいま〜、ルナ💓
ってくるの使い方ついにわっかてきた！
ありがとうございます！
よかった〜😊
Hello sensei, Thank you as always
can i ask you about something i don’t really understand in this sentence?
人手不足や気候変動など日本企業の経営のリスク開示 (３面きょうのことば）が海外勢に比べ遅れている。
What i don’t understand
1. ３面きょうのことば
2. 海外勢の勢の意味？
ちなみにこちらの文は日本の新聞から抜粋されました。
よろしくお願いします
Hi, ビーフレンダン
1. The newspaper has several pages. The front page is called 一面 and ３面 technically means “the third page” but it refers to the social news page.
So you probably got the article from 日経新聞 but it refers to the section called きょうのことば where they explained a trend word of the day on the third page.
2. 勢 means “companies, entities, group” so 海外勢 means “foreign companies” in this context.
先生すごい
優しいだけではなく賢いです。
ありがとうございます
いえいえ、日本の新聞で勉強をしているビーフレンダンが賢いのですよ〜😉
Hello! About this sentence:
彼が私のこと好きかどうかわからなくなってきた
I asked a similar question the other day, but I’m still confused about the use of きた in sentences such as these. Why is it わからなくなってきた and not わからなくなった or わからなくなっていた?
Hi ルナ
Yes you can say わからなくなった/わからなくなっていた
but the nuance changes. The English translation could be the same so let me explain the difference.
１）わからなくなってきた Focusing on the moment when she is speaking.
Describing the change from the certain moment in the past to the present moment. She thought he had liked her but she is getting confused and losing the confidence.
The change is happening now.
2) わからなくなった I don’t know his feelings anymore.
English translation is “present tense” but she’s already done defying her feelings.
3) わからくなっていた is describing the state (not the change) in the past.
So again, you can use all of them but it depends on how you want to express it. (focusing on the change from the past up to now, the change in the past, the state on the present moment, etc.)
FYI
I have a lesson on
ていく てくる So please check the lesson when you have time.
Link: Click here
Thank you for explaining!
I will go read this lesson too.
You’re very welcome! :)
勉強をさせていただいてありがとうございます！
はなはな
お役に立てればうれしいです。😊
Hi! I have a question regarding this sentence:
子供の頃から娘には好きなことをさせてきた
What is the function of きた here? What is the difference from:
子供の頃から娘には好きなことをさせた ？
Hi ルナ
させた I let my daughter do whatever she wanted. (Talking about the specific time in the past.
させてきた is I have been letting my daughter. (Expressing the duration of time from some time in the past up to the moment when they are talking.)
Hello sensei, thank a always
I wonder how you say “Japanese Native Resident”
日本に駐在する外国人ではなく純粋に最初から日本に生まれ育ている人のことです。
”日本の駐在者”があっていますか？
よろしくお願いします
こんにちは Beef Rendang
駐在というと通常、会社から他の国に仕事をするために派遣された人のことを指します。
在日＋国籍＋人
という言い方がありますが、日本に住んでいますが、日本で生まれた人とは限らないので
「日本で生まれ育った」と説明をつけた方がいいかもしれませんね。
在日+ Nationality + 人 （Ex.在日
いつもありがとうございます。本当にたすかりました。感謝いたします。
どういたしまして💖
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I have a question sort of related to shopping, but hard to categorise.
I left a clothes shop the other day and as I was exiting, the alarm went off.
I waited politely for someone to come and check, but I didn’t know how to say:
“Your store alarms went off.’
Or
“I am not sure why… but your store alarms went off?”
Thank you so much!
Hi Mini
When you want to tell them the alarm goes off even though you paid
すみません、アラームが鳴ったんですが…
= Sumimasen. Alarm ga nattan desu ga…
= Excuse me. The alarm went off..
You can add
このまま出てもいいですか？
= Kono mama dete mo ii desu ka?
= Can I just leave?
せんせい、こんにちは！
好きなポケモン教えてください！:D
こんにちはルナ！
やっぱりピカチュウが好きです💕 イーブイもかわいいです。
ルナの好きなポケモンは？
そうですか！：）
私には、ウパーが好き！いつも幸せな顔をしている！
ウパーもかわいい〜〜💕
確かにいつも幸せな顔をしていますね。😊
ルナも幸せな1日を過ごしてください。
Good night Maggie. I have doubts about two sentences and I would like you to answer these doubts.
The first sentence is: アラビア語を独習したいのですが良い参考書を教えてください。I would like to know the が function in this sentence.
The second sentence is: 台湾はグルメも良し、観光も良し、ショッピングも良しと、魅力たっぷりの観光地だ。I would like to know the function of と in this sentence.
Hi Mutuio
1) が has many different functions but this が is just to connect the sentence. “so”/”and”
You often leave the sentence with が without finishing it.
Vたいのですが + (what should I do/Do you have any advice?/ Can you help me?, etc.)
2) と in that sentence is to give examples and quote them.
I think you know the pattern AというB B which is A
You sometimes omit という/といった
〜ショッピングもよしと（いった(ように）)、魅力たっぷりの〜
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I love your posts very-very much, thank you for your work!
My question is about this example: 彼女はまだ２０歳にはなっていないはずだ
I didn’t know we can use wa twice in one sentence – it’s like we have two topics of the sentence. Could you elaborate on that please? Are there any tips/rules for using wa multiple times in a sentence?
doumo :3
Hello Valery
You are right. You tend to avoid using the same particle because repeating the same particle may look/sound confusing.
彼女はまだ２０歳にはなっていないはずだ
You can say
彼女はまだ２０歳になっていないはずだ as well but the nuance changes a little.
彼女は this は is a topic marker
20歳には→ this は is to show the contrast. (showing the contrast of 20 years old and other ages. For example, maybe she is close to 20, like 19 years old but not she hasn’t turned 20 yet.)
So even if there are two は, it won’t be confusing.
I will show you another example.
この会社は、給料はいいが、仕事が多い。
= This company offers good salary but gave us a lot of work.
Hello sensei,
Thanks as always
can i ask you what is the meaning (まんざら)
女の子の服もまんざらじゃなさそうだし。
tried dictionary but nothing make sense.
Hi Beef Rendang
まんざらでもない is a vague Japanese expression and it means “not so bad/ not totally bad and actually something is good” ./someone seems kind of satisfied or happy with something.
女の子の服もまんざらじゃなさそうだし
I don’t know the situation but
It seems like the girl’s outfits are not so bad.or The person who is wearing girl’s outfits seems to like wearing them.
Ah, thank you much sensei
The reason i got confused is because in some site i found an explanation that say まんざら＝必ずしも。
The scene is the tomboy girl is trying the dress, She is usually using boy clothes and when she tried to try skirt, She said to herself (女の子の服もまんざらじゃなさそうだし)
ありがとうございます。
まんざら is not exactly the same as 必ずしも.
You often use まんざらじゃない/ まんざらでもない in the situation like you expect someone would be unhappy with something but actually they actually kind of like it.
So in your example sentence, you assume the girl would hate that skirt because she was complaining or she usually hates wearing a skirt.
But once she puts it on, she looks rather happy with it. Though she is not saying anything, you can see she is thinking “Hey, this is not that bad. I actually like it.”
right, really appreciate for the help
My pleasure! :)
Maggie-sensei,
Happy New Year! 今年もよろしくお願いします。
I find your blog extremely helpful and one of the most useful out there. Thank you for all your work and effort.
I wondered if you could create a lesson on
こじんめんだん at Japanese kindergartens. It’s something that I am really struggling with.
Any phrases/vocabulary similar to the below would be super appreciated!
*My child has been toilet-trained.
*She goes to the potty by herself at home, but cannot go by herself outside the house.
*She speaks English at home and can only say a few single Japanese words.
*How is she doing at school.
*Ways to talk about one’s child: She is stubborn/independent/sociable/scared of strangers/quiet/very active at home.
*She holds food in her mouth./ I am worried about choking hazards.
and so on.
Thank you so much.
Hi Mini
I’m happy to hear you find this site useful.
OK, let me help you.
*My child has been toilet-trained.
うちの子*は、トイレのしつけができています。/オムツがとれました。
= Uchi no ko wa toire no shitsuke ga dekite imasu./ omutsu ga toremashita.
*She goes to the potty by herself at home, but cannot go by herself outside the house.
家では一人でトイレに行けますが、家の外では一人で行けません。
Ie dewa hitori de toire ni ikemaseuga, ie no soto dewa hitori de ikemasen.
*She speaks English at home and can only say a few single Japanese words.
家では英語を話していますので1) 日本語は一言、二言しか話しません。/ 2) 日本語はほとんど話せません。(2) She barely speaks Japanese.)
= Iedewa eigo wo shnashite imasu node 1) nihongo wa hitokoto futakoto shika hanasemasen / 2) Nihongo ưa Hotondo hanasemasen .
*How is she doing at school?
娘は、幼稚園ではどんな感じですか？/ちゃんとやっていますか？
= Musume wa youchien de wa donna kanji desu ka? / Chanto yatte imasu ka?
*Ways to talk about one’s child: 1) She is stubborn/2) independent/3) sociable/4 ) scared of strangers/ 5) quiet/ 6) very active at home.
1) （娘は）頑固（がんこ）です。/ 2) 自立心があります。/ 3) 人懐っこいです。/ 人見知りしません/ 4) 人見知りをします 5) 大人しいです/ 6) 家ではとても活発です。
=1) (Musume wa) ganko desu./ 2) Jiritsushin ga arimasu. /3) Hitonatsukkoi desu. / Hitomishiri shimasen ./ 4) Hitomishiri wo shimasu 5) Otonashii desu 6) Ie de wa totemo kappatsu desu
*She holds food in her mouth./ I am worried about choking hazards.
and so on.
口の中に食べ物を入れます。/喉につかえないか心配です。（窒息（ちそうく）しないか心配です）
= Kuchi no naka ni tabemono wo iremasu / Nodo ni tsukaenai ka shinpai desu. (Or Chissoku shinai ka shinpai desu)
Hello,
What should I answer to this message?
“フォロバ頂きありがとうございます”
Thanks!
Hi Topaz
So this person followed you first and you follow him/her back, right?
Did you say thank you for following before? If not, you can say
こちらこそフォローありがとうございます。And you can continue これからもよろしくお願いします。
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply.
This is very helpful.
Huge fan of your blog – thank you!
You’re very welcome,Mini.
こじんめんだん、がんばって！
Hello! I have a question about one grammar aspect, because my 先生 told me one thing and my workbook keeps mistaking those two (well, maybe the workbook is wrong)
「思っていたより」と 「期待していたより」の違いはなんですか。
先生 told me that 「思っていたより」is used when the outcome is better than expected, for example このケーキは思っていたよりおいしかった。 (You expected it to taste bad)
And 「期待していたより」is used when the outcome is worse than you expected, for example 試験の点数は期待していたより悪かった。
Is this right? Because when I searched in the internet, the opinions vary a lot and I don’t know anymore :((
Hi Alioth
Very good questions.
Technically
思う = to think
期待する = to expect
And they both can be translated “to think” but 期待する means “to hope” and it is used for something one is looking forward to.
So your teacher is right. The outcome should be good when you use 期待したより ~
You can say このケーキは思っていたよりおいしかった/おいしくなかった。 but it sound unnatural to say このケーキは期待していたよりおいしかった。
If it is a negative sentence, you can say
このケーキは期待していたよりおいしくなかった
I will give you other verbs that are often used in this pattern.
予想する = to fore
想像する= imagine
考える = to think (logically)
Among these verbs, only 期待する is used is used when the outcome is good.
新年明けましておめでとうマギー先生！
No matter how many years pass, I always find myself visiting and revisiting your blog posts😂 Your quality is unrivaled.
I have a vocab question: how do you say the word “interchangeable” in Japanese?
e.g
”Jealous” and “envious” mean the exact same thing. They are interchangeable.
”Wanna” is interchangeable with “want to,” with the former being more casual.
I typically wouldn’t want to bother you with words I can just look up in the dictionary, but I just can’t seem to find it.
On jisho, 「同意語」and 「同義語」show up, but being interchangeable is a bit different from being synonyms. For example, “while” and “during” are synonyms, but they aren’t interchangeable.
e.g
While I was sleeping, an earthquake happened.
During I was sleeping, an earthquake happened. ❌
The word that always comes up on DeepL is 「互換性」
e.g
”Wanna “は “want to “と互換性があります。
However, when I look up example sentences, it’s used with computers and devices and is translated as “compatible.”
Thank you as always!
Hi Sora
I’m happy to hear you have been visiting this site for many years. :)
OK, the most common way to say “A and B are interchangeable” in Japanese is
AはBに言い換えることができます
（You also say 置き換えることができる)
Oh, I see! It’s been driving me crazy, so thank you so much!!
Anytime! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei, Happy New Year and Wish you be Blessed with Good Health and Fortune
This the first question on this year.
1. What is the meaning of 僻む(ひがむ）
2. What is the meaning of 振り回す in the sentence (彼女はいつも友達に振り回されていてイライラする)
3. Are they have a same meaning : 取り繕う・決め込む・偽装
Thank you very much
Happy New Year! 明けましておめでとうございます！ いい年になりますように🙏
1. to have an inferiority complex feeling jealous of someone.
2. 振り回す to involve someone into something for one’s own convenience in a selfish manner.
For example, her friend says, “Let’s go out tomorrow and do something.” And though you were busy you arranged your schedule to go out with her. Then she said she changed her mind and she doesn’t want to go out anymore. So you rearrange your schedule. Then she said you should meet her somewhere instead. In this kind of situation you are 振り回されている.
3. No, they are different.
取り繕う to mend something/keep up with lies
決め込む persist in doing something/make up one’s mind
偽装 disguise
3.
sensei thank to explain in detailed manner. 改めてあけましておめでとうございます。
どういたしまして❤️
みなさん、明けましておめでとうございます！
今年もよろしくお願いします！
Happy New Year, everyone! 🐶
Happy new year sensei
Happy New Year, Emerald❤️
Hello Maggie sensei! I was reading a book and came across this sentence: “ぼうっと、その場に立ちすくんだ” and I can’t figure out what the use of んだ is for here! I hope you can help me understand.
Hi 暇！
OK, the main verb is 立ちすくむ and the past tense is 立ちすくんだ.
(The verb which ends with む →(the past tense) んだ. Ex. 産む（うむ）→産んだ）
Hi, Maggie!
First of all, thank you very much for the lesson. It was incredibly helpful. ^^
About にしては, apart from what it was explained in the lesson, my textbook says it can also appear in the form それにしては. However, I’m having a hard time trying to find helpful examples taken from real and daily-life Japanese that show me how is それにしては used. The very few ones I could find were kind of stiff sentences that, although they show the idea of the meaning of それにしては at some extent, they were a bit artificial. So, if you could please give me some examples of how それにしては is used in daily life, I’d appreciate a lot.
Anyway, thanks a lot again for the lesson!
Hi Natalie
First, thank you for your kind message.
You state something first. (Or someone states something)
You use それにしては ( = even so, in spite of, although) when you hear/see something is different from your expectation.
今日は、平日だけど、それにしては人が多いね。
The speaker thinks there are fewer people on weekdays
→Though it’s a weekday, there are unexpectedly many people today.
毎日、がんばって節電しているが、それにしては電気代が高い。
The speaker had expected lower electric bill because they have been saving electricity.
I have been trying to save electricity but still electric bill is high.
A: 「👨のうちはお金持ちなんだって」
= I heard 👨’s family is rich.
B: 「それにしては毎日、コンビニで安いパンばかり買っているよ。」
= But he buys cheap bread at a convenience store every day.
B thinks if 👨 is rich, he wouldn’t buy cheap bread every day at a convenience store. (Different from B’s expectation)
A: 「一度も海外に行ったことがありません。」
= I have never been abroad
B: 「それにしては英語がうまいね。」
= But your English is great.
B thinks if A has never been abroad, A’s English skill is so-so.
Hi again, Maggie!
Thank you very much for answering me and for your examples and explanations! They have been super helpful in order to understand better the usage of それにしては. ^^
I appreciate a lot your help. 😊
よかった〜 :)
からって・からといってとと言ってもはどう違いますか
時間があれば教えていただけませんか
からって is a casual way to say からといって so they mean the same.
からといって
理由を強調 (Emphasizing the reason)
Just because, it doesn’t mean ~
英語の試験で満点をとったからといって英語が話せるわけではない。
といっても
そこから推測できることと実際が違うときに使います
Though ~, it doesn’t mean ~ (the reality is different)
英語の試験でいい点をとったといっても満点をとったわけではない。
I’m confused to this sentence translation.
” 結婚するなら絶対にお金持ちというわけではない。
It is not necessarily true that I would only marry a rich man. ” I get it as “It is not needed to be rich when getting married” . How about this 僕は絶対にお金持ちと結婚するとういわけではない。
Hi haru,
Yes, you can also say 僕は絶対にお金持ちと結婚するというわけではない。
For education purposes, can I have your citation about the realted topic?
This lesson is 100 pct my original lesson.
And also. Just right now saw this phrase
はいでは今日も授業をやっていきます
I was watching the video about grammar:)
In videos like that there are a lot ていく
説明していきます・～見ていきます
書いていきます
Hi, Maggie, thank you!!
I have one question.
I sometimes see it in different videos. For example, a girl comes to the cafe, and orders food. She shows what she orders, for example, a cake. Then says about this cake “食べていきます”. What kind of idea of ていく is that?
Also, i often hear something like 説明していきます、見ていきます in the situations like the above one.
what does it mean?
Hello July
食べていきます = I will eat (and leave the restaurant)
It implies the speaker goes somewhere after they eat.
So you can’t use this expression when you eat at home.
説明していきます/見ていきます
In this case, it doesn’t imply any movement.
You use ていきます when you express the process of explaining/seeing something.
If you just say 説明します/見ます, it could be just one time action.
By using Vていきます, you can express what you are going to do (for a certain period of time).
先生こんにちは。
理論上と技術上は、理論的と技術的の同じ意味ですか？
こんにちは、ルナ
的と上の使い方は違いますが、（健康上の理由 (x健康的な理由）, 健康的な生活 ( X 健康上の生活））
以下のような場合は、同じ意味です。形だけ注意が必要です。
理論上は、可能だ。 = 理論的には可能だ。 = It is possible in theory/Theoretically possible
技術上、難しい = 技術的に難しい Technically difficult
技術上の問題 = 技術的な問題 = Technical problem
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Finally, I can again visit Japan. Since my first visit there has been a question that I have been wondering about. How would a Japanese person ask for their room key?
I knew only about 73 Japanese words (and numbers) on my first trip. I asked reception how to ask for my key and was told that just saying the room number was OK. So, 363 = san roku san. And, yes, it worked. I always got my room key. In one case, in Kansai, the receptionist replied to “363” with “363で”.
I want to do better this time. I notice that you use 号室. So, it would be better to say:
363号室おねがいします, or
363号室のかぎおねがいします.
Using overly polite language (in any language) sometimes creates complications for me, but would
“363号室のかぎ呉れてもらえますおねがいします” be OK? That’s not something I would want to say 3 times a day for a week.
Thanks, Michael
Hello Michael,
It is great hear that you can finally come back to Japan. :)
363号室おねがいします
363号室のかぎおねがいします.
They both work.
“363号室のかぎ呉れてもらえますおねがいします”
→You don’t say もらえます＋おねがいします togehter.
365号室のかぎもらえますか？
→（more polite) 365号室のかぎいただけますか？
Every day will be your great opportunity to practice your Japanese so try different way every time. 😉
Thanks again for your comments. Yes, I am curious about how I will manage this time with my Japanese language “skills”. My biggest problem now is not being able to practice speaking, except to myself.
For example, with “号室” I of course pronounce it “Gō shitsu”. Native speakers say something that sounds like “Gō sts” to me. It is all part of the fun of learning a language.
I have one more question (if you don’t mind), which I will post somewhere else.
I’m sure they will understand your pronunciation. (I wish I could link the audio here)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Update on the reality of speaking a language!
I went to 4 different hotels. Three of them gave me a key card. I never had to ask for a room key. At the 4th hotel the reception staff recognized me after 2 days and usually gave me my room key even before I asked for it.
Sometimes, speaking Japanese can be very easy.
Hi Michael
😆 Too bad that you couldn’t get to use Japanese at the hotels.
I hope you got to speak Japanese while you were in Japan. Are you still in Japan?
Hello Maggie,
I am no longer in Japan, unfortunately.
There were a lot of opportunities to speak Japanese, and to make a lot of mistakes.
Most of my day to day practical dealings were in Japanese — hotels, restaurants and so on. Probably as a result of my listening practice (watching TV) my passive comprehension was quite good, within the limits of my vocabulary. I could understand some things even when I wasn’t paying 100% attention. Also, all your examples in your lessons taught me to not depend on knowing just a few fixed sentences.
This made daily life feel more normal, because I could understand more of what was going on around me. And this meant more freedom in what I could do (not limited to tourist-friendly English) and also resulted in some more human interactions.
On the other hand, the complication was that my passive comprehension was a lot quicker than my ability to speak (it took more time to remember words), so my speaking speed was always lagging behind what I could understand. It was frustrating, but just a matter of needing more practice talking in the real world.
My concerns about not being understood were completely unfounded. It was obvious that my ‘accent’ (in other words, my sloppy pronunciation) sometimes confused a Japanese listener. It was actually better for me to speak slowly and clearly.
Michael
Thank you for sharing your precious experiences in Japan.
I am glad to hear you got to interact with Japanese people and use Japanese.
I do believe all your experiences will motivate you to learn Japanese more. 😉
日本語のレッスン、いつもどおりにとても役に立ちます！先生、どうもありがとうございます (^^)
お役に立ててうれしいです。☺️
hello maggie senei! i love your posts a lot!
could you please tell me what kind of meaning 〜たら has in this sentence? i feel like it means ‘so’ or something but that can’t be right 🥲
「私がそれを正しいと*思ったら*ね」
「ええ、それでいい」
Hello Alexa,
This たら means “if”. (conditional)
I assume they were talking about something and this person is saying he/she would do that if he/she thinks that is right.
Hello. May I ask if we can use the たい form of a verb with ために when we want to express the cause. For example, would the following sentence be correct in Japanese:ゆかさんは大学に入りたいために、毎日勉強しています。
You don’t use たいために. You say 入るため. If you want to use たい, you can say 入りたいので/ 入りたいから
One exception: There is an expression to emphasize the desire
入りたいがために. You see this form more in written forms.
Hi sensei,
むかしむかしある所に is once upon a time .
but i dont understand why ある所にis used why not only所に
Hello ritesh
You can’t say むかしむかし所に
あるところ means “in a certain place” and you don’t want to specify where it is so you add ある.
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have ２ question about this lesson
in this lesson, sensei wrote that
X 山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をくれた。→wrong!
we are all agree that くれる is use for “family group or very close friends”
but today, my Japanese co-worker asked me that
このかばん、誰が買ってくれた？
I just don’t understand that why he used “くれた” instead of “あげた”、he’s not in my “family group”, and he also don’t really know that the one bought me a bag is one of my family or not?
I got confused about this example too:
“= Can you give the sweets to my son?
You can also say
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？”
isn’t it should be translate to “can I received the sweets from my son”?
because in ~もらう grammar, the one go with に・から is the one we received things from?
Hello ルアン
山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をくれた
In this case, if the two parties, 山田さん and 加藤さん are not related to the speaker, it sounds unnatural.
You say 誰が買ってくれた？ (Who bought the bag for you?) or 誰に買ってもらったの？ (Who did you get the bag from?) to someone who is close to you based on the idea or assumption that someone else bought the bag for you. (In this case, the giver could be your family , customers, friends, etc.)
This phrase only works with someone close to you, equal to you or superior (who has been working more than you have or for the same period of time.)
Thank you so much maggie sensei
Can you explain this for me too?
“= Can you give the sweets to my son?
You can also say
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？”
isn’t it should be translate to “can I received the sweets from my son”?
because in ~もらう grammar, the one go with に・から is the one we received things from?
It’s written in this lesson too
If the sentence is
そのお菓子は (or を） 息子にもらった
Then, it could be I received this snack for my son (from someone) or I received the snack from my son.
However, そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ is a request.
If you are asking your son to give you the snack, you wouldn’t say 息子に
You are obviously asking the listener so it won’t be translated can I received the sweets from my son”?
thank you so much Maggie sensei
Anytime, ルアン :)
Good night Maggie. Can you tell me the function of 間に in this sentence: 主神ゼウスと人間の娘との間に生まれた半神半人の英雄。I couldn’t understand that word even after reading your explanation you made.
Could you also tell me the function of the も particle in this sentence: これは相当な手練れ。我が愛馬にも匹敵する怪物女王。
Hello Leonarudo
This 間 means “between”
Here is the basic structure of this sentence.
~はAとBの間に生まれた
= ~ was born between A and B
~ is demigod hero who was born between zeus and human.
***
これは相当な手練れ。我が愛馬にも匹敵する怪物女王。
我が愛馬に匹敵する to be equal to my horse/to be a match for my horse
By adding も you can add the nuance of “even”
我が愛馬にも匹敵する to be even equal to my horse//to be even a match for my horse
Hi Maggie Sensei! I love your use of example sentences for teaching, I find it super helpful :)
One question: is it possible to attach がち to a negative verb/adjective ending? Like, in order to say things like “I don’t tend to forget people’s names,” could we say “人の名前を忘れないがち”？
If not, what could we say instead?
Thank you :)
Hello Matt,
You don’t use the negative form with がち so you don’t say X 忘れないがち
忘れがち = tend to forget people’s name
The opposite will be “tend to remember people’s name” but it sounds unnatural even in English because you are supposed to remember people’s name.
So you just say
人の名前をよく覚えている。
If it is the context such as “You tend to remember things (which you don’t need to remember/in the way you are not supposed to), you can use 覚えがち
Ex. 人の名前を間違って覚えがちだ。
I see, makes perfect sense. Thank you for the examples!
どういたしまして 🐶💕
君との未来を思い描く。in lyrics
友達と相談する。why we don’t use との
Hi Faisal
I don’t understand your question,
友達と相談する
→You can nominalize the sentence saying 友達との相談
Ex. 友達との相談の結果、〜〜
Hi, 先生！I’ve come back to this post a couple times, but I just can’t figure out which meaning of 限る is being used in this:
「俺、絶対に結婚遅いタイプだわー。…え？そういう奴に限って？んなわけねーし！」
This line is from a game I log into from time to time to practice Japanese. When you click on the character on the home screen, they talk. In this particular example, I guess the “…” represents the character listening to our response, which is apparently 「そういうやつに限って」.
But I’m confused. If I were to reconstruct the conversation, it would be:
Character: 俺、絶対に結婚遅いタイプだわー。
I’m totally the type to get married late.
Me: そういう奴に限りますね。
Yeah, you’re limited to that type of person (?????)
Character: んなわけねーし。
No way/Of course not.
That’s not a conversation that makes very much sense to me. Basically the character says something, I agree, then he suddenly says the opposite? I’m definitely missing something here…
Hi Sora
I added a little note for you.
★Talking about opposite characteristics of what people would think, assume. (You may think A is ~ but actually it/he/she is quite opposite)
Ex. 威張っている人に限って気が弱い。
= Those who are arrogant tend to be cowards.
そういうやつに限って is the same usage of this one.
The speaker didn’t finish the sentence but
そういうやつに限って結婚が早いかもしれない*…んなわけないし
The one who says “I am getting married later in life” tends to get married (early)…. No, I’ll take it back. There is no way.
Ohhhhhh, that makes sooooo much sense!
Thank you so much, 先生！I definitely would’ve never figured that out on my own 😅
I’m happy to hear it makes sense now. :)
Can you elaborate on the negative versions?
大きな目 not so big?
少なめで not so much, less?
Could you give me some example sentences with the negative usage?
Hi Rita
Technically the negative form is
大きめではない/大きめじゃない
少なめではない/少なめじゃない
but it is rare to use these forms. You just use the opposite words, 小さめ, 多め
The only case that you use the negative forms will be when you deny what someone just said.
Ex. 「ご飯、少なめでいい？」 Would small serving of rice be OK with you?
「少なめじゃなくて普通にもって」 Serve me regular portion not small portion.
Could you please explain the second example under 3) Conditional sentences?
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
I think I understand the first example, but in this one it looks like たりする means something similar to かもしれない
In fact if I hadn’t seen your translation I would’ve completely misinterpreted the meaning of the sentence, as I was thinking of something along the lines “but he actually happens to be serious, you know”.
Many thanks in advance!
Hi enrique
You can rephrase the sentence with かもしれない → まじめかもしれない
The nuance difference is, たりする is more vague compare to かもしれない
You bring up some possibilities more softly with たりする avoiding direct expression
People tend to think shallow looking guys are not serious. But they could be serious. (there are cases such as they are serious.)
Hi maggie sensei. I saw a sentence that had the word また別 and I saw that it translates as another or different in some sites. I would like to know what the difference between this word and 別, 区別 or 違い.
Hi Ronaldo
As you said the translation might change depending on the context but the general idea is
別 another
区別 distinguish
違い difference
thank you maggie sensei. can you tell me the difference between また別 and 別?
Do you remember what word comes after また別?
For example
それは別の話です。
That’s another story.
→それはまた別の話です。
In this case, they mean the same but this また emphasize “another” more than just using 別
別の日に会いましょう。
→また別の日に会いましょう。
Let’s meet another day.
In this case, it depends on the context and it could be emphasizing another or “to meet again.”
適性はあっても、技術はまた別の話だ。
Ah OK, so it was the same as my example sentence. :)
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「つく」. It goes like this:
このスイッチを押すと電気がつく。
And was translated as: The light comes on when you press this switch.
I have two questions. The first one is: I would like to know why 電気 was translated as light and the second one is what’s the meaning of オマケつき.
Hello Lazerel,
電気 has two meanings 1) electricity 2) (electric) light Ex. 電気をつける = to turn on the light
おまけつき = with free gift/feebie
For example, you buy a magazine or snack and some freebie comes with it. That is おまけ付き
Hello Maggie sensei! Thank you very much for your thorough explanation.
However, I have come across a sentence in which instead of ことがありません, they use ことがありませんでした. The sentence is 日本に来る前に海を見たことがありませんでした。日本に来て、初めて見ました。In my opinion, following this lesson I would have opted for ことがありません. The past tense is already used in 見た. However, according to the key, it’s wrong. Could you please explain it?
Thank you very much. I hope you have a nice day!
Hello Sky
You can decide which tense to use depending on the time which you focus on.
日本に来る前 = before I came to Japan. This is the past. When are talking about your past experience in the past you use the past tense 見たことがありませんでした。
If you are talking about your experience up to now.
I have never seen the ocean (→I haven’t seen the ocean up to now.)
The focus time is “now” so you say 海を見たことがありません。
このレッスンはありがとうございました！自分の多くの意味と使い方は勘がもうあったんですけど、以前よく考えなかったです。
ちょっと質問があるんですけど。自身と自らは自分と違う所と使い方はよくわかりません。短説明するとありがとう！
こんにちは Para
英語にするとどちらも oneselfになるからわかりにくいかもしれませんね。
自身 = oneself
Ex. 私/自分自身のための作品 = the artwork for myself/oneself
自ら = 自分から何かをする = to do something voluntarily, to do something personally
Ex. 自ら手伝う= to help someone voluntarily
Hello Maggie-sensei 😊
I have a little question. I reviewed this grammar point with the book “新完全マスター文法 日本語能力試験Ｎ３”. The book talks about another function of -ていく and -てくる but I don’t quite understand it because there is only two examples. The function is “A movement or shift occurring after an action” and the examples are “出かけるとき、天気予報を見てきました” and “荷物はここに預けていこう”. My question is fuzzy, but I don’t really understand the difference with the function of doing something and coming back, and doing an action without coming back. If you can enlighten me. お願いします🤗
Hi Aurore
You connect two actions with te-form.
You do A and then do B.
If the verb B is 行く or 来る,
you do something (A) and you go somewhere or you come somewhere.
(You can rephrase them with から）
1) 出かけるとき、天気予報を見てきました （←天気予報を見てからきました）
I checked the weather report (action A) when I left the house and came here*(acton B)
(*wherever the speaker is now.)
2) 荷物はここに預けていこう (←荷物をここに預けてからいこう）
I will leave your bag (action A) here and go somewhere (action B).
So these two examples happened to have verbs, 行く/来る but you can use other verbs.
I had lunch and went out →昼ごはんを食べて出かけた。(←昼ごはんを食べてから出かけた)
We talked about it and then decided. →よく話し合って決めた。(←よく話し合ってから決めた）
Hello Maggie-sensei,
Thank you very much for your quick response 😊. It’s clear to me now, I didn’t realize that in this case -て was only used to connect 2 actions. Thanks for the explanation and additional examples 😁.
Have a nice week end
You’re very welcome, Aurone.
Have a great week, too! :)
Thank you!!!!
どういたしまして❤️
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「のに」. It goes like this:
これは練習、マスターと僕の戦いの為のなのに本気にな落ち込む。
I have two questions. The first one is about what is the difference between ための and ために, the second is if the な (after 本気に) and the 、 have some function inside that sentence or you can remove them without having any problem.
Hello Lazerel,
1) There is a hidden noun after 為の
マスターと僕の戦いのための（練習 or もの）なのに
Since the word 練習 is already mentioned, you don’t have to say 練習 again and just say ための
(You can sometimes rephrase it with もの as well)
You often omit the noun and just use の
(Check my の lesson if you want to learn more. The link is here.)
So though you use の instead of the nouns 練習/もの, ための is considered as a noun so you use なのに
Noun + なのに
2) Is it one phrase? There is no space between 本気にな and 落ち込む？
If so, I think it is a typo. 本気に落ち込む （本気に is an adverb which modifies the following verb, 落ち込む)
Hello meggie sensei,
I couldn’t understand the difference between たらすぐに vs 次第
and ofcourse i came across another similar grammer
するとすぐに and~か~ないかのうちに
so please teach us the difference between this four
Hi Ritesh
As for the difference between すぐに and たらすぐに
I explained in this lesson so please read the note. (Basically they means the same, as soon as but 次第 is more formal and たらすぐに is more conversational. But there are cases that you can not rephrase たらすぐ with 次第. Read Note. 2)
するとすぐに vs たらすぐに
Are very similar as well and they can be interchangeable.
As soon as he got home, he went out.
彼は家に着くとすぐに出かけた
= 彼は家に着いたらすぐに出かけた
The difference:
１）verb dictionary form + とすぐに →focusing on the action itself
2) Vたらすぐに →focusing of the completion of the action
You can not use 1) when you tell someone what to do
Ex. 家に着いたらすぐに電話をください。 = Call me as soon as you get home.
→X You can’t say 家につくとすぐに電話をください。
You use 1) when you talk about the past or daily routine.
~か~ないかのうちに is used when two actions are happening almost the same time.
家につくかつかないかのうちに can be right before you get home.
So you can’t say
家につくかつかないかのうちに電話をください。either.
やっぱり!
Something was puzzling me about という, and I thought that Maggie Sensei would have the answer.
A beginner in any language first learns words and some stand-alone sentences. But, in daily life, people have conversations. They say things in response to what someone else has said, and often speak in half sentences. While watching TV I have recently noticed that という can be the first word that a person uses when saying something. This did not make sense to me, considering that a beginner learns to use という for quotes, definitions and so on, where という is in the middle of a sentence.
But, you give some examples in “(2) To summarize /boil down something” which fits what was puzzling me:
A: 「大きな台風が近づいています。」
B: 「ということは、明日は誰も学校に来ないということですね。」
という is being used to connect the meanings of two sentences/phrases, and in this case there are two different speakers and B is replying to and completing/modifying the thought of A.
Unfortunately, I still cannot translate spoken Japanese quickly enough to always be able to connect a series of spoken sentences. But, I’m always learning something, so there is progress.
Thanks.
Hi Michael,
Yes, you do start the sentence with ということは when you summarize what you just heard/read in conversation.
Another colloquial/casual way to say ということは is
ってことは>..(てことは…)
You may not learn this in the textbooks but you use/hear this a lot in conversation. 😉
Textbooks (and web resources) have their uses, for explaining the basic rules. Also, most language learning resources seem to focus on JLPT levels and .. JLPT4-5の問題点は、語彙の多くが観光客にとって役に立たないことです. But that is a different story. :-)
It’s probably impossible to learn how to speak from reading a book of rules. Especially because I am teaching myself, I occasionally am victim of what I learned first, since I don’t have anyone to warn me about complications. という was one example of this.
An even bigger problem for me was the particle けど. You wrote about it, saying “I think many of you know the usage of けど ( = kedo) as “but”.” Exactly. That was my problem. When listening to real conversations, I got the impression that ですけど was the most frequent way in which people end their sentences. They couldn’t always mean “but”. And once again your examples gave me a deeper insight into how the Japanese language works in practice.
Michael
I understand your point.
I will do my best to cover both conversational and formal yet more useful Japanese phrases. :)
Hello Maggie. i don’t understand the meaning of 相手してあげません in the following sentence: 認めないと今後も相手してあげませんよぉ‼. Can you explain to me?
Hello again Mutuio3
相手をする means “to associate with someone/ to deal with someone/ to keep someone’s company/to play with someone”
So it depends on the context but it means
If you don’t accept it, I won’t hang out with you anymore, OK?
so the general meaning of 相手をする would be hang out and depending on the context you use the words you put as a translation, right?
the context of the phrase would be a boy challenges a girl to a competition, she accepted and arrogantly said that she would easily defeat him. after losing to him, he asks her to admit defeat and apologizes and if she doesn’t, he won’t partner up with her anymore.
That’s right.
And in that context you gave me, your translation is right.
Hello Maggie. I happen to come across the following sentence:
そなたのこれまでの旅を冒険の書に記録してよいな？
My doubt is if there has difference between してよい and してもいい.
i’m sorry for my english. i still practicing it.
Hi Mutuio2,
してもいい is much more common
してよい is more literal and you usually see this form in written form.
Also してよいな is a bit dramatic expression and is used for a speech of an old male character in the story/anime/movie.
I don’t understand what you meant with “more literal”
Sorry. it may have confused you by the word, literal. I mean you tend to use よいな for written form more.
Hello,
Can you please confirm if below sent sentence is correct or incorrect.
シェヤポイントの登録期間が終わったなのでシェヤポイントを使えない次第です.
If it’s incorrect then please mention the reason.
Thanks,
Akash
Hello Akash
First of all, the most natural way to say that is
シェアポイントは、登録期間が終わっているので使えません。(more natural)
But if you want to use 次第 to explain the situation in a formal writing
シェアポイントは、登録期間が終わっているので使えない次第です。
Hello maggie sensei,
I have a doubt, i recently discovered this expression という感じ
which is very similar to かんな、こんな感じ、こういう感じ、そういう感じ。
so iwant to know what is the difference between という感じ and こう/そう/ああいう感じ
and こんな感じvsこんな vs このような/こういう感じ
sorry for lots of questions at once🙏
It is confusing me and hloding back to learn new grammer.
Once again sorry sensei for lots of question these past few days.
I’am thankful that i found a wonderful teacher like you💖🙏
Hello Ritesh
~という感じ
と is used when you quote something
Ex. もう食べられないという感じだった。
= It was like “I can’t eat anymore.”
1) (casual) こんな→こういう→(more formal) このような感じ like this (referring something/someone right in front of you.)
2) (casual)そんな→そういう→(more formal)そのような感じ like that (referring something/someone a little bit farther than こういう)
3) (casual)あんな→ああいう→(more formal)あのような感じ like that (referring something/someone far from you.)
I hope this answers your questions. :)
Hi sensei, i want to know what is the difference between そう and 感じ in the sense of looks like and seems like and i which situation we will use
優しい感じ
優しそう both translate as looks kind
Hi Hritesh
I wouldn’t say there is much difference between 優しい感じの人 and 優しそうな人. You can both translate them “ a person who looks sweet”.
感じ: It is based on one’s feelings/impressions that one gets from that person./ sweetish person
そう:how the person looks / how one sees that person.
FYI You can even combine them そう and 感じ
優しそうな感じの人
😄 Hi, Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for this really useful lesson!!💗
I read a verse of a song that says:
「新ネタ仕入れたなんてね したり顔でtalkin’ talkin’… 」
The final 「なんで」 means anything in particular o is it just used to emphasize the sentence?
Also, in the phrase「あの子のアレコレ気になって センシティブな顔なんだって」… How is 「なんだって」used in this context?
Thanks in advance 💖.
Hi Leah
1) This なんて is quoting what comes before, 「新ネタ仕入れた」. ~なんて（言って） Saying things like ~
2) In this case なんだって is quoting the reason.
I heard/He/She/Someone told me the reason why ~ is ~
So you heard the reason why someone has a sensitive face. And tell someone that reason why.
Ooh, I see. 「なんて」 is quoting what comes before.
Thank you very much for the explanation💗.
Regarding to “あの子のアレコレ気になって センシティブな顔なんだって”, what would be the correct way to translate it?
Now I think of it なんだって has another usage. When you make your point or explain something or giving a reason in a strong way about oneself. “I am telling you ~”
It depends on the context and it is kind of hard to tell which one by reading just one line.
I don’t do the translation here but if it is quoting,
“I heard ~ has a sensitive face because ~ can’t help thinking about her/him.”
If that person is explaining the reason himself/herself then
“I have a sensitive face because I can’t help thinking about her/him, OK?”
Hello, Maggie-sensei.
ご相談をしたいと思います。
About ながら, can you use it in a sentence that mixes a verb of human/animate being action (歩く) and an intransitive verb of non-human action (付く)? Like this one:
道を歩きながら電気が付いた。
While walking in the street the lights came on (by themselves).
ご相談をよろしくお願いいたします。
こんにちは 六誌
道を歩きながら電気が付いた。
In that case you can’t use ながら.
It has to be the same person who does two actions at the same time.
Ex. 歩きながら電話で話した。
Maggie Sensei,
Another excellent article!
I was hoping you might be able to help clarify something though.
There seems to be disagreement about using 〜ない with ようになる.
My teacher and the book we are using (みんなの日本語) agree with you that なくなる should be used instead.
However there are quite a few examples online of なにようになる.
My wife (native Japanese) and several online teachers agree ないようになる can be used.
The opinions range from “ないようになる is not used very much” to “they mean the same thing”.
One person said “なくなる emphasizes the consequences of the change but ないようになる emphasizes the process of change”.
My wife thinks ないようになる might be used in a museum exhibit explanation.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this.
Sorry this was so long and thank you in advance!
Hello Niwashi Kun
Good question. I would say なくなる is much more common and it sounds more natural in many cases but you are right. I think I will add that information because some people do say that.
The difference between なくなる and ないようになる depends on the context but I agree with what you read. (consequences of the change and process of change)
Let’s compare the following two sentence.
With past tense
A ) （それ以来）彼は無駄なことをしなくなった。 (focusing on the consequences/results)
B ) （それ以来）彼は無駄なことをしないようになった。 (focusing on the process of how one became. )
Another difference is Vないようになった tends to describe slow change.
Vなくなった is used when the change could happened right after some incidence.
Wow! Thanks for the fast reply!
I appreciate your additional information and examples. I suppose it’s due to the subtlety and uncommonness of the usage of ないようになる that my teacher and book say to just use なくなる.
Note: I noticed a typo in my 1st message and also one in your reply.
Mine: “However there are quite a few examples online of な[に]ようになる.”
Should be “…… examples online of な[い]ようになる.”
Yours: “The difference between なくなる and ないように{する} depends on the context…..”
Should be “The difference between なくなる and ないように{なる} depends on the context….”
I only mention them because I’m concerned they might confuse a future reader. I don’t know how these things work but if possible can you edit the posts?
Thank you again for your reply and all your detailed explanations,
-N
Thank you for spotting the typo. 🙏
I guess a lot of teachers/textbooks avoid teaching ないようになる because it may sound unnatural or less common but you are right. Some readers might get confused when they hear/see it somewhere. I should have mentioned. So thank you for your good question!
Senseiii is there any other way to say 〇〇ば〇〇ほど? Like how kids and teenagers nowadays say it, or short ver. of it?
Hello, 茉愛
Not just for kids or teenagers but you can also say
◯◯ば◯◯だけ
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「方」. It goes like this:
罪を犯さない人なんて、この社会にはいない。『償い』とは結果ではなく、その過程で生まれる心の在り方です。
I have two questions. The first one is how would you translate 在り方 and the second is what is the function of と and で in this sentence.
Hello Mutuio,
1) 在り方 means “way of being”, “the way something is supposed to be”
心の在り方 the way you set your mind
2) と is to quote in this case 償い
償いというものは→(shorter way) 償いとは
3) で
See the pattern how you make a negative form of a noun
noun + です
→noun + ではない
Hello Maggie, this one gives me headaches for a long time. The meaning of the sentence is clear to me, but what effect has も here?
あれは用もないのに押しちゃだめなのよ
I am really looking forward to your answer. I appreciate your work very much and I have learned a lot from you.
Thank you in advance
こんにちはアンドレアス
〜もないのに is a very common patter なんの理由もないのに / 証拠もないのに
You can also say がないのに ,”there is no ~ “, but when you add the nuance of “not to even” or “any”, you use も
用がない not to have particular reasons
用もない not have any particular reasons
Hi Maggie. Thank’s a lot! I will remember this as a patern. You really helped me out. You are great!! :D
My pleasure! :)
こんにちは、マギー先生！This time I come with another question. How would you interpret たら in the following sentence?
何かを引き換えにしてもそばで笑えたらそれだけでよかったはずなのに。
こんにちは Julia!
そばで笑えたら = If (someone) can laugh
こんにちは、マギー先生！久しぶりですよ :)
Today I was listening to a song and I was wondering how the following verse translates:
どこの誰が何をささやいたって
僕たちだけの秘密のサインが
あれば怖いものなんてないんだ
他になにも欲しくはない
この手は離さぬように
What does that どこの mean? How would that ささやいたって translate? And that あれば corresponds to the previous sentence?
I’m so sorry to ask so many questions.
Hello Juliana
どこの誰が is an expression which means “someone/anybody” ( or “whoever” “no matter who”)
ささやいたって is a conditional ささやいても
あれば corresponds to 秘密のサイン
I don’t do the translation here but the idea is,
No matter what anyone whispers, there is nothing that scares us if we have our secret sign.
気持ち、金持ち、受け持、女持ち、持ち込み、持ち主。。。
いっぱいありますね！
こんにちは、ルナ
はい、「持ち」の入った言葉、いっぱいあります。:)
Hey Sensei, I was wondering if you could help me with this, because I can’t find much of any information about this but, how do you express looking or seeming without the nuance of hearsay or conjecture. For example, “old-sounding music” would usually be translated as something along the lines of “古そうな音楽”, but doesn’t that have the nuance of guessing or conjecture based on personal opinion? What I want to express in “old sounding music” would be music that sounds old because you know the styles that old music used, so what you’re stating is essentially a fact. Would そう still be what you use, our would it be something like “古く聞こえる音楽”? Or something else entirely (maybe involving ふう)? What about 見える, can you use く and に forms to express appearance? Sorry if this is hard to read, thanks a bunch :)
Hello Sean
Yes, you can say 古く聞こえる音楽 (the music that sounds old) but you can also just say 古い音楽 as your opinion. There is an expression, 古くさい音楽 which sounds negative.
You don’t use 見える for music.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence recently including 「なんて」. It goes like this:
まだです！私が一度も勝てないなんてコト。。。話してる途中で歌やめる。
I have two questions. The first one is about what is the function of なんて and コト in this sentence and the second is if you should always put で after 途中. I’ve seen two sentences that are like that and I’m not sure if it’s a rule or not.
Hello Mutuio
私が一度も勝てないなんてコト..
This is unfinished sentence but you can assume it expresses one’s disbelief.
私が一度も勝てないなんてこと、あるわけがない(There is no way that I can never win)/信じられない (I can’t believe that I can never win), etc.
So this なんて modifies こと and こと has a function the verb into a noun, in this case 勝てない (can never win →with こと: that I can never win)
It depends on the context but you can use で or に or no particle after 途中
マギー先生、
Thank you for your explanation, but for this sentence:
一生懸命がんばります
What is the emotion expressing here by adding ん after が?
Hello iwawee
This ん is a part of a verb.
がんばります is a verb which means “to do one’s best, to try hard”.
FYI if you want to add ん like I explained in this lesson, it will be
がんばります→dictionary form がんばる
→がんばるんです
I can’t find an example where you use 間 with 動詞 ない刑
I think there is. →僕がいない間は、部屋を好きに使っていいよ。
Hello マギー先生
Is this たまる, not まる? what does this sentence say?
こんな時代に殺されてたまるか
Hi Milk
It is a verb, 堪る = たまる = がまんする = to put up with
You usually use it in a negative form or with か to express one’s feelings of resistance.
I have a lesson on たまらない and I explained the usage of たまるか there so please go check if you want to learn more.
Link is here.
ありがとうございました! I will check it out
If you have more questions about たまる/たまらない, feel free to leave a question anytime. :)
As always, thank you for your lessons. I’m suppose to have an N2 level but I still have doubts when it comes to けど😅.
Can you use it with ますform?
For example: 食べられますけど、あまり好きじゃありません。
Or 行きませんでしたけど、行きたかったです。
Thanks again!
Hi Noraneko
Since けど is a casual form, if you want to use the polite form with the following verbs
食べられますけれども or 食べれますが+ あまり好きじゃありません。
行きませんでしたけれども or 行きませんでしたが+ 行きたかったです。
might be more natural but yes, people do use masu-form with けど in conversation.
Thank you for teaching us! I recently saw this combination
それだ, What does it mean?
Hi Mian
It depends on the context but
それだ！ means “That’s it./ That’s one. / That is what I am talking about.
maggie sensei, i love you but this is impossible for me to read lol. i always have o copy and paste it and then reformat it because my brain refuses to process the information lo;. but anyways, thank you for your lessons.
Hello zee
Sorry to hear it is impossible for you to read this lesson. 😢
If you try to learn the whole lesson at once, it might be hard.
I hope you can come back here just to get a piece of information. 😉
Ano sensei wa subarashii sensei da. Maggie sensei dokoro de wanai.
I disagree. You are a great Japanese teacher, Maggie Sensei!
Ajay
Aww…you are the sweetest! 🐶 💕💕
Hello! I am studying for N3 and one question says: 一度にバナナを20本も食べられる( ). The answer is わけがない but another choice is ことがない. Why is ことがない wrong? Don’t they both mean “There’s no way I can eat 20 bananas”?
ありがとうございます！
Hello ヘイリー
Yes, the correct answer is わけがない
わけがない is used with something extreme for that person. “There is no way to do something”
ことがない also negates what one would do/can do. but it’s based on the idea that doing something is not so extreme (you can see that from the opposite sentence.)
家族で外食をすることがない。⇄家族で外食をすることがある。
一人で焼肉を食べることがない。⇄一人で焼肉を食べることがある
Eating 20 bananas at once is something extreme and there is no way to do that so you use わけがない
Check the translation difference in the following three sentences.
A 一度にバナナを20本も食べられることがある means I sometimes can eat 20 bananas at once.
B 一度にバナナを20本も食べられることがない (this sentence itself is not so natural but..) it means I sometimes can’t eat 20 bananas at once.
A and B: You think eating 20 bananas is
C 一度にバナナを20本も食べられるわけがない means “There is no way that I can eat 20 bananas at once”
So the answer is わけがない
Oh, I was under the impression that ことがない meant never because of the examples like: “彼は疲れることがない”. So I was thinking it would mean: “I can never eat 20 bananas at once,” (一度にバナナを２０本も食べられることがない). So does ことがない actually imply that there are a few times that he is tired (first sentence)?
In that case, you don’t use the potential form 食べられる
If you want to use こと, you use the dictionary form + ことはない
→ 一度にバナナを２０本食べることはない He is not going to eat 20 bananas at once or There is no way for him to eat 20 bananas at once.
Hi! You are so great at explaining. I just have one question: Can I say “Even if I want to” with the same pattern of “temo”?
Hi Solaine,
Yes, you can use Vたくても form
Even if I want to go 行きたくても
Even if I want to eat 食べたくても
Hi Maggie先生！
I often heard this ては used in songs and always struggled to translate it, so finding this old lesson was a lifesaver!
I have something I want clarified:
I know that ては contracts to ちゃ and では contracts to じゃ.
However, we only use these contractions with usage 3 (describing an unfavorable result)
触れてはダメ –> 触れちゃだめ ✓
子供では無理 –> 子供じゃ無理 ✓
and usage 1 (repetitive actions),
食べては寝の生活 –> 食べちゃ寝の生活 ✓
彼はテレビをつけては消す –> 彼はテレビをつけちゃ消す ✓
right?
Am I right in assuming that these contractions can’t be used with usage 2 (whenever ~) or usage 4 (giving suggestions)
日本に来ては○○する –> 日本に来ちゃ○○する ✗
彼に任せてはどうですか –> 彼に任せちゃどうですか ✗
Thank you!
♡Sora
Hi Sora,
Yes, you can change ては・では →ちゃ・じゃ in all your example sentences including the last two.
And of course, they are all very casual. 😉
Thank you!!
Anytime! :)
In these lyrics “dog eat dog world”だと言う聞かせ someone said it means I tell myself it is a dog eat dog world. I am not understanding why it means that. I thought it was “I hear [someone] say this” or “it is said/we are told”.
Hi Ash
I think there is a typo in your sentence
言う聞かせ→言い聞かせ
1) (someone)に言い聞かせる = to tell(or persuade) someone that ~ / to do ~
2) (自分に)言い聞かせる = “to tell oneself ~ ”
So the translation is right. I tell myself it is a dog eat dog world.
Ha ha, I didn’t notice the typo. Good eye Maggie. Thank you for your response. Now it makes perfect sense! :)
Great!! :)
can you explain ~たりしてはいけません as it i can not find the answer any where, i really do appreciate the help if you can ease my stress on finding the answer.
sorry forgot to add this , its the form ~たり、〜たりしてはいけません
Hello Sean
~たり、〜たりしてはいけません
means “You must not do things such as ~ , ~ and so on ”
Ex. 教室では騒いだり、走ったりしてはいけません。
You must not do things such as making noises, running around and so on in the classroom.
Hi, Maggie sensei.
What does ついでみたいな or ついたでみたいにmean?
Thanks
Sorry, I meant ついでみたいに
Hi Bere
~ みたい means “like” / “as” ~
ついでみたいな (adjective) + noun = something like ついで
ついでみたいに (adverb ) + verb = to do something as ついで
And the interpretation of ついで changes depends on the context so please check the lesson.
Is this up? I’m just wondering what does the “twitter header” translation in Japanese slang? XD
Hello unmomumomu
I don’t think there is slang for twitter header. We just say Twitter (の )ヘッダー or バナー
Hi Maggie sensei!
Thank you for another wonderful post.
I saw this sentence which uses 的:
それはスケジュール的に厳しい。
Which is shown to translate to:
That’s a tight schedule.
Do you mind explaining what is 的 used for in this sentence? I’m having trouble understanding the use of 的 in this example. Seems like スケジュール的 is not used as an adjective here. スケジュール的 also feels weird to be an adjective.
Thank you!
Hi Chan,
スケジュール的に means “schedule-wise” and it modifies 厳しい (tight)
It is tight, schedule-wise.
Thanks for the kind explanation Maggie sensei!
先生、こんにちは。
問題があります。先生が教えていただけませんか。
～にもらう・～からもらう
私の例文です。
①私は田中さんに本をもらいました。
②私は田中さんから本をもらいました。
③私は会社の人にかばんをもらいました。
④私は会社に人からかばんをもらいました。
もし”に”を”から”に換えたら、例文の意味が変わりますか。
場合によって、”～にもらう”と”～からもらう”の使い方が違いますか。
先生 お願いいたします。どうもありがとうございます。
先生、すみません。
インターネットで調べてみましたが。
このように説明します。
個人（Ａさんなど）「に」「から」もらいます。借ります。
組織（公的機関、学校、銀行など）「から」もらいます。借ります。
調べたことは正しいですか。先生が教えていただけませんか。
個人同士なら「に」でも「から」でも両方使います。
Aさんから本をもらいました。
Aさんに本をもらいました。
組織からもらったり借りた場合は「から」を使います。
図書館に借りた x 不自然
図書館から借りた
「から」を使うときは「に」よりも出所(origin) を強調します。
こんにちは、Ha Thao
① = ②
③ = ④
意味は同じになります。
先生 こんにちは。
はい、わかりました。
返事してくれて、どうもありがとうございました。
どういたしまして❤️
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have questions regarding these lines, they are from a song:
1- 吐き出すルールは君が決めた
2- 吐き出すルールあなたが決めた
my translation was like this:
1- Rules of spitting out are what you have decided
2- Spit out the rules you have decided.
My questions are:
1- for the part (Hakidasu ruuru) in both of them, is the verb (Hakidasu) a transitive verb? I mean, could I say it is like (Imperative form) for giving commands which it means in this case (you spit out)
OR
is it considered a name (because it came at first), which it means (spitting out)?
2- Are they actually the same thing and have the same translation, and I just mistranslated?
Hi Katsu,
The literal meaning is “As for the spitting out rule is what you have decided” but
You decided the spitting rule. might be more natural.
And 1) and 2) are the same thing but 2) doesn’t have は so it sounds like a poetic expression or slogan.
I see, So it is considered a name in both 1 and 2.
Does it have a deep meaning or anything in Japanese?
Because I find it kinda hard to link its meaning with other lines.
Sorry, what do you mean by “a name”?
Anyway it is hard to interpret the meaning from just two lines but
吐き出す also means “Getting something out of one’s system/letting it out” and it could be one’s feelings (sadness, anger, etc.) or something
You made the rules of getting out of my (or your) feelings.
This is my guess but the reason why the writer changes the way of saying 君が決めた/あなたが決めた is probably because it sounds more interesting than just repeating the same phrase twice.
I mean using (spitting out) and not the verb (spit out).
Someone who translated this song said it’s a dialogue between a boy and a girl and the lines with (kimi) is for the boy when he talks to the girl, while the lines with (anata) is for the girl.
Anyway, thank you so much for clarifying, it was very helpful!
Ah yes, two people’s dialogue makes more sense.
Two people are kind of blaming each other who made the rule.
Anyway, I’m glad to hear it is more clear now.
Hello Maggie-sensei
I’ve turned into the dark side of male speech ごめんね Σ(°△°|||)
You said in your lesson we could turn ない to ねえ in male speech. But I’ve seen some using ん like すまん or 使わん (instead of すまない and 使わない). Is it the same ねえ or is it used for particular cases?
Also I’ve seen the suffix っタレ(or ったれ) which was translated as Sauce, which makes no sense to me. (for context: 動画っタレ用の宣材撮っないと) I suppose it is not a good word…
Thank you Sensei!
Hello Gaspatcher
〜ねえ sounds more rough than ~ん.
It depends on the intonation and as you said, すまん is mainly for male speech but ない →〜ん is also a dialect in many regions in Japan (Chubu area, Kansai area, etc.) and both men and women use.
知らない→知らん
できない→できん
~ったれ is derogatory. You add this suffix to point out someone’s weakness or negative aspect. You have to be careful because it will insult people.
Ok, I’ll avoid this then, but it’s always good to know!
Thank you for your reply Sensei!
Anytime! :)
hello Maggie,
I’m a little confused on something.
in the first example 「今まで僕みたいなかわいい先生いた？」
why is : “noun + mitai な + adjective” used here? reading the post and following the rules of construction I thought it was supposed to be:
“noun + mitai に + adjective?” Am I seeing this wrong?
Hello Chrollo
Good question. You can also say 僕みたいにかわいい先生いた？
In that case 僕みたいに modifies かわいい
My original sentence might be a little confusing because it has かわいい.
僕みたいな actually modifies a noun “(かわいい）先生” a (cute) teacher
So 僕みたいな先生いた？ is the basic structure.
And you can add adjective
僕みたいな素敵な先生いた？
But when you just modifies an adjective, you use に
Nian Nian先生みたいにかわいい/素敵だ
I understand now thanks! I’m really grateful for your speedy reply,
Thanks again ^-^
My pleasure. :)
Hi!
I was wondering, in these song lyrics, what is the purpose of ような?
ねぇ どっかに置いてきたような
事が一つ二つ浮いているけど
I know that song lyrics can be very poetic and bend normal linguistic rules, but I’m really struggling to understand what it means. From my understanding this means “Wherever you left it/those things behind, it/they are resurfacing one by one” but my japanese isn’t very good so I could definitely be misunderstanding the whole sentence lol.
Thanks!
Hi Sara
This ような modifies 事（こと）
どっかに置いてきたようなこと (things that I left behind somewhere) = subject
一つ二つ A few (A couple of ) ＋ どっかに置いてきたようなこと (things that I left behind somewhere) will be the subject
And the main verb 浮いている （the literal meaning is “floating/resurfacing” but this is a very literal/poetic expressions.
マギー先生、こんにちは～
先生のご説明は教科書の説明よりとても分かりやすいと思います。素晴らしい説明で、このレッスンをお教えいただき、ありがとうございました。
こんにちは〜🐶
こちらこそ、優しいコメントありがとうございます！❤️
Hello Maggie-Sensei,
You said in your lesson
連用形 = renyoukei (verbs with nominal ending) and add そう=sou
but it seems it is the same as ____ (polite form stem verb i.e. by removing ます)そう or are there some exceptions I don’t know?
In your examples:
•する → し + そう = しそう, so from します
•降る → ふり +そう=降りそう so from 降ります
•泣く→ 泣き + そう= 泣きそう so from 泣きます
•死ぬ → 死に =しに + そう= 死にそう so from 死にます
•起きる → 起き+そう= 起きそう so from 起きます
•来る → 来 +そう= 来そう so from 来ます
Is the rule ます-stem form + そう correct, or the nominal ending verbs are different sometimes from the ます-stem form? If yes, what verbs could that be?
Thank you a lot Sensei ♡
Hello Gaspatcher
I usually use the term masu-stem when I explain ”How to form” but I guess I used the term 連用形 in this lesson for some reason.
Yes, they are the same. :)
Ex. する
1) make masu-form →します
2) delete ます →masu-stem し
3) attach そう →しそう
But as I mentioned in this lesson, そう can be used with other verb forms such as potential forms. (Also ~てしまう/ (casual ) ちゃう ：落ちてしまいそう （落ちちゃいそう）. )
Ok, just wanted to be sure.ヽ(>∀<☆)ノ
ありがとうございました
どういたしまして〜☺️
Hi Maggie sensei!
Thank you for your very informative site!
Would like to know what does the ‘で’ in following examples mean? What is the function of ‘で’ in these examples?
– Ex. 持ち帰りで（お願いします。）
– Ex. Mサイズで（お願いします。）
Thank you!!
Hi Chan
When you order something or ask for something choosing from multiple choices/options, you use で
There are Small, Medium, Large →Mサイズで
You choose out of take away or eat in, →持ち帰りで
Another example. When you order ramen there are a few options.
Ex. 大盛りでお願いします。 large portion
Ex. みそでお願いします。 miso ramen
Thank you for the explanation!
You’re very welcome, Chan! :)
Thank you very much for these informative answers! I have a question regarding these uses with a teacher. How would I adapt these for remote one on one lessons with a teacher? I just don’t want to be rude, but also want to be attentive. Perhaps there’s a lesson here that I missed on this, but also the proper words to say beside はい when communicating that I understand what my teacher is saying. He used to speak entirely in Japanese with me, but now has gradually been sneaking more and more English in there and I think it’s because I’m not good with these sorts of situations 😅
Hello Jacki
You can use all these phrases with your on-line teacher but let me know if there are any specific phrases that you want to use in the class. I will help you.
Also I covered some class room Japanese in 学校 lesson. Link is here.
Hi Maggie sensei,
Sorry for bothering… again! (￣ ￣|||)
I really don’t know the grammar about this one and I couldn’t find an explanation in your lesson:【あの事故と結ばれでもしたんだろう】I suppose the でも here should be “even though” so I tried to translate it as: “I guess it was even though it was linked to that accident” but it makes no sense.
I found on a website the same construction for another sentence 英語の勉強でもするか which they have translate as “I might as well study English.” and the explanation is “でも here works to make your words less direct. It’s like “I think I will study something, let’s see…ok, English.” Also it’s not a question to someone. You say it to yourself.”
Is there some kind of construction based on 〜でもする/〜でもした where it is not conditional form?
How would you translate this 【あの事故と結ばれでもしたんだろう】?
Thank you a lot Maggie-sensei!
Hello again Gaspatcher
Your questions are always welcome. 😊
I guess I didn’t cover the usage in this lesson.
I don’t know the context of your example sentence (事故と結ばれる. Not 事故で？) but you use でも when you guess or imagine why something happened/why someone did/will do something or possible outcome.
So you bring up some possible cause/ outcome/results that you can think of with でも
When you use it with a verb,
verb masu-stem / noun* + でも＋したんだろう/したのかもしれない/したのだろうか..
You are not 100% sure but it could be ~ or something.
Another example, you have friends. They are usually very close but you can sense there is something wrong between them.
So you are not sure why exactly they are not talking to each other but you assume they got fight or something. In this case you use でも
喧嘩(けんか）でもしたんだろう。
Maybe they got fight or something.
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Aaah, it’s not the て-form verb +も but really the word でも (“but”) attached to the masu-stem verb?
So for example 遊びでも (masu-stem+でも) and 遊んでも (て-form verb+も) mean different things?
So in my case, I would have said 遊びでもしたんだろう (maybe they played or something) and not 遊んでもしたんだろう?
I think I got confused with ても/でも for conditional form and でも for “but”.
For my sentence, I don’t know exactly the origin, I retranscripted from ear so I’m not sure it’s correct. Maybe it’s 事故で actually if it makes more sense. The context is really “Maybe it was linked to that accident” when someone saw some event occurring before him.
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
おはよう、Gaspatcher
Ah, OK. If the context is
“Maybe it was linked to that accident” then 事故と is correct.
(If two people get connected to each other through the accident, 事故で ☺️）
And yes, for this usage you say 遊びでも not 遊んでも (遊んでも is different form. Ex. 遊んでもいいですか？ = to ask for the permission, etc.)
~でもしたんだろう
I added this in my previous comment but you can use a noun with でも so when you use a verb する, it will be easier to think
noun (遊び・喧嘩） + でも＋ したんだろう
And with a verb
verb masu stem (including auxiliary verb)
So I wouldn’t go too far here but
食べ＋でもしたんだろう
食べ＋られ(passive)/させられ(passive causative) ＋でもしたんだろう
Ok thank you as always Maggie-sensei! ♡
どういたしまして、Gaspatcher! ❤️
Hello Maggie Sensei
,
Gaspatcher here again! I have a question about【どうすれば良いか】which I found to be translated as “What should I do?” But a native also translate this as “How should I do it?” The meaning is different because the first one, you don’t know what to do and the second one, you know what but you don’t know how.
I think the second makes more sense “how should I do it?” because I would have translated the first meaning as 何をすれば良いか？ Am I missing something here?
I think it is more a question about どう rather than 良い but I didn’t find any lesson about the use of どう (that’s why I asked here)
ありがとうございました、先生
Hello Gaspatcher
How have you been? Good question!
The meaning of どう can be “how” or “what” depending on the context.
But the most natural translation for どうしたらいい？ is “What should I do?/What do you think I should do?”
You also say
何をしたらいい？ but the nuance difference is どう is used when you want to know “how” to deal with the situation and 何 is used when you want to know exactly what to do (actions).
And どう can be used as “how”
どう行ったらいいですか？ = How can I get there?
どうやったらいいですか？ = How should I do it?
(If you say どうしたらいいですか？, it may sound confusing because it also means “What should I do?” so it will be more clear to say どうやったらいいですか？)
Thank you Maggie. I’m fine thank you, hope you’re okay too!
Ok, that 100% answers my question. \(★ω★)/
So if I summarize:
どう〜 : generally “how”, but can be “what” depending on context
何を〜 : always “what”
Thank you as always!
Yes, that’s right. 😊
Let’s me add one more example with どう
When you are lost and don’t know what to do, you say
どうしよう
どうしたらいいんだろう…
(What should I do../I don’t know what to do..)
As always, thanks for the amazing lesson! I’m so used to using ら抜き言葉 in my speech that I often find myself forgetting to put it back when I’m writing in formal Japanese!
You hinted at something in this article that I had a lot of trouble with when I first learned potential forms: when to use the potential transitive vs normal intransitive verbs.
For example, in English, I would usually say something like “I can’t find my keys.” but I rarely hear 「鍵を(が)見つけられない。」 in daily life. Instead I often hear 「鍵が見つからない。」. This is often the case with sentences like with other transitivity pairs like 開く・開ける or 入る・入れる.
Do you know of any situations where the potential transitive form is preferred?
Thanks so much!
Hello JP,
As you said, we hear 見つからない/開かない more in conversation.
They simply describe the state or situation and you use this form when you are focusing on the object.
You use potential transitive form when you focus on the person and their capability.
The key is gone/missing = 鍵が見つからない (focusing on the key or the situation where you lost your key.)
I can’t find my key./ I am not capable to find my key. = 鍵を見つけられない。 (focusing on one’s capability)
ドアが開かない = The door won’t open. / The door is locked. (focusing on the door or the state)
ドアを（が）開けられない = I can not open the door. (focusing on the person who can not open the door. )
wtf…there’s more use for 「に」?!! ＠＿＠ I just wanted to know if けれども is more formal than けど. Is it? @_@
Hello Nyada
Yes, けど is a casual way to say けれども
Check this lesson if you want to learn more.
hi maggiesensei, can you tell me the difference between 〜ないといけない and 〜なくてはいけない？thanks
Hello cheruna
They mean the same but ないといけない is more conversational.
thank you!!!
Anytime :)
I wish to suggest a correction.
Original Version:
タクシーで駅まで行くのにいくら位かかりますか？
How much will it cost to the station?
Amendment:
タクシーで駅まで行くのにいくら位かかりますか？
How much will it cost to go to the station by taxi?
Hello JLearner
Thank you for the correction. I will fix it right away. ありがとう！
Hi Sensei,
Thank you very much for your lessons.
I want to ask a question
ある日、西岡君に「なぜそんなに成績がいいの」と聞いてみたことがある。
Here , what does”聞いてみたことがある” means
and also the meaning of “なぜそんなに”
Hello Prati
When you talk about one’s experience, (have done something) you use
verb past tense + ことがある (Check this lesson for more details.)
So 聞いたことがある means “I have asked Nishioka-kun”(the translation could be just “I asked Nishiokakun one day.”
なぜ = why
そんなに = so / such (emphasis)
Hello Maggie-Sensei,
Me again! (シ_ _)シ
In your lesson, I see we use the は particle for な-adjectives to make them negative: ~ではない but not for い-adjectives: 〜くない
But I’ve seen this: 安くはない. What is the difference between 安くない and 安くはない?
And does it work too for な-adjectives? Like きれいはではない?
Thank you so much, I wanted you to know by the way that your website is a huge boost in motivating me to learn Japanese.
Hello again Gaspatcher,
You add は either when you show the contrast or emphasize what come after.
安くない→安くはない
1) showing the contrast: Maybe it has a good quality but not cheap 2) Emphasizing the fact something is cheap.
For na-adjective or noun,
→きれいではない
→私のものではない
I’m so grateful to hear my site motivates you to learn Japanese. Yay! 😄
Thanks Sensei for this explanation. I understand the difference now with 安くない and 安くはない.
Sorry, I’m very pernickety (that’s my default) but what is the difference then with 安くはない (showing contrast) and それほど安くない? From my knowledge, それほど〜 tends also to show some contrast (it’s not that cheap).
And can we mix up both and have それほど安くはない – what would that mean then?
どうも有り難う先生
おはよう Gaspatcher
それほど安くはない/安くない It was not that cheap.
Yes, you can use それほど and は together. Actually it is a very common pattern.
But as you said since それほど already adds the emphasis, you can omit は as well.
ありがとう先生♥
どういたしまして :)
PS. こちらこそありがとうございました！🙏☕️❤️
Hello Maggie-sensei,
Can’t find anything about this, hope you could help: I’ve searched all over the internet and it seems the expression “to take care of” is 大事を取る with the を particle.
However, I found this sentence in a video game: 「大事に取っておいたんだけどなあ」 (“I took care of it and kept it (alive) you know, but…”) but I can’t find anything about 大事に取る with に particle and its meaning. Is it the same? Is there a subtle nuance between these 2 expressions? My issue is, when I type this on Google, all the searches land to the を particle. (・・;)ゞ
Thank you Sensei!
Hello Gaspatcher
大事を取る is an idiomatic expression so you use the particle を. You rarely use the particle を with 大事 except for this expression. (The original meaning is “to deal with the difficult situation”
but it means “to take care of oneself” but you use it when you want to be cautious and rest just in case.
For example, when you don’t feel good, you naturally worry that you may get worse the next day.
So 今日は、大事を取って休みます。 = I will rest and take care of myself (I don’t want to take any chance to get worse going out/working).
The sentence you heard in a video game,
大事に取っておいた This 大事に is an adverb (carefully) and this is pretty common way to use 大事に
大事に〜をとっておく = keep ~ close to one’s heart / to keep something carefully
Thank you so much Maggie Sensei!
This makes more sense now!
ありがとうございました♡
I am happy to hear it makes more sense now. :)
Hello Maggie sensei~
I would like to ask about the usage of か in the middle of a sentence.
I often see this kind of sentence, and I always interpret the sentence with か as ‘question or doubt about xx’ ex : I wonder if …., I guess …, maybe xx
I wonder if this is the right way to interpret the particle in this type of situation?
Also this sentence
それを考慮してか、盛大に料理を食べていたのである。
Can we ignore the か here, and interpret it as ‘intention’?
I’m sorry to bother you
/(__)\
“それを考慮してか、一昨日くらいから盛大に料理を食べていたのである。”
Hello Niko
Good question.
Let me rephrase the first part
それを考慮したからなのか(どうかわからないが)、 I’m not sure if it is because S took that into consideration but ~
それを考慮したのだろうか Maybe it’s because S took that into consideration
So you bring up the possible reason why the speaker thinks the following part （盛大に料理を食べていた） happened.
Your assumption + （な）のか + consequence/result/phenomenon
I am not sure but maybe ~/it could be why ~
For example you go to a cake shop where there is usually a long line to buy their popular sweets.
But you see from a distance that there is nobody around the store.
You think, the store might be closed. That is why nobody is there.
今日は休みなのか人が誰もいない。
ほどなる
So you can rephrase it like that!
As always, there is no subject mentioned in Japanese sentence sometimes, making it feels like groping in the dark with a candle. But I think I understand now.
説明ありがとうございます!!
I know sometimes interpreting the sentence without subject could be hard.
If you get confused again, just ask me. We can figure it out together. 😉
（Note for you:ほどなる→I think you meant なるほど）
こんにちはMaggie先生、
はじめまして、私はキルタナと申します。
Could you please explain the below expressions related to ~ばかりに
1)ちょっと大工の経験があるばかりに,いろいろな仕事を頼まれてしまう。
2)山頂から一目日の出を見たいばかりに、暗いうちに山小屋を出て2時間も走いたのだ。
宜しくお願い致します。_(_^_)_
Hi Keerthu
These ばかりに is the same usage of 5) giving a reason (the following sentence is something unfavorable or something one doesn’t want to do)
1)ちょっと大工の経験があるばかりに,いろいろな仕事を頼まれてしまう。
Just because I have some experience of being a carpenter (reason) I get asked to do many things (probably fixing something or building something)
Since this sentence has しまう, the speaker doesn’t want to do that kind of work.
2) This ばかりに also gives a reason but also expressing one’s strong desires to see the sunrise.
Just because I wanted to see the sunrise ~~~→I ended up doing ~ (I think 走いた is a typo. Maybe 歩いた？ Ended up walking for two hours.)
Hi Maggie Sensei
Thank you so much for your explanation. I am able to get it now.
And Sorry, in the second sentence its “歩いた” I typed wrongly.
Thank you once again. _(_^_)_
You’re very welcome, Keerthu!
歩いた→Good! It makes more sense now. ☺️
Hi Maggie sensei, I was wondering what this sentence mean.
無しと言ったのは自分のくせになんなんだその態度は
Hello Teo
You are the one who said ”なし” but what’s with the attitude?
(The speakers is annoyed by the listener’s attitude)
hello マギー先生！
I was wondering if でも and まで ,”even”, are interchangeable with nouns? Also what’s the difference?
Hi Milk
I have まで lesson and gave several usages of “even” in No. 5 this lesson
And they will all sound unnatural if you use でも instead of まで
* You use まで is used for something extreme /something unexpected
この漢字は子供でも読める (X まで） Reading the kanji is not that extreme.
But when you express someone can do something on top of something, you can use まで
その子供は、ひらがなだけではなく漢字まで読める
弟は、お腹がすいていて私の食べ残したものまで食べた。(Xでも)
My little brother was so hungry that he even ate my leftover.
on top of something even ~
A国だけではなくB国まで輸出を禁止した。 (Xでも）
(Not just the country A but also B banned the export.)
Aah I see! ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして、Milk💖
sensei i have one doubt about this
How can we differentiate betwwen(OR) and (EVEN) in the context of Noun+でも.please explain how we can understand whether the speaker is using でも as even or or?
and,
why でも has different meaning like but and or . Is it just a random or have some logical sense.
As always thanks for doing great work 🙏
Hi, Hritesh
Noun + でも in the usage of “even” and “or”
You can tell by the context. I will show you one example.
AでもBでも = either A or B (bring up more than two thins)
「りんごでもバナナでもいいです。」
Either 🍎 or 🍌 is fine with me.
~でも+ verb potential form : even
小さい子供でもできる
Even small children can do this.
Not just でも but also many Japanese particles, conjunctions have many different meanings.
For example, から = from, because, made of/from ~ , etc
Hello Maggie-sensei,
You said in your lesson that 〜ように+ 見える = it looks like〜
How about the following construction where ように is after 見える and there is also the は particle? Why?
そんなふうには 見えない あきらめるようには
Can this は be dropped?
I would translate this as: “It doesn’t seem that way, for you to give up”. Is it correct?
Thank you a lot Sensei!
Hello Gaspatcher
OK, when you use the negative form of ようにみえる, you often add the particle は to emphasize.
そんなふうにはみえない
But yes, you can drop は
→そんなふうにみえない
そんなふうには 見えない あきらめるようには
Yes, your translation is correct. This is a literal expression
Instead of just saying あきらめるようには見えない, you say そんなふうには見えない to intrigue the curiosity of the readers or listeners.
ありがとうございました♡
どういたしまして💖
こんにちはマギー先生！
I spotted a minor error in the lesson:
→書くな = かくな = kakuna = Don’t buy!
Should be “Don’t write!” of course.
Thank you very much for the lesson, I learned a few things that have always been obscure to me like converting る to ん for the casual negative command!
こんにちは altuser！
Thank you for spotting the mistake.
I’ll fix it right away. 💨
I’m happy to hear you learned something from this lesson.☺️
Dear Aya
Thank you for your message. I sent you a personal message through Patreon. Please check your Direct Message on Patreon. 🙏
A quick question Sensei, what is the difference between…
ここで待っていてください。
= Koko de matte ite kudasai.
and
ここで待ってください。
= Koko de matte kudasai.
I imagine they both mean the same thing essentially, but I’m interested to know what the difference in nuance is.
Thank you in advance!
Hello Jimmi
Good question.
As you said, the translation will be the same, “Please wait here.” but the nuance difference is
ここで待っていてください
It will take certain period of time and stay here and wait. (focusing on the state of waiting)
ここで待ってください
Focusing on the location where the listener waits = “here”.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Sensei says that the typical construction is SV(O)N, but can the N be at the beginning of the sentence.
I got to this:
隠し通路 七番街スラムまでつながってるの (The secret passage that leads to Sector 7 slums)
which I thought would be rather:
七番街スラムまでつながってる隠し通路の with the noun at the end.
Is it a special form of speech? e.g emphasizing the “secret passage”?
Hello Gaspatcher
It will be easier to see the structure of this sentence by adding a topic particle は after 隠し通路
隠し通路は、七番街スラムまでつながってるの
The secret passage leads to Sector 7 ~
Thanks Maggie-sensei (you answer really quickly!),
It’s coming from this video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o52IqteZ3pY&t=920s
around 15:22
She’s saying this without any particle? Is it because it is casual speech?
But is it okay then to put the noun at the beginning?
Aaaah ok I understand now the difference! Thank you Sensei(つ✧ω✧)つ
This is actually the omission of the は particle in casual speech, and it is not a noun modification, it’s a statement!
隠し通路は、 七番街スラムまでつながってるの (This secret passage connects to ~)
If we wanted to have a statement without a verb, that would be just like in your lesson
七番街スラムまでつながってる隠し通路の (The secret passage connecting to ~)
Thank you, I think I understand the slight difference!
Right.
If you modify a noun, 隠し通路 with 七番街スラムまでつながってる
You say 七番街スラムまでつながってる隠し通路
In English we use a change of voice (more emphatic, raised tone) to show the emphasis of a word in a sentence. I’ve found it difficult listening to Japanese without that mode of expression. Reading your article and talking to my my English speaking Japanese friend I have come to think thatモ may accomplish the same function as raising the tone in English. A simple sentence like “I want to drink tea” can have the four possible accents. I or WANT or DRINK or TEA . In Japanese, if I understand correctly, you could accomplish the same communication using 私もorスープもor たべたいも。is that correct? If it is I think it may really help improve my listening skills.
It is a little different but you do raise tone when you want to emphasize in Japanese as well.
But you are right. You cam emphasize with も as I explained in this lesson
number + counter も emphasizes the number
私も Me too/ I also
スープも soup also
X You can’t say たべたいも
Hello maggie sensei!
as far as I know, nandaka can also mean “I don’t know why but..” just like nanka. is there a difference between the two?
Hi Matthew,
Yes, that’s right. You can also say “なんだか” when you are not sure why
Ex. なんか悲しい = Nandaka kanashii
Ex. なんだか悲しい = Nandaka kanashii
= I don’t know why but I am sad. / I am kind of sad.
They mean almost the same.
thank you very much <3
Anytime! :)
マギー先生、
I hope you can help me clear up some of my confusion. In this article you use the following example
「これは僕んじゃない」
This makes sense to me but I’ve seen some Japanese people use something like
「これは私のものではありません」which I think could be made more casual by writing 「これは僕のものじゃない。」Is that right? Maybe you could help me write it more casually but my main confusion is what purpose 「もの」is serving in this sentence? It seems to pop up in ways that I don’t really expect it to and it is always confusing to me. Any help you could give me would be much appreciated.
Thanks for all your hard work on this site!
Hello Neil,
これは私のものではありません。This is not mine.
(もの = thing/object/stuff/item: It refers to the thing in front of you. Instead of saying what it is, you can rephrase it with もの)
For example, you are looking at a bag.
You can say either
これは私・僕のバッグではありません。
or
これは私・僕のものではありません。
Casual speech
→Drop もの
これは私・僕のではありません。This is not mine.
→More casual
これは私・僕んではありません。
Ah! I was confused as I thought もの was being used as a particle somehow and not as the noun “thing”. The order it appears in the sentence was very confusing to me.
Do これは僕のものではありません and これは僕んじゃない have the exact same sort of meaning besides the first one being more formal? Does もの add additional emphasis on the object?
ありがとうございます！
Does もの add additional emphasis on the object?
→Right but I think the idea is the same in English
これは僕のかばんではありません。”This is not my bag.”
これは僕のものではありません。”This is not my stuff.”
これは僕のではありません。/(Casual) これは、僕んではない “This is not mine.”
マギー先生、
I’m hoping you can help me with this. In this lesson, you use the example:
「これは僕んじゃない」
I’ve seen other Japanese people write something like
「これは私のものではありません」which I THINK could be written more casually as something like 「これは僕のものじゃない」。Is that right? Or maybe you could show me a proper way to write it less formally, but my main issue is that I don’t know what the purpose of もの is in this sentence. I’m having a hard time understanding it and it seems to confuse me whenever it pops up because it is not used how I expect it to be.
Thanks for all your hard work on the site.
こんにちは、マギー先生！
Thank you for this lesson it really helped a lot, but I’m confused in how んです and のです work. Is it that I must first be questioned to use it and can’t use it to explain a statement I made?
例えば: お腹すいた〜
今日は早起きのです。
でも、朝ご飯を作るのが面倒くさいです。
I’m hungry.
(because) I woke up early today.
but I can’t be bothered to make breakfast.
Would be incorrect? As It was corrected to 「今日は早起きです」
Hello Young
I am not sure if I understand your question well but you don’t have to use のです/んです in your example sentence. You can just say
今日は早起きしました。
今日は朝早く起きました。
If you want to emphasize the fact you got up early or add some explanatory tone (You got up early + So/That is why~/Then something happened..etc. ) you use のです/んです
今日は早起きしたのです。/今日は早起きしたんです。
今日は朝早く起きたのです。/今日は朝早く起きたんです。
Hello maggie sensei!
is ge a formal expression or can we use also use it for casual conversations?
Hi Matthew,
You can use げ for both formal and casual conversation.
thanks as always for answering!
Anytime, Matthew!
Hi マギー先生
Sometimes こと still confuses me a bit, what does 「気持ちのいいことじゃないことも」mean here in this sentence- “けど、私がどんな話をしてもスライムさんは面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた。話が進むにつれていつの間にか、これまでため込んでいた愚痴や村の子供のことなど聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないことも結構言ったのに。”
Hi Milk
聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないこと
There are two こと so it might be confusing. It means 聞いて気持ちがよくないこと
the things which are not pleasant to hear
I see, Thank you!
どういたしまして💖
Sorry, I can’t edit my comment… I meant 「聞いてなちゃう」
Hi there,
I am trying to understand a use of ちゃう. I’ve heard 「聞いちゃいねえ」and it was translated as “they’re not listening”. I don’t know how a negative construction would happen, but my prediction would be 「聞ってなちゃう」. Could you help clear this up?
Please and thank you.
Hello Anon505
The negative form is
〜ていない→〜ちゃいない
やっていない (I didn’t do)
→(casual) やっちゃいない
聞いていない not listening
Casual →聞いちゃいない
The suffix might have confused you.
Male speech (rough) ない changes ねえ
聞いちゃいねえ
Hello マギー先生！
I have a question that I’d love some help with. It is this particular sentence:
“物語という物語の探求”
Sadly I don’t have much more context to go with it, as that is the full sentence and it’s just listed as someone’s hobby. It is about someone who reads a lot, so I don’t think it’s trying to say that “he’s on a quest to find a book called ‘monogatari'”, though.
I’m guessing the use of という here is the one you have written in (7), “When you repeat something” … so I suppose it’s trying to emphasize 物語, but even knowing that I’m not sure how to interpret this sentence?
My first guess it’s supposed to be something like ‘the story to end all stories/the ultimate story’, like he’s hoping to find the best story ever? Otherwise I’m not sure how else I could take it, and it’s so hard with the lack of context other than knowing this is a person who loves to read….
I’d appreciate any help!
Hello k,
I think this sentence is using
AというA expression which means “the whole/ all sorts of/everything”
Ex. 犬という犬が好きです = I like all the dogs.
So pursue 物語という物語 = 全ての物語 = all the stories/all sorts of stories
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am copying a question by Victor Hugo posted on June 19th, 2020 for which I do not see a reply. Would you be able to answer it as I have the same question. Thank you very much.
Hi Meggie Sensei! How are you?
I’ve been wondering how to construct a sentence with the たりたりする structure but in negative tense. For example: I don’t gamble, I don’t drink and I don’t smoke (among other things).
Should I conjugate just the final する into しない -> ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。?
Should I conjugate all the verbs into past negative and keep する in affirmative tense -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコを吸わなかったりする?
Should I conjugate the first two verbs into past negative, the final verb into past and する into しない -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない?
Thanks in advance! Regards from Brazil!
Hi Dorina,
I guess I didn’t read his comment. I will repost this answer.
How to connect verb negative form with たり depends on the sentence but when you describe someone’s personality,
the basic form is
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）しない
You also can add は after the last たり
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）はしない
(Using negative form with the last verb)
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。 (correct)
or adding は
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりはしない。 (emphasis)
The following two sentences are unnatural.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない (Double negative so very confusing anyway. You can just say したり〜したり〜する)
All these habits are negative.
If you say なかったり〜なかったり.. it sounds like this person is supposed to gamble/drink/smoke but he/she doesn’t do that.
But it is possible to use this form if you change the sentence a little.
(Let’s say this person has bad habits and gamble, drink or smoke all the time but ) There are some days that he/she doesn’t gamble/drink/smoke.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする日もあります。
Hello! I have a question in regards to first person pronouns. My friend is gender fluid, and I know some people who are gender neutral. In these circumstances, how would someone go about choosing pronouns? Would someone switch between pronouns? Or would they permanently stick with 私 even in more casual situations? Would 自分 be viable even though it’s pretty distant sounding and self focused?
Hello K
As I wrote in the lesson, 私 is gender free so it might sound a little formal but both women and men can use. 自分 is also neutral.
But actually you often drop the first pronoun in conversation unless you emphasize “I”. So if you use 私/自分 for all your sentences, it may sound unnatural anyway.
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I’m sorry if you’ve covered this somewhere else and I haven’t seen it, but what does 「ご遠慮いただけませんか？」 mean? How formal is it?
Hi Vivi,
I don’t know if I have covered that in some lesson but
遠慮する means “to refrain from ~”
ご遠慮ください。
ご遠慮いただけませんか？
ご遠慮いただけますでしょうか？
All these expressions are very polite and it means “We kindly ask you to refrain from ~ ” = “Please do not do ~ ”
So for example if you tell someone not to smoke, you say
たばこを吸うのをやめてください。
たばこを吸わないでください。
たばこを吸わないでいただけませんか？ (polite)
In more formal way you say
たばこはご遠慮いただけませんか？
Would you please refrain from smoking?
Thank you very much, sensei! The examples are a great help!
You’re very welcome, Vivi! :)
why was wo particle not used in this?
daigakumae wo orimasu.
を (wo) is an object marker.
大学前 (daigakumae) is a location where you get off the bus so it can’t be a direct object.
It might be easier for you to see with this sentence.
私は大学前でバスを降ります。
Watashi wa daigakumae de basu wo orimasu.
バス (basu) is an object of your action (get off)
The main action is 降ります (=orimasu).
Where you are going to get off (action)? →大学前 (daigakumae)
So you use で (de) location marker where you do some actions
大学前で降ります。why is the de particle in it ,why is not ni particle
Hello deepika
降ります is an action. That’s why you use で
thank you sensei
have one more question to ask
koko wo oshite kudasai.
why is the wo particle use in this?
を ( = wo) is an object marker
日本語を教える
=にほんごをおしる
=Nihongo wo oshieru
= to teach Japanese
Asking someone to teach you this part
ここを教えてください
= Koko wo oshiete kudasai
ここ (= koko) in this sentence means “here/this part”. You are pointing something
And want to know about that part. So you use an object marker.
One more question sensei
インドで うみが ありますか
Why is the で particle used in this?
Why is the に not used?
I would use には
インドにはうみがありますか？
Hello Maggie-sensei 😁,
I have a quick question about ように expressing a request. I study N3 grammar with the book 新完全マスター日本語能力試験. In the book it is written that to express a request or a demand we can use よう, ように or ようにと but it is not specified if there is a difference between the 3 options or if they are similar 🤔. Here are the examples given with each option;
– 今週中にご返信くださいますよう、お願い申し上げます。
– 雑誌を買ってくるように頼まれた。
– 電車の中では携帯電話で話さないようにと注意された。
If you could enlighten me please 😅. Thank you in advance 😊.
Hello Aurore
Technically they are the same and interchangeable but
1) 今週中にご返信くださいますよう、お願い申し上げます。
Vますよう、お願いします・お願いいたします・お願い申し上げます (Formal)
Though よう is more common, you can also say Vようにお願いします
The difference is subtle. に adds emphasis of the favor so it sounds slightly stronger.
You can’t use ようにとお願いします because と is to quote what someone said and 〜お願いします is one’s direct request.
2) 雑誌を買ってくるように頼まれた。
You can also say よう and ようにと
Again, に adds more emphasis and と is to quote what someone told you.
３）話さないようにと注意された。
You can also say 話さないよう
In this case ようにと is more natural than 話さないように because it is quoting what someone told you.
Oooh ok, it’s much clearer to me now😁. Thank you very much for taking the time to explain these grammatical nuances to me 😊🙇🏼♀️
You’re very welcome! Have a nice weekend, Aurone! :)
Hi there,
in these lines:
誰も知らない 名付けられない
僕らの火花が 少し照らしたのは
干からびた土 焦げた瓦礫
確かに笑った君の日々
I have 2 questions:
1-In the second line, I read that sometimes (wa) comes at end of the sentences and it may mean (conclusion, decision, opinion) or adds feminine flavour. Is (wa) in this line like what I read OR it is related to the next line same as the one in your lesson?
2-I tried to translate these lines but not sure about which sentences are connected or which ones are separated. For example, is line 1 related to line 2&3? the same thing with line 4, is it the continuing of line 3? I’m really confused. Sorry for writing a lot!
Hello Katsu,
1. This は is a topic marker and it related to the next line.
What our sparks illuminated a little was ~
2. The line 1 誰も知らない 名付けられない modifies 僕らの火花 in the next line.
Our sparks which nobody knows and nobody can name
Hope it helps. :)
So I can say:
What our sparks (which nobody knows and nobody can name (or call)) illuminated a little was the dried soil, the charred rubble
and for sure the days when you smiled.
Is it good enough?
Yes, you got the sentence structures right. 👍
Thank you so much for explaining, really helped me!
You’re very welcome, Katsu! :)
Hello maggie sensei!
I always see this getting used but I cant quite get what it meant. I would really appreciate your help. Thanks!
泣きそうで泣かない
雨降りそうで降らない
Hello Matthew
VそうでVない
It looks ~ is about to ~ but actually not
泣きそうで泣かない
( = 泣きそうに見えるけれども泣かない)
It seems like someone is about to cry but he/she doesn’t (cry)
雨が降りそうで降らない
( = 雨が降りそうだけれども降らない)
It looks like rain but it doesn’t rain.
Hello Maggie 先生, I’m one of your avid reader.
Just confused about this によって and ため. They both imply giving reasons or cause what’s the difference between the two?
And also, do we really have to remove に in ために when giving cause or it’s OK to just write ために?
BDW thank you for the continous lessons it’s very helpful. Pls just continue your a big help.
Hello Marie
Ah, OK, によって is more limited compared to ために but you can use both ために/によって
↓
A (cause/reason) + ために/によって + B (result） what happened/what will happen
Let’s rephrase some of my example sentences with によって
台風のために電車が遅れた。→台風によって電車が遅れた。
大雨のため川が氾濫した。→大雨によって川が氾濫した。
パスポートの期限が切れていたために飛行機に乗れなかった。→パスポートの期限が切れていたことによって飛行機に乗れなかった。
However, you can’t use によって
A: reason + B asking for a favor/permission/telling someone what to do
明日は、雨のため、お休みさせてください。
→X You don’t say 明日は雨によって
A: reason + B volition/desire
熱が出たため、仕事を休みたい。
→X熱が出たことによって
熱が出たため、家にいます。
→X熱が出たことによって
Q: it’s OK to just write ために?
You sometimes drop に but yes, you can just write ために
台風のために電車が遅れた。
= 台風のため電車が遅れた。
大雨のため川が氾濫した。
=大雨のために川が氾濫した。
パスポートの期限が切れていたために飛行機に乗れなかった。
=パスポートの期限が切れていたため飛行機に乗れなかった。
Thanks for the lessons sensei
My pleasure, Budi! 🐶💕
Your explanation and examples on 〜し and the difference between it to 〜くて・〜で has been the most comprehensible and exhaustive one I could find after reading through so many articles and forums! The comment thread of questions and answers here has been super helpful as well. Thank you very much for such a fantastic write up!
Dear Yuru
Thank you for your comment.
I hope this lesson helps you understand the usage of し more. :)
Hello sensei
か is used when a sentence has question word and か どうか is where no question word in a sentence is it right?
And in front of か / どうか
How to choose we have to use negative verb or positive verb in front of か/ どうか
For example
でんしゃに わすれもの がある か どうか、 or でんしゃに わすれ ものが ないか どうか ?
おしえて いただ けません か 先生 、 おねが いします。
Hello arya
Good question.
Both are possible.
Verbs: Usually “affirmative form” first and the negative form follows/affirmative form + どうか
行くか行かないか
行くかどうか
Adjectives: positive adjective first and its opposite adjective or negative form follows./positive adjective + どうか
好きか嫌いか
好きかどうか
As for your two example sentences, you can say both.
The nuance difference is
でんしゃにわすれものがあるかどうか
The speaker thinks it is possible that he/she left something in the train
でんしゃにわすれものがないかどうか
The speaker thinks there isn’t but want to make sure if there is nothing left.
でんしゃに わすれものがあるかどうか
でんしゃに わすれ ものが ないか どうか
家にマギーがいるかどうか
こんにちはマギー先生！
Based on this lesson, I was trying to construct a sentence saying “Just because I’m a girl, doesn’t mean I have to (be the one to) do the cleaning” (or any other household chores, etc).
So this was my attempt:
女の子だからと言って掃除しないとわけじゃないもん。
Does that look right? Is there a way I can make it more contextually accurate or perhaps sound more natural?
よろしくお願いします！
こんにちは、altuser!
have to do the cleaning = 掃除(を)しなくてはいけない/しなければいけない
so just change that part.
It has two negative form (いけない/じゃない) so it might be a little confusing but
女の子だからと言って掃除しなければいけないわけじゃないもん
Ah, I see. Looks like I left out the いけない part in my sentence.
Is there any particular difference between ～ないといけない and ～なければいけない? There are also the ones with ～ならない, I’ve often wondered if there are nuances to them or they’re all interchangeable.
ないといけない・なければいけない・なければならない mean the same.
The formality level
なきゃ/なくちゃ(いけない) Casual
↓
ないといけない
↓
なければいけない
↓
なければならない (more formal)
Also いけない is more subjective
なるほど。説明してくれてありがとうございました！
どういたしまして :)
Hello 😃
せんせい、しつもんをしていいですか？
ある本に”Ａさんをその気にさせる”というフレーズがありました。どういう意味ですか？ある仮説を立ててみたけど本当の意味が見つかっていないと思う😥
だから、先生が私に説明してくださったら、嬉しいのです。
Hello Seiton
その前に書いてある文章が「その」の意味に関係します。
例えば、Aさんは勉強をしないという話をしていたら
Aさんをその（勉強する）気にさせる = to motivate A/ to make A to feel like studying / to lead A to study
という意味になります。
Aさんは、お母さんを手伝わないという話だったら
Aさんをその（お母さんを手伝う）気にさせる = to make A to help his/her mother/ to lead A to help his/her mother
という意味になります。
Hi, maggie先生. I was wondering if it was possible to combine this form てみる with もいいですか。Let’s 食べてみてもいいですか is this correct?
Hello denisse,
Yes, you can say 食べてみてもいいですか？
So when you ask for a permission to try something
Verb てもいいですか？ = Can I try?
やってみてもいいですか？
飲んでみてもいいですか？
Thank you so much! You are saving my language learning journey! <3
So happy to hear that!
Enjoy your journey!! :)
Maggie先生,
In your example
日本には行かないことになりました。
= I ended up not going to Japan.
Note: The reason why the speaker is not going to Japan is not necessarily the speaker’s decision. Maybe something happened. We can’t tell the reason from this sentence.
Q: Can I assume that because your note is about the speaker’s future reason why she can’t go that it can be translated as both past and future?
日本には行かないことになりました。
= I ended up not going to Japan.
OR
= (Its been decided/ It ends up) that I won’t go to Japan.
Hi Sarah W
The later translation will be more accurate to interpret this sentence.
→ (Its been decided/ It ends up) that I won’t go to Japan.
Maybe I should add that in the note.
Wow thank you for responding Maggie and thank you for clarification. I’ve been a fan of your help for many years. Thanks for all you have done to explain where the books haven’t!
I’m happy to hear you have been using this site.
こちらこそ、サイトを長い間使ってくれてありがとう💖
I guess I could say ,
日本に行かなたっかことになりました。To follow more with your original translation “I ended up not going ..” ?
XD lol I got too excited about your reply and forgot to follow up with this the first time.
OK, to be more clear, I will stick to the literal translation.
I ended up not going to Japan
日本に行かないことにしました。
It has been decided that I am not going to Japan
日本に行かないことになりました。
(X 行かなかったこと: You don’t use the past tense before なりました)
～てく＝＝ていく?
例えば：すり抜けてく（https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wefOI4tnW08）
Hello トーマス
Yes, that’s right. You sometimes drop い in casual conversation.
ている →てる
ていく→てく
先生 what about それを?
Shin
OK, let me add a few example sentences.
それを = sore wo
Ex. みんなでがんばったのにそれを時間の無駄なんて言わないで。
= Minna de ganbatta noni sore wo jikan no muda nante iwanai de.
We all tried so hard. Don’t even say it was waste of time.
Ex A: .「今、無事に家に着きました。」
= Ima, buji ni ie ni tsukimashita.
= I got home safely now.
B: 「それを聞いて安心しました。長旅お疲れ様でした。」
= Sore wo kiite anshin shimashita. Nagatabi otsukare sama deshita.
= I am relieved to hear that. It was a long trip. Have a good rest.
Hello Maggie. Your lessons are always very helpful, thank you very much
Ｉ feel that I am missing something about this lesson on 感じ.
I see in many occasions that the word 感じ is used also to say something like “how is it going” or something like that,
for example i found sentences like:
テストの結果はどんな感じ?
or
私が教えたギターは 今どんな感じ？ (this is a song by Aimyon called Futari no sekai)
is here どんな感じ used to say ‘how did it go’ or ‘how are you going along’ ?
maybe i can understand if i read a japanese sentence, but i am not sure how to use it,
For example asking a friend that has just moved in a new home, “how are you doing in your new home?” can i say: 新しい家はどんな感じ?
or if a friend tried to pass the JLPT N3 exam can i ask
日本語能力試験どんな感じ? to say “how did it go ?”
I don’t understrand if there is a rule or a particular nuance.
Thank you Maggie, you’re always very helpful
Hello Daniele
OK, I was going to add the information eventually but let me answer your question here for now.
テストの結果はどんな感じ?
私が教えたギターは 今どんな感じ？
You also use 感じ ( = kanji) when you talk about the progress/status
As you said the translation will be “How did it go”or “How are you going along”
Or “How is it going? “ but it might be easier to think this 感じ means “like”
How is/was ~ like?
What is ~ like?
How are you doing in your new home?
But I guess you can say
新しい家はどんな感じ?
But the listeners might interpret your question →What’s it like your new house?
If you want to ask this question with 感じ, you can say for example
新しい家での生活はどんな感じ?
日本語能力試験どんな感じ?
how did it go
I would say 日本語能力試験はどうだった？ is more common and natural but in conversation, yeah but sure. You can say
試験どんな感じだった?
Hi there,
I searched about the word “motaneba / 持たねば”, but didn’t find what I was looking for. My question: is motaneba the construction of (motanakereba / 持たなければ)?
And if this is the case, does it mean: (If you don’t have)?
Thanks.
Hi Katsu
Vねば is a literal expression of Vなければ
Vなければいけない = have to/must do something
Vねば (ならない/いけない）
You sometimes drop ならない/いけない
So 持たねば = have to have ~
Sorry, I did a mistake. I meant: is motaneba the contraction (not construction) of motanakereba? any way,
By the letter V beside the words, you mean “verb”?
Also I thought (nakereba) is the form of negative and this is why I said (if you don’t have) because “eba” is used for conditional form, right?
So in general, can we say (motaneba) also means (unless)?
Yes, V means “verb”
It is not contraction but as I said in my previous message もたねば(ならない）(motaneba (naranai)) is an literal/old way to say もたなければならない/いけない(motanakereba/ikenai)
Ex.しなければいけない = shinakereba ikenai = have to do something →literal/old way せねばならない ( = seneba naranai)
Originally this ば (=ba) is conditional. If you don’t do something, it is not good.
So, you can interpret, unless you do something, it is not good. But it means “have to do something/must do something”
Ex.もっとがんばらなくてはいけない →もっとがんばらなくては (I have to try harder)
→(more literal) もっとがんばらねばならない→もっとがんばらねば
I got it, thank you so much for the detailed answer!!
Anytime! :)
Itsumo doori, subarashii ressun 🤩, Sensei hontouni arigatou! (I was looking for a long time for some site that would explain this type of expression)
PS.even if it has nothing to do with this lesson, can I ask a question?
In the sentence you wrote (この寺の修復にはあと５年はかかるとのこと。随分、気の長い話だ) what does it mean “とのこと”? could you explain it to me please?
Hello Luli
Thank you for your kind message.
〜とのこと means ということです/ということだ
You use this when you tell someone what you heard/read. In this case, quoting この寺の修復にはあと５年はかかる
Wakarimashita, arigatou gozaimasu Sensei ^_^
Douitashiamshaite, Luli! ☺️
•many proverbs don’t use の between verb and subject particle. Maybe it’s a short form of 方が？
•危うい、危うし、危うき
•然 しか 如かず しかず
•あばた痘痕 えくぼ 笑窪 靨
•老いる オイル 🛢️🫖🤖
•光陰🌞🌝🕛🕒🕕🕘
•鬼が出るか蛇が出るかって鬼はいいことかな…
鬼の首を取ったようってから
•古いようにか誤字か分かんないけど
蓼 たで
鞭 むち, 鞭毛 べんもう
Hi アウベロン
1) 方が→It depends on the sentence but you are right. You often see skipping particle in proverbs.
2) 鬼 and 蛇 are both considered to be something scary.
There is a discrepancy here…
Ex. 彼といるとあまり気を使わないから楽だ
= Kare to iru to ki wo tsukawanakute ii kara rakuda.
= I feel comfortable being with him because I can be myself.
Is it tsukawanai kara or tsukawanakute ii kara? Or are both correct and mean the same thing?
Thank you for the lesson.
Hi Jimmi
彼に気を使う = to pay attention to his needs/worry about his feelings.
彼に気を使わない = not to pay attention to his needs./not to worry about his feelings. Therefore you can take it easy.→You can be yourself.
The nuance difference is
気を使わないから I don’t worry about his feelings/I don’t pay attention to his needs.
気を使わなくていいから = I don’t have to worry about his feelings/I don’t have to pay attention to his needs.
Hi, Maggie sensei.
In the following text, is it a double negative, or are they separate sentences? They are lyrics, so I’m confused.
Don’t Say 声にならない
胸を締め付けて 痛いだけ
頑なな想い 溶かすことできたなら
どうせ 手に入らない
期待してたわけじゃないけど
Also, 手に入らない refers to “想いを溶かすことできる”?
And 声にならない is used to describe 胸?
Thanks a Lot.
Hello Bere
I think “Don’t say” and 声にならない are two different sentences so it is not a double negative.
You insert English phrases here and there so that the lyrics sound somehow cool.
手に入らない probably means the person she loves or love from the person who she likes.
I think 声にならない expresses her feelings (頑なな想い）
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your lessons! I can’t express my gratitude enough!!
I was wondering about the different between Verb+Kiru and verb+ageru and verb+owaru
I know they all mean to “finish doing something” but are there any other nuances?
Thanks in advance!
Hello FluffyBooks,
OK, the nuance difference among Verb+Kiru/verb+ageru /verb+owaru are
verb+owaru = just expressing you have done something/you finish something
Ex. 食べ終わる = finish eating (focusing on the action)
Verb+Kiru = There is certain amount/quantity of something and you have cleared them.
Ex. 食べ切る (You finished eating all the food that you were supposed to eat.)
verb+ageru = You complete some work after putting time and energy.
Ex. 論文を書き上げる = finish writing the thesis.
Maggie-sensei, thanks for the lesson!
I was revising it recently and I got reminded of とする, not related to your lesson because it explains well how it is used after volational, but often I see it used after a noun or in news like someone declared something “政府は、25年までに年間死者数を2000人以下とする目標を掲げている。” or “「重点を国内対策に移す準備を始める」とする”
I believe there is no major translation change when it appears, but i would like to understand the nuance of とする when following a noun.
I hope it was not difficult to understand what I mean, and I hope it’s not a burden too!
thanks for your time
Hello rube,
(25年までに年間死者数を2000人以下)とする目標
This とする means “ということにする
と = to quote
いうことにする →こととする (formal): to be decided/ to set （ことに決める/ことに設定する, etc.)
You often use this pattern in formal writing.
In the lesson it states that:
“The difference: You can’t use なんて( = nante) **after** a particle.”
However, the examples seem to show that you can’t use なんて **before** a particle? Possibly a typo?
Hi Frappucchino
Oh… 😲 you are right. Thank you for spotting the mistake. I will fix it. ありがとう！
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Your article on this topic is super helpful and insightful, thank you!
However, I’m not sure I can put a site as a reference when writing a report about this topic so could you maybe recommend any books in either English or Japanese with similar information about sa and mi prefixes?
Thank you!
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Your article on this topic is super helpful and insightful, thank you!
However, I’m not sure I can put a site as a reference when writing a report about this topic so could you maybe recommend any books in either English or Japanese with similar information about sa and mi prefixes?
Thank you!
Hello anna/Cherin
All my lessons are original and I don’t use any reference book. Therefore I can’t give you the source book but I am sure there are many grammar books which explain this subject.
Is it for your school project? I have seen some people use this site as a reference in their school report, though.
I see, thank you! I will ask my teacher then. :) (sorry for the double comment, the first time it showed an error)
No problem! :)
Sensei, happy new year!
I have a question about this sentence. 「彼、バキバキだね」. May I ask why was it written in Katakana? I thought it was 擬態語.
Have a good day!
Hi Shiratori
Happy New Year!!
OK, as I mentioned at the beginning of this lesson, you are supposed to write 擬態語 in hiragana but actually you see them both written in hiragana and katakana in modern Japanese.
You tend to write colloquial / relatively new 擬態語 in katakana. バキバキ is one of them.
Hello Maggie-sensei,
I heard a line e in a game I’m playing and I thought the translation is wrong, so I was wondering what you think of it?
The line is (in romaji):
Oh kameraman-san wa Peter te iu no ka? Thank you Peter! Demo, henji ga kiita no nante hajimete daze!
Translation (sub) was:
Oh so your name is Peter? Well, let’s go with Pete! Thanks for giving me some attention.
I think the translation is inaccurate. What would be better?
Hi Wendy
I think you posted the same question here twice. (Please note that you can’t get any notification when I reply to you)
Please check below your previous question. I left a comment.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
How are you doing?
Your site is so helpful, thank you for every lesson!
I was watching an anime (Your Lie in April), and came across this sentence:
逆境でこそそいつが本物かどうか分かる。
Could you please help me translate what the でこそ means here?
I know you went over it in this lesson but I find it a little bit hard to understand, does the で show reason and the こそ emphasizes the noun?
Thanks in advance!
Hi FluffyBooks
OK, this で means “in/at” so “to be IN adversity/ in the hard time”
And こそ emphasizes “being in adversity”
So you can tell if that person is a real deal in adversity (because people tend to show who they are/true self in a hard time.)
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I came across a line in an otome game I’m playing and I thought the translation is wrong, so I was wondering what you think of it?
The line is (in romaji):
Oh kameraman-san wa Peter te iu no ka? Thank you Peter! Demo, henji ga kiita no nante hajimete daze!
Translation (sub) was:
Oh so your name is Peter? Well, let’s go with Pete! Thanks for giving me some attention.
I think the translation is inaccurate. What would be better?
Hi Wendy
Please check the last line,
“henji ga kiita” first.
Was it “kiita” or “kita”? Can you give me the kanji 聞いた 来た 効いた because the translation changes depends on this.
Also I don’t see Japanese line for
“let’s go with Pete! “
hello maggie sensei!!!
for grammar point 4 次第に ( = しだいに= shidaini) = gradually, little by little, is there a difference if i use だんだん or 徐々に？
Hi Matthew
次第に and だんだん are similar and a lot of time they are interchangeable
だんだん is more conversational and 次第に is more literal/formal.
徐々に is used when something changes slowly. So the speed of the changes could be much slower and the degree of the changes could be less than 次第に/だんだん
I’m curious about something from the anime title この醜くも美しい世界
More specifically, the くも. Is this the same as くても with the て being dropped, or is this just も after the adverbial form of 醜い. Has this been covered before?
Hello Will
You are right くも is from くても (though ~ /even if)
It is a literal expression
You can also say
醜くもあり美しい世界
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for the wonderful lesson! It is extremely helpful.
I have a minor question.
In one of the sentences, it says:
それでこそ私の息子だ。
I was just a little confused because the dad is speaking, and so I thought he would use 俺 or 僕. Is it normal to use 私?
Thanks in advance!
Hello FluffyBooks
Both men and women can use 私
It may sound a little formal for a dad talk but when you want to make it sound a bit dramatic, 私 fits.
And of course, if the dad talks in a bit more rough way, he uses 俺
Thank you so much! That makes a lot of sense!!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I hope you are doing well! This lesson was wonderful as always!
I just have a question about 割と.
I know you already mentioned this in the comments but I still do not understand when it is not permissible to use 割と instead of 割に.
Thanks in advance!
Hello again FluffyBooks,
I hope you are genki as well! :)
OK, so you read my reply to Joel in the comment section explaining the difference between 割に and 割と
As I explained there, you can use 割と in the meaning of “relatively・fairly・rather” instead of 割に and 割と is more conversational.
割に/割ときれいだ
割に/割と難しい
It will be easier for you to think, you can not use 割と instead of 割に other than that usage.
As you have seen in this lesson ~にしては/~の割に
Even though / Considering/For ~ something contradicted/unexpected
子供のわりに大人っぽい （Xわりと）・６０歳のわりに（Xわりと）
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I have been loving your lessons so far and cannot thank you enough for making them, my Japanese has improved so much with this site!
I just have a small question about one of the sentences:
本当！昨日なんか窓が凍ってたもん。
I simply do not understand the use of もん in this sentence, could you please briefly explain it to me?
Thank you in advance!
Hello FluffyBooks
First thank you so much for your kind words. I am very happy to hear your Japanese has improved a lot.
もん is a casual suffix and it is originally from もの and you use it to give a reason or express your feelings such as surprise or irritation.
昨日なんか窓が凍ってたもの。(It sounds slightly feminine ) →(casual) 〜凍ってたもん
In this case, talking about the cold weather giving an example with surprised feelings.
I explained a little in this lesson. Check だって
Hi Maggie!!
I learn so much through your lesson posts! Thank you so much for this! I have a question…I actually found your page when I was googling about something else, but I came across this sentece:
「辞書」がより一般的だと思います
^ this was someone’s response to whether we use 辞書more or 辞典. The translation from Google was:
“I think “辞書” is more common.”
I feel like のほうが should have been used in this instance? Does this mean that when you put the particle が right after an object (辞書 in this case), it changes things?
Thank you so much in advance for your help!! I see that you respond so diligently and thoroughly to everyone’s questions, and I truly cannot thank you enough for your dedication to your readers <3
Hello Rebecca,
OK, as I explained in this lesson, when you mention two things to compare, you say
AはBより〜です。
辞書は辞典より一般的だと思います。
When you already mentioned B in the previous sentence, you can omit B and say
Aがより〜です。
Or Aはより〜です。
You usually use this form when you think both of them are ~ but one of them is even more ~
(辞書を辞典を比べると = When you compare 辞書 and 辞典)
辞書の方がより一般的だと思います。I think 辞書 is even more common.
You said gachi tends to be used with volitional verbs but wasureru and tsukareru are non volitional. Is that ok too?
Hi Valerio
Yes, you can say 疲れがち (疲れ気味 is more natural but you say 疲れがち in conversation as well
You also say 忘れがち. (忘れる is both 意志 and 無意志動詞）
Hi Maggie-sensei! Have you ever heard the song “Picnic” by Radwimps? I think it’s wonderful, but have never been able to full get the sense of the last line, a line the singer repeats many times! The lines are as follows:
はじめてしがみついた この世界の袖
振り払われようとて 握りかえしたよ
僕らは 奇跡にも 及ばない光
それならいっそ僕ら
それならいっそ僕ら
Could you help me understand how それなら is working here? I’m not advanced enough to understand how 僕ら makes sense after それならいっそ in this context!
Thank you so much if you can help me understand this, and thank you for your wonderful videos even if you don’t have time to reply <3
Hi Luisa,
それなら refers to the previous sentence(s) (We are the lights which can’t reach the miracle ) and it means “If so../If that is the case”
いっそ僕ら We’d rather / Maybe we should ~ / Why don’t we ~ ?
それならいっそ僕ら is unfinished sentence. The listener has to guess what he wants to do with her.
(For example, leave the lights behind them, etc.)
I like Radwimps but I have never heard this song. It is a theme song for トイレのピエタ which deals with love and life and death. So I assume the meaning of the last line is very deep.
今朝雨がずっと降っていたけど今はもう雨が(A降らない、ｂ降っていない)どちらがただしいですか理由も教えて欲しいです。
Hi Tarun
It should be 降っていない
The key word is 今は = now. You have to express what is happening now.
If the sentence is
今朝は雨がずっと降っていたけど、午後はもう雨が（ ）だろう
then 降らない works.
この問題は試験にでましたがoptions are (A降らない、ｂ降っていない、C 降る、D ふっている)この４つの中で一番正しいのはどれですか
前のコメントでお伝えした通りです。
b. 降っていない
Hi Maggie! I know this lesson it’s not about this but is it true that 「よう」also means “Hello/Hi”? I mean in real life, not dramas or anime…
Say “Hello” in a casual way is kind of difficult in japanese I think 🤔😂
Hola David,
よう is a rough casual male speech and it is like “ YO!” / Hey” /sup? = “What’s up?” in English.
A short form is just よっ！ This sounds slightly cuter.
Not just a casual greeting but you also use よう/ようよう (Hey! Listen to me!) when you threaten people, too.
Either way, it sound rough so I rarely hear that in real life but I guess it depends on your circumstances. 😆
Hi Maggie,
How are you? Everything going well for you I hope!
I came across a phrase today that I’d never seen involving もらう:
この幸せなもらわれっ子のお犬様め。
It’s being said by a cat who is having a fight with a dog.
I get the feeling he’s being rude (because he’s quite a rude cat and he’s talking about a dog).
The もらわれっ子 bit – is this a derogatory phrase? Kind of like an unwanted adopted child?
Thanks for your help as always!
Peter.
Hi Peter,
Haha I thought you are talking about me. U^ェ^U
Right もらわれっ子 means a adopted kid (the formal word is 養子（ようし) an adopted child/person)
And you are right. Though it sounds a little cute, it could be used as a derogatory term.
Hi Maggie,
How are you? I seem to be asking less questions which I guess is a good thing, and that I’ve had a good teacher! :D
I came across something today – I just want to confirm it with you:
一回くらい言っといたらよかったーーー多分、歴史は変わっていた。
I think it means “I should have said it at least once…history would probably have been different”.
言っといたら – is this a shortened form of ~ておく (—> ~ておいたら —> といたら)?
Many thanks as always!
Peter.
Hello Peter,
Your questions are always welcome! 😉
You are right. 言っといたら is a casual contraction of 言っておいたら and your translation is correct.
Hi, Maggie sensei. Does “to” particle change anything in this sentence?
と笑いながら谛めるなと指をさすのは闇の彼方
Sorry lOra
I can see you wrote the same message a few times. The site has been acting up. You might have had a trouble accessing the comment section.
Anyway this “to” is used to quote, saying ~ .
In this case, it quotes 諦めるな ( = akirameru na = Don’t give up)
~ pointed the direction towards ~ saying “Don’t give up” with a laugh.
Hi there,
I have a question please!
jimi means plain, simple, etc.., right?
If we added “de” to become “jimide” would it mean: a little bit?
Hello Katsu
Right 地味 (= じみ = jimi) means “simple/plain)
You use て/で when you connect words or give a reason. So it is up to what follows but
地味でつまらない = jimi de tsumaranai = plain and boring
そのシャツは、地味であまり着ていない = Sono shatsu wa jimi de amari kiteinai = I don’t wear that shirt so much because it was (too) plain for me.
Hajimemashite, Maggie-sensei. I’m Henry. Perhaps, this issue has been addressed here but I’ve been unable to find an answer yet.
I’ve recently come across another example of how wakenai is used and I’m a little confused, because, apparently, it can also mean “it’s really easy” as in フランス語を話す彼にとってわけないことだ。
The question is: how to differentiate between the two meanings? Could, for example, “試験に合格するわけないだろう” mean “There’s no way I’ll pass the exam” or “Of course, I will pass the exam (it’s super easy)”. If so, how to tell which meaning is implied here? Is it the intonation or something else that helps to differentiate those two meanings?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Henry
Hajimemashite!
OK, わけない(訳無い) is an expression which means “easy” and different from わけがない
Nは、わけない・わけないことだ・です = ~ is easy
Vするのはわけない・わけないことだ ・です= Doing something is easy
Hello Maggie Sensei,
When I was watching a short video in Japanese, I heard a girl say |書いてた|
(she was texting her friend). I was surprised because I thought it would be |書いた|.
Could you explain the difference between |書いてた| and |書いた|, please?
Hello,Rapuntsel
書いてた means “書いていた”. In casual speech, you tend to drop い
書く to write → 書いた wrote
書いている is(am/are) writing →書いていた was(were) writing
While 書いた ”Someone wrote”, 書いていた “Someone was writing (at that time)” or “Someone used to write”
I have a lesson on ている so please check link is here
Dear Maggie Sensei,
In that video the girl checked her phone, saw a new message and said “書いてた!” (like “Yay, he just wrote me back!”)
I was wondering why it isn’t “書いた” there. Is it more natural to say “書いてた” in such situations?
OK, 書いた is “He wrote the message” It just describes one time action in the past, “He wrote ~”
書いてた is like “He did write the message” (emphasizing the action of writing and the action affects the current state = she can see the outcome, the message appeared on the phone.)
Oh, I see! It is used quite often in every day conversations, isn’t it? (e.g. 怒っていたから手紙をくしゃくしゃした).
Thank you for helping out, dear Maggie!
You are very welcome, Rapuntsel. :)
Hello Maggie Sensei, I hope you are doing well. I loved this lesson and it was super helpful! Thank you so much!!
I was just slightly confused about one of the verbs you used, “前にする”. I searched this up but I could not find much about it. Is it a common verb? Is it slang?
Thank you so much in advance!
Hello Fluffy Books,
I’m doing well. Thank you for asking. 😊
(something/someone)を前にする ・前にして〜 means “before” or “in the face of ～”
彼は、試験を前にして緊張（きんちょう）していた。
He was nervous before the exam.
彼女は、好きな人を前にして赤くなった。
She blushed in the face of a person she likes.
Hi Maggie-sensei🌻
I have a weird question and it’s a bit off-topic. I hope you don’t mind!
Let’s say that we’re close friends. We were having a talk but you were a bit too fast for me to catch what you were saying. I would want to say something like 「ごめん、聞こえなかったよ。もう一度言ってくれる？」, right?
But if I had only said 「ごめん、聞こえなかったよ」 would you still understand what I mean?😅
Hi Vivi,
Yes！
You can just say ごめん、聞こえなかった。/ごめん、今、何て言った？ / えっ？ 何？
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I have a question about this particular sample sentence:
薬を飲んだら痛くなくなりました
Is there a difference between negating 「痛い」 first into 「痛くな＋くなりました」
compared to negating 「なる」into 「痛く＋なりませんでした」
How would the meaning of the sentence be changed?
Hello Andrew
The difference between
1) 痛くなりませんでした and 2) 痛くなくなりました is
1) It didn’t hurt before but you expect it will hurt later. But after taking the medicine, it didn’t hurt after all.
2) It hurt before. But after taking the medicine, the pain was gone. 〜なる/~なくなる express the change.
(FYI I have a lesson on なる The link is here.)
こんにちはマギー先生！
Even though my studies have progressed considerably, sometimes something as basic as 今 would still trip me up; particularly with sentences that use 今から／今まで, as my brain would translate it as “from now”/”until now” in its literal sense. 今まの今まで「今の今まで」知りませんでした！;p
Thank you so much for this lesson!
こんにちは、altuser
I am happy to hear you have learned something from this lesson.
今まの今まで「今の今まで」知りませんでした！;p →Perferct!! 😆
Hey, Maggie. Thanks for doing these, your posts are always my go to when I don’t understand something. In this case I was checking if there was some hidden meaning of も that was confusing me, but turns out the dialogue I was reading was just poorly written!
Anyways, as for using も to emphasize a quality, I think there is a pretty good English translation using “whole”.
E.g.
１年で１０kgも太った。
I gained a whole 10 kg in one year.
もう２時間も待った。
I’ve already waited 2 whole hours.
もう彼女に三日も会っていない。
I haven’t seen her (or my girlfriend) for three whole days.
I think this one is often overlooked because も is so strongly associated in people’s minds with also/too/even. It’s often a good way to translate the emphasized amount, so just wanted to share!
Thank you Evan
That’s a great way to translate the nuance of も
I will add that information.
Hi Maggie先生, Thanks as always for your wonderful site, it’s very usefull!
I can’t understand this used of ーたり、can you help me?
パセリをかけて食べたりもします。
Thank you so much!
Hi Barbara,
That たり has a function of giving some examples, “doing this and that and etc.”
I eat sprinkling parsley and so on/and stuff. (It implies the speaker eat with something else, too.)
Maggie sensei, I have a question.
1/ 3ヶ月間日本語を勉強している。
2/ 3ヶ月日本語を勉強している。
Is there any difference between these two sentences? Why do we need to use “間” when “3ヶ月” is already the duration of month? Can I omit it? I don’t really get how it works tho..
Btw, thank you for such detailed lesson! 🙏
Hello Mimi
For your example sentences, you can use both 3ヶ月・3ヶ月間 and they mean the same.
I have been studying Japanese for three months.
You can omit 間 and just say ヶ月.
The nuance difference is you tend to use 〜間 when you are constantly doing something during certain period of time or stress the time period more. And ヶ月 is just mentioning the period of time.
なるほど!! Thank you so much 🥰🥰
どういたしまして :)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I was wondering if you would be able to make an extension of this lesson about vocabulary relating to the coronavirus pandemic 😅 I know it has been a while since it started, but I still struggle with the relevant words. Thank you so much as always, I have been following all your lessons for years.
Hello Stacey
Check my 風邪 = かぜ lesson. I added Covid related vocabulary towards the end.
Link is here.
Hi,
Can you please translate this line, it’s from a song:
(諦観 それも今となりゃ野暮か)
I searched everywhere about (narya) but didn’t find anything. Does it come from naru+ ya OR nari+ya?
Hi
I don’t do the translation here but
今となりゃ is a casual contraction of 今となれば = 今となっては at this point/ something is no longer ~ / Something used to be ~ but it has become ~at this point
I explained the usage of りゃ in this lesson. Link is here.
Sorry about that, didn’t know. thank you for explanation!
No problem! :)
レッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございます。とても役に立ちます。
質問があります:
Verb タ形+ついでに と Verb 辞書形+ついでに は同じ意味ですか？
こんにちは、Andrej
いい質問ですね。
まず、タ形は過去のこと、Verb 辞書形は未来のことという使い分けがあります。
京都に行ったついでに奈良に行った。（まず京都に行っってそれから奈良にいった：過去のこと）
京都に行くついでに奈良にも行こうかなあ。（これから京都に行く：未来のこと）
ただし、過去のことでもVerb 辞書形を使うことがあります。
買い物に行くついでにクリーニング屋に立ち寄った。
買い物に行ったついでにクリーニング屋に立ち寄った。
この場合は、英語の翻訳は同じなのですが、動作の視点が微妙に違います。
(In this case, the English translation could be the same but the point of view of the action is slightly different.)
行くついで 買い物に行く途中 on your way
行ったついで もう買い物に来ていてそこからクリーニング屋に行く
という違いがあります。
わかりました。ありがとうございます :)
どういたしまして :)
Maggie先生、こんにちは！
初めてのコメントなんですけど I’ve known your website for a long time! Your detailed lessons have been very helpful, ありがとうございました！
質問があります…
Is it possible to use と directly after たら? I’ve come up with the following sentence, somehow:
もしできたらと諦めたら、きっと後悔するんだね。
I mean to say: If I gave up [on my study], provided that I could give up on it, I’m sure I would regret it [now].
Does that make some sense, or did I fail fabulously?(笑)
(Also, does that ね make it sound feminine? It’s supposed to be said by a boy. Sorry for so many questions…)
Hello Vivi,
You mean if you can use
〜と〜たら？
Yes. Let me fix your sentence a little.
勉強を（途中で）諦めてもいいからと諦めたらきっと後悔するだろうね。（するんだろうね = more casual)
or instead of saying 諦める, you can also say やめる
勉強をやめてもいいからとやめたら
Understood. Thank you so much, sensei!
You’re very welcome, Vivi! :)
Maggie sensei, I have a question.
“けっこう笑ってたいんだ。” I heard someone says this when he was telling a very funny story. I guess he means that “That kind of makes me want to laugh” (?). I’m sure he was not talking about the song’s name so I really want to know the meaning and how it forms like that. Like て form + たい? That’s so strange..
Please help me 😔
Hi Mimi,
けっこう笑ってたいんだ。
I really need to see the scene to answer your question but that phrase means,
I want to laugh. I am the person who wants to laugh.
or if the person is talking about other people,
He/She wants to laugh.
Unfortunately I don’t have the video of him saying that. Thank you Maggie sensei. I got the meaning!!
OK. Let me add one more grammatical point.
笑ってたいんだ is a casual contraction of 笑っていたいんだ
Vていたい and Vたい are slightly different.
Vていたい = keep doing something/ to be in the state for a long time
So 笑ってたい is “want to keep laughing/ to be in the situation where one can laugh often”
Hey, Maggie-sensei! I thought I had a pretty good grasp on くらい, but then I came across this sentence:
言葉にならないくらいです。
I understand this means something to the effect of “(I’m so happy) I can’t put it into words,” but I don’t really understand くらい’s purpose here. Help me, Maggie-sensei!
Hello Ants,
言葉にできないくらいうれしい
so happy that I can’t even put into words
So the degree of the speaker’s happiness is to the extent that he/she can’t even express.
こんにちは、Maggie先生。元気ですか?
I want to ask about the difference between “Xが好きになる” and “Xを好きになる”。Is there any difference in meaning/nuance between these two when using different particles?
I even saw “XがYを好きになる”, I’m so confused, keep wondering if it was “X likes Y” or “Y likes X”???
I’ve already searched it up on Google but there is no answer 🥺.
こんばんは、Mimi
The difference is subtle but while Xを好きになる is “I will like X”
“X”が好きになる = You emphasize X. = to come to like “X” (anybody/anything else but X)
“Xを好きになる” = The message, “to come to like X” is important.
Thank you sensei <3
どういたしまして、Mimi :)
Thanks for all of your helpful articles! Even something as simple as 今 can be used in so many ways!!
I have a question about 今や. I have seen this used a lot in novels, but I have never really understood the nuance to it. From what I’ve seen, it emphasizes the present instead of the past, but is there a specific meaning to it different from your examples in this article like 今は?
I look forward to your response. Thanks as always!
Dear JP,
Thank YOU for everything, too, JP!
Ah, good question.
今や is an expression to stress “今” to show the contrast to the past.
For example, you are talking about someone who used to be an ordinary person like any other people but he/she became a big star.
昔は、ありきたりの人だったが、今は大スターだ。
→emphasize the contrast
昔はありきたりの人だったが今や大スターだ。(You also say 今では）
Ex.
Maggie sensei, I heard someone said “忘れんなよ” before, and I’ve asked my friend who is also studying Japanese and she told me that it was like a shorten form/colloquial of “忘れないよ”. But my thought is a bit different. I have read somewhere that “してるの?” = “してんの?”, so my guess “忘れんなよ” = “忘れるなよ” 🤔🤔 I’m not sure which one is correct…
Hi Mimi,
You are right.
忘れんなよ is from 忘れるなよ = Don’t forget (male/rough speech)
I explained 〜な in my male speech lesson.
The link is here.
I’ll check it out, thank you Maggie sensei 😍
Anytime. :)
First time I encountered this in class, and it’s really a hard topic for me to understand.
You might find it difficult but I think it eventually starts to make sense.
Maggie-sensei, I have a stupid question about this sentence.
Ex. 宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃなかったよ。= The medicine I saw on the commercial is not this one.
Can I say “宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃないよ” instead? What is the difference between them?
Actually the way how tenses work in Japanese hurts my head so bad. T_T It is so hard to comprehend. By the way, I have one more (kind of related) question:
“庭はきれい” – The garden is beautiful [present, like right now it’s still beautiful]
“庭はきれいだった” – The garden was beautiful [past, right now it’s not beautiful anymore].
But can I use “庭はきれいだった” when I want to tell someone that I don’t know how the garden looks like right now, the last time I visited it, it was beautiful? Does past tense always indicate that the event/state {has been completed/no longer in that condition} anymore?
Please point it out for me Maggie-sensei!! T_T
Hi Mimi,
It is not a stupid question. It is a good question. 😉
You can also say “宣伝で見た薬はこれじゃないよ“
The nuance difference is when you focus on the time when you saw the medicine in the advertisement, これじゃなかった. (It was not the same one that I saw in the advertisement. When you focus on the current time looking at the medicine comparing what you saw in the advertisement, これじゃないよ. (This is different from what I saw in the advertisement.)
Your second question
Basically you use present tense 1) when you describe what is happening right now or 2) when you talk about the definition or concept of something.
For example, you are telling your friend how beautiful the garden is.
庭はきれいだよ。 = the garden is beautiful.
It implies the garden is always beautiful or famous for their beautiful garden.
And when you describe how beautiful the garden was when you actually saw it,
庭がきれいだったよ/庭はきれいだったよ。= The garden was beautiful
(When you stress the garden, you use the particle が)
Again, you are focusing on the time you saw the garden.
Oh I think I got it now!!! Thank you for such detailed explanation 😍😍
You’re very welcome, Mimi! :)
How would you tell someone to please go ahead with their report ? Thanks !
Hi Joe
I don’t know what kind of report is but for example you can say
どうぞ (topics) の報告(ほうこく）をしてください。
Maggie-sensei,
I heard someone said “たまたまだって” before。I don’t really understand the function of “だって” in this case. Could you please break it down for me?
Thank you sensei.
Hello Mimi
Ah, OK, in casual conversation, you finish the sentence with だって or だってば to stress what comes before, to make your point or show your frustration.
たまたまだって
= It is just a coincidence. (Making your point.Stress たまたま）
Ex. このコーヒー、飲んでみてよ。本当に美味しいんだって。/ 美味しいんだってば。
(Try this coffee. (Trust me!) It is surely good. )
Ex. 私はそんなことやってないんだってば。
= I am telling you. I didn’t do such a thing.
(Expressing one’s annoyance/frustration)
It is like “I am telling you, it is just by chance.”
Thank you so much, Maggie sensei. 😍
Actually I’m still new to Japanese, I’ve learned Japanese for 3 months by self-study. That’s why I’m so grateful for what sensei have done so far. Every lesson was made with so much efforts! On my learning process, I come across many difficulties and I have many questions, which I don’t think that anyone out there would talk about it. But whenever I look it up on Google, Maggie sensei’s site always has full explanation for everything!!! 🙏
I’m not good at English so I will stop here. Thank you so much sensei. 🥰
Have a good day. 😊😊
Aww thank YOU for your kind words.
Your nice message motivates me to make more lessons!
You have a lovely day, too!! 🐶❤️
マギー先生、こんにちは。
先生 お願いがあるんですが、教えていただけませんか。
Vる ように なります・なりました。
もし 「Vない」だったら、それは いいですか。
例：おじいさんは 小さい字が読めないように なりました。マギー先生、こんにちは。
先生 お願いがあるんですが、教えていただけませんか。
Vる ように なります・なりました。
もし 「Vない」だったら、それは いいですか。
例：おじいさんは 小さい字が読めないように なりました。
先生 どうもありがとうございます。
こんにちは Ha Thao,
「Vない」は、
Vないようになった・Vないようになりました
「おじいさんは 小さい字が読めないように なりました。」 でもいいのですが、「読めなくなりました」の方がよく使われると思います。
マギー先生、こんばんは。
はい、わかりました。どうもありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！ :)
Hi Maggie Sensei! I hope you’re ok! I wanna ask you about だった as “because”… It’s always used when there is something previous? For example in the example sentence said: 「だって、おなかすいたんだもん。」But there is “something previous”: 「さっき食べたばかりじゃない。」In this case it’s a reply. Would be right start a conversation with だって? For example: 「あのさ、だって日本に行きたい、よく日本語の勉強するよ」It’s that ok? I think with から would be ok but I wanna know with だって. Same example but with から: 「あのさ、日本に行きたいから、よく日本語の勉強するよ」
Hello David,
元気？
だった→You mean the usage of だって?
You don’t say 「あのさ、だって日本に行きたい、よく日本語の勉強するよ」
As you said, から works
あのさ、日本に行きたいから ~
よく日本語の勉強をするよ is a bit unnatural. I would say もっと日本語の勉強をするよ。・日本語をがんばるよ。
You can’t connect “reason” and “outcome/decision” with だって. You say something first and then explain the reason why starting with だって.
もっと日本語の勉強をがんばるよ。だって日本に行きたいから。
いつもありがとうございます！💐わかった！
But in your final example would be ok if you omit から and say: もっと日本語の勉強をがんばるよ。だって日本に行きたい。? Use だって and から at the same time isn’t like I’m saying because two times?
Also I feel a bit confused with “日本語の勉強をがんばる”, because I thought that がんばる was an intransitive verb and you couldn’t use を… 😓😹
You can say だって日本に行きたい。but you are explaining the reason why you will study Japanese more so
だって~から/だって〜し/ だって〜もの(ore more casual もん） are more natural in conversation.
だって日本に行きたいから。/ だって日本に行きたいし/だって日本に行きたいもの（casual もん）
As for がんばる, yes it is 自動詞 but you can use it as 他動詞 as well in conversation.
Noun をがんばる
Ex.仕事をがんばる
You can also say もっと上達するようにがんばるよ。
Muchísimas gracias, Maggie Sensei 💝💐
No hay de qué, David. ☺️❤️
こんにちは、
医者になれば一生懸命勉強しなければならない。この文は正しいですか、ない場合は理由もおしえてください
こんにちは Tarun
医者になれば一生懸命勉強しなければならない
はい、大丈夫です。
(Note for you ない場合は→正しくない場合は）
Hi, what would be the difference between e.g. 不安にさせといて and 不安にして?
Thanks in advance!
Hello AndreaS22
不安にさせておいて→(casual contraction) 不安にさせといて = to leave someone uneasy・anxious
不安にして = to make someone uneasy・anxious
So させておいて（させといて） is to make someone uneasy and leave them
して is just one time.
Hi, Maggie! First of all, thank you so much for the lesson! It is very helpful.
I have only one doubt about せっかく. How do you use the patterns せっかく～ても／せっかく～でも? Could you please give me an example sentence with せっかく～ても and another with せっかく～でも?
In what they differ from sentences with just ～ても／～でも meaning “although, even though”?
If you could help me, I’d appreciate it a lot!
Hello Mary
OK, せっかく〜ても although ~ / even if / even though
せっかくいい会社に入ってもすぐに辞めてしまう人が多い。
せっかく高いワインを頼んでもそのよさがわからない。
You can say these without せっかく. They mean the same but you can emphasize the contrast more with せっかく
Thanks for your answer, Maggie! :)
Just one thing. Could you please give me an example sentence (or some) with 「せっかく + Noun + でも, 〜」?
I can’t find any on the Internet, so I’d appreciate if you could give me that sentence to have it as an example.
OK,
せっかくいい天気でも忙しくてどこにもいけない。
Though it is a nice weather, I am so busy that I can’t go anywhere.
せっかくの休みでも家族の世話をしなくてはいけない。
Though it is my day-off, I have to take care of my family.
Thank you very much for the sentences! They helped me a lot :)
My pleasure! :)
Which of the categories of sentences on this page do these sentences belong to? Is this the same use as せっかくの?
In other words, can I say せっかくのいい会社に入ってもすぐに辞めてしまう人が多い?
Thank you.
Hi David
Yes せっかくの + noun
(usage) When you don’t/can’t take advantage of a good opportunity, something precious/valuable/long-awaited
The more Japanese I learn, the more I find my way here :D
好きな先生。教えてくれてありがとう！
Hi humanbean,
Thank you for your nice comment!
Love you! ❤️
Hello マギー先生
what does ように mean here?
それでも彼は、噛みつくように叫ぶ。
Hi Milk
It is not a common expression (maybe this describes how a heavy metal singer shouts?) but this ように is “like” (shout like biting (someone))
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして💕
マギー先生いつもありがとう!
Recently I’ve heard the expression 「なんつって」here and there. Is it any different from「なんてね」or are they basically the same?
こんにちは、Salmony
Right. It is a variation of なんてね
You also say なんちゃって Just kidding!
Hi Maggie Sensei, I’ve been reading up on the も particle recently and I saw something interesting. It said that (for example) the sentence
小林さんも水を飲みました。
is in reality
小林さんは小林さんも水を飲みました。
In other words, the topic-marking は isn’t replaced by も, it is actually still there but it’s unnatural to say it. What are your thoughts on this and are there any articles written in Japanese about this?
Thank you so much for your time.
-アル
Hello アル
I have never seen any articles written in Japanese about that.
も is also used as a topic marker
AはBです。 A = B: A is B
CもBです。 C = B: C is also B
So it will be more simple not to interprete “As for C, C is also B”
Ok! Thank you for your reply. It is very helpful, as always!
No problem! :)
Ahhh. Is there a way to edit or delete this? I didn’t mean to make it all cluttered. Maybe you need two returns.
Like this?
Sorry. You can not edit or delete your comment. But if you want I can delete it. Do you want me to edit or delete your previous and this comment?
Hello Maggie-sensei,
Does this
1) ように ( = youni) = to do something ~ in order to do ~ / so that ~ / in such a way ~
only applies to you ni? not with you na?
いつか妹にも認めてもらえるような絵画が作れるようになればいいな。
It’d be great if he can make a painting that his sister will someday also be able to also approve of his decision?
And this 作れるようになればいい is a form of you ni naru, right?
Sorry to trouble you..
Hello Niko
So basically ように modifies a verb and ような modifies a noun.
いつか妹にも認めてもらえるような絵画が作れるようになればいいな。
In this case it modifies 絵画 “painting” so it has to be ような
If you use ように in this sentence, you have to change it a little like this.
作れるようになればいい: Yes, you are right. It is a form of ようになる
いつか妹に認めてもらえるように絵を描き続けていきたい。
ように modifies a verb, 描き続けていきたい want to keep drawing
なるほど
I see, I was quite confused with the sentence, so I thought that the writer made a mistake or something
‘ように modifies a verb and ような modifies a noun’
I’ll keep that in mind, and hopefully not forget about it www
どうもありがとうございます!!
No problem.
You may sometime get confused when you read a long complicated sentence but please remember the rule.
But if you ever get confused again, I am always here for you. 😉
Thank you very much sensei!!
🐶 💕💕
I was looking for a certain grammar point and of course I come back to Maggie Sensei :)
I didn’t know about Hachikou! Very cool story. My dad knew all about it though, which is weird… He’s an old American and not very “cultural”. We had 2 Akita’s when I was very little and now I know why!
Sasuga Maggie Sensei itsumo oshieru
Welcome back, humanbean!
I heard Akitaken is quite popular now. Your dad is “sasuga”. 😉
Thank you ^.^ You’re the best
🐶💕💕
Hi Maggie,
I’ve just seen のだ used in a short phrase:
「ナナはどうだったのだ」
I’ve always thought of どうだった as a question (“how was it?”), but the のだ has thrown me a bit because it tends to be used as a statement of fact.
Is the phrase saying “That’s how Nana was…” or am I completely misunderstanding?
Many thanks as always!
Peter.
P.S. Or does it mean “Is that how Nana was?” :D
Hi Peter,
How have you been?
ナナはどうだったのだ means “How was Nana?”
ナナはどうだった？・(polite) どうでしたか？ = How was Nana?
↓ (stronger, seeking explanation)
ナナはどうだったの？ (casual speech) / どうだったのですか？ (polite speech)
↓
Male speech
ナナはどうだったのだ
It sounds bossy and a bit dramatic.
Hi Maggie,
I’ve been good, thanks for asking.
Hope everything is good your end :)
Thanks for the explanation. Could I ask something else…?
I read ages ago that ~のだ can be used a kind of command form (usually used in films and books for dramatic uses), but I forgot until you said “a bit dramatic” above. Is that what ~のだ means here…?
And is 「勝手に何言ってんだよ、悟!」 similar?
In English we’d say “What are you saying Satoru!?” – grammatically it’s a question, but we don’t really mean it as a question. By saying this, we would really mean “Don’t say that Satoru!” – a kind of dramatic command.
Thanks again!
Peter.
Hi Peter,
I’m glad to hear you are 元気! :)
「勝手に何言ってんだよ、悟!」 is not a command. As you said,
What are you saying Satoru!
何Vてんだよ (male speech) /何Vてんの(both men and women use) / 何 Vてんのよ(female speech) express the speaker’s feelings such as frustration or annoyed feelings. You usually use this pattern when you complain or talk back.
The usage of command with のだ/んだ is like
Ex. もうやめるのだ！ Stop it already!
Sometimes you attach ぞ
Ex. がんばって勉強するんだぞ。 Study hard, OK?
And yes, it is a rough male speech and it’s for dramatic uses.
Thank you Maggie Sensei! You answered my question well. (◍•ᴗ•◍) I understand better now.
よかった〜 :)
こんにちは先生
勝手で失礼しますが、些細な質問を思いつきました。
どんな場合は「〇〇の通りする」と使いますか。
どんな場合は「〇〇の通りにする」と使いますか。
「に」のニュアンスはなんですか。
こんにちは、震矢
通常は、「〇〇の通りにする」の形を使います。
「〜に」は、副詞の役割があるので動詞「する」を修飾します。
ですからどの動詞を強調するときには「〜に」を使った方が自然です。
助動詞（です）を使うときは 「〇〇の通りです。」の形を使います。
また会話や、事実を伝える時など、「〜に」を省略することがあります。
Ex. 恐れていた通り、終電に間に合わなかった。
こんにちは、マギー先生
A simple question:
Is て行く pronouced ていく or てゆく?
Ps: When I listen to japanese songs, I always hear something like てゆく
Sorry for my bad english
こんにちは Moises
Good question.
行く
いく is more common and conversational
ゆく was used in old days. You still use it mainly in written form as a poetic or literal expressions so that you hear that in lyrics.
ありがとうございます
どういたしまして❤️
Hello Maggie Sensei, I love your lessons so much. They have been extremely helpful!!
I was slightly confused about this sentence:
このうちのきれいさは、うちと比べ物にならない。
What does this mean? Does it mean that our house is so clean this house is nothing compared to it, so this house is not as clean as ours? Or does it mean this house is so clean that our house is incomparable to it, so this house is cleaner than ours?
Thank you in advance!
Hello FluffyBooks,
The later interpretation is right. This house is so clean that I can’t even compare my house with this house. (This house is much cleaner than my house.)
I’m happy to hear you like my lessons.:)
Thank you so much!! Your lessons are one of the best things I have ever found!
Anytime!
And thank you again for your kind words! ☺️
こんにちは!
I ran into this sentence
「こんな建物昔に作っちゃうなんてイタリアかっこいい」ってなりました
Could you please help me understand what kind of ちゃう is that?
いつもありがとうございます
こんにちは、satabau!
Original sentence こんな建物を昔に作ってしまうなんて →作っちゃうなんて
作る means “to build” but by adding しまう・ちゃう you add the meaning of “accomplish of a task (of building this kind of architecture”
Hi Maggie Sensei! How would I form a sentence using “after” as in “I woke up after my children” (i.e. in the sense of later than)? I’m a little stuck on which construction is most appropriate here.
どうも！
Hi Jo
Usually
noun + の＋ 後で
works
But in that case there is a hidden verb (woke up) after “my children”
I woke up after my children (woke up)
so you say
子供が起きた後で起きた
Hi, Maggie-sensei. I have a question. How do I translate the sentence “あと少し頑張ってみようかな”. It’s from a song.
The whole verse is this:
見つけ出そうとしているのです
生まれてきたわけを
くじけそうでも あきらめないで
あと少し頑張ってみようかな
Hi Juliana
I would say
I guess I will give it a try a little more./ I will try a little bit more!
ありがとうございます、Maggie sensei!
どういたしまして :)
I don’t understand the てたら and たら part. What’s the different between 食べてたらand食べたら?
The original verb form is different.
食べていたら is from a verb 食べている (to be eating)
Ex. ご飯を食べていたら電話があった。
= When I was having a meal, someone called me.
Present progressive form
食べたら is from a verb 食べる (= to eat)
Ex. 食べたらお皿を洗って
= Wash the dishes after you finish eating.
Ex. これを食べたらマギーに怒られる
= If I eat this, Maggie will be angry.
So
食べていたら: when I was eating
食べたら: if/when/after I eat
Are these correct Sensei?
One more
食べていたら can be
if someone is eating
It all depends on the context
Hi Sensei! It looks like ~ni yotte can sometimes mean “because”. In these cases, how does it differ from ~kara, which I know can also mean “because”? Thank you!
Hello Eliana
It is true. You use から to indicate the reason/cause.
The difference is から is more conversational and より is more formal
The train is delayed due to an accident
事故により電車が遅れています。(formal/literal)
事故があったから電車が遅れています。(more conversational)
So you use より for the announcement of the trains because it is more formal.
But when you tell someone that the train is delayed because of an accident in conversation, you use から
いつもお世話になっております(^^)
How do you say “I didn´t know your grandmother died” in a casual way?
My attempt: お祖母さんは亡くなったを知らなかった。
Тhank you!
こんにちは Fumikiri 😊
Good. Just change は to が
お祖母さんが亡くなったのを知らなかった
Hello. Thank you very much telling about the differences が/を with きっかけ。But i have one question. In my textbook there is a example: いつたばこをおやめになったのですか。and answer: 彼女にやめると言われたのがきっかけなんです。So they are asking “when/いつ” ,but the answer is “がきっかけ”、not ” をきっかけ”.why?thank you for your answer
Hi Maria
OK, actually your sentence doesn’t have で and に and it ends with 〜(なん)です
but you can rephrase it.
The reason why I quit smoking was because she told me to quit.
→たばこをやめたのは、彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）からです。
いつ？
→彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）のをきっかけにたばこをやめた。
The time when I quit smoking was when she told me to quit.
→たばこをやめたのは、彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた）時です。
なぜ？ Why?
→彼女がやめろと言った(or 彼女にやめろと言われた） のがきっかけでたばこをやめた。
Thank you. That sounds much better=)
Good! :)
Hi Maggie sensei,
I am trying to understand the need of form causative passive when we already have the causative form.
example sentence, I was taught that for causative sentence, it carry different nuance of which particle (に or を) we will attach to the “victim” (pardon me for the lack of better term)
彼らは彼にアメリカへ行かせた。==> They let him to go to America
彼らは彼をアメリカへ行かせた。==> They made him to go to America (and he has no say against it).
My question is, how is causative form with を different from causative passive? Is it to convey the level of obedience of the “victim” ?
彼は彼らにアメリカへ行かせられた。==> He was forced by them to go to America ( no room of negotiation).
Also, is the use case of causative passive is only to say “Someone forced/made someone to do something?”
Thank you for your time
Hello ユフィ
Yes, you use causative passive form to convey the level of obedience or express annoyed feelings that you are forced to do something that you don’t want to do and it is only used to say “Someone forced/made someone to do something?”
So, if you want to change this sentence 彼らは彼にアメリカへ行かせた。 from his point of view, you can say for example
彼は、彼らにアメリカに行かせてもらった。
to show his appreciation.
Hi Maggie,
Hope you are well.
I came across this sentence today and I think it is related to ~ちゃう but just wanted to make sure:
いくら共働きだからって、子供めんどくさいから田舎に転校させちゃえってならないよな、普通。
“No matter how much they both work together, it doesn’t mean they should send a troublesome child to another school in the country.”
I’ve also never seen ~だからって – is this a casual form of ~からと言って?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hello Peter,
Yes, ちゃえ（←〜てしまえ） is an imperative form of ちゃう (←〜てしまう）.
You use this form to tell someone to do something. (You also use it when you talk to yourself)
And as you said だからって is a casual form of だからと言って
Thank you very very much :D
My pleasure. :)
Hi!
I don’t get the ておかないと part. Can you explain? ;_;
Hi Rina,
First do you know this form?
Vないといけない = have to do something
Ex. もっと勉強しないといけない = I have to study more.
Ex. この本を読まないといけない = I have to read a book.
Vて（で）おかないといけない = have to be done doing something/have to finish doing something (as a preparation)
So
Ex. 読んでおかないといけない。 = I have to finish reading the book ahead of time.
But what is the difference between ておかないと and ておかないといけない?
I feel stupid. ;_;
You mean from this example sentence?
明日は１日留守にするから猫に水と餌を置いておかないと（いけない）。
They mean the same. You often omit といけない in conversation
I explained this usage in this lesson
〜と＆〜ないと
Hello Maggie,
is 貸 a state verb態を表す動詞 or an action verb動きを表す動詞?
1 – 車を貸してもらえれば、ドライブに行きたい。
2 – 車を貸してもらえるとドライブに行きたい。
1 is right and 2 is wrong, but why is 1 right? I think they should both be wrong because using an action verb, you cannot use ば or と and have volition of the speaker, and there is volition of the speaker here for both ば and と? (Unless 貸 is not an action verb is it a state verb?)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can you let me know who わけではない refers to in the follows sentence?
医者や学校の先生のように評論家になるための資格試験があるわけではない。
医者 or 学校 or 評論家 , or all of them?
How am I able to tell?
Thank you
Hi Mark,
I am sure you do this but when you read a long sentence, find the main verb and subject and put ( ) the rest.
The only word which has が is 資格試験 so the subject is 資格試験 and the main verb is あるわけではない
(医者や学校の先生のように評論家になるための) 資格試験があるわけではない。
( ) part explains what kind of exam it is.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
thank you for your answer. Yes I know about the main verb and subject.
But someone said that the rest in brackets () = (医者や学校の先生のように評論家
do not go with the main verb あるわけではない.
They said that (医者や学校の先生( do NOT go with the main verb, meaning they NEED a test, and the 評論家 does not need a test/
So my question is do all 3 of them do not need a test in this sentence, or does the Critic only does not need a test? This was my question originally, how can I tell from what’s in the brackets ()?
So only doctor and school teachers need a test but not critic.
医者や学校の先生になるためには資格試験があります。
でも、評論家になるにはそんな資格試験はありません。
to be a doctor or school teacher you need qualification test.
But to be a critic, there is no qualification test.
So it denies “医者や学校の先生のように資格試験がある” →わけではない
Hello Maggies Sensei,
I think my problem is not understanding the right meaning of のように
I thought it meant:
Like a doctor and teacher you do not need an exam for a critic. ( All 3 do not need exams ) But this is wrong right?
Is this correct meaning of のように:
There are no qualification exams to become a critic “LIKE” doctors and school teachers.
Is this correct?
I always thought のように means exactly the same, or in the same way/
Is this correct meaning of のように:
There are no qualification exams to become a critic “LIKE” doctors and school teachers.
Right.
医者や学校の先生のように評論家になるための資格試験がある
There is a test to become a critic just like a doctor and teacher.
By adding わけではない, you can negate this sentence.
It is not that ~
Thank you Maggie Sensei,
“There is a test to become a critic just like a doctor and teacher.”
By adding わけではない, you can negate this sentence.
“There is NO test to become a critic LIKE there is for a doctor and teacher.”
I was stuck on this problem for 1 week,
now I finally understand it
Thanks!
Good! 😊👍
Hi,
so there’s no negative form for nagara? I mean:
While I’m sleeping – Nenagara
While I’m not sleeping – ? (can’t use nagara?)
Hi Nathalia
You can’t use ながら with negative form.
When you use it with negative form you can use 間 (=あいだ）
寝ない間
Helloマギー先生
しかし高級魚ゆえに馴染みのない人も多く、日本を代表する魚と言えるのかというと、しっくりこなくても仕方ありません。
What does this “かというと” mean here?
こんにちは Milk
You use 〜かというと to bring up some question, in this case “whether this fish is representative fish for Japan or not” and answer in the same sentence. (in this case, しっくりこなくても仕方ない = We can’t really say that . ）
I see! Is this form only in writing or could it be said in conversation? Is there any other forms that are similar to this?
It is a little formal but you hear it in conversation as well.
The similar expression is
〜かと言われると/言われたら・ 〜かと聞かれたら When you say/you ask me / When it comes to
Ex. A) 「その店はおいしくないの？ 」
B ) 「おいしくないかと言われると・聞かれたら、そうだね。おいしくないかなあ。」
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
どういたしまして❤️
Maggie Sensei Konnichiwa! I think your site is one of the most clear I`ve seen so far! If possibile, I`d like to ask: what`s the difference between tame ni, no ni or just ni? Thank you!
Hi Simone
A lot of expressions with に/のに can be replaced with ために
（The difference is ために emphasize the reason more than に)
友達に会いに日本に来た。
=友達に会うために日本に来た。
I came to Japan to see my friend.
I use this textbook to teach Japanese./ I need this textbook to teach Japanese.
この本は日本語を教えるのに使います/必要です
= この本は日本語を教えるために使います。/必要です
I saved up $ 3,000 in order to go to Japan.
日本に行くのに3,000ドル貯金をしました。
= 日本に行くために3,000ドル貯金をしました。
However, you can’t replace the specific usages of ために with に・のに
someoneのために + do something
家族旅行のために会社から休みを取った。
(X に・のに）
Cause
台風のため、電車が遅れた。
(X に・のに）
You tend to use に・のに
when you use something for something
(の)に使います。
you need something to do something
~ (の)に必要です
Ah, I guess I haven’t made a lesson on 〜に・のに yet.
I will add it to the list for the future lessons. :)
こんにちは！マギーせんせい。ゲスト先生になりたい！どうすればいいですか。ースキ
こんにちは、Karen!
About Usのページの下の方に Team Maggieのe-mailがあるのでそこにゲスト先生の写真を送ってくださいね。
Tsunami keihou ga happyou saremashita.
Shouldn’t keihou be chuuihou?
Thank you for a great lesson though. I’ll do my best to study!
Hi Berry
keihou / chuuihou
Both are correct.
Keihou is stronger alert.
Hi Maggie Sensei, what form is the verb iku in this sentence?
お前はあっちへ行ってろ！
Is it imperative? I’m not sure. Is there a lesson where you cover this?
Thank you in advance.
Hi Jimmi
Yes, it is an imperative form
いる→いろ
行っていろ→行っていろ→(sometimes you drop い) 行ってろ
Ex.やっている doing something →やっていろ→やってろ
I covered the form a little in this lesson.
Male speech lesson Click here
Thank you for the quick reply!
So are there two different imperative verb conjugations in Japanese then? Because on Jisho.org, I’ve noticed that they list 行け (affirmative) and 行くな (negative) as the imperative forms of 行く.
The imperative form of 行く is 行け
The imperative form of 行っている is 行っていろ
So if the verb is compound verb, you make an imperative form with the second verb
Other example
行っておく →行っておけ
Ah, I get it now. I shouldn’t have been treating 行く the same as 行っている. Silly me!
Thank you once again.
No problem! Keep studying! :)
Hi Maggie Sensei. How do you say these sentences in Japanese?
This is Yuki, with whom I’m working at the moment.
He needs a friend to play with.
Hello Dwi,
This is Yuki, with whom I’m working at the moment.
You can say こちらは一緒に仕事をしているゆきさんです。Or just こちらは同僚（どうりょう）のゆきさんです。（同僚= coworker)
He needs a friend to play with.
彼には一緒に遊ぶ友達が必要です。
He wants a friend to play with.
彼は一緒に遊ぶ友達が欲しいです。
Arigatou, Maggie Sensei. How do you say “would” and “could” in Japanese like the following sentences?
Such a plain would be disastrous.
A lot of crime could be prevented.
This new drug could be an important step in the fight against cancer
I think the translation can be changed depending on the context but
could できるだろう・できるでしょう/ ~ なりうるだろう・でしょう
would ~ （なる）だろう・でしょう
Such a plain would be disastrous. 災害になるだろう・
could be prevented. 防ぐことができる（だろう）/防げるだろう
could be an important step 重要な一歩（ステップ）になるだろう
Hey there, I was studying this grammar point by a N3 a book called TRY! and in it there are some exercises where they ask the student to choose between niyotte and niyoru. When should I choose one your the other? I noticed that at the end of sentences only niyoru can be used, however in the book there are exercices where the placemment of the structure is mid sentence …
Thank you very much! :)
Hi Luiza,
OK, the simple way to pick one of them is
Noun/person + ni yoru + noun
noun ni yotte + (noun + particle) verb
台風による遅延 ＝たいふうによるちえん delayed due to the typhoon
~による modifies a noun. In this case 遅延（ちえん）
電車が台風によって遅れた。（台風によって電車が遅れた）
〜によって modifies a verb = 遅れた
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I had a question about this sentence:
‘アランの言うとおり, 幽霊なんていないのかもしれないね’
Why is there a ‘no’ at’ inai no kamo shirenai’? What is the function of no there?
Hi Wendy
You can also say
アランが言うとおり、幽霊なんていないのかもしれないね。
When it modifies a noun in this case とおり, you can change が to の
I explained in this lesson. Please check.
How to modify a noun. Click this link.
Hello Maggie-sensei,
I wasn’t referring to that part, I was referring to the の in ないのかもしれないね, why is it ‘inai NO kamo’, why isn’t it just ‘inai kamo shirenai’?
Thank you for linking that lesson too, I will check that out!
Sorry! I should have read your question well.
The link of the related lesson is this
You add の when you stress your feelings (in this case feeling of uncertainty), emotions, or reason
幽霊なんかいないかもしれない
幽霊なんかいないのかもしれない Expressing one’s feelings of doubt more with の
Hello Maggie sensei🌻, I wanna ask you about Watashi, Boku and Ore🙏. I understand that Watashi it’s the safe option most of the time (with older people, not close relationship, stranger, etc), but I wanna know your opinion about 2 examples that makes me think a lot (I’m in my 20’s just in case that age were important):
1st example: Talking with older people, they are the age of my parents and they treat me like a son, we are close.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi: could be ok but maybe a bit cold if we have a close relationship?
Boku: in this case to me sounds ok if they treat me like a son? but doesn’t sound like a teenager? I’m a young adult but it’s not a good idea sound like a teenager when you are a responsible adult
Ore: I don’t know in this case, maybe rude because they are older? or maybe ok if you wanna show yourself like an adult?
2nd example: Couple relationship or date with a girl.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi: Weird if she’s your girlfriend or it’s a date?
Boku: Not so ok because you sound like a teenager?
Ore: Better option in this case?
Hi David
1st example
Watashi:
→If you know them well and they treat like their son, it is too formal to use 私
Boku:
→ For your age, it is the safest and the most natural way to call yourself.
Ore:
→You are right. It sounds a bit rude and rough. Unless you have a very close relationship. It doesn’t show yourself like an adult.
2nd example: Couple relationship or date with a girl.
How I see the situation (maybe wrong):
Watashi:
→Right Too formal.
Boku: Not so ok because you sound like a teenager?
→ぼく is not necessary just for teenagers. You can use ぼく
Ore:
→This depends on your personality. If you are calling yourself おれ in daily life and the girl think it is natural, it is acceptable. Some girls don’t care but some do so there is a fine line.
But the thing is you often omit the first pronoun and the second pronoun in conversation so unless you focus on yourself, you don’t use ぼく、おれ、わたし in conversation.
You: 昨日は、疲（つか）れて1日寝（ね）てたよ。
(I was really tired yesterday and slept all day yesterday.)
The girl : なんで疲れてたの？
(How come you were so tired?)
You: その前の日、徹夜(てつや）で勉強してたからさあ。
(Because I was studying all night the day before so…)
Thank you as always Maggie sensei🌻, it’s a deep topic and closely related to culture in my opinion, so unless you’re native japanese it’s not easy to fully understand, also there are many many opinions when native japanese people explain these words. Finally I would like to ask your opinion about a 3rd example:
It’s an informal situation, but it’s the first time that I meet that person, and he or she is the same age or younger than me, could be a friend of a friend or something like that, in that situation which word would be better if I have to use “I”? and also in a situation like that, should I use formal style like masu form and desu, or informal style? Thank you for the advice about omitting pronouns too 🌻🌻
Sending all my love to Maggie, Yukari and this wonderful site. This was heart-breaking to read, but beautiful too.
Love you, Jimmi❤️
Hello, I still can’t fully grasp it.
Where is the difference between
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいた
and
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っていた
?
Hello Marc
ておいた did something ahead of time for future use. /prepared something for future use
ていた was/were doing something (Just action)
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいた
I prepared the dinner for my children before we/I went out.
You can imagine from the sentence that the writer prepared dinner and left it on the table so that his/her children can eat right away when they get home.
（Someone は）出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っていた。
Someone was cooking dinner for children before she/he went out.
It focuses on the action, cooking for children. It doesn’t matter if the children ate the dinner that time or later.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
In this sentence, 「若い男は急いで立ち上がり、二、三の言葉をどもってたちまち行ってしまった」, is the 「しまった」the same as what you’ve written about here? Is it just emphasising the completeness of 「行く」?
Thanks,
Charlie
Hello Charlie,
行ってしまった: The usage of this てしまった is the completion of action 行く but it also involves the writer’s surprised feelings for something unexpected. (The person was gone in a minute)
Oh okay so unrelated. Thanks!!
No problem! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
1 – A「今日、川口さんも会いに出席するでしょうか。」 B え? 川口さんは今、日本にいない(XXXXX)ですよ。おとといアメリカに行ったんです。」
a- はず
b – わけ
Hello for the above statement I wrongly chose b – わけ, why is it wrong? I thought it means something factual, unlike はず?
Also for:
2 – 彼は「必ず行くよ。」と言っていたのだから、来る( )ですよ。もう少し待ちましょう
I again chose b – わけ wrong, but the correct answer is はず why is it wrong? I thought わけ means something factual, unlike はず?
thx in advance
Hi Mark
Hmm but did you read this lesson?
I think I covered the same usage of はず in this lesson.
1 いないはずです
I explained the usage of はず in the example sentences
verb (plain negative form ) + はず ( = hazu) + だ ( = da)/ です ( = desu)
to expect something/someone doesn’t do something/isn’t ~
Ex. マギーは今、家にいないはずだ。
= Maggie shouldn’t be home now./ Maggie is not supposed to be home now.
It is the same pattern.
2. 来るはずです
Is the same pattern
verb (plain form ) + はず ( = hazu) + だ ( = da)/ です ( = desu)
to be supposed to be/do, / I expect ~ / things should work as you have expected.
Ex. もうすぐタクシーが来るはずです。
= The taxi should come soon. / I expect the taxi will be here soon.
I am not going to explain the usage of わけ here but わけ is like
Something explain why/the reason why
A: 川口さんは今、アメリカにいます。 Kawaguchi-san is in the US now.
B: ああ、だから家にいないわけだ。 Ah that’s why he is not home now. That explains why he is not home now.
Thank you Maggi-sensei
You’re welcome, Mark. :)
Can you add examples for Na-Adjectives?
I added two example sentences but when you connect na-adjctive with とか,
→ na-adjctive + だ ＋ とか
You need だ when you quote 〜と言う but you tend to omit だ in casual conversation.
thank you! you’re so kind :)
No problem! :)
Maggie-sensei! Please, Could you make a lesson about when to use 動詞＋場合・名詞の場合?
For example… I having lots of trouble finding the reason of next sentence is right… “地震の場合、エレベーターが使用禁止” or “遅刻する場合、お知らせください” but next isn’t right “地震が起こる場合、…” or “地震が起きた場合、…”
Thank you sooooo much! I promise to pay you an extra large coffee!
Hi Angel
OK, I will add it to my request lesson list. It may take some time but please wait patiently.
いつもありがとうございます！とても役に立ちます、マギー先生のレッスン。
こんにちは、 Nassima
レッスンがお役に立ててうれしいです。☺️
Hello, Maggie Sensei.
I have aa question about how し is working here. Please help me.
アリのような小型の昆虫は潰れやすいために化石になりにくく、もしあったとしてもその小ささから発見もしづらい。
Is し working alone in 発見もしづらい, or is it working in conjunction with もし.
To me, it sounds as if it were working with も in the sentence
Something like “Even if there were 化石, because of being small the discovery is, too, difficult.
Would my translation be correct?
Hi David,
Ah OK, that し is a verb, する
発見をする = to discover
(masu-form) 発見をします
You attach the suffix づらい with masu-stem and expresses, hard to do ~ / difficult do do ~
発見をしづらい
masu form します
→masu-stem (delte ます）し ＋づらい (hard to do) ⇨しづらい
Another example
見る to see →(masu form) 見ます
→(masu-stem) 見
→attach づらい
→見づらい hard to see
質問を答えくれて心から感謝します！先生 お元気ですね。
どういたしまして、davidも元気でいい一週間を過ごしてくださいね。
Maggie Sensei
Please help me with this paragraph:
様々な植物で、花外蜜腺といって花以外の器官に蜜腺を持つ形質が進化しているが、これは蜜でアリを誘引し、その付近にアリを常駐させ、彼らに植食性の昆虫を襲わせることで体を守る適応的意義があるとされている。
Is といって working as と言う or 居る. To my thinking I think it is working as the first one, but if it so, why not use という。Is it because て is helping with the continuation of the sentence?
お願いします、先生！
Hello David,
That といって is from と言う
And right. It helps with the continuation of the sentence.
ありがとうございました。先生。
どういたしまして、david! :)
I was trying to translate this lyric for practice,春の光に包まれたままで
Then stumble upon your website. Wow, I am blown away by all the details here.
This is my fourth day learning Japanese via Duolingo app.
Thank you for the explanation. I will continue learning Japanese language until I succeed!
Love from Malaysia.
Hello mufiku
Thank you for your comment!
I hope you enjoy learning Japanese!
Love,
Maggie
I feel like when I see ても I’m still often confused about its usage. Like recently I saw:
空腹のせいで部活で負けられても困りますから。
Which should express the idea “(I gave you the meal) because I wouldn’t like it if games were lost in club due to an empty stomach. ” But I have no idea how ても is supposed to fit in here. Could you possibly clue me in here?
Hi Matt
Actually you can rephrase the sentence
空腹のせいで部活で負けられては困りますから。
If you(they) lose the game/match in the club activity, I would be in trouble.
And emphasize “losing the game” you change は to も
So it would be easier to think it is a function of も to emphasize the meaning.
Ah, okay, thank you! That makes sense! I didn’t know that ては could have the は change to も like the other uses of は.
(^^)v
Hi sensei, I have a question. In this sentence “決められなくない?” is not included は/も, but is it still part of this grammar? and therefore the meaning is “it’s not that I can’t decide (I can decide)”?
Hi Cit,
I don’t know the context but if it clear what you are talking about, you can omit the object and the particle.
The meaning is, “Isn’t it hard to decide/pick?”/”Don’t you think it is hard to decide/pick?” (the speaker is seeking an agreement from a listener.)
(things that you want an agreement from the listener) ＋ ない？
こんにちはマギー先生！！I am a new member〜
Can you tell me how to read the lessons in order? Should I study according to the date of lessons?
Sorry, my English is not good…
And thank you ^^
こんにちは、奈々生
Welcome to my site.
There is no right order to study this site. I believe all my readers have different levels and interests. I have been trying to cover lots of information in one lesson targeting all different levels.
One lesson is pretty long so you can get the information you like and move on to the different lesson.
You can use the JLPT level tag if you are focusing on grammar.
Oh no…
I just realized my main lesson index has been inactivated. I fixed it now so you can go through the list.
Main Lesson Index
Hi Maggie Sensei 😊, after my last question in the lesson about atatakai, I was thinking why in the sentence that you fixed for me I have to use との, but finally I can understand after read this lesson! But I wanna ask you something, in that question you gave me the next suggestion: マギーには、いつも私との温かい家庭があります。My question is, when we are using との, could the order of the words be changed without changing the meaning of the sentence? For example, if I change the order and write itsumo after “watashi to no” and not before, it’s still ok? Example: マギーには、私とのいつも温かい家庭があります。
Hola David,
Yes, you can say that but the meaning changes slightly.
マギーには、いつも私との温かい家庭があります。 いつも modifies 家庭があります (Maggie always has a warm family)
マギーには、私とのいつも温かい家庭があります。いつも modifies 温かい家庭 always-warm family
ありがとうございますマギー先生😊
どういたしまして、David! 🐶💕
Maggie Sensei
Help me please.
In this paragraph is there are two とs. Are they working like AS WELL AS?
単眼:
昆虫類・クモ類・多足類にみられる小形で単純な構造のレンズ眼。皮膚に突出したレンズ状の角膜と，若干の視細胞の集合した小網膜とからなり，主に明暗に反応する。
I mean: 単眼 consists of(からなり) 若干の視細胞の集合した小網膜 as well as 突出したレンズ状の角膜.
That is the impression I have.
Hi david,
と in the sentence means “and”
単眼 consists of(からなり) 若干の視細胞の集合した小網膜 and 突出したレンズ状の角膜.
こんにちは
How do you say in Japanese:
“Who knows the meaning of this word?”
“I do. I know the meaning of this word.”
“Who understands the meaning of this word?”
“I do. I understand the meaning of this word.”
こんにちは、iji
誰がこの言葉の意味を知っていますか？
私です。この言葉の意味を知っています。
誰がこの言葉の意味がわかりますか？
私です。この言葉の意味がわかります。
マギー先生こんにちは👋
In this song, Blue-Fujifabric, there’s this part that confuses me a bit
「まとめた言葉 単純なのにな
いつも上手く言えないのはなんでだろう」
What does the な after なのに means? To me it sounds like it doesn’t add anything because i can’t understand it, but i know i’m most likely wrong. Is it another structure? Or something related to のに？
こんにちは、Milena
It may not appear in the translation of this な.
You use the suffix な when you express what you feel or think.
Check this lesson. How to use な/なあ
What is the difference between this and と?
I feel like for some of the examples you can also use と and the meaning would stay more or less the same
Hi Glens
OK, for example let compare the following sentences.
「このレッスンにくるたびに私に会えますね。」 You get to see me every time you visit this site.
たびに every time when you do something
「このレッスンにくると私に会えますね。」 You get to see me when you visit this site.
と when you do something
たびに implies the repetitive actions. visiting my site over and over.
と can be just once and it could be used when you are just talking about the possibility.
Hi Maggie,
I came across the ~てきそう form for the first time today.
I think it means “~ is likely to happen” (e.g. 落ちてきそう – likely to fall). Is that correct?
And, can I ask, is this a form of ~てくる or is it another construct altogether?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hello Peter,
Yes, it is from てくる （落ちてくる）
落ちる→落ちそう
落ちてくる→落ちてきそう
Other example
雨が降る→雨が降りそう
雨が降ってくる →雨が降ってきそう
You can also use ていく with そう
飛ぶ→飛びそう
飛んでいく→飛んでいきそう
Related Lesson てくる・ていく
Hi Maggie,
Many thanks!
I don’t think I’ve never seen ~でいきそう before either…are these forms quite rare or have I just been unlucky not to come across them?
Peter.
You mean my example
でいきそう from 飛んでいきそう？
First as I explained in the lesson
Vて（で）くる/ Vて（で）いく
express the movement / change coming toward you (てくる） and going away from you (ていく）
飛んでいく tondeiku = to fly away from where you are/ to rush to somewhere
飛んでくる tondekuru = something/someone is flying towards you
Vて（で）きそう/V（で）ていきそう
By adding そう you can express
as if something is flying away from where you/something is about to fly away (飛んでいきそう = tondeikisou )
as if someone is rushing towards you （飛んできそう = tondekisou)
マギー先生ありがとうございます！ One example is “もっと早く言ってくれればよかったのに” Why are there two れ?
My understanding is
言ってくる＝to tell me
言ってくれば=if you tell me
言ってくればよかったのに=if you told me it would have been good/You should have told me
こんにちはオリブ
言ってくれば and 言ってくれれば are different.
言う
te-form 言って
言ってくる to come to someone and say something
conditional form with ば →言ってくれば If you come to tell me
（You also use the conditional form with たら →言ってきたら)
言ってくれる to say something for the speaker/writer
conditional form with ば → 言ってくれれば If you say something for me
（（You also use the conditional form with たら →言ってくれたら)
If you want to learn more about the conditional form check my ば lesson.
I’m so, so thankful for this! Your detailed explanation about the levels of politieness and giving context is a lifesaver. I think this is the best post on the internet about this subject. Thank you again!
Hello Simona,
Thank YOU for your nice message. I’m very happy to hear this lesson helps you! 🐶❤️
Hi Maggie sensei!
I noticed in casual conversations, people will often use もう at the end of sentences. For example, if two friends are joking around and one of them goes “やめて、もう！！”
Does this もう have the same meaning, like “quit it already!!” or is it a different grammar form?
Hi Cristine,
Yes, that もう is conversational but it means “enough”
The same usage
1)
*もういい加減にしてよ。(female speech)
*もういい加減にしろよ！(male/rough)
= Enough already!
やめてもう！ = Quiet it already/ That’s enough!
(Expressing one’s frustration)
Similar expressions
もういやだ！/もううんざり= I had it enough!
こんにちはMaggie先生
この前「よう」を含む文を見つけました。しかし、「ように」にかえってただで「よう」と書かれているのは分かりません。下記の通りです。
「何卒ご理解・ご了承賜りますようお願い申し上げます。」
何で「ようにお願い」と書かれていませんですか。
こんにちは nipachi
「〜ようお願いします/お願い申し上げます/お願いいたします」
はビジネスなどで使うフォーマルな表現です。「〜ようにお願いします」という文章もありますが、
基本的に 「〜ように」は動詞にかかります。
ようにしてください・〜ようにしていただきますよう
回答をありがとうございました。
その「〜ようにお願いします」という文章が「〜ようお願いします」とはどう違いますか。
そして「お願いする」は動詞ですよね。「〜ようにお願いする」と「〜ようにする」には文法的な違いはありますか。
この「〜ようお願いします」はフォーマルな設定した表現なんでしょうか。
意味は同じです。
nipatiさんの言う通り、「ようお願いします」の方がフォーマルです。
なるほど！説明してくれてありがとうございました。
どういたしまして。:)
Hi Maggie! When I read your example “温かい家庭” I start to think if 家庭 should be use with ある or いる? For example: “マギーのために私といつも温かい家庭ある”, it’s that phrase ok? make sense? and it’s ok ある in this case and not いる? It’s a bit confuse to me because the translation of 家庭 in the dictionary is like home or family, and home sounds like a not living thing (ある) but I wonder if family could be like a living thing maybe (いる), 家庭 it’s a bit confuse to me but an interesting word
Hi David,
Ah you are right.家庭 can be translated family/home but here’s the rule
家庭 → ある (You treat it as a group/idea of home)
家族 → いる (You treat the word as people/group of people)
So basically I have a warm family in Japanese
私には温かい家庭があります。
私には優しい家族がいます。
マギーのために私といつも温かい家庭ある
→Can you give me the English or Spanish translation?
Oh! I understand 家庭があります and 家族がいます!
In my example more than people or a house like building, I was thinking about the “idea of home”
So my example in english could be: “Maggie, there will always be a warm home for you with me” or “Maggie, you will always have a warm home with me”
In spanish could be:
“Maggie, siempre habrá un hogar cálido para ti conmigo” or “Maggie, siempre tendrás un hogar cálido conmigo”,
You mentioned Spanish and it made me very curious! can you speak my language?
OK, how about
→マギー には、いつも私（僕）との温かい家庭があります。
**
Sí, hablo español. 😉
日本語で書いてみます、間違ったらすみません
日本人がスペイン語に興味があるか話せるならすごく嬉しくなります
これから、質問があったらスペイン語と英語とどちらを使ったほうがいいですか？
今度もほんとにありがとうございますマギー先生
どういたしまして！ 文章、よく書けています。👏
英語でもスペイン語でもどちらでもいいのですがDavidの質問を他の人が読んで勉強することもあるからとりあえず日本語か英語で書いてみてくださいね。私からスペイン語で確認することもあるかもしれません。☺️
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I was watching episode 2 of Hamefura season 2, and I was confused by this line:
‘Katarina-sama to isshoni butai ni tatteru nante hontou ni ureshii desu!’
Why isn’t it’ butai de’? It’s standing ON stage right? Not ‘to’ the stage? I don’t really understand why ‘ni’ is used here?
Hi Wendy
The basic rule is you use で with actions/ “action + で” (Ex. dancing, singing on the state) → butai de odoru / butai de utau
tatteru is just standing still and there is no motion/action. In that case you use “ni”
Ex. Someone wa soko ni iru = Someone is there.
Ex. Watashi wa soko ni nemasu. I will sleep there.
Ex. isu ni suwaru = to sit in a chair
Thank you for your quick response! I never knew this before. So would it change it if were singing instead? Do you say ‘butai de utatte’ in that case?
Do you say ‘butai de utatte’ in that case?
→Yes, butai de utatteiru = ~ is singing on the stage
butai de odotte iru = ~ is dancing on the stage
One more question sensei
インドで うみが ありますか
Why is the で particle used in this?
Why is the に not used?
This lesson is very informative, but I read that もん is childish/only used by children. Is this true or is that a different use of the word もん than in this lesson? Thanks!
Oh also, if もん is childish, is writing the full thing out like もの or ものです considered not childish? Thanks! (Sorry I forgot to add this to the original comment)
Hi Sean,
Ah that childish もん is different from these.
The もん form that I introduced in this lesson is just casual form of もの and not childish.
What is the difference between the “let someone into the club” usage for 2?
Like, one could imagine:
空手部に入れてほしかったらもっと練習しなさい。
could have 入れる be いれる or はいれる, as the potential form of はいる, right? Would those have the same meaning?
In this case ほしい・〜たい
Ex. 空手部に入れてほしかったらもっと練習しなさい。
I should have add the literal translation.
I translated,
= If you want to join our Karate club, you have to practice more. (= 空手部に入りたかったら〜）
But the literal translation is “If you want us to let you join our Karate club”
入れる=いれる= to let someone in ~
入れる = はいれる = to be able to enter /join ~
入る = はいる = to enter, to join
Ah okay, thank you! That makes sense! :)
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I have a question regarding表現.
What does 表現 mean in the following phrase?
私は「寒椿」というお菓子を選んだ。いつも公園で見る赤い椿の花を表現したお菓子だ。
My guess:
I picked up this candy. This candy is like the flowers in the park?
Hi Mark,
表現 in that sentence means “depict” (The sweets that depict the red camellia flowers that I always see in the park)
Hi Maggie,
I hope all is well :)
I’m reading a new book and the story is talking about a child on a school trip buying お土産 for his parents. He wants to buy 油取り紙 for his mother (written as おかあさん in the book).
The school trip is cut short and the child hasn’t yet bought 油取り紙, but now the word おばさん (in hiragana) is used.
I always knew “おばさん” as “aunt”, but can it be used to mean “mum” informally?
The same occurs for おとうさん. This changes to おじさん in the same section.
Can おじさん ever be used for “dad”?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hello Peter,
おじさん・おばさん can’t be used for one’s own father/mother. But when children refer to someone’s father/mother, they might call them おじさん・おばさん
Maybe the speaker has changed in the story?
For example: おかあさんに、油取り紙を買わなければいけない。 (Talking about the writer’s mother)
「おばさんに油取り紙を買ったの？」(the writer’s friend asked the writer)
You’re right, the speaker had changed :)
It was his friend using the terms おじさん and おばさん, so that makes perfect sense.
Thinking about it, in English sometimes people refer to someone’s dad as “old man” or someone’s mum as “old dear”.
Thank you very much!
My pleasure! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I had a question about the difference between まで, でも, and さえ.
I have some samples from my book, but it looks like they all can be interchanged:
でも – そんなことは子供でも知っている。
でも – 妹は初めて会った人とでもすぐ仲良くなる。ましてや、会ったことがある人だったら仲良しなのはなおさらだ。
まで – こどもまでわかってるよ
まで – 会ったことがない人にまで年賀状を出した
さえ – そんなことは子供さえ知っている
さえ – 毎朝電車で会う、名前さえ知らない人を好きになった。
I understand the meanings of them, I do not need a translation, what I need to know is when I should use either まで, でも, or さえ?
Hi Mark
でも and さえ can be interchangeable in some cases but I would say さえ emphasizes what comes before more than でも.
子供でさえできる＞子供でもできる
I won’t explain the whole difference here because it is going to be too long
でも – そんなことは子供でも知っている。
You can use さえ but まで is not natural.
If the sentence is like 大人から子供まで知っている曲 from adults to a children, you can use まで
でも – 妹は初めて会った人とでもすぐ仲良くなる。
You can use さえ or まで
まで – こどもまでわかってるよ
Actually さえ・でも will be more natural but they are interchangeable.
まで – 会ったことがない人にまで年賀状を出した
You can use でも/まで
さえ – そんなことは子供さえ知っている
You can use で
まで is not natural
さえ – 毎朝電車で会う、名前さえ知らない人を好きになった
You can’t use でも/まで
Mark
I’ve been answering your questions every day and it is great that you have been studying so hard.
Though I’d love to answer all your questions, allow me to take a break for several days.
Hello Maggie Sensei,]
thanks for your help, no problem, don’t worry I will not ask too many questions form now on.
I found a yahoo board that has answered my question about さえ and でも
https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1075132965
Maybe it can help your readers
Thanks
Hello Maggie Sensei,
遠慮しながら人に手伝いを頼むくらいなら、自分でやったしまったほうがいい。
I understand the statement above means its better to do it yourself than to ask someone for help BUT what does the 遠慮しながら at the beginning of the sentence do? It can be used without it as in:
人に手伝いを頼むくらいなら、自分でやったしまったほうがいい。
What does 遠慮しながら人 mean?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
遠慮しながら means “in an apologetic way, reluctantly, with hesitation, in a reserved way”
It would be like this..
ごめんなさい、忙しいかったらいいんだけど、もしよかったら〜してくれる？
人に人に手伝いを頼むくらいなら、自分でやったしまったほうがいい just means you’d rather do something by yourself without asking someone.
What’s the difference between tsuide ni and sekkaku when in terms of taking advantage the opportunity? Thank you
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
東京に来たついでにディズニーランドにも行きたい。
せっかく東京に来たのだからディズニーランドにも行きたい。
They both can be translated → “I want to go to Disneyland taking advantage the opportunity of being in Tokyo”
but せっかく expresses stronger feelings and adds the nuance of “Since I came all the way to Tokyo/After all the trouble coming to Tokyo ”
And ついでに could be just on a whim. Since I am happened to be close to Disneyland, I want to go there.
彼らに先に注文された。
Hello Maggie Sensei, just wanted to confirm the above statement. My stab at it: The guys order was taken first. (passive)
Can I expand it to this, does it have the same meaning/syntax as:
(unknown waitress or 私？) は 彼らに先に注文された。
The waitress took the order from them.
彼ら は (unknown waitress or 私？) に先に注文した。
They gave their order to the waitress
The unknown waitress means it is a hidden person, it does not always mean 私 correct? Unless I am a waiter/waitress then I guess it can apply to 私,. amirite?
Hello Mark,
(私) は 彼らに先に注文された
to express the speaker’s annoyed feeling.
彼ら は (unknown waitress) に先に注文した。
or
If you want to involve the speaker, 私
you can say
彼ら は 私より先に注文した。
Hello Maggie Sensei
「美術館で」あの、お客様、とちらへ行かれますか。この奥は関係以外は入れませんが。
I am trying to figure out the 行かれますか phrase. I am guessing this is passive honorific form?
amirite?
Also the general meaning is confusing, is it: Anyone can go there, but only people working here can enter the inside part.
What does this part mean: とちらへ行かれますか
Does とちらへ mean any person or any choice of 2 or more things?
thx in advance
Hello Mark
Typos
とちら→どちら
関係以外→関係者以外
As I wrote in the lesson 行かれる is an honorific form of 行く = to go
Some customer was about to get in the staff only section and a salesperson stopped him/her saying
“Where are you going?” politely.
Maggie-先生、こんにちは。
I am trying to translate the following:
“Due to absences in our student’s group (ゼミ), I could not deliver our research paper earlier.”
My try:
『同級生のゼミ欠勤に付、直ぐに研究論文を終えることができませんでした。』
I have problems with: “some absences in our student’s group”.
Is it colloquial to say it so: 『同級生のゼミ欠勤に付』, in Japanese? :-s
I didn’t mention “our” in Japanese, as it is obivious that I am talking about our study group. ;-)
Thank you so much | どうもありがとうございます m(_ _)m
Hi アレックス
* 付き is usually used in written form and it is too formal. I would use ために・ので
* 欠勤 is for work.
欠席 is for missing the classes.
* deliver → You mean “to submit”?
If so, ⇨提出
*some absences in our student’s group
You wanted to say a few students were absent?
同級生 is classmate.
ゼミ生 a student who belonged to a seminar but you belong to the same seminar, you can say for example
ゼミで欠席者*が数名いた為(or ので) 、研究論文を提出するのに時間がかかってしまいました。
(or 欠席する人が）
If you couldn’t make it time to the fixed date
研究論文を（期日までに）終えることができませんでした。
その時、十人ほどの集団が入ってきて、レストランは満員になった。
彼らはこの店によく来るらしく、メニューを見ないでどんどん注文をし始めた。
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can you explain what does the -らしく means at the end of the sentence? What significance does it add to the sentence than without it?
He is there seeing them come in so why even use this?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
らしく It seems like they come to the place many times.
It will be more clear to have that part because you rarely order things without checking the menu.
People generally check the menu before they order something.
So the speaker is assuming they must be the regular customers who have been there many times.
Hi can you use とか to soften your sentences with verbs or adjectives?
Hi Jon
I think I covered some examples but yes, you use とか with verbs to soften your sentence or avoid straight forward speech in colloquial usage.
I am sure you don’t learn this type of speech in the textbooks but you hear them in casual conversation.
Ex. 休みの日はどこかに行くとかしないの？
うん、海に行くとかするよ。
I can’t think of adjective usage at the moment other than listing adjectives
美味しいとかまずいとかいわないで。
But if I think of any, I will add them here.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I got this answer wrong, I chose a.
来月国から両親が______。
a. 見えます
b. 参ります
c. おいでです
Why is the answer not a.
Maybe my meaning is misunderstood. Is this the correct meaning of it:
Next month, my parents are coming from their country to visit me.
So coming in 敬語 is いらっしゃいました, おいでになります, or 見えました.
So again why is the answer まいります(参ります)?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
You have to use humble expression(謙譲語） 参ります when you refer to your own family.
Hey
Thank you for explaining this. However, I’m confused about this spot:
→けんかをきっかけに二人は口をきかなくなった。
= Kenka wo kikkake ni futari wa kuchi wo kikanakunatta. The nuance difference between に ( = ni ) and が ( = ga) here is
で ( = de) focusing on the cause, fight
に ( = ni) focusing on the time when they got into the fight So if I try to translate the sentences literally:
You say difference between に and が, but explain で and に instead in an article about が vs を きっかけ. Is it a typo? I really want to understand the difference.
Hey 😆
Sorry. I changed the part that you got confused. It was confusing since there are two sets of particles.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I was reading your post while trying to figure out the meaning of 〜にとしては from something I was reading (and trying to make sense of) by 無古田邦子.
It reads as follows…
母の改まった辞儀はこれが二度目である。
二年前、私は妹をお供につけて母に五泊六日の香港旅行に行ってもらった。「死ん だお父さんに怒られう」とか「冥利が悪い」と抵抗したが、もともとおししいもの好きで、 *年にしては* 好奇心も旺盛な人だから、追い出してさえしまえばあとは喜ぶと判っていたので、けんか腰の出発だった。
You state that “年 ( = toshi) ／年齢 ( = nenrei ) means “age” but it’s not specific. It could be: old, young,etc.so you can’t use にしては ( = ni shitewa) .”
Now I’m lost with that passage and I am struggling understanding it.
May you please help me and bring some enlightenment to my life??!!! PLEASE :)
Hello Angel
You can judge the meaning in the context.
「死んだお父さんに怒られる」とか「冥利が悪い」と抵抗したが、— the person who say these is the writer’s mother.
年にしては* 好奇心も旺盛な人だから
You don’t say 子供にしては・子供のわりに好奇心が旺盛である because it is common to be curious about many things when you are a child or young.
So in this case the writer think her mother’s age is not young (=old)
She had a great deal of curiosity for her age /She had a great deal of curiosity regardless of her age. = She is not young but she is curious about many things.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
コーヒーを多く飲む人ほど、肌のしみができにくいという研究結果がある。
I would like to expand the sentence out, is the following equivalent correct?:
コーヒーを多く飲めば人飲む人ほど、肌のしみができにくいという研究結果がある。
Thx in advance
コーヒーを多く飲めば人飲む人ほど、 →It doesn’t work
コーヒーを多く飲む in the original sentence modifies 人
You can say
コーヒーを多く飲めば飲むほど instead of using 人
It is more natural. (The hidden subject is “people in general” or “you” in general)
Hello Maggie Sensei
according to definition from the book I am studying (新完全マスター N3):
~によって:「~が違えば・・・。」・・・は一定でないことを表す文(さまざま・変えるなど)。
「~によっては・・・」の・・・は、いろいろな場合のうちの一つ例を言う文。
“Means to change state or behaviour depending on something, or according to something. Expresses variety, and is commonly used with さまざまだ and 変える. etc. The term ~によっては…pinpoints one outcome from a range of possible outcomes.”
Now, I have seen sample sentences that do not make sense for the ~によっては part ( choosing one out of many )
The following sentences I understand, it is choosing one ( or a few) days that they person works till midnight. and says that some words could me misunderstood when giving thanks.
1. 私の帰宅時間は毎日違う。日によっては夜中になることもある。
2. 感謝の言葉でも、言い方によっては悪い意味に聞こえることもある。
Although the following 2 sentences do not follow the rule. Can you explain why the bottom 2 sample sentences use ~によっては instead of ~によって? ( there should be only 1 choice out of many, but there is not )
3. 場合によっては今年の文化祭は中止になるかもしれない。
4. 明日は、所によっては雨が降るかもしれない。
Thx in advance
Hi Mark,
3) 4) よっては means “depending on ~”
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Just FYI, the 父 died a while ago.
母は、父がこの時計を大切に使っていたことを思い出し、「この時計はまだ動くんだって伝えたかったのかも知らないね。」と言って笑いました。
My question is who is saying what?
I am guessing the 母 said the part in quotes: この時計はまだ動くんだって伝えたかったのかも知らないね。
Why is she using the って伝えたかった, is this information she got from the dead husband?
この時計はまだ動くんだって伝えたかった?
Finally at the end と言って笑いました。 I am guessing the 母 said it and is laughing correct?
Thx in Advance
1) 母は、父がこの時計を大切に使っていたことを思い出し mother is rememebering >、
2) 「この時計はまだ動くんだって伝えたかった のかも知らないね。」
伝えたかった is what father wanted to say
伝えたかったのかもしれない probably the father wanted to say
Mother is assuming what father wanted to say
3) と言って笑いました (mother said that laughing)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
「安さ」「よさ」が買い物を満足させるとして大切な要素であることは間違いないでしょう。
I am wondering if you can explain the causative verb満足させる here. What is being forced to whom? Or what is being forced onto what, who is forcing someone to do something etc.?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
This saseru is not “to force”
It means “to make”
To make (the customers) happy
Hello. I have a question.
Is there a kanou kei for this verb form?
For example:
(1) マギーはマックスに野菜を食べさせた。
= Maggie made Max eat vegetables.
(2)マックスはマギーに野菜を食べさせられた。
= Max was made to eat vegetables by Maggie.
Is it possible to use kanou kei for these examples?
(1) Maggie could not make Max eat vegetables.
(2) Max couldn’t be made to eat vegetables by Maggie.
Thank you.
asakura
させられる/させられた/させれない/させられなかった
These could be both the causative potential and the causative passive so you can say
(1) マギーはマックスに野菜を食べさせられなかった。
But the listener/reader might get confused. You can use it when the context is clear.
For example
マックスは野菜嫌いで絶対に野菜を食べようとしません。
マギーも美味しい野菜を買って食べさせようとしましたが、結局、マックスに野菜を食べさせられませんでした。
As for (2)
(2) マックスはマギーに野菜を食べさせられなかった。
I think 99 pct of people would think → Max couldn’t make Maggie eat vegetable.
So I wouldn’t use it.
Hi sensei
it is correct to say the following?
Ex 1) While swimming in the sea/(river) I swallowed some water
うみ(かわ) を およぎながら みず を のむ
Ex 2) While swimming in the sea/(river) water entered my ears
うみ(かわ) を およぎながら みず が みみ を はいる
Thank you
Hello Maggie Sensei,
あれ、この上着はちょっと大きすぎる。昨日買う前に
a 着てみたほうがいい
b 着てみたらいい
c 着てみてよかった
d 着てみればよかった
I chose ‘a’ but it was wrong. Why is ‘d’ right and the others wrong? I cannot find the difference between たら and ば and ほうがいい anywhere on your website. please make it.
Thx in advance.
Hi Mark
昨日 is a key word
着てみたほうがいい means “One should try it on/It will be bette to try it on”
So this person bought a jacket (since it says この上着） so it should express one’s regret.
~ みればよかった
Hello Maggie Sensei,
In the following sentence I chose b, したら but it was wrong, the correct answer is a するなら. Can anyone explain what is the difference between them, I know they both mean something that did not occur and for なら you are trying to influence someone to do something, but that is NOT the case here.
Also what does this sentence mean, I don’t get the かっこう part?
いいレストランで食事を
a するなら
b したら
、そんなかっこうではだめだろう。
Can you make a page that explains the differences between たら、なら, ば、etc.
No where on your website you explain when to use one or the other, I have to read the whole section and then try to guess the differences between them.
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
いいレストランで食事をするなら+ suggestion
いいレストランで食事をしたら+ what is going to happen
かっこう(格好） = in this case it means “clothes”
Hey Maggie sensei,
according to my book, answer b is correct, can you explain why b is correct and a is not correct?
As far as I know という means と言う ( was said ) so isn’t that the same as って( I heard)？
ねえ、この記事見て。昨日のスケート大会、大木選手が：
a. 優勝したという
or
b. 優勝したんだって
Thanks in advance
Hi Mark
Yes, as I explained in this lesson you finish the sentence with って to tell someone what you heard.
という usually modifies a noun. ~という話
It is only used to quote in a formal sentence.
They say ~ / I heard : 日本では玄関で靴を脱ぐという。
Hello Maggie, ok I understand your point but why is the following a formal sentence?
彼の話では、これはこの地方の伝統的な：
a 料理だと聞いた
b 料理だと言った
c 料理だと言われている
d 料理だという
In my book it says d is correct 料理だという. I thought という is only used in formal settings, this is something she heard from a guy, this is not formal correct? I chose b, but it was wrong, why is b wrong?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
Yes, using という at the end of a sentence is for writing. You rarely use it for conversation.
In conversation, you say これはこの地方の伝統的な料理だって。
(I know you have many questions but as I told you before I can only answer one or two simple questions a day if it is related to my lessons. So please wait for the other questions.お願いします。🙏)
One of the characters in an RPG I play has this voice clip that sounds to my ears like “いいかん” — I was wondering if you thought this would mean “いいかの” or “いいかな”. Also, if you combine the か and の particles, it has to be ～のか, right?
マギー先生のサイトにはいつも最高な説明があります。書いてくれてありがとうございます！
Hello Gran
I wish I could hear what it says so that I could help you.
Is that OK? in Japanese is
いいかな？
いいかの？ an old man’s speech. (You hear that in anime/game)
いいか？ male speech/rough
いいのか？ male speech/rough/(The speaker is more uncertain)
If you find a youtube clip with that phrase, let me know.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
いつでも電話に出られるわけではありません。連絡はメールでお願いします。
I wanted to confirm the meaning of 電話に出られるわけではありません and expand it out so I know all of the people involved.
Is these 2 sentences the correct meanings: (and are they the same)
彼は私に電話に出るわけではありません- My friend does not have to keep calling me.
私は彼に電話に出られるわけではありません – I am the person who is receiving the call from you, so you do not have to keep doing it.
Are the 2 sentences above equivalent, same?
Why do Japanese sentences always leave out the important parts like who is speaking to who, why can’t they put everyone in the sentence so its easier to read and understand?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
Let me correct your sentences/translation.
彼は私に電話に出るわけではありません
→彼は私の電話にいつも出るわけではありません
– My friend does not have to keep calling me.
→He doesn’t always answer my call.
私は彼に電話に出られるわけではありません
→私は彼の電話にいつも出られるわけではありません
= I can’t always answer his calls.
いつでも電話に出られるわけではありません。連絡はメールでお願いします。
You can tell who is talking by the second sentence.連絡はメールでお願いします The speaker is asking the listener.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
この地方の土地の値段は今後もあまり高くならないだろうという。
I am confused about the ending 2 parts:
だろう and という
He is saying: “I heard that the price will not go much”
だろう means to wonder, and という means だそうだ (I heard it from someone/somewhere)
Is my understanding correct?
Why do they need a だろう then?
Why is he saying he heard that the price will go up from someone, and he also wonders?
Thanks in advance
Hi Mark
だろう in that sentence doesn’t mean “wonder”
It shows the assumption/guess for the future. (I think) It will ~ (in this case, the assumption is “the price of the land won’t go up”)
This was a great explanation, but how do you decline it? So if someone says 食べていい？or 食べてもいいですか？ and I want to tell them that they may not eat, how do I say that. I have seen some people say that you would say 食べてはいけない but that seems too harsh because you are telling them that they must not eat. So how would I say, “you may not eat” or “please do not eat” or just simply “no” in response to てもいい? Thanks!
Hello Sean
You may not eat/Please do not eat.
You can say
食べないでください。
If you are talking to family/close friends
だめ！ /だめです No, you may not!
For example, if you meant to say “Not yet” you can say
いえ、まだです。
まだ食べないでください。
Or give a reason first and say no.
（Reason ので）食べないでください。
Hi,if “Gekkeiju” means “Bay Tree” then does the same word apply for “Bay Leaf”.
In “Indo no ryori”(Indian Cuisine) this is one of the “Zairyo”(Ingredients) that is commonly used.
Thanks in advance.
Hi SK
Bay Leaf is “月桂樹の葉=げっけいじゅのは = gekkeiju no ha” or “ローリエ = rourie (from a French word “laurier”)
Greetings Maggie Sensei.
In regards to this sentence…
Ex. Connerしか愛せない。
Could you explain to me what senai means, or what it is a conjugation of please? I am not familiar with it.
Thank you!
Hi Jimmi
OK,
愛せない is from
愛する = あいする = to love
potential form
愛せる = あいせる = to be able to love
negative potential form
愛せない = あいせない = not be able to love
Hello Maggie Sensei,
会社員A「僕、五時の新幹線に乗るんだ。あ、遅れそうだ。急がないと・・・。」
会社員B「時間がないなら後片付けは私がやっておくから、早く行って。」
I just want you to check my translation:
A: I have to take the Shinkansen at 5, it looks like I will be late, hurry up!
B: If you do not have time, let me clean up ( prepare for future?) hurry up and leave?
So my question is, is B saying I will clean and not go, you go ahead? Or is B saying I will clean and also go with you?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark,
An is telling B, I will clean up here so go ahead.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
In my book the question is:
今日は______早く家に帰りたい
a.疲れたせいで b. 疲れたのでは c. 疲れたら
So according to the book, the correct answer is c, so my question is why is it c?
According to my book, から and ことから cannot have any hope or intention, but the above sentence say 帰りたい so that means hope right?
Is the から part of のだから instead? Definitions are below:
Here are the definitions of my book:
~から。。。~ことから・・・ : Because of something factual~, … results. or I conclude that…. Not used when a speaker is expressing hope or intention or trying to induce another person to an action. XことからY X=原因 cause/理由reason/根拠basisになって, Y(結果) Because of~; From the fact that~ Often used in writing/Business presentations/News/News papers… 名 + から 普通形(ナ形だ-な/-である・名だ-である) + ことから
~の だから。。。 : のだから is used to express the speaker’s strong opinion. …is the natural consequence of ~. Means that one fact naturally follows from another, and the other person is assumed to know this. …is the speaker expressing a judgement, hope or intention, or trying to induce another person to an action. AのだからB Aだから,当然B 話す人も聞く人も理由を知っている。 Since~;Because of~; Used in casual conversation 普通形(ナ形だ-な・名だ-な) + の だから
？？ Before I answer your question (c) is 疲れたら？ or 疲れたから？
Sorry, its c:疲れたから
You are correct
The explanation of ~から。。。~ことから/のだから in your textbook is fine.
As you know, から has different functions but there are cases that you can use から to express the reason for your desire.
喉が渇いたから何か飲みたい。 I’m getting thirsty so I want to drink something.
眠いからもう寝たい。 I’m sleepy so I want to go to bed already
疲れたから帰りたい。 I’m tired so I want to go home.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I am having trouble figuring who the subjects are in the following passage:
1. 若い人にとって、知らない人に声をかけるのは少し緊張します。
Is my understanding correct:
According to young people it is stressful to talk to a stranger.
2. 人に席を譲ろのは少し勇気がいります。
Is my understanding correct:
In order to give up your seat to another person takes courage.
3.「どうぞ」と声を掛けた時に、感謝のことばと笑顔が返ってくれば、つぎもまた譲ろうという気持ちになります。
Is my understanding correct:
The young person says dozo: then if he gets in return a thank you or a smile, then the young person would get a feeling of offering a seat in the future?
Who says どうぞ, the young person giving up the seat?
Also the 感謝のことばと笑顔 is this from the other person ( not young person, but the person who is being offered the seat??
4. だから、もし席を譲られたら、「その必要はない」と思っても、素直に座り、笑って「ありがとう」と答えてあげて欲しいと思います。
Who is being offered the seat, the reader?
If the reader is offered a seat, 「その必要はない
What is it referring toその必要はない? 感謝 と笑顔？or 譲？ I am lost here.
Also who is referred to by 素直に座り、笑って「ありがとう」と答えてあげて欲しい。?
Thx in advance
OK, I know you have many questions and I’d love to help you all but as I said I can handle 1~2 simple questions a day. お願いします🙏
1) According to によれば →For young people にとって
2) typo 譲るのは：It takes courages to ~
3) Your translation is right. (It doesn’t say young people in Japanese, though)
the person who offers the seat says どうぞ
And 感謝のことばと笑顔 = from the person who is offered the seat
4) Talking to the reader: If you are offered the seat, just sit there, smile and says thank you
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I always follow your lessons, they are very useful. But this time there is a phrase that I don’t know how to translate, so I was wondering if you could help me. This is the verse of the song:
愛されたいよ
周りの異性が
全て消え去れ
とか思うよ
被害妄想ばっかして
また心臓痛くてさ
How would you translate “被害妄想ばっかして”?
Greetings! And thank you very much for the help.
Hi Juliana
Glad to hear my lessons are useful. :)
被害妄想ばっかして = 被害妄想ばかりして = being always paranoid
Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei :D
どういたしまして、Juliana :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
体が調子が悪くては
a. 仕事が進まないだろう
b. 仕事を休んでもいいよ
Can I ask why is a correct and b wrong?
Thx in advance
Hello again Mark
If the sentence is
体がの調子が悪かったら (reason) → b 仕事を休んでもいいよ works.
The following sentence of くては is usually
〜くては + can’t do something/it won’t work ~/
Hello Maggie Sensei,
for the bottom statement:
ペットは純粋な心のまま飼い主を慕ってくるので、わかいくてしかたがない存在になっている。
what does the まま mean snd what does かわい mean in this context, I thought it means cute?
Thx in advance
まま means “as the way it is” so keep having a pure heart/staying pure
かわいくてしかたがない is an idiom the writer loves the pets so much
Hello Maggie Sensei,
1. やっと運転免許が取れたんだから,
a. 車を買った、b. 車を買いたい
For 1 I chose a, but it was wrong, why is a wrong and b is right?
It is だから, so I got my license so now I bought a car, why is this wrong?
2. 先生、すみません。風をひいて______、今日は休ませてください。
a. しまったので、b. しまったんですから
For 2, I chose b, but it was wrong, why is b wrong and a right?
I am sick so can I take a holiday today, why is using だから wrong in this instance? Is it because ので is more polite?
Thx in advance.
1. The key word is やっと = finally , at last
You don’t say “finally I want to buy”
2. 風邪をひいてしまったので Because I got a cold
in this case ので gives a reason why the speaker want to be absent.
風邪をひいてしまったんですから
→If it is 風邪をひいてしまったから then, it is correct. から is more casual than ので but it also gives a reason.
しまったんですから ・ しまったのですから has more explanatory tone and it often leads the outcome, result
Hello Maggie Sensei,
ペットはいつまでも小さな子供のような純粋な心のままで、
飼う人を慕ってくる。
I had a question about the above statement, does it mean the pet loves its owner, or does it mean the owner loves its pet?
Hi Mark
It means the pets love the owners.
Thank you Maggie Sensei,
これが人間の子供なら、大きくらるにつれてだんだん親に反抗することもある。
親が思うように育たないこともある。
Does the above mean that as the kids get bigger, they will rebel against their parents and what does this part mean exactly:親が思うように育たないこともある。
Hi Mark
Does the above mean that as the kids get bigger, they will rebel against their parents?
→Yes, you are right.
親が思うように育たないこともある。
〜こともある sometimes ~
Sometime they don’t grow as the parents expect.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
A:「月日が経つのは早いですね。お子さんはも中学生なんでしょう。」
B:「いえ、中学生_______、もう高校生一年なんですよ。
for the empty blank above I am not sure if the answer is either
ではなく or というより。
What can the explanation for each of them be? ではなく means definitely NO, so maybe that is correct, but then also というより means not quite…
Thx in advance
Hello again Mark
ではなく No, he/she is not a junior high school student. (negating “he/she is not a junior high school student”)
というより mean “or rather” so it is a wrong answer.
For example, if you are assuming
彼は中学生というより高校生に見えた。
He looks like a high school student rather than a junior high student.
Then you can use というより
Hello Maggie Sensei,
In the book I have it has 2 meanings of そう
様態 and 伝聞。
The examples they give are:
遅刻してしまいそうだ
様態 – Mode, Manner
My questions for this one is how did they change しまう to しまい?
しまいます is the verk, then you take off the mas and then you get しまい。
Then add そう but if you do it this way, isn’t the meaning that you get a feeling for yourself? Is that what Mode. Manner is? 自の気持ち = 様態?
待たされてしまったそうです。
伝聞 – Reported speech
I don’t understand why is this reported speech, (or hearsay) the meaning is:
I was told to wait( feeling bad ) but why is there a そう here? It means I heard that I was told to wait. Or does it mean I heard that I was GOIN to wait, something that will happen in the future?
Thx in advance
You can tell by the verb form
verb dictionary form/past tense (しまう・しまった） + そうだ = 伝言(Report speech) I heard ~
verb masu-stem （しまい） + そうだ = will going to get /about to do ~ (talking about the possibility)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I wanted to confirm if this is the use of Passive for annoyance:
1. 自分が怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。
Does it mean, “The mad feelings that made me annoyed came to my eyes?”
What do eyes have to do with feeling mad?
2. この前上司から「余裕を持って来るように」
Also for this one, does it mean the Boss wants this person to make a SURPLUS of money, the boss is saying please make a lot of surplus money?
3. 怒られないで済む
Also does this passive mean I was not mad and it finished? I was not mad anymore?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
1) Yes. It is for annoyance.
2) I think you missed the verb
Is it 言われた or 怒られた？
言われた I was told (It is simply a passive form) / 怒られた I got scolded. (It is just a passive form but since 怒られる means to get scolded, it implies some negative feelings, fear, annoyance,etc.)
3) I can get away without been scolded. (check this lesson if you want to learn the usage of 済む）
Hello Maggie sensei,
for からだ, I do not know what the からだ is for in this sentence:
資源が少ないことは、国にとってはマイナスであるように見えるが、必ずしもそうとは言えない。日本においで、少ない資源のおかげで真面目な国民性が生まれ、高い技術力が育ったとも言えるからだ。
In your explanation above you said:
” Usually we give the reason for something, and then continue on with the sentence and explain the result.”
What is the reason in the above sentence and what is the result?
Thx in advance.
Hi again
から gives a reason why
As I wrote in the lesson, からだ in the second sentence explain the reason for the first sentence.
The write thinks 資源が少ないことは必ずしもマイナスではない why? Because 日本において〜育ったとも
いえるから
Hello Maggie Sensei,
真面目に働き、技術力を高め、よい製品を作ることが、日本が利益を得るためには必要なのである。
I am a bit confused of what the ために is used for, is it used for:
1. 真面目に働き、技術力を高め、よい製品を作ることが
or
2. 日本が利益を得る
for the result to be:
必要なのである。
?
or is it for both of them (1 and 2)?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark,
ために in that sentence is for 2
It might be more clear if you rephrase it.
本が利益を得るためには真面目に働き、技術力を高め、よい製品を作ることが必要である
Hello Sensei、
I am trying to understand what the される means at the end of this sentence.
日本人は真面目でよく働くと言われる。そして日本の技術力は世界的にも高く評価される。
Is it passive Causative, or just passive?
Hi Mark,
評価する→passive form 評価される
Hello Sensei,
I wanted to ask what is the correct sentence:
a.子供の頃兄によく意地悪をされた
b. 子供の頃兄によく意地悪をもらった
The correct answer is a, but why is it a?
If it is a, then it means that my older brother was a mean person.
But if you say b, it means that I received the bad treatment, so why isn’t b the correct answer?
Also for:
c. 私も海に遊びに行く仲間に入れて欲しかった。
d. 私も海に遊びに行く仲間に出して欲しかった。
The入れて is for what part of the sentence? 海に、or 仲間に?
How can I tell which noun the 入れて would be part of in Japanese sentences?
I believe the correct answer is c, but why?
Thx in advance
Hi Mark
a) and b)
Have you studied causative/passive causative form?
So 意地悪をされる is a passive causative
noun +を + もらう to receive something （意地悪 is something you don’t もらう）
verb-te form ~て+ もらう to have someone does something for you (usually something favorable)
Vされる / with suru verb Noun + をされる = passive causative (someone makes you something (unfavorable)/someone does something unpleasant to you
c) and d)
仲間に入れる is an idiom = to include /have someone in some group ・to take a person into a group as a member
Hello Maggie sensei,
here is the complete text:
First Part:
He is waiting at a bus stop because he has to go to work, but it really is Sunday, and the bus schedule is for the weekdays. He says if he keeps waiting there, he will be late for work about 2 hours. So it is his fault for thinking he has to go to work.
このままでは二時間近く遅刻してしまいそうだ。この前上司から「余裕を持って来るように。」と言われたばかりなのに。ちょっとも進歩しない。ああ、自分が怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。
I just do not know what 怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。Did he realize why he is mad/angry with himself?
Also what does the teacher / boss mean by: 余裕を持って来るように。
Second Part:
駅で大事なことに気が付いた。今日は日曜日だったのだ。目覚まし時計が鳴らなかったのも、バスが平日の時刻表どうりに来なかったのも、今日は日曜日だからだったのだ。よかった。怒られないで済む。
So the last part: 怒られないで済む。In this context does it mean he did not have to get mad/angry with himself?
Thanks
Yes, so the following verb is 言われた so it shows annoyance. (I was told (something negative))
怒られている様子が目に浮かぶ。means the speaker can picture himself /herself being scolded by his/her boss.
余裕をもってくる to be at the office earlier with plenty of time.
怒られないで済む: I think I already explained but the speaker is glad because he/she found out it was Sunday so he/she can get away from the situation to get scolded by his/her boss/
こんにちは先生！
I have a question about ていただきありがとうございます and てくださりありがとうございます. If I am thanking the other person for doing something, shouldn’t 作ってくださだて/作ってくださりありがとうございます be used only? In 作っていただいて, doesn’t いただいて focus on me recieving the favour? From what I understand, the て form of the word must be the action performed by the person who I am thanking. I am a little confused here. I have also seen an expression thanking the interviewer saying 面接のお時間をいただきありがとうございます. Here too I don’t understand why いただき is used. I thought くださりshould be used. Can they be used interchangeably? Can you please help?
Thankyou
こんにちは Ruchika
you receives someone’s time 時間をもらう → お時間をいただく
someone gives you his/her time 時間をくれる → お時間をくださる
Ah, I should have mentioned て form.
You can say both いただいて・いただき ・ くださって・くださり
いただき・くださり form is more formal but they mean the same.
Thankyou for answering! Like you said, いただく is used when I am receiving and くださる when someone is giving. When I thank them for giving me their time, shouldn’t くださり be used since the focus is on their action of giving me time? If I say お時間をいただきありがとうございます, it seems like I am thanking them for me recieving their time which doesn’t seem right. I might be wrong here. Can please clarify?
Thankyou
Here’s the literal meaning
お時間をいただき 〜 focusing on receiving their time (I thank you for the time I receive from you./I appreciate the fact that I receive your time.
お時間をくださり 〜 focusing on their action of giving me time (I thank you for giving me your time)
So can both be used interchangeably in this situation?
Right. いただき is considered to be slightly more polite.
Note: Just be careful. In casual form,
you say くれてありがとう but you don’t say もらってありがとう
Maggie先生、いつもお世辞になっております。
最近、日本に引っ越して、コンビニに行く時、わからないことがあったので、もしよかったら教えていただけないでしょうか？
袋ご利用なさいますか？って聞かれたら、袋が要る時や要らない時に何を答えたらいいでしょうか？
よろしくお願い致します。
こんにちは、Yui!
コンビニやスーパーなど今は、ほとんどのお店で聞かれますね。
袋がいらない時は
（袋は）いりません。
（袋は）持っています。
大丈夫です。持っています。
袋、あります。
袋が欲しいときは
はい、お願いします。
で答えたらいいと思いますよ。
人の顔色ばっかりうかがってる癖に、自分の本当の顔は絶対見せたがんない。
“She worried so much about what other people thought, that she’d never let anyone see the real her”
I do not understand this official translation, shouldn’t 癖に imply an opposition instead of a cause ?
Hi Pyth
The direct translation is
Though she worries so much about what other people think (A), she’d never let anyone see the real her.(B)
So it shows the contrast between A and B.
Thank you so much for your explanation! I am so grateful!
You’re very welcome! :)
こんにちわマギー先生、お忙しいところすみません、
ちょっと質問がありますが。。。出来れば答えていただけないでしょうか。
「顔が赤くなってきた」 と 「顔が赤くなっていった」と比べたら、何か違いがあるんですか。
こんにちは、Giorgiana
「顔が赤くなってきた」
A——face is turning red —- now
Something happened (A) and one’s face is turning red gradually
You are looking at the change/or feeling the change up to the current moment.
While the point of view is “now” for なってきた
「顔が赤くなっていった」 describes the change looking back the past.
①パーテイーでは食べきれないほどたくさん料理が出た。
②夏の暑さを忘れてしまうほど部屋の中は涼し。
Sensei, could you please help me translate these sentences? I was also having problem in understanding the purpose of hodo in these sentences.
They served more food that we could eat at the party.
ほど describes the amount (abundance) of the food.
(Typo 涼しい） It is so cool in the room that I could forget about the summer heat.
ほど describes how cool the room temperature is.
Hello Sensei,
I wanted to ask which is the correct sentence:
彼は日本 政治に対しての不満がある。
彼は日本の政治に対して 不満がある。
彼は日本の政治に対しての不満がある。
彼は日本 政治に対して 不満がある。
Basically how do I know if 不満 is a noun I have to modify?
Thx in advance
These two are OK
彼は日本の政治に対して不満がある。(対して modifies a verb ある）
彼は日本の政治に対しての不満がある。 (対しての is modifying 不満)
(You need の between 日本 and 政治）
Senseiii, is there a difference between に対して and 一方で in the context of making contrasts? Thank you for the great resources for studying Japanese!
Hi 肉桂
When you use 一方で and 対して in the context of making contrasts
When you compare two people/things/events
From my example sentences:
マギー先生は好きなものしか食べなかったのに対してクッキー先生はなんでも食べる。
You can use 一方 the sentence structure changes a little
→マギー先生は好きなものしか食べなかったが、一方、クッキー先生はなんでも食べる。
(You can’t say 食べなかった一方）
But you don’t use 対して when you talking about the different aspects of one person/thing/event
彼は、日本語学校に通っている一方でYouTuberとしても活躍している。
Talking about the different things that he does.
In this case you can’t use 対して
大学生活は楽しい一方で大変でもある。
Talking about the different aspects of one’s college life.
In this case you can’t use 対して
Hi Maggie sensei!
I read from your lessons that both noni and kedo has “although/even though” meaning. I am just wondering how are they different from each other?
マギーは犬だけど日本語の先生です。
マギーは犬なのに日本語の先生です。
Is there a difference between the two sentences?
Hello Matthew!
The translation is the same but なのに shows stronger contrast so the speaker expresses surprised feelings more.
Thank you as always for answering questions!
Anytime! :)
Hello Sensei,
I wanted to ask if these sentences are correct ( I made them up to practice):
Volition use:
1. 失業しているうちに日本語を勉強しました。(not measurable so cannot use 間に)
Non Volition Use:
2. 日本に住んでいるうちに日本の文化を分かるようになった。
Continuous time
3. 派遣契約中の間他の仕事を探していました。
In control, take advantage of the time:
4. 定義会議の間に要件を収集しました。
Something out of your control:
5. 仕事の間に東北地方太平洋沖地震が行ってしまいました。
6. 映画を見ている間に音が切れてしまいます。
Hello again,
Sorry. I don’t usually proofread many sentences here but I’ll do it just for today.😉
But I am not going to explain the details, the difference between うちに/ 間に/間,etc. this time because it will be too long.
Hope you understand.
1. 失業しているうちに日本語を勉強しました。(Not natural)
→失業しているうちに日本語を勉強したら？ (Giving advice) →But since 失業 is a negative word, taking advantage of losing a job sounds still a little unnatural. 失業して時間があるうちに〜 might work.
→失業している時に日本語を勉強しました。
2. 日本に住んでいるうちに日本の文化を分かるようになった。。(Not natural)
→日本に住んでいるときに日本の文化が分かるようになった。
→Talking to someone. 日本に住んでいるうちに日本の文化が分かるようになりますよ。
3. 派遣契約中の間他の仕事を探していました。(Not natural)
There are 中 and 間 in this sentence.
→派遣で働いている間、他の仕事を探していました。
In control, take advantage of the time:
4. 定義会議の間に要件を収集しました。
→ 間に is fine but word choices, 定義会議?? 要件??
5. 仕事の間に東北地方太平洋沖地震が行ってしまいました。
→ 仕事をしていた時に〜地震があった。 is better.
（間 is a long time. 地震 happens in a moment）
6. 映画を見ている間に音が切れてしまいます。
→ 映画を見ている間に音が切れてしまった。
→映画を見ている間（ずっと）音が途切れていた。
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I tried to make Japanese sentences using:
間、間に、間に、うちに、うちに
that is related to my Japanese job in Japan.
Unfortunately I cannot make them properly.
定義会議 is a regular meeting I have with my Japanese colleagues and I get their requests: 要件. I guess I used the wrong words. How can I learn to use proper words. The examples on your website do not relate to working in a Japanese company using Business Japanese, what can I do?
Thanks for your help
OK, I got it now. There is a meeting called 要件定義会議 for IT companies.
I am sorry that my site doesn’t cover business related lessons.
But I believe there are many business sites where you can learn proper words. You can use Google search and find the words you want.
お仕事がんばってください。
Hello Sensei,
I have failed N3 JLPT 2 times already so I still have to use your site to pass the N3, then N2, then N1.
Thanks for your continued help
My pleasure. :)
Hello Sensei,
I had a question regarding these below 2 sentences:
1. 私が旅行で留守の間に、庭に草がたくさん生えてしまった。
2. 私が旅行で留守の間、うちの犬の世話をお願いできないでしょうか。
For 1, can’t we also use 間 instead of 間に. During the entire time I was away on vacation, the weeds grew in the garden?
Also for 2, shouldn’t we use 間に because it is something we cannot control. We have no control to find someone to take care of the dog while we are on vacation?
Thanks in advance.
間 is used for on-going actions during a certain period of time
１）生えてしまった is a result
So if you change to 私が旅行で留守の間、庭に草がどんどん生え続けていた。・生えていた, 間 works.
2) If someone is constantly taking care of a dog, you use 間
It will be more clear if you make a statement.
友達が留守の間、犬の世話をした・していた。
Hello Sensei,
I have this sentence:
カンさんはピアノを弾く(???)歌を歌うのが上手です。
I chose たびに in there and it was wrong, the correct answer is: ひきながら。
Why can’t it be たびに?
Thanks
Hi Mark,
You use ながら when you do two things at the same time.
カンさんはピアノを弾きながら歌を歌う
Kan sings while playing the piano.
→カンさんはピアノを弾きながら歌を歌うのが上手です。
Kan is good at singing while playing the piano.
As I explained in this lesson, たびに means “every time/whenever ” so it will be strange to say
Every time Kan plays the piano, he/she sings.
It sounds like his/her strange habit.
たびに works for example,
Every time Kan plays the piano, something happens.
Ex. カンさんがピアノを弾くたびに、猫がやってくる。
= Every time / Whenever Kan plays the piano, his/her cat comes to him/her.
Hi, Maggie sensei!
I have found an example of the use of the use of なんて in a textbook, and it seems to be used to change completely the meaning of the phrase (from positive to negative), so I think it doesn’t fit any of the examples above:
歌いたくない人に歌わせるなんて。
From the context (the situation is a karaoke) I guess this means:
I don’t want to force to sing to anyone who doesn’t want to sing.
Is that right?
Without using なんて , could it be written like this?
歌いたくない人に歌わせないでほしいです。
Thanks!
Hi Marcos,
Sometimes you leave the sentence unfinished with なんて to express your strong feelings such as disbelief, surprise, admiration, etc.
In this case the words like ひどい ( = awful) / ありえない ( There is no way) / 意地悪な人だろう ( What a mean person), etc. will follow.
歌いたくない人に歌わせるなんて
= How dare you to make someone sing (even though they don’t want to sing.)
なるほど。 答えてくれてありがとう！
どういたしまして :)
Hi, Maggie sensei!
I’ve a found an example of the use of
せんせい,
おすすめ を できる ください
can you recommend me some books which have short sentences?
ありがとう
レベルや興味によっても違いますが、短いお話を集めた星新一さんのショートショートは、読みやすいかもしれませんよ。
先生、こんにちは。
日本語の勉強には先生の記事がとても役に立ちます。
いつもご丁寧に説明して頂き、ありがとうございます。
ところで、「～ておく」と「～てある」に関するご質問がありますが、ご回答をいただければ幸いです。
問題：
A：「さっき、冷蔵庫に入れて＿ビールはもう控えていますか」
B：「いいえ、まだです」
選択： ある いる おいた
答え：おいた
なぜ「てある」が正しくないでしょうか？
こんにちは、フォン
この答えの鍵となる言葉は、「さっき」という言葉です。
「さっき」は少し前に何かをした・何かがあったというときに使います。
「入れてあるビール」というのは、冷蔵庫の中のビールの状態を表していて、「さっき（何かをしたという）」というように使えません。
一方、「入れておく」というのは、冷蔵庫に入れる（１）という動きがあるので「さっき」と使えます。
You do say 冷蔵庫に入れてあるビールはもう冷えていますか？ (It must be a typo : 控えて→冷えて) but the key word to solve the question is “さっき” a little while ago.
You can say さっき入れておいたビール because 入れておく is an action (you put the beer in the fridge and left it there to drink it later) but 入れてある just describes the state of beer in the fridge so you can’t use it with さっき.
お返事ありがとうございます。勉強になりました。
漢字の間違いをご指摘いただき、ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして❤️
Thanks a lot Maggie! Your website saved me many times :)
Hi Marc,
I’m very happy to hear that! :)
こんにちは、 Maggie 先生、
I just have one small question – I have seen a lot written about the difference between when to use いけない and ならない in terms of the various nuances of obligation. But so far, I cannot find any good explanation about the difference between when to use ~なければ and ~なくては. Is there a nuance I am missing, or are they interchangeable and equal formality level?
Thank you in advance for your help!
こんにちは JJ
OK, you know the nuance difference between いけない and ならない already.
なければ and なくては are basically the same.
Personally I use なければ for slightly stronger obligation and なくては to show one’s strong will.
先生、お返事どうもありがとうございました！
どういたしまして、JJ! :)
Hi Maggie :-) I really like your website. I learned a lot from you. Thank you very much!
However, I stumbled upon the phrase アメリカがどうより. Can you explain what this means?
Hello Andreas,
I am glad to hear you have learned a lot from my site.
Can you give me the whole sentence?
Hi and thanks for this fast reply. The whole sentence is
一人一人ができることをやればいいじない？アメリカがどうより
The context is that everyone should give his best when preventing pollution. However, earlier, the character who says this found out that America is the country which causes most of the pollution on earth.
Thanks a lot!!
OK, that どう is like どうのこうの・ああだこうだ and you use it when you express how people complain/bitch about something. nagging saying blah-blah-blah
So アメリカがどうより means “instead of accusing/complaining America did this and that, “
Aaaaah, I just noticed you posted this! I don’t know if you remember my name/profile picture from when I requested this topic back in March (or at least, the それぞれ and counter+当たり part) but thank you so much for actually making a lesson! You are absolutely the best Japanese teacher on the Internet!!! (sorry JapanesePod101 lol).
Hi Sora,
Yes, this lesson is for you. I added a little message to you in the comment section of te-iru lesson but was not sure if you read it.
Um.. I am not a teacher for JapanesePod 101 (you might have misunderstood by the advertisement) 😉 but thank you for your message. :)
Haha, I was saying that you are *better* than JapanesePod101 lol. It’s become somewhat of a trend lately to say that honestly. I think their ratings dropped or something because I see a lot of people saying that XD
(〃艸〃) I’m blushing.
They are the best.
Hello again o▽o
So… There is this sentence I can’t put my finger on the meaning of: きみは家族のためとかそういうのばかりですよ！
The context is that the person saying this is trying to encourage someone to stop refraining from doing stuff they like.
Does the sentence mean “You keep doing things like this because of family or other stuff”, or maybe “You keep doing things like this in the name of the family”… or does it mean something else entirely?
Thanks in advance :D
To be honest, I don’t still quite get the situation but I think the first one is closer.
This is basically someone who keeps putting others’ wishes (specially those of his family) before his own, so much that one wonders if his ego is just super low or if he’s indecisive.
After the speaker tells him the sentence I wrote, they say: “We’re grateful for you but we want to know the real you! Don’t give up on the things you want!”
OK, so I guess the person is saying something like,
You always prioritize your family and other things (too much)
Sensei what is the difference between っぽいandかのように
Hello Manisha,
Aっぽい: someone/something/some situation has certain quality of A
Noun + っぽい = ~ ish/~ like
~ は大人っぽい /大人っぽい + noun
~ は子供っぽい /子供っぽい + noun
~ は春っぽい /春っぽい + noun
It expresses noun which has qualities/characteristic of 大人(adult) ・子供 (children) ・春 (spring)
“A + かのように(Noun/na-adj) であるかのように + verb” means “as if” / A behave like B but actually A is not B.
彼は、なんでも知っているかのように話していた。
He was talking as if he knew everything (But actually he didn’t)
彼女は、まるでお金持ちでるかのようにふるまっている。
= She behaves like a rich person (but she is not (rich))
彼は、わかったかのように
こんにちは！
I just search for のに usage and saw this website, I think I must include you as one of my senseis now.
Anyway, 質問があります。 i saw one of the comments about なければいいのに。you said that it means *you shouldn’t eat* but なければならないはなければなりませんでしょ？meaning, *must* so 食べなければならない means you must it?
こんにちは、Ran
食べなければならない = 食べなければいけない = I must eat/ You must eat / ~ must eat
Now 〜ばいいのに changes the meaning
If someone is reluctant to eat something, you tell them
食べればいいのに or 食べたらいいのに = You should eat./Why don’t you eat this. (But the listener wouldn’t eat.)
but if someone is eating something that they shouldn’t (Ex. they are on diet, etc.) you say
食べなければいいのに = You really shouldn’t eat that.
ありがとうございます！
I just started studying N3 now and upon checking all the grammar patterns, I saw this ～ばいい so i will be studying that. and thank you for explaining that to me.
マギー先生のサイトは役に立ってます。文法がわからないときは、たいていここに行きます.
どういたしまして、Ran! 日本語の勉強、楽しんでがんばってくださいね。🐶💕
Hello Maggie sensei
In another lesson for a different topic you used this sentence as example
安いのがなかったら高いのを買った。
My question is why you used なかったら and then the verb 買った in past. I can not comprenhend the connection since is not an if or a.when or an after
Hi May,
Oh that was a typo. It should be 安いのがなかったから高いのを買った。 I fixed it.
Sorry for the confusion.
If you are talking about future, you say
安いのがなかったら高いのを買う。
Aye! I got it Sensei! Thank you so much!(✯ᴗ✯)
You’re very welcome, ファラ :)
こんにちは先生！！素晴らしいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございます！
「置きに」と「毎に」について質問があるけど、
I was about to ask the same as Harinさん, but then read the comment and your response and it became clear as water, but then another question came to my mind.
When it’s a short action every x days/weeks/months/years, 毎に and 置きに have a clear difference as you explained, but what happens when the action’s duration is similar to the interval? Do 毎に and 置きに become equivalent?
For example, if you’re doing some workout where you rest during 1 minute for every 30 seconds round:
Would「一分毎に三十秒の運動です」 imply that the minute of 一分毎に starts after we’ve finished the workout, thus being equivalent to ｢一分おきに三十秒の運動です」? Or would it mean that the minute includes the 30 seconds of workout, thus getting only 30 seconds of rest? What would happen if the workout is one minute or greater :o?
こんな細か過ぎてすみません、先生 (m;_ _)m、そんなことを考えることは楽しいけどwww
Oh and another question (^^;), how formal or casual are 直後、直前 and 寸前？本で読んだからわからないｗｗ
素敵な一日を過ごしてね！！ありがとうございます！！
Hello Orti,
面白い質問ですね。
In that case,
３０秒ごとに運動する
or
３０秒おきに運動するの方
might be more natural.
Generally speaking when the unit you use is small or short, like 秒, 分, 時間 (second(s) /minute(s)/hour(s)), おき and ごと are interchangeable but if it gets longer such as 日・週間・年 (day(s)/ week(s) / year(s)) the meaning change.
But some cases are very complicated and confusing even for native speakers.
直前 ・ 直後 ・ 寸前
You use them in conversation but they are not neither formal nor too casual.
旅行に行く直前に飛行機がキャンセルになった。
旅行の直前まで飛行機が出るかどうかわからない。
向こうから車が出てくる寸前でブレーキをかけた。
Ortiもいい週末を過ごしてくださいね。
説明してくれてほおおおおおおおおんとうにありがとう！！！！
新しいこと教えてくれて嬉しい！！
Dear Orti,
お役に立てたらうれしいです。💕
久しぶり、先生！
Thank you so much for this amazing lesson! It’s splendid as always :D
I’ve always struggled with the “for each x, then y” structure. I’m definitely gonna have to study this one a lot!
A little question, I’m not entirely sure, but I kinda remember a friend once telling me that we can also use おき, at least for time. Is it correct to say, for example:「脚が弱過ぎて、山を登るとき十分おき休憩しないと死にそうになっちゃう」as「…十分当たり/につき休憩…」？
or 「五秒おき文句言ってんだよ、メンドクセ～」?
Is it common or formal? Does it have other uses?
Sorry for asking so many questions m（＿ ＿）m
I hope you have a great day! And as always, 心の中から感謝してます！
PS: I think there was a liiiittle romaji missing here
Ex.「大阪は各家庭にたこ焼き*器があるって聞いたけど本当？」
= Oosaka wa kaku katei ni takoyaki ga <– takoyaki ki?
Orti!!!💕 コメント久しぶりですね。😀
First of all, thank you so much for spotting the typo. I fixed it.
OK, I covered おき in this lesson. →時の日本語 but you need に after おき
number+ counter おきに + do something/something happens
十分おき→十分おきに休憩しないと…
五秒おき→（なに）五秒おきに（文句言ってんだよ）
You can not rephrase it with 当たり in these sentences.
As I mentioned in the lesson when you use 当たり means “per” and number + counter follows.
* number + counter + 当たり/あたり ( = atari) + number + counter
Or when it modifies a noun,
* number + counter + 当たりの + noun
So, you can’t say 十分当たりに休憩する but you can say
１時間当たり10分休む You rest 10 minutes every one hour/per hour
どうかなあ。
あああ、なるほどね！
So in “A 当たり B” B is always a quantity (that corresponds to each A)?
Oh now I get why it can’t be like what I wrote with 休憩 hahah.
訂正してくれてありがとうございます！時の日本語のレッスンをちゃんと勉強します！
どういたしまして！ いつでも質問してください。☺️
Hi Maggie Sensei.
I really got confused why we use “Shiranai” instead of “Shitteinai” when you say “I don’t know”. I wonder what is the technical reason behind this.
Hello Richmond-san,
Affirmative form:
You get some information (知る・知った）and you have been knowing the fact /having the information since that moment, so you can say 知っている。
●—————————————————————>
↑知った 知っている
The dot above is the point where someone got some information.
The negative form is tricky.
Since one gets the information instantaneously, you can’t describe the state with 知っていない
You only can talk about whether one knows the fact or not. 知っている (knowing something) or not (知らない）
「百点だと思ったら、隣の子の答案用紙だったことがわかってぬか喜びに終わった。」
Would the meaning change if ことがわかって was replaced with とわかって?
Hello Joel,
Yes, you can say とわかって instead of ことがわかって
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I thought i understood the しか~ない pattern but today i came across this sentence which has me stumped.
彼は勉強するしか能のない人間。
I understand it means “he only knows how to study”. but I don’t understand why; that 能のない is very confusing to me, and feels very different from the examples here.
Hello Giando,
First you know this pattern
家には、食べるものがりんごしかありません。 I only have an apple to eat at home./ I have nothing but an apple to eat at home.
Now, 能 means “skill, ability, talent, merits”
〜しか能がない
〜しか能のない+ noun
is an idiomatic expression which means
a person who has no skill besides~ (some sort of skill) / ~ is the only skill that one has
彼は勉強するしか能がない
He has no skill/ability besides studying / Studying is the only skill that he has. →He only knows how to study (but not something else.)
→彼は勉強するしか能のない人間 = He is the person who only knows how to study but nothing else.
Hi Maggie,
Hope you are well.
I’ve come across より twice recently where I couldn’t quite work out the meaning – thanks to your post (thanks as always!) I managed to work out that the first one means “from ~”:
大公代理オルウィナ様よりのお召しである。
The second one I’m struggling with though…
言い終わるより前に、….
I know it means “Before I could finish speaking, …” but I’m not sure what function より means here. Is ~より前に basically the same as ~前に?
Many thanks,
Peter.
Hi Peter,
大公代理オルウィナ様よりのお召しである
You are right. It means “from”
The second one is like comparative sentence.
AはBよりうまく日本語を話す。 = A speaks Japanese better than B.
AはBより早く家に着いた。 = A got home earlier than B.
Bが〜を言い終わるより前に = B does/did something before A finishes/finished saying something = A does/did something faster than A fishes/finished saying something.
Thanks Maggie, as usual your help is much appreciated :)
Anytime! ☺️
Hello Maggie! Hope you’re doing fine!
I saw the sentence: 彼は映画評論家なので、仕事がてらよくアジアの映画を見ることがあるそうだ。
I didn’t quite get the relation between よく and ことがある, since ことがある means “sometimes” and よく “often”. 時々 and ことがある seems to work fine, since they both mean “sometimes”. Could you please help me on this one?
Thanks a lot! 頑張りましょう！
Hi Victor,
As I mentioned in the beginning of this lesson, I focused on the usage of ことがある in the meaning of “sometimes ~ happens/sometimes one does something” but there are a couple of different usages of ことがある
Ex. to have something/things (to)~ /there is/are things to ~ “
V+こと: こと makes a verb into a noun.
The sentence you saw よく〜を見ることがある belongs to this one.
Ex. 話したいことがある・あります
Ex. 年末はいっぱいやることがあります。
In this usage, you can say “frequently” “always” “every day”
いつもやることがたくさんあります。
一緒に暮らしていて毎日、よく話すことがありますね。
You can make a noun using こと
Thanks for the great lesson! Just a question: I was doing some more reading regarding だって 、and I saw a very similar grammar point 、「たって」。It seems that these mesanings are the same, and maybe even when だって is in the middle of a sentence it is the exact same as when you use たって with a noun (it becomes だって）。Are these two grammar points the exact same or is there a bit of a difference? Thank you so much!
Hi Rebekah,
Actually there are a couple of usages of たって but you are probably talking about
verb past tense + って. or i-adjective く + たって
If so, you are right. It is the same as だって and it means Vても (even doing something)
Ex. どれだけ食べたって太らない = どれだけ食べても太らない = No matter how much one eats, one doesn’t get fat.
Ex. 今は、彼女に何を言ったって無駄だ。 = 今は、彼女に何をいっても無駄だ。= It’s no use telling her anything now.
Ex. どんなに美味しくたって高ければいらない。 = どんなに美味しくても高ければいらない。 = No matter how delicious it is, if it is expensive, I am not going to buy.
Hey, Maggie-sensei, A great lesson to learn. I’ve even drawn a diagram using a time scale for the difference between intransitive verb, ている, てある and ておく.
Have a little question regarding this sentence:
明日は１日留守にするから猫に水と餌を置いておかないと。
As far as I understand, an ending “いけない/ならない” is missing. So that the grammatically proper constrution would be e.g.
“〜猫に水と餌を置いておかないといけない。”
Is it normal to drop the ending in such way?
Thanks for the eventual help.
Hello Roman,
Right. It is missing いけない・ならない
You often drop いけない・ならない in conversation.
Also in more casual conversation, it changes
〜ておく→とく
〜ておかなくてはいけない・ならない→とかなくちゃ・とかなきゃ
置いとかなくちゃ・置いとかなきゃ
Check this なきゃ・なくちゃ lesson.
Hi sensei, your lesson is really amazing.
I don’t quite understand why って is in this sentence. (it’s from the manga)
ちょっと待って、一度くらいキスしたからってあたしは別に…
Is it there just to emphasizes the part before から or it does have another purpose?
WoW
Hi WoW!
Do you know the expression
~からといって？ (I guess I haven’t made the lesson yet. Maybe I will make one for in near future.)
Just because we kissed once, it doesn’t mean I (like you.)
So this って is
一度くらいキスしたからといって→(casual) 一度くらいキスしたからって
quoting the fact “一度キスをした”
So, it is somewhat different from という and should be considered as a different expression right?
Thank you very much, I think I’ll wait for the からといって lesson from sensei then (ﾟ∀ﾟ)
Right. という and からといって are different. But といって and からといって are similar. = Though ~,
I will make a lesson on it for you sometime so please wait.
As for more usage of って, you may want to check my って lesson. The link is here.
Hello Sensei! Thanks for this helpful article as always :D
This isn’t exactly about ‘nara’ but it could be… So there’s a sentence that I thought I understood at first, but then I noticed one of the words wasn’t the word I thought it was and that messed the meaning up. Now the more I try to make sense of it the more lost I get and it’s gotten to the point where I’m rechecking every single word’s meaning, nara included;; Even though it’s such a simple sentence..!
Would you please translate it for me? It’s:
> やる気なら世間知らずさ
FunFun
It is from the lyrics of STELLA TRAIL?
The sentence やる気なら世間知らず doesn’t really make sense so I understand you have a trouble translating it.
Lyrics and poems are hard to translate because you have to read between the lines or interpret the meaning of the word in your way.
Since I don’t do the translation here, you can interpret the line on your own but
When it comes to my motivation (level),I am (still) naive/immature.
So it somehow connects to the following line is 毎日が生まれたて I reborn every day.
It is :D
That translation does sound very correct except the character singing this is like the God of motivation ;O; I can’t see him telling others they’re naive either
Since the sentence before it has “The world” in it, could we look at the lit translation of the word and possibly get… “If you still have a lot of excitement you haven’t seen (enough of) the world yet”?? Because in my language there’s an adjective for people translating to them ‘not having seen the world’, which means that they’re naive.
Could this pass as a correct translation? Thanks in advance
The word 世間知らず itself means “naive/lack of experiences” and it doesn’t mean “not have seen the world”. → That would be 世界を知らない. But as I said, the readers can choose the meaning.
Though the word 世間知らず is negative, you can take it more positively and interpret as “pure” or as you said, “not have seen the world yet”, if you want. 😉
I came across both カップラーメンを食べてばかりです and カップラーメンを食べてばかりいます. What’s the difference between ～てばかりいる and ～てばかりだ?
Hi Michelle,
They mean the same.
Vてばかりです
Vてばかりいます
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
I learned ている form years ago but had also noticed some uses in daily use that my Genki textbook just hadn’t covered. This article answered a lot of the questions that I had never been able to verbalize, so thank you so much!
But of course, now I have a few more questions.
Point Three says that ている form can be used to “talk about something that frequently happens or one’s habitual actions.” But isn’t that basically the same as the basic present/future tense, AKA dictionary form?
毎日、新聞を読んでいる。
毎日、新聞を読みます。
毎日、新聞を読む。
Don’t those three sentences mean the exact same thing, “I read the newspaper everyday”? If not, what is the difference?
Also, Point Four states that another use is “to describe some continuous action or events, to have done/ have been doing, what you have been doing,” which can be summarized as “ている form can be used to describe future perfect tense.” And that makes sense for continuous actions.
３年間、日本語を勉強している。
I have been studying Japanese for three years.
But I do not understand the purpose of ている form in the following example for past experiences you gave:-
彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
She has been to Okinawa FIVE times already.
Why not use 「5回も行きました」or「5回も行ったことがあります」?
And finally, one of the things that I had noticed whenever I hear natives speak but didn’t see addressed in this article is that ている form can also express future continuous tense? I’m not completely sure but for example:-
待っている – am waiting / will be waiting
To give context, here is a sentence that I just now made up:-
自分でしてよ。俺はここで待ってる。
Do it yourself! I’ll be waiting here.
Notice how “I *am* waiting here” wouldn’t make sense in context. Here’s another example context:-
明日の大会に参加しています。
I will be participating in tomorrow’s tournament.
お前はどんな気持ちを持っても、俺は計画を続いている。
No matter how you feel, I’m continuing with the plan.
I suppose in that first case “I *am* participating” would also make sense. However, in the second case, “I’m continuing” means “I *will be* continuing with the plan,” not “I am continuing with the plan right in this moment.”
So? Am I right to notice that ている is BOTH present continuous and future continuous tense? Or have I been translating those sentences wrong?
Sorry for what is definitely a complicated question >_<
いつもありがとうございます！
Hi Sora,
Hi Sora,
1) 毎日、新聞を読んでいる。
2) 毎日、新聞を読みます。/ 読む。
You are right 1) and 2) both describe one’s habitual actions but
1) ている・でいる describes the actions or it gives the image of reading papers more vividly.
3) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
4) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行った
5) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行ったことがある
The same thing you can say about 3).
While 4) is just a fact and 5) is talking about one’s experiences, 3) focusing on her actions, going to Okinawa back and force.
ここで待ちます。= I will wait here.
ここで待っています。= I will be waiting here. It gives the listener the image of you waiting more.
明日の大会に参加しています。
If you simply express your decision/what you are going to do tomorrow,
参加します
But if someone asks 明日の今頃は何をしている？
参加しています works
お前はどんな気持ちを持っても、俺は計画を続いている。
This one doesn’t sound natural. If you focus on expressing what you have decided, お前がどう感じても、俺はこの計画を続ける is more natural.
But if you are talking about what you will be doing in certain period of time, 続けている works
As for the difference between ている・ います（いる） I explained more details in this tense lesson.
****
I forgot to tell you.
I made your request lesson. It should be released in May.
Good morning MaggieSensei,
Very interesting post!
A question arised to me. What’s the difference between:
彼がどこに住んでいるのかさえわからない.
And
彼がどこに住んでいるかさえわからない.
This question came to my mind since for examplo I’m used to say 行くかどうか instead of 行くのかどうか. I know の is used to turn verbs into noun, but why is it required here? And why is not joint to the verb in the かどうか expression?
Sorry if it is a basic question. I do really appreciate your help.
おはよう、 Pepa
You can also say 彼がどこに住んでいるかさえわからない.
の is added when you emphasize.
You stress the fact that you have no idea where he lives by adding の
I think maybe you have a misspelling? Near the top it says Minty. I think it’s supposed to be Minky.
Thank you for the helpful lesson!
Thank you Andy!
I fixed the typo. :)
This is a lot to take in… But the pieces will fall together eventually. I hope.
Hello Nood,
I know this lesson is long but it doesn’t mean you have to learn everything. Just get some information you need and come back here again if you want. 😉
hi maggie sensei!!
if i want to say:
even though emily is my best friend, i dont only play with her (i also play with other people). For example, I also hang out with maria and tom often afterschool.
can i say:
emilyさんが私の親友ですけど、 emilyさんだけと遊びません。たとえば、ほうかごmariaさんとtomとよく遊びます。
thank you!!
Hello Rush,
エミリーさんは私の親友ですが、彼女だけと遊ぶわけではありません。 (遊びません is fine but わけではない is more natural.)
たとえば、放課後はマリアさんやトムさんとよく遊びます。
Maggie sensei why didn’t you give any example for na adjective+hodo, and nara+hodo?
Good point! I will add some later. :)
Hello Maggie! How are you? Hope you doing well!
Could you give me a little help with this phrase ちょうどこの辺に参りましたので伺った次第です。? :)
I didn’t understand the ideia of “so I stopped”. I assumed the verb 伺う means “to visit” in that context, but this got me even more confused.
Also, I’m having a little trouble on why 参ります is in the past tense.
I really appreciate your time! Greetings from Brazil.
Hi Victor
OK, so there are two verbs in humble form.
参りました = まいりました = humble way to say 来ました
伺った = うかがった = humble way to to stop by, to visit たずねる
So if you rephrase it
ちょうどこの辺に来たので (I just happened to come to / be in this area so )
(the listenerのいるところを）たずねた (I visited you / where the listener is)
You use the past tense 参った・来た because the speaker is already in the area.
Can you also respond to さすが with something like さすがじゃないですよ?
Hi Ari,
No, you don’t say さすがじゃないですよ.
Hi! Thanks for the fast reply. Can you use さすが and じゃない together at all? I saw いやいや、全然、さすがじゃないですよ before, but I’m not sure if that’s wrong.
Ah OK,
If you use さすが as a quote you can say さすがじゃない
(to make it clear I will put ” ” and other examples)
さすがですね。
→”さすが”なんてとんでもないです。
→”さすが”なんてことないです。
→”さすが”じゃないですよ。
Hi maggie sensei!
i was just wondering if V+てはいる have any difference with just V+ている. if so, what does は do on this occasion?
Hello Matthew,
You add は to show the contrast.
A lot of time, the following sentence say something contradicted or negative.
For example,
日本語の勉強をしています。 I am studying Japanese. / I have been studying Japanese.
日本語の勉強をしてはいますが、あまり自信がありません。= I have been studying Japanese but I am not so confident.
Thank you very much as always!!!
You’re welcome! :)
Hi Maggie!
If you ask a question using いる？or ある？, can いるの？and あるの？be used in the same way?
Hi renna
Yes, you can attach の at the end.
いるの？ あるの？
While it could just add the casual tone, you can emphasize the question expressing your feelings such as surprise, frustration, doubts by attaching の
Thanks :)
どういたしまして❤️
Hi Sensei, is this a typo?
Ex. 時間が経つにつれて / したがって痛みがなくっていった。
It’s meant to be なくなっていった right?
Thank you for the lesson.
Hi Jimmi
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. :)
This lesson is really helpful, I regularly need to remind these differences.
Thanks a lot!
One thing is unclear though:
Why the bath is considered as a thing “to touch” (熱いお風呂) while the blanket – as a whole (暖かい毛布)? The logic tells me that お風呂 should be 暑い, as it is felt with the whole body.
Going further, how a warm, not hot, bath should be referred to: 温かい or 暖かい? Or, maybe even 温い?
Thank you for the eventual help.
Hi Roman,
Good question.
This is an old lesson but I think I should add more explanation, huh?
For climate : 暖かい (warm)
For something you touch: 温かい (warm)
When you describe one’s clothes (including a blanket) it is customary to use 暖かい. I guess it is because your skin touches it but actually you are covered by the clothes/blanket and feel warm.
But when you are talking about shower/bath, though you are soaking in the bath, you think it is something you touch.
And 暑い is just for climate.
マギー先生、感謝します。
U^ェ^U ❤️
1) 宿題をやりさえすればいい
=Shukudai wo yari sae sureba ii
2) 宿題をやってさえいたらいい
= Shukudai wo yatte sae itara ii.
The difference:
1) You are talking about what you need to do from now. (focusing on the future action)
2) You are talking about what you have done and future. (focusing on the current status)
^^^
Can you explain the difference more? What do you mean by (in 2) ‘ what you have done & future’? What is the ‘future’? What is the ‘current status’?
OK, for example, your teacher is telling you what to do.
1) 宿題をやりさえすればいい
The teacher is talking about the future (from now on)
(It doesn’t matter if you have been doing your homework or not.)
2) 宿題をやってさえいたらいい
It implies you have been doing your homework so keep doing that. (focusing on the current status and future)
I see! Thank you for explaining, Maggie-Sensei!
You’re very welcome, EL! ☺️
Above, this example is incorrect; in your translation, you have inverted the antecedent and the result of circumstances in each clause:
Ex. 友達と行くならハワイ、彼と行くならヨーロッパ。
= Tomodachi to iku nara, hawai, kare to iku nara youroppa.
= If I go to Hawaii, I prefer to go there with my friends. If it is Europe, I prefer to go there with my boyfriend.
Here are the correct translations:
友達と行くならハワイ。= If I go with my friend(s), I’ll/we’ll go to Hawaii.
彼と行くならヨーロッパ。= If I go with him, I’ll/we’ll go to Europe.
Hi Booboo
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I will fix the sentence.
Maggie Sensei!!! I have another question!!
If i was prompted with the question: 友達と一緒に楽しむために、何をする？
Can i say something like:
友達と楽しむために、別にすることはありません。
親友が＿＿＿さんと言うかわいい人で、ただ一緒に時間を過ごすことが好きです。
＿＿＿さんといると、何でもたのしいです。
I am trying to say something along the lines of：
To have fun with my friend(s), there is nothing in particular that we do.
My best friend is a cute person called ___, and we just like spending time with each other.
Everything is fun when I am with ____.
Is that alright to say??
(and also, if I am talking to a superior such as a teacher, is 別に too casual a word?)
Thank you Maggie Sensei!!!
I would say
友達と楽しむために、別にすることはありません。
→友達と楽しい時間を過ごすために特別なことはしなくでもいいです。
別にすることはありません。means “We have nothing to do.”
→私の親友は〜という人で、一緒に時間を過ごすだけで楽しいです。
〜さんといると何でもたのしいです。 is fine but you can also say 何をやっても楽しいです。
Thank you so much!
Then, building on your feedback,
can i say:
Q:友達と一緒に楽しむために、何をする？
A: 友達と楽しむために、特別なことをしません。
私の親友は〜という人で、一緒に時間を過ごすだけで楽しいです。
さんといると何をやっても楽しいです。
THANK YOU
特別なことをしません。→In that case 特別なことはしません。is better.
The rest is fine. (To be honest, the question is grammatically correct but a little unnatural.)
What do you do for fun? 友達と何をして過ごすのが楽しいですか？
Thank you so much!
I feel like I learn more from you than at school
Maggie先生が大好きです！！！
どういたしまして！
Love you too! 🐶❤️
マギー先生、レッスンありがとうございます！
質問がありますけど。。。
この文は正しいですか
彼は、日によって元気だったりそうじゃなかったりする。
「そうでなかった」じゃないで「そうじゃなかった」を使ってもいいですか
Sorry if I made any mistakes, I wanted to try writing my question in Japanese hehe \(^.^)7
こんにちは！
元気だったりそうではなかったりする
→元気だったりそうでなかったりする
→(casual) 元気だったりそうじゃなかったりする。
どの文章も使えます。
ありがとうございます！^^
どういたしまして！
(Note for you: じゃないで→じゃなくて ☺️）
Hi Maggie Sensei!!
If I wanted to say:
When we (me and my friend) are together, nothing is boring.
can i say: isshouni shitara, nanimo tsumaranai.
Would that be correct? Would there be a better way to say it?
Would it be easier to change the ending to “everything is fun”?
Thank you!
Hello 高校三年生！
nothing is boring
The literal translation is つまらないものはなにもない = tsumaranai mono wa nani mo nai
But it will be more natural to say
なんでもたのしい = nandemo tanoshii = everything is fun.
Hi!
Could you possibly explain the difference between 「来週のイベントはキャンセルされた」 and「来週のイベントはキャンセルすることになった」?
Thank you <3
Hello Ari,
A) 来週のイベントはキャンセルされた
The next week event was cancelled.
B) 来週のイベントはキャンセルすることになった
The next week event was cancelled after all.(It implies they ended up cancelling the event. )
The translation could be the same, “The next week event was cancelled.” but while A) simply states the fact B) implies that people who were organizing the even was wondering whether they were going to have the even or not and decided not to have the event.
なるほど！ That makes sense! I have one more question.
With する verbs, do both ～することになる and ～になる have the same nuance?
Like would 来週のイベントはキャンセルになった have the same meaning as B above?
If yes, how do you know whether or not you should use ～することになる or ～になる?
The difference is subtle but
キャンセルになった means “The next week event turned out to be cancelled.”
It is just focusing on the result. ことになった implies the process of cancelling the event more.
Hello. I’ve been looking all over and I can’t figure out the nuanced differences between ことにする and 決める. Could you possibly explain? Thank you.
Hello Jun,
Basically ことにする and 決める both mean “to decide” and they mean the same.
While ことにする can be used when you decide something minor and serious, you don’t use 決める so much when you decide something minor or less serious.
決める sounds heavier/more serious and you use it when you determined to do something with stronger will.
So if you are talking about something minor or casual, 決める may sound unnatural.
明日は、雨が降るから傘を持っていくことにしました。
is OK but 決めました is not natural.
Thanks for the quick reply! I have one more question if you don’t mind.
If I was trying to decide something ALL day, and I finally decided, would that matter? For example, if I was deciding whether or not to go to a party all day, would I use ことにする even if I was thinking about it all day? I hope my question makes sense.
Yes, you can still use ことにする
パーティーにやっぱり行くことにした。
Hello Maggie!
How you doing?
In my studies I’ve came across this sentence: 日本へ行けるかどうかによって、来年の計画が全く変わってきます。
I didn’t quite get the nuance in this sentence related to 変わってくる. Could you explain it to me, please?
Thanki you! :)
Hi Victor,
来年の計画が全く変わってきます。
The plans will change
変わってくる is used to describe the gradual change or the change that affects you. If you just say 変わる it doesn’t involve the speaker and just state the fact that the plans will change.
I have a question.
I came across this sentence in my book (赤いTシャツを着ています) the book says it’s a 結果の状態a result state!. I don’t see any result and why it’s ているwhen the subject is intentionally wearing a red t-shirt? Am I missing sth ?
着ています is 状態 The current state but I think the book meant,
着る to put on the shirt. →result: wearing the shirt.
I know understand this sentence. I forgot about ているother usages.
My question will be 替えの電球はいつも買ってありますcan we use ておくhere ?
Yes, just
You have to change the sentence a little
→替えの電球を買っておきます。
Hello, great article. I have a chunk of lyrics I try to understand, can you please, emphasize what role given なら has here? I know context is everything, but it is from a song. Can’t really guess, should I treat it as “if” here. Thank you so much!!!
固く誓った折れない想いなら
ここにあるだろう
I came up with such an interpretation. Surely you can translate it better, but it’s not the case, I want to understand it as japanese do. I think なら is used as “trust” here. What do you think?
Strongly I vowed, I won’t break this vow – I trust in this feeling, which Here I have, I think so.
OK, the literal meaning of なら means “if” (If one’s mind is determined and doesn’t break off)
but your translation is good.
Hi,
Can you explain to me the difference between「~るとき、…」and「~まえに、…」？
パリへ行くとき、かばんを買いました。→ I bought a bag, before going to Paris.
パリへ行くまえに、かばんを買いました。→ I bought a bag before going to Paris.
I can’t find the difference in grammar book; I guess (I hope) there is a nuance. ^^
Hello HnK
Good question. Basically they are the same but
行くまえに focusing on the order of two actions, 1) buying a bag 2) going to Paris.
Maybe you didn’t take the bag with you when you went to Paris.
行くとき（に） the action of buying the bag has stronger connection to the trip to Paris than 行くまえに.
I bought a bag and took it to Paris./ I bought a bag in order to take it to Paris.
Hi,
Thank you for your anwser.
So, we can translate「パリへ行くとき、かばんを買いました。」into “I bought a bag, just before going to Paris.” or “…, on the way to Paris.”?
If,I understand correctly,「~るとき…」made a continuity between the two actions; and「~まえに,…」no continuity.
The difference is the same between「~たとき、…」and「~あとで、…」？
Yes, that’s right.
And the difference between たとき and たあと is .
パリに行ったときにかばんを買いました you bought a bag in Paris or could be right before the trip/on the way to Paris
パリに行ったあとでかばんを買いました。 you bought a bag after you went to Paris and came back home.
Thank you, for your explanation.
Have a nice day ^^
You’re very welcome! :)
失礼しますが、ちょっと質問があります。「気合い薬」は何か知ってますか？抗鬱薬みたいなことですか？彼女はその薬を飲むから少し心配してます。その絵文字を使いましたから、飲むのがタブレット化カプセルだと思います。💊
「気合い薬」はないので、多分、彼女さんは、本当の薬のことではなく「気合いをいれなくてはいけない = I have to psyche myself up」というmetaphorの意味で使ったと思います。
その人によって気合いを入れるものは違うので、例えばお酒を飲んで気合いをいれる人もいるし、音楽を聞いたり、ライブに行くことが「気合い薬」になる人もいますね。
ああ、わかりました。少し安心してましたけど、彼女に聞くことがちょっと恥ずかしいと思いました。ありがとうございます！
あとから笑い話になるといいですね。☺️
Thank you so much Maggie Sensei, I couldn’t reply your answer so I’m saying thanks in this new comment!
No problem. Actually many people seem to have a problem of using とき.
I will make a lesson sometime. :)
Thank you! it was very clear and informative.
I’m happy to hear that, AitsuHiro! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei, I hope you ok! I have a question 🙏 Can be たら used when something will happen 100% sure in the future?
For example:
“I wanna be your teacher when we meet again” (I’m 100% sure we will meet again)… that sentence in japanese can be また会ったら(あなたの)先生になりたい?
To me また会うとき(あなたの)先生になりたい sounds better if you wanna express something 100% sure, because I feel like また会ったら(あなたの)先生になりたい sounds like it’s not completely sure that we will meet again, and I’m saying just in case that we meet again I wanna be your teacher (please tell if I’m right or wrong with that interpretation)
My intention is “I’m 100% sure we will meet again and I will be your teacher if you want”, so please tell me if in this case it’s better また会うとき(あなたの)先生になりたい
Hello David,
たら can’t be 100 %. 時 has more possibility but you example sentence is not natural because you can’t be a teacher right away when you see someone.
For example, when I see you again, I will teach you English.
（今度）また会ったら日本語を教えます。
（今度）また会った時に日本語を教えます。
Both of them are not 100 pct sure but 時 has more possibility to see that person.
Thank you Maggie Sensei, I understand but in the second example you wrote 「また会った時に」shouldn’t be “また会う時に” because the situation will be in the future?
You use the past tense even when you are talking about future.
V past tense + とき: action is completed (So you are talking about something that happens after you see someone)
In this case, 会ったときに is more natural because 1) You see someone (action is completed) and then teach that person Japanese.
V present tense + とき: action is not complete. When I go see you,
Ex. また会う時に、本を持っていくね。
= I will take a book when I see you.
(You take a book with you before you see someone.)
But if you want to give that book to that person, the action should be completed so you say
また会ったときに本を渡すね。
= I will give you the book when I see you again.
Thank you sooo much Maggie Sensei!!!
Maggie Sensei, I was thinking, if I wanna express something 100% sure or close to 100% (it’s almost sure we will meet again), maybe is better if I say と? For example in the previous situation… また会うとダビッドの先生になりたい? Can be that sentence correct?
Sorry. また会うとダビッドの先生になりたい doesn’t make sense.
As I said the following sentence, 先生になりたい (I want to become a teacher) doesn’t work with “when” とき、たら、と
（と = check the lesson)
When A happens, B happens automatically.
彼に会うと自然に笑顔になる。 When I see him, I naturally smile.
Hi マギー先生
Can you omit the する from “Volitional form + とする” at the end of a sentence in writing? Or does “Volitional form + と” mean something else?
I’m reading a book about bicycle sports and there’s a sentence that says –
3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと。
I was wondering if this sentence is “Volitional form + とする” without する at the end, or is Volitional form + と something different here?
Hi Milk,
You don’t usually end the sentence with volitional form + と like that but it is probably “inversion”
If the previous sentence is like describing what they did, you add more detailed information.
For example
彼らは、がんばっていた。3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと。
They tried really hard. In order to ~
〜
なるほど！
So then does this form of volitional form + と at the end always mean “inversion”? Why does volitional form + と here add more information, is there any alternative forms to use that can mean “inversion”?
Before I answer the question, can you give me the previous sentence?
クライマ―のトップを競る巻島と東堂は、ライバル同士、一つの約束をしていた。3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと。
OK, now it is more clear.
If you connect two sentences, it will be like this.
クライマ―のトップを競る巻島と東堂は、ライバル同士、3年最後のインターハイの山岳賞を賭けて勝負をしようと一つの約束をしていた。
It is kind of long. So in order to emphasize what kind of promise they made, the writer divided the sentence into two sentences like that.
First mentioning the fact that they promised. And then explain what kind of promise they made by just using quoting part.
As I said before, you don’t leave sentence with a particle unless the previous sentence indicates what you are talking about.
I’ll show you another example.
彼は、私に大事な話があると言った。
→彼は、私に言った。
大事な話があると。
It has a dramatic effect.
Ah I understand well now! Thank you very much for explaining this
マギー先生！ありがとうございました。
よかった〜☺️
ご説明ありがとう、 Maggie先生。聞きたいことがあるんです。
I want to ask you about 「～ようで」. Is the usage of 「～ようで」is same with [ように] and「ようだ」?
There’s a sentences;
あの人と話をすると、妹ち話しているようで、嬉しいです。
Could you tell me what’s the meaning?
ありがとうございます！
Hi Manami,
妹ち話しているようで→(typo)妹と話しているようで It is like talking with my little sister
Vようで/Nのようで gives a reason for the following part, in this case, 嬉しいです ( I am happy)
You may not translate “because” and just translate as “and” in many cases but the literal translation is,
I feel happy when I talk with her because it feels like talking with my little sister.
in the spot where you put you can also use it with auxiliary verbs were you referring to よりけり？ in the first place im not to knowledgeable on grammar but i couldn’t understand how the examples used an auxiliary verb after searching a lot up
Hi Joshua,
Sorry for the confusion. That sentence should be deleted. I thought I erased the sentence when I made a lesson but I guess I forgot to do so.
thank you for clearing up the confusion. i learned a lot while trying to figure it out so its all good! thank you for your wonderful lessons Maggie sensei
Thank you for your nice words, Joshua!
Good Day Maggie Sensei!
this is the first time I’m going to ask. But i have been reading a lot on this page. I’d like to support the page but I cannot provide for now. 😅 but I will, and everytime I visit the page, once I become a technical intern.
So here’s my question
いぬがいますからおとこのこがきのうえにいます。
いぬがいますからおとこのこはきのうえにいます。
those are the sentences that we’re trying to understand. What particle should be used, should it be は or が？
I’m aware that there’s a better sentence structure like おとこはいぬがいますからきのうえにいます。But with the two sentences provided, can you please explain the difference between them?
And also , I’ve been reading comments a while ago. I’m seeing the word “contrast” when you explain “は”. What does it mean? can you please give me an example of this sentence? Thank you so much!!!
Hi Kaeith,
First let me change the first part
いぬがいますから→いぬがいるから
いぬがいるから、おとこのこはきのうえにいます。 is more natural than おとこのこがきのうえにいます。
And you are right おとこのこは、いぬがいるからきのうえにいます is even more natural.
The key to figure out which particle to use in this sentence is
when you see a boy on the tree for the first time, you tell someone the informstion
おとこのこがきのうえにいます。 = There is a boy on the tree!
You don’t know who the boy is but you are describing what you see.
But you and the listener know who the boy is or you mentioned the boy before, you say
そのおとこのこは、きのうえにいます。= That boy is on the tree.
Now adding the reason, いぬがいるから, the speaker specifies which boy they are talking about so it will be more natural to use は
You can use this idea for object.
You see an apple on the table, you say
テーブルの上にりんごがあります。
But if you are talking about the specific apple,
そのりんごはテーブルの上にあります。
は is a topic marker so you use は when you introduce, bring up a topic.
You also use は when you show the contrast.
For example, the apple is on the table but an orange is under the table.
りんごはテーブルの上にありますが、オレンジはテーブルの下にあります。
I am American but she is Japanese.
私はアメリカ人ですが、彼女は日本人です。
Thanks for all the explanations!
I’ve been looking for an answer to something for a while, but I haven’t found it yet, so I think it’s best to ask you here: what is it called when a common verb (like 見る or 来る) is used (usually following て form) to modify the meaning?
Thanks again for all the effort you put into your lessons!
Hi Kata Waya
Hmm I wonder you meant subsidiary verbs, 補助動詞（ほじょどうし=hojo doushi)
Verb te-form + subsidiary verbs (おく、みる、いく、くる）
Are negative forms common? In English (at least in the UK) we like to say “it is not [too] difficult to ~”. Would that be similar in Japanese?
Eg would it sound natural to say “Hiragana wa yominikukunai desu ?”
HI Wojtek
Good question.
If it is a regular adjective, negative form is pretty common.
難しくないです。Not difficult
そんなに難しくないです。 Not so difficult
But the negative form of やすい and にくい are not so common.
読みにくい hard to read
読みやすい easy to read
Unless you negate what someone just said.
この本は読みにくいね。 = This book is hard to read.
読みにくくないよ。=It is not hard to read.
Very interesting – thank you 🙏🏻
Anytime! :)
This part wasn’t translated properly…
B:「試験に合格するためです。がんばらなくては…」
= Shiken ni goukaku suru tame desu. Ganbaranakutewa…
= Shiken ni goukaku suru tame desu. I have to try hard…
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. :)
Hi Maggie, my name’s Maggie. Thank you for your easy-to-understand lessons.
I have a question. I came across the sentence もうすぐ分かるようになるよ. Would it still be natural to also say もうすぐ分かるよ?
Hello Maggie!☺️
1) もうすぐ分かるようになる
You will come to understand soon.
2) もうすぐ分かるよ
You will find it out/figure it out/understand soon.
The nuance difference is while 1) implies there is a process to come to understand something, you use 2) when you find out/figure out/understand ~instantly.
Thank you soo much! I appreciate your reply. May I ask you another question? I don’t really understand ようにならない. Is it possible for you to provide some example sentences?
OK,
ようにならない will not be ~ / will not be able to ~
→人生、思ったようにならない。
= じんせい、おもったようにならない。
= Life doesn’t go as planned.
どれだけ勉強しても英語が話せるようにならない
=どれだけべんきょうしてもえいごがはなせるようにならない。
= No matter how much I studied, I won’t be able to speak English.(My English can’t get any better.)
Hi Maggie-sensei~!
I have a question about this example:
Sonna koto saisho kara wakatteta hazu na noni.
I knew that from the beginning.
I heard this in an episode from ‘GTO’ but I’m not sure why is it ‘wakatteta’ and not wakatta instead?
Hi Wendy
Do you like GTO? ☺️
OK, wakatta = I understood.
wakatteita = I knew it.
It is a long lesson but I explained the difference in this lesson. 知る＆わかる
Hi Maggie-sensei!
Yes I like it a lot! I started watching it with a friend and we always laugh super hard at it! But also the themes in the anime are very real and it gets quite deep/sad sometimes too. Do you like it?
That’s fine I will check that lesson out! If I don’t understand it still I will ask, thank you!
Anytime!
(And yes, I like it, too! 😉)
Hello, Maggie sensei, your page is the best! ^_^
I found this sentence in a novel: “無意味で美しい行為ほど、純粋な祈りがあるだろうか”. Do I translate it right into; “Can there be more pure prayer than meaningless, beautiful act?”
Thank you in advance for the reply!
Hello xerim,
Yes, your translation is right. Just one thing.
It implies →No there isn’t. = Meaningless and beautiful act is the most pure prayer.
Hello Maggie. I have two kinda stupid questions. What’s the difference between saying これでよかった？ and これでよい？
And then what’s the difference between …てよかった and …て嬉しい? Do both translate to “I’m glad …”?
Hello Meg,
They are not stupid questions at all.
これでよかった？ the past tense (For example, 1) you already bought something and show it to someone, Do you like it? Are you happy with this one? 2) You decided something and ask someone if it was OK with him/her.
これでいい？ （You usually say いい in conversation) 1) You are showing something to someone now and asking that person, Is this OK? / Do you like this one? 2) You are deciding what to do and ask someone if that idea is OK. )
Vてよかった I am happy/glad that I did ~. (You are talking about your own action.)
Vて嬉しい I am happy that someone did/does something for you / I am happy that something happened to you.
Hey sensei,
just to clarify, are iru and imasu the same thing except imasu is more polite?
And is it the same thing with aru and arimasu?
ありとうございます。 :)
Hello Teaseal
Yes “imasu/arimasu” is a polite form of “iru/aru”. They mean the same.
Thank you so much :D
Anytime! :)
Okay, this is probably a stupid question, but when propositioning something, the か can be used by women and men alike, right? I’m asking because in another lesson I read just asking a question by [something something]か was described as sounding blunt maleish lol
Hi april,
Yes, that’s right.
You attach “か” at the end of question but
noun/adjective + です＋か？
Vます＋か？
are OK. But
noun/adjective + か？
verb dictionary form + か？
sound blunt and it is a rough male speech.
So when you are talking with friends and talk casually
noun/adjective?
verb dictionary form?
are better.
これ、いる？ = Do you want this? (これ、いるか？ = blunt)
元気？ = How are you? (元気か？ = blunt)
私、かわいい？ = Am I cute? (私、かわいいか？ = blunt)
Thank you very much!
You’re very welcome! U^ェ^U
Hej Maggie先生。
I love how you explain the things and there is so many difference way.
But i have one question.
if you want to say, ex. I’m the only one who doens’t know her secret.
i have tried. I’m not sure if it’s right.
you have this sentence:
私しか彼女の秘密を知らない ( I’m the only one who know her secret (only I know her secret))
but what if i want to say, I’m the only one who doesn’t know her secret (I only don’t know her secret))
is this correct.
私がだけ彼女の秘密を知らない。
it is right?
i hope you will explain and answer.
Hello, Katharina
Almost!
私だけ彼女の秘密をしらない。
or
私だけが彼女の秘密をしらない。
Hello Maggie sensei.
Thank you for the lesson
I have a question, 素直にそう思えるほどの良い表情だ。
How do you translate that? My translation would be ‘have such a nice expression that (someone) seem to be unaffected.’
Hodo has a lot of used/way to be use that I’m confused, which part of hodo in your lesson does this sentence belong to sensei?
And that Sunaoni can also mean honest, I sometimes feel puzzled which meaning to use on some kanji..
If this sentence also has よう、そう、らしい, along with that omoeru, then I’m dead..
Hi Niko
The usage of ほど is to do something like ~ / to be as (like)~ / to be almost ~
素直にそう思えるほどの良い表情だ。
→素直にそう思えるほどの modifies 良い表情 (good expression)
そう (so, that way) refers to the previous sentence.
The literal translation is
Someone’s facial expression is so good to the extent of making me genuinely think that way.
Hello Maggie! You’re the best!
I went through the whole lesson again, but I’m still confused about how some verbs (especially those related to weather conditions) when attached to てくる mean that the change will begin in the present and continue to the future.
For example:
1) 雨が降てくる = It will rain.
2) 暑くなってくる = It will get hotter.
Normally てくる implies that the change already started in the past, will pass through me and continue to the future. But the ideia changes with those verbs.
Especially when I replace the examples with their いく versions.
3) 雨が降っていく
4) 暑くなっていく
Besides, I’m having trouble on how to identify if a verb implies a change from the past with てきた or if I’m talking about a change that will start in the present.
雨が降ってきた ＝It started to rain (I just noticed)
I mean, Why could it not be “The rain has been falling for a while, reached me and continues”?
As in 雨が強くなってきた = The rain was getting stronger (Change started in the past).
Hi Victor
Since I already wrote the difference between 暑くなってくる 暑くなっていく, I won’t explain here.
雨が降ってくる・暑くなってくる
The difference is 雨が降ってくる is instantaneous change*. (The change starts now)
暑くなる is continuous change. (the change starts in the past) So the translation will change.
It started to rain 雨が降ってきた (It was not raining before but all of a sudden, it started to rain)
It is getting hotter. 暑くなってきた (The temperature changes gradually and it doesn’t change from 0℃ to 40℃)
* But of course, it goes through some process before it rains. When water droplets grow and get too heavy, they fall and the people start to feel the rain. If it is easier for you to think that way.
雨が強くなってきた。 The rain is getting stronger. The premise is it has been already raining because it says 強くなってきた ( Getting stronger)
As for いく, you don’t say
3) 雨が降っていく
I guess it because the rain falls from the sky to the ground (towards people) and it doesn’t pass by the ground/people.)
Hi! I’m confused about ていった and てきた.
Someone told me 雨が降っていった is incorrect, but I don’t understand why. Could you possibly explain? Thank you
I just wrote in my previous comment.
→You don’t say 雨が降っていく I guess it because the rain falls from the sky to the ground (towards people) and it doesn’t pass by the ground/people.)
ていく is used when some movement goes away from you.
Meanwhile the rain falls vertically and once it hits the ground/you, it can’t move away. That’s why you don’t say 降っていく
Hello
I am struggling so much with the 宿題をしていきません sentence. I don’t understand how it can mean ”to go” when 行きません means don’t/won’t go?
Hi Emma P,
宿題をしません means ~ doesn’t do one’s homework
学校へ行きません means ~ doesn’t go to the school.
宿題をして(学校へ) いきません。
You don’t go to the school in the state of having finished your homework.
You go to the school without doing your homework. (= 宿題をしないで学校に行く）
Another example
朝ごはんを食べて学校に行く = to go to the school after having breakfast.
朝ごはんを食べないで学校に行く = to go to the school without having breakfast.
You can rephrase it,
→朝ごはんを食べて学校に行かない = no to go to the school in the state of having breakfast = go to school without having breakfast.
Thank you for replying! I understand now. Thank you for your wonderful lessons
You are very welcome, Emma! :)
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Why is eba forma used here?
どれくらいの雨が降れば
わたしはあしたを取り戻すだろう
This is from a song. Is there a lyrical meaning? Thanks
Hello Bere,
It is a conditional sentence so you use ば.
How much it should rain to get back tomorrow.
If it is hard to understand why it is a conditional sentence, let’s change the sentence a little.
たくさん雨がふれば明日を取り戻すだろう If it rains a lot, I will get back tomorrow.
And it is a very literal expression.
Excellent, comprehensive and very well ordered lesson on SEKKAKU. Many thanks for the numerous very realistic examples.
Thank YOU for your nice comment! うれしいです。☺️
Hi! Sorry if this question was asked already. But what about づらい and がたい？Are those the same as にくい
Nevermind I figured it out
Hello Les,
Sorry. I just read your comment. 🙏 But good that you figured it out.
お月見 の 時 は 団子 を たべます。
During moon gazing, I eat dumpling
I eat dumpling while gazing the moon
Sensei is my Japanese correct?
Thanks
時は means “when”
If you want to say “while”, you can say お月見をしながら団子を食べます。 or 月を見ながら団子を食べます。」
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I have an example that actually confuses me.
‘Even if you look at me like that, I won’t give you anything’
Sonna me de mitemo, nani mo kurete yaranai no yo
Shouldn’t it be ‘ageru’ instead of kureru in this case? Since it’s someone saying ‘I’ won’t give you anything?
Hello Wendy
kureteyaru is a very rough way to say “to give” (= ageru). You use that when you are looking down on someone.
It means the same as “Sonna me de mitemo nani mo agenai yo.”
So it’s just a condescending/rude way of saying ‘agenai yo’? And it’s not about a perspective change?
So it’s just a condescending/rude way of saying ‘agenai yo’?→Right. I am not going to give you ~
このサイトのおかげで、日本語の勉強を分りやすくなってありがとうございます！
よろしければ、一つの質問聞をきたいのですが、
I know that 「間・間に」translates to “while” in English, but how does it differ when compared to 「限り」?
例えば：
ービザを更新していない間、就職できないだろう。
ービザを更新していない限り、就職できないだろう。
英語で言いたいこと：
– You probably can’t get a job while you haven’t renewed your visa.
– Do they mean the same except for the fact that 間 is more commonly used in talking to people rather than 限り？
-「間」sounds more of “neutral” compared to「限り」 which is usually used for negative situations (I’ve only seen negative examples for 限り which is why I’m assuming it’s for negative sentences, but I might be wrong lol)
よろしくお願いいたします。
こんにちは
ービザを更新していない間（は）、就職できないだろう。
ービザを更新していない限り（は）、就職できないだろう。
First I would add は to show the contrast.
As you said we may translate them the same way but what you focus on is different.
間 indicates the time period (while)
限り indicates the condition “as long as/as far as / unless +certain condition”
So compare to 間, 限り show the stricter condition.
And you can use 限り in an affirmative sentence,
ビザを更新している限り、この国に滞在し続けることができます。
Please check more usages in my 限り lesson.
助けてもらってありがとうございます！
どういたしまして ☺️ （→助けてくれて）
Are these sentences correct?
私の上司は会議で失礼きった。
私は宿題全部を終わきった。
失礼きった。→What do you mean by 失礼 to leave?
宿題全部を終えた
宿題全部をやり切った
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you for the lesson!
The link to your ほど遠い mini-lesson doesn’t work. Has it broken or have you taken it down? Your lessons are always so helpful. :)
Hello Manda
I took down old mini lessons so the link didn’t work. I removed the link.
Thank you for telling me. :)
Thank you very much for your reply
truly appreciated it.
ありがとうございました!!
どういたしまして ☺️
Hello Maggie!
What about the ていく and ていく in the ている past forma (ていっていた and てきていた). I’m having trouble to understand how they are used!
Thanks a lot!
Hi again Vitor,
ていく・てくる
→past tense ていった てきた
→past progressive ていっていた てきていた
こんにちは先生 I have a question, in the 聞くpart; in minna no nihongo ask/listen kenjougo form is 伺います, is it any different from 拝聴する? and which one is used often?
Thank you for your lessons it’s extremely helpful!
こんにちは Sunny
Ah, good question. I should have added 伺う as well. (I will do that later)
拝聴する has a meaning of to listen to someone attentively, respectfully, humbly.
As for my example sentence, you use 拝聴 more than 伺う when you are talking about lectures.(Also 伺う means “to visit” so you can avoid the confusion.)
But it is very common to use 伺う when you just listen to what someone said.
Hello Maggie! Great Lesson!
What would be the difference in 京都のよう{な|に}古い街に憧れます。if I use な or に?
I’m having a bit of trouble when よう is followed by noun-phrases (as it is the case of the above sentence). I can’t really understand the difference is nuances.
Could you explain it to me, please?
Hello Vitor
京都のよう{な|に}古い街に憧れます。
→京都のような古い街に憧れます。
In this case 京都のよう modifies a noun, (古い)街 = old (town) so you use な
So you have to figure out what the main verb (in this case 憧れる=long for) and figure out if what comes before よう modifies that verb or a noun in that sentence.
You can’t 憧れる just 京都のよう(like Kyoto) so you can guess that doesn’t modify a verb, 憧れる.
I see！
But instead of the verb, couldn`t ように be modifying the i-adjective (古い) by itself?
I was thinking something like this:
When you use に you put emphasis on your attraction to old cities and you just use Kyoto as an example of an old city. This would translate as “I admire old cities like Kyoto for example.
When you use な you put emphasis on old cities you admire that resemble Kyoto. This would translate as “I admire old cities that resemble Kyoto.”
Hello,
I really do not understand what “よう” is doing in this sentence: そんなことができるようで嬉しかった
Can you please help me?
Hi Kat,
That よう is the same as みたい. It seems like ~
I can’t tell from the sentence what そんなこと means but the writer was talking about some possibility, one will be able to do something in future, right?.
I was glad that it seemed like that one can do such a thing/such a thing was feasible…
積極的 is often mistranslated in English to “aggressive”, as in angry or pushy.
I think “assertive” is a much better match, considering the way it’s used in Japanese.
Good point. I think when I made an example sentence, she was pushy but I will add ”assertive” with other translation.
Hi Maggie-san!
I have a question
Is there a difference in the meaning between these two sentences:
彼は漫画さえ読んでいれば退屈しないようだ
彼は漫画読んでさえすれば退屈しないようだ
Thank you!!
Hello Spencer,
元気？
１）彼は漫画さえ読んでいれば退屈しないようだ
２）彼は漫画読んでさえすれば退屈しないようだ
The first sentence is OK but the second sentence should be
3) 彼は漫画を読んでさえいれば退屈しないようだ
The difference between 1) and 3)
さえ emphasize what comes before. So 1) is emphasizing “漫画” (not other books but it has to be a comic book) 3) is emphasizing 漫画を読んでいる (reading a comic book) (not other activities but reading a comic book.)
元気です！
Ah, I see!
Thank you for the crystal clear explanation as always! :) I hope you’re well too!
My pleasure!
元気でよかったです☺️
Maggie sensei, i really love your site. It is so useful.
I have a job interview and a written test in a Japanese company in 3 months so I am wondering whether you give online classes or not?
Hello Amani,
I am a dog angel so I don’t give a lesson on line but my human pet, Yukari does.
Since she has been busy she doesn’t put the information on the site.
If you are interested, reach her through About Us page. If her schedule fits yours, she can help you.
Good luck on your job interview! :)
Hello マギー先生
I was wondering what is the difference between も、まで、and て/でも as “even / also”.
Hello Milk,
も・てまで Not want to do something/not worth doing even doing something (negative feelings)
２０万円出してまで旅行に行く必要はない。
２０万円も出して旅行に行く必要はない。
２０万円出してまであんなところに行きたいの？
てでも/でも
Even doing something, even ~ much + expressing one’s strong desire/strong will to do something
２０万円出してでも旅行に行きたい。（xまで）
２０万円出しても旅行に行きたい。
ツアー代が２０万円でも旅行に行きたい。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
Thank you for another very informative lesson! I would like to ask, is 間いたら an entirely different thing? I am also confused on how to read it as I have found varying roumaji on different sites and dictionaries.
Is it あいだいたら or まいたら?
こんにちは、Keb,
I wonder if you meant the expression
間に合う = まにあう = to be in time
間に合ったら = まにあったら = conditional: If you can make it in time.
Hello maggie sensei. I dont know where to ask this but i’ve seen zettai used as an adverb with and without ni. like 絶対食べます・絶対に食べます. any difference within the 2? from my understanding zettai is already an adverb so is it fine to just use it as is without adding ni?
Hi Matthew,
You sometimes drop に in more casual speech.
絶対に →絶対
So 絶対 is also an adverb.
ありがとうございます！
どういたしまして :)
Hello sensei, want to ask you
Ex ふろ に はいって くれ。Please take a bath.
What does くれ means?
Is it mean like くれる, the speaker will be happy/glad if listener took a bath?
Thanks
Hello,
Vてくれ is a rough way to ask someone to do something for you.
The politeness level
→Vていただけませんか？
→Vてくれませんか？
more casual→Vてくれる？
more casual→Vてくれ (male speech/rough)
other families
your family
addressing yours
mother
お母様[おかあさま]familiar: お母さん[おかあさん]formal: お母上[おははうえ]
母[はは]
お母さん[おかあさん]casual: 母さん[かあさん]
father
お父様[おとうさま]familiar: お父さん[おとうさん]formal: お父上[おちちうえ]
父[ちち]
お父さん[おとうさん]casual: 父さん[とうさん]
child
お子さん[おこさん]polite: お子様[おこさま]
daughter
娘さん[むすめさん]polite: ご令嬢[ごれいじょう]
娘[むすめ]
son
息子さん[むすこさん]polite: ご子息[ごしそく]polite: ご令息[ごれいそく]
息子[むすこ]せがれ
older sister
お姉さん[おねえさん]formal: お姉さま[おねえさま]
姉[あね]
(お)姉さん[おねえさん](お)姉ちゃん[おねえちゃん]very casual: 姉貴[あねき]
older brother
お兄さん[おにいさん]formal: お兄様[おにいさま]
兄[あに]
(お)兄さん[おにいさん]お兄ちゃん[おにいちゃん]very casual: 兄貴[あにき]
younger sister
妹さん[いもうとさん]familiar: 妹[いもうと]
妹[いもうと]
name
younger brother
弟さん[おとうとさん]familiar: 弟[おとうと]
弟[おとうと]
name
wife
奥さん[おくさん]formal: 奥様[おくさま]
妻[つま]家内[かない]うちのやつ(僕の)奥さん
husband
ご主人[ごしゅじん]formal: ご主人様[ごしゅじんさま]
夫[おっと]主人[しゅじん]うちのひと
grandmother
お祖母さん[おばあさん]formal: お祖母様[おばあさま]
祖母[そぼ]
casual: おばあちゃん
grandfather
お祖父さん[おじいさん]formal: お祖父様[おじいさま]
祖父[そふ]
casual: おじいちゃん
grandchild
お孫さん[おまごさん]
孫[まご]
uncle
伯父・叔父[おじ]
伯父さん・叔父さん[おじさん]伯父ちゃん・叔父ちゃん[おじちゃん]
aunt
伯母・叔母[おば]
伯母さん・叔母さん[おばさん]伯母ちゃん・叔母ちゃん[おばちゃん]
Wow, you added all the vocabulary?
Please also check the Family Related Lesson Part 1.
Hello
Could you please tell me the meaning of “おいて” in “盗んでおいて”.
Source – https://twitter.com/jojojojougi/status/1359132318623956994
Context – https://twitter.com/jojojojougi/status/1359127295668019201
>人のアカウントを盗んでおいてどの面下げてツイートしてるのか全くもって理解できない。
If I understand correctly, it says something like “How dare he to tweet from an account he stole! I don’t understand it (this kind of behavior) at all”
What would be the difference if it didn’t have “おいて” after “盗んで”?
As I explained in this lesson, ておく expresses the completion of action (having done)
Vておいて means
Though you have done something, ~ (something contradicted)
Despite the fact that you are the one who stole his account ~
It means the same as ておきながら （盗んでおきながら）
I get it now, thank you for a quick answer.
You’re welcome. :)
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Thank you for sharing all of these lessons with us! Your teaching is easy to understand and is a really big help on my journey to learning the Japanese language.
I have a question in regards to the usage of ”でも” in this sentence:
一旦公園にでもいくか
I’m not sure how to translate this, can you help me?
Hi Keb,
I guess I will go to the park once or something.
As it said in this lesson, by adding でも make the sentence sounds softer and implies there are some other choices, in this case, going somewhere else or spending time in some other ways.
I see. Thank you very much, Sensei!
You’re welcome! :)
We have the structure:
adjective + 間 + は
For i-adjectives we have ex: 子 供 が 小 さ い 間 は,
but if it is an adjective-na can we use the particle な before 間?
Right.
na-adjective 〜な間は
Ex. 私が元気な間は~
*neko chan to kagami no mukaitte*
Neko chan: “kako yukatta~”
Hi Viscocent
You mean
kako yukatta~” →Kakko yokatta~ = You were cool ?
Just noticed this was posted a long time ago and glad that it’s still effective. A bit off-topic, but I noticed that if you translated that “I was fined”, it becomes 罰金を「科せられる」. I know that it’s original form is 科す, but I’m a bit confused on how this was conjugated in the first place. I was expecting something like 科される which is normally the passive form. I tried searching my dictionary but the only 「科せ〜」 was potential and imperative form.
Thank you!
The verb 「科する」 has two passive forms depending on the conjugation types.
科せられる and 科される
irregular conjugation of s-stem verbs and godan verb conjugation
Hello! I´m having a hard time with this verb xD
What is the difference between saying “バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買って済ませたい” and “バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買いたい”?
Hello Yutaka
OK, バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買いたい shows the speaker’s desire to buy chocolate at supermarket. (Not other places)
バレンタインのチョコはスーパーで買って済ませたい 済ます means “to manage to do things in a easier way”/”avoid all the troubles” so the speaker wants to avoid all the trouble buying fancy chocolates or going to the nice chocolate stores. Buying chocolate at a supermarket is easy and cheap. 😉
Hello! I have a quick question. I studied Japanese in college for several years, and it was never properly explained to me the difference in meaning between something like “よく和食を食べる人がある” and “よく和食を食べるという人がある”
Can you please enlighten me? I feel like I’m just not grasping something incredibly simple about the slight difference in purpose and meaning here.
Hello Zach
OK, first the verb should be いる not ある
(You use いる. Noun がいる・ある いる for living things, people, animal/ ある for object in general.)
In this case という is to quote
よく和食を食べる人がいる There are people who eat Japanese food.
よく和食を食べるという人がいる There are people who say that they eat Japanese food.
Thank you! I actually know the difference between iru and aru. It’s not a mistake I usually make. I must not have been thinking very much when I wrote those example sentences. Kind of embarrassing actually haha
Anyways, thank you for the explanation! I think the fact I see it frequently without kanji really throws me sometimes, since I forget that’s the verb being used technically. I’ll keep practicing!
No problem! Yes, keep practicing. ☺️
Hi Maggie-san!
I have a question about using teiru with verbs that are “adjective-like”
For example, if I want to use 効く in this sentence:
“The aircon is effective”
What is the difference between the two:
冷房が効く
冷房が効いている
Thank you!
Hello Spencer,
効く = the air conditioner works
Ex. このエアコンはよく効く = This air conditioner works well. (talking about how it works)
効いている = the air conditioner is working (talking about the current state)
Ex. この部屋はエアコンがよく効いている。= The air conditioner is working well (which means the room temperature is nice and cool) in this room.
I see, thank you!!
I understand it now!
Great!
Maggie Sensei, 「こといます」is an incorrect grammar? I heard a person in a gameplay say 「自分の声がアニメキャラみたいと思ったこといますか」, I’m completely sure that he said that, but I don’t know if he is a native japanese speaker so maybe he just was wrong using an incorrect grammar and correct in that case would be ありますか not いますか?
Hello David,
Yes, こといます is wrong and you don’t say 思ったこといますか
The only possibility that I can think of is…that person said
自分の声がアニメキャラみたいと思った人（ひと）いますか
Then it is a correct expression.
Thank you for your answer 💛💛🧡🧡🧡, I realised that he study japanese but is not a native speaker so maybe he just made a mistake using iru instead of aru, because in the subtitles he put “Have you ever thought that your voice sounds like an anime character?”. Thank you for make things clear, that situation confused me but it’s useful to learn!
OK, then the original sentence that you heard was wrong. :)
This one post on “-tte” unlocked so many mysteries I’ve encountered trying to understand many of the lines in so many J-dramas and anime at my elementary level of Japanese. Thank you so much, Maggie-sensei! Enjoy your coffee!
Hello John,
I’m glad to hear this lesson helps you a little. 😉
And thank you soooooo much for the ☕️. I really appreciate it! ありがとうございます🙏
This is only my first lesson so this question may have already have been answered, but I am confused about how some sentences have the quote then といっています。 But another would have quote then といます。 I am confused about what the いって that is between とandいます？
Hi Novel,
You mean “といっています” and ” といいます”？
といっています A is saying “~~~~ ”
といいます A says “~~~ ” (habitual)
Ex. マギーは、忙しいと言っています。
Maggie is saying she is busy.
Ex. マギーは、誘うといつも忙しいといいます。
Whenever I ask Maggie out, she says she is busy.
Hi Maggie,
Hope you are well :)
I came across this in my new book today: 続けていけば
I understand that it means “if I/we/you continue”, but I wondered how 続けていけば is different to 続けば?
I’m sure there’s a subtle difference but I can’t work it out :D
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Ah…I just re-read a question of mine from a while ago regarding the difference between 断って来た and 断った and you mentioned that there can be an emotional element in this usage of て来た.
I wonder if maybe that’s the answer to this one too? :D
Hello Peter,
First 続けば is intransitive verb, If something continues, and 続ければ is transitive verb, if I/we/you continue or keep doing something” so I think you meant 続ければ
続けていけば and 続ければ
→続ける and 続けていく
断って来た involves one’s emotion element but in this case but not in this case.
They mean the same but the subtle nuance difference is 続けていく is used when you continue what you have been doing/you are going to do constantly in future/keep doing for a long time.
Many thanks, and yes you are correct! I meant 続ければ :D
So, 続ければ would mean “if I/we/you continue”, but perhaps for something over a shorter time?
続ければ: “If I carry on eating the rest of this meal then I’ll get too full”.
続けていけば: “If I continue studying Japanese then maybe one day I’ll be good at it”.
Is that kind of the difference?
You are right.
このまま食べ続ければお腹がいっぱいになる (You use 食べ続けていけば if there are so many things to eat and it will take a long time or このまま甘いものを食べ続けていけば糖尿病になる。 If I constantly keep eating sweet, I will get diabetes in future.
勉強し続けていけばいつか日本語が上手くなる。
Thank you so much.
Anytime!
Hi Maggie,
I’d like to ask, what’s the nuance between 日本に来た理由は・日本に来たきっかけは？
Thank you.
Hello, JP Arcilla
理由 is more general.
As I wrote in the lesson きっかけ means “original motive, something that triggers an incident”
Since the translation can be the same, reason, but the answer is a key to figure out the difference.
ずっと日本に行きたいと思っていた。I have been wanting to go to Japan for a long time.
can’t be きっかけ
子供の頃、〜というアニメを見た can be either 理由 or きっかけ
It makes sense, since it feels like きっかけ is more of a “trigger”. Lastly, 「彼女と喧嘩をしてしまったが、仲直りするきっかけが欲しい 」is translated as i want an opportunity to make up with my girlfriend.
If I wanted to say “I will USE this opportunity to make up with my girlfriend”, would it be okay to say
・仲直りするきっかけを掴む
・これから仲直りきっかけがあれば絶対掴むよ
Sorry if I’m asking detailed questions, I just want to make sure I understand the concept and flexibility of the word itself.
いつも詳しく説明してくれてありがとうございます。
Sorry for the double comment, couldn’t find an edit button since I made a mistake.
EDIT:
If I wanted to say “I will USE this opportunity to make up with my girlfriend”, would it be okay to say
・今回の仲直りするきっかけを掴む
・これから、仲直りするきっかけがあれば絶対掴むよ
Hello,
You don’t say きっかけを掴む like チャンスを掴む
If you want to use the word きっかけ in that sentence,
これをきっかけに彼女と仲直りしたい。
or use the word 機会・チャンス
今後、仲直りする機会 ( or チャンス）があれば絶対に逃さないよ。
A question regarding this sentence…
スマホは便利なことは便利なのですが、そのせいで最近本を読まなくなりました。
What does 読まなくなりました mean here exactly? I’m trying to figure out specifically what the nai stem of a verb + kunarimashita translates as. Does it mean “don’t read anymore”?
Thank you for your help in advance Maggie Sensei/Yukari, and as always thank you for the lessons.
Hello Jimmi
読まなくなりました
読む negative form 読まない→読まなくなる (express the change) come not to read ~
It is a negative form of 読むようになりました ( = come to read books/ start to read books)
I added the information at the end of ことになる・ようになる lesson
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして :)
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you for this very helpful post. I was wondering, how would you describe someone’s personality “on the inside,” as in describing a personality that may contradict that person’s appearance.
Hello 震矢
You can say
性格と見た目が違う = せいかくとみためがちがう
性格と外見が違う = せいかくとがいけんがちがう
内面と外見が、一致しない= ないめんとがいけんが、いっちしない
先生、この文はいいでしょうか。（迷惑受け身)
子供はボールで遊んだら、窓のガラスを壊されてしまった。
Hello
最初の文章を少し変えた方がいいですね。
子供がボールで遊んでいて〜
ボールで遊んでいる子供に〜
Maggie先生、こんにちは！
先生、すみません。問題があります。教えて、お願いします。
１．あの二人が付き合っていることを知りました。
２．あの二人が付き合っていることを知っていました。
２つの例文は正しいですか。
先生、いつも ありがとうございます。
こんにちは
(問題があります→質問があります。)
はい、二つの文章は合っています。
2 implies the speaker has knows the fact for a while.
先生こんにちは! Sensei I am having a doubt that why かis used in かのように？
can we use のように alone instead of かのように？what’s the difference between them sensei?
こんにちは！S.Abinaya
First のように is used with a noun
noun + のように Ex.犬のように = like a dog
verb + かのように Ex. 私のことを知っているかのように = as if ~ knows about me
When you use ように with a verb, you can use ように instead of かのように but the nuance difference is
verb + ように 歌うように like singing
verb + かのように 歌うかのように as if one sings
はい先生わかりました。教えてくださってありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして :)
Hi! Sorry to bother you with this question.
I don’t understand the structure for 幼い頃、父に死なれて母と途方に暮れた at all.
Specifically the 父に死なれて part. I feel like it says “I was dead by my father” (but I know it doesn’t.)
Could you please explain it, thank you!
Also thank you for all of your lessons <3
Hello Ariana
OK
父が死んだ My father died
When the incident affects the speaker negatively you use the passive form →父に死なれた
幼い頃、父が死んだ
幼い頃、父に死なれた
The translation is still the same “When I was a child, my father died ” but while 死んだ states just the fact,
the passive form,死なれた, expresses the speaker’s shocked feelings more.
Hello @maggie 先生,
I find を通して very similar to ついでに, how they are different.?
Could you please explain this.
Hi Laxmi
Why do you think they are similar? Do you have any confusing examples?
〜を通して means “to do something through ~ ”
彼女とは友人を通して知り合いました。
I got to know her through my friend.
経験を通して学んでいく
= to learn through one’s experiences.
Hello マギー先生
I was wondering if the causative form can be used for
“accidentally made”, for example –
“When the milk expired, I threw it away in the sink and made the sink smell.”
I didn’t force for the sink to smell, but accidentally made it smell, can causative be used here? Can causative + ちゃう be used?
Is there any examples of “accidentally made/forced”?
おはよう、Milk
For that particular example sentence, “made ~ smell” you can just use ちゃう・しまう 臭くなってしまった(casual ちゃった） instead of using させる but yes, you can use
causative + ちゃう・してしまう
親を心配させる to make one’s parents worry (about ~)
→親を心配させてしまう・心配させちゃう
なるほど！ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして☺️
Is it possible to use this in present progressive form? e.g. おいている
Hi Morgan,
Yes.
Ex. 私はいつも風邪薬を家においている。
= I always keep cold medicine at home.
Hi. In this sentence:
今日もあの人であるように
Could である be interpreted as naru?
It’s just that it does not make sense to me if it means “be”
Hello again, Bere.
It depends.
The basic difference is
ある to be
なる to become (or “to be” which expresses the change. It was someone else but hope ~ will be ~ )
What is the context of the sentence?
For example, you have a crush on some hair stylist at a hair salon. You don’t know who would be your hair stylist today. Then say “今日も（担当は）あの人であるように・ありますように! (I hope he/she will be (my hair stylist) for today again.
If you want to use なる, you have to change a little bit
今日も（担当は）あの人になるように！・なりますように。(なる = ended up having that person as my stylist)
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Is it correct to say
Yaseru you ni undou shite imasu?
does it matter if the verb is transitive or not in order to use ために or ように?
Hello Bere,
ために is more natural and common. However, you can use ように if やせる expresses the state/condition.
A: やせるために運動しています。in order to lose weight
B: やせるように運動しています。in order to be in the condition/state of being slim.
Hi Maggie-sensei
I have a question about using なんて in combination with a conditional clause.
In your example sentence:
受験勉強なんてなければいいのに
I am under the impression that 受験勉強 is a noun and not a verb, so I understand up to the point after なんて is attached. Why does なければ come right after なんて, and why is it that and not しなければ for example? (like if it was 受験勉強する/をする)
I also found another sentence online similar to that one:
お金が必要なければ、使わないでおけばいい,
where the verb is usually expressed as 必要がある, but the が is dropped in the conditional.
I feel as if there is something implied that I just may not be knowledgeable of yet. Sorry if this question is confusing. Thank you for the help!
Hello Aaron,
First you tend to drop particles in conversation/conversational writing.
Also you avoid using the same particle in one sentence.
１）受験勉強なんてなければいいのに
(←受験勉強なんてものは、(or が）なければいいのに）
２）お金が必要なければ、使わないでおけばいい,
(←お金の必要がなければ、使わないでおけばいい * In this case、in order to avoid using が twice, it will be more natural to say お金の）
Hi Maggie-san!
Quick question about the placement of なんて
In your example:
彼のことを忘れるなんてことはできない
Would it be the same meaning (or even grammatically correct) if I phrased it as:
彼のことを忘れることなんてできない
Thanks for your help as always!
Hello Spencer,
Yes, you can rephrase it
彼のことを忘れることなんてできない
It has the same meaning and it is grammatically correct. ☺️
Hello! Maggie-sensei I love your website and dog! 💖💖
Thank you so much for looking into a detailed look into はずだった^^. I’ve struggling, I do mean ~struggled~ with the meaning of it.
May I ask if it’s possible that the speaker who says はずだった say it without a regretful or unsatisfied tone?
I came across a dialogue bubble containing the words はずだった and 代わりに in the same bubble and thought to myself if the character “really” feels regret? I’m unsure about that.
Thank you, I look forward to more of your content:)
Hello Darlene
はずだった is used when something you were expected didn’t happen so a lot of time, it involves the speaker’s feelings, such as “It’s too bad”/ “I am disappointed” but I guess it is possible to use はずだった without the feelings of regret if the event has nothing to do with you and you just state the fact.
Ex. 建設工事は４月に完成するはずだったが６月に延期になったみたいだ。
The construction projects was supposed to be completed in April but it seems like they got postponed ’til June.
In this case, if the writer/speaker has nothing to do with the construction projects and just state the fact, it doesn’t involved any feelings.
Hello again, Maggie-Sensei ^^
Gotcha, I understand it’s common that the speaker will feel something while saying any sentence that includes “はずだった”. Thank you for your clarification.
If it’s not too much trouble, may I ask for your help on that said dialogue I’ve been struggling with? >//<
Here it is: "ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ"
It contains 代わりに and はずだった which throws me off from the thinking that the character is feeling regret since they said 代わりに.
It probably doesn't make any sense without context, huh?
“ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ”
Let me rephrase this sentence to understand the meaning better.
ユリと叶うはずだった新婚生活を、（ユリの代わりに）君が果たしてくれなきゃ
I believe the speaker was supposed to get married to Yuri but something happened and he couldn’t marry her.
So the speaker is asking the listener to marry him, “Instead of Yuri, you should carry out/fullfill my new married life.
Since there is のに, it doesn’t express so much of regrets here.
You’re so incredible!!❤️ I understand the rephrase better. ┌|o^▽^o|┘♪
Oh gosh, I made a mistake >\\<
The piece of dialogue was actually written this way: "ユリと叶えるはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ" with the "叶える" instead of "叶う" but when it's rephrased, it produces the same meaning, right?
OK, that makes more sense.
叶える(かなえる） to make ~ come true / to realize one’s hope (transitive verb)
叶う(かなう） one’s wish/dream comes true (intransitive verb)
叶える involves’s speaker’s will.
I see (・_・;) what you mean.
So the rephrase or meaning would be different if it comes from the way this is written?
“ユリと叶えるはずだった新婚生活君が代わりに果たしてくれなきゃ” where the phrase “はずだった” will openly show the speaker’s regret since it uses “叶える” but not so much or none at all if it uses “代わりに” too.
I’m so sorry to keep bothering you with this!
～♡•́ ‿ ,•̀
I would say no feeling of regrets in this case. Because this person is asking the listener to marry him. 😉
Lmao, that’s right. ☺️ Thank you so very much for your help, I really appreciate it, you’re an awesome teacher! (*＾3＾)/～♡🙏
You’re very welcome and thank YOU for your nice words!
Hi Maggie-san
Is it ok to rephrase this:
新聞は毎朝６：００までには配達されるはずなのに今日はまだ来ていない
as:
新聞は毎朝６：００までには配達されるはずだった、今日はまだ来ていない
Hello Spencer,
No, you can’t.
When you connect two sentences, the first sentence can’t finish with だった
You need some conjunction (in this case なのに) or finish the sentence once and start with conjunction, such as しかし
Also but だった is a past tense. 毎朝 means “every morning” so you have to use the present tense.
If you are talking about the past, you can use だった but you still need conjunction.
新聞は昨日の６：００までに配達されるはずだったのにまだ来ていない。
新聞は昨日の６：００までに配達されるはずだったが、まだ来ていない。
新聞は昨日の６：００までに配達されるはずだった。しかしまだ来ていない。
Your answer is super clear!! Thank you!! I understand it now!
よかった〜☺️
As always, thank you so much 🙏, I have one question… Can I say 「おかし食べながらテレビ見たい」, “I want to watch TV while I’m eating snacks”, It’s that ok? Can I use たい form in the main action in the same sentence with ながら?
Hello again, David,
Yes, but let me fix your sentence a little.
おかしを食べながらテレビをみたい。
Thank you!!!!!
You’re very welcome! :)
ありがとうございました。質問があります🙏、Can I use「て形 + みて(い)た」? いいですか?、Is that ok? 例えば、「食べてみてた」like “I was trying to eat”. Or「それ見つけてみてた」”I was trying to find that”.正解ですか?。Can be use it like that? Or also with てみてる? like 「食べてみてる」”I have been trying to eat”?
Hello David,
~てみる・みた usually describes one time action but I guess for example, if there are many sample foods and someone was trying to taste everything, you may say
すべての試食品を食べてみていた
Thank you very much! My native language is スペイン語, and sometimes when I wanna express my ideas in Japanese, I don’t know if the way that I’m using sound wrong or not, in my language sound pretty well in that way haha
That’s why learning language is fun!
I’m always here for you! 😉
Hi maggie sensei,
I was just wondering what is the difference of tame ni and ni mukete.
ライブに向けて練習します。
ライブのために練習します。
is there any difference between the 2?
Hi Matthew,
Basically the same but
ために simply indicate the purpose
向けて you set a goal and work for the goal
ありがとうございます！
どういたしまして☺️
Your website is one of the 3 websites I go to to learn Japanese grammar <3 Thank you!
Hi Mikki,
Thank YOU for your nice words. I’m flattered. 🤗
Maggie先生、こんにちは！Thank you so much for your blog! This slang page has been particularly helpful for me who is mostly using Twitter to practice Japanese. ^^ I hope it’s ok to ask questions here!
On Twitter, I’ve been seeing 「妄想話」come up frequently (eg.「〜妄想話したいけどTLは汚したくない！」) and I’ve seen it translate to “delusion,” but I was wondering if it’s slang? From what I’ve seen, I’m guessing it might be similar to “spamming,” but I wanted to ask in case.
Also, for アルファツイッタラー and ツイドル, I’m wondering if there is an instagram equivalent? Would it be「アルファインスタラ」and 「インスタアイドル」, or something else entirely?
ありがとうございます！！
こんにちは、 coco,
妄想 itself is not slang.
妄想話をする means to talk about my fantasy
So if you like some idol, you fantasize for example what if you get go out with him/her, etc.
You say インスタアイドル but for some reason, I rarely hear アルファインスタラ but some say アルファインスタグラマー
That makes a lot of sense! Thank you for explaining ^^ ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして☺️❤️
Hello, Maggie. I spent several hours and couldn’t find the answer myself, please help.
What is the difference between ように when I want to say “like;as” and “in order to”?
For example:
彼女は歌うように話す。Might be translated as both “In order to sign, she speaks” and “She talks like singing”.
I was told that I need to use まるで （彼女はまるで歌うように話す）for the 2nd case, but why? Wasn’t it just an additional in the note above: “まるで ( = marude) is often used with よう( = you) to add the meaning of “just“”as if“”?
The overall question is difference between like and in order to with ように.
Jiji
ように means
1) to do ~ in order to ~ (purpose)
2) to do like ~
彼女は歌うように話す。 is the second one.”to talk like singing”
まるで adds the meaning of “as if”
The usage 1) in order to:
“In order to sing, she speaks” doesn’t make sense.
But if you change the subject a little, it may work.
For example, she has been refusing to sing.
Ex. 彼女が歌うように（彼女と）話してみる。
I will talk to her in order her to sing.
Oh. Well, it’s from the song I hear You everywhere by Tanaka Ríe. Maybe it is referring to her beloved?
Yes. I checked the lyrics. The previous line has a key.
I don’t translate the whole thing but the rough idea is,
I hope “the first world I see and the first voice that I hear when I wake up” is you.
Thank you very much!
Anytime! :)
Hello again, Maggie-Sensei :)
I have some questions regarding ということ
I have seen a question regarding this in the comments but I did not understand it properly.
1)明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人ですか (Can I also use ということで instead?)
2) When do I have to use this in combination and when not: –ということは …..ということです?
3) Is there a difference between 明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人ですか
AND:
明日は誰も来ません。Answer: ということは私、一人だということです?
Basically, when do I have to use this grammar without ということですin the end and when with ということです in the end
Hi Sam
1） No, you can’t use ということで
While you use ということは for both statement or questions, you don’t use ということで in a question.
ということは that means…（summarize what other people or yourself said)
ということで that’s why/ so/therefore (what you are going to do)
So if you change the sentence a little, you can use ということで
明日は誰もきません。ということで私一人で過ごすことにしました。
Nobody is coming tomorrow. Therefore/So I decided to spend the time by myself.
2) For example, when you explain or give a definition of verbs.
生きるということは自分自身を高めるということです。
理解するということはわかるということです。
But you don’t have to use という
生きることは自分自身を高めることです。
理解することはわかることです。
By using という, it adds more explanatory tone.
So unless you are explaining the deep meaning or giving some definition, it may sound too dramatic.
3) I think you meant to say 私、一人だということですか？
(1) A 明日は誰も来ません。B ということは私、一人ですか
(2) A 明日は誰も来ません。B ということは私、一人だということですか？
They both mean the same but you can express more feelings (such as surprise) more with ということ
Regarding your examples in:
1) Can I also use それで or だから as a conjunction instead?
2) If that is the case, can I also use というものはor のは instead of ということは
3) But I heard also that the ということ at the end is also used, when you want to confirm sth, for example: 部長に30分ほど遅れると伝えてください ANSWER: はい、わかりました。30分ほど遅れるということですね without the ということは at the beginning of the sentence. What is the difference here compared with your examples?
And
I have also a question to というのが
このエアコンは、もともと業務用で、パワーがあるので、広い部屋でも短時間での温度調節が可能というのが最大の長所です. What does it mean here? is the “NO” particle a substitute for エアコン or is it something differen?
I am really sorry for so many questions but I do really struggle with them and really appreciate your efforts!
Happy new year by the way :)
Happy New Year,too, Sam! ☺️
1)
If B is surprised I guess you can use それで or だから
A:「明日は誰も来ません。」
B: 「それで・だから私、一人ですか 。」
But 私一人なんですね。・私一人なんですか will be more natural.
**
Also you can use だから in the following case
「明日は誰も来ません。だから私一人です。」
2) You don’t say 生きるというものは・理解するというものは
But if you refer to a noun, you can use もの
Ex. 人生というものは
3）You can repeat what you heard with ということは
30分ほど遅れるということですね
If the person say
部長に30分ほど遅れると伝えてください
You don’t repeat the same thing with ということは
X ということは誰も来ないんですね。
X ということは部長は３０分ほど遅れるんですね。
You use ということは to follow up based on what you heard.
Ex. ということは会議は時間をずらした方がいいですね。
**
It might be easier to think this way
「広い部屋でも短時間での温度調節が可能」という長所
The part in the 「」 modifies 長所
I would like to explain more but the comment section is limited so I’ll stop here. ☺️
2) But what about のは instead of ということは ?
So の of というのが is just replaced with 機能 andが would be the particle for the noun basically? Did I get it right?
Thank you again in advance :)
First, I wrote 機能 instead of 長所 in my previous comment. Sorry. I fixed it.
It may change your question so let me explain again.
「もともと業務用で、パワーがあるので、広い部屋でも短時間での温度調節が可能(A) 」 というのが「最大の長所(B) 」です
When you explain what B （最大の長所） is
AがBです A should be a noun. (Explain the functions first) and in the next line この機能が最大の長所です。
AのがBです When A is a verb or adjective add の to nominalize. ~可能なのが最大の長所です。
AというのがBです When A is a relatively long sentence which ends with a verb or adjective, you can quote with というの 〜〜可能というのが最大の長所です。
Hi sensei . I do have a question. 質問があるんですが、can I use toka to assume something about myself?. Like, I’m not sure why I said/ did such a thing .
Hi Aya,
I am not sure what you meant by “to assume something about myself” but
I’m not sure why I said/ did such a thing
You don’t use “toka” in this sentence.
The natural way to say that will be
Ex. どうしてあんなことを言ってしまったのかわからない。
Hi maggie sensei.
I was trying to remember why I hated some movie I watched before, but I don’t remember. So I made some assumptions on what possibly made me hate/ dislike it. (i don’t remember why I hated that movie. Maybe because I was young when I first watched it or maybe it’s actually a bad movie. ) I hope you get what I’m trying to say . I know my explanation is bad . 😓😓😓 by young , I mean I couldn’t understand it’s plot or wasn’t my cup of tea .
Btw, happy new year . 😄
Hi Maggie-sensei!
Thanks for such a detailed post.
I have a question.
You mention that “Verb + てくる ( = tekuru) From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions”
However, when I refer to this website, https://itazuraneko.neocities.org/grammar/donnatoki/tegyoudonnatoki.html#%E3%81%A6%E3%81%8F%E3%82%8B%E3%80%88%3Cruby%3E%E5%A4%89%3Crt%3E%E3%81%B8%E3%82%93%3C/rt%3E%E5%8C%96%3Crt%3E%E3%81%8B%3C/rt%3E%3C/ruby%3E%E3%80%89
the graphic shows tekuru as past to present… so I am confused which is which.
So sorry for the comment on New Year’s Eve!
Hi Spencer,
It depends.
For example,
If you say
これからだんだん寒くなってくるね。
You are talking about future from now. Maybe the change has started but you are thinking about future.
But if you say
だんだん寒くなってきたね。
The change has started in past and it affects the present.
Thank you!
Let me digest the entry one more time.
Patreon member になりました！
Thank you for all the lessons!!
Wow, thank you so much!!
これからPatreonでも日本語のお手伝いしますね！
ありがとう！！！🐶❤️
最近「納め」ってツイッターでよく見たのでmaggiesenseiのサイトにレッスンあるかなと思ててやっぱあるんだ！助かりました！いつもありがとうございます！そして良いお年を！
Hi Matthew,
今日が、日本語の勉強納めかな？😁
Matthewも、どうぞよいお年を迎えてくださいね。
This was such a great article, Maggie-Sensei!
I knew that sometimes with time expressions, you have to use は instead of に or omitting a particle completely, and I have been, for the most part, able to accurately choose which one to use.
However, I’ve been having a lot of trouble explaining to my friends/students why, for example, you have to say 来週はいそがしいです and not 来週忙しいです. I spent literally the last three days scouring the internet, but you’re the first to address and explain this little weird grammar structure, so thank you for being such a great virtual teacher! I know where to refer my friends to next time they ask ;)
Hello そら
I would be happy if this lesson helps you decide whether you use a particle or not with certain time expressions.
It was very helpful, thank you!!
🐶❤️
Hello Maggie Sensei! Recently i’ve been reading Nihongo Switch transcript (EP.37) and i came across this sentece:
雪を掘って道を作ったりすることを「雪かき」と言います。
My question is what 作ったりする means here? I feel like i understand this sentence but at the same time i don’t :/
Hi Daniel,
If the writer thinks the definition of 雪かき is only 雪を掘って道を作る, the sentence would be
雪を掘って道を作ることを「雪かき」と言います。
The function of this たり is the writer thinks there are other definitions of 雪かき
” ~ and etc.”
Aah alright i understand this now :O Thank you!
You’re very welcome!
Thank you again, Maggie-Sensei. It is my second lesson here and I am already considering patreon.
But I have a question: Is there a difference between って、だって, and if there is, what is the difference?
Ex: (hearsay)
—来ないって
—元気なんだって 元気だって (and what is the difference between them here?)
By the way:
(元気って Is this also possible? Or do I need always “da” because it is a Na-Adjective?)
Thank you in advance!
おはよう、Sam!
When you quote what you heard you say
na-adjective: 元気なんだって (more polite 元気なんですって）
noun: 犬なんだって (more polite 犬なんですって）
verb : 来ないんだって (more polite 来ないんですって）
These are very casual speech but in conversation, you sometime omit なん
元気だって
犬だって
来ないって
The meaning is the same.
なんだって is more explanatory and you say that when you give some new information expressing your feelings (such as surprised feelings) more.
As for the usage ん, if you want to learn more, please check my how to use ん lesson.
I still have some questions regarding this topic:
1)So the meaning of って andだって is the same and there are no differences between them in meaning or nuance?
2) What is the difference between って、だって and だそうです except the formality?
3）Can I use this form 元気って or do I need “Da” because it is a NA-adjective?
１） They mean the same.
I heard he is not coming today.
今日、彼は、来ないって
今日、彼は来ないんだって
But as I mentioned in my previous comment, 来ないんだって is more explanatory.
２） verbって/na-adjective or noun だって＋ the following verbs vary 言っていた・聞いた・伝えて欲しい
３）It depends what comes after.
You can quote ~ 元気
マギーは元気って聞いたよ。 (It could be Maggie’s cheerful personality or physical or mental state)
マギーは元気だって聞いたよ。(talking about Maggie’s physical or mental state)
But you can’t give this information to someone
マギーは元気って (You may hear that in super casual conversation but I would say だって）
マギーは元気だって。is more natural
Thank you so much, Maggie-Sensei! I really appreciate it :)
Anytime, Sam! ☺️
hi Maggie sensei, thank you for the support you provide for the people learning japanese.
the difference between もう and まだ ususally seems pretty clear to me, axcept for the もう一回 or もう一度 situation.
I really don’t get why this is the sentence used for ‘once again’.
in this case もう is only translatable with ‘again’ but this is supposed to be a translation more fitting the word まだ.
can you clarify this doubt of mine? I could’t find an explanation anywhere online.
as I’m italian, I’m not english mother tongue, so maybe I’m missing something about the english words ‘yet/again’.
thank you so much.
-Rom-
Hello Rom,
Ah, OK, I didn’t cover that in this lesson. Maybe I should add that sometime.
もう + 1 + counter (in affirmative sentence) has a meaning of “one more ~ ” / “another one” “the other ”
もう一回 ・もう一度= one more time, again
もう一度、日本に行きたい。
= I would like to go to Japan again.
もう一杯 = another cup/bowl/glass of ~
もう一杯ワインを飲みたい。
= Mou ippai wain wo nomitai.
= I would like to have another glass of wine.
You also use it as “the other”
For example you have two dogs.
この犬は白いです。もう一匹は黒いです。
= This dog is white. The other one is black.
thank you so much, Maggie sensei!
You’re welcome! ❤️
Hello Maggie Sensei, sorry for my late comment. I just want to know why there’s a use of もう even though it’s not properly necessary(in my opinion) for the sentence like this:
-お母さん、もう遊びに行ってもいいですか？
At this point, what would happen to the meaning of this sentence if we didn’t add もう or vice versa.
それについてお願いいたします、マギー先生🍁
Hello Siren
OK, you say
お母さん、遊びに行ってもいいですか？
when you simply asking your mother for permission to go out to play.
By adding もう implies that you have been waiting to go out to play for a long time.
Maybe your mother told you to finish your homework or help her before you go out. And when you finish what you need to do, you ask your mother お母さん、もう遊びに行ってもいいですか？ Can I go out to play now?
So the nuance changes with or without もう
Oh, what a wonderful explanation for everyone to see obviously.
心から本当に感謝いたします、マギー先生
[Image 74.jpg]
どういたしまして、Siren! :)
Hello do you have lesson about そうに and そうな ？
Hello マギー先生
I wanted to know what is the difference between these sentences –
青い目をした女の子
青い目をしている女の子
And also
“Someone + は ( = wa) + physical feature /facial expression + body part + を ( = wo ) している ( = shiteiru) /(past tense) していた ( = shiteita) ”
Why do we use は instead of が here?
Hello Milk,
青い目をした女の子
青い目をしている女の子
They mean the same and the English translation is the same. A girl with blue eyes.
But generally している describes the state more vividly compared to した.
When you are talking about someone as a topic, you use は
彼は、青い目をしている。
As for him, he has blue eyes.
You use が only when you emphasize what comes before in this case.
For example, the listener wasn’t sure who has blue eyes.
The listener: 誰が青い目をしているって言った？ Aさんが青い目をしているの？
You: 違うよ。Bさんが青い目をしているんだよ。
なるほど、ありがとうございます！
マギー先生のレッスンはためになります！
どういたしまして！ レッスンがお役に立てたらうれしいです。☺️
Maggie先生、thank you so much for all the great lessons!
って and と is a grammar form I have been familiar with for a while now, but I decided to revisit this lesson because there’s a particular usage of って I’ve been noticing that I haven’t found directly addressed anywhere.
Sometimes, in casual speech, I notice that people end sentences in って without actually quoting anything, or repeating anything.
For example, Hanako says to Nene 「そんな顔すんなって！」He is telling her not to make such a face in an encouraging tone. But why the って? He isn’t relaying information somebody else told him to tell Nene, and it is the first time he is saying that.
In another example between a husband and a wife, the husband says to his upset wife 「僕の心の中には君しかいないって！」Again, he isn’t quoting or repeating himself, and he isn’t showing frustration here because he says this with a smile on his face.
I’m not sure exactly, but I think this って is just used for emphasis? Or is there some slight meaning that I am not picking up on. Perhaps Hanako and the husband in this case are rehashing something they’ve said in a previous, unheard conversation or something? Please let me know!
Hello 空
In this lesson, there is a part
Also we finish the sentence with って in casual conversation when repeat or stress our own quote showing our frustration.
Maybe I will add more explanation.
Just like an English expression, “I am telling you”, you use って when you emphasize what you are saying.(not necessary frustration or repeating but making your point or showing your strong feelings)
「そんな顔すんなって！」 I’m telling you, don’t make that face.
僕の心の中には君しかいないって！ I’m telling you, I only have you in my heart.
Ohh, I see.
Thank you so much for the speedy reply, Maggie-sensei.
And Merry Christmas! (if you celebrate)
You’re very welcome!
Happy Christmas to you,too!! 🎄🎅🐶
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Even though I already know about the present progressive grammar, today I thought about this example:
‘Nande ayamarun dayo?’ = Why are you apologizing
I know this is a casual form, but what is the formal version of it?
‘Nande ayamatteru no?’
Is this correct?
Hi Wendy
Interesting question.
You can say all of the followings.
1) なんであやまったんだよ (= Nande ayamattan dayo)
2) なんであやまってるんだよ ( = Nande ayamatterundayo)
3) なんであやまるんだよ ( = Nande ayamarun dayo)
The nuance difference is
1) Why did you apologize?
2) Why are you apologizing (now)?
3) Why do you apologize? (Accusing the idea of apologizing.It could refer to the past, present or future.)
Are all of those the more ‘casual’/informal ways of saying it? Because I thought present progressive should be something ending with ‘iru’ or ‘imasu’?
Like ‘ayamatte iru?’ Or is that incorrect?
Your sentence in the question ‘Nande ayamarun dayo? is a casual/male speech so I used the same rough and casual forms for the other two examples.
If you want to say that in polite say,
1) なぜあやまったのですか？ ( = Naze ayamatta no desu ka?)
2) なぜあやまっているのですか？ ( = Naze ayamatte irunodesu ka?)
3) なぜあやまるのですか？ ( = Naze ayamaru no desu ka?)
Hi Maggie Sensei! Thank you so much for this. I just have a question about this sentence from a manga.
‘別にやってもいいけど’
(A character says this after being suggested to that she join a game her friends are playing)
It translates to something like ‘I don’t mind playing’, but I don’t really understand the grammar here, like using 別に and でもいい in the same sentence. Could you possible please explain this a bit further? What would the literal translation be? Sorry if this is a dumb question.
Thank you so much!
Hello Ash ☆彡
Right the meaning is “I don’t mind playing it. ”
別に means “not really”/ “not specially” but it conveys the feelings such as “I don’t care whether I do play it or not. /It is not a big deal./ Whatever..”
こんばんは先生！！先生「～たい」と「～ほし」の違うを教えていただきませんか？
こんばんは！
「～ほし」→「〜てほしい」のことですか？
〜たい： The speaker wants to do something
Ex. 手伝いたい = I want to help/I would like to help
~てほしい: The speaker wants someone to do something
Ex. 手伝ってほしい = I want you (or someone) to help me.
という違いがあります。
はい先生わかりました。教えてくださってありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして！今日も元気に日本語の勉強をしてくださいね。☺️
Thank you very much. :)
Thank you for visiting the site,too! 🐶❤️
こんばんは先生！！先生、「～てほし」と「～てもらいたい」と「～ていただきたい」、の違うを教えていただけませんか
〜てほしい You simply express your desire for someone to do something
〜てもらいたい It involves stronger feelings of desire for someone to do something for you.
〜ていただきたい The idea is the same as もらいたい but it sounds more polite.
がんばってほしい I want them (you) to try harder.
がんばってもらいたい = I want them (you) to try harder for me.
(more polite) がんばっていただきたい= I would like them (you) to try harder for me.
はい先生わかりました。教えてくださってありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして💕
I always see 電子あり (the opposite of 電子のみ) and 試し読みあり on comic sites. Does あり come from ある? And what does it mean exactly?
あり is a written form あります which means “available”
Ex. 電子あり = 電子書籍あり（ます） e-book available
Ex. 在庫あり = We have stock.
The opposite is なし = not available.
Thank you.
Anytime! :)
Hello, Maggie-senseio.
Thank you very much for the lesson. I wanted to ask you about the meaning that “ちゃう” has in the verse of this song:
笑っちゃうんだ
臆病すぎて
本当は強く
抱きしめてほしくて
雲が月を隠すように
自分で閉ざしてしまうの なぜ
Thank you very much in advance for the help. Nice job! I love your classes, they help me a lot to improve my Japanese.
Hello Juliana,
笑ってしまう→笑っちゃう It means “can’t help laughing”
You can’t control your emotion and cant help laughing. But 笑っちゃう is also used for self-deprecation. You laugh at yourself because you are or the situation is so bad.
Thank you very much! :)
どういたしまして！ ☺️
Thank you Maggie-Sensei for all your efforts. To my question:
来月、大学を卒業するって考えただけでなんか、悲しくなってきた
For what is って used here and is it here an abbreviation of と、という、ということと聞いた、といっている or something else?
Is the って hier a fact or something else?
And has でも （お茶でも飲もうか）the same meaning as なんか （お茶なんか飲もうか） and is it interchangeable?
Hello Sam,
来月、大学を卒業するって考えただけでなんか、悲しくなってきた
This って is と (to quote)
大学を卒業すると考えただけで
You might want to read my other lesson, How to use って. Link is here.
And the usage of でも is this link. (How to use でも）
You can use なんか instead of でも but I would say
お茶かなにか飲もうか？
The translation could be the same “something like tea” but the nuance is slightly different.
お茶でも tea (giving a specific example but it sounds softer than お茶を飲もうか）
お茶かなにか something such as tea
Thank you for your answer. I will watch both lessons later. May I ask a further question? Who are we quoting in this particular sentence?
The speaker/writer is thinking about it in his/her head.
So it is not an actual speech. Quoting an idea.
Thank you!! Keep up the good work! You are really awesome!
My pleasure and Thank you! 🐶❤️
＠先生, 質問があります。お答えください!
質問は先生のE.g.のことです. 僕は三つE.g.が分からない.
Sensei can you please tell me can you give context in which these 3 examples can be used, and the difference if these examples are used without よ.
1. 日本は９月に入って涼しくなりましたよ。
2. 食事ができましたよ.
3. 仕事、終わったよ
ありがとう先生
Basically when you give some new information or the information that the listener doesn’t know, you use よ
So
1. to a person who live abroad. The speaker is telling that person that temperature has dropped in September in Japan.
2. to let your family members (or friends) that the dinner is ready.
3. to let your family who has been waiting for you at home or friend who expect you to meet after work that you finished working.
Thank you so much for this post and all your other ones! You are helping me learn colloquial Japanese much better!
Hi Ana!
Glad to hear this lesson helps you learn colloquial Japanese. ☺️
Hello Maggie sensei !
In a light novel, I came across this.
パッと見た感じ、クールな印象を受けるその美女は、無表情にこちらを見ていた。
I don’t really understand the パッと見た感じ part, could you please explain ?
Hi ピエール
パッと見た感じ means “at a glance”
Super helpful!
Long sentences with ところで always gave me headaches because I didn’t know what it means xD
Now I understad a lot better
Hi フクロウ
Glad to hear you now understand how to use ところ better! ☺️
Hi, Maggie,
I came across the phrase “どうとでもなる / どうにでもなる” which is something along the lines of “X is possible doing anything”(?) and in that lieu “don’t worry about it”.
Can you please explain how となる / になる are used here with どう and if that translation’s train of thought is correct?
Thank you.
Hi Mack,
OK, you use なる with certain adverbs in some idiomatic expressions such as
どうとでも + なる
どうにでも + なる
なんとか + なる
This なる means “(things) work out” and どうとでも・どうにでも・なんとか means “somehow”
So the literal translation is
Things will work out somehow. (So don’t worry)
I’m reading something where a character is thinking to himself about what to do on his day off, and he thinks 「なんかメシでも買って・・・」 but I can’t figure out if I should read that as “I could buy rice or something” or “I could do something like buy rice” or something else entirely. Can you help, please?
Hi Avram,
That って… is “and” The speaker is thinking what to do after buy something to eat.
I’ll buy something to eat and (then…..)
dear Maggie,
can I use 終わる also in place of ちゃう?
for instance: 食べ終わりました
are they both basically the same?
kind regards, Johannes
Dear Johannes,
食べちゃった/食べてしまった
食べ終わりました
食べ終わりました is used when you simply state the action, finish eating.
食べちゃった/食べてしまった implies more feelings, such as satisfaction or regrets.
thank you Maggie! ☺️🙏
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Maggie Sensei, I believe many teachers mentioned that we don’t use と at the end of a sentence… but I hear this phrase a lot in drama and anime “なんだと！？” . Would this be an exception to that rule? Thank you!
Hello George,
Ah, OK, right. It is an expression to show your disbelief or surprised feelings for what you just heard.
It is like “What? You just said ~ ? ” (No way! / I can’t believe it.)
Polite form
ですって？ (なんですって？ ）
casual form
だって？ （なんだって？）
rough male speech
だと？ （なんだと？）
I understand now. Thank you Maggie sensei, appreciate your help!
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Maggie先生、こんばんは！
Quite the late question but How do I say “To everyone who has followed me until now, thank you!”? Kind of like addressing your followers as a whole. I was thinking along the lines of “今までのフォロしてくれった人に、感謝してます!” but I feel like the grammar might be off or there might be a more concise way of saying it haha. Would love to hear a reply soon.
Hi Nagi,
If you say 今まで or これまで, it may sound like you are going to quit Twitter.
How about:
私をフォローしてくださっている皆様に感謝しています！
more casual
フォローしてくれているみんなに感謝です！
Just a little something I found ;)
Nihongo wa motto muzuashii mono da to bakari omotteita.
muzukashii?
Arigatou for spotting the typo, Nick.
I fixed it. ☺️
Hi sensei! Your site looks really good for studying Japanese, but I have some doubts.
The interrogative form of kanji 目 is 何 _ 目 (nan_me), but what is the interrogative form of 第? is 第 何?
Also, I understood 目, 第 and 番, but I didn’t understand the meaning of 番 目, can you explain me?
PS. <3
sorry for any mistake, i'm from Brazil, i don't speak english
Hello Allany
Q what is the interrogative form of 第? is 第 何?
Some might say 第何番目 but you can simply ask 何番目
Technically 第 and 番目 both indicate the order so you are not supposed to use them together.
Ex. 第二番目→二番目(When you simply count the number) ・第二番 (You use it for something more official)
*
〜番目・〜目
the meaning is the same.
But after 番目
Number + 番目＋（の+noun)
Number + counter + 目＋（の+noun)
右から2番目の人 = 右から2人目の人
The second person from the right
The slight difference is you tend to use 番目 when there are multiple things, people or orders.
So it sounds a little strange if you say
２回目の結婚 is more natural than ２番目の結婚
Hello maggie sensei
Thanks as always for your wonderful site. just got curious but when can you omit suru at the end of the second tari?
like from your examples
今日は、雨が降ったりやんだりだ。
忙しい日は、食べたり食べなかったりです。
also in the same case, i did a little searching but seems like when omitting the suru in the second tari, i noticed people used で to connect a second clause in the sentence. or if used with node, you add na, like ~たりなので. is that right?
Hello Matthew
Ah, OK, as you say the basic patten is
A たり B たり する・している
You can say
今日は、雨が降ったり病んだりしている。
忙しい日は、食べたり食べなかったりしている
But sometimes you end with だ・です omitting ている
~ たり（している+noun) だ・です
今日は、雨が降ったりやんだり（している日 （状態)）だ。
忙しい日は、食べたり食べなかったり（している日 (状態)）です
＠先生 In few of your sentences why is ておいた used instead of ておいていた.
E.g. in your sentence 出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいた
In this sentence since you are showing the relation of you had prepared food before you went. So, why ていた used as in 作っておいていた, as ていた also has perfect reading.
Also, does Verbておく take ている and ていた? like 食べておいていた, 食べておいている
本当にありがとう
出かける前に子供に夕ご飯を作っておいている
Unless you are talking about your routine, (you do that every day) you don’t say 作っておいている
〜ておく to prepare the dinner and leave it
いる describes the state
so it is kind of redundant.
For the same reason
食べておいていた
食べておいている
are not natural.
ありがとう先生🤓🤓
ねえ~、先生. So, this ておく being redundant with ている and ていた applies to all in general ?
E.g. I want to say that I am standing in line at the station (to avoid the future problem of brikg late to work or lets say otherwise I will not be able to catch the train to office)
So, in this case, will ておく function with ている? And the verb 立つ become 立っておいている?or will it be unnatural and redundant in this case as well?
教えてください
In that situation, just use 待っている with certain adverb 先に・前もって
Vておいている is rare but of course if you use a verb 置く( to place)
you say 荷物を置いている
Thanks a lot ! sensei ! :) Studying by myself gets a bit tricky. This ている/ていた with different aspects confuses me a lot, but thanks to your replies I am able to understand this concept, rather than using hit and try method.
No problem! If you get confused, you can ask me a question, anytime! ☺️
@先生 一つも問題がある.
かね is just to express opinion or doubt about something. ね of Confirmation is also used like I assume xyz, can you confirm it format.
先生は僕にかねとね(of confirmation)の違いって教えてください
ありがとうございます
Ah.. OK, as you said かね is used when you ask a question or express your doubts when you talk to someone younger (ex. children) or your subordinators.
ここはどこですか？
→ここはどこかね？ (male speech)
お母さんは元気？
お母さんは元気かね？ (male speech)
こんなので書けるのかなあ。(expressing your doubt)
こんなので書けるのかねえ。(I guess older women also say that)
Hi Maggie, I was wondering if you can expand on the use of といえば. I recently saw a video and they used the examples:
“もみじといえば、もみじまんじゅう。
もみじまんじゅうは、広島の名物です。”
So I understand that maple trees and Momiji manjū are related because the manjū is shaped like a maple leaf in Hiroshima. But what exactly is the sentence trying to do here? When I try to find a translation of といえば what I get is “speaking of”. I think in English it would be weird to say “Speaking of maple leaves, Momiji manjū.” The listener would be left thinking “…what about it??”
Correct me if I’m wrong, but is what they are saying (implied): “When I think of maple trees, I think of Momiji manjū.”?
Thanks so much for your help!
Hi Kayla
といえば has a meaning of “Speaking of ~” but it is also used when you mention something typical or typical image that you associate with certain place, person, etc.
When I think of ~ / When it comes to ~ , the first thing that comes to my mind is ~
Or I always associate Y with X.
Hi Maggie,
It’s been probably 2 years since I’ve been visiting your websites for reviewing my Japanese. I just have 1 slight question that’s a bit off-topic from the lesson. Could you differentiate つらい・きつい・苦しい and would you mind giving some concrete examples?
Also, if I were to say something like “wearing this mask is such a bothersome, like im having a hard time because it’s hot”, which of those words would best fit in this situation?
Thank you in advance!
Hello,
They are sometimes interchangeable but you tend to use
つらい for something mental
きつい for something physical / It also means “tight”
苦しい for something physical and mental
仕事がきつくて辛い = It’s painful because the work is hard.
スケジュールがきつい = the schedule is tight.
wearing this mask is such a bothersome = マスクをつけるのはめんどくさい
but if it’s hard to breathe with a mask on, マスクは息苦しい ( = マスクをして息をするのは苦しい)
Hello!
I’ve come across this lyric:
怠いくらいの快晴だ
which is officially translated as “It’s weather that makes you lazy” and I wanted to see exactly what that くらい means, so I was reading your lesson here (which is awesome by the way) trying to find what category it fits in. Is it the second to last category that you wrote? I mean, can I think of it as “It’s such a weather that it makes you lazy”? Can it be used like this too?
I’m sorry if it’s a stupid question.
Hi Natalia,
You can categorized in “degree” or “So ~ that ~ would”. but you can just add it “It is like ~”
adjective + くらいの + noun
You describe the nouns by using a little extreme adjective and express the quality or characteristic of the noun.
Oh thank you!
So by the same model, can I say for example: 甘いくらいのケーキ ?
Cake is sweet anyway so you just say 甘いケーキ
But you can describe it with a little extreme expression such as
めまいがするぐらい甘いケーキ
The cake is so sweet that you would feel dizzy if you eat it.
I directed a question on Quora to your answer here regarding “ni totte”. Your pages are wonderful. Here is the link to my answer which is directly linked to your page here.
Bravo for your work.Excellent.
https://www.quora.com/What-is-meant-by-%E3%81%A8%E3%81%A3%E3%81%A6-in-a-sentence/answer/Michael-John-Peterson?ch=10&share=a954eb92&srid=n1hB
Hello Peterson Michael J.
Thank you for your nice words! :)
I hope this lesson helps some people.
You are the best
🐶❤️❤️
こんにちは先生！先生「はずがない」と「わけがない」のちがうは何ですか？
こんにちは、Ｓ。ABINAYA！
英語で説明しますね。
There is a difference between 「はず」 and 「わけ」 （Ex. you can use 「はず」when you are talking about future but you can’t use 「わけ」,etc.）
But 「はずがない」 and 「わけがない」 are interchangeable.
The slight difference is はずがない is more subjective and わけがない is more objective.
So you tend to use はずがない more when you have some specific reasons.
はい先生。わかりました。ありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして ☺️
Maggie 先生, ありがとう My doubt regarding からね/てね has been solved because of your lesson ! :).
先生 can you please tell the difference between the Seeking Agreement ね Like いいね, かわいいね and でしょう used for seeking agreement when having rising intonation e.g. かわいいでしょう, which has similar meaning like ね i.e. cute isn’t it?
If the answer is too big for your comment could you please consider it for a separate lesson, as there are hardly detailed answers on this topic お願いいたします.
Hello Apoorv Phillips
As I wrote in this lesson, いいね and かわいいね belong to the usage 1) to express one’s opinion. You say them even when you are not seeking for the listener’s agreement.
On the other hand you use でしょう, いいでしょう/ かわいいでしょう when seek approval in a strong way.
Please imagine, if you see someone has something nice or cute, you react saying
いいね or かわいいね to give that person your opinion but you don’t say いいでしょう・かわいいでしょう。
When you brag something you have, you show it to someone and say
いいでしょう
かわいいでしょう
Don’t you think this is nice/cute?
＠先生 ありがとう for replying. I just wanted to ask is it also something related to the fact that;
The person who uses でしょう, either does not have shared knowledge about that thing and seeks agreement E.g. A wants B to go to Japan with him, as he is his best friend. However, A does not have any shared knowledge of B wanting to go to Japan, So Can A say, 私と一緒に日本に行きますでしょう i.e. use Agreement でしょう
and/or
When he has a shared knowledge his focus is not on that shared knowledge, just like in your example when A already knew that the Dog was cute prior to their encounter, and then says to B when both see that Dog この犬がかわいいでしょう.
If A wants to ask if B wants to go to Japan with A,
私と一緒に日本に行きませんか？ Would you like to go to Japan with me?
私と一緒に日本に行きましょう！ Let’s go to Japan together./ Why don’t you go to Japan with me?
You don’t say 私と一緒に日本に行きますでしょう
**
In the second case, A would say
この犬は、かわいいでしょう。（Not この犬が but the rest is fine）
And i
@先生 ありがとう! Your quick reply, always helps me in progressing faster !
どういたしまして☺️
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I have stumbled upon って particle, but every time its use seems too daunting for me. Could you please explain to me the meaning of って in these 4 sentences below?
1)じゃ今夜は一緒にくらぶに行くってことで。
2)家に来たら料理作ってあげるって誘って。
3)幼稚園の時から一緒だった子が高校から別々だなんて寂しくってー。
4) カワイイ子の友達はカワイイってホントだねー。
Many thanks,
Andrea
Hi Andresa
1)じゃ今夜は一緒にくらぶに行くってことで。 quote 行くということで..
2)家に来たら料理作ってあげるって誘って。 quote 作ってあげると言って / command 誘って（ください）
3)幼稚園の時から一緒だった子が高校から別々だなんて寂しくってー。 reason 寂しくて
4) カワイイ子の友達はカワイイってホントだね quote カワイイというのは本当だね
HI Maggie, I have a question about the causative form. So far, I understand that we can use it to talk about being made to do something or letting someone do something.
But, I came across an example in a manga I’m reading where the speaker uses the causative to say that he has to do something.
台風が来る前に展示物の搬入を終わらせて帰らないと
I would translate this as having to finish the transport of the exhibition goods. Is this a different use of the causative??
Hi Angus,
It is one form of causative usages.
You can use causative form with people or things.
to make someone do something
to make something ~
〜を終わらせる = to make something finish →finish something / have finished
Thanks very much!
Hello Maggie-sensei,
I am having a hard time trying to understand what the gentleman in this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbnv4GE4XZk&t=614s&ab_channel=%E9%BE%8D%E3%81%8C%E5%A6%82%E3%81%8F%E3%82%B9%E3%82%BF%E3%82%B8%E3%82%AA%E5%85%AC%E5%BC%8F) says at 7:09, how does the “to ittara” make any sense here? [If you need context, you wouldn’t have to go beyond, 6:50] I understand what each word individually means but the whole sentence together just doesn’t make sense (nareteiru to ittara okashii n desu kedo). Also while you’re at it, can you please explain what he means by the word Mawasu at 7:02 means? Does it figuratively mean to attempt something new? Thank you in advance :)
Hi Moses,
慣れてるといったらおかしいんですけど
The literal meaning is
It might sound strange if I say “We got used to it/We are familiar with each other” but..
と is to quote
いったら If I say
“慣れてる” (nareteru): What you are quoting
You use this pattern
~といったら〜
for example
といったら嘘になる
I’d be lying if I said ~
回す means “to manage to do multiple things” but in this case he probably meant for shooting (カメラを回す）
Ohhhh, I get it now. Thanks a lot Maggie-sensei!
Good! よかった！ ☺️
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Is it correct to use -tari form with nasaimasu? Thank you
Yes, you can.
When you use たり with honorific expressions,
する→なさる→なさったりする
見る→ご覧になる→ご覧になったりする
So, if I want to say 書いたり in keigo, would it be 書きになったりする?
Is なさったりform just for suru verbs?
And can’t we use tari form with the “passive” form?
Thank you a lot.
Basically you stick to each honorific form so なさる is only used for suru-verb
買いたり will be お書きになったり or 書かれたり
And yes, you can use たり with passive form
Ex.そんなことを言われたりやられたりしたら誰でも怒ります。
Thank you very much!!!
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Hi maggie sensei. from what i understand Verb plus ki ga suru means” to feel like doing something” as well. is there any difference with that and verb + ki ni naru?
Hi Matthew,
There are many ki-idiomas.
ki ni suru = to be concerned about ~ . to worry about ~
ki ga suru = to have a hunch ~ / feel like ~
Ex. 誰かが外にいるような気がする
= I feel like someone is outside.
Ex. それはおかしい気がする
= I think that is strange.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Long time no see. How have you been?
I have a question related to たり and とか
(1) マギーはおもちゃで遊んだり散歩に行ったりするのが好きだ。
For this sentence, can I use とか also?
マギーはおもちゃで遊ぶとか散歩に行くとかのが好きだ。
(2) 昨夜は歌ったり踊ったりした。
For this sentence, is it OK if I use とか
昨夜は歌くとか踊るとかした。
Thanks my Lady.
久しぶり、Frozenheart! 元気でしたか？
I think I explained the nuance difference between Vたり and Vとか in my とか lesson.
As for 1) and 2) たり is much more natural than とか
はい、元気です。
Thanks for your answer.
I will check the とか lesson also.
Good! 元気でよかった！ :)
Hi Maggie sensei,
How may i insert two conditions using と ?
It would like this kind of sentence : If A and B, then C.
Do we simply add と at tyhe end of each proposal ? If A to, soshite B to, then C
Or is something more like ? : If A で, B to, then C
Hi Bee,
One way to connect more than two verbs with と is use the te-form (Ex. 食べて・飲んで）or masu-stem （make a masu-form and delete masu (Ex. 食べます→食べ・ 飲みます→飲み) and finish with verb と・ないと
粉にドライイーストを入れて、よく混ぜて、しばらくおくとふくらんできます。(connecting with te-form)
粉にドライイーストを入れ、よく混ぜ、しばらくおくつとふくらんできます。 (connecting with masu-stem)
粉にドライイーストを入れて、よく混ぜて、しばらくおかないとふくらみません。(connecting with te-form)
粉にドライイーストを入れ、よく混ぜ、しばらくおかないとふくらみません。(connecting with masu-stem)
I get the feeling しだい means something like “subsequent (to)”. It works for most its uses.
Kuukou ni tsuki shidai denwa shimasu.
Subsequent to arriving at the airport, call me.
Shinjiru ka shinjinai ka wa anata shidai da.
It is subsequent to whether you believe or not.
Not how you should translate it because no one speaks like that in English, but veiwing しだい as “subsequent” might help some people understand the expression and unify all its uses into one clarifying word.
Sensei:
How is から working here in からに：
ジョーはその包みを開き好いように両膝を突いて、幾つも幾つもの結び目を解いてからに、大きな重そうな巻き物になった何だか黒っぽい布片きれを引き摺り出した。
Is it working as after.
So far I have not seen から accompanied by に。
Please Sensei, help.
I think it is an old style of Japanese.
In old writings, you add に to から to give a reason.
But you don’t use that form in current conversational Japanese.
Añaychayki, 先生。
Dear Sensei, I have a question
ピーターは、昨日、３時間しか寝ていないから、元気なはずがない。
Why ている and not past ていなかった? (昨日)
Hi Shizuru,
When you talk about the past in an affirmative form, you use the past tense.
昨日は、１０時間も寝たから元気なはずだ。
When you use a negative form, you can say
３時間しか寝ていなかったから (when you are talking about the third person.)
３時間しか寝なかったから元気じゃない (When you are talking about yourself)
But when you haven’t done something (in this case, you haven’t slept enough) in past and emphasizes that it affects the current situation/condition, you can also use ていない
寝ていないから
I’ll show you other example
宿題をがんばってやったから早く学校に行きたい。 （affirmative form: Only past tense works)
宿題をやらなかったから学校に行きたくない(negative form: past tense)
宿題をやっていないから学校に行きたくない。(negative form: ていない present perfect simple)
Sensei:
I came across this paragraph in Winter Carol
引括めて云えば、彼女は気を揉ませるなとでも云いたいような女であった。しかし世話女房式な、おお、どこまでも世話女房式な女であった。
which in the english version is:
Altogether she was what you would have called provoking, you know; but satisfactory, too. Oh, perfectly satisfactory.
I am having difficulty figuring out why the translator decided to use 気を揉ませる plus な
When I parse the sentence out, to me, it seems that he decided to use that verb in the causative form to mean:
altogether I want to say this woman was the kind that made one worry, you know(な）（meaning she was provoking, therefore, made whomever looked at her worry)
Would my assumptions be right regarding 気を揉ませる and な？
よろしくお願いします。
Hello
な is for negative command. 「気を揉ませるな」 = Don’t make me (me = the speaker) worry ( = Don’t provoke me)
(talking to the woman)
Añaychayki, Sensei.
こんにちは先生、
私はダンと申します。
ちょっと質問がありますが。。。
下の文節について”に”と”を”とどちらがいいですか？
この はしを つくるの＿＿＿ ４年 かかりました。
私にとって、もし ”に” を使えば、英語でーIt took 4 years for this bridge to be built(in order to be built) という意味だと思います。 そして、もし ”を” を使えば、英語でーthe building of this bridge took 4 years.
しかし、正しい答えは”に”だけと書いてあります。。。どうして”を”は使えない？何か特別な説明がありますか。それともある理由で”を”は使えない？
ところで、先生の説明いつも読んでいるから、時々本当に助かった。私も日本語の先生なんですけど、まだ初心者です。
ありがとうございます！
ダン
こんにちは、ダン！
日本語の先生なんですね。
そうですね、答えは、やはり 「に」です。英語の in order to ~ の考え方で合っています。
「を」は、動作の対象を表しますが、「に」は行為の目的を表します。
何を作るのか→橋（はし）→橋をつくる
なんのために４年かかるのか（目的）→はしをつくる→はしをつくるのに
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I apologize if you’ve already covered this but I couldn’t find any information on it.
Would this be gramatically correct: i-adj plain form + ように + verb plain form. Ex. 自分だけに都合がよいように振る舞う
Thanks!
Yes, you can use the pattern when you quote
i-adjective plain form + ように + verb
It seems like ~
彼女にとって、この仕事はきついように見える
今年の冬は去年より寒いように思う。
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Can I clarify the following:
1. [こけし]というお土産を買った
2. [こけし]と言われたお土産を買った
Sentence 1 was the correct answer, but I am also trying to understand why Sentence 2 is not correct?
Literally translated, Sentence 2 sounds like “I bought a souvenir that was called “Kokeshi” “, correct?
Thanks!
Hi Jake,
Right 1) is correct and your translation for 2) is right.
Since kokeshi is a name of the gift, it is strange to say と言われた
I’ve seen いる and ある also paired with the は particle and it kind of confuses me. Is there a huge difference? For example:
英語のメニューは／がありますか？
I don’t know whether to use が or は
Hello Kevin,
When you describe someone / something is there in affirmative form
Aがある
Aがいる
is more natural.
So you say この店には英語のメニューがあります。
If you use 英語のメニューはあります, it shows the contrast so it implies, they have an English menu but they don’t have a menu in other languages.
Now, when you simply ask if they have an English menu or not
英語のメニューはありますか？
is more natural.
If you say 英語のメニューが
it sounds like
Do you have “AN ENGLISH MENU”? (emphasizing an English menu)
Ohhh, ok, I got it now! Thank you very much!
You’re very welcome, Kevin! :)
Hello, Maggie Sensei
Does this sentence “赦されることがあるのなら” mean “What if sometimes I can be forgiven”?
Hello
Right. It means, “If you forgive me / If I am forgiven “
やっぱり、この授業は間単です^^. みんな、頑張りましょう
＠Rizhu
そうそう！ がんばりましょう！！ :)
In a year rocked by uncertainty, one thing has always remained certain – Maggie Sensei’s informative and helpful lessons. I’m genuinely thankful for this site.
You are too nice, Jimmi!
Thank you!! ありがとう！☺️
勉強になりました。この間よくZoomで授業しているので、このレッスンはとても役に立ちます！ありがとうございました！
それはよかったです！ 是非、使ってみてくださいね。☺️
Sensei
In this paragraph
あの有名な詩中（註、ウォーヅウォースの「弥生に書かれたる」と題する短詩。）の羊の群とは違って、四十人の子供が一人のように振舞うのではなく、各一人の子供が四十人のように活動するのだから溜まらない。従ってその結果は信じられないほどの賑やかさであった。
たまらない is like helping the sentence at the end to emphasise that the children were being very noisy, therefore, it was INTOLERABLE?
Would it sound different if たまらない had not been written?
よろしくお願い致します
As you said, たまらない emphasize 賑やかさ. “intolerable” may sound a bit too negative in this case. How about “They were out of control”
Hi Maggie, I have a question regarding negating ておく phrases. Does it make a difference if I negate the てform verb instead of おく？as in the following sentence, is there any difference in meaning?
汚い服をテーブルの上に置いておかないで
汚い服をテーブルの上に置わないでおいて
Also. In general, when you negate a ておく phrase, what does it mean? Does it mean ‘In preparation for somethin (in the future), don’t do this?’
Hi Ed,
The second sentence should be 置かないでおいて
Since the verb is 置く, it may sound redundant but
置いておかないで Don’t put the dirty clothes on the table and leave them there.
The speaker is not happy that the clothes are left on the table for a long time.
置かないでおいて Don’t put the dirty clothes on the table.
The speaker is asking not to put the dirty clothes on the table.
Thank you for the explanation. Could you also explain the use of negative ておく? Like when someone uses ておかない or ないでおく what does that imply? Is it something like “Don’t do this, so in the future it’ll be easier for me/us?’ or ‘in preparation for the future, don’t do this?’
Could you use another example of ておかない to help me better understand the negative use of ておく？
It might rain today so don’t hang the laundry and leave them.
今日は雨が降るかもしれないから、洗濯物は外に干しておかないでね。
It might rain today so I won’t hang the laundry outside. (preparation)
今日は雨が降るかもしれないから、洗濯物は外に干さないでおく。
@Sensei There is one big query that I have I posted the same on JSE. I have been stuck on this topic for 3-4 months now. Could you please help me by providing me the answer over here, or I think you can make it as a separate post.
The question pertains to when can an action verb/durative verb (E.g. 食べる, 作る) have Perfect tense meaning when using ている. Link is attached below
We know that there are two type of verb one is action verb and the other are state-change verbs. Wherein, state change verb like 死ぬ have Perfect tense when using ている. Similarly Action Verbs also have this Perfect Tense, apart from Continuous Tense e.g. 食べている can mean both I am eating and I have eaten. So, my question revolves around when to use when, and how to figure out that the Action Verb e.g. 食べている is giving a continuous tense and when it is giving a Perfect tense.
Please help me ! I am really in a dire situation
Link
https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/82546/when-to-give-%e3%81%a6%e3%81%84%e3%82%8b-a-continuous-reading-and-when-to-give-it-a-perfect-reading
Hello Aproorv Phillips
I would say it is rare to use 食べている as a Perfect tense but let me see.
When to use 食べている
1) I am eating/ I am making (right now)
Ex. 「今、何をしていますか？」 What are you doing now?
「朝ごはんを食べています。」I am eating breakfast (now).
middle of the action, what is happening right now.
2) I have been eating (present perfect progressive）
(1) some action is still going on (You emphasis on the duration of an action)
Ex. 朝からおやつをずっと食べています。
= I have been eating snack since this morning.
You started eating in the morning and you are still eating.
(2) expressing one’s routine/habit
It can be translated with simple present tense in English.
Ex. 毎日、朝ごはんにシリアルを食べています。
= I have been eating cereal for breakfast every day.
Or I eat cereal for breakfast every day.
Ex.「Coco２番のカレーを、食べたことがありますか？」
= Have you ever had Coconiban’s curry?
「日本に行く度に食べていますよ。」
= I eat ( their curry ) every time when I go to Japan.
Now, if you focus on one’s experiences whether you have done something or not,
Vたことがある
Ex. はい、食べたことがあります。
= Yes, I have had (their curry).
Or use simple past test : 食べました
Ex. はい、去年食べました。
= Yes, I had (their curry) last year.
(3) when you indicate the state (You finish eating something )
I think this is the usage you are talking about but it is similar to 食事を済ませている ( = to finish eating)
Ex. 朝ごはんはもう食べましたか？
= Did you already have breakfast?
A: はい、もう食べました。(past tense) I had breakfast already. (The action of eating is done)
B: はい、もう食べています (Yes i have finish eating breakfast) : talking about the state not the action.
You decide which one to use depending on what you want to emphasize. (completing of the action or one’s state)
People usually ask if you have finished eating (completing action) so A is much more common than B.
本当にありがとうございます 先生。I understood it ! 先生はいつも私を助けてくれます。
朝、急いでコメントしましたが、わかってくれてよかった〜! ☺️
Thank you for this! I’m a US engineer working at a Japanese company and this is really useful. Something I didn’t see listed here, at internal Skype meetings we always use 失礼します(しつれいします) when ending the meeting before dropping the call.
Hi Taylor.
Glad to hear this lesson is useful.
I will add 失礼します to the list. :)
Thank you sensei, very helpful.
I’m happy to hear that. 🐶
Sensei:
I came across this paragraph:
そして、この路地はごくごく狭い方だのに、向う側の家並はただぼんやり幻影の様に見えたほど、戸外は霧が濃密であった。
When I literally translate it, to me it is as if it were saying: And even though the alley was very narrow, in regard to the houses on the other side they had aa degree of having the form of illusion, outside the door the fog was very dense.
But I read it fast is as if there should be から after 戸外は霧が濃密であった。or somewhere. Or is it that であった. is working as the reason for not being able to see the houses.
よろしくお願い致します。
Hello qwert,
It is from A Christmas Carol,right?
The original English is
The fog came pouring in at every chink and keyhole, and was so dense without, that although the court was of the narrowest, the houses opposite were mere phantoms.
The basic structure of the Japanese translation is
~たほど〜であった
The fog was so dense outside (1) that the houses in the opposite side looked liked phantoms/illusion. (2)
(1) gives a reason for the following sentence (2)
And (2) is expressing the degree of having the illusions.
Yes, Sensei, it is Christmas Carol.
Thanks for the explanation. I thought that the sentence needed から for reason because when I read it fast, it was as if something was not right. I don’t know how to explain it. And I was mentally rewriting it as:
そして、この路地はごくごく狭い方だのに、向う側の家並はただぼんやり幻影の様に見えたほど、戸外は霧が濃密ですから。
Would that sentence be correct, Sensei？
Hi again,
I understand why you want to use から to give a reason.
But if you use から the word order should change
For example
戸外は霧が濃密だったからこの路地はごくごく狭い方なのに向う側の家並はただぼんやり幻影の様に見えた。
The main focus changes → 幻影の様に見えた。
The original sentence
そして、この路地はごくごく狭い方だのに、向う側の家並はただぼんやり幻影の様に見えたほど、戸外は霧が濃密であった。
focuses on the last part, 戸外は霧が濃密であった
ありがとうございました、先生。
どういたしまして☺️
質問があります。
この文で 例えば、(アンナさんは老人ホームでボレンチアをして経験したこと感じしたことを話しました。
その上の(ことがある、) 同じ意味ですか
(ことがある)の文法を使わないのにおなじいみですか。
I mean in this sentence of the part where it’s used ( 経験したこと、カンジシアことを話しました)even though the “ga” and aru in ( ことがある)is not used?
Hi テリー
アンナさんは老人ホームでボレンチアをして経験したこと感じしたことを話しました。
→(I think there is a typoe) アンナさんは老人ホームでボボランティアをして経験したこと感じたことを話しました。
Q: その上の(ことがある、) 同じ意味ですか？
質問の意味がよくわからないのですが、
「その上」というのは、「最初の経験したこと」のことですか？
ことがある is talking about one’s experiences.
Ex.アンナさんは老人ホームでボランティアをしたことがあります。
Anna has worked at a nursing home. (She has an experience of working at a nursing home)
Now こと is used to nominalize a verb
So Anna talked about the followings,
1) ボランティアをして経験したこと things that Anna experienced through her volunteer work at a nursing home
2) 感じたこと things that she felt there = How she felt there.
Is it the same( こと)that means experiencing something like ( ことがある)
In the (経験したことかんじたこと)part ?
If it is why is it now using “ が” and “ある”
I’m not sure if this koto is a nomilized or not, and the nominalizing koto is confusing too
I think i got it thanks
Good! :)
質問があります。
この文で 例えば、(アンナさんは老人ホームでボレンチアをして経験したこと感じしたことを話しました。
その上の(ことがある、) 同じ意味ですか
Hello Maggie-sensei.
Thank you for the lesson.
Only skim through it, but I think I know the gist of it (maybe XP)
My question is : 手札は少しでも多くでもあったほうがいいのだ。
In this case, でも here means something like, even a little or more should be better to have?
Hi Nick,
I think the sentence should be
手札は少しでも多く
でもあったほうがいいのだ。and it means “as many as possible”
I see.
No wonder it feels kinda weird..
Thank you for the answer sensei!
You’re welcome! :)
Hi Maggie,
The book I’m reading at the moment refers to お母ちゃん but I’m fairly sure he’s using it to refer to his wife. Is お母ちゃん sometimes used for wife rather than mum?
I know in English we sometimes say “Mum” or “Dad” when talking to your wife or husband but that is old-fashioned and/or regional.
The person relating his story is from 焼津市, 静岡県 if that helps?
Many thanks,
Peter.
Hi Peter,
Yes, if you have a child/children, it is common to refer to your wife,お母さん・ お母ちゃん
and also refer to your husband, お父さん・お父ちゃん.
お母ちゃん・お父ちゃん sound friendly and it may sound a little old fashioned.
Thanks Maggie!
Hope everyone is well :)
My pleasure! :)
Hi maggie sensei .
My question might be stupid; I’m still upper beginner 😅.
I read your lesson on ばかりlast week. Yesterday i was trying to make a dialogue in Japanese.
I said (おばあさんを迎えに行くばかりだ). I have prepared everything for the trip and the only thing left is to pick up my grandmother.
Is this correct?
Hello Aya,
Good question!
Yes, your sentence is correct.And if it is writing, there is no problem.
If you actually want to say that, the listener know that you finish preparing something.
You did this and that so the only thing left is to pick up your grandma.
あとは、おばあさんを迎えに行くばかりですね。
In conversation, you hear more あとは、おばあさんを行くだけだね
That pattern is slightly formal so in conversation, あとはおばあさんを
It’s true I hear あとはa lot in conversational Japanese. Actually I wanted to use 後で. Anyways, thank you maggiesensei. ☺
Hi Aya,
Yes, you use あと（は） a lot in conversation.
Also, And…
If you say あとで, it means “to do something later”
Learn more about 後 in this lesson.
Hi, Maggie-sensei. I’ve started learning Japanese recently, and your website has really been a haven for someone who’s struggling to get through all this subtle aspects of the language. Thank you for that very much!
Anyway, not so long ago I’ve come across a sentence, which I generally understand, but the usage of ておく is still a mystery to me. Could you please explain this one?
忠告の気持ちだけはありがたくいただいておく。
Hello V,
Thank YOU for visiting my site to study Japanese!
It means “I appreciate your advice.(implying I may not change what I am going to do but thank you for your advice anyway)
When someone is trying to give you a gift and you think it is too much to receive it, you also say
気持ちだけはありがたくうけとっておきます。= I appreciate your kindness. (But I won’t take anything else from you.)
うけとっておく →(polite)いただいておく The literal translation is “I will receive ~ for now.”
箸はペンを持つように持つと使いやすい。
Or
箸はペンを持つように持てば使いやすい。
Please tell me sensee which one is correct and why
Hi Laxmi,
You say them both.
The difference is:
と when you do something, something usually (automatically) happens
ば adds more hypothetical nuance “If you hold ~”
Please translate this いつもお世話になっております。its on my wife’s hidden folder.
Please read the lesson. There are a few translations.
こんにちは先生！
この村に歯医者がいないために、病気の時は隣町までいかなければなりませ
先生,why they used ために instead of ため❓
can we use ため also here?
ありがとうございます先生
こんにちは先生！
この村には医者がいないために、病気の時は隣町までいかなければなりませ
先生,why they used ために instead of ため❓
can we use ため also here?
ありがとうございます先生
Hello!
Yes, you can use ため there.
ありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして💕
* #3150
→From サイコー (最高 = さいこう = saikou ) = Awesome! /Great!/ It’s the best
* #397
→From→サンキューな = sankyuu na = Thank you!
What do these numbers have to do with the words?
Hello Nyad
It is based on the sound
Some Japanese words can be typed in numbers.
3 = san + 9 = kyuu = san kyuu = It sounds like “Thank you”
+ 7 = nana = na = Thank you na!
Or use the part of the sound
3 = sa(n) + 1 = i(chi ) + 5 = go→ko + 0 = o = o = sa i ko o
こんにちは先制!!。先生、what is the difference between ため&ために？
こんにちは先生!。先生、what is the difference between ため&ために？
Hello
When you talk about cause, you can omit に
雨のために道が混んでいます。
= 雨のため道が混んでいます。
You see ため in more formal speech/writing.
When you give a reason in the first sentence and tell people to do/not to do something or give an advice, you use ため
この先の道は工事中のため、迂回（うかい）してください。（Xために）
はい先生、わかりました。
ありがとうございました先生
よかった！ ☺️
You are a great teacher. I love so much your explanations. Only for confirmation, for fire so is used 熱い? Thank you!
Hello Ben,
I’m glad to hear you like my explanations.
Yes, you use 熱い for fire.
But if you are in a nice and warm room around the fireplace, you can describe the fire as 暖かい as well.
教えてくれてありがとうございます
どういたしまして！ :)
Hello, Maggie sensei.
I have a little question, if I want to say: “It is my first time in Japan”, which particle should I use?
-日本 に 始めてです。
-日本 で 始めてです。
Thank you. 💕
Hello Reych
Neither one.
You can say
日本は初めてです。
or
日本に来たのは初めてです。
日本に初めて来ました。
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I have a question regarding てくださる and ていただく. If I want to thank my teacher for telling me about a book, which would be the correct way of saying it-
この本について教えてくださってありがとうございました。Or
この本について教えていただいてありがとうございました。
Since the teacher’s action is the focus here, I thought てくださって would be correct. But I am not sure.
Can you please help me?
Thanks!
Hello Ruchika
Yes, you are right.
It should be この本について教えてくださってありがとうございました。
いただく focuses on you who receive someone’s favor.
くださる focuses on someone who does/did something for you.
(You may also want to check my How to ask for a favor lesson.)
Thankyou! I will go through the section you mentioned.
You’re welcome! :)
Hello maggie sensei! thank you for doing this kind of lessons which as you said we can’t find in any kind of books. I am sure many people appreciate your lessons!
Just a question, I’ve noticed people omit “ai” for for negative words kinda like what happens to janai -> jan. one recent example I saw is 風邪ひかない-> 風邪ひかん。is this just a colloquial thing of shortening words?
Hi Matthew
Thank you for your nice comment for my lessons. :)
風邪ひかない-> 風邪ひかん
It is one of the common dialect patterns in many regions in Japan. (Kansai, Chubu, etc.)
ない changes to ん
知らない →知らん
できない→できん
It is different shortening pattern
〜らない→んない
わからない→わかんない
This one is not a dialect but pretty common all over Japan.
got it! いつもありがとうございます！
どういたしまして Matthew!
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I’m getting confused between the use of ために and ように. Since they both are used as “in order to” or “to aim for”.
大学に合格できる……………一生懸命勉強しています。(ように、ために) which one is suitable for the blank?
Hi Muskan
大学に合格できる(ように）一生懸命勉強しています。
合格できる is a potential form so you use ように
You can use ために
Ex. 大学に合格するために一生懸命勉強しています。
Check my ために lesson. I explained the difference a little. (Click this link)
Thank you so much Maggie Sensei 🙌
You’re very welcome! 🐶
Hi, Maggie Sensei!
Regarding 3) specifically.
3) If /because ~ + unfavorable result / to give one’s negative comments or express one’s negative opinion towards the topics.
verb te-form Vて ( = te) + は ( = wa).
If I wanted to say, “If I don’t make this video, I’ll be in trouble.”
Can I say 「動画を作らなくては困ります。」
Or does this grammar point ONLY work with the positive tense? Would I have to say,「動画をパスしては困ります」?
ありがとうございます！
Hiクリシュナ
You can say 「動画を作らなくては困ります。」 but for that particular sentence, it will sound more natural if you separate the subject.the one who make a video and the one who gets in trouble.
Ex. If you don’t make a video, I will be in trouble.
I don’t exactly understand what you meant by パス but you can use it in an affirmative form.
動画を作っては困ります。 Again, the subject should be different. If you make a video, I will be in trouble.
Thank you so much, Maggie Sensei!!
Would this sentence also apply to the same #3 grammar point?
「不本意*では*あるが
誠に遺憾だが
愛しの布団を去って
トイレに行かなくちゃ。」
Why was では used and not just は？
I seem to have a lot of trouble with this particle, すみません！
P.S. The sentence is from this HILARIOUS mini music video called 「布団の中から出たくない。」Please give it a watch if you have time!
Ah OK, ではあるが means “Though/Even though/But”
noun/na-adjective + だ （不本意だ）
→noun/na-adjective + である （不本意である）
→You add the meaning “Though it is against my will” 不本意だが・不本意であるが
Ahhhhhh, 分かりました！ And the は shows that 「不本意」is the subject of the phrase.
Thank you so much, maggie 先生！
質問に答えてくれてありがとうございます！
どういたしまして❤️
Hi Maggie-sensei. I want to ask how to use “te okimashita” and “te arimashita” I think the usage is different from the present tense “te oku/te aru” I am really confused on how to use them in a sentence
Hi Michell
te okimashita You did something (as a preparation)
te arimashita someone did something (as a preparation)
夕ご飯を作っておきました。
I prepared the dinner ahead of time
夕ご飯が作ってありました
Someone made dinner ahead of time.
present tense
夕ご飯を作っておく・おきます You are talking about future. I will prepare the dinner and leave it.
夕ご飯が作ってある You are looking at the dinner which someone prepared ahead of time.
Hi Maggie, I’ve come accros a sentence and I can’t really understand what’s this you to for?
よほど怠けてない限り頭を拳銃でぶら抜かれようと心臓をナイワで刺されようと死神は死なない。
(It’s obviously from death note ☺️)
Thank you in advance 😊
Hi Liza,
I don’t do the translation here but
Probably you don’t understand the usage ようと, right?
（たとえ） 〜ようと means No matter how/what or Even if ~
頭を拳銃でぶら抜かれようと Even if his head were shot through
心臓をナイフで刺されようと Even if his heart were stabbed with a knife
And these two sentence modify the main sentence, 死神は死なない。
よほど怠けてない限り = unless being too lazy
Thanks you very much!!!💞
You’re very welcome! :)
ii. and モテ separately?
Thx a million.
モテ is from a word モテる = popular with girls/women or boys/men
めちゃ is from めちゃめちゃ/めちゃくちゃ and it means “very”
こんにちは！！
Could you please explain me what’s the difference between 「部屋を掃除している」and 「部屋を掃除しているところ」
I don’t really get the difference between them
Thank you so much
こんにちは Daniela,
They both can be translated
“I am cleaning the room (now)” but difference is
If 部屋を掃除している doesn’t have a word such as 今 (= ima = now), it can be “I have been cleaning the room for certain period of time. or I clean the room regularly.
Talking about one’s habitual action/routine:
Ex. 私は（いつも）部屋を掃除している。 = I (always) clean the room.
Ex. 私は、部屋を掃除しているが、弟は部屋を掃除しない。= I clean my room but my little brother don’t clean his room.
部屋を掃除しているところ means “I am middle of cleaning the room.” and focuses on the current moment.
Hope this explanation helps..
Btw, do you know what does めちゃモテ mean?
Hi Alan
It seems like I haven’t answered your question yet. So sorry.
めちゃモテ means めちゃくちゃモテる = すごくモテる = very popular with the men/women, boys/girls.
Dear Maggie Sensei
Congratulations on a brilliant, informative website.
May I ask a question in relation to the following sentence which appears on this page.
Why is it Kanojo mo, and not kanojo o
Kanojo mo issho ni kitai you na kao wo shite ita.
Apologies if this has been asked before but there are too many to look through.
Thanks in advance.
Hello Nick,
も here means “also” “too”
For example, imagine this conversation.
You: “I am going to Tokyo tomorrow.”
= 「明日、東京に行くよ。 」
= Ashita Toukyou ni ikuyo.
She : “I want to go there with you,(too).”
= 「私も一緒に行きたい！」
= Watashi mo issho ni ikitai!
You use the particle も (= mo) because she “also” wants to go to Tokyo.
Now, she is not actually saying that but you can tell she really wants to go to Tokyo with you.
When you get to Tokyo, you are remembering her and say
Ex. 彼女も一緒に来たいような顔をしていた。
= Kanojo mo issho ni kitai you na kao wo shiteita.
= She looked like she wanted to come with me.
You don’t use を (= wo) because を (= wo) is an object marker and 彼女( = kanojo) is a subject in that sentence.
先生：
While watching Ponyo I came across this dialog between the mother and the son:
12:54リサ このコは ポニョっていうんだよ。
12:57ん？
12:58ポニョってしてるし 魔法が使えるもん。
13:01ポニョが なめたら ケガが治ったんだよ
I cannot quite grasp how ポニョってしてるし is working here? Does it mean that Ponyo has been doing something and (し) can use magic?
Hi Tupac Yupanqui
In this case, ポニョ is used as onomatopoeia
ポニョっとしている→ポニョってしている She is (being) chubby
You use the verb している to describe one’s physical appearance.
ありがとうございました、先生。
どういたしまして💕
彼には家庭が あります。family
私には弟が二人 います。brothers
Why family use ARU but brothers use IRU?
Isn’t both are “living”
For the following example do we use IRU or ARU?
I have a fever
I had a shock (someone gave me a scare)
I am worried
I have a nap
おしえて お願いします
難しい ね separating IRU and ARU
Hello soleyman
I have a fever 熱（ねつ）があります。
I had a shock (someone gave me a scare) ショックを受（う）けた・受けました。
I am worried 心配（しんぱい）しています。
I have a nap 昼寝（ひるね）をした・しました
This site is so useful! I am learning so many conversational expressions that I can use with my language exchange partners. Thank you for your time and effort! :)
Hi Hailey,
You’re very welcome! I’m happy to hear you learned something from this site!
What is the Difference of 今度の実験はなんとかして成功させたい vs 今度の実験はなんとかして成功したい
成功させたい shows stronger will and you control the experiment more. I want to make this experience a success.
Hi Maggie,
It’s been a while! Hope you are well :)
I was just wondering how often よう appears on its own, as it does near the end of this sentence I came across:
なるべく考えないように勤め、表面には喜びを一杯に表して、お母ちゃんが不安にならないよう気を配った。
I always expect -に or -な after よう, but I guess it’s fine without. Does it change the meaning much? I’m assuming the end part means “took care not to make mum uneasy”?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hello,
You sometimes drop に and just say よう
Basically ように modifies a verb so when you list a few verbs,
In this case, there are three verbs,
ように do A , B and ~ よう C.
The last よう modifies the verb C
A（努める）, B（表す） and C（気を配る）.
And the last part means “I was careful/paid attention tying not to make my mum uneasy.”
I thought that was probably the case :)
Many thanks!
You’re very welcome! :)
Sensei, how is 帰ったあと working here?:
このような子供たちは、宿題やビデオで勉強したり、オンラインで授業をうけたりしていました。先生が家に行ったり、他の子供が帰ったあと学校で授業をしたりしている場合もありました。
The thing is that children are having break from school due to Corona and this article says that teacher have been going to houses giving classes, but then it mentions about the teacher giving classes to other children after returning home at the school.
So that would mean that the teacher goes home and after it he or she teaches children at school?
Hi dizzt,
the teacher is giving classes not to other children.
The teacher is giving classes to these children ( = このような子供たち) after other students left the school and go home.
お世話になりました、先生。
☺️
Hi sensei. Wonderful and detailed explanation. May I know why does the furi in “ame ga furi hajimete” not conjugated? We can just remove -masu from furimasu and apply to this sentence? And do you cover any topic with combination of two action verbs apart from -te iku/kuru? for eg. mitts yukkuri shimasu, yonde yarimasu, oshiete moraimasu. Thank you in advance!!
Hello mimibae,
When you combine two verbs,
Ex. furu + hajimeru
You change the first verb to masu-form
→furimasu
And then delete “masu”
→furi
This is called “masu-stem”
So verb masu-stem + hajimeru
You just conjugate the second verb, hajimeru
Other examples
1) kaku = to write + 2) kaeru = to change / to do something again
Change the first verb kaku to masu-stem “kaki” and add the second verb “kaeru”
kakikaeru = to rewrite
the past tense will be kaikkaeta
te form will be kaikaete
***
yukkuri is an adverb so you don’t have to change it but again when you conjugate you change the second verb “suru” or “yaru”
→(past tense) “shita” →yukkuri shita
→(te-form) “shite”→ yukkuri shite ~
yondeyaru/oshiete morau / oshiete ageru
You use the first verb into te-form and attach the second verb.
You just conjugate the second verb, yaru/morau/ageru
(past tense) yonde yatta/oshiete moratta / oshiete ageta
(te-form) yonde yatte / oshiete moratet / oshiete agete
Hi,i told someone in Japanese, that i didn’t eat anything today ,and he told me “食べな or maybe 食べなあ” so may u plz help me to understand what he meant?does he mean Eat or Don’t eat??
HI PariSan
That suffix な is for a male speech when you tell someone what to do.
食べなさい Eat! →食べな ( male speech/a bit rough) Eat!
I explained in my male speech lesson. Click this link.
Thank you sooo much🙏😊
Anytime! :)
おはようございます先生、What is the difference between くらい /ぐらい？and what is the difference between くらい/ほど
こんにちは、S. Abinaya
くらい・ぐらい are the same and they are interchangeable.
As for the difference between くらい/ほど
When it is used as “about/approximately”
ほど is more formal than くらい
Ex. ５分くらい・ぐらい
Ex. ５分ほど
But some of the specific usages such as
食べれば食べるほど、太る
The more you eat, the fatter you become
マギーほどかわいい犬はいない。
There is no dog as cute as Maggie.
you can’t use くらい
(Check this lesson for the usage ほど）
はい先生わかりました。
ありがとうございました
先生！！^_^
どういたしまして❤️
こんにちは
What is the difference between 親に対してもんくをいう
親について文句を言う
こんにちは、Tarun
They both mean “complain about” but
ついて is just talking about something negative about one’s parents.
対して is stronger. It is similar to “against” in English.
Maggie Sensei,
If we want to ask a yes/no question, does it make sense to use n-desu?
たとえば、
もう食べたんですか。 VS もう食べましたか。
ありがとうございます！
Hello アミーリア
Yes you can say both
もう食べたんですか。
もう食べましたか。
The nuance difference: もう食べたんですか。 sounds a bit more surprised.
Hello Maggie Sensei
With this grammar point, can you say
最初に先生はかっこいいと思ったけど、彼は怠け者のはずだ。
So trying to say, on the contrary, he must be a lazy person.
Thanks!
Hi Jen
Since you are talking about someone’s personality I would say
最初は、先生はかっこいいと思ったけど
彼は怠け者に違いない is more natural.
If you are less sure,
彼は多分、怠け者かもしれない。 works as well.
If it’s “verb はずだ/です”, can’t you simply say “verb はずじゃない” for the negation, instead of “verb はずがない”? Is it wrong?
Usually the negative form of noun+だ・です is noun+ ではない・じゃない
But the negative form of はず is special and you use はずがない・はずはない as its negative form.
彼は時間通りに来るはずだ。
He should be here on time.
When you deny the possibility strongly you use はずはない・はずがない
彼が時間通りに来るはずはない・はずがない
There is no way that he would be here on time.
You don’t say 来るはずじゃない
You use はずではない・はずじゃない はずではなかった・はずじゃなかった when things don’t/didn’t work out as one has expected.
こんなはずじゃなかった
It’s not supposed to happen.
So I can say じゃない after はず only when it’s alone (or with こんな, その, etc.), right?
How do you negate “noun のはずだ”? Do you still use がない?
Is こんなはずがない right? If so, what’s the difference between this and your last example?
Yes, you can use がない・はない to negate noun+のはずだ
Ex. 彼は医者のはずだ
(strong negation)彼が医者のはずはない・はずがない
Sensei, sorry to bother you again. I have this question:
Aa man tells aa woman:
３回くしゃみをして お大事にって 言われないと 妖精になるんだ この辺の言いい伝えさ
She answers:
ならないわよ だってもう妖精ようせいだもの
That ならない, does it have anything to do with なら?
Personally I think it does not, but maybe it does. To me, when I translate it, it is as if she were saying: It cannot be helped
よろしくお願いします。
Hello again,
OK, you can pay attention to the previous sentence.
妖精になるんだ the verb in the sentence is
（〜に）なる to be, to become
妖精になるのです→妖精になるのだ→(casual) 妖精になるんだ to become a fairy
the negative form of なる is ならない not become
I’m not going to be/become a fairy (even I sneeze three times) because I’m already a fairy.
ありがとうございました、先生。
どういたしまして :)
「忙しいなら断っていいよ」は「忙しければ断っていいよ」と言い換えればいいですか？よければ、ニュアンスはどう違いますか？
Hi Leona,
二つとも使えます。人に使う場合なので意味は同じです。
Maggie Sensei, I have this doubt as to how と is working inside this sentence.
Is it working as WHEN or as abbreviated form of と思う and then 移している
50年前のゲート事件以来 月のかけらの落下による気象変化のために
全すべての生活空間を地下へと移している地球人たちにとって コンピューターによってつくられた宇ネットは
Please help me with my doubt.
Hi Pachacutec
Hello Pachacutec
生活空間を地下へと移している地球人
This と is a little different from the one I explained in this lesson but you sometimes use と with other particle. にと・へと・かと・でと, etc.
へ is a direction marker. You can say this without と
生活空間を地下へ(or に）移す~
You see へと in more written form/formal speech.
It might be easier to think this way.
←生活空間を地下へと（Ex. (いうように)場所を）移す
Other example
マギーに買ったプレゼント
マギーにと買ったプレゼント (more literal)
←マギーに（どうかと思って）買ったプレゼント
Sensei:
Watching this anime (https://anjsub.com/watch-cowboy-bebop/?v=episode04) I came across わけ。
But I cannot figure out quite exactly why he would use わけ。
7:44でもって これがそのテロ集団の
7:47トゥインクル・マリア・マードックってわけだ。
In my opinion, I think he uses it to summarize with aa conclusion. I mean she is the leader of the terrorist group, that is her name and the reason of the group. But then is it necessary to use わけ in there. What would happen if I omitted? Why not only トゥインクル・マリア・マードックってだ。?
よろしくお願いします。
I think he uses it to summarize with aa conclusion.
→Yes, that’s right! ☺️
Sensei:
I was watching this anime (https://anjsub.com/watch-cowboy-bebop/?v=episode04)
And I came across two なs, but I am unsure about how they are being used.
For example, in the first one, in my opinion I think the guy uses it to expect agreement from the other guy he is having dinner with: 食料に不自由しなくなってな (Food has not become inconvience, な, or there is not poverty of food, な). That is how I see it, but on the other hand, why would he expect agreement from the other person if that person doesn’t now about the 海ネズミ and it is the first time he is eating it (that is what makes me doubt).
2:59この海ネズミってやつはな
3:01昔はガニメデの海で養殖されてたんだが
3:04ゲートが安定してから
3:06食料に不自由しなくなってな
3:08今は野生化してるやつを
3:10物好きが食ってるだけさ
3:12で 結局うまいのか
3:15恐ろしくまずい
In the second one, the same guy, to me, sounds as if he is expecting agreement because he is explaining about how things while in 位相差空間 do not have any effect where they are, but they can see it. So he uses な to say, don’t you think so?. But again I am not sure
21:02ハイスクールで習わなかったか
21:05位相差空間に閉じ込められた物質は
21:08目には見えていても
21:10永遠にこっちの物質とは交わらねえってな
Are my suppositions correct 先生、or is な being used differently?
よろしくお願いします。
This な is the one for a male speech.
The function is similar to ね
この海ネズミってやつはな
The speaker is not actually expecting agreement but probably needs the listener’s attention.
It is similar to “You know/You see” in English.
Sensei：
Does this sentence みんなカジノですったと have anything to do with って
I was watching anime and I came across that dialog:
GIrl Bounty Hunter: じゃ何か？
Boy Bounty Hunter: 俺たちから持ち逃げした金は みんなカジノですったと。
Girl Bounty Hunter: 金は天下の回り物って言うでしょ。
I am unsure whether the guy is referring to です or って with たと
よろしくお願いします。
Hi david,
It is a kind of old male man’s speech/or dialect to say って
He is telling someone what happened.
~すったんだって
〜すったらしい
〜すったんだそうだ
→すったと
こんにちは先生！I am actually confused how ところで is used. Could you please give more example and explanation? ありがとうございます！Also, I also encounter ところだから in my book, can you also please explain during when it is used?
Hi Kailyn
I listed two usages of ところで
1) Indicating the location / time / situation / When it fills certain conditions~
2) even if
Which usage do you have a problem understanding? Or if you are talking about some other usage that you have seen, give me an example first. I will explain.
ところだから
から give a reason for the following part.
今、食べたところ = I just ate
Ex. (When someone offers you something to eat)
今、食べたところだからいらないです。 = I just ate so I don’t want it.
The first usage of ところで indicating the location/time/situation/when it fills certain conditions.. What are those certain conditions? and how do I know if I’ll use ところで? :)
Ah OK, the usage “when it fills certain conditions”?
Like in my example sentence,
Ex. 皆さんがそろったところで乾杯しましょう。
= Since everybody is here, let’s toast.
皆さんがそろった （everybody are here） is the condition for the following part, 乾杯しましょう。
→みんながそろったから乾杯しましょう
試験が終わったところで、旅行にでも行こうかな。
The exam was over so I guess I go traveling.
（Filling the condition of 試験が終わる leads to the next action.)
**
when to use ところで
Q:how do I know if I’ll use ところで?
indicating the location
ところ = place + で: do/did something~ where ~
道を曲がったところでタクシーを降りた。
電車を降りたところで待っていてください。
indicating the time
one action is done + ところで+ some other action
When you did/finish something, something else happened/you or someone did some other action.
映画が終わったところで目が覚めた。
家に着いたところで、鍵をもっていないことに気がついた。
すみません先生、I think you comment has been cut but I appreciate the detailed explanation. ありがとうございます先生！
Oops. Sorry. I thought I deleted the last two lines but I guess I forgot to do so.
Hello Maggie-sensei, I just read the lesson and, if I’m not mistaken, (te) shimau is the same meaning as chau but it’s the formal version of it? Because I don’t see the pattern and I’ve been wondering about this.
Hi Wendy
Hmm I think I explained the pattern in this lesson.
てしまう→(casual form) ちゃう
食べてしまう finish eating
→食べちゃう （casual) finish eating
And they mean the same. I probably don’t understand your question. What pattern you don’t exactly understand?
What I mean is, are there specific situations where using te shimau is more appropriate? Or are they both interchangeable? Because I do see them both being used often and I don’t really notice the difference, like I don’t notice that the other one is more ‘formal’.
I see. They are interchangeable but as I said, ちゃう is more casual.
But it is possible that some people use both patterns when they talk.
For example, when you repeat too many chau in one sentence, it sounds too much so you may mix with しまう
Hello Maggie Sensei..
With this grammar point of ても
Can you use it like this: 子供の時、父にピアノを習わせられました。 病気でもピアノのクラスに行かなければなりませんでした。
What I want to say is “I had to go to piano class even if I was sick!” The context is sort of like being forced to go to piano class and trying to emphasize that I still had to do classes regardless of my health.
Hello, Jen
Yes, it works. :)
What an awesome site you have … it has seriously helped me have a deeper understanding of the language.
Hello DD,
I’m happy to hear this lesson helped you! ☺️
Maggie-Sensei,
sorry in advanced for not knowing how to type Japanese on my laptop
What’s the difference between
ame ga futte kita noni
AND
ame ga furi hajimeta noni
Hi Lewis,
1) 雨が降ってきた= ame ga futte kita
2) 雨が降り始めた = ame ga furihajimeta
They mean the same, “it started raining/it started to rain” but the nuance difference is
1) It could be more subjective and conversational than 2).
The speaker is outside and see/feel the rain started to fall.
Also you are focusing on the moment when it started to rain.
2) could be more objective.
So for example, in the news or weather report, you use 降り始めた
Ex. 昨夜から降り始めた雨は~
Also while 1) is focusing on the moment when it started to rain, you use 降り始めた to describe the duration of rain.
It could be still raining now.
WOW!!
thank you for such a detailed explanation Maggie Sensei!
I definitely see the subtle difference now!
Good!! d(^_^o)
Hi maggie sensei, thanks again for your wonderful lesson, Can u perhaps do a lesson on ての ? Imabi’s site is too confusing with its deep analysis, perhaps you can clear things up if it is in your convenience? Also ての vs masu- form for nomilisation of a verb, thank you very much. I love your site way more, because it gives me easier understanding, unlike somethings… ==
Hello Yeow,
I’m sure there are many great sites out there and their explanation is much better than mine but I will add it on the request list. :)
unfortunately, I couldn’t find anything regarding this other than 1 site, Sorry for requesting such a hard task, I understand that you are very busy. :)
Sensei:
I came across this paragraph:
『ご免なさい。』と彼はいって、じっと眼を窓外に放ちながら、三分間ばかりは無言のままで坐っていた。やがて、重々しく吐息をつき、再びわたしの前へ座を占めた。彼の顔はまるで別人のようになり、その眼はいかにもみじめで、ほとんど奇怪なといっていいくらい一種異様な微笑が、脣のあたりに皺を寄せているのであった。
Is いい working with くらい . I mean when I translate it literally, I do it this way, but I am not sure:
ほとんど奇怪なといっていいくらい一種異様な微笑が、
almost+ strange といって (for という） good くらい(approx.) eccentric smileが、
In other words: Those eyes were wretched, aa eccentric smile almost like strange.
Is it correct, Sensei?
前もってお願いします。
Hi David,
Yes, your interpretation is right. Almost ~
The literal meaning of ~といっていいくらい is “as one could say/describe ~ ”
(Note for you: 前もってお願いします→よろしくお願いします。）
はい先生わかりました。どうもありがとうございました。
よかった！ :)
Hi, Maggie sensei!
First time commenter. Please be gentle XD I have been stalking your website from time to time looking for wisdome when needed :)
I have been watching some YouTube videos about ～に対して and came across this sentence:
今回の選挙は定数5人に対して、立候補者は15名でした。
It was put under the section of ratios. Because the video was in Japanese and without translation I am not exactly sure how I would translate it. To be honest, I am not really sure I get it. That’s why I need help of the great Maggie sensei!
Hi k2swis
In this case, it shows the contrast of the number.
There were “１５ candidates” for “5 seats” in this election.
Hi sensei.
It’s my first comment here. I have a question.
What does あとから means ?😅
Thank you for this great lesson.
Hi Aya,
あとから is similar to あとで
It means “later”/”after finishing something”
あとから電話します。
= I will call you later.
あとから文句を言う。
= to complain later (after something is over)
Can you help me out?, 復習時でも良い, meaning please, thanks.
Hi esson,
I don’t know the context but it means “You can do that (whatever topics you are talking about) when you review.”
Hi, could someone explain the difference between ことになるand ことになっている.
I understand that one of the meanings of this grammar structure is that something has been decided, but I don’t understand the nuance between these two structures.
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになっている。
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
I couldn’t tell you the difference between the sentences. Literally – It has been decided that I will be going to Tokyo next Friday for business – perhaps by the person’s superiors.
Hi Angus,
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになっている。 Already decided
I am supposed to go to Tokyo on business next Friday.
来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
It hasn’t decided. You are talking about the possibility.
For example, if you don’t finish your work today, you may end up going to Tokyo next Friday.
もし今日、仕事を終わらせることができなければ、来週の金曜日は東京へ出張へ行くことになります。
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you possibly help me. I’m so confusing…
(1) Is it true that すぎるis used mostly for minus meaning. And very little case, it is used for positive meaning, like 可愛すぎ
If so,
安全すぎます。
is impossible.
(2) My second confusing is if すぎるis used with positive words, it also includes the hidden minus meaning.
For example
この仕事は楽します。
(It means, this job is too pleasant that it becomes boring)
Thanks my Lady.
Hello Frozenhert,
1) Yes. The original usage of すぎる is to express unfavorable state.
高すぎる
ひどすぎる
However, like some of my example sentences, you see/hear a lot in conversation with positive meaning.
すごすぎる
かわいすぎる
楽しすぎる
安全すぎる is rare and it would be wrong in your exam but you do hear that expression when you take being safe is something negative.
日本は安全すぎるから海外でスリに遭う人が多い。
It implies being in a safe country makes you careless.
Good day, Maggie!
I am confused about the usage of と＋の, especially in these two cases (the first one is from a song, the second one is from a book, so they might not be good examples):
「今ここに誓おう あなたとの世界を
これから未来を 失わないために」
「どうして彼との間に何か違うことがある日は、こうして雨が降るのだろう」.
I understand more basic structures like 学校の先生との会話, but, in those two examples, I don’t even know if that’s the same usage.
Could you clear up what’s happening in those two sentences, please?
Thanks.
Hi Gabriel,
OK, I explained the usage in my noun + particle + の + noun so please read the lesson first.
Click this link.
You have to assume what verb is missing
あなたと<(一緒に)いる>世界
→あなたとの世界
あなたと（過ごす）時間
→あなたとの時間
あなたと（へ抱く）気持ち
→あなたへの気持ち
As for the second one,
（私と）彼との間
→彼との間
If you don’t omit 私と
you can say both
私と彼の間
or
私と彼との間
But if you just omit 私と, it will be just 彼の間 and it doesn’t make a sense.
Hope it helps.
Wow, such a fast reply!
Thank you so much for it, you really helped me. :3
I had already seen the lesson you linked, but I was still confused with the usage (as in what kind of の it was) and was thinking about where to post this comment, so I ended up posting it here.
You cleared up any questions I had with the first one, I didn’t know you could omit other things with と (I had thought it was only with 思う/考える).
With the second one, aside from the use of との, I think why I don’t get it is because of my lack of understanding of 間, or, in particular, if I could say 彼と私の間 instead of 私と彼の間 or 私と彼との間 (I have only seen 間 being used as between in the form of ＡとＢの間).
Sorry for asking even more of you ;w;
間 means “between” but in this case it indicates the relationship between two people.
It might be easier for you to think this と for quoting.
私と彼の間→「私と彼」という二人の間 →(私と) 彼との間
私と彼の関係→「私と彼」という二人の関係(かんけい = relationship) →(私と)彼との関係
私と彼の絆→「私と彼」という二人の絆（きずな = connection/bond）→(私と)彼との絆
Hi @maggie sensee, i wanted to that before にとってalways comes a NOUN。。 can we put any adjective or verb before にとって。
返事して下さい。
Hi Laxmi,
Yes, you only use にとって with a noun.
Thankyou sensee🌸🌸
You’re welcome! 🐶 💕
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I simply love your work, I spent the entire summer using your website as my no.1 go-to 教科書。You are one of the best teachers I’ve ever had, and you don’t even know me xD
I was watching a video and came across the phrases “あそんでいきたい” and “あそんでいきましょう”. It was a gaming video, a first-person Disneyland simulator, if it helps. The phrase was said before the gamer entered the first ride.
So, I’m sensing this has something to do with the grammar rule described above. My first thought was that in these phrases, あそんで and あそびに would be interchangeable but it doesn’t completely make sense to me… They have to be different, right?
I understand “あそびに” as a description of いく. Like, the whole purpose of いく is あそびに, and there is equal importance placed on both parts.
Whereas, あそんでいく simply highlights the direction of あそぶ、you have to いく if you want to あそぶ. So because you あそびたい、 you いく since the place where you あそぶ is far from you. You あそんでいく。
If you were already IN Disneyland and had just finished, would you say something like “またあそんできたい”?
Does this make sense?
Thank you so much in advance <3
Hello, Yukisia
First of all, I am very happy to hear you spend the entire summer studying my lessons.
Good question.
遊びにいく and 遊んでいく are different.
Ex. Disney Landに遊びにいく。
= To go to Disneyland (for fun)
Ex. Disney Landで遊んでいく。
= to hang out at Disneyland
Vて・でいく implies “to spend time doing something at some place”
If you are already in Disneyland, you say
また遊びに来たい (not あそんできたい）
Another example
どこかに食べに行こう！
Let’s go out to eat.
(You are going to move to one place and eat)
どこかで食べていこう
Let’s eat something somewhere.
(You want to spend some time having dinner/lunch)
Hope it helps. :)
Hello Maggie Sensei.
With Causative forms,
1) How best to distinguish the difference between てくれた and just a ~させた sentence?
Is my understanding of the following correct?
先生は私に日本語を話させました。
The teacher let/made me speak in Japanese.
先生は私に日本語を話させてくれました
The teacher lets**/allows me to speak in Japanese.
2) Can you have a negative causative sentence like the following?
先生は私に英語を話させてくれませんでした。
The teacher does not allow me to speak in English.
先生は私に英語を話させませんでした。
The teacher did not let me speak in English.
3) にor を？
I read in the Genki that verbs such as “to go”, “to return”, “to sit” use the に particle, so in the causative sentence, it takes on a “を”. Does that sound right to you? I am still trying to wrap my head around this concept…
The examples below – have I used the right particles or are they written correctly?
先生は私をトイレに行かせました。
The teacher made/let me go to the bathroom.
お父さんは私をイトクラブに行かせませんでした。
My father does not let me go to the Night Club
Thank you!
Regards,
Jen.
Hi Jen
1) Yes, your interpretation is right.
させた forced someone to do something
させてくれた someone allow/let you do something for your sake
２)
先生は私をトイレに行かせました。
お父さんは私をナイトクラブに行かせませんでした。
They are both correct.
Though you can use に in the causative sentence (Ex. 私に行かせた) you avoid using the same particles in one sentence. (You are already using に as a direction marker,トイレに・ナイトクラブに）
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for explaining that!
For question (2), what did you think of the negative causative sentences ? Or is causative form only used for positive sentences?
Thanks!
Oh sorry. For some reason, I must have erased my answer for 2) by accident.
2) You can use causative form in a negative sentence.
I would change the particle を to で to make them sound more natural, though.
A:先生は私に英語で話させてくれませんでした。
The teacher does not allow me to speak in English.
B: 先生は私に英語で話させませんでした。
The teacher did not let me speak in English.
Hello Maggie Sensei.
Thank you for clarifying that and for your explanations!! I really really appreciate it!
I am working on some textbook examples. And I am finding it confusing as to when to use the に or を particle for causative sentences.
Are there some rules/ structure to consider here?
**My initial thought is if the verb itself takes on the “を” particle (e.g をする、を拾う、を食べる – transitive verbs), then the sentence structure is :
==>Action Tellerは Action Doerに objectを action。
e.g 1. 母は私に野菜を食べさせます。
e.g.2. 先生は私に英語で話させませんでした
e.g.3. 先生は学生に宿題をさせました。
**if the verb takes on the “に” particle に行く、に帰る、にくる…
==>Action Tellerは Action Doerを non-object に action。 (And as you mentioned before, avoid using the same particles in one sentence)…
e.g 1. お父さんは私をナイトクラブに行かせませんでした。
e.g.2.先生は生徒を家に帰らせます。
Q: This is the right way to think of the particle?
Q – What about these examples though?
先生は生徒を宿題させます。
部長は部下を休ませました。
Q1) Yes, that’s right.
Q2) 先生は生徒を宿題させます。→先生は生徒に宿題をさせます （生徒 indierct object / 宿題 direct object)
部長は部下を休ませました。 Good.
But if you add 仕事, it changes
部長は部下に仕事を休ませました。
Hello Maggie Sensei.
So it really depends on whether the sentence itself has a direct object mentioned in it or not to determine which particular to use, does it?
Using previous examples:
部長は部下を休ませました。 (Teller は Doer (not direct object) を action)
But if you add 仕事, it changes
部長は部下に仕事を休ませました。(Tellerは Does に direct object を action)
Just another example – where there are irregular verbs such as
迎えに来る
*部長は部下を空港に迎えに来させます。<– Think this one is obvious because there is a place and we cannot have two "に" in the sentence.
**部長は部下を迎えに来させます。<– This one I am not sure now.. my guess is it is "部下を" because there is no direct object and the boss is making the subordinate go pick him up.
What are your thoughts on the last two examples?
That’s right.
And the all of your sentences are right. :)
Thank you, Maggie Sensei.
You are a legend!
本当にありがとうございました！
You’re welcome!
これからもがんばってくださいね。☺️
Hello Maggie Sensei.
It is possible to structure a sentence of something like:
“I wanted my parents to let me learn how to swim” ..
Would/could it look like this:
私は両親に泳ぎ方を習わせてくれてほしかったです。
It will be better to use もらう
両親に泳ぎ方を習わせてもらいたかったです。
Thank you Maggie Sensei.
How would I say “Despite I am a full-time work, up until recently, I was not allowed to live by myself. I want to say “up until recently” because for the longest time up until a point recently, I was not allowed doing this. But this has recently changed now.
Is this correct? –> 会社員なのに、最近まで、両親は一人暮らしをさせてくれませんでした。
Hi Jen,
Yes, it’s perfect!
Hi Maggie Sensei.
Thank you for your previous response.
I am just trying to get my head around forming causative-passive forms.
So for 歌う–> 歌わせられる and 歌わされる mean the same thing?
And using either is OK ?
Is there anything different in written form or speech form?
Hello again, Maggie Sensei.
Just thinking of more examples:
So, if I want to say my parents forced me to learn the piano, it could be either the following:
1) 子供の頃、私は親にピアノを習わされました。
2) 子供の頃、私は親にピアノを習わせられました。
Genki seems to emphasis on the (1) while some JLPT books mention both (1) and (2).
Hi Jen
There are two versions for causative form.
causative form: 歌わせる→passive causative: 歌わせられる
shorter version 歌す→passive causative:歌わされる
causative form:習わせる→passive causative:習わせられる
shorter version: 習わす→passive causative:習わされる
They mean the same. Shorter version is more conversational.
Some textbooks/teachers don’t teach the shorter version because it is more conversational (or it is considered to be a dialect in certain area).
But you do hear a lot in conversation so I think it is useful to learn that form as well.
Thank you Maggie Sensei for explaining this. I really really appreciate it!
I really love your way of explaining things. You give us all the different or potential contexts to use the grammar and a bit of background on how the grammar or word is formed. It really helps me understand the grammar point better.
本当にありがとうございました！
You are very very welcome! 🐶 💕
hi Sensei, I have a question
when there are 2 verbs (the first of which is “masu”) how does it translate?
For example “選びには選んだ”how do you translate?
Hi Lulu
１）選びに選んだ(＋noun) : (something that was ) carefully chosen/selected
Ex.選びに選んだワイン singled out wine
２）選ぶには選んだが＋〜 : I had no choices and picked one (but~)/ You choose something reluctantly but
Ex.たくさんあるワインから選ぶには選んだがそれが一番いいものかはわからない。
I picked one wine (among many) but not sure if it is the best one.
1) あの映画は期待していた(とおりに)面白くなかった.
2) あの映画は期待していた(ほど)面白くなかった.
Whats the difference between these two Sentences as there meaning is same. Please explain sensee.
Hi Laxmi
First
1)Let me change a little. 期待 is used when you expect something positive.
あの映画は思ったとおり面白くなかった。
That movie was not interesting as I thought it would be.
Before you saw the movie, you thought it would be interesting and you were right. It was not interesting.
2. あの映画は期待していた(ほど)面白くなかった.
That movie was not as interesting as I was expecting it to be.
Before you saw the movie, you thought it was interesting. (but it was not)
@maggiesensei Thank you so much sensee. I understood very well. You are amazing.
なみだをでるほどうれしいです。
You’re very welcome! I’m glad to hear it’s clear now. :)
Hi Maggie, thank you for the lesson! I have a question about using さえ with verbs. What’s the difference between using the ます form (minus ます)+さえすれば and the て form +さえいれば?
For example, in the lesson you used:
１日動かずに寝てさえいたら治るでしょう。
Can you use 寝さえしたら instead? What would be the difference?
In one of my Japanese textbooks, I see:
まじめに勉強してさえいれば試験は大丈夫。
(As long as you study seriously, you’ll do okay on the exam.)
Why isn’t it 勉強しさえすれば? If it’s 勉強してさえいれば then shouldn’t it translate to “As long as you are studyING seriously, you’ll do okay on the exam”?
I understand the difference between 寝ます/寝ている, and 勉強します/勉強している, but for some reason using them with さえ is confusing to me. You explained it a little bit with your 宿題をやりさえすればいい/宿題をやってさえいたらいい example but I still don’t understand.
Also, you used two examples of さえ+くれる
彼は私の方を見てさえくれない。
and
あなたが側にいてくれさえしたら私は幸せです。
Can you say 見てくれさえしない and 側にいてさえくれたら instead? Would there be any difference?
I’m sorry for such detailed questions…but if you can help me understand, I would really appreciate it!
Hi Natalie,
masu stem + さえいれば
〜て＋さえいれば
OK, you say you know the difference but let me explain:
The dictionary form is one time action or just focusing on what one does.
Vている describe on-going action (is doing ~ ) or state (have been doing something)
寝る = to go to bed, to sleep
寝ている = to be sleeping
勉強する = to study
勉強している =to be studying, has been studying
見る = to watch, see, look
見ている = to be watching, seeing, looking/ has been watching, seeing, looking
It is possible to use both form depending on your perspective.
１日動かずに寝ている to be in the state of sleeping all day long
Since there is a word, １日, 寝ている is better.
If someone keeps working without sleeping or has a problem sleeping, then you can say
少し寝さえすれば治ります。
まじめに勉強してさえいれば試験は大丈夫。
勉強している here implies, “keep constantly studying”
If you are talking about simply whether you study or not , it is possible to say 勉強しさせすれば
For example, you never study but only if you study, you would pass the exam.
彼は私の方を見てさえくれない。
In this example, 見る is one time action.
But for example, if you are talking about “to look at someone for a long time” you can say 見ていて
I understand! Thank you so much for explaining!
You’re very welcome! :)
From what I notice words like「的」and 「中 only works with compound kanji with 音読み readings like 「基本」 and 「世界」. Am I correct in that assumption?
Hi,
You are right about 音読み but as for 的 but not necessary compound words.
劇的、私的、詩的, etc.
Ah, I am very late, but was wonder,, so when saying the “___って呼んで。” can that be put in the bio? Or would that be awkward.
Your followers usually use your twitter name anyway but yes, you can write in your profile,
“Socksって呼んでね。・（more polite) “Socks”と呼んでください”
Hello! I’m very confused regarding the difference between “ところに” and “ところを”, I just don’t seem to get it :(.
I’m currently thinking of taking the N3 soon, but I was doing an exercise where I had to use one of the two and didn’t know which one to choose.
学校を休んで遊んでいる（ ）友達のお母さんに見られた
My book says it should be とことを and not ところに, could you please help me understand why, マギー先生?
Thanks in advance!
Hello アレハンドロ,
OK, focus on the function of the particle に and を and think without ところ first.
に indicates certain time
を object marker
Ex. 遊んでいる時に、友達のお母さんがやってきた。
= When I was playing, my friend’s mother came over.
(You can’t use を here)
Ex. 友達のお母さんは私が遊んでいるのを見た。
My friend’s mother saw me playing.
You use を here because 私が遊んでいるの is an object of the action of 見る
Now make this sentence into a passive form.
Ex. 遊んでいるのを友達のお母さんに見られた。
見られる is a passive form but still 私が遊んでいるの is an object of the action 見る
If you understand the difference between this に and を, add ところ
学校を休んで遊んでいる（ ）友達のお母さんに見られた
What the friend’s mother saw was “me playing” (“object”) so you use ところを
わかりました！マギー先生の説明のおかげで今明白みたいです。ありがとうございました。
よかった！！どういたしまして☺️
Is this the same as when では is attach to まま?. Shows unfavourable results?
Yes, it is the same usage as ~てはいけない
このままではいけない。
unfavorable results
このままではだめになってしまう。
このままでは試験に落ちてしまう。
質問を答えてくれてありがとう先生:)
に答えて*
どういたしまして❤️
Hello Sensei, by the way, thank you for the lesson. I loved it :)
Sensei do you have a Telegram group or something like that, so we can asking questions directly to you sensei?
Hi oden
I’m happy to hear you liked this lesson.
Sorry I don’t have a Telegram group.
But if it is not too personal, feel free to use Maggie’s Room or any comment section. :)
Hello Maggie Sensei.
You said in your lesson above:
“However, when you describe some preparation has been done, there are some cases that you can use V + てある ( = te aru) with a particle を ( = wo)”
–> Q: How do you know when to use which particle?
–> E.g Is it wrong to say ”パンが買ってあります。” with が？
Q: Difference between てある and てあった
てある – happening now.. as in a current state..
てあった – happened in the past.. as in the preparation was done before…
Also, Maggie Sensei,
Can you say “きのう、家に帰った時、主人が晩ご飯が作ってありました。”
Meaning “When I went home yesterday, my husband had already made dinner”?
Since you make it clear who made it, it will be more natural to say
→家に帰ったら、主人がもう晩ご飯を作ってくれていました。
If you just want to describe the state, the dinner was made by someone, you can say
昨日、家に帰ったら、晩ご飯が作ってありました。
Hello Maggie Sensei.
So when using “てある” it is about the state of something being done… and we don’t emphasis on who did it or how it has been done… Hence, in the sentence (for example)
“昨日、家に帰ったら、晩ご飯が作ってありました。” there is no person (for focus on the person who did it) ?
Actually… very very sorry. すみませんでした！I am re-reading your response again.
It really depends on what one wants to emphasize then.
So, if I try to summarize it, would the following be correct?
–> If the emphasis is WHAT has been done by someone –>
(Someone が) something ~ を~てある・あります
eg: 妹がケーキを焼いて、テーブルの上においてあります。
–> if the emphasis is on the STATE for what has been done, it should be:
〜が〜てある・あります (where who or how isn’t the emphasis here)
e.g パンが買ってあります <- where the literal meaning is "The state of purchasing the bread has been done…"
よろしてお願いします！
That’s right. I think you got the idea.
Hello Maggie Sensei.
If I wanted to describe that：
”it was my birthday yesterday, and when I went home, dinner was made and a cake was baked/bought. ”
Would the following make sense?
昨日は私の誕生日で、家に帰った時、晩ご飯が作ってありました。ケーキも焼いてありました・（かってありました）。
(Not caring who did it but caring the state that it was done)
Hi Jen,
It is almost perfect. Just one thing. 家に帰った時→家に帰ったら is more natural.
Can you also prepare a number of things like:
ケーキがやいて、テーブルの上においてあります。
(The cake is made and already put on the table)
In that case,
（someoneが）ケーキを焼いて、テーブルの上においてあります。
Thanks, Maggie Sensei.
If there was not birthday, is it strange to just say
“昨日、家に帰ったら、晩ご飯が作ってありました。ケーキも焼いてありました”?
— like as a statement on what happened yesterday?
Kind regards,
Jen.
Yes, it’s perfect! 👍
Hi Jen,
Q: How do you know when to use which particle?
–> E.g Is it wrong to say ”パンが買ってあります。” with が？
〜が〜てある・あります is much more common than ~ を~てある・あります
The cases that you use を is rare but when you emphasize what has been done, you use を
And when you just state what has been done, stick to が
Q: Difference between てある and てあった
財布が置いてある You are talking about the current state.
財布が置いてあった You are talking about the state in past.
There are cases that you use てあった to describe the current state but the nuance difference is
夕食が作ってある focusing on the current state (dinner is there)
夕食が作ってあった focusing on the action (Someone prepared the dinner and left it for you.)
Thank you for explaining the difference, Maggie Sensei.
I am studying using the Genki Textbook and our teachers mainly focus on the “〜が〜てある・あります” form. There is no mention of the “~ を~てある・あります” form. Hence, it is very interesting to learn there is that subtle difference between the two. Thank you again!
Hi.
Btw, may I ask, if I’m correct kanji’s only for nouns right, if so do you know who’s 宇多田ヒカル?
If yes, why’re there katakanas in that name?
Hi Arcob,
You use kanji not just for nouns. You use them for adjectives, verbs, adverbs…
And you use kanji, hiragana or katakana for your name.
FYI Her real name is in kanji 光（ひかる=hikaru). She uses katakana for her stage name.
This is really helpful, especially with all the different examples! Thank you!
Hi Rin,
Glad to hear you found this lesson helpful! ☺️
Hi Maggie Sensei, I have a question:
Suppose 2 people are having a conversation:
John: 駅は次だよ
Sam: 駅に着いたら、すぐ食べましょうね
Can I replace 着いたら with 着いたなら, since なら is like giving suggestion?
Hi Jake,
駅に着いたら、When we get to the station
In that case, たら is more natural because they both know that they are going to get to the station for sure.
駅に着いたなら means “If we get to the station” and it sounds like they are not sure if they would get to the station or not.
Hello Maggie sensei!
I have 2 questions:
The first question:
I read somewhere that you can make a negative sentence with そうだ and a
い-Adjective 2 ways:
1. Change そうだ/です to そうじゃない/ではない
Ex. そのケーキは美味しそうじゃない。
2. Change い-adj. to negative → replace い with さ → add そうだ
Ex. そのケーキは美味しくなさそうだ。
First of all, is this even right? Second of all, is there a difference in nuance? If so, what is it?
The second question:
What is the difference between そう and よう?
Yes, you can say both
1) そのケーキは美味しそうじゃない。
2) そのケーキは美味しくなさそうだ。
They mean the same (The cake doesn’t look delicious) but 1) is more straightforward so it sounds stronger.
Can you add ありがとうございます in the end senteces that become like this
“お言葉に甘えてどうもありがとうございます”
Hi shiragiku,
You don’t say “お言葉に甘えてどうもありがとうございます” because the person who お言葉に甘える is the speaker so you can’t say
thank you for “taking up on your kind offer.”
You say,
お言葉に甘えます。
お言葉に甘えさせていただきます。
and then add ありがとうございます。 or よろしくお願いします・いたします。
This really was a life saver!!!!! Thank you so much for all the information that you’ve provided here.
It would be a great help if you could tell me how to say ‘clean and devein the shrimps’.
Hello Muskaan,
Happy to hear you found this lesson informative.
‘clean and devein the shrimps’ in Japanese is エビの背わたをとる = Ebi no sewata wo toru
Hi! I’m trying to do some digging into a phrase that my friend has on a sticker they bought.
It reads 「政府の犬め」with a picture of a dog
The only translation I can find is simply ‘government dog’ but didn’t know if the -me particle possibly changed the meaning it. Online searching lead me here 😅
Hello, Kyoumi
That め is different from the one that I explained in this lesson.
As you say the translation is “You are a government dog!”
(この）＋noun(usually a bad word)+め is a strong way to curse or insult someone.
And unfortunately, “dog” is a derogatory term to refer to someone who does everything for their boss if it is used like that.
Hello Maggie!
I’m having a little trouble with the last set of examples you provided. (The “From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions” examples.) Is it right to assume that ていく/ていた here conveys a more factual point of view and that てくる/てきた is more to express the opinions/feelings of the speaker? Thanks in advance!
P.S. I just wanted to say how much your website has helped me with learning Japanese. Without you I would have had WAY more trouble with learning Japanese! I really like the way you explain things and of course the cute pictures at the start of every lesson! <3
Hello Bobba,
Thank you for your nice message! I’m grateful to hear my lessons help you learn Japanese.
Q: Is it right to assume that ていく/ていった here conveys a more factual point of view and that てくる/てきた is more to express the opinions/feelings of the speaker?
→They both could be based on factual point of view or one’s feelings/opinions.
Someoneのことが好きになっていく・いった
Someoneのことが好きになってくる・きた
They both express your feelings but the way you see the flow of your feelings is different and 好きになっていく・いった is not necessary conveying a more factual point of view.
Also,
空が明るくなっていく
空が明るくなってきた。
They are both based on what you see.
Is it wrong to use まま here?
運転したまま、スマホをみるのは。
(Literal Translation: Looking at the phone while at the condition of driving)
Or should I use ながら?
運転しながら、スマホをみるのは。
(Looking at the phone while driving)
Hello Nicole,
You say 運転しながら~ not 運転したまま because in order to drive a car, driving requires a lot of movement and attentions.
Hi Maggie,
I was just curious with the other usage of 合う which means “to fit/suit”, what is the difference between 「合う」and「向く」?
– この仕事は彼女に向いています。
– この仕事は彼女に合っています。
Also, I’d like to ask as well, does 「合う」or “fit” also refer to size? Like if “I think those shoes will fit your foot”
-あの靴は君の足に結構合うかも。
Hi JP Archilla
– この仕事は彼女に向いています。
– この仕事は彼女に合っています。
There is not much difference and they are interchangeable in conversation but I think it is similar to the difference between “suitable”and “to be suited”.
向いています to be suitable for ~ 合っています to suit ~to
あの靴は君の足に結構合うかも。
Yes, you can use it to refer to size.
on the book that im using, there seems to be a difference hoshigaru and hoshigatteiru. and Verb stem tagaru and verb stem tagatte iru.
tagaru – habits/disposition; tagatte iru – desire hope. Iunderstand the differences in english but when it comes to the japanese examples. it is very confusing.
Can you please shed some light into this?
thank you.
Hi kaikai
hoshigaru vs hoshigatteiru
When you use present tense, you usually express one’s habit, tendency, routine or what that person usually does.
And ~teiru (present progressive tense) expresses the current state.(right now/ has been wanted to have something.)
So hoshigaru
Ex. いつもマギーはお菓子を欲しがる。= Itsumo A wa okashi wo hoshigaru. = Maggie always asks for snacks.
Ex. 子供は人のおもちゃを欲しがる。= Kodomo wa hito no omocha wo hoshigaru. = Children tend to want someone else’s toy.
hoshigatteiru
Ex. マギーはお菓子を欲しがっている。= Maggie wa okashi wo hoshigatte iru. = Describing the current state
@Maggie Sensei よろしくお願いいたします。
What will be the difference between
これからテクストを読んでください and これからのテクストを読んでください
As in both the sentences whether から affects 読んでください or テクスト, the effect is the same. As per my little understanding of Grammar, first would be more like general informative i.e. From now on please read the texts. Whereas, 2nd could be more specific to the texts the person is receiving i.e. the texts that you are receiving from now please read them (It is not inculcating that the person was not reading earlier texts, whereas as per me the 2nd one could imply that, but I do not know for sure).
教えてください
Hi Phillips,
First when you say テキスト (not テクスト）, it means “a textbook” in Japanese.
So これからテキスト (not テクスト）を読んでください。= Please read a textbook now)
The second one is strange. You don’t say これからのテキスト.
If you want to tell someone who hasn’t read a textbook before to read a textbook from now on you say
これからは、テキスト読んでください。
By adding は, you can express the contrast (before and future)
Thank you!
Thank YOU for visiting the site! :)
こんばんは マギー先生！I have a doubt regarding a few arrangements
I just wanted to ask, what is the difference between in nuance and grammar
1 Noun + Particle + の + Noun, and Sentence Verb + の(as a nominaliser) + Particle
Eg. 電話での問い合わせは大変だ and 電話で問い合わせするのは大変だ
(There are other examples as well if you think about when you use のas nominaliser
2. Noun + Particle + の + Noun and, verb modifier (when working as a Participle) + Noun + Rest of the sentence
E.g. 窓からの景色がきれいです and 窓から見える景色がきれいです
ありがとう先生
おはよう、Phillips
1. Eg. 電話での問い合わせは大変だ and 電話で問い合わせするのは大変だ
“Noun + Particle + の + Noun” is slightly more formal so you use this form more in a written form. So you use 電話で問い合わせするのは〜 more in conversation.
2. E.g. 窓からの景色がきれいです and 窓から見える景色がきれいです
The listeners/readers can visualize what the speaker/writer says more vividly with a verb.
I have a lesson (link is here)
@Maggie Sensei 本当にありがとう! I got most of it I just wanted to ask, do both of these arrangements (2 above examples) have same nuance, when used, apart from being used in formal and the 2nd example being vivid in description, or there is more nuance to both of them. ありがとう先生
Yes, they mean the same but it adds more vivid image by using a verb form.
Thank you for the lesson! But I’m wondering, if I wanted to express my feelings in a pondering way, like in a journal and to myself, like “Today I feel/I’m feeling weird… ” would it be the same as this lesson or different?
Hi Yongbok,
There are many ways to express one’s feelings but you can use many of them in this lesson when you write a journal or talking to yourself.
Today I feel/I’m feeling weird… will be for example
今日は、なんか変な気分だ。
Facebook page for French lesson does not work. Please notify when possible that it is repaired, please?
Thank you very much for this learning opportunity.
Hi hanna
Oh sorry about that.
I can’t send you the notification but I fixed the link.
What is the kanji for this kakeru?
掛ける
I need to say this, THANK YOU. I can’t count how many times I ended on your website while searching for something. Furthermore, your explanations are complete and easy to understand.
I will probably try to use patreon for the first time in my life, as I really feel in debt haha.
Hi Federico L,
I am happy to hear you have been using this site.
I’ll do my best to make more and more lessons. ☺️
Hi Sensei!
Would a sentence like this make sense using たがる and てみます for expressing what other people want to try to do?
A 「彼女はすしを食べてみたがります」, or
B 「 彼女はすしを食べたがってみます」
“She wants to try and eat sushi.”
There’s every chance this may be completely wrong!
Thank you in advance for your help.
K
Hi Krisztina
In that case,
彼女はすしを食べたがります
彼女はすしを食べたがっています
are more natural.
But in the situation that she has never tried sushi before and keeps saying “I want to try sushi!” “I want to try sushi!” then, it might be possible to say 食べてみたがります. B sounds strange anyway. It sounds like trying to want to eat sushi.
Thank you very much for your quick reply, Maggie-sensei. It’s hard to know what sounds natural when you’re not a native speaker! I think the rule of thumb I need to follow is to just keep it simple :-)
(Also, if at all possible, would you be able to remove my last name from the previous comment? It was an auto-fill accident! I’m happy to re-post my original comment again for the benefit of others’ learning.)
Hi K,
Sure, no problem. (I erased your last name from the previous comment so don’t worry. )
Hello Maggie, thank you for this nice explanation. I found a usage of the particle も that I can not seem to find anywhere in grammar explanations. Could you be so kind as to enlighten me?
(From the book キラキラ共和国 – 小川糸)
ミツローさんもミツローさんで、揺れているのかもしれない。
Where ミツローさん is a character in the book.
Thanks a lot!
Hi ZeThomas,
Ah OK,
You sometimes repeat the same subject twice to emphasize the contrast.
YはYで
The translation changes depending on the context but sometimes you translate it, “in one’s own way”
Hi Maggie, I have a question. Recently my leg hurts and it’s a big problem because I have to walk all the time in the workplace. My boss asked me if I’m okay, so I replied that everything’s fine and I said “気にしなでください”. He responded using “気になる”. I’m not so sure about his behavior towards me. If I’m just and employee for him or he likes me. Is this a clue or maybe it means nothing?
Hi Elliot
Ah in that case he is worried about your leg.
No romantic meaning.
どうして、Elliot San の社長は返事には«気になる»を使いますか
気になる—–» to be interested in smth. ですね
Hello Nipun kumar
It depends on the context.
It could be
I am concerned about (something)
It is curious that ~
I am interested in ~
This is an old submission but every time I visit I’m confused on the glass half empty usage.
Why is もう半分ない translated as half is already gone? Is this not a case of negative conjugation?
Hi Wane
ない means “there isn’t ~ ” /” not to have ~ ”
Ex.水がない = There is no water. /I don’t have water.
Adding もう,
Ex. もう水がない = There was water before but it’s gone now/water is already gone.
Ex. もう半分ない (The literal meaning “there isn’t the half glass of water already) the glass was full before but the half of the water is gone.
I’m sorry if this is a bit off topic , I just want to ask about the breakdown and deep explanation of how anata no inai sekai turned into “a world without you” in english.
thank you!
http://142.93.68.150/2017/02/04/how-to-modify-a-noun-in-japanese/
already found the answer ! thank you maggie sensei
Hi Kaeith,
Oh good! I’m glad you found the answer! :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you please help me to understand ないで/ なくて
I mean, is it possible to use
勉強しないで、試験に受かった。
勉強しなくて、試験に受かった。
And are the following interchangeable too?
ごはんを食べないで出かけた。
ごはんを食べなくで出かけた。
Thanks my Lady.
Hello, Frozenheart!
1) 勉強しないで、試験に受かった。
2) 勉強しなくて、試験に受かった。
1) is better.
しないで in the condition of not having studied
勉強しなくて、試験に落ちた makes sense. Because you didn’t study, you failed the exam.
Or add も
勉強しなくても、試験に受かった Even though I didn’t study, I passed the exam.
3)ごはんを食べないで出かけた。
4)ごはんを食べなくで出かけた。
You say 3) but 4) is wrong.
I accidentally posted it twice, my bad !
No worried. I erased the first one.
Is 分かりました used, instead of 分かっています when talking about the present or past event in relation to present (wherein the focus is on present), even though it is a punctual/instant-state change/ stative verb, as when ている extends to it 分かる, it becomes from “to understand” to “to know”, wherein it starts acting like verb 知る? Which is an exception to this rule of ている (in case of perfectual aspect)
本当にありがとう Maggie sensei for your quick response to queries, as these responses to my queries become a bigger part of my learning !!
(I erased one of your comments)
分かっています: You understood something in one point and have known that since then. So it will be strange to say that when someone just explained something. It sounds like “I already knew that.”
You understood something right after someone explained so you say 分かりました。
However Maggiesensei here I am not using the adverb もう, but 今 to say, Now, I know (Eng) and Now, I have known/understood it (literal)! So, will it still take 分かりました? ありがとう！！！
Also that’s the point. You use 今 which indicates particular moment. When you use the verb わかる, there is a moment which you understood something.
I hope sometime there is a moment you truly understand the difference..
ありがとう 先生、私は今先生の答えが分かりました. The point is when I speak about the that I understood, I am not referring to the current state but the point back in time when I understood it (i.e. focus on past and not on present).
よかった！ :)
What’s the difference between “おばあちゃんが死んじゃった。” and “（私は）おばあちゃんに死なれた。”? Doesn’t the second one work both as a simple statement and as a sentence with that nuance that I’m sorry about that?
Both express one’s emotion but 死なれた is a passive form. The speaker got negative affects more than じゃった
Thank you for the detailed lesson! However, I am still having trouble with a translation where ほど is used after an adjective: “眩しい程の暗闇の中で”What is the ほど doing to the ‘dazzling’? Does it mean that it is incomparable? Or Is it more like “a darkness like that”? Thank you in advance!
Hello Rowena
“the darkness” never dazzles so it must be from some lyrics.😉
眩しい程の暗闇 dazzling darkness
The literal meaning with 程 is “the darkness is so bright that it was almost dazzling”
So it is not actually dazzling but it is so bright as if it was dazzling.
@maggiesensei 私が「に」と「で」の差を勉強するようにしている. でもこの差が分からない。だから、私は君の助けがほしいです！
The problem that I am facing is with verbs that can take both に and で, for the purpose of indicating a place/action just like 寝る. E.g. let us take 座る as an example, and the two sentences be 私は車の中で座っている and 車の中に座っている. Now, this was my original problem. I asked someone about it, and he said that, に座っている is more natural, whereas, で座っている is unnatural.
After not being satisfied by the reasoning I looked up upon your blog .In your blog is concerned it was stated that で was used to emphasize the focus of the action, whereas, に was to show the focus on the place. Thereafter, I pondered that, since the verb of 座る can be seen from two perspectives (i.e. both as focus on action and place). E.g. What are you doing in the park, could be answered 公園で座っている, whereas, where are you, could be answered as 公園に座っている. However, I was unsure, so I looked it up at Japanese Stackexchange. Therein I found differing answers, so I was not able to figure it out whether it was right or wrong. Further, the same situation is arising with similar verbs which have the applicability of both で and に. Could you really help me with this one and similar situations!? By giving the difference along with nuances and examples!? As these type of verbs usually have both directional focus as well as focus on action. I am linking below the answers that I found on JSE.
Moving ahead, I tried to apply the logic of focus on action and focus on place on different examples used in this blog. However, I got even more confused, when I tried to apply that logic, especially with どこ sentences, as both seemed same to me and I was not able to differentiate the nuance.
Especially with this 売っている = utte iru = to be sold
“Ex.どこに売っていますか？
= Doko ni utte imasuka?
= Where do they sell it?
or
Ex.どこで売っていますか？
= Doko de utte imasuka?”
both of them seemed same to me as in both the sentences the focus was felt on the action. I was not able to differentiate between the focus of place from that of action over here. So, could you please explain the nuance and how to differentiate in these type of sentences!? As, to be sold (and a few more examples that you cited, seemed action focused and not place focused) and I was not able to understand why に could have been used.
Also I was not able to find the relation between focus on action and place present in the following sentence
“But when you say 広がる = hirogaru = to expand, spread, you can use both
Ex. 鳥インフルエンザは世界中に/で広がりました.”
Could you please answer this as well?
I know this question is quite big to answer, but could you spare some time, as I am unable to understand this and have been working upon it since 1 week!.
(https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/55342/the-use-of-%e3%81%a7-and-%e3%81%ab-with-%e5%ba%a7%e3%82%8b)
(https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/80110/usage-of-%e3%81%ab-or-%e3%81%a7-in-the-following-sentence/80123noredirect=1#comment130657_80123)
Another one but this one is related to the verb 泣く. But it provides several answers relating to に and で, for focus on place/action
(https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/60/particles-%e3%81%ab-vs-%e3%81%a7/4594#4594)
Hi,
Well, so many quetsions and I can’t answer all the details in this comment section so let me answer what I can for now.
The basic difference is:
車（の座席）に座っています。/ 公園に座っている foucsing on where you are
車で座っています / 公園で座っている focusing on what you do (sitting down) in the car/the park.
When you are taking a walk with your friend. You got tired and you are looking for somewhere to sit.
「疲れたね。どこか座るところないかな？」
「あそこのベンチに座ろうよ。」
One hour has passed and you got bored.
「まず、ベンチで座わってばかりではつまらないからどこか行こうよ。」
= Just sitting down in the bench is boring. Let’s go somewhere.
A.どこに売っていますか？ (focusing on the location)
B.どこで売っていますか？(focusing on the action of selling)
Apart from the difference in the parenthesis, the nuance difference is
A: The speaker wants to know particular place. It could be just one store.
B: It could be many stores where you can buy the stuff.
Ex. 鳥インフルエンザは世界中に/で広がりました.”
This に indicates the direction (starting from certain place and spread over the world)
で is location (where this happened.)
You say 彼女は部屋の中で泣いている (where she is crying) but you don’t say 部屋の中に泣いている。
ありがとう @maggiesensei, I got most of it, but wouldn’t the last sentence, be grammatical, if the person wants to emphasize that he is crying at some place. E.g. If A asks, where are you crying I want to come to you. Won’t the reply by B, “部屋の中に泣いている”, be grammatical, as the focus of the sentence has shifted to place, and is not on action?
On similar, I would like to ask, will 大学の食堂に朝ごはんを食べます, be grammatical, if My mother asks me, “you did not have your breakfast, where will you eat it”? As in this sentence, the focus is more on place than on action.
ありがとう Maggie sensei, I got most of what you replied. An answer to these above two question would really help me out.
Q: If A asks, where are you crying I want to come to you. Won’t the reply by B, “部屋の中に泣いている”?
→No, I wouldn’t say that. 部屋の中で泣いている。
It only works for example
部屋の中に泣いている女の子がいる
= There is a girl who is crying in the room.
FYI you use に as an object marker,
（the reason why you cry) に泣く
But of course, it is not that usage in the example above.
大学の食堂に朝ごはんを食べます
→You don’t say that. 食堂で is correct.
Even if you focus on the place, the cases that you can use both に・で are limited.
本当にありがとう Maggie Sensei, 今分かっています! !
Good! よかった！ 😊
(Note for you: 今、分かりました。）
でも, I am explaining the state that I have understood it now, meaning to say, though that act happened in the past, I am relating it to the present showing the state that I have understood it now and, not that I am not saying that, I understood (focusing in the past), and だから、「今、分かっている」を使った. I hope it is right !! But thanks a lot !!
Though you want to express your current state, you don’t say 今、わかっている
You only use the past tense. 今、わかりました。
You use わかっています when someone tells you some information that you already knew. それは、わかっています。= I know that.
If you feel like learning more about わかる in future, this is the link.
And you are very welcome. :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a question. Could you please help me.
(1) Is it correct that we just use かもしれませんto express the low possibility. If the possibility is high, we will change into でしょう.
(2) And is it correct that かもしれませんis used together with worrying about something bad only. If no worry, is it OK to use かもしれません sensei?
For example,
My textbook says
明日雨が降らないかもしれません. Is not correct
So, I’m confusing if the followings are correct or not.
明日お金がたくさんもらうかもしれません。
来年合格できるかもしれません。
Thanks my Lady.
Hello again,
1) It is hard to answer it’s low possibility or not because everything is relative and some used it when something is likely to happen.
Ex. 明日行くかもしれない (That person might have made up his/her mind 90 pct.)
でしょう is a tricky word. You see Japanese people translate “will happen” with でしょう but unless you are a weather reporter, you don’t use でしょう so much.
X 明日行くでしょう。
You can just say 多分、行くと思います。／多分行きます。
2) Not necessary true.
明日行くかもしれない
彼がくるかもしれない。
晴れるかもしれない。
Let me just tweak a little
明日お金が、たくさんもらえるかもしれません。
来年は合格できるかもしれません。 OK
明日雨が降らないかもしれません
→明日、雨は降らないかもしれません。 is fine. But the weather reporters don’t say that. I wonder if that what your textbook meant..
They say 降らないでしょう。
Thanks a lot for helping me.
That’s really a big challenge to understand かもしれない・だろう・でしょう・よう・らしい@@
I will learn one by one, day by day. If anything I would like to ask my kind teacher, that’s Maggie sensei !!!!
Anytime! :)
Great post, Maggie-sensei! :)
Thank you, Jenny! 💕
Hi! I would like to get Itadakimasu tattooed and I want to make sure I’m getting it correct. What would be the proper way: (頂きます)or ( いただきますま)
(頂きます)or ( いただきますま) →There is a typo いただきます
Both kanji and hiragana are fine but you usually use hiragana いただきます when you start eating something.
Hi Maggie先生,
I had a question about this connected to the Japanese course I’m taking right now. The instructor had us watch a video which said that while the format for this is generally “short form + んです,” for nouns and な adjectives it is instead “なんです.” The video also may have implied that this was only for when these things are in present affirmative tense, but I was unsure. Could you help clear this up?
(Sorry if you mentioned it in your article, I tried to read it as best as I could but I may have missed something.)
Hi Eli
Ah, OK,
when you want to use it in past tense, you say
だったんです
Ex. 美味しかったんです。= Oishikattandesu. = It was actually delicious.
Ex. 実は、それは犬だったんです。= Jitsu wa sore wa inu dattandesu.= Actually it was a dog.
When you want to use a negative form you say
~ではないんです/(more casual) じゃないんです
犬ではないんです。= Inu dewa nain desu. = It is not a dog.
adjective ないんです
高くないんです。= Takakunain desu. = It is not expensive.
Ex.
これは、私の本じゃないんです
Hi Maggie !
Thank you always for your valuable study notes !
By the way, you gave me the motivation to try doing also my own site for sharing my knowledge !
May I have your opinion or feedback about it ^^? This is named “JLPTMatome” (https://jlptmatome.com)
Hi Louis
Great site! Keep it up!! がんばりましょう！！ 😊
こんにちは先生
I have a question about the particle がwith ある。From what I know, ある takes が particle (…がある。) . However, I have seen に being used in place of it as well. For example- 選択接続詞とは前の内容とあとの内容が選択関係にある。
Here meaning seems to be the same as when が is used, but I don’t know why に is being used here. It might be that I am not understanding the meaning of に here. Can you please help?
Hi Ruchika
〜がある There are/is something (This が shows the existence of object/event)
Ex. 机の上にかぎがある
= There is a key on the table.
So here you are talking about the existence and location of the key.
This が is a subject marker of what exists.
Your example sentence に describes where or in what kind of state something locates
somethingにある
to be in certain state/condition/relationship
Somethingは、〜関係にある =
Somethingは、〜状況（じょうきょう）にある
Somethingは、〜状態（じょうたい）にある
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして💕
Futari to gohan ni mazero yo!
?? 二人のご飯に混ぜろよ？？
Hi Maggie-sensei!
This lesson was really helpful!
I recently started a Twitter account and started a project involving some translating (with a couple other international users) and we’ve received a few offers of help from friendly Japanese users. 🙇♀️
I was wondering, in the case that people do offer you help and say things like 力になれたら嬉しいです！, what would be a good way to respond? 今までは「ありがとうございます」とか「嬉しいです」とか言ったことあるんですが。How might I say “Any help would be greatly appreciated” or “Just your reaching out/support/willingness is a great help to me” Or maybe “Your feelings of support really reached me?”
もしよければ教えてください！
Hi b,
OK, I will give you a couple of phrases.
When you accept the offer or help, you add よろしくお願いします。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。本当に助かります。
そう言っていただいて本当に嬉しいです。どうぞよろしくお願いします。
そのお気持ち、うれしいです。
ありがとうございます。感謝の気持ちで一杯です。
Thank you so much! 本当に助かりました！:)
My pleasure! :)
Sorry, I forgot to add this in my comment earlier! I was actually also wondering how I might thank someone for looking out for me or showing care (like お心遣いありがとうございます ), but in a slightly more casual setting. :)
OK, how about
気にかけてくれてありがとう
Hello,
I’ve been coming and going about a year now here in your website which is very helpful by the way. I just have a question with regards to this lesson. What would be the difference between:
朝ご飯を食べないでくる
朝ご飯を食べてこない
Both would mean that they don’t eat breakfast right, but is there a difference in nuance?
HI JP,
They mean the same but I would say 食べてこない may involves one’s will more.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I would like to double-check what って means here at the beginning of the sentence:
なんでスマホの目覚まし鳴らなかったの？４回も鳴るようにセットしてたのに。ってもしかしてまた止めちゃった？
I’ve already read your comment to another fellow learner about it being place at the start of a sentence. You said it can mean “but”, “anyway”, “then” dejpending on the context.
Therefore, would it be right to say it means “then I must have turned it off”?
Thank you so much. Your blog is a lifesaver!!! :)
Hello Sharon,
That is a very colloquial usage of って.
I will show you how it changes,
ということは (That* means) *”That” here means “the fact that alarm clock didn’t make any sound.)
→Casual っていうことは
→Casual ってことは
→more casual って
ありがとうございます！
どういたしまして♪ 😊
Ohayo, Maggie-sensei! I have a question on ordering from a restaurant. For example, if I’m looking to buy one set of dango, would it be: “Dango hitotsu, onegai shimasu”? And would it be the same for other numbers, or does vocabulary change as the numbers increase? I’m sorry if my question is a bit odd, I’m still learning the basics. ^^;
Hi Taylor
Haha, actually it’s a good question.
One dango is 団子一本ください。（ Dango ippon kudasai.) 🍡
When you want a pack of dango (several dangos are in one package) you point the package and say
これ、ひとつください。（= Kore hitotsu kudasai.)
or
おだんご、１パックください。
これ、１パックください。
If several dango are ine packages,
Thank you very much!
You’re welcome!
Let me add one more.
For example if the package has five dangos, you can say
Ex. この5本入りの（だんご）、一つください。= kono gohon iri no (dango) hitotsu kudasai.
マギー様
•金融業 = kinyou = finance business, bank business
上記は、「Kinyuugyou」のほうが正しいのではないでしょうか？
Thank your spotting the mistake. I fixed it. ありがとうございます！
Thank you for your reply. I checked the About US but I couldn’t find an mail address of Yukari Sensei so I don’t know how to reach her. Can you please provide an email address through which I can contact her? Thank you in advance
Hello Sensei!
Could you, perhaps, help me understand the subtle difference between 間に, うちに, ながら and ところ? It’s hard for me to wrap my head around it, especially around ところ. From what I gather:
A間にB – action or state B finishes before A does;
AうちにB – similar to 間に, but A being unfinished is the condition for B;
AながらB – basically like 間に, but A is much less important, it’s more like some background information;
Aところ(some particle)B – unlike earlier, A can be in the past tense and is more like “In the moment of A”, kind of locking A in time, which allows “Aところ” to be used gramatically as a noun of sorts (hence the possibility of other particles following it).
Do I understand those points correctly? Neither Shin Kanzen nor the dictionaries of Japanese grammar by Makino and Tsuitsui help. Maybe you would be able to?
I can only imagine how much work you put into this whole site and, believe, I am truly thankful for all you have done so far, as it has helped me tremendously, but unfortunately, not this time.
Hi Patrick,
Yes, I think you got the difference right. (As for the difference between 間 and うち I explained in this lesson.)
ごめんなさい先生。
You had already explained it .
見逃してしまいました🙏
Good!! I am glad to hear that. :)
こんにちは、マギー先生！^ – ^
I’ve been study to pass the JLPT N2 for a while, and you and your website are helping me a lot in my journey. About this topic, I am really struggling to understand the verb (present, past and present continuous)+次第です. For example:このたび担当が替わりましたので、あいさつに伺った次第です。I can’t really understand if “次第” in that sentence means “I am the new person in charge, SO I’m here to greet you” or is just because of the “ので” in the sentence. I don’t know if the expression 次第 means “so” and I can’t help but stay struggling about this.
If you, god Maggie, could help me, I would be so happy T^T
こんにちは、sooooy~
OK, it will be easier for you to think this pattern
reason + ので (that’s why/so) + consequence ( what you did/what you are doing)+ 次第 ＋ です。
reason: 担当が替わった The person in charge has changed lately
ので = that’s why/so
consequence あいさつに伺った次第です = I came here to greet you (You don’t translate this 次第 but it has a function to explain the circumstances.)
JLPT N2に受かるようにがんばってくださいね。応援しています！
OMG thank you so much!!<3
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi, I have a question.
What is the difference between ことが多い、ことは多い、and ことも多い?
They probably have different nuances, but I can’t seem to get them properly.
Thank you in advence!
Hi タム
For example when you describe
Ex. 父は、遅く帰ることが多い。
= ちちは、おそくかえることがおおい。
= My dad often comes back home late.
(Regular statement: As for my dad, he often comes back home late.: Focusing on the fact that he comes back home late.)
Ex. 父は、遅く帰ることは多いが、いつも遊んでくれる。
= ちちは、おそくかえることはおおいが、いつもあそんでくれる。
= My dad often comes back home late but he always play with us/me.
You use は to show the contrast. So you bring up the fact that he comes back home late and then bring up other fact to show the contrast.
Ex. 父は、最近遊んでくれないし、遅く帰ることも多い。
= ちちは、さいきんあそんでくれないし、おそくかえることもおおい。
= My dad doesn’t play with us/me lately and (on top of that) he often comes back home late.
This も has a function of adding more information. “also” / ” on top of ~”
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Would it be the same meaning if I Say:
あなたの声に目覚めたならば and
あなたの声で目覚めたならば?
Thanks!
Hi Bere,
That に is a location indicator but yes, they mean the same.
If I wake up (woke up) with your voice.
Hi,
One quick question:
「~ということになる」＝「~ことになる」？
For “It means / It will be”
Do I consider the「という」like more emphatic to distinguish them?
Thanks.
Hi HnK
Right. という emphasizes what comes before more than ことになる
1) 私が行かなければ誰も行かないということになる。
2) 私が行かなければ誰も行かないことになる
Hi,
Thank you for the confirmation.
Have a nice day ^^
Thank you! You have a nice day,too! :)
Sorry, one more thing m(_ _)m
Can I use name with「ことにらる」：
…、この旅行は中止ことになる。
or only with「~ということになる」.
I don’t see name with it on this lesson.
When you use it with a noun
noun + ということになる
中止ということになる （Not 中止ことになる）
Ok,
Thank you very much ^^
No problem! :)
In the book I’m reading I came across the line「なんとか場を和ませようと、～～～」, but I’m not quite sure how to translate it since it’s using the causative form and the volitional form.
In your examples it seems that the よう always comes along as part of a phrase such as ようとする or ようと思う, but that doesn’t seem to be the case here.
Hi Megan,
なんとか場を和ませようとして/と思って →You sometimes omit として/と思って but the meaning is the same,
to do something trying to breaking the ice
Hi, Maggie sensei.
If I want to say: the scolded person, could it be:叱った人 or should be 叱られた人?
Thank you very much.
Hi Bere
That is 叱られた人
叱った人= A person who scolded someone.
叱られた人 = A person who was scolded.
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Verb in passive voice + まま is somewhat similar to とおり?
Thank you
Hi Bere,
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) Aに言われた通りに do something
2) Aに言われるまま do something
The translation is could be the same
to do something as A said
but A) You control the situation following A’s instructions.
B) You don’t control the situation just following what A said without thinking.
こんにちは、先生、
二日に二番の質問だけど…
I have a question about the ば~ほど~ structure.
The way you taught it, the correct way to say “The older the whiskey, the more expensive it is” is:
__ウィスキーは古ければ古いほど高いです。
However, the way Coto Academy on YouTube taught it is :
__ウィスキーは古いほど高いです。
If I plug both those sentences into an online translator, I get the same translation, so they must both be correct. So what’s the difference? Is one more casual than the other?
Thank you!
女ですよ
〜ければ〜ほど〜
In this sentence pattern you repeat the same word, so even if you omit the first part, the listener would know the meaning.
So you can see them both.
ウィスキーは古ければ古いほど高いです。 →ウィスキーは古いほど高いです。
安ければ安いほどいいです。 →安いほどいいです。
So you can omit the first part.
Why did you say 女ですよ？
あー、分かりました！ありがとうございます！
And the 女ですよ thing is just a thing my friends and I do as a meme (in response to a character named Elfman always yelling『男だ!!』), and we end emails like that sometimes so I kind of added it without noticing ^_^” Sorry if that confused you!
Ah, OK..
I thought I have never doubt you were a woman by your name ”あの女” so.. 😂
こんばんは、マギー先生。
I have read this post at least twenty times in the last couple of years. On today’s read-through, I was finally able to recognize what everything means without having to look at your translation. I am now confident that if something throws the word よう at my face, I will know what it means.
However, I am still not sure when to use particular cases of よう *myself*。
Like, I am likely to say 忘れないように気をつけてください, using the fourth case of よう (-> in order to A, B). But I have trouble knowing when to use よう over other grammatical structures in the other cases.
Why would I use 疲れたような顔 to mean a tired (looking) face over 疲れたそうな顔, or even just 疲れた顔? When do I use よう over そう, or nothing at all?
Also, why would I say ようになる over just になる? ラーメンが好きようになった just seems like a longer way of saying ラーメンが好きになった.
Finally, is the following excerpt from my notes correct:
【★ Adjective ような Noun:
You don’t say 忙しいような人, we would just use そう. ような only comes after an adjective when quoting】
Thank you so much!
P.S. Is it weird that I never get an email alert when you reply to my comment? I always just kinda have to reload the page..
Hi
There is no notification for the comment so you just have to come back here. (^_−)−☆
OK, there are many questions but let me answer brifly.
1)
A) 疲れたような顔
B) 疲れたそうな顔 (wrong)
C) 疲れた顔 (tired face)
The translation of A) and B) are the same, tired face but the difference is
A) Maybe that person is not actually tired but the speaker is assuming that the person is tired. (Looks tired)
B) is more direct. That person has a tired face.
2)
ラーメンが好きになった. (Correct)
ラーメンが好きようになった (It is grammatically wrong)
If it is a verb, you can say Vようになった.
好き means “to like” and you might think it is a verb but actually it is an i-adjective.
3) Yes, your note is correct. You don’t say 忙しいような人. You say 忙しい人・忙しそうな人
いつもありがとうございます、先生！
お役に立てたらうれしいです。😊
Sorry if somebody already asked this. This is a partial quote from Madoka Magica I’m confused about: “避けようのない滅び。(さけようのないほろび）”
Question 1: What is ~よう doing here and what does it mean in this context?
Question 2 and 2.5: What does “~you no nai” mean? Would it be the same as saying “~nai you ni?”
Thank you!
Hi Ten,
Ah that よう is different from the one I explained in this lesson.
Vようがない = There is no way that one can do something
避けようがない= You can’t avoid
When it modifies a noun 避けようがない+ noun or 避けようのない+ noun = unavoidable + noun
Other example
わからない →(stronger) わかりようがない・わかりようのない
わかりようがない・わかりようのない問題 = The question/issue/problem that there is no way that one would know
Hi Maggie Sensei!! Thanks for your valuable lessons. I was analyzing DOKOROKA and came with a question from the examples you gave:
彼女は料理ができないどころか卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
In this example, it’s quite clear to me she can’t cook, from the negative form 料理ができない. However, in the next example it’s not so clear:
夫は手伝ってくれるどころか手伝って欲しいときにはどこかにでかけてしまう
My husband is hardly helpful. Whenever I need his help he just disappears
In this sentence, 手伝ってくれるどころか is positive, so I would assume that he actually helps her, but in the translation it says he doesn’t. Wouldn’t it be more appropriate “Tetsudattekurenai”? Why do we have in both sentences a negative meaning but only in the first one we have a negative verb on the first part of the sentence?
Thanks a lot for your support!!
Hi Alex
Good question!
夫は手伝ってくれるどころか手伝って欲しいときにはどこかにでかけてしまう
手伝ってくれる is an affirmative form but the meaning is negative. He didn’t help his wife.
It actually means,
夫は手伝ってくれるどころか手伝って欲しいときには（手伝わないで）でかけてしまう。
He goes out without helping me.
Yes, it is from たりlesson. Thanks for the explanation, Maggie Sensei.
GOOD!😊 You’re very welcome!
Maggie Sensei!!
[なでなで]
What about a small laugh, like:
“It gave me a tickle”
“It made me smile/chuckle”
Hi squidlydeux U^ェ^U
You can say くすっと笑えた ( = kusutto waraeta) ・くすっときた(= kusutto kita)
So instead of くすくすと笑う, くすっと笑えた or くすっときた is like a single giggle or chuckle?
Yes. That’s right.
Would it be the same for ぴくぴく –> ぴくっと~ like a single wince/twitch when you hear/see something that disturbs you. しくしくとなく–> しくっと or ひくひく –> ひくっと~ when you’re trying to stop from crying or the first ひく before you really ひくひく?
You usually repeat the word to describe the state condition or constant movement. And you use single word to describe the one time movement/action.
魚がぴくぴく動いている (The fish is twitching-constant movement) →ぴくっと動いた。(Just one time)
But it doesn’t work with any words. You don’t say しくっとなく→しくしく泣く I guess it is because しくしく means “weeping” is not one time action.
Hello, Maggie sensei. Thanks for the lesson. I have a question. How does “ga” work in these sentences? I’m confused about the use.
飲み会に行ったら彼女が怒るかもしれない。
= If I go to the drinking party, my girlfriend might be upset
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
The guy who looks shallow could be actually very serious, you know.
Hi Sandara,
Is it from my たり lesson?
You can use は as well but the change the nuance a little.
That が emphasizes what comes before.
飲み会に行ったら彼女が怒るかもしれない。Emphasizing 彼女 (My girlfriend)
彼女は怒るかもしれない focusing on the state “She may get angry”
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。
Emphasizing チャラくみえる人
When you state some commonsense or talk about the definition, you tend to use は
チャラくみえる人は、実はまじめだ。(focusing on what comes after 実はまじめだ）
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been a bit puzzled about the different uses of ‘morau’. I understand the one you explained in this lesson but I’ve heard it being used in other ways.
For example in this sentence what is the actual purpose or meaning?
今週限りで会社を辞めてもらいたい。
konshuu kagiri de kaisha o yamete moraitai.
In this case it doesn’t really mean receiving something from someone. And how do I know if ‘kureru’ is not a better use for this example instead of moraitai?
Hi Wendy
Ah OK.
As you said, もらう・もらった is used when you receive something or someone does/did something for you or when you ask for a favor.
I covered the second usage in my “How to make a request” lesson. Click this link
If you still have a doubt after the lesson, let me know.
Hello Maggie-sensei,
I’ve read the page on the ‘How to make a request’ lesson and I think I’m understanding it better now.
I was watching anime and I came across an example which I was wondering about?
It went like this:
S: ‘Mom why did you give me so many green peas?’
M: ‘It’s not good to be picky about your food’
Suki kirai te youku nai to omotte
M: ‘I thought this might be a good chance to get you over that’
Kono kikai ni kokufuku shite moraitaina~tte
In this case, is it because the mother is requesting her son to not be picky about food? Or wishes he would not be picky about food? Because technically the translation ‘might be a good chance to help you get over that’ isn’t really a reques/wish to my understanding?
Hi Wendy
First the mother’s quote is unfinished. You sometimes leave the sentence unfinished on purpose to make it sound vague or soft to avoid confrontation
この機会に克服してもらいたいなって(思ったからグリーンピースをいれたの (=omotta kara guriin piisu wo ireta no))
So in this case, is it not a direct request but expressing her “wish” that she wanted her son to like green pees.
I still don’t understand 100% but I think I’m getting the general idea of it!
Also I didn’t know that was an indicator of an unfinished sentence, I learned something again. Thank you Maggie-sensei!
Hi Maggie,
Thanks for this lesson! For some reason I really struggle with でも when it’s not the “but” meaning :)
Peter.
Hi Peter,
I really hope it is clear how to use でも now. Feel free to ask me questions anytime! :)
Hi Maggie. I was wondering what is ”し” doing next to “熱く”? ”熱い” doesn’t end with ”くし” like ”うつくし”. I’m talking about this phrase that I discovered in an 80’s japanese pop song:
”熱くしながら” = while feeling warm
Maybe it’s some outdated form considering the period were the lyrics come from? Or is there a shinagara form that isn’t metioned in this post?
Hello Yu,
Ah, OK, it is not an out-dated form.
See this pattern?
(noun/person + を ) adjective + する = to make (something/someone) + adjective
Ex. 胸を熱くする
This する changes to し when it is attached to ながら
(noun/person + を ) adjective + し＋ながら
= While making (something/someone) + adjective
Ex. 胸を熱くしながら
Ex.胸を熱くする= to make one’s heart warm = to feel warm
Thank you! I also have a question. Do you accept translation requests in general?
P.s. I love how you referenced ”胸” from the song. ;)
And besides, I didn’t know that the context in the lyrics was to make >somethingnot beingするしながら<
Those are just my after thoughts ^^'. And besides, I apologise if you don't accept such requests.
*to make something >warm<, not for it being
(This reply system is very strange… I actually wrote a longer reply clarifying that I didn't understand the context that I'm talking about here in *, but the bot detected that I repeated too much words! Just wondering, but is it possible to fix this?)
Hi Yu,
First, I am sorry but I don’t do the translation. If I do that, I have to do for everybody. Thank you for your understanding. :)
I made an example sentence with 胸 but it could be anything. You have to read the sentence which comes before.
Anyway if you know more about “adjective + する”, check this lesson.
Okay! Everything’s alright. ^^
I was thinking you were actually refering to the song ”君に胸キュン” by Yellow Magic Orchestra were I got the lyrics from. It’s a popular 80’s song in Japan and so I think you know it too.
Just a bit of digression on my side. ^^’
Ah then the subject of what they are making hot is “まなざしのボルテージ” (literal translation is “the voltage of my gaze”
Yellow Magic Orchestra is so-called legend of Japanese music history. (^_−)−☆
So you using ”胸” in your example was pure coincidence? ヾ( ﾟ∀ﾟ)ﾉ ☆ー( -∀・)
I have to also ask though if the entire sentence translates to “Making the voltage of my gaze warm.”? I mean, where’s the “while” meaning in the sentence.
Sorry for asking too may questions. ^^’
Right. When you hear 〜を熱くする, you can automatically link the image of 胸/心/気持ち or 目. (^_−)−☆
〜ながら means “to do something (A) (while) doing something (B) ”
(B)(while) making the voltage of my gaze hot”
I don’t interpret the lyrics but it either goes to the motion or action in the previous line or the following line.
Thank you very much!
How would you say ‘ extra 1/2/3 more patties’?
Hi Lou,
The way you call them depends on the burger shop.
double patties 二段パティー (nidan patties) ／倍パティー (bai patties) / ダブルパティー （double patties)
triple patties 三段パティー (sandan patties) /トリプルパティー (triple patties) ,etc.
Hello sensei! I would just like to ask if it is necessary to put に after 半? I’ve read a book and it just says “６時半起きました”
Thank you in advance for the reply 😊❤️
Yes, you need に
“６時半に起きました”
Dear Maggie 先生 could you maybe explain the difference between the sentence “吟遊詩人が村に来てるって？” and “吟遊詩人が村に来てる?”? What does the って change in the first one?
Thank you very much for all the hard work you put into creating all those detailed explanations!
Hello Simon,
1) 吟遊詩人が村に来てる? Is a/the bard is in the village? (Just making sure if a/the bard is in the village.)
2) 吟遊詩人が村に来てるって？ I heard a/the bard is in the village, is that right?
1) checking the information is right.
2) checking the information you heard is right.
どうもありがとうございます！
どういたしまして、Simon! :)
What does it mean when you end a sentence with a verb in ば conditional form?
An example situation I’ve heard it used in is someone handing someone else their umbrella and saying「使えば」.
And I’m like “tsukaeba… nani?” To me, that sentence just means “if you use it.” If you use it… what? Unless it’s supposed to be short for 『使えばいい』, in which case the sentence would be “It’s fine if you use it” or “You can use it.”
But this doesn’t even work for all instances. For example, there is a song lyric that goes
声色ヒソめ噂すれば
And I’m pretty sure that’s the both the beginning and end of the sentence because the next line is 扉をノックした 後ろ振り返らずにね。And the line before it is おうまが時だけ、笑いだす。
When I try to translate it I get “those (expletive) whispers, if you make a rumor,” which of course, makes no sense.
Is there some grammatical structure at work here that I don’t know about?
Hello あの女(Wow, that sounds very rude..but it’s your name so…)
As I explained in this lesson, there are many usages of ば
「使えば」 This ば is the usage I explained in this lesson
3) giving someone a suggestion/ an advice. (Why don’t you do ~ ?/ I think you should do ~.)
この傘を使えば？ （Or この傘をつかったら？）= Why don’t you use this umbrella?
噂をすれば is from an proverb
噂をすれば影=speak of the devil So when you talk about someone, that person shows up (conditional)
So I guess when the speaker was talking about someone, that person knocked the door so don’t turn around.
I see, I must’ve missed that part about 使えば… I will reread the lesson!
And thank you for explaining 噂をすれば: I never would’ve gotten it!!
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Hi Maggie,
I hope you are well. I’m still reading every day to try and improve!
I wanted to ask if you can use 3) to give yourself advice or suggest something to yourself, in a kind of “I should ~” way?
The following sentence seems to say “I’m a little bit scared, but if Trina says she’s going to meet then I should go too”:
なんだかちょっと怖いけれど、トリナが会うというなら自分も行かなければ。
Is that correct?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hello Peter,
元気でしたか？
なんだかちょっと怖いけれど、トリナが会うというなら自分も行かなければ。
This ば is the usage 7) V negative form + ば ( = ba) + いけない ( = ikenai)/ ならない ( = naranai) = have to do / must to do ~
自分も行かなければ（いけない） = I have to go too. / I should go too.
You sometimes drop いけない
Hi Maggie
Sorry for the question being out of this context but I came across a sentence pattern I am confused about.
S(plain form)+ [という]こと+ case particle
田中さんが結婚したことを知っていますか。
How it is different from
田中さんが結婚したのを知っていますか。
Also,
二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できることを知っていますか。
二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できるのを知っていますか。
Please enlighten me.
Hello Kirti,
こと・の are both used for nominalization.
Though there are cases they are not interchangeable, your example sentences mean the same and they are interchangeable.
田中さんが結婚したことを知っていますか。= 田中さんが結婚したのを知っていますか。
二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できることを知っていますか。=二十歳になれば誰でも結婚できるのを知っていますか。
の is slightly more conversational.
手伝ってくれて、ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして💕
Maggie先生、ご説明してくださってありがとうございました！I was wondering about 既読スルー. Basically, I understand this as the equivalent of the English slang expression “left on read” but I heard there’s another way to say this in Japanese that’s made up of four kanji? Something like 〜無視? I’ve seen my friends use it but I can’t remember it!
Again, thank you for all the work you put into your lessons!
Hello Meghann
スルー is slang for 無視. They both mean “to ignore”
彼女に無視された。/ 彼女にスルーされた。
= Kanojo ni mushi sareta./ Kanojo ni suruu sareta.
= (literal meaning) I got ignored by her.
= ( She ignored me.)
マギー先生こんにちは！
いつもレッスンを作ってありがとうございます！
このレッスンも大変いい勉強になりました。
ちょっと質問がありますが、
「Vている」のかわりに「Vてはいる」と書いているのもよく見ますが
「Vてはいる」の方がV動詞を強調するんでしょうか。例えば
「あんまり生々しいことを書くと智子ちゃんに怒られるから」
「いや、怒ってはいないし、それが良ければいいんですよ」
最初の話し手が「怒られる」と言ったから、「怒る」と言うのが重点になっていますね。私はこういう意味に読みましたが。
それで「～ていた」の使い方もあまりよく分かりません。普通の「～ている」とどこが違いますか。教えて頂いたら嬉しいです。
このコメントに使った「～ている」も全てあまり自信なく書きました笑
もし間違っていたらご遠慮なく指摘してください
まだ「～ている」の使い方をもっと勉強しなければいけないなと思います！😓
ええ２０１４年のレッスンですか！！今気づいたんです
六年前のレッスンの下にコメントを書いてすみません💧
どんなに前のレッスンでも質問があったらいつでも聞いてください。
こんにちは、bluemouse
「Vている」と「Vてはいる」
そうです。☺️
「は」をいれることによって、他のものと区別したり、前にくる言葉を強調することができます。
例文の場合、いろいろな感情がありますが特に、「怒っている」ということはしていないということです。
ていたは過去の状態です。
文章もあっていますよ。
詳しい説明ですね。ありがとうございました。
どういたしまして、Cheng! ☺️
It looks like there is an error here:
マギーはハワイに行きたいそうだ。
= Maggie wa Hawai ni ikita souda.
Shouldn’t it be “行きたそうだ” like in the transliteration ?
Hi Aspej
Ah, thank you for spotting the typo.
I will fix the hiragana.
Hello maggie
For the sentence pattern V-ない ようにand V dic form ように, everywhere I have seen when there is third person instructing something, they have used passive form. But can we also form sentence without applying passive form.?
Exp. この仕事を今日中やるように頼まれました。
Could it be 彼は私に今日中仕事をやるように頼めます。
Hello Kirti,
It’s possible to use ように to give an instruction.
Let me fix your sentences a little to make it sound more natural.
この仕事を今日中にやるように頼まれました。
or (私は）彼に今日中にこの仕事をやるように頼まれました。
→彼は私*に今日中にこの仕事をやるように頼んだ。
(You usually use passive form when you talk about yourself so this sentence itself is possible but it will be more natural to use the third person instead of 私)
上司は彼に今日中にこの仕事をやるように頼んだ。
お返事ありがとうございます。😊
どういたしまして💕
Hey sensei, how can I tell if this is read as ato, nochi, or go? Is there some rule behind these suffixes?
5.32MB – 解凍後 7.77MB
Hi Me,
解凍後= かいとうご = kaitou go
There are exceptions but you usually read it ご(=go) if it is in a compound word.
食後 =しょくご = shokugo = after meal
放課後=ほうかご= houkago= after school
And if a verb past tense + 後 or noun + の+ 後, you read it あと= ato
食事をした後= しょくじをしたあと= shokuji wo shita ato = after having a meal
放課の後= houka no ato
Hi Maggie sensei
I have a question. I want to ask someone to cover my shift for me. Is my sentence correct?
今週の土曜日用事があります。すみませんが、誰かが私に代わってもらえませんか。
Thx
Hello, パラミタ
OK, just change a little.
今週の土曜日は、用事があります。
すみませんが、誰かに代わってもらえませんか。
Thank you very much! Now I feel a bit more confident asking!
You’re welcome. 😊
Sensei, in phrase examples I saw in websites like linguee, I sometimes see も used to say “X and Y” in combination with とin this form: “X と Y も…”
But then there’s also examples that looks like this: “XもYも…” What’s the difference between the two?
Hi Renoir
The English translation can be the same but
X も Y も X and also Y (Bringing up two things X and Y)
X と Y も You see X and Y as one group, Also
犬と猫を飼っています。= I have a dog and a cat.
犬も猫も好きです。= I like both dogs and cats.
犬と猫も好きです is not natural)
Thank you sensei! Such minor difference has different meaning~~
I know. Good question, though. 😉
Is there any case when you can use dict. Form + 始める？
ie:… よむはじめる
If so, any examples and meanings? Thanks!!
Hi Marcos,
You don’t say よむはじめる.
The basic rule to make a compound verb is to use masu-stem for the first verb.
歩く＋始める→歩き始める
First of all thank you for your reply!
I know that basic rule. However is there any situation where could be used? For example…
彼が歩いて始めた (he walked and started -something-)
彼が歩き始めた (he started to walk).
So is there any context where it could be possible?
Thanks for you time!
Hello Marcos,
OK, if it is clear what he started, that first sentence worked.
歩いて始めた is not natural but for example,
彼は少し寝て勉強を始めた。
返事はありがとうございます😊！
いいえ〜どういたしまして💕
Hello! 先生, I’m having trouble to get the meaning of this sentence. By the way, it’s from the music “夏夜のマジック” by Indigo la End.
今なら君のことがわかるような気がする
夏の夜限りのマジックで
今夜限りのマジックで
What’s the usage of 限り in those sentences? I tried to translate it, but I can’t get the usage of 限り. Please, correct me, if I got it wrong.
Now, I feel I can understand you.
With this summer night’s magic.
With tonight’s magic.
Hi Yutaka
Your translation is fine but I would say add the nuance of 限り which means “just/limited to/only”
As always, thank you for your wonderful lessons! They are really useful to help me fill the gaps of my grammar knowledge!
I have a question about 見ての通り! This was the first time I’ve seen this expression so I was bit confused. I always thought that の is used to connect two nouns. A few days after I read your lesson, I encountered the phrase やってみての感想 in real life.
My question is, does verb-ての make up a different grammar point or are there only certain phrases that use this form? I’ve tried looking this up online, but couldn’t find any concrete explanations.
Again, thanks for being a great teacher!
Hi J
First Vての通り pattern is very limited. 見ての通り・知っての通り are two main ones.
Vての+ noun is different from these usage.
Vての means “Vてからの〜” (~ that after you have done ~ )
やってみての感想 = You do something and then give a feedback.
勝ってみてのお楽しみ = You win first and then you get some reward.
Another common usage is something/someone あっての~ : Something/someone is essential for ~ / ~ wouldn’t exist without something/someone
Ex. このサイトはみなさんあってのサイトです。
Ex. 仕事あっての人生
Ex. 夢あっての人生
Hi Maggie sensei, I have a question
なんかお手伝位できる事はありますか？
なんか手伝う事ない？
In the casual second sentence ない is used, but in the first sentence ある(あります) is used. Can it be used ある in the second sentence and ない in the first sentence?
Hi MilkTea
Ah, it was confusing huh?
Yes, you can also say なんか手伝うことある？ They mean the same.
ありますか？ →ある？
ないですか？ →ない？
Maybe I should change the example sentence but they mean the same.
I love your explanations. You’re a great teacher! Thank you so much
Hello Ben,
Thank YOU for your nice words! 😊
Hello 先生! I would just like to ask if 時間厳守する is also a personality? Can I say 私の性格は時間厳守する？ Thank you in advance for the answer! :D
Hello Kailyn
時間厳守 means “時間を守る” so you use it to be very punctual for one specific event.
Ex. 会議は8時に始まります。時間厳守してください。
If you want to describe one’s personality you say
彼は時間に厳しい
ありがとうございます先生！:)
Then, is it right to say that “私の性格は時間に厳しくて忍耐強いです。”？
Possible but actually when you are talking about yourself, 私は、時間をきちんと守り、忍耐強いです。might be more natural.
Thank you very much 先生！:) I need it for my interview and I’m having a hard time in constructing long sentences.
I see. Good luck!! うまくいきますように！ がんばってね。
Thanks for this wonderful lesson. This word is kinda new to me so it’s a little bit hard to absorb as it has different meanings depending to the context but I’ve found it very useful. I think I’m going to read this lesson everyday so I can use it properly!
Hello macaron,
Good! Now what you have to do is practice using the word.
このレッスンをきっかけに「きっかけ」の使い方を覚えてくださいね。😉
〜〜入るために
〜〜はいれるように、、このようにぶんをつかってもいいですかおへんじをたのしみにしています
こんにちは、geet,
例えば、この二つの文章のような使い方でしたら、両方使えます。
１）大学に入るために毎日がんばって勉強している。
２）大学に入れるように毎日がんばって勉強している。
What’s the difference between ために and ので? And which situations would you use one over the other?
Hi Mya
Verb + ために／ので = ~ because ~ (giving a reason)
寝坊をしたので遅刻をしました。
寝坊をしたために遅刻をしました。
They both mean the same “I got late because I overslept.” ので is a little bit more polite than ために because it softens the fact.
ために emphasize the reason more.
1) While you can use ために with a noun (noun + の＋ために）, you can’t use ので with a noun.
2) When you use ために to do something for someone, you can’t use ので
Myaのために説明します。 (X ので）
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for putting this site together – it has been a real help to me! I even managed to use this yoyaku page to make a reservation :)
I was wondering if you would be able to help me with changing the date of the reservation (because of the coronavirus situation, I can’t get into Japan at all!) please? For example, I would like to tell them that:
Because of the Coronavirus situation, I can’t make the reservation in August. Can I change my reservation to October instead please?
Does the following lines in Japanese work if I called them? How about if I wrote to them – would it need to be more formal?
コロナウイルスの状況のため、8月に予約をキャンセルするがありますか。予約を10月に変更できますか？
Sorry for such a long message –I tried to piece together information from your responses to the various posts but it’s really not easy trying to get a message in Japanese.
I really appreciate your help on this!!よろしくお願いいたします。
Hello Tania
Good to hear you have been using this lesson.
Your sentences are fine except
８月に予約をキャンセルするがあります
You need to cancel your reservation for August, right? If so, you say
８月の予約をキャンセルしなくてはいけません。
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for your response and sorry for taking so long to respond!
You are correct that I need to cancel my reservation for August so I will use your corrected sentence :)
ありがとうございました!
No problem! 😊
Hope things settle down soon and you can travel safely again.
Thanks very much Maggie-sensei. I am really hoping that things will settle down soon!
I managed to hear back from the restaurant (via email).. they said to me “明日変更の日程を送します”. There is no pronoun involved here but I’m assuming that they’re waiting for me to get back to them with the revised schedule?
More generally, when there is no pronoun in a Japanese sentence, is there any rule/way to tell what the pronoun refers to? [Sorry – I feel really silly asking this.]
Thank you again!
Hi Tania
I know you omit pronoun so it might be hard to understand.
That means “They are going to send you the revised schedule tomorrow.”
Hello! A saying I’ve heard recently that I don’t fully understand is いくらなんでも. Would you mind elaborating on that a little? Thank you!
Hello Kato,
いくらなんでも means “Whatever circumstances might be” and you say that to emphasize your feelings of disbelief (usually negative)
For example, A did something mean to B. B got angry and did something horrible to A in revenge.
You what happened between A and B and B’s feelings. Still, you think B is going too far, then you say to B,
いくらなんでもひどすぎる。
いくらなんでもやりすぎだ。
You are going too far.
Hi Meggie Sensei! How are you?
I’ve been wondering how to construct a sentence with the たりたりする structure but in negative tense. For example: I don’t gamble, I don’t drink and I don’t smoke (among other things).
Should I conjugate just the final する into しない -> ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。?
Should I conjugate all the verbs into past negative and keep する in affirmative tense -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコを吸わなかったりする?
Should I conjugate the first two verbs into past negative, the final verb into past and する into しない -> ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない?
Thanks in advance! Regards from Brazil!
Dear Victor
I am so sorry for this late reply. Someone informed me that I haven’t replied to your question.
How to connect verb negative form with たり depends on the sentence but when you describe someone’s personality,
the basic form is
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）しない
You also can add は after the last たり
〜たり〜たり（〜たり）はしない
(Using negative form with the last verb)
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりしない。 (correct)
or adding は
ギャンブルをしたり、お酒を飲んだり、タバコを吸ったりはしない。 (emphasis)
The following two sentences are unnatural.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなっかたり、タバコをすったりしない (Double negative so very confusing anyway. You can just say したり〜したり〜する)
All these habits are negative.
If you say なかったり〜なかったり.. it sounds like this person is supposed to gamble/drink/smoke but he/she doesn’t do that.
But it is possible to use this form if you change the sentence a little.
(Let’s say this person has bad habits and gamble, drink or smoke all the time but ) There are some days that he/she doesn’t gamble/drink/smoke.
ギャンブルをしなかったり、お酒を飲まなかったり、タバコを吸わなかったりする日もあります。
Hi,
First, thank you very much for your lessons, it’s helped me a lot to understand japanese.
So, I have a question: for reply at 「~のですか」,「~のです」is used.
And「~からです」is used too, but why choose 「~からです」instead「~のです」?
I suppose「~ので、…」can be used as well.
Thanks you
Hello HnK!
Ex. Q: どうして今年は日本に行かないの？ = Why don’t you go to Japan this year?
1) 忙しいからです。focusing on the reason why you don’t go to Japan.
２） 忙しいのです / (casual) 忙しいんだ。 focusing on your feelings more.
3) 忙しいので (polite) You leave the sentence unfinished on purpose (忙しいので（行けません。）） to make it sound softer. Compared to 2), ので sounds more polite.
Hi,
I read that 「~ので」is more objective,「~から」is more subjective.
So, can I say 「~のだ」is more subjective than「~から」?
Subjective ＞「~のだ」＞「~から」＞「~ので」＞Objective
Maybe, it’s too reductive.
「~ので」is more objective,「~から」is more subjective.
忙しいから遅れました。
忙しいので遅れました。
the translation and the situation are the same so it might be a little hard to judge whether it is subjective or objective.
As I said から make the reason clearer so it sounds stronger.
Ok, thank you for the clarification. ^^
You’re very welcome! :)
How to use んです with います
いるん
Negotive
Past
Past negotive
Hi Danushka
You conjugate the dictionary form
Ex. 食べる
Present negative 食べない+んです /行かない+んです
Past tense 食べた+んです /行った+んです
Negative past tense 食べなかった＋です/行かなかった＋んです
It’s not easy to find such thorough lessons regarding the more colloquial side of the language, so thank Yukari. Your site is a godsend.
Thank you for your kind words, Jimmi💕
ありがとう！
こんにちはマーギー先生！
色んな例文で詳しく説明していただいてありがとうございます！
こちからちょっと質問あるんですが、
何か理由を表現したければ、「による」も「によって」も「により」も使えますよね？
あまりその使い方法わからないから、ちょっと教えていただかないのですか？
こんにちは、RevSanic
あとにくる品詞が違いますよ。
〜による＋名詞（noun)
〜によって＋動詞(verb) / またはどうなったか文章で説明
〜により＋動詞 （「よって」と同じ使い方ですが、「よって」よりも堅い言い方（more formal than よって） です。）
ですね。
事故による渋滞（じゅうたい） traffic jam caused by an accident
事故によって渋滞した。 There was a heavy traffic jam due to an accident
事故により渋滞した。 There was a heavy traffic jam due to an accident
(Note for you:ちょっと教えていただかないのですか？ →いただきたいのですが)
Hi Maggie Sensei, thank you so much for your lessons. I started with grammar a month ago and your lessons are superb!
I have a question, well questions 😅
How do you use お目にかかる?
I heard in a movie that someone said to his brother that he is いたい, it said pathetic in the translation, what is the meaning?
Hi Reiko,
お目にかかる mea “to see someone (superior)”. It is 謙譲語 (kenjoubo), humble expression. I think I covered in my 謙譲語 lesson. Click this link.
I don’t know why the translations says “いたい= pathetic” though.
マギー先生こんにちは！
いつもレッスン作ってありがとうございます！今回のレッスンもいい勉強になりました ：）
ちょっと質問がありますが、
「時」、「度」と「頃」の区別があまりわからなくて 先生に説明していただいてもいいでしょうか？いつも区別がつかないのでよく間違えたりします笑
こんにちは lydia
では、英語で説明しますね。
時 = When
度 = every time when
頃= When, during the certain period of time in your life, around the time when (Ex. 五月頃）
Test yourself
１）明日、マギーの家に行く（ ）に花を持っていきます。
２）毎日、マギーに会う（ ）に花をあげます。
３）学生の（ ）、よくマギーに花をあげていた。
Hi Maggie sensei! I’ve been using your website for japanese grammar and it’s really helpful. However I still don’t quite understand the kagiri thing and there was a sentence I heard when I was watching anime and I don’t get the use of kagiri here?
‘Soredemo yurusareru kagiri soba ni itai to omotte ita’
of which the translation was:
But still, I wanted to stay close to her as long as possibl.
Could you help me?
Hi Wendy
This “yurusareru” is a passive form of “許す= yurusu so it means “to be allowed, to be permitted”
限り= kagiri means “as long as”
So the literal translation is “As long as I am allowed” →”As long as you allow me”
→So the translation “As long as possible” is right.
Thank you maggie-sensei, I understand it now! And thank you for your fast response :)
You’re very welcome, Wendy! 💕
マギー先生! 助けて下さい!
I found this sentence while reading manga and I can’t translate it!
あいつはお前が思っているような。。。
Thank you so much for your lesson! They are very helpful.
Hello Nicole,
あいつ= that person, he/she (rough/male speech)
お前 = you (rough/male speech)
思っている= thinking
ような= like
The last part is missing but it means
He (or She) not what you thought he(or she) was
Hello Maggie Sensei, I tried to translate a sentence with より, so I found here. All these examples are really informative, but they don’t seem to strictly match the pattern of より in this sentence.
増えたのが１ｋｇより少なかった人は３２％でした
What does より mean here?
Hi yang,
The first part is missing so I don’t know what it is talking about. Are they talking about the body weight? What is the subject of 増えた？
Anyway, より少ない here means
1kgより少ない = means “less than 1kg”
こんにちは先生。
お久しぶりです。先生は元気でいらっしゃるとおもいます。
JLPTの試験は、思った通りに、中止になってしまいました。でも、いつもどおりに、一生懸命頑張りましょう。
引き続きよろしくお願いいたします。
Pavithra
こんにちは、Pavithra D
そうですね。残念ながらJLPTは中止になってしまいましたがその分、準備期間が増えたので次回の試験までがんばってくださいね。
応援しています！ :)
Hi Maggie Sensei! I just want to know, when you use 〜ため to mean “because” in a sentence like 「パスポートの期限が切れていたために飛行機に乗れなかった。」, what’s the difference between replacing that ため with から or ので to also mean “because”?
Hi Avery,
Yes, you can say 〜切れていたから・切れていたので as “before”
から is more conversational. ので is more formal.
先生, why in this sentence
“彼の言うことを聞いたばかりにひどい目に遭った。” is used 言うこと instead of 言ったこと？
Hi Yutaka,
You can say 言ったこと as well.
言うこと what he says/said (You use this form when this person is always saying, said in past, or will say in future) It will be easier to think 言うこと as a noun. (the things he says)
言ったこと what he said (in the particular time)
How could i say turn off the heat? or remove from the heat?
Hello Hannah,
turn off the heat= 火を消す= hi wo kesu
remove from the heat = 火からおろす= hi kara orosu
Hi Maggie sensei! I can’t figure out what だけで means in some of your example sentences like 「メールを見なかっただけで無視をしたんじゃないよ」or 「彼はうちが貧しいだけで心は貧しいわけではない」or 「あの子はかわいいだけで中身がない」. Could you mind explaining why there’s a で and what it means with だけで？
Hi Avery
で is to connect a sentence “and”
So だけで〜 means “It is just ~ and” / “X is just ~ and ~”
寒い日は鍋に限る
can i translate this as “As for cold days, it is limited to nabe” or “cold days are limited to hotpot”
similarly,
このゲームの購入は、お一人様１個に限ります
can i flip the translation as
“As for purchasing this game, nothing is better than one game for one person”
For the first two usages outlined, it seems confusing to me to distinguish between “Limited to ~” and “Nothing is better than ~” because they seem mechanically the same, that is, it has “Noun + ni + kagiru”
on a slightly unrelated note
女の子が泣いていたらただ黙って話を聞いてあげるに限る。
i’m tripped up by ただ黙って in this sentence. does that part mean “Just be quiet”?
As in, “If girl is crying, just be quiet, and it is best to listen to her 話”?
Thank you for these nuanced lessons, even if they feel overwhelming at times :)
Hi Noel,
OK, let me explain one by one.
このゲームの購入は、お一人様１個に限ります (This 限る means “limited” / You often see this person お一人様+ number+counter)
So the literal translation will be
As for this game, it is limited to purchase one per person.
The second question
女の子が泣いていたらただ黙って話を聞いてあげるに限る。
たた黙って = just being quiet + modifies a verb 聞いてあげる = to listen
If a girl is crying, it is the best to listen to her being quiet.
is it okay to say it like this?
sensei, what do u think this sounds like?
さき何が言ったのですか?
Hi mie
You wanted to say “What did you say before?” Then さっき、なんて言ったのですか？ → (If you want to use ん) さっきなんて言ったんですか？
hello maggie先生!!
does ないで exist in present progressive too? like can you say 食べてないで for example???
thank you!
Hello april,
Yes. I will show you how to use the form.
好きなものばかり食べないで野菜も食べなさい。
= Don’t just eat things you like and eat some vegetable.
(general advice)
好きなものばかり食べていないで野菜も食べなさい。
（to a person who is actually eating)
thank you very much!!
Anytime! 😊
Hello Maggie sensei!
I came across this sentence and got the meaning all wrong. 初めて会ったひとに聞きたくても聞けないことは何ですか。
Mi first impression was something like “what would you not ask a person you just met”, but apparently it’s completely the opposite. Could you explain how to use this pattern: 聞きたくても聞けない？Thank you very much!
Hello Carolina,
OK, here is the pattern
Vたくても Vない(negative potential form)= Even if ~ wants to do ~ , ~ can’t.
聞きたくても聞けない = Even if you want to ask (Even if you are so curious to know), you can’t ask (because it is not polite).
Another example with this pattern.
When someone asks you to go somewhere with them. You really want to go but you can’t, you say
行きたくても行けない
(Or 行きたいけど行けない)
Thank you, Maggie sensei!! It’s clear for me now.
Good!よかった！ ☺️
先生、
Are さ and み the only ways to nominalize an adjective?
塔とその周辺の街は一夜にして地底の奥深くに埋没してしまったのだ。
In this sentence, 奥深い is in adverbial form but it seems to being used as a noun. Is that correct?
Hello Gabiru
Right. 奥深く is used as a noun.
I believe there aren’t many of them but it is the same usage as 近く／遠く
分かりやすく説明してくれました！参考にさせていただきます！
お役に立てたらうれしいです。☺️
Hi Maggie,
I hope everything is going well for you :)
I’m reading a new book about the 第五福竜丸 fishing boat which is really interesting, but I saw a bit of speech that I have no idea about at all.
I’m not sure if it’s relevant to this なあ topic at all (apologies if not)…
The crew are checking each other after they were rained on by a mysterious substance, and one says:
「そろそろ指をけずらにゃんなあ、大石」
I’m not sure if the にゃ is なければ and なあ is ね, but that doesn’t really make sense to me, so I’m very confused! :D
Many thanks,
Peter.
Hi Peter,
そろそろ指をけずらにゃんなあ
Or it could be
けずらにゃ（いかん）なあ。or けずらにゃなあ。(without ん）
As you guessed, Vにゃ（いかん） is a dialect or casual contraction that elderly men use which means Vなければいけない (= have to do ~). It is similar to なきゃなあ (=なければいけないなあ）
So he is saying そろそろ指をけずらなければ（いけない）なあ、大石
Hi Maggie,
Thanks for the help.
I think he’s saying “I have to scrape it off carefully with my fingers Oishi”, but I’ve never seen that にゃん contraction before :)
Many thanks,
Peter.
OK, just one thing.
with my fingers should be 指で not 指を
指をけずる= scrape/shave off one’s finger(s)
指でけずる= scrape/shave off with one’s fingers
Whooooops!
Of course it is…
It’s been a loooonnnnng day! :D
I was hoping it was で. Otherwise, it sounds like you were reading some horror. 😁
How to intepret this sentence ?
覚えてきた
This sentence was to a girl who was remembering something. Also when u state that when a change is moving towards a speaker, you use てきた, how is お腹がすいてくる coming towards your perspective?
I don’t know the context but 覚えてきた is to learn/memorize something and (physically) comes back to the place..
For example, imagine you didn’t know how to read hiragana and your teacher said try to learn how to read them and come back the class.
You studied hard at home and learned how to read them and go back to the class. Then you say ひらがなを覚えてきました。
Thank You for the reply, also can i ask whats the 腹が立ってくる have to do with coming to the perspective of the speaker ? Also, what about 遊びに来た and 遊んできた. いつもありがとうございます
腹が立ってくる the emotion is happening (in yourself) You are talking about your emtoion.
遊びに来た Someone comes to your house to hang out or play with you.
遊んで来た You went out to hang out with someone/play with someone and came back home.
I’m gonna try to make my own sentences with translation here
1. 彼は店に行っていく
He is going to the store (and will go somewhere else to do something)
2. 彼は店に行ってくる
He is going to the store (and will definitely come back home )
Are these correct?
Hello KP
2. 店に行ってくる is correct.
As for 1) It is tricky because the verb is 行く
If you want to use ていく, combine with other verb 出かけていく
Hi Maggie,
I’m not so sure about te-iru
4) to describe some continuous action or events, to have done/ have been doing, what you have been doing
Apparently “have done” uses only the simple past. I don’t need to use te-iru.
https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/63352/is-there-a-distinction-between-did-and-have-done-in-japanese
Can I get your help to clarify on this?
Here’s another link https://www.wasabi-jpn.com/japanese-grammar/past-tense-and-present-perfect-tense-with-the-ta-form/
Not comfortable to talk about other sites so I will just talk about my site, OK?
I think it depends on the verbs and how you translate the Japanese sentences but for example
The movie has already finished showing
その映画（の上映）はもう終わっている。
As I wrote in this lesson,
Max先生の話を聞いていますか？
It could be interpreted differently depending on the situation.
So there are cases that you can use ている as “have done”
hi again maggie sensei, as im a foreigner i want to ask something, does anybody care about kenjōgou and sonkeigo in japan now. Or maybe now teineigo is enough? thank you
also what the difference of ご連絡します、連絡おとします、and ご連絡おとします。thanks!
sorry i meant itashimasu not otoshimasu
its really confusing because some words like happyoushimasu can be changed to happyouitashimasu without a ご
Hi Theo
So you want to know the difference between
1) ご連絡します。= Gorenrakushimasu.
2) ご連絡いたします。= Gorenrakuitashimasu ?
2) is more polite.
You use kenjougo and sonkeigo more in formal situation (business, etc.)
Even if you don’t have to use it, it is good to know in some point. 😉
Wow, this is something probably even textbooks don’t teach. Thank you so much!
On that note, I have a small question. A song I like has this line:
「知ってるくせに、知らんぷりはして」
Would I translate this as “Even though I know, I’m acting like I don’t”? Also, why is it 知らんinstead of しらない?
Thank you!!
P.S. Can you make a lesson about alternative negative forms like ぬ and ず, and what makes them different from ない？Thank you again! Love your work, been following you for years.
マ-マギー先生？
Hi Sora,
I just read your first message. Sorry!! ごめんなさい 🙇♀️
I think there was a typo
→知ってるくせに 知らんぷりをして
Your translation is right. 知らんぷり is a kind of cute way to say 知らないふりをする(more literal 知らぬふりをする）
I have a lesson on ず. Please check. (Click here.)
ぬ is an old style Japanese and it means ない, you see it in old sayings.
ありがとうございます！
いいえ〜😊 返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
Can confirm that they don’t teach this at school or in textbooks. JLPT N2 passer here, and made it all the way to some N1 classes, and I’ve never heard of this grammar tidbit until I came across it on a Youtube comment saying something about 飲みっぷり. Thanks for your blog Maggie-sensei, they’re better than all the textbooks and classes I’ve attended. Very detailed yet easy to understand. Keep up the good work! :)
To Sora’s question, colloquial Nihongo has a lot of shortened words like 知らん, I guess because they’re easier to say. Like saying “何やってんの?” instead of saying the entire “何やっているの?” because it’s two syllables less. Same with 分からん or 分かんね. And those are just the easy ones! Don’t worry, as you get exposed to more native speaker dialogues, you’ll get the hang of it. ;)
Hi mikachan,
Thank you for your comment.
I am very happy to hear you can still learn something from this lesson.
Yes, there are lots of shortened forms in Japanese.
I think I have a couple of lessons but here is one of them. てる→てん
こんにちは、マギー先生！いつもありがとう！
I’m having a lot of trouble understanding how to use 「ところを」。If it’s not too much trouble, do you think you could explain it in a different way, with maybe a shorter sentence?
Also, in いつもは1800円のところを木曜日は1000円で映画を観ることができます, where can I pause? After the particle?
こんにちは、Sora!
Ah that usage of ところ is different from what I covered here.
Vところ also means “although, whereas”
“Whereas it’s usually 1,800 yen, you can see a movie for 1,000 yen on Thursday. “
Do you think the word ‘case’ is perhaps the closest translation for わけ?
In my mind it suits most uses…
Tomato ga suki ja nai wake de wa nai.
It is not the case that I don’t like tomatoes.
Watashi ga umaku utaeru wake ga nai.
The case that I could sing profficiently doesn’t existe. (There’s no way).
Tomato ga kirai na wake.
The case why I dislike tomatoes.
(The reason why…)
Does it work?
Hi Seiju
Yes, “case” works as well. :)
hello, i want to ask something
what is the difference of
どこへ行かれますか。
and
どこへいらしゃいますか。
ありがとうございます。
Hi Theo
The mean the same, “Where are you going?” but いらっしゃる is more polite than 行かれる
(Also when you use 行かれる・いらっしゃる, you might want to use どちらへ instead of どこへ. It sounds more polite.)
Thanks, im currently finishing minna no nihongo 2 which should cover until n4 right? my kanji game is weakk thoughh, can you recommend any book that is good for foreigners? im still 16 and i want to speak and read japanese i think its really interesting. Thank you very much!
There are many kanji books or apps out there. I would work on vocabulary and kanji at the same time.
How about getting a book on JLPTN4 Vocabulary book? (For example, JLPT N４語彙マスター, etc. )
Also if you use Twitter, follow me. I am tweeting kanji4Day often.
Thank you very much!!! have read your website for sometimes, really helps!!!
Hi Theo
I’m happy to hear that. :)
Wow, it’s the second time I come across your website while looking for an answer. The first time I did find the answer, This time, however, I didn’t really find the answer to what I was looking for but maybe you can help me out!
What’s the difference between:
毎朝7時に起きます。or スーパーでナンプラーを売ります。(habitual action)
毎朝7時に起きています。スーパーでナンプラーを売っています。(habitual action)
In Spanish, the first is a habit. The second one, however, is a new habit, something you started to do recently and could even be temporary (or not).
Is that the case in Japanese, too? Thanks for time and keep up the good work!
HI アーロン
It depends on the verb but ています describes the verb/situation more vividly.
毎朝7時に起きます。 habitual I get up at seven every morning. (Yo me levanto a las siete cada mañana)
毎朝7時に起きています。habitual also but it is focusing on the state of being awake. I am awake at 7:00 every morning. (Estoy despierta a las siete cada mañana)
~ を売ります。 talking about one’s occupation. Yo vendo ~
~ を売っています。Also 1) talking about one’s occupation but it expresses the verb more vividly 2) What the speaker is doing right now. (Maybe doing something else usually but right now, selling ~ ) (Estoy vendiendo)
I have another lesson explaining the tenses if you want to learn more. Click here
Cool! There’s a lot of information there! I like the fact that you explain a lot and not just the basics.
So I read it and I think it’s very similar to Spanish. Let me see if I got it right, please:
Imagine that before the coronavirus/quarantine, I used to say:
“毎朝7時に起きます” (In Spanish: Me levanto a las 7 todas las mañanas)
But now, with the coronavirus, I say:
“今、毎朝8時に起きています”. (Ahora me estoy levantando a las 8 todas las mañanas).
What do you think? haha.
By the way, I didn’t expect an answer with Spanish translation. It was such a bonus thing. Way to go! :)
Perfecto! Creo que has entendido la idea muy bien. 😊
改めましてこんばんは。先にツイッターで質問しているAn Asian Polyglotです。先生と話した後、ちょっと忙しくなって、結局遅くなって、ごめんなさい。それでは、先の質問を複写します：
「ば」についての質問がありますが。「金持ちであればいいのに。」という文は不自然ですか。「私が鳥であればいいのに」は？先生のサイトによると、自分の意志を表す時は、「たら…のに」を使うことです。しかし、インターネットでは、こんな文もやや多いです。それに、普通は前半と後半の主語が違うと、意志や希望などを表すのも大丈夫でしょう。では、あの…自分の欲望を表す時、「ば…のに」は絶対におかしいのですか。特に以上の二つの文と言えば？
その上、自分の要求について話す時は、どんな文が自然ですか。教えてください。
こちらの方が、文字数気にしなくていいからいいですね。😉
日本語で聞いてくれているので日本語で答えますが、もし英語の方がよければ言ってくださいね。
（私が）金持ちであればいいのに
私が鳥であればいいのに
この二つの文章ですが、
金持ちだったらいいのに
私が鳥だったらいいのに
の方が自然でよく使います。
(1) 一つの理由は、
「〜である」という言い方自体が文語的です。
彼は金持ちだ・です（口語）
彼は金持ちである。（文語）
(2) Vばいいのに
は、
１）他の人に対する助言・願望
Ex. マギー先生に聞けばいいのに。（マギー先生に聞いたらいいのに）
Xさんがもっと金持ちであればいいのに。（他の人について話すときは使えないこともありませんが、一般的には” 金持ちなら・金持ちだったら” を使う方が多いと思います。）
2)自分の願望を話すときも使えますが、例えば自分の家や自分の置かれている状況について話すときだったら「〜ばいいのに」を使います。
Ex. もっとお金があればいいのに。（お金があったらいいのに） 自分の状況
Ex. うちがもっと金持ちであったらいいのに （金持ちだったらいいのに） 実際の主語は自分の家
Ex. お金がすぐに貯まればいいのに。（貯金の状態）
自分の意志を伴う動詞を使う場合
X （私が）行けばいいのに
とは言えませんが、可能形を使うと自分のことでも使えます。
例外もあると思いますが、また思いついたら書きますね。
要約すると、 「Vばいいのに」は願望などを表す構造で、
ー Vの主語が自分ではないと一番自然であり、
ー Vの主語が自分ならVが自分の状況を表す動詞（例えば可能形動詞；「である」は例外）であればまだ自然である、
という理解でいいですか。
それは今日の最後の質問だと思います。先生の説明は詳しくて、大変勉強になりました：私はほぼ全部わかったと思いますが、いい表現や言い回しをたくさん学びました。
はい、そうです。😊
本当はもっと詳しく例外やなども含めて説明できればいいのですが、このぐらいにしておきますね。
はい。先生は他の例外を思いついたらまた書けばいいと思いますが、この説明ではもう普通の文章の場合には十分だと思います。😁 ありがとうございました！
は〜い！
伝わってよかったです。😊
こんにちは先生、I am having a doubt in the following sentence:
ここに車を止めてもいいですか。in this sentence why に is used and why でis not used? Because of で is used to indicate the place where the action occurs, で is not used? Or any other reasons why でis not used?
こんにちは、S. Abinaya
As I explained in the lesson,
に indicates one point or one specific place, で indicates “through out the place/ area.
When you park a car, you park in a specific parking spot not in the whole area.
わかりました、ありがとうございます先生
どういたしまして💕
Hi Maggie-sensei,
In the example 「ご飯を食べながらテレビを観る」, is there an implication that the second action is happening while the first action is happening, and it is subordinate to the first action?
What I mean is, there is a slight difference in emphasis between:
“When I am eating, I watch TV.” (eating is the main action, watching TV is secondary)
vs
“When watching TV, I eat.” (TV is my main activity, the eating is secondary).
Cheers
Hi Matt,
Oh great question. Actually I should change the English translation in the example sentence to make it clear.
ご飯を食べながらテレビを観る
Watch TV while eating
(main action is “to watch TV”)
テレビを見ながらご飯を食べる
to eat while watching TV.
(main action is “to eat”)
And besides, I didn’t know that the context in the lyrics was to make >somethingnot being< warm. So that's why I wasn't aware of the ”し” after ”熱く” being a modified ”する” as in the example that you gave:
仕事をする→仕事をしながら
Those are just my after thoughts ^^'. And besides, I apologise if you don't accept such requests.
Hello Maggie sensei !
There are two sentences where I am not sure of understanding demo correctly
「とりあえず，先生と基礎練習でもしかない」 and 「２秒でも早く寝ってください」
Can you help, please ?
I made a mistake in the first sentence, it was「基礎練習でもやるしかない」
Hi ピエール！
とりあえず先生と基礎練習でもやるしかない
There is no choice but doing the basics (basic practice/exercises) with my teacher for now.
This でも brings up an example what you can do for now.
２秒でも早く寝てください
Please go to bed as soon as possible. (literal translation “even two seconds earlier” This でも means “even”)
Maggie sensei, I have a question regarding this lesson. 済ませる is causative verb, and causative means ~ to force, allow, make someone do something, like 薬を飲ませた.
In one of the sentence above:
– もう、支払いは、済ませたから出ようよ。
Does this mean he was forced to pay?
もう、支払いは、済ませたから出ようよ。
This simply means “I finished paying” not “to be forced to pay”
済ませる・済ます are transitive verbs “somethingを済ます”
and 済む is intransitive verb “somethingが済む”
The causative form is 済まさせる passive 済まさせられる but I think it is rarely used.
Oh that’s why. I assumed 済ませる was causitive because of 済む. It makes sense, thank you for clearing that up! :)
Good! I’m glad it cleared it up!
RIP Maggie 😔😔😔
🐶💕💕💕
Thank you Maggie Sensei it was really helpful.
Happy to hear that, Vicky! :)
こんにちは！
First of all thank you for your page, it’s very helpful.
Secondly, I apologize if the question has been asked but I don’t seem to find it.
When studying Japanese one of the problems I encounter is to know if the grammar or vocabulary is commonly used and in which context (formal, informal).
For example with ば〜ほど, is something people use in casual speech? So if I want to say “the more I think about it the angrier I get” is there a more casual way of saying it or do people say 考えれば考えるほど怒る？
Thanks in advanced and sorry for the long thread
Hello Fumikiri,
You do use ば〜ほど in casual speech as well.
the more I think about it the angrier I get
The most natural way to say this 考えれば考えるほど、怒れてくる。・腹が立つ（hara ga tatsu) or 腹が立ってくる。
Another great content. Thank you for this lesson. I just have a question about the 「のに」as “in order to”. From what was written above, i saw the sentence :
「旅行に行くのに５万円必要だ」
Would it be possible for you to differentiate the following sentences:
1. 旅行に行く「のに」５万円必要だ
2. 旅行に行く「のために」、５万円必要だ
3. 旅行に行く「には」５万円必要だ
Hi JP Arcilla,
1. OK
2. 行くために （You use の after a noun. So You can also say 旅行のために）
3. OK
So basically, all are the same? There is no difference, even in nuance?
They mean the same but ために emphasizes the purpose more.
That makes perfect sense. Thank you very much!
Anytime! 😊
Hey Maggie Sensei. I came across this phrase.
そんな言い訳するくらいなら食べなきゃいいのに。
Which was translated as. If you’re going to make excuses just don’t eat it at all.
I’m confused because I thought 食べなきゃ is short for must eat. So thinking about it, should it be ” Even though you should eat” The combination of なきゃ+ いいのに is throwing me of. Could you help clear this up?
Hi Des,
OK first
When you express your desire that someone should do something but they don’t in reality, you say
~たら・ばいいのに
Ex. 食べたらいいのに / 食べればいいのに = You really should eat ~ (But they don’t eat)
And when you express your desire that someone shouldn’t do something but they do in reality, you say
〜なければいいのに ・(more casual) なきゃいいのに
Ex. 食べなければいいのに / 食べなきゃいいのに = Don’t eat ~ (But they eat)
Ohhhh! That helps so much! Thanks Maggie Sensei! So なければ is just a negative form? Like the negative of ければ。
That’s right. That’s a negative form.
So the literal translation of 食べなきゃいいのに（食べなければいいのに） is “It would be good if you didn’t eat~.
Hello, I was wondering how do you say this in Japanese. ‘I go to school at 9 o’clock’.
Hi Chole,
You say , ９時に学校にいきます。( くじにがっこうにいきます= Kuji ni gakkou ni ikimasu.)
Hello ~
It’s the first time I write a comment, and want to say that I really love your work and blog. ♡
Also I want to ask if you can do one post about 数学, how to pronounce it because so far I didn’t find much info.
About add, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions and decimal point.
Thank you so much!
Take care.
Hello Ana,
数学=すうがく=suugaku
I made a mini lesson on Twitter/Facebook or Pateron but I haven’t posted it here.
Since I can’t give you a link here (I don’t remember when I posted..) here is the basic vocabulary.
＊ 計算 = けいさん = keisan = calculation
* 足し算 = たしざん = tashizan = addition
→ 1 + 2 = 3
= 1 足す 2 は、3 = いちたすには、さん
= ichi tasu ni wa san
* 引き算 = ひきざん = hikizan = subtraction
→ 4 – 3 = 1
= 4 引く 3 は、1 = よんひくさんは、いち
= yon hiku san wa ichi
* 割り算 = わりざん= warizan = division
→ 6 ÷ 2 = 3
= 6 割る 2 は、3 = ろくわるには、さん
= roku waru ni wa san
* 掛け算 = かけざん = kakezan = multiplication
→ 2 x 3 = 6
= 2 掛ける 3 は、6 = にかけるさんは、ろく
= ni kakeru san wa roku
**
分数=ぶんすう=bunsuu = fraction
Hi Maggie,
Hope all is well :)
I saw 鈴木降様 / 鈴木降さん used in my new book today and wondered what the 降 meant.
I’m guessing that it means “The Younger Mr Suzuki” because the writer is talking about attending a memorial service for the deceased 鈴木様, and on arrival he met Mr Suzuki’s eldest son.
Is that correct? I can’t find a reference to using 降 anywhere when referring to people…
Many thanks,
Peter.
Hello Peter
How are you doing?
OK, 隆 is たかし (Takashi). It is one of the common male’s first names.
鈴木= Family name so 鈴木降様 or 鈴木降さん means “Mr. Takashi Suzuki”
Oh ha ha! I feel a bit silly now :D
Thank you so much – it all makes a bit more sense now :)
Problem solved! 😉
Hello, Maggie Sensei!
I found out about your website yesterday, and I am 100% in love with it. This is probably the best of the best that I have ever come across when it comes to teaching Japanese. The amount and depth of the knowledge you have, the simple and easy-to-understand way you write, the contexts and examples you create, everything is just PERFECT!
Greetings from Brazil!
Hi Lucas U
ありがとう！
Your message made me SO HAPPY and I am jumping up and down. ☺️
Hope you visit this site again and again.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been reading tons of your lessons now that I am learning by myself.
I thank you for that.
However, you made a mistake. You are not adorable. Please modify that example.
Haha, kidding.
Really enjoying your lessons!
Thanks from Argentina!
Hi Rino
I am glad to hear you enjoy reading my lessons but sad to hear your mean joke.😭
Just kidding. (^_−)−☆
Thank you so much!!!
🐶 💕 💕
what is the difference between Nari and Naru?
なる( = naru) is a verb and it means “to become”
Check this lesson.
Hello Maggie sensei,
So there are two ways to form the causative passive verbs.
Is it true that I can use both of them?
For example,
In my understanding, I think I can use all of them. But I’m not sure…
For 歌う
歌わせられる
歌わされる
走る
走らせられる
走らされる
座る
座らせられる
座らされる
Thanks my Lady
Yes, that’s right.
Think the original verb form is different.
歌う and 歌わす
走る and 走らす
座る and 座らす
（さ）せる →(さ) せられる
（さ）す→される
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして！ ☺️
おはよう先生!
It isn’t linked to this lesson, but while reading a manga, I came upon this sentence
“あのＪＫについていけるか”, which I would personally translate as “Can they keep up with that JK ?”. The thing is, in the context of the manga, the JK is the one having trouble following the others, and what I don’t understand is why the character uses に instead of が ?
宜しくお願いします
Hi ピエール！
You are right. If she is the one who has a trouble following them, it should be あのJKがついていけるか
It is hard to answer without knowing the context but the only possibility that I can think of is you sometimes say
(Someoneには）ついていけない to a person who is too slow, airhead, scatterbrain, etc.
Hello Maggie sensei, what about Questions + より? Should we treat it like も？For example だれより means more than anyone?
Hello,
Yes, you can say 誰より (だれより）
You attach も when you emphasize, 誰よりも
彼は誰より(or 誰よりも）私の気持ちをわかってくれる。
= He understands my feelings more than anybody.
Other examples,
どこより(も)
どれより(も)
なにより(も)
Hi, Maggie sensei.
First, i would like to thank you for explaining this topic this thorough. I’m new to your website and I’ve found it quite helpful.
I’ve got one problem understanding the following sentence 繰り返し何度も零してしまう. It is a part of a song. Here is the context:
春になって 桜が咲いて
いつかが 見えなくなって
「もういいかい？」
繰り返し何度も零してしまう
Is he expressing his feeling of regret or frustration or something like that?
どうもありがとうございます！
Hi Shian 333
Welcome to this site!
Is it from some lyrics?
This てしまう is expressing something you can’t control. Can’t help doing something
Maggie 先生!
I love your site, every time I have a question about something I come here bcos for me this is the most helpful site!
Thank you so much for your effort!
I thought that I was understanding everything about ようbut at the very end of this lesson I found this and then I found myself puzzled again x. X….
“どうですか？わかったような気がしてきましたか？”
Is it possible to use ように here? (I mean instead of ような)
As far I understood this is what I got:
–> ような needs a noun before and after it (like a ‘noun’ sandwich 🤣)
–>ように has a verb/adjective just after it (or as I saw in one of your comments modifies noun)
I also noticed ように can have a verb before and after without using の (like a ‘verb’ sandwich 🤣) [無視されているように感じる]
But in the last phrase that I quoted it’s verb+ような+verb and I don’t understand then… What is the real difference between using ような and ように 😢… Please! Help! 😣
Hello ジェシ
Welcome back to this site! 😊
Right.
ような + noun
ように +verb
ような actually modifies “気” which is a noun not the following verb, する (= suru)
(わかったような）気 (noun) ＋が ( particle) ＋する(verb)
しゅっきん「までして」高い車を買わなくてもいい。
Sensee why after まで,(して) is used.
Hi Laxmi
Let me rephrase it
借金（しゃっきん）をする =to borrow money
A) 借金をして高い車を買う = to buy a car borrowing money
B) 借金までする Even borrow money
A) + B) 借金までして高い車を買う buy a car going so far as to borrow money.
↓
借金までして高い車を買いたくない I don’t want to buy a car going so far as to borrow money.
Hi Maggie,
It’s me again :D
This sentence has stumped me because I can’t quite work out the meaning of the ~ても form here:
死んでもいないうちにしおしおしたって損なだけだろ.
Does 死んでもいない mean “(I’m) not even dead” or “Even if (I’m) not dead”, or something else…?
I think it means “(I’m) not even dead”, but thought I’d double-check.
Many thanks,
Peter.
Hello Peter,
Good for you that you keep studying!
Yes, 死んでもいない means “not even dead yet”
Hi Maggie,
Sorry to bring up an old question again.
Can we change ~でもいない and use ~でもない in the same way?
And is the word とんでもない (No way!) related to this pattern?
Many thanks as always,
Peter.
Hi Peter,
とんでもない is an expression but it is originally from 途でもない and 途 means “the principle of the thing/reason” →not rational So it would fit the pattern, “Not even rational” →No way!
Hi,
I’ve visited this site specifically this webpage many times and found it very useful in my studies. I’m just curious, is there a difference in nuance in the following sentences:
ーのどが渇いた感じだ。
ーのどが渇いた「って」感じだ。
ーのどが渇いた感じ「がする」。
Just added 「」 so that it’s easier to see what I added from the first sentence.
Hi JP Arcilla
1) のどが渇いた感じだ。
2) のどが渇いた「って」感じだ。
3) のどが渇いた感じ「がする」。
First when you simply want to say I am thirsty, you just say のどが乾いた。You don’t say 1) 2) 3) They are not natural.
When you describe the state of your body, health condition, etc., “My throat feels dry ” ” you use 3)
1) and 2) are used when you mention something first and “It is like being thirsty” and the difference between 1) and 2) is 2) is more casual than 1)
Hi Maggie,
I just wanted to check something if that’s OK?
There’s a bit in the lesson where it says “* So you drop い ( = i) and changing る ( = ru) to ん ( = n)”.
I’m wondering if you can you also do that for words like 対する, and make it 対すん?
Many thanks as always :)
Peter.
Hi Peter,
If the following letter is の, yes, you can say 対すん＋の
I can’t think of a good example sentence because 対する is kind of formal verb but let me explain with 反対する
反対する 反対するの→反対すんの
Ex. 彼の意見に反対するのはやめたらどうですか？
→彼の意見に反対すんのやめたら？ (Very casual)
Hi Maggie,
That’s great, thank you! You’ve confirmed what I suspected :D
I saw it a few days ago (can’t remember where), and I’m pretty sure the whole sentence was simply 対すんのかい。which I took to mean “No objections?”
I only ask now because the hard drive on my laptop died that day, and I’m only just back online :D
Thanks again!
Peter.
OK, I think what you saw was “反対すんのかい” （Are you against it?/ Do you disagree?) (対すんのかい？ still sounds strange..)
Hope you can fix your laptop. 😊
Have a good day, Peter!
Hi Sensei, I’ve heard this phrase around quite often.
待つしかない
However, this seems to be illegal usage of しか right? I need to convert 待つ into a Noun form (待つこと) before I can combine the phrase.
Hope you can advise. Thanks.
Hi Jake
You can use
verb plain form + しかない
待つしかない = You just need to wait (You can’t do anything else)
When the following verb is できない you use こと
verb plain form + こと＋しか
待つことしかできない “the all you can do is to wait (There is no choice) “
I did not quite grasp the difference between 済ます and 済ませる. Is 済ませる the causative form of 済ます?
済ます・済ませる: They mean the same.
〜せる is more common but I will show you other examples.
泣く→causative form 泣かせる the verb which already has a causative meaning →泣かす
寝る→causative form 寝かせる the verb which already has a causative meaning →→寝かす
Hello! Your explanations are very good, thank you so much.
I have a question.
I found this sentence on a YouTube video:
先生にもっと勉強するよう言われました.
I’m not sure it is correct and maybe I didn’t understand it.
よう is not followed by に or な here.
Can you help me understand it?
ありがとうございます
Hello さたばう
先生にもっと勉強するように言われました
→You sometimes omit に
先生にもっと勉強するよう言われました
試験に受かるようにがんばった。
→試験に受かるようがんばった。
You tend to drop に in writing form more.
Hello,
How are you? I’d like to be able to pay for the audio files but without have to renew any payment, is it possible?
Thank you!
Hi Kotori,
Right now, I am not selling audio files but let me think about it. 😊
Hello,
Ok, thank you! (⌒‿⌒) It would be nice if, for example, we could pay 2 dollars for the files of all the sentences of a lesson / page. It would be appreciated. Have a nice day!
Even if it is only for a month, I would not mind.
OK!
But just so you know, you can sigh up for Patreon even just for a month ($2.00/month) and quit in a month.
Hi, Maggie-sensei, I hope you’re doing great!
About this lesson, I wanted to know if there’s a difference between using ことができます and 可能形？
Thanks very much in advance. I’m always a fan of your great lessons!
Hello toumei
As for your question, the difference between ことができます and 可能形
Please look at the Note in the lesson.
↓
The difference between the regular potential form and verb + ことができる ( = koto ga dekiru)
As I wrote there, ことができる is more formal and literal. And potential form is more conversational.
Can you help me out?
Is the particle で in お茶でも飲まない？the one from である?
Literally, the question says “even being tea you don’t drink (beverages)?
It will be better to think でも as one particle in this case.
But there are cases that だ/である → also で+ も
彼は父だ / 彼は父である。
彼は父でもある。
(Beside being ~ ) He is also a father.
Sensei.
if i write comments here, do i use sou or mitai? for example nian nian 先生可愛いみたいだ。
I heard that みたい is not used for writing.
ありがとうございます先生
Hi Kharisma
If you see NyanNyan Sensei and says she looks cute,
you don’t say
Ex. ニャンニャン先生はかわいいみたいだ。
You say かわいい
And if you heard NyanNyan Sensei is cute, you say
Ex. ニャンニャン先生は可愛いそうだ。
いやあ、日本語を勉強しているのがきっかけでこのサイトをよく調べています！
また来てね〜😊
(Note for you: 〜がきっかけでこのサイトでよく調べるようになりました。 is more natural. ）
わかりました。修正してくれてありがとう！
いつでも練習してくださいね。😊
I want you to know that you are inspiring me to not give up, sensei.
I couldnt Thank you enough.
Thank you for your nice comment.
Yes, please keep studying Japanese. がんばって＼＼\\٩( ‘ω’ )و //／／
What is the kanji of the word かける
knowing the origin made me understand more
Hello nekoco,
The kanji for Vかける is 掛ける
Wow, so many ways to use this word! I had to take notes!
Good! がんばって！😊
Hello, sensei! I’ve found your blog because I was looking for something… This section is really well-made, thank you! :D If what I understood is correct, is “そりゃそうだわなー” a female sentence? Or can it be used by a male?
Thanks a lot in advance! :D
Hello Mirialia,
そりゃそうだわなー is from それはそうだよね and it is a male speech.
Hello, Maggie先生。
I need your explanation about “し” after the word 繁栄。
米国は、ともに繁栄し、平和と安全に関する責任をともに負う未来を望んでいる。
Is 繁栄 used as a noun or する verb? If 繁栄 is a noun it should be 繁栄だし according to the formula and 繁栄するし if it’s a する verb. But, the sentence used 繁栄し。
Thank you^^
Hello Chewy
Ah, this し is masu-stem of the verb 繁栄する
When you connect verbs, to do something and then do something, you can use te-form or masu-stem. This し is the later.
masu-stem is more formal than te-form.
繁栄する
masu form 繁栄します
masu stem 繁栄し
The meaning is the same as te form: 繁栄して
How much does the audio one cost?
And is it the same lessons as this just with a audio?
You really don’t have to be my Patron just for one audio file.
I was just saying that I currently offer the audio files just on my Patrons to be fair for my supporters. They support me so I support them. :)
Hi, i was wandering if you have any audio files for your lessons?
Hit would really help!🙏🏻
Hello Hazel,
I have been offering audio files for my Patreon since 2018.
→ Patreon.
If you are my Patron, you can make a request to make a new audio file.
Hi Maggie,
Hope you are well :)
I’m looking into giving and receiving today, and I just want to check I’ve got this sentence correct:
A:「あの、そのチュニック…」
B:「これかい？トレガーの旦那から買ったのさ。
身幅が足りなかったんで、裾を切って胸のとこを幅出しさせて貰ったよ」
A: Erm, that tunic…
B: This? I bought it from Treger’s master. The body width wasn’t sufficient, so he cut the hem and widened the chest area for me.
I still get a bit stuck sometimes on who does what, but the て貰った says to me that the action of widening the chest was done for B (not by B), presumably by the person she bought it from (so, トレガーの旦那).
Is that about right…?
Many Thanks,
Peter.
HI, Peter,
元気？
This させてもらった doesn’t specify who fixed the tunic but B took the liberty of doing or having someone do so.
“I took the liberty of cutting (or having someone cutting the hem) and widening the chest area (after B bought it from トレガー”
Hi Maggie,
I’m well thanks :)
Right, so might the following translation be more accurate?
“The body width wasn’t sufficient, so I had the hem cut and the chest area widened.” (by some unspecified individual, which may even have been herself)
Many thanks again!
Peter.
Yes, your translation is right. 😊
マギー先生、今日は❣️
もう一度のmattiaです。すみませ〜ん😅
I have a quick question in regard to ようにする。
I tried to find a lesson that explains the difference between ようにする (anticipated by the verb in its infinitive form) and ようとする (anticipated by the volitive form).
For instance, I know that
肉だけじゃなくて、野菜も食べるようにしています。
Means: I’ll try to eat vegetables too and not only meat.
でも。。。
There is this construct in Japanese: 〜ようとする that I thought it means “try to…”
So, I’m a little bit confused.
E.g.: ドアを開けようとしていました。
The sentence above is “I tried to open the door” right?
So what is the difference between the two?
V+ようとする
V (volitive form)+(よ)うにする
If there’s a lesson about it would you mind address me to it? And sorry if I couldn’t see it.
いつも通りありがとうございました！
Mattia
Oooooooops I found it :p
Sorry once again.
🙇🏻
Matt
Good! If you still have any doubts, let me know.
Hello Maggie sensei.
I am impressed with your esson. Not just but with a full of explanation and break down. WOW..
May I ask you how to tell a person on the line.
(Could you hold on, I would put your through my husband)
Formal and polite way to say it
Thank you
Betty
Hi Betty,
OK, I’ll show you the variations.
If someone calles your company and wants to talks to her husband and you transfer the phone call you say
I’ll put you through to YOUR husband:
少々お待ちください。ご主人におつなぎいたします。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Goshujin ni otsunagi itashimasu.
If her husband is close to you, you say,
少々お待ちください。ご主人に代わります。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Goshujin ni kawarimasu.
And if someone calls your house and wants to talk to your husband, you say
少々お待ちください。主人に代わります。
= Shoushou omachi kudasai. Shujin ni kawarimasu.
Hey Maggie! I have a question for you, I don’t really know if this is the right lesson to write this to you, but I could definitely use some help :)
I came across this sentence recently and it’s giving me some headache.
残りの人生は実に楽しくすごしており、夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。
Can you please try to help me with this grammar conundrum?
Thank youuuuu
Hello Mattia,
OK, let’s make this sentence into two sentences.
A: 残りの人生は実に楽しくすごしている。= I’m really enjoying the rest of the life (or my life).
＋そして = and
B: 夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。 (literal translation) It turned out to be so rich to the extent that I didn’t even imagine.
Now in order to put the sentence A and B together into one sentence, you have to change the main verb “いる” in the sentence A.
One way to do is to use te-form 〜すごしていて夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。
Another more literal way to connect them is to use the masu stem.
But you don’t make masu-stem from います. X 〜すごして「い」夢想だにしなかったほど恵まれたものとなった。(wrong)
This is irregular one.
いる changes to the formal version おる→おり
Oh! Thank you so very much. It was mainly that “だに” + “ほど” that were giving me problems.
本当にありがとうございます^_^
🙇🏻
Ah, OK
I didn’t mention but だに means “even”. It is a literal expression.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I believe that I have heard ひょっとして、ひょっとしたらandひょっとすると used before, but what’s the difference and when would you use each one respectively in conversation?
Hello,
ひょっとして・ひょっとしたら・ひょっとすると and also もしかして・もしかしたら・もしかすると add the meaning of “I could be wrong but, ~ by any chance
You start the sentence with it when you tell someone your assumption.
マギーは忙しいかもしれない。= Maggie might be busy.
ひょっとして忙しいのかもしれない。= I could be wrong but maybe Maggie is busy.
Thank you for answering! So to summarise they are all the same and can be used interchangeably?わかりました。ありがとうございます！
Yes, that’s right. They have the same meaning and interchangeable. 😊
Hey there!
I’m wondering about using する verbs with にくい and やすい .
家で、日本語を勉強するにくいです。
Does this work to mean studying Japanese at home is hard?
ありがとうございます！
Hi Isaac,
You use a masu-stem します→し＋にくい・やすい
〜しやすい
〜しにくい
I guess you can say 勉強しやすい・しにくい Under certain circumstances (room, environment ,etc) but you don’t say for example
日本語は勉強しやすい・しにくい
Hello Maggie-sensei!
My homework has two example sentences that have confused me, and I was hoping you could help me? Even though these sentences describe the past, the text uses ですinstead of でした。I can’t figure out why…
The sentences are here:
私は小さい時よく食べたものはチョコレートやアイスクリームです。
When I was small, the things that I often ate are(were?) chocolate and ice cream.
あまり食べなかったものは野菜です。
The thing that I hardly ate is(was?) vegetables.
As an English speaker, I would want to include the version in the parenthesis, but is it more natural to use です in Japanese here?
This web page was published in 2017, but I’d be grateful if you can help me. ;;u;;
Hi Rachel
The literal translation is:
私は小さい時よく食べたものはチョコレートやアイスクリームです。
When I was small, the things that I often ate “ARE” chocolate and ice cream.
あまり食べなかったものは野菜です。
The thing that I hardly ate “IS” vegetables.
Let me write questions, too.
小さい頃によく食べたものはなんですか？
= What are the things you used to eat when you were small.
あまり食べなかったものはなんですか？
= What are the things that you didn’t eat so much?
When you describe something that you did in past, you can use です
Ex.これは去年買った時計です。
= This is the watch that I bought last year.
Ex. 彼にもらった時計はこれです。
= The watch that I got from him is this one.
I think you understand why you use です here because you are talking about the object, a watch, which is in front of you.
You can use the same idea when you describe something intangible, such as memories, idea, issue, etc.
in the manga and the movie oboreru knife, there is the quote, “目が回るほど、息が止まるほど、震えるほど。。。” could you explain what these mean:) thank you
Hi vos
You have to check the meaning of these three verbs first
目が回る = literal meaning “feeling dizzy” →目が回るほど = as I feel dizzy
The common expression is 目が回るほど忙しい = very busy (like you feel dizzy)
息が止まる= stop breezing →息が止まるほど = breathtaking
震える = shaking, shivering →震えるほど = something gives the shivers (could be positive or negative)
Teacher, can you make a list of Japanese words on theme: Housework , habits in life , economics. Thanks you so much
Hi,
“habits in life” you mean daily life related Japanese?
I don’t know about economics but I will add them in the request list. :)
Hi Maggie,
I’ve come across a phrase today that looks like a combination of forms that I’ve never seen before:
「ならどこへでも行っちまいよ！清々するよ！」
行っちまい looks like it might be a contraction of 行ってしまう in the -まい form.
I thought -まい means “doesn’t intend to”, but that doesn’t really fit in with the sentence or the general conversation, so I’m a little bit confused…
Any help you can offer would be, as usual, greatly appreciated :)
Peter.
Hello Peter
I think the sentence should be 行っちまいなよ
Yes, 行っちまう is a contraction of 行ってしまう
It is a rough male speech so you should avoid using it but I bet you see that a lot in manga or TV drama.
行っちまいな is a command form (行ってしまいなさい）
Other example
早く宿題をやってしまいなさい→早く宿題をやっちまいな (male speech/rough)
全部食べてしまいなさい→全部食べちまいな (male speech/rough)
Hi Maggie,
Thanks you so much – that makes a lot more sense given the context of the conversation.
You were right – I checked the sentence again and it did have a -な that I missed :D
Thanks again!
Peter.
P.S. I think I posted this one the wrong topic…sorry!
I meant to post it on the ちゃう & ちゃった lesson, but I’ve got 3 different ones open on my browser…
Good! Problem solved. Don’t worry about where you write. I will read all the comments anyway. 😉
Have a great day!
I know this might be an old post, but this website has been really helpful for my Japanese studies. I was just curious about one thing though.
–> こんなに忙しい「のに」、友達の家なんかに行って遊んでいる時間はない
Why was のに used here? From one of the previous lessons discussed here, I assumed that のに is used to show contradiction like “Even though I studied, I failed”, but I don’t see the contradiction in this sentence though. Could you elaborate?
Hello JP Arcilla
I’m glad to hear you found this site helpful.
That example sentence こんなに忙しいのに、〜遊んでいる時間はない might be easy to understand if I change the sentence a little.
忙しいのに友達の家に遊びに行く・行った
In this case you give two contradicted facts.
being busy ⇄going out
So even if this speaker didn’t go visit the friend, there is still contradicted elements.
Also のに has a function to emphasize what comes before.
I am SO busy that I don’t have time to go visit my friend.
Is it also possible to say 休みの間, 漢字を200個覚えた。? And the meaning would be same as 休みの間に漢字を200個覚えた。?
Yes, as I said 間に is more natural but you say both in conversation.
Hi Maggie sensei!
I noticed that in many of your examples, you used ~なきゃ／なくちゃ and then put いけない in parentheses afterwards. My Japanese friend always uses the いけない after she says なきゃ. Is the いけない optional? And if it is, does using it make the sentence more formal? Thank you for the great lesson as always!
Hi Emily
Yes, the original form is
Vなければいけない/いけません
Vなくてはいけない/ いけません
→(casual) Vなきゃ・なくちゃいけない・いけません
→(even more casual) you drop いけない and say Vなきゃ・なくちゃ
Thank you so much for the help!
You’re very welcome! ☺️
Maggie-sensei,
I also can use the conditional と with てる forms, I mean, in present progressive?
Because I faced this sentence:
「話してると怒られる」
There are two girls at school, and the principal is making a speech, then one of the girls calls the other, and she replied with that.
おはよう、Gabriel
First てる is a casual way to say ている
And yes, you can use (て）いる with と
話していると・話してると describes the state of talking more vividly.
Thanks for clearing up for me! Your blog has been sooooo useful for me! Thanks a lot!!
ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして💕
Is it also possible to say 休みの間, 漢字を200個覚えた。?
And the meaning with 休みの間に漢字を200個覚えた。would be pretty the same?
Actually I would say 休みの間に漢字を２００個覚えた。is more natural.
Let me take back what I said before.
間 = during the break time, you have been memorizing 200 kanji. (on going action)
間に = taking advantage of the break time, you memorized 200 kanji.
So if you want to say 間
休みの間、ずっと漢字を覚えていた。works better.
Maggie-sensei, 最近はどうですか?
I recently was watching an anime and faced this sentence:
「こけしに当たるなんてなかなかないからね。」
I understand the meaning as “It’s not easy to get hit by a Kokeshi.”
But I do not understand properly the work of から after なかなかない.
Could you clear me up?
Thanks in advance =)
Hi Gabriel,
私は元気ですよ。Gabrielも元気？
から here is either 1) to give a reason why this person said/did something (depending on the previous sentence)
2) to emphasize the speaker’s point.
私も元気ですよ。
Sorry, I didn’t give you a lot context haha
In the previous sentence the character says
「でも人生の中で―」
Apparently, she is trying to see the positive side of being hit by a こけし
I mean the previous sentences to know the context but I found it out by myself.
So kokeshi doll was falling from the sky and they were talking about that, right?
In this case the usage of からね is very conversational.
You usually use kara to give a reason with から
(reason)から+ consequences/what you think/what you do…
You omit the following part on purpose and the listener can read between the lines.
Because it is rare that kokeshi hit my head, it is… （Ex. 面白いね。/ なんかいいことがあるかもしれないよ, etc.)
Probably the closes translation in English is “so”
「人生でこけしに当たるなんてなかなかないからね。」
“It is very rare that kokeshi hit one’s head in our life, so…”
なるほど！ありがとうございます、先生！！
どういたしまして💕
Hi Maggie,
It’s me again. Sorry to trouble you twice in one day!
I have a day off so I’m trying to understand a couple of things that are confusing me a little bit :)
I came across this yesterday:
R:「…訊いておいてくれだって.」
It relates to 2 people, R + M, in a conversation.
R is relaying a message from a 3rd person T, so I think it means:
“T asked me (R) to ask you (M)…”
Am I right in thinking that the -ておいて part indicates that T asked R in advance, and the -てくれ part indicates that R is doing something for T?
Hello again Peter,
Oh you can ask me questions anytime.
Yes! It means “T asked me (R) to ask you (M)…”
Q: Am I right in thinking that the -ておいて part indicates that T asked R in advance, and the -てくれ part indicates that R is doing something for T?
→Yes, you got that right!
Brilliant! Thanks once again for your continued, invaluable help!
My pleasure! 😊
Hi Maggie,
As usual when I got stuck on something, one of your lessons gave me the answer :)
Just a quick question on it though:
リオンが一生懸命やってくれればくれるほど、申し訳ない気持ちで一杯になる。
For the verb1 + ば + verb2 + ほど pattern, is verb1 always the same as verb2?
Are there any examples where they might be different?
Many thanks as always!
Hello Peter,
Welcome back!
Yes, verb1 + ば + verb2 + ほど
You use the same verb. (If it is suru-verb, 勉強する、料理する etc, you can just repeat する and as your example sentence, if the verb has くれる／あげる or other auxiliary verbs, etc, you can just repeat the dictionary form of くれる／あげる,etc. in verb 2)
料理すればするほど
やってあげればあげるほど
やってもらえばもらうほど
Lovely! Thank you for the quick reply :)
Anytime! 😊💕
I’ve once read in a retail store the word “現品限り.” What does it mean?
現品限り = just this item here / There is no more stock except this item (on the shelf)
Hello maggie sensei!
I don’t know if this place for it, but I went accross this while reading “そんな指図されにゃいかんのだ”, and I can’t seem to understand this されにゃいかん part, can you help me ?
Hello,
にゃいかん is a very casual (or also a dialect in certain area) way to say 〜なければいけない
Why do I have to be told to do such a thing.
Thank you for the answer ! But in that case, what is there in the sentence that indicates it is a question, isn’t のだ affirmative ?
Not a question. Why do I have to do that? = I don’t have to do that.
のだ is for statement but when you express your strong feelings.
Thank you for the answer. However, I have but one last question. Isn’t なければいけない “have to do” rather than “don’t have to do” ? Isn’t the character saying he has to do it ? Sorry for bothering you so long 😅
なければいけない itself means “have to do something” but by adding のか you make a question but at the same time you can express your strong feelings of disagreement.
The same idea in English.
I don’t have to do ~: なくてもいい
Why do I have to do that? = (どうして/なぜ）〜なければいけないのですか？ / 〜のか (more rough)
Hello, maggie sensei 😊
Just a slight question, but while reading ４月は君の嘘，a character uses 見てみなよ，which is an imperative negative, as an imperative positive. Could you please explain ?
Hi ピエール
Vてみて(よ)→(male speech, rough speech ) Vてみな(よ)
The translation could be “Why don’t you V?” but it is actually not an imperative negative. It is an affirmative form.
Vてみる= try to do something/ give it a try ~ ing
So 見てみなよ = (Why don’t you take a look at something) = Take a look at something.
見てみてよ→male speech 見てみなよ
〜てみる→imperative form male speech
ありがとう😊
どういたしまして💕
こんにちはマギー先生! ちょっと質問があります。
I just noticed that you used “ですし” in an example where I guessed that it’s because it’s polite form. Is it also acceptable to use ~ますし? Although I don’t think there is such a pattern. I’m just curious how you say a polite form of verb using し。🙂
Hi Lory
When you connect two verbs, you use the plain form before し and finish the sentence with です・ます
Ex. お金も欲しいし時間も欲しいです。
Ex. 休日は、掃除もするし洗濯もします。
But in formal conversation you connect です・ます＋し
Ex. お金も欲しいですし時間も欲しいです。
Ex. 休日は、掃除もしますし洗濯もします。
よく分かりました先生。😊
説明してくれてありがとうございます。
どういたしまして、Lory!
Hey Maggie, 元気ですか ?
Could you help me with this sentence? I didn’t get the usage of the に particle here:
食べ始めてすぐ、「お母さん、おかわりちょうだい」と言ってご飯のお茶碗をお母さんに出しました。
Note: Is the son who are speaking.
Is the mom receiving the rice? Or is she giving the rice?
Thanks in advance.
Hi Gabriel,
はい、元気ですよ〜♫
食べ始めてすぐ、「お母さん、おかわりちょうだい」と言ってご飯のお茶碗をお母さんに出しました。
The speaker (son/daughter) is talking to his/her mother and passing the (empty) rice bowl to his/her mother asking for another helping.
ああっ！なるほど！ありがとうございます。
And thanks for the fast reply :)
どういたしまして💕
Hi sensei,
I watched a movie and this line came out:
裁判に勝ってるかも知れないね
I assume it means: “we probably can win the trial.”
Why the sentence use the particle に instead of を or other particles?
Thank you
Hi vani,
It is one of the special usages of the particle に
When you are talking about “to win” or “to lose” you use に
試合に勝つ
ゲームに負ける
Actually I am thinking about making a lesson of the usage of に including this theme.
The meaning of your example sentence is
裁判に勝ってるかも知れないね Maybe ~ is winning the trial.
If it’s 裁判に勝てるかもしれないね Maybe ~ can win the trial.
Hi sensei, sorry for the late reply. I thought the blog will notify me.
Thank you! It makes more sense now for me!
裁判に勝てるかもしれないね Maybe ~ can win the trial
Does ” 裁判に勝てられる？” has the same meaning with the sentence above?
Thank you! Hope you have a nice day :)
Hello vani,
Sorry. The comment page doesn’t have a function to notify you.
You say 勝てる but you don’t say 勝てられる
勝てる already has a potential meaning.
You have a nice day,too!
oh, I got it! Thanks for the explanation! ❤
Good! You’re very welcome! 😊
Hello Maggie Sensei,
hmm…i’ve always wondered why plain past tense i.e ta-form is always used to form the meaning “if” or “when” for this grammar tara. I’m not quite sure on the tenses….for example:
“もしぶかつに遅れたら….”
Directly translating would be like “if I had been late to club activity”, which suggest the future?? Also can you please tell me how you know when tara means “when” or “if” in a particular sentence? Thankyou :3
Hi again,
もしぶかつに遅れたら….”
You use past tense with たら but it could mean both “If I had been late /I were late” or “If I am late” depending on the context.
遅れたらみんなに迷惑をかけるだろう。I may/might trouble everyone. (talking about the possibility in future)
遅れたら迷惑をかけたかもしれない。I would have troubled everyone. (talking about hypothetical situation that didn’t happen in past.)
Basically, if you are talking about something likely to happen, the better translation will be “when” and if you are talking about hypothetical situation, “if” is better.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I am curious…why can と mean both “if~” and “when~”. Since it’s a conditional it’s all about when conditions are met and the subsequent events occuring after, but i’m confused why it can be “when” as well as “if”.
Hello, shadoni
Some of the translations could be either “when” or “if” depending on your interpretation.
When you do something and automatically happens something, probably the translation “when” works better but when you are talking about more hypothetical situations or less possibilities, “if” would be better.
Thank you for this excellent lesson. I was aware of the verb 済む, but there are many expressions and meanings featured here that I was not aware of. Much appreciated!
Hello Jimmi,
Glad to hear you learned something here. 😋
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I come across this phrase ～なくとも. How is it different from ～なくても? I googled and found answers that they are similar but the former is more or writing. In that case, can we replace V+ても with V+とも? i.e. 質問しとも
Hello Chang
なくとも and なくても mean the same and they are interchangeable.
And you are right. なくとも is more literal.
You don’t use affirmative form (dictionary form) + とも
X 質問しとも
This blog is incredible! I saved it so long ago, I don’t know why I waited so long to take a look T–T…
Thank you so much for this great content!
Best
ian
Hi ian
Great, now you are here! :)
Hello Maggie! Is the following part correct when using TEWA for a similar use to TARA?
na-adjective A～い ( = i) + では (dewa)
It seems weird that we put I after a NA adjective so I just want to make sure. Thanks a lot for your work in this blog, it’s amazing!
Hi Diego,
You mean the usage of suggesting/giving some advice?
As I explained
You can use both Verb+ ては or Verb+たら
Why don’t you do something?
This usage works with verbs not with adjectives.
Hi.
In the next sentence, is たら form affecting the previous verbs?
涙見ないふりして笑ってうなずいたら
Thanks.
Hi Bere
Right. But in this case the way how this person うなずく is important.
（A: 涙見ないふりして笑って） + B: うなずいたら
(A:涙見ないふりして笑って) describes how this person うなずく
So, in this case, うなずいたら could be the same as うなずくとき??
Thank you very much.
There is nuance difference between たら and とき
たら = if (conditional) more hypothetical
とき = when (When you do it, Ex. something automatically happens.)
Sense I have a question concerning this lesson. I have made a lot of mistakes in the past and I would like to correct myself.
When you order to the restaurant if I use the base polite form (masu) it is okay for or casual ?
In principle I always use for exemple
“すみません、水をもらっていいですか？”
“注文お願いします。”
For looking apartment it’s always difficult when I need to write them because I think I mix all in one
Like : ご返事お待ちしております。douka
どうぞよろしくお願いします
Thanks a lot for your lesson, it’s help and everyday
Hello Virginie
“すみません、水をもらっていいですか？”
It is casual but many young people say that. Some older people think this もらっていいですか is a bit condescending so you can say that at a coffee shop but be careful who you use it with.
To make is sound more polite, you say
すみません、お水(を)いただけますか？
or just すみません、お水、お願いします。is good enough.
“注文お願いします。” You are asking the waiters if you can order or not, right? Then, yes, you can say that.
You can also say 注文いいですか？
ご返事お待ちしております。→お返事お待ちしております。どうぞよろしくお願いします( or more polite お願いいたします。）
マギー先生、
いつもすごく詳しく説明してくれてありがとうございました！
一番いい先生ですよ！
Max ありがとう！！
うれしいです！💖
Thank you very much.I found it very usefull to me.please keep teachingus like this.
My pleasure! I’m glad to hear that you found this lesson useful. :)
Is this really correct? I learned the teshimau and chau Form as meaning “accidentally/unintentionally did …” and I cant find the kind of grammar form you describe here anywhere else. Or maybe theyre formed the same way but have different meanings depending on context? Very confusing xD
You mean you just saw the usage “accidentally/unintentionally did …” but not the other usages, such as “finish doing something” or “to do something completely”, etc?
I don’t check other resources but yes, there are more usages of chau. It could be negative, positive or neutral depending on the context.
宿題やっちゃった。(positive expressing satisfaction, joy, relief.)
Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。(negative, anger, frustration)
お茶をこぼしちゃった。(did something accidentally. negative)
電車がいっちゃった (negative, the train is gone, Oh well..)
皿を洗っちゃいましょう。(neutral. Let’s finish some work) ,etc.
Thanks for the fast reply. Yes thats what I meant, but now that I read this lesson I will look out for the differences in meaning.
Its still a little confusing though as according to this lesson the sentence
“Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。”
could also mean Thomas finished eating my meal, right? Maybe you offered it to me before ;D. So I guess its highly dependant on context and maybe the way its said?
“Thomasが私のごはんを食べちゃった。”
For this particular example sentence, it delivers negative meaning. Because the meal was MINE. 😛
But yes, it’s all depending on the context. If you say
ごはんはもう食べちゃった “I already finish eating.”
It is not positive or negative. Just expressing the completion of action.
I dont really have a doubt but just wanted to let you know that this site is really helpful and thanks for helping us out:)
Hi Bavya
Thank you for your comment. I’m glad to hear this site is helpful. :)
Hello again Maggie! Two comments in such a short time :>
I had a question about the “As long as” section. How would you use it in negative sentences or would you use 限り?
このレッスンで僕の読んだことを踏まえてネガティブ文章の中で「as long as」を使いたいなら「さえーば」を使うべきだと思いませんね。
以上の文章の文法は可でしょうかな？
そうしてマギー先生のレッスンを読むたびに僕の日本語への勉強情熱が火みたいに点火します。
前もってありがとうございます。
Hello again, Dubz!
You can use 限り “as long as” in negative sentence.
諦めない限り夢はかないます。( As long as you don’t give up, your dream will come true.)
If you want to use さえ〜ば, you say
諦めさえしなければ夢はかなります。
日本語への勉強の火を消さないでね〜😊
is this right ?
昨日からいい本を探しているところにこのヴィデオを見つけた。
Context :
When i looking a good book (from yesterday untill find the video), i found a video.
The video is a review about books, so after watching the video i stop looking for book…
Hi Manila,
No, it’s not.
The reasons are:
1) AところにB
The doer of the action of A and B should be different.
2) 昨日から〜探している that means you have been looking for a book since yesterday not in the middle of action.
Oh, I see. Thank you, 先生!
どういたしまして😊
Hi ! I really like your lessons and there is something I would like to ask you about this one .
In the sentence
“Watashi ni kare ga iru koto wo tomodachi wa mada shiranai” from this lesson, why does “ni” go after “watashi” instead of “wa ” ? Thanks for everything up to this point !
Hello hoshi,
You can say
Watashi wa kare ga iru
When you emphasize “watashi” you add “ni”
Watashi niwa kare ga iru.
Watashi wa yaru koto ga arimasu. = I have things to do.
When you emphasize “watashi”, you say
watashi niwa yaru koto ga arimasu.
Hello Maggie!
I was just wondering since I know 最中 means “In the middle of-” and 中 means currently doing in some cases so would something like “I should be asleep but..” Look like this? 僕は寝中のはずだがー
またの素晴らしいレッスンは本当にありがとうございます
マギー先生のサイトは間違えなく世界の一番いいサイトです。
心から事実でございます。
Hello Dubz
You don’t say 寝中 but you can say 睡眠中（すいみんちゅう）
うれしいメッセージありがとう！💕
hello sensei.
i just learn about tokoro from shinkanzen master and confused by tokoro + particle.
And i came here to learn more.
i’m really sorry but i’m still confused between tokoro de and tokoro ni.
i’m trying to understand from this example :
駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った
i’m thinking why it isn’t using tokoroni. in my viewpoint, it’s 2 action that happened on the same time. so, i think why it’s using tokoro de ?
as you have already wrote that tokoro de used when it fulfill some condition. i don’t understand what condition on this example that fulfilled ?
i’ve already asked my friend about this, and he asked to read again about difference ni and de ? but i don’t still understand…
thank you very much sensei !
Hi Michael C,
Ex. 駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った。
Action 1: finish buying a cake (the action of buying some cakes is completed. → the condition of buying some cakes is fulfilled.)
Action 2: met her
So Action 1 and 2 are not happening at the same time.
When Action 1 is just finished, Action B happened.
If when you are buying some cake, she popped in the store you say
ケーキを買っているところに彼女がきた。
Action 1 : buying some cakes
Action 2 : She is entering the store.
Action 1 and 2 are happening at the same time.
hii…
aah… so it’s my mistake to read the translation carelessly .
now i understand…
thank you thank you a lot for explaining it to me…
本当にありがとうぎざます！！
どういたしまして💕
Hello!
Thanks for your lessons they’re always amazing!
I have a question regarding this topic
So I have this sentence: 試験に受かろうと、勉強しました。
Here the volitional form + と is used as (for) ?
Like I studied to pass the exam?
I didn’t find anything explaining this so would you please explain this grammar point for me?
Thanks
Hi Yara
Ah OK,
Volitional form + と ＋ verb = in an attempt to do something
I studied to pass the exam.
It might be easy to think 試験に受かろうと思って勉強しました。
First of all, I love your lessons! They’ve helped me a lot.
I know this lesson isn’t about it, but I wanted to ask a question about と phrases 「-ないとわからない」is this a kind of set phrase? Instead of translating it like “if you don’t do X you won’t know” you said “until you do X you won’t know”
Is this a common/appropriate way to translate “until you do X you won’t know”? Or just for certain situations?
Hello ビキ！
~と / ~ないと is a conditional
ないとわからない You won’t know until ~
Please check this lesson. Click here (How to use 〜と＆ないと）.
Hi Maggie.
I’ve come across a variation of ~ないではいられない:
~ないままではいられない
Is there a similar variation for ~ずにはいられない (~ずままにはいられない)?
Hi Peter,
元気？
You say ままではいられない (negative form ~ないままではいられない）
Ex. 知らないままではいられない
but you don’t say ~ずままにはいられない
X 知らずままにはいられない
元気です！マギーも元気ように。
いつもの通りに、完全な応えです！
ありがとうございました。
(please feel free to correct me btw – I mainly read rather than speak or write Japanese at the moment!)
OK, let me correct your sentences.
マギーも元気ように。 →(Casual) マギーも元気だったらいいけど。 or simply say マギーも元気？
いつもの通りに、完全な応えです！→いつも通り、完璧な答えです。
ありがとうございました!
Every time I read something or try writing in Japanese I learn something new :)
Good for you! Keep practicing! 😉
Your lessons are really helpful! I hope you continue teaching us. I just came here in Japan last January 24 and I’ll be living here for a year. I’m lucky that I get to work here in this country without any JLPT qualifications but I really want to learn. this website is really helping me Thank you so much Maggie sensei!
Hello Michelle
I’m so grateful to hear that you think my lesson are helpful.
Hope you come back here often! Ganbatte!
What a wonderful refresher on のに! I love using your blog as a great resource to help me recall grammar. I can tell you take a lot of time out to plan these and it’s very much appreciated!
Thank YOU for your kind words, Errol! 😊
HiHi, question, is there a difference between:
目が覚める
目覚める
目を覚ます
I think the first is intransitive and the last is transitive, but what is the middle? Is it the same as the first? Thank you, sorry if this is a bit off topic.
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Can You help me with this sentencie, please?
一人と一人でしかないん だろう
Sorry. I don’t do the translation in the comment section. Also I need to know more context but
Just assuming from the sentence, “It’s probably just one-to-one after all.”
Thanks You. Where do you do the translations?
Sorry. Maybe I made you misunderstand. As I wrote in the description in Maggie’s Room, I don’t do the translation on this site.
Though I would like to help everybody here (on this site), if I do the translation for one person, it will lead to many people.
Hope you understand.
Hi Maggie,
I’ve come across this sentence but I’m finding it hard to know exactly what it means, especially the 折りながら part:
メルが戻っていることを折りながら自室へと向かった。
Does it mean:
“While there is a chance Mel has returned, (I) head towards my private room.”
?
Many thanks as always!
Hello Peter,
OK, first, the kanji 折りながら must be a typo.
See the difference of kanji?
折る= oru = to fold
祈る= inoru = to pray, to wish for something
the main action of this sentence is 自室へと向かった and 祈りながら (wishing) describes how this person goes to his/her room.
I head towards my room wishing that Mel was back.
Oh no! I feel very silly :)
You are absolutely right – it is 祈 and not 折.
That sentence makes much more sense now!
The book I’m reading is quite small print and my eyes aren’t quite what they were…
Thank you!
Good! Problem solved! 😉
Hi Magi-sensei!
I want to ask what this means..
疲れないために〜
We were asked to complete that sentence, but I’m not sure what it means.
ありがとうね。
ーレン
Hello Ren,
疲れないために In order not to get tired, To not to get tired
I wonder if it’s not 疲れないように, though…
Thanks for the fast response, Magi-sensei!
Yes it is 〜ために
I answered 疲れないために、チョコを食べます。笑
:D Not sure if correct, though.
BTW, is ように more suitable for this?
「～ように」 is used with non-volitional verb and 「～ために」 is used with volitional verb so I would say 疲れないように is more natural but yes,
チョコを食べる is a good idea.
You can also say 疲れをとるためにチョコを食べます。 ☺️
Hello, Maggie先生!
I just want to ask how to use 知る and 分かる to differentiate the following situation.
My colleagues (日本人) would often ask me if I know some Japanese words they use. My answer would either be:
1) I know the kanji, but I don’t know the meaning.
2) I am totally unfamiliar with the word.
3) I know the meaning, but I can’t read the kanji.
Sometimes, when I answer either 知りません or 分かりません, they assume that I just don’t understand Japanese. But I do, just not the whole thing.
よろしくお願いします。m(_ _)m
Hi Annie,
You can use both 知る／わかる for 1) and 3)
1) I know the kanji, but I don’t know the meaning.
漢字は知っていますが、意味はわかりません／知りません。
2) I am totally unfamiliar with the word.
その言葉は全く知りません。／知らないです。
3) I know the meaning, but I can’t read the kanji.
意味はわかりますが（知っていますが）、漢字が読めません。
ありがとうございます、Maggie先生!
どういたしまして、Annie💓
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Sorry for asking you a question that is a little unrelated to this double negative lesson, but in Japanese we can conjugate a verb to the negative either in the polite form (ません) or casual form (ない), so is it possible in a slightly formal conversation to end a verb in (ないです) and it still be considered polite or even correct?
For example, instead of saying (今日は眠りません)
could I say (今日は眠らないです)?
Thank you Sensei!
Hello Victor,
Yes, you can use ないです for a slightly formal conversation.
今日は寝ません。
今日は寝ないです。
（眠る =fall a sleep 寝る = sleep/go to bed)
Probably you may not learn this ないです form in your Japanese class but actually many people use this form.
You can use it with adjective as well.
元気ではありません。
元気ではないです。
Hi Maggie sensei…
I hope your doing fine.
This sentence is confusing and i dont know how to explain to my friends. Hoping for your reply. Thanks.
･両親は学校で何が起きたのか話したがっていた。
･子供が見たがっていたアニメ映画。
･彼はいつも私の給料の額を知りたがった。
The tenses used in my example are confusing. Can you please explain the meaning. And also the tenses can be interchangeable to one another.
Thank you so much.
こんにちは、キング
両親は学校で何が起きたのか話したがっていた。
My parents want to talk about what happened at school.
子供が見たがっていたアニメ映画。
The anime movie that my*(or the) children wanted to see.
彼はいつも私の給料の額を知りたがった。
He always wanted to know how much my salary is.
The tense in the sentences show that the state in the past.
It indicates the emotion such as curiosity or eagerness that someone had for a certain period of time in past.
Maggie Sensei, how do you say “something of” in Japanese?
Your grandmother is something of a poet.
Your perfomance in the game was something of a disappointment.
Hello Dwi,
It depends.
Your grandmother is something of a poet.
In this case “ちょっとした” works
ちょっとした詩人だね。(positive nuance)
something of a disappointment.
かなりがっかりした (negative)
Thank you for the lesson!
Besides 「はい、いいですよ。」how do you reply to a request such as 「アイススケートを教えてほしいです」?
Thank you
Hello Rei,
You can say
うん、いいよ (casual)
いつでもいいですよ。（Anytime)
はい、喜（よろこ）んで (with pleasure)
はい、もちろんいいですよ。 (of course)
1。xさんは、 肉を食べなかったくせに、 coronavirusにかかってしまった。
2。病気のくせに、 おさけを飲んでるの。
3。 yさんは彼氏じゃないくせに。
though , he speaks or acts likemy kareshi.
ただしいですか。
教えてくれませんか。
ありがとう先生。
くせに
As I mentioned in this lesson, くせに is similar to のに but it sounds much more negative.
1. くせに→のに
この場合は、「のに」の方がいいです。
2. 間違いではないです。でも上で説明したように「病気のくせに」というと病気の人を下に見ているように聞こえます。
「病気なのに」と言った方が丁寧です。
3. Yさんに対して否定的な気持ちがあれば「くせに」でも大丈夫です。
先生、
正しいですか。
Corona virusという感染は発症しないかな。I wonder/I fear that it should not outbreak.
coronovirusの問題は解決しないのかな。
looking at the way it is spreading, I doubt whether it would get resolved . it shows my frustration.
Can かな be used with passive form ?
小説を書きましたが、
この本は、読まれるかな。
は上記の文章にくらべて、自然な文章だとおもいますか。
どちらがいいとおもいますか。
Corona virusという感染は発症しないかな。
感染自体に get infectedという意味があります。感染しても発症しない人もいるようです。その辺を
コロナウイルスに感染して発症しないかな。
コロナウイルスの感染症が発症しないかな。
ではどうでしょう。
coronovirusの問題は解決しないのかな。 OK
受け身形でも「かな」使います。
この本は、読まれるかな。OK
先生、
こんにちは。お元気ですか。
宇宙には、数えきれないほど、星がたくさんあります。
道に、片付けきれないほど、ごみが あります。
部屋で散らかっているものをやっとかたづけきった。
昨日買った小説は面白くて、一時間で、読み切った。
直してくれませんか。
待ちきれないです。
こんにちは、Pavithra D
宇宙には、数えきれないほど、星がたくさんあります。OK
道に、片付けきれないほど、ごみが あります。 OK (または”道には〜”)
部屋で散らかっているものをやっとかたづけきった。 散らかっているものには意思がないので 「散らかっている部屋」の方が自然だと思います。
昨日買った小説は面白くて、一時間で、読み切った。 OK
ありがとうございます先生。
どういたしまして💕
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I didn’t receive much formal education in Japanese, but as I tried to converse with a Japanese friend, I used something like 邪魔しちゃってごめん, but I don’t know why it sounded so right to me. I couldn’t quite find specific examples differentiating しちゃった、しちゃって and so on and would appreciate an explanation.
Hi ryo,
邪魔しちゃってごめん is a very natural conversational phrase.
邪魔しちゃった originally →邪魔（を）してしまった。(jama (wo) shite shimatta) I bothered/disturbed/interrupt you. (It’s a finishing sentence.)
邪魔しちゃってoriginally →邪魔を（を）してしまって ( jama (wo) shite shimatte)
This て has a function to give a reason for the following ごめん (Sorry) →Sorry for bothering/disturbing/interrupting you.
Thank you very much for this lesson, as well as for your other lessons too!
This site is now one of my top resources for learning Japanese. Gonna use it a lot hehe
Hello Khang,
Happy to hear you study my lessons!
またきてね！ 💕
I see. I was wondering if there are any differences between みたいな and って 感じ at the end of the sentence. And when they are used both one after the other みたいな って 感じ?
Ah your example sentence?
店員みたいなって感じる… should be 店員みたいだなって感じる = I feel like I am a clerk/waiter/waitress.
That’s a very common pattern.
I’ve never steadily kept up with the content on this website but find myself returning from time to time because it’s rich in information, and only now have I realized that Maggie Sensei was recruited to Doggy Heaven. Despite the delay, I still want to offer my condolences for your loss. A great teacher, and I’m sure an even greater family member.
Dear Au,
Thank you so much for your message.
Now I became a dog angel but I keep supporting your Japanese from Doggie Heaven. 🐶💕
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I was wondering if “demo” (no. 2) and “toka” are used interchangeably.
Hello Rapunzel,
Possible but just remember that usage of とか is very colloquial.
お茶とか飲まない？
４） in the usage How to use とか
Maggie Sensei,
Thank you very much for your help!💕
Recently I started watching Japanese shows with subtitles to pick up some conversational phrases and patterns, and immediately got confused with a number of sentence finals that don’t change the meaning as it is but, maybe, add some nuances, I don’t know…
Here I mean tte kanji, mitai na, toka, teka, etc.
In the Internet I found the speaker uses tte kanji when they don’t want to be conclusive, like “I feel that way. Am I right?” I also read “mitai na” is also a softener at the end of the sentence. Are they kind of the same?
I also came across sentences with both of them one after the other: “… mitai na tte kanji”…
e.g. 店員みたいなって感じる…
Yes, 感じ is one of very common way to finish the sentence in a vague way among young people.
When you want to avoid using the straightforward statement, you add 感じ
Ex. お腹がすいた
→ なんか、お腹がちょっとすいたなって感じ
インドには、がんを持つかたの数が増えていくのをきにしています。 がんのせいで、 生活は苦しく なってくるのが気になっています。
先生、
正しいですか。
宜しくお願いします。
こんにちは、 Pavithra D
がんを持つかたの数が増えていくのをきにしています。→がんにかかる人の数が増えているのを心配しています。
“生活は苦しく なってくる”というとまず浮かぶのが”経済的に大変な生活になる”というイメージです。
to live, lifeには人生、生活、命、生きることなどいろいろな言い方がありますが意味が違います。
どういう意味で言いたかったですか？
ありがとうございます先生。 がんにかかったため、 病人のくらしは 精神的や 身体的や経済的にたいへんになるかもしれない といういみです。
どの たんごが適当ですか。
わかりました。生活はevery day lifeですがそれでよければ生活でもいいです。
がんのせいで、 生活は苦しく なってくるのが気になっています。
→がんのせいで、生活が苦しくなるのが心配です。（Note:自分が当人でなければ、 「なってくる」よりも「なる」でいいと思います。「気になる」だと気持ちが弱い（curious) ので「心配」にしたらどうでしょう。
Hello Maggie 先生!
I love your blog! And thanks to it I’ve learned a lot! I know I can always come here to find my answers.
But this time I couldn’t figure out by myself just by reading the blog.
I tried to look for some comments here to find some opinions and differences but still I don’t get it. Would you be so kind and please, please help me? 😭
So far I found that:
たり: is used to give several examples/express repeated actions or conditions/or some types of activities.
While
し: is used to give multiple reasons.
But still that was not enough nor clear for me.
I have an specific example I would like you to help me.
For an interview I need to say: my hobbies are: learning languages, watch series and read about cultures.
My example would be like this :
私の趣味は言語を学んだり、テレビ番組を見たり、文化のついてを読んだりしています。
Or
私の趣味は言語を学ぶし、テレビ番組を見るし、文化のついてを読むしています
Hello ジェシ
If you simply list up some of the examples of what you do for fun, I do A, B and such, たり is more natural to use than し
私の趣味は言語を学んだり、テレビ番組を見たり、文化のついての（or 文化に関する）本を読んだりしています。（Perfect)
As you wrote, し gives multiple “reasons” or emphasize your activities.
私の趣味は言語を学ぶし、テレビ番組を見るし、文化のついてを読むしています (not natural)
If you list up why your Japanese is good and emphasize what you do, you can use し
休みの日は、言語の勉強をするし、日本語のテレビを観るし、文化についての（or 文化に関する）本を読みます。
I have a lesson on How to use し Click this link
Hi Maggie,
Just a quick question – can ことがある be replaced with こともある, or is こともある slightly different?
Many thanks!
There is a nuance difference between ことがある and こともある
As I wrote in the note も ( = mo) adds the nuance of “even” or “also”
They both mean “It sometimes happens” but by using も, you emphasizes what comes before more.
Ex. 職場で誰とも話さないことがある。
= There are times when I don’t speak to anybody at work.
You give another example when you don’t want to deal with other people first and then continue with こともある
Ex. 職場で誰とも話さないこともある。
= There are times when I even don’t speak to anybody at work.
= Sometimes I also don’t speak to anybody at work.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I have been reading a lot of dialogues in Japanese to improve my level recently, and came across one where two colleagues are discussing their daily routines. It’s like, “what do you do during the lunch break?”/“what do you do in the evening?” and so on. Every response ends with よ, e.g. 晩ご飯をたべてテレビを見るよ, etc. I was a bit confused to see so many よ’s but there was a footnote explaining that it makes this conversation sound really natural. Is it indeed so?
Also, I read when we are talking about someone’s emotional state we should do it indirectly, e.g.(私は)幸せです but (彼女は)幸せそうです. However, in manga there was a wedding scene where guests were gossiping about the bride, like “Is she happy with him?” – “幸せ?” (without そう). And in your example I noticed “マギーは幸せですよ” without そう, too.
I would really appreciate your help with this somewhat daunting stuff.
Thank you for your hard work to make learning Japanese easy and fun!
Dear Rapunzel
晩ご飯をたべてテレビを見るよ
This よ has a function of
★ Telling someone what you are going to do/ did to get the listener’s attention.
And the footnote explanation is right. It is makes the conversation more natural.
Of course, you can just say テレビを見る・ テレビを見ます to tell the listener what you are going to do when you just want to express what you are going to do. It doesn’t matter if the listener is paying attention to you or not.
よ makes one’s speech a little more friendly. (particularly this case.)
Someoneは幸せですよ。・だよ is a kind of set phrase. Maybe “lucky” or “one happy person/dog” is a better translation.
I think you are happy. = I think you are very lucky, Maggie. / I think you are one happy dog, Maggie.
When you are define someone’s state of happiness, you just skip そう
You use そう when you assume someone’s happiness. She looks happy.
Maggie Sensei,
So if I happen to answer somebody’s questions about my typical daily routine, it would be more natural to add よ at the end of each response to make it sound more friendly? I mean,
e.g. 休憩時間はいつも何をするの? What do you usually do during the break?
弁当を食べて音楽を聴くよ。I have lunch and listen to music.
夜わ? What about the evenings?
晩ごはんを食べてテレビを見るよ。I have dinner and watch TV.
Could you give more examples of assuming assuming vs stating one’s emotional state, please? It would be really helpful because I have not a similar concept in my mother tongue.
Thank you very much!
That’s possible. But to make it sound more natural, you may want to avoid repeating the same suffix.
I will give you another very conversational dialogue pattern using たり tari / かな kana
Ex. お弁当を食べたり音楽を聴いたりかな。
Ex.夜は？
晩御飯を食べてからテレビを観るよ。
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for the pattern you gave me! Well, is it not very natural to repeat the same suffix?
e.g. 朝何をするの? … よ。
休憩時間は? … よ。
夜は? … よ。 I also wonder if repeating よ‘s doesn’t annoy the listener.
I haven’t grasped assuming vs defining somebody else’s emotional states yet -> 幸せ vs 幸せそう, 悲しい vs 悲しいそう. Could you explain this in a little more detail, please?
Hello Rapunzel,
Some people might just repeat the same suffix twice or so but it sounds(or looks) robotic and you are right the listener might get annoyed hearing the repetition of the same pattern. (You can say that with any suffix or sentence pattern.)
I may have to repeat the same explanation but
A ) Someoneは、幸せだね。 = You are in the state of happiness = “Someoneは幸せな人だね。” = You are one happy person.
B ) Someoneは、幸せそうだね。= You look happy. (Assuming this person is happy by the way this person behaves or situations)
Of course, you are talking about someone else is happy or not so you both assume someone’s condition but A) is your opinion based on what you have been observing that person. B) is just describing what you assume by how someone looks or behaves. Thus A) sounds much more assertive.
Thanks Maggie Sensei, your lessons great as always! do you have online class in Telegram or something?
You’re very welcome! Hope you learn something from this lesson!
(Online class using Telegram?????? 😳）
What does it mean if it’s just the suffix itself?
You mean ポヨ？
It is just from a cute sound so, you just attach it at the end of a sentence,
おいしいなあ （oishii naa） It’s delicious! →おいしいぽよ (oishii poyo)
But this slang is outdated now.
Sensei.what is difference be tweet kamonshirenai and soudesu(looks like) ? Duomo
OK,
V+ かもしれない
V + そうです
今日は雨が降るかもしれない。（ = Kyou wa amega furu kamo shiremasen.) It might rain today. (Just talking about the possibility. )
雨が降りそうです。( = ame ga furisou desu.) It looks like a rain. (It is about to rain) The speaker is judging/assuming the change of the weather from the sky.
You can’t use そうです for your own action.
来年は日本に行くかもしれない。(= rainen wa nihon ni iku kamo shirenai.) I might go to Japan next year.
X 日本に行きそう (= nihon ni ikisou) wrong
Sensei the rule in conjugating (group 2)Verb in passive form is only delete masu and rare ? Tatoeba homemasu Will become homeraremasu.im right sensei ?
H Dan
Yes, homemasu →homerareru
And if you are just talking about Group2 verbs, this rule applies. る ⇒ -られる
For other group verbs, it might be easy to make nai-form. Check my 受け身 lesson if you want to learn more.
Sou desu ka.arigatou sensei.i Love this website ! Very helpful . Godbless :)
My pleasure, Dan!
Glad to hear you like this site! Thank you! 💕
マギー先生いつもありがとうございます、マギー先生の返事助かりました。
I have struggles with “を“ and “ご“ and I think I did some mistakes 😅
You’re very welcome, Virginie💕
You usually use ご for compound words Ex. ご連絡 but there are lots of exceptions.
お返事(へんじ）、お仕事（しごと）, etc.
Hi Maggie!! Love you!
So if I understand everything correctly when it’s about me (私は・私に) させる means I am forcing the person to do something and させられる means I am being forced. Is There ever a situation in which that isn’t true?
Also, if I want to say John made Susie clean her room which is better?
1) スージーさんはジョンさんに部屋を掃除させられました。
2)ジョンさんはスージーさんを部屋が掃除させました。
It’s really hard to know when to use the passive form since in English we rarely use it when speaking and therefore it’s not how I think and because of that I forget this grammar exists haha.
Hello A.man!
Yes, that’s right! You got the idea. :)
1) スージーさんはジョンさんに部屋を掃除させられました。(or 部屋の掃除をさせられました）
2)ジョンさんはスージーさんを部屋が掃除させました。→ ジョンさんはスージーさんに部屋を(or 部屋の）掃除をさせました。
1) focusing on Susie
2) focusing on John
You use the causative passive form when you assume the receiver of the action is not happy. Thus you can express one’s annoyed feelings.
Love💕
Hello Maggie-sensei! If the verb before “to suru” is not at the volitional form but just in its plain dictionary form, how does it translate?
Hi sanjuro
verb plain dictionary form + とする( = to suru) is used for a hypothetical sentence. (= moshi ~ dattara/tara/ to shitara)
If we suppose / Let’s say for argument’s sake that ~
Hey Maggie Sensei,
I wonder if you have certain book about this learning for sale? Honestly, i’d rather to read a book instead of staring at the “bright” screen monitor.
<3
Hi Puspa,
I know staring at the bright screen monitor is a pain, huh?
I’ve been working on e-book but when I got the book done, will consider publishing a paper book. (^_−)−☆
Why do you use くて?
せっかくハワイに行ったのに寒くて泳ぐどころではなかった
今、忙しくて旅行どころではない
I thought it means A1+a1/a2.
But there are くて+verb and くて+noun.
It looks like modifying a noun but actually not.
寒くて modifies 泳ぐどころではない
忙しくて modifies 旅行どころではない
て indicates the cause/reason and following sentence shows the (possible) consequences/result.
Because it’s cold (reason) → there is no way to swim (consequence)
Because I am busy(reason) →there is no way that I can travel.(consequence)
こんにちは先生。
温暖化の問題で、 夏は、 気温があがりかねない。 それで、 水不足になりかねない。
社長に頼まれて、できかねるといってしまいました。
７月は、 はじめて、 日本に行く予定です。 それは、 お待ちかねの旅行です。
直してくれませんか。
いつも、 お世話になっております。
こんにちは、Pavithra D！
それで、 水不足になりかねない。
→「それで」よりこの文章では、「そのため」の方がいいと思います。
社長に頼まれて、できかねるといってしまいました。
→社長に頼まれましたが、それはできかねますと言ってしまいました。
７月は、
→7月に
それは、 お待ちかねの旅行です。
→待ちかねていた旅行です。
の方がいいです。
ありがとうございます 先生。
どういたしまして💕
Hey Maggie! This has mostly demystified my confusion on the use of まま. However, I’m still a little shakey about it with adjectives in different situations. The one example I have right now is a simple sentence:
目を閉じたらいつもそこにはあなたがやさしいままでいるんだ。
So far I have it to:
When I close my eyes you are always there still kind(tender, graceful? Not sure which would be better but oh well.)
But to me there is something in my stomach that makes it feel off like it’s wrong. Like i’m still understanding まま incorrectly.
Any clarification would be helpful.
Thank you!
Hi, my0punk
やさしいまま means “staying sweet/nice”
Hello Maggie sensei. I saw this sentence: “Mada, nanika kakushite iru na!”. I guess it means “there’s still something hidden!”, but why the comma right after “mada”? Is it just a mistake?
Also, thank you for all your amazing hard work and many useful examples!
Hello sanjuro
“Mada, nanika kakushite iru na!”. = You are still hiding something.
Actually you don’t need a comma after “mada” but I think it’s just writing style. Probably the writer wants to emphasize “mada”.
Aah, thank you!
No problem! :)
Maggie Sensei always coming with great lessons!
Thanks so much by the good job!
Hello Antonio!
Thank YOU for your first comment for this lesson! :)
このレッスンは本当に役に立つです。いつもこのサイトが好き。ありがとう
コメントありがとう、Arjuno!
このレッスンがお役に立ててうれしいです！ ☺️
はじめまして、マギー先生!
私 は 「べあとりつ」（BEATRIZ）です。The meanig of my name, from Greek origins, is “blessed with happiness” or “blessing of joy”. I wanted a Japanese name where the Kanji has the same meaning of the original greek word. I’ve found 「惠喜」 or 「恵喜」that reads 「けいけ」, but I’m not so sure if it is the right one. Is there a more appropriate way of writing my name in Kanji? Or is there a Kanji combination with more proximity to the real name pronunciation with a beautiful meaning?
I’m sorry, I do know I’m asking many questions, but your lessons are SO MUCH GREATER than any japanese class I’ve been to, here in Brazil, that I couldn’t help it! (I’m learning japanese for quite a while, but although I’m confident enough to speak it, I’m not that sure about my writing skills just yet).
ところで、my brother’s name is “Andre”, means “strong/healty/manly man”. When he saw me looking for my name he asked me about his, and after a day worth of research, I found 「雄人 」. Is that correct? And what is the sound of this name (what’s it written in hiragana)? Is there a better choice for him?
Oh, Gosh, sorry, I’m on full rant-mode here!!
お手数ですが、よろしくお願いします.
I still have other questions, but I’ll stop myself short at this point.
ご面倒 をお掛け いたしまして 申し訳ありません。
マギー先生, ほんと に、いつも ありがとう！
こんにちは、Beatriz
You have a lovely name, Beatriz!
Some foreign name can be converted in kanji but べあとりつ with that meaning, “blessing of joy” is hard.
You may want to just have a Japanese name with the meaning.
恵喜 = けいき may sound better but it sounds like a boy’s name.
If you prefer a girl’s name, reverse the kanji
喜恵 よしえ
Or change the first letter 喜 joy to 幸 happiness
幸恵 (さちえ／ゆきえ） That is pretty common girl’s name.
As for your brother,
The common way of reading the name 雄人 is either まさと or ゆうと
It is very “manly” name which represent a strong man.
Hope it helps!
I’m happy to hear you learn something from my site.
日本語、楽しんでがんばってくださいね〜！
Thank you for making this lesson easy to understand Maggie 先生！
I would like to ask something although this is a different one.
So I translated “安定した収入があるとも限らない” which is written in the manga that I’m currently reading and I wonder how it turned out like this..
– You don’t always have a stable income –
Maggie 先生、どうやって「とも限らない」を使ったらいいですか？宜しくお願いします！
こんにちは、Uary!
Your translation is OK!
とも限らない：The usage is almost the same as とは限らない but とも限らない implies there are some cases that might happen (It is not always true).
You may not be able to tell the difference well by the English translation because it’s the same but compare to とは限らない, it denies the possibility more softly.
Hi there Maggie Sensei,
Just a question… 1980
a) いっせんくひゃくはちじゅう年
b) せんきゅうひゃくはちじゅう年
Which one is correct? or are both possible?
thnks!
Hi Angel,
1980 = b) せんきゅうひゃくはちじゅう年 is much more common.
先生、
複雑な問題について、さんざん考えたあげく に、解けなくなった。
正しいですか。
「さんざん考えた」という結果が「解けなくなった」というのは時は、逆説の接続詞を使います。
さんざん考えたが、解けなくなった。
先生のおかげで、よくわかりました。
日本語を勉強する理由は次第に 先生に親しくなるのです。 (でも、 犬は怖いです) 。日本に到着しだい、 先生にご連絡します。
JLPT の結果のしだいでは、 日本に行くかどうか きめます。
正しいですか?
よく書けていますが少しだけ直しますね。
日本語を勉強する理由は次第に 先生に親しくなるのです。
次第に 先生に親しくなるのです describe the state how you are getting closer to the teacher naturally.
When you want to get closer with someone intentionally, 次第に is unnatural.
How about just 先生と親しくなるためです。
(でも、 犬は怖いです) 。日本に到着しだい、 先生にご連絡します。 OK
JLPT の結果のしだいでは、 日本に行くかどうか きめます。→JLPT の結果のしだいで、日本に行くかどうか きめます。
ありがとうございます先生。
どういたしまして！
マーギ 先生の教えっぷりはすごいですね。
先生、
明けまして、おめでとうございます。
明けましておめでとうございます！！
ハハ、ありがとう！
Thank you for taking the time to write this blog it’s been very helpful in my 日本語 journey.
I’m struggling to understand the “attend” meaning of 出る. In all the other cases the meaning is linked to exiting/coming out, but in this case it’s the opposite. How does it work?
Thank you!
Hi Ale
Actually the idea of the usage 3) ~ 14) are similar. to come out/ to appear
Ex. 月が出る The moon comes out / appears
the moon was hiding and it appears.
授業に出る the translation is “to attend” but it might be easier to think, “to show up in the class (from somewhere).
Hello マギー先生！
I was wondering, for example- If me and a friend are working at a new place together-
I say to my friend「この仕事は私にとって難しい。」
how would i say-
“how is it for you?”
and
“I don’t know how it is for you (though).”
Hi Milk
In that case, you say
“how is it for you?”
* どうして？/(conversational)なんで (Why so?)
* どこが？
“I don’t know how it is for you (though).”
*なんでかなあ/どうしてかなあ
*どこがかなあ
(They are both conversational)
How would I say past tense of “I had to” with short forms such as なくちゃ ＆ しなきゃ
HI Kikuchan
To make a past tense,
なくちゃ・なきゃ＋いけなかった
I had to go by 6:00.
6時までに行かなくちゃいけなかった。
6時までに行かなきゃいけなかった。
Hey Maggie Sensei, I was reading One Piece and came across this sentence from Luffy. He says, 船から落ちなきゃいいじゃないか！In English it says, “I’ll be fine as long as I don’t fall off the boat”. My mind wants to make it “I have to fall off the boat” I guess I’m a little confused about when なきゃ becomes “As long I don’t x” I hope this makes sense!
Hi Desmon
The English translation is correct.
I’ll be fine as long as I don’t fall off the boat”
Vなければいけない (casual Vなきゃいけない) means “have to do ~ ” but
Vなければいい (casual Vなきゃいい) means “It’s OK as long as one doesn’t do ~ ”
OK, the basic structure of this sentence is
~なければいい
Oh, it’s short hand for the negative form! Thank you so much! That really helps!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have a question that is not about どん引き, but one of the example sentences instead.
「部長って恐く見えるけれども、たまに赤ちゃん言葉使っているって秘書の加藤さんが言っていましたけど本当っすか？」
In this sentence, the secretary said something. Why is it written as 秘書の加藤さんが言っていました? Shouldn’t it be 秘書の加藤さんが言いました?
I see past tense verbs like that sometimes. Why is there a need to change it to the ている form? Thanks very much in advance.
Hi Dennis,
Happy New year!
Good question.
When you quote what someone has said, you can use 言った・言いました or 言っていました・言っていた but 言っていました・言っていた
The difference is,
A) 昨日、おごってくれるって言ったよね。
= You told me yesterday that you were going to treat me, didn’t you?
* You focus on the action, saying something, more. / someone said something in particular time.
In novels, you use this form a lot.
” ~~~~” he said 「~~~~」彼は言った。
Then she said ” ~~~~ ” すると彼女は言った。「~~~~」
B) おごってくれるって言ってたよね。
= You were saying that you were going to treat me, weren’t you?
* You focus on what someone said more.
When you simply quote what someone said in conversation, this form is much more common.
You use 言ってた・言っていました 1) when someone said more than once/said something repeatedly. 2) to describe what someone said more vividly.
So
秘書の加藤さんが言っていました
in this case, there is no specific time mentioned and 加藤さん might have repeatedly mentioned it or
Thanks very much Maggie sensei. Feels like a nuance thing that I just have to get used to from experience. Happy new year!
You’re very welcome!
FYI, I have a tense lesson. Link: Click here.
Why is it 明けまして and not 明けて？
As you said you use te-form to connect sentences
年が明けて忙しくなった。
= I got busier after a new year started.
明けましておめでとうございます。
This is a set phrase for greeting, but you use the polite form, まして to connect sentences for formal speech.
この度、ケコンしまして。
SUGOI!!! Kansha shimasu.
Akemashite omedetou, Carlos! :)
happy new year dear Maggie Sensei and Yukari Sensei :)
thank you so much for the past years. I still read your lessons and looking forward to the future ones.
how have you been? as for me, i’ve been trying to make lyric videos for the past months. for some reason, i feel a sense of fulfillment whenever i complete a video. just in case you are curious, the name of my channel is Project 9:10 (with three dots as my profile photo). i still can’t translate on my own so i copy the translations of others/music video, but when i feel like i’m not convinced with the translation, i try to translate it, or maybe guesslate? on my own.
i also feel happy when people make comments, though there are times i’m having a hard time understanding those… haha…
i hope you’ll have a wonderful year ahead :)
thank you so much as always…
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!
明けましておめでとうございます！
I’m sure your Japanese has improved a lot doing what you enjoy!!
I hope you have a great new year 2020!!!
こんにちは 先生、こちらは インドのワイシャリ です。 先生のお説明 と 教える方が 大好きです。今までに 尊敬語と謙譲語は 大変 と 思って いました、でも 先生が お説明した ことを 読んで、今、尊敬語と謙譲語はそんなに 難しいないと 思います。
大変 お世話になりました。本当にありがとうございます。
よろしくお願いいたします。
こんにちは、Vaishali Arora！
コメント読んで本当に嬉しかったです！
thank you maggie sensie your site is a big help for me :)
Hello, lhea!
I’m glad to hear this site helps your Japanese! 🤗
Maggie先生、質問があります。
この質問は模型試験にあります。
電車に乗っている＿＿＿＿ずっと本を読んでいた。
１．あいだ
２．あいだに
３．まで
４．までに
選んだ答えは②ですが、正しい答えは①です。
何でですか？
教えてください。ありがとうございます！
ずっと本を読んでいた is “on-going actions during a certain period of time” so you use あいだ
For example, if you try to read a book or finish reading a book while you were on the train, you can say
電車に乗っている間に本を一冊、読んでしまおう。
電車に乗っている間に本を一冊、読み終えた。
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして💕
Dear Maggie sensei, maybe it could be noted that it should be possible to add は/が afterwards?
If that’s true, but I believe I did hear 「まだできるかどうかは分からないよ」in an anime, also found used of both through Google. I think it’s not obvious you can actually attach these particles to a sentence
It is used for emphasis?
Thank you!
Hi NoxArt!
まだできるかどうかは分からないよ
It is used for emphasis?
→Yes, you can use か・かどうか before は・が and in this case for emphasis.
There are cases that you use with other particles.
It depends on whether we can finish it by tomorrow or not.
明日までにできるかどうかによる。
I also want you to ask Maggie whether she is at home now or not
マギーが今、家にいるかも聞いてほしい。, etc.
Hello マギー先生！
Thank you for this lesson.
I have a question,
Why do we have to put this (なの)か with 思う? I thought whatever is before the か has to be asking some sort of indirect question, “whether ~ or not”, or contrast?
最初、マギー先生は人間なのかと思った。
I thought Maggie Sensei was a human being at first.
今日は晴れるかと思った。
I thought it would be sunny today.
Hi Milk,
You add の (or なの） when you emphasize the meaning or feelings.
You can say
マギー先生は人間かと思った。
or
今日は晴れるのかと思った。
Compared to “かと思った” which could be just expressing the fact that one thought so, “(な)のかと思った” emphasizes the meaning and expressed surprised feelings more.
When you have some time, check my “How to use ん” lesson. I explained the function of の there.
Sorry マギー先生、
I didn’t quite word my question right,
I was wondering what does かと思った mean exactly?
Why do these two sentences need this か with 思う, and do they make sense without it or are these two sentences more natural sounding with this か? The sentence before 思った doesn’t sound like its questioning so i don’t know why we need か there.
Thank you though i will also check out that lesson, i haven’t gotten ん/の down yet.
If you simply thought I was a human, you say
マギー先生は人間だと思った。／（more casual) マギー先生は人間と思った。
I thought Maggie Sensei was a human.
In this case the speaker is not questioning the fact.
If you questioned whether I was a human or not or simply embed the question, you use か
Let’s quote what comes before.
「マギー先生は人間なのだろうか？」と思った。
「マギー先生は人間なのかな？」と思った。
→I thought if Maggie Sensei was a human or not?
→I was wondering if Maggie Sensei was a human.
You can say this with か (or なのか）
マギー先生は人間かと思った。
あ〜、なるほど！
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
よかった！
どういたしまして :)
こんにちは、マギー先生。
えっと、「たとんに」や「次第」の間に違いは何ですか？
素晴らしいレッスンはいつも通りにありがとうございます。
こんにちは、Dub
質問が日本語なので日本語の説明しますがもしわからなかったら英語にするので言ってくださいね。
途端（とたん）に
immediatelyという意味で使うことが多いです。何かがあって（何かをしたら）その瞬間に変化が起きる・何かが起きる
というときに使います。
Ex.家を出た途端、雨が降ってきた。
ですから
Ex. 空港に着き次第、連絡します。
Ex. 空港に着き次第、連絡してください。
上の文章は「とたんに」は使えません。
うんん、大丈夫です。
完全にわかりましたので、英語の説明が必要はありません。
僕の質問はわざわざ答えてくれて本当にありがとうございました。
レッスンでマギ先生ーに見せられる文法がわかってくるから新しい文法を知りたい場合いつもここに来ることにします。
割れた日本語の場合は本当にごめんなさい。
質問を答えてくれてありがとうございます～
よかった！
（よく日本語書けていますよ。今日は、一つだけ直しますね（割れた日本語→Broken Japanese 「もし日本語が間違っていたら」 でいいと思います。））
Maggie sensei please tell if the following would be correct:
彼は大食漢だ。肉を大盛りにしてください。
生卵が苦手なのでもう少し長く料理してください。
食器を下げてもいいですか。
:)
彼は大食漢だ。肉を大盛りにしてください。
It depends on where you want to use this phrase. In the literature, it works.
In conversation, you may not use the word 大食漢 so often. (There is a cute word, 食いしん坊）
How about →彼はよく食べるので肉を大盛りにしてください。
生卵が苦手なのでもう少し長く料理してください。
→The first part is OK. もう少し長い時間 is not natural.
It depends on how you cook, if it is a boiled egg, もう少し茹でてください。, if it is a fried egg, もう少し火を通してください。・よく焼いてください。
食器を下げてもいいですか。
Perfect!
Howdy madam,
I hope you don’t mind question no.8７on this page (you work too hard ^-^)
I’m kind of a bad student XD. But i was wondering if my way of breaking down the explanations is not a good way.
E.g:
～なければ＋いけない/ならない
I explain it to myself as: [if the action is not ”able” to be done]+[“it” won’t proceed/become] .
Which when rephrased becomes “must do” etc.
I think “able”, because i think of the 得る sound. Lol I don’t exactly know why…
With today, i was kind of wondering if the same sort of thought process is possible with your lesson here on:
～ 無く＋ちゃ
～ 無き＋ゃ
Thank-you Maggie and staff XD
From Shaun,
Hi Shaun!
Oh is it the 87th question? I had no idea. 😁
～なければ＋いけない/ならない
the first part なければ [if the action is not ”able” to be done] is actually [if the action is not done]
As for なくちゃ・なきゃ,
無く＋ちゃ is kind of make sense but the second one ～ 無き＋ゃ, I wonder how you interpret this little ゃ
Vなくてはならない →なくちゃ Vなければならない →なきゃ
It might be easier to think that this type of casual contraction is similar to “gotta” in English. It is easier to say that way in spoken Japanese.
>>き＋ゃ, I wonder how you interpret this little ゃ<<
Well that makes both of us XD.
I think out of a habit i broke down 無きゃ to 無き as in 欠点無き… which was a wrong turn i guess.
いつもThank you very much.
Haha, OK.
Yes, since this is for casual speech, I think it will be better not to interpret this なき as 無き which is very literal.
またね〜♪ 😊
hi,
what do you call a thread in japanese? like a chain of replies to a tweet kind of thread.
thanks!
Hi Nicole,
Thread = スレッド (more colloquial スレ）
新しいスレッド／スレを立てる= atarashii sureddo/sure wo tateru = to start a new thread
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you please help to check my sentences!
1/ また新年が来たけど、まだ一人ぼっち。
が、ぜんぜん問題にならない。家族がそばにいるから。
I want to say
Again, New Year is coming, but I’m still alone.
But it doesn’t matter because I have family.
2/ 女の命。誰とも付き合ったことがない.
未来を見ると広い川、長い道のようなたびだった。
I want to say
My fate is that I was born as a girl. I even have not dated with anyone else.
Looking into the future, what I saw is like the wide river and a long road.
Thanks my Lady.
Hello again,
1. が、→でも
ぜんぜん問題にならない。→The Japanese is perfect but 問題になる sounds too serious. How about 全然（ぜんぜん） or 全く（まったく）気にならない。
2. There are many ways of saying “life” in Japanese. When you say 命 it means the life whether you are alive or not (=dead).
My fate is that I was born as a girl. = 女としての人生 or 女／女性として生まれた運命
未来を見ると is fine but how about to peek, 未来を覗いてみると長い道のようなたびだった。 or 長い道のりだった
Hi Maggie!
Thank you so much for all of your articles, they are so helpful to me. I have a question along these lines.
For nan demo / na ni demo, can I assume:
– nan demo = affirmative sentence
– nan ni demo = negative sentence
I thought my assumption was correct until I cam across:
– I can become anything – watashi wa nan ni demo naremasu
This isn’t a negative sentence, but uses nan ni demo. Could you please help clarify?
Thank you!!
Hi Julia
As for なんでも・なんにでも ( = nan demo & nanni demo) , is different from 誰でも＆誰にも
nan ni demo can be used in an affirmative sentence
(この接着剤はなんにでも使えます。= kono secchakuzai wa nan ni demo tsukaemasu.= This glue can be used for anything.)
But “何も” ( nani mo) is used in a negative sentence.
彼は何もわからない。
= Kare wa nani mo wakaranai.
= He doesn’t get anything.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I’m reading a novel and came upon this sentence: “無の境地を悟ることによって、神や宇宙という非人間的な存在に、彼らが限りなく近づこうとしているのなら。”
I was trying to find out how the “no nara’ affects the sentence. Usually nara means “if”, but I reading this lesson, I noticed that you said it is used to express trust on an ability.
I translated this sentence as “By realising the state of nothingness, they may be able to get as close as possible to the inhuman existence of God and the universe.” Would that work? Or it’s completely incorrect?
Hi でもなあ～!
You sometimes leave a sentence unfinished and this is one of the example.
The meaning of this なら is “If”. You might want to check the previous sentence/context.
(Ex. What is going to happen) + If(They are trying to approac—by ) ~ 無の境地を悟ることによって、神や宇宙という非人間的な存在に、彼らが限りなく近づこうとしているのなら。
Can you use ‘kamo/kamoshirenai’ to be elusive and playful? For example can you use it in circumstances, when it is obvious you have an opinion/intention/additional information but you don’t give it away. In English this might be common amongst close friends/lovers that are being playful or alternatively someone you were being very rude to.
e.g Did you go to the party yesterday.
I *might* have (gone to the party).
(Obviously the second speaker knows but they aren’t saying)
or Will you make me a cup of tea?
I might (do).
(Again the speaker is being elusive and perhaps playful)
Thanks in advance~
Hi K.Aki
Yes, you can
In conversation you can just say ~かも
Did you go to the party yesterday？ →行ったかも
However,
Will you make me a cup of tea?
I might (do). In this case 淹れるかも..is a bit strange.
But
If you do something (under certain condition), I might do so.
works
(under certain condition Ex. そのケーキをくれたら) 淹れてあげるかも..
Hello せんせい、I would like to ask you how to say “to remove the skin”. Thank you for your efforts and hope you have a wonderful day!
Hi アマチュア
It depends on what skin you are talking about but you can say
皮を取り除く（かわをとりのぞく）
皮を剥く（かわをむく）
hi Maggie先生,
I have a question about the use of のに in the sentence below! I originally wrote
しまったのは but my Japanese friend corrected me. In the example below is ‘noni’ used just to reinforce the regret of Dave for leaving his phone in the convenience store?
私達は車に乗って、出発した後で、Daveさんがコンビニでけいたを忘れてしまったのに気がつきました
Hello Angus,
First 携帯（けいたい）を忘れてしまったのに気がつきました
This のに is different from the one I explained in this lesson (→although, though, even if)
の is for nominalization (to make a noun from a verb, in this case “(the fact) that I have forgotten/have left (my cellphone)” )
に is for an indirect object marker. I realized, notice ~に気がつく
The basic pattern is
Noun/ verb noun form (Verb+(こと or の）） + に+ 気がつく
Ex. 彼に気がつく to realized his presence.
Ex. 彼がいないことに気がつく。
= 彼がいないのに気がつく = to realized that he isn’t there.
Maggie sensei, do you also write a book on all these lessons? If yes where can I buy?
I have been working on making an e-book or PDF book. :)
There are more than 250 lessons so it will take a little more time. Will let everyone know when it is ready. :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
how does にとって work in にとって代わる? I ran into it in a quote 「いつか奴らに取って代わる…いつか…。」(given translation is “One day I will replace them completely, one day…”). The idea that Xにとって means “from the viewpoint of X / for X” does not make much sense to me here.
Thank you
Hello NoxArt
取って代わる is a verb which means, to replace/to take the place of 〜 so it is different from ~にとって
There are many compound verbs in Japanese and 取って代わる (取る＋代わる） is one of them.
で、ため what is the difference?maggie先生
You mean the difference between
N+ で
N+のため？
渋滞で道が混んでいる
渋滞のため道が混んでいる
The both indicates the reason/cause and there is no big difference in these example sentences but ため emphasizes the cause more.
is a difficult concept to remember >_<
So this sentence "応援する気持ちにならないことはない" means "it’s not that I don’t feel like supporting (that is, I support him)" or am I wrong?
Hi Lulu,
Sorry for the late reply.
Yes, that is right. You got the idea. :)
Arigatou sensei ^_^
You’re very welcome! :*
I prefer to view たら as meaning something like “it is the case that…” a certain action happened/took place instead of inherently meaning “if” because in some cases “if” doesn’t make sense. I think “it is the case that…” better encapsulates both cases when たらmeans “if” and when it means “after, when” and so confusion with this conjugation goes away.
Good point! :)
Hello Maggie-sensei. Thank you for all of your lessons.
I have a question about the words used with 気味. In your lesson and other websites, it says that 気味 is used with a limited number of words about medical conditions (風邪気味 or 太り気味) and feelings (緊張気味 or 焦り気味).
However, I came across this sentence in a book I was reading: 「俺の話に被り気味に言った。」
Why doesn’t the author use ように instead of 気味 here? Is it because the author is trying to emphasize the speakers feelings? If you could explain why 気味 is used in this situation, it would be very helpful.
Thanks for always answering my questions quickly! I appreciate it a lot.
Hi J
You don’t say 被るように but I guess you can say (Someoneの話に）被せるように話す
~ように to do as/as if ~
気味に kind of / sort of
被り気味に+say something is kind of slangish and it is relatively new expression like 食い気味
You may see/hear this type of expressions in conversation.
時間が押し気味 Running out of time, etc.
Thank you for your quick and easy to understand response! I understand it a lot more now!
Good! :)
こんにちは先生。
久しぶりですね。 インドは、連休だったので、先生を忘れがちになりました。
緊張気味なときは、怒りがちになる恐れがあります。
南インドは、 ありがちな食べ物はイディリです。 大好きなので、毎日食べたりして、今、太りぎみです。
例文を直していただけますか。
宜しくお願いします。
こんにちは！
いっぱい、「がち」と「気味」を使えましたね。
インドは、連休だったので、先生を忘れがちになりました。
→人を忘れがちにするよりも例えば、日本語の勉強や宿題などを忘れがちの方がよく使われますよ。
ありがちな食べ物はイディリです。→口語的にはOK！ でももしイディリがtypical foodのことだったら「代表的な食べ物」の方を使います。
毎日食べたりして、→毎日食べているので
Hello Maggie sensei,
Can I replace the following sentences with なら？
１・ 安ければ買います。
安いなら、買います。
or
２・高くなければ買います。
高くないなら買います。
3/ 時間があれば*会いたいんだけど。
= 時間があるなら、会いたいんだけど。
４・いい人がいれば結婚したい。
いい人がいなら結婚したい。
Thanks my Lady.
Hi.
1, 2, 3 Good!
4 いい人がいなら結婚したい。 I think it’s a typo →いるなら
Hello! How would you say, Space the cookies 4 cm apart??
Hi Coco
クッキーの間を4センチ空けてください。
Hello, Maggie-sensei:
I was reading a visual novel when, suddenly, an incomprehensible sentence popped up: “また仕方もしれぬものを…”.
It was a conversation between person A and person B.
A was saying the gun invented by B was a failure and, then, he says that, but “もしれぬ” is confusing me. It may be possible the real meaning is “Another useless thing…” or “Another thing that may be useless…”? Is it a fusion between “仕方ない” and “かもしれない”?
Hi Adam
しれぬ is an old way to say しらない ( don’t know)
So I assume it means またやり方（How to use)もわからないものを… You got the gun that you don’t even know how to use
Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei.
For some reason, I was assuming it was “かもしれない”… *facepalm*. Your answer makes sense with the following part of the conversation between A and B. I didn’t know that しれぬ was しらない. I have learnt something new.
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you help to check my sentences.
I want to use 次第 to express the meaning “As soon as”.
1/ その商品を買い次第、チームに共有します。
As soon as we buy this product, we’ll share it to the team
2/ 方針を決め次第、プロジェクトを始めます。
As soon as we decide the strategy, we’ll start the project
3/ みんながそろい次第、出発しよう。
As soon as everyone is here, we’ll go.
Thanks my Lady.
Hello!
1. チームで共有します。 is better.
2. OK
3. OK
Good job! :)
ありがとうございました！
I have another question.
Can I replace my sentences wtih 上で。
1/ その商品を買い次第、チームに共有します。
その商品を買った上で、チームに共有します。
2/ 方針を決め次第、プロジェクトを始めます。
方針を決めた上で、プロジェクトを始めます。
What is the difference between 上で and 次第。
Thanks my Lady.
Hi again,
You can say all the sentences (besides チームに共有→チームで共有します／チームと共有します。）
But the nuance is different
次第 as soon as
上で after doing something
Maggie sensei, what is つく？
Hi Marife
There are tons of meaning of つく
Where did you see that? Give me an example sentence.
Or I have a lesson on つく.
Hope it helps. Link is here.
I’m very confused regarding the gendered speech. When speaking with friends, would it ever be appropriate for a female to use more masculine speech? Especially said in a friendly/familiar manner? Would it really be alarming or off-putting for a woman to use masculine grammar (excluding rude masculine words, of course)?
Hi Veronica
I wouldn’t use male speech.
Even if you avoid using rude masculine words it still sounds rough.
Hello,
I have a question concerning this sentence:
このサイトに毎日来たら、１年後には日本語がかなり上達しているはずです
Why did you use the form “joutatsu shite iru” instead of “joutatsu suru” at the end of it? I thought the meaning was supposed to be “your Japanese will get better”.
I’d be really grateful for the reply :)
Hi
You can say 上達します,too.
The nuance difference is
上達している will have improved (talking about the state that you are already improved)
上達します will improve
The key word is 一年後
Let’s say your Japanese level is “0” now. But if you come to this site every day, your level will be “10” a year from now.
Hi Maggie sensei! I’m a new learner here but I’ve been studying Japanese for almost two years.
I have a doubt with one of example sentences:
働けるうちにできるだけ働いて [のんびりとした 老後]を過ごしたい。
The words のびりとした老後、 what do they mean?
Hello Sun yuk
peaceful days when I get older.
のんびりとした+ noun = relaxing, peaceful, laid back + noun
老後 means The life after you get older (老いる= おいる= to get older = 年をとる →年をとってから = After you get older )
I’ve also seen Yappari or Yahari used to mean “so that’s it!” and sometimes “so it turns out that…”
My impression is that it literally means something on the order of “how it all finished.”
The main meaning of やっぱり／やはり is as one has expected or the way it is (the situation or state hasn’t changed) but yes, you can use it as “so that’s it!” and sometimes “so it turns out that…”
Thank you so much for the lesson senseii…. I prefer your grammar lessons than other text book hehe. But sensei can you please give the lesson about writing letters and postcard in Japanese? Both in formal and informal way,because it’s really confusing. Thank you so much for your hard work senseii.. Sending you so much love.
Hi Reana,
Thank YOU for visiting this site!
Actually some other people asked me to make a lesson about writing letters in past.
I guess I can introduce a simple way to write a letter/postcard in future. :)
Loved the site! Hope it will grow
ありがとう！ Thank you, Komaeda-san! 💕
Missa sensei do you have online group chat such as Telegram group or Line Group for japanese lesson? if you have one of them, i would like to join the group. :)
Hello Maggie先生,
Thank you so much for being awesome. There are practically no websites on this subject but of course you do! ♡♡♡ I am having a little trouble breaking down the differences between:
１） N+Particle (P) +の+N
２）P (で、は、に、の、etc) + Verb
３）N/ADJ/V+ の+Particle
I can understand your simple sentence explanations.
* 飲み会でふるまう = to behave in a drinking party
飲み会でのふるまい= behavior at a drinking party
but the example sentence is where I get confused…
Ex. 昨夜の飲み会でのふるまいは誰にも知られたくない。
= I don’t want anybody know how I behaved at the drinking party last night.
would the example sentence of just で be:
昨夜の飲み会でふるまったことは誰にも知られたくない
If that is true does that mean
is 1) just another way to say V+ことが・は？
での is really messing with me….
日本語で従業を取りたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
(I want to take a class in Japan?)
日本語での従業を受けたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
I will always appreciate you!! Thank you!
Hello Amanda,
I see your confusion.
Ex. 昨夜の飲み会でのふるまいは誰にも知られたくない。
I usually try to use more natural English translation so I translated “how I behaved” but actually the literal translation is
I don’t want anybody know “my behavior at a drinking party”
Your sentence, 昨夜の飲み会でふるまったことは誰にも知られたくない is grammatically correct but it’s not natural.
You say 飲み会でのふるまい more.
日本語で授業を取りたい= I want to take a class in Japanese
is more natural but if you emphasize 日本語 more, you attach の （日本語での）
“to take a class in Japan” will be 日本で授業を受けたい。
Thanks so much for your help! I understand better now. It’s hard to judge what structure I should pick when speaking but your explanations always help! Thanks a bunch!!
Anytime! :)
Why is deshita in parentheses?
You say both ご馳走様 or ご馳走様でした。 (A lot of time people drop でした）
It is slightly more casual than saying ご馳走様でした。
Thank you for the great article! Sensei, in the sentence いつ日本に留学するつもりなの？, is なの female language? かな can be used instead, can’t it?
Hi Kate,
Both men and women say いつ日本に留学するつもりなの？ (question form)
But it sounds feminine when you say 来年、日本に留学するつもりなの。(affirmative form)
And かな has a different meaning. I wonder when (someone) will go to Japan to study. （someoneは）いつ日本に留学するのかな。
こんにちはマギー先生！
Just curious, is「たっぷり」derived from 多 and 振り? Even though it’s not using a noun or verb…
i mean Maggie sensei. sorry
Don’t worry. :)
I don’t have a line group.
I do Twitter, Facebook, Patreon but no study group.
Hi Maggie, thank you so much for this amazing lesson!
I wrote some sentences to practice, could you tell me if they are correct?
１）息子は部屋を掃除さえしなかった。
２）息子は掃除をやることさえすればいい。
３）息子は部屋さえすればいい。
４）部屋を掃除してさえしたらいいのに。
Maggie Sensei, I don’t understand when I should use （verb masu steam+さえ）
Hi Eliza
Let me change a little to sound more natural.
１）息子は部屋を掃除さえしなかった。 OK
２）息子は掃除をやることさえすればいい。 掃除さえすればいい is more natural.
３）息子は部屋さえすればいい。 →You need a verb. 部屋さえ掃除すればいい
４）部屋を掃除してさえしたらいいのに。 部屋を (or 部屋の) 掃除さえしたら (or すれば） いいのに
Maggie Sensei thank you so much for your answer!
You’re very welcome. 💕
Hey Maggie, can you please explain what usage of ‘hodo’ is being used in this sentence I read? I cant wrap my head around it!
その男は不思議に思われるほど何も知らなかった
Hi Dub
This ほど expresses the degree of his ignorance.
ほど refers to “不思議に思われる”
so the literal meaning of 不思議に思われるほど is “to the extent that one wonders why”
→ curiously (enough)/ surprisingly (he didn’t know anything)
Hi Maggie 先生, I don’t know if you answer questions here anymore, but here I go anyways.
So I saw this comment on a youtube video:
上手くなった気になれる
I think it might mean “I am interested in how you got so good”, but the なれるmakes me think that it might mean another thing. Could you help me out? Thanks!!
Hi Pablo,
上手くなった気になれる
It makes me feel like I do better.
V past tense +気になる = you feel like you did something (even if you actually didn’t)
気になれる (potential form) to be able to feel
The explanation in this web is very useful for foreign people who stay in Japan. Thank you very much … Doumo arigatou gozaimashita.
You’re very welcome! :)
isn’t the difference between when you use お and ご before a noun dependent on whether it is pronounced with onyomi or kunyomi?
お is for kunyomi nouns
ご is for onyomi nounds
Yes, that’s the basic rule. (But there are lots of exceptions.)
お食事, お時間, etc.
Hello マギー先生、
I have a few questions
On this sentence
彼らの新しい曲は、日本では好評だったのに対して海外では不評だった。
How come では is used and not には?
And
若い人の間には政治に対しての/ 対する不信感がある。
Why is 対しての/ 対する used in this sentence but not in –
親は子供に対して責任がある。
Hi Milk,
1) You generally use 〜に （いる／ある ）, 日本にいる／日本にある (~ is in Japan/ ~ exists in Japan) when you talk about the existence of something and you use で when you talk about some actions or describe some state such as 不評である (being unpopular／being unfavorably received) ／人気がある (being popular)
2)
〜に対して＋verb/adjective
~に対しての／対する+ noun
若い人の間には政治に対しての/ 対する不信感がある。
In this case 対しての／対する modifies the following noun, 不信感
親は子供に対して責任がある。
Parents are responsible for children.
Here 対して doesn’t modify a noun, 責任. It modifies a verb （責任が）ある
If you rephrase it and make it modify the noun, 責任, you say
親は子供に対する／対しての責任がある。
Parents have a responsibility for children.
なるほど！
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
どういたしまして 🐶💕
Hi Maggie San. I am watching and reading 千と千尋の神隠し. In the film, 千尋 says ‘前の方が、いいもん’。I like my old school….She has just seen her new school and in a depressed way says.. 前の方が、いいもん。I’m just wondering what number this phrase would come under in your excellent lesson! Thanks! Ashley
Hello Ashley
Ah, OK I don’t think I explain the usage of the suffix もん in this lesson.
~もん is a suffix that children or girls use o express some reason (Because ~ / ‘Cause ~ ) or stress the feelings.
(だって)〜もん = (I did it /I think that way ) because ~
Thank you! Sorry for slow reply. I’ve been in bed for four days with a bad cold!
No problem! I hope you feel better soon. お大事に！ Take care!
Hi Maggie,
I found this sentence and wondered if the pattern relates to verb + 合う, but I’m not sure:
会うだけ会ってやってくれぬか
I think it’s saying something like “can you not just meet up with each other?”
I’ve not seen verb + だけ + て-verb before…
Many thanks!
Hi Peter,
First 合う and 会う are different verbs.
合う= to fit V+ 合う = to do something each other
会う = to meet / to see someone
会うだけ会ってくれぬか
（くれぬ is a literal expression which means “くれない” in modern Japanese.)
The grammar pattern here is
VだけVて = at least doing something
So
会うだけ会ってくれない? （くれぬか）
means “Can you at least meet/see (* someone/me)” ?
*Depends on the context.
That’s great, thanks so much!
I had a feeling 会う probably wasn’t related to 合う, but glad I checked as I now understand the VだけVて pattern :)
You’re welcome!
Fantastically detailed post – I came to find out about どんな…ても and found all of these other really useful expressions. Many thanks!
Hi Peter,
I’m happy to hear that! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I’m still a bit confused as to the difference between んです、のです and から。I kind of get that んです either adds a bit more explanation to the question and that から is more direct. Unless that’s all it is? I think my confusion lies with when someone asks a question like (this is an example in my textbook): どうして彼と別れたんでか。and the answer is: 彼、ぜんぜんおふろに入らないんです。Couldn’t the response be “ぜんぜんおふろにはりませんでしたから”?
ありがとうございます。
Hello Alexa,
1) どうして彼と別れましたか？ No emotion
2) どうして彼と別れたんですか？ It involves the speaker’s feelings. (curiosity, accusing tone, etc)
全然お風呂に入らないです。 Just a fact (No emotion)
全然お風呂に入らないんです。It involves the speaker’s feelings. (I don’t know what to do, I am puzzled. What can I do for this situation, etc.)
Hello,
Thank you! I never realized you replied and came back to read the lesson again, lol! So could the usage of んです be up to the speaker? Or is it common courtesy to always use it? Thank you once again.
Hi Alexa,
Sorry. This comment section doesn’t have a notification function.
Yes, it is up to the speaker. If you want to add some explanatory tone, you use んです for your statement.
忙しかったんです。giving a reason why
忙しかったです。simple statement
But since it sometimes involves accusation tone, it might sound impolite to use んですか
どうして会社にきませんか？
どうして会社にこないんですか？(sounds stronger)
I was going through “Genki” and thought there had to be more to “nara” than was being explained and…wow… I’m adding this site to my bookmarks. Thank you for the explanations
Hi Eliot,
Thank you for adding this site to your bookmark! :)
Hi Maggie, I’m very sorry to trouble you.
I’m reading a sentence here but I can’t work out the meaning of ~て来た:
縁組みを断って来たのではないですか？
I think I understand that 断って来た means “rejected” and 断って来たの means “a rejection”, and I understand that basically ~て来た means “to do ~ and come”.
But what I don’t understand is what’s the difference between 断って来た and 断った here? Are they the same or is there a difference that I can’t quite see?
Also, is there ever any difference in meaning between ~てきた and ~て来た?
(in my book it’s written て来た here, but ~てきた is used elsewhere)
Many thanks!
Hi Peter,
Ah, good. I didn’t cover that usage here.
When someone’s behavior or what they said affects your emotion, (could be negative or positive) you can express your feelings of surprise, annoyance, anger or joy with てきた
断った doesn’t involve any emotion.
断ってきた implies rejection triggered one’s emotion, such as anger (How dare you to turn me down), surprise (I didn’t expect this.)
I will show you another example.
彼がそんなことを言った。 He said such a thing. (Just stating what happened.)
彼がそんなことを言ってきた。 expressing the speaker’s surprised feelings (or joy, anger depending on the context.)
As for the kanji question, you see both kanji and hiragana but I would say hiragana is more common.
Hi Maggie,
As usual you’ve explained it perfectly! :D
Thanks so much!
Peter.
よかった〜！！ :)
Hi Maggie,
I am also confused when I see the phrase 言ってきた.
Am I right to say that it means said to me, just like メールを送ってきた (mail sent to me)?
Other times I see people explain it as ‘has been saying for some time till now’. But based on the context/scenario, it does not feel right.
Hi Chang
言ってきた・送ってきた
It depends on the context but it is often used when some action is one way and the recipient of the action (the speaker) is annoyed, confused or frustrated.
Hi Maggi-sensei,
I was just thinking, is it wrong to interpret the two examples as follow?
Ex. 息子は最近、宿題をしていきません。
He does homework and not take it to school.
Ex. 最近、宿題をしてこない生徒が多いです。
Many students do homework and not come to school.
Hi Chang,
Ex. 息子は最近、宿題をしていきません
can’t be interpret “He does homework and not take it to school.”
If you want to say that, you say 息子は宿題をしても学校に持っていきません。
Also
Ex. 最近、宿題をしてこない生徒が多いです。
can’t be interpreted as “Many students do homework and not come to school.”
宿題をしてこない生徒 means the students who come to school without doing their homework.
HI Maggie-sensei, thank you for your reply. There is no REPLY button next to your thread so I have to reply here.
I have another question. I always see phrase like this 〜を紹介していきます especially in Youtube where the uploader does an unboxing video for example. I googled to find which usage of ていく it falls under and found this website https://eigobu.jp/magazine/shiteikimasu
Based on the explanation, it says that it can be used to mean
1) これから新たに〜する予定だ
2) これからも継続して〜する予定だ
I supposed 〜を紹介していきます falls under explanation 1) これから新たに〜する予定だ but the writer also mentions 「将来的にある動作を継続して行う」という意味が根本になります。.
I felt strange because doing an introduction only lasts for the duration of the video and is not something that will be done continuously into the future. Unless 「将来的にある動作を継続して行う」という意味が根本になります。 applies to explanation 2) これからも継続して〜する予定だ only?
OK, it depends on the context but
紹介していきます can be 将来的にある動作を継続して行う I will keep introducing you something (in future)
But as in your example sentence, you can use it when you keep doing something even in a short period of time.
I’ll introduce something “one by one” /”one after another”
ここにあるものどんどん食べていきます。 = I am going to all the food here one by one.
Hello, Maggie. I’m wondering why あの子が可愛くなってくる isn’t translated as “she will get cuter”. But 暑くなってくる is translated as “it will get hotter”. What’s the difference? Or is it a typo?
Good question.
You can also say 可愛くなってきている for “getting cuter”, but you can say 可愛くなってくるね when you describe the change as if it is happening right now
But you don’t say 暑くなってくる for the current change. You say 暑くなってきた／きました。
Interesting lesson. But you shouldn’t feed a cat like you feed a dog. Food must always be available to cats because they take more than ten meals a day :)
I will tell Minky’s mom about it. 😂
So, in some cases なら and だけ are synonyms?
?? Can you give me an example?
Hello Maggie Sensei,
My name is Luis I am from Barcelona Spain and I am living in Japan for more tan 4 years.
I am using your website for learning japanesse from a long time and I think that really is one of the best someone can use for do that.
Instead of this i had never before make you a question basicly because i am unable for learnt japaness.
But at least I must to do..for this reason I send you the first one.
In the sentence
できないくせにできるなんていわないほうがいいよ。
If I traslate kuseni as instead of i can’t understeand at all.
Because it will be something like
“Instead of you can’t do something ,will be better don’t say that you can do it.
Could you tell me if i am wrong in this case traslating kuseni as instead of.
Thanks in advance for your help
Hola, Luis,
Moltes gràcies pel teu comentari!
“Instead of” → You mean “in spite of”? (Instead of in Japanese is 代わりに）
できないくせにできるなんていわないほうがいいよ。
The literal translation is “Though you can’t do it” but in this case the most natural translation is
If you can’t do something, you shouldn’t say you can do it.
Yes is in spite of.
Thanks for your answer..
You have a perfect catalán ..bikkuri shita.
To confirm i have understeand If we consider it lterally who are talking thinks that the other one can’t do this.
¿ that’s right?
Yes, that’s right! :)
I always become very impressed by Maggie’s hability and patience to post such relevant and abrangent content.
Thank you very much!
God bless you!
Thank you for reading my posts patiently, too! :)
おはよう先生！
I would like to ask you about this sentence:
“あんなののどこがいいんだか”
I have trouble understanding the double no and the use of doko in this sentence
(The character basically says that she doesn’t see what is good in an other character). Could you please help me ?
おはよう ピエル
Ah I see.
You usually use どこ to indicate “place(s)” or “part(s)”
When you say
Ex. A のどこか好き？
That means
“What do you like about A? ”
So when you ask about what part of A (including personality, appearance and behaviors, etc.), you use どこ
thank you!
However, I still don’t understand the double の, what is the first one used for ?
OK,
Noun + の+ どこがいい
The first の is for nominalization.
あんなの=(implies あんな人・あんなやつ） That kind of things/person (derogatory) = That one / That guy/woman
Thank you! I understand way better now!
Good! :)
Hello Magie 先生. To get the meaning “we will pretend as if”, is the verb preceding ことにするalways negative past? And you said it can be present/past i beleieve. Is that the case, or can it only be a plain past form that precedes ことにする? Because all the examples sentences were in a negative past form.
Hello Chiozo
Good question.
Sorry it was confusing.
What I meant was “present progressive.” and not simple present tense (I will fix the context.) and you can use both affirmative and negative form.
毎日勉強していることにしよう。(present progressive form)
X Not simple present form 勉強することにしよう that means “I decided to study every day.”
with past affirmative form
お皿を洗ったことにして。
Let’s just pretend that I washed the dishes.
Ok. 説明してくださってありがとうございます. I think I get it now. So 毎日勉強していることにしよう means “Lets pretend I study everyday”? ね?
Yes, that’s right.
マギー先生こにちは。質問があります。
この文は “台風のために電車が遅れた”。”台風で電車が遅れた”になりますか。私にとって同じ意味があります。(私は違いますか)
いつ “で” や “ために” 使うか よく分かりません。同じですか。
あなたの答えはありがとう。 😀
こんにちは、Rey
台風が原因で電車が遅れた場合、次のように言うことができます。
意味は同じです。
台風で電車が遅れた。
台風のため（に）電車が遅れた。
“ため”は、原因を強調するときに使います。
また
台風のせいで電車が遅れた。
という言い方もあります。これはnegativeなニュアンスがあります。
こんにちは マギー先生。そうですね。もっとはっきりと了解しています。いつもようにあなたの答えでありがとうございます。
またね。
どういたしまして、Rey! :)
Hello Maggie sensei, I had a question.
「いつもマギーのことばかり考えてるんだよ」
How come it’s かんがえってるんだよ when all the examples above it would make it seem like it should be かんがえてんだよ?
It seems like it should follow the rule (ている＋suffix/だ/です) ->（てん+suffix/だ/です)
Hi
Good question.
When you use the suffix よ
you can say both 考えてるんだよ or 考えてんだよ。
The nuance difference is てる emphasize て”い”る (I AM THINKING) more.
（I will add 考えてんだよ later in this lesson.)
Sensei, I just saw a phrase that goes like this: 私にしておく
Does that mean “Don’t mind me”?
Oh, sorry, I copy-pasted an incomplete phrase. The full sentence goes like this: 私にしておくといい.
I’m wondering if it means “I’m telling you to ignore me” or something
Hi, I still need to know more context what are they talking about in the previous sentence?
Anyway assuming from just that sentence, “You (or They) should leave it to me/ It is the best that I should be whatever they were talking about in the previous )
Oh, I see.
Before that is “悪いことは言わない” (I’m telling this for your own good?)
But after 私にしておくといい, it says “I’m going to take care of you”.
Can you explain what does “shite oku” actually mean, sensei? Since in the example and in dictionary it seems to mean “leave it be”.
Sorry. Still not enough information…
But first you have to know when to use
(someone)にする →しておく
1) to pick someone/ to choose someone
2) to do something to someone
I assume 1) has more possibility there. You should pick me/You should choose me (as ~ depending on the context)
Sorry sensei, the latest reply cannot be replied to, so I’m replying to the previous one.
I think “choose me” makes sense! The text is from a character profile in a game character popularity contest. Thank you for the explanation, sensei <3
Good. I’m glad to hear it makes sense.
マッギ先生こんにちはー
I have just one question.
If i want to say “i made breakfast even though my hand hurts”, what sounds more natural?
手が痛いのに、朝ご飯を作った。
or
手が痛かったのに、朝ご飯を作った。
Do we have to use past tense in the part where noni is or is it okay to use present tense there?
いつもお世話になっております！
Hi Ellen,
Interesting question.
Technically it should be past tense but actually you say both
痛かったのに作った and 痛いのに作った.
Ｈｅｌｌｏ, マギー先生
This is my first post ever on your site and I have to first thank you for all your hard work !
I have a question for when ように refers to something you wish for. There is a similar grammar rule ~といい
I am a little confused as when to use which.
Are they interchangeable?
-父の病気が早く治りますように
父の病気が早く治るといいね
-明日がいいお天気になりますように
明日がいいお天気になるといいのですが
Thank you in advance and
これからもよろしくお願いします。
こんにちは、りさ！
The English translation is the same but here are the nuance difference.
1) I hope my father gets better soon.
父の病気が早く治りますように is expressing one’s prayer.
(Wishing my father’s quick recovery)
父の病気が早く治るといいね
You are talking to someone else. And it should be the mutual wish between the speaker and the listener.
2) 明日がいいお天気になりますように (The same as the above example, it expresses your wish. It doesn’t matter if you have a listener or not. You could be just talking to yourself.
明日がいいお天気になるといいのですが
You say this when you have a listener.
Leaving the sentence unfinished like this （〜が） has two functions.
1) polite (when you are talking to someone superior and you finish the sentence with が)
２） が means “but” so it implies Ex. I don’t know. /I’m afraid it may rain (expressing uncertainty /worries)
Thank you so much for your explanation !
So do we use ～といい when we have a listener and when both parties feel the same way ?
明日がいいお天気になるといいな
Would this sentence make it the same ? 明日がいいお天気になりますように ?
Thank you again :)
So do we use ～といい when we have a listener and when both parties feel the same way ?
→Depends on the suffix
明日がいいお天気になるといいね Needs an agreement from the listener
明日がいいお天気になるといいな You could be just talking to yourself
The difference between いいな and ますように
ますように expresses one’s stronger desire. You often use ように when you pray for something.
Okay, Got it!
Thank you SO MUCH!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi, Maggie sensei.
Could you please help me to translate this?
友達に頼まれてついて きた子もたった一度 の ライブ なんだ
Thank you
Hi Bete,
I can’t tell the exact meaning by just that sentence and I also don’t do the translation here but
友達に頼まれてついてきた子 means “the the girl or the boy who followed us(?) who was asked by her/his friend”
I just wanted to say thank you for all of these amazing lessons for so many years. I’ve earned so much from you and now I live in Japan! You helped me get here and help me continue on my way to fluency.
Thank you for all you do!
Hello John!
日本へようこそ！
Welcome to Japan!
Thank YOU for your nice message.
Now it is time to use what you have learned. (^_−)−☆
がんばって！＆日本の生活を楽しんでください！
Can ながら be used with a passive verb?
To say you do something while receiving some action.
For example “while being scolded, I let my mind wander”
Or is there some other grammar for this?
Great site by the way.
Hi Andrew
Yes, you can.
先生に怒られながら心をさまよわせていた。
Sensei. How do you say the following words related to cooking.
To blanch
To sear
To julienne
To drizzle
To marinate
To whip
To whisk
To poach
To braise
Dressing/ to dress
To deglaze
OMG, OK, I will try
To blanch 湯どうしする= yudoushi suru
To sear 強火でさっと焼く = tsuyobi de satto yaku
To julienne 千切りにする = sengiri ni suru
To drizzle （〜に）たらす = ( ~ ni ) tarasu
To marinate 漬ける・マリネする = tsukeru/ marine suru
To whip （しっかり）泡立てる = (shikkari) awadateru
To whisk 泡立てる = awadateru
To poach 熱湯の中に入れる・熱湯でゆでる = nettou no naka ni ireru / nettou de yuderu
To braise 蒸し煮する = mushini suru
Dressing/ to dress If you meant to put dressing sauce on something ドレッシングをかける = doresshingu wo kakeru
To deglaze （鍋・フライパンに） 〜を入れてソースを作る = ( nabe/ furaipan ni) ~ wo irete soosu wo tsukuru
Thanks a lot sensei. I’ve been working at a restaurant and that helps me a lot. ありがとう!
You’re welcome! 💕
Hello マギー先生
If “地震が来ないかな…” means –
I am afraid if we will have an earthquake..
(showing fear)
what will “地震が来ないのかな” mean?
I’m not sure if i understand both
ないのかな
and
ないかな
地震が(It is probably better with は) こないのかなあ
“I wonder if the earthquake happens.”
〜かな (expressing one’s desire or fear)
〜のかな (question/doubt/emphasize one’s feelings such as irritation/frustration)
なるほど
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして！
とても有益があります！マギー先生、ありがとうごさいました！
それはよかったです！😌
（ Note for you: 有益がある→I think what you meant is とても役に立ちます ）
Hello sensei!
Recently I heard in an online ad that says “shichau nakara”
I searched and I found that nakara (not nagara) means similar to -nai.
Does that mean “[something] shichau nakara” means “not do [something]”? Thank you!
Hi Sharon,
There is no expression”shichau nakara”
I wonder what you heard is “shichaun dakara” (Girl speech) “I am going to do something, OK?”
Ooh, yeah, the person speaking in the clip was a girl. That makes sense!
Thank you sensei <3
Good! 😊
Sensei. Why is が used here?
財布がすっからかん
Hi Dwi
Is it from my Twitter word today?
財布がすっからかん You are emphasizing the state of 財布
If you are giving a general idea, (the usual state of one’s wallet, 私の財布はいつもすっからかんです。）
Yes, it is from your Twitter. Thanks, Sensei.
You’re very welcome!
マギー先生、こんにちは！
質問があるんですが…
「来年、国に帰る予定です。」と「来年、国に帰ることになりました。」は違いがありますか。
色々ありがとう。
カミ
こんにちは！
予定: You are just talking about your plans for the next year. planning to go back to country next year.
ことになりました You are talking about the result of some process. In this case, it implies there are some kind of stories behind and as a result, you decide to go back home.
説明してくれて、ありがとう、マギー先生！
どういたしまして、カミ！ 🐶
先生、
質問がありますが、CAn past continuous precede aidani./aida.
出かけていたあいだに、泥棒が入ったようです。
寝ていたあいだに、猫が牛乳を飲んでしまいました。
Regards,
Pavithra
There are cases that you use past tense before あいだ but for your two sentences, present tense is better.
出かけている間に
寝ている間に
I encountered this sentence: “そのことに対する人々の関心が高まってきている。”
And I don’t understand why there is “Kite Iru” at the end. Can you help please, Maggie Sensei?
関心が高まってきている people are getting more interested in that matter.
It expresses the change.
Before “no interest” →(is changing) →people are having more and more interest.
The change is coming towards you.Therefore you use kite iru.
Sensei. What is the difference between the following?
月がきれい
月はきれい
I’m always confused about the particle “ga” in this context. But when we tell something about what we see or what has happened/is happening, do we use が?
Dwi
Hi Dwi,
When you talk about the general idea that the moon is beautiful, you say 月はきれい
When you talk about the moon you are looking at now and emphasize the fact how beautiful “the moon” is, you say 月がきれい
I understand this lesson but I don’t like this. I don’t think people should lower themselves or self-deprecate. People should be proud of who they are and what they can do and have self-confidence. People shouldn’t brag, but they shouldn’t lower themselves or speak badly of their friends/family either.
For example, if I created something nice and someone tells me: Luna-san jouzu desu ne! I will reply: Arigatou! Sugoku ganbatta!
Because I put a lot of effort in it and I don’t want to deny my efforts, you know? I think you can accept a compliment politely without bragging or being arrogant.
粗茶ですが、どうぞ!
If the tea is not really bad, why say that? To me, it sounds impolite and unrespectful to tell your friends you’re serving them bad tea. If I like my friends I want to give them the best tea and I want them to know I’m giving them good things because I love them.
Also, if a rich person has a really big house and a really cool car and they say: “no it’s not that big/good, this is nothing.” isn’t that arrogant? Like he’s so rich and cool that something like that is nothing to him because he can buy an even better one? Or: your bag looks really nice! “No, it’s not that great!” To me, saying that this super expensive and beautiful bag is not great actually sounds more like bragging because it’s like you’re saying: nah, to someone like me, this is nothing (I’m worth so much more than you). I know that’s not what they mean but it kinda sounds like that?
I’m sorry, I don’t mean to critique! I know it’s a cultural thing but this might be the thing about Japan that I dislike the most. Everyone shouldn’t be afraid to show they are proud or happy about something/someone.
I totally understand you. It is very natural that you feel that way.
It is probably my fault if you misunderstand Japanese culture from this lesson.
The old customs remain in our modern language.
Using the humble expression doesn’t really mean we feel very low.
However, I don’t deny that being humble/modest is still considered to be virtue in Japan and being too proud or brag what you have in public may make others uncomfortable in certain situations.
In a lot of cases, it is just formality and show the respects to others.
I understand, thank you for replying!
It still feels a little weird to do it since everyone knows that you are being humble/modest on purpose. But when you say it’s just a formality, it actually makes more sense to me like this. Thanks!
No problem.
I hope you get what I meant. :)
Hello Maggie-Sensei,
thank you for this awesome lesson! Now what exactly would be the difference in meaning between なんとよむんですか and なんとよみますか? And is one of them more common? I already understand that ん often indicates reason, assumption (when asking) or emphasis, but I don’t quite see why it would be neccessary when asking how to read something.
Thank you!
Hi Elli
They are both pretty common.
なんとよみますか sounds softer than なんとよむんですか？
んですか? sounds a bit stronger than Vますか
Have just found this website.. and it is really helpful!
arigatou ne maggie-san.. anata ga kawaii… I suppose..
kyowa benkyo tanoshikatta.. :D
and please provide more listening also.. so that we can learn by hearing! :D
hontonni arigatou gozaimasuu..
Hi Dinul!
Welcome to my site!
There are many lessons here with audio files. Hope you find them useful.
Thank you for this information. I’m wondering if there are times when gochisosama deshita is more appropriate than oishi katta desu, or vice versa? And if you can say both or if you should pick one over the other. Thank you.
Hi Jen,
When someone treats you,
“Gochisousama deshita” is better than just saying “Oishikatta desu”.
Or you can say both
Gochisou sama deshita & Oishikatta desu.
先生、久しぶりにレッスンを勉強したよ！
いつもお世話になります！レッスンをずっと頑張って作ってくれて本当にありがとうございます！！ 出来ればこの辺にもっと(más seguidoってどう言えますか？)現れてくるよ！
Ortiiii!😊
元気だった？
más seguido もっと頻繁（ひんぱん）に/ もっと
この辺：このサイトのこと？
だったら、→出来ればここにもっと頻繁に来るようにするよ。
また、待っていますよ♪
はいはい！元気っすよ！ 先生は？
デジタル地帯みたいな感じで「この辺」を使ってみたwww
教えてくれてありがとうございました！
元気でよかった！ :)
なるほどね、「この辺り」にまた来てね。
Hi Maggie Sensei, thank you for another great lesson!
Could you explain me these things:
(1) In this example sentence
Ex. 子供が小さいうちはなかなか出かけることができない。
= It is so easy to go out while my child is still small.
But why “It is so easy….”, because for me the right translation would be “It is not easy…” ?
(2) In this example sentence:
Ex. わからないことはその日のうちに聞いてください。
= Please ask me things you don’t understand by the end of the day.
Can I translate その日のうちに as “during this day”?
(3) In this example sentence:
Ex. 休みのうちに読みたい本を全部読みたい。
= I would like to read all the books that I want to read.
I think is missing “during vacation/ holidays” in the translation.
Hi Eliza,
(1) + (3) Thank you for spotting the mistake. I will fix them right away.
(2) Yes, that’s possible. But it should imply that before that day is over.
Thank you so much for your reply Maggie Sensei! 😊
こちらこそありがとう！ Eliza! :)
Sorry this may be clearer:
Vるように見える/見えた
Only present tense for the verb preceding ようにwith 見える/見えた
Vるor Vたように感じる/ 感じた、思える/思えた、聞こえ/聞こえた
Present or past tense for 感じる/感じた、思える/思えた、聞こえる/聞こえた。
Did I understand correctly?
ありがとうございます
Hi エマ！
Technically if the following verb is past tense, the previous verb can be present tense.
For example
怒っているように見える／見えた
怒ったいるように感じる／思える／聞こえる or
怒ったいるように感じる／思える／聞こえる 感じた／思えた／聞こえた
But actually some people use past tense for both in conversation.
怒っていたように見えた／感じた／思えた／聞こえた
Hello!
Thank you for the many many great lessons!
I have a question:
Vるように見える/見えた
Only present tense for the verb preceding ようにwith 見える
Vるor たように感じる、思える、聞こえる
Present or past tense for 感じる、思える、聞こえる。
Did I understand correctly?
ありがとうございます！
返事してくれてありがとうございました‼️
So for example, if I went to the gym and got very tired, but I wanted to make a joke, could I say:
何もしなかかったように感じるよ！
“ I feel like I didn’t do anything!”
( sorry I couldn’t think of a better example!)
Hmm
If you didn’t do anything, you don’t feel it so you can’t use 感じる.
It might work with 感じない
It’s more complicated but for example なにもしなかったように全く疲れを感じない
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I love your site and visit it often. You provide the greatest sentence samples and I often add them to my Anki deck because I can picture myself saying them. I also get a real chuckle out of some of the sentences. I can tell you put a lot of thought into your pages and I am truly grateful for this site and all I have learned from it so far. Your a super cool person. ちょうかっこいい
So, for some reason I find my mind has a really hard time accepting ADJ+がる. I understand the use of using appearance adjectives with がる to say things like “I feel pretty”(Wait! can I say 私はきれいがっている?) but I don’t understand how it works with feeling adjectives…恥ずかしがる vs はずかしい both mean to be embarrassed. If I say 彼は恥ずかしいです, why/when should I use 恥ずかしがる?
Also, do people actually say things like 面白がる、楽しがる、すきがる？I only ever hear こわがる. That being said is using そうだ more common way to say for Japanese people? like はずかしそうだ vs はずかしがる。Or うれしがった vs うれしそうだった。
People always think I speak weird Japanese so I’m trying to speak more naturally.
If you could possibly help me, I would greatly appreciate it.
Again thanks for such a wonderful site. I think you should make a textbook but like a grammar dictionary kind. Anyways I love your website! Thanks for all your hard work.
Dear CB Awesome,
It is a great way to picture yourself using the Japanese you just learned.
OK, you can’t use がる with any adjectives or verbs. I gave you the most common ones in this lesson.
You can express your feelings with 恥ずかしい I am embarrassed. But you can’t say other people’s feelings. 彼は恥ずかしい. Instead you assume his feelings by his behavior or face expressions. Then you say 恥ずかしがっている
You say 面白がる but not 楽しがる／好きがる. When you assume other people’s feelings, you use 楽しそう／楽しそうにしている／好きみたい,etc. instead.
When you are not sure if people say certain expression or not, try using Google or Twitter and search the word and find out if people do use it or not and how they use it. (or ask me here.)
Thank you for all your compliments. When I make a textbook, I hope you will be the first person to get it.
Love you!
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Thanks for such the speedy reply! I think I’m starting to get the picture. It’s good to know you can’t use it with every adj and verb. I guess we don’t use そうだ to assume people’s feelings.
I use your site and weblio a lot for example sentences mainly because in the past when I used other websites the sentences turned out to be kind of weird according to my Japanese coworkers (I do ask them for help a lot but I try not to be too bothersome). Your website is a guarantee that the sentences are natural. I’ve been searching for other resources and found WWWJDIC and it seems pretty good but unfortunately resources are pretty slim for us Japanese learners which is why your site is so fabulous! It’s dependable. Thanks so much for everything you do for us!
I would 100 percent buy your textbook haha
Much love!
Oops I forgot to add I didn’t realize I could search twitter for grammar points. Thanks!
Weblio has many example sentences and it’s highly recommended. But you are right. If you just use some of the example sentences in daily conversation, you may sound strange.
I suggest Twitter because you can actually see how people use the words. Some of the expressions are extremely casual and they could be rude if you use them to someone superior. Try to watch Japanese TV shows too to learn natural Japanese if you have a chance.
If you don’t want to bother your coworker, I am always here for you. 😉
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I have a question.
DBJG says that なら can’t be use if we can’t check the condition right now (even hypothetically). Thus they mark:
明日雨が降るなら試合はないでしょう。
as unacceptable because “one can never tell whether it’s true or not that it will rain tomorrow”.
But that statement contradicts your example
明日雨ならいきません。
I’m confused… -_-
Hello,
Hmm? DBJG is a book?
Anyway I can just explain my example sentence. Whether you go or not depends on your will.
Even if you are not certain whether it rains or not, you can say
明日雨なら as a condition (in case of rain/ If it rains)
+ what you are/not going to do.
家にいます。
出かけません, etc.
Yes, “A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar”.
Thank you for replying!
That’s what I thought actually, that it has something to do with main clause, not the reason clause. I guess authors have made a mistake…
Though one japanese person I asked said that while example sentence (from the book) sounds unnatural, he has nothing against
“明日雨なら、試合はない.”
So the presence/absense of a verb makes so much difference?
日本語は難しい…
OK, I just talked about my example sentence 明日雨なら+ what you are going to do (your will) in my previous comment and didn’t actually mentioned that example.
I agree with your friend, “明日雨なら、試合はないです or 試合はありません。/試合は中止です” is acceptable in conversation but
the example sentence 明日雨が降るなら試合はないでしょう。doesn’t sound natural. I guess it’s because the following sentence ないでしょう is assumption. If I think of better reason, I will let you know. :)
Hello Maggie senei! How about make a subjunctive mood in Japanese, for example: If he had known your phone number yesterday, he would have called you.
Thank you!
Hello trang,
There are a few ways but たら is more natural than なら but
Ex. もし彼が(＊あなたの）電話番号を知っていたら電話をかけてきたと思うよ。(casual)
(* あなた: I wrote あなた here but you may want to avoid using it. Instead use the person’s name.)
If I had known his phone number, I would have called him.
もし彼の電話番号を知っていたら、電話をかけたのに （or 電話したのに）
To express one’s regret, you can use のに
（Check my のに lesson)
Sensei. How does は work in the following sentences?
体調にはお気をつけください.
And why does the particle は in the sentence below mean “in”?
プラハはおいしいベジタリアン料理も簡単に見つかって、いつもお腹いっぱいだった = it’s easy finding good vegetarian food in Prague, and I was always full.
は has a function to bring up some topics.
~ に気をつけてください。 (Take care of ~ “specifically” )
~ にはお気をつけてください。(As for ~ , please take care.)
プラハは
As for Prague, you can find good ~ there.
Thanks. How about these ones? Could you explain?
刑務所からは出ました.
から is from, so it would be “as for from…”, this is rather strange.
納豆は何回も食べたよ/ 食べましたよ
休日は、食べたり寝たりして過ごしています。
In these sentences, does the は bring up topic or show contrast?
刑務所からは出ました.
It shows the contrast/emphasize. Maybe this person got out of the jail but there could be some other problem.
Last two are topics.
Thanks very much for the explanation, Sensei. Very clear now!
Good! :)
Hi there!
May i asked you something related?
In the following sentence… how does “〜となっています” translates?
また、一世帯当たりの購読部数は1.02部と高い新聞普及率となっています。
どうぞよろしくお願います🤲
Hi Marcos
In this case, となります means ” ~ turns to be ~~”
So なっています expresses the result “~ turned to be ~”
Thanks a lot Maggie sensei!
Anytime! :)
Hello マギー先生,
from this example sentence
彼はいつも近所の人との関係を気にしていた。
“He was always concerned about the relationship with his neighbors.”
how would i say –
“I was always concerned about his relationship with his neighbors.” ?
Hi Milk
In that case you have to change the expression a little.
（私は）いつも彼と近所の人の関係を気にかけていた。／心配していた。
あっ、分かります！
ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして💕
why we don’t use 彼と近所の人との関係
Yes, you can say I guess it was a typo but you can say both
私は彼と近所の人の関係を気にしていた。
私は彼と近所の人との関係を気にしていた。
Or you can also say 私は彼の近所の人との関係を気にしていた。
What is the difference between, for example, こういうandこんな？
Eg. こんな人vsそういう人。
Perhaps this has been explained elsewhere. If so, please direct me to it.
Thank you.
Hi Matt,
こんな／そんな／あんなあ are more casual than こういう／そういう／ああいう
Hello, i found a sentence in the internet while I’am studying japanese.
行きたくなくもないけど、行けなくならなかったら、行けないよ。
And i don’t even understand the meaning of this.
Can you help me understand this?
Hi Nicart,
The first part is OK
行きたくなくもないけど、
= Though I don’t want to go/Though I don’t even want to go
行けなくならなかったら、行けないよ。 this part doesn’t make a sense.
You saved my life. Thanks.
Good to hear it helped you. :)
May i use し and のに in one sentence?
Foe example:
私はもう若くないし、頭が良くないし、もう可愛くないのに、Keanu reeves はまだ私の愛を追いかけているよ。。。(hahaha…. you wish 😂😂😂😂)
Although i am not young anymore, not smart, and not pretty anymore, but keanu reeves is still chasing my love (ignore my super high confidence 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂)
🤣 Love your example sentence! It seems like Keanu is really into you. 💕
You can use し and のに in one sentence.
Just one small change that I would suggest to make this sentence look more natural.
頭はよくないし (That implies some other stuff is good but not smart.)
The rest is fine.
Thank you very much, maggje…😘
Hahaha indeed…. keanu reeves is really indeed into me………….. in my dream 妄想の中に😂😂😂😂😂😂
Please say hello to him when you see him next (ahem! in your dream). 🤣
Maggie Sensei, こんにちは！
Thank you for the lesson, now I know another way to express “should” but I don’t really catch the nuance between each of them ;)
To say “You should study japanese” I have those translation :
日本語を勉強…
1-したほうがいい。
2-するべきだ。
3-すればいい。
4-するはずだ。
5-しなくてはいけない。
I am confused, what is the difference ?
1. You should study Japanese.(It implies you don’t have but it will be better to study Japanese for example to improve your Japanese.)
2. You must study Japanese. / You’d better study Japanese.
While 5) is talking about present or near future, 2 could be just for future in general. )
3. You can study Japanese./Why don’t you study Japanese?/I think you should study Japanese. (Giving some ideas.)
4. One is supposed to study Japanese. (The speaker is guessing what the listener would do.)
5. You have to study Japanese (Usually talking about what one have to do now because there is no choice.)
Thank you very much, the explanation was very clear and helpful ;)
よかった！ 😌
hi sensei
what is this も doing here? for context it’s a girl talking with her bf
seeing も and に together is kinda confusing
……我慢しなくていいです
人を好きになるとよくばりになるって
今はわたしにもわかるから
thank u in advance
Hi megumi
That にも is “even I” but にも means “I also / I ~ as well”
Let me break it down.
The particle に here is for ability, what one is able to do.
まだ私に読める漢字は少ない。
There are still a very few kanji that I can read.
読める is a potential form of 読む
You
この漢字は私には、読めない。
I can’t read this kanji. (by using は, you show the contrast. Maybe other people can but I can’t)
この漢字は私にも読める。(Even I can read this kanji)
Hi sensei,
thank you, so in this sentence it would be “Even I can understand that (…)” ?
:p
Sorry. I didn’t write the translation.
“also” is better for your sentence. “I can also understand.”
この授業をくれてありがとうございます！今中級へ行こうと呼ばれている本によって勉強しているんですがこの’わけでわない’の説明は特に下手です！明日試験があるので助けてくれてありがとうございます！前に英語に翻訳したらはっきり出来ないと思いましたが今分かるようなりました！ありがとうございます！何回もこのサイトを使ったことがあっていつも説明は上手だしたくさん例もくれるし。。今私のクラスメートに紹介しに行きます！
こんにちは、夏気！
お役に立ててよかったです。
明日の試験、がんばってくださいね！ 💕
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much! Your explanations are detailed and easy to understand.
By the way, is there any difference between 2 sentence:
# 食べるわけがない。
#食べられるわけがない。
I would be so so grateful if you could help me!
Thank you so much !!!!
Hi, Thaoha,
食べるわけがない。
There is no way that someone will eat ~
食べられるわけがない。
There is no way that I/We/You can eat / There is no way that something is edible.
Hi Maggie sensei,
私は この文法の意味はちょっと間違いました．だから 二つ文章の意味は同じだと思います。先生が教えてくれて、分かりました。
先生のおかげで、文法が詳しく理解しています。
本当にありがとございますた。
Hi Thaoha,
「わけではない」と「わけがない」はみなさん、わからなくなるみたいですね。
このレッスンで少しでも違いがわかるようになってくれたらうれしいです！
hello,
Thanks for all your great explanations :)
I have a question though,
I came across this sentence, I know the meaning, but I struggle a bit to understand how it articulates altogether.
Can you check if I’m correct and maybe give some explanations if I miss the point ^^’
しばらくここでの生活を楽しみたくなってきました。
so first there’s
楽しみたくなる which I translate(may be wrong) by “I get the urge to enjoy”
then they add てきた
楽しみたくなってきました
which I guess would mean “I have been getting more and more the urge to enjoy(this place’s lifestyle) until now.”
Am I correct?
thank you very much :)
Hi Juju
Yes, your interpretation is correct. :)
ありがとうございました :)
どういたしまして U^ェ^U
First page of yours that I’ve read. Took a while, since I’m a beginner. SUPERB article, awesome wealth of examples! So I must say thanks!
You’re awesome! I love the power of suggestion… so many elaborations of how to use particles are demonstrated here, too.
Warm regards from CT, USA.
Hi Grey,
Welcome to my site!
Hope you come back here again and again. :)
Hey Maggie,
Short question, my boyfriends name is Simon, when I want to say
„I‘m in love with Simon“
Do I say :
Watashi wa Saimon wo aishite iru.
Yes, you can say that.
There are a few ways to say that
“Watashi wa Saimon wo aishite iru. ” is good but you may see that more in written form.
In conversation you can just say
Saimon ga suki.
Saimon ni koishiteru.
Good to know, you really helped me out.
Thank you very much <3
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I’m not sure if this is the right section, but can you explain the difference between ～ようとする and ～ようとしてする？
I found the latter phrase while reading, and I can’t really discern the difference.
Here’s an example sentence I had found: 今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする.
Would there be a significant change in meaning if it were replaced with ~ようとする instead?
Any clarification would be appreciated.
Hello Jeremy,
～ようとする and ～ようとしてする
Before I answer it’s not ～ようとする and ～ようとしている?
今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする →You don’t say ようとしてする
It should be 生きようとしている
Hi Maggie-sensei!
Thank you for the reply. And yes, I thought it was a mistake at first, but after some research, it seems that ~ようとしてする is not an uncommon expression.
I can provide another example (from a J-J dictionary) if it helps with clarification.
愛想笑い：＜名＞ 相手に気に入られようとしてする、つくりわらい
Ahh I got it.
It simply modifies a noun 作り笑い
When you modify a noun
verb + noun
Let’s me rephrase it.
相手に気に入られようとして作り笑いをする
When you describe what 作り笑い is
the verb in this sentence is する
so 相手に気に入られようとして”する”+作り笑い
If you change the sentence for example
Jeremyに食べてもらおうとしておにぎりを作る。
→Describes おにぎり 🍙 a rice ball
Jeremyに食べてもらおうとして作るおにぎり
So going back to your original question
今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする
The sentence itself is unnatural but if it has a noun at the end of the sentence, it is possible to say that.
今よりもちょっと穏やかに生きようとしてする”田舎での生活”
The life in the country
Oh, I think I understand now. The verb (する・作る）describes what action is done to the noun, and ようとして describes the intention behind it.
So if I’m understanding correctly, and don’t mind my garbled translation, 「Jeremyに食べてもらおうとして作るおにぎり」 pretty much means “the rice ball I made [with the intention of having Jeremy eat it] for Jeremy to eat”.
Thank you very much for your explanation!
That’s right! You got it. 👏
こんにちは、マギー先生！
いつも日本語を分かりやすくて教えてくださってありがとうございます！
I’ve come across a different usage of ~し that I’m not sure how I should interpret and I was hoping you could help me. Here’s an example:
“自由を求めし者 変わり果てて
理想を追いし者に憧れていた”
Here, the ~し comes directly after the stem of a verb and I’m wondering what it means exactly?
返事をお待ちしております！良い一日を！
こんにちは Sebastian
Ah, that’s old Japanese.
So when you modify a noun with a verb you use a dictionary form in modern Japanese.
（自由を）求める者
（理想を）追う者
But in old Japanese, you use
求めます→求め＋し+ noun
追います→追い＋し+ noun
You only use it in some literal expressions and you might see some adjective form as well.
若かった日→若かりし日 The day that someone was young.
Sebastianもいい日を過ごしてくださいね。💕
なるほど！
No wonder I had no clue since it’s not part of modern Japanese…
早く答えてくださってありがとうございました！
どういたしまして！ 🐶💕
Hello Maggie sensei!
Wonderful lesson, it cleared a lot of things up with me, especially with all the examples you’re giving.
What I found from another source (which I feel you’ve also implied here) is that し states a reason while also implying other reasons, while から does not have that quality.
I was wondering if you replace the last し in a row with から, if you still have the *implying more* function or if the から makes that nuance disappear. Like in the following example you gave:
お金はないし、暇もないから、この夏は旅行に行くのはやめよう。
Hello Marloes
Good question.
The nuance difference between the following sentences are
お金はないし、暇もないし、(…) この夏は旅行に行くのはやめよう。 It implying there might be some other reasons why you gave up the trip this summer. (You often use this pattern in conversation ~ し ~ し.. when you are thinking about the reason)
お金はないし、暇もないから、この夏は旅行に行くのはやめよう。It gives two specific reason why you gave up the trip this summer.
Can you explain how が works in this sentence?
YouTubeチャネル登録者が20万人を超えました
Here’s the basic rule.
A = B A is B
AはBです。 (Emphasizing B / or Showing the contrast.)
AがBです。 (Emphasizing A)
A does B
AはBします。(Emphasizing B / or Showing the contrast.)
AがBします。(Emphasizing A)
YouTubeチャネル登録者は20万人を超えました (Emphasizing20万人を超えました or it implies the writer has other activities but as of youtube channel, he/she got ~ subscribers.)
YouTubeチャネル登録者が20万人を超えました (Emphasizing YouTubeチャネル登録者）
Does hatsukaはつか20日 take particle ni?
Hi Mark
It depends on the sentence but when you want to say “to do something on the 20th” yes.
Ex. ２０日にいきます。
彼らはいつものようにソファーの上でレコードをきいていた.
In the above sentence could any please advise why we use のように please advise
いつものように
As they always do/like they always do （いつもやっているように・いつもしているように） → as always (いつものように）
分かりました！
ありがとうございました😊
どういたしまして、エマ💕
Maggie Sensei:
I need help with this sentence. It has から in it. Usually it helps me when I break japanese sentences down, but in this example I don’t know how から is working here.
この辺りは治安も悪くないけど、あの辺りは治安が良くないからね。
This area doesn’t have bad public safety, but that area does. (translation given)
this+neighborhoodはpublic safety+ not bad + but that neighborhoodはp.s.+not good+ から (why?)
助けてくれてありがとうございます！
Hello david,
for better understanding of part. から, which implies the reason:
この辺りは治安も悪くないけど、あの辺りは治安が良くないからね。
This area is quite safe, cuz the other one is not safe, you know.
(The unsafeness of one area makes that the other one is safe)
治安がいい=safe (ex. country, area) / good (ex. neighborhood)
治安が悪い=not safe/dangerous (ex. country, area) / bad (ex. neighborhood)
ヨロシク
Hi David
(Thank you for helping him, 天人）
It depends on the previous sentence or context but for example if someone is telling you that he/she just moved from “that area” to “this area” or wants to move from “that area” to “this area”.
And you, as a listener, respond to that person.
I understand why you moved/want to move because this area is relatively safe but that area is dangerous.
So this から gives a reason why the writer/speakers agrees with the previous sentence.
Hi, I didnt understand the difference between these two topics:
2) verb ta-form Vた ( = ta) / Vんだ ( = V nda) / Vった ( = tta) / Vていた ( = te ita) + つもり( = tsumori) :
You thought you did but actually you didn’t.
believed/thought ~ but the reality was /might have been different
and
3) verb ta-form Vた ( = ta) / Vんだ ( = V nda) / Vった ( = tta) + つもり( = tsumori):
(1) to think one did something / thought one had done something (but it was different in reality) / one meant to do/be ~ (but it turned out to be different.)
Because for me they mean the same thing…
Can I just join these two as only one topic?
Hi Eliza,
Oh you are right, they are the same. The numbering was wrong. Thank you for telling me. I will fix it now.
Thanks. My friend says the が is telling something new in that sentence. Is that right?
Yes, that’s one of the usages.
A Japanese teacher I know had this question and she said the right answer is たいして and she aaid たいして is like to compare… I’m a little lost ( ˙-˙ ; )
「姉がおとなしいのに( )、兄は活動的だ。」
1) おいて
2) たいして
3) ついて
4) よって
Hi Eric
It is the usage 2) to show the contrast
The same idea of my example sentence
Ex. 父は物静かだったのに対して母はいつも口うるさい。
= Chichi wa monoshizuka datta noni taishite haha wa kuchiurusai.
= While my father was very quiet, my mom is always nagging.
姉= quiet
兄 = active
They have two different personality and to show the contrast, you use 対して
このレッスンありがとうございました！めっちゃ分かりやすいで便利だと思います。質問一つだけあります！what does it mean when “なのに” is at the beginning of the sentence? A friend told me:… しかもあなたはすごく優しいです。なのに僕を選んでくれてありがとう。please I hope you to respond me and thank you 先生！
こんにちは、Laura,
Ah, I see this is a tricky one.
なのに in that sentence means ~ なのに ”regardless (previous sentence)/but / yet”
So the previous sentence express how great you are. You are ~ and also very sweet.
By using なのに in the following sentence, the readers can tell this writer thinks he doesn’t deserve this person.
I am not that good/I am not as good as you are/I don’t deserve you but you chose me. Thank you.
Thank you Maggie sensei for yet another super useful lesson! I was thinking about this sentence from the lesson:
Ex. なぜか好きな人に冷たくしてしまう。 = Naze ka sukina hito ni tsumetaku shite shimau. = I don’t know why but I tend to turn the cold shoulder to people I like.
Would it be wrong to use ‘naru’ instead? ( = なぜか好きな人に冷たくなってしまう)。
To me, 冷たくなってしまう sounds more like it’s a natural/spontaneous/ inevitable process (it just happens, he/she has no choice), while 冷たくしてしまう sounds more like it’s an action that he/she chooses to do (she ‘makes herself’ cold).
Thank you so much for your help!
Hi Davide
I guess it is possible if you see your attitude objectively but I would still use 冷たくしてしまう because it is your own attitude that you control or you lose control.
冷たくなる is intransitive verb and it means “something turns cold.
手が冷たくなる One’s hands turn cold. →(adding your feelings.) 手が冷たくなってしまう。
お茶が冷たくなる tea gets cold→(adding your feelings.) お茶が冷たくなってしまう。
私は彼に冷たくなる is not natural because the subject is 私. You are talking about your own feelings/attitude.
If you (intentionally) make something cold you say 冷たくする
冷たくする is a transitive verb. To make something cold.
好きな人に冷たくする to treat someone you like in a cold way.
By changing the sentence to 冷たくしてしまう, you can add the feelings that You don’t really want to treat him coldly but you lose control and you ended up treating him coldly.
ありがとうございました。せんせい。
どういたしまして :)
こんにちは先生。
説明はわかりやすいので助かりました。本当にありがとうございました。
フィタ
よかった〜！！
嬉しいコメントありがとう！！ U^ェ^U💕
Sumimasen sensei, ” tou iu kanji” or ” to iu kanji” what does it mean. Ive heard it several times. Please teach me🙂
Hi, Godwil
I think what you have heard several times is “dou iu kanji” and ” ~ to iu kanji”
Dou iu kanji? What’s like?
~~ toiu kanji = It’s like ~ / ~ is like ~
Thank you😊
My pleasure! ☺️
Hello Maggie-sensei, does Vてはいけません falls under usage 5) Though you can’t expect good results, you will give it a try anyway.?
Because together with Vてはいられない and Vないではいられない, you listed them right below usage 5. But their usages seem to be slightly different from 5 especially Vてはいけませ which can mean prohibition/obligation/permission.
Hi Chang
No, they are different. (I added another line to separate them.)
Maggie-sensei, thank you. I have a few more questions regarding this lesson if you could help to answer.
In one of your example sentences, there is a 彼への気持ちを書いては消し、(書いては消し..) 結局、メールを出さなかった. 消し is 連用形 if I remember correctly. Is using this form only for writing or can it be used for conversation as well? I was taught to use て form when joining sentences so the above would become something like 彼への気持ちを書いては消して、結局、メールを出さなかった.
I guess you could say 彼への気持ちを書いては消して、結局、メールを出さなかった. but in conversation,I would say
書いては消したりして結局メールを出さなかった。
I would like to ask can の be attached directly after te-form of a verb like in your example 食べては寝ての生活? I came across a few other examples like 知っての通りbut I have never learnt this grammar in school nor able to find explanation on the internet.
Hello Chang,
technically, if you want to combine a verb with noun you can use:
1) 動詞＋て形＋の助詞＋名詞 or
2) 動詞＋る／た／ている形＋名詞
I believe the meaning between 1) and 2) will be the same, and also 1) and 2) are interchangeable.
EX)
知っている通り＝知っての通り
長い時間をかけての食事＝長い時間をかけた食事
Aに対してのB ＝Aに対するB
Maggie, is there any difference between 1) and 2)?
@天人
Thank you for helping Chang
Besides the set phrase such as 知っての通り／見ての通り, 2) is much more common and 1) is a little more formal.
Also when you use a verbて+の+noun,
a) 長い時間をかけての食事
b) 長い時間をかけた食事
a) involves more emotion. It took a long time to cook this food.
Thanks Maggie, that’s what I also felt about 動詞＋て形＋の助詞＋名詞 pattern.
Another 日本語謎 solved!
✌(╹◡╹)✌
Hi, first time commenting.
Whats the differenfe between
終わった後、
and
終わった後に/で
Hi Joey,
後で／後 focusing on the order/what you are going to do after ~
After finishing (A), you do (B)
食事が終わった後／後でテレビを観ます。
後に focusing on the time, the particular time after ~
食事が終わった後に薬を飲まないといけません。
Thanks for the response!
So the で is optional?
Right. You can say both 食事の後／食事の後でテレビを観ます。
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I actually have another question about a sentence from the lesson above:
Ex. 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる。= Since I live alone, I am apt to eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
Could you comment on the meaning of と in this sentence? I checked your lesson ( = ~ to & ~ naito) but I’m still not sure about this sentence. As you know, even the English translation ‘since’ is a bit ambiguous as it can mean ‘starting from (time)’ or ‘because’. Thank you so much!
Hi Davide,
OK, と here indicates “condition”.
So think 一人暮らし as condition (under the condition of “living alone”)
一人暮らし is a noun so you add + だと (If you use a verb form 一人暮らしすると = If you live on your own）
一人暮らしだと
+ You write in the following sentence what is likely to happen/what happens/ what is happening
1) what is like
2) general idea what will happen
3) your guess, what is likely to happen
一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる。
= Since I live alone, I am apt to eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
My translation here is for the speaker’s current feelings(1)
But if the writer is imagining how it will be if he/she lives alone, the translation is
If I live alone, I will eat more boxed lunches from convenience stores.
And if the writer is talking about the general idea,
If you (people in general) live alone, you are apt to eat ~
Sensei,
I didn’t know that と could be used for conditions that are real for the speaker at the moment of speaking, interesting! So if I understand correctly, when this person says 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる, he is already living alone, right?
I wish grammar books explained the ‘what is happening’ usage of と more in detail (I think they focus on the other usages). As always, your help really makes a difference. Thanks for taking the time to answer!
So if I understand correctly, when this person says 一人暮らしだとコンビニ弁当ばかり食べがちになる, he is already living alone, right?
→Yes, that is what I meant in my example sentence.
I translated the sentence with “since”, but the translation varies depending on the sentence.
一人暮らしだと寂しい could be “Living alone is lonely.”
一人暮らしだと寂しいんじゃない？ “Are you feeling lonely living alone?”
Hmmm, quite interesting.
And how much would the meaning be effected, if we change だと into は?
“AはB” also describes point 1) “what is like”.
一人暮らしだと寂しい vs 一人暮らしは寂しい.
@天人
It is hard to show your the difference with English translation because both could be translated “Living alone is lonely.”
As you know, AはB → A = B (definition)
一人暮らしは寂しい.
一人暮らし = 寂しい (talking about the quality of 一人暮らし）
It shows one’s stronger opinion.
一人暮らしだと寂しい It is based on the condition
If a person lives alone, it is lonely.
Or Since I am in the state of living alone, I am lonely.
“It shows one’s stronger opinion.” – that’s the key to understand the difference. Well done! Thanks Maggie!
U｡･ｪ･｡Uﾉ~ わんわん
ありがとうございます 先生。
どういたしまして💕
Hello Sensei, thanks for the great lesson! 😁 I might have spotted a mistake: in the sentence 波が寄せて返す、shouldn’t it be 返る?
Hi Davide
Good question! 波が寄せて返す is an expression and 返す here means “波が返ること”.
返す is usually used as a transitive verb, “to return something, to give something back” but there are some expressions that you use as an intransitive verb which means “返る = to return”
なるほど！ありがとうございます先生！
U^ェ^U 💕
@天人 thanks for the info. i assume u r also a japanese learner? did u learn 1) 動詞＋て形＋の助詞＋名詞 from school or any japanese language books because i have only learnt 2) 動詞＋る／た／ている形＋名詞 which is 名詞修飾.
＠Chang,
your assumption is correct. I came across this pattern in the past (probably playing some Japanese RPGs) and made some recherché about it, because it was a very interesting and rare one. I had no Japanese at school. Maggie is my first and my best Teacher <3
@天人 in that case, when you first came across it, did you managed to find any explanation for it? i tried googling but just can’t find any reference whether for foreign learners nor native japanese
Maggie Sensei, my grammar books don’t list a verb form that ends in -taro. What is this a contraction of?
Talking to my Japanese friend on email about watching Game of Thrones, he asked if I saw an episode already, but the sentence ended…
見たろ？
Why the ro?
Thanks so much! This is the best Japanese site on the web!
Hi Ed,
It is not listed because it’s a casual male speech.
I’ll show you how it changes.
見たでしょう(You saw it, right?)
→見ただろう
→見ただろ
→見たろ
Awwww :) the photo in this lesson is especially adorable.
Thank you!!!!!!! ❤️
Hi.
Off topic, is ちゃ w/ small ” ゃ” regarded as 1 Japanese Syllable, I don’t mean the 1 word aspect, as for purposes of word counting, as with あ, い, う, そ, ひ etc? Do you understand?
Sry if you can’t see it, ” ちゃ” has a small ゃ, I only can’t resize it here.
Hi Wilton
For writing, you count Ex.きゃ as two letters き+ small や
For sound, you count it as one. きゃ=kya
Hello Maggie, by “Show the contrast” What exactly do you mean by this? Im finding it hard to understand sorry~.
Hi Sats
From this explanation below?
You use the particle は ( = wa) , that means you show the contrast with other time period.
You use a particle は as a topic marker
わたしはマギーです。
And also when you show the contrast emphasizing what comes before.(contrast here means to compare, brings up the difference)
(いつもはひまですが、)明日は忙しいです。(emphasizing 明日 and showing the contrast of いつも and 明日)
うちは is the same thing.
お金があるうちは毎日、飲み歩いていた
お金があるとき (= going out for a drink every day) vs お金がないとき ( not going out for a drink every day. : It is not stated but it implies in the sentence.)
Showing the contrast of お金があるとき (when one has money) and お金がないとき* (when one doesn’t have money).
(*It is not mentioned in the sentence but the readers can tell what you
haha, I tried translating “There are no good excuses (to not like Maggie)!” in my head and then was like “huh, it just continues on to the next question…” before it hit me haha.
Also, thank you for indicating which sentences are male/female speech! It’s still a little exhausting for me to translate anime so it’s really handy to have an idea about who would be saying that kind of a sentence :)
Hi Brett!
Good to see you keep studying here. :)
serves (how many people)
set aside
let rest
blender
mixer
fold in
Good, I should cover those, huh?
serves (how many people) number + 人分 (= ninbun)
set aside 置いておく
For blender and mixer I already covered in this lesson 台所 lesson.
→ミキサー
let rest = 寝かせる= neakaseru / 寝かせておく= nekasete ku
Fold in （切るように）混ぜ込む (= kiru you ni) mazekomu ・切るようにさっくり混ぜる ( = kiru you ni sakkuri mazeru)
hi maggie sensei!
I was wondering how to say this in a polite manner:
–> could you please draw __ for me?
would it be
（__）を描いてもらえますか？
thank you :)
Hi lucy
（__）を描いてもらえますか？ is fine.
(more polite) 〜を描いていただけますか？
(more polite)〜を描いていただけますでしょうか。
thank you so much :D
You’re welcome, Lucy! 😊
マギー先生、こんにちは！
これは初めてのコメントです。よろしくお願いします。
まずレッスンに関係がないのは:
「彼、隣のクラスの背の高いモデルみたいな子が好きなんだって。」
どうして「背が高くてモデルみたいな子」使わないんですか。
あと、「どんな」と「どの」どう違いますか。
いつもこんな役に立って詳しいレッスンを書いてくれてありがとう！
こんにちは、カミ！
背の高いモデルみたいな子
背が高くてモデルみたいな子
両方言います。
違いですが、
「背が高くてモデルみたいな子」は、二つの特徴があります。
⓵背が高い tall ＋ (and also) ⓶モデルみたい (model-like)
a tall and model-like girl
「背の高いモデルみたいな子」
も同じように⓵背が高い tall ＋ (and also) ⓶モデルみたい (model-like) の意味で使うこともありますが、
背が高い tallが「モデルみたいな」を修飾しています。
a tall model-like girl.
Hi Maggie!
I heard that this sentence is incorrect:
この仕事は私にとってできない
But this sentence is correct:
この仕事は私にはできない
Why the first sentence is incorrect?
******
In this 夏休みに家族でハワイに行くのは子供にとっての夢だった。
But can I say 家族と instead of 家族で ?
Hi Eliza
“私にとって+ adjective” defines the quality of work/ what the work is for you.
この仕事は私にとって＋難しい/簡単だ/大切だ/無駄だ (muzukashii/ kantanda/ taisetsu da /a waste)
This work is hard / easy / important / a waste for me.
You can also say には in the sense of “to me” but basically the same meaning.
**
Now, you use the particle に with a verb potential form.
私は言えません →emphasize 私→私には言えません。
私はできません。 →emphasize 私→私にはできません。
子供もできる →emphasize子供→子供にもできる
But you can’t use verb potential form with とって
私にとって言えない (wrong)
私にとってできない(wrong)
子供にもとってできない(wrong)
＊＊＊＊
When you do something in a group, you use で
You can use と as well. Here’s a nuance difference.
家族と行く to go “with family”
家族で行く to go in a group as a family.
Why do we have to say “優しそうな人” even though “yasashii” is an i-adj? I don’t get it.
Hi Lai,
It doesn’t matter if it’s i-adjective,na-adjective or verb.
(i-adjective/na-adjctive/verb)+ そうな modifies a noun.
i-adjective やさしそうな＋人 ( noun)
na-adjective 元気そうな＋声 (noun)
verb 受かりそうな＋予感 (noun)
FYI 〜そうに modifies a verb
おいしそうに+食べる
げんきそうに＋している
落ちそうに＋なる
Wow I needed this – especially 15 through 18. I’ve been watching little witch academia and had no male characters to help me pick up on the differences. Hmmmm… time to find a show with both sexes I think
Good! Did you study male speech lesson?
I still don’t understand what のに means in this sentence.
部屋の奥で何か音がするのに気がついた。
Hi Ryan,
Ah OK
First you need a particle に, an indirect object marker, for something+ に+ 気がついた, to notice something
When you nominalize a verb, you use こと or の (more casual)
音がすること / 音がするの making sound
Therefore you say 音がするの( or 音がすること） + に+ 気がついた。
I often didn’t understand why のに was used at the end of a sentence. It seems so simple now
よかった〜 :)
I always search for things I don’t understand from my books, like grammars, expressions, etc. and most of the time like 80%, I always find my answers here in your website. I passed N5 last year and N4 this year, Now I am going for N3 this December 1, 2019, I am sure I will be using your website most of the time. Thank you very much and all this detailed informative lessons.
Also, the first comment I read here is from year 2011, now is 2019. I am sure another person will find this very useful in the future. Once again, Thank you very much Maggie Sensei. Have a great day ahead. ：－）
~アキ from Philippines
Hi アキ
Thank you for your comment. It means a lot to me.
I am so happy to hear you have been using this site.
Yeah, I can’t believe it has been 10 years since I started this site.
I really hope you pass N3. I am sure you will!!!
これからもがんばって勉強してくださいね！ 応援しています！ 💕
Hello,
First of all, thank you so much for your posts, they are so helpful.
I am confused with the following sentence:
体重計に乗るたびに痩せようと思うのだが。。。
Is the same case that this?:
It looks/seems/sounds/feels+ like
〜★〜ように+ 見える ( = mieru) / 思える ( = omoeru) / 聞こえる（ = kikoeru) / 感じる ( = kanjiru)
I’m not sure since it is 思う and not 思える.
Thank you.
Hello, Ku
Ah, OK, that よう is a volitional form so please check this lesson.
→Click this lesson.
やせようとする・やせようと思う trying to lose weight （expressing one’s volition, will)
Hello Ku,
痩せようと思う implies that the speaker as a plan/idea/thought of loosing weight/become thin, however he or she hasn’t took any actions to realize it yet.
痩せようと思うのだが = I feel like I want to be thin…
ヨロシク
After a quick reflection, I think “痩せようと思うのだが = I feel like I’m gonna lose some weight” would be even better.
Thank you, 天人 for helping Ku! :)
田中さんって、に本日に10年も住んでいたんだって。
それにしては日本語があまり上手じゃないね。
What does the って mean in the above example?
Hi Chris,
田中さんって(1) 日本に１０年も〜だって(2)
First って (1) is topics, 田中さんは〜
The second って(2) is to quote what you heard.
Thank you!! I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me to understand にとって without your website. I didn’t even know it was used like a particle until I saw the link for it here.
よかった〜！
I’m glad to hear that! :)
Hi,
Is 私を愛してくれてありがとう a good translation for “Thank you for loving me”
Many thanks for this great article!
Hi Megan,
Yes, that’s right. That means, “Thank you for loving me.” :)
Hi Maggie-Sensei! I’ve been reading your posts for a long time (three years!) but this is the first time I’ve ever posted a comment ^^
Anyway, I have a question concerning this ば form.
So, when we have ない, it’s ば form is なければ. It’s pretty easy to understand, and I can say things like 「食べなければ、おなかがいたいよ！」to my younger sister meaning “If you don’t eat, your stomach will hurt.” Say my younger sister gets all fired up to eat now, and she turns to her friends she was playing with and says 「食べなければなりません」, expressing that she has to eat. I have heard that this なければなりません／なければいけません form can be shortened to just なきゃ or なくちゃ, so my sister could’ve just have easily said 「たべなきゃ」to her friends.
Now this is where my question comes in:
Is なきゃ／なくちゃ only used to express things that we have to do, or are they generally accepted as a short, casual form of なければ？
For example, in Yonezu Kenshi’s song “Lemon,” he sings 「あなたがいなきゃえいえんに暗いまま。」At first I was translating it as “You have to be here, it will continue to be dark forever” but then realized that it would make more sense if it was “If you are not here, it will continue to be dark forever.” Am I correct to assume that his lyrics would mean the same thing if he’d said 「あなたがいなければ、えいえんに暗いまま」 or 「あなたがいなくちゃ永遠に暗いまま」?
I apologize for this long-winded question and thank you for any answer you provide!
Hi Sora
Thank you for reading my lessons for three years!
“If you don’t eat, your stomach will hurt.”
Almost, you say 何か食べないとお腹が痛くなるよ(onakga ga igaku naruyo) 。The second part should be いたくなるよ instead of いたいよ。
And if you want to use the casual contraction
何か食べなきゃお腹痛くなるよ。
Yes, 〜なければ→なきゃ／なくちゃ
あなたがいなきゃ = If you are not here
I have a lesson on なくちゃ／なきゃ where I explain all about the usage. Please go check it. :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Did you have a nice trip ?
Did you take back some omiyage for me :)
An answer for my question is valuable gift, I need nothing more than it.
Could you teach me if my understanding is correct, about tokorode/tokoroni
I will use tokorode for place and tokoroni for time
For example
１・私たち食べたところに彼が来た。
２・私たち食べたところで彼に会った。
My understanding is
(1) = He came when we just finished eating
(2) = We met him at the place we just finished eating.
Thank you for your gift to me, my Lady .
ただいま！ I had a great time! My omiyage for you is a big smile for you!
In this case ところに and ところで both indicate the time not the place but
ところに You focus on the moment, right after we finish eating, something happened, in this case “he came”
ところで after completing some action, you do something, in this case, “we met him”
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thanks for your big smile and very happy when you’re back.
I understand that point.
But could you please give me some examples when ところで indicate a location?
Second question is about the example
みなさんがそろったところで乾杯しましょう
What does tokoro de indicate here ? Is it a location or a situation (after everybody is ready, then kanpai0
Thanks my Lady.
Hello!
Sure, for example,
その角を曲がったところで待っていてください。
Please wait for me around the corner.
みなさんがそろったところで乾杯しましょう
This ところで indicates the situation. once(or when) everyone is here/everyone has arrived
簡単に分かれば、上記の「ところで」の意味は「～たら」と同じ。
そろったところで＝そろったら
ということです
ヨロシク
Thanks Maggie sensei and 天人 for help !!!
Hi Maggie, thanks for the lesson! There’s just one sentence that’s stumping me.
やめろというのに無理にやった。
= Although I stopped you, you did it anyway.
I thought we had to quote commands with ように like
やめるように言うのに無理にやった。
=Although I told you to stop you did it anyways.
Maybe I’m misunderstanding what your English translation. To me, “Although I stopped you, you did it anyway.” seems like
阻止するのに無理にやった。
Either way I’m still not sure how to use a command form like 書け with と.
In hindsight I’m wondering if your sentence was a direct quote like 「やめろ」というのに….
Hello Brett,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
First please notice the difference between やめろ and やめる.
The direct translation of やめろというのに is “Although I said stop!”. This imperative form (in combination with this pattern) is very emphatic, expressing strong will by a command.
The やめるように in やめるように言うのに無理にやった doesn’t imply this nuance; it sounds more like an advise, showing what somebody said to someone => 患者さんにタバコをやめるように言うのに、彼が吸っていては説得力がない.
The imperative form in combination with という should be interpreted as a strong advise/command or strongly insisting on something, showing also frustration of the speaker. Check the examples below.
1. 私にどうしろっていうんだ！？=> What do you want me to do!? / Tell me what to do! / What the hell should I do!?
2. 夫が離婚しろと言うのに… => Though my husband insist on divorcing…
3. 多くの大人が勉強しろと言うのにはきっと、とても大事な理由があるはずだ。 Many adults have surely an important reason behind insisting others on studying.
4. だから行かないように言ったのに！ What’s why I told you not to go (there), but you didn’t listen!
Hope I could clarify things up.
ヨロシク
Thank you, 天人 for helping people who visit here while I was gone. ありがとう💕
Thank you 天人！ That did clarify things. You’re very thorough. Sorry for not saying so earlier. I didn’t get an email notification that someone responded
Sorry, Brett. There is no notification for this comment section.
There is a typo in here … search for
“Kono tokoro kyuujitu”
I think that should be “Kono tokoro kyuujitsu” ;)
Fixed it. Thank you!
Hi, Maggie Sensei
I was reading your post and I came across these two statements, which I haven’t been able to understand them well when I try to compare them with the translations you always give after each japanese statement.
For example:
1.
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
as:
I saw him off without knowing what to say.
I’ve broken this sentence down and this is my result.
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
him to what (と) say if good not know (まま) see off.
Literally: To him if I what I said good, not know, in that condition, saw him off.
2.
地のままの自分でいればいい。
You should be just the way you are.
Lit.: earth, in that condition’s yourself で you existing if, ok.
Are my literal translations OK?
地のまま is something that I cannot quite grasp: as earth, in condition of earth (something like that)
Hello David,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
1)
彼になんと言ったらいいかわからないまま見送った。
彼に = him
なんと = what
と言ったらいいか = should (I) say
わからないまま = not knowing / without knowing (expresses the state of not knowing something / or leave something as it is, without knowing / acknowledging)
見送った saw off
2)
地のままの自分でいればいい。
地 = one’s true nature (地 has many meanings in fact and in this case it means one’s true nature / the way something or somebody is; 地のまま＝有りのまま)
のまま= the way something is / the state or condition in which something is / being~ / as~
~自分でいればいい = ~ should I (myself) be
Hope I could clarify things up.
ヨロシク
Hello Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much for providing us with such good lessons that are easy to understand! I stumbled across a sentence in a song recently including 「なんて」and I’m a bit unsure as to how I should translate it. It goes like this:
“突然鳴り出した電話の相手がまさか君だったなんて
もう忘れたハズなのにね”
It’s about whether it’s in a positive or negative way he’s implying it. Should I interpret it as something like “I can’t believe that you would suddenly call me” or “There is no way you would suddenly call me”. The second sentence 「もう忘れた。。。」is only there for context.
返事を楽しみにしています。良い一日を！
Hello Sebastian,
Maggie is on vacation right now, so I allow myself to answer your question.
In this sentence なんて is connected with まさか and it expresses strong surprise. The sentence is unfinished for purpose, like very often in Japanese. After なんて you can expect something like 「思いもしなかった！」 for example.
Your interpretation is correct. The context is positive; the person thought, that he/she already forgot about him/her, but surprisingly that was not the case.
Hope I could clarify things up.
ヨロシク
こんにちは、天人さん！
Yes, that made things a lot clearer. Thank you so much for taking your time to answer my question.
Hey Maggie! Amazingly thorough lesson, as ever.
One question though: I was trying, as an exercise, to translate some lyrics recently and can’t seem to confidently get the sense of how mama is used in this context.
The line is: 私たちいくつも約束をしたまま
Thank you for any help!
Hi Cristabel,
It is an unfinished sentence you have to read between the lines what follows
We made many promises and left them unfulfilled.
Maggie Sensei How to convey message to your Japanese supervisers? For example If I want to convey that ,” XXXsan asked to call back. .” how to say this?
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
There are a couple of ways to say that but
XX様（or さん）よりお電話があり折り返しお電話くださいとのことです。
= xx sama ( or ~ san) yori odenwa ga ari orikaeshi odenwa kudasai tono kot odesu.
If XX is your client use 様 ( = sama9
Hi マギー先生、
i noticed in the comments of the なんて lesson someone asked if you could use なんて with other particles
and you said
” You can use なんて with other particles.
８時に家を出る
→８時になんて家を出られない
東京まで行く
→歩いて東京までなんて遠くていけない。
みなの前で歌う
→みなの前でなんて歌えない。etc. ”
but in this なんか lesson you said you can’t use it after a particle.
Does it have to do with how you translate the なんて?
Hello Milk,
the example below should visualize you, what Maggie meant:
はさみなんかで切れない =>O
はさみでなんか切れない =>O
はさみでなんて切れない =>O
はさみなんてで切れない =>X
ヨロシク
Ah i see!
thank you 天人さん。
とんでもないよ！
日本語の勉強、頑張りや～
Thank you for this lesson! You always help me a lot preparing for the JLPT N4 in December.
I still have some troubles with the difference between たところ and たばかり. I thought I got it from your explanation but this sentence from a sample JLPT test still confuses me:
“生まれたばかりの子牛が立ち上がり、歩こうとしている。”
Why do I need to use ばかり here? The sentence doesn’t involve any negative emotion and I think that it’s about an event that really happened just a minute ago.
Is it because it’s about a general event?
I really cannot tell.
Thank you in advance!!
Hi Shiro,
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
I see. Good question.
今、日本に帰ってきたばかりです。
今、日本に帰ってきたところです。
They mean the same. I just came back to Japan.
The other difference between ばかり and ところ that I didn’t mention in the lesson is while you focus on the moment of just did something with ばかり, you use ところ when you focusing on the moment for the next movement/action.
今、会議が始まったところです。またあとから電話します。
Since
生まれたばかりです。is just focusing on the moment of birth, it will be unnatural to use ところ.
Hi Sensei,
What’s the difference between using V+きる versus V+とおす when talking about doing something to completion? It seems they have a similar meaning, but the sense I get is that V+とおす expresses that an action is continuous until it is completed while the other just emphasizes it is don’t until the end. Would they be interchangeable sometimes then?
Thank you!
Hello SLD
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
They are similar but とおす requires more will/determination and has a meaning of “to go through something until completion” so you can’t use it with some actions that you can easily do, X飲みとおす・X食べとおす。
守り通す focusing on the process of protecting something
守り切る focusing on the completion of action, protecting.
Hello Maggie sensei!
First of thank you so much for your lessons, they are very complete, interesting and easy to understand! I really appreciate the time you spend on them and answering people’s questions.
I do have a question of my own :
前の駅で降りていたら、動いていた。= If we had been getting off at the previous station, it was working ?
What is the function of the progressive past here?
Can I say If i had gotten off at the previous station it would be working (as in I would be on my way right now).
I am not a native English speaker so I hope my question makes sense.
Thank you again for your time!
Hi Lost,
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
前の駅で降りていたら、動いていた。= If we had been getting off at the previous station, it was working ?
→ I don’t quite get the part 動いていた (it means “moving”) What was moving???
Did you want to try to make a sentence with counterfactual conditional？
If so, for example
前の駅で降りていたら、事故に巻き込まれなかったのに。
If I had gotten off at the previous station, I wouldn’t have involved in the accident. (But actually I did.)
THANK YOU!!! じゃない had me so confused for the longest time. I went over this lesson 3 times trying to understand it. Although じゃない doesn’t make verbs or い adjectives negative, んじゃない (when it’s not part of a question) does!
There are a few things I’m still wondering tho. Consider the two sentences from above.
きれいじゃない(ですか)！
=Someone/something is beautiful! /Oh that’s beautiful!
野球じゃない(ですか)！
=Oh, it’s baseball!
Do we need the exclamation mark to let the reader know that they’re not negative sentences? “きれいじゃない。” would only mean “It’s not beautiful” right? The sentence その服、いいじゃない。Doesn’t use an exclamation mark, but we know that it can’t be negative so there’s no issue there. Basically I’m wondering if we just rely on context when interpreting them.
Also, with
その服、いいじゃない。
even though this sentence isn’t a question, would we still read じゃない with rising intonation like we would if it were a question?
One more thing!!! If I were speaking informally would it be unnatural to use じゃないですか to avoid the rougher じゃないか? I’m not sure if it’d be awkward to just use one polite form verb when the rest are all plain.
Hi Brett
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
Even with negative phrase you sometimes use exclamation mark so it is the same thing.
Usually you can tell if it’s a negative phrase or not by the context.
You use negative phrase when someone asks whether it is a baseball or not/ something is beautiful or not.
きれいじゃない？ Isn’t it beautiful?
きれいじゃない！ No, it is not beautiful.
あれ、野球？ Is that a baseball?
野球じゃない。No, it’s not a baseball.
その服、いいじゃない。
expresses one’s opinion but as you say if you raise the intonation, you ask for someone’s agreement.
いいじゃないか is male speech and it may sound a little rough.
Maggie-sensei, hello and thank you for your hard work on this site. Asking a question for the first time.
You previously said in the comments section that we should use Noun + の+ように+Adj + Noun = works as an adjective, as in彼は、ガラスのように繊細な心を持っている。
I got confused, because in Minna no Nihongo they give examples using the pattern Noun + の+ような+Adj + Noun (IMCのような大きい会社; 彼のような面白い人と友達になりたい) and Noun + の+ように+Verb + Noun (「トトロ」のように子供と一緒に楽しめる映画が好き). I don’t understand what particle I should use and why, could you please shed some light on this a little bit more?
In: スコティッシュフォールドのような可愛い猫が飼いたいです。Can I use both に and な?
And:
スコティッシュフォールドのように座れる猫が飼いたいです。
モデルのように歩く女性は上品です。Is it correct to always use に in such cases both with potential and non-potential Verbs?
I hope my questions make sense.
Hi エナ！
Sorry for the late reply. I just came back from the trip.
The difference is ように modifies a noun and ような modifies (an adjective) + noun
1) ガラスのように繊細な心
2) ガラスのような繊細な心
They are both fine.
1) ガラスのように modifies 繊細
2) ガラスのような modifies “繊細な心”
スコティッシュフォールドのような可愛い猫
ような modifies 可愛い猫
スコティッシュフォールドのように可愛い猫
ように modifies 可愛い
スコティッシュフォールドのように座れる猫／〜のように座る／〜のように鳴く
ように modifies a verb 座れる／座る／鳴く
Since a verb comes right after, ように is better.
If you are still around to answer questions…
How would you say “I think I am all paid up.” as in “I don’t think I owe any more money.” Is there a Japanese equivalent of “paid up” or “caught up”? Also, I assume (like in English), it would be different for a bank/business to tell you, “You are paid in full.”
Thanks in advance, I am having a hard time looking this one up.
Hello Christopher
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
paid up in Japanese is 支払いが済む= しはらいがすむ= shiharai ga sumu / noun form 支払済 しはらいずみ shiharaizumi
I think I am all paid up = もう支払いは済んでいると思います。= Mou shiharai wa sunde iru to omoimasu.
You are paid in full. 全額支払っています。( zengaku shiharatte imasu.) ／全額支払い済みです。(Zengaku shiharaizumi desu.)
人々は忙しくなって、それは大丈夫ですです。
この素晴らしい返事をありがとうございます。
どういたしまして💕
こんにちは、マギー先生！
ちょっと質問がありますが…
6.Vまでだ/Vまでのことだ
代わりに「Vだけだ」を使うことができますか。例えば：
先生に聞かれたら本当のことを話すまでだ。➝先生に聞かれたら本当のことを話すだけだ。
違いがありますか。
こんにちは！！
いい質問ですね。
本当のことを話すだけだ
も同じように使えます。
この文章の場合、あまり違いはありませんが、「までだ」の方が強い意志が伝わります。
基本的に、
だけ 他に選択肢がない
まで 自分が決めたこと・意志が強調される
という違いがあります。
あ、わかりました！教えてくれてありがとうございました。^_^
どういたしまして！
こんなに素晴らしい「まで」の説明を見らせていただき、大変ありがとうございました！先生のおかげ様で、何年もの疑いところ一瞬で分かっておりました。先生のサイトがあるのは幸いのです！
ご挨拶までｗｗｗ
www お役に立てて嬉しいです。
難しい文章がんばりましたね。
（説明を読ませていただき／説明をしていただき, →わかりました。 あるのは→あって →幸いです）
ご訂正いただきありがとうございます！！
Maggie先生は一番！
U^ェ^U /💕💕
こんにちはMaggie先生。
I would like to ask you a question.
怒った顔までかわいいね。
can でも be used instead of まで?
likewise,
子供でもこの問題ができる。
子供までこの問題ができる。
can まで be used instead of でも。
宜しくお願いします。
Hello ユキ!
怒った顔までかわいいね。
You can say 怒った顔でもかわいいね but まで emphasize the extreme example (in this case 怒った顔） more.
I would say for this particular sentence, まで is more natural.
子供でもこの問題ができる。
子供までこの問題ができる。
でも is more natural in this case because まで indicates the range (from ~ up to child)
what is the meaning of みれば
Vてみれば？
When you give an advice.
Why don’t you V?
what is meaningofみてみよう
The translation changes depending on the context.
Let’s see what is going to happen.
Let’s look at it.
Let’s see.
Let’s check it out, etc.
Hi Maggie
Great lesson as always. I just have a question about だけ in general.
I was talking to someone (messaging) telling them they reply really quickly to me. Then they said
暇なだけだよ
I’d never seen this form used before so I was wondering what the difference is between
暇だけだよ and 暇なだけだよ
Thanks
Hi Cake,
The translation is
暇なだけ= I just have nothing to do. That’s all.
In this case, 暇な is na-adjective so when you use だけ,
~な＋だけ and you don’t say 暇だけ
きれいな きれいなだけ Ex. この料理は見かけがきれいなだけで美味しくない。= This dish just looks beautiful but not delicious.
if it’s i-adjective
い＋だけ
Ex. 辛いだけ= tsurai dake dayo = It just painful
when do we need to put a の before かもしれない ?
列車に乗り遅れたのかもしれない。
You don’t use のかも when you talk about what you likely to do.
I might go to Tokyo tomorrow.
明日、東京に行くかもしれません。
X 明日、東京に行くのかもしれません。(wrong)
or when you assume what likely to happen.
It might rain today.
今日は、雨が降るかもしれない。
今日は、雨が降るのかもしれない。(not natural)
You use のかも when you assume the reason why something happened
列車に乗り遅れたのかもしれない。
And there is a subtle difference but のかも shows stronger assumption.
I might have done the same thing.
私も同じことをするかもしれない。
私も同じことをするのかもしれない。
hello,
Regarding the sentence
パーティを組んでみたり。
is てみる+たり correct ?
Sorry for the stupid question.
Hi Matheus,
It is not a stupid question at all. :)
Yes, you can say Vてみる＋たり→ みたり
hello sensei, thank you so much for the lesson
however i met some kind of sentence like this
なんか ざんげ室にいるみたい
could i change nanka into nante?
if cant why is that so?
also is 私 seems to be at before なんか ? cause i found this sentence on anime
Hello Melon,
In this case なんか means “for some reason/somehow” and you can’t change なんか with なんて。
私 is omitted but it it the feelings of the speaker. ((私)、なんかざんげ室にいるみたい。）
Maggie先生、can you tell me what 私の方 refers to? I think it is “me” or “I” but when is it used? And also, when is 方 pronounced as ほう？
Hello Mark!
私の方 わたしのほう me/I / my side
方(ほう） You often use it when you compare two things/two people
AよりBの方が〜
A is more ~ than B.
http://142.93.68.150/2015/10/22/how-to-use-%E3%82%88%E3%82%8A-yori-comparative-form/
Good night, Maggie . I was referring to で after 過程.
Ah sorry. 過程で This で means “in”
In the process
Is the literal translation of “時は金なり” → time (becomes) money?
なり is old Japanese and it means “である” So it means “Time is money.”
Maggie sensei, いつもありがとう！
I have a slight question regarding the first meaning of 「V + ていく」 (to go to do something) and 「V + てくる」(to do something and return).
In JLPT N5 grammar there is also form of 「V (masu stem) + に行く」(to go to do something) and 「V (masu stem) + に来る」(to come to do something)
e.g.: コンビニで買い物をしに行きます (I will go to buy things at convenience store).
Is it true to say that if the sentence is altered to be:
コンビニで買い物をして行きます 。
The meaning would be “I will buy things at convenience store and then go”?
If not (hence ~ていく and ～に行く have the same meaning), how to differentiate between both and which to use to say “to go to do something” ?
Thank you very much Maggie sensei!
Hello ユフィ、
コンビニに買い物に行きます。
to go to the convenience store for shopping.
(focusing on going to the convenience to buy something)
コンビニで買い物をして行きます。
I will do some shopping at the convenience store and then go (somewhere)
You spend some time at the convenience store and then leave there.
(focusing on doing shopping)
Hi maggie sensei,
I’ve come across your site quite often while studying Japanese over the last few years and it’s always been a great help! I have a pretty specific question which I was hoping you could answer this time.
In the Radwimps song [リユニオン], there is a line that goes “青春の日々なんか どんなかは知らないけど”.
In this case, what would be the meaning of the sentence and why usage of なんか is this? Thank you!
Hello ラィアン,
That なんか is to belittle what comes before.
So it has a nuance of “whatever”
I don’t know if it’s 〜 or whatever.
まず、I LOVE your website、せんせい、Thanks for everything
What is the meaning of YOU in this sentence?
１０年ぶりに訪れた故郷の変わりように驚いてしまった
こんにちは、Lucas!
Ah, I should have covered that usage of よう.
This よう expresses the degree of the state of someone/something
変わりよう = how much something/someone has changed.
The way my hometown changes.
How much my hometown changes.
彼女の困りようは
Hello maggie sensei. I’m looking for a graveyard shift right now, and i have to call this certain company. I am so nervous on how to start a phone conversation asking for an opening of the job since i am not really that good in nihongo. I hope you could give me an advice?
Hi Serene
OK,
First こんにちは／おはようございます (greeting)
Your nameと申します。= ~ to moushimasu.
夜勤（やきん）／深夜（しんや）の仕事を探しています。ただいま、求人をされていますか？
= yakin/ shinya no shigoto wo sagashite imasu. tadaima kyuujin wo sarete imasuka?
Dear Maggie-Sensei,
どうもありがとうございます。Whenever I am looking for some grammar issue, sooner or later I end up reading an article on your page. Your lessons are so informative and helpful!
Dear Ralph
こちらこそ、いつもここにきてくれてありがとう！ 💕
ねえ、一口食べない？」
= Nee hitokuchi tabenai?
= Hey, you wanna a bite?
—–
Shouldn’t it me “Hey, you want a bite?” or “You wanna bite?”
Thanks for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. :D
こんにちは、
I have a question. In this sentence :
“サラダは野菜を切って混ぜるだけだから、だれでも____。”
The correct answer is 失敗のしようがない。I understand that. But why is “失敗できない” the wrong answer in this case?
(this is a multiple choice question).
よろしくおねがいします!
こんにちは！
This example sentence has two key expressions to solve the problem.
混ぜるだけ just mix (implies the salad is easy) and だれでも ( anybody)
失敗のしようがない implies something is so easy that there is no way that you can fail.
失敗できない “can’t afford to fail” (for certain reason)
Ex. 一度試験に失敗しているのでもう失敗できない。= Since I already failed the exam once, I can’t afford to fail it again.
Thanks, it makes more sense now but, “失敗できないデートの時は是非Tokyo Q シティガイドをご覧ください”
I found this sentence in the dictionary. In this case it cannot be understood as “can’t afford to” right? If so, does the “can’t afford to” meaning only applies with people?
Thankss 🍍
失敗できないデート the subject is still people. The date that you can’t fail / you can’t afford to fail.
Ohhh, わかりました! ありがとうございました、先生 <3
Good! :)
Hello! I’m sorry – I know this is an old post, but I was wondering if you could tell me how to type the hiragana/katakana so that it’s squished to the left like some twitter users do? For example, if I want to type チュウ but small and squished to the left, what do I do? I tried looking in the suggestion box when I typed it but couldn’t find anything. Thank you!! Your site is super super helpful and I refer to it often!!
Hello,
You mean you want to use halfwidth-kana? (半角= hankaku)
I did a little research and it says
if you are Windows user use F8 key and if use Mac, Control + ;
But it depends on the system. https://mupon.net/mac-katakana/
Check this link. It is all written in Japanese but you get the idea.
Also there is a site that convert 全角 to 半角
Yes!! Thank you so much! I didn’t know what it was called in Japanese so everytime I tried to search it on google by just describing it I got unrelated pages. 助けてくれて本当にありがとうございます！！wめっちゃ役に立ちます^_^
どういたしまして。
When you search the sites in Japanese, use the key words such as
カタカナ 全角を半角に + mac (or Windows)
Good luck!
From ﾏｷﾞｰ :D
thanks for your effort
My pleasure!
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I had a question about some of the questions you answered in the comments,
A comment from Miburi asked if it was possible to use そうwith past tense on 痩せたそう, and you responded with –
” “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight” is 痩せたみたい
そう is only used to describe the current or sometime future condition.”
but a comment from Orti also asked if you could use そう with verbs in the past tense and you responded with –
” Yes you can use そう with a past tense.
運転手は酔っていたそうだ。”
i was wondering why you could say 酔っていたそう but not 痩せたそう
Hi Milk
If you have heard some information which happened in past, you can use そう with past tense.
I heard you have lost weight. 痩せたみたいだね。／I heard the driver was drunk. 運転手は酔っていたそうだ。
Miburi’s question was,“Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight”. That was from speaker’s point of view so 痩せたみたいだね is more natural.
ohh なるほど！
ありがとうございました、マギー先生！
どういたしまして💕
私のことあれだけ好きだって言ってたじゃない。それなのにもう別れようなんてひどすぎる！
I don’t think you’ve added the full translation for this sentence. I couldn’t understand the second part by myself
Hi Rafael,
I just added the translation. :)
okay, thanks!
🐶💕💕
Hello, I got problem translating this sentence 「追いかけては来ないでしょう」
From this song https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/izone/buenosaires.html
Does this 「追いかけては来ない」match with ては’s 3rd usage ? (3) If /because ~ + unfavorable result / to give one’s negative comments or express one’s negative opinion towards the topics.)
If it is, what does it mean when it’s translated ? I think it means “nothing comes when (someone)chase”
Hello,
It means nobody would follow us/chase after us.
It will be easier to think this way,
追いかける
te form + くる to come and do something/ come doing something
追いかけてくる coming after us
You add は to show the contrast. (Maybe they look for us but they are probably not going to come after us.)
追いかけてはこない
Thank you so much maggie sensei, whenever I search the grammar points in the internet. I search different websites, and this website always hit the right points, also colorful distinction for explanation. I also use that In my notes.
I may not be good at reading native material now, but slowly I learn japanese grammar correctly. This website is a great help.
こんにちは、 勉強さん！
Thank you so much for your nice comment! It made my day!
これからもがんばってレッスン作りますね！ 勉強さんもがんばって！
Dear Maggie-sensei
I wanted to say thank you very much for this extremely helpful page – I’ve used it a number of times to call restaurants in Japan for reservations, and it’s made things so much easier!
I was wondering if you could help me with the following – I would like to change the number of people for a restaurant reservation because of a change in plans. For example, I would like to say to them:
I am sorry but circumstances changed and I would like to change my reservation at XXX on 5 July, 7pm. Could I change my reservation from 2 people to 1 person?
Would it be possible to help me to express the above in Japanese please?
Thank you so much!! 宜しくお願い致します。
Hi Linda,
I’m happy to hear you have been using this lesson to make a reservation.
Is it an email message?
It is going to be a long sentence but
７月５日の7時に２名で予約した(your name)ですが、一人都合が悪くなったので人数を２名から１名に変更していただけますでしょうか？
= Shichigatsu itsuka no shiji ni nimei de yoyaku shita (your name) desu ga, hitori tsugou ga waruku natta node ninzuu wo nimei kara ichimei ni henkou shite itadakemasu deshouka?
Good luck!
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for your quick response!
It will be a LINE message (the chef kindly added me to his account), so I think it’s ok to have a long message!
Out of curiosity, if I wanted to change via a phone-call, is it ok to simply use the second part of the sentence that you’ve written or should I express it in a different way?
That is, can I just say on the phone:
申し訳ありませんが、一人都合が悪くなったので人数を２名から１名に変更していただけますでしょうか？
Thank you so much again!!!
Yes, that will work.
The conversation will be…
７月５日の7時に２名で予約した(your name)です。
= Shichigatsu itsuka no shichiji ni nimei de yoyaku shita (your name) desu.
(They will say お待ちください。確認いたします。= Omachi kudasai. Kakunin itashimasu. = Please hold the line. We will check your reservation.)
Then they will probably repeat your reservation. Ex. ７月５日の7時に２名でご予約をいただいた(your name) 様ですね。= Shichigatsu itsuka no shichiji ni nimei de goyoyaku wo itadaita (your name) sama desune.)
Then you say,
はい。申し訳ありませんが人数を一人に変更していただけますか？
= Hai. Moushiwake arimasen ga ninzuu wo hitori ni henkou shite itadakemasu ka?
Amazing Maggie-sensei!
Thank you so much! This website has really been a lifeline in so many situations that I’ve been in (also in conversations in Japan)!! :)
助かりました！どうもありがとうございました。<3
どういたしまして、Linda! お役に立てたらうれしいです。💕
Hello Maggie sensei,
I was wondering, doesn’t 帰る already means go home ?
Why use 帰ってくる then ?
Hi ピエル
OK, for example,
彼は家に帰る
He is going home. (going back to his house)
You are just describe he is leaving where he is and going to his house.
彼が家に帰ってくる。
He is coming home./He is returning home.
(The speaker is home. We can assume the speaker is his family.)
お金があるのに働きます。
How can you tell if its ‘i work in order to have money’ or ‘i work even though i have money’?
Can it be applied to both meanings?
And is it better to use よう or ため instead of の in 1st case?
Hello Ananas,
お金があるのに働きます
means
“to work even though one has money”
As you guessed,
to work in order to have money
is
お金のために働きます。
Hello,
Can you explain the difference between 割に and 割と?
Hello Joel,
You can use them both when you want to say “relatively”,
They mean the same but 割と わりと is much more conversational.
息子の部屋は割に(わりに)きれいだ。
→息子の部屋わ割と(わりと)きれいだ。(more conversational)
息子のは割に(わりに)部屋をきれいにしていた。
→息子は割と(わりと)部屋をきれいにしていた。(more conversational)
However, you don’t use 割と
verb + 割に(わりに)
adj + 割に(わりに)
noun + 割に(わりに)
勉強した割に(わりに)は成績が悪い。（X 割と(わりと)）
彼は年の割に(わりに)元気だ。（X 割と(わりと)）
この寿司は 高い割に(わりに)まずい。（X 割と(わりと)）
Many of the onomotopoeia and mimetic words that I do remember are due to familiarization through reading manga. But when I find these words in pure text I’m often left to guess their meaning.
I think I’ll draw the pictures to go along with these words to help me memorize them better. Thank you very much for this lesson!
My pleasure!!
Visualize the words with your drawing is a great idea!
What about “kamo wakarimasen”?
i heard about that today for first time.
I already have troubles with wakaru and shiru, so more troubles showed up now lol
When you talk about future possibility
Ex. It might rain tomorrow,
明日、雨が降るかもしれない。
X 降るかもわからない is not natural.
かもわからない can be use in some area as a dialect.
But for example, when you can’t tell which one something is, you can use かもわからない。
この犬がオスなのかメスなのかもわからない。
Hi Maggie sensei :)
Is there a hum/polite form for あります？How would I say “I have a bank account” In 謙譲語？
Hello, Alice! How are you?
あります
polite form ございます
持っている
humble form 持っております
銀行口座があります。 / A銀行に口座があります。／A銀行に口座を持っています are polite enough but
if you want to use a humble form, you can say
A銀行に口座を持っております。
Hello 先生！Thank you for this incredibly useful lesson! I’m going to Japan in July on vacation so I’m trying to get used to keigo, baito keigo and all the expressions used in shops! :D
I have been thinking about a sentence from the lesson, there are two things I don’t understand:
S. Ex. 有料でお好きなトッピングを追加頂けます。
1) The patterns that I’m used to are:
-te itadakemasu
-noun wo itadakemasu
but this seems different:
トッピングを 追加 頂けます。
nounA wo nounB itadakemasu.
Maybe there is a ‘hidden’ して (追加して頂けますで) ?
2) In terms of meaning, it also seems strange, but I cannot explain clearly beacause I’m not sure about 1). But basically if I say for example お金を貸して頂けませんか? the person humbly receiving the favour and the person doing the action (lending money) are two different people. This also happens in S. Ex. ポテトかサラダからお選び頂けます。from this lessson. But in お好きなトッピングを追加頂けます。 it seems that the person humbly receiving the favour (= the store clerk) is also the person doing the action (adding the toppings).
As always, thank you for your valuable help.
Hi Davide,
You are coming to Japan next month. How exciting!
OK, you can also say 追加していただけます。
The usage of
(お／ご)〜いただける／いただけます。
1) いただけますか？
You tell someone superior to do something.
お待ち（して）いただけますか？ Could you wait?
ご覧いただけますか？ Could you take a look?
いただけませんか？ (more polite than いただけますか？）
お金を貸していただけませんか？ （asking for a favor)
You ask someone superior to do something for you.
2) 〜いただけます。= The listener can get some benefit(not the speaker). / You can do something. / It is possible for you to do something.
The waiter is telling the customers that the customers can…
お選び頂けます。 can choose
こちらからご注文頂けます。order from here.
トッピングを追加頂けます。 add the topping.
日本に行くのをとても楽しみにしています 😍
Now that you say it like that, ‘can add the topping’ makes sense. I think I was interpreting this too literally. Thank you so much!
I’ve noticed you have lessons on keigo and kenjougo. I’ll be sure to check those out too!
Yes, I have a lessons on keigo and kenjougo. :)
I am also excited to hear about your trip!!
Hi maggie sensei,
About the word ~sura that you’ve said similar to ~sae.
I’ve tried to study that word next, but can’t get the difference between ~de sura and ~sura(only).
Can you lightly explain and with some examples, it would really help me.
Thank you
Hi Leo
ですら すら
You add で when you emphasize what comes before, EVEN ~ ,but basically the meaning is the same and a lot of time, they are interchangeable.
However you don’t use ですら after another particle
Ex. 彼はそのことを私にすら言わなかった。
Xですら
Ex. 家族にすら冷たい。
Xですら
Because if there are more than two particles, it gets confusing.
Also for example, when you use after verb+こと ~（し）ない, you don’t use ですら
疑うことすらしない。
X ですら
そんなことは私ですら知っている。
Sorry sensei,
I didn’t get the you dont use “desura” after another particle part.
Especially on these examples,
彼はそのことを私にすら言わなかった。
how come you can’t use “desura” here,
そんなことは私ですら知っている。
But can in here.
What I meant was
私ですら知っている
this sentence already has a particle で
So you can’t use に and で together
私でにすら知っている。(wrong)
私にですら知っている。(wrong)
Ohhhh!!!
Thank you so much sensei!!
I really want to learn nihongo, just that I have difficulty understanding the sentence particles. So thank you really
No problem! ☺️
Hi Maggie,
I see in the lesson that も can indicate that something is too long, too expensive, too much, etc.
Does that mean it can also be used to indicate that something is too short, too small, too brief…?
I have a sentence:
だがホッとしたのも束の間,….
I think it means “But the relief was (too) brief”.
Is that right or am I getting confused?
Many thanks!
Hello Peter,
も has various function
1) also, and Ex. 私も行きます。 Ex. 父も母も出かけています。
2) emphasis which I explained in this lesson
ホッとしたのも束の間/喜んだのも束の間
ホットしたけれどもそれは短い間のことだった。
(the literal translation) I was relieved but that was a very short period of time. (It didn’t last long.)
も can be used in the meaning of 3) but, however, even though~
Ex. がんばって勉強するも試験に落ちた。 ( = がんばって勉強したけれども試験に落ちた）
Though I studied hard, I failed the exam.
Thanky you :)
You’re welcome! 💕
Maggie sensei, thanks a lot for the article. I have a question. What is the role of particle の in this sentence. please help me.
どんな仕事につくのですか。
ありがとうございました、先生。
You may want to check this lesson. How to use ん
どんな仕事につきますか？
→の has a function to emphasize the meaning. Therefore, you show more interests by using の
どんな仕事につくのですか？
→(casual) どんな仕事につくんですか？
I’m the absolute worst when it comes to remembering these (they all sound the same and their meanings sound unclear) so thanks a lot for making this beast of a lesson!
You are very welcome!
I hope you don’t “stay skeptic” now. (^_−)−☆
I have now added everything on this list to my anki, it along with other resources like onomatopedia helped a lot! Especially the ones with sample sentences. I’m finally not completely lost when people use these words. I even guessed the meaning of ”ボソリ” when reading something because it resembled ぼそぼそ I had learned and I had a whole buncha other り ending adverbs.
Good!! Once you learned some word, it will be easier to guess the meaning of similar words.
Hello 先生!
I was just wondering: in your sentence「シャツをクリーニングを出したいのですがいつ出来ますか？」, why is it クリーニングを instead of クリーニングに ?
I’m asking sooo many questions lately, sorry about that… I’ll limit myself a bit I promise!
おはよう、Davide!!
Oh you are right. Thank you for spotting the typo. I must have added shirt later. I fixed the mistakes. Thank you!
And you can ask me questions ANYTIME!! Please don’t limit yourself. (^_−)−☆
Thank you 先生！:D
U^ェ^U 💕
Hello Maggie sensei,
また質問です。
I am c onfusing between ないことはない and わけではない。
The ない。。。ない grammars are always headache.
If I say
この店のカレーはおいしくないことはない
and If I say
この店のカレーはおいしくないわけではない。
What is the difference ?
Thanks my Lady
こんにちは〜！
They could mean the same depending on the intonation but, compared to 〜ないことはない, わけではない sounds milder and explanatory.
It doesn’t mean the curry here is bad.
We use わけではない ( = wakede wa nai) when we deny something “partially” but not “totally”.
Check this lesson. Click here.
Thanks my Lady.
Just 1 more question is about と・たら
家に帰ると、友達は待っていた。
家に帰えったら、友達は待っていた。
Are they the same sensei?
OK, let me fix a few things first.
1) 家に帰ると、友達が待っていた。
2) 家に帰ったら、友達が待っていた。
Almost the same but 2) たら shows surprised feelings.
So と is just a condition. You came back home and your friend was there.
But たら can be used when you didn’t expect your friend to come expressing your surprised feelings.
Things are clear now !!!
Thanks my Lady.
ありがとうございました。
My pleasure! 💕
先生、どもありがとうございました。But, I’m unable to understand the difference between “naisou” and “nasasou”. Example:
1) お金がないそうです。
2) お金がなさそうです。
Please help me. 🙏
1) I heard someone doesn’t have money. (You got the information from someone/somewhere.)
2) That person seems like he/she doesn’t have money. (You are assuming.)
Hi Maggie
Great lesson as always. I was just wondering about what is the difference between these two sentences:
初恋は一生忘れないものだという
初恋は一生忘れないものだと言われている
I wrote the former sentence in an essay but it got corrected to the latter one. Could you please explain the nuance?
Thanks
Hi Cake,
To be honest, I don’t quite get why your teacher corrected it.
Though ものだという＋noun (Ex. 〜ものだという考え方がある） is common we see ものだという。pattern as well.
You should ask your teacher first.
元気です😁そちらは? 教えてくれてありがとうございました!
元気でよかった〜😊
Hello 先生、what a difficult topic! Thanks for shedding some light on it! :D I would like to ask a question about a sentence you wrote in the comments:
Someone keeps the light on
(Someoneが）電気をつけている (transitive verb)
From what I understand, most transitive verbs are durative(継続動詞), and with these verbs -ている expresses:
-something happening right now: 昼ご飯を食べている
-a habit: 毎日お昼ご飯を作っている
-focus on experience in the past: 彼は多数のおもしろい探偵小説を書いている
… so how does
(Someoneが）電気をつけている (transitive verb)
mean ‘Someone keeps the lights on’ ?
I wonder if this is because tsukeru doesn’t behave like a durative verb even though it’s transitive (similarly to 店を開（あ）けている ‘the store is open’)
Hi Davide, 元気？
電気をつけている can be one’s habitual action
私は寝るときはいつも電気をつけている。
I usually leave/keep the light on when I sleep.
but （電気を）つける is 瞬間動詞 (punctual verb/momentary verb).
Since the action of turning on the light in one second, the action is not durative.
マギー先生、教えてくれてありがとうございます！あなたのポストについて日本語が役に立つよ！
JJ、私のレッスンが役に立つと聞いてとってもうれしいです！！ U^ェ^U 💕
Thank you so much for making this lesson. I’ve been waiting for this one for a while! I’ve been on this journey for six years and still learning new things thanks to you!
I have a question about some of these words. You said at the beginning of the lesson that this lesson will only cover words that repeat, but is there a big difference between words like: ぐるぐる回る / ぐるっと回る and にこにこ笑う / にっこり笑う ?
Hello J,
Glad to hear that there is still something that you can learn from me. ☺️
ぐるぐる回る / ぐるっと回る
にこにこ笑う / にっこり笑う
They mean the same but ぐるぐる／にこにこ describe the state or movement more visually /graphically.
Hey Maggie, thanks a lot for the article! This grammar is quite confusing, glad I could finally get it!
I just have one question, at:
予約が取れたかどうか確認できないまま飛行場に向かった。
I didn’t exactly get the “取れたかどうか”meaning. The other components are ok, just had this little translation gap issue D:
Thank you! :)
Hi Jackie,
Aかどうか means “Whether A or not”
予約が取れたかどうか = whether I got a reservation or not
Other examples.
試験に受かるかどうかわからない。= I don’t know whether I will (would) pass the exam or not.
past tense
試験に受かったかどうかわからない。= I don’t know whether I passed the exam or not.
That’s awesome! Thanks a lot for clarifying that! 😉
No problem!
I will make かどうか lesson sometime soon for you!
Hello maggie sensei! I’m grateful w ur blog, it hv became my main reference for grammar now.
I hv a question here. If we are using toka to soften the speech, when should we put it? After noun? Before noun? After subject? Or before it? Thank u in advance! Hv a good day maggie sensei
Hi Aj
After a noun/subject.
noun
休みの日とか何してる？
休みの日はスポーツとかしてる？
Now the following usages are very conversational usage but you can place とか after an adjective or verb as well.
adjective
私のこと冷たいとか思ってる？
verb
日本に行くとかするの？
Another great lesson Sensei, thank you so much! :D One question if I may: let’s compare these sentences from the lesson:
a) You :「ツインルームをお願いします。」
b) You :「和室(or 畳) の部屋でお願いします。」
My question is: why is it をお願いします in a) but でお願いします in b)?
Hello Davide,
You use を when you specifically want something and で is also used as a condition or state
a) You :「ツインルームをお願いします。」 “I want a twin room” →You want specifically a twin room.
b) You :「和室(or 畳) の部屋でお願いします。」 You want a room which is Japanese style. “Japanese style room” is a condition of your room. If you want specifically a Japanese-styled room, you can say 和室をお願いします。
***
Another example:
Ex.
「コーヒーお願いします。」
「ホットですか？アイスですか？ 」 Hot coffee or Iced coffee?
「アイスお願いします。」 In conversation you tend to omit を
or
「アイスでお願いします。」 literal translation: a coffee which is served cold. (state)
I see, so in some situations both are possible and it’s a question of focusing on the thing VS focusing on the condition. とても勉強になりました。Thank you! 🙏
どういたしまして💕
Hello Maggie sensei,
As for ために、 my textbook says that never use ために to try to induce another person to an action. It means I can not use tameni to end a sentence with ください。
Is it a rule without exception sensei?
Thanks Maggie sensei
Write some sentences. I will check them.
I came across a kya following a te form of verb. Is this even more of a contraction?
The sentence context is a shop keeper saying something like, “Just buy whatever you want,” I think…
てめえで気に入ったモン 持ってきゃいいだろうが。
I’m not sure about the “motte kya” part, though.
Thanks for your help! :bow:
Hello Ed
That’s a very brutal speech (Especially てめえ・だろうが）
持っていけばいいではないですか。
→持っていけばいいじゃない
→drop い from 持っていけば (This is another casual contraction) 持ってけばいいじゃないか。
→けば→きゃ
→持ってきゃいいじゃないか。
→more brutal 持ってきゃいいだろうが。
このサイトに来てくれた皆さんの日本語運は最高によくなると出ています。
-> This is a completely true statement,said Frozenheart :)
Thanks Maggie sensei for this lesson, very interesting !
そして、皆さんが幸せになると出ています。😊
Hi Maggie sensei, you mentioned we don’t use や twice, but I had seen other examples using やmore than once. Could you elaborate more on this?
For example: 新聞や、枕やチョコレートや、果物や、清涼飲料などの売り子がいた。
There were sellers of newspapers, of pillows, of chocolate, of fruit, of mineral waters.
よろしくお願いします
Hi Nate,
That was from the translation of a novel of Agatha Christie, right?
Connecting things with や four times like that is not that common and many Japanese people would avoid it.
But I guess it’s acceptable as a style of literature.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you help me this sentence
先生、すみません。風をひいて（）、今日は休ませてください
１．しまったので
２．しまったんですから
３．しまって
My text book say (1) is correct.
But I dont know why (2) and (3) are not correct.
Could you please explain it to me, my Lady ?
Thanks Maggie sensei
Hello, 元気？
(There is a typo 風→風邪）
Yes, the correct answer is 1.
しまったんですから works for example when someones accuses you, “Why didn’t/don’t you come to school?”
Then you say 風邪をひいてしまったんですからしかたがありません。／どうしようもありません。(You sound a little angry.)
I had/have a cold. It cannot be helped./ How could I go. I have no choice, right?”
You explain the reason showing your irritating feelings so it sounds rude towards the teacher.
しまって is used when you talk about the consequence in the following sentence.
風邪をひいてしまって学校を休みました。
風邪をひいてしまって３日寝込みました。etc.
Thanks my Lady,
I understand that point now.
I just have another question that can I use から、ので with some form like てくだい、or たい。
Ex
運転免許をとれたから、車をかいたい
and
運転免許をとれたので、車を買っていくダサい。
Thanks Maggie sensei
You’re welcome!
I think your second sentence has a typo. (てくだい and いくダサい: ダサい is slang for “lame/dorky” lol )
Can you check the original sentences first before I answer?
Hello Maggie sensei,
Woman are always right !!!
You are right for (2), that is a typo. The correct one is ください。
Thanks Maggie sensei
Haha I wonder if it includes female doggies.
車の免許が取れたから/ので車を買いたい。
車の免許が取れたから/ので車を買ってください。
Yes, they both work.
(I changed 車の免許を to 免許が because 取れた is a potential form so が will be a little more natural.)
Maggie 先生,
When students walk into the 職員室, WHAT do they say?
1.) 失礼します
2.) 名前 & 何年ー何組
3.) something ???????? 先生の名前お願いします.
Everyday, week after week, I hear the same thing but I canNOT understand the 3rd sentence *cry* I’ve asked my Japanese friends and they have NO idea what I’m talking about or can’t remember it…. I’ve heard this thousands of times but still cannot hear it…..
To me, it sounds like… “だれ-だれ先生, いいよっがてきました”？ But those are not words hahahaha….
I already know: “だれ-だれ先生,いらっしゃいますか?” but they are saying something different….
Please help!
Thank you so much <3
~Ali
Hi Ali,
So they are not saying,
(name)先生いらっしゃいますか？ huh?
Guessing from the few words that you heard, I will give you two possibilities.
1) 〜先生に用があってきました。
= 〜Sensei ni you ga atte kimashita.
(I am here to talk to ~ sensei.)
用がある I have things to talk to ~
If not 1)
2) ~~先生に呼ばれてきました。
= ~ Sensei ni yobarete kimashita.
= ~ Sensei told me to come here.)
呼ばれて is a passive form of 呼ぶ （よぶ）to call
I assume they are saying 1). Listen to them carefully again and let me know.
マギー先生,
*cry*ありがとうございました！D;
You’re absolutely right! “sensei ni you ga atte kimashita” <– this must be what they're saying!
I listened to them SUPER closely today at school (haha) And I could hear "~YOU GA atte kimashita"this time!!!
It makes total sense now! :D After all these years, the mystery is finally solved THANKS TO YOU!
I can't thank you enough D,x You're the BEST!
お世話になります！
<3
~Ali
Hi Ali,
Oh great!!! Problem solved!
Now you can use the word 用（よう）
Ex. When someone asks you to do something together and you are busy,
すみません、その日はちょっと用があります。
= Sumimasen, sono hi wa chotto you ga arimasu.
= Sorry. I already have plans that day.
(^_−)−☆
Hello, Maggie sensei !
Recently, I read the sentence “人間は魔神に滅ぼされるかに見えた”
However, I can’t seem to find anything about the use and meaning of かに
Could you please help me ?
Hi ピエル
人間は魔神に滅ぼされるかのように見えた →You skip のよう→かに見えた
You use か to express one’s emotion, doubt, uncertain feelings, question,surprised feelings, etc.
Sorry, answered the wrong comment, so I’m putting this one again
So in this case, かのように was reduced to かに ?
When you say doubt in this case, かのように would mean “as if”, meanwhile のように would just mean like ?
ありがとうございます
That’s right. You got the idea! :)
I have a job interview on Wednesday and have been using this as reference for study. I am so nervous I could die. Thank you for all your amazing work. I hope if I have question’s it’s okay to ask you.
Hi Alice,
Sure. You can ask me questions anytime.
Good luck!!!
Thank you so much!
Anytime! :)
Hi Maggie
I get that adding の indicates the reason for something but then what would be the difference between のだ and のだから? When would you use the latter over the former?
Thanks
から gives a reason clearly. You use のだ to stress the meaning or explain the reason in more subtle way.
And you finish the sentence with のだ・んだ but you don’t with のだから・んだから
So you give a reason with のだから for the following sentence.
せっかく東京に来たのだから観光していこう。
Since we are in Tokyo (reason) let’s do some sightseeing.
先生は忙しいのです。The teacher is busy. (explain the current state of the teacher.)
先生は忙しいのだからじゃまをしてはいけません。Since the teacher is busy, you shouldn’t bother him/her.
So you never finish a sentence with のだから・んだから?
What’s the reason for this? I remember writing a sentence that ended in んだから but it got corrected to のだ and I didn’t understand why.
On second thought, you do finish a sentence with のだから when you make your point, show your frustration
From my previous example sentence, if someone keeps bugging the teacher, they say
先生は、忙しいんだから
The difference is,
It sounds stronger than 先生は、今忙しいのです。and though you finish the sentence with から, the listener can read between the lines. 先生は、忙しいんだから（今はだめですよ。・あとにしてください。）
Hey Maggie. Much love for all of the info that you put out for all of us learners here. Thank youuuuuu!
Got some tiny questions. Why is there no past tense positive for i-adj? Also, there is no negative for plain style na-adjectives; why is that? Cause then you give the polite -masu form for all tenses.
Thank you again. Your blog is very inspiring!
Love,
Biz
Hi Biz!
Hmm you are not talking about suru/naru and just asking the conjugation of adjective here?
If so the past tense of i-adjective is
i→katta
ookii big →ookikatta was/were big
(polite) attach “desu” →ookikatta desu.
And the negative form of na-adjective is
benri(na) convenient → benridewanai / benrijanai not convenient
(polite) attach “desu” →benridewanai desu/ benrijanai desu.
Hello Maggie sensei ! I have quite an unusual question here
I was reading a manga (an ecchi manga, so it has jokes with people misunderstanding other people with sexual meaning and so on)
Could 手を出す imply something sexual or something ? It seemed like there was a joke, but even with the english translation i didn’t understand it, below is the link to the chapter since i believe reading it will be simpler for you
What I don’t understand is almost at the end
Thank you in advance if you help me with my unusual question !
Hi ピエル
手を出す in that case (I deleted the link) may imply physical relationship or just means “hitting on someone”.
Ok, thank you !
No problem!
Maggie! Is there a way to say, in Japanese, the English equivalent of “I was wondering if you could ~~~?”
Would it maybe be “~~していただけないでしょうか.”?
Hi Meghann
~していただけないでしょうか. is fine but you can also say
よろしければ〜していただけないでしょうか
〜していただきたいのですが..
Thank you!!
You’re always so helpful!
You’re very welcome! :)
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Very Useful !!!
Good! ☺️
ええ～マッギ先生ボストンテリアじゃない？どんな犬ですか？
フレンチブルドッグですよ。🐶💕
Where is Maggie? Missing Maggie…
Hi, I became an angel 5 years ago. (Check here.)
But I keep helping you all from up above. :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Can I use わけがない with すべて like
Somebody tells me
あの人はすべての答えがわかる。
And if I want to strongly deny this statement by
There is no way that that person knows all the answers
= あの人はすべての答えがわかるわけがない
I know that we can use わけではない
あの人はすべての答えがわかるわけではない
But is itcorret for わげがない also?
Thanks Maggie sensei :)
Hello 💗
あの人はすべての答えがわかるわけがない
I would change a little.
あの人にすべての答えがわかるわけがない。
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして💗
Hi,
This may sound like a dumb question, but what’s the difference between ～てある and the passive form in terms of use and meaning? I feel like they sound similar to one another in their meaning.
eg. クロッケはじゃが芋で作ってある。
クロッケはじゃが芋で作られた。
Neither require the person doing the making is necessary to be expressed. How do I know when to use one versus the other?
Hello,
Actually neither one sounds natural. You just say コロッケはじゃがいもで作る。
I guess it’s because we expect you to make korokke with potatoes.
Let me change the example sentence a little.
夕食にコロッケが作ってある。 Someone or you made korokke for dinner (The dinner is all set. The preparation is done.)
(Focusing on the state)
このコロッケはおからで作られている。 This korokke is made of tofu refuse.
(Focusing on the ingredients)
Hi maggie ,
Thanks for your awesome articles. I’ve just found your site recently and i’ve learned a lot of things which i wont be able to learn it in my school .
Keep doing good work xD
Hello Hung Do,
Welcome to my site!
I’m glad to hear you have learned a lot here.
また来てね！ :)
Hi maggie！First of all thank you so much for all the explanations you do. One question in this regard. I’ve heard before that either しか or たけ is used in the following regards:
– 1 is used for whenever there are many students in a class, for example, and only one traveled on golden week.So out of all students, only one traveled.
– 2 is when it’s only one traveled, regardless of how many there were.
Not sure if I make sense. Would love to hear back from you.
Kind regards!
Hi LC
I can’t really tell the difference between 1) and 2) but
If only one student student travelled during GW, you can say either
Aだけが旅行した
Aしか旅行しなかった。
こんばんは 先生！
There’s this question that I really need help with. In 新完全マスターN2文法、in the lesson about につれて、に従って、there’s this explanation
“につれての後には自然に起こる変化を表す文が来て、意志的な行為を表す文は来ない.”
What does this 意志的な行為 really mean here? Does it mean saying “学校に行きます” “よく遊びよう” “食事をしました。”etc? What kind of sentence does it say not to use after につれて here?
Please help me, I need you, 先生！
おはよう Trang!
意思的な行為を表す文 Your interpretation is right. 学校に行きます。よく遊ぼう、食事をしました they all involve your will to do something.
日が経つにつれて(as time passes) ＋だんだん寒くなってきた。(you can’t control the temperature or weather) / 彼の気持ちがわかってきた。(I come to understand his feelings) the emotions.feelings that you can’t control.
試験が近くにつれて (As the exams get closer) + 緊張してきた (getting nervous: uncontrollable feelings)
おはよう 先生、
I found these 3 example sentences with につれて in the dictionary.
ホワイト・デイの贈り物の範囲が広がるにつれて、他業種の多くの企業がその日のために新商品の開発を始めました。
10月の国連総会での議論が近づくにつれて、中国、エジプト、インド、パキスタン、ロシア、米国などのいくつかの国は、決議案を妨害、延期、骨抜きにしようと試みている。こうした目論見は、条約の目的の達成を不可能にし、野放し状態で武器貿易を続けさせることになりかねない。
「アメリカ人は年を取るにつれて『uh』を多く使います。
1. Are they all wrong?
2. Is にしたがって more proper to be used here?
先生のヘルプにとてもありがたいです!
These are tricky cases. :)
Technically you are not supposed to use volitional verbs but I guess even if the verb in the following sentence involves one’s will, when you just state the fact and not involving the writer/speaker’s will, there are cases that you can use them.
Wow O.o! so tricky. Thank you so much for pointing it out to me.
Only trouble you with 2 more examples, please?? 😭🙏
1. 町の発展につれて、店がたくさん開かれた。
(is this technically correct, the 2nd phrase is not 意志的な行為 right?)
2. ホワイト・デイの贈り物の範囲が広がるにしたがって、他業種の多くの企業がその日のために新商品の開発を始めました。
(is this sentence with にしたがって technically correct? I’m not sure cause in the explanation in the book, they only mention not using 意志的な行為 after につれて、while with にしたがって、they only say “.. の後には自然な変化を表す文が来ることが多い.”
I am so grateful for your help.. Yesterday I felt like my brain will explode from trying to figure these grammar out 🤯
1. That’s right. The 2nd phrase is not 意志的な行為
2. ~ につれて/にしたがい are almost the same. They will not ask you the difference between つれて and したがい in the exam.
~ につれて/にしたがい (1) + ~ (2)
Along with (1), ~ (2)
And as your textbook says, you describe what happens in (2)
The whole sentence in in your example sentence 他業種の多くの企業がその日のために新商品の開発を始めた is a sort of the change which was caused by (1)
ありがとうございました!
本当に勉強になりました。<3 <3 <3
どういたしまして 💗
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a question regarding によって and ため when they express the reason.
Are they interchangeable?
To be more specific,
(1) うちの工場では、材料不足によってたたみの生産はもうできなくなった。
(2) うちの工場では、材料不足のため、たたみの生産はもうできなくなった。
Are (1) and (2) interchangable
Thank you Maggie sensei
Hello,
Yes (1) and (2) are interchangeable but I personally use 材料不足により or 材料不足のため
Hi Maggie Sensei! :D 久しぶりだね!
May I ask a question? I’ve noticed that in your example sentence 彼女には美的感覚が全くない there is no -na connecting 美的 to 感覚. I suppose that’s because 美的感覚can be considered one large word, right?
But then, I’ve also found this sentence in my texbook: そこまでやるのは自殺的行為だ。In his case, 自殺的行為 doesn’t seem to be ‘one large word’ as I can’t find it in a dictionary. So, is it sometimes possible to omit -na?
こんにちは、Davide!
お久しぶり！
I guess some people say 美的な感覚・自殺的な行為 but 美的感覚・自殺的行為 are much more common.
So when you check the meaning in the dictionary and can’t find the definition, you may want to separate the words (Ex. 美的＋感覚・自殺的+ 行為） and figure out the meaning.
You will see a lot of words with 的 in a compound words without using な
知的好奇心 intellectual curiosity
具体的対策 a concrete measure
客観的意見 objective opinion, etc.
I see! Thank you so much for your help, I really appreciate it 😊😊😊
どういたしまして、Davide 🐶💕
Now that’s a cool lesson, thank you for that Maggie! ^^
I have also a couple of different expressions with それ, which I can share with you (with others). That might be useful, I think.
Maybe you could make a little update with 1-2 examples and explanation to that lesson?
Hi 天人！
There are so many expressions with それ that I couldn’t cover this time.
Yes, feel free to share yours. I can add the example sentences. :)
Thank you always for the excellent lessons.
I have a question about intransitive/transitive verbs in this lesson.
intransitive verb.
でる = deru is an intransitive verb, and you wrote:
* something / Someone + が + 出る
Why can we still use を before 出る in the following example?
“(1) to leave some place / to depart
Ex. 朝6時に家を出た。”
Also, I came across this question in a book and really confused about the answer:
この問題は試験によく（ ）ので覚えましょう。
A. でる
B. だす
The answer is B, but can you help me expain why? There is no を here.
Hi Kunio
The particle を is used as an object marker.
object + を + 出す (transitive verb)
舌を出す to stick out one’s tongue
食事を出す to serve food
Now,
subject + が+ place を+ 出る (or 散歩する/歩く, etc.)
This を is considered as a location marker which indicates the starting point or route (through)
公園を散歩する
山を歩く
公園 and 山 are not an object of the motions. It indicates the place.
For the same reason
家を出る
this を indicates the place, starting point so 出る is intransitive verb.
この問題は試験によく（ ）ので覚えましょう。
A. でる
B. だす
The answer is 出る でる
(The literal translation) This questions often appears in the exam.
If the teacher gives the questions,
試験にこの問題を出す。
を is an object marker
Hello Maggie sensei,
元気ですか？お久しぶり過ぎすぎです:)
Recently, I am so busy with my job, and that makes me a lazy student of Maggie sensei, ごめんね。
I have a question regarding わけではない.
Can I use わけではない with たびに, like
かせを引くたびに彼に世話をされるわけではない。
It’s not that every time I get cold, I will be taken care by him.
Thanks Maggie sensei.
And from now, I will be good student again :)
こんにちは、お久しぶりです。元気でしたか？
Yes, you can use たびに with わけではない
かせを引くたびに彼に世話をされるわけではない。
→ かせ→かぜ
The last part will be more natural 彼に世話をしてもらうわけではない or 彼が世話をしてくれるわけではない than using passive form される
You are always a nice student! :)
Thank you Maggie sensei. You are so nice !
By the way, could I ask more about たびに here !
My book teaches me that as for A たびにB, neither A nor B express the state. It makes me confused a lot. I think only Maggie sensei can help me.
My question is is it true that neither A nor B can not express the state. Since I see the following sentence is also OK while B is expressing a state.
この本を読むたびに新しい発見がある。
B = ~ がある。And I think it is a sign of state.
I hope Maggie sensei will teach us about たびに someday !
Thanks Maggie sensei
Hello again,
Your book is right.
新しい発見がある is actually not a state. Since it uses the verb ある, it might look confusing but
Every time I read books, I discover something new.
I will make a lesson for you sometime. Please wait. :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございます。
So I’d like to confirm my understanding about Aたびに、B
Since A and B is not allowed to be a state, then
(1)友達の活躍を聞くたびにうれしい。Will be incorrect because うれしい is a state.
But
(2) 友達の活躍を聞くたびにうれしく思う。Will be OK
If something wrong, please teach me again. And thank you so much Maggie sensei !!!
Good, I was going to tell you about expressing the feeling part.
You are right. 1) is not right but 2) is right. You can also say うれしくなる become happy (It is sort of the state with you can say that with the verb 思う／なる ）
Regarding the application of ～たて as a verb suffix, you write
”It won’t work with all the verbs but I will show you the common ones ”
Could you please elaborate more on that? What verbs and why? Could you please provide examples for verbs that cannot be conjugated with “-tate” as a suffix and only “bakari” can be applied? Thank you!
Hello Emi
Sure,
For example 走る・泣く・考える…..and many more. You can’t say 走りたて、泣きたて、考えたて
Hi Maggie! Here I am again, studying all your lessons!
I would like to know why you used the particle をin these sentences:
a) 明日は会社を休めません。/ 休むことができません。
= Ashita wa kaisha wo yasumemasen. / yasumu koto ga dekimasen.
= I can’t take a day off from work tomorrow.
b) 明日は会社を休むわけにはいきません。
= Ashita wa kaisha wo yasumu wake ni wa ikimasen.
= I have no choice but to go to work tomorrow. / There is no way that I can take a day off from work tomorrow.
****
because I thought that 休む was a intransitive verb, wich means that we can’t use the particle を
Hi Eliza
休む is used as both transitive and intransitive verb
家で休む = to rest at home = intransitive verb
授業/学校・会社・＋を休む = to skip the class/work
マギー先生、ありがとうございます！
Very nice. Far beyond my level, I am afraid. For example, you, as most people do, write gochisousan but I noticed that some write it Gochisōsan (with a long mark over the o instead of an extra u. So what exactly is the pronunciation? Thanks. We have been enjoying the very good Japanese TV series of the same name on Lithuanian television, but I see it is now available online with insightful English subtitles. There are also a couple of good Japanese restaurants in the country and we would like to compliment the chefs in their native tongue.
Hello Arturas,
I don’t use long sound symbol here and type exactly the same way as romaji spelling but the pronunciation is “Gochisōsama” / “Gochisōsan” strech “o” sound lightly.
I think they use Osaka dialect in the the TV show, “Gochisōsan”. Enjoy the show! :)
おはようございます、マギー先生！
I think this question is somewhat related to this lesson, if I switch 誰 with any other noun, would the same rules still apply?
e.g.
1.大人にも難しいです。
2.大人でも難しいです。
The first one with にも was what I used when I wanted to say something is difficult even for adults, then I came across a sentence by a native Japanese speaker using でも (the second one), which I assume is the correct way of saying it. But I’m still confused, is the first one strictly wrong? What would be the correct way of using にも in this case?
こんばんは！ altuser
The basic difference is
noun にも〜 = ~ for/to noun,too
noun でも 〜 = ~ even for ~
1.大人にも難しいです。
2.大人でも難しいです。
Though some people say 1) 大人にも難しい
2) 大人でも難しい is much more common
The nuance difference is
2) means “It is difficult even for adults.”
1) is “It is difficult for adults,too.”
***
I will show you other examples.
Let’s compare the following sentences.
→私にもできることがある。
There is something that I can do, too.
→私でもできることがある。
There is something that even I can do.
あ、わかりやすいです！説明してありがとうございます！
よかった〜😊
As so many definitions, how do you know what the person means,
eg for definitions=
i. Asking a favor/ telling what to do demandingly.
ii. Give offer/ suggestion softly.
Disclaimer, I’m newbie Japanese learner so may’ve Japanese grammar mistakes below.
Situation: A’s disturbing B by saying following & B knows it.
A: Tsukareta.
ie I’m tired.
B: Nemu yo.
ie ????
Possibly demandingly asking a favor/ telling what to do/ suggesting softly?
Hi Malcolm,
A: 疲れた Tsukareta = I am tired.
B :
“Why don’t you sleep?”
(じゃあ）寝たら = (jaa) netara?
Please sleep!
(じゃあ）寝てよ = (jaa) nete yo.
Sleep!!
(じゃあ）寝ろよ = (jaa) nero yo ( Male speech/rough/strong)
じゃあ( jaa) means “then”
Just considering yo, accounting the situation if B says ” Nemu yo. ” , how know it which definition of yo?
You said “Nemu yo” so I was wondering what you meant because you don’t say “nemu yo”
If you meant “nete yo” (or male speech “nero yo”), it means “Go to bed!” and the speaker is telling the listener to go to sleep.
But if you say “nemui yo” That means “I am sleepy!” and the speaker is just expressing how sleepy he/she is and not telling the listener to do anything.
Sry I meant ” Just considering yo, accounting the situation if B says” Nemuru yo. , ” how know it which definition of yo? “
If B says “Neru-yo” (Not Nemuru yo = Nemuru is fall asleep), that means B is telling B that “I am going to bed.”
Maggie先生、今日のレッスンありがとうございました！
でも、 質問があります。。。
この例は正しいですか？
– ここに入ってはいけませんよ。
– それを食べてはだめですよ！
Hi! Maggie sensei ✨
I found your explanation really easy to understand! But I have a question: when it comes to nouns the way they are used was different, so then when I use わけではない I can only put noun+という＋わけではない but with わけがない you could also use noun+である／の＋わけがないbit not with わけではない ?
Hi Camila
OK, for example
Ex. 1 彼女が美人というわけではない
= (She) is not particularly beautiful
Let’s change のわけがない
Ex. 2 彼女が美人のわけがない
Ex. 1) denying the possibility partially (not everything) “not particularly/especially beautiful”
Ex. 2) means “There is NO WAY that she is beautiful. She is far from beautiful.” It negates completely.
Ex. 独身のうちに友達と海外旅行に行きたい。
= I would like to go abroad while I am single.
I guess you’re missing a friend part in english translation.
Great lesson btw. Thanks a lot!
Thank you, Nashi.
I fixed the translation. ありがとう！
Hi Maggie thank you for another lesson. I have a question:
You gave this example:
Ex. 今日中に返事を下さい。
= Kyoujuuu ni henji wo kudasai .
= Please give me your answer
Can I translate this sentence to “Please give me your answer during the day”?
Thank you for spotting the blank.
今日中に means by the end of today/by the end of the day.
Sensei Maggie I am going to take the JLPT-N4 what should I study first..? The kanji the vocabulary or the sentence patterns.?
I would say everything but if you don’t have so much time to study, you can learn kanji and vocabulary when you study sentence patterns or reading.
がんばって！
Can も also be used at the end of a sentence?
Example: お父さんとお母さんが好きです。黄色も。
Or would it need a verb to end the sentence?
Hi Chryssa
That も means “also”
Yes, you sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with も
Ex. これください。あっ、それも。 Please give me this one. Oh, that one,to.
Ex. A: 「田中君のことが好き」 I like Tanaka-kun
B: 「私も！」
As for your example sentence
Example: お父さんとお母さんが好きです。黄色も
I like Dad and Mom. And yellow, too.
Just context-wise unnatural but
お母さんが好き。お父さんも！ is possible IN CONVERSATION.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Can you teach me how to order at a takoyaki store? I noticed that you can buy them in 4 pieces, 6 pieces or 8 pieces (sometimes even more).
How would you say the following in Japanese:
I would like to buy 2 orders of 8 pieces in each.
I would like to buy 1 order of 8 pieces and 1 order of 4 pieces.
Hi Steve,
Haha you like takoyaki? Me,too! 😋
I would like to buy 2 orders of 8 pieces in each.
８個入りを2つください。
= Hachiko iri wo futatsu kudasai.
I would like to buy 1 order of 8 pieces and 1 order of 4 pieces.
８個入りを一つと４個入りを一つください。
= Hachiko iri wo hitotsu to yonko iri wo hitotsu kudasai.
Hi Maggie, thank you for this lesson! You’re always helping us.
Maggie Sensei, I have a question, but it’s not related to ほど. Can you answer me please?
I don’t understand why you use the particle に in this example:
Ex. マギーは理想の女性にはほど遠い。
= Maggie wa risou no josei niwa hodotooi.
= Maggie is far from my ideal woman.
********
And why you use から here? Why not に?
Ex. 正解からほど遠い。
= Seikai kara hodo tooi.
= Not even close to the right answer.
Hi Eliza,
Good question.
理想の女性にはほど遠い
正解からほど遠い・正解にはほど遠い Actually you can use them both (から and には）
(far) from ~ = から(ほど遠い）
When you use には, it has a nuance of “as one’s ideal woman” “as the right answer”.
You’re so fast! Thank you so much Maggie Sensei!
Anytime! :)
Hi sensei, what does “datte” mean here? emphasis?
わたしは先輩がわたしの特別だって決めました
thank you :3
Hi Megu,
It is a conversational expression but let me explain.
わたしは先輩がわたしの特別だって決めました
→わたしは「先輩がわたしの特別(な人・存在)だ」ということを決めました
If this person is talking to her senpai (senpai is one’s senior who entered the school/company earlier than the speaker)
I decided that you are special.(It may sound too dramatic but she is saying “I hereby declare that I like you!” )
Do you know the etymology behind なり or could you break it down to have a better understanding of this expression? Thanks.
I don’t know if it helps but なり is classical Japanese and it means “である”(to be)
マギーは先生だ。
→マギーは先生である
→マギーは先生なり。(classic Japanese)
Ex. ~ なり〜なり means ~であれ〜であれ （であっても〜であっても）
大なり小なり (大きいのであっても小さいのであっても）
＠Vengl
Scroll a little bit down and find my comment from JUNE 24, 2018 AT 4:29 PM to get some more information about なり.
こんにちは maggie 先生！
i’d like to ask, how do we say this in a polite way?
“please sing a song”
and
“please make a new song”
こんにちはキッド
“please sing a song”
歌ってください。
or it might sound redundant but you also say
歌を歌ってください。
Casual speech
歌って！
歌を歌って！
If you say “one song” instead of “a song”, you say
一曲歌ってください。= ikkyoku utatte kudasai.・(casual) 一曲歌って！ = ikkyoku utatte!
“please make a new song
新しい歌を作ってください。
(casual) 新しい歌を作って！
or if you are talking to a composer
you can say 曲（kyoku) instead of 歌
Hello Sensei
In the sentence below, which particle should be used here- ni or de?
Jimusho de shorui o dashimashita.
Jimusho ni shorui o dashimashita.
I want to say- “I submitted the documents at the office”. I can’t clearly understand which one should be used. One of the examples above uses dashimasu in a similar sense. However, here, when i say “submit the document”, it seems like “submit” is the action taking place at the office (place). Can you please explain the reason for the answer?
Thanks
Hi Ruchika
The most natural answer is 事務所に
When you are talking about
どこに書類をだしましたか？
= Doko ni shorui wo dashimashita ka?
= Where did you submit your documents?
You say
事務所に書類を出しました。
（じむしょにしょるいをだしました。）
You submitted the documents to the office.
but under certain condition, both of them are possible.
Let’s change the sentence a little.
どこの事務所で出しましたか？
In which office, did you submit the documents?
名古屋の事務所で書類を出しました。
（なごやのじむしょでしょるいをだしました。）
= Nagoya no jimusho de shorui wo dashimashita.
= I submitted the documents in the office in Nagoya.
(As you said で indicated where the action, submitting, took a place.)
@maggiesensei is it because we are considering the office as an entity as in itself i.e. to say, when we are using “to” we are comprehending that, we are not basically giving (inside the office to someone, but to the office itself). As, if the context had another intent (like giving it to someone) I think that で could have been use; e.g. 私は会社で山口さんに手紙をあげた This is what my reasoning is, I need your help vide your response, as I am unable to figure out whether it is apt or not!
Hello フリップ
会社 is entity but even a place which is not entity you use で when some actions take place. (in this case the action is “handing a letter”)
（公園・部屋・日本）で〜さんに〜をあげた
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei!
What about words such as “グッスリ” or ”すっかり”, is there a specific name for these words?
Those are called 副詞（ふくし）adverbs
ありがとうございます、先生！
どういたしまして！
Hello Maggie sensei
I was looking for the case of use of tokoro with chousho tansho..pls could you explain
Hell Szilvia,
You mean 長所（ちょうしょ = chousho) and 短所（たんしょ = tansho)?
長所（ちょうしょ = chousho) advantage, one’s strong point/strength/ merit
短所（たんしょ = tansho) disadvantage, one’s weak point/weakness/demerit
ahoy maggie.
So,,, with しか。
If you are say for example having a conversation (hopefully with someone else(ʘᗩʘ)..
And your talking about how say：
“Max is rude to everyone”. （can you add) “あぁ、Maryにしか。。。いつも丁寧ねぇ
thankyou for your time.
Hi Shaun!
You want to say “Max is rude to everyone except Mary (He is only polite to Mary)?
Maryにだけ礼儀正しいね。
= Mary ni dake reigi tadashii ne.
Maryにだけ丁寧（ていねい）だね。
= Mary ni dake teinei dane.
If you want to use しか
Maryにしか礼儀正しくない。
Maryにしか丁寧ではない。
I have no way to make an example here.
But In a normal conversation between two people, would it ever be unusual to not finish the sentence?
instead just trail of with だけ or しか, (because you both kinda know what would be said)?
love ya work maggie, thankyou for your time.
Hmm I wonder if this is what you are asking but, you sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with だけ in casual conversation.
Ex.
A: 「いつ洗濯するの？」 =When do you do your laundry?
B: 「日曜だけ。」 Just Sunday
***
C: 「マギーだけを愛してる」 I only love you Maggie.
Maggie: 「本当に私だけ？」 Just me? Sure?
But you don’t finish the sentence with しか/だけしか
(*^.^*) perfect!
You are a gem.
Thankyou madam.
You’re very welcome! :)
What would the general difference between Aida ni and chuu/juu be? I am not picking it up.
For example
お話中 right in the middle of conversation
話している間 while one is talking/speaking
試験中 during the exam / right in the exam
試験の間 while one is taking the exam
Also you usually used 中 ( chuu/juu) in compound words and you use aida with a noun+ の/ verb + 間
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei!
I love all your lessons and they help me a lot! I want to ask you, is there a specific name for words such as “fuwa fuwa” or “peko peko”? Do you have any lessons on it?
Thank you!
Hi Felita,
Those are called 擬音語（ぎおんご）/ 擬態語（ぎたいご）
I don’t have a lesson here but I once in a while teach those on Twitter. (Actually I just taught fuwafuwa today) 😊
Search on Twitter typing the word
“Onomato4Day” +maggiesensei. You will see the past tweets.
こんにちは！
Could you help me with 3 sentences below? I’m not sure if どころか and どころではない is interchangeable in these 3 sentences. Thanks!
“こんな下手なチームでは、何度試合をしても一度も勝てないどころか、㍙も入れられないだろう。” （dokoroka -> dokorodehanaku: onaji?)
“咳が出るので風邪かなと思っていたが、ただの風邪どころではなく、肺炎だった。”
（dokorodehanaku -> dokoroka: onaji?)
“休日なのでちょっとは道がこむだろうと思っていたが、ちょっとどころではなかった。” （dokorodehanakatta -> dokoroka: onaji?)
よろしくお願いします。
こんにちは、Trang!
“こんな下手なチームでは、何度試合をしても一度も勝てないどころか、㍙も入れられないだろう。”
（dokoroka -> dokorodehanaku: onaji?) → No, you can’t say どころではなく
“咳が出るので風邪かなと思っていたが、ただの風邪どころではなく、肺炎だった。”
（dokorodehanaku -> dokoroka: onaji?)
Yes, You can say ただの風邪どころか肺炎だった。
“休日なのでちょっとは道がこむだろうと思っていたが、ちょっとどころではなかった。”
（dokorodehanakatta -> dokoroka: onaji?)
No, you can’t use どころか
When you use どころか, you have to explain how it was.
Ex.ちょっとどころかすごく混んでいた・車が渋滞で全く動かなかった。
先生、どうしてー目の例で「どころか」は「どころではなく」に変換できませんですか。
勝てる is a potential form so if you say 勝てないどころではなく, it sounds like “Not being able to lose”
So, it will work if it’s just 勝たない？ Is there a general rule to distinguish between when one can be used and the other cannot?
Thanks!
On second thought I guess it is possible to say 勝てないどころではなく but the listener might be confused.
There are a couple of possibilities but you have to change the sentence a little.
勝つどころか一点も入れられないだろう。
勝つどころではなく一点も入れられないだろう。”
Talking about the past
勝てなかったどころではなく一点も入れられなかった。
“勝てる is a potential form so if you say 勝てないどころではなく, it sounds like “Not being able to lose”
Sorry for troubling you again. I still don’t quite get it, why would it sound like “not being able to lose”? Why the confusion here?
I don’t know how far I can explain here but
1)勝てないどころか一点も入れられないだろう。
(勝てないどころではなく）
Not jut we can’t win (we will lose). We won’t be able to score even one point.
(Unfavorable result A + unfavorable resultB )
Responding to the idea, “We may lose this game.” /“We can’t win this game.”
2) 勝てる(or 勝つ）どころか一点も入れられないだろう。
(勝てないどころではなく）
We won’t be able to score one point let alone winning the game.
(desirable result C + unfavorable result D )
Responding to the idea, “We can win!” / “ We want to win” / “Are we going to win?”
So you can say 勝てないどころか, some listener might think why you use unfavorable result in C)
I kinda get it now! Just want to clarify one point though. So you mean either どころか or どころではなく will be a little confusing when used in this context right? (because originally my question was about why dokorodehanaku can’t be used, and the examples you gave me was of dokoroka, so I want to clarify again!)
Thank you so much!
Sorry. I forgot to include ではなく (I just added it in my previous email)
わかりました！ありがとうございました、先生 <3
どういたしまして、Trang! 💕
マギー先生 こんにちは、こんばんはo((*^▽^*))o
いつも役に立つレッスンを作ってくださりありがとうございます。
１つ質問させてください。
彼女は料理ができないどころか、卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
どうして 「料理ができるどころか」ではないの？
英語訳は being able to cook なのに？
なんか。。おかしい質問ですよね ｗｗｗ
こんにちは ユキ （同じ質問が３つあったので２つは消しました。）
最初に質問したときは、承認されるまで自分の質問が見えないと思います。
「彼女は料理ができないどころか」の英語訳は “Far from” being able to cook なので Not just being able to cook という意味です。
マギー先生、おはよう！
A friend of the girl that I like just wrote me: “（この女子）のことはお任せください”.
However, I don’t really understand that. Does it mean something like: “When it comes to (XXX), you can count on me”?
Greetings from Germany,
Ralph
Hello Ralph,
Yes, that’s right.
Actually お任せください has two meanings.
1) You can count on me./ You can leave it to me/ I will take care of it.(in this case her)
2) I know everything about it.(her) I am an expert on ~ .
マギー先生、
わかりました。ありがとうございます！😊
よかった〜☺️
マギー先生、
もう一度ラルフです。
Only to make this idiot-proof: When this friend of hers knows what I feel for that girl and wrote me “あやみ姫のことはお任せください” (Ayami is the girl’s last name), she basically said that she wants to help me with her? Like “when it comes to her, just leave it to me”?
It’s not that I wouldn’t believe you or wanted to ask the same thing over and over again – I just want to make sure that I understand her right, as this sounds a little too good to be true …
お助けありがとうございます！
ラルフ
Hi Ralph
It depends on the previous conversation.
For example, if you tell her “I need your help. I really like her” Then, お任せください means “I will help you with her.”
Or as another possibility is, if she knows you like her, お任せください also means “I will take care of her (for you). So don’t worry.”
Well, there was no real previous conversation. I wrote that friend of hers in oder to promise her my support in an important matter for her. She thanked me, said that my support was important for her, and then she wrote that sentence about あやみ姫.
OK, then she meant “I will take care of her. (Don’t worry.)”
そうですか。ありがとうございます。
I think it’s interesting that one word or term can have so many different – yet similar – meanings …
どういたしまして！
あやみ姫とうまくいくことを願っています😉
本当にありがとうございます！😊
U^ェ^U 💕💕
Oh no, there so many structures to learn…
This is so difficult for me to understand…
私はちょっと頭が悪いんだけど…
Maggie Sensei can you please help me?
I’ve learned that らしい can be translated as “It looks like” but in a way that someone told me about this and I’m just passing this information.
And I also learn that そう can mean “it looks/ it seems” but in a way that I look someting and take a conclusion about it.
Is it everything that I said right?
If it’s possible can you please give a brief explanation about the differences between らしい, そう, みたい and っぽい?
Hi Eliza
When you tell someone what you have heard.
この店はおいしいそうです。
この店はおいしいらしいです。
この店はおいしいみたいです。
X おいしいっぽい (Though some young people may say this, it is grammatically wrong.)
When you look at the food and looks delicious, you say
この料理はおいしそうです。
X らしい・みたい・ぽい
When you see something and assume what is going to happen
You say 雨が降りそうだ。based on what you have seen.
You say 雨が降るみたいだ・降るらしい based on what you heard from other people or read somewhere.
X You can’t use ぽい
The usage of ぽい is more limited. Many of the typical examples are in the lesson.
Trying to process all of this wonderful information. So for a sentence like: I open the book, would: 私は本を開くbe correct?
Yes, that’s correct. You say (私は）本を開く（ほんをひらく）・開きます（ひらきます）。
This is so amazing, thank you. I have recently decided to try and seriously perfect my understanding of the language and this website clarifies plenty of what I am not understanding.
Glad to hear that, Nameless! 🐶💕
Hi Maggie,
This lesson is really long, and I have a lot of questions. Can you please answer me?
1) can I say
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったって instead of あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったと言う
and
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないって instead of 動物好きの人に悪い人はいないと言う
informally?
2) can I say
あなたが好きだ気持 instead of あなたが好きだという気持
何が起こるかわからない恐怖 instead of 何が起こるかわからないという恐怖
物が豊富にある生活 instead of 物が豊富にあるという生活
大もうけできる話 instead of 大もうけできるという話 ??
3) I’m sorry but I didn’t understand the part of というと which says “Bring up something and continue something which always happens”
Hi Eliza
You can say in casual speech
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったって
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないって
But these could sound a little too light (I mean when you tell someone what you heard.)
But the closest ones to という are
あれからこの村の人々は皆いなくなったんだって
動物好きの人に悪い人はいないんだって
These sounds slightly more explanatory.
2) あなたが好きだ気持 →あなたが好きな気持ち
The rest are fine.
という add more serious tone, though.
3)
• このところ休日というといつも仕事だ。
So in this sentence, you bring up the topics, which is 休日 and tell the listener what always happens in 休日
Oh thank you so much Maggie!
You’re really helping me learn Japanese!
よかった〜😊
thanks to your lesson I better understood the various uses of “hodo”
But a sentence I read has confused me a little …
The phrase is this
目が回るほどの日々に
how could it be translated?
Hi Lucia,
There is an expression
忙しくて目が回る
to be so busy that one’s head spinning.
Thank you so much ^_^
Anytime! 💕
こんにちはMaggie先生！
質問してもいいのでしょうか？
A.メガネをかける人 = a person who wears glasses
B.メガネををかけた人 = wore glasses
C.メガネをかけている人= is wearing/wears glasses
D.メガネをかけていた人= was wearing glasses
BとC、だいたい意味は同じですか？
その人がメガネをすでにかけているように感じますけれど…
E. 結婚する人 = a person to marry or a person who is going to get married ?
F. 結婚した人 = a person who already got married
G. 結婚している人 = a person who is married
H. 結婚していた人 = a person was (once) married (no longer)?
これらの文章は合っていますか？
よろしくお願いします先生。
こんにちは、Sassy
A: correct. (Indicates the habitual action so a person who usually wears glasses. )
B is “a person who is wearing glasses” (describing the current state) so B & C are the same “A person who is wearing the glasses” but C also means “A person who is putting on the glasses now” as well.
***
E Yes
F Yes
G Yes
H Yes
教えてくれてありがとう先生！^^
どういたしまして、Sassy 💕
Hi Maggie, I am so sorry for bothering you again, but can you please explain these questions?
Is it always necessary to put なら or たら before or after ついて or ついてに?
If it’s not necessary, what’s the nuance that なら and たら give to the sentence?
(As I my understanding for なら and たら, they mean “if”)
Does it sound natural to not use なら and たら in the examples showed before?
You often use なら・たら when you use ついでに but it is possible to use without using them.
The nuance difference is
1) 出かけるなら・出かけるんだったらついでにパン買ってきて。 If you are going out ~ (The speaker is not 100 pct sure that the listener is going out yet.)
2) 出かけるついでにパン買ってきて。 Since you are going out (the speaker is sure that the listener is going out. )
You also use なら・たら even if you know the listener is going out for sure just to make the sentence sounds a little softer.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Frozenheart again :)
I am thinking of the difference between
『１』その果物は古そうです。
And
（２）その果物は古いようです。
Is it (1) is telling that I have not eaten the fruit, I just look and say 古そうです
And (2) I have eaten that fruit and say 古いようです。
難しそうですね：）
古そうです The speaker is judging （You are right the speaker is just looking at the apple and saying it looks old.)
古いようです Either the speaker is judging, heard the information from someone else or tasted it and assuming it’s old.
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a question.
I can not use よう with adjective for saying
彼は優しいようだ。
But is it possible to use Adj + よう to talk about something in the past.
For example, if I say
When we were young, he appeared to be kind to me.
彼はやさしいようだった。
Is it still OK, sensei?
Thanks Maggie sensei !!!!
Hello!!
Yes, you can use よう with adjecitves
優しいようだ
高いようだ
The past tense will be
優しかったようだ。
Thanks Maggie sensei. I got it.
Just 1 more question :)
Can I say
ふるそうだった
= This fruit looked old.
Yes, you can.古そうだった
Just one thing. I guess it is possible to say 古い for fruits but the fruits usually go bad 腐る（くさる） before it gets old. 😉
Hi Maggie-Sensei, I have three questions. I tried composing a sentence about some examples of Canadian sweets using とか, but I wonder if I did it correctly.
「Butter tarts」とか「BeaverTails」とか「Nanaimo bars」とか「tiger tail ice cream」とかもというお菓子があります。
1) Can とか and や be used if we list more than two nouns or adjectives, or are they only used after two instances?
2) Can additional particles like も come after とか as in my above sentence?
3) If I’m writing to a penpal I have spoken to in years, and want to be polite and write formally, should I use や instead? If I’m talking to people I don’t know on the street (of any age) would I use とか or would it be too casual with strangers?
1) Usually you list two things. AとかB（とかC） / AやB（やC)
You see some people connect three things in casual speech/writing but if it is more than four, I think it is too much.
What you can do is to connect with “、” and you can add など ( = etc)
AやB、D、E＋（など）の〜
AとかB、D、E＋（など）の〜
「Butter tarts」とか「BeaverTails」、「Nanaimo bars」、「tiger tail ice cream」などのお菓子があります。
２）If you want to add も
「Butter tarts」とか「BeaverTails」、「Nanaimo bars」、「tiger tail ice cream」などのお菓子もあります。
3) や is more formal than とか.
Unless you are in formal business situation, you can use とか when you talk to a stranger.
Hi Maggie! Thank you for another great lesson!
Can you please explain me these two examples from the last topic, which are:
Ex. あんなに冷たい人だとは思わなかった。
= Annani tsumetai hito dato wa omowanakatta.
=I had no idea he/she was such a cold hearted person.
Ex. あんなに雨が降るとは思わなかった。
= Annani ame ga furu to wa omowanakatta.
= I didn’t think it would rain that much.
My question is, why you use the particle は in these sentences?
I understand that は indicates the topic of the sentence but, can I just say あんなに冷たい人だと思わなかった and あんなに雨が降ると思わなかった ?
Again thank you so much for this great lesson and know that I have two notebooks only with your lessons! They are really helping me!
Hi Eliza,
Wow! You have two notebooks with my lessons? I’m impressed!!
You can say と思わなかった but by adding は （とは） you stress what comes before so that you can express your surprised feelings more.
Thank you for the reply!
Yes, I have two notebooks. I already filled one (wich has 100 sheets), and I am finishing the second notebook (wich has 200 sheets). Soon I will start to fill the third notebook.
I am reading asahi, and came across this sentence. How does the last part translate?
「そんな勘違いをしてしまった人がいるほどの超絶技巧だ」 from the full context:
本物の金魚を樹脂で固めるなんて、けしからん――。かつて、そんな勘違いをしてしまった人がいるほどの超絶技巧だ
Hi Claus
I don’t do the translation here but it roughly means,
The craftsmanship was so amazing that some people mistook (the artwork with the real goldfish.)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you help me this point !
1/昨日１２時すぎまで～
a. おきた
b．起きていた
Is a) is possible if I want to focus on the action (wake) I did in yesterday.
And for this sentence
2/私がこの５年間で（1. 作った ２．作っていた）作品の展覧会がひらられます。
My understanding is
If I use 作った, I am focusing on the action (create) I did in 5 years
And if I use 作っていた, I am focusing on the already-completed product.
So both are OK.
But is that correct sensei?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always !
Hello! 元気でしたか？
1.昨日１２時すぎまで起きていた。
You can’t say 起きた
起きた means “got up” and it’s a one-time action.
So it is possible to say
１２時に起きた。
朝遅く起きた。
起きていた means “to be awake” and describe the state of being awake so you can say
１２時過ぎまで起きていた／遅くまで起きていた／朝まで起きていた。
2. I think the most natural answer will be 1. 作った because the particle で after ５年間
５年間”で”作った作品 the piece/pieces of artwork that I made/finished making in these five years.
(focusing on how long it took to finish the artwork.)
５年間作っていた作品 the piece/pieces of artwork that I have been making for five years.
(focusing on the artwork which I have been making for five years.)
Oh my God, it’s clear now.
Many thanks to my Maggie sensei :)
Great!!! :)
Can we say?
この テレビ は こわれて いるよ. 音 が できません.
Hi Sheff
You say 音が出ない・音が出ません。
I still can’t understand the kedo / dake dou parts of this.
I was watching xxholic and hemawari-san asked watanuki what his birthday was and he says shi gatsu tsuitachi dake dou.
What??
It is this usage
2) Other usage of finishing a sentence with けど ( = kedo)
４月１日だけど
４月１日ですけど
So instead of saying ４月１日です。
dakedo/desu kedo add the nuance of softness of the speech.
There’s some mistake on the part of
かわいかったんだけど ( = kawaiku nakattan dakedo)
Could you please correct it? Romaji is a past negative but hiragana is just past tense.
Thank you.
Hi Nate
Thank you so much for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. ありがとう！
Hello Nihon Scope,
You can translate it as: “Well, it’s on April the 1st…”
Unfinished sentences are very common in Japanese, as Maggie said.
ヨロシク
Hello Maggie sensei!
Could you tell me the difference between ge and ppoi?
Ex: 大人げ vs 大人っぽい
Hi Luna
大なげ is a noun “matureness”
大人っぽい means “mature” someone/something looks mature.
Hello Maggie sensei,
If sbd asks me this question
「日本語もうあきらめたの？」
Then I think I can answer in the following ways:
(1) あきらめないよ！
（２）あきらめるわけではない
（３）あきらめるわけがない
All of the above sentences deny the thing that I quit learning.
But is it the level of denying is strongest in (3), is normal in (1) and is slight in (2) .
Thanks Maggie sensei :)
As always you have a good question.
(1) I am not going to give up.
(2) It is not that I will give up./I’m not saying I will give up.
(3) There is no way that I will give up.
(3) expresses stronger will than (1)
(2) is more explanatory and a little different from (1) and (2).
Thank you Maggie sensei :)
I think I get your point now.
Great!! :)
Hello, today, I’ve listened a song and it says “気づけば I came too far”. What does this mean.
https://kamenrider.fandom.com/wiki/EXCITE
From this website, it says “Before I knew it, I came too far”
Hello Kiw
気づけば・気がつけが The literal translation is “when I realized”.
気づけば〜〜 I did something before I knew it.
So “I have come this far before I knew it.”
マギー先生！
「勉強も終わったことだし出かけよう。」
「彼も謝ったことだし許してあげたら？」
これ、詳しく説明にくいかもしれないけど…
それら例文で「が/を」の代わりに「も」は「勉強」と「彼」に付いている理由を説明してもらえませんか？
This may be difficult to fully explain but, could you explain why in these sentences the partical も is attached to 彼 and 勉強 instead of say が or を?
「彼も謝った」は英語で「He’s also apologised」だから、リスナーも謝ったという意味ですか？そうでなければ、教えて下さい。よろしくお願いします。
Since「彼も謝った」means 「he also apologised」, does that imply the listener has also apologised? If not, please tell.
Thank you.
こんにちは、Cameron
も has a function of “also” and “to emphasize what comes before.”
In this case the later.
So 彼も謝った He did apologize
勉強も終わった emphasizing 勉強
Check this lesson. Click here.
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have a simple question. What is the difference between:
1. 学校に教科書を忘れてきました。
2. 学校に教科書を忘れました。
As I understand, 来る is to come. I thought the translation will be “I left my textbook (at home) and came to school)” ?
Also, If i want to say “I left my book at school and went home.”
I can write the below sentence?
学校に教科書を忘れて帰りました。
Hi Jason,
Bascic difference is
〜に忘れた I forgot something
〜に忘れてきた I left something at ~
So if you realized that you left a textbook at school and came home, you can say 学校に教科書を忘れてきました。
Thank you very much for another rich lesson！😊
I have only a little doubt: Are they interchangeable or not?
Hi oniichan
Basically you can’t use うちに in all the examples sentences of うちは. It shows the contrast.
~(A)~~ うちは〜(B)〜 →X うちに
However you can use うちは in some of the sentences in (1) During some period of time:) with うちに
Ex. 休みの [うちに／うちは] 課題の本を読まなければならない。
Ex. 休みの [うちに／うちは]読みたい本を全部読みたい。
Ex. 大学生の[うちに／うちは]やりたいことはなんでもやりなさい。
Ex. 独身の[うちに／うちは]友達と海外旅行に行きたい。etc.
The nuance difference is you use うちは when you want to show the contrast.
ありがとうございます 😄
どういたしまして💕
Thank you for this new lesson !!
Really I’m glad to found your blog 💕
Thank YOU for finding my site! 💕
Konnichiwa sensei,
Ogenki desu Ka.
First of all thank you for your hard work. :)
So my doubt is,
Can we use the volitional form with seniors, in formal situations?
Hello Maggie sensei,
Is it possible to use 可能系 in continuous tense like
漢字が書けている。
or
ケーキができていた。
赤ちゃんが立てている。
Thanks Maggie sensei and nice weekend!
Hello “warm”heart!
漢字がよく書けている。(Let me add よく to make it sound more natural) →OK or 書けるようになった
ケーキができていた。→ OK
If I just see the sentence, 赤ちゃんが立てている。, I would say it is not natural but if you add some context ,I guess it is possible.
Still （一人で）立てるようになった/ 立てるようになっている is more common.
Thank you Maggie sensei a lotttttt!
From your “Warm” heart student :)
🐶💕💕
おはようございます、マギー先生！
Your site is always very useful. I was doing my homework and wondered if you’ve already covered the 助詞+の topic, and sure enough, here it is!
An example sentence from my homework has got me confused though, I’m hoping you can help explain it. The following is how the sentence is formatted:
あれ（は の）吉田さん（が の）描いた絵です。
We’re supposed to circle the correct particles in similarly formatted questions. The example sentence already have the answers circled in:
あれ（’は’ の）吉田さん（’が’ ’の’）描いた絵です。(just in case it isn’t clear, the particles が and の in the second set of parentheses are both individually circled).
What confused me is the がの combination, as I thought that が/は/に/を cannot precede の?
Or am I misunderstanding it as an example that the sentence can possibly be written as 吉田さんが描いた絵です or 吉田さんの描いた絵です? However, this seems unlikely considering that the exercise was given just after learning the use of 助詞+の, so it’s probably meant to be read as 吉田さんがの描いた絵です. If this is correct, what is the difference with 吉田さんが描いた絵, and what could the の in the example sentence is supposed to refer to?
私、助詞が苦手です！T_T
Hello, altuser
That means you can use either が or の
あれは、吉田さんが描いた絵です。
あれは、吉田さんの描いた絵です。
Not 吉田さんがの描いた絵です。
Ah, so I guess it had nothing to do with 助詞+の after all. Thank you very much for clearing it up!
Right. :)
FYI I have a related lesson. が→の
How to modify a noun Click here
I’m a little lost here. How do you translate phrases with ままの? for example: きっと気が付かないままの君
This way of using まま followed by の and then a pronoun/noun is really confusing.
の explains what comes after.
~の君 = You who is ~ / does ~
So the literal translation is
You who may stay in the state without noticing.
It means you will probably not notice/realize/know*
(*depending on the context)
I see. Too many differences with Indoeuropean languages and our way of thinking, even the tiniest bits of Japanese grammar need explanation.
Thanks
You’re welcome! It sounds like a phrase from a song.
It actually is, from a disbanded indies Visual Kei band called SectMateria.
Yes, it is a very literal expression so you don’t hear that in conversation. 😊
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I had a question regarding these two tenses of くる
あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now and maybe in future as well)
景気がよくなってきています。
The economy has been getting better. (until now)
For some reason I thought きています would indicate (it has been but also in the future)and くるwould be until now… And if it is until now would you not just say
あの子はだんだん可愛くなってきたね。
I guess I am just confused on when you would use てきています vs てくる.
Thank you in advance.
Hi
景気がよくなってきています。
It could be talking about future but it is just focusing on the current state. The point of view is “now” and the describing the change up to now.
こんにちは先生！
There are things I want to ask.
I am a bit confused about ‘ほどの…’
1. 目に見えないほど小さいダイヤの指輪を買った。
Is it possible to shorten the following sentence? Modifying the ring.
1. 目に見えないほどの指輪を買った。
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどのお土産を持って帰ってきた。
Would it be alright to drop the ‘の’?
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどお土産を持って帰ってきた。
3. If i want to say, ‘that person has countless/so many cars’ using ほど expression.
3. あの方は、数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。Should i add ‘の’ to modify the car ?
or just
3. あの方は、車の数が数え切れないほど多いです。
Would you mind to take a look at the following sentence, I wonder if I make any mistakes.
4. 三時間ほどずっと働いていたので、体がいつでも倒れるほど疲れています。
Your answer would be appreciated
よろしくお願いします先生。
マギー先生からの返事を待っているポストを見つけた＾＾
よろしくお願いします、マギー先生！
@天人 教えてくれてありがとう！
@Sassy おはよう！
Is it possible to shorten the following sentence? Modifying the ring.
1. 目に見えないほどの指輪を買った。
It is possible but it is more clear with 小さい.
2.父は、両手に抱えきれないほどお土産を持って帰ってきた。
→Yes.
3. あの方は、数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。Should i add ‘の’ to modify the car ?
The original sentence itself is not natural.
Let me change the sentences a little first. Personは〜があります。→placeには〜があります。 or personは〜を持っています。
あの家には数え切れないほど車がたくさんあリます。
あの方は数え切れないほど車を持っています。
車の数が数え切れないほど多いです。
Not natural.
4. 三時間ほどずっと働いていたので、体がいつでも倒れるほど疲れています。
→今にも倒れそうなぐらい疲れています。
If you want to use ほど
今にも倒れそうなほど、働きました。
先生に聞いてよかった、ありがとう先生！
And thank you too 天人さん for letting マギー先生 know.
どういたしまして！💕
(We are lucky to have 天人！ U^ェ^U 💕）
As I understand, with intransitive verbs doesn’t matter who is doing the action because the focus is in the state. But with transitive verbs, who do the action is important…
**
But, I have questions…
Instead of あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートが出る, can I say あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートを出す ?
Because in this sentence, who is providing the dessert is the restarant… So, the restaurant is doing the action, right?
**
And talking about feelings/ emotions/ opinions…
Instead of 停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出ている, can I say 停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出している ?
***
Talking about ‘to stick out’:
Instead of 白線から前に出てはいけません, can I say 白線から前に出していけません ?
Instead of 車の窓から手を出してはいけません, can I say 車の窓から手を出てはいけません ?
あの店は女性だけに無料でデザートを出す Yes
There is a nuance difference but you can say that.
***
停電が続き、人々の間から不満が出している ? No
***
白線から前に出していけません ? No. Unless you are talking about particular thing, Ex. one’s feet or bag, 足/かばんを白線から前に出してはいけません。 In this case they are talking about a person, so you can’t say that.
***
For the same reason,
you can’t say
車の窓から手を出てはいけません ?
It is a part of your body so you use 出す
This is a really bit hard for me.. But, thank you for answering me :)
No problem.
Let me tell you one last time.
白線から出る You are talking about oneself so you use intransitive form. Someone crosses the line.
白線から足を出す You are talking about your feet-foot. Someone let one’s foot cross the line.（object is one’s foot)
Konnichiwa sensei,
Doyatte irrashaimasu and oide ni narimasu chigaimasu ka?
Hello Priyanka
They both mean the same but oideni narimasu is slightly more formal.
ありがとうございます先生😊
Longtime reader, first time poster! Thank you for all your hard work.
Though I have to admit, I’m one of the women who uses masculine words; not to make a point or because of anime, but because my personality has always been very 男っぽい and so it really does feel more natural for me.
All that said, I only use them with my Japanese husband and very close friends; when I’m talking to anyone else, I use proper feminine Japanese (^^)
Hi Naka!
I’m happy to hear you have been reading my lessons for a long time. Also thank you for your first comment.
Haha, so you can switch your way of speaking depending on who you talk to. That’s the next level!! Good for you! :)
Good day, Maggie-sensei.
My apologies in advance.
Since I’m not sure in which article I should ask, I’m going to ask here.
I’m kind of confused with the usage of ある/いる＋の
I’m having this problem to translate informal verbal conversation.
“Do even you remember where the chamber is?”
I used this in reflex of my brain.
「室はどこにあるか、覚えてる？」
Then after a while I felt odd, and thought of other sentences, that maybe I should use のas well. And it became,
「室はどこにあるのか、覚えてる？」
But after reading some articles about usage of のandこと, it even confused me and made me created other confusing options, such as:
「室はどこにあること、覚えてる？」
「室はどこにあるのこと、覚えてる？」
Would you mind to tell me which/what is the right one and why?
Thank you!
Hello CA!
First
「室はどこにあること、覚えてる？」
「室はどこにあるのこと、覚えてる？」
Neither one is correct.
The particle の has various functions.
One of them is to nominalize a verb.
Going out = でかけること
Eating = たべること
He is there. 彼はそこにいる。
to make a verb いる to a noun →いるの／いること
I know he is there. 私は彼がそこにいるのを知っています。（or 私は彼がそこにいることを知っています。）
***
Another usage of の is to place before か in “where/when/which/what/how/ who/if” question or negative form.
Do you know / Do you remember/ Did I tell you, etc.＋ “where/when/which/what/who” 〜〜?
“Do you even remember where the chamber is?”
It has “where” so you can say
either
どこにあるか
どこにあるのか
They both mean the same. The difference is pretty subtle. の emphasizes the questions slightly.
And it is not just with the verb いる／ある. You can use other verbs with の
Do you know where Maggie lives?
Maggie がどこに住んでいるか知っていますか？
Maggie がどこに住んでいるのか知っていますか？
(negative form)
I didn’t know where Maggie lived.
Maggieがどこに住んでいるか知らなかった。
Maggieがどこに住んでいるのか知らなかった。
Do you know when the meeting starts?
会議（かいぎ）がいつ始まるかわかる？
会議（かいぎ）がいつ始まるのかわかる？
Tell me which one is delicious.
どちらが美味しいか教えて。
どちらが美味しいのか教えて。
Thank you very much for your reply ;w;
That was really a great help. Your explanation is so easy to understand. I will take a note and will not forget this also.
Wish you have a great day, Maggie-sensei!
You’re very welcome, CA!
You have a good day,too! :)
Hello Maggie sensei,
Great lesson again !!!!
I have a question。
Are all of the followings possible?
彼は緊張しぎみ。(by using V – delete masu + gimi)
彼は緊張気味です。（by using Noun + gimi)
And
彼は少し緊張している。
彼は少しの緊張です。
If all of them are possible,
What is the stand out thing of 気味 ?
Thanks Maggie sensei
Hi
Good questions.
緊張 you use a noun form so you don’t say 緊張しぎみ but you say 緊張気味（ぎみ）
But with がち you can say both 緊張しがち and 緊張がち
緊張している OK
少しの緊張です X Not natural
Hello Maggie sensei and thank you very much :)
How about the nuance of 緊張気味 and 彼は少し緊張している?
They sound the same to me….
But..is there any difference here?
They more or less mean the same.
“a little nervous”
You can also say 少し緊張気味 😉
Hello Maggie sensei,
Me again :)
After reading your lesson about と also.
I have some questions and hope you will help me! Please !!!!
** Are these 3 sentences of me correct ?
あなたの涙が出ると悲しくなるよ
and
あなたの涙が出れば悲しくなる。
涙が出ればそばにいてふいてよ
涙が出るとふいてよ。
Thanks Maggie sensei!!!
Hello again 😊
あなたの涙が出ると悲しくなるよ
あなたの涙が出れば悲しくなる。
Let change 涙が出ると to 泣くと which sounds more natural.（Especially when you are talking about someone else.)
あなたが泣くと悲しくなるよ If you cry, I (naturally) feel sad.
あなたが泣けば悲しくなる If you cry, I will feel sad. (hypothetical)
涙が出ればそばにいてふいてよ/涙が出るとふいてよ。
Not natural
Hmm I guess you could say
涙が出たら or 私が泣いたらそばにいて拭いてよ。
どうも、ありがとうございました！どうも！
どういたしまして💕
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for a great lesson, again!
May I ask 1 question
*** For the usage of ば in this sentence
嫌だったらそう言えば*よかったのに。
Is it OK if I use と?
嫌だったらそう言うと*よかったのに。
*** For expressing a hope in present or future, I remember that と is possible
嫌って言えるといいのに
And is if OK for ば also?
嫌って言えばいいのに
Thank you Maggie sensei in advance !
Hello Frozenheart! 元気？
Is it OK if I use と?
嫌だったらそう言うと*よかったのに。
Not natural.
You can say そう言ってくれたらよかったのに
嫌って言えるといいのに Thinking about the future
嫌って言えばいいのに Referring either some event which happened in the past or is happening right now.
Thank you Maggie sensei.
They are clear now. Love youuuuuuuu!!!!!!!
Greaaatt!! Love you too! 💕
Hello, doesn’t really have anything to do with the subject i would like some help.
この文と大体同じ意味の文があります is supposed to mean “There is a sentence that means basically the same thing as this sentence”, but why use と in this sentence ? Souldn’t it be は ?
Hi ピエル！
The subject of the sentence is 文
文があります。= There is a sentence.
So when you use 同じ, you need a particle と
AとBは同じです。 = A and B are the same.
AとBは同じsomethingです。 = A and B are the same ~~.
→Aと同じBがあります。= There is B which is the same as A.
Okay, i think i get it, thank you very much :)
You’re welcome, ピエル！ :)
Hello, Maggie Sensei.
I wanted to try a sentence using のです. Is this correct?
人の多いところはあまり好きじゃないんです。 だから食べたい時は いつも近くの寿司屋に行きます。人も少なくて、かなり静かなんです。
このままでいい? Thank you in advance.
Sorry, forgot to say what It was supposed to mean.
“I don’t like crowded places very much. So when I want to eat I always go to the nearby Sushi place. There’s few people and its very quiet.
Hi Hexelis
Your sentences are all good!
If you want to make it sound more natural, you could add more information to だから食べたい時は
Ex. だから外食するときは / だから外で食べたいときは (When I want to eat out) because you assume that you could eat at home when you want to eat. 😉
Other than that, they are all very natural.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Could you please correct me for my sentences?
窓の外をみたら、大勢の人が殺された。
Is it grammatically correct?
And if I write as below, is it correct ?
窓の外を見たら、彼は大勢の人を殺した。
Thanks Maggie sensei !!!
Hello,
I am sorry but both sentences are not natural.
The verb tense in the following sentences can’t be simple past tense in this case.
ていた is better because it describes the state after the action or what has been happening.
窓の外を見たら、大勢の人が殺されていた。
窓の外を見たら、彼が大勢の人を殺していた。
When I looked out the windows, I saw* ~~
(There isn’t a verb to see (見る) in Japanese sentence but you describe what you saw by ていた)
If you use the simple past tense
窓の外を見たら、大勢の人が殺された。
窓の外を見たら、彼は大勢の人を殺した。
It sounds like the action of looking out the window 窓の外を見た caused people’s death or him killing people.
はい、わかりました！
どうもありがとうございました！
🐶💖💖
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have 1 more question about たら。
How is the verb “ いる”？
If I say,
when I closed my eyes, I saw you were here.
目を閉じたら、ここにあなたがいていた！
Is it OK or I need to change to いた。
Hello
You can’t say いていた. It’s いた
But I think it would be more natural to say
When I opened my eyes, you were there.
目を開けたら、そこにあなたがいた。
Hello, Maggie.
I had a question regarding using ように before 聞こえるor 見える.
I thought it was needed but I heard this… 100パーセント外国人に聞こえます。 When watching a video of someone saying to not do something or you’d sound 100% like a foreigner. I do not see ように used here so can you omit it and it will be fine?
Thank you
Hi Shenrai
Right, ように is often omitted in conversation.
You can also say 外国人が話しているように聞こえます。・外国人のように聞こえます。・外国人の発音のように聞こえます, etc.
Hi Maggie-sensei, good lesson, love it and thank you so much.
i have a question. what function “chau” for this sentence?
— “ときめきぐさ”ちゃう、”ときめきそう”–
is it mean –it’s not read as “tokimeki gusa”, but “tokimeki sou”– ?
Hi nikuman!
That ちゃう is Osaka/Kansai dialect. ではなくて／じゃなくて (Not ~ but ~)
The kanji 草 can be read “くさ／ぐさ／そう”
ときめき草 can be read ときめきそう or ときめきぐさ but ぐさ sound “uncool”
SO “ときめくぐさ”..じゃなくて（ではなくて）”ときめきそう”
Tokimeki gusa,, no I mean “Tokimeki sou”
or
Not “Tokimeki gusa” but “Tokimeki sou”
Thank you so much sensei for answering my question, sensei’s reply so fast 😄👍
So That ちゃう is Osaka/Kansai dialect.
Understood, once again, thank you so much 😊
You’re very welcome!
Yes, it’s Osaka/Kansai dialect but people in other area also use it jokingly. (A lot of comedians are from Kansai area so it is one of well-known expressions.)
お開き is so interesting. Never known it before.
If not reading this lesson, I will still think お開きis to start something (crying ….).
Thanks Maggie sensei a lot !
Haha I’m glad to hear you learned some new expression here! ☺️
どうもありがとうございました！
Hello Maggie sensei,
I had a quarrel with friend about the two sentences and would like to share it with you.
(1) 私は結婚している
（２）私は結婚した。
Does (2) means I already got married and already divorced while (1) means I got married (and still now I have a husband)
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Hello, Frozenheart! 元気？
Oh no, you had a fight with your friend? Then don’t tell me who said what.
(1) 私は結婚している = talking about the current state. I am married.
(2) 私は結婚した = I got married. It just tells the fact that this person got married in certain time. It doesn’t mean “I already divorced.”
If you say 私は結婚していた。then it means this person got divorced or husband/wife passed away.
Hope you make up with your friend.
Thanks Maggie sensei !
I understand it now.
Don’t worry sensei! Making quarrel with friend is normal.
It’ll be abnormal if not making any quarrel at all :)
You must have a really nice friend!! 😉
Hi Maggie,
I just started a job at a hotel in Australia looking for the opportunity to converse with Japanese guests. It was very hard to find a site with useful Japanese phrases for someone who WORKS at a hotel.
This page was fantastic. Extremely helpful! Thank you!!
http://142.93.68.150/2015/07/13/ホテルの日本語-hoteru-no-nihongo-useful-phrases-at-the-hotel/
Hi Jesse
I’m so happy to hear this lesson helps you.
Good luck with your work!! ☺️
isn’t it that kagiri and youdewa somewhere have same nuance?
例えば、
練習のやり方を変えない限り、優勝はむりだとコーチに言われた。
締め切りを守れないようじゃ、漫画家としてやっていけないよ。
can’t they be used interchangeably?
They could be interchangeable but ようでは involves the speaker’s feelings/emotions towards the target person more.
練習のやり方を変えないようでは、優勝は無理だとコーチに言われた。
締め切りを守れないようじゃ、漫画家としてやっていけないよ。
show more frustration than 限り
先生、ありがとうございます。
世界には、資源のあるかぎり、人生ができる。
今年限りでは、会社をやめようとおもっています。Can the 2nd part of the sentence be in volitional form?
Hello,
1) →世界に資源があるかぎり
the part 人生ができる is not clear. You mean 生活ができる？
2) 今年限りで the rest is fine.
先生、
As long as the resources are there, human life can exist.
OK, then the most natural way to say would be 人々は生きることができる。
Hi Sensei! Thank you for your lessons!
What is the meaning of のに in this sentence?
やあ、寒いのに大変だな。
Hi Virgo,
寒いのに in that sentence means “even in this cold weather”
So, the whole sentence will be something like “You’re working hard despite this cold”?
Yes!
Thank you very much for this lesson Maggie 先生, it’s really detailed, thank you!
however, I am a little confused .. What’s the difference between N + の こ と and に つ い て? both mean “about” right?
for example :
野球のことはいつでも私に聞いてください。
we could say :
野球についていつでも私に聞いてください
is it the same thing?
Hello Audrey,
OK, I guess I explained のこと as “things about something/someone” and the word “about” made you confused.
What I meant by “things about” is not “on the particular subject = ついて”
You can say
野球のことはいつでも私に聞いてください。
(or 野球に関することならいつでも私に聞いてください。)
“Ask me anything about baseball/ anything related to baseball.)
but 野球についていつでも私に聞いてください is not quite natural.
You can say 彼は野球について詳しい。・野球についてよく知っている。 He knows a lot about baseball.
この本は野球について書かれている。= This book is about baseball. (with the specific theme)
You say
彼は私のことが好きみたいだ。He seems to like me.
But you can’t say
彼は私について好きみたいだ。
Here’s a confusing example.
彼は私についてなにも知らない。
彼は私のことをなにも知らない。
These two sentences can be translated “He doesn’t know anything about me.”
The difference is
私について is more specific: what I did/ my background/my history, etc.
私のことを is more general, who I am (Ex. it could be what I did/background as well but it is more about my personality,)
Thank you very much for your answer. I have understood correctly now . =)
Great!! よかった！！😊
Hi Maggie sensei!, please help me. How should I say this in japanese ” Igraduated in ~~university major in finance and pursue another units for teaching program ” arigatou gozaimasu sensei!
Hi May
check my job hunting lesson. Click here
I don’t do the translation in the comment section but
The basic pattern is
university name 大学（department name 学部）卒業 (graduated)
or
university name 大学（department name 学部） 専攻:+ what you majored in 卒業 (graduated)
* additional information in your case→pursue another units for teaching program
Maybe the system is different but →Does that mean you have a teacher’s license?
We need another 18 units (if your not a 4 yr graduate of education) that covers all the major subjects of teaching for us to qualify in taking licensure exam in teacher. It is actually” certificate in teaching program”. Sumimasen sensei, im not good in english >.< Anyways, thank you very much for prompt response. You are an angel 😇 i'll check the link about job hunting . ありがとうございます😊😊😊
どういたしまして！ Good luck!! 🍀
Hi Maggie sensei, and thank you for the lesson.
服を買うのにあれこれ迷いました。
Could you please explain the use of のに in this sentence?
both “even though” and “in order to” seem not to fit.
ie:
even though i buy clothes i was undecided between this and that.
in order to buy clothes i was undecided between this and that.
Hi ジャン
It will be easier to think this のに
の＋に
First you use に with 迷う
道に迷う
人生に迷う
判断（はんだん）に迷う
and the first の is used to nominalize a verb
買う= to buy 買う = buying something (as a noun)
The literal translation
I was in the state of undecided of buying my clothes.
→I couldn’t decide what clothes to buy.
Hello again sensei,
What is the difference between
(1) 子供は泣いているばかりです。
and
(2) 子供は泣いてばかりいる。
And
(3) 彼女の幸せを祈るばかりです
and
(4) 彼女の幸せを祈ってばかりいる。
Thanks Maggie sensei so much!
(1) 子供は泣いているばかりです。 talking about the particular time when the child keeps crying.
(2) 子供は泣いてばかりいる。 The child always cries.
(3) 彼女の幸せを祈るばかりです
I just wish her happiness.
(4) 彼女の幸せを祈ってばかりいる。
The only thing I do is praying for her happiness. / I have been constantly praying for her happiness.
どうかな。わかる？
Hello! What does the ているばかり form mean? Does it still mean “only nothing but” like てばかり？ For example, what is the meaning of this sentence?:
道の雪の上に落ちているばかりでした
Thank you!
Hi Katie,
Are you reading the little fox’s tale, “手袋を買いに”？
This ばかり means “just ~ / nothing else”
Hello Maggie sensei,
Is it possible to combine 2 meanings of ばかり
(1) てばかりいる and 2)ばかりでなく to say、 for example this sentence.
Not only does Maggie sensei just always sleeping but also she teaches Japanese.
By
Maggie先生は寝てばかりいるばかりではなく、日本語を教えている
Hello,
It is not natural to combine two ばかり in one sentence.
From your 寝てばかりいる先生 😴 zzz
おかげさまで、やっとよく分かりました。
先生、ありがとうございました。
Can you also use ojousama to a pretty girl as a compliment/tease? For example if you are giving something to a girl, どうぞ、きれいな髪お嬢様。
Haha
Yes, you can say that “jokingly”
きれいな髪”の”お嬢様
こんにちは、マギー先生。
授業ありがとうございました。
ちょっと一つ質問があるのですけど、「Nのこと」と「Nであること」は何か違うのですか？
教えてくれてお願いいたします。
デイビッド
こんにちは、デイビッド！
「Nのこと」、「Nであること」の違いですね。
Nのことはもうこのレッスンで説明しましたが、
N = N/ things about N
Nであることは being N / should be N / the fact that ~ is Nなどいろいろな使い方があります。
Ex. 私のこと好き？ = Do you like me?
You can’t say 私であること好き？
Ex. 昨日のこと聞いた？
= Did you hear what happened yesterday?
(You can’t say 昨日であること）
***
Nであること is used in a formal speech/writing.
1) should
このサイトでは先生は犬か猫であること。
The teacher should be a dog or a cat on this site.
2) Nであること = the state of being N / the fact of being N / being N
私であること being myself
いい母親であることは大変だ。= Being a good mother is hard.
教えてくれてありがとうございました。
なるほどですね。あるテキストの名詞化の例文は、「明日の授業が休講であることを皆に連絡してください」があります。そういえば、あの「休講であること」って、「休講べきだ」とか「休講だ」とか、そういういみですか？
お願いします。
その例文の「Nであること」は
〜ということ (that N is ~ ) という意味です。
明日の授業が休講ということ ”that tomorrow’s class is cancelled”
おかげさまで、やっとよく分かりました。
先生、ありがとうございました。
よかった〜♫
Hello again,
Maggie sensei, I find that there is case that ～ているところに and ～るところ both mention the same thing (though they have a different grammar), and would like to ask you.
(1) 彼に話すところです。
This sentence grammar is るところ and it shows the meaning ” I am about to talk to him”.
(2) 彼に話そうとおもっちいるところ。
The grammar is ているところ but
Also means ” I was about to talk to him”
Or
彼に話そうとしているところ
The grammar is also ているところbut
Also means “I was about to talk to him”.
I think the translation is the same.
But are they different?
I’m sorry for my typo in (1) and I’d like to correct it.ごめんなさい！
ーーーーー
(2) 彼に話そうと思っているところ。
The grammar is ているところ but
Also means ” I was about to talk to him”
1) 話すところ I am about to talk.
2) 話そうとしているところ
These two mean the same. 2) is a volitional form so the literal translation would be
I am about to try to talk.
話そうと思っているところ is still thinking.
I am thinking about talking to him.
ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして☺️
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thanks for the great lesson!
I have a question about this sentence
ちょうどメールを書いている（～）本人が来た。
Which I need to choose in the bracket [], ところに or 間に
I feel no problem with ところに and no problem with 間に also.
Both will make the meaning “While I was writing email to that person, that person came”.
Thanks Maggie sensei :)
Hello
Good question.
As I explained in the section,
☆ところに ( = tokoro ni) & ☆ところへ ( = tokoro e)
*When two things happen at the same time / when you focus on the time more than location.
That ところに is more like “when”.
When I was just writing an email
If you use 間に, it indicates the duration,
While I was writing an email,
In this case, ちょうど doesn’t fit in the sentence.
Thanks Maggie sensei. I understand that ちょうど does not fit 間に now.
If that sentence has no ちょうど, then are both 間に and ところに suitable?
Or is there any nuance difference ?
メールを書いているところに本人が来た。
メールを書いている間に本人が来た。
Yes, as I wrote in my previous comment,
ところに when (Right in the time I was writing an email, that person showed up)
間に while I was waiting (it implies this person has been waiting for certain period of time. While I was writing and email, that person showed up.)
Hello Maggie-sensei, I hope this thread isn’t too old.. But what is DM (direct message/private message) in Japanese?
Thank you so much!
Hi Priss
It’s the same in Japanese.
DM (ディーエム）
Thank you so much for the quick reply!
Anytime! 🐶💕
Hi Maggie, can you please explain me the difference between ~てみるand ~ようとする.
Like, for example: 作てみる and 作ろうとする, or 作てみた and 作ろうとした
I know how to conjugate the verbs using this ~ようとする, but I would like to understand more about the difference between these two.
I heard that with ~ようとする it means to try but it doesn’t mean that I will really do it.
Is it corret?
Hi Eliza,
First 作ってみる not 作てみる
For example, you found an recipe which looks good and want to make that food.
美味しそうだから作ってみます。/ 作ってみる= It looks delicious so I will give it a try and make it. (You are talking about future.)
美味しそうだから作ってみました。/ 作ってみた = It looked delicious so I gave it a try and made it. (You actually made it.)
美味しそうだから作ってみようとした means you tried but you didn’t make it for some reason.
美味しそうだから作ってみようとしたけれども材料がなかった。= It looked so delicious that I was going to make it but I didn’t because I didn’t have ingredients.
When someone is trying to make it, you can say
妹はまだ小さいのに料理を作ろうとしている。My younger sister is still small but she is trying to cook something.
Oh, no… I am so embarassed for making this mistake with 作ってみる
恥ずかしい…
But anyway, thank you for your attention to reply me.
Note: I’m brazilian, so forgive me if I make some mistakes when I write in English.
You’re very welcome, Eliza! 😊
Why do some of them use ておくand others ておこう?
Hello Joseph,
ておこう is volitional form of ておく
You use volitional form when you are going to do something or ask someone to do something together.
(Volitional form lesson)
Hi Maggie 先生！
I understand how to use のだ、but I find it hard to understand the nuances when it’s だけどvsんだけど and でしょう(か)vsんでしょう(か)。Can you help me?
1 行きたいんだけど今日は忙しい。= (It’s that) I want to go, but I’m busy today ←？
2 行きたいけど今日は忙しい。= I want to go, but I’m busy today
3 このうち、好きなものはないんだけど、選ぼうとしたらあれ。= ？
4 このうち、好きなものはないけど、選ぼうとしたらあれ。= Even though I don’t like anything here, if I had to pick, I would pick that one.
5 AとBは違うでしょう？=A and B are probably different, right?/Yes, A and B are different, aren’t they? (a little like 「だよね？」?)
6 AとBは違うんでしょう？=A and B are two different things, right? ←？
7 AとBは違うでしょうか？=Could/might A and B be different? ←？
8 AとBは違うんでしょうか？= Could it be that A and B are different? ←？
Hi Lorrie,
んだけど／んでしょう（か） sounds stronger so that you can emphasize your feelings more with “ん”
1) & 2) →行きたいんだけど shows your desire more. 行きたいけど is just a statement.
3) & 4) →ないんだけど emphasizes the part 好きなものはない. NOTHING I like here BUT
5) & 6) 6) expresses more accusing tone. So you have to be careful when you ask a question like this with ん. The person who you asked might feel you are angry.
7 & 8) 8) express your surprised feelings. This is something unexpected. I thought A and B were different but is is possible that I am wrong????
Hi Maggie! Thank you for this lesson.
Can you please, explain me the difference between:
やすい and 簡単
にくい and 難しい
Hi Eliza,
The biggest difference is you always use やすい／にくい combining with other verb and
you don’t use 簡単／難しい in a compound words.
~するのは／verb dictionary form + のが簡単です。= Doing something is easy.
~するのは／verb dictionary form + のが難しいです。= Doing something is difficult/hard.
Also when you talk about the characteristic of things/people, you rarely use 簡単／難しい
Easy to break = breakable
壊れやすい (You don’t say 壊れるのが簡単）
Hard to break = durable
壊れにくい (You don’t say 壊れるのが難しい）
Easy to talk to (Friendly personality)
話しやすい (You don’t say 話すのが簡単）
Thank you so much for your reply. And thank you for this lesson!
My pleasure!! ☺️
Can I use んです with 好き or 好きじゃない？As in: あめをたべないんですか。(Why don’t you eat candy?) すきじゃないんです。(Because I don’t like it.)
Hello Laurie,
Yes, you can say that.
Thank you! Is 好きんです correct, or should it be すきなんです?
Hello,
It should be 好きなんです＝すきなんです。
Can I use んです with すき？ As in, あめがすきじゃないんですか。（Why don’t you like candy?) あまいんです。
Thank you for this very useful lesson!! I love your explanations. It’s always very clear and there are a lot of details. Thanks for the effort you put into this website. I’m grateful.
Thank YOU for your nice message, Random French girl!
I’ll do my best to keep making lessons! 💖
Hi Maggie-Sensei! Thanks for the great lesson!
Could you help me with this sentence?
Ex. 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた。 = It stopped raining while I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop.
My question is, why did you use やんでいた instead of just やんだ? I know that -ていた can be a past continuos (was stopping), a past perfect (had stopped), or express ‘result’ in the past (was over, or, for example, 落ちていた ‘was on the floor’), but none of these usages seem to make sense here…
I have also found the following sentence in my textbook:
ウトウトしている間に、テレビの番組は終わっていた。’While I was dozing, the TV program ended’.
Similarly, I don’t understand why they used 終わっていた instead of 終わった …
Hello Davide!
Ahh, good question.
Maybe this lesson might help you understand.
Click here
In that lesson, I explained
2) When you describe some action that has been completed already
When you focus on the state after the action, you use
→〜ていた／～ていました ( = ~ teita / ~ te imashita)
It might be easier to think
やんでいた to have stopped raining (describing the sky or town after stopped raining.)
終わっていた to have finished already
If you are describing what happened in particular moment you use simple past form.
今、雨がやんだ。
６時にテレビ番組が終わった。
Thanks for the quick reply! I’m still not 100% sure. Please let me ask one more question and try to explain:
1) Can I say 雨がやんでいる to mean “The rain has stopped” = “There is a state of no-rain right now” ? If this is true, is it correct to say that 雨がやんでいた has exacltly the same function as 雨がやんでいる, except that the time of reference is in the past?
2) Based on my understanding of the grammar, the sentence 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた means “While I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop, the rain was already over”. In other words, while I was having a cup of tea, there was already a state of no-rain. In other words, the rain had stopped before I entered the shop, or, at the very least, before I started drinking the tea.
Contrary to my understanding of grammar, it seems to me that 喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた actually describes a passage from a state of rain to a state of no-rain (During that interval of time while I was drinking the tea, the rain stopped. In other words, “It stopped raining while I was having a cup of tea at the coffee shop.”, as you translated ).
Also, I have no problems with 8時にはもう家に帰っていた/ いました。(from the lesson you linked). This sentence makes perfect sense to me.
Sorry for nitpicking but I would really like to understand, if possible…
1) You are right.
You say 雨がやんでいる describe the current state when you just realized it has stopped raining.
やんでいた You don’t know when it stopped raining but in some point in past it stopped raining.
2) 〜間に雨がやんでいた
= The rain stopped while you were doing something. Not before you entered the coffee shop.
I might be easier if I can draw a picture but I can’t post it here.
You know what, let me make a little note with picture for you on Patreon page. Is that OK?
OH GOD YOU’RE A LIFE SAVIOR!
THANK YOU
🐶💖💖💖
Hi Sensei! I have a question
if Gachi is used primarily for negative things, then how can we say “to tend to ~ / to be inclined to ~” for something positive? (like to give an example if I wanted to say “I tend to like long series”, how should this be said? )
Hi Kira,
There is a word ~する／Verb dictionary form + 傾向（けいこう）がある but it sounds too formal for your example sentence.
You can say
どちらかというと〜の方が好きだ。
Thank you Sensei ^_^
Anytime! 😊
Hello Maggie! I really appreciate your site. Thank goodness I’ve found this site. Btw, I have a question. I was having a conversation with a guy one day when he told me, “おれと結婚すんじゃね”. Now, I’m a little confused after reading this. Especially the “すんじゃね” part. He’s from Kobe, so he speaks Kansai-ben. Please help me. I would appreciate your response. Thank you so much! 😊
Hi Michelle,
It is a casual male speech
結婚するんじゃない？ Maybe she is getting married to me.
It sounds like he is kidding but does it make sense?
Maggie Sensei, thanks for your effort. Just few suggestions. Can you please state at the beginning of the lesson the main uses of the pattern you are going to discuss? Like, for example, you can briefly mention the places where the pattern can be used.
It would be of great help. Great day ahead!
Thanks for your suggestion.
Someone asked me once to write all the summary in the beginning and I did once. And it got too long so…. It is actually hard to make everybody happy….Maybe I can try in some mini lessons.
Anyway I appreciate your feedback. ☺️
Hello Maggie sensei,
If somebody calls me 子供っぽい, then is it a negative comment or a positive comment?
Since “子供” may also bring a positive image (like cute, innocent) and also a negative image (often crying, often wagamama, vv)
Then If I’m called like that, I really want to understand which thing is implied here :)
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Hello,
Good question.
As I wrote in the lesson 子供っぽい means “childish” and it sounds negative.(one’s behavior is immature/Something, for example clothes, looks too cute)
For positive / neutral / negative usage, you can use ようだ
（まるで）子供のようだ・です
Konnichiwa sensei.
Please explain the “hairou toshiteiru” part in the thief example under tokoro wo.
Hi Priyanka,
〜（よ）うとする is a volitional form (check this lesson.) and
入ろうとしている= to be trying to / to be about to get in the house.
Hello Maggie sensei,
I am quite not convinced with the answer of 天人.
Could you help me it. I want to understand the nuance difference of たすぐ後、and かと思うと、in this example
彼が出かけたすぐ後に、電話があったみたいだ。
Thanks Maggie sensei as always.
It’s great to know that a lot of people is willing to help in Maggie sensei site also:)
OK, for example,
彼が出かけたすぐ後に、電話があったみたいだ。
Vたすぐ後に〜 happened, B happened.
Right after
In this case you simply express what happened after action/event A.
1) He left
2) Someone called him
と思うと/思ったら is also used when something happened right after the first action/event but you can’t say
彼が出かけたと思ったら電話があったみたいだ。(wrong)
You usually use かと思うと・かと思ったら to show the contrast. Thus action/event A and B are often something contradicted/opposite/ unexpected.
Just when I thought ~ , something contradicte/unexpected happened.
For example,
Ex. 彼は出かけたと思ったらすぐに帰ってきた。
1) He left
but
2) He came back right after he left home.
Ex. 今、雨が降ったと思ったらすぐに太陽が出てきた。
1) It was just rainnnig
but
2) It clears up soon.
Ex. さっきまで泣いていたと思ったらすぐに笑う
1) He/She was crying just now
but immediately
2) He/She smiles again.
to express one’s emotions change easily.
**
Yes, 天人 is great!! 😊
Oh my God! Amazing!!!
Thanks Maggie sensei. I understand them now.
Love Maggie sensei….
Good! 😊
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for great lesson!
I dont know why even though I am studying the intermediate Japanese, I even forget the very basic grammar. But thanks Maggie sensei for this site, I can review any grammar any time.
Could you tell me the nuance difference for the followings :
(1) 彼が出かけたすぐ後に、電話があったみたいだ。
And if I write it with かと思うと。
(2) 彼が出かけたかと思うと、電話があった.
I feel the meanings are the same, but…if the same, why Japanese needs 1 more grammar かと思うと。。。。
Thanks Maggie sensei as usual.
Hello Frozenheart,
here’s the answer to your question.
出かけたすぐ後に – something happens right after something was done – the speaker is more specific about occurrence of the happenings. The particle に sets a specific point in time, which means that less time could have passed between the first and the second part of the sentence.
出かけたかと思うと – something happens no sooner than / as soon as something was done – the speaker is less specific occurrence of the happenings. The part. か＋とおもうと implies more uncertainty, which means that more time could have passed between the first and the second part of the sentence.
There are also more patterns, which are associated to that one, like: ～たとたんに、か～ないかのうちに、がはやいか、そばから、なり or や否や.
インタネットで調べてみたらそれらの違いがわかるだろう。
ヨロシク
Hello 天人: Thanks for your information.
Hello Maggie :
Looking forward to Maggie sensei :)
@天人
Thank you for helping Frozenheart!
Can this pattern be used in sentences like- I will try to fit in this dress??
You mean when you try some clothes on?
Sure, このドレスを試着（しちゃく）してみます。
Maggie sensei,
You can use to express “I wish …” but it is only for the future wish, isn’t it?
If I want to say “I wish I shouldn’t have said something”, can I use たら？
そんなことを言わなかったらよかったのに。
Hello again,
I’m sorry for my typo in my comment.
I would like to correct it.
Maggie sensei,
We can useよう to express “I wish …” but it is only for the future wish, isn’t it?
If I want to say “I wish I shouldn’t have said something”, can I use たら？
そんなことを言わなかったらよかったのに。
Hello!
Future wish?? Sorry. I don’t quite get it.
“I wish I should have/I shouldn’t have done ~ ” is to express one’s regrets for the past event which you did or didn’t do.
So “I wish I shouldn’t have said something” will be
なにも言わなければよかった。
You use のに when you talk to someone else.
You shouldn’t have said anything = なにも言わなければよかったのに。
Sorry for making you confused :)
I mean よう is only used for a wish for something to happen in the future (not a wish for something in the past showing regret). But is it correct?
Ah, I got it now. ごめんね〜😊
Right.
verb+ ように is used to express one’s wish for the future and not the regrets from the past.
いいえ、いいえ
I have 1 more question.
Can I use よう to express my wish for my friend’s health when visiting here in the hospital
はやく病気が治りますように！
Is it considered annoying to use a lot of slang like this?
Right. It could be annoying but it depends on who you are talking to.
A lot of Japanese people don’t know all of these words. But it should be OK for young Japanese people who use Twitter a lot.
I’ve heard a kind of phrase in Japanese when they repeat the same verb twice.
For example, I’m not sure the grammar makes sense but something like:
辞めるのを辞めたらいいじゃんい
I’d be really grateful if you could help me out with this!
Hi George,
辞める(a)のをやめたら(b) いいじゃない。
First
~たらいいじゃない？ means “Why don’t you do ~?”
That means “You should do ~”
やめるのを(A) やめたら(B) いいじゃない =the literal meaning is Why don’t you stop (B) quitting/resigning (A) = You should stop (B) quitting/resigning (A)
That means “You should continue whatever you have been doing./ or keep your job)
Super clear, thanks!
Great! ☺️
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I have a question about “ようとしない”. In my text book it says this expression is used to indicate present continuous, but I don’t really get the example sentences like for instance 彼は、自分のことは何も言おうとしない。This sentences is translated with: He doesn’t seem to talk about himself.
I don’t really understand how the expression “ようとしない” is used. Could you explain it?
Thank you in advance :)
Hello Barbara,
I have a lesson how to use volitional form (Click here.)
I explained ようとする in 8) in that lesson.
~ようとしない is a negative form but basically the idea is the same.
try not to do something/ not willing do something.
彼は、自分のことは何も言おうとしない。 could be translated “He is not willing to talk about himself. “
Hello Maggie-sensei,
今日N1を読んでみました！！！
思ったほど難しくないです:). Maggie sensei が書いたレッスンですから、いくら難しい問題でも、分かりやすいです。どうも！
ちょっと質問があります。「もしない」は「さえ」と同じですか？
こんにちは！
「〜もしない」 and 「さえ」 are slightly different.
~ もしない emphasize what comes before.
~ さえしない。 It also emphasizes what comes before but it has a nuance “not even doing something”
Thanks Maggie sensei!
Could you give me some examples for もしない and さえ？
For example,
From the picture,
忘れもしないけど（どうして昨日、あんなこと言ったの？）
You can’t say 忘れさえしないけど..
But the sentence like
1) 彼は皿洗いもしない。
you can say
2) 彼は皿洗いすらしない。
and the translation could be the same, He doesn’t even wash the dishes but the difference is 2) sounds stronger
1) the speaker think 皿洗い is important.
2) He doesn’t do many things and NOT even washing the dishes. The speaker thinks 皿洗い is something easy to do and he doesn’t even do that.
Thank you very much. taihen benkyuu narimashita. Every time i search nihongo topics, I always check if you have that lesson first before i open other websites … :-)..
Konnichiwa sensei,
Thank you for you efforts and lessons.
The explanation of Aida and Aida ni is amazing.
But I have a small doubt related to conjugation.
Can we use i-adjective and na-adjective before Aida and Aida ni?
Hello Priyanka
Ah, good question.
Yes, you can use adjective with 間・間に if it’s clear when it starts and ends. (If not clear, you use うちは）
子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない。（うちは）
= Kodomo ga chiisai aida wa, shigoto ni iku koto ga dekinai.
(I can’t go work while my child is still young.)
外が明るい間に*帰りたい。(うちに）
= Soto ga akarui aida ni kaeritai.
(I want to go home before it’s get dark.)
Hi Maggie!
Small question(s) to that.
You said “If not clear, you use うちは”.
When would it be not clear? ２，３文例をおねがいします。
あと、”子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない” => can this also be translated as ” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?
Hello 天人
子供が小さいうちは・間は〜
The translation is the same. They both express certain period of time but technically 間は is used when the speaker has certain idea of the period of time when the child is still young. (Ex. 0 year ~ 5 year’s old )
朝8時から夕方5時の間は、水道が使えません。
（You don’t use うちは because it is clear the beginning/finishing time.）
Ex.温かいうちに食べてください。
Please eat/help yourself while it’s hot.
(It is not clear when it cools down so you don’t use 間に）
You also use うちに when you expect some kind of change.
Ex. 寒くならないうちに洗濯をしよう。
Perfect! Very well explained.
Thanks to you, Maggie, I can learn always something new. I’m proud you are my 先生 : )
There’s also a second question you didn’t probably notice.
“あと、”子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない” => can this also be translated as ” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?”
Sorry, 天人. I must have missed the question.
子供が小さい間は*、仕事に行くことができない
” Children cannot go to work when they are (still)young”?”
Hahaha 😂 possible but grammatically it should be 子供は小さい間は、仕事に行くことができない。 but everybody can assume the speaker is not children.
Wakarimashita. Arigatou gōzaimasu sensei :)
Dou itashimashite! 💕
I see! So, let me compare:
私たちが着くと講演はもう始まっていた -> In this sentence, ていた expressess a state that began before the と clause.
彼女が入ってきた時、私たちは食事を終えていました。->Here as well, ていた/ていました expressess a state that began before the 時 clause.
喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間に雨がやんでいた -> In this sentence, ていた expresses a state that began during the 間に clause.
I just find this different use of ていた a bit strange… But, maybe I should just accept that the combination 間に + ていた has this meaning you explained. After all, there are many things I find strange about Japanese 😂😂😂
As for the picture, I’m not sure it’s still useful in the light of what I just said, but if it is, please post it!
…and as always, thank you! 🙏
Oh great! I think you got the idea!!
So the difference is whether you see/describe the event/action as one point or a line
one point (→ 始まった・終えた・やんだ)
a line (→ 始まっていた・終えていた・やんでいた）. state
I wonder if this works…let me try..
☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️🌧🌧☁️☁️☁️
▶️—◀️
☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️
喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間、雨が止んでいた。
☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️☔️🌧🌧☁️☁️☁️
↑
☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️☕️
喫茶店でお茶を飲んでいる間、雨が止んだ。
彼女が入ってきた時、私たちは食事を終えていました。
🍔🌯🍜🍰☕️ ▶️————◀️
↑
👩
私たちが着くと講演はもう始まっていた
This one is hard to describe with emoji.
🎤 = 講演会
👟 = We are walking
🏫 = get to the place where they have a lecture.
🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤🎤
▶️——————◀️
👟👟👟🏫
Good old timelines always help… Thank you so much!
I especially appreciate the transition burger-> tacos -> noodles -> cake -> coffee… Best timeline ever! (I’m hungry now) 😂😂😂
You’re welcome! I was trying to draw a picture but maybe emoji is better than my picture. 😉
What’s the difference between とか and し?
Because as I know you can use とか multiple things.
Hi Eliza
Basically you use とか with noun or noun form of verbs.
When you list up multiple things,
I had sushi, hamburger and etc.
You can say
すしとかハンバーガーを食べた。
But you can’t use し
X すしし、ハンバーガーを食べた(wrong)
When you list up some quality of thing/person
Maggie is cute and sweet, you connect with し but not とか
マギーはかわいいし優しい。
Xマギーはかわいいとか優しい (wrong)
When you talk about what you do/did, you use し
I went to Tokyo and had sukiyaki.
東京に行ったしすきやきも食べた。
X 東京に行ったとか京都も行った。(wrong)
You’re so fast!
I thought that とか could be used with adjectives, nouns and verbs.
あぁ！ちょと難しい。
でもありがとうございます！
Maybe you want to go through my とか lesson. (Click here.)
Let me see if I understood…
とか is used to list nouns and verbs in the dictionary form.
While し is used to list adjectives and verbs (actions).
And both have the nuance of “there is something more that are not listed”.
Also し has the nuance of “not only, but also”
I think you got the general idea.
This may confuse you a little but there are exceptions.
You can use とか with adjectives when you quote
The nuance difference is
かわいいとかきれいとか言われる。 (People tell me I’m cute, beautiful and so on.)
かわいいし、きれいだと言われる。(People tell me I’m cute and also beautiful.)
OK! Thank you for your reply! And I’m so sorry to bother you with so many questions.
But, anyway, thank you for this lesson! =)
Not at all!!
I’m always here for you! ☺️
hello maggie-sensei! I have a good grasp on how くらい works but I saw the following sentence “この勢いに負けないくらい私も頑張るぞ～” and can’t quite figure out the usage of くらい if I were to translate that sentence. The context is that another person achieved something and this person said that. Thank you in advance!
Hello, rubemar junior,
負ける means “to lose”
負けないくらい is “(adjective) enough so that one won’t lose” →as good as ~ / as much as ~ / as (adjective) as ~~ and this くらい expresses the amount/degree of this power.
So I will try as hard as this power/energy.
こんにちは先生、質問してもいいんですか？
例文
1. 飲んだはずのミルクはなぜ冷蔵庫にまだ残っているんですか？
2. 飲まれた…(継続は1と同じです）
英語に翻訳したらどうになりますか？違いはありますか？
3. “高価なはずだったの時計がいま安くなりました。”
“The watch, that was supposed to be expensive, has now become cheaper.”
英語に翻訳したら
不正解になりますか？
お返事、よろしくお願いします。
こんにちは、Sassy
1. 飲んだはずのミルク”は” → 飲んだはずのミルク”が” is better but the sentence itself sounds a bit mysterious. Is that what you meant?
The milk that I thought I drank is still in the fridge.
2. 飲まれた (passive form “The mill that was drunk”) is not natural.
3. It is not natural to use “the watch which was supposed to be expensive has now become cheaper”
高価な時計が今は安くなっている。 will work.
If you want to use はず, how about the sentence like
高価なはずの時計がすぐに壊れた。
Thank you for the reply Maggie sensei
1. I was trying to say: ‘why does the milk that is supposed to be drunk(by someone) still remain in fridge ?’
2. In this case, i was trying to say :’Why does the milk that should have already been drunk still remain in the fridge?’
3. I understand. I tried so much to include hazu in a sentence. In this case I tried to combine it with だった but it appears I got it wrong hehe.
1 & 2
OK, in that case, you can say
飲んだはずのミルクがどうしてまだ冷蔵庫にあるの／残っているの？
but passive form is not natural X飲まれたミルク
分かりました。
先生、教えてくれてありがとう！
どういたしまして、Sassy!
Verb + tokoro kara … What is the means?
Thanks
Mata minna no gokai o toku tokoro kara,hajimenakya na no ka
Hello Haze
V (past or present) tokoro
That “tokoro” means “certain point of time” (when/the time)
Hello sensei,
May I use げ for writing also?
Yes, you can!
Thanks Maggie sensei !
A thousand of loves to Maggie sensei.
My best wishes for your happy Valentine day tomorrow (heart ^.<)
You’re very welcome! And Happy Valentine’s Day 2u2!! 💕💕
Hello again,
I made some sentences with げ by myself. Could you help me to check if I am wrong?
(1) I want to say ” She looks moderate but actually, she is so boastful”
彼女は謙虚げだけど、実はとっても自慢だ。
(2) Mom told me “Everything is OK” happily but her eyes told me differently.
お母さんは嬉しげに「大丈夫よ」と言ってましたが、彼女の目は別のことを言いました。
Thanks Maggie sensei:)
Good, you are practicing!
(1) “謙虚げ” is not so common, it will be better 謙虚そうにみえる
You do say 自慢げ but you may want to add more context (Ex. the way she talk about herself/her family,etc.)
彼女は謙虚そうにみえるけど(or が）、自分のことを話す時はいつも自慢げだ。
(2) Good. Just the last part, 彼女の目は、そうは言っていませんでした。
If you say 別のこと, it means some other thing.
ありがとうございました！助かります。どうも！
お役に立てればうれしいです。
Hello Maggie sensei,
Long time no see !
Thank you for this great lesson.
Could you tell me more about 何げない。
Is 何気ない顔 means a face look likes nothing happens.
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Hello
The translation of 何気ない changes depending on the context but 何気ない顔 means “nonchalant face”.
Hello 先生! Could you help me with the following sentence (from my textbook)?
ジロジロ見ないの！
To me, it seems like an imperative: “Don’t stare!” Am I correct? Also, is this female speech? Thanks!
Hi Davide,
That’s の has a function of emphasis and this form is often used when teachers or parents tell small children to do/not to do something as an imperative form.
It is possible for men (teacher/father) to use this form but you are right, women tend to use it more than men.
FYI, you also use の at the end of the sentence to make your point.
だから、後でやるって言ってるの！ I am telling you that I am going to do that later! (this speech pattern is for children or women)
I see. Thank you so much 先生 ! 😁😁
どういたしまして、Davide💖
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me correct mistake
I’m still confused about Verb before ように in the usage of “When you warn someone to do something or give someone an order.” And “When you wish for something”
So I have 2 quetions:
1, Is this correct if I use V in potential form in below examples?
Ex1. 帰ってくるまでに仕事を 終えておくように（して下さい。*/ しなさい。）
➡️ 終えられるように
Ex2. Ex. ２、３日安静にしているように（してください。*）
➡️ 日安静にすることができる
2, Is this correct if I use volitional verb (not volitional conjugating form) in below example?
Ex3. (私は) 母が (私に) 車を買ってくれるように願っている
どうもありがとうございます 🌷🌷🌷
ここの質問はマギーからの返事を待っていますよ。
マギー先生、よろしくお願いします＾＾
わあ〜天人教えてくれてありがとう！
質問見落としていました。
Dear Sarang
Sorry Sarang that it took me a long time to answer your question.
1, Is this correct if I use V in potential form in below examples?
Ex1. 帰ってくるまでに仕事を 終えておくように（して下さい。*/ しなさい。）
➡️ 終えられるように
Yes, you can say that. The nuance changes a little.
終えておくように = Finish your work (complete your work by the time I come back)
終えられるように = You have to be ready to be able to finish your work by the time I come back.
Ex2. Ex. ２、３日安静にしているように（してください。*）Keep quiet in bed
➡️ ２、３日安静にすることができる just expresses some possibility “to be able to stay in bed quietly.”
As for your question,
When you pray/wish for something you finish the sentence with
masu-form + ように
仕事を早く終えるように。 (giving an instruction)
仕事が早く終わりますように。(expressing one’s desire)
２、３日安静にしているように (giving an instruction)
2,3日安静にしていられますように。(wishing)
im new to the website. Please don’t stop posting continue! i find it very helpful!
Hai! Ganbarimasu! 😊
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I came across this sentence “お金は貸金庫に預けられて。それを奪い返すなんて。”
Which translate apparently to “Now that the money is in a safe-deposit box, there’s no way I can steal it back.” (it’s from a drama, I am not planning a burglary )
I don’t get why, as 奪い返す in this form simply mean “to get back” or “steal back”. I don’t get where the “no way” come from. Could this be due to なんて?
Hello,
You sometimes leave the sentence unfinished with なんて to express one’s emotions.
In this case, assuming from the translation, the following part would be
それを奪い返すなんて “できない／できるわけがない／絶対、無理だ。”.
Hi Maggie sensei!
I hope you don’t mind me asking a question on an old lesson! But I was wondering can you say 気がする without the ような in front of it? I’ve been watching a lesson on youtube and they are giving examples without it.
Thanks for all your great lessons! You are an awesome sensei!
Hello iluvfuzz,
Yes you can say both
〜ような気がする
〜気がする
The difference is ような adds more “vagueness”/”uncertainty”
マギー先生、こんにちは！
This has me a bit confused:
“…you can’t use it with any adjectives / verbs / nouns.”
But you just gave several examples of it with adj/verbs/nouns :-P
Perhaps you meant “many”?
Moving on…
“While you use ～そう ( = sou) for things, weather, climate, events, atmosphere, etc, you usually use ～げ ( = ge) to describe someone’s emotion, feelings or state. ”
So while we can’t use 寒げ to say it looks cold outside, can we still use it for emotion/feelings?
例: 彼女は寒げだ。(she looks cold i.e. unfeeling/indifferent)
Perhaps it should be 冷たげ instead? Or in this case are we restricted to using ～そう only? But whichever I use it sounds like she’s feeling cold instead of seeming indifferent. Maybe I’m using the wrong adjective.
Hello! ☺️
Sorry to make you confused. What I meant was “You can’t use it with all the adjectives / verbs / nouns.” Only certain adjectives / verbs / nouns and I showed you the common ones in this lesson.
(I fixed the explanation.)
As for your second question,
you say 冷たげ or 冷たそう for one’s personality.
勉強になりました！教えてありがとうございました。
いえいえ〜U^ェ^U
Hi Maggie,
Thanks for this lesson. I have a couple of curious things I wanted to ask. Since, the pattern for using this grammar is always せっかく(=sekkaku) + reason + （だ）から, does this mean that we must always add ん (or の) to the end of the verb?
So for example, せっかく大阪まで来たんだから京都まで行こうよ。
We cannot say せっかく大阪まで来ただから京都まで行こうよ since “来ただ” is wrong grammar, right? Or we can simply remove だ altogether and say せっかく大阪まで来たから京都まで行こうよ。
Secondly, in the example sentence せっかくこうしてみんなが集まったのだからお酒でも飲みに行こうよ。
I am a bit confused about the particle でも after 酒…
From what I understand the particle I usually use would be を.
As in, 酒を飲みに行こう
What is the purpose of でも here?
Hi Dennis,
Good questions,
You can say せっかく〜から
せっかく大阪まで来たから京都まで行こう
来たのだから /来たんだから sounds more explanatory emphasizing the reason why you should go to Kyoto.
お酒でも
This でも has a function to soften the speech.
お酒を飲みに行こう = Let’s have Sake. (specifically sake)
お酒でも飲みに行こう doesn’t specify what you drink. Sake and such/ something like sake
Thanks for the great explanation, I fully understand it now!
Great! I’m glad to hear it’s clear now. :)
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
I’m currently stuck trying to figure out whether “スリルさえ味方にして魂が求めるまま!” is “A friend makes the soul desire even a thrill!” or if まま changes the connotation a bit, especially being connected to 求める!
Thank you for taking the time to read!
Hi N,
“スリルさえ味方にして (having even “thrill” on one’s side) modifies 魂が求めるままに （As my soul desires）
Hello, Maggie-sensei! Thank you for this and all of your other lessons, and especially for responding to user questions.
I recently came across this following sentiment:
彼は怒ってるくらいでちょうどいい
I am wondering if this くらい is being used similar to verb A + くらいなら verb Bの方がいい (better for him to be angry than to be ), or if it’s くらい in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)?
I’m an aspiring translator who has been learning Japanese for ten years, but Maggie-sensei’s posts are a resource I always come back to. (就職できると、パトロンになるつもりですよ。約束します！)
*better for him to be angry than to be [something else]
^ originally the brackets were angle brackets, which got hidden as HTML.
Hi エリ！ Happy to hear you have been using my site!
Q: I am wondering if this くらい is being used similar to verb A + くらいなら verb Bの方がいい (better for him to be angry than to be ), or if it’s くらい in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)?
→The later. in the sense of amount (he is currently the right (ちょうどいい) amount of angry)
I can’t imagine the context but for example, it matches to his personality or something.
Haha! Perfect. どうもありがとうございました！
どういたしまして💕
I knew tokuige before and was a bit puzzled so this explains everything. Thank you! In the example for urayamashige is the kanji for ittara a typo?
Hi Adrian,
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. You are right. It should be 言ったら
ありがとう！
Im confused by this example
Ex. 今日になってもまだ息子から連絡がない。
= Kyou ni natte mo mada musuko kara renraku ga nai.
= I haven’t heard from my son until today.
Could you explain why it means what it does
I think what you don’t get is the expression 今日になっても
In Japanese, when the certain time comes, there is an expression
(time related word)+ になる
明日になる
３時になる
来年になる
The literal meaning is the time (day/time/year 日付／時間／年が) turn(ed) （になる）
So this sentence’s literal meaning is
今日になってもまだ息子から連絡がない。
Although/Even though the day/date turned today, I haven’t heard anything from my son.
→I haven’t heard from my son until today.
But doesn’t until today mean you heard something from your son?
Ahh now I see the problem. You are right.Sorry. I will change the translation.
It might be unnatural English sentence but it means “My son has not contacted me even today.”
(→ I can’t believe it’s today and he still hasn’t contacted me.)
So happy to see a new post! Thank you so much for the lesson! ヽ(^o^)ノ
Hi Vivi!
Thank you for your comment. お待たせしました💕
My girlfriend wrote this to me, and it seems like a different use of のに than you’ve discussed：
わかった。なにも変わらないのに話す必要はないね。
I think this means, “If nothing will change, there’s no point in talking。”
But it seems like から or 変らなかったら or something would fit better. Is のに acting like から in this sentence?
I appreciate you and your site!
のに means “though/even though” but in this case, “anyway” works.
Here’s the nuance difference:
変わらなかったら If nothings changes (after trying something)
変わらないから We don’t need to talk because nothing will change. (to give a reason why there is no need to talk)
変わらないのに We don’t need to talk. Nothing will change anyway.
I hope you are not fighting with your girlfriend. 😉
Hello Maggie sensei,
Can I say the following 2 sentences with そう・よう
A:教室に電気がついているよ
B1:だれがいるようですね
B2:だれがいそうですね。
Then, when going with verb, could you teach me more which case verb is OK only with そう and which case verb is only OK with よう。
Thank you sensei as always!
Hello, 元気？
(Small mistake: だれが→だれか）
They are both possible but B1 is more natural.
The difference is the speaker is more certain in B1.
B1: I think someone is in the classroom.
B2: I’m not sure but it is possible that someone is in the classroom.
Hello Maggie sensei,
はい、元気です。
Thank you for helping me that point.
Could you show me more about the case that only よう is possible but そう is impossible please !
I am unable to categorize them.
Thanks Maggie sensei for always being kind !
OK, for example, you say
When you want to say “It looks like ~ ” (assumption), you can use よう with a past tense but you can’t use そう with a past tense.
It looks like someone was in the classroom.
誰かここにいたようだ。 or いたみたいだ
But if you say
誰かここにいたそうだ it means I heard someone was here.
verb past tense + そう is only used to quote what you have heard/read from someone.
Wowwww….Thanks Maggie sensei a lot.
どうもありがとうございました！
どういたしまして！
wow sensei…. I’v learn lots about aisatsu… Thank you very much ….
GREAT!!! 😊 I’m glad to hear you learned something from this lesson!
Another very useful lesson, thanks a lot Maggie-sensei! With this lesson alone under my belt, I understand anime a lot better!
May I aks a question about one of your example sentences? It’s
Ex. 俺、そんなことやってねえし。(I didn’t do such a thing)
From my understanding, やってねえし is from やってないし, with し being used emphatically and やって(い)ない being the negative form of やっている. But, why is the non-past tense used here, if the action is about the past?
Hello @Davide Bordoni,
～ている／～ていない have many meanings. In this case – depending on context – the speaker might refer to his/her habits (he/she generally doesn’t do such kind of things) or the speaker uses ～ていない as 現在完了形, which is in English translated as: “haven’t done something yet”. More probably he refers to the first aspect.
For further information please check the lessons below:
1) http://142.93.68.150/2015/05/12/japanese-verb-tense-part-1-present-future/
2) http://142.93.68.150/2015/05/20/verb-tense-part-2-past-tense/
ヨロシク
@Davide @天人
Sorry, Davide. I just saw your question. Luckily 天人 answered your question. Thank you 天人 for helping Davide.
No worries Maggie-sensei, and thanks again for this great lesson!
U^ェ^U 💕💕💕
Thanks 天人, I really appreciate that! I get it now
Good day, Maggie sensei.
Is there a difference between た+ところ and
た+ ばかり ?
isn’t that both are translated to “Just did something” ?
Hi lemon,
They are interchangeable when you talking about the action which someone just did.
I just came back home now/a little while ago.
今、／さっき + 帰ったところです。
今、／さっき + 帰ったばかりです。
But when you use ところ with time related word which describes the past
I just went to Japan last year.
日本には昨年行ったばかりです。
X 日本には昨年行ったところです。
Also when you describe something you just did something, you can’t use ところ
The word that you just learned/memorized
覚えたばかりの言葉
X 覚えたところの言葉
Thank you, Maggie sensei :D
Your site is always helpful for my studies.
More Power :D
Hi MaggieSensei,
This is my first comment. I found this sentence 「放課後の予定を埋めるように習い事がある」and wanted to ask what is the 用法 for the 「ように」in this case?
It’s clearly not the “1) to do something ~ in order to do ~ / so that ~ / in such a way ~” usage.
Is it similar to the usage in ”楽しんでいるように見えた”?
It also seems very similar to 「ほど」since the sentence can be changed to 「放課後の予定が埋まるほど習い事がある」
Hi stephen,
The usage of that ように is “in order to / so that..(reason/ purpose) ”
The purpose/reason of 習い事 is to fill out the time after the school.
Thank you for your input MaggieSensei.
Interesting, i’m not thoroughly convinced yet.
Wouldn’t ために be a better use case if it was “in order to/(reason/purpose)?
「放課後の予定を埋めるために習い事がある」
or
changing 埋める to the intransitive
「放課後の予定が埋まるように習い事がある」
I’m starting to think ように might have some other usage instead.
「放課後の予定を埋めるように習い事がある」
Good!
埋まる is to be filled by itself (You don’t control)
When you control something, you use ために but you have to use 埋まる
It might be easier to think
埋めるために in order to
埋まるために so that (as a result) focusing on the consequence
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you so much for this really useful lesson!!
I have one question: in the lesson you used 彼が私のことを好きだなんて, but why is there the を particle when the verb is だ/です?
Hi David,
When you say
He likes me,
彼は私のことが好きです。
or you also say
彼は私のことを好きです。
が is more common with 好き but since there is already が after 彼 （彼が）, you tend to avoid the same particle が and use を to make it sound more natural.
ありがとうございます！ :D :D
どういたしまして！
Hi Maggie 先生!
You said that saying 彼は優しいような人ですis wrong, while 彼は優しそうです is right. I’m trying to understand, and hopefully I’ve come to the right conclusion!
Is it because it’s actually not a conjecture like 「あの男の人が友達の仕事を手伝ったって聞いた。彼は優しいようだ」or 「Sallyが来てDaveは嬉しいようだ」but is instead trying to use this pattern:
「夢」のような「話」
「猫」のような「かわいい動物」
and therefore, because you can’t say that a person/noun “is like” an adjective,「優しい」ような「人」doesn’t make sense?
So I can’t say something like 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱいようなオレンジでした (because ex. I saw her wrinkling her face as she ate) BUT I can say 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱいようでした or 彼女が昨日食べていたオレンジは酸っぱそうでした (because ex. I saw how green the orange looked)?
Please let me know if I got it right! Thank you!
Hi Paige,
Yes, I think you got the idea. :)
If you say 優しいような人 it sounds like “a person like sweet” in English and it doesn’t make sense.
Hello again,
Sensei, can I say：
（１）病気になれば帰ります。
（２）医者になれば人を救いに行きます。
Thanks sensei so much.
Hi again,
Sorry. I don’t have much time right now so I will make it short.
They both don’t sound natural.
病気になったら〜 is better for the same reason that I wrote (3) x 3時になればおやつを食べよう
帰ります express one’s will.
医者になったら〜 is better
医者になれば you have to express what kind of outcomes you will have
医者になれば多くの人が救える
Maggie sensei,
いろいろありがとうございました！
はい、分かりましたよ！
よかった〜！ 🐶
Hello Maggie sensei,
So, when we want to ask for an advice, we can use both どうしたら いいですか,
and どうすればいいですか ?
Since the grammar has 4 similar points nara/to/ba/tara, so I want to confirm
Do we have such saying?
(a) どうするといいですか？
(b) どうするならいいですか？
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Hi,
(a) どうするといいですか？
(b) どうするならいいですか？
They are both unnatural.
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for this great lesson aboutなら。
I am a test in my textbook about nara and I have an unclear point. Could you help me this point?
新しいカメラを（(1)買ったら・(2)買うなら）,見せてください。
I choose both (1) and (2) but my textbook says only (1) is correct.
I think なら can be used to make a request, and it’s OK to go with ～ください.
But why this sentence can not be OK with nara , sensei ?
Dear Frozenheart
Right. It should be
新しいカメラを買ったら見せてください。
買うなら／買ったら both could be translated “If you buy a new camera/When you buy a new camera” but
買うなら focusing on the time when someone buys a camera – before buying the camera
買ったら focusing on the time when someone already bought a camera – after buying new camera
So in order to figure out which one to use, you have to pay attention to what comes after.
見せてください means “Show it (the new camera) to me”, so you can only show the camera after buying it (買ったら）
If you talk to someone who is thinking about buying a camera (before buying a camera, you use 買うなら）
(suggestion or giving a condition when someone buy a new camera)
Ex. 新しいカメラを買うなら〇〇カメラ店で買った方がいいですよ。
Ex. 新しいカメラを買うなら私の携帯も買って。
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Oh it’s more difficult than I thought.
If so, may I replace this examples with たら sensei?
(1) 答えを知っているのなら教えてよ。
ｰ> 答えを知ったら教えてよ。
=After you know the answer, tell me
I think we can only teach someone something after we already know the answer.
But… I also still don’t understand why なら is OK for this situation …
Really appreciate Maggie sensei’s help.
The tense is different.
行くなら= dictionary form + なら talking about future
Vているなら = If you are in the state,
(1) 答えを知っているのなら教えてよ。
If you already know the answer, let me know.
(知っている is the state of knowing the answer.)
答えを知ったら教えてよ。
is grammatically wrong. 知る is one of the irregular verbs.
答えがわかったら教えてよ。 = If you find out what the answer is, let me know.
As for the verb 知る, I am going to make a lesson in near future so please wait.
ありがとうございました！
例外が多いので、難しいです。。。。
どういたしまして！
Can you please explain the difference in nuance between さえand もwhen used in an interchangeable context (子供でも出来る/子供でさえ出来る=Even a child can do).
Hi Nimanyu
They both mean “even a child” but さえも is much stronger than でも
EVEN a child (さえも） emphasizing the following action is so easy to do.
Thank you for the reply sensei :)
So I understood we can combine さえ and も to make them stronger.
But I am still confused of the difference in nuance of using only も and only さえ when each of them is used alone, like 走ることもできる・走ることさえできる.
走ることもできる ~ can also run. (It is simply listing what ~ can do. ~ can do one thing and also run.
走ることさえできる. ~ can even run. (So on top of being able to do something else or other good features, ~ can even run.)
わかりました！:)
ありがとうございました
よかった！ どういたしまして☺️
Nice writing! I have a question.
While you have mentioned using じゃない(ですか) and ではない for positive meanings, is it also fine to use ではありません(without か) for the same purpose?
Hello Mr.rM!
Is it also fine to use ではありません(without か) for the same purpose?
→ No, you need か
Ex. いいではありませんか。
Wow, you answer questions so quickly. I always love reading your articles. May I ask what いいではありません would mean in Japanese? Or is it just bad grammar?
Hi 栗子
As I answered to Mr.rM., it only works いいではありません”か”.
If it’s just いいではありません。 , it’s a grammatically wrong sentence.
It should be よくありません。
Hi, Maggie sensei! You’re awesome.
I want to ask you if 雌豹の目 is an expression and what would be its meaning? Thank you very much.
Hi Bere,
雌豹(or 女豹） is often used to describe a strong, aggressive and sexy woman.
So the way she looks is bold and sexy.
Maggie-sensei,
I have one more question related to っぱなし
Is there any category of verb which is not OK for っぱなし？
As I review your lesson, I find 降りますis not OK.
But still I can not have an overview image of this type of verb which is not OK.
Could you help me this point?
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Ah, you must have seen my reply to someone who asked me if we can say 降りっぱなし below.
(My reply: It is one of the example sentences in a published textbook and people do say that in conversation. (However, I might say 最近は雨が降ってばかりいる.)
The most common verbs are the ones with physical actions or state.
開ける
つける
行く
立つ
座る
食べる, etc.
Sensei,
Sorry, I just have a small question.
The most common verbs that Maggie sense taught me like 開ける、つける、etc are the verb normally impossible to go with っぱなし、are n’t hey?
Thanks Maggie sensei so much :)
The verbs that I listed 開ける, つける etc. are the common ones “with” っぱなし.
ありがとうございました！
Maggie sensei, you know at first I think ppanashi is easy to understand. But after thinking it over, I find it’s quite hard for me. Want to share it with you.
About the verb like 脱ぎます、食べます, I find it’s still hard for me to imagine the situation when those verbs go with っぱなし。
（１）靴を脱ぎっぱなし.
~っぱなし is leave something ~(in a certain state) .
So when reading this sentence, the first thing coming into my mind is
“Some one leaves the state of not wearing for a while”
= He does not wear shoes for a while @@
The meaning “Some one takes off shoes and leaves it on the floor”, especially “to leave it on the floor’ is hard to imagine (to me).
(2) 食べっぱなし
Similarly, I apply the meaning of っぱなし to this sentence, and it comes as”
” I keep eating eating without stopping”
It’s hard for me to reach the meaning of “Maggie ate some food and left the bowl without putting away” .
Please do some magic to my case, Maggie sensei !!!!
OK, let me explain again.
ぱなし is not quite keep doing some actions. After doing something, you leave the way it is.
（１）靴を脱ぎっぱなし.
You take off your shoes and leave them without putting them away. (You know you have to take off your shoes when you enter the house, right?)
(2) 食べっぱなし
After you finish eating, you don’t put the plates away, wash the dishes leaving the mess on the table.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for ppanashi lesson. Really useful
I am making a sentence by myself. Could you check if I am abusing ppanashi :)
君のことが思い出しっぱなし。
I want to say I keep missing you (can not stop).
Is it OK to use っぱなし？
Besides,
Is っぱんし here replaceable with まま？
君のことが思い出しまま。
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Hello,
First the particle is を
君のことを思い出す
Though some people say 思い出しっぱなし in very casual conversation, you don’t usually use ぱなし or まま with 思い出す。
思い出してばかり is more natural.
ありがとうございました！！！
🐶❤️
Hello!
I am working on a translation project for my friends and I just discovered your website. It is so very helpful!
There are so many little parts of speaking a language that they don’t teach you in school, so it’s easy to become lost when you’re reading “real”, informal text.
Your explanations have saved me several times. I am learning so much! Thank you for the time and effort you have put into making these lessons.
心からありがとうございます！m(_ _)m
Hello, Nat!
Thank you for your comment. I am so happy to hear you are learning real Japanese from this site.
What does ‘戻りかけている’ mean?
“ぼくは、半分眠りのせかいに戻りかけている佑司の手を取ってアパートをでた。”
Please replace せかい and でた with 世界 and 出た respectively。
OK, the literal meaning is “has started to go back to the world of sleep” which means the person is falling asleep.
Maggie sensei, can I use ではないと instead of でないと when the precedent word is a ナ形容詞 or a 名詞?
Like, is「りっぱな刀ではないとあの人を倒せません」gramatically correct?
Moreover, is the comma that may comes after と purely optional?
My first impression is
でないと・じゃないと is more natural but I guess it is possible. When you emphasize what comes before, in this case, りっぱな刀, you use では
You can write it with 点(comma) or without 点
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson as always !
I understand the wakedehanai and wakeganai now.
By the way, is there any difference between わけではない&わけがない sensei?
Sorry Maggie sensei,
I’m making a typo in my question (because too tired
I would like to correct my question.
———
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson as always !
I understand the wakedehanai and wakeganai now.
By the way, is there any difference between わけではない&とは限らない sensei?
Hello again,
わけではない & とは限らない are very similar and they can be interchangeable
高い料理がすべて美味しい（という）わけではない
= 高い料理がすべて美味しいとは限らない。
You can’t use とは限らない in the usage 2) and 3)
2) When you deny some expected reason subtly.
~マギーが悪いわけではない (It is denying it is not Maggie’s fault)
3) When you want to explain a reason subtly : It is not like~
Ex. マギーのことが嫌いになったわけではないよ。 (The speaker is denying it is not because he doesn’t like Maggie.)
If you use とは限らない、it changes the nuance.
マギーが悪いとは限らない (It is based on the idea that Maggie’s fault but it could be not true.)
マギーのことが嫌いになったとは限らない (It is based on the idea that the person doesn’t like Maggie but it could be not true.)
Maggie sensei is amazing !
How can you be such like that ….
どうもありがとうございました！
U^ェ^U 💕
Hey Maggie sensei,
Is it possible to conjugate やすい・にくい into the past tense?
Hi Synthia
Yes, 〜やすかった・〜にくかった
食べやすかった
食べにくかった
マギー先生、
ちょっと手伝ってもらえますか。
「なかなか」と「結構」の違いは、何かと教えてもらえますか。また、「なかなか」が使えない例を挙げように願ってもいいですか。
なかなか・結構
OK, a lot of time, they are interchangeable.
“pretty/ fairly”
It’s pretty delicious.
= なかなかおいしい
= 結構おいしい
It’s pretty difficult.
= なかなか難しい
= 結構難しい
It took me longer time than I had expected.
=なかなか時間がかかった
=結構時間がかかった
But the usage 4) なかなか+ verb negative form
なかなか減らない
仕事がなかなかはかどらない
風邪がなかなか治らない
なかなかいない, etc.
You don’t use 結構
Also the conditional form
~たらなかなかなもの
You don’t say たら結構なものだ
Ah, sensei,
While reviewing the ppoi grammar, I found 1 question I raised before but still Maggie sensei ignored me (crying …).
Please don’t ignore me this time :)
If I did something bad, please forgive me , hahahaha
————-
My next question is can we describe a person as animal-like (means this person is aggressive, easy-to-fight, etc) by あの人は動物っぽい.
Or, someone is dog-like (It’s just a question for the lesson,please forgive me if you dont feel comfortable with this example) by 犬っぽい。
I understand in colloquial language, it’s OK to use. But… Is it grammatically correct?
Thanks Maggie sensei.
I am so sorry that I didn’t answer your question. I didn’t meant to ignore you. ごめんね！
I remember I read your comment but I guess I was going to answer you later after fetching a ball or something.
Yes, you say/hear that 動物っぽい・犬っぽい in conversation.
Ex. 動物っぽい動き
Ex. 行動が犬っぽい
(However, 動物みたい・犬のようだ might be better when you speak with your real human Japanese teacher in your class.)
Thank you Maggie sensei (from my heart) :)
I’m just kidding. Don’t be serious.
Always love Maggie sensei :)
Love you,too! 🐶💝
Hello Maggie sensei and hello Monday,
Could you help me this point?
The color itself has many tones, like strong pink, normal pink, slight pink.
When っぽい goes with color like ピンクっぽい = pinkish, what is the tone of this pink? I guess it’s strong pink but is it correct?
If ピンクっぽい is strong pink then is there any suffix to make pink slight pink?
Thanks Maggie sensei and enjoy a new week !
Hello Frozenheart!
I wouldn’t say “strong” pink. It is rather slightly pink but it depends on what you describe and what comes after ピンクっぽい
For example ピンクっぽい赤、ピンクっぽい肌,etc.
I think the idea is the same as “pinkish” in English.
Hello Maggie Sensei. It is always a pleasure to read your posts, totemo omoshiroi desu!
I have a doubt: here you showed the grammar of “koto ga aru” related to experience.
Please, could you explain when it is used in the way of “sometimes”, expressing occasion and do on?
If so, am I asking too much for explaining the difference between “koto ga aru” and “koto mo aru”?
Thanks!
TomRibas
Hello, TomRibas,
I have a lesson on “sometimes happens” Click here.
Verb past tense ＋ことがある = talking about one’s experiences
Verb present tense / adjective + ことがある = sometimes ~
Thanks so much!
I was looking for a lesson like that!
Again, great lesson!
どうもありがとう。
どういたしまして、TomRibas! ☺️
先生！「コメントをいれて」って言えますか？
はい、言えます。ライブ動画などによく使いますよ。
ブログとかだと「コメント書いて」も使います。
答えてくれてありがとうございます！ ^_^
どういたしまして。
いつでもコメントくださいね。
Hi Maggie,
おさしぶりです。
I have seen the expression 楽しみに quite a few times when someone says they are looking forward to something. I am curious that in your example sentence, you also use 楽しみ, but you leave out the に.
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
I am looking forward to the date next week.
What is the difference between having the に and leaving it out?
Hi Dennis,
Ex. 来週のデートが楽しみだ。
In this 楽しみ is a noun so you don’t use に
When you translate they are both “to look forward to ~” but here is the grammatical difference
楽しみ ( = noun) + だ／です
楽しみに ( = adverb) + verb (Ex. 楽しみにしています／楽しみにしてください。）
I see! Different nuances but in English it’s “looking forward to”. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
先生の授業が非常に好きでございます！毎日拝見できるなら、幸いだと思いております。心よりありがとうございます！！！！！
John様
ご丁寧なコメントありがとうございます。😆
Hello Maggie sensei,
What is the difference between “Hazunanoni” and “Hazudatta”
To be more specific, what is the difference between
(1) ここに財布を置いておいたはずなのに。。。。
And
(2) ここに財布を置くはずだった。。。
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Hello,
See the nuance difference?
(1) ここに財布を置いておいたはずなのに
I thought I put my wallet here (but it’s not here/It’s gone. I wonder why it’s not here..)
(2) ここに財布を置くはずだった
I was supposed to put the wallet here but I didn’t.
Oops…it’s difficult. I can not understand!
But thanks for answer.
OK, let me add
(1) emphasizes the fact that the wallet is missing
(2) emphasizes the regret or duty that you had to put the wallet but you didn’t.
Hello ,
Thanks for adding more explanation.
I think I am getting your point.
But, is it はずだった is similar with つもりだった？
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
先生
How do you use ~すぎる with 〜する？
〜しすぎる？ 〜しなさすぎる
Is that correct? And do you use that often?
I know you often use 〜やる with 〜すぎる
〜やりすぎる (〜勉強をやりすぎた)
What are the differences in meanings between these examples? Are they all correct depending on context?
〜 勉強しすぎた
〜 勉強すぎた
〜 勉強をすぎた / 〜 勉強をやりすぎた
Hi Reuben
する→しすぎる／しなさすぎる
やる→やりすぎる／やらなさすぎる
（やる is more casual than する)
1) 勉強をする→勉強をしすぎた
2) 勉強する→勉強しすぎた
They both mean the same “to study too much”.
〜 勉強しすぎた OK
〜 勉強すぎた wrong
〜 勉強をすぎた wrong / 〜 勉強をやりすぎた OK
1) 勉強（object) + を (= object marker) + する (the main verb)
2) 勉強する is one verb. (You never say 勉強やる）
先生
Thank you so very much. Textbooks/Online blogs all explain ~すぎる very well and I understand it clearly, but they never include an example with ~する. This has been very very helpful. Thank you again!
Anytime! I should have added the information as well.
Oops! Just one last thing
〜 勉強をすぎた wrong
I meant to write this, I made a typo!
〜 勉強をしすぎた
Thank you so much.
Ah, OK,
勉強をしすぎた is OK👌
This is super useful!Thank you so much.
Glad to hear that!
My sensei,
What is the difference between どれだけ・どれほど・どれくらい
They sound the same to me !!!!
When you are talking about the degree
Ex. 彼のこと、どれだけ／どれほど／どれくらい好きなの？
= How much do you like him?
(They are interchangeable: だけ/ぐらい sounds a little more casual than ほど）
You don’t use どれほど when you talk about time/amount, quantity
Ex. How long you have been waiting? (Asking about the time)
= どれぐらい待っていますか？／待ってるの？ （Xどれほど）
(Pouring some beer)
Ex. ビール、どれだけ／どれくらいいる？
= How much beer do you want?（Xどれほど）
Oh my God, it’s clear now!!!
Thank you sensei
よかった〜☺️
Hi, I find your web really helpful, thanks.
After reading this article I wonder, in 別の本も見せてください, is the particle mo used for emphasis?
Thanks!
Hello acr,
That も means “also”
Can I “also” see another book please?
Thank you so much Maggie sensei, I saw an interesting case of adverb + sugiru. It’s a sentence from 「ノルウェイの森」：
あまりにも克明な地図が、克明にすぎて時として役に立たないの… (I’m omitting the rest of the sentence.)
What’s going on with 克明にすぎて? Shouldn’t it just be 克明すぎて, Since 克明 is a na-adjective?
Thank you so much!
Yes, it should be 克明すぎて
I have never seen that usage but I guess it’s his style or literal way to write.
ありがとうごうざいます！
Hello Maggie sensei,
As for the sentence in the song “In the end” like：
“I tried so hard and got so far, but in the end it does n’t even matter” 。
Which grammar to use to express the “in the end” here?
Is it あげく or 末？
努力して遠くまで行ったあげく、何もない。
努力して遠くまで言った末、何もない。
I would use 結局 for “in the end”
がんばって・努力して・苦労してここまで来たが、結局（は）そんなことはどうでもいい。
Thanks Maggie sensei,
Why あげく and 末 are not OK sensei?
Hello Maggie sensei,
Is the usage of せっかく～たのに、～ similar with the usage of ～あげく？
せっかく彼に会いに彼の家まで来たのに外出中だった。
Is it possible to rewrite to
彼に会いに彼の家まで来たあげく、外出中だった。
Hello,
せっかく彼に会いに彼の家まで来たのに外出中だった。is OK. By using せっかく, you can express the nuance of “all the way / spending all your time”
but 彼に会いに彼の家まで来たあげく、外出中だった。 needs more context.
You use あげく in the context of after all the work, you ended up being in certain situation, but if you just read the first sentence, 彼に会いに彼の家まで来た is just one time action and you can’t tell why it is a big deal.
Also there are some exceptions but you usually use あげく when the subject in the first and the second sentence are the same.
彼に会いに彼の家まで来た (The subject is a writer/speaker)
外出中だった (The subject is 彼）
Wow…your explanation is wonderful !!!
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Never been clear to me until you !
Maggie sensei,
Happy New Year!
I am making a New year reflection and I see that I am using a lot of べきだった…
That makes a question floating in my head.
Is べきだった only used for the first person (I) since it has some reflection meaning.
Is べきだった used for the other person also?
Happy New Year!!
You can use べきだった for someone else, too.
もっと彼女に優しくしてあげるべきだったね。
You should have been nicer to her.
彼はもっと努力をするべきだったと思う。
He should have tried harder.
Maggie san, thank you so much for the lyrics and the excellent explanation. I was looking for this song just after I saw the movie (filmed in 2011) and it made me cry.
What a great song and a great movie as well!
Thank you for your comment. I love this song,too!! ❤️
Do you say “Gochisou sama deshita.”to who are sitting with or the workers?
Hello Jessica,
You say gochisousama deshita to the person who treated you, cooked for you.
It is not mandatory but you can also say gochisousama to the people who work for the restaurants/coffee shop.
Hello Maggie sensei!
I have a question about “what a” part of the lesson. You mad these examples:
Nante tsumranai hon nandarou.
Nante tabekata wo surun desu ka!
Kare wa nante uta ga umain darou!
Nante utsukushii inu nan deshou.
Nante subarashii sensei nandeshou!
Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan darou to omoimashita.
What’s the rule about the verb? Should I always use “darou/deshou”?
(plus, why “surun desu ka” that time?, and why do you put “nan” in front of the verb?)
I explain better, would those sentences be correct if I’d written them like this:
Nante tsumranai hon desu.
Nante tabekata wo surun desu!
Kare wa nante uta ga umain desu!
Nante utsukushii inu desu.
Nante subarashii sensei desu!
Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan desu to omoimashita.
Thank you for your patience, Maggie sensei.
Hi Massimiliano,
Nante ~ darou/deshou is a bit dramatic way to express your strong emotions.(Ex. when you are moved, surprised, angry, etc.)
you can also use the pattern
Nante ~ da!
Ex. Nante hito deshou (polite/sounds a bit feminine)
→(more casual) Nante hito darou!
→(more casual) Nante hito da!
The following sentences are not natural because you don’t finish this patter with です
X Nante tsumranai hon desu.
X Nante tabekata wo surun desu!
X Kare wa nante uta ga umain desu!
X Nante utsukushii inu desu.
X Nante subarashii sensei desu!
X Saisho ni atta toki nante kawaii onnanoko nan desu to omoimashita.
Ah maybe it was confusing to put surun desu ka there but the difference between “darou” and “surun desu ka” is
Ex. なんて食べ方をするんだろう (You are talking to yourself)
Ex. なんて食べ方をするんですか! (You are complaining to someone with accusing tone. )
Thank you so much for your lesson, Maggie sensei. マギー先生のウェブサイトは、僕の日本語の勉強の一番の行き先です。(You are my no.1 destination in learning Japanese–did I say it right?)
I’m reading 「ノルウェーの森」to learn Japanese, and I came across the construction “adverb (ending in と) + する”. I’d like to understand what it means and what’s going on in terms of grammar. Here are some examples:
１：”のっぺりとした”空港
２：それらはあまりにも”くっきりとしている”ので、手を伸ばせば一つ一つ指でなぞれそうな気がするくらいだ。（Your lessons on “くらい” and “potential form+そう” helped me understand the second part.）
３：”さらりとした”手触りのまっすぐな綺麗な髪
It seems like adverb+suru means “being something”. I assume のっぺりとした ＝ being smooth, and くっきりとしている = being clear. Is that right?
Thank you so much!
Hi Jing,
いつもこのサイトを使ってくれてありがとう！
（You can also say 日本語の勉強をするときは、真っ先にこのサイトに来ます。）
のっぺり・くっきり・さらり are mimetic words. You modify a noun with these mimetic words with とした
(onomatopoeia or mimetic words) と + した + noun
You use this form to describe the condition of the noun which comes after.
のっぺりと
FYI When you modify a verb,
(onomatopoeia or mimetic words) と + verb
Ex. くっきりと線を描く to draw a line clearly.
Ex. さらりと言う to say things without hesitation/nonchalantly
Thank you so much Maggie sensei, this solves everything!
You’re welcome! 😊
明けましておめでとうございます。
今年もよろしくお願いします！;-)
明けましておめでとうございます！！ ２０１９年が素晴らしい年になりますように！！
Hi maggie sensei,
There is this book that I am currently reading. One part of the sentence goes like this :
“愚痴を吐くも、その言葉に覇気はない.”
what does the も in 吐くも means? “also”?
Hi
verb dictionary + も = even if/though ~
愚痴を吐いても→(more literal) 愚痴を吐くも
Hello, Maggie! Thanks a lot for such a detailed lesson!
My pleasure!! Hope you learn something. 😊
Hi maggi sensei, if I were to want to say, learning/studying Japanese is a little difficult but I think it’s fun, would the following be correct? (Please go easy on me I haven’t learnt kanji yet)
Nihongo wo benkyou wa chotto muzukashii desu kedo tanoshii to omoimasu!
Hi Joe,
Almost!
You can say either
Nihongo no benkyou wa ~ (the rest is fine)
or
Nihongo wo benkyou suru no wa (the rest is fine)
先生、授業をありがとうございます。
I came across a sentence that goes like “あたたかくしていきましょう” and I guess this means “let’s keep warm” but how is it different from “あたたかくしましょ”？
and can this be used for any kind of sentence for example “頑張って行きましょう” instead of “頑張りましょう”？
Thanks in advance.
Hi Maintoos,
There are two interpretation of that kind of あたたかくして行く
1) to go somewhere keeping warm (Put some warm clothes and go out somewhere)
2) to spend the time keeping warm (So you are not actually going anywhere) *the same as がんばっていきましょう
I believe it is the same thing in English.
Let’s get going doing our best/keeping warm.
Maggie sensei,
I have question about this usage of どころではない
Ex. あの先生はすばらしい先生だ。マギー先生どころではない。
= That teacher is great. He is nothing like Maggie Sensei.
Is the hint of dokorodehanai is “He is so great,Maggie is not great” Or
He is so great but Maggie is greater?
But to me, Maggie is greater :))
Hello!
That means the teacher is much better than me and there is no comparison. lol
マギー先生、こんばんは、こんばんは＼(^o^)／
いつも役に立つレッスンを作ってくださりありがとうございます。
１つ質問させてください!
彼女は料理ができないどころか卵さえ割れない。
Far from being able to cook, she can’t even crack an egg.
どうして『料理ができるどころか』ではないの？
英語訳は being able to cook なのに？
なんか。。おかしい質問ですよねｗｗｗ
Hi Maggie sensei! Thanks for the lesson :) I came here because I had questions from an answer you wrote me and I was hoping I’d find the answer here! I didn’t but I have another question instead if you don’t mind!! 😖
Passive form means something is being done to the speaker but I also read in your lesson that it can also indicate negative (or happy?) feelings (I never knew!! 😖 )? I will borrow one of your examples : 上司の家に招待された。= I was invited to my boss’ house. If you heard that hoe would you know if the person was happy about it, unhappy about it or just saying they were invited to their boss’ house?
Thank you so much for your help always and merry christmas!! 😘
Hi Eva,
上司の家に招待された。
could be
1) neutral: just telling the fact that the speaker was invited to her/hi boss’ house.
(It is what I meant in the example sentence.)
If the speaker likes the boss
2) positive (expressing his/her happy feelings)
If the speaker doesn’t like the boss,
3) negative (expressing his/her annoyance.)
You can tell by the context or tone of his/her voice.
Merry Christmas to you too!! 🎄
I see! Thanks so much for explaining it! Makes perfect sense :))
Sorry for the super late reply but just wanted to say thanks!
Also- 明けましておめでとう！ <3
You’re welcome!!
And Happy New Year for you too!!
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson.
I am thinking of 2 sentences with aida/aidani, but could you help me to check my sentences?
(1) あなたが眠っている間、僕はその天使のような顔を見ている。
The whole time you are sleeping, I’m watching your angel face.
(2) あなたが眠っている間に、僕は敵を戦った。
I fought against the enemy while you are sleeping
(to protect your sleep).
Hello,
1) perfect (very romantic😍)
2) Just one small mistake. 敵と戦った
The usage of 間に is good!
Thank you sensei so much much much.
Love you
and Merry Christmas !!!!
You’re very welcome!
I hope you can sleep well tonight. 😉
Merry Christmas!!
Love💕
Maggie
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me correct mistake
I’m still confused in choosing tense in using “がする”😅
I make some sentences:
1, どこかでねこの鳴き声がしているの?
(Situation :
While having dinner with my family, I hear cat’s sound somewhere and I ask my family members)
2, このお菓子はお茶の味がしているの?
(Situation :
My brother directly gives me candies not made from tea and I eat it right after he’s giving then I asked him how taste I feel)
3, 先日 Công Anh (my little brother’s name)くん がくれたお菓子は, お茶の味が していたの? / したの？
(Situation :
My brother gave me candies not made from tea 2 weeks ago but I just ate it yesterday then today I messaged to him about how taste I feel)
4, この料理は, 食べると吐き気がするよ。
(Situation :
We are chatting in company about a cuisine and I’m telling to others that each time I eat that cuisine, I feel nausea)
どうもありがとうございます 🌷🌷🌷
Hi, Sarang
1. If you are asking your family members if they hear the cat,
どこかで猫の鳴き声がしない？
2. この間、Công Anhくんがくれたお菓子はお茶の味がしたよ。
先日 is too formal.
3. この料理は食べるたびに吐き気がします。 ・吐き気をもよおします。
Personally I would say 気持ちが悪くなります。
Dear Maggie 先生、
Firstly, thanh you so much for your soon reply as always 😚😘
Actually my sentence no. 2 and no. 3 is the nearly same but I only see your correction for no.3
My no. 2 is asking for using “がしている”
Can you help me check it again 🙂
2, このお菓子はお茶の味がしているね。
(Situation :
My brother directly gives me candies not made from tea and I eat it right after he’s giving then I told him how taste I feel)
If my sentence is unatural, please help me give another sentence if “がしている” is used in daily life
😊 💌
Dear Maggie 先生,
I hope my question on Dec 23, 2018 doesn’t go into your spam box 😅
I’ve been waiting for you 😊
Sorry. Just read your comment and the previous question.
2) なんか、このお菓子はお茶の味がするよ。
By using なんか you can express the feeling “Strange…it doesn’t have tea in it but for some reason, it tastes like tea.”
Dear Maggie 先生,
Thank you so much for your help 😊🌷🌷🌷
You’re very welcome. Sorry for the late reply. 😊
今、「ノルウエイの森」を読んで日本語を勉強しています。マギー先生の日本語の授業が大好きです！度々使います。ありがとうごうざいます。
こんにちは、Jing!
すごいですね、「ノルウエイの森」で日本語の勉強をしていますか？
このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！ 😊
はい。「ノルウエイの森」で日本語の勉強をしています！
When there’s something I don’t understand, I often find the answers on your site!
このサイトで答えがみつかればうれしいです。
Hi, I had a question about the usage of し in 何しに! I’m not sure if this is the place to ask it (sorry if you have an article that explains this already — I had a look and I couldn’t find anything) but this is the article that popped up on google so I’ll give it a shot.
I don’t think I’ve really come across 何しに before this.
I came across this sentence in a manga [ええ…⁉︎何でベランダ⁉︎ 何しに⁉︎何で⁉︎], where someone had previously unexpectedly appeared on their veranda. The reason for the confusion is self evident so I figured the sentence was shortened; either left incomplete or maybe slang.
My first impression was a vague feeling of に being kind of an ‘in the direction of’ usage [why (were they THERE (aka the veranda) / what (were they doing THERE)] but that didn’t fit quite right?
Then I remembered 為に being roughly ~ for what reason, and the に had a similar feeling. So that lead me to thinking it might have a ‘for what’ kind of quality, with an emphasis on purpose instead of direction. Kind of a: WHY?! are they there vs a why are they THERE?!
The し would be a conjunction of する, I’m assuming, but I have no idea how that fits into it. Is it just that 何する needs to be conjugated before using a に particle on the end? I’m not sure how する leads to しに at all.
Is it because it’s past tense? する -> した -> dropping the た so as to add the に -> しに. Why would the た be dropped, if that’s the case?
Would 何したに not work? Is it because た wouldn’t be used at the end of the sentence if it was left in there? What about する + に in other tenses?
After some googling, I learnt that 何しに is usually used with 行く and 来る which kind of makes sense in a ‘for what reason did you come to Japan’ etc way, if the に is a little of both direction and purpose? That’s all I could find on しに.
I still don’t understand how it works, or in what other situations しに is relevant 😓 I feel like I’m missing something really simple here but I’m not sure what.
Sorry for rambling, I just wanted to explain my reasoning behind my utter confusion haha. I’d really appreciate it if you could help me out. Thank you for reading!
Hi Rose,
Wow…がんばって考えましたね。
Let me break it down.
*なに・何 = what
You drop an object marker, を, after なに in casual conversation.
(→なにを・何を）
*し is a masu-stem of a verb する
*に is a particle to indicate one’s purpose
So the whole phrase is
何(を)しに（ベランダに来たの？）
You can also figure it out from the possible answer why that person came to the balcony.
(somethingを） verb masu-stem + に＋来た= I came (here) to do something
電話をかけに来た。I came here to make a phone call.
あなたに会いに来た。 I came here to see you.
たばこを吸いに来た。 I came here to smoke.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me for my below question
I don’t understand the difference when using ために and ように to describe purpose ” not…”
For example:
(1) 遅れない ように いつも早く家を出ています
(2) 遅れない ために いつも早く家を出ています
どうもありがとうございます 🌷🌷🌷
こんにちは、
（１） is more natural.
Though you use both ように／ために for purpose but you rarely use ないために for purpose. Instead, you use ないように.
hah, Everytime i look for a Japanese language construct that’s giving me trouble and i look it up I’m always hoping i end up in your page, and it often happens!
so, after this lesson I’m pretty sure i understand what i was looking for, but i feel this has a nuanca that is not covered:
鬼太郎いくら夏休みだからってたまには妖怪ポストぐらい見たらどうだい
which i interpret as
“kitaro, however much it’s summer holiday, how about you just look at the yokai post?”
similar expressions appear often in kitaro often with some kind of mocking or scolding tone
Hi takosuke
That usage of くらい／ぐらい is “at least” or “even” in this lesson.
いくら〜だからって = Even though
Kitaro, even though it’s summer vacation, you should at least check youkai mail box.
Hello Maggie Sensei.
How to say this in Japanese?
Tom said he was happy that Susan bought a new car.
Is it like this?
Tomは、Susanが新しい車を買って嬉しいと言っていました。
Thanks in advance!
Yes, that is correct. (Or 言いました。）
Thank you !
You’re welcome! ☺️
Maggie sensei,
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくれました。
For this sentence, if I want to use keigo for showing my respect to Maggie sensei, how do I say?
and for
マギー先生が外国の学生に日本語を教えてあげました。
If i want to use keigo also, how do I say?
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくれました。
The honorific form is
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくださった。
Maggie Sensei taught me Japanese.
(From your point of view.)
マギー先生が外国の学生に日本語を教えてあげました。
あげました can be used for the third person but the you can’t use keigo there.
If the speaker/writer teaches someone superior something, you can use kenjougo, さしあげる
Thanks Maggie sensei.
Now I know that the honorific expression of tekureru is tekudasaru.
The humble form of teageru is sashiageru.
How about temorau sensei?
For ex:
私はマギー先生に日本語を教えてもらう。
How to use the humble here ?
マギー先生が日本語を教えてくださって、言葉にできないほど感謝いたします！
(What my heart wants to say but …is there something wrong in the sentence ….)
I just posted 謙譲語／敬語 lessons so hopefully you can learn something from those lessons as well.
教えてもらう。→honorific form 教えていただく
If you are talking to a teacher directly,
〜先生、日本語を教えてくださり言葉にできないほど感謝しております。
（connecting masu-stem looks more formal than connecting with te-form.)
Or when you express your gratitude,
〜先生に日本語を教えていただき、言葉にできないほど感謝しております。
Thank you for the nice example sentence. I feel flattered.
Thank you Maggie sensei !!!!
I will read your 謙譲語／敬語 lessons :)
どういたしまして！ U^ェ^U
Hi, Maggie Sensei.
Thank you very much for all your lessons!
I read that ありたい can be used as hoshii. What’s the difference?
In the sentence:生まれながら に そういう人間で ありたかった. かんぜんに人ごとだ how can it be translated?
Thank you.
Hello Bere,
First here is the difference between たい and ほしい
* verb+たい = The speaker/writer wants to do something
* someone に verbて+ほしい = The speaker/writer wants someone to do something.
So
* 〜でありたい = The speaker/writer wants to be ~
* Someone に〜であってほしい = The speaker/writer wants someone to be ~
So 生まれながら に そういう人間で ありたかった means
I’ve wanted (Or I’ve been wanting) to be that kind of person since I was born.
Hi!
Thank you for another great lesson!
For the sake of learning and wanting to understand the subject to the roots, I wanted to clear up something.
Technically, could the sentence:
もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
also translate into:
(I /he/she) might be forced to marry (him/her) by her.?
As in not to be forced to marry her, but rather forced to marry someone by her?
Since に is used to indicate by whom the action is performed, in the case of using the potential form(if I understood correctly).
Thank you so much in advance for your help!
Wishing you and Maggie above a wonderful day!
Valentina
Hi Valentina,
もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
also translate into:
(I /he/she) might be forced to marry (him/her) by her.?
Yes, that’s possible.
It looks complicated so let’s change 彼女 to 母
もう３０歳になったので母に結婚させられるかもしれない。
I might be forced to marry (him/her) by my mother.
It’s so interesting to see how many possible interpretations there are 😁
Thank you for replying! ! I feel reassured 😊
Have a nice day!
＊彼にこの仕事をやらせます。
= ”I will force him do this work.”
Hi i just want to clear also if this sentence really means to force him to do this work or to make him do this work? Since it is in a “semasu” form? Thanks.
Both.
I will force him do this work. / I will make him do this work. or I will have him do this work.
Sorry Maggie sensei for so many questions !
I am learning the 2 phrases, てならない and てたまらない.
After going through examples of each of them, I feel that てならない only uses to show your feeling, not physical condition. While てたまらない can be used for physical condition also.
But….you know I ‘m not sure of my thinking :))
Could you help me this?
To be more specific, can we use あつくてならない？
Good question. Though there are people who say 暑くてならない, 暑くてたまらない is much more common.
Thank you Maggie sensei a lot!
I still can not stop thinking of you every day ….
My pleasure💕
Maggie sensei,
Is the usage of たまるか same as っこない?
Ex:
あなたに私の気持ちがわかってたまるもんですか。
= あなたに私の気持ちがわかっこない
Are those interchangeable?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always
Of course it also depends on how you deliver the phrase but in my opinion
あなたに私の気持ちがわかってたまるもんですか。 sounds stronger than あなたに私の気持ちがわかっこない
Thanks for your answer Maggie.
The lesson is great. Very easy to remember.
I’ve study for 2 hours, and nearly I can remember this grammar :)))
You’ve been studying for two hours? Wow!! 頭を休めてね。
Maggie sensei,
May I conclude that if Nakanak goes with verb, the verb should be non-volitional verb?
Not necessary.
For example
あの子は野菜を食べようとしない。
彼女は学校に行こうとしない。etc.
Oops…this time Maggie sensei confused me.
あの子は野菜を食べようとしない。
彼女は学校に行ことうしない。etc.
My question is about なかなか but examples don’t include なかなか。（Crying…)
I want to ask if なかかな goes with verb, the verb should be non-volitional verb. Is it true?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always,
Sorry to confused you. I meant to give you examples after なかなか
なかなかあの子は(なかなか*)野菜を食べようとしない。
なかなか彼女は(なかなか*)学校に行こうとしない。
I’m looking to apply for job at a Japanese next year & is starting preparations now, so this is so so helpful! thank you so much maggie sensei!!!
I hope you get a perfect job for you. Good luck! 😊
Hello, Maggie Sensei. Ohisashiburi Desu 🌸
Sensei, I Usually Hear/Read The Sentence: “一応聞いとけ” Or “一応聞いておけ”, But Cannot Figure Out What Does “一応” Stand For In This Context? Does It Mean: (For Now)→(Listen For Now)??
Onegai Shimasu! ✨
Hello, 元気でしたか？
I guess “for now” works.
Listen to ~ (I don’t know what/who from just this sentence) for now.
はい元気です❗️ 🐱
助かりました 最高のMaggie先生のお陰様で❗️ That Was Helpful Like Always, Sensei. 💙
元気でよかった〜💕
This was very useful, I have a question though, besides sounding rude is there any reason to not use this speech? And is there polite male speech? Thank you.
Generally speaking, male speech is rough so you should avoid using it unless you are talking to your close friends.
Though there are super casual “polite form” です→っす （そうです→そうっす）, I believe there is no proper polite male speech form.
Sensei,How different between べき and なきゃ, なくちゃ?
べき is more literal and stronger.
なきゃ／なくちゃ is much more casual.
Also unless you express your own regret, 〜べきだった, you don’t usually use べき for yourself.
I have to study more.
私はもっと勉強するべきです。(unnatural)
I gotta study more.
もっと勉強しなくちゃ／なきゃ。(conversational but very common)
Hello Maggie sensei,
May I … ask 1 more question.
I am re-organizing the level of denying a request and the order I am thinking is:
If some one makes a request to me, then
the normal deny is できません。
the strongest deny is できっこない。
and the polite deny is できかねる。
Is it correct sensei?
Yes, I think you got the idea.
Thank you Maggie sensei !!!!
I have 1 more question about idomatic expression with かねる.
Kaneru is very formal way to say NO.
But is idomatic expression with かねる still formal? Or we can use expression more informal case?
Hello,
No, these idiomatic expressions with かねる in my lesson are not necessary formal.
お待ちかね、たまりかねる, etc.
Thanks Maggie sensei !!!
Love you much
Maggie sensei,
Hello,
I have 1 question. Could you help me to clear away it?
As for かねます, we dont use it for the third party person. But かねます also has some idomatic expression.
My question is whether we can use idomatic expression for the third person always.
As seen in the example from this lesson, I tell to myself that idomatic expression with かねる (まちかねる,,,) can be used for the third person.
But could you teach me that?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always
Hi Frozenheart
Yes, you can use the idiomatic expressions （まちかねる／見かねる／たえかねる, etc.) for the third person.
Hi Maggie Sensei, thanks for another great lesson, this helped a lot! However I just had a question with something that I am writing for homework, does this sentence make sense? 空港で、自分でチェックインすることに緊張しました。Thank you!!
Hi Alyssa
空港で、自分でチェックインすることに緊張しました。
You can say that when someone asks you 何に緊張しましたか？, “What makes you feel nervous?”
You could also say
I was nervous at the airport because I had to check in by myself.
空港で自分で(or 一人で）チェックインしなくてはいけなくて緊張しました。
hello maggie-sensei, first of all, thanks for the lesson!
I have a question, I see those kind of numbers (２０万６７００円) on news web easy quite often. How do I count those? Thank you!
Hello rubemar junior
２０万６７００円
You write 二十万六千七百/ 20万６千７百 but it will be easier to read with fewer kanji for shopping. So, you just use the first kanji 万 and type out the rest with number and add 円.
I really like this website alot! it give so much information that enough for me to know everything about the subject, thank you for your hard work!
Hello Kevin
Thank YOU for your nice comment! ありがとう！
Sensei,
I have one more question related to はずがない and わけがない.
Is there any difference between わかるはずがない and わかるわけがない？
My friend told me that
彼がわかるはずがない is a little bit more subjective、 and can be translated as “I don’t think he knows it”
and
彼がわかるわけがない is a little bit more objective, and can be translated as “There is no way he knows it”.
But is it true , sensei?
Basically they are the same.
And you also use わけがない subjectively.
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us!
いつもありがとうございます！
どういたしまして♪
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me for my below question
Regarding how to say to give / receive objects “を + あげる / くれる / もらう”、FOR THIRD PARTY: A (giver) and B (receiver)
1, あげる
as in your note : ok to say A gives B sth
2, くれる
as in your note : ok to say A gives B sth (B must be my family, sweethearts or pets)
3, もらう
You don’t make note but through ex5, I understand that it’s ok to say B receives sth from A, regardless B has close relation with me or not, for example : Suzuki san receives a lot of flowers from Ken san
Do I understand it right? 😊
(Here is your ex5
「申し込み用紙が欲しい人は事務所でもらって下さい。」)
どうもありがとうございます 🌷🌷🌷
Hi Sarang,
Yes, you got them right. :)
Maggie sensei,
Hello,
May I ask 1 question?
Among わけがない、はずがない、っこない, what can not be used with the subject “I” or all of them can be used with the subject “I”.
For example, if I want to say “there’s no way that I can write such Kanji”, which of the followings is not correct?
(1) 私はそんな漢字が書けるはずがない
(2) 私はそんな漢字が書けるわけがない
(3) 私はそんな漢字がかけっこない。
Thanks Maggie sensei as always !
Hi Frozenheart,
Let me rephrase all the three sentences first.
1) 私にそんな漢字がかけるはずがない。possible if you talk about yourself objectively but a bit not natural.
2) 私にそんな漢字がかけるわけがない。OK
3) (私に)そんな漢字はかけっこない。 OK
Thanks Maggie sensei,but…
Why we need to use 私には~, not 私は sensei?
And so, do I need to avoid using はずがない for the subject 私?
に has a function to express one’s ability.
私にできることはありますか？
彼にはわからない。
You can emphasize the subject by using に.
subject+ に + Verb potential form + わけがない／はずがない／っこない
Subjectが＋ Verb potential form + わけがない／はずがない is OK as well but since there is ”が” in わけ”が”／はず”が”, it looks/sounds more natural with に
Also you say
object＋が＋わかる as well
答えがわかる
日本語がわかる
So if you say
彼がわかる
It could be “He understands” or “Someone can tell who he is” So it is confusing.
You don’t have to omit the subject 私.
Ah, I see.
Your explanation is so great !
🐶💕
いい加減にしろ is an expression. “Gimme a break! / That’s enough!”
ふざけないで “Stop fooling around. ”
いい加減にしろ is much stronger than ふざけないで
****
お前はもう死んでいる You are already dead. (in the state of dead)
お前はもう死んだ You already died.
You probably translate in the same way.”You are already dead” but as you said 死んでいる expresses the state do it sounds like the person died physically but for some reason, his/her sprits are alive.
死んだ is “died” simple past tense. It is like “You died. Period!”
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please explain for me difference between 2 below sentences:
(1) 私はそうは思いませんね。
(2) 私はそうは思わないんです。
どうもありがとうございます 🌷🌷🌷
Hi Sarang,
(1) When you make your point. (When you are against some people’s opinion.)
(2) It sounds explanatory. You say this and explain why you don’t think so.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
First of all, thank you so much for your explanation!!
I can quickly undertand it 😊
But I still have difficult with difference between ね and のです / んです
For example
Q1,
ね : to tell someone what you are going to do / express your will, your attention (usage no. 4)
Vs
のです : to introduce some topics (usage no. 5)
Here is ex in “のです lesson”
来週, 日本に行くんだけど, 何を持っていたらいい?
➡️ if I use ね in usage no.4
⏩ 来週, 日本に行くね, 何を持っていたらいい?
How is the difference here 🤓
And then
Q2,
ね : express your opinion or making point (usage no. 1)
Vs
のです : to state your opinion clearly or bring up sth important (usage no. 6)
I’m sorry I cannot give any example in Q2. Both of them are used to express speaker’s opinion but how is nuance behind them 🤪
I hope Maggie 先生 can understand my poor decription and find the way to help me.
I’m very worried about wrong making sentence because wrong understand suffix
Q1:
来週, 日本に行くね, 何を持っていたらいい? doesn’t sound natural.
You have to finish a sentence with ね and can’t connect two sentence with ね.
While 行くんだけど gives a reason for the following question, if you ね doesn’t require any suggestions.
Q2. I think I get your question.
そんなことをされたら困りますね。
そんなことをされたら困るのです（困るんです）
They both make your point.
The difference is ね is to tell “someone” your opinion/feelings.
のです is to explain your situation/feelings.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
I really couldn’t find any word to send thanks to you 💌
私の頭がひらけるように感じています 😇
Thank you so much for your great help as always
❤❤❤❤❤🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷
どういたしまして、Sarang! 💕
Thanks for the posts! It really helps me with learning Japanese.
Hi marcus!
Thank YOU for visiting this site! 😊 I’m glad to hear my lessons help you learn Japanese.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Please help me for my below questions
この夏休みは, に本”か”韓国”か”ドイツ”か”アメリカに行きたいんです。
1, does this sound natural?
2, Should I use “か” for the meaning “OR” in formal speech or casual speech or both of them?
どうもありがとうございます
Hi Sarang,
1. In casual conversation, it might be possible but I wouldn’t say it’s natural. There are too many か in one sentence.
2. You can use か in formal writing. You also use または in formal Japanese.
Thank you for your response! If would particles like で、に、へ be usable before とか? As in, 学校にとかレストランにとか行きます。
Hi Sheldon
You can use other particles with とか
Use this pattern
AとかBとか＋particle
→学校とかレストランとかに行きます。
マッギ先生が全部レッシュンをしにありがとうな!
日本に帰ったから日本語を勉強している。そのうえ、４コマ漫画を訳している。だから、マッギ先生のレッシュンはとても便利だよ。
それだけに書きたかった。も1回ありがとうございます :D
こんにちは、Eudald
４コマ漫画を訳しているの？すご〜い！ がんばってね！
私のレッスン （”レッシュン”の方がかわいいね💕）が、役に立てれば嬉しいです。😊
Hi Maggie-sensei,
For all the examples in this lesson which have だって, are they actually the same as usage 1 in another lesson How to use だって ( = datte)?
“1) to quote what someone says: When you quote what you have heard* When you quote what you have heard”
Another question is what is the difference between Noun + って vs Noun + だって?
Is the former used when you want to talk about the noun and the latter used when you want to quote the noun?
Hi Chang,
Yes, I did cover a little in my だって lesson this usage. (The usage 1))
Ah, good question.
noun + って／noun +だって
When you quote “明日は雨”
→天気予報で明日は、雨って言ってたよ。
When you quote “明日は雨だ／雨です”
→天気予報で明日は、雨だって言ってたよ。
The meaning is the same but だって emphasizes the speaker’s feelings more.
And you can say
明日は雨だって。
But you can’t say
X明日は雨って
The same thing with adjectives and verbs.
彼がマギーはきれいだって言ってたよ。
彼がマギーはきれいって言ってたよ (more conversational)
雨が降るんだって (X 雨が降るんだって言ってたよ is not natural)
雨が降るって言ってたよ。
But when you express “even”
亀だって泳げるよ
You can’t say
→亀って泳げるよ
Thank you! ^ ^
Maggie sensei,
Long time no see.
I’m reviewing the kurai lesson. And some questions occur in my mind. Could you please help me!
あなたと別れるくらい(ぐらい）なら死んだ方がましよ
Is ほどpossible to use here
あなたと別れるほどなら死んだ方がましよ 。Is it OK or not ?
Thank you for always helping us.
Hi, how have you been?
No, you can’t use ほど in that sentence.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
If I want to say “I get lost often”
Do I say “yoku maigo ni naru” or “maigo ni yoku naru” ?
Hi Brieuc
Both are OK. If you want to emphasize “often”, you start the sentence with “yoku”.
聞いてくれてありがとう!
Woops! little mistake here, I meant to write 教えてくれたありがとう.
（Almost..😊 →教えてくれてありがとう）
どういたしまして！ U^ェ^U💕
Hi maggie sensei. This may be out of the context but, why is “de” used after bakari?
あのホテルは高いばかりでサービスは、最低だった
Hi Leo,
That で means “and”
Maggie Sensei keep doing what you’ve been doing. I’m learning a lot from you more than any other books. :)
Thank you, Monica!
Love you! 💕
Dear Maggie先生 ♡♡
Please kindly teach me the difference between these 2 sentences:
1,
あなたの “質問の全部” を答えます
2,
あなたの “全部の質問” を答えます
どうもありがとうございます ^^
Hi Sarang
First you say 質問に答えます not 質問を答えます。
1. あなたの質問全部に答えます。 I will answer all your questions.
2. あなたの全部の質問に答えます。 I will answer ALL your questions. /I will answer your WHOLE questions.
I would say 1 is more natural but the difference is you emphasize 全部の in the sentence 2.
Dear Maggie 先生 ❤
Thank you so much for your explanation and correcting my wrong particle “を”
🌷🌷🌷🌷🌷
You’re very welcome, Sarang! 💕
Can you use ところ in the middle of a sentence like, 宿題をし終えたところ/ところで，休めよう for “I have just finished my homework, now I’ll rest”?
宿題をし終えたところ/ところで，休めよう→ In this case,休もう= talking about the future so たら will be better.
宿題をし終えたら休もう。 or 宿題が終わったら休もう。
You can use ところで in the middle of a sentence.
宿題をし終えたところで休もうと思っていたら電話がかかってきた。
I guess what I’m really asking is how can you say something like “I just finished doing X, so I’m going to do Z now.” It seems to me that usually there are almost always two different subjects in sentences with ところ. In your example for instance, (私が）宿題をし終えたところで休もうと思っていたら電話がかかってきた. So now you have watashi and denwa as two subjects. But can you use only one subject? Like 私がケーキを買ったところで（私が今）映画館に向かっている – I just bought cake, now I’m going to the movie theater. I think ところだが might work better here, am I wrong?
And yes, I actually meant to write 休もう, that was a mistake.
Now I see your question.
“I just finished doing X, so I’m going to do Z now.”
→In this sentence, you don’t use ところで
Maggie sensei,
First of all thank you very much for your lessons, they are very helpful!
I have a doubt when it comes to (not) using the ば in the past, you say you can`t use it unless is a regret or is not true but I read:
ビールを３本飲めばよっぱらいました meaning something that always happens, as opposed to ビールを３本飲んだらよっぱらいました somenthing that only happened once.
is it the first one incorrect?
Thank you very much!
I guess I didn’t cover the usage.
True. There are cases that you use ば when you talk about one’s habit in past. Whenever ~ someone does/did something./ One used to do something.
あの頃は彼と会えば(or 会うと）いつも喧嘩をしていた。
We used to fight whenever we get together that time.
As for the sentence “ビールを３本飲めばよっぱらいました”, it may work with more context. (Just that sentence may sound a little unnatural.)
Ex.昔は/前は/若い頃は、ビールを３本飲めば酔っ払って騒いでいました。(but not anymore.)
The basic pattern:
〜ば〜していた/ 〜ば〜したものだった (the following verb describe the state. )
Maggie sensei, thank you for your reply.
I raised this question because I was reading about られる.
It says there are four usages, 受身形, 可能形, 尊敬語 and 自発.
Initially, I thought all verbs in 受身形 can also mean 自発. But according to your explanation, it seems that is not the case. Besides 考えられる and 思われる, are there other 自発形 verbs that have the same pattern as 受身形? Is 言われる considered 自発?
I also always encounter the three verbs above in ている form. What is the difference between 考えられる・思われる・言われる and 考えられている・思われている・言われている?
In passive, using your example, 私は彼に変な人だと思われた, there is someone, 彼, who does the thinking. In 自発, 今年の冬は厳しいと思われる, who thought that this year is cold? Me or everyone in general?
How do you determine whether a verb like 思われる in a sentence is 自発形 or 受身形?
Other than 考えられる・思われる, there are not so many but
偲（しの）ばれる
思い出される
案（あん）じられる
惜（お）しまれる
are considered to be 自発形
I think 言われる is categorized into 受身形, passive form. It could show one’s annoyance (1) or to introduce general ideas (2)
1) Aさんに太っていると言われた
= I was told by A that I am fat.
2) 日本人は感情を表にあまり出さないと言われる。
= People said (It is said) that Japanese people don’t show much emotion.
考えられる・思われる・言われる
考えられている・思われている・言われている
られる to be thought/considered / to be said
〜ている has been considered / has been said
Vている = the state in certain period of time.:
私は彼に変な人だと思われた,
There are two people in this sentence. the speaker, “I” and the third person, “He”
The speaker was thought to be a strange person by him.
今年の冬は厳しいと思われる,
people in general think this winter will be harsh.
The speaker is introducing what they heard (general idea/news)
As for your last question,
Q:How do you determine whether a verb like 思われる in a sentence is 自発形 or 受身形?
If the speaker introduce a general idea, 自発
I wish I could give you the whole explanation here but the comment section is very limited so I will stop right here. 😉
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for making lesson on くらい・ぐらい.
I think it’s a complicated topic.
May I ask a question that
IS くらいinterchangeable with ほど in the comparison like
彼は私ほど高くない。
ｰ>彼は私くらい高くない。Is this sentence OK or not
To me, くらい is a tough topic. Because it can be used for all kind of comparison, 同じ程度、一番高い程度、一番軽い程度、etc. What a…..(no word to say) !
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us
Hello,
彼は私ほど高くない。
ｰ>彼は私くらい高くない。Is this sentence OK or not
→No, you can’t use くらい in that sentence.
They could be interchangeable, “approximately/about”
Ex. 10人ぐらいの人が集まった。
→１０人ほどの人が集まった。
Thanks Maggie sensei as always !
You’re welcome! :)
Hello Maggie-sensei, could you please explain how 受身形 is used to mean 自発?
Hi Chang
Some of 自発形 verbs have the same pattern as 受身形
Ex. 考えられる・思われる
〜と考えられる/思われる= It is believed that ~ / It is thought that ~
〜が思い出される= 〜comes to one’s mind
You use it when you describe something objectively. When you get the feelings/something happens “naturally” without any control.
Ex. 私は今年の冬は厳しいと思う。= I think this winter will be severe. (The subject is clear.)
Ex. 今年の冬は厳しいと思われる。= It is thought that this winter will be severe. (The subject is not clear.)
You use passive form with 思う
Ex. 私は彼に変な人だと思われた。
= I was thought to be a strange person by him.
(He thought I was a strange person.)
In this case the subject and object are clear. (He/I)
Other than the ones with (ら）れる,
聞こえる
わかる
見える
are also has a meaning of 自発
You don’t do anything but you hear/understand/see things naturally without any control.
I love your website! Well explained! Thank you for your lessons!
Thank YOU for visiting my site! 💕
Maggie sensei,
Hello again.
May I ask ２more questionｓ of using って for indirect speech.
(1) Is that we always need to change the です・ますof somebody’s quote to the casual form (ending with る・た・ない） then add って？
For example
A: 彼氏と別れました。
Is it possible to make an indirect speech like
Indirect speech : A さんは彼氏と別れましたって言いました。
Or we always need to change the quote to casual form
A さんは彼氏と別れたって言いました。
(2) I want to ask the same thing with とのこと。
とのこと is used for indirect speech to the superior.
But can we say
A さんは彼氏と別れましたとのこと
Or we need to change the quote to casual form as always.
A さんは彼氏と別れたとのことです。
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Hello again :)
Aさんは彼氏と別れましたって言いました。
Aさんは彼氏と別れたって言いました。
Though we sometimes see masu-form in quotes in stories, you don’t have to use masu-form.
It will be more natural to say Aさんは彼氏と別れたと言いました。or 言っていました。（言っていました describes the situation better.)
I change って→と because って is casual and ました is formal
If you want to use って the rest of the sentence should be casual as well.
Aさんは彼氏とわかれたって言ってたよ。
（２）A さんは彼氏と別れたとのことです。is better.
Thanks Maggie sensei much much much !
I understand them :)
Maggie sensei,
I have a question about てば.
Can we use this てば in the end of sentence for quoting the other person’s saying.
For example
Maggie が来ないってば！
Or we just use てば to quote our saying like
だからいそがしいってば！
Thanks Maggie sensei as usual.
Hello¡
You use ってば not to quote what other person said.
You only use it when you make your point. (I’m telling you ~ )
While completing some exercises in a textbook, I got these two sentences wrong.
1. ７時になれば帰ります！
2. このドアが開けば入りませんか？
I think I understand why you can you “ba” in these two sentences, but can you please explain why exactly these two sentences are wrong? I know you covered a lot of examples in your lesson, but I think i’m still not 100% sure I’m getting it when it comes to these two sentences.
Sorry, I forgot to say Hello Maggie, and thank you for the wonderful lessons!
Hi James,
1. ７時になれば(X) 帰ります (Y)→ ７時になったら帰ります。／７時に帰ります。
７時になれば sounds like the person is waiting until it turns 7:00 to come home or not sure if it turns seven.
In this case, you can use ば if the following sentence (Y) has a potential verb.
７時になれば(or なったら）帰れます。 I can go home when it turns 7:00.
2. このドアが開けば入りませんか？
That means, they are in front of a closed door and they are not sure if the door will open or not. If it opens, he/she wants to go inside with the listener.
If you are sure the door will open, you use 開いたら = When the door opens,
Hello maggie sensei,
Thank you very much for the lesson. It is very useful for everbody who wants to learn Japanese.
Could you please check which version among the sentences I`ve written below is correct ?
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuruno wo onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuru koto wo onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okuru you ni onegaishimashita.
-Tanakasan watashi ni meeru wo okutte kudasai tte iu onegai wo shimashita.
Hi Burak
You want to say
Tanaka-san asked me to send him/her an email?
If so, you write from your point of view so instead of “onegai shimashita” you use “tanomaremashita or passive form of onegai shimashita.
Takahashisan ni meeru wo okuru you tanomaremashita.
Thank you very much for your reply Maggie sensei,
Yes, that is what I want to say. How would you rebuild this
sentence with `tte iu`
I always hear this speech pattern, they use this especially reporting
a speech.
…tte iu hanashi wo shita
…tte iu onegai …
Because I”m a new learner of Japanese I can”t hear exactly what they say but
I guess it is used very often.
Sorry for bothering with my questions
I would like to ask one more question
Can I say : ”Watashi wa tanakasan ni meeru wo okuru no wo onegai shimashita” If I`m who asks for sending email.
When you ask someone to do something, the most natural patten is using よう
ようにお願いする・頼む
= you ni onegai suru/ tanomu
So, Watashi wa Tanaka san ni meeru wo okuru you ni tanonda.(onegai shita)
Maybe this lesson will help you.
Click this link.
Hi ms.maggie can you help how form the vte form
Currently doingv
Habitual
Continuing action
Still continuing
Hi Nica
Do you want to know how to form te-form??
I don’t get the rest..You are learning te-iru form now?
「～ことになっている」と「～ようになっている」の違いですが、
「～ようになっている」は、例文のように、物事の仕組みを説明するとき
「～ことになっている」は、決まりごと、（規則やルール）
Ex. 本は１週間以内に返すことになっています。（規則）
に使うことが多いですよ。…….
I found this in one of the replys.
But i can’t understand,sensei.😅
Could you explain me in English?
As it is shown in the example sentence, you usually use 「～ようになっている」 to explain how things work and 「～ことになっている」 for rules.
Ex. 本は１週間以内に返すことになっています。 = You are supposed to return the book (rules.)
Maggie-Sensei, ohayou!
I have one more question regarding this subject: Well, the girl I love wrote me “aishiteru” on a photo of the two of us. (Also, she only used my first name without “San” or anything like it.) Now of course you can’t read her mind, but as far as I know, this is something serious, isn’t it? So she probably wouldn’t say something that strong if she doesn’t mean it, right? (She’s an all-Japanese girl, with me being her only Western contact.)
Ohayou, Ralph,
Yes, if she writes that quote, she is more serious than “suki/daisuki” and she has feelings for you. 💕
そうですか！ありがとうございます！ This is great news for me! 😊
Also, thank you for all the knowledge!
どういたしまして💕
こんにちは, マギーせん正確。
I have a question regarding いる vs. ある – so it says in the blog that the former is used for people and animals while the latter is used for events, objects, etc.
But what about the book 吾輩は猫である？ (Wagahai-Wa Neko de Aru)
I personally haven’t read it yet, since I’m a beginner to Japanese, but I understand that the honorifics used by the speaker imply high social stature (like nobility) despite the narrator being a mere cat—but I digress.
My question is this: why is it ある and not いる？
こんにちは、エイデン
Ah, that ある is not to express the existence.
OK, you know this form, right?
Noun + です
私はエイデンです。 I am Aedan.
私は犬です。(in my case..) I am a dog.
今日は木曜日です。(It’s Thursday.)
In literal form you use である instead of です。
You see this form in writing Japanese.
私はエイデンである。
私は犬である。
今日は木曜日である。
Hello Maggie sensei,
How to say 1st week, 2nd week ?
Is it like : isshuume, nishuume or daiisshuu, dainishuu …
Thank you
Hi Burak
You say 1st week １週目(isshuume) ・2nd week ２週目(nishuume)
「ダラダラ」とか、「照れ」以外の意味もあったんですね!
i read that in a yahoo. what does it mean actually? google translate said
There was meaning other than “Daradara” or “shy”!
is it correct? can you please explain the とか usage in this sentence and the overall meaning? thanks in advance!
Hi Abe,
とか in that sentence means is (besides/other than) 「ダラダラ」 and 「照れ」, etc.
Maggie sensei,
I have made some sentences by myself. Could you please help me have a check, coz I’m not confident in my sentences !
(1) お金を銀行に預けたまま死んでしまいました。
(2) テーブルを倒したまま出かけた。
(3) バースが走ったまま外に立っていた彼女の手をつないだ。
I still hold my girl friend’s hand while the bus is moving.
(4) タクシー運転手は僕を降ろしたまま寝ました。
Taxi driver slept while letting me off the taxi.
(5) 彼は長い間働いたまま私のことを忘れた。
He forgot me in the state of keep working for a long time.
If something sound strange, please correct me.
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
(1) & (2)
Japanese sentences are OK but your example sentences are very dramatic. What happened? 😂
(3) ~ (5) are not natural with まま
I can’t picture the situation.
(3) バス is the subject of your sentence. But holding her hand is the speaker/writer.
(4) 降ろしたまま is not natural. 降ろしている間、居眠りをしていた might work.
(5) 働いたまま is not natural.
Maggie sensei,
Haha. I don’t know that my example sentences are dramatic. May be I am negative these day….
Oops (3) – (5) are not natural…たまま is still difficult. Let me do one more.
(3) 彼女の手をつないだまま逃げた。
（I mean a couple met a robber on the way and he hold her hand while escaping)
(4) タクシー運転手は僕を下ろしてくださいって言われましたがスピードを出したままでした。
（５）I mean he keeps working and in this state he forgets me.
That’s why I use 働いたまま。But if it’s not natural, how to write this sentence sensei?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always.
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Thank you very much for this lesson, I think I understood it!!
But still, I want to ask for confimation.
In several songs now I’ve heard かい being used. But, it was always at the complete end of the sentence and only written in hiragana. It were phrases like “なんてありきたりかい？” and “深く眠れるかい？”. Is this the same expression as in this lesson? So the translation would be “Is it worth it that it came to this?” or “Would it be worth it to be sleeping deeply”?
Thank you very much!
Ah that かい is a suffix and it is different from this 甲斐
You attach it to the end of a sentence to make a question. It is a casual male speech. You may see/hear it in lyrics, writing or anime a lot but it is a bit corny expression in real conversation.
I see… thank you!!
You’re very welcome! :)
先生
以下の質問を答えお願いします。
Q.知ってる？
A.知らない。
Q.この端末使ってる？
A1.使ってない。
A2.使わない。
A2がなんでまちがえているのか説明してもらえませんか。
The question is
Are you using this device?
A1. I am not using it.
A2. I will not use it. / I don’t use it.
You use present tense 使います・使いません・使う・使わない
when you 1) talk about future 2) one’s habitual action
The question is “Are you using ~” so you have to match the answer. I am not using it which is A1.
Maggie sensei,
Long time no see…
Do you know why you don’t see me here recently?
Coz I got sick :((
Today, my question is, what is the nuance difference between
(1) 彼女に別れを言わないまま日本に来てしまった。
(2) 彼女に別れを言わずに日本に来てしまった。
Both sentence mean “I went back to Japan without saying a word to her”.
But which case we use (1) and which case we use (2)?
Thanks Maggie sensei as always
Hi!
You got sick? I hope you feel better now. おだいじに！
There is no big difference between 1) and 2) so you can use either one.
If anything,
Vないまま〜 leaving some state/situation without doing something
Vずに without doing some action
*focusing on the action that you didn’t do
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございます！
どういたしまして！ もう体調はよくなりましたか？
Maggie先生〜
I think I remember hearing people start off saying “わざわざ…” and the other person will just start responding back without the person finishing their sentence. Is it common to just say “わざわざ” without intending to finish the sentence?
Hello squidlydeux
Ah, yes,
For example, when you want to say
Ex. 今日はわざわざ来てくれてありがとう。
You say
Ex. 今日はわざわざ….
then the listener can tell what comes after so he/she responds without hearing the rest.
You sometimes don’t finish the sentence in Japanese especially when you use a set phrase.
Other example
When you are about to leave someone’s house, you just say
Ex. もう、そろそろ
instead of saying the whole phrase,
Ex. もう、そろそろ行かないといけません。
If you use みたい in the past tense does that mean the the “similarity” no longer is true? In other words, if you say, “かわいかったみたい”, then the person is no longer cute today?
Hello Jill
かわいかったみたい。= I heard she/he used to be cute. It states how cute that person used to be in past and it doesn’t mention the current state.
It changes the nuance depending on the particle as well.
If you say Ex. 彼女は昔もかわいかったみたい。It means she is cute now, too.
But if you say 彼女は昔はかわいかったみたい。 It insinuates she is no longer cute.
こんにちは🌞マッギ先生,
I am always confused by the subject and object use in Japanese as I also need to consider the particle and verb as well, just like in these two sentences:
1)女子学生に宿題を見せてもらう
2)男子学生が宿題を見せてあげる
why に is used but not がin (1)? and have you written any article for this topic? Thank you very much indeed!
こんにちは、Anpanman!
2) is easy to understand
Subject+ が+ object+ を+ Vてあげる
Let me change the sentence a little.
男子学生が女子学生に宿題を見せてあげる。
Subject + が + indirect object + に+ directo object+ を+ Vてあげる
This に is to indicate “indirect object”, to whom
Now when you use Vてもらう or （〜を）もらう, you use either 1) から or 2) に
1) 女子学生から宿題を見せてもらう
２) 女子学生に宿題を見せてもらう
In this case に indicate the doer of action, which is to show her homework
I also have あげる・もらう lesson so please go check.
本当にありがとうございました😊
Now I have a clear understanding about this topic. But I have a question of another topic 通じてand通して, hope Maggie sensei could teach me too 🙏🏾
The textbook says they share the same meaning but they cannot be used interchangeably sometimes, like:
私は、共通の友人を通じて妻と知り合いました。
The textbook suggests “通じて“ as the answer only. I am confused.
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you very much for the lessons!! May I ask you a question? In your example above, “おたくのお子さんは何かお稽古ごとをさせていますか？” means “Do you make your children take any lessons?”. However, I learnt from another sensei that “watashi wa kato-san ni unten saseru” means “I make/let kato san drive”. In your example, “your children” is in front of は, but in his example “I” is in front of は. I am sure both examples are correct, but why the difference? In one example, the “weaker” person is in front of wa, but in the other example, the “stronger” one is in front of wa.
Thanks!!
Hi Kahloon
Right, Someoneに〜をさせる (あなたは、お子さんに何かお稽古事をさせていますか） is the correct form.
If you study for the JLPT exam, you stick to the form.
But in conversation, when you talk about something in this case your children, you introduce the topic with は
As for your children, do you make them take any lesson?
I will show you other simple example.
You say
あなたは朝食をもう食べましたか？
Did you already have breakfast?
You use を for breakfast because it’s an object of an action, eating.
But when you present breakfast as a topics, you change the particle with は
朝食はもう食べましたか？
(literal translation) As for breakfast, did you already have?
Also you often omit the subject あなた.
Hi Maggie sensei, thank you very much for the lessons!! May I ask you a question?
So far, my understanding is that, using the passive form, sometimes imply negative feeling (e.g. 甥にカメラを壊された。), and sometimes not (e.g. 上司の家に招待された。). My question is, when someone uses passive form in a blurred situation, how do we know whether he/she has bad feeling? For example, if someone says “本を友達に借られました。”(my booked was borrowed by a friend.). How do i know whether she has bad feeling lending a book to a friend? She might not like it, but doesn’t know how to reject. Or, she might be very willing to do so. How do I know/guess?
Thanks!!
Hi Kahloon,
It’s all depends on the context. Either way, I wouldn’t say 本を友達に借りられました for your own book because you control your books to lend but if you are talking about the library book,
誰かに読みたかった本を借りられました。
it shows annoyance. You wanted to borrow a book but someone else took it.
Maggie-sensei
Thank you for this lesson!
I have been learning Japanese on and off for years and always felt uncomfortable withあなた。
My question is : how do you address someone you don’t know at all ?
If you don’t know the name, title, position…
For example, if you meet someone and they ask you what your job is ; how would you say “and you ?” just ”あなたは？”
or if you find something and ask the person near to the objet ” is this yours” woudl you say “これは、あなたのですか？”
お返事ありがとうございます。
Hi,François
If you don’t know the name, just skip the subject,
What is your name? お名前は？
What do you do? お仕事は何をされているのですか？ / お仕事は？
And instead of saying “あなたは？” you repeat the question (or a part of the question) usually pointing the person with your hand (palm up)
お仕事は？
お名前は？
何をされているのですか？
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I want to know more the use of ‘anata’ between husband and wife,
is it only applies when ‘anata’ used as a calling from the wife?
Is the nuance of intimacy (maried couple) lose when ‘anata’ is in other forms like ‘anata-wa’ or ‘anata-no’?
Hi hana
The one I introduced as wife’s speech is kind of typical/stereotyped ones that you hear in a drama/anime.
Sometimes people jokingly say that with sweet and sexy voice in an exaggerate way.
Technically あなた is a gender free word so both husband and wife can use.
And it is not just for a married couple.
Hi sensei, what’s the meaning of tari in this sentence…?
どきどきも浮かれたりもしない
I don’t know who it is talking about but
~ is not feeling nervous* or overly excited.
先生
「にする」と「とする」も同じ意味ですか。
Sensei, I want to ask a question regarding this topic. I found a Japanese says in a video “こういうマークシートになっていて。。。” when she is showing a mark sheet for boat race betting and then she continues to explain further explanation about how to register in it. Why she use になっていて while it is not a “changing to something” event？
Hi アルテリア
Good question.
You mainly use なる to expresses the change or the result of change
However, in daily conversation, you use になる/になっている instead of だ・です
マークシートです→マークシートになっています。
こういうマークシートで →こういうマークシートになっていて
I will give you more common examples
(At a restaurant) 全部で3千円です。/3千円でございます→全部で３千円になります。 That’ll be 3,000 yen in total
(At a hotel) こちらが、お部屋の鍵です/鍵でございます。→こちらがお部屋の鍵になります。 = This is your room key
(At a hotel) お部屋は１０階にあります/１０階にございます。→お部屋は１０階になります。 = Your room is on the 10th floor.
Some people would think this usage of なります is grammatically wrong since it doesn’t have a meaning of change,
it is a quite common usage in conversation.
I’m sorry TMO
ごめんなさい、6年前のコメントに答えていませんでしたね。
にする
とする (written/formal Japanese)
また「する」と「なる」の違いですが、「~する」は、自分の意志が入ります。
よかったらこのレッスンが参考になるかもしれません。
How to use ことになる・する ようになる・する
Link
すみません。
先生
Bの文法を修正しました。
再確認をお願いします。
A.項目が追加されていることを確認する。
B.項目が追加されておくことを確認する。
AとBは同じ意味でしょう。
違うのを説明してもらえませんか。
Ah, I see. But I still think B is unnatural.
〜しておく is used when you intentionally do something ahead of time.
される is a passive form so using them together is unnatural.
先生
いつものご返事ありがとうございました。
また質問があるんですけど。
A.項目が追加されていることを確認する。
B.項目が追加されておいてことを確認する。
AとBは同じ意味でしょう。
違うのを説明してもらえませんか。
こんにちは！TMO
正しいのはAです。
Bの文章は間違っています。
Maggie sensei,
What is the difference between ながら and つつ？Since they all means “doing something while doing something, are they interchangeable?”
For example,
彼の気持を知りながら無視をしている。
Can I say
彼の気持を知りつつ無視をしている。
Hi Frozenheart,
Yes, you can say 彼の気持を知りつつ無視をしている。
You can use both ながら & つつ while doing something / even though (+ something contradicted)
つつ is a bit more formal than ながら. Also the usage of つつ is more limited. Ex. 残念ながら〜 X残念つつ
hello maggie sensei
why is ~ たら used in this sentence?
いつになったら日本語がきちんと話せるようになるんだろう.
I thought the verb + たら form means
“if verb” and “after verb”.
Did you check たら lesson?
You can use たら for “if”/”after” and also “when”
The speaker believes something is likely to happen./ The speaker is not sure if something will happen.
来年になったら日本語が話せるようになると思う。I think I will be able to speak in next year.
４月になったら日本語が話せるようになるかな。 I wonder if I will be able to speak Japanese in April.
どこにいったらその本が買えますか？ Where can I buy the book?
Thank you maggie sensei..
Yes, I’ll review the tara lesson now. Thanks again maggie sensei
One more thing maggie sensei..
Can I use you ni twice, in one sentence? like.
Watashi wa hana you ni kirei you no naritai.
I used the noun+ youni+ adjective and the youni +narimasu
And also, can I use the ~te kuru conjugation at the end of this(your) example 最近、納豆が美味しいと思えるようになった..so instead ofようになった it becomes ようになってきた?
Because it has a feeling of when and a subjecive display of thought.
I’m really sorry for barging you with so many questions.
Thank you for all your wonderful lessons.
Yes, you can say ようになってきた. :)
Sorry. Just saw your question.
Watashi wa hana you ni kirei you no naritai.
should be
Watashi wa hana no you ni kirei ni naritai.
We tend to avoid using the same particle in one sentence if it is possible but you can use double “ni” in this sentence.
Also what’s the difference if I used -te kudasai or just the te-form straightly here in this sentence, instead of placing ように first.
帰ってくるまでに仕事を終えておくように
. Does placing ように makes it more polite?
The difference between 帰ってくるまでに仕事を終えておいて(ください） and 帰ってくるまでに仕事を終えておくように?
ように sounds much stronger.
This was really helpful, thanks so much! But I just wanted to confirm something, so if you wanted to say for example ‘it is not too hot’, would you have to change the adjective あつい into the negative あつくない before adding すぎません? So would you say あつすぎません or あつくなすぎません? Or is that not how you would say it in the first place? Thank you!!
Hi Amelia
あつい is a regular adjective (I mean the affirmative form doesn’t end with ない) so, what you do is
1) drop い →あつ
2) Add すぎない→あつすぎない (Not too hot)
masu form すぎません→あつすぎません
Maggie sensei,
If I want to say ” I am having trouble with getting up early” by using なかなか、can I say:
なかなかはやくおきない（おきていない？）
Is it OK? Actually, I feel sthg is not right here, but I can’t explain, just a feeling.
Could you help me that point also?
なかなか早起きできない。
なかなか早く起きられない。
なかなか早く起きることができない。
Maggie sensei,
Thanks for making this lesson. It’s so great.
This is the topic which is not easily to digest ….
I have a question.
After reading and think, my understanding is
Vてあげる、Vてくれる、Vてもらう are giving and receiving centering on “私”.
Those grammar can be giving, can be receiving but they are centering on “watashi” like” do favor to “watashi”, “watashi” have SO do some favor, “watashi” received favor someone did.
If I want to say
(1) Mr A did some favor to Ms . B, can I use てあげる。
Mr A はMrBに掃除してあげる
(2) Mr B received a favor (掃除） from Mr B. can I use てもらう
Mr B は MrAに掃除してもらった。
(3) Mr B have Mr A do favor (掃除） for him
Mr B は MrA に掃除してもらう。
Thank you Maggie sensei
All your example sentences (1) ~ (3) are possible
くれる／あげる／もらう is based on the speaker’s point of view.
You can also describe the third person does something for the other third person from their point of view.
Hello!Maggie先生,
I would like to know this sentence is correct(or make sense)?
私がピクニックに出かければ、傘を持っています
ありがとうございます。
Hi Kaminari,
Do you want to say,
“When I go on a picnic, I will take an umbrella.” or “Whenever I go on a picnic, I take an umbrella with me.”
Then, you should say
ピクニックに行くときは傘を持っていきます。
出かければ is used for more
If I go on a picnic, + you expect something will happen. /Someone will do something.
ピクニックに出かければ彼が喜びます。
If I go on a picnic, he will be happy.
ありがとうございました
教科書に書かれないことが多いのね…
難しい…
どういたしまして。
ば・たら・と・なら,etc.はみんな苦労していますね。
がんばって！
Maggie sensei,
Thanks for the great lesson.
I understand that なかなか is used to describe a level (fairly, quite) of something.
Could you help to arrange the level in below sentences in order (from small to big).
Group 1
(１）彼女はきれいです
（２）彼女はなかなかきれいです。
（３）彼女はとってもきれいです。
Is that the level goes from (1) – beautiful , then to (2) quite beautiful and (3) extremely beautiful
Group 2
(1) 仕事がはかどらない。
（２）仕事がなかなかはかどらない。
（３）仕事がとってもはかどらない。
Thanks Maggie sensei in advance.
Group 1
Yes, that’s right.
Group 2
The order is right but (3) should be
(3) 全然はかどらない。 instead of とっても／とても〜ない
Thank you Maggie sensei :)
Love you much.
Everyday I can not stop thinking of you (because I always have question ^^)
You’re welcome! :)
You’ve been studying so hard. I am very proud of you!
Maggie sensei,
I have 2 questions about this lesson.
(1) み・さ for taste
苦さ = にがさ = nigasa = bitterness / how bitter it is
→苦味／苦み = にがみ = nigami = bitterness, bitter taste
Could you give me some examples to distinguish them?
Is that 苦味 is used for the taste of medicine?
What is 苦さ used for?
(2) Attach み ( = mi) suffix to certain verbs.
As in the lesson, 楽しみ is a noun by adding みto the verb 楽しむ。
Why it is not the noun by adding み to the adj 楽しい。
I mean it makes me confused for 2 ways of using a verb to make a noun and using an adj to make a noun. Why don’t we unify them as one way to make a noun, using an adj and make 2 nouns, with さ and with み。
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Hi again,
OK, I only have a few minutes now so let me make my answer short here.
（１） Yes, you can use 苦味 for the taste of medicine.
苦味／苦さ they both could be simply “bitterness” in English but the difference is
basically 苦味 is a quality of bitterness which some food/drink (or medicine as you asked) has and 苦さ is degree of bitterness.
Q:Why don’t we unify them as one way to make a noun, using an adj and make 2 nouns, with さ and with み。
I think that’s the beauty of learning language. 😉
But you are not the only person who feel that way.
Now young people create their own new words attaching the suffix み to anything.
Ex. おいしい →おいしさ →(slang) おいしみ
Thanks Maggie sensei for sparing every minute for my question.
I just leave a message here and wait for you….
(1) For 苦味／苦さ, I understand the 苦味 is a quality of bitterness which some food/drink (or medicine) .
I still not understand 苦さ. Could you please give me more example sentence?
If possible, please give me some examples with 辛さ・辛味. Really appreciate that.
(2) Absolutely agree !That is language:)
But…to remember the rule, my brain can not input many ways. So, if I just remember one way of making a noun, by using an adj to make 2 nouns, in さ and み, is it still OK sensei?
In fact , I see regardless of the way I use (using an adj たのしいto make noun, or using verb 楽しむto make noun), what I have is the same 楽しみ
苦味の少ないお茶
= Mild tea
(X 苦さの少ないお茶）
この二つのコーヒーの苦さを比べてみる。
= I will compare the bitterness level of these two kinds of coffee.
彼は失恋の苦さをまだ知らない。
= He doesn’t know the bitterness of broken heart yet.
(X 苦味）
この店のカレーはこれらの３つの辛さから選ぶことができる。
We can choose the spice level among these three at this restaurant.
辛さは控(ひか）えめでお願いします。
Can this dish be prepared with a low level of spiciness?
(2) Don’t think too much. A lot of people start learning from ” ~ さ” form first.
And then when you hear/ see the word which finishes with み, then you can start using them.
先生、ありがとうございました！
Thank you so much for explaining every way of using bakari as I’m always confusing myself on how to use T_T Japanese has so much nuances that can’t really differentiate with English!
The examples are also very useful, thank you so much!
Hello Anne
If you get confused, just come back again. And feel free to ask me questions here.
がんばって！ 💕
Maggie sensei,
Hello again :)
I’d thought that today I’m smart and no more question , but….(you know) ^^
Could you please teach me this point.
Is there any difference between the following 2 sentences I made.
(1) 彼は私の手紙を読むことさえしなかった。
(2)彼は私の手紙を読みさえしなかった。
Both sentence I want to emphasize “READ MY LETTER”. When referring to how to form sentence with さえ、I found 2 ways like that.
Would you help me that ?
Thank so much!
Don’t worry. The more you study, the more questions you should have.
Basically (1) and (2) are the same.
If anything, (1) is “reading action” and (2) is “to read” so, if you translate the difference, it would be something like,
(1) He didn’t even try reading my letter.
(2) He didn’t even read my letter.
Maggie sense,
いつもありがとうございます！
Feel like thing is clear now.
Love Maggie sensei :3
No problem!
Love💕
Maggie sensei,
Gomen :)
I have just said that I have no question. But now I have one ….
For this sentence
彼は子供にさえ冷たい。
Can I say ” 彼は子供に対してさえ冷たい?
Thanks Maggie sensei as usual.
Haha no problem.
Yes, you can say 彼は子供に対してさえ冷たい.
Thank you Maggie sensei for helping me this point :))
Maggie sensei,
Today I have no question, but I just would like to say
“The lesson is sooooo great”.
Thanks and love Maggie a lot,
Hello Maggie sensei, i’ve got a question
What are we supposed to do if the sentence end with はすなんだ ?
Thank you for all your lessons
こんにちはピエル
はずなんだ？
You have seen how to use はずです。はずだ
はずなんだ is used when you show your strong emotion or frustration because something was supposed to work in certain way but it didn’t work or someone is supposed to do something but they don’t.
Can it be excitation, maybe ? It comes from a game I’m playing, and I don’t think frustration would fit the context.
I also have another question which isn’t related to this article ( sorry )
Can どかな ( meaning “could be”) be spelled どうかな instead ? I saw it like that in the same game, and from the look of the official translation, I think it should be どかな.
It also could be just when you explain things to someone.
はずなんだ
どかな should be どうかな ( I wonder)
Thank you for making Haruka part of your site and thank you for the great lesson!
Hi Melanie,
Thank you for introducing us this wonderful guest teacher, Haruka-sensei.
This lesson is dedicated to you! :)
そんなに難しい文法はすぐに分かりっこないと思っても、先生のたいへんに役に立つ授業をもう一遍でもう一遍で勉強しないわけはありません。
ありがとうございます。
ちょっと質問あるのですけど。
あんな弱いチームに私達が負けっこないって上の一つの例えには、その助詞のがを代わりに代えれるのですか？
教えてくれるのお願いします。
すみませんでした。なんとなく間違っていました。
その助詞の「が」を「は」に代わられるのですか？
教えてくれるのお願いします。
こんにちは、ダビッド
あんな弱いチームに私達が負けっこない
あんな弱いチームに私達は負けっこない
はい、この例文は「が」を「は」にしても大丈夫です。
「私達が」を使うときは
「この（強い）私達が」という強い気持ちが加わります。
ご返事ありがとうございました。
それでは、他の例文の「彼に私の気持ちがわかりっこない」は、その「が」は「は」のよりどうして不自然なのですか？
私もどうして不自然なのか考えてみました。ちょっと英語に切り替えますね。
I have been wondering why it doesn’t sound natural. It could be the verb form.
When you use a potential form verb (or a verb which has a potential meaning)
Aに（~が）わかりっこない = There is no way that A (can) understand(s)~
The main subject is A not a noun which comes after が.
(The noun which comes after が is an object.)
On the other hand
Aに（Bが）負けっこない = There is no way that B loses A
The main subject is B, the one which comes after B.
So you can use whether が or は after B.
When you use verb potential form (or verb which has a potential meaning) Vっこない sounds unnatural to use が
Ex. 彼にそんなことができるはずがない わけがない
→彼にそんなことはできっこない。 (The main subject is 彼)
→(Not natural) 彼にそんなことができっこない (そんなこと is not the subject)
Ex. 彼にその曲が歌えるはずがない わけがない
→彼にその曲は歌えっこない
→(Not natural) 彼にその曲が歌えっこない。
I guess both っこない and が emphasize the meaning so it may sound too much emphasis.
他に理由が見つかったらまたコメントいれておきますね。
勉強になりました。ありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！
きっとわかるようになりました。どうも有難うございます。
よかった！
（I think you meant やっとわかるようになりました やっと = finally きっと for sure/probably: talking about future)
Thanks for another great lesson, Maggie sensei.
I have a problem with verb tense that I hope you will help me with: In the lightnovels I’ve been reading the narrators’s sentences often switch between past tense and present tense. Is there a clear rule for this?
I think it is the same in English. When you tell a story, you sometimes use present tense so that the readers can feel it is happening now.
I found this word in a song “誰かが描いていったかべの落書きの花”
Does 描いていった mean “have been drawn ?” or long drawn ago.
If it is what’s the difference between ていった and てきた。
I’m sorry for I being hard to understand.
I’ve read your article many times though.
Thanks a lot
誰かが描いていった
means “Someone draw a flower on the wall and he/she was gone leaving the graffiti.
Thank you very much. I’ve been stuck thinking this for a while.
You’re very welcome, KEW! :)
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your wonderful instruction. I’ve been struggling with this ん sound forever but this lesson has helped me a lot.
I have questions that need further explain: In a manga I read the main character said this:
“待って 覚えらんね” (after he’s been nagged by his friends to go buy them drinks: “I want Coke”, “I want orange juice” v.v…). I think this sentence meaning is: “Wait, I can’t remember all the types of drinks you guys want” (Because after that he had to write down the name of those drinks then went to buy them) . But does this mean られ changes to らん？I don’t see this type of change mentioned in this lesson.
And then there is this sentence:
“女が絡まれてんのを見てとっとととんずらか？”
What’s the meaning/function of this ん in 絡まれてんの? Is it shortened from ている ? If so, what is the rule for these ん’s changes, because I thought ん is only the shortened form of の.
Again, thanks a lot for all the efforts you’ve put in these lessons.
Hi Sara,
“待って 覚えらんね”
OK, I didn’t explain this because it is for a rough male speech pattern.
覚えられない→(rough/male speech)覚えられねえ→れ changes to ん 覚えらんねえ→Drop the last え→ 覚えらんね
Ex. やってられない (I can’t take this anymore./ I can’t keep going anymore.) →(rough/male speech) やってられねえ→やってらんねえ
Note: Besides rough male speech, there is a dialect in Tohoku area which uses the same pattern.
１） I think the last part is とっととずらかるのか or something but anyway
女が絡まれているの→ Drop い and add ん →女が絡まれてんの
Check this lesson: Casual contraction ている→てん
Hello Maggie sensei, thank for your detailed explanation.
My question is what is “relative clause” form of the sentences with “desu”
For example : “This book explains `what relative clasue is` ”
Thank you for advance.
Hi Burak,
How about
〜か説明している／〜ということを説明している。
This books explains what you need to improve your Japanese.
その本は何が日本語上達のために必要か（ということを）説明している。
or
その本は何が日本語上達のために何が必要か（ということを）説明している。
It
Maggie sensei,
説明して下さって有難うがおざいました。
(私が書いた物わ違うだったら直して頂けませんか)
Sure!
説明して下さって有難うがおざいました。→説明してくださって有難うございました。
(私が書いた物わ違うだったら直して頂けませんか)→私が書いた文章（ぶんしょう）が違っていたら直していただけませんか。or 私が書いた文章に間違いがあったら直していただけませんか？
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question. You mentioned 服を着た犬 can be used as an adjective clause and on the other hand, 服を着ている is used to describe condition.
What is the difference? If I saw a dog wearing clothes walked past, do I say 服を着た犬を見かけた or 服を着ている犬を見かけた?
The translation could be the same.
Maybe it will be easier to understand the difference if I translated as follows.
服を来た犬 = a dressed dog / 服を着ている犬 a dog who is wearing clothes
thank you for your reply.
dressed dog and dog who is wearing clothes sound similar. does that mean 服を着た犬 and 服を着ている犬 are same and interchangeable?
and if i saw the dog yesterday, do i say 服を着ている犬を見かけた or 服を着ていた犬を見かけた?
Yes, they are very similar and the difference is very subtle. (Just 着ている is focusing on the current state and 着た is “a dog in clothes.” ) so I guess they are interchangeable.
As for the past tense, 服を着ている犬を見かけた is more natural.
Maggie sensei,
Hello again !
I read over and over your lesson then 1 more question comes out.
If べき is used for telling what should be done from your point of view,
then what to use for telling what should be done from regulation point of view, such as
(1) as the national law, people under 18 years should not drink alcohol
Or
(2) As the company rule, people should were uniform.
Thanks Maggie sensei as always.
Hello
You can use for example, Vなくてはならない or Vといけない／(negative form) Vてはならない/ Vてはいけない （＋ことになっている: more explanatory. S is (not) supposed to do something）
(1) お酒を飲んではいけない（＋ことになっている）。/ お酒を飲んではならない。（＋ことになっている）
(2) 制服を着なくてはいけない。（＋ことになっている）／制服を着なくてはならない。（＋ことになっている）
ありがとうございます。
わかりました！
Love you, Maggie sensei
You’re welcome!!
Love 🐶💕
Maggie sensei,
I have a question about べき。 Could you help me as you always do !
If べき is more about obligation, then I don’t know what the obligation in this sentence.
あんな人とは別れるべきだ。
Since breaking up with him is the choice of the one person, not an obligation, isn’t it?
ありがとうございます。
Right. You can decide whether you break up with someone or not.
If your friend is going out with a bad person. How would you feel? You think your friend should break up with that person, right?
When you strongly think that someone should do something if possible, you can use べき.
Maggie sensei,
Thing is clear now.
Many thanks for helping me.
Any time! :)
Maggie sensei,
What is あって in this sentence ?
Ex. Yukari : マギー先生、あってこその私です。
Is it the あって of ある, いる（ existence)?
If so, I don’t understand why あって can be used here.
Since Maggie sensei is human, not a thing, we should use いる, should n’t we?
Please help me this point and thanks as always.
You usually use いる for people/animal.
In this case, I guess it originally came from 存在（そんざい）existence.
マギー先生という存在があってこその私です。
すばらしいです！！！
分かりました。
ありがとうございます、先生！
よかった〜！どういたしまして。
助けてくれてありがとう😍😍😍
どういたしまして❤️
“Maggie先生の様になりたい”
Does this mean: “I want to be like Ms. Maggie” (you didn’t write the English>< hehe)
Thank you so much!!! ^^
Hi Ali
Yes, it means “I want to be like Maggie Sensei.”
Just added the translation. Thank you!!
Maggie sensei,
Could you help me in this sentence?
When I want to say ” she is not the Sun, but She is Sun-like”, I use っぽい
彼女は太陽ではないですけど、太陽っぽい。
Then, my sensei put me 0 point on this sentence.
Why my sentence is not correct, Maggie sensei?
子供っぽい can mean “He is not children but he is children-like”.
That’s why I dont know why “彼女は太陽ではないですけど、太陽っぽい” is incorrect.
Hello,
First, you don’t need to say “she is not the sun” because it is too obvious.
A person can’t be 太陽っぽい. Instead you can use みたい
She is like the sun. (It implies she is a warm and bright person.) 彼女は太陽みたいな人だ。・お日様みたいな人だ。
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for helping me.
But… why is that sensei.
As my understanding, we can describe 1 大人 with children characteristic by 子供っぽい。Why we can not describe 1 person with Sun-like characteristic (warm and bright) by 太陽っぽい。
My sensei answers that 太陽 and 人 are not related.
But I still can not figure out what noun is not related to what noun. Like children and an adult are also not related, aren’t hey?
But , it there are some exception nouns, could you please teach me !
My next question is can we describe a person as animal-like (means this person is aggressive, easy-to-fight, etc) by あの人は動物っぽい.
Or, someone is dog-like (It’s just a question for the lesson,please forgive me if you dont feel comfortable with this example) by 犬っぽい。
Thank you Maggie sensei!
As many of English words with “ish” is coined words, you can create your own words with っぽい in colloquial Japanese. In that sense,
太陽っぽい人が好き
might be acceptable.
In fact, っぽい is one of the overused words among young Japanese people and they attach っぽい to anything.
Ex. 明日みんなで集まるっぽい。(It seems like/I heard that we all get together tomorrow.)
Ex. なんか違うっぽい。(It looks different somehow.)
But not in your Japanese class. 😉
If you just say あの人は太陽っぽい, it sounds confusing to other people. The image you get from the sun is hot or warm or bright but it is too vague.
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございました！
助かります
Thanks as always :)))
どういたしまして！
Hi Maggie sensei,
I really enjoy learning japanese, and very curious if I heard something new everytime a native speaker talk.
Regarding this topic, sometimes I heard Japanese said:
.〜わけと。
for example: 『良い旨味が出てくるわけと。』
can you explain what that person mean?
Hi ade
You sometimes leave a sentence unfinished on purpose.
In this case, leaving a sentence with と
（Finishing a sentence わけと is not that common but you sometimes leave a sentence with と.)
So instead of saying 良い旨味が出てくるわけだ／です。 you say, 『良い旨味が出てくるわけと。』
That is how you get good taste out of it.
Hi Maggie!
Long time no see, hope you are doing fine ^^
In this case, what could be used after と? 思う maybe, or something different?
Hi 天人！
元気だった？
As I mentioned, it is not that common to leave the sentence with わけと but yes, when you finish a sentence with ~と,
思う / ということだ, etc. could be omitted.
It depends on the context.
Other examples of leaving the sentence with と
Ex. さあ、もう寝よっと。(volitional form) expressing what you are going to do.
Ex. (Giving some instructions) ここを押すと、こうなると..(いうことです。）
Ex. (Confirming something) 明日からもう彼ははこないと..(いうことですか？/ と言っているのですか？）
うむ、元気ですよ
Perfect! Thanks Maggie <3
元気でよかった〜 :)
That is a very detailed explanation. Thanks!! Appreciate it
Hi Joshua,
I guess it is too much information but I hope you can learn something. :)
Hi Sensei,
This is an awesome lesson, but I just had one question:
What exactly does the “って” in
“日本語って難しいよね”
mean exactly? I’ve seen it elsewhere but from what I can tell, it turns whatever it’s attached to into the subject. Is that a good way to think about it?
Hi Jasmine,
日本語って難しいよね。
って in this sentence has a function of introducing a topic.
= 日本語は難しいよね
If you want to learn more about って, check this lesson. →How to use って
Maggie sensei,
I have a question. Could you please help me?
（１）コラを頼めば
Is that mean ” Why don’t we order coca cola”?
(2) 好きなものを飲んでもらえば
My infer is
飲んでもらう＝have (them) drink what they like
好きなものを飲んでもらえば＝why don’t we have them drink what they like
First, my question is “is my understanding of the above correct?”
(3) But this sentence I don”t know the meaning, could you help me?
明日店に来てもらえるんだよね！『店長が店員に話しています）
(1) コーラを頼めば？
Why don’t you (or we) order Coke?
(2) Your interpretation is right.
(3) You are coming to the store (restaurant, coffee shop) (to work for me), right?
It implies “I can count on you tomorrow, right?”
Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much much much!
Love you 心
You are very very welcome!
Love you,too!
Sensei,
One more question is the possibility of using わりには for myself.
にしては can not used in the case
X 私は２０歳にしてはなんでもよく知っている。(Not natural)
How about わりには？ Is it possible to say
私は年のわりには元気です。
私は年のわりには元気です。
Yes, you can say that but I would say 私は年のわりに元気だと思う。
So in this case, かのように was reduced to かに ?
When you say doubt in this case, かのように would mean “as if”, meanwhile のように would just mean like ?
ありがとうございます!
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for the lesson.
So, わりにはcan be used for general noun which we can not tell the concrete quality of that noun, for example 年、年齢、etc
Does it mean
If I want to tell “Though she is young 『regardless of age), she is so knowledgeable” 、then I will say
“年の割りにはよく知っている。(case 1)
And if I want to say “Though she is old (regardless of age), she is genki”, I can also use “年のわりには,元気だ” (case 2)
年のわりには can be both young and old
But for にしては、it should be concrete, young or old specificly
Is my understanding correct, sensei?
Hello!
Yes! You understand the difference very well. :)
先生のおかげで、その違いがわかる。
ありがとうございます！
よかった！😊
AHAHAHAHAHAHAH the final sentence XD does it mean that it was Maggie-sensei to ask Cookie? X°D
I love you, Maggie-sensei! a HUG from italy
Hi Maggie!!! Buon giorno！
Cookie is under my control. I know all his secrets! 😉
Love you,too!!!💕
Hey, thanks for the lesson. Just want to let you know that there is a typo at “Nigatre na tabemono wa arimasu ka”.
Hi Hitokage,
Thank you for spotting the typo! 😊
Sorry sensei, I made typo in my previous comment.
I’d like to correc it
Maggie sensei,
I’d like to ask the ばよかったのに。
Can we use ばよかったのに to talk about ourselves (not the others)?
In details, is it possible to change this sentence
留学先は、神戸にすればよかった。
= I should have gone to Kobe to study Japanese.
into ばのに
留学先は、神戸にすればよかったのに。
How does the meaning with ばよかったのに change , in compare with ばよかたった。
My next question is how is the tone we use to talk in ばよかったsentence.
Is the tone down or up?
When you talk about your own regret, you don’t use のに.
〜神戸にすればよかった。(Your own regret) I should have studied in Kobe. (The tones goes down)
〜神戸にすればよかったのに (Talking about someone else) You should have studied in Kobe.
Thank you sensei !
I understand them.
Maggie sensei,
I’d like to ask the ばよかったのに。
Can we use ばよかった to talk about ourselves (not the others)?
In details, is it possible to change this sentence
留学先は、神戸にすればよかった。
= I should have gone to Kobe to study Japanese.
into ばのに
留学先は、神戸にすればよかったのに。
How does the meaning with ばよかったのに change , in compare with ばよかたった。
My next question is how is the tone we use to talk in ばよかったsentence.
Is the tone down or up?
Hi!Maggie sensei!
Thank you for your effort!
Could you please tell me the meaning of the next sentence?:無い無い(笑)って流すところだったん.
Arigatou
Hi Bere,
I don’t do the translation here. Also it is hard to tell by just the sentence but is it a typo?
流すところだったん →流すところだった
I guess the person denying something saying “That is not possible/I don’t have something./ It can’t be true (depending on the context)” and 流す means he/she doesn’t try to answer the former question seriously. ところだった means “almost/was about to do something”
So he/she almost didn’t try to answer the question seriously denying the possibility laughing.
How does iru/aru compare to desu/da ?
I read desu/da also mean “to be.”
ありがとう 🤞 I love your site. The way you answer thoroughly and with examples in pretty colors is perfect 👍👌
Hi Blaise,
You are right.
“desu/da” also means “to be” in English.
The difference is when you are talking about the existence /location of something/someone, you use iru and aru.
Ex. He is at home = Kare wa ie ni iru/imasu.
Ex. There is a dog in the park = Kouen ni inu ga iru/imasu.
Ex. There is a bag on the desk/ = Tsukue no ue ni kaban ga aru/arimasu.
Ex. The bag is in the room. = Kaban wa heya ni aru/arimasu.
When you express, some quality, nationality, occupation you use, da/desu.
X = Y
Ex. Watashi wa Maggie da/desu. = I am Maggie.
Ex. Kare wa nihonjin da/desu. = He is Japanese.
Ex. Kore wa watashi no kasa desu. = This is my umbrella.
Maggie sensei,
毎日の朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことになっています。
(It becomes my habit (a rule) that I will read Maggie sensei site every morning). I write the English here for worrying of my bad Japanese , ひひ）
だから、毎日質問が来ているです。。。
で、毎日私からのコメントを見えますね。ごめん、先生。
Today, my question is about this sentence
彼に限ってそんなことをするわけがない。
= Kare ni kagitte sonna koto wo suru wake ga nai.
= He is the last person who would do such a thing.
Does it mean 彼以外に他の人がそんなことをするわけがない, my sensei ?
Hi
彼に限ってそんなことをするわけがない。 means “There is no way that he would do such a thing.”
Maybe other people would do but not him.
So it doesn’t mean 彼以外に他の人がそんなことをするわけがない because that means he would do that but not other people.
OK, let me help your Japanese sentences a little.
毎日の朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことになっています。
→毎朝、Maggie先生のサイトを読むことにしています。or 読むようになりました。
だから、毎日質問が来ているです。。。→I guess it’s OK…How about 毎日、質問が出てきます。
で、毎日私からのコメントを見えますね。→だから毎日、私からのコメントがあります。
毎日、ここで勉強してくれてうれしいです。 ☺️
Thank you sensei for correcting my Japanese.
I understand that sentence now.
But how about replacing にかぎってhere with にかぎり
彼に限りそんなことをするわけがない。
I am confused about にかぎって here. Since I think にかぎって is used to compare the situation in the 範囲 with にかぎって and the normal situation.
Like
彼は今日にかぎってかなり飲んだ。どうなたったかな。
It means “普段はかれはあまり飲まないですけど今日だけかなりのんだ”
Thank you sensei.
Aさんに限り／限って〜Vない
That would be the last thing that A would do.
A won’t do such a thing.
When you use (someoneに）限り／限って in a negative sentence, it means “someone” is the last person who would do that.
今日に限ってかなり飲んだ
It is an affirmative sentence. 限って modifies 今日 and it means “limited to /Only ~”
→Just today
Thank you sensei,
わかりました。
Ah sensei, 今N3を勉強していますけど、ちょっとN2の項目を読んでみました。で、サイトにN2の文法レッソンがあまり多くないと思います。N2の文法はどこにのせたですか、先生？
N2はまだ少ないと思いますが、どのレッスンにもN2レベルの人が見ても何かを学んでもらえるような情報をいれています。
最近、JLPTのレベル分けのTAGを入れましたが、About Usのページに書いてあるように、このサイトはJLPTのためのサイトではないのでもしJLPTの勉強だったらきちんとテキストを使って勉強した方がいいですよ。がんばってね。
It appears there might be a typo in one of the English sentences:
X Please finish all the work by five o’clock from now.
Please finish all the work by five o’clock from now *on*.
I also wonder if it might be more natural in English to express the sentence this way:
From now on, please finish work by five o’clock.
Thank you, merrill! Will fix the mistake later. But is it from this lesson??? I can’t find the sentence.
Maggie sensei,
Why “楽しみにシテイマス” means “Look forward to something something”, sensei?
Oops, sorry sensei, I’d liket to correct my typ
Why 楽しみにしています” means “Look forward to something, something”, sensei ?
I see why you asked me.
When you tell someone what you are going to do (action) you say ~します not しています
楽しみにしている is an expression which describe the state of being expecting something fun and 楽しみにする is not an action.
So you don’t say 楽しみにします
But don’t think about it too much. This is just an expression.
Sensei,
いろいろ、ありがとうございます！
助かります
どういたしまして！
Hi. I’ve been visiting this site for quite some time now. I just wanted to let you know how much I appreciate these lessons and how much I find them helpful!
Thank you so much for your hard work.
Sending my love from Slovenia to you and to Maggie above*
うれしいメッセージありがとう！！！
Thank you for your nice message, Valentina!!!
Big hug from Japan! 😘💕
Maggie sensei,
So, させる( = saseru) could also means “to let someone do something.” and could also means “to force someone to do something.
How about the emotion of させられる。Is it neutron like させる or it is used only when we are forced which is unhappy situation.
Ukemi form is easy to see the unhappy emotion, like
母にキャンプに行かされた。（complaining)
But m y question is what is the emotion if we replace ukemi by causative passive here
母にキャンプに行かせられた。
Does it sentence mean “I was allowed to go camping” in some situation, sensei?
母にキャンプに行かせられた。
= I was forced to go camping by my mother.
(My mother made me go camping.)
So it shows the emotion that “I didn’t want to go but there was no choice. ”
If you are allowed to do something by someone, you say
母に行かせてもらった。
Maggie sensei,
Me again !
What is the difference of the below 2 sentences sensei?
(1) 「ごめん。明日は、実家に行くことになっているんだ。」
= Sorry. I am supposed to go to my parents’ house tomorrow.
If I replace ことになっている with ことになりました、
(2) ごめん。明日は、実家に行くことにりました。
In my understanding, sentence (1) means
“Going to my parent’s house tomorrow is decided (and I am supposed to go)
Sentence (2) also means “Going to my parents’s house tomorrow is decided”.
What to use in which case sensei.
They sound the same
Thanks sensei as always.
Hello,
明日は、実家に行くことになっているんだ。
= I am supposed to go visit my parents.
You are focusing on your plans.
You have made the plans before and you are telling someone what you are planning to do tomorrow.
明日は、実家に行くことになりました。
= I decided to go visit my parents.
You are focusing on your decision.
Maggie sensei.
Thank you for the great lesson.
Before, when I read your lesson about 受身, I found a very very great way to change Verb dictionary form to 受身form. That is changing to verb dictionary form to ない、then add れる。
For example, いくｰ>いかない →いかれる。
Which is
very easy to remember.
I’d like to ask whether I can apply this rule to form the causative. In detail, changing the verb dictionary to ない、then add せる。
For ex, いく －＞いかないー＞いかせる。
I wonder if this rule is also possible to apply without no exception.
Thanks Maggie sensei for always helping us.
Actually I have been thinking about making a new lesson on this form and already prepared the conjugation chart.
u-verb 聞く = きく= kiku
1) Make a negative form
聞かない = きかない= kikanai
2) delete ない and add せる
聞かせる =きかせる= kikaseru
ru-verb 食べる = たべる = taberu
1) Make a negative form
食べない=たべない= tabenai
2) delete ない and add させる
食べさせる = たべさせる = tabesaseru
irregular verbs
くる →こさせる
する →させる
So great Sensei !!!!
I love your site much because you bring the dark side of Japanese to light.
Thank you sensei
You’re welcome!
thanks for the lesson. it was great.keep it up mggie sensei.
Hello Dinithi Pieris
お役に立ててうれしいです。:)
こにちわ, マギー先生。
I just have a question about this sentence.
一応そういういことにしておきましょう。
It translates to “Let’s just say that you don’t for now.” I can see how that sentence contains the words “for now” and “that”. But I am at a lost how you get “let’s just say you don’t”. Is the にして here the same one as your [にしては & わりに] lesson? And for the おきましょう verb I think it is the verb おく, right? But I just don’t understand how it translates to that in English.
Also, in 例の仕事はもうできた？ I tried to look up 例 but it only means “example”. Does it always mean “that” in such sentences?
わざわざこんな問題に答えてくれて頂有難うございます！
一応そういういことにしておきましょう。
Means “Let’s just put that way for now.”
My translation there, Let’s just say that you don’t for now.”
is from the previous sentences.
You like Max, don’t you?
No I don’t.
Let’s just say you don’t (like him)”
As for 例の I explained in this lesson.
わかりました！
☺️✌️
http://prntscr.com/l7l49b
「なし」を二度タイプしてしまいました
ありがとう、Jeff! 💕
Maggie sensei,
One sentence makes me headache again. Could you please help me.
先生( ~) その話し方は失礼だ。
1. にとって 2. に対して
私にとって、Both (1) and (2) sound correct because.
– If (1), then the sentence means “From sensei’s point of view, that way of talking is impolite.
-> Sensei thinks that this way of talking is impolite
– If (2), then the sentence means “That way of talking against sensei is impolite” ->
But I check my book, and it says only に対して is correct.
Why (1) can not be used here sensei?
Hello again,
先生に対してその話し方は失礼だ。
The way you* talk to the teacher is rude.
I can see how you took the sentence, the way you talk is rude for the teacher but it is still not natural.
It will be easier to see the usage of 対して if you change the sentence a little.
Aは、Bに失礼な話し方をする。
= A talks to B in a rude manner.
You see two parties, A and B in this sentence.
As I explained in the lesson, you use 対して to make the target of action clear
the action goes to the teacher/ or one’s attitude towards/against the teacher.
You use にとって when focus on how someone perceive someone’s action/events.
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for helping me.
Just would like to confirm my understanding.
In this sentence, if I want to use に対して, then I should say
あの人は先生に失礼な話し方をする
My second question is if I want to focus on the noun “話し方”、and I want to describe that noun (話し方) is rude (失礼）, may I use に対するin this case
先生に対するその話し方は失礼です。
I feel some thing is not right here, but I dont know it @@
My next concern is にとって in this sentence in the test.
the test only gives me 2 options to choose 1. にとって ２．に対して, for this one
先生( ~) その話し方は失礼だ。
1. にとって ２．に対して
I don’t know why (1)にとって is not the correct answer.
先生にとってその話し方は失礼だ
= In sensei’s perception, that way of talking is rude
The meaning sounds OK. But why only に対してis suitable makes me headache.
Thanks Maggie sensei in advance !
Q1) In this sentence, if I want to use に対して, then I should say
あの人は先生に失礼な話し方をする
→No, no. That is not what I meant. I just rephrase it to show you the meaning.
If that confuses you more, how about this
AさんはBに対して失礼だ
The attitude of A towards B is rude. – A is rude to B.
You don’t use とって
AさんはBにとって失礼だ
****
Your interpretation,
先生にとってその話し方は失礼だ
= In sensei’s perception, that way of talking is rude
The meaning sounds OK.→Not quite.
You can’t see if it is rude or not from the teacher’s point of view and also “Someoneにとって+ adjective” is not natural.
(Ex. X彼女にとって犬は好きだ X父にとってスマホは便利だ x彼にとってその服は大きい）
If you attach a noun, it is possible.
So if we translate as your interpretation, you could say
(それは）先生にとっては失礼な話し方だったようだ。
= I assume it was a rude way of talking for the teacher.
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございました.
本当に助かります。。。
It’s not that I understand them all but the feeling is better now.
Thank you sensei ^^
Good, at lease you feel better. (^_−)−☆
Maggie sensei,
I read over the grammar にとって again but it’s still headache.
If “Someone にとって＋adj” is not natural, why this sentence is OK sensei (crying …)
Ex. Silver先生にとって日本語は難しくない。
= Japanese is not hard for Silver Sensei.
Thanks sensei as always
Ah, good point. I shouldn’t have brought that pattern up because there are cases that you say にとって+ adjective.
But 先生にその話し方はとって失礼だ still doesn’t sound right. I may have to repeat the same thing again and again but
話し方 means how someone talk to the teacher. So you see the two people in the sentence. One person talks to the teacher in a rude way.
When some action is done against someone, you use 対して
Thank you sensei :)))))
I understand them now .
Thanks sensei for every little bit thing you did to help me study
My pleasure!
Maggie sensei,
いつもありがとうございます.
I have a question related to 間にand うちに.
They sound the same. Are they interchangeable?
If they can not, in which case we can only use 間に, and which case we can only use うちに
Ah, something has come into my mind. We also have 最中に with respect to “During” meaning.
You are right. うちに and 間に are very similar and a lot of time they are interchangeable.
But for example, when you are talking about the temperature of food/climate which changes by time, うちに is more natural.
Please eat this while it’s hot.
あたかいうちに食べてください。
X 間に
Please visit Japan while it’s cool.
すずしいうちに日本に来てください。
X間に
Also see the difference?
彼がこないうちに掃除をしなくてはいけない。Before he comes, I have to clean the house. (X 間に）
彼がいない間、掃除をしていた。 I was cleaning while he was away. （Xうちに）
最中 means right in middle of doing something.
Maggie sensei,
As always, thanks so much much much.
I understand them now.
どういたしまして💕
マギー先生
こんばんは。お久しぶりですね。
ちょっと質問が有るのですが、「〜なくちゃ」の過去形は何ですか。金沢大学に留学していた時に友達が教えてくれたんだけど、忘れてしまいました。
宜しくお願い致します
勇士
（追伸(P. S.)：間違いが有れば、ちょっと直していただきませんか。おっ！そういえば、すみませんが、質問がもう一つ有ります。「〜（ら）れば」と「〜たら」の違いは何ですか。）
いつも有難うございます (as always, thank you very much.)
こんにちは、勇士！
The past tense of 「〜なくちゃ」 is
なくちゃいけなかった／ならなかった
行かなくちゃ I gotta go (now)
行かなくちゃいけなかった I had to go.
「〜（ら）れば」 You mean られれば？
Or you simply want to know the difference between たら and ば？
勇士の日本語の文章、直すところありませんでした。おめでとうございます！
マギー先生
こんばんは！分かりました。返信して下さって有難うございます。
そうですね。もっとこんな感じです：「Ｖタ形ら、＿＿＿。」と「条件系、＿＿＿。」
例えば：「日本語学校を卒業したら、専門学校に入りたいです。」と「大学を卒業すれば、国へ帰ろうと思っています」。
そうなのですか。ちょっとびっくりしました。（笑）
いつも有難うございます。
こんにちは！
そうですね、「〜たら」と「ば」 は同じように使えることもあるのですが、その二つの例文を比べると「ば」の方が仮定の気持ちが強いです。
「卒業したら〜たい」 When I graduate from the Japanese school, I would like to study ~
「卒業すれば」 If I graduate from the university, ~ (It sounds more hypothetical. The speaker is not 100% sure if he/she would graduate)
お待たせしまして申し訳在ありません。。
分かったと思います。「Ｖタ形ら」は絶対に起こるという事ですね。 「条件形」は起こるかどうか分かりませんが、起こる場合に「〇〇の条件」でしょうか。
英語で速く書いてしまいます。
The 「Ｖタ形ら」 pattern is used to express that a certain action will be done or that a certain situation will arise upon the completion or occurrence of a matter, action, or state that the speaker is certain will happen.百パーセントで起こるという事です。
The 「条件形, or conditional form, the 「〜ば」 part of the sentence describes the requirements needed for an event or occurrence to manifest itself.
(その説明は私が金沢に留学した時来ます。それでも、マギー先生のおかげで、今分かってしまうかも知れません。)
そうですね。一つだけ
Vたら
百パーセントで起こるという事です。
→私が「〜ば」の説明のところで卒業するのが１００％確かではない時と書いたからだと思いますがたらを使うときは必ずしも100%起きるというわけではありません。
あの例文（卒業すれば）に関して言えば、卒業という行為が完了した時という意味で使われています。
Your interpretation is right except the part 百パーセントで起こるという事です。
I think you said 100% because I said “When the speaker is not 100 pct sure.” in the explanation of ~ば but you use たら when you are not 100% sure either.
For that particular example sentences たら in 卒業したら, is the completion of “finishing the school (graduation)”
マギー先生
もう少し考えたいですが、説明して下さって有難うございます。
勇士
はい、また考えて悩んでわからなくなったらいつでもきてください。
分かりました！
Just an interesting note…
「失礼ですが、どちら様でしょうか？」
If you merely say 失礼ですが, the person will immediately identify himself.
It’s like magic!
😊
Thanks Maggie Sensei! Your website is the best Japanese learning website!
Thank you for your nice comment! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I always enjoy learning Japanese by reading your articles as I love dogs so much. Thank you for your hard work.
I’m preparing for my N3 test and the textbook I bought said “訳がない“ and “っこない” share the same meaning. But when I did some exercises, I found they couldn’t be used interchangeably. Could you explain the differences in their usage? Thank you so much!!
Hi Anpanman
OK
For example
There is no way that I can do such a thing.
そんなことできるわけない conversational そんなんことできっこない
They mean the same.
You often use っこない with verbs in potential form.
And also while わけがない is used with adjectives or の+ noun , you can’t use っこない with adjective or の+ noun
私の服が高いわけがない。 There is no way that my clothes are expensive.
X You can’t use っこない。
彼が兄のわけがない。There is no way that he is my big brother.
X You can’t use っこない
If I have time, I will make っこない lesson for you.
Thank you very much for the quick reply Maggie Sensei!! Now I understand their differences. (⌒▽⌒)
Great!! :)
Hi Maggie-sensei! I just want to ask, what should I say when I want to say that someone has allowed me to do something? For example, to be forced to get married is 結婚させられた。But if I want to say that I was allowed to get married, what should I say?
I also want to ask, what should I use when I want to tell someone not to use keigo with me because it makes me feel old?
Thank you in advance, I love your lessons!
Hello Allie
1) You can say
結婚させてくれた (the person allowed me to get married) / 結婚させてもらった (I was allowed to get married.)
2) There are many ways to say that but how about
敬語をやめてもっと気軽に話さない？
= Keigo wo yamete motto kigaru ni hanasanai?
Hello, Maggie-sensei!一人で日本語を習うから、時々マギー先生の便利な記事を読む。ありがとうその記事を :)
では、今漫画が訳したに「怖がられそう」を見つけた。怖がるは「to scare」、られ（る）は potential or passive voiceそして「そう」！
全部の言葉は「マスク外したら怖がられそう？」
So, “if you had taken your mask out it would have been scary?”
ありがとうな
下手な日本語を誤る xD
Hello Eudald
The person who takes off the mask is the listener, “you”?
If so,I think you got the meaning.
“If you had taken off your mask, they (people around you or particular people depending on the content) would be very scared.
Hello Maggie I have a question, I was confused alittle about には but you explained it earlier
Can you please explain the difference of this to me
日本に山がある
日本にある山がある
and what is the best way to translate this:
たくさん休みがある５月が好すき
冷蔵庫がある台所
I understand Ga is marking subject of Refrigerator and saying it exists, but how exactly is it saying that its “In The Kitchen” is what confuses me, I know its modifying the noun but….it doesn’t translate this way in my western head
Hi there,
“There are mountains in Japan?”
The most natural way to say is
日本には山がある。 This には has a function to bring up a topic: As for ~
As for Japan, there are mountains (in it)”
日本に山がある is just a factual thing. 日本には is more explanatory. You bring up a topic, 日本 and explain what they have in Japan.
たくさん休みがある５月が好き (I fixed the typo)
I love May which has lots of holidays.
冷蔵庫がある台所
The kitchen which has a refrigerator.
If you want to learn more about how to modify a noun, check this lesson. →Click this link.
Maggie sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson.
I just have one small point to confirm.
らしい is used for indirect information. And よう is used for the fact based on our assumption.But they are all guess, right.
For the information I get from my friends, other people, it’s clear to be らしい。
However, for many cases, it’s hard to distinguish what is assumption and what is indirect information. Actually, when we get indirect information then we will make an assumption…
But my question is will I get any trouble if I used らしい and よう not cleverly? I mean, for example.
When getting up in the morning, I see the road is wet. Then I make a guess “Seem that It rained last night”. Is it possible if I use both らしい and よう
昨日の晩、雨がふったらしい。
昨日の晩、雨が降ったようです。
Thank you for always helping us, Maggie sensei
Hi
You are right. You use both よう and らしい for assumption but if you see the wet road, I would say
昨日の晩、雨が降ったようです。
Basically よう is based on one’s subjective judgement and らしい is based on something more objective, Ex. information from others.
Thank you Maggie sensei,
But sensei, will I cause some troubles if I use Rashii.
昨日の晩、雨がふったらしい。
Because when I am in a conversion, I can not quickly decide what is subjective and what is objective information….
And,in the case I get information from my friends (my friend tells me “It rained yesterday”, but then I use this information to make my own judgment, what to use, らしい or よう。
Sorry if I am making thing complicated….
But it’s really a headache.
Please don’t apologize.
If you hear from someone that it rained last night, you say
降ったらしい
Sorry. I have to run right now but will get back to you with more examples.
OK, I’m back.
昨日は、雨が降ったらしい。 I heard /Someone told me/ I read (somewhere) that it rained yesterday.
(based on the information that the speaker has heard/seen.)
昨日は、雨が降ったようだ。It seems like it rained last night.
(1) first hand experience. Based on what you have seen.
(2) Like らしい, it could be based on what the speaker has heard/seen but the speaker uses ようだ when they are more certain about it.
Let’s change the tense a little.
When you are talking about the future weather, you can use both らしい and ようだ. ようだ is used when the speaker is more certain.
明日は雨が降るらしい。
I heard it’s going to rain tomorrow.
Based on what the speaker has heard/seen.
明日は雨が降るようだ。
Apparently it is going to rain tomorrow.(based on more reliable information or the speaker’s experience/knowledge)
***
So if you ever get confused which one to use, I would suggest to use らしい when you heard the information from someone. And use ようだ for your first hand experience.
Maggie sensei,
Don’t know how to express my thanks to you and your site now…
Lots of thanks Maggie sensei.
Lucky that I’ve found you!
I feel flattered but I am sure there are so many great sites out there. :)
Dear Maggie Sensei, I have a question. if ら し い is like an iAdj, why do I have to write マ リ ア ら し い 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。 and not マ リ ア ら し く て 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。?
can I join it to an iAdj without modifying it?
こんにちは、Shizuru
I guess you can say them both but the meaning is slightly different.
1) マ リ ア ら し い 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。
マリアらしい modifies 明るい色
2) マ リ ア ら し く て 明 る い 色 の 洋服 だ ね。?
マリアらしい and 明るい modify 色
こんにちわ先生お元気でいっらしゃいますか?先生whole night は日本語で2いみです。
1。まるいちばん
2。よじゅう。。。。どっちもどやってつかいます。おしえていただけませんか。
こんにちは！
The whole night = 一晩中 = ひとばんじゅう
Ex. 毎日、1万歩は歩くようにしていている there is a mistake in the end ;-)
Hi fab
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. ありがとう！
Awesome post, very complete, there is no better, thank you very much !
I just have a question. Why did you write : “毎日、1万歩は歩くようにしていている。”
and not “毎日、1万歩は歩くようにしている。”
What’s the difference ?
Thank you :)
Hi Audrey!!!
Oops! Sorry to make you confused. That was a typo. I fixed it.
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for another great lesson. I also read the こそ lesson and I am wondering, is さえ sometimes interchangeable with こそ since they both add emphasis? I know さえ means “even”, but it can also be for emphasis like in –
この問題さえ解けたら１００点だったのに。
What would be the difference between these 2 sentences?
1. この問題さえ解けたら１００点だったのに。
2. この問題こそ解けたら１００点だったのに。
And I just have another question about this intro..
「あ～このレポートさえ終われば外で遊べるんだけど….」
“Ahh, all I have to do is to finish this report and I can go out and play but….”
I thought that we use 終える to say “to finish something”, and 終わる is only used when something ends (e.g. a lesson, a song). So for this lesson I thought we would use 終える becacuse the speaker is the one completing the report.
Hi Dennis,
You use こそ to emphasize but
You can’t say この問題こそ解けたら１００点だったのに。
This is a conditional/hypothetical sentence and you don’t use こそ.
レポートが終わる The subject of the translation is “I” but actually the subject is “report”
When the report is done, I would go out and play but…
FYI 終わる is a special verb which you can as both intransitive and transitive verb
これで授業を終わります。= I will finish the lesson now.
I think I get the difference… 度もありございました。
I also noticed (from your examples) that unlike こそ, when you use さえ with verbs, it always has to be placed in between 2 verbs, right?
So either [te-form verb]+[さえ]+[verb] or… [verb stem]+[さえ]+[verb]. And then when you don’t really have any particular verb to place after the [さえ] you just simply default to using the verb いる, right?
Right. I am not going to repeat what I wrote in the lessons here but さえ is also used for conditional form.
VさえVば
そのことを知ってさえいれば
If only I had known that
You don’t say
知ってこそいれば
Sorry, after going through the lesson a few more times I understand now!
Oh great! :)
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございます！
今、Maggie sensei サイトの大ファンになっています。毎日の朝、仕事の前にレッスンを読んでいます。
今日ははずというレッソンを読むながら、質問が浮かんですので、ちょっと質問させていただけますか？
はずとでしょうはちかい意味でしょうね。
でしょうの意味は事実に対して90%の確実度を言いたいときに使いますね。
で、はずの意味も何かが起こるのか確かですよね。
ですので、はずとでしょうは９０％以上の確実度で事実が起こることを言いたいときに使いますね。
ごめん、Maggie sensei. I try to make Japanese sentence by myselt.
Hope you can understand my Japanese !!!!
Hello!
がんばって日本語で書きましたね。
(Note: 今日ははずというレッソンを読むながら、質問が浮かんですので、→to make it sound more natural you can say 今日は「はず」というレッスンを読んでいたら質問が浮かんできたので)
確実かどうかは別にして「でしょう」と「はず」は使い方が異なります。
「でしょう」は実はあまり会話では使いません。予言や予報、それから書き言葉で使います。
「はず」は話している人が何か得た情報で強くそうなることになっていると信じているときに使います。
だから天気予報で、「明日は雨が降るはずです」とはいいません。「雨が降るでしょう」といいます。
Actually the usage of でしょう is kind of limited.
You use it when you predict something, forecast the weather or it is used in the written form.
はず is based on one’s strong belief.
For example the weather reporter says
明日は雨が降るでしょう。= It will rain tomorrow.
But they will never say 明日は雨が降るはずです。in the weather forecast. It sounds like “I believe it is going to rain tomorrow.”
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございます。
Very clear now !
Good! 👍
先生
A)もし試験を受けていたなら、合格していたと思う。
B)もし試験を受けたなら、合格したと思う。
AとBは何か違いますか。
同じような意味ですが、A)の方が、事実と違う過去の仮定の話というのが強調されています。
Always appreciate the lessons, so much more useful than standard textbooks.
I was just wondering if there was a casual way of saying don’t have to do.
For example if you’ve had a busy week but finally have the day off is しなくちゃ事がなくて嬉しい correct? I cant help but feel there must be a more natural way of saying it.
Thank you!
Hi jb01
しなくちゃ事がなくて嬉しい →Technically しなきゃいけないことがなくて嬉しい
But it is a direct translation and it doesn’t sound natural. I would say
(忙しかったけど）やっと休むことができてうれしい。
= (I have been busy but) I am happy that I can finally get some rest.
マギー先生、レッスンはいつもありがとうございます。
ちょっと質問がある:
How often do we use ‘tte’ to replace the ‘ha’ particle in day to day conversation? I hear it quite a bit, but i’m unsure of whether I’m misinterpreting it or not
Thank you!
Hi Krys
The answer is quite often.
But it depends on who you are talking to.
If you are talking to someone superior, you should stick to は
Ex. 明日の宿題はなんですか？ (When you are talking to your teacher. )
Ex. 明日の宿題ってなに？ (When you are talking to your friends.)
Hello sensei
Question.
In 「 私はもうすこし ( 日本語がかんたんな本) がいいです。」the relative clause is the one inside () or should I include もう少し? I was told that the relative clause is only 日本語がかんたんな and it modifies 本 but I thought a clause should have a verb?
Hi Shin
もうすこし modifies かんたんな →もうすこし簡単な a little easier
You may understand better if you translate it literally in English.
I prefer a book “which Japanese is a little easier”
「しない」と「下さい」の間に「で」がありません
http://prntscr.com/l365o4
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. ありがとう！
Hi sensei,
What about 何かで? 何かへ? 何かに?
I saw a sample question for jlpt N5 and it goes like : たまごりょうりの上手な作りかたを (___) 読みました。 Why is the answer 何かで and not 何かへ, 何かに?
Thank you~~~
Hi Shin
When you see that kind of questions, you can guess the correct answer from the particle after 何か
Aを本「で」読みました。
I have read A in a book.
You don’t say
本に読む (に for 1) indicate the location for some existence 2) indirect object)
本へ読む (へ for direction)
This is one of my favorite lessons of yours. Getting food is something I always have trouble with when I travel, and I love eating out, so… But I have never seen anyone give so much detail about “what will happen when you go to [insert place]” as you. I like that you always think of as many situations as possible. Thank you so much!
Hi Chan,
Haha I know this lesson is long but I am glad to hear you like it.
Eating is very important. Enjoy eating out in Japan. 😉
Thanks Maggie I love your work! Whenever I am looking for an answer and I Google it I always end up on your site and I love the way you present the information and the quirkiness of the site with the 犬と猫。I am just 18 months into my 日本語journey but loving it! どもありがとございいます。
Hello Andrew!
Thank YOU so much for visiting this site.
I am happy to hear you are enjoying your 日本語 journey!
The key to improve Japanese or any languages is to enjoy studying it.
がんばって！
Just wanted to say how much this helped me. :D I thought that a singer was saying “頑張って見る” and that didn’t make any sense to me. Now I learned about the ~てみる, it makes sense lol
ありがとうございました!
がんばってみる = give it a try and do one’s best.
I am glad to hear it makes sense now. ☺️
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Sorry if you explained it already, but I still just don’t get why for this sentence it had to be 間に and not 間.
留守をしている間に宅急便が来た。
I know you said its because the 宅急便が来た is just a one time action, a one time thing. But then I get confused when in these example sentences, it is alright to use 間.
母が出かけている間、昼寝をしていた。
彼は私がしゃべっている間、ずっと黙って聞いていた。
私が買い物をしている間、そこで本を読んで待っていてくれる？
These are also just one time actions, right?
Hi Dennis
Right. 宅急便が来た is one time action which just takes a couple of minutes.
昼寝をしていた・黙って聞いていた・待っている are not one time action. It is on going action/ has/had been sleeping/listening/waiting.
Oh now I know what you are talking about! Sorry, I don’t know why I couldn’t get it. Thank you!
I have also come across one example sentence I think has a typo.
Ex. 彼を待っている間にジュースを買いに行った。
= I went to go buy some juice while he was waiting.
I think the English translation should be “While I was waiting for him I went to buy juice”?
Thank you for spotting the translation mistake. I will fix it right away. :)
Maggie-sensei,
Hi again!
Excuse me but I have confused 1 point. Please help me, please please
The sentence here uses とか
わからない言葉があったら、辞書を引くとか先生に聞くとかすればいいのに。
May I use たり for this sentence ?
わからない言葉があったら、辞書を引いたりMaggie先生に聞いたりすればいいのに。
Hi again
Yes, you can use たり in that sentence.
わからない言葉があったら、辞書を引いたりMaggie先生に聞いたりすればいいのに。 :)
The meaning is the same and you can translate the same way but to be precise,
引くとか／聞くとか: connecting two noun form verb.
“looking up a dictionary” or “asking (Maggie)”
引いたり／聞いたり:connecting two verbs.
You could look up a dictionary or ask Maggie.
Maggie sensei,
すばらしいです。
いつもありがとうございます。
どういたしまして！ ☺️
Maggie-sensei,
May I ask a question related to や。
Your example of ice cream and cake, shows the 2 things to be listed
りんごやオレンジが好きです。
Here is ringo and orange.
My question is if や is still possible for listing up 3, 4,5 things?
For example
りんごやオレンジやスイカやももがすき。
Or ya is limited to 2 things only.
Thank you
Frozenheart
Hello. Is your heart still frozen? 😉
りんごやオレンジが好きです。
や is “A, B and etc. ” so it implies there are other things you like.
If it is limited to two things, you use と
Maggie sensei,
My heart will still be frozen , except for reading your comment.
Just one more point about や and と、 hope you will help me.
My understand is the meaning of と is “And”. And meaning of や and とか are “OR”. Is it correct?
That point is very important to me. Because in computing, the AND and the OR is completely different @@.
OK, here we go
A and B. (Nothing else) →AとB.
A or B. (Choose from one of them) A か B
A and B and etc.(+ something else) →AやB / (more conversational) Aとか*B (* とか also implies “things like ~)
Maggie sensei,
Thanks again.
Very clear now.
Great! 😊
Hi Maggie-sensei, would like to ask does the きて in this sentence 急に、彼女が昨日はどこに行ったか聞いてきて、焦りまくった。means the physical motion come? because the english translation is My girlfriend asked instead of My girlfriend came and asked.
Hi changkh
Ahhh good question. I made a lesson on てくる／ていく but I guess I didn’t cover the usage. I should add one.
てくる／てきた is not always someone/something comes to you.
When their actions (coming towards you and ) affects you, you use てくる
1) Someoneが、〜か聞いてきた Someone asked me if ~
2) Someoneが、〜と言ってきた。 Someone said to me ~
3) Someoneが、怒ってきた。Some got mad at me.
So if you just say 聞いた/言った／怒った it is a factual thing. But by using てくる／てきた, you can tell the speaker/write is affected by their actions.
… I don’t understand how can bakari mean only/just if most of the translated sentences don’t include the word only or just???? Explain?? Like these sentences make no sense to me :
同じ間違いばかりしている。
= Onaji machigai bakari shiteiru.
= I’m making the same mistakes over and over.
Ex. 時間ばかりかかる仕事
= Jikan bakari kakaru shigoto
= Time consuming work
Hi Anon,
Though my English translation does’t have the word, just/only, the sentence emphasize the meaning.
Let me add “just” in the translation for you.
同じ間違いばかりしている。
Just making the same mistake over and over.
(emphasizing the repetition of making the same mistakes)
* 時間ばかりかかる仕事 = The work which just taking a lot of time.
Compare to 時間がかかる仕事, ばかり add the emphasis of 時間
Maggie sensei, your lessons are really helpful. Hontouni arigatou gozaimasu.
Hi Anuja!
Thank YOU for your comment. Sou kiite ureshii desu!
Happy dog 🐶💕
ここからもありがとうございました！
さすが非常に役立ちます。
しかし、小さな間違うを見つけました：
「電車 」ー＞「Denwa」と書きました。
;)
ありがとう、Marvin.
間違いを直しました。
「電話」には乗れないですね。 (笑） 😝
（Note for you: 小さな間違う→小さな間違い ☺️）
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
Usually intransitive will use “ga” right? So, when “wa” need to be used instead?
thank you Maggie sensei
I have one simple question
can I use ~なさそうです for negative verb or it is only used for negative adjective
You can use verb なそう
雨が降らなそう
泣かなそう
When you use ない (there isn’t / S doesn’t have something)
なさそう
お金がなさそう
Also there is another negative form but it has slightly different.
Vそうもない
When you are expecting something but it is not going to happen
始まりそうもない
ariagatou gozaimashita!
どういたしまして！
Hi Maggie! I found this sentence o a JLPT test page but I don’t understand the meaning of ものか here: あの人には分からないのだろう、今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものか。Thanks and keep up the hard work!
Hi Miriam
This is an inverted sentence.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものかあの人には分からないのだろう。
So this もの is nominalizing what comes before.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういもの （= 今の生活の安定が危ういものだということ/今の生活の安定が危ういということ =） “(the fact that) how unstable the current life is”
+ あの人には分からないのだろう。 = He/She probably doesn’t know / He/She may not know.
how unstable the current life is.
I see, and what would be the difference if ことか was used instead of ものか sinceこと is also a nominalizer. Thank you very much Maggie sensei!
OK,
Let me rephrase it to understand better.
彼には私の仕事が大変だということがわからない。
He doesn’t understand that my work is hard.
What he doesn’t get is “my work is hard”
彼には私の仕事が大変なものだということがわからない。
He doesn’t know that my work is a hard thing.
What he doesn’t get is “my work is a hard thing”
Hello Miriam,
let’s make a little change in the order structure of this sentence, then you will understand the meaning of ものか easier.
今の生活の安定がいかに危ういものか、あの人には分からないのだろう。
The pattern 「いかに／どんなに～～～ものか」 puts more emphasis (and feelings of the speaker) in the sentence. In this case the speaker is concerned, because somebody doesn’t realize, how much his/her current stability in life is in danger.
Here’s an example I found in the Internet:
こんな気持ちがどんなに淋しいものか、あの人だけにもっとわかってほしい
ヨロシク
Thank you very much Maggie Sensei! I think I understand now. Thanks for your fast reply and for your patience.
You’re welcome, Miriam.
Also thank you so much 天人 for helping Miriam!
Hello!
Tabako wa karada ni warui kara MOU yameyou.
and
Tabako wa karada ni warui kara yameyou.
what’s the difference? it’s only emphasis?
many thanks
Hi bernard
1) Tabako wa karada ni warui kara MOU yameyou.
2) Tabako wa karada ni warui kara yameyou.
Yes, 1) emphasizes one’s stronger feelings.
When you add もう (= mou), you can add the feelings such as “I had enough” / I have been smoking but it is time to quit smoking NOW.”
このサイトで日本語を勉強しまくっているジョルが来ました！
まあ、「来ました」と言っても大分前から来てたんですけどね。（笑）
相変わらずマギー先生は素晴らしい先生ですね。いつか会ってみたいです！
序琉！
このサイトで勉強しまくってくれているの？ うれしいなあ💕
これからもずっと遊びに来てね。よろしくね！ 🐶💕
Maggie sensei,
Thanks for the lesson.
Actually, you teach the rule for forming passive voice by changing the Verb to ない then add れ, is much much much easier to remember than the other rules.
For your reference, I had learnt the rule of forming passive voice which was so complicated to remember like below
Group 1: like いきます。
– Look at き, the sound is “k”. Passive voice is use the “k” sound plus “a” -> か。Finally, the passive is 行かれる。
Like 飲みます。
Look at ’み”。The sound is “m”. Passive voice is using the “m” sound _ “a”,
Finally passive voice is 飲まれます。
Too headache with this rule.
Hello again!
You are right. Just reading the rules gives me a headache. lol
I really respect all of you who are working hard learning Japanese.
Hi Maggie sensei,
First, thanks for this great site you have made to us.
Second, could you help me for this issue. I could not solve it though I have search this grammar point in many sites, but I am not sure the answer.
My issue is I want to combine 2 sentences with なってきた。
(1) 日本人に親しくなってきた。
(2)日本の文化の美しさを分かってきた。
Could you help me which way is correct to combine them (or both are wronｇ)
Way 1
日本に三年間にいます。
日本人に親しくなってきて、日本の文化の美しさを分かってきた。
Way 2
日本に三年間にいます。
日本人に親しくなり、日本の文化の美しさを分かってきた。
Hi Frozenheart. Oh wait, I hope your heart is not frozen. 😉
Let me correct your sentences first.
(1) 日本人に親しくなってきた。
→日本人と親しくなってきた。
(2)日本の文化の美しさを分かってきた。
→日本の文化の美しさがわかってきた。
To combine (1) and (2) you either use て form or masu-stem
A: 日本人と親しくなってきて、日本の文化の美しさがわかってきた。
B: 日本人と親しくなり、日本の文化の美しさがわかってきた。
Maggie sensei,
My heart will be melted by your warmth =))
Thanks for your prompt answer.
It solves my issue now.
Feel fresh now !
Thanks you
Good! I’m glad it solves your issue.
Now you can change your name to “Warm-heart” 💕
Hi Maggie sensei,
Again, thanks for the great lesson.
I have learnt new thing that なら is also used for Conditional sentence “If”.
I also remembered that I had learnt と・ば・たら also are used for Conditional Sentence . So dizzy now !
Could you please explain the difference of conditional sentences of と・ば・たら・なら ！
There are so many usages of と・ば・たら・なら so I can’t explain the whole difference here but たら is the most general conditional form and you can replace と・ば・なら with たら in many cases.
I have all the lessons so I suggest that you go through them one by one to see the difference.
こんいちは Maggie 先生😀
I have 3 questions for below situation:
Last week my friend went to Japan for business.
He knows that I like Japanese lipstick so he bought a lipstick for me (I didn’t ask him to buy, he vouluntarily bought it for me)
1, I want to tell my mom that :
I was bought a Japanese lipstick by my friend
—–> Can I say this?
(1) 私は友達に日本のリップスティック”が”買われてもらいました
*😜 I want to stress on “I was bought” to imply that something like I am a special friend with him so he is interested in me then bought it for me 😊 rather than saying
(2) 友達が私に日本のリップスティックを買えってくれました ーーー> I feel (2) stresses on “my friend did” rather than “I am a special friend with him”
If my 日本語の sentence is wrong, please kindly teach me how to say it correctly
2, This sentence makes me confused that how can listener know well that
I asked him to buy
or he vouluntarily bought it for me?
(3) 私は友達に日本のリップスティックを買えってもらいました
3, In all (1)(2)(3), I finish by ました to show my respect attitude to my mom, not to my friend. Did I do it correctly?
♥️♥️♥️🌷🌷🌷 どうもありがとうございます
こんにちは、 Sarang
1.
(1) 私は友達に日本のリップスティック”が”買われてもらいました
→私は友達に日本のリップスティック”を”買ってもらいました。
(2) 友達が私に日本のリップスティックを買えってくれました
→友達が私に日本のリップスティックを買ってくれました
But to be more precise, he bought a lipstick in Japan and brought it back so you can also say
友達が日本で口紅を買って来てくれました。
(3) 私は友達に日本のリップスティックを買えってもらいました
→私は友達に日本のリップスティックを買ってもらいました
Again, if you say 日本のリップスティック, it could be just a lipstick which is made in Japan. You can buy them anywhere in the world.
But if you say 私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。, it implies he bought a lipstick in Japan and brought it back to you.
Dear Maggie 先生
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP!!
(🤤Please help me delete my comment under your reply on Aug 29, 2018 at 12:55AM. I was mis-press reply button)
I just want to confirm to be sure that I could understand your meant correctly
1, I should say that
友達が日本で口紅を買って来てくれました。
To stress that I don’t ask him but because I’m a special friend with him, he voluntarily bought then brought lipstick from Japan for me.
Besides that, I still wait for your help for question 2&3 😁
🔴Q2, If I say this sentence with another friend (A san) who doesn’t know him:
私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
—>
how can A san differentiate 2 below cases
(A) ➡️I knew he would go to Japan in advance so I asked him to help me buy a lipstick in Japan first, ▶️ he agreed then ▶️ I sent money to him ▶️ he helped me bought it
In this case, I wasn’t presented a gift
(B) ➡️ I hadn’t known that he went to Japan until he gave me a lipstick and told me about buying it in Japan
In this case, I was presented a gift
🔴Q3, In all sentence, I finish by ました to show my respect attitude to my mom, not to my friend. Did I do it correctly?
*私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
*友達が日本で口紅を買って来てくれました。
⭕But if the person who bought lipstick for me is my boss 🤣 and I told it to my younger brother, can I say
私は課長に日本でリップスティックを買ってきていただいたよ。
(I use いただくto show my respect to my boss and
Use short form in past tense of いただく+ よ ➡️ to show that I don’t need to use 敬語 / 尊敬語 with my younger brother)
Is that OK? 😀
I’m sorry for my long questions👧
1. Yes, your interpretation is correct.
Q2.私は友達に日本でリップスティックを買ってきてもらいました。
This sentence sounds like you asked him to buy a lipstick from Japan for you.
In case of (B) You can say 友達が日本からリップスティックを買ってきてくれました。
But this could be either you asked him to buy you a lipstick beforehand and he bought it for you
or he bought you a lipstick voluntarily
You can also say 友達が日本で買ったリップスティックをくれました。He gave me a lipstick which he bought in Japan. (This won’t imply that you asked him.)
Q3: You usually use casual form when you talk to your own mother but it is possible to use ました form.
私は課長に日本でリップスティックを買ってきていただいたよ。
That’s fine. But again, when you are talking to your younger brother, you can stick to the casual form, too.
課長に日本で口紅を買ってもらっちゃった。
Dear Maggie 先生、
I can completely understand your explanation now 😀
Thank you so much for your help!!
I wish you good health and happy time
Thanks to my younger brother, I have been known your website
I always feel your great enthusiasm and your kind heart in each lesson
頑張り続けてください💪💪
We love you always 💖❤🌷🌹🌸
Hi Sarang
I’m happy to hear you understood. Please say hello to your younger brother!
Big hug for both of you💕
すばらしいレっスンをつかられて、ありがとうございました!
There is a part where you say
“Note: You also use お嬢様 ( = ojousama ) to”..?
and then you stop right there. I’m really curious, is there anything you forgot to put after that “to”?
Thanks again!
Hi Tata
Sorry. I thought I erased the sentence.
I already wrote the note here.
(Sometimes it is used sarcastically, “a spoiled rich girl”
こんいちは Maggie 先生、
For the usage no.3 of ~に対して “to express some ratio / proportion ”
I have a question for the difference between 2 below options:
1, number / amount / quantity ( + counter) + に対して
2, number / amount / quantity ( + counter) + について
(I see no.2 when I search meaning of ~について in jisho dict
https://jisho.org/search/について
😊)
Thank you very much 😙😙😙
Hi Sarang
Ah, yes, you can say について as “per”. But (as for my example sentences, if you want to change 対して to について） you have to change the form 〜につき
Dear Maggie 先生
I’m sorry I really don’t get it well ☺
I saw form in no.2 in this website
https://www.tudienabc.com/tra-nghia/nhat-anh-viet-han/について
—-> They give this example
車1台について 5千円の 使用料 をちょうだいします。
It means that they were wrong? 😁
Please teach me how to make sentence correctly with no.2
And in the form ~ につき, kanji is に就き or に付き, 先生？
I’m very happy to see your reply 😙😙😙
Ah OK, in that case you can say both
車1台について・つき 5千円の 使用料 をちょうだいします。
But for some of my example sentences, for example
Ex. 小麦粉カップ１杯に対して塩を小さじ一杯入れてください。
It will be unnatural to say について
I could understand it 👧
Thank you so much 😀♥️🌷🌷🌷
You’re very welcome, Sarang! 💕
Hi again Maggie-Sensei! ^ ^
Is tokidoki interchangeable with koto ga aru?
The difference is,
ときどき “sometimes” is focusing on the frequency. How often you do things/how often things happen.
ことがある is focusing on one’s experience /whether you have done something or not/ whether something has happened or not.
“ことがある is focusing on one’s experience /whether you have done something or not/ whether something has happened or not.” Isn’t this is for [~ta koto ga aru] ? If yes, i already understood for this one. ^ ^
From your example :
“時々、何もかも忘れてどこか遠くへ行きたくなることがある。”
Could we only use 時々? or only ことがある?
Yes, you can say
時々、何もかも忘れてどこか遠くへ行きたくなる。
何もかも忘れてどこか遠くへ行きたくなることがある。
Ok, its clear now. Thank you! ^ ^
You’re welcome! :)
Ah! Sorry, somehow I completely missed the section covering も.
Thanks for the explanation though, very useful as always :)#
マギー先生、
授業を書いてくれてありがとうございます。ちょっと質問があるんですが、「って」と「ってさ」の違いは何ですか。
後、「さ」の使い方は何ですか。ちょっと難しいですね。「さ」のポストもありますか。
宜しくお願いします
こんにちは勇士！
「さ」のレッスンはまだありません。そのうち作りますね。
There are a couple of functions of さ but when you tell someone what you heard, you can add さ as a suffix. The nuance difference is very subtle.
For example when you tell someone “Maggie Sensei is busy.”
I heard Maggie Sensei is busy.
マギー先生は忙しいんだって。
マギー先生は忙しいんだってさ。 by just adding さ, you can express “Oh well…/ that’s how it works/ We can’t do anything about it/ whatever” type of feelings.
そうなんですか。「さ」のレッソンをお待ちしています ^_^。
So it is a bit like using 「〜んだ」とか「〜(だ)から」、 right?
「さ」の使い方はいくつかありますが、そうですね。「〜んだ」に近いですね。
分かりました。
どうも有難うございます ^_^
どういたしまして、勇士！ :)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Now I know what こそ is in 日本へようこそ.
I am wondering what the よう means?
It is from よく = well/ good
Originally よきこそ
→よくぞきてくれました = Thank you for coming all the way
→ようこそ Welcome to ~
ありがとうございます。
For these 2 example sentences, are there any previous lessons that I can look at to understand them better?
一晩中こそ、勉強してはいないが長い時間がんばって勉強した。
今でこそ笑っていられるが当時は毎日悩んでいました。
For the 1st sentence, I don’t understand why it is 勉強してはいない instead of 勉強していない.
And for the 2nd one, I think I just have not learned いられる? I tried to look up this word but can’t find anything.
Hi Dennis,
~ してはいない
You add は to emphasize what comes before (一晩中勉強していない ”I didn’t study all night long”) to show the contrast.
So you pick up one example and deny it by using は
Let’s make it more simple.
日本に行ったことがない。I have never been to Japan.
日本には行ったことがない. The same translation, “I have never been to Japan.” but it implies I have been to other places but Japan.
いられる is a potential form of いる
笑っている= to be in the state of laughing/smiling → to be smiling/to be laughing
笑っていられる = to be able to be in the state of of laughing/smiling → to be able to smile/laugh
Many thanks Maggie-sensei!
This really helps. Looks like I learned something new and important! Looks like the ている form is actually made of 2 parts that can be broken down. I had always thought that the ている form of verbs cannot be broken down, as in, it is one single form (piece of grammar) just like:
the past tense form した
the negative form しない
the polite form します
But it looks like ている is actually made of 1.) the ~て form, and 2.) いる
Is this いる the same いる as the verb “to exist”?
〜ている
This いる is “to be (in the state)” and describe some condition/ state
hello Maggie Sensei 😀
詳しく日本語を教えてくれていつもありがとうございます😄😄
質問がありますが、、
how to answer お疲れ様 correctly?
Hi Lee,
Basically you don’t have to say anything but…
If you are working with someone and they tell you お疲れ様, you can also say お疲れ様. You say that almost immediately when someone tells you.
Or you can say
Name (san) こそ、お疲れさ様でした。
Ex. Leeこそお疲れ様！ (Between friends)
Ex. Leeさんこそお疲れ様でした。(a little more formal)
If you leave earlier than other people, you say
お先に失礼します。
If you are working and someone shows appreciation for your work, saying お疲れ様です。
You can say something like
いいえ No problem. (This is nothing)
とんでもないです (formal) Not at all
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have a question about this sentence.
今から、「薔薇」という漢字を書く練習をしてきます！じゃあね！
I don’t understand why 〜てきます is added to the sentence. I have read your lesson about 〜ていく＋〜てくる.
But why not just say 「薔薇」という漢字を書く練習をします? I don’t see how 〜てくる adds anything to it.
Unless… I can only guess that you are implying “I will practice writing the kanji and then come back”?
Hi Dennis,
Of course you can say 書く練習をします。but what I meant was I will practice writing the kanji and will be back to this site.
You often use that form when you talk to someone on blog, twitter, Facebook…etc.
はい、いつものありがとうございます！
どういたしまして、Dennis! :)
Hi Maggie sensei,
Thanks for making this lesson.
I know you have overcome a lot of uncomfortable feeling to teach this male speech (coz it’s quite rough for a woman).
May I ask a question, that this is the conversation style typical of male when a man talk to a man.
How about the style when a man talk to a woman?
Do they still use this style, or if not, which style will be suitable?
It depends on the person and the relationship with the listener.
It could be more rough when a man talks to a man but some don’t change the way they talk when they talk to women.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
いつもありがとうございます :))
With love,
Bella
いいえ、どういたしまして、Bella! 💕
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Are all of these correct?
1. 泰の旅行をする。
2. 泰を旅行する。
3. 泰へ旅行する。
4. 泰に旅行する。
5. 泰へ旅行に行く。
6. 泰に旅行に行く。
Hi Drew,
All good but I would say 1 sounds a little unnatural.
I guess people would say タイ(泰）旅行をする。
Hi! I thought you could also use aida to mean “the other day / that time” (when you don’t remember exactly when it was, it was a while ago etc.) For example:
The other day, I saw a black cat , or That time, I saw a black cat.
Kono aida, kuro neko wo mita.
Am I wrong? I think I’ve heard used this way.
Hi Luna,
Yes, you are right.
この間 = このあいだ = kono aida = the other day
Ex. Thank you for the other day. = この間はありがとう。= Kono aida wa arigatou!
Ex. I went to the zoo the other day. = この間、動物園に行った。= Kono aida doubutsuen ni itta.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I found this example sentence interesting.
彼は、私の気持を知っているくせに無視をする。
At first I thought I understood it perfectly, but I really didn’t until I read your English translation. Then I got it.
My translation before I read yours was “He knows how I am feeling (maybe sick/unhappy) but he ignores it”.
I didn’t know it means “He knows how I feel ABOUT HIM, but he still ignores ME”
There is nothing in the sentence that indicates this, so I find it interesting that a Japanese person would naturally understand it because that is their native language/culture/mindset.
This is one of those things that I can only learn from coming across it in real life or your blog.
Hi!
You said that そう ( = sou) and らしい ( = rashii) are only used for things you have heard.
But in my 初級日本語文法総まとめ２０ポイント book, there’s this sentence:
田中さんは出かけたらしいです。留守番電話になっていましたから。
So does rashii have another use that’s similar to you/mitai? If it does, is there any difference between rashii and you? (I read from your blog that mitai is more colloquial than you)
2nd question is “Is rashii in this sentence natural? Like this use of rashii, is it common among native Japanese people?
よろしくお願いします、マ-ギ先生！
田中さんは出かけたらしいです。留守番電話になっていましたから。
Yes, it is a natural sentence and it is very common.
And yes, as I said, you use らしい based on the information of what you have heard/seen/read.
You can say
田中さんは出かけたようです。／出かけたみたいです。instead of 出かけたらしいです。
The meaning is the same.
A comprehensive and well written lesson! I have now grasp the basics of dekiru!
A note for the beginner who isn’t a genius. I consider myself intermediate (but no where near fluent) and this was a lot to grasp. Make sure you focus on the dekiru verb when you feel overwhelmed with the context because there is a lot of context (very useful for the intermediate learner, might I add).
Thank you very much Maggie Sensei!
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei
I love your post about wakamono kotoba and very interesting topic.
I would like to take this topic for my essay, especially about tameguchi.
May i request reference (books or ebook, journal, article) for this topic?
Thank you very much.
Hi Alif,
All my lessons are original. I don’t use any books, ebook, articles.
Okay, Thank you ^_^
and is any related genderism between josei and dansei for using slang words in Japanese?
Ex.
～っす is usually by dansei
～なくちゃ and ～ちゃだめ by josei
Tons! I can’t give you all the list here but check my other colloquial Japanese lessons. (For example here)
And I think I specify if the sentence is not neutral.
すごい→ (male) すげー
かっこいい→ (male) かっけー, etc.
Ah, I see
Thank you very much sensei
benkyou ni narimashita!
今から本気出す！
がんばって〜💪
Hi sensei!
This site is very good.
I just have one question though, where is the correct placement of
mada(まだ)
Is it before the verb?
Before or after the particle?
例：
私の質問はまだご回答をしていません。
私の質問はご回答まだをしていません。
私の質問はご回答をまだしていません。
All try mean the same in google translate.
Thanks you!
Hi Jezreel
First the sentence itself is wrong so let me change it a little.
私の質問に回答をもらっていません。
I haven’t got the answer for my question.
The possible placement of まだ
“まだ”私の質問に回答をもらっていません。
私の質問に”まだ”回答をもらっていません。
私の質問に回答を”まだ”もらっていません。
ご回答いただき、ありがとうございます。
Is that so? なるほどね
Is there any difference in the meaning?
A hidden context perhaps?
Thank you.
The translation is the same but you emphasize the word まだ (yet) in the following order
1 > 2> 3
1) “まだ”私の質問に回答をもらっていません。
2) 私の質問に”まだ”回答をもらっていません。
3) 私の質問に回答を”まだ”もらっていません。
ええと、辞書の定義などでも
「…またはその様」とよく書かれていますね。
こんにちは！
このレッスンでは丁寧な表現の様について説明しましたが、様には他の意味があります。
様子・有様（ありさま）= 物事の状態（じょうたい）を表す言葉です。
I was focusing on the honorific expressions with 様 (さま） in this lesson but
There is other meaning of 様(さま） which means
ありさま・様子（ようす） state/ condition of things/people.
Hi Maggie Sensei! Been following you for a long time, keep up the good work!
I have a question, maybe you can help me.
I read the following sentence in a manga:
ビルの方に走ってった。
Could please confirm whether the verb 走っていった is a contraction of 走っていった? If not, what’s the grammar explanation of it?
Such a beautiful but at the same time complicated language!
ありがとうございます!
ギレルモ。
こんにちは、ギレルモ！
You are right. 走ってった is a casual contraction of 走っていった
You often drop い in casual speech/writing.
(The person) ran towards the building (and disappeared from the speaker/writer’s view.)
If you want to learn more of this, I have a lesson here. → Click here
ありがとうございました!
Super helpful, as always ^_^
どういたしまして、ギレルモ💕
マギー先生、こんにちは。
私の自己紹介をチェックしてもらいませんか。
仕事の面接に使用します。
こんにちは。はじめまして。
私の名前は(name)と申します。
(nick name) と読んでください。
３０歳で結婚しています。
お子供が１人います。
(home town)出身です。
現在仕事がありません。家で日本語を勉強したり、子供を世話したりします。
２年ぐらいチャットサポートスタッフという仕事をしました。
５年前日本で３年間働いたことがあります。
お仕事は(work)でした。
どうぞ宜しくお願い致します。
I really want to know if this is ok.
Please correct my grammar..
こんにちは、charcie123
(nick name) と読んでください。 Different kanji 呼んでください
お子供が１人います。→ You don’t add お for your own child. 子供が一人います。
お仕事は(work)でした。→ Again you don’t use お here.
It depends on what kind of 仕事 you meant.
But (work) の仕事をしていました。
Ex. 経理の仕事をしていました。
マギー先生、文章を直してくれてありがとうございました。😊😊😊
can I say this
５年前日本で３年間働いたことがあります。
検査梱包の仕事をしていました。
Is this correct?
And in a job interview should I really need to include this in my 自己紹介?
３０歳で結婚しています。
子供が１人います。
Yes. They are correct. (To be honest, the first sentence has two 年 expression so it could be confusing.)
You can put the two sentences together.
Ex. 2008年から2013年の３年間日本で検査梱包の仕事をしていました。
As for your 自己紹介, you can include that information but it is up to you. I think your resume says whether you are single or married.
Maggie sensei thank you so much for your reply..
Can I ask another question?
Is there any format when writing a jikoshoukai for job interview?
If it does have, what should be the content of it that makes a jikoshoukai have impact to the employer.
I am very sorry if I have so many questions..
I think the one you wrote is good enough for your personal information but for job interview, you should talk about how much you are interested in that job and how you can serve for the company explaining your job experiences, skills, abilities and etc.
Have you checked my job hunting lesson?
Hi Maggie sensei,
Please let me make question about adding がるto adj to make a verb.
Is the verb formed by adj + がる only used for third person?
For example
If something is scaring, it is “Something がこわい”
If he’s scared of scaring thing, is it “彼はこわいものを怖がる？
If I’m sacred of his scaring thing, is it “彼のこわいものを怖がる, too?
Hi Bella
怖いものを怖がる
怖いものを怖がる
They both sound redundant.
You usually say Somethingを怖がる or Somethingが怖い
Hi Maggie sensei,
Ah, I got the redundant one :)))
So, is 怖がる can be used for the third person like
彼は私を怖がる？
Thanks as always !
Hi Bella!
Yes, がる is for the third person.
So 彼は私を怖がる is OK. But if you are talking about yourself, 私は彼が怖い
こんばんわ、マギー先生！
Is it possible to use ところ for things that happen elsewhere while you’re doing something unrelated in a another place?
E.g.
Last night, while eating dinner with my friends, I got fined for a parking violation.
夕べ友達と晩ご飯を食べていたところ、駐車違反で罰金を科せられました。
Of course, the traffic cop didn’t come to find me at the table to hand me the fine personally, instead I found the ticket on my windscreen after dinner ended.
こんにちは、altuser
OK, so you are talking about the usage,
★ when you did something / while doing something + something happened (result, consequences)
And yes, your example sentence works! :)
Sorry for the ultra late reply, thanks for the answer!
I must admit I was unsure it would come out right, when I reread the sentence it sounded like the cop came to me at the restaurant to issue the fine :-P
Though I suppose, it could be read that way as well if someone didn’t get the context?
P.S. 実は例文じゃありません、本当に罰金を科せられました！ でも、まだ払っていません。笑
Hello again, altuser,
I don’t think anybody would think the police comes to you and charge the fine at the table from that sentence unless you say レストランで食事をしていたところ警官がきて駐車違反の罰金を払わされた。 (^_−)−☆
Uh-oh… 実話でしたか？
それは残念！
Hi Maggie sensei,
For the last usage, do you have to put tamaranai in the -te form? Can you just use the plain form?
Hi Dennis
The last usage ~てたまるか, right?
Yes, you use Vて＋たまるか
When you use たまらない as an adjective, you can use the plain form.
Ex. plain form + の＋は＋たまらない/ conditional たら+ たまらない, etc.
こんな暑い日にアイスクリームを食べるのはたまらない。
ビールを飲んで野球を見るのはたまらない。
そんなこと言われたらたまらない
Thanks, I get it now. I just mixed myself up with so many usages of たまる. So when I say たまるか (NOT たまらない), I have to use the -te form for the verb.
Thanks very much for the example sentences. I just want to ask about the last example
– そんなこと言われたらたまらない
It means “After such a thing was said to me, I couldn’t stand it”. (Perhaps what was said was really mean.)
Am I right?
================================
Oh… I just have one last thing to ask… hope I am not being too fussy. I also read your lesson about というと.
You used this example sentence above – 一度、失敗したからと言って、諦めてたまりますか。
It took me a while to fully understand this sentence, but I believe the “と言って” in this sentence is basically explained in your というと lesson, right? If that is the case, then I think I get how it all works… Is it common to see this grammar used like that?
Hi Dennis,
Sorry. I should have added the note for the last example sentence.
そんなこと言われたらたまらない
could be positive or negative.
Either “I couldn’t stand it”(negative) or “I would be thrilled (It would be so nice)” (positive)
~からといって means “though” “even if/even though”
I don’t think if I’ve ever covered that here..(sorry. I made many lessons so..) but
（だ）からといって + contradicted fact
Ex. 日曜日だからといって休んでいることはできない。
= Though it is Sunday, I can’t just rest.
Thanks for the explanation, Maggie-sensei!
You’re very welcome, Dennis! :)
Hi Maggie 先生,
A quick question about another word sometimes used as “and”. I saw on a menu for a lunch set the following sentence (when talking about the included drink):-
ホットまたはアイス…
Obviously また is being used as and here (can’t remember rest of sentence but it’s saying hot and ice coffee both ok for set drink).
Why is また being used here and when else is it used to mean “and”?
Thanks in advance,
Gaiku-san
Hi Gaiku
または doesn’t mean “and”. It means “or”
So it they are talking about coffee,
ホットまたはアイス… means “hot coffee” or “iced coffee”
FYI, you also say か for “or”
ホットかアイス
If you want to say “and” in this case
ホットとアイス
Ahh, thank you for the correction. If you can use か, why is また being used? Is it more formal? Thanks again.
または is more formal.
I’m sorry I kind of forgot to say what is 言うことにしましたｍean here?
文部科学省は、教科書などを置いて帰ってもいいようにしてほしいと、日本中の学校に言いうことにしました。
I have two questions if you could answer them please whatに is doing here?：日本中の学校（に）言いうことにしました。
and could you explain the meaning of this example I gave you if you could? Thank you very much
Someoneに言う To tell someone
This に is an object marker (indirect object)
I don’t do the translation here but it means,
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology decided to tell all the schools in Japan that the students* can go home leaving their textbooks at school*.
* parts are not in the textbook but you can assume from the context.
Thank you very much for responding awesome page and awesome work you are really skilled at teaching.
I’ve been using a Japanese News app is where I got that from
You’re very welcome!
Good! You are studying Japanese from the current news!
Hi Maggie sensei,
Your lesson is nice with lots of example and exception. Thanks!
But I have a confusion when に go with some adjective like くわしい。
東京に詳しい。
I choose 東京が詳しい and it’s wrong .(crying)
How does にfunction here?
Thanks again, Maggie sensei
Hi Bella
There are many usages of に such as to indicate location, indirect object, direction, etc.
And one of the usages is to show one’s ability with specific adjectives.
Aは、東京に詳しい A knows a lot about Tokyo.
Aは、コンピューターに詳しい。 A knows a lot about computer.
Aは、車に詳しい。 A knows a lot about cars.
You can also use 明るい
Ex. このことには明るい。 = To know a lot about this matter.
私は、コンピューターに弱い。= I am not good at using a computer.
私は、数字に弱い = I am not good at numbers.
Note:
It is not actually one’s ability but 弱い also means “to have a soft spot for ~”
私は、子供に弱い (= 子供に甘い）= I have a soft spot for children.
Maggie sensei,
どうもありがとうございます！
From Bella with love, :3
どういたしまして、Bella! 💕
Hi Maggie Sensei!
I want to ask basic question about adjective. How to say “It was a good month”
Could it be “良かった月” or “良い月でした” ?
Hi Sno,
It is confusing if you say 月 because 月 also means “the moon”
If you add some words such as “this month” or “last month”, the listener will understand better.
“this month” 今月はよかった。/ “last month” 先月はよかったです。
Oh i see! Thanks for the 月 advice ^ ^
Actually i am confusing about adjective in “past” form.
I know we can use this pattern : noun + wa/ga + adjective(katta)
but how about when using adjective before noun in past tense?
adjective(katta) + noun
or
adjective + noun + deshita
And how about for na- adjective? Is it same as i-adjective?
OK, I hope the following examples will help you.
難しい試験
= Muzukashii shiken
= a difficult exam
難しかった試験
= Muzukashikatta shiken
= The exam which was difficult
その試験は難しかったです。
= Sono shiken wa muzukashikatta desu.
= That exam was difficult.
それは難しい試験でした。
= Sore wa muzukashii shiken deshita.
= That was a difficult exam.
na-adjecitve
静かな教室
= Shizukana kyoushitsu
= A quiet classroom
静かだった教室
= Shizuka datta kyoushitsu
= The classroom which was quiet
その教室は静かだった
= Sono kyoushitsu wa shizuka datta
= That classroom was quiet
それは静かな教室でした。
= Sore wa shizukana kyoushitsu deshita.
= That was a quiet classroom
Yes, there are really help me!
It’s clear now, thanks a lot Maggie-Sensei! :D
Good! :)
this lesson is just wordless!
totemo sugoi!desuyo! maggie sensei!
itsumo watashi ni nihongo o oshiete kurete hontouni arigatou gozaimasu!
nihongo ga donnani muzukashickutemo watashi ga settai ni ganbarimasu!
kono lesson no uta no kashi no youni ne.
Hi AISU!
Thank you for your comment!
Great!!! そうそう、これからも日本語（にほんご）がんばってください！！ :)
Hello Maggie Sensei! i have a question :)
1.今から軽食をたくさん食べていく。
2.軽食をたくさん食べていく。
3.今から軽食をたくさん食べる。
(From now on, i will eat many snacks)
Are those 3 sentences have the same meaning?
I am sorry if this is a silly question, i just want to make sure :)
Hi Rarow
From now on, i will eat many snacks
This sentence express the speaker’s will/ The speaker decides to eat lots of snacks from now on. Is that right?
If so,I would just say
これからお菓子をたくさん食べよう。
or 食べる (Your sentence No.3) works as well.
1.今から軽食をたくさん食べていく。
Sounds like you are going somewhere but you are going to have lots of snacks NOW and head to that place.
2.軽食をたくさん食べていく。
The same as 1. but it doesn’t specify when you are going to eat lots of snacks.
It could be tomorrow or next week.
For example, you are going somewhere where you can’t get any food. You might be hungry so you are saying (When I go there) I will eat a lots of snacks before I go there.
Oh so that’s how it is,
It seems i have to be careful using this expression for “from now on”
If the sentence is like
これからもっとがんばっていきます。
It means “I will work harder from now on.”
Maggie, but how about the context of: ～ていく = > 動作が継続していること or 変化していること (not 方向性)? I think, that’s what Rarow meant.
@天人
Hi again, :)
Right. You do use ～ていく in the context of 動作が継続していること or 変化していること (not 方向性) but
The Rarow’s example 軽食をたくさん食べていく。 doesn’t sound like either one.
Maybe the combination of the word 軽食 and 食べる
今から軽食をたくさん食べていく。2.軽食をたくさん食べていく。
All these いく sound like 行く（方向性） to native ears.
But let’s say you are having 焼肉 and say
I am going to eat just expensive meat now. Then you can say
これから高い肉だけ食べていく！
(decision/what you are going to do now)
Now everything’s clear, good work Maggie!
Thank you!
Good! よかった! 😊
レッスンはありがとうございます！
先生、二つの問題があるから、質問してもいいですか？
例文:
1.’今日の会議は四時で解散するから、先に飯を食ってもいいよ。’
その”も”を外したらこの文章が不正解になりますか？
2.任務はたくさんあるので、手伝ってもらってもいいんでしょうか？
“ん”をつけている理屈のはわかりませんがこれも正しい文章ですか？
こんにちは、はる
1. 「も」がなくても通じます。会話では「〜てもいい」が「〜ていい」ということもよくあります。
2. この例文の場合は、「いいでしょうか？」の方が自然です。
「てもいいですか？」→ちょっと驚きを表したり、疑いの気持ちがあるときは「てもいいんですか？」 の形を使います。
‘ん’の使い方は知りませんでした。
先生に聞いて良かったです。
先生、いつもありがとうございます！
どういたしまして、はる。
参考までに「ん」の使い方の説明をしたレッスンはこちらです。Click here
Hello Maggie-sensei. Thank you for a very informative lesson! I have come across this sentence when reading a manga, and I’m sure it’s pretty basic but I am not quite sure how to translate it….
The sentence is
田中さんと山下は「大学の友達」でいいんだよね？
I don’t understand the compromise theory in this case, because he is asking something pretty general.
I thought the translation might be something like
Is it right that Tanaka-san and Yamashita are “friends from University”?
I don’t think I understand the でいい in this case…
Sorry if it’s a weird question…
Hi NinaO
Yes, your translation is good.
Tanaka-san and Yamashita-san are “friends from University”. Am I right?
Is that right? /Is it right? / Am I right?
The speaker is checking some fact or their assumption is right.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
i am confusing about the difference of “sugiru” and “sugi”. I think there is no difference in your example. Please explain me more :)
Thank you in advance!
Hi Lau,
1) 高すぎる
2) 高すぎだ
The meaning is the same. Just the form is different.
V+ すぎる・すぎた
Noun form (V+ すぎ) + だ・です・だった・でした
考えすぎた
考えすぎだった
食べすぎる
食べすぎだ
The meaning/the translation are the same but you use the noun-form to describe the state and you use V-すぎる when you focus on the action.
There are certain expression that may sound unnatural with one of the forms but all my example sentences with すぎ are interchangeable.
Ah i see! Thanks once again for your explanation! ^ ^
No problem! :)
Hmmm, that’s interesting. Maggie, could you provide us please a few examples when it would sound unnatural to get the general idea?
@天人
For example, when you talk about your own action in past,
ついつい飲みすぎた / 昨日や飲みすぎた （natural)
ついつい飲みすぎだ / ついつい飲みすぎだった / 昨日は飲みすぎでした。(unnatural)
Now when you talk about one’s habitual action or current action,
* When you talk about someone else.
いつも飲みすぎだよ。 (OK)
今日は飲みすぎてるよ。(OK)
* When you talk about yourself
うれしいことがあると飲みすぎる。
うれしいことがあると飲みすぎです。(unnatural)
分かりました!
お勉強になりました！
マギーちゃんは最高ですよ！
🐶💕
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have a confusing about のに. Would you mind answering me?
If I want to say ” sorry, though you are a good girl, I can not love you”
Am I correct to say it with のに
あなたはとっても親切な人なのに恋人になるのができないです。ごめん！
Or is けど more suitable?
あなたはとっても親切な人なけれども、恋人になるのができないです。ごめん！
But I am not confident in the phrase I use also “恋人になるのができないです”. It must be so strange !!!
Thanks in advance, Maggie sensei
Hi Bella,
１）I would use けど for that sentence.
(A person’s name)はいい子だけど、
２）I am a bit confused because the English translation is I can not love you (好きになれない) but your Japanese sentence means
“I can’t be your boyfriend”. If that is what you meant
恋人になるのができないです。 should be 恋人・彼氏（カレシ）になることはできないです。
But more natural way to say that is 付き合うことはできない。
Ex. 君/ Girl’s name はいい子だけど付き合うことはできない。ごめん。
Hi Maggie sensei,
It have never been clear to me until you.
Thanks from the heart :3
You are star, Maggie sensei.
Great!! You’re very welcome, Bella! <3
Hi again Maggie-sensei,
I feel like there is a never ending supply of these great lessons. How many of these lessons are there in total? :)
I have a question about なんか usage. I am a little confused about two different usages of なんか.
Meaning #1. Somehow, for some reason
(来月、大学を卒業するって考えただけでなんか、悲しくなってきた。)
Meaning #2. Kind of, a little bit
(なんか、気持ち悪くなってきた。)
How do I know when a sentence means #1, and when it means #2? Is “context” the only way to determine the meaning? If so, that’s なんか難しい for me.
For example, for the sentence below, it could either mean “Today I am tired for some reason”, or “Today I am a bit tired”.
今日、なんか疲れた。
Hello again, Dennis
I see. There is a fine line between those two usages. I think it is similar to the difference between “somehow” and “kind of” in English.
なんか気持ち悪い could be
#1 I feel somehow sick. (I don’t know why but I feel sick.)
#2 I feel kind of sick. (I feel a little sick. )
Depending on how the speaker feels.
#1. Somehow, for some reason
Basically you use it when you talk about something unexplainable.
You don’t know why you feel that way or
#2.
a little (You are talking about degree of some state)
今日、なんか疲れた。
Right. It could be use for both cases, I am a bit tired. / I don’t know why but I am tired.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I’m reading manga and came across よく whose meaning I’m not sure of and was wondering if you could help.
Person B is asking person A for some tips in leading a group of people particularly problematic people. The next conversation follows:
A: しかしな
俺は何もしてないぞ
B: それでよくみんなをうまいこと扱えますね
Half of me is leaning towards gratitude while the other is leaning towards disbelief, could you shine some light on this?
Thanks in advance.
Hi Jinzal
For that particular case, it express surprised feelings/disbelief. (The usage 6) in my lesson)
B was surprised how well A manages people based on what A says, (I am not doing anything).
I was leaning towards that option a bit more so I’m glad to have received the confirmation. Thank you for the quick reply!
You’re very welcome! :)
こにちは、マギー先生！
I hope you can help me with this one, I read a sentence a fellow student made and wondered if I could phrase it better. Her sentence went like this:
友達のためにケーキを作っています。明日会います。(a picture of a cake baking in the oven was included)
My attempt was this:
明日友達に会うので、ケーキを作ってあげています。
Now here’s where I’m uncertain, is it even possible to use あげて+います like that? Should it have been 作っていてあげます instead? Or are they both wrong and the あげて does not belong there at all?
教えてください。m(__)m
こんにちは、Altuser! 元気でしたか？
Great! Your sentence is much more natural.
明日友達に会うので、ケーキを作ってあげています。
作ってあげています is OK.
作っていてあげます X wrong
You can also say 作ってあげているところです (Check my ところ lesson.)
You can omit あげて part. You are going to see the friend so that is why you are making a cake.
明日、友達に会うので今、ケーキを作って（焼いて）います・ ケーキを作って（焼いて）いるところです。
ええ、元気です！
教えてありがとうございます。
The ところ lesson was very useful too. 勉強になりました！
よかった〜♪
マギー先生、いつもレッスンをして有難うね。聞きたいことがありますけど、最近この文をみました、‘‘鬼の居ぬ間に洗濯。When the cat is away, the mice will play.‘‘ 質問は‘‘まに‘‘と言う発音はいつか使いますのか。
忘れてたー‘‘おにのいぬまにせんたく‘‘。jisho.orgからの文です。
こんにちは、ギレルメ
「間に(あいだに）」の方が一般的（いっぱんてき）ですが、「 間（ま）に」は慣用句（かんようく）によく使います。
Though 間に(あいだに） is more general, you use 間（ま）に in set phrases.
鬼の居ぬ間に洗濯= おにのいぬまにせんたく is one of them. It is a proverb and if you rephrase it in modern Japanese,
鬼のいない間（あいだ）に洗濯をする
I will give you a few more set expressions that you use 間（ま）に
あっと言う間に = あっというまに quickly, fast, Before I knew it
いつの間に（か） = いつのまにか Before I knew it
知らぬ間に = しらぬまに ( = 知らない間に= しらないあいだに） Before I knew it
説明してくれてありがとう。(＾▽＾)
どういたしまして、ギレルメ💕
Hi Maggie Sensei, I thought kono means “this” and aida means “during, between” so why does konoaida mean “the other day”?
Hello jahrey
この間 has three meanings
1) during this time
2) between the previous mentioned distance
2) the other day (You are right. It doesn’t coincide the literal meaning. It’s an idiomatic experssion.)
Hi Maggie!
I’m just wondering about the difference between 受身＋たい VS ～てほしい.
EX) 『おはようのちゅーは？』って言われたい VS 『おはようのちゅーは？』って言ってほしい.
The second one sounds more soften than the first one, I think and the translation in English seems to be the same (“I want you to say”), hmmm…
Hi 天人！ 今日も元気？
I agree. The second one sounds softer because it is focusing on yourself.
~言われたい I want to be said (stronger)
~言ってほしい I want you/him/her to tell me (focusing on you/the third person him/her)
平気やでッ～～！
Thank you for your help, Maggie. Just a small additional question.
It is natural in 日本語 to use ～言われたい during a conversation towards your 話の相手（例えば「ご主人さまと言われたい！」とかと言いたい時に＾＾）? Because in English if I used “I want to be said” then this would sound ちっと変.
つまり、受身の希望形・願望形はどんな時に使うのん？
Hi 天人
Yes, I assume you use passive form in Japanese much more than English.
言われたい is fine but in that case
ご主人様と呼ばれたい might be better.
I will show you other examples with 受身の希望形・願望形
Ex. かわいいねって言われたい
Ex. そんな風に言われたくない。
Ex. 先生に褒められたい。
(Note for you: 平気→元気* If you are not sure I will explain later.）
Thank you very much again!
And thank you for the 平気=>元気 correction!
(Although it means “all right; fine; OK; okay” according to kotobank.jp this belongs to the follow context: いつもと気持ちや態度が変わらないこと。また、そのさま／気にかけないこと／心配しなくともよいこと／落ち着いていること。また、そのさま／平静 – so generally mental calmness/peace, indeed. I thought that colloquially you can also use it instead of 元気)
No problem.
Right. 平気 has various functions but for example, if something happens to you and someone worries about you, you could say 平気だよ。(I’m fine. / I can deal with that.)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I am just a tiny bit confused about one thing.
彼は年のわりに元気だ。
We cannot use にしては for the above sentence, right? Because as you said it’s not specific. It could be: old, young,etc.so you can’t use にしては ( = ni shitewa) .
But for this nexe sentence, how come you could use にしては?
私にしては最近、日本語がんばってるよ。
Hi Dennis, 元気？
How come you could use にしては?
私にしては最近、日本語がんばってるよ。
As I explained in the lesson,
The word which comes before にしては ( = ni shitewa) should give the speaker and listener some specific or typical idea of the quality.
For this reason you can’t use general nouns unless you give specifics about that noun.
私にしては
→The speaker knows well about him/herself so has specific idea. We can assume that the speaker tends to give up on something or not a hard worker.
Hi Maggie-sensei, 病気になりました。
I understand that since the speaker knows well about himself, he can say 私にしては.
But I assume that the listener also needs to have some idea of the speaker’s character?
Along this line… would it be correct to use にしては after any noun, as long as both the speaker and the listener has some knowledge of that noun? For example:
彼の車にしては、速かった。
For his car, that was fast. (Both the speaker and listner knows well about the car)
彼の料理にしては、まずい。
For his cooking, that was bad. (They both know his cooking is normally good)
Hi Dennis
病気になりました You got sick??? If so, I hope you feel better soon.
私にしては: If you are talking to your friend or family, it is possible that the listener know the speaker’s personality but actually the speaker could be just talking to him/herself or write about him/herself.
The listeners/readers can assume the speaker/writer’s personality by the state.
The same thing you can tell by
彼の車にしては、速かった。
彼の料理にしては、まずい。
They are the speaker/writer’s opinion. The listener/reader can just assume “his car must be slow/his cooking is usually good but not this time.”
I am getting better! にんじんは病気を治るのためにはすごいね！
I wonder given what you said above… would it be correct to say this sentence (if both the speaker and listener know the age)?
彼は年にしては元気だ
I’m glad to hear you feel better. (→にんじんは病気を直すためにいいね）
If both the speaker know the age, he/she says ~ 歳にしては元気だ。
The word 年 itself doesn’t give any idea how old they are. (Besides the expression. Subject はもう年だ = Subject is old)
If you specify more, it is possible to use 年
For example その年にしては元気だ (for that age)
Thanks very much Maggie, I think I understand it now!
Good! :)
ありがとうございます! いっぱい勉強になりました
そういえば、もしよかったら、ありがとうございます対ありがとうございましたというレッスンが私の勉強にすごく役立ってます❤️❤️❤️
こんにちはAlexandra,
勉強になってよかったです。 :)
(Sorry. I am a little confused.
もしよかったら ( = If you can) :Do you want to know the difference between ありがとう and ありがとうございました？
Since you finished the sentence, レッスンが私の勉強にすごく役立ってます which means “The lesson was very useful”, maybe you are talking about my ありがとう lesson…)
誤解させてごめんなさい! Yes, I would like to know the difference between ありがとうございました and ありがとうございます❤️
Ah OK, I explained the difference in my ありがとう lesson.Click here.
Hello Maggie 先生!＜３
Thank you, thank you, thank youuuuu, THANK YOU! A million thank yous for this lesson .< Do I use 前日？
Thanks again for all your wonderful lessons! ^^ I'll keep studying hard!
~Ali
Hi Ali,
Thank you for all your “thank you”! :)
Yes, you say 前日 = ぜんじつ= the day before.
Ex. パーティーの前日は準備が大変です。
= パーティーのぜんじつはじゅんびがたいへんです。
= Paatii no zenjitsu wa junbi ga taihen desu.
= There are lots of things to do the day before the party.
could you explain why みんな、お前のせいじゃないか! means what it means? going off the other examples im confused
Oh wow. I have noticed it. Thank you for asking me. It was a mistake. It means “It’s all your faults.”
Hi Maggie-sensei, I would like to ask for this sentence 日本へ何度か行っていますか？, which of your explanations does it falls under? I suppose it is not progressive so that leaves ‘Talking about / describing present habitual actions or continuous actions’.
Hi changk,
日本へ何度か行っていますか？
Yes, it is habitual action because of the word 何度か ( many times)
If you say 日本へ一度行きました = I have been to Japan once. (past experience) / 日本は去年行きました。 = I went to Japan last year. (past experience / past action)
Hello Maggie sensei!
I am working in a kaigo facility and my workmate will be leaving at the end of the month.
I want to hand over a gift to her on her last day of her duty and i am wondering what should i say to her. Can i use お世話になりました to her even though she is the one who is leaving? What appropriate phrase whould i tell her instead? Thank you in advance!
Yes, if she has helped you at work, you can say お世話になりました。
Also you can say X年間、お疲れ様でした。
先生
もう一つ分からないのがあるんですけど。
先生の部屋の本棚には、外国の本がたくさん
並んでいた。
先生の部屋の本棚には、外国の本がたくさん
並んでいる。
上記一つ目の二つ目の状態を
説明してもらえませんか。
1) 先生の部屋の本棚には、外国の本がたくさん並んでいた。
2) 先生の部屋の本棚には、外国の本がたくさん並んでいる。
２） is current state. 1) is used when the speaker is recalling what they saw in past.
分かりました。
先生
ありがとうございましたね
どういたしまして、tmo! :)
どうしてだろう人は人を傷つけ大切なものをなくしてく is my favourite phrase!
Thank you for nice Japanese lessons. These lessons really help me improved not only Japanese but knowing Japanese cultures too!
That is a good line! :)
I’m glad to hear you like this lesson.
Hi Maggie sensei,
Bella again :))
Thanks for your hard work making this lesson.
I have a question about past continuous tense and present continuous tense. Would you mind answering me.
Thank for your clear explanation . I know the new thing.
————————————–
“2) When you describe some action that has been completed already
When you focus on the state after the action, you use
—————————————
Then, my confusion is if I want to focus on describing the state that my wallet has been dropped (from yesterday until the time I talk about the state), which one should I use?
財布が落ちていた
or 財布が落ちている。
Since ているalso can describe the state resulting from an action, they lead to my confusion.
And if I want to focus on the state that I wear glasses (from ten years ago, until the time I talk about it), which one should I use?
めがねをかけていた
or めがねをかけている。
Then, could you please explain more why we should use it.
Many thanks for the lesson, Maggie sensei. Love you!
OK, the two of your example verbs are not actual “action” so it won’t apply the rule.
財布が落ちていた = You are describing the sate in the past. (You found the wallet on the ground in past.)
財布が落ちている = You are describing the current state. (The wallet is in front of you.)
Do you know the difference between 落ちる and 落とす
落ちる is intransitive verb (to fall) and 落とす is transitive verb (to drop something) which is considered to be an action.
As I said “some action”/ “after the action” in 2), 落ちている is not actually an action.
It is confusing, right. 落ちている is a result of someone dropped something but it simply describe the state of the wallet. (It is on the ground)
Check this lesson. Click the link. (Read No. 5)
If you want to focus on the state that you have been wearing the glasses for 10 years until the time you talk about it,
めがねをかけている is better.
めがねをかける is one time action, to put on glasses.
めがねをかけている is “wearing glasses”. (the state)
Hi Maggie sensei,
Thanks for your patience answering my question!
So, the rule here will not apply for intransitive verb. I noted it now. Thank you :)))
Actually, I still am in the dark of some specific verbs…. I know I’ve asked too much. So I just write the question down here, please help me when you have time (I can wait :)))
I also feel difficulty to decide past continuous or present continuous for some specific verbs like 知る、似る。Whether 知っていた and 似ていた are used?
Since the followings also mean “I known it already” @@
これを知っていた
これを知っている。
The same thing will happen with 似る。
AはBと似ている。
A はBと似ていた。
The state of A is same as B regardless of present or past.
むずかしいです！
OK, let me give you a quick answer for now.
知っていた = I already knew / I used to know / Someone knew about something (You are recalling the moment when you found out someone knew something)
知っている = I know / Someone knows ~
AはBと似ている = A is similar to B / A looks like A
AはBと似ていた= A was similar to B / A looked like A (You are recalling the similarity between A and B)
Hi Maggie sensei,
Thank you :)))
I feel the sky is becoming clear now.
Again, thanks a lot and have a nice weekend.
You’re very welcome, Bella. You have a nice weekend, too! :)
とても役に立ちました！ありがとうございます！
Hi mimi!
お役に立ててうれしいです！ 💕
2) 楽 = らく = raku = easy, comfortable
adverb: 楽に = らくに= rakuni = easily, comfortably
adjecitve: 楽な= らくな= raku na = easy, comfortable
Maggie 先生! Thanks again for an amazing lesson!
Ive lived in Japan for 3 years now, and I didn’t know about “RAKU”!!! I only knew 楽 as TANO-shii.
RAKU-NI can be used as an adverb… Can you show an example of that?
For example, We can say “分かりやすい” to mean “easy to understand”. Can we do the same thing with “raku”? –> “楽に分かります” ???
Hi Ali!
Oh good. You learned something new here. :)
楽にわかります。
Hmm I would say わかりやすい is more natural. I guess it’s because わかる is something you do in your head and you tend to use 楽に (easily) for more physical tasks.
こんにちは、マギー先生,
I loved reading your website! It’s incredibly detailed and love the added touches for fonts and emoticons! ^_^
I have one question! My boyfriend of 5 years and I love to call each other “my love” how would we say that in Japanese? Is there such a word/phrase for it?
Example:
Me) Thank you for doing that for us!
BF) You’re welcome, my love!
Would it be “watashi no ai” or “watashi no koi”? Or what would it be? Thank you in advance! <3
Hi Psy
Thank you for visiting my site. I am glad to hear you like reading my site.
I am afraid to say you don’t use the terms of endearment such as “my love” / “babe/baby”/”sweetie” /”honey” in Japanese.
People might refer to one’s partner ハニー ( = honey) and ダーリン (darling) but they don’t say 私の愛・恋 ( = watasi no ai / koi).
You might see 私の愛しい人 (= watashi no itoshii hito) for my loved one in the literature but I doubt people use it verbally.
So if you want to express your love, I guess you say
ありがとう！ or どういたしまして and add (name/ nickname)+ 大好き! / 好きだよ💕
なるほど! ありがとう ございます for taking time out of your day to assist me, マギー先生 and 天人! 感謝します! 🙏
How sad it sounds, but Maggie’s right.
I don’t know, if you know, that あなた might also be translated as “dear”.
According kotobank.jp =>２ 妻が夫に対して、軽い敬意や親しみをこめていう。
However, I doubt that noways it’s commonly used among young people. Maybe in dramas, literature, etc…
ヨロシク
*nowadays
どういたしまして、Psy! 💕
Hi 天人!
I know… We have to create new words!
I might have mentioned in my あなた lesson but you might hear that usage in drama or animations but it is a bit old fashioned.
なるほど! ありがとう ございます for taking time out of your day to assist me, マギー先生 and 天人! 感謝します! 🙏
先生
質問があるんですけど。
－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－
ア・昨日の夜は、テレビを見ながらいつのまにか
寝ていた。
イ・昨日の夜は、テレビを見ながらいつのまにか
寝た。
－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－
上記二つは何か違いますか。説明してくれませんか。
知っていますか。
知りますか
上記二つも何か違いますか。説明してくれませんか。
Hi tmo
ア is more natural. The key is the word いつのまにか
You use いつの間にか + something changes /you happen to do something
You can’t control the change / situation / action.
寝ていた “I was asleep” （describing one’s state)
寝た “I slept” (You can control your action)
***
You say 知っていますか but you don’t say 知りますか？
知る is a special verb which applies the following rules.
Do you know ~ ? 知っていますか？（X 知りません）
I know ~ 知っています
I don’t know 知りません (X 知っていません）
先生
ありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！
結婚= kekkon* (not kekon?)
Part 4)
Ex. たとえ親に反対されても彼と結婚します。
= Tatoe oya ni hantai saretemo kare to *kekkon* shimasu.
= Even if my parents are against it, I will marry him.
Thank you for spotting the typo. I will fix it right away. :)
Maggie 先生<3
As always… I'm so grateful for your amazing lessons ^^ Thanks for working so hard.
I have a little question about ~nakute mo ii (～なくてもいい)
For NOUNS or な-ADJ., can you say:
"NOUN+*dewa*+nakute mo ii"or must it be:
"NOUN+ ja +nakute mo ii" ???
ex.) 今日 では なくてもいい。
or
ex.) 今日 じゃ なくてもいい。
This is confusing to me because when making a NEG. sentence like: "It's not a cat.", we can say "ねこ じゃない" or "ねこ ではない" or "ねこ ではありません"。
Hi Ali,
First, I just added the negative form information.
I see your confusion.
じゃ is a casual contraction of では but 今日でなくてもいい is much more common in conversation.
Unless you want to show the contrast.
Ex. 今日やらないといけませんか？
= Do we have to do it today?
You can simply say,
今日でなくてもいい・今日じゃなくてもいい。
(You don’t have to do it today.)
But when you emphasize the word “today” (implying there is other conditions)
今日ではなくてもいいです。(でも明日は絶対にやってください。）
Hello Maggie sensei,
Thanks a lot for your site! It’s great to learn the real life Japanese.
I have a question about this lesson. Would you mind answering it?
For the sentence, “I am here on business”, you teach use to use “仕事で来ます”。
Is it possible to say “仕事に来ます”
If possible, then what is the difference of them?
Thanks a lot for your site again.
Hi Bella
You mean from these quotes?
A: いいえ、仕事です。／仕事で来ました。
= Iie, shigoto desu. / Shigoto de kimashita.
= No, I am here on business.
仕事にきました sounds like
I came to the workplace (office /wherever you work at)
働きにきました
= (I cam here) I am here to work.
に means “to do something”
仕事できました。
= I am here on business.
This で indicate the reason
Hi Maggie sensei,
Many thanks for your prompt answer. I really appreciate your reply!
I think I quite get your point.
I do apologize for my continuous confusing but could you help me one more !
Now I understand the で indicates the reason. So, I wonder if my understanding is correct or not.
If somebody asks “どうして日本に来たんですか” -> why question
Then we answer “勉強で来ました” (and avoid “勉強に来ました”）
If sbd asks “日本に何をしに来ましたか？” -> what question
Then we answer “勉強にきました” = I came here to study.
Do we need to avoid 勉強で来ました (because the question is what question, not why question)? Or both are OK?
Sorry again. But 助けてください^.<
Hi Bella,
Hum.. The word 勉強 doesn’t quite work with で
But 留学で来ました works. If you want to use a word 勉強, you can say
（日本語の）勉強（を）するために来ました。
Hi Maggie sensei,
Lots of thanks and lots of love !
The way you answer each and each question from learner is great.
At first, I will apply what you’ve taught me.
(Though I still feel the difficulty with ~できます・~にきます….)
Japanese is so difficult because the exception case happens regardless of the defined grammar rule.
Thanks again for your site. You are star, Maggie sensei.
Hi Bella,
I guess you have to learn many patterns including all the exceptions. :)
Thank YOU for your nice words!
I am always here for you! がんばって！ 😀
まうわかりました先生。。maggie せんせいのれいぶんはいつもわかりにくいです。。。。ありがとう。おやすみなさい。いい夢をみてね
よかった！どういたしまして。よく眠れたかな？
Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much for your reply.
そうですね、Ｎ１頑張っておりますが、準備がぜんぜん足りない感じがします。先生が教えたとおりにいろいろな記事を読んで下ります。頑張ります！！では、語彙に関してはＭａｇｇｉｅ先生に質問してもいいでしょか。語彙の使い方を説明していただけますでしょか。たとえば、はなはだ、すこぶる、いたって、ごく”などの英語の意味は一緒になりますが日本語で使うシナリオは違いますね。いつもそういう質問に失敗される人が多いと思います。
Thank you in advance.:-)
Love,
Viji
おはようございますせんせい。。jlptN3のしけんにごうかくしました。せんせいのおかげで。。ぜんぶわかりました。⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘⚘
おめでとう！！！ 本当にがんばりましたね！
私もとっても嬉しいです！！
わかりやすい*****sorry I typed wrong….
No problem! :)
Hello, Maggie!!
I know this post is fairly old but I hope it’s still okay to ask questions?
I seem to remember reading somewhere that あんた is used mainly by women, do you know if this is correct?
Thank you in advance!
Hi Lune,
You can ask questions for all my lessons.
It doesn’t matter how old they are. :)
あんた is for both men and women. It is fairly casual and it could sound pretty rude to many situations so be careful when to use.
Thank you very much!
You’re welcome!! :)
簡単な説明をありがとうございます!!
どういたしまして、Aruna💕
Thank you very much sensei. Learned lot of new words and gramer patterns!!
Very undestandable!!
Hi Nimesh,
I’m glad to hear you learned a lot here.
Hi, Maggie Sensei. Does 相手 always mean contender (as in your example)? I found the next expression: aite no hito 相手の人 and “aite wa mono suki” What does it mean? Thank you very much!
Hello Bere,
相手 has many meanings depending on the context. We have:
1) a companion; a partner（仲間）
2) an opponent; a rival（勝負の）
3) the person one is speaking to; one’s party
Therefore 相手の人 means generally a person other than oneself => “one’s partner”.
ヨロシク
@天人
Thank you for helping Bere!
@Bere
I think 天人 cleared up your doubts.
As for “aite wa mono suki”, is it 相手は物好き ( あいては、ものずき= aite wa monozuki)？
Thanks for another lesson Maggie-sensei. It looks like という is used for so many things. It must be SO common in Japanese.
I just want to ask about one of the example sentences.
• 明日が試験だというのに何も勉強していない。
• Even though tomorrow is exam, I have not studied anything.
I often see sentences like these and it confuses me. They use the continuous tense rather than past tense.
Shouldn’t it be 勉強していなかった or 勉強しなかった, rather than 勉強していない?
We are talking about the past here (I haven’t studied), so shouldn’t we use past tense?
Hello Dennis,
we can consider that the ～ていないpattern refers to the present perfect tense in English. As you already know, the present perfect is used to indicate a link between the present and the past (=> because something happened/occurred in the past, we can experience now the result of that).
Here’s an example:
お母さん：「朝ごはんもう食べた？」
①子供：「まだ食べていない」 (= “No, I haven’t yet” => we can assume that the speaker just woke up and will soon eat his breakfast).
②子供：「まだ食べない」(=”I’m not going to eat yet” => this implies the will of the speaker and tells us that the speaker is – probably – not hungry. He will eat his breakfast later).
ヨロシク
Thank you 天人 for helping Dennis. I can go back to play now. :)
Dennis, I have two lesson on verb tense.
Part 1
Part 2
Thanks very much 天人 and Maggie-sensei!
先生、ご質問よろしいですか？
問題は”だけではなく”のことです。
例文:
一.幸子さんは明るい人だけではなく、親切な人でした。
ニ.幸子さんは明るかっただけではなく、親切な人でした。
どちらが正しいですか？
それとも…両方の文章は不正解ですか？
Hi はる
ねんのために英語で答えますね。
1 is not natural. 2 is better.
You can also say 幸子さんは明るいだけではなく親切な人でした。
(The first part 明るいだけではなく, doesn’t have to be past tense.)
(Note for you:If you are talking about your own question, ご質問→質問: Just say 質問してもいいですか？（more polite よろしいですか）
わかりました。
1は不自然な文章ですね。
ありがとうございます先生！
どういたしまして！☺️
Hi, Maggie. I’ve come across this: sayonara, mada deatte sura inai. Since this seems to be the most relates lesson, and as I think there is more to this than only “sae” but I’m not sure, I wanted to ask you whether this usage has some other meaning. Thank you very much in advance and sorry for the inconvenientes.
Hello Alraisen,
すら implies much stronger negative feelings, than さえ. The meaning the same. Depending on context we have: even; if only; if just; as long as; the only thing needed.
1) な、なに？こんな簡単な漢字すら読めないっていうかよ = Wha, what? Don’t say you cannot read even that easy kanjis!
2) さようなら、まだ出会ってすらいない（のに） = Farewell (though) we haven’t even met yet.
ヨロシク
Hi Alraisen
おはよう！
It seems like 天人 already helped you while I was sleeping.
Thank you 天人 for helping Alraisen! 💕
Hi! I’m struggling to understand translate this phrase:
これから稽古だったり、いろいろなことが始まっていくんだっていう感じがより高まりました。
This is one of the answers to a question about how they felt after wearing their performance costume for the first time, for context!
I noticed that the the beginning part, これから稽古だったり, is a noun + だったり form- but there’s only one. You did mention that this is pretty colloquial, though! So, is this why it’s a bit difficult for me to understand or is there something I’m missing?
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this, and I hope you’re doing well!!
Hi A
Yes, it is a casual way of writing.
it gives a reason first as an example for the following part, いろいろなことが始まっていくんだっていう感じがより高まりました。
Sensei!
Now I’m working at a restaurant and have a job in the kitchen. Could you help me listing some vocabularies so that I can communicate well with the other staff? Like phrases they use, indgredients name, the norm or the culture there…
Please :D
Hi Bloky,
Check my Cooking lesson and coffee shop and restaurant , fast food lesson.
(Just click the lesson titles. I added the link.) :)
割れると割ると壊れると壊すの違いは何ですか？
割れる intransitive verb
割る transitive verb
**
壊れる intransitive verb
壊す transitive verb
You use 割る・割れる for something fragile, such as dishes, glasses, mirrors, etc.
壊す・壊れる is for machines- computers, watches, TV and etc. or toys and so on.
ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして♪
甘いものを食べるばかりのなら太ります。
先生､この文はいかがですか？
例文とこれ同じですか？
ちょっと直しますね。
↓
甘いものを食べてばかりいると*太ります。If you just eat sweets, you will gain weight.
甘いものばかり食べると*太ります。 If you eat just sweets, you will gain weight.
*You can also say 食べたら
お返事ありがとうございます。
日本語に両方の文章は同じ意味ですか？
‘甘いものを食べてばかりいると太ります’
このは事実ですね。もしその’と’が’食べれば’に変えたらよろしいですか？
1) 甘いものを食べてばかりいると太ります。
2) 甘いものばかり食べると太ります
二つの文章の違いは、ばかりが何にかかるかの(What ばかり modifies) 違いです。
1) action: 甘いものを食べる just “eating sweets”
2) noun: 甘いものばかり食べる eating just “sweets”
と／たら／ば the translation could be the same If you ~, you will but
食べると Just eating sweets makes you fat. (と naturally, automatically →That the way your body system works)
You can replace と with たら but it sounds a little more hypothetical
食べたら If you eat just sweets, you will gain weight.
食べたら is hypothetical
食べれば is also possible.
Just you tend to use ば for something more positive
Ex. 食べれば病気が治る。
よかったら「ば」のレッスンを読んでくださいね。
→How to use ば
先生、ご説明を教えてくれてありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！
ありがとうマギ先生。本当に役に立った。これからもよろしくおねがいします。
お役に立ててよかったです💕
whats the difference between 労働 and 労力？
They are both “labor” in English, huh…Let’s see the difference in the following examples.
労働 = labor, job, work, tasks
労働者 = workers
労働時間 = working hours
労力 labor, the work force, how much you work
この仕事には時間と労力が必要だ= This job requires time and efforts.
労力の不足 = shortage of labor
Hello Maggie Sensei! i want to say something like this:
“If only you know how i feel”
So i made this sentence: どう感じてるかわかってくれさえすればいいのに。
1.Is that sentence correct?
2. If correct, is it possible to shorten it? i just felt that sentence is a bit too long.
Hi Rarow,
Nice try,
どう感じてるかわかってくれさえすればいいのに。
is fine.
You could shorten it in a couple of ways but how about
気持ちをわかってくれさえしたら..
どう感じているか→気持ち
くれさえすればいいのに→くれさえしたら (It is unfinished sentence but you often finish the sentence like this and the readers can read between the lines.)
In casual speech you can attach a suffix, な（あ）
気持ちをわかってくれさえしたらなあ。
わかりました！教えてくださってありがとうございました！
どういたしまして、Rarow! :)
hello maggie-sensei! thanks for the lesson it was helpful!
one quick question, do ある and いる have a ず form? thank you!
Hello rubemar junior,
as for ある（有る）we have あらず and as for 居る we have いず（居ず）.
あらず and いず are generally used in Classical Japanese.
ヨロシク
Hi rubemar junior!
You already got a nice help from 天人！
(Thank you for helping 天人 as usual!)
thank you thank you 天人 !
早速読んで勉強しまーす!♥♥
Hi roro! :)
Hello Maggie sensei. Back at you with another question.
っていうかなんか、マギーあんまり行きたくなさそうじゃない？
In this example sentence, I see なんか placed after っていうか.
What is the usage of なんか here. I have read the なんか lesson and there are 3 main usages listed there. Which one is most relevant here?
Hi Dennis,
The usage 6)
6) to start a conversation with なんか ( = nanka) putting your thoughts together.
In my なんか lesson, Conchita was saying
「てか、なんか、最近忙しいんだよね。」
= Teka, nanka, saikin isogashiin dayone.
= I don’t know why but I’ve been busy, you know.
てか is another casual form of っていうか
You often say ってか・てかなんか together when you put your thoughts together, “you know” “Like~”, etc.
It is a very casual speech.
Oh thanks Maggie. Japanese is very deep!
You’re very welcome, Dennis! :)
すみません、聞きたいんですが
1.
商品『 』質問は、下記の電話番号までお願いします。
Ａ．に関する
Ｂ．について
Ｃ．にしての
Ｄ．に対して
2.
ごみ問題で、市長に『 』市民の不満が高まっている。
Ａ．向かって
Ｂ．ついて
Ｃ．対する
Ｄ．とって
For me, A,B,D on number 1 can be the answer… coz in english their meanings look similar.
On number 2, i have difficulty to differ A and C…
Please help me… i have asked this to 3 japanese yet still can’t fully understand the difference between に関する、に対する、に向かって、について
Thank you in advance 🙏
1. OK, you are right. A/B/D could be the answers but you have to pay attention to the form.
Since it modifies a noun, 質問, it should be
A 商品に関する質問
B 商品について”の”質問
D 商品に対して”の”質問
B and D needs “の”. Therefore the correct answer is A.
(If there is an option 対する, →対する質問)
2. The same rule applies to this question.
Your word choice is good.
The main verb of this sentence is 高まっている.
So what comes in the parenthesis should modify the subject “（市民の）不満” which is a noun.
A 向かって should used as an adverb. →When someone does something towards someone, 向かって Ex. Aに向かってボールを投げる
However, 市長に向かって”の”市民の不満 doesn’t sound natural.
This is a bit difficult but “〜に向けられた+ noun” sounds better than 向かっての/向けた because 不満 is one’s feelings and you can’t actively control.
So as I mentioned above, 対する is the answer.
When you solve this type of questions with multiple possible words, check if it has の or not.
Verb dictionary form （関する/対する past tense） + noun
対して/ 関して/ 向けて/ とって+ の + noun
Thank you very much 😘
So what your basically saying is verb or い-adjective + じゃない has the same meaning as ね？meaning isn’t it? However I thought お前のせいじゃない means it’s not your fault. In your example みんな、お前のせいじゃない you translated as Its all your fault! but wouldn’t mean Everybody its not your fault. I’m confused about that. Can you please help me?
Hi Jimmy
Thank you for spotting the mistake.
It was an old lesson but I have never noticed it. You are right.
みんな、お前のせいじゃない measn “It is not all your fault.” Sorry to make you confused. :)
(This みんな doesn’t mean “everybody”. It means “everything”)
Dear Maggie Sensei!
I’m a little confused about the particle を when using the passive form.
For example, in the sentence you provided
「ずっと 欲しかったドレスを他の人に買われてしまった。」
Why is the particle used を and not は? Is it because the dress is something *I* wanted and not a random statement?
Also, I learnt that
私は人にXをされました
And in this case X is something I own or something related to me, and someone is doing something to my X(foot, etc). However in some cases I read the X belongs to the person doing the passive statement, like a statement i read beforehand 「ユニフォームは手を突っ込まれやすい」in this case the hand belongs to the other party.
Is there any way to understand it better?
Thank you very much!
Hi Megan,
私はドレスを買う
他の人がそのドレスを買う
You use を as an object marker.
The same rule works for the passive form.
他の人に（買おうと思っていた）ドレスを買われる
ずっと 欲しかったドレスを他の人に買われてしまった。
It is possible to use “は” when you show the contrast or emphasize the particular dress.
ずっと 欲しかったドレスは、他の人に買われてしまった implies,
Someone bought the particular dress that I wanted but other dresses are available/I bought other dresses.
**
「ユニフォームは手を突っ込まれやすい」
→It may be easier to think ユニフォームに手を突っ込まれやすい
Let me change the example a little.
ポケットに手を突っ込む
to stick/thrust one’s hand into one’s pocket.
passive form
ポケットに手を突っ込まれる
+ やすい
ポケットに手を突っ込みやすい
+ やすい (passive form)
ポケットに手を突っ込まれやすい
So 手 is an object of one’s action, sticking/thrusting, so you use を.
If it is a passive form, 手 is other people’s hand but it is still an object of an action so you use を
Thank you very much for your response! I now understand the explanation for the dress part, but I’m still unclear about the second part.
I do understand the X は passive + やすい but I’m not sure about the を in the use of passive sentences, as in does the word before を belong to the subject or the person performing the action, or does it depend on the context?
I’m sorry for disturbing you so much, and thank you for your explanation!
I changed the example sentence a little. Please check my previous answer.
Sensei could you please elaborate on the usage of をand the がparticles in passive grammar. It is a bit troublesome to distinguish the usages.
Plz help!
Hi Samayra
OK, for example
When you compare the following two sentences,
財布をとられた →（私は）財布を取られた →I had my wallet stolen. You are talking about what happened to 私
財布がとられた→ My wallet was stolen You are talking about what happened to 財布
Hello Maggie Sensei, could you help me figure out the meaning of the following sentence:
“自分は悪くないって言い張ってる人間に限って悪いんだよなあってのは一般論としてある点はマジで各位気をつけてくれな”
If my interpretation is correct, it says something like
“Since there’s a common opinion that the people who insist they’re not “bad” tend to be the “bad” ones, you have to be really careful (i.e.it implies that there’s a lot of such people out there?)”
I’m not 100% sure what part of the setence “は一般論としてある点は” refers to.
Hi Loom,
Though this sentence has some formal words, the style of writing is very casual but your interpretation is right.
Maggie sensei,
ありがとうございます！
JLPTではないサイトですけど、Maggie先生のサイトを読んだら、きっと勝つはずですよ！覚えやすいのはこつです。
ありがとうございます。
Hi Maggie!
This time I need some of your help ^ ^
It’s about 動詞ル形＋だけ＋動詞テ形
Could you please explain this pattern (when is it used and what does it imply [the nuance]) with some examples?
As far as I remember, you’ve mentioned that it stresses the meaning of the verb…
I found this one on the Internet「誘うだけ誘ってプランを具体化させない」and I think it means the speaker will not let realize/materialize someone’s plan of inviting someone somewhere.
Maybe a good translation of 動詞ル形＋だけ＋動詞テ形 would be “if it comes to~~” What do you think?
I found also 「聞くだけ聞いてみたら？」 which means: “it doesn’t hurt to ask”
Is this the same kind of usage of this pattern?
Looking forward to your reply :)
よろしくお願いします！
Hello 天人！
誘うだけ誘ってプランを具体化させない
All he/she does is asking out (and suggesting something) and never carries out the plans.
or He/She just asks out someone and doesn’t carry out the plans.
For example a boy asks a girl out.
“I know a good Italian restaurant. Do you want to go there with me?”
The girl says yes but the boy never carries out the plan, making a reservation, setting the time and going to the restaurant with the girl.
So VだけVて〜 implies “just do something and wouldn’t do something.”
Ex.言いたいことだけ言って帰ってきた。
= I just said things I needed to say and came home.
Implies the speaker just said whatever things he/she needed to say and didn’t listen to others and left the place and came home.
***
You use this form for a suggestion or asking someone to do something
「聞くだけ聞いてみたら？」
The closest translation is “It never hurts to ask.” = Just ask. You won’t lose anything.
You can use this form to ask for a favor.
私の話を聞くだけ聞いて
Just hear me out! / Please just listen to me. (implies “You don’t need to do anything else. Just listen and decide what to do.)
Ah, this wonderful feeling of being enlightened by Maggie <3
Thank you very much.
I made an example using 動詞ル形＋だけ＋動詞テ形, would you please take a look on it?
1) 甘い言葉言うだけ言って、一度約束したことを実行することになると、彼はまったく何もしない。
Thanks again and see ya next time, Maggie!
おはよう、天人!
Great!
甘い言葉”を”言うだけ言って / Or if that person asking someone out with sweet words, you can say 甘い言葉で誘うだけ誘って
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I have a question about なんかversus は in one of the examples you gave.
In this example:
「新しいイタリアンの店、入るまでに３０分かかったんだ。」
「私なんか一時間も待ったよ。」
Is there any difference in nuance between the above sentence and 「私は一時間も待ったよ。」？Thanks!
Hi Questioner!
「私は一時間も待ったよ。」 is simply state “I waited ONE hour.”
「私なんか一時間も待ったよ。」 by using なんか、you emphasize what comes before or giving an example,
→In MY case, it took me ONE hour to get in the restaurant.
なるほど！So would「私など一時間も待ったよ。」also have the same meaning?
(I replied to the last time, sorry)
「私など一時間も待ったよ。」
なんか is much more casual than など.
Since this speech is pretty casual など~ 待ったよ,may sound slightly unnatural but it is possible.
Hello, I have question!
What do we do when there’s more than one verb modifying the noun? Example: The book that I bought and read is very interesting.
Do we use the て form for the first verb and conjugate the last one or do we conjugate both of them?
買って読んだ本は凄くおもしろい。
買った、読んだ本は凄くおもしろい。
Which one is correct?
Thank you.
Hi Will!
Yes, you can connect two verbs with te-form
買って読んだ本は凄くおもしろい。
Thank you!
But then, another doubt came up: what if the tenses of the verbs are different?
How would the following sentence be in Japanese?
The rain that is ‘pouring’down and which ’caused’ a blackout is scary.
Would we still use the te-form in this case?
This sentence may not sound natural but it is possible to connect the verbs with te-form
激しく降って停電を起こした雨は怖い
I see, it indeed sounds a bit unnatural. I thought that in cases where the verbs have different tenses, we wouldn’t be able to use the te-form.
Thank you very much
When you connect two verbs you use te-form.
買って帰る →past tense 買って帰った
読んで捨てる→past tense 読んで捨てた
作って食べる→past tense 作って食べた
The same rule applies when you modify a noun.
Ex. 一度読んで捨てた新聞
一度読んで捨てた modifies 新聞
The newspaper which I read once and threw away.
You use this in a sentence like
一度読んで捨てた新聞をまた拾って読んだ。
Hi Maggie,
I have read all the article, but I couldn’t find an answer to my question.
What’s the meaning of ほど in this sentence?
事務所との約束が守られるほど芸能界は甘くはなかった。
I really can’t figure it out!
Could you please help me?
Thank you vey much!
OK, the simple form is easier to understand.
AはBほど甘くない
A is not as sweet as B.
Ex. りんごはいちごほど甘くない
Apples are not as sweet as strawberries.
事務所との約束が守られるほど芸能界は甘くはなかった。
I don’t know the context but
The subject is 芸能界 so
芸能界は〜ほど甘くはなかった。
= The show business was not easy as the promises with the entertainment companies would be kept.
In other word, The show business was tough. The promises with the entertainment company wouldn’t be kept.
Oh my god, thank you very much for answering my question.
This is in board terms the context. A guy from a model agency made a promise to a model but in the end he broke it. That sentence is from a thought of the model.
OK, then it make a sense.
You often say this expression bringing up one’s expectation and say
~ほど甘くない It is not that easy to do ~.
Thank you very much! You helped me a lot! :D
テストは簡単なら、簡単なほどいいですね。
I do not know what it means. Could you explain?
the easier the exam the better
So (adjective) なら (adjective) ほどいい is the more (adjective) the better
Hi,
Does this sentence make sense?
Zenbu shirabemashita ga, nakanaka mondai wa arimasendeshita.
It was a multi-answer question. Other options besides nakanaka are (dandan, choudo, tokuni).
Please help me with this,
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!
Hi Trang
You don’t say なかなか問題（もんだい）はありませんでした。
If you say that, you are expecting to have a problem but it is hard to have a problem.
So it should be
問題は特（とくに）にありませんでした。
There was no particular problem
たった、８ヶ月でこのブログが終わりだなんて誰が信じると思うの？
“Who would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months.”
Hi Maggie,
I have a question about this sentence. I don’t understand why it means the English sentence above.
When I read it, I can only understand the sentence as:
“Who do you think would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months?”
Kind of like the speaker is playing a prank on the readers, to see who would fall for this prank and believe it.
Because in my mind the と思うの part means “… do you think… ?”
And then 誰が信じると思うの means “who do you think would believe… ?”
If I wanted to say “Who would believe that this blog would finish in just eight months.”
then I would translate it as –
たった、８ヶ月でこのブログが終わりだなんて誰が信じる？
I feel this is another one of those subtle Japanese nuances that is hard for a foreigner like me to understand.
Hi Dennis,
誰がVerbと思う？ is a set phrase (Who would do ~ / Nobody would do ~
Ex. そんなこと誰がやると思う？
= Who would do such a thing? )
but you can say 誰が信じる？/ 誰が信じるっていうの？ （誰も信じないよ／信じやしないよ）
Maybe it will be easier to think this 思う is like “guess”
Guess who would believe it. (Nobody would.)
Guess who would do such a thing. (Nobody would.)
Hi Maggie,
Thank you. I understand what you mean. But if I wanted to say –
“Who do you think would believe such a thing?”
How would you put this in Japanese?
Sorry about posting 3 times… I think I clicked on the wrong reply button and my message went to the wrong place…
Ahh I see your point now.
You are right. More accurately the closest translation would be
“Who do you think would believe such a thing?”
誰がそんなこと信じると思うの？
Who would believe such a thing?
誰がそんなこと信じるっていうの？
Oh, thanks very much Maggie sensei.
So in your sentence 誰がそんなこと信じるっていうの？… the last part (っていうの？) is the concept you explained in the って lesson, right?
どういたしまして、Dennis! :)
Yes I think I explained the usage in my って lesson.
Arigatou gozaimashita. Omoshiroi jugyou desu. Watashi wa bintoro desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu. Indonesiajin desu.Douzo nihon go o oshiete kudasai.
Konnichiwa, Bintro-san!
Kochirakoso yoroshiku onegai shimasu ne! :)
hello sensei, what’s the meaning of ぐらい in this sentence? I’m pretty lost here
ずっとこれぐらいの季節が続いたらいいのになあ
if it helps, it’s a conversation about the autumn
thank you n_n
Hi Scarlet!
このぐらいの季節 this kind of season
(Maybe it refers to the temperature / nice and cool weather)
Hi, maggie
Thank you for the lesson, it was very enlightening. But I have a question.
If I want to say: “If you, to whom short-term relationships used to be everything, want to get married, then maybe it’s time I grew up as well.”
Then should I say:「とって短い暇の絆がすべてだった絵は結婚したがるなら、ぼくもそろそろ成人しなければ行けんかもしれない。
I am REALLY interested in your answer.
Thanks for advance :)
HI Robert-again,
Hmm there could be many ways to say that but how about
ずっと短い付き合いばかりしてきた”あの” 君（あなた）が結婚したがっているのなら、僕も成長する時なのかもしれない。
(I translated the speaker is a man following your translation)
Note: You add “あの” to emphasize the surprised feelings. That person who used to ~
Hello Maggie sensei,
I have a slightly stupid question. What is the meaning of の in this sentence:
“いろいろ検討したのですが、…”?
Is it supposed to be a nominalizer? I can’t quite tell. Thank you for the lesson!
Hello Vit,
If you just tell the fact, you say 検討しました
When you explain the reason or stress the meaning, you use の.
I have a lesson on の・ん usage. Click this link.
What’s the difference between かな and だろうか when Expressing doubt or the meaning “I wonder”
かな and だろうか
だろうか is more literal and かな is much more conversational.
I wonder if he would do such a thing.
彼はそんなことやるかな？ (casual)
彼がそんなことをやるだろうか。(sounds more literal)
I wonder if it is going to be a nice weather tomorrow.
明日は晴れるかな？ You can use both to ask yourself (talking to yourself) or ask someone else.
明日は晴れるだろうか。 You say that only when you talk to yourself, expressing your doubt.
Hey there Maggie,
I just came back from doing a homestay while going to a language school in Tokyo. I have a question about something my family used to say a lot using the ba conjugation. They would say it like a “what if” statement. For example, one day we were talking about getting haircuts, and the mom asked (sorry I don’t have a Japanese keyboard downloaded on my PC) “Nihon de kami wo kireba?” Which I thought meant something like “What if you got your hair cut in Japan?” It sounded like it was a joke, because the family would laugh after they said it. Do you know of a use of ba like this? Thanks in advance!
Hi JD
Hope you had a nice time in Japan.
日本で髪を切れば？
(Nihon de kami wo kireba?)
That “ば” is
3) giving someone a suggestion/ an advice. (Why don’t you do ~ ?/ I think you should do ~.)
So it means “Why don’t you get your haircut in Japan?/ You should get your haircut in Japan.”
Hey, for the longest time I’ve been having trouble figuring out why 僕が僕らしくあるために means what it means, why is the ある there?
First ある is a formal way to say “to be” / “to be in the state of being ~ ”
彼は大人だ He is an adult. → 彼は大人である
今日は静かだ It’s quiet today.→今日は静かである
OHHH, that was my first thought but I wasn’t sure. Thank you!!
You’re welcome! :)
Is にとって similar to にしたら?
There are different.
You use にしては when you have certain idea of what comes before.
Topics + one’s idea
Ex. この子は５歳にしては大きい。
= konoko wa gosai ni shite wa ookii.
= This child is big for five years old.
The speaker has certain idea how big five-year-old children.
X この子は、５歳にとって大きい doesn’t make any sense.
You use とって
Topics (A) is ~ for (B).
Ex.このゲームは子供にとっては難しい。
= Kono geemu wa kodomo ni totte wa muzukashii.
= This game is difficult for children.
You are talking about how difficult the game is for children.
I have a lesson on にしては. Do you want to check it?
Thank you Maggie Sensei for the quick reply! Really appreciate it. Didn’t realise that you have a lesson on にしては. Will check it out.
Actually I’m still a little confused between にとって and にしたら(not にしては). I came across the following sentence:大きすぎる親の期待は、子供にしたら苦痛だ。
I still can’t really understand if にとってcan be used here or not.
Oh sorry. I misread your question.
You are right したら and とって are similar
大きすぎる親の期待は、子供にしたら苦痛だ。
大きすぎる親の期待は、子供にとって苦痛だ。
The translation is the same but you use したら (or してみたら） when you put yourself in the children’s feet, assuming their feelings and sympathizing them. とって: You conclude your opinion (maybe you assume their feelings, maybe you get the information somewhere else)
Hi, I’ve something of an urgent request. I live one rail stop from a co-worker who will not hear of me leaving a bar before he has become too wobbly to support himself. I like a drink myself, but I’ve come to dread the ride home because of my senpai’s constant need to debark early in order to relieve himself—occasionally in terribly inappropriate places.
I am always drunk when I attempt the following conversation, but I assure you my Japanese is little better when I’m sober: all I know I’ve picked up from variety shows, so my vocabulary is limited; my particle selection is practically random; I have no formal training so I have no business breaking rules that I don’t even know yet in order to speak informally; and I have little sense for ordering phrases so that they make the best, er, sense.
Anyway, this is what I try to say after we have argued for ten minutes about when I will be allowed to pay the tab:
「できたれば おしっこしまさょうか？ 今は べんりし、おさけ は よく のんだったから、 もうすぐ ひつようじやないか？」
Or,
「さあ、こんや ビイルは よく のんだったさ、いま とても べんりとかさ、かえるまえに トイレ 行こう。 がまんがあるとか わかっているんでも、くるしくなかったのほうも いいじゃぬいか？」
I think I could be more assertive—or at least make my もんだい better-understood—if my Japanese weren’t so godawful. Help me Maggie-sensei, you’re my only hope.
Hi Vaffangool
Can you write the English translation for the Japanese sentences you wrote?
Hi!
In this sentence: 日本の暑い夏は人間だけではなくペットにとっても大変な季節だ why do you use ではなく and not ではない? What is the difference?
Also here: = Kanojo ni totte no tsurai toki
= A hard time for him
I think you meant to say her.
Hello Luna!
2)日本の暑い夏は人間だけではなくペットにとっても大変な季節だ
Q；why do you use ではなく and not ではない? What is the difference?
I am sorry. I don’t quite get your question.
人間だけではない instead of 人間だけではなく？ I used なく to connect the sentence.
Anyway, this sentence is from
日本の暑い夏は人間(にとって）だけではなくペットにとっても大変な季節だ
2) Thank you! It should be “A hard time for “her.”
I fixed it.
こんにちは、先生！このレッソンを書いてありがとう! I have a quick question about the particular meaning of the following phrases:
“お酒を飲まないでは/ 飲まずにはいられない。”
Does this have any negative connotations or express any sense of either “I can’t help drinking alcohol (because I like it so much)” or “I can’t help drinking alcohol (because I have a drinking problem)”? Or does it only mean “I can’t help drinking alcohol”, with any extra information about why the speaker feels that way being inferred through context or other info?
本当にありがとうございます！
こんにちは、frankie
It depends on the context.
When you use it negatively:
It means either the speaker has a drinking problem or some shocking thing happened to the speaker and he/she needs to drink alcohol to forget about the problem, distract oneself.
When you use it positively:
When the speaker heard a good news, he/she wants to drink to celebrate it.
私の質問を早く答えてくれてありがとうございました！
どういたしまして
(Note for you: 質問を→質問に）
Hi maggie,
Ummｍm, what do an adj/noun + suru get called?
e.g. 形容動詞, 接続詞…
The other one I’m curious about is: 形容動詞＝adj noun, but it’s literal meaning seems to be : “adj verb”.
Sorry, I hope i’m not too direct! XD
Thankyou for your time.
Hi Maggie,
As usual, I came here looking for some more information when I wasn’t sure somewhere else :) So I am listening to an audio course and it has said:
tte can mean speaking of; it can substitute for wa as a topic marker, but only if the
predicate expresses the speaker’s emotive evaluation/judgement; e.g., you can say, Keikosan tte hen na hito desu, but you cannot say, Keikosan tte sensei desu.
You have also given the example of
マギーって (→は)かわいいね = You are so cute, Maggie!
But there is also
今日って (→は)日曜日？= Is it Sunday today?
The second example sounds more factual rather than just your own judgement/feeling, so I’m not sure I understand when it can/cannot be used now.
Thanks :)
Hi Cindy!
Welcome back! :)
When you check something, you can also use って even for factual things.
That means it is not natural to say 今日って日曜日です。= Kyou tte nichiyoubi desu.
But when you are not sure what day is today, you can say 今日って日曜日？
Also as you said, you can’t say けいこさんって先生です。( = Keiko santte sensei desu.) but you can say
けいこさんって先生？= Keiko san tte sensei? = Is Keiko teacher?
You can attach the suffix http://142.93.68.150/2013/09/08/casual-suffix-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%A3%E3%81%91kke-%E3%80%80/ at the end as well.
今日って日曜日だっけ？ ( more polite 今日って日曜日でしたっけ？）
けいこさんって先生だっけ？ (more polite けいこさんって先生でしたっけ？）
Oh I see, thank you Maggie Sensei!
Also thank you for the link to っけ suffix, I will check that out :)
You’re very welcome! :)
Great lesson!暑い日に対していつもビールを飲みます！
Wow, hi Dan! 😊
暑い日に対して means “against/towards a hot day”
So
暑い日にはいつもビールを飲みます。
will be more natural.
暑い日に飲むビールは最高ですね！！ 🍻
Sensei! What about the -no-kata usage like in ancient names in samurai dramas (Odai-no-kata, Oichi-no-kata)?
Is that a suffix like -sama?
於大の方 (Odai no kata)
お市の方 (Oichi no kata)
北の方 (Kita no kata)
Yes, の方 is an honorific expressions like sama.
We stil use ~の方 to refer to a person.
そちらの方・その方 That person
あちらの方・あの方 That person over there
こちらの方・この方 This person
待っていらっしゃる方 a person who has been waiting, etc.
Hi, 先生!! I’m having trouble understanding the difference between まだ～ていません and まだ～いません.
One of the things I found on the Internet was that with TE-IRU we leave the door open up to the possibility of eating in the future(?)
Thanks in advance :)!
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
宿題は、まだやっていません。 I haven’t done my homework yet. (The key is I have not finished my homework yet.)
宿題は、まだやりません。I am not going to to my homework yet. (I am showing my will/ I decided not going to do my homework yet.)
So まだやっていません is wether you have done/finish doing something that you are supposed to do.
まだやりません is used when you express your will. :you decide not to do something yet.
ということは、「だって」というのは「でも」のカジュアルの言い方ですか？
例えば：「小学生だってこの問題を解けるよ」と「小学生でもこの問題を解けるよ」、どっちのほうが丁寧ですか？
「小学生だって/でもこの問題を解けるよ」
この分方はどちらにしても「〜よ」という文章なのでそんなに違いはありませんが、
「だって」の方がカジュアルです。
皆さん こんにちは、日本語ではひらがな、カタガナ、漢字として三つの文字があって覚えて置くのが大変です。特に漢字は大変で「日本語は分かりますか？」と聞いているときいつも「まだまだです。」と答えています。日本語にはもし、漢字がないとひらがな、カタガナでも日本語を伝えていくのは出来ないでしょうか。
漢字はあるのが大変で便利なところたくさんあります。でも、漢字なしで、にほんごをほしいです。。。。。。。。。。。。
こんにちは！
漢字は便利なこともありますよ。
ひらがなだけの文章だと意味がわからなくなることが多いです。
Ex. ははのはは、しろい。
と書いてもわからないけれども
母の歯は白い
って書いたら意味がわかりますよね。
少しずつ楽しんで漢字を勉強してください。
メールの返事、どうもありがとうございます。
例：母の歯は白い。
はは＝母
は ＝歯
は ＝Particular(wa)
はは の は は しろい。
漢字が覚えている方には便利ですが。漢字が覚えてない方たちには読めないところはもちろんあります。そうして意味も分かりません。
中国人には自分の文字があって読めないかも知りませんが意味は分かるはずです。
漢字がない国にとして、日本語には漢字が一番 難しいところです。
漢字がない、日本語を考えています。
外国人の心からの気持ちです。笑顔。。
気持ちはよ〜くわかります！
それにしてももう漢字、ずいぶん、知っていますね。😉
気持ちは分かって頂いて、ありがとうございます。
いろいろなことを教えてありがとうございます。また、何か分からないところがあればご相談に入ります。
本当にこのサイトにきてくれるみなさんは、がんばって勉強しているといつも感心（かんしん）しています。
(NOTE FOR YOU: 気持ちは→気持ちを・ご相談に入ります→ご相談します。）
Maggir sensei, I will check it. Thank you so much.
You’re welcome and good luck!
Hi, I’m rather confused about でしょう vs ようです。Can you please show me the difference between these two? Isn’t it true that both can be used to make uncertain judgement on the current situation?
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!
Hi,
Ex. 彼は明日くるようです。
= I heard he is coming tomorrow.
(It is based on what the speaker heard.)
Ex. 彼は明日くるでしょう。
= I believe he is coming tomorrow.
(It is based on the speaker’s belief)
I will not explain the whole usage here but it sounds very dramatic.
You will only hear/see that in some drama or literature.
I will add the usage of でしょう in the request lesson. I will explain all the details there.
Wow, I didn’t know でしょう sounds dramatic. Looking forward to your lesson on でしょう. Arigatou gozaimashita.
Sorry, one more question. What about かもしれません? Is there any difference between かもしれません and ようです ? (when used to make a judgement on the current situation), Is かもしれません dramatic too?
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu
かもしれない? It is not “dramatic”.
彼はくるかもしれない He may come.
I have a lesson on かもしれない
Please check that lesson.
Hi ….sensei…..how are you.?? I need a help …if you can help..plz tell me n3 grammar pattern and kanji.plz
Hello!
Haha I can’t just teach you all the JLPT N3 grammar and kanji in the comment section.
You should get textbooks and ask me question if you have some doubt in Maggie’s Room.
My site is not to study JLPT test but I just classified some of my grammar lesson by its JLPT level. If you click the tag, JLPT N3, you can see those lessons. There are many good site out there just to teach JLPT Japanese. Google with “JLPT N3 kanji list”.
はいどうもせんせい。。how to say I tried my level best and your prediction beacme true….plz help
I tried my level best = 最善を尽くしました。= さいぜんをつくしました
your prediction became true = (the name of the person you are talking to)の予想(よそう）が当（あ）たりました。
If I say….I tried my level best..
私は最高のﾉﾚﾌﾞﾛをためしました
And ….you predection became true….あなたの予測は真実になった。。
この文も正しですか。pls teach
No. 最高のレベルをためした is the literal translation but
“to do one’s level best / to do one’s best” is an idiom so the most natural translation is 精一杯(せいいっぱい）がんばる。・最善（さいぜん）をつくす
あなたの予測は真実になった
I guess that is possible but what kind of prediction came true?
Hi sensei .genki desu ka??. ということだand とのことだ。。。how we will use it ??
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thanks so much for your website, it’s been super helpful! I have a question regarding this sentence – 状況や場面を回想で語ると、どうしても説明的で嘘くさくなってしまう気がしたんです。May I know what does 嘘 in this context mean? Does the meaning lean towards more of “contrived”?
Thanks in advance :)
Hi Meredith
Yes, “contrived” is one way of translating the word 嘘くさい
So 嘘 in that context mean “fictional/unrealistic/false” (not real).
More conversational expression is 嘘っぽい
こんにちは先生！
I understand it now.
Thank you so much
よかった！☺️
こんにちは先生！
Btw, this grammar point is used in daily conversation? Or only in documents, books, etc(as a written form only I mean)?
Thank you in advance:)
こんばんは！
〜に対して is often used in documents, books, news or formal speech but like some example sentences,
私に対して冷たい
彼女に対して優しい／厳しい, etc. are very common in daily conversation.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
it’s me again with another question.
今日、宿題ないんだって。
明日から暑くなるんだって。
In these 2 examples, I understand the grammar. I also understand the ん and its usage. But why is だ added to the end?
今日、宿題ないんって。
明日から暑くなるんって。
Is it because when you say a sentence and end it with ん (orの) you have to say だ (or です) after?
Hi Dennis
You don’t say
今日、宿題ないんって。
明日から暑くなるんって。
But you say
今日、宿題ないって。/今日、宿題ないんだって。
明日から暑くなるって。/ 明日から暑くなるんだって。
んだ・んです sounds more explanatory and you can express your feelings such as surprised feelings.
Check my ん lesson.
This is very interesting. How would you write “Laughing Creek.” The idea being the creek is personified. I would like to bring to mind a mountain stream. Would “笑う磎” be correct?
laughing ~ = ~ が笑っている／笑う〜
pattern works.
小川が笑っている／笑う小川
But it is hard to imagine the situation.
こんばんは先生！
Thank you so much for your answers and for adding a note for me
As for 2. Haha it makes sense now.^^
As for 3. I’m confused about how to use the particle の in this lesson.
Because in this sentence “地震に対しての/対する 備え” the particleの comes after に対して, but not after に対する. This point really confuses me. Why in some examples に対するis followed by の like “家族に 対して/対するの思い”
and some other examples like are not?
ありがとう in advance.
You can modify a noun with a dictionary form.
これは私が寝るベッドです。
This is the bed where I sleep.
彼が読む本
The book that he reads.
and some other examples like are not?
Did I forget to add the 対する？ Let me recheck the lesson later.
こんばんは先生！ and thank you for your reply.
haha now I’m confused more than before.
Now, I don’t know which example from all the examples that you mentioned in this lesson, is used in daily conversation.
From you point of view, since you said it’s often used in books, news, etc, do you think it’s very formal to use even between friends?
Is there another grammar point that is less formal/neutral and has the same meaning?
Thank you in advance.
I can’t specify all the example sentences which one is formal and which one can be used for conversational.
But you know.. if it deals with country, politics, earthquakes and stuff, it is formal.
Many of my examples in
* to have some feelings + over / towards / on + something /someone
are pretty conversational
and the most of my example sentences in
* to do some actions + towards / on / against / to + something /someone
are very formal.
How’s that?
Omg thank you so much for this <3 You are definitely the best one in the world <3 All those explanations whithout exception are the best <3 Some offtopic: How Can I get better at knowing what japanese people are saying? I mean I can't figure out if they are saying something like:
し or ち、ほうがいい or ほうばいい or even ほうだいい(This one doesn't even exist and just like in those examples if I really think I heard this one then I will torture myself searching for it, until I realize that it doesn't exist and that person didn't actually said that) So…
I will become better just with knowing more vocabulary/grammar or I will need something more/else?
Hi Naru-chan!
I think what you heard is
~ほうがいい = hou ga ii which means “I prefer” / ” ~ should better do something ”
Talking to yourself.
Ex. もう寝た方がいい。
= Mou neta hou ga ii.
= I should better go to bed now.
Talking to someone else.
もう寝た方がいいよ。
= Mou neta hou ga iiyo.
= You should go to bed now.
If you learn some grammar pattern, you will start to hear things and they make more sense to you.
がんばって！
omgsh thank you so much <3 Your reply really motivated me, the best always <3!!
You’re very welcome.
Now I think of it, what you heard, し or ち part, must be した
So →した方がいい = shita hou ga ii = You should do ~ / I should do ~
こんばんは先生！^^
元気？
I have some questions please.
1. “対する/対しての”
I’m confused. What is the difference between them and “～に対して”
I’d really appreciate it if you could include more examples for “対する/対しての” section.
2. “地震に対する*備えは十分ですか？” why not “～に対しての？”
3. “～に対する” it’s not always followed by “の”？
Thank you so much in advance.
Hi Kuroineko
1) I added the note for you.
They mean the same.
As for 2. I knew someone would ask…haha. From a native point of view, 地震に対する備えは十分ですか？” sounds slightly more natural because ~ that is why I didn’t include 対しての but yes, there are people who use 地震に対しての備えは十分ですか。so I added 対しての
I don’t quite get your 3) question..
こんにちは先生！I don’t think you forgot to add it.
As for this sentence “and some other examples like are not?”
I added “like” by mistake.
So the question was about the “の” particle, “Why in some sentences of ~に対するis followed by ”の” For example, “家族に 対して/対するの思い”
and in some other sentences are not. For example, “地震に対しての/対する 備え”
本当にありがとう^^
Ahhh Now I get it.
Sorry. It was just a typo.
家族に対しての・対する思い
こんばんは！
It’s ok please don’t worry.
So just to make sure:
1. ~に対する+noun
But ~に対して+”の”+noun
Is it right?
2.”に対して ( = ni taishite) can be used when it modify a verb”
Can you please explain more about modifying a verb, with an example?
Is there a lesson on modifying verbs here?
Thank you so much and I appreciate your efforts always.^^
1. Yes
2. Yes. To be more precise, verb and adjective
Ex. Aは、 Bに対して抗議（こうぎ）した。
= A protest against B
→Against B, A does “protesting” (verb)
Ex. AはBに対して優（やさ）しい。
= A is nice to/towards B.
→Towards B, A is sweet (adjective)
こんにちは先生！How are you today?
Thank you for your explanation. The most important thing is that it can be used in daily conversation or between friends. I thought it was only used formally in news, books, etc.
I’m glad you corrected my information.
I really appreciate your help.^^
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Can you please tell me if the Te kudasai form of “goran ni narimasu” is “goran ni natte kudasai?
If it’s correct, why do I also hear people use goran kudasai?
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu
Hi Tata
Yes てください ( = te kudasai) form of ご覧になる ( = goran ni naru) is
ご覧になってください。= Goran ni natte kudasai.
But the shorten version ご覧ください ( = goran kudasai) is more common because it sounds “simpler”. :)
Arigatou gozaimasu :)
どういたしまして💕
I’m not sure if this is correct, but I learnt that there is a slight difference
ご覧ください is from the お/ご +verb stem + ください pattern, which suggests that the action will benefit the person doing it
E.g. メニューをご覧ください – please take a look at the menu (so that you can choose your food etc)
And ご覧になってください is an honorific verb inside the てください pattern, which does not have the connotation of “doing something for your benefit”
E.g. 私たちをおまちになってください – please wait for us (I couldn’t think of a good example using ご覧)
Hi Elenor
You may also want to check my Honorific Form lesson. Click here.
When you describe a customer is looking at the menu you say
お客様は/がメニューをご覧になっている
And if the customer is waiting
お客様がお待ちになっている
They both describe the state of doing something.
And the plain form is ご覧になる／お待ちになる
Now when you ask someone to do something
ご／お〜なってください
But you sometimes drop なって
ご覧になってください。
ご覧ください。
お待ちになってください。
お待ちください。
So they are all correct.
As for the “benefit”, ~なってください／ください is used when the speaker asks the listener to do something in a polite way.
For example if you say, ご覧いただけます/お待ちいただけます then the action will benefit the person doing it.
Hello!
I am studying Japanese Honorific forms right now.
Whenever I get stuck, I also refer to your website.
Thank you for sharing such great content.
Something that has been tripping me is “ご覧になってください。” versus “ご覧ください”. I am glad to read in this comment that saying “ご覧になってください。” is OK and correct.
There is so much to learn!
Hello Jen,
Let me add more information.
ご覧ください is more common than ご覧になってください。
This is an old post so please check the new keigo lesson,too!
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I just had a brief read of the new Keigo lesson. So my understanding is that ご覧になってください is using a double honorific. I am coming to realise that “ご覧ください” is definitely more common. But for service people, using double honorific is sometimes ok. I have heard both used so all and all, it is good to know both are correct statements. Thank you!
That’s right. ご覧になってください is commonly used among service people. However, ご覧ください is much more common.
In my personal opinion, though you describe someone who is superior is looking at something, you say ご覧になっている but I would use ご覧ください.
こんにちは！
「煙たい」というところで翻訳が逆じゃないですか。
レッスンは間違いないで、役に立ちます！
こんにちは！
“煙たい” はこのレッスンの例文にありましたか？
〜たいのレッスンのことかなあ。。。
Ex. あの先生は生徒に煙たがられている。
= Ano sensei wa seito ni kemutagararete iru.
= The students get annoyed by the teacher.
こんにちは！
「煙たい」の、「あの先生は生徒に煙たがられている」という例文です！英語の翻訳は逆じゃないですか？
日本語は受け身なので英語の訳と違うような印象を受けるかもしれませんが、「煙たがられる」には「嫌がられる」／「敬遠される」という意味があります。
「あの先生は生徒に煙たがられている」
= 生徒はあの先生を嫌がっている
= 生徒はあの先生に嫌な思いをさせられている
The students get annoyed by the teacher.
ということで訳は逆ではありません。でもわかりにくかったかもしれませんね。
「敬遠されている」という意味でとるともっとわかるかな。
That teacher is shunned by the students.
Hi Maggie,
Shouldn’t this sentence use instead 教えてあげます of 教えてくれます?
I thought if you are speaking, and you give something to someone (or do something for someone), you always use あげます because くれます is reserved for when you are the receiver.
Hi Dennis,
Good question. It is because I am not neither a hamster nor turtle. I am talking about they give the readers lessons.
If I am talking about myself, it sounds a bit arrogant but I could say 日本語を教えてあげます。
I see, thank you. So as a third party, it is okay to say くれます. Are both くれます and あげます fine to use when you are a third party?
You can use くれる if the receiver is the one you are talking to.
↓
Someone (the third person) が (listener/readerに） Vてくれるよ・くれますよ
= “Someone does something for you＊” (you = the listener/reader) ＊or someone who you can related to.
**
As for あげる, the speaker has to be yourself.
Aがみんなに日本語を教えてあげる (Not natural)
ありがとうマギー先生
Hi maggie sensei
Can i ask which is correct
Toshoukan de hon o karimasu
Toshoukan ni hon o karimasu
Or both correct?
Hello Kathrina,
since we have here an action (not a state), then “de” particle is correct.
Toshokan ni iru => to be in the library
Toshokan de yomu => to read (a book) in the library
ヨロシク
Nice follow up as always, 天人！
Toshokan de odoru. 💃 (to dance in the library)
Toshokan de hirune suru. 😪💤 (to take a nap in the library)
Toshokan ni inu ga iru. 🐶 (There is a dog in the library.)
Toshokaan ni neko mo iru. 🐱 (There is also a cat in the library.)
Hi maggie sensei:)
Can i ask which is correct?
Toshoukan de hon o karimasu or
Toshoukan ni hon o karimasu . ?
Thank you.
Hi Kathrina
It should be
Toshokan de hon o karimasu.
こんばんは先生＾＾
本当にありがとう for your reply. I understand perfectly now.
I saw a comment here about “My little sister is in Tokyo (she´s already there)”
I’m confused about your answer.
“いもうとは日本に行っています。
means
My sister is in Japan now. (implying And she doesn’t live here/She is not here)”
My questions are:
1. Can you please explain more about this sentence “(implying And she doesn’t live here/She is not here)”?
2. We can’t just say “妹は日本にいます？”
Thank you so much in advance.
Oh, that “And” was a mistake. I fixed it.
いもうとは日本にいます She is in Japan. Just talking about where she is right now.
いもうとは日本に行っています。She has gone to Japan. (But the speaker expect her to be back sometime)
こんばんは先生^^
元気でしたか？
I have some questions please:
1. “Max先生の話を聞いていますか？”
What is the difference between this sentence and “Max先生のことを聞いていますか？
2. “ここ数日”
What is ここ here?
3. ” 父の容態はかなり落ち着いています”
This 容態 is always related to health?
4. “皆のお役に立ったらうれしいです”
What is this の here? Why not 皆に？
Thank you so much in advance.
Hi Kuroineko! はい、元気でしたよ。Kuroinekoも元気でしたか？
1. You can say こと
Basically they mean the same. (The nuance difference is こと could be used for just factual thing. (What happened to Max) and 話 could be there is a little story for that incident.)
2. The same in English, “these” few days.
ここ measn 1) here 2) these + time related words
Ex. ここ10年 (These ten years)
Ex. ここ数ヶ月 these few months, etc.
3. Yes
4. お役・役 is a noun. The literal meaning is “everybody’s service”
So this の has a function like apostrophe
こんにちは！＾＾
ありがとう先生
どういたしまして！ :)
Hi Maggie sensei! I just found this website and I think it’s awesome! I would be grateful if you could answer me a question. I don’t understand the expression どんな心持ちで in this sentence, why is it used together with どちらかというと. The full sentence is: どちらかというと、どんな心持ちで勉強や仕事をしていたほうが幸せだろうか
Thank you so much!
Hello Pedro!
心持ち has two meanings:
1) 気持ち
2) 幾分／少し／わずかばかり
In this case it refers to 1) – 気持ち
どんな心持ちで = what kind of feelings
ヨロシク
PS どちらかというと is an expression, which means “would rather”, “if I had to say then” “… if anything …”
今はどちらかというと仕事に行くよりこの一日を友達と一緒に過ごしたいけど。
I would rather spend the day together with my friends, than go to the work today.
Pedro
Sorry. Just read your comment. Looks like our nice friend answered your question already.
Thank you 天人 for helping Pedro.
Thanks but I understand the meaning, what I don’t understand is the full meaning of the sentence combining those two words. “If anything, I wonder how happy it is to be studying and working with what kind of feelings”? If you know the meaning, could you please help me? Thank you^^
Well, I don’t do the translation here but it roughly means
If anything, I wonder what kind of mindset should I have when I study or work to make me happy.
I have one question Maggie Sensei, what does ということat the end of a sentence mean?I don’t quite understand its usage in this context: 字面にするとうまく伝わらないかもしれませんが、身振りよろしく歌にのせて返したということ。Thanks for your attention. I’m looking forward to your reply ^^
Hi Pedro,
You use ということ(です） at the end of a sentence to explain the definition.
It/That means ” ~~~~”
Q: 〜とはどういうことですか？
A: That means 身振りよろしく歌にのせて返した
maggie sensei!
なでなで
I’m trying to construct:
“Apparently, I’m not very good at [particles].” or,
“It’s seems that [particles] are not my strong point/specialty”
(ie. my Japanese exams/essays always come back with excessive particle error corrections – so this is me commenting on my own situation…)
So normally I would think, 助詞は私の得意じゃないらしい。
but a native told me that I cannot use ~らしい to talk about myself. (Is that true?)
So then can I use, 助詞は私の得意じゃないみたい。?
Or is there some other device to convey “It seems that…/Apparently…” about something about myself? Or, is this just an odd sentence that one wouldn’t find in Japanese?
Another example, Maggie-sensei is such a great teacher and so you receive a lot of positive feedback. So how would you, Maggie-sensei, say “[Apparently I’m]/[I seem to be] very popular” ?
Hi squidlydeux
Thank you for なでなで my head 🐶
First
助詞は私の得意じゃない → 私は助詞が得意じゃない
Or 私は助詞に弱い/ 助詞が苦手 is better. (There is also an expression that ~ は私の得意分野じゃない）
Your friend is right. You don’t use らしい when you talk about yourself.
However there are cases that you use らしい for yourself 1) when you see yourself objectively
2) When you are not aware of it but according to other people, 〜
Ex. (どうやら・どうも) 私は助詞が苦手らしい
(Note: どうやら・どうも = Apparently)
You can also say
Ex.(どうやら・どうも)私は助詞が苦手みたいだ。
Haha, I am embarrassed to translate the last sentence but you can use みたい・よう.
私は、とても人気があるようだ・みたいだ。
なんか、私ってすごく人気があるみたい。(more conversational) 😝
マギー先生すごい！ニャンニャン先生も！
丁寧に説明してくれてありがとうございます。
それでは、
Ex.
(どうやら)私は助詞が得意じゃないようだ･みたいだ。
(どうやら)助詞は私の得意分野じゃないようだ･みたいだ。
(どうやら)私はユーモアが得意じゃないようだ･みたいだ。
これらもいけますか。
はい。前のコメントに書いた通り自分を客観的に見ていうという場合はそういう言い方もできると思います。
ユーモアが得意
でも言えないことはありませんが「ユーモアのセンスがない」の方がよく使われます。
Maggie sensei,
Konnichiwa🙌
I’m so happy finally I found the place to learn japanese.
But I’m a little bit regret, why now I found your site😓.
I want to ask you, I saw a part time recruitment at a cafe. I want to apply that job. They ask to call them first. How to call and tell them that I want to have an interview, I really want to work there. I’m worry about my japanese and afraid they get not good impression from my Japanese😟.
Thank you so much for helping.
Hi indi
I am glad you found us here, too.
You can call them avoiding their busy hours and say
お忙しいところ恐れいります。
= Oisogashii tokoro moushiwake arimasen.
（It literally means I am sorry to bother you in your busy time)
先日、そちらで求人*募集を拝見してお電話いたしました。 ( * アルバイト= part time job You can change it depending on your job)
= Senjitsu, sochira de kyuujin boshuu wo haiken shite odenwa itashimashita.
= I saw your HR ad there the other day.
ご担当者様はいらっしゃいますでしょうか？
= Gotantousha sama wa irasshaimasu de shouka?
= May I speak to the person in charge?
If the person who answers the phone deals with it, you can continue
応募方法を教えていただけますでしょうか？
= Oubo houhou wo oshiete itadakemasu deshouka?
= Could you tell me how to apply the job?
Maggie sensei…
Thank you very much for replying🙇♀️
I will try to call them soon.
またよろしくお願いします🙏
Sincerely,
Indi
You’re welcome! Good luck!!
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Can you explain the difference between 上手 (じょうず) which I was taught at school and 上手い (うまい) which I haven’t seen before? Other than that one is a na and one an i-adjective.
It seems to me that うまい has wider uses, whereas じょうず only means ‘to be good at’, so would you tend to use うまい more commonly?
Hi Cindy
上手（じょうず）/ 上手（うま）い means “good at” / “to do something well”/ “skillful”/ to handle/manage something well” and they can be interchangeable in many sentences.
Ex. She is good at cooking.
→彼女は料理が上手（じょうず）だ。
→彼女は料理が上手（うま）い。
If you hear someone is singing well, you can say
You sing very well!
→歌が上手（じょうず）だね。→上手（じょうず）!
→歌が上手（うま）いね。→上手（うま）い!
I can’t explain well.
→上手（じょうず）に説明できない ○
→上手（うま）く説明できない。◎
I think your interpretation is right. There is a subtle nuance difference between jouzu and umai in certain cases.
上手（じょうず） might sound a bit condescending if you use it to someone professional or experienced.
Hi, Maggie. So, I was hearing a song (Summer Mermaid, by Misako Uno) and this comes out: どうぞ はじめて
Sノリ王子と
シュワシュワ 出逢いに(ラブ)乾杯
Could you, if possible, tell me what means Sノリ王子と, i found this tricky and confuse. Thank you in advance.
Hi Alex,
I am sorry. I wish I could help you but I have no idea.
“S” could be an initial of her prince and follows のり as a part of his name. In other word, there is no such a word, Sノリ王子 in Japanese. It is a coined word.
Thank you for the response. Yeah, that’s hard. Thank you again, I gonna trying to figure out.
I hope you can find the answer somewhere. :)
Hi Alex!
I checked that song and I think – like Maggie said – Sノリ王子 refers to a person and has rather nothing to do with the ノリ slang word.
It might refer to Nissy.
Wow. Yeah, it could be. Thank you 天人. I was thinking that could be S (sea) nori (weed). So, seaweed as Snori. Seaweed Prince. Ok, that’s ridiculous, but…hahaha.
Hi Maggie先生、
Gee wiz, you must be a workaholic.
So many examples and just as many answered questions (Thankyou! XD).
But i have to admit…. This time i read the examples、and i read them as if ところ wasn’t there.
Q: Could i summarize that ところ adds emphasis to “the” verb or adjective (in everyday conversation atleast)
If ところ, was left out of the examples, would that make it sound as if the speaker is less interested, and just conveying the facts/thoughts.
サンキュウ for your time。
Hi Shaun
You can say many sentences without ところ
Let’s pick up a few sentences.
今、先生とどこの大学に行くか相談しているところです。
→今、先生とどこの大学に行くか相談しています。
「そろそろ寝るとこなんだけど。」
→そろそろ寝るんだけど
うん、今、電話をかけようと思っていたとこだよ。
→うん、今、電話をかけようと思っていたんだ。
Yes, as you say without ところ you just convey the facts/thoughts. I wouldn’t say the speaker is less interested.
By using ところ, you can simply emphasize you are in middle of doing something or about to do something and you want the listener to understand you are trying to call or what you are about to do is more important.
From your “workaholic” teacher 😉
Thankyou for the reply Maggie.
I will work on this more and more.
Currently my vocabulary is maybe ‘N5’,
But, beautiful tools like “Rikaichamp” are available, so i can keep learning all grammar in context, like on you page on 〜はしない (it’s fantastic!).
No problem! がんばてって！ ☺️
Hi Maggie! thanks for the lesson, great as always! I have a question, Can you tell me why in this sentence “もう閉まっている感じがする” can’t use 感じがする?
Hi Emao
もう閉まっている感じがする” ,感じ actually means “sense/impression” so the literal mean is ” I get the sense / impression from the store that it is closed.” which you don’t say.
If the speaker is not in front of the store you can’t get the impression. You use 気がする instead when you “feel”
Also if you are in front of the store and you are guessing the store is closed, It seems like it’s closed, you say
もう閉まっているようだ/みたいだ。
Thank you very much! It cleared my doubts! Keep up the good work!
Hello Maggie先生,
Is it possible to use とか with verbs in the たい form?
A friend send to me “いつも会いたいとか嬉しいな” and the とか’s part let me a little confused…
Thanks
Hi Ly
OK, it is possible to use とか with Vたい when you list up someone’s quotes.
Ex. 彼はいつも私に会いたいとか一緒にいたいとか言っている。
He always tells me that he wants to see me or he wants to be with me and so on.
Ex. 子供達は夏になるとプールに行きたいとかキャンプに行きたいとかうるさい。
= My children bothers me in summer saying they want to go to the swimming pool or go camping and so on.
As for your friend’s line, I need to know more context but from just that line but it sounds like one of the colloquial usages.
It sounds like you have been telling your friend that you want to see her/him.
And your friend quote it
いつも会いたいと言ってくれて嬉しいな。
↓
(to make it sound softer) colloquial Japanese
いつも会いたいとか言ってくれて嬉しいな。
↓
いつも会いたいとか嬉しいな。
こんにちは、マギー先生。
いつも、そんなに素晴らしい授業を教えてくれてありがとうございます。
「ないでは」と「なくては」についての質問一つありますけど。
「★ Vない ( = nai) + では ( = dewa) + いられない ( = irarenai) : can’t help doing something」と言っていることが分かりますが、「★ Vなくては + いられない」と言ってもいいのですか？
お教えいただきありがとうございます。
ダビッドより
こんにちはダビッド！
「Vなくては + いられない」を使う人もネットでは時々いますが、
「Vないではいられない／Vずにはいられない」の方が一般的です。
マギー先生、ありがとうございました。
そういえば
「Vないではいられない」ってとか
「Vないでください」ってとか
「ない」のテ形を使わなくて
そのままに「で」を加えることは一般的なのでしょうか？
逆に
「Vなくてはいけない」ってとか
「Vなくてはならない」ってとか
「ない」のテ形を使うことは必要なのでしょうか？
それ以外
「ないで」と「なくて」の違い分けは他の例えはあるのですか？
お教えをお願いします。
ダビッドより
Q1) 「Vないではいられない」ってとか
「Vないでください」ってとか
「ない」のテ形を使わなくて
そのままに「で」を加えることは一般的なのでしょうか？
Vなくてはいられない：もう説明した通り文法的には 「〜せずにはいられない・ないではいられない」 の方が自然です。
「Vないでください」 = Please don’t V
Ex. ボタンを押さないでください。 = Please do not push the button.
X 押さなくてください。とは言いません。
Q2: 「Vなくてはいけない」 = have to V
「Vなくてはならない」 = have to V
「ない」のテ形を使うことは必要なのでしょうか？
はい、必要です。
I have to go = 行かなくてはいけない/ 行かなくてはならない
X 行かないではいけない・ならない
とは言いません。
Q3 それ以外
「ないで」と「なくて」の違い分けは他の例えはあるのですか？
いくつかありますが例えば
I just played the games without studying. (explaining how I played the games)
勉強しないでゲームばかりしていた。
I didn’t study and just played the games. (connecting two actions)
勉強しなくてゲームばかりしていた
先生、本当にありがとうございました。
最後の例えもとても役に立ちましたので、どんどん分かりました。
「〜いられない」と「〜ください」には、動詞の未然形のテ形を使えば不自然です。単に行動２つの接続じゃないし、「〜ないで」の「without 〜ing」の意味特にあるし、「〜ないで」+は+「いられない」はもっと自然です。
逆に、「〜いけない」と「〜ならない」には、行動２つの接続が必要なので、「〜なくて」が正しいです。
今日も勉強になりました。
ダビッドより
どういたしまして。
参考までに「〜ずに・ないで」のレッスンがあるからよかったら見てくださいね。→ ~ ずに・ないで
Hi, is there any difference between using just ato or ato with a particle (atode/atoni)? Can they be used with unchanged meaning in all grammatical structure? Arigatou gozaimasu.
Hi Akai,
When you simply talking about ” ~ more + time related words”, you don’t need a particle.
Ex. Ten more minutes →後10分
後で・後に
1) 〜A〜 後で 〜B〜
2) 〜A〜 後に 〜B〜
the grammatical structure is the same but the relations between the event/action A and B are slightly different.
It is a bit complicated and changes the nuance difference depending on the sentences but the general idea is
1) focusing on the order of action/events
2) focusing on the time when you finish doing A (A happens).
Hi, Maggie先生！
質問があります！「〜てない）」と「〜なかった」となんの違いがありますか？例えば「まだ見てない」と「まだ見なかった」、同じ意味なんですか？”I haven’t seen it yet”と言いたいですけど。。。「〜ていない、〜てない」のformがpast tenseにもなるのがまだわかりにくいですね！
あと、この例文：「湿気のため夏が嫌になる」って、literary formですか？conversational speechでは「湿気のため夏が嫌になっている」とか「湿気のため夏が嫌になって」？I thought タメ口 just used all verbs by their plain forms, but I guess that’s not the case? I want to say “I become not fond of summer because of the humidity” （not “I’m not fond of summer because of the humidity right now”).
I hope you’ll be able to reply! Thank you!
Hi Rachel,
まだ見ていない= I haven’t seen ~ yet.
You don’t say まだ見なかった
but you can say just 見なかった which means “ I didn’t see ~ “ and you are talking about the past.
Ex. あの映画見た？ Did you see the movie?
また見ていない I haven’t seen the movie yet.
If you say 見なかった, it means you had a chance to see it but you decided not to see it for some reason.
湿気のため夏が嫌になる
No it is not literal. You can say that casually.
Thank you, 先生！
Let me see if I got it right: the difference is kind of like
（まだ）見てない = “I haven’t seen it (yet)” or “I couldn’t see it (yet)”
見なかった = “I didn’t see it” = simply factual, or because of an implied reason, etc.
見てなかった* = I wasn’t seeing it
*Can I add まだ here in the third sentence and say まだ見てなかった to mean “I wasn’t able to see it up to now/until now”?
Ex. 「まだ見てなかった写真」 “The picture I wasn’t able to see up to now”
Thank you again, Maggie! Your replies are always so quick and helpful. We all appreciate what you do for us!!
“wasn’t able to see” →Your translation may work but to be more accurate, you can also use the potential form 見られなかった・見ることができなかった写真Ah So まだ見ていなかった写真 could be just “the picture that I haven’t seen yet”.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
I was wondering how you would say girl’s school, boy’s school and coeducational school.
Hi Naomi
Coeducation is as I wrote in the lesson
男女共学 = だんじょきょうがく= danjo kyougaku or simply 共学 = きょうがく = kyougaku = coeducation
I will add the following two. :)
女子校 = じょしこう = joshikou = girl’s school
男子校 = だんしこう = danshikou = boy’s school
Do much thank you
The most amazing and useful lessons
Love💗
Thank you, Beatriska’s mom 🐶💕
Hello, Maggie Sensei
I’ve been going through your lessons for quite a while now and its been very helpful! Easy to understand and very detailed!
However, as I am going through this lesson I wonder where つい is usually placed in sentences. (for ex: before noun, before verb, etc..)
Thank you very much in advance!
Good question!
つい is an adverb and it modifies a verb and it is pretty flexible.
彼女の前でつい他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。
You can say
彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいってつい言っちゃった。(right before the main verb)
つい彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。 (When you emphasize the fact that you had no intension to do that, you place it at the beginning of the sentence)
Dear, Maggie Sensei
Thank you for your reply.
So basically つい can go anywhere and not change the meaning of the sentence?
Like these 3 sentences = different position of つい does not affect the meaning?
彼女の前でつい他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。
彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいってつい言っちゃった。
つい彼女の前で他の女の子がかわいいって言っちゃった。
THANK YOU~
Right the meaning is the same.
As I wrote in the note, if you start the sentence with つい, the listener can tell the speaker did something without intention right away.
Helo sensei….how are you..?? I have joined the classes for n3 level….I have a Mondai..ano sono and kono. How we will use when we talk….can u plz explain it briefly 🍦🍦
Hi Check my こそあど言葉 lesson. I explained everything.
Like my frnd predicted that I will be passed….so I replied your prediction became true .??
OK, in that case, 予測が真実になった might sound a bit too serious.
How about
友達の予想通りになった。= Tomodachi no yosou doori ni natta.
友達の言った通りになった。= Tomodachi no itta toori ni natta.
The similar sentence to yours,
友達の予想が本当になった。instead of 真実になる
だってこのサイト大好きですよ、いつも役に立つのレッスンがあるんだからね。
ほんと？ うれし〜い！！
(Note4u→役に立つレッスン 😊）
Hello teacher..how are you…..1 of July jlpt 4 exam is going to held in delhi…..I am preparing very hard…so if you have any important kanji or grammar or suggestions…plz let me know….I learnt lots of things from….for that thank u very much…..
Hello! How have you been?
Did you try the sample test? At this point, you can set the time and do the sample exam and see how you do it. がんばって！ You can do it!
Hello sensei….how are you?? How can we say .that I was plucking the flowers???
I’m good! How have you been?
You say 花を摘んでいました／摘んでいた = Hana wo tsunde imashita/tsunde ita.
Hi Maggie Sensei! I heard someone use ありがたいね as thank you, and the internet said that it’s an old fashioned and informal way to say thank you. Is this true? What’s the difference between ありがたい and ありがとう?
Hi Cheru!
I see. The way you use ありがとう and ありがたい are a little different.
When you simply want to say “Thank you!” to someone, you say ありがとう. Not ありがたい.
While you say ありがとう to people who did/does something for you, ありがたい is used to show your appreciation to the situation, circumstances, things or event that help you.
Hello Maggie-sensei^_^
「これでいいですか」と「これがいいですか」はどう違いますか？ヌアンスが難しいので、分かりません
As I wrote in the beginning of the lesson, が ( = ga) shows a strong preference/desire
So when you choose one particular thing.
“I like this one/ I prefer this one.” and not other things, you say これがいい
And when you don’t have a strong preference/desire and you pick one thing and think “This will do./ This one is OK.” You say これでいい (It also implies “Maybe this one is not the best one but I would just fine with this one.”)
え、…読心術？今夜、僕は普段閲覧が終わって、勉強を準備している。
いきなり「『だって』あまり分からないな…マギー先生のサイトでチェくすべき」と思った。
それから、ジャン☆！このページで初めてのものがある「だっての使い方」。嬉しい！
今回も、(*´▽`人)ｱﾘｶﾞﾄｳ♡！！
すごーい！！偶然！
Kの心が読めたかな？ ヤッタ〜！！！
Kが喜んでくれて私も嬉しいです。🐶❤️
いつも楽しいレッスンをしてくれてありがとう、マギー先生！
ご苦労様です！
だって、みんなのことが好きだから❤️
マギー先生へ、
どうもありがとうございます！しかし『もんだ』などについて質問がまたありますが…
Is it true that you can sound whiny but cute when using もんだ, for example when you tell someone you’re sad or upset? Not because of them necessarily, but can you say 『悲しいもんだ』when you want them to feel sorry for you?
I’m a young female who would like to know how to sound cute and even somewhat childish, but I don’t want to overdo it.
前もってお願いします！
こんにちは、Karin
Ah I think you meant 悲しいんだもん
I think I have covered the usage of もん in a couple of other lessons. (For example 理由 lesson, etc.)
〜もん is used to make your point. (kind of childish but young women use it too.)
だって〜もん Because ~
It is a kind of cute way to give a reason.
Ex だって悲しんだもん ‘Cause I’m sad.
Hi Maggie,
Thank you. I understand what you mean. But if I wanted to say –
“Who do you think will believe such a thing?”
How would you put this in Japanese?
Hi Maggie,
Thank you. I understand what you mean. But if I wanted to say –
“Who do you think would believe such a thing?”
How would you put this in Japanese?
ええー面白いね！
初めて聞いたよ、日常にはどれぐらい使ってる？友達にただの外人フレンドリー日本語で話しかけられてるかもしれないかな〜www
質問があるけどね、この表現で「この表現は全然知らなかった」って言おうとしたらどうなるの？「この表現の「ひ」の字も知らなかった」？正しくなさそうけどそれしか想像できないね(笑)(笑)
いつもの通り、素晴らしいレッスン作ってくれてありがとうう！
Orti、こんばんは！！ 😊
「この表現の「ひ」の字も知らなかった」
は、実際の表現の最初の文字を使った方がいいかな。
よく使う言葉は限られますが、参考までに覚えておくといつか聞くかもしれませんよ〜。✌️
先生、おはよう！！^^
そうだね！Mientras más sepa, mejor! (あれは日本語でどう言えるかな？）
「実際の表現の最初の文字を使った方がいいかな」
I don’t know how to say it with this kind of expression, because it’s kinda a recursive question hahah. I tried to say that I didn’t know anything about the 「＊＊＊の＊のじも。。。」expression structure
おはよう、Orti!
Mientras más sepa, mejor! 「知っていた方がいい」
Haha I see what you mean.
You should at least know the word itself.
Actually it is used when people don’t know the real meaning or don’t have certain quality more than the linguistic meaning of the word.
なるほどね！
ありがとう、先生！！
PS: Mini Lessons Index Page is not working :'(
(btw, この文脈の「work」ってどう言いますか？)
Main Lesson Indexのしたのリンクのことですか？
だったら
Mini Lesson Index Pageのリンクが開きません／開かない
When my site was hacked, I deleted the page along with 124 mini lessons.
But I will eventually put some of them back with the index page.
待っててね。
Hi Maggie-sensei
I am confused as to the difference between よう and みたい.
I was reading some example sentences, and I saw these:
彼は学生のような雰囲気ですね。
学生みたいです。
In the first one, it seems to me that it is uncertain whether the person is a student or not, only that he gives off a student-like atmosphere. However, which the second one, I read that it is implied that he only LOOKS like a student, but isn’t.
もう売り切れみたい。
However, with this sentence, it supposedly means that it may or may not be sold out. I do not understand how, in the first example, みたい can mean that he only looks like and is not (which is different from よう), but in the second example, みたい means the same thing as よう.
Hi Andreas,
Where did you see these example sentences? I thought I gave you these example sentence and looked for them but I can’t…
Maybe you saw them somewhere else. Anyway,
学生みたいです。You are right. You can’t tell just by this sentence whether it means 1) He looks like a student or 2) I heard he is a student.
もう売り切れみたい。could also mean 1) It looks like something is sold out.(the speaker’s judges from what he/she saw. 2) I heard it’s sold out.
You only can tell by the context.
マギー先生、こんにちは！
Is it ok to use 「先月はお世話になって、どうもありがとうございます。」when I want to express my thanks at the end of a training course?
Thank you!!
Hi Ara,
I would say
先月はお世話になりありがとうございました。or just say
先月はお世話になりました。
I saw this word in a song and I was puzzled because it didn’t make sense to me. Now I see what it means but I was wondering if you know the etimology of this なりjust to have a better understanding of it. Thanks.
I don’t know if the etymology helps but they said it originally from a classical auxiliary verb, なり which means “to be” (である）
Indeed. And なり itself is an abbreviation of にてあり or にあり, used in 平安時代. Later it changed into にてぁ=>んでぁ=> ぢゃ and eventually become だ(だ・である is one of なり many meanings).
にて changed into で, although にて is still used in formal language even in these days.
Hope it helps ^ ^
＠天人
わあ、よく調べましたね！！ :)
古語については、私はAkira Komaiの「An introduction to Classical Japanese」を２、３回読みました（それに、Haruo Shiraneの「Classical Japanese: A Grammar」もまもなく買おうと思っています）。
以前、古語の練習として、私は文語訳聖書をも少し読みました。いろんな日本語・英語のweb-pageを使って、古語についての８０ページ以上のscriptを書くこともできたのです。ふ～ん、古語熱に取りつかれていたかな？
天人が古語に興味を持っていて勉強していたのをよ〜く覚えていますよ。すごいことです。:)
へ～、それもう言ったっけ？マギーちゃんの記憶力がやっぱりいいね＾＾
そろそろお仕事です。良い日をね、マギーちゃ～ん♪
もちろん、覚えていますよ♪
行ってらっしゃ〜い！
いい日を過ごしてくださいね。
Thank you very much for this really helpful lesson Maggie Sensei!
I have a question about a sentence I read recently, which is:
「貴方はあの人や私をどれだけ馬鹿にすれば気が済むんだっ！！」
I kind of get the meaning of the sentence from context but cant seem to figure out how to correctly translate it.
The construction looks like Interrogative + V(ば) + ですか but advice/suggestion translating to “should” doesnt really fit.
1) How would you translate the sentence?
2) Is there a reason to use や over と to mean “and” in this sentence?
Hi カルミス
1) 気がすむ means “to be satisfied” but in this case it is sarcastic.→ How much is enough for you to make you satisfied?
どれだけ~ だ！ shows the speaker feels angry.
It could be translated in many ways but for example
* Enough with making fun of him/her and me?
* Are you satisfied looking down on her/him and me this much?
2) AとB means “A and B”!
AやB means “A and B and etc.”
Hi thank you very much for this it is very informative :)) byw what is EVERY NOON? まいひる?
Some people use the word 毎昼 but compare to 毎朝・毎晩 it is not so common.
You can say 毎日、昼に〜do something.
マギー先生！こんばんは＾＾ I hope you are fine and always happy. I can’t believe I’m posting another comment after 4 years!! I’m glad that I knew this site for more than 8 years now. Wow time sure flies! Maggie is the cutest dog ever and will always be in our hearts. Btw, did u get another dog? sorry as I don’t know much about it…
Please help me with
these following questions:
1. “Ex. 今、何をしているの？”
you said it can mean “What do you do in general in your life now?”
this situation is when two people didn’t meet for a long time?
shouldn’t he or she use 最近？ I’m confused
2. In “You can also talk about past experiences.
Ex. 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。”
why not use past form“行った” instead? why ている？ the action is already done and it’s in the past..
本当にありがとう in advance.
1. Ex. 今、何をしているの？”
this situation is when two people didn’t meet for a long time? Right. It is one of those typical phrases to catch up with people who you haven’t seen for a while.
I guess you can say 最近、何をしているの？ as well but while 今なにをしているの usually asking for someone’s c current job 最近、何をしているの？ means “what you have been doing lately?” (Current activities/Not necessary one’s job)
2. It maybe easier to think in English.
5回も行った She went to Okinawa five times.
5回も行っている She has been to Okinawa five times.
***
I am gone physically but Yukari has a doggie, Cookie. He has been teaching here as a lazy assistant teacher. :)
こんにち先生！
Thank you for your answers. It helped me like usual^^
So another usage of the particle も is to stress the meaning. so 大丈夫も is used to stress “It’s ok”?
も is according to what I know means also.
Is there other usages for it?
I’m still confused about the ending of verbs ～いる。as in 食べている
Is there a lesson on it?
Thank you so much in advance.
こんにちは！
No you don’t say “大丈夫も”
X na-adjective + も
I have a lesson on も Check this link.
And yes, I have a lesson on ている Click here.
Found a couple of typos:
Ex. よく混ぜる = yokju mazeru = to mix well <– Yoku mazeru??
*冷やしてお召し上がり下さい。= ihyashite omeshiagari kudasai. <– Hiyashite??
I think it lacks one expression:
– (after finishing something) distribute X in each of the dishes . This is very common in recipes.
Thanks for the lesson :-)
Thank you for spotting the typos. I fixed them. ありがとう！
Umm, hi here, a frantic japanese student approaching a Noken exam. I’m only going to add to the pile of positive comments at this point, but I still wanted to thank you for such an wonderful page. It’s amazing how complete your lessons are, so much so that lately if I have any doubts I’ll come to your page right away.
However, one doubt here: what’s the difference between koto ni suru and furi wo suru?
Thank you, Maggie sensei
Hi Alraisen
As you can see in this lesson, one of the meanings of ことにする is “to pretend”/
When you catch someone is doing something and pretend not to see that, you can say both
見なかったことにする and 見なかったふりをする (pretend not to see)
But you use ふりをする when you describe that moment or one’s behaviors. (acting as if ~ )
For example, you are talking to a Japanese people and they use big words and you don’t understand at all but you keep nodding pretending you understand them. That is わかったふりをする not わかったことにする.
Ex. 彼はいつもわかったふりをする。
= He always prentend to understand ( = act as if he understands)
X 彼はいつもわかったことにする
Hope it helps…
I need to make a lesson on ふりをする someday.
JLPTがんばって！ :)
Hi Maggie,
I was reviewing this again, and I came across something curious.
目に見えないほど小さいダイヤの指輪を買った
The diamond was so small it is like you cannot see it with you eyes.
Why do we say 目に見えない? Shouldn’t it be 目で見えない? Because we are saying “you cannot see it BY looking”. I understand the particle で would be use for situations when you want to say “by…”. For example, “by car” – 車で.
So when we want to say “too small to see by sight/eye” (目に見えない)… why do we use the particle に?
Good question.
When you see something with your eyes, you use で
自分の目で見る = to see something with your eyes.
目に見える
If I translated it literally it means
to be visible in one’s sight. So actually it is a location marker.
The same thing with 頭に浮かぶ = atama ni ukabu = to think of something
The literal meaning “some idea comes up in one’s head.”
Hi Dennis, Hi Maggie!
a very good question, indeed.
I understand the difference as follows:
目で見える indicates means of action (= can see / is able to see !with! one’s eyes). It stresses more the fact that something can be seen.
目に・から見える refers to a location (eyes / sight), where something becomes visible (= to be visible). It stresses more this location, rather than the action itself.
人の目に見えない = Something is beyond one’s vision / something is not visible to one’s eyes.
人の目で見えない = Something cannot be seen with one’s eyes.
ヨロシク
Nice support as always, 天人！
Thank you very much to you both.
どういたしまして〜💓
Hi Maggie,
We never really covered passive or causative verb forms in Japanese at school, so causative is next on my to do list!
But I got myself in a muddle because I vaguely remember studying transitive and intransitive verbs, and my understanding was:
Transitive – someone actively does something to an object (I/he/she closes the door, ドアを閉める)
Intransitive – the action happens, there isn’t a direct object (the door closes, ドアが閉まる).
Any magic tips on learning all the intransitive verbs would be appreciated!
Ukemi passive form at least has much easier rules on how to form it, but the use of it sounded a bit like intransitive verbs to me, and I’ve been struggling to see the difference in when you use each of them. Obviously my English grammar isn’t good enough :'( I think I’m getting there, though.
I’ve read online that passive is used when there’s clearly an active agent causing the action (even if the agent isn’t explicitly stated). Intransitive doesn’t show that information
e.g. passive ドアが閉められる – the door is closed (was done by someone)
intransitive ドアが閉まる could mean it happened by itself.
or passive – the trees were moved by the breeze
intransitive – the trees were moving in the breeze (could mean it wasn’t the breeze that made them move in the first place)
Another example I saw was
e.g. passive 教えられた gives a sense that someone is actively teaching,
intransitive 教わった would be more used if you learned something from TV or a book.
One thing I have picked up is that English passive is made by a form of ‘to be’ and then the past tense of the verb.
Anyway I had a couple of notes on your actual lesson, sensei!
* One is, is よぶ = to call/to invite a ‘group 2’ verb, because it looks like it conjugates the same as ‘group 1’, but you have listed it as group 2?
* The other is, is it necessary to change group 2 verbs to their negative form? Because it seems like you are adding ‘nai’ just to take it straight back off again. But I don’t know if you just said that because it’s easier to give the same rule for both groups of verbs.
Sorry for the very long message, my brain hurts now :)
Hi Cindy
I think I released some mini list of transitive/ intransitive verbs or quiz on Twitter/ Facebook / Patreon but not here yet. But I have a lesson on 開く／開ける, etc.
http://142.93.68.150/2012/01/31/%E3%81%8A%E9%96%8B%E3%81%8D-ohiraki-%E9%96%8B%E3%81%8F%EF%BC%9D%E3%81%B2%E3%82%89%E3%81%8F%E3%81%82%E3%81%8F-etc/
Your interpretation of all the example sentences in the comment is right.
Using passive form sometimes involves the speaker’s feelings as well.
閉められた could be just describing how the door is closed or the speaker shows some emotions such as annoyance.
Thanks for the notes. I will take a look at them when I have more time. :)
こんばんは先生！＾＾
I have some questions please:
1: ” よく考えてからものを言いなさい。”
I don’t understand this sentence at all. Here what is から、もの？もの no kanji?
2.”忘れ物がないかよく見てください。”
What is the function of “か” here?
3. “この頃、彼とよく喧嘩をする。”
can you please explain to me the difference between
このごろ
最近
この前
I’m very confused about them
4. “私は父によく似ている。”
In this sentence, we talk about looks or personality?
Thanks in advance.
1. I guess you use kanji in old saying but if it is not something tangible you use hiragana in general.
2. ~か(どうか） whether ~ or not (In this case “to check well whether you leave something or not.)
3. このごろ／最近 can be interchangeable
You can use both このごろ/最近 for some ongoing actions.
But to describe one time action/event in the past, you can’t use このごろ
Ex. 最近事故があった。(There was an accident recently.)
X この頃、事故があった。
You can also use この前 here but
最近 recently この前 the other day
4. Could be both. You can tell by the context.
こんにちは先生！＾＾
Thank you so much for your answers. And thank you for correcting me.
I will check these lessons soon.
本当にありがとう！
どういたしまして💕
What is the general sense of ぐらい in this sentence?
「無駄を省くのが癖になってね。
楽しんでるくらいだよ。」
Something like ‘just enough to be content’?
In this case ぐらい expresses the degree of how much this person enjoy eliminating waste.
I even enjoy doing it.
Omg, thank you! I’m starting a job as a receptionist, and we have quite a few Japanese customers. I wanted to find the proper keigo to greet them etc and this page is a huge help ;u; (now to Learn all of this during my next day off XD)
Thank you again!
Hi Lucille,
Good luck! Hope this lesson help you communicate with your Japanese customers better. :)
Hi Maggie!
Is 「と言う」 and 「って言う」 formal/literary, or is it also used in everyday conversation? For example, if I want to tell my friends, “They say that Americans smile more than others” would saying 「アメリカ人は他のひとよりもっと笑うっていう」 be okay? Or should I add a の at the end? Would that change the meaning because of the emphasis?
Thank you!
Hi Charlotte
If you change the sentence a little, it is possible to finish the sentence with って
アメリカ人は他の国の人よりもっと笑うって／or 笑うんだって。
Thank you Maggie! So would the #5 form of と言う・って言う (They say/People say~) be seen more in books and narrations, rather than conversations?
Exactly! (I added a little note.)
おはよう先生！
I have some questions
1. ” もう７月なの? 時間が過ぎるの早いね.”
What is の after 過ぎる here?
2。”もういい加減にしてよ！”
When exactly we use this phrase? Can you give me a situation please?
3.”もうそんなことは言いません。” can we say そんなことはもう言いません”?
4.” まだまだこの世の中にはわからないことがいっぱいある。”
As for world why did you use よinstead of せかい？ Im confused
Thanks in advance.
Hi again. Someone has been studying hard!
1. 時間がすぎるの（は）早いね。
の is to nominalize a verb, すぎる
すぎる = to pass
すぎるの = passing
In conversation you often skip particle (は）
2. When you have had enough. (To express one’s annoying feelings.)
Give me a break/That’s enough.
For example someone is keep bothering you, doing something annoying, etc., you say いい加減にして
3. Yes. When you stress your feelings, you start the sentence with もう
4. 世界 / 世の中 are both translated as “world” but they are slightly different in Japanese.
For the world in global meaning, you use 世界 and you use 世の中 to refer to the world where you actually live / one’s environment.
こんばんは先生!
I have some question:
1.「なんかねえ、いろいろあってね。」
Since its in the past, why not あったね?
Im confused
2.「なんかなあ。」this is male speach?
Thisなあ is also used when we wish something or envy someone?
Is there a lesson on it? Im still confused about its function.
Thanks in advance
Hi, Kuroineko!
1. If the speaker and the listener are sharing the same memories, they could say いろいろあったね = We have been through many things. (Many things happened to us.)
You know the function of て right?
Vて = and / because
This いろいろあってね implies いろいろあって(+ what happened / how the speaker felt Ex. 大変だった）
Ex. いろいろあって大変だったんだよね→いろいろあってね。
2. Yes, I do have a lesson. Check this http://142.93.68.150/2015/12/07/how-to-use-the-suffix-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%AA-na-%E3%81%AA%E3%81%82-naa/
It is not a male speech. Women use it,too.
Hello Kuroineko,
1. Unfinished sentences in Japanese are very common. It’s because the speaker wants you to read between the lines, as Maggie many times mentioned. Of course the sentence, although the ～て form, implies the past.
なんかねえ、いろいろあってね。=> Well, many things happened, you know (the speaker lets the sentence unfinished because he/she doesn’t want to talk what happened and at the same time he/she doesn’t want to say directly “I don’t want to talk about that” because that might hurt your feelings).
2. Part. な has many functions. Besides prohibition, seeking confirmation, admiration or emotional expressions, it implies also pure emphasis.
In this sentence part. な you can translate as: well…; you know…
And yes, な is normally male speech, but it’s not a rule.
ヨロシク
遅かったな、わたし・・・
ありがとう for helping Kuroineko!
頼りになる〜💕
マギー先生、ありがとう！
as usual u helped me alot.
I understand now.
I will checkなあ lesson.
Thanks again^^
どういたしまして！
And Thank you, 天人 for your help,too!
なるほど！So would「私など一時間も待ったよ。」also have the same meaning?
(I replied to the wrong comment last time*****, sorry)
こんばんはマギー先生！
I have some questions please:
1. Ex. 先週、飲み会で会った人が忘れならない。
can we use を after 人？
２． If I want to say, forget it.
Can I say これを忘れて？ or これが忘れて？
I’m confused.
3. If I want to say, “my friend went to a birthday party that I didn’t want to go”
How to say this according to this lesson?
Thanks in advance.
おはよう！
1. Possible. Yes, you can use を
Since 忘れられない is potential form so you tend to use が
2. I would say このことは忘れて / If you are talking about what you just said, 今言ったことは忘れて
(Not other thing but this one: Showing the contrast)
2. 友達は、私が行きたくなかったパーティーに行った。
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Can I ask a stupid question? When you say ‘出ていった’, is the ‘いった’ part from 行く / 行った? Just asking because you wrote it in kanji further up and then hiragana in that example, so I wasn’t sure if it was just pronounced the same but not the same kanji. Hope that makes sense!
Hi Cindy
Ah, yes, the kanji is 行く
出て行った The pronunciation is the same. (I can change the hiranagan to kanji if it confuses you)
Could you explain the difference in nuance between mat a and mada, they are similar, but not interchangeable, when do I use which one?
Sorry, you want to know the difference between また and まだ？
Thank you sooo much!
This site is so good.
Thanks again^^
No problem. Keep studying!
マギー先生！こんばんは!^^
As always, your lessons are great and it benefit many people.
I have two questions:
1. “Making your point. (conversational)
Ex. 私だってがんばっているんですけど。
My question is what is~だって？私だって？I always hear it but I dont know its function.
2. My second question is けど used when we want that we are the best? Be arrogant?
Or its used when we dont have much confidence in what we do?
Or both?
Thank you so much in advance.
こんにちは、Kuroineko
1. Ah I haven’t made a lesson on だって yet? Maybe I should make one soon.
Anyway だって means 1) to give a reason “because”. (I mentioned this usage in my 理由lesson.)
2) even/ also / to emphasize what comes before in this case 私
私だってがんばっているんですけど。 implies “It may not appear that I try hard but I do try hard, too, you know.”
2. Not necessary being arrogant. It is just to make your point. So even if you don’t have any confidence, you try to make someone understand that you ARE trying hard.
Hello sensei ,
thank you so much for the information
I just want to ask you that is there should include the information of family members and their professional qualifications etc??
Of course you can include the information of family member.
Ex. 四人家族です。
= There are four people in my family./ We are a family of four.
Ex. 兄が二人います。
= I have two older brothers.
etc.
As for their professional qualifications, I don’t think it is necessary.
恋人や家族や先生や友達などに使う時にどれが正しいでしょうか。
「私の気持ちは分かっていますか。」
と
「私の気持ちを分かっていますか」
*「気持ちは」と使う例がありますか。
Do you understand how you feel?
私の気持ちがわかる？ (友達や家族と話すとき）
私の気持ちがわかりますか？ (中間）
Can you understand how you feel?(I want you to understand how I feel.)
私の気持ちをわかってくれる？(友達）
私の気持ちをわかっていただけますでしょうか？（丁寧）
どちらにしてもちょっと抗議（こうぎ）をするようなひびきがあります。
Hi Maggie, love your website. Just wanted to check on something…is there an extra から in this example sentence, and an extra “n” in the translation?
Ex. これ、せっかく買ってきてくれたんだけど、サイズが大きいからから返すね。
= Kore, sekkaku katte kite kuretann dakedo, saizu ga ookii kara kaesune.
Hi thornarm
Thank you for spotting the typos. I fixed them. ありがとう！ 💕
Hi Maggie, I’m confused on how to make a sentence using ageru. The sentence is something like, “Thank you for everyone’s help in giving Tom a birthday poster.” Or “Thank you to everyone who helped to give Tom a birthday poster.”
Even though I (the speaker) am not close with “everyone” or “Tom” since it’s more as a charitable group effort, so I am really confused on how to word such a long sentence too. I tried using your sentences as reference and I tried to make my own:
“皆さんが、トムにお誕生日ポスターを手伝ってあげたの、本当にありがとう！”
Was this a correct way to do it? Thank you for your help! Your website has helped me so much!
Hi Rachel
Good question.
The basic pattern of あげる・くれる・もらう are as follows.
* Aさん＋から/に ＋（〜を）+ ( Vて ) ＋もらう (polite いただく）You or your close family receives something from A-san.
* Aさん＋に＋（〜を）+ ( Vて ) ＋あげる (polite さしあげる）You do/give something for A-san.
* Aさんが＋（〜を）+ ( Vて ) ＋くれる (polite くださる）A-san does something for you./A-san gives something to you (your familly)
All of these form have to have “you / the writer / the speaker ” as a receiver or giver
(When you use ていた, etc to describer the situaion. you can talk about other people.
Ex. BさんはAさんからVてもらっていた。)
So you can not use the pattern with “everyone” and “Tom” unless Tom is your family or someone really close to you.
I would say
みなさま、Aさんにポスターを贈(おく）るのにご協力（きょうりょく）いただき*ありがとうございます。(formal)
協力する = きょうりょくする= cooperate / help
Thank you so much for your help and your fast reply!!! I understand the context better but i’m still a little confused on why there is an * next to いただき*
Also if I wanted to make the sentence you provided into a more friendly way (since we’re all around the same age), could I say (?):
みなさん、Aさんにポスターを贈るのに協力もらう、ありがとう！
Sorry for so many questions. I want to make sure I fully understand 😊
Actually, I just realized that since I’m not familiar with Tom, would it be incorrect/wrong to make the sentence more informal?
OK, if you want to use “casual” form then you can say
みなさん(or even more casual みんな） Aさんにポスターを贈るのに協力してくれてありがとう！
Hi Maggie-sensei. Thank you for your wonderful lessons. They’re always very informative and easy to follow. I have a question concerning the 「〜ては」form.
I came across these lyrics in a song:
どうしようもないことを
人のせいにしては
受け入れてるフリをしていたんだ
ずっと
I don’t really understand the 「人のせいにしては」part and I’ve been trying to translate it into English in a way that makes sense. Does the「〜ては」in this instance indicate a repeated action? Would the translation be something like this?:
“I always went back and forth
between blaming others for what I had no control over
and pretending to be accepting.”
Is this correct? Sorry to ask such a random question, but I’m really curious about this grammatical form lol. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Nubulado!
Yes, this indicates the habitual/repetitive behavior.
I think your translation is good.
So this person has been pretending to accept things that he/she can’t control over blaming on others.
レッスンはありがとうございました、マギー先生！
私はこれから間違いを少なくするかもしれません。:-P
どういたしまして！
(間違いを少なくするかもしれません→ Ah… it’s a bit difficult but how about これからあまり間違えなくなるかもしれません。 😉）
そうか、わかりました！
🐶👍
Maggie Sensei, please help me.と in this context is mean “If” too?
I got this context it hasの after verb and has と too.
ただ交際を断るのとは違う
Thank you.
OK, it will be easier for you to think this と as “and”
AとBは違う = A and B are different.
It is an excerpt of some sentence so I can’t tell “A” but B is “断ること” （V+ こと or V+ の is nominalization for a verb)
(somethingと）ただ交際を断るのとは違う
“Note : You also use non-volitional verb + てみる ( = temiru) in a conditional form but I will concentrate volitional verb in this lesson.”
うーん, 気になった！
マギー先生、can you give an example of 〜てみる using a non-volitional verb?
I tried to make a sentence in the conditional form but can’t seem to find any that makes sense.
E.g. 疲れてみたら… If you are going to try (and see what happens when you) get tired? Er…
Am I misunderstanding what you meant with the conditional form ?
Haha I don’t remember well what I meant but sorry for the confusion.
It is rare and conversational so you don’t have to worry about it.
I think what I meant was some intransitive non-volitional verbs such as 助かる／広まる／こわれる, etc.
When you find out something after something happens
Ex. ケータイが壊れてみてどれだけ便利だったか気がついた。
I found out how convenient to have a cellphone after it broke.
Aaah! I get it now. ありがとうございました、マギー先生！
い〜え、悩ませてごめんなさい。😉
What usage of ば is being used in this sentence?
「こっちが気ー使ってればいい気になりやがって！」
It’s an idiomatic expression.
こっちが＋ 気を使っていれば when I concern about your feelings /下手にでれば when I behave modestly / 黙っていれば when I keep my mouth shut (condition) ＋ いい気になって (you take an advantage/ get full of yourself/ behave arrogantly)
Ah, much clearer now.
I appreciate these lessons. Although I have no problem in the vocabulary department, I’ve too long neglected the grammatical quirks and nuances of the language; a lot is clicking into place now, reading your lessons.
Great!!
(I forgot to mention なりやがって！ is a very rough male speech. 😉 )
Maggie Sensei, Konnichiwa, shitsumon ga arundesu ga ii desu ka.
自分の考えで この パターン は （N は、～に、～を、PV ）わるい場合で
使うんです。例えば、 私は弟にカメラをこわされました。I had my camera broken by my brother. いいことだったら、例えば my camera was repaired by my brother. 私は弟にカメラを なおされました。この ぶん は だめ ですね。
”～してもらいます”のほうがいいです。－＞私は弟にカメラをなおしてもらいました。
どうしてこちらの例文は OKですか。”わたしは先生に漢字をなおされました。”
my kanji was corrected by the teacher. でも こちら の 例文 は だめだといいます。 my camera was repaired by my brother—私は弟にカメラを なおされました。
本当にすみませんがよろしくお願いします 先生。
ありがとうございます
こんにちは、shin no ai!
First let’s take a look at the meaning of 直す
1) カメラを直す to fix
2) 漢字を直す to correct kanji
When someone fix your camera, you usually appreciate that person so you don’t use a passive causative form.
As you say 直してもらう Someone fixes your camera for your favor.
Now as for 2) is tricky.
If you feel grateful for the teacher who correct your kanji mistake, you can also say
先生に漢字を直してもらった。
But if you feel disappointed, annoyed or any kind of negative feelings, you say
わたしは先生に漢字をなおされました。
Maggie 先生、解答してくださってありがとうございます。
でも、また 質問があります。
こちらのぶんは いいことですから、嫌な気持ちを表していません。
でも 受け身形を使っています。。こちらの されたもの は さくぶん です。
私は先生に ＊作文を＊ ほめられました。
それで この パターン は 悪いことだけ使わなくても いいことも使えるんですか。
いつも お世話になっております。
ありがとうございます。
受け身は迷惑な気持ちや嫌なことだけではなくいいこと、またはneutralなことにも使われます。
褒められる／愛される →いいこと
呼ばれる to be called／知られる →neutral
それぞれの動詞で判断するといいかと思います。
ありがとう ございます Maggie 先生 だんだん わかるようになりました
よかった！ ☺️
What usage would のに fall under in a sentence like “ネクタイを結ぶのに手間取ってしまって”? It seems like it’s used like ‘because’ in some sentences. Is it like a negative version of だから？
That’s the last usage of のに in my lesson.
in order to, for , to do something, for the purpose of doing something
手間取る = to take a long time
It took me a long time to tie the necktie.
Hi again Maggie-Sensei!
If i want to put place in front of the sentence like this :
“In Japan, Tom ate Ramen”
Could it be like this?
“Nihon de, Tom ga Ramen o tabeta”
Hi Sno
日本で、トムがラーメンを食べた （Nihon de Tom ga ramen wo tabeta）
→日本で、トムはラーメンを食べた (Nihon de Tom wa ramen wo tabeta) is more natural.
If Tom doesn’t eat ramen but IN Japan, he ate raman. (Emphasizing “in Japan” to show the contrast), you can also say
日本ではトムはラーメンを食べた。
( Nihon dewa Tomu wa ramen wo tabeta)
Oh i got it! I am still confuse when to use wa or ga. Beacuse i start to talking about Tom, so i should use wa as topic marker, is that right?
And i haven’t learned about “dewa” yet but i understand what are you meaning ^ ^. Is the “dewa” here same or different with your lesson about “tewa/dewa”? (I have not read that yet ^ ^”)
The difference between “wa” and “ga” is complicated but the simple rule is
~ wa ~ desu. (emphasize what comes after “wa”)
~ ga ~ desu. (emphasizes what comes before “ga”)
In your example sentence, you don’t need to stress “Tom”. What Tom did in Japan is more important so you use “wa”
***
Now “wa” has another function which shows the contrast.
And you can combine with other particle. de wa / ni wa / e wa, etc.
Maybe not other countries but “in Japan” he ate ramen.
Oh i see! It’s all clear now, Thank you very much for your detailed explanation Sensei. ^ ^
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for the lesson. I have a small question to ask about ほど ( = hodo) ＋よい ( = yoi)
It means just right. Is this related to ちょうどいい? Both seem to mean the same thing. When should I use which?
ほどよい and ちょうどいい both mean “just right”.
They could be interchangeable in some cases but when you are talking about the size or something fits someone perfectly, you use ちょうどいい.
ほどよい is often used when the speaker feels comfortable. So when you are talking about the shoe size, you don’t say
この靴のサイズはほどよい→ちょうどいい
Also when you are talking about some timing,
ちょうどいい時に彼が来た。
He showed up in the right time/timing.
You don’t say ほどよいときに
Wow, seems like a subtle difference, but I think I understand. Thanks so much and thanks for the lessons as always.
You’re very welcome, Dennis! :)
マギー先生、すごく助かりましたよ。
Roby
よかった！！ :)
What does みたり mean?
~てみたり
Check my たり lesson. Click → here
Ref. それでは第一次試験を始めます。
Can you say it without 第?
一次試験
二次試験
Yes, a lot of people omit 第 in conversation.
Hey, just a slight correction, you wrote ‘喜び = よろこび = yorokobijoy’, and the ‘joy’ probably shouldn’t be there
Thanks for the lesson though, I really appreciate you doing this <3
ありがとう、Nick! I fixed the typo! 💓
Hi Maggie sensei,
I came across this lesson while looking for an explanation for why the main character 藤沼悟 of Erased said “ほら やっぱり…関わるんじゃなかった…” when he crashed into something after he said earlier “関わりたくないけど…探すしかない”. In the English subtitles, it showed the translation as “I shouldn’t have gotten involved” but the sentence actually looks like it says “I didn’t get involved” or based on this lesson “Because I didn’t get involved.” Either translation confuses me because I don’t know how it means “I shouldn’t have”
So I’m guessing it’s the past tense of the command form? But I didn’t see it included in the lesson, and since you cant command someone not to do something in the past tense I guess it instead becomes you shouldn’t have like the character is scolding himself? Your clarification would really help me, thank you.
Hi Gabriel
関わるんじゃなかった…
The translation is correct. I shouldn’t have gotten involved.
“I didn’t get involved” would be 関わらなかった
There are a few ways to express one’s regret.
Vのではなかった / Vんではなかった is one of them.
Note: You also can use ~なければよかった to express your regrets.
Ex. 関わらなければよかった
Another example, when you say “I shouldn’t have said anything.”
You can say
何も言わなければよかった
or
何も言うのではなかった。
This clears things up completely. And the examples really helped too. Thank’s so much Maggie sensei!
Great!! :)
Wow I didn’t think you would reply so quick!I really appreciate your answer, sensei.
You’re very welcome, Sara!
Hello Maggie-Sensei! I have read a lot from your articles but i never comment (笑)
This time i want to ask about “taking care” ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ
How to say : thank you for always taking care of A-san.
Should we use sewa o suru or sewa ni naru? Can you give an example for using sewa o suru?
Hello Sno!
So you want to say thank you to someone who has been taking care of A-chan?
Then I suppose A-chan is your child, younger brother/sister.
You can say
Aちゃんが(いつも) お世話になっています。 = A chan ga (itsumo) osewa ninatte imasu.
Oh i see, Thank you Maggie-Sensei! ^ ^
I may ask again in the future.
Anytime, Sno! :)
こんにちは！
Thank you for taking the time to post all these lessons. They help a lot.
I do have a question:
For example in this dialogue I’m looking at a couple of bags with a friend.
A: Cさんの鞄はどれですか。
B: くまモンの鞄のはずです。
Is it possible to leave out the 鞄 and just say くまモンののはずです or would that sound really weird?
Thanks in advance 先生！
こんにちは、Eli,
くまモンの鞄のはずです。 is OK but くまモンののはずです is not natural. I would avoid using two の
Also you wanted to say “It must be the one with kumamon’s picture?”
くまモンの鞄に違いない。
→くまもんのに違いない。
work.
なるほど。
教えてくれてありがとう！
どういたしまして！ :)
How do you tell when のに means “although/even though” and when it means “in order to”? I find this rather tricky.
Also, could you make a lesson on verb-る+に(は) which I suppose has the same meaning as ために but I have no way to confirm that. Thanks.
You can usually tell by the context but
although/even though V+ のに
The verb which comes before can be dictionary form, past tense, progressive form, past progressive form
読むのに／読んだのに／読んでいるのに／読んでいたのに
negative form
読まないのに／読まなかったのに／読んでいないのに／読んでいなかったのに
Plus other 助動詞 (auxiliary verb)
Ex. 読みたいのに／読みたくないのに／読むことになっているのに etc.
in order to ~/ to do something : The verb which comes from のに is more limited.
読むのに
(negative form)
読まないのに
You can also tell by what kind of sentence follows.
この本を読むのに5時間かかった。(It took me five hours to read a book)
うちの子は、漫画は読むのに小説は読まない。(My child read a comic book but not a novel. Showing the contrast)
I added your request to the list. :)
Good morning teacher…..How are you..
Myfrnd asked me いかがお過ごしですか？what does it mean ….and what should I reply….if some say it pls teach
Hello Saurabh
いかがお過ごしですか？ is a very polite way to say “How have you been?”
So if you are doing OK, 元気です
（more formal) おかげさまで元気にしています。
Thank you so much sensei….what is the diffrance between Kantan and yasashi….plz explain
簡単(kantan) and 易しい ( yasashii) ?
First “yasashii” has two kanji 易しい and 優しい. The later means “sweet/kind/nice (personality, tone, etc)”
Now 簡単 and 易しい both mean “easy” and sometime they are interchangeable.
テストは簡単だった / 易しかった。
= The test was easy.
The difference 簡単 means “simple”
For example when you are tired and no energy to cook, you say
Ex. なにか簡単なものを作ります。
= I will make something simple.
If you say 易しいものを作ります it means I will make something easy to make. and you are talking about the procedure of cooking is easy.
こんにちわせんせい。まえのへじにありがとうございます。僕の今日の質問はくらいだとぐらいだ。くらいならとぐらいならどうやってつかいますか
この文のいみはなんですか(きがあわないひとちいっしょにせいかつするぐらいならこのままどくしんでいたい)
こんにちは！
くらいとぐらいのレッスンあるから見てくださいね。→ Click here
きがあわないひとちいっしょにせいかつするぐらいならこのままどくしんでいたい
そのレッスンの最後のwould ratherの意味です。
I would rather stay single than live with someone I can’t get along.
Hello,
is it the same meaning as “enryou naku itadakimasu”?
よろしくお願いします
The meaning is the same but the point of view is slightly different.
お言葉に甘えていただきます is showing some respect to the person who serves you food/gives you a gift
But 遠慮なくいただきます refers to your own action, taking, eating the food. I will do something without reservation. (Allow me to eat/take this gift)
わかりました
ありがとうございます
どういたしまして❤️
maggie-sensei, I understand ‘Adjective+なる’ but how should I interpret できなくなる? (with できる being a verb) same way?
Hello
The idea is the same.
できなくなる means “to become unable to ~ “”won’t be able to ~”
You used to be able do do something but under certain circumstances, you won’t be able to do that anymore.
Ex. ８月から忙しくなるので、日本語の勉強ができなくなる。
I will be busier from August so I won’t be able to study Japanese.
okay thank you!
I have another question, does this kind of structure with ‘verb negative form + くなる’ come out with other verbs other than できる?
Yes,
You used to do something but a little by little stop doing something
食べなくなる/ 勉強しなくなる / 使わなくなる
thank you, maggie-sensei! it was very helpful!
love your site and lessons! :D
You’re very welcome, rubemar junior! :)
Hi Maggie! Thanks for all your fantastic lessons! I have a question about まくる。 Can I use it in a negative sense such as like this: 働きまくらないで?
I think I’d like to say something like this to my workmates: “Don’t work TOO hard”. I usually said 頑張りすぎしないで but まくる seems like fun vocabulary to use here :) Is it appropriate?
Thanks again!
Hi Dave,
Good question. Someone asked me the difference between まくる and すぎる but you use すぎる for to do something too much/overdo something
“Don’t work TOO hard”. will be 働きすぎないで
In a recondite point of the Mexican southwest there is child (me) who wants to thank you for such fascinating lessons, I love them! I’ve learned a lot and I’ll keep on doing it. I appreciate it a lot ¡Saluditos!
¡Gracias por tu comentario!
Me alegro de que te gusten mis lecciones. :)
日本語、がんばって！
Is this correct to say if I want to change my order?
すみません、注文を変更したいんですが
Thanks in advance!
Yes, you can say that.
Variation: to be more clear
Ex. すみません。カレーライスを注文したんですが、シチューに変えることできますか？
= Excuse me. I ordered a “curry”. Can I change it to a “stew”?
Thank you for all your lessons! They’re very informative and I can learn a lot from all the examples.
I have a question: is there a difference between V+まくる and V+ちぎる? If so, what’s the difference?
Hi J!
V+ ちぎる？ It is different from まくる
1)ちぎる means to tear off
Ex. 食いちぎる = to bite off
2) ちぎる also emphasizes the verb which comes before but it’s very limited.
Ex. 褒めちぎる = ほめちぎる = to praise someone a lot.
Hi Maggie! Lovely tutorials, you are the best!
I have a question about one of the example sentences.
これ持ってちゃって！
Some believe it’s supposed to be
これ持ってっちゃって！ That is, if the verb is based from 持っていく
If the original verb was just 持つ、then
持っちゃって
But 持ってちゃって seemed incorrect. Please let me know your thoughts. Thank you so much!
Hi bazz
これ持ってっちゃって is a very conversational expression and it came from これ持っていってしまって
If you just want someone to take something, you say
＊ これ持っていって (casual 持ってって）
= Take it/them with you.
持っていく = to take something with you
持っていってしまう (持ってっちゃう） involves the speaker’s feelings and しまう（ちゃう） means to finish something.
Ex. 持っていってしまって（casual 持ってっちゃって) Take everything/ the rest with you. (So that I don’t have to take care of the rest anymore/ Something has been here for certain period of time and I don’t need it.)
マギー先生、こんにちは！
このサイトで検索しましたが、「～ようになっている」という表現の使い方が見つけられませんでした。特に、「～ことになっている」と「～ようになっている」はどう違うのでしょうか。
この二つの文法についていろいろ調べて、内容がまあまあわかるようになったと思いますが、例文を見るとき大変似ている気がします。例えば、あるサイトで見つけた以下の例文は、「よう」の代わりに「こと」を使ってもいいですか。
この図書館は、誰でも利用できるようになっています。
こんにちは Andrey!
「～ことになっている」と「～ようになっている」の違いですが、
「～ようになっている」は、例文のように、物事の仕組みを説明するとき
「～ことになっている」は、決まりごと、（規則やルール）
Ex. 本は１週間以内に返すことになっています。（規則）
に使うことが多いですよ。
あ、そんな風にもっと明らかになってきました。
早速答えてくださってありがとうございました！
よかった〜！！ :)
hello there.
What kind of grammar is the following ( found in a game ):
-逃げようと――諦めようと。
-どっちでも同じだ！
Another one with more context:
-奴ら、もう俺たちのことを忘れちまったのか、子羊？
-皆私たちのことは覚えていますよ、いくら忘れようとしても。もうすぐです。思い出させてあげましょう。
Google is not my friend in this case :/. It seems to be “verb stem + you to” but I can’t figure out this structure.
Thanks in advance!
1) ~ ようと〜ようと （どっちでも・どちらでも）同じこと
Whether you try to do A or B, it’s the same difference.
So combine the two sentences.
逃げようと諦めようとどっちでも同じこと。
Whether you try to escape or give up, it is the same difference.
2) 皆私たちのことは覚えていますよ、いくら忘れようとしても。
That is called 倒置法 (touchihou) inversion
いくら忘れようとしても、皆私たちのことは覚えていますよ。
This ようとしても Even if you try to forget us , everybody will remember us.
Hey thanks for the reply!
So let me check if I understand this correctly.
When there is “ようと～ようと”, it means “whether/or”? And can I use as many “ようと” verbs in series to say “whether, or, or, or, etc.”?
But when there is only one “ようと” it means “try to”, sort of like “て+みる” （for example: “この玉を避けてみる/この玉を避けようと”）?
Or is it a set phrase together ”ようとしても”
Could I do “てみるしても”?
When there is “ようと～ようと”, it means “whether/or”?
Right. Usually you repeat ようと twice. Not as many ようと
You sometimes use it with adjective
晴れていようと雨が降っていようと私は行きます。
**
The second one is happened to have ようと but the basic structure is
いくら〜ても / Even if you do something / No matter how much you do something ~
それはすごく便利でした。ありがとうございました！
どういたしまして！
こんにちは、I have a question Maggie, when should I use を or が in a passive sentence?
Can you be more specific? From what sentence?
Like we usually say,
昔の人々にこのような家を作られている。
昔の人々にこのような家が作られている。
Which one is correct?
As the house marks an object , as taught by you earlier we could use the をparticle with the objects in the passive too. But why I got my sentence corrected by saying がis appropriate here?
Plz help sensei!
Hi I just answered to your previous question.
Actually two of your sentences are not natural so let me change them a little.
1) 昔の人々によってこのような家を建てられた。 ❎
2) 昔の人々によってこのような家が建てられた。 ◯
You say 2) but not 1) because it is talking about the houses.
If you use を, the action of building the houses somehow affected to someone.
So it may work in the situation like there are many strange looking houses in one village and people who live there are complaining about the houses.
Then they say We got theses houses built by people who used to live here long time ago (and it is very annoying.)
Hi Maggie-san
I did not ask the original question but I have the same question.
Can I confirm that we can use が or を to mark the object in passive sentences?
And if we use を it implies some negative nuance?
ケーキが食べられた (it is a neutral sentence)
ケーキを食べられた (it implies someone is unhappy because the cake was eaten)
Spencer
Hello Spencer,
Yes, you can say both
ケーキが食べられた
ケーキを食べられた
When you focus on the fact that the cake is gone, you use が. It could be your cake or someone’s cake.
You use を when someone ate your cake.
They both could be negative but が expresses one’s shock /surprised feelings and you are right を implies you are not happy because the cake belonged to you.
What is the difference between verb+makuru and verb+sugiru?
Interesting… Two other people asked me the same question.
I will repost my answer here.
Verb+ すぎる ( = sugiru) means “to do something too much”
Verb + まくる ( = makuru) doesn’t mean “too much /excessibly” and it just focus on the amount, intensity or repetitive actions.
Ex. 食べすぎる = tabesugiru = to eat too much
Ex. 食べまくる = tabemakuru = to eat a lot / to eat and eat / keep eating. 😊
Also, while you use adjetives with すぎる (Ex. 大きすぎる = ooki sugiru), you don’t use adjetives with まくる ( = makuru)
Hi,I am reading a book concerning Jesus. But I found some sentences with
物となるand 物とする :”それはあなたがたの喜びが満ち満ちたものとなるためです。I translated : I want that your happiness will become full
Why it puts 物とbefore なる？
There is another sentence:
主は 彼らとともに 働き、みことばに 伴うしるしをもって、みことばを 確かなものとされた。
God working with them, and confirming the word with signs that followed (the word).In this case use 物とするIs it an old way to say or there is a grammar explanation?
Thanks for your delights
Maria
Hi Maria
もの in these sentence is like “the one(s)” in English. It indicates the noun which comes before and you can avoid using the same word.
それはあなたがたの喜びが満ち満ちたものとなるためです。
→This もの indicates 喜び
みことばを 確かなものとされた。
→This もの is みことば
Hello Maggie Sensei. i want to ask something.
when i attend some of short course, the man who explain everthing said this.
~説明していただきます
i don’t really understand, does that sentence mean he explain things to himself ?
Thank you.
OK, when did he say that?
You say
説明させていただきます。
before you explain something or give a speech.
When you ask someone to explain,
説明していただきます。
Thankyou for the answer maggie sensei.
Maybe i was wrong when hearing things. those two sentence above is very similar and maybe the speaker is too fast so i hear different things.
so, 説明していただきます literally can be translated to i receive that you let me explain things ? is it correct ?
Thank you.
OK
説明していただきます is a polite way to say 説明してください。
The literal meaning is “I will have you explain to me.”
And 説明させていただきます means “allow me to explain it” just like 一言言わせていただきます = allow me to say one thing / let me say one thing.
ヨロシク
Thank you for helping, 天人！ ☺️
Thankyou very much for the explanation maggie sensei and 天人!
😊💕
Dear Maggiesensei,
Thank you for the lesson. I have a question. Can I say Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekiteiru instead of Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekita?
If I can’t, why? Isn’t dekiru a ‘state’ verb like kowareru, oreru?
If I can, then what’s the difference between the two sentences?
I would be really grateful for your help. I’m stuck wondering why some verbs can be conjugated in the present continuous tense while others can’t (wakaru, aru..)
Thanks again, hope to hear from you soon,
Hi Trang
駅前に新しいデパートができている。
Ekimae ni atarashii depaato ga dekiteiru.
It is possible.
The difference between できている and できた is
できた ( = dekita) They finished the construction.
できている ( = dekiteiru) They are still working on the department building.
Kon’nichiwa Maggie Sensei (^_^ Thank You For The Lesson…. ♡♡♡♡
Sensei, I Have A Question Couldn’t Find Any Satisfyin’ Answer Of It, What Is The Exact Point For Usin’ The Adverb “Zuruzuru To” In This Context:
“Zuruzuru To Juu Nen….”
ずるずる と 10年….
….?
Onegai Shimasu!
Hello!
ずるずると10年 remain certain state for 10 years without trying to change something or do something new.
Ah Finally!! Thank You So Much My Helpful Sensei ♡
Good! You’re very welcome!
おはよう先生
Thank u so much for you answers but most important is that are you ok? I heard there was an earthquake so I wonder if you’re ok or not
I’m worried…
Thank you for your concerns!
We are OK! :)
Thank you for taking the time to teach us some Japanese which’s really useful.
A lot of the advanced grammar that you choose to teach are used more than the others so congrauts for your good grammar choices!! I consume Japanese for almost all my free time and I often encounter them so I recommend people to learn them well.
You’re very welcome!
Some of the advanced words are just for formal situations but this one can be used in a daily conversation. 😉
Thank you Maggie Sensei for your lessons.
My pleasure, Kororin! :)
はじめまして,マギー先生!
アルトです。これからお世話になります。
First of all, I’m big fan of your lessons! It’s been an immense help to me in my quest to learn Japanese.
I’ve a question which I’m not sure is strictly related to this topic.
Please consider the following sentence:
熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし…
I understand this to roughly mean “I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously.” (side note: is zealous too strong a word here for “熱心”?)
I note the “わけ” in it but it ends with “である” instead of “でない”
Does that mean the sentence is saying “visiting/praying at the shrine zealously” *is* the reason? So I assume it should be “It’s because I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously,”?
If so, why not use “から” instead?
Thanking you in advance.
こんにちは、アルト！
サイトに来てくれてありがとう！
*Is zealous too strong a word here for “熱心”?
→ No, it isn’t. 熱心に祈る means to pray “zealously” or it could be “devotedly”
わけ has many different usages besides わけではない・わけがない
わけである is used when you explain something or give a reason.
You can also say わけであるから to give a reason.
Because I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously ~
or
I’ve been visiting/praying at the shrine zealously so ~~
I see, just so I understand this clearly, does it imply that “熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるから” is stronger than just saying “熱心に祠に参っていたから”?
Since “から” already makes the statement before it a reason, it seems like adding “わけである” before it is either redundant or doubling the emphasis.
〜わけであるから sounds more formal and explanatory than 〜から.
わけである can be used when you simply explain some fact / some situation
To understand more clearly I need to know the sentence before/after 熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし…
し in ~わけであるし implies there are more reasons.
Ah, I think I get it now.
As for the sentence, although there is a し in it, it only listed one reason. It was one of the other things that struck to me as odd, and I simply assumed that whatever other reasons there were, they’ve been omitted, though I have no idea if that makes grammatical sense since I’ve only ever seen し used to list more than one thing.
Here it is in full:
熱心に祠に参っていたわけであるし、信仰を集めれば願い事を叶えなえられる。
From context, I had already hazarded a guess that the first part is the reason for the second. But I had no idea what the わけである part meant (until I Iooked it up on your site).
Your explanation has helped clear it up for me.
ありがとうございました、マギー先生!
OK, now it is clear. It is a reason as you already figured out.
As for the usage し, it implies that there are other reasons or emphasizes the sentence.
Whoops, sorry about the copypasta typo: should’ve been ” 叶えられる”, but I’m sure you already guessed that.
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Could you please clarify something for me?
You can’t use とか with people right? As in, when someone asked for example “Who could I ask to help me with x?” you couldn’t say something like “AさんとかBさんとかを頼んで” if you wanted to answer “Ask someone like A-san or B-san”, is that correct? Or is that maybe possible?
Thank you very much!!
Hi Lune,
Yes, you can use とか with people.
Ex. Aさんとか言う人から電話がありましたよ。
As for your example sentence, AさんとかBさん（とか） it is very conversational but you can use とか as well.
“Ask someone like A-san or B-san”, I would use the suggestion form with とか
AさんとかBさん（とか）に頼んで・聞いてみたら？
Thank you so much for your quick reply!
You’re very welcome! :)
東京駅 より 徒歩１０分 By walk 10 minutes from Tokyo Railway station . Is it correct sensei ?
Yes, 10 minutes walk from Tokyo station = 東京駅より徒歩10分
Sensei, Can you please explain why?
In this case what is より compare to?
Hi Jeff
This より is a literal way to say から (= “from” ) and not comparing anything.
母からの手紙 ( = haha kara no tegami) = A letter from my mother
→（more literal) 母よりの手紙( = haha yori no tegami)
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Thank you so much for this lesson. I usually study using the minna no nihongo textbooks but whenever I encounter something that isn’t clear your blog NEVER fails to help me.
I want to learn how to give directions in relation to using the train for example: take the yamanote line/ change trains at~to the ~ line/ get off at~/~ station is the first stop. Is there already a lesson like this one? I already searched but maybe I missed it. If not I’d be supper thankful if you could cover this topic. Thank you Maggie Sensei!!
Hi Peta-Gay
Please check my 公共交通 lesson. Click here.
I added some lines to give directions. I will add more when I have more time.
Maggie sensei ! 教えてくれてありがとうございます！
どういたしまして、Sasha! :)
Hi Maggie sensei! It’s me again! I had a quick question :)
Can you use the ように meaning ‘to hope for’ with a verb not in です/ます form? For example, 風邪を引かないように instead of 風邪を引きませんように?
Thanks so much :)
Hi Eva!
Yes, you also say 風邪を引きませんように。
Good question! :)
Thank you for clarifying! :D
You’re very welcome, Eva!
Hello Maggie sensei!! I’m sorry- you meant you can also say 風邪を引かないように, right? In your answer you said you can also say風邪を引きませんように, so I wasn’t too sure…
Ooops! Sorry. Yes, I meant you also say 風邪を引かないように
Okay! Thanks so much!! :D
🐶💕💕
Thank you. The examples made verb + ところ easy to understand.
よかった！ Great to hear that, Jack! :)
Hi Maggie,
thank you for this site.
I have still some problems in using ban and banme.
In your examples:
My grades are the second best in class. KURASU de niban no seiseki datta.
vs.
I am the fourth tallest person in class. Boku wa kurasu de yonbanme ni se ga takai.
How can i transform the first sentence to express i am the second best pupil in class, just as the second sentence? Do i have to use “nibanme” then?
Hi nouse
Ah OK, here is the basic formation
~ banme no + noun
~ banme ni + adjective
~ banme ni + (noun + no/ga) adjective + noun
So if you want to say “I am the second best student in the class.”, you say
クラスで２番目に成績が( or の） いい生徒だ。
(Kurasu de nibanme ni seiseki ga( or no) ii seito da)
I love your website Maggie sensei！ It cover so many topic not covered by other website. It’s really helpful. I wish you well and always healthy. お世話になりました！
Hi Lucky indonesia!
I am glad to hear you like our site!
Please come back! :)
Hi! This lesson is so helpful! Thank you! P.S. The “の to ん” lesson link is broken.
Thank you, Samantha!
I fixed the link. :)
Hi Maggie,
I came here looking for a bit of information on using ‘目’ as a counter and now I have a lot to read through! But I only got a few sentences in before I got confused why 一本目 (and not 一つ目) was used to say ‘first street’, but now I understand ‘本’ is used to count long, cylindrical objects. I had only seen this used before for bottles, etc., but I guess it is used for streets as well.
My question really is – as there are so many different counters in Japanese – would a Japanese speaker understand what I meant if I said, for example, 一つ目の道?
I am trying to learn the correct counters to use, and I already know that people are counted differently, but wow there are so many! For once, English is actually easier to learn ;) I think I will have to draw a wall chart with pictures and the counters used for them :)
Hi Cindy
Welcome to my site!
Yes, you use 本 as a counter for streets. (Streets are long, right? 😉）
And yes! Japanese people do understand if you say 一つ目の道. The counter of 一つ、二つ are general way to count things.
I also have a basic counter lesson with a little quiz here. 数字
Would you have an idea of how to say the subject name Drama? It is mainly acting, I think.
How about 演劇（えんげき）?
本当にありがとう先生！:)
こんばんは先生！おつかれさまでした！i can feel the amount of effort and time you spend for this lesson to help us. I really appreciate it.
I have the following questions please:
1.”明日になれば*熱も下がりますよ.” In this sentnce what is “も” here?
2.”明日になれば*熱も下がりますよ.” And”明日になったら*熱も下がりますよ.” No difference at all?
3. When exactly we never use”-ば”? From the lesson, is it only when we express our wishes and past events we dont use-ば？what else? im very confused
4. -ば and のに、which express regret and wish more?which is better? What situations we never use-ば instead of のに？
Thank you so much in advance.
Hi Kuroineko
1. If you say 熱は下がりますよ, it implies other symptoms may remains but the fever will drop.
So by using も, it implies the main concern, the fever, will also be gone with other problems.
2. They mean the same.
3. You mean compare to たら、と、なら？
Hmm I think I covered some in the lesson. I will add it when I think of more.
4. which express regret and wish more?which is better? What situations we never use-ば instead of のに？
Sorry but I don’t quite get your question.
For example if you are talking to someone,
行けばいいのに You should go. (knowing that the person won’t be able to go)
行ったらよかったのに You should have gone.
They both express one’s wish (even if the speaker knows it won’t come true) and not regrets.
Check my のに lesson.
Hello, I have a little question. So you know the difference between, Kunyomi and Onyomi. So I saw,{[彼女の顔を見ると心臓がドキドキとする(します)]}”かのじょのかおをみるとしんぞうがドキドキとする(します)。” When I read it I notice it had,しんぞう instead ofこころ. Kokoro means heart in kunyomi and shinsou means hot in oyomi.. So I didn’t know why they used Shinsou instead of Kokoro? (and the sentence means “When I see her face, my heart starts pounding like crazy.”)
Hi Tama
The English word “heart” means,
1) the organ in your chest
2) mind (where one’s feelings/emotions come from)
and more but let’s focus on these two.
Japanese distinguish these two
1) 心臓（しんぞう） shinzou
２） 心 (こころ） kokoro
As for the difference of kun-reading and on-reading, you tend to use on-reading for compound words. (But of course there are tons of exceptions.)
I am a bit confused with 誰も私の気持ちをわかってくれない。Shouldn’t it be 誰も私の気持ちがわかってくれない? I thought 分かる takes が…
Because it has くれる
You use が with わかる・わからない
彼は、私の気持ちがわかる
彼は、私の気持ちがわからない。
You use を with わかってくれる・わかってくれない
(It will be unnatural to use が）
彼は、私の気持ちをわかってくれる。
彼は、私の気持ちをわかってくれない。
誰も、私の気持ちをわかってくれない。
hi maggie-sensei
ではない and じゃない are basically the same but what about でない? It’s not that common but I’ve seen it used sometimes, what’s the difference between でない and ではない?
i.e
嫌ではないです
嫌でないです(?)
thank you :)
Hi jun
It should 〜ではないです (casual form 〜じゃないです）
But you hear でない in casual conversation or in some dialect.
Hi maggie sensei, may I ask,, a Japanese called me ojama mushi .. I’m living in his house though..
is that rude or something? though he treats me well in the house…
As I mentioned in the lesson, it usually use it as a third wheel. Two people go out on a date and if someone else joins them, then that person is お邪魔虫. ,
It is a kind of cute word. I bet he uses it as a joke.
Hey Maggie Sensei, I was just at my friends house and they were telling their daughter to go to bed and she keep saying 邪魔邪魔！
Does that mean like “you guys are ruining my fun!”?
Hi Luke,
Haha, That 邪魔 means,
“You are bothering us. / “Don’t disturb us. ” →Just go to bed now!
Oh sorry, I actually meant the daughter was saying that to her mom! Lol
Oops sorry. I missed that part.
But the meaning is the same or “You are in my way.”/”Stay away. I am in the middle of doing something.”
I don’t know how old the daughter is but she could be just mimicking her mom (I assume her mom tells her many times.)
Hello teacher…..how are you??what is the diffrance between tetsudai and tasukeru ….I mean how I will say. I need help or can i help you.or I am helping he /she please make me understand..😊😊😊😊😊
助ける ( = たすける = tasukeru ) and 手伝う ( = てつだう = tetsudau) are both translated “help” but while “tetsudau” is to give a hand and something minor and 助ける ( = tasukeru ) is for something more serious.
So if you are walking a street and someone is trying to rob your bag, you scream “助けて = Tasukete!” not “手伝って = tetsudatte!”
Thank you sensei you answer is very understandable….you should be a proffecer of japnese language…..
🐶💕
Thank you for all your nice messages!! Love you all! 💕
Hi sensei
What does も mean in this sentence?
先輩に見られるのも先輩を見るのも
Does it mean also or not even? I’m not sure if it means senpai and anon seeing each other or not seeing each other
Hi Romi,
It’s unfinished sentence.
も means “both””also” in an affirmative sentence and “neither” in a negative sentence (or the following verb has a negative meaning such as いやだ=I don’t like, I mind).
Let’s put one possible word after the sentence,
先輩に見られるのも先輩を見るのも（辛い= つらい = hard）
Both being seen by senpai and looking at senpai is hard.
i love you maggie
I love you too, Maggie! <3
Good morning teacher….How are you ….what is the best way to remember kanji.
Hi,
Do you have any kanji book? Three or five kanji per day and test yourself on the weekend.
Try not to remember many kanji at a time. It’s overwhelming.
ありがとうございます分かりました。
どういたしまして！:)
こんにちわ先生元気ですか。なぜとどうしてとなんでどうやってつかいますか。。
こんにちは！
なぜ・どうして why (どうして is a little more conversational. Also なんで is very conversational)
Ex. なぜ/どうして食べないのですか？
= Naze/ Doushite tabenai no desu ka?
= Why don’t you eat?
どうやって how
Ex.(これは）どうやって食べるのですか？
= (Kore wa) Douyatte taberu no desu ka?
= How do I eat (this)?
Awesome lesson, still helpful in 2018!
Thank you, Daniel! :)
Agreed, lovely stuff, greatly detailed with lots of examples :D
ありがとう、Sage💕
What is the difference between the iru tokoro and te emasu
Vているところ ( = te iru tokoro) emphasizes “right in the middle” of doing something”.
Vています = teimasu is used to state what someone is doing or does usually.
Ex. 彼はこの会社で働いています。
= Kare wa kono kaisha de hataraite imasu.
= He works for this company.
(It states what he does for living.)
Ex.彼はお風呂に入っています。
= Kare wa ofuro ni haitte imasu.
= He is taking bath (now)
→彼はお風呂に入っているところです。
= Kare wa ofuro ni haitte iru tokoro desu.
= He is taking bath. (the translation is the same as above but it emphasizes “He is in the middle of taking bath).
Hi Maggie!
I’ve been searching everywhere online for the meaning of たりして that’s closest to what I have in the Try! N3 book. It says here that “たりして is used when you gently say that another person’s appearance is different from normal, or when you gently give an instruction.” I have no idea what that means, or how a sentence like that would sound in English. The sample sentences are:
1) どうしたの？着物着たりして。どこか行くの？
2) 彼女、急に泣いたりして、どうしたんだろう？
3) バスの窓から手をだしたりしてはいけませにょ。
While I do know what all the sentences mean, I can’t figure how たりして makes it different from using the normal plain forms of the verbs. I hope you can enlighten me on this! Thank you so much in advance! (Love you and your website! I’ve always wanted a Frenchie!)
Hello Polar Beagle!
OK, when you see someone in Kimono and find it unusual, you say
どうしたの？ 着物を着ているけれども、どこか行くの？
It could sound more serious and the listener can take there is something wrong with wearing kimono.
This particular sentence is not that strong but by adding たりして makes the phrase soften. (In English “like / ~ and such” “~ you know”)
→ どうしたの？着物着たりして。どこか行くの？
Also
2) 彼女、急に泣いたりして、どうしたんだろう？
sounds more subtle than 急に泣いて which focuses on the fact she cried more.
3) バスの窓から手をだしたりしてはいけませんよ。
This たりして means “and such”
If you say 手を出してはいけませんよ, you focus on just one action.
出したり implies there are other actions that shouldn’t be done.
Oooh my gosh you are amazing. That clarifies things a LOT for me. Thank you SO much. Just another question, based on your explanation, does the kimono sentence sound something like this in English?
What’s up? You’re wearing a kimono and stuff.. Going somewhere?
Yes, you can translate it like that!
and stuff/ and such..
Though the speaker is just talking about one thing “kimono”, it sounds more subtle.
There are many expressions like this in Japanese. You’ll see. :)
Thank you so much! It makes so much sense to me now!! :D
どういたしまして💕
Hi, Sniff-sensei, Maggie-sensei! Could you help me out with this question? Which particles can be used in a relative clause? This might sound weird but I’m having trouble. I believe this example is valid:
“その犬と見つけてしまった魚が好き”
It could translate both to “I like the fish that I accidentally found with that dog” or “I like that dog and the fish that I accidentally found”, no?
This one as well:
“あなたも笑っているときを楽しむ”
It could translate as “I enjoy when you are also laughing” or “You also enjoy the time when you’re laughing”, no?
Pardon my clumsy examples but I think you can understand my doubt.
If と and も both can be used inside relative clauses, is there a hint to find out how it’s being used in the sentence?
Thank you very much for all your lessons!, they are very in-depth.
Hi Azul!
“その犬と見つけてしまった魚が好き”
(見つけてしまった is used when you happen to find something by mistake)
その犬と見つけた魚が好き
I like the fish that I found with that dog.
“あなたも笑っているときを楽しむ”
The sentence itself is not natural but the meaning is
You also enjoy the time you laugh.
But why? I still don’t understand. I guess in the first case, if I wanted to say that I like both “that dog” and “the fish that I found out”, I could say “見つけた魚とその犬が好き”. But what about the second case? Since the sentence I wrote is not natural, I think there is no point asking further about it, but do you have an example where も is being used in a relative cause? Or it can’t be used in a relative clause?
Maybe the sentence itself is difficult to understand.
But I guess 見つけた魚とその犬が好き can be I like the fish I found and the dog.
It will be more clear if you say
見つけた魚もその犬も好き
I like both the fish that I found and the dog.
**
You can use も in a relative clause.
彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。
= I bought the ice cream which he also likes.
But couldn’t the sentence 彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。 also mean “he also bought an ice cream he likes”, depending on the context? I just want to make sure, even though that might be obvious. Thank you for your patience.
Ahh OK, that’s right. It could also mean “He also bought his favorite ice cream!
Let me add the subject to make it clear
“私は”彼も好きなアイスクリームを買った。
OK, I will give you more examples with も
（私は）マギー先生も持っているドレスがほしい。
= I want a dress which Maggie Sensei also has.
（私は）父もよく行っていた店に立ち寄った。
= I stopped by the store where my father also used to go.
おはよう！
本当にありがとう
I understand now^^
hi sensei
the boyfriend first asked if she was really listening to him and she said she was. Then he said this
だってすごくどうでもよさそう. 君は余裕ある. うふふ
Then she says those sentences
余裕なんてない. どうでもよくなんかないよ
is it a bit clearer now?
Ah I see. Then どうでもよくなんかないよ means “It is NOT true that I don’t care.”
Either way, they both negate what her boyfriend said expressing her emotion.
そんんな面白い授業を作ってくれてありがとうございます。今以後あなたは私の気に入る先生になる。
ありがとう、Sara!
これからSaraのお気に入りの先生になれたらうれしいです。
Hello sensei!
I have a question about the function of なんか and なんて in these sentences. I’ll explain the context briefly.
A girl is talking to her boyfriend over the phone. He then tells her that her voice sounds too quiet and monotonous and says that she sounds like she doesn’t care about what he’s saying. Btw he’s not angry, he’s just teasing her and being playful. Then we see her, she looks pretty happy and nervous and she replies to him by saying these sentences. I translated them like this:
余裕なんてない (I’m not calm at all)
どうでもよくなんかないよ! (There’s no way that I don’t care!)
I think なんか and なんて are used to emphasize the negative sentences even more, is it right? Or is she trying to belittle the words that come before なんか and なんて? Or do なんか and なんて have another function here? My doubt is over the fact that she says these sentences while being happy indeed, so I know she’s not emphasizing negative feelings (like disgust).
Thanks!
Hi Chii
余裕なんてない
In this case, there is no negative meaning but it emphasizes what comes before, 余裕
The literal translation →There is no such a thing as 余裕
余裕がない
= I am too preoccupied with something/ too busy and there is no “headspace” to think about other things.
どうでもよくなんかない This なんか emphasizes どうでもいい
I don’t know the context but the person who the speaker must have said
どうでもいい = I don’t care.
or
どうでもいいと思っているんでしょ = I bet you don’t care.
So the speaker strongly negate what he/she just heard.
That is not the case!
Sensei sorry to bother one more time, it’s the last one
You said 余裕 would be “headspace” right? Looking on a dictionary I knew that 余裕 refers to “space” or margin/resource, but when it comes to emotions, does it mean something like “composure” ? The dictionary says that, and in the context I showed I think it means lack of composure (since she looks flustered) rather than lack of headspace to think about sth?/
lack of composure means “落ち着きがない・冷静さを欠く”
It’s true that the original translation, “I am not calm” fits that translation better.
I think it is the result of someone is 余裕がない.
If you are too preoccupied with something and can’t think of other things/deals with other things, they may ends up losing composure.
Hi Maggie,
What a wonderful lesson as always, my brain is swimming with phrases I need to learn now!
I had a thought, if you got there early and couldn’t check in yet, so asked:
(それでは)荷物をチェックインまで預かって頂けますか？
and then you come back later, how do you say something like… I left my luggage with you, can I have it back please?
Asking because when I have done this in England, they usually have a locked room that they put your bag in, so you have to ask for the staff to get it back for you.
On the other hand, when I have been to Spain, the hotels often just have a downstairs room that you can leave your bag in, so you just go there to fetch it yourself when you are ready.
Which is more likely in Japan?
It depends on the hotel but they usually give you 預かり証= あずかりしょう = a luggage ticket for your bag.
So you go to the same counter where you left the bag and show the tag to them and say
預けた荷物お願いします。
= あずけたにもつおねがいします。
= Can I have my bag back?
If they don’t give you any ticket, you go to the reception and ask
チェックアウトの時に荷物を預かって頂きましたがどこで引き取ればいいですか？
= チェックアウトのときににもつをあずかっていただきましたがどこでひきとればいいですか？
= I asked you to keep my bag when I checked out. Where can I pick it up?
Hi. Thank you for all your effort. I’ve learned a lot. I found the next sentence in a song: “boku wa kimi wo omou shika nai”.
Then, the verb can be before ” shika” and “nai” in every sentence or just in certain cases?
It would be the same as boku wa kimi shika omoimasen? Thanks.
verb plain form + しかない means there is no choice but doing ~ / the only think one can do is to ~
It should work with any verbs..(If I come up with any exceptions, I will add them here.)
taberu shikanai
iku shikanai
suru shikanai….
1) boku wa kimi wo omou shika nai
2) boku wa kimi shika omoimasen
are different.
1) The only thing I can do is to think about you. (Nothing else)
2) I will just think about you. (Nobody else)
Thank you very much!!!!
You’re very welcome! :)
Arigatou Sensei! you are the best!
Love you! 💕
Hi Maggie,
I just thought of a phrase that I *always* have to use in English, which is when the server comes and asks what your order is, I have to say “Sorry, I haven’t decided yet!” :)
Would that be ok to say as すみません, まだ決めていません or is there a better way of saying it?
After that, how would I say “Please could I have a little more time?” or maybe “Could I order drinks first?”
My complete guess would be 先に飲み物を注文してもいいですか but I am guessing!
I would definitely need these!!
Thanks,
Cindy
Hi Cindy
You can say
すみません, まだ決めていません or まだ（なんにしようか）考えています。
but people usually just say まだです。
“Please could I have a little more time?”
すみません、もう少し（or ちょっと）時間ください。
“Could I order drinks first?”
先に飲み物を注文してもいいですか is perfectly OK.
Other variation
とりあえず飲み物を先に注文します。
飲み物だけまず…〜お願いします。
Thank you! I am the worst at deciding what to order! :)
You’re very welcome! Haha, ゆっくりお選びください。:)
この授業はありがとう。でも、あの、ローマ字を止めてくれませんか。ちょっと不便だと思うんですけどね
ローマ字は希望する方も多いのでやめません。
漢字が読める人にとっては邪魔かもしれませんが、ひらがなを読まない人もきてくれています。
Also it is a lot of work for me to add furigana.
Sorry that I can’t make everybody happy. 😢
Thank you so much Maggie Sensei! You spend so much time on these lessons!
I was wondering how you would translate “the more you do~, the LESS~”?
Thank you!
Hi Rachel!
Good question!
“the more you do~, the LESS~” = Usually ~ すればするほど〜なくなる patten works.
the more I know, the less I understand
知れば知るほどわからなくなる。
The more I buy, the less money I have.
買えば買うほど、お金がなくなる。
Thank you so much 先生！
i understand now and i hope u can do my point 3 if u can think of more. I’d really appreciate it.
I will try to check のに soon after i can fully understand -ba
To be honest, Japanese language has so many (if) so many (must) so i feel so confused and when you want to talk to someone which one to use is difficult I think.
Right. It is complicated. As I wrote, たら is less restricted so it should cover a lot of the situations.
As for 3, yes, I will add more inf. when I think of more. :)
Hello Maggie-sensei! 質問があります！
How do I tell someone what subject(s) I studied in college? Specifically, I majored in Math Education (how to teach math effectively to young students).
subject is 課目 and major, 専攻（せんこう）
専攻はなんですか？
数学教育を専攻していました。
Hi, Maggie sensei, i have just discovered this site and i love it so far.
Keep up the good work !!!
Also, could i just ask a question cause previously i have been using another site and now i am not so sure whether that site is reliable .
Could i ask some questions to check my previous site reliability, please.
the particle の is used when there is any degree of doubt
彼女は忙しくないのですか?
and it also demonstrates the interest of the speaker even in the affirmative such as
パーティに行かないんですか?
And could i ask cause the site translates
1)いいんじゃない！as That`s great!
and in your site , you have written
1)いいじゃない as I think it’s good!,
could your usage without の means that the speaker has greater confidence in his statement.
Also, would it be possible for いいんじゃない? to mean
Isn`t that great?
If so what would the intonation be like to carry out the respective meanings?
cause i have been hearing this いいんじゃない form in 乃木坂工事中。So i have been really curious about the differences.
Sorry, if i had made any mistakes as i have been self studying for about 3 months now
Thanks so much for reading my comment :)
Sensei, i copied the wrong question for “and it also demonstrates the interest of the speaker even in the affirmative such as”, i meant to type this 彼氏は行くんですか? instead of パーティに行かないんですか?, as this one would establish more of the speaker`s surprise
Good, I was wondering about the sentence.
彼氏は行くんですか？ expresses one’s surprised feelings.
It could be affirmative or negative.
Right. By adding の, you can express your surprised feelings or doubt.
彼女は忙しくないですか？ Simply asking if she is not busy.
彼女は忙しくないのですか? (emphasizing the speaker’s surprise)
パーティに行かないんですか? (Expressing either one’s surprised feelings or accusation.)
As for the translation of いいんじゃない depends on the context and the speaker’s intonation.
So either other site and one of my particular example works.
(oops, i replied to the wrong section, I am really bad with computers
)
A million thank for replying :)
This has been really helpful! :)
Also,
I really love how your explanations are so concise and well packed.
And, i feel extremely heartened when i think about the amount of time and dedication that you have spent in writing this blog.
Please keep up the good work!!!
I love your site :)
No worries about where you post your comment. I will read all the comments anyway. :)
Thank YOU for visiting this site, too!
Maggie Sensei you are wonderful. You explained a difficult topic with very ease.
I am VERY happy to hear that! ありがとう！
Maggie, thank you very much! I love that you give so many examples, it’s really helpful. You make my life better :)
I’m HAPPY to hear that. 💕
Maggie, thank you for the great lesson!
My pleasure, Alexey! :)
Thank you very for the great lesson!
I hope it helps you understand the usage. :)
先生ありがとう！^^
Thank you so much it cleared up my confusion.
Yes, please make a lesson on だって and 間・間に I really need them
I have other questions please.
1.What to use in Japanese to show we have a strong will to do something? Is there a grammar point with this function?
2. Since けど is not used to show arrogance, what can we use instead?
By the way, can I make some suggestions?
1. To edit our comments after “post”
2. Ability to search for our own comments in this site because it’s more convenient this way.
Thanks in advance.
1.You can use present tense with a word like 絶対に／きっと to show your strong will.
絶対に行きます。／行く
きっと勝ちます。／勝つ
And you can attach some casual suffix.
絶対に行くよ。
きっと勝つぞ（ぞ is for a male speech)
2. You could show “arrogance” with your intonation.
I don’t know about arrogance but if
〜って言っているじゃないですか。／〜って言っているじゃない。/ (male speech)
express one’s annoyed feelings more.
3. There seems to be a plug in to allow you to edit/search your comments.
I will tell our web developer to have that plug-in. The problem is I used to have tons of plug-ins and got hacked the webpage from some of the plug-ins. So we have been very cautions.
OK, will work on your request soon.
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for your great lessons! ^-^ I have been reading along silently for a while, but today I got a bit confused, so I hope you can help me out.
It’s probably a stupid question, but isn’t the expression “verb＋ことができる” the verb in noun form plus ができる? Because I accidentally wrote “verb+のができる” in my grammar exercise and it was (of course) wrong according to the answer sheet. But isn’t の also a very common way of converting a verb into a noun? Is it just that verb+ことができる is a set expression or is there a reason behind not using verb+のができる as well? Like, maybe using のができる gives it a completely different meaning? (Or did I just not find any examples with の in them? :D)
Thank you so much and thanks again for the effort you put into your lessons!
ありがとうございます～ o(^▽^)o
Hi タニヤ！
Good question.
verb+ の / verb + こと both are used for nominalization and there are lots of cases that you can use them both but there are exception.
verb + ことができる is one of them
You don’t say verb+ のができる
Other patterns that you can’t use の
* Vことがある/ない
* Vことにする
* Vことになる
You can’t use Verb の＋が＋ある
Someone asked me to make a lesson on の and こと just recently and I added it to the request lesson.
Thank you so much for your nice encouragement. これからもがんばってレッスンを作ります！
Hello Sensei!
Thank you so much for your answer! ^_^ 教えてくれてありがとうございました!
(And sorry for my late reply, somehow I thought I would get a notification … (o_o); ごめんなさい～)
Together with the other examples you gave, I am getting the feeling the reason might be that you cannot use two particles at the same time. And “の” plus が or に would end up squishing two particles together. I did not even think about this before …
Anyways, thanks again and I am looking forward to the next lessons! :)
私も頑張ります！Have a great weekend! <3
どういたしまして！ そしてありがとう！タニヤもいい週末を過ごしてくださいね！ 🐶💕
Hi Maggie Sensei, wow what an in depth lesson! I am trying to work through slowly and I am a bit confused on the use of 思える or 感じる.
Ex 1. 彼と話すといつも批判されているように思える。
Ex 2. 無視されているように感じる。
So I think I understand 思う to think -> 思える to seem (it seems / I feel like…).
But I thought 感じる was used to mean ‘feel’ when you’re talking about the senses (e.g. I felt a cold wind blow), whereas your example is that you feel ignored. So am I right that 感じる is also used with emotions?
e.g. 私はしあわせに感じる – I feel happy
So in the second sentence, it is the emotional feeling of being ignored.
If I used 感じる in the first sentence, would that make sense?
彼と話すといつも批判されているように感じる
Thank you!
Excellent question! But hard to answer because the translation could be the same. :)
The basic difference is
思う = to think (with your brain)
感じる = to feel / to sense (with your body/heart)
思える = to be able to think → Something makes me think / It seems like (judging from your experience/what you see/hear but you still use your brain to judge) However, you sometimes use it when you “feel” something as well.
先生がみんなすべての答えを知っているわけではない。
= Teachers don’t necessarily know all the answers./ It is not always true that all the teachers know the answers.
If わけ means reason* and logically わけではない means it is not the reason why*, I don’t see how “it is not necesarily” or “it is not always true that” relates to “it is not the reason why”. I simply don’t see it. I would appreciate an explanation to better understand what’s going on. It may be that わけ is not being properly translated into English and some important understanding of the word is being left out…
I see your confusions.
I added some words in the beginning.
The main meaning of 訳 is reason(s)
It also means “judgement from what you read/heard. / meaning / case”
So it may be easier for you to think
わけではない is “It doesn’t mean / It can’t be based on what you read/heard” → It is not always true ~ / It is not necessary true.
Hope it helps…
There are many more expressions with わけ. I will make more lessons in future.
(I’m sorry, I replied to the wrong post before.)
Thanks for replying.
I’m very inquisitive. I need to understand what I’m saying instead of repeating words tht don’t seem to make sense in my mind.
わけ seems to be a very challenging word and it may bee partly because just like it happens with many other Japanese words and expressions we receive simplified translations that leave out the essential idea behind words which then ends up hindering proper comprehension of the Japanese language.
I looked up and found the verb 訳する (yakusuru) which means “to tranlate”, “to interpret”, so I conclude that the actual meaning of わけ is essentially “translation” and “interpretation” and not “reason”. Perhaps “reason” is a re-interpretation of the original meaning behind わけ but not the original meaning itself. If I think of わけ as meaning translation or interpretation the sentence above seems to make more sense and from that it can be accomodated it to make more sense in English.
“It does not translate to teachers knowing everything”.
At least in my mind that is what I think is being actually said and from there one can accomodate it to make it sound more natural in English, “It doesn’t mean that…”.
No problem. (I deleted the same message.)
The verb 訳する means “to translate old Japanese (古語） or foreign languages (外国語)”.
But I think it is a good idea to figure out by the meaning of kanji 訳 （reason, meaning, interpretation)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I´m reading your lesson and in the section
*verb + みたい ( = mitai) + に ( = ni) + adjective / adverb
The examples 3 seem to be noun + みたい and not verb + みたい… or am I understanding something wrongly?
Ex. Nian Nian先生(noun)みたいにかわいくなりたい。
Ex. このホテルはヨーロッパのお城(noun)みたいに美しい。
Ex. ネーティブ(moun)みたいにうまく発音できない。
Your lessons allways nicely explain the topic, thank you for your hard work.
Thank you for spotting the mistake. You are right. It should be “noun” + みたい ( = mitai) + に ( = ni) + adjective / adverb
I fixed it. ありがとう！💕
WOW you are fast lol
I´m sorry to contact again, but the sentence construction Noun + みたい ( = mitai) + に is already explained in your point 1.:
1) like something / someone
:w: Noun + みたい ( = mitai) + に ( = ni) + verb / adjective / adverb + verb
Under the point 3. I understand you´re explaining the sentence construction with verb+ みたい ( = mitai) + に+ verb / adjective / adverb + verb , so now there are missing now examples for the construction
verb+ みたい ( = mitai) + に+ adjective / adverb + verb
… or such sentences are not actually common?
I´m sorry for being such bother -.-;;;;;;
Oh OK, let me take a look at the lesson. I will fix it later. ありがとう！
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question with regards to ukemi. I came across this sentence.
私は時々「水」の代わりに「冷や」という言葉を使いますが、頼んだ人は私が日本語を話していることに気づかず、水をもらえません。Why is 頼んだ and not 頼まれた? Is this due to viewpoint? I mean if I am at the scene, from my viewpoint, shouldn’t the writer who places order be 頼んだ人 and the waiter who takes order be 頼まれた人?
Hello！
Yes, the person who ordered water is 私 so you have to describe it from the speaker’s point of view and it is strange to to see the waiter’s point of view.
(私が)水を頼んだ人
= The person I ordered water.
If from the speaker’s point of view, the waiter is 頼んだ人, then is there a 頼まれた人 from speaker’s point of view?
You use 頼まれた人 for the third person.
If you use 私 as a subject, it will be strange to say （私に）頼まれた人 in that sentence.
I think I got it. I try to summarize below.
Customer ordered water to waiter.
From customer point of view, waiter is 頼んだ人.
From waiter point of view, customer is 頼まれた人.
From my point of view as a 3rd party, customer is 頼んだ人 and waiter is 頼まれた人
Is my understanding correct?
Just
From waiter point of view, customer is 頼まれた人.
It depends on the particle.
私（waiter)が注文(order)を頼まれた人 = The customer who I got the order from (from a waiter’s point of view)
他のお客さん(other customer)に注文（order)を頼まれた人 = the waiter who got the order from other customer (from the speaker, the third person’s point of view)
Hi Maggie sensei, I have read that past tense だったら is actually the short form of だったとしたら. Is that true? In that case, what is the difference between past tense だったとしたら and present tense だとしたら?
だったら・だとしたら both talk about the hypothetical situation but you can’t use としたら for the case 2)
１） hypothetical
それが本当だったら大変だ。
それが本当だとしたら大変だ。
としたら sounds slightly more formal and adds more hypothetical nuance.
（だ）としたら If it were the case / (The speaker doesn’t that is the case but for the argument sake) Let’s say if it were (You are talking about counterfactual thing)
2) You can use Xだったら・たら+ Y pattern when you simply talk about what is going to happen if X happens.
明日晴れだったら海に行きます。 / 明日晴れたら海に行きます。
明日晴れだとしたら海に行きます。/ 明日晴れたとしたら海に行きます。(not natural)
***
~たら The speaker think it may happen
そうだったら
If so, If it is true/ If that’s the case (talking about the current situation)
としたら: The speaker think it is not going to happen
そうだとしたら
(Let’s say) If it were true (talking about the current situation)
そうだったとしたら
(Let’s say)If it had been true (talking about the past event)
Maggie sensei, thank you for your explanation. If だったら and だとしたら are different,then だったら is not a contracted form of だとしたら? I read that this was the case from not just one, two websites so I thought it was correct..
OK I added the number in my previous sentence.
As I said some of the sentences in the usage 1) can be translated the same so some might interpret だったら is a contracted form.
But the original form is different.
〜だ→ + たら → だったら
〜だ+ と＋する → だとする→ だとしたら
とする means “to make something ~ ”
So the nuance changes.
Thanks for the lesson Maggie-sensei!
I have a question about the use of そんなの (sonnano). I’ve read it’s used to talk about something undesirable or when you want to look down on it. Is this always the case? This word was used in a manga I read. If you don’t mind, I’ll tell you. Boy and girl like each other, but boy is open about his feelings while girl is still in denial. They will spend 3 days together for a school camp, so the girls tells him “Are you sure you will be able to control yourself?” boy gets worried since girl keeps teasing him about it and says “I’ll make sure I do, I was thinking I needed it to control myself around you, regardless. I don’t want to be hated by you”. Then the girl replies with べつにそんなの. Was her reply kind of rude? I mean, both べつに and そんなの are used to express indiference and lack of concern/interest, so I don’t know how to understand that reply… What would be the best way to translate it? Thank you in advance :)
Hi Romina
As I wrote in the lesson あんな・こんな・こんな could be both negative or positive but it expresses speaker’s emotion.
If she finishes the sentence with
べつにそんなの
or
べつにそんなこと…
I need to read the scene but I think she is showing her interest.
She is denying what the boy just said “I don’t want you to be hated by you. (君にきらわれたくない？）” in a subtle way.
The translation could be,
I wouldn’t say that’s true.(implying she likes him)
Maggie-san may i ask if until what time will the post office accept a parcel during weekdays if you want to send it international ems? Please reply
Hi Renshu
If it is a big post office, they will accept a parcel until 7 pm.
If it is a small post office, until 5 pm.
Maggie Sensei
Why is it that they are in は form and not in が?
子供より大切なものはないよ.
君より好きなひとはいない。
ただより高いものはない.
When you state general idea you tend to use は
For example
君より好きなひとはいない。
→If the speaker found someone else
君より好きな人ができた。
You use が to emphasize what comes before. :)
Hi Sensei,
May I inquire the meaning of “わけでもない”？I am sorry but when I googled it, it only showed me this page. If you have discussed this previously in another post, do kindly share the link with me. Would appreciate it very much
fivebx
The meaning is the same as わけではない (It doesn’t exactly mean ~, etc.)
You use わけでもない
1) when you negate a couple of things.
(Aのわけでもないし)Bのわけでもない。
(It doesn’t mean A) It doesn’t either mean B.
Ex.（彼女が嫌いになったわけでもないし）彼女と別れようと思っているわけでもない。
= (It doesn’t mean I stop liking her) I am not thinking about breaking up with her.
2) When someone tells you something, and you negate the possibility in a subtle way.
A: どうして今日は、出かけないの？ 疲れたの？
= How come you don’t go out today? Are you tired?
B : そういうわけでもないんだけど…
= Not exactly but…
I see! So the difference is that it is used for a couple of things rather than for one thing where you use わけではない instead, right?
fivebx
Yes. or 2)
Thank you!
You’re welcome, fivebx! :)
Maggie-Sensei.
What’s the difference or what will be the proper translation for this, if I used と in this sentence?
これから彼に話すところです.I am about to talk to him.
これから彼と話すところです.
would it be
“I am about to talk with him.” or “From now on I will talk with him.”?
彼と話す = talk with him
彼に話す= talk to him
Thank you very much for a great lesson, Maggie Sensei. I look forward to the next ones!
Thank YOU for visiting this site, Tomas! I am working on the next lesson now. :)
Hi Maggie Sensei!
If I said 「優しかったり楽しかったり感じがあります」, how would this sound to a native speaker? Would it be annoying, too colloquial, etc? If so, is there a better or a more polite way I could say this in Japanese?
Also I heard someone use 「adj-たりとか、adj-たりとか~」. How does this sound to native speakers?
Thank you!!
Hi Rachel
First ( ~ たり）感じがあります part is unnatural.
You wanted to describe someone’s personality?
A is sometimes sweet and fun?
Yes, we say ~たり、〜たりとか〜
Ex. 休みの日は友達と会ったり、買い物にいったりとかします。
Hi, thanks for the lesson. I have a doubt, which means this expression:
あなたのままで
does mean As you are?
Hi Thiago!
あなたのまま means “the way you are”
（あなたは）あなたのままで（いて(ください)・いてほしい)
= Just be who you are/Stay
Oh, thank you for your quick answer, help me a lot.
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie!
I recently heard the form ~ようとするand learned that it also has the meaning of “to try to”. Is there a difference between using ようとする and ようにする?
Hi Chami!
Good question.
1) First the the verb form is different and not all the verb can be ようとする
How to form
verb (dictionary form） + ようにする
食べるようにする
するようにする
来るようにする
書くようにする
行くようにする
愛するようにする
V(よ)うとする is a volitional form
verb masu stem + (よ)うとする
食べようする
irregular
しようとする
来ようとする
書こうとする
行こうとする
愛そうとする
2) The difference of the meaning
Ex. 野菜を食べるようにする
= to make up one’s mind to eat vegetables.
Ex. 野菜を食べようとする。
= to be about to eat vegetables./ to be trying to eat vegetables.
So ようとする shows one’s intention to do something or to be about to do something.
彼が私のお菓子を取ろうとした。
= He tried to take my snack away.
家を出ようとしたら電話がかかってきた。
= When I was about to leave my house, I got a phone call.
Hi Maggie Sensei, thank you for this lesson, I had only seen になる before, so it is interesting to see the difference :)
From your examples, can となる only be used with nouns? You have given a lot of examples of na-adjectives and said that you wouldn’t use とwith any of them. It also says “Note : i-adjective” but I don’t see any examples of them, so I’m not sure if the last few sentences have disappeared! :)
Thanks!
Hi Cindy
Oh, I see. I didn’t finish the note. I just added more information.
Since this is a lesson on となる and になる, I didn’t include i-adjective.
i-adjective will be くなる.
You might already checked the lesson but please refer to my latest lesson, Adjective + する・なる
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am a bit confused on one of the examples, as the romaji doesn’t seem to match the hiragana so I’m not sure which is correct?
待ち合わせ時間を一時間遅くしてくれない？
= Machiawase jikan wo ichijikan osoku shite moratta.
My vague understanding of the grammar is that ~shite kurenai would be correct, as this is asking someone to do something for you (whereas shite moratta would be saying someone has already done it for you…right?)
Thanks!
Thank you Cindy!
I changed the Japanese from もらえる to くれない and forgot to changed romaji.
It’s fixed now. :)
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I came here to understand why bakari was being used with de and though I noticed that in all the example os the section named below use bakari accompanying de, I became confused when I noticed it appears in other sections as well. Why and when is de used? De is always giving me a headache.
●adjective + ばかり =just (negative meaning)
Hi Azul
First as you can see in the lesson you don’t always use で with ばかり
〜ばかりの
〜ばかりに
As for the usage in the example sentences for
●adjective + ばかり =just (negative meaning)
~ばかりで
This で is a conjunctive form of an auxiliary verb だ
Let’s forget about ばかりで now.
When you connect two sentences, instead of saying そして ( = and) you can connect them by changing the first verb into this form.
Ex. これは私の本です ＋ あれはマギーの本です。
= Kore wa watashi no hon desu + Are wa Maggie no hon desu.
= This is my book. + That is Maggie’s book.
→これは私の本であれはマギーの本です。
= Kore wa watashi no hon de are wa Maggie no hon desu.
= This is my book and that is Maggie’s book.
Now, you can connect two sentences ばかり＋だ・です(polite form) by changing だ・です into で
→あのホテルは高いばかりだ。そしてサービスは最低だった。
→あのホテルは高いばかりでサービスは、最低だった。
外見がきれいなばかりだ・そして中身がない
→外見がきれいなばかりで中身がない
Hi Maggie sensei,
How do you Period 1, Period 2, Period 3, Period 4, Period 5, Period 6.
ありがとう
1st period = 一時間目 = いちじかんめ = ichijikan me
2nd period = 二時間目 = にじかんめ = nijikan me
So number + 時間目= じかんめ = jikan me
Thank you so much, Maggie sensei. This is exactly what I needed to better understand the use of adjective +suru. Great lesson. Thanks so much.
I am very happy to hear that because I made this lesson for you! :)
Hello Maggie sensei
I like your lesson very much, please keep continuing to teach Japanese。
こう言うのがすごく助かりますので引き続き宜しくお願いします。
応援する。
ありがとうマギー先生。
うれしいコメント＆応援ありがとう！！
これからもがんばってレッスン作ります！！また来てね💕
Thank you.teacher..and I am preparing for jlpt 4 ….and how i improve my communication in japnese..
Good!
As for communication, do you have any Japanese friends?
Thank you sensei….how are you ….I am very confused in causative form…like. how I use it ..when to force some or to make some on…please make it clear sensei…..arigatou
Hi Saurabh
How have you been?
Did I give you a link to my introductory lesson on a causative form? →させる
I have been thinking of making a new lesson because it is complicated.
Basically If you make someone do something for you, you use a causative form.
Basic pattern:
Subjectは、someoneに somethingを+ causative form
Let’s say you make your friend cook breakfast for you,
（私は）友達に朝ごはんを作らせる。／作らせます。
(わたしは）ともだちにあさごはんをつくらせる／つくらせます。
= ( Watashi wa) Tomodachi ni asagohan wo tsukuraseru./ tsukurasemasu.
What is the meaning and explanation of DENWA=ATARI ?
Thank you
Hi John
Can you give me the context? Where did you see DENWA=ATARI?
Your lessons are amazing, probably the best free resource that exists. Next I get paid I will definitely begin joining your patreon. Have you ever considered putting all your lessons into a book?
I know a lot of people will just study on their phones, but I own many books for studying Japanese and not many reach this level of detail and example and it’s always nice to have a physical copy you can look at outside or anywhere, planes and such. I think it would sell exceptionally well.
My weakest point is making my own sentences despite being able to play games, watch Japanese let’s players on Youtube, and read a lot of things in Japanese. It’s very frustrating and makes me feel mute haha. Though each time I read one of your lessons, I definitely see an improvement, and especially with my listening skills since most books don’t cover casual or conversational speech.
だから、お疲れ様です！本当にありがとうございます、次の課を待ち望んでいる。
Dear K,
Thank you so much for your nice comment! Your message motivated me to make more and more lessons!
You are like me. I prefer paper books as well. :)
Actually I have been working on my e-book but all my lessons are really long so I got stuck with the size problem.
でもがんばってみますね！Kも日本語がんばって！ わからないことがあったらいつでも相談してください。
次のレッスンもうすぐアップできます。もう少し待ってくださいね。
笑、そうですね。
日々パソコンと携帯電話で日本語を勉強している、こんなことは目によくないですね。
だから、パソコンというより本が好きだ。
頑張ります！マギー先生、ありがとう！（：楽しみにしているね。
は〜い！待っていてね〜💕
Hello!
In your example sentence 「しまった、家に忘れてきちゃった！ 」, what is the meaning of 忘れてくる?
Also would it be correct to say 「○○を忘れてちゃった」 instead of 「○○を忘れてた」?
本当にありがとうございます！
忘れる = 1) to forget something 2) to leave something somewhere by accident
The most natural way to say “Oops, “I left it home” is 家に忘れてきた・きちゃった because the speaker came to where he/she is from home and realized she/he left it home.
忘れる is just that moment when you left something home, 忘れてくる means you left something somewhere and came to where you are.
家に忘れてた only works when you talk about the state in the past. So it is not natural in this case.
こんにちわ Maggie先生.
I have problems with かもしれます. Can you tell me how to use it?
Also, I’ve seen it like のかもしれません but I don’t know why would be the NO particle there.
こんにちは、Celcilia
might/ may / it is possible ~ in Japanese is
V / noun / adjective かも~しれない
I might go = 行くかもしれない = Iku kamo shirenai
It might be big = 大きいかもしれない = ookii kamo shirenai
It might be a dog = 犬かもしれない= Inu kamo shirenai
this しれない doesn’t have a negative meaning.
You sometimes use ~ない in an affirmative meaning.
Do you want to eat? = 食べない？ = Tabenai ?
Do you want to go there with me? = 一緒にそこに行かない？ = Issho ni soko ni ikanai?
Hi Maggie Sensei,
What I find strange with ~かもしれない is we were taught:
~でしょう/だろう is used to say something is likely or probably the case
あの人は日本人でしょう – that person is probably Japanese
~かもしれません/かもしれない is used when you are less certain, like there is (almost) no way of knowing
あの人は日本人かもしれません – that person may be Japanese
So I find it strange that you use ~かもしれない with regards to something you yourself are thinking of doing, because surely you should be more sure about what you are going to do! That’s just my thought :)
Hi Cindy
You can think かもしれない as “might” in that case.
まだ使うかもしれないからとっておこう。 I am going to keep it because I still might use it in future.
日本に行くかもしれない I might go to Japan.
It is not certain but there is a possibility that you might do something.
This was so helpful! I learnt so much and understand this verb way better now. Thank you!! (I noticed one typo in the romaji: “→濃すぎる = こすぎる ( = yosugiru) too good ” – should that be kosugiru?)
Thank you for spotting the typo. I will fix it right away! ありがとう！
Hi maggie.
In English there are 6 noun Types: Common , Proper, Concrete, Abstract, Collective and “count,mass” nouns.
e.g- A concrete noun: is based off of the 5 senses. touch, smell, sight, hearing, taste.
I would love to learn to understand about the names and the types of nouns in Japanese and how they are classified ?
I would enjoy your thoughts on this.
Thankyou Maggie.
Shaun.
Hi Shaun!
Here you go!
* 普通名詞 = ふつうめいし= futsuu meishi = common noun
* 固有名詞 = こゆうめいし= koyuu meishi = proper noun
* 数詞 = すうし = suushi = a numeral
（基数詞 = きすうし = kisuushi = number, counters Ex. 一枚 = ichimai = one piece
序数詞= じょすうし= josuushi = 一番目 = いちばんめ= ichibanme = the first / 第１回 = だいいっかい= daiikkai = The first )
*代名詞 = だいめいし= daimeishi = pronoun
形式名詞 = けいしきめいし= keishiki meishi = formal/dummy noun
* ~ もの／こと／ところ
Ex. 飲む = のむ= nomu = to drink (verb) →飲むこと = のむこと= drinking
転成名詞 = てんせいめいし= tensei meishi = the ones that verbs/adjectives changes into a noun Ex. 重い = heavy →重さ= omosa = weight Ex. 帰る= to return →帰り= returning
***
*具象名詞 = ぐしょうめいし= gushou meishi = concrete noun
*抽象名詞 = ちゅうしょうめいし= chuushoumeishi = abstract noun
thanks maggie.
This gives me lots of work.
With say 具象名詞. Is taste, smell, sight, sound & touch the foundation of what the japanese define as a concrete noun.
I tried my Jp-en book, jisho, and a couple of j-j dictionary websites but couldn’t quite find anything .
much appreciative.
taste, smell, sight, sound & touch are classified as 普通名詞 (common noun)
I am not sure if I answer your question but 普通名詞 has concrete nouns and abstract nouns but you don’t actually need to classified them in Japanese.
Also it depends what word you use for those senses.
For example smell can be 嗅覚 (kyuukaku) as a sense but you also translate the word as 匂い (nioi) or 香り ( =kaori). The latter ones （匂い・香り) are originally from verbs 匂う/ 香る so they can be classified as 転成名詞
thankyou
this is very helpful.
Hello Maggie-sensei
I’m new to your site but not new to studying Japanese, and I must say you’re awesome for making the lessons fun and enjoyable! They’re also really easy to understand and make me persevere in learning!
I have a question though if it’s okay, regarding the ‘mo’ particle, like in your example above:
言い訳なんか聞きたくもない
If the ‘mo’ is removed and becomes
言い訳なんか聞きたくない
Does the context change? Because I think it’s still the same or does it just add nuance to the expression? Truth is I’m still quite confused with how the ‘mo’s particle is used.
Thanks in advance!
Hi Summer! Welcome to my site!
Good question.
も has many functions but in this case, it emphasizes the meaning.
~たくもない is much stronger than たくない and も here can be translated as “even”.
聞きたくない
= I don’t want to hear ~
聞きたくもない
= I don’t even want to hear ~
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can I use 〜たり〜たりする also with the verbs いる and ある？
ex.週末は映画館に行ったり家にいたりします。
机の上に本があったり、ペンがあったりします。
I think the second one is uncorrect, but I wanted to ask. Thank you very much!
Yes, you can say いたり・あったり
But you are right. The second sentence is not natural.
Ex.嬉しいことがあったり悲しいことがあったりするがそれがすべて人生です。
= There are happy things or sad things but that’s the life.
Thank you sensei….i have an another question..what is difference between Tara….ba…and to ….i want some good example ….if it is possible sensei.my n4 1st semester has completed….😊😊😊😊😊😊and this for you 🍰🍰🍰🍰
I am working on “ba” lesson but check out my たら・と&ないと lesson first. I gave lots of example sentences there.
Thanks for the 🍰!
Thank u ….i have already studied ba form ….by my own now pasaive form studying…and thanks for your response sensai 😊😊😊😊
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi sensei ….how are you….can you please answer me where to use ba and Tara…..it is little bit complicated 😣😣😣😣
You can find all my lesson through Index.
But I put the links to my previous comment. Just click the word たら／と／ないと
And as I told you, I haven’t made a lesson on ば yet.
Hi dear sensei….how are you….what is the meaning and use of seiri shimasu…
Hi there! Genki datta?
整理する= せいりする= seiri suru = to organize something, to put something in order.
部屋を整理する=へやをせいりする = heya wo seiri suru = organize one’s room
考えを整理する= かんがえをせいりする= kangae wo seiri suru = organize one’s thoughts.
Good morning teacher..no.i don’t have 😟😟😟😟.
OK, I can’t give you any examples here but I believe there are some sites or apps that you can practice your Japanese with Japanese people.
Arigatou gozaimasu sensei.no you didn’t send any link ….pls send sensei the easy one July 1st my jlpt 4 exam is in 1st July….I really want to cover all the sillaybus….but this topic is little complicated…..and I have almost learned all the jlpt 4 kanji….plz suggest me anything better for me…..I whoul be heighly obliged you… highly obliged you….👦👦👦👦
I already gave you the link in my previous message. Click the word させる
You can go through the Index page and choose the topics you like. And I will keep making more and more lessons for everybody! :)
Good evening sensei…..how are you…..I checked your lesson about causative verb….and yes I understood it…..thanks a lot …..sensai what is the diffrance between kaemasu and torikaemasu….pls make it clear sensai
Hi, I’m good. How are you?
It depends on kanji. Kaeru has many different kanji.
変える, 替える、換える, etc. (Check my facebook lesson to see all the difference.)
But for example,
Ex.AとBを替えてください。 / 取り替えてください。
= A to B wo kaete kudasai/ torikaete kudasai.
= Please exchange A with B.
the meaning is the same.
But while 替える is used when it simply means “change to something”, 取り替える means “switch A and B”
こんばんわせんせい。。。all the best にほんごでなんといいすか。。。plase correct it if it is wrong..(how to say all best in Japanese )
You can say “All the best to you” in many ways.
うまくいきますように (literal meaning I hope things go well) / 幸運を祈ります (こううんをいのります） (幸運 = Good luck)/ 成功を祈ります（せいこうをいのります） (成功 = success)
Thank you very much sensei….you are on of the best teachers of nihongo.like you very much🤗🤗🤗🤗
You’re very welcome!! わ〜うれしい！！ 😊
Sensei do you have lesson on no wa and no hai and no o
Yes! Click this link. Noun+ particle + の ( = no) + Noun : への／での／との ( = eno/deno/tono, etc.)
Helo sensei….I go through your all lesson. Very very useful..how can i say that I am not ready for teacing or studying or playing..and for rescue my fat I use to up and down stairs pls.teach me.sensai…☺☺🌷🌷🌷🌷
I am not ready for Ving
The basic patter is
まだV(する）・ noun+ の準備ができていません。
= Mada V(suru) / noun+ の junbi ga dekite imasen.
But you can just say まだ〜できません。( = mada ~ dekimasen.)
まだ教えることができません。( = mada oshieru koto ga dekimasen.)
for rescue my fat I use to up and down stairs
You mean “to lose fat”?
脂肪を減らすために階段を(or の）上り下りしています。
= Shibou wo herasu tame ni kaidan wo / no nobori ori shiteimasu.
Thank u sensei but plz send me the link…I did not get it on fb
Here you go! →Click here
こんにちはMaggie先生。^,^
Thank you so much for all the detailed explanations of this and many more topics, it really helps me to understand crucial grammar points much easier.
I finally have a general understanding of when to use the ～てある grammar.
But I still don’t get the difference between ～てある and ～てあった.
Sure, I know the latter one is in the past tense but I struggle to understand when to use ～てある and when to use ～てあった.
お茶が作ってある。The tea has been prepared. (to mean: someone prepared the tea in the past and now that I see the result, I can talk about it.)
お茶が作ってあった。The tea has been prepared. (but that action has also taken place in the past)
I’m not entirely sure but, when I’m talking about something I noticed in the past, could I use ～てあった？
昨日、お茶が作ってあった。Yesterday, the tea has been prepared.
I’d be glad to hear from you soon, Maggie先生
よろしくお願いします。
Hi Sebaz
I think your interpretation is right. Let me add one thing.
お茶がつくってある You are looking at the tea which someone prepared.
お茶がつくってあった You are talking about the tea which someone prepared. The tea doesn’t have to be in front of you.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
thank you for taking the time explaining that to me. It’s actually not that hard to understand but the more time I spent on this grammar point the more I got confused… By now I’m used to the ～てある grammar point.
No problem! Now you need to practice!
Hi Maggie先生、
In your example of the differences between ている anてある you give the example of:
電気をつけている家 “the house with the lights on”.
Why does this use the transitive verb and not the intransitive verb, in other words, why isn’t it:
電気がついている家?
ありがとうございました
Hi Chris,
(~ を)つける = transitive verb
(~ が）つく = intransitive verb
電気をつけている家 “the house with the lights on”
You can’t tell by the translation but there is a hidden subject.
(家の人が）電気をつけている家
Therefore it’s a transitive verb.
Someone turns the light on
(Someoneが）電気をつける (transitive verb)
Someone keeps the light on
(Someoneが）電気をつけている (transitive verb)
電気がついている is intransitive verb.
You just describe the state of the house.
3 dec 2017 jlpt n5… i have cleared now i am preparing for n4 Sensai plz help me out as much as possible…..and yes you have good knowledge in your language grammer……plz keep it up sensai….we need your kind of sensai
はい！わたしもみんなの日本語がもっともっと上手になるようにがんばりますね！
Thank you very much sensei….Sensei what we say ”for me” in nihongo.おしえてください
You’re welcome!
“for me”: It depends on the verb or context but “watashi no tameni” may work for many situations.
Ex. The cake you bought for me. = 私のために買ってくれたケーキ = Watashi no tame ni katte kureta kee-ki
こにちわせんせい。げんきですか。ここそろそろなつになっている。私はしつもんがあります。ことにしますときめますのちがいはなんですか。。おしえていただけませんか。😊😊
こんにちは、Saurabh
There are cases that they are interchangeable.
When you made some decision.
日本にいくことにした。/ 日本にいくことに決めた。
= I decided to go to Japan.
決める sounds stronger than ことにする
As I explained in the lesson ことにする → Lesson link
You use ことにする
2) to pretend that something happened/didn’t happen, someone did/didn’t do something
In this case you can not use 決める
Ex. 聞かなかったことに決めるよ （wrong)
Wow thank u very very much sensei….you are so good ..I really apriciate your knowledge. You are a nice person as well…Now a days no one gives a single minute to anyone.and you always sort out my problems….I always pray for you ☺☺☺☺☺☺☺
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi sensei do you use watts app????
No I don’t. Sorry!
Thank u sensei……do u have any lesson on honorific expression….it comes in jlpt 4…..it is very important…..and I am very thankful to you that you are helping me a lot…..my ぎりのちちwa Japanese guide desu….wherever you want to visit India plz let me know….and yes I heard from him that japnese people are very helpful….and after your support I saw it it’s really true….🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
Hello
I have a basic keigo lesson →Click here
Wow your father in law is a tour guide? Then you can learn a lot from him,too. :)
I’m sure Indian people are really nice!!
I live in india
Great!! :)
Hi sensei how are you…..opration nihongo de nan desu ka….I mean how to say…I had opration due to problem….oshiete itadakemasen ka.
Hello!
operation/surgery?
It’s 手術 =しゅじゅつ
I had an operation = 手術を受けました =しゅじゅつをうけました。
Thank u sensei..he is working from 25 years as a japnese tour guide he knows all prefecture nihongo….even all the history of India and Japan as well….and he studied by himself without any help just books nd all….
Wow! Then you can do it,too!! :)
How are you …..are you in japan
Yes, I live in Japan. :)
こんにちわ先生。。。。げんきですか。今にっぽんの天気はどうですか。😊😊。。先生。とくにとどくべつ[な]の違いは何ですか。おしえてください。
こんにちは！
日本はお花見の季節ずっといいお天気が続いていましたが今日は、雨が降っていますよ。
とくに (特に）= especially/ particularly (It modifies a verb or an adjective )
Maggieは特にきれいです。
= Especially Maggie is beautiful.
（日本の食べ物はみんな好きですが）特にすしが好きです。
(Nihon no tabemono wa minna suki desu ga) toku ni sushi ga suki desu.
(I love all the Japanese food but )I especially like sushi.
とくべつ（な）(特別な） = special （It modifies a noun)
今日は特別な日です。
= Kyou wa tokubetsu na hi desu.
= It is a special day today.
Hello sensei…..how are you….what the different between hatarakimasu and tsutomemasu….oshiete kudasai
Hi,
* 働く = はたらく = hataraku = means “to work” in general.
* 勤める = つとめる = tsutomeru = means you are hired by a company/bank/store/restauran,etc. and you work for them.
So you can say
今日はよく働きました。
= Kyou wa yoku hatarakimashita.
= I worked a lot today.
but you can’t say
今日はよく勤めました。
= Kyou wa yoku tsutomemashita.
Also when you want to say “I work for ABC company” you say
ABC会社で働いています。
= ABC gaisha de hataraite imasu.
ABC会社に勤めています。
= ABC gaisha ni tsutomete imasu.
As you can see the particles are different. (で／に)
I kinda get what you’re saying but thank you for taking time to answer my questions :3! ~
You’re welcome! :)
Thank you so much! And I forgot to write the proper “wa” >/<…
Also not to annoy you but I have one more Question about Japanese.
Would… "私は…とりかいしました。"I understand that.." So than I added"それはちがいます" Would that not make any sense?
That would be 私は、それはちがうとりかいしました。
But りかいする means “to comprehend” Is that what you wanted to say?
Hi sensai….
There you are! :)
Helo sensei….can I listen your voice☺☺☺☺and how to say I am uploading a video.in nihon go.pls. teach me.sensai
Thank u so much sensei……this is very helpful….🍫🍫🍫🍫……I studied today….Nikki. gatai and zurai…nikui i know how to use but gatai and zurai don’t know how to use….Please make it clear sensei
にくい／づらい (nikui/zurai)
The translation could be the same 見にくい／見づらい hard to see
something is physically hard to use/realize にくい ( = nikui)
Something is psychologically hard to do/use づらい ( = zurai)
The usage of がたい is more limited.
You use with non-action verbs.
忘れる ( =wasureru) to forget →忘れがたい ( = wasuregatai) hard to forget
信じる ( = shinjiru) to believe →信じがたい ( = shinjigatai) hard to believe
Thank you sensei..for your answer…..you always made things very clear thank u…..sensei what is the diffrance between ukagaimasu and mairimasu??
Hello!
You can use both when you go visit who you respect/someone superior.
6時に伺います。/ 参ります。
I will visit you six.
When you simply go somewhere, you can use “mairu” you can’t use 伺う (=ukagau) unless you visit someone superior.
これから東京に参ります。(OK)
= Kore kara Tokyou ni nmairimasu.
= I will go to Tokyo now.
これから東京に伺います。(Strange)
= Kore kara Tokyo ni ukagaimasu.
Hi sensei….o genki de irrashaimasuka?? Th and for you previous reply….my todays shitsumon is how to say….”I went to doctor and showed my eyes…means how i say to someone that I have shown my eyes to doctor….pls make it clear…
Ohayou!!
Hai, genki desu. Saurabh mo genki desu ka?
The direct translation is
医者に行って目を見せた。
= Isha ni itte me wo miseta.
But it will be more natural to say
I went to the doctor and had them/him/her examine my eyes.
医者に行って目を診てもらった。
= Isha ni itte me wo mite moratta.
The kanji for “miru” 見る = to see/look/watch 診る （medically)
こんばんは 先生, My name is Joy and I have a few question about Japanese <3 .So i'am self teaching myself which is difficult. I was wondering if you have any tips on how to learn in a better style.
Also, Is "私は….とおいます" – "I understand that…" Is that the proper way to say it? also what if i added"それわちがいます"- You're wrong. Which would be all together, "私はそれわちがいますとおいます" Would that make sense?
Hi Joy!
I know many people who have been studying on their own and their Japanese is amazing!
Get a proper text book you like to begin with.
OK, what you probably want to say is
私は〜とおもいます。= I think ~
それわちがいます→You have to use は for the particle. It is pronounced “wa = わ” but you write with は
All together 私は、それはちがうとおもいます。= I think it’s wrong.
Hi, sensei! That’s my first comment here!
I didn’t get the last part of the sentence “まっすぐ行って、三つ目の信号を左に曲がって下さい。そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった角にあります。” I don’t understand the connection between 角にあります with the た form that comes before. It looks like the “そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった” part is being used as an adjective for 角, but this doesn’t make sense to me…
Could you help me?
P.S.: I’m from Brazil!
Seu site parece ser muito bom para quem quer realmente aprender japonês! ;-)
Hi Márcio!
It is a very conversational phrase.
The whole phrase is
曲がった（ところの）角にあります。
You often skip ところの in conversation.
Wow! I am so grateful for your message in Portuguese.
Muito obrigada!! ❤️
Can you explain the conditional: BA
I can’t sleep anymore because of this grammar!!! Thank you!!!
Sorry to hear that you can’t sleep anymore. :)
Actually I have been working on the lesson since last year. It is going to be a long lesson so please wait patiently.
I love your website – thank you so much!!!!!
I’m glad to hear you like it! ありがとう！
Arigato Maggie Sensei. I am having a difficult time saying today’s date because everything seams to be backwards. For instance today’s (year, month, ordinal number day?)
二千十八
年
ニ
月
十二
日
(月)
Thank you.
AI
Yes,
year, month, date*, day?
2018年２月１３日（火曜日） = nisen juuhachi nen, ni gatsu, juu san nichi, kayoubi
And the date has a special way of saying 1st = ついたち 2nd ふつか 3rd みっか 4th よっか 5th いつか 6th むいか 7th なのか 8th ようか 9th ここのか
10th とうか and 20th はつか
Hello maggie sensei
is there a difference between ( tsuite kuru) and ( tsukete kuru)? I know it has to do with transitive and instransitive verbs.. but here they have the same meaning so I got confused….
Hi roro!!
ついてくる & つけてくる
They both can be translated “to follow” but here’s the difference.
AがBについてくる
ついてくる means “A accompanies with B” and “A follows B to do something with B”
Ex. 彼はどこにでもついてくる
B knows A is following.
AはBをつける
is like a detective or police following a criminal in secret.
So B doesn’t know A is following you.
Hello,
thanks for all your lessons! Would you mind explaining the word muku (向く)? I have seen it in many sentences like your expression of the day 気が向いたらいつでも遊びに来て. But also when I hit the sentences search on Jisho it looks like there are many different meanings and possible use cases for this word.
Thanks and keep up the good work here.
Hi Hitokage!
向く means
1) to turn certain direction , towards ~ , to face ~
前を向く = face forward
この家は東を向いている = This house is facing east.
こちらを向いて = Look this way.
2) to be suitable for ~ / to be good at ~
この仕事は私に向いている/ 向いていない
= I am good at this job/ This job isn’t for me. I am not good at this job.
And 気が向く is an idiomatic expression
to feel like doing, to feel inclined to do ~
誠にありがとうございました ^ _ ^
どういたしまして Hitokage-san! 💕
今日は、先生!ちょっと質問がありますが…
Would it be correct to say the difference of using the adverbial form of an adjective and that of ~そう is as follows:
悲しく笑う – to smile sadly
悲しそうに笑う – to smile seemingly sadly
悲しくなる – to become sad
悲しそうになる – to seem to become sad (or maybe a slightly different sense, like to become what seems to be sad?)
Also, is it possible to use hearsay ~そう as an adjective? As in:
面白いそうな映画 – the movie that I heard is good
面白いそうな映画を見たい – I want to watch the movie that I heard is good.
ありがとうございます！！
こんにちは、frankie!
悲しく笑う – to smile sadly → OK
悲しそうに笑う – to smile seemingly sadly→ OK
悲しくなる – to become sad→ OK
悲しそうになる – to seem to become sad (or maybe a slightly different sense, like to become what seems to be sad?→ That’s right! )
Also, is it possible to use hearsay ~そう as an adjective? As in:
面白いそうな映画 – the movie that I heard is good → The meaning changes but you say 面白そうな映画 (The movie which looks interesting) the speaker thinks the movie is interesting.
面白いという映画 / その映画は面白いらしい ( I heard that movie is interesting.)
面白いそうな映画を見たい – I want to watch the movie that I heard is good.→ 面白いという 面白そうな映画
So
面白いそう→面白そう Looks/ Sounds interesting
面白いらしい I heard it’s interesing
For some reason 面白いらしい映画をみたい doesn’t sound natural, though. I would say 面白いという・言われる映画を観たい。
Thank you very much Sensei!!!
It was very helpful!
You’re very welcome, Angelica💕
Thank you for the free lesson on あげく!
My pleasure, Savvy!! 💕
Hey Maggie! Ignacio here. I was looking for the etimology of ダサイ, its origin, and found out that you made a post of the word long time ago. Where does it come from?
Thanks!
Hi Ignacio,
One of the theories is from an old expression だしゃ which refer to a person from the country.
This word has spread and became very popular when a comedian, Tamori, mock on Saitama prefecture as ダ埼玉= da saitama making a pun.
@Ignacio, I remember someone explaining it on TV (it might have also been Tamori) that it comes from 「だって、埼玉だもん」. I can’t really say if that’s true or not, or if it was just his play on the word.
マギー先生、こんにちは！
ちょっと質問があるですけど、
（ことになっている）という意味は (supposed to be) ですね、はずとは何が違いますか？
例えば ：
彼はもう帰ったはずです
と
彼はもう帰ったことになっている
意味が同じじゃないですか？
こんにちは、LEO!
いい質問ですね。
英語だと同じような訳になるから違いがわかりにくいですね。
はずのレッスンはもう見ましたか？
１） 「はず」は話す人の気持ちが入ることが多いです。
彼は私を助けてくれるはず。I believe he will help me. (expressing the speaker’s strong belief or expectation)
彼は私を助けてくれることになっている。He is supposed to help me. (We can tell there was some kind of arrangement/ the speaker has talked to him and he agrees to help the speaker.)
2) verb past tense + はずです = the speaker is guessing something and is pretty sure about it.
verb past tense + ことになっている = People say ~ / People believe ~ but it didn’t actually happen.
彼はもう帰ったはずです I believe / I am sure he went home already. (the speaker believes he went home.)
彼はもう帰ったことになっている People think he went home already but he hasn’t.
マギー先生、いつも日本語を教えて下さってありがとうございます！
Your posts are always easy to understand and very relevant. I learn so much about Japanese as a language as well as the culture.
I feel okay with deprecating myself and my own achievements etc, but I feel a bit uncomfortable saying that my family members are no good. I always feel so awkward in those situations – I don’t brag about my family but I also don’t want to put them down (even if they’re not there to hear the conversation).
In Australia we tend to be self-deprecating and don’t like people who brag, but even so I occasionally find the Japanese level of humbleness to be challenging! It is hard to know what people are really thinking sometimes :O
もし何か失礼なことと言ったら、申し訳ございません！
こちらこそ、このサイトで勉強してくれてありがとう、Sally!!
Sallyは、なにも失礼なことを言っていませんよ。
It is very interesting to know other countries’ culture. I didn’t know Australian people tend to be self-deprecating.
As I wrote in the note in the lesson, you don’t have to change anything.
The thing is what you say and what you think are not always the same and listeners do know what you really mean.
Also things are changing in Japan and you see a lot of parents who brag about their children, too.
Sorry, I meant how would it be translated? Thanks again
Hi Bere!
Is it from a Zard song?
心が痛いくらい literal meaning is “like my heart aches” but you can translate it “painfully”. It’s an expression. :)
Hi! First of all thank you for all your lessons. I’ve learned a lot with you. I want to ask if in the sentences 痛いくらい 想い溢れて and 痛いくらい君があふれている “kurai”. is really necessary or what would it be translated?? Thank you
Hi Maggie Sensei! Is there a difference between using 後 and もっと? Thank you!
Hi Chami,
後 and もっと are both translated “more” but they are different.
もっと modifies a verb or adjecitve.
Ex. I want to eat more. = もっと食（た）べたい (x あと）
Ex. I wish I could have more money = もっとお金があればいいのに。(xあと）
Ex. A is more interesting than B. = Aの方がBよりもっと面白い。(X あと）
Ex. I like him more than Ken. = Ken より彼の方がもっと好きだ。（Xあと）
あと modifies a noun in the following cases.
Ex. I need 100 yen more = あと100円必要です。(xもっと）
Ex. I have one more hour. = あと１時間あります。(xもっと）
I love this site very very helpfull😊😊😊😊😊☺
Thank you!!! I’m glad you like my site! 💕
Hello Sensei. Actually, I want to ask this question on lesson about “wo” particle, but I can’t find it, or I just didn’t try hard enough to find it, so I post it here.
Few days ago, I watched Sukiyaki song on YouTube. Its first line is the one that was triggered my interest. It said “Ue wo muitte, arukou” and it was translated as “I look up as I walk”.
Why did it use “wo”, instead of “ni”? Particle “ni” is used for showing direction, right? For example, “mae ni”, “soko ni” and other. And, particle “wo”, if I’m not mistaken, is used for direct object of the verb or something that the subject is going through. Should it be, “Ue ni muitte, arukou.”?
Thank you.
Sorry! I don’t have a lesson on を “yet”.
(I should add it to the list, huh?)
As you said を is an object marker but it is also used as a direction marker with some verbs such as 向く or 見る
direction of action + を + verb
上を見る to look up
右を見る to look right
上を向く to look / face up
東の方を向く to face east
You don’t use に・へ with 見る・向く
X 上に向いて歩こう
Thank you very much Sensei! I think I can grasp what that lyric is trying to say. The main character look up, as there were something on this “up”, right? Maybe, it is related to the chorus, “shiawase wa kumo no ue ni”.
Japanese is really interesting. Make me want to know more about it. Thank you. Got another great lesson from here!
You’re very welcome! Your question was very good! And I love the song, too! ♪
Let’s spend the day looking up the sky today!! :)
Sensei!! Thank you so much for the lesson! お疲れ様でした！
I would like to ask something. I want to compliment someone for understanding English well. Can I say 英語よく分かるんじゃないですか！すごくないですか？
Thank you so much Sensei!おおきに〜
Hi Tony
コメントありがとう！
英語よく分かるんじゃないですか！
I would change a little
すごいですね。
英語よくわかるじゃないですか。(1) or 英語、上手じゃないですか。(2)
Note: Both (1)(2) express your surprised feelings (You didn’t know that person could speak English so well.)
So if you simply want to compliment someone’s English, you say
英語、よくわかりますね。英語、上手ですね。
なるほうど.
This has been really helpful!
Also,
I really love how your explanations are so concise and well packed.
i feel so touched in thinking about amount of time and dedication to do this, so please keep up the good work!!!
And a million thanks for replying to my question :)
Thank for another great lesson!
My pleasure, Pascal💕
Thanks for the lesson! It is very useful, and the last part took me by surprise :D
Hi Leo,
Thank YOU for visiting this site!
私のサイトでもよければまた来てね。
I’ve been looking for jobs located in Japan online and the requirement is knowing how to speak business Japanese. I’m wondering if 丁寧語 is sufficient as many young Japanese people don’t know how to speak 尊敬語 or 謙譲語 as well. Is business Japanese really required? Do young Japanese people use 敬語 during working hours? I really want to work for a Japanese company someday. Hope you can answer my question.
Hi Lea,
It depends on what kind of workplace you apply for.
I’d say, if you speak 丁寧語, you would be fine in a general work place.
Using the right 敬語 is difficult for even native speakers. So as I mentioned in my shopping lesson, young people tend to use the wrong keigo.
However, f your job requires talking to or dealing with the customers/clients/other company, some basic 尊敬語・謙譲語 will be necessary.
If you have to write emails/letters, you will need another level of 敬語 and formal business terms.
なんかさあ、このサイトはいつも役に立つです。
ありがとう！ ギレルメ💕
（一つだけ直しますね〜 →役に立つです→役に立ちます）
Hi there.
In your examples for usages of 第, you have the following example:
オバマは第４４代目のアメリカ合衆国の大統領です。
In this case, is it acceptable to use both 第 and 目 together?
Thank you for spotting it*. Though it is said in the newspaper, I think it is redundant. It will be better just to say 第４４代 or ４４代目. I will fix it and add some note.
(There are cases that you use 第 and 目 together, though and it is listed in the dictionary.)
想像していたほど and 想像していた通り Are both possible? If so, how does one tell when to use which?
Thanks.
この建物は、想像していたほど大きくなかった。
You imagined the building was big but it was not as big as you had imagined.
→When the fact is different from what you have imagined.
この建物は、想像していた通り大きかった・大きくなかった。
The building was as big as you had imagined/The building was small* was you had imagined. (*not big)
→When the fact is the same as you have imagined.
Hello maggi sensei! I am not sure how to comment here. I had a question regarding the use of hodo :
届かない光へと
手を伸ばしてしまうほど
待ち続けてた、
恋い焦がれてた…
この空を
What is the significance of hodo here? Like, is it saying the ‘the amount i reached out, was the amount i kept waiting’? I am really confused….Thank you in advance!
Hi Raee
This is a very poetic expression.
Imagine, it keeps raining and you miss the blue sky a lot. This ほど describes how much you have missed the sky. As you reach out your hand towards the light which you can’t even reach.
little mistake with Otouasn , should be Otousan xD
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. It would be hard to pronounce, “Otouasn”. 😅
「よくも！」そのように、一言で言われていますか。「己！」みたいな感じで、漫画とかビデオにキャラが言うでしょうか。もう一つは普通の人は言いますかな。
「よくも！」と言い切るのではなく 「よくも….」という形で使うことはあるかもしれませんが、省略するとしたら、
よくもそんなことが…（言えるな）
よくもそんなことを…（してくれたな）
で切ると思います。
普通の人も、相手のやったことに対して非難するときに使います。ただ、すこし強い表現なのでかなり怒ったときに使いますよ。
よくもやったな。(male speech)
よくもそんなことを言えるわね。(female speech)
It’s a relief.
I wish you all the best and all safety マギー先生＾＾
That is so nice of you, Kuroineko!
ありがとう！！ ❤️
Can you use たり form more than 2 times in a sentence?
For example; 学校の後でしゅくだいをしたり犬とあそんだり晩御飯をたべたりします。
Also, do we need commas between each たり? Is it gramatically wrong if i used the sentence above instead of 学校の後でしゅくだいをしたり, 犬とあそんだり, 晩御飯をたべたりします?
Can you use たり form more than 2 times in a sentence? →Possible. (But four たり could be too much.)
It will be easier to read if you use 点 （、）
学校の後で宿題をしたり、犬とあそんだり、晩御飯を食べたりします?
Hi Maggi-sensei,
When do we use ~し〜し vs 〜たり〜たり? I read that they can both be used when expressing multiple verbs/ adjectives/ nouns in a sentence without any particular order. Any guidance would be much appreciated!
よりしくお願い致します!
Hi Sue
し can give multiple reasons
どうして仕事をやめたいの？ Why do you want to quit your job?
給料は安いし仕事はきついし… Because the pay is bad and it is hard and so on.
X 安かったり仕事はきつかったり
あの店は高いしまずいし、もう行かない。
x 高かったりまずかったり
***
たり is used when you give multiple examples
休みの日は、洗濯をしたり掃除をしたり忙しい。
I do laundry or cleaning and etc on my day off.
x 洗濯をしたし掃除をしたし忙しい
（You can say 昨日は、洗濯をしたし家の掃除もした.
Not only doing the laundry but I also cleaned the house)
わかりました！ほんとにありがとうございました！
どういたしまして、Sue! ❤️
Maggie sensei,
Regarding the sentence :
“休みの日は、洗濯をしたり掃除をしたり忙しい。
I do laundry or cleaning and etc on my day off.”
Yes, I agree tari is the best for giving multiple examples here.
But, if I want to say and imply that “I was so busy on my day off. Because I did the laundry, I did the cleaning, etc” (Reason). May I use し to express that imply?
休みの日は忙しかった. 洗濯したし、掃除したし、。。。
Thanks in advance , Maggie sensei.
Yes, you can say 休みの日は忙しかった。洗濯したし、掃除したし、…
Maggie-Sensei, konnichiha!
If you don’t mind, I’d like to ask you a question on that matter, though this thread is rather old.
What is the difference between “osewa wo suru” and “mendou wo miru”? If I want to tell a girl that I always want to take care of her, which of these two would be appropriate? Or maybe none of these would be appropriate?
Thank you in advance for your help!
Hi Ralph,
the difference between お世話をする (osewa suru) vs 面倒をみる( mendou wo miru)
お世話をする is more polite and 面倒 has a connotation of “trouble”.
If you take care of your girlfriend, I would say 大事にする( = daiji ni suru) which sounds much more romantic.
あっ、そうなんですか！分かりました。本当にありがとうございました！
どういたしまして、Ralph! :)
Maggie sensei thank you for yet another helpful lesson. I received a gift coupon from a friend. She provided me the gift code and instructed me to call the salon to book an appointment before going and so I did. I thought that setting the appointment will go smoothly as I only have to provide my name, gift code and ask for the available date to go. Unfortunately, it didnt go as I thought. I know a fair amount of Japanese but if Keigo is used I often don’t understand most of the words. The person on the other line ended up saying communication ga torinikui. How should I convey that I have a coupon from a friend that I can use in your salon. I have the gift code and other details in Japanese. Sorry for such a long post.
Joyce
It is always hard to communicate over the phone.
I will give you some phrases that you can use to make an appointment.
すみません、友人からそちらのお店のギフトクーポンをもらったのですが、(date 日) の(time 時)にシャンプーカット/パーマ (depending on what you want) の予約できますか？
= Sumimasen, yuujin kara sochirano omise no gifuto kuupon wo morattano desuga,(date ~ nichi) no ( ~ ji) ni shampoo katto/paama no yoyaku dekimasu ka?
= Excuse me. I got a gift coupon from my friend for your shop. Could I make a reservation on ~~ for shampoo & cut / perm.
And if the gift coupon has a number,
ギフトクーポンのコードをお伝えします。(And give them the code) ~~~~~
Gifuto kuupon no koodo wo otsutae shimasu. ~~~
When they ask your name, you give your name.
I also have a hair salon lesson. Click the link.
How would you say, I buy medicine at the drugstore
You say
薬局で薬を買います。
= やっきょくでくすりをかいます。
= yakkyoku de kusuri wo kaimasu.
Sensei, I’ve got a question! is this any different than “shite itadakemasen ka?”
This one got me a little bit confused since it seems like both of them are the ways of asking someone for a favor..
Hi Sofia,
First, let’s compare the following examples.
shite kureru? = Can you do ~ for me?
↓ more polite
shite itadakemasuka? = Could you do ~ for me? (polite)
shite kite kureru? = Can you go somewhere and do something for me?
↓ more polite
Shite kite itadakemasu ka? = Could you go somewhere and do something for me?
***
If you want to learn more about asking for a favor go check this lesson.
What is the difference between 「バッグを買わせておいて」and 「バッグを買わせて」?
Doesn’t 買わせて mean “make someone buy”?
Thanks マギー先生！
買わせておいて sounds a little stronger. It implies, She put me in the situation (forcing me to buy the bag for her).
買わせて is focusing on the one time action but おいて implies the event put the speaker into the state for the certain period of time.
Hello, Maggie-sensei! Since I discovered this site about a month ago, I’ve been resorting to your lessons quite a lot. They’re really helpful, the best extra for the Japanese classes I’m taking!
You might remember from a little question about the usage of って in a certain statement… and well, since that time I’ve been doing just fine without needing to ask. But recently I stumbled upon a sentence I can’t really get the gist of it on my own. So, I hope you could help me again:
It goes like this: “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”, and to put you in context, this line is said by a somewhat tomboyish girl that went to a rock concert for her first time and now wants to learn to play the guitar so she’s got in touch with a private music teacher.
I have many doubts here. The first one is about せっかく (the topic of this very lesson). As you explained, せっかく implies that an effort has been done, but do “going out to a concert” or “setting up a date” really count as an effort? And even if they count, which word in English would take the role of せっかく here?
Second doubt is about that し at the end of the first sentence. I checked out the lesson [http://142.93.68.150/2014/07/10/how-to-use-%E3%80%9C%E3%81%97-shi/] and I’ve narrowed its meaning to two possibilities: that し is used either to make your point, or to give a reason (just like から). Last use kinda fits with the second structure you showed us in this lesson (“When you want to take advantage the opportunity”), but given that exclamation point, I’m not sure this is the true option.
Next doubt is about 気になってる, which I presume is 気になる + ている. I can’t conclude nothing about about its meaning, though… After reading the lesson about this idiom [http://142.93.68.150/2011/10/20/request-%E6%B0%97%E3%81%AB%E3%81%99%E3%82%8B-vs-%E6%B0%97%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8B-kinisuru-vs-kininaru/], I primarily thought that it meant “to be interested”… but given that kinda gloomy nuance that せっかく has, I’ve started to think that it really means “to be bothered”. I just don’t know anymore.
And the final doubt is about the ending of the second sentence (…思って！). I start sweating every time I see a sentence ending with a verb/adjective in the て-form, I never get it, and I always get lost: Is it a command/request? Is it an unfinished sentence? And if so, what could be the following remark?
And that’s all.. sorry if it is a very long question and my explanations aren’t that good. You helped me lots the first time I asked, so if it’s not too much of hassle, would you do it again? ;)
Hi Ichijiku!
Welcome back!
せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！
In this lesson, I explained the usage of
せっかく〜(だ）から When you want to take advantage the opportunity. / Since you have a chance to do so ~
As you said, し has a meaning of “から” to give a reason.
You can rephrase it
せっかく気になっているからやってみようと思って。
気になる means “to be curious, to be interested in” or something gets one’s attention.
Since it got my attention anyway, I thought I should give it a try anyway.
思って It is unfinished sentence. 思っています。／思っているの／(more casual) 思ってるんだ…
You sometimes leave a sentence unfinished on purpose.
Thank you very much! I think I’m starting to understand those lines now. However, I still have some minor doubts remaining:
Why is there a exclamation mark and not a comma in the middle? From my point of view, if you want to add a stop between the two statements, “せっかく気になってるし、やってみようと思って！” feels better than “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”. With that exclamation point in the middle, it seems like the two sentences are independent from each other.
And does that せっかく still have that “took the trouble of” nuance? I mean, could “せっかく気になってるし…” mean “Since they took the trouble of making me interested…”?
And finally, it’s not a doubt, but I gotta say it again: unfinished sentences always leave me confused. I really don’t get what purpose could be behind that. Probably it’s not the same in Japanese, but when somebody leaves a sentence unfinished in English, I find it kind of rude.
Again, thank you for all the trouble!
You are totally right. It should be せっかく気になっているし、やってみようと思って is more natural.
I wouldn’t put an exclamation mark after し and cut the sentence like that.
It is a writer’s style and younger people tend to use more exclamation marks but it is still not natural.
I have a lesson of ambiguity in Japanese language. (Check this link)
It is a cultural thing that you read between lines.
For example, if you want to ask your boss a day-off,
休みをとらせてください。/ 休みをとりたいです。 sound a bit too straight and strong.
Instead, if you say 休みをとりたいのですが… sounds more humble and polite.
Thank you again for answering!
I’ve just read the aimai lesson (thank you for that link too!). I liked it, I’ve learned a few things that I think they’re gonna help me… but I’ll probably still have some difficulties from time to time, since I have always had trouble reading between lines.
Just one more thing… I’ve been told that, sometimes, when Japanese people leave their sentences unfinished ending with the て-form, it’s because they’re kind of “answering” a previous statement.
For example, in the sentence we’ve been dealing with: before the girl says her line “せっかく気になってるし！やってみようと思って！”, a friend asked her “本当に始めるの！？”. So, could that “思って” actually be “思って始める”?
Would that theory be correct?
I would say the part which is not mentioned is いる to describe the current state.
思って（いるの）I am thinking about doing it (because ~)
思って始めます。sounds a little unnatural.
思って＋verb is usually used with a past tense.
Ex. 面白いと思って始めた。I thought it was interesting and that’s why I started.
I don’t know why but I cant reply to your last comment, so I’ll say it here:
It took me time, but I think I’m starting to understand the whole picture. Still, I feel like I have to do more practice on casual/conversational Japanese…
Anyway, thank you so much for all your answers!!
Good!!
Casual/Conversational Japanese could be harder in fact. There are some colloquial Japanese lesson here so check them out!
がんばって！
Hi Maggie Sensei,
May I know the difference between “itamae” and “taisho”?
Thank you!
板前 ( = itamae) means “(Japanese restaurant’s) chef” as an occupation.
大将( = taishou) originally means military “General” and it refers to owner of the restaurant or chief of chef.
常連客 (jourenkyaku), regular customers who go to the restaurant often and know the owner/chef well, you can address him “大将（たいしょう)” but you never address the chef, 板前 ( = itamae).
Hello Maggie!
ちょっと遅いけど、あけましてオメデトウ！
今年はマギーにとって良い年になるようにね！
The question for today is, why used Steiner言わせぬ instead of 言わぬ?
シナ
誰ずら？このブリキのおもちゃみたいなのは
スタイナー
ええい、忘れたとは言わせぬぞ！
マーカス
忘れたっスか？プルート隊の隊長っス
Maybe this (～とは言わせない) is a special pattern?
It sounds like “don’t tell me you forgot it!” or better “how dare you forget me!”
Could you tell me, what it literary means? (Maybe => I will not let you say “I forgot”?)
よろしく！
明けましておめでとう！！ ２０１８年もいい年にしましょう！
Yes, your translation is right.
Here’s the difference
言わぬ = 言わない = I won’t say ~
言わせぬ = 言わせない = “I won’t let you say ~” → Don’t tell me ~ “
I think I got the picture… Let’s change 言う into some different verb.
Would this sentence be OK?
まったそのようなばかげた考えを思いつかせぬぞ！ (Please, don’t came up with such ridiculous ideas again!)
Nice try. It’s grammatically correct but 思いつく is something that you can’t control so you can’t say “I won’t let you come up with ~ “
(I noticed it a few seconds after I posted this ^ ^)
Thank you very much for clarifying this as well.
Have a great day, Maggie!
どういたしまして！ Enjoy FF! :)
hi sensei.
With the で and に, are they interchangable in a conversation, but they create a slightly different image.
プールで泳ぐ : you would imagine a person swimming in a pool.
プールに行って泳ぐ : you would imagine a person going to the pool to swim.
thankyou maggie
Hi Shaun,
As I explained in the lesson, there are some confusing cases where you wonder which one to use. However
プールで泳ぐ you can’t say プールに泳ぐ
You do the action, swimming, in the swimming pool.
If you put something into a swimming pool, you say プールに入れる
Your example プールに行って〜
This に is a direction marker. ~に行く to go to ~
Hello!! I was doing a homestay in Japan and trying to clean up a small corner of the kitchen because I spilled shoyu,and the host dad said in english “make me come” when he wanted to go in the space where I was at and clean it for me. Is that because he was thinking 来させて, which would more naturally translate to “let me go”? Thank you!
Ah OK, it’s because the idea of Japanese “come and go” are different from English “come and go”.
As you guessed what your host father meant was “Let me take care of it.” (so please move and make a space for me.)
Maggie sensei ga nihongo o oshiete kuremashita.
Maggie sensei ni nihongo o oshiete morau.
Why is one marked ga and ni can you explain?
Maggie sensei ga nihongo o oshiete kuremashita.
Maggie is the subject so you need a subject marker, “ga”
Maggie sensei ni nihongo o oshiete morau.
The subject is a speaker not Maggie.
the particle “ni” has many meanings. One of them is “to” and it also means “from”
this “ni” means “from”.
Tasukete kurete arigatou gozaimasu!”ga”to “wa* no tsukai kata wa yoku wakarimasen.subject an topic seem the same to me lol in this case there is a difference though.
The difference between “ga” and “wa” is very complicated but if you are just talking about what Maggie does
Maggie sensei wa nihongo wo oshiete imasu. = Maggie teaches Japanese.
If you emphasizes who teaches Japanese, use “ga”
Maggie sensei ga nihongo wo oshiete kuremashita.
So basically “ga” stress what comes before.
I see thanks!
You’re welcome! :)
よくがんばっているね！ありがとう！!
ありがとう！ これからもがんばりま〜す！
こんばんは。どういたしまして＾＾
I have the following questions please:
1.”マジ卍” I heard this is very rude to say when we talk to people (daily conversation) among friends, family, etc. Is it true? Also is it true this word is for teenagers only?
2. “よく（ぞ）この仕事を引き受けてくれました。” I thought ぞ is a male limited suffix? Is it another type of ぞ？ I’m confused
3. ” よくもまあこの寒い中、コートも着ないで歩けるね。”
寒い中= Originally it had particles but they were omitted?
What is this ね at the end of the sentence?
4. “自分で言うのもなんだけど、 僕は、頭がいいだけじゃなくてかっこいいよね”. What is the function of のも here? Double particles? btw, is there a lesson on double particles?
Thank you very much in advance.
Hi Kuroineko!
1. Not rude but this slang word could be out of date by the end of this year. Yes, it is mainly for teenagers so I bet many Japanese people have never heard that word.
2. That is not just for men. Women can use it, too.
ぞ is a literal suffix to emphasize the meaning so it may sound a bit dramatic.
3. We say 寒い中, 暑い中 as 雨の中
I guess it will be easier for you to think 寒い天気の中
4. I think I explain this before (maybe some other people…) の is a particle to nominalize the verb which comes before in this case 言う
言う to say 言うの saying
も is a particle to stress the meaning.
Hope it helps
sensei, is there any way to convert a verb to adj in japanese?
＠jo
It is very limited but you can convert some verbs into adjectives using しい
change the last sound ~ u → ~ ashii
騒ぐ = さわぐ = sawagu = to make a noise
→ adj: 騒がしい = さわがしい = sawagashii = noisy
喜ぶ = よろこぶ = yorokobu = to be/become happy, pleased (English translation is adjective but it is a verb)
→ adj.: 喜ばしい = よろこばしい = yorokobashii = joyful
疑う = うたがう = utagau = to doubt
→ adj.疑わしい = うたがわしい= utagawashii = doubtful
嘆く= なげく = nageku = to lament
→ adj.嘆かわしい= なげかわしい= nagekawashii = lamentable
Man.. I feel just weird. I’ve been going to school in Japan for almost a year now… and I had no idea how to say this until today…. my school can be a pain in the ass… making me look all gaijinish.
明けましておめでとうございます
明けましておめでとう！ Nihon Scope!
Haha now you know how to say it!! :)
Happy new year, dear Maggi sensei.
Thank you so much for everything.
I hope 2018 will be a very good year for you.
Happy New Year!!! It has been a long time!
Hope the new year will bring you lots of happiness!!!
Maggie sensei, I can not say enough thanks for your valuable lessons. Thank you so much, you make japanese learning so much easier. ^^
良い一日を!!
Hello Damon!
Thank you so much for your nice message. It made my day! ありがとう！
よいお年をお迎えくださいね。💕
Hey Maggie Sensei :)
I’m new to your (excellent) website and currently going through many of your grammatical explanations.
What absolutely confuses me about the use of ~ことにする though is the fact that I learned “決める” first and don’t understand why we need ことにする at all if we already have the word “to decide”. So what would be the difference between:
“[…] と決めた” and
“[…] ことにした” ?
That’s also my biggest problem in Japanese. There are so many words and expressions that (on paper) have the same meaning if I look them up, so I get confused about whether it’s better to use expression A or B. Did you already cover this kind of problem in one of your guides or plan on doing some guide about how to deal with seemingly identical expressions? Or is it just a matter of getting used to and learning it by context?
Thank you very much in advance and keep up the good work!
Hello Kai
I understand your problems. That is why people here, Twitter, Facebook ask me all the difference/which one to use all the time.
The best way to learn the difference is to use Google and type the word to see how/when the word is used.
I know it depends on the context and intonation and sometimes they are interchangeable but 決める is much stronger than ことにする. For example if you decided to go to Tokyo
東京に行くことに決めた
東京に行くことにした。
If you say 決めた, it sounds like going to Tokyo is a big deal and you can assume that the speaker has gone through some kind of process and finally decided to go to Tokyo.
ことにした also means “make up one’s mind” but it could be just “I am going to Tokyo.” and it could be more casual.
So if you decide something in a meeting having some presentation, discussion, paper work, etc, you use 決める
Wow that was fast! Thank you very much for the detailed answer :)
ありがとうございます
どういたしまして、Kai 💕
Hello Maggie-sensei,
I am a bit confused about the meaning of “yoku” in the following example:
あんなひどいことをよく言えたもん（or もの）だ。
What does is mean exactly?
Also, what is the function of か in ものか? Is it a question particle in the end of the sentence or something else?
Alina
Hi Alina!
This よく has a sarcasm.
Usually よく言えた means “well said” but the speaker is sarcastic. →How could you say the horrible things?
か in ものか
expresses one’s strong feelings. (will/belief): I bet/There is no way
そんなことできるものか
If you are talking to someone: I bet you can’t do that.
If you are talking about yourself: There is no way that I can do that.
Thank you! I see the sarcasm there. So, よく is from いい.
The か is still a bit confusing to me. I understand that it is used to put a stress on some emotion, but I don’t understand it’s grammatical function. Does it have some kind of counterpart in English? Like maybe “Such a thing I can do… not” or something like that. It helps me when I try to translate as literally as possible.
I am sorry, you made a whole lesson about this topic and I still don’t quite get it completely… :/
@Alina
First, I will make よく lesson for you soon.
There are a few different usages.
**
As for か, the translation changes depending on the context or you don’t actually translate it so it is hard to give you the equivalent English words.
The example sentences in my previous comments
そんなことできるものか
If you are talking to someone: I bet you can’t do that./You are nog going to make it, I am sure. → So I guess you can express もんか with “I bet/ I am sure”
If you are talking about yourself: There is no way that I can do that./YOU can’t do that. →” There is no way” expresses もんか
They both express the speaker’s strong opinion.
Thank you, sensei. Thats the confusing thing though – そんなことできるものか sound to me like “I bet you CAN do that”. Otherwise it would have been できない. Again, in my head ;)
Looking forward to the よく lesson! :)
OK,
There is no way that I can do it.
そんなことできるか！ (rough/male speech)
そんなことできるものですか。
そんなことできるもんか。(casual)
All of these of a sentence implies the meaning “できるわけがない = There is no way that I can do it”
So grammatically it might be easier for you to think bring up the topics first and negate the possibility.
Do you think I can do it? No way! → There is no way that I can do it.
Anyway か has many functions. “or” “asking question” “express one’s strong feelings (usually talking back the listener, deny what the listener has just said.”
Will add it on the request lesson ,too.
Asking and then negating it actually does help to understand it better, thank you! How about this one (not sure though if this is the right place to post this question, but since it has もの in it…):
欲しいものなど もう何もない
君のほかに大切なものなど
It is from a song. The last sentence is really confusing. The official translation is “there is nothing more important than you”. So I can see “important thing” there (大切なもの), but where is this negation “there is nothing”? To me this sentence sounds literally “Besides you [there are] important things ans so on”. It is like the author is saying “you are not that important, because besides you there are also other important things” which I know is very wrong…
You’re very welcome!
OK, your new question…
君のほかに大切なものなど（何もない）
The last part 何もない is omitted because it is repeated.
As you said など has a meaning of “and so on””and etc.” but there is a usage
A などない = There is no such a thing as A
Aaahhhhh I get it now!!!! :) Thank you, I have finally found my peace with this song hehe.
Oh, one last thing: would it be possible for you to add a few audio recordings so that we could hear the intonation in your もの/もん example sentences? I wonder if the か at the end is pronounced like a question, or an exclamation… :)
OK, just added one audio file.
Thank you, that really did help a lot! I think I will stick with “you think I will cry? No way/as if!”
You’re welcome! :)
We can use どっかに旅行する to mean “to travel to somewhere”
How can we say to travel around somewhere. Like “I want to travel around South Africa” as opposed to just traveling to a single place in South Africa.
In that case could we use を?
like 南アフリカを旅行したい ? ?
I think that’s how it can be used for other verbs like walking. eg. 待ちを歩いてた.
Sorry I meant 町
Yes, you can say 南アフリカを旅行したい。
If you want to emphasize “around” and travel around many places through out South Africa, you can also say 南アフリカ中を旅行したい。
Thank you! I was also wondering how to say this :)
Great! U^ェ^U 💕
Maggie, hellooooo~! *hugs*
Christmas is just around the corner, so here are my wishes for you! Please be healthy, happy every day, keep supporting us with your knowledge about Japan’s culture and Japanese language and may all your dreams come true!
And here’s also my little request for you.
During playing Final fantasy IX <3 I come across an expression「かたじけない」, which also means「 ありがとう」. Could you tell us something about it? When is it used and who normally uses it?
Also you can add to "How do you response when someone says thank you to you":
1. 礼には及ばない
2. なんのなんの
Thank you!
Merry Christmas!!
Thank you for your nice Christmas wishes for me. I hope you have wonderful Christmas holidays, too!!
かたじけない Thank you
It is a typical samurai warrior’s speech.
You hear this only in Samurai drama, animations or games or when you talk like samurai jokingly.
I may add some of the expressions to say You’re welcome in future.
かたじけない！😆
Great page :) whenever I need to clarify some grammar point, I end up here.
However, I find the format of posts rather unclear. Posts get very long, and it takes a while to e.g. find specific forms or usages.
I think it would be a good idea to hide example sentences, so that they do not show unless one clicks on them. Subtopics etc. would also be very very helpful.
First thank you so much for your feedback. I really appreciate it.
I understand your point. All of my lessons are very long with lots of example sentences.
I am afraid I can’t have that function, hiding the example sentences, at the moment.
There could be some plug-in but if I do have one, I am sure some people who want to read the whole lesson without clicking the each subtopic or print out the lesson would complain. It is hard to satisfy everybody.
But if you just want to read the grammatical points, I guess there are tons of GREAT sites so please use mine just as a reference. I hope people who visit here learn Japanese through example sentences and find out the rules on their own.
Anyway, thank you for your visit! :)
Hi Maggie sensei! Thank you so much for all your detailed and helpful posts!
I was wondering how to order ice-cream. Such as when you can customize how many/which flavours you want, the size, and in a cup or cone. For example: “Medium size please, with vanilla and matcha in a cone”
Thank you!
Hi Krissy
You can use this pattern.
バニラと抹茶のMサイズをコーンでお願いします。
= banira to maccha no emu saizu wo koon de onegai shimasu.
or
Mサイズのバニラと抹茶をコーンでお願いします。
= Emu saizu no banira to maccha wo koon de onegai shimasu.
Hello,
I was trying to figure out how to say “dogs that don’t have wings” in Japanese, and I thought it would be 翼がない犬. However, Google Translate (which I know is not very reliable) gave me 翼のない犬, and I also know of a few other examples where の is used instead of が here (for example, 君のいる町, 名前のない怪物, etc). If it’s not too much trouble, could you please explain to me why の is used instead of が here, and whether that applies to other verbs in addition to いる and ある?
Hi Cher
You can say both
翼がない犬・翼のない犬
君がいる町・君のいる町
名前がない怪物・名前のない怪物
(The meaning is the same. You emphasize 翼・君・名前 with が more with が)
Please check this lesson. →Click this link
Hello Maggie-sensei!! I just stumbled upon your post and it’s extremely useful! I appreciate how you outline everything so carefully :) Thank you so much! By the way, I’m looking into applying for Animation industry in Japan and looking for further advises if you have any? Some people said a rirekisho is not needed, and some said during the interview they tend to be less formal and it’s more of showing around the company. So I’m getting a bit confused. I’m planning to go Japan soon to apply and attend the interviews in person so it would be a great help if I could get more information :) Thank you!
Hello 愛紗! Welcome to our site!
You are talking about working for Japanese company in Japan as a full time employee, right? If so,I can’t imagine Japanese companies would hire someone without rirekisho or any formal interviews. They have to sponsor your working visa. In order to get a working visa, you have to have proper academic background or career for the specific job.
The good news is the Japanese government has just changed the law and make it easier for foreign students who study in Japanese university or senmon gakkou (vocational school) to work in Japan. Check this article.
Thank you so much for your time and reply, Maggie-sensei!! That really helped a lot!! :)
Best regards! ❤❤❤
愛紗
You’re very welcome! Good luck! :)
Sensei, What Does The “Go” Stand For In These Words?
“Go-Meiwaku”
“Go-Kakete”
“Go-Renraku”.
That’s an honorific expression.
You add it in front of some word and make it sound polite. The kanji is 御 (ご/ お/おん = go / o / on) It has three ways of reading. (You can just write in hiragana as well.)
meiwaku → (polite) gomeiwaku
kake te → It is hard to tell by romaji but is it right after “gomeiwaku”? If so it should be “o kakeshite”
renraku →(polite) gorenraku
Check my keigo lesson.
Arigatou Gozaimasu, Too Understood Sensei. But I Got One More Question Please:
I Noticed In A Some Dictionnary A Word “Sama” In The End Of A Defined Term.
Ex: (…Ni Natte Iru Sama)
What’s That Word Sensei?
~verb + 様（さま）sama = 様子（ようす）yousu = (to describe) the way S is ~ (or does ~)
Sou Desu Ka, Mata Arigatou Gozaimasu Sensei. Kansha Shitemasu.
_Jitsuwa, Watashi No Nihongo Ha Yoku Natta Sou Deshite, Saikou No Sensei To Iu Anata No Tetsudai Ha Tottemo Yaku Ni Tatta N Desu. Ichiban Saito Ni Kimattemasu.
<3
どういたしまして！
うれしいメッセージありがとう！ これからもにほんご、たのしくつづけてくださいね。
= You’re very welcome! Thank you for your nice message. I hope you keep studying Japanese with fun!
Hai Yes I Do! Our Most Japanese Helpful Sensei!!
*-* <3
thankyou this is what i needed.
I have to admit there really is ALOT to absorb, but it’s good. so i will practice these examples for as long as it takes.
I take my hat off to the masters of second language.
Hi Shaun
Yes, practice, practice!! がんばって！
OMG! It’s really helpful. I couldn’t understand the meaning no matter how I read the dictionary again and again. Your explanation is so clear. Thank you. You saved me.
Hi Dahlia,
I am glad to hear this lesson help you understand the meaning. :)
Wow, just… wow! They don’t make lessons as good and complete as this one in my Japanese class!
It has been really helpful! Now I understand a lot of transcript interviews better! However, despite this wholesome lesson, there’s one line in one interview that it’s still giving me troubles. I hope you could help me with that.
It’s this one (to put you in context, it’s a fight promoter talking about women in MMA):「女の人もあんなに強くて戦えるって…！」, but then continues: 「総合格闘技って男性のスポーツだと思ってました…！」
I’m pretty sure the って from the second sentence [総合格闘技って—] is used as a topic marker and it’s interchangeable with は… But I don’t know about the って from the first sentence [—戦えるって].
My first guess was that it was used in the “I heard…/They say…” sense, and thus the first line would mean something like “I heard that women are strong and able to fight too (like men are)”. However, that doesn’t connect very well with the second line, I feel that an adversative conjunction like しかし or でも is lacking (in order to say “BUT I used to think that MMA was a sport for males” ).
I can’t think of any other satisfactory meanings for that って from the first sentence, though. Would you help me, Maggie-sensei?
Hello Ichijiku
You are right. て in the second one 総合格闘技って男性のスポーツだと思ってました…！ is a topic marker,
総合格闘技というものは男性のスポーツだと思っていました。I used to think MMA was a male sport.
女の人もあんなに強くて戦えるって…
This is an unfinished sentence. It follows the speaker’s surprised feelings.
女の人もあんなに強く戦えるって（→戦えるのは = topic *）…すごいなあ。・信じられない・驚きだ
*You can rephrase it 戦えるとは・戦えるなんて
I hope it helps…
Oh, yup, it surely helped me! I think I have finally understood the meaning of that って from the 1st line that was giving me so much trouble. Heh, Japanese people sure love to leave their sentences open…
Once again, thanks for the lesson, for the help, and for the fast reply too! マギー先生すごいな～!
よかった〜！ :)
It reminds me so muchof one usage of “come” in English… e.g. “I’ve come to realize that…”, “I’m glad I’ve come to know you…”
Hi Alina,
Good point. I’ve come to know わかってきた
You also say “ように”なってくる/きた
Hello Maggie sensei! I’m trying to read manga and was wondering if you could help me understand this one sentence?
For context, person A says to person B:
「これは君だからこそできる仕事だからな」
「頼んだぜ」
At which point, person B has a nostalgic flashback after which she thinks to herself:
「これは私だからこそできる仕事。。。か」
「フフ。。。」
「こんなの別に一撃じゃなくても倒せるじゃないですか」
Something about that last sentence’s structure is really confusing me, can you help?
Hi Jinzal
Are they talking about killing someone or some battle?
一撃 means “a single/one hit”
So 「こんなの別に一撃じゃなくても倒せるじゃないですか」 means,
“You don’t even need a single hit to beat him. = I bet you can beat him easily.”
Yeah, it’s a fantasy world and person A is trying to persuade person B to use her powers to kill some monsters in one hit while person B doesn’t want anything to do with them because of how disgusting they are.
OK, then it makes sense! :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Could you help me with my question, please? I was wondering if Japanese children use “teneigo” when they address their parents?
I’ll be thankful if you find time to answer it.
Sincerely,
Elena
Hi Yolochka
Generally speaking, they use “casual” speech when they talk to their parents. :)
What’s “subtweet” in japanese? I saw you didn’t cover that one
The closest one is 空中リプライ= kuuchuu ripurai (abbreviation 空中リプ = kuuchuu ripu）I will add it in the lesson later.
I would like to know if there is any difference in nunace between てくれる and てもらうsince most answers about it are ambiguous and contradict each other or some don’t mantion any difference between them so it would be importat to clarify any difference that may exist between the two.
Some say てもらう implies you asked a person to do something for you. How true is that? Could you explain, please?
Thanks.
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
1) 友達が教科書を貸してくれた。
2) 友達に教科書を貸してもらった。
The nuance difference.
1) implies “My friend is so nice and she lent me her textbook for me.” / My friend lent me a book and helped me. (She is really nice/I appreciate it.)
Focusing on “my friend” who lent me a book.
2) implies “I was so lucky. I got my friend lend me her textbook.”
Focusing on “I (myself)”
Q: てもらう implies you asked a person to do something for you. How true is that?
It will be easier to understand with more context.
教科書を忘れたが、友達が貸してくれた。
I forgot my textbook but my friend lent me hers.
教科書を忘れたので、友達に貸してもらった。
Since I forgot my textbook, I had my friend lend me hers ( = I asked my friend to lend me hers.)
Maggie Sensei, I like your blog sooo much. Very simple, practical, easy to understand, plus there are dozen of cuteness from your dog and cat <3
Your blog actually helped me with my work (^O^)
Hope you will continue this amazing work you do.
Much love,
Bella
Hi Bella!
ありがとう！for your nice message. I am happy to hear you like my lessons!
Good luck with your work!! これからもよろしくね！
マギー先生、こんにちは！「ことにする」について質問がありますよ。
「決定する」の意味も “to decide”ですね？「ことにする」と違いはありますか。
「結局、日本には行かないことにした」と「結局、日本には行かない決定した」は同じくらいですか。
ありがとうございます！
こんにちは、Palidor!
まず
「ことにする」を「ことに決めた」に言い換えることはできます。
結局、日本には行かないことに決めた。
「ことにする」に比べると「ことに決めた」の方が意思の強さが感じられます。
「決定した」は例えば、会議とか話し合いの上で何かをすること・しないことに決めた時に使うので自分の意思に使うの違和感があります。
ああ、なるほど。「決定する」はもっと公式的です。うちの会社で会議があって、「決定する」が使えます。分かりました。さすがマギー先生、説明をするのが上手ですよね！ありがとうございます。
どういたしまして、Palidor!
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I was having trouble translating a line from this song (https://www5.atwiki.jp/hmiku/pages/31606.html)
愛しているのは行為だよ
Literally, I would think it is “Loving is an act.” But that doesn’t make any sense.
I thought also that it might be something like, “I still love (you),” since 愛している is in the progressive form, and then 行為 would be highlighting the fact that it is something the speaker still does? I also thought that maybe it means something like, “It’s an act of love,” but then I feel like I’m forcing an English idiom onto the sentence. What does this actually mean, and how did you figure it out?
Thank you!
Hi Holly
“To love someone/Loving something” is (or means) an action.
愛している is the state of loving someone.
It is a line from a song, They play with words. That is why a lot of phrases are not grammatically correct.
So, do you think it’s best to just translate it literally as “Loving is an act,” then?
Also, could you tell me how 愛しているのは行為だよ is grammatically incorrect? I mean, I don’t understand what it means, but I can’t figure out how it’s incorrect either.
Thank you!
You can translate love is an action.
FYI the word 行為 literally means ” behave /what you do” and it is different from a word 行動, action.
The lyrics can be interpreted in many ways. The writer knows the real intention and listener can interpret as they like.
Okay, thanks for your help!
No problem! :)
マギー先生、こんにちは！お久しぶりですね。お元気ですか。
小さいタイポを見つけたと思います。
Ex. あなたががこれほど、馬鹿な人だとは思わなかった。
2つの「が」がありますよ。
Palidor xoxo
こんにちは、Palidor!
元気でしたか？ typo直しました。見つけてくれてありがとう！ ❤️
はい、私は元気でしたが、とても忙しかったですね。去年、新しい仕事を始めて、引っ越しましたが、仕事をあまり好きじゃなかったので、今年他の仕事を見つけました。今、国際法律事務所に勤めています。仕事が大好きですよね！
日本語を勉強し続いています。毎日、文書を書いたり、本や新聞を読んだり、暗記をしたりしますが、時々まだ無理だと感じます。でも、諦めません！
そうですか。いいお仕事見つかってよかったですね。
そしてずっと日本語の勉強を続けていると聞いて、私も嬉しいです。「継続は力」です。
これからもがんばってくださいね。
I see. Thanks.
You’re welcome! :
WOW! I’m so happy I found your website. You explained it so well. I had such a hard time understanding this. Thank you so very much.
Hi Sandy! I am so happy that you found this site, too!
Hope you come back here again and again! :)
Hello Maggie!
Long time no see, hope you’re doing well as always :)
This time I brought with me a simple question. During playing the Japanese version of Final Fantasy IX I came across the following expression:「ただでは済まさんからなっ！！」Here is a wider context:
「何を言うか、貴様～ッ！
自分は姫さまのことを案じておったのだっ！！
貴様らが誘拐などという不届きなことを企むから、
このようなことになったのだぞっ！！
姫さまに万が一のことがあったら、ただでは済まさんからなっ！！」
I’d like to know, which expression is stronger 1. ただでは済まない or 2. ただではおかない?
The meaning of both of them is the same, right Maggie?
Hi 天人！ 元気でしたか？
First
ただでは済まさんからな
ただではおかんからな。
mean almost the same. They both involves the speaker’s will.
ただでは済まない You can’t get away with it. /You are going to get it. / You are going to pay for it.
(The speaker is talking about what the listener’s going to get.)
ただではおかない I won’t let you get away with it. (It involves the speaker’s will.)
In that sense, I think おかない sounds a little stronger.
相変わらず元気でやってるずら！
説明してくれてありがとうな。
さー、FF IXとの冒険を続けようぜッ！なかなか長い冒険になるんだぜ、確かに！
行ってらっしゃ〜い！ 気をつけて冒険続けてね。(^_−)−☆
ワロスの上位互換として、ｸｿﾜﾛﾀﾝﾊﾞﾘﾝｼｬﾝｼｬﾝｶｽﾀﾈｯﾄﾀﾝﾀﾝﾌﾟｯﾌﾟｸﾌﾟｰｼｬﾝｼｬﾝﾌﾞｰﾁﾘﾘﾘﾘﾘﾝwwwwwwwというのがあります。
HAHAHA それは長い！！覚えきれるかな？
Hello Maggie-sensei,
There’s this sentence I’m reading with an odd form:
“なんて言ってはいるけど…”
I thought it might be something like “I don’t know how I’m saying this but…”.
It’s the は in the middle that throws me off. I was wondering how you’d translate this.
Thank you!
Hi EJ!
It means “(The speaker is) saying things like that (or something like that) but…”
なんて言っているけど → emphasizes the meaning なんて言ってはいるけど
マギー先生
先ず、レッスンを教えるのはありがとうございます。
いつも、便利です。
疑問があります、ネガティヴ+っぱなしできますか？
たとえば。。。
野菜を食べないっぱなし（に）出かけないで下さい。
野菜を食べないっぱなし（で）でかけないでください。
It is like “please, don’t leave without eating your vegetables”
I am not sure about particles either, so i apologize for any mistake in my japanese
I know I can use “zu”
野菜を食べずに出かけないで下さい, I am just wondering if above are correct.
Thank you so much
こんにちは、Suany
No, you don’t say 食べないっぱなしで〜
I guess 食べないで (or 食べずに） 出かけないでください。is grammatically correct but I would say
野菜を食べて出かけてください is more natural.
Hi Maggie!
I have a question regarding the differences between 「～という意味」and 「～の意味」 when they are used in explanatory contexts. I have several reference books which use both of these, but I am unsure of the specific conditions that require the use of one or the other.
From my understanding, the former is for defining something, whereas the latter is used to elaborate on what the concept is about/indicate what it represents.
Ex.
赤というのは、「血のような色」という意味だ。
Red is a color that looks like blood. [“means” – definition]
赤は、「危険」の意味だ。
Red represents “danger”. [“has the meaning of” – elaboration/representation]
Would this be an accurate way of interpreting it?
Any additional information would be greatly appreciated!
The main difference is
という意味= It means ~
の意味 = the meaning of ~
***
Red represents “danger”. I would say 赤は「危険」を意味する。(or simply use other verb 赤は「危険」を表す）
If you want to use ”〜の意味” You can say for example
Ex. 赤は「危険」の意味で使われる。
Hi!
Do ようになる and ことができる mean the same then? And so do ようにする and てみる (to try + verb)?
While ことができる means “to be able to do something” (describing the current ability) ようになる means “to become ~ “/ “to come to ~” and describes certain changes.
1) 彼は日本語を話すことができる。= He can speak Japanese.
2) 彼は日本語が話せるようになった。 = He came to be able to speak Japanese. (He couldn’t speak Japanese before.)
3) 彼は少しずつ日本語を話すようになった。= He has started to speak Japanese. (He didn’t speak Japanese before but now he has started speak Japanese.)
ようにする・てみる
ようにする = try to do something usually for something which requires efforts ) てみる (to give it a try, to do something as a trial, it could be just one time)
毎日、5時に起きるようにしている。I try to get up at five every morning.
明日は、５時に起きてみる。I will give it a try to get up at five.
I don’t get the difference between the last two examples. ようにする is more like “I make sure to”, isn’t it?
ようにする means “to try to do something” or if you want to talking about some state, “to make sure to”. It depends on the context.
Getting up at five in the morning is kind of hard. But if the speaker is trying hard to get up at five every morning, 毎朝、５時に起きるようにしている。 (You make it habit getting up at five. )
Please check my てみる lesson.
Hope you get the general usage of てみる to see the difference.
OK, many thanks! :)
You’re very welcome!
Hello Maggie-sensei,
this was one of the most difficult topics for me so far. I had to read it many times to understand it fully, and I am sure I will do it again one day :)
A small question regarding one of your examples:
マギー先生に怒られないように宿題をしないと…
I have to do my homework so that Maggie Sensei won’t get mad at me.
Why is it しない? Shouldn’t it be something like しなきゃいけない? The sentence you gave in my opinion sounds like “I WON’T do my homework so that Maggie Sensei won’t get mad at me.” Could you please explain? Thank you very much in advance!
These are the pattern
Vなければいけない・ならない （なきゃいけない・なくちゃいけない） = have to do ~
Vないといけない = have to do
なきゃいけない/なくちゃいけない） are casual contraction forms of なければいけない・ならない
Either way though the meaning is not negative the form itself is negative anyway.
Ex. 宿題をする→(negative form) 宿題をしない →（negative conditional form) 宿題をしなければ→(casual contraction) 宿題をしなきゃ
Thank you! I have never met the Vないといけない form before. Thank you very much and sorry for asking you too many questions lately :/
Go study this lesson.
Link →How to use ~と＆ないと
I explained the usage of “have to do something = ないといけない” right after the police officer’s picture. :)
Thank you very much, I read the lesson you’ve recommended me and understood that sentence :)
Good!! :)
Sorry I maybe have one more question with 思える!
In the sentence 最近、納豆が美味しいと思えるようになった, I was going to ask why do you use 思える(to seem) and not 思う (to think)?
But maybe ‘to seem’ is the wrong interpretation and 思える is being used as the potential form of 思う, like I have come to be able to feel that… ?
Ah because my translation is “come to like” so you can’t tell exact meaning.
思える is a potential form of 思う
So technically “I have come to be able to think Natto is delicious” (前は、納豆は美味しいと思わなかったけれども今は、そう思う。I didn’t think Natto is a delicious food but now I do.)
You can also say
納豆が美味しいと感じるようになった。
= I have come to be able to feel
Thank you for your quick response! I think because I haven’t had much practice with potential form, it isn’t always obvious to me that I should use it (if it isn’t obvious from the English sentence!) so I go back to using plain form because that feels more natural to me
e.g. I would say “I have come to like” not “I have come to be able to like”.
もっと勉強しなければならないんですよ!
OK, がんばって！ :)
Hello Maggie Sensei! Is there any other grammar with a similar meaning to panashi? Like for the example “to leave the light on”, are there other ways to say that?
Thank you!
Hi Chre
電気をつけたままにしておく You leave the light on
Check my まま lesson.
Hi maggie-sensei,
In this sentence, why is past tense 勉強した used since it is 今から?
今から勉強したところで試験に受かるはずはない。
Hi Chang
Ah I see.
It is a hypothetical sentence.
Though you use a past tense, it doesn’t mean you are talking about the past. It is just a pattern.
For example, you still have to use a past tense if you are talking about hypothetical situation in future.
明日、彼に会ったところで何も変わらないだろう。
Even if I see him tomorrow, nothing would change.
来年、受けたところでまた試験に落ちるだろう。
= Even if I take the exam, I would fail it again.
I found the phrase 笑いあうin a book. In the context, I believe the townspeople are smiling to each other as they say “Oh, little Kiki’s caught her foot again.”
Can you explain this 「笑いあう」 ?
笑いあう means either to smile/laugh at each other or laugh “together”.
Check my V+合う lesson. →Click here.
Hello Maggie-sensei,
thank you for the great lesson! :) I was wondering how do you build a zuni/naide sentence with words which are verbs in English but adjectives in Japanese, for example, 好き.
Like, how would you say “I can’t stop loving cooking”. 料理すろのが好き…しゃないで?? I’m totally lost, please help :)
Hi Alina
to love = 愛する works “V+ずにはいられない” pattern.
“I can’t stop loving you ” is （あなたのことを）愛さずにはいられない
If you use “愛する” “料理/(料理をするの)を愛さずにはいられない”
However as you said 好き is an adjective in Japanese so you can’t say 好きないで・好きずにはいられない
If you want o use 好き you have to add になる
〜を好きにならずにはいられない = can’t stop loving 〜
〜を好きにならないで+ V = to do something without loving/liking
Thank you so much sensei! :)
You’re very welcome, Alina! ❤️
Hi! Why is it 愛さずにはいられない and not 愛せずに? Thanks!
愛する = to love
愛せる = to be able to love (potential form)
〜ずにはいられない express one’s uncontrollable emotion. That’s why you don’t use the potential form.
Thank you Maggie sensei, you are my saviour,because I study japanese myself, your instructions are a bunch of help
I am very happy to hear that! Thank you for your nice comment!
これからも日本語がんばってくださいね。:)
Hi 先生！
Thank you for this lesson. It was really helpful! May I know if I can say “最近は雨が降りっぱなしだな。”as in, “it has been raining for quite a while/kept on raining these days”?
Thank you in advance! ><
It is one of the example sentences in a published textbook and people do say that in conversation. (However, I might say 最近は雨が降ってばかりいる.)
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Thank you . Maggie sensei ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
You’re welcome!
こんにちは 、マギせんせい.
in みんなの日本語初級第14課会話, the women speak to the taxi driver 「花屋の前で止めてください」.
Why not using 「に」? Because in 練習b, the car park attendant use 「あそこに車を止めてください。」
I’m confusing about this. lol
こんにちは、lawson
As I wrote in the example sentences, you can say both （location) に／で車を止める
If you do “an action of parking” in front of the flower shop, you use で. We can assume there is enough space in front of the flower shop.
But if you try to park in particular “spot” (let’ say you are aiming the spot), you use に.
ありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！ :)
こんにちはマギー先生、
I was wondering if you could explain the nuance between making a command with て form versus making a command with ように. : o
こんにちは！
Ex. これ書いて Can you write it?
Ex. これを書くように You must write it.
ように sounds stronger and demanding.
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Hi Maggie sensei ( o’y’o ) ! ( I’ve seen on several online lesson page ) To _KO / SO / A / DO we can add _KO / NO / RE / U / ITSU / NNA / CHIRA . Actually , the presentation is not as that in textbooks . They go the lesson details long and eventually they say > . ( Things like that ) . It:s something I dreamed ?(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
They say ＜＜ Actually , some other demonstrative pronouns still exist which are used for people and have to do with direction ＞＞( Things like that ) . It’s something I’ve dreamed ?
OK, I Think what you meant is this lesson.
Click this link. →こそあど言葉 ( kosoado kotoba) (this and that in Japanese)
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Thank you ! On to the next ! Maggie sensei , how to say FORTUNATELY and UNFORTUNATELY clause in japanese ? You’re wonderful ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
You just start a sentence with
fortunately 幸いにも( = saiwai nimo) ・ありがたいことに (= arigatai kotoni) 、運よく (= un yoku)
unfortunately 残念ながら ( = zannen nagara), 運の悪いことに（= un no warui kotoni)
and continue the sentence
Ex. 幸いにも日曜日でも店は開いていた。
= Saiwai nimo nichiyoubi demo mise wa aite ita.
= Fortunately the store was open even on Sunday.
Ex. あいにく予約(よやく）はいっぱいだった。
= Unfortunately it is all booked up.
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧ Hi Maggie sensei ! I want to go directly to the link of your lesson for は particle .Thank you !
Hello sensei,
I have a question:
彼ってすごいんです。
Is there a lesson about って? It is really confusing… I often meet a word with tte in the end. What does it mean and how to use it? Thank you!
Hello Alina,
this 「って」is an emphatic and colloquial equivalent of 「は」; it is used as a topic marker.
EX. あの人って、どう見ても、怪しいじゃん。 That guy is strange, no matter how you look at it. Don’t you think so?
ヨロシク
Thank you @天人 for helping Alina!
@Alina
Check this lesson.
How to use って
thank you guys! That will be my next lesson :)
こんにちはマギー先生、
I was wondering… When do you know to use ている+ところ instead of just plain old ている? : o
For example…
今、彼に話しているところです。versus 今、彼に話しています。
こんにちは！
話しています。 I have been talking to him. or I am talking to him.
話しているところ I am talking to him right now./ I am middle of talking to him.
ところ emphasizes when I am middle of talking to him. and it sounds more explanatory.
So when you just describe someone is talking to someone, you say
Ex. マギーは彼と話しています。
But if you need to explain something. (Ex. どうしてマギーは忙しいのですか？ =Why is Maggie busy? /あの件はどうなりましたか？= How is that matter going?)
マギーは彼と話しているところです。
Thank you maggie sensei. Very well explained lesson.
If possible, can you categorize lessons based on N1, N2 or etc?
Hi Lucas
Thank you for your suggestion. Though my lessons are not to study for JLPT, I have never clasified by its level.
But I will try to add more tags based on the level in future. :)
Thanks for the lesson, maggie-sensei!
I just wanted to let you know of a small typo:
Ex. 今日は家でずっと勉強をしている。/ しています。
= Konshuu wa ie de zutto benkyou shiteiru./ shiteimasu.
= I will be studying the whole day today.
should it be a day or a week? :)
Thank you for spotting the typo, Alina!
I’ll fix it right now. ありがとう！
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Hi Maggie sensei ! ( I really want to be able to master everything as helpful and accurate as so called “prepositions” ) Nice Maggie sensei , how to say properly ” _ACROSS eg: _A RIVER ” and ” _AROUND eg: _JULY ” / ” _AROUND eg: _A TREE ” / ” _AROUND eg: _A COUNTRY ” in japanese ? I especially need the pattern for each of them that Maggie sensei will show ! Maggie’s wonderful !(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
おはよう！
ACROSS eg: _A RIVER ”
It depends on the context but for example, My house is across the river
川の向こう (かわのむこう）
or
川を渡った(かわをわたった） （ところにあります）
So when you want to say “across the bridge, across the river”, you need an action verb, “crossing = 渡る（わたる）” or a word 向こう(mukou) the other side
” _AROUND eg: _JULY ” = ７月頃（ごろ）
“around” + Time related word + 頃（ごろ）
*around + number = approximately ~ = 大体（だいたい）〜・位（ぐらい・くらい）
around 20 (years) = 二十歳（はたち）ぐらい
” _AROUND eg: _A TREE ” = 木の周り（まわり）
around + big place = 周り（まわり）
” _AROUND eg: _A COUNTRY = 国の周辺（くにのしゅうへん）・国の周り（まわり）
周辺（しゅうへん） is more formal
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧( i’ll go them one by one ) (About the remark for ACROSS )Oh yeah ! I’ve understood ! Please show me it with ” TO WALK ACROSS THE RIVER ” (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
to walk across the bridge
You can use the verb 渡る
川を渡って歩く
If you are using a bridge,
橋を渡る
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Thank you ! ( New point ) Maggie sensei ! I’ve heard that there are some more demonstratives other than “_KO _NO _RE _U _ITSU _NNA _CHIRA and which seem to have to do with direction ー which they are ? Thank you ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
Hello,
I am sorry. I don’t quite get this part.
_KO _NO _RE _U _ITSU _NNA _CHIRA
こんばんはマッギー先生🤗
Long time no see 😊😉 I was woundering if this 載れちゃすいそー is also a construction of 〜ちゃう?? But would is the いそー standing for? Would you mind helping me ??
よろしくお願いします😉😊
ごめなさい i meant 載れちゃいそー
Hi Chii, 元気でしたか？
載れちゃいそう
I don’t know the context but for example
雑誌に載っちゃいそう
（雑誌に載ることができそう）
= It could appear in the magazine.
~そう has a meaning of “looks like, appears to be, to be going to”
Click this link → How to use そう
Hey again 😉
元気です。😊あなた？
あ！ありがとございます😉😊👍
Oh 🤦♀️sorry I’ve forgotten something i wanted to ask you about this word 王道 I have seen it quite a lot and it seems to have lots of meanings which confuse me especially when it’s just used like a expression. Could you maybe try to explain it to me ?
よろしくお願いします
王道 the literal meaning is “Royal Road” and it also means “easy way”
Ex. 学問に王道なし (proverb) There is no royal road to learning.( = There are no shortcuts in learning)
However, it is sometimes misused when you want to say
It is such a cliché
in daily conversation.
あ！わあ〜 ありがとございます 😊😉that really cleared things up a little bit for me😉 Thanks for the great explanation 👍
You’re welcome, Chii❤️
Hello! In conversations between friends, should I speak using the ちゃ and じゃ form? If so, could you give me more examples? Thank you!! I have trouble telling if I’m speaking too casually or too formally.
There is no rule that you should use ちゃ／じゃ form with your friends. Sometimes we use that form simply because it is easier to pronounce that way.
There are many causal speech forms but ちゃ／じゃ are pretty safe to use.
それではまた→それじゃまた See you later!
Hello マギー先生、
Under the sub-topic “past tense + なら”, for hypothetical statements, you give the example:
– 彼のことが嫌いなら３年も付き合わないです。
– If I didn’t like him, I wouldn’t have gone out with him for three years.
The condition is present tense.
My guess would have been this meant:
– If I don’t like him, I wont go out with him for three years.
So my question(s); is this a typo or do な adjectives follow a different pattern? And why is the second halve of the sentence in present tense? The action is (and would have been) completed already.
Thank you!
彼のことが嫌いなら３年も付き合わないです。
From this sentence, we can assume she has actually gone out with him for three years.
To be make it more clear, you can rephrase it as
彼のことが嫌いなら３年間も付き合っていないです。
I’m sorry, I kind of get why the second part would be present tense, but I still don’t understand why the hypothetical condition is not in the past tense here. The other two examples you give are past tense
– もし父がここにいたなら…
– もしも祖父が生きていたなら…
Why is this one different?
Hi Jay,
Sorry for the late reply. Just found your message.
Ahhhh, now I see your confusion. My mistake. That sentence was under “the verb + past tense” place.
Sorry to make you confused.
I see you removed the example, but of course I’m still wondering about it :D
The guy isn’t 嫌い, so could you still phrase this as 「嫌いなら。。。ない」?
What about
「嫌いだったなら付き合っていない」？
This would have been my first guess.
Is it okay to insert だった after nouns and なadjectives in cases like this?
Also (perhaps a bit off-topic), coming back to the second halve being present tense; does it imply they are still going out?
What if they are no longer together?
Something like 「嫌いだったなら付き合わなかった」 perhaps?
Thanks again!
@天人
Thank you for your helping as always!
@Jay
嫌い／好き are verbs in English translation so I had that example sentence there without thinking too much.
I shouldn’t have given you the example with other verbs and also it is a bit conversational.
Just for your reference. (I wouldn’t go any further.)
Ex. 彼のことが嫌いなら（ば）３年も付き合わないです。
= If I didn’t like him, I wouldn’t have gone out with him for three years.
It could mean either “they are still dating.” or “talking about their past but focusing on the reason”
past tense 〜だった + (の）+ なら expresses one’s stronger feelings or is used in more dramatic cases.
For these particular sentences, 嫌いだった doesn’t sound natural. Maybe it is because of the context or the second sentence could still mean the present.
For example,
そんなに彼のことが嫌いだったのなら別れれば/別れたらよかったのに。
works. (If you hated him that much, you should have broken up with him.)
Now let’s change 嫌い to 好き
1) 彼が好きならそう言えばいいのに。(S1 & S2 current situation)
If you like him so much, you should say so.
2) 彼が好きならそう言えばよかったのに。(S1 could be present or past/ S2 is past)
If you like/liked him so much, you should have said so.
3) X(not natural) 彼が好きだったならそう言えばよかったのに
Anyway, if you want to express clearly, present or past, たら is better.
Hello Jay,
「なら」 cannot appear after a past tense. Therefore ～た＋なら is grammatically wrong.
The most natural way to describe a past condition, whose result influences the present, is: ～たら… ～ない（だろう）／～てない（だろう） or ~なら…～ない（だろう）／~ていない（だろう）.
Using なら sounds more like: “if it is the case that…”, than just a simply “if”. Also, ～たら has less restrictions, than なら.
ヨロシク
(Somehow I can’t reply to your later answers, no button, so I’ll just reply to this earlier post.)
Thank you both for your answers.
I haven’t yet read up on たら. That lesson is currently waiting in my other tab for me to read it :)
But before I do that, just to check I’ve got this right;
when you’re making a counterfactual/hypothetical statement with なら and are not using a verb, you can just trust the context to make this clear?
おいしくないなら食べなかった
If it wasn’t tasty (it was) I wouldn’t have eaten it.
彼が好きならそう言う
If I liked him (I don’t) I would say so.
Or, theoretically: If I like him I will say so. (Which doesn’t make much sense.)
Thanks again for your help.
I’m off learning about たら.
おいしくないなら食べなかった alone doesn’t sound natural. For example if you add こんなに the person is eating something right now and shows his/her regret. If you change it to あんなに then we know the person is recalling the taste so we can tell it is something that happened in past.
こんな/あんなににおいしいしくないなら食べなかった
I wouldn’t have eaten it if I were this/that bad.
なら emphasizes what comes before.
*こんな・あんなに美味しくないんだったら食べなかった is more common
彼が好きならそう言う
If I liked him (I don’t) I would say so.
or
It could be the person hasn’t had the feelings for him yet but thinking about the possibility.
If I like him, I will say so.
(You can also say→彼が好きだったら言う）
So it all depends on the context.
Ah, yes of course, なら stresses what comes before. I should have kept that in mind.
Thank you for help.
I’ve got a feeling we will meet again in the たら comment section :D
In an anime setting in Hokkaido 1988, a 10 years old girl find it weird that her male classmate use 「じゃん」 and thought that he was trying to act like a city boy or something. Nowaday, is it still that way? Considered that you said it’s use has spread to other areas.
Also, I also heard a man abbreviate further to 邪魔すんじゃねえ.
Did you already make a lesson about changing 「る」to「ん」?
I assume it’s just male’s speech. Is there anymore thing to it?
Thank you in advance. I am going to study in Kyoto next year. Your website is very helpful. I visited it every now and then.
Hi petefinal!
1) It’s possible. Some people still may pretend to be they are from Yokohama area and use じゃん jokingly.
2) Yes, I do have a lesson on ん. Click this link. →When and How to use ん
Wow! How exciting that you are going to study in Kyoto. Kyoto is such a nice city!!
(｡ŏ﹏ŏ) Hi Maggie sensei ! How curious is ” _ miteminufuri ” vocabulary construction ! Is this construction unique among all vocabularies or it has some cousins who are constructed just the same way ？ Thank you ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
Not that special.
見て ( = mite ) to look and
+ 見ぬふり ( = minu furi) pretend that you didn’t see anything
Vて = to do ~ and
見ぬ is an old/literal form 見ない. (Ex. する→しない/ せぬ やる→やらない/ やらぬ）
ふり= ふりをする= to pretend
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Thank you , please ! (๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧
ლ(´ڡ`ლ)Hi Maggie sensei ❣ I’m curious about the suffix “_mi” and its meaning . Is it productive with vocabularies ? Please cite some examples ❣ Thank you ❣(´-﹏-`；)
Hello,
I have a lesson on the suffix み. Check this link.
(๑•̀ㅁ•́๑)✧Okay ❣ I’ll do that right away ❣ Thank you ❣ ლ(´ڡ`ლ)
Hope that lesson helps…:)
Hello Sensei!
I have read many many thread or post on Japanese conditional;
but indeed it seems to me that the most used conditional is something else.
In Japanese to make a conditional clause you have to modify the sentence which express the condition:
お金があればいいね
If I had money, it would be good, huh?
the conditional clause here is ” いいね” but to make it conditional we have to modify “お金がある” in “お金があれば”.
So what if we do not want to express explicitly the condition?
Conditional also stand on his own.
for example what about this conversation:
A: “Hey do you like sushi??”
B: “Yes! I would eat it every day!”
Here there is a stand alone conditional “I would eat sushi every day” (maybe some condition is implicit);
anyway how do we express this in Japanese ??
:-D
Hi Daniele,
There are several conditional forms, たら、ば、なら,と, etc.
たら is the most common one among all.
If I had money, it would be good, huh?
お金があればいいね。/more conversational お金があればなあ。works but you can also say お金があったらいいね。（more conversational お金があったらなあ）
For your example sentences, I would use でも〜+potential form
A: “Hey do you like sushi??”
B: “Yes! I would eat it every day!”
毎日でも食べられる。
“I would eat sushi every day”
毎日でもお寿司を食べられる。
or You can also use たら
You can stress “Sushi” by using だったら
お寿司だったら毎日でも食べます。/ 食べられる。
It’s minor but think I might’ve found a typo?
ほどではありません。(polite) ／〜ほどではない
= ~ hodo dewa arimasen /~ hodo de wa mao/
The romaji is written as mao instead of nai.~
(thanks for the lesson btw, just came across this in my textbook and I felt like I’m getting way more confused over this then I should be, this helps.~ <3 )
Thank you for spotting the typo,Tina! I fixed it. :)
Hello Maggie 先生!
I’ve read through your lesson and your additional explanation in the comments. However I still cannot understand the usage of the particle に in the following sentence (the first に) : 20歳未満の人に禁止されているものも自由に買えるのが不思議だと外国人はよく言う。
Could you please explain? Thanks!
こんにちは、Yan
に is either an indirect object marker or “by”. In this case an indirect marker.
someoneに(direct object) を、禁止する
someoneに(direct object) が、禁止されている
→
Something (direct object)は２０歳未満の人(indirect object)に禁止されている
→ ２０歳未満の人(indirect object)に禁止されている＋もの
Many thanks, Maggie Sensei! I understand it now.
You’re very welcome, Yan! :)
Can we use kara instead of ni as below?
hokano okyakusan ‘kara’ gochumon wo tanomareta hito
hokano okyakusan ‘kara’ gochumon wo tanomareta hito
The sentence itself is a bit unnatural but you can use “kara” instead of “ni.
I took an order from a customer.
お客さんに注文を受けた。= Okyakusan ni chuumon wo uketa.
お客さんから注文を受けた。 = Okyakusan kara chuumon wo uketa.
Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your hard work! Your explanations have saved me many times :)
I have one question please.
I am confused about adjectives and talking about personality.
I am shy.
Watashi wa hazukashii. / Watashi wa hazukashigariya.
Hazukashii is an adjective. But Hazukashigariya is a noun.
I don’t understand the grammar for (Subject-object marker- noun)
Is this strange? Is there a difference in the nuance?
(and not, for example. Kanajo wa akarui. But not, kanojo ha akaruigariya).
Thank you very much!
Hi Rho-chan
Ah, those are special words.
はずかしい = hazukashii means “to be embarrassed”
はずかしがり/はずかしがりや= hazukashigari / hazukashigariya= describes shy person.
You don’t say あかるがりや ( =akarugariya) “gari” only works with certain words.
Please go check my garu-gari lesson.
Maggie Sensei (Heart)
Thank you for your reply. OK, I see.
I will check out the garu-gari lesson :)
Thank you so much!
You’re welcome, Rho-chan!
Hi Maggie,
You write as an example above:
この花は誰からもらったの？」
= Kono hana wa dare kara moratta no?
However, as hana is the object of the give/take transacion, shouldn’t I say
” Kono hana wo dare kara moratta no?
Thanks!
Hi Karl
Good question.
You can also say,
誰からこの花をもらったの？
You use は when you talk about something and は has a function as a topic indicator.
You bring up a topic with は to show “I am talking about these flowers.”
So it won’t sound natural in English but it means
→ As for these flowers, who did you receive (them) from?”
The answers can be either
Karlからこの花をもらいました。
I got these flowers from Karl.
or
この花は、Karlからもらいました。
As for these flowers, I got (them) from Karl.
So you make it clear what you are talking about by using は in Japanese.
Maggie-sensei, I’m sorry to trouble you with another question. I first need to write an email to my friend’s aunt who will show me around during my visit to Japan, but I wonder how I should open it? Would including something like 貴重なお時間をありがとうございました and 迷惑をかけてすみません。to convey that I’m sorry to trouble her and to thank her for making the time to see me.
貴重なお時間をありがとうございました may sound too formal for your friend’s aunt.
迷惑をかけてすみません is used when you actually cause some problems.
How about 今日はお忙しい中、すみません/ ありがとうございます。 = Kyou wa oisogashii naka sumimasen/ arigatou gozaimasu. before she shows you around.
(すみません conveys your feelings of “Sorry for to trouble you./ ありがとう simply expresses your appreciation.)
Maggie-san, thank you for your lessons. Your site is very helpful and it’s fun to learn using it. I appreciate your time.
I had a question about itadakimasu and gochisosama deshta. What if you’re eating by yourself in a restaurant? Do you say them to the waiter who brings your food or only if you’re in a kind of restaurant where you interact with a chef? Thank you!
Hi Ami,
I am glad you enjoy learning Japanese.
OK, you don’t have to say anything to the waiters or chefs at all. However, as you said, if they are friendly, it would be nice to say “gochisousama(deshita)” or “oishikatta desu.” to them when you leave.
You don’t usually say “itadakimasu” when you eat by yourself.
こんにちはマギー先生！
I have a small question: you mention that というcan be used as a relative pronoun. However, I was wondering when/in what situation you would use という?
because couldn’t you also write this example:
マギーは結婚したという噂がある
withoutというas
マギーが結婚した噂がある。 ？
So I was wondering if you could explain WHEN you would need to take the extra step and add という。
Sorry if I worded this in a confusing way, I tried my best!
ありがとうございます！
こんにちは、ClarificationSeeker!
1) マギーが結婚した噂がある。
2) マギーは結婚したという噂がある
2) is quoting what kind of rumor there is. Let me rephrase it so that you can see what kind of emotion is behind it.
「マギーが結婚したよ/ マギーは結婚したんだって/ マギーが結婚したらしいよ, etc.」という噂がある
2) sounds more explanatory and emphasizes what comes before.
You use it when you expresses emotions such as your surprised feelings or when you think the listeners/readers don’t know that information.
3) 誰も
Hi Maggie-sensei..
I have a question.. 私なんてただの犬の先生でしかない. It is an example above, I just wanna ask why is で used after the sensei?
Hi Leo,
Nでしかない is an expression to belittle someone/something in this case “myself” It means “I am nothing but just a dog teacher”
Ohhhhhh…. Thank you as always Maggie-Sensei :D
どういたしまして、Leo! :)
1 more question maggie sensei.. I got lost in the difference of this 2 sentences that I made.. it goes like this..
“Kore ga yaru shika nai” & “Kore deshika yaranai” and is it right that I putted de in here? ..
Leo
I wonder if you meant these two sentences.
これをやるしかない？= Kore wo yaru shikanai = There is no choice. I have to do this. (Obligation/You are under pressure)
これだけしかやらない = Kore dake shika yaranai = I only do this.(Nothing else) (You do just one thing. You decide on your own)
Your sentences
Kore ga yarushika nai. = これがやるしかない = You use が after これ. That mean “これ” is a subject. “This one” should do. There is no choice. (That means you refers to someone with これ which is pretty rude.)
Kore deshika yaranai” これでしかやらない Since you put で after これ, it means “with this” “method”. I only do it using this.
こんにちはMaggie せんせい、
I am working at Reservation Department Hotel industry.
May you assist me the lesson in Hiragana please?
There would be highly appreciated with your kind assistance.
I would like to improve Japanese Speaking.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Best regard,
Long Mr.
こんにちは、Long!
Umm I am not quite sure how I could help you but there is a hotel lesson (I am sorry but I don’t just type in hiragana because the lesson will be too long) Please go check the lesson. :)
Hello, Maggie
A certain setnce has been puzzling me for a while, can you please help me to figure it out
The sentence is わざわざ相方用にレイヤーさんも気を使ったのかな
source
https://twitter.com/jdpajdpa/status/922046557863550976
I think the レイヤーさんも気を使ったのかな part translates to “I wonder did cosplayer also(?) pay attention to”, but what does わざわざ相方用 mean?
相方 means one’s partner/companion (It doesn’t have to be a lover. Could be a very close friend who you always hang out.)
用 is “for”
I think what he meant was, she (レイヤーさん）was supposed to make a heart shape with the guy next to her but she didn’t concerning her boyfriend’s feelings.
Either way, 用に／わざわざ (she took all the trouble) is not common usage in that sentence.
Sorry for the late answer
Yeah, that’s why I thought after thinking it through a bit more
Thanks for the help!
No problem!
玩具をかで来る
You mean おもちゃ（玩具=がんぐ is more literal）を買（か）ってくる？
this help me a lot sensei! i work as interperter here in the philippines,
thank you for all the hardship!
sensei can you provide also the vocabulary for benefits and commonly used
phrases in employment. ex. salary , benefits, wages, taxes. thanks a lot in advance
Hello rommel niemes,
I am glad to hear you found this lesson helpful.
I don’t cover the phrases but there are vocabulary regarding, salary, bonus, etc right below アルバイト. Please check again. :)
Hey,
just wanted to say thank you for all your lessons. Almost every time I looks for something that I don’t understand one of the first results on Google is your page where I always find an answer.
ありがとうございました
Hello, Hitokage!
I’m happy to hear you come visit here many times! :)
If someone says “昼ぶり” does that mean “I haven’t seen you since noon?” In the past I have only seen ぶり used after specific measurements of time like days, weeks, years, etc so I wasn’t sure.
It’s very conversational but it means “I haven’t seen you (Or It has been) since noon (or day time)”
You are right. You usually say “time period word” + ぶり
Thank you for your quick reply. Also, thank you so much for making this website! This is my first time leaving a comment but I have used it many times before and it was very helpful.
You’re very welcome, Joy!
And thank YOU for using this site! :)
There’s a question like this:
「マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートを………..」
Amongst the options, あげました and いただきました confused me. Because i think both can be the answers.
マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートをあげました
Mike san GAVE chocolate to ami san
マイクさんはアミさんにチョコレートをいただきました
Mike san RECEIVED chocolate from ami san
But i was wrong, the answer was あげました only.
How come?
Can’t “もらう / いただく” be used for ‘third person’ from ‘third person?
I thought “もらう / いただく”is a neutral one, any subjects can use it
Thank you in advance 🙏
The key is マイクさん.
If the subject is 私 (or someone close to you like your family)
私/私の息子は、アミさんにチョコレートをいただきました。works.
If so, how to say “receive” for third person to third person that’s not close to me?
You can say
AはBに〜をもらう
AはBに〜をあげる
but it will be unnatural to use honorific/humble expression for the third person unless they are your family or someone you emphasize with.
So i don’t have to use honorific expression to someone older than me yet not personally close?
For example, let’s say i have a neighbor, named A, who is 50 years older than me. I’m not personally close to A yet i know A and respect A.
One day i saw A gave chocolate to B. (Let’s sayB is also my neighbor, 40 years older than me, not personally close as well yet i respect)
If i want to say B received chocolate from A, i don’t have to use honorific expression (itadaita)?
Just say moratta / moraimashita is enough?
Because i thought honorifics is used for someone older or someone you respect for… No matter how close or not you are to that person….
Sorry for asking always 😁
Thank you thank you in advance…..🙏
If you respect A and B and want to express that feeling, you can say for example,
AさんはBさんにチョコレートを渡されていた。
BさんはAさんからチョコレートを受け取られていた。
Maggie –
When I order meat, do they ask the equivalent of “how would you like it cooked”? What would that be, and how would I respond?
Thanks!
Hi バッド!
You say
お肉*の焼き加減はどうしますか？/ more polite)いかがなさいますか？
= Oniku* no yakikagenn wa dou shimasu ka? / (more polite) ikaga nasaimasu ka?
*steak = ステーキ
レア/ミディアムレア/ミディアムウェルダンでお願いします。
= rea/midiamu rea/mediamu/werudan de onegai shimasu.
= rare/medium rare/medium/well done please.
You can also say
well-done →よく焼いてください。(Yoku yaite kudasai.)
Maggie-sensei, thank you so much for this lesson!
Actually I want to ask the difference of grammar, but it’s about love expression so I hope it’s not really out of context.
Usually I found either 君が好き or 君を好きになった, but recently I found this sentence 超美少女が好きになったのは、超能力者。 I take it’s 超能力者 who fell in love with 超美少女 rather than the other but it might be because of the comma that I’m not really sure.
And when I searched for other examples, looks like (object) が好きになる is used but not as frequently as (object )が好き or (object)を好きになる, did I guess it right? But aren’t their meanings all the same ?
Hi Crims,
Good question.
Aが好きになったのは、B
The one who A fell in love with is B.
Aが好きになったのはB
The one who fell in love with A is B.
As you said, comma is a key to tell which one is which.
**
First ~が好き and ~が好きになる are different.
~が好き I like/love ~
~が好きになる I come to like ~
As for these two
~が好きになる
~を好きになる
I can’t tell which one we use more but が is a topic marker and を is an object marker. Therefore, while が emphasizes who you like and を is used when you state the fact you like someone.
Hope it helps.
Hi Maggie-sensei!
Is there a way to say “ii n janai” politely, while preserving the meaning of the expression?
Thank you for these wonderful lessons! ♥
***I just realised the expression could have different meanings depending on the context. The meaning I was talking about is “Isn’t it fine?” and the like. For example, when someone tells you to change out of your pajamas, and you say “Isn’t it fine? It’s Saturday!”
Polite way to say それでいいんじゃない？
How about それでいいのではないでしょうか。土曜日ですし。
Thank you!!!
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie Sensei,
This article is extremely helpful, however there is something I am confused about.
You have written 学校に教科書を忘れてきました。
So in that case, would it be wrong to state 駅で傘をわすれてました。
Also, which of the following is the correct way to express me forgetting my wallet in Japan during a trip there?
日本に財布を忘れました。
日本で財布を忘れました。
Thank you!! :)
Hi Damian
You usually use place に忘れる
You may hear/see some Japanese people use place+で＋忘れる. But still に忘れる is more natural.
忘れる means “to leave something somewhere” ~に置く・置いておく is “to leave/put something on purpose” but the idea is the same. It describes the state.
If you say “to lose” なくす, it is your action so you use で
学校で教科書をなくした。= I lost my textbooks at the school.
日本で財布をなくした。= I lost my wallet in Japan.
Ah that clears things up.
Thank you for your advice!
Cheers! :)
どういたしまして、Damian! :)
すみみません
どして 新完全ますた(N3)には質問「日本で富士山ぐらい＿山はないと思う。」が答え「きれい」ですか
１・きれい ２・高い ３・ほかの
まったくわかりませんでした
だって 「高い」も適当じゃないか
マギー先生 詳しく答えいたけませんか お願いします！
１・きれい(な)!
of course
OK, you have to focus on the verb 思う which expresses one’s opinion and everybody (at least in Japan) knows that Mt.Fuji is the highest mountain in Japan. It’s a well known fact.
So it is not natural to use 高い.
Meanwhile, きれい is a personal opinion so you can say 富士山ぐらいきれいな山はないと思う。
Thanks a lot
You’re welcome! :)
How would you translate: “引き受けないほうがいいんじゃないの？”
I think you shouldn’t take/accept (it = the job/offer/request, etc.).
Hello, 先生. I’m trying to understand something in the sentence 「とっても強い家であったため建つまでに長い時間がかかりました。」
I don’t really understand why they use 「であった」here just before ため. I’d also asked on a different post why a sentence had left out the particle に after よう and I’m wondering if the same thing applies here — you can leave out the に after ため and it still holds the same meaning.
Hello Forest,
であった implies here the past tense (=the house was).
ため implies the reason (=therefore).
It was a very solid house. Therefore it took a long time to build it (lit. before it was built).
And yes, the に part. in ために emphasizes the meaning and sounds more polite. There is a rule in Japanese. The longer the sentence, the more polite it is.
ヨロシク
@天人
Thank you for helping ＠Forest! :)
I just want to thank you, Maggie. :D
You helped me a lot, and I hope I have not annoyed you too much.
My pleasure! 💕
Maggie sensei YOU ARE AWESOME!!
Thank you! ありがとう！ 😘 💕💕
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I have seen that you have giving us lot of inputs on vocabulary. Can you also train us in challenging the Dokkai portions of JLPT N1. Am unsure where am I going wrong and score so less.
It would be grateful of you to help us in this.
Thank you,
Viji
Hi Viji
Wow! You have been studying for JLPT N1?
それでは、日本語で書きますね。このサイトのレッスンはすべてオリジナルです。JLPT N1の読解の教材は、JLPTの過去問や、新聞のコラム、エッセイなどを使いますが、他の人が書いたものをここで使うのは難しいです。点数が低い理由がわからないとのことですが、１）語彙 ２）出てくる文法 に問題がなければ、内容は理解していますか？
質問に対して、ぴったりの答えが書かれている場所を探すコツがあります。JLPT用のテキスト等を使っていると思いますが、それ以外にネット等でいろいろな日本語で書かれた文章を練習して読んでみてください。
Hello Maggie Sensei,
So I was trying to translate this song (full lyrics here: http://vocadb.net/S/87131) and the first couple of lines didn’t make much sense to me. There seem to be a lot of inferred particles or something, because there seem to be a bunch of unrelated sentence fragments. In any case, the use ofなら confused me as well. It doesn’t seem to be any of the ones you wrote about on this page, which all still seem to have a sense of “if.”
触媒（カタリスト） Ocean of foliage
産み落ちた過ち故 佇む静寂なら縛り付け
罪の十字
“A catalyst (from) an ocean of foliage; because it was an error that I was born, in the still silence, a cross of sin is tied to me.” is what I could get from it.
I thought, perhaps, it was more for emphasizing topics: “Concerning the still silence,” which is where I got “in” from (since usually if you’re talking about silence, you’re talking doing something in silence). But I don’t know if that’s correct, since, if what I have is correct, ならwouldn’t be marking a topic.
Basically, what I’m asking is, how would you translate なら in this context?
Thank you!
(sorry if I posted this already); I noticed that my comment had disappeared, so I thought it was a technical glitch, but just now I notice the “awaiting moderation” thing at the top. So sorry if this is a repeat!)
Holly
Sorry, I can’t help you the lyrics here.
As I explained in the lesson, なら is usually conditional, “if ~ / in case ~ “or “If you are talking about ~, it’s ~ “(emphasis) but it just doesn’t fit in the lyrics.
So are you saying that, in your experience of Japanese, this usage of なら doesn’t make sense?
Poem and lyrics are hard to translated because you have to interpret the writer’s intention in the first place.
It could be if the person is just standing still (without accepting his sin or making any excuses), he will be crucified.
Oh, okay. I took 佇む as just modifying 静寂, but if you take it also as an action of the speaker like that, then it makes more sense.
Could you please help me with another question on the same song? It has, I think, some inferred particles, and I’m not sure what to connect and what not to connect. (You’re definitely right about songs! Translating them is very confusing (^^ゞ )
罪に塗れる 封印されし刃金の魔剣
今粉の砂炭 蘇る刻が来り
“Smeared with sin, the magic blade of pressed steel is now the particles of Satan (possibly ash? 砂炭 is just phonetic; you probably assumed that but it took me a while to figure out so I thought I’d put it in (^～^)). The time for rebirth has come. ”
That’s how I translated it, but I’m not sure if 今粉の砂炭 goes with the above line, especially since I assumed both a particle and the main verb for my translation. Is it okay if I do that, or is that wrong?
Sorry to bother you again, and thanks for helping!
I think you got the meaning right.
(p.s. There was a space between 今粉の砂炭and 蘇る刻が来:
今粉の砂炭 蘇る刻が来り. Don’t how much that matters, but somehow it got deleted! Oops.)
Okay, thanks! :)
You’re welcome! :)
This is a small question, but I saw the sentence 「狼に捕まらないよう気をつけなさい。」and I was just wondering why they left out the particle 「に」? Does it make a difference?
Both are fine. When you emphasize the meaning you add に
Hi,Maggie!
I have just read through your lessons but now I am a bit confused about the negative part…
I have never heard of the conjugation でなくなる etc.
I have alwazs learned にならない or くならない
Is it that this version,explained in your lesson,is rare or am I wrong?
Btw,I love your lessons you help me a lot :)
Hello, Kitsunax26
Oh, I see your confusion.
I added the special negative form section later to answer some of the questions but the basic negative form part was missing. I will fix it later.
Anyway you are right, the basic negative form is にならない／くならない
Just give me a couple of days to add more information. :)
Ah that makes sense, I just didn’t want to assume I couldn’t use となる as I’d never seen it before! Thank you!
My pleasure! :)
Is there an easy way to know whether the pronunciation is じゅう or ちゅう?
Unfortunately there is no simple rule but,
place related word You tend to use じゅう, そこらじゅう、日本中(にほんじゅう)
action related word ちゅう 勉強中（べんきょうちゅう）・仕事中（しごとちゅう）
Time related word chuu/juu both 午前中(gozen chuu)・１日中(ichinichi juu)
こんにちはマギー先生！
Recently I’ve been seeing the expression “というように” a lot.
For instance: 「猿も木から落ちるというように、誰でもミスをすることはあります。」In this case In this situation I think the というように means “that is to say”, however, in other situations I’m very confused about why you would need to use it.
Would you be able to provide some examples of when and why someoney would useというように?
Hello Confused,
I will try to help you. The other usage, referring to the first one, is “to give an impression of/that… / as if… / as much as…”.
This expression is quite similar to と言わんばかり／とばかり.
1) というように
分かったというようにうなずき始める。
=> To start nodding in understanding/agreement.
信じられないというように鼻をならす。
=> To give a snort of disbelief.
彼女は、この話はもうよそうというように言って、 いきなり慌てて部屋を出て行ってしまった。
=> She said it in a way, like she wanted to get off the subject and then –
without warning – she just left the room in hurry.
2) と言わんばかり
知っていると言わんばかりの口調で言う。
=> To say with a tone of understanding/knowing.
賛成だと言わんばかりに頷く。
=> To nod as much as to say “OK, I agree”.
「かわいそうな人」といわんばかりに人を見る。
=> To look at someone with pity (lit. as much as to say, poor him/her).
ヨロシク
PS. Regarding 「猿も木から落ちるというように、誰でもミスをすることはあります。」 a very fine translation would be “Everyone makes sometimes mistakes, just like monkeys fall from trees sometimes as well” or “Everyone makes sometimes mistakes, just like the old maxim says 「猿も木から落ちる」”.
@天人
Thank you for helping @Confused! :)
Hi Sensei,
I was wondering whether というように can be replaced with というふうに, such as in the examples below:
リンゴは 1 ポンドいくつというように売られている.
自動鉋盤で2.5～3.65ミリというように木取りの仕上がりの寸法を決める。
分かったというようにうなずき始める。
Your help is much appreciated! Thank you!
There are some cases that you can use both ふう and よう but I wouldn’t use ふうに for the first two sentences.
ふうに means “in the way that~” and 1) and 2) have concrete price.
As for the third sentence, you got it from ALC? The sentence itself is a bit unnatural unless the person nods a lot.
説明してくれてありがとうございました！Just to clarify though: というように is pretty much only translated as “as much as” in situations where numbers are involved, right?
I ask because I found these examples and was trying to wrap my head around it.
1) リンゴは 1 ポンドいくつというように売られている.
2)自動鉋盤で2.5～3.65ミリというように木取りの仕上がりの寸法を決める。
Thanks again~
＠Confused
It depends on the context but というように means “as if” / “like”/ “such as”
Actually it doesn’t matter if it involves numbers or not.
For example when you explain something, you give a concrete example and quote with というように.
1) リンゴは 1 ポンドいくつというように売られている.
So in this sentence, it explains how they sell the apples.
2)自動鉋盤で2.5～3.65ミリというように木取りの仕上がりの寸法を決める。
It explains how they decide the size of the wooden frame work.
こんばんは！Maggie、先生。
I’m just wondering, what does the “死んでしまったら” means？
In the sentence もしあなたが死んでしまったら生きていけない。I get the part of 死ぬ
which means to die。I’ve searched it in the Index main lesson 2 page, but with no luck of finding it XD.
ありがとうございます。:D
〜て(で）しまう
I explained the usage in my ちゃう lesson.
死んでしまう have died (action is completed), expressing speaker’s emotion, in this case, fear, anxiety)
You are am excellent teacher.
ありがとうございます 先生。
どういたしまして！ safa ❤️
Maggie sensei, I really love your lessons they helped me learning Japanese in more fun ways better than my grammar books and Japanese classes.
Anyway, could you please explain about the differences between 「気をつけて」and 「注意して」?? Normally if I want to say please be careful on the way I used 「気をつけて」、but what about 「途中で注意して下さい」?
Thank you 😊
Hi Riou,
I am happy to hear you like my lessons.
気をつけて/注意して They both mean “carefully” in English and they could be interchangeable
You tell someone who is careless and keep making mistakes,
これからもっと気をつけてください。
これからもっと注意してください。
The diference
注意してV paying attentions, with attention
気をつけてV taking care of, being careful
You say to someone “to take care of oneself”
気をつけてね= Take care! / Take care of yourself.
You never say 注意してね
You also use 注意する when you warn someone.
Hello Maggie Sensei,
can you explain what this is:
突然立っていられないほどの痛みを背中に感じた。
My guess:I cannot stand up fast because I feel my back hurting?
Let me break it down so that you can figure it out.
突然、痛みを背中に感じた。
= Suddenly I felt a pain in my back.
立っていられないほどの express what kind of pain.
the pain as you can’t stand still
Ahh ok, so is this correct then:
My back is in so much pain to the extent that it seems like I cannot even stand still?
Sorry I meant:
Suddenly I felt a pain in my back to the extent that it seems like I cannot even stand still
Ｈｅｌｌｏ Maggie,
what does this mean:
傘を刺すほどではないが、少し雨が降っています
I am having a hard time figuring out the meaning in english
thx
傘をさす= put up an umbrella / use an umbrella
So it is raining a little but it is not as hard as you would need to use an umbrella.
hello Maggie
you are missing Since xxx
Example:
Since 1990, Apple was made iphone.
@linh
Hi linh
Check my time expressions with/without time expressions lesson.
My friend just referred me to this website and I like it a lot. I found it very useful and full of content. Thank you so much for doing this!!!!!
Welcome to Maggie’s site. Hope you come back here often! よろしく！！ :)
What is difference between なかなか and かなり
Thank you
They are similar but you don’t use かなり in a negative sentence.
なかなかいない
xかなりいない
なかなか休みが取れない
xかなり休みが取れない
If my memory didn’t deceive me, I saw a man use 何かしら before. Is this an exception?
I would say it sounds very effeminate. Man would say 何だろう。 (I wonder what/ What is it?) unless he say 何かしらの (some kind of ) + noun
I found it. It is from a manga. A conversation between two young men.
A : お前さ。なんか欲しいもんある？
B : 欲しい物？
A : そー。なんかしらあんだろ。物でなくても。
Ah OK,
It’s different from the female suffix かしら
何かしら→(casual) なんかしら = something
何かあるだろ→なんかしらあんだろ = You must have something.
You add かしら with なに、だれ、どこ and add the nuance of assumption.
誰かしら somebody or other 誰かがきっと
どこかしら somewhere or other どこかきっと
なにかしら something or other なにかきっと
Hi Maggie先生, when I write my Western name in katakana, I have been putting my surname first. I also introduce myself by my surname in a formal or business setting. However, I have noticed that in certain letters or on business cards, Western names are written in katakana with the first name first. Which way round is it for Western names?
ありがとうございます！
@JJ
Hi JJ
We tend to adapt Western name order in business letters.
So “first name” + “surname”
***
However, when Japanese people make business cards in kanji and romaji,
since kanji order is “surname” + “first name”, romaji also use this order.
山田 花子
Yamada Hanako
(surname) + (first name)
Ahaaa! Thank you so much!
You’re very welcome, JJ! :)
Hello!
彼は彼女との距離を起き、彼女の感情の変化を観察することで彼女自身の気持ちを認識させる。
Does it translate to “He distances himself from her to confirm her feelings to him by observing the changes in her mood.” or “He distances himself from her and by observing the changes in her mood makes her recognize her own feelings”? I’m having trouble understanding the object of 認識させる. And how will the translation change if instead of 認識させる it ends with 認識する？
Thanks in advance
＠Pol
Hi
It is hard to tell by just one sentence and the key can be hidden in the previous sentence but
I would use 認識する・ or 認識しようとする in that sentence.
Unless the object of 認識する is 彼自身 himself. “let himself recognize her feelings”
(起き→the kanji should be 置き)
Here’s the whole thing to make it more clear. It’s a brief summary of the light novel.
八幡(Hachiman)は雪乃(Yukino)の気持ちがどうなのか見るため、陽乃(Haruno)と偽デートすることで揺さぶりをかける。 八幡は由比ヶ浜(Yuigahama)との距離を近づけ、雪乃に揺さぶりをかける。由比ヶ浜はその行動に気がつくも、気がつかないフリをする。 八幡は雪乃との距離を起き、雪乃の感情の変化を観察することで雪乃自身の気持ちを認識させる。 雪乃が八幡に自分の気持ちを告白するが、八幡は本当のシンジツなど存在しないと雪乃を拒否する。 高校卒業まで話が流れて行くで今回は終わり。
Ah, OK then the object is 雪乃
So he is trying to make her realize her own feelings towards him by keeping a distance from her and observing the change of her feelings.
Dear Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much for your useful lessons ^^
I am currently studying 受け身・使役・使役受け身 and stumbled across an issue common to both, and am struggling to unravel the differences.
1. 受け身
自然にそのような気持ちになると言いたいとき：自発を表す文
例：この写真を見ると、昔のことが思い出された。
Here, why can you not use 思い出している？I don’t understand why it is in passive form… I read your passive form lesson and it mentioned this kind of form when expressing negative emotions, but surely this sentence is positive? THe other sentences in my book are also positively inclined, such as 歌には何とも言えない優しいさが感じられる。
２．使役
あることが原因で、必然的にそのような感情が起こる・行為をするというとき
美しい花が行楽客を楽しませている。
By seeing the beautiful flowers, the tourists were allowed? to have fun?
I know this form is meant to express feelings that are occuring, but what is the difference in using this v something like ている？
Also how would you translate 彼の行動人がっかりられた(I was made to feel disappointed by him)・がっかりさせた(I was forced to feel disappointed by him? ・がっかりさせられた(I was made †o feel disappointed by him? the same translation as the first one?)？
Sorry for all of the questions but I am having a very hard time keeping this all straight…
Hi Karo,
1. First, 思い出される is not a passive form so it has nothing to do with positive or negative.
You use れる・られる for 1) honorific 2) potential and 3) 自発, spontaneous form as well and 思い出される (to come into one’s mind) is spontaneous form.
思い出される to come into one’s mind
思われる to seems / to appear / to think
感じられる to feel （Note: It also has a potential form. to be able to feel)
悔（く）やまれる to regret
案じられる to be anxious
見える・聞こえる are also spontaneous forms.
All these are spontaneous forms.
You can rephrase it with 思い出す
この写真を見ると昔のことが思い出される。
→この写真を見ると昔のことを思い出す。
And 感じる
この歌には何とも言えない優しさが感じられる。
→の歌には何とも言えない優しさを感じる。
You can’t tell the big difference between these sentences but particle changes, が＆を.
Technically 自発 verbs are used to when you do something naturally without any control. (spontaneously)
You can see the difference more with
見る and 見える
You see things / look at something/someone with your will →見る Ex. 先生を見る = to look at the teacher.
You see things naturally without any control →見える Ex. 山が見える = You see the mountain.
2. Not “allowed.” The flowers are the cause of the joy of the tourists.
The beautiful flowers make the tourist happy.
→The beautiful flowers please the tourist.
彼の行動人がっかりられた →I think this sentence has typos…
彼の行動は私をがっかりさせた。 (causative)
His behavior made me disappointed. (So his behavior is the cause of my disappointment.)
→passive causative (from my point of view)
(私は）彼の行動にがっかりさせられた
= I was disappointed by his behavior.
The translation can be the same because passive form is sometimes not natural in English.
Thank you so much for this. We covered saseru, saseraru then saseru+mora/kuru in class today and I was pretty lost but this clears a lot up.
Hi Risa!
Welcome to this site! I need to redo this lesson but I am glad to hear it helps!
Hajimemashite.
Konnichiwa, Maggie Sensei.
Sumimasen kedo,
[医者でもないくせに]
Woudln’t it translate to “You aren’t even a doctor.” as opposed to “You are even a doctor.” ?
Oh you are right. Thank you for pointing out the mistake. I didn’t realize it until now. :)
:)
Thanks for this lesson, even though it’s aimed at intermediate/advanced level, I thought it was very easy to understand (being a beginner and self-learner) and very helpful for day-to-day situations. After learning new topics, I usually try to make my own sentences, to see if I grasped the grammar. So, could you please tell me if this makes any sense? どんなに頼んでもパーティーに来はしない。(You can beg all you want, there’s no way I’m going to the party.) Thank you, I love your website!
Nice try!
どんなに頼んでもパーティーに来はしない。
You can change 来はしない。to 行かない。I am not going.
If you are talking about someone else, you can say 来はしない。（He/She/They are not going to come)
Maggie sensei,
Thank you so much for your reply.
そうですね、Ｎ１頑張っておりますが、準備がぜんぜん足りない感じがします。先生が教えたとおりにいろいろな記事を読んでおります。頑張ります！！では、語彙に関してはＭａｇｇｉｅ先生に質問してもいいでしょか。語彙の使い方を説明していただけますでしょか。たとえば、はなはだ、すこぶる、いたって、ごく”などの英語の意味は一緒になりますが日本語で使うシナリオは違いますね。いつもそういう質問に失敗する人が多いと思います。
Thank you in advance.:-)
Love,
Viji
そうですね。よくいくつもの類似語の違いを教えてくださいとコメントで質問する人がいますが、詳しくコメント欄で教えることは難しいです。
２つぐらいのものを簡単に答えられるものでしたらお答えしますね。
Hi Maggie sensei !
Thank you very much for posting lot of useful examples!
My pleasure! ❤️
Maggie-sensei,
Nice and useful article! Thank you very much.
I once made a blunder. I replied with “しょうがないね。” to someone who forgot an appointment with me. I meant that sometimes these things can’t be helped (a.k.a sh*t happens) and in no way intended to offend her.
But she took it to mean “お前はしょうがない”. But good thing she understood what I meant eventually.
Another thing though, what if you are actually mad because of the huge inconvenience/pain that someone caused? I just can’t bring myself to say “大丈夫です” or “気にしないでください” if I don’t really mean it. Where I come from, just because someone apologizes doesn’t mean that all is forgiven — or is this expected in Japan? (I mean, saying ”大丈夫です” when you are actually mad)
@AC
Interesting story.
I think しょうがないね is OK in that situation but if you stress ね, it sounds accusing.
しょうがないよ sounds safer.
Of course if you are mad, you don’t have to say 大丈夫です・気にしないでください。
I will be introducing myself at a professor from kyoto university. How do i make a proper introduction to him and thank him for coming all the way here.
Also i want to say that i don’t really use keigo with my friends so i just want to say sorry if i offended him in any way.
私は友達と敬語を表する必要はなかったからあなたにどこかで無礼であれば 本当にもしわけありませんでした。
Is this correct?
PLEASE HELP!!!
1) OK, you can greet him saying
Is Japan far from where you live? Then you can say
遠い日本からお越しいただきありがとうございました。
= とおいにほんからおこしいただきありがとうございました。
Then よろしくお願いいたします。 = よろしくおねがいいたします。
As for your self introduction, check my 自己紹介lesson.
2) The point is to use casual Japanese with your friends, right? Then
友達だから敬語で話さないけれども、なにか失礼な言い方をしたらごめんね。
= ともだちだからけいごではなさないけれども、なにかしつれいないいかたをしたらごめんね。
Hello Maggie-sensei!
As of lately I have seen a lot of people writing something like
無言フォローすみません。
or
無言フォローごめんなさい。
in their twitter profiles.
Sometimes there’s also a number in front like:
20↑無言フォローごめんなさい。
Do you know what that means? I have tried to find answers in Japanese but still could not really understand it..
Thank you very much!
＠Emu
無言フォローすみません。 /無言フォローごめんなさい。
It is a Twitter formality. Some people say something before they follow someone else on Twitter.
Like フォローさせてください。Let me follow you (on Twitter).
or フォローしてもいいですか？ Can I follow you(on Twitter)? (asking for their permission)
If you just follow someone without saying anything, it’s called 無言フォロー
So, people who don’t want to trouble asking every time they follow someone, they write in their profile,
“Sorry but I will just follow people without asking them if I can follow them or not”
20↑ means that person is over 20 years old and if he/she is under 20 years old, 20↓
Ahh I see, that makes sense!
Thank you very much for the fast response! :)
You’re very welcome, Emu! :)
Maggie Sensei, how do you write Fernan and Donelle in katakana? Is it
Fernan – ペルナン or フェルナン
Donelle -ドネリ or ドネリー or ドネッレ
I’m really confused
@Maria
How about
Fernan フェルナン
Donelle ドネル
こんにちは、Maggie-sensei! はじめまして、my name’s Chiaki. May i ask, when someone asked me「 呼びタメ大歓迎です」, how should i respond to that person?
Hi Chiaki! はじめまして！
When someone says 呼びタメ大歓迎, you can say for example,
わかりました。それでは、これから〜と呼びますね。
わかりました。それでは、これから〜と呼ばせてね。
= OK, then let me call you ” ~ ” from now on.
Thank you so much for always making useful lesson.
1. You say that we can’t say
胃の働くこと ( or 働くの) が悪い
why it so? the construction of the sentence is
辞書形 + ことが + Adjectiv
If you say
胃の働くことが悪い (働くのが悪い） , it changes the meaning completely.
“one’s stomach functions itself” is wrong. Not the way stomach functions is wrong.
Thank you so much for always making useful lesson.
1. You say that we can’t say
胃の働くこと ( or 働くの) が悪い
why it so? the construction of the sentence is
辞書形 + ことが + Adjective
in my text book, there is a 文法 with this construction
辞書形 + ことが + 「好き。できます」
(本を読むことが好きです)
(アニメを見ることが好きです)
(日本語を話すことができます)
the question about 辞書形 + ことが
so is it work only for (好き and 出来る) only?
2. You say that “We can’t make a noun form with all the verbs.”
so how to know that the verb can be transform to this form or not?
#Sorry for my bad English.
#if there are un-Understand-able of my english please tell me, I would like to know the answer of my Question, thanks
#Thank you so much for all lesson, I’v read all and its so useful for me :)
please keep the romaji! because i have a ” photographic memory” so in my brain:
kanji clic clac + romaji clic clac = ok
kanji clic clac+ hiragana clic clac = :ù$-*=+?-)ç!è ;
after decoder:ù$-*=+?-)ç!è= romaji! ok
＠gambarimasu
OK, I will keep romaji!!
I wrote 作らせられる for making causative passive form of 作るbut a japanese friend said that it’s not correct. It should be 作らされる.
I just found out from your site that -saseru or -aseru has shorter version, and that is -sasu or -su.
My question is if i’m still using 作らせられる, would that be considered as something incorrect?
Because i was taught that RU verbs such as kaeru, shiru, tsukuru, etc has causative passive as 作らせられる.
＠Sandra
Both of them are correct.
作る= tsukuru
causative forms
1) 作らせる = tsukuraseru
2) 作らす= tsukurasu (shortened form)
passive causative forms
1) 作らせられる
2) 作らされる (shortened form)
いつもお世話になっておりますのでどうもありがとうございます。Hope you have an enjoyable vacation,sensei!
@Hazel
ありがとう！ 帰ってきましたよ！
Maggie先生お久しぶりですね。I want to ask you about how to greet 社長 when we meet for the first time since the last interview.Although I started working since last week,we haven’t met yet because he’s gone back to Japan.I also want to know how to answer if asked about the “How’s working here?” or “How am I doing in this job?”And also give some advice you think suitable for this situation,too.I’m sorry to bother you with such urgent questions frequently.You’re the only one I can turn to for such important questions.Thank you in advance for your constant help! :-)
@Hazel
You caught me the right before my vacation. :)
It depends on what you want to tell the company president. If you want to say thank you for hiring me, then
採用（さいよう）ありがとうございました。and if he asks you how you are doing, you just tell him what you think but may something positive.
毎日、充実しております。
= Mainichi, juujitsu shite orimasu.
= I’ve been having fulfilling days.
仕事が、とても面白いです。
= Shigoto ga totemo omoshiroi desu.
= The work is very interesting.
Or まだいろいろ慣れないことがありますが一生懸命お役に立てるように努力いたします。
= Mada iroiro narenai koto ga arimasu ga isshoukenmei oyaku ni tateru you ni doryoku itashimasu.
= I haven’t get used to many things but I will do my best to serve this company.
OK I will be gone for one week. Good luck, Hazel!
THANK YOU SO MUCH for this lesson! I have been wondering SO LONG why so many sentences end with “kedo” for no apparent reason (since the usual “but/however” meaning didn’t make sense in those contexts). I cannot thank you enough for clearing up my confusion!!!!
＠Ky
Now you can sleep well! 😉
本当にありがとう！
楽しみにしてる^^
I have been working on 間・間に lesson but it may take more time because it is a bit complicated.
だって lesson is done. Will release it sometime soon.
thanks for this lesson Maggie sensei ! You know, I visit your website almost every day, it’s excellent !
ありがとうございます ！
あのう… May I ask you some help ? I’ve started to tweet in Japanese and communicate with Japanese people. Even though I make some mistakes, I enjoy it a lot !
Well, I was talking about Ainu language with one of my followers and told her I discovered that people thanks to Murakami’s books.
her answer was as follows :
“村上春樹を読んでるのね！アイヌ語は文字で残らない言語だから、むずかしい。ルーさんが興味を持ってるのがすごいよ.”
I understand it, except for the first part : is she saying she’s glad to hear I read Murakami or does that mean she’s reading Murakami’s novels too ? Or maybe is she correcting me ? Would you mind helping me ? ^^
I’m really to bother you, that’s okay if you have no time to answer !
Again, thanks for your website ! ^^
Hi ルー
I’m happy to hear you visit here almost every day!
I don’t do the translation here but just this time. :)
She is impressed to hear you read Haruki Murakami’s novels and you are interested in Ainu language.
It is a difficult language because there is no existence of written record.
thank you maggie sensei !! This is so kind of you !! (I won’t bother you with translation anymore, I promise ^^)
どうもありがとうございます！
My pleasure, ルー！ 💕
If you want, find me on Twitter,too and say hello! 😉
もうMaggie先生のフォロワーですよ〜 💕
いつでも気軽にtweetしてね！
Aynw ytah =an rw-we ne -e qw=qes-to ram-ma qan-na yay-paq-as-nw-ye-qar wa yn-qar rw-we , Aynw ytah shyq-no=an na.
A-nw-qar=an yan ne>👀 💻Ainutopic.ninjal.ac.jp
S(h)y-s(h)a-mo ytah= 日本語,アイヌ語=Aynw ytah wa Enqyrysw ytah=English( EJ so📰) 会話辞典( Qanazawa shozabwro wa Jynpo qotora1898 📖=w-qo-y-so—ytah qan-py ( qa-ta) sos OSX WNS (iOS saq🙅♂️) .
ainutopic.ninjal.ac.jp no =an ne -e an nw qar Puffi qo-nw-noqa-so(browser App Apple y-qor e anainutopic iOS y-qy-qar=an (desk top version =e-as-qay ne rw-we wa
Maggie as-pe se-qor an❤️ I’m happy to hear you visit here almost every day!
I don’t do the translation here but just this time. :)
She is impressed to hear you read Haruki Murakami’s novels and you are interested in Ainu language.
A -nw-p -qw-shyshアイヌ語は文字で残らない言語だから !s(h)o-mo e-ne qw=qw-ny qw=ram-w=a-hy TAN👇 orwsh-po qw=nw
It is a difficult language ysay-qa ne 📝 because there is no existence of written record.
qw-sw ne wa a-qan-na -qar wa yn-qar ram-ma qan-na qy-ary-qy-qy yan
Wow! Pretty impressive, Andrw!
Hi sensei!
Tks for the lesson, but I haven’t found out things I need.
At class, my teacher gave me a grammar be like:
〜ことになりました・名詞になりました
And she said that this structure means: the decision’s been made by the whole group, such as: where to party, school rule,… and not personal. If you wanna say the decision of personal, use にします.
Would you mind explaining it in more detail?
ありがとうございます
Hi, Luhy
Check my latest lesson. It may answer your question.
ことになる・ことにする
As for します I think you meant
~にします？？
If so, for example when you order something at a restaurant or buy something at a store, you say
これにします。= I will have this one.
ステーキにします。= I will have a steak
この靴にします。= I will take these shoes.
Thank you :)
Btw, your are doing a great job with your site
Thank you <3 :))
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi sensei,
I find the song in this lesson really amazing and can’t get it out of my head :)
Could you please write the lyrics and the translation of it starting from “chiisana you de…”? I would really like to understand it to the end :) Thanks!!
@Alina
Here you go!
小さなようで大きな話
= Chiisana you de ookina hanashi
= It seems a trivial thing but actually it is a important thing .
「ぱなし」ばかしじゃ地球も悲しい
= “panashi” bakashi ja chikyuu mo kanashii
= If you just doing “panashi” (leaving something on/running,etc) , the earth will feel sad
「ぱなし」はなしって話です。
= “panashi” wa nashi tte hanashi desu.
= This is a story that we shouldn’t do “panashi”
Thanks!!! :)
But isn’t hanashi “to talk”? How does it work in 小さなようで大きな話? In my head it’s “big talk”…
Same with 「ぱなし」はなしって話です -> for me it’s “without panashi it’s talk”
Also, what is tte?
@Alina
話 means “talk/story/topic/issue/matter…etc.”
大きな話 = big thing (= big deal / big issue) / big business…(You have to change the translation depending on the context)
「ぱなし」はなしって話です
= “「ぱなし」はなし ” という話です。
って is a casual contraction of という
~ はなし = You use this form when you want to wrap up the conversation. No more~ / I had enough with ~ / You shouldn’t ~ anymore.
Ah I get it now! Thank you so much for your explanation! I always learn so much from you <3
You’re very welcome, Alina! :)
Thank for the lesson. Is まあねえ the same as まあね ?
Also I usually see those phrases with little ぁ ぃ ぅ ぇ ぉ in manga.
Like まぁねぇ。
From what I can make out of https://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q11119411721
I think まぁねぇ is also just a gap filler. But how do you pronounce まぁねぇ?
よろしくお願いします
＠petefinal
It depends on the intonation and I can’t attach a sound file here but
You usually say まぁねぇ when you reluctantly say your opinion/agree with the listener or put your thoughts together.
Hi Maggie,
I really like your lessons and greatly appreciate the effort you put into preparing these.
I have a question regarding じゃない here. You give an example: あら、マギーじゃない！- how do you differentiate it from the negative? To me the sentence looks like: “This is not Maggie! / You are not Maggie!” Would the intonation be different in speech than the negative? The written language doesn’t use commas for this (and why not)?
@Gabe
Hi Gabe,
I’m happy to hear you like my lessons.
I think my じゃない lesson will answer your question. Click here.
I would like to know how to use “to finish stn” in Japanese
As I know “to finish stn” can be used by
Verb-stem + Owaru and Verbてしまうbut I would like to know how to use it correctly and how is it difference ?
Thank you !!
to finish something (transitive verb) 終える( = oeru ) → 終えてしまう ( = owatte shimau) →chau form: 終えちゃう
something finishes (intransitive verb) /* sometimes you use it as a transitive verb to finish something (transitive verb)
→ 終わる ( = owaru ) → 終わってしまう ( = owatte shimau) →chau form:終わっちゃう ( = owacchau)
question why is it ni?
in the kodonagara ni iroiro na koto o shitteiru
when ever i think i kno a particletheres these sentences that mess me up.
can you ex plain why?
Kouike sensei americano gakkai n ikareru younara watashi mo tsurete itte moraemasen ka?
Can you explain why its passive?
いつも、助けてくれてありがとうございます！
@Rodney
Konnichiwa, Rodney
That is an honorific expression.
The passive form and honorific form such as ~reru, rareru are the same so you have to interpret by the context.
Aa thank you ssoo much i was like huhhh._.あなたがいなくて、何も分かれないだろうね。
You’re very welcome!
（a little note for you: あなたがいなくて、何も分かれないだろうね。→I think what you meant is あなたがいないと何も分からないだろうね）
Put wakarenai cuz i wouldnt be able too understand fukanou desu.
I guess thats wrong though?
Thank you for the correction :)
Good mistake! the verb わかる( = wakaru) already has a potential meaning so you don’t need to change it with “れる(reru)”
Can you use 止める in a similar way to say “stop doing”? E.g. 遊び止める？
＠Matt
There are a few expression such as 降り止む（ふりやむ）stop raining, 立ち止まる（たちどまる）to stop walking
but you don’t say 遊び止める
You just say V のをやめる。Ex. 遊ぶのをやめる
ありがとうございます!
どういたしまして！
FYI “to finish playing” is 遊び終わる = asobi owaru
agree with Alain, each research for japanese grammar -good and usefull- explanations on google, always back my eyes to your site, your work is very precious for lot of japanese learners there’s no doubt!
@cyril
Thank you!!
Love all the people who visit here!
Ex. 彼の曖昧な態度が彼女を傷つけることにならないか心配だ。
= Kare no aimai na taido ga kanojo wo kizutsukeru koto ni naranai ka shinpai da.
= I am worried that his wishy-washy attitude may end up hurting her.
I’m confused about the using of ka in ( naranai ka shinpai )
the sentence is affirmative why it bacame negative?
I know my question is simple but I got confused suddenly..
@roro
You can say “affirmative form + か+ 心配だ”
1) ~が傷つけることになるか心配だ worry that ~ will end up hurting her (worry about the consequences)
2) 〜が傷つけることにならないか心配だ。worry that ~ may end up hurting her (worry about the possibilities more)
b) is more hypothetical
****
I will make a lesson on か some time.
Hello maggie!
I have a question regarding a certain song’s lyrics
http://www.project-imas.com/wiki/Radio_Happy
The line “聴かせてシンガロング･ナウ” is translated as “listen and sing-along now”, but isn’t it “let me hear/listen to your sing-along now”?
@Beginner
Yes, your translation is right. Let me hear/listen ~ not “Listen and sing along now”
When I saw 読んどけば I was like what??
So it was 読んでおけば awwww ^^
@iji
That’s right! 読んでおけば→読んどけば ☺️
You said haisha de ichijikan mo matasareta.._you changed se to sa and removed ra?
And can you explain the cojugation here?
Hen na hito dato omowaretakunai. Can you try explain why thats passive?
Chotto magiwarashiin desu.
＠Rodney
First, this lesson will be gone eventually. (I will remake it with more detailed explanation)
Some verbs have two causative forms. (long forms and shorter forms)
Ex.
* 泣く ( = naku) to cry →泣かせる ( = nakaseru ) → passive causatie 泣かせられる ( = nakaserareru)
* 泣かす ( = nakasu ) (shorter version) This form already means “to make someone cry” → passive causative 泣かされる ( = nakasareru)
So
待つ ( = matsu) →causative 待たせる *→ passive causative 待たせられる( = mataserareru)
待たす ( = matasu) (shorter version) The verb form already has causative nuance “to make someone wait” →待たされる (= matasareru)
***
変な人だと思われなくない
= Hen na hito dato omowaretakunai
Check my 受け身 lesson.
This type of passive form expresses one’s negative feelings. (fear, annoyance or disappointment)
Hi sensei!
Really good page and really detailed! Love it very much!
I would have a question regarding this lesson. I read it here, that “dake” goes before “ga” like: クラシックだけが聞きます.
However, I met with this sentence: あの人は英語がだけ分かります. So I think this must be a bad usage of “dake”, right? Can you please confirm it?
Best Regards!
Also, in this sentence: 美味しいものだけ食べたい
Can I put the “wo” particle or I cannot. Or if I want, I can just omit it?
like this: 美味しいものだけを食べたい
Thanks again!
Yes, you can say 美味しいものだけを食べたい
As I mentioned in my previous comment, you tend to drop certain particles in conversation but it is originally 美味しいものだけを食べたい
Hello Inside27,
When you use だけ with a particle, you have to be careful where to put a particle.
クラッシック（音楽）を聞く = to listen to the classical music.
You only listed to the classical music
クラッシック（音楽）だけを聞きます。
(In conversation, you sometimes drop the particle を
クラッシック（音楽）だけ聞きます。）
***
英語がわかります or 英語はわかります (when you show the contrast)
He/She understand just English.
英語＋だけ＋が・は＋わかります。
Maggie, what Inside27 means is the order of usage of the particles; whether if it changes the context, or not.
=> あの人は英語!がだけ!分かります VS あの人は英語!だけが!分かります
I think that がだけ focuses more on what it comes before => 英語
and だけが focuses more on what it comes after => 分かります
What do you think?
@天人
You don’t say あの人は英語がだけ分かります
The position of が is wrong.
The possible positions are
あの人だけが英語がわかります。Just that person understand English/ Only that person does understand English.
あの人は英語だけがわかります。He/She understand only English
あの人は英語がわかるだけです。He/She is just understand English.
Very good to know.
Thank you very much for clarifying this matter!
Till next time ^ ^
@天人
どういたしまして〜♪
Maggie sensei, ども お疲れ 様 でした You’ve done a great, and super job! I am sure you have a great personality! “マギーsenseiは性格がいい。
ありがとう!! 💕
Nickは優しいですね。😉
Hello Maggie-sensei. I have a question regarding the reading of パーティー
In the lesson, you wrote
ねえ、例のパーティー行く？
= Nee rei no paatei iku?
Is ティ read as ‘tea’ or テイ? I’ve always read it as ‘paatii’ all this time, so I am a little confused about this.
The romaji must be confusing.
Maybe I should have typed “paatii”. Will fix it later. :)
The pronunciation is “tea” in English.
Maggie sensei, I have a question about this sentence from the lesson.
マギー先生のように日本語が話せるようになるには4年はかかる。
= In order to be able to speak Japanese like Maggie Sensei, you will need at least two four years.
Is the ‘two four years’ a typo? Doesn’t 4年 mean four years?
Oh Than you for spotting the mistake. My original sentence was “two years” but I changed the number and forgot to erase it. :)
Many thanks for this lesson, Maggie-Sensei! Very informative and helpful as usual.
I have a question regarding the term “volitional” that you used in your explanation:
## So verb (volitional) + ことにしている ( = koto ni shiteiru) is used when you make a habit of doing something.
Ex. たくさん食べた次の日はダイエットをすることにしている。
verb (volitional verb) + ようにする ( = you ni suru) / ようにしている ( = you ni shiteiru)
これからもっと気をつけるようにします。##
I thought that “volitional verb” in Japanese means the “う” or “よう” form. Eg: しよう (for する) and つけよう (for つける). But in your example sentences, the dictionary form of the verb and not the volitional form of the verb is used?
@Yan
Hi Yan
What I meant by “volitional verb” is not a “volitional form” ~う・よう
ダイエットをする →ダイエットをすることにしている
食べる→食べることにしている
運動をする→運動をすることにしている
電話をする→電話をすることにしている
These verbs requires the doer’s will. You do all the action intentionally)
But for example, you can’t controle verbs such as ある, 雨が降る、出会う, with your will.
You don’t say
X電話があるようにしている。
X雨が降るようにしている
Xいい人に出会うようにしている
or potential form
X 話せることにしている
Thank you! Now I understand. :)
@Yan
You’re very welcome! :)
This has me wondering (heh) how would you express something like “I wonder if I should do X or X?”
Thank you for this site btw. I recently got back into studying after losing motivation and almost stopping. This site has actually helped motivate me again.
@Stumpy
There are a few ways to say that but for example,
* verb “do”
YとX（の）どちらをした（やった）方がいいのかな。
Yをした（やった）方がいいのかな。Xを verb + 方がいいのかな。
* With other verbs
Ex. 彼に電話した方がいいのかな。それともメールをした方がいいのかな。
Ex. 彼に電話とメールのどちらをした方がいいのかな。
I’m glad to hear this site helped you motivate you again.
Hello Maggie!
What’s the correct translation for
“脚見せを意識して前側が短い仕様になってますよん”?
I interpreted it as “Keeping in mind that the legs should show, she “short front”(of the dress) has been chosen” but I’m having doubts about how to properly translate “短い仕様になってますよん”. Maybe it’s “has been cut short”? Or “decided to go with the short front”? Please help!
The sentence is from this tweet
https://twitter.com/box_komiyaarisa/status/899961440110469120
Hi Beginner
仕様 means “way you do something or function/ specification”
~ 仕様になっている is to have a function/specification of ~ . You usually use it to describe a machine but in this case, it just means,
The front part of the dress is short in order to show my legs.
thank you maggie sensei ^^
you can’t imagine how happy I’m witn this new lesson.. I keep checking your page everyday for new lesssons :)
do you know where I can find the full list of all levels of kanji?
Good to hear that, roro.
As for the kanji, use Google and type in “kanji list” with specific level. You will get a lot of hits.
excellent Maggie Sensei, as usual
Thank you, alan! Glad to hear that!
先生のおかげさまで 今日内定を 貰いました。来月の 一日から仕事を初めることに なりました。それに九月の終わりに 北海道へ 出張する予定です。そちらはとても 寒いと言われた。初めての外国 旅行ですから 緊張しています。この間 いろいろお世話になっておりますので 本当にありがとうございました。
お仕事決まりましたか？
おめでとう！！！ 私も本当に嬉しいです。
北海道はとってもいいところですよ。初めての海外が日本でいろいろカルチャーショックを受けることもあるかもしれませんがすべていい経験になりますように。
困ったことがあったらいつでもこのコメント欄で聞いてくださいね。
I have this doubt. When ままで and ままに?
Thanks for the lesson.
@Austt
OK, I will give you the common patterns for both, ままに and ままで
Vままに＋する/ままに＋しておく to leave certain state the way it is.
A lot of them are set phrases but
Ex. 言われるままにする ( = iwareru mamani suru) to do just as someone tells you to do.
Ex. 欲しいままにする (= hoshii mama ni suru) to have one’s own way
Ex. 意のままにする ( = i no mama ni suru9 to do as one likes
Ex. そのままにしておく ( = sono mama ni suru) to leave something the way it is.
~ ままで＋いる remain ~
Vままで＋do something
Ex. 黙ったままでいる (= damatta mama de iru) to remain silent
Ex. お金を机の上に出したままでいる ( = Okane wo tsukue no ue ni dashita mama de iru) to leave the money on the table.
I see.
Thanks for the explanation.
You’re welcome, Austt!
Hi Maggie! 元気やってる？
Quick question, お金を机の上に出したままでいる VS お金を机の上に出しておいている. Both mean the same. Is there a difference between them?
Hi 天人
はい、元気”で”やっていますよ。😉
Here’s the difference.
お金を机の上に出したままでいる you leave the money and forget to put it back.
お金を机の上に出しておいている You leave the money on the table intentionally.
Thank you very much ^ ^
It’s 7 AM and I’m on your website to learn something new!
So who’s your best student, Maggie? <3
PS I was just wondering, whether should I use 元気で or 元気にやってる, so I decided to omit the particle.
Who’s my best student?
You! You! You!! 😂
You can use them both,
元気でやっている or 元気にやっている
(I think 元気でやっている is slightly more common)
Also you can say
元気にしている (state) →(casual) 元気にしてる？
Hi, Maggie.
I want to ask how to use masu stem + no.
I once heard it in an anime (七つの大罪):
刃折れの剣 [haore no ken]
It was translated as ‘a sword with a broken blade’
Is it the same as ‘刃が折れた剣’?
Is there a rule how to use ?
I appriciate your answer
It means ”刃が折れた剣” （or you can also say 刃の折れた剣）
刃折れの剣 is a literal expression.
If I know well 出す also means – with another verb – ‘to do out (of)’
For instence: 引き出す – to pull out.
Is it correct?
Yes.
That’s how you figure out the meaning of compound words.
ありがとうございます、本当に。
どういたしまして、Robert! :)
先生 から返事を貰って本当にありがとうございます｡申し込んだ仕事は日本へ 働きたい人たち のために仕事を捜すサービス 代理店でN5とN4の試験を受けようとしている 生徒たちに日本語を教えるのです。でも そのほかに 生徒たちといっしょに日本へ 行ってそちらのtraining centre に1ヶ月とか 3ヶ月とか サポートして欲しいと 言われましたので 自分も今までには 海外へ 行ったことは 一度もないので どうすれば 信頼できるように 見えますのか 知りたいです｡特には その仕事を 任せられたら 力を入れていて 頑張りますのを 伝えたいです。どんなものを 準備していると 知らせたら 宜しいでしょうか？日本のことはアニメとかドラマとかいつも見てるですけど 本当の日常生活に 住もうとは 一度も 考えなかったので 実は 少し怖いですよ｡それでも 諦めずに 頑張って見たいです。偶然に 先生のページを見て とてもよかったと思うわよ。私のような 多くの人たちが 居るのを 見て 私も 頑張ったら できると 思います。私たちのために こんなところを 創造して 本当にありがとうございます。I really admire the efforts you put in to explain things easier for us.It’s very kind of you to post those valuable and helpful lessons.Thank you so much！
@Hazel
そうですか。 それではN4とN5を教えるというために研修で日本に数ヶ月行き、実際に日本人がどれだけのスピードでどんな表現を使って話すか実地で吸収するのにいいチャンスになるので是非行かせていただきたいです。一生懸命努力します。とやる気をアピールするといいですね。Hazelが コメントに書いたことを言えば大丈夫ですよ。
いい経験になることは間違いありません。
がんばってくださいね。すべてうまくいくことを祈っています。
Maggie sensei のおかげさまで初対面がうまくできました 二番目の面接のひは来週に知らせしますので 今何を準備したらいいですか 面接者が日本にときどき通うするのはできますかときてパスポトを準備して今のアルバイトもできる限り早く通知してくださいとおしゃたが私は今でも 面接がうまくできるのか とても心配しています もし何か誤りをしたらどうしますか 私絶対に頑張って見ますから アドバイスしていただけませんか先生のこの ページから多の 注告を 貰ったのでどうもありがとうございました
@Hazel
最初の面接がうまくいったみたいで本当によかったですね。どんなお仕事かわからないので具体的にどんなことを準備したらいいのかアドバイスできませんが、
はっきりと丁寧（ていねい）な言葉で、自信をもって面接を受けてください。
もし自分がまだできないことができるか聞かれたら、「これからがんばって習得します」などポジティブな態度で接してくださいね。
無事にお仕事決まりますように。
Hi Maggie,
How would you say ” for 2 years and 3 weeks” ?
二年間と三週間 ?
Could you help me with the okurigana please ?
@dee
二年間と三週間 is fine but you can also say
二年と３週間の間 ( = にねんとさんしゅうかんのあいだ）
Oh, thank you for your reply ;).
@dee
You’re very welcome! :)
Maggie sensei, i’m sorry for posting here but, i din’t find anywhere on the site about making adverbs in japanese. Well i want to say pharses with adverbs in japanese Like:
The tap water i going out little -> 蛇口の水は弱くて出ている。
The car is moving slowly -> 車は遅くに動いている。
Can you tell me if this pharses are right or not ? Please teach me use adverbs in japanese! Thank you i love your website
＠Caia
蛇口の水は弱くて出ている
Just for this particular sentence, I wouldn’t use 弱い
If it is dripping ぽたぽた出ている
蛇口の水の勢いが弱い
but if it is adverb, 弱く
ドラムを弱くたたく = beat the drum softly
The car is moving slowly
車はゆっくり動く
***
How to make an adverb from an adjective
i-adjective
〜い→〜く
* 強い ( = tsuyoi ) strong → 強く (= tsuyoku) strongly
(Exception: いい・よい good → よく ( = yoku) well
na-adjetive
~な ( = na) → に ( =ni)
* きれいな ( = kireina) beautiful, clear → きれいに( = kireini ) beautifully, cleanly
* 静かな ( = shizukana) quiet → 静かに ( = shizukani) quietly
And there are many adverbs. I think I have some list on Facebook lesson.
Link Click here
Sorry for bothering, But I still don’t get it.
In a sentence like:
彼女のために命を犠牲にする覚悟もある。
(I am ready even to sacrifice my life for her sake)
How can you refer to the part 彼女のために (for her sake) in a claus.
For example:
What if I ruin the girl who you would secrifice your life for.
????
Could you help me, because I’ve been wandering on the net for while now looking for an answer but I couldn’t find any.
Again, my question is how to refer to any part of a sentence in a clause.
If you answered my question than I could smile and say ‘yes, my life has become perfect’
Thanks in advance
@Robert
I am not sure if I can make your smile yet because I don’t get your question well but…
“彼女のために命を犠牲にする覚悟” もある。
So The main structure is
（私には）〜覚悟もある
= I am even ready
You just have to know what modifies 覚悟 (In this case the whole sentence before 覚悟)
1) First you see this pattern
* someoneのために + verb
= to do something for someone/for someone’s sake
In this case 犠牲にする ( = to sacrifice) is a verb
彼女のために(命を)犠牲にする = to sacrifice (my life) for her
2) the next step.
The sentence 1) modifies a noun, 覚悟 (being mentally ready for something big)
“彼女のために命を犠牲にする”覚悟”
being ready to sacrifice my life for her.
****
Q: I ruin the girl who you would sacrifice life for.
(私は）あなたが命を犠牲にしてもいいと思っている女の子をだめにする
If you meant “I ruin the girl who I would sacrifice for”?
(私は）命を犠牲にしてもいいと思っている女の子をだめにする。
This is cheating Maggie because you have removed the 覚悟もある part :D
??? What do you mean I removed 覚悟もある. Maybe you didn’t see that line… I will move it to the beginning of the comment then.
Anyway,
The main structure : 私には〜覚悟がある I am even ready for ~ / I even made up my mind ~
The rest modifies 覚悟 (resolution)
I meant in the sentence あなたが命を犠牲にしてもいいと思っている女の子をだめにする.
You don’t use 覚悟 but てもいいと思っている
I see. But your original sentence doesn’t have a word for “make up one’s mind / to be prepared”.
Q: I ruin the girl who you would sacrifice life for.
“would sacrifice one’s life” is 命を犠牲にしてもいいと思う
If you want to use 覚悟
私はあなたが命を犠牲にする覚悟がある女の子をだめにする
Either way, “ruin girl” sounds a bit strange.
Hello, Maggie.
I would like to thank you for all the time that you spent bothering answering my questions. They’ve really helped me. Thanks a lot.
;D
Maggie Sensei,
how to use Vte form+Orimasu. I always hear it in movies for formal greetings.
then instead of ” to iimasu” i usually hear “te” I don’t know if they are the same in meaning.
thank you so much Sensei.
＠Jodel
It’s 謙譲語(kenjougo) an honorific expression and make yourself sound humble when you talk to someone superior or customers.
te-iru (dictionary form) →(polite) te-imasu →(very polite) te-orimasu
Hi maggie sensei !
First of all thank you for your great lesson !
But actually I have a question, it’s about a sentence that I’ve heard in a song.
It says : “確証ないほど拡散する”
So I wanted to know what it really means ?
Thanks !
@マエル
I just wrote to someone yesterday but I don’t do the translation here (especially lyrics.) but just this once.
It’s 欅坂46’s song, right?
拡散する means “to spread” (in this case the gossip, rumors (from the previous lyrics))
So the rumor/gossip spreads to the extent that you can’t prove if they are true or not.
→the gossip/rumor spread so much that you can’t even know if they are true or not.)
voilà!
Everything here is perfect. Quality content, well written lessons.
I just wan’t to thank you for your amazing website.
＠Giovanna
Arigatou！ for your kind words!
すみません、 I have a little problem with this:
田中さんは旅行したがるそうです.
I heard that Tanaka wants to travel.
Can we use がる+そうです? Even like 寂しがる、きれいがる、。。。
ありがとう、先生！
＠Luhy
Yes, you can use がる＋そうです
but for that particular example I would say 旅行に行きたがっているそうです。is more natural.
(Also you don’t say きれいがる）
Maggie sensei🤚, Since we use iku and kuru when actions are happening towards us or away from us, what if I am the action doer, and am doing the action towards someone else? For example if my mother had asked me when ill be back home, and i want to say “Ill return within an hour” will the Kaeru action be used with kuru Because it is happening towards my mother?
Sorry for any trouble.
@Shehab
You say either simply 一時間以内に帰ります or 帰ってきます。
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I was having trouble with this line in a song:
その腕で抱き締めてもくれやしない
My best guess would be, “Those arms would never embrace me.”
However, literally it would be “Even if those arms embraced me, doing that favor is really not.”
The first part seems to me to imply that the embracing happens, which then the second part would negate in my interpretation, which doesn’t really make any sense.
Is my interpretation completely wrong, or is that kind of conditional okay in Japanese?
Thank you!
＠Smoothie Made of Fruit
The subject is not “arms” because there is a particle で (with)
You don’t even embrace me with those arms.
Okay, thanks. I didn’t think the subject was the arms, I just was rewording it so it sounded better in English.
How did you get the “don’t even” out of that construction? What in the grammar tipped you off to use those words and give that meaning?
Thanks!
〜てくれない don’t do something for me
~てもくれない/てもくれやしない by adding “も” you can emphasize the meaning don’t even do something
Oh, okay, I get it now. Thank you, Maggie Sensei!
You’re very welcome! :)
I actually have one more question, about a couple of lines (from this song, btw: http://vocaloidlyrics.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%8F%8D%E8%8A%BB%E3%81%AE%E5%8D%B0%E8%B1%A1_(Hansuu_no_Inshou) ), if you don’t mind. I really don’t know what to make of them.
本当は噛み締めてなんかいやしない
明日の日付も今日も飲み込んじまえ
咀嚼の時間も 緊急停車にも気付きはしない
“I really didn’t understand it, but tomorrow and today, I understood completely. When I understood, I hadn’t realized (that I understood it(?)) when we came to an emergency stop” is my best guess at what these mean.
I’m really confused about what they’re talking about here, especially because all words for understand also mean “chew,” which really confused me.
Thank you again for your help, sorry to bother you again!
I understood completely. When I understood, I hadn’t realized (that I understood it(?)) when we came to an emergency stop” is my best guess at what these mean.
→ ??? I am confused with your question.
Anyway I don’t do the translation here. (If I do, I have to do for everybody) ごめんね。
What I could tell you is it’s all metaphor and you have to interpret the lyrics yourself.
Sorry if my question was confusing. I guess what I was asking was if my interpretation was correct, and if there is any special meaning to the fact that “chew” is used so many times (I understand if it’s just a metaphor; I was just thinking that maybe there is some cultural/grammatical significance to this that I wasn’t grasping).
I understand completely that you can’t translate; I wasn’t looking for a translation.
Thanks.
Yes,噛みしめる is a metaphor.
You often use it “to think/reflect well on what someone says or what you read” “digest””to feel something with your heart”, etc.
So as 飲み込む = swallow
Okay, thanks Maggie Sensei!
You’re very welcome! :)
Is これ美味しいですかしら correct too?
@Coco
美味しいでしょうか？ is more natural.
If you want to sound feminine you can say
美味しいかしら？
You hear that in anime or TV drama but it may sound too feminine.
So never ですかしら , but is there any rule for using かしら politely? I may be wrong but 美味しいかしら sounds informal?
And thank you very much Maggie-sensei, I learn a lot!
If you want to use the feminine form かしら
adjective ~ い＋かしら
verb dictionary form + かしら
not です＋かしら
Basically the same structure as かな
Maggie Sensei, Thank you for your lessons. Please don’t tire making japanese lessons. I see your lessons very helpful since I am studying for my JLPT exams. In fact,I am making your site my default site.
＠Jodel Quijano
Hi Jodel,
Thank you so much for your nice message. I am happy to hear you find my lessons helpful.
Don’t worry! I’ll never get tired of making lessons! :)
Good evening. I just found this site because I was so frustrated that I could never understand this concept.
Your explanation was wonderful and now I’m just frustrated that I didn’t find it sooner! Thank you!
@Ben
Hi Ben,
Welcome to our site. I’m glad you found us!! :)
先生がみんなすべての答えを知っているわけではない。
Why did it has minna and subete adjectives for kotae, i am thinking that “minna” means all in japanese, and “subete” is means all too. Is it redundant?
ありがとうございます！先生マギーこのサイトが一番だから
@Yunkekakugo
こんにちは、Yunkekakugo
You are right. すべて and みんな both mean “all” but in this case, what modifies is different.
先生がみんな = all the teachers (modifies teachers)
すべての答え= all the answers (modifies answers)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I would like to ask what’s the difference between you and sou? Thank you!
＠fivebx
Hi fivebx
I added the link to my そう lesson. Did you check that lesson?
It is going to be complicated to show all the difference here but
adjective + そう = to look + adjective
おいしそう= looks delicious
You can’t say おいしいよう to describe something looks delicious.
Then you use it with a verb
while そう can be used only for the future.
よう can be used for the past event.
Hi, Maggie sensei
I don’t understand clearly the meaning of these two sentences:
1. 自分だけを信じる。
2. 自分を信じるだけ。
Please explain them for me sensei.
@hang
Hi hang
1. 自分だけを信じる。
だけ modifies 自分
to believe just “oneself”
2. 自分を信じるだけ。
だけ modifies “自分を信じる”
Just “believe oneself”.
Maggie sensei, thanks for all your lessons.
I have a question if you may help me,
When someone says to you:
心配してくれてありがとう
What can you answer?
Thanks in advance
@Dan
Hi Dan,
It depends on what you want to say and your relationship with that person but for example
(また）なにかあったらいつでも相談して(ください）
= (Mata) Nanika attara itsudemo soudan shite (kudasai.)
= You can talk to me anytime when something happens (again).
*ください ( = kudasai) polite
* いつでも相談に乗るよ。/ 乗りますよ。
= Itsudemo soudan ni noru yo./ Norimasu yo.
= You can talk to me anytime/ I am always here for you.
Maggie Sensei – would “ううん” or “いいえ” be a sufficient/appropriate answer?
Yes and No.
It could be enough for certain situation but you may need to say something to follow up.
If you just say ううん・いいえ, it might sound cold.
Ex. – 明日は仕事ですか？
– いいえ、（明日は休みです。）
Ex. – アイスクリームほしい？
– ううん、(今、いらない。)
Hello, in the sentence “就職したら、スーツやジャケットのよう_社会人らしい服装をしたほうがいい” would it be に or な and what is it modifying? Also in the sentence “田中さんはアメリカ人みたいに英語が上手ですね” why is it に if 英語 comes after it?
Thank you!
＠Sofia
“就職したら、スーツやジャケットのよう_社会人らしい服装をしたほうがいい”
スーツやジャケットのよう modifies 服装 so what do you think it comes after?
田中さんはアメリカ人みたいに英語が上手ですね
アメリカ人みたいに modifies （英語が）上手
Maggie, could you please explain this to me.
「日本語で読めるようにしないと。」The しないと part is really confusing me. I think it says something like “I have to read it in Japanese” but I don’t know if that is correct or why it would be.
＠猫にゃん
Hi 猫にゃん！
〜しないと
Vしないといけない・ならない = have to do something.
You often omit the last part いけない・ならない and leave the sentence unfinished on purpose.
If you are talking to yourself,
I have to be able to read it in Japanese.
If you are talking to someone else,
You have to be able to read it in Japanese.
Dear Maggie Sensei, konnichiwa!
I’m sorry for commenting on this rather old article, but there is something I would like to learn from you.
There is this Japanese girl I have deep feelings for. Ich know that she also likes me a lot, but I can’t figure out how much exactly. However, I am confident, so I want to propose my love to her. Should I say “(name) wo aishiteru yo”, or is it too heavy? If so, were I to use “(Name) ga daisuki da yo” instead? Doesn’t it make a difference if I left out the “ga” before her name (I’ve also read that several times)?
If “koibito”, by the way, is definitely related to a mutual feeling, this makes me even more confident – I’ve called her “watashi no koibito” several times, and she didn’t object that. However, maybe it’s only because I’m a gaijin …
Kind regards,
Ralph
(I’m sorry for “ich know” – it’s German autocorrect …^^)
@Ralph
Hi Ralph
It’s true. “Aishite imasu” is deeper than “daisuki dayo”. The middle one is “~ no koto ga suki desu.”
It may sound strange but “Boku wa ~ no koto ga suki desu.” sounds deeper than “daisuki”.
FYI “koibito” is fine but you use “kanojo” more often in Japanese. “Boku no kanojo ni natte kudasai.” = Please be my girlfriend.
Good luck!!
Maggie sensei✋How would i come about saying”the reason why I___is___”
Using 理由?
@Shehab Eldin
You can either use the following patterns.
(consequence/decision) （な）のはreason (だ）からです。
(reason) （だ）から〜＋consequences, decision
私があまり食べないのはダイエットをしているからです。
私はダイエットをしているからあまり食べません。
more explanatory
私はダイエットをしているからあまり食べないのです。
Hello Shehab Eldin,
you can also use follow pattern: ～（という）理由は～（だ）からです in order to describe / show the reason, why something is like it is.
1. 彼は、なぜ一人でその取り憑かれた部屋に入っていたかという理由は未だに明らかではない。
2. 人が彼女のことを「不思議ちゃん」と呼ばれる理由は～からである。
Most natural / common pattern implying why ! I ! did something is, as Maggie said,（な）のはreason (だ）からです。
ヨロシク
How does っぱなし differ from まま？
@Amber
They are very similar. But there is a slight difference.
I explained the difference in this lesson →How to use まま
Thank you for this lesson! I find it easy to understand, especially your explanation for 気味. I do wonder why many books and websites give the meaning of 気味 as “tend to” / “seems like”.
@Yan
Yes, it could be translated “tend to” as well. I think I included that translation in the lesson as well.
Verb masu stem + がち= tend to do something
Hello Maggie. I’m a little confused by your reply. Yes, I read in the lesson that verb masu stem + がち = tend to do something. What I meant in my first comment is that many websites and books also translate verb masu stem + 気味 = tend to / seems like. That makes it difficult to understand the difference between がちand 気味. Do you mean in your reply that 気味 also means “tend to”?
@Yan
Sorry. I was just talking about がち not 気味. I didn’t read your question well and got confused why you asked me.. lol
I don’t know how other sites or book explain. It could be just a translation problem and certain cases, you may able to use “tend to! but when you describe the current condition “slightly/a bit ~” would fit better, I think.
Te+oku reminds me a little bit of the English expression “to set out to do something”. While the English expression may not necessarily focus on future use it still can be used implying that sometimes.
@Austt
Perfect!! ✌️
Hello,
I’ve been learning Japanese for a while, but there are still simple things that are confusing to me.
Which particle should I use in a sentence “it’s hot in Japan?”
＠kropiciel
Hello, kropiciel,
It’s hot in Japan.
The most natural way to say this sentence in Japanese is “As for Japan, it’s hot” →日本は暑いです。= Nihon wa atsui desu.
Maggie sensei, please HELP ME!
I have some questions about てもらう and てくれる.
例えば。
お姉さんに駅まで送ってくれる. This means “My syster will take me at station ?
お姉さんにプールに行くように誘ってくれる. This means “I was invited by my sister to go to the pool?
This pharses below means the same ? Please help me understand this form !!!
お姉さんに駅まで送ってもらう
お姉さんにプールに行くように誘ってもらう
@Caio
Your sentence: お姉さんに駅まで送ってくれる.・お姉さんにプールに行くように誘ってくれる.
You don’t use someone+に＋Vくれる
You have to use （The subject は） ＋ someone+に ＋ Vてもらう or Soomeoneが＋Vてくれる
→（私は）お姉さんに駅まで送ってもらう I got my sister take me to the station.
You can also say お姉さんが（私を）駅まで送ってくれる。 My sister will take me to the station for me.
I was invited / asked by my sister to go to the swimming pool?
（私は）お姉さんにプールに誘ってもらった。
お姉さんが（私を）プールに誘ってくれた。
My sister invited/asked me to go to the swimming pool.(And I am happy about that.)
Hello Maggie sensei!!
I tried finding out what this means without success —>友達は見える人いるから
I was wondering if it means “Because I have a friend who can see it” ?
but if that were the case, it should have been ” 見える人友達がいるから”
so thats why Its a pretty confussing sentence for me .Can you help me out?
Thank you in advance !!
@MAK
Hi, MAK
It must be a part of some casual conversation.
Since I don’t know the context, I can’t tell what the friend can see but, translation-wise, yes, your are right and
you can rephrase 見える友達がいるから or 友達に、見える人いるから。
i think that understood, so in this case: maggie先生が（は）私を日本語教えてくれた
is it right? Means Maggie sensei taught me japanese ?
いつもありがとうございます！
＠Caio
→Maggie先生が（は）私に日本語を教えてくれた
or Maggie先生に日本語を教えてもらった。
Hey Ms. Maggie. How are you doing? I am really grateful in learning Japanese, and your website made me more passionate about Japanese language and Japan in general. I have a blog that talks about Japanese language and culture. Please check it out, and tell me what do you think.
＠Jay
こんにちは、Jay! Thank you for visiting my site. I just visited your site as well. You have a really nice blog!
I am happy that you are interested in Japanese culture and sharing your insights with people.
Allow me to give you one little suggestion.
I am a queen of typos. So your is a minor but…
僕のサイトへようこそう→ ようこそ
これからもがんばってくださいね！
my bad haha! I’ll change it as soon as possible.
I do wonder if there’s a chance that you can be a guest in my blog!
＠Jay
Thank you for inviting me to be a guest in your blog but my paws are full at the moment.
ごめんなさい….
I wish you all the best with your blog!!
That’s fine!! I completely understand! I hope we can do it in the future!! Will you please tell your friends and family in Japan about my blog? It would really help me out! I am planning to do a Japanese version of either Yahoo! Japan or Ameba
d(^_^o)
I am grateful to know your site Maggie sensor it’s help me a lot.
＠Lhea
And I am grateful to know we help your Japanese. :)
Maggie先生! Please teach me how to use relative clauses in japanese with い and な adjectives.
I tried to wrote some pharses.
どのおまちゃが新しいですか 新しいのはこのおまちゃです
どのスーポツをやりたいですか やりたいのはサーカスです
＠Caio
I think this lesson will answer your question.
How to use の
Your sentences are good except
新しいのはこのおまちゃです→おもちゃ (spelling)
Hi Maggie. My text book shows the tari form of the verb okoru (to happen) as okitari which does not appear to be correct. However when I put the Japanese sentence using okitari into a translator, it comes up as correct. Why is it not okattari? Love your site. Greetings from Australia
＠Nick
Hi Nick!
OK, there are two forms to say “to happen”
起こる = おこる = okoru
and
起きる = おきる = okiru
Originally 起こる ( = okoru) but you use 起きる (= okiru) as well now.
起きる = おきる = okiru
たり (tari) form is 起きたり = おきたり= okitari
起こる = おこる = okoru
たり (tari) form is 起こったり = okottari
Thank you very much for your reply. So 起こるand 起きるare interchangeable?
@Nick
They are pretty much interchangeable besides certain exceptions.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
In my textbook there’s this phrase ”学生たちは静かに勉強しています。” which I interpret as the students are studying quietly. I tried googling for the usage of the に here but can’t seem to find a suitable meaning. What is it? 静か is not really a location or thing isn’t it?
@fivebx
Hi fivebx,
静か（な） is a na-adjective and it means “quiet”.
静かに = quietly and modify a verb, in this case 勉強しています (studying)
Thank you for answering my above question sensei,
Could I also check that for i-adj, the に is not required? In my textbook there is this phrase called “ラジオの音を小さくしました。” I assume that it is an i-adj that’s why you don’t use 小さくにしました。
@fivebx
Right when you use adjectives to modify a verb or make a verb,
na-adective ~に+ verb
i-adjecitve ~ く + verb
静かに勉強する to study quetly
きれいに食べる to eat nicely (or finish eating everything)
大きく切る to cut in big pieces
かわいくする to make oneself/something cute
音を大きくする= to turn up the volume
音を小さくする = to turn down the volume
I have understood this use of au but it is something that i can’t understeand at all ,the diference between に合う and 似合う.
@Luis
に合う to match, to fit
似合う to look good in ~ / something looks good on someone
Maggie sensei ✋, is there a functional difference beyween using 方法(houhou) and 方( kata)?
@Shehab
Hello Shehab,
１）方法 means “a way / method / system / choice, etc”
２）While you can use 方法 alone, you can’t use just 方
There is no choice
なにも方法がない。
なにも方がない (wrong)
３）When you compound the words,
verb masu stem + 方
食べ方
The way you eat
*focusing on the manner/how to eat something
verb dictionary form + 方法
食べる方法
how to survive by eating / how to eat
*focusing on “eating” itself.
Ah I see!
Thank you Maggie sensei for replying!
@Shehab
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei😄😊
I don’t know if it’s too late or not but I’m soooo happpy to found out your page and really exciting to learn each of your lesson.
Thank you for your hardworking, this page so incredible 😆
話した時間違っていたばかりで(特に尊敬語の使った時），なんか勉強のやる気が減らしちゃったけどMaggie先生のページ見つけたら解りやすくて，面白いから勉強のやる気が戻りますよ~
これからもよろしくお願いします😘
＠Inez
こんにちは、 Inez! 尊敬語は難しいですね。日本人でもよく間違えますよ。😁
楽しんで日本語の勉強を続けてくださいね。💖
There is one place I always in into when I need to understand japanese grammar. That’s Maggie sensei’s site. Maggie sensei’s is awesome Sensitive makes a great effort to make manyxampke sentences. Couldn’t Thank enough!
@Rajkumar
Awww how nice of you!!
Your message made my day! ありがとう！
Hello! Could you tell me if I translated this song sentences correctly?
I traslate this sentense
ここまでの道のり奇跡のような時間
色んな人達と泣いたり笑ったり
支えあってる
The trip here has had moments that have been magical.
We had the support of many people with whom we have cried and laughed
or “We laughed and cried with many people. We have also supported each other”(The two persons only) is better?
＠Kaede
The tense-wise, the last part of translation should be
We have been supporting each other
but not between “two people”, among many people.
優しいマッギエ先生へ
お元気にくらしていますか。私はリナです。インドネシアの出身です。
私は、「では」「には」と使い分けがなかなか自身を持っていません。
明確に使うできるように知りたいんです。
教えて頂けませんか。宜しくお願いします。
上記の文章が間違ったら、訂正して御願いします。
@Herina Naibaho
こんにちはリナ！はじめまして！
Please check this lesson to see the difference between に and で → Lesson link
You add は to show the contrast or emphasize the meaning.
日本では＋introducing some activities/actions 日本ではそんなことはしない。
日本には+ talking about some existence. 日本にはたくさん温泉があります。
*****
Let me fix your sentences.
マッギエ→マギー
使い分けが自身を持っていません。→使い分けに自信がありません。
明確に使うできる→明確に使うことができるように
間違ったら→間違っていたら
マッギエ先生へ、
本当にありがとうございました。
どういたしまして！
（マッギエ→マギーって呼んでね。(^_−)−☆）
Hi, maggie.
My question is if there is any way to make sure what you want to refer to when modifying a noun.
Because as long as I know a noun like this:
書いているペン
might mean: “the pen I’m writing with” or it might mean: ” the pen I’m painting”.
Ok, I know that there aren’t many people who paint a pen, but the imagination and the creativity of an artist know no bounds. ;)
So I am interested if there is any method to make sure wich one is the correct meaning.
@Robert-again
Hi Robert,
First if you write something you use kanji 書く and if you draw something you use the kanji 描く
You can usually tell the meaning by the context.
Let’s see..
Ex. 1) これは私が描いているペンです。
= This is a pen that I am drawing with./ I have been drawing with.
Ex. 2) これは私が描いているペンです。
= This is a pen that I have been drawing.
You may hear 1) but it is not clear even for native speakers.
So you may change the verb 使っている and say
これは私が使っているペンです
今、使っているペン
When you are talking about the finished picture.
Ex.3) これは私が描いたペンです。
= this is the pen I draw a picture with.
= this is a pen that I drew.
If you are talking about a pen, you need a word picture
Ex. これは私がこの絵を描いたペンです。
= This is a pen that I drew this picture with.
Hi Maggie,
a further query on iru/aru.
When talking of bacteria, viruses, or bugs/insects, etc., which do I use? I know that plants are considered ‘inanimate’ because they don’t move, but germs or creepy-crawlies?
Many, many thanks.
＠Ted
Interesting questions. As long as they are alive, technically you use いる
微生物(biseibutsu) a microbe
虫 (mushi) insects/bugs
→いる
However, you sometimes use ある (in this case “to exist”) for
バクテリア (vacteria)
ウイルス(virus)
菌 (きん) (germ)
Hi again, thank you for your reply the last time.
I have a question again
the example you provided
“ここに財布を置いておいたはずなのにない。”
I am confused. Why do we need a double verb? Why isn’t it just
ここに財布を置いたはずなのにない ? please teach me.
thank you so much.
Hello yuuna,
置いておく implies leaving something in a certain state.
That’s why Maggie used this pattern. It sounds just more natural and adds this nuance.
ヨロシク
@天人
Thank you for helping yuuna!! ❤️
@yuuna
置いて(1) おく (2)
(1) 置く is a verb but
(2) Vておく has a function to leave something the way it is.
Check this lesson V＋ておく
Thank you both!
Hi!
This lesson has been very useful, thank you. I have a question.
This example you gave:
この作文には直すべき間違いがいくつもある。
The translation you provided is:
There are several mistakes in this composition.
Should it be “You should correct several mistakes in this composition” ? Because of “直すべき”
Thank you!!
@yuuna
OK, the literal translation of that sentence is
There are several mistakes that I should fix in that composition.
or
There are several mistakes that should be fixed in that composition.
直すべき modifies 間違い
やっぼ〜 😊
it’s me again I am really sorry for bothering you so often 🙇♀️😞
My fist question is this expression:
フッフッフ
And then I am struggling with the negative past form verb + よう+ ね here:
勝負 から 逃げ なかっ た よう ね。
Can it mean ~ it seems or it looks like
Whole translation of sentence would be something like:
It seems/looks like you didn’t run away form the/our game/match.
よろしくお願いします！😊🤗
@Chii
フッフッフ is another way of laughing. Usually when you are up to something.
Your translation is correct.
よう is It seems like/ It looks like
ね in that sentence is a suffix for a female speech. The meaning there is “I guess..”
Check this lesson : How to use ね
ありがとうございます😊
I am glad that I got it right this time thank you very much 😊😉🤗
@Chii
No problem! ❤️
Yukari-sensei,
(I didn’t want to ask Maggie-sensei this question, because… well, you’ll see.)
I recently saw a post that a writer incorrectly wrote “Watashi wa inu wo motte imasu. Anata wa arimasu ka?” of course intending to mean “I have a dog. Do you have one?” Couldn’t this be completely correct if, say, the conversation were about taxidermy (剥製術)? Or stuffed (toy) animals for that matter. Then with the living-いるvs non-living-ある thing – if someone said “犬がある”, would a native Japanese automatically think that there’s a dead animal somewhere?
@squidlydeux
Hello, squidlydeux.
Haha, thank you for being sensitive. :)
Right. If you have a dog as a pet, you say 犬を飼っています。( = Inu wo katte imasu.)
But if you are talking about stuffed animals or some kind of figure collections, you say 犬を持っている。
I don’t think we automatically think there is a dead animal when we hear 犬がある. We just think it’s wrong Japanese. :)
(From Yukari)
So 犬がある is just wrong in either/any case?
@squidlydeuz
Right. Unless it is a stuffed animal/doll/statue.
But wouldn’t you say 魚がある at a fish market?
@squidlydeux
It’s because you consider 魚 in the fish market is considered to be food.
Hi Maggie Sensei, i have a question,
what is the difference between these two sentences?
あなたに私の気持ちがわかってたまるもんですか
and
私の気持ちは、あなたにはわかりはしない
I see little diference, but i want your advise
Thanks in advance.
Great site.
＠Rey
They both mean “There is no way that you would understand how I feel” but たまるもんですか expresses stronger feelings.
It depends on the context but when you use わかりはしない, it sounds like you have already given up.
I see, thank you very much.
I have another question, not of this leason by the way.
What mean the particule へと?
Like in this sentence:
黒い天使は、その漆黒の翼を大きく広げて、そら空へと舞い上がる
I have seen it in another sentence but can’t get the meaning very well.
Again thank you very much.
@Rey
The meaning of へと is “towards (the sky) ”
へ indicates the directions
You add と→へと to make it sound more literal.
So there’s no chance on meaning.
Thank you very much.
@Rey
Right and you’re welcome! :)
dare yori mo maggie sensei ga ichiban joujuu da to omoimasu.
Arigatou gozaimashita.
@Herlina Naibaho
Thank you for your comment.
Can you just tell me what you meant by “joujuu” ? jouzu???
ありがとうございました! Your blog really help me in my journey to learn Japanese.
ど
@ゆじ
どういたしまして！It is going to be a long journey but I hope you enjoy every single step! :)
This is probably the best lesson I have found on greetings. I am sansei, older and trying to connect to my heritage
@Nick (Minoru)
Hi Nick (Minoru)! Hajimemashite!
Thank you for your nice comment!! Hope you learn many ways of greetings in this lesson!
Maggie sensei, can Isay like this :
kyou wa saigo no kurasu kara, watashitachi ni shashin o torarete kurete, mina wa kitekudasai.
pls reply,tks
＠husni chen
What do you want to say in English? It’s our last class so we are going to take a picture together? Then you don’t need to use a passive form.
Kyou wa saigo no kurasu nanode, minna de shashin wo issho ni torimasu. (or torimashou) Zehi kite kudasai.
@Maggi-sensei:
How do I say “Money can buy anything, even happiness” in Japanese?
Is there any idiom that reflects this kind of sentiment/nuance in Japanese?
@John
Hi John,
You can say “愛があればなんでも買える。幸せさえも。”
It is not an idiom but the the common phrase we have has an opposite idea.
愛でお金は買えない。= You can’t buy love with money.
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
Can you please help me? I’m trying to read a manga and I’m having hard time understanding the hodo in this sentence:
「このまま見逃すほど甘くはないですよ？」
If it helps, there’s a battle going on and the person saying this has been ignored this whole time, until she brings out a huge weapon and says this line to the enemy.
@Jinzal
Hi Jinzal
ほど in that sentence modifies “このまま見逃す” = to over look like this. (Probably “to let you go without catching you.” in this case.)
So the rough idea is
I am not as sweet as just letting you go like that.”
Thought it might be something like that but wasn’t quite sure, thanks for the reply!
@Jinzal
You’re welcome! :)
“Nian Nian先生みたいな小さくてかわいい先生は今までいませんでしたね。”
Regarding this sentence, does it mean they HAD found the teacher that looks like Nian Nian sensei? Or they hadn’t?
@Benny
“Nian Nian先生みたいな小さくてかわいい先生は今までいませんでしたね。”
As I wrote, it means we have never had this little and cute teacher like Nian Nian Sense (until now).
(But now we do!)
I see! But what if there hasn’t been any teacher who’s little and cute like Nian Nian sensei instead (we still don’t have one now), do we say: “Nian Nian先生みたいな小さくてかわいい先生は今までいません。”?
@Benny
I see your confusion now
Since we already had Nian Nian Sensei in this lesson, “we still don’t have one” context doesn’t work but
When you describe the state as present perfect you say
We haven’t had ~ until now (but we now have one) ~みたいな〜は今までいません
When you describe the state as past you say
We hadn’t had ~ until now ~みたいな〜は今までいなかった
To answer your question, let me change the example sentence.
***
In this blog, we have never had a guest teacher of elephant.
象の先生は今までいません。
なるほど。ありがとうございます！勉強になりました。
sensei, in 彼のことをほってはおけない。 what role does the は serve?
i mean what is different if i say: 彼のことをほっておけない. is it wrong?
i don’t really understand why the は goes there
Hello シロ！
マギーに代わって回答させてもらう。
In Japanese negation sentences you will find very often the は particle.
There’s no direct translation for the は used here.
The difference is, that は puts more emphasis in the sentence and implies also contrast.
彼のことをほってはおけない = (I can do many things, but) I cannot leave him alone.
Hope it helps ^ ^
ご参考になれば幸いです。
PS. Maggie, I’m waiting for the holy grail of all of your lessons, which is the legendary は vs が lesson ^ ^
@天人
Thank you for helping シロ
I know….I got another request on は vs が from one of my twitter followers as well.
Thank you very much for the answer.
So even without the は its still correct but the は just adds emphasis, right?
I really love this part of the language. There are just so many ways to express yourself ^_^
Yes シロ, without は the sentence is correct as well.
The ways of expressing yourself in Japanese is that, what I love the most. The other parts are dialects and Classical Japanese（古語）.
In the examples I see “Climb”, “Hill” and “Hajime”; is it possible that you are watching Yowamushi Pedal? lol :D
Thanx for the lesson!
＠Cici
Haha, no I am not but now I feel like watching 弱虫ペダル! 😀
hai maggie sensei.
i have troble to understand the meaning of these sentence. just like u wrote above.
tsukareta you na kao wo shiteiru. and
Maggie wa marude dareka ni koi wo shita you na me wo shiteita
thing that i’m wondering is i can’t understand how to translate
kao wo shite iru and me wo shite iru. while the meaning of kao is face and me is eyes. and shite iru is to know (if i wasn’t wrong) if i translate it, it would be to know the face. and to know the eyes. but your translate is diffrent. so o get confuse to translate it. please help me out.
@budi
First “to know” is 知る (= shiru) / 知っている (= shitte iru) not している (=shiteiru)
The expressions that I used in the examples sentences are
Also you may want to know this expression.
Subjectは+ adjective + body part + をしている
Maggieはきれいな目をしている
= Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru.
= Maggie has beautiful eyes.
( = マギーの目はきれいだ = Maggie no me wa kirei da)
so is that mean
Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru. and
Maggie no me wa kirei da
in english has the same meaning as “maggie has beatiful eyes”??
sorry for too much question. i just sleepless when thingking about something ^=^!! and i just started to learn japanese.
@budi
They could be translated the same but to be precise,
1) Maggie wa kireina me wo shiteiru.
Maggie has beautiful eyes.
2) Maggie no me wa kire da.
Maggie’s eyes are beautiful.
owhhh!! u realy light me up !! arigato gozaimashita sishou !!
@budi
Anytime! :)
From Maggie Shishou 🤣
I was reading in your lessons ^_^. I found it very good, informative, colorful and easy to understand. I wanted to thank you for all the time and the efforts. The world is a good place, because of people like you. I am living and working in Japan. Thus, I am trying to learn more.
@Maher
Thank you for your nice words. Your kind word made my day!
ありがとう！！ 💕
Konnichiwa Maggie-sensei,
1. Please explain the difference between “dekiru dake” and “dekiru made”.
I understand “dekiru dake” means “as much as possible” but, since I think of “dake” to mean “only,” I mistakenly think of “dekiru dake” as “do only what you can”. It’s hard for me to shake this!
I think “dekiru made” means “do only what you can” but I think of “made” as “until,” so my intution is to (incorrectly) translate “dekiru made” as “do as much as you can” (like, “do until your stopping point”).
2. Is there a nmenonic for remembering the difference in usage?
3. There is a typo in this example — it’s missing the “e” in dekite: Ano futari wa dkite iru mitaida.
@Genki
Hi Genki!
1) 2)できるだけ = dekirudake = as much as possible
だけ( = dake) means “only” but also “one’s limit” ( = かぎり） or as much as
verb potential form + だけ
Ex. 食べられるだけ食べてください。
= Taberareru dake tabete kudasai.
= Please eat as much as you can (eat)
Ex. 荷物を持てるだけ持って行く。
= Nimotsu wo moteru dake mote iku.
= I will take luggage as much as I can (carry).
*できるまで = dekiru made = until one can do something/ until something is finished
Ex. パンができるまで待ちます。
= Pan ga dekriu made machimasu.
= I will wait until the bread is done.
3. Thank you!! I fixed it. :)
I really enjoyed reading your explanation and examples. Thank you very much!
@kufre
Hi kufre,
I’m glad to hear enjoyed the lesson. :)
Please tell me about さすがandまさか
@Karan
I have a lesson on さすが → Check this lesson.
まさか is ” No way!” or when something you can’t believe happens.
Ex. 「マギーが結婚するんだって。」
= Maggie ga kekkon surun datte.
= I heard Maggie is going to get married.
「まさか！」
= Masaka!
= No way!
Ex. まさか、マギーが結婚するとは思わなかった。
= Masaka, Maggie ga kekkon suru towa omowanakatta.
= I didn’t even dream that Maggie would get married.
Ex. まさか、マギーが結婚するわけない。
= Masaka, Maggie ga kekkon suru wake nai.
= There is no way that Maggie would get married.
結婚の例文を選んだね、面白い。
そういえば、もう結婚してるかいなー、ってずっと気になってて♪＾＾
Can you have たり form and ことができます form in one sentence??
勉強をしたり歌うをすることができます。
like this maybe???
@haeun
Yes, you can use potential form with たり
But to be able to sing is not 歌うをすることができます
→歌うことができます or 歌えます。
Thanks for answering
What happens is that the song is about two people (I did not put the complete lyrics) so I assumed that supporting each other was just something between them.
＠Kaede
I know it is hard to tell by just the excerpt but judging from that part
いろいろな人達と could modify 泣いたり笑ったり and 支えあったり because it has the same suffix, たり.
こんにちはマギー先生👩🏫
I have a problem understanding this sentence can you plea help me 😊🤗also I am not sure where the あれかgoes maybe at the beginning or at the end what would me more sense? Also is the nai form plus to = have to or something else
あれか仲直りさせないと。
仲直りさせないとあれか。
Sorry i now it’s hard because it’s not so clear but please try you would help me a lot thank you 😊
Hi Chii!
仲直りさせないと = to make some (or to let someone, depending from the context) fixed up a quarrel / to make someone make up with someone.
EX. 僕はその二人を仲直りさせようとしたけど・・・。
The あれか part is unclear for me, I need a wider context.
ヨロシク。
to make some fix up a quarrel*
to make someone fix up a quarrel**
三度目の正直・・・。
@Chii & 天人
Thank you for helping Chii, 天人！
The position of あれか, at the end,
仲直りしないとあれか。 sounds more natural.
As 天人 says, it depends on the context but you sometimes say あれか to make your speech vague on purpose to avoid saying いけない・だめ・まずい (not good)
Or only the speaker knows what is going to happen (some bad consequences such as divorce, etc. ) or just looking for the right word.
@maggie&天人
Thank you both for your help 😊🤗👍😉 now I have an idea what it can mean than you both your explanations are so great they helped me a lot 😊👍🤗😉 as for the あれか I would say it stands for いけない in this situation also I would choose it because the pattern ない+と+ いけない I think I haven’t seen it some were before. 🤔 I hope I get it right 😊🤗
ありがとうございますマギーと天人
@Chii
My pleasure!! ❤️
Hello Maggie!
久しぶりでんな！元気だったかのう？
I’m playing the Japanese version of Final Fantasy III on my PSP.
In the early part of the game (right now I’m before the final boss fight) the 光の戦士たち were captured by the bahamur dragon at Dragon’s Peak and sent back into his nest. They found there a guy called デッシュ, which apparently was the one who they were searching for.
Now it comes my 気になる part. The moment デッシュ saw them, he started the conversation with: 「ハハハ！すべて見物させてもらったよ。おまえたちもドジだねえ～！ドラゴンにさらわれてザマないな！」.
I want just to make sure that I understand 「見物させてもらったよ」 correctly. Two translation-possibilities, where only one is correct.
1. Ironically speaking, the party received a favour from the Dragon of sightseeing his nest; デッシュ describes the situation from the party’s perspective, that’s why he uses ～てもらう.
– However this point does not explain, why ！～させて！もらう was used here…
2. デッシュ allowed himself to watch (to observe) the whole spectacle, where the dragon captured the party, etc.
– This explains, why ～させてもらう was used.
In your opinion, Maggie, which point is correct, No. 1 or No. 2?
My bonus question is regarding ドラゴンにさらわれてザマないな！
I’d translated it as: What a pity you let yourself get caught by that dragon!” or “You let yourself get caught by that dragon! Shame on you!” or “Ow boy, that’s really bad, you let yourself get caught by that dragon!”
Which translation of ザマないな would fit here the most?
よろしくお願いします！
PS Now I found out the best way to learn Japanese; since I noticed I understand over 90% from the dialogues, I became suddenly able to play J-RPG games. 素晴らしいことじゃないか！さあ、次はファイナルファンタジー IXだわい！よーし！
@天人
ほんまやな〜久しぶりやなあ。（笑）
全て見物させてもらったよ
I saw everything.
As you said 1) 見物 in that sentence doesn’t mean “sightseeing” . When you witness or see/watch the fight and as “an entertainment” , you also use 見物
You can not exactly translate the nuance in English but 見物させてもらったよ just means “I saw / I have seen”. You use passive causative form when you look down on someone to show you are superior to others.
Ex. 全部聞かせてもらったよ。
= I have heard everything. / I heard everything.
If you need to translate “させてもらう” part in English somehow, it could be
I took the liberty of watching the whole thing.
but he uses his politeness as sarcasm.
bonus question:
I would say the first one
You can also translate “How pathetic” instead of “pity”
楽しそうね、ファイナルファンタジー！やってみようかな。
Thank you very much Maggie for your help!
Thanks to you, I learned something new today.
Yesterday I completed FF III! But I’m gonna spend a few days to make my save file a perfect one.
FF IX is awaiting…!＊ワクワク＊
Take care and see you soon!
＠天人
Haha, you’re very welcome! Enjoy FF IX!!! (^_-)
Maggie sensei, I have a question about a sentence from your answer.
The sentence
全部聞かせてもらったよ. ( I have heard everything/ I heard everything)
Does it literally mean “ (Someone lets me heard everything) because it is a causative verb?
Hi Khan
聞かせる A lets B hear everything.
聞かせてもらう B got hear everything thanks to A.
But this is an expression you use when B heard something without A’s intention.
B takes liberty of hearing the story from A.
I see.
So does the sentence in this situation have the same usage, Maggie sensei.
A crimnial kidnaps a friend of a police that he hates. Then he tortures him. Before the police friend have any serious injuries. The police arrives. It was very lucky for him to be able to find the criminal hideout. He then handcuff the crimmial easily without using too much streghth. The crimminal surrenders and tell him to throw him back in jail. The police then stare at the criminal and say
” I was thinking about it, but before that…”
“君が言ってたことをそのまま俺もやらせてもらうよ”
After he says this sentence, he starts to punch the criminal face over and over.
Does this sentence means “I will do what you have said, too”?
The police takes the liberty of doing what the criminal have said.
Yes. I will take the liberty of doing what you have said, too.
Maggie, hello.
You are the cutest dog (except for mine).
I once heard this in an anime (進撃の巨人): エレンを傷つけたりしないよ
Eren wo kizutsuketari shinai yo
And this was translated as ‘I wouldn’t hurt Eren’
So tari can be used to express that someone would do something.?
Hi Robert!
In this case ～たり implies other possibilities beside those, which were mentioned.
So basically it means that the speaker would never do something bad to Ellen, like hurting her in any way.
～たりalso it adds lots of emphasis.
A good translation, which shows the ～たり part, would be: “I would n e v e r hurt Ellen!”
And yes, it can express an action towards another person => EX. 人に嫌がることをさせたり笑いものにするのが好き、だという人が、残念ながら、いる。
＠Robert and 天人
Thank you for helping Robert, 天人 While I was sleeping! :)
Thank you very much, but…
It’ Eren (it’s a german name) and he is male.
Sorry, just when I had a look at it, I started laughing.
Could you translate this sentence please?
人に嫌がることをさせたり笑いものにするのが好き、だという人が、残念ながら、いる。
@Robert-again
Hmm I don’t do the translation but the idea is
Unfortunately there are people who like forcing other people do things they dislike or laugh at them.
Thanks for answering Sensei!
So … even if we take into account that the song is about two people “We laughed and cried with many people. We would also support each other “(The two persons only)” would be incorrect?
@Kaede
No, I wouldn’t say it is incorrect. It could be “two people are supporting each other”. It all depends on the context.
Thank you for answering and for all your patience!
@Kaede
どういたしまして ❤️
hi magie sensei !!
i just lernd the material to day !! n i quite don’t understand about this
verb+ mitai+ na+ noun!! like this exmple
Dezunii ni iru to otogibanashi no sekai ni iru mitai na kibun ni nareru.
can u explain me about kibun ni nareru?? i can’t understand when i tried to translate it without seeing the meaning!! so please for help
and please this one!!
yume no naka demo hataraiteiru mitai na ki ni naru.
why it use “ki ni naru”?
＠budi
Hi budi,
〜気になる ( ki ni naru) has many meanings but in this case it means “to feel like +Ving”
〜気分になる ( kibun ni naru) as well. (気分になれる is a potential form so it means ”to be able to feel like ~” )
oww!! kibun ni naru is potensial form?? how do we form like that?? i only know the potensial form just to add eru n rareru!! do u have lesson about this?? and can u explain me more abot adverb !!
Oji mitai ni jiyuu ni ikitai.
Konpyuutaa mitai ni seikaku ni keisan dekinai.
i’m wondering, why it use ni after jiyuu and seikaku??
@budi
~になる= to become
Check this lesson.
OK, you can make an adjective or an adverb with certain nouns by adding な / に
自由 = jiyuu = (noun) freedom
1) ＋な
自由な = free (adjective) free
2) +に
自由に= jiyuu ni = (adverb) freely
正確 = seikaku = (noun) accuracy
1) ＋な
正確な = seikaku na = accurate
2) +に
正確に= seikaku ni = (adverb) accurately
aaah!! thank u so much for explaination!! i really appreciate ur reaply!! i’ve studied about japan’s language on many site !! but only u the one who would like to answer my question!! arigatou maggie sansei
@budi
どういたしまして、budi! :)
Maggie Sensei,
Just wanted to say thanks for making this lesson for me :)
@Dan
My pleasure! I hope this help understand your original question more. :)
Thank you Maggie sensei
＠Karan
You’re welcome, Karan!
＠天人
まさか！！かっこいい犬知っていたら紹介してね。
ほーい、了解です！
（＊鏡を見ながらの独り言＊ 実は立派で格好いい犬知ってるかもしれないさ❤）
＠天人
いま、かっこいい犬知っているっていった？ （笑）
Maggie sensei, can I know how verbs can be joined with nouns? I read this before from a Japanese textbook but I forgot the proper conjugation。I think it was 行くバス。In other words, is there a general rule around this grammar type?
And as usual, thank you for constantly teaching us new stuff! :D
@Banana
Hi Banana
行くバス
It must be a part of a sentence
For example “学校へ行くバス” a bus which goes to the school.
そのバスは学校へ行く That bus goes to the school
→describe the bus
学校へ行くバス
Check this lesson. How to modify a noun.
Please tell me difference about すればいいなあandすればよかった
@Karan
すればいいな wishing for some future event / I hope ~
すればよかった expressing one’s regret / I should have done
maggie sensei please tell me using of 「なさそう」
＠karan
Did you see my そう lesson?
なさそう = it seems like there isn’t
For example you are looking for something and can’t seem to find it.
You say
ここにはなさそうだ。
= It seems like it is not here.
Ex. マギーはお金がなさそうだ。
= It seems like Maggie doesn’t have any money.
わかりました。。ありがとうございます
@Karan
どういたしまして。
こんにちはマギー先生！
It’s me again 😊 I have trouble understanding this sentence can you please help me 😊😉🤗
ていうかテレビだったら見てるだけでいいから楽だし。
I am interested in the meaning of だったら and also the combination of だけでいいから gives me problems. Also I wanted to ask what だけで means I’ve come across it many times now and still don’t really understand it’s meaning 🤔
ありがとうございます先生😊👩🏫
@Chii
Hi Chii
Vだけでいい= just doing something is good enough/ just need to do something. That’s all
見てるだけでいい = just watching is good enough. You don’t need to do anything./ You just need to watch it, that’s all.
Noun + だったら is a casual way to show the topics. (= テレビは）
As for ~
ありがとうございます😊
Thank you for the great explanation! 😊Now I understand it👍 would you mind telling me the meaning of the whole sentence ?? 🤗
@Chii
I will give you the gist.
As for TV, it is easy because all you need to do is just to watch, you know.
@maggie
Thank you 😊 now i get it 😉😊👍 thank you again fr your help 😊👍🤗
@Chii
You’re very welcome, Chii! :)
Hi Maggie,
I’m sorry for disturbing you again, but I have a question.
How can I say that: ‘I find the wall I am standing in front of beautiful’
Am I right to think, that it is:
ぼくは前に立っている壁が美しいと思う
@Robert
Hi Robert,
I would say
僕が立っている前にある壁は美しいと思う。
こんにちは !
First of all, this website is great to learn japanese ! This lesson seems quite easy to understand ! どうもありがとう !
I just want to check if I got it. For example, if I want to say “Please refrain to eat with a fork”, should I write フォークで食べるのは避けて下さい ?
＠ルー
こんにちは、ルー！
こちらこそ、このサイトで勉強してくれてうれしいです。
The sentence is OK but
避ける (= to avoid) is not natural in that sentence.
フォークで食べるのはやめてください。(a bit too straight)
フォークで食べるのは控(ひか）えてください。might be better.
(polite way
フォーク（のご使用）はお控えください。
わかりました ^^
ありがとうございました！
@ルー
どういたしまして💕
Maggie sensei Please tell me using of (こんな感じ)
And make a sentence on this
＠Karan
Hi Karan,
感じ is on the request list but
こんな感じ = like this
Ex. 学校に誰もいないとこんな感じなんだ。
= So this is how it looks like when nobody is here at school.
Ex. こんな感じのスカートを探しています。(showing a picture of a skirt. )
= I am looking for a skirt which looks like this.
Ex. こんな感じの髪型でどうですか？ (A hair stylist is showing hair style sample to a customer)
= How do you like this kind of hair style?
Hello. Many thanks for the lesson! Regarding the usage of にand で for the verb 広がる, I came across this sentence in a book: 道路が整備されるとともに地方都市が外側へと広がった。
I don’t understand the usage of へと here.
＠Yan
Hi Yan,
OK, now there is a subtle difference between に and へ
に is “to one destination”
へ is “towards that direction”
Yes, I read your explanation regarding the difference between に and へ in one of your older comments. I’m just confused with the addition of と after へ. What purpose does と serve? It’s not a quote in the sentence right?
@Yan
Ah, OK,
That と has a function to express “in such a manner” / “in the way” and describes the way how things work/ how someone does things and modifies the verb which comes after, in this case 広がった.
It would be easier to think と（いうように）
“〜へ….(a) “というように広がった。
(the part (a) describes how it expanded.)
こんにちは🤗マギー先生👩🏫！
I have some trouble understanding this sentence 😓 I would really appreciate your help 😉😊
ちょ肉球がじゃまで押しにく …
First I don’t really understand the ちょ at the beginning I thought it could be a other writing style of the ちょう which stand for ちょっとin kansai Ben and also i don’t really understand the じゃま or 邪魔 in this case and also the ending is totally confusing for me 😓😅
よろしくお願いしますマギー先生👩🏫！
I really hope you can help me 😊😉
Love Chii 🤗
@Chii
Hello Chii!!
ちょ is a slang expression of ちょっと which means “kind of/ a little” You see that a lot on the comment section of Niconico douga. チョ！, ちょ etc.
Did you find the sentence with a cat or dog picture?
~がじゃま in that sentence means “to make it hard to do something with ~”
So it means
It is kinda hard to type with my paws.
@maggie
Yes I found this sentence with a cat picture 😊😉 thank you so much 😊 👍😊😉 put can you please explain me the 押しにく at the end is it kind of an adverb or is it a negative form 😅 That’s what’s bothering me 😓 But thank you so much for the explanation of ちょ and じゃま 🤗👍😊😉
@Chii
Ah, sorry. I forgot to explain that part.
It is an unfinished sentence. （Some people drop い in colloquial Japanese
Ex. 寒い→さむ！)
押しにくい = hard to push (If the cat is in front of a computer, It is hard to type)
~にくい to be hard to do something
Ex. 食べにくい = hard to eat
opposite:
〜やすい = easy to do something
Ex. 飲みやすい= easy to drink
Hope this helps your question. ☺️
@maggie
Yes now I understand it thank you for the great explanation 😊🤗👍😉 sorry for bothering you 😓
ありがとうございます先生👩🏫😊
＠Chii
どういたしまして、Chii! 💕 Anytime!!
Ahhh funny, ok got it thanks! And she’s pretty young, like 1st grade.
No problem! 😉
Hello maggie sensei
Thank you very much for the lesson, it was very useful. I have some questions.
1. so are verbs like 走り続ける made the same way? As in 走るー＞走りますー＞走り＋続ける?
2. if that is the case when should i make it a verb like 走り続ける and when should i add する in the end?
3. would 眠る事ができない be correct? i know its simpler to say 眠れない but i just wanted to know if its wrong or not
4.so 書き is not valid on its own but if its combined with other nouns it can form words? Are there many other instances like that? can every verb be turned into a noun like that?
5. difference between わけがない and わけない? if there is a lesson just link me there
6. difference between 忘れはしない and 忘れやしない?
7. and finally is っこない exactly the same as はしない in meaning?
Thank you very much ^_^
＠シロ
Hello シロ！
1. Yes
走る = to run
続ける = keep doing something
In order to make a verb which expresses “keep running”, you should combine two verbs, 走る and 続ける.
2. Generally when you combine two words and make a noun, then you add する
立ち読みする
（立つ→立ち・読む→読み）
The last verb 読む became a noun form so you can use する
3. Yes, it is correct.
4. For example you don’t use 書き on its own as a subject.
X 書きができない
or many other verbs.
する→し 来る→来
However, you can use them in the form of はしない・もしない
先生はホワイトボードに書きもしない。
5. I have a lesson on わけではない vs わけがない
Click here.
6. They mean the same but while you use 忘れはしない for yourself or someone else to express your strong will not to forget, you tend to use 忘れやしない for someone else and it has a connotation of looking down on that person a little.
彼はあのことを忘れやしない。He is not going to forget about that. (It implies he should let it go but he wouldn’t)
7. っこない is a casual form. Basically they mean the same. Also it is similar to わけはない
承知しました。。教えてくれてありがとうございます
@Karan
どういたしまして、Karan! :)
I add artificial flavorings to my voice and to my face
Hey Maggie-Sensei! 🙋
Can you please help me with this sentence😊😉:
噛むほどうまい
I have seen a lot on Japanese sweets packages but I don’t really understand what they want to express 🤔🤷♀️ And what this ほど is used for. I had the idea that it maybe can have like a sense of “amazingly tasty” or “it’s so delicious to chew”. Does this make sense? I am so confused please help me😓🙏
よろしくマギー先生！
@Chii
噛むほどうまい is actually
噛めば噛むほどうまい. So the first part (噛めば） is missing.
The more you chew, the more flavor comes out or you get
The more you chew, the more tasty it gets.
ありがとうございます😊
I thought it would mean something like this I was just confused because the first part was missing 😊 Thank you for the quick reply 😉👍
@Chii
You’re welcome!!
@天人
Haha, 今回はまだ起きていましたよ！ Thank you for helping, Chii, anyway. :)
Hello Chii!
「噛むほどうまい」というのは「噛めば噛むほど味が口の中に広がって美味しい」という意味になると思います。
The more you chew, the better it tastes ＝＞ it’s so delicious to chewというのもOKです＾＾
ヨロシク。
ほ～、マギーがもう回答しましたな。なんか気づかなかったんだ＾＾
This was a great post, thanks! (Sorry, I’m 7 years late) The 記念切手 got me really excited, but I’m wondering, do they still sell it, considering that most of them were released years ago?
Thanks for any help!
＠Lindy
Hi Lindy,
Every year, they sell different 記念切手. If you want old ones, you can buy them on some auction sites.
They were selling Ghibli stamps last year.
Hi Maggie-Sensei, I’ve gone through your lesson, but I’m still not sure what hodo means in the following sentence in my book.
こーヒーを多く飲む人ほど、肌のしみができにくいという研究結果がある。
People who drink coffee a lot do not get freckles easily? What role does hodo play here?
Hello Yan!
ほど used in this sentence implies “the more… the…”.
So according some scientific studies a negative correlation was found between drinking coffee and getting freckles (= the more coffee you drink, the less you are prone to getting freckles [lit. the harder freckles you can get]).
ヨロシク
@Yan
It seems like you have a nice friend who already helped you here.
Thank you 天人 for helping Yan.
Now I go get a cup of coffee!! ≡≡≡ﾍ(* ﾟ-)ﾉ.
Oh, now I get it. Many many thanks!
I don’t get why it’s just 飲む人ほど and not 飲めば飲むほど.
What’s the difference?
You can say 飲めば飲むほど,too.
Here’s the difference:
1) verbばverbほど〜
飲めば飲むほど the more you drink, the more ~
2) Noun ほど〜
飲む人ほど(* 飲む modifies a noun 人） People who drink ~ (talking about the tendency/possibility.)
Ex. 練習すればするほど上手になります。
= The more you practice, the better you will become
Ex. 練習する人ほど上手になります。
= People who study more tend to be able to do better.
ありがとうございます😊
I thought it would mean something like this I was just confused because the first part was missing 😊 Thank you for the quick reply 😉👍
いつも通りとっても勉強になりますよね、maggie先生！あえてこのページがブックマークしておきました。
I have one question. Is the difference in nuance between 任せて and 任せておけ something like:
任せて – leave it to me
任せておけ – leave it to me (and stay out of it, let me handle it!)
＠friend
Hi friend,
任せて Leave it to me (for now)
任せておいて Leave it to me (indicates certain duration of time. from now on)
任せておけ male speech of 任せておいて. It sounds rough.
(FYI あえて〜する dare to do something. You can simply say このサイト（ページ）をブックマークしました。or お気に入りに登録しました。(okiniiri ni touroku shimashita.)) :)
Hello Maggie – Sensei,
I don’t understand the use of the particle “ni” in your following example :
もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
I might be forced to marry my girlfriend.
Doesn’t “kanojo ni kekkon saserareru” mean that the girlfriend is forced to get married, instead of I am forced to get married?
Can I say “watashi ni kanojo to kekkon saserareru” to mean “I am forced to marry my girlfriend”?
Oops, I think I’ve realised my mistake : saserareru is causative – passive, not causative!
I understand now, the person is made (by the girlfriend =kanojo ni) to marry her. Is that correct?
@Yan
Yes! You got it!! :)
maggie sensei.. that lesson was kinda hard for me.. though this i got an idea,, and recovered my mistakes..thankx a lot
@Anupama
Hi Anupama
I know the causative/passive causative is hard. I eventually make a lesson with more information. :)
Thank you very much maggie san.._.This is my least favorite verb form._..Yuh i never heard of matasu or that stuff yut.
I have problems to fully understand どんなに used in this particular expression with ても because I relate どんな with “way, method, manner” because of the よう abbreviated in the expression, but the english equivalent requieres “how much” which I think it is not implied in どんなに. Could it be that どんなに is implying the manner in which you do somehting, “it doesn’t matter how you do it” instead of “how much you do it”?
If you could help me get a better understanding of this I would appreaciate it.
Thanks for the lesson.
@Austt
Right. どんな solely means “what kind of” but
どんなに+Verb/Adjective+ても／でも〜= No matter how much you do / how +adjective it/Subject is ~
いつも通り、分かりやすいレッスンを作ってありがとう！たくさんの例文を読むのがたまらなく楽しんだ！
次のレッスンを読みたくてたまらないわ～ \(^v^)/
@Sophie
楽しんでもらえてよかった！！またがんばって新しいレッスン作りますね。
Hey Maggie,
I want to thank you for all your great lesson on this awesome language 😊😘
I wanted to give you something back for your hard work 😉 I tried my best to make some summary sheets for this lesson and wanted to ask if you can please take a look on them😊😉 if you like them or you find them useful, maybe you can share it with all the other Japanese learners here to 😊 how can I send them to you ?
Thank you again for all your help 😊
Kind regards 😊
@Chii
I just got your beautiful sheets!!
I uploaded on Facebook for a few hours today and many many people liked it! Thank you!
Thank you 😊 I am so glad I could help you and all the others just I little 😊😉👍 I will try to make more if you want 😊Thanks again your amazing 😉
That is seriously cool :) I need to look through your lessons in some proper order one day. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
My lessons are pretty random. Go to index and find the lesson you like. Hope you enjoy learning Japanese here. :)
Hi Maggie sensei!
Sorry to add more troublesome question…
It has been 8 months since I came in Tokyo and I indeed noticed that なかなか is quite often used both in casual and in formal situations. Even in TV I heard it a lot of times. Since many adverbs of this kind is actually used too, I was trying to do quite a “degree list” of the most used ones.
ものすごく > すごく、とても、非常に、大分、大いに、よっぽど > かなり > なかなか > 結構 > 十分に
Is this, in a broader way, correct? I hear 結構 too a lot of times, many of which as a starting point for a following sentence.
Thank you very much!
@Daniele
Hi Daniele,
Yes なかなか can be used both in formal and casual way.
As for your degree list,
ものすごく is very casual. It is the same level as 非常に.
よっぽど and 大いに、大分 are bit different in the usagewise. (For example, you don’t say よっぽど美しい/おいしい 大分美しい/おいしい as a compliment. )]If you say 十分にきれい。You are beautiful enough.
You use 十分に when you are talking about amount.
Ex. 十分食べた= I had enough.
Hi Maggie, congratulations on your website! The passion for the Japanese language is very clear in your work! Great job!
I hope you can help me with the following request. I am trying to find an expression to thank my son’s teachers for the past (and future) guidance and help in his sport (jiu jitsu).
I found Itsuno osewa ni narimasu/narmashita and
Domo arigato gozaimashita
Could I use any of the two expressions? Or do you have a better phrase that expresses gratitude on a more apropriate way?
Thank you very much,
Mary
@Mary
Hi Mary! Thank you for your nice message!
You can say
Itsumo osewa ni natte imasu. Korekara mo yoroshiku onegai shimasu.
Hello Maggie Sensai, thank you for all the examples in this lesson. I think I have grasped the ideas of when or how to use たら. However, I have a question about the following sentence:
もしそうだったらわたし
Is it different in meanings from this:
もしわたしがそうだったら
I read somewhere that the second sentence means “If I were like that…”
お願い致します❣
@Presto
こんにちは、Presto!
Right,
もしそうだったら= If that is the case, If so,
もしわたしがそうだったら = If I were like that
Thank you Maggie Sensai ❣こんにちは。
So can I say that the following sentence also means “if I were like that…”?
もしそうだったらわたし
ありがとうございます❣
@Presto
That will be
もし私がそうだったら not もしそうだったらわたし …
“もしそうだったらわたし” sounds more like “If so, then I…” or “If that’s the case, then I…”
ヨロシクポ(=^〇^=)
Thank you 天人 and Maggie Sensai. That was why I asked in the first place, 😅because the entire sentence is
もしそうだったらわたし、つごうわるいな。
My original attempt to translate the above is:
If that’s the case, to me it’s inconvenient, hmmmm.
What do you think?
＠Presto
Ah, OK, the whole sentence makes more sense.
You sometimes switch the word order or drop a particle in conversation.
The whole sentence is
もしそうだったら、わたしは都合が悪いな。
If that’s the case, it is not good for me ( I am not available)
Wonderful! ありがとうございます、マギー先生❣
@Presto
どういたしまして！
＠天人
Thank you for helping Presto! ❤️
I would like to download the audio fragments in order to make a wonderful compilation of phrases. They’re so useful and your voice is so clear and beautiful, is that possible? Thank you for this wonderful site
@claudia
Hi Claudia, Thank you for visiting this site!
I am not sure if you can download the audio fragments from this site right now…
But I will record more phrases and think about the ways to download the sound files somehow. :)
When we talk about whether the listner`s urge to do a verb towards us (speakers),shall we use ってあげる？
お前は「他人を手伝ってあげるのは無意味で無駄ぞ」を考えるらしいのさ。
You likely think its useless and pointless to help others.
あ、そう。手伝ってあげたいと言う気持ちは全く無いよね。
分かった。好きにしなさい。
I got it. You’ve got no urge to help me at all. Fine, do as you want.
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/book/export/html/239
I’d like to know when to use this “verb+teagetai” to indicate the listner’s urges toward us.
Does it need to have a “toiukimochi\toiukanji” after “verb+teagetai”?
@david
Hello david,
First do you know how/when to use たい？ (If not check this lesson. たい＆がる )
Vたい= would like to V
It expresses one’s desire.
Now Someoneに ( somethingを) Vて＋あげ+ たい
expresses one’s desires (urge) to do something for someone.
手伝いたい = I want to help someone
手伝ってあげたい= I want to help someone for that person. (for that person sake)
The difference is while 手伝いたい is just expressing one’s desire, 手伝ってあげたい is used when you believe your action will help someone.
“verb+teagetai” to indicate the listener’s urges toward us.
In the second example sentence, the speaker is talking to someone else. So, the speaker thinks, the listener has no urge/desire to help the speaker.
Hi there!
Regarding the question: “Does it need to have a “toiukimochi\toiukanji” after “verb+teagetai”?” The answer is yes. In this case the という part has the function of describing what (kind of) feeling does the speaker mean, namely the feeling (or desire) to help someone (手伝ってあげたい).
The pattern ～てあげたい (like Maggie mentioned) is used here because the person, who the speaker is talking to, is:
1) the source of the action
2) the action is toward others (me or other people are the receivers of that action).
Just think like I’d talking to you and come to the conclusion, that you have got no urge to help other people (or particularly me) at all. You are the source of the action, and the action is toward others, therefore you have to use ～てあげたい and because I’m describing, what kind of action I mean, I use という気持ち.
Hope this helps a little.
ヨロシク
To be absolutely clear ” therefore you have to use ” => “therefore I have to use”. I, because I am sending the communicate (my opinion) to you.
It’s a bit confusing, but no panic. After 5 years of regular contact with 日本語you gonna get used to it!
@天人
Thank you for helping David!
@David
Sorry. I forgot to answer your question but 天人 helped you. That’s very nice of him!
Let me add one thing:
If you don’t use 気持ち in that sentence, you could also say
手伝ってあげたいとは全く思わないんだね。
Hello Maggie Sensai!
I learned a lot from this lesson. It’s wonderfully detailed and helpful. どうもありがとうございました！
Regrettably, I still can’t figure out the following:
そればかり、繰り返していっています。
Just before this sentence, it is about something that he regretted.
Can I translate it to “He keeps/is always talking about/repeating this (something he regretted).” ??
@Presto
Hi, Presto,
It means He just talking about that.
Let me break it down.
そればかり繰り返し言っています。
そればかり = just that matter
繰り返し repeatedly
言っています is saying/ has been saying
From just that sentence, I can’t see the “regret” part.
ありがとうございます, Maggie Sensai❣
The sentence of regrets comes right before this, so that’s why I assumed the person keeps talking about his regrets.
So based on your analysis, I believe it means “He has repeated saying about this (which is likely his regrets)”, correct?
感謝しています❢
@Presto
OK, them right, it means,
“He keeps talking about the same thing over and over.”
今までありがとうございました。
レッスンはいつも助けてくれるね。
頑張って！
@Michaela
レッスンがお役になってよかったです。
これからもまたきてね。
hi Maggie sensei ..
I’m happy you’re back with new lessons..
in these examples,
Ex. 離れていると会いたさが増す。
Ex. 木々の緑の深みがましてきた。
why did you say増す( masu ) instead of ( fueru )?
don’t they have the same meaning of increasing ?
＠roro
Hello roro!
You don’t say 会いたさが増える・深みが増える
Of course, there are exceptions but general difference is you tend to use 増す for something you can’t count, degree, amount, strength, something intangible which you can express with an adjective
You use 増える for something countable, tangible, 数が増える・人数が増える・人が増える
Hello, マギー先生！私が中国人です。
It’s my first time to read this blog, I think it’s awesome! It can teach me lots of command used of Japanese so I love this blog so much!
Hope you–マギー先生,can post more blogs about japanese lessons!
I will follow this blog, 頑張ります！
＠せんき
你好！ このサイトへようこそ！ Welcome to my site!
日本語（にほんご）の勉強（べんきょう）、これからもがんばってくださいね。私もがんばってレッスンをつくります。
Dear Maggie先生、
Thank you for the lesson. I had so much question about ように。Some question have been answered after reading your lesson above. Which is stated as point 1.
1. いつだって泳げなくても 飛びこめるように
The ように above should be: I wish I can jump/dive in.（Just learned from your lesson, thank you very much) :D
However, I have a question regarding below two sentences.
1. 生まれたばかりの三日月が まわるよに ほほえむ。
2. さぁ踊ろう いつもよりはやまる空 ゆるい殻に捲かれるよに軽く
The よに in the two example, are they as noun such as 世、夜？or there are short form of ように？
Thank you so much.
Thank you so much for the detailed explanation/ lesson.
@weep
どういたしまして！❤️
HI Maggie先生、Thank you for the post. I’ve been searching the explanation for the particle end with し。Your explanation is very in detail and clear. I’ve learned a lot today. ありがとうございました。
@weep
Hi weekp! Welcome to the site!
Hope you come back here to visit me!
HI Maggie先生、
I will check in everyday. A lot of question have been solved by reading your lesson. Thank you so much for your knowledge.
先生、you are amazing! Your lessons are really good and easy to understand. Even I could clatify the things that I could not understand in my Japanese classes nor at school.
Thank you so much 先生。
And another thing I should say, your web site is really cool♡ because there are pets ♡ i love them
＠ヘヨン
Thank you for your nice comment!
I’m glad to hear my lesson help you clarify things.
We are lucky to have many cute guest teachers!! 😉
先生、can we use かなwith ある?
For an example, can we say、
明日、時間があるかな。
@ヘヨン
Yes, you can say あるかな
明日、時間あるかな。(Since it is a casual speech you can also skip “が” )
I came across the word わざと and was wondering if it has the same meaning as わざわざ?
By the way, I found your website quite a while ago and I just wanted to thank you for the amazing lessons you put up! On a side note sorry for asking a question on such an old lesson haha! :p
@Banana
Hello, Banana!
Thank YOU for visiting my site!
わざと and わざわざ are different. わざと means “(to do something) on purpose/ intentionally ”
Ex. わざとぶつかった。= to bump into someone on purpose.
Thanks for the reply! I really appreciate it :D
@Banana 🍌
You’re very welcome!
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you for teaching this lesson.
I want to ask about “いつものように” and “いつもみたいに”, is there any exact difference between these two? Because I just found a question “彼らはいつも _______ ソファーの上でレコードをきいていた” and rather than “みたいに” it said the right answer is “のように”.
＠Crims
A lot of time ように and みたいに are replaceable. However, I agree with the answer.
いつもみたいに〜きいていた。doesn’t sound natural. Maybe it’s because the word いつも is an adverb.
Though some people might say that in colloquial conversation,
” いつものように + verb ” is more proper.
You can use “noun” + みたいに + verb pattern.
子供みたいに喜ぶ。
= Kodomo mitai ni yorokobu.
Please check my みたい lesson,too.
I’m native Japanese, and my local hairstylist said she was having difficulty communicating with overseas customers who visits her salon. This post was also perfect for the Japanese speakers. I would like to say thank you in behalf of her!
@ori
コメントありがとうございます！
このポストが行きつけの美容師さんのお役に立てばうれしいです！❤️
What does it mean when people tell you 「フォローさせてもらいます」? I see this a lot on instagram. What’s a good way to respond to it?
@nugget
It means “I will follow you” in a kind polite way. like “Allow me to follow you. ”
If you welcome that person, you could just say
フォローありがとうございます。
(Thank you for following me.)
this form can be used with first person ? like
明日私は働くべきです
私は父と謝るべきです
＠Caio
It is possible to use べき with the first person in certain cases
Ex. 私は父に謝るべきか迷っている。
Ex. 私が行くべきだと思う？
Ex. 私はあんなことを言うべきじゃなかった。
Ex. それは私がやるべきことです。
(person) は Verbべきです pattern is when you give someone an advice so 私はVべきです is unnatural.
〜てはいけない is more natural.
明日私は働くべきです
→明日、私は働かなくてはいけないです。
私は父と謝るべきです
→私は父に謝らなくてはいけないです。
maggie先生、詳しく説明してありがとうございました。もう一つ聞いていいですか。
I understood your explanation. I should use the form てはいけない in te first person instead beki, but i wish to know if its ok use the form ばいい with first person.
私はなにやればいい
私はあなたの車追えばいいか
明日学校に行けばいい
@Caio
Yes, you can use ばいい with the first person.
(ればいい sounds much lighter/less obligatory than べき)
All your sentences are very natural.
Hi,can you help me?
What does 写真 シェアされました mean? I’d say its “the picture was shared,published”. Is this line in the passive voice? 写真にシェアされました sounds like “something was shared by the picture” and 写真は自分にシェアされました “the picture was shared by me”. These last 2 lines seem to be in the causative-passive form,yet I’m unsure about the first one.
@david
Hi David,
You sometimes drop a particle. I don’t know the context but from just that the line, I think it means 写真はシェアされました。 The picture was shared. (passive form) (It doesn’t say by whom)
Hello, Maggie sensei,
Thank you for making this lesson! May I ask you a question?
I can’t quite figure out which case of “you ni” is used here.
もっと激しさを痛い程味あう様に
Please, do it harder till it hurts, so that we could taste each other?
Do it harder, till it hurts like we’re tasting each other?
We taste each other to make it harder till it hurts?
Sorry, it’s from modern poetry full of darkness and eroticism which is really hard to understand((
Thank you!
You got the point Julia.
This 「様に」 has no direct translation. It expresses hoping or wishing for something. In this case a desire for experiencing pain while doing something god doesn’t want you to know about : ))
“Do it harder, till it hurts!” would be the best translation, I guess.
ヨロシク。
Thank you, sensei.
But I can’t decide what to do with 味あう. I mean, maybe it’s something like “It would be nice to taste each other”, so the “you ni” part is connected only with the “味あう” and has nothing to do with the “もっと激しさを痛い程” part. Or it’s more likely that “you ni” refers to the whole sentence?
＠Julia
It’s from the lyrics of one of BUCK-TICK songs, right?
~ように means 1) “in order to / to ~ ” 2) like ~
The literal translation is
Like enjoying the passion (or intensity) so much that it hurts
＠天人 Nice follow as always! :)
Yes, that’s right. Thank you, Maggie sensei! 🙏🏻
Well, Maggie took some trouble and fished up the whole context.
I just took a shortcut and listened to my エッチマインド when I saw “a poetry full of darkness and eroticism”.
味あう is just an unorthodox variant of 味わう.
Context is always the key.
Have a good day!
＠Julia
You’re welcome!
@天人
lol You did a great job there!
Hi Maggie-Sensei!
I still can’t grasp the meaning of -te shimau completely because I can’t fully understand the difference of -te shimau when used compared to normal ones. Like for example, if I use -te shimau when asking for permission, what would the difference be when I use -te mo ii?
Does sentences with -te shimau generally mean they’re negative?
My native Japanese teacher can’t explain the meaning of te-shimau as well ;-;
Thanks in advance !!
@エリ
You mean the difference between てもいい？ and しまってもいい？ like these?
1) これ食べてもいいですか？
2) これ食べてしまってもいいですか？
1) is simply asking for a permission for an action of eating. “Can I eat this?”. You say that before you eat something.
2) is asking for a permission for eating the whole thing. It implies you eat the last piece of something. You say that either before you eat something or when you are already eating. “Can I finish this?”
So while Vてもいいですか is just asking someone if you can do something or not and you don’t need to fish doing / complete something,
Vてしまってもいいですか？ implies if you can finish doing something.
Maggie先生、知識を教えてくれてありがとう！毎日このブログを読んで楽しいんだ。
お聞きしたいことはどうして「恋バナ」の「バナ」がカタカナで書かれているのか。
どうもありがとうございました！
@エライザ
こんにちは、エライザ！
「恋ばな」とひらがなで書いてもいいです。
スラングの言葉はカタカナで書くことが多いです。
恋ばな→恋の話（こいのはなし）・恋愛の話（れんあいのはなし）→casual contraction 恋ばな(こいばな）→ It looks lighter 恋バナ
Hello!
Are there any lessons on the differences between それに、そして、それから、それで、さらに、なお、なおかつ,それとも、それにしても、それでも、etc?
@vinicius oliveira
Hello! I don’t think there is. (I might have covered some of them in a Mini lesson but not the whole differences.)
How would you say “I would like to be added to your list”?
＠Rena
私をリストに加えてほしいです。(= Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete hoshii desu.)
私をリストに加えてくれない？ ( = Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete kurenai?) (casual)
→(more polite) 私をリストに加えて頂けないでしょうか？ （= Watashi wo risuto ni kuwaete itadake nai de shouka?)
Thank you so much this is by far the most helpful article I’ve read! It is so detailed thank you so much!
@Gen
Happy to hear that, Gen! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Sorry this isn’t related to this lesson, but I have a general translation question I would like your help with!
So I’m trying to translate this song (full lyrics here: http://vocaloidlyrics.wikia.com/wiki/%E5%8F%8D%E8%8A%BB%E3%81%AE%E5%8D%B0%E8%B1%A1_(Hansuu_no_Inshou) )
and I came across this line:寝台列車も星と日付と共倒れ
What I could get out of it was: “Even the sleeper car falls together with the stars and the date.”
That doesn’t really make sense; I was wondering if “As the stars fall, and the date changes, the sleeper car falls out of use” would be correct for that. It seems a bit too interpretive to me, but it was the only thing that made sense to me.
What would you think is most likely the intended meaning of that phrase?
Thank you!
＠Holly Werb
The literal meaning is your first translation. “Even the sleeper car falls together with the stars and the date.”
But your interpretation is correct. :)
Okay, I wasn’t sure if my interpretation was stretching too far.
Thanks for your help! :)
You’re welcome! ❤️
I have another question on the same song, if you don’t mind.
I was torn between interpretations of this lyric:
看守が微笑む偶然を寝そべり待ちぼうけ
Lying on the ground, I wait in vain for the chance (for/when) the jailer smiles.
Lying on the ground, I wait in vain for the jailer to smile by chance/coincidentally.
For my first interpretation, I’m not sure if the person is waiting for the jailer to smile, as in their chance/opportunity is in itself the jailer smiling, or if they are waiting for a chance when the jailer smiles, like they want to do something and they think their best bet is the moment he smiles.
Yet I found in examples that 偶然 almost always means simply “by chance;” yet it definitely seems like 看守が微笑む is the attributive phrase and 偶然 is being used completely as a noun here; but I found almost no examples of its usage as a noun, which really threw me.
Anyways, which one of the three options do you think it is? Or is it none of those and I’m just totally wrong? (Hopefully not!)
Thank you, again, for your help!
＠Holly Werb
You can’t find any examples because you don’t say 偶然を待ちぼうけ It is another original expression.
The person is waiting for the chance when the jailer smiles. So the first interpretation is right.
Okay, I was wondering why I wasn’t seeing any examples. Thank you!
You’re welcome! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I have yet another question, if you don’t mind, on the same song. This song is proving very hard to translate! O~O
本当は思ってなんかいやしない
Literally, this would be something like “In truth, I thought and something did not (emphatically) exist. ” That, of course, makes no sense, but I’m unsure as to what it really means.
Possibly – “In reality, what we had thought of didn’t exist.” Or maybe “Really, we did not think (with なんか being an example of tmesis – though I’m not sure if that exists in Japanese)” Though I don’t think it’s either of those…
Anyways, thank you so much for helping me again!
@Holly Werb
Hello,
~なんていやしない is a casual way to negate something strongly. It means the same as “思ってなんていない。”
It means
The person is not really thinks so.
どうもありがとうございます
＠ホワンさん
どういたしまして❤️
Thank you so much for these lessons; they are great! 本当に助かります！
＠Himali🌻
Thank YOU for visiting this site!! ❤️ またきてくださいね。
Thank you very much, Maggie Sensai!!! I’ve learned a lot from this lesson. However, I still have trouble understanding the following:
幸せで気がくるいそって、こんな状態をいうのかしら。
@Presto
Hi Presto
I think there is a typo in your sentence. くるいそって→くるいそうって
Let me rephrase this
幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか。
→幸せで気がくるいそうって、こんな状態をいうのかしら。
幸せで気が狂いそう = (to feel like) going crazy because one is really happy
こんな状態= this kind of state/condition
〜を = object marker
いう = to indicate/ to mean
~のかしら (female speech) = I wonder
Now put them together since I don’t do the translation. 😉
You’re absolutely right, Maggie Sensai!!! There was a typo right there 😁 どうもありがうとございました‼
Here is my attempt to translate. Please let me know if I’m far off.
I’m so happy that I feel that I’m going crazy. I wonder if my condition indicates that.
But this doesn’t sound like natural English, so if I can rephrase it, I’d say “I’m so happy that I feel that my condition indicates that I’m going crazy.” This still sounds cumbersome, to be honest… Sigh.
お願い致します❣
Besides, I lost the nuance of doubt in my translation… :'(
@Presto
OK, it basically means
I wonder this is what it’s like to go crazy with happiness.
Ahhh…. That’s so much better, Maggie Sensai! You’re the best!!! I’ve been reading your various posts, and they are real treasures to me!! Thanks a million!
@Presto
Good, problem solved! :)
I am happy to hear you have been reading my lessons!
Hello there!
Long time no see, Maggie ^ ^ (although I’m almost everyday here to check your comments and learn – thanks to that – something new).
I’ve got an additional question regarding this post.
So here we go!
「幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか。」
Could you tell me, Maggie, how strong the meaning would change, if we use instead of ～のことをいうのだろうか just ～なのだろうか or ～のことだろうか.
In other words, why was here used ～をいう?
@天人
Hello, there. 久しぶり！！元気でしたか？
1) 〜というのは、こういう〜のことをいうのだろうか。
2) 〜というのは、こういう〜のこと～なのだろうか
3) 〜というのは、こういう〜のこと～のことだろうか.
1), 2) and 3) mean the same.
The nuance difference:
2) & 3)
2) sounds slightly stronger than 3) and you can express your feelings more with なの
3) In this case, いう means “to call something as ~ ” /”to describe something as ~””
Now, let’s rephrase the sentences a little to understand these better. (I will add one more pattern.)
A) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことです。
Simply stating the fact. A is B.
B) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことなのです。
By adding な, you can emphasize the meaning of A)
C) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいいます。
The direct translation
→We call this kind of condition “going crazy with happiness”
D) 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのです。
The meaning is the same as C) but it sounds more explanatory.
I’m doing fine, thank you for asking.
While I was preparing my breakfast I had an enlightenment regarding my yesterday’s question.
I realized that this をいう has the meaning of “to be called”, therefore 幸せで気が狂いそうというのは、こういう状態のことをいうのだろうか = I’m wondering if this [referring to a certain state/condition] is what is called to feel like going crazy with happiness.
Shortly after that I run quick on maggiesensei.com to check, if you answered my question, and I saw, what I wanted to see ^w^
みんなの質問に答えて、みんなを幸せにしてくれてありがとうございます！
@天人
元気でよかった！
Good! That’s why it is important to prepare your breakfast! (^_−)−☆
Maggie-sensei,
My textbook has numbered lessons but also has numbered sub-lessons. How would I say, “Lesson 4, section 3”? I know lesson 4 is “daiyonka”, but I don’t know how to deal with the other part.
Arigatoo!
@Julie
Hi Julie,
章（しょう）：chapter
節（せつ）：section
項（こう）：subsection
Hello! The answer might be here already, but I was wondering why it’s 眠くてたまらない and not 眠たくてたまらない? I thought it was Verb + たくて?
Thanks for your help! This site is great.
@Steven
Hi Steven
Good question. You can say both, 眠くてたまらない and 眠たくてたまらない
* 眠る = nemuru = verb = to sleep
There are two adjective forms
1) 眠い=ねむい= sleepy
and
2) 眠たい= ねむたい= sleepy
＋たまらない form
1) 眠くてたらまない
２） 眠たくてたまらない
This is one awesome article ! I really liked how you covered all kinds of usages of みたい. I was searching for this everywhere T_T.
I am reading よつばと！ manga and I came across this sentence:
ちゃんといつもみたいにぼんぼんってして。
If I understand this correctly, いつも is noun here and ぼんぼんってして the action /verb here ? Am I correct here Sensei ?
@Retra
Hi Retra,
Glad to hear you liked the lesson.
いつも= always (いつも is a noun but it works as an adverb as well)
みたいに= as / like
→いつもみたいに = as always / like you always do
ぼんぼんってして →ぼんぼん= onomatopoeia to modifies a verb, する, but in colloquial conversation you can think ぼんぼんってする as a verb.
It depends on the context but it could mean “pat on my head” You also say ポンポンする
説明してくれて有難うございます。
てあった と てあるの違いについて問いが有りますよね。。
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。 You are already in the bed or telling someone that you saw someone made a bed for you.
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあるよ。 You are not in the bed yet. You are looking at the clean bed.
I wonder if teatta shall be used only if the speaker is enjoying \ doing something through whatever was done by others,
or if might be also used if the speaker is attempting to say he enjoyed\ did something through what other people have done.
料理作ってある
The food was prepared (it wasn’t eaten yet)
料理作ってあった
The food was prepared
Shall I say this only if I\someone is eating it right now?
Or if someone ate it as well?
Please correct me:
10年前あそこに車を停める。 The car was parked 10 years ago and its still there.
10年前あそこに車を停めてあった。When the speaker saw the car,it has been parked there for 10 years already.
The current state of that car is unknown.
@vinicius oliveira
こんにちは、vinicious.
てある・てあった expresses someone did something (and leave it) for someone on purpose.
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあるよ
料理が作ってある
料理が作ってあった
The speaker is aware of something through whatever was done by others.
As you say we can usually tell the speaker enjoys the state/enjoyed doing something but てあった doesn’t always mean that the speaker enjoyed doing something or not.
It could just describe some state which has done by others.
Ex. 家に帰ったら料理が作ってあったけれどもお腹がいっぱいだったから食べなかった。
= Ie ni kaettara ryouri ga tsukutte atta keredomo onaka ga ippai datta kara tabenakatta.
= When I got home, I saw the food prepared for me but I didn’t eat it because I was full.
(the speaker is aware of what has been done for him/her but we can’t tell he/she enjoyed the fact.)
More extreme example
Ex. テーブルに離婚届が置いてあった。
= Teiburu ni Rikon todoke ga oite atta.
= a divorce paper was on the table.(the wife/husband put the divorce paper and left it on the table on purpose)
10年前あそこに車を停める。 The car was parked 10 years ago and its still there.
→it should be 10年前からあそこに車が停めてある。
10年前あそこに車を停めてあった。When the speaker saw the car,it has been parked there for 10 years already.
The current state of that car is unknown.
→Correct.
can you please explain the に before する as in だしっぱなし に する。i can’t wrap my head around it at all.
@ghost buster
Hello, ghost buster,
に has many functions.
だしっぱなし＋に＋する
The に is “as/like” and describe how you leave the state/ condition .
Maggie sensei 今日は
I would like to be informed if there is any good synonym dictionary in japanese that you recommand (I mean online)
Thanks for your answer in advance
Yours
@Horváth Róbert
こんにちは、Róbert!
Someone else was asking me the same question on FB but I don’t know if there is one in English.
It’s all in Japanese but how about http://thesaurus.weblio.jp/
If you turn nemuru on its side it looks like a bed and a sheet with a persons head touching the sheet and the body as it floats and the mountains in the back ground and left to right turning into hills and then to the winding river as if the person has returned to the earth and its nature and the physics of motion and the change from being to the condition of not being.
＠Steve
Haha great imagination!
It is always fascinating to know how people see the kanji.
Wonderful website and truly helpful lessons! After I finished basic Japanese grammar I was stuck for quite a while, not knowing how to continue developing my knowledge. It’s really difficult to transition from purely academic level to more colloquial expressions. Your amazing blog is really helping me with that. Thank you so much for your hard work and dedication.
@Niniko
Hello Niniko!
I’m happy to hear you found my site help.
Hope you come visit here often! これからもよろしくね！
このサイトのレッスンはいつもたまらなく便利です！
＠アンディ
わあ、完璧（かんぺき）な「たまらなく」の使い方ですね！
ありがとう、アンディ❤️
Thank you for adding the part about the negative. I had been searching online everywhere for the negative form but nobody has it but you!
So since なります means to become (polite), can I also use なりません to mean the negative form?
For example… 面白くなりません, will that mean to become not interesting?
@Francine
Yes, you say 面白くなりません。 (or 面白くならないです）
Sensei, what does ‘netsuite’ means?
＠Viscocent
Can you type it with kanji?
If it’s 寝付いて, it is te-form of a verb 寝付く= ねつく= to fall asleep
→te-form 寝付itいて= ねついて= netsuite = fell asleep and ~~~
マギー先生！手伝って下さい！
生徒から「に」についての質問って：
けいたいに絵がある。
けいたいって｜所〜場所｜じゃなくても、「に」を使えますか？
ありがとうございます！
@Cambriana
こんにちは、Cambriana
「に」は、場所だけではなく物や体にも使いますよ。
物でも記録（きろく）やメモリーされているというときには「に」を使います。
Ex. 携帯（けいたい）にある写真（しゃしん）をすべてコンピューターに移す。
= to transfer all the pictures in the cellphone.
Ex. その書類（しょるい）はPCにあります。
= That document is stored in the PC.
Ex. 棚(たな）にある本（ほん）
= The books in the shelf.
Ex. 腎臓（じんぞう）に石（いし）がある。
= to have a stone in one’s kidney
Thank you for your lessons, Maggie sensei! I find them very useful.
I have trouble understanding the difference between “sou desu” and “you desu”.
彼、優しそうな人です。
彼、優しいような人です。
雨が降りそうです。
雨が降るようです。
When do we use sou and you?
@Yan
Hi Yan!
Basically when you judge from the appearance/what you see, you use そう and when you judge things by having observed them or gathering information, you use よう.
彼、優しそうな人です。 He looks sweet. (The speaker/writer is judging him by his appearance.)
彼、優しいような人です。→It should be 彼は、優しい人のようです。(According to what the speaker/writer has been observing, he seems like a nice person.)
雨が降りそうです。It looks like rain. /It is about to rain.
雨が降るようです。It will probably rain. / It is likely to rain.
There is one more
雨が降るそうです。( I heard it will rain.)
Many thanks for your explanation.
## 彼、優しいような人です。→It should be 彼は、優しい人のようです。##
Regarding the above sentence, I don’t quite understand why the first sentence is wrong. According to your explanation in the “よう”-lesson:
A (adjective / verb) + ような ( = you na) + B (noun / person) = B (noun/person) which looks /seems (like) A
Doesn’t yasashii + youna + hito mean “a person who seems kind”?
@Yan
I see your confusion. I added the note for you in my ような lesson.
adjective + ような＋noun / person works when you quote or express your feelings.
Ex. 誰かが彼は優しいようなことを言っていた。
Someone was saying he seems like a sweet person.
Ex. 彼は、私には優しいような気がする。
= I feel like he is sweet to me.
Very helpful. Thank you. :-)
＠Halim
Happy to hear that! :)
御馳走してしてもらったと書いてました。
（してして）が書き間違えでしょう。
@アンディー
ありがとう！ 直しました。 :)
If I have to say Smith forced me giving Erika my hat,shall I say
（俺は）スミスから｜に （俺の）帽子をエリカにあげされた\あげさせられた?
＠Vinicius
The verb “あげる/to give” itself shows one’s willingness (to give something for someone/ Verb causative form て＋あげる。 = to let someone do something) so it will be strange to say あげさせられた.
PS:
Perharps I made a mistake on my last message.
先生が質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Teacher let someone ask lots of questions.
According to your lesson I guess this line would actually mean “Teacher let ME ask many queries” .
However 先生が誰かに質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Sounds more like “Sensei let someone do many questions as a favor for me”(For this case I’d use 聞かせてあげてくれた instead,though)
than “Sensei let someone do many questions”. I think “sensei let someone do many queries” would be 先生が\は誰かに質問をたくさん聞かせてあげた。
@Vinicius
I think I answered this question in my last comment.
If the teacher is the speaker, you can say 私は生徒にたくさん質問をさせてあげた。 but you can’t say 先生が〜あげた
I’m a bit confused on せてくれる\せてあげる.
I took the “kureru,morau and ageru” lesson from you already,so I know that shitekureru and shitemoraeru\morau means “to do for me\to do as a favor to me”,whereas shiteageru means “to do (something) as a favor to somebody else”.
Yet I found on another website that together with させて\せて, both kureru and ageru becomes “allow to do”.
“Causative verb: Context will usually tell you what is being meant, but for our purposes we will assume that when the verb is used with 「あげる」 and 「くれる」（ください） it means “to let someone do” while it means, “to make someone do” when used without these”.
There an example on that site
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
Teacher let (someone) ask lots of questions.
Is this wrong?
According to your lesson I guess this line would mean “Teacher let ME ask many queries”.
For “teacher let someone ask lots of questions” I’d use 聞かせてあげた instead.
As like 内緒の話聞かせてあげる。
I’ll let you hear a secret story\I’ll tell you a secret story
@Vinicius
Right.
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてくれた。
means “The teacher let someone ask many questions.”
If the speaker is talking about the teacher, it could be
“The teacher let me ask many questions.” as well. It could be just the speaker when she/he asked the questions
(You can also say
先生は生徒に/私に質問をたくさんさせてくれた。
= The teacher let the students/me ask many questions.
***
For “teacher let someone ask lots of questions” I’d use 聞かせてあげた instead.
→You can’t use あげる when you are talking about the other people. You use あげる/あげた when you talk about yourself.
why this sentence is not like this. because this is the third person point of view..
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてもらった。
Is that a question?
先生が(誰かに)質問をたくさん聞かせてもらった。
is not natural because you are talking about the third person, teacher.
hello again Maggie sensei.
Because from the previous lesson, my understanding was あげるandくれる used when we are talking about ourself.
So if we are talking about other person as in third person view we can also useくれる?
Thank you for your answer
That’s right. You don’t use あげる／くれる when you talk about the third person. (Unless you are referring to your family.)
Can you use tari with other verbs?
＠Horváth Róbert Ferenc
Sorry, but what do you mean by other verbs?
As I explained in my lesson you can connects verbs with たり
Verb１+たり + Verb２+たり
I mean other than suru
＠robert
Hmmm yes… taberu, neru….many of my example sentences in the lesson have verbs other than “suru”.
Yesss!
I have translated it the same way.
Thanks a lot ;D
@robert
Good! You’re welcome!!
Thankyou for mking things so much clearer
One question, how do you say “I want you to make him do it”, or is it just “make him”
＠Ted
あなたが彼にそれをやらせてほしい
The most natural way to say that is to omit あなた ( = you)
彼にそれをやらせてほしい。
Thankyou.
So it’s not possible to use the-tai ending? Maybe that would just complicate things?
I’m thinking of other verbs like…
I want you to make him go..
i want you to make me happy…
or even
I want to be taken
I want to be told
I want to be cured
also, what’s the difference between wanting and needing?
Thanks again.
＠Ted
The basic difference between たい and ほしい is
you use たい to express your own desire and
食べたい = I want to eat.
買いたい = I want to buy
You can’t use Vたい to express the third person’s desire because you don’t know how much other people want to do.
X 彼はアイスクリームを食べたい
X 彼は車を買いたい。
Now when you want someone to do something you can say either ほしい or たい
Someone に食べてほしい = I want someone to eat.
Someone に買ってほしい = I want someone to buy
Causative
Someone AにSomeoneBを家に帰らせてほしい = I want A to make B go home.
Someoneに食べてもらいたい = I would like someone to eat ~ .
someoneに買ってもらいたい。 = I would like someone to buy ~ .
Causative
Someone AにSomeoneBを家に帰らせてもらいたい = I would like A to make B go home.
てもらいたい sounds more polite and expresses the speaker’s request.
部屋で寝る or 部屋に寝る？
I am so confused. Can I use both? Please help Maggie Sensei☹️😔🙏
@Yuna
If you are talking about a small space such as a bed or a sofa,somewhere special or unusual, you use に because you are focusing on the place.
So if you are simply talking about sleeping in a room, you use 部屋で寝る
Ex.Talking to a child who falls a sleep in a living room
部屋で寝なさい。= Go sleep in a room.
(focusing on the action of sleeping)
It will be strange to say 部屋に寝なさい。
Exception, if you are talking about special room and focusing on the place, it is possible to use に
Ex. 今日は別の部屋に寝ます。
（You can also say 別の部屋で寝ます）
A very great website (^ ^) It’s better than any textbook lesson.
Thank you
@Anisha
ありがとう、Anisha! ❤️
Thanks maggie sensei! Just one question
パネェくらいマギー先生のブログが好き！
What does くらい means in that context?
@Alberto
Hi Alberto,
You can express the degree how much the speaker loves my site. (^_−)−☆
I have a lesson on くらい ( click this link →How to use くらい）
Minor typo. “Shokuban” is apparently not a word in jisho.org but ShokuPAn is, and that means “loaf of bread” Thanks for the lesson though!
@noel
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it! ❤️
would the same apply to ‘afuresou’ ? like, it looks like it will overflow?
@finnien
Yes, you say あふれそう ( = afuresou) about to overlow
Ex. お風呂のお湯があふれそうです。
= Ofuro no oyu ga afuresou desu.
Hiii :D
Really enjoyed reading this one. I’ve known about み and さ but never really thought about there being a difference between the two.
I just wanted to let you know I spotted a typo in the article earlier that might make things a little confusing for beginners who might not have Kana memorized quite yet:
“You can’t say X 美しみ= = utsukuMISHI”
@Arlen
Hello Arlen,
Thank you for the comment and letting me know the typo. I fixed it!
ありがとう！！
マギー先生
はじめまして、インドネシアから来ました。
別のことですが、
お聞きところがありますが、宜しいでしょうか。
Written Warning is given up to twice every15days since the obligation is not fulfilled。
義務が果たせない時からの１５日間に2回まで警告された場合、書面での警告は与えられる」正しいでしょうか。
教えて頂けませんか。御願いします。
＠Herlina
こんにちは Herlina
ちょっと語順を変えた方がいいと思いますよ。
義務が果たされなくなってから１５日に２回まで〜
Hello Maggie sensei, it’s me again… Just wanted to say thank you so much. :)
@Jasmine,
You’re welcome!
Hello Maggie it is me! I came and checked out your lesson!
I was wondering, but when you said がる makes the adjective into a verb- it’s not really a direct translation into a verb, so how would we know if we’re not native speakers?
Eg you said: かわいい: cute
かわいがる: to dote on someone, to be affectionate.
But that’s not really making ‘cute’ into a verb, because the verb version would be ‘to be cute’, so I was wondering how to know what they meant?
Thank you :) :) :)
@Jasumine
I know some of the verbs have different meaning but you can still related to かわいい and かわいがる
You think someone is cute → to treat that person with affection. How’s that. (^_−)−☆
I have a quick question, if we wanna use ＿ない then なら, is it possible?
For example: 先生じゃないなら、。。。 or 美味しくないなら、。。。
@Tenshi Himawari
Yes, you can say 先生じゃないなら・美味しくないなら
negative form 〜ない+なら
*面白くないなら〜
*買わないなら〜
*行きたくないなら〜
“勘弁して”
In one of my favorite Japanese dramas, long vacation, sena-kun says to minami when she asks him to marry her (they have just met): “kanbenshite kudasai!” 😊
＠Joanne
勘弁して has a couple of meanings
“I am sorry / Please forgive me” or “Give a break / Spare me / Are you kidding me?”
In that case, she meant the later. “Oh please, give me a break..”
I really wanted to travel to japan, but someone stole my passport. And i dont know why he really like to steal everything from me. He got money so he can litteraly get everything he wants but he was not contented.
＠Viscocent
Oh No…Sorry to hear that. I hope you get your passport back asap and come to Japan!
It has been a long time :), but you’re back now and that’s what important dear Maggie sensei… I really can’t afford to lose you.
@obakasan000
Hisashiburi!!!
Happy to be back and happy to have you back here too!
こんにちは先生。
Thank you again for another lesson! Since finishing みんなの日本語上級1+2, this side became so incredibly useful to me. All the example sentences alone are priceless. Thank you so much!!!
I have a question. I noticed that the lyrics of the original キャプテン翼 theme, also includes a さsuffix. But I dont understand why.
(そんときおれがスーパーヒーローさ.)
Why ist there a さ used?
@Pascal
こんにちは、Pascal! わあ、上級の２も終わりましたか？
すごいですね！
There are various usages of さ suffix but that one is for a casual male speech. It is like “なんだよ”
Basic patterns:
noun + さ スーパーヒーローさ。
verb + さ 明日行くのさ。
Thank you for your fast answer.
I ment 下級！(゜o゜;
日本語はまだまだですね。(^.^;
@Pascal
「初級」かな？ 😉
初級１、２終わったらもう中級ですね。がんばってくださいね〜♪
Hi, Maggie-sensei!
May I know how to say something like “Please let me follow you (on Twitter)”?
Is 「あなたがフォローさせてください」okay?
@KAMUI
You have to use an object particle, を
あなたをフォローさせてください。
(You often omit あなた)
フォローさせてください。
Maggie sensei ありがとうございます。
＠Nophie
どういたしまして、Nophie! Nophie! ❤️
Hello Maggie,
How do you say in japanese a sentence like ‘The pinecake I have written about is at my grandma’s place where I’ve just come from’.
Thanks in advance
@orbert
I am not sure what you meant “pinecake”. All this time I thought it was a Japanese English.
“Pinecake” as in ”pineapple cake”? If so パインケーキ or パイナップルケーキ
Or you meant “pancake” パンケーキ?
And “just come from” means you used to live there but left there just recently?
私が書いた”pinecake”は、私がこの間まで住んでいた祖母の家のです。
Or if your gradma used to make “pinecake” then,
私が書いた”pinecake”は、私がこの間まで住んでいた祖母の家で作っていたものです。
Yes, yes thanks. Sorry for not being exact, but I had been sure, that there existed such a word as pinecake. I’m not a native speaker so I can be wrong about the grammer and some words sometimes.
Thanks, anyway.
@robert
OK! :)
Then just use the pattern that I wrote in the previous comment.
「み」と「さ」の違いの曖昧さのせいか、なんだか難解なところはあったけど、とても役に立つレッスンでしたね！またありがとう、マギー先生！！
＠らわ
お役に立てばうれしいです。
一つの解釈では違いがわからないことが多いのでそれぞれの言葉で違いがわかるようになるといいですね。
Hi, everyone, and Maggie.
I’ve just found a sentence that sais:
何も私にそれをあきらめるように強制することができない
(nanimo watashi ni sore wo akirameru you ni kyousei suru koto ga dekinai)
-> Nothing can force me to give it up.
So, you can say it with ように and with こと also.
Thanks Maggie, you are the best (and cutest)
@Robert
Yes, you can both use ように and こと. When you use こと, you need an object marker を
Vように強いる・強制する・強要する
V+ ことを強いる・強制する・強要する
Many thanks, now just need to remember!
@Ted
You’re very welcome, Ted! :)
Hi, Maggie.
I appriciate your lessons so much, you help me a lot, so that’s why I’ve decided since you seem like you like wasting your time on us, I have a question.
So I’ve just come across this verb 強いる (shiiru), wich means: to force someone, And I’d like to ask you if there is an opportunity to say that someone forces someone to do something with this verb.
Like: マッギを眠らせた。[Maggi wo nemuraseta] (I’ve forced Maggie to sleep)
and then, マッギにねむることをしいた。
thanks for your answer in advance. :D
@robert horvath
Hi robert,
Good question. You also use 強いる to make /force someone do something.
The difference:
You usually use it with a noun or nominalized verb.
Also 強いる is much stronger than させる.
Someoneにお酒を飲ませる
→stronger
Someoneにお酒を強いる
or お酒を飲むことを強いる
Another difference:
Someoneにお酒を飲ませた= It is clear that you made that person drink alcohol.
Someoneにお酒を強いた。／お酒を飲むことを強いた。 You forced someone to drink but the person may not drink alcohol.
It focuses on your action, trying to make someone drink alcohol.
As for your sentence, 眠る is fall asleep so 寝る is better.
So マギーを寝させた
マギーに寝ることを強いた might work out.
Another thing.
Is there some verb that sais ‘let someone do something’, instead of させる/あせる
just like in the case of 強いる and させる?
@ROBERT
It is similar to 強いる but there are words such as
強要する（きょうようする）・強制する（きょうせいする）
They are much stronger.
I’m still confused…
But thank you very much for your explanation. Maybe by time, i’ll figure it out.. Sooner or later….
ありがとうございました
@Sandra
Sorry to hear you are still confused. I hope you get everything clear one day.
******
I deleted my previous comment once to add some information.
お茶を飲みながら楽しみで日本語会話をしましょう
there’s nothing wrong by putting tanoshimi de in the above sentence if you want to, yet, once again, it will be not natural in nihongo, they said
→ I would say it is wrong.
***
楽しんで is translated “with fun”, but actually 楽しむ is a verb and its te-form is 楽しんで
I think you are familiar with this pattern.
Vて (or で）+ do something
= to do something V-ing. (describing how you do something)
楽しんでテニスをする to play tennis *having fun
楽しんで勉強する to study *having fun
楽しんで日本語で会話する to talk in Japanese *having fun
*it can be translated as “with fun”.
**
楽しみで+do something
means, “to do something for one’s pleasure”
You wanted to say “Let’s talk in Japanese having fun (→with fun) “ not “ for your pleasure”
Also as I said in the lesson, 〜み expresses one’s subjective feelings, so you don’t use
~みで〜しましょう！pattern.
I know it may sound complicated but once you know the rules, it shouldn’t be so difficult.
hi, i have a question that’s confusing me from yesterday morning.
I wrote:
Sumimasen…. Mata kikitai 😁
I wrote お茶を飲みながら楽しみで日本語会話をしましょう
Let’s make conversation with fun while having a tea
And it’s incorrect, my friend said.
The correct one, he said:
お茶を飲みながら楽しんで日本語会話をしましょう
Why?
How do you translate the above sentence using tanoshimi de?
Actually i already asked 15 people on facebook about this problem. Since yesterday morning till now.
7 nihonjin, 3 indonesiajin, 5 japanese community on fb.
Still i don’t get the red line. Indeed, some nihonjin said that tanoshimi de has a nuance more to interest or hobby or for fun or for pleasure. Sort of. That’s why it’s not natural in nihongo, they said.
But there’s nothing wrong by putting tanoshimi de in the above sentence if you want to, yet, once again, it will be not natural in nihongo, they said
Okay… At first i get the point why it sounds not natural if i use tanoshimi de in the sentence, because it would mean:
Let’s have a conversation for pleasure or for fun while having tea
But then after an hour, i changed my mind. It seems like There’s nothing wrong by saying let’s have a conversation for fun or for pleasure.
Right?
Or you have another translation or extra explanation (you will be the 16th person :D) that can make me
“Aha!! That’s the keyword for tanoshimi de”
“Aha!! That’s why it’s not natural!”
Ah, one more….
Do you have a fb messenger? Or an email?
I have to rethink 1000 times to post a question on your fb post.
I’m just scared that if i posted it, it’ll offend my nihonjin friends for asking the same question to you.
@Sandra
No, I am not using FB messenger anymore. I once activated and got too many questions.
Don’t worry about your Japanese friends. You don’t have to use the same name here and also I doubt your friends will come to this site. 😉
Konnichiha Maggie Sensei, O~Hisashi Buri Deshou Ne
_Sensei, I Found Some Sentences End Up With Something Like (~To Kita Mon Da), But I Don’t Know What It Exactly Means Or Used For? O~Negai Shimasu…
@Kibounokata
~ときたものだ／きたもんだ。( = to kita monoda/ kita monda)
V/ Noun(+だ）/ adjective + ときたもんだ expresses one’s feelings (usually negative) such as surprise, disgust, frustration, etc.
This きた doesn’t mean “to come”. It could be “saying things like” “demanding things like ~ ” “doing something like ~ ” “end up with ~”
For example, there is person who always thinks about himself and never helps others.
But when he is a trouble, he asks for help.
Ex.1A 彼は、いつも自分のことしか考えていないのに困ったときだけ助けてくれという。
(You just state the fact.)
Ex.1B 彼は、いつも自分のことしか考えていないのに困ったときだけ助けてくれときたもんだ。
(It shows one’s feelings more)
***
Also it means “on top of that” “what’s more”
Ex.このお金がないのところに旅行だときたもんだ。
= On top of the fact that we don’t have any money, he/she wants go to traveling.
(he/she is saying something like traveling)
Haa Sugoi Mono Desu Ka Nee, Konna Subarashii O~Kotai Nano De!
Makoto Ni Arigatou Gozaimashita Sensei, Tottemo Tasukatta N Desu Yo Ne!
@Kibounokata
Douitashimashite! ☺️
Otto Chigaimasu Boku Ha Hehehe
(Sugoi Mono Desu Ka Nee) Ja Naku (Sugoi Mono Desu Nee) To iu Imi Deshita ^_^
Hello!!
thank you for the lesson.
I see this word a lot, I somehow understood the lesson but I still need to practice ^^”.
so I read this in a manga but I still can’t get the meaning?
” 気持ち的” and “頭的”
な came after them which means the are “adjectives” right?
but I still don’t know how to translate them into English.
the whole sentence is:
「なんかこういろいろ追いつかないから！！ 気持ち的なことも頭的なことも！！」
looking forward to your reply!
Thank you in advance.
＠FatimahBHR
Hi FatimahBHR!
There are a lot of colloquial ways of using 的.
In general, the most proper translation of 的 is “~ wise” or “~ ly” but you have to pick the right translation depending on the context.
気持ち的なこと = mental things / 頭的なこと= logical things
But to translate them more naturally, it will be something like
I can’t catch up with many things somehow, mentally and also logically.
Perfect! Thank you very much♥♥♥
(Sorry, I posted the comment in the wrong place 😅💔)
@FatimahBHR
You’re welcome!
Hi Maggie
How can I reassure my girlfriends mother that i will look after/take care if her when she moves to my country? I also want to tell her not to worry but i dont know if that translates well.
Thank you!
＠PK
Nanimo shinpai shinaide kochira ni kite kudasai.
Kochira dewa watashi ni subete makasete kudasai.
(Please do not worry about anything and come here. You can rely on me once you come here.)
There are expressions that
watashi ga osewa wo sasete itadakimasu. ( I will take care of you)
Watashi ni mendou wo misasete kudasai. (Let me take care of you)
But these expressions are for someone weak (physically, financially)
By the way,you said that usingにもらう｜にくれる on queries sound like the speaker is asking the listener to give something to the person on the setence.
金もらう｜くれる？ Will you give me money？
So,if I say 彼に金もらう｜くれる？Can you give him money? (instead of
彼に金あげる?)
will it mean “can you give him money” as a favor to the speaker or to the one who’ll get the money?
Just a doubt on もらってもらう:
誰もいらないのなら彼にもらってもらいます。
If no one else wants this,I’ll have him take it.
Is that guy supposed to take it for him or for the speaker? Seems like it means “I’ll ask him to take it for himself as a favor to me”.
About the もらってもらう、your “そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらってもらえますか？” example shows it as a もらってさせる (don’t know if this exist,though).
俺にお菓子を｜お菓子を俺にもらうの？＝俺にくれる？
彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってもらう？＝彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってさせる？
Wonder whether I’m right or not. Some help would be good. Thanks!
@Vinicius
Someoneにsomethingをやってもらう
1) to have someone do something
A boss is talking to his subordinate.
この仕事は君にやってもらうよ。
= I will have you do this work.
彼らはなにもやってくれなかったから、これからはもっと（彼らに）手伝ってもらいます。
= They haven’t done anything so I will have them help us more.
2) to let someone do
彼女が来たら好きなものを食べてもらってください。
= When she comes, please let her eat anything she likes.
***
* もらってさせる doesn’t exist
***
OK, let me fix your sentences
* 俺にお菓子を｜お菓子を俺にもらうの？＝俺にくれる？
more natural →そのお菓子、俺にお菓子をくれるの？/ そのお菓子もらえるの？
* 彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってもらう？＝彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってさせる？
→？？？You are asking someone to give you some snack?
* 金もらう｜くれる？ Will you give me money？
金もらえる？・金くれる？
(FYI “金” sounds very rough. お金 sounds better)
* So,if I say 彼に金もらう｜くれる？Can you give him money? (instead of
彼に金あげる?)
→彼に金をもらう means you receive a money from him. “Can you give him money” is
彼にお金をあげてくれる？
Thank you very much.
* 彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってもらう？＝彼らのお菓子を俺にもらってさせる？
→？？？You are asking someone to give you some snack?
Yes,it was supposed to mean “can you make them give me their snacks?”
I got anything you on your previous message,yet I’m still trying to figure out how to use もらってもらう propely. Its the kind of thing I’ve never heard nor read before.
Whereas
俺に本をもらえる？ is Will you give me a book (as a favor to me)
Seems like 俺に\から本をもらってもらう？
means”will you take this book from me as a favor”?
誰もいらないのなら彼にもらってもらいます
->ね、これもらってもらう？うん、もらってあげるよ。
I wonder if that’s the right way of using もらってもらう？
Hi Maggie sensei! Can you use はずin a question? For example, “Is it supposed to rain today?” 「今日雨が降るはずですか？」 Is this correct? Thank you in advance!! <3
Hello Courtney,
since はず implies speaker’s guess with conviction it would be unnatural to ask (someone) for it.
この場合は「今日、雨が降りますか。」が正しい日本語です。
ヨロシク
@天人
Thank you for helping Courtney!
Thank you!!! 😊
Hello Maggie-sensei! Thank you so much for your lessons!
I have a small question.
Is it possible to translate the following lines:
崩れてしまうほど 壊れてしまうほど
いつでもここにいて 見つめていたい
(It’s a love poetry)
as:
Until we crumble down,
Until we break into pieces,
I want to be here always
Looking at you.
Or maybe ほど here refers to the extent of “crumbling” and “breaking”?
Thank you!
@Julia
Hi Julia
It is hard to translate poetry from a few lines but I think the subject of the first line is the person who the speaker want to look at.
So until you crumble down and break into pieces, I would love to keep looking at you staying here for good
Thank you, Maggie-sensei!
＠Julia
You’re welcome, Julia!
Sensei, thank you for the explanation. I have a question. In your post, koibito= loved one, boyfriend or girlfriend. so, if a woman say, “aitsu wa watashi no koibito” what does exactly she mean? Is she refer to “he is my boyfriend” or “he is my beloved”? The situation is, she doesn’t know exactly whether the guy loves her or not. But, sure she knows her own feeling, how deeply in love she is with him. And, they never officially going out. I am so confused. Please help me, sensei
@Coraline
恋人 is someone exclusive.
So they are supposed to be in love. (So they should have been going out and love each other deeply.)
友達＜ボーイフレンド＜恋人
I see, so you can’t say someone is your koibito just because you love her/him without knowing their feeling toward us?
＠Coraline
Right. Unless he/she is your imaginary lover. (^_−)−☆
And Maggie-sensei, sorry for the bad grammar. English isn’t my first language. So you might be confused to understand what i meant. What i really wanted to ask is, can we use 恋人 to describe someone relationship other than lovers/boyfriend?
Because in a light novel i have been read, the main lead guy is called as the second lead female’s ‘yuujin and koibito’ by the narrator. But from the story, we can exactly tell that the main lead guy is in love with another woman.
Of course this second lead female is deeply in love with the main lead guy. So, can we interpret the ‘koibito’ that’s used by narrator as a beloved?
Sorry for being a bit annoying…
Oh no, i’m really bad with grammar. What i meant is “a light novel i have read’ not ‘i have been read’
Gomenasai Maggie-sensei
@Coraline
My answer is the same.
恋人= one’s loved one/boyfriend/girlfriend/significant other
nothing else.
yuujin no koibito means “my friend’s loved one”
I don’t know the story so I can’t give you more information but you may find some hidden facts while the story develops.
Maggie Sensei, arigatou gozaimasu!
Yes, in fact it really sounds strange that “suki” can be stronger than “daisuki” … Is there any explanation for that? Is it because of that “koto” expression … On the other hand, that could be used with “daisuki” as well, couldn’t it. So I really have no clue …
@Ralph
I guess it’s because ” 好き ( = suki)” already have a meaning of “I love you” besides “I like something”, you don’t need to add “dai”. Also we say “daisuki” too casually when you talk about food, games, things or some preferences, etc.
Of course, 大好き ( = daisuki) can sounds much stronger than 好き ( = suki) depends on how you deliver the speech.
Maggie sensei , i’d like to know what is the difference between vstem+上げる and vstem+終わる?
I’m still confuse how and in what condition i should use them .
@Ran
Hi Ran
V+終わる = You use it when you finish doing something./Something finishes
V+上がる When you “complete” some work./to finish “up” something
For example, when you are writing a book and finish writing.
書き終わる= It simply means you finish writing.
書き上げる = It also means “you finish writing” but it implies you have worked so hard writing the book or you “finally” complete your work.
鈴木は宿題を木村にもらった
鈴木は木村から宿題をもらった
Do both of these lines mean “Suzuki got the homework through Kimura?”
＠vinicius
Yes!!
I meant “I got ,understood everying” from your last reply,not I got “anything”. Sorry.
＠vincius
Oh good. I thought you said you didn’t get anything from my reply. Whew… 😀
1) “can you make them give me their snacks?”
If you want to use もらう, then
彼らから(私に）おやつをもらってもらえる？
(You can say 彼らに but we tend to avoid the same particle, in this case に)
You can also avoid two もらう and say
彼らに私におやつをくれないか頼（たの）んでくれない？
2) 俺に本をもらえる？ is Will you give me a book (as a favor to me)
Seems like 俺に\から本をもらってもらう？
means”will you take this book from me as a favor”?
↓
If a speaker asks someone to give him the book, then
(俺に）その本もらえる？is possible. (You tend to drop 俺に)
But again, 俺にその本、くれない？ is more natural.
BTW, you know 俺 is a male speech and it sounds a bit rough, right?
3) 誰もいらないのなら彼にもらってもらいます
->ね、これもらってもらう？うん、もらってあげるよ。
I wonder if that’s the right way of using もらってもらう？
↓
Do you want to say “Let’s do that. Let’s have him receive the book.” then
I would say, そうしよう。もらってもらおう。(Let’s do that. Let’s have him receive the book.)
I made this lesson long time ago. Now I think of it, I shouldn’t have included もらってもらう here. It depends on your level but it may have just confused you. Sorry.
I meant
ね、 この本もらってもらう？
“can you take this book from me as a favor for myself?”
うん、もらってあげる
“yes,I’ll take it as a favor”
If the lines above are wrong (they likely are) then should I think of morattemorau as a “make someone else take a thing that belongs to the speaker or listener”? Like as 取ってさせる?
この本は誰も要らないなら彼にもらってもらう｜取ってさせる
if no one wants this book then I’ll make him\ allow him to own it (as a favor for me).
＠vinicius
ね、 この本もらってもらう？ →もらってくれる？ is more natural.
(If you stick to もらう, この本もらってもらえる？）
彼にもらってもらう OK
取ってさせる→ You don’t say that.
どうも！
ビニシウスと言います。
説明について、問いが有ります。
この役目は部下に任せる。
I`ll force my subordinate to do this obligation
この役目は部上に任せられた。
My boss gave me this obligation
尚、「来させる」の事。。
「今日は誰に来させられたの？」
の英訳はちょっと分かりません。
By whom were you made to come here todayは
Who forced you to come here today と同様ですかね？
それなら「親母に来させられたんだ。。」で答えられますよね。。
これで正しいですか？
PS
この役目は上司に任せられた
My boss gave me this obligation (that I dont want to do)
部上じゃなくて上司です 笑笑
すいません
@Vinicius
こんにちは、ビニシウス
You don’t usually use “passive/causative passive forms” in English as much as in Japanese so the translation is sometimes strange.
So By whom were you made to come here today is “Who forced you to come here today” in English. Therefore you can say
叔母に来させられたんだ。
As for your sentences,
この役目は部下に任せる。
I`ll force my subordinate to do this obligation
この役目は上司に任せられた。
My boss gave me this obligation
任せる has a meaning of “to let someone do ” so it’s not necessary “forcing” but you got the pattern right.
hai maggie sensei
i’ve read ur web n saved ur article in my phone, and ur article helps me a lot!! but i have a qustion about how to use wo particle like this sntence
Ima wa sukina koto wo kodomo ni sasete okimasu.
= I will let my children do whatever they like now.
or
hana wo mizu ni tsukeru
= to put flowers in water.
i tottaly don’t understand it!! would u explain it?? hhh:$
@budi
Here’s a pattern
Somethingをsomeoneにさせる
You can switch them but you use the same particles.
Someoneにsomethingをさせる
***
花に水をやる
Something/someone/animal にsomethingをやる／あげる
In this case 花 is direct object and 水
You may want to check this lesson to see more patterns.
could you write the name of the lesson please?? cuz i think it’s really important,! i had seen many words like this then it made me confuse, but with ur explain i got hint to understand but i want to make sure!! so can u show me wich lesseon is? cuz u know !u have a lot article and it’s difficult to find it hehe!! help me pleas!!
@budi
Ah, sorry. Maybe you can’t see it but I added the link in my previous comment under “lesson”. If you click “lesson”, it jumps to the lesson.)
The title of the lesson is
How to use （〜して）あげる＋くれる＋もらう = (~shite) Ageru＋Kureru＋Morau
とても面白かったレッスンです！いくつかの表現がゲームによく出てくるし、いい勉強になりました！虫の居所が悪いとか、猫をかぶるなど
＠らわ
こんにちは、らわ！ 元気でしたか？
ゲームで日本語も勉強できますね！！らわはどんなゲームをしているのかなあ。
I tried to use this on Lang-8 in:
今朝、日本の旅の切符を買っておきました。
But the Japanese speakers there corrected this to simply 買いました. Did I use ておくincorrectly, or why is it inappropriate here?
@Joe Strout
It depends on the context.
If you are just talking about an action, 買いました will be more natural.
But you can say that in the situations like
It will be hard to get an air ticket for summer so you bought a ticket in advance.
Ex.夏は飛行機の予約が混み合うので、今朝、日本行きの航空券を買っておきました。
The price of airfare will go up soon so you bought a ticket in advance.
Ex. 航空料金が値上がりする前に日本行きのチケットを買っておきました。（or 予約しておきました。）
(Either examples can be replaced with simple past 買いました・予約しました but by using おきました you can express you did some preparation ahead of time.)
Thank you! This is the best website to learn Japanese, really! It’s helping me a lot! 本当ありがとう :D
@Leticia
Thank YOU for your nice message,too! これからもよろしくね！😘
ありがとうございます！先生！
勉強になりました！
＠Ningen
どういたしまして！😘
Thank you, I think I understand now!
@Joe
Good! ☺️
Maggie sensei おはようございます！
いつもの通り、役に立つレッスンでありがとうございました！
I would like to ask you about some patterns that make a verb-ending modifier clause into a noun itself. For example:
午前8時から営業しているはずの銀行に行ってきます。
I’m going to the bank it’s supposed to be open from 8 AM.
そちらの使わないで見ているだけのパソコンは妹のです。
The PC I’m not using but I’m just looking that is over there is my syster’s PC.
Are those sentences grammatically correct? (I don’t even dare to expect them to be “natural” for a native speaker). Is の correct after “noun-transforming” particle like はず、つもり、予定、だけ and so on? About べき、does it need の too if it modifies a noun?
Thank you so much!
@Daniele
こんにちは、Daniele
OK, right. I wouldn’t say your sentences are natural but grammatically OK.
You can use
verb + だけ・はず・つもり・予定＋の+ noun
同じ教室で勉強するだけの関係
払ったはずの請求書（せいきゅうしょ）が来た。
後から会う予定の
As for べき, you don’t need の
やるべきことが多すぎる (You don’t need の）
このサイトに毎日来たら、１年後には日本語がかなり上達しているはずです。
当たり前です。。。。
頑張ります
マギー先生。。。有難うね
@Natsu
そうそう！ 毎日来てね！ 😀
ありがとうございます！
＠Duke
どういたしまして❤️
ありがとうございます
@泉水
こちらこそ！
Hi, Maggi sensei!~
I really like all your lessons and the way you explain them~
Everytime I don’t know how to use something or I need to learn something new I always come to your site because your examples and explanations are really good and clear. Thank you so much and please keep it up!~ ♥
@Miroslava
Thank YOU for visiting this site! I’m VERY happy to hear you like my lessons!
I guess I have to work harder!! もっとがんばらなくちゃね。(^_−)−☆
How would you translate 悲しいほどに美しい then? Would it be “A beautiful as (she was) sad”?
@Emily
So beautiful that I (or the proper subject) feel like crying.
こんにちは先生。
全ぶんのレッスンどうもありがとう！
I wondered, how would I adress someone else’s dog? Or any pet or animal?With 君?
I shouldnt call them 先生 as well, should I? 😉
Thank you for your priceless side.
Pascal
@Pascal
こんにちは、Pascal!
Haha a great question!
You can call someone else’s pet without さん、ちゃん、君 but many people use ちゃん. (And some use 君 for male dogs.
People used to call me Maggie / Maggie-chan and Maggie Sensei (^_−)−☆
Hi Maggie Sensei,
How does あとで話そう translate into “Let’s talk later” based on this lesson.
I understand the following points from what you taught.
1. “looks like”
2. “It seems like 〜can do ~” “~ able”
But I’m not sure how this “そう” in this sentence means “let’s”.
Thank you,
Steven
@Steven
Hi Steven
話そう
This そう is different. It is a volitional form of verb.
1) Let’s do ~ ‘when you are talking to others”
2) I am going to do ~ / I will do ~ ( showing your will)
行く iku → 行こう ikou
聞く kiku → 聞こう kikou
する suru → しよう shiyou
and
話す hanasu → 話そう hanasou
I’m really happy this website is back up!! I’ve always used it to look up small things I didn’t understand in Japanese and now that I’ve decided to properly learn the language, this website is a big help! Thank you so much for everything you’ve done, and I hope I could proudly come back here in a few years and tell you that I can speak Japanese thanks to you!
＠QC
Thank you for your nice comment, QC!
I’m glad we are back as well so that we can make more lessons for you!!
Looking forward to seeing your progress in a few years or even in a few months!!
久しぶり！マギー先生のブロッグでは今まで書き込みしたことがありませんけど、日本語の勉強のために先生のサイトは非常に役立っています。少なくとも毎週を使っています。お疲れ様でした。ヨロシクね。
@ブラッド
ただいま、ブラッド！
うれしい初コメントありがとう！！
Hi, your blog is one of the most awesome things and the most useful when it comes to studying Japanese :D
Can you please explain to me what is the difference between こっそり and ひそかに?
@Sandra
Hello Sandra,
Glad to hear you think this site is useful. :)
こっそり & ひそかに
They both mean “secretly” but こっそり is used mainly for actions ひそかに can be used actions and also feelings for others.
Action:
こっそり彼の後をつける。
ひそかに彼の後をつける。
= To follow him in secret
Feelings
ひそかに彼のことを思う。
= To love him secretly.
(△こっそり彼のことを思う)
ひそかに信じる
= to believe secretly
(△こっそり信じる）
Hi Maggie, Please correct me if I misunderstood
（私は）猫に死なれた – I got died by a cat/ I was died by a cat
（私は）雨に降られた – I got rained by the rain
（私は）赤ちゃんに泣かれた the baby cried (and let me nervous) / I got cried by the baby.
@Lucas
If you translated them in English, they don’t sound natural but I think you got the idea.
猫に死なれた= My cat died (and I am very sad/ It was a painful)
雨に振られた= I got rained on.
赤ちゃんに泣かれた= The baby cried and that makes me nervous/ I was/am in a trouble.
How do you say in japanese a sentence like: “I will get up from the chair that I have been sitting on”
So my question is; how can you make completely sure where the noun after the verb comes from, I mean where it would belong, if it was inside of a regular sentence, for example with the particle “de” you can indicate that something is utilised to do something, but when you put the noun wich has originally the particle “de” after the verb how can you let the one you’re speaking to know that the noun refers to the object you use?
Thanks for any answer (because I’ve been looking for this for months) in advance
@robert horvath
I will get up from the chair that I have been sitting on” in Japanese is
座っていた椅子から立ちあがる(= Suwatte ita isu kara tachiagaru)
I have been sitting on the chair
椅子に座っていた ( = isu ni suwatte ita)
→modifies a chair
座っていた椅子 (= suwatte ita isu )
to get up from the chair
椅子から立ち上がる= isu kara tachi agaru
all together
座っていた椅子から立ち上がる= Suwatte ita isu kara tachiagaru.
If you want to add the length of time when you have been sitting, for example “for a while”
ずっと座っていた椅子から立ち上がる
****
You don’t use で when you sit on a chair
椅子に座る= Isu ni suwaru
But when you get up from the chair, you just use a particle “from=”から” “
ありがとうございます！もっと明確にしていただきました!
＠Daniele
どういたしまして、Daniele!
I just don’t know exactly the mean among these words, I only know the sittuations from you to use them, could you show me the nearest means ? Thank you so much :D
Happy to have you back online :D
@Sophie
Thank you, Sophie❤️
Welcome back, Maggie. I’ve been missing you.
This is the place to learn Japanese as a whole (language, culture, daily life).
ありがとう ございます!
@Beto Kamide
Thank you!!! I am so happy to be back here,too!!
これからもよろしくね！！ I will keep making lessons here!
こんにちはマギー先生
I have confusing doubts about the usage of ん to substitute the ない negative form
I have come across some cases that I identified it was the negative version only using ん:
ボクは学生じゃん。。。/ instead of じゃない
わからん。。。/instead of わからない
I have also came across a phrase where I can’t tell if it is negative or not:
お前に捕まえられんのか?。I guess it is the る becoming ん, so would you (japanes人) translate it as “to be captured by you” or “not to be captured by you”?
Thanks a lot!!!
@Lucas
こんにちは、Lucas,
Though we hear じゃん a lot in conversation, (especially younger generation) it is originally from Kanto area’s dialect.It is a suffix that you use instead of じゃない. (As じゃない, it is used to make your point or express your opinion)
これ、おいしいね。This is delicious, isn’t it?
これ、おいしくない？ Isn’t it delicious?
これ、おいしいじゃない。This is delicious, isn’t it?
→これ、おいしいじゃん。(casual)
So as わからん／しらん／〜られん are all from dialect. (These are use among older generations as well.)
ない→ん
わからない→わからん
しらない→しらん
できない→dできん
oh my godi’m sooo gld that you are finally here …i missed you ..i have been checking the site , waiting for along time to be back so ありがとうございました..i like the new design too..
@zara
Hello zara,
I missed everybody here too! これからもよろしくね！
Grateful!!!you come back.
@Eakasu
Tadaima~♪
Hi I have some doubts with the て form,I couldnt find the main て form page so I am gonna ask here if you dont mind :)
So lets say I finished doing something today
たとえば
私は今日宿題をやってた
それとも
私は今日宿題をやった
何が正しいですか^
Like I am not sure when to use Verb+て+た form and Verb+た form
Thank you
@Chibainu
Hello Chibainu,
* 宿題をやっていた= I have been doing my homework./ I was doing my homework. (describe what you were doing.)
→Casual contraction (skipping い)
宿題をやってた (grammatically wrong but we use this form a lot in conversation)
If you want to learn more about this form, go check this lesson. (Casual contraction)
* 宿題をやった = I did my homework/ I finished my homework/ I have done my homework. (completion of the action)
Oh oh i see
So て+た is for something I have been doing sometime ago in the past!
昨日花を見てた
I was looking at flowers yesterday
分かりました
ありがとうございます！
そのペイジ見ました。じゃあ それは目上と教師に話す時使わないほうがいいですよね？
@Chibainu
見ていた→casual contraction 見てた
学校のクラスや試験、作文では「い」を入れた方がいいかもしれませんね。でも悪い言葉ではありません。発音で「い」が自然に抜けることもあるので会話では先生もきっと使っていると思いますよ。(^з<)ー★
Yayyy!! Your site is finally back. I’m so thankful. I love the new design <3
@Micahella
おまたせしました！ Thank you for waiting!!
I’m looking forward to.
hello sensei,
I’m still a beginner in learning Japanese so I can’t be too sure, but I read a sentence from the post above:
“先生が来たらみな静かになった。”
is it supposed to be ‘みんな’ instead of ‘みな’
or is ‘みな’ acceptable too?
@shsw
Hello shsw!
皆= みな= mina = everybody
みんな is more conversational. They mean the same.
Just one note for you.
皆さん= minasan = when you address many people in a polite way
Many people make a mistake but you don’t say みんなさん= minnasan
Hi Maggie先生,
Your site is back up, よかった！
Never realised how many times I check your lessons until they were no longer there.
Anyway, my question:
Omitting and contracting things is quite common in casual speech, so just saying
-なきゃ without ならない makes sense.
But I think I also heard the polite -なければ, meaning to say “have to”, without any follow-up, which seems casual to me.
Is this natural, or did I perhaps simply misheard/misinterpret?
@Jay
Hi Jay
Yes, I am back!
OK, you mean like a finishing a sentence with なければ?
If so, I wouldn’t say “casual” but you leave the sentence without finishing on purpose.
So instead of saying なければいけない you just omit いけない. The listener can tell what the speaker means.
もういかなければ (I have to go now)
(casual もういかなくちゃ／もういかなきゃ）
もっとがんばらなければ…
（casual もっとがんばらなくちゃ／がんばらなきゃ）
Hi Maggie Sensei, I am confused with this two. What is the difference? look similar to me except one uses て while the other use plain form.
verb て(=te)(で(~de)) form +ばかり(=bakari)
4) only do/does / doing something / always do/does/doing something
遊んでばかりいてはいけません。
You can’t just play all the time.
verb plain form + ばかり(=bakari)
(1) do nothing but…, all you do is ~
人に頼るばかりの人生ではいけない。
We shouldn’t just depend on someone in life.
＠Max
Hi Max
In the following pattens you can use them in the same way.
a) verb plain form + ばかり＋だ／です／だった／でした。
b) verb て form + ばかり＋だ／です／だった／でした。
彼は、泣くばかりだった。
彼は、泣いてばかりだった。
He does nothing but crying.
As for my examples,
て／でばかり
You can’t say V dictionary form ばかりいてはいけない。
X 遊ぶばかりいてはいけません。
You have to use て form.
The second example can be replaced.
頼る（Verb plain form) ばかり+ の+ 人生 modifies a noun, in this case 人生
You can say 頼んでばかりの人生 as well.
”去年、家族と行ったホテルは最高だった”は同じ意味ですか？
での代わりにとを使えますか？
＠Luke Yarabe
はい、「家族と〜」ということもできます。
家族と〜する
家族と = to do something “with my family”
家族で = to do something in a group of “family”
ありがとう,Sniff先生！
@泉水
Sniff先生 says どういたしまして！
I’m 4 days late! But I am forever thankful and indebted to you for this site and your willingness to teach Japanese to us!! Thank you! m(_ _)m…… Also I’m glad your site is back I’ve missed it so much! Lol <3
@Courtney
Hello, Courtney!
THANK YOU for your nice comment! I always appreciate your support!! ありがとう！
Hello,Maggie
the design looks very nice and happily you’re back!!
I could still learn japanese in a fun way now ~~~
btw, Today its my birthday , can i receive your blessings,Maggie-sama? lol hehehe
@SY
お誕生日おめでとう、SY!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!
Thank YOU for visiting my site on your birthday!
Hope this special day will bring you a lot of happiness, joy and love!
これからもよろしくね！
Thanks a lot for all the lessons! The new site looks great, and I am glad you are back!
@reid
Thank YOU for your nice comment!
これからもがんばります！！
hello how could i say
You look familiar so i added you
in japanese? casual way to same age ..
i am female
@yuuka
I just saw your question on FB. I will answer it here.
“add” as in Facebook friends, right?
どこかで見たことがあるような気がしたので友達になりました。
or
見覚えがあったので友達になりました。
(If you are talking to the person for the first time, I would stick to ます form.)
So glad you´ re back !!
@Hintono
Thank you for waiting!! おまたせしました！
Love the new design❤️ Glad you’re back❤️❤️❤️
@Topさん
いつもサポートありがとう！これからもよろしくね！
Where were you Maggie sensei?!!
I was terribly worried…but thank God you’re back ^^♥
@roro
Hi, roro!
Sorry for making you worried but I am back!!!
これからもよろしくね！
I’m happy to have you back, Maggie (>^^)>
I’ve been missing you.
@天人
ただいま〜♪
I missed you too!!
これからもよろしくね！
I have a question about a phrase I’ve seen some times… “x shiyou ka na… nante”. Based on context I’d assume it’s somewhat along the lines of “I guess maybe I should give x a try or something” or “I’ll try x, I guess”, but I don’t entirely get how the “nante” at the end works here. Is it thrown on to make the the statement even more noncommittal than the “ka na” already made it?
＠F
Hi F,
〜しようかな…なんて
Is it thrown on to make the the statement even more noncommittal than the “ka na” already made it?
Exactly!! And your translation is right.
By adding ”…なんて(ね）” at the end, you can make your speech make sound less serious.
It could also add the nuance, “I am just kidding”/ “Haha”.
Oh, so using “nante” like this is the same as using “nante ne”? I always just see “nante” on its own in this particular construct.
Saying “hajimeyou ka na… nante” would have roughly the same meaning as saying “I guess I should start… or something” in English, then?
＠F
…なんて
…なんてね
…なんて思ったりして
All these are the same group. You use them when you avoid sounding too assertive and add “vaguity”.
So as you said, “or something” or ” I guess I am going to give it a try..” is very close to the nuance.
Hello, Maggie Sensei!
I have a question about this sentence:
(あいつはyou lie – I included this for context; “you lie” was in English)
誰に落雷されたのか
I’m mostly confused because according to the definition of 落雷, with する it means either “to strike (lightning)” or “to be struck by lightning.” I thought “to be struck by lightning” was more probable here, and then there would basically be a double passive; canceling those out it would mean: “Who struck (him) with lightning?” But if you take it through the other definition, it would mean: “Who was struck with lightning?”
I can’t decide which one it is! Please help!
Thank you!
＠Smoothie Made of Fruit
落雷 means “thunderbolt”
You don’t usually say Someoneに落雷された because you can’t control thunder.
However there is an expression in Japanese
雷を落とす= to scold someone in a harsh way/ to speak someone in an angry way / to give someone hell/ to chew someone out
誰に雷を落とされた= passive form (You do say this expression)
→誰に落雷された=unusual expression but you can figure out the meaning (Who chewed him out that much?)
Oh, okay!
Thank you, Maggie Sensei!
@Smoothie Made of Fruit
You’re very welcome! :)
こんにちはMaggie 先生
Could you please explain the difference between 中 and 内?
ありがとうございます。
@Fabian,
こんにちは、Fabian
内 has many usages but for example when you express the location, you say
家の中 (in the house)、教室の中 (in the classroom)
but you don’t say
家の内、教室の内
There are cases that you express “inside” using 内 when it is used in compound words
教室内（きょうしつない）
**
内 : time expression “meanwhile” “within”
年内
=within the year
(年中= throughout the year）
学生のうちにいい経験をしたい。
While I am a student, I would love to have good experiences
(You can’t say 学生の中に）
話しているうちに混乱(こんらん）してきた。
= As I talked, I got confused.
（You don’t say 話している中に）
If you say お話し中 it means middle of talking
Hi, Fabian,
内 has many usages.
For example when you express the location, “inside” , you say
家の中 (in the house)、教室の中 (in the classroom)
but you don’t say
家の内、教室の内
There are cases that you express “inside” using 内 when it is used in compound words
教室内（きょうしつない）
**
内 : time expression “meanwhile” “within”
年内
=within the year
(年中= throughout the year）
学生のうちにいい経験をしたい。
While I am a student, I would love to have good experiences
(You can’t say 学生の中に）
話しているうちに混乱(こんらん）してきた。
= As I talked, I got confused.
（You don’t say 話している中に）
If you say お話し中 it means middle of talking
Hi Sensei Maggie, I am so happy to have discovered your site! I will be travelling to Japan in two months and I don’t have much time to learn Japanese. I bought some books and downloaded some applications, but I am still not satisfied. Your site is great!
Can I ask you a question?
How can I order food for my wife in a restaurant? In all the books, I only learned how to order food for myself. Thank you and kindest regards! – Pat :zzzz2:
＠Pat
Hello Pat!
How exciting! You will be in Japan in two months. That will be an ideal season to travel around Japan.
OK, the simple way to order for two people is,
1) first place your order
Put your finger to your chest and say
私は〜 = Watashi wa (food name) (or male speech ぼくは〜= Boku wa ~ )
and then point at your wife with your hand and say
(そして）つまには〜おねがいします。
= (Soshite) Tsuma niwa ~ onegai shimasu.
= (and) For my wife, ~~ please.
or
(そして）かのじょには〜おねがいします。
= (Soshite) Kanojo niwa ~ onegai shimasu.
= (and) For her, ~~ please.
***
Variation
Ex. わたしは、コーヒーで、かのじょはこうちゃをおねがいします。
= Watashi wa koohii de, kanojo wa koucha wo onegai shimasu.
= I will have a coffee and she will have a blacktea, please.
2) More simple way
Order two meals at the same time.
AとBおねがいします。
= A to B onegai shimasu.
And when they bring the plates, they will ask which one is for whome.
You point at the plate for yourself and say
わたしは、これです。
= Watashiwa, kore desu.
= This one is mine.
or point at the plate for your wife and indicate your wife.
これはこちらにおねがいします。
= Kore wa kochira ni onegai shimasu.
= This one should be here, please.
Then they can figure out.
Hi. How can I say “during 3 years”? For example, “I’ve been travelling during 3 years”
@mike
You can say
３年間（さんねんかん）
or
この３年間（このさんねんかん）／この３年の間（このさんねんのあいだ）
ここ３年間（このさんねんかん）／ここ３年の間（ここさんねんのあいだ）
You are incredible! Thank you so much for your help.
:maggie-small: !heart3! !DANCING!
m(_ _)m arigatou!
@viscocent
Dou itashimashite! :)
ありがとう,Sniff先生！
@kevs
どういたしまして！！
さすが、マギー先生！
昔々, I had a Japanese girlfriend who would often tell me
「ね、なんか食べさして」 which I have come to find out is a form of “食べさせて”
I always took it to mean “feed me” and we would happily go off to eat somewhere, but according to the passive pattern it means “let me eat something”. Is this the same as “feed me”?
In another example,
「パパ、本を聞かせてちょうだい」= Papa, read me a book [let me be read to](aloud)
マギー先生は「ゆかり先生、ちょっとナデナデさせてちょうだい」を頼んだことがありますか
Maggie-sensei, have you ever asked Yukari sensei to pet you a little bit?
Am I interpreting/using “させる” correctly?
＠moonkow
こんにちは、moonkow
なんか食べさせて changes the meaning depending on the context.
Feed me something or Let me eat.
パパ、本を聞かせてちょうだい
Yes, your translation is right.
マギー先生は「ゆかり先生、ちょっとナデナデさせてちょうだい」を頼んだことがありますか
Haha, cute!
That would be
マギー先生は「ゆかり先生、ちょっとナデナデしてちょうだい」と頼んだことがありますか
(If you say ナデナデさせてちょうだい means “Let me pet you, Yukari” )
I may take down this lesson eventually and repost it with more information in future. :)
だって、ゆかり先生でもたまにナデナデが要るんだと思いますよね。
(Yukari sensei needs an occasional nadenade sometimes too.)
ですから、「ゆかり先生、ちょっとナデナデしてちょうだい」と頼めればいいんでしょうかね
ナデナデ
moonkow
@moonkow
ほんと！私だってなでなでしてもらいたいです！ !niconico!
ねー！ [ナデナデ]
!JYANE! ヾ(・ω・*)なでなで
Ah, good 〰 I thought I was the only one who thought that “if a woman uses male speech, it sounds horrible.”
There was a girl who I knew when I studied abroad in Japan who insisted on calling herself “Bokukko-Kun” and talked very masculine, despite being the cutest, littlest girl I’ve ever met! Many of the students in our program were “dedicated to japan” (for lack of better words) because of Anime, and like to embody Anime stereotypes …needless to say, they weren’t very professional, even when talking to the principal! 
@Ymir
Hi Ymir,
Yes, there are girls/women who intentionally use this male speech to create their own “character” or to try to make them sound “strong/rough”.
Boys/Men also have a risk to use Japanese that they learned in anime.
Hello Maggie Sensei:
I was having trouble translating these lines:
いずれそうなる運命 でもいっか
多目的なようで 罪なようで そういうものです
I thought it was:
Someday fate will catch up to me (Literally, I took it as: “Someday, fake will become like that.”)
But that’s okay.
Using multipurpose and sinful methods I get by (Literally, I thought this meant: “By means of multipurpose ways, and by means of sinful ways – there are such things.”)
Mostly I’m unsure about the last line. The only example I could find for なようで was translated “seems like,” but that didn’t seem to fit here.
Please help!
Thank you!
＠Smoothie Made of Fruit
Hello, Smoothie Made of Fruit
(Your name makes me want to drink smoothie.. :)
いずれそうなる運命 means
It meant to be like that (anyway).
I don’t know the context so I can’t answer it but the sentences are very casually written.
Nなようで means
It seems like ~
But since it is not a formal sentences, you can translate
It is like ~
そういうものです = something like that.
I’d translate 「いずれそうなる運命でもいっか。」as: ”Let it happen as it’s doomed to happen, though.” / “It is doomed to happen, I don’t care.” / “Fate, it’s just the way it has to happen” and 「多目的なようで 罪なようで そういうものです」 as: “It’s like something with many purposes, something like a sin”.
Without the full context it’s a bit hard to match the words. However, this should help you, I hope.
@天人
Thank you for helping Smoothie Made of Fruit!
Nice support as always!
So do you think “Someday fate will catch up to me” is an okay translation for that line? I thought it meant that the person was doomed to a certain fate, and tried to convey that.
So, I’m assuming, for the next line でis used just to connect nouns, not as “by means of”? That would make more sense.
As for more context, this is from a song, and it doesn’t really have too much more context ( sorry!) which is one of the reasons I couldn’t figure it out. But if you’re interested, the line before it is: クックークックアドゥールドゥードゥー(the song is called Toriatama, so I thought these were just bird sounds). The line after is 知ったこっちゃない 微妙な感じばっかり (I translated this as: “But that’s not something I’d know about. I really don’t know how to feel.)
Thank you, Maggie Sensei, 天人, for all your help!
＠Smoothie Made Of Fruit
the person was doomed to a certain fate, and tried to convey that.
→Yes, you got the idea.
でis used just to connect nouns, not as “by means of”?
→Yes. Exactly. It means “and”
You got the lyrics from one of 初音ミク songs? I checked the whole lyrics but a lot of the phrases don’t make a sense. They just play with the sound or expresses random feelings.
知ったこっちゃない 微妙な感じばっかり I guess your translation is fine except
知ったこっちゃない
→知ったことではない= I don’t care/ It is none of my business.
@Maggie Sensei
Yes, the song is a vocaloid song, sung by Kagamine Rin/ Len.
I will change my translation for 知ったことではない, then.
It’s good to know that you thought a lot of it didn’t make sense, also. I was worried because so many of the lyrics seemed so random; I was concerned that I was way off with the translation, especially with all the casual language!
Thank you for all your help! !happyface!
Konbanha Sensei;
I Just Want To Know What Are The Words (Nanza & Nanzo)? I Used To Hear In Anime
Does They Have Any Relations With (Nante/Nanka)?
O~Negai Shimasu !CHECKHEART!
@Kibounokata
Ohayou, Kibounokata!
Hmmm what could it be??? Maybe you heard the word なんぞ (Nanzo)?
If so it is originally an old literal expression of など but you use it as なんて/なんか.(I said it was a literal expression but you hear that in quite rough male speech to emphasize what comes before.)
お前なんぞに負けるものか。＝ お前なんかに負けるものか
I will never lose to you
(The speaker belittles the listener)
Sou Desu Ka, Used As (Nante/Nanka), So As A Result, (Nanzo) Has Nothing To Do With (Etc…), I Mean Like The (Toka) Word?
＠Kibounokata
It is possible to use なんぞ in the meaning of “,etc.” instead of など but it is old fashioned.
And you have to be careful when you use it because as I mentioned in my previous comment, it has a function to belittle what you are talking about.
Also 〜とはなんぞ？ What is ~ ? (literal)
Maggie sensei こんにちは！
I’m sorry to bother you one more time…
I was wondering what are the differences among あ/そ/こ/どれぐらい/ほど/だけ?
失礼だとしたら、すみませんでした！
お願いいたします！
@Daniele
Hi Daniele,
To be honest the difference is a bit complicated. I don’t know how much I can explain in this comment section but…
the translation could be the same, this much, that much, that much (when you refer to something far / talk about the past) and in some cases they are interchangeable.
When you are talking about the vague degree/amount of something.
(Please tell me how much money it will cost me (more or less)/ About this much.)
どれぐらいお金がかかるか教えてください。 これぐらいかかります。
どれだけお金がかかるか教えてください。 これだけかかります。(more conversational)
どれほどお金がかかるか教えてください。△ これほどかかります。△ (You may hear people say these and they may sound polite but I would say you use ぐらい・だけ more)
1) あれぐらい・それぐらい・ これぐらい・ どれぐらい
*talking about the amount
As in my example sentences you can use it for something tangible.
Ex. 砂糖をどれだけいれますか？How much sugar…
Ex. 砂糖は、これだけ入れてください。this much sugar…
and also something intangible
Ex. 私も勉強をあれぐらいやらないといけない。
= I should study that much.
2) あれだけ・それだけ・ これだけ・ どれだけ
(1) “only” or “just”
Just this much/ that much/ that much (further than それだけ）
I just have this much money.
お金がこれだけしかない。
えっ？それだけしかないの？
What? That’s all you have?
If you are looking at the sugar bag which is far from you or recalling certain time in the past.
彼、お金、あれだけしかないんだって。
= I heard he just has that much money.
(2) emphasizing the amount.
Although I told him this/that much, he just doesn’t get it.
彼は、これだけ私が言ってもわからない。 Refering to the event which happened just recently.
あなたが、それだけ言ってもわからないの? The listener just heard what happened.
あれだけ言ってもわからない。 Recalling the past event.
Sometimes they are interchangeable with ほど
あれだけ・ほど言ってもわからないなんて
I can’t believe they don’t understand me even though I told them that much.
3) あれほど・それほど・ これほど・ どれほど
It indicates the degrees.
あれほどの人はいない There is nobody like that person. (He/She is great.)
それほどでもないです It is not that big deal. (You can’t replace it with ぐらい/だけ）
I have a lesson on ほど so please check that lesson to know the functions more.
Interesting question and very interesting and useful answer.
Thank you, Maggie!
@天人
:maggie-small: boucingheart!
!heart3! I love ur lessons sensei! Very helpful..greetings from イタリア :maggie-small:
＠チコ
Grazie mille! チコ！I’m glad to hear you like the lessons here.
これからもよろしくね！
国くにの役所やくしょが職員しょくいんの次つぎの仕事しごとを探さがしたり、探さがす手伝てつだいをしたりしてはいけません。
Maggie sensei, I found this article of yours when I stumbled into this sentence in an article when reading japanese stuff on the web. As there are various possibilities of how to use the たり form, I read your article and now I understand basically how it works. However, I still wanted to make sure if I assumed correctly how it was used on these senteces. Could you help me? お願いします！
in the sentence of the middle, it’s used to give an etc. to the number of functions you could have and in the following phrase, to emphasize that they are not looking for assistants?
@rubemar junior
Hello rubemar junior,
The basic structure of the sentence is
Don’t do things such as A and B.
Verb AたりVerb Bたりしてはいけません。
In that sentence
Verb A = (職員）次の仕事を探す = to find the job (for the emploees)
Verb B = 探す手伝いをする = to help finding the job (for them)
その犬の人形がジョジョの奇妙な冒険からイギーですか?
@Rômulo Dias Machado
はい、そうです！よくわかりましたね。:)
(Note for you: To make it sound more natural, how about…その犬の人形はジョジョの冒険のイギーですか？）
Hello Maggie-sensei, what is the best way or common ways Japanese uses to ask the other party to repeat what he/she just said if I couldn’t catch it?
Based on what I learned in school, I would have said: もう一度言ってください.
But I assume, as with most cases, a native would say it differently.
May I know what is a PHS phone? See it mentioned quite often on company’s websites.
@changkh
Hello, changkh
Q:What is the best way or common ways Japanese uses to ask the other party to repeat what he/she just said if I couldn’t catch it?
Are you talknig to someone on the phone, as I wrote
お電話が遠いのですがもう一度お願いいたします。
(The connection seems to be bad. Could you repeat what you said again?)
Or
すみません、よく聞き取れなかったのでもう一度お願いできますか？
***
PHS? I haven’t heard of it for a long time. It is a kind of old fashioned movile phone.
I think there are still a couple of companies selling them but very few.
is this correct?
“光栄いやっ” is iya~tsu the opposite form of chatta?
im writing a comic and only know a little japanese ive been using google translate as practice so i dont know if everything is accurate. i want my character to express informally that they are flattered by a compliment.
Is “光栄いやっ” a correct phrase?
@Haiato
I wonder how you got いやっ on Google..
いやっ means “No way!” “Never”(female or children speech for strong negation.)
So you don’t say 光栄いやっ It just doesn’t make any sense.
I am flattered in Japanese is
光栄です。= Kouei desu.
More casual/male speech a little rough
それは光栄だ (= Sore wa kouei da)
Another variation,
If the character just got some compliment, he/she can also say
お世辞でもうれしいな (casual)
(= Oseji demo ureshii na)
(I know you are trying to be nice but) I am flattered
Naruhodo Alright, sensei. Arigatou gozaimasu That’s so helpful!
@Risya
You’re very welcome! :)
Souka, arigatou gozaimasu (^_^)
@Coraline
Douitashimashite!
I see. I just want to know that whether it’s same as I love you or stay in love with you. I found the sentence when I was listening to Misato Aki’s song. The lyrics is “さよならの向こう側で、キミを大好きなまま”
@Riesya
The meaning of きみを大好きなまま is “stay (or keep) loving you”
The previous line of the song is
キミを待っている I will wait for you.
So キミを大好きなまま modifies that line.
I will wait for you loving you.
*キミを大好きなまま
@Riesya
Ah..まま the way it is right now/ keep doing something
But I am confused with your question. What do you want to know. 大好きなまま to do something keep loving you
You need a verb after that.
Oh no. I think I made a mistake with my writing haha sorry sensei. It’s supposed to be like this キミ大好きなまま.
Hi, Maggie-sensei. I want to ask a question. How about 君を大好きなママ? Is it same as I love you?
@Riesya
Hi Riesya
君を大好きなママ means “Mom who loves you” (Ex. 君を大好きなママより= From Mom who loves you.)
Is that what you meant?
Sorry maggie but i have 1 more question.
Nekogo wa hitokoto mo hanasemasen
Why wa and an not de?
＠Rodney
Oh sorry. I didn’t pay attention to your sentence, ６語も because I thought you were making a joke.
一言も話せない is an idiomatic expression
I can’t speak even one word = I can’t speak at all (idiom)
日本語は= as for Japanese (topic marker)
So the literal meaning is “as for Japanese, I can’t speak at all.”
I know prob 500 Japanese words n i know all the main particles but i still have problems with は an が
i can do small talk lol……
日本語で話せません。
日本語は話せません。
both are correct?
Both are correct, however: 日本語は話せません is more natural and it implies contrast, so you can translate this like: “(as for Japanese) I don’t speak Japanese… (however I speak for example English very well)”. That’s the aspect of contrast which part. は implies here.
Don’t worry, after 5 years of learning Japanese the problem, whether to choose は or が will disappear.
ヨロシク
助けてくれてありがとうございます！分かりやすいです。
ahh ok so itd be like
speaker A:日本語で話せる？
speaker B:いいえ、日本語は話せないんです。英語を使ってくれますか？
(sorry) for so many questions
@天人
Thank you for helping Rodney
＠Rodney
Here is the nuance difference.
日本語を話す to speak Japanese ( focusing on the language, Japanese.)
日本語で話す to communicate in Japanese. / to talk in Japanese
日本語で話せる？
Can we talk in Japanese?
日本語を話せる？
Can you speak Japanese?
speaker B: 英語を使ってくれますか？→ more natural ways to say that is…英語で話してくれますか？/ 英語でもいいですか？/ 英語でいいでsか？
いいえ、日本語は話せないんです。英語を使ってくれますか？ ＝＞ 「いいえ、日本語は話せないんです。でも英語でいいんです。」 sounds better.
Thank you very much maggie!
@Rodney
You’re welcome! boucingheart!
Konnichiwa Maggie Sensei,
I am Sorry to bother, but I really want to sincerely apologize for not being able to finish a project(work related) I’ve promised my Japanese friend and his family. I know this my sound silly but I truly feel bad for the fact I cannot manage to keep this promise. I want them to know how sorry I am and how bad i feel that I cannot say in person.
I used to stay in Japan for High school and have adopted the sincerity of how Japanese people treat others’ feeling with care, just haven’t been confronted with this kind of situation before so I don’t really know how to fix this.
Please if you don’t mind helping me out, Thank you very much in advance.
Suku Yo
＠Yo
Hello Yo,
Are you thinking about writing a letter to them?
I am not sure what kind of project but if you tell them why you didn’t do it and show your sincerity, I am sure they will forgive you.
If you haven’t talked to then for a long time.
For example you can start…
ご無沙汰（ぶさた）しています。 Long time no see.
お元気でいらっしゃいますか？ How have you been?
今日は、ずっと謝（あやま）らなければいけないと思っていることがあったので手紙を書きます。
I am writing to you today because there is something that I have wanted to apologized to you for a long time
====
あの時（とき）約束（やくそく）をした〜〜〜をすることができなくて本当にごめんなさい。
= I am so sorry that I couldn’t keep my promise doing ~~~ that time.
どうぞお許しください。
= Please forgive me.
Just an idea.
Hi Maggie! :)
first of all thank you for your amazing and useful web-site! ^_^
Me and my wife are just back from Japan (we wish we could go back today!) and are planning to print a “celebrative” photobook.
We would like to entitle it “Jan and Maggie’s travel to Japan” (yeah, you share the same name! :D ).
Is it correct to write:
ヤン の マギー と 日本 で 旅行
Thanks again! :-D
Jan
＠Jan
Hello Jan! I hope you and your wife, Maggie (what a lovely name she has! (^з<) ) had a good time in Japan. ヤン の マギー と 日本 で 旅行 →Grammatically ヤンとマギーの日本での旅行 But I would title ヤンとマギーの日本旅行 (BTW Is your name pronounced as ヤン （yan)?)
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for the wonderful lesson once again. I’m just wondering why after some verbs, there’s きた?
e.g やっと勉強する気になってきた
Why can’t I say やっと勉強する気になりました。
Can I also use any verbs in front of that grammar pattern or only suru verbs?
Thank you very much!
Hello Forest,
the pattern ～てきた implies here that a change has happened. In English you can translate ～てきた as: “started to”.
Both sentences are correct from the grammatical point of view, however 「やっと勉強する気になってきた」 is more specific, it gives us more information. 詳しくはこちらへ => http://142.93.68.150/2010/03/13/requested-lesson-「〜ていく＋〜てくる」teiku-tekuru/
Q: Can I also use any verbs in front of that grammar pattern or only suru verbs?
A: There’s no limitation. However, the sentence must be logical of course.
ヨロシク。
@天人
Thank you for helping @Forest！
Hi 天人、
Sorry for my late reply. Thank you for your help!
I thought “nemutai” meant “I want to sleep” not “sleepy”. Am I mistaken?
＠Chiyo
I want to sleep = 寝たい／眠りたい = netai / nemuri tai.
Would it sound natural to say「初めてにしては(or わりに)あなたの作ったカツ丼がずいぶんおいしかったよ」? (“For your first time, the katsudon you made was really delicious”)
@tempura
→OK but need to fix a few minor things.
初めてにしては(or 初めて”の”わりに)あなたの作ったカツ丼”は”ずいぶんおいしかったよ
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Thank you for the lesson. I have a question about another useage of hodo.
I was searching around how to say ‘I’m not good enough to..’ and found this grammar pattern that you didn’t mention. Is this correct?
My Japanese is not good enough to speak to you.
あなた話せるほど日本語が上手じゃないのです。
If that is possible, can I also say things like these using the grammar pattern above?
I can’t run fast enough to catch up with you.
I’m not good enough for you.
I’ve had enough of eating sushi. I ate too much.
I can’t get enough of Maggie Sensei’s lessons :)
This product’s quality is good enough for me.
＠Can’t get enough of Maggie’s lessons
My Japanese is not good enough to speak to you.
あなた話せるほど日本語が上手じゃないのです。
Yes you can use ほど. Just to make it more natural…
→あなたと話せるほど日本語が上手じゃないのです。
Q：If that is possible, can I also say things like these using the grammar pattern above?
Depends on the sentence.
The basic pattern is
* Aほど+ adj+ Vない・できない
One cannot/doesn’t do something as adj as A
* AがVほど+ adj+ Vない・できない
One cannot/doesn’t do something as adj as A does
I can’t run fast enough to catch up with you.
Yes. あなたに追いつけるほど早く走れない
However, you can not simply use ほど for “enough”
The following expressions will be….
I’m not good enough for you. = 私はあなたにはふさわしくない
I’ve had enough of eating sushi. I ate too much. = すしを十分（じゅうぶん）食べた・食べすぎた
I can’t get enough of Maggie Sensei’s lessons = マギー先生のレッスンが大好きだ。(How sweet!)
(can’t get enough of ~ : いくら〜しても飽(あ）きない= 好きだ)
This product’s quality is good enough for me. = この製品の質は私には十分だ。
ありがとうございます！Maggie先生の説明はいつもわかりやすいです！！
@Can’t get enough of Maggie’s lessons
どういたしまして！ :)
Brilliant – was just about to ask exactly the same question.
I came across:
厄介者の養い子に余分を取っておくほど伯母は優しくない。
Which I think means:
“Aunty is not kind enough to set aside extra for the troublesome foster-child.”
Hi Peter!
Yes, you got it right! :)
What about when you’re at the post office to receive mail or a parcel/package? In Australia there are PO Boxes or Post Office Boxes which you rent from the post office and they deliver your mail and your packages there. And then you collect everything from the box. If the packages are too large to fit in the box then a note or card is left advising that there is a package to collect and you take the note to the front counter to collect the package over the counter. Post office boxes are usually outside the post office so that they can be accessed 24/7. Most post offices also offer early collection before the post office opens where you can ring the doorbell near the PO Boxes. The postal worker will open the top half of the door and hand your package out this way. Is there anything like that in Japan?
＠Kelly
For example, when you get a 不在票 delivery notice, you can choose to pick the package/letter at the post office nearby instead of asking them to redeliver to your house.
As for PO Boxes(私書箱=ししょばこ) , it is difficult to have your PO box at the post office unless you own a company or receive a lot of letters regularly.
You have to use a private company to have the PO box service. (It is a bit pricey…)
hi sensei
thank you for these lessons boucingheart! boucingheart!
can i say
幸せになってください
@Yuuki
Hi Yuuki!
Yes, you can say 「幸せになってください」
Also「お幸せに」is a very common phrase.
Ça va bien, 天人さん^_^
つまり、「と」は、２つの文をつながって、何がお世話になったかを表すことですね。説明ありがとうございました♪ わかりやすかったです。
天人さんも、マギー先生も、みんなもいいお年を！
@Marianne
明けましておめでとう！
Marianneにとって新しい年が素晴らしい年になりますように！
Hi Maggie!
Sorry that this isn’t exactly related to this specific lesson; I was going to ask this question on another lesson but I’ve had a problem with my screen tuning blue on your website.
Anyways, how would you translate these lines?
数の暴力
言っちゃってよ そこもっと 精神性のショートショート
I was thinking it was: “It’s just the tyranny of the masses, that I unfortunately said that. It’s a more spiritual short short (circuit).”
My problem was mainly how to translate the そこもっと. I translated そこ as that, which my dictionary said was technically correct, but I’m not sure if what I have is the intended meaning?
Thank you.
＠Smoothie Made of Fruit
Hello, it is a line from an anime?
I will just help you the part you don’t get.
言っちゃってよ そこもっと
↓
Reverse the order
そこもっと、言っちゃってよ
Just tell them* about that more.
(*It depends on who the speaker is talking to)
It’s from a song. Actually, I’m trying to translate it for my Youtube channel – is it okay if I post that line that you translated? I’ll give you credit, of course.
Okay, that makes more sense! For future reference, how could you tell that もっと went with 言っちゃって?
Thank you!
@Smoothie Made of Fruit
Of course you can use the line I helped. (I don’t do the translation so you don’t need to give me any credit. You may want to have someone to help the other lines..I don’t understand what you meant by 精神性〜〜 part. )
You sometimes reverse the order of words in Japanese, which is called 倒置（とうち= inversion) (Especially in lyrics, story, poem, etc.)
Okay, thank you!
I had thought that the 精神性 part meant that the person had a spiritual short circuit, as in there is something wrong with their spirituality. Does that sound correct to you?
マギーセンセイ、ありがとうございます！ :w:
じゃあ、りゃあの使い方が面白くて、今からよく使います！
@チャン
どういたしまして！カジュアルですが日常（にちじょう= daily life）でよく使う言葉ですよ。
少しずつ練習してね。
I completed JLPT 5 last week
And I think we learned that form a little in class
If I remember correctly it’s used to make contrasts
But I guess I will stick to を until I better understand the concept so I won’t get confused. I am going to Japan in 2 weeks for a program and I can’t wait to test my Japanese skills
I have revised a lot of my lessons from your website and it really helped me so 本当に ありがとう ございます マッギョ先生 :D <3
And sorry for commenting too much haha
＠Yasaisan
No problem! がんばって！
Oh oh I see thank you
But I think I will use を when I talk instead of は since that’s how I practiced my speech from my classes haha
That’s okay right?
@Yasaisan
It depends on your level. But if you are just making simple sentences, stick to を.
Eventually you will learn this form.
日本語で6語も話せないんだよ。そんな難しい文を分かるもんか！
most Japanese i know is by intuition lol from anime,Japanese tv shows,music,etc….,,
i dont even kno what もん really is lol sounds cheeky
とにかく、”も”の使い方は正しいんですか？
でも、助詞はとても下手です。（いつも助けてくれてありがとうございます！)
@Rodney
Hi Rodney,
Yes, the way you use も is good.
(Just one thing. そんな難しい文が(or なんて）わかるもんか is more natural.)
I realized i was supposed to used ga but before i learned ga i always put o wakaru,bad habit.
Ah,i forgot about nante>_< Thank you for your help! 感謝している。
@Rodney
You’re welcome! :)
Why is 映画は instead of 映画を
Isn’t
この映画をぜったい見るべきです?
＠Yasaisan
You can say
この映画を観るべきです。
映画を観る
映画 is an object of the verb, 観る
この映画は観るべきです。
this は is a topic marker and introducing a topic, “as for “
You use this pattern when you emphasize what comes before, in this case “this movie”
***
Other example:
この映画を観たい = I want to see this movie.
この映画は観たい (stronger feeling/emphasizing this movie) = I’d love to see this movie.
(This movie is special. Showing the contrast)
人参（にんじん）を食べない= I don’t eat carrots.
人参（にんじん）は食べない = I don’t eat carrots. (Emphasizing carrots/ the speaker eats everything but carrots.)
@天人
I’m getting confused now hhh
Is their a difference in terms of meaning between ( you ni ) and ( you )? I saw an axample with ( you ni):
戻りましたら折り返しお電話する様に伝えます
and what do you mean by using (to)? do you mean like ( 自分のもの素晴らしい旅行の話をしてくれるよう と 頼んだ。)?
Is there a difference between ( you/ ni ) and ( to )?
I’m excited to know ^^
As I said, …よう without に doesn’t change the meaning.
When you use 敬語 together with よう then it sounds just better when よう is used without に – but that’s my personal opinion.
Normally the full form of the pattern is …ようにと… The particle と describes the subject’s wish – as an advice – towards his interlocutor. However very often と is simply omitted.
Therefore,
…してくれるように頼んだ。 => Most natural
…してくれるように、と頼んだ。 => Natural.
…してくれるよう、と頼んだ。 => It is acceptable, but very rarely used.
I got it now..
actually, I’ve never heard of ( you nito ) before even in most formal Japanese dramas hhhh.. I’m familiar with ( you ni ) from maggaie sensei’s lessons.. that’s why I wanted to make sure..
thank you for your patience with me :yy:
Always welcome! !ohisama!
Sensei is it correct to say
“Tabesugiru beki janakatta”
??
@Yuuki
Hi Yuuki
I understand your sentence but
食べすぎる ( = tabesugiru) means “to eat too much” and you say that when you can’t control your appetite.
It will be more natural to use volitional verbs with べきじゃなかった
I would say
あんなに食べるべきじゃなかった。
or
あんなに食べなければよかった。
I have a question about this sentence:
Ex. 会議が終わりましたらお電話頂くようお伝え頂けますか？
= Kaigi ga owarimashitara odenwa itadaku you otsutae itadakemasu ka?
= Could you tell him/her to call me back after the meeting?
I think it should be ( Odenwa itadaku you ni otsutae itadakemasu ka ?
corrent me if I’m wrong …
I always check your site for new lessons ^^
また来年もよろしくお願いします、良いお年を
Hello roro,
the pattern ように（と） works also very good without part. 「に（と）」=> お父さんに、自分のもの素晴らしい旅行の話をしてくれるよう（にと）頼んだ。
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ
@roro @天人
Thank you @天人 for helping @roro. :)
We are lucky to have you here.
暖かい言葉ありがとうございます。
One of my principles of life’s philosophy is: “Knowledge without sharing it with others is a useless knowledge.”
That’s why I’m trying to help as much as I can.
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ
マギー先生、こんにちは〜
元気ですか? 今先生がいる所は寒いですか?
「〜たり」のあったメッセージについて質問あってマギーの部屋よりこのレッスンで聞こうと思いました。
「その件では 通訳してくれたりと 大変 お世話になりました」
あのメッセージの「〜たりと」は今まで見たことないんですけど、説明してくれませんか?
Merci, 先生♡
@Marianne
Coucou, ca va?
Getting straight to the answer,
～てくれる implies a favor which the speaker received.
～たり implies that the speaker is grateful for many things, and one of these is the translation stuff.
と should be here translated as “for”. It stands for an explanation for what kind of fact is the speaker grateful.
その件では通訳してくれたりと 大変 お世話になりました = I’d really like to thank you for helping me out with the translations (etc).
———-
I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you and Maggie and everyone here, who visits – let’s say – our website a Happy and Prosperous New Year, hoping that everyone will have many blessings in the year to come. May all your dreams come true!
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ
@Marianne
こんにちは、Marianne
天人さんがMarianneの質問に答えてくれたようですね。
@天人 Thank you for helping Marianne and nice message for all of us!
May your coming year be filled with joy, happiness and dreams.
Belated Merry Christmas dear Maggie sensei. I hope you enjoyed yours :)
@obakasan000
Thank you!!! Hope you had a very Merry Christmas as well! :)
Thank you maggie sensei for this thorough lesson, I hope there are more to come. !happyface!
@iza
Thank YOU for your comment, iza!
Yes, I will make more and more lessons next year! :)
Hi. I was wondering what is the most natural way to say “follow me back please” is on instagram and twitter. I have seen this sentence “フォローしてください” but i’m not sure if it means the same thing.
@Lucy
Hi, Lucy,
フォローしてください= Please follow me.
does work. FYI, there is a slang expression. フォロバ= follow back
フォロバしてください = Please follow me back.
So you can say,
よかったらフォロバしてください。
素晴らしいレッセンですね！でもの使い方と意味がちょっと難しいと思っています。マーギー先生の説明は本当に詳しくて、ありがとうございます！ boucingheart!
@チャン
コメントありがとう、チャン！使い方、ぜひ、練習してくださいね。
Hi Maggie sensei I’ve just started studying for the N3 test using the So-matome books and already hit a roadblock on the first grammar point. I hope you can help.
So I think understand the basics of the られる form, but what the textbook is trying to teaching me is confusing me. The explanation they use for the られる form says “When you mention a fact without a subject, the passive form is often used” 「主語を表さないで事実を述べるとき、よく受身形を使う」. Here are a few examples.
本には、くわしい説明は書かれていません。
There is no detailed explanation in this book.
入学しは、このホールて行われます。
The entrance ceremony will take place in this hall.
これは、世界で一番大きいダイヤモンドだと言われています。
This is said to be the biggest diamond in the world.
昔は、その考えが正しいと思われていた。
The idea used to be considered correct.
Is this a different grammar point using られる or am i just not fully understanding the the られる form?
Hello Colette,
in this case it’s just like in English.
The passive form is very often used when the focus is on the action. It is not important or not known, however, who or what is performing the action. Also a statement in passive – as you already know – sounds more polite and formal.
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ
@Colette @天人
Thank you for helping Collette while I was away, 天人！
Maggie-sensei,
Konnichiwa from Kanagawa! Your website has been tremendously helpful as a Japanese language learner and much more practical than textbooks!
One question on shopping etiquette in Japan: are you supposed to say anything (other than thank you) when cashiers hand your change/receipt back?
Thanks,
Sarah
Hello Sarah,
normally in department stores you probably don’t see that people use any special words of thankfulness and gratitude, and I would stick to it. A simple どうも is good enough.
Observe the people and do like they do.
What do people do or how do they react, when a sweet Japanese girl greets them with a いらっしゃいませ♪ ? Well, they do nothing, they imply just ignore </3. There are different customs in different countries, you know.
I would – for example – ask for her phone number, cuz that's my lovely custom, hohoho ^ ^
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ。
@Sarah
Thank you ＠天人さん for helping everybody while I was gone.
Sarah, as 天人 said, many people don’t usually say anything when they receive their change/receipt back. Some nod lightly or greet with their eyes with a subtle smile.
If they wrap something nicely or help you a lot, then you say ありがとう.
このレッソンの説明は分かりやすくて、よかった
本当にありがとう! !happyface! !DANCING!
@メグナ
そう聞いてうれしいです！ありがとう、メグナ！
Hi Maggie Sensei! Thank you for all your lessons! When you use adjective + 限り and you wanted to make it past tense, you would say, for instance “うれしい限りだった” right?
Another question that I tried to ask before but I’m not sure if my comment ever went through:
What’s the difference between V+きる/V+きれない and V+おわる? I know V+きる has a meaning “to have successfully done/completely finished doing something” like I saw in that lesson, but so does V+おわる. Can you explain how they differ? Thanks!
@Shi
Sorry for the late reply, Shi.
Your comment went through. I couldn’t activate your comment because I was away from home.
うれしい限りだった →Yes, you use adjective+限り＋だった for the past tense.
V 終わる is focusing on the action, finish doing something.
V きる is finish doing something with all your energy, power or focusing on completion until the last part of it.
For example
食べ終わる = finish eating. (simply you finish the action of eating.)
食べ切る = You focus on what you are eating. It is usually use for large portion. When you finish eating until the last piece, you say 食べ切る。
Konnichiha Sensei;
_I Can’t Figure Out The Exact Usage Of The Old-Fashioned (~Nu)
**Besides, Can It Be Used Also With Adjectives Or Just With Verbs?!
Hello Kibounokata,
Nowadays ～ぬ is used as 終止形 of ～ず.
In Modern Japanese 助詞「ぬ」 or 「ん」 implies negation just like ～ない.
If you want to imply importance or if the sentence should sound formal, then you can use ～ぬ.
Therefore it’s very often used in combination with ～てはならない／～なければならない, and works only with verbs.
EX. 明日は会社に八時までに行かねばならぬ／ならん。
EX. そんなことさせるわけにはいかぬ／いかん。
In Classical Japanese ～ぬ has 3 meaning, but I think you are asking about modern usage.
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ。
Well Understood Ten’nin-San!
_I Was Considering That (~N) Was A Wrong Spelling Of (~Nu), But Sounded Correct To Use Instead Of (~Nai, ~Nu). Arigatou Gozaimashita !happyface! & I Hope Maggie-Sensei Is Pretty-Well Recently…
Thank you so very much!!! <3
Hi Maggie Sensei! I really like all your lessons, they’re very helpful. I have a question– what’s the difference between “V+きる”/”V+きれない” and “V+おわる”? Don’t they both have a meaning of “to end/finish”? Maybe they aren’t exactly the same but what’s the main difference between them?
Thank you for these lessons! I’ve been randomly searching for sites on how to use “dake” because I can’t really depend only on our school sensei. I have to do self study too, Glad i’ve found a nice reliable Japanese lesson site!
I just want to ask if this sentence is correct and acceptable:
女優が好きからだけだよ
ありがとうございますマギー先生！
Hihi Maggie 先生、
I often hear Japanese adding “なになに~いいじゃないかなぁと思う” or “なになに~じゃないかなぁと思う” when they are interviewed on the Youtube?.
1. What is the meaning behind adding じゃないかなぁ to the ending part of the sentence?
2. Is there a difference between “~じゃないかなぁ” and “~んじゃない”？
ありがとうございます o(∩_∩)o
@Teck Wee
I am so sorry. I just read your question dated December 17th. I must have been gone for vacation then.
~じゃないかなあと思う = I wonder if it could be ~ You are not sure. It sounds more uncertain than じゃない.
2. ~（ん）じゃない？ is used when you express your opinion.
Ex. 1) 彼は忙しいんじゃないかなあと思う。 I think he could be busy. (I am not sure) Expressing your assumption in a mild way.
Ex. 2) 彼は忙しいんじゃない？ He is busy, isn’t he? / I think he is busy. You are giving someone your opinion for them. You are more certain than 1)
I have a lesson on じゃない？. Please go check it. → Click this link.
Maggie sensei,
こんにちは！
Thank you so much for such a useful lesson.
I would like to ask you about a rule I read through Internet. That is,
as opposed to ばかり, ところ couldn’t be placed before a 名詞. For example:
彼にもらったばかりのプレゼントを開けました。
I opened the present I just received from him.
What about:
彼にもらったところのプレゼントを開けました。
Could it work as other formal nouns which modifies verbs,
like つもり、予定 and so on?
Thanks again and please, forgive me for such a trivial question.
Hello Daniele!
「彼にもらったところのプレゼントを開けました」 sounds unnatural to me.
You cannot use ところ for 連体修飾 because ところ is used as a metaphor for specifying a period of time when something is going to happen, is happening, or just happened.
The main difference between ～たばかり and ～たところ is that ～たところ is used for events that happened seconds or minutes ago (objectively a moment ago).
～たばかり is used for events that happed relatively (subjectively) not long ago. This pattern can be used for events that happened even over a year ago, but the speaker’s memories are still fresh (for example when we are talking about a war that ended a few years ago).
Also ばかり implies very often some negative emotions =>「彼からもらったばかりのプレゼントが盗まれた」.
Pure theoretically the pattern 動詞＋ところ＋の＋名詞＋を＋動詞 can be used => 高田が会社を出ようとしているところの後を追った (I caught up Takato while was leaving his office).
As for つもり, it can be used as 連体修飾, EX. 家に帰った時、食べるつもりのケーキが食べられてしまったことに気付いた。
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ。
@Daniele @天人
Thank you for helping Daniele, 天人!
あ~なるほど！いつものようにありがとうございました！！
どういたしまして！ :)
こんにちわ Maggie-sensei. !niconico!
私がに日本語を教えたきたですから日本人友達が作りたい
だれかと一生に話したいです (skype etc.)
日本語をもっと高めるから日本人友達が作りたい。
そしてとっても寂しいよ 俺にたすけてくれ
どうか わたしにネットでと友達作る方をおしえて。 :cryingboy:
かわい女の子で友達なればさいこうです。 boucingheart!
(私は18歳です， しょうねんだよ)
@Ofiris
こんにちは、Ofris
日本人の友達いっぱいできるといいですね。
多分、いろいろなサイトがあると思いますよ。探してみてね。
しかたねえ わたくしわがんばる。 さんぐ- (thank you)
@Ofiris
Balance is important. Stick to one form. :)
わたくし= polite
しかたねえ= rough
サンキュ= Thank you
なるほど ありがとうございました 先生
どう思うおれには日本語に資格があるのですか？
・
・
・
あのねぇMaggie先生 頼みがある 「どうかおれのメル友になれ おねがいだよ」 と言ったらどうする？
おれは自分を高める おれは日本語を高める だから力を貸してくれ
So,send a mail my e-mail, if you want to help me. What I am need is practising Japanese with someone.
@Ofiris
日本語の資格？ それは誰にもありますよ。
おれのメル友になれ → 私だからいいけど（笑）日本の女の子の友達欲しかったら男言葉は知らない人に使うと乱暴に聞こえるからちょっと気をつけた方がいいかもしれませんよ。
I don’t know well but some of my students use “Hello Talk”, etc to make Japanese friends.
To communicate with me, follow me on Twitter. We can chat there.
Sekkaku nara?
＠Omar Benchbana
せっかくなら (sekaku nara) = どうせなら(douse nara) = might as well
@Omar
Sekkaku nara = どうせなら(=dousenara) = might as well
電話で話すといつも緊張しちゃうけど、とても役に立つレッスンです！またありがとう、マギー先生！
ちょっとしたのスペルミスを発見したけど
Ex.よろしければ、かわりにご伝言を承りますが (polite)
= Yoroshikereba, kawari ni godengon wo uetamawari masu ga.-> uketamawari masu. (Kが抜けているだけです）
@らわ
こんにちは、らわ！
スペルミス、見つけてくれてありがとう！確かに電話は相手の顔が見えないから緊張しますね。このレッスンで練習してね！ :)
Thank you very much Maggie Sensei!
I really appreciate the hard work you put into the lessons!
@Mathias
Awww that is so nice…
こちらこそ、このサイトを使ってくれてありがとう！
Thank YOU for using this site,too!!
マギー先生、「より」の使い方を教えてくれてありがとうございます！！
質問が一つあります。
dateの後で「より」を使ったら、「より」の意味はなんですか。例えば、「７月２日より・・」というのはどういう意味ですか。
よろしくおねがいします！！ !greenapple!
＠vicky
こんにちは、Vicky!
date + より = date+ から = from
という意味です。
７月２日より = 7月２日から = From July 2nd.
@チャン
こちらこそ、うれしいコメントありがとう！
マギー先生、とてもいいレッセンですね。ありがとうございます！ boucingheart!
Sensei.. How about chau chau?
@Junichan
It is Kansai dialect.
違う=ちがう= chigau →ちゃう = chau
To emphasize, they say that twice ちゃう、ちゃう = chau chau
Hi Maggie Sensei, are makasu and makaseru both have the same meaning? or makaseru is the sasemasu form of makasu?
Thx :)
＠bill21
Hello bill21,
任せる(=makaseru) / 任す(=makasu) mean the same. (任す＝makasu is more literal (or slightly old))
Some verbs have two forms like these.
愛する ( = aisuru) ・愛す(=aisu) to love
求める ( = motomeru ) ・求む (= motomu) to need, etc.
Hi, Maggie sensei! Excelent post!
I was wondering if I can use “ご無沙汰しています” with someone who I haven’t messaged (long distance friendship) in a long time. And also, how do I ask the person if he/she has been doing well? Is “元気でしたか” appropriate?
Thank you in advance!
＠Denise
Yes, you can write ご無沙汰しています. (If you are very close to that person, you can also say 久しぶり／お久しぶり（です））
And you can say 元気でしたか？ (more polite お元気でしたか）
One question Maggie sensei.If it is not used with nouns, then 夢だそうです means I heard it is a dream?
@Giselle
Hello, Giselle.
Yes, 夢だそうです means “I heard it is (or was) a dream/They said it is(or was) a dream.”
Hi! ¿も can be “about”? like “sonna uwaza mo arukeredo…”There are rumors about it”
＠Kaede
Hi Kaede,
そんな噂（うわさ）もあるけれど = Sonna uwasa mo aru keredo
This も is not “about”. “also”
There is also a such a rumor.
Or simply emphasizing what comes before. uwasa
Hontou ni arigaotu!
@Kaede
Douitashimashite, kaede :)
Shady せんせい、
how could you say 1 out of 10 people?
ありがとうございました！ :w:
＠アン
こんにちは、アン！
1 out of 10 people = １０人のうち一人 (juunin no uchi hitori ) / １０人に一人 (juunin ni hitori)
Hi sensei, sort of a question about a sentence I saw while reading.
だから、雑談はおろか、本当なら、リサを見かけたところで無視を決め込んだってよかったのだ。
Am I correct to assume that the って here refers to the というのは outlined in the lesson? It seems to be the only feasible option given that って is immediately followed by an adjective（よっかた）。
Thanks for the lessons, they have been of great helps.
＠drumpenguin
Hi drumpenguin
Ah, that って is ても・でも = even (you do something)・ てもよかった→ってよかった hypothetical: you could have done something
無視を決めこんでもよかった→無視を決めこんだってよかった
So, as far as I understand you use 番目 to say that something is e.g. the first in or from something.
So when I want to say, give me the book from the bookshelf I would have to use that.
But if I just say I am reading the first book, I use number+counter+目. Furthermore counting from 10 upwards I have to use 番目 since 目 is only for the numbers 1-9 (I read this on another website).
But what if my word doesn´t have its own counter, like child?
As in the example below I just use what´s most associated with this word, so 一人目の子?
2. In this sentece(from the very first examples above): そこから一本目の道を右に曲がった角にあります
Why is 一本目 translated as second street and not first street here?
Thank´s in advance.
@Michael
Hi Michael,
number+counter+目 Furthermore counting from 10 upwards I have to use 番目 since 目 is only for the numbers 1-9 (I read this on another website).
→ You can use whatever number.
１冊目の本〜１００冊目の本〜冊目
１台目の車〜５０台目の車, etc.
I think what you read is general counter, 一つ = ひとつ= hitotsu、二つ = ふたつ= futatsu 、三つ =みっつ= mittsu….九つ = ここのつ= kokonotsu、十 = とう= tou
You count children with 一人= hitori, 二人= futari…
So as you said, the first child is 一人目の子供/ 一人目の子
2. Or really? Then it is a mistake. 一本目= should be the first street.
I wass reading Facebook comment it said: このクマ？？色使いとかいいね。
it was about i pink bear mascot character i think lol
Does that mean:Is this a bear?I like its color.._.._ whats the function of toka?
Make it sound more polite
*a pink mascot character
このクマ？ Is this the bear you are talking about? / ” This is it?”
The actual meaning of 色使い is “use of color” but as you translated the color is just fine.
とか here is the usage 4). (and so on, stuff) It is just a soft way to say I like its color
oh ok isee thank you as always! !Japanese is tricky
＠Rodney
You’re welcome, Rodney!
mōichido kimi to aetara
shiranai yōna…
Shiranai mama
waratte īdesu ka
in this context, what would “yona” and “mama” mean? i understand “shiranai” means to not know something, but how do yona and mama affect that negative verb?
@aureal
Is it from some lyrics? It is hard to tell you the exact translation from that but
知らないような means “as if not knowing/ It is like I don’t know ~ ” / (feel) like not knowing”
知らないままに without knowing
http://eleven-xi.tumblr.com/post/119650258316/ia%E3%83%8F%E3%83%BC%E3%83%88%E3%81%AE%E5%BE%8C%E5%91%B3ia-aftertaste-of-the-heart-lyrics-and
yeah, this is the song. that was one of the only pages i could find. i get the meaning of it, i just wanted to understand how it was being used in that particular scenario.
Maggie Sensei, can you please explain to me the usage of ってわけ。I tried looking for a clear explanation online but to no avail. I know it’s the shortened for of ～というわけ。But I’m confused as to how you properly use it. I often hear it being used at the end of the sentence. Can you give examples? Thanks in advance.
＠Joyce
Hi Joyce!
You are right. ってわけ is a casual form of 〜というわけです・〜というわけだ。
You use it when you casually explain
* why/how something happened
* why/how someone does/did something.
* how things work
and conclude with ってわけ = That’s why.
* sentence ってわけ = ~~~ That’s why./ That means ~ /It’s because ~~.
Ex. 彼女、失恋したみたい。だから髪を切ったってわけ。
= かのじょ、しつれんしたみたい。だからかみをきったってわけ。
= I heard she had a broken heart. That’s why she had her hair cut, you know.
Ex. 隣の家族は東京に引っ越したよ。つまりもう誰もあの部屋には住んでいないってわけ。
= となりのかぞくはとうきょうにひっこしたよ。つまりもうだれもあのへやにはすんでいないってわけ。
= The next door family moved to Tokyo. That means nobody is living in that room, you know.
Ex. A: どうして彼はツアーで日本に行くのかな？
= I wonder why he is going to Japan in a group tour.
B: ツアーの方が安かったってわけ。
= It’s because group tour is cheaper. That’s why.
Hello Maggie sensei!
Thanks a lot for the lesson as well as all the other ones.
So easy to understand yet so useful and clever!
I would kindly like to ask if the concept of the phrase:
恥ずかしくて彼の目を見ることさえできなかった。
may be communicated with the following:
彼の目を見ることはできなかったほど／くらい、恥ずかしかった。
Thanks a lot! :-D
@Daniele
Hi Daniele
Yes the basic idea is the same.
彼の目を見ることはできなかったほど／くらい、恥ずかしかった。
→彼の目を見ること”が”できなかった is better.
こんにちは、先生！
誰かに私が書いた文章を直してもらったときに「直したり、説明したりしてくれてありがとう」とお礼を言いたかったら、こう書けば正しいでしょうか。
よろしくお願いします。
@lucas
こんにちは、Lucas! はい、もしその人がいつもlucasの文章の添削をしてくれている人だったら「たり」を使えます。
Hi! I have a question: What does “koko toka” (こことか) mean? Google translator gives me a nonsensical answer and I already search the internet but nothing. Help me, please :c
Sorry for my bad english xd
＠Hitomi
Hi Hitomi,
The literal meaning is
ここ – here
とか = and etc.
But it is hard to say without knowing the context.
Ex.
A: 〜はどこにあるかな？ = I wonder where X is…
B: こことか、あそことか探した？ Did you look here or there and so on?
Woah, very good! Besides being rude, I feel that I’ll sound more naturally from a native speaker perspective, by using some of the male speech in casual conversations. Because of the animes, I always wanted to know where that “~ee” form came from, such as “sugoi” becoming “sugee” (I thought it was some kind of regional variation lol). Now I managed to understand it. Thank you sooo much, Maggie Sensei!
@ビクトル
Haha, you now sound like a man! (Just be careful when to use.) :)
Hello Maggie sensei, i fully understand TARA, but i don’t Quite understand NARA. They both mean “IF” but can you give me some brief explanation and few sentence examples of how to use NARA? thank you
＠Johathan
Hi Jonathan.
Did you check this lesson? How to use なら
彼女が指差している先を見上げて見ると…。
Then they saw where she was pointing
¿Is raight?
@Kaede
I don’t know who the doer is from one sentence but you got the meaning right.
This phrase is the extraction of a video, and indeed “they” are the three protagonists.
If you really believe that I did well, then as if I could cry for the T-T emosion
@Kaede
OK, just one thing. The position of “then”
They saw where she was pointing and then..
Now you can cry. You did well! :)
XD I see
“They tried to see where she was pointing” is better?
@Kaede
There is not connotaton of “try to” in the sentence. Just the last と… implies there is something in that direction where she was pointing at. So you can just translate it with “when” as well.
When they looked at the direction where she was pointing….
Hello there, Maggie-sensei!
I’m learning Japanese, as most of your readers do, I suppose ))
I have a question. I’ve read that with such words as 好き 嫌い 上手 下手 が must be used. But in your example you use を 「初めて人を好きになりました。」
Is it also OK to use を in such cases?
@Eugene
Hi Eugene,
Yes,好き、嫌い、上手、下手 are adjectives so you say ~が(or は）好き、嫌い、上手、下手
But when it is use with になる (verb) you can both use が好きになる・を好きになる・が嫌いになる・を嫌いになる、
（As for 上手 and 下手, が上手になる、が下手になる）
Also when you modify a noun you can use を as well.
彼女を好きな人
彼女が好きな人
にんじんが嫌いな人
にんじんを嫌いな人
When it is modify a verb (to use 上手 and 下手 as adverbs) you use を
漢字を上手に書く
絵を下手に描く
There are two more ways(maybe even more :p) how to say not really which are
べつに ~ない
As in:
別にかまわないよ。
betsu ni kamawanai yo.
I don’t really care.
And secondly, the combination of both, as in:
別に彼のために作ったわけではない。
betsu ni kare no tame ni tsukutta wake dewa nai.
It’s not like I made this for him.
Is it just formality, synonyms? Or what exactly is the difference between those three versions?
You add 別に when you deny something and it means “not particularly, not really”
別にかまわない = I don’t really care
別に興味がない = I am not really into this.
別にVわけではない
別にきらいと言っているわけではない
= I am not really saying I don’t like ~
Hi Maggie :)
There is something I don’t understand – using TE IKEMASEN with NAGARA – because I have seen examples of this in both ways and can’t be sure which one is better.
Example 1. Arukinagara tabako wo sutte wa ikemasen.
I understand this one.
BUT
Example 2. Terebi wo minagara, benkyou shinai de kudasai.
Example 3. Toshokan de, ongaku wo kikinagara, benkyou shinai de kudasai.
Why?? Why is it not ‘Benkyou shinagara, terebi o minaide kudasai’ (and same for example 3)??
It is driving me crazy, haha
Because it’s the first part of the sentence what’s not allowed.
Thanks very much in advance!!
Diana
@Diana
Hi Diana,
I see your confusion.
Do not study watching TV.
テレビを観ながら勉強してはいけません。
= terebi o minagara benkyou shite wa ikemasen.
テレビを観ながら勉強しないでください。
= Terebi o minagara benkou shinai de kudasai.
Q* Because it’s the first part of the sentence what’s not allowed.
What is not allowed is not just the first part (watching TV) but the whole action, which is
“to study watching TV” = テレビを観ながら勉強する = terebi o minagara benkyou suru.
Of course the main action is “to study” and the speaker wants to say not to study in certain condition.
If you say
勉強しながらテレビを観ないでください。
= Benkyou shinagara terebi o minai de kudasai.
The main action is テレビを観る, watching TV.
So it means “Do not watch TV while you are studying.” and it changes the nuance.
hi maggie,sorry to ask
i-adjective + ながら can use i-adjective stem+ながら
恥ずかしながら same ?
see from https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/2460/what-conjugation-is-included-in-%E6%81%A5%E3%81%9A%E3%81%8B%E3%81%97%E3%81%AA%E3%81%8C%E3%82%89
恥ずかしながら is an expression but it doesn’t follow the rule with i-adjective.
It is probably you deal it as a noun 恥ずかしいこと→恥ずかし in this case.
Good day! I was looking for an explanation of Facebook word for “followers”: フォロー中. After your article I guess it the meaning of 中 is “under specific conditions”, am I right?
@Jade
Hi Jade,
“followers” is フォロワー in Japanese.
フォロー中 means “I am following now”
フォローしました although it is in past form, it also means “I’m following you”, right Maggie?
@天人
I’m following you is フォローしています。or フォロー中です。
フォローしました is I followed you/ I just followed you. (focusing on the action of clicking the follow rather than the state of following.)
Hello Sensei! I’m glad the site is healthy again! :-D
I have a question
Through the lesson, the sentence “誰に聞いても何も教えてくれない。” is translated as “No matter who I ask, nobody tells me anything.”
Could it also mean “No matter who you ask, noone will tell you” ? As a warning or in a sarcastic manner.
Thanks you for the awesome lesson! :) :-P
Dear Sensei, I am confused with the certain examples which has the ‘da’ affixed to ” to iu noni”..Can you enlighten me on this? Any difference even if it is without the ‘da’?
Now i can sound like a punk – yo yo bitch. lol just kidding, but this lesson can be very useful to understand some anime characters. ブラジルからちーっす。
@ギレルメ
Hehe, enjoy watching anime!
Hello,
I wonder if you could help me with a book (A dictionary of basic Japanese grammar) that I am reading. For ある, it says “When ある is used to express the idea of having and the object is animate, that object must be someone who maintains a very close relationship with the possessor, such as a family member, a relative or a friend. Thus, (4) is acceptable, but (5) is odd.
(4) 私には子供が三人ある
…”
Whenever I use ある in this way, I am corrected and told to use いる instead which makes sense to me.
Even in the いる section of the same book is the sentence 「私には子供が三人いる」.
Do you think the use of ある is just very very rare or maybe it has become outdated since the books publication?
Or do you think the book wrong? I am quite confused by it…
Thank you for your help! Also love your website it has been very helpful :)!
＠Wolf Clayton
I wouldn’t say the book is wrong.
As the book says, you can use ある when you are talking about someone close to you.
Maybe the usage such as
私には子供が３人ある
could be getting outdated and not many people say that anymore.
However, I did a Google search and found out one thing.
The negative form ない is still very common. (The usage is more common when it modifies a noun)
Ex. （〜には）子供がない・子供がない~ 1,510,000 ー 子供がいない 716,000
Ex. (~には）男兄弟がない・男兄弟がない~ 84,100 ー 男兄弟がいない 18,800
Hi Maggie!
One thing about your research.
Uncle Google sometimes doesn’t count correctly at fist glance.
“Ex. （〜には）子供がない・子供がない~ 1,510,000 ー 子供がいない 716,000
Ex. (~には）男兄弟がない・男兄弟がない~ 84,100 ー 男兄弟がいない 18,800”
“子供がない” = 16件 (Just tip “子供がない” scroll down, click 次へ and then you will see only 16件 instead of 1 980 000).
“男兄弟がない” = 29件
I personally would avoid using ある in this case.
@天人
Oh my.. you are right. After all, I learned I can’t trust Google research results number. Have to check the next page. haha. Thank you!
But is it ある because it’s considered food, or because it’s not living? I think what I’m trying to get at is, does ある imply that something is dead (or that it was once a living thing) where otherwise いる would be used? Here’s an odd example – If my grandmother had died and someone asked “Where’s Grandma(‘s body)?” would (could) I say something like “隣の部屋にある” (she’s in the next room)?
I’ve probably annoyed you much too long, so I’ll stop here – but that’s what you get when you give such great explanations. Thanks for always entertaining my weird questions as though they are as important to you as they are to me. You both do such great and wonderful work on this site. I really appreciate it. Thanks!
なでなで
＠squidlydeux
When someone you know or loving pets die and talk about their body, you use いる
おばあちゃんは隣の部屋にいる and treat them as if they are alive with respect. If you say ある, it sounds really cold and you may offend their family.
Now, if you treat them as a dead body you say 死体 (dead body: sounds very cold if you use it for someone you know. You hear that on news), then you use ある (We say 死体を発見した= We found a dead body more though) but when you use ご遺体 (goitai: more polite than 死体), you use 置かれる / 安置する or we even use 眠っている /横たわっている (sleeping/lying)
I you found a dead animal , just saying (animal) がある is strange.
You say あそこに死んだ(animal) がいる
or
(animal) の死体がある
I should stop here before Maggie reads this comment…
(From Yukari)
Thanks – you’re the best!
@squidlydeux
You’re welcome! :)
Good day/afternoon/evening/night Maggie sensei!
I have this question that what is 与えることだけはできたらしいさ in English?
I know that 与える means ‘to give’, ことだけ could mean ‘only thing’ but I have no idea how to translate this できたらしい.
I would be very happy if you could help me :D
With greetings, Karin.
I don’t know who gives what to whom.. So it is difficult to translate but
~だけはできたらしい means
It seems like at least he/she/they/ I could give (something)
~さ is a casual male suffix.
~ さ: ~ , you know.
Thank you so much, I love all your lessons! They are so fun and easy to understand, so many great examples. Everytime my textbook confuses me I come to your site & things start to make sense. Thank you!
@Kathy
Hi Kathy,
Thank you so much for your nice comment!
Kathyのメッセージを読(よ）んでとってもうれしかったです！ありがとう！
Konnichiha, Maggie-Sensei, Mata Watakushi Desu
Actually I’m Confused Between (Towa) & (Nante/Da Nante), They Sounded Kind Of Similar To Me!
*Could You Please Show Me In Which Circumstances We Use Each One Of Them?
*Besides, Is It True That: (Towa) Is A Collocial Abbreviation To (To iu No Ha)?
* Does (To iu No Ha) = (To iu Koto/Mono Ha)?
*Moreover, Putting (No/N/Nano/Nan) Right Before (Towa) Makes Sense? Ex: “Subarashii Ninja Seifuku Ga Oru N Towa Na!”
Haha Asked Too Much
@kibounokata
Ohayou!
I’m sorry… I just told other visitors but I can only deal with one or two simple questions here.
Luckily I already have lessons on two subjects so please check the links.
Q1* Could You Please Show Me In Which Circumstances We Use Each One Of Them?
* とは：
When you explain something/talk about the definition.
人生とは何かを考える
= Jinsei towa nani ka wo kangaeru.
= To think what the life is.
「難解」とは「難しい」ということです。
= “Nankai” to wa “muzukashii toiu koto desu.
= “難解: Nankai” means “difficult”.
When you quote what you just heard.
全部お金を使ってしまったとはどういうこと？
= Zenbu okane wo tsukatte shimatta towa douiu koto?
= What do you mean you spent all the money??
* ということ
Please check this lesson
http://bit.ly/1dpnB4Q
* なんて/だなんて
I have a lesson. Please check it.
http://142.93.68.150/2013/09/02/how-to-use-%E3%81%AA%E3%82%93%E3%81%A6nante/
Q2*Besides, Is It True That: (Towa) Is A Collocial Abbreviation To (To iu No Ha)?
Q3* Does (To iu No Ha) = (To iu Koto/Mono Ha)?
There are cases that you can replace them and you shorten というのは to とは but I wouldn’t say とは is colloquial.
When you can’t replace them:
When a speaker says something and continue explaining.
Bla bla bla.
というのは私達は今、大切な時代にいるからです。
So while とは is just explaining the definition/meaning, というのは explains the reason besides definition/meaning
→It is because….
In that usage, you can’t replace it with ということ・ものは
Q4*Moreover, Putting (No/N/Nano/Nan) Right Before (Towa) Makes Sense? Ex: “Subarashii Ninja Seifuku Ga Oru N Towa Na!”
No, it doesn’t make sense.
Hope this helps…
As Always, You Gave Me What I’ve Been Exactly Looking For Dear Sensei, Though I Found Many English Sentences Haven’t Mentioned Me An Exact [Translation] To (To Ha) & (To iu No Ha), However You Show Me A Way To Deal With The Both.
_TASUKARIMASHITA! Arigatou Gozaimasu Maggie-Sensei, O Deha !happyface! !formingheart3!
@Kibounokata
Oh sorry! I added the English translation for you. :)
Migoto Desu Ne Sensei, Arigatou Gozaimashita!! Honyaku Shite Kurete
:-D !heart3! !CHECKHEART! boucingheart!
@Kibounokata
どういたしまして！ ♥
こんにちは先生、
I have question about anime title, forgive me if it’s not suitable for this lesson. I know the premises of this anime, but I don’t watch it, so may be I have misunderstanding here. The title is 進撃の巨人 or “attack on titan”. If I’m following this lesson correctly, the main noun is 巨人 (titan) not 進撃 (attack), so the literal meaning is either “the attacked/assaulted titan” or “the attacking/assaulting titan”. Using the same word, “attack on titan” should be 巨人の進撃, or to make it clearer 巨人への進撃. I know it’s just a title, so the translation can be influenced by many factor, such as to make target language’s speaker easy to understand.
＠Kamal
こんにちは、Kamal.
You are not alone. Obviously many Japanese people question the meaning of the title 進撃の巨人 and wonder why 巨人 and 進撃 are reversed. (As you said, 巨人の進撃 looks/sounds grammatically more clear. )
Since I have never read the story I can’t tell you the real intention but according to what I have researched, the interpretation of the title changes by the point of view and the episode. If the title is 巨人の進撃, you imagines a lot of Titans are attacking.
Some said 巨人 refers to Eren himself. He becomes a Titan.
Anyway, they decided to have that title to make the story more mysterious. Maybe we can tell the real intention while reading the story.
Thanks for the explanation.
ありがとうございます
@Kamal
どういたしまして、Kamal!
Hi Sensei! Thank goodness you are back! Was checking out ur site today but it was down. T-T
Great to see you again!
Sensei, I need help with this word – tachidomari. I cant seem to conjugate it from tachidomaru and it ended up differently. Please help! Thanks for all your help ;)
@Anna
Hi Anna,
Sorry. The site has been down… It has been on and off…
Anyway,
立ち止まり = たちどまり= tachidomari is a conjugation from a verb
立ち止まる= たちどまる= stand still, stop (walking or doing something what you have been doing once)
Do you have an example sentence where you saw the word? If it is used with other verb, it works like this.
You can use this form as te-form. Stop walking/Stand still/ Stop what you have been doing once and then…..
立ち止まり( = tachidomari)+ Verb = to do something standing still/ stop walking/stop doing what you have been doing.
(It is similar to 立ち止まって( = tachidomatte ) )
ずっと働き続けてきたが、たまには立ち止まり（立ち止まって）人生について考えることも必要だと思った。
= Zutto hataraite kita ga, tama niwa tachidomari (or tachidomatte) jinsei ni tsuite kangaeru koto mo hitsuyou da to omotta.
= I have been working all my life but I came to think that it is necessary to stop working and think about my life once.
Here you go:
彼は立ち止まり、ドキドキしながら考えた. Was basically scratching my head. So the tachidomari is the same as tachidomatte is it?
Thanks for the explaination Sensei! I think I am beginning to get the gist of it. Aww…Japanese language honestly isnt easy.
@Anna
Yes, it is the same as tachidomatte.
He stopped (walking) and ~
So you can connect sentences using masu-stem like te-form.
He was surprised to know the fact.
↓
彼はそのことを知って驚いた。
= Kare wa sono koto wo shitte odoroita.
彼はそのことを知り驚いた。
= Kare wa sono koto wo shiri odoroita.
Many learners get confused with this form.
Will add it to the lesson list. :)
That would be great!! Thanks a million, Sensei. Thanks for being so patient and helpful. :cryingboy:
@Anna
You’re welcome, Anna! :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Now I understand the difference between あげます and くれます, I only have one question regarding もらいます.
(I’m sorry if someone has already asked that, there are so many comments that I couldn’t read all of them.)
I know where the position of わたし should be in senteces using あげます and くれます.
I’m just not sure where わたし can be if I say もらいます.
I know it can be in the beginning, eg. I received money from my mother: 私は母からお金をもらいました。
But if I want to say: “My mother received flowers from me”, can is say: 母は私に花をもらいました。?
Thank you very much in advance!
Berry
@Berry
Hi Berry. Sorry. I found your four messages. They went to SPAM folder for some reason. I erased the other three messages.
Q: I know it can be in the beginning, eg. I received money from my mother: 私は母からお金をもらいました。
But if I want to say: “My mother received flowers from me”, can is say: 母は私に花をもらいました。?
Yes, technically you can say 母は私に(or から）花をもらいました。
Since the speaker is a giver, it will be more natural to say 私は母に花をあげました。
But if the third person gave flowers to the speaker’s mother, you can say
母は、〜に花をもらいました。
(I will post the same Q&A in Maggie’s room in case you check there.)
Maggie先生！
How would I ask someone if I am wearing something correctly?
Example: I am wearing a yukata for the first time. How would I ask someone if I am wearing the yukata correctly?
@Ralph
Hello Ralph,
You can use the word
着方=きかた=kikata =the way you wear
Ex. 浴衣の着方はこれで合っていますか？
= ゆかたのきかたはこれであっていますか？
= Yukata no kikata wa kore de atte imasu ka?
Aa… I think I get it now…. thank you very much
@sandra
You’re welcome! I’m glad the comment works now! :)
What if questioning to our selves?
Like questiong if he stole it….
How you put janai on the sentence?
@sandra
Then you say
これ、彼の辞書じゃないんじゃない？
You wrote
●これ、彼の辞書じゃない？
= Kore, kare no jisho janai?
= Isn’t this his dictionary?
But i think it can also mean:
“it’s not his dictionary?” (Questioning….Maybe he stole it).
My question is how to distinguish or how do we know that the sentence is affirmative/negative meaning if “janai ka” can act affirmative and negative as well? Especially if noun is put before janai ka?
＠sandra
Finally!! :)
●これ、彼の辞書じゃない？
= Kore, kare no jisho janai?
Since it is a question, it means “Isn’t this his dictionary?”
If it is a statement,
これは、彼の辞書ではない。
→(casual contraction) これ、彼の辞書じゃない。
Konnichiha Maggie-Sensei
_I’ve Been Stuck In This Matter About (Te) Form:
As We Know That When There’s A Couple Of Linked Verbs Or Events In A Sentence We Have To Conjugate Them Into A (Te) Form Except The Last Verb/Noun/Adj/Event…etc, But I Just Want To Figure Out This Difference Between The Two Sentences:
Ex:
– I Want To Ride A Bike.
– I Want To Go To Japan.
– I Want To Be A Writer.
_Alright When We Link Them As One Sentence, Become:
(Jitensha Ni Notte, Nippon Ni Itte, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
OR
(Jitensha Ni Noritakute, Nippon Ni Ikitakute, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
WHICH ONE IS THE CORRECT, Sensei?!
@Kibounokata
When you continue the three sentences, I would use し instead of て
自転車に乗りたいし、日本に行きたいし、作家（さっか）にもなりたい。
(Jitensha Ni Notte, Nippon Ni Itte, Sakka Ni Naritai.)
It means “I ride a bike and go to Japan and want to be a writer.”
(Jitensha Ni Noritakute, Nippon Ni Ikitakute, Hissha Ni Naritai.)
is not natural.
Jitensha ni noritaku te = this “te” gives a reason. I want to ride a bike and do something in order to ride a bike.
Sou Deshou Ka, Wakarimashita, Arigatou Sensei :idea:
@Kibounokata
どういたしまして :)
Hey maggie, i was just wondering why you put two -て forms next to each other. Maybe you have a lesson on this? Thanks…
@Dale
Hi Dale
two -て forms next to each other
Before I answer let me confirm your question.
You mean like 行ってて・探してて…etc?
Can we change te aru to negative
@black blue
Ah good question. I should have included the information.
Yes the negative form is 〜ていない
You also might see てない. It is a casual contraction and you drop い in conversation.
I am confused with ”2) Other usage of finishing a sentence with けど ( = kedo)”.Is the definition of kedo still the same or has another definition?
@Daniel
In the usage 1), I showed the examples of showing the contrast cleary or two contradicted facts.
2) contains, more subtle usages. Ex. マギーですけど… (It doesn’t show any contrast.) , showing more emotions, colloquial usages, etc.
when the speaker picks the phone and says ”maggie desukedo” does it not mean but?I am really confused why is it not mean ”but”
@Daniel
Maggie desu kedo.
This kedo doesn’t have a function to show the contrast or lead to something contradicting.
You add it to either emphasize the feelings or soften the speech.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
How do you express sympathy and well wishes for someone who has an ill relative through written text?
Would *親戚*が早くよくなられるように祈っています work?
Thank you!
@Peachie
Hi Peachie,
親戚 → ご親戚の方（ごしんせきのかた）is better.
You can also say
・ご親戚の方が、早くよくなられますように。
・ご親戚の方が一日も早くよくなられますように。
・ご親戚の方が一日も早くよくなられますように。
・ご親戚の方の一日も早いご快復（かいふく）をお祈りしております。
Maggie sensei,こんにちは！
Thanks a lot for all the useful lessons!
I’d like to ask you about the difference between
Noun+のように+Verb
and
Noun+と同じように+Verb. For example, does the following sentences mean the same? (Both on a grammatical and polite/causal point of view):
(1) 彼は、犬のように歌います。
(2) 彼は、犬と同じように歌います。
Does maybe the difference would only be the same as in English, that is “…like a dog” for (1) and “…similarly to a dog”?
I beg your pardon to be such a nuisance. I’d kindly ask you too if I may write:
この料理の味は、鶏肉のようなのかどうかまだわからない。
I can’t understand yet if the flavour of this dish is like chicken meat or not.
Thank you very much!
@Daniele
こんにちは、Daniele!
Noun+のように + V
Noun + と同じように + V
They both could be translated as “to do something like/as〜” but と同じように means “to do something in the same way as ~”, ” or “to do something “just” like ~ ” (the similarity is stronger than のように)
(1) 彼は、犬のように歌います。
(2) 彼は、犬と同じように歌います。
(1) is OK (even though singing like a dog is a bit challenging. :D)
As for (2) if the sentence would be good if he sings just like certain singer. (He is copying the way that person sings.)
Ex. プロの歌手と同じように歌うのは難しい
= It is difficult to sing in the same way as a professional singers.
この料理の味は、鶏肉のようなのかどうかまだわからない。
Let me change the first part because you don’t say 料理 tastes like 鶏肉.
この肉は鶏肉のような味がする。
This meat tastes like chicken.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
授業で「翌年」を学んだけど、使い方よく分かりません。
ある出来事の次の年という意味あると言われていました。
具体的にはどういうことですか。
例文を書いてくださいませんか。
＠Thalia
Hi Thalia,
翌年と来年の違いから説明しますね。
翌年は”the next year” / “the following year”
来年は”next year”
*****
For example, if you say
Ex. 1) 来年、日本に行きます。
now, it means “I will go to Japan next year. ”
It’s 2016 now so you will come to Japan in 2017.
You can’t say
翌年、日本に行きます。
翌年 is used in past tense. You mention one past event first and then add what happened in the following year.
Ex. 2) ２０１０年に日本に行きました。翌年はどこにも行きませんでした。
= I went to Japan in 2010. I didn’t go anywhere in the following year.
So in this case, 翌年 refers to 2011. (the following year of 2010)
You can mention two actions.
one action →翌年→the other actions.
Ex. 3) 卒業(そつぎょう）した翌年、日本に行った。
= I went to Japan the year after the graduation (year).
Note: You can’t use 来年 in Ex.2) and Ex.3)
You can also say 次の年（とし）instead of 翌年
Is there a difference between the usage of -chau and -chimau?
＠Verdusk
Basically they mean the same. They are from てしまう
ちゃう is a sort of cute suffix.
ちまう is a rough male speech.
Hello Sensei! Would you mind explaining to me the usage of Japanese verb stem form? I watched an anime and I heard they use the word tabe. Please help!
@Anna
Hi Anna,
“tabe”? I need more information of your question. You want to know how you conjugate a verb, “taberu”?
Hi Sensei..Good to hear from you:) . Nope, I was thinking of how to use verb stem for daily conversations coz I have heard in the anime using the word tabe in their conversations…Was wondering how to use and the function of it~ Thanks :)
@Anna
Hi Anna
Hmm, so you saw a verb, taberu, is used just “tabe”??
You don’t usually use just a verb stem.
tabe-te.
tabe-nasai
tabe-ta,etc.
It is possible to say
o-tabe = Eat!
Please recheck the whole sentence.
Yes yes! He was saying about dating a girl and mention about “Burger o tabe”. Can you enlighten me on this? I read somewhere that renyoukei form can be used on its own but more to literary and writing type. But some sites wrote that it can’t be used alone as well.
@Anna
OK, お+ verb stem = is a gentle command form.
Note: It doesn’t work with all the verbs.
(It is usually used when older people tell younger people or children what to do or what not to do)
Burger otabe = Eat a burger. (command form)
Mizu wo onomi = Drink water.
Odamari = Shut up/ Keep your month shut. (It sounds more gentle than だまりなさい)
Arigatou gozaimasu. … it is wonderful…It removed many confusionS related to its usages….. regards
@Balram
Hi Balram,
Douitashimashite ♥ :)
Hello Maggie!
During my journey with 日本語 I came across a very interesting archaic causative pattern; it’s …をして～しめる.
I’d like you to check, if the sentences are correctly translated.
1. わが意思を、速やかに民をして知らしめよ。 => Inform the nation about our intension as soon as possible!
2. 自らをして悟らしめよ。 => Enlighten me / us! (Make me /us understand!)
The 3rd sentence is a ことわざ, and here I need also your help, please.
3. 死せる孔明、生ける仲達をして走らしむ。
ヨロシク＾＾
@天人
Hello 天人
You are studying 漢文？
「AをしてBせしめる」means「AにBさせる」
1. OK
2. I think it means “Enlighten yourself.”
3. It is an old saying.
孔明 is dead but he made 仲達 who is still alive run (away).
There is a little history behind this saying but basically it means
an influential person still influences people even if they are dead.
As always I’m grateful for your help, Maggieさん :qq:
No, I’m not studying 漢文, but you are right, this pattern derives from 漢文訓読調.
Now I can continue my journey. Maybe some day it leads me to China (to 漢文).
Who knows, who knows…
@天人
Learning languages is a long journey.
Hope you keep enjoying learning Japanese. :)
天気予報によると、明日は雨だそうだから、雨がないとかの場所に行ってはどうですか。
え～と、私のアパートとか、映画とかはどうだ？
the weather forcast said its going to rain tomorrow,so how about we go a place wheres there no rain.__….Hmmmmm._.._like my apartment or the movie theaters?
Correct in hiragana please.Im sure my Japanese is incorrect. (Thanks for all your lessons)
雨がないとかの→雨（あめ）が降（ふ）らない場所に（or へ）行（い）ってはどうですか？
Since you used とか, you can also say 場所とかに（or へ）行（い）ってはどうですか？
Note: 行ってはどうですか？means “Why don’t you go to ~ ?” and the speaker is not involved.
But the second speaker suggested his/her apartment. So
行きませんか？ / (casual) 行かない？ would be better.
え～と、私のアパートとか、映画とかはどうだ？
→ １）え〜と is used when you are thinking. If you suggest some idea, you say それなら (then)
２）どうだ？ is a male speech and sounds blunt. The first speaker used どうですか？ so you should use
どうですか？ or どう？(less casual)
Thank you so much.._.._i appreciate it. !happyface!
Your explanations are too perfect!
@Rodney
You’re very welcome! :)
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS ARTICLE OMG SO USEFUL YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW THANKFUL I AM FOR YOU RIGHT NOW.
@Ashtin
Good to know this lesson is useful. :)
please show me how to write shihan in japaneese
thanks jay
@jay
Hi jay
Is it a person’s name?
Shihan = If you pronounce “h”, シハン. If “h” is silent, シアン
konnichiha :w:
I thought I should use Ga particle with using suki and kirau
can I say:
Haha wa watashi ga ichinichi juu geimu suru no (ga) kirau.
thank you
Hello roro ,
because 嫌う is a verb the particle を has to be used in this case.
But if you use 形容動詞「嫌い」then you can use it with particle が or は.
Cheers!
@天人
Thank you for helping @roro
@roro
嫌う is a verb so you use a particle を
〜を嫌う
母は私が一日中ゲームするの”を”嫌う
嫌い is an adverb so you say
〜が嫌い
~は嫌い (*when you show the contrast)
So if you want to use 嫌い in the example sentence, you say
母は私が一日中ゲームするの”が”(“は”*) 嫌いだ
But since 母は is a subject and I used a subject marker,”は”, I used a verb, 嫌う on purpose.
Japanese people tend to avoid having two subject markers in one sentence.
Thank you, Maggie sensei! Yeah, I’m still newbie on Japanese, and I found this greateful website. This is very helpful, you know!
@dian
Hello, dian!
Happy to hear this site is helpful. Hope you keep learning Japanese with fun! :)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
お久しぶりです。
I have a question but not sure where to put it. Because the sentence contains させる, so I post it here.
I came across this sentence in Hiragana Times.
応募数の多い場合は抽選。結果は発送をもってかえさせていただきます。
The English text was:
Winners will be selected by lottery and receive gifts directly.
I do not understand the second sentence 結果は発送をもってかえさせていただきます in particular, the words をもって and かえさせていただきます. I do know させていただきます but not かえ. And I am not sure if it should be かえる or かえす since it is not written in kanji.
I googled and found this is a common phrase like 賞品の発送をもってかえさせていただきます in lucky draw, etc.
In this website, some mentioned it loosely translates to “winners will be notified by post”
http://www.proz.com/kudoz/english_to_japanese/surveying/1243903-%E7%99%BA%E8%A1%A8%E3%81%AF%E7%99%BA%E9%80%81%E3%82%92%E3%82%82%E3%81%A3%E3%81%A6%E3%81%8B%E3%81%88%E3%81%95%E3%81%9B%E3%81%A6%E3%81%84%E3%81%9F%E3%81%A0%E3%81%8D%E3%81%BE%E3%81%99%E3%80%82.html
@Chang
Hi Chang,
Vさせていただきます is a polite way to say “to take the liberty of doing something”
In this case the verb is 代える →代えさせていただきます
When a company gives away prizes, they usually announce the names of the winners on their homepage, in newspaper,
or magazines. But instead of doing that , they will show the result by sending the prize to the winners directly.
結果は発送をもって（当選の発表ということに）代えさせていただきます。
The direct translation is
As for the result, we take the liberty of substituting the mean of showing the result for sending the prize to the winners.
〜をもって with 〜 / by mean of ~
代える= change/ substitute
Ohhhhh. I forgot the *as* meaning. Now I understand.
Thank you very much :D
Hi and thank you for the lesson. I recently came across ように in a song and it kind of stumped me a little. The line in particular is 「乙女の剣(つるぎ)を
この生命(いのち) 燃え尽きるように」. What is the translation of this line and how is the youni being used?
@Dylan
Hi Dylan, I don’t do the translation here but in order to understand better, you need a previous line.
ふりかざせ! 乙女の剣(つるぎ)を = The word order is, 乙女の剣を(object) ふりかざせ (verb)
この生命(いのち) 燃え尽きるように = as this life burns out
Maggie-sensei, thank you so much for this explanation! I’ve been struggling with this word in a text I’m translating and thought I was completely lost. However, by some magic power I have found this post and I’m eternally grateful! !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART!
@Simply Sally
Hi Sally
I am glad you found us with your magical power,too! :)
ありがとうございました！マギー先生のサイトはとても有用です。 !flowerssss!
@リディア
うれしいコメントありがとう、リディア！
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Thank you for the lesson! I just wanted to know, would it be more common to use (as a young girl toward her boyfriend in public) 「ねえ、私のこと大好き？」as opposed to 「ねえ、私のこと愛してる？」?
@Jenni
I would say 「私のこと好き？」instead of 大好き.
as well thank you for all the effort you put in your lessons they are a huge help!!
@おはぎ
My pleasure! ❤
Konbanha Gozaimasu Maggie-Sensei.
_Found A Sentence Days Ago: “Ano Mono Ha Mitsukarazu”. (Ni) Has Been Omited?!
Any Explanation, Sensei?
Hello Kibounokata,
No it hasn’t been, because ～ず＝～ない and ずに＝～ないで.
So 見つからず＝見つからない
( ｀・∀・´)ﾉﾖﾛｼｸ。
@kibounokata @天人
Thank you @天人 for helping @Kibounokata :)
手伝って くれって ありがとう ございます マギー-先生, 天人-さん も ね!!!! !happyface!
Maggie 先生! Thank you for your various lessons – I’m heading to Japan soon and am very excited and very thankful for your useful phrases. I have a question to ask – I will be using the Kansai One Pass while in Kansai, which is refundable with a handling fee. I intend to ask for a refund when I leave Kansai but am not sure how I should do this. Is it okay to take the card to the ticket station and say “返品がしたいです”? Thank you again for your help!
@Nicole
Hi Nicole,
Wow, you are coming to Japan. How exciting!
Kansai One Pass is relatively a new pass.
Here is the details of the pass. You can check the locations where you can get/refund the pass.
You tell them,
デポジットの返金お願いします。(Depozitto no henkin onegai shimasu.)
They will charge 手数料（てすうりょう）handling fee from the deposit.
Have a nice trip!
Dear Maggie sensei,
きしむベッドの上で優しさを持ちより
きつく躰 抱きしめあえば
それからまた二人は目を閉じるよ
悲しい歌に愛がしらけてしまわぬ様に
What does this ‘yori’ mean? 持ちより
@Jelle
Hi Jelle,
持ち寄る= to bring each other.
How would you say “i like girls who wear makeup?” boucingheart!
@Lily
Hi Lily,
You say →お化粧をしている女の子が好きです/好きだ。
Ex.車で行ったら楽チンなのに。
= Kuruma de ittara !koujichuu! [rakuchi]
rakuchin nanoni.
@zoheb
Thank you!!!! I fixed it. ありがとう！ boucingheart!
Thank you very much Maggie Sensei! You’re a great teacher!!
@Rafael
ありがとう！ YOU ARE GREAT! !onpu!
Hi, Maggie-sensei! Sorry to bother you!
I have a line that I’m trying to make sense of with ‘yori’, but it’s difficult for me because I think it may be in slang.
The line is :
前からカワイかったのに、よりカワイくなったって。
Actually, there are a number of things I don’t understand about this!
First of all, my understanding is something like “Even though I used to be cute, there was a time I was not.” Although I think I might be completely wrong.
I don’t think I’ve seen the construction of ‘maekara’ before. Does this mean ‘before what you see in front of you’?
And why do they put the ‘yori’ comparative before the negative form of ‘was not cute’ without a subject and action? This sentence is confusing me a lot. I would appreciate any help you can give.
Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei!
@AC
Hi AC,
Usually when you use より, you use this pattern
→AよりBのほうが、adjective
But sometimes you use the pattern
より+adjective = even more + adjective.
I don’t know the context but the speaker is talking about herself?
If so, someone told me that I was cute before but I got even cuter.
よりかわいくなった= to become even cuter.
That’s right. The speaker is a very egotistical person who is talking about herself. Thank you for showing me this new form of ‘yori’. I will definitely remember it.
I appreciate your time to answer all these questions! Thank you for helping me understand the beautiful language of Japanese better.
@AC
No problem. Anytime! :)
Maggie-sensei! I love your lessons and all the time you take to help explain things. Thank you very much for all your work and effort! Perhaps you can help me with a sentence. I’m trying to translate it, but I’m not sure how accurate it is.
ひとりぐらい増えても構いません。
I’m wondering why the ‘gurai’ word is used with a noun (hitori). I understand the sentence to mean something like “It doesn’t matter that I’m alone more often”, but I’m not sure why ‘gurai’ is used in conjunction with ‘hitori’.
Maybe you can help me explain! よろしくお願いします！
@AC
こんにちは、AC! メッセージありがとう！
ひとりぐらい増えても構いません。
→It will be easier to think this sentence as a conditional
（人数は）ひとりぐらい（なら）増えても構いません。
(Literal translation)ひとりぐらい（なら）= If just one person, 増えても構いません。= it doesn’t matter if we have more.
(You can increase the number of people, if it is just one person or so. It doesn’t matter.)
→I don’t mind (It doesn’t matter) if we have one more person.
Oh, I think I understand now. It’s very tricky, but I’ll keep trying to learn. Thank you very much for your help!
Is this kind of sentence construction considered very ‘casual’? The context of where this is from is from dialogue, so maybe it is different from how it would be in print.
Maggie-sensei, just want to say that your explanations stand out among a lot of other websites out there. You almost always consider every possible edge case and capture every nuance!
In this particular sentence, can ほど also be used to say something like:
五人ほど増えても、構いません。
Hello wireman
First of all, thank you so much for your kind words! 😊
Yes, you can use ほど in that context as well.
ほど is more formal.
Thanks so much for replying! Just registered as a patron on your Patreon. You are awesome :)
Dear wireman,
Oh, that was you!
Thank you sooo much for your support!
Please feel free to ask me question on Patreon as well. :)
Looking forward to making more lesson there,too.
Hello Maggie!
I always love reading your lessons!
How often in real life do people use ‘あたし’? When I type in Japanese, I usually refer to myself as ‘わたし’ in hiragana over kanji because I’ve heard it’s more casual when I write my blog or talk to my friends. I heard that some girls use ‘ぼく’ as well, but I’m not sure sometimes because non-native Japanese speakers confuse anime and real life a lot. I want to learn how to speak as casually and candidly as possible towards my friends.
Thanks for helping me so much with my Japanese!
＠Sharlz
Hi Sharlz
I’m happy to hear you read my lessons. :)
People who use あたし do exist but compare to わたし, it is still rare. (You may think it is just for young people but certain people in an older age group use it as well.)
And as you said there are girls who prefer to call themselves ぼく.
If you have a strong policy to create your image, you can use it.
However, if you overuse あたし・ぼく, it gets annoying for many people.
I have seen many Japanese learners try to use わよ・そうよ type of speech intentionally to make themselves sound more feminine but it gives the listener/readers of feeling of 違和感 (いわかん), the feeling that something is wrong.
I would stick to 私. By using the suffix, such as 〜の makes your speech sounds pretty casual yet neutral and friendly.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Your post was great as always! ^^
I have only one question: can I use volitional form (-tai) before -nara?
For example I would like to say to a friend: “if you want to see a good movie, you should watch this.”
Is it okay to say: “何か楽しい映画を見たいなら、この映画を見たほうがいいと思います” ?
Thank you in advance! ^^
Berry
@Berry
Hi Berry,
Yes, you can say 楽しい映画を見たいなら〜
Ex. 試験に合格したいならもっと勉強した方がいい。If you want to pass the exam, you should study more.
Ex. やせたいなら間食をやめなさい。If you want to lose weight, stop eating snack.
すごく早いお返事ありがとうございます！ !niconico! 
:purple: :w:
And your example sentences are great, too, now I could learn the word “snack” in Japanese! And its kanji combination makes a lot of sense! ^^
I’ll keep learning, thanks a lot!
@Berry
どういたしまして、Berry!
（I love 間食❤）
Konbanha Gozaimasu, Maggie-Sensei!
_I’ve Been Learning Japanese For About Two Years, But Still Don’t Know What Really The Verb “Infinitive-Form” Is Used For? I Mean Sometimes Finds That It Mentions To Past Events, & Usually Followed By Another Verb In Events-Linked Phrase (Especially In Anime). Confused About It, I Really Need A Specific Usage, Onegai Shimasu!
:kkk:
@Kibounokata
Konnichiwa Kibounokata
Infinitive-form such as 食べる・読む・する etc. is used in the following cases
1. Casual conversation:
(1) to tell someone what you are going to do now.
お腹すいたから、何か食べる。
= I am hungry so I am going to eat something (now)
あの本は難しいからこの本を読む。
= That book is difficult so I am going to read this book.
(2) informal question
これ、食べる？= Do you want to eat this?
本、読む？= Do you want to read a book?
何、する？= What do you want to do?
(3) casual conversation
彼、最近、ここに来る？ = Does he come here often?
ううん、来ない。 No he doesn’t
2. Writing:
(1) To describe one’s routine actions/habitual actions
私は、毎朝、８時に起きる。I get up at eight every morning.
そして仕事に出かける And then I go to work.
１０時に家に帰る。I will come back home at 10:00
日本人はお米をよく食べる = Japanese people eat rice a lot.
(2) to express one’s opinion, describe something, to state (basically anything.)
この頃の若者は漢字を使わない。 = Young people don’t use kanji lately.
3. And you use it with other suffixes.
Such as 食べる＋こと・には/とき・noun, etc. (There are too many so I won’t write them here.)
Ahh Etto.
_Thanks Alot For This Worthy Explanation, But.. My Fault Hehe, I Know That Casual-Form Of The Verb, But I Wanted Exactly To Know About This Form, Example:
Suru________Sh(i).
Naru________Nar(i).
Shinu_______Shin(i).
Aru_________Ar(i)… “Neko Ga Ari Desu” Though: Aru = Ari [Or Any Difference?]
_Well, This Form Isn’t Used Too Much, But It Does Change The Context?!
@Kibounokata
Hmm? I thought you wanted to know the usage of infinitive form.
You want to know when to use ます form?
する→します
なる→なります
しぬ→しにます
ある→あります
If so it is a polite form of the dictionary form.
You can use that form for something habitual and also near future. (What you are going do do.)
Or verbs such as あります／います describe a current state.
And you can check my tense lesson.
BTW you don’t say ねこがあります (cat is a living thing so you say ねこがいます)
Sugoi! Arigatou, Maggie Sensei! Saikou Deshou Anata Ha !happyface!
Hhhh I Was About To Correct The Typo For “Ga Aru” Into “Ga Iru” But Was Too Late After Putting The Comment!
!nemui! Mata Arigatou Gozaimashita Sensei !!
@Kibounokata
You’re welcome! :)
Hi Maggie!
I found this site accidentally while searching how can I translate “ついでに”.
Actually I am studying English in Australia.
So your explanation is very useful for me too.
I’m looking forward to next update!
Take care♪
やっほー、マギー
“ついでに”の訳を調べてたらたまたまこのサイトを見つけたよ。
実は私はオーストラリアで英語の勉強をしてるんだけど
先生の説明は私にとっても物凄く役にたってるよ。
次の更新も楽しみにしてるね。
ご自愛くださいなー♪
@Hayato Kamoi
Hi Hayato!
英語の表現を探してこのサイトを見つけてくれたのですね。うれしいです。
オーストラリアで英語勉強中とのこと。がんばって〜！！
また来てね❤
Maggie sensei, ciao!
I’d like to ask you about location particle when switching from transitive to intransitive verbs.
For example, I know that, if I’m in the act of opening the window in the room, I’ll say:
私は部屋で窓を開けています。
since in the room the action is taking place. But, if I want to describe the current state of the window, then there’s not “such an action” but “an existence instead”, I’m naturally prone (but maybe I’m wrong!) to say:
部屋に窓が開いています。
Thank you for all the useful lessons!
@Daniele
Ciao, Daniele!
Good question!
In that case you say
部屋の窓が開いています。
Thank you very much Maggie sensei for the quick reply! !JYANE!
@Daniele
You’re welcome, Daniele❤
Hello, Maggie sensei. What does も mean in the following sentence? It goes before a verb, doesn’t it? And after を. I’m a bit confused about its placement.
このオレはいずれ火影の名を受け継いで、先代のどの火影をも超えてやるんだ！
@SandaraKiss
Naruto??
火影を超える= to surpass 火影
→emphasizing the meaning
どの (or どんな) 火影をも超える= to surpass any 火影
Other example
問題を解く= to solve a problem
→emphasizing the meaning
どんな問題をも解いてやる
マギー先生、
こんにちは。
下の文の場合は、「ぐらい」の意味は何ですか？
１）持ち帰れないぐらいのお土産を頂いた。
２）あの人ぐらい日本語が上手に話せたらいい。
よろしくお願いします！
@Selene
こんにちは、Selene
1) Indicates a lot of amount of omiyage that I can’t even hold.
2) Indicates the level of Japanese speaking ability.
I would be happy if I can speak Japanese as well as that person.
Hi, Maggie先生 !niconico!
What should I say for my potentional director (If he/she knows my name already)
「…と申します。よろしくお願いします。」、
「…でございます。よろしくお願いします。」 or
「…でございます。お世話になっております。」？:roll:
@OKちゃん
Hi OKちゃん
The potential director already knows your name but you haven’t see that director yet?
If so the third one doesn’t work.
And the keigo level depend on how high his position is.
〜です。よろしくお願いします。(polite) I think this is sufficient.
~ と申します。よろしくお願い致します。(very polite) If you are not comfortable, use this form.
Yo, Maggie sense
I find your blog by accident, and actually I really love it, I learned many kanji here, but please continue learning. My best regards..
@Rick shimizu
Yo Rick,
I’m glad you found this site,too.
Hope you come back here soon again.
下のコメント*
新しいコメンとか下に現れたと思った (^^;)
@Orti
こんにちは！ひさしぶりにコメントくれましたね。
いっぱい練習して使ってみてね。:)
(→少しだけもう少し自然に直しますね。：二日前に読んだわりにはもう何度も使っている・います）
いつも訂正してくれてありがとうございます、先生!!
@Orti
Ortiのためならいつでもお手伝いしますよ。:)
こんな表現はよく使って、めっちゃ便利なレッスンだよ！
いままで上のコメントのような”-ても”と”-なのに”しか使えなかったけれども、時々本当に言いたかったことと感じはちょっと違ったね。実は、このレッスンをただ二日間前に読んだのわりにもう何度も使ったことある(笑)
勉強になった！ありがとうございまーす、先生！
良い日を過ごしてね！
Hi,
Could someone please tell me what つい means in that example:
レッスンを作っているとつい時間を忘れがちになります。
Thank you very much Maggie sensei. Your lessons were too hard for me when I began learning Japanese, but now I really appreciate the numerous examples you provide.
Hello Vincent,
in this sentence つい implies unintentionality (pattern つい～がちになる tells us, that the action [= the tendency to forget about time] has been done unconsciously). It is good not to translate つい in this case. Let’s say that adds more emphasis to ～がちになる.
ヨロシク。
@Vincent
Hi Vincent,
I know my lessons can be really difficult for the beginners but I am glad you still come here.
つい means “without intention/ unconsciously / happen to do something,etc”
Or when you do something and get too involved and can’t control it.
When I make lessons, I am apt to forget about time. (I get too involved with making lessons and forget the truck of time and can’t control it.)
Ex.つい食べ過ぎる = I tend to eat too much. (Once I start to eat, I keep eating.I can’t control it. )
Hi, firstly I wanna thank you for all those lessond you have made so far, it is incredibly helpful. !JYANE!
In one book of japanese grammar I found written that the same thing as conditional ba+yokatta/ii can also be expressed using conditional tara+ii/yokatta but so far I have not seen the second possibility so often, so I wanna ask if it is better to stick with conditional ba?
So if I get it right, for example if I wanted to say “If only I had told my mother” it would be: お母さんに言ったらよかった ＝お母さんに言えばよかった and “If only I could swim” would be : 泳げたらいいな＝泳げればいいな? Thanks in advance.
@Robulko
Hi Robulko
Thank you for your kind words. :)
Yes, you can also say お母さんに言ったらよかった・泳げたらいいな
このサイト見つけてよかった。
ブックマークします。
＠リで
はじめまして、リで！
このサイトを見つけてくれてありがとう！
I love nihongo binkiyo readidy everyday
@Abdil
Hi Abdil,
Glad to hear you enjoy studying nihongo :)
Thank you☺️
Thnc Maggie sense I for replying I want to thank your lesson make my Japanese improve a lot, I read a lot of japanese book but your explanation is awesome you are awesome thnx
@hibabekha
You’re very welcome! :)
And thank YOU for your nice words!
Well i have a problem my comments dissapear haha you may see the same question million time
Sensei 問題してもいいですか。
作っていくIts mean we will go nd make something or we will make something
作ってくる means to makee something nd come or to come nd makes something
Please help me I am confused
@hibabekha
Yes, I found four comments in the SPAM file. If one comment doen’t go through, it is probably because it goes to the SPAM file. Don’t worry. I always check SPAM file.
作っていく = to make something and go somewhere with what you made.
作ってくる= to make something and come to where the speaker was/is with what they made.
(Note for you: 問題してもいいですか？= You mean “Can I ask you a question? Then you say 質問してもいいですか？）
I have a probleme I am confused
私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている
Its means I have been teaching japanese on Maggie sense I site from 7 years ago
私は7年間マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えた
Mean also I havr been teaching Japanese on Maggie sense I site from 7 years ago
Is it right nd I f am wrong correct for me nd tell me the difference please sensei お願いします
＠hibabekha
Hi, hibabekha!
As I explained in Verb Tense Part 1,
私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている
means ” I have been teaching Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.”
It implies “I am still teaching here on this site.” (ongoing action)
私は7年間マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えた
means
1) I taught Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.
(Talking about the fact in the past. I don’t teach there anymore.)
2) I have taught Japanese on Maggie Sensei’s site for seven years.
(Talking about my experience until the moment. But unlike the sentence, 私は7年間マキー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている, it doesn’t imply “ongoing action”. I am looking back my experience of teaching Japanese on this site. )
Hi Maggie! Your article about the particle “shi” was quite illuminating! I found your site via a Google search looking for an explanation of “shi”, and I will definitely be going through your blog for more.
I really appreciate how approachable and fun your explanations are, and how you give so much detail and nuance without ever being too dense.
Anyway, keep up the good work マギー先生！
Regards,
Jack Wolfe
@Jack
Hello, Jack!
Thank you for your nice comment. I’m so happy that you found this site.
Hope you come back here often.
これからもよろしくね！ :)
yoku ganbatta ne is “i proud of you?
@Kaede
Yes, it means “You did a good job/You did great” and it has a feeling of “I am proud of you!”
Hi Maggie sensei!
First, I would just like to give huge props for putting out such amazing content as you do and taking your free time to teach others, huge respect!
Regarding my question, as I’ve understood “も” can be used to to “emphasize” hence some meanings will translate to “even” in english.
For instance as in this lesson:
一問も答えない => not answer even one question
and my question here is, “でも” also has the nuance of “even” and can also be used in the same fashion to emphasize, right?
So how would this sentence differ from the one above: 一問でも答えない
In a case like this, which of “も” and “でも” has a deeper emphasize? or is the meaning even the same to begin with?
If I get to guess, “でも” sounds more negative in my ears, more like not answer EVEN ONE while “も” sounds more like not answer ONE, but I don’t know :3
Sorry for asking of so much without being able to give much back but I would really appreciate some more deeper comparison of “も” and “でも” when it comes to emphasizing. よろしく！〜 !DANCING! !beermug!
Though I am aware of some grammar points where only “も” is allowed to emphasize if I’ve understood things right, words like より(も) 幸いに(も) and so on..
Thanks again for your awesomeness, your lessons have really helped me throughout my studies! :D
Hi William
First you sent me a question twice (one of the questions went to SPAM mail folder for some reason) so I deleted the shorter one.
Thank you for your kind message!! That is very nice of you!
OK, let me answer your question.
一問も答えない
For this particular sentence, I would use も.
But for example, this difference is clear,
私もできない I can’t do that either.
私でもできない Even I can’t do that.
も = also / neigher
でも= (not) even
Let’s compare the following.
a) 子供も読める本
b) 子供でも読める本
they both can be translated as “a book that even children can read” but as you say b) emphasizes 子供 more.
Thank you so much for your fast response!!
I’m sorry for sending multiple comments, it’s just for some reason when I commented and hit the “post” comment button the site would just go blank for me so I never knew if my comments made it through or not :3
Anyways thank you again, I think I get the difference now !happyface! Have a good day! !DANCING!
@William
You’re very welcome, William.
Oh please don’t apologize. The comment filter doesn’t work properly sometime and one of your message went to a Spam folder for some reason. That happens a lot here.
Anyway, have a good day! :)
Sorry for yet another post (I can’t modify my posted message! Do delete my previous posts if it is taking up space!)
I think I somewhat understand it after looking at the posts a couple of times.
The gist of it isn’t really about the particle に or the change in verb form. It is about the speaker/listeners’ perspective. Do correct me if i am wrong on this.
For example, it would be odd just to say “そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか” (can you receive that sweet from my son) since it would be rude to reject a gift when someone offers it to you in Japanese culture, let alone of a children. (It is okay to reject once or twice, however, to initiate this kind of question would probably means that “my son” has been rejected at least dozen times).
Because of this, whenever this question is initiated, it can only be perceived as “can i receive that sweet from my son” since the other option, “can you receive that sweet from my son” is literally not possible due to the norms Japanese shares.
Good question.
Someone else was asking me the same question in past.
You learned the following pattern with a particle に and もらう , right?
* マギーに本をもらう。
= I received a book from Maggie.
もらう= receive
に= from (a person who you get something from)
* マギーに本を貸してもらう
= I have Maggie lend me a book (for me)
= Maggie lends me a book.
V+てもらう = to have someone to do a favor for you.
に = object marker (a person who you get a favor from)
Now, how would you say when you want a book from me?
guessing from your question, you may answer,
マギーに本をもらえませんか？
If you say that, the listener would think
Can you give a book for Maggie?
The receiver of the book is Maggie.
You should say
私に本をもらえませんか？
= Can I have a book (from you)?
And if you want me to lend you a book, you say
私に本を貸してもらえませんか？
= Can you lend me a book?
***
You can use the same idea for this sentence.
そのお菓子を私の息子にもらえませんか？
私の息子 （my son) is a receiver
お菓子 is an object
もらえませんか？ Can I have = Can you give ?
Can you give that sweet to my son?
If you meant to say I got that sweet from my son, you say
そのお菓子は私の息子からもらいました。
Sorry for the additional post as I just stumbled across a similar question.
I still can’t understand why it would differ so much just because the form of the verb changes. I am betting that the gist of it lies within the particle “に”. But even if the “に” here is “のために”, under what circumstances should we see the “に” here as “のために”?
One question.
Why is “Can you give the sweets to my son?” = そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか
Because of the particle “ni” and the receiving verb, shouldn’t it be (can you) received sweets from my son?
MagggieSensei !CHECKHEART! :purple: ,
Thank you so much! !heart3! !formingheart3! I am learning something new again today because of your good deed! :tulip2: Please keep up your awesome work, we people are so lucky to have an awesome person like u in this world! !happyface! Thank you!!! boucingheart! :w:
@TheLearningGal
Hello TheLearningGal,
Thank YOU so much for your nice comment. !heart3!
I am very lucky to have you here,too!!
これからもよろしくね！ boucingheart!
マギー先生、今日先生のサイトを見つけてよかった！＾＿＾
@レベッカ
レベッカが私のサイトを見つけてくれてよかった！ :)
Hello! This isn’t the right spot to post this, but I couldn’t find a post for it, so I’ll just ask here if that’s okay. :)
I was just wondering if there are rules about when to use kun-yomi or on-yomi or if it’s okay to use either?
Like 剣: is it okay to use つるぎ or ケン interchangeably?
Thanks so much!! :D
＠Jasmine
Hi Jasmine,
Unless it has furigana, we don’t know which one to use. That means technically you can read 剣 both けん and つるぎ
Hello Maggie Sensei!!
I have a bit of trouble with morau
I know that the meaning is “having someone doing something for me”
But somehow i cannot understans this prase : a bad guy asks to his victim to tell him what he knows : “Kikasetemorauka?”
it ithis verb , kiku that amkes everything bad :((((
i assume it is used in the “to hear” meaning right?
I cannot figure things out :cryingboy: with kureru and ageru it is easier but with morau i get confused^^
In this it would mean : “i would like to receive the favor from you that you let me hear you????” Basivally i don’t know who would let the other hear him…The locutor, the interlocutor?
Sorry for the confuse answer and i would like to says that your site is the best i have found to learn very usefull things in japanese!!
Thank you again for all your hard work on it!!! :-D
Sorry for the double message but here is another example : “言わせてもらうけど。
申し訳ありません !
Apparently it would mean “let me tell you something” but i just cannot comprhend it
Hello rysper!
Regarding your first question, I think it should be 「聞かせてもらおうか」 instead of 「聞かせてもらうか」. In this case it means “Let me hear it!” The sentence should be understood as follows: The bad guy receives a favour from his victim of letting him hear about something.
The same scenario goes to: 「見せてもらおうか！」 which means “Show me!”, as in 「キサマの本当の力、見せてもらおうか！」.
Regarding your second question, 言わせてもらうけど means “Let me tell you something…”. So basically you receive the permission from your 相手 that allows you to say something to her/him.
The same scenario goes to: 「私の立場から言わせてもらえば…」 which means “if you allow me to show you my point of view”.
ご参考になれば。
@天人
Thank you for helping rysper.
Thank you :-D
I can see what you mean but even with that it is a bit hard for me to “understand ” it
I think it is because with morau, the point of you is on me or someone close to me and feels a bit bizarre, whereas with kureru it is on the interlocutor and feels more “natural”.. so if i write “misetekureru(ka)” i can understand it a bit better than with “misetemorau(ka)” beacause with saying “show me”, the point on view is on the interlocutor and feels right..the translation “i would like you to show me” (the point of you is on me) doesn’t appear in my head naturally^^
So when the verb is more complicated like kikasete (in this case”to have the permission to hear”) i completely lose it^^
Just a little thing : why did you use the o form in this : 「聞かせてもらおうか」
ご教示ありがとうございま ! :-D i need to practice more :)
Generally してもらう means have someone do something.
And させてもらう means let someone do something (in the context of receiving a permission to do something).
From the context you will learn who receives the favour.
友達に空港へ連れてってもらいました。 => The Speaker received the favour of taking him to the airport from his friend.
マギー先生にrysperのエッセーを訂正してもらいます。=> You will receive from Maggie the favour of revising your essay.
聞かせてもらおうか sounds to me more natural in this case / context (=> a bad guy asks to his victim to tell him what he know).
Well, to be honest, these constructions are relatively easy. But I found on the Internet a nice pattern-combo, look:
ありがたく使わせてもらわせてもらうことにしました。 *mind blowing*
マギー、以上の文書の日本語が違うかどうか分からないけど、とにかく、英語にしてもらってみようか？＾＾
この「もらわせてもらう」・・・・。 orz
@天人
Thank you again for helping rysper
@rysper
Hi rysper, 天人さん is already helping you but just let me add something that I didn’t mention in my lesson.
You use あげる(→やる）・くれる・もらう for something favorable in general.
But you sometimes you them negatively.
＊あげる(→usually with a casual form やる）
Ex. ぼこぼこにしてやる (threat)
= I will beat you up.
＊くれる
Ex. よくもこんなことをしてくれたね。（くれたな）(sarcasm)
= How could you do that to me.
＊もらう
Ex. 借りは返してもらう。(challenge/ command)
= I will have you pay me back what you owe me.
Now your question, you usually use
Someoneに〜をVてもらう = to have someone do something favorable for the speaker
Ex. マギーにこの文を訳してもらう。 I will have Maggie translate this sentence.
Ex. マギーにこの文を訳してもらおうか。Should we ask Maggie to translate this sentence? /Let’s ask Maggie to translate this sentence, shall we?
However, you sometimes use Vてもらう/ Vて+ もらおうか/(politer) Vて+ もらいましょうか when you challenge someone to do something.→It may sound polite but actually a speaker is telling a listener to do something.
聞かせてもらおうか (Talking to a listener directly)
= Let me hear your story / Let me hear you
= I will have you tell me something.
This could also mean
= Tell me / Explain ( ~ ) to me. (command)
やってもらおうか (Talking to a listener directly)
= I will challenge you to do ~ .
→Do ~ (command)
***
Vてもらう・もらいます means “to have someone do something favorable for you”
or to ask someone a permission to do something
→ Allow me to do something/ Let me do ~
But you also use Vてもらう・もらいます when you express your strong will regardless what one’s listener think.
→I’ll take the liberty to do something
言わせてもらうけど= Let me tell you something (and tell the listener your point)
You use this phrase when you make your point or talk back to someone.
Hope this helps…
ご苦労さまでした、マギーさん。詳しく教えてくれてありがとうございました。しかし、残りは私の質問のようです。この件に関しても少し手を貸してくれれば大変ありがたく存じます。
よろしくおねがいします。
@天人
Sorry! You mean this sentence?
ありがたく使わせてもらわせてもらうことにしました。
I would say this sentence is redundant.
ありがたく使わせてもらうことにしました。is more natural.
この見事な説明Hyakkaiありがとうご!!! !happyface!
If i try to put in application all (but i still have a lot of work to do), 英語にしてもらってみようか means : “can you try to translate (this) in english for me?” And if the meaning is to be “offensive, negative” it becomes : “i will have you try to translate (this) in english for me”. (the 2nd example could apply to the first but i chosed it here because it sounded more “rude”^^).
Thank you for the precision Maggie sensei!, i had noticed that in animes people often say “bad” things to others using kureru/ageru/moreru and i felt it was to be even more “rude” since usually you use them to add a “thankfull” nuance to your phrase.
Unfortunately i couldn’t translate ありがたく使わせてもらうことにしました :cryingboy: the とにしました preturbed me i know that it means “to choose to do something” but here it is bizarre^^
I won’t take anymore place in this page and i’m sorry to have taken that lot so far!!
again, ありがとうございました!!
＠rysper
Hi rysper,
I am getting confused which question is to whom so I will just answer your second question.
使わせてもらうことにしました。
使わせてもらう = The literal meaning is “to allow myself to use ~ ” but it is a humble way to say 使う
〜ことにしました means “to decided to do something”
So 使わせてもらうことにしました。means
I decided to use it with appreciation.
Hi Maggie sensei !greenapple! .
I would like to ask you the differences in usage and nuances between を通して and を通じて.
Thank you so much for your time and patience.
Diana.
Good morning Maggie sensei. I have a question about what’s the difference between いろいろ
and さまざま because in the dictionary both can be translated as “various”. Thanks in advance.
@Joshua and Diana
Good morning, Joshua and Diana
いろいろ vs さまざま
を通して vs を通じて
They mean the same.
さまざま and を通じて are more literal (formal) than いろいろ・を通して
Thank you so much Maggie sensei. Now I understand. Thanks for your fast reply and I’m sorry I didn’ know about this lesson before.
@Giselle
You’re very welcome, Giselle! :)
Hi Maggie sensei, could you translate me this sentence? I don’t understand very well the meaning of もったいない here: もったいないと思うとなかなか捨てられない.
Thank you very much for your attention.
@Giselle
Hi Giselle
もったいないと思う = I don’t want to waste
So もったいない is the feeling that you don’t want to waste something.
I have a lesson so please check it.
Your lessons are very useful, thank you for posting so frequently. I have one question. I have seen this sentence written in this two different ways: 雨が降る and 雨は降る. I would like to know what’s the difference between them or which one is the correct one. Thank you.
＠Yotsuba
Hello Yotsuba,
the difference between は and が is complicated but the main difference is
が：emphasizes what comes after
は：emphasizes what comes before
You usually use が when you simply describe the weather, it is raining/it will rain/ It rained.
*future
Ex. 明日は雨が降る。(明日は雨が降ります。）
* past tense
Ex. 昨日は雨が降った。（昨日は雨が降りました。）
*present progressive
Ex. 今、雨が降っている。(今、雨が降っています。）
****
You use は when you show the contrast.
明日、雪は降りませんが、雨は降ります。
= It won’t snow tomorrow but it will rain.
(showing the contrast between the snow and the rain)
Ex. 何故、雨は降るのですか？
= Why does it rain?
Ok, thank you for your fast and accurate reply. !niconico!
How would you say an agent caused something to happen rather than forced me to do something? I was trying to say that a product made my skin peel, but from what I understand the endings here would mean “the product made peel my skin,” which is pretty gory.
@Saugiu
Hello Saugiu
In that case in stead of using a causative verb, you can just use (cause + Noun+Adj+の＋で・せいで・V+ たら, etc.）to indicate the cause.
Ex. この製品で皮が剥けた。
Ex. この製品のせいで皮が剥けた。（stronger than で)
Ex. この製品を使っていたら皮が剥けた。
Sensei i have a some questions.
so i started reading the この素晴らしい世界に祝福を！ light novel for practice and it said in a sentence : あなたはつい先ほど、不幸にも亡くなりました.
so i understand the meaning is something like : unfortunately you died just a while ago
question 1. why does the author use both tsui and saki hodo? dont they have the same meaning or am i missing something? is it like an expression?
question 2. is there a lesson on the particle ni mo here? i dont really understand the exact meaning of the sentence(didnt find a lesson just for that one by searching “ni mo” on the site)
question 3. this isnt really important but on the 亡 kanji there was furigana saying it is read as na, is there some reason it was added? usually kanji dont have furigana in light novels unless they are names or they want them to be read specifically.
after some searching regarding my second question i found out nimo means either also or its used for emphasis. So does the nimo in the sentence just emphasize 不幸？
another update regarding question 3
i found more words with furigana, i guess light novels do have furigana for some words after all.
i guess the harder ones
@arandomboy
こんにちは、arandomboy
Q1: つい means “just” and 先ほど means “a little while ago”. So that つい is used to emphasize 先ほど
You often use them together.
The casual way: ついさっき (just now)
Q2, Q3, I guess you figured out the answer yourself.
thank you for the answer.
@arandomboy
You’re very welcome, arandomboy!
完璧ですね！いつも教えてくれてありがとうございます。マギー先生、回転寿司に行く時は店員さんは「１００円のお皿とか、２００円のお器とか」と言いますね。食器の言葉を教えてくれればよかった。 !SUSHI!!
@Renner Abreu
こんにちは、Renner!
皿 = a place, you put food on it.
器 = a general name for a container, you put food (or not food) in it.
でも回転寿しだと器だとちょっと深いもの、皿は浅いものをさすと思います。
In the sentence format where A makes B do X, it’s
A wa B (ni/wo*) [causative verb]
For example A wa B ni nattou wo tabesasemasu.
I’ve learned that the particle used (ni/wo) depends on whether the verb is transitive or intransitive.
Benkyou wo shimasu for example seems to count as transitive as benkyou is the object, which we can tell because of the particle wo after benkyou, while shimasu is the transitive verb, as seen in the example:
Seito ni benkyou (wo) saseru.
But if the “wo” is removed, does it still work that way, or “benkyou shimasu” becomes a verb instead of just the shimasu, which means it becomes an intransitive verb, and the particle used after B becomes wo instead of ni?
The example seems to imply that the wo can be removed without consequence, which means “Seito ni benkyou sareru” is correct and “Seito wo benkyou sareru” is wrong, but I have to ask this to make sure.
@Verdusk
Hello Verdusk,
Great question.
I should add more explanation. But I’ve been thinking about renewing the whole lesson. So please wait.
****
to make students study
* Seito ni benkyou wo saseru (benkyou is an object of an action, verb: suru)
* Seito wo benkyou saseru (seito is an object, verb: benkyou-suru )
are grammatically correct.
benkyou suru is a special verb. It is a transitive verb
Ex. Nihongo wo benkyo suru
Note: * Seito wo benkyou saseru
When it is obvious what to study for the speaker or listener, you sometimes say
*Seito ni ( ~~ wo ) benkyou saseru.
omitting ( ~~ wo)
Thank you so much for this comprehensive article! I’m just about to go for my first dye session in a Japanese salon and was so anxious that I wouldn’t be able to communicate what I want clearly and end up with blue hair. I’m feeling much more equipped after reading this page – you are a lifesaver!
@Cherie
You’re very welcome, Cherie!
I’m sure you will look GREAT!! Good luck!!
I want to ask you a question about ていく
@hibanaracism
Hello,
Would you like to check this lesson?
ていく・てくる
I made this lesson a long time ago.
Hi, Maggie-sensei, you’ve got quite detailed lessons here, thank you very much. I came across phrase “スキあい” in manga I’m reading now and I suspect that it has nothing to be with love (it has been used in child’s play). Am I right or not? What does it mean?
＠Irina
Hi Irina,
Can you give me the whole sentence with スキあい？
I will figure that out.
Sorry, that’s it – the whole sentence
Maybe the story can help? The highschool boy and girl are standing really close to each other face to face, the boy is going to say something but that girl’s little brother suddenly jumps on him shouting スキあい.
＠Irina
I see.
Can you check if it is スキあり not スキあい.
If it is スキあり(隙あり） it totally makes sense.
It means “chink in one’s armor (armour)” which we say when we attack someone when you find their weak spot that shows and opening for attack.
Thank you very much, Maggie! It makes sense! Font is styled to look like handwriting, so for me last symbol looked totally like い! But now I see that 2nd stroke much longer (sigh).
@Irina
Great! Now problem solved! :)
Domo arigatogozaimashita. Oyasumi :)
@Holly
Douitashimashite! :w:
Konichiwa Maggie Sensei!
I’ve actually been dying to know how you say things in Japanese like “Class 1-2” and “1st Years”, but I haven’t been able to find any reliable sources. Tasketekudasai!
@Caity
Konnichiwa, Caity
1st year is as I wrote in the lesson, you say 一年生（いちねんせい）
Class 1 is 一組（いちくみ）Class 2 二組(にくみ）
Class 1 of first year is 一年一組 = 1年２組 = いちねんにくみ= ichinen nikumi
I didn’t notice you wrote how to say 1st year in the lesson (oops). Arigato Maggie Sensei!
@Caity
You’re welcome, Caity! :)
Maggie-sensei こんにちは！
Thanks for all the useful lessons you posted so far!
I’d like to ask, if it’s not of too much trouble, if it’s correct to say (among all the available ways…I would like to use ぐらいの+Noun):
ここから美術館まで３０分ぐらいの道はそちらですか
when asking “The way crossing which from here to the art museum needs about 30 minutes, is over there?”.
Then if I need to say “From here to the art museum there are more than ３０ minutes”, which one I should use in 以上も and 以上に?
ここから美術館まで３０分以上もかかります。
Thanks a lot Maggie-sensei!
@Daniele
ここから美術館まで３０分ぐらいの道はそちらですか
when asking “The way crossing which from here to the art museum needs about 30 minutes, is over there?”.
→Hmm it is grammatically correct but somehow it doesn’t sound natural because you usually ask
* how long does it take to the museum
* how long does it take to the museum if you take this street
* which way is the shortest to go to the museum.
The second question
ここから美術館まで３０分以上かかります。
If the speaker thinks 30 minutes is way too long to take, you say
30分以上もかかります。
Thank you very much for the explanation!
@Daniele
You’re very welcome, Daniele! ❤
Hi Maggie Sensei thanks for another awesome lesson. I would appreciate if you could answer me one question: I understand that ほしがる is used when referring a third person, but I don’t see why they use ほしい in this sentence: 当時の我が家はお金に余裕がなかったこともあり、子供がほしいものがあってもなかなか買い与えてもらうことができませんでした。
Thanks in advance.
@Diana
Hi Diana,
The writer’s family was poor and they couldn’t afford to buy things that the children wanted back then.
子供が欲しいものがあっても= Even though children wanted something (the direct translation: there were something that children wanted)
So the subject for 欲しい is the writer’s children
Hi Maggie sensei thank you for your fast response.
So we don’t refer to the writer’s children as third person?
The same happens in this sentence, it seems more general:彼女がほしいもの人気ランキング
@Diana
Here is the rule,
There is no problem to use both 欲しい・欲しがる for the third person when the verb, 欲しい・欲しがる modifies a noun.
(子供が）欲しい＋もの
（彼女が）ほしい＋もの
（私が）ほしい＋もの
（私達が）ほしい＋もの
（あなたが）ほしい＋もの
なるほど…ありがとうございます ^_^
@Diana
どういたしまして！ :)
Konichwa miss maggie,
I am a uni student in Brisbane and find there are quite a lot of Japanese students here as well, most of them speak English but some do not.
Unfortunately when everyone is in the library studying for exams and tests sometimes people forget how loud they are being. It’s easy to remind the English speaking students though not so easy to remind the Japanese speaking students that don’t speak all that much English.
I was wondering if you would be able to help me out with some very polite ways of asking if the girls would please be able to speak a little bit quieter because I am trying to study.
I am asking you because I do not want to google translate something as it could come across as rude and I do not wish to be rude in any way! Any other helpful things to say in this situation would be much appreciated as well.
Domo arigatou!
@Holly
Hello, Holly
I am very sorry to hear the Japanese students are too loud.
Please be able to speak a little bit quieter because I am trying to study.
is
勉強したいのでもう少し静かにしていただけますか？
= Benkyou shitai node mou sukoshi shizuka ni shite itadakemasu ka?
You can add すみません ( = sumimasen) / ごめんなさい( = gomennasai) when you talk to them.
Hope they get quieter.
Pardon me, sensei:
I have a somewhat difficult grammar problem in a message I want to send. I want to write a sentence like “this is the thing that you said was [something] / that you called [something]”. Basically, using something specific said by a specific person as a descriptive clause.
@Double
Hello, Double
You can use this pattern
“this is the thing that you said was [something]
これ＋は・が(person’s name) がsomethingといっていたものです。（ものだ）
Ex. これは、マギーが見たいといっていた映画です。
that you called [something]”
これ＋は・が(person’s name) がsomethingと呼んでいたものです。（ものだ）
Ex. これは、マギーが弟と呼んでいた子猫です。
Much appreciated
@Vince
どういたしまして！ :)
I have a question. When you say :
いい天気でよかった。could it also means “I was glad/it was good that the weather was nice.” I am asking that because I am trying to understand why あのホテルは静かでよかった。translates into “I liked that hotel because it was quiet”.
I guess the tense of the verbs depends on the context. Like, for 犬でよかった。it is obvious you would never say “It was good that I was a dog.”
Thank you for your lessons!
@Vince
いい天気でよかった could be “I’m/I was glad it was nice weather.” but you usually include time related word which represents past such as “昨日・あの日は、先週の日曜日は, etc.”
あのホテルは静かでよかった obviously indicates the past because it uses “あのホテル” looking back the past.
As for the verb tense, you may want to check my tense lessons.
Part 1
Part 2
My question is what is customarily said in reply to someone who says お邪魔しました as they leave your home?
@SRinJapan
You don’t usually say anything to that phrase.
If someone is visiting your house and says “お邪魔しました” when they leave, you say “お気をつけて。Take care (casual 気をつけて）/ またどうぞいらしてください。Please come again. (more casual またいつでも来て＝You can come anytime.,etc.)
If it is an office, you can say “お疲れ様でした。(Otsukare sama deshita )”, “お気をつけて (= Oki wo tsukete)”,etc.
Hi Maggie sensei!
おじゃましたら、ごめん！
I’d like to ask you about お盆はどこのホテルもいっぱいだ。
May I also say: お盆はどのホテルもいっぱいだ。Using どの+Noun+も?
About instead 忙しくて宿題を何もしていない,
May I also say: 忙しくて何もの宿題をしていない
One last question (and please, forgive me for the trouble): may I say
このノートに色々な鉛筆何本かで書けます。 (I can write on this agenda with some different pencils)
Thanks a lot for your help and your effort put in this great work of yours!
＠Daniele
こんにちは、Daniel.
1) Yes, you can also say お盆はどのホテルもいっぱいだ。
2) No. You don’t say 忙しくて何もの宿題をしていない
3) You can say 何本かの違う鉛筆で書くことができます。
Hi
With ref to :
===
Ex. 「一泊、朝食付きでおいくらですか？」
= Ippaku, choushoku tsuki de oikura desuka?
= How much is the room charge without breakfast?
===
The translation should be “with breakfast”?
@LG
Oops!! Thank you! Thank you!! Thank you!!!
I fixed it. :)
I missed your lessons.. they keep me alive :donuts:
@Roro
よかった〜！！ :)
こんにちは！＼(^o^)／
質問があるんですが、、、
この文章は合ってますか？
・15秒以内見つけられるのなんか無理。
「こと」の代わりに、「の」を使ってもいいでしょうか？
お返事を楽しみにしてます。
ありがとうございます！(*^_^*)
@りん
こんにちは、りん！
はい、「こと」のかわりに「の」を使うことができます。
りんが言いたいのは
There is no way to find it(or someone) just in 15 seconds?
ということですか？だったら
１５秒以内に見つけるのなんて無理
の方がいいと思います。
はい、そうです！
また助かりました！
いつもありがとうございまーす！＼(^o^)／
良い1日を！♡
＠りん
どういたしまして！りんもいい日を過ごしてくださいね。
What does it mean どうかなさいましたか,?
@Christina
Hello Christina,
It is a polite way to say どうかしましたか？
= What is the matter with you? / Is everything all right? / Anything wrong? / What happened?
Thank you so much for this site Maggie Sensei. You’re the best! I hope I’m not too late to ask a small question related to this lesson. You say that the meaning of もう changes depending on whether the sentence is affirmative or negative right? I was wondering, what about when you use もう with certain “negative-like” affirmative verbs . I mean verbs like やめる, 諦める, ほうっておく. Those verbs usually mean that the subject is stopping or not doing an action or something, right? So how should I understand a line like “私はそれをもうやめる”? Does it mean “I’m going to stop doing that already”, or “I’m going not going to do that anymore”?
Sorry if that’s a stupid question, but I wonder how a naive speaker like you understands it.
@OHMaster
Hello OHMaster,
Great question! やめる can be “stop doing something” or “will not do something what you have been doing” so the translation could be both.
私はそれをもうやめる”= “I am going to stop doing that now.” and also “I am not going to do that anymore.”
私はもう諦めます= I will give up now. / (It has a connotation of “I will not do that anymore.”)
私は彼をもうほうっておきます。= I will leave him now. / I won’t take care of him anymore or I will not worry about him anymore.
I see. Thank you for the response, Maggie Sensei.
@OHMaster
You’re welcome! :w:
Hello, Maggie-san. Your website is awesome and I’ve always like it very much. !niconico!
may I know does “と言うわけで” is the same meaning with “だから” and how can it be used in a sentence? If you dont mind, can you give example with some sentences?
Sorry for my ignorance and thank you for reply !happyface!
@ファイズ
Hello ファイズ！ I’m glad to hear you like our site. :)
と言うわけで means “So”/”That’s why”/”For this reason” . だから is more conversational and と言うわけで is more explanatory.
You say something(reason) and then continue with と言うわけで and conclude your sentence or summarize what you just said. (results, consequences, what you are going to do)
While you use だから to react what you have just heard
だから遅れたの？＝ That’s why you were late?
というわけで遅れたの？ is not natural.
You usually use と言うわけで for your own speech.
Ex. 今日の会議は中止になりました。と言うわけで、今日はもうみなさん、お帰りください。
= Today’s meeting has been cancelled. So you all may go home now.
Ex. この店は来月から閉まります。と言うわけで今日からセールを始めます。
= This store will be closed from next month. So we will start sales from today.
ありがとうございます！ *bow*
@ファイズ
どういたしまして :)
Thank you very much for this! It was very helpful for my production training.
@risu
You’re very welcome! !niconico!
Any tips for remembering the difference between the two そうです? I keep mixing them up and using the wrong verb conjugations.
@Myisha
Focus on the form before そうです
If it is a plain form, I heard ~ /Someone told me ~
Ex. 重い = omoi = 重いそうです。 I heard it’s heavy.
Ex. 雨が降る= ame ga furu = 雨が降るそうです。 I heard it is going to rain.
(重そう ＝ Looks heavy / 雨が降りそう= Ame ga furisou= It looks like it is going to rain soon.)
Maggie sensei how to say I am grateful to be part of this program in nihongo?
@Sophia
How about
このプログラムの一員になれてうれしいです。
Kono program no ichiin ni narete ureshii desu.
こんにちは！はじめまして？
So, I’m in my very beginner’s lessons and I found myself caught up by this note I saw a guy at work write:
共有フォルダの資料等で理論容積を確認し回答しであげて下さい。
I can understand almost all of it after a good look at it, except the part after the “answer” part. I know the end is “kudasai”, but I get nothing off of “しであげて”. Help?
Arigato!
@Luís Eduardo
回答しであげて下さい。
It must be a typo. It doesn’t make a sense.
Could it be 回答してあげてください。 = Please answer to someone?
Hola (Hi) Maggie-sensei, this web is great!
Could you help me translate this?:
なんだ そりゃ
ふふっ い一じゃ ないの
＠Daniela
Hola Daniela,
It depends on the context.
なんだそりゃ What is that?/ What are you talking about? / No kidding
いーじゃないの
1) When you try to convince the listener it is not a big deal, Hey, it’s not a biggie. / C’mon, it’s OK.
2) When you see something that impresses me. “That’s not bad / That’s good!”
When you
Hello, Maggie & Yukari sensei! Thanks for making another really interesting Lesson. I have a question on もう: It seems like it always appears at the beginnig of a sentence (eg. もうこの暑さには、耐えられない) but is it possible (especially in casual speech) that it appears halfway through the sentence to emphasize the second half of the sentence? eg. この暑さ、もう耐えられないわ
Thanks as always for your help!
@Jane
Hi Jane,
Yes, you can put もう in the middle of the sentence, この暑さ、もう耐えられないわ
もう、これ以上食べられない
これ以上、もう食べられない
もう、マギーにはおやつをあげません。
マギーにはもうおやつをあげません。
ありがとうございました！
@Jane
どういたしまして！ :maggie-small: boucingheart!
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I have a question regarding on of the examples
まだそこにいたの？
How is this different from
またそこにいるの？
I know that both can be translated as “Are you still there?” And that いた is the past tense of いる.
I found some stuff online that it could be similar due the present perfect phasing but didn’t know if that was what it is.
Hi Luke
You are right. The translation could be the same but what you focus on is slightly different.
そこにいたの focusing on the continuous action from the past to the present. You have been there the whole time.
そこにいるの focusing on the current state. ‘You are (still) there”
Hi Maggie..
Gohan o tabe nagara terebi o Mimasu..Can we say it – I am having food while watching TV. Or I am watching Tv while having food. Is it one and the same thing?
If I am not right. Can you please explain..
＠Nitin Dikshit
Gohan wo tabenagara terebi wo mimasu = the main action is terebi wo mimasu. Therefore, “To watch TV while eating.”
Hello Maggie! I’m commenting here because I dont know where also to contact you but I’m starting a blog with Japanese lessons in Portuguese and I want to know if I can translate to Portuguese some of your lessons, it would be great. Of course all the credits is gonna be given to your site. よろしくお願いします !JYANE!
@Marcelle
Maggie Sensei’s site has been translated, French, Spanish, Turkish, German, Russian and Polish.
If it is just a couple of lessons and add the link to the original lesson, I think why not. :)
You can post a link to the original lesson using the comment section. People who speak Portuguese will love to read the translation. :)
Hi, Maggie! First, I want to say that your site is very helpful and I have found much use with it. Thank you for your teaching!
My question is how I might write the following in my Twitter bio:
“Japanese / English tweets” or “Japanese and English tweets”
(as in my tweets are in Japanese and English)
and
“Business contact:”
(which would be followed by a direct e-mail)
Thank you so much! !greenapple!
@Cora
If your mother language, I would start from English
英語・日本語
There is no set format.
英語、日本語どちらでも大丈夫です。
If you want to make it look more slangish,
英語、日本語おっK
“Business contact”
You can type in English ‘Business contact”.
But 連絡先 (contact) or 問い合わせ先（inquiry) is also common for business.
Hai 先生, how can I make a past sentence with an adjective being a noun modifier? is this a correct sentence?
これ は 静かな まち でした。
This was a quiet town.
@Ary Anandaputra
Yes, you can say これは静かなまちでした。
It was / They were ajective + noun + でした・だった
negative form: ではなかった・じゃなかった・ではなかったです・ではありませんでした。
まだ
[昨日のこと]、怒っているの？
@Zoheb
Thank you! Fixed it. boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
In paragraph 1), just after “basic pattern”, the example is:
Ex. ドアを開ける (transitive verb)
= Doa wo akeru
= to open the door
= doa wo aku
= the door opens
But the second time it should be “ga” (in romaji)
@ hictamenvivit
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. Really appreciate it. :)
Hello Maggie,
Is it possible to use も、with ぐらい、くらい？
It took me around 5 years!! ５年ぐらいもかかったよ！
＠Ukkun
Hi Ukkun
Though it sounds a bit conversational, yes people do say that.
Hello,
I’ve found that many Japanese twitter users use a similar format to their name (not their twitter handle). For example they may put their nickname then @ and what seems random numbers and words.
For example あずーる@3日目東セ-17b. What do these mean?
As its not the twitter handle they didn’t need to make it unique in order to not have the same as another persons..
Heres another example わざきた【C90三日目東セ04a】.
Thanks!
@taylor
Sorry for the late reply.
I assume, that particular pattern is based on the comic market information (booth number, group number, etc.)
Abou the つcounter, does the japanese still use these readings after 11 or in modern japanese they just say the number itself? 11つ=とおあまりひとつ 12つ=とおあまりふたつ 20つ=はたち 21つ=はたちあまりひとつ 30=みそじ 40=よそじ 50=いそじ 60=むそじ 70=ななそじ 80=やそじ 90=ここのそじ 100=もも 200=ふたお 300= みお 400=よお 500=いお 600=むお 700=ななお 800=やお 900=ここのお 1000=ち
@ivan
No we hardly use them anymore in modern Japanese.
maggie i need help with my 聞き取り. i have been using tv and youtube to train my listening comprehension since when i started studying japanese(its been almost 1 year) and its still bad. some japanese speak too fast. do you kwow any good website to help with it?
@ivan
How about
https://www.erin.ne.jp/en/
NHKやさしい日本語
This site introduces a lot of good sites.
Hey Maggie! I just found about your website! Its impressing how you’ve doing this for such a long time! I hope you keep up the great work! I’m gonna follow every post from now on! :grin:
@Someone?
Hi, “Someone?”
I am glad your found us!
これからよろしくね！ :)
Maggie Sensei:
Thank you for your explanations. I have read both your lessons on shi & tali. Are they pretty much interchangable? I’ve noticed that tali is used with verbs more. but it seems that both can be used to list examples. Can you go over the differences for me? Thank you.
Amy
@Amy
A lot of time they are not interchangeable.
You don’t use たり when you show the contrast (2) , give a reason (3) or make your point in a colloquial usage. (4)
While you use し when you add more information/facts,
〜（１）し（２）し..
On top of (1), ＋(2)
you could use たら for more random facts.
I would like to ask an out-of-topic question, I just started learning basic Nihon go.
I once read that we can say “あなたが好きです ~ anata ga suki desu” to say “I like you”.
The question is, the above clause is a shortened clause, isn’t it? And the complete clause is “私はあなたが好きです ~ Watashi wa anata ga suki desu”, is that correct?
Thanks for the answers!
＠Ary Anandaputra
Hello Ary Anandaputra
Yes,that’s right.
“私はあなたが好きです ~ Watashi wa anata ga suki desu”
私= watashi = I
は= wa = particle (topic marker)
We tend to omit the subject in Japanese.
→あなたが好きです。= Anata ga suki desu.
やっほ :pika: 、また私ですけど。
ねー、マギー, could you tell me if you can see any difference (meaning, nuance, etc.) between 「～てよかったものの」 and 「からいいようなものの／からよかったものの」?
Here’s a sentence:
今回は事故が起こらなかったからいいようなものの、これからよく注意しないといけないですね。
今回は事故が起こらなくてよかったものの、これからよく注意しないといけないですね。
ヨロシク、ヨロシク！＾＾
@天人
Hi, 天人さん、元気？
1) 雨が降らなくてよかったものの
2) 雨が降らなかったからよかったものの
They mean the same and I guess people use them both forms.
However, I would use 2) form. It is a set phrase.
からいいようなものの／からよかったものの／からいいものの
（から give a reason) and 1) somehow sounds unnatural.
I could be wrong but people use てよかったものの because we mix the form with
~てよかった
(I’m glad that ~ )
(雨が降らなくてよかった）I am glad it didn’t rain.
For that reason, the difference between 1) and 2) is 1) is more conversational than 2)
(FYI I don’t know if I will post it here but I am working on yokatta lesson right now.)
ゲンキだよー。教えてくれてありがとうー。
Emm 2) sounds unnatural or 1)?
Because you said that からいいようなものの／からよかったものの／からいいものの is a set phrase and you would use 2) form @___@
Btw, depending on context 雨が降らなくてよかった can also mean: I’m glad it doesn’t rain, ne?
@天人
Oops! I mean 1) sounds unnatural. (Sorry. I fixed the mistake.)
Sorry to make you confused.
雨が降らなくてよかった= I am glad it didn’t rain. (It is not raining when the speaker is talking or the speaker is recalling the day when it didn’t rain )
ありがとう、マギー！
I’m very happy that you are always there for me \^o^/
Thank you so much once again and till next time ^o^
＠天人
どういたしまして!
Have a great day! :)
hello Maggie sensei..
recently I added you in Twitter.. I’m the one who guessed those Japanese-English sentences..I’m so happy to be with you boucingheart!
about this lesson, I’m sure it was posted before, is there any changes in this one.. cause I already have that printed??
and my name in katakana is read like : Ruwaida it’s an arabic name… do you think it can be turned into kanji.. my name is log and hard..
@Roro
Hi Roro,
Oh you followed me on Twitter? よろしくね！:)
Ah, OK, here’s what happened.
I usually check the lessons one more time before I release them. But somehow I accidentally published this lesson right after I made it without checking the spelling and etc.
So I unpublished it again to check. So I doubt there will be a major change in future.
Ruwaida.
Hmm let me think. How about 瑠愛多
RU: 瑠 beautiful jewelry. It is one of common kanji for name with ru
WAI : Instead of “wai” you could use the sound “AI” 愛 love
TA : da 多(=ta/da) a lot
beautiful jewelry+ a lot of love
Hey, I just coincidentally found your blog by googling while trying to find out what “なーんてな” means. I heard that in an anime, where one particular character likes to fool people by playing dead and afterwards says “なーんてな, 死んだふり”, and since I heard that I’m trying to find a proper translation to that “なーんてな”-part but I just can’t find one no matter what I try – Google Translate obviously didn’t give me anything. Do you maybe know how to translate that word? Nothing comes before it, the entire sentence is only those 2 words.
@Serjo
Hi Serjo,
なーんてな (male speech)
variation: なんてね(both men and women use) , なんちゃって(colloquial)
means “Just kidding”
ちわっす, マギー先生｡
聞きたいことがあります｡
1 と 2 違っているのは何でしょ?
1. 「んだ
(Substitute 「の」 or 「のだ」 for 「んだ」)
Noun/Na-Adj Verb/I-Adj
Plain 学生なんだ 飲むんだ
Negative 学生じゃないんだ 飲まないんだ
Past 学生だったんだ 飲んだんだ
Past-Neg 学生じゃなかっ たんだ 飲まなかっ たんだ
2. 「んだ」
Noun/Na-Adj Verb/I-Adj
Plain 学生なんだ 飲むんだ
Negative 学生なんじゃな い 飲むんじゃな い
Past 学生なんだった 飲むんだった
Past-Neg 学生なんじゃな かった 飲むんじゃな かった
@Sally
こんにちは、Sally
It’s depends on the subject so I will give you two possibilities.
Negative
a) 学生じゃないんだ
(To tell you the truth) I am not a student. (Telling a secret)
Oh, so you are not a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she is (or they are) not a student(s) (showing your surprised feelings)
b) 学生なんじゃない
He/She is a student, isn’t he/she? / They are students, aren’t they?
I guess he/she (they) is (are) student. (when you assume something) showing your uncertain feelings.
Past
c) 学生だったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I was a student. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you were a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she was (or they were) a student(s) (showing your surprised feelings)
d) 学生なんだった
??
I wouldn’t use noun+なんだった
Past-negative
e)学生じゃなかったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I was not a student. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you were not a student. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she was (or they were) not a student(s) . (showing your surprised feelings)
f) 学生なんじゃなかった
??
I would say 学生じゃなかった。
*******
Negative
a) 飲まないんだ
(To tell you the truth) I don’t drink. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you don’t drink (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she doesn’t (or they don’t ) drink. (showing your surprised feelings)
b) 飲むんじゃない
He/She drinks, doesn’t he/she? / They drink, don’t they?
I guess he/she drinks (they drink) (when you assume something) showing your uncertain feelings.
Past
c) 飲んだんだ
(To tell you the truth) I drank. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you drank. (showing your surprised feelings)
Oh, so he/she/they drank. (showing your surprised feelings)
d) 飲むんだった
I should have drunk (showing your regret feelings)
Past-negative
e) 飲まなかったんだ
(To tell you the truth) I didn’t drink. (Telling a secret or new information)
Oh, so you/ he/she/they didn’t drink (showing your surprised feelings)
f) 飲むんじゃな かった
I shouldn’t have drunk. (showing your regret feelings.)
(Ok let’s try it here…)
Hello again!
Maggie, I need your help to verify the difference between ～終わる and ～終える. Using a few Japanese web sites I’ve tried to figure out it by myself. I came to follow conclusions.
1. there’s no difference in the meaning between this two patterns
2. the nuance is
～終える implies that because of certain circumstances the speaker was (in a way) forced to finish a certain action. It can also imply, that the finishing of the action was connected with efforts or that the speaker had no other choice, but to finish his action faster then expected (then it normally would take).
～終わる implies that finishing of the action was a result of normal course of things, because with the passage of time every action reaches its final stage.
EX.
すしを食べ終わった => implies that the speaker ate his sushi as a normal course of things. He was hungry, ate his sushi and now he’s full.
すしを食べ終えた => implies that the speaker had to do some extra actions (it wasn’t just a normal course of things) to finish his sushi. It might imply he did some efforts (for example although he was full he forced himself to eat everything what was on his plate) or he was in hurry and had to finished eating faster then normal, because his bus leaves soon.
出典：
http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1413636904
http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1213636922
＠天人
Hi, 天人さん
One of your comment was in the pending file but all other comments worked.
I deleted two of them. Will answer this question in Maggie’s room. :)
I noticed you can not post a comment there sometime. If that happens, you can post a question anywhere.
マギー先生素晴らしい!
マギー先生のレッスンはとっても面白くて色々んな勉強ができました､マギー先生のサイト大好きです｡本当にありがとうございます!ヾ(｡>﹏<｡)ﾉﾞ✧*♡
@アブブ
うれしいコメントありがとう、アブブ！ :)
Konbanha Maggie Sensei
Shitsumon Ga Arimasu Yo:
For Example:
“He Went” (Kare Ha Itta).
“He Also Went” (Kare Mo Itta).
**Between The Two Sentences, When We Put (Mo), Logically We Have To Omit (Ha) Particle.
But As You Thought Us That It’s Possible To Put (Tte) Instead Of (Ha)
So In This Case, Is It True:
“He Also Went” (Kare -Tte- Mo Itta).
Or We Have To Omit That (Tte) As The Case Of (Ha) ?
@Kibounonaka
Ohayou, Kibounonaka.
You can’t say
“彼（かれ）っても行った” (Kare -Tte- Mo Itta) for “He Also Went”
But you can quote using って, I heard he also went.
彼も行ったんだって= Kare mo ittan datte.
Also it is very conversational but you can have the place where he went as a subject, (In this case you use double tte)
あのパーティーって彼も行ったんだって。
(Ano paatii tte kare mo ittan datte)
As for the party, I heard he also went.
Mou Wakarimashita. Arigatou Gozaimashita Sensei !happyface! :yy: :pika: :pika:
@Kibounokata
You’re welcome! :)
Thanks for your hard work! It must be difficult to keep changing colors for fonts
@Yusoff
Thank YOU for the nice comment!
がんばりま〜す！
!koujichuu! [Kodokomo]
[kodomo] dake de dekakeru
ごめんなさい。その日だけは忙しいです。」
gomennasai ] Sono hi dake wa isogashii desu.
[chikatta] dake desu
[ !koujichuu! missing !koujichuu!
Ex. メールを見なかっただけで無視をしたんじゃないよ。
= Mairu wo minakatta dakede !koujichuu! [de] !koujichuu! mushi wo shitan ja nai yo.
Kare to wa ie ga !koujichuu! chikakatta
@zoheb
Thank you!!!!!!! いつも本当にありがとう、zoheb!!boucingheart!
近かった＝ちかかった= chikakatta で大丈夫です。
ありがとう！！
Maggie, I’ve got two more quick questions for you :pika:
1. About とか and やら.
My book says 『「ＡやらＢやら」はＡ、Ｂを例示して「Ａ、Ｂ、その他いろいろある」という意味を表す並立助詞の用法です。ほぼ同義文型に「～とか～とか」がありますが、これは全体の中から代表例を選ぶ点に重点があります。』
Q: This これは is linked to 「ＡやらＢやら」 or to 「～とか～とか」?
2. About やいなや.
One of my book says that: 「自分のことには使えない」, but I found many examples in an online English-Japanese sentence dictionary, like:
私が乗り込むやいなや、汽車は動き出した。
私がそうするやいなや雨が降り出した。
私は家に着くやいなや寝た。
So what’s the truth?
@天人
Hello again!
1. これ refers to 「～とか～とか」
Additional inf. やら is often used to describe some different things, feelings get all mixed up.
Ex. その話を聞いたとき、嬉しいやら悲しいやら複雑な思いだった。
Also it is often used to show your negative emotions.
Ex. 床には脱ぎ捨てた洋服やら食べ残したゴミやらが散らばっていた。
2. We do use やいなや to describe your own actions as your example sentences.
But you have to see the second action objectively.
Verb (A) するやいなや Verb (B)
These two actions happens almost simultaneously
The verb (B) can’t be volitional or assumption.
Xするつもりだ
Xするでしょう
Thank you very much for the additional info. That was very helpful :purple:
And how about this sentence → 私はお金をもらうや否や貯金します。
This was considered as the wrong one.
Maybe in the second part of the sentence must be something which cannot be controlled by the speaker?
@天人
You’re right.
Because 貯金します means I will save that money. You are showing your will. So it will be volitional.
Mhmm, I see. Very good!
OK, now I can continue my journey with 日本語 !happyface!
Many thanks Maggie!
＠天人
You’re very welcome, 天人さん.
I really like your positive attitude!
Oh and also this one character said 「ササと早く」 in the context of hurry and go to sleep, but i didnt get what she meant by ささと
@ ジェリエル
ササと / サッサと・さっさと is a mimetic word to describe some quick movement.
To do something quickly = ささと・ササと / サッサと・さっさと〜する
So in this case, you emphasize the word 早く (fast).
Maggie sensei!
Can you explain 立ちいる気がない
Its from this anime, i think it’s translated as “i didn’t mean to pry”
The full sentence was 「別に立ち入る気がないんでせけど」
Can i use (verb plain form)気がある to modify 気?
@ ジェリエル
Hello, ジェリエル
OK,
立ち入る= intrude
〜気がない = no intention to do something/not to feel like doing something
So 立ち入る気がない means “I don’t meant to intrude.
i dont get how korosareru….follows under these meanings? whats the direct translation of korosareru? completly stuck on this >.<
nvrm i did some research……its a passive verb isnt it? watashi wa kanojo no tabemono wo taberareta…….is that correct?
＠rodney
Hi rodney
Yes, 殺される（korosareru）is a passive form.
If you want to learn that form, go check this lesson 受身 (passive form)
Hello Maggie! ゲンキ？
I came across an interesting usage of ～よう.
According to kotobank: 「話し手の推量や想像を表す。また，婉曲表現をつくる。」.
So now I’m wondering about the difference between 動詞の未然形＋よう and 動詞の原型＋ようだ, for example:
いまは雲が多いが，午後には晴れよう。
いまは雲が多いが，午後には晴れるようだ。
景気も来年あたりには好転しよう。
景気も来年あたりには好転するようだ。
動詞の原型＋よう can imply both 話し手の推量や想像 and 婉曲. So where’s the difference? – if there is a difference.
I would be grateful if you could explain me this.
よろしくお願いします！ !onpu!
＠天人
こんにちは〜！！！はい、元気ですよ！天人さんも元気でしたか？
OK, you use
１）動詞の原型＋ようだ
both in written form and conversation a lot.
You see
２）未然形＋よう
mostly in written form (or you may hear some dramatic scene in a story where a king, profet, etc predicts future or tells what is going to happen.).
In my personal opinion, 1) is used when you are less uncertain compared to ２）
は～い、私はいつも元気です♪♪(*´▽`*)ﾉﾞ !ohisama!
Thank you for your answer, now everything is clear.
Have a pleasant day! :tulip2:
@天人
元気でよかった〜 !JYANE!
どういたしまして！天人さんもいい日を過ごしてくださいね。 !onpu!
Hello Maggie,
I was looking for the lyrics to a Righteous Brothers song called “Bring Back That Loving Feeling” (maybe you’ve heard it). I found the translation below, but I’m not sure if the translation makes sense in Japanese.
Can you do a quick read and let me know if it is accurate?
THANK YOU VERY MUCH!
もう今はキスする時も
目を閉じない
前みたいに指先で
優しく触れてもくれないね
頑張って
気付かれないようにしてるけど
ベイビイ，どうしたって気が付くよ
好きだっていうあの気持ち
その人を想う気持が今はもう
どこかへ行ってしまったんだ
大切に想うあの気持ちは
もう残ってないんだね
触れようとして
そっちに手を伸ばしても
もう優しく見つめてくれない
ちょっとしたことにも文句を言われる
まるで自分が駄々っ子に
なったような気がするよ
前は２人の間にあった
素晴らしい何かが
今はこうして消えていってる
好きだっていうあの気持ち
その人を想う気持をもう一度
思い出して欲しいんだ
大切に想うあの気持ちを
また思い出して欲しいけど
もう残ってないんだね
このままじゃ耐えられないよ
ベイビイ，跪いてお願いするよ
あの頃みたいに愛してくれる
それだけでいいんだよ
前は2人の間に愛があったよね？
なかなか簡単には見つからない
そんな愛があったよね？
だからこのままダメにしないで
好きだっていうあの気持ち
その人を想う気持をもう一度
思い出して欲しいんだ
大切に想うあの気持ちを
また思い出して欲しいけど
もう残ってないんだね
このままじゃ耐えられないよ
@Erik
Hi Erik
Yes, the Japanese lyrics make sense. :)
ううん、分かります！ありがとうございますマギー先生！
レッスンが大好き！もっと頑張ります！
＠Myllzz
どういたしまして boucingheart!
これからも日本語楽しんでがんばってくださいね。 :ii:
Hi Maggie Sensei,
This article was very informative, and I was wondering if there was anything else you thought would be vital for a foreign exchange student in Japan to have mastered before going. I was recommended here by some other exchange students, but your website is massive and I want to master the essentials before I go. ありがとうございます！
@Micah
Hi Micah,
Welcome to our site.
I know there are lots of lessons here but you can go to the index page and pick whatever lesson you feel like checking. I can’t tell you what to study because I don’t know your interests and level.
But you may want to go through the time related lesson, numbers, Typical questions from Japanese people, shopping lesson, restaurant, fast food Japanese.etc.
こんにちは! マギー先生！なんて素晴らしいレッスンですが、質問があります。
How do you know when to add a particle to だけ or combine だけ and しか with a particle?
＠Myllzz
こんにちは、Myllzz
いい質問ですね。
You can replace だけ with だけしか in a negative sentence.
There are all the colors but this one.
この色だけない。
この色だけしかない。
But you can’t use だけしか in an affirmative sentence.
There is no other colors but this one.
この色だけある。
X この色だけしかある。
Ex. Connerだけを愛している。
You can’t say
X Connerだけしかを愛している。
G) このページだけ勉強した。
You can’t say
Xこのページだけしか勉強した。
hi maggie sensei
I tried to respond to my other post but it wouldn’t work. I’m a boy and my name in katakana would be ケイン
any interesting suggestions you could give to me to convert my name into kanji
?
pls n ty
＠kane
Oh, sorry. You are a boy. And it reads kein. I searched it and they got the similar one but how about
華音(ke-in)
華 means brilliant
音 is the same as I have suggested before. You usually read “ね(=ne)” but “いん” is possible for names.
How about I have sixth period (in school) period is ６校時 or 6 時間. But what is “have” for teacher or students?
@Michael
I’m sorry but I don’t understand your question well but
When you refer to the classes in school,
the first class１時間目
the second class ２時間目
the sixth class ６時間目
If you say I have three classes today, you say
今日はクラス（授業）が３つある
いつもお世話利なります。
i have a question regarding business keigo. may i seek the answer from you? Thank you in advance.
When do you use ～いただきます？
another one would when is a good time is use 申し上げる？
@choon han
こんにちは、choon han.
いただきます
nounをいただきます。
= I will receive/eat something
When you eat something/when you receive something from someone.
Ex. いただきます。
Ex. 遠慮なくいただきます。
= Enryo naku itadakimasu.
Ex. お電話をいただけますか？
= Odenwa wo itadakemasuka?
= Could I have a phone call from you?
〜させていただきます
= to do something for you (Allow me to do something for you.)
Ex.明日、お電話をさせていただきます。
= I will give you a call tomorrow.
***
申し上げる is a modest way to say 言う
お願い申し上げます。
= Onegai moushiagemasu.
= I’d like to ask / Please ~
You often see it in formal letter.
心よりお喜び申し上げます。= Kokoro yoro oyorokobi moushiagemasu. = I am very delighted to hear the news.
御礼申し上げます。= Orei moushiagemasu = I’d love to express my gratitude.
when you have several verbs in a sentence, do I conjugate all of them to the honorific expression?
ex: I : 先生、今お宿題を終わりしたら、今何をいたしますか？
@kahn moza
You can focus on the last verb.
先生、宿題が終わったら、何をしたらよろしいでしょうか？
Maggie-sensei! Shouldn’t くる be and いく be switched in this part of your post?
Ex.マギー、ドッグフードがないから買って :i: くる :i: ね。
=Maggie, doggu fuudo ga nai kara katte kuru ne.
= Maggie, there is no dog food left so I will go get some and come back (home).
(The speaker is with Maggie right now and leave the house to get dog food.)
Ex.マギー、ドッグフードがないから買って :i: いく :i: ね。
=Maggie, doggu fuudo ga nai kara katte iku ne.
= Maggie, there is no dog food left so I will get it and come to your house.
(The speaker is not with Maggie right now and will bring her dog food.)
@Michelle
Hi Michelle,
OK, here is the situation.
買ってくる = Maggie and the speaker(X) are togehter. →X will go get dog food and comes back to Maggie with dog food.
Vてくる= the speaker or a doer will come back where they originally are.
買っていく = Maggie and the speaker (X) are in difference places. →X will go get dog food and goes to where Maggie is.
Vていく= the speaker or a doer will move from one place to the other place.
あ、なるほど！
I was a bit confused but after you explained it like that, it made more sense!
マギー先生、ありがとうございます！
@Michelle
どういたしまして！ !formingheart3!
You are amazing. Thank u so much for these lessons. Ur saving me at 2am here in Japan and have a test today.
＠A
Wow, you were studying at 2am?
Good luck with your test today! がんばって！
Hello!
I’ve been using and reading your lessons since I began to study further the Japanese language. There’s something I need to ask and hopefully you could answer this.
There’s a grammar 必要がある so from what I can understand based on the pattern itself it’s “there is a need to VERB” or “need to VERB”. Then I remembered having a previous lesson with なければならない and なければいけない which have similar meanings.
From what I learned, なければならない is used when you have to do something even if you don’t want to, and なければいけない is used to express that you have to do something no matter what. So now, what does 必要がある mean?
Furthermore, if turned negative it becomes 必要はない translating to “There is no need” or “You don’t need to~” depending on the context. Then there’s なくてもいい which from what I learned from my language class was “You don’t need to~”. I also wanted to know the difference between the two.
I hope you could provide me some insight and better explanation about these. I really wanted to learn more about Japanese and even grammar books like Genki doesn’t cover much of this.
Thank you in advance.
@Anna
Hi Anna
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) 勉強しなければならない must to study / have to study
2) 勉強しなければいけない have to study / have got to study
They could be interchangeable but in my opinion
2) involves speaker’s will or opinions. It is more conversational.
3) 勉強する必要がある
You use 必要がある when you have some object (or goal).
For example in order to pass the exam, I need to study this and that.
As for the negative sentences,
勉強しなくてもいい don’t have to study. (It involves speaker’s opinion)
勉強する必要はない no need to study (for certain object.)
So when you want to say
I have to go home. you say もう帰らなくてはいけない
If you say もう帰らなければならない・もう帰る必要がある。 sounds too formal and unnatural.
Hello Maggie Yukari, congratulation for your website, its really usefull.
I want to ask you a question:
What the diference with “you ni” and “hodo”?? They both mean “as/like”, but can’t get the difference between the two of them, how and when to use them.
@Rey-kun
Hi Rey-kun!
Here is one of the differences
Rey-kun no you ni nihonogo ga hanasenai. = I can’t speak Japanese like Rey-kun.
Rey-kun hodo (jouzu ni) nihongo ga hanasenai. = I can’t speak Japanese (as well) as Rey-kun
So “like X does” = youni , “as (adjective as) X” (you are talking about degree) = hodo
Please check “hodo” lesson to see the usage of hodo.
I see Thank you very much, i see it more clearly now.
if i have a question i will ask you again.
Actually i have review your “Hodo” lesson 2 times
Great site, keep it up, and thank you very much
hi maggie sensei,
i was wondering what site you used to find kanji for hanko for tourists?
my name is Kane, and i was interested in seeing what cool kanji combinations it would suggest for my name.
what would be a good kanji combination for my name
thanks
@Kane
There are few sites to see kanji hanko for foreign people. I can not promote other business sites but use Japanese google with a search word “外国人判子”
Let me see,
Are you a girl? If so, how about 香音 かね
か＝香 (aroma)
ね= 音 (tone/sound)
Hello!
I’m wondering, will Japanese use a double negative but the sentence will still be negative? Like with slang?
For example, “I don’t got no time!” meaning “I don’t have any time (for this)!”
Thank you so much for this lesson! I have an N3 grammar book which I was studying, I came across this grammar point and it mentioned the different particles but offered no explanation. Your lessons have saved me for the 100th time, Maggie-sensei! They are easy to follow and I have learnt so much thanks to you. boucingheart! !Anapple!
＠Leigha
Hi Leigha
I am very happy to hear that!
N3がんばってくださいね！ :)
Dear Maggie Sensei
I have a problem about how to use To iu koto da and To iu imi da, if I’m right the meaning of these mean “mean” right?
and I have seen a lots of Japanese Animation and Series use Dou iu koto da and Dou iu imu da to describe “what does it mean ? so is that different to use it?”
Please give me a trick how to use it properly.
Thank you very much
@Toongtang
Hi Toongtang
Ahh good point.
The translation of
1) Dou iu koto da
2) Dou iu imi da
could be the same.
“What do you mean (by that)?”
But you sometimes distinguish the usages as follows.
1) asking for why it happened. (process / background)
2) asking for the real intention of what someone has just said.
どうもありがとございます！
@Toongtang
どういたしまして！
I don’t understand the meaning of all kakeru in this example :r:
and can I apply ( color+ migakatta ) to other colors like: akamigakatta = reddish :r:
Ex. 根元から毛先にかけて白から青みがかったグレーのグラデーションでお願いします。
= Nemoto kara kesaki ni kakete shiro kara aomi gakatta guree no guradeeshon de onegai shimasu.
= I’d like to have a white to blue-gray gradient coloring going from the roots to the ends”
@Roro
Yes, you can say 赤みがかった
color + がかる= (color) ish →Color がかった + noun
and what about the meaning of kakeru in ( kesaki ni kakete )?
@Roro
〜から〜にかけて
(some actions affects )from ~ to(towards) ~
毛先にかけて to hair ends
I didn’t know where to say this, but I really want to thank you for this website and all of the work and effort you put into it.
I’ve been using this site off and on for at least a year now, so I felt it needed to be said.
私は日本語が下手ですけどマギー先生のおかげで学べる！
いつも聞いたんだけど本当にありがとう！
@Kemrin
こんにちは、Kemrin!
Thank you for your nice message.
メッセージとてもうれしかったです。
これからもこのサイトを使って日本語の勉強してくださいね。 :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Wow, there were great many expressions that were new for me, thanks a lot! !happyface!
I have only one question which I haven’t found the answer for in the post.
If I would like to say, for example, that “The package is going to arrive on the 4th day”, do I need to put に after 四日目, like there is “on” in the English version: “on the 4th day”, or not?
I have learnt that when a time expression contains any number, we usually put に after it, but I’m not sure here.
Thank you very much in advance! :w:
Berry
@Berry
Hi Berry.
Yes, you need に
4日目に：荷物は４日目に届きます。
If you are interested in particles with time related word, go check this lesson.
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I love your website, it’s so helpful.
How would I say something like “I’m going to Japan in January”?
@Lia
Hi Lia!
Glad to hear you find my site helpful! :)
I’m going to Japan in January. = 一月に日本へ行きます。= いちがつににほんへいきます。= Ichigatsu ni nihon e ikimasu.
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I am really confused about particles.
1. Is there any difference in unsing “に” and “によって”?
2. At the very beginning I was tought that the particle “を” becomes “が”,
e.g. お寺を建てた !to right! お寺が建てられた
But in your sentence it doesn’t happen:
ゴミを月曜日に出したら、近所の人に注意をされた。
Is it so because bad (or in some cases good) feelings are connected with that situation? For example like here: 私は先生に作文をほめられてうれしかったです and 大切な洋服を弟に汚されてしまいました (additionally emphasized by しまう?). And also like here, when someone is negatively affected by an action: となりの人にたばこを吸われて、気分が悪くなりました.
But even if I am right, I don’t understand why in one book is that sentence wrong: 私の背中は後ろの人に押されました。 Would it be correct with を insteas of は? 私の背中を後ろの人に押されました。
3. You wrote: マギーは猫steじめられました
Is it the same to use は instead of が or are there any particular situation where we cannot change it?
4. The last one, I don’t understand that sentence: かわいがっていた猫に死なれて、とてもさびしかった。
I know it’s a lot of questions but I hope you will help me :-D
Thanks!
＠Patrik
hello Patryk
1. *When a building/work, artwork is done by someone, (a new thing which didn’t exist/ not known before was made/found by someone) you use によって
Ex. この建物はYによって建てられた （Xに建てられた）
This building was built by Y
この本はYによって書かかれた（xに書かれた）
This book was written by ~
Ex. アメリカ大陸はコロンブスによって発見された。
= America was discovered by Columbus.
2. As for the particle, here are the basic patterns of the passive form.
(1) (subjectは／が）〜に(によって／から) 〜(ら)れた
お寺を建てた
→お寺が建てられた
みんなが私を笑った
→（私は）みんなに笑われた
先生は私を褒めた
→（私は）先生に褒められた
近所の人が私を注意した
→（私は）近所の人に注意された
猫がマギーをいじめた
→マギーは猫にいじめられた
(2) (subjectは／が）〜に〜を〜られた
the action is done on the object
先生は、私の作文を褒めた
→私は、先生に作文を褒められた
Q: 私の背中は後ろの人に押されました。
→(more natural) 私は背中を後ろの人に押されました。
4. When some misfortune thing happens you use a passive form to show you are a sort of victim of the incident.
（私は）猫に死なれた
（私は）雨に降られた
Hello マギー, long to no see, how have you been?
Today during my grammar studies I came across a very interesting construction, namely 動詞…や…動詞の.
I’ve got a few question regarding this topic, because the explanation in my book still leaves some doubts, which only you can dispel :)
1. This pattern combines sometimes with imperative form of a verb (EX. 飲めや歌えの忘年会) and sometimes with the dictionary form (EX. 殴るや蹴るの暴行). The question is, if the are any rules, or can I combine them as I want?
2. My book says that this pattern 「慣用語を作りますが、そのまま語彙として覚えた方がいいでしょう。」 but gives only a few examples, such as 食うや食わずの／飲めや騒げの／一度や二度の／殴るや蹴るの. Could you make up more examples for me, please?
3. Please check my translations.
飲めや歌えの忘年会 a drink-and-sing-till-you-gonna-fall-down-year-end party (hmm, or maybe just “a hardcore year-end party”?)
食うや食わずの生活 living on the verge of poverty
殴るや蹴るの暴行 an act of violence where someone gets hit and kicked (hmm, I think this needs a correction, because it’s too long…)
!! If you have a translation that fits better than mine, then please correct it. !!
4. あの日は飲めや歌えの忘年会になってね、大変な盛り上がりようだったよ。 「大変な盛り上がりようだった」 = it seemed it was something really big! (=the party was really lively) という翻訳、合ってるかな。
お返事をわくわくしながら待っています。
よろしく！
＠天人
こんにちは、天人さん！お久しぶりですね。
1. 2.
A: action X や action Yのnoun
to describe some extreme situations or commotions using the main actions.
飲めや歌えの忘年会 ・大騒ぎ
殴るや蹴るの暴行・行為
B: 食うや食わずの生活
affirmative form + negative form ~ず＋の＋noun : to express the extreme condition/state
As your book says, this patten is usually used in a set phrase and you don’t just combine random words.
For example, it might be possible to say
カラオケで歌うや運動するストレス解消法
but I wouldn’t say that. It sounds more natural to say
カラオケで歌ったり運動したりするストレス解消法
4.Translation: Your translation is just fine.
the party one could be…
It seemed like the year end party turned out to be a blast. Everybody sang and danced and they all had a good time.
Thank you very much Maggie! :qq:
This pattern is now marked as completed. Today I also completed が故に、もの故に and 故あって.
I hope you are proud of me ^^v
またね～ :maggie-small:
＠天人
You’re very welcome!
I am always proud of you! :)
Maggie先生、こんにちは！
How do I ask “May I know who you would like to speak to?”
A superior told me 誰としゃべるですか? or something along the lines, or would 話す be a better verb to use?
どうもありがとうございます ^^
@マーリ
こんにちは、マーリ
Who would you like to speak to? in Japanese is
どちらあてにおかけでしょうか？
= Dochira ate ni okake deshouka?
or
誰に（More polite どなたに）おかけですか？
= Dare ni (donatani) okake desuka?
助かりましたー！
ありがとうございまーす！♡
@りん
どういたしまして、りん❤
とても勉強になります！ルールが多くて、すごく厳しそうですね！
イギリスでは、つまり自由に服を着たり、履歴書を書いたりしてまいいです。もちろん、やりたいようにやれるわけではないけど、日本と比べたらそんな感じ！
@Saw
こんにちは、 Saw!
そうなんですか。イギリスのように、服や履歴書のフォーマットよりも実力で選ばれた方がいいですね。
Hi Maggie-sensei~♫
Thanks for another nice lesson. I have a question about another form. Where would you place 〜てくれないでしょうか and 〜ていただけないでしょうか on the politeness scale?
Thanks for the reply!
@Johan
Hello! Johan! :)
Good question! Maybe I should include them as well when I have time.
〜てくれないでしょうか goes above くれませんか？
and 〜ていただけないでしょうか goes between いただきたいんですが and いただけませんか
こんばんはー！(*^_^*)
With regards to べき, would like to know if the following sentence is correct?
みんなで日本語を話すべきです。
A little unsure on how to write a sentence with べき when speaking/referring to more than 1 person..
いつもありがとうございます！＼(^o^)／
りん
@りん
こんばんは、りん
みんなで日本語を話すべきです。
→Perfect!!! :)
Oh, I see.
Thank you Maggie Sensei, I really appreciate your help. I also feel amazed that you’re keeping to reply all of our questions on the same day. :)
＠Pat
You’re very welcome, Pat! boucingheart!
Hello Maggie Sensei!
Are “dore kurai/gurai” and “dono kurai/gurai” interchangeable?
Using your example, “dore gurai matta?”, can I also say “dono gurai matta?” ?
Thank you very much :)
@Pat
Hi Pat,
Yes, they are interchangeable. :)
Wow…so comprehensive! Thanks Maggis-sensei!
@Tommy
You’re very welcome, Tommy! !CHECKHEART!
Hello! First off, I just want to say thanks for creating this website because it’s been super helpful and goes into a good amount of detail! I have been having trouble with causative tense lately in Japanese. I can’t figure out if I’m using it correctly in a few sentences I’ve come up with for practice…can you help out? am I using the correct particles for these?
克哉に寂しさを感じさせないで。
Don’t make Katsuya feel lonely.
母に私は英語を勉強させられています。
My mom is making me study English.
たくやに私は歌わされちゃったんだ。
Takuya forced me to sing.
克哉を探させてください。
Please let me look for Katsuya.
帰る前に、ワンちゃんを見させてください。
Please let me see the dog before I leave.
たくやは私に彰に話させてくれた。
Takuya let me talk to Akira.
＠Tempura
Hi Tempura,
Your particles are fines.
Note:
１）たくやは私に彰に話させてくれた。
Takuya let me talk to Akira.
You can also use 彰と
２）母に私は英語を勉強させられています。
My mom is making me study English.
たくやに私は歌わされちゃったんだ。
Takuya forced me to sing.
You can switch the order and start with 私は
* 帰る前に、ワンちゃんを見させてください。
Please let me see the dog before I leave.
Grammatically correct. But I would say we use “show me” 見せてください in conversation more.
Thank you for another really helpful lesson, Maggie Sensei! If convenient, could you please consider teaching us how to use さらに in a future lesson? Have looked it up myself online but still find it quite confusing because it looks like there are quite a few meanings and ways to use the word. I feel like I could learn it a lot better if Maggie Sensei taught it because you always lay down the rules in a clear, concise way. Thank you so much for considering!
@Jane
Hi Jane,
さらに？OK, will add it to the request list! :)
こんいちは、
レッスンはとても役に立って、ありがとうございます！
質問がありますが、マクドナルドでアイスミルクティを注文してから、シロップとクリーマーを各一つだけもらいました。もしもっと欲しかったら、以下の文章は大丈夫ですか。
シロップとクリーマー、各もう二ついだだけませんか。
Can I have 2 more each for the creamer and syrup?
ありがとうございます！
マンファ
＠Man Hua
もしもらう前だったら、
シロップとクリーム（or ミルク)、二つずついただけませんか？
１つずつもらった後だったら、
すみません、シロップとクリーム（or ミルク）あと、一つずついただけませんか？
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your wonderful site, I have learned a lot and also many things have been clarified :)
マギー先生におかげで色々なことを分かれるようになりました！ :D
ぜひこのサイトを読んで勉強つづけます！
I have tried to create some sentences using “hazu” but I’m not sure if they are correct… Could you please help me correct this one?
I was trying to say: “If you leave the window open, it is sure that I won’t be able to sleep” (because my husband likes to sleep next to an open window, but the noise of the street disturbs me, so I always tell him this. In the end he always closes it :grin: )
My version was: 窓をあけておいたら私が寝られないはずです。
Thank you in advance!
Berry
@Berry
こんにちは、Berry!
“If you leave the window open, it is sure that I won’t be able to sleep”
In this case, I wouldn’t use はず
won’t be able to ~ できなくなる／~なくなる／〜できない
窓を開けておいたら＊寝られなくなる。
＊You can also say
窓を開けっ放しにしておいたら
窓を開けたままにしておいたら
はず is used when you expect someone/something to happen/ something should happen
For example, you couldn’t sleep for some reason and found out the windows were open. Then you can say
窓が開いていた。これでは、寝られないはずだ。
= The windows were open. No wonder I couldn’t sleep.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Thank you for your quick reply! !heart3!
It sounds so clear and simple when you explain it!
It seems I still need some time to get the hang of the use of “hazu”! ^^;
I even made a 4 page long note and summary out of this lesson for personal use, but I’m sure my brain needs time to process it…
I’ll keep trying! :grin:
Love,
Berry
@Berry
You’re very welcome!
Wow! 4 pages long note??? すごいですね。
大丈夫！Berryなら絶対にできるはず！
( I am sure you can do it, Berry!)
What is different between kurai and gurai
＠Sangam
Either one is fine now. You can use them both.
hello maggie-sensei,
sorry to trouble you, but, could you help me translate this:
– ひとりきりじゃ気付けなかった (Hitorikiri ja kizukenakatta)
– お伽話なんかじゃ (otogibanashi nanka ja)
are jya (じゃ) on there is the same like janai (じゃない)?
thank you so much….
@maya
Hi maya,
ひとりきりでは→ひとりきりじゃ I would have been able to notice by myself
おとぎ話なんかでは→おとぎ話なんかじゃ it is not a fairly tale
Hello, Sensei.
I love your site so much because it is very useful not only for me but for everyone who want to learn Japanese. :grin:
Thanks so much for your effort. !CHECKHEART!
Chan
@Victor Chan
Hello Victor Chan!
Thank you for your nice comment!!
I’ll do my best making more and more lessons for everyone!
ありがとう！ :maggie-small: boucingheart!
Hey Maggie/Yukari,
I am currently self-studying for JLPT N2 and would just like to say your website has helped a great deal in helping me refresh concepts! Really appreciate it (:
Thank You
＠Kai
Hi Kai, Thank you for your comment.
I am very happy to hear our site is helping your study!
２級がんばってね！:)
Maggie sensei,
Great resource you created, hontou ni.
Just one shitsumon: how do you say “I have been in Japan many times”? and “I have been in Japan more than 10 times” ?
@Peter
Hi Peter,
I have been in Japan many times”?
日本（にほん）に／へ何回（なんかい）も行（い）ったことがあります。
I have been in Japan more than 10 times”
日本（にほん）に／へ１０回以上（かいいじょう）、行（い）ったことがあります。
Hi sensei maggie. Would you please tell me how to ask for clothes suggestion to a japanese ?
@Danial
Hi Danial,
Sure. I can help you. What kind of expressions would you like to know?
Ex. このブラウスにはどんなスカートが合いますか？
= Kono burausu niwa donna sukaato ga aimasu ka?
= What kind of skirt will go well with this blouse.
Hello Sensei,
I really need your help and I hope you will give me your guidance.
I’ve been reading an interview from a Japanese music magazine (or rather it’s a dialogue between two musicians from two different bands), and it was more or less OK until I stumbled upon this really difficult passage near the end.
So the person from YMO (more experienced) is talking to the person from BUCK-TICK about the complex interaction between musicians and their audiences, and here’s what he says to him at one point (I have made each sentence a separate paragraph to make it clearer for myself):
“バクチクが売れれば売れる程、バクチクっていうブランドが一人歩きするようになるわけで、自分たちが考えてることとどんどん違う見られかたとかされる。
例えば全員が、髪の毛を短く切ったりするじゃない、そしたら「バクチクはこうじゃない」とか言われたりするわけじゃない。
自分たちが考えてやったことでもさ。
「アタシたちのバクチクは、あ～じゃなかった」とかさ。
そいう巨大な誤解がヒットであるわけだし、現象としてのね。
ま、だから楽しいんだけど。
僕たちは「ショウ・ビジネスは楽しい」っていう言い方はしないもんね。
一応ロック・アーティストだから。
ショウ・ビジネスの中で客にサービスしようと思って来たわけじゃないし。”
For some reason, the first 5 sentences just do not make any sense to me. :-(
At first I thought that maybe it’s one of those cases in colloquial speech where じゃない actually has a positive meaning, but after re-reading your lesson on わけじゃない, I realized I must be wrong and here it actually means the things that indeed WON’T be done and said.
Then I thought that perhaps I’ve got something wrong in the first sentence because of the passive voices and what does what to what. Or maybe I’m misreading the “一人歩きする” part (does the “ensuing independence of the brand” have negative implications in terms of being overwhelming and “dictating its own terms” to the musicians – or, on the contrary, positive ones likes being able to do what you want?)
I can see that the whole thing is somehow summed up in the 5th sentence which looks really important, but I can’t understand it at all because the structure is a bit unusual, and I don’t understand how “huge misunderstanding” and “ヒットでする” (“to be a success”??) correlate to each other.
Anyway, for some reason, nothing in this passage adds up AT ALL. :-(
So… could you please kindly explain the first 5 sentences to me? Or at least the gist of it, so that I can see the point he’s making?
I have done all the research I could do by myself, dictionary- and grammarwise, and I’m just desperate.
I would be so so grateful if you could help me!
@Anna
Hello Anna,
I don’t do the translation but will help you some part of the gist.
The more Buck-Tick has becomes popular, the more the “brand” of the band spreads by itself. As a result people see them with the “brand” image which could be different from their intention.
For example if they get their hair cut short or when they do something different from the brand image, people get upset saying Buck-Tick should be like that,etc even if that is what the band really wants to do.
But it is a fact that all these huge misunderstandings create the smash hits as well as a phenomenon.
Ah, so it was the positive meaning after all.
Thank you Sensei!
It all makes sense now!
Yes, I know that doing translations is hard work, I’m sorry for coming out of the blue with this big chunk of text – but I was translating this interview for myself and other fans of the band, which is my hobby and my main way of studying Japanese – and I got terribly stuck. The problem is, I had nobody else to ask since my Japanese is entirely self-taught, and colloquial speech is the most problematic point for me since it’s not covered in any books, so…
Thank you again for answering!
＠Anna
No problem.
I could see you have been trying hard translating so I wanted to help you a little.
It is a great way to study Japanese from what you are interested in. :)
Dearest Yukari-san & Maggie-sensei,
I’ve just finished 2 lessons today, and I really want to thank you for teaching us boucingheart! I’ve been studying Japanese since I was 12 because I love the language a lot, and until now I’m still learning and your site is really a great help! Your teaching strategy is so easy to understand, and not to mention, it’s very enjoying! I really love your site and finding it has been one of the best things that has happened to me this year! ^_____^ I want to be confident with my Japanese, and I know I will be, soon, with the your help :) Thank you so much! よろしくおねがいします！ :purple: I will try to make more time to visit your site and learn with you !formingheart3!
All the love,
Dani !heartsippai! !heart3!
@Dani
Hello Dani,
Awww that is soooo sweet! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy learning Japanese.
It is just amazing that you have been studying since you were 12. The secret of improving languages is to enjoy learning them. So I can guarantee your Japanese is great and you still want to keep learning.
これからもがんばってくださいね！私達もみなさんに喜んでもらえるようなレッスンこれからもがんばって作ります。:)
Thank you so much for your reply, Maggie-sensei & Yukari-san !happyface! I agree! I really enjoy learning Japanese, but there are times when I can’t help but think that it’s really hard to master it
私これからもがんばっています！本当にありがとうございます！ !heart3!
＠Dani
応援(おうえん）しています。またいつでもコメントくださいね。
:maggie-small: !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART!
Thank you for your support! !heart3! これからお世話になります !greenapple!
Hi Maggie sensei,
This is a great lesson. (thumbs up). :uparrow:
この例文を添削していただけませんか？
I go into a shop and want to take a look at something. (e.g. a toy)
Level of politeness (Extremely to appropriately – top down)
これ、見せて いただけませんか？
これ、見せて くださいませんか？
Extremely polite. Probably not appropriate
if we consider “buyer / client” is “king”.
Anyway, it is always good to be polite.
Never goes wrong.
これ、見せて もれえませんか？
Could I take a look at this?
Very polite – consider the shop owner’s feeling.
Literally, could I “receive” a “take a look service”
at this product?
これ、見せて くれませんか？
Could I take a look a this ?
Very polite but less polite than もれえませんか
Literally, could you “give me”
a “take a look service” at this product?
これ、見せて もらえますか？
Could I take a look at this ?
Polite.
これ、見せて くれますか？
Could I take a look at this ?
Polite but less polite than もらえますか.
これ、見せて ください。
Could I take a look at this.
Acceptable polite is you are talking
to the shop owner. Well, probably quite common
for buyer ( the one who pays) to say this.
Please advise. Not sure if I get them right.
Cheers
Kenz
@Kenz
Great! You got the idea!! :)
Hi Sensei,
Thanks for your guidance.
Cheers
Ken
@Kenz
You’re very welcome, Kenz! :)
Hello Maggie. Thanks for all of these informative posts.
I was wondering what the difference between マギー先生はこの学校で教えているのではありません。 And…
マギー先生はこの学校で教えていません。
のではない just seems to be confusing for me in general
Thanks in advance.
@Shen
Hi Shen
マギー先生はこの学校で教えていません is just telling the fact that Maggie doesn’t work in this school.
マギー先生はこの学校で教えているのではありません。 is more explanatory.
説明してくれてありがとうございます!
@Shen
どういたしまして、Shen :)
Hi Maggie sensei
I am wondering if the following are the same.
I go to a shop and I would like to take a look at a toy
(placed inside a glass cabinet).
I point to the toy and ask the shop keeper.
これ、見せて もらえませんか？ potential
これ、見せて もらえますか？
これ、見せて もらいますか？
これ、見せて くれられませんか？ potential
これ、見せて くれられますか？
これ、見せて くれますか？
これ、見せて いただけないでしょうか？
これ、見せて ください。
Note: Assuming I want to take a look, and so, I used “見せて”
instead of “見て”. i.e. allow me to see.
Thank you very much.
Regards
Kenz
@Kenz
これ、見せて くれられませんか？ should be 見せてくれませんか？
これ、見せて くれられますか？ should be 見せてくれますか？
Please go check my latest lesson. I explained the difference of all the forms.
Hi maggie sensei,
Thank you so much.
Cheers,
Kenz
Shio mo irete inai ryori nante oishii wake ga nai.
What doesも do?
@Rodney
も has a function to emphasize what comes before.
In this case “not even (salt)”
If you want to learn more about も, check this lesson.
Thank you!
＠Rodney
You’re welcome! :)
hello Maggie sensei ^^
can you tell me the difference among these in terms of the meaning ( to change), I always get confused and don’t know which one to choose:
変わる 換わる 代わる 替わる
I’m now studying kanji level 1.. it is sooooo hard and confusing and rarely used I think.. I sometimes I wonder if Japanese people know them all hhhhh.. Japanese people are indeed smart, that’s why I love them boucingheart!
thank you
@Roro
Hi Roro,
The best way to figure out the difference is to search those words on the Internet and compare the usages.
(v.i) 変わる → (v.t.) 変える transform, change into something completely different
Ex. 彼は変わってしまった。= He has changed. (to someone different)
Ex. 髪型を変える= to change one’s hair style.
(v.i) 代わる → (v.t.) 代える substitute
Ex. マギー先生は忙しいので今日のレッスンはマックス先生が代わります。
= Maggie is busy today so Max will substitute today’s lesson.
The difference between 替わる,替える & 換わる,換える is very vague and sometimes they are interchangeable.
(v.i) 替わる →(v.t.) 替える exchange, to succeed, to switch
(v.i) 換わる → (v.t.) 換える exchange, interchange, to replace
Technically you use 替わる,替える when you exchange something with something new.
Dear Maggie Sensei
If I want to say end of July, can I say ７月末？ which will read as しちがつまつ.
ありがとう ございます。
Man Hua
@Man Hua
Hi Man Hua,
end of July (a few days in the end of July) ７月末= しちがつすえ
July 31st = ７月末= しちがつまつ
Hi Maggie-sensei !
I have been studying Japanese for more than 5 years now (and I’m still afraid to write in Japanese because of the mistake I would make …), and I just beeing introduced to your website by a friend very recently. I found it soooo helpful ! Thank you for your hard work !
I just had a quick question about interviews in Japan.
Would it be considered unapropriate or too cocky to ask “what would be the reason you would not take me for this job ? (もし、御社に入社させていただけませんの理由はその理由を教えていただけませんか？)”
I usually ask this question (in western job interview) in order to being able to clarify some weak points they wouldn’t get as much as I wanted to.
Thank you again for all your help !
@サブリア
Hi サブリア
Feel free to practice your Japanese here. Making mistakes is the best way to learn languages.
Would it be considered unapropriate or too cocky to ask “what would be the reason you would not take me for this job ? (もし、御社に入社させていただけませんの理由はその理由を教えていただけませんか？)”
The polite way to ask the question is
お差し支えなければ、御社に採用していただけない理由を教えて頂けないでしょうか？
It depends on the company or interviewers but I’d say it still sounds demanding or pushy for traditional Japanese companies.
Ex. Vて ( = te) いただけますか？ ( = itadakemasu ka) is more polite than
[ressun] wo mittsu tsukutte kurenai
!koujichuu! Vて ( = te) + いただけますか？ ( = itadakemasu ka?) !koujichuu!
I am just kidding. You can talk to me casually.—–>nihongo onegaishimasu :cryingboy:
casual talk = tameguchi desu ka ??
Ashita made ni [ressunn]
@zoheb
いつもチェックありがとう！本当に感謝しています！
I am just kidding. You can talk to me casually.
—–>nihongo onegaishimasu :cryingboy:
casual talk = tameguchi desu ka ??
I meant to say, 気さくに話しかけてね。or
Casual speech is カジュアルな話し方/くだけた話し方.
タメ語 tamego belongs to Casual speech but it is considered to be really casual.
Hello! How do you say “I am sorry for the inconvenience we have caused, please accept this Sake as a gift” thank you
@CHar
ご迷惑をおかけして申し訳ありません。（more polite 申し訳ございません。）
お詫びにこちらのお酒をお受け取りください。
Thank you Sensei Maggie boucingheart! boucingheart!
@CHar
どういたしまして、CHar! :)
マギーへ !hamberger!
Thanks for the lesson, there are indeed some new aspects to けど. :test:
So I’ve learned that generally you use けど when you leave something unsaid, which would be to direct if you’d spell it out. But contrasting 2 of your sentences, I wonder what is left unsaid in the second one.
1.ちょっと寒いんだけど。 As you said, the speaker implies he wants something done about it.
2.ちょっと、美味しいんだけど！ So what’s implied with this sentence? Your translation sounds like: It’s soo delicious (but I didn’t expect it, I thought it would be bad). Is my interpretation correct? Couldn’t it also mean something like: It’s very delicious, but I don’t want to eat right now?
I’m asking because, if I just want to express my feelings, it seems kind of strange to me to add a けど, as it sounds like I would hold something back, which could lead to misinterpretations. Or is this けど really just an emphasis without any hidden implications?
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
1. Your interpretation is right.
2. In this colloquial usage, the speaker doesn’t imply anything. It is one way to express your feelings.
But you are right. The intonation is very important.
If you say 美味しいんだけど with no smile, the listener would think “But what? Something wrong??”
I recently got handed down a katana that came from Japan during ww2. I do not have social media but I was wandering if I could get your email and send you a picture of the kanji and you could possibly translate it thanks!
@Matt
Sorry. I don’t use email to accept questions or do translation.
If you tentatively make a Twitter account send me a picture.
Usually they use an old writing style in katana. If so I don’t think I can read it. You have to ask an expert.
I was looking up a kanji for middle (naka) that’s how I came here. Your site is very helpful.
From reading one of your first sentences,
Is it okay to say “ibara no naka ni yuri” is this the correct translation of saying “lily among thorns”?
If it’s wrong, could you please correct sentence so I could understand it better. Thank you.
@Lily Flower
Hi Lily, Welcome to our site.
lily among thorns is
Ibara no naka no yuri
It is possible to say Ibara no naka ni yuri,too if it is a title or something.
But to be precise,
You usually use “ni” with a verb of existence such as “iru” (=There is/are)
Ibara no naka ni yuri (ga aru)
I see! :D So far, I’ve always been able to find the answers to my questions here when I want to understand in depth! I absolutely love this site!
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
@りん
こちらこそ、やさしいメッセージありがとう！ boucingheart!
こんばんはー！(*^_^*)
With regard to the colloquial usage of けど in order to soften sentences, does that mean that it can be added behind any sentence? For example, if I say “食べたことないですけどね”, does that make sense?
Thank you in advance!
Lots of love,
りん
@りん
こんばんは、りん！
I wouldn’t say “any sentences” (for example imperative form won’t work with けど) but regular declarative sentences should work with けど. And yes you can say “食べたことないですけどね”.
you僕らはうそをついてるわけじゃなくてもなぜかすれちがい.__…..___
What does wake literally mean in that sentence? Can you translate it literally.Im confused
Ignore the you at the beginning.__…Typo
Hello Rodney,
the pattern わけじゃなくても means “Though we~” / “Even if it doesn’t mean that we~” / “Though it’s not that we~”.
=> 僕らはうそをついてるわけじゃなくても = “Though we are telling the truth” / “Even if it doesn’t mean that we are lying” / “Though it’s not that we are lying”.
ヨロシク。
@天人
Thank you for your support!! ありがとう！ boucingheart!
いつでもご用件を承ります、マギー先生 :)
Thanks for the help.^^ :-D
Im curious is your name tenjin?
Sorry.__……___..I take it back Its amato??
「てんにん」と読むのである。
That was my next guess lol but ten’nin reminded me of clerk xd
またありがとうございます
I thought i’d understood ～より boy you proved be wrong…………lol
thank you for your post on yori :p
@Rodney
You’re welcome, Rodney. :)
Sensei, thank you for your lessons! I was wondering if you could tell me how to say “I’m sorry too”, to someone who is apologizing to you?
Thank you very much! :)
@Kaidyn
Hi Kaidyn,
I am sorry too.
You can say
こちらこそごめんなさい。(= Kochira koso gomen nasai) (neutral both men and women can use)
私こそごめんなさい。 (= Watashi koso gomen nasai) (female)
僕こそごめん （= Boku koso gomen) (male)
Can you tell me the difference between ageru:Increase in price
Noboru:to advance in price
Agaru:To raise in price._.__…?ぜんぜんわからないです。
@Rodney
If you are talking about raising price, you use 上がる(= agaru)
値段が上がる = nedan ga agaru.
上る（のぼる）= noboru is used when you are talking about “amount up ~~”
Ex. 損失は１~~円に上る= Sonshitsu wa juuokuen ni noboru = The loss amounts up ~~ yen.
Or when someone/something physically goes up high place.
1) when the amount sums up
なるほど、ありがとうございます^_^
@Rodney
どういたしまして！
Just have a quick question.
あなたのこと全部好きです。does this koto refer to about?
あなたには日本語の一番難しいのことは？ is this correct…………
いろいろくれてありがとうございます！感謝します！
@Rodney
あなたのことが好きです。
The literal meaning “I like (all) things about you” but it means “I like/love you”
あなたには日本語の一番難しいのことは？ →日本語で一番難しいことは（なんですか）？is more natural.
(You don’t actually need to say あなた but if you want, あなたが日本語で一番難しいと思うことは何ですか？”
Thank you..I shall note this^^
@Rodney
You’re welcome, Rodney. :)
One last thing do you have any particles you teach?Like で、を、etc?
Yayyy! I’m so glad I found out you did a lesson on this because miitomo uses this suffix and it confused me haha. Thank you so much!!!!! boucingheart!
＠Courtney
Oh good! I am glad I made this lesson then. :)
こんにちわ マギーせんせい。
ありがとう ございます！！
@えりかーさま
こんにちは！えりかーさま！
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I found the following statement from instagram. With a dog picture and the dog looks not happy :)
外に でなきゃ いけなくて 邪魔されるのが いやなん でしょうね。
Does that mean,
If not permitted to go outside, he is feeling not happy ( or displeasure )
外に でなきゃ = 外に でない IF not outside ( or literally means “going outside”)
いけなくて ＝ いけない Not allow / don’t do
Thanks for your advice.
Cheers
Kenz
@Kenz
Hi Kenz
外にでる = go outside
外にでなければいけない=(the dog) has to go outside
→(casual contraction)
外にでなきゃいけない
→て form
外にでなきゃいけなくて = has to go outside and…/ Because the dog has to go out
Hi Maggie Sensei
わかりました。
A million thanks for your advice. You’re the best. !happyface!
Regards
Kenz
＠Kenz
どういたしまして、Kenz! :)
いつもありがとうございます！
今まで私は「し」の使い方がわかりません。
でも、今わかります。
マギー先生は詳しい説明を教えたし、説明はかんたんだし、私はやっと分かります！
@Alec
こんにちは、Alex!
それはよかったです！
(少しだけ直しますね。今まで「し」の使い方がわかりません。→わかりませんでした
今、わかります・私はやっと分かります→今、わかりました/ やっと分かりました。）
これ一つ、欲しいんですけど…
[hoshiin] desu kedo
[hoshiin] dakedo
[tsuittaa]
[kurasshikku] konsaato ni ikanai
[datta]
= Kore hitotsu, [hoshin]
Ex. 千円貸して欲しいんだけど…
= Sen-en kashite [hoshinn]
ツイッター !koujichuu! [tsuitta]
Sensei: Sukoshi wa !koujichuu! [benkoyu] [benkyou]shitara?
Issho ni !koujichuu! kurasshiku
!koujichuu! だった ( = katta)
@zoheb
Thank you, my spell checking angel!!! boucingheart!
いつも本当にありがとう！！
Love, !CHECKHEART!
Hi Maggie-sensei! Thanks for the explanations regarding そう.
I have a question: what about te-form + そう？
Does it have the meaning of “It looks like it is engaged in that particular activity/state”?
For example, パンを買ってそうだ。 Does it mean, “It looks like (they are) currently buying bread”?
Any clarification would be appreciated.
Thanks!
@Jeremy
Hi Jeremy
I think what you meant is this pattern.
〜ていそう
→casual contraction てそう
OK, パンを買っている＋そうだ。→パンを買っていそうだ→(casual contraction) パンを買ってそうだ
Ex. 彼女はお弁当は作らずに毎日パンを買って（い）そうだ。
She appears to be a person who buys bread everyday without making boxed lunch.
If you want to say
“It looks like (they are) currently buying bread”?
パンを買っているみたいだ。・パンを買っているようだ。
I just found your website! Thank you so much for all the lessons! (*^▽^*)
Maggie-sensei, I was wondering if you could give me tips on looking for internships in Japan? At the moment I’m in my second year of artschool (I study 2d animation) and next year I will have to do an internship. I would absolutely love to do an internship in Japan in the animation industry if possible.
My japanese languange skills are at beginner level. Would you still recommend me to use the Japanese format for my resume? And if so, would it be better to submit it in japanese or in english? I’m afraid that if I fill it in in Japanese it will create the impression that my Japanese is better than it actually is.
Thank you!
@Kani
Hi Kani,
Welcome to our site!
It depends on the company where you want to work. Some companies requires Japanese resume but for example if you work for a language school, English resume is just enough. But if you want to work for an animation industry, I’d say you should prepare Japanese resume.
The best thing is to ask them the format of your resume.
Thank you very much for the advice :)
@Kani
You’re welcome! :)
Happy Mother’s day to your mother dear Maggie sensei and Ma’am Yukari. I hope your mothers and you are having a good time tonight. Thank you so much for being born !JYANE!
@obakasan
Hi orikousan!
Thank you so much for the sweetest message!
Happy Mother’s Day to you and your mother,2u2! :k:
ありがとう！ !CHECKHEART!
Hi sensei, I have a question regarding the imperative form of “te miru”.
Is it “te miro” or “te miyo”?
The masu-stem of “miru” is “mi” isn’t it?
Besides, in Sanada Maru drama I heard them say ????? and the English translation was “Speak up”.
Thank you.
sorry sensei, ????? = 申してみよ
Please edit if possible.
Thanks
＠Ali
Hi Ali,
The imperative form of “te miru” is “te miro” and “te miyo”. “te miyo” is an old form so you may hear/see it in historical stories, Samurai drama, etc.
hello Maggie sensei^^
I missed you :w:
in this sentence:
Kono hen de tsuki goman en gurai de ii appato wa arimasuka?
why did you say ( kono hen de) instead of( kono hen ni) since we are taking about location?
thank you
@Roro
Hi Roro! 久しぶり！！
Ah good question.
You are right. When you talk about location, you should say この辺”に” ~ ありますか？ but this で is to indicate a condition, around here.
Ex. 月１０万円でいい物件はありますか？
= Tsuki juuman en de ii bukken wa arimasuka?
Ex. 駅の近くでいい物件はありますか？
= Eki no chikaku de ii bukken wa arimasu ka?
Ex. 築１０年でいい物件はありますか？
= Chiku juunen de ii bukken wa arimasu ka?
These で are all to indicate some condition.
Ahaa, I see.. so it is like when I say:
kore de ii no?
I already know about this uasage but it seems like I got confused since it was used with location…
thank you Maggie sensei boucingheart!
@Roro
“kore de ii no”?
Yes, it is exactly the same usage.
If you are simply asking for location, just use “ni”.
It’s a relief to know -au doesn’t have any weird conjugations; just a compound verb like ugokihajimeru and others, I assume. Whew!
Okay, so using “phrase” + toki when I want to speak about a certain occurrence is better in this case- “phrase” + koto ga aru is a bit long, and “phrase” + no is more explanatory, and “phrase” + nara is referring to something that happens after so that doesn’t work either… And teineigo definitely makes more sense by shortening the sentence.
Thank you sensei!
What I’ve noticed is Yappari is used SO much by Japanese people. It’s like a special word that defies the usual translation rules and has it’s own usage style.
@Elliot
This is a mini lesson but there are so many more way to use it.
I will add more usages when I have time.
Thanks for all of your hard work, Maggie.
I was wondering if it’s possible to use 久しぶりに～ in a negative sentence?
i.e. “I haven’t used Japanese in a long time” -> “久しぶりに日本語が使わなかった”
If not, could you give an example of an alternative that I could use in this situation?
Thanks! :)
@Daniel
Hello Daniel,
You can use 久しぶりに in a negative sentence only when you haven’t done something for the first time in a long time.
Ex. 久しぶりに仕事をしなかった。
= Hisashiburi ni shigoto wo shinakatta.
= I didn’t work for the first time in a long time.
But if you haven’ done for a long time, you say
*ずっと〜していない
= Zutto ~ shite inai
*長い間〜していない
= Nagai aida ~ shite inai
*しばらく〜していない
= Shibaraku ~ shite inai
“I haven’t used Japanese in a long time”
= ずっと/長い間/ しばらく日本語の勉強をしていない。(or 日本語を勉強していない）
= Zutto / Nagaiaida / Shibaraku nihongo no benkyou wo shiteinai. (or nihongo wo benkyou shiteinai)
ありがとうございます！
Thank you!
The sentence you gave means “I haven’t studied Japanese in a long time”, could I just say 長い間日本語が使わなかった for “I haven’t used Japanese in a long time”?
@Daniel Crane
久しぶりに〜した and 長い間〜していない are different.
1) I haven’t used Japanese in a long time.
= 長い間、日本語を使っていない。
(Focusing the time when you haven’t studied Japanese.)
the listeners/readers think the speaker/writer hasn’t studied Japanese for a long time up to now.
2) I used Japanese for the first time in a long time.
久しぶりに日本語を使った。
(Focusing on the fact that you used Japanese.)
Konnichiwa inu wa kawaidesu :-P :-P :-P :-P :-P :-D :-D :-D
!DANCING! !DANCING! !DANCING! !DANCING! !DANCING! !DANCING! !DANCING!
@Kona-san
Konnichiwa, Kona-san.
I know Cece-Sensei is so cute! boucingheart!
Konbanwa Maggie Sensei,
Kono kotoba au wa, teinei gokei ga nandesuka? Tatoeba, hanasu ga hanashiau wo nattanara, teinei wo imasutai to hanashiaimasu itte mo ii desuka?
Eigo de,
Good evening Sensei,
About au, what is it’s polite form? For example, after hanasu becomes hanashiau if I want to be polite, should I say hanashiaimasu?
Also, if anything I say in Japanese has incorrect grammar or something, please correct me! ^^ I really need to get better I think…
Arigato gozaimasu!!! !Anapple! !greenapple! !greenapple!
@Shiani
Hi Shiani
Yes, the masu form of 合う(= au) is 合います(= aimasu)
話し合う(=hanashiau) →話し合います ( = hanashiaimasu)
**
OK, let me help your Japanese.
Tatoeba, hanasu ga hanashiau wo nattanara, teinei wo imasutai to hanashiaimasu itte mo ii desuka?
→There are a few ways to say this but how about
Tatoeba, hanasu ga hanashiau ni nattatoki teineigo wa hanashiaimasu de ii desu ka?
Hi Sensei!
I’ve been studying some sentence patterns with ~にしても。。
so, does
マギーのケーキ、小さくてもいい？
roughly equate to
マギーのケーキ、小さくにしてもいいですか？
Thanks
@daniel
Hi Daniel
They are little different.
小さくてもいい？ = Is small one OK? / Is it OK if it is small?
小さくしてもいい？= Can I make it small/ Is it OK to make it small?
先生 どうも ありがとう ございます。 、、、、、、、、、、
＠subhankar chanda
どういたしまして boucingheart!
こんにちわマギー先生！
I’ve been using your blog for grammar notes for some time now, and they have been very helpful!
レッスン作ってくれてありがとう！
I wanted to ask about the difference between 台所 and 厨房. Both means ‘kitchen’, but what is the difference in usage?
@ジュちゃん
こんにちは、ジュちゃん！
Happy to hear you have been using my site.
You use 台所 for your family kitchen. (In old day we used to call it 厨房）
厨房 is mainly used for a kitchen in a restaurants, coffee shops, or big places.
Maggie sensei why are japanese people use number and character in their username? Is there any special way to read ’em? Please answerrrr
@April
A lot of sites which require us to set a password or username using alphabet and numbers for security reason.
For example, if you want to register your username, “April”, I am sure it is already taken. So you just mix it up with other alphabet or numbers.
boucingheart!
thanky for help . I m in process of translation selected part of ” Hotaru no hikari ” as my base for cach up possibility for speaking . Yoroshikugozaimasu !
＠wlad kioshi nowak
Ganabatte! !JYANE!
(yoroshikugozaimasu →I think you mean “Yoroshiku onegai shimasu”)
勉強になるレッスンをありがとうございます。
マギーにしては綴りの間違いが少ないんですよ。お見事。多分、つめを切ったのかなあ。 !JYANE!
“Watashi wa nihongo no sensei ni shitewa kannji wo yoku wasureru.”
“kanji”
そういえば、”わりに”は、漢字とかなは、どちらのほうが確立された書き方ですか。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
ほんと？一つしか間違えていなかった？奇跡ですね。
やっぱり爪は切らないといけませんね。
「割に」：今、Googleでもチェックしてみましたが、漢字で使う方が多いです。
こんにちはマッギ先生、
この授業をありがとうございます！！！
ほとんど分かってきましたけど、まだ二つの問題があります。
『Aという人 は Bという人 に 食べさせる』と『Aという人 は Bという人 を 食べさせる』はどう違いますか？私には、両方を英語に訳すと『A let/made B eat』と言います。
二つ目は、『犬を散歩させる』と『犬に散歩をさせる』どう違いますか？『take the dog for a walk』という意味として両方使えますか？最初の文の方がいい気がしますけど、理由は分からないです！
よろしくお願いします。
@Johnny
こんにちは、Johnny
*例外もありますが、基本的に「に」を使うときはBが自分の意思で食べるときに使います。ただ、目的語に食べ物がはいると「を」は「に」に変わります。
A lets B eat / A feeds B *= Aは、Bに食べさせる
A makes B eat = Aは、Bを食べさせる
A lets B eat a banana. = AはBにバナナを食べさせる。
A makes B eat a banana = AはBにバナナを食べさせる
* Note: 「〜させる」はmake/let someone do somethingですが、
「食べさせる」には
“A makes / lets B eat”
に、もう一つ意味が加わります。”A feeds B ”
『犬を散歩させる』『犬に散歩をさせる』
どちらも使えますが、普通は、『犬を散歩させる』の方をよく使います。
『犬を散歩させる』の方が、飼い主さんが犬をコントロールしていますが、『犬に散歩をさせる』だと犬に好きなように散歩をさせているように聞こえるかもしれませんね。
I don’t get why you dont use tearu for when you are wearing things,the verbs of wearing are obviously transitive and you put clothes on on purpose and keep wearing them.
シャツをきています。 wear a shirt
ズボンをはいています。 wear pants
@Frendo12
The verb “to wear/to put on”, you use ている／ています
S is/are wearing something
(Check ている lesson 5)
帽子をかぶっている
ズボンをはいている
化粧（けしょう= make up)をつけている
describe the state of the person who wear those or will of the person who is wearing those.
However, if you are talking about a mannequin, you can say
マネキンにシャツを着せてある。
マネキンにズボンをはかせてある。
Someone put the shirt/pants on the mannequin (on purpose)
It doesn’t matter who did/does it. You describe the result of an action (putting on).
Hi Sensei,
I have been watching anime lately and I notice some characters like to use the word ” korosareru ” when they are in trouble. As I know, causative passive is the subject being forced to do something. How is that applicable to korosareru???
@anne
Hi Anne,
OK 殺す= korosu = to kill →passive form 殺される= korosareru= I will be killed (→They are (or He/She is) going to kill me!)
If you want to learn more about passive form, check my passive form lesson.
Thanks Sensei! I figured out the mistake. The causative passive form for korosu is actually korosaserareru. You have pointed it out. Thanks again. But there is another case though. I learned that serareru can be colloquial which is sareru~ But I cant seem to find the word korosasareru on the net which I think might be wrong. Please help ;(
@Anne
You want to say “someone makes me kill someone”?
Then 殺させられる= korosaserareru
But Sensei is there any colloquial form for “korosaserareru”? As said, I read some verbs were shorten from serareru to sareru for godan verbs though. For example kakaserareru become kakasareru. Can korosaserareru becomes korosasareru?
@anne
OK, in that case, you could day 殺さされる = korosasareru as a colloquial shorten version. :)
「にしては」のレッスンを待っていましたよ。ワクワクしてます~
ひとつが気になりましたけど
どうして「私にしては最近、日本語がんばってるよ。」は言えますけど、「私は日本語の先生にしては漢字をよく忘れる。」は不自然ですか？
I’m not sure what you mean by seeing yourself objectively in the first sentence. What makes the second sentence subjective compared to the first one?
@ Marianne
こんにちは！
質問のところですが、あとからみんなから質問くるかなあって思っていました。
★私にしては〜 is OK
Ex. 私にしては +(Ex, よくやった・がんばった・続いている）
★私は、〜にしては is not natural.
Ex. 彼は２０歳にしてはなんでもよく知っている。
X 私は２０歳にしてはなんでもよく知っている。(Not natural)
説明ありがとうございました！そうだとって思っていましたけど確認したかったです
One more thing; does 「質問のところですが、あとからみんなから質問くるかなあって思っていました。」 mean something like “Although I’m already getting questions, I thought people would start asking them later.”?
Sorry for my silly reading comprehension ^^;
＠Marianne
直訳すると、こんな感じですよ。
As for your question (= the part you have asked me), I thought someone might have asked me later.
Thank you so much Maggie sensei^^
Have a nice day !ohisama!
@Marianne
どういたしまして！Marianneもいい日を過ごしてね。:)
Yay, a new lesson! This one is very good. Thanks for another great lesson. Question: Is this form interchangeable with ても?
Like is 子供だっても力があるね。 okay? It sounds unnatural to me, but I thought I should ask anyway.
＠reid
Hi reid,
子供だっても→子供でも力があるね
子供でも力があるね。
子供にしては力があるね。
Yes, they are very similar and the translation could be the same
To be precise,
ても・でも = even though / but
子供でも He/She is a child but / Though he/she is a child
子供にしては for a child
Oh I see. Thanks. As a follow up question, would that also be true for ても・でも and なのに?
子供でも力があるね。 is interchangeable with 子供なのに力があるね。?
Thanks again!
@red
They mean the same.
子供でも力があるね。
子供なのに力があるね。
I would say なのに sounds slightly stronger.
there is one of the という variants i see a lot(TV,internet,interviews,books) but i never understand the meaning. how to use “ということで”?. sometimes i see ということで in the middle of a phrase and sometimes solely.
@ivan
ということで is used when you conclude the result.
(You explain some situation / reason )
ということで〜 therefore
ということで is more formal or i can use in casual speech too?
@ivan
ということで is a little formal but you can use in a daily conversation.
If you want to make is sound very casual, you say てことで / ってことで
This lesson is really helpful. I wonder if you would have another lesson about ‘v stem + こむ’?
Thank you.
@J
Good to hear that. I will add V+こむ on the request list. :)
こんにちは、マギー 先生
ひとつ聞いてもいいですか。『ずにはいられない 』と『て仕方がない』の違いは何ですか。『ずにはいられない』より『て仕方がない』を使った方がいい場合があるのですか。
そして、他に同じ事を伝える方法がありますか。マギーの答えを読むといつも勉強になるので、ニュアンスを教えてくれませんか。そういえば、日本語で何か書くのは初めてなので、どうですか。読んでもちゃんと分かりますか。
ありがとうございます。
Sorry if you can’t understand this. I’ll type it in English if you don’t
@Danny G
こんにちは、Danny G!
日本語で書くのは初めて？よく書けていますよ。
Both 「〜（たく）て仕方ない」and「ずにはいられない」are used to describe one’s crave.
Let’s compare the following sentences.
Ex. A; 彼に会いたくて仕方ない。
I want to see him badly.
Ex. B: 彼に会わずにはいられない。
I can’t help seeing him.
A and B both express one’s strong feelings for him.
But A implies the speaker hasn’t seen him so that she is missing him badly.
And B implies no matter how often she sees him, she wants to see him again.
The main difference is,
〜（たく）て仕方ない ＝to want to do something badly
(focusing on one’s desire to do something)
You may not be doing it now /You haven’t done it but you want to do it badly.
ずにはいられない = can’t help doing something
You are doing something because you can’t help it.
(You may not want to do it but you can’t help doing it.)
***
Also while ずにはいられない express when you can’t control your feelings, 〜（たく）て仕方ない is based on your will. (willing to do something badly)
So you can say,
彼のことを考えずにはいられない
I can’t help thinking about him. (You can’t control your feeling)
but
彼のことを考えたくて仕方ない (strange)
= I want to think about him badly.
does’t sound natural.
なるほど。 ニュアンスが少しわかりにくいですね。では、日本語で『I can’t help but eat pizza』を伝えたい場合は、『ピザを食べずにはいられない』を使えばいいですか。 そして、『I can’t help but want to become a doctor』なら、『医者になりたくて仕方ない』を日本語に訳してもいいでしょう? こんな感じはどうですか。
わかりやすく説明してくれてありがとうございます。
Thanks again :)
@Danny G
そうですね。英語の”I can’t help but eat pizza”のときは「ピザを食べずにはいられない」で “I have a craving for a pizza. “のときは「ピザを食べたくて仕方ない。」と考えたらどうでしょう。
“I can’t help but want to become a doctor” (If the feeling is kind of out of control) =文法的には「医者になりたくて仕方ない」と考えていいと思います。
ただ、医者になるのは大変なので”〜たくて仕方ない”という言葉を使うにはちょっと重いかもしれませんね。
返事が遅れてしまってすみません。なるほど。わかりやすい説明のおかげで、全部分かるのでしょう?
でも、最近ドラマとかアニメとかであまり 聞いていないから、『ずにはいられない』という文法は話し言葉かどうかを考えずにはいられない。教えてくれませんか。ありがとうございます。
どうですか。正しく使っているのですか。
@Danny G
『ずにはいられない』という文法は話し言葉かどうかを考えずにはいられない。→はい、使い方、合っていますよ。
そうですね。話し言葉でも使いますよ。
また、話し言葉では、『ずにはいられない』の代わりに
どうしても〜しちゃう（してしまう）という言い方もします。
どうしても考えてしまう。→どうしても考えちゃう。
Hi Maggie,
When do I use お〜になる and when do I use ukemi(受身) as keigo?
Also, does it not confuse the listener since passive form is also keigo?
Thank you!
@Man Hua
O-V ni naru is more polite than reru/rareru form
And you don’t get keigo reru-rareru and passive reru-rareru if you pay attention to the context and particles.
この本はAによって書かれた。
= Kono hon wa A ni yotte kakareta.
= This book was written by A.
Aさんがこの本を書かれた。
= A san ga kono hon wo kakareta.
= A -san wrote this book.
Maggie sensei.
If 2000年前 means 2000 years ago, then how to say “before 2000” (e.g: 1999, 1900).
Thank you.
@Rudi
Hi Rudi
before 2000
You can say 2000年以前（izen)
Thank you Maggie Sensei.
I learn a lot from this website.
@Rudi
You’re welcome, Rudi!
Maggie sensei,
Konnichiha.
Do you have a lesson which shows different ways on how to express “during” or “when” situations.
Sample:
when i went to hokkaido, i visited a hot spring. or
while i was riding the train, i saw fuji san.
and a lot more variations/tenses which can be categorized under such situations..
arigatou maggie sensei!
!DANCING!
i always visit your site, as it is wakariyasui.. boucingheart!
@geler
Hi geler,
I don’t have a lesson non during/when but a lesson on “when” is on the request list.
I should work on it soon. :)
Thanks maggie sensei for the quick response.
But would it be okay with you if you could answer this last question that i have..
What is the difference with these following expressions and in what situations are they used?
I am really confused and i cannot proceed.. Thank you in advance for your time and effort.
– aida ( soujishiteru aida)
– aida ni ( benyoushiteiru aidani)
– aidajuu (notteiru aidajuu)
– saichuu ( uketeiru saichuu ni)
– tochuu (kaeru tochuu ni)
– and lastly, toki and toki ni…
Sincerely,
geler :cryingboy: !JYANE!
@geler
As you can tell by the length of my lessons, it is impossible to explain the whole difference and usages in this comment section but I will just give you one example each, OK?
間（に）aida (ni) = while / during
souji shiteiru aida (ni) = while S is cleaning
Ex. ははが、いえのそうじをしているあいだ、そとにでかけた。
= Haha ga ie no souji wo shite iru aida, soto ni dekaketa.
= I went out while my mother was cleaning the house.
間に aida ni
You often omit the particle “ni” but when you emphasize the meaning you use “ni”
Ex. ははが、いえのそうじをしているあいだに、そとにでかけることにしよう。
= Haha ga, ie no souji wo shite iru aida ni, soto ni dekakeru koto ni shiyou.
= I guess I am going out while my mother is cleaning the house.
間中 aidajuu = during the whole time/ when some action has been taken a place the whole time.
Ex. 彼は、タクシーに乗っているあいだじゅう、ずっとしゃべっていた。
= Kare wa, takushii ni notte iru aidajuu, zutto shabette ita.
= He was talking the whole time when he was on the taxi.
最中 saichuu = in the middle of some action/during some action
Ex. 試験（しけん）を受けている最中（さいちゅう）にベルが鳴った。
= Shiken wo ukete iru saichuu ni beru ga natta.
= The bell rang right during the exam.
途中= tochuu = on the way
Ex. 帰る途中にラーメン屋に寄った。
= Kaeru tochuu ni raamen ya ni yotta.
= I stopped by a ramen shop on the way home.
とき = when
困った時は言ってください。
= Komatta toki wa itte kudasai.
= Let me know when you are in trouble.
このカップは日本に去年行ったときに買いました。
= Kono kappu wa nihon ni kyonen itta toki ni kaimashita.
= I bought this cup when I went to Japan last year.
Hello Maggie sensei,
Good day!
My apologies for the very late response.
Thank you very much for your effort. This is a great help and now i also understand each expressions better.
You are the best!
Thank you!
Sincerely,
geler
@geler
You’re very welcome, geler! :)
Sensei could you explain how to ask a station master/someone if certain trains/bus are covered by a travel pass?
For example,
Will this bus that go to Motosuko lake fee is covered by Fuji-Hakone pass?
Thank you for your time! !heart3! !heartsippai! !heart3!
@Jane
Hi Jane,
There are many ways to ask that question but
first
富士箱根周遊券= Fuji Hakone Shuuyuuken = Fuji Hakone pass
本栖湖= Motosuko (Lake)
~ 行きのバス=~ iki no basu = a bus that goes to ~
使えますか？= Tsukaemasu ka? = Can I use
乗れますか？ = Noremasu ka? = Can I get on
Basic pattern:
(destination ) iki no basu wa ( Pass ) ga tsukaemasu ka? (Can I/we use ~ pass for the bus to (destination) )
(destination ) iki no basu wa ( Pass ) de noremasu ka? (Can I/we get on a bus that goes to (destination)
Motosuko iki no basu wa Fuji-Hakone shuuyuuken de noremasu ka?
Motosuko iki no basu wa FUji-Hankone shuuyuuken ga tsukaemasu ka?
how do i use the word “感じ”? i know it means “feeling” but sometimes i feel like this word its in the phrase just to make the phrase bigger, because i dont see the word “feeling” fitting in most of the phrases i read.
:cryingboy: !cryingboy!
@ivan
Hi Ivan,
“to make the phrase bigger” →Do you have any examples?
One of the colloquial usages of 感じ is “like”/ something
It’s like I did something wrong. = なんか私が悪いことでもしたみたいな感じ。
Is it like this? = こんな感じ？
I think the “like and “something” meaning fit the phrases i saw.
one more doubt, lets say i do something or i say something to some person and this person says to me 「感じ!!!」, what it means?
@ivan
You don’t use 感じ solely.
If you say something/do something and someone says something, then it could be
そんな感じ。
Yes, just like that.
Maggie-Sensei, can you explain how the movie Warui Natsu Hodo Yoku Nemuru uses hodo? Your post seems exhaustive, and maybe it’s my yoku-nai nihongo, but I don’t see a use that fits it. Arigatoo!
@Kristi
Hi Kristi,
I should have covered the usage.
When speaker express their opinion how things works or gives some stereotyped phenomenon/person.
adjective + noun+ ほど ~
= the more noun gets (adjective) ~ (what likely to be/happens)
悪い奴ほどよく眠る
= Warui yatsu hodo yoku nemuru.
= The bad guy sleeps better.(The bad guys sleep better) (The worse guy you are, the better you sleep.)
Konbanwa Maggie-Sensei,
Kare ga yonde oku 
Kare ga yondoku”
Teru ga teku mitai, toku no “slang” ga “verbs ending with de in their te form” de tsukaemasuka?
-I’ll write this in English too, since my Japanese is horrible !shoshinsha!
Like teru and teku, can the toku slang be used with verbs ending in de when conjugated to that form? Then, would it be used like
“He reads in preparation
Arigato gozaimasu sensei!
@Shiani
Ohayou, Shiani!
Yes,
to read in preparation = 本を読んでおく (=hon wo yonde oku) →本を読んどく(=Hon wo yondoku)
Thank you!
@Shiani
You’re very welcome. :)
The paper just came in the mail asking if I want to renew my contract. I LOVE my location but it would be great to find a better ventilated room. I know its a long shot but do you know anything about JikoBukken? Are they really hard to come by in nice areas? There doesnt seem to be much information on them in central Tokyo
@Darkumbra
Jiko Bukken is a place where someone was murdered, committed suicide or other incident happened.
People avoid this type of places so usually they are cheaper.
If you find a cheap place for the location, you could ask the real estate agents if that place is not such a place.
Good luck on finding a nice place!
FYI (ventilated room = 換気のいい部屋＝kanki no ii heya)
凄いな授業をありがとうございますマギー先生 :-D :-D
@Lucas
どういたしまして！サイトに来てくれてありがとう、Lucas!
(凄いな→凄い／すごい）
Is there any connection to this ～め and the negative ～め we see in movie dialog?
For example, バカめ seems pretty rude, while this adj+め can be used in polite situations.
My dictionary lists the kanji for both as 目 (but I suspect this is just 当て字).
Any thoughts?
@randome guy with an internet connection
There is a suffix ~め
noun + め
It is a male speech and as you said it is pretty rude and it is often used to curse someone/something or show your anger or frustration.
Ex. このバカめ！
I wouldn’t use the kanji 目 for that usage. You usually use hiragana.
先生、助けてください！
I am teaching senior Japanese for the first time, and one of the sections in the textbook is about using そうな and そうに, and I am struggling to explain the difference to them.
It has been a few years since I have used my Japanese, so getting it all back is difficult!
@Stephanie
Hi Stephanie,
Are you a Japanese teacher?
そうな modifies a noun and is used as an adjective.
（かばんから）落ちそうな財布
a wallet which is almost falling from a bag.落ちそうな modifies 財布（さいふ）
泣きそうな顔
almost crying face
泣きそうな modifies 顔（かお）face
そうに modifies a verb and it is used as an adverb
美味しそうに食べる
to eat something happily
美味しそうに modifies a verb, 食べる
It is often use with a verb ~なる
〜そうになる = to become/ come to almost ~
泣きそうになる
落ちそうになる
くじけそうになる
面白いレッスンありがとうございます。
“Wasabi wa sukoshi me ni onegai shimasu.”
“sukuname”
ちょっととろめだから、例文の助詞の使い方を説明していただけませんか。
今日は、デートだからいつもより多めにお金を持っていこう。 Why “に” instead of “の”, as I would think “多め” modifies ”お金”?
よろしくお願いします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. :)
多めに modifies a verb 持って行く. It is an adverb.
（ご飯を多めに作る）
多めのお金を持って行こう works too.
多め modifies お金 so it is an adjective.
Ohh, Thanks for this lesson! I have never noticed this expression before, though I might have heard it somewhere.
@reid
You’re very welcome. You will hear a lot in a restaurant here. (Ex. ごはん、多め/少なめにお願いします。etc.) :)
Thank you so much for compiling this! I came across the expression どごの馬の骨 in a comic today and had no idea what it meant. Now not only do I know but I found a big list of other cool expressions to learn. Thanks again! :)
@Tony
Hello Tony
I am glad you found the information here. There are tons of animal related expressions. Hope you can learn a few more. :)
Oh my goodness it’s so long.. I should have just emailed that… That’s embarrassing… Please, delete that if you can…!!!
＠Brews
OK, I did. :)
But there is no email that you can ask me a question…
If you can, try to make one or two question at a time. I can help you.
hello does this comment work
@S
Hello s,
All your comments were in Pending Files. I erased other comments as you wrote.
I have to authorized your comments first. I assume it should appear from the second time.
It’s interesting to know difference between male/female speech. Thank you for the great lessons!
I read quite often: ありがとうなんだよ。is this also to masculine or can it be used by female?
@MilkySnow
Hello Milky Show!
ありがとうなんだよ: I don’t think it is common. (Personally I have never heard/seen people using it.)
But ありがとよ/ ありがとな is a male speech and it is pretty rough.
弱い = よわい !koujichuu! ( = yowame
[yowai] ) weak !niconico!
@zoheb
Thank you, my spell check angel! !heart3! !CHECKHEART! boucingheart!
If you were resigning from a position at a place of business, what phrase would be more appropriate in thanking your employer for taking care of you during your time with the company?
@cora
Either you say thank you or say sorry for all the troubles.
長い間お休みを頂き有り難うございました。
= Nagai aida oyasumi wo itadaki arigatou gozaimashita.
= Thank you for giving me a long vacation.
長い間、お休みを取らせて頂き、ご迷惑をおかけいたしました。
= Nagai aida, oyasumi wo torasete itadaki, gomeiwaku wo okake itashimashita.
= Sorry for all the trouble during my absence.
And then you can continue
今日からまたよろしくお願いいたします。
= Kyou kara mata yoroshiku onegai itashimasu.
There isn’t equivalent translation in English but it means,
(= Thank you in advance for letting me work from today.)
Hello,
I’ve heard my Japanese teacher say ’この椅子は座りやすい’ how would you translate this into English without it sounding strange?
＠Kristina
Hi Kristina
I would say
This chair is comfortable.
Konbanwa Maggie-Sensei,
Watashi wa, kono tatoede wakatte imasu kara, moshi “ikareru” no imi ga “crazy” desu, dou ga kore hatarakimasu ka?
Ex. どこへ行かれるんですか？
= Doko ye ikarerun desu ka?
= Where would you like to go?
Sumimasen!- watashi ga “wakatte imasen” imi shita.
@Shiani
Haha, you know the word いかれる crazy?
OK, this 行かれる in the example sentence is a polite form of 行く＝いく= iku = to go
どこへ行きますか？
= Doko ye ikimasuka?
→どこへ行くんですか？
= Doko ye ikun desu ka?
→(polite) どこへ行かれるんですか？
= Doko ye ikarerun desu ka?
Huh, I’ve never seen that form before- is it derived from irassharu, or from iku’s dekiru form? Otherwise, how does this conjugation work?
You really reply to everyone ! We’re so lucky to have you.
I’ll take a look at that lesson ! Thank you very much
@Edu
You’re welcome! And I am very to have you all. :)
Thank you for your lessons. You really should consider to make a series of books to learn Japanese. Congratulations!
Just one question: do you have any lesson using “shimau” (at the end of the sentences) ?
Best!
@Edu
Hi Edu,
Thank YOU for the nice comment.
I don’t have a lesson on しまう but please check ちゃう・ちゃった lesson. It is a casual form of しまう. I explained some of the usages of しまう there.
Doushite “dare NI Nihongo wo naraitai?’?
And not “dare kara”??
This always confuses me. Itsumon mono energy koto wo komateiru.
＠tordy
You can say “Dare kara nihongo wo naraitai?”
This function of に is to indicate the source, “from”
Ex. 誰からその時計をもらったの？
= Dare kara sono tokei wo moratta no?
= (Lit) From whom did you receive the watch?
= Who gave you the watch?
→You can say
誰にその時計をもらったの？
= Dare ni sono tokei wo moratta no?
Ex. 父から時計をもらった。
= Chichi kara tokei wo moratta.
= I received the watch from my father.
→You can also say
父に時計をもらった。
= Chichi ni tokei wo moratta.
You often see this type of に with passive form, and the verbs such as 習う／教えてもらう
Ex. マギー先生から日本語を教えてもらった。
＝ Maggie sensei ni nihongo wo oshiete moratta.
Ex. マギー先生に日本語を教えてもらった。
＝ Maggie sensei ni nihongo wo oshiete moratta.
@Hyo
In short,
がいいです= I like ~ / I prefer ~
でいいです = Something/someone is just fine. (I don’t care)
hi Maggie sensei, !happyface!
Thanks to this site that im learning japanese much easier than before. :) thank you so much sensei!
As for this lesson. just want to ask something about this no. 2 meaning of tsuite which it also means to accompany, to come with something extra, to be attached, right?
Where is the tsuite action in this example?
母がずっとついて看病をしてくれた。
= Haha ga zutto tsuite kanbyou wo shite kureta.
= My mother was taking care of me the whole time.
gomen ne… im kinda slow on this! hehehe thank you in advance. !heart3! !heart3! !heart3!
@Jheanne Dee
Hello Jehanne!
Yes, ついて in that sentence means “to accompany/to be with someone”
My mother was being with me the whole time and took care of me.
Could せる or させる mean
マッギはブルスが書かせる。
“Maggie enables Brews intention to write.”?
@Brew
Hi Brew,
せる・させる= causative verb = to make someone do something/ to let someone do something
マギーはブルスに書かせる
= Maggie makes Brews write (something)
@Maggie-Sensei
Oh! Please forgive me
… I wrote this thought on the wrong page.. and I even wrote the example wrong. I said “Brews makes Maggie write.”… opps.
I know you’re dear. マギーはブルースに日本語を学ばせる。
@Brew
No worries. There is nothing to apologize. :)
Brews makes Maggie write = BrewsはMaggieに書かせる（かかせる）
Thank you for another great lesson, besides grammar I love your casualspeechlessons best. I’ve been working on honorifics lately and whats left then is to learn how to talk dirty. I hope you do a lesson on that too sometime… :)
Some typos, funnily all extra syllables. You have to contract your romaji too, you know!
“sanjuppun”
“kangaete”
“katazuketoku”
“Mou sanjuppunb mo matteru…”
“Dare no koto wo, kanngaete iru no?”
“Ato wa katazuketetoku kara.”
And some questions:
1. まあ、寝せとこうかな。What kind of contraction is that? 寝させとこう (寝させておこう) I would understand, so is 寝せる the “さ抜き言葉” of 寝させる?
2. I recently saw 出てけば translated as “Go!”. Is this a contracted ba-form, and if so, I still don’t get the translation?
3. Concerning contracted -ba forms, I often hear it for 一段 verbs (z.B 見れば–>見りゃ), and in some expressions (そうすれば–>そうすりゃ; そういえば–>そういや), but I wonder, can you use them for all 五段 verbs as well? If so, what would the forms be for 買う、帰る、待つ、話す、書く、泳ぐ、飲む、遊ぶ?
よろしくお願いします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you so much for spotting the typos. I fixed them.
1. 寝せておく is more colloquial way to say 寝させておく/寝かせておく。
(I added the information in the lesson.)
2. 出てけば is contraction of 出ていけば
This ば is a suggestion. (出てけば（いいじゃない）⇦出ていけば（いいではないですか））
Why don’t you leave.
3. OK, these sound really casual but
買う→買や
帰る→帰りゃ
待つ→待ちゃ
書く→書きゃ
泳ぐ→泳ぎゃ
飲む→のみゃあ
遊ぶ→遊びゃ
Thank you Cookie-sensei.
This I heard all the time and never was sure what grammar they represent.
The hyperlink to “～ておく” is broken.
@Emin
Thank you, Emin.
I fixed the link. ありがとう :)
Thanks For Lesson #Maggie_Sensei !CHECKHEART!
But I’ve Got A Mark; While I’ve Been Watching Anime, I Used To Hear Sentence Like:
(“N Na” Koto / “N Na” Mono), And I Thought If “N Na” Could Be A Kind Of Abbreviation Of (Anna)
Is It A Way Of Sense ?!
@Kibounokata
Hi Kibounokata,
Yes you sometimes drop the first letter, (especially そ)
Ex. んなことあるわけないだろ。(rough/male speech)
= There is no way.
:pika: :pika: Dōmo Arigatō Gozaimasu Sensei, Much Of A Help :k: :tulip2:
@Kibounokata
Dou itashimashite! :)
Hello
I have this: nakanaka doushite
And I just don’t get it. Does that actually mean anytingh?
@ruchi
Hi ruchi,
なかなかどうして is an expression and it stresses the meaning of “なかなか”
You use this expression when someone/something is better than what you have expected.
Ex. 彼は歌は下手だと思っていたらなかなかどうして上手だった。
= Kare wa uta wa heta dato omotte itara nakanaka doushite jouzu datta.
= I thought he was a bad singer but he was pretty good in fact.
boucingheart! Thanks!
@Ruchi
You’re very welcome! :)
使い方は恐ろしいほど多いですね
でも、私にはまだ分からない文章を見つけました。
この歌の歌詞の中にあります： http://blog.livedoor.jp/eland4771/archives/1043961433.html
「悲しいほどに美しいまま生きた」
（その歌はちょっと幻想的ですから、言葉遣いが珍しいかもしれないと分かっています）
まずは「(she) lived as beautiful as (she was) sad」という意味だと思いましたけれど、このページを読んだときに「(she) lived so beautifully that it was sad」だと決めました。どちらが正しいですか？
このレスの第一文章にその構文を使ってみました。それは正しかったですか？
Apologies for all the above as I’m sure it’s not half as comprehensible as it was in my head.
あぁ、そこにも「ほど」が要ります。「思ったほど理解しやすいではない」とか。
@score
本当に「ほど」の使い方はたくさんありますね。
確かに直訳するとおかしな文章になるのでscoreさんの訳でいいと思いますよ。
Could you help me with this sentence?
ふいに見渡す世界は
美しいくらいに静かだ
I thought it might be “Unexpectedly, the world I’m looking out over/ Is so beautiful I become quiet.” But that’s filling in a lot of words that don’t seem to be there. And I’m not sure about the first part; looking out over the world would make sense, but isn’t 見渡す modifying 世界?
Anyways, please help! I would really appreciate it! :)
@Smoothie Made of Fruits
The subject of the sentence is 世界 and ふいに見渡す modifies 世界
The word ふいに means unexpectedly but it has more meanings “suddenly, casually, unintentionally, happened to ~ etc.”
So you can choose your own words to translate but to get a general idea, it will be something like “the world I suddenly look around is beautifully quiet.”
So in this case, you wouldn’t even translate the くらい? Does it just mean “so” in this case, like “so beautifully quiet” and not “so beautiful that I was quiet”? How can you tell which way it is being used?
And, if you don’t mind, could you help me with these, too?
君が唄う その愛を
この手に広げて
(these are the lines after the other ones, by the way)
I’m confused about the space. I couldn’t find anything about that; I assumed it was just used to indicate that the 君が唄う was part of a different thought than the rest. So I thought it meant, “As you sing, I broaden that love with this hand.” But if the space didn’t mean it was a separate thought, then it could “You sing of that love.”
Basically, I’m asking: What is the significance of the space?
Sorry for all the questions, but I really need help and I can’t find anything about this on the internet!
Thank you so much. :D
@Smoothie Made of Fruits
You can just type 君が唄うその愛を but you often see that kind of space in lyrics or poems.
It gives a reader to enjoy the meaning of the words more. (They can read between the lines.)
With くらい, how could you tell that in that sentence, it meant “so beautifully quiet” and not “so beautiful that I/it was quiet?”
@Smoothie Made of Fruits
美しいくらいに is just an expression to describe something (which you usually don’t describe the word, 美しい in this case 静けさ) is beautiful.
So I would just translate is “beautifully”
And also, do you think the “その愛を” is the direct object for “君が唄う” before it or “この手に広げて” after it? And how can you tell which one?
Thanks!
@Smoothie Made of Fruit
Here is the structure
(君が唄う）その愛をこの手に広げる
君が唄う modifying その愛 The love you sing
The object of the verb 広げる is その愛
Okay, I understand now. Thank you! :D
I just wanted to say, your website is awesome! There aren’t many active Japanese language bloggers that I’ve seen lately, and I love your style! You have yourself a new fan :)
@Mary
Hi Mary,
Thank you so much for your nice message which motivates us to make more and more lessons!
ありがとう！
わあ、バームクーヘンが本当に大好きですよ！ !happyface! 日本に行くたびに、たくさん食べましたが、キャラメルバームクーヘンを食べたことがありません。 とても美味しそうです！ 今年の5月に、東京に旅行して、キャラメルバームクーヘンを探しますね。 !purin! !CHECKHEART!
@Palidor
こんにちは、Palidor.
５月に日本に来ますか？楽しみですね。
キャラメルブリュレのバームクーヘン美味しいですよ。バームクーヘン色々な種類があります。いっぱい食べていってくださいね。
マギーちゃん、おはようございます。 カナダには今朝です。 はい、日本に行きます！ 本当に楽しみにしていますね。 日本に行く旅行は四回目ですよ。 いつか日本全国を訪れますね。 :tulip3:
@Palidor
もう日本に４回も来ているんですね。日本全国行けたらいいですね。次はどこに行くのかな？
楽しい旅になりますように！
今年の秋、福岡へ行きたいんですね。 来年の夏、たぶん北海度へ行くでしょう。 もちろんいつか、名古屋にも行って、マギーちゃんを訪ねますね。 MistyとMinkyを連れて来て、マギーちゃんと遊べますか？？
!JYANE!
@Palidor
MistyとMinkyに是非、会いたいです！！！
今年は九州で来年は北海道？まさに日本全国行きますね。すご〜い！！
How do you say “I took a [transport] to [location]”? e.g. I took a plane to Tokyo.
@Amy
Hi Amy,
東京まで飛行機に乗った。（乗りました）
Hello Maggie-sensei! Although I read most of this lesson, I can’t still get the meaning of this message sent to me. :'(
“それと、フィリピンといえばバナナをイメージしちゃいますww”
What does しちゃいます mean in this sentence?
いろいろとてもありがとうございます
@りつこ
Hi りつこ
That しちゃう is used when you can’t control yourself/ you can’t help doing something.
~~と言えば〜してしまいます
→(casual contraction)
〜と言えば〜しちゃいまいます
Speaking of ~, I automatically do ~ / I can’t help doing ~
Speaking of the Philippines, I automatically think of bananas. (I can’t help linking the image to bananas.The first image that I get is bananas.)
Hi maggie sensei, i am only a begginner,a new student in japanese school.can you please help me/teach me how to introduce myself in proper way. My sensei gave me a notes,but some of those are different from the web that i searched. Please help. Thanks!
@Cutieannohj
Hi, there are so many ways of introducing yourself.
Follow some of the basic form and make a couple of sentences. I can check them for you.
Ex. わたしは（name)です。I am ~
(Place)にすんでいます。 I live in ~
まだにほんごをべんきょうしはじめたばかりです。= I just started to study Japanese.
しゅみは〜です。= I like doing ~ (talking about your interests)
~~~etc.
and finish the introduction
よろしくおねがいします。
彼は、私のお父さんと同じくらい（ぐらい）の背丈です。
I misunderstood this one. Without reading the translation and with my poor Japanese I thought it said “he is may father and the about the same height as me”.
@Mew34
He is my father and has about the same height as me
will be
彼は私のお父さん（or 父）で私と同じぐらいの背丈です。
Thanks.
@Mew
You’re welcome! :)
こんな素晴らしいサイトはなかなかない! JLPTの準備のためマギー先生の説明をよく使っています。わざわざ知識を伝えてくれてありがとうございます。 :n:
@Alicia
どういたしまして！JLPTがんばってくださいね。 boucingheart!
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I’ve just stumbled upon your website… It’s a real gem! Thank you so much for your time and effort, these lessons are so helpful!
I have a question; it’s about this sentence:
“このふんわり具合 …… なかなかですね。”
There is no adjective between なかなか and ですね, and the dictionary says ふんわり is an adverb. How should I take なかなか then?
@Arya
Hi Arya,
Welcome to our site! :)
“このふんわり具合 …… なかなかですね。”
So the speaker must be talking about something fluffy (hair, pillow, etc.) or soft (sponge cake,etc.)
ふんわりぐあい means “fluffiness” “softness” of something. なかなかですね there means “quite something/pretty good”
入居申込書 = !koujichuu! [nyuukyok]
nyuukyo !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [moushikomi] 
moushikomisho= application to rent a property.
この辺で[月]５万円位でいいアパートはありますか？
[a month] around here?
setsubi = facility
= Kono hen de [tsuki] goman en gurai de ii appato wa arimasuka?
Do you have any good apartments under 50,000 yen
設備 = !koujichuu! [setubi]
@zoheb
Thank you, zoheb!!
いつもありがとう！
Love you boucingheart!
Thanks for this, I always wondered about the nuance between ‘ne’ and ‘na’. The examples were quite helpful in grasping this difference!
@makkusu
You’re very welcome!
I am happy to hear you got the idea of な（あ）.
うれしいなあ〜♩
This was super helpful, it always makes me happy when you post another lesson !happyface!
@iza
Thank you!! I am very happy to read your comment,too!!
Can it ever take the opposite meaning? I mean, this happens with slang sometimes, right – for instance saying – that’s so bad! – i.e. to mean good?
On a recent pop video in YouTube, someone posted a comment: “衣装ダサい（褒め言葉”
An opposite meaning would make better sense? – I thought the bit in brackets pointed to that too. Plus, the outfits were cool (well, that’s what I thought //0//…
What do you think? When I tried to search on ‘dasai’ used positively,… I came up with nothing so, wasn’t sure…
@nonoji
A word ヤバい is yes. You can use it in a positive way and negative way.
Unless it has (褒め言葉) or (いい意味で）etc, we take ダサい as a negative word.
However, sometimes you combine with other positive word to create another slang.
ダサい dorky ＋かわいい cute, adorable ＝ダサかわいい。adorkable
ダサい+ かっこいい cool ＝ダサかっこいい dorky but cool
thank you for the article inusensei !!!!! my dream job is work and live in japan..
..
your article is very amazing..
@fay
Hi fay,
You’re welcome! Hope your dream comes true. :)
Good luck!
Hi Maggie sensei,
I have the following sentence that uses “のに” and not sure which category it belongs to.
Basically, this article is about Japanese are strict in following rules.
ま、そこまで「きまり」を守らなくてもいい のに と あきれながら も、この「きまり」に対する 厳格さには感動を覚えた。
I roughly understand the meaning of the sentence but not sure how “のに” work in this
sentence.
「きまり」を守らなくてもいい
= it is better not to obey rules
「きまり」を守らなくてもいい のに
= “even though” it is better not to obey rules ?
Thanks.
Cheers
Kenz
@Ken
そこまで「きまり」を守らなくてもいい のに
This のに is to express one’s feeling. The closest category will be
→to complain to someone or give someone a suggestion：
So the speaker is saying “(I think) They don’t have to obey the rules that much.”
Thank you very much Maggie sensei. It makes sense now.
As always, you have been very helpful.
Thanks.
Regards
Kenz
@Ken
You’re welcome, Ken! :)
I found your blog through and I hope you still check messages on older entries. :) First of all thank you for writing this. It was really interesting!
Now I have some questions. I’ve seen many Japanese users on twitter ask for retweets. At least I think that’s what they did. Are their specific hashtags for that? I saw several longer phrases but I’m not exactly sure what they mean. Isn’t it impolite to ask others to share your tweets?
Also, is it impolite to follow someone without writing them a message? I often silently follow users without “asking if I may”. But when Japanese people follow me, it seems like they often also tweet me something like “I have the priviledge of following you now”.
@Anshie
Hi Anshie,
Yes, I do read all the comments no matter how old the lesson is.
If you want people to retweet, you can use “拡散希望= kakusan kibou” (Check the lesson again.)
Or you can also say,
RTしてね
***
Q: Is it impolite to follow someone without writing them a message?
I don’t think so because if you don’t want others to follow you, they can lock their account.
But if that person doesn’t have many followers, it is nice to say hello and tell them you are going to follow them.
You can follow me anytime without saying anything. :)
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for this great article.
I was wondering, when I describe my own personality in Japanese culture, what are the acceptable words to use.
For example, if I meet someone and I describe myself as 穏やかて優しい would that sound arrogant?
@Teo
Hi Teo,
Right, I think it is the same in English. You don’t usually introduce yourself, “I am a sweet person.”
But there is a trick word.
You can say jokingly 自分で言うのもなんですが、穏やかで優しい方（ほう）だと思います。
Sensei, how to say ” its have been one year since your gone (he passed away) ”
@Herze
あなた（or his name)がいなくなって*から１年経ちます。
= Anata (or his name) ga inaku natte kara ichinen tachimasu.
いなくなってから means “since you are gone”. You can use this line for someone who passed away.
There are many ways to say “passed away”
亡くなってから
= Nakunatte kara
(In my opinion, it is too direct)
You can also say,
この世から旅立ってから
= Kono yo kara tabidatte kara
hi Maggie-sensei, thank you for all your lessons! I know this is an old thread but I’m hoping you’ll still see this message.
is it possible to use ですよね alone as a reply without attaching it to a statement?
for example:
a: 桜は素敵ですね
b: ですよね~
instead of
a: 桜は素敵ですね。
b: そうですよね/綺麗ですよね~
I’ve heard ですよね alone used as a reply before but I don’t hear it commonly so I’m wondering if it’s acceptable/natural! thank you ♡
@c
Hello!
Q: Is it possible to use ですよね alone as a reply without attaching it to a statement?
→Yes. It is conversational but pretty common.
The other casual contraction is でしょう。
Ex. A 桜がきれいですね。
B. でしょう？ Isn’t it?
そうやっていつも迷っちゃうんだから How about it here?
My attempt is: that’s how we are going to get lost because of you.
I’m a super novice..
Thanks anyway!!
@dRyW
Hi dRyW!
That そう means “that way””so””that”
そうやって= like that
いつも= always
迷っちゃうんだから(colloquial) I (or You) can’t decide (迷う also has a meaning to lose one’s way)
そうやって = like that
Hi,
I have a question about “ryokou suru”.
I found 2 different uses to express the destination (to travel to France) :
1- furansu wo ryokou suru
2- furansu ni ryokou suru
Are they both correct ? Is there a difference ? Can we also use ‘furansu he ryokou suru’ ?
Thank you.
@poulpi
Hi poulpi,
フランスを旅行する= travel around France (France is an object of your action, traveling)
フランスへ／に旅行する= to go visit France (destination)
When you modify a noun, you can’t use に
Ex. フランスへの旅行 (= a trip to France) X フランスにの旅行(Wrong)
Ohhh, this site is really amazing… I’ve spent the last few days reading through the site! I had a question about とか in this dialogue:
A: じゃあ雨の日だからこそこう行きたくなるところとか、
行っちゃうとこ、思わず行っちゃうところとかあります？
B: 雨の日とかはカフェとか行ってますね。
Is it just the ‘softening’ とか being used? Or is it just a filler word like なんか？
@Yuu
Hi Yuu,
A: じゃあ雨の日だからこそこう行きたくなるところとか(1) 、
行っちゃうとこ、思わず行っちゃうところとか(2) あります？
B: 雨の日とかはカフェとか(3)行ってますね。
(1) and/or (2) etc (3) somewhere like..
@Yuu
A: This とか is to list up things.: and/or.. so on/ such as ~~
B: This one is “like” :Somewhere/something/something like ~
Is お世話になりました appropriate for leaving school for the last time at the end of term?
@Ken
If you don’t come back to the school and it is your last day, you can say お世話になりました。
But you can say この学期(がっき=term) では、お世話になりました。また来学期(らいがっき= next term) もよろしくお願いします。
Thank you very much.
I could have sworn that I replied back in March, but came back for a refresher since I left one of my schools today. Now I’m going home to sob into my pillow
:zzzz2:
@Ken
You’re very welcome!
I bet you made many good friends there.
Maggie sensei, what is the difference between using まだ熱いから触らないように（して下さい。） and just まだ熱いから触らないでて下さい。?
@changk
The translation is the same, “It’s still hot so please don’t touch it” but to be more precise,
まだ熱いから触らないように（して下さい。）It’s still hot so try not to touch it. (while you are there, don’t touch it/ stay away from it.)
まだ熱いから触らないで下さい。? It’s still hot so don’t touch it. (Just talking about that moment.)
After all that complaining, she quit !koujichuu! [his]
[her] job just like that after only one day
thank you Maggie sensei !nemui!
@zoheb
Thank you, zoheb!! いつもありがとう！！ :maggie-small: boucingheart!
Hi
I’ve always wondered how use this word…
Many thanks to you !formingheart3!
@Veron
Hi Veron,
You’re very welcome! :)
first time I know about this word.. have to learn it ^^
thank you Maggie sensei boucingheart!
@Roro
Thank YOU for visiting this site again, Roro!
この文例を三回書いたくせに同じタイポを二回してしまった。レッスンの前にたらふく食べたほうがよかったね。 !rice! !hamberger! !greenapple! !SUSHI!! !chocolate!
“Asa takusan tabeta kuse ni mou onaga suita no?” x2
“onaka ga”
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
ありがとう！！ごはん、もっと食べないと…
Hi Sensei,
I have the following “tara” and I am not sure which category does it belong to?
i.e.
“たたかって くれたら”
主婦(しゅふ)でもありキャリアウーマンでもある人の超人(ちょうじん)ぶりをみるたびに、
その力で企業(きぎょう)と 男にたたかってくれたら と思います.
“男に たたかって くれたら” – means –> “IF” challenged by men ?
Thanks.
Regards
Ken
@Ken
Hello Ken,
That たら is to express your desire.
Since the writer is talking about housewives, I hope they (housewives) fight with companies and men.
Thank you very much Maggie sensei. boucingheart!
Regards
Ken
@Ken
You’re very welcome, Ken. :)
is it OK to say Okashii tokoro wa nai instead of okashina tokoro wa nai
上にある文章には、おかしなところはないってよりも、おかしいところはない言っても正解ですか
what I wanted to say is:
Is it OK to say Okashii tokoro wa nai instead of okashina tokoro wa nai?
If my sentence is wrong, can you teach me?
thank you Maggie sensei :w:
@Roro
Hi Roro,
You can use “代わりに” for “instead of”
上の文章で「おかしなところはない」の代わりに「おかしいところはない」と言っても正解ですか（正しいですか）？
oh yes.. I remembered that I studied ( kawari ni) before :)
your sentence is much easier to understand than mine
My problem is I forget to use such easy words but I recognize them quickly.. I guess it is because I know so many word that I even forget the easiest ones….
but still you didn’t answer my question. is it right to say okashii tokoro instead of okashi na tokoro?
thank you again Maggie sensei
@Roro
Oh that was your question. Sorry. I thought you just wanted me to correct your sentence.
Yes, you can say both okashii tokokoro and okashina tokoro.
マギ先生 こんにちは
Hope you can help me with use of とき, mostly I don’t understand the difference between 1st two
Ex. 部屋を出るとき電気を消します
部屋に入ったとき電気をつけます
去年日本へ行ったとき京都へ行きました
ありがとうね！
＠Pauu
1) 部屋を出るとき電気を消します I turn off the light when I leave a(the) room.
2) 部屋に入ったとき電気をつけます I will turn on the light when/once/ if I enter a(the) room.
I don’t know if I understand your question but the tense of the verbs in 1) and 2) are different.
1) says what you do habitually when you leave a room.
2) says I don’t know when but when I enter the room, I will turn on the light.
FYI I have been working on the lesson on “when”
2) 去年日本へ行ったとき京都へ行きました isn’t so difficult.
It simply state what you did when you went to Japan.
I visited Kyoto when I went to Japan last year.
Thank you!!!
I think my problem was more on the 2 nd example since verb is in past form and I don’t understand why… ~ 入った
Looking forward for the lesson about when =]
ありがとうございます！
Thank you so much for all these great lessons:)
@Sai
どういたしまして！
My pleasure! Thank YOU for visiting this site!
理由に or 理由で ?
@ani
Hi ani,
Focus on what comes before 理由
(reason)を理由に+what to do/ what you did
(reason)が/という理由で+what to do/ what you did
いっぺんに聞かれても困るな。
I got this sentence from Doraemon. Nobita is asking a lot of questions so Doraemon says this to him.
いっぺんに (all at once)
聞かれても (guessing it’s ask in this sentence and it’s in te-form passive. If Doraemon is the passive subject then he’s the one being asked all at once.)
困るな (guessing Doraemon is just saying な at the end of the sentence and it’s not conjugated as 困るな.)
I don’t understand what role ても plays in this sentence. My Japanese friend can’t explain it to me. I understand that the basic idea is that Doraemon doesn’t want Nobita to ask so many questions at once because it’s bothering him. But I kind of wish I could break it down to a rough translation to understand how everything is interacting.
＠Zack
It roughly means,
Even if you ask me all the questions at once, I can’t answer them right away.
So the function of this ても is “even if”
困る means ”to be in trouble”/ “to be puzzled”/ It is annoying” (depending on the context.)
The other point of this sentence is 聞かれる is a passive form. As I explained in my passive form lesson, passive form sometimes shows negative connotation.
So Doraemon was not happy to be asked many questions all at once.
Thank you very much! I think what my problem is is that I try to translate directly into English a lot of the time. So I would have translated this to something like, “Even if you are asking me (all the questions) at once, I will be bothered.” Which just sounds kind of weird because the second part isn’t something unexpected.
@Zack
You’re welcome. Yes, the direct translation is “I will be bothered” but as you said, it is not natural.
A lot of time, you don’t translate 困る with its literal meaning, “to be bothered”
You just have to translate the sentence depending on the context.
It is difficult/hard for me to do ~ = (there is no way that)I can do ~ / I can’t do ~ / I don’t want to do that. /I won’t do ~ .
Hi, I came across your website because I am trying to understand the different usages of “ても”. I have noticed that you’ve already covered ”てもいい”. Also, I noticed on the comment you mentioned ”ても” can mean “even if” depending on the context. Can you give another example for that? One more thing, I am checking out these lyrics to a song…and I have noticed the usage of ”ても”; however, I don’t think its context. How is this ”ても” used in these lyrics? It’s below. Thanks.
どんなに笑っても
ここに君はいない
この笑顔 この涙も意味ない
どんな遠くても
ねぇ 迎えにきて
電話じゃ ものたりない
@TekAnn
This is how it works
どんなに〜ても
No matter how ~ it is/you do/did
どんなに笑っても
No matter how much I laugh/smile
どんなに遠くても
No matter how far it is
マギー先生、ご機嫌はいかが。
Thank you very much for this lesson, this grammar was totally new to me. I love grammarlessons. Thats why I tested your explanations on a hundred or so sentences, and could translate all of them. Which officially makes this lesson a great one. !happyface!
私の見る限りでは、二三の誤りだけです。
“Tadasih ikemen ni kaigiru.”
“tadashi” “kagiru”
“Ex. 日本人だからと日本語を教えられるとは限らない。
There’s a “と” thats not in the romaji
= Nihonjin dakara nihongo wo oshierareru towa kagiranai.”
“= Just because being rich doesn’t mean being generous.” Now thats difficult english grammar. You either need a subject (just because you’re rich doesn’t mean you’re generous), or omit “just because”.
Since you didn’t cover na-adjectives+kagiri, I tried to search for combinations of -na+kagiri, but they seem to be rare, I could only find a few examples like 必要な限り(as long as necessary), 可能な限り (as much as possible), お金持ちな限り (as long as you are rich). I’m wondering, could one use other na-adjectives or nouns in this way and would “as … as” be the general translation pattern for these cases?
事前にご苦労様です。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
こんにちは！ 早速、スペルチェックしてくれてありがとう！！！(As for the English translation, “it” was missing as a subject.)
You can say 必要な限り, 可能な限り お金持ちな限り
You also say
必要である限り
可能である限り
お金持ちである限り
I wouldn’t say na-adjecitve + 限り is rare compared to i-adjecitve+限り
元気な限り
静かな限り
好きな限り
You can also use with katakana word
ハッピーな限り…etc.
(事前のご苦労様です→I know you meant “Thank you for your work in advance but “よろしくお願いします” is more natural.)
Maggie sensei, I would like to ask about 3 verbs: 来る, 行く and 思う.
Your example 毎週金曜日にドッグフードを買いに行きます。/ 買いに行っています。translates as I go buy dog food every Friday.
That means 来ている and 行っている are coming and going respectively, right?
If I am not wrong, 来ている・行っている also means to come/go and then be there? In fact, I’ve seen this context being used much more like in drama.
Correct me if I am wrong. For example, 先に行っています means I will go and be there first rather than I am going first.
Second question regarding 思う.
If I want to say “I think I want to…”, for Japanese, is it more natural to use …と思う or …と思ってる?
I see both used equally much so I am not sure what is the subtle difference.
Or are they exactly like English where we say “I think I want to go Japan” versus “I am thinking of going to Japan”.
@changk
Hi changk
It depends on the context but
来ている means “to come (as one’s habitual action) / to have come/ someone came to the place and he/she is there (in that place) ” and 行く・行っている means ” to go (as one’s habitual action) / to have gone/someone has gone from that place”
And 先に行っています means I will go and be there first or I will go ahead and leave earlier than you. (The speaker involves the listener.)
You also say 先に行きます。for that situation but to be more precise, it means “I will go ahead and leave.” (the speakers just states his/her action.)
***
1) 私は日本に行きたいと思う I want to go to Japan. Expressing the present feeling
2-a) 私は日本に行きたいと思っている I have been thinking about going to Japan
or
2-b) 私は日本に行きたいと考えている I have been thinking about going to Japan
Hi Maggie-sensei!
Recently I’ve been hearing this form of speech in anime, where the て-form is dropped when connecting sentences. One such sentence I can recall is
もし彼を倒すことができれば、サチは戻り、彼女の最後の言葉を聴くことができる。
Why was 戻り used instead of 戻って? Is this just used in conversation or am I missing something?
Thanks in advance for your reply. :-D
@Seiki
Hi Seiki,
When you connect two verbs, “to do A and (then )do B, you can say
1) Aをして、Bをする
or
2) Aをし、Bをする。
戻り〜 is the form 2). It is not conversational. It is rather more literal.
How to form:
1) make masu form Ex. 戻ります
2) and delete ます →戻り
finish my homework and go to bed
Ex. 今日は、宿題をやって寝ます。
→今日は、宿題をやり（それから・そして）寝ます。
get up early and help my father every morning
Ex. 毎朝、早く起きて父の手伝いをします。
→毎朝、早く７時に起き父の手伝いをします。
本当にありがとう。先生!^^
But which do you think is better to use when it’s about visiting a particular place for many times?
~ている?
~た?
Cookie-chan!! I think I saw”Cookie” in one of the lessons but I can’t remember where exactly. I hope to meet him again as I keep on checking lessons from this site.
You use them both.
If you are stressing one’s experience you use ている
But if you just talk about the fact, た.
Cookie’s lessons are everywhere. Here is one. How to use かねる
Thank you so much for this lesson!!! It was extremely informative :tulip3: :s: :pinkcandy2:
@Jeff D.
My pleasure! どういたしまして♩
So the も particle in ~てもいいですか? for example, トイレへ行ってもいいですか？,also have a meaning of “too/as well,etc.”
Thanks in advance!
@Newbie
No it is different. When も is used with て, the meaning changes. (For the details, please check this lesson.)
Hi sensei,
I am always bothered by this question: does the “も” particle here also suggests a meaning of “as well” or “too” in English? Or is it just one of those words that is a little difficult to translate? If not, can you briefly explain why it is used here?
By the way, I’ve seen some native Japanese speaker say 例文も添えていただけるとありがたいです。But isn’t there “no reference” to another subject, so it should just be 例文を…? And is 例文も一緒に添えていただけるとありがたいです correct as well?
Sorry for the long post! !gejigeji! !gejigeji!
@Newbie
Hi Newbie,
First I have a lesson on some usage of も. Check this lesson.
One of the main meaning of も is “as well”/ “also, / ~,too”
例文を添えてください。= Please give me example sentences.
Let’s say the Japanese person asks a meaning of one word.
例文も添えてください。= (Please explain how to use the word) And give me some example sentences also.
Suppose I want to say please keep balance in your account how should I say in Japanese in a polite form
@Apeksha
It changes depending on the context but
口座の収支バランスを保ってください。
Maggie Sensei, Thank you so much. You’re amazing !ase!
@Kakada
:maggie-small: boucingheart!
Hi sensei,
Could you explain the difference between お金を持ってない and お金を持たなかった, and which is more commonly used. Are the translated as “I haven’t brought money” or “I don’t have money now” and “I didn’t bring money”? Thanks in advance!
@Newbie
Hi Newbie,
So お金を持っていない means “I don’t have money with me now.”
お金を持たなかった means “I didn’t carry money with me. (Maybe the speaker has a credit card or he/she always goes out with someone who has money but it is his/her decision not to carry money with him/her when he/she goes out.) “
Maggie-sensei,
I have a question regarding your examples:
今、宿題やっているのだけれど難しすぎて…
今、宿題やってんだけど難しすぎて…
Am I right to say やっているのだけれど contracts to やってんのだけれど contracts to やってんんだけれど and finally contracts to やってんだけれど?
何やってんだよ is commonly heard in drama/anime and I believe it is from 何やっているのだよ.
What I don’t understand is, if いる shortens to ん and の to ん as well, there will be double んん. So since double んん sounds like ん, one is omitted.
I can only think of this reasoning unless the whole いるの can also be contracted to ん in speech?
@changk
Hello changk,
I see. I am currently working on a lesson on this subject but
the contraction goes like this.
やっているのだけれど
→(dropping い) やってるのだけれど
→(の changes to ん ) やってるんだけれど
→(dropping る) やってんだけれど
→(けれど →けど）やってんだけど
now it makes sense.
thank you, sensei.
@changk
Good! You’re welcome, changk!
Thank you so much^^
I will check his lessons soon.
🐶💕
Hi Maggie! Did you miss me? ^ ^
I’m just wondering, if there’s a difference between らしい and ～めく and っぱい in the context of “-like”?
EX. 春らしい日 vs 春めいた日 vs 春っぽい日.
Btw, what’s the most natural way to say in Japanese “Did you miss me?” / “Have you missed me?”
1. 私がいなくて寂しかった？
2. 私が恋しかった？
3. Maybe something else?
ヨロシク！
@天人
Hi 天人!
Yes, I missed you. :D
らしい and ～めく and っぽい
らしい= something/someone is like what the speaker expect
めく= something is getting certain state (It is becoming like ~ = “〜らしくなる”)
っぽい= ~ ish : Similar to らしい but more conversational
EX. 春らしい日 vs 春めいた日 vs 春っぽい日.
春っぽい日 is very conversational. Spring-ish day
春らしい日 springlike When you see/feel something that represents spring, such as flowers, air, weather,etc.
春めいた日 to describe a day which is in the process of getting spring
***
to miss
You have to change depending on the context
I miss you.
1) 彼がいなくて寂しい (You are talking about his presence. expressing one’s loneliness)
2) 彼が恋しい (You are attracted to him and miss his presence badly.)
3) 彼に会いたい (I want to see him. While 1) expresses one’s loneliness, you focus on wanting to see him more.)
But for example, if I miss you because you haven’t come here for a long time,
I can’t say 天人さんがいなくて寂しい・寂しかった
You have to add more information
天人さんがこのサイトにずっと来なくて寂しかった。
If this site hasn’t uploaded for a long time, some might say (hopefully)
このサイトがずっと更新されなかったから（更新されなくて）寂しかった。
So the typical pattern is
reason + から・くて＋寂しかった
Ex. 天人さんが２日間、コメントをくれなくて寂しかった。
(I will make a mini lesson on Facebook sometime.)
了解です！
Thanks for help again, Maggie! !formingheart3!
@天人
どういたしまして♩
はい、三級中レベルです。 :tulip3: :tulip3:
@Roro
三級のレベルですね。これからもがんばってくださいね。
こんにちは先生
You might have a lesson about it already but could you please explain 〜てから
Ex. 勉強してからテレビを見ます。
ありがとう
@Pauu
こんにちは、Pauu
verb （A）てから＋ do something （B）
Do (B) after doing (A)
勉強してからテレビを見ます。
I will watch TV after studying. /After I finish studying, I will watch TV.
“Yachiji ni natte mo shigoto ga yamazumi da.”
“hachiji”
“tomorrow” (your version sounds like dog language :-P )
this example is twice, the first one should be without “は”
“明日 ( = ashita) tommrrow”
“Ex. 明日は、釣りに行きます。
= Ashita wa, tsuri ni ikimasu.”
And I have some questions about some sentences:
1. Ex. この旅行は出発の２ヶ月前に申し込んで下さい。
= Kono ryokou wa shuppatsu no nikagetsu mae ni moushikonde kudasai.
= Please apply for this trip two months before the departure date.
If I would have translated this sentence into Japanese, I would have written: この旅行の出発は2ヶ月前に申し込んで下さい。 So, in my sentence の would be used to modify 出発. But I don’t quite understand its function in your sentence. It kind of sounds like a relative clause, in which の replaces the が, but I don’t know. So what kind of の is 出発の２ヶ月?
2.明日から夏休みが始まります。 Can you use は after 明日 in this sentence or do you have to use から?
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typo as always. (I usually pronounce “tomorrow” →Grrrrrow. )
Very interesting question.
1. この旅行の出発は〜 is “The departure of this trip”
The pattern you might know is
（出発の２ヶ月前に）この旅行を申し込んでください。
= 出発の２ヶ月前に= two months before the departure
You sometimes put the word you want to emphasize first.
この旅行は(+condition) 申し込んでください。(Emphasizing “this trip”)
If you want to emphasize applying for this trip, you say
この旅行の申し込みは(condition + what to do) ください。
この旅行の申し込みは出発の２ヶ月前にしてください。
2. 明日から
You use から because the summer vacation will start “from” tomorrow.
Though から is more common, you can also say
~ は明日始まります。(without は）
Topics は〜してください。
= Please do ~
Thanks for this lesson. I had no idea that you could say greetings in so many ways. I have an unrelated question:
I wrote a sentence like this: 最近、映画が気に入ってない, and a friend changed it to this 最近、映画にはまってないんだ
I understand what it means, I am just not sure if my original sentence sounds unnatural or it was wrong. Can you tell me if it was okay?
@reid
Hi Reid,
I think it is because 最近 & 気に入っていない together doesn’t sound natural.
You can say 最近、映画が好きじゃない／好きではない。
Also you can say
最近、映画が面白くない
(I don’t find movies (in general) are not interesting.)
Also you use 気に入らない when you don’t like specific movie
“I don’t like this movie” (something bothering me.)
この映画は気に入らない
and if you are talking about recent movies in general, you can say
最近の映画は気に入らない
（はまる is fine but it is very colloquial.)
Ohh, ok. Thanks! Why can’t I use 最近 and 気に入っていない together? Could you give me a brief explanation if it isn’t too much trouble?
@reid
OK, I may repeat the same thing but 気に入る is usually used when you like something specific and it sounds unnatural to say I like movies in general = 映画（というもの）が気に入っている
but you can say “I like this (specific) movie” この映画が気に入っている.
Also though we use the pattern 最近〜ていない I haven’t doing something lately (Ex. 最近、日本語の勉強をしていない）because 気に入る is not an active verb.
You don’t say 最近〜気に入っていない
OH! got it! Thanks a lot! You’re great!
@reid
You’re welcome! :)
wow!!! this explains a lot more than the books can…thanks
＠Jodel
You’re welcome! :)
Ex. お先に失礼します。
= Osaki ni !koujichuu! !koujichuu! shituresi
[shitsurei] shimasu.
@zoheb
わ〜もうチェックしてくれたのね。いつも本当にありがとう、zoheb!
!Anapple! !Anapple! thank you! because no other site or book explained the use of ‘nara’ at the start of a sentence
@dezi
ならよかった！ :)
It is very conversational but you do hear that in daily conversation.
thank you Maggie sensei ^^
can you make a lesson about the differences among sai, toki, koro?
@Roro
I have been already working on how to say “when” in Japanese. I will include those. :)
I’m so happy to know that.. !heart3! !heartsippai!
聞いて嬉しいわ :w:
待っていますよ :w:
@Roro
時間がかかると思いますが、辛抱強く待っていてくださいね。まだいっぱいリクエストレッスンを作っている最中です。
ずべての漢字は読む事が出来ました。
私はまだ三級中ですけど、一生懸命頑張りますよ。 :tulip3:
は～い、次のレッスンに楽しみにしています。 !CHECKHEART!
@Roro
よかった！！すごい！！
（三級中？日本語能力試験の三級レベルですか？）
七福神 !koujichuu! (=Hichifukujin)[shichifukujin]
関東地方(=kantou !koujichuu! )+
[chihou]——–> Kanto district
•どっちでも !koujichuu! (=docchicemo ) (casual)
[docchidemo]
どっちでもいいのに !koujichuu! (=docchicemo iinoni )
[docchidemo]
皆は、今年は豆まきをしましたか？私は、ジャーキーを
[nagete][投げて]もらった方が嬉しいんだけど…(=Mina wa kotoshi wa mamemaki wo shimashitaka? Watashi wa 
jaakii wo !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [maite] 
[nagete] moratta houga ureshiindakedo..)
jaakii= ?? wakarimasen
is it jerky[lean meat]
@zoheb
Thank you, zoheb for checking the spelling as always. Really appreciate it!
ジャーキー= jaakii is a dog treat which came from beef(or chicken/pork) jerky for dogs. :)
Hi
Thanks for this site. I truly goldmine for japanese.
“Koto” and “naru” are very difficult concepts for westerners. Another example is this sentence I’ve read on News in Slow Japanese:
この駅は、１９４７年に開業し、７０年近く無人駅として 使われていましたが、３年前に廃駅となること が 決まりました。
I do understand the sentence but the subtility of that part is a bit difficult to grasp: “廃駅となること が 決まりました”. It’s been decided to close the station but why using a noun “廃駅” instead of a verbe?
Thank you!
＠Graz71
Hi Graz71!
This is the pattern
Noun + と／に＋なる= To become ~ / end up ~
(と is more literal.)
Ex. 彼は来月、父になります。= He will become a father next month.
→(more formal/ literal) 彼は、来月、父となります。
Thanks for your reply.
I had to read again the whole lesson to understand. I get now it’s a fix set and I think the “koto” in the middle didn’t help.
One last thing though.What would be the most accurate translation:
It’s been decided to close the station (transitive)
or
The closure of the station has been decided (intransitive)
I would choose the first one but Japanese is soo tricky… :-D :-D
@Graz71
I know it is tricky.
Sorry. I didn’t explain こと part but did you understand the usage now??
It’s been decided to close the station (transitive)
→廃駅にすることが決まった。
Thanks again for your answer.
I understand the usage but I think it is going to take me some times to use it or feel confortable with it.
As for the koto part, I know it’s used to make verbs into nouns but as why now it is needed in the sentence, I am not too sure it would come naturally to me when speaking but I’ll get used to it:
[noun + to naru] + koto + GA + intransitive verb
been decided the thing of to become the closure
とっても変ですね (笑)
Sorry I didn’t finish the previous sentence.
I will give you some examples.
1) 彼がリーダになることが決まった。
= It has been decided that he will be a leader.
（The subject is “彼がリーダーになること” Becoming a leader” So the literal translation is
“His becoming a leader” has been decided” )
The speaker is just telling the fact.
2) 彼をリーダーにすることが決まった。
= It has been decided to make him a leader.
From this sentence, we can tell the speaker (or someone) was trying to make him a leader.
3) 彼はリーダになることに( or を) 決めた。
= He has decided to be a leader.
It was his decision.
Now you can say the same thing.
* 廃駅となることが決まった。
The subject is “the station will be closed” so the most accurate translation is
The closure of the station has been decided.
The speaker is just telling the fact of closure of the station.
6) 廃駅とすることに決まった。
Someone decided to close the station.
Yes!!!!! This is what I was talking about on Twitter!!! You’re so awesome!! Lol is っぽい the only suffix that does this kind of modifying? Thanks again! いつもありがとう！
＠Courtney
Yay! Problem solved!
We also use ~気味(gimi) / 、～がかった(=gakkatta)
Ex. 赤みがかった(akami gakatta) reddish
Ex. 風邪気味=kazegimi = I have a light cold.
Ex. 遅れ気味= latish (running late)
わーい！(笑)マギー先生がいなければ困ってしまいました！いつもありがとう！！！！！
@Courtney
:maggie-small: boucingheart! boucingheart!
Question.
You said な can be used to tell someone you’re going to do something, but also can be used to tell someone not to do something.
Does context decide on which use the speaker is going for? If so, does this:
家に帰ったらメールするな
also mean “When I get home, don’t text (me),” if the context allows for it?
@eightgate
家に帰ったらメールするな。
Q：When I get home, don’t text (me),” if the context allows for it?
Situation-wise, it sounds a bit strange, but I guess it is possible. Or “When you get home, don’t text me (anymore).”
When I get home, don’t text (me),”→ I would say “俺（僕）が家にいる時はメールするな。”/ 家にはメールするな。 Don’t text me when I am home.
Hello, this helped me a lot, thanks!
Can you tell me what “no kanatte” means when paired with “shitetan janai”?
“shitetan janai no kanatte” ?
Hello M,
Without context it’s quite difficult, but I would say that 知ってたんじゃないのかなって（思う） could mean “I think he/she might have known (about that)”
ご参考に。
@M
Sorry. I didn’t see the comment. (Thank you 天人さん for answering the question)
As 天人さん says, the translation changes depending on the context.
Verb +してたんじゃないのかなって+(思う）
I think if X has been doing something/was doing something
If you mean しってたんじゃないのかな(=Shittetan ja nai no kana), I think if X has known (already) /new.
So ~てたんじゃない is a casual contraction of ていたのではない
すごく役に立ってる！ どうもありがとう～
@Sophie
そう聞いてうれしいです♩
As always, the lesson is very useful. Thanks a lot. I just noticed one small mistake:
“Ex.来月の末に*京都に行きます。
= Raigetsu no sue ni Kyoto ni ikimasu.
= I will go to Kyoto at the end of next week.”
…at the end of next month
@reid
Thank you, reid❤
I fixed it. ありがとう！
Kyou ni natte mo mada musuko kara rennraku
[renraku] ga nai.
@zoheb
Hello zoheb!
いつもありがとう！！！
Great information here, as always.
Sometimes when I’m coming home from Tokyo, the local train waits at a station for the rapid or commuter rapid train. What do you call this in Japanese and what does the conductor announce to the passengers? They say it so fast, I can’t understand the words
＠アル
Hi アル！
I know the announcement at the station is very fast and hard to hear.
I hope I got your question but you want to know what the announcement says when a local train has to wait for the rapid train passes at the station?
If so, they are probably saying something like
特急列車通過待ちをいたします
= Tokyuu ressha tsuukamachi wo itashimasu.
Hi Maggie!
I know this post is old, but I have a question! In your post, you note that Godiva is for big clients. Should it not be given to a boyfriend then? Is it too formal? What would you recommend?
@Sunshine
I said Godiva is for 本命 (the person you really like) (or big clients) so of course you can give it to your boyfriend along with other fancy chocolates.
Or you can make your own chocolates. 手作りチョコ(=tezukuri choko) handmade chocolates.
Ah! Okay. Thank you for explaining! Thank you very much for your time, Maggie! boucingheart!
@Sunshine
You’re welcome! Hope you have a sweet Valentine’s day.
Hello, hello~ !ohisama!
Maggie, please tell me, if we can use 「ってゆーか」 in the context of: “by the way”?
For example Speaker B asks Speaker A about something. Speaker A answers that he doesn’t know the answer and then he adds “By the way, who are you?” because he doesn’t know speaker B.
ヨロシク！
@天人
こんにちは！元気でしたか？
ってゆーか／てか／つーか
are all very conversational expressions and people (young people) use pretty randomly.
It is supposed to be used when you mention something related to your previous sentence but some people just use it as “By the way”.
Thank you very much, Maggie!
Another question. 女の子 means “a girl”. (I don’t know, how to put my thoughts in words…) how old max. can be a 女の子? If a girl is – let’s say – 18 yo, can we say to her 女の子?
@天人
Haha there isn’t a specific rule but generally speaking, 女の子 is from a baby to…..early 20s.
女子 might be more common for 20s~ 30s.
I am 女の子 forever, though. :)
了解、ありがとうー! boucingheart!
相変わらずピンピン元気ですよーん♪ :maggie-small:
あっ、新しいレッスンが！すぐにチェックしなくちゃね！
PS 遅ればせながら、謹賀新年、マギーさん！
＠天人
元気そうでよかったです！
今年もよろしくね❤
Hello, Thanks for your continued lessons :)
I wanted to ask a question regarding the difference between
んじゃないか
んじゃないんですか
And んじゃないのか
I’ll just use an example I heard, and ask what the difference of nuance is between them
ゲームはまだ終わってないんじゃないのか
What would the difference in nuance be for the three if you were to replace the end?
Thank you very much :)
@Gallus
Hi Gallus,
First the formality is different.
んじゃないんですか polite
んじゃないか / んじゃないのか rough/male speech (It sounds strong) You use this tone when you accuse someone / make your point in a strong way.
When it is used as a question.
Ex. 1) それは間違いなんじゃないですか？
Ex. 2) それは間違いなんじゃないか？
It depends on the context but you sometimes add の when you are not sure or emphasize the meaning.
Ex. 3) それは間違いなんじゃないのか？
And んじゃないのか
マギー先生は すごいし, 優しいしです。
本当にありがとうございます。
質問があります。
I like to practice reading and listening to anime songs, and when I was “studying” a son called pray from the anime Gintama I found this.
責める雨の音 悲しくなるなら
優しい君の盾になる
I think it means something like
“If the sound of the blamed rain becomes sad, it will become the shield of the gentle you”
but in other sites I found a translation like this one
“Condemn the sound of the rain, if you become sad, it will become your shield of kindness”
And I couldn’t fully understand, if it is possible to use なら in the second sentence and that the first sentence become the consequence like in this song example?
責める雨の音 悲しくなるなら (blame the rain if it becomes sad or )
優しい君の盾になる (If it becomes sad it will become your shield)
or neither is correct? xp.
And of course thank you for all your effort and this amazing lesson it helped me a lot.
Eres la mejor マギー。
@puercopigsk8
こんにちは、puercopigsk8
うれしいコメントをありがとう！優しいのはpuercopigsk8ですね。
OK, I won’t do the translation here but will try to help you to understand the structure.
The basic idea is
（君がもし）悲しくなるなら（僕は）君の盾になる
= If you feel sad, I will be a shield for you.
責める雨の音 is in the same
So the direct translation is not natural but here is the whole structure
If you feel sad (with the sounds of the aggressive rain) , I will protect you (, my sweet girl), becoming a shield for you.
なるほど
I’ve been studying japanese for 1 year so it still confuses me a lot when subjects like 僕 or 君 are missing in the sentence, and when I saw this sentence rewriten,
（君がもし）悲しくなるなら（僕は）君の盾になる
I realized, that I was just making up wrong grammar constructions,
まだまだ 頑張らなければなりません。
助けいただきありがとうございます。
@puercopigsk8
I know we often skip the subjects. Usually we can tell by the context but lyrics are harder.
これからも楽しんで日本語の勉強を続けてくださいね。
Good day to you, Maggie-sensei! I was reading this and noticed that most of the time なんて would replace は or other particles, but what if なんて comes after particles?
I read a line that says
見せ掛けは何て綺麗で 吐き気がする世界だろう。
Would that means that the なんて is emphasizing on 綺麗, or is it actually 見せ掛け? I am confused as how I should go for this… I asked various friends and they’re giving different answers for it >_< I wonder if it would be "Such a sickening world because the fakes are so beautiful" or "Such a sickening world because the beauties are so fake"?
Thank you in advance. I hope you'll have a good day!
@Aozora
Hi Aozora,
見せ掛けは何て綺麗で 吐き気がする世界だろう。
People give you different answers because there are two possibilities.
１）なんて just modifies 綺麗（きれい) → “Such a beautiful sickening world”(beautiful modifies sickening world)
２）It modifies 綺麗 and 吐き気がする Such a “beautiful and sickening” world.
Hello マギー先生!
I have a doubt, i hope you can help me.
Well, i understand that if you put a verb in potential form + ようにる it means that you become able to do something.
But what if the verb is in dictionary form + ようになる?
For example:
1. 新聞を読めるようになりました。
2. 新聞を読むようになりました。
In the 1st sentence i think it means: “i became able to read newspaper”.
But what would be the meaning of the 2nd sentence?
I’m not sure but i think it means: “I didn’t read the newspaper in the past, but i read it now in the present”.
Is this correct or not?
Please help me マギー先生。
お願いします。
@ケヴィン
こんにちは、ケヴィン
I’m not sure but i think it means: “I didn’t read the newspaper in the past, but i read it now in the present”.
Is this correct or not?
→Yes, you are right. :)
Ex. ケヴィンは最近、がんばって日本語を勉強するようになりました。
Hi sensei,
How can ask if the sentence in the quotation marks is correct? For example, I want to ask if the sentence: “the apple is red” is correct or not, is it 「りんごは赤いです」という正しいですか or「りんごは赤いです」という言葉は正しいですか。And does it also work if I say I have heard that “the apple is red” by saying「りんごは赤いです」という句を聞いています。
Sorry if this is confusing(*_*)
@Bob
Hi Bob,
You can say
「りんごは赤いです」という文は正しいですか？
and
「りんごは赤いです」という文を聞いたことがあります。
Hi sensei! I wad just wondering how you say ‘I want to be able to…’?
Thanks you!
@Joyce
Hi Joyce,
I want to be able to ~
It changes depending on the verb but the basic pattern is
~できるようになりたい 〜(verb potential form) ようになりたい
Ex. I want to be able to speak Japanese.
= 日本語が話せるようになりたい。
Ex. I want to be able to do it.
= それができるようになりたい。
Hi maggie sensei, I want to better understand the sentence, “ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？”
I just started studying Japanese so please excuse me for any dumb questions. xD
What exactly does しましたが mean? Or what verb or form does it derive from? And what is the difference between using the term, 発行 and つくりwhen asking for them to make you a card?
@Louisa
Hi Louisa,
Sure.
ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？
ネットで on net
登録しましたが(touroku shimashitaga) I have registered but..( 〜しました= have done/ did)
カード(kaado) shop card
を(wo) an object marker
発行する(hakkou suru) issue, make (You can also say 作って頂けますか？）
〜して頂けますか？(=Shite itadakemasuka) Polite form to ask someone for a favor, Could you?
i was so worried about your site being down for a week :v im glad it’s up again !heartsippai! !heartsippai!
@Naim
Hi Naim, Sorry to make you worry.
Actually we still need to work on our site. Wish us luck!
Hi Maggie sensei! I was wondering, when a shop clerk compliments you, what should you say back?
And in general, if anyone compliments you, what should you say back? Saying ‘arigatou’ doesn’t sound right. xD
@Louisa
Hi Louisa,
You can say ありがとう but in some occasion, ありがとう may sound like you are aware of your beauty. :)
So, how about just saying そうですか？or tell them how much you like the outfits (if you like them). いいですね。/ 色がいいですね。/ かわいいですね。/ デザインがいいですね。or デザインが気に入りました。etc.
Maggie-sensei,
how would you say “It’s been X minutes/hours/days/weeks/months/years since”.
As in, for example, “It’s been 6 months since I last went swimming.”
On that note, how would you say “several” or “a few” minutes/hours/days etc. instead of using an exact number?
And is there a way to simply say, “It’s been a while since [I last did something]”?
Sorry for using English–I’ve only been learning Japanese for around three months.
Thank you as always for your help!! boucingheart!
@seimei
Hi Seimei,
~ぶりに〜をしました。
→半年（６ヶ月）ぶりに泳ぎに行きました。
Check this lesson.
several” or “a few” minutes/hours/day →You can use 数 (数分、数時間、数日、数ヶ月、数年）
“It’s been a while since [I last did something]”?
I also explained this in the lesson which I gave you the link above. →久しぶりに〜をしました・した
Thank you for another awesome lesson!
How do I ask someone if I can take a photo with him/her? Like a selfie xD
Also, I apologize in advance if this question has already been asked ~
@Louisa
Hi Louisa,
Can I take a picture with you?
= 一緒に写真を撮ってもいいですか？
= Issho ni shashin wo totte mo ii desuka?
(more casual)
一緒に写真を撮ってもいい？
= Issho ni shashin wo totte mo ii?
Wow, so useful! Now I have a lot to study! xD I love your page
@Natalia
Good to hear you think it is useful. :)
Hello! It’s a bit late, but happy new year! Anyway, thanks for the lesson. Today a have specific questions. I read the sentence 自分の顔に対する捉え方は他の人のと比べれば全く違うという結果を出すとよく聞くね
And I can understand most of it. I am just having a hard time understanding the 対する捉え方 part?
I know the general meaning of both words, I just don’t understand how they’re being used here.
捉え方 means “the way to grasp something”, “the way to perceive something”, right? I guess my problem is mostly with 対する and how it is being used here.
@reid
Happy New Year, reid!
捉え方 means “the way to grasp something”, “the way to perceive something”, right?
→Yes.
対する has a various meanings. on, against, about,
In this case 自分の顔に対する捉え方 is just “how you see your own face””the way you see your own face”
Hmm now I think I get it. Thanks a lot!
＠reid
You’re welcome.
自分の顔に対する捉え方は他の人のと比べれば全く違う
It basically says The way how you see your face and how other people see your face are totally different.
このレッスンには一応目を通すと「一体どう一気に一部始終を一通り読めばいい」と思った。一見長過ぎそうなのに一か八か一世一代の挑戦を受けてみた。だって三日坊主じゃなくて一息努力だけすればきっと成功するだろう。
二週間一切何も食べなくて一人で一心に本文の言葉を一々再三読んでいて一時的に気が触れてしまった。一喜一憂だった。一言で言えば件の一件は結局万事が上手く行った。十二分の用語を習って万能の一人前の男になった。これで一件落着だ。
一点一画もおろそかにしないでね:
“icchou itttan”
“ittan”
“That cheap rehash of “Attach of Titan” won’t be popular.”
“Attack on Titan”
“niho ashi wo fumu”
“nino”
“I can’t help feeling reluctant when it come to going to Karaoke.”
“it comes”
“Mite, Maggie to urifutatu no furenchi buru ga iru yo.”
“urifutatsu”
“Kinou wa, netto ga tsunagarazu ni ichinichi juu, shiku hakku shitieta.”
“shiteita”
“= せんさばんべつ
“banbetsu” or “せんさまんべつ” or both, there seems to be an infinite variety of pronunciations :)
= Sensa manbetsu”
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you!!!!!! boucingheart! :maggie-small:
Fixed them all.
二週間一切食べないで直してくれたの？もう何か食べてね。ありがとう！
「スネる」と「やさぐれる」の違いは何ですか？
@Axle
両方、sulkyという意味が出てくると思いますが、「スネる」がその時の一時的な感情を表したり、ちょっとかわいい響きがあるのに対して「やさぐれる」は元々、家を出てぐれるという意味もあり、ある一定の期間、「投げやり」になったり「ぐれる」意味を持ちます。
!greenapple!
So how many stereotypes does Google assume about the Japanese language? because I’m using Google for some weapon chants in some stories and I don’t know how to correctly translate them from English to Japanese (not caligraphy) Plz reply ASAP..
@Crystal Rianna
Hi Crystal Rianna
So how many stereotypes does Google assume about the Japanese language? →I am sorry. I don’t know.
But what I can say is not to trust Google Translate. It sometimes works OK but they are not good at translating long complicated sentences.
ありがとうございます Maggiesensei! 💐
どういたしまして、Ami! 💕
MEEP I just found your website! d=I wanna learn more about Japanese language. Like, how many stereotypes does Google put in their translations?
Hi sensei,
I dont understand what you mean by “some compound words will be used with で”.
So “これはアメリカで大人気です” is correct and not “これはアメリカに大人気です” even though there is no “action”?
And can I also say アメリカでは大人気です
Thanks in advance!
@Bob
Hi Bob,
You usually use に with a verb ある
Ex. ここに鍵（かぎ）がある There is a key here.
But you use a particle で with some idiomatic compound words such as 人気ある（人気がある/ 人気ある) even if it is not an action.
And yes, you can say アメリカでは大人気です
は adds the meaning of contrast.
“some compound words will be used with で”.
means to use ある in
明けましておめでとう！
この文法をずっと習いたかったけどやっとできた！なかなか紛らわしいもの…
教えてくれてありがとう！
@chaos_prinz
明けましておめでとう！
またこのサイトに来てもらえてうれしいです。
I’m confused sensei!
What’s the difference between “毎日、ご飯を食べる” and “毎日、ご飯を食べている”? (since 毎日 is a time phrase so should we use ている?) or does the second sentence imply that before I don’t eat breakfast everyday but now I do?
Also, in the lesson, you said: “子供達は今、ゲームで遊んでいる”. Why is it not 子供達は今、ゲーム”を”遊んでいる?
Sorry for the long questions!
@momo
毎日、ご飯を食べる
毎日、ご飯を食べている
They both mean the same and describes the daily habitual action.
As I explained in the lesson, you can describe the actions with 〜ている ( = ~ te iru) / 〜ています ( = ~ te imasu) more vividly than 〜る(=ru)/〜ます(=masu) .
So for example, if a mother worries about her child who lives far away and asks if they eat everyday, it will be more natural to say
毎日、きちんとご飯を食べていますか？ (continuous actions/habitual action)
than
毎日、きちんと食べますか？
ゲームで遊ぶ
Unlike English we say play “with” something. =〜で遊ぶ
So you don’t use an object marker,を.
I was so scared when your site was down, because it is brilliant and I love it so much! Thank you for your great work. And Happy New year!
@Rin
Happy New Year, Rin!
I guess I made too many lessons here so the site is getting heavier. We have to fix the major problem sometime soon but I am happy to be able to make lessons again.
今年もよろしくね！
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I was wondering what the difference between using
Okureru and osoi is when being late? Initially I thought osokunatte was used for objects only but I have heard people scold others for being late using osoi.
Thank you for clearing this up :3
@nicole
Hi nicole
osoi is an adjective and it means “slow”/ “late”
Ex. Osoi kuruma = slow car
Ex. Watashi wa aruku no ga osoi.
= I walk slowly.
(The directly translation is “my walking is slow.”
Now okureru means “to be late”
Ex. Kurasu ni okueru.
= To be late to the class.
Ex. Jikan ni okureru.
= To be late (in time).
” I am sorry I am late” in Japanese is “Osoku natte gomennasai.”
If you apologize for walking slowly, you say
Aruku no ga osokute gomennasai.
Ex.
Hi Maggie, first off, thank you so much for all your wonderful lessons! They have been so helpful. C:
I have a question regarding point cards. What if you already registered for a point card online but now you want to have them make you a physical card in store? For example, Club Animate allows you to do that.
How do I ask for a physical card without confusing them with registering for a new card? Keep in mind, I’ll be pointing to a barcode on my cellphone as proof of my registration.
Thank you in advance!
@Louisa
Thank YOU for visiting here,too!
You can show that and tell them,
ネットで登録しましたが、カードを発行して頂けますか？
= Netto de touroku shimashitaga, kaado wo hakkou shite itadakemasu ka?
= I registered this on net but could you make a card please?
Thank you, Maggie-sensei! ^^
@Louisa
You’re welcome, Louisa! :)
ああ、またNian Nian ですか？光栄です！！ 最近、マギー先生のウェブサイトが見られなくて、悲しかったんです！また面白いレッスンを作ってもらって、ありがとうございます！ 今回のトッピング、深いですね。私にとって、一番好きな四字熟語は「一期一会」です！
よいお年をお迎えください！
@Jane
こんにちは、 Jane!
Nian Nian先生は本当にかわいい先生ですよ。そしてがんばって一緒にレッスンを作ってくれました。
このサイトはまだこれから大きな修復をしないといけないと思うのですがこうやってまた皆に来てもらえてうれしいです。
Janeの周りのかわいいワンちゃんや猫ちゃんと出会えたことも一期一会ですね。
Janeもよいお年を迎えてくださいね。
Konnichiha Maggie_Sensei
It’s me again, arigatou gozaimasu for responsing my prev question back there, but sensei i still have some issues about those, heard them from anime and couldn’t recognize them:
“Bunkatte Hoshii”
“kou nara koto nozonde ita ka o shiranai n da”
“anata o tairu” “watashitachi o taiou tte hoshii”
“this last sentence it’s sounded like about “dependence” …
_Onegai Shimasu !gejigeji! !gejigeji!
o’ i forget one more:
“mina no chikara ga oboeta osare(ba)..zettai ni makenai
@Ōsama
Hi,Ōsama,
First I am sorry but I don’t do the translation here. (If I do, I have to translate for everybody…)
I can explain the structure but can you post them in Japanese?
Maybe they are typos..but some of the phrases don’t make any sense.
I Am Sorry Sensei, I know it’s kind of nonsense, because i tried so hard to get these words from their voices but unfortunately the words aren’t clear (expectable from jp anime).
_About thie sentence:
“mina no chikara ga oboeta osare(ba)” Sensei is it true that in some cases when two verbs are linked in one sentence, the first verb congigated to “past form” ?
That’s all Sensei
Hi sensei,
I am just wondering is it possible to just take the “る” form of a verb and add a noun to make it a new noun, because I just heard the word “帰る場所”? But what I have learned is always to add こと after the verb to make a noun.
I have also noticed that some verbs can just take the “ます” stem to form a noun such as たべもの? Does it work for all verbs as well?
Sorry for the long questions!
Hi Bob,
*こと after the verb is to make a noun
帰ること = kaeru koto = going home
帰る場所
This 帰る is not a noun.
It is a very that modifies a noun.
place to go back.
It is not just る form.
This is how it works
Verb + noun
You can use it with any tense.
日本語を話す人
= Nihongo wo hanasu hito
= a person who speaks Japanese.
昔、読んだ本
= Mukashi, yonda hon
= A book that I read a long time ago.
喧嘩した友達
= Kenka shita tomodachi
= A friend that I fought with.
Q: I have also noticed that some verbs can just take the “ます” stem to form a noun such as たべもの?
Does it work for all verbs as well?
No, not all the verbs. It is very limited.
飲みます= nomimasu = to drink →飲み物= nomimono = drinks
読みます=yomimas = to read →読み物= yomimono = things to read
But it is all right to say nani ga mondai desu ka?
Im so confused! IF nani ka = “something” but nani ga = “what”, how will nanika mondai ga aru be translated into english?
Will it be translated as “Is there something/some problem?” Won’t “nani ga” be better translated as “What problem is there”? Sensei, Oshiete kudasai!!
@Bob
The difference between “nani ka” and “nani ga”
1) nani ka + noun= any + noun / any + verb plain form + noun
Nani ka mondai ga arimasu ka?
→Are there any problems?
or
→Do you have any problems?
*****
Ex. Nani ka taberu mono wa arimasu ka?
= Do you have anything to eat?
Ex. Nani ka petto wa katte imasu ka?
= Do you have any pets?
***
2) “nani ga” + adjective + da/ desu
“ga” is a subject marker.
Ex. Nani ga mondai desu ka?
= What is the problem.
Ex. Nani ga okashii no desu ka?
= What is funny?
Hi Maggie sensei,
Many thanks for your prompt answer. I really appreciate your reply!
I think I quite get your point.
I do apologize for my continuous confusing but could you help me one more !
Now I understand the で indicates the reason. So, I wonder if my understanding is correct or not.
If somebody asks “どうして日本に来たんですか” -> why question
Then we answer “勉強で来ました” (and avoid “勉強に来ました”）
If sbd asks “日本に何をしに来ましたか？” -> what question
Then we answer “勉強にきました” = I came here to study.
Do we need to avoid 勉強で来ました (because the question is what question, not why question)? Or both are OK?
Sorry again. But 助けてください^.<
ごめんなさいMaggie sensei.
This is my mistake in posting comment. I posted it in the wrong position.
I posted my reply again in our conversation already. Please help me !
Maggie sensei..
I have a long list of request lessons..If possible:
tsui
naosara尚更/ issou 一層
irassharu
V-te irareru
ja
ka
nomi (only)
X ni taishite,
wake when it comes in the end of the sentence
and I want to know the difference between tabemono and taberumono >> I find them both translated to food when watching dramas!!
Also, the meaning of sore ni taishite??
that’s all maggie sensei..
Iknow I’m asking too much.. but I’m asking you because you’re my number one teacher
thank you boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
@Roro
I will add your requests on the list that I have.
But will try to explain some of them here when I have more time tomorrow.
@Roro
OK, will try to explain some of your questions here.
* irassharu
is an honorific way of saying iru
Ex. 明日は家にいますか？
= Ashita wa ie ni imasu ka?
= Are you home tomorrow?
→(polite)明日は家にいらっしゃいますか？
= Ashita wa ie ni irasshai masu ka?
Ex. 普段は何をしていますか？
= Fudan wa nani wo shite imasu ka?
= What do you usually do?
→(polite) 普段は、何をされていますか？
= Fudan wa, nani wo sarete imasuka?
or
普段は、何をしていらっしゃいますか？
= Fudan wa, nani wo shite irasshaimasu ka?
*ja = casual contraction of では
Ex. 今日はお休みではないですか？
= Kyou wa oyasumi de wa nai desu ka?
= Isn’t it a day-off today?
→(casual) 今日はお休みじゃない？
= Kyou wa oyasumi janai?
*nomi (only): literal / formal
だけ(= dake) is more common in conversation
Ex. 女性のみ
= Josei nomi
= Only women
Ex. ほとんどの飲み物は３００円ですが、ビールのみ６００円です。
= Hotondo no nominono wa sanbyaku en desu ga, biiru nomi roppyakuen desu.
= Almost all the drinks cost 300 yen but only beer costs 600 yen.
* X ni taishite= against/ towards ~/ in contrast with
Ex. 彼は私に対して冷たい。
= Kare wa watashi ni taishite tsumetai.
= He is cold towards me.
Sore ni taishite = in contrast with that/ by contrast
Ex. 兄は、運動神経がいいですが、それに対して私はスポーツが大嫌いです。
= Ani wa, undoushinkei ga ii desu ga, sore ni taishite watashi wa supootu ga daikirai desu.
= My older brother is very athletic. By contrast, I hate sports.
*wake when it comes in the end of the sentence
Usually you say “wake desu/ wake da” but you omit desu/da in conversation.
You use “wake” when you explain how things work or when you give a reason.
That is why ~~
~ to iu wake desu/da – It is because ~
* I want to know the difference between tabemono and taberumono >> I find them both translated to food when watching dramas!!
When you talk about food in general, you use “tabemono”
But you use taberu mono, for example
Ex. Do you have anything to eat?
= Nanka taberu mono aru?
* Also, the meaning of sore ni taishite??
I explained in the above
thank you sooo much maggie sensei..
I really wish I can thank you in person ^^
take care :w:
@Roro
My pleasure, Roro. :)
Is there a difference between “nani ga mondai ga arimasu ka” and “nani ka mondai ga arimasu ka” and which would sound more natural for Japanese?
ありがとうございます!
@Bob
Hi Bob, Is anything wrong? in Japanese is
Nani ka mondai ga arimasuka
You don’t say nani ga mondai ga arimasu ka.
your site was down for about aweek.. I’m happy to see your lesson again :tulip3:
thank you maggie sensei boucingheart!
@Roro
I know. I missed you all!
Sorry to disturb again, but I still dont really get the difference between chotto mattete and chotto matte if both of them means please wait :/
Please help senseiiii
@A
The translation is the same. “Wait/Just a moment” but while
Matte = Wait (this moment)
Matte ite = Stay waiting (the speaker tells the listener to wait for certain period of time)
Hi sensei,
I have often hear this when watching anime:”chotto mattete”. Is this the shorten form of matte ite, if so, then when it is translated into English will the meaning be more like “stay/be waitING” or more like “stay/be HERE waitING” as “ite/iru” could also be interpreted as to exist or to be or the meaning could be both?
Thanks in advance!!
@A
Hi A,
We often drop い(=i) in conversation
ちょっとまっていて = Chotto matte ite
→ちょっとまってて = Chotto mattete
It means “Please wait” / Just a minute” / “Please wait for me (a little)”/”Stay here and wait for me.” /
The literal meaning of matteiru is “to be in the state of waiting.”
Hello Maggie, I had a question if possible.
What exactly do you use なっている and なっていた for regarding the usage of state for ている? Haven’t seen it used much so I’m not exactly sure how to use them in sentences.
Seemed to me that なっていた could have been replaced with なった. But obviously I’m wrong so any help on that light is appreciated.
@Gallus
The tenses are different.
なっている describes the current state or how things are supposed to work.
Facebookで話題になっている Everybody is talking about it on Facebook.(current state)
毎年、１２月に同窓会をすることになっている。We always have a class reunion every December. (talking about something habitual)
次の月曜日には病院に行くことになっている. I am supposed to go to the hospital next Monday. (What you are supposed to do (future)
なっていた You were supposed to do/something was supposed to happen in past but you didn’t/it didn’t happen.
Ex. 今日、彼に会うことになっていた = I was supposed to see him today. (But I didn’t see him.)
なった has become/ describing some decision/ result
Ex. 明日、彼に会うことになった。(talking about what you are supposed to do in future.)
= I decided to see him tomorrow.
We got the same message from you so I deleted one of them.
Hello, Thanks for your reply (And sorry for the double post, website seemed to have trouble for me)
I now understand the usage of it on how things are supposed to work. It’s usage of current state still confuses me though. I’m quite slow in this regard though so if it would be possible whenever you have time to explain it a bit further, It would be appreciated. As I’m not sure how Facebookで話題になっている translates into that.
@Gallus
OK! I have a lesson on ている
話題になる to become a popular topic
話題になっている has been a popular topic
Thanks for taking your time. Strangely the link takes me to a No Page found though.
@Gallus
Sorry. Try again. It should work now.
Hi sensei! I really like your lessons, they’re really helpful.
I just have a question.
I heard someone say 苦いの嫌い。
Why did they use の instead of が? Is it because it’s a short form of 苦いの者が嫌い or 苦いの食べ物が嫌い?
@Lisa
Hi Lisa,
Glad to hear you like my lessons.
苦いの嫌い
is a colloquial expression.
The whole sentence is
苦い食べ物は嫌いです。
↓
Now instead of saying 食べ物, you can just say の (things) in conversation.
苦いのは嫌いです。
↓
Also you often omit particle. And you don’t say です。
苦いの嫌い
This lesson will help you understand how to use の.
こんにちは、マギー先生！質問があります。手伝ってくれますか。
日本語が上手ではないのにupper levelの文法をまた習いたいです。しかし本当に難しいですよ。
ところで ところに（へ） ところを as for me seems pretty similar to ～たら/～と if-grammar (I might be wrong, but most sentences you translated as ‘when’, so…)
So, if I’m right, and it has the same meaning as ～たら/～と I want to now what is nuance between them?
よろしくお願いします。
@chaos_prinz
こんにちは！
You are right. Some usage of 「ところに（へ）」is similar to 「たら」
皆さんがそろったところで乾杯しましょう。
→皆さんがそろったら乾杯しましょう。
(You can’t interchange this with と)
While ところ is focusing on the point of time, you use「たら」when some condition is filled (Please check my lesson)
I learnt 「たら」 but it feels like I need to review it /cries
Sorry, I forgot to add few more questions:
☆た+ ところで even if / although / even though / no matter how ~(the result won’t be desirable anyway)
and のに means the same or?
☆Also, do we always need to use such words as 今 ちょうど with ところ or sentence is correct even w/o them?
Thanks in advance boucingheart!
@chaos_prinz
☆た+ ところで and のに are different.
のに is used when you actually did something but you don’t get the expected result.
たところで is used for hypothetical situation.
Ex. 一生懸命勉強したのに試験に受からなかった。
= Isshoukenmei benkyou shita noni shiken ni ukaranakatta.
= Even though I studied so hard I didn’t pass the exam.
Ex. 一生懸命勉強したところで試験には受からない(だろう）
= Even if I study so hard, I am not going to pass the exam.
☆Not necessary 今ちょうど but we use ~ ところです with some time related word.
今（ちょうど）出たところです。
さっき出たところです。
５分前に出たところです。
Thank you very much for explaining this to me!!!
I think I live in your site, ahahahaha.
But Japanese has so much similar grammar, that I start to think I’ll never master it, pfff.
@ chaos_prinz
You’re welcome.
If you try to understand the whole difference and details, it will stress you out. Take baby steps.
Hi Maggie
What would be the difference between these two sentences?
一生懸命勉強したところで試験には受からない(だろう）
一生懸命勉強しても試験には受からない(だろう）
Hi Cake
I would say the same.
したところで = しても or したとしても
They both lead the contradicted result.
まさに”な”の問題について他の先生にメールを書こうとしていたときにこのレッスン出た。不思議なあ。マギー先生は第六感があるかなああ。 :s:
“Kanojo wa nani wo kite mi niau naa.”
“kite mo”
I was wondering, since the the combination of a verb+na could mean both an expression of emotion or a negative command, how do know what is meant. Is there maybe a difference in pronunciation if I say for instance: “今食べるな。”, so that you would know whether I meant: “Don’t eat now!” or “I’m goin to eat now!”? I don’t want to sound like ordering people around when I just want to express my feelings…
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Typo見つけてくれてありがとう！直しました。
そうなの、Zetsuboumanadeshiがきっとこのレッスンいるかなって思って作りましたよ。（不思議なあ→不思議だなあ）
Haha good question.
今、食べるな
could mean
1) Don’t eat now.
2) I am going to eat now, OK? (male speech)
and the intonation is different.
It is too bad that I can’t attach a sound file here but 1) you stress “食べる” more. and you say 2) more softly.
ああ、そういう奴、いたな。/ いたよな。
Aa, souiu yatsu, ita na/ !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [iata] —> ita yona.
@zoheb
いつもありがとう！！
i’ve never heard of 住まい or お住まい before, ちょっと説明してくれませんか？(´･ω･`)
i also have learned こう、そう、ああ and どう before(ex: こういう、こうして- this way). They’re used to describe things in an abstract way right? can you please tell me about more of its uses or just examples 先生? (´ω`)
@yzr
住まい means where you live/ a house/housing/dwelling.
So “Where do you live?” in Japanese is どこに住んでいますか？= Doko ni sunde imasu ka? But you can also ask
お住まいはどちらですか？= Osumai wa dochira desuka?. It sounds more polite.
Yes, こう, そう、ああ means this way, that way
どうやるんですか？ = How do you do that?
こうやってください。= Do this way, please.
こういう・そういう・ああいう also means “this kind of/that kind of/ such a ”
こういう本がほしい= Koiuiu hon ga hoshii = I would like this kind of book. / a book like this.
also from this lesson : http://142.93.68.150/2015/02/04/how-to-use-%E3%81%93%E3%82%93%E3%81%AAkonna-%E3%81%9D%E3%82%93%E3%81%AAsonna-%E3%81%82%E3%82%93%E3%81%AAanna/
is it also the same with こういう、そういう, etc as well? :-D
@yzr
Hi yzr!
この、その、あの just indicates an item/person depending on the distance from the speaker.
こんな、そんな、あんな involves more emotions.
こういう、そういう、ああいう means like this, like that, like that one (physically or mentally far from the speakers) or such ~
Ex.こういうやり方 = such a way to deal with things
こんにちは、マギー先生！この文法を読み直していて質問がありますよ。名詞＋方 がどういう意味ですか？ よろしくお願いします。
@chaos_prinz
Commentが使えなくて返事が遅れました。twitterの方で返事をしますね。
Thank you for that lesson, but to make things clearer, if I wanted to say I like ALL the things about someone/something would it be something like subete or zenbou no koto? Thanks
@A
I like everything about you?
It is more common to say あなたの(or Name＋の）すべてが好きです。
Sorry,I just wanted to ask the difference between these 2 sentences regarding the use of koto:
1)kimi ga suki desu
2)kimi no koto ga suki desu
Does koto here means all the things about you or just things/thoughts about you? Thanks in advance!!
@A
Hi A,
Please go check my 愛しています lesson. I explained the nuance difference.
こんにちは、マギー先生！このレッスンはありがとう！
英語と母語ではこの言い回しをよく使うと思うから習ってとっても嬉しい。
例：すごく忙しかったから日本語能力試験を受けるどころじゃなかった。だから日本語のレベルがわからない。
@chaos_prinz
こんにちは！「どころ」の使い方、上手ですよ。
また使ってみてね。
おもいしろかった!!! !riceball! !riceball! !purplecandy! !purplecandy!
Tetsudatte kurete arigatou Magi sensei, but
sensei why don’t give this lesson through video it would be awesome and i’m no one who watch it
@Fahmi san
おもしろかった？よかった！
I am sorry but I don’t have a Youtube channel and don’t make video.
おもしろかった haip chigaimashita gomen2 :)
Ohhh its okay sensei :) !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE!
Sensei i have a request can u make a lesson about onomatopoeia japanese? :)
@Fahmi san
You know what? Tofugu has a great lesson on onomatopoeia.
Go check his page.
Hold me now don’t bother if every minute it makes me weaker
You can save me from the man that I’ve become, oh yeah
Hi Maggie sensei,
As always thanks for another great lesson.
I know you said that you can’t just add 的 to any nouns. How about する-nouns? Are they usually used with 的？ I noticed a bunch of your examples were する-nouns.
@アル
Hi アル？
Hmmm…You mean like a noun such as 開放(+する）、実践(+する）、行動(+する）?
It may work with some of them but not all of them.
勉強(+する）料理（＋する）旅行(+する) ，They all won’t work with 的
Perfect! Thank you very much♥♥♥
｢程」の文法はこれ程難しいだとは思いませんでした。
*I hope it is correct.
Maggie-sensei, I could understand pretty much everything :kanpai1:, but not that “We sometimes describe things in an extreme way” part. I wasn’t able to see the pattern on the examples like:
言葉にできないほど美しい景色だ。
この漫画は、飽きるほど読んだ。
I always look for patterns on the structure to make my studies easy, but I’m cracking my head trying to figure that one.
@Utsuo
OK, You may see the patten better from
Ex.彼のことが死ぬほど好きです。
= Kare no koto ga shinuhodo suki desu.
= I love him so much I would die for him. / I love him to death.
You don’t actually die but to express how much you love him in an exaggerate way you use 程.
言葉にできないほど= You may able to express the beauty of the scenery.
飽きるほど= If you get really tired of reading something, you wouldn’t keep reading but you do.
So you bring up some extreme/exaggerate example to show the degree of things.
Thanks! Both this and the previous lesson are very useful!
@reid
Hi reid,
Thank YOU for your comment. I am happy to know you found these lessons useful. :)
Can I say:
予約確認番号は 678954 。ホテルに着いたところ、この番号はホテル員に申し上げたりするはずです。
Is it correct?
What I mean to say is: you should give/say this number to the hotel clerk when you arrive
@LyraGiulia
Do you work for a hotel?
If you are talking to a customer,
ご予約番号は６７８９５６です。ホテルにチェックインされる際、こちらの番号をお伝え下さい。
(arrive = ご到着されたら but check-in チェックイン is more natural.)
No, I’m telling their confirmation number to my japanese friends who are coming in Rome. And maybe they don’t know what the confirmation number is meant for. So I wanted to tell them what they are supposed to do with it. !AHOUSE!
@LyraGuilia
OK, then you don’t have to be so polite.
ご予約確認番号は６７８９５６です。ホテルにチェックインする時に、この番号を伝えて下さい。
Thank you so much Maggie sensei !greenapple! !Anapple!
@LyraGuilia
Prego! Hope you have a great time with your Japanese friends in Rome.
Hi Maggie sensei,
Your lesson about hodo is very useful. Thank you very much. However, I found a sentence like this and can’t tell what type of this “hodo” in the sentence.
Please help me to clarify it. It seems they omitted the “fukamareba”…
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
(The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance)
Thank you Maggie sensei.
Triet Dao
@Triet Dao
Hi, sorry for the late reply. I was on the short winter vacation.
You posted the same questions a couple of time and 天人さん was trying to help you. Did you read his comment?
(@ 天人 Than, you for your help! I can always rely on you when I am away. :) )
OK
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
(The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance)
You are right. It is omitted 深まれば
人は知識が深まれば深まるほど~~
Sometimes we omit the 〜ば because it looks/sounds repetitive.
Tks Maggie sensei,
For some reason, my posting seemed not gone thru so I keep repeating the posting. Sorry for annoying you.
Thanks for yours and 天人さん’s clarifying.
Best regards,
Triet Dao
@Triet Dao
I am sorry.
I was on vacation and it took me a while to activate your question.
Hi Maggie sensei.
Pls help me to clarify the use of hodo in the below sentene. It seems they left the “fukamareba” off…thank you very much. Triet Dao
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。
The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance.
Hello Triet Dao.
There’s a long and a short version of the ～ば…ほど construction.
Long: （ゲームは）難しければ、難しいほど面白い。 ==> Used in conversations & texts; sounds more formal.
Short: （ゲームは）難しいほど面白い。 ==> Usually used in conversations; sounds more casual.
ご参考になれば。
Hi Maggie sensei, pls help me to clarify the “hodo” in this sentence. It seems they left the “fukamareba” off. Thank you very much. Triet Dao
人は知識が深まるほど、自分の無知に気がつくものである。The more a man knows, the more he discovers his ignorance.
maggie sensei… you’re mind reader.. thank you !heart3!
what is the difference between ban and gou both means number and how can I use gou?
@Roro
Hi Roro,
番 is used when you simply count a number from the top.
号 is more limited. You use 号 for the issue, edition, address of an apartment/house, etc.
So imagewise, if are counting many people/things and put the order, you use 番
And if you count the order of something special, (invention, address of your house/apartment, model number)
Also you use it for a model name.
アポロ１３号= Apollo 13
So if I make/have a rocket, a bus, a special car I will name it マギー号
Dear Maggie sensei,
I was wondering how do you say “Happy 21st birthday!” in Japanese? Or It’s my 21st birthday? Which counter would I use?
Thank you!
@Andy
Hi Andy,
Happy 21st birthday!
21歳のお誕生日おめでとう（ございます*）
*ございます＝polite/formal
It’s my 21st birthday
今日は私（僕＊）の２１歳の誕生日です。
僕(boku) for a man
Hi, I have a question ~
“妹はいつも電気を消さないで/ 消さずに寝る。”
Isn’t it suppose to be 電気を消しずに寝る? Just minus the “ます” ?
Hello Jenn.
消す belongs to 四段活用動詞のサ行. A negation requires 未然形 of the verb 消す.
Therefore: 消す ==> 消さない ==> 消さないで／消さず, because the 未然形 of サ行 is ～さ not ～し
More infos you will find here: https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%9B%9B%E6%AE%B5%E6%B4%BB%E7%94%A8 [日本語動詞の活用の種類]
ご参考になれば。
@Jenn
Sorry for the late reply but you had 天人さん answer your question.
消さずに寝る
@天人
ありがとう！！ boucingheart! boucingheart!
第一、368番目のレッスンありがとうございます、片時も非番じゃないらしいです。第二に、タイポを見つけるのは私の十八番ですね。
“それから一本目の道…
soko kara ipponme no michi…” :rrrr: sore or soko?
I have a question concerning the counters in combination with these forms. The first one seem clear enough, its always number+counter+目のnoun:
1. １０００人目のお客様
Now, lets try the same example using the other forms, I guess it is:
2. １０００番目のお客様 – If this is correct, 人 is missing, which means you can’t use counters with 番目, right?
3. 第１０００人のお客様 – If this is correct, 目 is missing, but could you add it after 人?
Also, some of your examples for 第 don’t have a counter, (第２ボタン, 第二子) so could I omit the counter in this case, ie 第１０００お客様?
And lastly, you gave these examples:
日本で2番目に高い山は北岳です。
AKBは「クラスで１０番目に可愛い女の子」を集めたとしている。
I am puzzled about the に after 第目, I was expecting a の. Does it have something to do with the adjectives that are following?
よろしくお願いします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typo as always. I really appreciate it.
2. It is not wrong to say 1000番目のお客様. I guess 〜人目のお客様 is more common.
3. No, you don’t say 第１０００人のお客様
4.
If you are pointing a girl who is standing in a line, you say
前から１０番目の女の子 = the 10th girl from the front.
Not１０番目に
When you refer to someone/something in a ranking, you tend to use に
彼はクラスで１０番目に頭のいい生徒だ。
(X Not の）
Maggie sensei….
watashi ni kono section wa muzukashi desu ga, tanoshikatta desu !JYANE! !JYANE!
@Fahmi san
Uso? Muzukashikatta? :)
Haip uso desu ga, muzukashikata
@Fahmi san
This is one of my old lessons. Just know you say “uso” in the situation like you can’t believe something. Ex. Really? No way!
Yeah i like to learn from the beginning of your lesson because i like it boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
Is there any equivalent to following english sentence when saying bye to someone who you met for the first time, and not sure when will you meet him again – “It as nice meeting you. Good bye.”
@Aitaka
Hi Aitaka,
Nice meeting you in Japanese is
(polite)
お会いできてうれしかったです。
= Oai dekite ureshikatta desu.
お会いできてよかったです。
= Oai dekite yokatta desu.
Can someone here explain the usage of も in this sentence:
春も、ゆうべの雨や風で、残りなく洗われてしまった
I know what the sentence means, I just don’t fully understand how も is used here.
It’s from the old novel Musashi, so it could be literary or outdated usage of it.
@Bingfa
That も is for emphasizing 春
So the last night rain and wind were strong and they even washed away “spring”
hi sensei boucingheart! boucingheart!
Maggie Sensei wa ichiban suki
@Fahmi-san
ありがとう！！Fahmi-sanはやさしいですね。
大好き boucingheart! boucingheart!
先生、このレッスンはありがとう。
”とき”のレッスンがありますか？
@wen hao
こんにちは、wen hao.
時（とき）のレッスンありますよ。
１）時の日本語
２）時間
Hi Sensei,
The”とき” I was mentioned was referring to “when” in English.
@WenHao
Sorry for the late reply. I was away for a week. off. :)
No, I don’t have “when” lesson. But someone else asked me to make a lesson so I will add it on the list.
Kore ga boku ga gesuto sensei to shite oshieru !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [futatume]—> futatsume no ressun desuyo.
有り難うございますマギー先生とShady先生 !happyface! !happyface!
@zoheb
Thank you zeheb!!!
いつも感謝しています boucingheart!
@zoheb
Thank you zeheb!!!
いつも感謝しています boucingheart! boucingheart!
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
In some novel MC comes to a shop hoping to sell some remnants of a monster. He stays in a queque and sees another guest selling the same thing. Now it’s his turn.
‘おう。魔物の素材を持ってきたんだが買い取ってくれ。’
1) What が means here? Could it be interpreted like ‘though’? So it’d be something like:
‘Hi. I’ve brought some monster parts (=even though you probably don’t need them anymore, I made efforts to come here, so…), but buy them, will you?’
2) Is there some general rule how んだ interacts with が?
Thanks in advance!
Hello!
It can be omitted “wa/mo” in this example?
Negative form of verb + naku + ga/wa + nai
Or when is omitted, mean something else?
Thanks.
I read a paragraph which says:
お母さんはお父さんがいない方が食事のよういがらくでいい、なんていっていました。
How is なんてused in this context? Does it mean “Mom says that it is a lot easier and better to prepare meals when dad is not here”, where emphasis is placed on how much easier it is to prepare meals?
もちろんこれはじょうだんで、本当はずいぶんさびしがっているんです。
Does “がっているんです” mean show signs of? Do you mind explaining?
お父さんが電話をかけてくると喜ぶのでわかります。
If I were to say this in English a bit literally, can I say “It can be understood because whenever dad calls, mom is happy”?
しつもんがたくさんあるね～
@pennypup
こんにちは、pennypup,
1) お母さんはお父さんがいない方が食事のよういがらくでいい、なんていっていました。
This なんて means “(to say something like) ~~~” but it involves some feelings of a little surprise or jokingly accusing in this case.
2) 寂しがる to feel lonely. I have がり、がる lesson. So please go check.
3) OK, or “I can tell because ~~”
I had a lesson with my Japanese teacher from italki on the 22nd of November. Today I had a Japanese friend check my notes to make sure my conjugations were correct and the example sentences I used for the different ways ちゃう/ちゃった were also correct.
I was wondering if you would be able to confirm some things for me. :3
・～でしまいます（じゃう） isn’t really used and can sound awkward and it’s sounds more natural to go with the original ます ending of the verb.
・～でしまいます(じゃう） includes a feeling of going against one’s own will.
＠184
Hi 184.
Well I don’t know what you wrote in your note but
・～でしまいます（じゃう） isn’t really used and can sound awkward and it’s sounds more natural to go with the original ます ending of the verb.
→It depends on the context.
We do say
Ex. そんなことをしたら死んでしまいますよ。
(casual) そんなことをしたら死んじゃうよ。
when you give an advice.
・～でしまいます(じゃう） includes a feeling of going against one’s own will.
Yes.
Maggie I need your assistance, I’m sorry ><
I tried to figure out, what the difference is between ありのまま and あるがまま… and it's a bit more complicated, than I thought.
Here's a little help:
1. http://oshiete.goo.ne.jp/qa/8663486.html
2. http://www.ccore.co.jp/plus/arinomama/
3. http://76871734.at.webry.info/201203/article_3.html
ありのまま VS あるがまま の例文もあれば役に立ちますね。
よろしくお願いします！
＠天人
こんにちは！
ありのまま VS あるがまま
To be honest, you already found all the sites and I don’t think I can give you further/different opinion on this topics.
These people already gave thoughts and explained well.
My first impression is just ありのまま is more conversational than あるがまま and あるがまま tends to be used in more literal expression.
1) ありのままの自分
2) あるがままの自分 (sounds more literal)
So they mean the same (at least to me) but if anything 1) the way I am (including your life style, they way you look, they way you should be.
ありのまま話して下さい。(conversational)
あるがまま話して下さい。It sounds more dramatic. You don’t usually hear this in conversation.
Since あるがまま is more literal, you see in proverbs, old sayings more.
物事はあるがままがに受け入れる
sounds more deeper than ありのままに受け入れる
Also I get the impression they are a lot of time interchangeable but
ありのまま the current state, situation,
あるがまま is more refer to the essence of things/people.
And this is my interpretation. :)
Thanks Maggie!
マギーへのお花です！ :qq:
＠天人
わ〜ありがとう！ !heartsippai! !heartsippai!
大学の授業ではどうして、たべさせられましたの「せ」があるのに、
よむはよまさられましたですか？どうして「せ」いらないんですか？
@Jeff
～させられる、～せられる、～される の違いについて、詳細はこちらをご覧ください → http://d.hatena.ne.jp/ninkyoro/20120218
@天人
いつもフォローありがとう❤
返事が遅れてごめんなさい。
「食べる」は一段活用です。
1) 食べる taberu
2) delete “る= ru”
→ 食べ tabe
3) add させる saseru
→ 食べさせる （使役）Causative form
↓
Passive causative form
食べさせられる tabesaserareru (使役受身）Passive causative form
そして「読む」には二つ使役の形があります。「読む」は、五段活用ですが、
五段活用では「〜せる」を「〜す」とする形になるものがあります。
(1)
1) 読む yomu
2-A) delete “u” and add “-aseru”
→読ませる yomaseru （使役）Causative form
→読ませられる (使役受身）Passive causative form
2-B) 読ます yomasu （使役）Causative form
→読まされる yomasareru (使役受身）Passive causative form
Hi!
I don’t know how to translate this…
夢見がちな理想論を唱えるかと思えば
嫌になるほど冷静な現実を武器として持ち出すな
“hodo” is used like kurai/ gurai, right? But with “buki to shite” It does not make sense !cryingboy! !cryingboy!
I hope you help me understand these lines !gejigeji! !gejigeji! !gejigeji!
@Veron
OK, I won’t do the translation here but I will break it down.
嫌になる means “to fed up with something””to be sick of something”
嫌になるほど=to the extent of being sick of something
(冷静な)現実を武器として持ち出す = to bring up (冷静な)現実 as a 武器.
Thank you, it is enough for me. I understand now… !heartsippai!
@Veron
You’re welcome!
Thanks for this wonderful explanation, Maggie-sensei. Though I still feel like I have to re-read it a couple of times before really grasping it :cryingboy:
Anyways, if it’s not too much to ask, I was wondering what it does mean in this case? “（あ、いや…帰るんじゃなくて…）今からちょっとな！” the context is just someone else asking him 家帰るのか？
@Kano
Hi, Kano!
So someone asking that person if he is going back home now.
The speaker doesn’t want to tell that person what he is going to do/where he is going,
(Ah, no I am not going home) I have something to do.
So in this case, ちょっとな(male speech)
I see! Thank you so much!
@Kano
You’re very welcome! ❤
隠れているタイポなら俺は必ず捕まえるよ。 :maggie-small:
“Konnsaato ga hachiji kara nara maniaun dakedo.”
“konsaato”
Thank you for this lesson, it’s another piece of the puzzle regarding conditional sentences. I’ve been trying to fully understand them for a year now, they remain quite difficult.
To summarize your lesson and what I already knew, I understand that なら often stands after nouns and pronouns, and since its the short form of ならば and can be replaced with (の)だたら, in this function it’s basically not very different from -ba and -tara conditionals.
The second and main function are time-reversed conditionals, which means, when the contitional part follows the conclusion in time or both happen at the same time, which is often the case in suggestions, advices, decisions etc. You cannot use to, -ba and -tara conditionals in this case as they require the condition to happen before the conclusion. Therefore, the nara-conditional is mostly used for imperativ clauses.
So now that I know when I have to use nara and when I can optionally can use it, I’m having difficulties to understand when I absolutely cannot use it. For example, I found these sentences, of which my grammar says, you cannot use the nara conditional for them:
1. これをなくしたら大変です。
2. 私が行けばあなたも行きますか。
But “あなたが行くなら私も行きます。” works fine. So what are the restrictions for using nara. Does it have something to do with the subject in the sentence or can’t you use it in questions?
Hello Zetsuboumanadeshi,
the key is to understand how ～たら works.
If you look close, you will find out, that it’s combined with 過去の助動詞「た」＋仮定を表す助動詞「ら」.
Now the conclusion.
～た implies that the action is already completed (has been done already).
～ら implies a conditional statement, a supposition that if something occurs, then something else will happen （仮定の条件 => if）.
Therefore,
これをなくしたら大変です。
If we lose this, we gonna have troubles. ==> ～たら implies what is going to happen, when something is lost.
これをなくするなら大変です。
Since you lose this, you gonna have trouble ==> Sounds strange, isn’t it? So, なくするなら implies that the speaker has a will to lose something. Something is not lost, yet, but it will be lost.
私が行けばあなたも行きます。 ==> ～ば indicates a conditional statement “supposing A is going to happen”. The usage of this pattern is more restricted then なら or ～たら. For example you cannot use ～ば implying speakers volition, requests if ～ば doesn’t combine with a verb of state（状態性の動詞）.
EX それについて何か分からなければ、私に遠慮なく聞いてください。 ○
EX 風邪を引けば、外に出ないでください。 Ｘ
EX 熱が出れば、この薬を飲んでくださいね。 Ｘ
あなたが行くなら私も行きます ==> なら indicates also conditional statement “since A is going to happen”. Someone shows a will to go somewhere （あなたが行くなら） and the result is, that the speaker is also going somewhere（私も行きます）.
ご参考になれば幸いざんす。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typo.
Well, looks like you have a GREAT senpai here for you!
＠天人
Thank you for helping Zetsuboumanadeshi’s question.
You are always helping people here. That is just so nice of you! ありがとう！
It’s always my pleasure!
One more thing about “2. 私が行けばあなたも行きますか。”
In fact, I didn’t notice the か particle hidden there… sometimes my mind makes auto corrections or auto semi-corrections.
～ば is a pure condition-consequence case, therefore you cannot use it in a interrogative sentences.
In other words, by using ～ば you just state a clear cause and effect relationship.
よく読まなければ、分からない。
この本、読みたければ、貸してあげるよ。
静かでなければ、勉強できんない。
私が行けばあなたも行きますか。==> 私が行ったらあなたも行きますか。 or 私が行くならあなたも行くわよね or 私が行くならあなたも行くべきかと。
Thank you sempai 天人 for your answers. It helps a lot, even though I think you are not totally right and we still have to rely on Maggie Senseis judgement, as it’s really difficult for a nonnative speaker.
Concerning the first sentence “これをなくしたら大変です。”, I understand that nara is more a factual conditional than a time conditional, like “if that is the case…; if we assume that…”, so you don’t use it for time related conditions, right? However, you can say “雨なら行きません。” or “雨がふるなら行きません。”(?? don’t know about that one). The focus may not on the time it starts raining, but on the decision, not to go. Nevertheless, the condition can have a time related fact in the future, that may or may not come true. But thats also the case in my sentence: “If (I, you) loose it…” I can’t see any structural difference between the conditions, so if I would say: “If I loose this, I won’t go!” it probably could be the nara conditional?
If so, the reason why you can’t use nara in that sentence may rather be the conclusion “…I/you will be in trouble.” But I don’t understand why. Let me quote my grammar on the nara conditional:
“In other words, S1 is an assumption that is based on something/somebody other than the speaker, and S2 is the speaker’s evaluation or judgement based on that assumption.”
Well, S1 “I I/you/we loose it” is a assumption not necessarily based on the speaker, and S2 “I/you/we will be in trouble” is an evaluation and judgement based on that assumption. So I don’t understand why I can’t use nara in this case.
Concerning Sentence 2 “私が行けばあなたも行きますか。” That is in fact a correct sentence according to my grammar. So you actually can use the -ba conditional in questions. But you can’t use nara here, and I don’t know why. If you are right and the same sentence formed into a statement” 私が行くならあなたも行くわよね” is correct, it would mean that it nara won’t work with questions. But I’ve never read that anywhere, so again we need Maggie Sensei to help us.
Magiiiiie, I know that this is pretty dry stuff, but we need your expertise here. Those damn grammarbooks just won’t do it…
@天人
Thank you for your help as always!!
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
Sorry I have been really busy making new lessons. I will have more time on the weekend. But I think 天人先輩 explained to you really well.
He is better than me. :)
Well, I have to correct myself.
“私が行けばあなたも行きますか。” ==> I haven’t seen ～ば used in such kind of sentences. However the sentence is… correct.
As for interrogative sentences, ～ば appears very oft when the speaker asks for directions:
どう／何／どこ／どの／どうやって／なんで＋動詞－ばいいですか
or in questions like:
私たちはこのバスに乗ればXXXに行けますか。
どの道を行けばXXXへ出ますか
日本に行けば、マギー先生に会えますか。
Another important thing is that ～ば appears in sentences with a good result.
In “これをなくするなら大変です。” the result would be bad.
I found something interesting for you. http://www.google.com ==> tip: ” 「～と、～たら、～ば、～なら」の使い分けについて ” and go on the first result. The web-page should be “jigou.hqwy.com/jpk/jap/….” There’s a .doc file that explains everything very well.
ご参考に。
@天人
がんばって調べて答えてくれてありがとう！！頼りになる先輩ですね、天人さんは。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Sorry for the late reply.
Since 天人さん already explained and gave you a great link, what I can do here is to show you a little pattern.
S1: action/when something happens →S2 : expected consequence (what is going to happen)
EX1) これをなくしたら (S1) 大変です( S2)。
Ex.2) このボタンを押したら (S1) 音楽がなります( S2)。
Ex.3) 私が呼んだら (S1) すぐに来てね ( S2)。
Ex. 4) 雨が降ったら (S1) 道が混む (S2)。
Ex. 5) 彼が来たら (S1) 一緒に行きましょう (S2)。
(This たら is not “if”/ When (or Once) he comes, let’s go out together.)
You can’t use なら in these patterns.
*****
Now, let’s see the other pattern.
*1) 私が行けば (S1) あなたも行きますか (S2)？
*2) 私が行ったら (S1) あなたも行きますか (S2)?
The question is if we say
3) 私が行くなら（S1)あなたも行きますか (S2)？
or not.
They all means “If I go..” in English but while 1) and 2) gives a condition with ば and たら, なら has a nuance of assumption. Therefore it is not natural to assume your own action, 私が行く.
As you said, if the subject is someone else, you can use なら
*4) あなたが行くなら(S1) 私も行きます(S2)。
@ 天人
Thank you very much again for your help. Also for clearing up the -ba conditional, so I needn’t bother Maggie Sensei too much when she puts out a lesson on that. :) I’ve downloaded the document, it will take me some time to translate though as I’m only 2 years and ~600 kanji into Japanese and therefore am still lacking significant kanji- and vocabularyknowledge to read original texts. But it will be a good practice.
@ :maggie-small:
Thank you so much, your example sentences and explanations totally nailed it. Thanks to your combined efforts I think I really understand now and my main problems regarding the conditionals are finally solved. I’m so happy, I could bite you… !niconico! !DANCING!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Well…I prefer you lick me.. :)
Can i use お先に or お先にどうぞ！when i open the door for someone? just like the “ladies first” kind of thing.
ありがとう ございました. !happyface! !happyface!
@Ivan
Yes, you can say お先にどうぞ when you let someone go ahead of you or you can just say どうぞ.
Hi Maggie Sensei! Just wondering if it was correct to say or use this:
verb+たり+verb+たり+することなどをします
Is it alright to use など after たり form?
@Sarah
Hi Sarah,
Hmmm
verb+たり+verb+たり+することなどをします
First the form is not natural because it has two different verb forms,
verb + たり form and Verb (する）こと
Also it sounds redundant because たり already has a connotation of “Doing A and B and etc” and など also means “-and etc.”
However, I would say if you don’t use V+こと form , it is possible to use たり with など in conversation.
Ex. パーティーでは食べたり、飲んだり、ゲームをするなどして楽しんだ。
Thanks for this explanation, マギー先生. I’m trying to translate this song (it’s stuck in my head), and I was wondering about how ほど is used in it:
(1) ヒマラヤほどの消しゴムひとつ
(2) 楽しい事をたくさんしたい
(3) ミサイルほどのペンを片手に
(4) おもしろい事をたくさんしたい
What do lines 1 & 3 mean, and how is ほど being applied grammatically there?
Thanks for your help; love the site. This is the song that I’m referencing https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NvKoIEmwN8Y&feature=youtu.be
@Michael
I know this song♪
They are trying to express how big their dream is.
So I would like to have so many fun things, having an eraser as big as the size of he Himalaya Mountains and a pen as big as the size of missile.
マギー先生
わかりました！説明してくれてありがとうございます！
ところで、この歌はすごいね。
@Michael
どういたしまして！このコメントに答えてからこの曲がずっと頭の中で流れていますよ♪
Hello, Thank you for making this post!
I know of a quote I’ve heard and was wondering how 自分 is used here..
昨日の自分より強く”!!! Was wondering what it was referring to in this phrase? Thanks in advance.
@Gallus
Hi Gallus,
昨日の自分より強く = Make yourself(oneself) stronger than yesterday
Ex.彼女はプロと間違えられるほどの料理の腕がある。
That sentence is extremely confusing
@Bob
Which part is confusing?
料理の腕がある = good at cooking
間違えられる= to be mistaken (people think she is a pro even if she is not.)
ほど = as (to the extent)
She cooks so well that some people think she is a professional chef (even if she is not.)
why all male speeches are rough? i’m a man but i dont want to sound rough.i dont know how things work very well in japan but where i live is quite wrong to be rough with other people. so how should i use じゃない and んじゃない and other possible words without being rough?
良く教えてくれてありがとうございました.
@Ivan
Why all male speeches are rough? It is a cultural thing from old days. Men also avoid using it when they talk to someone superior.
じゃない・んじゃない itself is not rough and you can use it. Just some usage such as adding か？ in the end sounds rough.
Ex. それは違うんじゃない？ = Sore wa chigaun janai? = I think it’s wrong/different/you are not right. (neutral)
Ex. それは違うんじゃないか？= Sore wa chigaun janai ka? = rough/male speech
Thanks
Hello Maggie Sensei;
is it true that: “Na No Ka?” (casual) = “Na (No Desu) Ka?” (formal)
*could You please tell me the difference between: “Na No Ka?” “Na No?” “Na No Desu Ka?” and when do we use them anyway
Also, The final particle “Sa”, when Do we use it ?
_Onegaishimasu =)
@Ōsama
Hello, Ōsama!
OK, here is the difference
〜なのですか(nano desu ka)？ polite/formal
〜なの (= nano)? casual (It is safe to use between friends.)
〜なのか(nano ka) ？ casual/rough/male speech (Since it sounds very strong, you have to be careful who you use it with.)
**
さ(=sa)・さあ(=saa) is a casual suffix.
1) Just fill the time when you think what to say
あのさあ、この間借りた本さあ、持ってくるの忘れちゃった。
= Ano saa, kono aida karita hon saa, motte kuru no wasurechatta.
= You know…the book I borrowed from you the other day? I forgot to bring it today.
2) to express your opinion./ to make your point.
まあ、いいさ。(male speech)
Maa, iisa.
= Never mind.
You may hear this usage a lot in anime, manga or drama but it could sound snobbish.
Hi maggie-sensei!! i was wondering but how do you say “i want to unlock my (twitter) account” in japanese?
@ran
Hi ran,
unlock is ロックを解除する= rokku wo kaijo suru
So ツイッターのアカウントのロックを解除したいです。
Isshou no uchi, ichido wa faasuto
[kursau]—-> kurasu ni notte mitai naa
[ホホバ]オイルは敏感肌の人でも使えるオイルみたいです。
[Hohoba] oiru wa binkan hada no hito demo tsukaeru oiru mitai desu.
I heard [Jojoba] oil can be used by even those who have sensitive skin.
!koujichuu! why jojoba = Hohoba —> ホホバ !koujichuu! why not [ジョジョバ] 教えて下さい !happyface! !happyface!
@zoheb
Jojoba is originally a Spanish word. You pronounce Jo = ホ in Spanish. (Ex. Japón = ハポン )
@Maggie, yes. It means pat on my head. :) You are right. It’s from Yotsubato. ありがとう^_^
@Retra
Good!
You’re welcome! ❤️
Hi,
Why do we use wo in kaze wo hiku but ga in zutsuu ga suru? Is it right to say kaze ga hiku? And if possible, could you make a lesson on the difference between ha, ga, and wa?
Thanks in advance
@A
I think someone else has just asked me the usage of ~ga suru.
Sometimes we use ~ ga suru to express one’s feelings or symptoms.
zutsuu ga suru = to have a headache
Ki a suru = to feel like ~
memai ga suru = to feel dizzy
And the difference between “wa” and “ga” is on the request list. Please wait patiently. It will take a lot of time to make that lesson.
The legendary は VS が lesson…
It’s like a Holy Grail…
I really cannot wait to check it! ^ ^
Give your best, Maggie!
@天人
I know SOOOOO MANY people have asked me to make a lesson on that subject but I have been procrastinating.
It used to be my final goal…but I have started to work on it. :D
Thanks! This lesson helped me understand this subject better. I just have one last doubt. If I am not mistaken, there is another expression that is similar to mitai: “something” ni mieru.
Is there any difference between mitai and ni mieru?
@reid
Hi reid,
As you see, there are many usages of みたい but one of the usages of みたい ( = mitai) is similar to にみえる(=mieru) but they are slightly different.
マギーはきれいみたい= I heard Maggie is beautiful
マギーはきれいにみえる= Maggie looks beautiful (to me).
**
マギーは豚みたい。= Maggie looks like a pig./ Maggie is like a pig./ Maggie behaves like a pig. (It could be my appearance but it also involves my behavior, the way I sound, etc.)
マギーは豚にみえる= Maggie looks like a pig. (It is only used to express how the speaker sees me.)
Sometimes we use them both.
〜みたいにみえる instead of saying ようにみえる = Looks like ~ / Seems like ~
彼女の隣にいるとお父さんみたいにみえるよ。
= You looks like her father if you are next to her.
What if we want to say “I heard (someone, let’s just use Tanaka here) Tanaka looks like a pig?”
Just wondering…
Hello
Would it mean different or is it wrong to say
まだお店やっているかなあ —> お店まだやっているかなあ
Thank you in advance
@Tamusan
Hi Tamusan,
Both of them are correct. :)
Hello :)
I came across this page while looking for an explanation of a specific construct, but saw that it wasn’t actually explained here… the use of ほど as a subject marker in lines like (x)ほど(y) to mean, to my understanding, “that which is x are/do y, unlike that which is not x”.
The specific constructs in question used “(qualifier)人ほど(statement)”, as in the proverb 下手な職人ほど道具に難癖をつけたがる, which I take it differs slightly in meaning from the variant 下手な職人は道具に難癖を付ける by emphasizing that “while 下手な職人 do this, those that are not 下手な職人 do not do this”.
I would greatly appreciate a proper explanation, though.
@FJ
下手な職人ほど道具に難癖をつけたがる
The translation is ”A bad workman always blames his tools.” but this is the pattern
~人ほど〜したがる
The more you are ~, the more you tend to be/do ~
The more the person is ~, the more he/she tends to be/do ~
Thanks for your reply.
That’s what was confusing me… whether the meaning is supposed to be “a bad workman always blames his tools (unlike a good workman)”, “the worse a workman you are, the more you blame your tools” or something like “the worse a workman you are, the more likely you are to blame your tools”/”most bad workmen blame their tools (but not all)”
But there’s no REAL difference between ほど and は in this construct?
(also, the 〜したがる root doesn’t really have aything to do with the construct, does it? The meaning is the same if it’s 〜する or something else?)
@FJ
1) 〜人は〜したがる
2) 〜人ほど〜したがる
Yes, the meaning are the same. は also has a function to show the contrast.
While は is just A = B, ほど emphasizes the meaning “the more~ ” more than ”は” and you see all the degrees/levels in your head.
Ex. excellent workman→ good workman→ so-so workman→ bad workman
So the more you move forward the direction of →, the more you want to do something
***
したがる・する the translation is the same but したがる involves the desire to do something more.
I have a がる lesson.
Got it. Thank you so much for the explanation :)
Wow this word has a lot of usage! I only knew “looks like~” and “to want to try something” like 行ってみたい. Thanks for the lesson I really enjoyed it :) very useful information!
@Courtney
Thank you for your comment. Good! I will add てみたい form in the lesson.
Hi.
I have a question I would like to ask. I have read that, usually, てくれる expresses the idea of a spontaneous favour done to you whether or not you requested for it previously, correct?
Can I use てくれる in the negative form to express that I would love that a specific person did a favour to me, but that may never happen? This is the sentence I have in mind: “He will never hug me”.
My attempts.
彼は決して抱きしめてくれない。
Or 彼に決して抱きしめられてくれない。 (I get the impression this one sounds awful >.<)
I have only seen てくれない used for questions but never for negative statements so it is worth asking.
Thanks for the lesson.
@Mew34
Yes, when someone doesn’t do a favor that you expect, you can say ~てくれない
Ex.彼女はちっとも料理を作ってくれない。
= She never cooks for me.
Ex.生徒が宿題をやってくれない。
= My students don’t do homework. (for me.)
彼は決して抱きしめてくれない。→correct
彼に決して抱きしめられてくれない。→This sentence is not natural because it is a passive tense.
Understood.
Thanks!
@Mew34
You’re welcome! :)
Hi
I have little doubt… :yy:
Thorin (name) + nado + to iu + kesshi…
It means that Thorin and others which are called heroes…?
@Veron
Hi, Veron,
It should be
A hero called something like Thorin.
Thanks, Maggie. boucingheart! boucingheart!
@Veron
You’re welcome! boucingheart! boucingheart!
こにちわ… boucingheart! マギ せんせい
How to use mono and dake in sentences???
tasukete sensei !JYANE! !JYANE!
@Fahmi san
こんにちは、Fahmi san
You mean how to use ものだけ(=mono dake) ?
Or you want to know how to use “もの” and how to use “だけ” separately?
Hi Sensei,
Your lesson really make my learning become more interesting..
Sensei, can you explain Rentaikei + と・・・言う ? I can’t really understand the usage of this..
Regards,
wen hao
@WenHao
Hello, WenHao!
連体形＋という？
(There is a space between と and 言う so if I am wrong, let me know.)
When you modify a noun, you use this pattern.
Ex. 彼を疑うという気持ち
= Kare wo utagau toiu kimochi
The feelings that I doubt him.
(（彼を）疑う modifies 気持ち）
Ex. 毎日、１時間、散歩をするという習慣。
= Mainichi, ichijikan, sanpo wo suru toiu shuukan.
= The custom that I walk one hour everyday.
((毎日、１時間)散歩する modifies 習慣)
Hi Sensei,
thank you for the explanation.
At the same time, I’m looking forward on your upcoming article on は and が
Regards,
wen hao
@WenHao
You’re welcome.
The lesson on は and が is already on the request list. Since it is a complicated theme, it will take a long time to make it but please wait patiently.
どうも有り難う マギー先生 !happyface! !happyface! 間違いありませんですた「no error found」
@zoheb
AMAZING!!! 間違いなかった？？
いつも本当にありがとう、zoheb❤
Oh, thanks for this lesson!
I have one question.
Ex. もし冬に日本に行くなら、コートを持っていった方がいいよ。
= If you are going to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
Note: You can’t replace 行くなら ( = ikunara) with 行ったら ( = ittara) here.
Why 行ったら can’t be used here? Is it because it would change the meaning? I was thought that verbs ending with “tara” are conditional, so I don’t see the difference clearly here.
And in this case b) マギーが出かけたら私も行きます。 you said it means going out after Maggie leaves, so could I replace it with “出かけたあとで” ?
Thanks again for this lesson!
@reid
Hi reid! 元気だった？
もし冬に日本に行くなら、コートを持っていった方がいいよ。
“If you are going to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
As I said you can replace 行くなら with 行くのだったら/ 行くんだったら
行ったら won’t work with this type of suggestion.
It sounds like this.
↓
When you go to Japan in winter/ When you get to Japan in winter, you should take a coat with you.
The suggestion of taking a coat should be given before the listener goes to Japan.
日本に行ったら: When the listener gets to Japan or is already in Japan. So the suggestion should be something they can do when they get to Japan.
Oh so that would imply that the person is already certain of going to Japan or that the person is already on the way to Japan?
Thanks for the answer!
@reid
Either the person is already certain or two people are talking about the situation that one of them is ALREADY in Japan.
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I still have doubts about this case.
I clearly understand why you can’t use 行ったら without もし here.
But we have もし in the beginning, and もし + condition + たら is “if” construction so it can be translated the same as with 行くなら except there would be no emphasis on winter or am wrong here?
Or もし here only makes condition less certain?
Thanks!
Ahh I should have explained better.
You can’t use たら there because of the following sentence
持っていった方がいい is something you do before the trip.
You can say もし行ったら but the following sentence should be something you do when you get to Japan.
もし日本に行ったらお土産を買ってきてね。
= If you go to Japan, buy me some gift.
Now I get it, thank you Maggie!
And for all useful lessons!
By the way, I noticed that comments in long answer chains have not “reply” button starting from 5th answer.
You’re very welcome, GrumpyCat.
I guess the current comments plug-in doesn’t allow you to have a long conversation. If that happens to you, just post as a new comment. I read all the comments anyway. :)
First of all, thanks for the great lesson!
Would it still be correct if someone asked me “gohan wo tabemasitaka?” and I replied with “iie, mada tabemasen.” Does this still have the same meaning of “mada tabete imasen”?
Thanks in advance!
@A
Hi A!
Mada tabete imasen. is better.
If you say Mada tabemasen, you are talking about future. I am not going to eat yet.
You may want to check my Japanese tense lesson. :)
sorry to disturb again,
so should the “correct” question be be asked:
1)gohan wo tabemasitaka /tabemasuka
2)gohan wo tabete imasuka
3)gohan wo tabete imasitaka
4)or just gohan wo tabemasenka (but I remembered the fourth one also have a sense of inviting someone?)
Thanks in advance !!
＠A
I don’t know what you mean by “correct.”
It depends on what you want to ask.
1) Gohan wo tabemashitaka? = Did you eat? ? Have you eaten?
Gohan wo tabemasu ka? = Are you going to eat? / Do you eat~? (habitual actions)
2) Gohan wo tabete imasuka? = Do you eat ~ ? (habitual actions)
3) Gohan wo tabete imashitaka? = Were you eating? (in past moment) / You used to eat ~ ? (past habitual action)
4) Gohan wo tabemasen ka? = Would like to eat? (inviting) / Or You are not going to eat? / You don’t eat?? (habitual action)
Hello, I have heard people using te aru in anime, but the meaning is totally different because it is referring to the future (or one’s intention I am not sure)
Here are some examples:
Sono jidai ore ga kaetearuyo.
Orega hokage ni nattekara, hyuugawo kaetearuyo.
Keep in mind all of these actions have not happend yet. They are both referring to the future.
Thank you in advance :)
@Mina124
tearu could be used to refer to the future state but I think what you saw in your example sentences is not tearu, it’s teyaru
~てやる（= te yaru) = to show your will. I am going to ~~~
俺が変えてやるよ。
= Ore ga kaete yaru yo.
= I am going to change ~
I found a few words with しちゃ in front of them.my dictionary says that is a ちゃう variation.but I can’t find an explanation for why it.please help
@Justin
ちゃ is a casual way to say 〜しては
Ex. そんなことをしてはいけません。
= You shouldn’t do such a thing.
→(casual contraction)
Ex. そんなことをしちゃいけません。
= Sonna koto wo shicha ikemasen.
Hello Maggie-sensei. Your lessons are wonderfully helpful and informative!
Do you know what イケボ means? I see it being used to describe people sometimes.
@RM
Hi RM!
I taught once the word イケボ on Twitter.
I added on my Colloquial Japanese lesson.
★イケボ= ikebo (←イケメンボイス= lit. “good looking guy’s voice”)
= Cool and attractive voice which is associated with a good looking man
Hi Maggie sensei~!
I’m confused with some of my friends’ twitter names. Some of them go like this name@11/07ニコクロ or name@12/26西川口
I’m assuming the latter part is where they are? like Nishi kawaguchi
Thank you so much. ご苦労様です，お疲れ様です and ごめいわく かけて もうし わけ ございませｎ
@Shu
boucingheart! boucingheart!
先生！please also make a little lesson or maybe explain just explain about the use of 気がする？i’ve seen this a lot too.
thank you!! lol :-D :-D
@yzr
Hi yzr
There are a lot of expressions with 気
OK, will add 気がする on the request lesson. It is not that complicated so I might just post it on Facebook page. :)
FYI I have a lesson no 気になる・気にする
sure!
i’ll be waiting. thanks a lot !ase! !heartsippai!
oh and one more!
lol
looll
what about the ～がする thingy sentences? example like ～味がする or ～匂いがする
@yzr
~がする in 味がする/ 匂いがする？
味がする= tastes ~
Ex. It tastes strange. = 変な味がする
匂いがする= smells ~
Ex. It smells good. = いい匂いがする
i mean the use of ～がする in general! lol
@yzr
One of the usage of (~が）する is to express one’s body’s symptoms.
Other examples
めまいがする= to feel dizzy
頭痛がする= to have a headache
吐き気がする= to feel sick / nausea
Are you Chinese or Indian? 😂 Looks like you are asking people for big favor (like making classes based on your demand) as if people exist for you? Just post your darn questions here and don’t expect Maggie sensei can make a lesson like a snap of fingers! Lol lol 😁
No worries. That’s why I am here for. 😊 (Though I only have “paws” so that I can’t snap my fingers..)
hi 先生！ :grin: :grin:
can you please tell me/explain about しては or してから or something like that because i see it quite often and i also saw my japanese friend using it too.
thank you!! ^^
@yzr
してから to have done something (and do something else)./ (To do something) after doing something
宿題をしてから出かける
= Shukudai wo shite kara dekakeru.
= to go out after finishing one’s homework.
食べてから寝ます。
= Tabete kara nemasu.
= I will go to bed after I eat.
しては is usually used to describe repeated actions.
食べては寝る
= Tabete wa neru.
= You eat and sleep (and eat and sleep)
悪いことをやっては怒られる
= Warui koto wo yatte wa okorareru
= To do something bad and to get scolded. (We can assume that this actions has been repeated.)
oh and some people say 決めるか or 行くか(any verb+か) instead 決めようか or 行こうか。example like バイト決めるか or 学校いくか。is there a slight difference in meaning/context? ^^
and how to say “it was (so) embarassing”, “i was so embarassed”,”i am/he/she is so embarassing”, “you/he embarassed me” or something like that because something embarassing happened? :D
@yzr
That kind of か is a male speech and kind of rough and ようか is much more polite.
***
“it was (so) embarassing”, それは（とても）恥ずかしいことでした／ことだった (= Sore wa (totemo) hazukashii koto deshita/kotodatta)
“i was so embarassed”, （私は）とても恥ずかしかった。／恥ずかしかったです。(=(watashi wa) totemo hazukashikatta/ hazukashikatta desu.
i am/he/she is so embarassing”, ~はとても恥ずかしい人だ。／人です。= ~ wa totemo hazukashii hitoda/ hitodesu.
you/he embarassed me ~は私に恥ずかしい思いをさせた／させました。= ~ wa watashi ni hazukashii omoi wo saseta/ sasemashita.
なるほど! 説明ありがとうございましたー !happyface!
@yzr
どういたしまして！
Hi Maggie!
Hmmm as for “you/he embarrassed me” how about => …は私を恥ずかしくさせた
I know it sounds a bit strange, but maybe it’s OK (/natural). How do you think, Maggie?
＠天人
彼は私を恥ずかしくさせた….It is possible and some people say that but not natural.
あなた／彼に恥ずかしい思いをさせられた is more natural.
Also in conversation, we just say
あなた／彼が〜をしたから／〜して恥ずかしかった
Got it!
Thank you very much for clarifying this!
@天人
どういたしまして♪
マギーお姫様、 :tulip3:
お久しぶりだね。前より少ないタイポが見当たりました。お見事ね。
“A wa, B yori uta ga umail.”
“umai”
1. Can you explain the change of verbtenses in your sentence: “Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki de itta hou ga hayaku tsuku.” Why is it “itta”?
2. I found this sentence “遅くなっても何もないよりはまし。” It looks quite complicated, is there an easier way to say “Better…than…”, such as “Better late than never”, “Better safe than sorry”, “Better fat than stupid”? !niconico!
よろしくお願いします
Hello!
ありがとう！私はtypoのお姫様ですよ。
今回はzohebさんがもういっぱい直してくれました。
I am very fortunate to have zoheb and you to find the typos. :)
Typo見つけの王子様です！
1. 新幹線で行くより飛行機で行った方がはやい。
= Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki itta hou ga hayai.
You can also say
新幹線で行くより飛行機で行く方がはやい。
= Shinkansen de iku yori hikouki iku hou ga hayai.
We often use ~た(=ta) form to indicate the completion of the action. (have done/ have gone..)
自分でやる方がいい。
= Jibun de yaru hou ga ii.
= It will be better to do all by myself.
↓
自分でやった方がいい。
= Jibun de yatta hou ga ii
2.
Better ~ than ~
If you compare two nouns, you can say
A yori B no hou ga mashi.
(Note: This word まし(=mashi) is negative so be careful when you use it. You can use it for your own action but do not use it for someone. )
The basic pattern is:
adjective
~て（で）も〜〜方がいい（or まし)
~ te (de) mo ~~~ hou ga ii (or mashi)
Verb
~するよりも〜方がいい（or まし)
~ Suru yori mo ~ hou ga ii (or mashi)
〜しないよりも〜した/するがいい（or まし)
~ shinai yori mo ~ shita /suru hou ga ii (or mashi)
遅くなっても = Even ( I give you the present) this late
better safe than sorry. We have an idiom so it sounds more complicated 備えあれば憂いなし (=Sonae areba urei nashi)
another awesome lesson from maggie sensei! !niconico! !niconico!
but i have question.
in your example above, ケチャップ下さい or フォーク（を）もう一本下さい
why dont we use onegaishimasu here? can we replace it?
@feris
Hi feris,
ケチャップ下さい or フォーク（を）もう一本下さい
Yes, you can replace 下さい with お願いします。(=onegai shimasu.)
Here’s the difference.
〜下さい=kudasai = Please give me ~
お願いします。= onegai shimasu. = ~~~ please.
My email address was wrong in that one. Sorry!
Hello! I’m living in Japan and seeing someone. When I asked about our relationship status they said 微妙な関係だ. In English they said “it’s a gray relationship.” I’m not sure how I feel about the translation or meaning of this phrase. The Japanese person holds my hand and kisses me in public. They tell me all the time “好き、めっちゃ好き、大好き”. I don’t what the feeling behind 微妙 is. Is it bad in this situation? Could I look at this as just dating? Not ready for a relationship? Is this like セフレ？ I just don’t fully understand and we have a bit of a language barrier.
@Amanda
Hi Amanda,
Who said 微妙な関係だ? The guys you have been dating?
If you ask them “私達の関係ってどんな関係？” = What is our relationship? and they answer that, they don’t want to make any commitments so your relationship doesn’t sound exclusive.
I am sure they do have feelings for you. But a man who says 好き、めっちゃ好き、大好き and describes the relationship, 微妙…It is dubious.
If you are looking for the real relationship, you should tell them. 真剣なお付き合いがしたい。
という is one of the most confusing pieces of grammar for me. I have two questions regarding this
It seems when you’re modifying a noun with a clause with という. It seems you could just put the relative clause before the noun instead.
*From one of your examples*
何が起こるかわからないという恐怖 Is there a difference using 何が起こるかわからない恐怖
Second question if possible. The usage “That means” I’m not sure of the grammar pattern here. It seems that you could put ということは at the start for “This/That means that” or putting it after a clause to mean “Sentence means that” And than at the end of sentence 2 I see ということです like in example ということは、明日は誰も学校に来ないということですね。 But in the example before it has no ということです and it’s just あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。 Which I assume is just casual のです at the end. So how’s it work exactly?
Sorry for the long questions. I seem to ask a lot of questions and I apologize for doing so. Not many people to discuss these problems with. Thanks in advance.
@Shen
Hello Shen,
It seems you could just put the relative clause before the noun instead.
True. It is a subtle difference but
The difference between
何が起こるかわからないという恐怖 and 何が起こるかわからない恐怖 is
~という is more explanatory it describes 恐怖 more vividly.
2) Oh sorry. It is an old lesson but I think I didn’t give you any example sentence for ということは(=That means..)
I will add some later.
It is a very conversational usage but when someone tells you something and when you summarize what you just hear, you start with ということは
Ah. If I may ask. for 2) What would be the written version of it? And you don’t need anything to end the sentence I assume?
@Shen
2) Just repeat what you just heard.
「〜〜〜〜」ということは…….
Ex.A: 「 明日は誰も来ません。」
B: 「ということは(or というと）私一人ですか？」
→ 「明日誰も来ないということは私一人ですか？」
But it is kind of annoying to repeat what someone says so we tend to start the conversation from ということ（というと） skipping the quote.
Thank you for taking the time to answer. Much appreciated. Thanks once again.
@Shen
どういたしまして❤
Hello, I apologize for posting again but after thinking about it a bit I was still slightly confused.
If ということは is basically shortening what was said before and than S2 talks about what that means…. Why is ということです used at the end? I see ということです used at the end without ということは at the start and sometimes as you posted ということは is at the start without ということです at the end
Example: 明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。
Does that mean you can’t go to the party tomorrow? The end being the shortened version I assume of ということ without ということは at the start…
And than as was posted before without ということです あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。
So basically what determines what is left out and what is used?
Sorry for being a bother. Thanks in advance.
@Shen
Hi Shen,
You can say
ということは(1) 〜〜〜ということ(2) です。
(1) summarizing what the speaker just said/heard
(2) The speaker is concluding something.
****
OK, I will make a dialogue.
A: 「明日は、とても忙しいです。」
B: 「((明日はとても忙しい）ということは、) 明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。」（Assuming A can’t go to the party based on the fact A is busy.)
A: 「Bさん、明日は夜まで仕事をして下さい。」
B: 「((明日は夜まで仕事がある）ということは、)明日のパーティーに行けないっていうことか。」(Assuming A can’t go to the party based on the fact that B has to work tomorrow evening.)
*****
ということです あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。
I will check your previous comment later but you can’t start the sentence with ということです
ということです should come to the end of a sentence to conclude something.
Hello, thanks for the reply. あなたも旅行に行くということは明日は、私一人なんですね。 was actually my example . The ということです was not part of it. May have looked that way :p It was just showing the lack of it at the sentence.
I think I may be over thinking it or making it more difficult than it should be.
From reading a lot of examples and wondering a bit I’m going to guess that ということです used without ということは is basically just going “so you mean that” or “so that means” skipping the introduction of what you’re talking about. And used together it goes “Judging from the fact A, B”
Could be wrong as usual. I’m quite slow with this apparently.
@Shen
I think you got the idea. :)
Nice! Alright I want to thank you for taking up your time. I’m going to go hide now in embarrassment
I found your lessons very useful for a beginner like me. :-D
Thank you so much. Hope to hear something from you sensei. boucingheart! boucingheart!
@Eulla Airra Sia
Hello Eulla,
Thank you for your comment. Hope you come visit here as you visit your friend’s house. :)
Hello, i this correct grammar sensei?
明日は雨が降ると私は出ない。
@oziel
Hi oziel,
It will be better
明日、雨が降ったら私は出ない。
おまけにとっても謙虚でしょ
=
Omade[omake] ni tottemo kenkyo desho
@zoheb
Thank you for spotting the typo!!!! I always count on you. :)
いつも本当にありがとう！！！
努力家 = doryokiuka
[doryokuka] = a hard worker
完全主義 = kansen
[kanzen] shugi = perfectionist
とっつきにくい = tottukinikui[ottsukinikui] = to be hard to approach
とっつきにくい = tottukinikui
[tottsukinikui] = to be hard to approach
@zoheb
THANK YOU!!! boucingheart! boucingheart!
@zoheb
THANK YOU!!! boucingheart!
Many many thanks for this wonderful lesson, Maggie! Very well done!
One little question. In what kind of situations do you use 痛い (slang) translated as “pathetic”? Could you make 2~3 sentences?
@天人
My pleasure!
OK, as I mentioned in the lesson, 痛い is a slang expression.
Ex. 「彼は、Twitterに毎日、自撮り(Selfie)をアップしているんだって。」
「かなり痛い人になってるね。」
Ex. 私の姉は３０歳になってもまだハローキティーのぬいぐるみと寝ている痛い人です。
Ex. 別れた彼が忘れられなくて毎日、彼の家の近くまで行っちゃうんだよね。私、かなり痛いよね。
なるほどです！ありがとうな！ :)
（彼の家の近くまで行っちゃうだよね。 ＝＞ 彼の家の近くまで行っちゃうんだよね。 ってね ＾ ＾）
＠天人
Ooops! 直しました。失礼しました！
I had a question about
when you did something / while doing something + something happened (result, consequences)
usage of ところ
コミックコンに着いて、入ったところ思ったよりたくさんの人がビルの中にいました。 (I think that is how it’s used here)
But it seems like たら is better used here with the past form for something happened and than a result you didn’t expect. コミックコンに着いて入ったら、思ったよりたくさんの人がビルの中にいました。?
Is there a difference between the two? Whenever you have time.
Thanks in advance.
@Gallus
Hi Gallus
You can also say 入ったら instead of 入ったところ. They mean the same.
たら is more conversational than ところ
Thank you for the quick answer ^^
@Gallus
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello, Maggie!
I saw a phrase:
彼は拝むように言った。
It seems pretty much as a comparison, so:
‘He said in begging manner?’
But as far as I know, the verb means ‘to pray’ in general and a praying gesture in particular. And here is my question: does it assume that the subject clasps his hands, when he’s asking for a favor, like could often be seen in anime?
So then:
‘He said in begging manner clasping his hands’?
Thanks in advance!
@TWarrior
Hi TWarrior
Yes, it means “He said ~ in a begging manner”
拝む means “to pray/worship ~ ” but in this case just means “to say something begging”
And when you 拝む, you don’t necessary “clap your hands”. You don’t need to translate this part but when we beg for something, we put our hands/palms together.
I see, thanks a lot!
@TWarrior
You’re welcome!
hello maggie sensei^^
in the examples: Dochira mo suki desu / Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen..
can I say demo instead of mo..like : Dochira demo suki desu/ dochira demo suki dewa arimasen?
I wonder if you can you make a similar lesson about denying 2 option or more using demo…like this sentence:
彼の考え方は具体的でも抽象的でもなかった。
Lately I studied this sentence ,and made me confused .. I always use demo in positive situation like >> dochi demo ii yo..
I know that demo is used like any , even or even if
thank you..
@Roro
Hi Roro,
Your question seemed very easy to answer at first but it is actually very deep.
どちらも好きです。= Dochira mo suki desu.
どちらも好きではありません。 = Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen.
You can’t replace も(=mo) with でも (=demo)
****
While も emphasize the meaning, でも has a connotation of “Even”
どちらもいいです。= Dochira mo ii desu. = Both of them are good.
どちらでもいいです。= Dochira demo ii desu. = Either one is fine.
*****
~でも〜でもない
OK, I will add it to the request lesson list. :)
but I still can say: dochira demo ii desu if I want to emphasize on one of them, righ???
OK,, I think I got it…correct me if I’m wrong, please
dochira demo suki dewa arimasen = means I don’t like any of them..
thank you maggie sensei :tulip3:
@Roro
but I still can say: dochira demo ii desu if I want to emphasize on one of them, righ???
→”Dochira demo ii” means “which ever” (It doesn’t matter) and so you are not emphasizing neither one.
“Dochira mo ii” means you like both of them.
****
Again, you can’t say
dochira demo suki dewa arimasen
You have to say ”Dochira mo suki dewa arimasen.” = I don’t like any of them.
Thank you for this lesson !
When you are in the fitting room and the shop clerk ask you “如何ですか？” what do you usually respond ?
@Louise
Hi Louise,
If the size fits OK or you like it, you say
はい、いいみたいです。
= Hai, ii mitai desu.
= It seems to be OK./ It fits OK.
If it is a little too small,
少し小さいです。
= Sukoshi chiisai desu.
If it is too big,
少し大きいです。
= Sukoshi ookii desu.
Hi! Maggie sensei!
te-form + kureru (or kuru, etc…) can modify a noun? I know that te-form + iru/aru can modify a noun, but… if not, why can not?
Thanks… !happyface! !happyface!
@Veron
Hi Veron,
Yes.
Ex. 母が送ってくれたシャツ= The shirt that my mother sent to me.
Ex. いつも友達が貸してくれる自転車が壊れた。= The bicycle that my friend always lends to me got broken.
whoah! Thanks a lot, Maggie sensei! It is much better to study here than in a book… !happyface! !happyface!
One more question…
te-form + kureru (or other) + na-adjective + na + noun…
The te-form and na-adjective modify the noun at the same time?
or the te-form modify the na-adjective and this modify the noun?
Thanks.
@Veron
Hmm you mean like
母が買ってくれたきれいなドレス？
The beautiful dress that my mother bought for me.
母が買ってくれた modifies “きれいなドレス”
きれいな modifies ドレス
exactly! I had this doubt, but I do not have it now with your help…
Again, thanks a lot! !BOO!! !BOO!!
@Veron
OK, problem solved! :)
Hello! Where can I ask questions or request help with translations? Do you have an e-mail for that purpose? Or is it okay to ask questions that are not relevant to the lesson topic here in the comment section?
@Hirviruhtinatar
Hi, I can help if it is a simple question. (one or two at a time.)
You can leave a question in Maggie’s Room. But I don’t help translation.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
便利なレッスンを使ってくれてありがとうございます！
Minkyの方がMistyより太っていますよ。 :maggie-small: でも、どれもとても可愛いと思いますね。 !happyface!
＠Palidor
こんにちは、Palidor!
そのコメントはMisty先生には内緒（ないしょ）ね。 :)
わかります！どちらもかわいいですね。 boucingheart!
（どれも→どちらも：人や動物には「どれも」より「どちらも」の方がいいですよ。 !onpu! ）
ああ、分かりました。 ”どちらも”を使いますね。 訂正をしてありがとう！ :-D :-D
@Palidor
どういたしまして！❤
Niku yori sakana no hou ga suki desu.
meat
Yamada-san yori mo kechi da.
Kyone [kyonen]yori nihongo ga jouzu ni narimashitane.
= I like fish more than !koujichuu! !koujichuu! fish.
佐藤さんは田中さんよりもケチだ。
= Satou-san wa [tanaka]
Ex. 去年より日本語が上手になりましたね。
=
Ex. あの子は、私よりも足が長い。
= Anoko wa, watashi yori mo ashi ga nagai.
= [why not “that kid”]!koujichuu! !koujichuu! [She] has longer legs than I.
@zoheb
Thank you zoheb boucingheart!
いつも本当にありがとう！
I really appreciate it!
I fixed all the typos.
あの子 is not necessary “that child/kid”. You can refer to a young girl (or sometimes a boy). But I changed あの子 to 彼女 to avoid the confusion.
Have lesson on particles yet
＠ロドニー
I am sorry but I don’t quite get your comment. Is that a request to make a lesson on particles??
Yus particles are difficult for me.So i was asking if you have a lesson on particles yet. If not then yus please it is a request.
＠ロドニー
I see. I have tried to include the information on particles whenever I have a chance in many lessons but here is one lesson.
に and で
Hi!! Maggie Sensei!! !BOO!! !BOO!!
what’s the meaning of this? is formal speech?
verb stem + koto nasaru (example. kami ga moe koto nasaru)
Thanks…
PS: Sorry for putting the question anywhere…
@Veron
Hi Veron,
なさる(=nasaru) is an honorific way to say する(=suru) verb
I don’t quite get your example sentence but for example
どんなことをしているのですか？
= Donna koto wo shite iru no desuka?
= What do you do? / what do you do for a living?
→(more polite)
どんなことをなさっているのですか？
= Donna koto wo nasatte iru nodesuka?
not worry! I understood
very thanks, Maggie Sensei! !niconico! !niconico!
If I may ask a question.
I hear that ている has a usage of experience where you’ve done something before.[As if it doesn’t have many usages to begin with] Seems like たことがある also has that same sort of nuance.
本を書いている (Example I used)
本を書いたことがある
Both seem to mean “I have written a book”
Is there any major difference I should know about? Thanks for your time.
@Gallus
You are right. You use 〜ている to have experiences as well.
Let’s compare the following two sentences.
a) 彼は日本について多くの本を書いている作家です。
b) 彼は日本について多くの本を書いたことがある作家です。
They both could mean the same “He is a writer who has written many books on Japan.”
But the difference is
a) He has been writing many books on Japan and he is still writing a book on Japan.
b) This sentence just focuses on his past experiences. He have written many books on Japan but he may writes about something else or he stops writing now.
Thanks for taking the time to reply!
It seems a)Focuses on something related to the present and b)Focuses on a past event that has nothing to do with the present.
Am I correct?
(I posted this but it didn’t seem to pop up. So if there are two instances of this same message I apologize.)
＠Gallus
Yes and No. I wouldn’t say b) has nothing to do with the present because that experience made the present state.
a) whether focusing on something that started in the past and continues in the present or one’s experiences up to the present.
b) one’s experiences
The idea is the same in English, “have done something”
Alright. Thank you for your time.
Hello!
Thanks again for the great lesson. 期待していたよりよく習った
I have one question about this example:
Ex. 京都の方が大阪よりも名古屋から近いです。
= Kyouto no hou ga Osaka yori mo Nagoya kara chikai desu.
= Kyoto is closer to Osaka from Nagoya.
Shouldn’t it be “Kyouto is closer THAN Osaka from Nagoya”? Because from my perspective “Kyoto is closer to Osaka from Nagoya” would be something like this 京都は名古屋から大坂にもっと近い
Am I missing something? hahaha.
Also I found a small typo: “Furansu ryouri yori mo izakaya de nanka karuku trabenai?”
Thanks again for the great lesson.
@reid
Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them. ありがとう！！❤
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
@Courtney
Courtney!!
誰よりも早くコメントを書いてくれましたね。 :)
いつもありがとう！！
笑！うん、そうだよね。誰よりもマギー先生のことを好きですので。多分ね。笑 !heart3!
:maggie-small: boucingheart! boucingheart!
笑、面白いすぎる！ははは
Hello, could you Dear Maggie Sensei perhaps please explain this one:
what is the origin of the “ん” in “真ん中”.
You say “真” has three different KUN readings, but if they were different readings, then the “ん” would be included in the “真” itself and not added after it.
I thought that the “ん” is a remaining part of “の”, as in “真の中”. But I am wrong.
What on earth is this “ん”. Could you perhaps look at it in 日本語源大辞典? I have no access to the book. I would be so grateful.
Thank you.
＠Student
Hi Student,
I don’t have 日本語語源大辞典 but 真ん中 came from a word 真中 (manaka). For the pronunciation purpose, they added ん in the middle.
Hello! I have a question. what would the sentence “doushite kowarete iru no?” mean? I’m having a bit of trouble figuring it out.
@Taylor
Hello Taylor.
Doushite kowarete iru no?
どうして壊（こわ）れているの？
means “Why is it broken?”
Maggie先生、質問がありますけど。「学生は学校に通う」から「school is attended by students」の文を作りたいですが、インターネットで「通われる」と書いたら「学校に通われる学生」という文がでてきます。この文は「students attendend by school」って意味ではありませんね。じゃ、どんな意味ですか？「学校は学生に通われる」の文は正解ではないですか？
@Alekandra
First, the passive form for 学生は学校に通う is not natural.
But if you really want to make a passive form, for example,
Many students go to this school.
passive tense
→This school is attended by many students.
この学校は多くの生徒に通われています。
But I would stick to
多くの生徒がこの学校に通っています。form.
Ok, thank You! In my language (Polish) it sounds more natural, thats why that weird form !ase! !ase!
Hi.
Does the word まま basically mean “condition/state”? Whether or not translating it as “condition/state” may be suitable I get the impression that that is its literal meaning.
Thanks for the lesson.
＠Mew34
As I explained in the lessons, there are many ways to use まま and the translation changes but yes, it refers to certain condition/state.
How do you say “Please don’t apologize”
@tin
（どうぞ）あやまらないでください。
= (Douzo) ayamaranai de kudasai.
Between friends
あやまらなくていいよ。
= Ayamaranakute iiyo.
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Thank you so much for letting Misty and Minky teach on your site! I actually think Minky ate Misty’s snack, rather than hiding it.
ゆかりは”マギー先生、あってこその私です”と言いました。 私もミスティーとミンキーに同じ気持ちがありますね。 !CHECKHEART!
@Palidor
Hi Palidor!
Hahaha, so you think Minky sensei is guilty, huh?
Thank YOU for introducing use Misty and Minky Sensei! They have been a great help!
ありがとう！！！
so whats the difference between ているところ and verb+中(like 考え中)？＼(^o^)／
@yzr
考え中 and 考えているところ means the same but you usually use 中 with a noun/noun form.
食べているところ
you can’t say 食べ中, you say
食事中
本を読んでいるところ
You can’t say 読んで中, you say
読書中
マギー先生のレッスンっていつもスゲっス! ありがとう先生~
@kiki
スラングの新しいレッスンも、いくつかあるからまた遊びに来てくださいね。
“You want to bring something like wine or chips to the part”
“party”
“moratte”
“Ensoku ni” is missing or to much
“kyoushitsu”
“kyoushitsu”
“brings” (and where is the lesson about pocket tissues, I can’t find it :cryingboy: )
it should be “from now on”, right?
“Kore oishisou dakara moratta ikimasu.”
“お弁当を作ってきて下さい。(=Ensoku ni obentou wo tukutte kite kudasai.)
Please make lunch and bring it.”
“Maggie ga kyoushitu kara deteiku”
“Maggie ga kyoushitu kara dete kuru”
“Whenever my mom goes out, she gets lots of pocket tissues and bring them back home.”
“Ex. 暑くなってくる (=atsuku natte kuru)
It will get hotter.(until now)”
This lesson is reeeeeeeeeeeealy difficult, I read all the comments and still don’t get it. I’ve got two big problems:
1. So te-kuru/iki can mean basically three things: 1. movement of the subject 2. movement of the object in relation to the subject 3. movement of time in realtion to the subject. But how do you know which one is meant, if the verb isn’t a motion verb? You gave the example:
• 宿題をしていく(=shukudai wo shiteiku) to do homework and go (to school)
• 宿題をしてくる(=shukudai wo shitekuru) to do homework and come (to school )
but couln’t it also mean: to do homework in the future? Especially if you don’t write いく or くる in kanji?
And what about: お茶をのんでいってください。 Does this describe the movement of the objekt (Please drink tea!) or the subject (Please drink tea and go!). And then お茶をのんできました。 Does it mean “I drank tea.” or “I drank tea and than came here” or “I have started/getting used to drink tea.”
2. Concerning the time meaning, you say that te-kuru could mean both past or/and future. But how do you know what is meant? だんだん切望してくる! So will I get desperate or did I already get desperate? Also, if you add the continous form, does that change the meaning? Then there are eight formes and I don’t know which means what. So what would be the differences between:
彼女は可愛くなって~ /暑くなって~
~ kuru
~ kite iru
~ kita
~ kite ita
~ iku
~ itte iru
~ itta
~ itte ita
気が触れてしまってくる。 :l:
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you so much for helping me fix the typos.
“Whenever my mom goes out, she gets lots of pocket tissues and bring them back home.” “brings”
Actually I translated “get” and “bring back” so I will leave the way it is.
And here is the link for the lesson.
Listening and Reading practice 花粉症+ポケットティッシュ
http://bit.ly/1GFk91x
******
1.
• 宿題をしていく ( = shukudai wo shiteiku) to do homework and go (to school)
• 宿題をしてくる ( = shukudai wo shitekuru) to do homework and come (to school )
As for the tense, you use 宿題をしていく/ 宿題をしてくる to describe one’s habitual actions or future.
And what about: お茶をのんでいってください。
When you say this line to someone, you want them to stop by your house and have some tea before they go somewhere.
お茶をのんできました。I already had tea and came here.
2.
First you don’t say 切望してくる.
How about
だんだん焦ってくる
I am getting desperate. / I have become desperate
For the rest of the questions, I think I already explained the differences in the lesson. But I will add more explanation when I have more time.
“Shukudai wa itsumo tomodachi ni yatte morau nante hito ga imaseu ga jibun de yatte kudasai.”
“imasu”
“itaga” “shinjirarenai”
“Kugatsu ni nattara suzushiku narunante terebi de itte igata shinjirarenasi.”
In your examples なんて always replaces は or を after a noun. I was wondering if なんて can be used with other particles like に、で、から、まで、より、しか、し etc. and what the word order would be.
よろしく :pika: :pika:
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typos.
You can use なんて with other particles.
８時に家を出る
→８時になんて家を出られない
東京まで行く
→歩いて東京までなんて遠くていけない。
みなの前で歌う
→みなの前でなんて歌えない。etc.
Hello, Maggie sensei,
I hope you find my question.
I’m really confused how to use っぽい with verbs.
Because in your example sentences the ending is always different 行くっぽい (basic form) 怒りっぽい 忘れっぽい (i-form), so there isn’t a rule which form of verb to use? And is the meaning somehow changed by the form of verb in the end?
I hope you understand my question and thank you for your reply boucingheart!
@sabi
Hi sabi,
Actually the correct way of using ぽい with a verb is
verb
*忘れる→(masu form) 忘れます→delete ます and add っぽい→ 忘れっぽい
*怒る→(masu form) 怒ります→delete ます and add っぽい→ 怒りっぽい
*飽きる→(masu form)飽きます→delete ます and add っぽい→飽きっぽい
However, in colloquial usage, you just add っぽい after a dictionary form.
する＋っぽい
した＋っぽい
It is grammatically wrong. Only for conversation.
I got it!! Thank you so much for your kind explain !heartsippai! !heartsippai!
And, Maggie sensei, I tried to look on your website for some lesson about differences in usage of よう/みたい、そう、らしい and っぽい (or at least some of them )
Especially らしい is confusing with よう/みたい and そう.. well, back to topic, I couldn’t find any lesson about this, so can I ask if there is some? If not, it would be nice if you could do a lesson about this if you want to.
I believe this grammar may be confusing for more people.
Anyway, thank you for all the lessons you did until now, they are so helpful !formingheart3! !formingheart3!
I always go here for the help when I’m lost in classes, Magie sensei is the best one, thank you !JYANE! !JYANE!
@sabi
Good to hear you got it.
I made lessons on らしい、よう and そう but not みたい yet. Will make a lesson if I have a chance.
Thank you for your nice words! これからもがんばります！
“Juutai shitei ita kara/nod”e
“shite”
It’s so great, everytime I have a problem, I look at your site and you already made a lesson about it. I’m still having some questions though…
1. Today I got into some quarrel with my real life Sensei. I do that from time to time, 石頭 だから:P . Have a look at this sentence: 男性が亡くなっていた場所の近くにはスズメバチの巣があったため、警察は蜂に刺されて亡くなったと考えています。
First, does スズメバチ really just mean “wasp” or couldn’t it also mean “hornet”?
Second, she says that this “ため” cannot ever be exchanged with “から”. I did not quite understand why. Since the sentence is from a newspaper, から surely is to casual for that occasion, but if used in a normal conversation, would から still be totally wrong?
2. The difference between から and ので – we agree that node is more polite and objective. I learned from other sites, that から emphasizes the reason and indicates, that the given reason is the only reason (this and only this is why…), while ので emphasizes the result and states just one reason among possible others. My teacher could not confirm this, so whats your opinon about that?
3. Concerning sentences like: お金もっていないから買えません。 I found this site that says, you cannot use から in sentences like this, because Japanese people would never talk like that. http://www.learn-japanese-adventure.com/te-form-cause-reason.html According to this site, you have to use the te-form if the result is a state or a potential form. However, you use から all the time under exactly those conditions, so I’m quite puzzled who is right.
4. Another lesson on that site says, that noun + で can only be used if the result is inevitable. So 雨天でびしょぬれになった。 would be correct, while 雨天で一晩中古い映画を見ました。 would be wrong, because that would be a choice. Do you agree with that?
5. Is なぜなら as formal as なぜならば? Because in the Tanaka Corpus, which holds many example sentences, there are a lot of quite casual sentences with なせなら, so I thought you could use it in normal conversations, i.E. あいつのことを好きなやつは誰もいない。なぜなら奴はいつも自分のことを自画自賛ばかりしているからだ。
I hope this isn’t too much… よろしくお願いいたします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Hi, Thank you for spotting the typo as always. I fixed it.
1. スズメバチ means either “wasp” or “hornet”.
For that particular sentence, I think ため is more natural. Maybe it is because as you said it is news and also the verb, 考えられています is objective
The main idea of this sentence is,
(reason) ため〜と考えられています。
=It is considered to be ~~~ because ~~~~
But in daily conversation, if someone interviews the police man,
「どうしてその人はスズメバチに刺されて亡くなったと思いますか？」
The police man would say
「近くにスズメバチの巣があったからです。」
↓
The police man: 近くにスズメバチの巣があったからその人はスズメバチに刺されて死んだと思いました。 (subjective opinion based on the fact.)
2. Yes and No.
I agree the most to the information you wrote but at the same time, there are cases you just switch から with ので to add the politeness.
3. Actually we do talk like that in conversation.
The pattern お金もっていないから買えません。, お金がないから買えない。携帯が壊れているから電話をかけられませんでした。instead of saying お金を持っていなくて買えません／お金がなくて買えない／携帯が壊れていて電話をかけられませんでした。
4.
* 雨天でびしょぬれになった。（cause)
* 体育祭は、雨天で中止になった。（cause)
Because of ~, it resulted ~
雨天で一晩中古い映画を見ました。 Because it rained you deiced to watch a movie all night long？
It is not natural.
The action, watching old movies all night long is not caused by the rainy weather. It was your choice.
5. As I mentioned in the lesson, we do use なぜなら in literal form and it is not so common to use it in conversation.
OK, in a movie or drama, you may hear that.
Ex. 私がどうして君にその事実を隠していたかわかるかね？なぜならば君が犯人だからだ！
It sounds too dramatic to use in daily conversation.
*****
I think you should talk to your Japanese teacher to discuss the 1 and 2 questions more. Please be nice to her.
And ask the site owner about No. 3, 4.
I can try to answer questions if it is something from my site but I am not so comfortable answering for other sites. They are all great and they know much more than I. :)
お返事ありがとうございます。さすが、マギー先生はいつも奥ゆかしすぎですね。それでも何でも知ってるといっても過言ではないんですよ。日本語が話せて高度な教育を受けていた犬だお陰で天下一番の日本語の先生だといってきかない。ですからあなたの見解より大切なものがありませんね。!JYANE!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
いえいえ、犬の先生、まだまだです。。。 :maggie-small:
それにしてもコメントの日本語が上手でびっくりしましたよ。
Thanks for the lesson! It is fairly difficult at first, but I don’t have any questions about it for now.
But I do have questions about other stuff again! hahaha.
I was studying a test my teacher gave me, and now I have 2 problems I am not really sure about.
I am supposed to choose the correct order for 4 options to make the complete sentence.
1 – the sentence is 会社へは何で行っていますか. I understand this sentence, but at first I was a bit confused because of that は. Usually I would have just said “会社へ/に何で行っていますか”
would it be wrong to say it without the は? Why do I need to use the は in this case?
2- This one seemed way more confusing to me. I am not even sure this is right.
This is the first sentence: 私はこの本を買います。アンナさんはどんな本がいいですか, then I have to complete the reply, and it goes like this : 私はもう少し__ __ __ __ がいいです and there are 4 options to choose the order: 1-本 2-かんたんな 3-が and 4-日本語
So I am not sure about this. It seems like that が should be a の or something like that. Nothing I make sounds right in that sentence. How would it be? Is one of the options wrong? Is there an extra が that shouldn’t be there?
@reid
Hi reid,
1. Yes, you can say 会社へ（に）何で行っていますか” / 何で会社へ（に）行っていますか？ without using は.
When you show the contrast, you use the particle は.
So the speaker wants to know what kind of transportation the listener uses especially when he/she goes to work.
Since you emphasize “to work”, you tend to start the sentence with 会社へは
2. I see.
If there are just two words
もう少し＋(adjective）+(noun)がいいです。
→もう少し簡単な本がいいです。
But since there are が and 日本語、
clause ＋noun がいいです。
So the clause has to modify a noun which comes after.
Therefore,
日本語がかんたんな本がいいです。
OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHH! Thanks! I got too focused on the が itself and forgot to read it as a whole. 日本語がかんたんな本がいいです = A book with simple japanese would be okay for me.
So 日本語がかんたんな is adding that “simple japanese” characteristic to 本, right?
It feels like it was right in front of me and I didn’t see it.
Could you also say “簡単な日本語の本がいいです”? Because that’s the one of the ways I was thinking about. I think that is what made me not see how it worked with が, I was just looking at it in one way, but there is always more than one way, hahaha
@reid
Yes, if there is “の” , もう少し簡単な日本語の本がいいです works too. :)
ああ、先生、早い返事をありがとうございます！もう分かっています *\(^o^)/*
@アレクサンドラ
どういたしまして！
(NOTE FOR YOU: もう分かっています→”これでもうわかりました。”の方が自然ですよ。）
Maggie先生こんにちは。質問がありますけど、〜なきゃ 〜なくちゃ の過去形はどうですか？
@アレクサンドラ
こんにちは、アレクサンドラ
なきゃ、なくちゃの過去は= had to do somethingの場合は
なきゃいけない→なきゃいけなかった。／なきゃならない
なくちゃいけない→なくちゃいけなかった／なくちゃならない
の形なら表すことができます。
Ex. I had to go shopping. 買い物に行かなきゃ／なくちゃいけなかった。
Ex. I had to work. 仕事しなくちゃならなかった／しきゃならなかった。
全て理解するわけではないのに、このレッスンこそ待ち望みました。 ありがとうございました。 !happyface!
タイポ:
“(fermented soybeans”
“)” is missing
“Natto”
“accident”
“Though I can’t eat Natt,…”
“Although you didn’t cause an acciden,…”
And some questions:
1. 今でこそ笑っていられるが当時は毎日悩んでいました。 Could you explain why “今で” instead of just “今”?
2. 彼らは結婚こそしていないがもう１０年も一緒に住んでいる。 Would it be possible to place “こそ” behind “していない”?
3. 努力してこそ、結果がついてくる。 This is the only example for Verb+ こそ, however, it’s the te-form and therefore is identical to the V-te+ こそ meaning, isn’t it? Can you think of an example of Verb+ こそ without the te-form?
よろしく
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the type as always.
1. 今こそ= “now” the very moment, It is now to do something
今でこそ= is used when you refer to your current state looking back the past.
2. No.
3. There are a few more examples with verb plain form + こそ
But I will add more example sentences for ~て+こそ later.
全て理解するわけではないのに、このレッスンこそ待ち望みました。
Hmmm how can I make this sentence more natural…
How about… 全ては理解できませんが、このレッスンこそ待ち望んだものでした。
Thank you for the correction, I too really appreciate it. I read the monka/monda lesson of yours, but I can’t figure out why it’s necessary here and what function it has. And why is わけではない not appropriate in my sentence?
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
このレッスンこそ待ち望んだものでした。
This もの means “the one”
This lesson IS the one I had been waiting for.
You could say
このレッスンこそ待ち望んだレッスンでした。
but there are two レッスン so I switched it to もの
＊＊＊
I deleted わけではない in your previous sentence because it was not quite natural.
Did you want to say this?
Though you knew wouldn’t be able to understand the whole lesson, you were looking forward to this lesson.
Ahh, now I understand the もの. I thought you just add こそ to a nown in a normal sentence, but in some cases you have to repeat the noun. What I wanted to say was:
“Although it’s not like I understand all of it, this lesson is really one I’ve been
eagerly awaiting.”
And what I really wanted to say was: マギー先生ばかりでなくゆかり先生のことも大好きです。 !formingheart3!
@Zetsubomanadeshi
“Although it’s not like I understand all of it,
全部わかるわけではない OK
this lesson is really one I’ve been eagerly awaiting.”
このレッスンこそ、ずっと待ち望んでいたものです。
But when we put these two sentence together, it doesn’t sound natural.
I think it is because you can’t tell you wouldn’t understand all of it before you read my lesson.
How about switching the sentence?
このレッスンこそ、ずっと待ち望んでいたものです。といっても全部わかるわけではないですが….
And Yukari is thrilled to read your message! ❤
こんにちは、マギー先生！
質問があります。
「Over the past few days」または「During the past few days」ってどう書きますか？
「数日前中」っていいですか？
全ての助け,頂きありがとうございます！
@Dan
こんにちは、Dan
over the past few days/ during the past few daysは
ここ数日、ここ数日間
で言い表せますよ。:)
Imade koso waratte irareru ga touji wa mainichi !damedame! !damedame! [nayannde]
[nayande] imashita.
Doryoku shite koso, kekka ga tsuite kuru.
Only when you make efforts, you get good results/good results will come.
= Only when you make efforts, !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [do] !koujichuu! you get good results.
Fan no ouen ga atte koso ima no !koujichuu! [watashitatachi]
[watashitachi] ga arimasu
@zoheb
Thank you for spotting the typos. I really appreciate it.
As for the English sentence,
Only when you make efforts….
→When you start a sentence with “only”, you have to change the word order. So I will leave the way it is.
いつもありがとう！
*明日は晴れますように。
Konobunha “ashitaha hareruto iina” toonajidesuka?
Arigatou gozaimasu !formingheart3! !formingheart3! !formingheart3!
@Joanne
Hi Joanne,
1) 明日は晴れますように = Ashita wa haremasu youni. ( I hope the weather is nice tomorrow.)
2) 明日は晴れたらいいな = Ashita wa haretara iina. (It would be nice if the weather is nice tomorrow. )
Yes, they mean the same but “youni” shows your stronger desire.
Hi
I just saw this:
来たらず
You can explain me grammar behind of this?
thanks…
@Veron
It is a literal expression from classic Japanese and it means 来ない
With other verbs is the same?
It hasn’t a special implication (just a normal negation)?
It is no longer used?
If still used… what kind of situations would be used?
Sorry for so many questions, I do not understand much, this part is new to me…
＠Veron
Sorry for the late reply.
No, we don’t use that form in conversation anymore.
But we hear/see it when we quote an old saying. We usually use 来ない=konai = not to come now. (~ず form is 来ず=kozu)
来らず= きたらず(= kitarazu) is from a verb 来る= きたる (= kitaru) which is an old form for 来る=kuru
A good example of きたらず(= kitarazu) is a みくじ=mikuji= fortune slip, oracle slip that you draw in shrines.
待ち人来らず= まちびときたらず = your future girlfriend/boyfriend/spouse or someone who you have waiting won’t show up.
Thanks a lot… I understood perfectly.
it is very reassuring to have someone to consult… !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE! !JYANE!
@Veron
Good!! You’re very welcome, Veron! :)
Dear Maggie-sensei,
The last couple of weeks, I’ve been searching high and low for this use of たり+たら. I’ve been chatting with a couple of Japanese friends via text and one of them texted me, “私の英語が変だったり、間違ってたら、自然な英語に直してくれない？”
In the beginning, I thought it was a typo with the use of double たら. However, when I conversed with my other friend using a similar sentence, just swapping 英語 with 日本語 and using “間違ってたら、変だったら”, she told me that it would’ve been better had I written “間違ってたり、変だったら”.
I would like to ask if this is a colloquial thing or something? Because I really don’t get it and I can’t seem to find it on the Internet either.. I would appreciate an explanation very, very much. (:
I hope my explanation of my situation isn’t confusing.
Thank you in advance! (:
@ りん
Hi りん
I am not sure if I understand your questions well. But…
1) 私の英語が変だったり間違って(い*)たら、自然な英語に直してくれない？
2) 私の英語が間違って(い*)たり変だったら、自然な英語に直してくれない？
＊間違ってる・間違ってたら is a casual contraction of 間違っている・間違っていたら
Both 1) and 2) are fine.
You can also say
1) 私の英語が変だったり間違って(い*)たりしたら、自然な英語に直してくれない？
2) 私の英語が間違って(い*)たり変だったりしたら、自然な英語に直してくれない？
in conversation.
Maggie-sensei, I truly enjoy reading your posts, and many of them are very helpful and well written with plenty of examples. I’m a beginner still, so please bear with me.
About たり, what does と思ったり usually mean? Does it mean “also thought” or does it imply assumption or emphasis?
Thank you very much in advance!!
@Presto
Hi Presto!
Glad to hear you enjoy reading my posts.
If they use 思ったり solely without any v+たり
Ex. ~~と思ったり….
It is a colloquial usage (like No.6)
We leave the sentence unfinished with たり on purpose.
It sounds softer than 〜と思う
〜と思う= I think ~~~ (Showing one’s strong opinion)
〜と思ったり= Sometimes I think…./ (I could be wrong but) I could be ~~ , It is possible ~~ (Expressing the possibility)
So happy to see your website! You see, I was writing an anime fanfiction, and I’m trying to learn more japanese. What does this phrase mean in japanese: “Complete my heart/Complete this heart of mine” ?
@Margaux0615
Hi!
What does this phrase mean in japanese: “Complete my heart/Complete this heart of mine” ?
You mean how to say that line in Japanese?
There is no direct translation.
You could translate it literally but it sounds unnatural.
You could say You can fill my heart. あなたは私の心を満たしてくれます。
Thank you very much! boucingheart! !niconico!
@Margaux0615
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello, maggie sensei! This is my first time replying to one of your lessons !niconico! !niconico! I had watched this drama called 明日、ママがいない and heard this phrase ちょっと離してよ！ have you ever done a lesson on 離す？ I don’t understand it really. :cryingboy:
@ラミイシャ
Hello!
I have to see the scene but I assume someone is hold on to a speaker or something and the speaker tells that person
“Let me go! / Let it go!”
Hi. Rules are quite helpful. I was not quite sure how to translate Joaquin into Katakana though. Pronounced sort of like Wakkin It has oa in it so ー should fit in there somewhere
ツ
Before ap, ip, up, op, ck, ot, it, ic,tt
None of that isn’t there though. But it sounds like a ツ should be there. Help would be appreciated.
Seems hard to convert words that don’t sound as they are written.
@Danny
Hi Danny,
“Joaquin” (in Spanish pronunciation) is ホアキン in Japanese.
Thanks!
＠Danny
You’re welcome!
どんなに勉強してもレッスンは絶えないな。
まずいつも通り:
“Kore, tabenakukte mo ii desu ka?”
“tabenakute”
“ayamatte”
“Donnani ayamatta mo …”
ちょっと説明してもらってもかまいませんか。
1. “Kanojo wa darega mite mo shufu datta.
a) housewife. (as anyone can see)” Why “datta” if she still “is” a houswife?
She is obviously an (
2. “何をやっても妻に怒られる。
No matter what I do, I make my wife angry.” I’m having problems with 怒る, it’s intransitiv or transitiv, so it’s a bit confusing:
彼は怒っている- He is angry.
彼を怒らせる – I make him angry.
彼に怒らせられる- I am made angry by him.
彼を怒っている – I scold him. or: I am angry at him. (?)
彼に怒られる – I am scolded by him. or: I am angered by him. (??) but your translation is: i make him angry (but why, isn’t it passive??? 絶望した~)
3. I read the following sentence: スズメバチを見つけても、手などを動かして蜂を遠くへ行かせようとしてください。
I don’t quite understand the “temo” here. “Even if, no matter what, whatever” etc. make no real sense to me, as it is a general advice, isn’t it?
よろしくお願いします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you always for spotting the typo. I fixed them.
1. Oh that was my mistake. I changed it to the present tense to avoid the confusion.
But if you see her in past and describe how she was, you can say 主婦だった = She was a housewife…
2. We tend to use passive form in Japanese but sometimes the direct translation is not natural in English.
（私は）マギーに怒られた＞マギーは私を怒った
The nuance is different but it won’t sound natural to say
I was reprimanded by Maggie.
It is more natural to translate in English,
Maggie got mad at me.
3. I would use たら in that sentence.
スズメバチを見つけたら = If / When you see ~
It depends on the context but ても there means “Even if”
Hey, I’m trying to translate a blog post from Japanese but I got stuck at “まんま体験版”. Is this likely to be まま as well? And if so, how does it work in this case?
@Sam
Before I answer your question, it is from a name of a game?
Hi.
Thanks for the lesson.
However, I have been struggling with this which has made me a bit discouraged about still learning Japanese beacause I have found no one who could answer my question.
My problem is particle に in the passive voice. に is used to express the agent in the passive voice, the origin of the action, the performer, right?, however, this contrasts with its directional meaning (to/towards/for) and this, let’s call it, contradiction in meaning makes understanding particle に very difficult for me in the passive voice.
Why is a particle that indicates direction or target such as に used to indicate the origin of an action (the agent) in the passive voice? It makes no sense in my head because the performer (agent) is not supposed to be the target of the action but the one that performs the action, the origin.
I don’t know if I have exposed my problem clearly, but I hope you can help me solve this puzzle.
Thanks!
@Mew34
Hello Mew34!
My advice for you is not to stick to one function of に.
Japanese particles have many functions.
The functions of に is not just “direction”
For example…
1) direction (towards)
Ex. 東京に*行く = Toukyou ni iku. = to go to Tokyo
2) indirect object
Ex. 友達に*会う= Tomodachi ni au. = to see one’s friend
3) location (in) existence
Ex. 東京に*住んでいる。= Toukyou ni sunde iru. = to live in Tokyo
4) purpose
Ex. 本を買いに* でかける= Hon wo kai ni* dekakeru. = to go out to buy a book.
5) time marker
Ex. 11時に寝る。= Juuichiji ni neru = to go to bed at 11:00.
Ex. 9月３０日に試験がある。= Kugatsu sanjuunichi ni shiken ga aru. = there is an exam on Sep.30th
6) per
Ex. １日に３回、薬を飲む= Ichinichi ni sankai kusuri wo nomu. = to take a medicine three times a day.
7) by , from
This is what you use to make a passive and causative form.
に has a function of “by” (some action was caused by ~~~)
弟が私のおやつを取った。
= Otouto ga watashi no oyatsu wo totta.
= My younger brother took my snack.
When you make this sentence into a passive form,
My snack was taken by my younger brother.
As に has a function of “by” (source), you say
私はおやつを弟に取られた
=Watashi wa oyatsu wo otouto ni torareta
or
私は弟におやつを取られた。
=Watashi wa otouto ni oyatsu wo torareta.
hello! I have another question. It’s something that came up during my japanese class. My teacher couldn’t explain very well, so I have to ask to you. hahaha.
Anyways here the example:
まどが開けてあります. I asked my teacher if there was any difference between that and まどが開いてあります, and why or when to use that instead of まどが開けています.
Could you explain that?
@reid
OK,
*開く＝あく= intransitive verb The window opens
*開ける=あける= transitive verb Someone opens the window.
まどが開いてあります is grammatically wrong.
”開（あ）く→開（あ）いて” is an intransitive verb so it should be まどが開いています。(The window is open.) Describing the state of the window which is open.
Vてあります is used when someone intentionally leave something in certain state and you use it with transitive verb. 開ける（あける）
まどが開けてあります。= when you describe the state where you or someone left the window open (on purpose).
or
まどを開けています。= Someone leaves the window open/ someone opens window.
FYI I have a lesson on 開く. So please go check the lesson.
And ~てある
That’s a terrific explanation! I don’t even feel like it is complicated anymore. I will definitely study the lessons too. Thanks a lot!
@reid
You’re very welcome, reid! ♥
what’s the difference between 揚げる、焼く and 炒める?
also 沸騰させる and 水を沸かす？＾＾
＠yrz
揚げる deep fry (with lots of oil) 炒める fry or saute (less oil than 揚げる)
焼く toast, broil, bake..(general)
水を沸かす= to boil water
沸騰させる= to heat/bring ~ to boil
＠yrz
揚げる deep fry (with lots of oil) 炒める fry or saute (less oil than 揚げる)
焼く toast, broil, bake..(general)
水を沸かす= to boil water
沸騰させる= to heat/bring ~ to boil
こんにちは、先生 !MUSIC!
i always wonder about stem verbs that are combined such as 降り注ぐ、響きあう、塗りつぶす、食べ比べる、抱きしめる、消え去る、舞い落ちる、辿り着く、付け加える、切り替える、待ち焦げれる、繰り寄せる、飛び立つ、鳴り響く、振り向ける、失い進む。
i mean how do you make them or how do you use them(their rules probably??)
i hope you get what i mean lol. if it’s possible, please make a little lesson about it, maybe? thank you^^
oh and etc.! lol
@yzr
こんにちは、yzr!
First, I have a lesson on ~合う.
Other than 合う, there are not so many compound words. It will be easier for you to separate two parts and figure out the meaning.
I will show you how.
抱きしめる→抱く(to hold)/ 抱いて(hold and ) ＋締める(tighten ) →抱きしめる= to hold someone/something tightly.
舞い落ちる→舞う(to dance) 舞って(dance and) ＋落ちる( fall) →舞い落ちる = something falls as if dancing.
塗りつぶす→塗る(to paint) 塗って(paint and) ＋つぶす(mash)→ 塗りつぶす→paint out/black out
Other words 押しつぶす=push and smash = smash/crush
wow 説明してくれてありがとうございました！＾＾ !flowerssss!
@yzr
どういたしまして boucingheart!
:test: には !damedame! がいます。ではここで一緒に直しましょうか。
!damedame! “Nagai aida, ano boro apaato de seikatu wo shiteita.”
“seikatsu”
“ijou tatta”
“erebeeta”
!damedame! “Toyota de tsutomete mou gonen ijyou tattta.”
!damedame! “Kono erebeetaa ni nannin kurai hairimasu ka?”
!damedame! “Eki no baiten de utte imasu.
either “store” or “kiosk” (?)
They sell it (them) at the store at the kiosk in the station.”
!damedame! “When something is aiming in some direction we use に and で indicate the place where it happens.”
There is something missing in this sentence and I don’t quite understand it, maybe “to indicate”?
!damedame! “Ex.携帯を電車の中で落としてしまった。
“densha no naka” instead of “Tokyou eki”
= Keitai wo Toukyou eki de otoshite shimatta.”
!damedame! “You dropped it somewhere on the train and you focus on where this action of dropping happened more than the
place where you actually dropped.”
no need for a paragraph 
!damedame! “「マギーどこで何をやってるの？」
“yatteru”
= Maggie doko de nani wo yatte iru no?”
And can you explain this “で” in a sentence I found in a Japanese course: アメリカではボストンも古い町です。 I don’t see an action, so why not “に”?
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting all the typos as always. I fixed them. :)
アメリカではボストンも古い町です。
Can you give me the sentence before this sentence?
Are they listing the old towns in the world or the U.S?
The dialog goes:
S: 奈良は古い町ですね。
A: ええ、たくさんお寺がありますよ。
S: 奈良はお寺で有名ですね。
A: ええ、スミスさんは古い町が好きですか。
S: ええ、私はボストンから来ました。アメリカではボストンも古い町です。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
OK, then this では is “for” (For the ” U.S.” ） in the U.S.
京都 and 奈良 are much older than Boston. But Boston is considered to be an old town in the U.S.
So actually this 古い町です。means
アメリカではボストンも古い町として見なされています・古い町の中に含まれます。古い町と考えられています、古い町としてとらえれています。
→So
(The action here is “to think”)
That is why you use で.
なるほど。 And they don’t even bother to explain this in the course. That’s why I only take lessons at your site now. (Well, thats a lie, but lets pretend !happyface! )
おやすみなさい :zzzz2:
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
どういたしまして＆おやすみなさ〜い！ :zzzz:
こんにちはマギー先生！
文章の最後に来る「〜わよ」と「〜わ」の違いは何ですか？
よく日本語に翻訳された英語書籍/記事で出てくる女性のセリフに「〜わ」が使われているようです。例えば翻訳されたエマ・ワトソンのインタビューとか。
そしてゲームには戦闘の始まりに「行くわよ！」って叫ぶ女性キャラもいます。
両方は 「〜よ」と同じような意味だと思っていたけど、違うのですか？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
「わよ」と「わ」の違いですね。これもsituationによって使い方が異なります。
行くわ = just expressing “I am leaving now.”/”I am off!”
行くわよ= involving the listener. “Let’s go!”
説明にも書きましたが、「わ・わよ」はアニメの女の子のキャラやドラマや海外の映画や本の翻訳、吹き替えなどでは女性らしさを強調するために使いますが、実際にはそれほど使いません。
説明ありがとうございます！
そうでしたか、アニメやドラマなどに「わ・わよ」がよく出でくると気づいたけど、セレブが実際に言ったセリフにも出てきたので、なんでだろうと思っていました（＾＾；
@Lava
「わ・わよ」はかわいらしさを強調する言葉ですが、逆にちょっと年配の人が使うこともありますよ。
それから男女が使う「わ」のカジュアルな使い方の一つで”make your point”というものもあります。これは少し強く聞こえるので家族やよく知っている友達の間で使います。また関西地方などで使う「わ」もあります。
しらんわ！
ありがとう、先生、でも~…
:uparrow: これもう直さなかったよ。細心の注意をせよ。叱らせないでよ! :)
“もっと日本語の勉強を勉強しましょうよ。”
余計な”勉強”
“benkyou”
“Motto nihongo no bekyou wo shimashou yo.”
しかも
“Kippu wo otashimashita yo.”
“otoshimashita”
“yuuenchi”
“geimu”
“Issho ni yuuennchi ni ikou yo.”
“Sono geeimu…”
And could you explain the te-miru form in this sentence “Shoubu wa owatte miru made wakarimasen yo.” It’s not “to try to do”, but what is it?
大変ご迷惑をおかけして申し訳ありません。 !ase!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you again, my spelling angel!
I have to hire a cat to proofread my lesson. :)
Vてみる
When it is used with a volitional verb, it means “to try to do”.
You use it with a non-volitional verb + a conditional particle, such as みる＋と、みれ＋ば
one some action has finished/ done (→some condition is fulfilled , something happens/ the state will change. you will realize something/ you end up realize something
Maggie先生、こんにちは！
May I ask how strong is the word “恋人” ?
On my Twitter bio, I wrote “私の恋人→ XXX (It’s a Japanese Celebrity Name Here)”
A Japanese user who I followed then tweeted “XXXくんの恋人？ . . . ”
Was it wrong for me to joke about it in my bio? (Cause it’s kinda common in western terms do so)
So is 恋人 a strong word? Cause I think she got offended T_T
Thanks!
@ナチ
こんにちは！
Oh don’t worry! She just reacted because she is jealous.
恋人 is an exclusive relationship.
She would still react if you change it to ~君の彼女（カノジョ）~’s girlfriend.
hello maggie sensei :w:
in this sentence: いろいろ大変かと思いますがどうか頑張って下さい
why did you say ka to omoimasu? can’t I use da to omoimasu?
thank you !CHECKHEART!
@Roro
You can say 大変だと思いますが、…as well.
You usually use か when you assume something. But it also make your quote more polite.
お元気だと思います。
→お元気かと思います (You are less certain/ assuming)
この部屋の方が静かだと思います。
→こちらのお部屋の方が静かかと思います。(You are less certain/ assuming)
Thanks for the lesson! I never had any trouble understanding “yo” in context, but it is good to know it has a lot of different naunces. Great lesson, as usual.
@reid
Hi reid,
Thank you for the comment!
I am sure there are more usages of よ that I haven’t covered. :)
I am taking AP Japanese. These lessons are so helpful. Thank you 先生！
@StarDriver
Good to hear that, StarDriver. :)
Thank you! I was wondering which kanji it was. :)
Sorry sensei, just one other question…
When people say things like 迷って I’ve noticed sometimes people say 迷っちゃう or something similar? Is this just a quirk or is it just a thing people do?
@Sammy
ちゃう is a kind of cute way to say ~てしまう
迷う = 迷ってしまう (describing one’s state)= 迷っちゃう
I have a lesson on ちゃう／ちゃった.
Hi, I was wondering if the よう used here is the same 何のようだ よう used? I was searching up よう in the dictionary because I wanted to confirm 何のようだ meant ‘what do you want’, but I couldn’t find it. Just wondering if you could give me more info on the よう that means want?
Thanks!
@Sammy
Hi Sammy
何の用だよう！= Nan no you da you!
It means “What do you want? / What has brought you here?”
So the first you is 用 (business)
The second よう is the suffix よ (Please refer to my latest lesson for all the usage of this suffix.)
難しいレッスンで今回は誤字さえ難しいですよ。
“Kyou wa hajimete no ressunn desuga, ganbarimasu.”
“ressun”
“行きさえ”
“shisae”
kanji says 部屋, so: “Amarini heya ga chirakatteite…”
I don’t know about comma in Japanese, but this one seems problematic.
“sae”
“行き (= iki sae)”
“しさえ (= shisase)”
“Amari ni ie ga chirakatteite…”
“Ex. パーティーには顔さえ、だしてくれればいいです。
= Paatii niwa kao sae, dashite kurereba ii desu.”
“Jugyou ni mainichi shusseki sase…”
“= Mikisaa sae areba daredemo kantan ni tsukuremasu.
絶望した! :)
= All you need is a blender. Anybody can make it easily.” Ok now I’m splitting hairs, but just because I’m curious, you have the word ミキサー for mixer and ブレンダー for blender and 混合機 for both mixer and blender, and yet you use ミキサー for blender too it seems…
And one question about V+ かさえ(=ka sae): In your examples, it’s always V+の+かさえ or Adj.+の+かさえ, so I wonder whether the の is always required.
よろしくお願いいたします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
ありがとう！！直しました！感謝！感謝です！:)
As for a blender, what I meant was a kitchen appliance (to make a juice,etc). We call it ミキサー in Japanese.
Vかさえ and Vのかさえ
You add の when you emphasize.
先生~、質問攻めにしてもいいですか。
1. Concerning the form 書かす. You said that only some verbs have short forms like 書かす. Most of these Verbs like 泣かす, 飲ます, 待たす seem to be regular vocabulary and can be found in any dictionary, but I can’t find 書かす in any regular reference book or website. Is this form really grammatically correct, like JLPT proof, or is it just conversational or slang?
2. In the case of 待たせる and 待たす, I noticed that the short form is mostly used in passive voice (though it could be the irregular causative-passive form of 待つ too, which then seems to be prefered to the regular causative-passive), while the regular causative form is mostly used in active voice. i.E.
“彼は私に待たされる。 He was kept waiting.” seems to be prefered to “彼は私に待たせられた。”
“私は彼を待たせた。 I made him wait.” I don’t think I ever saw “私は彼を待たした。”
Is my observation correct that the short and regular causative forms are used differently and are not always interchangeable?
3. Can you combine the potential form with passive, causative or causative-passive? It does not make much sense in my language, but in english some people think it would be possible to say things like: “He made me able to swim.” or “I was made being able to swim.” In my understanding, this is terrible english and nobody would talk like that, but it seems gramatically possible. Also, my learning programm, which recognizes conjugations, says that 泳げさせられる is a correct potential-causative-passive verb. (It does not recognize 書かす though. :) )So, is that really possible in Japanese?
教えてくださいね。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
www 質問攻め〜♪
1. Hmm I don’t use the grammar books and I don’t know where you have searched but let me check…
OK, check these pages.
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BD%BF%E5%BD%B9
http://bit.ly/1F9Lpdl
2. Yes, your observation is correct. This is a really interesting and complicated thing and I bet many Japanese teachers have trouble teaching. お
You use 待たせる more than 待たす
待たす ＜ 待たせる
but when it becomes causative passive form you use 待たされる more.
待たされる*＞待たせられる
And though 待たした is not so common, we hear/see people use. I think it also has something to do with dialects.
待たしてごめんなさい。
待たしておく
3. Japanese causative form is used when someone force someone to do something.
He made me able to swim.” or “I was made being able to swim.
This “made” is not “forced”
If it is something favorable, we use してくれる (passive してもらう）form.
彼は（or が）私を泳げるようにしてくれた。
私は、彼に泳げるようにしてもらった。
Ex. わからないことがあったらいつでも
聞いてよ。
= Wakaranai koto ga attara itsudemo !koujichuu! [itte] yo.
わからないことがあったらいつでも
聞いてね。
= Wakaranai koto ga attara itsudemo !koujichuu! [itte] ne.
Ex. もっと日本語の !koujichuu! !koujichuu! [勉強を]勉強しましょうよ。
= Motto nihongo no bekyou shimashou yo.
@zoheb
Wow! You are so quick!!! I fixed them.
いつも本当にありがとう！！:)
マギー先生、Minkyに教えさせてくれてありがとうございます！ I noticed in a typo of Minky’s name in a few places – it is written as “Minty.” It’s kind of cute though, like a combination of “Minky” and “Misty”! MinkyとMistyは姉妹なのに、たぶんそれがあまり好きじゃないですよ。
(Although they are sisters, they probably wouldn’t like that!)
小さな間違いを見つけたと思います：Note: i-adjective + だ ( = da ) ・です (= desu ) + よ ( = yo ) is neutral.
Should that be “na-adjective”?
マギー先生、私は質問がありますよ。 この文は“バッグが開いていますよ”, “あく”を使っています。 “あく”と“ひらく”の違いは何ですか。いつどっちがどっちかを使いますか。(Maggie Sensei, I have a question. In this sentence, you use “aku”. What’s the difference between “aku” and hiraku”? When do you use one or the other?)
ありがとう! :grin:
@Palidor
Hello Palidor! Ohhh I’m sorry for the typos of the name. Hope Minky will forgive me.
And yes, it should be na-adjective. I fixed them.
ありがとう！！
バッグが開いています。You usually use あいています for a bag.
I have a lesson on this specific theme.
開く lesson.
And thank you again for introducing us two cute guest teachers. :)
大丈夫ですね。 Minkyは暢気ですよ。 :lol:
ああ、そうですね。 ありがとう！ サイトはとても大きいので、私はまだ全部読みません。
@Palidor
よかった〜！Minkyにあやまっておきます。長いレッスンなのでゆっくり読んで下さいね。
(せっかくだから少しだけ直しますね。
大丈夫ですね。→ 大丈夫です”よ” の方がいいです。)
Ah, okay. Thank you Maggie! I felt kind of weird using “よ” in two consecutive sentences, but I see why it’s more appropriate.
:maggie-small: :purple:
Some typos:
“Maggie hodo no ii onna a sousou inai.”
wa
hodo
sakuya
“Kare bodo hidoi hito wa imasen.”
“Sakuwa wa dorehodo nondaka kioku ni nai.”
Some questions:
1. I’ve been tought to use ほど in negative comparisons as you explained in the first section: A wa B hodo ~ nai. But I was wondering whether you could use より instead ほど in this case to, like in normal comparisons.
2. Same question for the 思ったほど ~ない form. Because I’ve heard this one with より: 思ってたより少ないな。
3. あの人のことを好きになれば好きになるほど、心が痛い。
In the “verb + ば + verb + ほど” section, why is 好きになる repeated as a whole in this case? Isn’t grammatically just なる the verb and 好きに an adverb or a noun? Is it because it’s an expression or are verbmodifiers like adverbs repeated too?
よろしく
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Hi, manadeshi!
Thank you for spotting the typos again. :D
1. OK, here is the difference.
1) AはBより ~
You usually compare A and B
2) AはBほど〜ではない
The difference:
(1) We tend to use より more when we compare two things.
(2) ほど is talking about the degrees.
(3) AさんはBさんほど背が高くない
= A is not as tall as B
You can’t say
AさんはBさんより背が高くない。
You don’t usually use より in a negative sentence.
(Actually I am making a lesson on より(-yori) so I will cover that difference.)
2. You have to change the pattern.
思ったほど多くない。(negative sentence)
思ったより少ない。 (affirmative sentence)
3. You can also say 好きになればなるほど
If it is a compound verb, 好きに＋なる, you can skip the first part.
Ex. 勉強をすればするほど、わからなくなる。
But if it is one simple verb, you repeat it twice.
働けば働くほどお金がもうかる。
ドジっぽいタイポを見つけました。
“otonapppoi karenndaa”
“otonappoi karendaa”
:w:
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
Hahaha, it will be hard to read that way. Thank you!!!! I fixed them. ありがとう！
Hi Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been using Japanese Twitter for a while now and noticed nearly everybody in this cyber space has “(Name) @ (Something)” as their display name. This “something” could be anything from a place to a random saying or phrase. What does it mean? It seems like only the trendiest Twitter users seem to have it.
I want to get it too for my Twitter handle, but I can’t seem to understand the nuances of what can or can’t go behind the @.
お願いします！
Pika
@Pika
Hi Pika!
There is no rules for handle name. Only you can create your name.
You wrote here with your name or nickname Pika. If you like it, you can use it as a part of your name.Pikachan, Pika4twitter, etc.
Twitter is totally anonymous. You can have a creative name or just make a Twitter name based on the words you like. What if your favorite word?
愛弟子になりたかったんだけどなんとなく校正係となっちゃったね。しゃーない、日本語が得意になりさえすればよろこんで力になるよ。
Feel free to correct me anytime too!
“Boku mo nihongo no sensei ni nau!” !damedame! !damedame! !damedame! 
“naru” (now we know why he never became sensei :) )
“Kokoro” (2 times!)
“perapera”
“Kokokor”
“perapeara”
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
ありがとう！！！
OK, will help your Japanese as well. In this case 「校正係になっちゃったね」is more natural.
そして今日からZetsuboumanadeshiを私の「愛弟子」に任命します！
与えた名誉学位を重んじてなおいっそう頑張る! !DANCING! (褒められて育つタイプになったみたいです。
)
:) !CHECKHEART!
Hello Maggie Sensei! I just wanted to ask…
Does the following sentence:
このレッスンを理解しないわけではないって言う訳がないのはずが全然ありません。
Mean something like:
There is utterly no possibility that it is impossible for me to not, not understand this lesson.
(I understand this lesson)
or did I mess up somewhere?
Thanks for everything so far! XD
いつもありがとうございます! XD
＠The river puppy
Hello, the river puppy,
Oh wow! REALLY complicated.
I kind of understand up to ないって言う but 言い訳がないのはずが~ part doesn’t make sense. I even don’t understand the English sentence.
このレッスンを理解できないわけではない I wouldn’t say I don’t understand this lesson.
“このレッスンを理解できないわけではない”と言う訳がない = There is no way that I say “I wouldn’t say I don’t understand this lesson.”
I think this is as far as you can go.
And you know we never talk like that. :D
Hello Maggie :)
I am currently studying Translation and Interpreting and I was curious if I could translate your lessons into German (for free of course) because I need a little bit practice :)
Feel free to contact me if you’re interested. I couldn’t find another way to contact you, but I think it’s fine here as well.
Regards
Btw: I am a German native speaker.
@Misel Tunjic
Hello Misel,
Thank you for your interests in translation our lessons.
I will send you an email. :)
Hello! Thanks for this lesson. I didn’t even know you could use a double negative like this.
I have another off-topic question. I am trying to write and I am not too sure, it feels like something is off about it.
古い機種だから、両親と話すことばかり使ってるんだ。
I want to say “It is an old model I use to talk with my parents”. I also originally wanted to say “I use to receive calls from my parents”, but how do I say “to receive calls”?
Thanks again! And sorry for asking off-topic things so often, I don’t know anyone else to ask, hahahaha.
@reid
Hi reid,
古い機種だから、両親と話すことばかり使ってるんだ。
I have to confirm two things.
1) 古い機種だから= You used だから= because
2) ばかり= just, only
But I don’t see the translation in the English sentence.
When I saw this sentence, I thought you wanted to say “Since it is an old model, I just use it to receive calls from my parents.”
If so,
古い機種だから両親から電話を受けるときだけに使っているんだ。
So to receive calls in Japanese is 電話を受ける
But you can also say 両親から電話がかかってきたときだけに使っているんだ。
I see. I used だから mainly because I was going for a less literal translation, hahaha. So without it would it be:
両親から電話を受けるときだけに使ってる機種だ ?
Also, I kinda wanted to use ばかり to practice, how could I use it in this case? I have even studied the lesson you made already, but I am not sure now, haha.
Thanks! You always give the best replies.
@reid
Yes,両親から電話を受けるときだけに使ってる機種だ will be natural.
だけ and ばかり both mean “only/just” but there is a difference.
If you use ばかり, it sounds like “the only thing you do is or you are always using the old phone to talk to your parents.” But what you wanted to say is “I only use the old phone” so だけ is better.
OOHHH that’s true! I forgot about that detail. Something so simple and I forgot, hahaha.
Hi
「そんな大きなスイカ一人で食べられないでしょ。」 Aさん–>Bさん
= You know you are not going to be able to eat a watermelon that big by yourself, right?
Can the same sentence 「そんな大きなスイカ一人で食べられないでしょ。」 be used if i want to say [You know I’m not going to be able to eat a watermelon that big by myself, right]
@Kyle
Yes, it is possible. If someone serves you a big watermelon, you can say that.
Hello Maggie sensei,
I am Krishna das Mukherjee,from india. I want to study in japnese language, I allredy start it but face a problem in kanji. so if you teach me? great for me.
thaking you
Krishna das mukherjee
＠krishna das mukherjee
Hi, Kirishna,
If you use Twitter, follow me on Twitter. I have been tweeting kanji once in a while.
But the best way to learn kanji is to get a kanji book and study constantly. I know it is a pain but it is so much fun to be able to read Japanese. And I believe you can do it.
Good day dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for explaining them to me, haha, my interpretations were totally wrong in the first place. Oh, sorry for the typo for だという.
My questions for today are:
1.
便利なはずのスマホが時々すごく不便に感じる
Smartphone is supposed to be convenient, but I sometime feel it is very inconvenient to use.
(from hazu lesson)
If I understand this correctly:
“1. No it won’t be the same. If you say プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介が、”プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介” will be a subject.”
Then
便利なはずのスマホが時々すごく不便に感じる would give a thought:
“sometimes I feel that the smart phone which is supposed to be convenient, is very inconvenient”
Though,
Smartphone is supposed to be convenient, but I sometime feel it is very inconvenient to use. – Would be natural in English. Did I get it right?
——-
2.
事になった – it has been decided that.
How about
事に決まった and事に決めた?
決まる – instransitive
決める – transitive
But when they are used with 事に, i don’t know when
事に決まった or 事に決めた is preferred over 事になった.
——–
thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
Hello “orikousan”000
1. Yes, you got it right.
2. OK the translation of 〜ことにきまった / 〜ことになった could be both “has been decided” but the difference is
You use ことになった when you describe some situation/state has turned out to be ~
Ex. 大変なことになった。= It turned out to be a big trouble.
You use 決まった when there are people behind and they decide something.
And as you said 決める intransitive and 決まる transitive so
Personが〜を決める ( Person decides ~ )
~が決まる (~ is decided)
Good day dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for clarifying them to me.
My questions for today are:
1.
こんなにも喜んでくれる方がいる
i am not really sure where こんなにも applies to:
does こんなにも apply to 喜んでくれる方 =
a. there are people this much delighted.
Or こんなにも to いる:
b. there are many (this many) delighted people
——–
2.
[I don’t know if he will “still” go.]
I would like to translate this sentence in Japanese but I think if I will use:
まだ彼が行くか分からない – this would mean
[I “still” don’t know if he will go]
So I would like to ask for dear Maggie sensei’s version.
——–
3.
What would be the difference between 時 and たら if they are both translated as “when”. I just made these sentences:
頼む時, 丁寧な言葉を使って下さい
頼んだら, 丁寧な言葉を使って下さい
——–
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
Hello,
1. こんなにも modifies 喜んでくれる
There are people who are happy for me (us) this much.
2. [I don’t know if he will “still” go.] Right. It is a confusing sentence.
How about
私は彼がまだ行くかどうかわからない。
3. I would say 頼む時は、丁寧な言葉を使ってください。
たら is more hypothetical situation.
Ex. If you ask him, he might do it.
彼に頼んだらやってくれるかもしれない。
Good morning dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much clarifying it to me. .n_n.
My questions for today are:
1. Are 久し振り and 久々 interchangeable when they become adverb or modifier?
——-
2.
後輩たちがドッと増えて、
『先輩として、恥ずかしくないように！』って、気が引き締まる年でもありました
I think the missing verb for 『先輩として、恥ずかしくないように！』is 頑張る but I would like to ask what could be the other verbs that could fit in this sentence.
———-
3. でもありました = this is derived from である which is the ancient from of です and not from で+(も)+ ある. Is my observation ok?
—-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
Hello, おはよう！！
1. Yes. 久々に東京に行った。 = 久しぶりに東京に行った。
To be precise, 久々 is slightly stronger. While you use 久しぶり even if it is not actually a long time ago, you use 久々 when you did/do something for the first time in a really long time.
2. OK, for example, 先輩として、恥ずかしくないようにする。or ふるまう
3. Yes. But である is not “ancient form”. It is just a literal form and we do use it when we write.
obakasan000
One suggestion. Why don’t you use Maggie’s room when you have a question? All your questions are really good so that other people can learn from your questions. (If it is related to the lesson, you can keep using the comment section of each lesson.) :D
Thanks for this great lesson, it’s old, but soooo important. The various uses of という where a big mystery for me for quite some time, and you unraveled them all, thats amazing.
Since it’s such a long lesson, I found some typos that have been hiding for half a decade. Not anymore! :i:
“会議が(or は）中止となった(=Kaigi ga/wa chuushi to natta)
These two sentences should have the same partikel for didactic reasons (“to natta” or “ni natta”).
:u:
会議が(or は）中止になったというメールを受け取った。(=Kaigi ga/wa chuushi ni natta toiu meiru wo uketotta.”
“tugikonde”
“tsugikonde”
“manshitsu”
“Iza toiu toki wa denwa shitene.”
“kyuujitsu”
“mannshitu”
“Iza toiu toki wa dewa shitene.”
“benkyou busoku” not a real typo, but the space should be removed because it’s a compound word which changes the usual pronunciation of 不足.
“kyuujitu”
And one tiny question: is the だ before というのに obligatory or can it be omitted? i.E. 明日が試験というのに何も勉強していない。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you my spell check angel!
I haven’t checked this lesson for five years.
I should change the format as well when I have time.
いつもありがとう！
As for your question,
明日が試験というのに is possible.
だ emphasizes the fact more.
*マギーの気持ちが、わからなくもないです。
= Maggie no kimochi ga, [wakara
[na]ku] mo !koujichuu! [arimasen]=[naidesu].
x. 「ねえ、付き合っている人いるの？」
= Nee, tsukiatte iru hito !koujichuu! [inai] no?
＠zoheb
早速、チェックしてくれてありがとう！ zoheb boucingheart!
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
I have a question regarding 邪魔する.
I came across it being used like this:
邪魔するぞ、お前たち。
It’s being translated as “Pardon for the interruption, you guys,” or something like that. And I’m just wondering if that is correct.
Doesn’t it have to be お邪魔します、お前たち for it to be translated like that? Because, if it’s 邪魔するぞ、then it’s somehow a reproach rather than a polite “excuse me,” is it?
Sorry for bothering, and I await your reply~
P.S. Your lessons are great! Thank you so much!
@tweeny
Hi tweeny
The speech 邪魔するぞ、お前たち is very rough. I think you probably saw it in animation or something.
~ぞ suffix and お前(達）are considered to be very strong/rude expression.
So you don’t use お邪魔します＋お前たち together because お邪魔します is a polite expression.
Maggie 先生！心より感謝申し上げます。 !CHECKHEART! !heart3! boucingheart!
中国では、今日は「老师节」(教師の日）
マギ先生、中国に住んでいる生徒たちより 教師の日おめでとうございます！
(haha, I hope I said this correctly ~ )
@ミカちゃん
わ〜〜素敵なメッセージ、ありがとうございます！！とても嬉しいです。
中国には「教師の日」があるんですね。
私にとっては毎日「生徒の日」で皆に感謝していますよ !CHECKHEART!
Hello, Maggie!
Another great lesson, thank you very much.
Just out of curiosity, are there in Japanese triple negative?
I think not. At least I haven’t seen one.
＠天人
こんにちは〜！！
Triple negative is not common. We may say that jokingly but it really confuses the listener.
Let me try,
日本語を話さない(1) のがいけない(2) というわけではない(3) 。
Can you get it?
Yup, that’s really cool!
日本語を話さない(1) のがいけない(2) というわけではない(3) = it doesn’t mean it’s bad (not good) that you don’t speak Japanese. って意味ね？
@天人
おみごと！！
Sooo let’s go a step further. How about 4-hit combo negation?
@天人
無理！！敢えて作ってみると….
４重否定は全くできなく(1)はない(2) わけではない(３) と言わない(４）方がいい 。
Ok, that’s a tricky one!
Hmmm, let me see…
４重否定は全くできなく(1)はない(2) わけではない(３) と言わない(４）方がいい 。 =
It’s better not to say that it’s not that [/it doesn’t mean that] you can possibly use quadra negation. 翻訳、合ってる？
@____@
@天人
Haha, yes, you got it.
But it gives me a headache now.
こっちも同じだ ＾ ＾
複雑なほど面白いけどね。
ありがとう、マギー！ !riceball!
どういたしまして！今日は頭を珍しく使ったから早く寝ま〜す！ !JYANE!
このレッスンがもっと読みやすいように本文をじっくり校正して、二三の間違うような言葉を見つけました。
“ahita” should be “ashita”
“hirogaranaimasen” should be “hirogarimasen”
“Kaze wo hikanai you (ki wo tsukete ne)” should be “Kaze wo hikanai you ni (ki wo tsukete ne).”
“albe” should be “able”
お尻に噛み付かないようにさっさと誤字を直してね。 !niconico!
Also, I have a question about one example: “いつになったら日本語がきちんと話せるようになるんだろう。”
Again, I’m having trouble understanding the conditional part “なったら”, because I can’t think of a way to translate it meaningfully.
ちょっと説明するように。
よろしくお願いします
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typos. I fixed them. ありがとう！
You use たら in a conditional sentence.
明日になったら彼に会える。
I will be able to see him tomorrow.
(The direct translation is “when the date changes tomorrow”)
Don’t bite me please.
来年になったら日本語が話せるようになるかなあ。
= I wonder if I will be able to speak Japanese next year.
which means “when the year changes the next year.”
And if you are not sure when you will be able to speak Japanese, you say
いつになったら〜
いつもお世話になってすみません。
Since I’m thoroughly reading and re-reading a lot of your old lessons I could do some proof-reading if you like. I just didn’t want to spam the comments on every lesson.
And I feel a bit awkward correcting a sensei, as do I now when I have to say that the translation for 溺れている you wanted to write was “drowning”… 
But don’t worry, just now I had to look up how to spell “thoroughly” and “awkward” myself, hope I got it right. 
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
ありがとう a million!!!!
As I always say, I REALLY REALLY appreciate it!!!
I will blame it on my paws. :)
Maggie-sensei, I always find your pages in google when I’m trying to puzzle out a phrase I didn’t learn in my few JP language classes! Your lessons are so helpful… I find myself on this site so often that I thought I’d give you a big ありがとうございます！
＠SamQ
Hi SamQ!
Awww Thank you so much for your nice message!!
I hope you enjoy learning Japanese. :)
ありがとう！
先生、いつもありがとうございます！
聞きたいことがありますが、あだ名と愛称何が違いますか？友達が愛称の方が親愛があると言っていますが…
@リン
こんにちはリン！
日本語で質問をしてくれたから日本語で返事をしますがわからなかったら言って下さいね。
そうですね、「あだ名」も「愛称」もnicknameとして同じ様に使うこともあるのですが、あだ名にはその人の身体的な特徴やいやなことを表した意地の悪いものもあります。愛称はお友達が言うように親愛をこめて呼ぶものを指します。
hello maggie sensei :w:
can you make a lesson for:
1- the different usage of kakeru/kakaru ? by now I know the most common ones but lately I came across a korean movie named in Japanese (海にかかる霧）. I know the overall meaning is like the see overwhelmed by fog something like that,.. but I don’t know the exact meaning in Japanese.
2- tsui= by accident
3- making nouns from adjectives and verbs
4- I want to know the difference among : manabu/ benkyou suru/ narau/ osowaru?
@Roro
Hi Roro! Genki?
1. Ah, OK..
かかる is an intransitive verb
霧がかかる so the fog/mist covers the air →It describes the state of being foggy
Ex. 月に雲がかかる clouds is covering the moon
かける is a transitive verb
2. 3. 4 つい: OK, will add them in the list. I can’t promise that I will make all the lessons but will try to make some for you in future.
Please wait patiently.
ahha.. now I understand !JYANE!
thank you maggie sensei..
bty, there is something I want to ask you privately.. and don’t know how I should ask tell.. do you an email?
thanks again
@Roro
You’re welcome, Roro.
Well, I can’t give you my personal email here… If I do, some people may start to use it to ask me Japanese questions or ask me to translate something.
You don’t need to give me all the details here but can you just tell me what it is about?
I always read people’s comments before I release them. So if it is something personal, just add “Confidential”. I will not post it. So don’t worry.
And if I think I can help you, I will email you using your email address that you left when you left a comment.
(But please know that I don’t do translation or writing letters, thesis..)
Arigatou senseii! :))))
@amy
Douitashimashite, amy! boucingheart!
ご教示ありがとうございました。 いつもどおりちょっと問い合わさなきゃんだけど。
1. I often see “Verb+tokoro da” accompanied by the adverbs まさに and ちょうど. These adverbs are as often combined with the “Verb-Volitional+to suru/shite iru/shite ita” expression, and it seems to mean the same thing. So is there a difference between:
まさに/ちょうど食べる(食べた)ところだ。
まさに/ちょうど食べようとしている(いた。)
2. Also, what puzzles me is the second meaning of “V-Volitional+to suru” as “trying”, because in these sentences are to my understanding no connotations of “trying”. However, you gave the example: 父は、どろぼうが家に入ろうとしているところを見つけて捕まえた。 In this sentence, “V-Volitional+to shite iru” actually means “trying”, so I was wandering whether one can combine these forms like this:
食べるところだ。 – I was just about to eat.
ちょうど食べようとしている。 – I was just about to eat.
ちょうど食べようとしているところだ。 – I was just about to try to eat.
3. I saw some sentences with “Verb+tokoro datta/deshita”. Is that also correct?
あやうく某業者の甘言に騙され、大損するところでした。
彼女はスキャンダルでもう少しで失踪するところだった。
お返事のかわりに誤字を二つ知らせてあげます。「drawing」と「uattte」を探してくださいね。 :maggie-small:
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
Thank you for spotting the typo again. I really appreciate it!!
1.
a) まさに/ちょうど食べる(食べた)ところだ。
b) まさに/ちょうど食べようとしている(いた。)
The translation is the same but you use ところ when you describe the state more vividly.
2. Right ~しようとしている means “to try to do something” but sometimes the translation is not natural.
Because you don’t actually “try” when you eat something.
食べようとしている ＝”I am about to eat or I am going to eat now” is more natural.
3. Ah, yes. I didn’t cover that, huh? Maybe I should add that information later.
~ ところだった/でした is used when you had some risk and it almost affected you but nothing happened/you managed to avoid it after all.
Maggie Sensei
こんにちは、
I have found something like ところだった。
もう少しで遅刻するところだった。
それはどういう意味ですか？
ところ の 過去形ですか？
教えていただければうれしいです(✿^‿^)
宜しくお願いします。
Since you wrote that you found the explanation in the lesson in your latest comment, I won’t answer here.
:)
Hi! I love your site^_^
Sorry to bother, but what about adjectives? May we use them too?
Example: oshiire ga chiisakute mo ii desuka?
Thanks!!
＠Mikage
Hi Mikage,
Yes you can use ても with adjectives.
I will add that information in the lesson.
oshiire ga chiisakute mo ii desuka? →OK!!
OH! I already studied this lesson, and I even commented on it! I completely forgot, hahaha. But it was nice to study it again. In any case, I am still note sure about this sentence:
税金は高いとか、大都市は汚いとか、そんな悩みがたくさんあるんだ
It seems like there isn’t anything wrong… Guess I am just not sure if とか is the best choice here.
Thanks again
@reid
Hi reid,
Welcome back to this lesson.
税金は高いとか、大都市は汚いとか、そんな悩みがたくさんあるんだ
Did you make this sentence?
Looks fine to me.
It is a subtle thing but you may want to change は with が
税金が高いとか、〜 to emphasizes the tax.
Yes, I made it. Thanks for confirming it is correct! I guess I was just unsure if it was okay to use toka here. When I showed it to a japanese friend of mine she replaced toka with shi like this:
税金は高いし、大都市は汚いし
So I was unsure if it was because toka was incorrect or just her personal preference, hahaha.
Thanks again
@reid
When you list out things you can also use し
You use し when you simply connect more than two things or when you emphasize the reason more.
税金は高いし、大都市は汚いし+result/ what you are going to do/conculusion
Since your sentence simply giving some examples of your concerns, とか works fine.
The sentence is very conversational but very natural.
Oh, I see. Thanks!
@reid
You’re welcome! :)
漢字を勉強していたところに頭痛がしました！ lol see I remembered how to say headache!!! But as far as the rest of the sentence I seek your guidance and correction haha (I hope it’s grammatically correct) !happyface!
＠Courtney
Hi Courtney! Good now you remember how to say 頭痛がする
Just one thing. 頭痛がする is a state so it will be more natural to say
漢字の勉強をしたところ、頭痛がしてきました。(getting a headache)
Hope it won’t give you a headache. :)
lol studying Japanese will never give me a headache, I love it too much!! Thank you! I can always count on you! so してきました is the present perfect continuous conjugation of する right? So your sentence would be translated as…”I have been getting a headache when studying kanji.” right? Thank you in advance!
＠Courtney
Yes, してきている means “has been getting something” and your translation is right.
The present perfect continuous conjugation of する is している but when you describe gradual change you use してきている.
And I know you always love studying Japanese!
Ok! thank you! I will work harder at studying verb conjugations. :grin:
Hello! Thanks for this lesson. It is a bit complicated in some parts, but I can understand it.
I have a couple of questions:
In this sentence, 駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った I am trying to use the other forms of tokoro to understand them better.
So by ところで you’re indicating that you met her after buying cake.
If you use ところに you’re indicating that you met her while buying cake. Both happened at the same time.
And if you use ところを you’re focusing on the action of buying cake? I don’t really get the difference here. And depending on the context it can mean that it is something unusual to meet her while buying the cake?
And the second question:
Is there any difference between 今、彼に話しているところです。 and 今、彼に話している。 ?
Thanks again for this lesson!
@reid
Hello reid,
OK, I have to slightly change the sentences to explain.
1) ケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った。
I saw her right after I bought cake.
(Focusing on the situation.)
2) ケーキを買っているところに(へ）彼女がやって来た。
She showed up when I am buying cake.
(Two actions are happening at the same time.)
(Focusing on the time)
3) ケーキを買っているところを彼女に見られた。
She saw me buying cake.
(focusing on the action)
＊＊＊
While 今、彼に話している。is just describing the action, 今、彼に話しているところです。describes the action more vividly and also has more explanatory tone.
So if someone asks you to give them updates on some issue,
今、彼に話しているところです。sounds more convincing than 今、彼に話しています。
Hmmm I understand them, but why did you have to change the sentences? The other forms wouldn’t work in the original?
Thanks for the reply!
Ah, I have two unrelated things to ask. Is there a lesson about honorific speech?(Did I ask about this before? I am not sure, hahaha)
And I am little confused about the use of とか. Is it only used in lists? Here is an example sentence of what I am not sure.
税金は高いとか、大都市は汚いとか、そんな悩みがたくさんあるんだ
Is that example of とか use incorrect?
Thanks again. You’re such a great help!
@reid
I changed the sentence because you can’t say
駅の近くでケーキを買った<ところに> or<ところ>を 彼女に偶然会った
Why… ところに（or へ） You might say “But two actions are happening at the same time…” but the subject is the same “I” (I bought cake and I met her)
You usually have different subjects for two actions.
And you use an object marker, を in ところを. That means you have to have some action to be an object.
〜ところを見られた= I was seen ~ = She saw me buying
***
As for とか I have a lesson so please go check that lesson.
Oh I completely understand it now. Thank you very much! I will definitely study the lesson for toka too.
@reid
You’re welcome, reid!
このサイトは本当に便利ですよ。ここからたくさん日本語を習いました。マギー先生、ありがとうございますね！
@メーガン
コメントうれしかったです。こちらこそありがとう、メーガン！
Thanks for the lesson, however, I am still having this question in my mind. From all the literal meanings of 合う, which one conveys the sense of mutuality or doing something together when attached to the stem or a verb?
I mean there must be a reason why 合う is used here to convey this meaning and it must necessarily be connected to one of its literal meanings.
Thanks.
@Hakken
I think it depends on the action but basically,
When,
A does something for B (action towards B)
B does something for A (action towards A)
A and B do something each other. (mutual)
Ex. 愛し合う, 助け合う
A does something for C or A and B.
B does something for C or A and B.
A and B do something together for C or themselves.
Ex. お金を出し合う。
Hello sensei! Thank you so much for all the lessons! I had a question…
I was taught いる is for living things and ある is for non-living, but then how come いらない can be used for anything?
E.g I heard people say 心配いらない and 傘はいらない?
@Maddy
Hi Maddy,
心配いらない／傘はいらない
This いる is a different verb. 要る= iru = to need
Hi sensei! Your lessons are great! They really help me out. :)
I just had two questions about particles…
I heard someone say サッカーって楽しい and I was wondering why they said って instead of は?
And I also heard みんなでやろう and I was wondering why they said で instead of と?
Sorry for all the questions. :o
@Romy
Hi Romy
サッカーは楽しいですか？
→casual サッカーって楽しい？
So this って is a colloquial way to say ~（というもの／〜ということ）は
みんなで everybody (including you) / in a group
みんなと you and everybody
Oh gosh, I didn’t see your reply to the previous question! Very sorry, sensei!
@Kelly
No worry.
I don’t know how long it will take but I will eventually make a lesson on the difference between は and が. Please wait.
@Kelly
No worries, Kelly.
The difference between は and が is REALLY complicated but I will eventually make a lesson. Please wait.
Hi sensei, thanks again for the great lesson! I was also wondering like the person below me the difference between は and が?
I often see が used when I thought が should be used, and vice versa. If you could clear this up for me, that’d be great!
Hi Maggie sensei! I have a friend lives in Japan, and she sent me an email the other day saying
‘友達と会うのが楽しみです!!
Sarah にまた会いたいです.’
Why did she use のが after 会う?
And why did she use に after my name? I thought に was only for location and time?
@Sarah
Hi Sarah
1) の is used for nominalization (to turn a verb into a noun)
会うの＝会うこと= seeing
Ex. 私は食べることが好きです。
= I like eating.
= 私は食べるのが好きです。
= I like eating.
2) に also has a function as an object marker.
(It indicates the person/thing an action is directed at)
Ex. Sarahに手紙を書く。
= Sarah ni tegami wo kaku.
= To write a letter to Sarah.
Ex. Sarahに電話をかける。
= Sarah ni denwa wo kakeru.
= To call Sarah.
Hi sensei, this isn’t part of the lesson but I couldn’t find a lesson on this…
I don’t understand the difference between using は or が? I know one is the subject marker and one is the topic marker, but if you could explain it in a bit more detail that’d be great! TT.TT
@Sam
Haha, I have been avoiding making the lesson on that subject because it is very complicated.
But it is on the request list so eventually I will make a lesson. Please wait patiently.
For now,
when you focus on what comes after, you use は and when you focus on what comes before, you use が
Ex. 私はマギーです。
= Watashi wa Maggie desu.
= I am Maggie.
Who is Maggie?
Ex. 私がマギーです。
= Watashi ga Maggie desu.
= I AM Maggie.
***
When you show the contrast, you use は
Ex. Aさんは日本人ですが、Bさんはアメリカ人です。
= A-san wa nihonjin desuga, B-san wa amerikajin desu.
= A is Japanese but B is American.
Hi sensei! I still don’t really understand the difference between 旅 and 旅行! TT.TT
Don’t they both mean the same thing? And if they both mean the same thing, why does 旅行 exist and why is it used more commonly? I’m sorry, please explain it again!
As I said 旅 is more literal.
It might be easier for you to think
★旅行= travel, trip(more conversational)
A trip which has an itinerary or destination
★旅= journey (long distance)
It is also used to describe some process or experiences of growing in lief.
Maggie,thank you for this. Watashi wa Nihonjin hanbun. Nihonjin to amerikajin demo nihongo chouto hanashimasu. I work in a dunkin donuts in America and sometimes when a Japanese customer comes in I try to speak Japanese. This lesson is exactly what I was looking for. My goal is to learn enough Japanese to work in a Japanese restaurant in the area.
@Shogo Yamada
Thank you for your comment! I am very happy to hear you found this lesson useful.
I hope you can find a nice job in Japan.
(Note for you: Watashi wa Nihonjin hanbun. Nihonjin to amerikajin →How about saying “Watashi wa nihonjin to amerikajin no half desu. )
Hi, I would like to know what is Noun + no tokoro? And the differences between “ni” and “no tokoro”
TQ
Regards,
Kym
＠Kym
Hi
Can you give me an example for noun+の＋ところ which is similar to に？
お箸は使えないのにヌンチャクは自由自在に操るので生身のものは問題ない~
!hamberger!
Thank you for another very informative lesson. As usual, the most easy sentences leave me in despair. 私の下手な日本語によって絶望した!! I had to laugh a bit reading this sentence: “Hai, sukoshi nara hanasemasu.” I can’t even grammatically understand that one… !cryingboy! Could you tell me, what the “nara” is for? Also in this one: “Sashimi igai nara nandemo suki desu.” I only guess it’s optional as I learned these sentences without “nara”, but I really would like to know its use.
Also, some more typos: look for “nihonji”, and the answer “Machi ga kirei desu.” is double.
よろしく
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
First thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them.
nara is used when you give certain condition.
So sukoshi nara hanasemasu. means,
(I don’t speak Japanese fluently but) if it is a little, I can speak.
Giving the condition of the speaker’s speaking ability which is “a little”
“Sashimi igai nara nandemo suki desu.
I eat anything but Sashimi. (If it is not Sashimi)
(In this case, the condition is “besides Sashimi)
Note for you:
お箸は使えないのにヌンチャクは自由自在に操る →haha! Is it true?
Just I don’t get the part 生身のもの????
私の下手な日本語によって絶望した →(to sound more natural) 自分の下手な日本語に絶望した。(→But it is not true!!! Your Japanese IS good!)
See how bad my Japanese is? I even have to explain my jokes.
生身のもの is supposed to mean “living creature(s)”, according to weblio. I wanted to say “living things” and I thought that 生き物 or 生物 were not quite fitting.
And yes, I practiced kung-fu and nunchaku for a few years, but nowadays the only thing I would hit is my own head. That’s why these days I’m rather using words than weapons, yet still I keep hitting myself…
Thanks for the explanation of the sentences. I know the conditionals, I just didn’t think they would apply here, especially to the first one. Because we would never say “If its a little, I can speak it.” Sounds strange as “little” it’s not really a condition, it’s an adverb. It’s like “I only can run slowly” –> “If it’s slow, I can run it”. Thats makes no sense. And in the sashimi sentence, “以外” already kind of markes the condition, so the conditional seems not necessary. I guess thats my problem, i didn’t expect conditionals, because both sentences seem to work without them.
日本語はややこしい言語ですね。気が触れるかもでも泣き寝入りするもんか!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Oh wow. You do practice kung-fu! かっこいい！
Will make なら lesson for you sometime. There are many usages. But at this point, just think the usage there is to emphasize the word which comes before なら
Ex. 明日なら行けます。
= If it is tomorrow, I can make it.
= I can make it TOMORROW (Not other day.)
——————————————-confuse???
is it —>[doko or nani]/[what or where]
Q: 日本の[どこ]が気に入りましたか？
= Nihon no [doko] ga kiniirimashita ka?
= [What] do you like about Japan?
(casual) 日本の[どこ]が好き？
= Nihon no [doko] ga suki?
= [What] do you like about Japan?
————————————————————typo
Q: 苦手な食べ物はありますか？
= nigate
[NIgatre] na tabemono wa arimasu ka?
= Ohanashi
[dektie]—>[dekite] tanoshikatta desu.
@zoheb
いつもありがとう、zoheb! I fixed the typos.
is it —>[doko or nani]/[what or where]
Q: 日本の[どこ]が気に入りましたか？
→Ahhh good point! You are right.どこ can be “where/what”. Since I already explained “where”, I wanted to give an example of “what” but it is confusing, huh?I changed the question.
Thank you!!! :)
A: 専攻が日本語でした。
= Senkou ga
[hihongo]—->[nihongo] deshita.
@zoheb
Thank you!!! boucingheart!
İt’s so simple lesson. I haven’t read text through. Arigatou Gozaimasu Sensei. (Çok Teşekkür Ederim Sensei.)
＠Kar
Rica ederim! :)
In your example, 「(2)マックスはマギーに泣かされた。」 shouldn’t the verb be, 泣かせられた ?
I’m a little confused by all the さs and せs and られるs… :cryingboy:
Or is this like a more casual way of saying it?
@Tom
I made this lesson a few years ago and I know I should add more information but I have been procrastinating. Sorry.
There are two forms for certain verbs.
飲む→(causative form) 飲ませる or 飲ます
→(passive causative) 飲まされる／飲ませられる
書く→(causative form) 書かせる or 書かす
→(passive causative)書かされる or 書かせられる
泣く→(causative form)泣かせる or 泣かす
→(passive causative)泣かされる／泣かせられる
So both 泣かされた／泣かせられた are fine.
Hello there!
Thanks a lot for this very useful article. I’d love to translate it to french on my blog. Would you give me the authorization to do that? I’ll OF COURSE put a link to your website and explaining that I just did the translation, and didn’t write the content. Would you mind? boucingheart!
@Matou
Bien sûr!
Leave the link here so that I can study French. :)
For these questions there wasn’t a translation added does the first set of questions mean “How long have you lived in Japan?” and the second set mean “Where have you been in Japan?”
日本に住んでどのぐらいですか？
= Nihon ni sunde donogurai desu ka?
(casual)日本に住んでどのぐらいなの？
= Nihon ni sunde donogurai nano?
Q: 日本ではどこに行きましたか？
= Nihon dewa dokoni ikimashitaka?
(polite) 日本ではどちらに行かれましたか？
= Nihon de wa dochira ni ikaremashitaka?
(casual) 日本ではどこに行ったの？
= Nihon dewa doko ni ittano?
@Courtney
Oh, sorry! I added the whole translation. :)
Oh! You added a translation for each variation. Sorry to cause you so much trouble! Thank you so much as always you are the best! Sometimes I feel like I’m annoying because I ask so many questions up here and on twitter lol :) thanks again
@Courney
Not at all! You always have great questions!
:)
why did you say 食べたって in this sentence: いいじゃない、少しぐらいなら食べたって
can I say 食べたら or 食べてくれればいい instead of 食べたって？
and can you tell me the difference between ikinai/ kyuuni/ totsuzen?
thank you Maggie sensei !niconico!
@Roro
食べたっていい:
You can also say 食べてもいいじゃない、食べたらいいじゃない(more conditional) 、食べてくればいいじゃない(=go eat something)
As for the difference between ikinari/kyuuni/totsuzen, you asked the same question in my 是非 lesson and I already answered it. So please go check the answer.
I’m really sorry.. I thought I didn’t ask you before..
but I still don’t understand why you used the past tense in ( tabetatte)?? is a casual form of saying ( tabetara)?
thank you again
＠Roro
Ah, OK
Yes, it is a casual form
When you talk about permission,
~てもいい
→(casual form) たっていい
食べてもいいじゃない。It is OK that you eat. You can eat.
→(casual form) 食べたっていいじゃない (It is OK that you eat. It sometimes means “you have eaten”)
I would say 食べたっていい sounds slightly stronger than 食べてもいい
You will hear this form a lot.
若い頃は何をやってもいい。
若い頃は何をやったっていい。
You(We) can do anything when we are young.
When you ask someone for permission, stick to てもいい
Ex. これ、食べてもいい？
x これ、食べたっていい？ is not natural.
When you ask
マギー先生
役に立つレッスンありがとうございます ＾＾
日本語であいまい表現は本当に多くてよく使われていますね。
ちょっと質問があるんです。「そのうち」はどういう意味で使われますか？「そのうち」を言うときは、永遠にこないという意味ですか？例えば、「そのうち行きたくなるかもしれない」を言う人は、ぜんぜん行きたくないでしょうか？
@jolie
「そのうち」ですね。
もしその人が「そのうち、行きます。」と言ったら、かなり可能性があります。
「そのうち行きたくなるかもしれない」この文章の問題は「そのうち」よりも ”行きたくなるかもしれない”の部分です。
下の文章で比べてみると
A) そのうち行きます。= I will go there sometime (soon).
B ) そのうち行くかもしれません。= I might go there sometime (soon).
C) そのうち行きたくなるかもしれません。= I might want to go there sometime (soon).
D)行きたくない。
A>B>C>D の順で話し手の気持ちが読み取ることができます。
つまりC）の文章は「今は行きたくないけれど」という気持ちを相手の気持ちを考えて、少しでもpositiveに聞こえるように言っています。
Hi Maggie-sensei! Thanks for all the great lessons!
I have a quick off-topic question about one of the example sentences:
“Kinou, mata ano mise ni itte ne, oishii biiru wo nonde kita yo.”
What is the meaning or nuance of ~tekuru form (nonde kita) here? I went through the examples in the ~tekuru/iku lesson but couldn’t find something that matched.
I thought “nonde kita” -> “it became that I drank” or “I ended up drinking” maybe?
Sorry if it’s a silly question!
@Greg
Hi Greg!
It is a good question.
As I explained in my ~tekuru / te iku lesson,
• 買ってくる(=katte kuru) to buy something and bring it to the place where speaker is.
That kind of ~ tekuru is used when speaker goes to somewhere to do something and comes back to the place where they are.
But this “nonde kita” means “went out for a drink (and came back where the speaker is)”.
Also “~tekita” has a function to describe one’s experiences more vividly.
¥
So, if you say “biiru wo nonda”, you are just talking about the action
but if you say “biiru wo nonde kita! you are talking about your experience more vividly.
oh, that is a very good question, a doubt I didn’t even know I had too. Thanks for linking to the lesson as well, I will study it tomorrow!
Hi sensei! This isn’t to do with this lesson but I just had a question…
Sometimes I see in anime the word 嫌い but the romaji will be ぎらい instead of きらい? And they pronounce it ぎらい?
Or instead of 魂 it’ll be pronounced だましい？
Why do they do that?
@Susan
That sometimes happens in a compound word.
For example when you read the kanji 魂 alone, you read it “たましい”
But when it is a part of a word,
Ex. 野球魂= やきゅうだましい = baseball spirit
彼は人間が嫌いです
= かれはにんげんがきらいです。
彼は人間嫌いです
= かれはにんげんぎらいです。
Note: 人間嫌い= Misanthrope = A person who hate people.
Thanks so much! I was really wondering about that!
Will you make lessons for other ending particles like wa, sa, i, zo, ze etc?
@kaheeh
It is on the request list already. :)
As for certain usage of “wa” and “yo” please go check female speech lesson.
Hi Maggie sensei, for this sentence “watashi ga rensai no geemu wo sasete moratte imasu.” Would the proper translation be…” I was allowed to have the game series”, “I was asked to have the game series” or “I was able to have the game series” thanks in advance!
＠Courtney
I don’t understand well how the game site works but if the writer is a creator of a game,
Sasete moratteiru is a humble way to say “to do something” but when you translate it, just “I am the one who has been creating a series of the game.”
面白いレッソンありがとうございます !happyface!
日本語では一人称代名詞が多くて使い方は難しいですけど、女の子ですから、名乗ることはそんなに複雑だと思います。日本語を始めて以来「私」だけ使っても大丈夫です。男性より楽だと思います。（笑）
ですけど、友達と話すときに、話し方で少し変化に気づきました。例えば私の友達は、最初は「僕」を使いましたが、今はよく「こっち」を使うようになりました。「こっち」とか「そっち」とかは、友達でよく使われていますか。
@jolie
こんにちは、Jolie
そうですね、男性は、私、僕、俺などの言い方がありますが、女性はその点、楽ですよね。
こっち、そっちですが、そうですね、目上の人には使いません。
電話やメールなど二人の距離（きょり）が離（はな）れている時に使うことがあります。
「こっちは元気だけどそっちはどう？」
丁寧（ていねい）な言い方は「こちら」「そちら・そちら様」です。
このレッスンで少し説明しているのでよかったらみてください。
「ちょっと＆曖昧表現」
あ、私のコメントには間違いがあって、恥ずかしい＞＿＜ ”そんなに複雑じゃないと思います。”
先生、ありがとうございます ^_^
「こっち」「そっち」とかはメールや電話でしか使わないんですか？それに、「こっち」「そっち」を使うほうが親しい感じがありますか？
＠jolie
そうですね、「そっち」、「こっち」は英語でいう your side, my(our) side というニュアンスが入るので相手と自分の間に線をひくので使い方によっては親しいというより距離を出すことがあります。
名前で呼んだ方が親しい感じがしますよ。
そうですね。
私にとって名乗ることはあまり問題じゃないですけど、話すとき、相手の言い方を聞いて感情を読むことは難しいと思います。（笑） これから時々「こっち」「そっち」を使ってみます。
それに、外国では会話であまり名前で呼ばないので、まだ慣れないですけど、日本では相手が名前を呼んでくれたら本当に親しい感じがします。それは、いいと思います。（笑）
先生、答えてくれてありがとうございます。
@jolie
そうですね、すでに「こっち」「そっち」を使っている人だったら練習に使ってみて下さい。
Ex. 私は元気だけどそっちはどう？etc.
OH! Thank you! I have always seen ね more like something instictive, but it is good to know exactly how it is used.
I have a question. In this sentence “昔はねえ、子供は外でもっと遊んでいたものなんだよ”, why do you use “もの”? Is it necessary or could have used the same sentence without the use of もの? I have seen other sentences like that, but I don’t really understand how もの is used in that case.
@reid
Hi reid,
もの has a lot of functions but when you look back on your past and remember habitual actions or events, you say
verb past tense + ものだ・です
Ex. 小さい頃は、よく父がこの店に連れてきてくれたものだ。
= When I was a child, my father used to take me to the store.
Ex. 若い頃は、家から歩いて街まで行ったものだ。
= When I was young, I used to walk to the town from my house.
Oh, it is simpler than I expected, thanks.
＠reid
You’re very welcome! :)
thank you so much! your blog really helps a lot!
boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
@uchan
I’m very happy to hear that. ♥
助かります! ありがとうございます。💞
どういたしまして！ ☺️
Hello,
New user that’s just starting to use the site here.
I wanted to report that the ~方 link on the Main Lesson index actually links here, instead of the described lesson.
@cbp
Thank you cbp! Fixed it!! :)
ありがとうございました。面白かったです。
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd! 早速、読んでくれてありがとう！
Hi,
Just came across your site and thought you might know of a superstition where children who loose their milk teeth throw the teeth over the house. I can’t remember if this is because it makes the new teeth grow strong. Do you know this superstition? I want to confirm it before I put it on the site. I’ve put a few on the site already but could only think of one that was good luck. Do you have any suggestions on any other ones I could add?
@Laoise
Hi Laoise! Welcome to our site!
Yes, when a child loses a baby tooth we throw them.
Throw an upper baby tooth over the roof and throw lower milk teeth towards under the floor hoping the permanent teeth grow in the right direction.
Wow so many uses of ね! Thank you very much! !heart3!
＠Sakotoki
Yes indeed.
And thank YOU for checking the lesson! ありがとう！
In the case 4, can’t you use よ? For example 着いたら、電話するよ。
Is it too rude?
Ahhh good question! I have to make another lesson on よ ( = yo) sometime.
(Oh wait.. I did explain in my female speech lesson lesson.)
I won’t go too far here but…
As I explained ね(=ne) expresses your will,
*よ ( =yo) is used when you tell some information that the listener doesn’t know or should know.
Ex. 電車は遅れているみたいですよ。
= Densha wa okurete iru mitai desuyo.
= I heard the train is late.
You use ね, when you want agreement from the listener.
Ex. 財布を落としましたよ。
= Saifu wo otoshimashitayo.
= You dropped your wallet.
X Since the listener doesn’t know the fact, you don’t use ね (=ne)
You use よ if the speaker’s action is related to the listener.
In that case you can change ね to よ.
Also ます・です+ よ is safe to use but if you use “verb plain form + よ” may sound either slightly blunt or for a male speech.
来年、日本に行きますよ。
→(nuance) You should know this information.
着いたら電話するよ
今日は私（僕）がおごるよ。
The actions, ‘calling/treating” related to the listener so you can use よ but in these two cases, よ sound a bit blunt. (male talk)
説明してくれて、ありがとう！
@Lollo
どういたしまして！
Is it the same when you make your point? For example, what’s the difference between私はそうは思いませんね and 私はそうは思いませんよ. Or, for example, if someone asks you コーヒーが好き？is it better to reply “あまり好きじゃないね” or “あまり好きじゃないよ” ?
よろしく！
@Lollo
Hello Lollo,
It depends on the intonation but the basic difference is if you involve the listener or not.
そうは思いませんね・あまり好きじゃないね。: You are just making your point/expressing your opinion.
そうは思いませんよ・あまり好きじゃないよ Telling the listener your opinion or feelings.
I am making a new lesson on the suffix よ. Will try to include the sentence to explain so please wait.
ありがとうございますLevo先生。
本当に役に立ったレッスンですね！
@教子
そう聞いてうれしいです！ !niconico!
Ex. [今日]は私 ( or 僕*)がおごるね。
= Kyou wa watashi (or boku) ga ogorune.
= It’s on me [tonight]—————————>today,It’s on me .
Ex. 「そこにあるお菓子もっていってね。」
= Soko ni aru okashi motte itte
[ne–missing].
@zoheb
Thank you zoheb!!! Fixed them. いつもありがとう！ boucingheart!
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei boucingheart!
what is the difference between ikinari/ kyuu ni / totsuzen ni?
@Roro
Hi Roro
いきなり
突然
急に
They all mean “suddenly” or describe some unexpected matters.
A lot of time they are interchangeable.
Ex. 家を出たら雨がいきなり／突然／急に降って来た。
= Ie wo detara ame ga ikinari / totsuzen / kyuu ni futte kita.
= When I left the house, it suddenly started to rain
Ex. 彼はいきなり／突然／急に家にやってきた。
= Kare wa ikinari/ totsuzen/kyuu ni ie ni yattekita.
= He came over suddenly/ out of the blue.
(The nuance difference
いきなり is used when someone does things suddenly skipping the certain procedure.
when you are talking about something urgent or focusing on the action, we tend to use 急に
急な仕事が入った。
= Kyuuna shigoto ga haitta.
= I got an urgent business to deal with.
車は急に止まれない。
= Kuruma wa kyuu ni tomarenai.
= Cars can’t stop immediately.
And of course, there are some set phrases.
Ex. 突然の手紙、失礼します。
= Totsuzen no tegamik shitsurei shimasu.
= I am sorry to write to you out of the blue.
Xいきなりの手紙／急の手紙 are not natural
You’re my best teacher.. thank you so much :yy: boucingheart!
@Roro
You’re welcome!! boucingheart!
Good day dear Maggie sensei. Thank you so much for answering my question and for sharing a trivia about the blog. I hope that your site will last for many many many more years and that your future puppies will continue your legacy..
My question for today is:
勉強してきた– have/has/had been studying.
(focusing on the length of the action) according to dear maggie sensei.
And if I will try to convert this verb into its potential form, it would be something like:
勉強してこれらた=
And the thought would be something like:
have/has/had been (staying in the state of [being able to study])
is my observation somewhat ok?
recently, I have been seeing てこれらた often, so I thought i need to clarify if my understanding is correct.
———–
Thank you so much dear Maggie sensei in advance. .n_n.
@obakasan000
こんにちは！
Thank YOU again for remembering our important day.
Yes, you are right. 勉強してこられた means “have/has/had been (staying in the state of [being able to study])”
(Also してこられた is used as a polite form.)
６年間、このブログをやってこられたのは皆さんのおかげです。
＝Thanks to everyone I have been able to continue this blog for six years.
Good day dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for answering my question. .n_n.
My question for today is based on a blog..
Blog: http://gree.jp/c_ute/blog/entry/691784636
話は変わって、ハロー！プロジェクトのコンサートのスタートと同時に、ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが、
ついに今日で最後です
Translation given: http://maimilog.com/2015/01/22/blog-update-spring-touro/
Changing the subject, coinciding with the start of the Hello! Project concerts, I’ve introduced the new members of Hello! Project in this blog,
and today is finally the last
I would like to ask if is there by any chance that
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが…
is a variation of:
ハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介[を]ブログで始めた[ん]ですが… ?
I often see this structure where in the [verb] comes first, then [noun+ですが] followed by the rest of the sentence but, the English translation looks like as if it is based on the [noun+を+verb+んですが]…
Though sometimes I think maybe the meaning of
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが is somewhat like:
[Regarding about the new members’introduction that I have started in this blog] – where in the role of ですがis to give an [introducing-nuance] by placing the [noun] before ですが, but i am not really sure..
But if dear maggie sensei thinks that the english translation is quite incorrect in the first place..i would like to ask for dear Maggie sensei’s English version..
——-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.
＠obakasan000
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが is somewhat like:
[Regarding about the new members’introduction that I have started in this blog] – where in the role of ですがis to give an [introducing-nuance] by placing the [noun] before ですが, but i am not really sure..
Your translation is right.
The direct translation is something like “(as for) the introduction of new members for Hello! Project which I started on my blog…”
So ((Subjet)+ verb (私がブログで始めた)）modifies the following noun, “新メンバーの紹介”.
But I guess they choose the most natural translation, I’ve introduced the new members of Hello! Project in this blog,and…
Good evening dear Maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for clarifying it to me .n_n.
My question today are:
1.
Regarding again about:
ブログで始めたハロー！プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介ですが
If I will remove です, and leave only が, would the sentence still retain it’s meaning of:
“(as for) the introduction of new members for Hello! Project which I started on my blog…” ?
—–
2
Blog:
たくさんの方たちの支えが導いて下さった横浜アリーナ公演で、感動や喜びを皆さんと分かち合いたいと思います
English translation:
the support of many people led us here, so I want to share my gratitude
and joy with everyone.
The pattern with [ですが] is the same where in [noun] was put at the end before [で]
But the translation looked like as if it was based on:
横浜アリーナ公演[に]たくさんの方たちの支えが導いて下さった[ので]
(I am not sure if に is the right one to use)..
So that this pattern has also the [introducing nuance]?
Or 矢島様 just imply jumbled the position of words because たくさんの方たちの支えが導いて下さった first came in her mind before 横浜アリーナ公演 and ので
——-
3.
Blog:
そんなメンバーたち含め、
大好きなteam℃-uteの皆さんに祝福されながら迎えた10周年！
私はステージに立ちながら、
まだまだ皆さんと一緒に走り続けていたい！っていう想いを噛み締めていました。
English translation:
With those members and everyone in team ℃-ute we love celebrating,
we reached our 10th anniversary!
While standing on stage,
I reflected on the feeling that I still want to keep moving forward with everyone.
My understanding is somewhat like:
We celebrated our [anniversary # 10 / 10th anniversary] including those members, while having the blessing of everyone in team ℃-ute.
But the [We celebrated our [anniversary # 10 / 10th anniversary]] part
Would be only possible if the sentence was like : 10周年を迎えた
(I assumed that the next 私はステージに立ちながら is another sentence after 10周年 and it has nothing to do about 10周年) do you think, it has been jumbled?
—–
4.
日本人だとういのは,本当ですか?
if I will try to shortcut this sentence, would this form be acceptable?
日本人ってういのは, 本当?
だとういのは became ってういのは
—–
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei.. I really don’t know what to do without you..
@obakasan0000
Hello!
1. No it won’t be the same. If you say プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介が、”プロジェクトの新メンバー紹介” will be a subject.
2. I am not sure if I understand your question here but if you are talking about で at the end
たくさんの方たちの支えが導いて下さった横浜アリーナ公演”で”
It is a location marker, “in/ at/ where…”
→I would like to share my gratitude and joy with everyone in the 横浜アリーナ公演 where the support of many people led us
3. 大好きなteam℃-uteの皆さんに祝福されながら迎えた10周年！
The translation is very natural.
If you translate this directly it sounds strange
大好きなteam℃-uteの皆さんに祝福されながら迎えた modifies 10周年
We have commemorated the 10th anniversary being blessed by dear team℃-ute members.
4. I think it’s typo but it should be
だというのは
っていうのは
Anyway っていうのは is a casual way to say だというのは
Maggie-sensei, konnichiwa!
I have this favorite song with した right after 色 on its lyrics. Here it goes:
優しい色した空を映して 高層ビルがやけにキレイだ
…..
悲しい色した誰かの為に 今の自分に何ができるのか？
…..
I just wanted to ask what is the meaning and role of this word on each line ’cause I can’t seem to make out the meaning of it using its usual use as ‘to do’ with する. And what would be its english translation for you.
Thanks for the help in advance!
@aiji
Hi aiji, ohayou!!
OK, When we describe some typical color, you say 青い空 or 青い色の車
you see “color + した” in poetic expressions or when things have unusual color. 青い色をしたお酒
優しい色をした空= The sky with sweet colors
悲しい色をした誰か= someone with sad color
Hi, your site is great! I just had a question. Do you always have to use particle が when followed by あります or います? Because I heard someone say まだ時間はあるよ and I was wondering why he said は instead?
@Jessie
Hi Jessie,
We also use は for あります or います。
The most standard way to say is まだ時間があります。
まだ時間はあります。
It depends on the situation and what in the speaker’s mind but when you show the contrast we use は.
Usually you use は when you emphasize what comes before, in this case 時間.
++++
For example,
You see Tanaka-san.
田中さんがいます。 = Tanaka-san is here (there) / There is Tanaka-san.
(You are just talking about Tanaka-san.)
Now you are supposed to meet Tanaka-san and Kato-san but you only see Tanaka-san.
田中さんはいます。（でも加藤さんはいません。） = There is Tanaka san but Kato-san is not here yet.
thanks for the lesson maggie sensei,,,it help me a lot,,, do you have lesson for kekkou? thanks and more power God bless u,,,
@tommichael
Hello tomichael,
I am sure I have use the word “kekkou” a lot in the example sentences but I don’t have a particular lesson on the word.
What part is difficult for you? I can help you here.
thanks sensei,,, i dont know how to use in sentence,,, and i dont know what is the really meaning of kekkou,,, thanks again and God bls sensei…..
こんにちは～
質問があります。「～ですね」と「んですね」の違いと、「～ですよね」と「～んですよね」の違いが分からないので、教えて下さい。
@Lollo
こんにちは、 Lollo,
★noun/ i-adj + です＋ね・よね
★verb/ na-adj +んです＋ね・よね
(It is possible to use it with a noun when you make a question but you have to add な
noun+ な + んです＋ね・よね)
******
「～ですね」vs「んですね」
Ex. 1) 彼はいい人ですね。
Ex. 2) 彼はいい人なんですね。
Difference
They both express your opinion but you emphasize your surprised feeling more with Ex.2) or when you just find out the fact that he is nice.
「～ですよね」vs「～んですよね」
Ex. 3) マギーは犬ですよね。
Ex. 4) マギーは犬なんですよね。
(Maggie is a dog, isn’t she?/You are a dog, Maggie, aren’t you?)
While 3) is just checking, 4) sounds stronger and shows your feelings more.
Can to iu and tte (the structures for expressing that somebody said something) be used with sou desu (I heard that…) ?
@Sakurai
When you pass along a message, You use verb + “そうです”(=soudesu)
Ex. 明日、試合があるそうです。
= Ashita, shiai ga aru soudesu.
= I heard there is a game tomorrow.
Ex. 彼はもう日本にはいないそうです。
= I heard he is no longer in Japan.
“I heard someone said ~~~”
Ex. マギーがSakuraiはとてもいい人だと言っていたそうです。
= I heard Maggie was saying Sakurai is a very nice person.
I http://142.93.68.150/wp-includes/images/smilies/heart_01.gif!heart3! Maggie a lot come back soon
@gaurika
Thank you! We are back already! :)
Would 霊 美 mean “beautiful soul” for the name Remi? Sorry for all the questions Maggie, I just want to make sure I get the kanji correct.
＠Philip
Yes 霊 is a very spiritual kanji and it is possible to use it for the name “remi”.
But 霊 is also used for 幽霊=ghost so some people might avoid using it.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Thank you always for your great explanations. I noticed a mistake that might confuse people. You wrote:
“The difference :
When you focus on the action (sleeping) you use で(=de) and when you focus on the place, where you sleep, you use で(=de)”
I think the second で should be a に. I hope that’s right
@アルアル
Hi アルアル！！
Thank you for spotting the mistake! I fixed it. ありがとう！！
Kono ressun ga saiko dokoro janai.
@kar
Arigatou, kar!
Thanks for the quick and detailed explanation! I knew that -mi meant beauty but does the -Re add anything to the meaning of the name Remi? I heard some Japanese make up names.
＠Philip
鈴 just means “bell” so if the following kanji is 美, it could mean “beautiful sound of the bell.”
FYI
礼= politeness
玲= symbolize the beauty of jewel, a precious stone
澪= a pole standing in water to show the ship’s way
It is a complicated kanji so I didn’t write in my previous comment but
麗 = graceful, lovely is also a beautiful kanji to use for a name.
We are supposed to read the kanji “rei” but we can use these kanji for re sound for names.
hello! I just have a small question. It is about どれ, どっち and どちら. I can’t quite remember their specific uses. Is there a lesson about them already? Can you explain the differences?
Thanks for all the great lessons!
@reid
Hello reid.
The difference between どれ、どっち、どちら
どっち(colloquial) / どれ (standard) / どちら(more polite)
(どれ can be used to pick one among two or more things but どっち and どちら are usually used to pick one from two things/people.)
So when you are talking about people and ask “Which one is your brother?” どちら is much more polite than どっち.
Ahhh! Yes, that’s exactly what I was unsure about. Thanks for the reply!
@reid
You’re welcome! :)
Hi Maggie,
I am Japanese Canadian. We named our daughter Remi with the desire for it to mean beautiful. What would your translation of Remi be, and how would you write it using kanji? I know it as 鈴実. But is there an easier way to write the first character? Thank you!
@Philip
Hi Philip,
Your daughter must be a beautiful girl.
the meaning of 鈴実? 鈴=bell 実=real, honest, truth, full filled, fruits
If you want the meaning of “beauty” you can switch the second kanji to 美(=mi)
I checked other options of the name Remi. It won’t be easier but…
礼美
怜美
玲海
澪美
「中」というは話題の中心だけど、「心中」は中々おかしな言葉ですね。
Depending how you read it, it’s either “in ones heart” or “double (lovers) suicide”?! boucingheart! Along with the variation 無理心中 “forced double suicide” this is a common word and even a JLPT N1 term! I was wondering, is this a common phenomenon in Japan? Because I never heard of something like that before, and I can’t even imagine how a forced double suicide works…
Strange question, but it’s 夜中 here !BOO!!
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
夜中に心中のことを考えていましたか？（笑）
It is a very sad phenomenon but we sometimes hear 無理心中・一家心中 (a suicide of an entire family） on the news…
OK, now it is 昼間, daytime so let’s think about something more uplifting! :)
Maggie!! I need help, please! Could you please translate this tiny thing for me? I would be very grateful!!
自分の部屋で
ツレと酒盛りして
そのまま雑魚寝とか
マギー先生、このポストーはとても便利です。 ありがとうございます！ :-D
@Palidor
そう聞いてうれしいです！！よかった〜♪
マギー先生、質問があります。9月に大阪に旅行をします。ホテルの店員に話しかける時、何タイトルを使いますか。”店員さん”はいいですか。ありがとうございます!
@Palidor
ホテルで働く人はホテルの店員ではなくスタッフです。
The one who works at the reception is called 受付(うけつけ）or レセプション。bellboy is ベルボーイ、doorman is ドアマン. But when you talk to them, you don’t use their job title.
When you refer to them (to someone else) you add ~の方(=no kata) Ex.受付の方(Uketsuke no kata) , スタッフの方(=Sutaffu no kata), etc.
If you stay at a traditional Japanese hotel, the main hostess is called 女将さん(=okamisan) and the maids care called 仲居さん(=Nakaisan)
Okay, thank you for the information. I’ll be staying in a hotel, not a ryokan. I realize that my question was a bit ambiguous. What I meant by title was not their specific job title, but whether there are words equivalent to “sir” or “ma’am” that would serve as a polite way to address the staff. Thank you again!
@Palidor
We don’t have equivalent terms for “sir” or “ma’am” in Japanese. (Except Japanese ryokan. We address 女将さん=okamisan But since you are not staying in 旅館, just stick to the polite form.)
FYI You might already check this lesson but I have this lesson. ホテルの日本語
Okay, thank you! :grin: Yes, I did read that lesson, and I’ll be sure to read it again before my trip. I’m determined to speak Japanese as much as I can, though I must admit that I feel rather nervous about it.
Thanks for thiss:) i have my answers on my homework;)
Ex. ここは本町６丁目です。
= Koko wa Honmachi rokuchoume desu.
= It’s Honmachi 6
-[chome, here.] (district of a town/city block)
:-P :-D
神社
[の]向かい側にあります。
= Jinja wo mukai gawa ni arimasu.
Ex. この道をまっすぐ行ってください。
= Kono michi wo massugu itte kudasai.
= Please go straight
[missing–>along the street].
@zoheb
Thank you zoheb, my typo checker angel!
いつもありがとう！
I fixed them.
Thank you for another lesson, a lot of usefull variations and vocabulary. By the way, a friend of mine who doesn’t speak Japanese wanted to be a good tourist and learned some of these phrases. But everytime he proudly asked someone “toire wa doko desu ka”, the surprised Japanese people showered him in questions, compliments and remarks and anything but directions, of which he of course understood none. He always had to find the toilet on his own…
Anyhow, I have some minor questions.
1. In the sentence “Meiji jinguu ni iku niwa kono michi de atte imasu ka?”, could you explain the grammatical funktion of “niwa”? I never get used to particles after verbs.
2. I often hear the 聞いてみて expression in this connection, like in 交番で聞いてみてください。 Its often translated as “go ask and see” which I find strange, as I would think its “try asking”. So which translation is correct? And I always wondered, why do I have to “try” and not just ask right away, as in 聞いてください. Is みて a necessary part of this expression?
Also, I found some typos. Look for “arimsauka” ,”dokon”, “eki no eki”, “Dochira ye” and “Where would like to go?” that could use a subject. And “3階” could also be “sangai”, right?
大変お世話になりありがとうございました
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
Hi there,
Ohhh your friend should have said, “ところでトイレはどこですか？”(By the way, where is the restroom?) / すみません、トイレの場所を聞いていたのですが….(Sorry. I was asking where the bathroom is..) After hearing all the compliments.
1) This niwa means “in order to”
”Meiji Jinguu ni iku niwa ” = In order to go to Meiji Jinguu
2. The literal translation is “to try / give it a try” but ~てみて is a suggestion and it has a function to soften the command form.
聞いてください = Go ask (sounds stronger) → (Sounds much softer) 聞いてみてください。
Thank you for spotting the typo. I will fix it. ありがとう！
ごめんください｡
You translate
My boss invited me to his house
by
上司の家に招待された。
Usually, you are honoured to have been invited. So I thought the following translation should be used :
上司の家にご招待してもらいました。(or 上司の家にご招待していただきました。)
Can you please explain us, for this example, the difference between the ukemi form and the てもらう form.
よろしくお願いします。
@hugo
Hi Hugo,
Here is the thing. When you are talking to the boss or someone related to the boss and talk about when your boss invited you to his house, you have to use the honorific expression.
＊Expressing your gratitude towards your boss,
Ex. 本日は、ご招待を頂き有り難うございました。
Ex. 本日は、お招き頂き有り難うございます。
*Talking about the time when your boss invited you to someone superior or related to the boss.
Ex.先日、〜課長（部長）ご招待頂きご自宅にお邪魔しました。etc.
However, if you are simply talking about factual thing, you don’t need to use polite form.
Thanks maggie sensei. I love you boucingheart!
@Kar
Douitashimashite, Kar. Love you,too! !CHECKHEART!
iie senpai, “kai” janakute “kar” desu :n:
＠kar
Gomenne, kar!
(Senpai???)
I was going to say “sensei”. Pardon me. :cryingboy:
Could we say: Go shuushou no koto de gozaimasu instead of :” goshuushou sama deshita? Tq.
@murdiyanto
I wouldn’t say “goshuusama no koto de gozaimasu”
If you want a polite form for “goshuusama deshtia”, you say “(誠に)ご愁傷様でございます。(makoto ni) goshuushousama de gozaimasu”
ありがと! You explain it so well.
@Margy
どういたしまして ❤
こんにちは、マギー先生！
I’m so glad to have found your site! It’s very informative and I have learned a lot from you. !heart3!
So say that someone you met online (but haven’t met in person) tells you “あなたのことが気になるよ”. To my understanding “気になる” could also mean “I like you” or “I’m curious/interested about/in you”. Is that right?
Then I want to ask this person, “Why are you interested in me?” Previously you went over the phrase “どうして私のことが好きなの？” but what are some other ways to ask this question without using the word “好き”? I think “好き” is too strong a word to use in this case.
Would any of these phrases work?
何故私のことが気になるの？
私のどかが気になるの？
私のことをどう思う？
What would sound more natural? I also don’t want to sound too direct or rude.
お返事お待ちしております。お願いいたします。
@Sofia
Hi Sofia,
I am glad that you found my site as well. :)
As you said the feeling of 好き is stronger than 気になる
So when someone says あなたのことが気になります and if you say “どうして私のことが好きなの？”, the person might feel pressured so you should avoid using the word 好き
And if you want to know the reason,
何故私のことが気になるの？ →OK or どうして私のことが気になるの？
私のどかが気になるの？ →私のどこが気になるの？
私のことをどう思う？→A bit straight forward but OK
Or if you feel happy, just tell him 私のことが気になると聞いて嬉しいです。without asking a question.
Hi, I want to get a tattoo of the Japanese for laugh because it’s the best thing to do and I was born in Japan and lived there for 7 years.
What is the word/phrase/kanji I should get?
@Mitisha
Hi, you posted the same question on Maggie’s room so I will answer there. :)
Hi Maggie-Sensei! :k:
Just to make sure I have understood, does this sentence make sense?
地図を持っても持たなくても迷子になる。
What I intend to say: “If I take a map or not, I’ll [still] get lost.”
Thanks for your awesome lessons, they are very helpful!
@H
Hi H!
地図を持っても持たなくても迷子になる。
→It will be more natural to say 地図を持っていても（持って）いなくても迷子になる
Whether you(I) have a map or not, you(I) get lost.
ありがとう先生! !JYANE! !DANCING!
@H
どういたしまして！ boucingheart!
Hello, Maggie-sensei. I have a question related to ‘dewa arimasen’. What are the differences between the following four sentences and when (in what situation) should I use each one? Thank you very much!!!
– ペンではありません。
– ペンじゃありません。
– ペンではない。
– ペンじゃない。
Hello Juan!
The difference lies in the level of politeness.
Polite => ではありません
Polite/Semipolite => じゃありません
Causal => では／じゃない
じゃ is the abbreviation of では.
Generally the rule is: the shorter the less polite.
You use Polite language to show respect to others.
ご参考になれば。
@Juan & 天人
Thank you 天人 for answering Juan’s question! ありがとう！
hi
i was wondering if kurai could be used to say ‘this school has about 800 students’ and if so how would that sentence look? im really struggling on where to sentence layout.
arigatou gozaimasu. :-D
@zaia
この学校には生徒が８００人位います。
You can also say ８００人程（ほど）います。
Thank you… the google translator says: Kanojo wa itsumo kanojo no kusuri o torimasu for she always takes her medicine. I guess that is not correct. :grin: I am glad I check here first and now know the correct way to say take you medicine. Thanks you site is wonderful. I have learned a lot from your lessons. boucingheart! :uparrow:
@Janice
That is why we can not depend on google translator yet.
hello maggie sensei :w:
can I use some of the words in WhatsApp, LINE and in other chat applications ??
and about ( omaera no ~ sarase ), can I use anata/anatatachi instead? because you taught us that ( omaera) is to be used with close friends and not polite to use.
and can I request a lesson about how to use: Verb in masu form+genai
ex: yurugenai = stable, not shaky)
and another lesson about uchi ni.
ex: chikai uchi ni, = soon.
ex: wasurenai uchi ni= before I forget
thank you sensei !formingheart3!
@Roro
Hi Roro,
Though there is a trend to use ~を晒せ hashtag but 晒せ is actually a very rough expression. So even if you say あなた, it still sounds blunt.
教えて is friendlier and polite.
OK, I will add うち on my request list. Please wait patiently.
good morning sir 天人 . Thank you so much for answering them for me and telling me bonus infos..
.n_n. you are really smart as always.
my question for today are:
Q1
さて、今日は何をして遊ぼうかな… (from かな lesson)
Hmm…what should I play with today.
I would like to ask, what is the difference between して遊ぶ and the plain 遊ぶ?
——–
Q2
サグラダファミリアは建築家ガウディーによって設計されました。
SagradaFamilia was designed by an architect, Gaudi.
(from受身 lesson)
によって= depeding
Would there be a big difference if によって is removed?
Or is it customary to add よって to に in passive type sentences and I don’t have to translate it to (depending to/in etc.)?
————-
Q3
お宅(様)に比べたらもう全然..
もう本当に手がかかって、目が離せませんよ。
いやあ〜、乗りもしないのに、もう何を考えてるんだか
(from 謙遜 lesson)
もう-1) already, anymore 2) soon, shortly 3) more, further, other, again 4) interjection used to strengthen expression of an emotion (often exasperation)
I would like to confirm if the もう that is included in these sentences are the もう that = interjection used to strengthen expression of an emotion (often exasperation)…? looks like it is customary to add もう before you list bad things about you/your family when you/your family is being praised..
———-
Q4
[she wants him to go to japan]
If I will try translate this using 欲しい, please help me fill in the blanks…
彼女[?]彼[?]日本に行くって欲しい..
if the format is wrong, I would like to ask for dear maggie’s version or sir 天人’s version using
欲しい.
—–
Q6
お茶も出さないで申し訳ございません。 (from 謙遜 lesson)
“I am sorry that we didn’t even serve you a cup of tea.”
i would like to ask, would there be a big difference [in nuance] if I will turn出さないで into出さなくて?
お茶も出さなくて申し訳ございません。
———–
Q7
順位だけが全てではありませんが、
努力してきたその過程も含め
今回1位という結果が出たこと。
Ranking isn’t everything、
But including the course of our hard work
It resulted in this 1st place。
Source: http://ameblo.jp/juicejuice-official/entry-12014109359.html
Source: http://blog-project.net/kanazawa-tomoko/229093
my question is about
“努力してきたその過程”
努力してきた = has been working
過程 = process, course…
i would like to ask if the interpretation of the translator is right?
my interpretation, though, it is kinda vague is:
including the course where we have been working so hard at leads to..
it brought our song into number 1 spot…
my english is also not good so i am not really sure if i was able to present my interpretation exactly as i thought, but please bear with me if i got these all wrong sir 天人..
——-
thank you much in advance dear maggie sensei and sir 天人..
hope you are having a great time dear maggie sensei..
oh speaking of which, the anniversary is drawing near. .n_n.
Hello obakasan.
お誉めにあずかり光栄です。
Answer nr 1
～して遊ぼう。 is a fixed construction which implies “to do something for fun” / “to amuse oneself”, like in: 雨降りには何をして遊ぶか。
何を遊ぶ means just: “what do (/ does someone) play”.
Answer nr 2
The fixed construction によって ～られた is used in sentences, where “designed by / created by / made by / discovered by” appears. It implies that someone important has done something important for the world.
Answer nr 3
Yes, this もう used here implies strong emotions.
もう has 2 meanings in this case:
1. ある感情や感動が高まったときに用いられる。
2. やや非難・叱責の気持ちをこめていう。
Answer nr 4.
彼女が彼に日本に行って欲しい… or …行ってもらいたい。
行くって欲しい sounds strange and it’s incorrect.
Here って implies a quotation and 行く verb doesn’t imply volition.
Answer nr 5.
Well, there’s no question 5…
Answer nr 6.
～くて申し訳ございません。
～で申し訳ございません。
Both constructions are correct.
However ～くて implies a reason and it’s more natural to use it with ごめんあさい、すみなせん、よかった etc.
～くて申し訳ございません。 I’m terribly sorry that…; I…. so / and I’m sorry (for that).
～で申し訳ございません。 I…. , I’m sorry.
Answer nr 7.
Both interpretations are correct.
This してきた implies that this 努力 has taken a really long and hard time (=have been working on so hard).
The first interpretation doesn’t show us this nuance.
ご参考になれば。
Good day sir 天人
Thank you so much for answering..i really appreciate it
haha, sorry for not having number 5.. .n_n.
My questions for today are:
——
Q1
辛い時も優しい言葉をかけてくれる家族みんな
(to my family who comforts me during tough times)
(“thank you” is the last line of this paragraph)
If I will assume that it is the [emphasizing も], is it interchangeable with に?
辛い時に優しい言葉をかけてくれる家族みんな
If so, what would be the basic difference?
I have read before that 時に has emphasize more the time and if there is only 時, there is no emphasis. But how about the [emphasizing も]
——
Q2
1.[名詞]を[場所]に/で忘れた
2.[名詞]を[場所]に/で忘れてきた
I left [noun] at [somewhere]
I would like to ask what rule for てきた should I apply for 忘れてきた?
———-
Q3
I would like to ask if I got these right.
聞いてくる人 could mean:
a. a person that comes to ask (a person that approaches someone to ask)
b. a person that comes to listen (a person that approaches someone to listen)
—–
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人.
Hello Obakasan,
Here are the answers.
Answer nr 1
If you put に instead of も then the meaning will change a bit.
に will imply that you are grateful only for that (= that all members of your familiy supported you in your hard times, and only in hard times).
も will imply that you are grateful to your family for supporting you in good times as well as in bad / hard times. も implies therefore “even, also, …, too”. It sounds better because it puts more emphases.
Answer nr 2
We use …に何かを忘れる, not で.
忘れた vs 忘れてきた
Meaning is the same. 強いていえば、you can translate 「忘れてきた」 as: “left”
私は鍵をどこに忘れてきたかな～。 = I wonder where I left my keys.
鍵を忘れてきた。 = I left my keys.
鍵を忘れた。 = I forgot my keys.
すみません、宿題を忘れました。 = I’m sorry, I forgot to do my homework.
すみません、宿題をどこかに忘れてきた。 = I’m sorry, I left my homework somewhere.
Answer nr 3
Both answers are correct. It depends on the context.
Most natural, I’d say, is “to ask”, rather than “to listen”.
ご参考になれば。
Good day dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人
Belated happy anniversary.. if my memory is right, august 5 is the date?
Thank you so much for regularly answering my questions, I am really grateful to you and to sir 天人..
My question for today is:
I don’t know if this is the right question in order to understand this sentence but I will try my best.
http://maimilog.com/2015/06/20/blog-update-the-place-we-dreamed-of/
http://ameblo.jp/c-ute-official/entry-12038167633.html
アリーナなんて言ってられないよな
this was the first time I saw 言ってる becomes 言ってられる (I think that
られる here is probably the passive form of 言ってる
I would like to ask why 言われない has not been used?
Is it because アリーナ has been previously mentioned in 『アリーナやドームでライブができるようになりたい！』と書いた後
so 言ってられない is appropriate?
——-
thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei and sir 天人.. .n_n.
@obakasan000
Awwwww how sweet of you to remember the anniversary. It is August 6th but it is Japan time so August 5th may work for some other country. Arigatou for all your support. I started this blog in 2009. That means it’s 6th year anniversary.
OK, let me see your question.
The English site translated her sentence pretty accurately.
That られる is not a passive form. It is a potential form but depending on the sentence, you translate with “should”.
言ってられない
言っている = to be saying, have been saying
言っていられない= can’t be saying, can’t say → shouldn’t say
(casual contraction)
→言ってられない
Ex. 両親のおかげでこうやって生活していられる= Thanks to my parents, I can live like this.
Ex. こんなことやっていられない →こんなことやってられない = It is not the time to do such a thing/ (I shouldn’t be doing this.)
Dear Maggie-sensei.
I came across an expression when I was reading a novel but I can’t figure out by myself.
The expression is なんかもいたりして
I’ll give you the complete sentence and my interpretation about it.
Let’s start
そうして迎えた新学期の最初の登校目には、ご大層な旅行をしていた連中たちの自慢話を聞かされる羽目になるのだ。中に海外旅行になったヤツなんかもいたりして、自分はいつもそういう連中たちの話を聞かされる側の立場だった。
And when I have the first class of the new school term, I just end up listening to my colleages(classmates) bragging about exaggerated stories of their trips. Between them, a story from a guy who traveled abroad (NANKA MO ITARI SHITE?), I always find myself in the side of those who just end up listening that kind of stories.
I know there might be some incongruences in my “translation”, but more than considering it as such, I would prefer call it “adaptation”. But anyway….
I understand the concept of almost everything, but I don’t really know what’s the usage of NANKA MO ITARI SHITE.
If you note something important to point out in my “adaptation-interpretation” please tell me, after all I’m just learning.
And of course, I hope you can help me about that expression.
Thanks in advance.
Note: English is not my first language so forgive my possible mistakes.
Hello acuriousperson,
マギー先生はただ今旅行中ですので、私がご質問に返事をさせていただきます。
中に海外旅行になったヤツなんかもいたりして… = Between them there was for example a guy, who managed to go aboard (lit. a guy, who was on a foreign/international travel), and so on…
この文章に出てきた「なんか」は一例を挙げて示す。「など」という意味と同じです。「も」助詞は「なんか」の意を強めて表す。「～たりする」は、ご存じの通り、一つの動作や状態を例としてあげ、他に同類の事柄がなおあることを暗示する。
Is this really 登校目? I think it should be 登校日.
そうして迎えた新学期の最初の登校日には… = And when the first day of a new (school) semester approached…
ご参考になれば幸いざんす。
天人さん
実は、私はまだ日本語で上手く表現できません。:cryingboy:
ですが質問に答えるために貴重な時間を割いてくれてありがとうございます。
多分、今それを理解することができます。
英語で続き。。。
I said “cannot express” but I can read and understand (most part of the times) :)
Honestly, that was difficult to express.
I already understand why I couldn’t figure out first time when I read it.
Basically I just was mistaking いたる(至る) and いる (two very differents verbs in every aspect).
In this case itarishite is from IRU. (To exist)
For itaru, I should have used ittari, right? (according to the rules of the conjugation for tari-form)
Anyway, that’s why it didn’t make sense to me.
Tari is a form we used to list two actions or two states (or maybe more) but there are some cases when you can list just one action. Just like my example, right?
But when you use tari to list just one action, in this case there is no need to list more because they have similars “usages/characteristics”(in meaning or what they imply)
For example:
新聞を読んだりして友達が来るのを待っていた。
I was waiting my friend to come doing things like reading a newspaper (and stuff*)
What can the subject of this sentence do while he is waiting for his friend?
A lot of stuff, in this case he just say that he was reading a newspaper but he could have done more stuff, like watch TV, drink water, have a light meal, go to the toilet, etc…And even he could have done just one thing: read the newspaper…
where all the examples I gave are the “stuff” placed in the context, obviously they are different in meanings but they are things you can do while waiting for someone and therefore they have some things in common but since if not really neccesary to explain all the things you do, you just say “I was waiting for him while reading a newspaper and stuff like that”.
Maybe I just misunderstand something or maybe not…In any case I understand more than before and I know what my mistake was.
If something is wrong with what I have just say, I’ll appreciate all the suggestion/explanation you can do.
About your message.
The explanation about the “nanka” and the particule “mo” is an easy matter. I think I have no problem with grasp the concept about them.
About the question: Is this really 登校目? I think it should be 登校日.
Yes, you’re right. That was a typo.
And about your japanese explanation.
I understood everything…..except for the last expressión
他に同類の事柄がなおあることを暗示する。
I just figured the meaning by context but I don’t know how to put that into english
Especcially that “nao aru koto”.
Could you please give me some details about that.
And again,
本当にありがとうございした。
こんにちは！
Q. For itaru, I should have used ittari, right? (according to the rules of the conjugation for tari-form)
A: itattari （至ったり）
Q. Tari is a form we used to list two actions or two states (or maybe more) but there are some cases when you can list just one action. Just like my example, right?
A. Indeed. Sometime the speaker just wants that other examples are implied in supposition. We can translate this as: “etc / and so on / and other stuff”. This other examples belong to the same group（同類の事柄）.
This other stuff in your example 「新聞を読んだりして友達が来るのを待っていた。」 would – most natural – be: watching TV. I think drinking water, having a meal or going to the toilet doesn’t fit in this group much. You have to image the most natural things that you do, when you are waiting for someone. You have to do something, that makes the time run much faster. You have to kill the time somehow, so you’re watching TV. Drinking water is a bit… strange.
Q. I just figured the meaning by context but I don’t know how to put that into English Especcially that “nao aru koto”. Could you please give me some details about that.
A. ～がなおある = there are more / still / further…; yet there are…
～ことを暗示する = it implies that…
他に同類の事柄がなおあることを暗示する。= It implies, that there are still other things, which belongs to the same group.
よろしく。
@天人
Thank you, 天人 for helping everyone while I was gone! お陰でゆっくり旅行ができました！
It’s always my pleasure, Maggie!
I’m happy that I could help a little.
@天人
You have been a great help!!
Thank you very much on behalf of everyone who asked the questions during my vacation!
こんにちは！お元気ですか。受け身の文法は便利で大切ですよ。だからこのレッスンを教えてくれてありがとう！
ちなみに、最後の用法が分からなかったから知ってビックリしました。
ここで日本語を書いてもいいですか。
で、昨日はとても面白い記事を読んだ。あの記事は人の歩き方を調べて犯人を見つかる技術にとって書かれます。楽しいですね。私はあの技術に調べられるのは是非欲しいです。
あの記事のおかげでたくさん新しい言葉を習いました。
そうです。いつも色々な事を言いたいけど難しいです。まず英語で文章を作って日本語に訳すけどよく書き直します。
韓国語の勉強を話したいです。これは酷いです。韓国語は日本語よりすごく難しくて特に発音です。全然分かりません。
@ocd
こんにちは！ocd!
返事が遅れてごめんなさい。今、旅行中でWiFiがつながりません。
今日は長い日本語の文章、よく書けていますよ。U^ェ^U
直すところあまりないですが、ちょっと気になるところだけお手伝いしますね。（→犯人を見つける技術について書かれていました。/→not sure but you meanあの技術について是非調べてみたいです。?）後半は本当によく書けています。
韓国語も難しそうですが、日本語みたいにきっと上達も早いと思います。がんばってくださいね。
こんにちは！わあぁ、そんな早い返事をすると期待しなかったよ。今度は私がごめんねと言う番ね。ごめんなさい、返事が遅れて。
旅行はどうだった？
そんないい言葉はありがとう。マギー先生はすごく優しいなぁ。
あの文章は「I would like to be examined by that technique」と言いたかった。
@ocd
旅行はとっても楽しかったですよ。
「I would like to be examined by that technique」ですね。だったらそのテクニック（技術）で調べられてみたいです。
ではどうでしょう？
Hello Miss Maggie and Yukari.
I’ve been into this nonsense adventure for five years now (with two continuous years without attending formal classes).
I must thank you both from the bottom of my heart because I’ve learned more with you than with anyone else (and it’s been only 30 minutes since I visited your site for the first time!)
Thank you for making look the study of the Japanese language as something as normal as breathing
I miss those days when I’ve had just started! The illusions I had about starting this life proyect.
Your explanations are clear and concise and I appreciate much that. I feel like I’ve lose so much time and now I hope to be able to go forward without hesitating anymore.
I wish to be as good as you Maggie 先生, someday
So that I can if possible, help fellow Japanese learners to be better regardless of their level of English (I’m a native Spanish speaker)
本当にありがとうございます！
これからもずっと、応援します。 !heartsippai!
@ブルーナイト
Sorry for the late reply. I’m on vacation now.Thank you for your nice message!
When we make a lesson, we think of all of you hoping you enjoy learning Japanese. So we are VERY happy to hear you get to learn something from our lessons. We hope you keep studying Japanese with fun! これからもまたこのサイトに来てくださいね。
Maggie-senseiへ、
I love all the lessons on here, they are extremely useful and well written. I have a question though !DANCING!
Can ～て(い)ない have a で attached after the ない to have a similar meaning to the soft imperative (1st base verb)ないで [e.g. 怒らないで]? If so, does the ～てform(い)ない one imply a progressive action over the other, (1st base verb)ないで one?
Hopefully you can understand my question (I didn’t word it very well) ahah
Thanks in advance !JYANE!
＠Up
First, ありがとう！for your nice message.
Q：Can ～て(い)ない have a で attached after the ない to have a similar meaning to the soft imperative (1st base verb)ないで [e.g. 怒らないで]?
→Yes
If so, does the ～てform(い)ない one imply a progressive action over the other, (1st base verb)ないで one?
→Yes
1) 怒らないで Don’t get mad
2) 怒っていないで・怒ってないで(casual) Don’t stay mad (focusing on the state/condition)
Thank you very much for the reply!
わかりました!ありがとうございます !happyface!
@Up
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie,
I realized that instead of ある、 you have used あった in this sentence, 今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。But the way i intepreted it, it is no different than ある.
We all know that ある is the present form as such, we can understand that the Bed has been already made for today (Since the state is there after bed making). Hence, what i could interpret it my way is that the state may no longer be there when we use あった instead (It could be there somebody went to the bed and we do not know or such).
May I know why is that so? Would appreciate it if you can show me an example in both its present tense and past tense may help me to understand better in this matter.
@Kelvin
Hi Kelvin,
I think it is related my verb tense lessons (Part 1, Part 2)
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあったよ。
You are already in the bed or telling someone that you saw someone made a bed for you.
今日はベッドメイキングがもうしてあるよ。
You are not in the bed yet. You are looking at the clean bed.
Thank you so much !!! I have been stressing over it for days :)
@Mina123
You’re welcome! :)
Ex. H. 「お部屋は禁煙フロアーで宜しかったでしょうか？」
[n] furoaa de yoroshikatta deshouka?
[n]nai itashimasu.
[i]iningu wo dashitai no desu ga itsu dekimasu ka?
[致]しましょうか？」
[mase or masen or masu]
[thug life :xd]
= Oheya wa kinen
Ex. H. 「お部屋に御案内致します。」
= Oheya ni goan
Ex. 「シャツをクリーニングを出したいのですがいつ出来ますか？」
= Shatsu wo kuri
Ex. H. 「タクシーをお呼び
= Takushii wo oyobi itashimasu ka.
Ex. H. 「いってらっしゃい[ませ]」
= Itterasshai[mase].
= It literally means “Please go.” but it means “Have a nice day.”
Ex. H. 「お気をつけていってらっしゃい[ませ]。」
= Okiwo tsukete itte rasshai[masen].
有り難う 御座います マギー先生 ,先生わ最高です !JYANE!
＠zoheb
Thank you, zoheb!! You are my spell checker angel! !heart3!
「タクシーをお呼び
[致]<—–[kanji missing]しましょうか？」
= Takushii wo oyobi [ita]shimasu ka.
@zoheb
Oops! I missed that one. Thank you again for your help! ありがとう！
So ore means that you regard yourself highly? Why can’t women use it? what would the Japanese think if I used it ?
@Anna
I don’t know if they want to think themselves higher than others.
Compared to 僕 (=boku) 俺 (=ore) sounds more blunt and “macho”.
If you use it, people would think you learned Japanese wrongly from anime or something.
If you are interested in “female speech”, go check this lesson → female speech lesson
こんばんは、マギー先生!
Thank you for always help me! ありがとうございます!!
I hope you will help me now, too.
A Japanese said that: 2日前ですか！ペーチ来てたので見逃しました。楽しいイベントみたかった、ざんねん.
I would answer that : お気の毒に。とても楽しかったですよ~
10月にアニメコンベンションがありますできたら来てくださいね. きっと気に入ると思います.
Is this sentence correct?
I would say that: What a pity! It was fun. There will be an anime convention in October, so come if you can. I’m sure you would enjoy it.
Thank you for your help in advance! ^-^
@Fando
おはよう、Fando!
お気の毒に。とても楽しかったですよ~
→I think お気の毒に is too strong for this. How about それは残念でしたね。
10月にアニメコンベンションがありますできたら来てくださいね. きっと気に入ると思います.
→10月にアニメコンベンションがあります。できたら（As I explained in the lesson, if you want to show your friend your enthusiasm you can also say よかったら是非）来てくださいね。
気に入る is OK but for event, きっと楽しいと思います。is more natural.
tsuyoku naru kara ne tte ; HOW mean English kara ne tte ?
@WILLIAM PEDRONI
It depends on the context.
but “He/She said he/she will be sronger.”
Hi, Maggie-sensei!
I’ve been chatting with a friend that I met while studying abroad in Japan, and he recently sent me a message with a verb that I cannot seem to figure out. I haven’t had any luck looking it up either. He said, “レイチェルと新宿で会った時のことを思い出すと、早くそっちに行きたくなるよ”
The part I am having trouble understanding is 行きたくなる, but if you don’t mind, a full translation would be helpful just to make sure I read it correctly. Thanks for your help! Your lessons are so helpful!
@Rachel
Hi Rachel,
Basically he is saying “I want to go there soon (to see you) when I remember the time I met you in Shinjuku.”
So 行きたい= I want to go/ I would like to go →行きたくなる shows the changes of his feelings. →He wants to see you sooner.
In http://tangorin.com/examples/%E3%81%A9%E3%81%93%E3%82%8D
They translate 彼は馬鹿どころではない as “He is no fool”.
Why is that? It should mean “he is very stupid”, is it not?
Second question) Can I instead write
わんわんホテルは新しくなくて豪華じゃな。あのホテルはどころではない。
Third question) If someone say 「わんわんホテルどころではない」, without any context, can I deduce anything from that sentence, like わんわんホテル is inferior or superior than the one speaker has in mind?
よろしくおねがいします (I wanted to say “thank you in advance”, is there any phrase more specific?)
(わんわん is a dog’s bark, right? It would be weird to stay at “arf arf hotel”. >_<
＠Pete
1) That’s the tricky part of ~どころではない
どころではない could be 1) Far from ~ (negating ) “far from stupid! 2) beyond ~ (beyond stupid. Not just stupid. Really stupid) You always have to read what comes after that sentence (Ex. すごく頭がいい・Ex. 本当にばかだ or example stroesi how smart/stupid he is.）and figure out the context.
2) Hmm I think you meant 新しくないし豪華ではない・or 豪華でもない。(or colloquial 豪華じゃない）
And are you comparing わんわんホテル with “that hotel(あのホテル）？ If so, あのホテルどころではない
3) this questions is related to my answer to your first question. You really have to know the context. It may sound confusing but usually we can tell in conversation because both speakers and listeners know what they are talking about.
* Yes, よろしくお願いします is Thank you in advance.
* Yes, わんわん means Arf Arf. I am a dog so there is nothing weird to stay at Arf Arf Hotel. :)
Sensei thx for this lesson XD
But i’d like to ask something, can i translate zehi as ‘make sure’? So ‘zehi kite kudasai ne’ means ‘pls make sure to come’… because that words keep pop up in my head haha
@feris
Hi feris!
There are a few ways to translate the sentence with 是非.
As long as that “make sure” involves the speaker’s willingness to invite someone, yes.
Sorry I’m confused about ”jai nai ka” because the ”ka” is a question mark.Like in Bleach the dialogue was ”Aru ka yo” and ”Tasuken ja nee ka yo”.
@Daniel
Ah you say “janai ka” (blunt expression) when you ask a question or tell people your opinion.
Ex. いいじゃないか = It is nice, isn’t it?
Ex. 明日は雨が降るんじゃないか？= Isn’t going to rain tomorrow? (I think it is going to rain tomorrow. Am I right?)
no I’m confused because of the other definition of ”Ka” than using it as a question marker so I’m asking to help understand why there was a other definition to it
@Daniel
Almost all the particles have several different functions/definitions.
か as well has a a few different functions, more than just a question marker.
This か is to stress your speech. There are other usages of か
Ex. 何回も言ったじゃないですか。
Ex. 何回も言ったじゃないか。(Male speech/ rough)
I told you many times! (making your point)
To understand that other definition of ”Ka” what does ”Konna kachi kata ga aru ka yo” from Bleach said By Ichigo to Ulquiorra mean? because I don’t know what this really means.
Hello Daniel,
The sentence-ending particle combination かよ has 2 meanings:
1. Expressing doubt in a stronger way than 「か」 alone.
2. Expressing irony.
Konna kachi kata ga aru ka yo = こんな勝ち方があるかよ = Is this what you call a win?! / This is not the way you can win a battle!! (The speaker refuses to win a battle this way).
@Daniel
Sorry!I’m in vacación Noé and i can’t access Internet often. Thank you @天人 for helping Daniel!
As always your lessons do not disappoint! Courtney has leveled up! :uparrow: :up!!: マギーせんせい、ありがとうございました！！！
@Courtney
Courtney、レベルアップした？よかった〜！！ !JYANE!
Hey Maggie-Sensei, I have one question. Are there instances where you can say na instead of a negative form, like for example :
馬鹿するな！ Baka suru na! Don’t be an idiot!
Is that only for don’t or can it be used as a negative form as well? Thank you!
僕は本当に感謝するだ！
@Daichi
First,
you don’t say, 馬鹿するな
→You usually say, 馬鹿なことをするな (= Don’t do stupid things) or ばかばかしいことをするな
Hmmm I am not sure if I understand your question here..
You want to know if the suffix な is only for “Don’t do ~”? If so, we use な when we express our desire 〜たい＋な
Ex. 日本に行きたいな。
= I would like to go to Japan (talking to yourself)
When you wonder something
Ex. これおいしいかな？
= I wonder if this taste good.
Ex. 彼は来ないのかな。
= I wonder if he is not coming.
(僕は本当に感謝するだ→本当に感謝しています。）
こんにちは！元気なの？そちらの天気はいかがなの？ここはすごく暑く死ぬって思うんだよ。気温は３８度…地獄に住んでいるでしょうか。
すみません。I was carried away lol
とにかく、レッスンは便利で教えてくれてありがとう！レッスンが作ってもいつもとっても面白くて便利でわかりやすいだなぁ。
もっと書いて練習してもいい？
今日から一緒に友達と韓国語を学ぶつもりだけど日本語の勉強は断念じゃない。
それだけ。笑 !heartsippai! !heartsippai! !heartsippai!
@ocd
こんにちは！ocd! 日本は今、梅雨ですよ。３８度は暑いですね。体に気をつけて楽しい夏を過ごしてください。
日本語がんばって練習してくれたのね。
じゃあお手伝いしましょう！
元気なの？→元気？／元気ですか？
（You use なの when you haven’t heard from someone for a long time and worry about that person whether they are doing all right.)
そちらの天気はいかがなの？→いかがですか？ is more natural
ここはすごく暑く死ぬって思うんだよ→ここはすごく暑くて死にそうです。
地獄に住んでいるでしょうか。→地獄に住んでいるみたいです。
とにかく、レッスンは便利で教えてくれてありがとう！→It will be better to separate into two sentences to make it sounds more natural. とにかく、このレッスンは便利です。教えてくれてありがとう。
レッスンが作ってもいつもとっても面白くて便利でわかりやすいだなぁ。→?? 作ってくれるレッスンはいつもとっても面白くて便利でわかりやすいなあ。
断念じゃない。→断念しません。→やめません。／あきらめません。
ocdはずいぶん、長くて複雑な文章が書ける様になりましたね。
もちろん、これからもここでいつでも練習してください。
直してくれてありがとう！
To not be mistaken, from here on I’ll use English.
There are so many grammar points in Japanese that I messed up all of them lol.
About that sentence, I wanted to say: Whatever lesson you make, it’s always very interesting, useful and easy to understand. But the corrected sentence looks much better.
BTW, about this 死にそう, if I want to say: I’m going to melt; or I’m gonna to fall asleep; do I make it the same way as 死にそう?
@ocd
どういたしまして！
大丈夫！I can guarantee that your Japanese has been improving since you left a comment for the first time.
Whatever lesson you make, it’s always very interesting, useful and easy to understand.
Ah, OK, →マギー先生がレッスンを作るといつも面白いし、役に立つし、わかりやすいです。
Awww you are so sweet! ありがとう！
Sure, you can use そう
I’m going to melt 溶けそう・(casual) 溶けちゃいそう
or I’m gonna to fall asleep; 寝そう ・(casual) 寝ちゃいそう
Thanks for your kind words! !heartsippai! !heartsippai! But ahead still a lot of work.
Thanks for helping !formingheart3!
no errors were found :zzzz:
translate to japanese [no errors were found , thug life]
arigatou
@zoheb
no errors were found = 間違いは、ありませんでした。= machigai wa arimsen deshita.
Really? Amazing!! lol
Thank you, zoheb!!!
あいにく一つ見つけ出しました。絶望したー。 A “tokoro” where there should be a “dokoro”. !damedame!
I wanted my first comment to be positive, but here I go again…
What I wanted to say was: you’re amazing. Best Japanese learning site on the web, hands down. I’ve been reading a gazillion books and sites, but thanks to you, I’m finally getting somewhere. I’m from Germany btw., and you have no idea how boring German textbooks on japanese are. And you won’t find any spoken Japanese in it, you can easily go up the JLPT ladder without understanding a word in an anime. Thanks to you, thats changing now.
Anyhow, since I’m German, I always want to know every detail. So, I hope you don’t mind my questions on minor things. Like this:
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
In the first sentence, you use a verb transformed into a noun, in the second a negative verb. I always wonder whats the difference in meaning, when and why do you use こと instead of for example 日本語は書けないどころか話せません。
Also, I’m confused with the wordorder. If I wantet to say: “Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!” Would that be これは鳥どころか鶏じゃありません。 or the other way around. And, if I wanted to say the positive version: “Thats not just a bird, thats a chicken!”, would the order be the same? Because the order changes in English and German, wich makes it confusing and I too tired to find the solution in your examples. It’s 5am here but I can’t just stop in the middle of a lesson, can I.!sleepy!
And thirdly, I noticed that you omit the “する” in what I would think are suru-verbs. Would it also be correct if you added a “する” like this:
今、忙しくて旅行(する)どころではない。?
よろしくお願いします!
＠Zetsuboumanadeshi
Hello! Zetsuboumanadeshi!
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it! だから、絶望しないで〜〜！！
So happy to read your nice message. ありがとう！
OK, let me see your questions.
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
OK, as you noticed, there are two ways of saying “can do ~ / to be able to do~”
Verb+ことができる
Verb +れる／られる／える etc.
To be able to write = 書ける or 書くことができる
to be able to read = 読める or 読むことができる
They mean the same.
**
Word order:
“Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!”
→それはにわとりどころか鳥ではありません。
Positive version
“Thats not just a bird, thats a chicken!”,
それは鳥どころかにわとりです。
(But it may look hard to understand because readers don’t think “chicken” is something good.”
It will be easier to understand if you add ただの(= just)
それはただの鳥どころか「にわとり」です。
or without using どころ
それはただの鳥ではなく「にわとり」です。
Hope you get to sleep well tonight.
＊＊
You can say 旅行するどころではない but I’d say 旅行どころではない is more common.
Google Search result 旅行するどころではない hits just 8 while 旅行どころではない hits 7410 sites.
OK, let me see your questions.
日本語は書くことどころか話すことも出来ない。 vs. 漢字が読めないどころかひらがなも読めません。
OK, as you noticed, there are two ways of saying “can do ~ / to be able to do~”
Verb+ことができる
Verb +れる／られる／える etc.
To be able to write = 書ける or 書くことができる
to be able to read = 読める or 読むことができる
They mean the same.
**
Word order:
“Thats not a chicken, thats not even a bird!” Would that be これは鳥どころか鶏じゃありません。
ありがとうございました、今やよっぽど理解しますよ。寝ぼけなければ物事ははっかりするね。ちなみに、間違いがもう一つあります。一人ぼっちにされたローマ字のnakuがありますけどかなのは見当たりません。
@Zetsuboumanadeshi
一人ぼっちにされたローマ字のnakuがありますけどかなのは見当たりません。
→？？？どの文章ですか？
見つけました。タイプミスです。
人手不足で契約社員どころかアルバイトも見つからない。
= Hitode busoku de keiyaku shain dokoro ka !naku! arubaito mo mitsukaranai.
@天人
Thank you!! I can always count on you! :)
初めまして。私は日本人ですが、英語を勉強する私にとってもすごく分かりやすく解説されています！
このブログは日本語を勉強する外国人に限らず、英語を勉強する日本人にもとても役立つと思いますよ！！
これからも拝見させて頂きます。更新頑張って下さいね！！
Hi Magggie sense. Hajimemashite.
I’m Japanese and I study English.
It’s very easy to understand even for me, who’s Japanese. This blog will help not only the people who are learning Japanese but also Japanese who are learning English.
I always look forward to your uploading! Thank you!!!
もし英語で間違っている部分があったら訂正してください…泣
@hitomi
こんにちは、Hitomiさん！Welcome to Maggiesensei.com!
日本人の方も英語の勉強に来てくれていると聞き本当に嬉しいです。 boucingheart!
ここに来てくれる皆さんは本当に学習熱心な方々ばかりだからきっとHitomiさんの英語のお手伝いもしてくれると思いますよ。いつでもまた遊びに来て下さいね。
Hello hitomi!
I took the liberty of making a couple of corrections to your sentences, I hope it helps.
It’s very easy to understand even for me, who’s Japanese.
This one doesn’t sound that natural, even if it is almost correct(the correct would be “even for me, who am Japanese”)
The best option would be: It’s very easy to understand even for me, a Japanese(person).
I always look forward to your uploading! Thank you!!!
This just needs a small adjustment: “I always look forward to your uploads!”
Your English already sounds pretty great! 頑張って!
＠reid
ありがとう、reid, on behalf of Hitomi. boucingheart!
I’ve been wondering for a while now how to say,” just in case.” So tatoeba kumotteiru hiniha “ichiou kasawo motte tsurete okimasu” tte ittemo iidesuka?
Thank you !!
＠Joanne
Yes you can use 一応
曇っている日は一応、傘を持っていきます。
= Kumottte iru hi wa ichiou, kasa wo motte ikimasu.
Careful. 連れていく= tsurete iku= is just for people.
Thank you very much!! your site is indeed a great help!! Im just so happy to learn and be able to read japanese word and somehow use it!!! By the way how can i say ‘goodluck to me” in a nice way .. you are awesome!!!!
@kurizu
Hi Kurizu!
I’m happy to hear this site helps you.
Sorry, I don’t quite understand your question. When do you use “good luck to me”?
Do you mean “Wish me luck”?
Thank you!! !happyface!
I came to this page after hearing the song 思えば遠くへ来たもんだ 故郷離れて四十年 by 海援隊
A very good old song. What does the title mean?
もんだ followed a past tense so it should be “(4) When you recall what you used to do.” right.
So I think it mean “I recall coming from far away, have been separated from my home town for 40 years”, is it not?
@Pete
思えば遠くへ来たもんだ
Yes, this もんだ is recalling the past.
You got the meaning right.
(Now I think of it) I have come very far from my hometown for 40 years.
Thanks for the lesson! I have never heard of this expression before, but I understand it now. It is just a bit confusing because it uses the negative form, so it sounds like it means the exact opposite of what it means.
For example: あの店は高いどころじゃない。 here you say the store is so expensive that it is beyond expensive, but at fist I had to read it a few more times to understand it completely, because to me it sounded like the sentence means the store is not expensive at all.
Thinking about that created a doubt in my mind. How do I say the opposite of どころじゃない。?
Using the same sentence as an example, how do I say the store is really cheap? Could I use あの店は安いどころじゃない。? And is there a way to change the meaning and say that the store is far from expensive but meaning that the store is cheap?
Example:
Q:Is this store expensive?
A: No, this store is far from expensive. (meaning that the store is really cheap)
@reid
Hi reid,
I see. Because it says ~ない, you automatically think this sentence is a negative sentence.
If that store is not expensive, you say
あの店は高くない。 = That store is not expensive.
あの店は全く（全然）高くない。= That store is not expensive at all.
あの店は高いどころじゃない= That store is beyond expensive. → Really expensive.
Yes, you want to describe a really cheap store you can say
あの店は安いどころじゃない。
That store is REALLY cheap. (Just saying “cheap” is not good enough)
Thanks!
Sensei: itsumo omoshirokute totemo yakunitatsu lesson wo tsukutte itadaite doumo arigotougozaimasu!! Sensei ha “ichiou” nikansuru lesson wo shimashitaka. Watashiha “ichiou” toiutango yoku kikimasuga tsukaikataha yoku wakarimasen…
Dehakorekara mo yoroshikuonegai shimasu !heart3! !sushimaguro!
＠Joanne
Hi Joanne,
Hai, ichiou no lesson, ichiou arimasu.
Click here.
Hi Maggie. Relationship troubles! How do I say and write to my long-time middle-aged Japanese girlfriend “I’m really sorry that I let you down so badly” followed by “I really appreciate all that you’ve done for me.”
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! CW
＠Cabin W
Hi Cabin,
Uh-oh…relationship problem….
“I’m really sorry that I let you down so badly”
to let someone down in Japanese is がっかりさせる・失望（しつぼう）させる
So the translation will be
がっかりさせてしまって本当にごめんなさい。
失望させてしまって本当にごめんなさい。
This kind of message is very sensitive.
But personally if you use the word such as がっかり or 失望(=disappointment) , it may sound strong.
Here are other options…
もし傷つけてしまったらごめんなさい。
( I am sorry if I hurt you.)
Or I assume you already wrote a sentence that you can’t be with that lady anymore. If so, I would avoid using these negative terms and just say 本当にごめんなさい。
Sensei, arigato! Tasukarimashita…
＠Cabin W
Douitashimashite!
good day dear Maggie sensei.
はい, 元気です. Thank you so much for always answering my questions .n_n.
My questions for today are:
Q1
マギー先生の教え[?]分かる為に犬語の勉強をしなくてもいいというのは嬉しいです.
I am happy that I don’t need to study dog language in order to understand maggiesensei’s teachings.
I would like to ask what is applicable for phrases like:
分かる為に
分かるのに
分かるように
[を] or [が]
—–
Q2
全曲フル尺での
パフォーマンスっていうのも、
なかなかレアだったなぁ…
(my understanding is different from the given translation)
My understanding is:
[Performances where all [of our] songs are sung in full (full length) are pretty rare]
My assumption is that this is really [というのは] but [というのも]has emphasis power, while having explanatory tone because of [というの] format..
is my observation correct?
———-
Q3
フルで聴くのは久々な曲とかも
あったでしょ？！
The translation given is:
I’m sure that there were songs
That you haven’t heard fully for a while？！
I would like to ask for とかも…
isit [かもしれない] and the [と] before it, is the [と] that
quotes?
orとかも is really a separate word that does not included in the dictionary?
——-
Q4
たり + して
「休日は、食べたり寝たりして過ごしています。」
(got this from たり lesson)
I spend my days off eating, sleeping and etc.
疲れてるんだけど忙しい時、どーやって疲れを癒したりリフレッシュしてますか？
If my understanding is correct, then i can translate this is as:
When you are tired but busy, how do you do things like [relieving] stress and [refreshing] yourself?
——-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei .n_n.
＠obakasan000
Hello,
Q1 Hahaha
How about マギー先生のレッスンを理解するために、犬語を勉強しなくてもいいからよかったです。
Q2 You got it! Good job!
Q3 とか
I have a lesson on とか
http://142.93.68.150/2015/02/19/how-to-use-%E3%81%A8%E3%81%8B-toka/
Q 4
Almost!
how do you do things like [relieving] stress and [refreshing] yourself?
How about just → how do you relive your fatigue and refresh yourself
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei .n_n.
good day dear maggie sensei. thank you so much for answering them..
my questions for today are:
———-
Q1
when japanese people write their signatures, do they still follow the right stroke orders? or it is up to them to follow it or not?
————
Q2
what would be the closest english filler equivalent of:
何だろうな..
ex.
a. 好きなアイドルは?
b. 何だろうな..
——-
Q3
みんなで髪型をやり合いっこしたよー
the [members] all did each others’ hairstyle
I would like to ask what is the function on っこ? Is this a slang term?
——–
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei. .n_n.
@obakasan000
Hello!
Q1 I wouldn’t say all the Japanese people know the right stroke order of all the kanji but usually we follow the right stroke order when we write our names.
Q2 I think it should be 誰だろうな・誰かな = Who could it be?
Q3 っこ is a kind of cute (girly) way to say “to do something each other”
good day dear Maggie sensei.
thank you so much for answering .n_n.
oh, sorry for my wrong example..
my questions for today are:
Q1
i would like to ask what is the long version of
やめんか, i think, the root verb is やめる (to stop)..
例:
男: かわいいな (teasing)
女: やめんか..
———–
Q2
鳥取には、なかなかこれなかった分、
初めましての方がたくさんいらっしゃいましたー
Translation given:
Since we haven’t been able to come to Tottori,
there were a lot of people we met for the first time
(many people came for the first time)
I would like to ask for [なかなかこれなかった分]..
なかなか-1) very, considerably,
これなかった- was not able to come (my guess is that [ら] is omitted)
分-part
I would like to ask if the interpretation of the translator was correct?
鳥取には、なかなかこれなかった分 = Since we haven’t been able to come to Tottori
——
Q3
Please correct me if I got this wrong..
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかなと心配していました。
I was afraid Maggie Sensei’s site would be gone.
(got this from かな lesson)
のかな – stresses the doubt / uncertainty..
so if i will remove the のかな, would it show less emotion?
(the speaker is more worried, in the のかな sentence..)
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなると心配していました。
Did I get it right?
Or, if the translation would be totally different, please let me know..
—-
Thank you so much in advance dear Maggie sensei… .n_n.
Hello Obakasan,
Maggie Sensei is on vacation, therefore I shall answer your questions.
1.
やめんか（い）＝やめないか = Would you stop it? やめんなや＝やめるなよ！ = Stop it now!!! It’s Kansai dialekt.
2.
This translation is correct. 「来れる」 = 「来られる」. It is calleg ら抜き言葉.
食べられる=食べれる
見られる=見れる
It’s very important to know, that you can use ら抜き言葉 ONLY with the potencial （可能） meaning of （ら）れる. In 尊敬 and 受身 meaning of （ら）れる you cannot use ら抜き言葉.
Also 分 implies 物事の状態／様子／程度 therefore we can translate it as: because, since, etc. It’s rarely used, often with この、その、あの; in this case it implies: as affairs / matters now stand; as the case /matter, situation now stands; as things are / go, stand now, etc.
3.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなると心配していました。 => Speaker is more or less (I’d say more) sure that Maggie Sensei’s site will disappear one day and he’s afraid of that.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるかなと心配していました。 => Speaker is less sure that Maggie Sensei’s site will disappear. He’s just wondering and at the same time he’s afraid of that.
マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのではないかと心配していました。==> Speaker supposes that Maggie Sensei’s site might disappear one day and he’s afraid of that.
ご参考になれば幸いです。
i wonder if husbands refer to their wives or fathers to their children as きみ？or if family members are using it to each other as well? :)) and i wonder how fine or okay it is to refer to your wife as おまえ lol
@yol
Yes. There are husbands who refer to their wife as きみ. But usually fathers call their children with their name or お兄ちゃん、お姉ちゃん、if they are older brother/sister.
It depends on the family but usually husbands refer to their wife お母さん in front of children.
(I mentioned it in my family related lessons.)
Though it sounds pretty blunt, there are affectionate husbands or boyfriends who call their wife お前
ohh and does that apply to when you’re referring to your children too? im talking about おまえ here ^_^
@yol
Yes. :)
Personally my parents have never called me お前 but there are parents who address their children お前.
このレッスンを教えてくれてありがとうー、マギー先生！先に、受身は難しかったが、このレッスンので、分かれるようになった。
ちょっと間違った文を探した :
“Ex.幼い頃、父に死なれて母と途方に暮れた。
= When I was a little child, my mom and I were devastated.”
(父に死なれて is missing in the English translation)
ありがとう！次のレッスンが楽しみだ。
@Sophie
こんにちは、Sophie! 本当ですね、父に死なれての英語が抜けていましたね。直しました。教えてくれてありがとう！ :)
(お礼にSophieの日本語を少しお手伝いしますね。
このレッスンので→このレッスンで/ わかれるようになりました→わかるようになりました/探した→見つけた・見つけました。）
Hello! :) Thank you so much for your lessons! They’re always so detailed and I learn a lot.
Although I’ve read this one as well, I came across a sentence which I can’t totally get the meaning of ばっかり. The sentence is ‘将来、デビューしたいけど、もしできなくても悲観ばっかりはしないです’. Does it mean something like ‘I want to debut in the future but, if I’m not able to, I won’t be disappointed.’?
Thank you so much! ^^
@Aida
Hi Aida,
We don’t usually say 悲観ばっかりする・しない
I think he meant “悲観的（な気持ちばかり）になる・ならない”
So basically he is saying “将来、デビューしたいけど、もしできなくても(Though he would love to make a debut in future) もしできなくても(=even if he can’t)
悲観的（な気持ちばかり）にならない He won’t just stay pessimistic
(Hm, seems like the previous comment didn’t get transmitted properly. Re-sending.)
このレッスンをありがとうございました!!
私にとって、これは大切なレッスンなんです!!
I’m on an intensive Japanese language course now and was just introduced to “transitive verbs” and “intransitive verbs” yesterday. The learning progress had been smooth sailing until this point and I was a bit stumped by yesterday’s class. But as is always, when in doubt, refer to MaggieSensei.com ;)
The way you explained it was very intuitive and logical. It makes sense now :) Only managed to read half of the lesson right now but will finish this for sure.
本当にありがとうございました! 助かりました!
@Jane
Hello Jane!
コメント、うれしく読みました。
Ohh transitive verbs and intransitive verbs are difficult, huh?
But hope you enjoy learning Japanese in your intensive course.
You are always welcome to practice Japanese in this comment sections. I will check your sentences.
がんばって！
Thank you in advance for offering to help! I will definitely take up on your offer and be more active in the comments section. それでは、 いい週末を!
@Jane
ありがとう、Jane!
Janeもいい週末を過ごしてくださいね。❤
I’m embarrassed to ask this question because I’ve been studying Japanese for a
3 years. But how can なる be used with a verb?
For example “It has become sunny.” :pika:
Must I change the verb to a noun 晴れることになった。? or 晴れるようになった。
I love your lessons and website design!
@Eric
Hi Eric,
“It has become sunny.” in Japanese is “晴れてきた・晴れてきました” We don’t use なる
But you can say
いい天気になってきた・きました
I will show you other examples with なる
Ex. 寒くなってきました。
= Samuku natte kimashita.
= I is getting colder.
Ex. 彼は医者になった。
= He became/has become a doctor.
Glad to hear you like my lessons. ❤
I do not know if it’s relate :cryingboy:
what means this:
verb + no + mo ii
＠Veron
It is nice/good to do something
The translation could be the same as
~no ga ii
~no wa ii
but 〜もいい(=mo ii) is more subtle than ~がいい(-ga ii) or 〜はいい(=wa ii) and more suggestive.
Ex. たまには温泉に行くのもいいですね。
= Tamani wa onsen ni iku no mo iidesune.
= It is nice to go visit hot springs once in a while.
Ex. 京都に行くのもいいですね。
= Kyouto ni iku no mo iidesune.
= Visiting Kyoto would be nice,too.
thanks, thanks, thanks… !happyface!
＠Veron
You’re welcome! :)
こんばんは、マギー先生! Thank you for this lesson, it was very useful! ありがとうございます!!
I would like to ask a question. A Japanese boy asked that—-> ハンガリーの方……日本在住ですか?
It’s not clear for me, I’m a beginner. T_T and I don’t know how should I answer.
Could you please help me? Thank you for your help in advance.
@Fando
こんにちは、Fando!
ハンガリーの方ですか？ (Hangarii no kata desu ka) means “Are you Hungarian?”
(方 is more polite than 人）
If you are, you can say
はい、そうです。(=Hai soudesu) Yes, I am.
If you are not,
いいえ、ちがいます。(=Iie chigaimasu.) No I am not.
If you want to tell that person what your nationality is,
いいえ、〜〜人です。
Ex. いいえ、ルーマニア人です。
= Iie, Ruumania jin desu.
= No, I am Romanian.
日本在住ですか？= Is a formal way to say “日本に住んでいますか？= Nihon ni sunde imasu ka” It means “Do you live in Japan?”
If you do,
はい、日本に住んでいます。
= Hai, nihon ni sunde imasu.
If you don’t
いいえ、〜〜に住んでいます。
= Iie, ~~~ ni sunde imasu.
= No, I live in ~~
I am confused right now.
If it is 飲ませられる (=nomaserareru)
Why does it become 飲まされた? shouldn’t it be 飲ませられた?
@reid
Good question!
飲む has two forms. 飲ます・飲ませる like 書く （書かせる・書かす）
I added it in the lesson. Please check it again.
Oh, I get it. Are there many of verbs with two forms like 飲む? And is there any difference, like one is more polite or something?
I really wish japanese didn’t have so many of these little details, and exceptions and tricks that confuse so easily. Well, I guess that is part of what makes the language so interesting.
@reid
Not so many of the exceptions. Don’t worry. They(書かす／飲ます）are more literal.
I really wish japanese didn’t have so many of these little details
→I totally agree with you. If so, the length of my lesson would be much shorter. :)
Hello Maggie-sensei~! I’ve been using this site for reference for a while, but looking at this lesson, I couldn’t answer the question I had. :cryingboy:
Can you tell me if 「食べてみ」 and 「クリックしてみ」, or other verbs like that are just a shortened/colloquial form of ～てみる? Thank you so much for your reply, I appreciate it~! !heartsippai!
@Mori
Hi Mori,
Yes, ~てみ is a colloquial form for V+てみて(ください）
Can I ask you a question, what is this mean, そんなもんです? I am so confused
This is the conversation:
A: 私はあなたを愛し、私は不注意な男です。時々私は結果を考えずに物事を行います。私はちょうど恐れてあなたを失います..
B: そんなもんです
I cannot understand what the B mean by that. Thank You
＠Human
BTW the sentence A is strange…. I think some non-native person wrote it.
Oh is it?
I don’t notice it because i still can’t read japanese languange correctly
i just used google translate to read that, and i find difficulties knowing the B mean
Thank You BTW for giving me the information
So from the context, what is B thinking by “That’s the way it goes.”
From my translation, A is loving B and don’t want to lose B, but he seems to be reckless person. is that correct?
@Human
Your translation is more or less correct. Except the part “I do things without thinking well”
Yes, that sentence sounds like someone tried to translate it with Google translation or something.
＠Human
Hello Human!
そんなもんです / “そんなものです” means “That’s the way it goes.”
Hi sensei!
I would like to ask you about the function of も in the following sentence
“特に何の反応もない…”
For context, the person heard something loud coming from a locker, thinking that something is in there and shook it, then the sentence pops up)
What exactly does the も do in the sentence? I don’t think the function described in this lesson is the one, since there is no “number”
My translation is “nothing (no response) in particular”, but I think I completely ignored the も
I would also like to ask another function of も, which I read from another website (but can only recall a little bit of the information) that it “compares”
I think the も in Danny G’s question (topmost) has the same function, in that it compares everyone in the world (only a few goes to church on Sunday mornings and others don’t). Is this correct? If not, can you tell me if も even “compares”?
I would be really grateful if you can help me, and thank you for the great lesson :-P
@Nazaka
Hi Nazaka
Ah I should have added this usage, huh?
You use も in the following cases to emphasize.
There is NO ~~
→何も〜ない
→何の〜もない
NOBODY does ~ / There is NOBODY
→誰も〜ない
ANY ~ isn’t/doesn’t ~
→どの〜も〜ない
→どこの〜も〜ない
Any ~ is/does ~
→どの〜も〜
→どこの〜も〜
I just added the information in the lesson now.
As for your other question, I will get back to you later. I gotta go now. Sorry!
OK, I am back and read your question again but I don’t understand what you meant by も as comparison.
If you find an example sentence, please let me know.
Thanks for the reply sensei!
I completely get it now after reading your example and explanations!
ありがとうございます！
It’s alright, please take your time!
Hello! Thanks for this lesson, it’s very helpful. I only have one question to make about this, more like a confirmation.
Sometimes I get confused about which verb form I should use, so let me see if I understand it now.
For verbs of the same group as 食べる, I will use the masu form and add the られる?
and for verbs from the other group, like 聞く, I will use the nai form and add れる?
Also, thank you for linking to the lesson about saseru and saserareru, I have a lot of trouble with that too, hahaha.
@reid
I added more conjugation information in the lesson to make it more clear. Please check.
Ex.幼い頃、父に死なれて母と途方に暮れた。
= Osanai koro, chichi ni shinarete
[haha to] tohou ni kureta.
= When I was a little child, my mom and I were devastated.
arigatou
@zoheb
Fixed it! Thank you for your help!! I really appreciate it!!
Oh, I completely understand it now, no doubts at all! Thanks a lot!
@reid
You’re welcome! :)
I replied in the wrong comment! hahaha, my last reply was meant to the information you added in the lesson.
マギー先生、 ありがとうございます！先学期に私の大学で日本語202をとったのに、受身がまだ本当に分かりにくいです。
でも、毎日サイトを見て新しい文法とか単語を習います。マギー先生は一番好きな先生です！
新しいレッスンを読むの楽しみにしています！
@Robert
こんにちは、Robert!
毎日、サイトに来てくれていると聞いて本当にうれしいです！ありがとう！
受身にはみんな苦労しているみたいですね。いつでもここで練習してくださいね。 :)
I wrote the wrong kanji for tsuku I meant 造
What is the difference between 造 and 作?
＠reid
Relatively when you make something big or industrial you use 造
Ex. 船/ships, 国/country 庭/yard or something special such as 酒, Japanese sake,
Thanks!
@reid
You’re welcome!
マギー先生！久しぶりだね！お元気ですか？何かあった？「かんぺきな計算で作られた楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない愛してる。」 I would translate it in which way? “In a paradise made by perfect calculation, the only thing that isn’t a lie is love.” or “In a paradise of perfect calculation has been made, the only thing that is true is love.” I think that the first way sounds more natural. どう思う? ありがとう ございます！
@Courtney
こんにちは、Courtney！久しぶり！元気でしたか？
Perfumeの歌で勉強しているの？
Lyrics are hard to interpret but this is what I think…
Maybe you should separate it into two
1) かんぺきな計算で作られた楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない
2) 愛してる
1) かんぺきな計算で造られた楽園
OK, here you see a passive form 造られた which modifies 楽園
The paradise (which is) made with perfect calculation.
Now you see the whole sentence
(かんぺきな計算で作られた)楽園でひとつだけうそじゃない
で here is a location marker.
There is one thing which is not false (in the paradise (which is)made…..)
and continue, rephrasing what is not false…the feeling of love
2) 愛している
“I love you”
あ！先生！ありがとうございました！ 今、わかっている！Perfumeの大ファンだよ！あなたのレッスンをいつみた、コンピュータシティどう思った。(笑)
@Courtney
Perfumeかわいいですね。
（今、わかっている→今、わかりました／やっとわかりました。／これでわかりました
あなたのレッスンをいつみた What did you want to say? ）
Oh no! I messed up! I’m sorry
I meant to say, “When I saw your lesson…”
マギー先生、こんにちは
面白く、分かりやすいレッソン、ありがとうございます !happyface!
しかし、質問があるんですが… 「らしい」と「そうだ」は、どちらが違いますか？「らしい」も「そうだ」も「人々から聞きました」という意味がありますので…
@jolie
こんにちは、Jolie,
「そう」のレッスンがあるからそちらをみてくださいね。
Ex.1) 今日は雨が降るらしい。
Ex.2) 今日は雨が降るそうだ。
この二つはよく似ていますね。どちらも人から聞いたり、天気予報で見たり、読んだりした情報を伝えています。
しかし
Ex.3) 今日は雨が降りそうだ。(It looks like it is going to rain today.)
というと、話している人が空をみて雨が降るかもしれないと推量している時に使います。
「らしい」の方が、推量の気持ちが強いと思います。
これも話し手が聞いた情報を伝言しています。
というと話している人の
彼女の世界を現実と繋げてあげたいです。What と in this sentence mean?
This sentence mean
(I want to) connect reality with her world , That right?
@Mamiya
I answered you on Twitter. :D
Difficult datta :cryingboy: :cryingboy:
It’s useful, but too much to memorize but I see this word too much in the JLPT N4 exercises. Thank you for this lesson!
@Angelina
Hell Angelina,
Don’t cry!!!!!!!
And don’t give up! !nemui!
You don’t need to memorize anything. Feel free to practice making sentence using なかなか here. I will check it for you.
Maggie, I got a question :pika:
In this song:
貴方が行ってしまったら When you’re gone
どうやったら私は生き続けられると言うの？ How can I even try to go on
貴方が行ってしまったら When you’re gone
やってはみるけど、どうしたら乗り越えられるっていうの？ Though I try how can I carry on
why is here used this と言うの / っていうの?
どうやったら私は生き続けられる（の）か VS どうやったら私は生き続けられると言うの？ の違いは？
ヨロシク！ !riceball!
@天人
Hello!
You use ~というの？（more casual: 〜っていうの）when you accuse /complain/ showing strong emotions towards the listener. (How could I ~? implying it is difficult to do so. )
It looks like a question but it is actually you just want to vent out your emotion.
So it sounds much stronger than regular question form.
Thank you very much, Maggie boucingheart!
マギー先生は最高です！
＠天人
どういたしまして♪ Uo・ｪ-oU/^☆
こんにちはMaggie先生！
I love your website! I have a question: I wanted to create a twitter account to practice my Japanese but can I use the casual form in my tweets or is it going to seem rude?
Thank you!
@Jade
こんにちは、Jade!
Twitter is a great to way to practice Japanese.
Can I use the casual form in my tweets or is it going to seem rude?
Being casual and being blunt are different.
Being casual and friendly is good on Twitter. It all depends on who you talk to.
Observe what kind of Japanese the people you follow use. Talk to them “desu” form first and then when you get to know them better, switch to more casual Japanese.
If you talk to them super formal Japanese to begin with, it may be hard to change. So I would say aim between casual and formal.
If you make an account, tweet to me in Japanese. I can always practice with you. :)
boucingheart! マギー先生、本当にありがとうございました。マギー先生が大好き。 !happyface!
@マイラン
どういたしまして！こちらこそこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
Love you,too! boucingheart!
Maggie sensei,
How do you say “… days to go”?
Hontou ni arigatou gozaimashita :)
@Nikita
Hi Nikita,
“… days to go” = 後、〜日= あと〜日= ato ~ nichi
hi maggie sensei, this is a very helpful lesson of yours. i’ve been wondering what’s the perfect way of requesting someone to take my photo. i came up with this sentence:
Shashin wo totte moratte ii desu ka?
i patterned it based on what you just taught us. im not sure if i got it right because i’m not really good in understanding/composing japanese sentences. please help. !cryingboy!
@bimbolera
Hello bimbolera,
Shashin wo totte moratte ii desu ka?
As long as you know what I wrote in the remarks,you can say that.
(→Though we hear this usage a lot in conversation (especially among young people), this expression may offend some people because it sounds a bit condescending.)
I will show you some ways to ask that question in Japanese.
写真を撮って頂いてもよろしいでしょうか？ (Very polite)
= Shashin wo totte itadaite mo yoroshii deshouka?
写真を撮って頂けますか？ (polite)
= Shashin wo totte itadakemasu ka?
写真を撮ってくれますか？(standard)
=Shashin wo totte kuremasu ka?
写真を撮ってもらえますか？ (conversational but polite enough )
= Shashin wo totte moraemasuka?
写真、撮ってくれる？ (Very casual)
= Shashin, totte kureru?
arigatou gozaimasu maggie-sensei! !heartsippai! i adore your blog. i’ve been following it on bloglovin’. looking forward to more of your lessons. yoku gambattane! :k:
@bimbolera
Douitashimashite! !niconico!
More lessons are coming!! Minna no tame ni ganbarima~~su!! :l:
Hello Maggie sensei ^^
I´m studying this cruel form called TE and I´m quite confused …please help me
いもうとは日本に行っています。
How can I discover the meaning of this sentence..? The correct translation will be:
My little sister is in Tokyo (she´s already there)
or
My little sister is going to Tokyo (progressive action) ?
Or I see by the context ?
@Helen M.
Hello M.
いもうとは日本に行っています。
means
My sister is in Japan now. (implying she doesn’t live where the speaker lives.)
If you say “She is going to Japan” it means future so いもうとは日本にいきます。
This case is not so complicated but ている can be used for various verb tenses and you have to figure it out by context or time related word.
Go check verb tense lesson.
Hello
What this would be in japanese
“I thought you/this thing you said meant A”, “i thought you were talking about A”, “i thought this was about A”?
@sam
Hi sam,
Aのことを言っているのだと思いました。
(casual) Aのことを言っているんだと思った。
or
Aのことだと思いました。
(casual) Aのことだと思った。
早く「べき」の文法は学ぶべきだった。とっても便利だし分かりやすいなぁ。一日で習った。教えてくれてありがとう！
「勇気を出す」の表現は大好き！思い出しておくよ。
勇気を出して存命中に新しいものをやってみる！＞＜
@pcd
今日は、「べき」も勉強しましたね♪
そうそう、生きている間（←Note ”存命中”より自然です）に新しいものにいっぱい挑戦してみてください！
As usual, a very useful lesson, thanks!
@reid
Happy to hear that!! !JYANE! boucingheart!
Ex. 入ってもいいですか？
= Haitte mo ii
[ddesuka?]
Ex. 何回聞いても彼の[missing]
[店の]名前が覚えられない。
= Nankai kiite mo ano mise no namaega oboerarenai.
= No matter how many times I asked, I can’t remember the name of the place.
Ex. 日本語を勉強したことがあるといってもたった[半月] :rrrr:[半年] です。
= Nihongo wo benkyou shita koto ga aru to itte mo tatta [hantsuki]
[hannen] desu.
= I did study Japanese in past but it’s only for a [half year].
btw arigatou gozaimasu 有り難う 御座います :-D
@zoheb
Thank you!!!!!!! Fixed them. boucingheart!
Good evening Sensei! ^^ Thank you for this post. It’s so useful! And you’re a very great teacher.^^
I have a question. I would like to say to a boy: “Your smile is so cute.” Could you please tell me that if this sentence correct? -> 笑顔はめっちゃ可愛いです! Thank you for your help in advance. ありがとうございます ^^
@Fando
Hello Fando!
笑顔は→笑顔が is better.
(I think you know but めっちゃ is very casual)
Why is が better in this case? What’s the difference?
@reid
You use は when you shows the contrast. If you tell someone 笑顔はかわいい, it implies “Your smile IS cute (but maybe not her face or something)
Oh, thanks for the quick reply! Sometimes I get a bit confused about the use of は and が, is there a lesson about that in this site? If not, could you make one in the future?
@reid
You’re welcome!
It’s already on the request lessons. :)
I couldn’t find it, maybe it was the way I searched for it
, sorry for bothering so much, but could you link the lesson here?
@reid
Oh sorry.. “It’s on the request list” means I haven’t made the lesson yet but I will in future.
Actually that will be my final goal…
It is going to be a very tough lesson for me to make. There is even a book on the difference between が and は
Oh, I see. I didn’t know it was such an extensive topic. Thank you again.
私も寝てもいい？笑
マギー先生、ありがとう！便利で面白いだよ。このレッスンを読んで、よく理解することができた。
わぁ、次は何習うだろう…
@ocd
いつもコメントありがとう！はい、今日はもう寝てもいいですよ（笑）
（Note for you →便利で面白いよ）
まだまだいっぱいレッスンがアップされますからね〜♪
誤字だった．．．恥ずかしい
直してくれてありがとう〜
うわぁ、楽しみにしている！
@ocd
時々、皆のコメントを直した方がいいのか悩むことがありますよ。でももっとうまくなってもらいたいから時々直しますね。
でもocdの日本語は本当に上手になってきています！！これからもがんばって下さいね。
Hii~ I love this site, you’re so great!
Let me ask a question. How should I say ” Come to Hungary! I’m sure you would like my country.”
Thank you for your help in advance! ^.^
＠Fando
Hi Fando,
Thank you for visiting this site.
” Come to Hungary! I’m sure you would like my country.”
ハンガリーにぜひ来てください。きっと気に入ると思います。
= Hangarii ni zehi kite kudasai. Kitto kini iru to omoimasu.
(The next time, try to make a sentence in Japanese first so that I can help you.) :)
Hello Maggie!
Even after your lesson I still couldn’t figure out this sentence:
好きなことばっかり書いているブログですが、私のブログブログもよろしくお願いします。
Even though this lesson was really helpfull! :k:
@Nana
Hi Nana
So 好きなことばかり書く= sukina koto bakari kaku = to write only what you like
ばっかり is a casual way to say ばかり
So the person says he/she just writes what he/she likes on his/her blog.
But he/she wants you to visit.
Sometime I confused with ~hazu
What’s the different it? boucingheart!
＠couzio
はず(=hazu) means “Someone is supposed to ~” or things are supposed to be ~
べき(=beki) is for more obligation.
I have a lesson on はず
Sensei, it’s me, Sandara. Can you tell me the use of the particle wo in the title below?
Ima no Obito wo.
@sandara
I already tweeted you. :)
Hi Maggie!
I have a question. The next sentence:
寝なければいけないのに、テレビゲームで遊んでしまいました。
When changed into casual style, becomes:
寝なきゃなのに、テレビゲームで遊んじゃった。
or at least according to my grammar book… But my question is, why the な after なきゃ?
Thans a lot!
@Mariana
Hi Mariana,
寝なければいけないのに、テレビゲームで遊んでしまいました。
the casual form is
寝なきゃいけないのに、テレビゲームで遊んじゃった。
If your textbook says 寝なきゃなのに, it must be a mistake. Unless it covers a super colloquial Japanese.
In slang, you use 寝なきゃ as a noun. （It is from a quote「もう寝なきゃ（いけなない）」) Since it is considered as a noun, you use な
寝なきゃなのに…
もう寝なきゃだわ。(female speech)
But this is super colloquial I doubt the textbook has that expression…
マギー先生、実は日本語の教科書はもっと口語文になるんですよね。
十年ぐらい前、初めて日本語を勉強した時に、アメリカ人の大学生に「なきゃ」と「なくちゃ」を教えますが、今年の「元気2」という教科書には、「なくちゃ」と「なきゃ」を教えます。びっくりします！
(Trying to say: Actually, Maggie-sensei, textbooks have been getting more colloquial. I studied Japanese for the first time perhaps ten years ago, and then we were not taught なきゃ / なくちゃ, but in my Genki II textbook this year we were taught these forms! 不適切な言葉遣いがありましたら、申し訳ありません。)
oops, that should say 教えませんが、not 教えますが. In my defense, I usually use plain forms as conjunctions, but I was trying to be a bit more polite for Maggie-sensei.
@Eri
こんにちは、Eri!
そうですね、普通の会話で、「なきゃ」や「なくちゃ」はよく使うので教科書でも教えて方がいいと思います。
Note for Eri
Eriの日本語に、不適切な言葉はないですよ。少しお手伝いしますね。
１０年ぐらい前に初めて日本語を勉強した時には、「なきゃ」「なくちゃ」は習いませんでしたが、
（If you want to use “were not taught” →教えられませんでした (Passive form) but 教えてもらえませんでした is more natural)
今年の「元気2」という教科書では、〜を教えてあります。
(If you want to use には
今年の「元気2」という教科書には〜〜があります。or 書いてあります）
びっくりします is fine. But you were surprised so びっくりしました/ 驚きました may be better.)
!JYANE! Hello, could you explain the meaning of GURAI in this sentence ? :)
Sono sora ippai no kamihikouki gurai ni natte.
Thank you in advance :)
Arigatou ! Yes, it is from a lyrics:
Ima, tada shiritai no eien ja nai
kono mama zutto mite itai kedo
sono sora ippai no kami hikouki kurai ni natte
hitotsu dake mitsukete
So, basically, the GURAI here marks the amount of the airplane he/she wants to become?
@Mina
OK,let me try again. I am still not sure what this lyrics means but
“gurai” there modifies “kami hikouki” (paper plane).
Becoming (like) a paper airplane (in the sky)
“Sora ippai no kamihikouki” could be wither the sky is filled with paper planes or a big paper airplane which covers the sky fully.
やらなきゃいけない <if someone said this, is it a positive terms or negative terms?
thank you :-D
@Miiko
Not negative or positive.
If someone is talking to oneself, it simply means “I have to do it / I gotta do it”
If that person is talking to someone else, やらなきゃいけないでしょ= You have to do it.
Thank you for helping Sensei!
Hope you’ll have a great day! ＼(^o^)／
@Miiko
You’re very welcome!
Hope you have a nice weekend,too!! :)
How come in the example in the introduction it’s 勉強し すぎで sugide and not 勉強し すぎてsugite?
As always, thanks for your help!!
@Jessica
Hello Jessica
~すぎる has two forms
1) verb + すぎる
勉強しすぎる
= Benkyou shisugiru
or
勉強をしすぎる
= benkyou wo shisugiru
→te-form
→勉強しすぎて
= bekyou shisugite
or
勉強をしすぎて
= benkyou wo shisugite
=Studied too much and…..
2) verb + すぎ＋だ／です
It is easier to think “(object の) verb + 過ぎ” is a noun, a state of overdoing something
勉強しすぎ
= studying too much
or
勉強のしすぎ(=benkyou no shisugi)
+で(a particle to indicate a cause)
勉強し過ぎで(=benkyyou shisugi de) /勉強のし過ぎで =( benkyou no shisugi de) = due to having studied too much
本人だけど、あんた見てる限り完璧だね、感服。
しかし一つ漏れがあるんじゃないかと。
～なんてもんじゃない、という型、外国人にとって訳わからないらしいよ。
教えてあげてって
@wow
”なんてもんじゃない” のことかな？また機会があったらその使い方、追加します。
!niconico! I hope sometime I can go to Japan, Soshite mottomo hayai densha to iu shinkansen ga noseru
@Bahasajepang
Hi Bahasajepang
Thank you for mentioning us on your site!
Hope you get to come to Japan,too!
(Will help your Japanese a little. I think you meant….Soshite mottomo hayai shinkansen toiu densha ni noritai desu.)
So I was looking up the usages of ~ている and stumbled upon this awesome website! Thank you very much.
I still don’t understand what is the distinctive difference between the habits/facts/general actions for which we can use both ～る/う and ~ている, and for those we can only use ～る/う?
You said we only use ～る/う form “When you talk about something in general or about something that happens all the time.” But is not this the case for all habitual actions?
What is the difference between the cat example (うちの猫は兄が呼ぶと死んだふりをする/ します) and going to a university everyday, for example? Why could not we use ～ている form for the cat example?
Thank you in advance!
@Mohamed
Hello Mohamed
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site and はじめまして！
Generally speaking, as I explained in the lesson,
*When you are just talking about the present situation, 今 ( = ima), now, 現在 ( = genzai) present time, not the regular activity or routine, you don’t use 〜る( = ru) / ～ます ( = masu) form. Instead, you use 〜ている ( = ~ teiru) / 〜ています ( = ~ teimasu) form.
今、大学に通っています
But When you talk about something in general or about something that happens all the time, you use る・う form.
Ex. 日本人は主食に米を食べる。/ 食べます。
Ex. うちの猫は兄が呼ぶと死んだふりをする/ します
But if you add certain time related word, you use ている form.
うちでは毎朝、お米を食べています。
今、うちの猫は死んだふりをしています。
こんにちは、マギー先生！ありがとう、このレッスンを教えてくれて。長いものだったけど確かに便利よ。新用法はFuture Progressive 〜ている・〜ていますなどが知ったし。(I wanted to say: I learned a lot of new usages, such as Future Progressive)
＠ocd
こんにちは、ocd! レッスンが便利と聞いてうれしいです。
新しく覚えたこと、ぜひ、練習してみてくださいね。
し、しまった！気づいたとこだよ。私の最後の文章が間違ってるって思うね。
新用法はFuture Progressive 〜ている・〜ていますなどが知ったし → 「Future Progressive 〜ている・〜ています」の文法のような新用法を知ったし。
こちらが無理なの？
@ocd
書き直した文章の方がずっといいですね。
（こちらが無理なの？→これは何を言いたかったですか？）
あと「新用法」でもわかりますが、
「新しい用法」の方がわかりやすいと思います。
→「Future Progressive 〜ている・〜ています」ような文法の新らしい用法も知ることができたし
:up!!: merci maggie ^^ merci merci !!!
@simogossa
De rien :w:
Maggie Sensei What is 魚も釣ってきたり mean?
Thank you
@LTP
Hi LTP,
Catching a fish (or Fishing) also and….
So could you please translate this sentence
身体を鍛えている から 魚も釣ってきたり
and
あの花の裏側だって 虫に食われ朽ちていたり
Why its sentence use たり
Thank you
＠LTP
Sorry but I don’t do the translation here but I can help you correct your translation if it is a short one.
Also I am not sure if it is a part of a sentence.
↓
1) Does it end like that? ~釣ってきたり。 or continues…釣ってきたり、…?
OK, I will show you the structure of the sentence.
Someone is working out (and building his/her body) + so (~から giving a reason) + what to to (giving an example) → he/she (sometimes) goes fishing and etc.
2) It seems like unfinished sentence. Is it from AKB song?
If so…
Even that flower has a secret such as…(giving an example) (if you see the back side of flower), you may find ….and……etc.
1.It end like this ~釣ってきたり。 so i don’t understand this sentence
2.Yes , it from AKB48’s song
I think Japanese language is very difficult to understand and i’m not good at Japanese but when i read your blog that make me understand in Japanese such as grammar,vocabulary and etc. better than before.
Thank you very much
@LTP
Just keep practicing your Japanese. Keep reading, writing, listening…and make a lot of mistakes.
And more importantly enjoy studying! :D
It end like this 身体を鍛えている から 魚も釣ってきたり。
身体を鍛えている から 魚も釣ってきたり。= Because he is building his body so he (can)goes fishing and etc. << Right?
Sorry i'm not good at Japanese language. :cryingboy:
Yes, it from AKB48's song
＠LTP
Good job! You figured it out! :D
Maggie sensei, Yukari sensei – you are absolute saints. Thanks for another really helpful lesson on how to use a common phrase that isn’t usually covered in textbooks and thanks for taking the time out to answer questions so patiently in the comments section. Reading those are always helpful as well. The comments section is like the Bonus Round of each class with you two! :D
@Jane,
Thank YOU for the nice comment!
I know everybody is trying very hard to study Japanese.
It’s the least we can do here. !onpu!
!happyface! Yeah, I’ve learnt two new Japanese grammar,today, thanks for the lesson, maggie-sensei !DANCING! maggie sensei wa sugokute atama ga ii inu da :)
@Bahasajepang
ありがとう！！I am happy to hear you learned something new here.
Hi! Thank you for all your hardwork! It helps me a lot!
Just one question: how can you say “let me be your boyfriend” in japanese? I’m looking forward to your answer~
@Saya
Hi Saya,
“let me be your boyfriend”
The literal translation is
あなたの彼に(なら）させて（ください）
僕をあなたの彼にしてください。
But it doesn’t sound natural.
In Japanese we would say
付き合わせてください。
Ex. 空腹時は機嫌が悪くなりがちだ。
= Kuufukuji wa
[kinge]/ [kigen]ga waruku narigachida.
= When I am hungry, I am apt to be in a bad mood.
btw domou arigatou for this lesson :-D
@zoheb
Hello zoheb,
Thank you for spotting the typos. I fixed them.
有り難う！！
Ex.弟は子供の頃から病気がちだった。
= Otouto wa kodomo no koro kara byouki gachi datta.
= My younger brother has been prone to illness since [he was a
job] !to right! [he was a kid].
Hello Sensei,
I read somewhere and I saw 数月 as in a couple of months…any difference between this version and your version as in 数ヶ月? Thank you !happyface!
@Anne
Hello Anne.
Hmmmm we usually use 数ヶ月 for a couple of months.
If you see someone using 数月 somewhere, give me a link. I will take a look.
Oh, very good lesson! I don’t even have any questions about it.
@reid
Hi Reid!
Thank YOU for the first comment! :)
konnichiha
first, I want to say that you’re my number one teacher.. Every day, I take new lesson to study and I have all your lessons printed and review them from time to time. I still have so much to study from this site.
I have question.. it’s related to passive verbs, though:
Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita. (shouldn’t the meaning be everyone were turned off by him(
so why we didn’t say: minna ha kare ni donbiki saremashita??
what I know so far is like :
The cake was eaten by him= keeki ha kare ni taberaremashita.
thank you my # 1 teacher.. !MUSIC!
:yy:
why don’t you teach us in Saudi Arabia.. they need someone qualified like you.. shall you come if there was any teaching opportunity.. I’m really looking to meeting you in person boucingheart!
@Roro
Konnichiwa Roro! I am very happy to hear you have been studying hard from this site.
Q: Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita. (shouldn’t the meaning be everyone were turned off by him(
Ah good point! Yes, that is a direct translation.
Passive sentence is hard to translate. (Especially this word, ドン引きされる）
Since the subject of this sentence is “kare= he”, it may be more natural to translate He turned off everyone.
***
Passive form lesson is coming soon!
I mentioned the translation problem in that lesson.
***
Awww how sweet… Thank you for your nice message.
I am sure there are many good Japanese teachers in your country. I am doing this for fun. :D
thank you for your fast reply :tulip3:
So, in that case, if I say: (minna ha kare ni donbiki sareta) , is it right?
I know that particle ni comes after the doer, correct me if I’m wrong.
passive is fine with me.. but sometimes I find the opposite of what I’ve already studied :((
sigh~unfortunately, we don’t have teachers.. even if someone is willing to teach, they won’t allow her since none has official teaching certificate. :cryingfirl:
@Roro
OK, here’s the pattern.
A wa B ni donbiki sareta.
A did something strange and that creeped B out. (A’s behavior/what A said made B feel uncomfortable)
= A turned B off (←B was turned off by A)
= A creeped B out (←B was creeped out by A)
Trust me. The simple passive tense is much easier to understand. This particular slang word is more complicated. :)
わあああ〜 今回はFrisky ですね！！ 嬉しかったです！ フィーチャをありがとうございました！ Thank you also for all the lessons. They are, without fail, so interesting and helpful.
@Jane
Thank YOU for introducing us Frisky Sensei, Jane!
Frisky Sensei is a really sweet teacher. Though she was REALLY sleepy, she worked hard so hard for us.
Please give a big hug to Frisky-sensei!
Ok I will give her a hug on your behalf :)
@Jane
boucingheart!
Hello! I have another question. I asked my teacher how to use なぜなら in a sentence, but he could not answer at the time. It happens I guess, so I have to ask you, hahaha.
It is used solely as a reply to a question? Or you can use it to explain things without a question?
@reid
Hello reid,
なぜなら means “because” and you use it to give a reason why.
なぜなら〜（だ）からです・だ
You can use it to explain things without a question.
Ex. 彼は最近とても忙しい。なぜなら試験の準備があるからだ。
= He has been very busy lately. It is because he has to prepare for the exams.
So you bring up a state and explain the reason later.
Ex. 水を大切にしなくてはいけません。なぜなら今年は雨が少ないからです。
= We have to use water carefully. It’s because there has been little rain this year.
You can give someone a reason answering their question.
「なぜ、彼は戦わないのですか？」
= Why won’t he fight?
「なぜなら、彼は戦いを好まないからです。」
= Because he doesn’t like fighting.
You may see/hear this type of usage in literature, drama or movie. (It sounds a bit too dramatic)
なぜなら is used in a formal / literal sentences.
In daily conversation, we don’t use it so much.
Ex. 「マギー、どうして食べないの？」
= How come you don’t eat, Maggie?
I wouldn’t say
「なぜならお腹がすいていないからです。」
= Because I am hungry.
I would say
「だってお腹がすいていないもん。」
（もん is a casual way to say から)
Thank you sooo much! haha, this explanation really erased all my doubts.
@reid
You’re welcome! :)
このレッソンを待ってました！
ありがとうマギー先生♪( ´▽｀)
メロディ♪
@Merorin
お待たせしました！！！
good day dear maggie sensei.
thank you so much for explaining them to me.
ah, yes.. for me i believe, your guide is really based on practical usage so i am really grateful to be given a chance to study them.
———–
for 諦めないで = I normally hear/see 諦めず in songs with no follow-up sentence and the translation is always [don’t give up] so I thought 諦めず + [に] (another variation of 諦めず) is applicable. But then thank you so much for telling me that 諦めず is not supposed to mean [don’t give up]
———-
for んじゃない = i was just confused in this sentence I got from [私+自分] lesson
そんなの自分(←あなた)が悪いんじゃない
It’s your (own) fault!
though there is んじゃない, there is no [?] question mark/かと思う/かな, in the end so i assumed the speaker is just making his point.
Same with:
愛ってそんな崇拝的じゃないんじゃない = Love isn’t something to worship that much
http://projecthello.com/c-ute/aitte.html
sorry for almost regularly asking for んじゃない.. even now, i am still confused when a complete sentence ends up with the plain [んじゃない] which is not accompanied with question mark [?] or かと思う or かな..
but then, based on Japanese understanding what would be the possible meaning of
その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。 (giving that is there no context).
———
The questions for today are:
Q1
「実は今回集まってもらったのには別の理由があります」
i just saw it when was watching hello station # 120, this was the first time i saw のには so i would like to ask if it is [のに+は]? i can’t find it in the dictionary..
———
Q2
i just noticed that Japanese people combine 漢字 with katakana / English words to produce compound words. But then, i do not know if I will stick to 音読み all the way.
Please help me to fill the pronunciation of 漢字 for the compound words
Ex:
新メンバー = new member
[新] + メンバー = しん
Just incase, for some compound words, I will put the Japanese and English version of the sentence from which I got the compound word.
1.
受URL : application URL
[受] + URL=???
2.
大ホール :
[大] + ホール =???
3.
両A面:
[両] + A + [面] =????
両A面「Wonderful World／Ça va ? Ça va ?」
double A side「Wonderful World／Ça va ? Ça va ?」
4.
フル尺 =
フル + [尺] =????
全曲フル尺での
All the songs were sung in full so…
5.
CD付
CD + [付] =????
劇中歌が全て収録されたCD付だよ
There’s an included CD that has recordings of all the songs we sang in the play！
6.
笑 = laughs / LOL (though it is not a compound, it seems pretty common)
笑 =?????
——–
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei. .n_n.
i really owe you a lot….
@obakasan000
Hello!
Let see what you have today….
1) の+に+は
The first の is for nominalization
So it makes the verb 集まってもらった a noun.
に shows a reason or a purpose (=in order to do something)
And は shows the contrast.
→There is a reason why I gathered everyone （←I have you gathered here)
2) It is all depends on the compound words.
受URL I have never seen it…. If it is 待受 then まちうけ
大ホール だいホール
If the kanji itself can be read as kun reading, then I would stick to kun reading
フル尺= We usually read 尺 with kun reading so フルしゃく
CD付 = 付き= tsuki →CDつき
両A面 = りょうAめん
But to be honest some of the new coined words are just for visual. People can recognize kanji so they can figure out the meaning.
笑 わらう or わら
Good day dear Maggie sensei. Thank you so much for answering them for me.
Belated happy father’s day to your Maggie sensei’s papa and mam yukari’s お父さん. Hope you all had a good time yesterday.
My questions for today are:
——
Q1
てくる
based on the [てくる and ていく] lesson, noun+を+してくる would be mean
to do [something/noun] and come somewhere else
ex.
宿題をしてくる= to do homework and come somewhere else
(come to school with their home homework done)
but how about if the format is [noun+してくる] where in the noun is not an object but
serves as a part of the verb.
Ex. i could not find a simple example so I just type the main verb.
活動してきた and 紹介してきた
Does this format also give a meaning of:
to do [something/noun] and come somewhere else
or i should use the [time-related] meaning for [noun+してくる]?
—————
2Q
I was able to read the lesson about 中 but i would like to ask for this specific
format.
plain verb + 中で
[日本語の勉強をする中で] ?
if the plain verb should be inている-form first before i can add中で, please
disregard the first format..and:
ている-form + 中で
[日本語の勉強をしている中で] ?
To be honest the exact phrase was:
活動してきた中で, but since i don’t know the exact meaning of 活動してきた,
i cannot finish the sentence
Aちゃんが研修生として活動してきた中で感じていた胸の内を語ってるところがありましたね
研修生として= as a trainee
感じていた胸の内を語ってるところがありましたね =
there was a part where Aちゃん talked about the her feelings as a trainee during…
活動してきた中で = ?
—————-
Q3
[たり] though I was able to check the lesson aboutたり, i would like to confirm something:
悔しさがあったりする= ある in たり form?
do you think this it needs to be rephrased or i can translate it as
[to have frustrations]?
the whole sentence is:
きっと、他の子にも他の子なりの、悩みや、悔しさがあったりするんだろうな～。
also I would like to ask what would be the meaning of
Noun + にも + noun + なり like in 他の子にも他の子なり?
is this a set of expression?
——————
Q4
ところ
彼女に枕を貰ったところで, 今寝ます.
Does this mean:
a. i “just” got pillow from her, [so/and] I am going to sleep now.
b. i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.
————
Thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei..
@obakasan000
Hi there,
Thank you for your father’s day wish! Hope you had a nice father’s day,too.
Q1. Q2.
It will be better to think 活動する and 紹介する are verbs not a noun plus verb, suru.
活動をする → 活動する
紹介をする→紹介する
勉強をする→勉強する
and ~してきた there means “has/have been doing something until now/ had been doing something in certain period of time in past
While 〜ている is focusing on the current action or action which has been done and it affects the current state, してきた focuses on the length of the action that someone has been doing.
活動してきた= has/have/had been doing some activities
紹介してきた= has/have/had been introducing
勉強してきた= has/have/had been studying
活動してきた中で = while she has been doing the activities
Q3. 悔しさがあったりする= ある in たり form?
Yes. It means there are cases that other children have their own 悔しさ
~にも〜なりの〜
yes, it is a set expression.
〜なりの means “one’s own”
By using にも together you can express the nuance of “even for ~, there is one’s own ~ ”
Q4.
It should be
a. i “just” got pillow from her, [so/and] I am going to sleep now.
If there is no 今, it could mean “I will go to bed when I receive a pillow from her.”
But it is a strange sentence.
Good day dear maggie sensei.
Thank you so much for clarifying those things to me and for greeting me..
Oh just a follow-up question.
Q1
Then, if i want to produce the thought
[i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.]
Then it would be something like:
[彼女に貰ったところの枕で, 今寝ます]?
Or no need for の?
————–
Q2
他人が羨ましいなと思う立場にいる人でも…
[Even people who are in the [position/situation] where they think other people envy them]
Was I able to get the thought from the noun-clause?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei…
＠obakasan000
Hello! Genki?
Q1.[i will sleep now with the pillow I “just” got from her.]
ばかり(-bakari) is better.
→彼女にもらったばかりの枕で今から寝ます。
(If you want to say, “I just got a pillow from her” then you can say 今、彼女に枕をもらったところです。)
Q2. 他人が羨ましいなと思う立場にいる人でも…
Your translation is correct up to here.
↓
Even people who are in the position where
where they think other people envy them]
→where other people envy
羨ましいと思う= envy
Hallo~ boucingheart!
Could you may do an updated version of your slang lessons?
I wanna start to be more casual/slangly with my frends since they always ”complain” about my stiff/over polite way of speech.. but i am not sure what is still common and what is not O.O
@Kurosaki
Hi, Kurosaki
Check my latest lesson.
Japanese slang words and colloquial expressions.
Hi again xD I started reading random posts in Japanese and I got stumped on one
「おすそ分けそんなにトーカちゃんがすきなんだね」
Supposedly おすそ分け mean share (noun). トーカちゃん is a person in the post, while すきなんだね means I like you. Right? XD
I don’t know what そんなに means.
Can I get a translation please?
@Katherine
Hi Katherine,
そんなにトーカちゃんがすきなんだね
I see you like Toka-chan so much.
そんなに means “that much”
You’re the best Maggie Sensei.. please keep up the good work!
@bip
Thank you for your nice message!
はい、がんばります！！ :)
Maggie Sensei, if I want use きる to define a noun, does it have to be in the た-form?
In my Japanese books, the examples are using た-form when it comes to define a noun, like 疲れきった顔, 安心しきった表情, etc
Can I use る-form? And if I can, is there any difference?
It’s already 2015 but I hope you can reply me as soon as possible ;w;
Thanks!
@VTFA
Hi, VTFA
疲れきった顔
安心しきった表情
疲れきった and 安心しきった : They both used as an adjective to describe the following noun.
You can’t say 疲れ切る顔／安心しきる表情
Because when you describe the expression, you usually use the tense, （present perfect or past tense in English?) (completely) “(have been) tired/relaxed” ”
There I answered before a new year starts.
Hello, Maggie-sensei! How are you doing? ^_^ It’s me again, Ritsuko!
Thank you so much for conducting this lesson, since I have been talking lately with a lot of Japanese people, and they often use “~kana” in some conversations. Just like this one, I’ve been talking about actors with this Japanese girl, and there is a portion where she said, “あれ”, then followed this sentence:
“神木くんとまた映画出るんだったかな？？”
I was a little puzzled what this sentence may mean, so I’m asking for your help. ^.^
Thank you so much, Maggie-sensei!
@Ritsuko
Hello Ritsuko! I’m good! Thank you for asking!
As I explained かな means “I wonder”
She is talking about some actor right? So “神木くんとまた映画出るんだったかな？？” means “I wonder if he/she will appear in the movie again with 神木くん”
おはようございます！マギー先生、お元気ですか？便利なレッスンが教えてくれてありがとうございます。たくさんの「できる」の用法が見慣れなかったのでこのレッスンはとても面白いです。次はVerb Tensesを勉強するつもりです。時々失敗するから…
@ocd
こんにちは！おひさしぶりです。元気でしたか？
「できる」はいろいろな使い方がありますね。
Verb Tenseのレッスンもがんばって勉強して下さいね！
Thank you!
“Hodo” is used like “the more it’s”?
@Katherine
Yes, that type of 程 means, “the more ~, the more ~”
Hi! I was wondering what hodo meant in this context
1)つまんない記憶ほど頭に蘇える
And
2)殺したい記憶ほど頭を支配する
Thank you!
@Katherine
Hi Katherine
1) The trivial memories come back to use more.
(←The more boring the memories are, the more you remember)
2) Not sure if this 殺す literally means to kill someone or kill certain memories. But the pattern is the same as 1)
Let say 殺したい記憶 means 忘れたい記憶
The more you want to delete the memory, the more it comes back to you.
Hi. I very frequently see the particle を at the end of a sentence in songs. 西部に活力を！What does this mean?
覚えてるかな？涙の空を。
傷付かない強さよりも、傷付けない優しさを。
忘れないでね、笑顔の訳を。
いつまでも追いかけているあなたの残像を
@Sandra
Hello, Sandra.
That を is an object marker.
In lyrics or poems, they often switch the order of words.
That is called 倒置法(=touchihou), inversion of the word order in a sentence.
Let me show you what I am talking about.
The original sentence was
涙の空を(1) 覚えているかな(2) ？
→ 覚えているかな (Do you remember?) then follow (object) 涙の空を the teary sky
This is the same word order in English. Do you remember(2) the teary sky (1)? but in Japanese it is a reversed order.
The same pattern in the following sentences. (I won’t translate but will how you how they switch the word order.)
Original sentence 笑顔の訳を忘れないでね。
→忘れないでね、笑顔の訳を。
Original sentence あなたの残像をいつまでも追いかけている
→いつまでも追いかけているあなたの残像を
The only confusing part is the second line because it doesn’t have a main verb.
傷付かない強さ(B)よりも、傷付けない優しさ(A) を。
It could be Have A instead of B (more than B)
Hey, thanks for this lesson!
I have a question about something else today.
The first time I was learning japanese, my teacher told me to always use the particle が for things like “好き”, and to use で when talking about a language, like in “I speak english”.
Now I am having classes to improve my kanji and the books have examples of cases using the を particle, and the teacher said it is okay.
So I am confused, which is more correct to use? And is it common to use を in those cases?
@reid
Hello reid,
Though が好き is much more common, there are cases that you use を
When it modifies a noun.
Ex. 日本が/を好きな人 a person who likes Japan
Ex. こんな映画を/が好きな人はいない。Nobody would like such a movie.
Ex.この本が好きです。 I like this book (Xを is strange.)
Ex.あなたが好きです。I love you. (Xを is not natural)
And when you talk about something in English, you say で but when you speak English in general, you use を
私は英語を話す I speak English
私は英語で話す I speak in English
It all depends on the example sentences that your Japanese teacher taught. But I guess your teacher wanted to teach you the most common way to use the particles or didn’t want to confuse you teaching other possibilities.
OOHH! I get it! Thanks! I wish I could be your student, hahahaha.
@reid
You’re very welcome! :s:
THANKS maggie sensie :cryingfirl: !CHECKHEART! !CHECKHEART!
your website help mo so much :w:
faito ~~~ !niconico! !heartsippai!
@Sully
Hi Sully! Thank YOU for visiting this site,too!
はい、がんばりますよ〜！(= I will do my best!) !niconico!
やっほマギー＾ ＾ お久しぶりですね！
Maggie, I found in my grammar book (ばかりに lesson) an idiom and I don’t know, if I translate it correctly.
男の風上にも置けない奴 （in: 出世したいばかりに、恋人を裏切り、社長令嬢と結婚するなんて男の風上にも置けない奴だ。）
I think 男の風上にも置けない奴 = He doesn’t desire to be called a man / It’s a shame to called him a man / He is not to be treated as a man / He is just a disgrace to the man.
Which translation fits here (in this sentence) the best, in your opinion?
「…の風上にも置けない…」の２～３文を作ってくださいませんか。
ヨロシク!
＠天人
やっほ〜〜2u2!
Your translation of 風上にも置けない is correct.
Usually 男の〜、人の〜 and it describes a despicable person who takes advantage of others.
Ex. 盗んだカードで旅行に行くなんて人の風上にも置けない。
Ex. 女性に暴力をふるうなんて男の風上にも置けない。
了解です！ありがとう、先生！
I really appreciate that I can always count on you!
@天人
どういたしまして！ boucingheart!
Great job as always, love this website. Keep them coming
!happyface! !heart3!
I used to use uchi(うち) sorry for the terrible hiragana and no kanji, I’m still learning. Anyway, I used to use uchi, but I started using jibun instead because it’s technically gender-neutral but used more by men and I find it suits me. I only use that informally and just use watakushi or watashi in formal situations. Is my usage correct?
@Kii-kun
Basically if you and people around you are fine you calling yourself 自分,then fine.
In Kansai area, some women address themselves うち but in general, when you use うち, it refers to your family or home/house.
And as I mentioned in my lesson, 自分 sounds a bit distant and in some cases it sounds like military speech.
But if nobody has told you anything then that’s fine.
Thank you sensei!
@Kii-kun
どういたしまして！
As always thank you for the lessons !JYANE!
Today the kanji’s are a little daunting !BOO!!
@iza
Haha, don’t worry about all the kanji so much.
But it will help if you recognize some of them, such as 方面=houmen= For (destination) / ~ 線(=sen) ~ Line, etc.
がんばって！
Konnichiwa :k: !
I just wanted to ask what you should say when leaving a restaurant, something in the line of “Have a nice day”. I´ve heard people say “otsukaresama”, but i thought that was for coworkers only.
@Cristina
Konnichiwa, Cristina!
You are right. Otsukare sama is strange.
If you are a customer, you just tell them “ごちそうさまでした=Gochisou sama deshita.” / “美味しかったです= Oishikatta desu= It was delicious” / If you want to come again, “また来ます= Mata kimasu.” I will be back. But we don’t usually say Have a nice day = いい日を過ごして下さい。
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I’m Jill from Vietnam. And I’m working for a resort as receptionist. Most of our guests at this period from Japan, so can you teach me some Japanese sentences which we can use for my work.
Thanks & Best Regards,
Jill
good day dear maggie sensei.
thank you much so much for explaining their differences.
recently whenever i have time, i randomly read comments on facebook and i happen to see a sentence that goes like this:
Q1
1. Aさんは喜んだことでしょう。
this was the first time i saw こと in this usage.
i would like to ask what is the purpose of こと here?
or is it a shortcut for喜んだことがあるでしょう。
[a-san experienced being happy]?
if this is out of context then, i will just forget about it.
2. 人混みに出る時はマスクを着用すること。
3. 帰宅したら手洗いとうがいをすること。
(got these from [風邪 （＝kaze) cold related Lesson)
i would like also to ask what is the role of こと at the end of the sentences?
————–
Q2
i was able to read all the lessons about the tenses but i would like to clarify something for
たいと思う。
please correct me if I got these all wrong.
i just based my observation on all the examples i have seen so far.
1. 私は日本に行きたいと思います。
I would like to go to japan.
2.私は日本に行きたいと思っています。
I would like to go to japan.
though they have the same translation [2] implies that the speaker has been thinking/planning to go to japan (within a certain period of time).
———–
Q3
can I use「諦めず」＋「に」to say:
[do not give up.]?
———-
Q4
i was able to read the lesson about [になる vs となる] but i am not really sure
if i can apply it with出会う.
1.彼女に出会う
2.彼女と出会う
i would like to ask what is the difference between the two?
————
Q5
彼女に早く寝ろと言った。
I told her to sleep early.
Though寝ろ is a command form, it does not necessarily mean that i commanded her to sleep early, but it could also mean that i politely told/asked her to go to bed early. and if was to put 寝てor 寝て下さい before と言った, i would be needing to use「」but the meaning would slightly change because it would become:
彼女に「早く寝て下さい」と言った。= a direct quote.
————-
Q6
1. 海外にはよく行きますか?
(got this from 頻度(=hindo) Frequency)
2. 近所の人には自分から声をかけましょう。
(got this from [私＋自分= watashi + jibun lesson]).
3. 軽過ぎる男には要注意！
(got this from [karui/charai] lesson)
4. 風邪の初期には生姜湯が効きます。
(got this from [風邪 （＝kaze) cold related Lesson)
5. 7時には帰って下さい.
(got this from dictionary.)
には makes the sentence a bit more softer, but it only applies with sentence [1] which the format is [location/name] に/へ [motion verb].
from [2] to [5] は stressed the word before に.
————-
Q7
1. 高い本は図書館にあります。
2. 図書館に高い本があります。
3. 図書館には高い本があります。
1. an expensive book is in the library.
(telling the location of the高い本)
2. there is an expensive book in the library.
(telling that 高い本 is the thing/one that exists in the library)
3. in the library, there is an expensive book.
(the library has an expensive book.)
in #[3], 図書館 has been stressed out.
—————-
Q8
1. その新曲は可愛いじゃないか
2. その新曲は可愛いんじゃない？
3. その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。
1. the new song is really cute (amazed)
2. the new song is cute, don’t you think? (opinion with tag question)
but [3], without a context, could be translated as
a. the new song is not cute (opinion with explanatory tone).
b. the new song is really cute (when you make your point).
————
Q9
このラスイチのお菓子は、広島名物、「紅葉まんじゅう！」です！
誰が「遠慮のかたまり」を食べたって？当ててみて！
(got this from enryo no katamari)
i would like to ask what is the missing word after [食べたって?] or [って?] is another way to ask?
———
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei.
＠obakasan000
Hello! How have you been?
Since you have 9 questions, let me answer your question little by little. I will come back here again when I have more time.
Q1.
こと has many usages.
1) talking about one’s experiences
喜んだことがあるでしょう。
2)
人混みに出る時はマスクを着用すること。
帰宅したら手洗いとうがいをすること。
Verb plain form + こと= You must ~~ = When you tell people what to do, when you explain some rules.
3) ことでしょう・ことだろう
When you assume someone’s feeling or what was happening, you use ことだろう/ ことでしょう
Usually it is use with どんなに, どれだけ、どれほど,etc.
Aさんは喜んだことでしょう。
= Aさんは（どんなに）喜んだことでしょう。
= I assume A was very happy.
Ex. お父様が亡くなられてどんなにつらかったことでしょう。
= It must have been really hard for you to lose your father.
= I assume it was really hard for you to lose your father.
Q2.
Ah OK,
1. 私は日本に行きたいと思います。
I would like to go to japan.
2.私は日本に行きたいと思っています。
I would like to go to japan.
2) could be translated “I have been wanted to go to Japan.”
思っています focuses on the current feeling more.
Q.3
I don’t know if I understand your question but
Don’t give up is 諦めないで
If you meant to say “Keep doing whatever you do without giving it up” then you say 諦めずに今やっていることを続けなさい”
Q 4.
１）Aと出会う (focusing on who you met, “A”)
２）Aに出会う (focusing on the fact you met A.)
Q5)
Though寝ろ is a command form, it does not necessarily mean that i commanded her to sleep early, but it could also mean that i politely told/asked her to go to bed early.
→But we can assume he used a strong command form.
The neutral way to say
Someone told her to go to bed early will be 彼女に早く寝るように言った。
As you said, you could use “direct quote”, 彼女に「早く寝て下さい」と言った。= a direct quote.
But you could also say 彼女に早く寝なさいと言った。/ 早く寝てと言った。
Q6) Wow! You really are studying really hard using my lessons. :)
1. location marker に + は to show the contrast (stressed the word before)
2. Object marker に+ は to show the contrast (stressed the word before)
3. For (purpose)
4. by the time
Q.7) You got them right.
Q. 8)
1. Right. But please note that it is a male speech so it sounds a bit rough.
2. Right.
The problem is 3.
a) We don’t say その新曲は可愛いんじゃない。when you want to say “the new song is not cute” We say その新曲はかわいくない
b) the new song is really cute (when you make your point). It should be 2) その新曲は可愛じゃない。
Q. 9)
食べたって（言ったの）？
So it missing 言った？言ったの？言ったのですか？
Hello :tulip3:
I’ve just found you blog and it looks totally 面白い!
Now it’s almost midnight so I go to sleep soon, but I will definitely go back to you tomorrow :-D
Have a nice day
＠Hanna
Hello Hanna!
Welcome to our site!
There are many lessons here. Hope you come back here again and again. :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Im beginner, and im working for a hotel as a receptionist. Can you teach me some sentences for check in and check out at the hotel?
Thanks & Best regards,
Jill (from Vietnam)
@Jill
Hi Jill,
OK, I think checking-in and checking-out-Japanese might be useful for many people.
I will make a lesson for you. Please wait patiently.
I think I made duplicate posting… so sorry about that.
Anyway, thanks for your reply and I’m waiting for your lesson !JYANE!
@Jill
Yes, I got your comment yesterday.
Are there any particular phrases that you really need to know? I can include them in the lesson. (If they are not so general, I will teach them here in the comment section.)
Hello Maggie-sensei! How are you? I hope you are fine.
I just have a question about “toka” usage.
I’m just having a hard time understanding how “toka” is used in this sentence:
日本に旅行とか行くの？
How was is used in this kind of sentence?
Thank you so much, Maggie-sensei!
@Ritsuko
Hello, Ritsuko!! I’m good! Thank you for asking! :)
日本に旅行とか行くの？
This とか has is the usage that I explained in 4)
Do you sometimes go to Japan or something?
4) To avoid sounding assertive (colloquial) : ~ or something
This とか (=toka) doesn’t have any specific meaning but has functions as a way to soften the tone of one’s speech in some cases.
By adding とか (=toka), you can express something not too directly.
So the speaker could have asked
旅行に行くの？
but by using とか, it soften the question.
It is a very colloquial usage.
Young people especially tend to use this kind of とか (=toka).
oooooh! I see! That’s why. Thank you so much for all the help Maggie-sensei!
Honestly, ever since I knew about your site, I have been improving on self-studying about the Japanese language! I have been taking notes all the time! I hope you’ll love and continue what you’re doing! I’m very glad!! Thank you so much Maggie-sensei!
@Ritsuko
You’re very welcome! I feel flattered to read your comment. Thank you for your nice words! ありがとう！
Whenever you have time, What exactly is the difference between…
『のに』と『には』? to mean the same as for the purpose of?
こんにちはマギー先生！
「させる」と「させられる」を使う時、助詞の「を」と「に」についてよく混乱します！基本のルールとかはありますか？
例文を作ってみたんですが
「彼女は結婚式で私をブライズメードにさせてくださって光栄に思います」
それとも「を」と「に」は逆であるべきでしょうか？「私に。。ブライズメードを。。。」？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
いい質問ですね。まず
「彼女は結婚式で私をブライズメードにさせてくださって光栄に思います」
の文章ですが、言い直すと
彼女は私をブライドメイドにさせた（ことを光栄に思う）
となるので「彼女が私を無理にブライドメイドにした=She forced me to be her braidmaid 」というニュアンスが入ります。
ですから、「彼女が私にブライドメイドをさせてくださったことを光栄に思います。」
ただ、もう少し自然な日本語では「彼女が私をブライドメイドに選んで下さったことを光栄に思います。」の方がいいかもしれませんね。
＊＊＊
「に」と「を」ですが、
I made him clean the room
私は彼に部屋の掃除をさせる
(主語：私）
He was forced to clean the room by me.
彼は私に部屋の掃除をさせられる
（主語：彼）
この例をみてわかる様に「に」は行為をさせる人、させられる人、両方に使います。
(As you can see, you use “に” for someone who makes you do something and someone who is forced to do something.)
I made HIM clean the room.
He was forced to clean the room BY ME.
「を」は、「させる・させられる」行為に使います。
(「を」is used for t what you made someone do/ what someone made you do)
Lavaに宿題です。
「は」、「を」、「に」を入れてみてください。
1) 先生（ ）生徒（ ）文（ ）書かせる
2) 生徒（ ）先生（ ）文（ ）書かされる
3) お母さん（ ）手伝い（ ）させられる
4) お母さん（ ）子供（ ）手伝い（ ）させる
説明してくれてありがとうございました！
宿題の文章なんですが、やって見ました。
1) 先生（は）生徒（に）文（を）書かせる
2) 生徒（は）先生（に）文（を）書かされる
3) お母さん（に）手伝い（を）させられる
4) お母さん（は）子供（に）手伝い（を）させる
でも、なんで「マギーはマックスを泣かせた。」と「子供をキャンプに行かせる。」には「に」ではなくて「を」が使われていますかな？The above sentences and these two sentences both seem to be “made to do”.
＠Lava
宿題、全問正解です！
では、もう少し詳しく説明しますね。
基本的に使う動詞が自動詞か他動詞かをみてください。
★他動詞(transitive verb) You need を
生徒が文を書く
→先生が生徒に文を書かせる
→生徒は先生に文を書かされる
子供が手伝いをする
→お母さんが子供に手伝いをさせる
→子供はお母さんに手伝いをさせられる
★自動詞 (intransitive verb) You don’t need を
*マックスが泣く (Original Sentence)
→マギーがマックスを泣かせる
*子供が（キャンプに this に is a direction marker）行く
→親が子供を（キャンプに）行かせる
＊でも例外があります。
Exceptions : 待つ （他動詞=transitive verb)
友達が待つ
→私は友達を待たせる
詳しい説明本当にありがとう！
大体分かったような気がします！ :-P
@Lava
よかった！！またいつでもここで練習してくださいね。
I love every lesson you’ve made Sensei. :-)
@John
Thank you!!! ありがとう！ boucingheart!
Sensei, I’m just wondering whether ～ている in the two sentences below indicates a resultative state?
最近は作曲をしたりしてるんだ。休日は、食べたり寝たりして過ごしています。
@Akatsuki
Hello!
最近は作曲をしたりしてるんだ。→作曲をしている
休日は、食べたり寝たりして過ごしています。→食べている・寝ている
These are on going habitual actions connected with たり (V and V and such)
Thank you very much for this lesson, Maggie!
Also we can sometimes see べし which is the 終止形 of べき used in Classical Japanese (in fact the verb べし has 6 different meanings in Classical Japanese, in Modern Japanese there’s only one meaning).
EX) もっと日本語を勉強すべし。（＝もっと日本語を勉強すべき。）
The negative form of classical べし in 未然形 is べからず.
EX) 公園の掲示に「芝生に入るべからず」と書いてあった。（＝公園の掲示に「芝生に入るべきではない」と書いてあった。）
In the middle of the sentence べからざる is used as the 連体形 of べし.
EX) 許すべからざる行動。（＝許すべきではない行動）
I think that’s all what I wanted to add ^w^
@天人
Nice follow up! ありがとう！天人さん！ !niconico!
Hello, can you tell me what’s the difference between MORAU and UKETORU,
Thanks in advance :)
@123
Hello 123,
OK, the difference between もらう(=morau) and 受け取る(=uketoru)
1) 誕生日に毎年、彼からバラの花をもらう
= Tanjoubi ni maitoshi kara bara no hana wo morau
= I get roses from my boyfriend (or him) every year on my birthday.
Focusing on the fact that I got a favor from him.
2) 花屋からそのバラの花を受け取る
= Hanaya kara sono bara no hana wo uketoru
= I received those roses.
I simply receive them as an action from the flower shop or a delivery person.
(When someone hand out something and you receive it/them, you use 受け取る=uketoru)
3) 結婚したとき叔父からお祝い金をもらった。
= Kekkon shita toki oji kara oiwaikin wo moratta.
= When I got married, ←I got some gift-money from my uncle(←my uncle gave me some gift-money. )
Focusing on the fact that I got a favor from my uncle.
4) 父は、年金を受け取っている。
= Chichi wa, nenkin wo uketotte iru.
= My father has been receiving pension.
Just focusing on the fact that he is getting pension. Government pays him money and he accepts/takes it.
Thanks for this great lesson! I had some lingering doubts about the use of beki, but now I have learned about it and more.
＠reid
Hi reid! Good to hear you have learned something from this lesson. :)
I think お土産 is not considered as Ateji. It is Jukujikun I think. “Jukujikun are when the standard kanji for a word are related to the meaning, but not the sound”. But Ateji “principally refer to kanji used phonetically to represent native or borrowed words without regard to the underlying meaning of the characters”.
@Aidin
Wow! You are very good! I checked it and there seems to have two theories. (土産 could be 当て字 or 熟字訓）
Also there a fine line between 当て字 and 熟字訓. We mix them up sometime or some consider 熟字訓 a part of 当て字.
According to the etymology dictionary, 土産 was originally from all different words. I can’t copy and paste here so please go check the site.
Anyway thank you for your comment.
I am sorry but I can’t go too deep in this lesson. :)
マギー先生、レッスンありがとうございました！とても良い勉強になりました！
@Lava
Lava、早速、読んでくれてありがとう！
Sensei, how do I know if the subject “you, I, we, they”?
In this sentence, you use subject “you”. この映画は絶対に観るべきだ。
Whereas here, you use “we” as a subject. あんな派手な結婚式をする べきではありませんでした。
Can you explain? I’m rather perplexed to determine it.
@Akatsuki
Unlike many textbook Japanese, we often skip the subject in natural Japanese so it is hard for you to determine the subject in some short example sentences.
Only the speaker/writer can decide. In this lesson it’s me. :)
That “you” is “you in general” so you can be replaced with “we”
あんな派手な結婚式をする べきではありませんでした。
I meant to write the example to show the regrets of the speaker so I used “we” as a subject. But it could be “I”
Yeah, when I was starting I had the same questions. Over time you will learn that in general you just pick up the subject by context.
Ninaも日本に行くべきです。 should be Ninaも東京に行くべきです。
@Maroun
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I meant to say Japan. I fixed it. ありがとう！ :)
Hi Maggie! Love your site. I’ve been working my way through all of your mini-lessons, and filling in some of the many gaps in my Japanese knowledge.
May I make a suggestion for this page?
やっぱり is very often used to mean “on second thought,” or “after all.” I ｔhink it would be very useful to your readers to be aware of this common usage!
やっぱりいらない。 –> On second thought, I don’t want it.
やっぱりいい。 –> Actually, that’s fine. (Never mind.)
やっぱり行く。 –> I think I’ll go after all.
@Moon
Hello Moon, thank you for your suggestion!
I will add the information later. ありがとう！
Thanks so much. I have seen adverbs such as 今日、最近 etc, also followed by は. Does this work the same as above, showing a contrast?
今日は日本語でも教えるよ。
最近は作曲をしたりしてるんだ。And if the particle は is dropped in the above. Is there any difference?
Does the particle は here also indicate a contrast, Sensei?
子供の頃は手作りのおもちゃで遊んでいたものだ。
@Akatsuki
I have seen adverbs such as 今日、最近 etc, also followed by は. Does this work the same as above, showing a contrast?
→Yes.
And yes, you could drop は if you don’t show the contrast or emphasize the time related words.
Ex.最近、作曲をしたりしているんだ。
(I would leave は in the last sentence though. It will be more natural to say 〜の頃は〜したものだ）
Thank you so much Maggie Sensei!
@Akatsuki
You’re very welcome! :)
Hello sensei. Why don’t these sentences use the particle を?
1. このソフトはよく使っていた。
2. 日本語はアニメを観 たり マギー先生のサイトも使って勉強します。
Why not say このソフトを… and 日本語を…?
@Akatsuki
You can say
このソフトをよく使っていた
アニメを観たりマギー先生のサイトも使って日本語を勉強します。
When you want to emphasize the object and show the contrast you use は
1. このソフトはよく使っていた。(emphasizing このソフト/ Maybe not other software but I used to use “THIS SOFTWARE” ）
2. 日本語は~勉強します。(emphasizing 日本語/ I may use other method when I study some other language but, this is how I study JAPANESE. )
So は has a function to show contrast and you can use it as an object marker.
I will show you other example.
私は甘いものを食べます。
= I eat sweets (in general)
私は甘いものは食べます。
= I eat SWEETS (but maybe not something else.)
Ex. アニメを観ます。(I watch animations)
Ex. アニメは観ます。(I watch animations but maybe not other stuff.)
マギー先生こんにちは！
「〜たり」は受身形でどうやって使いますか？
例文を作ってみたんですが、どうですか？
「彼女は中学校の頃に殴られたり、押されたり、仲間はずれされたりしてしょっちゅう苛められた。」
She was bullied often in middle school; she was often hit, pushed and left out by others.
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
〜たりを受身形で使う時は”（ら）れたり”でつなげばいいです。
「彼女は中学校の頃に殴られたり、押されたり、仲間はずれされたりしてしょっちゅう苛められた。」
*仲間はずれされたり→でもいいのですが、”仲間はずれにされたり”の方が自然だと思います。
あとは完璧です！！
このサイトは、日本語が上達するために、とても役立ちます。 ありがとうございます。 できたら、質問が一つあります。『約束はしないままでいたいよ。』『ままでいる』と『ままである』が分かりません。少し暇があったら、教えてください。
I tried to type this out in Japanese to practice a bit, hopefully it makes sense. I’m just not sure what ままでいたい is doing in this sentence. Thank you for your time.
@Danny G
こんにちは、Danny G!
ままでいる= to stay in certain state (intentionally) It involves the intention of the subject.
ままである= to remain in certain state : To see the state objectively.
Ex. 部屋は掃除されないままであった。
= The room remained uncleaned. (You are talking about the room.)
Ex. 部屋を掃除しないままでいた。
= Someone left the room uncleaned. (intentionally)
Ahhhh. So the で here is just です in て form? Still not sure what the translation of the sentence would be though. Something like “I want the promise to remain unmade”? Or something like that?
ありがとうございます
@Danny G
Right ~ ままです・ままだ →to remain ~ and ~ = ~ままで
And yes, you got the direct translation right.
→I want the promise to remain unmade
Alright. Thank you so much for helping me. まま seems to be the hardest piece of grammar for me to understand. Sorry for bothering you
Thanks again!
@Danny G
You’re welcome!
Don’t think it is too hard. If you know it means “to remain/stay in certain state” you can eventually figure it out.
You may want to know the difference of usage between~ている and ~てある.
If you want to know more, check
How to use てある
How to use ている
I took your advice and read your
How to use てある
How to use ている
Posts. Yet something is confusing me, maybe I’ve just read it wrong? According to this above post
ままでいる= to stay in certain state (intentionally) It involves the intention of the subject.
ままである= to remain in certain state : To see the state objectively.
Yet in the てある post. There’s two examples that contradict this.
電気がついている
= Denki ga tsuite iru
= The light is on.
(You are just describing the current state.)
電気がつけてある
= Denki ga tsukete aru
= The light is on. (Someone turned on the light on purpose)
So which one is intentional and otherwise? Seems てある is intentional and the other is just stating the state it’s in. Am I confused? Thanks again!
＠Danny G
I am sorry. Maybe sending you to tearu and teiru lesson confused you more.
I know why you got confused. While ~ままでいる usually involves intention of the subject, the subject of ている could be “people” or “things/condition”.
You always have to pay attention to the subjects.
It could be really hard to know if there is someone behind the sentence but
電気がつけてある(someone left the light on intentionally) =someoneが電気をつけておいてある
電気がついている(just the state/ subject is “light”) The light is on
If we go into the difference between these type of ている, it may confuse you more so let’s go back to your original question.
約束をしないままでいる
the subject is the speaker and it involved the speaker’s intention so you use ままでいる
お久しぶりですよね！マギー先生、お元気ですか？日本語が学習に戻りましたよ〜 色々なものを忘れてしまったのでなかなか繰り返す必要がありました。とても恥ずかしいです。とにかく、「なかなか」について簡単ように見えるけれども最新の用法はなかなか厳しいようですよ。
これを使いにくいと思います。というか覚えにくいですよ。
@ocd
Welcome back!!! おかえりなさい！日本語の勉強は久しぶりですか？でも日本語きちんとかけていますよ。
また時々このサイトに勉強しにきてくださいね。
How would you say: “it’s already late where you are, please sleep well”
@Marie
もう（the name where you are)は遅い時間だから＋もう寝て下さい。ゆっくり休んでね。(ね suffix = girl/casual)
Hello teacher. Why isn’t 寝ていた here translated “I was sleeping”?
う～ん、昨日は家でずっと寝ていたから、今日は日本語でも教えるよ。
Also, how does でも work? I don’t see its translation here.
@Akatsuki
Hello Akatsuki
Ah, OK, Maybe you can’t see the function of でも from the translation.
Can you tell the difference in the following sentences?
1) 日本語を教えます。
2) 日本語でも教えます。
While 1) is very specific. →I will teach Japanese. 2) is more vague. →I will do something like teaching Japanese. →I guess I will teach Japanese or something like that.
1) Aをする= to do A (specific)
2) Aでもする= to do something like A (less specific/ to do something for example ~ )
Why thank you. I have another question. How do you make passive voice? For instance: Her car is parked in front of the department store.
This conversation could be tapped.
@Akatsuki
彼女の車はデパートの前に駐車された。されました
= Kanojo no kuruma wa depaato no mae ni chuusha sareta/ saremashita.
But we don’t say that so much. We say
彼女はデパートの前に駐車した/ 駐車しました。
= Kanojo wa depaato no mae ni chuusha shita./chuusha shimashita.
more.
The first, so the～する can be used to make passive form instead of ～される ?
The second, I have seen people using ～ている for passive form. So, could you shed any light on this subject?
@Akatsuki
The passive form of する is される.
What you have seen is されている= has been done.
ありがとう Magie Sensei！I look forward to your next lesson. :)
@dwishiren
どういたしまして！またいつでもこのサイトに来て下さいね。次のレッスンも今週中にアップしますよ〜♩
Isn’t no 1 not natural if using 〜る?
1) 朝食にはいつも何を食べますか？
2) 朝食にはいつも何を食べていますか？
While in this sentence if using oshieru sounds not natural. 私は、マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている。
@dwinshiren
When you describe what you do in general , to talk about your daily routine, you can use both る and ている
朝食にはいつもパンを食べる／食べます。 （habitual actions/custom )
朝食にはいつもパンを食べている。／食べています。（habitual actions/custom / describing the actions more vividly)
But when you talk about what you do as a job, ている is more natural.
マギー先生のサイトで日本語を教えている／教えています。（describing what you do for living.)
Ex. 警察官をしています。(X 警察官をします。）
Ex. 大きな会社で働いています。。(X 大きな会社で働きます。）
hi !cryingboy!
what it means when “youni” appears at the end of the sentence, like “koto dekinai youni na”
@Veron
Hi Veron, how come you are crying???
~ように(=youni)
~ koto ga dekinai you ni?
In order not to do something.
As I explained in the part
★When you warn someone to do something or give someone an order.
and
★When you wish for something
we finish the sentence with ~ように
Thank you very much !BOO!!
@Veron
You’re welcome! Boo!!
hi can you please give me a sample in presenting new clothing line in nihonggo? we are having a japanese presentation in class and our group is tasked to present new era of kimonos. It includes the history of kimonos and how we came up with such an idea of revising the kimonos into a fashionable way. Our sensei wants everything in japanese and i am having a trouble in this project. pls reply. i would really appreciate it.
thanks.
@jadine
Hi jadine
It is hard to help you because I don’t know how you want to present new type of kimono.
新しい時代に融合した着物
新世紀の着物
現代ファッションとしての着物
something like that?
My suggestion : Use Japanese google and go check modern kimono sites and see how they introduce kimono.
Good luck!
How can you say, “I want to wear a yukata,” in the context of talking about yukatas. I’m writing to my Japanese friend in Tokyo, and I want to reply back. Thank you, Kaylie.
＠Kayle
You say 浴衣を着たいです。
If you meant to tell your friend, “I would love to try wearing yukata” you say 浴衣を着てみたいです。= Yukata wo kite mitai desu. (Between friends 浴衣を着てみたいな。= Yukata wo kite mitai na)
Thank you so much, Maggie! I’m going to tell my Japanese classmates about this site!
@Kaylie
You’re welcome! boucingheart!
Hi Maggie-sensei
I have probably the same problem as 90% of the commenters, but I still can’t tell the difference between “v+teiru” for doing something right now, and “v+teiru” for have done something. How am I supposed to know the difference?
Like:
そんなことはもうわかっています。 if I say そんなことはもうわかった。 what’s the difference?
and the difference between 思ってた and 思った.
思ってた can mean both “was thinking” and “thought” right?
@Amanda
Hi Amanda,
I know many people seem to have a problem with the difference between 〜た and 〜ている,etc so I made verb tense related lessons.
I just released a lesson on verb tense (Verb present tense + future tense) and will release a past tense next week.
I think I covered ている/ ていた in those lessons.
わかっている (わかっています) = I have known that (from certain time in past to present time)
わかった I got that (in particular time)
思っていた= I have been thinking (the whole time) or was thinking (depending on the context)
思った= I thought
marlowe先生、すみません
第一の例の漢字が違うよー ~>
「せっかく彼女とデートする為に車を買ったのに断られた。」
Even though I rented a car to go on a date with her, she turned me down.
「借りた」もっと正しいです。＾＾
@Siberian husky
ありがとう！！直しました。
Thank you so much for making this lesson 先生。I really appreciate it. :-)
＠John
And I appreciate your nice comment! ありがとう！ :)
I see when you say テレビを観ている。You use the kanji 観 what is the difference between this kanji and 見? Could you use 見 in it’s place?
＠Courtney
You can use them both. 見る is more general and 観る is mainly used to when you enjoy watching/seeing something. (games, movies, shows,etc.)
Awesome! Thanks that is good to know. This was a good lesson I feel like I leveled up! :uparrow: :-D
@Courtney
You’re welcome!
You may also want to know….
聞く= kiku = to hear (more general)
Ex. うわさを聞く= to hear the rumor
聴く= kiku to listen （to listen to something attentively)
Ex. 音楽を聞く= to listen to the music
Thank you!!!!!!!!
@Courtney
boucingheart!
hello maggie sensei..!
i’d like to make a sentence. “Watashi wa kono kanji wo kakinikui desu”
is it correct?
@yaya
Hello yaya!
“Watashi wa kono kanji wo kakinikui desu”
The basic pattern is A is ~ yasui/nikui = Something is easy/difficult to do something
You put “watashi” as a subject so change the subject particle “(watashi) wa” to “(watashi) niwa” which means “for (me)” and put “kanji” as a subject using a particle “wa”
I’ll show you
漢字は書きにくいです。
= Kanji wa kakinikui desu.
= Kanji is difficult to write
+ add “for me” 私には(=watashi niwa)
→私には漢字は書きにくいです。
= Watashi niwa kanji wa kakinikui desu.
You can also say 私にとっては= Watashi ni tottewa for “for me”.
Hello Maggie sensie .. I learned a lot of Japanese through your site . Aregatou Guzaiimashita.!
Hi Lhea!
I’m happy to hear you learned a lot here! :)
thank you very much maggie-sensei, your explanation is very clearly^^
ima wakaru you ni narimashita, arigatou gozaimashita maggie-sensei.
「せっかくだから、他のポストを読まない？」 いいですかこの文章？
＠Japanese Learner
Hello!!
「せっかくだから、他のポストを読まない？」
It’s correct.
But are you talking about some blog and wanted to say “read other posts as well since you are here?” If so
せっかくだから、他のポストも読まない？
（ポスト could be 記事、投稿 depending on what kind of posts..)
owh, も particle is better (forget)
, 記事/投稿=POST/ARTICLE, oke, new vocab :)
and I am waiting for the next lessons from Maggie-sensei and friends^^ !BOO!!
@Japanese Learners
!happyface! !CHECKHEART!
What a coincidence! I’m learning present + future tense in my Japanese classes now too!
ところで、あの…
@Jane
Hi Jane! Yes, what a coincidence, huh?
Were you trying to say something else? →(ところで あの..)
Sorry, I accidentally hit a keyboard shortcut that caused the message to be submitted before I was done typing.
ところで、あの…実は…これはNemoじゃありません。Tofu なんです ：）
In any case, thank you so much for this lesson. I learned new things here as always! (eg. 教える & 教えます are used to refer to future actions, and not something you do in general.)
@Jane
あ〜〜〜NemoとTofu先生のお姉さんのJaneだったのね。わ〜〜〜ごめんなさい。名前変えておきます。
Sorry!!! I must have mixed them up. The realy Nemo-sensei will teach next week. I will fix the name but it will take several hours. Please wait.
Thank you so much for introducing me many nice teachers!! Please apologize Tofu-sensei (such a lovely name..)
Oh okay that’s really interesting. Arigatou Sensei! ^_~
＠Reibun (Raven)
Douitashimashite! !happyface! !CHECKHEART!
Your basic lessons are so helpful I always learn something new reading them. Thanks!
Also
“Ex. 今日は家でずっと勉強をしている。
= Konshuu wa zutto ie de benkyou shiteimasu.”
Shouldn’t the romaji here be “Kyou wa ie de zutto benkyou shiteimasu”?
I look forward to your next lesson!
@reid
Hi reid!
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. I will release verb tense Part 2 next week. Please come back to study. :)
Hi Maggie,
I was kind of nervous when my friend told me to call several restaurants to make reservation for our Japan trip next week!
Thank god that I just came across your website before I made the calls :D
Thanks to the lesson above, I’ve made all my reservations successfully.
I would just like to share with you that there’s one thing that I encountered when I called the restaurants.
They would always ask for my phone number, but since I am not going to stay at the hotel / 民宿 / a friend’s place, I really can’t provide a phone number. At that moment, I just told them 連絡先がありません。
Though they still accepted my booking at the end, I wonder for the case of no phone number that I can provide (like not even a hotel number), is there a better way to say it in Japanese?
Thank you so much!!!
@Winnie
Hi Winnie!!
You are coming to Japan next week. How exciting!!
If you don’t know where you are going to stay,
Ex. まだ滞在先がわからないので日本での連絡先がないのですが。
Mada taizai saki ga wakaranainode nihon deno rennrakusaki ga nai no desuga.
= I don’t know where I am going to stay yet so I don’t have a contact information.
Ex. まだどこに泊まるかわからないのですが。
= Mada doko ni tomaru ka wakaranai no desuga.
= I still don’t know where I am going to stay. (What should I do..)
Ex. まだ滞在先の予約をしていないのでわかりません。
= Mada taizaisaki no yoyaku wo shiteinai node wakarimasen.
= I haven’t made a reservation of a hotel so I can’t give you the information.
Sometimes they just need your contact information as a formality
Ex.今、住んでいるところの連絡先でいいですか？
= Ima, sunde iru tokoro no renraku saki de iidesuka?
= Will it be OK if I give you where I live right now?
For example if you live in Canada
Ex.まだ、滞在先が決まっていないのでカナダの自宅の電話番号でいいですか？
= Mada, taizaisaki ga kimatte inai node kanada no jitaku no denwabangou de ii desuka?
= I still don’t know where I am staying so will the phone number of my house in Canada be all right?
If they say it is not necessary they say
「では、結構です。」
= Dewa, kekkou desu.
Hope it helps.
Have a nice trip!!
And if you have other questions, please feel free to ask me anytime.
Thank you so much Maggie!! It’s really helpful! I actually tried the first sentence when I had to make another phone call today and the conversation went very well XD (sounds much softer…)
Also I was going to ask what if I need to change the date of reservation…but I just found the answer below!
I bet there must be many people like me struggling at similar situations :D
本当に助かりました！
ありがとうございます！
@Winnie
I worked? Great!!
Now you are ready to come to Japan?
I really hope you have a great time here. !onpu!
たまたま通りかかりました。
とても良いサイトですね。大変でしょうが頑張ってください。
ところで、個数の数え方の部分が、3個＝niko、4個＝niko、5個＝nikoとなっております。
気になりましたのでご報告まで。
@nanashi
ありがとうございます。コピペしたままになっていたみたいです。直しました。またいつでも遊びに来てくださいね。:)
元気です！使用期限ですね、ありがとうございましたマギー先生！
あともう一つ気になる事があるんですが、「…. Doesn’t count」は日本語で何と言いますか？例えば、”Potatos don’t count as one of your 5 a-day vegetables”, “Watching japanese anime doesn’t count as real study”.
A: I love video games!
B: Like what?
A: Candy crush on my phone!
B: Mobile game’s don’t count (as real video games).
＠Lava
元気でよかった〜♪
doesn’t countは「〜は含まれない」「〜は数に入れない」「〜は数に含まれない」「〜は〜〜〜に入らない」「〜は別」などいろいろな言い方があります。その例文でどれを使うか微妙に変わります。
日本のアニメを見ることは本当の勉強には入らない。
日本のアニメを見ることは本当の勉強とは別だ。
日本のアニメを見ることは本当の勉強には含まれない。
***
〜は別です！・(casual)〜は別だよ。
〜は数に入(はい）りません。・(casual)〜は数に入らないよ。etc.
I can’t thank you enough. This is very helpful.
I’m looking forward to your next lesson.
Do you like video games? Or what’s your favorite manga?
ありがとう！
@Kuroineko
Good to hear you found this lesson helpful.
I am not good at video games. I used to enjoy 銀魂.
こんにちはマギー先生！
賞味期限について質問があるんですが、食材以外の物にはなんの言葉が使われていますか？例えば化粧品とかスキンケアの商品とか車とか。
化粧品に賞味期限を使ってしまったことがあって笑われたんです~_~;
@Lava
こんにちは〜Lava!! 元気でしたか？
そうですね、賞味期限や消費期限は主に食品に使うので
化粧品やスキンケア商品には”使用期限”を使いますよ。
sensei, could you teach me all about uses of passive verb. thank you very much. you’re site is very useful in my study.
@yumie
Hello yumie,
I have a causative lesson but I guess I don’t have a lesson on just passive form, huh?
OK, will add it on the request list. :)
This is so AWSOME! What a great explanation. I love all the foods you have written. You are awesome.
@Maya
Hi Maya!
Thank you for the nice comment!
I bet you love cooking (or food!) like I do. :)
こんばんは先生！お元気ですか？
I hope you are fine and in good health.
By the way, can you please tell me what is the most famous Japanese newspaper that most people like to read? Also, I’d appreciate it if you’d give me a link to read any newspaper online.
I have the following questions:
1.”服のサイズを直すことはできますか？and ” ドイツ語を話すことはできますか？” Why did you use the particle “は” instead of “が”?
2.”抱っこする” as I know this “抱っこ” is a child language. Is it acceptable to use it here? or adults also use it?
3. “しいたけ、まつけ、マシュルーム” They all mean “mushroom” but what is the difference? Does Japan have so many types of mushroom or what? I’m so confused.
Also, can you tell me what is the most common word for “mushroom” that people use?
4. Can you teach me the difference between “ただ”and “だけ”?
They both mean it’s just… But what exactly is the difference?
Thank you so much in advance.
@Kuroineko
おはよう！！
The major Japanese newspaper?
朝日新聞
毎日新聞
日経新聞
This is not newspapers but I recommend NHKやさしい日本語
You can hear the news and also study the news with text.
1. You can also say が
You use は when you show the contrast.
You can probably do something else but how about this one? Can you do that?
2. Not really. However sometimes adults say that jokingly. お姫様だっこ = to hold a girl like a princess.
3. They are all different.
椎茸(=shiitake)Lentinula edodes、shiitake mushroom We use this for many different types of Japanese food.
松茸(=matsutake) The very expensive one that we have only in autumn
マッシュルーム(=mushroom) →This is the one is the most universal one.
I can’t post pictures here so Google the image of しいたけ and まつたけ. You will see the difference.
The most common word for mushroom in general is きのこ
4. This is on the request lesson so please wait for the full explanation.
Great to have such a thorough resource tackling one of Japanese’s trillions of adverbs. They can be quite overwhelming at times.
This has really helped, thank you! !DANCING!
@George Porgie
Haha, I know it is one of trillions of adverbs but it’s quite important and useful.
Thank you for your comment! ありがとう！
Hi Maggie Sensei!
Thanks for the very informative lesson! I do have two questions though:
1. どこかで財布をなくしてしまいました。
Why is the particle で here and not に, since this is referring to the location where you put/left something? I thought this was similar to your example – 傘をどこかに忘れてきました。
2. 向こうに大きな川が見えます。
Here, is the particle に because 向こう, which means over there, connotes a direction? At first I thought it is に because it refers to the existence of the river, but the verb is 見えます and not います, so I’m confused.
Thank you!!
@May
Hello May
1.
〜で財布をなくす = I lost my wallet in ~
〜に財布を忘れる= I left my wallet in ~
なくす is an active verb so we consider it as an action. Therefore we use で
→学校でなくした （Not x学校になくした）
忘れる means to leave something and it is a verb to describe some state. (Same as 置く、置き忘れる） So we use に
→家に忘れる （Not x 家で忘れる）
2. 向こうに大きな川が見えます。
向こうに、connotes a direction? Yes.
Also 見える is a verb to describe some state so you use に
(When you say
向こうにある建物は〜です。it indicates location.)
Hello maggie-sensei!
if i want to ask someone for their twitter username how do i say it in japanese?
@emi
Hello Emi!
If you want to know someone’s Twitter name,
ツイッター名を教えて下さい。
(more casual) ツイッター名を教えて。
Thank you for another great lesson, Maggie!
Question: is there a difference between なんか and なにか? Or can they both be used interchangeably to mean “something”?
Thank you!
@Palidor
Hello Palidor,
They mean the same. なんか is a casual form of なにか.
Ex. なにか欲しいものはありますか？
= Nanika hoshii mono wa arimasu ka?
= Is there anything you want?
→Informal
Ex. なんか欲しいものある？
= Nanka hoshii mono aru?
= Anything you want?
Okay, gotcha. Thank you Maggie! :grin:
@Palidor
どういたしまして、Palidor! :)
thanks for your always great lessons!!!
Do you have already a lesson about how to use “なんか“? I hear it all the time in Japanese dramas and real live but a don’t get how to use it. !gejigeji!
Thank you again :) from Spain :kanpai1:
@Fer
Hola Fer!
I have made a lesson on なんて but I only have a mini lesson on なんか
Will make one when I have a time, OK?
Gracias por tu comentario desde Japón. :)
是非の使い方レッソンしてあるかなー
たくさん勉強になったのよ！
ありがとうマギー先生、マロー先生♪
@Melody
「是非」の使い方のレッスンは、まだないです。（レッスンをいっぱい作りすぎてたまに自分が何を作ったのかわからなくなります。）
また機会があったら作りますね♪
Could you help me with this – がっての憧れ
I can’t tell if that means idolizing or longing for in a more romantical manner with those particals
Maggie Sensei, should 「せっかく料理を作ったのにお腹が一杯なの？」 be “Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutta noni onaka ga ippai nano?” instead of “Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutte noni onaka ga ippai nano?” in romaji? :)
@Jane
Hello Jane!
Thank you for spotting the typo. ありがとう！
いつも便利なレッスンありがとうございます！
@Zarana
どういたしまして、Zarana! !CHECKHEART!
Hi Maggie! Thanks again for all your great lessons.
I’ve been confused lately about how to use ている、ていた verbs when describing nouns.
For example:
帽子をかぶっていた人を電車で見た。
帽子をかぶっている人を電車で見た。
If I want to say that this person was wearing a hat at the time I saw this person on the train, which is correct?
And what would be the difference of the meaning of the other sentence?
Thanks so much!! Arigatou gozaimasu
@Patrick
Hi Patrick! おひさしぶり！
a) 帽子をかぶっていた人
b) 帽子をかぶっている人
They are both correct.
The translation could be the same but
a) is close to your English translation, “A person who was wearing a hat at that time” and b) can be translated as “a person wearing a hat”
Usually verb+ていた+noun focuses on the completion of action and ている focuses on the condition.
In this case the verb かぶる(=to wear a hat) is not an active or volitional verb but let see…
1) Someone put on the hat on his/her head. (volitional action)
2) the hat stays in his/her head. (she/he is wearing a hat)
When you see the completion of action and the result (in this case, to put the hat on one’s head and it is on one’s head) you use かぶっていた
and when you just focus on the condition (someone is wearing a hat), you use かぶっている
ありがとう、先生！
@Patrick
どういたしまして !happyface!
Hello! Thanks for your lessons, they’re always helpful.
I have two things to say:
1. “to do something only to to succeed”, did you mean “only to not succeed”?
and “Ex. 「せっかく料理を作ったのにお腹が一杯なの？」 = Sekkaku ryouri wo tsukutte matte ita noni onaka ga ippai nano?”
hmmm they’re not matching, right?
2. Ex. せっかくレポートを書いたのに提出しなくてもよくなった。
Hmm why is the yoi in negative form? I know the “not having to do something” as nakutemo ii, which would be nakutemo yokatta in past form, so I don’t really understand why it needs to be on negative as well…
@reid
Hello reid
1. Sorry for the confusion. That was a typo. to to →to not succeed. I fixed the sentence.
2. I am not sure if I understand your question.
提出しなくてもいい= I don’t have to turn in the report.
提出しなくてもよくなった = after all I don’t have to turn in the report
（〜なった= It ended up/ turned out ）
* Usually ~しなくてもよくなった is used when you are relieved but since the speaker tried really hard writing the report, he/she got disappointed.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH I READ IT WRONG!
I was 1850% sure it was “提出しなくてもよくなかった” instead of just 提出しなくてもよくなった, now I understand it completely, sorry for the confusion too! hahahahaha.
@reid
Whew…Good! Problem solved. :D
待ってます！
ありがとうございました〜♡
返事してくれてありがとう！
Loved the nicknames you came up with! But I was hoping for a word to be added after melody, not to be cut
メロディ〜なにかなにか
Melodychiy for example
Thank you so much! \(//∇//)\
@Melody
Hmm Usually we make a nickname shorten people’s name so メロディーなんとか may sound too long. But If I come up with good one, I will post here.
I came to find to your website by looking for cute slang for nicknames and I started to like your blog! Thank you so much Maggie Chan!
And can you tell me what’s the best to add for Japanese nickname for example melody-chiy, some cute words that comes after names and becomes a cute nickname! 教えてください！
@Melody
Hi Melody! Welcome to our site!
I once taught typical nicknames in my “Is it OK to use あなた” lesson.
But those are for Japanese names.
Your name, メロディー…. The typical way to make it sound cute is just
メロ(In romaji “mero”),
add リン →メロリン(Merorin)
add っち→メロっち(=Merocchi)
どう？
If I can ask, what does 日曜日の朝に教会に行く人もいる。 mean than? Specifically もいる. I hear it translated as “some” but I’m not sure if it relates to this lesson.
@Danny G
Hello Danny
日曜日の朝に教会に行く人もいる。
emphasize the part 日曜日の朝に教会に行く人
It means “also” or “even”
There are even people who go to church on Sunday morning.
or
There are also people who go to church on Sunday morning.
はっきり説明してくれてありがとうございました。
@Danny G
どういたしまして！ ❤
Hello, can you please tell me why is itteiru (from iu) used so much like : Tanaka san wa nomimono ga hoshiito itteimasu. ????
@123
Hello, 123,
言う(=iu) to say → 言っている(=itteiru) saying
Tanaka san wa nomimono ga hoshiito itteimasu.
When you quote what someone says, you use this pattern.
Tanaka san is saying “I want a drink”
Tanaka san is saying he wants a drink.
So the basic pattern is this
Aさんが〜と言っています
= A san ga ~~ to itte imasu.
= A san says/is saying ~~
When you just quote what A said (in past) you say
Aさんが〜と言いました・言っていました。
=A san ga ~ to iimashita/ itte imashita.
or
Aさんが〜と言った・言っていた
= A san ga ~ to itta / itte ita.
If you want to learn more about how to quote, go check this lesson.
(You posted the same questions twice so I deleted one.)
ありがとう先生！
I understand now. Your explanation is so good.
I have the following questions:
1. “このメニューにはドリンクがついていますか？” I’m a little confused as you translated it as “comes with”
but later you said that “comes with” is ” ついてくる”
Can you please explain the difference? ついてくる/ついている
2. “母がずっとついて看病をしてくれた。” The verb”看病をする” is to take care of a patient. So is the daughter/son sick or something?
2. “ホテルの部屋、アップグレードしてもらっちゃった”！ついてるなあ。
“ついてるなあ” “ついてるねえ”
A. Is it possible to just say “ついている”?
B. Is it right to say “ついてる～” instead? A stretched last letter in this case is ok? I’m confused. When exactly do you use stretched last letter? All verbs apply? or Some of them only?
Thanks in advance.
@Kuroineko
1. OK,but let’s compare the following two sentences.
a) このメニューにはドリンクがついている
b) このメニューにはドリンクがついてくる
They both “comes with ~ ” and they are interchangeable.
The difference is very subtle. I don’t know if I can explain well but…
Imagewise, ついている is to describe a set menu with a drink, and ついてくる is used when they serve main thing first and then they will serve/give you a drink later.
2. Since it is used くれた so the speaker gets the action from his/her mother.
→My mother took care of me.
3.
A : Yes. But it may sound like ついてる=tsuiteru (omitting い）
B: Yes. We tend to stretch some letter not just the last letter but the middle letter.
こわい→こわ〜い
おいしい→おいし〜い！
こら！→こら〜！
When to use. When you express your emotion
マギーも行く？
行く！・行く〜！
やった！(Yay!) →やった〜！(Yaaaay!)
マギー先生、こんにちは！
質問が2問あります。
「取る」という動詞は「抜く」という意味も出来ますか？
「さ」という語尾は方言ですか？それとも、標準語にも使えますか？
This will be very helpful because I’m going on exchange to a high school in japan soon and i’ve only been learning adult Japanese (i guess you could call it that)
@Vinn
Hi Vinn,
Wow, you are going to learn a lot in a high school.
Hope you come back here next year and share what you learn.
お久しぶり先生！元気でした？ :n:
I really hope you are doing fine. Thank you always for posting beneficial lessons. Please continue to do that.You’re the best teacher ever. Do you have any new pets?
I have the following questions:
1. “コンサートの券、余ったからあげる！”
I don’t understand “余った” what is the meaning of this verb and its plain form?
Please explain “から” its meaning here is “if”? I don’t understand.
2. “東大に受かったよ。” He means he passed the entrance exam? Also, how to say “I failed the entrance exam for 東大?
3. ” ミトンズ「彼、フのこと好きなんじゃない？」” What is “なん” here and what is its function in grammar?
4. About “ええ” which means “yes” is it formal? more than “はい”？Who uses it females or males?
5. About “あいづち” why is it written like this? is it wrong to write it as “あいずち”？
ＢＴＷ、How to say I’m looking forward to hearing from you?
ありがとう。
@Kuroineko
お久しぶり！はい、元気でしたよ！Kuroinekoさんも元気でしたか？
1. コンサートの券、余ったからあげる
I have extra concert ticket(s) so I will give it to you.
The plain form of 余った is 余る(=amaru) and it means “to be left over, to be in excess”
So the speaker has extra concert ticket(s) so he/she wants to give it to the listener.
から here is to give a reason = because, since, so.
2. 東大の試験に落ちた(=ochita) (受からなかった=ukaranakatta)
3. なん is a casual contraction of なの(=nano) 好きなのではないですか？→好きなんじゃないですか？→(more casual) 好きなんじゃない？
4. はい is more polite than ええ, but ええ is polite enough when you show you are listening.
5. Ahh good question! Maybe romaji is aizuchi and not aiduchi, it might be confusing.
The origin of the word, 相槌=(aizuchi), is more than two people pound molten metal taking a turn.
相(あい） means “together/ each other”+ 槌(=つち）means hammer.
So since it came from a word, つち=tsuchi, we use づ and not ず
Other example : A new moon, crescent moon is 三日月= みかづき not みかずき because the last kanji is つき
There are exceptions but you always have to pay attention to how you read the individual kanji.
Hi, I stumbled upon your site through google, and after reading this lesson (which is great btw, totally gonna use your site more) I have a question. Maybe you already covered this in a different lesson I don’t know, but anyway what I don’t understand is why you sometimes use “には” istead of ”は”. Like in this example “彼には家庭があります”. I have seen this before too but I never understood what the difference is. Is it used only with いる and ある verbs?
@misia
Hi Misia,
Welcome to our site!
When you want to emphasize 彼
Ex. I have a dream
私は夢があります。
→emphasizing “I”
私には夢があります。
You use には not just いる・ある
Ex. 私はできません。
(I can’t do it)
→emphasizing “I”
私にはできません。
Ex. 彼はわかりません。
= He doesn’t understand
→emphasizing “He”
彼にはわかりません。
I see now, thank you!
ありがとうございました
@misia
どういたしまして、misia!
Maggie-sensei ohayou! Is this a correct sentence? どのくらいとおく東京がひろしまから？ How far is Tokyo from Hiroshima?
@Courtney
こんばんは、Courtney!
You should switch the word order.
東京は広島からどのぐらいとおい（ですか）？
Ohhhhh I see, thank you!
So, what’s the difference between 温和 and 温暖？ 温和 seems to refer more to a person’s gentle nature, but I have seen it used to describe mild climates as well. Thanks in advance for any clarification!
@Natasha
You are right. Sometimes you use 温和 to describe mild climate like 温暖. (In that case, they are the same meaning, mild
But you don’t use 温暖 to describe gentle personality. Just for climate.
sensei ,
when to use
koto wa
koto ga
koto wo…
doumo arigatou gozaimasu
@robbie jean salinas
Hello, the usage of こと is very complicated and it is on the request lessons. But maybe if you focus on the function of the particles, it will be easier for you to know which one to use.
★wa/ ga = subject marker
Ex. 毎日、勉強することは大切です。
= Mainichi, benkyou suru koto wa taisetsu desu.
= Studying everyday is important.
Ex. 毎日、勉強することが大切です。
= Mainichi, benkyou suru koto ga taisetsu desu.
= Studying everyday is important.
(Emphasizing “studying everyday”)
★wo = object marker (Doing something is an object)
Ex. 毎日勉強することをやめないで。
= Mainichi benkyou suru koto wo yamenaide.
= Don’t stop studying everyday.
Feel free to practice making example sentences here. I will check them for you.
こにちわ マギーせんせい,
Can I use も in this way:
もいちねん (one more year)
ありがとうございます
ヴァルタ
@Valter
こんにちは、ヴァルタ！
one more year is もう一年。
もう and も are different.
Hi! Can I check with you, how do I say “I really love this, it is so cute!” in Japanese? (referring to a toy/pet)
Thank you in advance!
@Carmen
Hi Carmen,
In casual Japanese? There are many ways but if you are talking to your (young) friend, すごくいいね、めちゃ、かわいい！
or (more formal) すごくかわいらしいですね。
You could say 大好き for I really love this! but if it is obvious that you are talking about particular picture or pet/toy, you don’t need to say “this.”
Hi Maggie Sensei! Great website! Your articles about slang helps me a lot! ^^
I have a question about 中途半端. When someone says 中途半端な美人 or 中途半端に可愛い子 etc, what does he mean? H-half pretty?
Thanks.
@syp
Hi syp!
中途半端な美人 or 中途半端に可愛い子
Someone who is sort of pretty but not that beautiful.
Thank you very much, Sensei!
@syp
You’re welcome, Syp!
レッスンを書いてくれてありがとう！！ !heartsippai!
ほとんどの表現が知っていたけど、どう使うかあまりわかりませんでした。とても助かりました！
＠あどり
最初のコメントありがとう！うまく相づちを打つ練習をしてくださいね。
（Note for you : 書いて→作って is more natural・表現が→表現を）
Maggie先生 心の底からありがとうございます。 !new!
I am shocked how accurate you are and how easy it is to learn from you !! I am french and not native english but it comes so naturally さすがに先生は先生だけあって教育的な考えの所有でございますね。今度の木曜日口頭試験がございます。とくに敬語について実行いたすべきでございますので、すごく緊張いたします。それこそ、こちらのレッスンは最も適切な素材と存じます。。
幸あれと祈ってください !! !heart3!
@Zack
うれしいコメントありがとうございます！
木曜日に口頭試験があるのですね。がんばってください。うまくいきます様に！！
ありがとうございました、マギー先生！いい勉強になりました！
@Lava
どういたしまして、Lava♥
O|¯|_ 日本語の時間はむずかしいです. Ever since high school telling time in Japanese was the hardest for me, but this lesson actually helped me to better understand it. Thank you!!
@Courtney
日本語、難しいですか？ Don’t give up. :D
I’m glad to hear this lesson helped you a little to understand how to tell time more.
Japanese isn’t too difficult but between kanji and telling time it is the hardest. But I really love Japanese so I will work hard! :-D
@Courtney
Great! がんばって！:D
Dear Maggie Sensei,
I am writing to you to ask you about whether this is believed to be a superstition in Japan..
Several years ago I went to Nara and unfortunately I accidentally stepped on a praying mantis!. I was wondering if there was a superstition related to this and would be grateful if you could let me know as I’m quite superstitious!. -_-; Thank you.
@Autumn_leaf
Hello, Autumn_leaf!
I have never heard of superstitions of stepping praying mantis. No worries. :)
hello maggie-sama.
At first, In can understand english, but I can’t speak well for this reason meggie-sensei try to understand me, please.
I’m sory for I asked you in this topic a question this like.
There are two sentenses below. And I don’t know which one is correct.
1- Watashi wa Tokyo ga suki.
2- Watashi wa Tokyo wo suki.
Can you help me Maggie-sensei?
@Kar
Hello Kar,
1- Watashi wa Tokyo ga suki.
2- Watashi wa Tokyo wo suki.
“~wo suki” is not wrong but “~ ga suki” is more natural.
Hi Maggie Sensei, could you explain the following? I’ve been trying to figure out what it means the whole day
“Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da to kimerareru hodo mondai wa tanjyun dewa nai.”
Not really sure what this sentence is talking about. Is the sentence structure mentioned in your post?
Thanks a lot!
@Barry
Hi Barry
I don’t do the translation but I will help you understand the structure.
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だと決められるほど、問題は単純ではない
“Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da to kimerareru hodo mondai wa tanjyun dewa nai.”
OK, let’s break it down.
1) The main sentence is
問題は単純ではない
mondai wa tanjyun dewa nai
= The issue is not that simple
2) This sentence has 程(=ほど=hodo) “like/as”
It might be easier for you to switch the order of words
問題は~~ほど単純ではない
= Mondai wa ~~ hodo tanjun de wa nai
= The issue is not as easy as ~~
2) Now you just need to figure out the part after “as” (The issue is not as easy as what)
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だと決められる
=Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da to kimerareru
This sentence is kind of long, so let’s break this down as well.
~~だと決められる (passive form)
= ~~ dato kimerareru
= to be determined ~~
this と is to quote something
What is to be determined?
↓
子供の非行がすべて教師の責任だ
Kodomo no hikou ga subete kyoushi no sekinin da
Teachers are responsible for all the juvenile delinquency
Now can you figure out the whole thing?
Thanks Maggie Sensei! It make sense now. I had difficulty determining which is “not as easy” as the other. :-D
@Barry
You’re welcome, Barry!
こんにちは、マギー先生！
とても役の立つレッスンありがとうございました！
「きっかり」「ちょうど」に関して質問があるんですが、”Every day at exactly the same time”はなんと言いますか？例えば “You must take this medicine at exactly the same time every day”.
あとは、”Exactly ~days” eg. Exactly 10 daysは「きっかり１０日間・ちょうど１０日間」になりますか？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
「きっかり」と「ちょうど」は類語なので同じ様に正確さを表す時に使えます。
”Every day at exactly the same time”
毎日、きっかり同じ時間に
毎日、ちょうど同じ時間に
Exactly 10 days
きっかり１０日間
ちょうど１０日間
違いがあるとしたら「ちょうど」は”丁度いい＝ちょうどいい＝convenient”という意味があるので使う時に話し手が都合がいいと思う気持ちが入ることがあります。
ちょうど１００円あった (The speaker needs 100 yen so it was perfect・convenient.)
きっかり１００円あった ( just stressing the amount)
You must call someone exactly at ten o’clock.
１０時ちょうどに電話をしなければなりません。
１０時きっかりに電話をしなければなりません。
この二つの文章も全く同じ意味なのですが気持ち的にきっかりの方が時間の正確さを強調している様に私には思えます。
次の文は「ちょうど」を使うこともできますが、「きっかり」の方が自然です。
“You must take this medicine at exactly the same time every day”.
毎日、きっかり同じ時間にこの薬を飲まなければいけません。
こんにちは、マギー先生！素晴らしいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとう！文法は私の一番好きな勉強することですよ＾＾
質問が２つありますけど。
1. 「~V+かさえ」と「~V+のかさえ」の違いはなんですか？たとえば：
-親でさえも彼がなにを考えているかわからなかった。（「親でさえも彼がなにを考えているのかわからなかった。」と同じですか？）
-彼がどこに住んでいるのかわからない。（「彼がどこに住んでいるかわからない。」と同じですか？）
2. 「さえ」と「でも」は同じですか？たとえば、
-このロボットは走ることさえできます/このロボットは走ることでもできます
@Marianne
こんにちは〜Marianne!
1. 「~V+かさえ」と「~V+のかさえ」
-親でさえも彼がなにを考えているかわからなかった。（「親でさえも彼がなにを考えているのかわからなかった。」と同じですか？）
彼がどこに住んでいるのかわからない。（「彼がどこに住んでいるかわからない。」と同じですか？）
→はい、意味は同じです。「の」を使うことにより限定的な意味が強まると思います。(By using の, it specifies what you don’t understand more.)
2. まず、
1) このロボットは走ることさえできます
この文章は合っていますが、
2) このロボットは走ることでもできます
は、不自然です。
多分、Marianneが聞きたい「さえ」と「でも」が同じ様に使える文章は「名詞＋でさえ・でも」のことだと思います。
Even children could understand
子供でさえわかる。
子供でもわかる。
The same meaning but ”でさえ” is stronger and it often brings up an extreme example.
どうかなあ…
なるほどね。動詞の後にその意味で「でも」を使うのは不自然に聞こえるということですね。説明してくれてありがとう＾＾
@Marianne
どういたしまして、Marianne! :)
I am currently studying Japanese and supplementing my study with breaking down lines from popular anime. Maggie, I have a question for you. I have extracted this line from an anime:
“持っているなるそう言えばいいでしょう？”
The context is there are two women who are trapped in a room and one girl finds out the other has water. The girl says “If you had water, you could have just said so.”
I understand 持っている means “having,” なる ”become,” そう言えば “if said so,” いいでしょう “good would be.”
Does the なる following 持っている mean “become having”? I was wondering if perhaps in informal speech the に is removed from になる. So instead of 持っているになる, it becomes 持っているなる.
It’s also possible I am not hearing the dialogue correctly. Thank you for your help!
@Ken Myers
Hi Ken,
“持っているなるそう言えばいいでしょう？”
→It should be 持っているならそう言えばいいでしょう。
And this なら is for conditional “If”
Hi Maggie, thanks a lot for the lesson, that made thing much clearer.
Anyway, I miss the ようにする section, which I think is also quite important, is it already in another lesson?
Thanks.
@Joyodongo
Hello Joyodongo!
I don’t have a specific lesson on 〜ようにする
But will explain a little here.
Basically you can use it as I explained in the lesson.
to do something ~ in order (not) to do ~ / so that ~ / in such a way ~
(to intend to make things work as you hope)
Ex. 明日は遅れないようにします。
= Ashita wa okurenai you ni shimasu.
= I will try not to be late tomorrow.
*〜potential verb + ようにします。 = to make sure/try to be able to do something
Ex. 明日までにこの漢字が書けるようにします。
= Ashita made ni kono kanji ga kakeru you ni shimasu.
= I will try to be able to write this kanji.
*noun + ようにする= to do something like ~
Ex. このようにしてください。
= Kono you ni shite kudasai.
= Do it like this.
Ex. マギーのようにしてください。
= Maggie no you ni shite kudasai.
= Please do ~ as Maggie does.
ありがとうございました、マギー先生！
@Joyodongo
どういたしまして！♥
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei. Thnak you for the lesson. Just want to clarify the usage of gakusei and seito, since both refer to students; as well as sensei and kyoushi. Is kyoushi only used to refer to your profession as a teacher and not in any other situations ?
Domo arigatou !
@Mike
OK, to be more precise, 学生 is used to refer to college students and 生徒 is for younger students who go to junior high and high school, private institutes.
教師 is usually for teachers who work for school besides 家庭教師(=katei kyoushi) home tutors. 先生 is a more general word for people who teach things.
Wow thanks Maggie sensei ! :-D years of confusion have finally ended :kanpai1: !DANCING!
乾杯！！ :kanpai1: !happyface!
hello,
i have a little questin. In sentence with combination of people/animals and things (Under tree are cat, dog and books. / for example :-P ) Should I use aru or iru? “KI NO SHITA NEKO TO INU TO HON GA IRU/ARU.”
Thanks. BOB
@BOB
Hi Bob,
Haha a good question.
You have to say
猫と犬がいて、本がある
= Neko to inu ga ite, hon ga aru.
まーぎせんせいのおかげさまで、以上の大切なことばとコツをいかしてめんせつに合格しました。おせわになりました。どうぞよろしくおねがいします。
@Irshad
わ〜〜〜おめでとう！！！！！！すごくうれしいいです！！
お返事をいただいてどうもありがとうございます。
先生、留守中猫の世話は任せてください。
@Irshad
猫ちゃんは今、飼っていませんが、また飼ったらお願いしますね♪
I wanna asking for you..!!
May i know this book’s referention?? Bcause i’ll write my thesis about how to use V +始める and V+だす..thanks a lot before :)
@Anita anggraini
Hello Anita.
What do you mean “this book”? All the lessons here on Maggie Sensei’s site are original. I made the whole thing. :)
I see. I’d be so thankful if you make a lesson about Japanese tenses Sensei.
And I hope I can more use Japanese correctly in every situation and condition.
そんなこと待ちきれません。ありがとうございます。
@John
がんばりますね。
Meanwhile, check this lesson V+たことがある(~ takotoga aru)
You can use this tense when you want to say “I have done something/I have ever done/been ~” (present perfect)
マッキー先生 の レッスンは最高です!私はそんなに学んだ! ありがとうございました！
@Courtney
わ〜〜い！！うれしい！！！
おはようございます先生。
We know in English there are about 12-16 tenses and we use each of them depending on the context and the situation are. But I still confuse how to use the Japanese tenses I’ve been learning about Godan Doushi, Ichidan Doushi and Fukisoku Doushi. On the comment section you explained about 食べます what I’m questioning about how many form of a verb in Japanese like: 食べます、行きます、飲みます、歩きます etc and how to use them using the rule of tenses in English language is it different because I still don’t get it how to use them.
I confused when should I use ‘tabete, tabemasu, tabete ita, tabete tabemashita.
教えて下さいよろしくお願いします。
@John
Hello John,
I have been thinking about making a lesson on the tense comparing English.
(But I have no idea how deep I can get…)
Until I make that lesson.. just teach you the gist
*食べる／食べます= I will eat (near future)
*食べた／食べました= I ate / I have already eaten
*食べていた／食べていました= I was eating / I used to eat
*食べている／食べています= I am eating / I eat ((talking about one’s custom, habit) *
But of course, there are more… so please wait patiently until I make this lesson.
Hi Maggie sensei!
Is “mo” always only used to emphasize the amount or can it also mean “more than” or “less than”? Or is it “motto” that is used for that?
Does “mo” always go with the word that precedes it or can it sometimes modify the word that follows it?
Do you also have a lesson on “mou”? Does “mou” always modify the word that follows it or can it also be placed after the word? How do I know whether to use “mo”, “mou” or “motto”?
@etoile38
Hello etoile,
Ah, OK…I think you are talking about the following cases.
Ex. このワインは千円もしません。
= This wine doesn’t cost (even) one thousand yen.
In you rephrase it, it is possible to say
*This wine costs less than 1,000 yen.
But the second translation doesn’t involve any feelings and it just tells the fact that the wine costs less than 1,000 yen.
*****
I can’t think of good examples right now but
も does emphasizes the word that precedes it but the preceded word with も modifies what comes after.
Ex. ５００人も集まった。
= Gohyakunin mo atsumatta.
も emphasizes “500 people” and modifies the following verb, 集まった(=atsumatta)
*****
も, もう, もっと are all different. もっと
I don’t have a lesson on もう(=mou) but will make one for you if I have a chance. (Right now I have a long list of request lessons.)
もう(=mou) = already, expressing the feelings that something is enough
もっと(=motto) =more
You can not replace も with もう・もっと in none of my example sentences.
Thank you, Maggie sensei! :grin:
@etoile37
You’re very welcome! :)
Maggie-sensei!
But what dies it mean when someone says to me,
“Ato, tame de onegaishimasu!” (あと、タメお願いします!)
Or
“Yobi tame dai kangei desu!” (呼びタメ大歓迎です！)
＠Ritsuko
Hi Ritsuko!
I also explain in my net slang lesson but
あと、タメお願いします!
= Also, talk to me casually. (like friends.)
呼びタメ大歓迎です！
=(Literally) I welcome more casual speech. = I prefer to call each other with first name or talk to each other in a casual way. (like close friends)
Thank you so much Maggie-sensei!!
@Ritsuko
You’re very welcome! :w:
My bad, but the examples
田舎のおばさんのように小柄な人
雪のように白い肌
appear on this page:
http://dic.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?p=%E3%82%88%E3%81%86%E3%81%A0&stype=prefix&aq=-1&oq=&ei=UTF-8
Another doubt I have. I found this line in a song:
ありふれた人生を紅く色付ける様な
From I’ve been told that 様な here is used with an emphasizing nuance in a poetic sense. And nothing follows 様な in this line, seems like a separate statement, but for completeness’ sake, here’s the portion of the song:
ありふれた人生を紅く色付ける様な
たおやかな恋でした たおやかな恋でした
さよなら
お疲れ様, Maggie-sensei !happyface!
I’m trying to ‘master’ you and sou beyond their simplest usages, and well, I find it hard to interpret and translate them when it comes to verbs.
I checked the entry for You on Kotobank.com and found some examples with Youni used with nouns:
田舎のおばさんのように小柄な人
雪のように白い肌
Should I interpret these constructions as adverbs?
Source: https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%82%88%E3%81%86-652682#E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.9E.97.20.E7.AC.AC.E4.B8.89.E7.89.88
＠jess
Hello Jess,
1) Ah I see. I guess I didn’t cover
noun + の＋ように+ adjective in the lesson.
I added the information. Please check the lesson again.
★Verb + ように+ verb →works as an adverb
★Noun + の+ように+ verb→works as an adverb
★Noun + の+ように+adj + noun = works as an adjective.
2) ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な
this modifies to the next line.
たおやかな「恋」
In short, (ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける）様な”恋”(noun)
Thanks!
Sorry to bother you but I still have a doubt
So you say that ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な modifies 恋. Yes, I could understand that, but what about what is in between them, たおやかな?
I mean, I see that both ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な and たおやかな end in な, is possible for two adjectives/clauses ending in な be together before the noun they modify?
@jess
たおやかな is an adjective to modify 恋 as well.
So to be more precise,
ありふれた人生を赤く色付ける様な modifies “（たおやかな）恋”
Hello sensei!! good lesson, it’s very explicative and even knowing the verb meanings it taught some new things!!
I know with dekiru wo is never used but, with the potential form of a verb I see both “kore wo taberareru” or “kore ga taberareru” (I see it more often with ga). According to my book this is common but it doesn’t mention anything about it being grammatically correct so, when doing an exam, should I avoid it or is it grammatically correct?
arigatou!!
@Sarah
Hello Sarah,
I know が is more common but we do say 〜を食べられます／食べられる
~を食べます／食べる
~は食べられますか／食べられる？
~が食べられます。／食べられる
~を食べられます/食べられる
〜を食べられる店／場所
〜が食べられる店／場所
When you want to emphasize what you can eat use が
Exception
you can say
★Someoneが〜を食べられる
but you can’t say
★ Someoneに〜を食べられる。
You have to say
★Someoneに〜が食べられる
Hi Maggie sensei!
I’ve seen some sentences beginning with “tada de sae”, but “tada” has a lot of different meanings according to my dictionary. Which one would it be when used with “sae”?
@etoile37
Hello, etoile37
ただでさえ = on top of being already something is too ~, something else happens.
Ex. 電気代はただでさえ高いのにまた高くなった。
= Denkidai wa tadade sae takai noni mata takaku natta.
= The electricity is already expensive (and it got worse) and it got raised.
Ex. ただでさえ寒いのに雪が降った。
= Tadade sae samui noni yuki ga futta.
= It was cold enough (and it got worse) and it snowed.
Thank you for explaining!
@etoile37
You’re welcome! :)
先生、これは正しいですか。
『去年日本さえ行ったら暗殺教室映画見たのに…』
@ジャズ
こんにちは、ジャズ。
う〜〜ん、英語でなんと言いたいかもう一度教えてくれる？
!hamberger! マギー先生、ありがとうございます！
I can not express how grateful I am for this post, it is so fantastic and useful. Next time I go to Japan I will definitely use this!
You are amazing Maggie sensei! boucingheart!
@Leigha
Hello Leigha!
I am SOOOO HAPPY to hear this lesson is useful.
Hope you get to order anything you want when you visit Japan.
完全に騙されてしまいました!
へーこれからどうする？(´；ω；｀)と思ったりしました（笑）
いつもとても勉強になるレッスンをありがとううございました！
ところで、「せっかっく」についての質問なんですが、
ある人が写真を撮ってあげようと言っていますが、私は「あ、すみません」と言うと、その人が「いや、せっかくですから」と答えた場面なんですが、その「せっかく」ってどういう意味ですか。
!JYANE! よろしくお願いしますm(_ _)m
@Iggy
だまされた？:D
その「せっかく」は”いい機会だから”という意味ですよ。
It is a good chance so I will take your picture.
マーギ先生、相変わらず分かりやすくて詳しくなるようなレッスンをありがとうございました。
この文章を正確書きましたように。
@チャド
どういたしまして！
（to make it sound more natural. →この文章が合っていますように！）
Hi Maggie-Sensei. I’m a little but confused on the conditional part of this lesson. You said “2) conditional さえ～ば (= sae ~ ba) / さえ～たら (= sae ~ tara)
if only, all you have to do is ~ / all I need is to ~ / as long as ~ / if you just ~” but I can’t tell the difference between any of them. How do you tell what type of translation the sentence is?
＠Millz
Ahhh, OK.
Note: The difference between ば(=ba) and たら(=tara) is very complicated and I won’t explain the whole difference here.
1) Aさえ～ば(= A sae ~ ba ) + B
2) Aさえ～たら (= A sae ~ tara )+ B
A lot of time the translation is the same ( if only, all you have to do is ~ / all I need is to ~ / as long as ~ / if you just ~ )
Both 1) and 2) gives certain condition (A) to get the result (B)
But, I will show you the basic difference here.
↓
1) Aさえ～ば (= A sae ~ ba)+ B
To make B happen, you only need to fulfill the condition, A
Focusing on the condition, A.
2) Aさえ～たら(= A sae ~ tara) + B
Only when fulfill the condition A, B will happen/You will get the result B
Focusing on the result, what is going to happen after the condition.
As long as I have money, I can do anything.
Ex. 1) お金さえあればどこでも行ける。
= Okane sae areba dokodemo ikeru.
（focusing on the condition, having money)
Ex. 2) お金さえあったらどこでも行ける。
= Okane sae attara dokodemo ikeru.
(focusing on what you want to do with money)
Omg,this lesson must have taken you hours
I enjoyed reading it a lot!!
What I love the most about japanese language are the proverbs, some are hard to understand at first hehehe but they have a deep meaning! I got a tattoo with a short one (in romaji) and when people reads it they’re always like “oooh, japanese language is so mysterious” lol
@Rhi
Hello Rhi!
Actually it took months to make this lesson.
But if someone like you think it was interesting, it worth spending that much time.
What does your tattoo say?
Wow, that was hard for sure!! Otsukaresama deshita !nemui!
Actually my tattoo is something a japanese friend said once randomly, she said it half kidding and it’s not a real proverb I guess haha but I found it very encouraging. It says “akirame ochitsukazu”, meaning something like “if you give up you’ll never feel at ease” :)
So as you can imagine, when some English speaker reads it, it’s very “fushigi” for that person haha
＠Rhi
akirame ochitsukazu? It’s very unique and original.
Good so it motivates you to keep trying without giving up. 教えてくれてありがとう！
Hi Maggie, thanks for your great lessons.
The combination:
なんて。。。なんでしょう。
seems to be used for saying
How … !
The final 「なんでしょう」 means anything in particular o is it just used to emphasize the sentence?
Can you use 「なんて」 alone?
Thanks in advance.
@jyodongo
Hello, jyodongo!
Yes, なんて〜でしょう／だろう means “How ~!”/ “What a ~!”
Ex. なんていいお天気なんでしょう。
= How lovely weather it is.
Ex. なんてひどい人なんだろう。
= What an awful person he/she/they are.
Though you see this expression a lot in writing, we just say いい天気だね／いい天気ですね／ひどい！／ひどい人！in real conversation.
You don’t use なんて alone. xなんてひどい！
ありがとうございます。
@joyodongo
どういたしまして！
嘘に決まってるじゃないですか
Here says something like “I’m definitely lying” or “This is definitely a lie”, right?
Thanks for helping!
@AIMBurst
Yes, that’s right. :)
Or “That is not true. You know that! ”
Thanks, Maggie-sensei!
こんいちは、maggie-sensei! :ii:
I have a question, there was a Japanese thanking me but I don’t know what she was thanking for. If I want to ask her “why did you thanking me?” in nihongo, does this sentence !to right! なぜあなたは私に感謝しましたか？ has the exact meaning?
よろしくおねがいします～
Whooooaa I was starving for a sae lesson!! Very explicative! Thanks a lot!!
And, only to clarify my head more, can you show me another sentence using the te form with sae? I’ve read the last one “ikite sae ireba” but, can I say for example, “shukudai wo yattesae sureba ii” or does it have to be “yarisae” ? I think the yattesae sounds weird for that sentence, I mean, I see that -te sae more like the -te wa or something like that
Thank you !heart3!
@Lia
OK, I added more explanation on verb te-form +さえ(=sae)
Hope it clarify your doubts!
Thank you!! I’ve caught the difference. Arigatoooooou
@Lia
You’re very welcome, Lia!
We have a very similar expression in Spain!
When a group of people are eating and there’s only one bit/piece of food left on the plate we call it “el de la vergüenza” or “la de la vergüenza” (“el/la” depends on whether the food noun is masculine or feminine”). It means “the piece/bit of shame” because everyone would be ashamed or embarrassed to eat it. :-D
So when that happens somebody says: “¿Quién quiere el/la de la vergüenza?” (“Who wants the piece/bit of shame?”.
It was great to learn the Japanese equivalent of that expression! Thanks!
Actually I ended up here by accident because I was googling another expression: 可愛いの塊. Does that mean the same, except that it is a cute thing somehow? ?_?
＠Cristina
可愛いの塊 is a slang word to describe something super cute. Such as a cat, a dog, a baby, etc.
Ah síííí… Es verdad. Se dice el/la de la vergüenza también en español. Ahora me acuerdo la palabra. :) Gracias!!
Thank you for this lesson Maggie-sensei!
Although I’m still getting confused
In this sentence, 満開の桜を一週間も見ることができない
is the speaker giving emphasis on 一週間 too?
@Myu
Hello Myu,
Yes, that も stresses 一週間 and the speaker feels one week is too long.
Hello!
May I have one question? Is there any difference between these two sentences?
1.一番話したい人ほどうまく話せない
2.一番話したい人とほどうまく話せない
Because, taking it purely grammatically, shouldn’t they respectively mean:
1.I’m not as good at talking as the person I want to talk to the most.
2.I can’t even talk that well to the person I want to talk to the most.
@Caucasus
Hello Caucasus,
The subjects of these two sentences are different.
1. people (or a person) who want(s) to talk the most
2. I (And pay attention to the particle “と” = with. → With a person who I want to talk the most)
Kon nichi ha, Maggie sensei!
I know this is an old post, but I have this question about, let’s call it ‘Adjective Verb Agreement’
If an inanimate noun qualifies an otherwise animate subject, will the verb be iru after the subject or aru after the qualifier!
Yoroshiku onegai shimasu! !ohisama!
@KanSeiTaiSusaNoO
Hmmm I can’t think of the example now… Oh how about this one?
Ex. ロボットがいる = There is a robot.
I will add more if I think of other examples.
Hello Maggie 先生,
I just found your website a few days ago, and I really like it! It has been very helpful to me, and I love the animals you bring on to give the lessons. This post reminded me of my own sweet kitty Minky, whom I had for more than 15 years. She became an “angel” two weeks ago.
@Palidor
Hello Palidor!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
Sorry to hear about Minky. I am an Angel, too, you know. I will show her around here if I see her around.
She is always welcome to be a guest teacher. (You can send a picture from About Us.)
Hi.
Thanks for this lesson. I heard the pattern “となる” in one of KAMIJO’s songs and felt the need to know about it and now I understand what it means when it should be used thanks to your lesson.
Now, I am curious about this. I know three と particles:
1. と used to express company or an action performed together with someone.
ex: 友達と話した。
2. と equivalent to English “and”.
ex: 紙と鉛筆が必要です。
3. と used for quotation.
ex: 彼はドラゴンボールが好きだと言った。
Unless there is another meaning conveyed by と that I have not yet read about I don’t see how any of the three meanings above can be similar to the meaning conveyed by particle に as it happens in になる. I guess this has to do with etimology (not good with these concepts >.< ). If you could explain I will be deeply thankful.
Sorry for the long post.
Thanks.
@Ryuusa
Hello Ryuusa.
Actually と has a lot of different functions besides 1,2,3.
The common function that と and に have is “result of an action”
〜となる／〜になる = to turn out to be ~
Thank you for doing all this amazing lessons and keeping this site full of information !niconico!
I laughed a lot readind this lesson. You Japanese people are so creative hahaha
You are the best!! !DANCING!
@Lia
Hello Lia,
Thank you for the nice comment! Good to know that you enjoyed reading this lesson. That makes me very happy!! :)
Dear Maggie,
Thank you for teaching us so many useful phrases. I’m a French woman and currently learning Japanese. I often pick up sentences and/or explanations on your blog.
I was looking for some sentences to express how glad I am to have met a Japanese man who became my close friend. It’s not about a love relationship so the vocabulary of this lesson doesn’t fit.
We’re both a little over 40 and never met physically, we exchange e-mails to improve our language skills. I’m looking for sentences such as:I’m glad we got to know each other. I’m happy we can talk freely and understand each other, your friendship and trust are important to me….
I want to send him an handmade card to thank him because he always helps me with Japanese and he also comforted me at a difficult time in my life.
Could you eventually help? Maybe a topic with phrases about friendship would be a good idea
@Carine
Bonjour Carine! Thank you for visiting our site.
It seems like you found a nice Japanese friend.
First if you want to thank him for supporting you through difficult time and appreciate your friendship you can say something like
いつも日本語を教えてくれて有り難う。そしていつも支えてくれてありがとう。（Nama)のお陰で辛いことも乗り越えてくることができました。心から感謝しています。
=Itsumo nihongo wo oshiete kurete arigatou. Soshite itsumo sasaete kurete arigatou. (Name) no okage de tsurai kotomo norikoete kuru koto ga dekimashita. Kokoro kara kansha shiteimasu.
= Thank you for always teaching me Japanese. And thank you for your support. Thank to (name), I could overcome the hardship. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Hello Maggie Sensei! Ogenki desu ka? Thank you for your wonderful blog!
Like Corine, I am in my 40s and have a Japanese male friend of the same age with whom a correspond from time to time. In my case, we have met in person a few times in Japan and are close enough for public hugging, but it is not a romantic relationship.
He does not speak much English and I am only a beginner at Japanese so we do not write long notes and I always have to use a dictionary, but it is extremely helpful for me to practice reading Japanese characters and understand colloquial phrases (our correspondence is not formal). Sometimes a friend translates, but I would like to be able to express some forms of friendly affection on my own, as that seems more personal.
For instance, it would be nice to express that I miss his company (I am never sure if words such as “aitai” are suited to friendship) or how much I appreciate him as a person/apprecite his correspondence. Also he has some health issues, and I am often at a loss how to express concern and caring in a personal way without being formal. It would be super if you could do a lesson on expressing affection/caring on a friendship level one day!
@Em
Hello Em!
Thank you for visiting this site.
I think I got the similar request in past. Was it you? Well, everybody has different type of friendship so it would be hard to make a general friendship lesson but will keep it in mind.
Meanwhile,
it would be nice to express that I miss his company (I am never sure if words such as “aitai” are suited to friendship)
So you want to know some casual expression to tell him you miss him. 会いたい could be too direct. How about
また会えたらうれしいな。 = I will be happy if I get to see you again.(but it has a very light tone)
or how much I appreciate him as a person/apprecite his correspondence.
Your correspondence is by email or letters?
こうやってemail (or 手紙=letter)を書き合えることに感謝しています。
Also he has some health issues, and I am often at a loss how to express concern and caring in a personal way without being formal.
Just say 体に気をつけてね。/ 無理はしないでね。
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
No, it was not me. Perhaps there are many people who have non-romantic close friendships reading your blog! :-D I agree that it is difficult though, as there are many degrees of friendship.
Can you explain 無理はしないでね? Is it a way of saying “take care of yourself?” I love to read your explanations of the differences in saying things in Japanese, it’s very helpful to a beginner.
@EM
Ah, OK,
無理しないでね。/ 無理はしないでね。(a little stronger) means “Take care (not work too hard/try not to do too much )
When tte is added after an imperative like in やめろって, does it always mean that it’s the second time that we ask the person to stop? Or could we add tte the first time we ask the person to stop, just to add force to the command?
@etoile37
Hello etoile37!
Both! You use it to repeat what you said or for the first time.
Thank you!
@etoile
You’re welcome!
This was exactly what I was looking for! (thanks etoile for asking lol).
I was reading something and this person used “adj-tte” even when he wasn’t repeating something he said before, but for the first time so I took it as if it was just to emphasize.
Thanks Maggie sensei for this whole class !
@Lu
Hello, Lu!
You had the same question as etoile?
I guess I should have included that usage in the lesson. :)
Hello,
with the verb “hajimaru”, I have been taught that で始まる = it starts WITH and に始まる = it starts IN, so is it some exception? Because starting is an action itself and I don’t think it aims at any place but it’s true that when I hear “x de hajimaru” I think of “starting with x”, like “r”で始まる名前
So are the particles interchangeable in this kind of case?
@Lia
Hello,
The particles に and で have different functions.
＊〜で始まる = to start／begin with ~
Ex. 会議は会長のスピーチで始まる。 The meeting will start with the chairman’s speech.
Ex. 0120で始まる電話番号 The telephone number which starts with 0120
＊~に始まる= to start/begin in (from) ~
Ex. 新しい学期は春に始まります。= A new semester starts in spring.
Ex. ４月に始まるクラス= A class which starts from April.
Ok, thank you so much!! !Anapple!
@Lia
You’re welcome, Lia!
マッギー 先生と 天人さん も おへんじを ありがとう ございました!!
@Courtney
どういたしまして！（天人さんが手伝ってくれてよかったですね）
すみません、まえにみすをおかした。いうことをいみ、”I don’t want to get out of bed or wake up” どのように言うのですか？
Hello Courtney
I don’t want to get out of bed or wake up ==> ベッドから起きたり、目覚めたりなんかしたくないよ！／ベッドから起るとか、目覚めるとかいやだ！
って言ってもＯＫだと思います。
ヨロシク。
@Courtney & 天人
Again, thank you, 天人 for helping our friend!
Other possibilities.
ベッドから出たくないし目を覚ますのもいやだ。
ベッドから出たくないし起きたくもない。
マッギー先生、こんばんは! あの。。。”I don’t want to get out of bed or wake up”ってどうゆういみですか？ そのための言葉はありますか?
What a helpful lesson!! Thank you so much!
@Eva
Hello Eva!!
I am happy to hear you find this lesson helpful!!
Oishii mono ippai tsukutte ne!
Maggie先生！マレーシアからのハフィズと申します。よろしくお願いいたします。
私は今日本で留学するために、マレーシアのある大学で勉強しています。
一つの質問があるんですけど、「～ように」と「～ために」について質問したいと思います。
この二つの表現の違いは何ですか。
「～ように」は、可能形だけですか。しかも、「～ために」は、volitionalform、だけですか。
例えば、
１．汚れをきれいに落とす（＿＿＿＿）、特別な洗剤を使ってみた。
２．汚れがきれいに落ちる（＿＿＿＿）、特別な洗剤を使ってみた。
（１）と（２）の（＿＿＿＿）の中に入るのはどれですか。
よければ、詳しく説明していただけませんか。
どうもありがとうございます！
＠ハフィズ
こんにちは、ハフィズ！
１．汚れをきれいに落とす（＿＿＿＿）A、特別な洗剤を使ってみたB。→ために
２．汚れがきれいに落ちる（＿＿＿＿）A、特別な洗剤を使ってみたB。→ように
1) A(purpose) ために+ B (action)
2) A(purpose) ように+ B(action)
目的ーA(purpose)ーに意思が入るとためにを使います。
汚れを落とす= to remove stains (volitional) →ために
汚れが落ちる= the stains come out (intransitive /non-volitional)→ように
1) A(purpose) ために+ B (action)
*A(purpose)
→意思動詞 (volitional verb)
* B (action)
→意思動詞 (volitional verb)
AとBの主語は同じでなければなりません。
The subject of A and B should be the same
2) A(purpose) ように+ B(action)
*A(purpose)
→無意思動詞(non-volitional verb) (可能動詞=potential verb / 自動詞=intransitive verb)
* B (action)
→意思動詞 (volitional verb) 他動詞(transitive verb)
Wow, you’re very thorough! I learnt something like this on another site but they only covered ga ii desu and de ii desu. I never knew there was a demo ii desu! Thanks Maggie Sensei! You’re awesome. Oh, also…I noticed that you wrote this at the end:
So 皆はマギー先生がいい？
= Mina wa Maggie sensei ga ii?
I think the romaji should say minna but I’m probably wrong. Anyway, thanks for teaching, this was an awesome lesson! :}
@the river puppy
Thank you for your comment!
The way you read the kanji 皆 is「みな=mina」(みんな=minna is colloquial way to say “everyone”)
Hello, my book lists “kaze wo hikiyasui” and I was wondering, if you say you use ga/wa with yasui/nikui (and makes all the sense to me since it becomes a some kind of adjective), is my book wrong using wo? (I sometimes spot fails so I wouldn’t be surprised) Or maybe they’re sometimes switched? Thank you
＠Lia
Hello Lia,
風邪をひく(kazw wo hiku) is an idiom. The original meaning of 引く＝ひく= hiku is “to draw” so you need an object marker を
（FYI We also say 風邪にかかる= Kaze ni kakaru : In this case かかる means “to be infected” so you need a particle for cause, に = ni= by)
Back to your question, you don’t say 風邪がひきやすい but when you show the contrast you can say 風邪はひきやすい(=kaze wa hikiyasui)／風邪はひきにくい(=kaze wa hikinikui)
Ex. 大きな病気にかかることはあるがなぜか風邪はひきにくい。
= Ookina byouki ni kakaru koto wa aru ga naze ka kaze wa hikinikui.
(Showing the contrast between serious disease and cold.)
Haha yep, I see it’s an idiom, I like it, sounds really strange, to draw a cold or to pull a cold. Anyway I read more often “kodomo ga tabeyasui tabemono”, for example, to say that it’s food that a kid can easily eat so, I guess nikui/yasui is not as much an adjective and has a verb part. I’d have said “kodomo ni tabeyasui” but I understand the ga.
thank you!!!
@Lia
Basically it is possible to use many different particles with V+やすい／にくい depending on the verb and context.
noun が／は／を／に/も/でも, etc… + V+やすい／にくい
子供が食べやすい食べ物= Kodomo ga tabeyasui tabemono
子供が食べやすいように切る= Kodomo ga tabeyasui you ni kiru.
このお菓子は子供に食べやすいように作られています。= Kono okashi wa kodomo ni tabeyasui you ni tsukurarete imasu.
Hi Maggie sensei,
In the sentence “Kaze wo hikinikui”, the subject is “I” right.
If I dont want to bury the subject, how would I say?
私には風を引きやすい。
Or
私は風を引きやすい。
Thanks a lot Maggie sensei
私は風邪をひきやすい。
Note: 風邪= cold / 風 = wind
こんにちは、マギー先生！
サラダとかドレッシングが掛けられているものを注文する時、ドレッシング・ソースはサラダを掛けず別の小皿でお願いできますか？
どうやって頼みますか？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
Lavaの文章、よく書けていますよ。
ドレッシング・ソースはサラダを掛けず別の小皿でお願いできますか？
Note :
１）サラダを→ サラダに
２）ドレッシングソースでもいいですが、普通はただ”ドレッシング”ともいいます。
Fastfoodの持ち帰りの場合、ドレッシングが別にパックされていることもあります。その場合は、
「ドレッシングはサラダにかけないで別にして下さい。／別にして頂けますか？」
またレストランとかでは、ボトルで持ってくる場合もあるので
「ドレッシングはサラダにかけないで別に持ってきて下さい。／持ってきて頂けますか？」
と言ってもいいですね。
ありがとうございます、マギー先生！日本へ行ったら使ってみます！
@Lava
Lavaの日本語はもうぺらぺらだから日本に来ても全然困りませんね！
Sensei,
By my unintentional actions I have troubled a young woman. I tried apologizing with words but due to miscommunication and misunderstanding, I made her even more annoyed. She is a Caucasian American married to a Japanese man. I was hoping after some time has passed that I would confront them and perform a dogeza before them to show honor and respect towards them both. Would this be all right to do or unnecessary? And what do I say while performing this act of apology?
@Christopher
Hi Christopher
I don’t know what happened but as you said if you did something unintentionally and they are still angry because of miscommunication, then just apologize sincerely one more time.
In my opinion Dogeza is a very old fashioned and too dramatic. You don’t need to do that.
Hope you make peace with them soon…
Hi Maggie-sensei.
I’m trying to start using japanese – japanese dictionaries and I stumbled over this patern a few times, verb + sama. I can’t find any resources online about this kind of patern. Also please can you teach us how to use an online dictionary in japanese?
はっきりした理由や意識もないままに事が起こるさま。思いがけず。不意に。ふっと。「―立ち止まる」「夜中に―目がさめた」
https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%B5%E3%81%A8-619655#E3.83.87.E3.82.B8.E3.82.BF.E3.83.AB.E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.B3.89
＠DavidChristi
Hello DavidChristi!
さま= sama = means “the way something works/happens, people do something”
You use it to describe the state, appearance, situation, condition.
If you just start using Japanese, コトバンク(=Kotobank) might be difficult to use.
I recommend Tangorin.
Ex. ご飯できたら呼んで！ = Gohen dekitara yonde! = Call me when dinner is ready. {Umm…it should be gohan right?} I think it might be a typo, though my Kanji isn’t very good, so I might be wrong. Anyway, thanks for the lesson Maggie-sensei! It’s much better and more detailed than any other {tara} lesson i’ve read! :grin:
@the river puppy
Ooops! That was a typo. Thank you! I fixed it!
Hello Maggie-sensei! Your lessons are very helpful!! Thank you! So I was watching a video of Perfume and they were wishing A~chan happy birthday. They were reading tweets from fans and one of the fans said “A~chan omedetou kekoshite” and they started laughing what is kekoshite? Also someone else said “A~chan ome” which A~chan replied “Ariau(?) omeri” what does that mean? And Nocchi said “Ari” which I just learned (:-D )is a shortened thank you lol
＠Courtney
Hello Courtney
The members of Perfume are cute, huh? They also talk in Hiroshima accent.
Do you have a link to that video?
A~chan omedetou kekoshite →It’s 結婚して= kekkon shite = Marry me!
ome = おめでとう = omedetou = Happy Birthday!
“Ariau(?) omeri” →I need to see the video…. Isn’t Ariau(?) ありがとう= Arigatou?
https://vine.co/v/OPllFlr7iOg
@Courtney
The link doesn’t work… :cryingboy:
@Courtney
わかりました〜！！
おめ= ome = Casual abbreviation of おめでとう(=omedetou) Congratulations!
あり= ari = Casual abbreviation of ありがとう (= arigatou) Thank you
So おめあり=omeari = Thank you for saying “Congratulation” (In this case “Happy Birthday!” )
ありがとうございました！！… This is off subject but…is it ok to use わくわくする to say “I’m excited!” or is it not used anymore?
＠Courtney
どういたしまして！ And yes we do say わくわくする= to get excited. It is not a slang word.
Thank you sensei! It cleared a lot of confusions (・ω・)ノ
@Chie
Hi Chie!! Glad to hear this lesson clear some confusions!!!
マギー先生！教えてくれて有難うございます。
今まで全く分かりました。
先生の説明方は簡単だし、分かりやすいし。
@bokun
どういたしまして！Bokun!
（少しお手伝いしますね。今まで全て分かりました。：今までは”until now”という意味になります。「全てわかりました」だけでいいと思いますよ。
「〜し」で文章を終わらずに
1) 簡単だし、分かりやすいです。
or
2) 簡単だし、分かりやすいし、+ conclude your sentence)
にした方がいいですね。がんばって！）
Maggie, こんにちは
My friend wrote in an email: … 来ればいいのに？ I take this to mean ‘why don’t you come?’ But I’m not sure how to use this structure. I get のに pretty much as a conjunction as you have explained, but not the one n my friends email. Can you help?
Thanks,
ポール
@ポール
こんにちは、ポール！
来ればいいのに means “You should come (anyway)!”
Maybe you turned down your friends’ invitation once, right? So they know you can’t come or it is difficult for you to come but they are trying to convince you again showing their feelings that they really want you to come.
Ohayou sensei! ^^
sensei, in けど、私がどんな話をしてもスライムさんは面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた。話が進むにつれていつの間にか、これまでため込んでいた愚痴や村の子供のことなど聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないことも結構言ったのに。
is のに in that paragraph are the type that dropped their main clause?
and the clause that is dropped is スライムさんは面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた ?
so the last sentence are actually 話が進むにつれていつの間にか、これまでため込んでいた愚痴や村の子供のことなど聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないことも結構言ったのにスライムさんは面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた。 ?
@just a novel lover’s
Ohayou!
Ah, we sometimes do invert subject and object in literature. So that のに goes to 話を聞いてくれた
これまでため込んでいた愚痴や村の子供のことなど聞いて気持ちのいいことじゃないことも結構言ったのに面倒くさがらずに真摯に話を聞いてくれた。
hehehe, thanks Maggie-sensei ^^
ah, I almost forgot
what do you think about the way that girl talk sensei?
is that normal, casual, or too polite for a 19 years old girl?
A Japanese friend calls me always from my name, without the -kun or -san (she used it before, but not now), what that means, and what should I do? D:
@Alex
Hello Alex,
She calls you with your first name and drops -kun and -san because she feels close to you. Using san is too formal between friends.
Or she is trying to adjust to your culture, calling each other with one’s first name.
こんいちわ maggie せんせい
I am really glad to found your website,
@Abi
はじめまして、Abi!
You just found this page?
I hope you enjoy learning Japanese here. ❤
boucingheart! This site is amazing…first lesson I’ve read from it (literally just heard of your website today. Thanks for all the hard work in putting this stuff together, and also for replying to people who post. That’s really nice of you to answer questions like that.
@David
Welcome to maggiesensei.com!
I’m glad you found us! There are many lessons here. Hope you learn something here. :)
よろしくね！
Maggie/ゆかり さん、
I chance upon your site while looking for [~いられない]. It is really informative and lots of effort put into it. o(^▽^)o
@Ceres
こんにちは、Ceres! はじめまして！
We are very happy that you found our page.
これからもよろしく ♥
Hello! This lesson is very helpful! Thank you very much!
I just have one question, how would we say “Is there an English menu?” or “Do you have an English menu?”
In the past I know, from experience, that there are a few restaurants that offer a translated menu- in case one does not fully understand Japanese.
Thank you for your time!
@愛理
Hello, 愛理!
Good question!
“Is there an English menu?” or “Do you have an English menu?”
→英語のメニューはありますか？= Eigo no menyuu wa arimasu ka?
And yes, some of the restaurants have English menu.
BTW I am working on a new lesson on How to order at a fast food shop. :)
Hi Maggie-sensei,
The last sentence is interesting.
でも、本当は私は自分のことを世界で一番可愛いと信じています。
I assume the particle を is used with 信じています and so is the particle と.
i.e. マギー先生を信じてる マギー先生が最高だと信じてる
So it seems special that two particles are tied to the same word cause normally I see each particle is attached to each word in a sentence.
What if the を is replaced with が？
でも、本当は私は自分のことが世界で一番可愛いと信じています。
@changkh
Hello changkh again,
でも、本当は私は自分のことを世界で一番可愛いと信じています。
What I, Maggie, believe is the fact that I am the cutest in the world.(世界で一番可愛いということ）
私は (自分のことを世界で一番可愛い) と信じています。
= 私は (自分のことを世界で一番可愛い)ということ）を信じています。
You use 信じる with both particles, を and と
1) Aを信じる to believe A (noun/nominalized verb) Ex. 噂を信じる=uwasa wo shinjiru= to believe in the rumor
2) Aと信じる to believe that ~~~~ Ex. 彼が日本に来るという噂を信じる= Kare ga nihon ni kuru toiu uwasa wo shinjiru = to believe the rumor that he is coming to Japan.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I can understand the meaning of the sentence but what I am confused about is the use of を.
If I were to just extract the sub clause to a separate sentence by itself – 自分のことを世界で一番可愛い, is this grammatically correct since there is no verb in the sentence.
That is why in the original sentence, I cannot help but feel that both を and と are associated with 信じています, the only verb in the entire sentence.
@changkh
Hello changkh
Ahh I see. You can say
1) 自分が一番かわいいと信じる
2) 自分は一番かわいいと信じる
3) 自分を一番かわいいと信じる
The difference :
1) & 2) to believe “I am the cutest.”
3) to believe yourself as the cutest.
Hi Maggie-sensei,
Can I ask how is it different if I were to rephrase
既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしています。
to
既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしました。
I think this is similar in nature to the question I asked in
http://142.93.68.150/2009/08/01/mini-listening-shopping-part-1/#comments
about difference between 言いました/ 言った and 言っていました/ 言っていた.
@changkh
Hello changkh!
OK the difference between
1) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしています。
And
2) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしました。
1) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしています。 I have been posted various lessons already
2) 既にいくつかのサンプルレッスンをアップしました。 I already posted various lessons already.
Sometimes we translated the same but the difference is しました implies your action has completed. しています means “has been doing the action” and the speaker will keep posting a new lesson.
A great lesson, Sensei. I enjoy it so much <3
@dwi
Happy to hear you enjoyed it. :)
sensei
sorry,i dont know where i can ask questions :cryingboy: .could you please explain the differences between mada Vte imasen and mada Vmasen ?
thank you. boucingheart!
@nguuchanmono
Hello again.
A great question.
まだVていません
まだVません
When your order hasn’t come yet at a restaurant, you say
Ex. 1) 頼んだ料理がまだ来ていません。(= Tanonda ryouri ga mada kite imasen.)
But some people do say
Ex. 2) 頼んだ料理がまだ来ません。(=Tanonda ryouri ga mada kimasen.)
And they both mean “My order hasn’t come yet.” / “My order is not here yet.”
However, technically まだVていません means “hasn’t (haven’t) pp yet”
and まだVせん usually means “will not do something yet.”
Ex. まだ宿題をやっていません。= I haven’t done my homework yet.
Ex. まだ宿題をやりません。= I still won’t/ don’t do my homework. (showing one’s will not to do/ describing one’s current situation)
Ex. 彼はまだ何も食べていません。= He hasn’t eaten anything yet.
Ex. 彼はまだ何も食べません。= He still refuses to eat and won’t eat anything.
sensei arigatou
@nguuchanmono
Douitashimashite!! :)
People have been calling me jonosuke because I’ve been working 6 days a week since October..
@John
Hello John,
I am sorry.. I don’t understand why jonosuke is related to the fact you have been working 6 days a week since October??? 〜之助／〜之介(~ no suke) is a traditional male name. (From Samurai era.) So I thought they combine it with your name ジョン.
Hi! ^_^
Thanks for the lesson!)
But there is one thing that’s not clear to me… For example, I need the say: “In winter, I usually wear a coat and boots.”
What word should I use when I wear different things at the same time?
Would it be correct to say 冬に私はよくコートやブーツをきます? Or I need something else here instead of きます？
@Sierra
Hi Sierra,
Ahh good question. You have to use the difference verbs.
冬にはよくコートを着てブーツをはきます。
冬にはよくコートを着たりブーツを履いたりまします。
This may sound crazy but if you wear a coat, gloves, a cap and a pair of boots, you say
Ex. 外は寒いからコートを着て、手袋をつけ、帽子をかぶり、ブーツを履いてでかけた。
@Maggie
ありがとうございます!!
This question has been bothered me for the past few days already.
Japanese is such a crazy language:D But in the good way!
私は何にもかかわらず、日本語が大好き！
さようなら！
＠Sierra
どういたしまして！I know sometimes it is a pain to learn all the different verbs and stuff but I am glad to hear you like learning Japanese.
Wow! This helps alot! But can you help, I want to know how to say I bought a new shirt yesterday? Thank you so much!
@eri
Hello eri
I bought a new shirt yesterday
昨日、新しいシャツを買いました。
more casual
昨日、新しいシャツを買った。
konbanwa, Maggie-sensei
it’s unrelated question again sensei
sensei in これ一冊で試験範囲はバッチリ！, what is 試験範囲 mean?
@just a novel lover’s
Konbannwa!
You can post unrelated question on Maggie’s room so that other people can also learn from your question. :)
試験範囲= exam coverage
Thank you sensei ^^
yes I’ll do that from now on ^^
Konnichiwa, sensei ^^
sensei, what is だと in 訓練場だと、結界が張ってあって高さが足りないんだ！ mean?
@just a novel lover’s
Konnichiwa!
In this case だと is a casual way of saying “(location) では” = in / at ~ (showing the contrast) but it has conditional nuance.
Ex. I can relax at home but I can’t relax outside of my house.
= 家ではリラックスことができるけど、家の外ではリラックスすることができないんだ。
= 家だとリラックスことができるけど、家の外ではリラックスすることができないんだ。
thanks, sensei ^^
now the sentence become much more understandable hehehe….
@just a novel lover’s
どういたしまして！
sensei, sensei
how should I translate this word to english? 長い付き合いにあるな！
@just a novel lover’s
nani nani?
長い付き合いにあるな！
I think it is
長い付き合いになるな
Depends on the context.
It could be
*We have been seeing each other (=dating) for a long time.
*I have known her/him/them for a long time.
*We have been friends for a long time.
Or if the speaker is talking about how long something will take,
*Something will take a long time
There could be other possibilities but I hope one of these fit in the context.
it’s an introduction, sensei
here is the full sentence that macho-sensei says, 俺がお前たちの担任のラングだ！武術の授業を取る奴らとは、長い付き合いにあるな！これからよろしくな、ははははは！
@just a novel lover’s
OK, then that means
I am your homeroom teacher. (I am new here but) I have already known some of you who have been taking my martial class for a long time.
hmmm… that could work if the teacher is teaching a second year student
but this is a first year student Maggie-sensei so I don’t think it’s work in here…
hmmm…., aha! sensei, sensei. Can I translate this words 武術の授業を取る奴らとは、長い付き合いにあるな！ to “For you fella’s who take martial arts class, you will have a long relationship with me!” ? so he is telling them in round about manner that he is teaching Martial Arts Class.
@just a novel lover’s
Then it must be a typo as I said earlier. 長い付き合いになるな (not あるな）and your translation is correct.
Majidesuka, Watashi no translation wa seikaitte, ureshiina~ ^^
*sob* Me attending sensei lesson are not in vain at all !gejigeji!
yeah, sensei. That’s the downside of Web Novel, the author don’t have an editor to check his work T_T.
thanks sensei, for answering my question and making all of this fun lesson ^^
@just a novel lover’s
You’re welcome! And thank YOU for being a nice student! You always try hard! :)
Hello Maggie Sensei.
I read news in Japanese and I have stuck with one sentence. I hope you will help me with it.
特に若い人たちがＩＳと同じような考え方を持たないように教えることが大切だと、アメリカなどは考えています。
And that’s how I would translate this sentence.
America and the other countries think that it is important to teach especially young people not to have the same way of thinking that IS has.
IS – イスラミックステート
@Berek
Hello Berek,
I think you got the meaning.
America and the other countries think that it is important to teach people, especially young people, not to have the same way of thinking that IS has.
Thank you very much. :)
By the way. Your lessons are awesome and very useful. Thank you for your effort.
Greetings from Poland
@Berek
Cześć!
Glad to hear you think our lessons are useful. よかった！！！
Hope you come back here again.
Dziękuję!
Hi Maggie-sensei,
I have 3 questions in this topic.
1) 動詞＋てくる
The concept of having to explicitly mention doing something and then come back is rather unique for Japanese language. When I first started learning Japanese, I cannot understand the purpose of having to say ‘go do something and come back’. I have also asked Japanese friends but maybe because it is instilled in them since young, it is hard to explain why the need to include てくる. I mean, what is the difference between トイレ二行ってきます and just トイレに行きます?
So I was thinking, whether you could give some scenarios where it is not correct to include てくる? Maybe I can understand it better that way. I also used to think that てくる is for doing something and coming back in a short while; at most within a day (and is that why they always say 行ってきます！?) In that case, is it alright to say 明日日本に行ってきます? I hear my Japanese friends say something like フランスに行ってきました when they came back from abroad. But overseas trip usually last many days and what if one does not yet know when is the time to return?
2) 〜ていく＋〜てくる
Another user has posted similar question so I will read your lesson on that and see if I can understand better
3) マギーはなんと言いましたか
I am not sure if you have done any lesson on this but I always have a problem understanding the proper use of 言う. Because sometimes they use 言いました, sometimes 言っていました.
Sorry for the long post.
@changkh
1) トイレに行ってきます insinuating that the speaker is going to the bathroom and comes back later.
トイレに行きます just means “I am going to the bathroom.”
明日日本に行きます
I am going to Japan tomorrow. (Just focusing on the trip to Japan. )
明日日本に行ってきます。
I am going to Japan tomorrow. (And eventually I will be back)
It doesn’t matter when the speaker is coming back (short time or long period of time) but the both speaker and listener know the speaker is coming back eventually.
2) Yes, I have a lesson so please read it first.
3) The difference between 言いました/ 言った and 言っていました/ 言っていた
They all could be translated as ”said” but it might be easier to think
言いました/ 言った said (in particular moment in the past)
言っていました/ 言っていた was saying/ had been saying / used to say (either the person was usually saying something or even just one time, describing the situation of saying something more vividly.)
Ｈｅｌｌｏ
I have a question about させる and させられる
What is the difference between
彼にこの仕事をやらされた and 彼にこの仕事をやらさせられた
does the above carry the same meaning as “I was forced to do this work by him” ?
Thanks
＠Kyle
Hello Kyle,
The meaning is the same but I would use やらされた.
Thanks for the quick answer.
If I say 「彼から仕事をやらせれた」 is this grammatically correct?
@Kyle
「彼から仕事をやらせれた」→やらされた
教えてくれてありがとうございました！
勉強になりました :uparrow: :up!!:
@Kyle
どうしたしまして、Kyle!
Konbanwa, Maggie-sensei ^^
sensei, what is なので means?
@just a novel lover’s
こんばんは！
It means “because””so” and you use it when you give a reason.
Ex. 明日は雨なので出かけたくありません。
= Ashita wa ame nanode dekaketaku arimasen.
= Because it is going to rain tomorrow, I don’t want to go out.
Ex. マギーは犬なのでレストランには入れません。
= Maggie wa inu nanode resutoran niwa hairemasen.
na-adjective ~ な+ので
Ex. ひまなのでどこかに行きたい。
= Hima nanode dokoka ni ikitai.
= I am free so I want to go out.
Ex.
thank you sensei ^^
“Denki wo tsukete iru ie” – The house with lights on
Without seeing the translation that you wrote, I’m sure I’d have translated something like “The house that it’s turning the lights on” lol Why the -te iru here? Since it’s transitive and when I see a transitive with -te iru, I understand an ongoing action by the subject, so I don’t get the use of “te iru” there, instead of “denki ga tsukete aru ie” (on purpose) or more stative ” Denki ga tsuite iru ie” , the house with lights on (by themselves). What is the difference?
I’m a crazy commenter, I know. itsumo osewa ni narimasu ne
@Sarah
電気をつけている家 (Denki wo tsukete iru ie) The house with lights on
The literal translation is “The house which is turning the lights on” But since the subject is a house, it will be more natural to translate “The house with lights on” So your interpretation is correct.
Oook, so, I see it’s more up to the context. Sometimes your omitting things confuses me :cryingboy: hahaha. Thinking about it as “The house whose owners have switched the light on” makes much more sense to me, but I guess it’s unnecesary to specify “juumin ga denki wo tsukete iru ie”. I think that I sometimes overexplain things when I’m talking japanese, because I’m afraid of saying something awkward, but then I see you Japanese people are not that strict, and as long as it makes good sense you don’t mind it that much !happyface! So it gives me more confidence. Thanks!!
@Sarah
It might be easier to understand the sentence with the translation,
The house has the lights on
But yes, we omit particles, subjects and switching the order of words….In that sense, Japanese is not that strict languages.
電気をつけている家 – The house that turns the lights on. (It implies that the house itself turned on the lights. As if the house has its own will – I think that’s a bit strange, don’t you think so Maggie?)
電気が／のついている家 – The house with lights on. (Describing the state)
電気がつけてある家 – The house which someone (on purpose) turned the lights on. (Implying that someone for some purpose turned the lights on)
@天人
Thank you for your follow up as always, 天人さん！
Sensei, even though you say the particle used with “neru” is “de” and it’s the usually used, sometimes it can be switched with “ni” if it refers permanency, right? I’ve heard recently “kokoro ni nete iru”, so I assumed they were trying to say that something was permanently “sleeping” there, on the speaker’s “heart”, giving an idea of permanency. Or maybe is it common to switch these 2 with the -te iru form? Thanks!!
@Sarah
I think what you heard/saw was not 寝る but 眠る=nemuru
“心に寝ている= kokoro ni neteiru” sounds strange. But you can say 心に眠っている
It is a metaphor and it means someone/something(some memory) stays in one’s heart.
to see the difference between 寝る and 眠る check this lesson.
And yes, we say 心に眠っている to indicate the location.
Oh yep, I’ve checked it again and I think they said that. But they were talking really fast and it sounds more like “neru”, it’s strange :/
It’s a metaphor yes, but anyway I think I’ve also heard it with real places when they want to say that something it’s there “hidden/sleeping”, as you mentioned in your neru/nemuru lesson, that “nemureru mori” fairytale, I watched the drama a few years ago and if I still remember well they were always saying “nemureru mori ni nemutte iru”, so I get the point of permanency !JYANE!
@Sarah
If you got the sentence from some youtube video that I can see, I will check it for you.
(And yes, you use に or で with 眠る Ex.ここで眠っているのは誰？ Who is sleeping here? Ex. 〜〜〜ここに眠る= metaphor hic jacet(here lies) —inscription on someone’s tombstone)
Oh, it was a movie but thank you for offering! anyway, after checking it with “open ears” I started to hear it right. Sometimes in movies the words get mixed up, it’s harder to understand than in real life! arigatou gozaimashita!!
@Sarah
I still think 心に寝る is somehow strange but ここに寝る may work.
So there are cases you use に for the verb 寝る. I added the information in the lesson.
But either way, good question, Sarah!And studying Japanese using a movie is tough but very useful and fun!
•本当にありがとうございます。its relly help me, sugoii <3
@Murniati
こんにちは、Murniati!
うれしいコメント、ありがとう！:)
Dear Maggie, could you tell me please how to reask in Japanese, like “how did you say was “..the word.” in Japanese?”. Thanks!!
@Eva
Hello Eva!
I am not sure if I understand your question but you want to say how to ask
“What did you just say?” If so, 今、何て言いましたか？= Ima nante iimashita ka?
“What was the word for “a car” in Japanese?” = “car”は日本語で何ていいましたか？= “Car” wa nihongo de nante iimashita ka? （more casual “car”は日本語で何て言ったけ？= Car wa nihongo de nante ittakke?”
Konbanwa Maggie-sensei ^^
can I ask something not related to the lesson?
in this sentence 入学式は教頭の演説のみで終わり、すぐに自分の教室に移動。 what the meaning of this words sensei のみで?
@just a novel lover’s
Hello. のみ means “just” + で with
So the literal meaning is
The entrance ceremony ended just with the vice principal’s speech
sankyu sensei hehehe…
@just a novel lover’s
You’re very welcome!
このレッスンはとても役に立って、いろいろな面白い語彙を勉強になりました。
ありがとうございました＾＾
@教子
コメントありがとう！お役に立ててうれしいです。
（Note for you : 語彙を勉強になりました→語彙が〜）
Maggie-sensei, may I know why did you use 「ところ」in ここでは “Good Luck!”とか “Do your best!” or “Hang in there!”ってところでしょうか？
@changkh
Hello changkh
Oh this is my very first lesson.
You can replace ってところでしょうか with ということです。(=That means)
You use という（っていう）ところでしょうか when you rephrase something.
@Maggie-sensei
Thank you for your quick reply. I knew about your blog some time back but never had time to read through. So I have decided to start reading every lesson from day 1.
I see. This is something new. I always thought ところ is only used to refer to place or location, both physical and abstract.
これから、よろしくお願いします。
@changkh
こちらこそよろしくお願いします。
All the lessons are very random so I would say go to the Index and start with any lesson you are interested in.
This lesson was short but very helpful, thanks!
@reid
Hello, reid!
Thank you for your feedback! Glad to hear this lesson was helpful!
マッギ先生、ありがとう！
スウェーデン人ですけど、最近は日本語のツイッターをはじめましたから、このツイッター用語は本当に便利なんです！ !niconico!
去年は東京に住んでいましたから、ちょっとできますのに、もっと上手になりたい。このページはよく使う予定ですーぅ
もう一度ありがとうございます！ boucingheart!
@カッロス
こんにちは、カッロス！
ツイッターやっているんですね。よかったらいつでも私にも日本語でつぶやいてね。
!damedame!
!DANCING! OhaYÔ!~ !DANCING!
39 for your complete, very flashy (ee, no, no 39 for that !ase! ) and useful lessons.
Y often listen Sashi Buri, isen’t the very casual form for Hisashi Buri? personaly Y prefere it. Sashi Buri Ne,Scar Chain! (Go! Go! Genka-chan!)
…Y love those smileys…
＠Liris
Hi Konbanwa!
I am glad you like the smileys and found my lesson useful. I appreciate your feedback. Yes Sashiburi must be a casual form for Hisashiburi.
(Sorry but I got to delete all the F words here. Not coolだよ. )
Wow ! Excellent job here Maggie Sensei ^.^ I’ve been struggling with this word since it conveys so many different nuances but your explanations just made them crystal clear ! And that just gave more interesting insights about the Japanese culture and “indirectness” (or indirect “directness” should I say ^.^)
Ed
@ec2953
Thank you for your comment and I’m happy to hear this lesson helps you understand the word more. よかった〜！ :)
sensei
in this sentence こんな人と仲良くなるなんて、ツチオ殿も中々隅に置けませんなー、このこの！
is this kanji 隅 correct? or a typo? because the sentence feels weird (T_T)
@just a novel lover’s
隅に置けない is an idiom. You use it when you discover someone has some abilities unexpectedly or who you thought they were innocent/immature were actually not.
In this case, the speaker was surprised because they thought ツチオ was a shy person but actually he was dating someone who is out of his league.
thank you sensei ^^
no wonder it feels weird, so it’s actually an idiom hahahaha
@just a novel lover’s
You’re welcome!
Konbanwa Maggie-sensei ^^
sensei have you heard this term? 貴公子スマイル, 貴公子系聖女, and 潔癖気味な女の子
@just a novel lover’s
They are coined word.
貴公子 is a young noble 貴公子スマイル is like “princely smile”
貴公子系聖女…It is a strange word. Usually 貴公子 is a young man but 聖女 is a holy woman
潔癖気味な女の子 a little fastidious girl
are there any hidden meaning on 潔癖 in 潔癖気味な女の子 except “fastidious” sensei?
because when the mc heard that word he concluded that the other’s party is an all girl party
@just a novel lover’s
The other possibility? Maybe innocent, pure or naive.
ah, I see I see, yes that could work.
thank you sensei ehehehe ^^
@just a novel lover’s
Good! Good!! Good!!! :)
使い方の４）を知らなかった :O 便利になるだろう =D
３）の例で「とか」と「かな」を置き換えることができますか？意味は同？例えば、「寝坊したとか…」と「寝坊したかな…」の違いは何ですか？
それは、「可能性」ｖｓ「Wondering]（自問自答？日本語で知らない :P）のようなものですか？ ありがとう！
@Humberto
こんにちは、Humberto!
３）の例で「とか」と「かな」を置き換えることができますか？
はい、できます。
意味は大体同じですが、「とか」は、考えられる理由をあげるとき(giving a plausible reason, Ex. It could be because….) 。「かな」はその考えついた理由についてどうかなあと思うときにに使います。（when you wonder that plausible reason)
Maggie-sensei
can you please explain to me why the author use both だけど and し in this sentence この後、僕たちは入学式と学校案内だけだけど、上級生は普通に授業らしいし
because isn’t that し function in there already use by だけど that is to list two different things to show contrast?
Dear sensei !DANCING!
Maybe it’s the same with Japanese.
If I say: (mada) tabete inai, it means “I haven’t eaten (yet)”, so, if I want to deny that I’ve done something, it would also be “watashi yatte inai!!” It confused me at first, because it sounded like “I’m not doing it!(now)”, but then I realized that “te inai” is somehow like “I haven’t…”. So, is it OK if I say “mada shiranai”, “mada dekinai”, etc? I would be very strange for me if I say, in English, “I haven’t known it yet”
And, “tabete inai” both means “I’m not eating now” and “I haven’t eaten”, right?
Same with -te iru when used to say “have you…?”, if I hear “kare wo koroshite iru” I would probably misunderstand that the speaker’s killing him right now lol
Any advice to help me difference, or is it pure context? Thanks !heart3!
@Sarah
Yes, ~ ている could be “to be doing something” or “to have done”.
Q: Is it OK if I say “mada shiranai”, “mada dekinai”, etc?
Yes. You can say “まだ知らない” “まだ出来ない(or まだ出来ていない）”
FYI you can say 知っている
Ex. I have known him for a long time = 彼をもう長いこと知っています。
Q : And, “tabete inai” both means “I’m not eating now” and “I haven’t eaten”, right?
Yes. that is correct.
Hello, I wanted to make this a new question but as this relates to these posts. Hope I don’t steal the spotlight ;p
I am having trouble with ていません hearing that it can be used as has have not. I saw a few posts explaining this and these two in particular confuse me. Perhaps when you have time you could help?
2. あの映画を見ていませんか
This would be, “Aren’t you watching that movie (now)?”
if you wanted to say “have you seen the movie”, you should put it in past form.
あの映画を観ました？
if you want to say “haven’t you seen the movie yet?” you would use the てない form used for expressing experience.
あの映画を観てないの？
This was from an explanation of あの映画を見ていませんか being aren’t you seeing that move or have you not seen that movie. I myself look at the two examples given and besides the Kanji change I do not see anything changed that would make one different than the other in meaning.
And 今まで、何も気づいていないのは面白いだと思います。 The translation being “I just find it interesting that I haven’t realized anything until now. Being corrected to 気づかなかった. Is there a reason for this? I hear 気づいていない used a lot.
Big post. Sorry. Whenever you have time.
Thank you
＠Shen
Hello Shen,
Good question!
As I mentioned in my lesson ている can describe what is happening/doing right now and also for the past event, have done something.
あの映画を観ていませんか
means
You haven’t seen that movie (yet)?”
As you said it could also mean “You are not seeing that movie right now?” but situation wise, it doesn’t sound natural. (because of the word あの)
As for kanji, you 見る is a general kanji for seeing/ watching something. You use 観る to see a movie, TV, games or shows.
Did you find the example sentence from my lessons? If so from which lesson?
*****
面白いだと思います。
→面白いと思います。
Here are the difference:
気づいていない have not been realized
気づかなかった. didn’t realize / haven’t realized
Since the sentence has 今まで until now,
the person did realized something so you should use the past tense 気づかなかった.
If you use まだ instead of 今まで、you can use 気づいていない
まだ、何も気づいていないは面白いと思います。
Hi Maggie!
Thanks for a quick reply. So it seems to me that ていません used here is just a shortened form or less emphasis form of まだ ていません am I correct in thinking so?
And I think I understand the difference between 気づいていない and 気づかなかった.
The first meaning that I haven’t realized and I still did not realize anything, and the latter being I haven’t realized up until this point.
Am I correct in this thinking? Thanks again.
@Shen
Not shortened word but it will be easier for you to think the sentence by adding まだ.
As I explained in my Japanese tense lessons, Part 1 and Part 2, a lot of Japanese tense can be interpreted by the time related words in the sentence.
So 気づいていない haven’t realized (yet- up to this point)
but 気づかなかった Either “haven’t realized” or “didn’t realize”
And you have to figure it out with the time related words or context in the sentence.
Ohayou, sensei ^^
it’s me asking a question again ^^
from what I learned in this lesson, we can drop all the main verbs when we want to pass along an information, right sensei?
then this sentence that I found 授業の説明もあるって are actually the shortened version from this sentence? 授業の説明もあるって聞いたよ
@just a novel lover’s
おはよう！！
Q : then this sentence that I found 授業の説明もあるって are actually the shortened version from this sentence? 授業の説明もあるって聞いたよ or 授業の説明もあるって言っていたよ。
Yes, that’s right! :)
thank you sensei ^^ now I can be at ease
@just a novel lover’s
Good!
Sensei, Hello!
I have a question, I’ve heard recently while watching a dorama, a character (a very very informal one) saying the positive version of nakya all the time. When he used it, it was like giving advice or telling “you should…”, so I inferred from that:
ikya > ikereba > ikereba ii > you should go ¿? maybe ¿? Is this used to give advice as well?
Is it some dialect? The city was Tokyo but that character used like some kind of dialect, or he was really really informal, I think
arigatou!
@Sarah
Hello Sarah
Yes, see my examples
★When you tell other people what to do.
★When you tell other people what to do and the possible consequences.
They all mean “you should” or “I should” (If you are talking to yourself, “I should”/ “We should” and if you are talking to someone else what they should do “You should”)
Ex. もっとがんばらなきゃ！= You should try harder. or I should study harder.
Ex. 勉強しなきゃ! = You should study! or I should study!
Hi Maggie Sensei!
I’ve been trying to understand the differences in nuance between ~になる and ~になっている. I know that なる is technically an intransitive verb, and when intransitive verbs are in ている form, the meaning is more like an intransitive state of being, like “The door is open” would be ドアが開いている. Does the same apply to なる as well?
Specifically I’m trying to dissect this sentence from NHK News Web Easy: マラソンのコースになっている銀座では Is it something like “In Ginza, which will be the marathon course,” …what would the change be if it were マラソンのコースになる銀座では? Maybe something like, “In Ginza, which will become the marathon course,” Thank you for your help!
Max
＠Max
Hello Max.
Since it is talking about future Olympics
Both マラソンコースになっている銀座 and マラソンコースになる銀座 can be translated Ginza which will be the marathon course.
But there is a slight nuance difference.
OK, let’s rephrase those sentences and compare them.
A: 銀座はマラソンコースになっている 1) Ginza has been the marathon course (current situation) or 2) Ginza is supposed/planned to be the marathon course (You are talking about the future but the plan has already decided. But when you translate this sentence, it could be the same as B (Ginza will be/become the marathon course) )
B : 銀座はマラソンコースになる Ginza will be/become the marathon course. (talking about future)
Maggie-sensei help me with this sentence please (T_T) 日本時間で朝の６時、正午、夕方の６時になるらしい。
I only can understand this part 日本時間で朝の６時 (T_T)
@just a novel lover’s
It will be
*朝の６時 = at 6:00 in the morning (6:00 AM)
*正午= shougo = at noon (12:00)
*夕方の６時= at 6:00 in the evening (6:00PM)
Japan Time.
then the sentence become like this sensei?
“It seems that by Japan standard time it will be 6 o’clock in the morning, noon, 6 o’clock in the evening.”
@just a novel lover’s
It depends on the previous sentence but if they are talking about some schedule, yes.
thank you sensei ^^
@just a novel lover’s
You’re welcome!
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei.
sensei in this sentence 食堂があるみたいだ
which one is the correct one?
“Looks like there is a cafeteria in boy’s dormitory”
or
“Looks like boy’s dormitory have a cafeteria”
@just a novel lover’s
こんにちは！！
Both of them are correct.
It looks like there is a cafeteria in boy’s dormitory.
It looks like the boy’s dormitory has a cafeteria.
It could also mean
I heard/It seems like ~
thank you sensei for confirming it and giving alternative for ~mitaida ^^
お久しぶり、マギー先生！ 元気でしたか？
いい「とか」の使い方のレッスンをずっと待っていた！どこにも見つけれなかったからね…
だからありがとうございます！すごく嬉しい！^^
最近翻訳するために時間がなくてごめんね。毎日毎日したかったのに、いつも忙しい :cryingboy:
次のは作成中です！覚悟してくださいね〜
@Marianne
こんにちは、Marianne!!! お久しぶりです！
「とか」のレッスンはよくリクエストされていましたがやっとできました。
翻訳、いつもありがとう！！でも前にも言ったように無理しないで大丈夫ですよ。
毎日、忙しそうですが、体に気をつけてくださいね。À bientôt!
Maggie先生、thank you for these lessons. They’re really useful!
質問があります。。。
In this sentence
りんごやオレンジなどが好きです。
Can I take off the が particle or is that incorrect? りんごやオレンジなど好きです。
I’m asking you this because I read somewhere that you can delete the particle after など but I’m not sure about it. I don’t know if this works well with some sentences but with others don’t? Can you please help me to clarify this?
ありがとうございます！
Hi そらちゃん
Technically you need the particle が (for 好き） but it is possible to drop が in casual speech especially in a question form
AやBなど、好きですか？
Many people drop が from 〜や〜など、好きです。but since など is a slightly polite word, I wouldn’t drop が for affirmative form.
Thanks again! I just have 2 little questions:
Why do you use 聴く instead of 聞く? Is it by choice or is it wrong to use 聞く?
Can I use と and など together instead of using や or it always has to be や and など?
@reid
Hello reid!
1) 聞く is the most general kanji and you can write 聞く. But it is more common to use the kanji 聴く for the music.
→When you hear something (naturally/ happened to hear something) you use the kanji, 聞く and when you listen to something/someone carefully, such as music, lecture or some audio books, etc. you use 聴く.
2) など has a meaning of “etc.” and you use と for something specific. Therefore AとBなど sounds a little strange.
I would use AやBなど
I am reading a short story and this paragraph came at the end:
この話は、人に何かをさせるには、力ずくでやるよりも、あいてがその気になるようによく説明するほうが、ききめがあることがおおい、ということをおしえています。
How to explain ように here?
@seifu
Hello Seifu!
that ように means “in order to ” “to ~ ”
So the translation would be something like:
“Explain clearly in order to let others be interested in doing something”
Is it correct?
@seifu
Yes, you got the idea.
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei
it’s me again ^^
sensei I found some word that got me confused (T_T)
in this sentence こんなところで美少女の胸を揉みしだいたりなんかしたら、悪漢に絡まれない方が珍しいのだ。
what is this しだいたりなんかしたら means?
@just a novel lover’s
What are you reading????
胸をもみしだく= to knead breasts
~たりなんかしたら = If you do something
it’s a web novel sensei
the title is 異世界の迷宮都市で治癒魔法使いやってます
so it become “if I do something like groping a girl breast”?
it’s not a pervert novel sensei, it’s just a romantic comedy kind of novel with some rpg element ^^
no pervert scene as far as I read it right now, just a touching scene (“touching” in something that can make us teary mean not the other meaning ^^) when… it’s a spoiler so I suggest you read it yourself sensei because it’s really a nice novel ^^
@just a novel lover’s
OK, OK I am relieved to hear that.
I’m from England and I have a Japanese friend that I meet up with when I’m in Japan. We stay in touch between visits via LINE/Facebook/etc. I sometimes ask her ‘genki?’ and she responds ‘hai/iie/guai ga warui’ or whatever. She assumed I was going to visit her for GW this year (because I did last year). When I told her that I couldn’t go this GW, she didn’t respond for a long time and when I asked ‘genki?’ the next day, she just said ‘nantoka’. I’d never heard ‘nantoka’ as a response to ‘genki?’ before, so I wasn’t sure how she was feeling! Is it just a short version of ‘(Maa)Nantoka yatte imasu.’? I’m pretty sure I’ve upset her…
@Andrew
Hello Andrew,
I see. She got a little disappointed, huh?
Yes, nantoka is from ‘(Maa)Nantoka yatte imasu.” = ”No more than I have to.”
ありがとうございました。
Perhaps I should try to make it over there this GW after all… 頑張ります！
Your website has been a great resource for me over the last couple of years.
@Andrew
どういたしまして、Andrew! Good luck!!
And I am happy to hear you have been visiting here for a couple of years.
Ahhh, 今わかります. とても簡単です。ありがとうございました
@Shabaescaba
よかった！！
Maggie Sensei,
見る is a 他動詞, so it should be able to be used with てある form. However, I have never heard anyone say 見てある。
この映画はもう 見てあります。。 sounds so odd.
but using it in the same form with different words…
ご飯はもう 作ってあります。This works.
Why is it wrong??
There are some other transitive verbs that just sound odd used with the てある form… Is there a rule to this?
ヘルプお願いします！！！！
ありがとうございます。
@Mariko Shimasaki
Hello Mariko!
I see your point.
If you just want to say
I have seen this movie already.
この映画はもう見たことがあります。
この映画はもう見ました。
sound more natural.
As you said 見てあります sounds odd because you don’t usually see a movie to prepare yourself.
You usually use てある when you do something intentionally to prepare for something.
So この映画はもう見てあります only works for example you are a judge of some movie contest and you have to see a lot of movies to attend the contest.
Then you can say この映画はもう見てあります。= I have seen this movie already (I am prepared to be a judge for this contest.)
Konbanwa Maggie-sensei ^^
it’s me asking for my understanding again ehehehe
sensei, is どんな夢を見てるんでしょうか。 mean “I wonder what kind of dream you see?” or just plain “What kind of dream you see?
＠just a novel lover’s
こんばんは！
どんな夢を見てるんでしょうか。= What kind of dream are you having? / I wonder what kind of you are having. / What are you dreaming about?
見ているのでしょうか
（の→ん) 見ているんでしょうか？
yes sensei
I understand the （の→ん) because you have explained it to me before
I just wondering on the function of でしょう in that sentence ^^
@just a novel lover’s
でしょう（だろう）is used when you assume something.
Ex. そちらは寒いでしょうか？
= Is it cold there? / I wonder if it is cold there.
Ex. 日本語は難しいでしょう。
= I bet Japanese is difficult. / I think Japanese is difficult. Is that true?
waiii !DANCING!
sankyuu sensei !niconico!
こんにちは、マギー先生！
ハッピーバレンタインデー！
質問があるんですが、「命」、「生命」と「人命」はどう違いますか
@Lava
ハッピーバレンタインデー! Lava ♥
そうですね、「命」、「生命」、「人命」 は英語でみな”life”ですね。
★命 : 精神的／哲学的／道徳的な意味で使われることが多いです。 (life in general/ spiritual,mental or moral.)
Ex.尊い命
= toutoi inochi
= precious lives
Ex.命は大切にしなくてはいけない
= Inochi wa taisetsu ni shinakute wa ikenai.
= You have to respect one’s life.
★生命: 「命」の様に精神的な意味で使われることもありますが、主に生物学的（医学的) な意味で使われます。(“living life” /biological/medical)
Ex. 生命保険 = seimei hoken = life insurance
Ex. 生命の危機= seimei no kiki = crisis of life
★人命: 文字通り”人の命 = human life”で人間以外（Ex. 動物, 虫) には使いません。(literally “human” life. You don’t use it for animals, insects, etc.)
Ex. 人命救助
= jinmei kyuujo
= lifesaving
Ex. 地震で多くの人命が奪われた
= Jishin de ooku no jinmei ga ubawareta
= The earthquake took a hevy toll of lives.
説明してくださってありがとうございました、マギー先生！ !niconico!
@Lava
どういたしまして、Lava! <3
Konnichiwa Maggie-sensei ^^
sensei, is the 建物は赤く色づいている in 海の表面を日光が反射してきらきらと光り、建物は赤く色づいている。
means “the buildings are colored in red”?
@just a novel lover’s
こんにちは！
Yes, you got it the meaning. The buildings are colored in red (or The buildings look red) “with (reflection of) the sun light”
phew, I’m glad I’m right
at first I though it’s “the buildings color are changed to crimson” hehehe
thanks for confirming it sensei ^^
@just a novel lover’s
Wait a minute, maybe I misunderstood you. (I added some words in my previous comment.)
I think you know but the original color of the buildings are not red. But because of the reflection of the sun light, they turned in red.
yes, sensei
the building is not originally red,it’s a describing sentence about how the city look at dusk
@just a novel lover’s
Good! Good!! Good!!!! :)
Sensei, sensei
did I understand this sentence right?
リュカは買い物があるらしく、ここで分かれることになった。
It seems that Luca have something to buy so we parted our ways here.
@just a novel lover’s
Yes, you got the meaning!
yatta!
I’m soo happy sensei, it’s the first time I got it right
it’s all thanks to sensei lesson hehehe
@just a novel lover’s
Yatta4u2!
You’ve been doing great!
sensei I found new variant it’s なかなかに + adjective
is that have the same meaning as なかなか + adjective?
なかなかに（中々に）is used in Classical Japanese and it has 2 meanings:
1. something is unfinished / half done / incomplete;
2. on the contrary / rather / all the more.
ご参考に。
＠天人
Thank you for answering the question! :maggie-small:
hmmm…
the~n is this sentence 空から見た学院都市は、なかなかに美しかった。 means “The academy city seen from the sky was rather beautiful.” ?
@just a novel lover’s
Hello again.
As 天人さん said なかなかに is a classical Japanese words, and personally I have never used it or heard it in conversation but I found out on Google that there are people who use it as なかなか even in modern days.
なかなかに面白い
なかなかに優秀
The meaning is the same なかなか面白い、なかなか優秀
is that so sensei?
no wonder it’s not on the example hehehehe
Even I quite shocked when 天人さん said that なかなかに is Classical Japanese Words. I thought,”huh? classical? I thought you are a modern boy, Tsuchio!”
thanks 天人さん for answering my question ^^, and Maggie-sensei for confirming it hehehe
Quick question sensei!! When using “noni” to say “in order to; to do something”, is it compulsory to use the “no”? Can I say “neru niwa mada hayai” (to say it’s still early to go to bed) or is it necessary to use “neru noni mada hayai” ? I’ve been wondering if I can’t use the particle “ni” after a verb without nominalization. If it’s possible, what’s the difference with and without the “no”? Makes it a bit confusing with the other meaning of noni for me :/
Thank you!
@Sarah
Hi Sarah
You can say both 寝るにはまだ早い(=Neru niwa mada hayai) and 寝るのにはまだ早い (=neru no niwa mada hayai)
We sometimes omit “の” for that usage when it is used as a subject. And the meaning is the same.
Other example
食べるのには困らない →食べるには困らない
(But のには is more common)
Arigatou! What do you mean with the taberu sentence? komaru means to be in trouble, right?
＠Sarah
Oh sorry! I didn’t write the translation.
You use that phrase when you have enough money and no need to worry about “eating”
食べること implies “to live”
Ahh hahahaha, Ok, now makes all sense.
Thank you!
@Sarah
You’re welcome! :D
Konnichiwa sensei ^^
can I ask something?
what is the meaning/use of くれてる in 乗りやすいようにしゃがんでくれてるルウの背中に乗り
@just a novel lover’s
Ohayou!!
くれてる is another casual contraction of くれている = to do something for someone
乗りやすいようにしゃがんでくれてるルウの背中に乗り
So “Riding Ruu who is crouching down to give me a ride.”
ah, so it’s the casual form, no wonder… hahaha
sankyu sensei ehehehe
but sensei, you’re not give any casual form example in how to use ~te aru that’s why I got lost *sob*
@just a novel lover’s
I know. I covered きゃ、ちゃ、くちゃ, ん、etc. contraction but haven’t made that form yet.
Will add it on the request list!
Konbanwa, sensei
It’s me again ehehehe
I want to ask, why Japanese language sometimes use double negative words to make a positive meaning?
like this one
ルウを散歩させなきゃいけないしな！
that’s actually mean,”I must let Ruu take a walk, you know!” or “I must walk Ruu, you know!” right? Maggie-sensei.
why the speaker don’t just say
ルウを散歩させるしな！
@Just a novel lover’s
Konbanwa!
The sentence
ルウを散歩させなきゃいけないしな！
Let’s break it down.
First do you understand the meaning of this sentence?
↓
ルウを散歩させなければいけない
It means “I have to walk Ruu”
Now the casual contraction of なければいけない is
なきゃいけない
→ルウを散歩に連れていかなきゃいけない
The meaning is the same, I have to walk Ruu
Now the ending part し implies “also”
I also have to walk Ruu.
And the last casual suffix な is to stress the speaker’s point.
(So your translation “you know” is good.)
ルウを散歩させるしな
just means “I am also going to walk Ruu, you know.” and it doesn’t have a meaning of “must/ have to”.
Hope this helps.
I see… thank you sensei for helping me, it’s really help on reconstructing my logic
seriously, because I’m asking sensei about this double negative words I rechecked my translation on my favorite’s novel and I found a critical miss (fufufu… now my doubt about his gender are up by 80%)
dakara hontouni arigato gozaimasu sensei ^^
@just a novel lover’s
どういたしまして！！
Enjoy reading the novel! :)
Hi, maybe a difficult question, maybe not.
When you take the word “hi” 日 and add a “ru” – you get “hiru” 昼.
When you take “evening” “yuugata” 夕方, extract “yuu” and add a “ru” – you get “yoru” 夜. (Or am I making a mistake in this one?)
What does this “ru” mean in itself? Does it have a kanji?
—
Thank you for this incredible website.
＠Ross
Hello Ross,
ひる=hiru= means “day time/afternoon/noon” And the kanji for ひる=hiru is “昼”
And よる=yoru means “night” and the kanji for よる=yoru is 夜
The word ゆうがた=yuugata means “evening” and we use two kanji 夕(=ゆう=yuu)方(=がた= gata)
So your question
What does this “ru” mean in itself?
It doesn’t mean anything. It is just a part of a word.
And you can’t combine 日(=hi) and る(=ru) and stuff.
Maggie-sensei
help me again (T-T)
what the use of がい in 頼りがいがありそうだなぁ
cannot we just said 頼りがありそうだなぁ
sorry sensei my sentence was not complete T_T
this is the right one *tehe*
さっき言ったでしょ？頼りがいがありそうだなぁって
@just a novel lover’s
Hi again.
頼る = tayoru= means “to depend (on something/someone)
甲斐/かい・がい= kai/gai = means “worth/ effect/use”
頼りがいがある means someone “dependable/ reliable”
Ex. 彼は頼りがいがある人です。= He is a reliable person.
You can also say 頼りになる=tayori ni naru
Ex. 彼は頼りになる人です。= Kare wa tayori ni naru hito desu.
But you can’t say 頼りがある
Other words with 甲斐(がい・かい）
＊やり甲斐(=yarigai)がある= worth doing
＊生き甲斐(=ikigai)がある= something worth living for
thanks Maggie-sensei, you have clear my confusion
note to myself:
you have use as a person for me to depend on = You are a reliable person (LOL)
@just a novel lover’s
You’re welcome.
I guess I should make a mini lesson on 甲斐 sometime.
I’ll look forward for it sensei ^^
Maggie sensei, please help me m(_ _)m
even though I have read the example above I still cannot understand this sentence really well T_T
どんなシャンプーやリンスを使ったら、ここまで見事な髪になるんだろうな…。
what I get from that sentence is, “Even if I use any kind of shampoo and conditioner, I won’t be able to turn my hair into this magnificent hair.”
＠just a novel lover’s
It may be easier for you to think the answer for this question first.
このハーブのシャンプーを使ったらここまで見事な髪になります。
= If you use this herb shampoo, your hair will be this beautiful.
So as you can see this たら make this sentence conditional.
Ex. 私もハーブのシャンプーを使ったらここまで見事な髪になりますか？
= If I use herb shampoo, do you think my hair will be this beautiful?
Again, this is a conditional sentence.
So
どんなシャンプーやリンスを使ったら、ここまで見事な髪になるんだろうな…。
means
I wonder what kind of shampoo or conditioners I should use to make my hair this beautiful.
(I wonder what kind of shampoo or conditioner would make my hair this beautiful. )
waiii….
sankyu maggie-sensei (^o^)
so the “ん” in になるんだろうな…。
do not make that sentence into a negative sentence?
@just a novel lover’s
になるんだろうな means the same as ~になるのかな (= I wonder)
So it doesn’t have any negative meaning.
Ex. どうしてあんなにマギー先生はきれいなんだろう。
= Doushite annani Maggie Sensei wa kireinandarou.
= I wonder why Maggie Sensei is that beautiful.
= どうしてあんなにマギー先生はきれいなのかな（あ）
= Doushite annnani Maggie Sensei wa kirei nano kana(a)
*****
= どうして日本語はこんなに難しいんだろう
= Doushite nihongo wa konnani muzukashiin darou
= I wonder why Japanese is this difficult.
= どうして日本語はこんなに難しいのかな（あ）
= Doushite nihongo wa konnani muzukashii nokana(a)
I see…
マギー先生はきれいじゃない, かわいいよ
@just a novel lover’s
ヘヘヘ….Uo・ｪ-oU/^☆
私が「なかなか」のレッスンを取っていないのに、変に意味がなかなか分かる。リスニングとの関連があると思います。とにかく、マギー先生のレッスンを読み終わって、全部分かりました！。。。そうならいいですね <—- 質問！この最後の「ね」は女だけが使うの「ね」ですか。
@Humberto
なかなかの表現、耳で覚えていましたか？
Humbertoの日本語上手に書けていますが、ちょっとだけお手伝いしますね。
＊変に意味がなかなか分かる。→なぜかわからないけれども意味がわかります。（If you want to use なかなか there, このレッスンは”なかなか”わかりやすいです。）
You use a verb with 「なかなか」in a negative sentence なかなか〜ない or 時間がかかる／苦労する etc.
＊そうならいいですね。（that ね is not just for women. Men can use it as well.)
しまった！You’re right, I guess I didn’t have it that clear after all
..thank you so much now I think I got the last part of the lesson! I wasn’t sure how to write the “listening” part, I hope it turned out ok. I vaguely remember my sensei using it sometimes and I hear it often on tv shows and songs, but as far as I can remember this is the first time I’ve come across with a lesson focusing specifically on it. 手伝ってくれてありがとう！
@Humberto
You’re very welcome! :)
I figured “the listening” part. You could also say
どこかで聞いて耳で覚えていた
Whew, this is a lot of information, but thank you for the explanation. Maggie sensei, I have a question though. I understand the が and を difference for intransitive and transitive verbs, but I have seen examples that state:
O-mise wa aite imasu (the store is open).
while others state:
O-mise ga aite imasu (the store is open).
Some people say you must use が because it is intransive, but others say it doesn’t matter in this case. I’ve spent hours trying to sort this out, but you’re the one person whose explanations made sense. Tasukete! (sorry for being dramatic).
Sorry for the romanji, I haven’t set up a furigana keyboard on my new computer yet.
@Shabaescaba
Hello Shabaescaba,
OK, the difference between “が” and “は” is very complicated.
The basic rule is
AはBです (focusing on B)
AがBです (focusing on A)
1) When you are talking about general things you use は
*この部屋は寒い= This room is cold.
*彼はリーダーです。= He is a leader.
And you usually use が when you focus on the subject
(どの部屋が寒いのですか？(=Dono heya ga samui no desu ka?)= Which room is cold, you said? ）
→この部屋が寒い= (Kono heya ga samui) THIS ROOM is cold.
(誰がリーダーですか？=(Dare ga riidaa desu ka?) = Who is the leader? ）
→彼がリーダーです。(Kare ga riidaa desu.) = He is the leader. (Emphasizing the subject)
2) は is also used to emphasize what comes after showing the contrast.
1) お店が開いています。O-mise wa aite imasu (the store is open).
2) お店は開いています。O-mise ga aite imasu (the store is open).
Imagine, you are walking and saw some store is open.
If you simply describe what you saw, which one would you use?
The answer is 1) お店が開いています。(=Omise ga aite imasu.)
And imagine, you go to a coffee shop and it was closed. But they have a little store right next to the coffee shop and it was open. Which one would you use?
The answer is 2) お店は開いています。(= Omise wa aite imasu.)
So you use “は” in this case to show some contrast. (The store is open but maybe some other places are not.) Or to emphasize the subject more.
その店は開いていますが、他の店は開いていません。
= Sono mise wa aite imasu ga, hoka no mise wa aite imasen.
= That store is open but other stores are not open.
I am having a bit of trouble fully understanding this sentence:
“なかなか手に入らないものほど、欲しくなるものだ。”
what role is the ほど playing in it?
I think a literal translation would help too.
@reid
ほど in that sentence has a function of emphasizing.
Check this lesson. How to use ほど。
The idea is,
The harder it gets the more you want it.
Thanks!
@reid
You’re very welcome! :)
Aaaah, I see. Arigatou! By the way, do I use “aru” or “iru” if the subject is human? “tomodachi wa warui joutai de aru” or “de iru”? I see with mama you say “mama de itai”, “mama de ireba”, etc using always the iru verb for living things. But with “de aru” I always see aru, even when talking about people. Can I say “warui joutai de iru”? It confuses me a lot usually.
Same with the “ni”, ni aru or ni iru?
And,
*Zutto gakusei no mamadewa irarenai*– here, potential form of iru, maybe?
Thanks again!!
@Mel
Even if you are talking about people, when you are talking about someone’s condition, yes, you can use ある.
(If you are talking about the existence or location of people, you use いる)
As for the difference between ままでいる(=mamade iru) and ままである(=mamade aru)
you usually use ままでいる(=mamade iru) when you are talking about people.
Ex. tomodachi no mama de itai. = to want to stay as someone’s friend.
But there are cases that we use mamade aru when we describe people’s condition objectively.
Ex. 危篤状態のままである= kitokujyoutai no mama de aru = to be in critical condition (Seeing the patient condition objectively) Focusing on the condition
Ex. 危篤状態のままでいる= kitokujyoutai no mama de iru =staying in critical condition (Talking about what kind of condition the patient is in right now.) Focusing on the person
Arigatou sensei :3 I think I got it. Then, with aru is objective and with iru is subjective, more personal, right? It sounds like that to my ears too. If you say “kitokujoutai no mama de iru” to me sounds talking about you and your existence, and the way your existence is right now, the way you are carrying in life. But it’s true that saying it with aru it’s like talking about the status. My initial confusion came, I think, from having read “kare wa warui joutai ni aru”, since I thought they were trying to talk about how bad his life was right now subjectively, and seeing it with the aru confused me, but I guess they were focusing on the condition anyway, more than the person itself.
Thanks!!
@Mel
You’re welcome. I think you got the idea.It made me think,too.
It was a great question!!
I hope I did! haha. But it’s a long way until I get the true nuance of the expressions. By the way, then, if I wanna use, for instance the word “tachiba”, like “if you were in my position…?” do I use aru or iru? (apart from tachiba ni tatsu which I often hear) :grin:
@Mel
If you were in my position in Japanese is
もしあなたが私の立場だったら or 立場にいたら
Konnichiwa, Maggie-sensei
Shitsumon ga arimasu
How would you translate a causative form verb with nasai end?
For example,
If I want to say something like, “complete the translation of that book” and I want to be firm and polite I know I must use nasai at the end of the verb but someone told me that I should use owarasenasai and that made me think a lot but with no results.
So, for my sentence… which one is more suitable?
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarasenasai
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarinasai
And how would you use nasai with causative and passive forms.
Some examples would be good.
Thanks in advance.
Note: Sorry, I cant type in japanese with my celphone at this moment
@Freddy
こんにちは、Freddy
First
終わる(=owaru) is a intransitive and a transitive verb
You use it as a transitive verb when you finish something on time or as you planned.
When someome tries to finish something, you use either
1) 終える= oeru
or
2) 終わらせる= owaraseru
So your sentence
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarasenasai →OK
Sono hon no honyaku wo owarinasai→終えなさい(=oenasai) is better
＊＊＊＊＊＊
Q: And how would you use nasai with causative and passive forms?
Some examples would be good.
Let me see….
causative
Ex. 彼に自分の荷物を持たせなさい。
= Kare ni jibun no nimotsu wo motasenasai.
= Make him carry his own luggage.
Ex. もっと子供を遊ばせなさい。
= Motto kodomo wo asobasenasai.
= Let your children play more.
passive form is not that common but
Ex. 親は子供をもっと叱りなさい。そして子供は親にもっと叱られなさい。
= Oyawa kodomo wo motto shikarinasai. Soshite kodomo wa oyani motto shikararenasai.
= Parents should scold children. And children should be scolded by their parents more.
Hope this helps.
Thanks for your reply and sorry for not giving a response earlier.
I wanted to make sure that I had studied enough to come back here again and ask with more details.
At this very moment, I understand more the usage of this form “causative”. However, there are still several doubts in my mind regarding to this.
According to what I looked up and to your explanation, the causative forms can have the following meanings
– Make/ Have someone do
– Let someone do
I have noticed something peculiar, and it’s that when a verb is intransitive you can turn into a transitive verb by using the causative form, just like “OWARU”.
Why does this happen?
Nevertheless, in the case of owaru, it seems to have the following behavior:
– Owaru: to come to an end
– Owaraseru: to finish something (because someone tries to finish it).
In the example “その本の翻訳を終わらせなさい”
What I meant was “complete/finish the translation of that book.”
But since owaraseru is causative then this makes me feel that the sentence written above says something like:
“Make yourself finish the translation of that book”
But “make someone itself do something” sounds weird to me…It’s kind of implicit.
For example:
私の宿題を終わらせたい = I want to finish my homework.
まず最初に宿題を終わらせなくちゃ = We must finish our homework first
However, to me these sentences are something like:
– I want to make myself finish my homework.
– We must make ourselves finish our homework first
No one says, “I want to make myself do something”, at least in a cases similar to these ones.
However, it looks like In Japanese this is normal.
In the translation, obviously we just ignore the causative part “make ourselves/myself do something” because is implicit.
Why does this happen? I don’t really know what is the reason for this.
Another thing is make me thing a lot is about the real usages of verbs that have both transitive and intransitive forms.
Example: Owaru is both, transitive and intransitive verb.
And both cases the meaning doesn’t change but it’s seem to be that the usage is different according to the form of the verb (vt/vi)
– Owaru transitive form: When finish something on time or as you planned
– Owaru intransitive form: Not sure how to explain the usage with this form.
So, when a verb is transitive you use for some specific cases and when is intransitive you use it for another cases.
Does this always happen with verbs that have these two forms (transitive/intransitive)?
Why?
For now that would be all.
Again thanks for your reply.
＠Freddy
Hello Freddy
Q when a verb is intransitive you can turn into a transitive verb by using the causative form, just like “OWARU”.Why does this happen?
Let me see if I understand your question here.
花が咲く(flower blooms) intransitive
→花を咲かせる(transitive verb) to make the flower bloom transitive
（Yes, as you said you can make intransitive verb to transitive verb by using the causative form)
*****
As I said 終える is a very special verb which can be used both for intransitive and transitive.
仕事が終わる (the work finishes) intransitive
仕事を終わる。(you finish working) transitive (This doesn’t have a meaning of causative)
Let’s compare the following examples.
Ex. 1) Freddyの仕事は５時に終わった。(intransitive) (just describing what time your work finished.)
Ex. 2) Freddyは５時に仕事を終わった。 (transitive) (as you planned/just describing what time you finished working.)
(causative)↓
Ex. 3) Freddyは５時に仕事を終えた。(transitive/ causative) (involving your will)
Ex.4) Freddyは５時に仕事を終わらせた。(transitive/ causative)(involving your strong will. implying there is a reason why you finished your work at five.)
I think you should separate 終わる from other verbs.
There are not many verbs which can be used for both intransitive and transitive.
Other verb like 終わる is
Ex. 開く(=hiraku) ドアを開く(hiraku) transitive ・ドアが開く(hiraku) intransitive
Q: 私の宿題を終わらせたい = I want to finish my homework.
まず最初に宿題を終わらせなくちゃ = We must finish our homework first
However, to me these sentences are something like:
– I want to make myself finish my homework.
– We must make ourselves finish our homework first
→I know what you are trying to say here but these two sentence are causative.
You want to finish the sentence. The object is homework. Not yourself.
Hello maggie sensei
I’ve read the previous comment and your answer helped me as well but, can I use “ni” with aru?
Because, with this stative words, I usually hear de aru or desu, like “kare wa warui joutai de aru/ desu”, but sometimes also “warui joutai ni aru”, and I don’t know what difference they’re trying to point out, since aru is not an action so… maybe trying to empashize the status more than the bad condition? I understand the difference between “warui joutai de kita” and “warui joutai ni kita”, the subtle difference on the focus, but I don’t see that difference between de aru and ni aru …
yoroshiku onegai shimasu!
@Mel
1) 悪い状態です (= warui joutai desu)
2) 悪い状態である(=warui joutai de aru)
3)悪い状態にある(=warui joutai ni aru
They all mean “to be in the bad condition/status”
But here is the difference
1) and 2) are
A = B
→”the condition is bad” / “It is a bad condition”
and 3)
is A is in B
→Subject is in the bad condition
So as you said, by using に you can emphasize “to be IN the bad state/condition” more.
*******
As for
悪い状態できた(=warui joutai de kita)
悪い状態にきた(=warui joutai ni kita)
you wanted to say
悪い状態になってきた(=warui joutai ni natte kita) ？
If so, you can’t say 悪い状態でなってきた(=warui joutai de natte kita)
The condition is getting “IN” bad status.
If you meant
It has come all the way in bad condition then you say
悪い状態でやってきた(=warui joutai de yatte kita)
this で means “in the condition or with the condition”
Oh yep, sorry, I should have explained that last one better. I meant that someone came in bad status, like he came home sick, or drunk, etc.
Why the yatte? Sometimes I see it (or shite) and I don’t know why hehe
Thank you for the reply, I understand the difference of nuance better now!!
Ok I think I suddenly got it. Maybe that yatte means “he came DOING in a bad condition” ? I am usually a little “slow” with the te form (especially when it’s something like “he came running”, “he went walking”, etc) If it’s not that please correct me cause I’m a mess with the te form looool
@Mel
やって来る
this やって is not from a verb やる=do. So it doesn’t mean “to come doing something”
You can learn やって来る as a one verb.
“To come all the way”
So while 来る just means “to come”, やって来る(=yattekuru) is usually used when you come from far away.
Can someone translate this for me, I believe it is just a like in Japanese social media but I don’t know.
いいねしました
@jonathan mccarthy 「真赤死 さん」
いいね(=iine) means to click “like” on Facebook.
いいねする(= iine suru)/(polite) いいねします(iine shimasu) is “to LIKE (=click “LIKE” button) someone’s picture or message on Facebook.”
いいねした(=iineshita)/ (polite) いいねしました(=iine shimahsita) is a past tense of “to LIKE” (=clicked “LIKE” button) someone’s picture or message Facebook.
こんにちは、ウンベルトです！
しばらくの間マギー先生のサイトを訪問してきた事実にもかかわらず、これは僕がコメントをする初めてです。これからよろしくお願いします！いつものようにグレートレッスン。
＠Humberto
こんにちは、ウンベルト！はじめまして！
そして初めてのコメントうれしいです！これからもよろしくね！！
コメントに日本語を書いてくれたら日本語のお手伝いをしますよ。よかったらいつでもここで日本語の練習をして下さいね。
（A little correction. しばらくの間マギー先生のサイトを訪問してきた事実にもかかわらず、これは僕がコメントをする初めてです。→to sound more natural ずっとマギー先生のサイトに来ていたのですが、コメントをするのは初めてです。）
はい！手伝ってくれてありがとう、あまり書かないから ちょっと下手です へへ。
まだ練習する必要があるので、もっと参加します。
＠Humberto
いえいえ、ウンベルトの日本語はとってもよく書けていますよ。
これからもがんばってくださいね。
Thanks Maggie-sensei. Japanese is such as Turkish that’s why i can learning easily japanese.
@Kar
Hello Kar,
Ahhh my friend who used to study Turkish once told me Japanese and Turkish are somehow similar. Very interesting!
sensei what is the difference between below sentence
こんな優しい人
優しい感じの人
人は優しそう
and another example sentences are
こんな人が悪い
こんな感じの人が悪い
このような人が悪い
and what is nuance when we use 感じ in this sentwnce
こんな優しい人 Such a nice person (You know that person is nice.)
優しい感じの人/優しそう a person who seems/looks nice.(I already explained the nuance difference in my previous comment but these two)
1) こんな人が悪い
2) こんな感じの人が悪い
3) このような人が悪い
The translation is the same. This kind of person is bad.
1) and 3) are the same （こんな is more conversational ） and more specific about the person compared to 2)
2) is more based on one’s impressions.
Maggie Sensei! I love your site so much! I’m learning a lot here about the various usages much better than from formal grammar references. Thank you so much for all your efforts.
I have a huge, huge request. The usages of “koto” and “no”, especially as nominalizers, still stump me and I don’t know how to put them naturally in writing or speech. I understand the -kotogaaru, and how “no” is used as you explained here in the lesson, but the topic marker/nominalizer issue is still very hard to put in active usage. I would give anything for you to put up an explanation for these two constructions, because I’m learning the best from your format: lots of example sentences that point out the subtleties in meaning and multiple usages without all the confusing grammatical jargon. You have no idea how the saseru/saserareru and “wake” lessons cleared up much of the confusion I had.
Thank you again for an amazing site :-D
@Enjuchan
Hello Enjuchan,
I am very happy to know you are learning a lot here.
Actually the usage of “koto” is on top of the request list.
Please give me some time and I promise that I will make a lesson for you sometime.
がんばりま〜す！ :)
もちろん！本当にありがとうございました！ :-D
Hi sensei, I’m sorry to ask you this kind of question here but truth is, this is a little thing that’s annoying me a lot during my studies. It’s about the na adjectives.
“jibun ga oya ni natte mite hajimete kosodate no taihensa ga wakatta.”
Why the “sa” after taihen? I mean, wasn’t that “sa” only for the I adjectives? Since the na adjectives are also nouns, it confuses me a lot when I look up a word on a dictionary and it defines it as a noun, “inconvenience”, for example. But then I see the word used as a na adjective, meaning “inconvenient”, I guess. So, I can say “fuben na tokoro” as “inconvenient place” or “sonna fuben” as “what an inconvenience” (as a noun), true?
And why the “sa” after some na adjectives? It doesn’t appear in my dictionary so I don’t know about it. Thanks a lot and sorry for all the trouble! !heart3!
@Rhi
Hello Rhi!!
First nominalization with さ(=sa) is not just with i-adjective. It also works with na-adjetive.
Since the na adjectives are also nouns, it confuses me a lot
→na-adjectives are not nouns.
I think it will be easier for you to think the plain form of na-adjecitve is ~ な
*元気な = genkina Ex. 元気な子供= genkina kodomo = a cheerful child
*きれいな=kireina Ex. きれいな絵= kireina e = a beautiful picture
And the way you make a noun from na-adjective is
1) delete な(=na) *元気な = genkina →元気=genki
2) add さ(=sa) 元気さ= genkisa = cheefulness
Therefore
大変な（＝taihenna) →大変さ(=taihensa)
きれいな(=kireina) →きれいさ(=kireisa)
不便な(=fubennna) →不便さ(=fubennsa)
Oh but then, a word like “shiawase”, that is used as a na adjective “shiawase na hito”, is also the noun for happiness, isn’t it?
Or “fuan”, according to my dictionary it means anxiety and also “fuan na hito/ fuan ni naru” are listed as examples. That’s pretty much what confuses me, in my dictionary almost all na-adjectives are also listed as nouns, and most of them appear with a noun description, so I don’t know well how to treat them. If, for instance, I can add -sou to a noun, so with the shiawase example “shiawasesou” would be correct? Another example, with “kiken = danger, hazard; na adjective and noun”, So is kiken also the noun for “danger”? Or do I have to add -sa to all na adjectives to make their noun form :/
Thank you!! !happyface!
@Rhi
Maybe the dictionary that you use confuses you.
na-adjectives are adjectives. They are not nous.
“shiawase-na” is an adjective and it means “happy” and “shiawase” is a noun and it means “happiness”
“fuan-na” is an adjective “anxious” and “fuan” is a noun “anxiety”
Either na-adj and i-adj modify a noun.
“shiawase-na hito” itself is a noun “a happy person” but
“hito” is a noun and “shiawase-na” is an adj that modifies a noun,”hito”
こんにちは、マギー先生！
多分このレッスンというものがこんなに長くて難しいけどずっと数日勉強していたのにちゃんとわかると疑うんだ。
頭がクラクラする笑
だから疑いを解くように少数質問を聞きたい。
1. a function as relative pronoun
動詞を使えば良い？例文： やってみると怖がる (I’m scared to try )
2. when you determine smth
「難しい」で強調すれば「ということ」か「といもの」を使えばいい？だが「ということ」は「事」のところを使われただけの？
3.when we speak/talk of something
「というと」は「について」とか「にとって」など交換できる？
4.bring up smth and continue smth which always happens
「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」を言いたければ、良い？この場合は「というと」か「～と conditional」のどれを書いた方がいいのがよく分からなかった。
おわりだろう。
相変わらず間違いがあれば、直してください。この文章という文章はがんばって書いたのにたくさん間違ってしまうって思う。
I really want to write complicated sentences but to scared ;;
*間違ってしまったって思う
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd!
はは、頭がクラクラしましたか？長いレッスンだから全部一度に覚えようとしないで少しずつ勉強して下さいね。
日本語で書くと混乱（こんらん）するかもしれないので英語で答えますね。
1. Your sentence 「やってみると怖がる」means “If A tries, A gets scared” and と is a conditional particle. ~すると〜
(If you do something, something will happen)
You wanted to make an example sentence with
AというB?
Then
A could be a verb or adjective but B should be a noun
*怖いという気持ち= the feeling of being scared / that you are scared
*やりたいという気持ち the feelings that you want to do
2. 「難しい」で強調すれば「ということ」か「といもの」を使えばいい？だが「ということ」は「事」のところを使われただけの？
Sorry. I don’t understand your question well.
But when you define something, there are cases that you can use というもの
愛は耐えるということです。
愛は耐えるものです。
However there are a lot of difference between them. It is too complicated to explain the difference here so if I have a chance, I will make a lesson on というもの
3. No, you can’t.
「日本語というとまず何を思い浮かべますか？」
When you hear “Japanese”, what comes to your mind first?
について means “about”
日本についてどう思いますか？
= What do you think about Japan?
にとって means “for”
私にとって日本は特別な国です。
= Japan is a special country for me.
4. 「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」→It won’t work..
But if you always plays games on your day off, then you can say
休日というと家でゲームだ。
＊＊＊＊＊＊＊
それではocdの文章を直しますね。２.の文章はよくわからなかったのでそれ以外の文章を直します。
（１）多分このレッスンというものがこんなに長くて難しいけどずっと数日勉強していたのにちゃんとわかると疑うんだ。→疑うんだ means “I doubt” You are not sure if you will be able to understand this? If so このレッスンは長くて難しいけどずっと何日も勉強したらわかるのかなあ。
２）だから疑いを解くように少数質問を聞きたい。→疑いを解くために but just say わからないところをはっきりさせるために、少し質問をしたいです。
３）「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」を言いたければ、良い？→「家に帰るというとゲームを遊ぶ」と言えばいい？
４）おわりだろう。→これでおわりです。
５）相変わらず。→いつもの通り
６）この文章という文章はがんばって書いたのにたくさん間違ってしまうって思う。→がんばってたくさんの文章を書いたけれどもたくさん間違ってしまったと思います。
長い文章を書くのは大変ですね。でもいつもocdは努力して日本語の文章を書いているし習った言葉を使っていてすごいですよ。
Good job!!!
Hello !JYANE! Amazing lesson Sensei. I love the word. I have a little question:
“Kare yori mo watashi no hou ga nihongo ga umai da nante tondemo nai.”
How many “ga” can I use in the same sentence? I guess it’s because “hou ga” is always using ga but, it sounds a little new to me, I don’t know if it’s fine but I would have say something like “watashi niwa” or “watashi no hou niwa” (I don’t know if hou niwa even exists !gejigeji! )
Can I say something like “watashi ga uta ga heta desu” oooor do I have to say “watashi (ni)wa”? I’ve seen wa, ni, niwa, but I don’t recall having seen ga with that kind of potential/adjective words !ase!
Thank you in advance sensei boucingheart!
@Rhi
Hello Rhi!
彼よりも私の方が日本語がうまいだなんてとんでもない。
“Kare yori mo watashi no hou ga nihongo ga umai da nante tondemo nai.”
Yes, there are two が in the sentence.
Since you need to use が in the following sentences,
1) Aより（も）Bの方が〜 As you said, it is a pattern using が(=ga) here. (You can’t replace this が with には(niwa))
2) 日本語がうまい (=nihongo ga umai)
When you want to emphasize Japanese, you use が(=ga)
If you say 日本語は上手い(=Nihongo wa umai) it shows the contrast so you imply “to be good at Japanese but maybe bad at other languages”. )
Therefore you need two が.
1)
********
“watashi ga uta ga heta desu”
→Usually we say 私は歌が下手です。= Watashi wa uta ga heta desu.
You only use が(=ga) after 私(=watashi) when you try to focus on the subject.
For example, you are telling someone 歌が下手です= Uta ga heta desu = bad at singing.
They will ask you “who doesn’t sing well?” 誰が歌が下手なんですか？= Dare ga uta ga heta nan desu ka?
You can say “私が歌が下手です。= Watashi ga uta ga heta desu. = I am the one who can’t sing well.
It is possible to have more than one が in one sentence if it is necessary.
But we sometimes change the sentence in order to avoid using the same particles.
Ryoukai! !JYANE! I’m finally starting to distinguish the particle difference, but it’s a slow process lol At first I was dealing with the niwa but it finally sounds different to my ears, using the one or the other.
I get that “ga” is used when you want to emphasize the subject, as when asking a question, even if there’s another subject, “uta” in this case, which is unskilled, hence de “uta GA heta”, but since it’s me the subject I’m emphasizing when I answer that question of “dare ga…”, I use it for me too. I don’t think that asking “dare ni wa uta ga heta desu ka?”, would ever sound right to me to ask that, it sounds more like asking for an opinion. It’s very tricky, the japanese grammar
Kedo, Maggie Sensei no okage de yatto wakatte kuru boucingheart! Arigatou gozaimashita :3
@Rhi
どういたしまして、Rhi!
It’s true. The difference between “ga” and “wa” is very tricky. But eventually you will know what sounds more natural.
You use には=niwa
1) for ~ Ex. It is difficult for me. = 私には難しいです。＝Watashi niwa muzukashii desu.
2) in (location) Ex. There are many tourists in Kyoto. = 京都には観光客が一杯います。= Kyouto niwa kankoukyaku ga ippai imasu.
がんばってね！ :)
このレッスンはとんでもなく分かりやすいと思う。とんでもないという言葉は日常的に使えそうだ。
＠エドワード
は〜い、よく使う言葉なので是非、使ってみてくださいね！
Un GRAND merci! I really could not understand that from the Minna Nihongo… Especially since the -のです had not being covered yet.
＠Liana
Hello Liana!!
Good to hear this lesson helps you. :)
関西に住んでいるのに、まだ関西弁が分からへん。あかんやん。
…>_<…
でも、先生のおかげで、分かりやすくなって、鬼嬉しいやん。ありがとうございます。
@エドワード
「吉本」や「お笑い番組」みて勉強してや〜♩
見てみよう。おおきに！
舞子はレディー を観に行って、その中に京都弁をよく使って、面白かったどす。大阪弁より難しいそうだと思う。
@エドワード
www 舞子はレディー、まだ観てへん。
京都弁どすか〜？
おきばりやす！（=がんばって！）
うわあ、このレッスンを勉強すると決めて嬉しい。
「ないと conditional」について知ってなかった。まあ驚いた！
ありがとう！
@ocd
いいですねえ、いつもocdは楽しんで日本語を勉強してくれるから私もうれしいです。
（１つだけ直しますね。知ってなかった→知らなかった の方が自然です。）
直してくれてありがとう！
といえば、「知る」と「知っている」の違いは何ですか？
@ocd
どういたしまして。
Grammatically 「知る」is a dictionary form (=to know) and it means “to find out, to learn”
知っている= to have known something/something
Hello Sensei. I have a doubt about “de aru”. I can say “Maggie no kare de aru wake ga nai”, but I can’t say “Maggie no kare DA wake ga nai”, it has to be “kare no wake”, right?
Then, is “de aru” that different from “da”?
Also, If I wanna say it in past tense, “Maggie no kare datta wake ga nai” is correct or should I use “de atta” or something like that? It confuses me that somethimes de aru is used where “da” as a more formal version but also in place of “no”
And, If I say “Kare no yume wa watashi no yume de mo atta” (trying to say “his dream was my dream too”), is it common or sounds too formal? Any more casual way to say it?
Thank you!!
@Sarah
Hello Sarah,
Q : I can say “Maggie no kare de aru wake ga nai”, but I can’t say “Maggie no kare DA wake ga nai”, it has to be “kare no wake”, right?
Yes, that’s right.
As for the difference between だ and である, let’s compare the following sentences.
1)あの犬はマギーの彼だ。
= That dog is Maggie’s boyfriend.
2) あの犬はマギーの彼である。
= That dog is Maggie’s boyfriend.
They both mean the same but 2) has more explanatory tone.
1) だ is an auxiliary verb which comes after a noun, in this case 彼(=kare)
2) で= is a particle and ある is a verb
わけがない won’t come after だ.
Q : Also, If I wanna say it in past tense, “Maggie no kare datta wake ga nai” is correct or should I use “de atta” or something like that?
As I explained in other people’s question, though we hear people use “past tense + わけがない”, it is not so common.
Usually we use “present tense” + わけがなかった／わけがありませんでした。
So I would say 彼のわけがなかった／彼であるわけがなかった
Is there a difference between using ついでに and verb in masu form + ながら ?
@reid
Hi reid,
While you use ついでに when you do something taking advantage of some action, you use ながら when two actions are happening at the same time.
For example
Ex. 東京に行くついでに横浜に行く。
= Going to Tokyo →And then go to Yokohama →Either going back to Tokyo or going home from Yokohama.
Ex. ご飯を食べながらテレビを観る。
Two actions (eating and watching TV) are happening at the same time.
I have a lesson on ながら. Please check it. (How to use ながら）
ohh, thanks a lot.
＠reid
You are welcome! :)
こんにちは先生!レッスンありがとうございます!いつも分かりやすくて本当に助かります :-D
Um, however, I have a question regarding this sentence:
“ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう。”, since you translated it as “(Since I am here) I might as well buy this too.”, could we use せっかく as the substitute of ついで or not? If so, so what is the difference between ついで in this context and せっかく? Thanks in advance!
@Kai
こんにちは、Kai!
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう
２）せっかくだからこれも買っちゃおう
The meaning is the same but the feeling is ついでに is much lighter.
せっかく implies the feeling of “after all the trouble/work”. In this case you can imagine someone comes to the store all the way (from far away) and finally got to the store or making time to get to the store so you don’t want to waste the opportunity.
But ついで doesn’t involve this kind of feeling. Since you are just there, you will buy something. That’s all.
You use せっかく
マティーニのおすすめの飲み方は何ですか。
＠エドワード
好きな人と飲むと何でも美味しくなります！
関西に住んでいるついでに、日本語だけじゃなくて、関西弁も勉強します。
＠エドワード
関西弁、楽しいやんな〜♩がんばりや〜！
（Check This lesson)
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I have been your site’s reader for quite a time but it’s my first time leaving a comment here ^^
I just have a small question. Can I use potential verb with ~yasui/nikui? For example, when I want to say something like “It’s easy to see snow in winter”, can I say “yuki ga mirareyasui”? (it does sound strange to be honest T_T).
Thank you in advance ^^.
＠Jolie
Hello Jolie, Thank you for your first comment!
There isn’t a potential for of ~yasui/nikui but there is a passive form.
So if you say
見られやすい（=mirareyasui) , we automatically think it’s a passive form. “something is easy to be seen”
Ex. 私は３０歳ですが、若く見られやすい。＝I am thirty years old but I look younger.
Will show you other example with a passive form.
*盗む=nusumu=to steal →盗まれやすい= nusumareyasui = easy to be stolen / 盗まれにくい(=nusumare nikui) hard to be stolen
Ex. この自転車は盗まれやすい= Kono jitensha wa nusumare yasui = This bicycle is easy to be stolen.
So if you want to say “It’s easy to see snow in winter”, you just say
雪は冬に見られることが多い。
= Yuki wa fuyu ni mirareru koto ga ooi.
But we usually say
雪は冬に降ることが多い。
= Yuki wa fuyu ni furu koto ga ooi.
Sensei, thank you so much ^^
Through your explaining, I understand the meaning of passive form + yasui/nikui, but here come one more question. Even though “yuki ga mirareyasui” here literally means “Snow can easily be seen”, I guess it still can’t be used to express the likeliness of seeing snow in winter, right Sensei? (i’m a little bit confused here
)
And a little more, can I say “Yuki wa fuyu ni mirarerukoto ga yasashii”?
Nice day Sensei ^w^
@Jolie
Still I would say 雪は冬に見られやすい doesn’t sound natural.
And you don’t say 雪は冬にみられることがやさしい (“Yuki wa fuyu ni mirarerukoto ga yasashii)
I see.
Thank you for you explaining :-D
@Jolie
You’re welcome,Jolie!
電車に乗っていて、通勤中です。座れない。 （−＿−；）
@エドワード
満員電車ですか？がんばって通勤してくださいね！！
京阪本線だから、東京での電車や地下鉄ほど込んでいなかった。でも、途中でやっと座れて、よかった。
@エドワード
東京の電車はすごく混んでいますからね。座れてよかったですね〜♩
Sensei, T-T Can you explain in detail about the time difference for mayonaka and yonaka? I read online that mayonaka should not be used as 12am as in midnight. And there is this word shinya as well.
@Anne
Hello Anne!
Sorry I can’t explain from what time to what time is which one but the most general word for the middle of the night is 夜中. Technically 真夜中 is midnight but 深夜(=shinya) and 真夜中(mayonaka) are both used as middle of the night.
For your information, NHK did the survey
夜中= from 23:00 ish~ 2:00 ish
深夜= from 24:00 usg ~ 2:00 ish
Thanks for your reply, Sensei. So basically you mean mayonaka can be used for both midnight and middle of the night? Ok, between mayonaka and yonaka which one is later in the night? Can I just summarized as in mayonaka is 12am and yonaka as in after 12am?
Sorry…I still have difficulty curbing with this issue. Sorry sensei!! (usg and ish??)
@Anne
真夜中 has a meaning as “midnight” but usually we used it for no specific time and use it as “middle of the night”.
Let me see if I can explain the concept in a more graphic way.
There is no rules rules but
23:45ish or later—————————————2:00ish
<-----------------夜中(yonaka)/深夜(shinya)------------＞ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<----真夜中(mayonaka)-----＞~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ↑★２４：００／正子（shoushi)~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thank you!! !JYANE! Thank you so much for your patience! Love you so much, Sensei boucingheart!
@Anne
You’re very welcome!
Love you,too!! <3
Thank you so much for this lesson!
I was wondering, would it be an advantage to ask questions for the interviewers??
I wanted to ask “what is your turnover rate?” but perhaps that is too rude for Japan?
@kay
Hi Kay,
What is your turnover rate? in Japanese is 御社の離職率はどのぐらいでしょうか？(=Onsha no rishokuritsu wa donogurai deshou ka?)
But I wouldn’t ask that question. They will think you are already thinking about quitting at the interview.
@Maggie
AH! That makes sense now, thank you so much! I’ve been trying to understand songs specifically because they’re challenging, my goal is to see unusual forms of 日本語 to stretch and strengthen how I think about it. Anyway, thank you again for replying and for writing this massively informative article!
@宇宙
You’re very welcome!! Good, keep enjoying studying Japanese in your way!
Hello Maggie Sensei. I was wondering something about the tai form used on the passive form.
In your sentence “kono okashi, darenimo taberaretakunai”, there’s no wa or ga but, if I wanted to say, for example:
I don’t want you to be kissed by her
What should I use for “anata”? wa or ga?
“anata wa kanojo ni kisu saretakunai” or “anata ga kanojo ni kisu saretakunai”
I mean, who is the subject? Me (because it’s me who doesn’t want) or “anata” (because you would receive the kiss). I don’t know if I am getting my point across but the thing is I don’t know which one of these two phrases is OK:
Watashi wa anata ga kanojo ni kisu saretakunai
Anata wa watashi ga kanojoni kisu saretakunai
Also, is it correct if I say “darenimo kono ringo o taberaretakunai” (meaning I don’t want nobody to eat my apple), or I can’t use ringo as direct object in this sentence? I’ve been told that, when it is a simple passive I can use “tomodachi ni ringo o taberareta” to express that my apple was eaten by my friend (and that kind of annoys me), but maybe if I use the -tai form I have to use it in a different way.
thanks in advance!!
@Sarah
Hello Sarah
Yes, you can use tai-form with passive form.
And as for the particles, we often omit the particle in conversation.
このお菓子(は・を）、誰にも食べられたくない。
= Kono okashi (wa, wo) , dareni mo taberaretaku nai.
I don’t want you to be kissed by her
The most natural translation will be
あなたが彼女にキスをされてほしくない。
= Anata ga kanojo ni kisu wo sarete hoshiku nai.
If you say
あなたは(or が) 彼女にキスをされたくない
(=Anata wa (or ga)kanojo ni kisu wo saretakunai)
means “You don’t want her to kiss you” and there is no speaker’s feeling there.
If you want to add your feelings there,
私はあなたが彼女に(or から）キスをされるのを見たくない。
= Watashi wa anataga kanojo ni (or kara) kisu wo sareru no wo mitaku nai.
.
＊＊＊＊
誰にもこのりんごを食べられたくない。
= Dareni mo kono ringo wo taberaretakunai.
Yes, you can say that.
Thanks a lot that was really helpful!! I have the bad habit of complicating things too much hehehe but I like to cover all the possibilities, I aim to speak my mind as it is, I hate it when I have to spend a while thinking how to say something with other words.
Seriously thanks!!
@Sarah
You’re very welcome.
Haha your question made me think. But it was a really good question!
But thank you for answer that tricky question!! You are the best!!
Dear Maggie Sensei,
referring to the previous comment, could you please explain the nuances of kara&dakara? I always thought Kara was a reason and Dakara is to describe the consequences. But we once came up with a tongue twister: kareshi wa karai karashi ga kirai kara, karai karashi wa kirei:) but the Japanese told us it had to be Dakara. I don’t get, we mention the reason why the musturd is good, why Dakara?
@Eva
Hello Eva.
Good question. I will post the question on FB sometime.
OK, first から(=kara) and だから(=dakara) are both used to give a reason. (because/so…/that’s why)
1) When they are used in the middle of the sentence.
★から(=kara)
＊i-adjective + から
おいしいから
Ex. 美味しいからたくさん食べてしまう。
= Oishii kara takusan tabete shimau.
= It is so delicious that I eat a lot.
＊verb (plain form) + から
:
*走るから(=hashiru kara)
Ex. これから１０km 走るからゴールで待っていて下さい。
= Kore kara jukkiro hashiru kara gooru de matte ite kudasai.
= I will run 10 km no so please wait at the goal
*走ったから(=hashitta kara) past tense
Ex. 10km 走ったから疲れた。
= 10 km hashitta kara tsukareta.
= I ran 10 km so I am tired.
＊verb with other auxiliary verb
Ex.走るだろうから(=hashiru darou) will probably run
Ex.走ったそうだから(= hashitta sou dakara) I heard someone run
★だから(=dakara)
＊na-adjecitve + だから
Ex.しずかな→しずか＋な）
しずかだから
Ex. 図書館は静かだから勉強しやすい。
= Toshokan wa shizuka dakara benkyou shiyasui
= The library is so quiet that I can study well.
*noun + だから
Ex.犬だから = because ~ is a dog
Ex. マギーだから = Because it’s Maggie…
2) Sometimes you can start a sentence with だから(=dakara)
Ex. 明日は雨です。だから野球はしません。
= Ashita wa ame desu. Dakara tenisu wa shimasen.
= It is going to rain tomorrow. That’s why (So) I won’t play tennis.
But you can’t start a sentence with から(=kara)
Oh thank you!! it was so confusing..
@Eva
You’re very welcome!
眉先生ありがとう！眉毛は可愛いよ( ⋂‿⋂’)
マギー先生もありがとう！相変わらずマギー先生のレッスンは便利でわかりやすい。今まで「使い方」について知ったけど「方」のすべての文法を見つけてびっくりした。(this sentence was hard and I’m not sure if I wrote right, wanted to say “~I was surprised to find out that there is whole kata grammar”)
だから今から私の日本語が上手くなっていくように。
先生、ひとつ質問がある。「方」じゃなくて「とき」だ。
よく見た「とき」と「ときに」と「ときは」それぞれずつの使い方がわからない。英語で説明してもいいですか？ よろしくね。
(If there is any mistake, please correct me. Complicated sentences will be the death of me lol)
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd!! 眉先生かわいい？伝えておきますね。きっと喜ぶと思います。
OK, let me help your sentence first.
*~知ったけど →知っていたけ（れ）ど
*見つけてびっくりした→知ってびっくりした
だから今から私の日本語が上手くなっていくように。
You wanted to say “I hope my Japanese will improve”?
You started the sentence with だから.
だから means “that’s why” / “So..” and it has to explain what you mentioned in the previous sentence.
How about just saying これから（私の）日本語がもっと上手くなりますように。
*********
とき/ときに/ときは
They all mean “when” and it is complicated to explain the difference here but
とき is the most general one.
ときに is used when you specify the time point
ときは is used when you show the contrast.
Ex. 若いときよくこの曲を聴きました。
= When I was young, I used to listen to the song.
adding に to specify the time
Ex. 若いときによくこの曲を聴きました。
(The translation is the same but に specifies the particular time.)
********
Ex. 若いときは好きなことをいっぱいした方がいい。
= When we are young, we should do a lot of fun things.
Showing the contrast ‘the time when we are young” and “the time when we get older”
直して説明してくれてありがとう！
マギー先生って最高だよ！
@ocd
どういたしまして！ boucingheart!
マギー先生、このレッソンでありがとうございました！
I actually found my way here because I’m trying to make my Japanese learning journey even more fun by attempting to translate songs. (I generally try to avoid pre-existing translations if only because they’re very rarely literal, so they don’t help much.) One in particular has me stumped; the first line goes like this:
どこから来たかなんて / わからないほどの日々で
When I saw hodo I was like “Oh great, that hodo word again…” and eventually found my way here, haha. Admittedly, I’m still not totally clear on the meaning; is he saying he doesn’t get where he came from as much these days (as opposed to the past)? Anyway, I feel like the whole song is probably sung with lots of slang and casual speech, so I’m not able to understand much anyway and there’s not much I can do right now to help that…But I’m glad I found my way here regardless, I learned a lot!
宇宙さんはマギーほど強気ない、そして宇宙さんを奮い立つ。
@宇宙
Hello 宇宙！
Everybody has a different way of learning language. And I agree. You should study Japanese from what you enjoy is the best.
But just remember. Studying Japanese from J-pop or anime songs are sometimes confusing because it is very different from how we talk and order of the words are sometimes different.
So this song is ビバナミダ？
どこから来たなんてわからないほどの日々で
I assume it is missing an adjective such as 忙しい(=isogachii=busy) after ほどの
So the possible meaning is,
I’ve been so busy lately that I don’t even know where I came from,…
Awww what a lovely dog boucingheart!
I love -kata, it’s one of my favourite words in Japanese ever!! Kata kata kata !niconico!
By the way, does this word have a requirement-describing use too? I’ve read, written on some job offering-bulletins (this stuff appears on my books lol) something like
(We are looking for new staff, blahblahblah) Requirements:
Kuruma no unten ga dekiru KATA
Like, you know, describing the way a person has to be in order to get hired !ase!
@Rhi
Hello Rhi,
車の運転ができる方= Kuruma no unten ga dekiru kata = A person (someone)who can drive a car.
Ok, that 方=kata means “a person”. It is a polite way to refer to a (third) person.
Ex. その人 = Sono hito = that person →(polite) その方= sono kata
Ex. 次の人= Tsugi no hito = the next person →(polite)次の方= tsugi no kata
Dear Maggie Sensei: Thank you for this lovely site! I have a question: How would you say “I am grateful for our friendship”? Or is that too direct culturally? Would like to get your opinion :)
＠R
Hello R! Thank YOU for visiting this site!
“I am grateful for our friendship”? 私達の友情に感謝しています。= Watashitachi no yuujou ni kansha shiteimasu.
If you want to say more casual way, just say
Thank you for being my friend. = 友達でいてくれてありがとう！= Tomodachi de ite kurete arigatou!
I am glad you are my friend = (your friend name)が友達でよかった！= ~ ga tomodachi de yokatta.
Dear sensei! May I ask something a little out of context? It’s about one of the last sentences of the post, the example with “akirameru”
Kanojo no koto GA akiramekiru koto ga dekinai
I don’t understand well the first ga. I would have write:
Kanojo no koto WO akiramekiru koto ga dekinai
Which is literally, the thing of completely giving up on her is not feasible, isn’t it?
Then, I’m a little confused with the first ga, I’ve tried to figure out but I can’t come up with a clear explanation !gejigeji!
Anyway this lesson was amazing!! Very well explained and useful !niconico!
Thank you always!!
@Rhi
Hello Rhi,
Ahhh good question. I wrote the example sentence without thinking.
But you can say
彼女のことを諦めきることができない。
= Kanojo no koto wo akiramekiru koto ga dekinai.
As you say we usually use を for an object marker.
But sometimes we switch it with が
Ex. アイスクリームが欲しい = Aisukuriimu ga hoshii = I WANT ice cream
Ex. アイスクリームが食べたい= Aisukuriimu ga tabetai = I want to eat ice cream
Actually 好き=suki is an adjective but
Ex. アイスクリームが好きです。= Aisukuriimu ga sukidesu = I like ice cream.
Ex. アイスクリームが食べきれない= Aisukuriimu ga tabekirenai = I can’t finish eating icecream
Good, I will be alert so I can get used to switched particles !DANCING!
ありがとう boucingheart! boucingheart!
@Rhi
どういたしまして！
You can’t replace を with が all the time but just remember sometimes there are cases that we do.
そうか、全然気づいてなかった！ありがとう、せんせい
@Marianne
どういたしまして、Marianne♪
こんにちは、マギー先生！
この文に「っけ」の意味がわからないんだけど、説明くれない？
混じりっけナシの (With nothing else mixed in)
＠Marianne
こんにちは、Marianne,
混じりっけ is a casual way to say 混じり気/ 混じりけ = majirike
It means “pure (nothing mixed in)”
マジー先生,すごく丁寧に教えてくれてありがとうございます! とても役にたちました!
二つ質問があります:
1 “ように”は”祈っている”よりよく使えばいいということが書いたんですが,”父の病気を早く治りますように”という文は形式的に使えますか?
２”いい一年でありますように”と書いた。マジー先生はどうして”で”をつかいましたか? “いい一年がありますように” はばつですか?
ありがとうございます!
@Pek
こんにちは、Pek!
1. はい、何かを願うときに”ように”を使いますよ。文章を少し直しますね。
父の病気を早く治りますように→父の病気が早く治りますように。
2.「~でありますように」の「で」ですが、
「〜である」の「で」です。
＊いい一年だ→いい一年である→いい一年でありますように
＊健康な子だ→健康な子である→健康な子でありますように
I liked the lesson but there were some things I didn’t really understand.
The sentences “その話が出たついでに一言、言いたいことがあります。” “ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう。” and “ついでに言っておくとあの件はまだ終わっていないよ。” How understand how 一言 is used in the first sentence,ちゃおう in the second, and how the translation of the 3rd one works. How did the te form get into the sentence? Sorry if I’m asking for too much here. I’ll try to make a few sentences by the way:
１．えっと、新しいノートを買ったついでに、古いノートを借りてくれる？
２．日本語を勉強したついでに教えってあげるよ。
３．日本に行ったついで漢字を学びますか？
４．序でがある、フランスに一緒に行ったらどうですか？
@Millz
Hello Millz,
*その話が出たついでに一言、言いたいことがあります。
→Q: 一言／ひとこと= literally means “a word” and 一言（ひとこと）言う means “to give a word”
*ついでだからこれも買っちゃおう
〜しちゃう is a very colloquial word and it came from 買ってしまおう. In this case it means “to decide to buy something”
I have a lesson on ちゃう so please check the lesson.
*ついでに言っておくと
OK, it means “Since we are talking about that, let me tell you ~ “/ Speaking of ~ / Let me add something
******
When you use ついでに, the second action should be something you do taking advantage of the first action.
Let’s look at the actions in your example sentences.
1. (1) Buying a notebook / (2) asking someone to borrow an old notebook. (There are different type of activities.)
2. (1)Studying Japanese / (2)teaching Japanese (These two are contradicted actions.)
3. (1)Going to Japan / (2)learning Kanji (This may work/ but learning Kanji is not the main purpose to go to Japan.)
4. (1)? / (2)Going to France (You started the sentence 序でがある= Since I do something/I have a chance to do something. But you are suggesting that someone should go to France together. You should have one subject.)
So I will fix here and there to make them sound more natural.
1. 新しいノートを買うついでに消しゴムも買った。
2. 日本語を勉強するついでに日本の歴史も学ぼうかな。
3. 日本に行ったついでに漢字の勉強もしてこようかな。
4. ヨーロッパにいくついでがあるなら、彼とフランスに一緒に行ったらどうですか？
I still don’t really understand but thanks anyway. I love your lessons
@Millz
Don’t give up!
When you make an example sentence with ついで, you have to pick two actions but they are not random.
There is always a main action. (Action A)
You do action B taking advantage of doing the action A.
When you go shopping, you can stop by the post office on the way and buy some stamps.
買い物に行く(A) ついでに郵便局に行って切手を買おう (B)。
I think some of your example sentences would work with たら(=tara)
When/If you do something, do ~ (〜たら〜する）
Ex.日本語を勉強したら（覚えたら）教えてあげるよ。（If I study Japanese, I will teach you)
Ex. 日本に行ったら漢字を学びますか？（勉強しますか？）(If/When you go to Japan, will you study kanji?)
Ah okay so If I said “Since you’re going to get the mail, can you walk the dog on the way?” or “Since you’re doing your laundry, can you do mine too please?” those would work with ついでに, right?
＠Millz
Yes, that’s the idea. :)
Thank you so much Maggie&Yukari for your comment! It is really helpful! Your site generally helps a lot! !niconico! !heart3!
@Eva
You’re welcome!
説明してくれてありがとうございます！
それで、
がてらは「同時に」「しながら」という事ですか？仕事とか生活の事にも使えますか？「兼ねて」みたいに？
例えば、「学校の先生がてら塾の先生として働く」
「大学生がてらアルバイトする」とか。
他の分も作ってみましたが、
「料理しがてら本を読む」
「勉強がてら音楽を聞く」
「公園で散歩しがてら愛犬とキャッチボールを遊んでいた」
＠Lava
前のコメントでは十分な説明をしなかったのでもう一度説明しますね。
「ついで」にと「がてら」は同じ様な文章で使うこともあります。
Ex. 1) 散歩のついでに郵便局に行く
Ex. 2) 散歩がてら郵便局に行く
訳は同じですが、「ついでに」の方が話し言葉で「がてら」は書き言葉と考えられています。
どちらもtaking advantage of one action, do something elseという意味になりますが、
ニュアンスの違いはイメージとして
（ついでに：Going for walk →stop by the post office →keep walking
がてら： While going for a walk, stop by the post office)
という感じです。
＊＊＊＊
「がてら」vs「ながら」
「がてら」にtaking advantage of one action, to do something elseという意味があるのに対して「ながら」は単に二つの動作が同時に起こっている時につかいます。
Ex. テレビを見ながら宿題をする。
———– watching TV—————————
———–doing one’s homework————
(Two actions are happening at the same time)
Ex. 外出がてら美味しいものを食べに行こう。
—————- going out—————————
**********＜to eat something good>*************
それから「がてら」は何かを気軽にする時に使われることが多いです。ですからあまり重要なことには使われません。
＊＊＊＊＊＊
まず下の３つは”ながら”の方がいいです。
「大学生がてらアルバイトする」→大学に行きながらアルバイトをする
「料理しがてら本を読む」→料理をしながら本を読む
「勉強がてら音楽を聞く」→勉強しながら音楽を聞く
例えば「日本語の勉強がてら日本のアニメを観た」なら使えます。
「公園で散歩しがてら愛犬とキャッチボールを遊んでいた」
→公園を散歩しがてら愛犬とキャッチボールで遊んだ。
また機会があったら「がてら」のレッスンを作ってきちんと説明しますね。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
うわああ、また新しいレッスンし今年は多くのあるんだ。このレッスンは短かったのに1時間ぐらい勉強する事を過ごした。他人とマギー先生のコメントを読み始めたし役に立つんだよ。たくさんインフォを見つけることはできる。
日本語を勉強しているついでに中国語を勉強したいな。
質問ある。（ところで、間違いがあれば直してね）I tried to sound casual ;;
1. Sometimes I see people saying できる while I thought it can be used する. So I’d like to ask what’s the difference, for example if I wanted to say マギー先生は新しいレッスンできた or I should use した？
2. While I was reading kids tales, I often saw ある日 then I also saw ある事柄, so I wonder what does it mean.
@ocd
こんにちは、Ocd!!! １時間も勉強してくれたのね。ありがとう！！
本当にいつも熱心に勉強していて感心します！
1. OK, here is the rule of how/when to use できる
Maggie made a new lesson = マギーは新しいレッスンを作った。・作りました。
Maggie was very busy but she was able to make a lesson = マギーは忙しかったけれども新しいレッスンを作ることが出来た・出来ました。（or say レッスンが作れた・作れました。）
If I say “A new lesson is done!” I say “新しいレッスンが出来た・出来ました。
******
So when something is done/finished/completed, you say 出来た・出来ました
Ex. 料理が出来た・出来ました。(Ryouri ga dekita/dekimashita) =The meal is done. (I finished cooking)
Ex. 宿題が出来た。出来ました。(Shukudai ga dekita/dekimashita) = Homework is done (I finished my homework)
or when you did a good job.
Ex. 試験は出来た？(出来ましたか？）= (Shiken wa dekimashitaka?) = Did you do a good job on the exam?
2. ある日 = one day
ある事柄= Some issue
**************
OK, I will help your sentences.
*新しいレッスンし今年は多くのあるんだ →新しいレッスンだし、今年はもっと多くのレッスンがあるんだ！
Note: noun + だし （レッスンだし）・i-adjective + し (Ex. おいしいし）
多くの＋noun
*勉強する事を過ごした
勉強してすごした。
or Just say このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました。= This lesson was short but it took me about one hour to study.
*日本語を勉強しているついでに中国語を勉強したいな。
Good! How about 日本語を勉強する(plain form)ついでに中国語も(also) 勉強したいな。
*質問ある。
質問がある（あります）
Good! When you asked me a question on Twitter the other day you say 問題がある
When you have a question you say 質問。
問題 means some problem.
Good job, ocd!! Keep writing Japanese!!! だんだん上手になってきていますよ！
役に立った説明してくれて心からありがとう！でもちゃんと分かったらって思う（かなあ）？I am not sure if it’s okay to use kana there or I don’t need to use って思う and just use with kana (I just finished re-reading kana grammar and now I’m conflicted xD)
so my question in this sentence このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました for what stand the second のに？
@ocd
でもちゃんと分かったらって思う
You wanted to say “But I wish I understood well (properly)”?
Then, it is a bit casual but it makes sense.
But you don’t need かなあ。(かなあ is when you wonder.)
If you want to say “I wonder if I understand well.” then
でもちゃんとわかったかなあ・or 理解したかなあ（って思います。）
このレッスンは短かったのに勉強するのに一時間ぐらいかかりました
This のに is “though”(even though/even if)
Though this lesson was short, it took me about an hour to study (the whole lesson.)
omfg, I was so sure that bc I wanted to say “I wonder -IF- I understand well” I should use “tara” xD
after this I even went to re-read tara grammar to remind myself how to use it. I completely forgot that tara IS CONDITIONAL
What brings me to, the other day I said [漫画を読んだら〜気づいた] which I assume is wrong I should use [漫画を読んで〜気づいた]? *I noticed smth while I was reading/When I was reading I noticed*
Thanks for all your help, I can’t express with words how much it means for me. !heartsippai!
レッスンありがとうございます！とても便利な言葉ですね！
ちょっと質問があるんですが、
「ついでに」と「がてら」はどう違いますか？両方を同時に勉強したことがあって、違いはあまり分からなかったんです。
@Lava
早速、新しいレッスンに来てくれてありがとう！
「ついでに」と「がてら」の違いは簡単に言うと
*AをするついでにBをする ：You do A and then you do B. (The main action is A)
Ex. 買い物に行くついでにクリーニング屋に行く。 (going out for shopping →Going to to the cleaners.) Note: You may go to the cleaners before doing shopping but “going out for shopping” is the main action.)
*AをしがてらBをする ：You do A and B at the same time.
Ex. 練習がてら文章を作ってみて下さい。= Try making a sentence for practice. (練習する/ 文章を作る Two actions are happening at the same time.)
ということになります。
どうでしょう？
Hello!
This lesson is quite helpful to me right now, I just stumbled across it while trying to find a way to deal with reservations. It has helped a lot but I’d just like to clarify for my self something.
In the restaurant section it said that I can say “I have a reservation under the name ~~” I wanted to ask how would I say a similar thing in a hotel / Ryokan? I mean to say that if I reserved the hotel online, how would I tell the hotel that? Especially if that was an English booking site such as booking.com or Expedia? Something along “Hello, I’ve made a reservation online on booking.com and here’re the details.”
Thanks ahead, whether answered or not the information here is great help! ^^
@Dani
Hello Dani! Welcome to this site!
OK, I will give you a couple of phrases that you can use in a hotel.
* “Hello, I’ve made a reservation online on booking.com and here’re the details.”
=こんにちは。Booking.comで予約をいれた(your name) です。(and show them the details)
= Konnichiwa. Booking.com de yoyaku wo ireta (your name) desu. (and show them the details)
*I’ve made a reservation on Internet.
=ネットで予約を入れました。
= Netto de yoyaku wo iremashita.
*I made a reservation net for three night from today.
= ネットで今日から３泊の予約を入れました。
= Netto de kyou kara sanpaku no yoyaku wo iremashita.
Here is the confirmation copy.
=これが確認書のコピーです。
= Kore ga kakuninsho no kopii desu.
Hello, my name is ~~~. I made a reservation on booking com for two night from today.
= こんにちは。(your name) です。Booking.com で今日から２泊の予約を入れました。
= Konnichiwa. (Your name) desu. Booking.com de kyou kara nihaku no yoyaku wo iremashita.
Here’s the reservation confirmation.
=これが予約確認書です。
= Kore ga yoyaku kakunin sho desu.
If you don’t have any reservation but want to ask the availability,
I don’t have a reservation but can is there a room available for tonight?
予約をしていませんが、今日泊まれますか？
= Yoyaku wo shiteimasen ga kyou tomaremasu ka?
If you have more questions, feel free to leave them here anytime. :)
Dear Yukari&Maggie,
could you please do a lesson about how to tell the contents of a book/a movie? Like how to say “the story is about”, the stars playing in the movie are, the book was adapted to a screen etc. It would be very helpful!
Thank you for your great site!^^
@Eva
Hi Eva,
Thank you for visiting this site.
As for your request, to be honest, it is hard to make that kind of lesson because every book/movie has different content.
But I can help you a little here.
＊“the story is about”, この物語は〜についての話である。
＊the book was adapted to a screen etc→ 映画「〜」の原作 or Ex. ２０１４年秋に映画化 It was made into a movie in 2014 fall.
If you want to write about a movie, introduce the name of the director or the leading actor(s), ~ 監督 (director’s name) 、主演〜 = Leading actor(s) + name
and roughly introduce what kind of movie it is. 恋愛ドラマ(romance) ホラー映画 (horror) サスペンス(suspense) and then talk about the contents.
Use Japanese google, typing for example 映画作品紹介 and you will see tons of good examples how people write about movies.
and 本紹介 for the books.
がんばって！
見事なレッソンでございますマギー様！
＠John
うれしいコメントありがとうございます、ジョン様！ :)
wow, what a great site!! full of pearls of japanese learning. thank you both so much.
@arekkusu
Hello, Arekkusu!! Welcome to our site! :)
How beautiful!!! !formingheart3!
@naxsa
That’s a nice song, huh?
!happyface! !happyface! thank u for this lesson maggie-sensei:)
if it were possible could you help me with this, please ?:
そっとるー？
I cant figure out what it means
atte
plumis
@plumita
Hello pulmita,
I need to know the previous sentence but what I can tell you from just that sentence is it is dialect.
そっとる（ー）？ came from そっている？
And the verb そう has various meanings 沿う、添う
to go along, to shave, something is along ~ , to comply with
Dear Yukari san,
Akemashite omedetou gozaimasu!
Thank you so much for the first lesson of the year! Learning Japanese with you and Maggie Sensei is wonderful. Thank you, thank you, thank you! And thank you also to the guest teachers, they are great. I have a soft spot for Leelu sensei! Kawaii! !formingheart3!
Next time I will try to write in Japanese!
Take care,
a
@Andrea
Hello Andrea
Thank you for the nice comment.
It has been pleasure to work with cute guest teachers. Yes, I agree. Leelu sensei is so cute!!!
Please feel free to write in Japanese anytime. I will help you.
またね！
はじめましてマギー先生! ジョディーともうします。よろしくおねがいします。(*˙︶˙*)☆*°
My name is Jodie. The reason I was named that because actress Jodie Foster was famous during the year of my birth and my brother (who thought it up) thinks is an uncommon and unique name. Maybe my family thought I should be one who can pick and do something not everyone else can do. :D
I think if I go to Japan, I’ll still use my katakana full name. However, if I can pick a Japanese name, I’d like to use I usually use for my internet handle name, 青空, which means blue sky. However, my friend said it is not a word that can be used as a name. I wonder if that is true?
Also, if I can pick any name for 上の名前, I’d like to use name with kanji 宮. Like 高宮 or 桜ノ宮. I think the word 宮 is very cool. If else, I think surname with kanji 原 is also cool.
@Jodie
はじめまして、Jodie!こちらこそよろしくお願いしますね。
ジョディーはとってもいい名前ですね。ジョディーフォスターも素敵です。
There is actually a name, 青空（Some people raed it as Sora or Harua) Usually it is a boy’s name but who cares.
宮 is a very noble kanji. We link the image of palace or emperor. 高宮, 桜の宮 both sound good.
原 is a pretty common name.
If you want to give yourself a Japanese name for fun, it is the best to choose the kanji you like.
So basically, bimyou means “meh”? :)
@Dina
Haha, yes. But it’s a little more subtle. :)
Hi there !JYANE! This one is kinda old but I was just brushing it up a bit and found something that I don’t get well. It’s a general doubt about ni(wa) triggered from something I’ve read in this lesson. I’ll try to make my point across !DANCING!
I can use ni(wa) to target someone, right? Like “for Maggie” = “Maggie ni” (or “Maggie no tame ni” which I know is more polite and structured). Also I’ve read “Maggie ni” (or niwa most of the time) to refer to Maggie’s point of view, her position, you know, like “ni totte”. So I was wondering if I can use just “ni” to say “for Maggie”, meaning both “for her sake, targeting her/something for her” and “from her point of view”.
And here’s comes the problem on the lesson:
On the “monka” part, which I understand well I think, these 2 sentences use “ni” and I just can’t translate:
“Maggie ni sonna koto dekiru mon/mono ka!”
and
“Anata ni watashi no kimochi ga wakaru mon/mono desuka”
I really struggle with NI particle
I hope I’m not bothering, while learning a language it is sooo usual (at least for me) to get stuck into something and rack your brains for little things! :3
＠Rhi
Hello again,
Good question!
When you use potential verbs (or verbs which have potential meaning), we sometime use に／にも／には
できる→私に出来ることはありますか？
読める→私に読める本はありますか？
書ける→私に書けない漢字はありません。
わかる→私にはわかりません。
Woooh at last!! Hahaha thank you so much. I suspected something about this usage of ni but of course without confirmation it’s impossible to figure out !JYANE!
Thanx!
@Rhi
Good!! You’re very welcome!
マギー先生へ
いつもありがとうございます！
看護学校が始まりましたから、日本語勉強の時間があまりありません。
でも、マギー先生のレッスンはいつも楽しくて、便利です。
大切なルールと言葉が覚えやすいです。
だから、毎回ツイッターを読んで、レッスンのリンクをクリックをします。
ありがとう！
今、卒業試験をを受ける中が、マギー先生の日本語レッスンも勉強しています！ ｗ
（試験は３日間かかります～ 明日は最後の筆記試験です）
バイバイ～
Alex
@Alexandra
こんにちは、Alexandra!
看護学校に行っているんですね。卒業試験がんばって下さいね！！
（少しだけ直しますね。卒業試験をを受ける中が→卒業試験中も）
また来てね〜！
マギー先生が覚えてる、僕のこと？気がよくだよ！(=ﾟωﾟ)
@めっちゃマット
もちろん、覚えていますよ〜！確か、モー娘好きでしたよね♪ （気がよく？？）
マギー先生,ご苦労様です
アッシュと申します
何回も自己紹介をしましたけどまだ完璧に出来ない、僕は大手の日本企業で働いてますので凄く高いレベル日本語を使いなければいけないです。僕の質問は何のことを話を話してもいい？例えば、趣味？好きな料理？から来ました国？全部は子供っぽいと思ういます。。バカみたくない
お時間いただきありがとうごさいました
宜しくお願いします
@Ash
こんにちは、アッシュ！
仕事での自己紹介はもっとビジネスの内容とか入れなくてはいけませんが、それでも会社の飲み会とかで自己紹介する時に趣味の話をするのはよくあることですよ。アッシュがどんな人か知ってもらうチャンスなので自分がどういう人なのかを伝えていけばいいと思います。
あけおめ先生！(・ω・)ノ
Thank you as always for making these great lessons! 2015年もよろしくね (*^_^*)
Is this right sensei?
“部屋の中には猫がいます”
“There is a cat in the room”
そして、ももクロの中では玉井さんが好き（*/∇＼*)
@Chie
あけおめ、Chie!
こちらこそ、今年もよろしくね！
“部屋の中には猫がいます”
ももクロの中では玉井さんが好き
Perfect!! Good job!
Nice lesson Sensei! But I don’t get one thing I’ve seen before and always wondered is it like that: the Wo after nihongo on the last sentence. Also, is chuu used after ‘aida’? I’ve read ‘aidachuu’ as ‘during’,’while’ but I don’t see any diference from aida itself…
Hello Rhi!
Thank you for visiting this site.
OK, let me see your questions…
1) the Wo after nihongo on the last sentence.
You are talking about “を” in the last sentence 日本語を勉強中の人, right?
日本語を勉強する= Nihongo wo benkyou suru
を is an object marker.
You use を before the direct object, 日本語 (Japanese)
The same thing with 日本語を勉強中= studying Japanese (Japanese is a direct object for the verb 勉強 so you need を）
２）Ah,good question. Yes, it is possible. I added some example sentences. Check 4) 〜の間じゅう. It means “the whole time while doing something”
Whoaa nice new examples with aida!! Makes much more sense. It is a little confusing sometimes, seeing that chuu/juu is both used for the middle of an activity and the whole.
Any rule to difference those meanings? I mean, shigotochuu is middle of work, but gozenchuu is all morning, so it confuses me a bit.
About the “wo”, the reason I don’t get it is because I don’t see a verb, I mean, isn’t benkyouchuu a noun? Is chuu added to another noun or is it like some kind of ending to some verbs? b2+chuu and added right to the noun in verbs with suru? !ase! Confusiiiiing :cryingboy:
＠Rhi
1) One of the rule is if you see the time related word, 午前、一日、一年 etc. or some words that refer to location 世界、日本、国 it means “the whole”
2) Don’t cry…. Even 勉強 in 勉強中 doesn’t look like a verb, it has the same function of verb.
〜を作成する(to make something) →〜を作成中~
〜を準備する(to prepare something) →~を準備中~
Ooooh nice nice! Yeah really it sounds like using “wo” there, makes a lot of sense, but until now I thought it was extrictly for the verbs !niconico!
Also when it comes to time related I always read juu instead of chuu, and when it comes to an activity I read almost always chuu so I guess I’ll be able to figure out !greenapple!
Now I understand, thanks boucingheart!
＠Rhi
You’re welcome! どういたしまして！
マギー先生、こんにちは！初レッスンでおめでとう！
これは面白かった。教えてくれてありがとう！
きっとここに毎日、来る。 !JYANE!
＠ocd
初レッスン、読んでくれてありがとう！
毎日、来て下さいね！
Hi and thank you for your ever great teaching! It’s been a long while since I’ve visited, but one of my new year’s resolution is to come here as often as possible!
Even your beginners lessons are entertaining! Keep on the great work!
Mattより
＠めっちゃマット
わ〜〜〜めっちゃ久しぶり！（笑）元気でしたか？
I am very happy to hear from you again. I hope you come back here more often as well.
いつでも大歓迎ですよ！
Hi, Maggie-sensei!
I had a quick pronunciation question (as I am a lowly beginner with little idea of what she is doing). !ase!
I have heard “masu” (apologies–this computer doesn’t have a Japanese keyboard) pronounced with and without the long “u” sound in “su”–an example of w/o would be “arigatou gozaimasu”, and an example of with would be “onegai shimasu”. Similarly, I know that “desu” (such as in “watashi wa….desu”) does not pronounce the “u” sound in the “su” letter, but I am unsure if other verb suffixes (such as V + dasu) also follow this rule.
If that was clear at all, could you please help me with some examples? I would be very much obliged. !greenapple!
Arigatou gozaimashita!!!
@Kaitlyn
Hello Katlyn!
I hope I got your question right but
Each hiragana letter has its own sound.
です= で+ す = de+ su
ます= ま+す= ma+ su
However when we pronounce, we don’t enunciate the sound す(=su) and です(=desu) sounds like “des” and ます(=masu) sounds like “mas”
I wish I could add the sound file here but I can’t so please check other lessons that have audio files to check the pronunciation.
Kaitlyn
I usually hear Nihonjins pronounce the long “SU” at work when they are speaking to customers and on formal setting
I don’t know if it’s a rule or just a cultural thing where in they put stress on “SU” on certain occasions
Some people probably don’t even realise it because it just comes out naturally
Our receptionist would say “ohayougozaimas” to me but would say “ohayougozaimasUー” to an important person
don’t worry about it too much
it could also be just a personal preference
just my 2 cents
こんにちは Maggie 先生! 始めまして。私の名前はアレックスです｡ イギリスです｡ 私は少し日本語が話せます。
(I hope I wrote this correctly. Sorry for any mistakes. My japanese is very limited at the moment since I just started learning ^^’)
I just would like to say thank you for creating this blog. It is very helpful for my self studies of Japanese. I hope one day I will be a fluent speaker and perhaps move to Japan. I really like the language and culture.
I have a question though.
My real name is Alex and I am not quite sure how to write it in Kanji. All I could find online is アレックス which is a bit too long and well not that interesting to look at. If its possible for you to write it for me in Kanji I would be very happy.
Also, another question. It is regarding writing the は symbol.
When I write it on my phone or ipod I must write it as ‘ha’ but it’s pronunced as ‘wa’. When I write ‘wa’ i get this わ instead of は｡ Why is that? I am using a romaji keyboard. Are they the same or my keyboard has an error? I found this out by an accidental typo… O.o
I am confused a bit…
Thank you for your time.
And once again thank you for creating this blog or I should say ありがとうございます。(*^_^*)
Alex.
@Alex
こんにちは、Alex! はじめまして！(Your Japanese is really good. Just one thing. イギリスです。→イギリス人です。I made self-introduction lesson so please check it out. ）
I am VERY happy to hear you think our site helpful. :)
When we write foreign names in kanji, we have to pick kanji by its sound and then pick from its meaning.
It has been a trend for foreign tourists to make a personal seal called 判子(=hanko) and one of the sites used
彼久寿 for your name.
彼=are = that
久=ku = eternal, long lived
寿=su = happiness
Other possibilities
阿礼久寿/阿麗久寿
阿=a= compromising or calling someone in a friendly manner
礼＝rei (The way we read is rei but I guess you can use it as レ for name) = gratitude, politeness
麗= rei = beautiful lovely
****************
As for the letter は or を, you just have to use “ha” or “wo” when you type.
For example if you want to say
I have the same book.
↓
私は同じ本を持っています。
You read （Watashi wa onaji hon wo motte imasu.)
But you type as follows.
watashihaonajihonwomotteimasu.
Hope this helps.
がんばって！ I am always here for you!
彼久寿
nice teaching Maggie-Sensei it helps me a lot. if you can would you like to add on how to use Kunyomi and Onyomi reading? sometime it is still confusing :-D
@Vigo
Hello Vigo, Thank you for visiting this site.
There are so many kanji so I can’t teach you all of them here but
Kanji has kun-reading and on-reading.
For example
kanji 読
kun reading よ（む）= yo (mu)
on reading どく = doku
* Kun reading is used individually with hiragana.
to read 読む = yomu
*But if it is combined with other kanji, we tend to use on-reading.
読書=dokusho= reading a book
okay thanks for the explanation. does this rules apply for Name too since name of Japanese people uses kanji i mean do their name only uses Onyomi reading (unless stated by the person him or herself of course) :-D
＠Vigo
You use both on-reading and kun-reading for names.
Ex. 守=mamoru (boy’s name/kunreading)
Ex. 清美=kyomi (清=kiyo is kun-reading and 美 is on-reading)
But we sometimes use completely different way of reading for names as well. Check my latest lesson. 名前
thanks for the instructions Maggie-Sensei :-D
Hai Yes I Do! Our Most Japanese Helpful Sensei!!
*-* <3
You are way too nice! 💕
マギー先生!
I recently discovered your site, and you have helped me further my japanese studies a lot ^_^ どうもありがとう！
明けましておめでとうございます~
＠レン
明けましておめでとうございます！！
I am very happy that you found our site.
これからもよろしくね！
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. i just would like to greet you dear
maggie sensei and maam yukari a belated merry Christmas and a happy new year.
thank you so much for everything you have done for us especially for answering my
questions. i have been checking out your lessons for the past few months and i really
find them so informative and entertaining. this sounds corny but, thank you so much for
saving me from my anxieties and sleepless nights. i am really grateful to you for
patiently making lessons and answering my questions with beginner-friendly-explanations
all this time. i hope that this year will be a year full of happiness for you
dear maggie sensei and for maam yukari.
@obakasan000
Happy New Year!!
Your sweet message is the best New Year’s gift for us.
Though we don’t know anybody in person but we feel like we know everybody who visits this site (especially the ones who leave the comments) and we really care about all of you.
We have been learning a lot from your questions,too.
I hope this new year will bring you loooots of happiness.
Love you!!!
Thankyou for the onlibne teaching . Has helped me a lot! :) … am studying japanese language for 1 year now and your site is one of my source if I need to seek further understanding about a subject.
@alexandra susie
Hello Alexandra,
Happy New Year!!! I’m very happy to hear you have been using my site for a year.
I will make more and more lessons for you this year!!
hi, I’d read your post but still I don’t understand how to say “please send me lot of clover too this year” in japanese?…is it 今年もたくさんクロバーをあげてねぇ．
thank you :D
@marui
Hello marui,
So the person has sent you clovers before?
Just say 今年もたくさんのクローバーを送って下さいね。
If you want to say くれる
今年もたくさんのクローバーを送ってくれますか？（more casual くれる？）= Could you send me a lot of clovers this year as well?
But the person has never sent you clovers in past and you want to ask if he/she could send you a lot of clovers as well, then
今年は、たくさんのクローバーも送って下さい（ね）。
今年はたくさんのクローバーも送ってくれますか？（more casual くれる？）
ya, he did sent me clover before. thank you for your quick response. :D
btw although it’s quite early but Happy New Year
明けましておめでとう Maggie 先生 ^-^
@marui
You’re welcome! It is not early. We are in 2015 in Japan now.
明けましておめでとう！！
こんにちは！質問がある！
My Chinese name in characters is 英柏. What would be the 読み方 and 意味 if there is a valid translation? Or would it be simpler to continue going by my given English name.
ありがとう！
＠英柏
こんにちは、英柏！
The possible way to read your name will be えいはく=eihaku or ひではく=hidehaku. (In my opinion, えいはく sounds better but it is up to you.)
The meaning of 英 excellence, superiority, great ability
柏 is a name of a tree, an oak
マギー先生、こんにちは！いつも教えてくれてありがとう！このレッスンが便利だったようにこれから日本の友達に作る。
さあ、自己紹介してみたい。
ocdという。ウクライナに住んでいる。会社員。えと、一番新しい言語を習うのが大好きなし・・・。９ヶ月、独学で日本語を勉強する。って日本に来たい。
将来、是非中国語も勉強したい。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd!
がんばって自己紹介をしましたね。
(このレッスンが便利だったようにこれから日本の友達に作る。→Did you want to say “I would like to make Japanese friends using what I learned in this lesson? If so このレッスンで学んだことを使ってこれから日本の友達を作りたいです。/ If you meant “This lesson was useful to make Japanese friends, say このレッスンは日本の友達を作るのに役立ちます。）
First since you said よろしくお願いします (the polite form) in the last sentence, you should stick to the polite form.
ocdという。→ocdといいます。/ ocdです。
ウクライナに住んでいる。→ウクライナに住んでいます。
会社員。→会社員です。
えと、一番新しい言語を習うのが大好きなし・・・。→えーと is a very casual way to say “well”. I think you don’t need it here. 新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好きです。
９ヶ月、独学で日本語を勉強する。→（You have been studying Japanese on your own for 9 months, right?) ９ヶ月、独学で日本語を勉強しています。(If you say 独学する, it means “I am going to study on my own for 9 months9
って日本に来たい。→You don’t start the sentence with って. I wonder what you wanted to say in the beginning. Maybe “That’s why”? If so, だから But in this case, how about
いつか日本に行ってみたいです。= I would like to go to Japan.
Note for you: 来たい is “want to come” so you should say “want to to go = 行きたい” instead.
将来、是非中国語も勉強したい。→Good. Just make it to polite form.将来、是非、中国語も勉強したいです。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。→Good!!
I was going to make it casual but in the last moment I automatically copied どうぞよろしくお願いします and when I noticed, it was too late, I already posted it ;;
Yeah I’ve been studying Japanese by myself for 9 months.
Really? I remember I saw some tweets where the start with って
Ah, so many mistakes …
@ocd
独学でそれだけの文章が書けるのは本当にすごいことですよ。１０年以上勉強してもまだまだ間違えます。
I think I told you before but learning from your mistakes is the best way to improve your Japanese.
You don’t start a sentence just with って.
What you saw on Twitter could be っていうか or ってか. It is a casual expression to rephrase what you have just heard or “actually” Or っていうことで、っていうわけで (=That’s why…). They are all very casual. (I made a lesson about it once.)
OK, so you want to make it sound more casual. When you write casual sentence, you want to sound friendly not too blunt.
Finishing です・ます is not necessary too formal but if you want to change some sentences more casual,
いつか日本に行ってみたいです。→いつか日本に行ってみたいな
新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好きです。→新しい言葉を勉強するのが大好き。
どうぞよろしくお願いします。→よろしく！・よろしくね！
I remember but at times I think I’m perfectionist, so…
Thank you very much ;; Really?
I’ll keep it in mind, actually all your lessons I write down to better remember. I’m really happy that you’re teaching us Japanese, doubt that I would have reached so far without you. !heart3!
＠ocd
どういたしまして！たくさんの人が独学で日本語をマスターしています。
一緒にこれからもがんばりましょう！！
sensei I heard te/de+bakari is used to express a complaint usually is that true?
@hoshi
Yes, it’s true.
te/de bakari / noun bakari tend to express complaint because when a person only does something, other people may get annoyed, right?
Ex. 彼女は文句を言ってばかりいる。She is always complaining.
Ex. 彼はおしゃべりばかりしていて何も仕事をしていない。All he does is chatting and he doesn’t do any work.
But it is not always used to express complaints.
For example when you feel guilt,
Ex いつも頂いてばかりですみません。= I am sorry I am always getting something from you.
先生、すごくべんりな日本語ですね！ありがとうございました！ :grin:
@トミー
ありがとう、トミー！いつか自己紹介してみてね。
Hi:D
I’m a big anime fan. An from watching sub and dubbed anime a lot, I can pick up words :) that’s how I know some greetings. Etc..
I really liked your lessons.
Do you do voice lessons.. or anything else besides writing them down?
I was just wondering if you did other stuff besides, blogs, writing the words down etc. I pick up by hearing more then seeing. That’s why I’m curious to know :D
@ChelseyBear
Hello, ChelseyBear!
I do Skype lesson only for certain people but not for public at the moment.
I sometimes give listening practice on Facebook or Twitter using a movie preview or anime. Will try to post the quiz on Maggie’s Room.
Hello, Maggie-sensei!
Thanks a lot for such a detailed lesson! It’s really helpful!
But I have a question. Lately, I’ve stumbled upon a phrase, that was like that:
左からItem1、Item2、Item3、Item4と高価になっていく。
Could it mean ‘From left (to right) the least expensive Item to the most expensive one’? In other words, could なっていく be used in such a fashion or I’m just making a wrong assumption here?
P.S. Thanks in advance!
@TWarrior
Hello TWarrior!!
左から〜〜〜〜〜〜と高価になっていく
means
It gets more expensive from the left.
(So Item 1 is the cheapest and Item 4 is the most expensive one.)
It is the same pattern as
(だんだん)〜っていく = It (gradually) gets/grows ~~
I see, as I suspected. Thanks a lot for the explanation!
@TWarrior
You’re very welcome! どういたしまして！
Great lesson!! I love how you explain, with a lot of examples. It really really helps to figure out how the japanese language goes !happyface!
I have a grammar book that says that when we pass some order in Indirect speech, we should never use any form of imperative but “you ni”, like direct)”tabete kudasai/tabenasai” to itta —> indirect) “taberu you ni” to itta :idea:
Is it like that? Cause I haven’t been able to comfirm this
Thanks and lots of boucingheart! boucingheart!
＠Rhi
Hello Rhi,
Good question!
Though there are some cases you can use the speech the way it is,
父は「早く食べろ！」と言いました。→父は早く食べろと言った。
when we rephrase the sentence in indirect speech, you usually have to change the verb form.
And yes, ~ ように言った・言いました is a very common way to change it to indirect speech.
母は「早く食べなさい」と言いました。→母は早く食べるように言いました。
It is not just imperative form. You may have to summarize the speech changing the verbs, speech form and etc. to make a indirect speech.
But there are cases you can use the quote as the way it is.
Hello! Nice post, really helpful :) Anyway, I have a little doubt: is the particle DE after ‘mama’ optional or is it needed sometimes? I don’t think it fits at all in some sentences but in others I feel like I miss it; like this Frozen song, Ari no Mama De, it makes perfect sense there. Then when should I use it with De? And also, I’ve read ‘de atta’ instead of ‘datta’ for ‘remained x way’. Interchangeable?
Thank you so much!
@Rhi
Hello Rhi! We sometimes omit the particles, but here are some differences.
1) 〜ままで（いてほしい・いる・いたい）to be/remain in certain condition the way it is/ as ~ .) When you are focusing on the condition (to do something remaining in certain condition)
Ex. ありのままでいてほしい。
Ex. その猫は物陰にずっと隠れたままでいた。
2) 〜ままに(some actions, 生きる、生きてゆきたい、行く、行きたい etc.) When you are focusing on what you are going to do/you did as ~
Ex. ありのままに話して下さい。
Ex. 言われるままに行動するのはやめなさい。
As for the lyrics of Frozen, “Let is go” is not ありのままで.
こんにちは先生！
How are you? I hope you are fine and everything is ok. This lesson is very useful, I didn’t know how to use these verbs before. Now it’s getting easier.
I have the following questions.
1. 夕食を食べかけたところに、友達から電話がかかってきた/ ホテルを出たところで急に雨が降りだした。Can you please tell me what is “ところに and ところで” and how to use it?
2. 地下鉄の中で急に一人の男性が歌いだした。 What is “一人の男”? is there any replacement for it?
3. 文句ばかり言っていないで早く仕事をやり始めたらどうなの？ What is “言っていないで” ? Please explain about this form. Why not “言わないで”？I’m confused.
ありがとう先生。
@kuroineko
こんにちは、kuroineko! Thank you! I am good! How about you?
1. 夕食を食べかけたところに・ホテルを出たところで They both mean “when”
the difference between ところに and ところで is complicated and it is difficult to explain the whole difference here so I will just explain shortly.
What we need to do is to focus on the particle に and で （When some action/movement (in this case 電話がかかる）is aiming toward certain time period (夕食を食べかけたところ）you use ところに
When some event or actions take place (雨が降る), you use ところで）
If you want to learn more about the difference between に and で、go check this lesson.
2. 一人の男性＝One man
3. You can also say 言わないで (without complaining) but when you describe someone is constantly complaining, ~ている is better.
言っている= have been saying/ to be saying →言っていないで = without being complaining
エドワードと申します。アメリカ人ですけど、留学生で京都に住んでいます。日本に3年間にいるが、俺の日本語は全然だめだと思います。
大学院生として日米文化交流について研究しています。趣味は弓道です。去年初段になりました。時代劇を見るのが好きです、特に子連れ狼！「ござる」よく聞ける。
これからもよろしくお願いします。
@エドワード
こんにちは、エドワード！
はじめまして（かな？）
自己紹介、すごく上手に書けましたね。
２つだけ直しますね。
１）エドワードの文章は最初から丁寧な〜です・ますの形を使っているのでそろえた方がいいと思います。
＊日本に3年間にいるが→日本に３年間いますが
２）「ござる」よく聞ける。→ 聞けるはto be able to hearという意味になります。エドワードが言いたかったのは
「ござる」という言葉をよく聞きます。
でしょうか？
こちらこそこれからもよろしくお願いします！！
マギー先生、
文章を直してくれてありがとうございます。実は、お久しゅうございます。ご無沙汰しております。
先生と話していますから、丁寧語を使ったほうがいいでしょうか。「俺」より「私」を言ったほうがいいですね。
@エドワード
そうですか、前にもお話をしていましたか？ごめんなさい。
私と話す時は気楽に話して下さいね。
俺でも僕でも私でも好きな言葉を使っていいですよ。（いつも”俺”って言っていますか？）
Hello!!! Merry Xmas!!
I need help with two different subjects. First, There’s this song, Kurage by Kanjani8, that has this phrase: いつも 何を考えてるのか
分からない君の横顔の先に
誰が見えてるんだろう 夏休みが来るんだよ
しばらく会えない日々 想像すると一人へこんだ
Where 分からない君の横顔の先に was translated (into Spanish) as ”I don’t Know, It’s a Part of Your self” and I’ve been trying to understand it but I just Cannot. Is it ”君の横顔の先に” an expression? and that is why I cannot get the literal meaning?
My other question is: What does 卒業らしい mean? This is from the first sentence of Nobuta Wo produce novel. It says: 辻ちゃんと加護ちゃんが卒業らしい。For what I understand is that This kids look like senior students to the narrator. Or it could mean that they act like typical senior students. Am I right?
Thank you so much for your help!
＠R.deM.
Merry Christmas, R.deM.!!
Since it is from lyrics, 横顔の先に is a very poetic expression and it means “beyond one’s profile”
This guy (the singer) is looking at a mysterious profile of a girl wondering who she is seeing (= who she actually likes) beyond her profile.
****
卒業らしい means 卒業するらしい= It seems like Tsuji-chan and Kago-chan are going to graduate (leaving) from the group, モー娘 ,an idol group
looking at the profile (=side face) of this person wondering who she is actually seeing.
Thank you so much for making this site and teaching us Japanese even in every bit of detail. I am so grateful and relieved that I found your site! Please keep being this awesome! !JYANE! !niconico! !heartsippai! boucingheart!
@Vicky
Hello Vicky,
Thank you for visiting this site.
Hope you visit here again and again!
マギー先生、こんにちは! 元気なの？質問がある。「I feel like I have been ignored by friends」を言いたければ「友達は私が無視されていように感じる」か「友達で〜」どちらが使えばいい？
ときどきparticlesが紛らわしい。 !cryingboy!
@ocd
こんにちは！はい、元気いっぱいですよ。 ocdも元気？
I feel like I have been ignored by friends
受け身を使った方が自然ですよ。
〜に無視をされる
→友達に無視をされている様な気がする・します。
元気だよ。
なるほど。教えてくれてありがとう！
もう一度問題がある。「Everything what I was saying to her was ignored」は 「彼女に全部もの言っていたのが無視した。」か「彼女に全部もの言っていたのが無視させれた」の(do I need here no?)どちらが正しいの？受け身についてはレッスンがある？ってぜひ習う。(Can I say this way?:受け身についてはレッスンがあってってぜひ習う)
そして「風邪をひかないように」と「風邪が（を）ひかないで」は違いが何の？アニメに「風邪が（を）ひかないで」を聞いたように物珍しくなった。
めちゃ長い問題。ごめん。 boucingheart! boucingheart! boucingheart!
@ocd
ocdも元気でよかった！
もう一度問題がある。→もう一つ質問がある／あります。
「Everything what I was saying to her was ignored」
（僕が）彼女に言ったことは全部（or 全て）無視された。
If you say “She ignored everything what I said” 彼女は僕の言ったことを全部（or 全て）無視した。
受け身についてはレッスンがある？ってぜひ習う。
→受け身形のレッスンがあれば是非勉強したいです。
(Sorry I only have causative verb lesson. )
「風邪をひかないように」と「風邪が（を）ひかないで」
→We both say 風邪をひかないように／風邪をひかないで (You don’t say 風邪がひかないで）
The difference is
風邪をひかないように（気をつけて）= Be careful not to catch a cold.
風邪をひかないで= Don’t catch a cold.
ありがとうございました。 !happyface!
I noticed that I need pay more attention to what I write
@ocd
どういたしまして❤
Hi!
I just found your blog, and I am making a a gift for my dad, (he speaks japanese and thats why i want to write him in this language) so i would like to know, how do you write “I love you, dad!” in japanese? I saw “i love you, mom”, but i would like to know the dad version:)
thank you so much!
@Ginny
Hello Ginny
I love you, dad! in natural Japanese is
お父さん、大好き！
Thank your lesson, it very useful to me, but could sensei explain more about Hodo use in this sentence: のみこむのに 苦労した日本語は、佃煮にするほどあった
Domoarigatougozaimasu
@anzen
It means “there were so many Japanese words (or expressions) that I had difficulties with”
You may have checked the word 佃煮 already but 佃煮 is a name of Japanese food but of course, 佃煮にするほど is an expression when there are so many things.
There are also other expression to describe when there are too many something.
(Ex. 掃いて捨てるほどある(=haite suteru hodo aru) ・星の数ほどある(=hoshi no kazu hodo aru)・）
Thank’s for your Hodo lesson Maggiesensei, could you explain more about Hodo use in this sentence: のみこむのに 苦労した日本語は、佃煮にするほどあった, and what it mean,
Arigatougozaimasu Maggiesensei
So you wouldn’t use もらう when speaking to your sensei? For example you ask, “what did i get on my test?”
@リゼット
Hello リゼット！
I don’t know what you mean by “what did i get on my test?” but yes, I would avoid using もらう with my teacher.
You should use polite form. 頂く
Ex. Could you mark my test? = 試験を採点して頂けますか？
Hi dear maggie-sensei!
i tried to translate a song the other day but when i checked the translation online there were two quite different translations and I’m not sure I understand well which is the right one or how the grammar works.Please help!
ドラマティックさに欠けてる 別れも良しとして バイバイ
1)Our breakup, not as dramatic as expected, concluded with a nonchalant bye-bye.
2)Even an undramatic break-up Is fine BYEBYE
さよならの理由は 幾らもあるのに 咲いた傘の花の数だけ ついた溜息
1)While there are many reasons for our parting, the number of the umbrellas represents the number of my sighs.
2)The reasons for breaking up Were so numerous Just like the number of umbrellas blooming like flowers I heaved a sigh.
(i can’t understand the part with the umbrellas and the sigh)
黄昏 久留米駅から 傾れ込む人の波 波 寄せては帰らず 街 鼓動 前夜
1)At dusk, I let myself dissolve into the waves of people from the Kurume Station.
Not going home, I think about the previous night with a racy heart on the street.
2)Evening From Kurume Station The crowd surged like A wave A wave That I lean into, away from home to The town Its pulse The previous night
(the syntax here is completely different,I’m so confused)
最後に約束してた 中華に連れて行ってちょうだい 言いそびれた そうじゃない 染まった女の弱み
1)You made a promise in the end, so please take her to Chinatown.
You couldn’t bring yourself to say it, huh? Women’s weakness has rubbed off on you
2)In the end we made a promise I’ll have you take her out for Chinese food
Which I missed the chance to say No, that’s not it This is the weakness of a stained woman.
待ち合わせには決まって 遅れて到着の彼が なのに 先に待ってるの 最後まで冷たい人
1)Although he’d always be late for our dates, I always wait there first and stay there until it’s become too cold to bear.
2)He always arrives late When we meet up But He’s waiting there before me Until the end, he’s a cold-hearted person
処方箋代にくれた 煙草 消した後で効くの？
1)Instead of my prescribed medicine, I want some tobacco. Will it sedate me?
2)Cigarettes Given in place of a prescription Will they still be effective after they burn out?
Sorry for making such a long comment
@HakushakuV
Hello HakushakuV!
I think 2) translation better.1) doesn’t make sense here and there.
Thank you Sensei!
Your site is the best!
You are the best!
@HakushakuV
どういたしまして！
My pleasure!
こんにちは先生！私は元気です。Sensei, are you a teacher in real life? Your teaching is amazing. I’m glad that I can study from your site.
Japanese counting system is the most complicated. I’ll try to understand and practice more on this.. I hope I’ll master this someday.
ありがとう。。じゃね。
先生！！おひさしぶり！元気でしたか？ :-D
I hope you are doing fine and everything is ok.
I’m so confused about how to count in Japanese. I’m still studying the basics of counting. I didn’t study about how to count thin things and so on. I’ll study them after I’m done with the basics. First of all, I can count until “まん” part, but I amt confused about “おく” I don’t know how to use it… It’s so complicated.. like this following number “150000000”
I need your help to explain to me and give me examples about this counter..
ありがとうせんせい。 :-D
@kuroineko
こんにちは、はい、私は元気です！！ありがとう！！Kuroinekoちゃんも元気でしたか？
150,000,000= １億５千万= Ichioku go sen man
I know it is hard to figure out how to count when the figure has lots of zeros.
If there are 6 zeros, it’s 百万=hyakuman = million
↓
7 zeros,(10,000,000) 1千万=Issen man
8 zeros, (100,000,000)１億=ichi oku
9 zeros, (1,000,000,000) １０億=juu oku
10 zeros, (10,000,000,000) １００億=hyaku oku
11zeros, (100,000,000,000) １０００億=sen oku
12 zeros (1,000,000,000,000) １兆=icchou
さあ、宝くじでも買いに行こうかなあ…
Thank you so much for explaining this lesson!! I actually have a Final tomorrow! I’ve been trying to understand って言う・聞く・書く, but it was hard to understand. Thank you for clarifying!!
@Maggie
Oh your name is Maggie,too?
Hello Maggie! I’m happy to hear this lesson helped you a little.
試験がんばってね！
相変わらず、すごいレッスンありがとう！文化のことも面白かった。
「これで私のレッスンを終わります。」
この文章で「終わります」は自動視だけどなんで「は/が」の代わりに「を」を使ったの？
@Marianne
こんにちは、Marianne!
「終わる」は自動詞にも他動詞にもなる動詞です。
開く（ひらく）も両方使える動詞です。
somethingが開（ひら）く
Someoneがsomethingを開（ひら）く
あ、なるほど！知らなかったんです。ありがとう！
ところで、世界一遅い返事ごめんなさい！
どういたしまして、Marianne! !heart3!
waaa, this is so cool, sensei :-D
I wonder how to say things like “eight hours a day”, “24/7”, “two days a week/month”, “three months a year”. Do you have a lesson for these?
@iji
Hello iji,
eight hours a day = １日（に）８時間= Ichinichi (ni) hachijikan
24/7 いつも(=itsumo) / 常に(=tsuneni)
“two days a week/month” = １週間（isshuukan) or １ヶ月（ikkagetsu) (に=ni)二日(=futsuka)
three months a year = １年（に）３ヶ月 (=ichinen (ni) sankagetsu)
I have a related lesson. 頻度
Maggie先生、こんにちは。
ハンスと申します。
このWEBSITEを見つけてよかった！
でも、まだ質問があります。
「わけがない」と「わけではない」は過去形にできますか。
*since in my textbook it is said that for a verb before わけがない is 普通形、 I suppose I can change it to past tense.
例えば「食べるわけがなかった」、「食べるわけがありませんでした」、「食べるなわけがないでした」。
それとも、『食べたわけがない』ですか。
if it is possible, I suppose it is going to be like this in English?
^it WAS impossible to EAT (this)^
それとも、『食べたわけがなかった』てすか。
Is it used in Japanese?
Although literally in English it is wrong to change the form of a verb after ‘to’ to become like this:
^it WAS impossible to ATE (this)^
宜しくお願いします :grin:
@Hans
こんにちは、ハンス！このサイトを見つけてくれてうれしいです。
Q: 「わけがない」と「わけではない」は過去形にできますか。
A: はいできます。
＊present tense+ わけがなかった /わけがありませんでした。
Ex. 食べるわけがなかった・食べるわけがありませんでした。
＊present tense+ わけではなかった /わけではありませんでした
Ex. 食べるわけではなかった・食べるわけではありませんでした
Note: past tense+わけがない” is not so common.
食べたわけがない sounds a bit strange.
*****
２）
＊past tense + わけではない・わけではありません
Ex. 食べたわけではない・食べたわけではない
3)
double past tense + わけではなかった・ありませんでした。
Ex. 食べたわけではなかった・食べたわけではありませんでした
Note: Again though some people use “past tense”+わけがなかった・ありませんでした in conversation it is not so common
食べたわけがなかった・ありませんでした doesn’t sound natural.
tate tsukaikata naraitate.
what does kichatteru mean ( if anything)?
hypothetical situation : I’m in class and there is an empty seat next to mine. I want to say he is gone or he left. do i say
itteiru, deteiru
itteshimau, deteshimau, dechau
itteshimatte iru,ichatteiru, dechatte iru
or a different verb like
nakunatta (i get the impression this is for objects being gone).
is te – shimau treated a state verb for te iru / te ita i.e. doe dechatte ita mean he has been gone?
@sanyal
Hello sanyal,
1) kichatteru = when someone is going crazy / someone has had enough and can’t take things anymore
Or when something reaches to the limit
2) he is gone = icchatta / icchaimashita
3) nakunatta / nakunaccha = you are right. when some object is gone. something is gone
He has been gone = inakunachatta/ he has left (somewhere = dekakechatta
thanks!
I just realized nakunatta and inakunatta come from nai and inai which come from aru and iru.. so thats why objects being gone is nakunatta.. it’s all mkaing sense now……
on another note..
How correct am i in stating this:
kiteru can mean “he has come” (te iru state verb for kuru (to come)) or “he going crazy” or “he’s turning popular” depending on the context and kiteru in all three cases is describing “the current state for a verb that describes a change that is more or less instantaneous” – i.e. turning crazy isn’t a near instantaneous transition but is treated as such when using kiteru, so kiteru describes the current state when thinking in japanese.
Hi Maggie sensei, i wanted to ask you, what does “mou” means before verbs.
Thank you.
@eli
Hello eli!
OK, I will show you some examples もう with verbs
1) already
already ate/ have already eaten = もう食べました (=mou tabemashita)・もう食べた(=mou tabeta)
already read/ have already read = もう読みました(=mou yomimashita) ・もう読んだ(=mou yonda)
Ex. それはもう終わりました。
= Sore wa mou owarimashita.
= It is already over.
2) anymore : When it is used in a negative sentence
Ex. 彼にはもう会いません。
= Kare niwa mou aimeasen.
= I won’t see him anymore
Ex. もう食べられません。
= Mou taberaremasen.
= I can’t eat anymore.
= I won’t see him anymore
hey maggie, i know its kinda late but thank you for taking the time to make this blog.
I’ve recently gotten my heart broken by an ex who was japanese.. and i’d like to know how to tell him that i miss him dearly and im thinking about him, but want to make it really short, sweet but powerful. how would i go on about saying this?
The relationship barely started and tough circumstances ended it.. but we both knew we had strong feelings for eachother, to the point of considering marriage.. but im not so sure anymore about his feeling now..and so i want to ask him if he still does feel the same way, but im not sure how to put it. if you could help me id greatly appreciate it! thanks ~
@kitten
Hello kitten, thank you for visiting this site.
Hmmm it is a tough request because I don’t know his personality.
But let me give you a couple of example sentences so that you can use a part of them.
（私達が）会わなくなって~ ヶ月（〜年）経ちますね。
= It has been ~ months(~ year(s) since we decided not see each other anymore.
ふっきれたと思ったけれどもやはり(his name)のこと、忘れることができません。
= I thought I was over you but I can not forget about you.
まだ(his name) への(強い)気持ちが強く残っています。
= I still have a (strong) feeling for you.
(His name)は、まだ私に対する気持ちが残っているのかな？
= I wonder if you still have feelings for me…
If you want to make it sound more straightforward, you can tell him
まだ(his name) のことが好きです。
= I still love you.
(His name)が少しでもまだ私に何らかの気持ちがあれば嬉しいです。
= I would be very happy if you have some kind of feelings towards me.
How’s that?
Hey, on one of the examples, the romaji says “sakuya” but the kanji says 昨日 (sometimes sakujitsu, so I can see where the mistake came from), just letting you know.
I was looking up たり with -i adjectives, I don’t understand why it uses する, I wanted to make sure another site wasn’t wrong, apparently it wasn’t, thanks Victor ^_^
@James
Thank you for spotting the mistake, James. I fixed it.
The basic pattern of たり is “〜たり〜たりする” so even with an i-adjective, you usually use with する
Ex. 悲しかったり嬉しかったりする
But there could be a variation
Ex. 悲しかったり嬉しかったり気持ちが揺らぐことがある etc.
And I am sorry. I am not Victor. He has been promoting our site. :)
こにちわ 元気ですか
このページはめっちゃ面白くてすごいですよ。 本当にありがとうございます
この文は文法を説明してくるお願いします
—–>「ちょっとどうしちゃったんだよ二人共」<——-
本とうにありがとうございます
Hello jehdal
Sorry for the late answer. I guess me and Maggie haven’t noticed your question, because sometimes there are so many of them…
Depending on the context ちょっとどうしちゃったんだよ二人共 could mean: “Hey, what’s going on with you, guys!” / “Hey, what’s wrong with you, guys!” / “Hey, what happened, guys!”
ヨロシク。
＠jehdal / 天人
Thank you 天人さん for answering jehdal’s question.
Sorry jehdal! I didn’t notice your question until I saw 天人さん’s comment now.
Good to have have you here, 天人さん！
マギー先生、暖かい言葉ありがとうございます！
I’m always here for you and for those, who loves to learn Japanese.
I check your site almost every day, learning something new; people have many questions and their questions (your answers) are a good source of information in order to improve my Japanese.
Regretfully because of my work I don’t have much time, like before, to learn Japanese. But I try to make up 0,5 – 1 hour/day to spend my free time with my passion.
居てくれてうれしいです。
天人より。
＠天人
天人さんありがとう！毎日このサイトに来てくれているんですね。うれしいです。
これからもよろしくね！
そして勉強もお仕事もがんばってください！！
Thanks for this tip. I knew ‘ハンパ’, but couldn’t figure out what my buddy’s ‘ハンパねえよ’ meant. ^_^;
@Lironah
Thank you for visiting this site! Great! You have a friend who use this word around you. Now you know the meaning!
Umm could you help me please? how do you say “thank you for sharing the songs!” Or “thanks for telling me the songs” ? *-*
@Hi
I need to know the situation.
If someone share a link to the songs you like, you can say
いい歌を教えてくれてありがとう。
いい曲を教えてくれてありがとう。
If that person shared some songs that they singed/composed/played on net, you can also say
すごい曲をシェアしてくれてありがとう
素敵な歌を聞かせてくれてありがとう, etc.
etc.
Maggie sensei can I ask how do you translate Kimi no koto nante?
ありがとうございます!
@Joe
Hello Joe,
It seems like an unfinished sentence.
The pattern ~ のことなんて= ~ no koto nante is usually used in a negative context. And you emphasize what comes before なんて(=nante)
Ex. 君のことなんて知らない。= Kimi no koto nante shiranai. = I don’t know YOU!
If you want to learn more about the function of なんて=nante, go check this lesson.
How to use なんて
Ex. 君のことなんてきらいだ。= Kimi no koto nante kiraida. = I don’t like you.
i’m new to japanese and is currently struggling trying to learn it…
however there is one thing that bothers me with that first picture lol
being the beginner that i am, i seriously thought the first picture was meant to be pronounced onamae HA instead of WA.
can you please explain to me why write HA in hiragana and not WA?
i know its a trivial matter but i cant help but be bothered by it
@182
Hello 182!
わたしは182です。
= Watashi wa 182 desu.
= I am 182.
OK, 私(=watashi) is a subject and は is a subject marker. When は is used as a subject maker, we pronounce は, “wa”.
you really are a great sensei Ms Maggie. Arigatou!
@jeff
Arigatou Jeff!!
Your message made my day! :)
maggie-san…
first of all, thanks for the lesson although i’m still not quite sure myself~
is there any section/website that explains the different ways of using “de”, “ni” and “he/e”…
I know that some of the “ni” can be replaced by “he/e” like
(tokyou e ikimasu)(tokyou ni ikimasu)… (kouen no naka de, hito ga imasu)(kouen no naka ni, hito ga imasu)
but other than that I have no idea at all. please help~
@seb
Hello seb!
If you are not still sure how/when to use “に and で”, feel free to make a couple of sentences in this comment section. I will check them for you.
I don’t have a lesson on へ vs に.
But to be honest, we use it without thinking the difference but here is the grammatically difference.
to go to Tokyo
1) 東京に行く= Toukyou ni iku (particular point of the place)
2) 東京へ行く = Toukyou ni iku (direction)
to go to the restaurant
3)レストランに行く= resutoran ni iku = to go to the restaurant to eat
4) レストランへ行く= resutoran ye iku = to go to the place
So while へ simply implies “direction”, you use に when refer to the particular place (building) or when you have certain things/plans to do there
Thanks for this lesson, though I have a question on requesting for a transfer.
I have a friend who is staying in a hotel, and want to be transferred to his room phone in room 810. How do I ask this in Japanese? Thanks :)
@Ryan
Hello Ryan,
I made this lesson long time ago and I am thinking about remaking a new one with more information.
Anyway, you can say
“そちらの８１０の部屋に滞在している〜〜さんにつないで下さい。”
= Sochira no happyaku juu no heya ni taizai shiteiru (your friend’s name) san ni tsunai de kudasai.
or
810号室に泊まっている〜さんにつないで下さい。”
= Happyaku juugou shitsu ni tomatte iru ~~ san ni tsunai de kudasai.
マギー先生、こんにちは！
このレッスンをツイートしてくれてありがとう！ いつも新ものは習ってかっこいいんだよね。 !DANCING!
なのに 「ノリ」と「ノる」の使い方があまり分からなかった。でもこれをもう一回読んだ後分かって希望。
いつも難しい文を使いたいんだけど残念ながら簡単のがしてしまう。
この時間にも、難しいのが作ってみた。だから間違いがあれば直してください。
あっ、マギー先生のサイトはノリがいい！
ごめん、たくさん書いた。
@ocd
おはよ〜、ocd!
ocdはツイッターでフォローしてくれているんですね。
マギー先生のサイトはノリがいい！→ありがとう！！それはきっとここに来てくれるみんなのノリがいいからですね（笑）
(Note for you. ノリの文章はとてもよく書けていますよ。あとの文章もいっぱいがんばって日本語で書いてくれましたね。直して欲しかったらocdの勉強のために手伝うので言ってね。）
I’ve a question about what is the difference or which one is correct
If I want to say “It’s nice to learn….”
習ってよい or 習うよい ???
@ocd
習ってよい means “You may learn” (Giving a permission to learn something)
習うよい is grammatically wrong.
It depends on the context but how about (〜を or ~が)習えてよい(or いい）/ 学べてよい（or いい）?
先生、手伝ってくれてありがとう！
I’m trying to read some Japanese texts everyday (tho I don’t really always understand it), but I’m really bad at hearing… What can I do for better recognizing Japanese sounds?
@ocd
It’s good for you to study Japanese everyday.
As for hearing, besides all the language course listening materials, you can use any Japanese videos using youtube or somehting. Find a drama, anime or anything you like. Some of them have subtitles.
Pick any scene and focus on hearing what they are talking about even just 30 seconds everyday. Try to write down every single word that you hear and check it with the subtitles.
NHK also offers やさしい日本語(I once in a while retweet their tweet) They read a news along the text and you can check the vocabulary as well.
まぎーせんせい、
御免なさい。
長い間の知らなさや不明確を完全にわかると突然大歓声を叫びだした。
抑えることができませんでした。
Glenn
@Glenn
今、なんか聞こえてきたなと思ったら…
日本までGlennの声が聞こえてきました！
Hi Maggie.
What could means 見てないじゃないか
Thank u :-D
@jache
Hello jache
I need to know more context but
if the listener told the speaker was not looking/watching something then it means “I AM looking/watching!”
And if the speaker is complaining that the listener is watching something, “(But) You ARE looking/watching ~!””
It is a male speech and you use “か” in the end when you usually talk back to people or point out something that you don’t like about.
まぎーせんせい、
ご苦労様。。。
皆さんは分かるように説明してくれるから先生の苦心の甲斐がおありになりました。
@Glenn
いえいえ、日々みなさんが私を鍛えてくれています。ありがとう！
Maggie sensei,
Hajimemaste, onamae susan desu, meggie sensei Can you please teach japanese language in private?
I really want to speak japanese, but sometimes make me confuse.
Maggie sensei Onegai shimasu
@Susan
Konnichiwa, Susan! Hajimemashite.
I feel flattered to hear you want to take my lesson in private.
Actually several people have been asking me if I could teach them in private but I have to find the time and the way to do so. When I figure it out, I will announce it on the site. Meanwhile please feel free to ask me any questions here.
(Note for you. When you introduce yourself, you say “Watashi no namae wa Susan desu or Watashi wa susan desu. “onamae” is an honorific expression and you use it for other people. )
Could you do a lesson on “texting”? I hear that phone email is used in Japan instead of texting. Here in the U.S., texting is constant for teenagers. I was wondering if a student should say, “tomodachi to keitai meeru o shimasu” to mean “I text with my friends.” Would that sound normal?
@Julie
Hello Julie,
It is already on the request list. Please wait patiently. There are so many lessons that I want to make.
You can say
友達の携帯にメールを送る
= tomodachi no keitai ni meiru wo okuru
友達の携帯にメールを入れる
= Tomodachi no keitai ni meiru wo ireru
ありがとう先生！
Please explain to me how to use “とんでもない”
Also, these forms “すごい＝すげー/すげぇ” ”やばい＝やべ” Can females use this type of verbs “やべ/すげー” or is it only for males? and please correct my spelling.
先生、is it possible to add a highlight feature in the comment section? I think it will be more easier to point out something..
Thanks in advance.
＠kuroineko
Hi kuroineko,
I don’t think I can add a the highlight feature in the comment section. Sorry.
You say とんでもない when you deny something strongly.
Ex. 冬に海で泳ぐなんてとんでもない。
= There is no way to swim in the ocean in winter.
Ex. 「お母さん、明日の夜、遊びに行ってもいい？」
= Mom, can I go out tomorrow night?
「とんでもないです。」
= No way.
Ex. A「Bさんの日本語は上手ですね。」
= Your Japanese is very good.
B. 「とんでもないです。」
= Tondemo nai
= That’s not true. (being humble)
“すごい＝すげー/すげぇ” ”やばい＝やべ” Can females use this type of verbs “やべ/すげー” or is it only for males?
It is possible but men use it more. If a girl says すげー/すげぇ/やべー, their parents or adults around them are most likely reprove them.
マギー先生、教えてくれてありがとう！このレッスンを習っていて面白かった。だから前に「V+だす」と「V＋かける」の使い方がわからなかった。
日本語を習い始めてうれしい！
このemojiを見たらすぐに大好きだよ！ boucingheart!
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd!
これからも楽しんで日本語の勉強をつづけてくださいね！
（コメントにも絵文字を使える様にしましたよ〜。）
@John
Yokatta!!!!!
Hi there Maggie sensei!
Thanks for another great lesson! I stumbled upon this website a few months ago and I’m really glad you’ve gone over the uses ’言う’ and some of the ways of using ’かける’; you’ve helped may it much easier for me to understand them-they seem to be used everywhere!
To be honest if there were 2 verbs I could get rid of in Japanese- it would still have to be them.haha!
Though making them clearer has made me hate them a little less now
Thanks again and I hope you keep making lessons!
@Will
Hello Will!
Thank you for visiting this site.
I really respect all of you who are trying to learn Japanese. You may hate some of the complicated grammar but I believe you will be able to use them without thinking.
がんばってくださいね！
ありがとう先生！
As for question 3, I mean in this sentence “みんな 真剣な顔して きばっちゃって” what exactly is “ちゃって” and why is it at the end? Is it a complete sentence?
I have two questions:
1. As for “ちゃう” form, can you please tell me which age group can use it?
2. what is the difference between うるさい and だまれ？Please tell me the exact meaning of “うるさい” does it mean “you’re noisy/annoying/ or shut up? I’m confused >_<
Thanks in advance.
@kuroineko
どういたしまして。
Ah.. OK, we finish a sentence with ちゃって on purpose in the following cases.
(1) When you point out something.
どうしたの？真面目な顔しちゃって。= What’s wrong? You look very serious. (By using ちゃって it lightens up the seriousness.)
(2) When you explain some reason.
遅れてごめんね。朝寝坊しちゃって。
I’m sorry I’m late. I overslept so…
(anastrophe)
(3) When you describe something.
彼の部屋はいつも散らかっちゃって…
= His room is always messy (so you know)…
Q1) I would say younger people tend to use more than older people. But older people also use it.
Ex. ご迷惑かけちゃってごめんなさい。= I am sorry that I trouble you.
Q2) うるさい is just saying “something is too loud” / “annoying” and だまれ is “Shut up!”
So they are different. If someone listens to the music and it is too loud, you can’t say だまれ because they are not talking. You would say うるさい
When someone complains a lot or talks back to you, you can say both うるさい・だまれ or even both.
Hi, I would like to ask a question. :) How do we use the phrase お世話になっております when talking to a friend’s boss? For example my friend introduced me to his boss, would it be appropriate to answer, 友人がいつもお世話になっております？ Thanks for your reply in advance! :)
@工藤
Hello, 工藤さん！
Though we don’t usually say お世話になっています towards our friend’s boss (if you are their family, yes) , I guess you can say that if you always hear their boss really takes care of your friend or they work for a small company.
先生!!はい、私も元気です。
Thank you so much for answering my questions. You are the best teacher :-D
However, I know that when talking to yourself, you would use “おう/よう or it depends on the word” at the end. For example, “何をつくろうかな/どうしよう”, but in the case of “宿題をしちゃおっと” is the ending “っと” used to express talking to oneself? and please give me another example for this.
I have the following questions:
1. “だまってもらっちゃおうか？” You want to just take it without asking?
if “黙る” means “to be silent, what exactly is the word for “shut up”? Because usually they would translate this verb as “shut up” I’m confused.
2. To describe what is happening,ちゃって（い）る form
Can you please explain it more and give more examples?
3. How to use “ちゃって” as a connector between sentences. I heard people use it at the end of the sentence and then start a new one ending with “ちゃって” what is this grammar point? is it a connector?
4. 先生、 you mentioned that when men use “ちゃう” form a lot, they would be called “shallow”. Does that mean that men cannot use them? is it only for females to sound cute?
5.Please give me another example of “いやになる/やになる”
＠kuroineko
〜っと ending is a very causal way to express your will. It doesn’t matter if other people are listening or not. It is often use when you decide what to do right before you say that.
何をつくろうかなあ→そうだ、今日は天ぷらをつくろう！ I am going to cook Tenpura today.→(casual)今日は天ぷらをつくろっと! Oh maybe I should make a Tenpura today.
Compare to つくろう、つくろっと gives an impression that you just got the idea what to cook.
So when you compare 宿題をやろう・やってしまおう：やっちょう (A) and 宿題をやろうっと・やってしまおっと・（やっちゃおっと）(B), while A shows your will that you are going to do homework in general, you use B, when you were doing/talking about something else and you just remembered you have to do your homework. Oh, I guess I have to finish my homework.
1. Ah… OK, though だまってもらっちゃおうか？” is VERY casual,
“V+てもらおうか/V+てもらいましょうか/V+てもらっちゃおう” are sort of command form.
Do something
It shows the listener owes the speaker to do something. It may sound polite but it sounds very demanding.
だまってもらおうか・だまってもらいましょうか・だまってもらっちゃおうか= I want you to shut up = So it means “Shut up!”
2. For example
Ex. 答えがみえちゃっているんですけど。
= Kotae ga miechatte irunndesukedo.
= I can see the answer. (You are showing the answer)
Ex. ストレスがたまっちゃって…
＝Sutoresu ga tamachatte.
= I am stressed up.
3. I don’t understand your question well.
You mean finish a sentence with ちゃった and then continue with ちゃって？
I can’t think of any example.. Sorry.
4. No. men can use it but overusing ちゃう sounds shallow. That’s all.
5. OK,
Ex. 毎日雨ばっかりでいやになっちゃう。
Ex. 勉強、勉強でいやになっちゃう。
Hope I answered your questions (except 3)
Though I probably don’t need it much myself due to such helpful things such as the ピクシブ百科事典 and the ニコニコ大百科 which explains most things, I wonder if it would be useful to cover some more things that those two encyclopedia explain that pop up a lot, such as うぽつ (at the beginning of almost every video) and わこつ (at the beginning of almost every live stream).
@Commenter
If you know enough Japanese, those sites are very useful. It covers much more than my site.
And those slang words are changing everyday.
But thank you for visiting my site anyway. :)
Something I notice often is how し is used in conjunction with も.
いろんな経緯もありますし
For example. It makes me wonder if their meanings are similar in some way.
@Commenter
Hello, Commenter!
Ah maybe you are right. You might see the pattern 〜も+V し a lot.
Actually we use various particles with し such as
いろいろな経験がありますし…
この分野での経験はありますし…
but when you want to emphasize that fact that this person ALSO has a lot of experiences, you use も with し.
お久しぶり、マギー先生！元気だった？
質問があるんだけど… なんで「で」の助詞と「の」の助詞を一緒に使っているの？見たことがない O.o
@Marianne
Hello Marianne! 久しぶり！今日までお休みで返事が遅れてごめんなさい。
助詞の「で」と「の」を一緒に使うことありますよ。
I think you already know you use で
1) to show some location
Ex. 図書館で勉強する
= Toshokan de benkyou suru
= to study at the library
Ex. 家でカラオケをする
= Ie de karaoke wo suru
= To do karaoke at home
2) method
Ex. タクシーで帰宅する
= Takushii de kitaku suru
= to go home by taxi
Now, when you modify a noun, you use 「の」
１）図書館での勉強
= Toshokan deno benkyou
= The study in the library
2) 家でのカラオケ
= Ie deno karaoke
= Karaoke at home
3) タクシーでの帰宅
= Takushii deno kitaku
= Going home by taxi
いいえ、全然！私こそ、遅い返事ごめんなさい！
とにかく、説明ありがとう！マギー先生のサイトでの勉強はいつも役に立つんです＾＾
@Marianne
どういたしまして！またいつでもこのサイトに来て下さいね。
Maggie-sensei
help me pleaaaase (T_T)
I got confused in this sentence リュカの寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンで、寝るときは布団をかぶってたんだ
because I don’t really understand で function in that sentence
what I get from that sentence is “Luca sleep-wear are a T-shirt and long pants when its sleeping time he would put on the futon”
@just a novel lover’s
Hi!
That で is simply means “and” （Actually this で is not a particle. te-form of an auxiliary verb. 寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンだ。→te-form and continue the sentence with te-form 寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンで…
Luca’s night clothes and T-shirt and longs pants (Luca sleeps in T-shirt and longs pants) and he used to sleep with his head under the futon.
so で in that sentence not means “method” or “place”, but “and” like と, sensei?
@just a novel lover’s
Yes. で also has a function of giving a reason but in this case it would be more natural to translate “and”.
If it is said
リュカは、Tシャツと長ズボンで寝ます。
(Luca sleeps in T-shirt and long pants.)
Then で means “with”
can you explain to me sensei, why the author use で in that sentence instead of と?
and, hehehe can I ask you about cutting words sensei?
like in this sentence ここでも忍び足で歩いていく。
is it ここで-も忍び足で-歩いて-いく。
or
ここでも-忍び足で-歩いて-いく。?
@just a novel lover’s
That で is actually not a particle. It is te-form of an auxiliary verb.
Ex. 彼は歌が上手だ。そしてギターも上手だ。
(compound sentence)
→彼は歌が上手で、(そして)ギターも上手だ。
He sings well and (also) plays the piano well.
Ex. 彼女は学生です。（そして）勉強が好きです。
↓(compound sentence)
Ex. 彼女は学生でそして）勉強が好きです。
= She is a student and loves studying.
*****
寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンだ。そして寝るときは布団をかぶってたんだ
→(compound sentence)
寝間着はTシャツと長ズボンで、そして寝るときは布団をかぶってたんだ
And you can’t replace this で with と
****
ここでも忍び足で歩いていく。
This で is a particle to indicate the location.
By using with も adds the nuance of “also”
ここ+で (location)+も (also)+ verb
If it is said
ここでは, it shows the contrast. Maybe not other places but someone tiptoes here.
ここ+で(location) +は (subject/contrast) + verb
Or depending on the content, it could mean ここ-でも(even)= even here
Maggie-sensei, question!
in this sentence 無い物ねだりをしてもしょうがない、出来る範囲で頑張ろう。
the dictionary that I use said that 無い物ねだり can mean “asking for the moon”, where “the moon” came from? there is no word in that words that have meaning for “moon”
@just a novel lover’s
“asking for the moon” is an English idiom. You can’t reach the moon and the moon is too big to have so it is impossible to get the moon.
So when people wish for what they can’t have, or seek things that they can’t reach, you say 無いものねだり
ah, so it’s english idiom no wonder I cannot “click” it hahaha
thank you sensei for telling me about it ^^
@just a novel lover’s
You’re welcome! :)
uwaaa…. !niconico!
hontouni arigatogozaimasu sensei (_ _)
it’s really broaden my view hehehe…
@just a novel lover’s
You’re very welcome!
Hello~ Maggie Sensei and Moko Sensei~
this lesson is so much fun~
My name is written like this →愛子
ah, by the way Sensei that’s my real name~
愛 is just my ニックネーム！( ´ ▽ ` )
the meaning of my name is Love Child? am i right Sensei? |ω･`)
@Ai
Hello Ai!
So your real name is 愛子. You have a really nice name!
愛子 literally means “Love Child” as you said but it could mean “a woman with full of love”, “lovely girl”, and etc.
Love your name!
先生！！おひさしぶりです！！元気でしたか？ :-D :-D
I hope you are fine and everything is well. Thank you always for supporting us and helping us to learn this wonderful language.
I have the following questions:
1. 明日までに宿題をしちゃおっと。You said (when talking to yourself), can you please explain this form? (ちゃおっと）？
2. In this sentence”Did you have dinner already?”
How to use “ちゃう” form here?
3. “そんなことをやってもらったら困ります。” what is the meaning of “やってもらったら” here?
4. “忘れてきちゃった” what is “きちゃった”?
Thanks in advance. !JYANE!
@kuroineko
わ〜久しぶりですね！はい、元気ですよ。kuroinekoさんも元気でしたか？
OK, let me see your questions…
1. 宿題をしちゃう is a casual form of 宿題をしてしまう(to finish doing my homework/to have my homework done)
This is a very casual speech but when you talk to yourself showing your will, you say
宿題をしてしまおっと = I guess I will finish my homework.
And the casual contraction of してしまう is しちゃう so you can also say
宿題をしちゃおっと
I will show you other examples. りですね！はい、元気ですよ。kuroinekoさんも元気でしたか？
OK, let me see your questions…
1. 宿題をしちゃう is a casual form of 宿題をしてしまう(to finish doing my homework/to have my homework done)
This is a very casual speech but when you talk to yourself showing your will, you say
宿題をしようかな = I guess I am going to do my homework.
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう(to have done something / to finish doing something) form.
↓
宿題をしてしまおうかな = I guess I will have my homework done.
↓
You can also say
宿題をしてしまおっと = I guess I will finish my homework.
And the casual contraction of してしまう is しちゃう so you can also say
宿題をしちゃおっと
You may not learn this in your textbook but we say this often in casual conversation.
Ex. I guess I will go to sleep now.
もう寝ようかな
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう(to have done something / to finish doing something) form.
もう寝てしまおうかな
↓
もう寝ちゃおうかな。
↓ Showing your stronger will in a casual way
もう寝ちゃおっと
Ex. I guess I am going to eat this.
これ食べようかな
↓
Use 〜（し）てしまう( to finish eating)
これ食べてしまおうかな。
↓
これ食べちゃおうかな。
↓ Showing your stronger will in a casual way
これ食べちゃおっと
2) Did you have dinner already →もう夕食食べちゃった？
3) We usually use V+てもらう when you receive some favorable action from others.
But we sometimes use V+てもらう for negative situations.
In this case, やってもらったら困る is sarcasm. You insinuate the feeling of “I will be in trouble if you are free to do such a thing.”
Other examples
Ex, そんなところに書いてもらったら困ります。
You shouldn’t write it in such a place. (I will be in trouble.)
4) 忘れてきちゃった is a casual contraction of 忘れてきてしまった= to have left something you need somewhere
OK, I guess that’s all.
Hope I answered your questions.
おやすみなさい zzz
Hello Maggie Sensei~
um if someone says this to me it is mean that he want me to talk to hum casually?
(あ、あと、 僕にはタメでいいですよ笑)
am i right? or wrong? wahh gomen for the trouble Sensei ><
@Ai
Hello Ai,
Yes, that means he wants you to talk to him casually. :)
マギー先生こんにちは～ お元気でしたか。
私はたくさん日本語を勉強しました。今日は受身形と使役動詞を習いました。でも、昨日かちょっと(むちゃくちゃ-confused)になってきたんですが、一つの質問に答えて頂けませんか。 「うん、日本語で留学してみたいなと思ってね。」どうしてこの文章は「て形」と終るんですか。易しそうもんだいが、どこにも答えを見つけられないんです。 ＠＿＠
Um my question isn’t related to this lesson, but I hope it’s not a problem for asking this here. So why that sentence ends in te 思うって form i feel its a silly question, but I can’t find answer to it and I can’t sleep because of that :D Just kidding hehe. Ahh its so hard to absorb so much information, maybe I forgot it somewhere along the way.
I was exploring Maggies site and, wow its just to good to be true..so many information, detailed explanation and those cute pictures and so on.. You really are putting so much effort, time and doing that with passion and love and because of that I’d like to thank from my bottom of the heart for doing this! 「礼」本当にありがとうございます！
ところで、英語は母国語がじゃないから、間違いをごめなさい
良い一日を
＠チャド
こんにちは、チャド！はい、私は元気ですよ♪ チャドも元気でしたか？
優しいコメントをありがとう！とても励みになります。
（ちょっと(むちゃくちゃ-confused)になってきたんですが、「ちょっと頭が混乱してきました。」でいいと思いますよ。）
OK, let’s work on your question.
There are many ways to add ね
1) Asking an agreement from the listener
verb plain form + ね
Ex. 日本に行きたいね。
= Nihon ni ikitaine.
= I’d love to go to Japan. / It would be nice if I could go to Japan. (Don’t you agree?/You,too, right?)
(more polite)
Ex. 日本に行きたいですね。
= Nihon ni ikitai desune
2) Telling someone what you are going to do/ Expressing your will/intention
Ex. 来年、日本に行きますね。
= Rainen nihon ni ikimasu ne.
Ex. 明日、迎えに行くね。
= Ashita mukae ni ikune!
= I will pick you up tomorrow, OK?
3) Asking someone to do something
Ex. 明日、迎えに来てね。
= Ashita mukae ni kitene.
= Pick me up tomorrow, OK?
Ex. 是非、日本に留学してね。
= Zehi nihon ni ryuugaku shitene.
= Please come study in Japan by all means.
4) Telling a story/ To tell someone what happened or explaining why you do something.
verb て form + ね
(1)
A:「どうしてこの店で買わないの？」
= Doushite kono mise de kawanaino?
= Why don’t you buy at this store?
B : 「他の店の方が安いと思ってね。」
= Hoka no mise no hou ga yasui to omotte ne.
(more polite : 思いましてね）
(2)
A : 「ちょっと熱が出てね。明日は会えないよ。」
= Chotto netsu ga dete ne. Ashita wa aenai yo.
= I have a slight fever so I can’t see you tomorrow.
（more polite 出ましてね）
So the usage you want to know is this one. No. 4)
Hi! :D Thank you so much for your hard work! It’s great! Can I ask you something? In the following sentence:
世界のどんな言葉
探してもニュアンス違うだろう
what is the point of ”も”? Is it something like ”Whichever language in the world, I keep searching and the nuance seems not correct”.
@Ereki
Hello Ereki!
It’s from an AKB song, ハートエレキ, right?
This も means “even if”
But in this case, you can translate it something like…
Whatever word you found in the world must have difference nuance.
hello Maggie-sensei~
what if i’m going to say ‘i will call you (name) ‘ in nihongo?
wah gomen nasai i’m just confused with Japanese grammars… um sensei? did you have a lesson about Particles? and how to use it? and about grammars? ^_^
@Ai
Hello Ai,
Ex. I will call you “Ai”
“Ai”さんって呼びますね。= Ai san to yobimasu ne.
More casual
“Ai”って呼ぶね。 Ai tte yobu ne.
There are so many particles in Japanese. I have a few lessons here. Go check the Index. :)
Think my post didn’t come through so.
読めば読むほど分かりやすくなる
I’m not sure what やすく was conjugated from? so I can’t understand ほど
Also my attempt この映画を見れば見るほど怖いだろう The more I watch this movie the more scary it seems
@Dannny G
Hello Danny G,
わかりやすい = easy to understand →わかりやすくなる=to be easier to understand/to become easier to understand
I have a lesson on やすい・にくい. Check this lesson.
この映画を見れば見るほど怖いだろう
Good!
But to sound more natural,
→この映画を見れば見るほど怖くなる
Hello Maggie. How would you say “sleepy time”?
@Ryan
Hello Ryan!
Sleepy time (=time to sleep)? We say, 寝る時間=neru jikan
わあ～マギー先生のすてきなサイトを見つけてとても嬉しかった。これから、マギー先生からも日本語を勉強します。
お願いがあるんですけど。。
あの～日本語が上手になりたいし、日本に参りたいし、あそこで友達をたくさん作りたいし、それから、色々な所にもお訪ねたいし、そして日本の料理をたくさんいただきたいし/
（いただきたいので/ですから/が？）、僕は毎日２か３時間ぐらい日本語を勉強しております。
この文は正しいかどうか知りません。 ちょっと手伝ってくれませんか.
Well I hope I have written it correctly. 良い一日を
@チャド
こんにちは、チャド！このサイトをチャドが見つけてくれて私もうれしいですよ。
文章、よく書けていますが少しお手伝いしますね。
１）The way you use し is good but using too many し in one sentence sounds strange. Maybe you should divide them into a couple of sentences.
２）You know the honorific words such as 参る、頂く、おります。very well.
When you write a sentence, you have to stick to the same form. I think balance-wise, you should stick to just regular ます form.
Now I will fix your sentence a little to make it sounds more natural, OK?
僕は日本語が上手になりたいので日本に行きたいです。＊(Adding one sentence so that you can use a couple of し in the next sentence.) 日本ではやりたいことがいっぱいあります。例えば友達をたくさん作りたいし、色々な所を訪ねたいし、日本料理もたくさん食べたいです。
そのために、僕は毎日２、３時間日本語を勉強しています。
How’s that?
わ～すごい！この文章はそんなに自然みたいと思いますよ。
I can now imagine myself saying this passionately. ^_^
マギー先生をそんなに早く手伝って頂いてありがとうございます。
@チャド
どういたしまして！
(Note for you. そんなに自然みたいと思いますよ If you meant my sentences are natural, use とても →とても自然だと思います。
マギー先生をそんなに早く手伝って頂いてありがとうございます。→It means Thank you for helping Maggie Sensei this fast. So just say マギー先生、手伝ってくれてありがとうございます。）
And どういたしまして、チャド！My pleasure!! :)
こんにちは先生。
Thank you again for honest corrections. Sorry, I should have left English translations as well. You see I wanted to say that your sentences look or sound so natural to me. And I wanted to emphasize that ”so” by adding そんな. Oh and I wanted to thank for your help and also for replying so fast so I sticked those reasons together. Don’t know if I did it correctly though.
良い一日を Have a wonderful day ^_^
@チャド
どういたしまして、チャド！がんばってくださいね。
I will help your Japanese here anytime.
Wonderful lesson for me, an intermediate Japanese speaker. Really great in-depth look at “seiwa”. Oseiwa ni narimashita. Arigatou gozimashita.
@Ken
どういたしまして！I’m very happy to hear that.
Hello, this was very helpful. Just one question,
what if I want to change a reservation at a restaurant? Like just the date?
@asahara
Hello asahara,
OK, when you want to change the date of your reservation from Nov. 1 to Nov. 6th on the phone.
First you say
もしもし、１１月１日の６時に予約をしたAsaharaと申します。
= Moshimoshi. Juuichigatsu tsuitachi ni yoyaku wo shita Asahara to moushiamsu.
= Hello, my name is Asahara and I made a reservation for Nov. 1st
and tell them
= 申し訳ありませんが、予約を１１月６日に変更できますか？
= Moushiwake arimasen ga yoyaku wo juuichigatsu muika ni henkou dekimasu ka?
= I am sorry but I’d like to change my reservation to Nov. 6th.
Hi Maggie-sensei, Moko-sensei! Thank you for another great and informative article, I really learned a lot.
Speaking of names, much to my surprise I discovered my name (Remi) on a list of Japanese baby names for girls not to long ago and was wondering if that name is common and what it typically means. The kanji that I’ve encountered so far is “玲美”.
It’s funny because even though I’m American, my mom named me after a character with the same name from one of the novels that she wrote before I was born. She swears she made the name up herself! lol
Thank you for your input, keep up the good work!:)
@Remi
Hello Remi,
I really like your name and yes, it could be written
礼美，礼実，鈴実，玲美，玲実，玲未，玲海，玲深，玲並，怜美，怜実，怜未，怜海，伶美…..
The character in your mom’s novel must be a lovely person as you are.
Thank you for the very kind words, Maggie-sensei! I really appreciate that! Thanks again for taking the time to show me the different variations of my name, this is so cool!
sensei, I just want to know if I translate this correctly:
同じ高校に入ったのに距離ができたようで ==> If I know there would be distance between us, I would have gone to the same high school.
Am I correct? Thank you for your help.. :grin:
@Una
How about
同じ高校に入ったのに Though we entered the same high school
距離ができたようで we seems to be distant and…
!happyface! ohayou maggie-sensei, hajimemashite watashi no namae wa Miftah Riza desu, Indonsia ni sunde imasu^^ yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
kono webusaito ga daisuki desu^^ muryou de nihongo no benkyou ga dekiru you ni narimasu^^
nihongo o oshiete kurete houtou ni arigatou gozaimasu, maggie-sensei.
@ Miftah Riza
Ohayou, Miftah Riza!
Kochirakoso kono saito ni kite kurete arigatou! Korekara mo yoroshikune!
My name’s Angel. Would the kanji be 天使?
Thank you Sensei
@Angel
Hello Angel,
Yes, the kanji for angel is 天使. :)
how to say “you scared me”in japanese
@me
びっくりした！(=Bikkurishita!)
驚かせないで! (= Odorokasenaide) (It is more like “Don’t scare me!”)
Sensei~ shitsumon ga arimuasu~~
I have to make a Japanese poem for our class but there’s a phrase that I cannot translate. Could you help me?
How do you say: “I realize how much I love you and this rainy season” in Japanese?
Arigatou gozaimasu!
＠lariza
Konnichiwa lariza!
realize or realized?
I can’t write a poem so you have to change the following sentence a little but how about
あなたのこと、そしてこの雨の季節をどれだけ愛しているか気がつく。
(If it is a past tense, “realized” 気がついた）
私の名前はLava、ひらがなで「らわ」と書きます。「らゔぁ」って間違われてしまうことがあるけど、発音は「ゔぁ」じゃなくて「わ」です！
英語の意味はちょっと変。直接に「溶岩」っていう意味になっちゃうけど、両親の付けた名前が嫌で、その名前を短くして公式に改名したんです。意味や由来はないと思います。
前に日本人の友達に漢字を付けてみればって言われたけど、「ら」の漢字は少ないようですね。「蘭和」で決めたけど「羅和」も考慮していました。マギー先生はどう思いますか？多分、おかしいですね。
「蘭」は「アイルランド」の漢字「愛蘭」で（私はアイルランド人です）、「和」は日本の「和風」、一緒にすればこの名前って考えたこともあるんですけど。
＠Lava
自分の名前は一生のものだから大切ですね。 Lavaも改名したのね。
確かに「ら」の漢字は少ないから「蘭和」「羅和」になるかな？お花の「蘭」も美しいし「和」の漢字は日本の和という意味とそれから人と人とのハーモニーという意味もあるから素敵な名前だと思いますよ。
もっと長くて発音できないぐらい名前から Lavaに改名したんですよ（＾＾）
このレッスンはとても面白かったです！
@Lava
いつもありがとう、Lava!! Lavaはいい名前ですよ♬
(typoかな？ →ぐらい”の”名前）
あ、そうです！間違いました！「長くて発音できないぐらい難しい名前」でしたっけ。
ありがとうマギー先生！
@Lava
どういたしまして！いつもほとんど完璧な日本語ですよ！
こんにちは先生。いつも教えてくれてありがとうございます。
My name’s Harold and when I went to Japan last year, everyone is calling me Harorudo as my name is written as ハロルド in Japanese. Our sensei taught me that if my name will be written in Kanji, it would be written as 晴道. Pretty much close, eh? The literal meaning would be “sunny road” which I liked because I am quite an optimistic person.
@Harold Ian
こんにちは、晴道！
Sunny Road!!! What a cool name you have! :)
説明してありがとうございます。わたしの日本語はまだまだです。「気にする」と「気になる」では違うのを分ると思っています。
But it sounds like since 気になる has a few different meanings does it make it hard to infer based on the context of the sentence what the usage is for those scenarios?
@hoshi
こんにちは、hoshi!
ごめんなさい。質問の意味がよくわからないのですが…
Hello. What I’m trying to say since 気になる has quite a lot of meanings how does someone figure out if they are curious/interested/annoyed based on what they are trying to say in a sentence?
＠hoshi
Ah, I see.
Usually we know the meaning by the context.
ああっ…わかった。ありがとうございました先生（＾ν＾）
@Diladina
どういたしまして！
Thank you so much! Your explanations are detailed and easy to understand. The part where you explained the difference between わけではない and わけがない was invaluable. The textbooks I’m learning from (N3 Kanzen or Sou Matome) do not explain the nuances between the two forms as well as you did. I have been enlightened!
Thank you so much!
@MK
Hello MK,
I’m glad to hear this lesson clarified your doubt. Feel free to practice in the comment section. I can help you.
Konbanwa maggie sensei..
Thank you so much for putting a lot of effort on this website. Really luv it so much.
I have a question, i’m not really clear about ‘jibun datte’ wording. This sentence,
= Jibun datte itsumo tabeteru kuseni!
= You always eats sweets, too. (Look who’s talking!)
Can i change to ‘anata mo itsumo tabeteru kuseni’. Is this sentence correct? TQ ^ ^
@Diladina
Hello Diladina! Hajimemashite!
自分だって(=jibun datte) + V
This だって is to emphasize 自分 (in this case “you”= あなた(=anata)) and yes, you can say
自分も食べてるくせに。
or
あなたも食べてるくせに。
It means the same as も but compared to も, だって(=datte) is often used when you complain something.
You can talk about yourself using だって
私も一生懸命がんばっています。
= Watashi mo isshou kenmei ganbatte imasu.
= I am also working hard.
→ 私だって一生懸命がんばっています。
= Watashi datte isshoukenmei ganbatte imasu.
hai~ i hope i can fully learn Nihongo.
oh… ah it’s okay i’ll start from here. And I Want To see all your lessons ^_^
@Ai
Great!! Gambattene!!! :)
Hi Maggie Sensei
i really like the way you explain everything. I’m just a beginner in learning japanese. I’m a nihonjin but raised in other country so i need to study japanese in order for me to understand of what japanese people are saying. so When i go back there i don’t need to worry about understanding them. n_n)
so i’ll proceed to the next lesson~
@Ai
はじめまして、Ai!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site. So you are Japanese learning 日本語. Feel free to ask any questions. There is no right order to start this site. Just go to the Index and pick a lesson. Hope you learn a lot!
I don’t understand the “conditional” part of this lesson. What does the use of たり in these sentences mean? How are they different than if you hadn’t used たり?
Ex. チャラくみえる人が実はまじめだったりするんだよね。 (The guy who looks shallow could be actually very serious, you know.)
Before I saw the translation, I thought that sentence meant “The guy who looks shallow is actually serious and stuff.”
If the translation is “could be” (probaby/maybe), shouldn’t the sentence be something like, 「チャラくみえる人が実はまじめでしょう。」?
@Marianne
Ah OK, ~だったりする implies the possibilities.
So if I rephrase the sentence,
チャラくみえる人が実はまじめなこともある。
= The guy who looks shallow could be actually serious/There is a possibility that shallow looking people turn to be serious
Your translation
「チャラくみえる人が実はまじめでしょう。」→More natural チャラくみえる人が実はまじめです。
means “Shallow looking people are actually serious. ” and the speaker determines their opinion.
Thank you so much! I understand ~だったりする now ^^
But I often have problems with でしょう/だろう… Especially when there is no word like “maybe” or “probably” in the translation
I know Maggie Sensei has very little free time, but If you ever have the opportunity, I would love a lesson on all the nuances of でしょう/だろう!
@Marianne
I see your problem. でしょう／だろう are used when we assume something but we don’t always say “probably”/maybe” in the translation.
For example
It will rain tomorrow. can be translated as 明日は雨が降るでしょう(when you are assuming) ／明日は雨が降ります (when you are certain)
If you want, feel free to make sentences and leave them here. I will check them for you.
Alright. Thanks again :)
Hi Maggie sensei, thanks very much, these are very useful!
I have a question, I went shopping for clothes today and when I went into the fitting room, the 店員さん asked me something which I later figured should be asking me if I wanted to try on the clothes. However I did not catch what she said, would you be able to share what does the 店員さん usually say when we enter the fitting room and how we can respond to that? Thanks!
@valen
Hello Valen,
Hmm it is hard to guess what they said but let me try.
If you went to the big store where there are a lot of fitting rooms, they talked to you to check how many items you have.
Then
こちらの１点でよろしかったですか？
= Kochira no itten de yoroshikatta desuka?
= So you have one item, right?
→You can just say はい and if you have more items, you say あとこれも試着したいです。= Ato kore mo shichaku shitaidesu.
They might have double checked the size,
Mサイズでよろしかったですか？
= M saizu de yoroshikatta desuka?
= This is size M, is that all right?
Again if so, you can say はい(=hai) if not, you can ask them ~~~サイズをお願いします。= ~~~ saizu wo onegai shimasu.
Or if they want to see how you look when you try it on, they might ask you
ご試着終わりましたら一度出て見せて頂けますか？
= Goshichaku owarimashitara ichido dete misete itadakemasu ka?
= Could you come out once when you try it on?
If you are already in the fitting room,
they probably asked you
如何ですか？
= Ikaga desuka?
= How is it?
サイズの方は、如何ですか？
= Saizu no hou wa ikaga desuka?
= Does it fit you? / How’s the size?
If it fits you perfectly you can say
ちょうどいいです。
= Choudo iidesu
= Just right.
If not, you can say すこし大きいです(=sukoshi ookii desu, This is a little too big.)・少し小さいです。(=Sukoshi chiisai desu. This is a little too small)
= Ikaga desuka?
= How is it?
Wow, thanks for the very detailed reply! That really helps a lot!
I thought I might have heard something ～おしゃれって…, is that an honorific form?
@valen
If they say the word おしゃれ. It is not an honorific expression but it means “fashionable”.
i see, thanks for the explanation! :)
@valen
Douitashimashite!
Hello, I have a sentence that goes:
それほど並外れたこととも思えませんでした。
It’s not so much about the hodo but, the tomo that I don’t get.
How can we translate this??
Thanks
@Jean
How about,
“I didn’t think it was such an extraordinary thing either.”
〜とは思わなかった = I didn’t think ~~~
〜とも思わなかった = I didn’t think ~~ either
ちょっと質問があるんですが、誰かが好きの場合は「気がある」という表現は漫画で出てきました。
「。。。さんに気がある」と「。。。さんに気になる」の両方は「好き」っ意味になりますか？
@Lava
はい、誰かに好意を持つことを「〜に気がある」と言います。
「〜さんに気がある」は言いますが、「〜さんに気になる」は言いません。
「気になる」は to worry, to have something on one’s chestという時に使いますよ。
dear–Maggie,
¨Please–ekskuse–the–weird–writing–(been–typing–5–min–just–for–these–words—-10–mw–but–the–keyboard–got–soa;ked–
.Kould–U–please–eksplain–
BOKU–OKAASAN–NO–.KOTO–(3–dots–following)
domo–arigatoo–masuta–!
@ema
Wow. I had to decipher your writing. :)
僕、お母さんのこと…
= Boku okaasan no koto..
We often leave the sentence unfinished on purpose in Japanese.
So you have to read between the lines.
Usually when you leave the sentence like that it means “I like you.”
僕、お母さんのこと（が好きだ）…
= Boku okaasan no koto (ga sukida)
I love you, Mom.
But it depends on the context.
Is it common for the は in ではない to be omitted? For example could you say 彼でない instead of 彼ではない? If yes, do they mean the same thing?
Also, in the comments, you said that 行ったらいいのに can only be used when talking about other people. Then how would you say “I wish I had went”?
@Marianne
Q : Is it common for the は in ではない to be omitted?
Yes.
Q : If yes, do they mean the same thing?
Yes, but with は emphasizes the meaning more.
Q : How do you say “I wish I had gone”
→行ったらよかった
I hope I answered your questions.
You did, except I asked to wrong question XD I actually wanted to ask, since you can’t use 行ったらいいのに to talk about yourself, is there another way to say “I should go/It would be good if I went” using the たら form? If not, Is there another way I can say it?
Finally, is there a difference between 行けばいい and 行ったらいい?
@Marianne
I should go is 行かなくてはいけない・行った方がいい （more colloquial 行かなきゃ（いけない））
When you express your regret that you should have gone but you couldn’t
行けばよかった・行ったらよかった
どうもありがとう！相変わらずマギー先生は一番の先生！^^
マッギ先生よろしく！ 最近キンドルの本を買った「ちょっと食べちゃったパイ君」と言う。たくさん長い句がいる。
「なくちゃいけないって」ってどういう意味？ I assume the “nakucha” here is “無く”? and why does the phrase end with 「って」? Is it just a casual ending to make it more childish?
授業とどうもありがとう！
または, is there any specific reason to use ~かなくて versus ～かなければ or ～なきゃ vs ～なちゃ?
皆さんが、「どちらかでもいい。」と言う。
も、か書き直してくださいね！
@Emma
こんにちは、Emma!
I need the whole sentence to understand the context better but
”なくちゃいけない” is a casual contraction of なくてはいけない
It shouldn’t be the state of “ない” so it means “you have to have something/ you can’t omit (skip) it”
Ex.この文章で助詞はなくてはいけません。
= Kono bunshou de joshi wa nakute wa ikemasen.
= You have to have a particle in this sentence.(You can’t skip the particle in this sentence.)
→(casual contraction)
この文章で助詞はなくちゃいけない
= Kono bunshou de joshi wa nakucha ikenai.
If it combines with other verb
Ex. 食べなくちゃいけない= tabenakucha ikenai = have to eat something
Ex. 勉強しなくちゃいけない= benkyou shinakucha ikenai = have to study
And I need to know the previous sentence って is usually used to quote what someone has just said.
Someone said “~~~~~”
→Someoneが〜〜〜って(言っていました。）
Generally なきゃ、なくちゃ form is for casual speech.
先生、お久しぶりです～
「は」と「が」について問題があるけど、具体的に「ない」がついている時には混乱している。
例：
考えてる暇はないよ！
君と喧嘩したくはない。
お母さんはそんなに厳しいわけがないでしょ？
どう分ければいいんでしょう？
@Blossom
こんにちは！Blossom
Basically when you stress what comes before the particle, you use が and when you want to show some contrast, you use は
“考えている暇”がない stressing “考えている暇”
You use は to show some contrast
“考えてる暇”はない but there could be some other time to do something else.
お母さんは”そんなに厳しいわけ”がないでしょ？stressing “there is no way to be so strict”.
I have a lesson on the difference between わけがない and わけではない
http://bit.ly/1fRR096
And ~ したくない is usually used with は not with が
君と喧嘩したくはない
（Not 君と喧嘩したくがない）
説明してくれてありがとうございます！それにね、私最近日本語で書いてある子供絵本を読み始めたけど、なんとなく書き方はちょっとちがうと気づきました。なんだか関西弁と似てるって感じで、それから見たことのない言葉も気づいた。（例：待ってまえ、みさえ）お爺さんのイーフェックトがあるようですね～
@Blossom
どういたしまして。
Hmm 待ってまえ? Could it be 「待ちたまえ」？
イーフェックト→「影響」のことかな？
ああ、そうです、影響っていうんだね。。えーと、あまりわかりませんが、とにかく絵本の書き方は会話とちょっと違うだと思っちゃって。読みにくいです＞。＜
@Blossom
そうですね。絵本や物語は日常の会話とは違います。でもみないい勉強になると思いますよ。楽しんで勉強を続けて下さいね。
お久しぶり、マギー先生！ I have a few questions.
1. I’m a little bit confused about the difference between ばかり and ばかりで…
あのホテルは高いばかりでサービスは、最低だった。
外見がきれいなばかりで中身がない
Why did you use で instead of なのに in these sentences?
2. How would you translate this sentence (from the comments)?
このレストランは安いばかりです。 “This restaurant is just cheap”? Isn’t that a good thing, though? It sounds odd, as if the sentence was incomplete.
3. I found this example sentence somewhere:
今にも雨が降り出さんばかりの空模様だ。
Why is it 降り出さんばかり, and not 降りだせんばかり?
@Marianne
こんにちは、Marianne!
1. ばかり and ばかりで ：で has a function of giving a reason so ばかりで is used when you continue the sentence.
→something is too ~ “so”/ “and” + ~~~
(な)のに means “although/though/even if/even though” and you have to give the contradicted result.
If you want to use (な)のに in those sentence,
あのホテルは高いのにサービスは最低だった。
外見がきれいなのに中身がない
2. Isn’t that a good thing, though?→Not necessary. Even if the restaurant serves cheap food, what is the quality of food is bad, the service is horrible or dirty?
3. It is a literal expression but 降り出さないばかり→ない contracted to ん→ 降りださんばかり
あのホテルは高いばかりでサービスは、最低だった。= The hotel is just to
外見がきれいなばかりで中身がない
説明を全部分かった。ありがとう、先生！
@Marianne
どういたしまして、Marianne!
(説明を全部分かった。→説明してくれたこと全部分かりました。）
I am super enjoying your lesson maggie sensei! I have been to many japanese learning sites, so far you’re on my TOP 3 best japanese learning sites!!
btw How do we say “sorry for troubling you but….” but in casual way(talking with friends)?
@Lucky
Hello Lucky,
I am VERY happy to hear you are enjoying my lessons.
“sorry for troubling you but….” in casual way, huh?
There are a couple of ways to say that
悪いけど= waruikedo
お手数かけるけど= Otesuu kakeru kedo
面倒かけるけど= Mendou kakeru kedo
Ex.悪いけど買い物に行ってきてくれる？
Ex.お手数かけるけどこの手紙出しておいてくれる？
Ex.面倒かけるけど明日、駅まで来てくれる？
Hello Maggie Sensei!
I’m confused between あげよう and あげる…
I want to tell my friend that I will give her the tickets tomorrow. But we will not be sitting together because seats number are different.
チケットを明日あげよう／チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号は異なりますので、一緒に座らない。
Is this correct??
I will appreciate a lot if you could and help me with this!
Cheers~ :)
@Heidi
Hi Heidi,
In this case, チケットを明日あげる is better.
You use あげよう in the following cases.
1) If you are thinking in your heard, “I will/am going to give this ticket to her tomorrow”, you can say
明日、彼女にチケットをあげよう。
2) When you are telling someone who will give the ticket to her together, “Let’s give this ticket to her”, you can say あげよう.
Other correction :
でも座席番号は異なりますので、一緒に座らない。
First, do you want to talk to this person in casual way?
The first sentence ~あげる is pretty casual so maybe you should stick to the casual speech.
〜ますので is too formal.
The seat number should be different so how about
でも座席番号が離れている*から一緒には座れないの。(girl speech) or 座れないよ(neutral)
(or 座席が続き番号じゃないから）
Yes! I am talking to her in a casual way.
Thank you for your prompt reply.
So, to put everything together. I can either say:
チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないの。
or
チケットを明日あげる。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないよ。
Am I right? ^^
@Heidi
OK, now I read the whole sentence, I think it will be better to use the particle は instead of を in the first sentence.
How about
チケットは明日あげるね。でも座席番号が離れているから..一緒には座れないの。or 一緒には座れないよ。
Hello again, Maggie!
I’ve always wondered what 渋い tastes like. Somewhere (perhaps in a dictionary?) I read that 渋い is the taste of unripe persimmon (柿) fruit. Unfortunately, I’ve never had any occasion to taste persimmon fruit, let alone unripe persimmon fruit. Are there other things that taste 渋い? Maybe dry wine or strong black tea?
@Armadillomon
Hello, Armadillomon!
Good point! If you haven’t had persimmon, it might be hard to imagine the tastes.
渋い is also used to describe the taste of astringent red wine.
このワインは渋い(Kono wain wa shibui) ・渋味があるワイン(=shibumi ga aru wain)
Also strong green tea is often described 渋い
Thank you Maggie! That helped. I don’t like this taste very much.
＠Armadillomon
You’re welcome!
Hello Maggie!
Thank you for this wonderful lesson! You explain things very clearly, but I have one little question. Since 頂く is a more polite form of もらう, why is ～ていただき有り難う correct and ～てもらって有り難う wrong? Isn’t the degree of politeness the only difference between those two expressions? Is there some kind of explanation for this?
@Armadillomon
A great question.
Hmm I wonder why…let’s figure it out together.
〜くれてありがとう is the most natural way to say “Thank you for doing something (for me.)”
and though some people say that in certain cases in conversation, 〜もらってありがとう doesn’t sound natural.
For example if someone helped you, you say,
Ex. 手伝ってくれてありがとう。
Thank you for helping.
but not
Ex. 手伝ってもらってありがとう。
It is mainly because もらう is used when you receive something (some service). So if you say 手伝ってもらってありがとう。it sounds like
Thank you for getting some help from someone.
****
Now when you use honorific expressions, technically we should use 下さる instead of 頂くbecause 下さる is a polite form of くれる.
But we both use 〜頂きありがとうございます and ~ 〜下さり有り難うございます。nowadays even in business situations.
As you say 頂く is a polite way to say もらう but when you say
Ex. お手伝い頂き有り難うございました。
It means more than receiving something, it shows the respect towards that person’s help.
Hope this helps….
Now I understand. Thank you Maggie, you are the best!
@Armadillomon
You’re very welcome! :)
Thank you for this great lesson! I was able to understand well^^
As I read through the comments, I saw this sentence:
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたとは知らなかった。驚いたよ。
What does “とは” mean? And how do you use it?
@Marianne
Hi Marianne,
When you hear/find out something you didn’t expect, you say
~~~とは知らなかった to show your surprise feelings.
So by using とは you can express the feeling “I had no idea””I didn’t think it was coming”
Ex. マギーが犬だったとは… = Maggie is a dog? (I didn’t think it was coming…)
Ex.彼がそんなことをする人だったは意外だ。(=Kare ga sonna koto wo suru hito datta towa igaida) I didn’t expect he would do such a thing.
Thanks a bunch^^
I wish you good week~!
@Marianne
No problem! You have a nice week,too!
Sensei, I just learned about adjectives with da shi but cant seem to get the hang of it. Any difference like kirei shi and kirei da shi?
If we were to use da shi to adjectives, how to link more than three adjectives in a sentence and which part i should add in da shi? *headache
@Anne
Hello Anne,
As I explained in “How to form”, きれい(=kirei) is na-adjective. Therefore you have to say きれいだし(=kireidashi) not きれいし(=kireishi)
Ex. しずか(=shizuka) is na-adjective しずかだ(=shizukada) →しずかだし(=shizukadashi)
If it is i-adjective, you just add “shi”
Ex. かわいい(=kawaii) na-adj →かわいいし(=kawaiishi)
Ex. むずかしい(=muzukashii) na-adj →むずかしいし(=muzukashiishi)
申し訳ありません! I overlooked that part. Thank you so much Sensei! I did find a comment regarding this subject online but it didnt mention that na-adjective should be added with da/datta. You have clarified it well in here. Thank you once again and for your prompt reply. I have to admit you are the best Japanese teacher online that one could rely on.
@Anna
You’re very welcome, Anna!
またね〜♪
Sensei, I came across the suffix naku from the work wasurenaku and goshinpainaku. Is it a honorific form? I read that wasurenaku is a negative form of the honorific 忘れる but I cant seem to find any sites that support this. Please help.
@Anne
Hello Anne!
~なく form is a shorter way to say ならないように so it is not a honorific form but just a polite way to say not to forget something.
お忘れにならないようにお願いいたします。(Please do not forget)
→お忘れにならないように
→お忘れなく
Other example
お間違いのないようにお願い致します。(=Please do not make a mistake/mistake something)
→お間違いのないように
→お間違いなく
お間違いのないようお願いいたします。(Please do not make a mistake)
Good lesson but commuting by bike is definitely mecha Kakkoii!
@James
Thank you!! Commuting by bike? Oohh that was a good old day…
失礼ですが、間違いを見つけたようです。
Ex. 重ねて御礼申し上げます。
(=Atsuku orei moushiagemasu.)
こちらの例のローマ字はkasanete orei moushiagemasu でしょうか？
ご授業を頂き誠にありがとうございました
@samson
これはこれは御丁寧にありがとうございます。
間違い直させて頂きました。:)
質問があります。「～ます」「～です」の後に「の」がついたら、どんな意味になるでしょうか？
例：「おはようございますの」「時差ですの……」 (これは https://twitter.com/hanedaSK/status/509117545907908608 で見ました）
@Toshiaki
「おはようございますの」「時差ですの……」
ツイッターを見ましたが、普通はこういうところに”の”は使いません。この人の独特な話し方だと思います。
ただ、ちょっと気取った女性が（実生活よりも漫画やドラマの中で）語尾（です・ます）に「の」を使うことはあります。
Ex. うちは毎日、ステーキですの。
Ex. いつも車でそのお店に行きますの。
でも「おはようございます」「時差です」に”の”をつけるのは正直言って、変わった使い方だと思いますの。（笑）
I’m Looking for an japanese-english dictionary android app which has audio. I’ve spent days looking for one but it’s just impossible for me. Could you please suggest me one??? (I prefer offline dictionary but online one is okie too)
@Masami
I don’t know much about android app.
If you follow me on Twitter, I can retweet your question. People can help you.
Ok, I will. Thanks for your reply :)
つい最近聞いたのですけれど、その「あげぽよ」はもう古いようです。ま、流行語だからですね。「ナウい」と同じように。だからと言って、「よくって」という言葉は明治時代に女学生の間で流行したものの、いまなら上品扱いされています。不思議ですね。
＠Toshiaki
新しい言葉がなくなるのは早いです。ただ”ヤバい”とか”ハンパない”などかなり長い間使われているものもありますね。
@Toshiaki
本当に新しい言葉は消えるのが早いです。ただ「ヤバい」とか「ハンパない」などかなじ長い間使われ続けているものも多いですね。
「まさかお前が生き残るなんて、思いもしませんでした」
「まさかお前、私を殺そうとしてるの？」
「まさかの逆転」
大体の場合「まさか」は「no way」とか「can’t be」とかに直訳でいませんね。
わがままはたしかに、「利己的」というような意味が含まれていると感じますが、なんか「自分勝手」とちょっと違いますね。
「その願望はただのわがままですけれど、どうかお許しください」
よく似ている単語「様子」もあるのですね。
「あいつの様子が変」とかが、しばしば見られていますね。
@Toshiaki
そうですね、「様子」は目に見えるもののことを言います。
Dear Sensei,
When I first learnt Japanese, my teacher taught me that Gomennasai is a more formal version of Sumimasen. However, it seems (from online resources) that gomennasai is more casual/childish? I recently inconvenienced my dorm manager by forgetting to tell her I was back home so she had to make a call to my room to ask for me. I apologised with Gomennasai and I have been worrying about it ever since because I am afraid it is too casual for the situation. Please help me in this issue. My dorm manager is older than me and we are not well acquainted yet, so in my mother tongue, I feel the need to apologise formally but I am confused about the degrees and nuances in Japanese. Please help to explain this for me!
Thank you very much for your wonderful website. I will be learning a lot from it.
Sincerely,
Hal
@Hayley
Hello, Hal! Thank you for visiting our site.
Yes, it’s true. Gomennasai is more serious than Sumimasen. (I added the information in the lesson.)
But the way you say is very important,too. If you apologize sincerely, either one works. So I don’t think you offended your dorm manager.
Not just saying ごめんなさい or すみません、I would add 本当に(=hontouni)
Ex. 本当にすみませんでした。
Ex. 本当にごめんなさい。
And follow up saying things like,
これから気をつけます
= Kore kara kiwotukemasu.
= I will be careful from now on.
etc.
こんにちは！マギー先生！
私は厄介なことがあります。
「料理するだけなら、楽しいのになあ…」
この文は訳すことが難しいです。(・_・ヾ
「If it’s only cooking, we could have fun…」ようなものかな。
To put into context my language exchange partner previously said.
「私は誰かと競うのが嫌いです。」
ありがとうございます！
@ソウコバン
こんにちは！
「料理するだけなら、楽しいのになあ…」
の訳ですね。
How about,
“It would be fun if we just cooked.”
“Just cooking would be fun”
マギー先生、こんにちは！
そういえば、ちょっと「にいいです」について聴きたいんですけど
「問題ないさ 問題ないさ 明日も頑張るあなたに いいね 心配ない もう 心配ないさ 明日にもがいてる あなたでいいですよ」
この文は「あなたに いいね」と「あなたでいいです」も入れています。
違いは何ですか？
＠レーナ
こんにちは、レーナ。
これはどこかの歌詞ですか？ 誰かにいいねという言い方はあまりしませんが、
「明日も頑張るあなたに いいね」 は、「明日も頑張るあなたはいいですね。」ということです。
You know Facebook has a “Like” button. We called it いいね. So it means “I like you who tries hard tomorrow./ You are great”
明日にもがいているあなたでもいいです。This あなたでもいい means I still like you even + something negative” In this case,
I like you who struggles tomorrow/ Even you struggle tomorrow, you are great”
教えてくれてありがとうございます！
@レーナ
どういたしまして！
Good day Maggie sensei!
I’m a male and I’ve taken a liking to someone (a girl xD) and I want to tell her I like her.
I do not want it to be too direct because I don’t want to be too “sudden”. Another way to put it is, I’m trying to be subtle, but I also want to know if that is a bad thing? I’m thinking like this because I do not know how she feels about me. Hehe. >A<
I enjoy talking to her and I want to know more about her. I hope you can help me.
Thank you very much!
PS: I love your posts! :)
@Haru
Hi Haru,
So you want to know how to telling someone verbally in a subtle way.
As I wrote in this lesson, telling someone 好きです is very straight forward.
If you keep asking her out, she will get a hint.
Or if you always go out with her in a group, you can tell her
Ex. 今度、二人きりで会えないかなあ。
= Kondo futari kiri de aenai kanaa.
= Is it possible to go out just you and me?
You can give her compliments.
Ex. Aちゃんは本当にかわいいね。
= A chan wa hontou ni kawaiine.
= You are so cute, A-chan.
If you want to tell her your feelings in a subtle way,
Ex.最近、Aちゃんのことが気になってきたんだけど。
= Saikin A chan no koto ga kini natte kitanndakedo…
= I kind of think of you often lately.
Ex. Aちゃんは僕の理想のタイプなんだよね。
= A chan wa boku no riosu no taipu nan dayone.
= You are my ideal type, you know.
If you want to express you feelings a little more strong,
Ex.Aちゃんのことが好きになっちゃったかもしれない。
= A chan no koto ga suki ni nacchatta kamo shirenai.
= I kind of like you. (The direct translation is..I might be in love with you… )
See we have lots of vague ways to confess our love. :)
がんばって！
Uwaa, thank you for the very quick reply. I hope I wasn’t much of a bother! >__<
ありがとうございます！
がんばる！
Have a good day~ (*´∀｀*)
Uwaa, thank you for the very quick reply. I hope I wasn’t much of a bother! >___<)
Ahhh sorry, I think I’m flooding the replies, my 2 previous replies didn’t completely post. ごめなさい m(_ _)m
So copying the contents of my previous replies and editing it:
Uwaa, thank you for the very quick reply. I hope I wasn’t much of a bother! XD
I’m doing my best in regards to the complimenting but there’s still the fear of feelings not going to be reciprocated but I’ll work hard!
Hmm, I forgot to include it in first post but if it’s someone you meet online or through SMS, will the approach be very different? I really am falling for her but I don’t know what to do aside from telling her my feelings.
ありがとうございます！
がんばる！
Have a good day~ (*´∀｀*)
@Haru
We have received all your comments. :)
So you just know her on line?
Then, you can add a sentence like
LineでしかAちゃんのことを知らないけれどももうずっと知っている様な気がします。
= Line de shika A-chan no koto wo shiranai keredomo mou zutto shitte iru you na ki ga shimasu.
= I only know you on LINE but I feel like I have known you for a long time.
But if you haven’t seen her yet, then you should see her in person first and then tell her how you feel.
一度会ってもらえますか？
= Ichido atte moraemasu ka?
= Is it possible to see me in person once?
Good luck!
Hi Maggie sensei, I’m back to ask for additional help. XD
How should I say these things?
“I cannot stop thinking of you for a while now.” or “You’ve been on mind for quite a while now.”
“I wish / want to know more about you.” or “I wish to know you better.”
Would one say these things to the person they like? Thanks! :D
@Haru
Hi Haru,
I can help you but do you want to try translating the sentences first?
Thank you!
Do you mean I will try translating it? x3
@Haru
Yes. That way you can learn Japanese better.
I forgot about your previous reply, I found the other sentence there:
“Ex.最近、Aちゃんのことが気になってきたんだけど。
= Saikin A chan no koto ga kini natte kitanndakedo…
= I kind of think of you often lately.”
But I will try translating the other one:
Aちゃんのことをもっと知りたい。
A-chan no koto wo motto shiritai. (I want to know more about you.)
I hope I was able to translate it correctly.
Thank you!
@Haru
Perfect!! You got it!! :)
Hello Maggie! Thank you very much for this interesting lesson.
I’m not entirely sure, if I understand を＋動詞～て形＋ある correctly. Does it imply that not someone else but the speaker himself has done some kind of preparations?
1) チケットが買ってある.
The tickets have been / are bought [already] ==> Someone have bought them. It might be the speaker, but we don’t know that exactly. The fact is, that the tickets are bought.
2) チケットを買ってある.
I have bought the tickets ==> The speaker have bought the tickets.
I know that を＋動詞～て形＋ある is 正しい日本語, but for me it sounds a bit strange this combination of を and ～てある.
よろしくお願いします。
@天人
チケットを買ってある the subject could be a speaker as well.
Ex. もうチケットを買ってあるのですが、行けるかどうかわかりません。
I have already bought a ticket but I don’t know if I can go there or not.
(focusing on the fact that “the speaker has already bought a ticket”)
チケットが買ってあるのですが…
(focusing on the “ticket”)
チケットは買ってあるのですが….
(Showing the contrast. The speaker has bought a ticket but maybe hasn’t bought something else.)
了解です！
So I understand that in を…てある and は／が…てある the result we see could be caused by the speaker (ex. I) as well as by someone else. It depends on the context.
Thank you very much for the quick answer and have a nice day, Maggie <3
@天人
どういたしまして！天人さんもいい日を過ごして下さいね！:)
Hi Maggie, please check your fb. I had a question about something totally different from what I see in any of the lessons or posts. Thanks! Sharon
@Sharon
I just answered your question on FB. :)
お久しぶり、マギー先生！元気？
学校はもう始まったから、日本語の勉強のために時間が少ない。でも暇があると、いつもマギー先生のサイトに行っている＾＾
ちょっと質問がある。
私も最近、忘れっぽくなっちゃって。—>Why is the ~て form being used here? And how do you know what tense it’s in, since it’s the last verb in the sentence?
@Marianne
お久しぶり、Marianne! はい、元気ですよ！Marianneも元気でしたか？
We often leave the sentence without finishing it on purpose.Sometimes to avoid direct expressions because Japanese people tend to make it sound suggestive.
This て means “and../ so…” The listeners/readers can read between the lines depending on the context.
→私も最近、忘れっぽくなっちゃって(困ってしまいます。）
Suggesting some reason in a subtle way
Ex. 今日、遅く起きちゃって..(I got up late today so…)
Ex. もう宿題終わったので…(I’ve already finished my homework so…)
Ex. 勉強が忙しくて….(I’ve been busy studying so…)
Note for you
I will help your comment just a little to make it sound more natural :)
＊学校は→学校が
＊日本語の勉強のために時間→日本語の勉強のための時間 Note ために+ verb / ための+noun
＊時間が少ない→”時間が少なくなった or 少なくなりました。
＊サイトに行っている go →サイトに来ている o 来ています。(since you are here, “come” is better in Japanese）
元気でしたよ^^
Now I understand. ありがとう、先生！訂正もありがとう.
@Marianne
どういたしまして♪
元気そうでよかった！！！
前、「てある」の使い方は良く分からなかったからこのレッスンはべんりだよ。だからこれを使ったことがなかった。いつも教えてくれてありがとう！
今はしてみよう！
今日はここに来たら新しいレッスンがしてあった。
@ocd
こんにちは、ocd! 久しぶりに新しいレッスンを作りましたがまた来てくれてありがとう！
コメント、日本語でがんばって書いてくれましたね。
少しだけ直しますね。
（今はしてみよう→使ってみよう・新しいレッスンがしてあった→→作ってあった）
なるほど！間違いを直してくれてありがとう！いつもここにきてうれしい。新しいレッスンを待ちながら先のレッスンが勉強するね。
@ocd
どういたしまして！
間違いを直すのはocdにうまくなってほしいからですよ〜♪
(→いつもここに来るのが楽しいです。新しいレッスンができるのを待ちながら前のレッスンを勉強するね）はい、楽しんで勉強してくれたら私もうれしいです！
How do you say “I think I am in love with some one, what should I do?” in japanese?
@ハー
→誰かを好きになったみたい。どうしたらいい？
はい、本当に分かりやすいです、この文法は今、分かるようになりました、ありがとうございますマギー先生(=^ㅅ^=)
@Belajar Bahasa Jepang
コメントありがとう！！わかりやすかったと聞いてうれしいです！:)
Maggie Sensei, many thanks to bring to us this great lesson.
It was perfect!
Keep your great work!
@ぜ・カルロス
Thank YOU for checking the lesson,too!!
ありがとう、カルロス！
このレッスンをくれてありがとうございます。(^o^)
At the end of the lesson, you say that you can use てある when you have done some preparation. So… is it like ておく ? Or is there any difference ?
For example :
チケットを買ってある
チケットを買っておく
Thank you ! :D
@サーフィー
こんにちは、サーフィー! いい質問ですね。
First
チケットを買ってある = You already bought a ticket and ready (to go see concert, etc.)
チケットを買っておく= You will buy a ticket and be ready. (You don’t have a ticket)
So you have to use the past tense with おく if you want to say “I have bought a ticket.”
EX. 1) チケットを買ってある・あります。
EX. 2) チケットを買っておいた・おきました。
They both means “I (have) bought a ticket for some purpose” and they are almost the same. (てある focuses on the resultant states ておく focuses on the actions (the preparation for future) more )
Other difference between てある and ておく.
1) You can’t make a commando form with ~てある
Ex. チケットを買っておいて(下さい。）
= Please buy a ticket in advance (and be ready)
You can’t use てある here.
2) You can’t use てある when you express what you are going to do.
Ex. チケットを買っておこう・おきます。
= I will go get a ticket. (and be ready)
You can’t use てある
(A little note for you : このレッスンをくれて→You need a verb, このレッスンを”作って”くれて”）
ありがとう！^O^
@サーフィー
どういたしまして、サーフィー！ :)
先生、いつもありがとうございます(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o)))
ご飯はもう食べてありましたって言えますか？
@メロ
こんばんは、メロ！さっそく、レッスンをチェックしてくれてありがとう！
ご飯はもう食べてありました
→はい、言えます！！
ありがとうございました. For me this is a very confusing form that I can now practice using your helpful examples! I completed Rosetta Stone Japanese and there are 3 different “koto” pattern sentences that they use and don’t explain. I think they are:
1) verb + koto ga dekiru = able to do the verb: inu wa oyogu koto ga dekimasu – the dog is able to swim.
2) thinking about someone/something = subject + no koto wo kangaete imasu – inu no koto wo kangaete imasul- I am thinking about the dog
3) and they use the “life experience” form you describe here.
I was going crazy trying to figure this out! Thanks again!
@Mr Customs
Hello Mr Customs
There are many ways to use こと. がんばって！
Hi I’m trying to figure out how to say ” I wore shorts” the context being “it was very warm so I wore shorts” I have all of it up until the wore shorts bit. Also I’m taught by a Japanese man who grew up in japan and is fluent and according to him to wear on the lower body or footwear is はいています, so if you could sete straight that would be a great help.
Thanks Evan
@Evan
Hi Evan,
You say 履く(=haku) for shorts.
“it was very warm so I wore shorts”
暖かかったからショーツ（we also say 短パン(=tanpan))を履いた。
= Atatakakatta kara shootsu (or tanpan) wo haita.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Shitsumon ga arimasu.
– In supermarket, there is zone for taste free sampling food (lady or men give a little free food to customer). Nihongo de nan to iimasu ka.
– If they ask the customer to taste, what’ll they say? (Hitokuchi mimasu ka. or tabete mimasu ka.)
Many Thanks for your kind help in this matter. ^^
@yuyu
Hello yuyu,
Q In supermarket, there is zone for taste free sampling food (lady or men give a little free food to customer). Nihongo de nan to iimasu ka.
That section is called 試食コーナー(=shishoku kounaa) and food tasting is called 試食(=shishoku)
Q If they ask the customer to taste, what’ll they say? (Hitokuchi mimasu ka. or tabete mimasu ka.)
I think what you meant is 一口、食べてみますか？(=Hitokuchi tabete mimasuka)
Other typical phrases are,
Ex. もしよろしかったらお味見してみませんか？（Polite)
= Moshi yoroshikattara oajimi shite mimasenka?
= Would like to taste (this)?
Ex.どうぞお味見していって下さいね。
= Douzo oajimi shite itte kudasaine.
= Please taste this.
Ex.一口如何ですか？
= hitokuchi ikaga desuka?
= Would like a bite?
Good job on another great lesson! I have 2 questions…
私はなんの苦労もせずに育った。
I’m still having trouble understanding the も particle ;_; It baffles me every time I see it in a sentence without an amount to emphasize (ex. １０００円, 一言, etc.) What does it emphasize here, and in what way (negative/positive)? Also, what does なんの mean?
これからも変わらずにいて下さい。
Again, with the も particle >_< What is the difference between これから & これからも?
＠Marianne
私はなんの苦労もせずに育った
*苦労をする = having hardship
*も here emphasizes 苦労(hardship)
*なんの means “any”/ “at all”
なんの苦労もしない (negative sentence)
Not do have any hardship
↓
なんの苦労もせずに
= without having ANY hardship
We often use this pattern なんの〜も〜ない (negative sentence.)
Ex. なんの手伝いもしない = not to help someone at all
Ex. なんの手伝いもせずに話してばかりいる= Just chatting without offering any help/ helping us at all.
****
これから from now on
これからも from now on “as well”
So this も means “as well/again”
これからも変わらずにいて下さい。
Don’t change the way you are/ Stay the way you are from now on as well.
So なんの苦労もせずに without having ANY
Thanks to Maggie Sensei, I think I’m starting to get the hang of も^^ いつもどおり、ありがとうございました！
Hi, Maggie-Sensei!
I have a short, irrelevant question. What does “はよ” by itself mean? because there was this part in a song that says “ボカロPになりたいなら さぁ （はよ！ はよ！）”
The singer DID pronounce はよ as ‘hayo,’ not ‘wayo’ for some reason. What does it mean in this case?
-Eager to see a response from you
Migi
@Migi
Hi Migi,
Haha I got to see the video to figure it out.
はよはよ means “hurry up!” in Kansai dialect. It is strange because just that part was Kansai dialect but I guess it is kind of catchy.
ありがとうせんせい！That really helped me. But can you please answer question number 2?
About this sentence “漢字を毎日１００字ずつ覚えたらどうかなあ？” what is “ずつ”? What’s its position in a sentence?
I have the following questions:
1. “今日は何も食べないでおこうかな。” what is “おこう”?
2. “今日は一日家にいようかな。” This “いよう” is “いる”?
3. “みんなに日本語を教えることができてうれしいです。” What is the function of “できて” here?
4. “夏休み、どこに行く？海外に行く？” Let’s suppose I want to go abroad. If I answer “海外がいい”, then is it ok? or we have to be more specific?
“Thank you so much in advance.” By the way, how do you translate this sentence into Japanese?
@kuroineko
ずつ means “each””per””at a time”
Ex. 漢字を毎日１００字ずつ覚える= to memorize/learn 100 kanji “per” day.
Ex. 一人二個ずつ= two pieces to each
1. 〜でおく= to do/leave something (intentionally) / ~ないでおく= to not to do something (intentionally)./to leave something without doing something
~ でおこう= try/will not to do something (intentionally)/~ないでおこう= try/will not to do something (intentionally).
Go check my lesson ~ておく
2. 家にいる= to stay home (to be home )→いよう= will stay home.
3. できる= to be able to do something できて= (This て has a function of giving a reason) in this case “because I can teach”
4. Yes, you can say 海外がいい or 海外に行きたい
“Thank you so much in advance.”
You can say よろしくお願いします。
Awesome lesson, マギー先生!
I’m not sure about the function of で in this sentence: お腹が一杯で一口も食べられない。
Is this で short for なので (because)?
So the literal translate would be: “Because my stomach is full, I can’t eat another bite.” (Is this correct?)
@Marianne
Hi Marianne,
Great! I can see you’ve been studying hard!
お腹が一杯で一口も食べられない
で has many functions and one of them is to indicate a reason causally.
You can replace it with なので
お腹が一杯なので一口も食べられない。
= Because I am full I can’t eat another bite.
I would say で is lighter and なので indicates the reason stronger.
That’s why I translated it as “and”
(なので = because ~~ / 〜で = (reason) so../ and…/because )
お腹が一杯なので一口も食べられない
ああ、なるほど！That makes sense^^ ありがとう、先生！
Sorry, but I have another question: How is も used in this sentence?
愚痴なんて聞きたくもない.
I got it from the なんて lesson. I believe it’s just for emphasis, but I’m not entirely sure. Are there any patterns/rules for using this kind of も?
@Marianne
Yes, it is to emphasize.
OK, I will show you the pattern.
~なんてVたくない
→(stronger feeling.)
〜なんてVたくもない
Ex. 宿題なんてやりたくない。
= I don’t want to do my homework.
→stronger feeling.
Ex. 宿題なんてやりたくもない。
ありがとう、マギー先生！
マギー先生のサイトなんていつも使い止みたくもない^^
@Marianne
どういたしまして！（マギー先生のサイトなんていつも使い止みたくもない^^→??? you wanted to say you don’t even want to stop using my site?)
I basically tried to say, “I never want to stop using Maggie Sensei’s site!” with LOTS of emphasis. I guess it didn’t work out like I thought it would, eh? XD 拙い日本語ごめんなさい! >_<
Hi Maggie,
Can you not also say 「ジャギーをくれなかったらいたずらよ！」?
What’s the basic difference between using ~たら and ~と?
@Jeff
Hello Jeff,
Yes, you can also say 「ジャーキーをくれなかったらいたずら”する”よ」
And in this case, the translation is the same
”If you don’t give me “dog treats” or I will play a trick on you!”
But the basic difference between 〜と and 〜たら is…
While 〜と + what is going to happen (a predictable outcome, a consequence)
~たら is more hypothetical. And it sometimes involves hypothetical condition which is impossible or difficult to be fulfilled (or something emotionally hard to imagine).
I also have a lesson on ~たら. Check this lesson.
もう素晴らしいレッスンありがとう、マギー先生＾＾ ちょっと質問がある…
Is there a difference between ~ということです and ~とのことです? Since both indicate something you heard or read.
Ex. マギーは今日、来ないとのことです。
マギーは今日、来ないということです。
Is there a difference in nuance/meaning between these two sentences?
Also, can you replace ~って or ~とのことです with verbs other than ~と言う or ~と聞いた? For example, ~と思う?
Ex. マギーは今日、来ないんだってさ/マギーは今日、来ないとのことです—> “I don’t think Maggie will come today.” (Could this translation also be correct?)
@Marianne
Hello Marianne!
Yes, there is a difference
Ex. 1) マギーは今日、来ないとのことです。 I heard Maggie was not coming today. (delivering a message)
Ex. 2) マギーは今日、来ないということです。It/That means Maggie is not coming today. (explaining the reason)
You can study more about ということ in this lesson
Ex. マギーは今日、来ないんだってさ (very casual) /マギーは今日、来ないとのことです (formal)
Yes they mean the same. “I heard Maggie is not coming today.”
You can use と or って with the verbs that you can quote, 言う、聞く、思う、知る(find out)、ほのめかす (imply)、説明する(explain)、書く(write),etc.
わかった。有益な説明ありがとう！
@Marianne
どういたしまして。
（有益な= You meant “useful”? )
I actually meant “informative”… sorry about that T_T
How should I say “Thanks for the useful/informative explanation?”
@Marianne
A lot of people use the word 有益な when they send me a message on Twitter so I have been wondering what word they were trying to say.
有益な is too formal. 役に立つ is more common.
How about just say とても参考になりました。ありがとう（ございました）。
And you are very welcome! :)
“とても参考になりました”? (It very became a reference)? Hmm… does とても meaning anything other than “very”?
@Marianne
参考になる means “to be informative”
So it will sound more natural than saying とても役に立つ情報をありがとう。
Oh, ok! Now I understand… Thanks again, Maggie sensei. You’re the best!
@Marianne
You’re very welcome, Marianne. :)
Is there any difference if I were to replace te-iru with the masu form to express habitual actions? Example:
1) 私は日本語を勉強します。
2) 私は日本語を勉強しています。
Thanks!!!
@Anna
Hello Anna,
While 2) means”I am studying Japanese (now)”
1) means “I will study Japanese / I am going to study Japanese.” and you are talking about future.
Ex. 私は来年、日本語を勉強します。= I will study Japanese next year.
Ex. 私は日本で日本語を勉強します。 = I will study Japanese in Japan.
Ex. 私はもっと真面目に日本語を勉強します。 = I am going to study Japanese more seriously.
Hi Sensei! Thanks for the reply. But if I were to add in mainichi will these two sentences mean the same as in habitual actions? Can I use either of these to express habitual actions?
1) watashi wa mainichi nihongo o benkyou shiteimasu.
2) watashi wa mainichi nihongo o benkyou shimasu.
@Anna
Ohayou Anna.
Ah good point.
Yes, 1) 私は毎日勉強します。can be
I study Japanese everyday or I’m going to study Japanese everyday (from now)
Thanks!! I was confused coz I read that te-iru is used for habitual actions and I was thinking whether of using the masu-form instead to indicate that as well. And you have been a great teacher as usual!! Thank you!
@Anna
どういたしまして vUo・ｪ・oU
I’m also learning from your questions.
こんにちはせんせい！
Thank you for your answer, but what’s exactly the position of ” ～としても”? After the verb? ”～にしても” is same? or a different grammar point?
Also, I have the following questions:
1. What is the difference between “もし” and “もしも”?
2. 見てみなさい. What is this verb? I know it’s imperative but I’ve never seen this pattern before.
3. あがれるじょうたいじゃないの分かるでしょう？What is ”あがれる” and What is the meaning of “あがれるじょうたい”?
4. それに 私 この仕事 けっこう 好きかも。”かも” is maybe here? or another meaning?
5. ”するの” what is this grammar point? Please give me examples.
ありがとう。
@kuroineko
Hello kuroineko,
Here are the formation of としても
*verb (plain form) + としても Ex. 行くとしても
*i-adj ~ い + としても Ex. 辛いとしても
*na-adj / noun + だ + としても Ex. きれいだとしても Ex. 子供だとしても
（In some cases you can replace it with にしても but にしても has a meaning of “Even for/as ~ “) Sorry. But it is too complicated to explain the whole difference in this comment section.)
1. もし”も” : “も” emphasizes more.
3. It depends on the previous sentence. If they are talking about going up somewhere, あがれる= to be able to go up somewhere.
4. It is very colloquial way to finish the sentence. We tend to avoid straight expressions in Japanese. So instead of saying 私はこの仕事がけっこう好きです, you add かも at the end and softens the sentence.
5. Ex. これから何をするの？= What are you going to do now? (casual way to say これから何をするのですか？）
Ex. これから勉強をするの。= I will study now. (casual way to say これから勉強をします。 showing your will)
Thank you very much for the lesson, Maggie Sensei!
I didn’t realize 〜かな could be quite deep!
The lesson makes so much sense, however, I just ran into this sentence which I don’t understand.
“あと ついてないかな”
What do you think this sentence may possibly mean?
(From context, it would actually make sense to me if あと ついて来いかな was used, but it’s possible that the character was thinking of something unrelated…)
By “あと ついて来いかな”, I meant “あと ついて来ないかな”. orz
@yui
I think it’s あとついて来ないかな.
If so, it meant to say（私・私達の）後をつけて来ないかな。
後を*ついて行く= ato wo* tuite iku = to follow someone
後を*ついて来る =ato wo* tsuite kuru = someone follows you
*Note：We often omit the particle (in this case を(=wo) in casual conversation.
So I wonder if they (he/she/it) follows me/us. （the speaker is nervous / worried.)
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I have a question about adjectives. In the above examples, 〜にしている、〜くしている、it seems like the meaning is ‘staying X’, ‘keeping X’. If you want to say that something has been X for a period of time, do you use that pattern? Or do you just use the plain adjective?
For example:
1. Recently it has been hot.
– 最近熱いです
2. That band has been popular for a long time
– そのバンドは長い間人気です
3. since the new school term started, she has been busy
– 新学期が始めてから、忙しいです
4. this trip has been fun
– この旅行は楽しいです
Is that correct? Thank you. :-)
@elainelinc
Hi elainelinc
You use ている in the meaning of ‘staying X’, ‘keeping X’, when you think someone keeps that condition.
So for example
3. since the new school term started, she has been busy
– 新学期が始めてから、忙しいです
is more natural.
But if you meant to say
since the new school term started, she has been keeping herself busy.
新学期が始まってから、彼女は忙しくしている。
1, 2, 4
1) 最近暑いです。(Careful with the kanji)
Because you can’t control the heat.
If you want your room always cool with air conditioner, you can say
She keeps her room always cool.
=彼女はいつも部屋を涼しくしている。
2) そのバンドは長い間、人気がある is more natural.
You don’t use 〜にしている、〜くしている
4) this trip has been fun
– この旅行は楽しいです
You don’t use 〜にしている、〜くしている
But if someone/something makes the trip fun, you can.
Ex. 大好きな音楽を集めたCDが長旅を楽しいものにしている。
How’s that?
Thank you. That helps a lot. :-) So that pattern is really about doing something intentionally.
– 静かにしている ＝ staying quiet on purpose
As opposed to it being that way for some time:
– 最近、静かです= Recently it has been quiet
As an english speaker, I tend to want to use a conjugation to show time. ‘has been quiet’, ‘has been hot’, ‘have been busy’. With verbs, those patterns usually translate to ‘ている’. Like: it has been raining = 雨が降っています. But with adjectives, it is just the plain adjective. It’s definitely easier than English, but sometimes it throws me off. Like the other day I wanted to tell my teacher that class has been fun and said ‘楽しかったです’ instead of ‘楽しいです’. So she was wondering why it was not fun anymore. ;-P 恥ずかしかったです。
@elainelinc
That’s right.
But the thing is the translation could be the same so you have to know the nuance difference.
Ex. 最近、彼は静かにしている。= He has been very quiet recently. (He has kept himself quiet.)
Ex. 最近、彼は静かだ。= He has been very quiet recently.
***
Thank you for sharing your story.
If you just say 雨が降っています，we automatically think “It is raining NOW.” but if you say “雨がここ２、３日、ずっと降っています。”, it means “It has been raining these few days.”
It is very interesting to compare English and Japanese tense.
そうですね。面白いです。学べば学ぶほどもっと微妙な違いを気づいています。日本語を勉強しながら英語の文法もゆっくり考えている必要があります。 マギー先生がたくさん例えばを作るのはほんとに役に立つです。いろいろのやり方が見えて学ぶ事が多いのです。:-)
こんにちは先生！
I want to ask about “かしら”。If it’s very feminine, then who can exactly use it? Usual people?
Also, what is this grammar point ” ～としても”？ How to use it?
ありがとう。
@kuroineko
こんにちは、kuroineko!
1) かしら
Though it is very feminine and I don’t hear people around me use it so much but some people do use it. (Some say older women tend to use and some say Tokyo area people use it more but not sure.)
Sorry but I can’t specify what kind of people use it.
Since we hear this often in anime characters, they sounds a bit dramatic.
Ex. そうかしら。= I wonder if it is true.
Ex. 私にもできるかしら= I wonder if I can do it.
Not just feminine but in my opinion, it gives an impression of being snob when it is used in polite form.
Ex. やっていただけるかしら。= Could you do that for me?
2) ” ～としても” :
(1) when you are talking about hypothetical situation.
Even if ~ / Let’s say ~ / allowing that
Ex. たとえ今から出かけたとしてもとても間に合わない。
= Even if we leave now, I don’t think we can make it anyway.
(2) also as ~
Ex. このケースは眼鏡入れとしても使える。
= You can use this also as a spectacle case.
Hi sensei,
sorry for the dumb question, but I still don’t get something. Is ひらける transitive or intransitive?
@Steph
Hi Steph
ひらける is intransitive word
~がひらける
Ex. 視界がひらける（x視界をひらける）
Ex. 運がひらける （x運をひらける）
Ex. 道がひらける (x 道をひらける）
I see, thanks sensei!
The part that confused me was this:
“When you use it as a transitive verb : to open something
(object）を開く = ひらく(= hiraku), 開ける = ひらける (= hirakeru) or 開ける = あける(= akeru)”
@Steph
Ohhhh I’m sorry. That was a mistake. I fixed it.
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I really appreciate it. I made this lesson two years ago and didn’t realize that mistake until now.
And sorry for all the confusions.
No problem sensei, I’m glad I could help.
I only want to let you know that I’ve improved a lot thanks to your site. Keep up the good work!
＠Steph
ありがとう！！がんばります！！ :)
おはようございます！
I really love your site. There are tons of useful examples. Thank you so much ^^
I’m studying Japanese by Soumatome N3, but the problem is that there’s no explanations, not so many examples. Thus it’s quite difficult for me to master new grammar ><
Could you please give me some examples based on this:
Noun/Verb(te form)+ ばかり/ばかりだ/ばかりのNoun/ばかりで
Thank you :)
@Masami
こんばんは、Masami!
I’m very happy to hear you like our site. :)
As for your request,
Noun/Verb(te form)+ ばかり/ばかりだ/ばかりのNoun/ばかりで
You mean
Noun/Verb(te form)+ ばかり/ばかりだ/ばかりのNoun＋ばかりで
two ばかり in one sentence???
こんばんは、
Sorry I must have made myself clearer. I meant:
Noun ばかり
Verb(te form) + ばかりだ
ばかりのNoun
ばかりで
@Masami
So you want more examples with these patterns? Sure.
＊Noun ばかり
Ex.私のクラスは面白い生徒ばかりだ・いる。
= All the students in my class are funny.
＊ばかりのNoun
Ex.女性ばかりのチーム
= A team just with women
＊Verb(te form) + ばかりだ
Ex.彼はいつも寝てばかりだ。
= He does nothing but sleeping.
＊ばかりで
Ex.今、家に帰ったばかりで何も夕食の準備が出来ていない。
= I just came back home and I haven’t prepared dinner at all.
ありがとうございました。^^
@Masami
どういたしまして、Masami! :)
こんにちは先生！
It’s much easier to understand now. Learning a new language can be quite difficult without a help from someone. I really appreciate your efforts for everything you did so far. Your site is the best and I mean it. I can find materials here that I couldn’t find in any other site. so こころからありがとうございます (＾▽＾)
I have the following questions:
1. In this sentence “さて、今日は何をして遊ぼうかな…” Why did you add “して”? Is it wrong to just say “さて、今日は何を遊ぼうかな…”?
2. “もう食べていいかな…” Is it wrong to add “も” after “食べて”? I’m confused as this pattern is different..
3. “マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかなと心配していました.” What is the function of “と” here?
4. How do you pronounce the letter “ん” in Japanese? Like “新聞、パン、自分、etc” I don’t think it’s the same as “night, new and so on…
Thanks in advance.
@kuroineko
こんにちは！
Glad to know you find some of my lessons help you a little.
1. 何をして this して is する= to do, so 〜をして means “doing”
We use this pattern with 遊ぶ(=asobu)、過ごす(=sugosu), etc.
Ex. 週末は何をして過ごしますか？
= Shuumatsu wa nani wo shite sugoshimasu ka?
= What are you going to be doing this weekend?
2. Yes. It is originally もう食べてもいいかな？ We omit て in conversation.
3. this と has a function of quoting. “マギー先生のサイトはもうなくなるのかな”＋と＋思う・言う・心配する etc.
4. I can’t add the audio file in comment section. Check this lesson Super Basic Words Week 29 has an audio file of 新聞
Also check the audio in Hiragana Chart lesson.
こんにちは！
Thanks for answering my questions.
I have two questions:
1. Does “やっと” always come at the beginning of the sentence? What’s its exact position?
2. What is “ただ” and how to use it?
ありがとう。
@kuroineko
You’re welcome!
1. Not necessary.
You can put it before the verb.
やっとマギーに会えた
マギーにやっと会えた
2. ただ as in “just”?
Ex. ただ見ているだけです。
= I am just looking.
Ex. 何もできずにただ見ているだけだった。
= I couldn’t do anything but just looking.
Ex. 日本語をうまく話したければただ教科書を読むだけではなくできるだけ日本人と話した方がいいです。
= If you want to speak Japanese well, not just reading your text book but you should talk to Japanese as much as possible.
Dear Maggie Sensei,
Shitsumon ga arimasu.
Can “Aishiteru” use with Family member? Ex. If I want to Post in my mother’s facebook on haha no hi that…Okaasan, itsumademo aishiteru yo., is this phrase can be use to tell mom that I love her?
Or it’s suitable to say “Daisuki” with Family member b’coz I’ve searched in the internet that Aishiteru like a affair word, can’t use with mom or dad or any family members but some websites said that it’s ok to use with family member.
Could you please help to explain the different between “Aishiteru and Daisuki” when using with family member (Dad and Mom)
Many Thanks for your kind help in this matter.
@yuyu
Hello YuyYou
Daisuki is more common and sound lighter but I am sure your mother will be very happy to see your heartwarming message either way.
Japanese people are not good at expressing our love even towards our family or even our sweethearts.
But I am sure she knows you can express your love openly so that’s perfectly all right.
I think it is very lovely.
In Japan (of course it depends on the family but) grownups don’t express their love towards their parents, children saying “daisuki / Aishiteimasu” verbally in daily life.
But there is love equally in your country. Maybe we express our appreciation here and there, saying ありがとう/感謝しています
Your comment reminded me how important to express our love. ありがとう！
ありがとう先生！＾＾
But in this sentence “宿題をするのを忘れていた。” why the particle ” を” used twice? I’m confused..
Also, I have following questions.
1. お忙しいようですし、そろそろ失礼します。Is it ok to add “し”to “です”？If so, how to pronounce? Silent “です”like usual?
2. “遊びに行きたいし、宿題はしなくてはいけないし、どうしよう。” what is ”なくてはいけない”? And what is “なくてもかまわない？
3. While watching anime or Japanese drama, I noticed that females (Different ages 15+) use the particle “わ” at the end of their sentence or before ”よ”like “いいわよ”. I know it doesn’t have any meaning like “の” and it’s just a female language, but is it really used in real life? Or it’s just anime and drama?
ありがとう先生。
@kuroineko
“宿題をするのを忘れていた。
*宿題をする = to do one’s homework : 宿題 is an object so you need an object marker
However, you can also say 宿題する as one verb
（the same thing 勉強をする / 勉強する= to study )
*Vを忘れる= the verb 忘れる needs an object. Therefore you need an object marker,を
1. Yes, you can say ですし. Sorry I can’t post an audio file here but you can pronounce “desu-shi”
2. Vなくてはいけない= have to do
Ex. する→negative form しない→しなくてはいけない = have to do
Ex. 飲む→negative form 飲まない→飲まなくてはいけない = have to drink
Ex. 書く→negative form 書かない→書かなくてはいけない= have to write
なくてもかまわない = no need to do something / it doesn’t matter if S does it/it is ~ or not/ I don’t care without ~
Ex. 明日は教科書を持ってこなくてもかまわないです。
= You don’t need to bring your textbooks tomorrow.
3. Some do use わ but it sounds very feminine. Go check female speech lesson.
Maggie Sensei and Max Sensei. Thanks for this lesson. It was very helpful. You’re amazing!!!
If possible, you can also teach about the use of ーてある?
Thanks to you I’m more passionate for japanese language.
どうもありがとうございます！！！
@Zé Carlos
Hi Carlos,
Great to hear you are more passionate for nihongo.
OK, I will make a lesson on 〜てある. It may take a time but please wait patiently.
Maggie Sensei, I’ll always wait for your lessons no matter how much time you spend.
Don’t need rush yourself and keep your excelent work!
Tchau!
こんにちは！Thank you so much for answering my questions. It’s much easier to understand now and especially that idiom. I don’t know any Japanese idioms. Can you please make a lesson someday on idioms? I think it’s useful for any learner.
I have the following questions (I Hope I’m not bothering you by my many questions):
1. 何やってんの？and 何してんの？I’m confused, can you please tell me the difference between the verbs “やる”and “して”？Same meaning?
2. Can you provide an example of “忘れて（い）た”? Continued state of forgetting thing is still confusing me..
3. What is “やっと” and how to use it?
4. What is the difference between “オレンジ” and “ミカン”？Are they the same, and which one is usually used?
Thanks in advance.
@kuroineko
おはよう！
Hmm idioms are too broad but I have been tweeting idioms sometimes on Twitter. If I can find a good theme, I will make a lesson on some idioms in future.
1.
やってんの is from a verb やる = to do
してんの is from a verb する = to do
They mean the same but やる is more casual.
2. Sure,
1) When you were supposed to do something but you completely forgot about it or doing it.
(Note : the translation could be just “forgot” not “had forgotten” but it expresses you had/had forgotten to do something for a while)
Ex. 花に水をやるのをすっかり忘れていた
= I completely forgot to water my plants.
Ex. 宿題をするのを忘れていた。
= I forgot to do my homework.
2) When you haven’t/hadn’t remembered something/someone for a long time.
→haven’t thought about/remembered something/someone for a while
Ex. 彼のことをずっと忘れていた。
= I haven’t thought about him for a long time.
Ex.朝ご飯を食べることを忘れていた。
= I just remembered I haven’t had breakfast yet.
3. やっと means finally, at last. You use it when some event, someone, something you have been waiting finally happens,comes,arrives.
Ex.やっと日本に来た。
= I finally managed to come to Japan.
Ex. やっとマギーに会えた。
= I finally got to see Maggie.
4.
ミカン（みかん、蜜柑） is Japanese mandarin orange or tangerine. They are much smaller than オレンジ.
オレンジ is a general name for orange that you probably see in your country. We import them from abroad.
Maggie sensei can you explain te form +aru..
@pio
Hi, pio.
Someone just asked the same thing so I will make a lesson on てある sometime soon. Please wait.
こんにちはマギー先生！＾＾
I hope you are fine. Your lessons are great like always. I’m so glad that you made a lesson on “ている” as it’s very helpful and easy to understand.
I have the following questions:
1. “普段、車で会社に通っている”。In this sentence, why did you use the verb “通う” and what is the meaning of this verb? Can we use “行っている”instead?
2. 今、宿題やっているのだけれど難しすぎて… In this sentence, what is “すぎて” and why is it at the end? I’ve never seen “て-form at the end before..
3. 少しでも皆のお役に立ったらうれしいです。What is “少しでも” and how to use it? And what is “立ったら” in the same sentence?
4. What is the difference between the following words “忘れた”、”忘れてた”、”忘れちゃった”？I’m so confused.
Can you please explain them and give me examples.
Thank you so much in advance. You’re a great teacher for all of us.
@kuroineko
こんにちは、kuroineko-chan.
I’m good. Thank you for asking.
You got good questions.
1) 通う means “to commute” “to go somewhere back and forth”. While we use 行く when you go somewhere just once, we use 通う for school, office or some place you go daily.
2) We often leave a sentence unfinished on purpose. (The readers/speakers have to read between the lines.)
今、宿題やっているのだけれど難しすぎて(困っている／どうしたらいいのかわからない／手伝ってくれない？）….
Not just ~て、we often leave a sentence with が
Ex. 今、宿題をやっているのですが….etc.
3) 少しでも = even a little It’s a typical Japanese expression to make yourself humble or modest.
＊役に立つ is an idiom. It means “to be useful, helpful, to serve something”
＊役に立てたら = If S is useful, helpful →casual 役に立ったら
4) 忘れた= I forgot
忘れちゃった= (casual contraction) I forgot (involves some feelings)
忘れて（い）た= I had forgotten (continued state of forgetting) focusing on the state of forgetting
勉強になりました。ありがとうがざいます。
@Nadeshiko
こちらこそ、このサイトに来てくれてありがとうございます！また来てくださいね。:)
先生、こんにちは。
is there a logic of transformation from では to じゃ or are they like いたす and する – two separate words with different levels of politeness?
@iji
こんにちは、iji
logic of transformation?
1) V-te form ~んで＋は→じゃ Ex. 読んではいけません →読んじゃいけません。
2) Noun + では→じゃ Ex. マギーではない→マギーじゃない
3) place + では→じゃ Ex. 家では勉強しない→家じゃ勉強しない。
As you say では and じゃ has a difference of politeness.
じゃ a casual form.
(する is not a casual form. It is a plain (dictionary) form.)
する is a plain form not casual.
Maggie-sensei! Thank you so much for your lesson! I learned a lot from this!! I have been chatting with a Japanese recently and this is really helpful for me! Thank you very much!!!
@micahella
Hi Micahella! Good to hear you learned a lot from this lesson.
Hope you make a lot of good Japanese friends! :)
Thank you for this, sensei! Your lessons are really helpful!
@Micah
Hello Micha! Thank you for your comment! またいつでも来てね！
Konnichiwa! Sorry, I don’t know where to ask question,so i just posted here
@Charlotte
Konnichiwa, Charlotte!
You can ask a question here, any comment section or Maggie’s room. What is your question?
マギー先生、「ことがある」と「ている」について質問がある。この文は違いがありますか：
− 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
− 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行ったことがある。
意味は同じですか？
@elanelinc
いい質問ですね。
1) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行っている。
2) 彼女は、沖縄に５回も行ったことがある。
They both means “She has been to Okinawa “FIVE” times” and talking about her experiences.
You can use them both but there is a slight nuance difference.
But 1) shows her experiences has certain connection with the present time.
If you talking about the experiences of going to Okinawa as a past event, you use 2)
なるほど、ありがとうマギー先生。:-) その話題はも質問があります。「X never happens」と日本語で言ったらどちらか正しいかな。
例えば：
１。その子供は素直なことがない。
Those children are never obedient
２。その子供は素直にしていない。
Those children are not obedient (right now)
Or Those children are not obedient (generally)
３。Maxは猫を追うことがない。
Max never chases cats
４。Maxは決して猫を追っていない。
Max never chases cats.
In all examples, the statements are meant to be general. Maybe the children are obedient sometimes, and maybe Max has chased a cat once. ;-)
@elainelinc
X never happens = Xは〜ことは／がない
１。その子供は素直なことがない。
That child is never obedient
→Fine (Those children = その子供達）
２。その子供は素直にしていない。
→That child can’t keep obedient.
３。Maxは猫を追うことがない。
Max never chases cats
→Fine. (It is his nature.)
If you say
Maxは猫を追ったことがない
= Max has never chased a cat (in his life)
４。Maxは決して猫を追っていない。
Max never chased a cat. (Explaining the past event)
説明してくれた、ありがとう。分かるような気がします。:-) このレッスンを作ってくれてありがとう。今まで「ている」も分かっていると思いましたが。。。違いそうです。;-P
も一つ質問を聞きたいのです。その例えば：Max先生の話を聞いていますか
I would guess there is some nuance like:
– ‘have you heard that story about max sensei (lately/recently)?’ or
– ‘have you been hearing that story about Max sensei’ – like it’s an ongoing issue, people keep talking about it.
Whereas if you said 「Max先生の話を聞きましたか」／‘have you heard that story about Max sensei’, the time is less clear. Maybe it’s recent, maybe it happened a while ago.
Is that correct?
I must say I am really thankful for you making this blog! It has helped really much, love how you always give many example sentences which I can memorize and use later. Plus the slang lessons are great, I have some japanese friends and sometimes it’s hard to understand them because of massive amount of slang they use, uh.
This isn’t really related to this lesson, but I’ve been wondering about one sentence for a few days already and still can’t figure it out. Could you help me?
変換そのままやっちまった
I do understand what そのまま means, but I have no idea what 変換 and やっちまった mean in that context and how can they be related to each other.
@Aurora
Thank you for your nice message! It is so nice to hear this site has help you. A new slang lesson is coming soon!
変換そのままやっちまった
OK, I need to know the context but I think the speaker is talking about 文字変換. When you type Japanese letters, you first type using romaji and then press Enter key to change it to kanji or hiragana. That is called 変換.
Usually when you press Enter key, it shows some candidates of words.
For example,
taichou →（たいちょう）→体調、隊長、退庁、退潮、体長….They are all ”taichou”
そのまま means “the way it is” in this case, without picking the right kanji / leaving the kanji which appeared in the first place./ without checking whether the kanji is right or not
やっちまった is a bit rough colloquial expression of やってしまった （してしまった） to happen to do something without one’s intention
So I think that person happened to send a message without checking the kanji
For example, you meant to say
体長はいかがですか？= How do you feel today? (体長 – physical condition)
But when you typed
→隊長はいかがですか？ = How is the captain?
Hope this helps.
相変わらずマギー先生からいいところを習っています。ありがとう。
@elainelink
さっそく「います」を使っていますね。感心！感心！
（もう少し自然な言い方にしてみましょうか。「いいところ」は英語でなんて言いたかったかな？ →いつもマギー先生から〜を学んでいます。）
「いいところ」で「good points」と言ったかったです。英語と違いそうですね。日本語でなんと言いますか。
Hi, you’re website is really helpful!
I’m having a little trouble trying to say “I want to take lots of photos during the trip so that I can show my family”
So far, I have
家族にみせられるようにりょうりょこう中にしゃしんをたくさんとりたいです。
@kjh97
Hello kjh97! Welcome to our site! :)
Your sentence is fine. (I think it is a typo. りょうりょこう中→りょこう中に）
The other natural way to say that sentence is,
Ex. 旅行中（りょこうちゅう）に写真（しゃしん）をたくさん撮（と）って家族（かぞく）に見せたいです。
= I want to take a lot of pictures during the trip to show them to my pictures.
ah, I get it. I wish I read your “how to use ~noni” lesson first. Thank you sensei….
@Una
You’re welcome, Una! :)
マギー先生こんにちは! マギー先生のサイトは大好きだよ! このレッスンを教えくれてありがとう。いつもコメントを書きたいんだけど間違いで書いて心配する。
毎日このサイトに来ている。
@ocd
はじめまして、ocd! いつもこのサイトに来てくれているのね、ありがとう！！コメントとってもうれしいです。いつでも気軽に書いて下さい。
でも日本語、よく書けていますよ。（ 間違いで書いて心配する。→「間違わないか心配です」 にした方が自然かな。)
また来てね！ :)
Thank you very much for correction. I don’t very well understand when to use [か] in relative clauses (I hope I’m not mistake this grammar with smth else).But next time for sure I’ll try harder! Thanks again.
@ocd
どういたしまして！いつでもこのコメントで練習してね。間違った方が絶対に上達しますよ。 I will make a mini lesson on Facebook how to use か sometime soon!
先生、「ている」の使い方をはっきり説明してくれてありがとう！！でもね、「てくる」のレッソンがあるのですか？その複合動詞は一番わかり難いよ！「ていく」だってもそれほど難しくない！そうして、スラングについて質問ですが、「なんか」と「なんて」教えてください。
@Blossom
レッスンあります。以下、リンクです。
＊〜ていく & ~てくる
＊なんて
＊もんか、もんで、なんて
＊なんか (Mini Lesson)
Thank you :)
@Connor
You’re welcome! Anytime! :)
Great lesson! The (adj+ている) I didn’t know about, so it’s helpful! Thanks Max & Maggie様! ＾。＾
@サカトキ
Great to hear this lesson was helpful.
Love from Max and Maggie❤
こんにちは、マギー先生！
愛犬のマックスを雇ってくれてありがとう！とても嬉しいです！
質問があるんですが、「〜ている」は過去形で使えば、普通の過去形とどう違いますか？
「使っていた」と「使った」、「行っていた」と「行った」
@Lava
こんにちは！Lava!!
ええ〜〜Lavaがマックス先生のお友達だったんですね。ちっとも知りませんでした。マックス先生、このレッスン、この２週間、がんばって作っていましたよ。ほめてあげて下さいね。
過去形はまた違う使い方があるので分けて別にレッスンを作るつもりでしたが、
使った = used something particular time
使っていた =was using something, or used to do something
Ex. マックスはマギー先生のサイトを使った。
= Max used Maggie Sensei’s site. (just that time.)
Ex. マックスはマギー先生のサイトを2回使った。
= Max used Maggie Sensei’s site twice. (Just those two times.)
***
If you want to describe the way Max used to use Maggie Sensei’s site, you use 使っていた
Ex. マックスは前、マギー先生のサイトを使っていた。
= Max used to use Maggie Sensei’s site.
******
Ex. 1) 昨日の夜、マックスはこのサイトを使っていた。
= Max was using this site last night.
Ex. 2)昨日の夜、マックスはこのサイトを使った。
= Max used this site last night.
The difference : While 2) just expresses one time action, 1) implies Max was continuously using this site.
行った= went somewhere particular time
行っていた= used to go somewhere
Ex.マックスは昨日、東京に行った
= Max went to Tokyo yesterday.
(You can’t say 行っていた）
Ex. マックスは昔は東京によく行っていた。
= Max used to go to Tokyo frequently.
(You can replace it with 行った(ものだ）but 行っていた describes the time Max used to go to Tokyo more.)
また機会があったら”〜ていた”のレッスンを作りますね。
そうです、私はFacebookの蘭和ですよ！マックスの飼い主です（＾＾）。マギー先生のサイトをよく使っています（＜ーこの使い方は当ていますか？）
説明してくれてありがとうございました！とても役に立ちました！
@Lava・欄和
そうだったんですね。Lavaの大切なMax先生と一緒にお仕事できて楽しかったですよ。これからもよろしくね❤
Thanks for the lesson :) Bu I still have one question about the spelling of teiru. Is it “te” and then “iru” or “teiru” with a long spoken “e”?
Thank you in advance :)
@Connor
Ahh because I wrote Vている(=teiru)?
V+ている (= V+te iru) might be easier for you to understand, huh?
I added the space between “te” and “iru” to make it more clear.
So V+ている= V+te iru
(But the pronunciation is the same because there is no pause.)
Hi, this is the first time I’ve come across a verb like 接せる (せっせる) which seems to have the small つ. (Sorry, don’t know the exact name for that). This must be pretty rare? Thanks
Toby
@Toby
I think it’s typo and it should be 接する (= せっする= sessuru) = to contact which is pretty common.
We call っ (小さい「つ」= chiisai tsu)
good morning dear maggie sensei. i saw some explanations about the usage of kedo:
http://japanese.about.com/library/blqow1.htm
https://ph.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20131211112552AAMMirR
but there are times i see/hear kedo/keredo + mo. is the “mo” in (kedo/keredo + mo) is the emphasizing “mo” or (kedo/keredo + mo) is just another variation of kedo/keredo?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
keredomo/kedomo/kedo
It is originally “けれども(=keredomo)”
けれども keredomo (formal)
→けれど keredo (less formal)
→ けどkado (more casual)
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. n_n.
@obakasan000
You’re welcome! :)
hi Maggie sensei.. I wanna let you know your lessons are very very useful…
btw, i got a question. how to use noun with的 and noun w/o 的 +ni/. For example
自動的に/自動に
実際的に/実際に
appreciate your help
@Jim
Hello Jim,
First the words you can use with 的 are limited so you can’t add 的 to any words.
And 基本的に(= basically) you can’t make adverbs just deleting 的 and replacing it with に or で
Ex. 基本的に x 基本に／で
Ex.客観的に x 客観に／で
However, we can use certain words without 的
Ex. ファイルを自動的に開く = to open a file automatically
Ex. ファイルを自動で/に開く = to open a file automatically （で is more common)
Ex. ファイルが自動的に／自動に／自動で開く = A file opens automatically
*****
実際的に and 実際に
There are cases you can replace them but there is a difference
実際的には実現が難しい (It is practically difficult to make it come true.
実際には実現が難しい (It is difficult to make it come true in reality.)
実際的に means “practically/ in a practical way”
But 実際に has a meaning of “for real, in fact, actual, in reality” and a lot of time can’t replace it with 実際的に
Ex. これは実際にあった話です。（x 実際的）
= This is a true story.
それで、「もらう」は受身形の使い方と同じだって言えますね。
＠Blossom
こんにちは、Blossom!
受け身と「〜もらう」は気持ちが違いますよ。その違いを少し説明しますね。
英語で説明しますね。
Let’s compare the following sentences.
Ex. 1) ８時に母（はは）に起(お）こしてもらう。
My mother woke me up at 8:00 (for me)
(It shows your appreciation towards your mother.)
Ex. 2) ８時に母（はは）に起（お）こされる。
I was awakened by my mother at 8:00. ( = My mother woke me up at 8:00.)
(It may show your annoying feelings towards your mom. I wanted to sleep more but she woke me up.)
So ~もらう usually implies the feeling of appreciation or happy feeling. Someone does something thinking of you.
But 受け身 can be used in a negative connotation.
Thank you for this lesson!
I have a question, how should I say ¨recently I´ve been talking in japanese with a friend on skype and so.”
”最近は友達とLINEで日本語で話したりしました” or should I say ”最近は友達とLINEで日本語で話したりしていた”
thank you!
ups! I said skype and then LINE, well, it is the same. sorry.
@Emmanuel
Hello Emmanuel
Yes, you can use 最近 for recently
Recently I´ve been talking in japanese with a friend on skype and so.
The most natural way to say this is
最近、友達とSkypeで日本語で話したりしています。
Note 1) 最近 or 最近は : We use “は” only when you want to show a contrast.
For example
I used to talk to my friend on the phone but recently I have been talking to him/her on Skype and so.
以前は友達と電話で話していましたが最近はSkypeで話したりしています。(Comparing “before” and “recently”)
Note 2) have been = If the action is still going on, ~たりしています・〜たりしている is better.
Thank you so much! have been studying japanese for 4 years and this is the best site by far! Please keep going on with it :)
Greeting from Argentina.
@Emmanuel
Thank you for the nice message from Argentina!
Hope you come visit here often! :)
I’ve heard that if you borrow an object and it breaks, even if you did not break it (e.g. it was old and stopped working by itself) it is polite to say “kowashite shimaimasita” and apologize. For example, you borrow a heater from your landlord and it stops working. Any thoughts on this? When would it be appropriate, when would it not be appropriate? We don’t want the Japanese person to misunderstand and think that we really broke the thing.
@Steve
OK, 壊してしまいました（= Kowashite shimaimashita) is when you actually broke something. If you are using some device or machines and it stopped working by itself, you say
使っていたら動かなくなりました。(= Tsukatte itara ugokanaku narimashita.)
If you haven’t even touched it and it broke by itself.
何もやっていないのに、動かなくなりました。 ( = Nanimo yatte inainoni ugokanaku narimashita.)
thank you very much for your great site.
i am trying to find out the best way to express “please do not bend” on something i am going to mail to Japan but my many reference books don’t list this expression. could you let me know or include this in your post office page?
thank you very much.
@Carleton Hoffman
Hello Carleton!
”please do not bend” in Japanese is 折り曲げないで下さい。(= Orimagenai de kudasai.) when you tell people not to fold.
But we write 「折曲厳禁」(=orimage genkin), Do not fold, in red ink on the envelope like this.
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. i would like to ask
why do people add “k” in i-adjectives? (though i rarely see this)
kanashii – kanashiki
sabishii – sabishiki
thank you so much dear maggie sensei in advance.
@obakasan000
*悲しい歌 = a sad song = kanashii uta
*悲しき歌=a sad song kanashiki uta
The adjective with き(=ki) is a literal form. You often see it in the lyrics, poem or some classic expressions.
We use ~い （= i) more in conversation.
Also you say
Ex. 私は悲しい(です)。= Watashi wa kanashii desu. = I am dad
but you can’t say
Ex. 私は悲しき(です)。 = Watashi wa kanashiki desu.
It is only used before a noun.
thank you so much dear maggie sensei n_n.
Sensei, you said it is only used before nouns, but I have heard people saying ありがたき to thank someone in historical anime, wich I believe is a variation of ありがたい. iF I am wrong, which process was used to form the word ありがたき?
ありがたき is a classic form of ありがたい and it is used as an adjective. ありがたき幸せ/ ありがたきもの
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. i tried to find an answer to my question in “sorede vs dakara” thread but i think the “kara” that i am being problematic about is not related to it.
kara = “because” and needs “da” before “kara” for na-adjectives and for nouns, to avoid the meaning of “from”.
but i saw an example in dictionary for “kara”
jugyou ga hachiji sanjuppun kara hajimaru kara = the class doesn’t start until 8:30
(the class starts from 8:30)
the second kara was not translated as “because” and it seems that the 2nd “kara” has no equivalent.
i often see/hear this “kara/dakara” ending sentences in anime and it is not being translated as “because”. i had seen a sentence like this in manga too and i checked the translated version to double check and there was no “because” in that specific sentence.
i would like to ask what is the purpose of the “kara/dakara” in this type of sentence if it wasnt meant to give the meaning of “because”?
or the translators just decided to omit the word “because” and it was really there to begin with, in the first place?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei
@obakasan000
授業が８時から始まるから。
= Jugyou ga hachiji kara
The last kara means “because”. It is unfinished sentence.
授業が８時から始まるから行かなくてはいけません。
= Jugyou ga hachiji kara hajimaru kara ikanakutewa ikemasn.
= I have to go because the class starts at 8:00.
But I know what you mean.
We leave the sentence with から(kara)・だから(=dakara) in conversation when you stress out what you want to say or when you make your point.
もうやったから！
= Mou yatta kara!
= I said I did it already!
私が先生に言うから。
= Watashi ga sennsei ni iu kara!
= I will tell about it to the teacher so..
thank you so much dear maggie sensei n_n.
Maggie sensei! Konnichiwa! I’m sorry I’m still a beginner so I can’t really write in japanese. I only remember some hiragana characters for now T_T It’s really hard and confusing! If I want to start learning from your site, from where I should start? Should I memorize all the hiragana and katakana first before learning anything else? Can’t I skip hiragana and katakana first because it’s tougher to remember? Btw, I have a japanese friend and he can’t speak english that’s why my passion to learn japanese is increasing now ^^ I really want to understand and be able to speak better with him in Japanese. I wanted to say “do you only accept girl in your team, xx-kun” so I said to him “xx-kunのチームで女の子だけを受け入れるか”. I wonder if my sentence is correct? To me it sounds so off lol. I can’t read most of katakana and kanji yet so I really rely on Google Translate whenever I want to speak with him. I hope you can help me which lesson from your site I should learn first (as there are too many lessons and idk which one to continue read after “super basic”, “beginners” lesson and so on. Imo it’s easier for us truly beginners to read your lessons if you label/categorize your lesson like “lesson 1”, “lesson 2” until the end so we can know which lesson we should start first then which lesson followed after the first lesson ^^ just my opinion. Thank you so much for your awesome website!!
@xx-san
Hello xx-san!
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site. Start learning from hiragana and katakana. There are charts on this site. Some people don’t learn hiragana/katakana first and just read romaji. But eventually you will need them. Also you have to be a friend with kanji. :)
You can study other lessons at the same time.
Don’t be stressed out. Try to learn it with fun.
And thank you for your feedback. It would be nice
I know my lessons are very random and there are not many lessons for people who have just started learning Japanese.
Since all people have different level and interest, I try to include as much information as possible targeting beginners to advanced level.
People come here checking index and learn whatever they are interested in.
If you want to learn basic Japanese first, I would highly recommend to get a proper Japanese textbook first and study basic.
I’d love to help you if you have any questions here.
Now “do you only accept girl in your team, xx-kun” is xx-kunのチームは女の子だけ受け入れるの？ (= xx-kun no team wa onnanoko dake ukeireru no?)
うわああ。。。先生はスペイン語でも話せるのですか？すごいい！ね、先生、「でも」という言葉の使い方を教えて頂けませんか？例えば「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」「でも」の意味合いは’even(a child could do it)’や’even (with this) is also fine’というのはわかるけど、たった今の例はどういう意味なのかしら？
@Blossom
こんばんは、Blossom! いい質問ですねえ。この「でも」は、ちょっと言葉を曖昧（あいまい）にしてくれるのでやわらかく聞こえますよ。
OK, let’s compare the following two sentences.
1)「写真を撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」
2) 「写真でも撮ってきたら信じてあげる。」
1) I will believe you if you take the picture.
2) I will believe you if you take the picture or something.
This でも has a function to show some example and make the quote sound softer.
Many people avoid straight expressions in Japan. By using でも, it adds the nuance of “~ or something” / “something like” /”for example” /”like” / “..and etc.”
Ex. お茶はいかがですか？ = Would like a cup of tea?
Ex. お茶でもいかがですか？ = Would like a cup of tea or something? (It implies there are other options. Or it sounds softer.)
Ex. 日本語を勉強してみる？= Do you want to study Japanese?
Ex. 日本語でも勉強してみる？ = Do you want to study Japanese or something?
Ex. サッカーを観ようかな。 = I guess I will watch a soccer game.
Ex. サッカーでも観ようかな。= I guess I will watch a soccer game or something.
始めまして、先生！
素敵なマギー先生のサイトに新人です。インヴェダー・リンと言って、鬼星から来ました。
さて、この惑星を攻め込むつもりですが、本当にすみません。でも、心配しないでください！その前に日本語が上手になりたいと思います。
マギー先生のレッスンは大変役に立つし楽しいし分かり易いから、ぜひフォローし続けます。
@Invader Lin
はじめまして！遠い星からこのサイトにようこそ！これからもよろしくね！
Ooh, interesting!
Sensei, can you tell me how to say “I have fallen in love with someone else” in Japanese? Both in a formal and informal way?
@Sharon
Hi Sharon!
“I have fallen in love with someone else”
The literal translation is 他の人を好きになりました。but I will teach you more natural Japanese here.
（casual) 他に好きな人ができちゃったの。(female) / 他に好きな人ができちゃったんだ。
（formal) 他に好きな人ができました。
Wow, sounds complex. So it’s not just 他に好きして or something like that? :O
Oh, sensei, I remember reading a blog post somewhere saying that the word for “love” doesn’t exist in ancient times in Japan? Is that true? I thought 愛 is an old word because it’s the same as Chinese. Or maybe it’s not used in ancient Japanese era?
Thank you.
As usual another interesting and useful lesson ! Thank you so much! I’m your biggest fan
I have 2 doubts. Can you help me please?
1.’Shi’ is similar in some cases as ‘~tari’?
2. Why sometimes do you write in Spanish? Do you also speak Spanish?
Thank you so much
Hello Edu!
Thank you for your nice message!
1) たり and し：In some cases* the translation might be the same but most of the time し and たり are not replaceable.
As I explained in my たり lesson, we use たり(=tari) when we give examples or express repeated actions/conditions or for the same types of activities.
Ex. 日本語を読んだり書いたりするのは難しい。
= Nihongo wo yondari kaitari suru nowa muzukashii.
= It is difficult to write or to read Japanese.
Ex. 立ったり座ったりする
= Tattari suwattari suru.
= alternate between standing and sitting
→You can’t replace たり with し
Ex. 食べたし飲んだしもう帰ろう。
= Tabetashi nondashi mou kaerou.
= I ate and drank (enough) so I guess I will go home now.
→You can’t replace し with たら
I will add it if I think of some confusing cases.
2) Really? I don’t think I have used Spanish here…but yes, occasionally I tweeted in Spanish or writes comment on Facebook.
And yes, I do speak Spanish. :)
Hey Maggie sensei, sorry I can’t type in Japanese right now, thank you very much for the lesson, I really enjoyed it! Is there maybe some lesson about “node”? I keep running into it and it just isn’t sticking.
@John
Hello John!
I don’t have a specific lesson just on ので but I explained in this lesson.
理由(=riyuu)
Oh! That really helps a lot!! Thank you for including the casual omitting of the reasoning in that lesson for “node”! Thank you so much and enjoy the rest of your day! :D
＠John
You’re welcome, John.
Have a nice day,too! :)
Thank you very much for this lesson Maggie!
Now I learned, how to use the colloquial し, yeeey!
There’s one thing that I would like to stress.
から／ので shows that there is a strong cause-effect relation between the first and the second part of the sentence (= because).
し shows a very weak cause-effect relation (= so).
There’s also a ～まいし construction which means “It’s not like”, “it isn’t as if”. It implies disparaging / scanting.
EX 君一人が悪いわけではあるまいし、そんなに落ち込むことはないよ。 You’re not the only one at fault, so there’s no need to feel depressed that much!
＠天人
Hello, 天人さん！Ah good one! ~ まいし
Ex. そんなことあるまいし…
Ex. 子供じゃあるまいし…etc.
Nice follow as always. :)
No~ the comment I wrote just now didn’t get postedT^T is this bug?
Kiryuu is a 3 tailed fox．He’s a thief and a liar because of his past(Abandonned by his father). 三人の家族で住んでる、お母さんと大好きな弟のKaname。
キリュウは私の乙女ゲームのキャラクターでも名前つけるの下手なんだから。そしてカタカナかどうかわからなくて。
星キリュウでいい？
http://theotomeproject.deviantart.com/art/Kiryuu-design-464889067
http://sta.sh/019oqjh0jc4p
それはキリュウ。やさしいからいい人に思われる、でも本当はうそつき。
＠メロ
本当は嘘つきなの？？？ (^-^)
そうやT^Tでも誰だってええ人になれるやで。それ関西弁ですね、正しいかな。
＠メロ
関西弁上手！そっか〜キリュウもいい人になって行くのね。よかった！
(なれるやで →〜なれるで/ なれるんやで)
そうですね〜
直してくれてありがとう(´∀｀)
＠メロ
星キリュウ…いいんじゃない？ The Little Prince = 星の王子様みたいなイメージにも合っていると思いますよ
ならそれにしよう。星の王子様ってだれですか？
@メロ
「星の王子様 The Little Prince」はフランスの有名なお話ですよ。
この絵を見て！
そうですか。楽しそう(o^^o)
あ、嵐か。そうです。私は松本潤だけ、嵐には。でもやっぱかわいいね＾＾アイドル大体みんなかわいいけどさあ、特にジャニーズの。
リンクありがとう＾＾
マギー先生、レッスンについてない話だけどキリュウって言う名前となんの苗字が似合うかな。それはなんでもいいかな。変なこと聞いてごめんなさい(^◇^;)
＠メロ
キリュウは片仮名？ う〜ん、どんな名字がいいかはわからないけれど自分の好きな漢字からつけたらどうかな。イメージでは短い名字の方が合うかも。
Ex. 星キリュウ= Hoshi Kiryuu
そうですね。一番かっこいいよ(o^∀^o)マギー先生もゆかり先生も有名人の誰が好き？
えっと．．．し方は変かな。
聞かれたらね．．．こんな文法は難しよね。Sareu/saseru/reru/rareruとか余り使えない(T^T)そんなレッスンある？
＠メロ
好きな有名人？嵐、みんなかわいい〜♪
このレッスンで「させる／させられる」を一度勉強してみてね。
Oh I see~ Thanks for explaining.
Somehow, using shi at the end of a sentence makes me me think that the person is annoyed or something.
@メロ
When you are giving a reason and leave the sentence with し, the speaker is just trying to avoid the straight expression so the person is not annoyed.
The colloquial way of finishing the sentence with し is often used jokingly when they want to make their point or talk back to you.
But it all depends on their intonation. :)
@Maggie
分かりましたかも(^-^)
初恋はとても素敵なものと思うわ。けど私恋のことならへんですよ。なんてゆーか、飽きっぽいかな。そして誰がホントに好きか分からなくてね。だから初恋のこと知らない。でも、男の誰が一番好きって聞いたら、ＫＡＴ−ＴＵＮの亀梨和也ですね(#^.^#)
(Please correct me whenever I’m wrong)
@メロ
メロは亀梨君が好きなのね〜かっこいいよね！❤
(OK,
私恋のことならへんですよ。→Hmmm どうやって言いたいのかなあ。 You wanted to say “My love is strange”? 私の恋は変ですよ。or The way I love people is different? 私の恋し方は変ですよ。
男の誰が一番好きって聞いたら→ 誰が一番好きな男性かって聞かれたら）
さっすがマギー先生のレッスンは面白いし、分かり易しい。
＠Dikas Wibiyanto
ありがとう！！（パーフェクトな「し」の使い方でした！！）
ありがとうございます〜！
Hi maggie sensei, you were such a very good teacher. to be honest with you, whenever i have something i cannot understand, i usually look at your website and read. i learned a lot, and thank you very much. You were such an inspiration to me to strive and study harder especially that December is near. JLPT again. Im planning to take n2 this time. Good luck to me. Thank you so much Maggie sensei.
@zai
Hello zai,
Thank you so much for your nice comment. I’m very happy to hear you found my site useful.
Oh great! You are going to take N2 in December.
Good luck! 絶対合格！！！！
勉強になりました(o^^o)♪
ところで、
「 初恋の甘酸っぱい経験は誰にでもあるものだ」
これ初恋の苦いはどうちがいですか？ドラマとかで甘ずっぱいってよく聞くけどね、じまくで「Bittersweet」って書いているだから。
＠メロ
こんにちは、メロ！
面白い質問ですね。
初恋の経験にもよりますよ。
苦い経験 implies painful experience. Nothing sweet.
ほろ苦い経験 bittersweet. Not as hard as 苦い経験 but your hurts must have hurt in certain degree.
甘酸っぱい経験 sweet-sour implies some “sweet” experiences
メロの初恋はどれだった？ :)
thank you so much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. .n_n. thank so much for helping me realized that focusing too much on songs is not a practical way to learn the grammar.
こんにちは、マギー先生！
ちょっと質問があるんですが、
「彼は格好よくない？」と「彼は「格好いいじゃない？」は同じですか？ (Isn’t he cool?!)
「〜じゃない」と代わりに否定形容詞をよく使う友達がいて、「〜じゃない」と同じヌアンスかなと思って。例えば：
このケーキ美味しくない？ (Isn’t this cake tasty?!)
Also, when using んじゃない for giving orders, is it only men that can use it? I was just wondering since I was playing this game and a female character kept using this form to give orders to her sidekicks. Like 「じろじろ見るんじゃないよ！」and「さぼるんじゃないよ」など。
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava! 彼、格好よくない？ and 彼、格好いいじゃない mean the same. He is cool, isn’t he?
But to be precise, here is the nuance difference.
彼、格好よくない？ （asking for agreement.)
彼、格好いいじゃない。(expressing your opinion.)
*******
このケーキ美味しくない？= I think this cake is delicious. Don’t you agree? / Don’t you think this cake is delicious? = It’s delicious!
Yes, we use this pattern a lot in conversation.
******
「じろじろ見るんじゃないよ！」and「さぼるんじゃないよ」
Good ones! 〜じゃないよ is a rough male speech.
But you do hear mothers say じろじろ見るんじゃありません（よ）。／さぼるんじゃありません（よ）。
ありがとうございました！
男性と女性の話し方の違いに気をつけないと（＾＾）
good evening dear maggie sensei and everyone. these questions may look like i am not reading the lesson carefully but i just want to clarify something about the examples above.
surunjanai – not doing
shitanjanai – did not do
kyou wa ame ga furun janai ka to omotta – i thought it might rain
is “ka” the one who made it “might rain” and if there wasn’t “ka” like “surunjanai”, it would be “rain will not fall”?
—————————
dear maggie sensei janain janai
would this be mean “it,s dear maggie sensei”
i saw an example and it did not end with question mark also, that is why i think it is not inlined with the (nai + njanai) section
dear maggie sensei janai! – its dear maggie sensei
dear maggie sensei nan janai – it is not dear maggie sensei.
dear maggie sensei janainjanai – “its dear maggie sensei”?
oh sorry dear maggie sensei, what i am asking is
maggie sensei janain janai
“its -not- dear maggie sensei”
Hello again and again.
～んじゃない has two meanings:
1. ～てはいけない
2. たぶん…だろう
Here we have the 2nd meaning:
Aじゃない（か） = It’s A! / It must be A! （強い肯定の語気）
Aなんじゃないか = It might be A / It could be A
Aじゃないんじゃないか = This isn’t A, right? / This isn’t A, is it? (lit. isn’t that this isn’t A? = this isn’t A, is it?)
～では／じゃかと思った＝ I thought it could / might~
こんなことになるんじゃないかと思ったんだ。 = I thought (one day) this could / might happen / This is what I was afraid of.
~かと思った = I though~ . (part. か implies less confidence)
恥ずかしさで死ぬかと思ったんだ。 = I thought he/she was going to die of embarrassment.
Little error:
～では／じゃかと思った＝ I thought it could / might~ ==> ～では／じゃないかと思った＝ I thought it could / might~
wow thank you so much for explaining them to me one by one, .n_n. i am really grateful to you 天人さん…
good evening dear maggie sensei and everyone. question about specific sentences again.
a. ame ga furu wa owaranai
b. junbi shita wa ii
just to confirm dear maggie sensei, (koto/no) has been omitted before “wa” particle right?
Hello obakasan000,
I have no idea where did you get these kind of sentences. The sentences are – of course – incorrect.
If you really want to learn Japanese, please use appropriate books or Internet websites like maggiesensei.com.
oh, thank you so much for clearing it up to me 天人さん. to be honest i got,
ame ga furu wa owaranai – in aah koi too, the first line the chorus
http://www.kiwi-musume.com/lyrics/cute/shocking5/ahkoi.html
while
junbi shita wa ii – in “wagastumasan ore no yome”, sorry i forgot the exact page….T_T
oh sorry, this is the first site where i saw the lyrics first.
http://www.projecthello.com/c-ute/aa.html
@obakasan000 & @天人
You know 天人 is really nice to help you out.
Obakasan000 is learning Japanese through lyrics. That can be very confusing because a lot of sentences in lyrics are not complete and you have to guess who is talking about what…and it is hard to translate just by one line.
Anyway,
The first lyrics that you wrote is from this part, right?
雨が降るわ 終わらない
(心が土砂降りの雨
恋が散るわ 密やかに
誰にも教えない 恋
嗚呼)
This わ is a female speech suffix.
雨が降る(It rains/it is raining) →female speech 雨が降るわ
雨が降るわ 終わらない are two different sentences.
It is raining. I won’t stop raining.
***
So guessing from 1), 2) could also means 準備したわ いい? = I am ready, OK? or I prepared, OK?
But since it lacks of information, I could be wrong.
How’s that, obakasan000?
good evening dear maggie sensei and everyone. question about specific sentence.
kirei datte kotoba mune ni tsukisasatta
is this the shortcut for “kirei da to iu kotoba”?
in case that is correct,
does the “anata wa” has been omitted and – kirei datte kotoba will be = words like “you are beautiful”
or i cannot assume that, and the translation would be – kirei datte kotoba = words which are beautiful
and i need to see 「kirei da」tte kotoba / “kirei da” tte kotoba, in order to get (words like “you are beautiful”)
oh i am terribly sorry for bringing it up for the third time, (i guess the conflict is not yet resolved) T_T.
while i was posting this question i’ve realized, “to negai” was used by the singer and i am wondering my she did not use “to iu negai”?
so sorry dear maggie sensei please don,t get irritated by me T_T.
Hello again,
kirei datte kotoba mune ni tsukisasatta ==> 「綺麗だ」って言葉胸に突き刺さった。＝His “you are beautiful” just stuck in my mind / heart.
I see you like Alas Love – Suzuki Airi. I like it, too.
thank you so much 天人さん, .n_n. wow that’s good to know… to be honest, i really like c-ute especially 矢島舞美様. if it is okay, i would like to ask, do you live in japan?
Unfortunately I don’t live in Japan, I live in Poland – it’s a strange country in Central Europe.
But maybe one day my dream will come true and I will live in Japan.
Who knows, who knows. Life is full of surprises!
oh, i thought you were an american because your english is great…(you must have noticed that my english is bad hehe)…
i hope that it will come true.. n_n.. 天人さん.
こんにちは、マギー先生！
ちょっと質問があるんですが、本で「言わんばかり」という表現が出てきて、もし良ければ、意味と使い方説明していただきませんか？
@Lava
おはよう、Lava!
言わんばかり means “as if to say” “as much as to say””as though” (Someone(something) is not actually saying so but you can tell they want to say/do certain things by their behavior/condition )
It is often used with まるで(=marude = as if)
Basic pattern :
（まるで）〜〜〜と言わんばかりのnounで or 言わんばかりに+ main verb
= Someone does/did something (main verb) as if to say ~~~~~~
Ex.母はまるで私のやっていることは全て知っていると言わんばかりの顔で私を見た。
= My mother looked at me as if she knew everything.
Ex. マギー先生は「大丈夫だよ」と言わんばかりにうなずいた。
= Maggie Sensei nodded as if to say “Everything is all right”.
Ex.そのダイヤは「私を買って下さい。」と言わんばかりに輝いていた。
= That diamond was shining as if to say “Buy me!”
Maggie-sensei, thank you for all the help you give!
Could you please explain this use of なきゃ?
It’s from Over the Distance by Hitomi Yaida. I’m trying to translate it, but there are some parts that confuse me.
空で唄えない小鳥の声みたい
こんなに苦しい だけどあなたじゃなきゃ
I get it up to だけど. But the use of なきゃ here is confusing me.
Also a nakya here:
上手く泳げないあの時の未来
どうしても遠い だけどあなたじゃなきゃ意味ない
(In fact, that entire verse confuses me, especially the first bit. Sorry to ask so much, but can you explain how these sentences work?)
どうもありがとう先生!
@Silver
Hello Silver,
あなたじゃなきゃ a casual contraction of あなたでなくては and it omitted いけない(の）
and it means “It has to be you”
So “(the person I love) has to be you even if it hurts me this much (the first line) / thought it is very far (the second line)
手伝い(?)ありがとう！
Thank you! I have been wondering about that line for a long time. Now it makes sense!
I am still confused about the second verse though
上手く泳げない = Cannot swim well
あの時の未来 = That time in the future (?)
どうしても遠い だけど = even though it is very far
あなたじゃなきゃ意味ない = without you it means nothing
Have I got that right? The reason it is confusing me is the use of 泳ぐ. Is this a metaphorical phrase here, because literally it doesn’t make sense. How would you put it all together?
[Sorry to ask so much. It is just that recently I’ve had a few hits from Japanese people looking up my English translation, and I don’t want them to be learning it wrong because my translation skills are so bad :'( I’ve put the link to it as my URL if anyone wants to check over it]
[マギー先生は、とてもカワイイので、『マギーちゃん』 と言いたいですね！]
＠Silver
(→手伝ってくれてありがとう）
I think you are doing great.
It is very hard to translate lyrics.
First I will help you line by line
上手く泳げない = Cannot swim well → Right.
あの時の未来 = That time in the future (?) →Your translation means “未来のあの時 “That time in the future” means “the future at that time”
Now if you put these two lines together.
↓
上手く泳げない あの時の未来
You are right. It doesn’t make sense because it is a poetic expression but it means
I couldn’t swim well in “my future” then.
どうしても遠い だけど = even though it is very far →Fine. (It’s far but…)
あなたじゃなきゃ意味ない = without you it means nothing →Fine but that means “あなたがいないと（あなたがいなきゃ）意味がない” the literal meaning is “It has to be you.”
Again when you put these two lines together,
→You are too far from me but it has to be you.
How’s that?
手伝ってくれてありがとう!! 分かりました！
That’s a really big help, thank you so much! I never would have been able to understand it without your explanation. So I will copy this out and read over it a few more times so I properly understand it. Thank you, Maggie-sensei and Yukari-sama!! Finally I know what Hitomi-san is singing about :D
@Silver
どういたしまして！あとはSilverのセンスで訳してみてね。がんばって！:)
great lesson, hontou ni arigatou gozaimasu maggie-sensei.
kono saito de tada de nihongo o oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimasu(=^ㅅ^=)
@Belajar Bahasa Jepang
Dou itashimashite! Mata itsudemo kite kudasaine. :)
Thanks for teaching. Also please analyze this Japanese phrase ‘Okaerinasai’ for ‘Welcome back’.
Arigato ! ^J^
@Bobby
Hello Bobby
Analyze “okaerinasai”?
お帰りなさい = okaerinasai = Welcome back home/or where you belong to (company, city, country, etc.)
It may sound a command form.
It is said that originally they used to say
「よくお帰りなさいました」
=yoku okaerinasai mashita.
= I am happy that you came back safely
and shortened the phrase
→お帰りなさい = okaerinasai
Or just say
お帰り= おかえり= okaeri
And the person who just came back home says
ただいま= tadaima
It is also a short way to say
ただいま帰りました。
= Tadaima kaerimashita
= I just got home / I’m back now.
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. i have a question about “what a” part of the lesson.
ex:
Nante utsukushii inu nan deshou.
= What a beautiful dog!
i saw a song entitled as
nanka shiawase and it has been translated as “what happiness…”
does that mean “nanka” can also substitutes “nante” in this kind of situation?
nanka utsukushii inu nan deshou.
= What a beautiful dog!
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
@obakasan000
Good morning!
なんて and なんか are different.
Therefore we don’t say,
nanka utsukushii inu nan deshou.
You have to say なんて美しい犬なんでしょう。(=nante utsukushii inu nanndeshou.)
なんか（a casual way to say 何か=nanika) means “somehow” “you can’t explain why but somehow…” “for some reason” “like”or we sometimes use it to emphasizing the word.
So the translation of the song is
なんかしあわせ means (I can’t explain why (I don’t know why)) but I am somehow happy
wow thank you so much dear maggie sensei. n_n you are the best
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. another question again.
zoresore ni egaku omoi
the feelings each and everyone of us sketch
but if that is the message, i think it needs to be “egakareru” to produce “feelings that are being sketched by us”
which is also close to “the feelings each and everyone of us sketch”.
i’ve read that passive form is also the honorific form of the verb. does that mean, “egaku” is considered passive form here because of “ni”? i always see “ni” to be translated as “by” whenever there is passive verb.
or this is another grammatical structure and it would produce phrases like:
the book you read
(anata ni yomu hon)?
the voice he hears
(kare ni kiku koe)?
the friend she wants to marry
(kanojo ni kekkon shitai tomodachi)
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
@obakasan000
Hello, before I answer your question, please give me the whole sentence. If it is the only one, give me the line before/after the sentence.
それぞれに描く想い
That will help me to answer better.
good day dear maggie sensei, oh sorry about that. this is the lyrics.
sorezore ni egaku omoi de mirai o tsumuide yukeba
kiseki ni hohoemu itsuka o tsukameru no
If we go spin the future with thoughts that each and everyone of us sketch
Then can we grasp onto the “someday” that smiles in miracles?
this is the link incase.
http://gendou.com/amusic/lyrics.php?id=5955
thank you so mich in advance dear maggie sensei. n_n
…それぞれに描く思い => A desire that each of… draws / A desire for each to draw / All have their desire to draw.
This sentence is out of context. As Maggie said, the rest of this sentence is necessarily to fully understand the whole sentence.
それぞれに is a fixed expression that means: for each / each (それぞれ means severally; respectively ==> 複数の物・人の、ひとつひとつ・ひとりひとり)
anata ni yomu hon => あなたが読む本 = the book you read
kare ni kiku koe => 彼が聞こえる声 = the voice he hears
kanojo ni kekkon shitai tomodachi => 彼女が結婚したがる友達／彼女が結婚したいと思っている友達。 = the friend she wants to marry
ご参考に。
thank you so much for your explanation 天人さん. oh sorry about that, i will remember what you said n_n.
goog morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. sorry to bring up this topic for the second time. (so sorry, slow learner):
PUROGURESSHIBU to KONSABATIBU na jibun
KIMI ni ari no mama o suki de ite hoshii to
(which has been rephrased by dear maggi sensei in to “Kimini ari no mama wo suki ni natte hoshii” )
negai wa (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
sekirara (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
myself who’s progressive and conservative
wanting you to love me the way I am…
the wish is (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
frank (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
i’ve read that using the root of the verb is also serves as “te-form” of the verb and in this case “negatte” is the the “te-form” of “negau” and root of “negau” is “negai”. i saw examples like (to+verb te-form+wa) and does that mean the singer just preferred to use “negai wa” instead of “negatte wa”? and if i will combine the words, my guess is it would be like:
myself who’s progressive and conservative, hoping that you would love me just the way i am is a frank thing (to do).
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei. (sorry for having so many questions, please take your time).
@obakasan000
You can combine all that sentences like you did when you translate them.
It is just the style of the lyrics.
Usually
“something” to negau
“something” to negatte + do something
But this person used “negai” which is a noun.
The wish (that I want you to love me the way I am) is frank.
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. n_n at last, conflict resolved…
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. n_n. wow that was fast, you are really thoughtful as always.
i can read hiragana but slowly. i prefer to type them as romaji because, our tablet and the computer rental shops around our neighborhood don’t have the file needed to be installed in order to type hiragana, katakana’ kanji. but i copy and paste kanji and hiragana words from dictionary, (specially when the kanji word that i am referring to is something i am not familiar with)
———————-
oh just wondering because, when i started learning japanese, whenever i see katakana, i first think that, that katakana word is referring to a english word but as i read manga, i found out that even kanji and hiragana are being typed as katakana. is there any significant reason for doing
that or the author only wants that, that way?
————————–
oh question again,
そんあことゆ一の?! – sonna koto yuu no.
i tried looking at to “to iu koto” thread but i guess “koto iu” is not related to it.
whenever i try to figure it out, it becomes (that kind of event, say?!) and it doesnt make any sense. T_T.
————————————-
thank you so much again dear maggie sensei. i really appreciate your life changing teachings and i will treasure them. n_n take care and have a nice day.
そんなことゆーの＝そんなこというの？
EX) どうしてそんなことゆーの？ ＝ Why do you say that?
In 関西 area ゆー is used very often.
おやおや、マギー、 obakasanからの山ほどの質問にちょっと圧倒されたんじゃないですか？
good morning 天人さん. wow you’re an expert. n_n. thank you so much for explaining it to me.
@obakasan000 and 天人
Yes, you are lucky to have 天人 here. :)
dear maggie sensei, another questions again,
いつかは見てなさい – watch me someday/some time, based on what i read nasai can only used with root verb and not with te-form, but how about this example? can nasai can also be used with te-form or it just so happened because it is lyrics of a song?
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kono ai ga honmono to wakareba ii no – i want to know if this love is real
kono ai ga honmono to wakaru you ni kisu shite – kiss me so that i know this love is real.
i am wondering if the first line has no been included, will “kono ai ga honmono to wakaru you ni kisu shite” be “kiss me so that you’ll know this love is real.?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei n_n
@obakasan000
That should be
いつかみていなさい= (skipping い in conversational Japanese.)
It means “You will see what is going to happen. ”
*****
The first line means “I just want to know if this love is real.” “I would be just happy if I know this love is true.”
“kono ai ga honmono to wakaru you ni kisu shite” is “kiss me to show that this love is real.”
***
OK, that’s enough for today. I can help you when I am available but I have to go now. Sorry!!
part 2
———————-
はたして告った(toko)でOKは出るのだろうか – “can it really turn out well if i confess”?. the verb is not in “tara” form but there is “hatashite”, is these correct? the (toko) part is written in katakana and i wasnt able to see the meaning using dictionary. T_T
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なんてったって-no matter what
相手は校内の一- partner, within the school, 1
モテモテ女子- popular girl
我が妻亜衣- my wife ai
please help dear maggie sensei, i cant unite them together
oh this is the second sentence (incase this is just a clause)
そうそうOKは出ないだろう.
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hontou no jinsei – real life
hitomi no ruby – ruby eyes. but i think ruby no hitomi will also produce
ruby eyes (please correct me if i am wrong).
if that so, then (jinsei no hontou) will also produce real life?
i have seen words like “yoru no nagai” and it has been translated as long nights and “namida no jibun” as own tears. i also saw “himitsu no akko chan. (at first i thought it is “secret akko chan”) but it is “secret of akko chan”
——————————————————
dear maggie sensei, i would like to ask if there is any dictionary exclusive for katakata words only, and if so, what name do you recommend?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and so sorry for unlimited questions.
@obakasan000
1) 果たして〜とこ（ろ）で〜だろうか？ = Even if ~, I wonder ~ / it is questionable / I doubt
Even if he confesses his love, I doubt that she would say OK
2) It is just explaining how pouplar Ai is in her school. Giving that reason, even if he confesses his love, Ai wouldn’t say yes that easily.
3) I think they are two different sentences.(1) hontou no..2) hitomi no ruby)
Hirobi mo ruby = eyes like ruby
4) I am sorry but I don’t know if there is any dictionary just for katakana. But why do you need one?
****
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. these are questions i have collected for the past few days. these questions are supposed to be posted in your room but for some reasons i can’t access the room, i am sorry to post these in the wrong thread.
—————————————–
PUROGURESSHIBU to KONSABATIBU na jibun
KIMI ni ari no mama o suki de ite hoshii to
negai wa (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
sekirara (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
myself who’s progressive and conservative
wanting you to love me the way I am…
the wish is (DISCO LADY DISCO LADY)
frank (DEEP EMOTION TRUE EMOTION)
i cant really figure out lit translation for the second line.
all i can come up with is the “i want you to exist with loving” but i can’t translate the “kimi ni ari no mama”, whenever i try i always end up with “to you/by you/from you, as whole”. i dont know why it became “the way i am “.
oh i always see “to” for quoting with (omou, iu, etc). i really dont know if “to” qouting can be used with out any verb and it will be translated as (“”) and the preeciding words are another sets of senteces/thoughts. i dont think that “to” conditional is applicable because of the words after “to” is noun with adjective without verb.
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does “desu yo” with (?) give the same thought as (desu yo ne)?
————————————————————-
nande oikaketeirunja = a girl is the one who said this in manga and i am wondering if (ja which is the combination of de, wa) has been used instead of (nda/ndesu) to sound girly? or this is a unfinished sentence?
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sou kantan ni akiramenai- i wont give up that easily (example i saw in a random site).
kuyashii omoi wa sou bijin ni nattekureru – that’s right, these feeling of frustrations will help me to become beautiful. (saw in translation of song). i tried to use google translator but “sou kantan ni” and “sonna kantan ni” both produced “that easily”. i always see “sou” being translated as “that,s right” in songs. is it just safe to think “sou” as “that,s right” and use “sonna (x) ni” for words like (that easily, that beautiful and etc)?
———————————————–
toka – things like. but how about when it is being used as qouting would it be corrected:
kore o taberu to omou – i am thinking of eating this.
Kore o taberu toka omou – i am thinking of things like eating this.
is that correct?
———————————————-
感動の扉を二人の手で – the door of happiness lies on our hands. this is the fiest time i ever seen “wo” with out a verb and i wonder if (depends/lies) is the cloest translation for this?
@obakasan000
Hello
1) the 2nd line : 君にありのままを好きになってほしい= Kimini ari no mama wo suki ni natte hoshii = I want you to like the way I am.
ありのまま=arino mama = means “the way it is/the way someone is”
And that と continues to the third line 願い=negai
~と願う= ~ to negau = hoping that (you would like me the way I am)
2) ですよ(=desuyo) and ですよね(=desuyone) are different. (BTW You type hiragana in romaji but can you read hiragana?)
You use ですよね(=desuyone) when you try to confirm something with the listener. It is like a tag question. “Isn’t it?/ Right?)
3) なんで追いかけているんじゃ(=Nande oikakete irunja) is for old guy’s speech. Maybe she was saying that jokingly.
4) kuyashii omoi wa sou bijin ni nattekureru –strange… It should be “kuyashi omoi ga utsukushiku sasete kureru.” is better.
5) そう+ adjective = emphasizing (That much/ that + adjective)
そうです／だ = so
6) That とか is a conversational way of softening the speech.
と思う=to omou →とか思う
7) It is because the verb is omitted in the sentence.
感動の扉を二人の手で開ける／開く
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. i really do believe in everything you say from the bottom of my heart .n_n.
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. it really cleared up my confusion. japanese songs are really tricky but that is also the reason why they are really interesting.
thank you so much dear maggie sensei n_n.
Hi there!
I’m wondering about the sentence: “He made me look awsome”
彼は私をすごい見させた。
or
私は彼にすごい見させられた。
@jacob
Hi jacob,
How about
彼は私をかっこよく見せてくれた。
Dear Maggie
I will always loving you..
Therefore you has gone :)
Rest In Peace..
大好きマッギエ先生。
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone and thank you so much for this topic. i’ve been trying to search the exact meaning of 萌え in manga. i often see it by a character 萌え, 萌え while the character smiles. it says that it has related to “to have a crush” or “to have desire for a certain person (without malice)”. but then if 萌え is the only word said, i wonder what would be the literal translation.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
@obakasan000
The literal meaning of 萌える is “to sprout”
萌え is doesn’t have an equivalent word in English. Believe me. Many people have attempted to translate on net.
It is so called “otaku” word when you see something/someone (usually anime character) that turn you on.
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. i’ve got a feeling that a thread for this type of question has been already made long time ago but for some reason, i couldn’t find it using the search bar that is why i will post it in “tai vs garu” thread.
few days ago i saw in a random forum that “yasashikunai” and “yasashikuwanai” both technically produce “not gentle”. if that’s true then “yasashikumonai” would be the “not gentle” with emphasizing power. so i am convinced that “naritakunai” “naritakuwanai” and “naritakumonai” will all produce “don’t want to become”.
but how about “dareka mitaku wa ikinai” (i don’t live my life imitating someone else). the “wa” has been placed between adverb (mitaku) and verb (ikinai). does this mean, “yasashikuwanai” and “mitakuwaikinai” are considered as complete and “yasashikunai” and “mitakuikinai” are both shortcuts because (wa) is often omitted?
the forum also says that:
yasashikunai – not gentle, harsh.
yssashikuwanai – not gentle (but not necessarily harsh)
that is kind a vague to me because how can it be applied to “naritakunai” and “mitakuikinai”.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone, and so sorry if i always ask so many questions.
@obakasan000
1) Kare wa yasashiku nai : He is not nice. Just telling the fact he is not nice
2) Kare wa yasashiku wa nai : (I don’t think) He is nice. (Denying the part “yasashii” ) So when someone says “He is nice” and you disagree, you say “I don’t agree. (I don’t think so) He is not nice.)
3) Kare wa yasashiku mo nai : He is not even nice.
Usually when you use は(=wa) you show some contrast. For example Kare wa yasashiku wa naiga iji ga warui wake dewa nai.(= I wouldn’t say he is nice but he is not mean either.) So it implies something else.
As for your second sentence, ”dareka mitaku wa ikinai”
This “like” should be “mitai ni”
a) “A” mitai ni ikitakunai. (I don’t want to live like A)
b) “A” mitai ni wa ikitaku nai. (Emphasizing the part “like “A”)
good morning dear maggie sensei and everyone. thank you so much again. n_n. but then, i would like to seek clarification for some words:
1. does “ii no ka” derived from “ii n(o) janai (desu)ka.” ?
2. does “sokka” (often translated as “i see”) derived of “sou janai desu ka.” ?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei.
@obakasan000
じゃない(=janai) is a casual form of ではない(=dewanai)
1) If you meant to say “It’s good, isn’t it!” you can say いいですね(=iidesune) or いいじゃないですか (=iijanai desuka)
いいのか(=iinoka) : whether something is good (OK) or not
これでいいのか。= I wonder if it is OK this way.
これでいいのかなあ = (softer)
2) As you said そっか(=sokka) means “I see..” and it is from そうですか (=soudesuka).
そうじゃないですか(=soujanai desu ka) means “Isn’t it true?/Don’t you agree?” so it is different from そっか(=sokka)
こんにちは、メギーさん。
この全部のレッスンはとても有益ですね！ありがとうございました。
私は質問がある。
このレッスンで練習された「もの」とは、「物」に関係があるのですか？
それとも、「も」や「の」は２つの異なる意味ですか？
よろしくお願いします。
@Jessi
もともと「物」なのですが、この場合は漢字はつかわないでひらがなで書くのが普通です。
Maggie Sensei:
How is と working in the sentence that Jessi wrote? Is is quotative?
このレッスンで練習された「もの」とは、「物」に関係があるのですか？
Hi David,
It is an old comment but right. Basically you distinguish もの and 物
You use kanji 物 for object/something tangible (It means “things”)
When you are talking about the idea, reason (something intangible) like the ones in this lesson, you use hiragana.
Sensei, I meant the particle と. I mean she could have just as easily written:
このレッスンで練習された「もの」は、「物」に関係があるのですか？
instead of :
このレッスンで練習された「もの」とは、「物」に関係があるのですか？
Why does Jessi feel the need to use と?
前もってお願いします！
Oh sorry. I guess I didn’t read your question well.
Aは、〜です。 = A is ~
When you define what A is, you say とは
This と is to quote
Let me add what has been omitted after と
このレッスンで練習された「もの」と(いう言葉）は、「物」に関係があるのですか？
人生はなんだろう。→人生とはなんだろう
thank you so much dear maggie sensei. yes mam’ n_n. you may call me with that name. you’re so thoughtful explaining all the possible answers. how i wish i could have an internet connection in our home (so that i’ll be always updated). good night dear maggie sensei. n_n
どういたしまして！Have a nice day!
Ha! また最初のコメントが俺様のものだ！ソレの後味がいいですね。。。 XD
このレッソンをありがとうございます！とてもいい参考になりました。
＠John
あっ、Johnまたコメント一番！！
いつも来てくれてありがとう！
good day dear maggie sensei and everyone. i dont if this is the right thread for this question. i am having confusion for this words.
does the same principle (mo as the one that emphasize) also applies in konna ni mo
does that mean konna ni kawaii and konna ni mo kawaii are the same but konna ni mo has emphasazing power
and do these two sentencces have the same exact meaning:
konna ni mo kono omoi (feeling)
konna ni mo omoi
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
@obakasan000
Hello again, (Should I call you “orikousan000”?)
こんなに＜こんなにも (こんなにも is stronger. As you said も has a function of emphasizing)
a) 彼の妹がこんなにかわいい女の子だとは知らなかった。
= I didn’t know his sister was this cute.
b) 彼の妹がこんなにもかわいい女の子だとは知らなかった。(stronger)
= I didn’t know his sister was THIS cute.
****
konna ni mo kono omoi (feeling)
konna ni mo omoi
I have to guess what you wanted to say using these words but for example
a sentence like this?
こんなにもこの想いに苦しめられるなんて…
= Konnanimo kono omoi ni kurushimerareru nante…
I had no idea I would suffer from this feeling this much.
If so, your second sentence doesn’t have “この=kono” so it won’t specify the feeling so it won’t be the same.
If you wanted to compare the sentences
Konna ni kono omoi
Konna nimo kono omoi
the the later is stronger. (It emphasizes “this much” more.)
wow. thank you so much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. thank you much for giving examples. n_n. thank you much for creating this friendly and helpful site.
thank you much dear maggie sensei and 天人さん. i am really grateful to the two of you. thank you for spending your time, clearing up my confusions. it really means a lot to me. n_n. have a nice day
What does “Zutto Aishiteru Yo” mean? Is it a heavy frase or casual? Please and thanks :)
@Kendra
ずっと愛してるよ (=Zutto aishiteruyo) means “I will love you forever.” and it is a phrase to tell someone so it is heavy.
maggie sensei,
Kimi no koto ga suki, is used as love/like
can you use this like in english after seeing a girl a couple of times to let a girl know you are interested in seeing her romantically?
or would it come off a little strong
thank you ver much
Well Michael, in my opinion you can safely use 君のことが好き（です）.
And after next couple of times you can go to level 2 and say: 大好きです！
Maggie, would you agree with me?
@michael ＆ 天人
Actually telling someone 好きです(=sukidesu) is very powerful. And if you say 〜のことが好きです。it is considered to be 告白 (confession of your love.)
So in that sense it is strong. But it depends on your relationship. If you want to tell her you really like her, you can say that.
If you are not that ready yet, you can deliver your feelings in a subtle way like.
Ex. ~ といると本当に楽しい。
Or all sorts of compliments will tell her you are interested in her.
Then when you are ready, you can tell her 好きです.
Just for your information, you may think 大好き is “to like/love someone so much” and it is strong but we (especially girls) often say that casually
Ex. あっ、マギーレッスン作ってくれたの？大好き！
= You made a lesson, Maggie? Love you！
Good luck! ❤
good day dear maggie sensei. thank you so much for your explanations. as always, you really are brilliant. oh sorry to bother, it is just that i am wondering what if (verb+hodo+ni) will mean.
i get the idea of:
me wa kuchi hodo ni mono wo ii
(eyes can say things as same level as the mouth)
but i don’t know what will be the meaning if the noun would be replaced with verb
noun+wa+verb+hodo+ni (please give an example|) n_n
but if i just over look it on the existing comments of lesson(s)please correct me and please forgive me.
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone.
Hello obakasanOOO
Aは…動詞＋ほどに… ＝A is so… like… / A is so… that… / A is as much… as…
Examples:
1. 彼は人々が思うほどにそんなに金持ちではない。(He isn’t so rich like people think he is)
2. ジョンは野球をするほどには、サッカーに夢中になりませんでした。 (John wasn’t so absorbed in playing soccer like in basketball)
3. 彼は、想像できないほどの嫌なやつだ。(He is so unpleasant that you cannot even image)
4. これは、期待したほどではない結果です。 (This result is below my expectations [lit. this result is not what I expected)
ご参考まで。
@obakasanOOO & 天人
Hello obakasan000! Looks like you had a nice friend who helped you here. Thank you, 天人！
hi everyone and to dear maggie sensei. thank you so much dear maggie sensei. you really are a sensei. oh by the way, i would like to seek help for some clarifications (if you have sometime). based on the examples given, the usage of tekuru/teiku is divided by 3 categories. (please correct me if i am wrong). for:
a) there is always an object/person to go/come with after a certain verb has been completed.
b) there is a motion verb from one place to another by the subject(without object to go or come with) before tekuru/teiku.
c) both object/person to come/go with and motion are absent.
does that mean,verbs like taberu,kiku-to listen, wakaru, miru, miseru, au and other verbs with au (tsukiau, dakishimeau, wakariau, and etc) will automatically fall for category #3 or is it case-to-case basis?
thank you so much in advance dear maggie sensei and everyone…..
Hello obakasan000
～てくる and ～ていく have many meanings. I have listed below every meaning of ～てくる and ～ていく I know. Let this be a (/the best) guide on how to use ～てくる and ～ていく. No division is needed. The best way to fully understand the usage of these forms is to memorize my lovely guide. Here we go!
1. 行って戻る ==> Speaker goes somewhere and will be back soon. Used only use with ～てくる.
– ちょっとトイレへ行ってきます！
2. 順次 ==> Speaker first has to do something and then they can move on. Used with ～てくる and ～ていく.
– 日本へ行く前に、日本語を勉強していきます。(First learn Japanese, then go to Japan)
– よしよし、ルーシー、もう泣くのやめてよ、ママはお菓子をもらってきてあげるからね。 (In this sentence mother says to Lucy [her child] that she will bring her some candies [lit. bring and give her some candies])
3. 変化／継続 ==> a) Shows a change made in past. This change continues to the present. Used with ～てくる. b) Shows a change made in the present. This change will continue to the future. Used only with ～ていく.
– マギー先生のサイトのお陰で、日本語がだんだん楽しく、易しくなってきました。ありがとうマギー＾＾
– マギー先生のサイトがますます面白くなっていくでしょね。ね？
4. 移動の状態 ==> Shows the direction of moving. Used only with special verbs of movement like: 連れる、持つ. ～ていく implies that the speaker takes/carries something away. ～てくる implies that the speaker brings something along.
– 水を 1 杯持って来てくれ (Person X goes from destination A to destination B, takes the glass of water, comes back to destination A and gives the water to person Y)
– 水を 1 杯持って行ってくれ (Person X takes the glass of water away from destination A, because – for example – person Y doesn’t need water now)
5. 方向性 ==> Shows the direction of moving towards the speaker. Used with verbs of movement: 歩く、走る、飛ぶ、逃げる、集まる、引っ越す, etc. Used with ～ていく (something moves away from speaker) and ～てくる (something comes closer to speaker).
– 「A: あ、SUPERMANが飛んできますよ！見てよ」「B: 見てるよ、すごいな！」
– 「A: あ！SUPERMANだ！見て見て」「B: どこどこ？」「A: 遅いよ！もう飛んでいきました」「B: し、しまった・・・」
6. 話者への接近(1) ==> Shows approaching or leaving towards the speaker. Used with verbs like: 出る、入る. Used with ～ていく (away) and ～てくる (closer).
– 先生：授業が終わって、学生たちが出ていきます。(This sentence implies that the students go away from the classroom, where the teacher is)
– 先生：授業が終わって、学生たちが出てきます。(This sentence implies that the teacher is outside the classroom. The students come closer to him)
7. 話者への接近(2) ==> Things or sensations (sounds, smells, etc) approach the speaker. Used only with ～てくる (closer).
「A: あのさー、夜中の１２時になると、この部屋から何か変な泣き声が聞こえてくるらしいね。ここは人が殺された場所という話が・・・」「B: わああ、やめて、怖いのよ。何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？酷いよ ･ﾟ･･ﾟ･(⊃´Д｀泣)･ﾟ･･ﾟ･」
8. 変化の出現 ==> Shows that something (usually a natural phenomena or a psychological or emotional state) has just started. Used only with ～てくる.
– ったく、またこの忌々しい雨が降ってきたかよ！
– 「A：マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・。」「B：なんだって？！絶対にだめだよ！マギーはもう結婚してるって知らないの？」、「A:あ、そう・・・」
Ufff, that was a long reply ＾＾
ご参考に。
@obakasan000 & 天人
Good job, 天人！
（This is a little note for you. Your Japanese is really good! I would change just these.
7 : 何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？ →そんなこと言うの？will be more natural
8 : マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・→someone に恋に落ちる. When you are talking about just that experience, we say 恋に落ちた(past tense). So you may want to say 好きになってきた.
(You can say 恋に落ちてきた when you are talking about your experiences up to now Ex. 今まで何度となく恋に落ちてきた））
Hahaha love your example sentences.
マギー先生、日本語の誤りを訂正してくれてありがとう！
“何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？ →そんなこと言うの？will be more natural” ==> Ah, because 「何であたしにそんなこと、言ってるの？」 would imply habituation (a habit), right? (= why are you always telling me that?). I thought it would be “why are you tellING me this NOW?”.
マギーのこと、何となく恋に落ちてきた・・・ Long time ago the speaker felt in love with Maggie and he still loves herと言う意味で. In 恋に落ちた we don’t know, if the speaker still loves her、ね.
私の例文がお気に入りでよかったです。おおきにありがとう＾＾
＠天人
Right. We use 言って（い）る if the person always say the same thing.
Ex. 彼は文句ばかり言っている。
Or someone has been saying something (for a certain period of time.)
Ex. まだそんなことを言って（い）るの？
Are you still talking about that?
*It is possible to say 恋に落ちて来た but usually you just fall in love. Not gradually.And if you say 何となく, it will be more natural to say 好きになってきた
ということですよ〜。:)
Can you please give the source from where you took this information? Thank you.
Maggie: I just found this website – it is wonderful! I love Japanese food and the way that your
society looks at politeness as part of a way of life. Appreciation of every grain of rice and every
gesture. Lovely, just lovely.
@Pat
Hello Pat,
Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
Hope you visit here often. We have other Japanese food related lessons!
なるほど、ありがとう先生。
@elainelinc
どういたしまして！U^ｪ^U
i have a question, i’ve been reading this book on japanese and there is a sentence : べスは大学を出たらしい and it translates as : beth seems to have graduated from college is the use of rashii correct?
@虎
Yes, it is correct.
べスは大学を出たらしい can be translated as,
Beth seems to have graduated from college.
It seems like Beth graduated from college.
I heard that Beth graduated from college.
thank you
@虎
どういたしまして！ :)
Maggie-sensei, how do you quote more than one sentence? Is it possible to do that in a single sentence?
For example: あの人たちは「美味しい！」と「甘い！」と言いました。
Is that correct?
＠fluffymoochicken
Hi, fluffymoochicken!
It depends on the context but in this case, I wouldn’t connect two sentences with ”と” .
Just connect with ” 、” (or even with out ” 、” )
Ex.彼らは、「美味しい！」、「甘い！」と言いました。
Ex, 彼らは、口々に「美味しい！」、「甘い！」と言いました。
Okay come back soon because we do not want to see the moon at any cost!. Come and give us some good stuff.
@Shawna Auten
We are back already a month ago, Shawna! Korekara mo yoroshikune! :)
Maggie 先生のおかげで「きれない」と「きる」を使い始めます。でも質問が聞きたいんです。「fully understand」か「not fully understand」といいったら、この文法を使われますか？例えば：
– その質問を分かりきれなかった。I didn’t (wasn’t able to) fully understand that question.
– そのところを分かりきった。I fully understood that point.
全部分かる事ができませんの場合はよく合いますので。;-)
ありがとう。
@elainelinc
＊その質問を分かりきれなかった。
→使いますが、”理解しきれない”の方がよく使うと思います。
＊そのところを分かりきった。
それはよくわかりました。十分わかりました。
の方が自然です。
でも「分かりきった」= obviousという意味で使うことは多いですよ。
そんなのは分かりきったことだ。
= It is really obvious. (Everybody knows that.)
Ex. そんなのはわかりきったことだ。
= It is too obvious.
– そのところを分かりきった。I fully understood that point.
「わかりきる」は形容詞でわかりきったこと
このレッスンを作ってくれたありがとうございます。とても面白いです。私もその使い方「〜ないかな」前に見たことじゃありません。本当に役に立つの文法です。
@elainelinc
このレッスンが役に立つと聞いてうれしいです。またこのサイトに来てくださいね！
（少し、elainelincの文章のお手伝いをしますね。
〜をしてくれたありがとう→〜をしてくれ”て”ありがとう。
前に見たことじゃありません。→前に見たこと”が”ありません。
本当に役に立つの→役に立つ文法です。
あとは上手に書けていますよ！がんばって！）
Hi maggie sensei… first of all thank you very much for making this wonderful lessons… Ive been learning a lot lately and having fun most specially UNDERSTANDING the lesson so easily… I have a request though, could you kindly make a lesson about inside the hospital. The form they use and questionaires and so fort… thank you and more power…
@Paul
Hi Paul,
Thank you for visiting this site. I am very happy to hear you enjoy studying Japanese.
As for your request, I thought about making a lesson on that theme before but since there are so many medical terms and they are tough, I was reluctant to make one. But I will add it on the request list.
Meanwhile please check this 風邪 lesson where I explained how to express your symptoms.
先生、このコメントで日本語で書き始めてみます。間違いがあったら、直してくださいませんか？ちょっと質問があります。「なんとして」とか「なんだと」とか「なんとする」の使い方は何でしょうか？いつも会話に聞いています。しかも、誰かに漢字の書き方を教えてもらいたいときに、どう聞けばいいのですか？例えば「（学）という漢字はどう書けばいいのか」って聞けばOKですか？
@Blossom
Hi Blossom,
「（学）という漢字はどう書けばいいのか」
→ Right.
Or we also say,
~ という漢字はどう書いたらいいのですか？
〜という漢字はどう書きますか？
****
「なんとして」
We usually use it with も
なんとしても= anyhow, by any means necessary,whatever it takes
Ex. なんとしても試験に合格しなくてはいけない。
「なんだと」= 何だと What is..
Ex. この言葉の意味はなんだと思いますか？
Ex. これはなんだと思いますか？
Ex. 私のことをなんだと思っているの？
「なんとする」
I wonder where you heard it…. We only hear it in old Japanese.
Ex. 今、やらなくてなんとする= 今、やらなくてどうする！ = We have to do it now!
(correction :
いつも会話に聞いています。→いつも(or I would say よく)会話で聞きます。
しかも→means “on top of that” what did you want to say? I think it is not necessary in this context.)
Great answer Maggie!
Also なんだと ＝なんだって (depending on context) which means “What did you say?”. It’s often used in アニメ.
I don’t think なんとする is 文語 (classical Japanese), because in classical Japanese there’s no する in 終止形 but す. This would change the form to なんとす （＝ なむとす） which means ～てしまおうとする or ～てしまいそうだ. I think なんとする might be some kind of dialect, and it could mean 「どうする（んだよ）」.
@天人 & @Kai
Good follow up information, 天人
As for なんとする，
I bet many Japanese people would say this famous Samurai drama line when they hear this word.
のさばる悪をなんとする。天の裁きは待ってはおれぬ
We also say なんとしよう
この気持ちをなんとしよう。
But it sounds very dramatic and corny.
Kai, are you trying to figure out how to say,
what to do
how to do
and since it is “what”, you think it’s なに／なん?
Thank you for the new lesson, Maggie!
@天人
My pleasure!! :)
ありがとうございます。
@ゼガーロス
このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
Can you explain when to use を and when to use に in causative? For example, I made my brother cook lunch.
@Manaki91
The basic patterns are
☆(someone)に(something)をさせる = to make someone do something
Ex. マギーに部屋のそうじをさせる。
= to make Maggie clean the room
☆(someone)に(something)をさせられる =(It is a passive form but we translate it as Someone made you do something)
マギーに部屋の掃除をさせられる
= Maggie makes me clean the room.
今回もすごく面白かった！！
あの、もしよかったら、「たどる」（辿る）の使い方を教えてもらいませんか、次のレッスンで？
本当にありがとうございます！
PS: sorry if my japanese sounds a little rude… I’m still a little confused when it comes to make requests properly TT_TT
@Caio
レッスン楽しめたみたいでよかったです。質問の仕方は全然rudeではないですよ。
たどる（辿る）
たどる(=辿る）means “to follow”
1) To move forward following the path, to move on with effort trying to figure out the direction
Ex. 暗がりの道をたどって村についた
= kuragari no michi wo tadotte mura ni tsuita
= I managed to a village following the path in the dark.
Ex. 重い荷物を持ってやっと家にたどり着いた。
= Omoi nimotsu wo motte yatto ie ni tadori tsuita.
= I finally got home carrying a heavy bag.
2) to follow, to trace, to keep track
Ex. 狐の足跡をたどった。
= Kitsune no ashiato wo tadotat.
= I followed a footstep of a fox.
Ex. 自分の家系をたどる
= Jibun no kakei wo tadoru
= to keep track of one’s family tree
Ex. ケーブルをたどる
= to trace a cable
3) when the condition goes to certain direction, to go through some experiences
Ex. 同じ運命をたどる
= Onaji unmei wo tadoru
= to follow the same destiny
Ex. 進化の過程をたどる
= Shinka no katei wo tadoru
= to trace the process of evolution
Feel free to write an example sentence. I can check it.
説明してあげて本当にありがとうございました、マギー先生！！！これでちゃんと理解できたよね！
とりあえず、「「もしも」をたどれば天文学的確率になるんだ」ってもしかして三番目例題と同じかな？翻訳したら、”It will be an astronomical possibility if I trace (would it also be ‘follow’) the “IF”” になるかな？
元気でね、先生！！
@Caio
そうそう！
「東京ワンダー」の歌詞だったんですね〜♩
wW先生もこの曲を知っていますよね！面白い！！！
マギー先生と日本語を勉強しているのが絶対に退屈しないぜ！！本当の楽しかったです！
ありがとう〜〜！
ええ！？お疲れ様でした,先生！
楽しがったです！
@John
今日も来てくれたの？いつもありがとう！John!
hehe,すごく面白いから。：D
Wooow… To think ‘good’ can be used in so many ways @.@… Thank you very much for this lesson, it helped me with Japanese subtitles when I don’t understand why on earth they would put an ‘いい’ seemingly out of nowhere. Speaking of which, is Japanese multimedia usually subtitled? I can’t find any sources of Japanese audio/Japanese subtitled shows or dramas (since I don’t have access to Japanese TV)and when I do find a Japanese movie on my local TV (I’m from Malaysia), they usually have English subtitles instead. Any tips?
@Blossom
Hi Blossom!
Yes, いい has many ways of using. :)
It may be hard to find movies or TV dramas with Japanese subtitles but many talk shows have a part of subtitles. You can find them on Youtube.
詳しいね、ありがとうございます。
超面白いよ。
質問だよ。
「~ていい？」と「〜でもいい？」どう違うの？
宜しくお願いします。
阿武
@阿武門
こんにちは、阿武門！
★〜ていい？ : verb て form + いい asking for permission
Can I~~
Ex. 質問していい（ですか）？ ＝ Can I ask you a question?
Ex. 食べてもいい（ですか）？= Can I eat?
Ex. 歌ってもいい（ですか）？ = Can I sing?
★~でもいい：noun/pronoun ＋でもいい = compromising :I don’t care/mind even with something/someone
(For more details go check this lesson. )
あっ！ かわいい 。
やった！新しいレッスン！ありがとうございます！やってみます！
”日本語の勉強の調子はどうですか”
”残念ながら調子がまだ悪いです”
この使い方が大丈夫ですか？
@John
やった！最初のコメント！（笑）
”日本語の勉強の調子はどうですか”
→OK!!
”残念ながら調子がまだ悪いです”
→Good!
でももし日本語の勉強の話をしているのならばちょっとおかしいです。
「残念ながらまだ調子が出ません」
の方がいいと思いますよ。
やっぱりね。”なんかが間違っている”と思った。
いつも あ。ご。 ;P
@John
その文章だけなら間違いではありませんよ。
このレッスンが短かったからですね。例が少なくてごめんなさい。
謝らないでください、このレッスンはとても参考になりましたよ。とても感謝しています！
「だよね」の使い方はなんですか ❓
@Nan
Hi Nan!
We use だよね for example,
*When we ask an agreement from the listeners.
Ex.ここはマギーの家だよね。
= This is Maggie’s house, right?
Ex. 彼女は本当にきれいだよね。
= She is so beautiful, isn’t she?
*When you show an agreement to people around you.
Ex. そうだよね。=I suppose you are right./ I suppose that’s right. / I agree with you.
Ex. 本当だよね〜= Hontou dayonee.. = That’s right./It’s true. / What you have just said is right.
だよね is not just for women. A lot of men use it,too.
Great lesson, thank you.
But how does this differ from “nounがほしい” or the “たい” form of verbs?
@nibill
Hi nibill,
OK, let’s compare the following sentences.
1) 水が飲みたいです。 = I want to drink water. (たい is always used with a verb.)
2) 水が欲しいです。= I want some water. (You are expressing what you want clearly.)
(We use 1) and 2) when you tell people what you want/what you want to do)
3) 水がいいです。= I prefer water. (When someone asks you what you want to drink.)
4) 水でいいです。= (I don’t mind) Water is just fine. (When someone asks you what you want to drink.)
(We use 3) and 4) when someone asks you what you want first.You don’t usually say these when nobody asks you what you want to drink.)
Ahhh I see. Totally understand now. Thank you very much ;)
@nibill
どういたしまして！
鬼ごっこ の 「ゴッコ」 って なにか言いますか？何も言いませんか？
@山うさぎ (@alpinerabbit)
こんにちは！さっそく来てくれましたね。ありがとう！
“〜ごっこ”は子供の遊びによく使いますよ。
鬼ごっこ= onigokko = play tag
Ex. お医者さんごっこ= oishasan gokko = play doctor
Ex. お母さんーごっこ= okaasan gokko = play mom
そうなの？’かしら’の使用することは一般的じゃないですか？残念！！もし私が女性になったら、いつも使います！！
XD
Really, it was one of my favourite words, one of the first things I picked up since it sounded so soft and pleasant. XD
@John
もちろん使う人もいますよ。でも「そうかしら？」より「そうかな」の方が使う人がもっと多いと思います。
ちょっと気取って聞こえるからかなあ。
でももちろん、ジョンが女性になったら(But if you “become” a woman) 使ってみて！
ありがとう、役に立つ表現です。
「とか」はよく使います。でも「など」は少し分かりにくいです。「etc.」として大丈夫です、でも他の使い方があるらしいです。レッスンのリストに付け足されますか。
@elainelink
わかりました。リクエストリストに加えておきますね。
若い犬！児童労働じゃないですか？犯罪だよ！
@John
こんにちは、John,
若いよね〜。犬の２歳は人間の２４歳以上だから大丈夫！ ♪ Uo・ｪ・oUﾉ
Thank you very much for this interesting lesson!
I thought I knew everything about かな（あ） but apparently I didn’t. っかな and ～ないかな (I hope~ ) was quite new for me. I’m very happy that your lessons are so complex.
先生, I’m wondering if there are any differences between だろう （疑問や反語の意）and かな ？
EX)
あの人は誰かな／だろう（な）
今、マギーはどうしているのかな／だろう って考えていたの。
彼、私のこと好きじゃないのかな／だろうな…
ここに座ってもいいかな／だろう？
明日、晴れないかな／だろうな…
かわいいかなあ／だろうな
どのDVDを最初に観ようかな／だろうな。
皆で京都に行ったらどうかな／だろう？
これみっちゃんにできるかな／だろう？
May 26, 2014 at 11:50 pm (Edit)
＠天人
I’m glad to know there is still you can learn here. :)
かな VS だろう
There are cases you can replace them and the translation could be the same but there is a subtle difference.
while かな is used when you express your doubt or question, だろう is used when we guess/assume something.
あの人は誰かな = I wonder who that person is.
あの人は誰だろう= I wonder who that person could be.
今、マギーはどうしているのかなって考えていたの。 (You are wondering what I am doing)
今、マギーはどうしているだろうって考えていたの。(you are guessing what I am doing)
彼、私のこと好きじゃないのかな I wonder if he doesn’t like me.
彼、私のこと好きじゃないの(or ん）だろうな… I guess he doesn’t like me.
*ここに座ってもいいかな／だろう？
You can’t say だろう？
*明日、晴れないかな = I hope it is going to be a nice weather tomorrow.
*明日、晴れないだろうな… = I think (assume) it is not going to a nice weather tomorrow.
かわいいかなあ = I wonder if S is cute.
かわいいだろうな = I imagine S is cute.
どのDVDを最初に観ようかな
X You can’t say どのDVDを最初に観ようだろうな。
***
皆で京都に行ったらどうかな？
皆で京都に行ったらどうだろう？
I guess they both suggest the idea of going to Kyoto so the translation is the same but while どうかな simply suggests going to Kyoto, どうだろう gives us impression that the speaker is imagining how it would be going to Kyoto together.
これみっちゃんにできるかな
X You can’t say これみっちゃんにできるかなだろう？
(But you can say これみっちゃんにできるだろうか。）
この説明でわかるかなあ….
「この説明でわかるかなあ….」分かるだろうなー。はは、もちろん分かりますとも。詳しい説明をどうもありがとうございました。お勉強になりました。先生は最高です！
＠天人
よかった〜！！VU^ｪ^U ♩
Good stuff Maggie-Sensei, けど please use the ひらがな of kanji for those of us who are reading 日本語 (にほんご) but have yet to thoroughly master kanji, however; don’t like reading things in romanji as it clutters ones pronunciation and comprehension of the more easily followed words in ひらがな, ね。 ありがとう。
@chase
Hello Chase！
Hmmm you are the second person who told me about romaji today.
I know many of you who already know hiragana and kanji feel the same way. However, it is really hard for me to add hiragana at the moment. As you can see all my lessons are very long and I can’t spend more time adding hiragana. And also many people who don’t read hiragana and kanji visit this site so I can’t delete romaji either.
But when I make a lesson targeting upper level learners, I will give it a try not including romaji in future. Thank you for your feedback! :)
先生、レッソンのことで何か助けが必要でしたら、私が喜んでお手伝いしますよ。
@天人
いつもありがとう！！天人さんは本当に頼りになりますね。そうやって言ってくれるだけでもとてもうれしいです。
Hi I recently discovered your blog. It’s very informative and easy to understand but the Romaji is highly distracting. I suggest to start using Hiragana instead when explaining the pronounciation of the Kanji. Furthermore no Japanese person ever uses Romaji and it only serves as a factor to cripple early students who has yet to learn/write the kana. So please ditch the Romaji next time.
@Anonymous
このサイトにきてくれてありがとう。Anonymousさんはきっとにほんごがよくできるひとなんですね。
このへんじもためしにすべてひらがなでかいてみますね。
(にほんじんはローマじをつかわないといいますが、こういうふうにひらがなだけのぶんしょうをよむのはちょっとにがてです。)
おきもちはよくわかります。ローマじをよむのがきらいなひとはたくさんいます。きょうはほかのひとからもおなじコメントをいただきました。
ただ、しょうじき、ひらがなをくわえるのはいまのげんじょうではすこしむずかしいです。てまとじかんがいっぱいかかるからです。
いまはかんじのはいったぶんしょうとローマじのぶんしょうをいれるのでせいいっぱいです。ぜんぶできたらいいのですが….
ひとにはいろいろなべんきょうほうほうがあります。まだローマじだけしかよめないひともいっぱいこのサイトにきます。
だからいまのじてんではローマじをとるかひらがなをくわえるかをえらぶとローマじになります。ごきぼうにそえなくてごめんなさい。
でもしょうらい、じょうきゅうレベルのレッスンをつくるときにいちどローマじなしでためしてみますね。
このレッスンのかんじのぶぶんにはひらがなをいれておきました。
それでもよかったらまたいつでもこのサイトにきてくださいね。
As someone who has been learning Japanese slowly for years, thanks for using romaji so we don’t have to stress over reading hiragana all the time while just trying to learn the topic of the article.
@Mr.X
Thank you so much for your opinion. Thought about we should get rid of romaji from some lessons as a trial but we will keep it. :)
I greatly appreciate the romaji under the kanji. It helps me learn the kanji faster instead of switching between this page and many other websites to look up the meaning over and over again. Everything I need to learn these phrases is on one page. Thank you Maggie Sensei. Your website is thorough and fantastic :)
@Ari
Hello Ari,
A couple of people told me to get rid of romaji in past but I am glad I keep it.
And thank YOU for visiting this site! よろしくね！
Thank you for the lesson :) How do I send you emails? I have a helper for you. Her name is Leelu :)
@テレサ
Hi テレサ！
If Leelu wants to be a member of Team Maggie, please find the information here. About Us.
ありがとう先生。とても便利な表現です。少し聞きたいことがあるんですけど。In English, we’d often answer a questions like ‘Where should we go for lunch’ with something like ‘anywhere is fine’. In Japanese, is it 「どこでもいいですよ」？Grammar ok? Politeness ok?
Or if we want to say either one (of two or more options) is fine with me:「どちらでもいいです」、「どれもいい」
Is the pattern usually どこ／どれ／どちら ＋ でもいい? Or just もいい？ Or either one?
Also, if someone asks a question like 「夏休みはどこに行こうか」and we want to list some possible answers and/or be vague:
「さあ。。イタリアやフランスなどがいい」someplace like italy or france is good
「日帰りはどう？鎌倉か箱根などでいい」how about a day trip? someplace like Kamakura or Hakone would be fine
Can you add など to make it sound less specific?
Thank you!
@elainelink
「どこでもいいですよ」
Grammar ok?
→Yes. We say that often in conversation.
Politeness ok?
→ どこでもいい means “wherever” and it implies “I don’t care” so if you are talking to someone superior,
どちらでも結構です(= dochira demo kekkou desu) sounds more polite.
*****
「さあ。。イタリアやフランスなどがいい」
「日帰りはどう？鎌倉か箱根などでいい」
Can you add など to make it sound less specific?
AやBなど means “A and B and etc.”
If you want it sound less specific in conversation, I would use とか
someplace like A or B would be fine = AとかBとか*がいい
イタリアとかフランスとか＊がいい
鎌倉とか箱根とか＊がいい
(Sometimes we skip the second とか in conversation)
Hi, Maggie Sensei! Another great lesson, but there’s another usage of いい that I would like to ask about. What does it mean when は precedes いい？From what I understand, it can mean ‘It’s fine, don’t bother’.
Scenario I encountered:
A: お茶を入れて？それとも水はどうかしら？(Person A is very nervous at this point and is trying to start a conversation with Person B in this context)
B:水はいいから。
(What I’m guessing is that Person B is trying to imply ‘It’s fine, so calm down’ even though いい is used in this context)
Would you mind elaborating? P.S. Is there a lesson concerning the usage of the casual 意向形動詞available?
@Blossom
Hello Blossom,
いい means “good/nice” and also “yes” and “no”
Your guess is right. お水はいいから means お水はいらないから = “It’s fine. / I’m good. / Don’t worry about water./ I don’t need water now so don’t bother.”
So いい means “good/nice, yes and no” depending on the context.
I will show you some examples.
Ex. 1) 自然はいいね。
= Shizen wa iine.
= I love nature. / Nature is good.
Ex. 2) B: マギー先生、このお菓子食べてもいいですか？(asking for a permission.)
= Maggie sensei, kono okashi tabete mo ii desuka?
= May I eat this snack, Maggie Sensei. ?
Maggie : いいです。
= Iidesu.
= Sure! / Yes!
Note : This いい means “Yes” .
(← 食べてもいいですよ。= Tabete mo iidesuyo= You may eat it.)
☆When you ask someone a permission or request someone to do something and they say いいです/いいですよ/いいよ(more casual) , they mean “Yes, you can. You are allow to do that. /Yes, go ahead”
Now what confuses you is the following one.
Ex. 3) Blossom: マギー先生、このお菓子食べますか。
= Maggie Sensei kono okashi tabemasuka?
= Do you want to eat this snack, Maggie Sensei?
Maggie: いいです。
= Iidesu.
= No thank you.
(Variation : 私はいいです。= Watashi wa ii desu = I am good, No thank you./ 今、いいです。= Ima iidesu. = not now. )
The polite way is : 結構です。= Kekkou desu. = No thank you.
☆This いいです means いらない（です）(= iranai (desu)) “No thank you” and saying “No” to someone’s offer.
So when you offer someone something and they say いいです・いいから、いい, they mean “No thank you”
I will make a short lesson for you in near future.
＊＊＊＊＊
意向形動詞
I might have made a mini lesson on Facebook but I will add it on the request list.
Domo arigatou gozaimasu…
Maggie mo, bunta mo, soshite saikou no yukari sensei
sasuga yukari sensei…
tsuzuketekudasi…
Ja~
@Layol
Layol、コメントありがとう！はい、がんばってレッスン続けていきますね。これからもよろしく！！
=Layol, comment arigatou!! Hai ganbatte lesson tsuzukete ikimasune. Korekara mo yoroshiku!!
:)
ほ～、新しいレッソンだ！ ブタ先生、どうもありがとうございました！ご苦労さんでした。
因みに、ちょっとした質問がありますね！
「ある事柄、事態を「容認」する、それを否定しない、ということでしょうか。次の例では「も」の省略はできません。「申し出」に近くなります。
その仕事、僕がやってもいいよ。（×やっていいよ）
cf. きみがやっていいよ。（モの省略可）」 http://www.geocities.jp/niwasaburoo/35kinsikyoka.html#35.5 によるものです。
質問なのは、どうして「やっていいよ」は正しくないですか。『「申し出」に近くなります』と書いているが、意味はまだちょっと曖昧なんですが・・・
ヨロシクね＾＾
あのう、ブタじゃなくてブンタ先生でした！読み違えてしまって本当にごめんあさい ｡ﾟ･（＞Д＜）･ﾟ｡
＠天人
Hi 天人
あはは、ブタ先生と書いてあるのを見て思わず笑ってしまいました。ブンタ先生が、ちょっと傷つくかも…(笑）
「V+て（で）もいい」の方の質問ですね。
ここからは英語で書きますね。
*******
OK, I saw the site and I agree.
その仕事、僕がやってもいいよ
It is not natural to skip も here.
When you give someone a permission, you say
きみがやって・やってもいいよ
~(し)ていいですよ・〜(し)てもいいですよ。
Ex. 食べてもいいよ/ 食べていいよ。
Ex. 質問してもいいですよ。/ 質問していいですよ。
(Note : In my opinion, ていい is more colloquial and you are supposed to use てもいい in your Japanese class.)
When you offer to do something for someone (that what they meant “申し出”) , (Ex. I can do that for you.), you don’t say 〜ていい
Ex. 教えてもいいですよ。I don’t mind teaching. / I could teach (for you) (X 教えていいですよ。）
Ex. 見せてもいいですよ。I don’t mind showing something to you./ I could show something to you.
(X見せていいですよ。）
If you say 教えていいですよ。it sounds like you are giving a permission to someone to teach (“You can teach/ You are allowed to teach.”)
if you say 見せていいですよ。it means “You can show something.” /”You are allow to show something.”
I’m very grateful for your help. This was the only part in 禁止／許可 that I had problems with.
Finally I understood it, ノートダン！Thank you very very much! You are the best! ＼(^o^)／
PS “ていい is more colloquial and you are supposed to use てもいい in your Japanese class” うん、そうだね。でも実は私、日本語学校に通っていません。ずっと一人で勉強していますね（＾ω＾）
@天人
天人さんはずっと独学なんですね。すご〜〜い！！
またどうやって勉強してきたか教えてね。
了解！
Here’s my learning method:
1. Learn the language basics from the Internet.
2. Buy the best available books for the Japanese language proficiency test (up to N1).
3. Use the best Internet websites that will help you to learn Japanese. ==> http://142.93.68.150 <==
4. Learn every day (no excuses) new words, new 漢字's, new expressions, new grammar forms; systematicity is the key.
5. Make notes. The most important grammar information you've read should be in one place. Unfortunately there are no perfect books. So every book, every website will bring you tons of new information.
6. When you reached the N2/N1 level then it's time to read Japanese school books, just like the Japanese do at school (ex. 日本語文型辞典) . Use 100% Japanese dictionaries like http://kotobank.jp/ No English allowed on this level.
7. Buy some Japanese novel books (written in Japanese) and the English version of it. Read them simultaneously.
8. Watch every day for few hours NHK or listen to Japanese Radio or just watch anime if you don't have access to NHK or jap. radio.
9. Stop thinking in your mother language, start thinking in Japanese!
10. Learning Japanese = FUN!!!
And in 5 years you should:
– master over 12000 words;
– master over 2000 漢字's;
– master the Japanese grammar on a higher level than N1;
– have the satisfaction that nothing's impossible.
I am in the middle of my path to master Japanese.
And Japanese is my forth language.
頑張ります！
＠天人
WOOOOW!! I am VERY impressed! Thank you so much for sharing this valuable information.
I bet many people can learn from this list. I like your learning attitude a lot. Not just setting the goal but you actually make a great effort. Haha, thank you for including my site in your list. I feel flattered. :)
I totally agree with No.10. Let’s have lots of fun learning Japanese!
Dear Maggie-Sensei,
Thank you for the great lesson! And for introducing me to such a great and inspirational song!
I’ve been trying to study the song with your translation. However, there are a few points regarding the last sentence that I still don’t understand after much searching. If it’s not too much trouble, could you please explain these for me please?
その人を守れる強さを自分の力に変えて行けるように
1. What does “行ける” mean? Is it just the potential form of “行く”? Or something entirely different?
2. If I had to translate “その人を守れる強さを自分の力に変えて” by myself, it would go along the line of “change the strength to protect that person to my own strength”. Could you tell me where I went wrong here?
3. What would the literal translation for the whole sentence be?
I’m still a beginner so I hope I’m not annoying you too much with these questions.
Thank you!
Hello Monica!
Maggie先生 is probably sleeping right now, but I am still awake, so I will answer your question.
1. ～ていける is the potential form of ～ていく. You can read about ～ていく here: http://142.93.68.150/jp/2010/03/13/requested-lesson-「〜ていく＋〜てくる」teiku-tekuru/
2-3. Your translation is quite good! But it’s better to know the whole context, otherwise a translation mistake can easily be done.
どんなときもどんなときも
ビルの間窮屈そうに
落ちて行く夕陽に
焦る気持ち溶かして行こう
そしていつか誰かを愛し
その人を守れる強さを
自分の力に変えて行けるように
My interpretation:
Anytime, anytime
The space between buildings feels [so] tight (/seems to be [so] tight)
In the setting sun
I’m gonna melt my frustration down
And some day I shall love someone
And I hope, I will be able to
change the strength that protects her
into my own power (/strength).
日本語、頑張ってください！
ヨロシク
@Monica & @天人
Oh wow…while I was sleeping 天人 answered Monica’s question. Thank you, 天人！
Monica, is it clear now?
I love this song. I am glad you like it,too!
Hi 天人!
Thank you so very much for your response, and wonderful interpretation. It’s all clear now.
I’m sorry for the late reply. I kept thinking I’d receive an email notification if I got a reply but apparently not. Lucky for me I checked! =)
Maggie先生,
I love the song! Been replaying it again and again for the past few days!
ありがとうございます！
Monica
Dakara/ Sorede yasumi nanda.
先生 can you please plain that nanda in the end, cause i’ve seen it while reading manga to practise and i cant really understand what it means
(i didnt read the lesson so if its in there excuse me for asking)
Hello 白虎君!
だから／それで is very often used together with （な）のです（／だ）. This is a fixed construction that shows the reason of something what was mentioned before. だから～なのだ can be translated as: “that’s why~”. For further information please read this article and that one→ http://142.93.68.150/2010/09/08/request-lesson-when-and-how-to-use-んn-のです→んです）/
Ah, human beings are so lazy・・・
@白虎君 & @天人
Thank you for your support, 天人さん！いつもありがとう！
白虎君、Hope 天人さん answered your question. :)
This is unrelated to this particular post, but I wanted to ask a certain question about something new I saw. The sentence
まったくもって1ミリたりとも
According to the following news article, it appears that the word 1ミリ, which is supposed to mean “1 millimeter,” has started to be used figuratively in a lot of contexts.
http://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXBZO12966720X10C10A8000000/
In this 1ミリたりとも, for example, meaning “not even 1 millimeter of …” Have you ever seen such a thing before?
@Tosiaki
Hi Tosiaki,
I think I taught that word once on Twitter before.
Yes, the direct translation is １ミリも or (stronger) １ミリたりとも “not even 1 millimeter” and we use it when we deny something strongly.
Ex. １ミリたりとも譲れない= it is not negotiable
Though the politicians use it, it is often used in a colloquial way.
Ex. １ミリも知らなかった= didn’t know about something at all.
Ex. １ミリも許せない= can’t allow at all
waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah very informative. 教えてくれてありがとう
@フスニ
Goooooooooood!! どういたしまして！ :)
お帰りなさい。いつも新しいレッスンを楽しみにしています。相変わらず分かりやすいです。:-)
It’s very interesting, I hadn’t thought of てみる as a way to soften a comment. Similar to English that way.
When talking about something you tried out and found that it was X, the てみる is used to add emphasis/show that the result was different than expected, right? Looking at the examples, it seems like without てみる the meaning is basically the same.
I was also wondering on the example 「彼の家に行ってみると誰もいなかった」could you use the other kind of trying: 彼の家に行こうとしたが誰もいなかった。
Ok? Or does it not work with 「誰もいなかった」because you did actually physically go there / you weren’t stopped from going.
Another example, could you say either:
レストランに行ってみると満室でした when I went to the restaurant, I found it was full
レストランに行こうとしたが満室でした I tried to go to the restaurant, but it was full
Thank you!
@elainelinc
Hello, elainelinc!
ただいま〜！いつもこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
Now I will show you the difference between 行ってみると—- and 行こうとすると….
While 行ってみると means you actually went there and found out something, 行こうとすると…means when you are about to leave/when you attempt to go somewhere/whenever you attempt to go somewhere, something happens and you can’t go. So 行ってみると means you actually go somewhere but 行こうとすると means you are not actually in that place. It just focuses on your action trying going somewhere.
So レストランに行こうとしたが満室でした/彼の家に行こうとしたが誰もいなかった。don’t sound natural because the speakers actually went to the restaurant or his house.
〜に行こうとしたら親に止められた。= I was going to go ~ but my parents stopped me.
明らかに説明してくれてありがとう。いまから「て見る」は使いやすくなります。
This is very helpful. Thank you! I’ve always had some trouble with knowing when to use verb-おうとする and when to use てみる. This explanation helps a lot.
@elainelinc
どういたしまして！
（A little correction : 明らかに : You wanted to say “clearly”? In this case, “clearly” is はっきりと but how about わかりやすく？）
これからも日本語がんばってね！:)
それは試してみました。;-) ありがとう。
Hello Maggie-sensei!
I’m new to this site, although I have visited a few times in the past. In most of the sites I have gotten confused reading chats between various people trying to explain to each other slight grammatical nuances.
However I came again today for a better explanation of ageru/kureru/morau endings and I really liked the quality of your lesson! After reading around I also noticed how responsive you are to everyone’s responses. (and how colorful your lessons are) So I decided to post and plan more future visits. :)
I did have a question since I don’t see a lesson for it. I don’t need a full blown explanation but I’ve seen the kakeru paired with several verbs and the meaning has never been consistent. If you could explain it would be greatly appreciated!
@nyoro
Hello nyoro! Welcome to our site!
As for your request, V＋かける, someone else has just asked me to explain the meaning/usage of かける and it is already added to the request list. So I will make a lesson for you. I still have a long list of request but please wait patiently. :)
ありがとうございます！必ず楽しみにします。
@nyoro
はい、待っていてくださいね♩
（a little correction : →とても楽しみにしています。）
Maggie Sensei, お元気ですか. I’m new to this site, having only just begun visiting this week; but I have learned plenty. どうもありがとうございます！ However being new also means I haven’t really gotten around to learning how to navigate this website properly and I have a few questions regarding colloquial grammar. I frequently hear in casual speech the ‘te’ form being followed immediately by ‘ます’ or た and ました without any ‘i’ sound. Is it just a result of slurring because it’s easier to say without an ‘i’, or is it a correct construction?
Example:
食べてます
聞こえてました
見てた
@Blossom
Hello Blossom! はじめまして！Welcome to our site! :)
There is no proper way to use this site. Go to the Index page and find the topics you like and get the information you need from the page you choose.
OK, let me answer your question.
When we talk, we often drop い after て in colloquial Japanese. Or the listener can’t hear the sound of い.
食べています→ 食べてます
食べている→ 食べてる
聞こえていました→ 聞こえてました
聞こえている → 聞こえてる
見ていた → 見てた
住んでいる→住んでる
This is called い抜き言葉(=inuki kotoba) and it is considered to be incorrect grammatically and I bet your Japanese teachers hate it especially when you write without い.
So if you are studying Japanese in a class or you are going to take an exam, do write い.
But it is very important to know how we actually talk in conversation dropping い.
So the removal of the ‘i’ does not change the intended meaning? ‘見てた’ simply means ‘見ていた’ and is NOT just a colloquial ‘見た’, right? Because sometimes I can’t tell the difference when they are used in context. Japanese is spoken very quickly and I get very confused as to when the V+~ている form is used (like in instances of 結婚している and 知っている meaning ‘married’ and ‘know’ and not ‘is getting married’ and ‘knowing’ respectively). Thank you for the explanation and the tip about 抜き言葉 ：）
@Blossom
So the removal of the ‘i’ does not change the intended meaning? ‘見てた’ simply means ‘見ていた’ and is NOT just a colloquial ‘見た’, right?
→Right. 見ていた →見てた
見た (simple past) and 見て(い)た are different.
~ている means “to be ~ ing” (describing what is happening) but you are right. It also used to describe some state of the current condition.
Thank you for the lesson its so good to have you back! The lesson was fun, the only part I did not understand was the みたら. I never understand the たら section ><
@John
Hi John! We are glad to be back here,too!
~たら is conditional.
1) Making an suggestion
~みたら？・〜みたらどうですか？
Do you want to try doing something? / Why don’t you try doing something?/ You should ~
Ex. 行ってみたら？
Ex. 食べてみたらどうですか？
Ex. この映画観てみたらどう？
2) When you report how it goes when you try doing something
Ex. 行ってみたらいい所だった = (I gave it a try and ) I went there and (found out) it was a nice place.
Ex. やってみたら簡単だった = I tried doing that and (found out) it was easy
Ex. 食べてみたら苦かった = (I gave it a try and ) I ate it and (found out) it was bitter.
If you want to learn more about たら、go check this lesson.
~たら
Ex.
スゲエ！本当にありがとうございます！絶対に読みます！
@John
は〜い、読んでね〜❤
お帰りなさい、マギー先生！とても良いレッスンでした（＾＾）
ちょっと質問があるんですが、「試す」と「試みる」も”Try”っていう意味ですね。「てみる」とどう違いますか？あとは使い方を教えていただきませんか？よく聞きますし。
よろしくお願いします（＾＾）
@Lava
ただいま、Lava! またこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
そうですね、英語の訳をみると「〜てみる」も「試す」、「試みる」もto try で違いがわかりにくいですね。
ではここからは他の人のために英語で説明しますね。
1) We use 〜てみる casually in daily conversation with many verbs but we use 試す when we emphasize the actions of testing something.
2) As we saw in the lesson, ～てみる is used with other verbs but 試す can’t be combined with other verbs.
object (noun) を試す
verb かどうか試す, etc.
3) 試す means “to try/ to test / to experiment / to check it out”
〜てみる means “to try doing something to see what happens / how it goes”
But actually you can combine these two.
↓
“試してみる”
試してみる means “to give it a try to see what happens / how it goes”
Let’s compare the following sentences.
Ex. 1) 新しい薬を試す。 = to test a new medicine
Ex. 2) 新しい薬が効くかどうか試す = to test a new medicine to see if it works.”
Ex. 3) 新しい薬が効くかどうか試してみる = to try using a new medicine to see how it works.”
****
試みる to make an attempt / take a shot
Now 試みる is used for something more challenging or formal.
救出を試みる = to attempt rescue someone
犯人の説得を試みる= to attempt to persuade the criminal
どうでしょうか？
詳しく説明してくれてありがとうございます！
わかるようになりました（＾＾）
こんばんは、おはよう、マギー先生！また私です（＾ω＾)
～テミルについてのレッスンをどうもありがとうございました！相変わらずとてもお勉強になりましたね♥
このレッスンに関して、加えたいことが四つあります。
一. People often confuse～てみる with ～（よ）うする, so I think a good idea would be to write something about it.
二.～てみる is also sometimes used as an euphemism （間接・椀曲表現）to avoid being too direct. It makes the sentence more polite.
三. There is also a construction such as ～てみろ EX) もういっぺん言ってみろ and it feels like “come on, try to say that again (and you will see what happens)”.
四. There are also some expressions like 言ってみれば (in a matter of speaking)、今となってみれば (looking back today)、考えてみれば (come to think about it) which are a bit different translated than this ～てみる. It’s useful to know their meaning.
ヨロシク！
@天人
おはよう！！そしてとっても役に立つ補足、ありがとう！！ :)
Thank you for the lesson, learned a lot.
@Vishal
よかった〜！
Happy to hear that. :)
Hi Maggie senses
I have a question that I want to ask you. I had read a manga and I found a sentence that I don’t understand. Based on you lesson , does this sentence “ 今度改めてお礼に来てみたら? “ means “ Why don’t we try give him our thanks again the next time we come here ?”
Hi Khan
Right.
Why don’t you (give it a try and) come visit him/her to say thank you (properly) again.
Thank you for relying my answer, Maggie sensei.
I am sorry to bother you but do know the function of the particle に in this sentence?
お礼に来る
食べに行く
買い物に出かける
This に indicates one’s purpose. “in order to do something/to do something” “for ~ ” “
Welcome back, and thank you so much for the new lesson!!! <3
@Andrea
ただいま〜！！And thank YOU for coming back this site,too!
Seconding songbanana – it’s a mark of progress when people stop using 2nd person pronouns in Japanese. It painfully grates on the ears. Next to go is 1st person.
“Anata” just sounds rude or crude to my ears. One notch above kisama.
Just stop using pronouns and learn to use particles and verb endings – that’s where the secret sauce is.
if i start from here i can cover all the lessons right?by clicking “next lesson” i mean,i dont mind if it skips any of the beginners lessons as i already know a bit of the language, i just want to make sure ill cover all the categories (on top of the page)doing this?
＠白虎君
There is no rule where to start but yes, if you keep studying from this lesson, eventually it will cover the whole lessons.
But I would pick the lessons you are interested in from Index.
i see thanks a lot, this site is really good by the way, there are a lot of things the previous site i had been studying from did not have ^_^
@白虎君
どういたしまして！Hope you enjoy studying Japanese here. :)
Sensei,
Many thanks for the clear explanation.
How is Verb(masu form) + たて different from Verb(masu form) + あげる (Ex: 書き上げる、焼き上げる）。
Both mean “just completed” so, am not sure when to use which one!!
Thanks a ton!
@Veena
Sorry for the late reply. I was resting until I get to Dog Heaven.
OK, while V+たて focuses on the condition or results where something has “just” finished/done
you use V+あげる when you you do something until you complete/finish it.So it usually requires certain effort or time.
Ex. 書き立ての本 = A book that you just finished writing. (Something you have just done/finished)
Ex. 長年かけてやっとこの本を書き上げた = I finally finished writing this book over the years. (to complete something making efforts or spending certain time.)
ありがとう ございます 先生 :)
@Veena
どういたしまして、Veena!
Thank you for this lesson, I loved it !
A female friend told me that かしら was more for old women. Do you think it’s right ? She also told me that そうね was a bit old too…
@nani?
I wouldn’t say かしら or そうね for old women but they both sound very feminine. I personally don’t use them but you may hear/see people use them in the drama or movie or in manga more often.
Ok, thank you very much !
And I have a last question; sorry, but it’s the second time my japanese friends correct me when I write わ at the end of a sentence (they tell me not to write it). So is it because it’s not spoken language, or because I can’t use it when I talk with “です・ます” ?
Thank you for this article. I’ve been looking for a phrase/terms collection like this. It’ll be super useful when I’m in Japan this year （＾Ｏ＾）
Lots of hugs to Yukari!!! Thank you for all your love!!!! Maggie will be missed and loved always!!! She will be in Dog Heaven!!!! HUGS HUGS HUGS HUGS
Hi! Can you explain the -chattari form please?
I’ve heard it in a form but cannot understand it.
Is it normal to sometimes drop the する verb at the end?
I was reading the lyrics of Kana-Boon’s ないものねだり and there’s a line that says
あっち見たりそっちを見たり美人が好きなのね
did they just decided to drop it, or is it a completely different grammar?
Hello Gabriel,
there many situations where たり is used without する, for example in constructions such as: ～たり～たりです・だ (this one is used especially in idioms: 1-3) or ～たり～たり～(4) or ～たり～なかったたりです・だ (5):
1. まさに願ったり叶ったりだ！
2. どれも似たり寄ったりだな。
3. デートに遅刻したり、財布を落としたりしちゃって、今日は踏んだり蹴ったりだ！
4. 行ったり来たり動く。
5. 天気によって富士山が見えたり見えなかったりです。
This, of course, doesn’t change the meaning. Notice that in these constructions opposed verbs are used: 行ったり来たり、見えたり見えなかったり. ”あっち見たりそっちを見たり” is also opposed and means: looking here and there / looking here, looking there, looking everywhere.
What’s important, you cannot make constructions such as ～たり～ or ～たりだ (using one ～たり without する):
1. （誤）友達と話したり、買い物する時間もない。 ==> （正） 友達と話したり、買い物したりする時間もない。
2. （誤）あの池の水は暑い夏でも冷たかったりです。 ==> （正） あの池の水は暑い夏でも冷たかったりします。
ご参考まで。
あ、まずい、タイプミスだ！
“or ～たり～なかったたりです・だ (5)” ==> or “～たり～なかったりです・だ (5)”
Very useful explanations and examples, Thank you! Website bookmarked! :)
Maggie sensei!! :)
We understand!!
Please enjoy your break!!
We are all gonna miss you~ :3
I love you’re detailed descriptions of various new words and different sentence patterns! You’re lessons have helped me learn a vast amount of Japanese on my own.教えてくれてありがとうよ！
I am so sorry for your loss, Yukari-san!
I was so shocked when I found out the news! My thoughts are with you and your family during this difficult loss. Please take all the time you need to heal.
ima made nihongo o oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimashita. Maggie-sensei no koto o watashi wa eien ni wasure-masen. otsukaresama deshita.
Don’t feel bad Maggie sensei :) we all have paitence to wait for you :)
Waaaaa—-i !!! This is such good news !!! So looking forward to it, until then, please take care !!
部屋が汚くなってきたから彼に掃除をしてもらおう。
Heya ga kitanaku natte kita kara kare ni souji wo shite moraou.
Since the room is getting messier, let’s get him to clean it up.
I do not understand what “kita” (before kara) means in this sentence. Could you please explain it?
Hello Felix.
～てくる has many meanings. In this sentence ～てくる shows that a certain change（変化）has been made in the past and this change is still active (to the present) . The change we are talking about is: clean room ==> messy room.
More information you will find here ==> http://142.93.68.150/2010/03/13/requested-lesson-「〜ていく＋〜てくる」teiku-tekuru/
参考になれば。
その文章なんですが、どうして「掃除してまらおう」ですか？
他の人のために何かをする場合には「。。。てあげる」になると思いましたが、「。。。てもらおう」をよく聞いたことがあって、”..will do for you” という意味ですか？「。。。。てあげよう」と同じ意味ですか？
Hello Lava,
「～てあげる」は動作をする人が相手のためにある動作をするという意味を表します。
「汚い部屋を掃除してあげる」は I/we will do him a favor and clean up the messy room.
「～てもらう」はある人の動作によって、利益や好意を受けたり、または依頼してある行為をさせるようにしたりする意味を表します。
「汚い部屋を掃除してもらう」は I/we will receive from him the favor of cleaning up the messy room. (If he has made the room messy then now he has to clan it up)
マギーに日本語を教えてあげる。(=I will teach Maggie Japanese => I will do a favor for Maggie)
マギーに日本語を教えてもらう。(=Maggie will teach me Japanese => I will receive a favor from Maggie)
という違いです。
詳しくはこちらをご覧ください → http://www.coelang.tufs.ac.jp/modules/ja/gmod/contents_m/explanation/086.html
ご参考になれば幸いざんす。
Hello~
I’m a bit confused about noun+の
I thought な was needed before using の; ex: クラスの中で,アメリカ人なのは僕だけです。 Of my class, the one who’s american is just me.
But you have ぶたの (the pig one). Is な not necessary?
Hello Kebbin.
In this case な is an abbreviated form of である（／だ） used in attributive sentences. The full form of なのは would be: であることは.
Therefore 名詞＋なのは means “The…is…” (1-2); “What [someone]…is…” (3-4); “…that/the fact that…” (5-6), etc.
EX)
1. …について問題なのは… (=The problem about…is…)
2. 一番大切なのは… (=The most important thing is…)
3. 私が心配なのは… (=What I concern is…)
4. あなたに必要なのは休みです (=What you need is a holiday)
5. あなたが優しい人なのは分かっています (=I know that you are a nice person)
6. 私があのレストランを大好きなのは、料理が美味しくて安いからです (=I love that restaurant because they serve delicious and cheap food there = The fact that I love that restaurant is because they serve delicious and cheap food there)
これは、ブタ!の!世界だッ (=It’s the pig!’s! world)
ブタ!なのは!あんただよ (=!The one who is the! pig is you, not me! / You ARE the pig, not me!)
ご参考になれば。
ne sensei, wht does “ノリ気じゃなかったのに” mean?
Hello una,
先生 will be back soon, so I will answer your question instead.
ノリ気（乗り気） means “interest; eagerness; enthusiasm” and じゃなかった is its negation in the past. Therefore the speaker wasn’t in the mood for doing something, but he/she (probably) eventually did it. のに expresses feelings like 不平・不満・恨み・非難.
EX) 試験勉強をすることに全く乗り気ではなかったのにな～ (=Though I totally didn’t feel like learning for the exam / Though I really wasn’t thrilled with learning for the exam)
ご参考まで。
Hello there! I miss you very much too! Please don’t feel sorry that you haven’t answered us, take all the time you need. I’m looking forward to starting my Japanese studies again on May 12th. 体に、くれぐれも、気をつけてください！
We are waiting for the meeting by all our hearts!
マギー先生！！久しぶり！！
マギー先生いなくて寂しいです( p_q)
またここに会えると楽しみにしています（＾＾）
Hi maggie sensei!
How should we address ourselves, hiding the gender on the internet? Is using jibun or watashi the answer?
Hello Heivia,
like マギー先生 said: “There are people who call themselves 自分(=jibun), but it sounds a little more distant than the other pronouns. It sounds like one is drawing a line between themselves and the listener.”, also I think that, in this case, 自分 is mostly used by males with high ego. Therefore I don’t prefer to use 自分. The most natural way is just to use「私」, if you want to hide your gender on the Internet.
マギ先生、今までありがとうございました〜 レッソンは受けられて嬉しいです
くれたレッソンを練習し続けます ☆ 本当にいつもありがとう、お疲れさまです、ゆかりさん ♥
こんばんは sensei! how do you say ‘..because i know that you love me’ in nihongo?
Bonjour charlotte,
the answer is:
（私を）愛しているのは分かっているから。
Or more colloquial （私を）愛してるのって分かってるから。
You can also use 知っている instead of 分かっている.
Dasai. A cool word, even though..er, it’s so uncool.
My friend Masumoto just emailed me (which is why I found your blog) about how Saitama translates as ‘Sh*t F*ck’ in Taiwanese.
He’s in Taiwan at the moment and from Saitama. The two are related. As he describes Saitama as ‘dasai’ and ‘kusai’ to anyone who will listen.
I can’t understand why is it used 思い知らされ in passive form? As far as I can understand here the sound「音」 is making someone to realize something. And even if passive, why not それらの音に?
Thank you in advance!
いつもは車の音や街の音にかき消されてしまう、世界の囁き。それらの音が、世界の中心にあることを思い知らされ、だから、人の世界の不在を強く実感してしまうのだ
Hello Darkakira
思い知らせる means “to give someone a lesson / to show someone something”.
EX)
1. おまえに思い知らせてやろうぜ！ (= I’m gonna teach you a lesson!)
2. 相手チームに思い知らせてやれよ。(= Let’s give them a lesson!)
3. 人に身の程を思い知らせてやる。(= To show someone where his/her place is) [身の程=one’s position/standing/place]
に used here tells us WHO will get the “free” lesson.
を used here tells us WHAT 話し手 will show to his 相手.
思い知らされる means “to made someone something to realize / to be reminded of something / to made someone aware of / to become aware of”.
EX)
1. 自分の力の限界を思い知らされた。(= Someone become aware of his/her own limitations)
“why not それらの音に?” because in this sentence 間接受身 is used: Ｂ が/は ＡにＤをＣされる.
受身のヲ（間接）と二（直接）の違いについては、以下のlinkを御覧なさい。
http://web.ydu.edu.tw/~uchiyama/1h93fy/ukemi.html
http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1072740650
http://oshiete.goo.ne.jp/qa/7637418.html
http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q1015317070
ご参考になれば。
Maggie sensei, your message is wonderful, you’re such a wonderful teacher and you’re so adorable. You’ve taught me so much and have been so inspiring, I’ll miss you!
Thank you so much, i finally got it… And its pretty sad…
Please help me with that sentence, i dont get the” you ni” meaning…
彼女の不在がいつまでも私に痛みを与えますように。。。そう願いながら癒え掛けた傷を自分で掻きむしるのだ。
Hello Jean Christophe,
this ように means “to hope” or “may” like in: 早く良くなりますように。(=I hope you feel better soon) or あなたの夢がかないますように！(=May your dreams come true!).
Therefore the translation of your sentence would be:
I hope her absence will always be painful for me [/ will always cause me pain]… with this hope [in my heart] I’m gonna scratch my almost healed wounds.
参考になれば。
I found this kanji 時期 and 期間
It’s means ‘period’ What’s the difference?
I am very sorry for your loss. Maggie was a very cute dog and a great teacher. She will be missed very much. I hope you are doing okay. Please accept my condolences.
Oh no. I will miss Maggie so much. I almost want to cry, she has been the mascot of my learning for some time now. I hope the family and friends of Maggie are okay. I had three dogs pass on at once due to Snailbait poisoning so i know what a loss is like. I still can’t get over it and its been many years. I was in my first year of high school and now im almost 29. R.I.P. Maggie Sensei.
I thank her and the friends and family for so many great lessons. ^_^
Sensei for a moment there I thought I wouldn’t hear more from you. So glad you are still here for all of us. :) Sensei is the angel that keeps on giving. Thanks sensei. :)
こんにちわ先生！I’m in my final year in highschool and I’m totally confused with the indirect/casual speech. Do you have any pointers for me to easily convert a polite sentence to a casual one? Especially ones with ください, and others like that. 助け、ほんとにむずかしい！！！
Maggie is the best Japanese teacher ever!!!
マギー先生はいつまでも心にいるでしょう…
Take care, Yukari-sensei. We will be here when you return!
Goodbye, Maggie-sensei….
You gave the best nihongo lessons I’ve ever learned from – and you were such a cute dog!
RIP, little angel!
Could you use to negative of 世話をかける to express that something was no trouble? So something like お世話をかけません？ Thanks!
***Sorry, I meant “use the negative of…”
it’s just a saying, like yoroshiku, so there’s no negative form of it
Take all the time you need!
Then when the time’s right teach us more great things like all the rest!
You are an angel! Love u guys so much!
We will be waiting for you.. I trust that your love and dedication to teach us Japanese will go on forevet…rest well in heaven ..Maggie sensei. .. I shall be waiting for your return..
I am saddened by the death of Maggie-sensei. I’ve just visited the site recently but it seemed to me that she was a very kind person and a wonderful teacher. I find her lessons extremely detailed and useful and it is a shame that she can’t continue her excellent teachings. Hope you rest in peace sensei and will keep on giving blessings to us Japanese learners from above. Thank you!
Thank you so much for everything! Sending love to pooch heaven!!
Maggie sensei, you will be forever missed! Please take care and take your time Yukarisan :) thank you so much for your hard work Maggie, enjoy doggie heaven :*)
I just found this out today and I am very sad to hear the news. Maggie made learning Japanese fun. She was a very cute and pleasant teacher, and very smart as well. Rest in peace, I will miss you a great deal.
We will miss having you here on earth, Maggie Sensei! I hope you have fun in doggie heaven, I’m glad to hear you can still blog from up there. ♡
I’m sorry for your loss, Yukari-san. Take all the time you need. (^-^) xoxo
数年前このウェブサイトを使って日本語を勉強しました。
今年日本語能力試験を受ける事にして、また勉強が始めましたので久々このウェブサイトを見てみよっと思っていましたが。
I’m so sorry to hear this. I wish you and your family the best.
Please take all the time you need. Like Ralph said we’re not going anywhere.
Sending positive energy and thoughts.
Daniel
Dear angel Maggie, thank you for your heartfelt message. I wanna send plenty of positive energy to you as well as your best friend and big sister, Yukari san. You both take all the time that you need, we are not going anywhere ^^/~~☆ With love, Ralph.
I’m so sorry to hear that :'( Thanks for everything , Maggie-sensei! Whenever I had a doubt in Japanese , I knew I’d find the answer here! You’ve always been so helpful !
Rest In Peace <3
R. I. P. Maggie
Thanks for your work
R.I.P Maggie~ I will never forget you. Lots of love, from Elle
My condolences, Victor. I’ve enjoyed the videos that featured Maggie.
I hope she will continue to teach us from wherever she is now…
OMG! I can’t believe it!
I’m really sorry for your loss, of course I will not forget Maggie-sensei T_T
Thank you so much dear doggie, it was a lot of fun learning japanese with your lessons! Love you!
Im so sorry to hear this…..Maggie sensei is the best…we love you <3
ご愁傷さまです。
Thank you for teaching me Japanese. RIP
NOOOOOOOO
This is such sad news, you were a wonderful teacher and warmed all our hearts, you will be missed by so many. RIP.
So sorry to hear this, RIP.
Great lesson! I do have one question, and I apologize in advance if it was discussed in the article. Can you make chatta or chau negative, and if so how do you form it? Thanks in advance!
Hello Alaina,
Apology accepted.
Present negative:
～てしまう＝＞～てしまわない＝＞食べてしまわない
～ちゃう＝＞～ちゃわない ＝＞食べちゃわない／食べちゃわん （～ちゃわん more casual）
Past negative:
～てしまった＝＞～てしまわなかった＝＞食べてしまわなかった
～ちゃった＝＞～ちゃわなかった＝＞食べちゃわなかった
To fully understand ～てしまう I advise you to read the whole lesson.
ご参考になれば。
thank you for being part of our lives Maggie sensei. I always smile when I see your lessons. you will be greatly missed by all your students. not only for being our cutest teacher, but for helping us to enjoy learning.
thanks to Yukari sensei for sharing Maggie with us. we can all see how special she was and you have our sympathy. we couldn’t ask for better teachers.
I’m so sorry for your loss of Maggiesensei. It’s the equivalent of losing a family member… at least it felt like that when I witnessed the death of my first pet back when I was 10 years old. From what I’ve seen Maggie had one awesome life, not only did she have some amazingly cool parents she lived in Japan, has lot’s and lot’s of lovers all over the world, she was one lucky girl ;) haha. She passed knowing she was loved by so many people out there.
Take care of yourselves and stay safe :)
I’m so heartbroken. I’ve loved Maggie-sensei for many years and have always enjoyed her lessons, and I’m just so sad she’s gone now. I’ll miss her pictures and lessons, but I hope she can have fun in Heaven with my own dogs who have also passed!
My deepest condolences, Yukari-sensei.
I cried…
Maggiesensei has become an icon, a symbol, a visual representation in my Japanese learning. I am sure this is true to a lot of other visitors/students in here. :)
When I stumble across something I learned thanks to Maggiesensei’s lessons I can’t help but remember her cute and hilarious expressions from the lesson descriptions. :) Maggiesensei always made remembering and learning easier, and fun. :)
When I think about our lives and how everyone’s time here on Earth seems to be borrowed for a short while, I wonder about the notion of immortality. I think that some do accomplish to live on beyond their time and extend their existence through people’s memories. That is why I think Maggiesensei will live on, as a lot of us will remember her and her lessons and thank her for years to come for lending her helping paw in the process of something we all yearn for: learning Japanese. :)
I never got to meet Maggiesensei in person but through the numerous pictures and videos from Maggiesensei where she shared time with Yukari-sama and family, I am sure Maggiesensei lived a happy life surrounded by people who gave her lots of love and cared for her and looked for her well-being. Considering how we often see heartless people doing heartless stuff to their pets I believe Maggiesensei was very fortunate to have Yukari-sama for mom, and we are very grateful of that because Yukari-sama shared her a little with us all. :)
Thank you Maggiesensei for everything. We will always remember you. :) My thoughts are with Yukari-sama and famility. Wishing you the strength to walk thought this sad moment. Thank you Maggiesensei.
Maggie-sensei, rest in peace
she helped me just yesterday. Her lessons were so helpful 
I saw she had heart surgery. Even if her lessons won’t be continued, she has helped me a lot. RIP forever Maggie-sensei, nobody will ever be able to replace you.
Not heart surgery… It was to remove a lump of something in her airway.
Oh
still super sad though.
Discovered this site through Victor, and it quickly became my go-to site for daily or quick and fun lessons on Japanese. Enjoyed all the videos with Maggie, Victor, Yukari and everyone else. It will feel so different without her.
Thanks for everything Maggie. Rest in peace.
Oh, dear Maggie sensei… I learnt so much from you. Please protect us from dog heaven and take care of yourself too, while you’re there. Maybe you will meet my friend Whisky there… he was a lovely German shepherd and I spent most of my childhood with him. I loved him very much ~ but I have to admit that he didn’t speak Japanese. Say hello if you see him. Andrea remembers him. I think you will be very very missed from everyone here. Thank you for everything you’ve done for us. Much love <3
I am so sorry for your loss
I hope you can find some comfort knowing your angel is peacefully resting now.
Thank you for all the lessons.
Love from Canada.
I just found this site and started reading all the fun articles and now this happens! Really, really sorry to hear about it, one of the saddest experiences to have. Hope you’re alright!
So many people loved Maggie. I didn’t spend a lot of time with her but I loved her so much because she WAS family. I feel a lot sadness for her loss
I will not forget you T.T
マギーの事は忘れない。マギーの日本語のレッスンはもう勉強します。
今まで、ありがとうございました。
さよならマギー。(╯︵╰,)
忘れることができない!
I will never forget Maggie Sensei!!
RIP…. ;(
Sensei….my deepest condolences. It’s a great loss to all of us as it was so fun to learn from Maggie.. The best teacher…It’s so hard to believe that maggie is actually gone..
Who’s gonna teach us now and make us laugh..It’s just so sad. I know exactly how you feel..I also lost my precious bird last year.. It was a hard time for me.. But with time, I was able to get used to the fact that I will not see him again.. But I’ll never forget the wonderful times we spent together and how I cared for him until his last moment..
I know it’s a hard time for you now, but I hope you remember the good times you spent together..
Thx Sensei..
I am so sorry to hear this. My condolences.
Sad news. R.I.P. Maggie Sensei
goodbye, maggie-sensei and many thanks for all your tireless work. you’ve helped thousands of people and brought joy to them all.
it’s now time to live on in memories. rest in peace.
Oh no!!
Oh no… May you rest in peace… You’ll be missed!
you will always be remembered Maggie-sensei
御愁傷様です、
今まで色々お世話になって本当にありがとうございました。マギー先生のこと、忘れません。
I’m really sorry to hear this! I hope you wil rest peacefully in heaven.
My condolences with this loss.
what happened?
the stress of the surgery was too great for her heart
生まれぬる
そのあかつきに
死にぬれば
けふの夕べは
涙雨ぞ降る。
いつまでも私の心で生き続ける。
君のことは、いつまでも忘れない大切な思い出になるからです。
天人より。
If you see Rex, be sure to say hi. He's the best playmate ever.
RIP Maggie-sensei…
Oh no!!((((；ﾟДﾟ)))))))(＞人＜;) sorry to hear this, sensei. My condolences( ；´Д｀)
I’m so sorry for your loss. ㅠㅠ. May you rest in peace.
Rest in peace, Maggiesensei…
はじめまして。
日本語を勉強しています。
GOOGLEで若者言葉をさがしているところ、このPAGEをみました！
よろしくお願いします。
Hi maggie, could you explain the use of -nari in adjectives as in the following sentence? You’ll help me a lot!
ホテルの古いじゅうたんにｗｅｔｓｕｉｔを広げて準備している彼のうしろ姿が愛おしくなり、熱くて濃いcoffeeを淹てあげた。
Greetings, David!
The ～なり used in 愛おしくなり has the same meaning as ～なって, so 愛おしくなり＝愛おしくなって.
例）
１） 私の子どもはもう大きくなって、暗闇を恐れなくなった。 = 私の子どもはもう大きくなり、暗闇を恐れなくなりました。
２） 返事が遅くなり、申し訳なく存じます。 = 返事が遅くなって、申し訳なく存じます。
So as you can see the meaning is the same. However I think that なり is slightly more formal than なって. In everyday conversation, especially between friends, the ～て form （＝なって） would be used.
As for the translation: I sympathize with him, watching his preparations when he was spreading out his ｗｅｔｓｕｉｔ on the old carpet in the hotel, so [/and] I made him a hot, dark coffee.
However I’m not sure if my translation is correct because 愛おしい can mean: 1. 大事にして、かわいがりたくなるさま。 or 2. かわいそうだ。気の毒だ。 But I know someone, who will solve this problem＾＾
今はマギー先生の番ですよ！
マギー先生、
thank you very much for this interesting lesson.
Unfortunately I got 2 questions…（相変わらずね・・・but qui langue a, à Rome va ^ ^）
I.
I found out that～たまま implies the same meaning as～たなり and even as～たきり.
EX)
1. 主人は朝早く出かけたなり、この時間になっても帰ってきません。
2. 主人は朝早く出かけたきり、この時間になっても帰ってきません。
3. 主人は朝早く出かけたまま、この時間になっても帰ってきません。
4. 彼は腕を組んだまま、黙って何かを考え続けていた。
5. 彼は腕を組んだなり、黙って何かを考え続けていた。
Could you explain when ～たまま can be used interchangeably with ～たなり , ～なきり and when not?
II.
I also read in the Internet that:『 「～たまま」は普通と違う不自然なことに使います』, therefore 「パジャマを着たまま寝てしまった」 is incorect. それは本当ですか。
宜しくお願いします。
＠天人
I. ★「出かけたまま 」・「腕を組んだまま」:
「出かけた」（「腕を組んだ」）という状態がずっとそのまま続いている （変わらない状態）
★「出かけたなり」・「腕を組んだなり」も基本的には「〜たままと」と同じ意味で、その状態のままという時に使います。
(個人的に私は「〜たなり」の形を一度も使ったことはなく日常会話であまり使うのを聞いたことはないのですが..)
★出かけたきり : 「出かける」という行動が最後ということ（それから何もやっていないか何をやったかわからない）
II. そうですね、でも「電話を置いたままメモを取る」など不自然というか別のアクションをすると考えてもいいかもしれませんね。
了解です！
詳しく教えてくださってありがとうございました＾＾
完璧な日本語に一歩近づく！
@天人
どういたしまして！ :)
Thanks for all these details, but I thought I learned it until that part :
歌いながら食る is wrong /not natural to say and it should be :
歌ったまま食べる
But I couldn’t understand why.. Cause seems like “ながら” has all the conditions in this 歌いながら食る two actions etc. Why it can’t be ながら there
Btw sorry for my English it’s not my native language.
Hi Mimi
The basic difference between ながら and まま is
ながら “doing some action while doing other action”
まま is “to leave something in certain state”/ “to do something while letting something do something”
歌う is an action that one can control.You can just leave yourself sing on and on
Maggie sensei!
Thank you for replying to my message.
I can now understand that “kurete” is for thanking someone for doing something. Is there other usages for “kurete” besides the purpose of thanking someone?
Thanks in advance.
＠kuroineko
The other meaning of kurete?
For example
Ex. 彼が来（き）てくれてよかった。
= I am happy that he came over.
Ex. わかってくれてうれしいです。
= I am glad that you understand ~
Ex. Kさんが家に招待(しょうたい）してくれて美味（おい）しい料理（りょうり）を作（つく）ってくれた。
= K-san invited me over his/her house and cooked me delicious food.
Thank you so much maggie sensei!!
I wish you the best of luck^^
＠kuroineko
You’re very welcome! :)
こんにちは、マギー先生！
相手に「お世話になっています」とか「よろしくお願いします」を言われる時、どうやって反応すればいいですか? 適当な返事を教えていただきませんか？
らわ
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava.
その場合は「こちらこそ」をつければいいです。
「こちらこそお世話になっています。」
「こちらこそよろしくお願いします。」
または最後の部分を省略して
「こちらこそ」だけ言うことも多いです。
こちらこそ
Hello Maggie Sensei,
I’ve got a question about ように usage in the following sentence:
わたし達の前から一瞬にして人形が消える。お母さまが、吊るすように摘んで持ち上げたからだ。
Which one of those translation sounds gramatically correct: “Because mother picked it as if hanged up and rased it.” or “Because mother picked and rased it as if hanged up.”? The problem is that I cannot grasp which one of those two verbs 摘んで持ち上げたからだ is the speaker performs “as if hanged up”.
Thank you very much for help.
@Darkakira
I can’t picture the mother’s movement either just from the sentence…
But the literal translation is
“Because mother grabbed the doll and raise it (or hold it up) as if it’s hanging (with a string?) “
Thank you, oh, and one last question. Maybe my question will be vague, but like in that sentence, where two verbs is after ように, will it always show likeness(‘as if’) to both of them? Or it solely depends on the context?
@Darkakira
It depends on the context.
But usually we can figure it out by the meaning of the verbs.
Maggie sensei!! おひさしぶりです
This lesson is so informative. Thank you so much.
can you please explain to me what is “kurete”? How to use it and what does it mean? what is the difference between “kureru” and “kurete”?
and if I want to say “Thank you for coming to visit me”
do I say “kite kurete arigatou or kite kureta arigatou? I’m so confused.
thanks in advance^^
@kuroineko
こんにちは！お久しぶりですね。
“kureru” is a dictionary form. We use te-form, “kurete” when we continue the sentence or “(doing something) and ~~~~”
Thank you for coming is
来てくれてありがとう= kite kurete arigatou.
A lot of people make the same mistake. (来てくれたありがとう= kite kureta arigatou)
So remember when you want to say
Thank you for doing something, you always use te-form.
手伝ってくれてありがとう= tetsudatte kurete arigatou = Thank you for helping me.
絵を描いてくれてありがとう= E wo kaite kurete arigatou = Thank you for drawing a picture (for me.)
難しい文法だとおもいます
まだうまく分かりません
＠Belajar Bahasa Jepang
いつでもコメントのところで練習をして下さい。
Maggie先生、
次の文で「だって」の使いがよく分かりません、
分：「璃子も服が濡れてるし、光奈だってあたしを支えてたから、ほら！」
それはつまり、「璃子も服が濡れてるし、光奈だって’服が濡れてる、’あたしを支えてたから」それとも「璃子も服が濡れてるし、光奈だってあたしを支えてたから’服が濡れてる’」、どちらが正しいのか、教えてください。
ありがごうございます！
文脈：
「あんた達も一緒に入るのよ」
「え……」
「璃子も服が濡れてるし、光奈だってあたしを支えてたから、ほら！」
「あっ……！」
手を伸ばし光奈の腕を掴むと、思った通りその手は氷のように冷たかった。
「あたし一人だけ温まるってのもね。あんた達だってどうせ風呂に入るつもりなら、今一緒に入れば良いじゃん」
@よしや
こんにちは、よしや！
「璃子も服が濡れてるし、光奈だってあたしを支えてたから’服が濡れてる’」の解釈が正しいです。
だって means “even” “also” / Also it emphasize the noun which comes before だって
こんにちは、マギー先生！
「終える」について質問なんですが、
「宿題を終える」と「宿題を終わらせる」はどうやって違いますか？後は「宿題を済ませる」
@Lava
この３つはよく似ていますね。同じ様に使うことも多いのですが、一応意味の違いを下に英語でしておきますね。
「終える」is simply “to finish”. You have been working on your homework and as a result you have done/finished your homework.
Ex. ２時間机にむかい、宿題をやっと終えることができた。
「終わらせる」is “to make/force something over/finish””to put an end” “make an end”
Ex. 遊びたいので宿題を早く終わらせる
「済ませる」is “to get something done/to complete something” It implies nothing left. It sounds very similar to 終わらせる but usually 済ませる is used for something that you have to do.
Ex. 支払いを済ませる
Ex.. 用を済ませる
詳しく説明してくれてありがとうございます！
よく分かってきました（＾＾）
使役形は難しいと思うんですけどね。
@Lava
どういたしまして！ :)
Also some that I seen often (頻繁に見られる言葉):
俺得、誰得 (for me, for who)
あらし、荒らし、嵐 (troll)
んｃ (nice cut)
(ry (short for (ryaku))
虹 (二次元)
鯖 (サーバー server)
垢 (account). Also 複垢 (multiple accounts)
窓 (Microsoft windows)
林檎 (Apple, the company)
ネ申 (神)
タヒ (死) also 市ね 氏ね, and of course タヒれ
セクロス (sex, originally referred to the game “Sector Zone,” but now with a new meaning probably because of its resemblance to セックス)
禿同 (激しく同意)
BBA (ババァ, originally 婆)
釣り (魚を釣ろう… fishing…, and on the internet, a scam or fake, like 釣り動画)
黒歴史 (dark history, one that you’d rather forget. From Gundam)
希ガス (気がする)
アンチ (anti. Someone who hates something (goes after the thing hated). Often seen with 厨)
オワコン (終わったコンテンツ, something that has gone out of style)
大杉 (多すぎ)
フラグ (flag. 死亡フラグ、生存フラグ、成功フラグ etc. etc. – refers to signs or foreshadowing that something is about to happen, in a video or game)
CP (カップリング. Equivalent of “relationshipping” in English. Just wanted to toss this one in here)
@Tosiaki
Oh wow! Great list!!! (I covered some of them on my Twitter Japanese slang lesson but I have never heard many of them.)
Thank you! I think many people can use your additional list! :)
Another small addition
NKT (長く苦しい戦いだった, used after completing something difficult, especially in a game, and used jokingly after TAS videos)
NDK (ねぇ、どんな気持ち, for example, when someone is hovering over someone else, as if going “heeeey”)
ggrks (ググレカス, go google it you idiot)
I also do wonder if you could cover some words that are difficult to tell apart. If you do a search for them in Japanese, of course you can find multiple answers, but more answers are also great. Examples: 意外 & 案外, 意志 & 意思, 耐える & 堪える, 永遠 & 永久, 歳 & 才, 遺体 & 死体 & 死骸, 使用 & 利用 & 使う, 製作 & 制作 & 作製 & 作成 & 製造 & 造作 & 作る (創る, 造る). Obviously there are many others, but these are the ones I’ve gotten confused about in the past. Also wondering about convering words that you often see Japanese people misuse: 爆笑 (does not mean “burst of laughter”), 確信犯 (does not mean “belief that you definitely did something bad”)
こにちは先生！
“本当の夫婦になっちゃおうか?”
Does that translate into “Shall we become officially married couple ?”
@Aaron
Hello Aaron!
Yes, that is what that means. (Or “Should we be getting married?”)
It is a light way to suggest marriage.
血液型と性格の関係はなんだか面白いなんですけど、非論理的じゃないんですか？
私の家族の皆は違う血液型があるけど、全部は外れみたい。特にA型の弟、奇麗好きと几帳面の正反対ですよ。彼の部屋は何かが爆発したほど汚い（笑）。私b型ですが、あまりマイペースじゃないんです。
多分、十二支とか西洋占星術と似ているかもしれません
@Lava
その通り！まったく科学的な根拠はありません。楽しくゲーム感覚で言っている内はいいのかもしれませんが、型にはめられたくありませんね。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
ちょっと質問があるんですが、「ありのままで」というのは何の意味ですか？
最近のディズニーの映画「Frozen/ アナと雪の女王」の日本語のテーマソングの名前です。英語の名前は「Let It Go」だったんですけど。
よろしくお願いします！
@Lava
「ありのまま」はthe way you are, being yourself, the way it isという意味です。
よく知っていますね。「Frozen/ アナと雪の女王」の日本語のテーマソング「Let It Go」の日本語タイトルは「ありのままで」ですが、英語のタイトルと少し意味が違いますね。
映画を観ていないのでストーリがわかりませんが、「ありのままで（いさせなさい・いさせよう）」(Let it go and ) Let it be itself, let it be who they areという意味からだと思います。
そうですね、映画を見たけど、名前はそうになったと分かってきました！歌は自由になるってテーマでした。
ありがとうございます！
@Lava
どういたしまして！私もこの映画、是非観てみたいです！
Hello, I found a sentence with some sort of interesting(at least for me) ばかり usage -「 あたしは、形とばかり並べられた陶器のティーセットに手を伸ばす。」, I understand that the meaning would be something like “the teacups was lined up just for show”, but what is the point of putting と before ばかり in this case, can you please explain this part to me? Thank you very much!
@Darkakira
Hello Darkakira,
Yes the meaning is correct. I found it is a bit strange to use と. We usually don’t put と and say ~とばかりに並べられた。I’d just say 形ばかりに並べられた
I guess the writer used と just to emphasize the meaning.
元気です！(*^o^*)//
＠majoringram3636
よかった〜〜♩U^ｪ^Uノ彡
こんにちは, マギー先生！お久しぶりです。
わからないまま答えます！(笑)
毎日運動するかな。。 (*^^*)
@majoringram3636
こんにちは〜！！！！久しぶりですね。レッスンに来てくれてありがとう！
わからないままにしないで下さいね。（笑）
元気でしたか？
maggie sensei?? i just want to know how to speak japanese please help me :D
@Richie
Hello Richie, You tweeted me earlier, right? You can practice Japanese with me on Twitter anytime. :)
thank you so much for helping me. :D
sorry for disturbing you maggie sensei.
can i ask you a favor?
@charlotte
はい、なんでしょう？
Sure, what is it? I can help you if it is not a complicated questions or translation. :)
thank you maggie sensei! :D that’s what i meant.
what is the difference of the two phrases?
@charlotte
They both are the same.
If there is…
忙しいでしょうが、I know you are busy…
忙しいとは思いますが、I think you are busy…
‘isogashii node,muri shinaide ne’
is that correct maggie sensei?
@charlotte
You wanted to tell that person, “I know you are busy but don’t work too hard？” Then how about
忙しいでしょうが、無理をしないでね。
= Isogashii deshou ga muri wo shinai dene.
忙しいとは思いますが、無理をしないでね。
= Isogashii to wa omoimasuga muri wo shinai dene.
Note : 忙しいので= isogashii node means “because you are busy”
〜ので(=node) is used to give a reason for something.
maggie sensei please help me with my japanese
@Charlotte
Mochironn!Isshoni ganbarimashou! :)
This is so clear now, thank you very much for the lesson :)
@Kashern
Hi Kashern!
I am glad to hear it’s clear now.
How do you say “Hurry up and fall inlove with me” in japanese? thanks a lot for the reply :)
@Juno
In jokingly? How about 早く、急いで私に（or if you are a boy, 僕に）恋をして！
I want to know in joke and in being serious, and also in both genders :) and by the way can you translate into Romanji? thanks a lot.
@Juno
Hi Juno,
I am sorry but I don’t quite get what you want to know. Jokes in Japanese related to love?
what i mean is that i want to know how to say “hurry up and fall in with me” in both genders in a joke and serious way to say. and actually i cant understand your reply because its in kanji so can you reply me in romanji. thanks a lot again maggi sensei :)
@juno
OK, I will type it again with romaji.
早く、急いで私に恋をして(下さい）
= Hayaku isoi de watashi ni koi wo shite(kudasai)
(kudasai is more polite)
It is supposed to be “jokingly” because the original sentence doesn’t sound “serious”
Marvelous Lesson!!!
This is the pure quintessence of savior-vivre in the context of visiting someone’s house in Japan.
Very interesting lesson with lots of useful expressions and informations about the Japanese mentality.
It’s surely the most comprehensive lesson in the Internet.
ご苦労さまでした、マギー先生！参考になりました！有難う御座いました。
次の素晴らしいレッスンをお待ちにしております！＊ワクワク＊
@天人
Thank YOU for checking the lesson,too! :)
Hope everybody can feel like visiting someone’s house in Japan in this lesson.
は〜い、次のレッスンもがんばります！！
このサイトが好き。＾－＾
@Bontot
私もみんなが、大好き♡
ありがとうございました、ゆかりさん！レッスン、まじすごいだよ！
@マルコ
こんにちは、マルコ！長いレッスンだから少しずつ勉強してね！
I have a question. Can I say 「お疲れ様でした。」 to my teacher after class has ended or is it only the teacher who says can say it? If my teacher says it to us, how should we reply?
@jane
お疲れ様でした is a polite expression and you can use it to someone superior. So some people do say お疲れ様でした to one’s teacher after the class but but ありがとうございました is more appropriate.
Very well-explained tutorial. But in terms of usage, can you tell me the difference or when to use ja nai, dewa nai or even ja arimasen? I mean in terms of superior, colleagues or strangers?
@Alisa
As I explained in the lesson じゃない is a casual form of ではない
So the politeness level is
(polite to casual)
ではありません
↓
じゃありません
↓
ではない
↓
じゃない
So if you are talking to someone superior, stick to ではありません but if you are talking to your friends, you can use じゃない
Thanks for the reply! I always have problems differentiating the polite and casual forms as I often get mixed replies from people.
@Alisa
You’re welcome. If people mix casual and polite Japanese, then じゃない is totally safe to use.
If you want to sound yourself more polite, mix it with です form
そうじゃないです。
言ったんじゃないです。etc.
Thanks for the lesson. That really cleared up one of the uses of no that i hear everyday and never quite fully understood!
@John
Hello John,
Thank you for your comment. Yes, の has many uses but I am glad to hear it cleared up one of them. :)
Although it is preferable to refer to someone by their name or title, searching around, I have found some possibilities for second-person pronouns that could be used polite:
あなた様 (anata-sama)
お宅様 (otaku-sama)
For example, one possibility of phrasing Ella’s question of how to say
あなたの言う通りです?
Might be
お宅様のおっしゃる通りですか？ (or お宅様のおっしゃる通りでございますか？)
And どちらさま (dochira-sama) could be used for asking for names:
失礼ですが、どちら様でいらっしゃいますか？
Of course, there’s a billion ways of asking for a person’s name politely, all with different nuances and levels of politeness, but this is one of them…
… I think (I’m fairly sure, but I have only begun to explore the complexities of polite Japanese).
@Tosiaki
Hello Tosiaki!
あなた様 is not so common. You may hear that in old samurai drama or when you talk to someone sarcastically because it sounds overly polite.
Compared to あなた様、we hear お宅様 more. Still it is not considered to be a formal way to address people.
お宅様のおっしゃる通りですか？ (or お宅様のおっしゃる通りでございますか？)
I think you meant affirmative sentence not a question. It sounds strange in question.
お宅様のおっしゃる通りです。
But I would just say おっしゃる通りです
このレッスンはとても役に立っています！あるがとうございます、マギー先生！
日本語を４年間くらい勉強しているけど、日本に留学に行く時、店人さんが何を言っているか聞き取れなくて少し困ったんです。
敬語は少しだけ話せるけど、レジで店人さんは早口で敬語で話して私が分からなくて恥ずかしかったんです。何も言わずに首を横に降って。。。
このレッスンはすごく助かってありがとう（＾＾）
@Lava
このレッスンが役に立つと聞いて嬉しいです。
レジで店員さんが早口で話すので何を言っているかわからないという人は多いみたいですね。今度、日本でお買い物をする時は是非、何を言っているか聞き取ってみて下さいね。
（A little correction : このレッスンはすごく助かります。or このレッスンはすごく役に立ちます。+ ありがとう ）
and どういたしまして！:)
こんにちは、マギー先生！
質問があるんですが、「沙汰」と言う意味は何ですか？
本でこう出てきましたが、「銀行強盗なんて狂気の沙汰だ。」
事件、事柄、出来事って同じ意味ですか？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava.
沙汰はいろいろな意味がありますが、deed,conduct incident, case, issue, matter, notice, news, etc. という意味があります。
狂気の沙汰はcrazy deedで事件、事柄と考えていいです。
他にも裁判沙汰= saiban zata= taking some cases into court, 暴力沙汰= bouryoku zata = an instance of violence, 音沙汰がない(haven’t heard from someone) などの言葉でよく使います。
Where does omoikitte come into all this? to one’s hearts content right? and harikitte, to go all out, are they specific variations of the same kirenai/ kiru thing?
＠John
It will be easier to think
思う＝to concern, to worry, to think about something a lot →思い切る= to stop／finish worrying about something/what is going to happen and just do something.= take risk and do something.
張る = to yank something (such as a string, a rope, etc.) →張り切る= Describe your exciting feelings to do something as if you yank a string (or rope) all the way (completely).
こんにちは、マギー先生！
質問があるなんですけど、「。。。ることがある」の例文を作ってみましたが、正しいかどうか分かりません。
「２年前の怪我をした日以来、時々膝は炎症がまた起こって痛くなることがある。」
“Since my injury 2 years ago, sometimes by knees flare up again and become really sore.”って言いたいです。
添削してくださいませんか？
@Lava
こんにちは、Lava!
「２年前の怪我をした日以来、時々膝は炎症がまた起こって痛くなることがある。」
→よく書けていますよ。細かいところを直しますね。
２年前(に）、怪我をして以来、時々、膝が炎症を起こし痛くなることがある。/or 痛むことがある。
Note :
Lavaは２年前のといいましたが、去年、明日、昨日などの時の言葉の後に「の」を使うのは後に名詞が来るときです。
２年前の+名詞
Ex. ２年前の怪我で足が動かない
明日の＋名詞
この場合、「怪我をする」という動詞を使っているので
２年前+（に）+〜の方がいいです。
膝は→膝が
「は」と「が」の区別は難しいですが、この場合は、どこが痛いかはっきりさせる文章になるので「が」を使った方がいいです。
動詞の方がいいです。
直してくださってありがとうございます、先生！
いい勉強になりました！
@Lava
どういたしまして！ :)
ありがと五歳マスタ！！！！！ これ大好物！！！！！茂市と ありがと誤差います！！！！！！！
@errolronal
五歳マスタ??? Ah you are writing that way on purpose? Then I won’t correct you. :)
どういたしまして！
ありがと誤差います！！あけましておめでとう 誤差います！！！！マジ手すごい！！！！！！
@errolronal
明けましておめでとうございます。:) Thank you for visiting this site!
Hope you come back again.
（A little correction : ありがとうございます。
Kanji 「誤差います」→You can write ”御座います” but we usually use hiragana. 「ございます。」）
The concluding する, can it be any form of する, including the potential form? できる
ハワイに行けば、ゴルフをしたり、海で泳いだり できます。
If I go to Hawaii, I can swim in the ocean, I can play golf and can do other things.
@Brett Davidson
~たりできる →Yes, it’s possible. :)
こんにちは、マギー先生!
このレッスンには関係ないんですが、初めてこのサイトを見つけると、すぐ気になります。おもしろいし、分かりやすいし、色んな事を教えてくれてありがとうございます!
実は去年から先生のサイトをよく見ているんですが、先生に「こんにちは。」と言う何て恥ずかしくて、勇気がないんです ^^;
Sorry if I made any grammatical errors orz
@Kai
こんにちは、Kai!!! 初めてのメッセージとってもうれしかったです。これからもいつでも気軽にメッセージ書いて下さいね。
そしてこのサイトに来てくれて本当にありがとう！これからもよろしくね。:)
（日本語、よく書けています。）
はい、こちらこそ O w O)/
またこのレッスンと関係ないけど、質問があります。
【さっさと】と【早く】の違うのはなんですか。
and in what kind of context should we use it?
@Kai
“早く” is a general word and you can use it in the meaning of “early”/ “quickly”/”fast/now” and さっさと is an onomatopoeia and it describe a quick action and often implies one’s cold-hearted，nonchalant, careless behavior and emotion.
*朝早く起きます。= I wake up early in the morning.（You can’t use さっさと）
*彼は早く走ります= He runs fast. （You can’t use さっさと）
*彼は早く帰った= He left (somewhere) early.
*彼はさっさと帰った = He left quickly (without any hesitation.)
早く起きなさい！= Get up now!
さっさと起きなさい
means the same but さっさと sounds strong and condescending so it is OK to use to describe your actions but avoid using it with someone superior.
!!! Ah, I get it now :D
説明してくれてありがとう、先生!
マギー先生, thank you for the wonderful breakdown of なければ・なくてはいけない to なきゃ・なくちゃ.
It makes a lot of sense, so in fact, I quite understand it now.
But, I do have a question about the なきゃ when it is なきゃいい. Is it なければいい? or なくていい?
I was reading this manga, and the narration was 変われなきゃいい. I’ve only seen なければ with the negative, so it confuses me with the positive.
Thank you!!
@Tilly
Hi Tilly,
OK, 変われなきゃいい is a casual contraction of 変わらなければいい
Other examples
*しなければいい→しなきゃいい
Ex. ~をしたくなければしなきゃいいのに。
If you don’t want to do 〜, you don’t have to do that.
*ならなければいい→ならなきゃいい
Ex. そんなことにならなきゃいいが…
= I hope it won’t happen.
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for the explanation and clarification.
Your blog is super helpful, I wish I had found it sooner!
@Tilly
You’re very welcome, Tilly!
And I am very happy to hear my site is helpful.
Feel free to come visit me anytime!
Wow this is a really helpful guide to job hunting! I’m still a student so I’ve never hunted for a job before.
I was just wondering, Maggie-sensei, if you know anything about medical jobs (doctors) for foreigners in Japan? I am currently a 4th year medical student in Ireland and it’s my dream to work in Japan. I’ve been studying Japanese for 3 years now too.
Thank you:)
@Lava
Hi Lava,
I am glad to hear you find this lesson helpful.
OK, what I know is in order to be a doctor in Japan, you have to pass 国家試験(National exam) in Japanese and get a license and it is very difficult to be a doctor in Japan.
However Japanese government has been trying to change the law in past few years and they said we should accept more foreign doctors in future.
I found this article. It might give you an idea.
Thank you!
That exam seems really hard, since I’m aware that the medical terms are not in latin. I hope maybe one day I’ll be able to go.
Thanks for all your help:)
@Lava
You’re very welcome! And がんばって！
Hello Maggie sensei,
I know my question has not much to do with this lesson, other than the kanji 先 itself. I have a really hard time understanding the overall meaning of the following sentence, especially the last part.
もちろん、民主的な選挙が出来ない国も世界には沢山ありますから、そういう意味では、そこそこ民主的な選挙制度があるだけでも幸せで、そういう意味で、日本の選挙制度も “Better than nothing.”「ないよりはまし」なのかもしれませんがが、都民、国民が「この人にぜひ！」と思えるような人が沢山出てくるような時代は、もう少し先なのでしょうかねぇ
My try at literal translation (sorry that English is not my mother tongue, but hope you get what I mean)
As a matter of course, there are many other countries in the world that do not have democratic electoral system, so in that kind of meaning, having such system is already quite a good thing. One could say that the electoral system in Japan is “Better than nothing”, and there is time when there are a lot of municipal/ national citizens could think (point out) “That guy will win (the election)”, so it’s fairly predictable, isn’t it?
I know it sounds a bit awkward, so could you help me out, sensei?
@Poriko
Hello Poriko
Your translation is pretty good.
Just…
1) この人にぜひ！ : Your translation “That guy will win (the election)”
この人にぜひ is unfinished sentence and it implies (勝ってもらいたい・政治家になってもらいたい・やってもらいたい…etc)
2) もう少し先なのでしょうか : you translated it’s fairy predictable.
The speaker is wondering it will take a little bit of time
Thank you for your correction sensei!
Now things are much clearer to me.
Since I had no idea 少し先 means so I just assumed the writer wants to criticize the not-so-democratic of the so-called democratic electoral system, then translated the last part accordingly.
Thank you again for your help.
@Poriko
You’re very welcome! :)
マギー先生、
ちょっと聞きたいことがありますが。。
「ように」と「ために」はどちら違いますか？
I know that ために sounds more like “for the benefit of”, but my textbook also says that you can only use the particle を with ために.
For example:
自分の店を持つために、貯金していますえ。
自分の店が持てるように、貯金していますえ。(as if ように can only be used with potential verbs)
So.. can’t you say this?:
自分の店を持つように、貯金していますえ。
Because in another textbook I found another example using the particle を
子供が本を読むようにおもしろそうな本を買ってきた。
Thank you very much for your time!!
@Macarena
こんにちは！Macarena!
You are right. 「ように」and「ために」are very similar and you might wonder which one to use.
Usually you use ように with potential verbs or verbs with potential meaning such as わかる
読める、話せる、帰れる、できる、わかる etc＋ように
and you use ために with volitional verbs
読む、話す、帰る、行く、勉強する, etc. + ために
and show your will in order to do something.
Now about the sentence you found
子供が本を読むようにおもしろそうな本を買ってきた。
It is possible to use ように when it has different subjects in one sentence.
Let’s divide this sentence into two parts.
子供が本を読むように= In order my child to read a book (subject : my child)
おもしろそうな本を買ってきた= I bought an interesting book (subject : I )
Hello Maggie Sensei,
Happy Lunar New Year, though I don’t know whether you celebrate it or not :)
I’ve been a follower of your wonderful site for quite a long time, but this is my very 1st comment.
Could you tell me what is the meaning of ようで in the following sentence:
“週末になると、よくフリマが開催されていたりしますが、フリマは、主催者がいるようでいない催し物という感じがするものですが、そんなときには、
“Who’s running the show?”「誰が主催しているの？」
“Nobody’s running the show.”「別に誰というわけじゃないみたい」
なんていうやり取りがるかもしれません。”
I have never seen ようで used in such a way, but I have the feeling that it has a very close meaning to “主催者がいないような”.
Many thanks in advance for your help!
@Poriko
Hello Poriko!
Thank you for your first message on this site!! And Happy Lunar New Year, 2u2!
OK about your question, it is funny because someone has asked a similar question on Twitter today (〜ようで〜ないようで）
Your sentence
主催者がいるようでいない
has a following pattern.
↓
~ようで〜ない
It means
Though it looks like there is an organizer but there isn’t.
↓
It is hard to tell if there is an organizer or not.
It is not clear that if there is an organizer or not
So it means you don’t feel the presence of the organizer in the events like flea markets.
How’s that?
Ahhh, I think I got it, sensei.
So, to put it another way, ようで is a conjunctive form of ようだ, and だ changes to で to link 主催者がいる and いない which both act as adjectives of 催し物.
Does it still work the other way around, sensei? ~主催者がいないようでいる催し物~
@Poriko
That’s right! I think you got it,too! :)
And yes, the other way around works as well. 主催者がいないようでいる催し物~
What about the difference between them in situations where 誰にも is used with non-negative verbs? e.g. What is the difference (if there is one? I feel like there isn’t really but grammatically I couldn’t explain why) between 誰にもできる and 誰でもできる or 誰にもわかる and 誰でもわかる?
@Erica
Hello Erica,
誰にも is usually used in a negative sentence but you can see it with non-negative verb form when it modify a noun.
誰にもわかる日本語 = 誰でもわかる日本語 (The same meaning)
誰にもできる仕事 = 誰でもできる仕事 (The same meaning)
マギー先生、
「とか言ってみたりして・・・」は「なんちゃって」と同じニュアンスですか。
「私のお蔭で、なんとかさんは上手になったよね。とか言ってみたりして、へへ。」
@Cygnus
こんにちは、Cygnus! お久しぶり！
そうそう、”とか言ってみたりして” = “なんちゃって”と同じ意味で自分の言ったことを冗談っぽく聞こえさせるために言います。
Hello! It’s me again ^^u
I need more airport vocabulary xD
How do you say, Casher (where you pay for sth, like an excess bag) and Ticket Sales (where you buy tickets or change sth in your reservation)?
And also,how would you say “go straight ahead, and at the first counter turn left to go to inmigration”.
sorry if this post was made three times, for some reason the window froze.
Thank u so much for your help!
@R.de M.
Hello, R.de M. again! (I just got one comment from you.)
Casher in Japanese is レジ but it is only used in the stores. Do you have a special counter to pay all that? If so we would just say カウンター
Ex. お荷物の超過料金はあちらのカウンターでお支払い下さい。
= Onimotsu no choukaryoukin wa achira no kauntaa de oshiharai kudasai.
= Please pay the excess bag charge at the counter over there
And you if you sell tickets at a counter, you can call it
発券カウンター= hakken kauntaa
このまままっすぐお進み頂き最初のカウンターを左に曲がり入国審査の方にいらして下さい。
= Kono mama massugu osusumi itadaki saisho no kauntaa wo hidari ni magari nyuukoku shinnsa no hou ni irashite kudasai.
thank you so much again for your help!
@R.de M.
You’re very welcome! :)
Hi Maggie,
Would you know what i the Japanese name of those Origami fortune teller?
I am sure it must come from Japan and has spread worldwide.
Anyone I spoke about it used to play with it when they were little.
Thank you
Sabine
@sabine
Hi Sabine!
Origami uranai? I wonder if you are talking about this but it is called パクパク. :)
I don’t oftenly post comments but I had to say
どうも有り難うございました for this incredible lesson. You gave many many great examples that are going to be more than usefull . Thank you for taking time to do this excellent lesson .
(^o^)/
@YumiBeauty
コメント、ありがとう Yumi！！！ :)
hello! im a bit confused about when ‘nante’ is at the end of the sentence. like… after a somewhat sentence, he says, なぁんて. is that equivalent to ‘just kidding’ as well? or maybe ‘like this’. eg. watashi mo suki desu, naante.
@rin
Hello rin!
私も好きです。なあんて…(Watashi mo suki desu. Naante..)
→It means “just kidding” not “like this”
今日は日本語勉強したらりうんどうしたりしました！
@John
よくできました！！ :) いつでもここで練習してくださいね。
（I think it is just a typo 勉強したらり→日本語の勉強（を）したり）
maggiesensei.com は当たり前じゃない？www 本とか雑誌はできない。ここにないし。残念よね(T ^ T)
@ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
それはうれしいです！！
そう、本や雑誌がなければ、インターネットで何か探すといいですね。
I understand…maybe.
Anyways, do you know other ways I can practice?
@ ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
What do you mean → “other ways I can practice”? You want to find other ways to practice reading Japanese other than DS?
If so, yes, tons! Books, magazines, internet….and MaggieSensei.com. :)
Not all the words but you can say 初カレ(The first boyfriend), colloquial, 初トモ(The first friend), colloquial, 初旅（the first trip).
→なるほど(´・ω・｀)
反対側 means the other side, the opposite side
→っていうか、文の意味は「This is the back of the school building’s opposite side?」ちょっと変かな？それとも「This is the back of the school building」でいいかもね。
校舎 is school building. (I don’t understand 畏. I wonder if it is 裏=ura= behind)
→ああ、漢字を誤解してたかも。だって、裏に見えた場所は[のノベルに]。
教えてくれてありがとうございます(*´▽｀*)
@ ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
OK, if the sentence is ここが反対側の校舎の裏かな？ the translation is
I wonder if this is the back of the school building in the opposite side.
And どういたしまして！
Just in case I made too many mistakes that you can’t understand what I wrote(^◇^;)
Question→Can I add hatsu to anything (hatsukare, hatsutomodachi, hatsutabi etc)?
These days I play/read visual novels on my ds. I get to learn different words kinds of words but sometimes the dictionary doesn’t have the meaning to those words. Could you tell me what 反対側 and 校舎畏 mean? The sentence I found them in was ”ここが反対側の校舎畏かな？”
This lesson was interesting(≧∇≦)b
質問→”初” と何もを付けられるかな（た例えば→初彼、初達、初たび)
この頃ＤＳでビジュアルノベルやってる。色々単語をならってるでもたまに辞書に引けない(?)。反対側と校舎畏ってなんの意味でしょ？The sentence is 「ここは反対厠の校舎畏」。
ありがとうございます。
@ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
Not all the words but you can say 初カレ(The first boyfriend), colloquial, 初トモ(The first friend), colloquial, 初旅（the first trip).
反対側 means the other side, the opposite side
校舎 is school building. (I don’t understand 畏. I wonder if it is 裏=ura= behind)
I know this is an old post and I understand the basic meanings for いるとある
but I was trying to translate the phrase 「私は新宿にある」and was confused on what it meant for the にある。
I would be really grateful if you could briefly help explain what にある means. Thank you.
＠Miburi
Hi Miburi!
We don’t use ある for people. We are supposed to say 私は新宿にいる／います so 私は新宿にある。doesn’t make any sense.
Unless it is a part of the sentence, for example
私は新宿にあるビルの中にいます。
Where did you see the sentence?
I saw it on a Japanese tv show.
She said ”私は新宿にある北海度に流れ着きました”
How should someone interpret the sentence grammar.
The ある is in reference to the Hokkaido coming to Shinjuku?
@Miburi
Hello Miburi.
First of all, it is 北海道 not 北海度, right?
I can assume the speaker is talking about a place (supposedly a restaurant or bar) in Shinjuku where they serve typical Hokkaido food and place where Hokkaido people hang out.
If so, this ある refers to a place not 私 and it makes sense.
私は＜新宿にある”北海道”＞に流れ着きました。
It is some kind of metaphor.
It means “I drifted to “Hokkaido” which exists in Shinjuku”
ありがとうございました！
漢字が間違いました。はい、「北海道」が書いていました。
Yes, it was a show about a product exhibition of Hokkaido food.
北海道の物産展の所でした。
Ok that makes sense so to break down the sentence from the 私は, since that would not make sense if it was connected.
Sorry for the confusing question, I’ll make sure to provide more detail next time.
@Miburi
どういたしまして！
Now it makes sense!
I am glad we solved the problem!!
Thanks for the lesson~ I noticed this:
[A and B are talking about a book.
A : まだ半分も読み終えていない。
= Mada kono hon hanbun mo yomioete inai.]
There’s some text missing from the Japanese part or there’s some extra in the romanji. :) Not a big deal, but for a real beginner it may be confusing.
@papperogue
Thank you for Sporting the mistake.Right now I’m on vacation so I will fiv it as soon as I come back to Japan! ありがとう！
This was very useful and detailed. Thank you. I know you covered 重そう which is the adj + ending removed + そう but I was wondering what about if someone says “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight”. I was thinking you could say something like “痩せたみたいです” but is it possible to use そう because its the past tense so I’m not sure if that makes sense.
@Miburi
Hello Miburi!
Good point! “Maggie, you seemed to have lost weight” is 痩せたみたい
そう is only used to describe the current or sometime future condition.
If I am working on a diet and I think it may work, I can say 痩せそう。
And if you see someone who looks skinny you can say
細そう
Thank you 先生! You explained it very well. 「細そう」はかなり言いにくいですね。
I was wondering from the comment below, “彼はいつもセーターを着ていそうだ。”
Can we use any action form that’s present tense or future with そう? like くれる＝くれそう
For instance, “it seems like he’s always teaching me English.”
彼はいつも私に英語を教えてくれそうです。 Does that make sense?
@Miburi
Yes, you can use ~そう with くれる
彼はいつも私に英語を教えてくれそうです。totally makes sense. :)
こんばんは！
また質問があります。
１．A: やちゃったね
B：えぇぇ、わたしじゃない/ わたしではありません
Are there any difference between じゃない and ではありません in terms of meaning and usage? If there is, how do we use them, say, for the above example?
２．How should we address someone? For example, 渡辺リオ. Do we address her as 渡辺さん or リオさん if we first met each other?
あけましておめでとう！
@Aki
Happy New Year! Aki!
1) じゃない is much more casual than ではない
I have a lesson on that theme. Please check じゃない＆んじゃない
2) It depends on the person but generally speaking if you see someone for the first time, it will be safe to address them with family name with さん 渡辺さん
But if that person introduce themselves with their first name, you can call that person first name with さん リオさん
お正月であっても日本語を勉強せねばならぬ！^^
このレッソンには二つのことを言い足させていただきます。
一つ： 「～たことがあった」の形もありますね。 英語なら “there where times when”, “there was a time when”, “one day I ~ed”という意味です。
例）「うち娘はニンジンが嫌いなんだけど、目に見えなかったら食べられるのよ。キャロットケーキを作ったことがあったんだけど、すごく喜んで食べたのよ！」(Our daughter hates carrots, but she can eat them if she can’t see them. !One day I made! a carrot cake, and she happily ate it!)
二つ： 「～たことがある」は話し手の過去の経験を表すことだけでなく、時に「過去の時別なことがあった」という意味を表すこともあります。
例）「5年前にこの地方で大変な山火事が起こったことがあります。」(5 years ago !there was! a terrible forest fire in this area.)
今は完璧です！
＠天人
お正月でも日本語を勉強をすることがありますか？（笑）
ああ、いい補足ですね。また時間がある時にこの二つを「〜たことがある」の方のレッスンに足しておきますね。ありがとう！！
こちらこそ、素晴らしいレッスンをどうもありがとうございました、先生！
実は、勉強ならばどの日でも良いですね、お正月でも＾＾。それに日本語は私の大趣味なので、毎日頑張って勉強していますしね。
役に立つコメントだったので嬉しいです。I will try to post some comments to every of your lessons – as a supplement – if something interesting will come up to my mind or when I will have some questions. I’m very happy that you love to share your knowledge about the Japanese language. I also share my knowledge with some of my friends (友達は日本学科学生です。２、３年生). 私は独習ですので and it is sometimes really hard to see the slight differences between some patterns, especially when you
are not Japanese, although I use good Japanese dictionaries and websites like kotobank.jp or dictionary.goo.ne.jp, but still… ま、ちょっと喋り過ぎちゃったね＾＾とにかく、居てくれてありがとう！
@天人
独学でそれだけ日本語ができるのは素晴らしいことだと思います。
これからもがんばって下さいね！！
I came across a sentence that just said “Shinji-kun, 手あげて.” I can’t figure out what that’s supposed to mean. Nothing happens involving hands or anything like that so I can’t help but think it’s some idiom?
@An
Hello An! Happy New Year!
Ah that’s あげる is not to do something for someone. It means “to raise”
So 手(を)あげて is Te (w) agete = raise your hand(s)
Hello,
I’ve started studying japanese last december, and I just found out about this website today. I have to say, I really loved your lessens sensei.
Not only they’re easy to understand but we also get to laugh xD お世話になります!!
@Wissam
Hello Wissam!
Welcome to our site! I am glad you found us.
こちらこそ、よろしくね！
Hello Maggie, thanks again for this lesson
(I’m reading it late I know but I need time to assimilate the lessons I read)
I was wondering about the word “なんか” It seems to have a very similar usage; Is it just a derivation ? If so, what nuance does it have?
Thanks in advance and cheers for your EXCELLENT work !
@ジュリアン
Hello ジュリアン！
Welcome to this lesson. (You can study any lesson any time. There is no right order here.:)
Though I have made a mini lesson other usage of なんか, you can replace なんて with なんか
1) when you emphasize the word which comes before なんて（=nante) and express your feelings such as surprise (either positive or negative), disgust, admiration, happiness, disbelief, etc.
2) When you look down, belittle someone or something or lack of confidence.
Ex. 試験なんてきらいだ→試験なんかきらいだ
Ex. お金なんていりません。→お金なんかいりません。
Ex. もう恋なんてしない。→もう恋なんかしない。
But you use なんか right after a noun and you can’t use なんか after an adjective or verb.
彼が私のことを好きだなんてしらなかった。→ X 好きだなんか
こんなに試験が難しいなんて…→ X 難しいなんか
So
彼のことを忘れるなんてことはできない。
This case なんて comes after a verb 忘れる so you can’t replace なんて with なんか but if you say
彼のことを忘れることなんてできない
なんて comes after a noun (忘れること）
You can replace なんて with なんか
彼のことを忘れることなんかできない。
Good question, ジュリアン！
Hi, thanks for the great blog and lessons!
What is the meaning of し in NEWSも好きだし、嵐も好きだ。?
ありがとうございます！
@マルコ
Hi マルコ！
〜し here means “and”
(I will post a lesson on し next year!)
ありがとうございました、ゆかり先生！
あなたのブログが本当に好きだよ！
@マルコ
どういたしまして！！またいつでもこのブログに来て下さいね。
こんにちは、マギー先生！
I think you have explained everything what could be explained about という in an outstanding way. Great job!
I’ve got two small questions:
1. I’m just wondering about the following grammar construction: ～というはず、 ～というべき、～というともり.
a) In what kind of situations would you use という+はず、という+べき、という＋つもり?
(I’m sure that it is used in quotations: ex.「はい、いいですよ。」というはずがありません。I think, it might be used also in explanation like というわけ. How about other possibilities?)
2. Is there a difference between というと～ 、ということは～ and というわけで～ ?
例）マギー先生: 明子さんの家族は今四人です。
私: というと、赤ちゃんが生まれましたね！
↓
私：ということは、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。
↓
私：というわけで、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。
I think those three expressions can be used interchangeable and the meaning will be still almost the same (= which means / this means / so).
宜しくお願い致します！
天人より。
@天人
こんにちは、天人!
1. a) という+はず
(I’m sure that it is used in quotations: ex.「はい、いいですよ。」というはずがありません。
→Yes it is correct.
と言うはず is usually used to quote someone’s speech.
Someone is supposed to say ~~~~
Someone should say ~~~~
The speaker expect someone says ~~~~
b) という+べき = should say, call , would say, call
Ex. それが法律違反というべきかどうかわからない。
Ex. おかしいことはおかしいというべきです。
Ex. これも運命というべきなのだろうか。
c) ～というつもり to be going to say ~~~
Ex. 全部私がやりますというつもりはありません。
Ex. 彼女に愛しているというつもりです。
Ex. 自分は間違ったことは何もしていないというつもりですか？
2. ~というと I already explained in the lesson so please read it again.
マギー先生: 明子さんの家族は今四人です。
私：ということは、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。(correct)
( ということは= That means) You can’t use というと (Speaking of~)
You use というわけで when you explain some reason. In this case you are not explaining any reason.
ご回答ありがとうございました。
一つ気になることがありますが。先生は私が最後の述べた文章では、「You can’t use というと」と言いましたね。実はこれは「どんな時どう使う」という教科書から取られた例文です(家族の名などをちょっとchangeしたのだけれど). この「というと」という言い回しは相手の言った言葉を受けて、それが自分の思っている内容と同じかどか確かめる時に使うものです。先生が言った通りの”To confirm what other people has just told you.”と同じ意味である。『「というと」の前を省略して接続的に使う場合もある』とある。ならば、「というと、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。」は「明子さんの家族というと、赤ちゃんが生まれたのですね。」=> 確認 ＝ 正解文章（だと思います）。違うかな？
@天人
今回は日本語で書いてくれたので日本語で返事をしますね。
そうですね、「というと」で文を始めることもありますが、この例はなんか違和感があるんですよね。多分、というとのspeaking ofの方の意味につながるからかなあ。「ということは」の方がよく相手の言っていることを受けて結論に結びつけるときにわかりやすく伝わる自然だと思いました。
でも語学書にそう書いてあるのならそういう使い方も合っているのだと思います。”語学書様”に異論を唱えるつもりはありません。逆に教えてくれてありがとう！ ：）
Dear Maggie先生,
First of all I wanted to thank you very very much for such wonderful lessons. You made them in a very interesting and easy-to-learn way, which is quite difficult. I am also really impressed how precise your lessons are. Thanks to you my japanese has become much better.
Now, if you allow, I’d like to ask you two questions about わけ.
1. When わけがない cannot be interchanged with はずがない? It’s quite difficult to see the difference between わけがないand はずがない, however there is a difference, which is: 「はずがない」は客観的判断であり、「わけがない」は主観的判断です。
2. What’s the difference between というわけ vs （な）わけ, and when is it necessary to use というわけ instead of （な）わけ?
例）
1. 絶対に嫌だというわけではない。 VS 絶対に嫌なではない。
2. あの二人は仲が悪いというわけではないがよく言い争いをしている。 VS あの二人は仲が悪いわけではないがよく言い争いをしている。
3. そんなに複雑なわけではないがやたら時間がかかる。 VS そんなに複雑（だ）というわけではないがやたら時間がかかる。
I think that 「という」 used in 「というわけ」(depending on context) might also imply hearsay (伝聞) (people say/they say/it seems like). Which means that the speaker doesn’t fully agree with the – let’s call it – general idea of something or second-hand information. This brings me to the conclusion that そんなに複雑なわけではないがやたら時間がかかる means: It is not so complicated, but it takes a lot of time, and そんなに複雑というわけではないがやたら時間がかかる could mean:
1. It is not that they [/people] say it’s so complicated, but it takes a lot of time, or
2. It is not that I say it’s so complicated, but it takes a lot of time.
Am I right?
やっぱし難しいやね・・・その違いを詳しく説明して頂けると有り難いです。宜しくお願い致します。
天人より
@Tennin
こんにちは！Tennin!
Thank you for your nice message!
1. わけがない and はずがない ：
Yes わけがない is subjective and はずがない is objective.
Ex. 1) 日曜日なのに銀行が開いているはずがない
Ex. 2) 日曜日なのに銀行が開いているわけがない。
The translation can be the same and we may use them the same way but Ex.1) All the banks are supposed to be closed on Sunday. Ex.2) There is no way that banks are open on Sunday and it express your strong opinion.
2) (A little correction 絶対に嫌なではない。→絶対に嫌なわけではない)
I think your interpretation is correct in certain cases but という is not always for hearsay. We also use it when we explain how things work. The main difference between ~というわけではない and ~わけではない is ~というわけではない is more explanatory.
I have mentioned in my という lesson so please go check.
Thank you for the piping hot lessons!~
@Kasandra
Now we can see your comment!! Thank you!! :)
hi maggie sensei!
Im very confused! Can you tell me whats the difference between ‘baka ni shinai de yo’, ‘baka shinai de yo’ and ‘baka ni shinai da yo’ and ‘baka shinai da yo’ ?? @-@
@llovepie
Hello llovepie!
Ah good question!
馬鹿にしないでよ。
= Baka ni shinai de yo!
= Don’t make fun of me.
馬鹿(なことを）しないでよ。
= Baka (na koto wo) shinai de yo
= Don’t do stupid things.
こんにちは、マギー先生
一つ問題があります
In this sentence, “白いのはないの” what does the second の function as ? Is it used to end the sentence more naturally ?
eg. 何をしてるの？ How about the の here ? I am thinking they are used the same way.
@Aki
こんにちは、Aki!
(You have a question? Then 問題 →質問=しつもん=shitsumon is better. 問題 means “a trouble”）
OK, when you make a casual question, you add の at the end.
これは美味しいですか？= Is this delicious?
→(casual) これ美味しいの？= Kore oishii no?
何をしていますか？
→(casual) 何をしているの？
誰ですか？
→(casual)誰なの？
日本語の勉強をしていますか？
→(casual)日本語の勉強をしているの？
Thank you for your prompt reply and also the correction.
はい、わかりました。
PS: 早く答えて訂正してありがとうございした。
Is this right ? :)
@Aki
（Here is a pattern : Verb (し)てくれてありがとう Ex. 早速返事をしてくれてありがとう。Ex.訂正してくれてありがとう。Ex.直してくれてありがとう。 ）
どういたしまして！ U^ェ^U
This blog is very helpful!!! Thank you so much… You help me to improve my Japanese… Thank you so much!!! <3 <3
@amylia
Hi Amylia!
Thank YOU for visiting this site!
I am very happy to hear my blog helps your Japanese.
がんばってね！
Hi,
this: “It is not considered as kanji so we can’t read this letter alone. ” preoccupies me cause i’ve learned to read it のま and tangorin mentions it too.
Are you positive?
Great site btw.
ありがと
@Jo
Hello jo,
のま(ノマ） is just a name of this repetition mark.
Because it looks like ノ+マ
I checked Tangorin but I don’t see the example of reading 々 as のま.
They introduce the name of the mark as,
くりかえしkurikaeshi · おなじonaji · おなじくonajiku · のまnoma · どうのじてんdounojiten
Thank you for visiting this site!
Hello sensei, is it possible to explain the terms ‘desutte’? I think I came across this word in your forum but there werent any lessons regarding to it. Can you tell me how to use and the function of desutte? Thank you so much.
@anna
Hello Anna!
I added the information in the lesson. So please check it. :)
Basically it adds the politeness.
だって→ですって
Ex. マギー、明日来ないんだって = I heard Maggie is not coming tomorrow.
↓
マギー、明日来ないんですって。
Maggie-sensei,
I’m at a Japanese elementary school, and before the children say “te wo awasete kudasai”, they usually say another phrase and I can’t quite make it out. It sounds something like “kyuushoku otobansan arigatougozaimasu”. What exactly are they saying?
I’ve been a fan of your site and I’ve just came across this post today. Thank you for all the wonderful lessons!
@ann
Hello Ann!
I guess every school has different version but your listening is very good.
That must be
給食お当番さん有り難うございます。
= Kyuushoku otoubansan arigatou gozaimasu.
給食= kyuushoku = school lunch
当番= touban = turn, duty
（The polite way : お当番さん= otouban san)
給食当番 = Kyuushoku touban = one’s turn to serve school lunches,
or a student who is in charge of helping serve school lunches
Thank you for the nice message!!! Hope you come back here again and again! :)
Usually students take a turn to help serve school lunch.
So other students express their appreciation towards them.
先生、高校生の女の子とか若い人々の言い方は大人と違うですか？映画とかドラマに違って見えるけど。違うとどうやってdifferenciate できるかな？
@ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
違いますよ〜。
いっぱいレッスンがあります。よかったらチェックしてね。
Gal’s slang あげぽよ
若者言葉
日本の高校生がいいそうなこと
etc. etc.
Hello ! I just finished reading your lesson and saw a mistake right here :
” 寝る(=okiru) to sleep
寝ない (=okinai) not to sleep ”
Isn’t it “neru” and “nenai” ?
And by the way, about that part :
“明日、映画でも観に行かない？”
Just wondering, is there any difference between 見に行く and 観に行く ? I’ve always learnt to write it like the first one, so I was a bit surprised !
Thank you for what you do, I love your lessons, there’re really great !
頑張ってね！
@サーフィー
こんにちは、サーフィー!
Ooops!! Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them. (I copied and pasted them with my little paws and forgot to changed them. ^；ｪ；^,)
As for 見る vs 観る
Basically you can use 見る
But we use 観る for movies, musicals, arts, plays, arts, something you appreciate, sightseeing, etc.
そうか。ありがとうございました！
@サーフィー
こちらこそ、ありがとう！
Beginner lessons are very helpful. ありがとうございます。
@ヽ(*´∀｀)ノ
I am very happy to hear that!! I will make more lessons for beginners for you! U^ェ^U
Hello,
Ive heard this sentence today:
「ゆっくりしか歩けないし、まっすぐ歩けなかったり、重い物持ってなかったり」
Why is the tari form is use in the past negative, further more why is there no suru ?
助けてください マギー先生！
@Jean Christophe
Hello Jean,
(I think the last part is 重いもの（を）持てなかったり）
So this sentence connect the following things.
1) ゆっくりしか歩けない
& connect with し
2-1) まっすぐ歩けない
& connect with たり
2-2) 重いものを持てない
Now when we connect 歩けない & 持てない with たり
It will be 歩けなかったり持てなかったり
There isn’t any example sentences with negative form, huh?
I will add them later.
When you use たり with a negative verb form,
The formation will be,
☆verb past tense negative form (~なかった）+ り
Ex. 日によって食べたり食べなかったりする。
Ex. 日によって電話をかけたりかけなかったりする。
Ex. 日によって歌を歌ったり歌わなかったりする。
Ex. 日によって掃除をしたりしなかったりする。
but these are not a past tense. If you want to make it in past tense, just change
Ex. 日によって食べたり食べなかったりした。
Ex. 日によって電話をかけたりかけなかったりした。
Ex. 日によって歌を歌ったり歌わなかったりした。
Ex. 日によって掃除をしたりしなかったりした。
I think 帰る should be classified as u-verb :)
@Mon Sama
Hello Mon Sama!
Thank you!!! I removed it. ありがとう！
Hello maggie sensei^^
It’s been a while since I visited your wonderful site.
I have the following question:
1. what is the plain form of “yarareta?
2. what is the meaning of “kanari”? in the first sentence. Also, what is “de” function here?
3. “watashi ga icchatterutte itta no wa” what is “-tte” here? Also, what is the function of “no wa? I don’t understand the combination..
Thanks in advance for your help and your great efforts to help people learn Japanese.
ほんとうにありがとうございます。
@kuroineko
Hello!! Ohisashiburi!
1. やられた(=yarareta) やる(=yaru) →passive form やられる(=yarareru) →past tense of passive form やられた(=yarareta)
2. かなり(=kanari) means “very much” “pretty much” “a lot” “really”
“(この暑さ）で” this で(=de) has a function of cause. = by this heat, because of this heat
3. 〜って is a casual way to say “と” It is used when we quote someone’s speech. (Go check this lesson.)
のは(=nowa) →「〜」と言った人は誰ですか？→「〜」って言った人は誰ですか？→「〜」って言ったのは誰ですか？
(If you want to know more about the function of の. Go check this lesson.)
(I’m sorry I have to post this here, since I coulnd’t post in the previous page… my computer freezes whenever I returned to that page :/”)
Maggie-sensei, may I ask something pretty er.. random?
Approximately how many Kanjis I have to know to be able to read Seinen mangas? (The one that doesn’t have Furiganas).
I learned around 500 kanjis (although I only remember around half…) and I can barely read raw Seinen mnagas :/””. I’m curious to know how far am I from reading them without having to find what’s the kanji by searching those kanjis by radical in websites….@@”
Thank you!
@Zephuros
We learn at least 1,000 kanji in elementary school. And 2000 kanji by the time when you graduate high school.
That will give you an idea… Ganbatte!
(As for the comment, use Maggie’s Room comment section. That way, you can remember where you have posted your question. :))
Reading the title, i though Maggie Sensei wants to tell me about チャラい, as the one that can be translated to ‘playboy’ in English :)
@Ruben
Haha, Actually I have a lesson on ちゃらい. Click this page.
先生、色々有難うございました。
@ageng
どういたしまして！ :)
先生、若者言葉、外来語、流行語はどんな違いますか。
@ageng
こんにちは、ageng!
流行語の中に若者言葉が入ります。
☆流行語 : Buzz words, trendy words
★若者言葉 : buzz words which are used among young people
流行語 is not always used by young people. It could be a word or a quote from news, politicians, athletes, comedians,celebrities, etc.
外来語 means Japanese words which originally came from foreign language* terms (*Mainly from Western language.)
そうですか、つまり若者言葉は絶対に流行語ですか。
先生！また質問します、SLANG語はどんな語ですか。若者言葉と同じ意味ですか。
@ageng
日本語で答えた方がいいかな？
大まかに分類するとそうなりますが、厳密に言うと”若者が使う言葉”という意味でもあるので若者言葉の全てが”流行”しているわけではありません。
スラングは英語から来た言葉ですが、こちらも若者言葉と同じ言葉として扱うこともありますが、ネットスラングとか一定のグループの中で使われている新語、俗語などのことを言います。
先生、返事は遅れてすみませんでした。
やはり若者言葉は特殊の語ですね。先生、若者言葉はいつも変わりますか。若者言葉オンライン事典がありますか。
Nb:sensei iam sorry for my bad japanese
@ageng
日本のGoogleで”若者言葉”を検索するといっぱい出てくると思いますよ。
I came across the verb “kaeri ni/ kaeri michi”. Can all japanese verbs be added with ri at the end just like kaeri? And what does it mean, sensei? Thanks!
@anna
帰る= karu is a verb and it means to go home, to return, to go back
The noun is 帰り= kareri
帰りに= kaeri ni or 帰り道に= kaeri michi ni means “on the way back home” “on one’s way home
Thanks sensei! But is it possible to turn all verbs into -ri ending?
@anna
I think so (including causative and passive forms)
But if I can think of any verbs which we can’t turn into =tari form I will let you know.
BANZAI!! Maggie sensei
eeto…. I wonder if へと for example in.. kimi e to kono te wo nobashita.. applies this ruuru concept that you’ve explained or it has other bunpou..?
Doumo arigatougozaimasu ~
@Layol
Haha Banzai 2u2, Layol!
That と is not a conditional と.
君へとこの手を伸ばした。
is a very poetic expression but へと means “towards” and express some action or feelings goes to some direction.
こんにちは、マギー先生！
I´m sorry sensei, because perhaps this is not the post to ask this but I don´t find any information about “ます 形+上げる/上がる”, for example, 書き上がる、作り上げる… I only know the meaning is “to just finish doing + verb” but I don´t understand, for example, which verbs with to use 上げる and which verbs with use 上がる.
Like always, thank you very much in advance, 先生! ^-^
@Sandra
First you know the difference between ~上げる and 〜上がる？
(object) を(verb masu form) 上げる = 他動詞(Transitive verb)
(subject) が(verb masu form) 上がる = 自動詞 (Intransitive verb)
☆Sometimes one verb can be used for both ~上げる and~上がる
For example the verb 書く
You finished writing the book,
（私は）本を書き上げる
= I finished writing the book.
In English it is the same meaning but you can put the book as a subject,
本が書き上がる
*******
＊（someoneが）肉を焼き上げる (a bit rare but there are cases that we use.)
＊肉が焼き上がる
*******
＊（someoneが）洋服を仕上げる
＊洋服が仕上がる
*******
I will show you other examples which use one of the forms.
○歌い上げる
Ex. Excileの曲を歌い上げる
X歌い上がる
*******
○育て上げる
Ex. 子供を育て上げる
Someone raise the child
x育て上がる
*******
○出来上がる
Something is finished/completed
Ex. 新しい作品が出来上がる
x出来上げる
*******
○晴れ上がる
Ex. 空が晴れ上がる
The sky is clear and you can’t control the sky
x晴れ上げる
Transitive and intransitive verbs… Thank you Maggie sensei, I don´t know how I couldn´t notice that it was about transitive and intransitive verbs when I read this point of grammar at my book.
This pattern meaning is “just finished doing…”, right? What about たて? Both pattern meanings are very similar, and don´t know very well what´s the difference between them.
Thank you very much, 先生!
@Sandra
I have a lesson on 〜たて
Please go check it
http://142.93.68.150/2013/06/28/v%E3%81%9F%E3%81%A6tate-from-facebook-mini-lessons/
The basic difference is Vたて modifies a noun and it has a function as an adj and Vあがる has a function as a verb.
焼きたてのパン
このパンは焼きたてです。
パンが焼き上がった。
I didn´t noticed there was a lesson about 〜たて until you told me, 先生.
I got an idea about 〜たて meaning because an anime called 焼きたてジャパン :) but with your explanation is now completly clear.
As always, thank you very much for your help 先生 and I´m very sorry to answer so late to your last comment.
@Sandra
Good to hear it is clear now. :)
先生、こんにちは。
お元気ですか。
I’d like to thank you for this great lesson.
やっと「はず」の使い方が分かったはずです。(I hope that sentence is correct. If not, how embarrassing…
@Rodrigo
Haha よかった〜！！
Sensei, what’s the difference between “hazu” and “tsumori”?
Ex: Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda tsumori desu.
Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda hazu desu.
Chichi wa mada wakai tsumori desu.
Chichi wa mada wakai hazu desu.
@Rodrigo
Ex. 私はその本を読んだつもりです。
= Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda tsumori desu.
= I thought I read the book. (But I could be wrong.)
Ex. 私はその本を読んだはずです。
= Watashi wa sono hon wo yonda hazu desu.
= I must have read that book.(I am pretty sure.)
Note : verb present tense + つもり= (~するつもりです）to be going to do something, will do something
(When you are talking about what you are going to do in near future.)
verb past tense + つもり=(~したつもりです。）is used when you thought you did/have done something.
*****
Ex. 3) 父はまだ若いつもりです。
= Chichi wa mada wakai tsumori desu.
= My father believes he is still young.
Ex.4) 父はまだ若いはずです。
= Chichi wa mada wakai hazu desu.
= I believe my father is still young.
Note : As you can see the subject of Ex.3) is “my father” but the subject of Ex.4) is “I”.
先生、本当にありがとうございます。
よく分かりました。
@Rodrigo
よかった〜！どういたしまして！ :)
Hey, thanks for posting all this helpful information. I have a fairly specific question regarding the usage of ように見える。
I asked a Japanese friend of mine if I seem like a quiet person and phrased it as “静かなように見える？” and they responded with “(my friend’s name)に比べて静かに見える…”
My question about this exchange is whether the use of 見える specifies the “seemingness” as being specifically a matter of appearance and/or prediction, or can it also carry the sense of “seem” whereby one is stating from experience that doesn’t really relate much to vision.
In other words, does this grammar convey that “I look like I’m quiet compared to my friend” or “I seem more quiet than my friend(based on how much we talk)”, or does it depend on context?
Thanks!
@dha
Hello dha!
When we use みえる it could be based on one’s appearance, the impression you get from that person, things or events or your experience.
私は友達よりも（友達と比べて）〜〜（ように／そうに）みえる／〜（ように／そうに）思われる
I seem more ~~ than my friend
I look like I’m ~~~compare to my friend
Note : When someone looks like a quite person, somehow Aさんは静かなようにみえる/ 静かにみえる don’t sound natural to me even if you adds Bに比べて
I would say
a) Aさんは大人（otona)しくみえる。
b) Aさんは大人しそうにみえる
c) Aさんは大人しそうな人だ。
d) Aさんは大人しそうだ。
Dear マギー先生、 thank you for all these useful explanations!
I am trying to understand the meaning and structure of the following sentence: 日本語で答えてくれる場合でも、普通の日本人の使わないような、変な日本語で答えられることも多い。
I understand “even where an answer is given in Japanese, a strange form of Japanese is used so that [the language] of ordinary Japanese people is not used”.
Is that correct?
Thanks in advance.
@Yoko
Hello, Yoko!
答えられる is a passive form so it will be more natural to translate with an active form in English.
“普通の日本人の使わないような” modifies “変な日本語”
strange Japanese which ordinary Japanese wouldn’t use
They often answer with strange Japanese which ordinary Japanese people wouldn’t use.
(*I don’t know the subject so I translated it “they” but you can replace it.)
Thank you so much!!
Could you please also help me with the following sentence (excerpt from the Japan Times’s Intermediate Japanese Book, regarding American students in Japan who are being asked by Japanese people to converse in English):
もちろん、そんなことから、日本人の友達ができることもあるだが、自分が利用されているような気持ちがするというアメリカ人は少なくない。
In the last section, the part with the negative seems to be the subject of the sentence (there aren’t few Americans who…) but I don’t understand the beginning of that last section. Could you please let me know what it means?
@Yoko
You’re welcome!
And let me see your next question.
First, I think it lacks “の” here.
日本人の友達ができることもある”の”だが、
So you want to know this part, right?
〜というアメリカ人は少なくない
means “There are quite a few American people who….”
自分が利用されているような気持ちがする
modifies “American people”
So
There are quite a few American who feel like they have been/are exploited/used.”
Bless you for posting this stuff, you make it so fun to learn!
@Vex
My pleasure!! ありがとう！
Sensei, another great lesson. Thank you very much.
I’m trying to read a children’s version of Momotaro and hataorigumo’s tale and I found lots of sentence with this pattern: ~~~to~~~~verb in the past.
Examples:
Momotaro:
Obaasan ga sentaku wo hajimeru to, ookina momo ga nagaretekite, bikkuri shimashita;
Momotaro to, inu to, saru ga naomo aruite iru to, kondo wa kiji ni deaimashita.
Hataorigumo:
Yosaku-san wa hebi ni chikatzuku to, motte ita kuwa de, kore wo oiharaimashita;
Yosaku ga hataori no koya wo musume ni miseru to, sassoku musume wa wata o tsukatte, hataoriki de orihajimemashita.
According to your lesson, in which category those examples fit in?
-What is likely to happen/what is supposed to happen if/when you do something;
-Unexpected or unknown results.
Sorry for my long question.
@Rodrigo
The conditional 〜と has the following pattern.
Sentence A (providing certain condition) + Sentence B (predictable outcome, what is going to happen)
Sentence A somehow causes the following event, action or feelings in Sentence B. (A is a condition for B)
１）A おばあさんが洗濯を始めると(1) B 大きな桃が流れてきてびっくりしました。
Obaasan ga sentaku wo hajimeru to, ookina momo ga nagaretekite, bikkuri shimashita;
C : The old lady started to do the laundry but it is not the condition of the big peach
２）A 桃太郎と犬と 猿がなおも歩いていると(2) B 今度は雉に出会いました。
Momotaro to, inu to, saru ga naomo aruite iru to, kondo wa kiji ni deaimashita.
３）A 与作さんは蛇に近づくと(3) B 持っていた鍬でこれを追い払いました。
Yosaku-san wa hebi ni chikatzuku to, motte ita kuwa de, kore wo oiharaimashita;
４）A 与作が機織りの小屋を娘に見せると(4) B さっそく娘は綿を使って機織り機で織り始めました。
Yosaku ga hataori no koya wo musume ni miseru to, sassoku musume wa wata o tsukatte, hataoriki de orihajimemashita.
When we see these sentences, Sentence A and Sentence B are not necessary related. In other word A is not the condition for B.
4) can be categorized as an unexpected result but the と in 1)~3) is “when”/”as”/”and (then)” and it simply connect two actions or events.
Ex. マギーは本を読む(A) とすぐに眠くなる(B)。(Conditional)
Whenever Maggie reads a book, she gets sleepy.
(A is the condition for B. Reading a book makes Maggie sleepy. )
Ex. マギーは本を読むと眠りについた。(not conditional)
Maggie read a book and fell in sleep.
(Two continuous actions. Maggie read a book (action1) and then she slept (action2)
先生は質問を答えてくださって、本当にありがとうございます。
いまよう分かりました。
*いまよく分かりました。
@Rodrigo
よかった〜！ :)
Maggie sensei!~~IN 「お気に召すかどうかわかりませんが、」
oki ni mesuka douka wakariamsen ga..do you pronounce 召す as me-su or mesu?(same as desu pronunciation?)~~
Ariagtou in advance~~~thank you
@Kasandra
We pronounce 召す “mesu” (not me-su) as you said like “desu”.
Maggie san レッソンは どうもありがとうございます。とてもuseful です！！！！
I am only beginning to learn Japanese, and was looking up the difference between agete and kurete, and found your blog~~~~
@Kasandra
こんにちは、Kasandra!
Thank you for visiting this site! I am very happy to hear this lesson is useful.
また来てくれたらうれしいです。:)
Hi Maggie Sensei!
I work for an airline company. My main job is at the check-in counter. I found your vocabulary list very helpul ^^
I was wondering, how would you say that a flight was cancelled or that they have to take a flight at another airport? (I work at the international airport and sometimes due to the weather the flights departure from the domestic airport).
Thank you sincerely for your help ^^
@R.de M.
Hello R.de M.
Oh you are actually working for an airline company. I am very happy to hear my vocab. list is helpful.But I guess my lesson is for the passengers, huh?
Flight cancellation in Japanese is 欠航=kekkou
Ex. お客様の便は悪天候のため*、欠航になりました
= Okyakusama no bin wa akutenkou no tame kekkou ni narimashita.
= Your flight has been cancelled due to the bad weather.
For other reasons
＊悪天候のため
= akutenkou no tame
= for the bad weather
You can switch the reason.
＊ 機材の故障のため
= Kizai no koshou no tame
= for a mechanical reason
******
Q : How would you say that they have to take a flight at another airport
That means they have to go to the domestic airport and take a domestic flight and change the flight somewhere? If so, you can say
Ex. 大変申し訳ございませんが、国内空港よりお乗り継ぎをお願いしております。
= Taihen moushiwake gozaimasen ga kokunani kuukou yori onoritsugi wo onegai shiteorimasu.
= We are very sorry but we ask you to take another domestic connecting flight from the domestic airport.
But of course, you need to add more information, the airport name, what kind of connecting flight they should take and etc.
Feel free to ask me any other sentence patterns if necessary. :)
Thank you so much for helping me!
About the question on taking the flight at another airport, I meant that at our domestic airport we also have international flights but only to neighbouring countries. Sometimes due to the bad weather, international planes (the ones that are not too big) may be able to land at o departure from the domestic airport.
@R.de M.
Ah I see. Then how about this?
Ex. (15:30に）成田行きの便が〜〜国内空港から出ますのでそちらの方へ（シャトルバスで）移動下さい。
= (Sanji sanjuppun ni) Narita iki no bin ga ~~ kokunai kuukou kara demasu node sochira no hou ye (shatorubasu de) idou kudasai.
= Please go to ~~ Domestic Airport (by our shuttle bus) where you can take the 15:30h flight to Narita.
Sounds great! Thank you!!!
@R.de M.
You’re very welcome and Good luck!
Hi Maggie!
A friend of mine always says “ぐち” and says things like ”ぐちばかりでごめんね”
Is this used commonly? I think it sounded to me more harsh, more like “whining” than “complaining”, but I’d like to be able to use it correctly!
Thanks!!!
Patrick
@Patrick
Hello Patrick!
When you look up in a dictionary, 苦情(kujou), 不平(fuhei), 文句(monku) and 愚痴(guchi) might be all “complaints”
(I have a lesson on ぼやく and mentioned all these words so please go check. Click here!)
Actually 愚痴 and ぼやき are very similar.
I don’t know what you meant by “harsh” but 愚痴（ぐち）を言う means “to complain, to whine, to grumble” about something which may not be so important to other people on and on.
How to use :
Ex. ちょっと愚痴っていい？
= Can I whine a bit?
(In casual Japanese)
Ex. ちょっと愚痴ってもいい？
Or as your friend says,
いつも愚痴ってばかりいてごめんね。
I am sorry I always whine/complain.
Ex. いつも愚痴を聞いてくれてありがとう。
= Thank you for always listening to my complaints.
Ex. いつでも愚痴っていいよ。
= Itsudemo guchitte iiyo.
= You can always complain.
Is there any particular way of knowing the formation of different verb using chau~? For example; wakacchatta, barechatta,icchatta, kacchata ( Some with one ‘c’ and some with 2’c’) Confusing~~~
@anna
I added the formation part for you. Please check. :)
Thank you so much for your consideration. :) It is the part when you add the small tsu that confuses me. I am having problem as to which verb to add small tsu or vice versa.
@anna
OK, if you have a problem with って then you might want to review how to make て-form as well. You can always check the verb lists but there is a way to remember the basic ones with a song.
Go google the te-song. You will figure out when you use っ, ん,い and exception in a fun way.
Here is the lyrics. It will be easier to remember with songs. There are a lot of videos on Youtube.
★masu form
い・ち・り 「って」
び・み・に 「んで」
き 「いて」 ぎ 「いで」
し 「して」
例外 行きます 「行って」
Ex. 買います= かいます
The letter before ます is い so it will use って
買って
past tense : 買った
★dictionary form :
う・つ・る 「って」
ぶ・む・ぬ 「んで」
く 「いて」 ぐ 「いで」
す 「する」
例外 行く 「行って」
Ex. 散る = ちる = the last letter is る so you use って
→散って
past tense 散った= ちった
Ex. 読む= よむ= the last letter is む so you use んで
→読んで
past tense : 読んだ
Thank you so much!! :)
@anna
どういたしまして♩
ありがとう。 マギー先生。
いつもお世話になっております。
@Amit Moondra
こんにちは！Amit! こちらこそ、このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！:)
Hi Maggie Sensei,
Under the section where you explain ~ないと, you used 美味しい as an example. However, when you write 美味しくない you translate it as ‘not delicious’ but when you add と to it you translate it as ‘if not young.’ I was just wondering if this was a typo. If not, is that just a Japanese expression or something?
@Naz
Oh sorry! I fixed it. (I originally wrote 若い=wakai = young as an example and changed it later.)
マッギー先生、
このレッスンも役に立った！最高です！ありがとー（＾－＾）
@ninipana
いつもレッスンをチェックしてくれてありがとう！！！役に立ったと聞いて本当にうれしいです！
ohhhh okay. so てくる has two meanings then? 1. has been ing
2. has started to
Is it alright if you translate these couple of sentences into English for me :)
1: 近年、空き缶を無駄遣いしてしまう人数は増えてきた
2: 最近、この番組が嫌いになってきた
3: 地球温暖化のため、動物が何匹絶滅してきたの？
sorry for asking so many questions and taking up your time
@Campbell Carsley
~てくる can be translated 1) “to have been ~ ing” 2) “to have+ pp” “3) “be ing” and it changes depending on the sentence.
As for the translation, I am sorry but I don’t do the translation. (So many people have asked me to do the translations so.. Hope you understand..)
But I can help you translating the verb parts. Hope it’s OK with you.
1. has been increasing/ has increased
2. have come to hate~
3. have become extinct
I understand that you are busy and get constantly harassed by people like me to translate sentences so it’s okay! thank you so much for the explanations and making me have a better understanding on this topic. ご迷惑をかけてすみませんでした。
@Campbell Carsley
No problem!! :)
hey Maggie :) I read through this blog again and I just got a little confused. it was described that てきた means has been doing (from a certain point in the past until the present). So, how come in examples like these –> (気温が下がってきた or 雨が止んできた ) the meanings aren’t, “The temperature has been dropping” and “the rain has been stopping”?
@Campbell Carsley
I think your translation would work.
The temperature has been dropping” / “the rain has been stopping”?
But to be more precise,
The temperature has been dropping” = 気温が下がってきている
“The rain has been stopping” = 雨が止んできている
might work better. What do you think?
and “the rain has been stopping”?
Thank you for explaining. “The rain has been stopping” might not make sense now that I think about it. It would be “the rain has stopped” which I think in Japanese is 雨が止んだ。
Is it alright if I ask one more question? :)
What is the difference between てくる and stem+始める? Like if I wanted to say, “It has started to increase”, in Japanese would that be 増えてきた or 増え始めた?
Thank you in advance:)
@Campbell Carsley
I agree. Maybe “The rain has been stopping” sounds strange in English.
We do say “雨がやんできた”. “雨がやんできている” is possible to use as well. (Another way to say this is “小雨になってきた／きている”)
増えてきた and 増え始めた
They can be the same but there is a slight difference.
増えてきた is “It has been increasing”. It focusing the current condition. It is going on right now.
and 増え始めた is “It (has) started to increase. You are talking about the past when it started to increase)
But 増えてきた and 増え始めてきた are the same.
増えてきた ＆増え始めてきた
Still you can not switch each other all the time.
You can describe how things have started to change with ~てくる and ~始める but you can’t use ~てくる when you describe people’s action.
Ex. 赤ちゃんが歩き始める
You can’t use 〜てくる／きた
Ex. 学校に行き始める
You can’t use 〜てくる／きた
先生、こんにちは。
Excellent lesson.
Thank you very much.
@Rodrigo
こんにちは、ロドリーゴ！
どういたしまして！またきてね！
Sensei, I just want to confirm:
Verb plain form + bakari has two nuances:
●do nothing but…, all you do is ~
Ex. 彼女は、何を言っても泣くばかりだ.
●almost, ready to ~, you did everything and the only thing you have to do now is ~
Ex. もう料理は温めるばかりだ。
@Rodrigo
Thank you!! I thought about adding the information the other day and totally forgot about it.
Will add it sometime soon.
ありがとう！
そういう意味だった。下手ですよねww 冬休み来たらこのサイトの全部レッスンを読んで勉強して頑張る。(文は違うと思うけど）
＠ナバ
はい！冬休みがきたらまたがんばって下さいね。応援しています！
直してありがとう( ´ ▽ ` )
あぉそう？だったら使わないね。先生ありがとう。そんなこと誰も教えてくれないから。そしてマギ先生がいつも簡単に説明出来る(・∀・)
＠ナバ
どういたしまして。ここに書いてくれた日本語は、みんなの勉強のために直しますよ〜♩
（直してありがとう→直してくれてありがとう。／いつも簡単に説明できる→You mean I can teach you in the easy way? how about マギー先生はいつも簡単に説明してくれます。）
Thanks for correcting (๑･㉨･๑)
そうじゃないだから。あたし女の子でも男言葉は気に入って使いたいことになった(┯_┯)多分ドラマのせいで。。。
@ナバ
ナバは女の子なのね。勉強してもいいけど、使わない方がいいよ〜
（A little correction : 使いたいことになった→使いたくなった
If you are a girl, you can use あたし but it sounds childish or shallow who you use it with. I would still avoid using あたし. 私＝わたし sounds better. )
感動したよ。早く答えてありがとう(*^o^*)
あのさぁ、あたしProblem(I don’t know if 問題 fits here or not)がある。男言葉使えたいだけどwww ダメなんですよね？ヽ(≧Д≦)ノ
＠ナバ
どういたしまして。のだ、んだ are very strong. It is good to study but you should avoid using this form when you talk to people.
（A little correction : 男言葉使えたいだけど→使いたいけど）
ナバは男の人？だったら”あたし”は女性が使いますよ。:)
先生、It’s not related to the lesson above but… I’be been hearing dictionary form of verbs used as commands. Like in Yokai Ningen Bem, I’ve heard them use ”Mou Yamerunda”. The subtitles said it as a command, like- stop, enough, etc… It’s kinda confusing me ヽ(≧Д≦)ノ
お願いいたします。
@ナバ
Hello ナバ！
OK,
You mean “verb dictionary form + んだ”, right?
(Note : ~んだ is originally 〜のだ)
There are a few ways to make a command form (読みなさい！飲みなさい！やめなさい！座りなさい！→(stronger, male, rough) 読め！飲め！やめろ！座れ！
And you can also make a command form with “verb dictionary form＋のだ or んだ
Ex. 読むのだ・読むんだ = Read!
Ex. 飲むのだ・飲むんだ = Drink!
Ex. やめるのだ・やめるんだ= Stop!
Ex. 座るのだ・座るんだ = Sit
These are all male speech.
Hello maggie sensei:)
I wish you all success.
I have the following questions:
1. Is -ppoi ending for all ages? Children, teens or adults?
2. I know we can end sentences with “da” instead of “desu”
is it the casual form of “desu”?
Also, is it manly to use “da” at the end of the sentences or is it fine for girls to use it too?
Thanks in advance.
@kuroineko
Hello! kuroineko!
1. Depends. The words such as 安っぽい、色っぽい、子供っぽい etc are pretty common all thorough the ages.
But only certain teens use っぽい with verbs.
Ex. 〜したっぽい、やったっぽい etc.
2.だ is not a casual suffix.
1) For writing : You can chose either desu form or da form.
2) For conversation : It sounds rough even for men.
Ex. あそこに見えるのが私の家だ。(If it is in writing, it is totally safe but if you verbally say that it sounds very blunt.)
In order to soften up we often add よ to a noun
私の家だよ。
My Japanese is improving bit by bit. どうもありがとう、マーギ先生！
従業はとても楽しいです！（＾ω＾）
Oops, I meant 授業…
@イサイ
こんにちは、イサイ！
日本語（にほんご）が上達（じょうたつ）していると聞（き）いてうれしいです。(I am glad to hear your Japanese is improving. )
これからもがんばって下さいね。:)
速く返信にはどうもありがとう！ (I hope I said that with no errors) (^_^)
@イサイ
(速い→ 早速の is better. 早速の返信ありがとう！）
And
どういたしまして。:)
早速の= sassoku no = quidk
Thanks again!! First time I’ve heard it, thanks for the new word :D
@イサイ
どういたしまして again.
こんにちは、先生！最近、日本語に訳し方が分からなくて困っている英語の文法がありますが、手伝っていただけませんか？ここから、英語で説明します。The grammar I’m talking about is “I know that” or of the like. I think in Japanese it’s called 接続詞。For example, “I didn’t know that you were moving to Japan!” or “I just realized that you were standing right behind me. You scared me!” I don’t know how to translate that “that” into Japanese correctly.
その例文を日本語に訳してみた。
1) 君が日本に引っ越しをするということを知らなかった。
2) 君が真っ直ぐ僕の後ろに立っていたということを気づいたばかりだわ。驚いたよ！
Those are my translations but they’re probably wrong. Could you please translate them for me?
@Campbell Carsley
こんにちは！！
I didn’t know that you were moving to Japan!”
1. 君が日本に引っ越しをするということを知らなかった。
→Correct!! Good job.
You can also use “なんて” if you want to express the surprised feelings.
君が日本に引っ越しをするなんて知らなかった。
“I just realized that you were standing right behind me. You scared me!”
2. 君が真っ直ぐ僕の後ろに立っていたということを気づいたばかりだわ。驚いたよ！
1) 真っ直ぐ→すぐ後ろに
2) Since you use 僕, the speaker is a boy right? Then avoid using だわ suffix because it is for women.
The direct translation is
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたということに今、気がついた。驚いたよ。
But the natural way to say this sentence is
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたとは知らなかった。驚いたよ。
Again you can use なんて to show your surprise.
君が僕のすぐ後ろに立っていたなんて知らなかった。
So overall you can use “ということ” for “that clause” but be careful with the particles.
You have to choose pick the right particle depending on the verb.
~に気がついた
I’ve always wondered how to use ずに properly >< and now for sure I know how it can be used! :D thank you so much sensei! <3
@ninipana
Oh great! Now you know how to use it!
Hi, Maggie!
About the baseball manager’s sentence “I can’t help complaining – ぼやきたくなる”, could you explain that pattern a little bit more? Is that always that way when you mean “I can’t help なになに”?
Thank you very much for your amazing lessons
@Casiel
Hi Casiel!
〜たくなる is to feel like doing something, something makes you want to do something，to be tempted to do something
Ex. 食べたくなる = Something makes you want to eat, to be tempted to eat,
Ex. この映画を観ていると日本に行きたくなる= This movie makes me want to go to Japan
Ex. ぼやきたくなる= to feel like grumbling
I translated “I can’t help grumbling! there because there is a sentence before “ぼやきたくないけれども = Though I don’t want”
***
There are several ways to say “can’t help ~”
~(し)たくてたまらなくなる
Ex. 食べたくてたまらなくなる
~(せ)ずにはいられない
Ex. 食べずにはいられない
(Check my latest lesson : ずに）
Hello maggie sensei!
Thank you for your answer and for the examples, but part of the second question has no answer
2. what is “食べていない” and why not “食べなかった”?
Thanks in advance.
@kuroineko
Oh sorry! I missed the question.
食べていない means “I haven’t eaten” and 食べなかった is “I didn’t eat”
今日は何も食べていない= I haven’t eaten anything today.
昨日は何も食べなかった= I didn’t eat anything yesterday.
このレッスンはすごく便利ですよ！最近”ず”の文をよくみているですけど、私の教科書や辞書などみつけられませんでした。本当にありがとうございます。
@Mandy
こんにちは、Mandy!
このレッスンがお役にたったみたいでうれしいです！:)
Hi maggie sensei^^
I want to thank you for your efforts and support to all of us.
I have the following questions:
1. in this sentence “彼はいい歳をしているのに子供っぽい” what is “している” meaning?
2. “私も最近、忘れっぽくなっちゃって。今日、ご飯まだ食べていないよね” what is “も” here?
does it mean “also”?
also, what is “食べていない” and why not “食べた”?
3. (not related). What is “なんと”? and please give me example.
Thanks in advance. ほんとうにありがとうございます。
@kuroineko
Hello kuroineko-san!
1) It is the same as いい歳をして. It is a set phrase. “for one’s age”
2) It could be “also” but it’s an emphasizing in this case.
3) なんと = what, how
Ex. なんというお名前ですか？= What is your name?
Ex. これはなんという本ですか？= What is the name of the book?
Ex. 子供の頃、なんと呼ばれていましたか？= How did people call you when you were a child?
I see… Now is completly clear for me :) どうもありがとうございました、マギー先生！
Sorry, but since I discovered this page, about 2 months ago, I have asked several questions, in different posts. Is there any way for me to find all my questions?
And again, thank you very much!
@Sandra
どういたしまして。
And there is no easy way to find your past comments.
But I did the search for you just this time. If you leave a comment or question in different posts in future, please write them down somewhere. :)
★程
★How to use の
★よう
★〜ておく
私の質問を探して教えてくれてどうもすみません。将来の質問をノートにメモを書いて置こうと思っています。
いつも日本語に手伝ってくれてどうもありがとうございました、先生。
@Sandra
どういたしまして、サンドラ :)
こんにちは maggie先生！
This is a great lesson like always.
I have the the following questions:
1. Can you please explain “wasurezu” for me in ” Sorekara doggu fuudo mo wasurezu ni katte kitene.”
and what is the “ni” after “wasurezu”?
2. What is the vocabulary for “beginner level”?
3. what is “watashite”?
Thanks in advance:)
@kuroineko
こんにちは！
1. ~ずに is one of the lessons that I am working on right now.
忘れずに is the same as 忘れないで = Don’t forget
~ずに〜する = “to do without doing something.”
Ex. 勉強せずに試験を受ける
= to take exams without preparation.
Ex. 朝食を食べずに出かける。
= To go out without having breakfast.
に here has a function of emphasizing.
2. You mean what is the 初級レベル vocabulary? I have several “Super Basic Words” lessons so please go check them.
3. 渡して=watashite = te form of 渡す= to hand out, hand over = to give something to someone
Can i ask you something? I’ve watched an anime and there was a character who always said something which sounded like ‘majitsuka/ga’ but in her context (I watched with subtitles–such a shame -.-)
it was used like: that’s so weird, so grazy something in this direction.
Is this right? I mean common and right how I understood if yes would it be written with Kata/Hiragana or Kanji? I know majitsuka has also another meaning but i forgot..
And can you tell me what:
I’m (so) bored!
Thats’s so weird/stupid!
Are you kidding me?!
It’s georgious!
You are georgious!
That’s so much fun!
He/She is so much fun!
He/She is so kind.
would be in japanese?
Haha, that’s just some things which popped in my mind where I though I could need it somewhere..
Maybe you know the anime ‘date a live’ there are always 3 girls as nextcharacters and one of them says this always.. it’s the only sentence she says, if she sees something confusing/grazy/weird.
@Cho
What you have heard must be
まじっすか？= Majissuka? (slang but politer than まじか）
or
まじか？= Majika? (slang/ more rough than まじっすか)
They mean “Are you serious?””No way!” “I can’t believe it”
So it could be “That’s strange (I can’t believe it!)”
OK these are a few ways to say the following sentences but I will give you the casual ones.
I’m (so) bored! = 退屈！= taikutsu
That’s so weird/stupid! = それは変だね= sore wa hen dane
Are you kidding me?! = うそ！= uso! / 本当に？ Hontou ni?
It’s gorgeous! = すてき！ (=suteki) note : this sounds a bit feminine.
You are georgious! = あなたは（or the person’s name) すてきだね。 ＊Be careful when you address someone あなた
That’s so much fun! = それは楽しい！= sore wa tanoshii
He/She is so much fun! = 彼／彼女はとても楽しい= Kare/kanojo wa totemo tanoshii
He/She is so kind. = 彼／彼女はとても優しい (or 親切だ） = Kare/kanojo wa totemo yasashii (or shinsetsu da)
By the question ”Am I cute” for example was with boku, so was this male speach now?
Or female speach, or can both use it?
I just tough when female uses boku it’s very rough or something.. thanks in advance!
I meant this— 「僕、イケメン？」:)
@Cho
Yes, 僕イケメン？ is a male speech. (Not just 僕 but also イケメン refers to a cute guy)
no you can’t use this. for a girl it is “nee, watashi, kawaii to omou ?”
or just “ne, watashi, kawaii?”
ikemen is “man who go” so cannot apply for girls.
@lebibi
Sorry…I don’t understand.
Boku is the first pronoun for a man.
Ikemen is not “man who go”. It is a slang word to refer to a cool and cute guy.
So “Am I cute?” = girl says “Watashi kawaii (to omou) ?” and a man says “Boku kakkoii? or Boku ikemen (dato omou)?”
I am sorry for do not fitting in the theme again but..
do you know something of the chances for foreigners living in japan, I mean if i wanna live there.. I heard many times for an foreigner it’s kind of impossible to live there.. is it true?
Yes one reason why i wanna learn japanese is because I wanna live there I am just wondering if it’s still possible..
Thanks in advance!
@Cho
Of course it is “possible” to live in Japan.
It is true that some foreign people find it difficult to live in Japan for different reasons but at the same time there are many foreign people live here without any problems.
Learning language is very important but more than that, be open minded. And I think we can say that to anybody who live in other countries not just in Japan.
Thank you and wow you’re fast! O.O
@Cho
どういたしまして！
ehrm another question,
I know every language has it’s own system with tense forms, so I would be really happy if yu could give me a overview for japanese tenseforms with an example??
Sorry if i demand too much! >.<
@Cho
OK, here are some examples for you.
★Present tense 現在形(genzaikei)
Ex. 私は日本語を勉強している
= I am studying Japanese.
★Present progressive 現在進行形(=genzai shinkoukei)
Ex. 私は今、日本語を勉強しているところだ。
= I am not studying Japanese.
=
★Past tense 過去形（=kakokei) 1)
Ex. 私は昨日、日本語を勉強した。
= I studied Japanese yesterday.
★Past tense 過去形（=kakokei) 2) (old habit)
Ex. 私は日本語を勉強していた。
= I used to study Japanese.
★present perfect 現在完了形(=genzaikannryoukei)（one’s experiences)
Ex. 私は日本語を勉強したことがある。
= I have studied Japanese.
★future tense 未来形(=miraikei ): 1) near future, to show your will
Ex. 私は日本語を勉強する。
= I am going to study Japanese./ I will study Japanese.
★future tense 未来形(=miraikei ): 2)
Ex. 私は日本語を勉強するだろう／するでしょう
= I will study Japanese (in future)
Hu thank you very mucht but have these tense forms a special name, future, perfect, past perfect or so.. and how would it be in japanese?
@Cho
I added the information to my previous comment. Please check it again.
Can I ask how do you answer on questions with because/cause? (is there also a short form in jp?)
Like: Why …?
Because..?
urm i am not good at examples at all..
maybe you can make some? pleaaaaaase!
And could you may make a lesson or give me an example (or both ;)) for if senteces?
Like: If you go to Maggie sensei’s page, you’ll find good stuff for learning Japanese!
If you don’t go, you’ll miss much!
Or like: I could.., if you.. .
How I said not good at examples!
I’m just wonderng how to say sentences like this in japanese.. Thanks in advance!!
@Cho
There are several ways to say “because”
“というのは”、”だって”（casual) “なぜならば” (literal) + 〜（だ）からです。/ 〜（だ）から。
Ex. というのは明日は仕事があるからです。= It’s because I have to work tomorrow.
Ex. お腹がすいているから。= Because I am hungry
or
Just
〜（だ）からです。
Ex. 寒いからです。(Because it’s cold.)
(casual)
〜（だ）から。
Ex. 怒っているから。(Because I am angry)
******
If clause : I will just give you a basic pattern for today
★ (もし）〜なら,〜たら
Ex. If you want to see me, come to Japan.
↓
もし私に会いたかったら日本に来て下さい。
もし私に会いたいのなら日本に来て下さい。
Thank ya! :)
@Cho
You’re welcome!
Did you delete in Greetings lesson??
Which has been the first in the category daily life.. when click on it it just tells me page didn’t found.
@Cho
Sorry! I fixed the link. :)
Thanks! :)
@Cho
どういたしまして！
こんにちはマギー先生、
after using という grammar, I have found several sentences where they use past tense といった and I don´t understand why.
この高校では、テニス、サッカー、野球といったスポーツが盛んです。
たたみとかしょうじといった日本的なものに興味があります。
Is といった used because they talk about several sports in the first sentence and about several typical japanese things in the second one? Is the only explanation I find, but probably is wrong… Could you explain a little about the use of といった in this kind of sentences?
Thank you very much in advance!
@Sandra
Hi Sandra
That ~といった means “such as~””for example””things like ~” and it is used to give some examples.
*テニス、サッカー、野球といったスポーツ
Sports such as tennis, soccer and baseball
*たたみとかしょうじといった日本的なもの
Japanese stuff such as tatami mats and “shouji”（paper door)
Hello!
I have a small question and is about ta koto ga aru and ru koto ga aru tatoeba: tabeta koto ga aru or taberu koto ga aru. I know the meaning of ta koto ga aru and ru koto ga aru . My question is about the verb can i use passive or potential form of verb tatoeba: ikenai koto aru toka ijimerareta koto ga aru. I can’t find anything about it in my book’s so please can you anwser to my question? ^_^
@PukiPuki
Hello PukiPuki,
Yes, you can use passive or potential form with 〜たことががある and 〜ることがある
★Potential form :
Ex. チケットを持っていてもコンサート会場に入れないことがあった。
Even though I had a ticket, there was a time when I couldn’t get in the concert hall.
Ex. チケットを持っていてもコンサート会場に入れないことがあります。
It is possible not to be able get in the concert hall even if you have a ticket.
★Passive form :
If someone has stepped on your feet with her high heels before and you are talking about that particular experience, you say
Ex. ハイヒールで足を踏まれたことがある。
But if you are talking about the possibility you say
Ex. ハイヒールで足を踏まれることがある。
Thank you so much! I was wondering about it and now i know the anwser:) Thank you~!!! LOVE from Poland :)
@PukiPuki
Nie ma za co! (→合ってる?)
Sugoi jan!!! atteru atteru! :)
Can I ask you something even it didn’t fit the theme?
I’m getting a little confiused about 「」and 【】in which context are they used? I though it is like () if you say something and add in () extra information to that but I see 「」is used very often also by all your sentences in Japanese.. I’ll be really thankful if you could explain?
And I’m really thankful for your lessons I’m German and here it’s really hard to find good daily stuff the difference between male/female/neutral (have you a lesson to neutral too?) speech and
exspacially slang.. thank you very much!! By the way thank your stuff i learn both Japanese and
English ;)
＠Cho
Hello Cho!
Welcome to our site!
「」are single quotation marks and they are used for dialogue or speech
Ex. Maggie said “blah blah blah”
→マギーは「blah blah blah」と言いました。
or highlight of the word.
Ex. I hate “exams”.
私は「試験」が嫌いだ。
【】are not as common as 「」We use them for math,chemistry code, phonetic symbols, explanations, rephrase some word, etc.
As for the neutral speech, though I am a woman, I try to teach you neutral Japanese. But once in a while I include male or female speech. And when I do, I add the remarks “female speech”-“male speech”
I hope I answered your questions.
Schönen Tag noch!
Huh, thank you really much for the fast answer!
That helped me!!
But how is ist for example when you uses in a twitter biography, when you write something about yourself or information?
I just picked the biography from a musician I like:
カノン(アンティック-珈琲店-/AN CAFEベース) 2013年11月6日full album『非可逆ZiprocK』発売。【アプリ】『Pinky☆Distortion』【音楽】『アンティック-珈琲店-』『kanon×kanon』【楽曲提供etc.】LiSA、ave;new、劇団V、KERAソン
How are they used in context like this?
Because it’s no speach, and what are the differences between 「」and 【】?
i know you said【】isn’t common but I saw it much lately.
sorry for annyoing but i do not know who else to ask.
@Cho
Actually these examples you found with【】are to highlight the genre, some classification.
【アプリ】【音楽】【楽曲提供etc.】
It is just their stile of writing the description. No specific rules.
「」are used for the titles.
We usually use 『』 for the quote in a quote.
(“I heard Maggie said “blahblah” said Yukari = ゆかりは「マギーが『blahblah』って言っているのを聞いたよ。」と言った。
but In your example, they are using them to show the title instead of regular single 「」
I notice you used the word ‘taberete’ in one of your examples. Would you mind explaining about it coz i was searching and referring to a table of japanese verb conjugations online but to no avail regarding to the ‘rete’ ending.
@anna
It is a very casual speech but I fixed it to avoid the confusion.
It is 食べられていいですね(taberarete iidesu ne) but in conversation we often skip いいですね
食べれる is considered to be ら抜き言葉(ranukikotoba, skipping ら in casual converasation) and 食べられる is grammatically correct.
Although “食べれていい” equally appeared on Google as “食べられていい”, I should have avoid using it in the beginners’ lesson.
The basic pattern
食べられていいですね。
→switch the orders
いいですね。食べられて
It is good that you can eat.- I envy you that you can eat.
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I just moved to Japan and even though I took Japanese for three years in college, I`ve still had a lot of trouble communicating/understanding others while I`ve been here. I hate relying on other people (like friends and coworkers) to help me with daily life, so I`m trying really hard to study Japanese even more in order to speak like a native Japanese person would as best as I can. I stumbled upon your website while researching a grammer point, and after briefly skimming through the site, I am very happy that I came across it. It seems wonderful and I can`t wait to go through all your lessons and videos when I get home after work. Just wanted to say thanks so much for helping all of us out. It`s really nice to learn all this informal stuff like slang and how to get through an everyday type of activity like signing up for a points card. If only they taught us how to say stuff like this back in school -_-
Sincerey,
Naz
@Naz
Hello Naz! Welcome to Japan and our site!
There are many lessons here (I am sorry but I don’t make videos..) so hope you visit here often and enjoy learning Japanese with us.
OK now you live in Japan, your wallet will be full of “point cards” soon. Be careful! :)
I heard Teki is kanji a chinese character, did the pronouciation of the word Teki originate in China or Japan.
@Andy
Sorry but I don’t know anything about Chinese language. But I checked the pronunciation of 的 in Chinese. It is either di or da.
I’ve read the usage of -teki comes from the English -tic. Japanese grammar got changed a bit since the influence of Western languages, especially English. 精力的 energetic, 映画的 cinematic, etc…
@Bjorn
Yes, that’s right!! :)
Sorry to say but that’s completely wrong. Although the genitive in Classical Chinese was 之 zhi, 的 (pronounced “de”, which isn’t で but sort of like “dø;” in old Chinese it was pronounced “dak” or “duhk” and thus became “teki” in Japanese ) was still used as an attributive marker and was passed to Japanese and given a Japanese-style grammar. Basically 的 means “of” and な is what is used in Japanese to attach it to words.
@risu
Thank you for your comment. I don’t know any Chinese so I can’t answer the similarity or difference between Japanese and Chinese but the equivalent English word depends on the words, I think.
~ic/ ish, wise, etc.
Oh my, thank you for clarifying this. I have always wanted to know what this little character meant! Didn’t know how to type it as it’s not part of the syllabaries.
@Camemberu
Oh good!! Now you know what it is! :)
How to type this letter : If you type どう or おなじ, it usually comes out among other kanji.
Hello!
I just discovered this blog 2 days ago while googling a more thorough explanation of “~teotsu” and my God, this is fantastic!
I love the adorable dog icon, I love your explanations, I love your lessons. Thank you so much, you cannot imagine how much I appreciate you doing this!
<3
You're amazing!
Vex
@Vex
Hi Vex! Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
Thank you for your nice message. I am VERY happy to hear you like my lessons.
There are many lessons here so please come visit us again.
またね〜！！
Wow! I never realized until now how many different uses there were for も! This is definitely a useful lesson to use as a reference during my studies. ありがとうございます、マギー先生!^_^
To the cute kitty: ニャー, ニャー!(Nice to meet you too!)
実は猫語が少しだけ話せますね…じょだんですよ(笑)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
Hi, Remi!
すご〜い！猫語がわかるのね。
Oh that was what she was saying. な〜んだ…I thought she was saying「マギーはかわいい❤」:)
幸せー
＠アフロ君
アフロ君、幸せそうでよかった！ :)
This lesson taught me so much!and I really love how you used NEWS in one of your examples! :D
ありがとうございます、マギー先生！。本当に楽しかったです！
@ninipana
レッスン楽しんでくれてうれしいです！ :)
Hi!
Instead of saying “kaze wo hiku”. Is it okay to say “kaze desu”. and what is the difference?
thank you
@Josefin
Hello Josefin,
When you translate them, it could the same but the difference is
Kaze wo hiku = to catch a cold, to have a cold (You are talking about the process of getting a cold)
Kaze desu. = What I (you) have is a cold.(you are talking about the symptoms or the name of the disease you have.)
But when you translate them, it’s the same.
ありがとう マギー先生。
勉強になりました。
いつも時間をさいて、教えてくれてありがとう。
@Amit Moondra
こんばんは、Amit! いつもこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
Hi, Maggie! Congrats on your awesome blog. :) I was reading this entry and I wanted to ask if there is a reason why in Japanese certain words, like certain foods take the prefix o- in polite speech. You mention お野菜 and I’ve also heard お魚 and お肉. But as you say it’s not extensive to other food words, like “banana”, etc. So why do you need the o- prefix for meat, fish, vegetables and some other foods? I read in a grammar book that the o- prefix is used for taboo words with dirty/unhealthy connotations, like お手洗い, which I can understand. Also, to some extent, with food , it could be for aesthetic reasons (i.e. to show refinement), like in English you say “pork stew” (pork being a word of French origin) and not “pig stew” but I’ve also heard お花, as in お花綺麗～！, which I don’t understand, because flowers are something beautiful and have a lovely smell.
@Irea
Hello Irea1
Thank you for visiting this site!
We don’t put お by its value or aesthetic reasons. It is a technique to make you sound polite when you talk to others.
For example when you refer to the phone call you made you say 電話 but when you refer to the call someone else made it is considered to be polite to say お電話
Women tend to use お more than men. A lot of women say お花 but if a man says “お花がきれい” it sounds a big feminine.
There are no specific rules which word takes お. But usually we don’t put お in front of katakana words.
X おバナナ X おコンピューター x おオレンジ
about ぶっちゃけ, can you use it as a noun i.e 「彼女のぶっちゃけで凄くびっくりした」?
ありがとうございます。
@Sherddr
Hello Sherddr!
You can’t not use ぶっちゃけ as a noun but you can say 彼女のぶっちゃけ話、すごくびっくりした。
Hello maggie sensei
Can you please explain kiranai and give me an example?
So kirenai and kiranai are different?
Thanks in advance.
@Kuroineko
There are some expressions that you always use きらない
入りきらない= hairikiranai = won’t be able to fit, won’t hold
煮え切らない= niekiranai = indecisive
But besides that きらない is usually used to show your will. You won’t complete, do something on purpose
(敢えて)全力を出し切らない
= Aete zenroku wo dashikiranai
= Won’t do one’s best on purpose
全力を出し切れない
= Zenryoku wo dashikirenai
= not be able to do one’s best
最近、日本の料理を作る〜！(^-^)♡
@Ninipana
わ〜日本のお料理が作れるんですね、すごい！！:)
あ、ちょっとね、「お休みの日は」。
@ninipana
おはよう、ninipana!
お休みの日は、日本語を勉強したり、友達と映画を観に行ったり、料理を作ったりする
→Perfect!!
どんなお料理を作るの？
マギー先生、おはようございまーす（＾－＾）このレッスンも本当に楽しかったです！
お休みのは、日本語を勉強したり、友達と映画を観に行ったり、料理を作ったりする～！
Best post ever! Thank you! It is very useful :D I just found your web and I love it :)
maggie sensei arigatou ^^
thank you for explaining this lesson.
i have a question:
i noticed that you wrote “desho” once with ou ending and once without, is there a difference?
thanks in advance
@kuroineko
Hello Kuroi Neko-chan,
でしょ is a casual form of でしょう. It is a tag question.
待ちきれない= machikirenai = I can’t wait.
↓
待ちきれないでしょ（う）= Machikirenai desho(u) = You can’t wait, can you? = I bet you can’t wait.
食べきれない(=tabekirenai) = tabekirenai
↓
食べきれないでしょ(う）(=tabekirenai desho(u)) You can’t finish eating, can you? = I bet you can’t finish eating.
こりゃ、ゴールデンエッグスという番組を思い出す
lol the girl in the pink is always saying kke, kke, kke
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52CLVTW1-84
@ブレット
Hello ブレット！
I love Golden Eggs. What they repeatedly use is not ~っけ(=kke).
I explained in my 草食系男子(=soushokukei danshi) and 肉食系女子（=nikushokukei joshi) lesson a long time ago but it’s 系=kei = a group, category, family. And yes, the girl in the Gold Eggs overuses it in a funny way. :) ノテ系ってどういう意味系？= Note kei tte douiu imi kei?
I really enjoyed the lesson! Thank you so much Maggie Sensei :D!
@ninipana
Thank you for the nice comment,ninipana❤ I am glad to hear you enjoyed the lesson! :)
I have small question
医者でもないくせに。 why is demo why is not ja nai or deha nai?
This isvery useful thank you!
@PukiPuki
You can say 医者ではないくせに（=Isha de wa nai kuseni) /(more casual) 医者じゃないくせに(=isha ja nai kuseni) as well.
~でもない is “not even ~” and it sounds stronger.
wow so fast! thank you ^___^
Have a nice day!
@PukiPuki
Haha, I was in front of the computer. You’re welcome! またね！:)
WOW. Your contents are VERY valuable in a world of crazy books and many explanations, none of them useful at all in the real life.
Thanks a lot!
@Darkgaze
I am very happy to hear that! Hope you can learn something here. :)
Hi Maggie!
Thank you so much for the lessons.
Could you explain the sentence お決まりの方からどうぞ?
I understand “If you’ve decided, from that person please”
Best regards from Spain.
@Casiel
Hola Casiel,
お決まりの方からどうぞ?
決める means “to decide to buy something” → to know what to buy →to be ready to buy something
So the literal translation is,
“We will attend from that person who have decide to buy something, so please come (to the cashier)”
We use お決まり at the restaurant or fast food as well.
ご注文はお決まりですか？
= Gochuumon wa okimari desu ka?
= Do you know what to order?
Saludos de Japón. :)
今日はマギー先生。
このサイトは本当に素晴らしいです
よ！このレッスンは優位木です。でも質問があります。日本語で「~to make you want to do something」なんといいますか？「～させたい」ですか？
たとえば、「アニメとドラマを見ることで日本に行かさせたい。」って正ですか？
@ジャッシンデレラー
こんにちは！ジャッシンデレラー！
I think there are many ways to say “~to make you want to do something” depending on the sentence but you can say
but a lot of time we say it ~したくなる without using a causative verb.
アニメとドラマを見ると日本に行きたくなる
This commercial film makes me want to eat the ice cream.
このCMをみるとアイスクリームが食べたくなる。
This site makes me want to study Japanese.
このサイトに来ると日本語を勉強したくなる。
(A little note for you : 優位木→有意義= yuuigi But you you meant to say “useful” 役に立ちました。is more natural. :) )
ありがとうございます。あたし初めてこんなブログにコメントしちゃた、返事もらう事予想しなかった(ななんでだろうね)だから嬉しい(o^^o)♪本当にありがとう
@ナバ
どういたしまして！私も初めてのコメントもらってうれしかったですよ。:)
HI, I’m having a little trouble
From what I read in the lesson, てくる and ていく both deal with the future right?
You said: Verb + ていく(=teiku) From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions
てくる(=tekuru) From the time when speaker is thinking to the future. / habitual actions
In this example:
Ex. 1)あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte kurune.
= She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now)
Ex. 2)あの子はだんだん可愛くなっていくね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte ikune.
= She will be cuter and cuter. (from now on )
Why isn’t なってきた used in the first example? She has been getting cuter and cuter until this point.
I was under the impression that てくる is she will continue to get cuter and cuter in the future and she has been cute this whole time.
While I thought that, ていく meant she will get cuter and cuter in the future, from this point on, and she really hasn’t been cute until now.
So てくる she has been cute and will continue being cute and hasn’t reached her peak of cuteness yet.
While ていく means she will start becoming cute from now on (she really hasn’t been cute until now)
てきた She has become cuter and cuter until now, and we don’t know if she will get any cuter, stay the same etc etc
Thank you.
@Amit Moondra
Hello, Amit,
I added some more information. I made this lesson a long time ago but I guess I wanted to just focus on the difference between 〜てくる and 〜ていく that time in that example.
As you said, ~てくる deals with future time. But we also use it to describe what has been happening or what is happening right now in certain cases.
Thank you so much. I had a few more questions, but I will take a look again at the lesson and see if things become more clear.
I really appreciate the hardwork and details you incorporate into each lesson.
Your numerous examples really, really help with the nuance of many words.
Last time I checked there wasn’t a lesson on -ても。 Is this grammar point on your “requested list”? I read through a lesson on this grammar point, but it was a little confusing, maybe I just need to read the lesson again.
Once again, thank you so much for your hardwork!
@Amit Moondra
You’re welcome! I was going to go through the lesson again to make sure if everything was clear but I have been verry busy so will do that some other time.
And I will tell 〜ても on the request lesson.
Last but not least thank you for the nice message! :)
thank you so much! that makes a lot more sense now :) when you say habitual, would the English equivalent be ‘has been’. So like 雨が降ってくる could also mean it has been raining but not necessarily raining right now. ずこく役に立つコメントを書いてくれてありがとうございます。本当に感謝しています。
@Campbell Carsley
Umm when I said “habitual”, I meant “present tense” can also describe future actions and also habitual actions just like English.
Ex. 1) もうすぐ雨が降ってくる。= It will rain soon. (future)
Ex. 2) 私が海に行くといつも雨が降ってくる= Whenever I go to the beach, it rains. (something habitual)
Note : However with certain verbs and situations, ~くる can be used to describe the action what is happening/has been happening.
From the example sentences in the lesson.
Ex. 1)あの子はだんだん可愛くなってくるね。
=Anoko wa dandan kawaiku natte kurune.
=She has been getting cuter and cuter. (until now)
Ex. マギーが好きになってくる／きた
=Maggie ga suki ni natte kuru./kita.
=I’m getting like Maggie/ I’ve come to like Maggie. (until now)
But 降ってくる is just strange to use to describe when it has been raining/it is raining.
Hey maggie! I’m still having a little trouble understanding the てくる and てきた. I can understand ていく fairly easily but it’s the other two I can’t quite seem to grasp. What would be the difference between 雨が降ってくる and 雨が降ってきた. And how come even though the てきた is in its past tense it doesn’t mean ‘had been or was’? One more question :) This is an example situation I made up. A: 最近、上司の性格が変わってくるんだよね。B: お前も気付いていたの？まあねー１週間前ぐらい彼女と別れたんじゃない？A: あっ、そうですね。そういうことかも。。In that example situation, what would be the difference if you used 変わってきた instead? Sorry for the very long comment and lots of questions, it’s just I am really having a hard time working this out. Hope you can answer this for me!
@Campbell Carsley
Hello CC!
OK the first question.
1) The difference between A) 雨が降ってくる and B) 雨が降ってきた
They both have a verb くる
Basically 降ってくる is for future or something habitual and 降ってきた is used in the form of present perfect or the past.
A) 雨が降ってくる : It will rain (soon). It is not happening yet. You are talking about future or possibility
B) 雨が降ってきた : It has started to rain. So it is raining now.
This is present perfect but you can also use it when you talk about the past.
昨日、雨が降ってきたときにどこにいましたか？
= Where were you when it started to rain yesterday?
Now your example sentence.
A: 最近、上司の性格が変わってくるんだよね。
For the same reason as above, you can’t use くる here because his personality has been changed and you should say 変わってきたんだよね。
But if the boss always changes his personality when he drinks (habitual actions or behavior)you can use くる
上司はいつもお酒を飲むと性格が変わってくるんだよね。
このサイト本当に役立ってるよ(≧∇≦)
Anyways Is there a tutorial on how/when to use 方法、風、方？Or any other words that mean 「how to」
Example in english→
”I like how you ___”（or I like the way you ____）
”Can you tell me how to do this sum？”
“How is he winning without even trying?!”
@ナバ
こんにちは、ナバ！
このサイトが役に立つと聞いてうれしいです。
”I like how you ___”（or I like the way you ____）
You can use 方 here.
verb + 方
how you do something =〜の やり方=yarikata、し方=shikata
how you play the piano = ピアノの弾き方= Piano no hikikata
how you talk = 話し方= hanashikata
how to do this sum = この合計の出し方= kono goukei no dashikata
******
When you ask a question how people do something,
どうやって(=douyatte)
“How is he winning without even trying?!”
彼はどうやって努力しないで勝っているのだろう？
= Kare douyatte doryoku shinai de katte iru nodarou.
Nice expanation, I hope i could learn keigo
@Annie
You can! I know it seems to be tough but learn sukoshi zutsu!
Hi, I love your explanation >.< But I have a question. If you use って in the beginning of a sentence, how would you say it in English? For example,
って、何描いってんの？What does it emphasise?
@Hina
Hello Hina
Ah, we only start a sentence with って in colloquial conversation but it’s usually ってか、っていうか. (I wrote about it in a couple of lessons. (Ex. 若者言葉 lesson. No. 5)
Your example sentence, って、何描いてんの？
It is not actually emphasizing anything. It means light “but”, “anyway”, “then” depends on the conversation.
“そういうこともあったっけ” is definitely my favorite out of these examples. I had forgotten that you could use it with polite forms, maybe because I neglected to use them… even with my teachers, haha.
@Ragnar
Thank you for your comment, Ragnar!
Yes, there is a polite form of っけ but as I wrote in the lesson, I wouldn’t use it in a very formal situation. :)
卒業の日が待ちきれない！
このレッソンはすっごく役に立ちました！（＾－＾）
@ninipana
このレッスンがお役にたってよかったです。
卒業はいつですか？
遅くなって、すみませんでした。
３月に卒業式をする！（＾－＾）
@ninipana
ではあと半年後ですね。今の学校生活も楽しんで下さいね。
ここには学校の生活はつまらないので、早く卒業したいです。笑
@ninipana
だから、卒業が待ちきれないんですね。でも卒業までの学校生活をぜひ、楽しんで下さい！！:)
（a little note for you : ここには→ここの学校の生活）
はーい！♪( ´θ｀)ノマギー先生は最高！
Oh I thought it would work if I wanted to say yes I remember I had breakfast ><"
ありがとう♪
@Ninipana
Ah, you can say
今、朝ご飯を食べたのを思い出しました。= I just remembered I had breakfast. That will be perfect! :)
おはようございます、マギー先生！
はい、今日、朝ご飯を食べたっけ。
＾
これでいいのかな～ 照
マギー先生のレッソンはいつも楽しいですよ！ありがとうございます！
＠ninipana
おはよう！ninipana!!
はい、今日、朝ご飯を食べたっけ。
→Did you mean to say “Yes, I had breakfast”? Then はい、今日、朝ご飯を食べました。
We use ”っけ” when we are not sure whether we did something or not :)
今日、朝ご飯を食べたっけ？
マッギー先生なんて先生は聞いたことありますよ！なんて面白いレッソンなんだろう！
このレッソンをありがとうございます！これからも宜しくお願いします！
@ninipapa
ありがとう！！こちらこそこれからもよろしくね！
(マッギー先生なんて先生は聞いたことありますよ！→Ahhh, good mistake! なんて〜聞いたこと（は）ない (negative sentence) is fine but since it is an affirmative sentence, how about マギー先生のことよく知っていますよ。）
あ、分かりました！教えてくれて、ありがとう！ （＾－＾）
@ninipana
どういたしまして♥
こんにちはマギー先生、すみませんが “ということだ” について質問があります。。。
“つまり。。。ということだ” どういう意味ですか。I have found a lot of sentences using this pattern. I have found that つまり meaning is “in other words”, but what does ということだ add to the meaning of this pattern? Could it be “in other words, it looks like…”?
For example:
山田さんはまだ来ていませんか。つまり、また遅刻ということですね。
Could I translate as:
“Hasn´t Yamada arrived yet? So/in other words, it looks like he will be late again.”
どうもありがとうございます先生！
@Sandra
Hello Sandra!
Yes, we use つまり〜ということだ pattern a lot.
つまり means “in short, on other words, that is to say”, etc and summarize what it is said in the previous statement.
山田さんはまだ来ていませんか。つまり、また遅刻ということですね。
Your translation,
“Hasn´t Yamada arrived yet? So/in other words, it looks like he will be late again.”
is just fine.
Though I would translate,
Mr. Yamada is not here yet? That means he is late again, huh?
So つまり is often translated as “That means””I mean””You mean”
Ex. つまり私がいいたいのは〜ということだ。
What I mean is blah blah blah.
Ex. つまり~ということですか？
So that means blah blah blah?
Makes sense?
Oh, I see… “That mean…” Yes, I got it :)
I’m sorry 先生 but there is another sentence I have doubts about.
田中さんから電話があって、少し遅れるということです。
I would translate:
Tanaka called and said that he would be a little late.
That´s what I understand when I read the sentence, so for me it would have the same meaning with 少し遅れるといいました。
I guess here ということです meaning it is what you explained before: “(3) What I know is, I’ve heard that, They say…:” but here, Tanaka called and said it, it´s an information he gave about himself, so it´s not a hearsay, so I don´t understand why is ということです used here.
Sorry 先生 for so long question, and thank you very much in advance!
@Sandra
田中さんから電話があって、少し遅れるということです。
Yes, your translation is correct.
As you said, ということです has a function to pass the information that you have heard or seen to someone.
It actually means the same as と言いました and we do say
田中さんから電話があって少し遅れると言っていました。
but while と言いました／言っていました just describes the action of “saying something”,ということです focuses on delivering the message and it sounds more formal than と言いました／言っていました. and we use ということです (or とのことです）） much more in business situations.
Oh! Now I understand why it´s used ということです in this sentence! Both sentences I asked you were together at the same point of ということです in my book, and for me had different meanings, so I was very confused, but now I got both of them!
You really helped me a lot, マギー先生.
心からどうもありがとうございました!
@Sandra
あ〜よかった！！ :)
すごく役に立ったレーズン！
時々聞いたけど意味分からなかった。
ありがとうございました先生。
この例文「彼は背が高かったでしたっけ？」
ダブルPASTはいつ使えますか？
阿武
@阿武
おはよう！阿武！
「彼は背が高かったでしたっけ？」
ダブルPASTはいつ使えますか？
以前に会ったことがある人、または見たことがある人のことを思い出そうとしている時に使いますよ。
Ex. マギーは可愛かったっけ？
Ex. マギーは可愛かったでしたっけ？
さすがマギー先生、
ありがとうございます！
よい晩を
@阿武
ありがとう！おやすみなさい！！
Oh, now I understand :) ほど has a lot of different uses… I guessed that was the meaning, but I preferred ask you and get sure.
ありがとうございましたマギー先生！
@Sandra
どういたしまして！！いつでも聞いてね！
I love reading your lessons so much!! Thank you! I used to think I was learning Nihongo like a turtle but now I am learning many useful and practical lessons in Nihongo. Arigatou, Maggie Sensei~ > u<
@Isay
Hello Isay! このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！Thank you for visiting this site.
Learning Japanese like a turtle is good as long as you enjoy learning it. :)
Hope you come back here to learn more!
Wow, you replied so fast! Your site has become one of my relaxation activities after a long day at work. I love it! And yes, I enjoy learning Japanese, each new word I learn is so colorful, especially when I learn more about the kanji that comprise them. But words are weak without regular usage.. your site shows precisely how to do so correctly, so again, thank you!! <3
@Isay
I’m VERY happy to hear that. Feel free to practice with the words that you have just learned here anytime. :)
こんにちは、マギー先生。
I´m studying ほど and I have a question. There is a sentence I´m not sure how to translate, and what´s the use of ほど that they do.
若い人ほど朝寝坊をする。
It´s possible that here they use the ば…ほど… pattern but ば has fallen down? Which is the use for
ほど in this sentence?
Thank you in advance!
@Sandra
A great question! You are right 若い人ほど is from “若ければ若いほど”.
Young people tend to wake up late (more than older people).
The younger you are, you tend to wake up late more.
This is a technique that we use to emphasize the word which comes before ほど (in this case 若い) and it often use to bring up the unexpected fact.
You may not expect this but the truth is〜〜〜〜
Ex. （暑いければ）暑いほど、何か熱いものが食べたくなる。
When it gets hotter, we prefer to eat something hot more.
本当にありがとうございます、先生！I’m glad my sentences weren’t as bad as I thought :D thanks for all the help助かりました。 絶対、このサイトにまた来るよ☆
@Campbell Carsley
どういたしまして！ほんとうによくできていましたよ。
また来てね！！:)
ああ、わかりました (*^^*) 対照的な時に、”は”が使われるんですね。でも、「知る、知っている」と言ったら、たいてい”を”が使われています。hmmm…. I’m still not quite sure when to use the particle か or particle を when saying “know”. I’ll write some example sentences and can you please correct them? (^_^)
eg1. (you don’t know how hungry I am)
君がどれだけ腹減ったか知らないよ
eg2. (do you know how to turn on the tv?)
テレビの付け方を知っている？
eg3. (how do you know where maggie hid her bone?)
なんでマギーがどこに骨を隠したか知ってるの？
最後の例 (I don’t know any shops that fix tv’s not working)
壊れているテレビを直す店のことを知らないんだ
They’re my example sentences, hopefully they aren’t too bad :) thanks for your help!!
@Campbell Carsley
This is the best way to master the language.
All your example sentence are very well.
My suggestions :
1) eg.1 It will be more natural to add なんて
~ なんて知らないよ。
2) (I don’t know any shops that fix tv’s not working)
I would say,
どこで壊れたテレビを直してくれるか知らないんだ。
よくできました！！
おはようございます。
Sorry for the confusion.
I am asking the chefs what they would like to drink.
They cannot leave to get their own drink since they have to take care of making customers order, so I (as a server) can get it for them.
ありがとうございます！
@ミーちゃん
Oh, I see. You are so nice! Although it is rare, if it is a cozy and friendly place , there might be a customer who would offer a drink to chef.
You could say
何か飲まれませんか？(polite)
= Nanika nomaremasen ka?
何かお飲みになりませんか？
= Nanika onomi ni narimasenka?
If they look confused you can say
ずっと作っていらっしゃるから…
= Zutto tsukutte irassharu kara..
= You’ve been cooking the whole time so…
And if you treat them, you say
私がごちそうします。
= Watashi ga gochisou shimasu.
なんてすばらしいレッスンなんでしょう!(*⌒∇⌒*)
マギー先生, ただいま! お久しぶりですね? 私は悪い生徒でごめんなさい。o(╥﹏╥)o 最近、毎日仕事で忙しいですから。 でも, 日本語を上達することを一所懸命に頑張ります!
ミツ先生がかわいい!もちろんマギー先生も!
Oh no, I meant to post this comment on “How to use なんて(=nante)” my mistake! (^_^)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
久しぶり！またこのサイトに来てくれてうれしいです。ミツ先生、かわいいでしょ〜❤（大丈夫！どのレッスンにコメント入れてくれても必ず読みます！）
これからも日本語楽しいんで続けてくださいね！
なるほど〜分かりやすく説明してくれてありがとう！添削もありがとう！(((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) あっ、もうひとつの質問を聞いてもいいかな？日本語で言い方が分からないので英語で言います。When you want to say a sentence using the verb ‘know’ in Japanese, which particle do you use? Because, I’ve seen the particle は and を and also か being used with the verb ‘to know’ (as in 知ってる) Sorry for the long question, but all I want to know is what particle do Japanese people tend to use when they say 知ってる. thanks in advance :)
@Campbell Carsley
OK, 知る・知っている・（casual contraction 知ってる）
We usually use the particle “を”
〜（〜のこと）を知っている（casual contraction 知ってる）
Ex. マギー先生のサイトを知っていますか？
= Do you know about Maggie Sensei’s site?
Ex. 真実を知りたい。
= I want to know the truth.
Ex. この携帯の使い方を知らない。
= I don’t know how to use this cell phone.
But if you want to show some contrast, you can use は
Ex. Aは知っていますが、Bは知りませんでした。(= I know A but didn’t know about B)
Ex. この携帯の使い方は知らない。( I don’t know how to use this cell phone but I know how to use other cell phone.)
＊〜か知らない ~か知っている = to know whether ~ or not/what, who, which, as to
Ex. 誰が来るか知っていますか？
= Do you know who is coming?
Ex. 何時に会うか知らない。
= I don’t know what time we are supposed to see each other.
Ex. マギーがどこに骨を隠したか知っている。
= I know where Maggie hid her bone.
このレッスンも分かりやすくてありがとうございます！でも、疑問があるんです。例えばですね、I want to know why the resources of our once beautiful have been overusedって英語で言いたいとしたら、日本語で言うと、「なぜ美しかった地球の資源は使い過ぎられたということを知りたいんです」という意味になりますか？その文章で「ということ」をつければいいでしょうか？よろしくお願いします(^_^)
@Campbell Carsley
こんにちは！
「なぜ美しかった地球の資源は使い過ぎられたということを知りたいんです」
↓
よく書けています。
確かに”資源”を主語にすると使いすぎられたと受け身にしないといけないと思うかもれませんが、”使いすぎられた”はあまり使いません。”乱用された”にするか人を主語にして”使いすぎた”にした方が自然かもしれません。
（かつて）美しかった地球の資源はなぜ乱用されたかということを知りたいんです。
（かつて）美しかった地球の資源をなぜ（人々は）乱用したかということを知りたいんです。
ありがとうございます。
I need help on another thing.
お願いします。
If I’m asking the chefs what they would like to drink, is it appropriate to say: “お飲物は如何ですか？ (Onomimono wa ikaga desu ka?)
You are a great help~
@ミーちゃん
こんにちは、ミーちゃん！
I’m sorry I don’t quite get the situation. You are going to ask chefs what they would like to drink???
Or you want to ask them what kind of drink they would recommend?
“お飲物は如何ですか？ (Onomimono wa ikaga desu ka?) is used when you are the one who serves drinks.
My friend told me that nagara is added to masu form to say “while doing,” instead of changing to nai and then removing it.
Don’t these two examples show pre masu form + nagara instead of nai–> remove nai–>add nagara?
Ex. 子供達は笑いながらゲームで遊んでいた。
Ex. 彼の気持を知りながら無視をしている。
Btw your lessons are so great. マギー先生のサイトを見つけたのが よかった！
@Francis
Thank you!! I fixed the pattern.
ありがとう！！
マギー先生、
初めてのコメントですが去年からマギー先生を見つかってよかった。すごく便利だと思う。日本語はまだうまくないからすまない ＾＾；
このレッスンの文法と可能形どう違うの？？
ちょっと考えて
ありがとうございます。
ところで去年から名古屋市の愛知県に暮らしています。
@阿武
こんにちは！このサイトを見つけてくれてうれしいです。
そうですね、可能形と考えていいと思います。
（ただ「切る」の可能形は「切れる」ですが、「切る」自体に何かを達成したという意味があるので可能形を使わないことも多いです。）
名古屋の住み心地はどうですか？東京に比べるとのんびりしているのでは…
マギー先生
遅く返事すみません。
分かりやすい説明してくれてありがとうございます。
実は東京に住んでいたことがありません。
4年前金沢に8ヶ月滞在しました。
昭和区の八事の辺に暮らしています。去年の9月墨西哥から来ました。
マギー先生はずっと名古屋に住んでいますか？
阿武
@阿武
はい！”名古屋”犬ですよ！（笑）八事はいい所ですね。
メキシコ（難しい字を知っていますね）から来たんですね。名古屋にはメキシコ料理のお店があんまりないけど、名古屋の人達が阿武に優しくしてくれていることを願います。
マギー先生
もちろん！日本人も優しくて親切で素晴らしい人だと思います。
日本に住んで嬉しいですよ。
日本文化や日本語が大好きです。昨日長野県の妻籠宿行って景色がすごかったよ。
日本語が上手になりたいです。美しく言語だと思います。＾＾
マギー先生は日本語の先生ですか？
失礼なことを聞いてしまいましてすみません。
このサイトを作ってありがとう！
阿武
＠阿武
よかった！！そう聞いて安心しました。もう阿武の日本語は上手ですよ。
全然、失礼なことではありませんよ。普段、日本語を教えているかということですか？日本語はこのサイトだけで教えています。私は”犬”だから普段は犬の生活をしていますよ。:) 少しでも日本語を勉強しているみんなの役にたてばうれしいです。
妻籠宿は久しく行っていないけれどもとってもいいところですね。
マギー先生、教えたことは本当に分かりやすいです。特に「は」と「を」の使い方。それを知るのが便利だと思います。ありがとうございます。
@江戸W.
よかった！！”やすい＆にくい”、これからも使ってみて下さいね。
Hello maggie sensei,
You replied to the comment of jolie-san in this lesson that, the translate of –
“Its easy to see winter in Japanese”
雪は冬に降ることが多い
i can’t get the nuance of this stentnec
and can the below sentence is more common than the before one
冬は雪が見やすい.
And i have another doubt that 易い is used as suffix of verb stem as easily
so please tell which is correct one
of ” He climbs tree easily”
彼は簡単に木にのぼる。
彼は木がのぼりやすい。
if both are correct then whats the difference between their nuance.
As always thanks for your amazing service. your lessons helps me a lot to improve japanese.
冬は雪が見やすい or 雪は冬に見やすい doesn’t sound natural because it generally snows in winter.
You use 見やすい in the context such as
この席の方がステージが見やすい。
You can see the stage better in this seat.
You don’t say 彼は木がのぼりやすい。
but you can say この木は登りやすい。This tree is easy to climb.
彼は簡単に木に登れる (potential form is better)
簡単に means “to do something easily/without difficulties”
なんて素晴らしいサイトを見つけた。こういう面白いサイトなんて見たことない。
よろしくお願いします。
@江戸川W.
わ〜なんてうれしいコメントなんでしょう♩
こちらこそこれからもよろしくね！:)
Nante hi desu yo!
mou uchi ni kaeritai desu. shigoto de iro iro atta no desu.
Thank you Maggie Sensei! chuu w
@PukiPuki
Hello PukiPuki!! お仕事でいろいろあったみたいですね。(=Oshigoto de iroiro atta mitai desune.)大丈夫！(=Daijoubu!) 明日はきっといい日になりますよ。(=Ashita wa kitto ii hi ni narimasuyo.)
明日は”なんていい日だろう！”って思えます様に。(=Ashita wa “Nante ii hidarou! tte omoe masu you ni!)
Big Chu for you,too!!
Hi!
Thank you very much for your great site, it’s really thorough and great help when studying Japanese.
However, there’s a small typo in the following example. I hope you could fix it when you’ve time.
Ex. ここに財布を置いておいたはずなのにない。
= Koko ni saifu wo oite oita hazu nanoni…
@Student
Hello! Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. :)
Wow, このサイトを見つけたところですが, これからのところは、マーギ先生の説明が楽しいし、面白いし、簡単だし、大好きですよ。
それでは、「彼はお尻から落ちた時、私は笑いきれなかった」って言ってもいいのですか。
Sometimes, I have a hard time choosing between が and は in sentences with more than one clause. Did I use them correctly this time?
Thanks! :D
よろしく！
@James
Hello James, こんにちは！
このサイトをみつけてくれてうれしいです。
OK, you can’t use 笑う and きれない. Because 笑う is an action that you can’t complete.
If you say 笑いきれない, it means “You have started to laugh and you can’t finish/complete laughing.”
So 彼がお尻から落ちた時、私は笑えなかった。 = I couldn’t laugh when he fell on his butt.
Thank you very much, Maggie Sensei!
I think I finally got it…
Love the website. I think I will use it more frequently from now on.
Best wishes
@Irina
Hello Irina,
Hope you come back here often,too!!
Feel free to leave comments or questions anytime!
Hmmmmm… I just tried to comment and I don’t think it worked. Thanks for the great lessons. I have to start exploring your archive of lessons they are a great resource.
@Wes
Hello Wes!
Thank you for your comment. There are a lot of lessons. Hope you come back here soon again!
また来てね！
次のレッスンが待ちきれないっす！ (笑）
@ブレット
ハハハ、完璧（kanpeki)！！楽しみにしていてね！ U^ｪ^U
Hi Maggie thank’s for this lesson! Is quite interesting, especially no ga kirenai! Nihon ni iku no ga machikirenai n desu.
@PukiPuki
Hello PukiPuki!
Nihon ni iku no ga machikrendesu! → Good! :)
Oh, I see! I didn’t think about that possibility at all.
Very good explanation 先生! Now I understand it! ^_^
どうもありがとうございましたマギー先生！
@Sandra
Oh good!! わかってくれてよかった〜！！
こんにちはマギー先生！
すみませんが、「の」の使い方について質問があります…
In my text book, I have a sentence to sort properly and the answer the book gives is:
私は少し苦みのあるコーヒーが好きです。
My answer was:
私は少し苦みあるコーヒーのが好きです。
I thought when you use 「の」as nominalizer, always follows a particle. I don’t understand why here it follows 「ある」。
Could you please help me a little?
どうもありがとうございます！
@Sandra
こんにちは、Sandra!
私は少し苦みのあるコーヒーが好きです。
This の is not a nominalizer. It has a function as a subject.
苦みがあるコーヒーが好きです。
= 苦みのあるコーヒーが好きです。
苦み is a noun =bitterness
I will show you other examples.
1) The song that my mother likes
母が好きな歌 (haha ga sukina uta)
= 母の好きな歌(haha no sukina uta)
Ex. これは母が好きな歌です。(kore wa haha ga sukina uta desu.)
= これは母の好きな歌です。(kore wa haha no sukina uta desu.)
= This is the song that my mother likes
2) a girl who has long hair
髪が長い女の子(kami ga nagai onnanoko)
= 髪の長い女の子 (kami no nagai onnanoko)
Ex. あの髪が長い女の子は誰ですか？
=あの髪の長い女の子は誰ですか？
= Who is the girl who has long hair?
We use の as a subject marker only when it goes to a noun.
.
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I don’t understand the last part. Why do you put “datte” in a sentence and how would I go about using it?
If you could explain it like I’m a baby, that’d be helpful since I’m still a beginner at Japanese. I can’t grasp some of these concepts very well and I don’t exactly get what kind of sentence counts as a “summary”.
>”I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.”
I’m not exactly sure what makes this a summary. Does this mean that it’s sort of a conversation wrap up after you’ve explained your story? (or something along the lines of that)
One more thing, I found this usage of “tte” in a song and was just curious how this usage works.
“itsu made mo mamotte iku”
Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks!
@Brad
Hello Brad,
OK, for example you are talking to someone about Mr.A. and that person tells you “He hasn’t been home for over month.” and maybe you get some other information about Mr.A from that person.
Now when you see someone else and tell that person what you have just heard about Mr.A.
You say “I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.”
So the information you want to give is
↓
he hasn’t been home for over a month now
= もう一ヶ月も家に帰っていない
= Mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inai
↓
I heard he hasn’t been home for over a month now.
私は彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないと聞きました。
= Watashi wa Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inai to kikimashita.
↓(More conversational)
彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないって。
= Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inaitte
↓
(Stress the information.)
彼はもう一ヶ月も家に帰っていないんだって。
= Kare wa mou ikkagetsu mo ie ni kaette inain datte.
So the function of って here is “passing the information” but as you said, it could be a summary of what you have heard.
*****
Your second question :
いつまでも守っていく
“itsu made mo mamotte iku”
OK, this って is a part of the conjugation of 守る
守っていく
守ってきた
守っていた
守ってあげる etc.
There are many verbs that conjugate with って
to know = 知る = shiru
知っていく= shitteiku
知っていた = shitteita
to cut = 切る = kiru
切っていく = kitte iku
切って下さい = kitte kudasai
You will see this conjugation while studying Japanese grammar.
I hope this helps…
Hi maggie, first time on your website and it is just so helpful, thanks for your dedicated lessons and taking your time to help out the rest of us who are struggling with this beautiful language! I was wondering, shouldn’t Saki ni itte mattete! be 「先に行って待ってて」instead of 「先に行ってて」. I wish I had the confidence to write this message in japanese but I don’t think I’m quite there yet!:D
@slo
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
And also thank you so much for your nice message!!! ありがとう！
Well, I have both of them but the grammar I find there is beginner level and not very useful with the grammar I’m studying now (intermediate). I can find almost everything at どんな時どう使う日本語 but the explanations are very short and sometimes no clear enough.
Anyway, thank you very much Maggie sensei! :) I will continue checking your page everyday.
@Sandra
Oh you have both of them.
OK, I will let you know when I find a good grammar text books.
Anybody who knows good ones, please feel free to write in this comment section for Sandra as well!
Maggie Sensei, taihen benkyou ni narimashita. Enjoy your vacation, and thanks for this wonderful site you have.
@momo
Thank you, momo! I came back from the vacation!!
ありがとう！！
You are really very kind, マギー先生！
The truth is I’m studying with 日本語そまとめ for N3 exam by myself and although I have other books, as どんなときどう使う日本語, I can’t find good explanations for the grammar I learn everyday. Perhaps it’s too much ask you for this but, could you recommend me any good grammar book, where I could find more detailed explanations? My mother tongue is Spanish but I manage with english.
Thank you again!
@Sandra
How about みんなの日本語. It has a Spanish version. Have you ever checked the book before?
Also many people like げんき.
What’s the difference between としたら , とすれば and とすると ?
It works with adjectives ?
@titi
Yes, it works with adjectives.
大きいとしたら
大きいとすれば
大きいとすると
But sorry, it is hard to explain the difference in this comment section. I will add it to the future lesson list.
I see… Thank you very much マギー先生。ように has so many meanings and differents uses that it looks impossible to learn all of them.
もう一度ありがとうございました。
@Sandra
You’re very welcome. I know there are a lot of usages of ように and you might feel overwhelmed but it is not that bad.
Now keep practicing. If you make example sentences, feel free to post in this comment section. I will check them for you. がんばって！
Maggie Sensei
Does って言うかＭｅａｎｓ In other words?/ How do I say it?
I heard this in a variety show too, but could not figure out what it means still, or how it’s usually used.
教えてください。ありがとう～
＾＾
@Kasandra
Ah, yes, って言うか means “in other words/How do I say it” , “But” or sometimes no meaning.
The casual forms are is ってか・つうか.
If you are interested in learning more, I mentioned in the following in this lesson
*若者言葉(wakamono kotoba)
and I explained more in this lesson.
*曖昧（あいまい）*
So please check them.
今日はマギー先生、
I have a question about ように。I’m reading at “Nihongo so matome” several uses for ようにand it says that you can use it when introducing some explanations, whose meaning would be “as”. I give an example from this book:
ここに書いてあるように、今度の木曜日、授業は午前中だけです。
They translate it like: “as is written here, there will be morning classes only next Thursday”.
So here, ように meaning is similar to とうりに、right? Is this use for ように the one you explained before, with the sentence “マギー先生が言ったようにもっと漢字の勉強をすればよかった”?
And the sentence I wrote as example is correctly translated? For me, the correct translation it would be:
“As is written here, next Thursday, there will be classes only in the morning”.
Thank you in advance, 先生、and sorry for a so long question!
@Sandra
こんにちは、Sandra!
Let me see your question here…
Q : So here, ように meaning is similar to とうりに、right?
↓
Yes.
Q : Is this use for ように the one you explained before, with the sentence “マギー先生が言ったようにもっと漢字の勉強をすればよかった”?
↓
That is right.
Q : And the sentence I wrote as example is correctly translated?
there will be morning classes only next Thursday
↓
I see. If this only goes to Thursday, it is wrong but I think this “only” goes to “morning classes”. In that case the translation is correct.
And your translation is also correct.
hey im just asking about your sentence
“Sensei, keiki to iu keiki wa sakki minna tabeta ja nai desu ka”
I understand the majority of this lesson however this sentence still confuses me mainly the “minna tabeta” i read that us “sensei just now didnt everyone eat all the cake”
@Daniel
Hello Daniel!
OK, this “minna” means “the whole thing／everything” not “everyone”
I don’t really understand っぽい
This grammar has two meaning ? tendency and similarity ?
It works with verbs and adjectives too ?
@titi
Hello titi.
Q : This grammar has two meaning ? tendency and similarity ?
Yes. It means “ish” or “~like”
Q It works with verbs and adjectives too ?
Yes, the words that you can use with っぽい are very limited. The one I listed are the common examples. (忘れっぽい、安っぽい.etc)
As I said, young people crate their own words using っぽい but I would say if you overuse it it sounds shallow.
Can you give me some sentences with verb, -i adj and -na adj + みたいな and みたいに ?
Thank you
マギー先生
こんにちは。
只一つの簡単な質問です。上に「静かでなくなる」と書いてありますが、「静かじゃなくなる」も「静かではなくなる」も大丈夫でしょうか？
よろしくお願いします。
ジェレミー
@ジェレミー
こんにちは、ジェレミー。はい、二つとも同じ意味です。
静かで（は）なくなる
↓
(casual contraction)
静かじゃなくなる
thank you for the lesson maggie sensei!
somehow i wonder is there any relation between ばかり and ばっかり?
Is it the same or like, the former one is more formal while the latter is just the speaking accent?
@cyphoncofe
Hello cyphoncofe!
Ah good one!
It is another colloquial way to say ばかり(=bakari) besides ばっか(=bakka)
I will add that information. :)
Sorry about all these questions ^^’
What’s the grammar of みたいな and みたいに ?
What are the forms that we can write before them ?
thank you
@Jo
みたいな and みたいに usually come after a noun or a verb
★noun + みたいな+ noun
Ex. お人形みたいな女の子 = Girl who is like a doll
★noun + みたいに+ verb / adjectives
Ex. プロの歌手みたいに歌う = to sing like a professional singer
Ex. 冬みたいに寒い= It’s cold like in winter
★verb + みたいな+ noun
Ex. 日本にいるみたいな気分
= feel like being in Japan
★verb + みたいに+ verb
Ex. 彼はなんでも知っているみたいに話す。
= To talk as if he knew everything
Although it is not so common we hear adj＋みたいな in conversation to quote someone’s speech.
Ex. 北海道はこの夏、雨が多いみたいなことを言っていた。
= I heard something like it rains a lot in Hokkaido this summer.
Ex. 彼は元気みたいなことを言っていた。
= I heard he was doing OK or something like that.
These sentences are correct ?
静かなような住居です。
さっきは便利だったような自転車を見た。
@Jo
I would use そうな instead of ような there.
静かなような住居
↓
静かそうな住居 sounds more natural
便利だったような
↓
便利そうな自転車
It may not apply all the time but we use そうな for something visual and ような is used more for the contents.
(Related lesson : 〜そう）
Ex. なんだか今日はいつもより静かなような気がする。
Ex. 昔使っていた自転車はもっと便利だったような記憶がある。
Hello,
What are the forms that I can have before ような ?
-i adjective etc ?
@jo
Hello jo!
1) verb plain form + ような Ex. 笑うような….
2) noun＋の+ ような Ex. マギーのような、Ex. この映画のような….
3) i-adj plain form + ような Ex. 寒いような….
4) na-adj ~な+ ような Ex. 静かなような….
Thanks a lot, but i found a copy&paste mistake:
3) add ながら(=nagara) 食べながら(=nenagara) while eating
Should be:
3) add ながら(=nagara) 食べながら(tabenagara) while eating
@viru paksha
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
I must have copied and pasted the line 寝ながら…. :)
How would I say something like, I got you? As in I got your back. The best word I could find for this for tsukamaeta, but it seems to be more like I caught you. Great lessons by the way! :) please continue!
@Victor
Hello Victor!
Right the translation of I got you can be つかまえた but it means “I caught you”
I got your back. = (大丈夫）私がついている more polite : （あなたには） 私がついています
Could I get that in Romanji? I barely started studying hiragana. :) you are right! I got your back is similar to what I’m looking for. I’m meeting my girl at the airport in a couple of days and would really like to surprise her with this.
@Victor
Ah, OK, if you are a man, you can say
大丈夫= Daijoubu
1) 僕がついています。= Boku ga tsuite imasu.
（more casual)
2) 僕がついているよ。= Boku ga tsuite iruyo.
Good luck!
Maggieちゃん, please help.
When we seat customer at a sushi bar, we’re supposed to tell the chef how many people. Example is 二名様です。(when it’s two people) but if one, do we say お一人様です。or 一名様です。and if three do we say 三名様です。or 三人様です。because for four people it is 四人様です。I want to know what to say for up to 8 people because it can get a little confusing..
@ミーちゃん
Hello ミーちゃん！
OK, here you go!
4 people 四人様 = yonin sama / 四名様= yonmei sama
5 people 五人様= gonin sama / 五名様= gomei sama
6 people 六人様= rokunin sama / 六名様= rokumei sama
7 people 七人様= hichinin sama (nananin sama )/ 七名様= shichimei sama (nanamei sama )
8 people 八人様 = hachinin sama / 八名様= hachimei sama
お仕事、がんばってね！
さすがマギー先生！
素晴らしいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございます！元気ですか？
少し質問がありますね
・「－てくる」は、現在形か過去形の方が使ってはいいかどうわかりますか？(I tried to ask “About -てくる、How do you know wether it’s better to use present tense or past tense?”)
・Is 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？ Is 「V+ていく」 similar to 「これからもV．．．」？
残り休み日に楽しんでね＾＾
@Orti
こんにちは、Orti! 元気でしたか？
返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
1) てきた can be used to describe what has been happening right now and くる is for the event from now to the future.
So when you are talking about what has been happening, use きた.
お腹がすいてきた／マギーが好きになってきた／腹が立ってきた
and when you simply describe the current condition, say
お腹がすいている／マギーが好きだ／腹が立っている。
2) 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？→Can you give me an example.
When you use 今まで, we use the past tense : 今までOrtiはここにいました。
but 「V+てくる」for the action which will happen now. So they are not the same.
3) Is 「V+ていく」 similar to 「これからもV．．．」
But you can also say これからもV＋ていく
Ortiの日本語は上手くなっていく
これからもOrtiの日本語はうまくなる, うまくなっていく
@Orti
こんにちは、Orti! 元気でしたか？
返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
1) Usually きた is a past tense and describe some past event but てきた can be used to describe what has been happening right now and くる is from now to the future.
So when you are talking about what has been happening, use きた.
お腹がすいてきた／マギーが好きになってきた／腹が立ってきた
and when you simply describe the current condition, say
お腹がすいている／マギーが好きだ／腹が立っている。
2) 「V+てくる」 similar to 「いままでV．．．」？→Can you give me an example.
When you use 今まで, we use the past tense : 今までOrtiはここにいました。
but 「V+てくる」for the action which will happen now. So they are not the same.
3) Is 「V+ていく」 similar to 「これからもV．．．」
But you can also say これからもV＋ていく,too.
Ortiの日本語は上手くなっていく
これからもOrtiの日本語はうまくなる, うまくなっていく
Hi Maggie sensei. This is one useful lesson however, I notice you used to itte imashita and to iimashita for both sentences. Can you tell us when to use these both verbs correctly? I have been reading up on those and each sites explained differently. Thanks alot though!
@anna
Hello, Anna!
I am now on vacation so I will answer your question when I come back to Japan,OK?
まっててね。
@anna
OK, sorry it took me a while to get back to you.
So you want to know the difference between
1)
Aさんは「〜〜〜」と言いました。（or 言った）A said “~~”
Aさんは〜〜〜と言いました。A said ~~~
2) Aさんは〜〜〜と言っていました。(or 言っていた）A said (that)~~~ / A was saying ~~~
They both quote what A said. The difference :
1:
1) you are just talking about the fact that A said something (It is often used in a writing form, ex.novels.)
2) When you pass on what A said to someone.
or
1) A said something
2) A was saying something (The speaker is describing the condition, the time when A was saying something.)
You can give the listeners stronger impression of the quote with 2)
Thanks for replying back to me! Please provide more lessons in the future. Would really appreciate it! Love you lots! どうもありがとうございました!
@anna
どういたしまして！ Many more lessons are coming!
Love you,too! ❤
@anna
どういたしまして！ Many more lessons are coming!
Love you,too!! ❤
maggie sensei, i have a similar question as anna-san regarding 言う, 言った, 言ってる and 言ってた.
but it will be a long one. i am not sure if it is ok to post here.
@changk
Leave a question here anyway. I will help you as much as I can.
I am confused with the correct tense to use for the word say. There are 言う, 言ってる, 言った, 言ってた. Let’s go through one by one.
言う – I think this is the least used tense for say. If the present tense is to be used, it will most likely be 言ってる rather than 言う. Under what kind of situation would one use 言う?
言ってる – The most common phrase heard in drama will be 何言ってんの and 言ってるでしょ. Is there a time reference as to when one can still use 言ってる; after which the past tense 言った or 言ってた has to be used? For example, 何言ってんの is said right after the other party said something unacceptable. On the other hand, 言ってるでしょ is said with regards to something mentioned some time back.
言ってた/言った – I was taught in school when we quote what a third party said, we must use 言ってた. And 言った is used in like books, etc. So far so good; but only if it was that straightforward. I have seen/heard of 言ってた and 言った being used interchangeably, although majority was still 言ってた.
I guess the best way to make this clear is to use examples. I created some scenarios. Could Maggie sensei please correct them accordingly?
Scenario 1) A and B are talking
01 A: 明日日本に行きます (I will go Japan tomorrow)
02 B: すみません。何と言いましたか (Sorry. What did you say?) [Can B say 何と言っていましたか also?)
03 A: 明日日本に行くと言いました (I said I will go Japan tomorrow) [Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていました?)
04 B: Cさは (What about C-san?)
05 A: 行きません (C-san will not go)
06 B: Cさんは何とお言っていましたか (What did C-san say?) [Can B say Cさんは何とお言いましたか?]
07 A: Cさんは病気だと言っていました (C-san said he is sick) [Can A say Cさんは病気だと言いました?]
08 B: では、明日ゴルフに行きましょう (Let’s go play golf tomorrow)
09 A: 明日日本に行くと言ったでしょう (Didn’t I say I am going to Japan tomorrow) [Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていたでしょう or 明日日本に行くと言ってるでしょう?]
Scenario 2) A and B are meeting at a cafe and C is a waiter. A only speaks Japanese, C only speaks English and B speaks both English and Japanese
01 Waiter C: What would you like to drink?
02 A: 彼は何と言っていましたか (What did he say?) [Is this correct or should A say 彼は何と言いましたか or even 彼は何と言っていまか?
03 B: 彼は何を飲みますかと言っていました (He said what would you like to drink?) [Same as above, should B use と言っていましたか or even と言っていまか?]
04 B: Lemonade, please
05 A: 何と言いましたか (What did you say?) [Can A say 何と言っていましたか?]
06 B: レモネードと言いました (I said Lemonade) [Can B say レモネードと言っていました?]
＠changk
Hi Changk
First I have a lesson on verb tense where I explained the difference of the tenses so please check it or review.
The difference between 言って（い）た/ 言った
言った = Someone said ~ : You use it when you describe someone said something. (focusing on the action on saying something.) / Someone just said something.
言っていた・言ってた = I heard someone was saying : When you recall the moment when someone says something and tell the third person what you heard. / Someone was saying ~ (in past)
(It is more explanatory than 言った)
When you are talking about what you heard in past, you use 言ってた more than 言った。
マギー先生がそう言っていたよ。I heard Maggie Sensei was saying so.
When you are talking to Y and say “But you said ~~”, you could say both
a: でもこの間、そう言ったじゃない。(But you said so the other day.)
b : でもこの間、そう言って（い）たじゃない。(But you were saying so the other day.)
Scenario 1) A and B are talking
01 A: 明日日本に行きます (I will go Japan tomorrow)
02 B: すみません。何と言いましたか (Sorry. What did you say?)
→You can also say 今、何て言いましたか？
[Can B say 何と言っていましたか also?)
→Strange. Because you just heard that.
03 A: 明日日本に行くと言いました (I said I will go Japan tomorrow)
[Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていました?)
→Strange. (If you quote what someone said in past, you can say 言っていました。）
04 B: Cさんは (What about C-san?)
05 A: 行きません (C-san will not go)
06 B: Cさんは何とお言っていましたか (What did C-san say?)
→OK, except you don’t say お言う. The polite form of 言う is おっしゃる
おっしゃっていましたか？
[Can B say Cさんは何とお言いましたか?]
→Cさんは何と、おっしゃっいましたか？
Yes, possible.
07 A: Cさんは病気だと言っていました (C-san said he is sick)
[Can A say Cさんは病気だと言いました?]
→Again, A is telling B what C said in past so 言っていました is better.
However, if the question is
その時、Cさんはなんとおっしゃいましたか？
then you can say 病気だと言いました。
08 B: では、明日ゴルフに行きましょう (Let’s go play golf tomorrow)
09 A: 明日日本に行くと言ったでしょう (Didn’t I say I am going to Japan tomorrow)
[Can A say 明日日本に行くと言っていたでしょう
→This conversation just happened so “I just said I am going to Japan tomorrow” is 言ったでしょう is better.
But if this conversation happens a few days later and B asks the same question, A said 言っていたでしょう。
or 明日日本に行くと言ってるでしょう?]
→Means “I am telling you I am going to Japan tomorrow.” So it sounds strange unless B repeats asking A to go play golf and A gets frustrated.
Scenario 2) A and B are meeting at a cafe and C is a waiter. A only speaks Japanese, C only speaks English and B speaks both English and Japanese
01 Waiter C: What would you like to drink?
02 A: 彼は何と言っていましたか (What did he say?)
[Is this correct or should A say 彼は何と言いましたか or even 彼は何と言っていまか?
→If it just happened, I would use 今、何て言いましたか？（今、何て言った？）
But if A asks a few minutes later after the waiter leaves the table, さっき、何て言っていましたか？
03 B: 彼は何を飲みますかと言っていました (He said what would you like to drink?)
[Same as above, should B use と言っていましたか or even と言っていまか?]
→Again, if the conversation happens right after the waiter leaves, you can say 言いました but if A asks after passing some time, 言っていました。
04 B: Lemonade, please
05 A: 何と言いましたか (What did you say?)
[Can A say 何と言っていましたか?]
→I assume A asks right after B says something so 言いましたか？ is better.
06 B: レモネードと言いました (I said Lemonade) [Can B say レモネードと言っていました?]
→For the same reason above, 言いました is better.
Hope this helps.
Thank you Maggie-sensei for painstakingly answering my queries. I hope this would be useful to other learners who had the same difficulty as me.
Sorry, お in scenario 1 line 06 was a typo error.
I am more clear with when one should use 言ってた over 言った or vice versa.
I am less clear when both can be used like in scenario 1 line 06 and 07.
Although A and B is talking about a third party C, 言った can still be used as per your explanation.
@changk
06/07
Ah, OK, it is hard to tell the situation from the script but
If A, B and C are together and B couldn’t catch what C just said for some reason, 何て言いましたか？
If it passes time after C said something (for example next day), 何て言っていましたか？
Maggie-sensei, I was reading this blog and came across this sentence:
夫は Monitor Lizard （オオトカゲの意味） と言っていますが
コモドドラゴンではないし～
こちらも名前が分からないので
ご存知の方いたら是非教えて下さい!
Why did the blogger use 言っています rather than 言っていました?
The full article is found here: http://ameblo.jp/singapore-times/entry-11839720277.html
@changk
Hi changk
Actually you can use them both.
The writer’s husband still insists the creature is Monitor Lizard, so writer used 言っています.
But if the writer brings up the fact as a past event, she can use 言っていました。
言っていました。 usually used with time expression which represents “past” such as 昨日、先週、去年,さっきまで, 今まで、etc.
could you show me list repeatable word and how to use it like “fuka-fuka, sube-sube, fuwa-fuwa etc” ?
Hi Maggie!
I’m not sure is this the right place for lesson request but i will try :)
Now im studying : てたまらない , てならない , てしょうがない and てかなわない can you please explain what is the difference bettewen them because i don’t get ir ><"""
Thank you like always and have a nice vacation!!!!
@PukiPuki
Hi, PukiPuki! Hisashiburi!
You can leave a comment, request or message in any comment section. Right now I’m on vacation but when I come back to Japan, I will add your request to my “to do” list. I have 40 lessons to release but when I have a chance I will make a lesson for you. I might make it on Facebook first. Please wait. I think it’s a nice theme.
You know im always here :)
No problem i will wait patiently, i will be very grateful if you will do a lesson about it.
Take your time on vacation!
@Pukipuki
Thank you! It’s nice to know you are always checking my site!
Christ, I’ve been using kimi with all the girls I talk to. Thankfully they seem pretty into me and probably give me a huge free pass for being a foreigner, but I feel really dumb right now.
I have to say, the single most unnatural-feeling thing about Japanese is calling someone by their name in a conversation, which is why I avoid it. With girls, because I thought kimi was friendly, yet slightly polite, I’ve been using that. No idea it could come off as snobbish…
I have no idea if you still go back and answer these questions considering it’s a pretty old article by now, but if you do; if a person tells me that I can use their name without an honorific (呼ぶ捨てでもいい, as they put it) d’you think that’s a free pass to call them -chan? Or is that too assuming? I feel like -chan is kinda sexist to use unless you know the person really well. Wrong?
Also, when you talk about “same age” – in Japanese is this super literal? To me same age, unless you’re in school or a work environment, would mean +/- a couple of years, but I’m still new to Japanese. I feel like I’m straddling the line for what I can get away with though, because I can hold a conversation unless we go into deeper subjects, in which case I usually start describing stuff in roundabout ways because I don’t know the word. No English needed, which I’m happy about, but I don’t think not knowing the basic honorific stuff flies at this point.
@Duder
Hi,Duder!
I’m in vacation right now so I can’t give you a long reply at the moment but the best way to decide how to call your friends is to ask how they want you to call them.
1)何て呼べばいい？(more formal どうやって呼べばいいですか？)
2)ちゃん付けで呼んでもいい？
3) 呼び捨てでもいい？
4)君って呼ばれるのどう思う？
In my opinion, if somoeone keeps calling me with “君” or “あなた”, it could be annoying.
ちゃん is not sexist but it may sound childish. It depends on the age but since it sounds cute, many girls like to be called with “chan” and if you get closer to that person, yobisute gives even closer feeling. But as you said, if you are not so close to that person, it will be awkward.
“The same age”: It is not just the age difference. Even if you have the same age, if you don’t know the person well, it is always safer to be formal at the beginning and change to the casual form little by little.
Japanese people also have difficulty how to address each other when we meet for the first time.
Thanks for the quick answer! It feels a little awkward asking someone how to address them, but I suppose I’ll get used to it.
Thanks again!
@Duder
You can always ask people how they want you to address them casually and we do that often.
And you’re very welcome!
i just started learning japanese and i know hiragana and katakana but i dont know what to start learning now. please help me. thanks
@Khalia
Sorry for the late response. I’m on vacation right now so I won’t be able to give you all the detailed information but you can start super basic words series. All my lessons are random so basically you can start any lessons with “beginners’ tag.
昼ごはんの果物が食べたのなんですか？
Is it correct, Sensei? Arigatou gozaimasu!
@Linh
OK, nice try!
Let me see. Your sentence :
昼ごはんの果物が食べたのなんですか？
Since you used the subject marker が after, it sounds like “What did the fruit for lunch eat?”
You want to say what kind of fruits did you eat for lunch?
If you want to use の，how about
昼ご飯に食べたのはどんな果物ですか？
I was just wondering Yukari-sensei, if you have anything on OR could possibly explain (thoroughly? :D) the difference between やる and する, because I’ve heard them being used almost interchangeably…
ありがとうね^o^
@Daisy
Hello Daisy! We don’t have the lesson on the difference between やる and する yet. Sure! We will put it on the list. But there are still over 40 lessons to release so please wait, OK? (Or we might post the lesson on Facebook. Do you follow us on Facebook?)
今日は、先生!元気ですか?日本はまだ暑いかな?
このレッスンを作ってくれて有り難うございます!
質問がありますね
なきゃ can stand for なければ or なければならない/いけない. Is なけりゃ completely equivalent to なきゃ or it stands only for なければ？
@Orti
こんにちは！Orti! はい、日本はまだまだ３７〜３９度の暑い日が続いていいますよ。
なければ has two casual contractions : なきゃ and なけりゃ.
I can’t think of the big difference at the moment but we don’t usually finish the sentence with なけりゃ.
勉強しなくちゃ。
勉強しなけりゃ。(strange)
I will add if I find other differences.
ああ、大変ですね。我慢して!
有り難うございます、先生!
@Orti
はい！！がんばります！！ありがとう！
＊母はキャンプに行かせてくれた。
(=Haha wa kyanpu ni ikasete moratta.)
“My mom let me go camping.” (He is happy to get to go camping.)
→You wrote kureta in kana but moratta in romaji. ( ´ ▽ ` )
@N4B4
こんにちは！N4B4!
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. ありがとう！！
hi! your site is really great, it really helps in learning nihonggo.
may i ask, what does okune mean?
@cass
Hello Cass!
~ておくね(=te okune) is a casual suffix
V ておく/ V ておきます
to do something done for someone
to do something and leave it
Here is the related lesson. ~shiteoku
Maggie 先生、ありがとうございます！
この新しいレーソンは勉強したてだよ。とても面白かった！
@Linh
どういたしまして！是非(ぜひ）、使って下さいね。
（a little correction : レーソン→レッスン）
I am grateful for your fruitful lessons!
@Linh
Hello Linh! Thank you for the comment! Yoroshikune!
Thank you sensei. :D I went through all of them but still there is much reviewing to be done on my part, I have to admit. :) Also, I have some questions written down in a word document which I kind of left hanging until the end, just in case the questions would answer themselves with a following, already existing lesson from sensei. :) So I will be writing some questions for some lessons in the following days. :D
1) So I guessed that kanji out of the blue. XD That was my impression sensei, that if it had a kanji form it wasn’t used very often so sensei didn’t find it necessary to feature it. :) It may be just me wondering about things which may not be very useful. XD But then I have to admit that after climbing that huge wall which comes to be the process of learning kanji, kanji tend to help in remembering words and their pronunciations when you memorize or are able to remember the kanji that form the words. Kanji sometimes help to remember words, right sensei? :)
2) Thank you sensei. The place in which I looked that word up had that word with that kanji, but it didn’t have the definition sensei provided. :)
3) Oh, sensei always seems to kindly correct comments so I thought that one was correct. XD That sentence makes a lot of sense to me. :D And it is a complex sentence I will enjoy studying. :)
Thank you sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
1) You have a good point! Maybe I should add kanji in that lesson anyway. You are right. Kanji help many people to remember words.
3) I am usually “strict” correcting sentences but I guess I was “nice” at that time. I should remember there are people who also study in the comment section.
Right sensei. hmm, I still feel kind of guilty of encouraging sensei to go through even more work considering how detailed sensei’s lessons already are. ^^’ I think it is a great idea, maybe if the kanji is not used much in practice, sensei could just mention the kanji in the beginning of the lesson and then go the normal way for the rest of the lesson. I have seen sensei do this before in some lessons, so this idea actually comes from you sensei to be honest. :) Just a suggestion. :)
@NecroMadMat
No, I really appreciate your suggestion. I should have included that information. This lesson came from the Facebook lessons. I thought I included more information but obviously I didn’t include the kanji part. Thank you!!!
Happy to read that, sensei. :) Glad to be of some help, even a little. :D
@NecroMadMat
いつもありがとう！！❤
こちらこそ！：Ｄ
Can you tell me what kind of construction is -てもらっちゃ and it’s translation?
The sentence is 忘れてもらっちゃ 困るよ！ The context is a bullied person that forgot her past and meets with the man that bullied her. He attacks her and when she remembered him this was what he replied, the next sentence is that her father arruined his life.
girl: 久保山君…
man: お～ そうだよ
man: 忘れてもらっちゃ 困るよ！
man: 俺の人生 お前の親父が 全部 狂わせたんだ！
I would like to know if the full sentence is 忘れてもらては or if it’s a construction with しまう or if it’s another shortening.
Thank you in advance and sorry if here is not the place to ask about it. BTW, do you have now a Maggie room?
@Ana
Hello Ana! Sorry, currently Maggie’s Room is down but will put it back eventually. Meanwhile, feel free to leave a comment or question any comment section or contact me on Facebook or Twitter.
忘れてもらっちゃ困る is a casual contraction and it is from
忘れてもらっては困る
Usually もらう is “to have someone to do something for you” so you could just say
忘れたら困る
or
忘れては困る
But when we use the verb like 困る, we use もらっては to add a feeling of sarcasm and emphasize what action cause the problem.
So the translation is just
“If you forget about it, I will be in trouble” → Don’t forget about it!
*(unfavorable action) （し）てもらっては困る→〜もらっちゃ困る
Ex. こんなところに荷物を置いてもらっちゃ困る。
= Konna tokoro ni nimotsu wo oite moraccha komaru.
= Don’t leave your bags (personal belongings) here.(I will be in trouble.)
Ex. 好きな様にやってもらっても困ります。
= Sukina you ni yatte moratte mo komarimasu.
= You can’t just do anything you want. (I will be in trouble.)
Thank you so much! I couldnt understand why he used the verb morau in this situation but now I understand.
@Ana
GREAT!! よかった〜！！
Sensei now that I finished the mini lessons I came back here to review “comprehensively” and, guess what!? I have more questions! XD
1) Does ~tate by any chance have a kanji? For example, the one for “立つ”, maybe?
2) おろす
Likewise, does this verb have a kanji as well? I tried looking up this verb but none of the ones I found gave the meaning of “to start using something new”, so maybe the kanji form (if it has one) would help me differentiate it among the others. :)
3) Sensei, from the comment section:
たては少ない言葉だけと使われたんですか？
Reading sensei’s response to this comment, I kind of get the impression that this sentece means something like: “tate is a “rare” (sukunai?) word but were you able to use it”. Actually I can’t translate this sentece very well, there are some things I don’t get. For example:
a) sukunai kotoba: Does it really mean rare word? Maybe there is something being ommited that I don’t get.
b) tsukawareta: This is the part I get the least. Is this supposed to mean: “were you able to use it?” Or maybe “was it used”?
Maybe if sensei could give me a translation of the sentence it could be enough. XD
Thank you sensei. :)
＠NecroMadMat
You finished all the lessons now. お疲れ様！！ I don’t know how many people have studied all the lessons. I am very impressed!
OK, let me answer your questions.
1) Yes, ~たて has kanji 立て. Some of the ~たて words are more common with hiragana so I didn’t write kanji.
2) orosu = 下ろす/ Oroshitate = 下ろし立て.
3) Actually I didn’t correct the comment but I figured out the meaning.
I think what the person meant was
「〜たて」は「〜ばかり」に比べると使える動詞が少ないと書いてありますが、よく使いますか？
= You wrote the verbs that we use with ~tate are limited compared to “~bakari” but do you use that word often?
I’d just like to tell you how much I love your blog !
I’m going to study in Japan for the following months and to be honest, it really makes me nervous since my japanese level isn’t, well… incredible. But each time I visit your website, it gives me hope and makes me feel like I want to learn everything and start a conversation with any random japanese passing by.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you Maggie Sensei ! You may not realise how much your lessons can mean to someone… I can tell you : a lot.
Thanks for all \^o^/
@Flo
Ohhhhh how sweet….
Your message made my day!
You already have a great attitude to learn other languages. You will learn so many new things while you stay in Japan.
Nobody will bite you so don’t worry. Just relax and enjoy your study in Japan. :)
Thank you so much for another VERY helpful lesson :D
@Ella
Hi Ella! Thank you for the comment! Glad you to hear you found this lesson helpful!
thanks now i get it :D
@diana
You’re welcome!!
i thouth that chotto means a little Chotto neko wo kabutte mimashita.
= I am “wearing a cat” for fun. im confuse now
@diana
Yes, “chotto” means “a little” but in this case the most appropriate translation is “(just) for fun” “(Just) as a trial”
we often use ちょっと just to make the sentence lighter.
Ex. ちょっとでかけてきます。
Ex. ちょっと飲みに行ってきた。
EX. ちょっとマギー先生にあいさつに行ってきます。
See my ちょっと lesson
先生が言った通りはもっと自然と思います ：P
But even if it doesn’t sound natural, is か well used in the sentence?
Sensei, this was a sweet follow up lesson to “~tate”. :D After the “tate” lesson I thought about looking up a previous lesson from sensei in which she touched the usage of “bakari” to review the usage of the word a little, but with this comprehensive lesson that is not necessary anymore, this one is great. XD
I liked the part in the lesson for “to bakari ni”, this pattern may come in handy in the future. :D Hopefully I can use it soon. XD
One question sensei. Is the “n + bakari” pattern colloquial or can it be used in any circumstances without getting a superior stirred up? XD
Thank you sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
I am very happy to hear that.
Yes, you have to practice a lot to get familiar with ばかり.
Ah good point. Usually ん is used for a casual contraction but n+bakari is a literal expression. You may not hear often in everyday conversation but you will see in the writing form more.
Oh so it is more likely to see “n+bakari” used in writing, more so than in conversations.
I bet if I use this pattern around in conversation I would give the impression I learned Japanese from books. XD
@NecroMadMat
You can impress Japanese people for sure!
Really! sensei? I better get this pattern down asap, seems it may come in handy. XD
Also, in an Anki deck I found the form “i-adjective + ばかり”:
このレストランは安いばかりです。
I guess that it looks more or less like the category 2.
@Fabimaru
こんにちは、Fabimaru!
Good! I added adjective + ばかり.
********
As for your question, although they are not exactly the same, they could be interchangeable if you change a little.
マギーは寝てばかりいる。
=マギーは寝るばかりだ。
遊んでばかりいてはいけません。
=遊ぶばかりではいけません。
いつもマギーに御馳走になってばかりいます。
=マギーに御馳走になるばかりです。
人に頼るばかりの人生ではいけない。
=人に頼ってばかりの人生ではいけない
彼女は、何を言っても泣くばかりだ。
= 彼女は何を言っても泣いてばかりいる。
彼は自分の自慢話をするばかりで人の話は何も聞かない。
=彼は自分の自慢話をしてばかりで人の話は何も聞かない。
物事はこれからよくなるばかりだと思いたい。
→Can’t replace it with て form
娘の幸せを願うばかりだ。
→Can’t replace it with て form
Sensei, one thing about these examples you provided:
彼女は、何を言っても泣くばかりだ。
= 彼女は何を言っても泣いてばかりいた。
Shouldn’t the second sentence end in: “bakari iru”?
@NecroMadMat
Ah good point!
Thank you! I fixed it.
Do the 2 verbal form you explain in section 4 (verb in て form and plain form) can be used interchangeably?
あああ、わかりました!
では、｢問題があるか伝えてください｣=Please let me know if you have any problem??
有り難うございます、先生!!
@Orti
Please let me know if you have any problem.
How about,
何か問題があれば言って下さい。/ 何か問題があれば教えて下さい。
ああ、I forgot to hit Reply again
先生が言った通りはもっと自然と思います ：P
But even if it doesn’t sound natural, is か well used in the sentence?
@Orti
Could you tell me if there is a problem or not?
In that case you can say
問題があるか（どうか）教えてくれますか？
Since your sentence was a conditional, it will be better to use れば
（先生が言った通りは→先生の文章の方が，自然と→自然だと）
あああ、なるほどね
添削しくれて有り難うございます!
@Orti
どういたしまして！（Now you can use くれて perfectly!)
素晴らしいレッスンわよ！サイトはまた元気になったとてもうれしいよね！
たては少ない言葉だけと使われたんですか？
@お人形さん
御礼が言いたくてずっと探していました。コメントもらって本当にうれしいです。
ちょっと前にお人形さんが”Wayback Machine”のサイトをtwitterで教えてくれましたよね。そのお陰（かげ）でたくさんのレッスンの写真を見つけることができました。本当にありがとう！！
”たて”は使える動詞は少ないけれどもよく使います！
how do you say “if you’re like this, i might fall for you” in japanese?
@Chiharu
Hello Chiharu!
これが好きだったらあなた（name）のことが好きになるかもしれない。
1) Oh I see sensei! V+tate is used in special occasions with specific verbs. :) In other cases I will try using “bakari”, it is a safer bet, isn’t it sensei? :) I will do my best to memorize these examples using “tate”.
2) Sensei, dictionaries rarely tell you when a word is used in normal conversation or formal/serious/academic-level-flaunting situations. I am so glad sensei is here to tell me these things, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to tell which word to use in normal conversation. XD Thank you sensei. :) I will memorize these alternatives for daily conversation. :) And I will try to remember the fancy word I used above in case I feel like dropping a bomb to someone someday. XD
@NecroMadMat
I am always here for you and help you improve your Japanese.
Hi sensei, from the Twitter conversation:
“Ah, in that case ばかり is better. レッスンを読んだばかりです。”
Sensei I am trying to get the difference between “V+tate” and “bakari”. I wrote the sentence from Twiter:
この先生の新たなレッスンは読みたてですよね。
“I just read this new lesson from sensei.”.
using this example sentence:
この単語は覚えたてです。
(This is the word I have just learned.) I just learned this word.
Sensei, I have an idea of how v+tate works but I can’t be sure so I ask sensei for confirmation:
1) Does v+tate work as some sort of passive form of verb?
For example, if I take the example above, is it ok to translate “この単語は覚えたてです。” to “This is the word that has been just learned (by me)”
Likewise, this other example from sensei’s lesson:
まだ免許取りたてなので運転に自信がない。
I just got a driver’s license so I am not comfortable driving.
Maybe I could translate this to: “The driver’s license was just gotten so I am not comfortable driving”.
Does this make any sense sensei? XD It is like v+tate focus describing the noun instead of the person who makes the action and thus the person is omitted and kind of left to be understood by analyzing the situation?
2) また後で包括的に復習するつもりですね。
包括的に→Wow! You know a difficult word. But what did you want to say?
Sensei I wanted to say “I am planing to make a comprehensive review later on.” but it seems I got it wrong. XD
Now that I think about it “mata ato de” I think means “again later on” which is not what I wanted to say. ^^’ Also, maybe I should have said “houkatsuteki na fukushuu” instead of “houkatsuteki ni” in order to say “comprehensive review”. But I rather allow sensei to identify all the mistakes there in the sentence and let me know. XD
Sensei, yoroshiku onegaishimasu. :D
@NecroMadMat
Hello there!
1) Ummm not because it’s a passive verb or not but like I wrote in the lesson, the verbs you can use with ~たて are much more limited than ばかり.
I wrote the basic ones in the lessons and if it doesn’t work use ばかり.
It may not work to explain 覚えたて but we usually use たて when we emphasize “freshness” or when the condition of something/someone has changed a lot (in a good way when we use it with things.)
2) Ah I see. 包括的に is a big word which we usually see in the news or thesis.
How about 総合的に、広い範囲で、まとめて?
広い範囲で復習します。
まとめて復習します。
Hi Maggie! Welcome BACK! :)
I have a small question what is the difference between ばかり and たて? ばかり is more official or something? Can we use both of them in speaking and writing or maybe not?
Thank YOU:)
@PukiPuki
Hi PukiPuki! Hisashiburi!
OK, ~
Compare to ばかり, たて is more limited. You can replace たて with ばかり but you can’t always replace ばかり with たて
When you talk about your daily actions, you usually use ばかり not たて.
Ex. I just woke up. 今起きたばかりだ。 not 起きたてだ
Ex. I just came back home. 今、帰ってきたばかりだ。not 帰ってきたてだ。
Ex. I just ate. 今、食べたばかりだ not 食べたてだ。
So たて is used when you describe certain condition more than action itself and we use it when we stress the freshness.
I see :) Thank you ! Have a nice weekend!
p.s. im always watching your site and facebook ;)
@PukiPuki
どういたしまして！
Glad to hear you check my Facebook lessons as well!
You,too! 楽しい週末を過ごしてね！
今日は、先生!（^O^）/
このすばらしいレッスンを作ってくれて有り難うございます!!(やっと｢くれて｣を忘れなかった:D)
それぞれの使い方を分かったかどうかチェックしてみます、間違いを訂正してくれますか?
I’ll write my example and what I’m trying to say, here I go!
という：
・Quotation:
・・お母さんは今日遅く帰っていたと言った= Mom said that she was going to come home late.
・Be called:
・・A: あそこに座っている人はなんと言うかな?= What’s the name of the person sitting over there?
B: たけしという教師です= He’s a teacher called Takeshi.
･Define something:
・・その紫色のディスクはDVDといいます= Those violet discs are called DVD
・Emphasize:
・・スペイン語という言語は面白い言語ですね= Spanish is an interesting language
・Numbers:
・・今日の抗議運動は300ぐらいという人が逮捕されてしまった= During today’s protest, 300 people were arrested.
･Something heard somewhere：
・・A: へビーメタルという音楽を聴くと攻撃的になってしまうという= They say that if you listen to heavy metal you become aggressive。
B: そういうことは嘘だ!=That’s a lie!
･As relative pronoun:
・・昨日、誰もいなかったという海辺を見つけた!=Yesterday I found a beach where there wasn’t anyone．
・・ずっと息子を批判しているというのはちょっとひどいだ=It’s a bit severe to be always criticizing your son.
･To repeat something:
・・毎日という毎日は勉強していたというのに失敗してしまった= Despite of having studied every single day, I failed anyways.
・In case of:
･･また遅れてしまうという時は君を待つように電話してね=If you are late,please call me so I will wait for you.
ということ：
･When you determine something:
・・催しを準備するということが難しいです=It’s difficult to organize a festival
･･愛する人が死ぬときまで悲しみということが分からない=You don’t know pain until a beloved person dies.
･･英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語をわかるということがすごく便利です=Even if you don’t like english, it’s very useful to know a language like that. (I wanted to say “it’s very useful to know a language so widely used around the world” but I couldn’t figure ou how)
・To sum up:
・・雨があまり降っているということは今日出かけません=It’s raining too much, so I’m not going out today．
・・A:彼女と話すとずっと気後れしてよく考えられなくてしまう…=When I talk to her I get all nervous and can’t think well…
B:ということは彼女が好きみたいんだね(笑)=So it seems that you like her
・They say…:
・・今彼は病気で寝ているということだから別の日に来た方がいいと思います=They told me that he’s sick and sleeping now, so I think it would be better to come another day.
というと：
･When speaking about something:
･･折り紙作家というと神谷哲史や小松英夫などなどを思い出す=When I hear Origami artist, I remember Kamiya Satoshi, Komatsu Hideo and many more.
･･私の大好きなスポーツというとテコンドーだ=My favourite sport is Taekwondo
･To mention something that always happens:
・・パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう=It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio
･･アメリカといったらマクドナルドだ=If you think in United States, you think in Mc Donald’s
･Ask and answer by yourself：
･･何回も中国語という言語は日本語より便利だと言われたことがあるが、なぜ日本語を勉強しているかというと大好きだから=I’ve been told a lot of times that chinese is more useful than japanese, but I study Japanese because I really like it.
というもの：
･Which is called…:
・・昨日、テルミンというものを始めて見た=Yesterday I saw a theremin for the first time.
･･まだ食べたことがないが、ハイチュウというものは美味しいそうだ=I haven’t tried it, but they say that Hi－Chews are delicious.
・To emphasize:
・・Facebookというものは癖になってしまった=Facebook has become a habit
という訳：
・To explain cause:
・・宿題を終えている間パソコンはとつぜん故障してバックアップがなかったから全てはなくなってしまった。という訳で失敗した。= The computer failed suddenly while I was finishing my homework, as I didn’t have any backup everything was lost. That’s why I failed.
･In a negative sentence:
・・悪い人だという訳ではないが、なぜか彼に信じられない… = I’m not saying he’s a bad person, but for some reason I can’t trust him.
･･あなたができないというわけではないけど…任せてくださいね= I don’t mean that you can’t do it but…please leave it to me.
というのに：
･･毎日練習しているというのにまだサンバを弾けない= Even though I’ve been practising every day, I still can’t play samba.
・・ちょっと冷たいだというのにその中で優しい精神がある= Despite he/she being cold, he/she has a kind heart.
It took me a while to write this down, but I finally made it.(笑)
To finish this loooong comment, I spotted a few minor mistakes:
・「•何故かというと…./どうしてかというと…+reason
(=Nazeka to iu to …/Doshite ka to iu to)」
・「•いつかというと…（=Itsukaraka to iu to)+place」
ずっと先生に感謝していますよ、有り難うございます!!
@Orti
こんにちは、Orti!
わ〜がんばりましたね。
では私もがんばって添削しますね。
・・お母さんは今日遅く帰っていたと言った
→ 遅く帰ってくると〜
・・A: あそこに座っている人はなんと言うかな?
→なんという人かな？ is better
B: たけしという教師です
→OK! If you want to make it sound more polite
たけしさんという先生です。is better.
･Define something:
・・その紫色のディスクはDVDといいます
→Perfect!
スペイン語という言語は面白い言語ですね→Perfect!
・今日の抗議運動は300ぐらいという人が逮捕されてしまった
→今日の抗議運動では300人ぐらいの人が
・・A: へビーメタルという音楽を聴くと攻撃的になってしまうという
→Perfect!
B: そういうことは嘘だ!=That’s a lie!
→Good! (But we usually say それは嘘だ）
･As relative pronoun:
・・昨日、誰もいなかったという海辺を見つけた!
→Umm it is possible if someone was talking about the beach before. But if you simply found a beach without people, you can just say “誰もいない海辺を見つけた。”
If you hear someone was talking about the beach and telling you a story, you can use という
Ex. 昨日、サメが出たという海辺を見つけた。
・・ずっと息子を批判しているというのはちょっとひどいだ
→ひどい。
･To repeat something:
・・毎日という毎日は勉強していたというのに失敗してしまった= Despite of having studied every single day, I failed anyways.
→We don’t say 毎日という毎日. But the rest of the sentence is good.
・In case of:
･･また遅れてしまうという時は君を待つように電話してね=If you are late,please call me so I will wait for you.
→遅れるときは電話（or 連絡）してね。待っているから。
ということ：
・・催しを準備するということが難しいです
=催しもの（or we often say イベント)を準備するということは難しいです。
･･愛する人が死ぬときまで悲しみということが分からない
→It’s OK but 愛する人が死ぬ時に初めて悲しみということが分かる is more natural.
･･英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語をわかるということがすごく便利です
→OK, a little correction to make it sound more natural.
英語が好きじゃなくても、そういう言語がわかるということはすごく便利です
・・雨があまり降っているということは今日出かけません=It’s raining too much, so I’m not going out today．
→あまり is used with a negative sentence. あまり〜ない
今日、出かけません is your will, so 雨がいっぱい（すごく／たくさん）降っているので出かけません is more natural. But you can say 雨がいっぱい（すごく／たくさん）降っているということは今日はキャンプは中止だろう。
・・A:彼女と話すとずっと気後れしてよく考えられなくてしまう…
→Good! Just ずっと →とても （ずっと is used to describe a time duration.)
B:ということは彼女が好きみたいんだね(笑)
→ということは彼女が好きなんだね。
・・今彼は病気で寝ているということだから別の日に来た方がいいと思います
→Perfect! Good job!
：
･･折り紙作家というと神谷哲史や小松英夫などなどを思い出す
→Just one など 神谷哲史や小松英夫などを〜
･･私の大好きなスポーツというとテコンドーだ=My favourite sport is Taekwondo
→OK, but It is more natural to say 私の大好きなスポーツはテコンドーだ。
･To mention something that always happens:
・・パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう
→It doesn’t work in this case. This function of というと is usually used with a noun
･･アメリカといったらマクドナルドだ=If you think in United States, you think in Mc Donald’s
→Perfect!
･･何回も中国語という言語は日本語より便利だと言われたことがあるが、なぜ日本語を勉強しているかというと大好きだから
→Good!
というもの：
・・昨日、テルミンというものを始めて見た
→Perfect!
･･まだ食べたことがないが、ハイチュウというものは美味しいそうだ
→Perfect! (ハイチュウおいしいよ！:) ）
・To emphasize:
・・Facebookというものは癖になってしまった
→Facebookというものは癖になる。
という訳：
・・宿題を終えている間パソコンはとつぜん故障してバックアップがなかったから全てはなくなってしまった。という訳で失敗した。
→パソコンは→パソコンが
→バックアップがなかったから→バックアップしていなかったから
→全ては→全て
the rest is perfect!
・・悪い人だという訳ではないが、なぜか彼に信じられない…
→彼は（彼のことは）or 彼を（彼のことを）
･･あなたができないというわけではないけど…任せてくださいね
→OK.
But if you want to make it sound more natural
→あなたにそれができないというわけではないけれど、どうぞ私に任せてください。
･･毎日練習しているというのにまだサンバを弾けない
→サンバが
ちょっと冷たいだというのにその中で優しい精神がある
冷たいだというのに→冷たいというのに
However In this case, we just say 冷たいが
優しい精神がある→気持は優しい
Thank you for spotting the mistakes.
今日は、先生!添削してくれて本当に有り難うございます!!
少し質問残っていますね.
・Given that “パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう” is incorrect, how would you say “It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio”?
・｢ずっと｣と｢いつも｣の違いはどのですか? I’ve been trying to figure out by observing their uses in different examples, but it seems that both ずっと and いつも may be used as “always” or “forever” depending on the context :/
・The か used after 寒い in 「冬に北海道に行ってみればどんなに寒いかということがわかるだろう」 and after 辛い in 「子供に会えないということがどれだけ辛いかあなたにはわかりません」 has similar meaning to the one used in the “self questions-answers” made with というと？？
I mean, is it something like “how it is to be/feel (adjective)” or “how (adjective) it is when(something)” depending on the interrogative word preceding the adjective?? Therefore that question is used as the object of the sentence?
もう一度有り難うございます、先生！
@Orti
１）Given that “パティオをきれいにしたばかりというといつも雨が降ってしまう” is incorrect, how would you say “It always rains when I’ve just cleaned the patio”?
→Just say, パティオをきれいにするといつも雨が降ってしまう
２）｢ずっと｣と｢いつも｣の違いはどのですか? I’ve been trying to figure out by observing their uses in different examples, but it seems that both ずっと and いつも may be used as “always” or “forever” depending on the context :/
いつも is all the time, always and it is often used to describe your habitual actions.
ずっと is as I said, time duration or when you see things will happen continuously for a long time.
Ex. マギーはいつも仕事をしている。= Maggie is always working.
Ex. マギーはずっと仕事をしている。= Maggie has been working for a long time.
Ex. いつもいい友達でいて下さい。= Please always be my good friend.
Ex. ずっといい友達でいて下さい。= Please be my good friend for good. (You are talking about future from now.)
3) I don’t know exactly what your question is but
どんなに寒い”か” = “how cold it is”
どんなに辛い”か”= how hard it is
This か shows interrogative words and has a function to quote a question.
Please let me know how much it costs.
いくら”か”教えて下さい。
I don’t know what happened.
何が起きたの”か”わからない。
ねねマーギせんせい。。。ニコちゃんもねながら本をよむね。
＠ローラ
ニコちゃんも私もいっしょですね！ニコちゃんかわいい〜❤
またこんにちはマーギ先生。
I’m confusing myself as usual
Trying to say “I fell asleep while he was reading to me.”
Does 「彼に読み上げられていながら眠ってしまった」 sound right? Is it better to use something other than ながら? 「私に読み上げていたとき、眠ってしまった」？
Hi Terry
First of all, the verb 読み上げる, read out loud, in that situation is a bit not natural.
Read a story to children, 読み聞かせる/読み聞かせをする/ お話を読んで聞かせる
Or Reading something to someone , (someoneにsomething)を読む/声を出して読む is more natural.
So your second sentence, 私に読み上げていたとき、眠ってしまった is better if you change the verb
→彼が私に（somethingを）読み聞かせているときに、眠ってしまった。but it means
I fell asleep when he was reading to me.
I would use 間 ( = during/while) in this sentence because as I explained in this lesson, you use ながら when you describe one person’s actions.
Ex.テレビをみながら眠ってしまった。
= I fell asleep while watching TV. (The subject of two actions, “fell asleep” and watching TV is the speaker/writer “I”)
→彼が（somethingを）声を出して読んでいる間に私は眠ってしまった。
If you want to use just one subject, “I” and use ながら, reading a book to someone usually a positive/favorable action so てもらう works.
彼に（somethingを）読んでもらいながら眠ってしまった。/眠った。
Ooohkay, didn’t know if you could use 読む for reading aloud. When would you use 読み上げる？It’s hard to tell the nuance from the dictionary.
From reading another comment, I wasn’t sure if it could describe both a person’s actions and actions that happen to that person. (先生に怒られながら心をさまよわせていた) Using 間 definitely seems much more straightforward here, gotta read that lesson now.
本当にありがとうございます〜
You use 読み上げる when you read something loud, read out something formal Ex. speech/statement
声明文を読み上げる
Also you can use it when some app. reads out the text.
スマホの音声読み上げ機能
As for the sentence
先生に怒られながら心をさまよわせていた。
Though you see the word 先生 in that sentence, the subject is still the same person, “I”
（私は）先生に怒られる = I got scolded by my teacher
（私は）心をさまよわせる = I let my mind wander
Sensei congratulations on your full comeback! :D I shall bookmark this lesson and attack it once I finish with all the mini lessons in the lesson index! XD
@NecroMadMat
Thank you!!!
I will add 30 more lessons. Be ready!!
Aah! 30!? Sensei, overwhelmed! Happily overwhelmed though. XD My body is ready, maybe. XD
＠NecroMadMat
Yes, over 30 lessons are coming! I’m glad “your body” is ready!
おかえりマギー先生!
お久しぶりですね！
A great lesson with a perfect theme as allways, thanks! =)
@ライアン
ただいま！ライアン！！本当にお久しぶりです！また来てくれてありがとう！
このレッスンを作って有り難うございます、先生!
ご無沙汰でしたね~
Let’s see if I got the ”振り” idea
“Today I met with a friend in the bus after 6 years”=”今日、バスで六年ぶりに友達と合った” ?
先に動画を見た。先生は私が思う人だったら驚いています! 一ヵ年にしかスペイン語を勉強していますか? その場合は、とっても上手くしてるよ!
では、また後ね^^
@Orti
久しぶりのコメントですね。OK じゃあ、直しますね。
”今日、バスで六年ぶりに友達と合った”
Almost! 合った→会った
Hahaha, you saw the Japanese4Morons’s video? She is Tomokosan and she is not related to us. Sorry! :)
ああ、また間違えた!（笑）
訂正して有り難う、先生!
@Orti
どういたしまして！
（→訂正して”くれて”）
ずっと｢くれて｣と言うことが忘れてしまう(笑)
@Orti
一つのフレーズで覚えるといいですよ。
V (し) てくれてありがとう！
i’ve read this lesson long time ago, and i’m glad to learn how to sound girly! :D
up to now, i always avoid using the だ ending, i really hesitate to use it.
but lately my friend, she use it pretty much in her messages.
so… which kind of だ is girly? should i avoid だ?
can adult female use の often? does it make the sentence stronger or.. what kind of feeling does it bring?
@kaechan
Maybe your female friend uses 〜んだ？
これ食べるんだ
明日、試験があるんだ etc.
Then it is totally acceptable.
And yes female adults use の as well
Ex. どこいくの？
買い物に行くの。
sensei, how do you say something like, “it seems he always wear sweaters.” and “she seems to never forget my birthday.”
thanks:)
@Campbell Carsley
If you want to translate those sentences with そう
“it seems he always wear sweaters.”
彼はいつもセーターを着ていそうだ。
“she seems to never forget my birthday.”
彼女は私の誕生日を忘れなさそうだ。
How’s that?
マギー先生 こんにちは (^^)
質問が一つだけあるね。書いた前のコメントで「マギーのassistant」というassistantには日本語で何と言いますか？ by the way, do my sentences make any sense? haha. I meant to ask, how do you say assistant in Japanese as in Maggie’s assistant which you’ve written in an earlier comment? まえもって教えてくれてありがとう！(thanks for replying in advance!) :)
@Campbell C arsley
今日は！
assistantは日本語で「アシスタント」といいます。また「助手（じょしゅ)=joshu」とも言いますよ。
Hello. Thanks for this great grammar point that can make us sound a bit more natural.
However I have a question regarding the connection. It seems that in some example the の directly attaches to the following noun, whereas some other times あの,あれ etc are place in between. Can you tell me more about the necessity to put it and the nuance that it introduces if optional.
例のあの機能がついています VS 今、例の仕事で忙しいんだ or 例の件、どうなった
Thanks in advance
PS: a romaji translation is not correct in this sentance
Ex.例の彼が来るから準備して！
= Rei no anohito ga kuru kara junbi shite!
@Juice
Hello, Juice.
First, thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
Now about your question, “例のあの機能がついています” is “It has “that” that function.” and it is redundant. I got the phrase from an actual advertisement line.
例の and あの they both are used when we can’t say what it is. It sounds mysterious yet very obvious.
But it gives more impact to draw listeners’ attention.
Okay, it’s clear now. Thanks again
初めましてMaggie先生。 日本語ですみません。
僕は日本人ですがこのサイトを英語の勉強の為に利用させて貰っています。
Thanks maggie sensei.
@名無しさん
こんにちは！名無しさん。わ〜英語の学習の為にこのサイトに来てくれてと〜〜ってもうれしいです。
前に英語のレッスンのABCレッスンというサイトをやっていましたが今はこちらの日本語のサイトでがんばっていますよ。
また遊びに来て下さいね。
Please, never close this site down *O* It is such a perfect place for people learning japanese…
Thank you for all the effort you’re putting into it ^-^/
@Flo
Thank you for your nice comment. This site is still under maintenance but once it is fixed, I will keep making lessons.
Thank you very much for this lesson. It definitely help s a lot in understanding. do keep up the good work Maggie Sensei
@Ivan
Thank you for the nice comment, Ivan!
Hope you come back here often! また来てね！
sensei, I have a question,
I found this pattern in manga:
~なんじゃないでしょうか。
What it’s mean sensei?
I confused to grab the meaning… >.<
@reiz
Hi Reiz!
~なんじゃないでしょうか。is a tag question. And it is used to make sure what you think or make your point asking the listener’s opinion.
Although でしょうか is a polite way to make a tag question, なんじゃない is a casual contraction of なのではない
★na- adjective, noun, demonstrative adjective :
Ex. 必要な
= hitsuyouna = necessary
→必要なのではないでしょうか？
= Hitsuyou nanode wa nai deshouka?
= Isn’t it necessary?/ Don’t we need something?
= I think it is necessary.
→必要なんじゃないでしょうか？
私のこと嫌いなのではないでしょうか？
Watashi no koto kirai nano dewa nai deshouka?
= I think you don’t like me, do you?/ I think you don’t like me.
↓
私のこと嫌いなんじゃないでしょうか？
= Watshi no koto kirai nanjanai deshouka?
↓
(More casual)
私のこと嫌いなんじゃない？
= Watashi no koto kirai nanjanai?
すごくゆうようです。ありがとう、Maggie 先生！
@YuetChing
Thank you for your comment. I am glad to hear my site is useful. これからもよろしくね！
ありがとうございます！マギー先生はすごいですね！:D
This has helped me a lot with my homework.
Thanks!
@Hannah
宿題できましたか？このサイトが役に立ってよかったです！
先生, I have a question about some variations on the “it looks like…” structure. How should I complete this:
(丁寧体 ／ 普通体)
A) It looks like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそうです。 / 雨が降りそうだ。
* No doubt here… I hope.
B) It doesn’t look like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* I /think/, based on some research, it might be 雨が降りそうもありません。 / 雨が降りそうもない。 Right? But I’m not sure about the も or why it’s there. そうではありません / そうではない would make a lot more sense for a beginner like me =p
C) It looked like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* My guess, based on another comment: 雨が降りそうでした。 / 雨が降りそうだった。
D) It didn’t look like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう____。 / 雨が降りそう____。
* No clue on this one. If the も thing’s right, then, maybe: 雨が降りそうもありませんでした。 / 雨が降りそうもなかった。
By the way, do all those forms even exist?
ありがとうございます！！！
@Gabe
Hello Gabe,
A) It looks like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそうです。 / 雨が降りそうだ。
Correct!
B) It doesn’t look like it’s going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* I /think/, based on some research, it might be 雨が降りそうもありません。 / 雨が降りそうもない。 Right? But I’m not sure about the も or why it’s there. そうではありません / そうではない would make a lot more sense for a beginner like me =p
It is possible to say 降りそうではありません / 降りそうではない but 降りそうもない／降りそうもありません are more common.
When you use そう in a negative sentence, we often add も to stress the meaning.
そうもありません。そうもない
“も” has a function to emphasizing the phrase. Not even close to ~/ It seems like there is no way ~
We also say
降りそうにありません。／降りそうにない
and
降りそうにもありません。／降りそうにもない (stronger)
C) It looked like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう_____。 / 雨が降りそう_____。
* My guess, based on another comment: 雨が降りそうでした。 / 雨が降りそうだった。
Good!
D) It didn’t look like it was going to rain – 雨が降りそう____。 / 雨が降りそう____。
* No clue on this one. If the も thing’s right, then, maybe: 雨が降りそうもありませんでした。 / 雨が降りそうもなかった。
Right. Those are correct.
ありがとうございます！！
Thanks for the fast reply, it REALLY helped me a lot!
@Gabe
どういたしまして！
Hello ! welcome back
I wonder what is the negative form from this grammar…
Can you give me some examples please ?
thank you
@jo
Hello Jo! It has been a long time!
The negative form of 〜ていく is 〜ていかない? I think I mentioned in the lesson.
~ていかない 〜てこない Is that what you want to know?
I’m glad to see this website is kind of back…
Hi Maggie! Im confused wich is correct:
「行かなそう」か「行かなさそう」か
I know that we also can use 行きそうにもありません
What do you think?
@PukiPuki
Hi PukiPuki!!
Those are very confusing. In conversation we say them both but grammatically 行かなそう is correct.
How to form ~negative form ない + そう
1) make a negative form ~ない 食べない
2) delete い 食べな
3) add そう 食べなそう
Hi! I ask some jap friends and they don’t know i mean some of them said that is 行かなそう corect and others said that 行かなさそう is correct so it’s quite strange XD Thank you for your quick help! 相変わらず最高！マギー先生
BTW i have small sugestion i think it will be better for us (people who want to learn) if you will put everything i mean how the verb will change or noun it will be easier to learn. Anyway thank you so much!^__^
@PukiPuki
Yes, because we use 〜なさそう form a lot in conversation.
But when you use ない as an auxiliary verb, “there isn’t, there aren’t , to not to have,” you use なさそう
Ex. 時間がない→ 時間がなさそう (not 時間がなそう）
and when it is used with an adjective, you also use なさそう
Ex. 暑くない→暑くなさそう (not 暑くなそう）
As for your suggestion, I know it would be nice to have a complete conjugation chart here but there are a lot of sites where you can check them out there already so…..
ok. I see anyway thank you so much ^___^
Have a nice weekend!
@PukiPuki
Thank you! PukiPukiもよい週末を過ごしてね！ !happyface!
If it’s not used with nouns, then such sentence is incorrect, right?
スイスの銀行 は 世界で いちばん きんじつな ぎんこう じゃない そうです。
What do you mean by “きんじつ”?
You don’t say Noun+ そうだ・そうじゃない but you can use with 助動詞（だ・じゃない）
Noun + だ＋そうだ
Noun + じゃない・ではない＋そうだ
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you very much! Your lessons are the most comprehensive among all the explanations I find online. They’re such a big help! :)
How does this work using the verb ‘kaku’ (to write)? I can imagine ‘kaiteiku’ to mean go and write (start writing something), but I’m pretty confused with ‘kaitekuru’…
@Emma
Hi Emma! I am very happy to hear you think my lessons are helpful.
Yes, ていく form for “to write” = 書くis “書いていく” and てくる form for “to write” = 書くis “書いてくる
Ex. 作文を家で書いてくる = to write composition at home (and come to the class / to be ready for the class,etc.)
マギーさん、こんにちわ！このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！。ありがとうございました！
とにかく、私は問題を抱えていた。
その例。。。『今日、加藤さんは来ないんじゃないでしょうか？
= I think Kato-san is coming today. Don’t you think so?』と 『マギーは今、家にいないんじゃない？
= I think Maggie is not home. Don’t you think so?』
First example, why it’s not a negative “not coming” just like in the second example “not home” or vice versa, why it’s not “Maggie is at home, don’t you think so?” just like the first example “coming”. I mean both have the same double negative form(来ないんじゃない) and (いないんじゃない) but the two translated differently? 分かりました、マギーさん？^^;
＠王様
こんにちは！王様！
Ah, thank you for spotting the mistake. You are right.
今日、加藤さんは来ないんじゃないでしょうか？ The translation should mean
“I think Kato-san is not coming today. Don’t you think so?”
I fixed it. ありがとう、王様！
BTW did you think this lesson was interesting? If so, このレッスンは面白いじゃないですか。
このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！means “This lesson is not interesting, don’t you agree?”
Hope you didn’t mean that. :)
Haha, did you think my lesson was interesting? If so, このレッスンは面白いじゃないですか。
このレッソンはとても面白いんじゃないんですね！means “This lesson is not interesting, don’t you agree?”
Hope you didn’t mean that. lol
何！！いええええ！すみませんマギー先生＞＿＜
レッソンはとても面白いていうか！！-_- (I think I didn’t use ていうか right) -_-
Well now I think I understand the difference when using んじゃないか？ and only じゃないか？ .. I learn by making mistakes ^^;
Thanks a lot for explaining that point and for the correction :D
@王様
あ〜よかった！そう聞いて安心しました（笑） !ochame!
ありがとう！ !CHECKHEART!
Some more questions for today sensei. XD
1) 赤っ恥をかく
What is the “kaku” verb?
2) 日に焼けて真っ黒になる。
I got a deep tan.
Sensei, does the “hi ni” part tries to convey the message that the “tan” was during “that day”?
@NecroMadMat
1) It is an idiom 恥をかく= to get embarrassed. It simply means “to get” here but to be more precise, かく has many meanings as かける and this one is used when something annoying shows up on surface.
汗をかく = to sweat
いびきをかく = to snore
2) this 日 means “the Sun” not “a day”.
Got it. :)
So 日に焼けて真っ黒になる would mean something like “I got heated by the sun got tanned.”. :D Thank you sensei.
@NecroMadMat
Yes. The literal meaning is “to get roasted/grilled by the sun” and get tanned.
By the way, we say 日焼け for suntan and sunburn.
Oh, I looked 日焼け up and it can also be used as a “suru” verb as well, right sensei. That is a useful word!
@NecroMadMat
That’s right. There is a verb. 日焼けする
Japanese girls hate to get 日焼け.
That makes sense, sensei. :) Sunburn is bad, especially during the night when it deprives of sleep with the red skin and the ardor on the skin.
@NecroMadMat
That’s right. Luckily I am covered with fur so… I don’t need to worry about that. :maggie-small:
lol sensei is lucky. Maybe I’ll let my beard grow to help out the situation. XD
@NecroMadMat
Hahaha, Good luck with that! It may take a little time. !happyface!
Sensei, a couple of questions :)
1) いろいろ大変かと思いますがどうか頑張って下さい。
I know things are tough but please hang in there.
Sensei showed me about “ka” for subordinated clauses. I have the feeling that “ka” in here has that purpose but I am not sure how to think about this sentence in a literal perspective. The one I have is this one”
“I am thinking that “Maybe there are a lot of hardships?” but please somehow do your best.”
Is this ok?
2) 私に何か出来ることありませんか？
Is there anything that I can do (for you)?
I am trying to get a natural feel for the particle “ni” as sometimes it seems to convey the feeling “by” and “to”.
a) Sensei, I know Japanese omits parts of sentences, but if we were to add to this sentence the part “you”, how would the sentence be?
b) Is it ok to add a “ga” after “koto” in the sentence?
@NecroMadMat
1) Yes, your interpretation is right.
I assume “Maybe there are a lot of hardships” but hang in there.
2) Almost! 私に何かできること”は”ありませんか？ You got に right!
I think I answered your question b).
a) If you want to add “you” it will be
あなたのために私に何か出来ることはありませんか？
1) Sensei I understand that using “ka” as a way to show assumption is like expressing a question to oneself but at the same time sharing it with the person in conversation. I find that interesting. :) It’s kind of different to Spanish and English but conveys the same message. :)
2)
a) Oh, I get it. Since we are kind of bringing the intention to help, out of the blue, we kind of need to “introduce” the idea with “wa”. At least that is how I understand it. XD
b) I have seen that sentence patter before. :) It all makes perfect sense now. Thank you sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
You are very welcome!
1) Sometimes just one letter could change the whole meaning of the sentence in Japanese. Therefore “か” can be a very powerful letter!!
We will learn how to use it little by little, OK?
Yes sensei. :) Little by little. :) I actually am taking that approach to learning Japanese. XD I am studying little by little without torturing my head with a lot of information, but studying everyday steadily. XD
@NecroMadMat
That is the best way to learn language. !happyface!
今日はマギー先生お元気でしたかこれはまた素晴らしいレッスンでしたね〜いつも有難う御座いました!
“よう”という言葉について質問があるんですけど（これから日本語で続けるのは大変になりそうから英語でやります ^^）
I recently came across a sentence as i was randomly googling a japanese verb.
人間は自分が考えるような人間になる
it appears to be the translation of an Earl Nightingale phrase
“we become what we think about”
The thing is, i didnt get the same meaning at all at first from the japanese sentence, i rather understood it as “We(or humans) become self thinking (become like humans thinking by themeselves)
maybe it doesnt make as much sense but thats how i understood it, can sensei please tell me where did i go wrong, its the same with one of your sentences
お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません
i understood it as “There is no way my father would become worried”
I think the commun point is that the ような following a verb is used to compare something with the verb’s object (if it has one) rather than the action itself, should i take this as a rule or am i misunderstanding something here.
Thanks for your time!
＠ライアン
おはよう！ライアン！！
Your questions are great!
1) 人間は自分が考えるような人間になる
Ah I see your confusion. If you want to say
“We(or humans) become self thinking (become like humans thinking by themselves)
You have to say
人間は自分で考える(or 考えられる）ような人間になる
See the difference?
自分が考えるような人間 = a person what you think you are going to be
自分で考える（o 考えられる）人間= a person who can think by himself.
2) お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません
Again if you want to say
“There is no way my father would become worried”
You have to say
お父さんが心配するようなことにはなりません。or 心配してしまうようなことになりません。(you have to use the future tense.)
So by just changing some particles or verb form, it can be what you meant.
成程!分かってきたような気がします!有難う ^^
on a side note, if i may, i’d like to add a request of my own to the long request lessons list, i apologize in advance if it was already done before (can’t seem to find it after looking around for a bit)
its about the correct use of the Volitional (Presumptive)form, there are a couple of points that tend to confuse me:
– Is the regular conjugation, for example (行く => 行こう) only used with i/we (as in let’s, shall) and never with other subjetcs? (i know about the volitional+とする/と思う that can mean plan or feel like doing something)
– Are だろう and だろ endings somewhat the same?
– when using だろう/でしょう do we allways express doubt? or does it simply implie a future tense
Thanks for your time, i hope you can someday get around to doing this lesson =)
Best of wishes.
@ライアン
OK, let me see if I can answer your question here…
1) 〜よう as in “let’s, shall”: When you ask someone to do some activity together and end the sentence with よう? Yes, you have to include yourself in a subject, “I” or “We” unless you quote someone’s speech.
彼が明日映画に行こうと誘ってきた。
= He asked me to go see a movie tomorrow.
彼女がもうこの関係はやめようと言った。
= She told me that she wanted to end our relationship.
2) If you want to make an assumption sentence “I think something/someone will ~ ” then you use だろう not だろ
明日は雨だろう=I think it is going to rain tomorrow.
だろ is a rough male speech suffix.
そう言っただろ！= I told you so! (rough)
明日は雨だろ？ = I think it will rain tomorrow. Am I right? (rough)
明日は雨だろ！= I am telling you, it is going to rain tomorrow!(rough)
3) You can use でしょう、だろう as a simple future but it involves some degree of doubts.
But if you are 100 pct sure you will use an assertive form instead of だろう・でしょう
c) 彼は来年は日本に来るでしょう・来年は日本に来るだろう
He will (probably) come to Japan next year. / He may come to Japan next year.
d) 彼は来年日本に来ます。来る
He will come to Japan next year.
You may translate both sentences as “He will come to Japan next year” but d) shows more possibility.
わざわざ僕くの質問を答たえてくれて言葉にできない程感謝しています
やっぱりマギ-先生は最高！！
マギ-先生ばんざあああい ^^！！
御蔭様で今日もすっごく勉強になった！
Best of wishes.
@ライアン
そう聞いて嬉しいです。よかった！！
そろそろライアンも名前を”初学者”から”勉強家のライアン”に変えましょうか？ !happyface!
btw, Can you provide more detail regarding use of yoroshiku onegai shimasu. Can Itsumade mo be used, as well as korekara mo? In particular, with teachers, managers or Senior colleagues, can you provide a variety of applications? Itsumade mo yoroshiku! PK
@pkbos
Hum…いつまでも宜しくお願いします。It is possible to say that but it is much more common to say “これからもよろしくお願いします。”
If you want to add the feeling of “for a long time from now.”, you can say
これからもずっとよろしくお願いします。
in business letter, it will be more formal and polite
今後共、宜しくお願い申し上げます。
= Kongotomo yoroshiku onegai moushiagemasu.
or
今後共、末永く宜しくお願い申し上げます。
= Kongotomo suenagaku yoroshiku onegai moushiagemasu.
Thank you so much for this site! Your explanations are perfect. I studied & lived in Japan 20 years ago, and have lost most of my fluency. However, phrases & basic conversation remains, but is jumbled. The expanse of situations you cover has helped me time & again. Taihen kansha shite imasu! (Is it ok to use Taihen instead of totemo, for emphasis, or is the connotation strange?) – PK
@pkbos
Hi, pkbos!
I am very happy to read your comment. ありがとう！！
Yes, you can say 大変感謝しています。= Taihen kansha shiteimasu. It is used in more formal or business situation though.
wow! this website is very interesting :)
I really want to study japanese language here! :)
@dekz
Hi dekz!
Great! Hope you learn some Japanese here. Feel free to ask me if you have any questions, OK? :h:
始めましてマギー先生。何時も楽しいレッスンを作ってくれて本当に有難う御座います
本当は随分昔からこのサイトを時々見に来たがこれは初めてのコメントなのですもっと早く印刷したかったけどいつも後にしようと思う（小心っていうかアバウトな性格っていうやつかな〜 ^^）
兎に角いつもこのサイトで色々な勉強になるのにお礼でも言わないのはちょっと無礼だと思ったから改めて少し遅かったけど本当に有難う御座います
There! This is actually the first time i ever tried to write something in japanese so i hope its not too akward or worst case didnt make any sense, its probably full of mistakes thou ^^
Anyhow i really want to thank you again for the wonderfull work and effort you put into this, i think this is the best website out there when it comes to teaching japanese!
Merci du fond du coeur! =)
@ライアン
Your Japanese is amazing so I will write to you in Japanese.
こんにちは！ライアン！！コメントと〜〜〜ってもうれしかったです！
そして日本語、上手に書けていましたよ。いつでも気軽にコメントして下さい。このサイトは日本語を勉強しているみんなが友達の家に遊びにくる様な気持で来てくれるといいなって思います。これからもよろしくお願いします。
本当？よかった〜 ^^ 早く返事してくれてありがとう！！
なんか返事を待つていて落ち着かなかった〜でも僕の日本語がまだまだと思うよ誉められてびっくりしたけど！嬉しい〜 ^^
これからもいっぱいコメントするつもりよ！覚悟しなさい！ =）
＠ライアン
は〜い！これからもライアンからのコメント楽しみにしていますね！！ !onpu!
Thank you Maggie sensei! was getting a lil confused bout hodo till I found your explanation! Clears a lot of confusion on my end~ :)
@bulats
よかった！！I’m very happy to hear that!! !happyface!
Sensei, one last question for today. :)
それではこちらにご記入頂けますでしょうか？
=Could you fill this out, please?
Itadaku is one of those words that sometimes cause me some trouble. I know sensei has a lesson for “itadaku” and I am close to getting there. :) I thought maybe by sensei explaining this sentence to me it would help in having a better understanding going to that lesson.
My doubt regarding “itadaku” is to whom the action is directed, who “receives the action”. I am not sure to which of these two the action is directed, taking the above sentence as subject:
1) Can I receive the filling of this form from you? = Would you fill me this form I require from you? (The attendant kindly asks the costumer to make her the favor of filling the form. Spanish: ¿Podrías llenarme esta forma?)
2) Could you fill this form for your own sake? (Spanish: ¿Podrías llenarte esta forma?)
Which of these two would be the sentence that more or less translates the feeling of the sentence in Japanese, sensei?
Sensei, I may have not explained myself very well, hopefully sensei understood, if that wasn’t the case I could try explaining myself better. :)
@NecroMadMat
Yes, 頂く is used when you receive some action from someone.
In this case, it will be 1) Would you fill out the form for me? So you the speaker receives an action of filling out the form form the customer.
Your Spanish sentence explains better.
So if you ask me to teach you Japanese, how would you ask me politely? Hehehe
Sensei, I sometimes try to used Spanish as a method to learn Japanese. English and Spanish are my tools. XD
hmm, やってみますよね！
えーと。。。マギー先生には日本語を教えていただけますでしょうか？
先生が直すかどうかのため緊張しています。 ^^’
Sensei, my deepest apologies for mutilating the Japanese language. XD
@NecroMadMat
Good job! Just change the first part
If you are talking to me and say “Could you teach me Japanese, Maggie Sensei?”
マギー先生、日本語を教えて頂けますでしょうか？
And “I would like Maggie sensei to teach me Japanese” is
マギー先生に日本語を教えて頂きたいです。
No need to apologize. You did very well!
(Ah it will be more natural to use a passive form here : 先生に直されるかどうか緊張しています。）
That definitely seems more natural, sensei. :) I learned a lot. Thank you.
Sensei, may I throw some doubts in here? :)
1) 本製品をお買い上げ頂きまして誠にありがとうございました。
a) Does “honseihin” mean “the authentic product”?
I can find the definition for “seihin” but not when attached with “hon”.
b) Is the literal translation of this sentence: “We are really grateful that you bought the authentic product”?
2) ご足労をおかけ致しました。
Sensei, I have seen “kake” used several times since I started learning Japanese.
a) Does this word, when used with the “i-stem” hold the meaning of “getting into”, “being subject to” X action/verb?
b) Is there a specific kanji version for this word when used in this manner? Or is it intended to be used with Hiragana?
3) そうですか？それではお言葉に甘えて…
“Kotoba ni amaete…”
Is the literal meaning of this phrase something like “I will indulge in your words, I will take advantage of your words” and accept your present then.
4) 何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら。
I don’t know how to thank you.
a) Can the literal meaning of this sentence be something like: “I don’t know how it would be ok for me to say thank you to you.”?
b) “yara” is another way of saying “darou”, right sensei?
5) “When someone does something for you or give you something, you receive it saying,
Ex. 恐れいります”
Sensei, I think I get the words “fear/anxiety/uneasiness” and “enter”. Does it mean “I enter fear/uneasiness as I receive your favor/gift.”, as in “I am uneasy to receive this from you”?
Sensei may have realized by now that I tend to ask a lot for the literal meaning of things in Japanese. I feel like knowing the literal meaning of the pieces which then conform the expressions allow me to have a better understanding of things and hopefull end up allowing me to play with the words in the future. I am sorry if sensei feels thess questions are somewhat annoying.
@NecroMadMat
Great! Someone has been studying.
1) No, 本 mean “this” here. So 本製品 means “this product”
If you want to say “authentic”, you say 本物の
2) This かけ is from a verb かける. The kanji is 掛ける
掛ける is one of the verbs which has a lot of meaning. This case it means “to cause something negative”
迷惑をかける= meiwaku wo kakeru = to trouble someone
苦労をかける= to cause someone hardship
So to cause (かける）”ご足労 = to trouble of going/coming all the way”
3) Yes, that’s right. The literal meaning is “I will allow myself indulge in your words (kindness)”
4) a)+b)
何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら
this やら is the same as のか or as you said だろう and it is unfinished sentence.
何と御礼を申し上げたらいいのかわかりません。/いいのだろう….= 何と御礼を申し上げたらいいやら…
And your translation is correct.
“I don’t know how I can express my gratitude. ”
5) You are right. 恐れる means “to be scared” “To be afraid of” but the original kanji is 畏れる(=osoreru) it means “to awe”
So 恐れいる means “to be in awe” いる is to be into that condition deeply.
It is just one dramatic expression.
******
To figure out the meaning by the literal meaning does help understand the words or phrases.
And all your questions are good. Not annoying at all. !happyface!
1) Oh sensei, I get it. It is as in honjitsu = today. I think I got confused because I learned the meaning of “本” with the keyword of “source”, so I felt like the Japanese sentence was a disclaimer of gratitude for buying the “source product” from which people may be making fake copies. XD So wrong. XD
I recall reading sensei’s “honmono” lesson so sensei has just reinforced that lesson for me. Thank you sensei. :)
2) kake:
Sensei, I recall hearing “hanashikakeru”, if I am not mistaken. Does this expression also have a negative connotation to it? Maybe it is has the nuance of “interrupting” what someone is doing by going to talk to them, right?
4) Oh I think I get it. yara = noka. It is a subordinate clause, like sensei teach me before, right? A question about this sensei, is “yara” by any chance a “casual form of “noka” then?
5) Oh, I do am familiar of “iru” sensei. :) I just took a bet it was the “iru” for “enter”. “Iru” for “need” was a runner up, I have to admit. lol The amount of homophone words in Japanese is really challenging, and when they lack the kanji in their written form they sometimes become a guessing game for me. :/
Sensei, I have been thinking that once I finish asking all the doubts I have from sensei’s lessons, sensei could put a disclaimer above her lessons that could read something along the lines of: “In the comment section there will be questions from a student called “NecroMadMat”, chances are your doubts are already covered with his questions because he tends to ask questions about every little detail, including the most obvious questions. Feel free to check his comment before posting.” lol
Thank you sensei, as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
2) 話しかける : Ah, Now I see your original question. This かける is different from かける in “ご足労をかける”／”迷惑をかける” and it doesn’t not “causing troubles”
As I told you, there are many meanings of かける.
When some action is done towards someone (or something), you use かける
問いかける，笑いかける、訴えかける, etc.
4) Yes. (And I’m sorry. I added a line in my previous comment but as you said it is also equivalent to “だろう”)
Also やら shows one’s feeling of suspicion.
どうなることやら… = I wonder what is going to happen.
いつになることやら…= I wonder when it would happen…
All of your questions are going to be very useful for many people. And you will become very famous here. People will say “Thank you! NecroMadMat!” !happyface!
Got it sensei. :) I will try to do my best to identify what kind of “kakeru” is used in the context of the conversation. :)
“All of your questions are going to be very useful for many people. And you will become very famous here. People will say “Thank you! NecroMadMat!”
Self-esteem to the MAX! XD
Thank you sensei. :)
What kind of grammar would you use to say “I wish (something) was the case (though it’s not)”
I have only learned “I hope” and “(something) was supposed to be the case” so I don’t know how to express my wish for something that is impossible, or unlikely to happen.
(I hope that makes sense u.u)
@Jules
Hello Jules!
I wish ~ past tense + (だっ）たらいいのに/(だっ） らよかったのに
I wish Maggie was here. : マギーがここにいたらいいのに
I wish I had a nice car : いい車があったらいいのに
I wish I could speak Japanese fluently = 日本語がぺらぺらだったらいいのに。
I will make a short lesson on Facebook sometime.
kawaii maggie-sensei~ it’s peko-chin~~~
your mini lessons are very useful for daily conversation, i love it ♥
for this lesson, if i want to say “i can’t accept your feelings”..
then can i say it like this:
“anata no kimochi ga dekinai yo”?
and how if i want to say “i can only love taller guy”? >.<
@peko-chin
Hi peko-chin! Kawaii? Thank you!! !heart!
“I can’t accept your feelings!”
→あなたの(the person’s name+の)気持ちを受け入れられない・受け入れられません。(→more polite)
= Anatano (or the person’s name+ の) kimochi wo ukeirerarenai.・ukeireraremasen.(→more polite)
I can only love taller guys.
背の高い男性しか好きになれない。・好きになれません。(→more polite)
Se no takai dansei shika suki ni narenai.・suki ni naremasen. (→more polite)
I’m glad to hear you like my mini lessons!
Hi Maggie Sensei,
I have a question, How can I express these statements:
” I been thinking about him”
” I also feel the same way about that person”
” please don’t play with my feelings”
@DeeSweety
Hi SeeSweety!
” I been thinking about him”
彼のことをずっと考えています。= Kare no koto wo zutto kangaete imasu.
” I also feel the same way about that person”
私もあの人に同じ様な気持ちを持っています。= Watashi mo anohito ni onajiyouna kimochi wo motte imasu.
or
私もあの人に同じ様な気持ちを感じています。= Watashi mo anohito ni onajiyouna kimochi wo kanjite imasu.
” please don’t play with my feelings”
私の気持ちを持て遊ばないで下さい。= Watashi no kimochi wo moteasobanaide kudasai. (If you are a woman.)
(If you are a man, you say 僕(=boku) instead of 私(=watashi))
Hope this helps…. !happyface!
Heya Maggie-sensei, I have a question and I’m sure I’m right about this, but I wanted to run this by you, because I am not 100% sure I am. >.< and I studied myself for years off sites like yours and a couple other genuine sensei's and barely now I am taking free online course at YesJapan and another one via mobile call Human Japanese. But I am still very unsure of my knowledge.
I want to write 'I'm not in love'. I've heard the line said in my favorite BL anime,Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi. But it's different then what I want. There's is more of the freaking out I'm not in love – this is not love, kinda thing.
I get 私は恋をしてないです (I'm not in love) / 'Watashi wa koi o shi tenaidesu'
Watashi as in 'I, myself'
は (Wa) as in the particle that expresses the Listener knows who the speaker is referring to as well as stating you do not like or in this case the speaker is saying he isn't in love.
を (wo) would normally changed to Wa if you wanted to emphasize the fact. But he isn't trying to, because the truth he knows he's in love. Kind of like he's ashamed to admit but ashamed that he can't go out and just say he is, I guess. That's why you put をし meaning to be regrettable or disappointing in the fact.
てな it's used after a phrase right? To modify a noun and い used to express the thoughts and feelings??
I really hope I didn't do to bad and I really hope you can help. Thank you for taking the time to read this.
@Akemi Zyanya
Hi Akemi!
You got more or less except the way you separate the sentence.
私= I = subject
は= subject marker
恋= love = object
を=object marker
してない= shitenai a casual contraction of していない = not doing
です= auxiliary verb
恋をする=the literal translation is “to do love.” here. but it means “to be in love.”
↓
Present progressive form : 恋をしている
↓
the negative form = 恋をしていない
Hope this helps..
Arigatou sensei,
Oh, I see where I went wrong . . . -Sighs- Study is so much easier then putting everything together.
I’m sorry for messing that up and again thank you so very much for helping me, from the bottom of my heart, really. I’ve always wanted to learn but I has a horrible student as a kid.
@Akemi Zyanya
Douitashimashite! You’re very welcome! !happyface!
この彩りはいいと思います。フォロアーの人形はふつうの彩りが好きだが、今度のもいいです。またすごいレッスンを作ってくれてありがとうございました。
@お人形さん
気に入ってもらえてよかったです！
私も前のピンク色が好きですが、今度のピンクはもう少し読みやすくなっていると思います。
This site is very informative and helpful.
ありがとうございました Maggie 先生。
@caylyn
Hello caylyn!
Thank you for the nice comment!! I am very happy to hear that! ありがとう！ !happyface!
This is a very nice lesson, however, may I suggest that you perhaps either make a small change to, or, add a note in order to make it easier for your readers regarding お面/マスク?
Unless I’m terribly mistaken, お面 descibes just about any kind of mask that you can put on your face (e.g. a Pikachu-mask, etc.). マスク, on the other hand, seems to only be used for surgical masks.
Anyway, thank you very much for your very useful site. :-)
@Kris.k52
Thank you for your comment.
Though マスク is not only be used for surgical masks (Ex プロレスラーマスク、キャッチャーマスク, 仮面, etc), it might be confusing so I added a little note.
ありがとう！！ !happyface!
Whoa, this is awesome thanks a lot ^^
How do you say that you have a secret crush?
Thanks! :3
@Charles
Hi Charles!
OK, to have a secret crush= ひそかに心を寄せる= Hisoka ni kokoro wo yoseru
But in conversation
“You have a secret crush on him, right?” (female speech / between friends)
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼のこと好きなんでしょ！
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare no koto sukinandesho!
or
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼に気があるんでしょ！
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare ni ki ga arun desho!
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼のこと好きなんだろ。(male speech/ Between friends)
= (Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare no koto suki nan daro.
= (隠しているけれど）本当は彼に気があるんだろ！
=(Kakushite iru keredo) Hontou wa kare ni ki ga arun daro!
Some more questions sensei. :D
1) Is there a difference between using “subeki” and “subeshi”?
2) またどんなことが縁起がよくって、どんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
Sensei, I know “tte” can be used in various contexts. I know it can be used as a substitute for “wa” and “to”. In this specific sentence, what is the usage it has? I feel it is used as a quotation mark and kind of imperative as in “say what is a good thing of good omen”, but of course I can’t be sure.
Thank you sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
Hello again,
1) ~すべし is literal and usually used at the end of the sentences of aphoristic imperative.
すべき is much more common to use.
2) Ah, OK, again we add っ before て in casual speech.
There are various ways to say that sentence but
＊どんなことが縁起がよく、そしてどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
＊どんなことが縁起がよく、どんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
＊どんなことが縁起がよくてどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？
↓
＊どんなことが縁起がよくってどんなことが縁起が悪いですか？ (the most colloquial)
And this “て””って” has a meaning of “and”
Oh I understand sensei. :) Those three examples sensei provided really helped me as I am used to seeing sentences constructed in that manner, they really helped me. :)
Sensei, “tte” is a very dynamic particle and it’s dynamism has me clueless at times. lol Right now it stands as one of my deadly adversaries towards Japanese learning, hopefully I’ll make it my ally some day. XD
Thank you Maggiesensei for explaining things so clearly. :)
@NecroMadMat
Good to hear it’s clear now.
Actually small っ is very tricky. It is just one small letter but it is difficult even for many people who have lived in Japan for a long time.
I have a lesson of って when you quote but since I know you have been following the index order, just take a quick peek, OK?
That’s my situation sensei. “tte” is very complicated for me. Sensei I do am following the index but I am ahead of this lesson by now, I mean, I already studied this lesson a while back. :)
The thing is that I write down my doubts in a document and then when some days pass after the last time I asked sensei some questions, I ask once again, as not to overwhelm sensei with all the questions I have piling up in a document. XD
I already read the “tte” lesson as a matter of fact sensei, but even then I am still struggling to differentiate the meaning behind “tte” depending on sentence, and that is why I am treating each sentence case by case. Sorry sensei if I ask again for the meaning of “tte” in the future.
“tte” just doesn’t seem to be my friend sometimes. 
Thank you sensei, as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
I see. But don’t worry. You can ask me questions as much as you want until you and tte become good friends! !happyface!
Thank you sensei! Maybe if sensei speaks good things about me to “tte” it would want to hangout with me. lol
@NecroMadMat
You can always count on that! You two may fight here and there but I am sure you will be best friends eventually!
Thank you sensei! XD
Hi sensei, just dropping by with a questions. :)
食べ放題で)３,０００円も出したんだから一杯食べて元を取らなくっちゃ。
Toranakuccha, I thought the 未然形 was “nakucha”, can I write it as “nakuccha” as well, sensei? Is there a special rule for when to write and not to write it like this?
@NecroMadMat
Hello!!
You are right. Ah, they both work.
1) 取らなくてはいけない(=toranakutewa ikenai)
↓ (casual contraction)
2) 取らなくちゃいけない(=toranakucha ikenai)
When you skip いけない(=ikenai) and finish the sentence with ~ちゃ Ex. 取らなくちゃ
we often add っ and say なくっちゃ
↓
３）取らなくっちゃ(=toranakuccha)
Very again they are both very colloquial.
Other examples :
勉強しなくてはいけない
↓
勉強しなくちゃいけない
↓
勉強しなくちゃ／勉強しなくっちゃ
Oh, I got it sensei, thank you very much. :)
@NecroMadMat
You’re very welcome!! !onpu!
Amazing!!! Thank you ♥~
Can you make a lesson about usage of こと? It’s really annoying…(At least for me (. .;) )
@Flora
Hi Flora! Welcome to our site!
こと is used for nominalization.
V + こと→
I like eating = 食べることが好きです。 = Taberu koto ga suki desu.
Practicing is good. = 練習することはいいことです。 = Renshuu suru koto wa ii koto desu.
etc.
But it is deeper than that. Feel free to practice making a sentence using こと here (or Twitter). I can always check it for you.
@Flora
OK, I will add it to my lesson request list. It may take a time but I will make a lesson for you either on this site or on Facebook, OK? 待っててね。
Maggie Sensei~
Thank you for your lesson !
I’d like to know how do you count videos ? (files, not dvds)
@Pinkapple
Hello!! Pinkapple!
You can count videos with 本(=hon)
ビデオを３本買った。
ビデオを１本観た。etc.
hi, maggie sensei
nice to meet you in your site,
昨年、一応大学生に卒業したが、日本語を勉強するの機会がほとんどないので、また本を読むと大変だと思うので、Maggie先生のおかげで本当に助かりました。
毎日このサイトを勉強しに見ますよ。
ありがとうございます。
（＾＾）
@Irma
こんにちは！はじめましてIrma! 毎日このサイトに勉強に来てくれてありがとう！！
大学を卒業しても日本語を勉強し続けて下さいね。
What is the ‘masu’ form of wabiru?
@Sammy
Hello Sammy!
masu form of 詫びる(=wabiru) is 詫びます(=wabimasu).
Thank you!
@Sammy
You’re welcome!
I was helping about this the other day but you’ve cleared this up a little more easier for me to understand! Thanks!
By the way, I have my own blog which focuses on Asian culture and entertainment such as video games and I wonder if it is possible for you to view it and tell me what you think please: http://nynyonlinex.wordpress.com
@NyNy
Hi NyNy!
Thank you for the comment. I checked your site. Very nice! Keep up the good work!! !happyface!
Hello Maggie先生,
I’m confused by two example sentences; is
「これ持ってちゃって」 short for
「これ持っていてしまって」 ? If so, is there a difference to
「これ持っちゃって」 ?
Does the small っ in 「もう、私を置いてっちゃっていいから！」 come from いく, or is it a mistake?
Thank you for your time, I really like the site!
@negi
Hi negi!! OK,
1) これ持ってっちゃって came from これ（を）持っていってしまって（ください）
Your sentence これ持っちゃって is from これ（を）持ってしまって（ください）and it means “to hold something”
2) 「もう、私を置いてっちゃっていいから！」
It is a very casual contraction and we sometimes skip い
もう置いていっちゃっていいから→もう置いてっちゃっていいから
So the verbs were 持っていく and 置いていく.
Then shouldn’t it be 「これ持ってっちゃって！」?
As the difference is very subtle when spoken, can one assume that …て(っ)ちゃって is usually from …いく+しまって, in other words, is …ている+しまって ever used?
@negi
Sorry, there was a typo. You are right. 持ってっちゃって
＊持っていって（しまって）→持っていっちゃって→持ってっちゃって = Take it with you
＊持って（しまって）→持っちゃって = Hold it
＊置いていって（しまって）→置いていっちゃって→置いてっちゃって = Leave it here
*置いて（しまって）→置いちゃって = Put it here.
As for your question,
If the form ~ いる+しまう ever used…
You can express what is happening now with ~てしまっている (~ちゃっている）instead of いる＋しまう
Hello, I love your page. It took me insanley long to find something on “love”. When I reseached, the results were all confusing and didnt seem right (my instincs kicked in haha) I found a video which helped a little, but your page really broke it down!
I’m actually doing something for a friend and I wanted to know how do you say “I missed you and I love you” But I love you as a confession. In one sentence? Thanx =)
@Twix
Hi, Twix! I am very happy that you found our site following your instinct!
“I missed you and I love you.”
You can’t say that in one sentence. It will be two sentences but….
The most standard way to say is
あなた(name)が恋しいです。愛しています。
FYI There a couple of ways to say “I miss you” in Japanese.
あなた(name) が側にいないから寂しいです。
= Anataga soba ni inai kara samishii desu.
あなた(name)がいないと寂しいです。
= Anataga inai to samishii desu.
あなた(name)に会えなくて寂しいです。etc.
= Anatani aenakute samishii desu.
And I put あなた for the pronoun, “you” but you can use her/his name.
Hope this helps.
Thanx! or どうもありがとうございま.
This helped me a lot, after hours of searching.
@Twix
You’re very welcome, Twix!
Hope you visit us again and again! !happyface!
Thank you so much for doing this im teaching myself japanese and this is invaluable to me ty ty ty ty I noticed here that the first sentence in this example is incorrect the japanese says neko=cat but the english text reads inu=dog
●マギーは猫ではありません。
= Maggie wa inu de wa arimasen.
↓
●マギーは猫じゃありません。
= Maggie wa neko ja arimasen.
@Fonzybear
Ooops! I’m a dog! I’m a dog!!!
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it. And I am happy to hear you use my site to study Japanese. :-P
Dear Maggie san:
Folks in Kyoto-shi say kakanaitokyaikemasen (I have to write it). My Genki 1 textbook says the modal is nakyaikemasen without “ito.” Why, and what is “ito,” please.
@Gordon Tippett
Hello, Gordon!
I think your host family in Kyoto said
書かないといけません。
= Kakanai to ikemasen.
Not
書かないときゃいけません。
= Kakanai to kya ikemasen.
(This doesn’t make any sense..)
There are a couple of ways to say “You have to do something.”
1) ~ないといけません。(=~ nai to ikemasen.)
→the casual contraction is 〜なくちゃいけません。(= ~ nakucha ikemasen.)
Ex. 書かないといけません。(=kakanai to ikemasen.)→書かなくちゃいけません。(=kakanakucha ikemasen.)
or
2) 〜なければいけません。(= ~ nakereba ikemasen.)
→the casual contraction is ~なきゃいけません。(= nakya ikemasen.)
Ex. 書かなければいけません。(= kakanakereba ikemasen) →書かなきゃいけません。
So both 書かないといけません(=kakanaito ikemasen) and 書かなきゃいけません。(‘=kakanakya ikemasen) works when you want to say “have to write”
このレスンはずいぶん詳しいじゃないですか! これを絶対に覚えておきます! お疲れ様でした! \(^0^)/
ところで,マギー先生はExileが好き? 私は大ファンですよ ♥
↓
Ex. Exileの新曲、悪くないんじゃない？(female speech)
= Ekuzairu no shinkyoku, waruku nain janai?
= Exile’s new song is not bad, huh?
@Remi Ayumi Lee
こんにちは！！！元気でしたか？
Excile、歌も踊りもかっこいいと思いますよ〜 !onpu!
はい、是非、”じゃない”の使い方、マスターして下さいね。 !happyface!
Thank you Maggie sensei. This is very helpful lecture. Can you teach me some sentences of canceling reservation?
@Metsu
Oh, maybe I should add that information, huh?
Here are some of the example sentences. If you want to know more specific example sentences, please let me know.
すみません、予約をキャンセルしたいのですが…
= Sumimasen, yoyaku wo kyanseru shitai no desu ga…
= I’m sorry but I would like to cancel my reservation…
Then they will ask your name or the date/time of your reservation.
You can tell them all the information at the beginning.
As I wrote in the lesson you can tell them your reservation status first.
Ex. 今夜２名で７時から予約を入れている(your name) と申します。
= Konya nimei de hichiji kara yoyaku wo irete iru (your name) to moushimasu.
=I have a reservation for two at 7:00 tonight under the name ~
Ex. 明日から２泊で予約を入れている(your name) と申します。
= Ashita kara nihaku de yoyaku wo irete iru (your name) to moushimasu.
= I have a reservation for two nights from tomorrow under the name ~
申し訳ありませんが、都合により予約をキャンセルしたいのですが…
= Moushiwake arimasen ga tsugou ni yori yoyaku wo kyanseru shitai no desu ga…
= I am sorry but something came up and I would like to cancel my reservation.
If you want to ask if the charges cancellation fee,
キャンセル料はかかりますか？
= Kyanseru ryou wa kakarimasu ka?
= Do you charge cancellation fee?
Once they accept the cancellation, you can tell them
お手数をおかけしました。またよろしくお願いします。
= Otesuu wo okake shimashita. Mata yoroshiku onegai shimasu.
= I am sorry to trouble you. We (or I) would like to come back some other time. (←Maybe some other time) Thank you.
お世話になっています。助かりました。ほんとにありがとうございました。
@metsu
どういたしまして！！ !happyface!
“It is considered to be a dialect in Tokyo (Yokohama) area but it is pretty common among other areas.”
It’s a dialect which originated in Yokohama and have spread to other areas.
When you write “Tokyo (Yokohama)” you make it look like Yokohama is a part of Tokyo.
@Ldc
I fixed it as Kanto area. (Many people think it is from Yokohama but it is not originated in Yokohama so…)
nan datteba yo ?!?! (Naruto)
@sunamiassault
That is a peculiar way of Naruto speech. Only for that animation.
When he emphasizes what he wants to say he adds だってばよ.
Like “I am telling you!” I said ~”
わああ！素晴らしいレッスンじゃない！
人形は賢い人形じゃない。
じゃあー
「じゃない」＝ いいえ
「じゃない」＝ はい
「じゃない」 ＝ 多分
人形はマゴマゴです。
人間はちょっとおかしいじゃない！
どんあ意味はどうやってわかりますか？
＠人形Angelic
わ〜初めてのコメントじゃない？
OK, こうやったらわかるかな？
賢い人形じゃない？= Isn’t she a smart doll?
賢い人形じゃない。= She is not a smart doll.
賢い人形じゃない！= She’s a smart doll.
先生、ありがとうございます！人形はもっとわかります。説明は賢くて優しいです。レッスンはすごいじゃない！
@人形Angelic
いつもスイートなメッセージありがとう、 お人形さんAngelic!!! !heart!
こんにちは！Another wonderful lesson, マギー先生。 I like these colors better. They are a little less eye straining. (^^) ありがとうございました！
·ケーラ
＠ケーラ
Thank you for the feedback!! ありがとう！！ !happyface!
Sensei! Sensei finished the lesson! お疲れ様でした!
Sensei as soon as I buy a Mac computer I plan to chaｎge my name to NecroMadMac as you wrote in the begining of the lesson, it sounds cool. XD
Hopefully I will get to this lesson soon (I am studying in the index order as not to miss any lesson from Maggiesensei).
先生、この素敵なレッスン作ってくれて本当にどうもありがとうございました！マギー先生いつも優しすぎますね! ：）
Hopefully I did didn’t butcher sensei’s native tongue that much with my previous sentences. ：（ If that was the case:
先生、申し訳ありません。 ：（
@NecroMadMat
Hello, NMM!!!
I am very happy to hear that you have been trying to study all my lessons. So you have been following the index order?
Well, I hope you eventually get to this lesson because I made it for you!
OMG I am sorry!! I wrote your name NecroMadMac??? I will fix it when I finish writing this comment. Hehe I am a Mac user so….. Please forgive me.
BTW Your Japanese is just perfect!!!
Yes sensei. I have been following the Main Index and now that I think about it I am kind of scared I may have skipped the newest lessons sensei has created since I started studying a couple of months ago. :S The new lessons are not listed by entry date, right sensei?
Oh sensei prefers Mac! :) I like the style of the Mac OS but I can’t part ways with the number of customization and programs that are available for W7. :)
Sensei, I really appreciate those words. I will keep doing my best to extend my knowledge to different types of sentences and with Maggiesensei’s help I am sure I can do it! Thank you Maggiesensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
Yes, you can do it!! That is why I am here for!
Haha, that’s right. I keep adding lessons so you may miss the new lessons if you follow the index. I am sorry for all the inconvenience.
よく書いてあるじゃん～！ ;)
@curryisyummy
お〜〜久しぶりじゃん !onpu! 元気だった？
Thank you Maggie-sensei!
とても勉強になりました！☆
@Zarana
Thank you for visiting this lesson,too!!
勉強になったと聞いてうれしいです！！ !happyface!
また来てね！
LOVE YOU!
@PukiPuki
Glad you checked the lesson!
Love you,too!! boucingheart!
Thank you for the explanation.
I have a question though.It’s about the negative of ni naru.
we say おいしくなる for ex.But can we say おいしくなくなる。
I just read a sentence in a book which is:
面白くない もの に なってしまた。
Can we say something like:
面白くなく なってしまた。
Thank you.
@Lancaster
Hello Lancaster.
I added the information for you in the lesson.
Yes, you can say おいしくなくなる、おいしくなくなってしまった。
and 面白くなくなる・面白くなくなってしまった。
Thank you so much.I love your lessons they’re so fun.
@Lancaster
I’m very happy to hear you like my lessons!!!
Wow!!! This is by far the best, most through and easy to understand explanation I’ve seen :D Thank you so much, I can’t tell you how much I appreciate this. It has been very helpful, because I have a Japanese test coming up :)
@ShiroUsagi
We are very happy to hear this lesson was helpful. 試験、がんばって！ !happyface!
今日は、先生!
Hmm, trying to say this in japanese would take a lot of time, so I’ll have to say it in english (笑)
One thing that kinda shocks me about this part of japanese culture (society in general, actually) is how much importance is given to money and the cost of presents. To me, the feeling that a present carries on it is way more important than the cost of it. Regardless of how expensive, beautiful, useful, delicious, etc. a present could be, if it’s not given from the heart it’s just a hollow thing and over the years you’ll probably not even remember who gave it to you.
I personally think that (at least for me) something as small as a sincere letter or a handmade thing, rather than any expensive gift, can become a real treasure.
I guess I went a bit too far (笑)
In Chile Valentine’s is like what ハリちゃん said. The difference is that it’s during school’s vacations period, so there isn’t any costume between classmates about it
いつものように、有り難うございます!
@Orti
こんにちは！Orti! Thank you for your comment!
Your comment was VERY refreshing. As you said sincere letter, handmade things can show more love than expensive presents.
I guess people start to lose confidence and don’t know how to express one’s love, friendships or gratitude without spending money.
As for me, a romantic poem or one piece of bone would work! :)
Sensei, thanks for your reply, I hadn’t thought about lack of confidence, maybe that’s one big reason.
I guess a sculpted piece of bone would be great!(笑)
Hi, せんせい～
I have a question! I was reading a manga the other day where the man says: 俺の人生の愛 [at least I think so?? This is from memory!]
Is it something like ‘love of my life’? It was on a letter, so in English, it would look something like: “To the love of my life” (like a love letter or a Valentine’s Day card).
ありがとう! ^^
@Tacti
Hi Tacti!
俺の人生の愛 sounds a bit strange to address someone because it also means “love in my life” but it is possible to use as “love of my life”.
Check it again if you still have the manga to see if it says 俺の人生の愛 and let me know. !happyface!
Sensei, I have some questions for this lesson :)
1) 愛する人
“loved one, a person you love”
How do I say “a person that is loving” or “a person that loves”?
2) 恋人たちの予感
“Expected to be lovers”
How does one say “a premonition of lovers” as in “a premonition that belongs to the lovers”? Do I simply invert the order to “Yokan no koibitotachi”?
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
“Carried out for love”
a) Does this mean “that one loses one’s cool because of love” or that “for the sake of love one lose’s one’s cool”?
b) Could sensei give me another couple of examples that use this no + kara combination?
4) 惚れてしまうやろ〜！」
“(If you are so sweet to me) I will fall in love with you!/I can’t help falling in love with you.”
Sensei I looked up the word “yaro” and found it means “it seems”. Does this mean that the above sentence could be also translated to: “(If you are so sweet to me) it seems I can’t help falling in love with you.”?
5) Sensei some time ago I came across the expression “suki de iru”.
a) Does this expression mean “being in love”?
b) Is it possible to use this (i)stem + de pattern in other sentences like for example: “onaka ga suki de iru”?
6) 暇な時に連絡くれる？
“Can you contact me when you are free?”
How do I say: “Can I contact you some day you may be free?”, “Himana toki ni renraku ageru?”
7) Sensei, for a man, how quick does sensei think we should drop polite speech with a girl when we are getting to know her for:
a) friendship
b) trying to getting things closer to a possible relationship
8) 私（僕）と付き合って下さい。
“Go out with me, please.”
Just to make sure sensei, when we talk about going out in this context we are talking about getting to the beginning of a relationship of some kind, like something before being a couple. In other words, that there would be a mutual understanding that both parties are interested in each other. It doesn’t involve the literal meaning of going out somewhere, like to watch a movie or something, right?
9) 今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！
Now I am even studying the comment section sensei! XD And I used to think some of the lessons from Maggiesensei were long… XD It is all good study though so I am not complaining. :)
Does the above sentence mean “This time it isn’t that long so it is an exemption.”?
これどうやって使うの？
“How do you use this?”
Sensei I don’t recall seeing this “yatte tsukau” pattern before. I guess “yatte” is the -te form of “yaru”. Does this “yatte tsukau” pairing imply something we could translate to “make use” in English.
This has become a long comment. Sorry sensei for so many questions. :/
@NecroMadMat
Good, now you have been studying about “Love” !heart!
OK, let me answer your questions one by one.
1) 愛する人
→It works for both ways but you should clarify who loves who.
私の愛する人= A person who I love
NMMの愛する人 = A person who NMM loves
私を愛する人 = A person who loves me
NMMを愛する人 = A person who loves NMM
2) Actually 恋人たちの予感 can be translated “Expected to be lovers” or “Premonition of lovers.”
And usually the later translation is more common. Since this movie is about two people who we expect them to be a couple, I guess they put that title. 恋人たち(=同士)になる予感 is more accurate title.
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
“Carried awat for love”
a) Does this mean “that one loses one’s cool because of love” or that “for the sake of love one lose’s one’s cool”?
→Could be both.
b) Could sensei give me another couple of examples that use this no + kara combination?
This から is not a particle. It is from a word 空 = から= empty
空騒ぎ ＝から騒ぎ= to make a fuss about nothing
4) This Osaka dialect やろ is equivalent of でしょう／でしょ／ではありませんか and used when you make your point.
Something something, isn’t it?
↓
惚れてしまうでしょ！（惚れてしまうではありませんか。）
5)
a) have/has been loving someone
b) “onaka ga suki de iru” doesn’t work.
好き is actually na-adjective / an adverb
So it works as follows :
na-adjective plain form
元気な
delete な→元気
add で→元気で
add いる→元気でいる
6) あげる is used when you do some action for someone’s sake so you can only say
連絡”をして”あげる= himana toki ni renraku wo shite ageru
when you are talking to your big fan or someone who is crazy about you. :)
so 連絡してもいい？ is better.
7)You can always observe how the person addresses you and how she changes the way she talks to you. If you feel it is getting closer, you can adjust to it. If you are talking to the same age people, being overly polite will put some distance between you two. On the contrary, if she is talking to you politely and you keep talking to her too casually, she might think you are shallow.
8) Yes that is right.
But some people say this phrase without knowing that person so well even if they have never dated before.
9) 今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！
Hahaha, you are an ideal student!
Yes, it means
Since it (the translation you asked me) is not that long this time, I will make an exception for you.
これどうやって使うの？
“How do you use this?”
Sensei I don’t recall seeing this “yatte tsukau” pattern before. I guess “yatte” is the -te form of “yaru”. Does this “yatte tsukau” pairing imply something we could translate to “make use” in English.
どうやって means “how”
どうやって払うの？= How do we pay?
どうやって勉強したらいいですか？= How should I study?
どうやって駅に行ったらいいかわからない。= I don’t know how to get to the station.
This has become a long comment. Sorry sensei for so many questions. :/
No problem! Hope I answered all your questions.
Oh yeah sensei, I am studying about love everyday, especially when I am studying with the big love sensei gives to her students. XD
1) 愛する人
Sensei I think I got it. But outside of the verb “suru”, when it comes to other verbs, would there be a more marked difference when one uses intransitive and transitive verbs to describe the action of a person?
Like for example, pardon me sensei if this doesn’t make sense, ok?
A) TRAN: watashi wo mitsukeru hito (the person that finds me)
B) INTRAN: mitsukaru hito (the person that is found)
I bet those sentence don’t make any sense but maybe sensei will understand. :)
2) Sensei, 恋人たち(同士)になる予感 is easier for me to understand. :D But I wanted to know how would I be able to say:
“Lover’s premonition”
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
Oh, I completely forgot about that “kara” meaning. ^^’ So the sentence could actually mean: “Love and it’s getting crazy for nothing”, right sensei? :)
4) 元気でいる
So this would mean: “have been fine/have been ok”?
5) Polite vs casual
A) So, is it expected for men to be the ones to drop polite first?
B) If I get this right, once I drop polite she would also drop polite and if she doesn’t it means I am being considered shallow.
C) Are there women that never drop polite in Japan?
6) Dou yatte tsukau: It didn’t occur to me to look for “dou yatte” together, now I found there is a definition for both words put together. ^^’
Thank you sensei, the other questions are clearer than a cleaned piece of glass. :)
@NecroMadMat
Hi NMM!
1)
→If you are talking about the difference between transitive verbs and intransitive verbs, yes, there are lots of verbs which have different meanings.
For example 開ける(akeru) and 開く(=hiraku/aku)
This could be your next lesson to study.
http://142.93.68.150/2012/01/31/%E3%81%8A%E9%96%8B%E3%81%8D-ohiraki-%E9%96%8B%E3%81%8F%EF%BC%9D%E3%81%B2%E3%82%89%E3%81%8F%E3%81%82%E3%81%8F-etc/
2) Ah I see your point. I guess we say
“Lovers’ premonition” = 恋人達の予感
3) 恋のから騒ぎ
Oh, I completely forgot about that “kara” meaning. ^^’ So the sentence could actually mean: “Love and it’s getting crazy for nothing”, right sensei?
→Ummm not quite “Love “and”” ~~”
から of から騒ぎ is 空=kara= empty and 空騒ぎ means “fuss” and the verb 空騒ぎする means “to make a fuss over something or carry away”
So 恋のから騒ぎ means “Carried away for love” or “Making a fuss over all the love relationships”
4) 元気でいる
So this would mean: “have been fine/have been ok”?
Yes!
5) Polite vs casual
A) So, is it expected for men to be the ones to drop polite first?
Not necessary. It could be a girl who drop the politeness first.
B) If I get this right, once I drop polite she would also drop polite and if she doesn’t it means I am being considered shallow.
If you talk to her casually and she keeps using polite form then it could be
she respects you or she wants to put the distance between you.
C) Are there women that never drop polite in Japan?
Possible but I doubt it…
Thank you very much sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
どういたしまして！
Could you use this form to say:
Like me, my brother also likes basketball
or does it not work that way?
If so would it be:
私のように兄もバスケットボールが好きです。
@arekkusu
Hi Arrekkusu!
Like me, my brother also likes basketball
私のように兄もバスケットボールが好きです。
Yes, that works!
You can also switch the word order
兄も私のようにバスケットボールが好きです。
My brother likes basketball like me/I do.
Ahh kks sweet
Thanks for clarifying :)
@arekkusu
You’re welcome! どういたしまして！ !happyface!
Please explain me that as 泣く is a first group verb so its causitive form is 泣かせる。For example,
1)Mother made chid cry.
（母は芯ちゃんを泣かせた）
2)Child was made cried by mother.
（芯ちゃんは母になかされた。）
Same should be applied for 書く as it is also the first group verb.
1)To make children write.
子供を日本語を書かせる。
2)Children were forced to write.
子供は母に日本語を書かされた。
@shikha
Yes, they are correct.
Just one correction.
1)To make children write.
子供を日本語を書かせる。
→子供に〜を書かせる。
thank you, this helps alot :)
@ahari
We are happy to hear that! ありがと！
This is awesome! Thank you!
*bookmarked!
@jr_dp18
Welcome to Maggie’s site! ♪( ´▽｀)
Ohayo Maggie Sensie, Your lesson is very helpful. Domo arigato gozaimasu. Do you have a lesson specifically at a grocery store when you pay at the cashier. They say or ask you so many things once you paid. For example, my bill was 526 yen so I gave them 1,026 yen so I get a full 500 yen back. They said or asked something and i could not understand. They also ask me so many things before they give me plastic bags, is it possible for you to please give me a list of what they actually say versus the questuons they actually want answers..?
@carlainjapan
Hi Carla!
I don’t have a particular lesson for grocery store.
Usually when you pay money, they repeat
~円お預かり致します。
= ~ en oazukari itahsimasu.
=(The direct translation is ” I have received ~ yen from you.”)
Now let’s see your question :
My bill was 526 yen so I gave them 1,026 yen so I get a full 500 yen back. They said or asked something and i could not understand.
↓
Probably they were just saying how much they have received and how much change they give you.
This is a typical pattern.
~~~円お預かり致しましたので〜円のお返しになります。
= ~~~ en oazukari itashimashita node ~ en no okaeshi ni narimasu.
= Since we have received ~~ yen from you, I will give you ~ yen change.
Ex.１０２６円お預かり致しましたので５百円のお返しになります。
= Sen nijuurokuen oazukari itashimashita node gohyakuen no okaeshi ni narimasu.
= Since we have received 1026 yen from you, I will give you back 5,00 yen change.
If you just give them a bill, they might ask you
Ex. １万円からでよろしかったでしょうか？
= Ichimanen kara de yoroshikatta deshouka?
= (Technically it is a wrong Japanese but they say that because it is written in their manual)
= From 10,000 yen, right?
Or they might check if you want to pay small changes
細かい方、よろしかったでしょうか？
= Komakai hou yoroshikatta deshouka?
= Would like to pay small change?
About a plastic bag, レジ袋= reji bukuro many places charge for a plastic bag now so they ask you if you have your own bag or you need a plastic bag.
It is possible that they are asking you
Ex. 袋は必要ですか？= Fukuro wa hitsuyou desuka?
Ex.袋はお持ちですか？ = Fukuro wa omochi desuka?
Ex.袋は御入用ですか？ = Fukuro wa goiriyou desuka?
Ex.袋はご利用でしょうか？ = Fukuro wa goriyou desuka?
If I think of any other expressions, I will keep adding them here.
Hello again, Maggie-sensei! I have a question for you!
I’m not sure if you remember telling me this when we first spoke to each other, but you said that 「自然な日本語を身につけていけば完璧だと思います」.
Even since then I’ve been working on improving that aspect of my speech. I wanted to know in your opinion if I have improved much since then?
Thanks for your input :)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
I am 100 pct sure your Japanese has improved. I am always impressed with your motivation to learn Japanese.
Keep practicing 自然な日本語, OK? !happyface!
I will! Thank you so much (^_^)
Hi sensei. Is it possible that sensei could explain this sentence for me a little? :)
1) また、終わらせないことで相手にどうしたらいいのか言ってもらう時間を与えることがあります。）
I feel it says something like: “Also, by not finishing what you want to express, you give the other party time to decide how to continue (make a follow up, how to proceed). As you can see Maggiesensei, I have a little problem with the “dou shitara ii no ka” in this sentence.
2) 時として
What does “toki toshite” means sensei?
@NecroMadMat
Ohh you are studying one of my first sample lessons…なつかしい！
1) どうしたらいいのか= what to do, what we should do
We sometimes give some time to the listeners to tell us what to do by not finishing the sentence.
So imagine you call me and ask me if Yukari is home. If I say
「Yukari は今、おりません。」
That is the end of the conversation. It may sound a bit strong unless you follow right away「何かご伝言はありませんか？」
But if I say
「Yukariは今、おりませんが….」
This unfinished sentence with “が” implies “What would like to do? What would you want me to do? Would you call her back later?”
Then you can think “Um.. what should I do. I will call her back then.”
Thus I can give you sometime to decide what to do without asking you to call her back.
2) 時として= in some cases
I got it. I relate these types of sentences to something like: “He is not here now…” with the dots as to allow the other party to finish and unfinished or opened sentence.
What interested me the most from that previous sentence sensei is that I recently became aware of this type of usage of “ka” within a sentence. How should I put it? It is like a question that is not really a question but when you try to explain something. For example a sentence as this “what we need to do is to climb that tree.”
Actually I am not sure if I get the usage of “ka” when applied in this manner, that is why I asked the previous question. ^^’
Sorry for not explaining myself correctly sensei. Is it possible to give some examples of the usage of “ka” in this manner?
@NecroMadMat
I think I got your question about the usage of か.
か is often used before subordinate clauses.
(whether, if, when, which, what…etc)
I don’t know “if ” Maggie is coming today.
今日、マギーが来る”か”知らない。
I have to ask “if ” Maggie is coming today.
今日、マギーが来る”か”（どうか）聞かなくてはいけない。
Can you tell me “when” you are coming.
いつ来る”か”教えてくれますか？
I will let you know if I go to school today.
今日、学校に行く”か”（どうか）知らせます。
I don’t know “what” to do.
どうしたらいいの”か”わからい。
Can ask Maggie if she likes me?
マギーに私のことが好き”か”聞いてくれますか？
That is exactly what I meant and sensei. As expected of sensei she understands even with poor explanations like mine. :) Subordinate clauses is the correct name. :) Thank you sensei for your all your help.
@NecroMadMat
Oh, Greeeeeat!! I’m sorry that I didn’t understand your question in the first place.
Sensei, part two. XD
1) 何時がよろしかったでしょうか？
= What time is good for you?
I could memorize the pattern of using the past tense when making such a question, but I would really like to know the way Japanese people think when making this question, do they really think in past tense when making this question? My guess is that they ask in past tense because they give for certain that the “decision” of what time was already made in the person’s mind so they are asking something like, what did you decide. Is this correct sensei? :)
2) 今、携帯がないので滞在先の”わんわんホテル”の電話番号をお伝えします。」
= I don’t have a cell phone so, here is the phone number of Wanwan hotel where I am staying.
What would be the meaning of “saki” in this sentence?
3) はい、それでは復唱させていただきます。」
= OK, let me repeat your reservation.
Sensei, I give a rough translation to this sentence as “I will receive the chance to be allowed to repeat your order?”. Is it alright?
4) シャンプー＆カットで予約できますか？」
= Shanpuu katto de yoyaku dekimasu ka?
= I would like to make a reservation for a shampoo and a haircut.
When it comes to the character “＆”, doesn’t it have a pronunciation in Japanese? Like “to” for example, sensei?
5) ４：３０ならおとりできますが…」
= Yoji han nara otori dekimasu ga…
= How about 4:30?
Is the “otori” in this sentence a: “honorific (o) + toru (take) conversion to noun “i-stem”. In other words, does the sentence says: If it comes to the 4:30, can you take (my reservation)?
6) 初めてかかられますか？
This sentence if from Maggiesensei’s comments reply. :) Is the kakaremasuka a honorific in this sentence?
Thank you Maggiesensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
1) Good question!
In this lesson, I focused on practical Japanese phrases you will hear in Japan more than grammatically correct sentences.
The correct phrase should be
何時がよろしいでしょうか？
As I mentioned in the shopping lesson, よろしかったでしょうか？ is often used in the places like family restaurants, stores etc. (I should have left a note in this lesson,too. Sorry for making you confused.)
It is one of the common phrases which you often hear in service industries. So if you want to memorize it, memorize the よろしいでしょうか？and pay attention what people say when you get here.
2) 先（さき）means “one’s destination, the places where you are going to be.”
滞在先= the places you are going to stay/ you are staying
I will give you other examples.
*宛先= あてさき= (destination) address
*行き先 ＝いきさき= destination, where to go
*連絡先= れんらくさき = contact information （→where/who to contact )
3) Nice try but いただく doesn’t mean “to receive” .
How about
~させていただく= I will allow myself to do something
Let me allow myself to repeat your order.
4) Ah, OK. シャンプ＆ブロー is a typical course menu for the beauty salon so it is customary to read “shanpuu burou” without と(=to)
or シャンプーアンドブロー
シャンプー&ブローお願いします。
= Shanpuu burou onegai shimasu.
but you can say
シャンプーとブローお願いします。
= Shanpuu to burou onegai shimasu.
Usually when you see & mark, we read it as “アンド”
５）おとりできる came from “おとりすることができる” (honorific expression of とることができる）
If 4:30 is OK with you, we could make a reservation for you.
4) Yes. かかられる is an honorific form of かかる
医者にかかる= to consult a doctor, to see a doctor
Thank you sensei as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
どういたしまして！ !happyface!
Thank you for the lesson, Maggie-sensei! ^__^ Your lessons are always full of useful information.
〜してしまい/しまって（＝~shite shimai/shimatte)+すみません／ごめんなさい／ 申し訳ありません。
Can I say here
〜してしまいまして instead of してしまい? Which is used more often?
@Mika
Hi Mika!
Yes, although してしまい・してしまって are more common, you can say 〜してしまいまして申し訳ございませんでした。
It sounds more formal you usually don’t use it with すみません or ごめんなさい.
Also you can separate the sentence.
〜してしまいました。大変申し訳ございませんでした。・ご迷惑を御かけ致しました。etc.
Is “you” often used without “ni”?
A japanese person sent me this message before surgery, with “you” but without ni or na:
“umaku iku you inotte imasu.”
@astro
Hello astro!
Yes, we often omit particles in casual Japanese including よう”に”
うまくいくよう（に）祈っています。
元気になるよう（に）願っています。
試験に受かるよう（に）がんばっています。
But you can’t always omit に
It would sound strange if you omit に for example,
x うまくいきますよう！→うまくいきますように！
X マギー先生のようなりたい。→マギー先生のようになりたい。
I was looking at concise guides like this one, but I found yours to be so well thought out and informative. Thank you for taking the time to write such an excellent guide.
＠Yoshiyuki
Hello! Welcome to our site! The link is pretty good! What you have to do is gather all the useful information for you. がんばって！
Thanks for great lesson ! Your lessons really help me studying japanese.
Like @kohaku, this ~よう form is little bit difficult for me.
Are there any differences between ~ようになります and ~ようになっています ?
Ex :
雨がすぐに止めるようになります。
雨がすぐに止めるようになっています。
Any difference of meaning at those sentences?
Thank you in advance.
@hariajie
Hello, hariajie! Welcome to our site!
First your example sentences, 雨 won’t work because you can’t predict if rain will stop or not.
(A little correction: 雨が止む＝やむ not 止める）
Now ようになります is talking about the future, “will be, will become”. and ようになっています is Future Perfect, “will have been ~ ”
マギー先生のサイトで毎日勉強すると…..
= If you study with Maggie Sensei’s site everyday
a) １年後には日本語がペラペラに話せるようになります。
b) １年後には日本語がペラペラに話せるようになっています。
We may translate them both in the same say but there is a slight difference as follows.
a) You will be able to speak Japanese fluently in a year.
b) You will have been able to speak Japanese fluently in a year. You are supposed to be able to speak Japanese fluently in a year.
Also ようになっています is used when you describe how things are supposed to work or be.
電気は自然に消えるようになっています。
= The lights should automatically turn off. / The lights are supposed to turn off automatically.
なるほど。
今分かるようになりました。
教えてくれてありがとうございます。
@hariajie
どういたしまして！ !happyface!
今まで、このブログを知って、悔しいだよ！Maggie先生、質問があるんですが、
だれでも分かる＝anybody can understand it
だれにも分からない＝nobody can understand it
では、not everyone can understand it 日本語でなんと言いますか。
@rokuvo
Hi rokuvo!
not everyone can understand it =みんな(or すべての人）がわかるわけではない（です）
今まで、このブログを知って、悔しいだよ！
You mean “今までこのブログを知らなくて悔しいよ”？
先生の優しい言葉をありがとうございます。人形の所は今張れで暖かいです！最近、寒いでしたでも、今急に暖かいになりました！ちょっとビックリましたが、うれしいです！
なにしても、日本に行きたいです！
先生、すみません！
張れ ➞ 晴れ！
人形は復習しないでメセーギを送りました。
人形はとても恥ずかしいです！
@人形
お人形さん、日本に近いうちに来れるといいですね。
日本語上手に書けていますよ。いつでもこのコメント欄（らん）で練習して下さいね。
（もっとうまくなって欲しいから少しだけ直しますね。→暖かくなりました。メッセージ）
先生、直すのをありがとうございます。
練習の招きもありがとうございます。
人形はこのきれいな所で練習しま！
@人形
はい、いっぱい勉強して下さい。お人形さんがもっと上手になる様にお手伝いします。
（直すのを→直してくれて／練習しま！→（多分、typoですね。）練習します！）
はい、連勝しまはtypoでした！あいにく人形はおっちょこちょいです。すみません。家で練習します、島に行きません！
まだ直してくれてありがとうございました。
連勝 → 練習。そそっかしいな人形ですね！先生、すみません！
マギー先生と話していてワクワクして復習ことを忘れます。
もう直ぐもっと真面目な人形になります！
@人形
大丈夫！私もおっちょこちょいで、いつも間違えます。 !happyface!
（→そそっかしい人形／復習することを）
先生はとても優しいです。
直してくれてありがとうございます。
おかしい笑っている顔でしね！どうして書きますか？
@人形
どうして書きますか= Why do you write it?
どうやって書きますか= How do you write it?
どちらですか？
もし「どうして」なら自分がおっちょこちょいだから笑っているんですよ♩
「どうやって書きますか」もっと正しいですか？
ありがとうございます。「どうやって」の意味は言いたいでした（人形もおかしい顔を書きたいです！）
@人形
どうやって絵文字を入れるかですね。私は皆と違うadministratorの画面から書くので絵文字を入れることができます。
でもコメントで絵文字を入れている人もいるしどうやるのかなあ…..わかる人がいたらお人形さんに教えてあげてね。
ありがとうございます。人形わかります。絵文字を作るのは、人形が名案を思いつきましたが、先生のきれいなサイトを実験で汚したくありません！
タイプで絵文字を作ります! \(˘◊˘)/
@人形
\(˘◊˘)/→お〜かわいい絵文字を見つけましたね。
いいですよ〜どんどん実験してみて下さい。 !onpu!
マギー先生, お久しぶりです! \(^o^)/
去年いろいろお世話になりました。そして今年も宜しくお願い致します。マギー先生は, みんなも毎日幸せになりますように。
次のレッスンを、お楽しみにしております！
Another great and informative lesson by the way. (^_^)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
お久しぶりです！ありがとう！こちらこそ、今年も宜しくお願いしますね！
はい！これから次のレッスンを作りますよ〜！！ また一年一緒に日本語がんばりましょうね！！!Vsain!
先生、初めまして！よろしくお願いします。
私は人形です。人形はずっとマギー先生のサイトを読んでいます。
新年になりました、人形は声かけしたいです。
先生のサイトはすごいです！先生は、世界で一番賢い犬ですよ！そしてとてもかわいい！
人形は寒がりだが、暑がりではない。
この素敵なサイトを作っているのはありがとうございます。
@人形
こんにちは、お人形さん！
私のサイトをずっと読んでいてくれてありがとう！！
お人形さんは寒がりなのね。日本は今、とっても寒いですが、お人形さんの国はどうかな？
これからもこのサイトをよろしくね！！
Maggiesensei, two questions for this lesson :)
Sensei wrote:
1) お一人様ですか？
(Ohitori desu ka?)
In the Japanese version there is “sama” but in the roomaji it isn’t there. Do they use “sama” in this situation or is it “ohitori desu ka?”
2) 決められましたか？
Sensei, one of the biggest challenges I recognize in my learning at this moment is recognizing with ease the difference between “potential” and “passive” verbs. I was wondering if there is a clear rule that could help me differentiate when a verb is “passive” and when it is used as “potential”. Up until now I try to discern the difference by the context in which the verb is used so I was thinking that maybe there is a rule I haven’t encountered yet.
Thank you sensei. :) And please excuse my apologies for my hunger of knowledge and the constant questions. XD
^I meant “excuse my hunger for knowledge and the constant questions.” XD I messed that up. :/
@NecroMadMat
I think it is great to have all the motivation to learn Japanese.
I am always hungry,too! (Literally) :)
@NecroMadMat
1) That was a typo. Thank you!! I fixed it.
Ohitori sama desuka? is more polite.
2) れる・られる form can be either passive or honorifics. And it could be potential form.
You have to know who is the subject and what the object is.
This 決められましたか？ is an honorific.
But if you say
一人で決められましたか？（potential form)
= Could you decide on your own?
決められた手順 (passive form)
= set procedure (←The procedure which was set.)
It will be a long lesson if I start to explain the whole thing here so we’ll study little by little.
And your questions are always welcome!
I need to pay attention the the subject and the object and how the verb is related to them. I will study and practice until I get a hang of it, sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
And I am always here for you to help! !ochame!
Sensei I watched the Japanese Tradition video. Do I really need to do the “maa, maa, maa” and “Oh toh toh toh” chant? XD
My bet is that one doesn’t need to do things 100 percent as it says in the video or do we sensei? But since the video is constantly reminding me that Japan is the “samurai country” I am afraid that if I don’t follow everything through a samurai may appear to put me in line. XD
By the way, sensei, my dream is to someday live in Japan, to try out living in Japan. :) However, beyond language and differences in culture, the is one thing that actually has me worried and makes me think that my experience there could be hard and that would be the fact that I…
don’t like fish.
I really have the intention of trying Japanese dishes, that consist of fish, in spite of me disliking it, but I am asking myself, what if I just can’t eat them? 
I really don’t want to portray myself as someone with a capricious take on food. :/ Of course, none of this is a question for sensei. XD
My question for sensei. Are there any common or traditional Japanese dishes that do not involve fish? :)
@NecroMadMat
Oh that video is a joke video. Everything in the video is so extreme and exaggerated. I would say 5 pct of the video is true. That is why it is funny.
Samurai have disappeared many many years ago so no worries.
You are right. We eat a lot of fish in Japan but you can survive here without eating fish. There are a variety of food in Japan so I am sure you can find something that you would like.
We do have traditional food without fish. Vegetable tempura, sukiyaki, shabushabu, beef bowls, etc.etc.
But one thing that I can advice you is to be open minded.
It would be much more fun to try many different things when you are in other country.
And people would love you if you at least try to adjust Japanese culture.
Sensei, I like the part when they say: “Taishou has a private life, let us not ask about it.”, whilst he is cleaning a knife. XD They convinced me. lol
Oh sensei, with your comment I would like to make sure, isn’t there someone that actually still addresses himself as samurai? I have seen some TV bangumi where some experts of Japanese sword make appearances but maybe they are just experts, right?
Yeah sensei, I’ll take your advice, I’d go open minded, if my plan to go to Japan works. :D I intend to try those fish dishes out, maybe they would make me like fish, right? :) Hopefully. I plan on trying Maggiesensei’s list in this website if I get to try out Japanese food. :D I’ll use it as a guide. :D
But yeah, my fear is to not being able to start liking fish. If for example I visit someone’s house I know that the percentage of having fish when invited to eat over there in Japan is very high, I really wouldn’t like to turn them down.
I can learn customs and language but when one can’t eat something it becomes a problem, doesn’t it? Like, if as an example, someone gives Maggiesensei cat food to try. XD
But somehow I think it is great that Japan is a country with a diet based on fish. Girls over there seem to have a very pretty skin because of it. XD I bet Maggiesensei must have a really beautiful skin under all that pretty fur. XD
Sensei, I checked on those dishes you listed and they look delicious. As I suspected, Japanese dishes are very varied. :)
@NecroMadMat
Yes, I love the scene,too!
There must be some groups that they call themselves samurai but it is hard to find them. And it is totally illegal to carry Katana around now. They will be arrested right away.
Haha, as a matter of fact, I can eat cat food without any problems. (That’s why I am fat…)
If you are going to visit Japanese family or eat with Japanese people, just tell them
ごめんなさい。魚はちょっと苦手なので.. 。= Gomennasai. Sakana wa chotto nigate nanode… = I am sorry but I am not a big fan of fish.
They will understand you. There are Japanese people who don’t like fish as well.
I am not sure if you have seen this lesson (B-kyuu gurume) but there are cheap Japanese food as well.
Try them all!
Now I go check if I have a beautiful skin underneath of my fur….
Maggiesensei, about samurai, I learned that they were indeed prohibited to carry a sword in public, got to know it first from an anime. XD
I read that some fish is kind of dangerous for canines so please be careful sensei, ok? :) But I bet Yukarisama takes good care of you sensei. :)
I don’t think sensei looks fat at all. :/ But I guess it is a ladies thing to be overly critical of their weight. XD
Sensei I recall once reading that there was some Japanese talent that didn’t like fish and following a TV program she was critiqued for asking someone what was his/her favorite type of sushi. Can’t remember who she was though. So I guess I am not alone. lol Unfortunately, even here in my country I am an exemption to the norm, actually I don’t think I know someone else who doesn’t like fish like me… lol depressing.
I recall hearing an expression similar to what Maggiesensei wrote once, in a YouTube channel. I will practice it sensei, thank you very much. :)
Yeah sensei, I checked that lesson out. I can actually picture myself ordering different Japanese dishes and sitting there in my apartment saying: “Let me check if I like this one…” and so forth. XD
I wonder if Maggiesensei is intending to get a crazy haircut to check her skin. If that’s the case, please post pictures sensei. XD
@NecroMadMat
Yes, the simulation practice is very important! Be sure to visualize me in the scene and offering you a lot of fish.(・ω<) Thank you! You are the only one who doesn't think I am not fat. :) Yukari"sama" always eats delicious sweets in front of me. She is torturing me!
Woot. I will imagine Maggie-taishou serving me dishes. :) Maybe Yukarisama does that so that Maggiesensei can strengthen her will to resist sweets. ;)
@NecroMadMat
And you can say “ちょっと魚が苦手なので..” to me. Before you finish saying that I will eat yours. So no problem!
Oh, so kind sensei. :) Maybe I would invite Maggiesensei whenever I am invited to someone’s house so that Maggiesensei can take care of the fish. XD I guess some may argue that the hosts wouldn’t like it if I invite someone out of the blue like that to someone’s house, but once they see it is Maggiesensei and how cute she is they won’t mind, I bet. lol
@NecroMadMat
Great! Problem solved!! !happyface!
Maggiesensei, these questions attacked me while reading this lesson.
いえ、ちょっと見せて下さい。
No, thank you. Do you mind if I just look around.
1) a) Wouldn’t this sentence be used to ask the store clerk to show you some stuff to buy? Or to let you see the store?
b) I may be confusing the meaning of the words “miseru” and “misaseru” though. :/ Sensei, could you tell me the difference between these two words?
鏡で合わせてみますか？
“Would you like to use a mirror?”
2) Sensei, I am trying to understand the causative usage of the verb “au” in here. Doing so I get this rough translation of the sentence, is it alright:
“Would you like to try making it fit in front of the mirror?”
Or am I completely off, sensei? lol What I am not sure is if what is made to fit in this sentence is the “piece of clothing” in question.
只今、在庫があるか見て参ります。
3) Is mairimasu used as a polite form of kuru, as in “mite kuru”?
この服は細く見える
This dress makes me look fat.
Maggiesensei isn’t this sentence supposed to mean “This dress makes me look thin.”
4) ございます
Can gozaimasu be used as a substitute for “imasu” as well? I have listened to the expression of “de gozaimasu” while a person addresses himself in an anime.
御入学祝い
Do I read this as “gonyuugaku iwai” or “onyuugaku iwai”?
Thank you sensei for your time and as always, no rush. :) Whenever sensei has the time. :)
@NecroMadMat
Hello, NMM!
1) a)
ちょっと見せて下さい
The direct translation is : Will you show me / May I see / Let me see (what you have in this store).
You can use this phrase to ask someone to show something or someplace.
Since you are asking a shop clerk to show you what they have, you can use this phrase.
And yes, you can use this phrase to ask a shop clerk to show you something.
すみません、この帽子を見せて下さい。
= Excuse me. May I see this hat, please? / Could you show me this hat please?
ショーウィンドーにある青いセーターを見せて下さい。
= May I see / Could you show me the blue sweater in the store window please?
見せる vs 見させる
見せる means “to show something to someone”
見させる= could be two things and that is why it is confusing.
1) When it is uses as a causative verb = to make someone see something.
Ex. Aにsomethingを見させた。= I made A see seomething.
2) When it is used as an honorific
Ex. 見させてください。＝Please let me see
******
2) OK, Not bad.
鏡で合わせる is an idiom. You put on the clothes or simply holding the clothes as if you wear them in front of the mirror and see if you like the design, size or color would fit you.
3) Exactly
見てきます→(polite form ) 見て参ります。
4) Ahh, you are right! Thank you for spotting the mistake. I will fix it.
Right ございます can be used to address yourself. Very polite. マギーでございます！= I am Maggie.
5) gonyuugaku iwai.
I have been officially abbreviated. XD It took me a while to realize what NMM meant sensei, lol sometimes I am a little slow. lol
I think I got it now. In “misete” someone will show you something while in “misasete” someone will make you or let you see.
What was kind of confusing is that the end result is similar, by the action of someone I see, being it either by being shown or made/allowed to see.
Thank you Maggiesensei, as always. :D
@NecroMadMat
Hola NMM!
I think you got it but just in case I will type out the basic forms below.
見る= to see
見せる= to show
見せられる= (passive form) You are forced to see something by someone
見させる = to force someone to see something
*******
When you ask someone to show you something
a) 見せて下さい。
b) 見させて下さい。
The both mean the same thing. Please let me see something/Show something to me.
But b) sounds a bit more humble and polite.
Sensei, seems like one of the things that got me confused is that “miseru” is not an inflection of “miru”, in other words: “miru” =/= “miseru”. “Miseru” is a verb on its own, right?
Sensei, with the first explanation it was clearer than water, with the second explanation it is clearer than air. XD Thank you Maggiesensei. :)
Maggiesensei, “making my life a lot simpler since 2012.” XD
@NecroMadMat
見せる is a one form of 見る but when we translate it look the different words. to see / to show
But you are right. It is easier to think they are different words at the moment.
Good that my explanation cleared things up.
Oh is that so? The plot thickens. lol I’ll follow your advice sensei. :)
Edit: I couldn’t find the reply option to sensei’s last comment, I meant to reply to sensei’s last comment just in case. :)
Your lessons are always so useful <3 Thank you for taking the time and making them!
今年もマギー先生のレッスン、お楽しみにしています！（＾。＾）ｂ
@Gurgelsnurp
レッスンを楽しみにしていてくれてありがとう！！
これからもがんばってみんなのためにレッスン作りますね！ !JYANE!
やった！マギー先生先生に褒められちゃった。そうかじゃ。。。一つ目の間違いは他の人について説明に使えるかな
ええっっ。。。みんなとみなは違うの。どうやって違うの先生？
犬のマギー先生は今年何歳になるの？写真見てると子供はまだ出来てないね。相手でももう見つかったかな (¬‿¬)
@Jupiter
作りたがらない→他の人だったら使えます。
レディーに年を聞くのは失礼ですよ。でも内緒で教えてあげます。７歳です。今年こそイケメンのカレを見つけます！
ははは。。。頑張って下さいね。イケメンのカレ出来るようにお祈りします。なんか僕も楽しみにしている、マギー先生にどんなカレがふさわしいかな
@Jupiter
はい、真剣（しんけん）に祈っていてくださいね。 !happyface!
さっき、質問に答えるのを忘れていました。ごめんね。
When you are talking to people, you can say
*みなさん (correct)
*皆様= みなさま (correct) more formal
*********
*みんな (correct) more casual
********
But we don’t say
*みんなさん
*みんなさま
はい、そうします！
へっっ僕の耳にみんなとみなは別に違うんですけど、そういう違いはあるんだ。。。ありがとうございましたマギー先生
@Jupiter
どういたしまして！ !happyface!
ずっと待ってましたよマギー先生。もうレッスン作りたがっていなかったと思った.
there’s a typo there先生. がるの部分のなかで気味悪いのexample. 近つきたがらないは日本語で書いてあるですがロマ字は近つきたくないと書いてある。すみません上手な日本語で説明したいですけどまだ下手なんです。今年も僕もブログを読んでるみんなさんもきっと先生のレッスンに楽しみがっています
PS. 僕のtypeした日本語にも欠点があるなら教えて頂けないでしょうか先生 >-<
@Jupiter
間違いを見つけてくれてありがとう！直しました！（新しいレッスンは間違いが結構あると思います。また見つけたら教えてね。）
Jupiterの日本語はすごく上手ですよ。でもせっかくだから少しだけアドバイスしますね。
*作りたがっていない→As I mentioned in this lesson, たがる is usually used to describe the third person’s desire. So if you meant to say “I thought you didn’t want to make a lesson anymore” then もうレッスンは作りたくないのかと思っていました。is better.
But I would just say “もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った” I thought you were not going to make a lesson anymore is more natural.
*書いてあるですがロマ字は→書いてありますがローマ字は
*みんなさん→みなさん （Actually many people make this mistake. みんな is not used with さん)
*楽しみがっています→Ahhh too bad. You are trying to use がる here but it doesn’t work here. 楽しみにしています。
*欠点→欠点 is usually used for defects so how about just → 間違い(mistake)?
Other than these your writing is excellent!
よく書けていましたよ♩ !happyface!
Hi Maggie! How’s it going
I read a comment i have a question:
“もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った” can you please explain me why you use のか?
I will just writte もうレッスンは作らないと思った without のか . That’s why i would like to know why you use it.
@PukiPuki
Hi PukiPuki! I’m genki how about you?
Yes, you can say
もうレッスンは作らないと思った。
もうレッスンは作らないかと思った。
もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った。
の is usually used for nominalization. Also のか emphasizes the meaning more.
I will show you more examples when we use のか
(Can you ask where she lives?)
Ex. 彼女がどこに住んでいるか聞いてくれる？
Ex.彼女がどこに住んでいるのか聞いてくれる？
I don’t know how to do this.
Ex. これをどうやってやるかわからない。
Ex. これをどうやってやるのかわからない。
I’m glad to hear that ^^ I’m fine but i have no motivation to learn….><"""
NOKA is like a hidden question. I read and understand examples that you gave but when i see noka plus to omou it’s different from the hidden question. Sorry don’t know how to explain it ><"
Anyway thank you for anwser ^^
@PukiPuki
か／のか can express your emotion (such as surprised feeling, etc.) more.
In this case, it is like “whether ~ or not” and 思う is “to wonder”
So
もうレッスンは作らないのかと思った means
I was wondering if you stopped making lessons.
sensei, sensei
can we translate that sentence to “‘Is she/he not making a lesson anymore?’, was what I thought.”?
Hi Maggiesensei, I made questions for two different lessons today, hopefully I am not asking too much at the same time. There is no need for sensei to answer right away, I can wait. :)
1) 「彼女って血液型ABじゃない？だってちょっと掴みどころがないもの。」
“Her blood type must be AB because she is a bit enigmatic.”
a) I can’t find the “enigmatic” in the sentence. My guess is that “tsukami” (grip) is used as enigmatic by using the logic that something enigmatic is something one person does not have a
“grip” on. Is that right sensei?
b) I wanted to know about “dokoro”. I read it is used for emphasis and negation, right?
2) 型にはまった
Sensei wrote that this expression means “conventional”. “Conventional” in what form sensei?
3) Does the “aishou” have a sentimental connotation or can I use it when referring to friends?
4) あなたの血液型ってA型じゃない？何か細かいから…
“Isn’t your blood type A? You seem somehow meticulous to me.”
Sensei, can I use “nanika” to convey the meaning of “somewhat” as well?
Muchas gracias sensei. :)
@NecroMadMat
Let me see your questions here…
1) enigmatic = 掴みどころがない ＝つかみどころがない
You use this expression for a mysterious person who you can’t tell what they are thinking about.
つかむ has mainly two meanings, to hold on to something, to grip something or to apprehend, to grasp, to get
It is from つかむところ(=所= place, part) がない There is no place you can grip, hold on to →(changed to) つかみどころがない there is no place to grasp, hard to tell
2) 型 literally means “mold” ,”form” or “pattern”
So imagine people who are fixed in a mold which is made by society or one’s group. They behave, say or think as other people. They do the same routines everyday.
No originality. In that sense, the are conventional. People don’t do things spontaneously.
3) Yes, 相性がいい，悪い is used all the time for any human relationships.
4) Yes.
De nada!!
Sensei, is it possible to have an example sentence with the usage of 型にはまった?
@NecroMadMat
OK, 型にはまる(= conventional, stereotyped, formulaic) is usually used in a negative connotation.
Ex. 型にはまったってはいけない。(Don’t be too conventional. Be unique! )
Ex. 型にはまらずに〜した方がいい。(You should be unconventional (more original) when you do ~ .)
Ex. 型にはまらない方がいい。(=You should be unconventional, You should be unique)
Ex. 彼は型にはまっている。(negative, criticizing)
*型にはまった仕事をする = to do the same routine
*型にはまった教育 = conventional education
*型にはまった物の考え方 = conventional way of thinking
*型にはまらない考え方= unconventional way of thinking, to think out of the box
*型にはまらない方法= unconventional way, a formulaic way, mannerism
*型にはまったもの= cliche
Nice! I get it perfectly now. Thank you Maggiesensei. :D
@NecroMadMad
よかった！！！You are very welcome!!
Maggiesensei, NecroMadMat here reporting for help as always. XD
ああ〜疲れた！温泉にでも行ってゆっくりしたい！
“Oh, I am so tired. I feel like going to hot-spring and just relax!”
I was wondering if there is a special meaning for the particles “ni+demo”. I am reading them as “even to the onsen” but I could be wrong. I can only trust sensei on this one. XD
Also, I found interesting the way the desire of “going to a hot-spring and just relax” is conveyed in the sentence. By putting the “shitai” at the end, does that make the “itte” to have the nuance of “wanting to go” as well, as in “ikitai”?
Thank you sensei as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
Hello!!
Q 1) Let’s compare these two sentences.
1) 温泉に行きたい。 = I want to go to hot-spring.
2) 温泉にでも行きたい。= I feel like go to hot-spring. / I would like to go to a place like hot-spring.
Difference 1) While you want to go to a specific place which is 温泉 in the sentence 1), you want to go to a place such as 温泉 in the sentence 2).
Difference 2) Also in the sentence 1) shows your stronger will to go to hot-spring and 2) sounds softer and it suggests that it would be nice if I could go to hot-spring or I feel like going to hot-spring
Q 2) 温泉にでも行ってゆっくりしたい
~たい goes to two verbs “to go (to hot-spring) and “relax”
行きたいそしてゆっくりしたい
When you connect two verbs with たい, you can omit the first one.
Ex. I would like to have lunch with you and talk a lot.
一緒にランチをたべていっぱい話したい。
Hope this helps…
Maggiesensei, your lessons don’t help, they rescue. XD Maggie, this is clearer than water now. :)
@NecroMadMat
Great to hear that!!
やっと「-らしい」レッスンを学んで終わりました!
小さな間違いがあるかどうか分かりません。。。
「Ex. この辺においしいラーメン屋があるらしいよ。
= Kono hen ni oishii raamenyasan ga arurashiiyo.
= I heard there is a good ramen shop around here.」
あの｢屋｣の読み方は「やさん」か「や」だけですか？
いつもありがとうございます、先生＾＾
@Orti
間違いを見つけてくれてありがとう！！直しました。
読み方はramen-ya です。
最初「ラーメン屋さん」て書いてあとから「ラーメン屋」に変えました。（”ラーメン屋さん”の方が丁寧（ていねい）です。）
ありがとう！
なるほどね、(何か)屋さんが店の所有者だと思いました
@Orti
親しみをこめて「〜屋さん」という言い方をよくしますよ。（特に女性がよく使いますが男性でも使います。）
Ex. お米屋さん・魚屋さん、郵便屋さん
Maggiesensei, I have doubts with these sentences:
1) みんなは日本に来た時に何かお土産を買いますか？
“What are you going to get as a gift when you come to Japan?”
The “kita toki ni” seems to be in the past, but then I know that in Japanese the “a” form of verbs is used at times without the “past” connotation like for example: “yameta hou ga ii”. Is it a rule to use the “a” form of the verb when talking about something that will be done in the future?
What about when people use the dictionary form with “toki”? I recall that pattern being used, like “kuru toki ni”.
2) 何か却って申し訳ありません。
“Sorry that I (we) ended up making you worry about causing more trouble (bringing us something) by inviting you.”
In this lesson Maggiesensei you provided a lot of examples of how to answer to favors or some situations. :) I wanted to know if it is ok for men to use this expressions. I bet men use them for people they don’t have much confidence with and with superiors but what about people of lower age and friends? Is it ok to use it for all situations?
「どうぞ、手ぶらでいらして下さい。」
“Please do not worry about coming empty-handed. (Just come!)”
I can’t find the definition of the word “irashite”. :/
Sorry for the lengthy post. :/ Thank you Maggiesensei as always. :)
@NecroMadMat
こんにちは！
なるほど！！I am always impressed with your questions.
1) You are right. The past tense of 来る is 来た, so it looks strange, huh?
When you are simply talking about the future, you can use 来る
Ex1) 日本に来る時は言ってね。
= Let me know when you come to Japan.
As you said we can use 来た時 for the real past action.
Ex. 2) 去年、日本に来た時はとても寒かった。
= It was really cold when I visited (came to )Japan last year.
We also use 来た時 for future when you assume some action is completed = will have come
So the translation of
Ex.3) 日本に来たら言ってね。
could be the same as E1) but actually it means “Let me know when you will have arrived in Japan./will have come to Japan.”
And Ex.3 has slightly more possibility of coming to Japan.
So you can use ~た時 when you did something or when will have done something.
2) 却って申し訳ありません。
Is totally OK for men to use.
If you are talking to your friends, you can say
却って気を遣わせちゃって….
却ってごめん。
却って悪かったね/な。
(な suffix is for men.)
3) いらしてください is a contraction form of いらっしゃってください
an honorific form of 来てください
Hope I answered all your questions. !happyface!
Thank you Maggiesensei. XD It is all clearer now. It is just a matter of practice, practice, practice, to get it down. :) Thank you Maggiesensei for your precious time, as always. ;)
@NecroMadMat
You’re welcome! That’s right! Practice! Practice!! And you can always practice making sentences with me here or on Twitter. !happyface!
Hi Maggiesensei. I have a doubt In this sentence:
「まだふられたわけではないじゃない。」
= But that doesn’t mean you’ve been dumped yet.
It seems to me that “being dumped” is negated twice. Like: But that doesn’t mean that you’ve been dumped yet, it isn’t.
How does that work, sensei?
@NecroMadMat
Hi! Welcome to the comment section! U^ェ^U
OK, I see your confusion.
This “まだ=yet” is for わけではない not for ふられた.
Let’s break it down.
まだふられたわけではない。
The sentence structure is
まだ…..わけではない。
That/It doesn’t mean …. yet
(It is too early to assume/think…)
It is denying the fact
“ふられた=to be dumped/to have been dumped”
Therefore it means,
“That/It doesn’t mean yet.”
@NecroMadMad
Hi!! Welcome to the comment section!!
「まだふられたわけではないじゃない。」
じゃない is confusing, huh?
じゃない is a casual form of ではない and as you said, it is used to make a negative form.
Ex. マギーはねこではない→マギーはねこじゃない= Maggie is not a cat.
Ex. この言葉は日本語ではない→この言葉は日本語じゃない。 = This word is not Japanese.
However this じゃない in the example sentence is not for negative sentence.
It means the same as でしょ= desho
まだふられたわけではないでしょ。
and used as a tag question such as “isn’t it?/ don’t you?, etc.” or express your opinion and asking the listener for their agreement.
And it simply stresses the previous part “まだふられたわけではない”
Women use this form often.
Men would say じゃないか= janaika
まだふられたわけではないじゃないか。
It is a great question. If I have a chance, I will make a lesson on じゃない for you.
Thank you Maggiesensei. It makes sense now. XD A lesson about the different ways of ending a sentence in this manner during conversation would be awesome! :D
@NecroMadMat
You’re very welcome! I will add that theme on my list. Thank you for the good question!
お久しぶりです、マギー先生！
Thank you for the short and simple explanation!
School work is more than what I would expect, so I find myself visiting sensei’s class less often… D:
先生に困りませんでしたら、日本語に翻訳してもらいませんか。
Sensei, if it doesn’t trouble you, could you please translate my English to Japanese? 私も日本語を上手になりたい！
いつも様にありがとうございます！ merci！
I’m very sorry sensei. I used the wrong account to post a comment, but ‘Wong’ ってやつもわたしです！
そしてマギー先生、明けましておめでとうございます！今年もよろしくお願いします！ Happy New Year!
@Wong& Bearz314熊314
明けましておめでとうございます！！今年もよろしくお願いします。
School work is more than what I would expect, so I find myself visiting sensei’s class less often… D:
の翻訳ですか？
How about
学校の勉強が思ったより大変なので先生のレッスン（このサイトに）になかなか来れません。
翻訳してくれてありがとう。頑張ります！
gratias ago vos （ラテン語）
＠Bearz314 熊３１４
ワンワン！（犬語で”どういたしまして！”）U^ｪ^U
hey maggie ! so yeah just couldn’t understand when to use jibun , like . . . is it equivalent to boku or watashi ? and when can i use it ? please give me simple example. . . I always hear it when Japanese people speak and I know it translate to “myself” i think : |
@Brandon
Hi Brandon!
First we usually use 1st person pronouns such as 私, 僕 to refer to yourself more. When to use jibun? There are times you refers to yourself with 自分 when you see yourself more objectively.
Ex. 自分は日本人です。= I am Japanese
→私（僕）は日本人です。is more common
Ex. これは自分のものです。 = This is mine.
→これは私のものです。is more common
Ex. 自分のせいです。= It’s my fault.
→私のせいです。= Watashi no sei desu.
But as I wrote in the lesson
“it sounds a little more distant than the other pronouns. It sounds like one is drawing a line between themselves and the listener.
Also sometimes it sounds more rigid because it is a typical soldiers’ type of speech.”
I would stick to the regular first pronouns to refer to yourself.
However when you use it to focus on “oneself” , you use 自分
Ex. 自分でやります。 = I will do it myself.
Ex. 自分のために生きたい。= I would like to live for myself.
And as for your other question that you asked me on Twitter,
Q : If i say 自分の家 does that equal my house? or could it also mean one’s house which means could be another person’s house?
It depends on the context but it could be either your own house or another person’s house.
A : 宿題は自分の家でやります。= 私の家(=watashi no ie)
= Shukudai wa jibun no ie de yarimasu.
= I will do my homework at (my own) home.
B : 宿題は自分の家でやりなさい。= あなたの家(=anata no ie)
= Shukudai wa jibun no ie de yarinasai.
= Do your homework at (your own) home
But when you invite someone to your house, we say
今日、私（僕）の家に来ない？
= Kyou watashi (boku) no ie ni konai?
= Do you want to come over my house today?
And usually we don’t say
X 今日、自分の家に来ない？
= Kyou jibun no ie ni konai?
alright thanks ! have much better explanation of jibun now : ) you’re such a great teacher !
@Brandon
You’re welcome! !happyface!
Maggie sensei, can we use hazu when we blame someone ? For example “You should have taken off your shoes!”
Thank you very much >3<
@Lodee
Hi Lodee!
You should have taken off your shoes.
→I would translate that sentence using with のに not はず
靴を脱がなくてはいけなかったのに= Kutsu wo nuganakutewa ikenakatta noni.
But yes, you can use ”はず=hazu” when you blame someone.
靴を脱がなくてはいけないと言ったはずです
= Itta hazu desu.
= I told you that you should have taken off your shoes.
Would 1時のに起きたばかりよ be correct?
@ハリちゃん
１時のに→1時”な”のに
(まだ)一時なのに起きたばかり
マギー先生、すばらしいのポースト ありがとう！ちょっとすこしだけど、somehow わかってきました。チェックすることを本当にありがとう、そしてお疲れさまでした。Sorry if I did some silly mistake :) Thank you!! かたじけない！
@Bearz314熊314
わかってきましたか？よかった〜♩
（Your sentences are good! Just let me correct you a little : すばらしいの→すばらしい・チェックすることを→チェックしてくれて）
Haha, where did you learn かたじけない？？
も一度ありがとう、マギー先生。
まめしばの CM から習った！http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=JP&v=5hTp10yVZ8M&hl=ja
先生、do you know any other children’s materials? I find them very interesting :D
Thank you! :)
@Bearz314 熊３１４
あはは、このまめしばもかわいいですね。
I also made Mameshiba lesson. I wonder if you have seen it already…
まめしばlesson
And ヤンヤンまちこ is fun to study with,too.
Hyaaa!! <3
ありがとう、マギー先生！ I will have a look at them! And actually no, I haven't read まめしばレッスン yet :D I am reading (only) a lesson a day because I find it easier to absorb and also for motivation purpose..
Once again, thank you! :D ¡gracias!
@Bearz314熊314
OK, OK One lesson per day is more than enough. Take your time.
And “De nada!” !happyface!
マギー先生、おはよー！ (*^◯^*)
他のレッスンでありがとう！ また勉強になった！
追伸
マギー先生、名前はゆかりなの？
僕の中学校には留学する日本人の女の子がいって彼女の名前もゆかりなんだかね！（笑）
@Matteo Nassini
マッテオ、初コメントありがとう！
ゆかりっていう名前の女の子がいるの？偶然！！よろしく伝えてね〜♩
I’ve heard a lot about “tktk”, seems to be like sarcasm or sparkles or something. Help?
Also, any slang terms you know of related to wovey-dovey romance or such? Like, say, text messaging your fiance.
@Ammika
I am not sure where you saw tktk.
tktk is from the game music when Super Mario Bros dies. テケテケ(=teketeke) →tktk
Another question : you mean slang that “lovey-dovy” couples use? I wonder if there are…If I think of it, I will let you know.
I came across your website after someone posted a reply to my question in italki.com. I am trying to find explaination on いただきます but while reading this article, I have another question.
In this sentence, そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？, on first look, I thought it meant ‘can I receive sweets from your son?’ Am I wrong?
@changkh
Hi changkh!
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ can’t be “Can I receive sweets from your son?”
If I translate “Can I receive sweets from your son?” in Japanese, it should be
そのお菓子をあなたの息子さん”から”もらえますか？(Or 頂けますか？）
@maggie-sensei
i was taught that から and に is interchangeable and in this case, に takes the meaning of ‘from’.
just like another sentence 私はマギーにお菓子をもらった。isn’t t そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ the same form as it?
@changkh
Ah I see your confusion now.
マギーにお菓子をもらった
マギーからお菓子をもらった
both means ” I got snacks from Maggie”
As you said “に” could be “from” however, as for this sentence
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？
we usually refer to other person’s son as 息子さん and refer to your own son as 息子
There are cases that you refer to other person’s son as 息子 in casual conversation but you don’t use ます form.
So the readers naturally think this sentence as “Can I have the snack for my son?”
And even you change 息子 to 息子さん
Can I have the snack from your son?
そのお菓子を（あなたの）息子さんからもらえますか？ is more clear in this case.
If you ask someone to get a snack from their son,
そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらってもらえますか？
@maggie-sensei,
thank you for your clarification. now i understand.
can i say that in this case ‘に’ means ‘to’?
for your last sentence, ‘そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらってもらえますか？’, what is the purpose of 2 ‘もらう’? is there any difference just using ‘もらえますか’?
@changkh
Q 1) can i say that in this case ‘に’ means ‘to’?
→Yes.
Q2) ‘そのお菓子をあなたの息子さんからもらって(1) もらえ(2)ますか？’, what is the purpose of 2 ‘もらう’? is there any difference just using ‘もらえますか’?
The first one means “to receive” and the second one is asking the listener for favor, to do something for me. (Ex. やってもらえますか？ Ex. 書いてもらえますか？）
so the に in そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか can act as a のために and the sentence would mean something like “息子のために私がもらえる”
@Snaut
Yes!! :)
Maggie sensei, in this sentence そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか I can’t but think it as “can I get candy from my son” because I was told that にもらえます means “x gave it to y”, how can it be thought as meaning the same as そのお菓子を息子にくれますか？
if it because the に in に can act as a のために how to tell apart the に/から that indicates who gives and に acting as a のために?
@Snaut
If the sentence is
そのお菓子はAさんにもらった
Then it means the speaker received that snack from A.
However, もらえますか means “to be able to receive” (= Can you give that snack to my son)
そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか = May I have that snack for my son?
1) そのお菓子を息子にもらえますか？ May I have that snack for my son?
2) そのお菓子を息子にくれますか？ Can you give that snack to my son?
Technically they means the same but 1) sounds more polite.
How do you say “Sorry the (object) is/are late” in japanese??? Please help it is pretty urgent!
Thank-you so much!
@marisacmc11
Hello!
Object 遅くなってごめんなさい。
= Object osoku natte gomennasai.
OK, for example, if you give a late Christmas present, you say
Ex. クリスマスプレゼント遅くなって*ごめんなさい。
= Kurisumasu purezento osoku natte gomennasai.
Or *ごめんね(=gomenne) between friends
私わトルコ人だからそしてトルコ語と日本語わほとんど同じだからトルコ語から日本語を翻訳して学んで見ています・でも今その文で分からなかった事がありました・しつもんわ
‘Yappari nihongo wo benkyou suru nara Maggie Sensei no saito dayone.‘
İn this sentence do we know that he/she going to learn from Maggie’s site or he/she just going to learn? Emphasis is on which sentente? On Maggie’s site?
ごめん2週間まえにべんきょうするに始めましたからまだよくしれない・おねがいおしえてください・
@Toruko
こんにちは！
Wow! You have just started to learn Japanese two weeks ago and you can write all the sentences? Impressive.
‘Yappari nihongo wo benkyou suru nara Maggie Sensei no saito dayone.‘
We can tell from this sentence that the speaker is already studying Japanese from Maggie’s site so that he/she can assure this site is GREAT! :l:
Yappari emphasizing the whole sentence “If you want to study Japanese, it should be Maggie Sensei’s site)
And FYI, one Turkish person has been translating many of my lessons on Facebook. Go check Maggie Sensei Facebook
よいお年をお迎え下さい。
Happy New Year, sensei! my new year resolution is to study all of your lessons^^ wishing you and your family well into the new year and beyond^^
@Top
Thank you for your nice message!!!
Hehe I hope you keep up your new year’s resolution.
The same to you! よいお年をお迎え下さい。そして来年がTopさんにとって素晴らしい年となります様に！ !happyface!
I just wanted to say thanks, this page is my hero.
I’m actually a current exchange student in Japan, got here a week ago… And despite having studied Japanese at school, I cannot for the life of me understand the casual talk. This page has everything that’s been confusing me on it all explained, so a big thanks!!
@Emily
Hello, Emily! Thank you for your nice message!
Great! I will keep making “casual” Japanese lessons for you!
watashino shashin wa donko desu ka?
→(more polite) 決められましたか？(Okime ni narimashitaka?)
chotto machigai ga aru n..
sensei wa “kimeraremashitaka” o kakitakatta n to omotte imasu.
sono ue
Ex. 「ドレッシグは如何なさいますか？」 “n” ga ushinatta
kono saito wa nihogo o benkyou suru tame ni sekai de ichiban desu :D
マギー先生どうもありがとうございました。ものすごく助かりました。
本当にありがとうございました
kyuunenchuu wa osewa ni narimashita.
goshinsetsu wa wasuremasen.
gomeiwaku o okake shimashita.
@maggie daisuki (→Haha, What a lovely name you have! :) )
Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I just fixed them.
Wow… I made this lesson three years ago. Time flies.
Anyway 優しいメッセージありがとう！！とってもうれしく読みました！こちらこそこれからも宜しくね！
来年もまたこのサイトに来て下さい。
= Yasashii messeiji arigatou! Tottemo ureshiku yomimashita. Kochirakoso korekara mo yoroshiku ne.
Rainen mo mata kono saito ni kite kudasai. !happyface!
こんばんはせんせい。。”のに”と ”くせに” の使い方と意味は同じですか。
doumo arigatou maggie sensei.. :)
@joikoi
こんばんは！joikoi!
You can’t use くせに when you are talking about yourself, Ex after all that work, although I did this….(+ disappointed result)
○せっかく作ったのに… (x せっかく作ったくせに..)
But sometimes you can use them both and the translation is the same. However, くせに sounds much stronger.
くせに is usually used to accuse someone or look down on someone.
a) 犬のくせに日本語を教えている
b) 犬なのに日本語を教えている
a) sounds much stronger and I would take it as an insult so you have to be careful when to use.
そうですか.. はい、分かりました..
返事ありがとうございます。。
いい週末を,マギー先生..
:D
@joikoi
どういたしまして！joikoiもいい週末を過ごして下さいね。 :h:
今回、初めてこのブログに入りましたが、とても良い日本語知識を教えてもらって、本当に有難う御座いました。
今後、是非入って続けると思っています。
いろいろ、宜しく御願いします。
@Hang Thuy Le
こんにちは！マギー先生のサイトにようこそ！
これからもぜひこのサイトに来て下さいね。 :h:
Great “illness” lesson Maggie! Very useful! どうもありがとうございました。
Debbie
@デビー
Glad to hear this lesson is useful.
風邪ひかないように気をつけてね！ !happyface!
Thank you for this lesson ^^
@DaVinciChan
Douitashimashite! Hope you come back here again and again !CHECKHEART!
マギー先生～ こんにちは！
i just discovered your site some time ago and it’s a great help to learning japanese ^^
I have some questions about the もらう part..
I’m confused about the difference between に and から used with もらう. Like you stated above, 「私はマギーにお菓子をもらった」 and 「彼からもらいました」。 Is there a difference between usiing に and から for the two sentences? Like, 「私はマギーからお菓子をもらった」？ As far as I noticed in example sentences I see that when it’s something like してもらう or おごってもらう it’s mostly (always?) に. Why is that so?
Also, I have another question about に and から that is, sometimes I hear people saying 「田中さんに聞いて」, in this case can から be used? I always use から in such sentences but I was confused about the に and から usage.
Hope that you can explain this to me! Thank you maggie sensei!
And keep up the good work for the site! I will be back to study again ^^
＠yuu
こんにちは！ yuu!
OK, You can both use ~にもらう&〜からもらう and ~に聞く&〜から聞く
Ex. 誰にもらったの？= 誰からもらったの？
Ex. 田中さんに聞きました。 = 田中さんから聞きました。
If there is a difference, I would say から emphasizes more on “direction” (FROM who)
Thank you for the quick reply! I understand better now~
ありがとうございます!!
@yuu
どういたしまして！ !happyface!
さすがマギー先生！
本当にありがとう！
ゆかりさんも感謝しているんだ！
@Bearz314
うれしいコメントありがとう！ :)
いいえ、the ‘thank’ should come from me. (Sorry, don’t know how to write this in 日本語）
Also, I wish to do a correction if it’s okay…
ゆかりさん*に*も感謝しているんだ！
I just realised that a small mistake can have a big change in meaning… だから私はちゃんと日本語を勉強します！
もう一度、ありがとう。
@Bearz314
Good!!
ゆかりさん*に*も感謝しているんだ！
is correct.
and the ‘thank’ should come from me. is ありがとうというのは私の方です。
日本語がんばって下さいね。
そしてもう一度、ありがとう！
hai maggie sensei
how to say..i’m sorry,i don’t have a small change..
or sorry i don’t have enough small change to give..
arigatou…
@aid
Hi, aid!
OK, small change is 小銭= こぜに= Kozeni. We also say 細かいお金 = こまかいおかね = komakai okane (You can contract it as 細かいの= komakai no)
So when we buy something and don’t have small change we say
すみません。小銭がないので…
すみません。細かいお金がなくて…
kozeni -small change..
nai no de -i don’t hve
maggie sensei..what does nakute mean..
i have been in nihon for a month..so i always get stuck at cashier counter when buying something.. :)..but u really help me a lot..
@aid
nai = there is not
node = because/since / so… (giving a reason)
kozeni nai node = Since I don’t have small change so…
We often don’t finish the sentence and let the listener figure out the rest.
But you can also say
ごめんなさい。（or すみません）小銭を持っていません。/ or 小銭がありません。
= Gomennasai (or Sumimasen.) Kozeni wo motte imasen. or Kozeni ga arimasen.
Enjoy your shopping!
thanks for that phrase..that is what i’m looking for..sorry coz i am a new learner..hiii.. :)
arigatou gozaimashita
@aid
どういたしまして！= Dou itashimashite = You’re very welcome!
Feel free to ask me a question anytime. :h:
I am curious about さ き are these different when we write them on a paper?
@cha cha
Yes, they are different. き has two horizontal lines while さ only has one.
Good question! I used to have the same problem. There are some really help full videos. I’m not sure why, but the way you write and type ki and sa are different than writing. Just keep practing or go on youtube! Wish you the best!
Hi sensei,
Thanks for your useful lessons (as always) !
Regarding this lesson, I have 2 questions:
1. I often heard that “monka”, “monda” is associated with female speech, is it true? Is it common for both guys & girls to use “monka”, “monda” this way?
2. Also, what is the level of politeness of “monodesuka”? I mean, the “desu” form is polite, but can I use it with older people without making them feel I’m a little too rude?
Thank you.
@Lupe
Sorry that it took me a while to get back to you. I was on vacation.
1. もんか and もんだ are both for men and women. But since if you finish the sentence with もんか it sounds strong (even for a man) so women should avoid using it verbally.
もんだ will be OK if you add ね, よね or なあ ,etc.
2. ものですか also sound strong and as I wrote, it could be very aggressive so avoid using it with older people or upper level people.
Hello!
私も女子力UP!
言語に関して, ときどき難しいからあきらめたくなるような気分になるでしょう. それでもマギー先生のおかげでこれから私は毎日頑張り続きます.
♥みんな, 頑張ってね♥
@Remi Ayumi Lee
はい、Remiも女子力アップしてね！そしてみんなもRemiの様に日本語をギブアップしないでがんばってつづけよう！！！
おかえりなさい
優しいお言葉ありがとうございます！(^_^)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
ただいま〜！！ !JYANE!
Sensei, I have a question. How do we say “It seemed fun”? Is it “楽しそうだった”? Or is it “楽しかったそう”? I’m not sure both are correct. Please help me! Thank you so much! :D
@egasani
Sorry for the late reply. I was on vacation.
“It seemed fun”? = “楽しそうだった”?
It seemed fun = 楽しそうだった
I heard it was fun = 楽しかったそうだ。
Magggie-chan Konnichiwa O genki desu ka? hehe
kimo watashi sa or ich ggg… :/
@Yuki-chan
Hi Yuki-chan!! Sorry for the late response. I was on vacation now. Genki desuyo! Yukichan wa?
マーギせんせい、ありがとうございました。
@Laura T
Hi Laura! コメントありがとう！！ :h:
Love Maggie sensei!
永遠にマッギ先生サイトを祈る！I want to say ” I wish maggiesensei.com stay with us forever” please correct.
Could you also give examples of male voice? because male voices are so tough to understand.
@Top
永遠にマッギ先生サイトを祈る！→マギー先生のサイトが永遠に（or ずっと）続きますように。
かな？
ありがとう、Top!
We are sorry. this site is created by Maggie and Yukari and both of us are girls so that we can’t have male voices. I will try to make more listening exercises instead using TV commercials or movie preview on Facebook. ごめんね。
And we love you,too! !CHECKHEART!
Thank you for your correction, sensei
Yes that’s what I meant. Examples from YouTube files or something like that^^.
@Top
どういたしまして！Top-san!
今日は、先生!＾＾
元気ですか?
たくさんの勉強と練習しています!
今日日本語だけで書きます!訂正してください n_n
先生、質問があります
名詞のために｢～らしい｣を使って正しいですか?
例えば、｢彼女はマッギーらしいですね｣を言っていいですか?
その場合は「マギーらしい」がマギーの人格に関すると思いますでもただ当てずっぽうで考えています（笑）
AKFGの｢君と言う花｣で｢君らしい色｣を聞いたけど、多分ただ曲で使ってもかまいませんでしょう xP
レッスン有り難うございます!
PS:小さな間違いがあります「書きそう=tabesou = about to write, looks like s.o. is going to write, writable」
PS2:過去形と｢そう｣を使ってもかまいませんか? 例えば、「少し間違えたそう」 正しいですか?
@Orti
まず間違いを見つけてくれてありがとう。早速（さっそく）直しました。
OK first I will correct your sentences.( Just minor things. You did great!)
名詞のために｢～らしい｣を使って正しいですか?
→名詞に｢らしい｣を使っても正しいですか？/Or how about 名詞＋｢らしい｣も正しいですか？
例えば、｢彼女はマッギーらしいですね｣を言っていいですか?
→例えば「彼女はマギーらしいですね」と言ってもいいですか？
その場合は「マギーらしい」がマギーの人格に関すると思いますでもただ当てずっぽうで考えています（笑）
→その場合、「マギーらしい」はマギーの性格についてのことだと思いますが、これはただの推測です。
AKFGの｢君と言う花｣で｢君らしい色｣を聞いたけど、
→AKFGの歌の中に｢君と言う花｣という歌詞がありますが
多分ただ曲で使ってもかまいませんでしょう
→？？（Can you give me the translation here? 何を「使ってもかまわないでしょう」といいたいですか？)
**********
Now as for your question, らしい, yes, you can use 名詞+らしい
and you are right, if you say マギーらしい it refers to my personality or what I would do.
I have to send you another related lesson. らしい
BTW I will take vacation from tomorrow so I may not be able to answer your question for a week but will get back to you when I come back.
勉強続けてね！
どうも有り難うございます、先生!
I’ll keep those corrections in mind^^
With 「使ってもかまわないでしょう」 I was trying to say “Maybe it’s ok to use it only in songs” because songs often say things in a way that we wouldn’t really use in our daily life.
I’ll check the らしい lesson!
Have a great time on your vacations, 先生!
@Orti
I see. Then how about : 多分、歌詞だからそう使うのかもしれませんが。
Thank you!! Keep studying! !JYANE!
Sensei, I forgot to ask about the 2nd PS.
Is it possible to use ～そう with verbs in past? I mean, to tell how you think that something happened.
For example, would 「車で衝突した？酔っていたそう。。。」 make sense?
Assuming that you’ll read this when you come back…
I hope you had had great vacations!
有り難う、先生＾＾
@Orti
Sorry for the late response.
Yes you can use そう with a past tense.
運転手は酔っていたそうだ。
Oh, my doubt was answered on the first paragraphs of らしい lesson xD
@Orti
Oh, great!!
ありがとうございます! :)
@majoringram3636
今回もず〜〜っとQuiz perfectでしたね！You are the best!! !Vsain!
本当に役に立ちました！ありがとうございます＾＾
@Uian
それを聞いて本当にうれしいです！！ !happyface!
Thank you so much, Sensei.
I found this lesson just now but i think it will come into handy. Thank you! <3
@whyyouandi
Thank you for visiting this site! Hope you come back here again and again! また来てね！ !happyface!
I will, it’s on my bookmark! ^^
@whyyouandi
!Vsain!
2年間独学で日本語を勉強しています。このサイトを見つけたすっごく嬉しいんです！ゆかりさんのレッスンは、わかりやすくてとても役に立ちます。レッスンをしてくれてどうもありがとうございます＾＾
@Rachel
Hi Rachel!!
コメントありがとう！２年間独学でそこまで日本語が書けるなんてすごい！！これからもがんばってね！ !JYANE!
Great Lesson! I have two queestions regarding はず. I can always understand the meaning of the sentences that use はず, but when it comes to making up my own’s, I end up getting stuck especially in deciding which verb tenses should be used. So the questions are.
Can you use Verb Past tense + はず + だった (i.e, double past tense)? What would it mean?
The other question was about a situation that occured to me. I slept at my friend’s house and then he told me he had to wake up at 7 am, but it was already 9 and he hadn’t woke up yet. So I thought of the sentence “He should already have woken up”. And when I tried to translate to japanese, I came up with “もう起きたはずなのに”. Is this correct?
Sorry it became a little long, this is the first time I comment on this site but I always follow the posts and it has helped me a lot in my studies!
@RPARAH
Q1) It is possible to use double past tense.
V 1 (past / past perfect)+ はず+ だった = When you expected that you have done something/someone has done something.
Ex. 1) お金を持って来たはずだったのに…
I thought I have brought money
The translation could be the same as
Ex. 2) お金を持ってきたはずなのに
But Ex.1) shows slightly more regret than 2)
Q2) That is a tricky one.
How about もう起きていなければいけないはずなのに。He should have been woken up already.
Thanks for the answer!
@RParah
どういたしまして♩
Hello, Maggie! I want so bad to study Japanese and found your site. I don’t know anything about this language yet(I just recognize some words in romanji) and I wanted to start with the first lesson. I thought this would be the one, but it seems too difficult. Do I have to learn the basics from somewhere else or is there another lesson that is meant to be the first one for the beginers? Thanks! :)
@Regaux
Thank you for your message. I am sorry that I haven’t made many lesson targeting real beginner people yet. You can use hiragana, katakana lessons first and go to Super Basic Words series or Daily Basic Phrases to begin with.
Either way, I would use my site as sub-material to learn Japanese. Get a good textbook or go find good site where you can learn basic Japanese.
But feel free to ask me questions here. I can help you anytime.
Okay! :D Thank you!
@Regaux
Gambatte! Good luck! I’m always here for you! !JYANE!
hi, I like your site a lot, and i have a question!
can you do a bit on baking cake and words and sentences you would use in the kitchen and how to understand recipes from recipe books!
maybe you could just use some japanese recipe for some cake and then go through it line by line and explain and translate the instruction and mention what other words would be used in the kitchen!
Best!!
@Marril
Hi Marril! I’m happy to hear you like my site. Right now I have been working on three different lessons and there is a long list of request from people.
Still I found cooking will be an interesting topics because I love eating. I can not use someone’s recipe taking out from a book or Internet for copy right reason. But I could make a very basic and general lesson on how to read basic cooking instructions someday. !happyface!
I am so happy! ^^ Thanks to you, Maggie Sensei! And, thanks also to tagging my name on this lesson. ^^ This is the best site I’ve ever seen online! ^^
@Mew
I’m very happy to read your comment.
Now you have to practice using はず. (And wait for the べき lesson which I will post on Facebook soon!) !JYANE!
******
Nov. 17 : I just posted a lesson on FB so please check.
私はこの表現をこれからよく使うはずです！ありがとう先生
@DanielleCanada08
Haha 完璧！そうしたらDanielleの日本語はもっともっと上手になるはずです！ :)
Thank you Maggie-sensei! Please continue the good lessons!
I’m also learning at a school, Learn Japanese In Singapore so this is a great additional practice!
@Lydia
Hi, Lydia! はじめまして！
Thank you for your message. はい、これからもみんなのためにがんばってレッスン作（つく）りますね！ !happyface!
Hello, sensei!
I have a doubt with the meaning of 「そんなことをやってもらったら困ります」. Does it mean “You’ll get in trouble if you do something like that (for me)”?
Thank you very much for this lesson, Sensei!
PS: There’s a little mistake in
「Ex. そんなことをやってもらったら困ってしまいます。
=Sonna koto wo yatte morattara komari masu.」
^^
@Orti
Hi Orti! Thank you for spotting the mistake and sorry I didn’t put the translation there.
「そんなことをやってもらったら困ります」means
I will be in trouble if you do that.
どういたしましてと同時に有り難うございます ＾＾
would it be a different structure if you wanted to say “you will be in trouble if you do that”? or is it “I will be in trouble…..” just because the subject isn’t mentioned?
@Orti
I know Japanese is sometimes confusing because we often skip the subject and unlike Spanish, we can’t always tell the subject by the conjugation of the verbs.
But in this case, やってもらう is a key word here. Someone does something for/to me.
And it is not natural to use 困っちゃう if the subject is you unless you add でしょ (aren’t you, won’t you) etc.
You will be in trouble if I do that, won’t you?
私がそんなことしたら困っちゃうでしょ。(casual)
I will be in trouble if you (or someone) do(does) that.
そんなことをされたら／してもらったら／やってもらったら／されたら／困っちゃう
そんなことやってもらったら困っちゃう。
aah, I see, it’s more complicated than what I tought, but I hope it’s just a matter of practice
有り難う、先生!
@Orti
That’s right. You will know if you keep learning more sentence patterns. がんばって！
先生、
支払う と はらう は ちがいますか。
ありがとう ございます。
Asta-K.
@Asta-Karolina
払う and 支払う both mean “to pay” but 支払う is used in more formal situation and used for “fee” or “bills” that you have to pay such as electric/water/gas bills, tax , fine, and etc.
I love your site!
I have a question about this article though.
You explained using になる with な adjectives, but not with い adjectives.
Does that mean we can’t use になる with them?
If so, how do we use?
Substitute い for になる、 for example 珍しになる?
Thanks
I’ve learnt so much already from you :)
@John
Hi John! I am glad to hear you like my site!
〜なる with i-adjective : くなる
おもしろい →おもしろくなる
めずらしい→めずらしくなる
かわいい→かわいくなる
こわい→こわくなる
Great Blog,- thanx!
Is there a honorific expression for 興味 が ある ?
Thank you in advance for your help!
Asta-K.
@Asta-karolina
Hi, Asta-K!
The honorific expression for 興味がある is 興味がおありになる/お持ちになる
ども ありがとう
@Asta-Karolina
どういたしまして !happyface!
最近、試験があります。忙しいです。あの試験はすごい難しいです。よく勉強しましただな。マレシャアの天気あんな暑いです。嫌いです！雪は大好きけど、マレシャアありませんでしょう。マーギ先生、あたしは日本語は上手じゃありません。それに、よろしくお願いいします。ありがとう！
チャチャより。
@chacha
“マレーシア”は毎日暑そうですね。日本はこれからどんどん寒くなるからうらやましいです。
試験、がんばって下さいね！
（勉強のためにコメント少し直しますね〜↓
Ex. よく勉強しましただな→よく勉強しました。大好きけど→大好きだけど ありませんでしょう→Hum how about just saying ありません。）
ごめんね、ちょっと詳しい説明下さい。
これは何と言う意味ですか。
1.どんどん
2.うらやましい
いいえ、全然。
@chacha
1) It’s a sound of drum or when things are moving rapidly or to describe some action keeps going.
どんどん暗くなる= It is getting darker and darker.
どんどん時間が過ぎる = The hours go quickly.
2) I envy you./ I’m jealous = うらやましい
いいえ全然= No, not at all
ああ、分かりました。日本へ行きました、２年前です。日本は大好きです。マギ先生は日本のどちらからですか。２年前下関と長崎行きました。とても嬉しいかったでしょう！
お金：
２５００円＝にせんごひゃく円ですか
８５００００＝はっじゅごまん円ですか
７０００＝ななせん、しちせん
４８００＝よんじゅはっひゃくですか
教えてください、よろしくお願いします。
@chacha
九州はいい所ですね。私は名古屋に住んでいます。
２５００円＝にせんごひゃく円ですか →yes
８５００００＝はっじゅごまん円ですか →はちじゅうごまん円
７０００＝ななせん、しちせん →Yes but I think ななせん is more common
４８００＝よんじゅはっひゃくですか →よんせんはっぴゃく
Go check my 数字 lesson, OK?
oh~!I get it!!
しちゃくしてもいいですか
して<—what does shite means?
よく<——Is this mean good/well?
many conversation is added with "koto",how to use koto?
＠chacha
試着する= しちゃくする= shichaku suru is a verb = to try something on
verb てもいいですか？= asking for permission.
Ex. Can I eat? = 食べてもいいですか？= たべてもいいですか？= Tabetemo ii desu ka?
Ex.Can I come in? = 入ってもいいですか？= はいってもいいですか？= Haitte mo ii desu ka?
よく？ I am not sure which phrase but よく means =well, a lot, much or frequently
Ex. よく寝(ね）た。= I slept well.
Ex. よく笑(わら）った。= I laughed a lot.
Ex. よくここに来(き）ますか？= Do you come here often?
こと is used for nominalization (make a verb into a noun. 走る= hashiru = to run →走ること= hashiru koto = running
Or added after the pronoun with の
Ex. Do you like me? = 私のこと好き？= Watashi no koto suki?
Ex.Can I try it on? = 試着してもいいですか? = しちゃくしてもいいですか？= Shichaku shite mo ii desu ka?
何カ国語話せますか？
why can’t this translate as:what languages did you speak?
@chacha
When you count certain things such as languages we use カ
１カ国語= one language
２カ国語 = two languages
3カ国語 = three languages
So 何カ国語 means “How many languages”
If you want to ask someone “What language do you speak?” You say “何語を話しますか？= なにごをはなしますか？= Nanigo wo hanashimasu ka?”
Woah, this was a quite long family lesson!
It took me two nights to finish studying it xD
next stop: ちゃう lesson!
Thank you very much for your hard work, sensei!!
@Orti
お疲れ様！！It took you two nights? No wonder! It took me days to make that lesson. :)
Yeah, I think the first part took me three nights or so
. I wouldn’t have ever imagined the subtle details you must be aware of while referring to your own or someone’s family.
有り難う!
@Orti
Really three nights? Haha I know my lessons tend to be too long. I hope you are an expert of family related words now.
Your lessons are great! It’s like one can feel your dedication in every one of them, it’s very inspiring.
I couldn’t internalize all the lesson by reading it just once, but soon I’ll surely become an expert of family related words! (笑）
Thank you very much for creating this site, and for always being there to kindly answer any doubt we have, really.
＠Orti
I am sorry. I just read your comment.
Welcome to Family Related Lesson Part 2! I hope you come back here again and again until you get familiar with all the words.
And THANK YOU for always visiting here. It has been a pleasure to answer or read your comments!
I have recently started to study Japanese more seriously and having some hard time, but i accidently found this site and it helped me a lot!
わざわざこのサイトを作ってくれてありがとうございます, マギー先生!
@tdw
コメントありがとう！I am glad to hear you found us!! またいつでも来てね！ !happyface!
Sensei, I learned a lot with this lesson, I guess I didn’t even know the half of the things you taught us here.
Now it’s time to move to part 2 (^o^)/!
Thank you very much for your hard work!!
@Orti
Glad to hear that!!
Yes, please go on to Part 2. Hope you learn many other things there.
友達に告白されたんですが、なんるべく傷つけない様に断るにはどうすればいいですか？？ 私、英語が苦手で。。（泣
＊申し訳ないのですが、お友達のままでいたいです。
本当にごめんなさい。
英語でどうやって書くんですか？？
お返事まってます！！☆
@SEri
お〜上手にお断りするのはどこに行っても難しいですね。
I’m sorry but I just want to stay friends.
ではどう？うまく伝わるといいね。 !ryouwink!
マギー先生、こんにちは！
first of all, i love your page, i always read it, and it helps me a LOT! thanks ^^
but i have a quick question about しちゃう.(maybe its a bit silly question ><") at the part "express your emotions", do you use it just with bad things?? like you wrote, when you miss the bus, or you are in trouble, or did something wrong. is it emphasize the emotions just about bad things?
@sacchan
こんにちは！Sacchan! !happyface!
Thank you for your nice comment! I am glad to hear my site helps you.
Oh, it is a good question. No, しちゃう can be used for neutral or positive things as well.
I separated “expressing one’s emotions” and “To finish doing something, to complete some action” but you can express your emotion when someone complete an action.
For example
もう宿題終わっちゃったの？ You are impressed that someone has finished the homework.
これもらっちゃった！= I got this from (someone) (You are happy or bragging.)
試験に受かっちゃった！= I got to pass the exam! (Happy feelings.)
Thank you so much~
It’s clear now! you helped me a lot!
@sacchan
Great!! よかった〜！！ !happyface!
I’m still confused by this ~れる and ~される.
弟 に お酒 を みんな 飲まれました.
Is that right?
And i have some questions:
1. How to make ~される or ~される form of ~て しまう? Does it change to ~て しまわれる?
2. Could this sentence: 前の人が立って, 映画 が 見えませんでした changed into 受け身? Considering 見える is tadoushi.
Well, I’m still learning Japanese so maybe i’ve made some mistakes. Hope you can explain it clearly.
Thank you :)
＠masihbelajar
こんにちは！はじめまして。
弟 に お酒 を みんな 飲まれました.
Q1) Is that right?
→Yes, it is correct.
The direct translation is
All the liquor (beer, or any alcoholic beverage) was drunk by my brother. It means, My brother drank all the liquor.
Q2) And i have some questions:
1. How to make ~される or ~される form of ~て しまう?
食べる
→食べさせる to make someone eat
→食べさせられる Someone is forced to eat something
→食べさせられてしまう。Someone has been/was forced to eat something.
Note : 〜てしまう : action is completed/ It implies more emotion (feelings)
Q3) Does it change to ~て しまわれる?
I can’t think of any at the moment.
Q3) . Could this sentence: 前の人が立って, 映画 が 見えませんでした changed into 受け身?
You can say
前の人に立たれてしまい（or しまって）、映画が見えませんでした。
oh i see i think i get it now. thank you so much sensei!(:
@melissa
Good! どういたしまして！
先生こんにちは!
thanks for the nice detailed lesson. however, i dont really get this sentence . もっとわかるように話してください
shouldn’t it mean: if you want me to understand more, please talk? since the motto is in front.
oh and i read from my notes, for ようにone of the example states: 妹は人形のようにかわいいです。shouldn’t it be ような since it has nothing to do with “to do something like”?
＠melissa
Ah, I see.
もっとわかるように話してください。
This わかるように is a bit tricky. わかるように itself means “easily, clearly” like “わかりやすく”
So the direct translation is “Please talk to me more clearly so that I understand you more (better). But since it is redundant, I translated just the way I did in the lesson.
Your sentence
“if you want me to understand more, please talk? ”
will be もしもっとわかってもらいたかったら話してください。It doesn’t mean the same.
The second question :
妹は人形のようにかわいいです。
You can’t change ように to ような here.
But if you can say
妹は人形のような女の子です。
As I explained in the lesson, ような comes before a noun
ような+ noun (女の子）
So possible to say
人形のようなかわいさだ
because かわいさ is a noun (=cuteness)
If this sentence is
もっとわかるようにゆっくり話してください。
You can translate it
Please speak more slowly so that I can understand you more.
マギー先生、おはようございます、先生からたくさん新しい日本語をならっていて、まことにありがとうございます。
始めまして、アウリアと申します、インドネシアから着ました、どうぞよろしくお願いします。
できれば、たくさん ビジネスの日本語のレッスンをもっとたくさん作ってください。おねがいい ＞ｗ＜ そして 工場のレッスンも映画の言葉のレッスンももっと深く知りたいです。。。どうも有り難うございます先生。。＾＾
@Auchan
おはよう！ビジネスのレッスンのリクエストはこの間も誰から来ましたよ。いろいろな仕事があるからgeneralなレッスンになるかもしれませんがその内にがんばって作りますね。（工場の日本語は専門的になってしまうから難しいかもしれません。）
映画はどんな日本語が知りたいですか？もし映画の中で使われている日本語だったらたまにFacebookで映画の予告編を使ってリスニングクイズをしているのでチェックしてね。
アウちゃんの日本語はとっても上手ですね。
こんばんは、マギー先生、今日、お元気ですか、あらら私はただ少しだけ日本語を知っていますわ、マギー先生は英語がとても上手ですね、マギー先生の方がずっとすごいじゃん！＞ｗ＜
わあ、、いろいろありがとうございます、先生の動力してがんばってくれてから私達はたくさん新単語をならいました
ええと、映画の作る方法の言葉ならできますか、たとえば、監督とか 映画のカメラは映画を作る方がどうですか、、
はいい、マギー先生のｆｂをすぐにチェックします。。どうもありがとうございます＜３
@Auchan
ありがと！元気ですよ〜♩
映画制作の日本語？２年程前に映画関係のレッスンを作ろうと思ってずっと下書きに入っているのがあります。また見つけたらいつかレッスン作りますね。
こんにちは、先生!
一つの設問があります。 ｢～なくてはならない｣と｢～なければならない｣は大体同じですか?
もう一度、有り難うございます!!
@Orti
はい、大体同じように使っています。
But if you want to know the slight difference,
While なければいけない can be used to tell people what to do, なければならない is used when you have to follow certain rules, laws, certain obligations and you can’t know decide whether you do it or not on your own will.
（ A little correction : 設問→質問）
Thanks for your explanation and correction, sensei!
what’s the difference between 設問 and 質問？ they both appear as ‘Question’ in the dictionary :S
えっと。。。 and is there any difference between “なければならない” and “なくてはならない”?
@Orti
質問＆設問 They both mean question(s)
質問・・・question, inquiry , when you ask someone about the things you don’t understand
設問・・・posing a question : when you ask someone a question that you already know the answer. (to test/quiz someone)
So when you have a question for me, 質問があります is better.
“なければならない” and “なくてはならない”
About the same. なければならない is slightly more formal but not much difference.
分かりました＾＾
いつも質問を答えて有り難うございます、先生!!
@Orti
どういたしまして！
(もう一つ…..質問”に”答える…) !happyface!
全部分かりました。どうもありがとうございます。
@pheaktra
よかった！どういたしまして！ !happyface!
hi maggie sensei ,since sensei tell me about the full sentence now i understand about the first sentence .and i never saw a sentence have “desu” after ” ka” so i a little confuse in here. thank you.
but the second sentence i still not so sure, 誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？ “って” in here is の . but seem like in “って” lesson don’t mention anything “って” is like の. so it make me confuse . anyway thank you ,maggie sensei.
can you correct for me ?
明日休みよ。
明日休みって？ ＝ 明日休みなの？
@pheaktra
This is a very conversational expression so that you may have not seen it.
明日休み（だ）って（言った（の）)？
or
明日休み（だ）って（言いましたか）？
If you want to make it sound a little polite, you can add です
明日休みですって？
yes,sensei i already read that って lesson.but i still not clear about the 2 sentence.because don’t have example in question
so 誰が〜を食べたかですって? is stress our own quote showing our frustration ” ってば” ? and we can use
です after か ?
and 誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？is the same ?
thank you.
@pheaktra
OK,
誰が〜を食べたかですって?
is repeating what other person has just asked.
You can also say
誰が食べたかって？ in a casual situation.
hi maggie sensei i don’t understand this sentence
Q）誰が〜を食べたかですって? why you put です after か ?
A) To make it sound more polite
You can also say
誰が〜を食べたかって？ or 誰が食べたって？in casual conversation.
Q ) what is it full sentence ? is it 誰が〜を食べたかだと聞きました？
「誰が〜を食べたか」と聞いているんですか？
or
誰が食べたのか知りたいのですか？
A) and what is the full sentence of this sentence ?
誰が私のことでぶって言ったって is って here the same as の ?
Yes, the last って is replaced with の to stress your emotion more.
「誰が私のこと（を）でぶ（だ）」って言ったの？
hi maggie sensei i don’t understand this sentence
誰が〜を食べたかですって?
why you put です after か ? what is it full sentence ? is it 誰が〜を食べたかだと聞きました？
and what is the full sentence of this sentence ?
誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？
is って here the same as の ?
thank you.
@pheaktra
I have a perfect lesson for you.
Go check “って” lesson. and if you still have a doubt, come back here.
Thank you very much, sensei!, I learned a lot from this lesson! A few days ago I was chatting with a friend and she told me “お母さんに学校まで車で乗せてもらいました。”.Then I got stuck at that part of the conversation because I couldn’t understand it, but now everything is soo clear :D
ね～先生、一つの間違いがあります
ここで：
「山田さんが加藤さんにお菓子をあげた。（=Yamada san ga katou san ni okashi wo kureta.)」
I’m not intending to point out every mistake, just trying to help and improve your already awesome site ><
Thanks for your hard work!
@Orti
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I really appreciate it! Really!! ありがと〜！！
And I am very happy to hear this lessons helped you understand the conversation with your friend.
今晩は先生！＾＾
えっと。。。 could you please take a look at my exapmples for the exercises to see if they are correct? It would help me a lot
Here I go:
1). ｢お兄さんに洗濯してあげた。｣
. ｢お母さんがいつも洗濯してくれます。｣ That would mean something like “Mom always does(as an act of kindness) the laundry”?
.「私の洗濯機が壊れたので、姉さんに洗濯してもらった」(Assuming that she doesn’t live with me)
2).｢友達に買い物に行ってあげました｣
・「昨日は、私が家でいなくてお母さんが病みましたので隣人が買い物に行ってくれた｣ (I tried to say “As I wasn’t at home and mom was sick,our neighbour went shopping for us”)
.｢弟に買い物に行ってもらった｣
3. ｢お父さんもう仕事でいますけど彼のメールをもらってあげます｣
.｢友達は彼の家で、私がインターネットで書いたケームをもらってくれました｣ (I tried to say “My friend recieved (for me) the game I had bought on internet)
.家でいなかったので、お兄さんにメールをもらってもらった｣
That’s it, thanks in advance, and thank you soooooooooooo much for your hard work!!
@Orti
1). ｢お兄さんに洗濯してあげた。｣
→Good. Also you can say 兄のために洗濯をしてあげた。or 兄の洗濯をしてあげた。
. ｢お母さんがいつも洗濯してくれます。｣ That would mean something like “Mom always does(as an act of kindness) the laundry”?
→Good. Or 母がいつも洗濯（を）してくれます。
.「私の洗濯機が壊れたので、姉さんに洗濯してもらった」
→Good! Or 私の洗濯機が壊れたので、姉に洗濯してもらった
Note : When you refer to your own family,
You can say お兄さん、お母さん、お姉さん when you talk to your close friends but sometimes it sounds childish.
(Go check my family lesson.)
It will be better to say
お兄さん→兄（あに）
お母さん→母（はは）
お姉さん→姉（あね）
お父さん→父（ちち）
2).｢友達に買い物に行ってあげました｣
→友達の(ために) 買い物に行ってあげました。
・「昨日は、私が家でいなくてお母さんが病みましたので隣人が買い物に行ってくれた｣
This one is a bit complicated. How about 昨日、母が病気で私も家にいなかったので隣の人が私たちの為に買い物に行ってくれた。
.｢弟に買い物に行ってもらった｣ →OK!
3. ｢お父さんもう仕事でいますけど彼のメールをもらってあげます｣
→I am not sure what you are trying to say here but
父はもう仕事に出かけたので、(彼の代わりに）手紙を受け取ります。
If you are talking to your dad, you can use あげる
｢友達は彼の家で、私がインターネットで書いたケームをもらってくれました｣
→友達は私が、インターネット（or ネット) で買ったゲームを彼の家で受け取ってくれました。
.家でいなかったので、お兄さんにメールをもらってもらった｣
→家にいなかったので（or 外出していたので）兄に手紙を受け取ってもらった。
(When you say メール in Japanese, it means “email” so say 手紙)
返事して有り難うございます、先生!!
As I’m a beginner it took me some time to think how to write 2.2 :S 。 I have a doubt, when you are listing situations like these (I wasn’t home and mother was ill) the tense of the last verb is the one which leads the whole sentence? or you can mix tenses?
In 3 that’s exactly what I was trying to say
So if dad is not at home I could say something like that to the postman?
Hahah and I hadn’t noticed that I had put kaita instead of katta, I always mistake the past form of kau and kaku e_e
I’ll definitely see the Family lesson and remember your corrections!
And once again…有り難う!!
@Orti
Q 1: when you are listing situations like these (I wasn’t home and mother was ill) the tense of the last verb is the one which leads the whole sentence? or you can mix tenses?
Ah, good question! Yes. When you simply list two past actions in one sentence, change the last verb into the past.
For example
I wrote a letter and mailed it.
手紙を書いて、投函した。
or
手紙を書き、投函した。
It was hot and delicious
温かくて美味しかった。
or
温かく美味しかった。
Q 2: So if dad is not at home I could say something like that to the postman?
Yes
****************
Actually you did a good job writing all the sentences with あげる、もらう、くれる
Those are very difficult.
がんばってね！
どうも有り難うございます、先生^^
一生懸命に頑張ります!
@Orti
どういたしまして！！
ＧＳＭ，安心なと安全同じですか？
@mestu
No. 安心な is psychological thing. Feeling of security. Feeling of relief, to be in peace
Ex. それを聞いて安心しました。= I am relieved to hear that.
安全な means “safe” or physical security, risk-free,
Ex. 安全な場所= safe place
So it is possible to say 安全で安心に暮らす= anzen de anshin ni kurasu= to live safely in peace of mind
this is just a test to see if another person can post with my username using a different email
@Orti
It proves that they can. But I can tell by pin code.
マギー先生
お久しぶりです！
もっとコメントを書くべきなのに、なかなか書く時間が見つからなくてすみません・・・
本当に、マギー先生のブログほど、おもしろい日本語関連のサイトはありませんね！いつも更新を首を長くして待って、読ませていただきます。教科書に載らない日常の日本語、最近の流行語、日本に住んでいない私にとって、いつも勉強になります。
ありがとうございます！
のろじか
@Norojika
わ〜！元気でしたか？久しぶりのコメントとってもうれしく読みましたよ♩
これからも時間があったら是非、このサイトに来て下さいね！！いつでもお待ちしています！ !happyface!
じゃあ, 次は私の番です!
「私はマギー先生ほど日本語を話すのがよくない」
Wow, I was familiar with the basics of how to use “hodo” but this lesson showed me all sorts of different ways to use it now! Great job!
@Remi Ayumi Lee
久しぶり！
Good! Just change よい to うまい
話すのがよくない→うまくない
すばらしいレッスンをありがとうございました
Thank you for the great lesson!
kono chuko no kuruma wa omotta hodo takaku wa nakatta
this used car was not as expensive as i had =)
@Amberbee
Thank you for your comment!
この中古の車は思ったほど高くはなかった。
Perfect!!!
Hi! Your site is wonderful! I have a question about おせわになる… I’m writing an open letter/about me to the small town where I will be teaching English for their newspaper and I was wondering if it would be appropriate to close with これからお世話になります or if I should stick to よろしくお願いします. What do you recommend?
@nichibei-peaches
Hi!!! Thank you for your comment.
If you are writing to people who you may not see, use よろしくお願いします。
(これからお世話になります。is used when you address people who you actually work with or see in person expecting future help.)
please continue doing this! i think yours is hands down the best website to review conversational japanese. i tend to learn just by repeating what people say, so it’s really useful to have your site provide a written down version of this that also analyses the grammar and everything.
if i can request one thing: it would be cool to have a lesson on words that you can use in business meetings. it’s always hard for me to find the right “tone”. Basically simple stuff like “hey, so we’ll start with the powerpoint now” and “ok, please look at this graph here” and stuff like that. I’m also wondering what level of speech is appropriate when taking business contacts out for drinks: Sure you don’t want to sound too formal, but also not too casual.
…and: You NEED to do a lesson on golf! Seriously! Golf vocabulary and sentences and slang should be your #1 priority! :D
Cheers, again great site!
@Wolfman
Thank you for your nice comment. !happyface!
So are you a ビジネスマン? If I have a chance, I will make a lesson on business. (Can’t tell you when though..Lots of things on the list. )
Meanwhile, if you have a question, please feel free to leave a comment here or follow me on Twitter or Facebook. I can answer your questions.
It is always safe to use 敬語(keigo) formal languages in business situation unless you are talking to your subordinates or coworkers or someone really close to you.
Even if you avoid sounding too formal you should stick to desu-masu form.
(When you show people graphs)
Ex.こちらのグラフをご覧下さい。= Kochirano gurafu wo goran kudasai. formal
Ex. こちらのグラフを見て下さい。= Kochirano gurafu wo mite kudasai. (polite)
Haha, I have never played golf so I should learn how to play golf first. I wonder if they allow a dog to play golf though….
Thank you Maggie-sensei! That was an excellent lesson as usual. We just learned about “~(verb)ba~hodo” at university so it’s great to be able to consolidate my learning and get to know other ways to use “hodo”. :)
@Caedmon
Hi, Caedmon! 久しぶり！
Oh great! You have just learned ほど at University.
じゃあ、いっぱい練習して下さいね！
使えば使うほどわかってきますよ !onpu!
今、日本語を勉強すれば勉強するほど、難しすぎると思います T_T
@majoringram3636
Haha, それでも勉強すればするほど、面白くなるから続けて下さいね。 !happyface!
Hello Maggie-sensei
I have a doubt, in the whole conversation of the “A : 「試験なのにどこに出かけるの？」” example, were you using female speech or neutral? It’s just that my intuition tells me that a man wouldn’t speak in that way
Thank you very much for this lesson!
@Orti
It sounds very soft but it is neutral. If you want to make it sound more “manly” you could say “どこに出かけるんだ？” But it is rough and the listener would feel you are interrogating.
Anyway when ~の is used in a question form both women and men can use.
何をするの？
どうして食べないの？
どこに住んでるの？
But if you used it in an affirmative sentence, の ending sounds very feminine. In other word, men don’t use this form except little boys.
もう食べたくないの。
あなたとは会いたくないの。
名古屋に住んでいるの。
なるほど! 分かったと思います ＾＾
それなら、Ｂの文は女性らしいでしょう?
Maggie-sensei, new doubts came to my mind…
How do you use 「事実上」？ I looked up in the dictionary for “actually” because I wanted to ask “Then B sentence is actually femenine?” but I couldn’t figure out how to use it correctly S:
The other doubt is about 「よ」…
It is used at the end of a sentence to add emphasis neutrally, is it right? Are there any cases in which 「よ」 might sound too femenine?
Sorry for making so many questions, sometimes I feel like I’m abusing of your good will ):
有り難うございます ^^
@Orti
OK here you go!
1) Exactly B) is for women.
2)事実上 means “practically speaking” For example if a couple lives together for a long time, we say they are 事実上結婚している。(Maybe not legally but they are just the same as a marriage couple.
If you want to say “actually” just say 本当は, 実は、実際は、実際のところ
3) When you are talking to someone and try to involve them, it is neutral
Ex. これおいしいよ！(Asking for agreement from a listener ) neutral
Ex. やってみようよ！/ 今度ドライブに行こうよ！(Asking someone to do something, inviting ) neutral neutral
When you assert things telling people what you think or what you are going to do, it is femenine.
Ex. これ私のよ！(Affirmative sentence. To tell people what you are going to do. ) for women
Ex.明日、学校に行くのよ！(Affirmative sentence to show what you are going to do.) for women
分かった分かった ：D
説明して有り難うございます、マギー先生！＾＾
@Orti
よかった〜！どういたしまして！ :h:
Thanks so much, i was seeking this…
@Aidolu
You’re welcome! Thank you for visiting this site! !ochame!
GSM is much more interesting than GTO indeed.
@Akazuki Japan
Oh, Thank you!!!! ありがとう！ from GSM :)
Thank you very much for your lesson!
I’ve become friends with two japanese girls and I was afraid to end up speaking like a girl hahah, but now I will know how to and how not to talk xD
@Orti
That’s funny. You can use the stuff in this lesson not to use. Very clever!
Yes, it is safer to learn “neutral” Japanese first. :)
Please please please please please help me!
Maggie…I have this guy friend that told me to figure out what this phrase thingy means! I have searched and searched!
What does “anata niwa unzari shiteiru” mean in English?
Is it even real??? D”’X>
@MeggiePoo!
Hi MeggiePoo!
Here you go!
anata ni wa unzari shiteiru = I am sick of you/I am fed up with you.
Dear Maggie Sensei, thank you for your lesson! I really appreciate it, and it’s very nice learning with all the bouncy arrows, nice pictures and word colours. Makes learning much more fun!
@Jon
Hi Jon! はじめまして！Thank you for your comment. I am happy to hear you liked the “bouncy arrows” and stuff. Hope you enjoy learning nihongo with me! !happyface!
ありがとう、マギー
聞きたいことがあるんでうが。
二つ目の「のに」と「ために」はどう違いますか。
@Cygnus
久しぶり！日本語で説明した方がいいかな？（何かわからなかったまた聞いてね。）
「のに」も「ために」も二つとも”in order to/for” の意味で使います。だから同じ意味で使えます。
＊そのコンサートのチケットを買うのに１時間も並ばなければいけなかった。
=＊そのコンサートのチケットを買うために１時間も並ばなければいけなかった。
でも「ために」の方が何かをする目的を強調するので「のに」より強く聞こえます。だから最後の例文の
＊このケーキを作るのに卵がいくついりますか？
を
＊このケーキを作るために卵がいくついりますか？
に変えると”ケーキを作る目的のために”と大げさになるので不自然に響きます。
そうですか。分かりました。そのニュアンスが伝わっているんですね。ありがとう！
@Cygnus
どういたしまして！
Maggie, I just applied for a job and there was an age requirement! You mentioned that is illegal but it said from 20 to 35 years of age.
@Vonn
It is illegal but I guess many companies still have the age limit. And even if they can’t tell the applicants that they would hire younger people, they would find other excuses not to hire them. That’s a shame…
マギー先生のレッスンはとっても役立つです
私は日本語の勉強を始まったところですが、もっと日常生活の日本語を学びたいんです。
ワザワザこのサイトで無料のレッスンをつくるの事、ありがとうございます。
きょうから よろしくお願いします
あの、できれば”テキトー”この言葉の使う方を教えてくれませんか？
@YongJi
今日は！コメントありがとう！こちらこそよろしくお願いしますね。
テキトー は”適当（てきとう）”という言葉から来ています。よかったらこのミニレッスンを見て下さいね。
http://142.93.68.150/mini-lessons-2/?pid=108
(少しだけ直しますね。：レッスンをつくるの事→ レッスンをつくってくれて）
Sry i’m brazilian, so my english isn’t good but…
i loved your website, and i have a question:
its writen: フン！何もしてくれたことないくせに！
instead of saying that, isnt better says 「何もしてくれないくせに」
i Dont know if have some difference betwen,
if there are, can you explain me?
ah!, got it…
in this case
何もしてくれない is something like “you dont do nothing for me
in the same situation]
何もしてくれたことない became something like “You’ve never done anything for me”
and the reason for this, would be… 「ことない」
its right?
@Alexandre
Hi! Alexandre! はじめまして！
Yes, you got it. !happyface!
何もしてくれない= You don’t do anything for me.
何もしてくれたこと(が)ない= You haven’t done anything for me.
thank you sensei, thank you so much
@tham
いつもnice commentありがとう！tham!
SSorry maybe this is an old post, but I’m wondering how do you respond when someone compliments you by saying something like “Your hand writting is better than mine!”
@JEss
The most basic response will be
そんなことないですよ。(polite)
そんなことないよ。(Between friends)
You may want to just say ありがとう but since this person is comparing your handwriting and his/hers, if you say ありがとう you give the person impression that you agree that their handwriting is not good.
I’m a male. how do u say:
“What i love the most is your smile. Your childishness is also very charming. I love every bit of you.”
@Mikaze (or are you @Mooonn?)
OK, then “僕が一番好きなのは君の笑顔です。(Boku ga suki nano wa kimi no egao desu.) 君の子供っぽさも好きだ。(Kimi no kodomopposamo suki da) 君のすべてを愛しています。(Kimi no subete wo aishite imasu.)”
You can change 君 to あなた. But it is more common to use the person’s name.
Also the translation changes depending on how close you are to the person.
How do you say “Why do you love me?” in japanese?
@Mooonn
For girls
どうして私のことが好きなの？
= Doushite watashi no koto ga suki nano?
どうして私のことを愛しているの？
= Doushite watashi no koto wo aisshite iruno?
For men
どうして僕のことが好きなの？
= Doushite boku no koto ga suki nano?
どうして僕のことを愛しているの？
= Doushite boku no koto wo aishite iru no?
Ah, thank you! Um.. Sorry for being a bit annoying, but..
How do you say: “Thank you! Your feelings make me very happy! Ah, what is it that you love about me?I’m just so curious, i’m sorry!”
Sorry for being a bother ;A;
Sorry! Here’s another one: “Thank you! Your feelings make me very happy! Ah, what are the things you love about me? I’m just so curious, i’m sorry!”
I’m truly very sorry for being a bother! ;;
@Moonn
Are you a girl? If so,
“Thank you! Your feelings make me very happy! Ah, what is it that you love about me?I’m just so curious
ありがとう。あなたの（or the person’s name) 気持ち、とてもうれしいです。ねえ、私のどこが好き？ すごく知りたいです。
= Arigatou. Anata no kimochi totemo ureshii desu. Nee watashi doko ga suki? Sugoku shiritai desu.
I don’t get why you wrote “I’m sorry” in the end. I don’t think you need to apologize… Anyway, I hope this helps.
If you are a boy, just change 私 to 僕
Thank you for this informative explanation of ways to express thanks and appreciation.
I’m an advanced-level student of Japanese. I speak six other languages fluently, I’ve studied comparative linguistics and right now I’m living in Japan, using Japanese daily (speaking, reading, writing).
What I still find VERY confusing, and, with all due respect, your explanation fails to explain (in fact, it glosses right over it) is the fact that most Japanese people do NOT say or write the particle “を” before the phrases “どうもありがとうございます” or “どうもありがとうございました.”
So my question is, and I’ve looked EVERYWHERE for an answer (even a native Japanese speaker/teacher here was unable to answer; alas, she was also not a trained linguist), is:
When should or must one use を immediately preceding either of these phrases and when is it permissible to NOT use this direct object-marking particle?
Thank you for your time and attention.
@Coco
I added some information. It may not enough for you because I am not a linguistically trained dog :) and this site is just for fun but will keep adding inf whenever I get more examples.
.まことに有り難うございました。
@nanda
どういたしまして！ :)
Hi Maggie,
Thank you for this! It is wonderful!
I have a question about verse 22. One can’t tell in English if her grandmother told her to go home because she was upset or for another reason. Does the original give any hints as to why obachaan told Kana to go home?
@Aquinas
No, neither original (Japanese) verse doesn’t say the reason. You have to read between the lines.
Obaacgab is not upset. We can tell it is her omoiyari (she cares about her grandchild.)
Of course, obaachan wants her to stay but probably she doesn’t want her grandchild to see her getting weaker or make her feel sad or worry. Actually that is the saddest line in this song. !gejigeji!
Hi, Maggie sensei!
Could you please tell me what っていうことで means here, because, well, even if I know the words I dont fully understand the conversation.
It’s from Saurai Sho’s dart trip in 24h tv of this year. Sakurai-san enters in a tabaco shop and it’s full of manekinekos,so he asks why there are so many manekinekos (it looks like a manekineko shop and not a tabaco shop, lol). So she tells:
瀬戸の友達が
陶器屋さんに行ってて
半端モノいらない？
っていうことで
陶器を受け始めたら
こうなっちゃったんです！！
Thank you in advance.
@Ana
Hi Ana!
OK, っていうことで here has a function to conclude the previous sentence. →As a result, That’s why, therefore
So in this case,
Reason :His friend who works for a ceramic shop asked him if he wanted the ceramics that they can’t sell.
↓
っていうことで= That’s why, That how I started…, As a result, therefore
↓
Result : He started to take them and ended up like this.
レッソンはありがとうございます。たくさん、日本語を習いました。助かりました。笑。EienStudentより
@EienStudent
コメントありがとう！Is Eien from 永遠(=えいえん）? もしそうならず〜〜〜っとマギーのサイトで勉強してね！
Eienは永遠の意味ですよ。実は、私は絶対に死にません、のでずっとマギのセイトです。そのおかわりに、たくさん、レッソンを作らせるです。haha-haha。笑。
ところで、意味分かりました？私の日本語は正しいかどうか分かりません
@Eienstudent
Haha good!!
Let me correct you a bit.(But you did a good job!)
実は私は絶対に死にませんからずっとマギーの生徒でいます。
その代わりにマギーにたくさんレッスンを作らせます。
OK! OK!! Will try to make lots of lesson for you for good! !ase!
おかえりなさい, マギー先生! バルセロナとイタリアを楽しんでもらえたらいいと思います.
I LOVE this lesson because I eat out a lot and would like to try more local places so this will really come in handy. With that said…ちょっと質問がありますが.
This is off topic but if you were at say a mcdonald’s or burger king type fast food place, what would a typical conversation for placing an order be like there?
Thanks!
@Remi Ayumi Lee
Hi ! Remi!! ありがとう！とても楽しい夏休みでしたよ♩
As for your question, I have a restaurant/coffee shop conversation lesson here but since someone else asked me the same thing, I will make a mini lesson sometime. Can you wait?
Sure, no problem! Thanks for making one! (^-^)
This is very helpful for learning more natural expressions, I can make myself understood in Japanese but the way I say things is sometimes very unnatural （＞д＜）
I hope this isn’t a daft question, but what is the most natural thing to say when you arrive at an izakaya and you are meeting friends who have already arrived at the table? Or if the reservation is in someone else’s name? I am quite clearly not Japanese, so it might sound a bit weird if I said 予約をした斉藤です (for example)
Also, if you go to a clinic or a health club and you get asked 初めてですか what is the most natural response if you’ve been before?
Thank you for your help ヽ(*・ω・)ﾉ
@Jess
what is the most natural thing to say when you arrive at an izakaya and you are meeting friends who have already arrived at the table?
「もう友人がこちらで待っていると思うのですが。」
= Mou yuujin ga kochira de matte iru to omounodesu ga.
= I think my friends are waiting for me here.
「もう先に友人が来ていると思うのですが。」
= Mou saki ni yuujin ga kite iruto omouno desuga
= I think my friends are here already.
「すみません。8時の予約で遅く着きました。」
= Sumimasen hachiji no yoyaku de osoku tsukimashita
= I was late for 8:00 reservation.
Then they will ask you your friend’s name and they will say
「先にいらっしゃっています。」
= Saki ni irasshatte imasu.
= They are already here.
「あちらでお待ちです。
= Achira de omachi desu.
= They are waiting for you there.
etc.
Or if the reservation is in someone else’s name?
「~~~の名前で予約が入っていると思うのですが。」
~= ~ no namae de yoyaku ga haitte iruto omou no desu ga.
= I think you have a reservation under …..
「〜〜の名前で予約を入れています。」
= ~ no namae de yoyaku wo irete imasu.
= We have a reservation under (name)
if you go to a clinic or a health club and you get asked 初めてですか what is the most natural response if you’ve been before?
If it is a clinic they will ask you
「初めてですか？」
「初診（しょしん）ですか？
= Shoshin desu ka?
「初めてかかられますか？」
= Hajimete kakararemasu ka?
And you answer
「以前かかったことがあります。」
= Izen kakatta koto ga arimasu.
If you remember when you came, you say
「いえ、3ヶ月前に来たことがあります。/ かかったことがあります。」
= Ie sankagetsu mae ni kita koto ga arimasu. / kakatta koto ga arimasu
(I came here last three months ago.)
「去年の４月頃に来たことがあります。」
= Kyonen no shigatsu goro ni kita koto ga arimasu.
= I came here around April last year.
Then they might ask you if you have their patient registration card.
「診察券はお持ちですか？」
= Shinsatsu ken wa omochi desu ka?
If you do, just show it to them and if you don’t tell them なくしました (=nakushimashita) and they will make you a new card.
If it is a health club
They will ask you
Is it your first time to come here?
「こちらは初めてですか？」
= Kochira wa hajimete desu ka?
「こちらのご利用は初めてですか？」
= Kochira no goriyou ha hajimete desu ka?
「会員さんでいらっしゃったことはありますか？」
=Kaiin san de irasshatta koto wa arimasuka?
= Were you our member before?
etc
And you say
「以前会員でした。」
=Izen kaiin deshita.
= I was a member before.
「以前、来たことがあります。」
= Izen kita koto ga arimasu.
= I have been here before.
Hope this helps. :h:
Thank you so much for this extremely comprehensive reply!
It all makes perfect sense when I read it, and yet I always up end saying all sorts of strange things even though I know they sound strange!
This helps me no end! ^^
@Jess
Great!!! Hope you can use them naturally!! がんばって！ !JYANE!
面白い、ありがとう！
どの系ですかしら。。。私は肉食系に可能性がありますけど。。。やっぱり草食系かな。。。 But I want to be, at least, moderately successful at work. Don’t really care about love at the moment tho
(can you correct my Japanese if you have some time?)
Thank you ^^
@Sarusaru
Hi! Sarusaru!
OK, どの系ですかしら。。。→私は （or if you are a man, you can also say 僕は）何系かなあ。
私は肉食系に可能性がありますけど。。。→肉食系の可能性はあるけれども （or 肉食の傾向があるけれども）
やっぱり草食系かな。。。→OK
Maggie先生、この授業をかいてくれてありがとうございました。とても分かりやすいし、例文も多いので私は Maggie先生のおしえかたが気になってきましたよ。
@Caedmon
ありがとう！Caedmon! また来てね！ :)
またいいレッソンを提供してくださって、ありがとうございます。
僕は滋賀県に留学したときに関西弁に一目惚れしました。やっぱり、関西弁の一番難しいところはイントネーションですかね。語尾とか言葉遣いを勉強すればまだ頭に入るんですけどイントネーションをマスターするにはかなり時間がかかりますね。下手したら一生身に付かないかもしれません。
でも、外人の僕にはもう一つの悩みがあります。「お前のイントネーションはまだまだだね」って今でも関東人の友達に言われます。それもおそらく関西弁からの影響を受けてるではないかと思います。だから、今喋ってるのは関西弁でもなく、標準語でもないですよね。まさに中途半端って状態で自分でも気持ち悪いですw 両方ともうまく使い分けれるようになるのは理想ですけど、今のところ、まだほど遠いみたいですねorz
@困ったちゃん
困ったちゃんはすごく日本語が上手ですね。びっくり！！ !happyface! イントネーションは関西弁のイントネーションが入っちゃうのかなあ。逆に私が関西弁を話そうとしてもすぐに関西人じゃないってばれちゃいます。イントネーションは難しいね。標準語はドラマとかいっぱいみて耳から入れていったらどうかなあ。あまり自分に厳しくしずぎないで楽しんで日本語をマスターしていって下さい！ :maggie-small:
アァァ。。ありがとう！
ウァ。。 アンズ先生もうまく教えられますね！(^_^)/ (笑)
このレッスンをまた楽しまれた。
@Phylisscyn
アンズ先生かわいいね！ !heart!
（A little correction : このレッスンをまた楽しまれた。→このレッスンもまた楽しかったです。）
Haha sorry i wright wrong!!!!
書かされる-Incorrect for test
書かせられる-Correct for test
友達に日本語を書かされた-Incorrect for test
友達に日本語を書かせられた-Correct for test
Hello ViktorSAMA
I have a few questions:
書かされる-Correct for test
書かせられる-Incorrect for test
友達に日本語を書かされた-correct for test
友達に日本語を書かせられた-incorret for test
I hope you have time to Answer my questions. BTW i love your videos on Give me a Breakman too. Japanse for morons rock hehe. I am a big moron too HEHE宜しくお願いします
@eienstudent
I am not Victor… We are Maggie and Yukari. (Victor is helping us promoting this site.) so I don’t make the videos but will tell him your message. He will like that.
Anyway, when you take an exam, 書かせられる is correct.
書かされる is considered as さ入れ言葉 as I explained in the lesson and grammatically wrong.
Though many of us use it in daily conversation.
Please read “Note” in the lesson. I explained more about this さ入れ言葉
そうですか、マッギエとゆかり、はこのホームページを作りました。知りませんでした！すみません。笑。
早くて返事を、書いてくれてありがとうございました。マッギエ先生、もいいホームページだと思います。はい、させる・させられる・レッソンって、もっと読んで見ます。これからも楽しいレッソンを作ってください。eienstudentより
@eienstudent
だいじょうぶ！そしてコメントありがとう！またよかったらこのサイトに来てくださいね。そしてVictorのビデオも応援（おうえん）してあげてください！
先生、ありがとうございました。よろしければ、「閉める」と「閉じる」の違いも失明してもらいませんか？
@whyyouandi
OK, the difference between
閉める(=shimeru) and 閉じる(=tojiru)
First 閉める is transitive verb and 閉じる could be both transitive and intransitive verb.
So you can say
○ドアを閉める = to close the door (as a transitive verb)
○ドアを閉じる = to close the door (as a transitive verb)
But when you use it as an intransitive verb
You can say
○ドアが閉じる = the door closes (an intransitive verb)
but you can’t say
x ドアが閉める
*******
So let’s focus on the cases when you use as a transitive verb
閉じる
閉める
They both means “to close something” but
閉める = shimeru = is used when you close something which was open or loose. (It also has a meaning such as to zip, to fasten (to tighten), to lock)
and 閉じる= tojiru = to close something firmly. to put the curtains together, to block, to end (finish)
There are certain things that you have to use either one
○目を閉じる= me wo tojiru
x 目を閉める= me wo shimeru (wrong)
Sorry for replying late. Thank you so much for the explanation Sensei, i think i get a bit of the grasp of it. Thank you so much for taking quite a time to explain, good luck always :)
@whyyouandi
You’re welcome! :)
Ahh.. Maggie sensei.. But you didn’t teach how to use wakkate kita…!! It doesn’t make sense to understand (and come back?)…
I googled for some examples and I think it means “are you beginning to understand?” Am I right..?
@Phylisscyn
わかってくる = to come to understand, getting understand
〜てっくる is different from ~してきてくれる
Check this lesson. 〜てくる＆〜ていく
マギー先生～～～
チェックを しました。 「～てくる・～ていく」の レッスンは 本当に 長いね！でも、 分かってきた！ ありがとうね、先生！
@phylisscyn
おかえり〜！！
あのレッスン、たしかに長いです！でもわかってきたみたいでよかった！
Maggie-sensei,
There is something I found out and I was wondering if you could correct me. のです since it’s explanatory…it sounds more, how can I say it?
Ok, example:
暑いです (fact) This sounds kinda cold (no pun intended) it sounds short and abrupt.
暑いのです (explaining) this sounds better and it sounds kind of inviting. Sorry, I really dont know how to explain. There is an ambiguity that can only be felt in the Japanese language that cannot translate well into English.
I once heard the following conversation among two Japanese student when my friends and I were playing tennis with them:
Student 1: 何したの?
Student 2: ボールと行ったんだ。
My friend took the ball and ran away with it. So the 行ったんだ was like, obvious and explanatory, no? ボールと行った sounds just…a bit cold.
Sensei, I would greatly appreciate your insight :) どうもありがとう
@Zebra-kun
I know many Japanese expressions are hard to translate.
It’s not 暑いのです。(or 暑いんです）sounds better or warmer than 暑いです。
When you just state today’s weather, you usually say
今日は暑いです。(It’s your opinion.)
If you want to make it sound more friendly and ask listener’s agreement, you say
今日は暑いですね。
You can’t start a conversation with 今日は暑いのです。It sounds strange.
If you explain why it’s hot, you can use 暑いのです。
For example,
ここは砂漠（さばく）だから暑いのです。
Besides it is explanatory, it is also used when you make your point so that it sounds stronger than 暑いです。
About the conversation you heard :
ボールと行った sounds strange.
Maybe they were saying
ボール持っていっちゃったんだ。
= He was gone with a ball.
Anyway yes, in that case, ~んだ is explanatory. The person was explaining what happened.
And it is not “cold” at all.
I hope I answered your question. But if you have any questions, feel free to ask me anytime. !happyface!
YOU ARE MY SAVIOR.
THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!
@jalil
Ohhhh I’m very happy to hear that!! !happyface!
Hi Maggie,
Thanks for the very useful lesson!
My wife is now 8 months pregnant and will soon deliver the baby. The nurse in the clinic said that we should call the clinic and make reservation first once the labor pain starts. Could please teach us common word/conversation to make reservation in the clinic for labor?
Big thanks in advance!
@Windra
First of all, おめでとう！for your coming baby!!! :h:
When the labor pain starts, you call the clinic.
First you tell your name
「もしもしそちらでお世話になっている (your family name) です。」
= Moshimoshi sochira de osewa ni natte iru (your family name) desu.
= Hello, we are your patients at your clinic, name.
「妻の陣痛が始まったみたいです。」
= Tsuma no jintsuu ga hajimarimashita.
= I think my wife is in labor.
If you want to go there right away,
「すぐに伺ってもいいですか？」
= Sugu ni ukagatte mo ii desuka?
= Can we go there right away?
If you don’t know what to do, say
「どうしたらいいでしょうか？」
= Doushitara ii de shouka?
= What should we do?
Then they will give you an instruction what to do.
If you are not in hurry and just want to make an appointment, you say
「診察の予約を取りたい(or したい）のですが。」
= Shinsatsu no yoyaku wo toritai (or shitai )no desuga.
= I would like to make an appointment with a doctor.
If it’s a big hospital and you know the doctor’s name, you can add the name.
「~先生の診察の予約を取りたいのですが。」
= ~ sensei no shinsatsu no yoyaku wo toritai no desuga.
= I would like to make an appointment with Dr. ~
How’s that?
Maggie 先生
This is really helpful!
助かりました！どうもありがとうございました。
@Windra
You’re very welcome! 赤ちゃん、楽しみですね♩ !happyface!
Maggie 先生,
今日、赤ちゃんが生まれた！元気な男の子。
I used the expressions you taught me when make a phone call this morning! It REALLY helped.
どうもありがとうございました！！
@Windra
わ〜〜〜おめでとう！！！Thank you so much for sharing the happiest news! 元気な男の子の赤ちゃんですね。本当によかった！！
Your message made my day! ありがとう！きっとすばらしいパパとママになると思います！
A lot of !heart! for you and your family!
Sensei! I found a really good japanese CM. http://youtu.be/N0E20In7pGo
I would be grateful if you made a lesson about this cm. There are a lot of useful words in it. It would be very good for learning Japanese.
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu! m_m
p.s. Also Tsumabuki Satoshi is so cute!
@Margo
Hi, Margo! I know Tsumabuki-kun, is cute, huh? boucingheart!
I would like to make a lesson on using another commercial film but what happened to me was I made a long lesson based on all the commercial film before but the video was deleted. So that video will be deleted eventually as well. ごめんね！
But I think that even without video there are a lot of really good expressions in it! This is such a good way to learn Japanese!=((
@Margo
I know it is a great way to study even without the video. But it would be more fun for many people to watch the video at the same time.
Hope you understand…
分かりました。
Could you please just write in Japanese what they arу saying at these moments? I can’t recognize.
0.44-0.57
1.16-1.24
1.54-1.55
2.14-2.26
@Margo
Please know that I don’t/can’t usually do you this type of favor. (Especially in the comment section.)
But since you insist, I will do it just this time as a special case, OK? And this is as much as I could help you here.
Here you go!
0.44-0.57
一言（ひとこと）で、俺（おれ）は「覚悟（かくご）」ですね。(It was not clear but I think this is what he said.)
ああそれはありますね。
もっとうまくなりたいっていうのはあるんですよ。
自分（じぶん）らしさって何でしょう。
なんでしょう
落（お）ち着（つ）きのなさかな。
1.16-1.24
子供（こども）の想像（そうぞう）の産物（さんぶつ）っていうか
だってもっとちゃんとしているはずだったもん
俺（おれ）の想像の大人（おとな）は
1.54-1.55
体（からだ）がしんどくなってぐらいかな
2.14-2.26
共存（きょうぞん）できなかったですよ。だってこう音楽（おんがく）と喧嘩（けんか）して
鏡（かがみ）の中にいるもう一人（ひとり）の自分みたいな
そうそうそう
スガさんにとって出会（であ）いって
出会いないと一歩（いっぽ）がこう出（で）ないんですよね。
Thank you very very much!!!!
お手間をかけさせてしまって申し訳ありません。 ｍ＿ｍ
@Margo
You’re very welcome, Margo!
I have no sentence, but an important question.
The language phenomenom abotu the ra-nuki words and the sa-ire words.
You mentioned it before, that if you attend a Japanese exam (perhaps oral exam), you should avoid using these features.
But what about the official JLPT exam? Do you know something? Beacuase the exam was newly revised due to a better and more natural Japanese, so these two ra-nuki and sa-ire would be included.
@Japanese Learner
I would still avoid ra-nuki and sa-ire on JLPT exam.
You should know the fact that people do use them nowadays but when it comes to exams (→any types!) or serious Japanese class, you’d better avoid using them.
Hi! could you please explain the use of -tari suru here please. It’s from Mikeneko Holmes drama episode 2:
Ishizu: 片山さん ケータイ鳴ってますよ。
Hiro-nii: ヒロ兄が出てやろう 貸せ。
Hiro-nii: 涼子からだったりして。
I more or less can guess thanks to the circumstances but I dont know how properly translate it and how they are using -tari suru there.
Thank you so much, Maggie is really cute!
@Ana
In this case, ~ からだったりして is a colloquial way to say (ひょっとして）~からかもしれない
In that short dialogue, they see someone was calling on Hiro’s cell phone and Hiro wondered it could be Ryoko who is calling.
涼子からだったりして。
Maybe it(the phone call) could be (from) Ryoko.
Compared to 涼子かもしれない(Maybe it is from Ryoko) , 涼子からだったりして has a connotation that “It would be strange/funny if this call is from Ryoko.)”
Hope you get it. どう？
Thank you so much for your fast reply!
I understand your explanation and it really suits the circumstances of the conversation but I didnt know this use for -tari suru, it’s usual? I thought -tari suru is for listing activities that doesnt have a continuation or correlation, to mark an action as an example, the repetition of an action or the alternation of states.
So if he didnt just use kamo as the coloquial of kamoshirenai is to give that other connotation?
And why did you put hyotto shite in brackets? it’s because it’s usually obviated or it’s because it’s an alternative?
Sorry for the questions and thank you so much again <3
@Ana
You are right.
Usually ~たり is used when you list up a couple of actions.
Ex. 寝たり食べたりする = netari tabetari suru = sleeping and eating etc.
〜たりして is a colloquial hypothetical word.
The translation is the same as かもしれない (maybe, may, might) but 〜たりしてinvolves more emotion, it would be surprising (fun, strange, great, awful) if ~ . You leave the sentence unfinished. So the listener has to read between the lines.
Ex. 明日は雨だったりして。
= Ashita wa ame dattari shite.
= It might rain tomorrow.
Ex. 実は、マギー結婚していたりして。
= Jitsu wa Maggie kekkon shite itari shite.
= It would be surprising if Maggie is married.
****
かも／かもしれない is just a statement.
1) 明日は雨かも（しれない）= I think it may rain tomorrow.
2) 明日は雨だったりして = What do you say if it rains tomorrow. (slightly less possibility than (1))
Also ~たりして shows more feelings.
***
Your other question :
（ひょっとして） 〜かもしれない
You add ひょっとして when you emphasizes the presumption/supposition.
a) マギーが来るかもしれない。
Maggie may come.
b) ひょっとしてマギーが来るかもしれない。
Maggie might come.
When you compare a) and b), a) has more possibility than b).
How’s that?
Your explanation is pretty easy to understand, thank you so much!
Oh! And in this case the tense of suru is always shite, right?
@Ana
You’re welcome! And yes, as for your last question, yes, it’s always tarishite.
Maggie先生〜
「わざわざ」と「せっかく」は、どうやって違いますか？
ありがとうございます！
クリスタルより
@Crystal
わざわざ and せっかく are very similar.
They are interchangeable in following cases.
a) わざわざ来てくれたのに留守にしていてごめんね。
b) せっかく来てくれたのに留守にしていてごめんね。
I am sorry that I wasn’t home even though you came all the way to visit me.
The difference is せっかく is used in the meaning of “to take advantage of someone’s action.”
When someone serves you a cup of tea, you would say
せっかくですから頂きます。
= I will have this tea since you already made one for me.
You won’t say
わざわざですから頂きます。
When we say
c) せっかく作ってくれたのですから頂きます。
(= Since you did all the work to please me, I want to take advantage of your work and eat it.)
d) わざわざ作ってくれたのですから頂きます。
(= Since you have made all the effort or tried hard to make this, I will eat it.)
わざわざ focuses on all your trouble you went through or money and energy you spent.
せっかく focuses on one’s good intention. Also when you want to take advantage of one’s work.
Hi maggie sensei,
Thank you very much for your website. This
Verb-て-form きて has been bothering me for some time. 先生のおかげで、「Verbて-form きて」の 使うことが やっと分かりました！
This is such a good website, please keep going ^_^
@ phylisscyn
Verbて-form きて」の使い方がわかってきた？（笑）
I am happy to hear that! Thank you for the nice comment!
Konnichiwa Maggie Sensei!
I found your blog after I search “what does agepoyo mean” on google XD
This is so cool! Your explanation is so understandable!
Thank you so much!!! I’m currently watching Arashi Wakuwaku Gakkou and since my Japanese is poor I can’t understand all what those sensei say.. Now I get what agepoyo means, and soon other words (by seeing your blog) (>̯͡.̮<̯͡)
Agepoyo~ \(´▽`)/
＠Indah Relato
Thank you for your nice comment!
あげぽよ〜♪
Arashi is cute, huh? Hope you learn a lot from my site. Please come visit here again and again!
it’s great. i would like to see more from your lessons. your lesson helped me understand clearly. thank you so much sensei
@tham
ありがとう！うれしいです !JYANE!
thank you so much sensei
@tham
Thank YOU for visiting this site,too! ありがとう！ !happyface!
Hi Maggie. I know this is two years old but this is very relevant to me as I will go to to the Boston Forum and perhaps the Tokyo Forum. I have been applying for jobs to various agencies in New York City (where I live at the moment) and I have used about 80% of the vocabulary on this page. It is great to read thoroughly and polish my way of writing/talking to employers and recruiters. I do know it is considered rude to ask about wages and etc, but I have encountered many instances that if I do not ask, I would be hired to do a certain job without knowing the very details. In such cases I ask… It’s rather complicated. As for the rirekisho, many large scale Japanese companies have been lenient on what should be on a rirekisho. In some instances 志望動機 is removed or replaced with 大学で学んだこと・専攻内容詳細 (assuming you’re 新卒). I have a phone interview tomorrow so this page will come in handy!!
@Sebastian
Thank you for your comment. Good luck tomorrow and hope you get the ideal job for you! がんばって！ :)
WOW!! I almost skipped this one as I thought it was just another standard “father-mother-son-daughter” textbook lesson, but I ended up learning over 20 new words & expressions! やっぱりマギー先生のブログは最高!!
@kresnap
Good to hear you have learned more than you expected. また来てね！ :)
Thank you so much! Because there are different meanings behind ki ni naru, I was never completely sure what it meant. This is so helpful! Thank you!
@Jenna
Hi,Jenna! よかった! Now you know the difference!
Always heard of this sight referenced to on AJATT. Never knew it was a dog. Go figure. She seems smarter than your average bear.
@MattoMani
Thank you!!! Hope you visit here often! :)
ok sensei thank you much. I’ll wait til you get back…I hope you have a nice time there^^
@Top
Thank you!! 待っててね！(^-^)/
Sensei! Good evening!
Could you explain me please, how everyone understands what meaning of the word みんな is implied?
For example, “minna tabeta ja nai desu ka!” you can translate as “But everyone ate it, didn’t they?!”
@b2
Hi, b2! I’m sorry I’m on vacation and away from Jaoan right now. I can’t answer your question until I go back there. Please wait 10 more days.
@b2
Sorry that it too me a long time to answer your question. Now I am back to Japan.
みんな is a casual way of saying 皆(みな）
It could refer to people, things or issues.
So the translation is “everyone””everything” “all”
So みんな食べたじゃないですか。(=Minna tabeta ja nai desu ka) could mean
“But everybody ate it, didn’t they?” or “You ate everything, didn’t you!”
You will know which one by context.
I love this site, it helps me alot in learning japanese.
Just one question,”whats the meaning of yappari and how to use it”.
@Hubert Hansean
Thank you for your comment! Right now I’m on vacation so that I can not give you the link but I made a mini lesson on yap pari. Please go to “Index for Mini lesson” and find the lesson under ヤ行(yagyou).
great lesson as always..sensei
now i’d like to ask you something about how to say something like, “Good thing I got rid of someone.”
Do I say, “よかった！きみっていない”?
also one more question about the song I’ve listened to many times called, さよならの向こう側 by Koda KUmi.
I was curious about 後姿 見ないで下さい and 後姿 見ないでゆきます
do they both mean please leave..don’t let me see you?
thank you much sensei^^
@Top
Hi, I am back! Let me answer your questions.
＊“Good thing I got rid of someone.”
There are many ways of saying this
~ がいなくなってよかった
~がいなくなってせいせいした
If you break up with someone, you say
〜と別れてよかった
〜と別れてせいせいした
If you cut the tie with someone you say
〜と縁（えん）を切（き）ってよかった
〜と縁を切ってせいせいした
Note : “せいせいした” sounds much stronger than よかった
＊後ろ姿を見ないで下さい
It’s a metaphor.
When you break up with someone, some people are reluctant to let someone go and keep thinking about the person or worrying about the person. Ex. What is he/she going to do, what is he/she doing now after we break up, etc. That means “後ろ姿を見る”
後ろ姿を見ないで下さい means “Just let go of me and move on.” and 後姿 見ないでゆきます means “I will just move on without attachment.
Aaaaahhhh thank you so much sensei! Your explanation has made it clearer for me. ありがとうございます(^O^)／
@Top
You’re very welcome! (＾▽＾)/
Hello,
Thank you for this lesson
I never heard about this word before… it seems “Wazawza” is not often used
I read the lesson and I understood a bit:
わざわざこの授業して来たいただきありがとうございます
I got a question I’m reading “Aishite Night” (manga) and trying to understand a bit it’s
少女漫画, and I noticed something:
In several sentences they add “no” or “no yo” at the end I don’t know why
@Setsuko & @Top
Thank you for your comments. Right now I’m on vacation and I can’t answer your questions. But I will get back to your questions when I come back to Japan in August! Mattetene!
有り難いことです! 有り難うございます。
@Yokyoko
コメント、ありがとう！ !happyface!
Hi Maggie – thanks for this great blog post – this is explained so well that I had to share!!
@Sarai Pahla
Hi Sarai! Thank you for the nice comment! また来てね！
How come people say なんでもないです and not なににもないです? 例えば：
友：「もうあなたのタイムカードを落としたよ」
私：「あ、そっか！めっちゃありがとう！」
友：「なんでもないです！」
Thanks so much for this lesson. My Japanese grammar book teaches all kinds of lofty ideas about elevated usage and so on, but doesn’t really go into this kind of colloquial Japanese. It’s nice to be able to watch anime, drama and so on and think ‘ah, I just learned that!’.
@TolpuddleMartyr
こちらこそ！Thank you for your comment!
What you learn from grammar books and teachers are essential. But if you don’t know colloquial Japanese, you won’t be able to understand the real conversation because we don’t always talk like a text book.
また来てね！
うわああ、
分かる、分かる！It makes so much more sense now. XD
このレッスンを作て、ありがとう!(That was probably all sorts of wrong. Hee)
@ハリちゃん
よかった、ハリちゃんに「分かる、分かる」って言ってもらってうれしいです！
（almost! このレッスンを作て、ありがとう→このレッスンを作ってくれてありがとう）
Hi there
Your blog is very interesting!
How can you translate: ” I wish you could show me some love! I’ve got everything I need except a man. And I’m not one of those women who thinks a man is the answer to everything, but I’m tired of being alone.”
I hope you could help me!
@Alina
Hi, Alina!
First thank you for finding this site! Hope you learn some.
I help people who have a Japanese question here but I don’t usually do translation.
今回はあまり長くないから特別ね！ :)
私に(少しでも）愛を見せてくれたらいいのに。
男の人以外、必要なものはすべて持っている
男の人がすべての答えと思っている女ではないけれど
一人でいるのに疲れたの
Thank you for this lesson Maggie-sama!! Exactly what I’ve been looking for ^__^
@Fina
Hi,Fina-chan! Hisashiburi!
Good to hear you found the right lesson!
How would you ask that you would like an order to go? Like, oh this order will be to go. What does it sound like when they ask you will this be carry out?
@iheartmaggiesensei
When they usually ask you
“こちらでお召し上がりですか？それともお持ち帰りですか？
= Kochira de omeshiagari desuka ? Soretomo omochi kaeri desuka?
= Would you like it for here or to go?
If you want to take it home, you say
持ち帰りでお願いします。
= Mochikaeri de onegai shimasu.
If you eat it there, you say
ここで食べます。
= Koko de tabemasu.
Thank you very much!
Just one question: is there any difference between のに and ように as “in order to” use, or can they be interchangeable?
Thanks in advance! ^^
@Mimi
Hi Mimi!
I know the translation for the certain function of のに and ように are both “in order to” but while のに is used to refer to simple procedure, method to do something or how much time it takes, ように is used when people try to make things work as they want so they are not interchangeable.
Ex. このケーキを作るのに卵が何個いりますか？
→can’t say このケーキをつくるように卵が何個いりますか？
But if you try to make a difficult cake,
Ex. こんなケーキが作れるようにがんばります。
(You can’t say こんなケーキが作れるのにがんばります。）
I have よう lesson made so pleas check it.
ようlesson
マギー先生、教えてくれてどうもありがとう！
日本語を勉強しるのにlang-8で日記を書く。
I write entries in lang-8 to study japanese, and because I like it a lot.
Some people always correct me with this のに, so I was searching what was the use of のに, thank you very much, now I understand.
Note: Lang-8 is a site where you write entries in one language that you are learning and then native speakers correct that entry, I have learned a lot because of that.
@Cantabile
はじめまして！このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！Lang-8知っていますよ。
日本語を勉強しるのに(Maybe it’s typo but just in case..)
→日本語を勉強するのに
またこのサイトにも勉強しにきてね。 !happyface!
またいい勉強になりましたね,マギー先生。
それで私が「アメリカ人なのに日本語には興味があっている.」と言えば正しいですか
@Remi
いい勉強になった？よかった！
「アメリカ人なのに日本語には興味があっている.」
OK, just fix 興味があってる→興味がある
マギー先生返事をありがとうございます。
話の中にでてくる”のに”がむずかしいです。
“行くのに車がいいよ”“つくるのに便利だよ”とみんな言いますが
反対にはならないですから。
いつもなぜのにだろうと思います。
マギー先生の日本語はとてもわかるので
知ってから見てべんきょうしています。
@katy
ああ、なるほど！
A) althoughの「のに」
と
B) in order to/to/forの「のに」
の違いがまだよくわからないのですね。
まず、A)の方は、二つの反する意味の文をつなげます。こちらはもうわかっているみたいなのでいいですよね。
B)は通常、何かをする方法、手段、〜をするために何をしなければいけないか。どれだけお金、時間がかかるかという時に使います。
First A) is used to connect two contradicted sentences. I think you already got this one so no problem, right?
B) is usually used to indicate(or suggest) how to do it, what you need to do, how much time/money it takes/costs to do something/to go somewhere.
Ex. いつもは会社に車で行くのに今日は電車で行く。(two contradicted sentences：いつもは車で行く vs 今日は電車で行く)
Ex. 今日は道が混んでいるから会社に行くのに電車で行った方がいいよ。(suggestion: Because the streets are crowded today, you should use the train to go to the office. )
Ex. スプーンを使った方が便利なのにどうして箸（はし）を使うの？(two contradicted sentences：スプーンを使うvs 箸を使う）
Ex. 茶碗蒸（ちゃわんむ）しを食べるのに箸を使うのは難しい。(方法 : It is difficult to use chopsticks to eat “Chawanmushi”)
****
あとは参考までに= Just for your information,
These are grammatical differences :
1) While A) is used with adjectives, nouns or verbs, B) is only used with verbs.
2) A) usually has two contradicted facts or consequences.
3) While A) can be finished with のに without finishing the sentence, we almost never finish the sentence in B)
4) We can use both present tense/past tense in A), we only use present tense in B)
Feel free to make a sentence using the last “noni” here. I can always correct you.
Thank you very much!
とてもわかります、マギー先生！
のには多くの場合に使いますね。
わからなかったのに、わかります！
このサイトは日本語を勉強するのに、いい勉強になります！
本当にありがとうございます。
@Katy
よかった〜！！もう２つの”のに”が使えるようになりましたね。
ほとんど使い方は完璧（かんぺき）です。
でも少しだけ勉強のために直しますね。↓
わからなかったのに、わかります！→(to be more clear why don’t you add “before” and “after”) 前はわからなかったのに今はわかります。
このサイトは日本語を勉強するのに、いい勉強になります！→We don’t say 勉強するのにいい勉強になる because it’s redundant. How about something like このサイトは日本語を勉強するのに役に立ちます。
Hi Maggie Sensei, when we see the kanji ‘恐’ how do we know we should read it as ‘oso’ from ‘恐れる’ in kun reading or we should read it as ‘kyuo’ from ‘恐縮ですが’ in on reading?
@Komet Tjin
There are lots of exceptions but the basic rules are :
On reading is usually used when it is used with other kanji as a compoun word. And kun reading is used on its own with hiragana.
kun reading :
*恐れる = osoreru = to be scared
*縮む = chijimu = shrink
a compound word : 恐＋縮
You use on-reading
恐縮 kyoushuku
マギー先生こんにちわ。
親切をありがとうございます！
とてもうれしいです。
１つめののにがとてもわかりました！
本当にありがとうございます。
そして、もしよいなら
２つめの“のに”も教えてあげると
とてもうれしいです。
@katy
katyレッスンをチェックしてくれてうれしいです。
もしよいなら２つめの“のに”も教えてあげるととてもうれしいです。
→”もしよければふたつめの”のに”も教えてくれるととてもうれしいです。”ってこと？
“ふたつめ”がどの”のに”をさしているのか教えてくれる？わからないことがあったら質問して下さいね。
Hi, katy! I am glad that you checked this lesson.
What do you mean by the second “のに” ＝ふたつめの”のに”
The conditional one? Or the one “in order to”? You didn’t understand well and you want more explanation?
If you have a question, just let me know,OK? I will add some explanation. :grin:
This is so useful (^^)
but I was wondering, how does the nakya/nakucha form conjugate? Are they like na-adjectives or nouns etc? For example, if you were to say “I have to make dinner and/then I have to walk my dog”, would you say:
ご飯を作らなきゃで、犬を散歩させなきゃ
Thank you ^^
@pudding
Hi, pudding!
OK since なきゃ and なくちゃ is a part of なきゃ／なくちゃいけない, you use いけない part to conjugate.
I have to make dinner and (on top of that) I also have to walk my dog.
You just connect two sentences using し
= ご飯を作らなきゃ(or 作らなくちゃ）いけないし犬も散歩させなきゃ（or 散歩させなくちゃ）いけない。
Dear Maggie-sensei,
since I think you are probably the best person to ask for that translation I ask here right away.
There is a sentence which is simply breaking my neck because I simply have no idea what’s the best way to translate it properly. It’s that one:
”いや、間違ってるのは、今現在俺はこんなことで悩んでいる場合では
ないということだ。”
I think it fits best in this category…does it mean “It’s not wrong that I am worried about such a thing right now” or is it “It’s wrong that it is not that case that I am worried about such a thing right now” …..or something totally different..the more often I try to analyze this sentence in my head the more difficult it turns out…Thanks in advance (_-_)
@Doci
Hi Doci! You got a complicated sentence, huh?
I would say,
”いや、間違ってるのは、今現在俺はこんなことで悩んでいる場合ではないということだ。”
No, I was wrong. (What I have been doing was wrong.) It is not the right time to worry about such a thing.(Now is not the time to worry about such a thing)
So the speaker realized “現在こんなことで悩んでいること=worrying about such a thing.” is “間違っている=wrong” and “そんなことをしている場合ではない=it is not the time to do so”.
Makes sense?
Aah! That makes indeed sense!
I think the real problem was the “場合ではない” thing…I thought I could translate it literally and didn’t know that its like the same like “時ではない” that’s why no matter how I thought about it..it couldnt make sense at all…
Thanks a lot for the quick reply! Helped me a lot!! ;)
@Doci
どういたしまして！It is a tough sentence! わかってよかった！ !happyface!
こんにちは、マギー先生！
I find your lessons incredibly helpful. I was wondering if it’s okay to use あなた in a fan letter? Also I was wondering how to structure a fan letter in Japanese :)
ありがとう！
@Catlin
Hi Catlin
Ummm in a fan letter, it’s probably OK to use あなた. But I would still use their name.
There is no specific structure for a fan letter but for example,
こんにちは！(or はじめまして！）
私は〜の大ファンです。(I am a huge fan of yours.)
or
私は**に住む〜の大ファンです。(I am a huge fan of yours who lives in **) *
~の音楽が大好きです。
~の音楽が大好きでいつも聴いています。
~の音楽はすばらしいです。= Your music is wonderful.
and to finish the letter
これからもがんばってください！
これからも**から応援しています！
etc.
How’s that?
マギー先生こんにちは。
のに、はないですか。
一応さがしたが見つかりません。
のに、もしてほしいです。
@katy
Hi! You mean “~のに”? I might have made a mini lesson on Twitter before but not on this site yet.
OK, I can make a mini lesson sometime. (Maybe on my Facebook!) Will let you know when it’s done in this comment section, OK?
ＯＫ！
ありがとうございました。マギー先生。
@katy
Hi, I just posted a new lesson for you! Go check のに=noni
このレッスンは難しいですね! 私の頭がまだくらくらしていますが ~(O_o)~, 一応,わかるようにがんばって習います!(~_^)
ありがとうございました, マギー先生!
Cute picture of you by the way, that cupcake looks tasty ♥
@Remi
Haha, I know it’s a tough lesson addressing intermediate level people. でも、一応がんばってみて！
I also used to have problem with ‘ichiou’, but this lesson has been very helpful. Thank you!
@Rashmi
Happy to hear that!! よかった！！
so when you want to say something is funny you say 笑える ore 笑ちゃう
@kyashi
Yes, (笑える or 笑っちゃう) you can also say “ウケる！= ukeru!” in colloquial Japanese.
このレッスンで沢山の会話に使いやすい句が出ている！一応、それぞれの意味をわかっているけど、把握できるまではまだまだですよね
In the sentence,
「東大生はなぜ「一応、東大です」と言うのか。」
= Tousaisei wa naze “Ichiou Toudai desu” to iu noka.
Is Tousaisei supposed to be TouDaisei?
@Jen
Hi, Jen! I am very happy that you have checked this lesson because I made this for you!
I know, as I wrote in the lessons, this word is tough unless you know when and how to use it. Please read through example sentences again and again until you 把握！！(→You know a great word!)
Sorry for the typo. I will fix it.
こんにちは Maggie Sensei!
I really love this lesson, it’s perfect for me as I’m watching a lot of J Drama and listening to J Pop and I am learning way too much male speech without even realising it sometimes… >_<
Also, I have made a few Japanese friends in the last few months and we always enjoy 女子会 so much! I want to use this word with them the next time. ありがとう ^_^
Licia.
@Licia
Hi Licia!!
I am so happy to read your nice comment. Thank you! Hope you enjoy 女子会 with your Japanese friends. Hope your J-friends teach you lots of cool Japanese words,too!
また来てね！ :)
Thanks for your reply! ^_^
Yes, my friends teach me a lot of interesting words… like 猫舌 <– I love this one, there is no translation in English or Italian (my mother-tongue)
I also like oyaji gyagu and dajare, everyone finds this strange! I heard they are usually greeted with "さむい"
And finally I love Samurai のことば! Probably because of Rurouni Kenshin… I love how he always says "ござる" or "拙者 は" <3
I am always asking my 日本人のともだち to teach me Samurai speech or tell me some dajare… So if I can make a request for a lesson, it would be either Samurai words, dajare or Kansaiben (which I love and I find so interesting!)
ありがとう !!
Licia
@Licia
どういたしまして！
Haha, yes, oyaji gyagu is always 寒い！！
And I was surprised to hear you like Samurai languages. Might try to make a mini lesson on Facebook in future.
As for kansaiben, please check ヤンヤンマチコ lesson. I taught some kansaiben there.
Ciao!
Thank you Maggie!
I will check out your Kansaiben lesson now!
ciao ciao ^_^
Licia
sensei it is also correct if we write it like this??
‘Nanbyaku hito ga sono saigai de nakunatta’
@Faila
‘Nanbyaku hito ga sono saigai de nakunatta’
We don’t say ”Nanbyaku hito” but you could say,
何百人の人(達)がその災害で亡くなった。
= Nanbyakunin no hito(tachi) ga sono saigai de nakunatta.
or
何百人もの人がその災害で亡くなった。
= Nanbyaku nin mono hito ga sono saigai de nakunatta.
(~ もの= emphasizing)
Thank you for making this lesson for us! :)
@Pippa
Oh, Thank YOU for visiting this site!
その素敵なレッスンにありがとうマギー先生＾＿＿＾！
たくさん新しい表現と言葉を初めて知ったです＾＾
@kimu_m
このレッスンがお役に立ってよかったです！うれしいコメントありがとう！！ !happyface!
先生ー寝てないとダメよと寝なくちゃダメですよは同じ意味ですか？
@stenier
寝てないとダメ : 例(たと）えば病気（びょうき）とかで寝ている状態（じょうたい）・横たわっている状態でいないといけない人に言います。
(Keep lying down, Stay in bed)
寝なきゃダメ：ずっと寝ていなくて起（お）きている人に言（い）います。(You should sleep. Go to bed! )
先生説明有難う！！
@stenier
どういたしまして！
先生それらの2つの漢字の違いは何ですか？聞くや聴く
@steiner
「聞く」is more general. 聴く is mainly used when you listen to something more attentively or intentionally listen to something. Like music, lecture, etc.
音楽を聴く, 講義を聴く
なるほど、有難うございます
@steinier
どういたしまして！
久しぶりだな,マギー先生!
Thanks for this great lesson. It really helped me to understand って a lot better and now I can use it more correctly!
LOVE your website(^_^)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
Hiiii! 久しぶり!
ってか、Remiって女の子だよねえ。だったら
↓
久しぶりだな is for boys. 久しぶり！・久しぶりだね！ is better. :)
そう, 私は女の子です.(笑)
Sorry about that, I’ll say ね more often. I just think that male slang in japanese sounds so cool and it shows in the way I speak sometimes.
ありがとう, マギー先生! (^_^)
Great lesson. ^^ I like to use つうかさ a lot, actually. It’s pretty useful I think.
＠curryisyummy
Thank you for the comment!
ってか、すっごく久しぶりだよね！ :)
Dear Maggie Sensei,
“いつもマギー先生は元気だなって思います。”
What is the purpose of な?
Thank you for your good work!
Glenn
@glenn
Hi glenn!!
な / なあ is a casual suffix.
When we wonder something or express our opinion or feelings, we say ~な / ~ なあ
元気だなあ。= He/She/You/ They are very energetic.
or
元気だな
↓
いつもマギー先生は元気だなって思います。
or also
いつもマギー先生は元気だなあって思います。
Other examples :
Ex. This is delicious! → おいしいな／おいしいなあ
Ex. It’s great! = すごいな／すごいなあ
な ending is generally for male speech and women use ね / ねえmore.
おいしいね／おいしいねえ = It’s delicious, isn’t it?
すごいね／すごいねえ =It’s great, isn’t it?
When you wonder something, you also use な／なあ (Both men and women use these.)
Ex. I wonder if I can do it.= これできるかな？/ これできるかなあ
I LOVE YOU AND YOUR SITE. I LIVE IN JAPAN NOW AND EVERYTHING ON THIS SITE IS JUST AWWWWWSSSSOME.
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR HARD WORK FOR GIVING US THIS AWSOME KNOWLEDGE.
@jalil
Thank you for your nice comment! It made my day!
Love you,too! boucingheart!
is there a video on the te form?
I had dumb moment with naratte “narau”
and imasen which i thought ima meant now but after some research “my dictionary” i got the ima part
@Marsit
Sorry but I don’t make videos. (Maybe you think I am Victor??? If so I am his dog. :) ) Anyway here is a link for te form.
ima means “now” but imasen has nothing to do with “ima=now” It is a negative form of imasu.
Domo Arigato Gozaimasu Sensei
Sensei..I don’t quite get this sentence.
Does it mean, “It’s not like Dad’s gonna worry that much.”??
Ex. お父さんが心配しているようなことにはなりません。
= Otousan ga shinpai shiteiru youna koto ni wa narimasen.
= It won’t be the way Daddy worries it will be.
@Top
Oh, you are right. Why did I translated that way….OK, How about,
↓
Dad, what you’re worried about will never happen.
Makes sense?
oh thank you much sensei…your explanation has cleared it all up^^ I guess I’m always confused with ことになる^^
@Top
よかった！！
You are right. ~ことになる might be difficult. In this case,~ことになる means “to happen”has different meaning “to happen/ to turn out be / to become / to ended up”
Related lesson : ~になる
Thank you for studying with this site!
thank you so much sensei for the link and this website. I’m trying to catch up as much as I can^^
Gonna wake up everyday and study this page till it memory
@Marsit
Great!! I will wait for you here tomorrow! :)
would you please make a lesson about kara and dakara?
I’d really appreciate that.
@mil
I just made a mini lesson on kara on Facebook. ~kara
Kara and dakara indicate the reasons for something. (Because ~ , since~ , ~ so, etc.)
The difference between ~から and ~だから are what comes before them
＊~だから is for na-adjective
* 元気（＝げんき）＋だから
Ex. お子さんはいつも元気だからいいですね。
= Okosan wa itsumo genki dakara ii desune.
= You must to be happy because your children are always cheerful.
*静か（=しずか）＋だから
＊~から is for i-adjective or verbs
Ex. 静かだから誰もいないと思った。
= I thought nobody was here because it was so quiet.
*おいしい+ から
Ex. おいしいからもっとちょうだい！
= It’s delicious so give me some more.
*走った＋から
Ex. たくさん走ったから疲れた。= Takusan hashitta kara tsukareta. = I ran a lot so I am tired.
*勉強する+から
Ex. もっと勉強するから自転車を買って！
= Motto benkyou surukara jitensha wo katte!
= I will study more so buy me a bicycle!
Also だから can be used in the beginning of the sentence and gives a reason for the previous sentence.
Ex. 昨日は風邪をひいていました。
= Kinou wa kaze wo hiiteimashita.
= I had cold yesterday.
だから宿題ができませんでした。
= Dakara shukudai ga dekimasen deshita.
= That’s why I couldn’t do any homework.
Note : You can’t start a sentence with から
I explained how to use だから in this lesson,too. Please check it.
Thank you very very much. It really helped me.
You are an amazing teacher. I always study your lessons.
I hope you keep adding more lessons.
When I have a question, I hope you teach me.
Thanks again.
@mil
You’re very welcome!
And thank you for studying my lessons! Feel free to ask me a question anytime. You can also follow me on Twitter. People always ask me random questions there.
がんばって！ !happyface!
Hi sensei. I have a suggestion. Why don’t you include a detailed description about Kanji in your site and give an example about each kanji? I think this is a great idea as it will help me and many students in learning kanji.I want to know how to write and when to use them. Can you help me?
I hope to hear from you sensei.
@mil
Thank you for your suggestion. However, but there are a lot of sites where you can learn Kanji already exist. Ex.one. English site.
Google them. I know there are so many kanji but start from first grader kanji.
And if you have a question regarding how to read and stuff, I can always help you on Twitter.
Thank you sensei. I’ll try to study from the site that you gave me.Sensei, are you Japanese?
How do you know so much about this language?
I wish I can have this amount of knowledge you have.
@mil
どういたしまして！And yes, I’m Japanese.
Maggie sensei,
I try to work with Japanese restaurant owners in USA.
How do I address them in Japanese?
How do I explain myself?
For example, I am an independent insurance broker.
ぼくは保険のやるひとじゃない？
I am looking for the lowest premium for customers.
Thanks!
Glenn
@glenn
an independent insurance broker is 保険仲立人(=hoken nakadachinin) or 保険ブローカー(=hoken broukaa) in Japanese.
So if you want to introduce yourself, you say “私は保険仲立人or 保険ブローカーです. = (Watashi wa hoken nakadachinin / hoken broukaa desu.)
I will help you find the lowest premium for customers = お客様に一番安い保険料をお探しします。 = Okyaku sama ni ichiban yasui hokenryou wo osagashi shimasu.
I understand.
How do I say boss in Japanese?
When I walk into a Japanese restaurant, I want to ask, “Is your boss available?”
社長いる？
親分いる？
@glenn
OK, first いる→いらっしゃいますか？ unless you know the boss very well or he/she is your close friend.
You can also say ~とお話できますか？= ~ to ohanashi dekimasu ka? = May I talk to ~?
〜はどちらですか？= the literal translation is “Where is ~?” or “Which one is ~”?
Never use the term 親分. It is for Mafia organizations.
社長 means president. Although it is not necessary, many people add さん to show their courtesy. →社長さん
If you want to talk to a manager of the place, 店長=tenchou
Ex. 店長さんとお話できますか？
Ex. 店長さんいらっしゃいますか？
Ex. 店長さんはどちらですか？
Hope this helps.
Also you you use Twitter, you can ask this type of question there,too.
全部分りました.
Now I don’t have any excuse not to learn Japanese.
@glenn
Great! Ganbatte!! :)
すごく長いでしたが、ずっと役に立ちました。
@Shiro
ほんとね、長かったね〜！お疲れ様でした！
Whoaaaa! That was a lot of information. I’m still going to have trouble for a while, remembering which is correct to use in whatever text I’m reading, but at least I know I’ll always have this lesson to refer back to if I ever get stuck.
THANK YOU!
@chibola
Yes, please come back again and again!!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THESE LESSONS! AS ALWAYS, THEY ARE WONDERFUL :)!
@chibola
Oh Thank YOU for visiting the site and leaving the nice comment!!
woo!!
thanks for taking the time to do that! It’s actually really informative. lol.
How would someone say “don’t fall in love with me.” in a joking manner?
@Jill
Hi Jill!
“Don’t fall in love with me!” in a joking manner? The most common joking phrase is 惚れるなよ！= Horerunayo (a male speech)
If you are a man this （俺に）惚れるなよ。(= (Ore ni) Horeru na yo. ) or you can also say 俺を好きになるな。(sounds tough) 僕を好きにならないで(=Boku wo suki ni naranai de)
If you are a woman, 私を好きにならないでね。(=Watashi wo suki ninaranai dene) or if you want to make it sound cuter, 私を好きになっちゃだめよ。(= Watashi wo suki ni naccha dame yo)
Hi!!
I’m just starting out learning and was wondering if I want to say “I want to wear sandals” would it be サンダルを履くしたい? Is that way ok?
@Melissa
Hi Melissa!
“I want to wear sandals” is サンダルを履きたい
いい勉強になりました。
「一羽のうさぎ」 と 「一匹のうさぎ」とはどちらが正しいでしょうか。 よく使えられるのは？
ありがとうございます。
@Chandra
うさぎの数え方は一羽でも一匹でもどちらでも使えます。でも最近の会話では匹で数える人の方が多いかと思います。
継続って知らなかった！レッスンありがとう。
@furetosan
こちらこそ、このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！！また来てね。
Thank you for making this lesson! ~よう is definitely a weak area for me. I can usually understand it when I read it, but for whatever reason, I’m still not used to using it.
Let’s see…
Did I say this right?
最近もう少し日本語の音楽を分かれるようになります。たぶん、もっと日本語の歌うをよく聞くおかげですね。
Lately, I’ve been able to understand a little more Japanese music; probably thanks to listening to more Japanaese songs.
@Kohaku
There are many ways to use よう.
You have to master them one by one. あとは練習（れんしゅう）！！
Good you tried the hard sentence.
~を分かれるようになります。
→~がもう少しわかるようになってきました。
日本語の歌うをよく聞くおかげですね。
→日本語の歌を聞いているおかげですね。
Thank you for this lesson, MaggieSensei.
もっと分かるようになりました! :)
@majoringram3636
よかった！そう言ってもらえるとうれしいです！！！ !Vsain!
if possible drop me a line I live in Tokyo and many Outhers foreigners need assistence for some applications in city Hall or direct in company .
Thanks
andre
アンドレ コスタ
Dear Maggi Very nice explanations. think this ill help many peoples.
But I d like ask you to write about
profission that foreigners work in Japan like
supermarket.
factory jobs like LCD kensa
Maguro Industry
Recycles jobs
Bus drivers ..
how to work as sagawa or post Ofice tayukubin ?
how to find Farms Jobs in Japan?
How to get jobs at Airport ?
Constructions many profissions
and how to get the above jobs in Japan.
how to write a simples cover letter ?
wishing get the jobs ?
thanks
have a pleasent day
@andretokyo
Hi, Andre
Thank you for visiting this site. As for your request, I would like to help people who are interested in working in Japan but it is difficult for me to write all about those different professions you listed and how to apply for those jobs because I need to provide all the information which I don’t have. Hope you understand this site is to help people learn Japanese and I am not able to make a lesson “How to get a job”
However I will work on a lesson about some of the procedure at a ward office or immigration office sometime. !happyface!
Maggie sensei e
sensei wa kono burogu Fb de yameru suru tsumori desuka
@tuti.riswantini
(→a little correction 先生はこのブログとFBをやめるつもりですか？= Sensei wa burogu to FB wo yameru tsumori desu ka?)
Don’t worry! まだやめないよ！Happy April Fool’s Day!
thanks! this is so cool! i’m really like kansai ben!
＠ヘイゼル
Oh, Hi! ヘイゼル！Uo･∇･oU I agree! Kansaiben is very fun and cool!
great lesson! thanks!
@VanTilden
Hello!!! Your name looks familiar. Maybe we know each other on FB.
Anyway コメントありがとう！！
Good thing I came across your site, I really love reading your lessons. Keep up the good work sensei! :)
Every time I hear sakura or spring, the song 花は桜君は美しい by いきものがかり comes to mind.
いつかお花見に行きたいです。
@summersky
Thank you for visiting this site! 日本に来るなら桜の季節がおすすめですよ！
おはようございます、Maggie先生！面白いレッソン、いつもありがとうございます！
私、兵庫県の南部に住んでます。もちろん、関西弁使いますけど、こちらは播州弁や神戸弁となります。「何しとん」とか、「○○やで」が毎日使います(笑)
今年に引っ越ししますが、東京に住んでみたい。今まで、東京で遊びに行ったら、出来るだけ標準語を喋ったら、また「お住まいは関西だね」と言われました。（>＿<）どうやって綺麗な標準語を喋られるでしょうか？
後、意見だけですけど、宮城弁は一番聞きやすいです☆宮城弁のレッソンが希望です！いつかに(笑)
また宜しくお願い致します！
@D.
コメントありがとう！！D.の日本語完璧やん！（笑）
関西弁のイントネーション、私はとっても好きです♥ 宮城弁はどんなのかなあ。標準語はテレビのアナウンサーや東京のドラマとかで勉強すれば身につくと思います。イントネーションが関西弁と逆になることが多いから気をつけてね。でも方言も個性だから無理に標準語で話す必要はないと思いますよ。関西人は東京にいっても関西弁バリバリな人多いし!
標準語だけではなくこれからはDの様に、方言も話せる国際人が増えると面白いですね。引っ越し先がどこになるか楽しみです！
i love your web site! you make things look so clear!
@alliswhite
I’m happy to hear that!
Thank you for your comment! ありがとう！！
Sensei, hajimemashite. Watashi wa Indonesia kara no Dani desu. Ima daigaku de nihongo no ronbun wo kaiteimasu. Robun no teema wa wake toiu kotodesu. Sorede, kono saito wo mitsukete, hontou ni tasukarimashita. Wake no tsukaikata wa iro-iro de atte, juubun komatte imasu. I’m sorry for my poor japanese. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu….
@dani
今日は！dani! このサイトを見つけてくれてうれしいです。I am happy to hear you found this site.
論文（ろんぶん）がんばってくださいね！！
Hi Maggie Sensei!
I love this site ;) Really love how You can explain grammar problems so easily ;) Thx for incredible source! I hope I’ll post next comment in Japanese :)
ありがとうございます!
@Syriusz15
はじめまして！！Thank you for your nice comment! Hope you come back here again and again!
Feel free to ask a question or leave a comment anytime. I will always help you here.
How can i say it? This lesson is… beautiful, thank you so much Maggie-sensei. And i think there’s a mistake in the artist name (the link to Youtube Jupiter by 平原綾香 Hirahara Ayaka but the title said Jupiter by 平山綾香 Hirayama Ayaka). Thank you so much for the songs :)
@why.you.and.i
Thank you for visiting this site. Also thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
ありがとう！！
Hello maggie and co :)
Would you mind clarifying the sentence どう答えたらいいかわかりません. I don’t quite understand how the individual words add up to mean “I don’t know how to reply”. Thank you for all the time you put into the website — you have at least one person who is determined to learn every last sentence on here!! Well, maybe one day. Thank you!!
Suki
@sukiZrose
OK the sentence structure is
どう+ verb+たら＋いい＋か＋わからない
= I don’t know how to + verb
Ex. どう勉強したらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to study
Ex. どう歌ったらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to sing
Ex. どう教えたらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to teach
So back to the original sentence
どう答えたらいいかわからない
= I don’t know how to answer
→polite form : わかりません
*どう= how
*答えたら
*verb 答える + たら（conditional) = 答えたら
*いい= OK, good
*か = whether (question marker)
*わからない= don’t know
I will make a mini lesson on FaceBook this week for you.
And I am happy to hear you use this site to study Japanese.
@sukiXrose
I made a mini lesson for you on FaceBook
Go check http://on.fb.me/GCF4Cc
「そんなんないし」
意味はなんで知りたいと思います。
先生、 教えれ。
御免、 御免。
先生、 もう一度ゆっくり 教えてください。
@glenn
Sure!
そんなんないし
そんなん →そんなもの（or そんなプリント）= Such a thing (maybe handout/printed material)
ない→I don’t have/ There isn’t
し: Colloquial suffix to emphasize
So そんなんないし means “(I am telling you) I don’t have such a thing”
This site is wonderful. Thank you for such an incredible resource. I just finished studying Tae Kim’s website, and I was looking for a good site to transition to. I feel your blog will take me a long way. Much appreciation!
@Jessie
Hi Jessie! Welcome to Maggie Sensei’s site!
これから、よろしくね！ !happyface!
Hi Maggie-sensei ^^
I just have a question about the conjugation of ちゃう／ちゃった。
I have been told that for verbs like 飲む、読む、遊ぶ etc, when using the casual version of ~てしまいました／しまった they turn into ~じゃった. Is this correct?
e.g.
全部飲んでいた → 全部読んでしまった → 全部飲んじゃった
“I drank everything!! >..<
@hanoi_j
Yes, since I wanted to concentrate just ちゃう and ちゃった, I didn’t write about じゃった but maybe I should add the information.
Your sentence is correct
全部飲んじゃった = I drank everything
Oops, for some reason my question didn’t fully send, sorry >.<
I did go on to ask, if it's じゃった for the past-form, then does that mean it is じゃう for the present form?
e.g. 明日に読んでしまいます → 明日に読んじゃう！
I'll finish reading it by tomorrow!
Thank you ^^
@hanoi_j
I just added the information of じゃう／じゃった
明日に読んでしまいます → 明日に読んじゃう！
じゃうpart is correct. And yes, you can use it for the future.
Just 明日”に” is strange. Either 明日(without particle) or 明日までに is better.
明日までに読んでしまいます。→ 明日までに読んじゃう！
awesome lesson, sensei…
one question is 「きもっ」abbreviated from which word?
@Top
Ah Sorry. I mentioned in the example section of っ ending. (next to うざい→うざっ）Will add the original word below きもっ now.
きもっ is from 気持悪い= きもちわるい= kimochi warui = disgusting, gross, yucky
thank you much, sensei^^
@Top
こちらこそ！Thank you for checking the lesson! !happyface!
The audio don’t play under Chrome possibly because artist tag info isn’t fill out in the mp3.
@mr_l
Sorry. I didn’t know until now that you can’t hear the sound with Chrome. (I use Safari so…) It is mp3.
I have been using Quick Time as a sound file format so that iphone, iPad users can hear the sound.
perhaps if you fill out the artist-tag info it will play. see: http://groups.google.com/a/googleproductforums.com/forum/#!searchin/chrome/mp3/chrome/vmuTO3xeymI/8ts8StTRVQYJ
@mr_l
I think it is your Chrome setting. You have to activate the plugin for Quick time. It worked with our Chrome.
(When you visit this site and click the audio, you will see the message up above saying if you want to use Quick Time for this site or not so just click Yes.)
Twitterよりです! 勉強になりました :)
@majoringram3636
本当にいつもがんばってくれていますね！
このレッスンでは音声を聞きながら復習（ふくしゅう）してね。You are one of my best Twitter followers!!
先生、
はじめまして
面白い質料 ですよ。 どうも有り難う御座いました。いろいろ勉強になりましたよ。
ご苦労さまでした。 先生の英語はすごいですよ。
玲子
@leiko1234 玲子さん
コメントありがとう！！英語ほめられちゃった！ !happyface!
Thank you so much for this lessons, and all others! I don’t comment much, but I am SERIOUSLY GRATEFUL for all of these!!!
@chibola
Thank YOU for your comment!! よかったらいつでもコメントしてね！！
Howdy! Love the site! I have a quick question!
Can you use ちゃう in the emotional sense to express regret for things that are uncontrollable?
For example: 寒くなっちゃった！
Cheers!
@Foolofatook
Hi!! はじめまして！（かな？）
All very conversational but for example,
“また(=again)寒くなっちゃったね！”
“突然(とつぜん= suddenly）寒くなっちゃった”
etc.
お元気ですか先生！
This is interesting! Will you (or have you) make one for 2011?
hehehee…
http://blog.livedoor.jp/hisabisaniwarota/archives/52132472.html
マルマルもりもり I love this song! \^o^/
@Kenneth
Hi Kenneth!
No I haven’t made the one for 2011. Since they have a couple of words that I have already covered, I decided not to make one. But will keep collecting new slang words!
I knoooow, マルモリ〜〜 is so cute!! !onpu!
Ex.君の気持がわからない.
= Kimi no kimochi ga wakaranai.
= I don’t know what you are thinking about.
マギー先生、質問一つですが。
気持は気分の意味があると思った。
気持は思いの意味を知らなっかた。
I associated 気持 with feeling.
I did not know 気持 had something to do with thinking.
詳しく教えていただけますか。
どうもありがどうございます。
@glenn
Ah, OK, I translated as “what you are thinking about” but it could be also translated as “how you feel about me”
“to think” in Japanese is 考える or 思う.
考える is either to think with your brain or your heart and 思う is often done with your heart. And when you are talking about one’s feelings=気持, we “think” with your heart not your brain.
私はあなたのことを思っています。
私はあなたのことを考えています。
Thus even though the translation is “thinking” it doesn’t mean your logical thinking but your feelings.
わかるかな？
はい、分かった。
僕 は間違えました。
皆さんにわらわれないようにお祈りしましょ。
@glenn
誰も笑いませんよ。 !happyface! とってもいい質問だと思います。またいつでもコメント下さいね。
Ex. ばかばかしいといったらない
マギー先生、もう一度説明してくれてくださいませんか？
「ばかばかしいったらない」の言うことが理解できる。
しかし「 ばかばかしいといったらない」の言うことを理解するな。
有り難う御座います、 ご苦労様でした。
@glenn
First,
~といったらない is the most formal form.
*i-adjective+ といったらない
*na-adjective+ といったらない
*verb (dictionary form) + といったらない
Ex. ばかばかしいといったらない = It is extremely ridiculous
And if you want to make it sound more casual, we say
↓
ばかばかしいったらない
more casual↓
ばかばかしいったらありゃしない
How’s that?
はい、全部分かりました。
いつもお世話に。
ごもっともですやん。
この興味ぶがいレッスンを繰り返し繰り返し習っているやん。
マギー先生 お願い致します、
浮かばれるについては例文を作ってくれて頂きませんか。
感謝にたりません。
@glennはん
今、”浮かばれる”の説明＋例文を増やしたやん。
おおきに！ :)
Hi,
I am wondering what’s the difference between さまざま and いろいろ. Can I say いろいろな職業?
Thank you!
@Jack
Hi Jack!!
様々（さまざま）is a bit more formal than 色々(いろいろ）but you can say
いろいろな職業
However, the cases like this,
Ex.いろいろ有り難う。= Thank you for everything
you can’t say
様々ありがとう！
様々
犬先生、いろいろ有り難う！
I have a follow-up question: For example 色々 means various, but it’s written “color-color”. Somehow this seems weird, because the meaning of the Kanji 色 has no real connection to the meaning of 色色. Also it’s used twice.
There are a few more of these I know, e.g. 益々 and 元々.
I have two questions:
1) Are these words colloquial? Can I use them in a business negotiation or do they sound childish (double-syllables always sound childish in english, e.g. you could never say “This tree is old-old!”)
2) Are there more of these words that use the same kanji twice? Is there a connection to 擬声語 ?
Thank you!
@Jack
OK, let me answer your questions.
1) No. They are not colloquial and you can use them in business/formal situations. And they don’t sound childish.
2) There are tons of words with 々
人々 = hitobito = people
日々 ＝hibi = everyday, day by day
年々= nennen= each year, every year
木々 = kibi = trees
別々 = betsubetsu = separately
But they are not necessary onomatopoeic words.
Many of onomatopoeic words are written in hiragana or katakana but you are right. But you are right. There are some onomatopoeic words in kanji with 々
@Jack
It’s good you try to understand kanji a bit more.
To answer your question about 色色, “形形色色” is a very common Chinese idiom. 形形色色 means all kinds, all shapes, all sizes, all forms, etc. Hope this helps!
Maggie Sensei,
Could you kindly explain how you change まつ (to
wait) to 待ちきれません? Thank you!
Glenn
@glennliou
Oh, what a coincidence!
I just made a mini lesson on 待ちきれない on Facebook. Check http://tinyurl.com/7xwzhyn and if you have a question, let me know.
I just started working my way through the So-matome N3 grammar book, and this lesson really helped me understand -らしい. Thanks!
＠Snolygoster
Thank you for visiting this site. I am happy to hear my lesson helped you. また来てね。
このレッスンを教えてくれてありがとうございました!
でも, 質問がありますが, “に”と”へ”の違いは何ですか
説明してください.
Max=かわいい〜〜！マギーも！(^_~)
@Remi
「に」と「へ」の違いは微妙（びみょう）です。
Basic ideas
に： 到着地点（とうちゃくちてん）the specific place you arrive
へ： 方角（ほうがく）、方向（ほうこう）direction
どこに行くの？ Where are you going? = Which place are you going to? (Asking a specific place)
どこへ行くの？ Where are you heading to? (Asking a general direction)
A : 東京に行きます。I will go to Tokyo (stress the place, Tokyo more than the B)
B : 東京へ行きます。I will go to/towards Tokyo
But in conversation, we use them without thinking about the difference so much.
Some says younger people use に more and I am one of them.
Thanks for explaining that to me, it was really helpful.
@Remi
You’re very welcome! :h:
マギー先生、ありがとう。From your lesson I understand that the nuance between 寒い and 寒いんだ is that the latter carries an explanatory tone. With that in mind, what’s the difference between 寒いだから and 寒いんだから?
@wasuremono
Hello!! Ah, OK, first, you can’t say 寒いだから. It should be 寒いから. And you can also add ん →寒いんだから
The difference between 寒いから and 寒いんだから is the later one is casual yet it emphasize the fact that it is cold more.
This is very interesting because I can’t find an English equivalent so I don’t know how to process it. Basically, in Japanese I can *specially* emphasize the reason for something:
寒い。[It] is cold.
寒いから。Because [it] is cold.
寒いんだから。Because [it] is cold!!!! (Ahh, did I say cold?).
Does that make sense?
@waruremono
@waruremono
寒いんだから is more like
“I said it’s cold …”
「寒いから窓を閉めなさい！」
= Close the windows! (because) It’s cold!
If you stress your quote
「寒いんだから窓を閉めなさい！」
= I am telling you! It’s cold! Close the windows!
For some reason I cannot remember what I was typing the other night when the blackout happened! I think I had a blackout myself too! Anyway…
テニスーコートでテニスーをしました。
Is this correct?
Thank you for the lesson! I hope the more advanced learners can bear with us!
@Kenneth
Good! No more blackout!
Your sentence is perfect. Just change テニスー to テニス.
こんにちは先生！
I always assumed 君(kimi) is for men calling women, and 君(kun) is for women calling men. I suppose a man can also call a man 君(kun) if they are close enough? Then, can a man call a woman 君(kun)?
Would kimi and kun both be used on the same level of closeness in relationships?
If a guy calls a female friend kimi(or kun?), does it imply that he likes her, or at least he has good feelings on her?
The reason I asked:
My former Japanese female teacher is only a few years older than me and of course I used to call her by Family name + 先生.
But after she stopped teaching Japanese we became friends so I started calling her Family name + さん. If I start calling her Family name + kun/kimi, would I sound really strange?
(She said she wouldn’t mind if I call her by her First name, but I thought from 先生 to First name is too fast? :P)
Thank you so much!
@Kenneth Chow
Hi, Kenneth!
Q 1) Can a man call a woman 君(kun)?
In case you get confused,
These are different :
*君= kimi = you （pronoun)
*君= kun = a friendly honorific for boys or someone inferiror
If you meant to ask if you can call a woman 君(=kimi), the answer is yes.
And if you meant to ask if you can put the honorific 君(=kun) after female name, some men call women with their family name + 君(=kun) Ex. the boss calles the subordinates by their family name with kun.
Q 2) Would kimi and kun both be used on the same level of closeness in relationships?
That depends. But calling someone with 君(= kimi) might sounds snobbish and you may have to be careful when you use it.
君 (= kun) is used among close friends or someone inferior.
Q 3) If a guy calls a female friend kimii(or kun?) does it imply that he likes her, or at least he has good feelings on her?
Again, you don’t usually call your female friend with an honorific, kun.
Calling a female friend with kimi. : Not necessary gives closeness. It might give someone impression that you look down on that person so be careful.
First name with chan gives much closer feelings.
About your situation :
If you have asked her already how to address her and she told you to use her first name, I would start from calling her by her first name + name.
Hope this helps.
Thank you! :)
Yep I understood the difference between them. Next time I should ask my questions more clearly!
I’m clear now! :D
@Kenneth
Great! Keep studying!!! がんばって！ !happyface!
“Inu no kuse ni nihongo ga oshierareru wake ga nai.”
I must disagree, Maggie Sensai is fantastic at teaching me. I have learned quite a bit these last few hours. I have even noticed that when I am reading one of the sentences my mouth just automatically seems to know what sound to make for the next couple of syllables. It is kind of nice. Then I kind freak out thinking my brain was moving faster then my mouth only to find out that what I slipped out was actually correct.
Arigatou!
Signed,
Adam
@Adam
Thank you for your nice comment! ありがとう！
Wow! How impressive! I wish I had your brain!
これからもこのサイトに来て下さいね！
Love from Maggie boucingheart!
Hi! Thank you for this!
I’m a little confuse:
the estructure ということです can be used to summarize something you just said without meaning somebody else said or I heard
Like このじゅうぎょうで満足していないということです。
That means that you are saying you aren’t satisfied with this situation, emphasizing that, that insatisfaction with the situation is something you mean.
I don’t know if I explain myself well but I hope you can help me m(_ _)m
*じょうきょう instead of じゅうぎょう
sorry I misspelled
@rirachan
Hi rirachan!
この授業で満足していないということです。
Yes!
If you hear this quote from someone else,
Ex. マギー先生、リラちゃんはこの授業で満足していないということです。
It is the case (3) I’ve heard…They said…
If you are telling someone your opinion directly
Ex.この授業で満足していないということです。
It means (1) or (2) When you determine something or summarize (= conclude) your opinion.
ところで, 誰かがSMAPの僕の半分の歌を聞いたの?
素敵だね ♥ ♥ ♥
キムタク♥
@Remi
誰かがSMAPの僕の半分の歌を聞いたの?
?? Do you want to try again? Will help you.
RemiはSMAPファン?
はい,SMAPが大好きです!
ごめんなさい, また失敗しましたね? じゃあ,もう一度書いて見よう:
“SMAPで僕の半分という曲は聞いたことがあるの? 素敵だね”
@Remi
OK, getting much better!
How about
SMAPの「僕の半分」という歌を聞いたことがある？素敵な曲だよ。
Have you heard the song
Ahh, I understand it a lot better now. I can definately see why you answered with question marks the first time. lol
I do have one question though. In casual settings, when a female speaker is asking a question, sometimes I hear her end it in 「の」. When is it appropriate to use it versus leaving it out altogether?
Thanks again! \(^_^)/
@Remi
Hum..I wonder which の you are talking about.
の ending is very common among men as well.
今夜どこに行くの？= Where are you going tonight?
何を食べるの？= What are you going to eat?
これどうやって使うの？= How do you use this?
All of these can be said without の.
Adding の makes the sentence sound a bit stronger.
Just be careful a lot of people make this type of mistakes when they add の
おいしいなの？(wrong) →おいしいの？
かわいいなの？(wrong) →かわいいの？
Actually, that sounds like the の I was talking about. For some reason, I read somewhere that sometimes it’s considered feminine speech when you end certain kinds of questions with の. I must be mistaken.
But anyway, thanks for clearing that up for me. I love the Japanese language and hope that someday I can become fluent. Love your lessons and look forward to the next one!
♥では,また♥
Sorry, I made a typo. Here is what I was really trying to type here: 書いて見よう → 書いてみよう
I hope I got it right this time. Thanks again for your help maggie-sensei, it’s really helpful. ♥
この記事, どうもありがとうございます!!!
But I have one question – why do you say “ゴーヤって”, what does it mean?
@Pavla
Hi Pavla!
Good question!
~って…
It is a very colloquial speech pattern. When someone tells you something you can’t agree or when something happens you don’t like, you don’t finish a sentence and add って at the end. It gives a feelings of protesting.
Ex. ゴーヤって… Adds a feelings of “Why Goya…It is strange to give me.”
Ex. そんなこと言ったって… (When someone tells you something hard to accept.) Adding a feeling of protesting.
Ex.犬が日本語を教えているって…(What? A dog teaching Japanese?? – It’s strange….) Adding surprising feeling.
Got it?
@MrKnov
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
このレッスンはいい勉強になりました！ありがとうございました,マギー先生。\(^0^)/
…わたしもケーキが食べたいな!(笑)
@Remi Ayumi Lee
よかった！
ケーキほしかったらパーティーをお開きした後に内緒（ないしょ）であげるね。 :)
GOOD LUCK GOOD HEALTH EVERYONE
@afterefex
afterefexにも福がいっぱいきます様に！
*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)’･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*ありがとうございました。
^^thank you much, sensei, for making the sound clip compatible with iPhone and iPad^^
@Top
Just for you♡ (and many other people who use iPhone or iPad! :) )
thank you for this post.
I just had to explain what the tadashigaki for a
ryoshusho is to my English client and found your website which was incredibly helpful to me.
Thank you so much.
@tigerlily
You’re welcome! I am very happy to hear that!!
というとは日本人の方ですか？よかったらまたサイトに遊びに来て下さいね！
拝啓先生
I am having some serious trouble understanding the difference between ~とき and ~たら to mean “When…”. Please do give thought to do a lesson on it sometime in the future.
敬具
@gakusei89
Hello!! Thank you for visiting this site!
I hope you understand how and when to use たら in this lesson. As you have seen たら is usually used in a conditional sentence.
時 is used as “when” and “if”. I think the later one confuses you more. Will put that on the request list.
Can’t use katakana on my keyboard for some reason, but this is /the/ Hari-chan.
I had a question. In my school, every year they group us up and have us make dance routines. There’s a girl who just transferred from Japan last year and, while I’ve introduced myself, she doesn’t really speak much (but nods or shakes her head) when I say something in Japanese, so I don’t really know how to address her…
Gah, I got off track! Anyway, I wanted to know how I could either explain the dances better (like, “quickly slide back” or “turn to the left”) or ask if she has any ideas. Le help?
@Hari-chan
It is very nice of you to try to communicate with the Japanese girl in Japanese. I bet she is very happy even if she is not that communicative.
Eventually she will get used to the school and opens up more.
Actually when you teach someone dancing, you just show the movement but here are some example sentences that you may use
見て！Look!
こうして！Do like this
こうやって動（うご）いて！Move like this
わかる？ Do you understand?
右（みぎ）に動(うご）いて Move towards right
左（ひだり）に動いて Move towards left
右（みぎ）にターンして Turn right
左ひだりにターンして Turn left
もっと早（はや）く Do it more quickly
もっと遅(おそ）く Do it more slowly
手（て）をこうやって動かして = Move your hands like this
Thank you! I actually tried this– and I guess I said everything right, ’cause she got the steps. Again, arigatou!
@Hari-chan
You’re welcome! I’m happy to hear she got the steps! ダンスがんばってね！ :l:
hajime mashite, maggie-sensei
remi to moushi masu ga.
4 nen kan jibun de benkyou shita kara, nihongo ga hanaseru you ni narimashita. mada shoushinsha keredo mo dekireba watashi wa motto joutatsu
shitai to omoi masu.
ima no nihongo nouryoku wa dou desu ka?
kono burogu de oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimasu.
ganbatte kudasai.
はじめまして, マギー先生
レミともうしますが
4年間自分で勉強したから,日本語が話せるようになりました.
まだ初心者けれどもできれば私は上達したいと思います.
私の日本語能力はどうですか
このブログで教えてくれてありがとうございます.
@Remi
独学（どくがく）４年間でそれだけの日本語が書けて話せるのはすごいですね。
（ちょっとだけ直しますね。初心者けれども→初心者ですが）
後は、自然な日本語を身につけていけば完璧(かんぺき）だと思いますよ！
がんばって下さいね。 !happyface!
(初心者けれども→初心者ですが)
分かりました。今度は違えないようにします. (^_^)
ありがとうございます, マギー先生
@Remi
どういたしまして！！一緒に練習しましょうね！
（もう一つね、違えない様に→almost! 間違えない様に）
よろしくおねがいし ます!
私がまた 間違えちゃった.(笑)
マギー先生, どうやってエラーを避けるんですか?
@Remi
間違いをしない様にする方法があります！
それはいっぱい間違えて、直してもらってそれを覚えること！だから間違いをすることを恐れないで下さい。
いつでも直します！
そうですね. では, 頑張ります! (^_^)
@Remi
は〜い！一緒（いっしょ）にがんばりましょう！！ :-P
Hello, I have a question! Because ‘saseru’ can mean ‘to make’ or ‘to let,’ sometimes it can be confusing.
「貴方はそんな約束 誰にもさせちゃだめよ」
Does this mean ‘You shouldn’t make anyone make those kinds of promises’ or ‘You shouldn’t let anyone make those kinds of promises with you’ or something different? Thanks!
@Kay
You are right. させる can be “to make” or “to let”
So, if you hear 「貴方はそんな約束 誰にもさせちゃだめよ」
it could be both 1) ‘You shouldn’t make anyone make those kinds of promises’ and 2) ‘You shouldn’t let anyone make those kinds of promises with you’ .
You have to know the context.
Ahh, the context doesn’t make it exactly clear, unfortunately
But thank you so much for clarifying!
And thank you for your wonderful lessons!
@Kay
You’re welcome. If you find out about the whole context, just let me know. Usually we can tell which one they mean.
Anyway, がんばって！ !ochame!
Hi Maggie-Ssensei!
First, I want to say THANK YOU for doing a great job here!
Now my question:
There is:
a) ittara ii noni (Verb in conditional form/tara ii no ni) and
b) iketara ii no ni (Verb in potential form/tara ii no ni)
Whats the difference in usage and meaning of these two? I was told that a) is used only for 3. persons (I wish HE could go…) but I found lots of examples where both a) and b) are used in the same way. Could you please help? Thank you in advance!
Ele
@Elefumi
Thank you for visiting this site!
OK, the difference bettween 1) 行ったらいいのに( = ittara ii noni) and 2) 行けたらいいのに ( = Iketara ii noni)?
1) 行ったらいいのに( = ittara ii noni) is a suggestion for other people.
Why don’t you go?
You should go!
(You only use it for the 3rd person. Not yourself)
2) 行けたらいいのに ( = Iketara ii noni)
We say this when there is no (or less) possibility to go.
I wish I could go / I wish (someone) could go
(You can use both yourself or other people.)
Hope this helps…
マギー先生、質問を聞き続けてすみません。日本語にはまだ分からないことがたくさんあります。
「～たらいいのに」他人に提案をする表現だと言っていましたが、どうしてこの文章は自分の望みを表現しますか。
JLPTの１級に受かったらいいのに。
= I wish I could pass JLPT Level 1.
このレッスンで説明したように「たら」にはいろいろな使い方があります。
他の人に何か提案するときは You should / Why don’t you ~ という意味で使います。
またPalidorの文章のように自分の望みを言う時にも使います。
たら＋のに
は叶（かな）わない現実を望むとき（wish I could / were…)に使います。
一度、「のに」のレッスンも見てくださいね。リンクはこちら！
マギー先生、返事をありがとうございます。私は「のに」のレッソンを2，3回読んでいましたが、この部分はまだ分かりません。「のに」のレッソンから：
誕生パーティーに行ったらいいのに。
I wish someone would go to the birthday party / You should go to the party.
動詞の形：行くー＞行ったら
自分の望み表現する時、行けるー＞「行けたら」可能形を使いました：誕生パーティーに行けたらいいのに
この文書：
JLPTの１級に受かったらいいのに。
動詞の形：受かるー＞受かったら
どうしてこの文章には可能形を使わないんですか。
“受かる”にはもう可能の意味が入っています。
試験を受ける = to take an exam.
試験に受かる = to pass the exam.
他にも動詞には可能形がないものがいくつかあります。
見える には (to be able to see) の意味が
解けるには (to be able to solve) の意味が動詞に入っています。
ああ、なるほど！やっと分かりました。マギー先生、ありがとうございます！
よかった〜！！ :)
Sensei, one more thing to bother you. I can’t listen to sound clips on iPad & iPhone because flash player cannot be played on both devices. Strangely it works on my Mac. Is there any solution?
@Top
I know….I have an iPhone and iPad,too but they don’t support Flash/ Adove. I found this video
The appr called CloudBrowse. It seems to work… but it changes the fonts. I guess I need more time to do some research…
thank you so much sensei..but..oh no..it’s not free anymore..that’s ok. I’ll just have to listen to your sound clips on my Mac for the time being.
@Top
It used to be free, huh?
I am sure iPad/iPhone will develop something soon to be able to use Flash…(I hope…)
I will let you know whenever I find out a good free appr! ごめんね！
no problem sensei…thank you so much for your great lessons.^^
@Top
I think I just figured out how to make an audio file that you can listen with your iphone or ipad. Check my latest lesson. お開き！and let me know how it works.
extremely useful lesson…can’t wait for the next part of 訳^^
＠Top
Thank you for your comment! Will continue…
Hi Maggie, thanks for all you lessons- I find them super helpful! I’ve only recently learned about the nuanced of anata (to my horror, ‘cos I’d used it so much), and I was wondering if you could help clear something up? You say it’s OK to use anata in some general statements and questions, but what about something like あなたの言う通りです? (which I think means something like ‘you’re right’ or ‘as you said’. ) Does this count as another situation where you shouldn’t use あなた?
Thanks!
@Ella
Hi Ella! Thank you for your comment!
OK, let me answer your question : あなたの言う通りですis grammatically correct and we do say that to certain people depending on our relationship but I wouldn’t use あなた for someone superior like your teachers, friends’ parents, etc.
The safest way is to use someone’s name or job title ~さんの言う通りです。or you can say おっしゃる通りです。without any pronouns or name.
Great, thanks so much for answering my question. That’s really helpful- it’s good to know the pronoun-free version too :)
@Ella
You’re welcome!! Good question!
ははは, そうそう、間違えたんです。
お返事どうもありがとう！
@Sash
どういたしまして！It’s a good question!!
Oh thank you for this lesson, it was a life-saver! I always keep confusing the two forms! But I remember seeing わけでもない once, used in the flow of a conversation; is it the same thing that わけではない with a も instead of は, or is it somewhat related to tricky particle でも?
@Daeva
Hi Daeva!
Good to hear this lesson helps you! !happyface!
The English translation for わけではない and わけでもない could be the same but there is a slight nuance difference.
I am not sure if I can answer this in the comment section but,
1) わけではない denies stronger than わけでもない
A) そういうわけではない That is not the reason / That is not the case /
B) そういうわけでもない Not exactly
わけでもない sounds more vague and it implies that could be a part of the reason.
2) However there are cases わけでもない emphasizes more than わけではない like “even”
C) 先生になるわけではない (It doesn’t mean (this person) will become a teacher.)
D) 先生になるわけでもない ((This person) won’t become “even” a teacher)
今、二級を勉強していますが、この違い前にあまり分からなかったから、教えてくれてありがとうございます！
@ジェシー
どういたしまして！２級合格しますように！
Maggie sensei, thank you very much for this blog! I am reading it all the time and I have learnt a lot. It is extremely useful.
I have to say only one thing…
I am married to a Japanese, and he often uses わけがない also in a sense that something is easy/simple.
@Sash
Thank you for always visiting this site!
ああ〜That’s “わけない” not “わけがない”
Ex.Q : この問題解ける？
= Kono mondai tokeru?
= Can you solve this problem?
A : わけないよ！
= Wakenai yo!
= It is easy!! / It is a piece of cake!
or
この問題はわけなく解ける
= Kono mondai wa wakenaku tokeru.
= I can solve this problem without any problems.
I should add that to the next lesson, huh?
「訳にはいかない」のレッスンを今か今と待つ！
ありがとう、先生！
@thedustykid
はは、プレッシャ〜〜ありがとう！！ :)
Can I used taisetsu na hito for closed friend and family member?
@michael
Usually 大切な人 refers to one’s significant other, one’s loved one.
But yes, you can refer to your family or friend as 大切な人,too!
Ex. この保険はあなたの大切な人を守ります。
= Kono hoken wa anata no taisetsu na hito wo mamorimasu.
= This insurance will protect someone you care about. (“somone” could be your family)
arigato sensei^-^
Shisureshimashita. Gomenasai (^^)
Ohenji domo arigato gozaimashita.
@michael
どういたしまして！
質問があったらいつでも聞いてね！= Shitsumon ga attara itsudemo kiitene! = Feel free to ask me questions anytime!
I would like this to recommend to my other fellow Japanese language learners. Maggie you’re so good I want to marry you..haha.
冗談だ。やばいだ！
@Ron
What!? You are not going to marry me??? !gejigeji!
If its ok to you! Wjy not. I like people who really help other people.
一番やばいかたを知り合った！マッギさんは！
レッスンはやばかったっすよ！
@Ron
ハハ、やばいっしょ！ :)
(A little correction : 〜を知り合った→〜と知り合った）
Thanks for this lesson ..
Arigatou gozaimasu .. :D
@mikaela
Kochirakoso! Thank you for visiting this site!! Love♡
マギー先生のレッスンを読まなきゃ損！（あ、違うかｗお金払ってねぇし）
明けましておめでとう♪
@curryisyummy
明けましておめでとう！！久しぶり！元気だった？
さすが、腕をあげてもう一人ツッコミできるね（笑）
Hi Maggie-sensei, I have a question. Are these valid Japanese expressions?
もうラブラブになっちゃって
横隔膜突っ張っちゃって
強烈な味にぶっ飛んで
等身大の裏表
脅迫的に縛っちゃって
網膜の上に貼っちゃって
もうラブラブでいっちゃってよ
会いたいたいない、無い！
@twofaced-error
It must be some lyrics. 初音ミク？
もうラブラブになっちゃって、means They got lovey dovey.
強烈な味にぶっ飛んで : ぶっ飛ぶ means “to get really surprised with the strong taste (It is a very extreme expression.)
But other words are just play of words so I don’t know if you can learn Japanese from it. But you can see lots of ちゃって from it huh?
Haha, Maggie-sensei, you got it right. It’s the chorus from Ura-Omote Errors. I was trying to clear things up for myself because of all the different contradicting translations and explanations of the lyrics. I always wondered why the composer wrote a lot of ちゃって in there. At least “toushindai no ura-omote” was the only thing I could understand.
Did I say Errors? Sorry, I meant Ura-Omote Lovers.
@twofaced-error
I guess having lots of chatte in the lyrics gives more upbeat feelings. !onpu!
すみません、日本人にとって新年に普通の年賀状の内容は何ですか。見本が有りますか。ありがとう御座います。
@Fauzi Banzai
このレッスンをチェックしてみて下さいね。
明けましておめでとう！
なるほど！
わかりやすいし役に立つ！
I have read some people saying “あげまして” instead of あけまして. I don’t think they are native Japanese speakers. Is this an alternate saying or a mistake?
今年もまたよろしくお願いします!
@songbanana
Never heard of あげまして. You are right. They are not native Japanese speakers.
Anyway 明けましておめでとう！！
すごいレッソンですよ！とにがく、おとしだまがどこですか？wwwwwじょうだん、じょうだん！あけましておめでとうございます！
@applezoid
明けましておめでとう！！！
You wanna お年玉？Sure!
:u: !onpu!
Everybody! Go visit J.Geeks! It’s a great site!
今年もよろしくね！ :)
oh! おすすめくれてありがとうございます！しつれいしましたごめんなさい！lol
こちらこそ今年もよろしくおねがいします！
このレッソンはJGeeksのFacebook Pageでおすすみました。僕のおとしだまです！
@applezoid
わ〜すごい！お年玉返しありがとう！！ !Naiteyorokobu!
みなさん、よいお年をお迎えください。
@kage
Now I can say 明けましておめでとう！Kage!!!
I simply love your site. Thank you so much for writing all this! ^^
@Panti Happy New Year, Panti! Hope this new year will bring you lots of 愛= love♡
明けましておめでとう！
@Thaisa Happy New Year!! 明けましておめでとう、Thaisa！！
Maggie Sensei,
I wanted to let you know that I LOVE your site and keep coming back for more. I learn so much from you guys so please dont ever stop doing the posts :)
I’m learning Japanese from Singapore!
@Eri
Hi Eri!! Thank you for the nice comment! Hope you keep coming back here from Singapore,too!
Love, you,too!! boucingheart!
先生、勉強になるレッスン有難うございました。
良いお年をお迎えください。
@akakumo
ありがとう！！！akakumoもよいお年をお迎え下さいね。来年もまた一緒に勉強しましょう！！ !onpu!
Sensei,
Thanks for all the lessons you made. I’ve been reading your blog for almost a year now and I’ll always will. It’s fun and I learn a lot.
Belated Merry Christmas to you and your family!
Advance Happy New Year and more powers to your blog! :D
@Amelie
Ohhh how nice! Thank you for visiting this site over a year! Feel free to leave comments anytime.
And Happy Holidays!!! これからもよろしくね！ !happyface!
Hi Maggie sensei,
Thanks for your great lessons.
I have one question:
Is it nomiMosame, or nomiOsame?
Thanks!
@Mo
Hi Mo! Oops! Thank you for spotting the typo! It is nomi osame! I fixed it! ありがとう！
マギー先生！ホントに、ありがとう！
マギー先生の投稿がいつも私に手伝した：D
Please make more entries next year! I can’t wait!
@Kimu
コメントありがとう！！Will make lots of fun lessons next year! 待っててね！
Dear Sensei,
This is the first time I visit your website to learn “How to say Happy New Year in Japanese”. Your lesson is very interesting. Thank you very much for your work. From now on, this website is surely my close friend ;-)
Wish you a Happy New Year,
Yoiotoshii o omukaekudasai!
Han
@Han
Thank you for visiting this site!
Great! That means I now have a new friend here! :)
どうぞよいお年（とし）をお迎（むか）えくださいね！
来年（らいねん）もよろしく！
domo arigatou sensei…
i’m a 14 years old student and i learn japanese in myschool..
with ur site,i can understand everything clearly^_^
@Faika-Chan
Arigatou for your comment! Wow! You are 14 years old and learning Japanese? Ganbattene!!! Good luck! Feel free to leave comments or ask questions here anytime!
マギー先生
いつも楽しい勉強のこと ありがとうございます！
Thank you for all the great lessons. I always enjoy reading your posts especially with your cute pictures too.
I am really looking forward to your new lessons next year!
お疲れ様でした！
@Joanne
Ohhhh how sweet!! Thank you for visiting our site,too!! boucingheart!
来年もがんばって楽しいレッスンいっぱい作りますね！
Dear Maggie-sensei,
Thank you for this lesson, and for all your your lessons this past year!
I wonder though if you would mind explaining why the particle も is used in so many of the example sentences for ～納め
I can maybe understand for the marriage examples, but for the sakura example why is it 桜も見納め as opposed to say 桜は見納め?
いつもありがとうございます!
@Jess
Hi Jess! A good question!
Usually the particle of も is used when we want to say “also” or “and”
犬も猫も好きです。= I like dogs and cats.
マギーもハワイに行くの？= Is Maggie also going to Hawaii?
★桜も見納め
The も here is an exclamatory particle. You can express your feelings towards cherry blossoms.
It is possible to say 桜は見納めです。”は” is used to distinguish from others so it sounds like something else is still keep going.
桜は見納めです。でも他の花はまだ楽しめます。
Hope I answered your question.
Hi again Maggie!
Thank you for your clear concise answer, that clears it up for me! (￣▽￣)b
@Jess
よかった〜！！またね！
domou arigatou sensei^_^..
its help me a lot..thank you!!!
@Faika
こちらこそ！サイトにきてくれてありがとう！またきてね！ :)
マギー先生、thank you very much about the explanation. ^^
Now I understand the differences. Well, I get it when I read these comments, though. :)
Anyway, I’m looking forward for your another lesson! :DDD
@izu
Hi, izu! Thank you for visiting the site. 日本語がペラペラ”になる”様（よう）に私もお手伝（てつだ）いしますね。(= I will help you be fluent in Japanese!) いっしょにがんばりましょう！！ :l:
omg! i found your site when searching for what ‘ukepi’ means. sugoi!!! you are very detailed in your explainations agepoyo!! thank you! :D i would love more slang lessons onegaishimasu!
@xelliwhammy
Thank you for your comment! There are more slang lessons besides this one. Find them in the index. I will keep making more and more slang lesson! また来てね！ :)
maggie sensei~ こんにちは：D
今日もいい勉強になりました、ありがとう！
で、質問があります～
「だから」と比べると、「ですから」はもっと丁寧ですね？丁寧の程度しか違う点がないんですね？
@薫
Hi, 久しぶり！
そうですね、「ですから」は「だから」の丁寧表現ですのでそのまま言い換えることができます。
今日は日曜日です。It’s Sunday today.
That’s why :
だから誰もいないんですね。→
(polite) ですから誰もいないんですね。
Emphasizing what you are trying to say :
だから何回も言ったでしょ！
ですから何回も申し上げたと思います！
There is no difference. The only difference I can think of is, while you can use ですから with i-adjective, you can’t use だから with i-adjective,
Ex. 暑い → 暑いですから （You can’t say 暑いだから. You have to say 暑いから） 怖い→怖いですから （You can’t say 怖いだから You have to say 怖いから）
今日は寒いですから風邪をひかない様に気をつけて下さい。
→X 今日から寒いだから~
→○今日は寒いから~
ちょうちょうちょう～～詳しい！
ちょうちょうちょうありがとう、先生！
ノートにうつしました：D
but there seems to be a tiny miss
「while you can use ですから with na-adjective, you can’t use だから with na-adjective」逆になったみたいですね～
@薫
Haha, I thought you were singing 蝶々 = batterfly チョウチョ song!♪
Oh what I meant was i-adjective. Sorry!
maggie sensei~merry christmas!!!!
* ,
_/^\_
* /.-.\ *
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/`;–.,__ `’) *
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@薫
わ〜〜〜〜〜すご〜〜〜い！！！(ﾉﾟοﾟ)ﾉ クリスマスツリーだ！Thank you 薫！！ありがとう！
(*ﾉ∇ﾟ)ﾉ⌒☆ -=★ -=☆Happy Holidays 2U2!
今年もいろいろお世話になりました,マギー先生！
i love the new year, becuse my birthday is on the 4th day of the 1st month!
@sagi arie
Oh, Hi, sagi!! Thank you for checking the lesson and leaving the comment.
How exciting! You can celebrate New Years and your birthday soon!!!
よいお年を！Sagi!
Hi can I ask if 誰も=誰にも？
@mel
Hi, mel!
誰も and 誰にも :
They are not the same :
１）When に in 誰にも is an Indirect Object Marker, you can’t switch them.
Indirect Object Marker に:
Ex. Maggieにこれをあげます。= I will give this to Maggie
Ex. Maggieに秘密（ひみつ）を話（はな）す。 = to tell Maggie one’s secret.
→
Ex. これは誰にもあげません。= I won’t give this to anybody. (X これは誰もあげません。This means “Nobody will give this.）
Ex. 誰にも秘密を話しません。= I won’t tell my secret to anybody. （X 誰も秘密を話しません。This means “Nobody tells the secret.）
When 誰も is used as a subject,
Ex. Nobody knows = 誰も知らない= daremo shiranai, you can’t say 誰にも知らない= darenimo shiranai. This doesn’t make any sense.
1) When に in 誰にも is used as emphasizing of 誰も, you can switch them.
Nobody knows what I am thinking about.
a: 誰にも私の考えていることはわからない。＞b : 誰も私の考えていることはわからない。
a) emphasizes “Nobody” more than b)
thanks alot maggie sensei!(:
i am now clearer about those two words. however can i ask from your example,
誰にもわからない
= darenimo wakaranai
= Nobody can get /understand it
does 誰にも知らない= darenimo shiranai.
=nobody can know it?
(or does it make no sense like what you said from the previous comment? sorry im a little confused here! gomenasai!)
once again thanks alot!(:
@mel
I assume you already know the difference of the meaning between 知る(= to know, to learn) and わかる (= to understand)
While わかる is an intransitive verb, 知る is a transitive verb and we have to use different particle for each verb.
*(object) がわかる (Note : Occasionally you can say ~をわかる）
*(object) を知る （We never say ~が知る）
We sometimes use に when we want to emphasize the subject.
私は〜がわかる =I understand ~
→subject + には Emphasizing the subject “I” →私には〜がわかる= (emphasizing the subject “I”) ( (Maybe you or other people don’t but ) I understand ~
→subject + にも Adding the nuance of “even” (Even I know ~or Also I know ) →私にも〜がわかる (Even I understand ~ )
Now the verb 知る can’t use with the particle に
*私は〜を知っている。= I know ~ →(negative form) 私は〜を知らない = I don’t know~
So you can’t say 私には〜を知っている or 私に〜を知らない
That is why you can’t say 誰にも知らない。We just say 誰も知らない = Nobody knows.
あっそっか！教えてくれてありがとうございました！有り難いことです。(i backtracked your lessons and found this phrase!^^)ごめんね、i only started learning japanese last year,だから、私の日本語は上手でわない。thankyou so much for your long and detailed explanation! i look forward to your future lessons!(:
@mel
どういたしまして。Hope you keep learning! がんばって！
(a little correction : 上手でわない→上手ではない。）
Could you use tekuru/teiku to say, for example, “are you coming/going to do something”?
So like:
明日にクラブしてくるの？(are you coming clubbing tomorrow?)
^^ thank you
@hanoi_j
Ah, in that case you can say, 明日クラブに行ってくるの？
Other future examples :
明日、彼の家でご飯を食べてくるの？
= Are you going to eat at his house tomorrow?
え～
私も「ノリ」は「海苔」というと思いました。 orz
とことで、 this lesson was very helpful. My Japanese friend always said 「ノリ！」 And every time, I thought she was saying seaweed. XD
@ハリちゃん
Haha! You must have thought your friends just loved seaweed!
Thanks for your blog. I’ve just started reading it recently, but it has really helped make some things clear. It really helps since I live in Japan
@Ace I am happy to hear you found us! また来てね！
hi maggie! great lesson as always. i think the way u teach is perfect pls don’t change. what edo said was absurd (sorry) so pls don’t think you have to do something insane like that u do enuf work as it is.
@edo just use firefox rikaichan (i forgot name -something like this…rikachan?) it lets you read kanji just by scrolling over it. all u mentioned is work u can do to learn better.
maggie gives us enough material as it is.
anyways
good luck edo!
@wata
Thank you, wata! I am always open to hear what people want. Rikaichan is a great suggestion! Lots of people are using it. ありがとう！
@Wata and Sensei
Thanks for Rikaichan, I have installed it and yes it is useful for reading kanji as it is automatically extracting the full word :p
Domo arigatou gozaimasu
@edo Wonderful!! Yokattane!! Thank you, @wata again for your information!
Your website is a godsend! I’m just starting to learn japanese and couldn’t have found a better site than yours. Just right on time! Thanks.
@Eee
Thank you, Eee!! (→Easy to remember your nick name!) Hope you come back here often! またね！ !happyface!
Wow Maggie, this is a really comprehensive section! Thank you so much I read all of it. You must be so busy all day, I hope you have time for walks!
@whosaidpie
Thank you for checking this lesson! Yes, I am busy going for a walk, chasing a cat, playing with a toy, etc. etc. :)
sensei! i just find your blog when i was looking for this expression! it is amazing! i study japanese at school but with you i can learn the real slang! cool! i am very happy! you teach better than my japanese teachers! thank you very very much! yoroshiku!!
@cheo
Hi cheo! Thank you for visiting this site! I am happy to read your nice comment. あげぽよ〜♩
これからもよろしく！！
あー
See, I always reffered to Valentine’s Day as Singles Awareness Day. XD I wonder how you’d say that in Japanese?
Anywayー
In my small town in アメリカ on ホワイトデー、 all the couples get more でれでれ and clingy, while the singles are left out of everything and get all ツンツン. Though, both men and women give valentines-themed chocolates, candy, and cards mostly as friends. I’ve seen a lot of marriage proposals on Valentines day. Couples going steady, married couples and people in that category give jewelry, but that’s usually men-to-women. (Girls give watches, though, I guess -shrugs-)
I remember in elementary school, we had to decorate shoe boxes and make a card for everyone to put in them (If you made them only for a few people, you wouldn’t be allowed to hand them out).
I heard that on White Day, sometimes they get ribbons in Japan? Or just a rumor?
Oh gosh, this turned out long. Sorry. ///
いつもありがとね～
@ハリちゃん
コメントありがとう！I enjoyed reading it. Loved the idea of shoe boxes! It is always interesting to hear about other country’s culture. Haha! でれでれ vs ツンツン, huh? It is universal but at least Japanese girls have 友チョコ or マイチョコ so that girls have an excuse to buy ourselves chocolates and eat them.
(I have never heard about getting ribbons on White Day.)
授業を読んだのにドラマを見ながら「だから」と「それで」をよく聞き取りました。
ええと、実はこれは言いたいことがあります：
“Ever since i read your lesson…”
日本語でどう言いますか。
@Bruce
Ah, OK,how about
Ever since I read your lesson = このレッスンを読んでから(or 読んで以来ずっと）〜よく聞き取ることが出来ます。And GREAT! I am very happy to hear that!
ありがとうございました。
いい勉強になります。
Konnichiwa Maggie sensei,
Edo to moshimasu :p
My Japanese level is still very low and I am really that I found your webpage !!!!!
It is really a great great great and a big big work you are doing… This website, Facebook, Twitter, different categories, many example, audios, Pictures, different colors, cute icons…. wooooowww amazing !!!!
I would liek to know if it is possible to change a little bit the way how you are wrtting the sentences to make more easy to learn the Japanese sentances and words…
Here an example of what I mean:
I took one of your sentence:
母は元気だから心配ない。
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
It is already a big work by writting in Japanese, then hiragana and finally english, this is good for each level, but I think there are few more things which are missing to make even more effective the learning…
For this sentence:
母は元気だから心配ない。
I think putting spaces for each word will make easy to read and learn each words and later, it will be easy to recognize when the word start and finish…
For somebody who does not read well japanese, it is difficult to know if は元気 is a full word or not… Furthermore, 母 is a kanji which means HAHA (2 syllables), If I use your romanji sentence, it is difficult to make the relation for each Kanji/Hiragan to romanji…
Therefore, putting a space between each words will make easy to differentiate all words…
For these sentences:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
I think it can be really helful to add one more line with the translation of each word in English, like that:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= Mum about good so nothing to worry
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
Like this is easy to know the meaning of each word and also to learn a structure of japanese sentences
In your english sentence, it is perfectly English but in the japanese sentence, there is no “I” which is “watashi”, there is no “my” which is “no”, etc…
If I should translate your English sentence in Japanese, I will say like this:
= My mom is healthy so there is nothing I worry about.
= Watashi no Haha wa genki desu. Dakara shinpai nai
Which is word by word translation but this is not a normal way to write…
Your sentence is more usual:
= Haha wa genki dakara shinpai nai.
= Mum about good so nothing to worry
Looks like normal Japanese sentences are very short and straight forward comparing to European sentence structure…
This is why, I think it is really important and really helpful to add this word translation…
I do hope I am not offending you, I just want to learn Japanese and I could see many, many websites which try to teach Japanese but you are the only one who is close to the perfection (to my eyes) and adding that will even help more the learning of Japanese language…
Yoroshiku oneigashimasu
Edo
@Edo
Wow!!! Thank you for the long comment!
I really appreciate your support and feedback for this site.
I just got another request to add one more line just in Hiragana.
To be honest, it is going to be a lot of work for me and I am not sure if I can do that.
Also many people think my lessons are too long and they will be even longer.
But I can see how important for you to learn example sentences word by word so…
If there are many other people who want me to explain word by word as you suggested, I will give it a try in some lessons (not all of them but just the one for the beginners) as a trial.
So anybody who want more lines, feel free to leave a comment here.
Thank you again for your comment! I am very happy that you visit here to learn Japanese!
Sensei,
Many thanks for your time to reply to my message…
Here too I can see how Japanese people are very humble… other people will either not read and delete such message or simply reply… you are not happy of the way I am doing the things, do it yourself… :p
Yes I can understand the people who wants Hiragana only sentences… when I am looking a specific words in my Japanese Jisho, for the Kanji, it is difficult because, we need to know the stroke order to find the good word… when we use electronic jisho, we have either to enter Romanji syllables or write in hiragana to get the kanji and then get the definition…
This is why from my experience, having a space between the words, may help when we are looking into dictionaries, where the word start and finish.
I will say that a sentence including kanji with spaces and romanji sentences should be enough. If there is a kanji we do not understand, we can use the romanji way to enter it into the dictionary to get the definition of the kanji.
Something like: 母, you gave us the romanji HAHA, therefore we can get the Kanji in the dictionary (electronic dictionary of course :p)
But getting only Kanji is difficult as we do not know yet all basic kanjis…
Some people are right some comments in your pages only in good Japanese, I cannot understand
and I am sure it can very very interesting…
Yes you are prefectly right saying that I learn the sentence word by word.
As mentioned in my previous message and as you know the Japanese sentence structure is very different of European sentence structure.
Here your example:
Ichiman en wo hirotte doushitakatte?
What did I do with the 10,000 yen I picked up?
This is a literally translation of Japanese to English. If I want to create my own sentence:
What did I do with the mobile phone I picket up ?
I will translate first the Japanese sentence word by word to know each words, for the ones I do not know, I will look into the dictionary…
I get:
Ichiman = ten thousand
en = yen
wo = about (object marker)
hirotte = pick up
Doushitakatte = What do you do
then in English, it will be:
Ten thousand yen about pick up what do you do
I do not see I, with, etc… Once again I can see how Japanese sentences are straight forward…
Thus to make my Sentence I will do something like this:
Mobile phone about pick up what do you do
Denwa wo hirotte Doushitakatte ?
Is is correct sentence ??
But unfortunately, yes you are right, it is giving much more, much more work to you
I do not think that your lesson are too long as you are giving many examples with different conditions, this is really helpful.
Like the “Anata” lesson, my first time I see such lesson, I never saw it in Lesson book and other websites…
I learnt a lot and now I prefer to say the name of the person + san instead of Anata, I find it more respectful, more polite
Domo arigatou gozaimasu sensei !!!!!!
@Edo
Again, thank you so much for your message. I read every single word.
When I first started to make this site, I had no idea which level I should have aimed for. Everybody should have a different level. I assume people who visit this site have been studying basic Japanese with a text book or at school. Also there are a lot of great Japanese teaching sites explaining all the details of the grammar, kanji, letters and everything.
So I wanted our site to be a bit different from others and help people learn “natural” Japanese more than textbook Japanese.
But you are right. Many of the example sentences here must be very confusing for the beginners because they are different from what they have been learning at school. Like skipping personal pronouns or casual contractions, etc.
One thing I can tell you now is, please believe me. All your confusion will be eventually disappeared. If you keep studying, you will be able to separate the sentence without problems and tell which word you have to look up in a dictionary and stuff.
And meanwhile I can always help you here, on Twitter or FB. if you have a question.
Now about your question,
Yes, you can say
Denwa wo hirotte Doushitakatte ?
The problem of translating word by word is a particle
を is not always “about” in English. In English they say”To pick up + object” and there is no translation for を
So it may be different from what you asked me, as I said, if many other people want me to make more beginner friendly lessons, I will give it a try to make a lesson with all the explanation of the words.
Anyway ありがとう again for all your wonderful suggestions!
Sensei,
Thanks again for you comment but yes it will be a big work, therefore no need to do it…
domo sumimasen :)
@edo
OK, will see what I could do to make everybody happy here. Please keep visiting me here, OK?
いつも通り良いレッソン、ありがとうね。
@WolfHavenXIII
こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがとう！！
I notice Japnanese people tweeting in English use nau instead of now.
@Jeremy
You know why なう！ :)
Makes me think of when you’re on the train in Japan, they say something like あぶないですから、足元を注意してください。or something like that. I think I remember seeing a little Hello Kitty sticker saying something similar in regards to sticking your fingers in the door.
That’s some good info. I’ve been looking for a good phrase for “Oh that’s what that means,” or something. I’ve always been saying ああ、なるほど which maybe sounds like I’m being lectured or something, maybe?
Anyway, a brilliant lesson as always!
@applezoid
いつもサイトに来てくれてありがとう！
Ah, yes,
あぶないです”から”、足下に注意してください。
this “から” also has a function to give a reason.
ああ、なるほど！ is a very common phrase and as you said, we use it when we learned something.
Hope you can master various usages of “だから” and ”それで”!
ありがとうマギー先生。 小さいミスがありますけど。
= I can’t get out of him out of my mind, and I can’t do anything else.
There is an extra “out of”!
@Bruce
Thank you, Bruce♡ 直しました！！
That’s a wonderful blog!! Thanks a lot!!!
I’m just wondering about a phrase Cygnus used: 「見逃してほしけりゃ」
What does ほしけりゃ mean and when is it used?
Sorry, just found the lecture about りゃ（あ）＆じゃ（あ）
so 欲しけりゃ comes from 欲しければ and means something like “if you want”?
たとえば： 旅行して欲しけりゃ夏休みにイタリアへ行かない？
@hanako
Good! you found the answer from my りゃ（あ）lesson.
欲しければ or 欲しけりゃ means “If you want me to do something”
旅行して欲しけりゃ夏休みにイタリアへ行かない？→(correction) You mean “If you want to go traveling, why don’t you go to Italy”？ Then it will be
旅行したけりゃ夏休みにイタリアに行けば？
If you are asking this person to go to Italy with, you can say
旅行したけりゃ夏休みにイタリアに一緒に行かない？
分かります！
I used to think ‘mame’ only meant beans. Thanks for clearing that up. That would’ve been awkward. XD
流石先生ね～
ありがとね！
@ハリちゃん
Yes, it would sound weird if you don’t know the meaning and someone calls you “You are really beans” ! :)
えと～
私の好きな日本語の言葉は…イギリス。
I know that it’s just the Japanese word for England, but I just like the sound of it. I dunno why. XD
Oh! I also like 水 and 音 because those were the first Japanese words I learned for a haiku in middle school.
I know. I’m kinda weird. XD
～ハリちゃん
@ハリちゃん
イギリスって言葉（ことば）が好（す）きなんですね。おもしろ〜い！！
いいですよ〜! 人それぞれで！=Everyone is different
I found this site last night– Wow! It’s showed me that I still have a lot to learn… ;; ;; ;;
But, I’m really happy I found it! It’s helped me so much! あげぽよ~! \(^o^)/
You’re so informative and I’m learning more that ever! I’ve heard rumors that you were a good teacher. I’m glad I decided to check it out!
ありがとう~!
(I hope I got those right. ;;)
@ハリちゃん
Thank you for finding us!! Check the index and check the lesson you like.
Feel free to leave a comment or a question anytime.
これからもよろしくね〜！！ :)
Hi Maggie,
I wonder if you have heard of these ones. What kind of nuance do they convey? I
おい: I found it in the sentence おいも強い I think. Is this a deformation of 俺 maybe?
おはん: I think this is from Kagoshima dialect.
おまはん: Kyoto dialect? Because they tend to use H instead of S, like いきまひょうか。
己: maybe used for samurai? Could this actually mean both you or me 自分?
お前さん: this translates as “buddy, pal”, right?
I became a Japanese into Spanish translator and I’m interested in knowing the nuances :-). Thank you a lot for being so useful and helpful, Maggie.
@Cygnus
おい？Never heard of it. おいら, yes. You may have heard in anime. Takeshi Kitano (aka Beat Takeshi) always refers to himself.
I have never heard of おはん either. It must be a dialect.
おまはん、yes. It is Kyoto dialect but and it is equivalent to おまえさん。In Kyoto, they use はん for さん. And it is used towards someone close to them.
Since はん sounds very soft and gentle, even though they say おまえ、it is not rude or blunt.
お前さん also sound friendly but I don’t know if it is “buddy” or “pal” because older people use it to refer to younger people.
And you are right. 己 can be used as “I” or “you”. You have to be very careful when you address someone with おのれ. It is very aggressive.
I know it is impossible to translate these in Spanish. It is all going to be “tú”
Hi Maggie!
Thank you for another great lesson. I have a question.
Ex. 後は任せたよ！
= Ato wa makaseta yo!
= I will leave the rest up to you.
Can the past have a future nuance? Did you mean to write “後は任せるよ！”?
@Cygnus
Yes, this form has a future nuance.
We say 任せたよ for future.
The difference between 任せたよ and 任せるよ is very subtle.
I would say 任せたよ involves stronger feeling (Ex. As I told you, I am counting on you to have completed what I asked you for) than 任せるよ( I don’t care much, You just take care of it.)。
The same thing with 頼（たの）んだよ and 頼（たの）むよ = Please do something.Please take care of it/ I depend on you.
頼んだよ emphasizes more than 頼むよ
Excellent! I will never forget this :-).
ところで, is there a way to donate via Paypal to Red Cross or you? I checked the link but I’m not sure they accept Paypal.
@Cygnus
I have checked if you can donate to Red Cross via PayPal and found this link.
http://www.paypal-japan.com/charity/
Oh sorry…It seems to be over… I will let you know if I find it out.
There seem to have a lot of scam so please be careful,though.
あ！学べるニュースで出た「Ｘさんのノリがいいですね」の「ノリ」。
以前この表現について優しいマギーに聞いたけど、徹底的な説明をしてくれてどうもありがとう！さすがマギー。
@Cygnus
前に質問されましたっけ？毎日多くの質問に答えているから忘れちゃった。 :) でも「ノリ」はよく使う言葉だから自然に使えるといいですね。
自腹を切るって、面白いですね
勉強になりました、ありがとう先生！
質問は一つあるんですか
日本語で ‘go dutch’ と同じ意味の表現がありますか？
@薫
go dutch = split the billは”割り勘（わりかん）”と言います。
Ex. 「今日は、割り勘ね！」= Let’s split the bill today!
ありがとう、先生～
文を作ってみます：
今日、クラス全員の飲み会は割り勘にしました。
正しいですか？
@薫
完璧（かんぺき）です！ !happyface!
Hi sensei! I missed you and your site! I’m sorry if I haven’t been around lately but I promise to catch-up.
Btw, thanks for the lessons and Happy Halloween!^^
@Amelie
Hey, Amelie! ひさしぶり！！！+ お帰りなさい！！ !CHECKHEART! I missed you,too!!
How have you been? Hope you had a fun Halloween!!! :h:
thenk you! i still confuse letters like は and ほ
but i lernt most of them!
ありがとう！
@mento da sheep
Great! Now you can move onto Kanji!
Hi, I am a native Japanese speaker and I think your lessons are very interesting and useful even for me.
But I don’t think the word アリ literally came form あり得る/有り得る. This is because in this case the opposite word of アリ is ナシ.
For example, you can say:
スイカに塩をかけるのは，アリですか，ナシですか。
or
スイカに塩をかけるのは，やっぱりナシですか。
If アリ is a short form of 有り得る, how do we explain ナシ? We have 有り得る but don’t have 無し得る.
So, I think it is natural to consider that these アリand ナシ are directly came from classical Japanese words あり and なし, whose modern forms are ある and ない, respectively.
As you know, あり and なし are still often used idiomatically in modern Japanese, and I think アリ (あり) itself can deliver the meaning of possibility just like ある in “そんなことあるかな？”.
Moreover, I think アリ (あり) is not a very rude slang. Indeed, it is not suitable for writing, but you can say “〜という対策もありだと思います” or “社長に直接相談してみることもありだと思います” in your business meeting.
We have to investigate when the expression was coined.
@脈あり脈なし様
はじめまして！日本人の方もこのサイトに来て下さるのですね。有り難うございます！！
まずアリの説明ですが、このレッスンでは元の言葉は「ある」か「あり得る」のどちらかということで説明しました。
実際、”アリ”は「ある」だけにすると”経験があるかどうか”という解釈にもつながるかもしれない（→すいかに塩をかけたことはありますか？）そして”~することがあるか”だけではなく”〜することが許容範囲か、出来うるか”と結構、気持的なものが加わることの多い言葉だと思い「あり得る」も表記してあります。その辺りがうまくこのサイトに来て下さっている皆さんに理解を頂けていればいいのですが…
例えば、
「〜君と付き合うのアリ？」
「なし！/ない！」
というシチュエーションの場合、「なし／ない」はもちろん「なし得る」ではなくレッスンで説明した様に「ありえない」かと思います。
Moreover, I think アリ (あり) is not a very rude slang.
→全く同感です。カジュアルだけれども失礼な表現ではないですよね。
俗語も毎回真剣勝負で毎日学ぶことばかりです。 :grin: これからも宜しくお願い致します！
マギー先生、有り難うございました。勉強になりました。今私が敬語と仕事用の語彙を勉強し始めましたが、もしこのようなレッスンをもっと教えて頂ければ有り難いです。
因に、パソコンのファイルを話している時に、「サーバーに落とす」の表現はよく聞いています。あれは「サーバーに移動する」という意味なのでしょうか？他の意味がありますか？
以上、有り難うございます。
@dans
ちょっと難しいかなって思いましたが、このレッスンがお役に立てればうれしいです。「サーバーに落とす」＝「サーバーに移す」でいいと思います。
「サーバーが落ちる」の方もよく使いますが、こちらの意味は、ネットの接続が切れることです。
This was a great lesson! I am a member of the Moron Army but I’ve not spent much time on this site. I really should though…this info is so infortmative! Thanks, I WILL be visiting more often =) BTW I think you forgot “ni” in the romanji sentence “Haha wa itsumo watashi ga chanto tabete iru ka ki ni shite iru.”
@csleverette
Thank you for spotting the typo. I fixed it. Yes, please visit this site more often.
Sensei!
This is quite sometime already but I want to ask this:
ちゃうやちゃったは「しまう、しまった」
Its short for しまいます＆しまいました
But aren’t they use for time when its like you did something and regret something. Or something like It’s not exactly good thing to do. Isn’t it?
@Sakuraiba201
Yes, it is. As I wrote in the lesson, “ちゃった” expresses the feeling of regret for the things you have done.
Please read the part in the lesson,
↓
To express how shocked or full of regret you are,
Ex.「しまった、家に忘れてきちゃった！」~~~
Great lesson!
@giugnhgbvinierngvb89
Thank you!!
私的にはとっても役に立つと思うんだ.
@mike
そう、マイク”的”にはこのレッスン、役に立ったのね。www よかった！ :)
先生、ご無沙汰しております
相変わらずわかりやすいレッソンを作りましたね
最高です！
実は、私、試験に通って、今日本の大学別科に勉強してます：D それで、先生と少しでも近づいてましたねLOL
もしコトバが間違っていったら、直してくれますか？
ありがとう：D
@薫
お久しぶりです！試験合格、おめでとうございます！！日本の大学生活はどうですか？
はい、それでは添削しますね。
＊レッソン→レッスン
＊大学別科に→で
＊それで、先生と少しでも近づいてましたね→これで先生と少し（でも）近づきましたね。
楽しい学生生活を過ごして下さいね！！
直してくれてありがとう、先生！
「に」と「で」はしょっちゅう間違っているので、困っていますわ。
「大学で」の「で」は、範囲ですか？
「に」も、範囲の意味がありそうですね、どうしてかな～
@薫
「に」と「で」の使い分けはみなさん、苦労しているみたいですね。Twitterでも一度練習したことがありますが、また機会があったらレッスンを作ってまとめてみますね。
「勉強する」というactivityをする時は「〜で（勉強をする）」を使います。
そうですか。twitterでも練習しましたね。
捜してみます。
じゃあ、
大学で勉強している。
会社で働いている。
ただしいですか？
@薫
*大学で勉強している。
*会社で働いている。
そうそう、二つとも合ってます！！ :h:
As for the quiz, check May 1st quiz in Maggie’s room on this site.
先生のブローグはとてもべんりです！
みつかってよかったです。
from now i will visit your blog at least once every week.(先生、この文を日本語に訳していただけませんでしょうか？)
先生、もし、間違ったところがあれば直してください。どうぞよろしくおねがいします！＝）
@Edwin
はじめまして、Edwin! は〜い、じゃあちょっと直しますね。
•ブローグ→ブログ
•みつかってよかったです。→ It is grammatically correct but not natural. We use this phrase when you find something you have been looking for.
So （このブログを）みつけることができて(or このブログにであえて）よかったです。or うれしいです。 will be more natural.
あとはよく書けてましたよ！
★from now i will visit your blog at least once every week
→ これから少（すく）なくとも毎週（まいしゅう）１回（かい）はこのブログに来（き）ます。
ありがとう！またいつでもこのブログに来て下さいね！
from now i will visit your blog at least once every week
Great post, I always wondered about the difference between those two — sounds like its pretty subtle in meaning, but the difference is more in usage.
来週に東京に行くので、僕の日本語を気なって来ます。
tried to say: since I am going to Japan next week, I am getting concerned about my Japanese ability.
気is a very interesting word, and one we talk about quite a bit in 合気道 Aikido. In fact, here is a blog post about Ki on aikiweb readers might find useful. http://www.aikiweb.com/language/ki_phrases.html
Thanks again for your lesson. I don’t know how you do it, but keep it up!
@applezoid
Good! Youu picked the right one. Just a little correction though…
気なって→ 気になって
So it will be 来週東京に行くので、僕の(or 自分の）日本語（能力=nouryoku）が気になってきました。
Thank you for the link.
I tried 合気道 for 6 months in past. It was wonderful!
Doh! I forgot the に！lol Yes Aikido is great. I’ve been doing it for nearly four years now and I love it!
@applezoid
Oh then you are an expert of “気” !! :)
Lol Nope, I’m only scratching the surface — just like Japanese, it’s a lifelong pursuit!
ずっと気になってたところを教えてくれてありがとうございます。すごく役に立てましたよ。
@Yuki
どういたしまして！さっそくチェックしてくれてうれしいです！
Note : ずっと気になってた→もうちゃんと使えますね〜♪
(A little correction : 役に立てました→almost! 役に立ちました)
これからもわからなくなったらいつでも聞いてくださいね。
授業は相変わらず役に立ちました。
ありがとうございます
「外見を気にしてばかりいる男性が増えてきた。」
私にはこの文法が少し難しいです。
Can you please explain: te + bakari iru？！
@Bruce
Sure! 「~てばかりいる 」は、一つのことだけをずっとやっているときにつかいます。
★verbて + ばかりいる = just doing something、keep doing something, always doing something
Ex. 彼は食(た）べてばかりいる =He is always eating. / He just keeps eating.
Ex. Bruceは勉強（べんきょう）ばかりしている = Bruce is always studying.
Ex. マギーは仕事（しごと）をしないで遊（あそ）んでばかりいる。= Maggie just plays around and she doesn’t work.
Feel free to make a sentence. I can correct you.
ありがとう。
例文を作ってみます。
彼は急いでばかりいる
He is always hurrying?!
@Bruce
完璧= かんぺき＝Perfect!!! Good job!
いいレッスンだろうーー！
あとで、僕の顏の写真を見せます。
そして・・・先生に体の部分を言います。
Will I remember all of them?
@Rafael.
Hi Rafa! このレッスンはRafaの顔の写真を使って作った方がよかったね。私には眉毛（まゆげ=eyebrow）がないから www :)
Maggie, why not mentioning that famous 落ち from those Japanese comedians? They always ended up saying ダメだこりゃ！ I would like to know about them actually, hah.
I’d also buy your books, hehe.
@Cygnus
Wow! I’m impressed that you know the line ダメだこりゃ! www
You’re right. It is a famous line of いかりや長介, a leader of a comedian group, ドリフターズ.
It is a kind of old show but it used to be very popular.
There is a series of the skit in their show called,
もしもこんな〜がいたら/あったら What if there is a person like this in ~ / What if there is a place/shop/ like this.
Ex.もしもこんな先生がいたら…Ex. もしもこんな病院があったら
Here’s a link! “もしもシリーズ”
They show a very extreme situational comedy skit. And it always finish with a line of the leader, ダメだこりゃ!
Good! Now I can sell at least “5” books!
先生、ちょっとまちがいましたかもしれない。
この辺：
B ; 「見ればわかるでしょ！。」
= Mireba wakaru dewa nai desuka.
= Can’t you tell?/ Isn’t it obvious? (If you see something/somebody you will know what it is/who they are.)
見りゃ(あ）わかるでしょ！(casual)
= Mirya(a) wakaru janai ka.
@WolfHavenXIII
Ooops!! ほんとだ〜！
途中で文章変えたんですがローマ字を変えるのを忘れていました。ありがとう！！
dear Maggie sensei、
I’ve got a problem with this phrase 「熱く なつちまってる」 cus I know only 熱く but what is なつち and why まって＋いる ＝waiting？？？
I don’t know where to post this pharse cus I don’t get its structure then after I met “atsui” I decided to post it here, hope u don’t mind ><.
@Nicole
Haha, I wonder where you saw the line. It is a kind of vulgar. Anyway it must be
熱くなっちまってる with small っ not 熱くなつちまてる
The original line is
熱くなってしまっている = it has become hot
By using ~ってしまう or ~ってしまっている, you can express your feelings of regret or dissatisfaction for the result or certain condition.
So it means “It got hotter than it should be/we expected / It shouldn’t be this hot but it has become hot.)
Now let’s see how they change :
★present tense / future tense : なってしまう →(more vulgar) なっちまう = will be ~ / will turn into ~ / will become / becomes /changes to
★present tense / present progressive form : なってしまっている →(more vulgar) なっちまっている = to be ~ / is being/ is becoming /to have become ~ /to have changed to ~
★past tense / past perfect form : なってしまった→（more vulgar) なっちまった = has become ~ / became ~ / has turned into ~ /turned into / have changed to/ changed to
so なっちまう／なっちまってる／なっちまった are all very casual/vulgar male speech (a bit old fashioned)
Hope I answered your question.
doumo arigatou Maggie sensei….LOVE UUUUU
I’ve got this phrase from a manga, it’s shounen type. I’m trying to translate it cause this book in my country has too late publishing. Then I gotta face with many strange structures plz help me.
like this one…
熱く”なっち”まってる –> 熱く”なって”しまっている
That means whenever I meet this “なっち” can I always presume it is “なって”,right ? and its measuring like “damn”?
and in まってる the author can leave ”い” anytime isn’t it?
Sensei from this phrase, Does it have some other young men using in real life? or this is a bookish word?
and the last one I know only this word “熱くなっている” form but what’s まう and まってる they’re using only with vulgar expression?
sorry to ask alot and Thank you in advance
@Nicole Hi, Nicole!
OK, let me answer your questions one by one.
1)That means whenever I meet this “なっち” can I always presume it is “なって”,right ? and its measuring like “damn”? →Yes
2)and in まってる the author can leave ”い” anytime isn’t it?→Yes, we can either leave it or delete it.
3) Does it have some other young men using in real life? or this is a bookish word?→Yes. Not necessary young men.. some older men use it in real life as well. But women don’t use it.
4)まう and まってる they’re using only with vulgar expression?→This suffix is used with なっち and you have to think as a set. And yes, it is a rough expressions.
FYI not just なっちまう you can form this type of phrases with other verbs.
やってしまう→やっちまう→やっちまった
食べてしまう→食べちまう→食べちまった
etc.
あああ～ 分かったね.Then these examples should say like this, right?
やってしまう –> Damn..to do this.(that I don’t want to do.)
やっちまった –> Oop! I did it.
Thank you Maggie Sensei for the wonderful explaining.
@Nicole
Yes, and these expressions implies the feeling of regret.
FYI やっちまえ！is a typical line for Yakuza type of people which means “Kill!” “Beat them up!
and やっちまった is often used now as a joke when you made a mistake.
really cool, yeah that´s right we don´t learn these sentences at the school… Thanx… Jya…
@andre
Thank you for your comment!
じゃあ、またね！ !happyface!
失恋する＝to have one’s heart broken??
マギー先生のレッスン最高だから変えないでね！
＜３３３
@Aki
Yes, 失恋する literally means “to lose love” so it means “to get one’s heart broken” /”to get brokenhearted”
ン？
いつもありがと、Aki! !CHECKHEART!
このレーソンは面白いったらありゃしない！Awesome lesson. Have you ever thought about writing some kind of book? I would definitely buy a copy, and probably one for a couple friends of mine learning Japanese too.
とにがく、それじゃ；）
@aookezoid
Haha, you can use them perfectly!
Yes, I’d love to publish a book someday. じゃあ、本を作ったら２、３冊は確実に売れますね！ :)
もちろん！
本を書いて下さい！ブログを読んだら、いつもたくさん学びますよ！
ありがとうございます〜ミ☆
@Claudia
ありがとう、Claudia!! それじゃあいつか本が出たらよろしくね！
詳しい説明ありがとうございます！
Like someone else said, I think learning how to (not) use あなた is kind of a benchmark in learning Japanese. You can tell when people are getting really good because they start using casual speech and stop using あなた all the time like in English :D
I have a question about talking to people your own age or younger. When do I use くん or ちゃん or さん or just their name? When I was a 留学生 most of my friends were studying English so I just used their first names, but I noticed some of my friends referred to each other differently. One guy was always called by his last name, so I started to call him that too. And some of my girl friends were called ちゃん. Are these things just なんとなく? Is it OK to ask people what they want to be called?
@songbanana
Good question! It is important to observe how your Japanese friends call each other. Usually you have to go through a certain process. We don’t usually call someone with chan or kun/ nickname or yobisute when you meet them for the first name. You can gradually change the way you call them but yes, it is totally OK to ask people how to address them.
Ex. 「どう (or なんて) 呼んだらいい？」
Ex. 「マギーちゃんて呼んでもいい？」
Ex. 「みんなに何て呼ばれている？」→「じゃあ私（or 僕）もそうやって呼んでもいい？」
(These examples are very casual)
Hello Maggie sensei! Thank you so much for the great lesson’s; they’re always so insightful and informative. I have a question: if you are the person who is treating someone else, what is a polite and humble way to respond if they say ご馳走様でした to you? Also if you are the one who is again treating the other person, does it appear arrogant to say ご馳走様でした yourself or is it a way of expressing thanks (ie to God/the restaurant etc) at the end of the meal?
よろしくお願いします。
P.S I’m sorry for the long question! m(_ _)m
@Sarah86 Hi, Sarah! It is a really good question! I made this lesson a long time ago so I should add more inf.
If you treat someone, you don’t say 御馳走様でした。to the person you invited. But you can say that to the waiter, chef, restaurant owner when you leave.
★If you invite people, serve food and they say “御馳走様でした。” to you, you say ”
Ex. いえいえ、何のお構いもできませんで…
= Ieie nanno okamai mo dekimasen de.
= Not at all. I couldn’t serve you enough. (humble)
Ex. お口に合いましたか？
= Okuchi ni aimashita ka?
=Did it taste good enough for you?
Ex. お粗末様でした。
= Osomatsu sama deshita.
= It was a poor service/food. (lol!! I know this sounds too humble but our parents generation say that often.)
★If you take someone out and they say 御馳走様でした。to you, you could say
Ex. いえいえ、これ位のもので。お口に合ったらいいのですが..
= Ieie koregurai no mono de… Okuchi ni attara ii no desuga…
=Not at all. This is nothing. Hope this tasted good enough for you. (humble)
Ex. どういたしまして。私も楽しかったです。
= Douitashimashite. Watashi mo tanoshikatta desu.
= It’s my pleasure. I had a good time.
Ex. こちらこそ、お忙しい中、有り難うございました。
= Kochirakoso oisogashii naka arigatougozaimashita.
= ( It’s me who has to say thank you. Even though you were busy you made time for me.) Thank you for your time. (to someone superior)
Ex. どういたしまして。また美味しいもの(を）食べに行きましょう！
= Douitashimashite. mata oishii mono (wo) tabeni ikimashou.
= My pleasure! Let’s go out and eat something delicious again!
Maggie先生, 本当にありがとうございました！You’re the best!! :D Thank you so much for taking the time to give such a detailed response! I will apply what you have taught me. Thank you so much again :) x
@Sarah86
You’re very welcome! また来てね！
I dont think you will get back to me any time soon on ths but if you do thank you soo much. But i was wondering whats the best way to learn all 3 styles of writing? Ive spent roughly 4-8 hours studying and i have one down but the other one im not worried about but kanji is the one i cant get. Any tips?
@Johnathan
Hi Johnathan
So I assume you know how to write/read hiranagana now and work for katakana soon.
Kanji look all intimidating but take baby steps unless you are in hurry.
Set a goal how many kanji you will study for certain period of time.
You can get a kanji workbook but I believe there are a lot of free kanji sites out there,too.
More importantly, enjoy learning kanji. :)
Awesome lesson Maggie! Now I know how to use -rashii!
@Robert
Now it’s time to practice!!
My favorite song!
@majoringram3636
No way! Isn’t it a great song? !onpu!
Sure, MaggieSensei. It’s a very nice song with meanings. My Japanese friend recommended it to me. :)
@majoringram3636
I am happy to hear that. It is very catchy! I am still singing “どんなときも〜♫” on and on in my head after I made this lesson. !happyface!
Awesome post as always. I read another post about 自分becoming more popular with young people recently, even using the phrase 自分のなかで to say “I” with a real sense of reservation. If I remember right, it had to do with opinions or likes and dislikes, and was a way of de-emphasizing themselves in the conversation. ie 自分の中でにんじんあんまり好きじゃなくて．．．Has this been your experience, recently? I will be visiting my host family at the end of the month and wonder if it will impress them if I throw this in the conversation once in a while…
@applezoid
Ah, like 自分の中で好きな〜, 自分の中でブーム(=マイブーム）、自分の中でホットな~ , etc? You are right. More people have started to say this and I am sure you can impress your host family if you use it once or twice. :)
hello!
thank you for the wonderful lesson- this is so useful.!
i saw a video recently where an idol used this expression
今日のメイク乗り悪いんですけど。。
i think is what she said, so was she saying
“i wasn’t so excited about today’s makeup but….”
(that would make sense w the rest of the video)
?
also you wrote
みんな、ノってる？
could one also write
みんな、ノっている？
without changing the meaning? is the first one just more slangy?
Thank you!
@WATA
Hello, WATA!!
Ah, OK, メイクのノリがいい／悪い is different from ノリがいい／悪い.
化粧（けしょう）／メイクのノリがいい means make-up goes on smoothly. When you have a nice smooth skin condition, your skin absorbs all the make up cream, lotion, foundation, powder etc. well and you look good after wearing the make-up.
As for your second question,
ノッてる = ノっている
We often omit ”い” in casual Japanese.
三九！
@WATA
You’re very welcome!
*the telephone rings*
もしもし、ラファエルと申しますが、マギー先生いらっしゃいますか？
うん～！ちょっと待ってよ！
*after a minute*
ごめんなさい・・・今、先生がいません。
本当に？先生がどこに行きました？分かりますか？
わかんないよ・・・でも御伝言を承りましょうか？
おーけー・・・「ただいま！」先生に言って。 よろしくお願いします。
@Rafael.
www Yay!!!!伝言聞いたよ！！お帰り〜〜〜〜!!! Rafa!!!!! !happyface!
Maggie-sensei, is it correct to say 「日本語を教える情熱は誰でも勝つわよ！」 –> “When it comes to teach Japanese, I beat anyone!”?
@Mweggy
Hi, Mweggy!
“誰でも勝つわよ” means “Anyone will/would win”.
Ex. そんな試合、誰でも勝つよ。
= Sonna shiai daredemo katsuyo.
= Anybody would win such a game!
So if you want to say
“I beat anyone! ”
The direct translation is
私は誰にでも勝つ(わよ)！
= Wsatashi wa darenidemo katsu (wayo).
誰にでも = darenidemo
We put the particle に here because “to beat/ to win over someone” is ~に勝つ = ~ ni katsu
But in this case, it is more common to say “I won’t lose to anybody!” = 私は誰にも負けない。= Watashi wa darenimo makenai.
あ、なるほど！
ありがとうございます, マギー先生! Even though that was my first comment I always read your lessons, you’re such a great help! マギー先生の事尊重します！(*^o^*)
@Mweggy
どういたしまして！！またいつでもコメントいれて下さいね。
（尊重 You mean “to respect”= 尊敬= sonkei?) Anyway, thank you!!! Please come back!!
Yes I meant it as “respect”, I thought 尊重 was synonymous with 尊敬… and yes I’ll come back for sure! じゃね,マギー先生! (^-^)/
＠Mweggy
It means “to respect” but 尊重 is usually used for one’s ideas, opinions, thoughts, positions, etc. not people.
あなたの意見(iken =opinion)/ 立場(tachiba= position)/考え (=kanngae= thoughts) を尊重します。
and it also means “to regard, esteem, value”, etc.
OK, will see you in some article comment section again!!
最近、宿題ノらないよね。。。けど、今日から、秋休みだよ！ｗｗ家に帰る＾＾買い物をノリノリでしましょうね～！
レッスンありがとう、先生！
@Aki
すごい！もうAkiは上手に”ノリ”が使えるね！お買い物の後は、宿題もノリノリでがんばってね！！
What a great song. It must have been so much work to translate, but I love to learn new words from listening to songs ^^ I’m going to check out more songs from 植村花菜 now!
@Keekii
Isn’t it great??? I love this song. I think she has just released a new song recently. But this one is my favorite!! Will make a lesson if I find an interesting song to learn Japanese again!
♫♪
マギー先生
初めまして！マギー先生のブログを見つけてしばらく経つのですが、初めて書き込みさせていただきます。
いつも教科書にない、毎日耳にするのに意味が辞書を引いてもよくわからないような日本語を取り上げてくれて、ありがとうございます。「あっ、そういう意味だったんだ！」と思うことが毎回と言っていいほどあります。ほんとうに勉強になります！
これからも、どうぞよろしくお願いします。
@Norojika
今日は！！初めてのコメントありがとうございます！！こちらこそこれからも宜しくお願いしますね。
それにしてもコメントの日本語、完璧でびっくりしましたよ。日本語上級の人達にも面白いと思ってもらえるレッスンを作らないといけませんね！….よ〜しがんばろ〜！！！ !happyface!
Hi Maggie! I am Italian, I started studying Japanese 2 years ago and I love it! I have just found your blog and I love it too! It is nice, fun and very useful….Maggie Sensei rules!! ;-) Ciao!
@Annarita
Hello Annarita!! Thank you for comment. I am very happy that you found us in Italy!!
Hope you come back soon again!! Feel free to leave a message or questions here anytime!
Ciao!!
おっ、
たくさん間違えたがあったですね。
直ったをありがとう。
はい、これから「twitter account」をつくって、頑張ります。
マギー先生がいいね、たすけられました。
お会いできたうれしいです。(^^)
@Haru
どういたしまして。たくさん直しましたがよかったら、間違ったところをメモしておいてね。必（かなら）ず上達（じょうたつ）しますよ。
（I am not sure if you want me to correct this comment as well but…I will do that anyway to help your Japanese….
間違えたがあったですね。→間違えがありましたね。
直ったをありがとう→直してくれてありがとう。
マギー先生がいいね、たすけられました。→マギー先生、てつだってくれてありがとう。
お会いできた→お会いできて）
私もHaruさんと知り合えてうれしいですよ。これからもよろしくね！
悪人+は+いない+”+how+acn+i+read+this
hope u can reply asap now.. dont know how to read kanji .. i just know how to right them…^_^very confusing.. nihonggo musukashi desu ne..yorushiku onegaishimasu..
oopps sorry i mean i just know only how to write kanji katakana and hiragana..i cant read kanji but hiragana and katana is not that easy but i can read sometimes..^_^
@analynkojima
You want to know how to read 悪人はいない？
It’s
Akunin wa inai
間違えて「publish」ボタンをおしました。
すみまめせんせんせい。
I just found your blog today マギー先生！
めっちゃべんりです！
ありはとうね。
今日からぜひ先生の「blog」またいきたいんです！
ところで、先生の新しい「wig」はいいね。
マギー先生はノリがいいね。＜－この使い方は正しいですか？
*間違えたが会ったら治してくださらないんですか？「今日本でべんきょうしているところなんです、よろしく！(^^)」
@Haru
こんにちは！Haru! コメントありがとう！Wig 似合（にあ）ってる？うれしい！！
マギー先生はノリがいいね。→OK!!!
OK,I can help your Japanese. Are you ready?
•すみまめせん→すみません
•ありはとうね。→ありがとうね。
(I think the first two are typos but…)
•またいきたいんです！→またきたいです。
•行く = いく = to go →行きたい = いきたい = ikitai = to want to go
•来る = くる = to come→来たい= きたい= kitai = to want to come
→so you should use きたい in this case.
•間違えたが会ったら→間違いがあったら The kanji 会う is to meet someone
•治してくださらないんですか？→直してくださいませんか？
•直す= to fix, to correct, to repair
•治す= to heal to cure,
でもよく書けてますよ！これからもがんばってね！ !happyface!
I can always help your Japanese on Twitter,too!
I just found your blog マギー先生!
Great tutorial! I have one question, sorry if I missed it somewhere on the page: What if you are addressing a stranger (older)?
For example what if an elderly man dropped something and you want to say “Sir, is this yours?” Would “Kore wa anato no desu ka?” be inappropriate? And what would be the equivalent of “sir”?
@LS
Hi! Good question!!
In that case, we still avoid saying “anata”. So if you want to say “Is this yours? ” will be
「これ(or こちら）落とされませんでしたか？」= Kore (or kochira) otosaremasen deshitaka? = Did you drop this?
or
「これ違いますか？」= Kore chigaimasu ka?
(I know this one phrase may not make sense but we sometimes say this. It came from これはあなたが落とされたものと違いますか？= Kore wa anataga otosareta mono to chigaimasu ka?)
And if you have to talk to some elderly person that you know, you would just use their name, ~ さん
マギー先生最高！
あはは、ゆかり先生タイプしてくれているね＾＾
ありがとう、ゆかり先生！＜３
@Aki
ありがと！アキ！
Shhh! 誰にも言わないでよ！ 前足でタイプできないからね。 :)
Great lesson, and great website! I learned not to use おまえ the hard way — I tried using おまえ with my ex-girlfriend to sound more casual. She put a stop to that very quick! (I didn’t understand at that time that it was rude, but I found out very fast!)
The personal pronoun I think is sort of a benchmark, huh? Realizing when to use a personal pronoun and when it’s unnecessary is sort of right of passage I think.
Anyway, thanks again for these great lessons. They’re fantastic and amazingly detailed!
@applezoid
Thank you for your comment! Haha, thank you for sharing your experience! おまえ is easier to learn because people will stop you right away. But あなた is the hardest one to tell people not to use in certain occasions. Although people feel awkward, they can’t stop you because we all know you learned “あなた” as a polite form.
Hope you visit this site again! :grin:
It reminds me a bit of the use of “have something to do with…” (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o))) or asking if an action can correctly fit a situation. Thank you, Maggie Sensei! You’re incredible good at teaching. ありがとうございます。
@Kharol
Thank you for checking the lesson,too!! ありがと〜！！
Why do you say “Nihongo wo oshieru jounetsu wa darenimo makenai wayo” Instead of “Nihongo wo oshieru jounetsu wa darenimo katanai wayo” ?
@Jason
Because 勝たない(= katanai) means “not to win”
and 負けない(= makenai) means “nobody can beat me”
負ける(=makeru)= to lose→ negative form: 負けない(= makenai) = unbeaten, not to lose
勝つ (=katsu) = to beat/to win → negative form: 勝たない(=katanai) = not to win/ to lose
I think I understand. It’s like saying “it loses to no one” So darenimo means nobody in this context. I was thinking it should be ” it beats everyone”. Thanks for your help.
@Jason1982
どういたしまして！(＾▽＾)/
I thought “ノリ” is a seaweed. Thank you for your lesson. ^_^
@majoringram3636
Haha, that’s different, nori. →海苔= nori= seaweed!
Anyway thank you for your comment!
Thanks Maggie, Pepsi and Yukari sensei! Your passion in teaching Japanese inspires learners like me to do my best.
More powers to your blog!
@Amelie
Thank you for always having a great attitude towards learning Japanese!!
Thank you so much for writing this very informative lesson, Maggie-sensei! I’ve always been confused about when and how to use 「誰でも」and「誰にも」.
A friend recently introduced me to your website and I’m backtracking your lessons bit by bit! I’m self-studying Japanese and I have a long way to go but your lessons are very helpful, informative and very interesting too!
ありがとうございます！
@sonattan
Hello, sonattan!! Thank you for your first comment! I am glad to hear this lesson was helpful.
There are lots of lessons but they are random. Go through the index. Hope you can find some useful lessons for you.
Feel free to ask me any questions here.
Does うれしっ make sense for “I am happy”? I don’t know why, to me it sounds kind of strange! Heh
@Ichigobanana
You say うれしっ！ when you are happy so “I am happy!” is fine but it is more like “Yay!” in English.
What a fun + useful blog! I’ll be back to learn more ;)
@Hiragana Mama
Thank you for the comment. Please come back!! Also seems like you have a nice blog,too!!
The Kanji-Hiragana transcription is very handy. I enjoyed this lesson. :D
ありがとうございました！＾＾
@Amie
I am very happy to hear that!
わ、沢山の新しい単語あるよ！すごーい！
先生、本当に有り難う！
私は、お婆さんに会った事ないけど、いい曲だね～！＾～＾
懐かしいね～！
@Aki
いい歌でしょ。このレッスンを作ったときはまだそこまで大ヒットしていなかったんだけ今では誰でも知ってる曲です。♪
Sensei I want you to check this sentence please!
I want to say:
“I will support you on my own way”
is it like that?
“watashi wa jibun no yarikata de anata wo ouen suru”
@manju
Yes,
“watashi wa jibun no yarikata de anata wo ouen suru”
is just fine.
waah I’m glad that I didn’t make a mistake.
thanks to you I’m getting better!
@manju
That’s because you have been studying hard!
わ～、お疲れ様！
Audioファイルも、有り難う！
よく使えるよ！
@Aki
山の様な宿題は終わったの？時間ができたらこちらもしっかり復習してね〜！
うん、終わった！やったね～！うん、今週末、しっかり勉強しよね～！＾～＾
@Aki
お疲れちゃん！よくがんばりました！(^-^)//””
WOW!!!
どうもありがとうございました！
@Jetta
Hi, Jetta! こちらこそ！Thank you for checking the lesson!
I like this lesson. I always felt あなた to be kind of a taboo. ^^ With all the safer alternatives out there, it’s easy to do without it. Except for phrases like the featured mini-dialogue.
@curryisyummy
Thank you for the comment!
Yes, your Japanese is great already so now it’s time to learn something deeper. :)
Haha, thank you for the kind words Maggie-sensei. I don’t think my Japanese is that good at all. All of your lessons, even the basic ones, teach me something interesting. Thank you. :)
@curryisyummy
Glad to hear you are still learning from my lessons! また来てね！
眺めるって、Staringの意味もあるかな？
わ、おやつはすっごーーくかわいい～！食べたくない！ｗｗ見たいだけ！超可愛い！！！
アメリカには、お月見の事をしないよね。。。やっぱり、日本人は自然が大すきよね～！＾～＾日本人の心には人間は自然の一部だという考えるよね？その印象になってきた＾＾
温泉卵だね！美味しいよ～！
先生、いつも有り難う１
@Aki
staringはひとつのスポットをじ〜っと見つめることで眺めるは全体（ぜんたい）や周（まわ）りも見ること。
温泉卵食べたことある？
（わあ〜、難しい文章書いたね。ちょっとだけ直すね。
お月見の事をしない→お月見をしない。
日本人の心には→心→感じる 頭→考える の動詞を使うよ。
その印象になってきた→そういう印象を持ったよ。）
そうね、日本人は昔からその季節の自然を大切にした行事（ぎょうじ）をしますね。Akiも今日は月を眺めてね。
うん！食べた事ある！ラーメンを作ってる時はいつも、最後で、卵をあげる（笑）美味しい～！
うん、眺めてみるね！
先生、訂正ありがとう！
また、間違いを見たら訂正してね！
私には、すっごーーく良い練習だよ！
@Aki
ラーメンに温泉卵を入れるの？すごい！
コメントとTwitterではいつでも添削（てんさく）するよ！がんばってね！ずいぶん長い文章が書ける様になったと感心（かんしん）！！ !happyface!
てへ まだもっと頑張らなくちゃね！
ねえ、今、月を見てるよ！Big yellow dotみたい。。。ウサギがいない！（笑）けど、すっごく明るいの＾＾綺麗！
@Aki
日本とアメリカはこれだけ離（はな）れているけれども同（おな）じ月を見れるのって素敵（すてき）！！
I find it so tough to use 俺… it just feels like a false show of bravado, like swearing or something which I don’t like to do. When I was on exchange though, all the guys I met would only use 俺 and I felt kind of forced to do it. I always tried to avoid using 僕 or 俺 if I could, and I would rush through the word like I didn’t want to say it the times I did use it. Sounding manly in Japanese is too difficult…;;
@Matisyahu
Thank you for your comment. I’ve always wondered how you all pick 俺 or 僕 which possibly represent two different personalities.
But a lot of time you can just omit the subjects in Japanese. So you can avoid picking one of them.
マーギ先生、超アリガトウ！＾＾
このレースンはまた楽しかった。
Can you please explain to me though, what does おっしゃる?
And あげる too.
for example, in the sentence “あなたにあげる”
I don’t quite understand the meaning ><
@キム
OK, おっしゃる is 敬語 (= keigo) an honorific expression for 言う = iu = to say something.
あげる means to give something
あなたにあげる means “(I) will give you”
Actually あげる has more meanings but check this lesson when you are ready.
(くれる & あげる）
(A little correction : カタカナ is hard, huh? My name is マギー and lesson is レッスン）
Sensei, thanks for another wonderful lesson!
And oh, is that Anpanman?! XD
@Amelie
Yes, it’s あんぱんまん！ :)
concerning this phrase:
お前にそんなこと言われたくないわ
I have not yet heard a man end a sentence with わ. However, I’ve only been studying Japanese seriously for about a year and a half. I was just wondering if this was a typo, or if you might be playing a joke on us guys ;)
@Mike
Good question. Recently I have received a question regarding “わ” ending for men. This person heart many men using this わ ending and got really confused as well.
I will post my answer to that person here.
**********************
The majority of textbooks say “わ” ending as a female speech. But as I mentioned in my female speech lesson, men use わ ending often as well especially in Chubu and also Kansai area. (Actually there are many men who use “wa” ending in other areas as well.)
Ex.あかんわ！= It’s not good! (Osaka area)
Ex.これやるわ！= I will give you this. / I will do it.
Ex.見せるわ！= I will show you.
Ex.もう寝るわ！= I will go to bed now.
Ex.ああ、これだわ！= Oh, This is it!
Ex. これ、僕がやるわ。= I will take care of this.
Ex.明日、試験だから勉強するわ。= I will have an exam tomorrow so will study now.
(Note : お前/あんたに言われたくないわ! is a typical “talking back” phrase for Japanese comedians. And many of Japanese comedians are from Kansai area.)
I understand you don’t want to sound like a woman when you use this ending.
The key is your intonation.
Women say the わ ending with rising tone (or flat) わ↑and men say this with lowered pitch わ↓.
So as long as you don’t say it with rising tone, you are safe.
But わね or わよ, it is only for women.
*******
So I am not playing a joke on you. But be careful with your intonation!
新しいことを教えてくれてありがとうございます！
お疲れ様でございました。
@Gabriel
こちらこそ、コメントありがとう！よかったら「〜ちゃ＆〜きゃ」の使い方、練習（れんしゅう）してみてね。
Hi Maggie!
There’s something that is worrying me profoundly as a translator. You have shown us that 別嬪 is an old-fashioned word. I’ve looked up that word in my monolingual and bilingual dictionaries and couldn’t find any reference to it being old-fashioned. How can I know when a word is colloquial/old-fashioned/vulgar when I look it up in the dictionary? Is there any dictionary with this sort of indications (monolingual or bilingual)? It would be very useful.
I don’t want to pester Japanese friends every time I have to find out.
@Cygnus
Good question. If it is a very old word, some Japanese dictionaries (for example 広辞苑) indicate it as <文語> and if it is a colloquial word, it says <口語>, and if it is a vulgar word, it says <卑語>.
But you can also use “Google” and check the number of hits and how people use the word and you can judge yourself.
wow!explaining “you” must be tough!
先生、ありがとうございます!
I wish there were more people like you who are willing to spend time explaining the topics more.
I’m glad I found this site. it is very helpful!
because of your site, I learned to appreciate the Japanese language more (^_^)v
@roulette225
Hi there! Thank you for your nice comment. Me,too! I am happy that you found this site!
I believe learning languages should be fun. And I am doing this for fun as well. (I mean it’s challenging but fun at the same time.)
I can see your Japanese has been improving. It is because you have been studying very hard! これからもがんばってね！
私は最近ごくせんを見ました。 やんくみはよく「おまえら」をつかいますね。 いぜん 「おまえ」を聞くことが歩けどあまりよくないんです。
I have recently watched Gokusen. Yankumi uses Omaera all the time!! I have heard Omae before but never this often!
@Bruce
ゴクセンやGTOなどの学園（がくえん）ドラマ (=School drama) ではよくこの「お前ら」を先生が使いますよね。実際（じっさい）は男の先生はよく使いますが、女の先生は使いません。（ヤンクミはのぞいて= Except Yankumi)
（A little correction : いぜん 「おまえ」を聞くことが歩けどあまりよくないんです。→「お前」は以前（いぜん）聞いたことがありますが、これは聞いたことがありませんでした。)
LOL… these cute puppies make me laugh.
Maggie, don’t let marron sit on your hat! Because someday he maybe sits on your head too
MaggieとMarronの性格が真逆ですか。
@Adelheid
Thank you for your comment! Haha, OK, will be careful not to let him sit on my hat.
MaggieとMarronの見かけ(=appearance) が、真逆です！
Thank you for the lesson! In Mexico we put salt and lime to pretty much any fruit.
@Pippa
Hola Pippa!
Thank you for the comment. How interesting. You put lime as well in Mexico?
I will try that!! (Except limes are kind of expensive in Japan….)
「あんたに言われたくないわよ！」って、女性らしくないかな？
「自分だってそうじゃない！」って言っても方がいいかな？
先生優しい～！アイラブユー！にゃ～～！＊♥＊
@Aki
We (girls) say that jokingly. It sounds funnier than 自分だってそうじゃない or 自分こそ！
You can also use one’s name,
Ex. Maggieに言われたくないわよ！
Other line you can use is
「よく言うわ！」
In Kansaiben 「よう言うわ！」
Love, you,too! !CHECKHEART!
Very useful! ありがとうございます先生！
I did find a small error (which might confuse some people, haha)
Ex. あなた！行ってらっしゃい！
= Anata ofuro ni hairu?
= Have a nice day, honey.
Again, thank you for the lesson. I’ll try to keep the “yous” straight!
@DanielleCanada8
Thank you for checking the lesson and also spotting the mistake, Danielle! I fixed it! !happyface!
Thank you for sharing this. I thought it was okay to use ‘anata’ to everyone since it’s considered ‘polite’ than using kimi/omae, but I guess I’m wrong ^^;;
I learned a lot today! (and your site is awesome XD)
@hiiki
Thank you for visiting this site! I think almost all the Japanese learners use あなた thinking it is a polite form.
I just wanted to teach you all a bit deeper than regular classroom Japanese.
Thank you so much for this! I am planning on participating in the Boston Career Forum this November. You have no idea how nervous I was (and still am!)
All of this information is giving me much more confidence in the entire process.
Again, I want to say thank you for all of your hard work! I know this must have taken you forever to complete!
@Kingssd3
Thank you for your comment! I made this lesson a while ago but I do remember I tried to put lots of information.
Good luck on your job hunting! いいお仕事が見つかります様に！まずは、Relaxしてね！ :)
how to say , “but i dont love you” ? thanks maggie sensei :D love the lesson ! :)
@Intan
Thank you for visiting this site!
“but i dont love you” – If you are a man, use 僕 (=boku) or 俺(=ore). 俺 is more rough. If you are a girl, use 私(=watashi)
* でも私は (or 僕は）（あなたを／君を）愛していない。
* でも (or 僕は）あなた(or 君）のことなんて好きじゃない。
ow.. thank you for the answer. but how i say it? “Demo watashi wa aishite inai” ? :)
@Intan
As I wrote in the earlier comment, it changes slightly depending on your gender.
if you are a girl,
Demo watashi wa anata wo aishite inai.
Demo watashi wa anata ga sukijanai.
Demo watashi wa anata no koto sukijanai.
Demo watashi wa anata no koto aishite inai.
If you are a boy,
Demo boku wa kimi no koto aishite inai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto sukijanai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto sukijanai.
Demo boku wa kimi no koto aishite inai.
thank you very much for the answer sensei ! GBU :D
your site is the best source to learn Japanese ^-^
btw, I came across these words “よちちは”&”よちの” I always thought it means something like “watashi”…????not really sure?
@manju
Hi Manju!
“よちちは”&”よちの” ？ I have never heard of them. If I come across these words, I will let you know. Where did you see them? It would help if you give me the whole sentence.
maybe I’ve mistaken it with another word *-*
it could have been a name actually.
thanks for replying ^0^
@manju
OK, anytime! :h:
Sensei this is a wonderful lesson! O.O I now understand everything! XD
@Jelena
Thank you for the comment. I am very very happy to hear that!
Hi. sensei. How do you translate this?
If i played basketball(for example when i was a child) I would be very good now!.
using past conditions? which conditional should i use?
@Ron
Hi Ron!
There are a couple of ways to say this but one pattern is : ~っていたら 〜(の)に
子供（こども）の頃（ころ）、バスケットボールをやっていたら今頃(いまごろ）、とてもうまくなっていただろうに。or いたのに
Hi, Maggie-sensei! I know this is an old answer, but could you perhaps share the other patterns you mentioned?
I always see the structure “If you were A, B would’ve happened” with なっていた.
For example: “君が生きていたらどうなっていただろうか”
Why can’t I say: “君が生きていたらどうなっただろうか”?
Also, would I say “君が生き残っていたらどうなっていただろうか”? Or would I say “君が生き残ったらどうなっていただろうか”?
And in Ron’s sentence’s case, is it possible to say “バスケットボールをやったら”? Isn’t the verbs’ dictionary form used to express habits? So, if he had made a habit of playing basketball during his child he would be goot at it now. Or could I say “とてもうまくなっただろうに”? Why are both “ていた”?
Which of these sentences is correct, if any?
傘を買ったら雨に降られなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に降られなかったのに
傘を買ったら雨に降られていなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に降られていなかったのに
I gave a lot of examples, but my doubts about all of them are the same one. Thank you very much for your attention in advance. I hope I could express myself well.
I just realized I used the wrong verb. Let me ask again:
Which of these sentences is correct, if any?
傘を買ったら雨に濡れなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れなかったのに
傘を買ったら雨に濡れていなかったのに
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れていなかったのに
Good, 雨に降られない doesn’t make sense.
So the following sentence is talking about the past so
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れなかったのに (I wouldn’t have got wet)
傘を買っていたら雨に濡れていなかったのに (describes the state for certain period of time) “I wouldn’t have been getting wet”
work.
Hi エルフ
１) 君が生きていたらどうなっていただろうか
2) 君が生きていたらどうなっただろうか
なっていた describes the state of certain period of time :what would have been happening/ what you would have been
なった describes just one time thing :what would have happened
3) 君が生き残っていたらどうなっていただろうか”
4) 君が生き残ったらどうなっていただろうか”
3) OK
4) A bit unnatural. Maybe it’s because the tense of the following sentence.
For example, 君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか (Talking about future) works
バスケットボールをやったら could be just one time
バスケットボールをやっていたら It describes the certain period of time
Thanks for your reply, Maggie-sensei! I now understand why to use なっていた and not なった.
But I’m still confused… Why is it “傘を買っていたら” and not “傘を買ったら”? And why doesn’t “君が生き残ったら” work for the past?
Aren’t the translations of “傘を買っていたら” and “君が生き残っていたら” “If I had been buying an umbrella” and “If you had been surviving” respectively? Isn’t buying an umbrella a one-time thing, unlike playing basketball?
Does it have anything to do with how ている can express a resultative state of an action?
How would you translate “君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか”? In my understanding, it can only be “if you survive, what will happen?” or “if you survived, what would happen?”.
In other words, there is still a chance that “you” may survive. If there weren’t, because “you” is already dead, I would put it in the past tense like in English, like “if you had survived, what would’ve happened”, right?
That’s why I wonder, if I know for sure that the person didn’t survive or didn’t buy an umbrella, for example, and that things would’ve been different if they had done that, then should I always use “～ていたら”?
I’d be very grateful if you could help me again! Thank you for attention.
I won’t go too deep in this comment section but
1) 買う/買った is one time action.
買っていたら focusing on the state of having an umbrella after buying an umbrella but maybe you should just learn by what tense to use.
There are lots of exceptions but generally speaking
You tend to use Vていたら〜 form for an unreal past condition and its probable result in the past.
日本に行ったらマギーに会いたい。 When I go to Japan, I would like to see Maggie. (talking about the future/ A possible condition and its probable result.)
日本に行っていたらマギーに会えたのに。/ 会ったのに。 If I had gone to Japan, I would have been able to see Maggie/I would have seen Maggie. (an unreal past condition and its probable result in the past.)
2) 君が生き残ったらどうなるのだろうか 君 is still alive. You won’t probably survive but what if you do…
What would happen if you survived or survive.
君が生き残っていれば/いたら “if you had survived, what would’ve happened” (The person is not alive)
Aaahh, that’s exactly what I wanted to know! Thank you very much, Maggie-sensei! ^^
You said you wouldn’t go into many details and that there are a lot of exceptions. Do you know where I could read more about it? Or what I should search on Google? I tried some things before but couldn’t find exactly what I was looking for. It’s fine even if it’s in Japanese. Thank you very much for explanation, anyway!
One of the exceptions is for example Vてくれたら
If you have told me earlier we could have seen each other.
I guess you could say 早く言ってくれていたら but もっと早く言ってくれたら会えたのに。 is much more common.
Also when you express the regrets with よかった, you use Vたら
行ったらよかった
I should have gone.
食べたらよかった
I should have eaten.
Since I don’t use other sites, I don’t know what sites cover the theme but try using google typing 日本語条件文
Good luck! :)
Ahmm. これ云いサイトでしょう。先生、”こちらこそ”って言うのは教えてくれませんか？ありがとう！bookmarkするはすだ！。
@Ron
Hi Ron! 来てくれてありがとう！
「こちらこそ」の使い方ですか？
Ex. A : 「ありがとう！」 Thank you! B : 「こちらこそ！」Me,too.
Ex. A : 「よろしくお願いします。」Nice to meet you!B : 「こちらこそ！」 Nice to meet you,too!
Ex. A : 「会えてうれしいです。」It’s a pleasure to meet you. B : 「こちらこそ！」Likewise
Ex. A: 「御迷惑をおかけいたしました。」I am terribly. B : 「こちらこそ….」Me,too.
So こちら refers to you or your side. So instead of repeating the same thing, you say this to the person.
Is it clear?
あのえ、先生。時々、”そう思います”ってか”私も”ってかを返事できろうとおもうんだ。同じ使用だろう。
@Ron
ごめんなさい。質問（しつもん）の意味（いみ）がよくわからないのですが、
So you want to ask,
Q : 「そう思います」と「私も」の使い方が同じですか？
If so…they are different.
そう思います = I think so
私も = me,too
If you say 私もそう思います, it means ” I think so,too.”
ごめんなさい。”こちらこそ”の使い方が本当にまだはっきりわかります。質問は”そう思います”と”私も”っていうのを、時々、返事できる。ね?どうもありがとう先生。
@Ron
OK, first let me help your sentences. ”こちらこそ”の使い方が本当にまだはっきりわかります。→You know clearly how to use”こちらこそ”? Then say, こちらこその使い方はもうはっきりわかります。
もう = already まだ = not yet
“時々返事できる” means “You can answer once in a while.” I assume you sometimes get confused when to use “私も” and ”そう思います”
Then I hope I answered your questions in my last comment.
そう思います is used only when you agree with someone.
私も just means, “me,too”
Try these :
Ex. 私はカレーが好きです。 Which one do you use? ” “私も” or ”そう思います”
Ex. マギーはかわいいです。Which one do you use? ” “私も” or ”そう思います”
If you want, follow me on twitter. We can practice there.
For me, Marron-sensei and Maggie-sensei are both cute! :D
Btw, I have a question. I’m confused with these two words: 点検 and 検問. The dictionary says both mean inspection. But is/are there any difference/s? Like, when it comes to how it’s used or something?
Thanks! ^^
@amelie
Oh there are very different.
点検 is to check something is functioning properly.
Ex. 車の点検、エンジンの点検
検問 is used when police stop passersby or cars to inspect.
Oh, I see. They are indeed different.
Thanks for enlightening me, sensei! ^^
@Amelie
どういたしまして！Amelie!
デカイってスラングでしょう？
ま、マギーの顔はユニークからマロンちゃん羨ましいよね～！＾。～うふ
先生、An Anっていう雑誌を知ってるの？女の子のためにの雑誌からジャニーズはモデルしてるんだ！赤西仁も山Ｐも真っ裸で雑誌にいったの。。。なんか嫌だね・・・
けど、亀くんはそんな事したないから嬉しいね＾Ｏ＾
新しいレッスンありがとう！
今日から、学校を始まるの！あの、今学年も、日本から新しい生徒がないの。。。残念ねぇ～＿～
@Aki
Hi Aki! ”でかい”は”大きい”のくだけた(casual)言い方だけれどもスラングではなく昔からある言葉ですよ。カタカナで書くから新しく見えるよね。
anan？もちろん知ってるよ。ハハ、そうね。亀君は大丈夫だよ！
Akiの大学では日本人の留学生（りゅうがくせい）今年はいないの？残念！！でもAkiの大学に行く日本人留学生はラッキーだよね。Akiがいるから！ :)
Thank you for the lesson, Maggie sensei. Nice video at the end. :)
@Pippa
Thank YOU for checking the lesson!! また来てね！
いつもお世話になってます。
この間の質問者のtakkyでございます。私の事はまだ覚えてるかどうか、わかりませんけど。
また、お世話になります。よろしくお願いします。
ある「イヂオム？」が発見しましたんですが。まぁ、あるバンドからの歌詞なんだけど…これです。
「後がない」ってどういう意味ですか。
「もう、これしかない！」が
「もう、こんの・こんな方法しかない！」が
「前を進むしかない」って色々考えって、こんな感じですかね。
マギー先生にはもうちょっと詳しく説明もらえると、すごく助かります。
ちょっと変わった質問とおかしい日本語を通じしましたか、すごく心配です。
よろしくお願いします。
PS、こんな質問、ここに書けばよろしいのでしょうか。もし、NGだったら、申し訳ございません。今度、気をつけます。
@takky
お久しぶりです！！「もう後がない」は、It is now or never.と言う様な、今、このチャンスを逃したら次のチャンスがない、今やらないと一生できないという時に使います。
また、いろいろな方法を試してみて最後に残された方法はこれしかないという時にも使います。at the end of the rope.
Ex. 受験で失敗し続けてもう後がない。
質問はどのコメント欄（らん）に書いてもらってもいいし、もしTwitterをやっていたらいつでもTwitterで質問して下さい。
(Maggie Sensei)
Congratulations on your second year! I have been using these lessons for a few months now as a supplement to my Japanese learning. Many are still over my head but I am learning a lot of wonderful thinks that you couldn’t get in a standard classroom. Thank you for all of your hard work!
~ R
@Rebecca
Thank you, Rebecca! Your words mean a lot to me!!
これからもがんばりま〜す！！
I wish Maggie Sensei’s Website a lovely Happy Birthday!
ここからも頑張ってください!
@Mina
ありがとう、Mina!! はい！これからもがんばりま〜す！！
いつも楽しくて面白いレッスン ありがとう!!
その上 二年祭おめでとう!!
@sev
こちらこそ、二年間ありがとう！！これからもヨロシク！
Thank you very much for this lesson :)
Congratulations on your 2nd Anniversary :)
@eeskaatt
Thank you!! ありがとう！！
Congratiolation on your second anniversari, Yukari-sensei!
Keep up the good work, you’re awesome!~ :)
@Tass
Thank you, Tass!! ありがとう！
Thanks for the lesson, sensei! I learned something new today. :D
Oh, we put a dash of salt on watermelon, but only when it’s not that sweet. We also put salt on sour mangoes to intensify the sourness. A bit of salt work wonders! :D
@Amelie
Oh goodie! There is another one who puts salt on watermelon! Do you prefer sour mangoes??
Thanks for this lesson, sensei! I’ve always found first person pronouns a bit confusing.
I’m a few days late but…
Happy 2nd Blogiversary!!!
Wishing you more blogiversaries to come!
@Amelie
ありがとう！！
I love the word Blogiversary!
Congrats on two years!
@KansaiJesse
Thank you!!!! Much appreciated!
スイカに塩かけてるね。。。やっぱり、試してみなくちゃね！
先生、レッスンありがとう！
@Aki
お塩はちょこっとだけかけてみて！そしてアリかどうか教えてね。
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY! THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR GOOD WORK :)
@meme
Thank you!!!!! ありがとう！！
Nice examples. Hadn’t even come across that word yet.
The video was pretty tough for me, had to read the transcript and translation a few times to understand how it adds up to that meaning.
Thanks.
@shirankao69
Don’t worry about the video. It is tough.
Wish I could show you the real TV show. You will hear the word “beta” a lot in the show.
sensei, I don’t understand the part about talking with little children. So when adult talking to children, boku and watashi means ‘you’ instead of ‘I’? Very odd.
Thank you for the lesson! I just started following and can’t wait for more! (must also check the archive)
@mee
Hi mee! Thank you for visiting this site!
OK, it’s a bit confusing, isn’t it?
When you talk to a boy, you refer to the boy with ぼく and when you talk to a girl, you refer to the girl with わたし instead of using “you”.
Talking to a boy ：”How old are you?” : It should be あなたは何さい（ですか）？ but we say “ぼくは何さい（ですか）？”
Talking to a girl ： “How old are you?” will be “わたしは何さい（ですか）？”
Yes, there are tons of lessons. Hope you find them useful.
始めまして!授業をありがとありがと!!大阪の友達の近畿方言は ちょう面白いですよ!:)
@heivazora
大阪のお友達がいるんですね。大阪弁は本当に楽しいですよね！
very informative…
関西弁ステキ ❤
すっごくよく分かった！先生ありがとう！
関西弁で、アホってバカの意味があるでしょう？
そして、めちゃくちゃって言い方の使い方教えてくれる？
ところで、先生は名古屋市に生まれたの？
いつもありがとう！＊♥＊・:・:・＊♡＊
@Aki
I love Kansaiben,too! It is fun!
そうそう、関西ではバカはアホって言います。
めちゃくちゃ + adjective = super + adjective
めちゃくちゃ + verb = to do something a lot
Ex. めちゃくちゃ面白い！= It is very funny.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ楽しかった！= It was so much fun.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ食べた！= I ate a lot.
Ex. めちゃくちゃ好き！ = I love you a lot. / I like it a lot.
Ex. めちゃくちゃかわいい！= Super cute!
Ex. めちゃくちゃ歌がうまいね！= You are a very good singer!
In Kansai or some other areas, they say めっちゃ= meccha
And yes, I was born in Nagoya! Nagoyakko!
マギー先生、楽しい授業をありがとうございます。
@Yahia
はじめまして！！コメントありがとう！！またいつでもこのサイトに来て下さいね！
Dear How are you.
I d liek ask you to fix on your web page the
google blogger. (share it) becouse have more many outhers way to the people copy and send to friends or outhers blog…
ll be great .. very nice help for the people and hope some outhers brasilian enjoy visit your site :
have you CD translated to romanji ?
how to find out?
Real a great job. God Bless you
thanks a lot see you…..
@andre costa
Thank you for your comment. I make lessons but I don’t know much about google blogger,etc. Will ask my homepage builder to figure out your request.
Maggie sensei, I missed you! :D
Thanks for the new lesson! I really look forward to visiting your blog and learning new things. ^^
@Amelie
Hi Amelie! ひさしぶり！Thank you for always visiting our site! これからももっとおもしろいレッスンをがんばって作りますね！
maagie先生！！！
I love ur lesson…
また宜しくね＾＾
@vinda
Hi vinda!
Thank you for your comment! こちらこそヨロシク！！ !heart!
haha when I first saw this title it thought it said
花より男女 XD 花より男女がすごいシリーずです。
what it’s called 花より男子 XD
wow now I see why kanji is important >.< The meanings are totally different XD
thanks for the lesson ^w^
@Chalkgoop
ひさしぶり！Thank you for your comment. How is your kitty?
Are you still dancing?
Anyway, 男子 is usually read as “danshi” but it is read as “dango” to make a pun.
I feel like the assumptions about blood type A are the worst XD
@Chalkgoop
Is your blood type A? Don’t worry. They are not accurate at all!
ゴーヤと苦瓜はどちらがよく会話で使いますか。
@Bob
日常会話ではゴーヤの方がよく使われます。
is it ok for girls to say 「ベタだなあ…」 or is it a bit rough? I know the girl in the video said it, but she could be a rough girl…
Thank you for the lesson! .<
@Aki
Yes, girls can say「ベタだなあ…」and it doesn’t sound rough. (It all depends on how you deliver it.)
You can also say「ベタ〜だね〜！」「ベタ〜！」etc.
A great lesson!
Thank you for all the work you put in your page.
Its like having a Japanese friend to talk to everytime.
I´m studying Japanese for a long and your page makes it much easier to me to understand Japanese better. Thank you so much!!
@Fuchsmaul
ここに来てくれる人はみな、私の友達です！
Thank you for your nice comment! また来てね！ :)
Nice, never seen your lessons before, I like how they are all in Kanji, keep it up!
@Stevo
Hi Stevo! Thank you for visiting my site! また来（き）てね！ :)
Great .. ”くれる” is clear now :D plus with a great listening quize, really thanks sensei.
ドッグフード was quite hard to catch hehe specially the part フード。
cc: Sensei, have you explained the use of こと（事） in your website before? i couldn’t understand the use of it until now! it has been bothering me for a long time :/
@Abdullah
Hello! Abdullah! Thank you for your first comment here!
こと is used to make verb a noun.
Ex. I love eating.
→食べることが好きです。
Ex. I love making people laugh.
→人を笑わせることが好きです。
Ex. It is important to sleep well.
→よく寝ることが大切です。
Feel free to practice here or on twitter. I can correct you.
Cool .. can I use it with adjectives too?
I’ll try to make some sentences, lets see :D
１－ 暑いことが好きではない。 / 好きじゃない
> I hate hot weather.
２－ サッカーをしていることが好きです。
> I love playing soccer. ( how can I use ます form for this sentence too ? )
３－テニスしていることがよくできない。
> I can’t play tennis very well.
Lots of mistakes haha .. May God be with you sensei XD
@Abdullah
Hi Abdullah!!
OK, I will help you correct the sentences.
1. Sorry! In this case 暑いのは好きではない／好きじゃない will be more natural.
2. サッカーをすることが好きです。will be more natural. していること means “being playing”（You can’t use ます with 好き.)
3. How about テニスをあまりうまくプレーすることができません。
(Without こと →テニスがあまり上手（うま）くありません。／下手（へた）です。）
Ex. テニスでボールをバックハンドで打つことが下手（へた）です。
is OK!
FYI I have ということ lesson. link
But I may make “koto” lesson for you sometime.
Thank you for always trying hard!
Thank you so much for correcting senseiii.. seems i really need to work on my poor grammer >< i will make a time for ということ lesson soon inshallah,Seems a long and VALUABLE one.
btw sorry for replying too late, I already put my email account! shouldn't the website send a notification to our e-mails? or we have to check everytime?
@Abdullah
Your grammar is not poor at all. Just need a good practice. That’s all.
I once accept your comment, you can post comment without my authorization. It should appear automatically. But if I answer you back here in the comment. I don’t think you will get a notification by email. So I am afraid you have to come and check to the comment section. Sorry!
Shokran sensei : ) Ok then i’ll check whenever i leave a reply.
@Abdullah
I am always waiting for you here!
wow, thank you sensei, you try to answer my question so fast,i think it may take a few day for you to reply me. yes,it’s my typo. i read it again and again ,but still have alot of typos,and english is not my native language, so some sentence may look so strange. anyway.thank you so much now i know about (お）～ 下さい。is used for asking for a favor.and the last question i ask my teacher he said some verbs they rearly use with られる like いいえ、課長はまだ帰られません。
@tyty
Yes, (ら)れる is used for polite expressions. (The form is the same as 受身=ukemi= passive form.)
書（か）く→ 書かれる
言（い）う→ 言われる
聞（き）く→ 聞かれる
日本語これからもがんばって下さいね！
Good morning Maggie Sensei,
What’s the word for “Favor” in japanese?
like saying “I want to return the favor to you” or “repay you back”
Thank you
@Manju
to return the favor is 恩返しをする=ongaeshi wo suru Or you can simply say お返しをする
Ex. いつかあなたに恩返しをしたいです。
Ex. あの時のお返しです。
naruhodo ne. itsumo aritgou Maggie sensei.
@Manju
どういたしまして♪
hello,maggie sensei, i’m new comer here, and i don’t know wether u answer in old leasson or not ,but i have some confuse about 謙譲語 られるand お～に なる。 my textbook said お～に なる have imply the meaning “依頼” ,like “そこに名前をお書きになってください。this sentence i understand, but i read a grammar book it write like this
先生はアメリカの大学で日本語をお教えになります。
先生はアメリカの大学で日本語を教えられます。
both are right ,but it dosen’t imply any meaning of 依頼. so i don’t know when we use られる and お～に なる.
one more 課長はもう帰られましたか。 いいえ、まだお帰りになりません。 can we write いいえ、まだ帰られましせん。or not ?
hope sensei can help me, thanks you. sorry for post alot ,because i see some words i write wrong so i post again.
@tyty
Hi tyty! You are always welcome to leave a comment or question in my old lessons.
お〜なる is just a polite form and it doesn’t have 依頼 meaning. However if you say
(お）〜下さい。is used for asking for a favor.
Ex. おかけ下さい。= Please sit down.
Ex. お召し上がり下さい。= Please eat.
Ex. お電話下さい。= Please give me a call
The next question :
いいえ、まだ帰られま
しせんNo. It is not correct. You don’t need “し”. Or is it typo and you wanted to say 帰られません? Then, it is correct.
Thank you, that was really useful! Also, do’t know if anyone’s said before, but this site works excellently in mobile version :D
@SprockerTalker
Yes, you can use it when someone insists on offering something.
Good to hear it works with your mobile!
ありがとう!! It helped me a lot! I just love these lessons! Greetings from Hungary!
@heivazora
Hello heivazora!! Thank you for visiting this site from Hungary!!!
how to say ” You dont know how much i love u ” thanks
@ticha
If you are a woman,
あなたは私があなたのことをどれだけ愛しているかわからない／知らない+ のよ(→you can add accusing feelings.)
If you are a man, you could also say
君は僕が君のことをどれだけ愛しているか（好きか）わからない／知らない+ んだ(→you can add accusing feelings.)
たいぎ(広島弁) for ridiculously hot…
@benjamín
Wow! You know 広島弁？It’s not going to be too たいぎ this summer(^-^)
Thanks for your lessons Maggie sensei. They really help me.
Enjoy you vacation and return safely home.
Best regards from Czech Rebublic :) (please excuse my English)
Grace
@Grace
Thank you!! I’m very happy to read your comment! I’m having fun in France right now. I’d looove to visit Czech Republic one day,too!
Love this lesson!!有り難う。
@アリナ
Thank you for the comment! Will ,ake more interesting lesson when I come back!
Sorry, I have two questions.
1) I saw a foreigner on a Japanese show answering a question from a Japanese panellist who told him “So do you think the Japanese are a little picky?”:
言っちゃえば、そうですね。
That means something like: “Well, if I might say so…”. What kind of use is that one?
2) Are 言っちゃった and ばれちゃった always girly? Oooooops, I kind of used them often.
@Cygnus Nazca
I’m on vacation now so I will answer your questions as soon as I come back to Japan!
@Cygnus Nazca
Sorry that it took me a long time to answer your question. Now I am back and able to answer your question with time.
1) 言っちゃえば、そうですね。 Maybe he meant to say→ まあ、そう言っちゃえば、そうですね。It means “I would say yes.””Yo diría que sí ” or he might have tried to translate ”to tell you the truth” in casual Japanese. and he meant to say ぶっちゃけそうですね (very casual)
2) Men can say 言っちゃった、ばれちゃった. If you are young, it is totally acceptable. But I would say don’t over use it. Check my reply to @Vanli
↓(more dramatic/more literal)
•早く行くのです！！
=Hayaku iku no desu!
↓（stronger)
•早く行くのだ！
=Hayaku iku no da!
↓(conversational)
•早く行くんだ！
=Hayaku ikun da!
So can the “nda/noda” actually be an imperative form? I read young people use it so much it doesn’t really imply a reason (=they overuse it). Is that true?
@Cygnus Nazca
Yes, those are examples of imperative form.
And you are right. Young people use statement form a lot.
このレッスンホント役に立つです．いつもありがとうマギー先生(^o^)／
@マリア
…と言ってくれるのが一番うれしいです＼(^o^)／
I miss u soooooo much already >.<…. T___T
no Super Basic Words, no tweets, no homework!!! (yes, I even miss sensei's homework!!)
gahhhh you better be having a lot of fun over there so this all is worth it… and come back soon!!!
<3
@Aki
Hi Aki! Miss you,too! Lots of love from France! !heart!
涼介だけが生き甲斐だ。
is that right?
@ryuuna2ryoupi
Yes!! That’s right! You can also say 「涼介だけが私の生き甲斐だ。」(^^)
thanks:D
Interesting lesson. I think the “prostitute story” will make it easier to remember the expression. Sometimes you need to be able to link a word to something else in order to remember it properly. But I’m a bit confused of who it is that makes these lessons. Has Victor nothing to do with it besides promoting it? And is Maggie and Yukari the same person? Sorry if I’m asking stupid questions, but I couldn’t find any explanation anywhere… But great site ;)
@Keekii
Hi! Thank you for visiting this lesson. All the lessons are created by Yukari. Maggie is Victor’s dog. she wants to help me but she only has paws so it is hard to type. But she gave me a great inspiration. Victor has been helping me promote and proofread the lessons. He is great!
A suggestion, at the end of each lesson, write the vocabulary used in the lesson.
Please consider my suggestion.
Thank you.
@Mari
Thank you for your suggestion. Since all my lessons are too long already I don’t think I can write all the vocabulary uses in the lesson. But at leas I will try to explain the vocab used in a core sentence.
もういっぺんありがとう、先生ェ：）Hope you have a nice and safe trip^_^
@寝ちゃま
ありがとう!! I’m having a great time!
久しすぎたね、先生：) This lesson was great, I haven’t had the time I used to—I’ve been lurking though：）The part about the prostitutes was funny in a strange way. I love learning about the etymology of words and expressions.
じゃまたね、先生ェ~
ーりゅう
@寝ちゃま
久しぶり!! 元気だった? Hope you come here more often!
Thanks for the lesson, Maggie-sensei! :D
Have a safe trip. ^^
@Amelie Thank you! Amellie! Will be back in a week!
Thanks for the lesson, Sensei. I bookmarked your site and I’ll always come back. :D
@Amelie
Great! Now you are 常連さん= jouren san = regular ( a person who comes visit frequently.) :)
Thanks for an awesome lesson! This site is really great!!
@Delphine
Thank you for your nice comment!!! Hope you come back!
I can’t make a promise that I cannot keep, otherwise I’ll have to swallow 1000 needles lol
But I will stick around for sure.
PS: I like to colors of the website, very balanced, you designed it yourself Victor ?
@Mari
Hi Mari! Thank you for visiting this site! Victor has been helping me a lot to promote this blog but actually Maggie and Yukari are making lessons and Depointless designed the website for us.
We really like it!
Never knew that bit about the prostitutes. Pretty interesting. Thanks
@shirankao69
Thank you for the comment! Hope you come back! 指切り！？
Thanks for the reply, I’ll have a look from time to time :)
@shirankao69
I am always waiting your visit here!
Haha, the prostitute part was random and kinda disgusting :S
THANK YOU for another wonderful lesson!!!
毎日新しいレッスンをアップしたらきっとブログに来るよ！＾～＾
Cause I think I’ve seen pretty much all the other ones ;)
@Aki
I know…it was scary and disgusting but when we do or say 指切り, we almost NEVER think about the origin of the word or we don’t even know how it started. It is just a cute way to make a promise.
You are the ideal visitor of this site! But do come back!
Oh, Maggie Sensei lives for eating!
私も食べることが生き甲斐。:D
I’m a foodie, too. I’m also interested in Japanese cuisine and it’s one of the reasons why I became interested in learning Japanese. I still have a lot of things to learn though, so I’ll do my best.
Thanks for the lessons, as always. マギー先生のサイトで来た甲斐がありました。^^
And oh, I enjoyed Aki’s video. lol
@Amelie
Hi, Amelie! Haha, you like food,too, huh? I love people who can enjoy food!
What is your favorite Japanese food? Can you cook any Japanese food?
(Almost! マギー先生のサイトで→マギー先生のサイトに来た甲斐がありました。）
Good that you enjoyed Aki’s video! I bet she will be happy!
I love sushi and daifuku! I’ve tried making these at home. Good thing there’s cooking-with-dog channel on youtube and its video tutorials. :D
Thanks for the correction. I always mix-up some particles so I guess I should be careful about it. ^^
@Amelie
Oh, Cooking-with-dog channelis fun, huh? Is it easy to get ingredients where you live? You like daifuku!! I love it,too!
There’s a specialty section in grocery stores and supermarkets here in my place which sells Japanese condiments and products. As for the ingredients I can’t find such as adzuki, I try to substitute and use monggo instead. ^^
買い物に行くことが生き甲斐だよ！
I live to go shopping!!!
（特に、最近ね、買い物に全然行かない。。。だってね、貯金をしなきゃ！日本に行きたいよ＞。＜ がんばろ～！）
亀梨くんのビデオがもっと分かるから日本語の勉強で頑張りがいがあるよ～！
The effort put into Japanese study is worth it since I can Understand Kamenashi’s videos better
先生！！あのね、ちょっと聞いてもいい？＾＾
気合いって、何？
そして、重い＝Heavyでしょ？では、重い感じ＝Heavy feelingっていう意味かな？？
先生、よろしくね！m(_ _)m
@Aki
GREAT!! ちゃんと使えてるよ。少しだけ直しますね。
*買い物に行くことが生き甲斐だよ！→Perfect sentence!!
*亀梨くんのビデオがもっと分かるから→もっと分かる様になったから will be better
*日本語の勉強で→日本語の勉強の
*頑張りがいがあるよ～！→good!!
お買い物楽しいよね。日本に来たら買い物天国（てんごく＝Heaven)だからもうちょっとがまんね！
As for your question, you mean 気合 = 重い？
If so, 気合 is not 重い = heavy nor heavy feelings.
気 is energy for your body and mind or vigor.
気合を入れる or 気合を出す means to stir oneself, to put spirit in oneself
For example when you feel like you are tired or less energy, you can encourage yourself, saying
Ex. さあ、気合を入れてがんばろう！/気合を出してがんばろう！
I will do my best (putting myself more energy/spirit/rolling up my sleeves).
You can also encourage people,
気合入れて(or 出して)がんばって！
Or you often hear coaches cheer athletes (especially in martial art)
“気合だ！！”
Hope I answer your question.
よく分かったの！
ありがと～う！！！
これ、プレゼントだ（笑）
かめぽよ～～！！！
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRZs6ogRuFQ
@Aki
あはは！よく見つけたね！亀君が亀を抱（だ）いてる！I couldn’t stop barking while watching this video clip.
わぁ～、このレッソンを作るため、非常に時間がかかりますよね。お疲れ様でした！
さて、友達の仕事に関する給与を聞けば、私はいつも「給料」という単語を使ってますけど、大丈夫でしょうか。どう違いますか。
「〜年後のビジョンを教えて下さい。」という質問はよく聞かれますね。予め答えを考えておいた方がいいと思います。いきなり話は変わって、答えをすぐ思いつくとは限りません。まあ、他のもちゃんと準備をしないといけないね。
@Cygnus
正確に言うと給与の中に給料が含まれます。給与 = wage in general includes 給料 which is salary that employers pay to employees.
会話では給料でいいですが、書類などフォーマルなものは給与を使います。
(A little correction for you : 作るため→作るのに / かかりますよね→かかりましたよね (past tense)/ 話は変わって→話は変わりますが(formal)／変わるけど(casual))
I agree with Aki. This blog makes learning Japanese fun. I enjoy the pictures too because it helps me retain what I’ve learned. :D
Thanks for the lessons!
@Amelie
Thank you for your nice comment, Amelie!!!
I will keep making fun and useful lessons!! !happyface!
ミニレッスンを、ありがとう！！
I am REALLYYYY Enjoying these!! ^~^
@Aki
Akiちゃん、いつもコメントありがと〜！！
It’s good to know someone enjoys the lessons!
oh, I found your lessons VERY useful!! Besides, the main subject of the lesson they also teach me words like 家賃, 借りる, etc. So it helps me expand my vocab! Your website is THE BEST!!!
@Aki
Ohhhh how sweet! じゃあこれからもがんばるよ〜！！
Grrrrrreat! Thx!
@Jetta
どういたしまして！ヽ(*^^*)ノ
I’m watching Manaberu News now and one of the guests answers the question of the audience. Then Ikegami says じゃあ、もうここからは士田さんにお願いしましょうか。 And he says 分かりました, as if he would take over from that time and be the new show host. Ikegami then says ノリがいいですね.
How would u translate that ノリがいいですね? What does he mean by that? That he has a good sense of humor?
@Cygus
Ah, that ノリがいい is used to describe a person who can play along picking up the joyful mood. It is one of the words on the list for my future lesson.
hehe なわばり seems very useful ^^
so how would you say a “possessive person” someone who likes to claim things, selfish…?
@Aki
possessive person is 独占欲（どくせんよく） (or 所有欲（=しょゆうよく)の強（つよ）い（or 独占欲が強い）
Do you have any なわばり？
not really… I guess I am not that good at anything to call it “my territory” ._.
but in the house, kitchen is my territory in a way cause I LOVE cooking!! does that count? （笑）
マギー先生は？
そして、あのね、これ、観てね～！すっごーく日本っぽいよね！？
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF5pRuxGer8
@Aki
Oh, then キッチンはAkiのなわばりだね！
Thank you for forwarding the link of Kaggra. It’s very cool!!!
Aki ヴィジュアル系好きでしょ〜！
I think I’ll pass on anything 踊り! But I’m so glad that now I know what they call it so if I see that anywhere to avoid it!
The 稲荷寿司 sounds like a fantastic idea though!
I love sushi:):)
Thanks for a great lesson!!!
@KristinaMary
Haha! It’s true. It is very important to know what to avoid!
Thank you for your comment! Hope you come back to visit me soon!
Hi Sensei! Thanks for this lesson.
I’m a foodie at heart and I love sushi! Just looking at those pictures makes me hungry too. :D
@Amelie
Hi, Amelie! Ohhh you are sushi love,too, huh?
You know, in order to add more sushi pictures, I have to keep eating more sushi, Isn’t that “awful”?
•彼の教え方といったら！
(=Kare no oshiekata to ittara.)
The way he teaches… (It could be negative or positive.)
But if you say:
•彼の教え方ときたら！
It will always be negative, right?
@Cygnus
Exactly!!! きたら is usually negative.
スペインには：耳が痛いなら、誰かが噂をしている。
Maggie, do you know what’s the unlucky number for Italians?
17. It’s not easy to infer why. If you write it in roman numerals, it would be XVII, which is an anagram of VIXI, which means “I have lived” (therefore, I’m dead). I’ve read that buildings in Italy don’t have a 17th floor, hotels don’t have a room No. 17 and Alitalia planes don’t feature a 17th row, as you can see here: http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archivo:Alitalia-17.jpg
By the way, I talked about the 立て箸 in my speech (Speech Contest 2011 in Chiyoda, Tokyo, before I left Japan).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KmBwjNzDWQ
@Cygnus
Very interesting!!!
Cygnusはいろいろ知っていますね。
それからよく出来たスピーチでしたね！！面白かったですよ！金賞おめでとう！
鼻をかむのがマナー違反だということは知ってるんだが、いざとなれば、どうやればいいのか。
@Cygnus
人から離れてこっそりね！でもいつもそうはしてられないですよね。 :)
I just found out that a kind of neta I enjoyed a lot when I was in China (abura bouzu, or escolar in English) isn’t allowed to be served as neta in Japan. I didn’t have any problems after eating it, so I was surprised to read that it can cause digestive problems! :S Anyway, it was tasty!
@DanielleCanada8
Hi Danielle!
Wow! You had あぶらぼうず？ I am glad to hear it didn’t cause you any digestive problem!
I so wanna try eel and 踊り now!!
and I LOOOOOVE sushi!!! so yeah I am ぺこぺこ、なう。（笑）
@Aki
Really? You want to try 踊り？？？
Grilled eel is pretty good!! Haha! I made you ペコペコ!!! !Vsain!
貰ったチョコは義理チョコか本命チョコかどうやって分かる？
@Cygnus
あまり男の子には教えたくないんだけど :)
すぐ分かります！義理チョコは安いチョコが多く本命チョコは高級で一生懸命に選んだのがよくわかります。そして本命チョコには他にもプレゼントがあることが多いです。 boucingheart!
なるほど！
同感、パネェくらいマギー先生のブログが好き！この表現を始めて読んだところは「聖お兄さん」という漫画にだったんだ。日本人の友達に何の言葉の略語を教えって貰ったが、詳しい説明してくれてありがとう！
@Cygnus
ありがとう！！日本人の友達がいるとすぐにいろいろ聞けていいですね。
（A little correction :
＊この表現を始めて読んだところは→この表現を始めて読んだのは
＊漫画にだったんだ→漫画だったんだ
＊何の言葉の略語を教えって→何の言葉の略語か教えて貰った)
訂正してくれてありがとう！マギーほど素晴らしい犬はいないぞ。
Maggie, thanks a lot for your lessons.
I have a question. Are 利子, 利息 and 金利 synonyms?
@Jane
Hi Jane!
They are all “interest” in English and some Japanese don’t distinguish them but to be more specific,
利子 : interest for your 預金 = bank saving、
利息 : interest for 借入金 貸付金、debt, loan、
金利 : interest rate for your loan, or saving
Thank you for activating the comments, hehe.
Some time ago I read the sentence パトカーがいます。Since the car is an object, how can that be? Is it because there are people inside? Does this apply to other objects? Or is it just incorrect?
@Cygnus
パトカーがいる is possible if there are policemen inside and we treat パトカー as if a human. (How can I say, personification!?)
For the same reason, we also say in conversation あそこにタクシーがいる only when a taxi driver is in it. If we just see a car and nobody is in it, we say 車がとまっている。
マギー先生、
２０１０１月１５日のレッソンに関する質問ですが（そのレッソンのページでコメントできなかったわけ）。
「には」についての質問：
彼には家庭があります。
私には弟が二人います。
いつ「には」という助詞が使えるの？「私は弟が二人います。」でもいい？どうやって違う？
この質問はずっと前あったので、明らかにしてもらったらいいな。
@Cygnus
Oh, you mean “いる＋ある lesson”? sorry. I activated the comment now.
Now about your question,
a) 彼は家庭があります。= He has a family.
b)彼には家庭があります。 = He does have a family.
c) 私は弟がいます。= I have a younger brother.
d) 私には弟がいます。= I do have a younger brother.
They are all correct. に has a function of emphasizing.
So b) + d) sounds much stronger.
Hi!
Here am I again, always nagging with questions, haha.
1) Are 倹約 and 節約 total synonyms? No diffence in nuance or usage?
2) 倹約家 and 節約家 mean saver but… in a good way or negative way?
@Cygnus
The difference is very subtle but here you go!
節約＝無駄をはぶいて、切り詰めること。=To trim down the cost cutting waste
倹約＝金や物を無駄遣いしないように努めること。= Try not to waste money or things.
Thank you! And if you call someone 倹約家 or 節約家, would that be praise? Or can it be negative?
@Cygnus
They both are not negative. But you may have to be careful when and how you use it.
Because it may sound that person is cheap. You know what I mean..
I think Japanese has an astounding amount of onomatopeia for the action of grumbling. How about these ones?
ガミガミ 言う
ネチネチ 言う
ギャーギャー言う
ブーブー言う
And:
ぶつくさ言う
くどくど言う
I guess they’re quite similar, right?
@Cygnus
They are not exactly the same
For example
ギャーギャー loud compared to ぶつくさ
ねちねち or くどくど is for a long period of time, they complain about the same thing on and on.
Thank you for always replying gracefully and ultra-fast. Good dog! :-D
Great one!
Isn’t the し used to explain reasons when there are several? And I’ve heard it also when the speaker only mentions one.
このレストランが好き！安いし、サービスはいいだし。
@Cygnus
Yes, as I mentioned in the lesson, し is usualy use when you list up something.
安いし、サービスはいいだし。→安いしサービスはいいし
I personally would like to know the meaning of those expressions :-P. The only one I know is 「そんなの関係ね〜」.
@Cygnus
You mean the rest of the old gag lines?
A lot of them are meaningless. You just have to see the old comedy shows.
「おめえに食わせるタンメ ンはない！ 」Pretending a Chinese chef in Jacky Chan movie. “There is no Tanmen (Chinese noodle) for you!” ” I won’t serve any Chinese noodle for a person like you.”
「 欧米か！ 」 means “You are too westernized! ”
「フォ〜！ 」 No meaning （just a sound of calling out)
「グウ〜〜！」 No particular meaning but it comes from “Good! ”
「あると思います！」 “I think it’s possible.”
「トウ〜ス！ 」No meaning (It is from American Football calling out sound)
Thanks A LOT. I think 「ダメだこりゃ」 is also famous but a little older, right?
My two favourite shows are personally 学べるニュース and ザ・ベスト・ハウス, I always learn something new :-).
@Cygnus
「ダメだこりゃ」 (a gag line of いかりや長介 from ドリフターズ）is old but people still use it.
ザ・ベスト・ハウス is very popular in Japan.
輸血 (=yuketsu) blood infusion
I think the right term is “transfusion”, blood infusion sounds a little creepy (o_O’).
I found it very surprising that, at a recent interview, the interviewer said to my friend that her blood type wasn’t compatible with the company.
「合わないかな」だって。
そこまで大切だろう。信じられない。
@Cygnus
You are right. “infusion” is also listed in the dictionary but “transfusion” is more adequate. I will revise it.
そうですね、ある血液型が面接で落とされるという嘘の様な話も以前はよく聞きました。（→そこまで大切なんだろうか。信じられない。or そこまで大切なんて信じられない。）
相変わらず、素晴らしいレッソンです。
聞きたいことがあるんですが、大好物というものは食べ物だけでしょうか。たとえば、お土産はシーディーなら、「これは大好き/とても気に入る」とかと応答しますか。
ちなみに、「一番」じゃなくて「one of my favourite…」は何といいますか。
例:
This is one of my favourite presents
This is one of my favourite journeys of the last 20 years.
根掘り葉掘り訪ねて申し訳ありません （当然辞書で調べた表現。おかしかもしれません。）
追伸：私も包装紙を大切にします（笑）。
追伸2:ご当地キットカットもありますよね。東北で枝豆キットカットを買いました。
@Cygnus
大好物は普通は食べ物や飲み物だけです。そうですね、もしCDだったら「（歌手の名前）大好き！／この曲大好き！」って言いますね。
one of my favorite はお気に入りの一つ、（とても）気に入ったものの一つ、大好きなものの一つ、気に入ったものの一つ, etc.
This is one of my favorite presents ：これは私がとても気に入ったプレゼントの一つです。
This is one of my favorite journeys of the last 20 years = in this case it will be a bit odd to translate “favorite” for the trip. We would say 楽しい or よかった, 心に残った = memorable, etc.
ここ２０年でとても楽しかった旅の一つです。etc.
★根掘り葉掘り is usually negative and it is used when you pry into the affairs of others. Just say いろいろ
★ご当地キットカットいろいろありますよ！！
★Cyguns : Are you following me on Twitter? If so, you can ask me question on Twitter anytime.
I check Twitter more often.
I don’t use Twitter, I spend too much time already with my blog and Facebook. Plus, by asking questions related to a lesson, they remain in that particular entry. Is it okay for you to answer questions here? You can take your time :-).
@Cygnus
OK, no problem.
For the same reason, I don’t do Facebook at the moment.
You can keep asking me questions here.
マギー先生、こんにちは。
そのレッソンは難しかったです。T_T
敬語は難しいですが、大事ですね。
明日は、総領事が私の職場にいらっしゃいますから、頑張ります！（＾－＾）
レッソンありがとうございました！★
@Luna
このレッスンは随分前（ずいぶんまえ）に作りました。また機会（きかい）があればもっとベーシクなレッスンを作りますね。
お仕事がんばって下さいね！Good luck!
えっと、よく考えると、「どころか」の使い方は間違ってるだろう。では、頑張ってはもちろん、くじけないようにしてください。正しいかな（汗）。
@Cygnus
がんばるとくじけないは似た様な意味ですから
もっと自然に言うには
「がんばって下さい。そしてくじけないで！」
ではどうかな？
ありがとう＾＾
赤裸裸っては「裸」の意味も含まれているかい。
@Cygnus
はい。
もともと赤裸(せきら）＝ 全裸(ぜんら）という意味です。
だから裸＝raw, without hidingの意味は赤裸裸に入っていますよ。
I’m a little confused by 今より大人っぽい気がします。はい。 Does that mean that she looked more adult in the previous calendar than in the current calendar? Or compared to NOW in general?
@Cygnus
今より大人っぽい気がします。
means “I think I look more mature (in the previous calendar compared to now.)”
I recommend the manga 日本人の知らない日本語 to read something funny about this バイト敬語. 例えば、ウエートレスが「こちらはパスタになりま～す」と言って、日本語を勉強している外国人が「じゃ、今は何？」と応答するとか。
@Cygnus
I have read the book. It is hilarious! :h: でも映画は観ていません。
映画化まだされていないですけれども、ドラマがあるなんですよ！だが、漫画の方が面白いと思います。
Maybe it’d be useful for the readers to know what お is normally attached to genuinely Japanese words, whereas 御 precedes words of Chinese origin: 漢語. だから「お名前」と読まれるんだ（訓読みだから）。 I believe it’s not correct to add it to katakana. おビル（笑）。
超可愛い葉書を送ってくれてありがとう！びっくりした。このページが大好きなので、貢献したかった。
@Cygnus
Oh you are the one!! :)
Thank you sooooo much again for your contribution! We really appreciate it!!!
As for the reading of 御, I also explained in my 御の字 mini lesson!
I will visit your blog,too!!
Oh, sorry. I was so surprised to receive such a cute postcard and, to top it all, with perfect Spanish :-).
@Cygnus
ああ、そうでした。映画化されたのは「ダーリンは外国人」の方でした。「日本人の知らない日本語 」のドラマのエピソードはいくつかみましたが……原作の方が絶対面白いですね。
Jaja! Bueno, a veces hablaremos en español!
先生の授業はすごく分かりやすい！ちょっと聞きたいことがある。状態と状況と情報が同じですか？
@dans
コメントありがとう！
状況、状態、情報の違いはこちらです！
＊状況 = circumstance, situation
Ex. 社会状況 = social circumstances
＊状態 = condition
Ex.健康状態= condition of health
＊情報= information
Ex. 情報がない = lack of information
YES, I wanna come here again and again so 早く新しいレッスンを作てね！楽しみにしっているよ！＾O＾
先生のブログが大好き＜３３３
感謝！
@Aki
Thank you!!! You are always so sweet!!
(楽しみにしっている→してるよ) 今、新しいレッスンつくってるよ。待っててね！
yeah I am NOT looking forward to having to learn about trash rules in japan… seems so complicated…
how do foreigners usually learn that stuff?? is it OK to ask a neighbor for a guideline? or is that too much to ask??
@Aki
Nobody likes to separate the trash here either.
Don’t worry. There are plenty of nosy neighbors around you and tell you to learn how to do it.
Here’s a lesson for you in future. 分別=bunbetsu
sensei, u know how here they say “the fastest way to man’s heart is through his stomach”? I swear, that applies to me too !!!(but I am not a man so it’s kinda scary that it applies to me 0_0 or maybe that saying is just wrong!>..>)
is there a saying like that in japan at all? any sort of “the fastest way to man’s heart …” sayings in japanese language at all?
@Aki
We say “男の気持をつかむには胃袋(ibukuro)をつかめ”
We also say “マギーの♥をつかむには胃袋をつかめ！”
マギー先生、
いいレッソンでしたね！いつも日本語を教えてくれて、ありがとうございます。ｍ（＿‘‘‘＿）ｍ
時々私は「よく寝た」言えますが、「よく眠れた」言えません
（T_T）.不眠症ですからね。もし睡眠薬を飲んだら、眠れます。（笑）
じゃ、「不眠症」のことの問題があります★。
例えば：
「不眠症があります」？
「昨日の晩不眠症があるので、今朝早く起きられませんでした。」
その「不眠症があります」は正しいですか。（笑）
ポルトガル語で意味がありますが、たぶん日本語であまり使いませんね。
ありがとうございます。＾＾
ルナより。
@Luna
そう、Lunaは不眠症なのですね。
「不眠症」は動詞の「ある」は使わず
Ex. 私は不眠症です。
Ex. 不眠症で毎晩眠れない。
Ex. A : 「最近よく眠れないの。」- B:「不眠症じゃない？」
というふうに使います。
日常生活でよく使いますが、実は「不眠症」というのは”睡眠障害=(suimin shougai=Sleep disorder)の中の病気の名前です。
Lunaも寝る前は、ゆったりと過ごすといいですよ〜♪
i just asked my friend this question a few days ago so thanks for the detailed response!
@sven
それは偶然（ぐうぜん）！！= What a coincidence!
このレッスン、作（つく）ってよかったです！！ !ochame!
Thank you for this lesson! This really helped alot because I don’t understand the difference between the 2. Hopefully I’ll use the 2 words correctly next time. =)
@Kristy
Thank you for your comment. Feel free to practice here or on Twitter! I can help you anytime!
Hey Maggie! Thanks a lot, you bestlooking and fastest Japanese-teaching Dog on the net! Until my next question ;-)
Jetta
@Jetta
Glad you checked the lesson. I hope my lesson didn’t make you feel sleepy! !nemui!
枕が変わると眠れない。<-that happens to me a lot but only for one night and then I am fine :)
そしても、私はどこでも寝れるよ。ふふ～！＾～＾
けど、そんなこと恥ずかしいね・・・。＿。
マギー先生、ありがと～！！
お風呂に時は、寝てるかな？（笑）
色々な日本人はお風呂に寝るよ！なんか、可愛い～！
@Aki
じゃあ、Akiは枕を持って旅行に行かないとね。でもどこでも寝れるなんて幸せだね〜！
(a little correction ; お風呂に時は寝てるかな？→お風呂に入ると寝てるかな？ 色々な日本人→多くの日本人 お風呂に寝るよ→お風呂で）
日本人は電車の中で寝ているか携帯で遊んでいるかどっちかです。
勉強になりました！
以下の表現もよく使われますか？
寝違える
寝ぐせがつく
うたた寝する
＠Harin
久しぶりです！！
3つの表現もよく使います。後で付け足しておきますね。
Nice lesson! I like this one.. the timing was good (俺はレポートを夜更かしして書いてるから眠たいんだ（笑）)
By the way, you wrote:
Ex. 最近、寝てもすぐ目が覚める
= Saikin nete mo sugu okiru
= Lately even if I go to sleep, I wake up easily
I think you meant either 最近、寝てもすぐ起きる or the romaji is wrong, or something. I just thought I’d point it out. Sorry.
@curryisyummy
Heeey! Your first comment on this site! Thank you so much for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
もう寝ていいよ〜!
Of course! It’s not a problem. お役に立って嬉しいよ
Heh, I guess you’re right.. it is my first comment on the site. ^^
*raises a hand*I have a question sensei!!
so an average Japanese person, how many kanjis would they know?
and, in everyday life, do most Japanese use kanjis when typing (like on the cell phone and computer) or do they actually hand write a lot?? The non student Japanese people of course^^ Cause when you type kanjis pop up and it’s not that hard, but writing them… ちょっと難しいね・・・
じゃ、やっぱり、二回質問を聞いたね（笑）＾＾；
@Aki
Well, I just checked it.
We are supposed to know at least 1600 kanji by the time when we graduate from junior high school and almost 400 more kanji for high school students. So more or less 2500 kanji you should know, I think.
But it doesn’t mean we all can write kanji. You are right. Since we depend on computer or cellphones too much when we write, we don’t and we tend to forget how to write them. We have a couple of games shows on TV where people compete the knowledge of Kanji. It’s crazy! You will laugh!
haha, I really wanna go to japan!! every day I want it a bit more >.<
BTW sensei, could you explain to me the use of kanji 「方」？
ありがとう＜３
@Aki
OK, I will tweet you about 方 later!
待っててね！
マギー先生、
ルナです。 こんにちは、元気ですか。
今日本語の学校でその「～んです」を勉強しています。
その～んですの問題があります。★
答えていただけませんか。
例えば：
「どうして日本語を勉強しているの？」
私の答えは：
「日本語が大好きですから。」
だけど、「日本語が大好きなんです。」を答えたら、正しい答えですか。
そのとき(when we wanna answer why we like something, for example)「～んです」と「ですから」は同じ意味がありますか。
ありがとう(笑）
ルナより。
@ルナ
今日は、ルナ！！
そう、学校で「〜んです」を勉強しているんですね。
To answer your question, yes, you can say
「日本語が大好きなんです。」
and it is very natural.
The difference between
a) *日本語が大好きなんです。= I love Japanese.
b) *日本語が大好きだからです。= Because I love Japanese.
(→You wrote ですから but It sounds more natural than 日本語が大好きですから）
While a) is a statement b) is giving a clear reason.
Hope this helps…
wow!!先生、お疲れ様！！m(_ _)m
so are Japanese people more sensitive to pollen than us? Cause where I live it’s country side with a really high concentration of pollen but I don’t know that many people who got trouble with it… but you know when I first moved here I had a terrible pollen allergy for a month or so (runny nose, teary eyes, everything!!) after that never again ^^
and u notice how differnt people sneeze differently? it’s the funniest thing でしょ！！？I think I sneeze くっしゃん and I usually sneeze 2 times, I noticed… what about sensei? :)
@Aki
You are very lucky that you don’t suffer from pollen allergy anymore. It is just miserable.
くしゃみ? You have seen my superstitious lesson, right? If you sneeze twice, we think someone is talking about you.
はあ〜〜〜っくしょん！
先生、have I told you that you are the best? :)
最近、お元気ですか？
and so, if I am using an adjective then I should use the “-ku” adjective ending right? like in, [暑くなってくる]?
@Aki
Hi, Aki! 元気ですよ〜！でも先週はすっごく忙しくてブログもTwitterもなかなかできなかったの。これからはもっと時間できると思います。
そうそう！！暑くなってくる * 寒くなってくる * 痛くなってくる etc.
そっか＾＾先生はもっと時間できる、嬉しい(＠＾▽＾＠)ﾉ ということ、あげぽよ～～！！！
マギー先生は忙しくなってきた
けど、これからはもっと暇になっていくね！（←これは練習の文章ｗｗ）
＠Aki
ああ〜〜今日からもっと暇になると思ったけれどもまだまだ忙しい一日でした。さげぽよ〜〜〜！
練習の文章きちんと書けてるよ。Akiの日本語はどんどん上手になってきたね。
え？？！本当にそう思う？よかったね～！
先生！有り難う！＜３実は、先生のサイトは最高！！＾O＾
あの、これからも、頑張ろう！
マギーが大好きよ！
I love you Maggie!
Te amo Maggie!
Ti amo!
Ich Liebe Dich!
Je t’aime!
Я тебя люблю !
Ja te volim!
我爱你
사랑해
うふ＜３３３
@Aki
わ〜〜〜いっぱいの I love you ありがとう！！
Big love from Maggie boucingheart!
One question,
I was under the impression that “yakubusoku” actually meant that you think your current task is “too easy” for you. Could you please clarify.
Here it seems to mean “maybe to hard for me but I will do my best” as in “yukitodokanu tokoro ga arimasu kamoshirenai goyousha no
hodo…”
Thanks!
@MArik
You are absolutely right! I’m so sorry for the confusion. I deleted the line. !nemui!
マギー先生の日本語のレッソンを読んだら、よく分かります！★
ありがとうマギー先生(笑)
ルナより。
@Luna
こちらこそこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！ルナ！
また来てね！ !happyface!
遅れてしまった、私＠＿＠
先生の授業はいつものとおりに詳しくて、分かりやすいですね！
ありがとう～！
マギーは思いやる暖かい人です、犬です？マジ？はは
今日も暑いし、蚊も出てくるし、出かけたくないんです。じゃあ、家でリラックスしましょう！！
@薫
Haha, 遅れてないですよ！いつも来てくれて有り難う！！
暖かい犬？温かい犬？どっち？
もう蚊がいるんですね、日本はこれから！
温かい人！温かい犬！
本当に間違いやすいね～～～
ありがとう :)
@nya nya
Hi, nya nya! ありがとう！for visit this site,too!!
sensei you are 温かい人!!! well, 温かい犬（笑）
and yes, you must be very passionate to have the energy to deal with all of us!^^
有り難う！！m(_ _)m
@Aki
Thank you, Aki! And I hope you become 熱々=アツアツ（=lovey-dovey) with 亀君！ !heart!
I hope so! うふ <3
I'll make sure you get a wedding invitation :)
@Aki
Now you can use うふ perfectly!!
Looking forward to the invitation!
Thanks a lot for fulfilling my request! You’ve explained it perfectly, I don’t think I’ll have trouble with this in the future… and if I do, I’ll refer to this lesson again ^^
@Jack
Thank you for checking the lesson! I am happy to hear you got this confusion clear.
Another great lesson. Thank you for all the work you put into explaining details like this so very well. I always learn something from you. Thank you.
@Maggie’s Mind
Oh, Hi, Maggie!!! What a neat site you have! And we have the same name!! :)
Thank you for the feedback!! I am happy to hear my lessons are useful. ありがとう！
thanks for the lesson sensei!
hope you cover something confusing like this again on your next lesson.
I have a lot of confusion about this kind of problem.
like, the difference of this 見る and this 観る..
by the way, I learn 温 kanji lately. but the word is ぬるい not あたたかい. please explain about it sensei! >_<
ありがとう！ ;)
@umashika kyou
ぬるい means “lukewarm”. When you expect something hot or cold, and it is not warm or cold enough we say ”ぬるい”
I added the information in the lesson.
More lessons like this are coming!
sensei do you think I am more 肉食系 or 草食系??? :)
Is the whole thing with S&M personalities still popular in Japan??
@Aki
You are asking me if you are 肉食系 or 草食系？
It is hard to tell. I have to know how you approach a boy. What do you think yourself?
We still say ドM & ドS to describe personalities.
ahh you know sensei, a japanese friend once described me as 恥ずかしいな性格＾＾
I am really friendly and open with people, boys and girls both, but if I like a guy I get all 恥ずかしい around him and … *blush*
so I guess I am 草食系? ^^;
oh, and I did a japanese test on S&M once(a friend was translating for me), and I turned out to be 75%ドM so I don’t know if that fits with 草食系 or not….
@Aki
恥ずかしい性格（→Not 恥ずかしいな性格)!? You mean “You are embarrassing”? But you are shy (= 恥ずかしがり屋）around a boy you like, Cuuuute!
75％ドM, huh? Funny! Yeah, I think you are 草食系 for sure！
what makes me feel donbiki ね？For example, when a guy approaches me and one of the first things he tells me about himself is what kind of car he has, how he organizes great parties at his house, or how I m “special” -__-; that really turns me off!
マギー先生は？＾～＾
@Aki
I totally agree!!! Also マザコン男 is donbiki for many Japanese girls.
(マザコン男 = A guy who depends on his mother too much (or mother still takes care of him too much) or shows too much love towards his mother in front of one’s girlfriend.)
that too!!! so true! I mean, I don’t want him to disrespect his parents/siblings cause he needs to be a “family guy” in a way but too much attachment is ダメ！
also, if he keeps bringing up his ex girlfriend into our conversation, and especially if he compares me with her (like “oh anna used to do it like this and you do it like that” or “sarah cooked spaghetti a bit different and I liked that”) that’s a TOTAL ABSOLUTE どん引き !!
@Aki
Oh, no “ex-talk”, either!! You know what? We can go on and on… There are so many どん引き examples in the world!
haha I loved the ending :)
gahhh I know one 軽い guy who’s going after me know and gahhhh it’s annoying >.>
besides, 亀君のことだけ好きだから
@Aki
Haha! I was thinking about you when I saw 亀君 on “Going” (A sports TV news show) last night!
マジで？きゃ～～！！！日本に行きたい＞。＜
what was he doing on SPORTS news???
glad you thought of me hehe of course you’d think of me right? ^_~ <3
lol, first of all I m sick and staying in my house all day so with plenty of time on my hands I decided to look at this lesson (don’t get some wrong ideas about me sensei, I m not planning on getting drunk any time soon or anything :)
you know one thing that’s good about drunk salarymen (and drunk people in general in japan maybe) is that they usually take a train ride home! Here people would get into their car (cause almost everybody has a car) and get into a car accident! they would be like a killer on the loose here !!
that’s why our drinking age in the States is so freakin high (you need to be 21 to drink!) Our driving age is 16 (you can actually get a “limited” permit when you are 14) so I guess the thinking is: if they already have a 5 year long driving experience (from 16-21) then they should know by then that drinking&driving is bad so they should be smart enough to not do it.
But there are idiots everywhere….
and I wish our drinking age was lower (for example, 18 like in most of Europe!) but at the same time, I know it would cause chaos because everybody has cars and lots of people would drive drunk…
Laughing makes you live longer, as we’d say :)
I think that was scientifically proven actually….
先生、質問があるよん！From your girl speech lesson I remember you saying that うふふ is kinda cocquetishね？If so, then would a woman use うふふ in front of a guy unless if she does like him? たぶん、変な質問だ、けどcuriousだもん。:)
@Aki
Interesting question! うふふ or うふっ is usually used when girls want them to look/sound cuter, attractive or provocative on purpose. So we can assume the girl has some kind of feeling towards him. (But we do write it to a girl,too.)
m kinda sick today so m staying in and I thought “Let’s look for some good lessons on Maggie sensei’s website!” hehe
“Whenever I hear this line in a divorce interview, I wonder why they apologize for their own divorce…”LOL! could it be cause they are supposed to be 元気 and divorce is not a 元気 topic so they “troubled” people with a non 元気 thing? lol just guessing :)
@Aki
Are you OK? I hope you feel better now.
If you don’t feel good, you have to apologize to me because you are not 元気! :)
i guess from this day on, i wouldnt dare to take 三人写真 photos…just in case…
@薫
Haha! Don’t worry about it. It’s just 迷信！
せんせい、キムチクッパはなんですか？
I know kimchi, but can’t find the meaning of kuppa anywhere? Is it rice in soup?
@Tiffany
クッパ？ It’s rice in soup like Korean risotto!
Looks like this!
お誕生日おめでとうございます, Yukari. :)
＠majoringram3636
わ〜！！ありがとうmajoringram！！！うれしいです！！(このサイトには初めてのコメントかな？） boucingheart!
これは今まで一番面白い授業です！！
日本の祝日などがいっぱい教えられて大変勉強になります、ありがとう、先生！＾＾
端午の節句のかげで、男の子たちは毎年鯉のぼりをかけられるのはうらやましい。。。なんときれいですが。。。
先生、八月のごろはぜひお盆休みのこと教えていただけませんか。
聞きたいことがひとつあります：「お帰りなさい」と「お帰りなさいませ」という表現の違うはなんですか？
@薫
こちらこそ、いつもありがとう！そうですね、また夏に夏のお祭りのレッスンを作りますね。
質問ですが、「お帰りなさい」と「お帰りなさいませ」の違いですが、「お帰りなさいませ」の方がずっと丁寧（ていねい）です。
（でも今は「お帰りなさいませ」はメイドカフェのメイドのあいさつで知られる様になりましたよね。）
メイドカフェですか？！ピンクなイメージが浮かびやすいね～～ほほほ
でも、「いらっしゃいませ」はいつも聞きますか？
@薫
ハハ ピンクというより”ヲタ”です！
はい、「いらっしゃいませ」は大体、どのお店に行っても言われます。
そうですね～～
私、日本ヲタLOL
hehe sensei you should teach that too! sensei is so wise ne :)
what all countries have you visited? I love travelling!!!
@Aki
I love traveling,too!
I have been to Holland, Germany, UK, France, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, the US, Purto Rico, Australia, Hong Kong.
There are so many countries I have never visited in the world…but I tend to go to the same place again and again.
wow, that’s awesome!!! out of all those any favorites? or favorite new food you got to try or something?^^
you know sensei I am not jealous that you’ve been to any of those… I am just jealous that you live in Japan !! いいな。。。＞。＜ （笑）
先生は亀くんの近いね～！うふ＾＿～
@Aki
Haha, I knew you would say that! You would like to go to a country where 亀 lives!
My favorite place is Hawaii no matter what!
so 小銭 includes 5 yen 20 yen 50 yen coins??
I hate small change -.- like pennys here! they are absolutely worthless and you will probably lose them…. and yeah I know we have a saying “a penny saved is a penny earned” but still…
Maggie sensei, what do you you think of small change? めんどくさいな？ :)
@Aki
小銭 includes 5 yen 20 yen 50 yen or even 100 yen coins.
Yes! I agree! It’s めんどくさい！We have a saying, 一円を笑うものは一円に泣く,too.
Actually I am very good at getting rid of all the coins when I go traveling abroad, though… It is like a game for me.
Dear Maggie!
I also have a question: Are there any differences between 眠る and 寝る. Or are these words totally synonymous?
Many thanks in advance!
@Jetta
Hi, Jetta!
I will make a lesson on that subject for you sometime. I am in middle of making another request lessons so please wait!
Oh, thank you! I am looking forward to your next lesson. Meanwhile there is still more than enough for me to explore on your amazing site! Thanks a lot for your work!
Hi maggie sensei if im not mistaken is it something related with transitive/intransitive verb
I also confuse with that nemuru and neru… ?
@Angel & @Jetta
This is an old comment but I already made a lesson for Jetta years ago.
The difference between neru and nemuru.
Click this link →Click here
I have a question ……not sure if it’s ok to ask here but,
About “deru” “detekuru” “dereru
minna ga deru deshou??….does it mean that everyone is showing up or participating??
thank you~
@Manju
OK first of all
*出る= deru = to leave, to come out, to appear, to attend
Ex. 電車が出る= densha ga deru = a train leaves,
Ex. テレビに出る= terebi ni deru = to appear/show up on TV
Ex.この問題は試験に出る= kono mondai wa shiken ni deru = This question will be in the exam.
Now it is hard to translate just one sentence 皆が出るでしょう= Mina ga deru deshou because it needs an object.
But I can assume “Everybody will participate in something or attend something”
Ex.試合に出る=shiai ni deru = participate in game,
Ex.パーティーに出る= Paatii ni deru = to attend the party
Ex.授業に出る= jugyou ni deru = to attend the class
or something.
And
出てくる=detekuru = means to come out from somewhere, to appear from somewhere
and
出れる= to be able to leave
Hope I answered your question.
oshiete kurete arigatou gozaimasu!
Maggie Sensei daisuki desu ^o^
@Manju
どういたしまして！
Love you,too! !CHECKHEART!
I don’t think Maggie sensei is 重い she’s just 細やかな性格だ。:)
「お帰りなさい！ご飯にする？おやつ？それともお風呂？」きゃ～～！細やかな～！
I’ll make sure I use that on 亀梨 ふふ
＜３
@Aki
Hehe, Thank you, Aki! And yes, use that phrase to Kame-chan!! I somehow feel like talking to a Japanese girl whenever I talk to you.
HAHAHA actually the international students at my college (they come from all over the world) tend to tell me that I don’t seem western or American in the way I behave and when it comes to stuff I like :) funny that you said that even though you only know me through the internet!^~^
well sensei, I always tell people I should’ve been born in a different country (Japan >.>) >.<
@Aki
That matters!
I bet you won’t have much trouble adopting Japanese culture when you come here.
Either way, nationality doesn’t matter. Just be you. Stay wonderful!
really?? u are 5!!? u look younger ^^ 若くみえる!!
here they say that 1 dog year=7 human years, is it the same in japan?
and some japanese and korean people are the most 年を取らない people I know!!!! but then again, they say I say that cause I can’t tell asian people’s age just like they can’t tell our age… so I don’t know, they just look younger than their real age to me ^^; skin careかな？cause they usually take much better skin care than us…. I m bad at teling age anyway~! when people ask me to guess their age I usually say a few years younger than what I really think, just in case I m totally off xD
@Aki
Do I look younger? Thank you!!!! I guess everybody wants to look younger. I use special “doggie facial cream” when I sleep :)
(But, yes, we have the same calculation!)
Hey, don’t calculate my age in “dog years”!
「だから俺はお前のことが好きなんだよ！」きゃ～～！！！male speechすごーい！！（笑）
こっちは、５月６日から８月２８まで夏休みだよ～！うらやましい？:)
仕事があるよ～！単科大学（college?いいかな？？）に勤めている＾＾お金がほしいの！！＄＿＄日本に行きたいけどplane ticket高いね！お金を貯めなきゃ＞。＜
がんばろう！！！
@Aki
ええ〜！！５月から夏休みが始まるの？うらやまし〜〜！！！
しっかりお金を貯めて日本に来てね！
「だから俺はお前のことが好きなんだよ！」ふふ..♡Akiの頭の中は亀君が… !CHECKHEART!
yeah, Japanese are very humble so it was hard for me at first cause I always had to remember to say “いえいえ、そんなことじゃないよ＾＾；” when I was told I was cute or nicely dressed or that my Japanese is improving and all… always had to remember to be more 奥ゆかしい….
but you know sensei, now I have a reverse problem-now I talk like a Japanese when I m with the Western people here… hahaha it’s driving my friends nuts! when someone tells me “oh cute skirt” I m like “oh no it’s not that great…” and when people say “you look cute” I tend to say “oh no no no I am just average^^;” instead of saying “thank you!” or “I know right!” like “normal” people here do. So yeah some of my friends are wondering what’s wrong with me :)
oh well, しょうがないね～！and I think modesty can go long ways with people, especially when they don’t expect it ^^
@Aki
Your comments are always VERY interesting to read!
As we say,
能ある鷹は爪を隠す。=Nou aru taka wa tsume wo kakusu.) = A clever falcon hides his claws. =Still waters run deep./ He who knows most speaks least.
or
謙遜は美徳= kenson wa bitoku = modesty be a virtue
How do your friend usually react when you give them compliments?
本当なの？I thought my comments were bothersome ^^; I tend to talk too much hehe I am quite, as Japanese would say, キャピキャピギャル＾～＾
so すみません for talking so much m(_ _)m
My friends reactions are something like this:
“You look cute today!”
“thank you! of course I do!” or “Oh yeah, m gonna make all the boys turn around” or “you know me^_~”(=something like of course I do…)
“Your skirt is cute!”
“I know! that’s why I bought it!” or “I figured it would look good on me so I bought it”
“Your kid is really cute/smart”
“Yeah I know right! He/she is the cutest thing! He/she always does well in classes. She’s an excellent student./She is in sports, plays piano, does drama. He is the best in his class at (something).”なんとけなんとけ stuff along those lines^^
“Wow, your house is so nice!”
“I decorated it myself. I got good tastes so I figured I’d do it” or “Yeah my husband/son decorated it/built it. They are so talented and got a great taste when it comes to layouts. They did a great job”
and really, everybody replies like this… yes, I do agree that 謙遜は美徳 ^.^
but I am the annoying one here>.< cause of my answers…. o_o
Maggie, how would you say "patience is a virtue"?
@Aki
What are you saying? I always enjoy reading your comments!
Hahahaha!!! I love it!! Reading your friends reaction made me laugh so much. You are right. They are so different. Very confident and positive.
Showing how happy we are when we hear nice compliments is sort of important, huh? We should learn from them reactions.
“patience is a virtue”=忍耐（にんたい）は美徳（びとく）or 何事（なにごと）にも忍耐（にんたい）は必要（ひつよう）である。
Ah so 亀 are good luck?!! ^_~ <3
Yeah, we got some superstitions in the US like 13=unlucky, breaking a mirror, "knock on the wood" (to chase evil spirits away), 7=lucky number (I think it comes from the Bible…), 666=Satan, and one that's REALLY REALLY big is the groom shouldn;t see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding ceremony (which is different from Japanでしょう？）
I know that in China 8 is a lucky number too cause they made a big deal with the Olympics and they had to take place on 08/08 of 2008 ^^ and in Korea lucky number is 7 (I guess they got it from the West ^ ^ at least that's what they've told me)
In some places in the Middle East 4 is unlucky number too! Did you know? Also, in most of Eastern Europe even numbers are unlucky because when you go to funerals you buy an even numbers of flowers (2,4,6…) so you don't buy an even number of anything (especially flowers) to people for special occassions, unless if it's a funeral!^^ It's funny cause here (in the US) we like even numbers! We usually go buy dozens so a guy will buy his girl a dozen roses and if you did that to a girl from over there she'd freak out www Also, I think Americans got a special place for number 2 in their hearts (2=couple=love)
Also, the mirror thing probably comes from Eastern Europe cause there most people believe mirrors are a passage to the other world (so even today they cover the mirrors in the house of the person who died so that their soul can move on)
oh, and in some places in Middle East people believe that sleeping with your had towards south or west is bad luck (cause that's the position they put dead people in ) so they try to sleep with their heads towards north, or even better-east! (west=sun goes down=bad; east=sun rises=life=good :) most churched in middle eastern Europe were built so that when you enter them you are moving towards east (=the beginning of life)
Also, in some parts of Middle East red thread means separation/divorce so if you want someone to break up with someone (and trust me, there are people who do this) you put a short piece of red thread under their bed/pillow, in their pocket, or something and let them carry it around. (mean, right?)
one more superstition I can think of, and I think this one is pretty common in Europe (cause my friends from different countries like Russia and the Netherlands both practised it) is to put a knife under your pillow at night to chase away nightmares/bad dreams ^^ (it works ! I've tried it ^~^)
yup, as you can tell I like learning about these things and I m probably more superstitious than an average person here^^ and my mom is Arabic and I've lived in Europe before so I got to learn a bit about some other cultures there ;)
oops~! “most churched in middle eastern Europe were built so that when you enter them you are moving towards east ” I meant to say MEDIEVAL Europe^^; sorry for so many typos, it’s 2:55 AM here …. zzzzz
@Aki
Wow! I will call you Miss Superstition from now. I had no idea you know this much! I am very impressed. Thank you so much for telling me all about interesting superstitions. I will check under my pillow before I sleep from now on.
But I would feel a bit uncomfortable sleeping on a knife, though…
Yes, 亀 will bring good luck. Also in Hawaii, Honu=ウミガメ brings you happiness, I heard..
亀 are awesome ne!? ^_~
hehehe I love learning about different cultures^~^ <3
Can なくちゃ and なきゃ be used by both girls and boys? Is one more girly then the other one?
Thank you
@Van
Yes, men and women both can use these forms.
wow!!! so detailed and clear – I LOVED IT!!! you should make a quiz out of this on twitter!
@Aki
OK, I will sometime!
ahhhhh..what about slang for boys, sensei?? T^T
@Top
OK, OK!! !ryouwink! But ”紙うさぎロペ”はみな、男の子のスラングですよ〜 :)
First time I visited this site. Daisuki!!
@Lochan
Thank you for visiting this site! Come back again!!
占いことがたくさんですね？・マギー先生は占うことが出来ますか？
@Biozu
はい！Biozuさんはしあわせになると出ています！ :)
Thank you so much for all the insightful lessons.
I’ve started watching Taiga dramas so, in this particular lesson, 有り難き幸せ was just the expression I was looking for. :)
@m1zu
Thank you for visiting this site!
Oh, so you’ve been watching Taiga Drama? 有り難き幸せに存じまする！ is a very typical line to show your appreciation in Samurai dramas.
The language is very different from modern Japanese, huh?
They also say かたじけない！（A humble way to say thank you in old days.)
I still need english subtitles to understand everything in dramas, but I can see the language in Taiga is different and I’m especially enjoying the use honorific and humble verbs. It’s very interesting and getting better with more vocabulary learned each episode.
Btw. I’m also following Victor on Youtube so, 皆様、心からありがとう存じまする。 :D
@m1zu
Haha! You can use 存じまする!!! I will forward your message to Victor. He might say かたじけない!
oh wow sooo useful!!! thank u!!!
@Aki
You’re welcome! It is not easy to master these. Keep practicing here or on Twitter! !happyface!
はーい！がんばろう！！If you ever have time, just give me some sentences in English and I’ll try and translate ^_~
@Aki
OK, I just tweeted the questions now. Check it out!
マギーちゃん、ダメだ！おもちゃを片付けなきゃ！（笑）
Nice lesson!今、「おく」と「～ぱなし」のことが知るよね～！ありがとう先生！！
@Aki
は〜い！片付けます！！
(今〜知るよね〜 →これで〜を習った／習いました or わかった／わかりました）
そっか、そっか。分かった＾＾
つぎのレッスンは？
面白い話！ありがとう、先生～
日本人はそんなに占いを信じていますか？本当ですか？ドラマを見る時そんな感じがしますが、フィクションだっただけと思います。
ところで、蠍座というのは さそりざ と読みますか、かにざ と読みますか？
@薫
間違いをみつけてくれて有り難う！！蠍座はsasorizaと読みます。直しました。
そうですね、特に女性は占い好きだと思います。あの占い師はよく当たると言うとすごい行列ができることもありますよ。
でも皆が信じているわけではなく遊びの気持も半分です。
先生は細かくて、乙女座生まれらしいですねn_n~
私たちもホロスコープが大好きなので、時々相談し、だんだん星座達人になりますよ。
@薫
星座達人！？すご〜い！！じゃあいつか運勢をみてくださいね！
YES, I do believe in 占い! (but most of people in this country don’t)
I don’t really believe in feng shui, never tried it.. but I believe in horoscope, blood types…
I m a Virgo (Horse in chinese horoscope), O blood type ^^ (Kame kun is B and I heard that in Japan there was a study that said that B type guys and O type girls are the BEST match!!-a japanese friend told me :) デスチニね！？destiny?)
haha, thank you for the lesson!!! question: what about 「うさんくさい」？「怪しい」は違うかな？or are they pretty much the same?
なんか it seems like 「うさんくさい」is mainly used when you hear something “fishy” and 「怪しい」seems to mainly be used when you see something “fishy”…
@Aki
Good question!
We use うさんくさい is a synonym of 怪しい. And you can use it when you hear or see something fishy. But it is a little bit more negative and you can’t use in certain cases.
For example as I explained in the lesson, when you suspect a couple is dating in secret, you can say
Ex. あの二人は怪しい = ano futari wa ayashii
but you can’t say
あの二人はうさんくさい.
It just means they look strange.
So 亀 is your 運命の人！
例えば：
どうして宿題をしなかったの？
外で、いい天気から。（遊んだ）
どうして彼のことが好きないよ？あいつはいい人だ！
それは、亀くんはあたしの一つの恋だからだよ。>.>
:)
どう？
@Aki
Nice try! OK, I will correct you a little.
外で、いい天気から。（遊んだ）
→いい天気だったから外で遊んだ(の)。
どうして彼のことが好きないよ？
You mean “Why do you like him?” if so
→どうして彼のことが好きなの？
あいつはいい人だ！
When you give a reason,
→（あいつは）いい人だから。
(Remember あいつ is for male speech and it sounds a bit rough. If you use あいつ, いい奴（やつ）だから is more adequate than 人.
the safer way is : (彼は)いい人だから。)
それは、亀くんはあたしの一つの恋だからだよ。
→??? 一つの恋だから？ Can you rephrase it?
for the second one, I meant:
Why don’t you like this guy? he’s a good guy! (and yeah I put あいつ cause I meant it as a reproach from an older brother/friend or something…) and then the answer was supposed to be:
That’s because Kamekun is my only love.
うん！へへへ ＜３
だから、たぶん、「一つの恋だから？」ｰ>「亀くんのことをばかり好かれるの。」
@Aki
OK, then how about
亀君のことだけ好きだから
Someone is in looooove! boucingheart!
うふ＜３
そうだよね～！うふふふ
２００９の四月から２０１１の三月中旬まで、日本に住んでいました。帰国する日は予め１５日だったけど、地震が起きたからこそ、出発をすること時に、私の心も悲しみ一杯で、日本人を支えてあげたくてたまらなかった。余震が続いても、マギーが素晴らしいレッソンを作り続けることを感謝いたします。「頑張って」を言うのが簡単だが、私も「頑張って」どころか、「くじけないで」を言ってあげたいと思います。
これからもお言葉に甘えて。
@Cygnus
温かいメッセージ嬉しかったです。こちらこそ、日本を離れても日本のことを心配してくれてありがとうございます！！
地震でしばらくレッスンをお休みしましたがこれからもみなさんに楽しいレッスンをがんばって作っていきますね。
また元気になった日本にいつか帰って来て下さい。
Te esperaremos aquí!
Un abrazo muy fuerte,
so 一般的 can be used for other things, like food/fashion??
先生はとっても魅力的だ！！！！＜３
@Aki
Yes, 一般的な食べ物。一般的な服 etc.
Thank you! Aki! You are 魅力的 as well!
Chuken Hachikou story is soooo sad ;_; I could never watch the movie >.<
ok, here we go:
今晩、フレンドはあたしに仕事をやらせた。
Tonight, a friend made me do her work.
@Aki
Good! Can you change the sentence,
→I made my friend do the work.
フレンドは私に仕事をやらせられた。
@Aki
That’s right! Good job!
Akiはマギー先生に例文を作らされた。 :)
= Aki wa Maggie sensei ni reibun wo tsukrasareta.
(例文= reibun = example sentences.)
ゆかりさん、お久しぶり！マーギは元気？地震や原子力発電所とか、ちょっと心配かな。
豆しばのビデオが面白い、やっばりこのサイトは最高！
こねはダッドリの最近の写真、http://rgm501.deviantart.com/#/d3e617f
Think you might like it:D
@Tiffany
お久しぶり！！元気でしたか？ダッドリの写真、めちゃくちゃかわいい〜♡
Please ask him if he wants to be a guest teacher again!
haha, I’m sure he won’t mind. He loves attention:D
@Tiffany
OK, then I will make a new lesson having him as a guest teacher again sometime. I wonder if he remembers Japanese…. :)
エーーー？？！そして、”That’s so like Aki”って言ったら、it will sound like “飽きっぽい”?
ダメだね。。。
How would you say “I will never give up!”?
and how would you say “I give up!” for example, when you don’t get something or don’t think you can win a game?
@Aki
Hahaha!! Akiっぽい！＝飽きっぽい！?
Hope you don’t get tired of my site!
to give up = あきらめる
Ex. I gave up! = あきらめた！
Ex. Don’t give up! = あきらめないで！
hahah never sensei!!! ぜったいにない！！
do you have a lesson on word 全然？I’ve heard it so much, but I m not quite sure I know all of its uses…
@Aki
I don’t have a particular lesson on 全然 but I mentioned it in my slang lesson.
全然 (or 全く= mattaku) is usually used in negative sentences. Ex. 全然、英語が話せません。= I don’t speak English at all.
But we use it in affirmative sentences to stress the meaning in modern Japanese.
Ex.これ、全然、イケてる！ = This is really cool!
haha!! Kansai ben rocks :3
I’ll have to be careful with this word though… Don’t want to seem stuck up or something でしょう？:)
and sensei, what do people in other parts of japan think of Kansai people? cause I heard from some Kansai friends that Tokyo people for example are really “proper.” So I was wondering, is there a certain image of Kansai people?
@Aki
It doesn’t sound stuck up it just sounds funny. We use it jokingly now.
Kansai people are considered to be very warm, funny and friendly. That is why many comedians are from Kansai. On the other hand, imagewise, Tokyo people might be cooler but more distant.
Personally I love Kansai people and kansai dialect!
ahh ok^^
me too!! I really like them :) 好きやねん！あはは、にゃ～！
I just have this tendency of sometimes saying nya to myself when something is cute&funny… I don’t know why… maybe cause it was one of the first japanese words that I learned? hehehe it’s sooooo cuuuuuute <3
@Aki
That’s かわいいニャ〜！(=^x^=)
毎日このサイトに来ますね～！（笑）at least it feels like it :)
Let me try! Let me try!!
例えば：
一年に何度位家族に合うの？
How many times do you see your family a year?
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNを聞きますか？
How often do you listen to KAT TUN? <3 (don't know if I used the right kind of listen)
@Aki
がんばってるね！
一年に何度位家族に合うの？
Ahhh almost. Just one kanji. 合う→会う
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNを聞きますか？
No grammatical mistake but 頻度 sounds a bit too formal to listen to the music.
どのくらいの頻度でKAT TUNのコンサートに行きますか？would work though.
Any way you did good job!
マギー先生どうもありがとうございました。ものすごく助かりました。
@カイル
うれしいコメント有り難うございました！また来て下さいね。
last time i was in ibaraki i tried natto daifuku. i liked natto so i thought it was good but obviously most ppl would be afraid of the idea! it was a mame only store.
@sven
Wow! I have never heard + tried 納豆大福= Nattou daifuku….If I have a chance, I would love to try one!
sensei, I was at this lesson again 質問があるよ＾＾
「生」の漢字が説明してくれる？
I’ve seen it as すむーー＞生む
and as いーー＞父が生きていたら喜んでくれたのに。
so I am wondering what are all of its uses/pronounciations? :)
教えって下さい！m(_ _)m
@Aki
Sure!
生
★kun reading
1) 生=nama= raw/fresh 生魚= namazakana = raw fish / 生クリーム= fresh cream / 生野菜= namayasai = fresh vegetable/ 生ビール= draft beer
2) 生む(or 産む）= umu = to give birth, produce Ex.かわいい子供を生む(or 産む）= kawaii kodomo wo umu = to give birth to a cute baby
3) 生まれる(or 産まれる）= umareru = to be born Ex. マギーは９月に生まれた。Maggie wa kugatsu ni umareta = Maggie was born in September.
4) 生きる= ikiru = to live, to alive Ex. 生きる喜び= ikiru yorokobi = a pleasure to live
5)生える= haeru = to grow Ex. 木が生える= kiga haeru = the tree grows Ex. 歯が生える= haga haeru = the tooth (teeth) grow(s)
★on reading
6) 生= sei = life Ex. 生活= せいかつ= seikatsu = life Ex. 学生= gakusei = student Ex. 生徒= seito= student, 先生= sensei= teacher
7) 生 = jou Ex. 誕生日= tanjoubi = birthday
8) 生= ki = pure, fresh Ex. 生じょうゆ= kijouyu = pure soy sauce
There are more but I think it should be enough for now.
わぁ～！本当にありがとう！！！
でわ、あきも９月に生まれた。＾＾
@Aki
そうなの？Akiも私と同じ９月生まれなのね〜！一緒（いっしょ）だね。なんか、嬉（うれ）しい！
Thank you so much for all these translations and pronunciations, it’s exactly what I was looking for! I hope everyone’s okay!
@imiOnashi
You’re welcome and Thank you for the comment! Please come back!
私もまめだよ～！＾＾
日本の男の子マメ男かな？
このフレンチブルの先生大大大好きよ！！！！:)
@Aki
ありがと〜！！
亀はマメ男かな？？？
これからもマメにここに来てね！
うん！うん！亀は完璧だ！！！＾O＾
@Aki
Haha! もう完璧って言葉、使えるね！
Love is blind = 恋は盲目=koi wa moumoku! !happyface!
あのウェブサイトのことがいかにも面白いです！ありがとう先生！ n_n
日本では、テレビ番組は７０％で教育的だそうです、本当でしょうか？
@薫
こちらこそいつも来てくれてありがとう！
日本のテレビ番組の７０％が教育というのはちょっと信じられません。
娯楽（ごらく）が７０％ならわかるけど…
はは そうですが
最近、＜劇的のbeforeーafter大改造＞をよく見ています。先生が知りますか、それは問題がかかるお宅の改築というの超面白い番組です。古そうですけど、大好きです。先生、日本では持てる知識的な番組を薦めてもらえませんか n_n
@薫
“Before After”面白いですよね。特にどうやってお家が変わっていくのが見るのが楽しみです。
＊日本で持てる知識的な→日本の知識的な番組？知識が持てる日本の番組？
NHKでは知的な番組をよくやっていますが、ちょっと堅過ぎるかもしれませんね。私のお勧めは、企業の裏側とか製品の作られ方を面白く紹介する「シルシルミシル」最近ハマっています。 :h:
先生へ
今日youtubeで『シルシルミシル』を見てみました。素敵です！のど飴作る工場の中を見ましたから。
見る前にちょっと心配ですが、実際に見るとき、聞き取れるところが予想より多いです。嬉しいです n_n
@薫
早速（さっそく）見ましたか？Youtubeでも見られるんですね。聞き取れてよかった！あの番組のナレーションと司会のやり取りは本当に楽しいですよ♫
Hi Sensei!
Every time I hear the Japanese word ‘mame’ the first thing that comes to my mind are beans. lol. Thanks to this lesson, I’ve learned that it’s not just about beans. ^__^
Speaking of beans, I love them – from legumes to those colorful jellybeans! I’d also love to try nattou when I visit Japan someday. :D
@Amelie
Hi Amelie! Haha you love “beans”! Yes, try nattou someday and let me know how you like it.
You might see “Nattou-shiba”” :)
Again: Wow! Feel like I’m learning more in a few hours than in the last weeks. Thank you very much for your work!
本当にTwitterのフォローしているデージャです。
And I won’t stop :-)
@Deja,
Thank you for visiting again, Deja! やっぱり！！どこかで見たことある名前だなって..Hope you keep learning!
Wow! Super useful! Great job! Thank you very much!
どうもありがとうございます。
@Deja
Hi Deja! (Your name sounds familiar. Are you the one who follows me on Twitter?) Anyway I am happy to hear it is useful!
Thanks so much >””<. Now I know what it is…
@pdarkangle
You’re welcome! Thank you for visiting the site,too!
I join all the comments and…well I really don’t know what else to add to what has been said so far. Sometimes words are hard to find.
Sensei can I point out one little thing about the lesson? It is something that happened right the other day in a forum. It is about: もっと私達に甘えて下さい. Often in Japanese もっと is placed before the noun and we students think it could be used directly with nouns. Some of us (I did the same mistake too) tend to forget that もっと is an adverb and thus refers to the verb and not the noun :)
@charyop
Good point! I didn’t think it would confuse Japanese learners.
もっと is placed before adjectives or adverbs and modify them as well.
Ex. もっときれいになりたい。
Ex. もっと優しい男の人がいい。
Ex. もっとゆっくり話して下さい。
Ex. もっと静かな所で話しましょう。
Quite moving and educational lesson :), very very thank you,love it. The songs,all of them beautiful and encouraging. I wish i could live upto 100 years and have that clear, bright and wise mind as that lady poet Shibata Toyo.
@NylsX
Thank you for your comment!
Yes, it will be great to live up to 100 and still can write those beautiful poems, huh?
hahaha I actually didn’t realize it was Fool’s Day today until a few hours ago ^^; maybe cause nobody pranked anybody today? haha :)
Sensei, I have a random question ^^ Do you write “Yukari” in hiragana or do you have a kanji for your name?
@Aki
Well, Happy April Fool’s day anyway!
Haha, it is a random question. It is written in Hiragana.
先生ありがとう。
嬉しいメッセージが沢山あり
とても感動し涙が出ました。
本当に辛い事が起きてしまいました・・
実質的に被害を受けていなくとも
日本人全てが心に大きな傷を受けて
今でも悲しんでいますよね・・
毎日、心のどこかが痛んで苦しいです。
沢山の国の方々が、こうして支援してくれる
応援してくれる事は本当に有り難く
『人』としての繋がりを感じ、心が温かくなります。
私も今だけではなく長期間に渡り物資や義援金を通し
ずっと支援していきます。
同じ日本人として頑張りましょうね！
『きっと』ではなく『絶対に』日本は復興します。
震災前より、もっと強い日本になれます！
@Kazumi-chan
初コメント有り難うございます。同感ですよ。みんな、同じ気持ちだと思います。何をやってもどこにいても同じ日本で起きた地震の傷跡が大きくて悲しみ、心配、不安にかられますが、人は皆つながっています。遠く離れたアフリカの子供達まで日本のことを心配して泣いてくれています。これだけ多くの人達が応援してくれているなんてすごいことですよね。ポジティブなエネルギーを送り続け復興を信じて日々、元気に過ごしましょう！
二週間になった。日本以外の私たちにとってはあっという間だけど、日本人にとってはどんなに辛いか、想像がつけないんです。柴田さんのことを初めて聞きましたけど、あんなに優しく静かな強さで、涙が流れてきた。きっと大丈夫、明日は味方ですからn_n
@薫
コメントありがとう！トヨさんの言葉は人生の大先輩（だいせんぱい）の言葉だけに心に響きますよね。薫さんの心にも伝わってよかったです。
Yes sensei. There are a lot of people here who love Japan. I donated some money quite a few times through a Japanese supermarket here. The box is always full. I pray for all the victims of this terrible disaster.
@Top
THANK YOU!! We hear the news of receiving support from all over the world almost everyday. We are deeply moved.
I am sure Japanese people won’t forget about this kindness and do the same to other countries. After all, we are all connected.
Very touching.
I love SMAP too.
強く未来を信じて
Best wishes to Japan.
Arigadou, sensei.
@B-chan
Yes, 未来を信じて！
Thank you for your support!
loved it! ahh Japanese people can be so simple, ne :) cause “do your best!” is not a hard thing to say but it can mean so much to them ^^ <3
@Aki
You are right. It is easy to say but difficult to do. So we all have to ganbaru!p(・∩・)q
I’m so heartbroken over this tragedy and I don’t know why…
Wonderful lesson as always, sensei…
@Top
As long as there is a person like you who is concerned about Japan, we all can be genki again someday. !ochame!
I am baaaaack!!!!このSONY laptop本当にすごい! ^o^
いつぱい宿題があるね @_@
ま, だいじょうぶだよ ^^ 日本語は おもしろい <3
先生, 復習にありがとう !!!
Super Basic レッスンはとても助かりました^^ これからもよろしくね ^^v
@Aki
おかえり！ 新しいコンピューターさっそく使っているね。
４月４日から新しいSuper Basicスタートするからしっかり復習しておいてね。
Arigatougozaimasu! I was having trouble with this kind of stuff on my homework. This helps a lot! hope to tune into more of your lessons! <3
@ugliehchibi
どういたしまして！Glad to hear it helped you! またきてね！
thank you vic hope yr doing well.
how many readings are there for下?
for stairs its oriru but for mountain it would be kudaru?
私は山を下る
@sven
Hi, thank you for the comment but I am sorry….I am not Victor. :) Maggie and Yukari are making these lessons.
I will forward your message to Victor. :-D
But here is an answer for your question.
下＝した、しも、もと、げ、さがる、さげる、おろす、くださる、くだす、くだる
It is possible to say 山を降りる but 山を下る is more common.
(We also say 下山する= gezan suru)
thank you, sorry for the confusion.
本当に実用的な単語です！twitterを使わなくて感動します！ありがとう先生！
@薫
Twitterをやっていない方でも実用的と聞いて嬉しいです。少しずつ勉強して下さいね。
Hey Yukari *hugs* I am so so sorry for this happening to Japan. The day it happened i was so so sad and started tearing up. It still bothers me and i really wish i could do so much more than watch videos in amazement and disbelief. I really appreciate you taking the time to make this lesson and show us how much you love us even though so much is going on. Its really hard to type this right now. Thank you so much again and you are all in my thoughts each day.
@Itsumaru
Thank you so much for your warm message. So many people in the world have worried about Japan. And we are very very happy to feel your love.
I don’t have anything to return to you all so what I can do is keep making lessons for everybody.
本当んありがとうございました～助かりました！
日本語が好きです、マーギも好きですよ～
Thank you very much! That was very helpful~ I love Japanese and I love Maggie Sensei as well! Looking forward to more lessons~
@Yin
コメントありがとう！
Love you,too!!!
素敵な文章で、ありがとう、先生！
前回美しい桜の後で現れた文章は地震に関する内容で、何だか悲しいです。今年、花見の雰囲気はなくなるかもしれません。でも、東北地方も東京も、事情が少し少しよくなって、来年の花見はきっと！日本がまた元気になることを信じている～マギー作戦！応援！
@薫
マギー作戦応援ありがとう〜！！そうですね、被災地の人達だけでなく日本の人達、みんなが悲しくて泣きました。それでも明日を信じてがんばっていくしかないですね。薫さんが言う様に来年の桜は東北の人達がみんな元気に見れることを祈っています。ありがとう！
Very cool! I’ve also seen “san” (the suffix) spelled like the number three.
@nicoleb
There are many more. Will keep adding in future! Thank you!!
このレッスンはどうもありがとうございます。今までに一年半東京に住んでいて、日本語はもう大体慣れてきましたが、防災の言葉を勉強するきっかけがなくて先週のテレビとラジオの情報発表をわかるのが大変でした。
また防災の言葉を使わない必要がないと祈っていますが、やはり備えたほうがいいな。
先生の日本に住んでいるご家族と知り合いは無事だと願っています。
@Jessie
コメントありがとう！！こんなに日本語が上手なJessieでもニュースの情報を理解するのが大変とのこと。やはり緊急時は周りの日本の人に少しでも多くの情報を得て下さいね。
今は日本に住んでいませんか？日本がまた元気になる様、いいエネルギーを送ってね。
そうですね。まだ日本に住んでいますが、最近の厳しい状況で先週は母国へ帰国してしまいました。早く日本へ帰ればいいと思いますが、とりあえず遠いところからいいエネルギーを送らないといけない。まだ日本にいる友達ととても会いたいな！
母国にいる間は日本語を忘れないためにマギー先生のすごいブログを毎日読むつもりです！
@Jessie
そうですか。ご家族の皆さんが、心配したでしょうね。日本は必ずまた元気になります！だからまたいつか帰って来てね。
はい！ここにも毎日来て下さい！！大歓迎です！
Thanks for this lesson Maggie-sensei and Yukari-sensei. :D
Uhm, I’m just wondering what happened to Tashirojima (Cat Island). It’s near Ishinomaki, right? I hope the island and its inhabitants are okay.
@Amelie
Where did you hear about Tashirojima? Actually many people are worried about that island as well.
Seems to be a nice little island with all the nice people. Hope they are all safe,too.
It’s me again. I had a typo.
I meant to say, that your mini-lesson answered (NOT ASKED) by question.
sumimasen. ~~
B-chan.
Hi Maggie Sensai,
I love your lessons. Although I am a beginner, I have learned a lot just by reading your blog.
I just started about a month ago.
This mini-lesson asked my question too because I had problem understanding irunda as well.
I found some people explain this which is pretty much the same. However, your lesson has more examples and illustrations.
Thanks a lot for putting up all these for Japanese lover, like me. ^-^
I am really happy and felt lucky that I found you and your blog.
Please keep it up.
B-chan mashida.
@B-chan
Thank you for visiting this site and your nice comment!! I am very happy to hear this lesson was useful for you.
Feel free to ask me if you have a question.
matane!
Hi Yukari-sensei and Maggie-sensei. :D
I discovered your blog about two months ago and I immediately liked it. I’ve been reading it since then but I was just too shy to leave a comment.
I got worried after hearing the news on the incident last Friday. Even the headlines of the newspaper here in my country (Philippines) are talking about it. This seems to be one of Japan’s most challenging times but I believe you will overcome it. We will always be here to support you through prayers.
BTW, I read your latest post on emergencies but didn’t know where to leave a comment so I decided to write here. Thanks for the great lessons. I always enjoy reading your posts. ^___^
@Amelie
Thank you for your comment and your concern! (Sorry! I just fixed the last post comment section.)
We will keep posting useful Japanese lesson for all of you!
How’s everything after the tsunami and earthquake? 心よりお見舞い申し上げます。Hope 皆さん are OK and life back to normal soon.
@Andini
Thank you for your concern on behalf of all the Japanese people.
マギー先生とゆかりさんは地震で無事でしたか？
マギー先生、日本で地震があったそうでしたが
マギー先生とゆかりは無事ですか？
@ダンさん
心配してくれてありがとう！！二人！？とも大丈夫です！
何より無事でよかったですね～
@ダンさん
世界中のいろいろな方々に心配してもらいました。ダンさんを始め、皆さんの優しさに心から感謝しています。
Hello Maggie :>
I’m actually a newbie to Japanese, thank you so much for great lessons :D
They’re very helpful! And me (14), and my older brother (16) benefit a lot from this amazing website ^___^ .
@Jessie
Thank you for visiting this site and leaving a comment! Wow! 14 years?? It is so nice to hear young people like you and your brother are learning Japanese.
Please feel free to ask me any questions using the comment section or twitter (Maggiesensei) gambatte! :)
ありがとう 先生 素敵な文章ですから！
@薫
コメントありがとう！！また来て下さいね。
I know the sakurasakura song!i learned it drg my highschool. I like sakura girl but recently i found another song that i really like which is sakurae by yuzu. Really love that song.
There is 1 traditional song that has seasons in the lyric and family members (haha/ chichi)/tomodachi. I dont really remember the exact lyric but its like “natsu no lalalala hito wa lalala you ni bokuno tomodachi” something like that.
@アリナ
Yuzu’s 桜会 is a nice song,too!!
Hum….I wonder what traditional song you are talking about.
It can be 四季の歌= shiki no uta.
Aaaaahh sou sou. This song!!I remember presenting this song to Japanese students when they came to my school when I was 14. I also hear this song in a drama called Aikurushii.
@アリナ
Good that I found it!! Everybody knows this song ♪
wow you actually answer to everyones’ questions
awesome lesson btw
now Im not going to miss one of them
I wish I can see the Sakura season.
Also, does school end and start in spring in Japan?
@Kurosaki
Hi, Kurosaki!! Thank you for leaving a comment. Yes, as I mentioned in the lesson, schools end and start in spring in Japan.
Hope you come back to this site!
Does japanese see rabbit shadow on moon? Im not familiar with this and my question might sound weird as well. Hehe. The animal they see on moon is not related to the year is it? Like dragon cow tiger and so on…
I spotted malay words there..hehe
Saya cinta padamu 日本語で愛してる。
@アリナ
Saya cinta padamu 2U2!! ♥
Very interesting lesson!!thanks, maggie sensei..
両親はきびしのきの字が無いです。しあわせ~~。なんてね、ハハハ、言いたいだけ~~
＠アリナ
Umm that will be 両親には厳しさの”き”の字もない。But good point. We don’t use this for something positive.
Like 両親にはやさしさの”や”の字もない。You are very lucky to have sweet parents.
Hello! Thank you for the lesson!
I have a question about the meaning of ”って”. I see this used in many sentences but I don’t know what it means or when to use it etc.
For example, it was used in some of the sentences from todays lesson, like:
マギーってもう６歳だわよね.
あなたって細かいわね.
日本語って難しいよね.
マギーって可愛いよね.
Thanks for the help ^_^
@Paris
Hello Paris!
OK “って” is used instead of subject marker “は”(= wa) or “という~は”(=toiu~ wa) It is casual but we use it all the time.
＊マギーはもう６歳だわよね→マギーってもう６歳だわよね
＊あなたは(or あなたという人は）細かいわね→あなたって細かいわね
＊日本語は（or というものは）難しいよね→日本語って難しいよね
＊マギーは可愛いよね→マギーって可愛いよね.
Also we use it instead of “と”=”to” when we quote something.
＊Paris said hello to Maggie = Parisがマギーによろしくと言っていたよ。→Parisがマギーによろしくって言っていたよ。
* Paris said she likes you. = Parisがあなたのこと好きだと言っていたよ。→ Parisがあなたのこと好きだって言っていたよ。
If I have a chance, I will make a mini lesson.
Thank you so much for the lesson Maggie sensei. This is the first lesson i checked out but I’m sure to check out more soon. I want to master this first. hihi ^.^
By the way, do we use mai for counting paper bills too? And what can we use to count coins?
@TJ-chii
Welcome to our site!
That’s right. we use 枚=mai=when we count paper bills. Coins are tricky. We both use 枚=mai and 個=ko.
あっ、私は最近忙しすぎてリクエストに返事してくれたのは見ませんでした！（それにメールが”spam”として受信したんです^^;)
本当にありがとうございました！はっきり説明してとっても勉強になりましたよ！
@Harin
Harinさんの為に作ったからレッスンをやっと見てもらえてよかった〜！！
是非、練習してみて下さいね。
Thank you for these information. Your blog is very interesting to read!! ^~^
Though you should have added Sakura Girl by NEWS (song…) too <3
xx
@Rina
Thank you for the comment!
You like NEWS, huh? Unfortunately I couldn’t find a good PV…
when I first saw “hana yori dango” I thought of that drama :)
but no saying goodbyes either in school or at work^^
that’s SOOO different from here! we sre just generally busy as always at this time of the year no special parties or anything to celebrate spring
and the only place that’s got LOTS of cherry blossom trees in the US is (sensei shitteiru kana?)-Washington, DC!! saw them there 3 years ago and loved them^^ the trees were a gift from Japan to US many years ago and they got a festival in DC too! (no sakura kind of food there though)
I don’t like AKB48 much but sensei you know SNSD (Girls’ Generation)? they are from Korea but they sing in Japanese too^^
and yeah I checked out La Carmina’s site after I saw it on here and watched her videos on there^^ she’s so cute and her english is perfect!!
oh and I really like how Japan has something special for every season! autumn-yams and stuff; winter-the beautiful Xmas decorations, fried chicken, love; spring-ohanami, summer-festivals&fireworks
always something going on there! you guys must really like to party :)
@Aki
“花より男子” came from the saying, 花より団子
もちろん！I know 少女時代=SNSD. They are sooo cute!
Good that you checked the La Carmina’s site. She is very cool!!
You are right. We have a lots of seasonal events. What is your favorite season?
少女時代 <3333
mmm haru to aki ^^ spring cause of it's BEAUTIFUL weather (it's warm but not too hot and it's just right ;) and autumn cause it's got pretty colors and I was born in autumn! (september 17^^v) plus, my name sounds like "autumn" in japanese heheh so it matches me well cause of my birthdate :)
I heard that Aki is usually a guys name though… and girl is usually "Akiko" ne?
@Aki
People tend to favor the season when they are born.
There are a lot of girls whose name is Aki
亜紀、亜希 etc. Cute name!!
I have a qustion about ようこそ, i hope it’s ok to ask here.. I heard this word a lot, but never in situation when somebody is welcoming someone in his country.. so would it be ok to greet someone “ようこそ日本へ！” for example?
@Buzenko
ようこそ means Welcome!
Ex. ようこそ日本へ! = youkoso nihon e = Welcome to Japan!
昨日7しゅるいのチョコレートを大人買いをしちゃった。食べ過ぎました!！
Is it correct? ‘I bought 7 different types of chocolates in bulk yesterday. I ate chocolates too much!!’
@アリナ
Haha, it’s correct!! Enjoy your chocolates!!! :)
今日は！thanks for the lesson..
アラシックです〜
あげぽよ!! So this word is famous in japan right now. I know about this word when i watch last week ひみつの嵐ちゃん。I like it when kiritani-san told arashi some young words especially japanese people put other word/character in btw word.. Eg: わたしはきりたにです。 become わばたぶしびはばきばりばたぶにばでばすぶ。something like that..
Haha..thats sound so funny. In my country there is secret languange like that also. Very similar. But teens in my country dont use it anymore. I use it when i was 11 years old which is 12 years ago.
Thanks for the lesson!!
@アリナ
久しぶり！！そうそう、アリナはアラシックだったよね。
You have already mastered babibubebo language!!
まばたばきびてべねべ〜！ :)
Another great lesson マギー先生：）This may seem random, but do you think I’m a girl by any chance? I know that you didn’t make this lesson just for me, but I just want to let you know that I’m a guy；）Its just that many people assume I’m a girl because, well, I guess ゾモチ sounds a bit girlish. Does it?
Anyway I was wondering if you could make more posts on “rougher” sounding slang and maybe a few focusing on ギャル男 in the future?
Thanks again for a great lesson, じゃまた～
@ゾモチ
I didn’t make this lesson just for girls. This is listed as a Gal lingo but actually many boys use it on twitter or blogs.
As for your name, I had no idea but somehow I thought you were a boy anyway.
But OK, I will make a “rough slang words” if I have a chance.
アラシックです！
I really loved the lesson! Thanks =)
@Luma
Hi Luma!!! Thank you for the comment!
So you are アラシック！！！嵐の中で誰が一番好きですか？= Arashi no naka de dare ga ichiban suki desu ka?= Who do you like the most in Arashi?
Awesome entry :D I already commented on your video that I’m obsessed with Gyaru culture. So I was already familiar with the word, but haven’t seen the exact meaning anywhere until now. Keep up the good work!
@Ragrunzel
Thank you for your comment. Mata kite ne~★
Hahaha! I consider myself Gyaru yet I didn’t know these words at all! I’m following a blog and the person who writes in it kept saying “sagepoyo, ne?” and “it was agepoyo!!!” and I was beginning to wonder what those words meant!
So this lesson came right in time! Thank you so much!
@Ayame
Good! Now you can use both Agepoyo and Sagepoyo!! :)
interesting that hiragana is more cute/comical^^ yappari it makes sense ne? the hiragana stroke lines are much softer than katakana^^ katakana is so edgy and sharp ne^^
my best japanese friend told me I m “hazukashi no seikaku” I don’t know if that’s good or bad but she thinks it’s kawaii dakara :)
@Aki
That’s right. You have a nice observation. Hiagana is more round and it looks softer.
Akiは日本人の親友（しんゆう= best friend）がいるのね。よかったね〜！
un :) she’s from Kyoto–> Kansai ben meccha meccha kawaiiyo!!! suki yanen (^_^)
@Aki
I love kansaiben,too!! If you get used to her accent, you won’t have any problem understanding “owarai” = Japanese comedies.
maggie sensei no ressun agepoyo~~~~!\(^0^)/
maggie sensei no saito にらぶぽよ〜 *doki doki* :)
Egg is such a cute magazine ne^^ and I m not アラシック www but some of them are good looking ^_~
it’s so crazy how fast the slang changes over there though… it doesn’t happen in the States…. we do have lots of abbreviations though!!!^^ does maggie sensei know these? idk, smh, ttyl, ttyt, phat, hbu, smf, pda, tmi?
@Aki
Akipoyoooo~!! ヾ(＠＾▽＾＠)ﾉ
Haha! You can use agepoyo & lovepoyo perfectly now. Oh, you know Egg magazine. Sugoi!!
なに、なに！？idk, smh, ttyl, ttyt, phat, hbu, smf, pda, tmi
(ｏ’д’)ﾝ？？？？？
It’s my turn to study English なう….
okie eigo no ressun nau ne ^^v
idk-I don’t know, smh-shake my head (when you dissapprove of something), ttyl-talk to you later, ttyt-talk to you tomorrow, phat-pretty hot and tremendous (it sounds like FAT so if you meet a guy and he says “you’re fat!” he probably means PHat not fat ^^ take it as a compliment ww), hbu-how ’bout you(u)?, smf-shaking my fist (=threatening), pda-public display of affection (mainly couples kissing and stuff in public.. sometimes it can be too much… chotto ne ^^;), tmi-too much information(usually you say it when someone tells you something gross that you really didn’t need to know for example, if a friend tells me “kyou wa akai no 下着を着ている” soredewa aki says “ano TMI!><" so you use it when people share something way too personal or disturbing or something that makes you feel uncomfortable ne ^^;;)
"akipoyo" hehe I like that word :)
oh, and we use these in everyday speech not just on the Internet^^ and phat is only used by men (girls don’t say it to boys but some girls might call guys “eye candy” or recently I heard a slang “made right” which is like ikemen but to me it’s weird to call a guy “made right” cause we have some type of sandwiches that are called that:) Aki doesn’t generally use those kinds of terms for guys^^(chotto hazukashi ne ^^;) I just think in my head sugoi or kakkoi… un ^ ^
@Aki-sensei!
Thank you so much for teaching me all the fun abbreviations. I had no idea…. I thought PDA was a file or something.
Haha Fat and PHat do sound the same. Hope you see a lot of “eye candies” and “made right” at your college.
ありがと！Aki先生！
betsu ni ^____^ <3
Great lesson! And now i finally get the difference between 好き and 愛す and 恋する, because i was always wondering… In my language, we also have differents verbs for loving smb deeply (and we rarely use that) like 愛す and loving like 好き, and be in love like 恋する.
Thank you, i feel very enlightened now! ^0^
@Buzenko
Thank you for your comment. Very interesting. You have a different verb for love s.o. deeply? I guess we just add adverb Ex. 深く愛する
Yes, and it’s used rarely, usually between people in long-lasting relationships and parents-children, and it seems similar to 愛す from your explanation. Btw, this site is great and i recommend it to all friends who also study Japanese! ^^
What about ゲゲゲ from ゲゲゲの女房? I was told it got some kind of reward too.
Btw, I love the site!
@Himeko
Ah, OK…
There are two awards for trendy words in Japan.
1) Main one : General trendy words of the year
I made a lesson in 2009 (boyaku + Ryuukougo lesson )
2) Just for young girls
This lesson is based on the 2nd one and ゲゲゲ is from the first main award.
Gals use peculiar words so they made a new award from last year. It is fairly new.
hi maggie, im so happy i came across your website…very helpful.. i have a new japanese friend and he is learning my local dialect..i want to learn japanese too, so its easy for him to understand…can you please post some helpful phrases for friends who gives special attention to each other? thanks maggie…
@Jing
Hi, Jing!! Thank you for visiting this site.
OK, I want you to be more specific about “special attentio”, though. Are there any particular phrases that you want to learn?
And do you know any Japanese?
sou? atashi wa hontouni “lovely”? arigatou sensei :)
@Aki
も*ち*ろ*ん！！(*´∇｀*)
役に立つレッスンです。分かりやすい説明してくれてありがとうございます。じゃ、「～たら」の文を作ってみますーよいしょ！規則的にマギー先生のレッスンから勉強したら、日本語がじょうずになります。ところで、アンディニさんと同意します。
122.27.111.145
2011/02/18 at 12:09 am | In reply to デイヴィッド.
@デイヴィッド
わあ、ありがとう！！ さっそく”~たら”の文章作りましたね。またちょくちょくこのサイトに来てくれたらうれしいです。
I really like the way you use colorful fonts, cute 絵文字, and highlights. Thank you for such a great explanation about -tara. Now I know how to explain about the verb conjugation in case anyone asks.I mean I can use -tara but I’ forgot the theory. ;)
@Andini
Hi Andini!! Thank you for checking the lesson. You are sooo quick! I am happy to hear you like my “colorful” lessons! !happyface!
Hi Ms. Maggie! “彼女はいませんよ~しょぼん”
why is “imasen” used here? shouldn’t it be “arimasen”? o.o
P.S. for some reasons, I can’t send a direct message to you in twitter T__T
@roulette225
Hello!! OK, it’s because we use いる for people and we use ある for things.
That is why we say 彼女はいません(=I don’t have a girlfriend) instead of 彼女はありません。
But we don’t say 車はいません. We say 車があります。=We have a car.
Despite being a pretty fluent Japanese speaker, this topic still causes me confusion. Thanks for the help in understanding it better.
@anthony
Thank you for checking the lesson,too! I’m glad to hear it helps you. :-P
wow, tottemo helpful Maggie sensei AS ALWAYS
^ o ^ and this is SO important cause the last thing you want is to go to another country, unintentionally offend people, and not even know it (cause knowing japanese, they probably won’t even react to it they’ll just get offended and be quiet about it…)
and such a loooong lesson… otsukaresama!!
so またの機会に！can that be used for any kind of invitation (like goukon etc) or only for nomikai?
and ごたごた is busy?
and this form of the verb with -reba, like がんばれば nanka “I wish…” ne? I’ve seen it a few times and it seems like it always gives out that kind of feeling ne…
@Aki
Hi Aki! Yes, you can use またの機会に for any invitations.
ごたごたしていて…: Yes it means you are busy taking care of some problems or troubles. When you have some troubles but you don’t to give others any details, you say ごたごたしていて…
The last question : ?? -reba? I wish? Which verb are you talking about?
thank you~!
ah I was just wondering about that reba ending (it’s called conditional form of the verb ne?) and it’s sometimes used as “If… then…” right?
so I was wondering if you had a lesson on that conditional verb or if you could explain it to me really quick? :) conditional form ga wakaranaiyo ~_~
@Aki
Oh I see. れば!! It can be used for conditional sentence and also suggestions,etc.
Conditional forms is complicated. But I am working on たら(Remember you asked me before?) right now so will include some more information in that lesson.
待っててね！
hai ^~^ perfect da yo! thank you so much!!
ah so if I wanna say someone’s mean but still wanna sound “cute” about it and not sound like I m calling them a total “b*tch” then “ijiwaruchatta ><" ii deshou?
@Aki
Haha If someone is mean to you and you want to say something in a cute way, you say「意地悪！」 ”ijiwaru!”, 「意地悪ね！」 “Ijiwaru ne!” 「意地悪しないで！」”Ijiwaru shinaide!”
And if you were mean to someone and want to apologize for that in a cute way, you say
「意地悪してごめんね。」= Ijiwaru shite gomenne.
ahhh I can never get tired of your lessons, Maggie :)
oh and it’s mainly guys doing things for girls, I think (here we got this whole idea of a “prince on a white horse” doing stuff for his “princess” so the girl just usually sits back and enjoys it^^) oh and gifts are usually chocolate or something else that’s sweet, roses, maybe underwear….
LOVED her reaction to the card HAHAHAH she ever found out who sent it?
as for the US: I feel like unless if you have a significant other, Valentine’s Day can be kinda depressing (so I like the idea of tomochoco^^) cause seriously Valentine’s stuff is everywhere and it’s all about romance no giri or tomo anything, so unless if you have a significant other it’s kinda like you are being left out
@Aki
Yes, it is one of the few days that women can take the initiative and men just have to wait patiently for the chocolates from girls.
You should come visit Japan now. You can get all kinds of chocolates from all over the world.
Now the big trend is マイチョコ. Women buy chocolates for themselves. (Needless to say I got some for myself, too!! !CHECKHEART! )
いつもありがとう！
「何人兄弟？」と聞かれたときは、自分を含め答えるべきらしいけど…マギー先生はどう思いますか？たとえば、私は妹が二人いるけど、「三人兄弟」と答えるべきでしょうか？
私のつたない日本語をお許しください。（笑）
@ナミ
今日は！！日本語すごく自然で上手ですよ。
いい質問ですね。「何人家族ですか？」と聞かれたときは、自分を含めて「４人家族です。」と言いますが、兄弟の場合は、例えば「 三人」と、数だけ言うと他に三人いる様に思われる可能性があります。
「三人姉妹です。」（女の子だけの場合は”姉妹”の方がわかりやすいと思います。）という言い方なら普通はわかります。
でも日本人同士の会話を聞いていてもよく「えっ！？自分を含めて？」というやり取りがあるので「３人姉妹です。私が真ん中です。（一番上です。一番下です。）」と補足することが多いです。
返事してくれてありがとう！とても分かりやすかったです。
@ナミ
どういたしまして。いつでもわからないことがあったら聞いて下さいね。
ahahah okie I won’t ever call u “obasan” Maggie^^ besides shujin and uchi no hito, is there a way to call him “honey” or something when you are talking to him? or not really?
oh, and yeah I’ve heard some foreigners say how shujin and kanai are sexist… I’ve even heard foreigners say how attaching chan to a girl’s name is sexist!! I was like give it a break people I think it’s cute >< besides, that's how the language is-period! I got no problem with these words at all^^
thankies Maggie chan~~!
@Aki-chan
Good question. Maybe I should add that information, huh?
Unlike other western languages, Japanese don’t have many terms of endearment. Women sometimes jokingly refer to their husband or boyfriend “ハニー” or “ダーリン” when you talk to someone close. Ex. うちのダーリンがね….
Generally we simply call each other by one’s first name, or あなた (addressing men) 君(addressing women) some rough men old generation address their wife お前.
I wouldn’t think using ちゃん is sexist but I understand what they mean. If my boss calls my male coworker by his family name, Ex. 山田君 and he call me by Maggieちゃん, it gives us impression that my boss treats us differently. But there is no problem calling each other by chan between friends.
ah so it’s only jokingly, huh?
sokka sokka naruhodo ne^^
and this verb 呼ばないで what’s its dictionary form? so it means “to call someone something”?
@Aki
The dictionary form of 呼ばないで is 呼ぶ
Right it means “to call someone something”
Ex. マギーをお姉さんと呼ぶ
オッス Maggie先生:) This was an extremely informative lesson. I couldn’t imagine how much time and effort went into writting this. じゃあ、もうありがとう I look forward to more hefty -not to mention interesting- entries like this;)
If you wouldn’t mind a suggestion, I would really enjoy it if you would dedicate your next entry to slang;) Also I was wondering if you could think of a future posts on affixes, but not the ones like さん and さま that attach to names, but instead the ones like 〜ず、み〜、ect. that work to change the grammar it’s being used with. You know, like grammar suffixes (ex. English affixes ab-, aero-, ect.)
@ゾモチ
ひさしぶり！！
Thank you for all the interesting suggestions. Actually there are tons of requests right now but I will keep them in mind.
Also I myself have tons of ideas for lessons. Feels like we never run out of ideas for the lessons…
また来てね！！
Hey Maggie + Yukari i really like this lesson so far and thought i should come over like always and say hi and give you guys a huge hug for doing this for us! Thank you so much! I help take care of some kids so this lesson will help me out even though i am not a father. ^>^ Take care.
@Itsumaru
Hi, Itsumaru!!! Arigatou for the comment. Yes, come over more often!!!
Big hug for you from Maggie + Yukari
ohhh that’s so different :) here, when parents are old they usually end up moving to a nursing home….
I don’t think I wanna do konkatsu yet (20sai dakedo) demo I need to do shuukatsu soon!!!! so I can find a job in Japan and move there :)
thanks for the lesson and if I got time (all the shukudai these days ~_~) I will watch Ueto Aya’s drama^^
@Aki
We do have lots of nursing homes as well. A lot of elder people prefer to live in their own house but when they get really old and they need special care=介護=kaigo, they decide to move there. It’s a tough decision.
就活= Shuukatsu ganbattene!
Hi Ms. Maggie Sensei! I have a question! I heard that the eldest son on the family is oblige to take care of his family despite the fact he’s married… that’s why some japanese women prefer to marry younger japanese guys because they are more liberated and they don’t have to carry such tasks.. well what do you think? is it true?
Hi Ms. Maggie Sensei! I just want to ask a question! hope you don’t mind (^_^)
is it true that the eldest son in the family is oblige to take care of his family despite the fact that he’s married? I also heard that some japanese women prefer to marry young japanese guys because they are more liberated… what do you think? o.o
@roulette225
Hi, roulette225!! (Somehow I got two comments from you.) But thank you for always visiting this site!
Yes, as I mentioned in the reply to Aki below, many families still expect their oldest son to take care of the family. And women prefer to marry younger sons. Go check my 婚活 = konkatsu lesson!
yatta ne ;) fix-shite kurete arigatou^^
so what’s 父親参観日 like? do schools organize those? ^^
is adopting/fostering children common in japan or not really?
in a typical japanese family, does 長男 have to take up a lot of responsibility??
tokoro de okaachan is such a KAWAII word ne :) (it kinda makes me wanna have japanese kids so I could be called that ;)
@Aki
Yay! 1st comment from Aki! Yes, there are 父親参観日 and 母親参観日 at some kindergartens or elementary schools.
Adopting/fostering children are not so common in Japan compared to the U.S.
Things have been changing but I would say 長男 is still expected to have more responsibility. That is why girls prefer to marry 次男.
Haha you will be a cute okaachan!
ahh tanoshikatta^_^ will try and check out the aimai lesson tomorrow^^
toka shinjiki maggie wa kawaii da yo!!! there’s NOTHING busaiku about you :) mou ichido-ARIGATOU SENSEI <3
ganbare ne!
@Aki
Glad to hear you enjoyed it.
It is important to have fun when you learn languages. I am busa-kawaii♥
電化製品 hey I recognize the first kanji! it’s from densha=train?
会話 ian’t kai=party kanji? so like a “talk party” heheheh
are… majide? the sale people there are SO polite!! I think it would feel kinda strange at first if people were talking to me in such keigo way! I guess I would have to get used to it ne :)
and they really tell u it looks good on you and ask if the size and color is ok?? heheh yasashi yo^^ here they usually don’t make any comments and u usually have to go find them yourself and call out to them and then ask them….
and it’s nice that they wrap up things, they don’t do that in the States.. not much 試食品 here either…
one more question! (iroiro questions ano gomenne
m(__)m) what’s included in 日常品 ?? I’ve never heard of such a section before!
Maggie sensei makes shopping sound easy :) okie when I go to Japan I’ll make sure I use this lesson^^ arigatou <333
@Aki
Hi Aki!
日常品 is also called 日用品 = nichiyouhin and it includes all kinds of articles for everyday such as detergent, dish soap, toilet paper, kitchen paper, clothes hangers, etc.etc.
Oh, I bet you will LOVE shopping in Japan!!
sensei I also heard of this word “pittari” so is that the same as 似合う?
@Aki
ぴったりis usually used when something is just the right size or something fits perfectly.
But you can also say when it looks good on you as well.
Also you can use ぴったり for people or intangible things as well.
Ex. 私にぴったりの人を見つけた。= I found a right (perfect) person for me.
Ex. 息がぴっったり= iki ga pittari = to have a perfect harmony, etc.
Maggie! Did I guess right? :)
thanks for telling about this ressun^^ will keep in mind ^ ^
@Aki
Thank you for checking the lesson, Aki!!
cute dog! But not as cute as Maggie^~^ ahhh this was a good one^^ cause I m always scared that Japanese might think of me as rude/non considerate cause we usually aren’t as reserved ….
@Aki
Shhhhh! Don’t say that. I know I am beautiful but Cookie will get hurt.
Haha, when you are with Japanese people, just be careful not to eat ”遠慮のかたまり”.
I was looking through your website last night and stumbled across this lesson^^ I always thought that this part of japanese with wearing clothes was SOOO complicated, but now that I read your lesson nanka simple-ppoi ne…. u are such a great sensei Maggie!!! you could make anything seem plain and clear ^_^ arigatou :)
oh and so would it be tsukematsuge o tsukeru/suru then?
@Aki
Good! Now you know the trick!
Right! つけまつげ will be つけまつげをする or つける
恵方巻き wa… oishisou ^O^ maggie sensei is lucky :)
Setsubun is such a cool tradition^^ I admit I m chotto 方向音痴 .__.
日本語を学ぶよい方法はありませんか？
HAAAAAI Maggie Sensei no saito <3 ^O^
oh and "fuku" kanji from "oni wa soto fuku wa uchi" is the same as in fukubukuro ne~ ^^ (recognized it from your fukubukuro lesson :)
otsukaresama!!
@Aki
Haha, I am VERY 方向音痴 as well!
Ohhhh you are learning!! That’s right. 福 is the same kanji as 福袋！
Hope a lot of 福 comes to you!
u too ^~^ lots and lots of 福 to u too^^
and I already feel SUPER lucky to have u as my sensei, Maggie <3
itsumo tasukete kurete arigatou :)(maybe it doesn't make sense but I wanted to say: thanks for always helping us^^)
@Aki
itsumo tasukete kurete arigatou : Thank you! And it’s a perfect sentence!
You are my favorite student!!
気分がいい so 気 like in “genki” ne~ I remember that lesson Maggie sensei taught me^^
mou hontou ni ARGATOU m(_)m Maggie sensei is such a great teacher :)
so how would u say “there are all sorts of lessons on Maggie Sensei’s site!” or would u not use あれこれ for that?^^
and can u please tell me the main uses of the verb “ageru”? cause it can be used in a few ways ne? oshiete kudasai ^ ^
mou ichido, hontou ni arigatou :)
@Aki
Hi, Aki! こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがと〜！
there are all sorts of lessons on Maggie Sensei’s site!” → In this case マギー先生のサイトにはあらゆるレッスンがあります。 will be better.
the verb あげる is difficult. Since I knew you would ask me, I already made this lesson for you a year ago! :)
あげる、くれるLesson
betsu ni heheh I m enjoying it ^~^ nihongo wa omoshiroi :)
Maggie Sensei’s got great intuition ne ;)
@Aki,
Yep! I can predict the future! (￣∇￣)
i recently found this page and its SU.TE.KI!
@Gonzah
Thank you for your first comment!!
また来てね！
I left you a youtube message with the same thing before I scrolled down here like a true moron, so if you read that disregaurd this.
In the *to define locations* segment you put socchi for the casual form of so a and do. If this is correct I’m sorry for wasting your time, but if not please edit it so people with less insight don’t learn wrong. Thanks for everything!
@DrVoltage
Oh, you are right!! I must have copied and paste the text.
Thank you for spotting the mistakes. I fixed them.
ありがとう！！
It was nothing…I’m sure other people may have spotted it as well and just assumed. I just wanted to make sure if it was correct or not.
Thank you for constantly working hard to help us learn!
eto I feel much smarter now ww I didn’t know this expresion before^^
maggie sensei, could you explain the use of -tara verbs? like shitara, iretara…. Cause I see them once in a while but I don’t quite get when to use them and in what situations to use them @_@
Arigatou ^O^
@Aki
Hi Aki!! Genki? I’m glad to hear you “feel” smarter! :)
As for your request, I got the same request last December and I have been working on it. So it will be done hopefully soon.
I’ve been currently making 5 or 6 lessons simultaneously.
待っててね〜！
haai meccha genki yo ^O^
ah okie patience is a virtue ne :3 tsugino ressun no tanoshimi ~~~
I was supposed to be doing my homework when I read this lesson… Ano shukudai o suru kurai nara nihongo o benkyou shimasu hou ga mashi (??)
I m SO in love with Japanese !!!
・:*:・:┣¨キ(*ﾟДﾟ*)┣¨キ:・:*:・
haha ;)
@Aki
Hope you have finished your homework.
Good! You made a sentence.
Ano shukudai o suru kurai nara nihongo o benkyou shimasu hou ga mashi
→Almost!!!! shimasu hou ga →shita hou ga
あの宿題をするくらいなら”Maggie先生のサイトで”日本語を勉強した方がまし。(^○^)
こんな有用なレッソンを作ったのはマギー先生ぐらいだよ！
「Aぐらいなら・・・B方がまし」のパターンを使ってみる・・・
日本語の授業に行くぐらいならマギー先生のサイトから勉強した方がまし。
@デイヴィッド
わ〜David嬉しい例文ありがとう！！
Aaa~~ Kore tte totemo omoshiroi ndesu yo~
Atashi, ‘kwsk’ wo chotto gugutte mimashite, kono saito wo mitsukatte… Ima made mita koto ga nakatta no desu ga, sugu ni ki ni ittemasu!
Maggie-sensei mo, Yukari-sensei mo, totemo yomiyasui, tanoshii lessun wo tsukuttemasu ne!
Shashin de me wo hiitemasu shi~
Datte, maggie-sensei no kawaii ga sugimasu wa!
(Basil-sensei mo ^o^)
Minna-san wa jiyuu ni shinpai shiteru kotoba no koto to ka, wakaranai kotoba to ka hanashimasu to, sensei no okage de, maikai rikai ga kimasu! Sonna toko (maa, foramu no soto de ne) aru no ga ureshii desu ^∀^
Kyou kara, dekirudake, chanto lessun wo mi ni ikimasu ^-^
@Masshiro usa-tan
はじめまして！コメントありがとう！とってもうれしいです。
もしわからないこととかあったらいつでも気軽（きがる）にきいてくださいね。
heheh 1-9-8 is such a cute word :) thank u sensei! I think I got it for the most part^^
so do u count magazines/manga etc with satsu like the books?
@Aki
Yes you can count magazines/manga with satsu.
But we also use 巻 (=kan) for a series of manga or books
第(=dai) + number +巻 (=kan) Ex. 第一巻 = Dai ikkan = Vol 1.
唾が出る this kanji 出る is used in the expressions like “hana ga deru” too ne?^^
my computer doesn’t have japanese on it ;; but I promise I know hiragana and katakana ^^ and some kanji ne :)
ah so ばかり means always?
sensei, hontou ni arigatou !!!! itsumo yasashii da yo!! :) romaji gomenne
I remember when my japanese friend brought me natto and I LIKED IT! I really did^^ her face was SO funy she was like “eeeeee u liked it?? I haven’t met a gaijin who does o_O” heheh she was cute :) I wanna try umeboshi>< and okonomiyaki toka takoyaki toka all all I wanna try it all!! but I m on the other side of the Pacific
B kyuu stuff here would be: hamburgers, tacos, enchiladas (and lots of other "mexican" food) toka hot dogs toka corn dogs toka pizza toka "breakfast menus" that include (iri is the word ne?^^) pancakes, waffles, sausage, bacon, omelettes, oh also stuff like chicken (either roast chicken which is like $5 for a whole chicken, or fried chicken buscuit^^) oh CHEESE is meccha meccha popular! stuff like fried cheese sticks and fried cheese balls yeah^^
you ever been in the US?^^
@Aki
Right 鼻が出る uses the same kanji.
ばかり : Ah I translated as “always” here but it also means “only” or “just”
Ex. 今食べたばかりだ。
= Ima tabeta bakari da.
= I just ate now.
Ex. N.Y.には行ったばかりです。
= N.Y niwa itta bakari desu.
= I just went to N.Y.
Ex. マギーはいつも勉強ばかりしている。
= Maggie wa itsumo benkyou bakari shiteiru.
= Maggie is always studying. (nothing else)
Ex. 彼はAkiにばかり優しい。= Akiにだけ〜
= Kare wa Aki ni bakari yasashii.
= He is sweet only to Aki.
Great! I love people who are willing try different food!
Oh I love tacos and enchilada…Fried cheese sticks & balls?? Yummy! I’d love to try them!
Yes! I have been to the US many times.
okie, then when u come again if u come somewhere close to me (I live in Iowa but Chicago, Minneapolis and some other big cities are kinda close) if we can meet up I’ll treat u a meal, sensei ^^ (I know some good places in most of the major cities dakedo)
@Aki
やさしい！How sweet!! I have never been there. Will be super fun to see in you in person someday! !ochame!
“ハンパなくマギー先生のブログが好き” sou sou ^~^
so is 夕食 used more often than “bangohan”?
Sensei, you ever made a lesson on counters? just wondering cause they sometimes confuse me ^^
@Aki
Hehe Thank you, Aki! :)
晩ごはん is more conversational than 夕食. 夕食 sounds a bit more sophisticated. But they are both equally used.
Yes, I made a lesson on counters. Please check it!
数字 = suuji lesson.
ah sokka sokka
okie I will make sure I check it ^^
hehe(hope this won’t offend u cause I don’t mean to offend :) and maybe this is just me as a really young person that notices it^^ maybe some older American would never notice these things cause they grew up in different times) it’s so easy to tell you are Japanese cause you guys always say stuff like “please check it” please this and that :) we would just be like “go check it out!”/”here” no place for kudasai/please or anything(it might sound kinda commanding ne? but it’s not meant to be so^^ we just don’t take each other too seriously sometimes^^) ahhhh cultures can be so different, ne? :) and that’s why when I hear “please” it sounds SO refreshing to me ^__^ I don’t hear that too often, you know…
@Aki
Haha!! Very interesting!! ‘Cause I’m a well-trained dog!
Now PLEASE PLEASE PLEEEASE go check the lesson!
Thank you for this lesson I often visit this site and never post in the comments. I just want you and victor to know how much I appreciate the lesson on here and on youtube don’t stop making them please~ I study Japanese in college but it’s these kind of lessons that help me sound more fluent. Thank you :3
@DaggerTribal
Thank you for leaving the comment. Will forward your message to Victor.
So you are studying proper Japanese in college. I will teach you here more casual one. Please feel free to leave any comments and questions here anytime.
I just want to say “thank you” for making and keeping this Site.
You are helping me improving my english and japanese.
I am honestly wishing the “Maggie Sensei”-Team (and Maggie) the very best.
God bless you
with kind regards
Zeki
(Germany)
@Zeki
Ohhhh Thank you so much for your nice comment!!
Just to know that someone in Germany has been studying my lessons made my day.
I will try to make more and more lessons!!
Danke schön!
Ich bin es, der zu danken hat.
(engl.: “It is me, who got to thank you”)
z
Yukari-sensei, ARIGATOU!!! I loved loved LOVED this lesson, and yes, of course I want more “girls only” lessons ^_~
I think (but this might be just me dakedo) when guys use “ore” and “omae” it’s SO セクシ うふふ ^_~
to answer your question: no, I can’t really think of anything that gives special discounts to women only in the US… we have lots of discounts for “senior” citizens (55 and older, I think…) but I m 20 so I am not gonna profit from that for a while :D
and I LOVE how japanese’s got male and female distinctions :) I wish English had that but it doesn’t really
and thank u for all the sound recording sensei! hontou ni tasukari mashite m(_)m
<3 this sooo much!! ^^v
@Aki
Hello, Aki!! Thank you for your first comment!!
I’m very happy to hear you liked the lesson. I’ve always wondered how you feel about this gender difference. Ever since we, girls, were children, we have been raised to speak proper Japanese.
I mean if a girl talks like a boy, her parents always correct her not to talk like a boy. It’s a pain but I prefer softer Japanese.
Thank you for your information. We do have special discounts for senior citizen as well. But you are right. We have to wait for a while ’til we get the benefit.
Haha, “ore” or “omae” sounds sexy only when cute and sexy guys use it. :)
oh yes! haha that’s EXACTLY the greatest charm some japanese guys have: they can be cute and sexy and manly in their speech all at the same time :3 When a guy speaks English he loses some of that…. Spanish has that male and female distinction in some ways too(and that cute “r” similar to japanese^^) and it’s considered the “language of love” in the Western World, at least :)
I remember when I first watched japanese dramas and didn’t know any japanese I’d pick up words like “ikuzo!” and then my japanese friend was like “no no girls don’t talk like that” heheh ^^;; but then I learned ^^ it’s really fun cause girls can flirt and all by using that “softer Japanese” I love it!! ^o^
nee yukari sensei, how did you learn English?? Cause your English is awesome^^
@Aki
It is always refreshing to know what other countries’ people feel about Japanese language. Thank you!!
Have fun trying to use “softer Japanese” !
My English!? Hehe…madamada desu. Hope it is good enough to communicate with everybody here.
iie iie your english is very good yo!^^ ma soshite sensei, kore kara tameguchi de ii yo? I feel like I know you (yeah it must sound weird but we just had kind of a joshikai talk about guys hehe) so no need for “desu” and all the keigo ne ^^v
@Aki
“まだまだです” is a kind of set phrase but I got you! Will use タメ口!! ∠(*^ｰ^*)o
Interesting…oops sorry, I dropped in even though I am a man :) Some of those are often hard to understand (we student lack of the natural sounding in our heads) like よ and の. There are many cases that can be ambiguous.
Anyway talking about culture. In my country, Italy, March 8th is officially recognized as “women day”. Usually women get out together as a group and in those days many restaurants won’t let you reserve tables if it is only a group of men (I guess they want to avoid problems LOL). Men as tradition give to women a yellow kinda flower called “mimosa”.
@Gianluigi
Haha, thank you for stopping by. I made a lesson for men as well to avoid using female speech.
Oh so you are from Italy! Thank you for their cultural information. How cool!!
I love mimosa! I should go to Italy on March 8th!!
Yukari-sensei:
Great lesson, I loved it. I have to get some of this phrases in my head and use them regularly.
It was a lot of work…. thank you so much.
Laura T
P.S.: BTW, the 20 to 40 years old….. do they ask your actual age at the movies to get the discount hehehe!!!!
@Laura T
Hi, Laura! Thank you for checking the lesson!
Haha,there is no age limit to get a discount. As long as we are women!
One question.
A guy told me “Kaze ki wo tsukete kudasai ne” and I was wondering if it’s just casual and normal to say that. I don’t think any japanese girl ever said that to me.
Thank you.
@Shaina
風邪に気をつけて下さいね。
= Kaze ni ki wo tsukete kudasaine.
Yes, it is nice and polite. And both men and women can say that.
(Between friends, you just say 風邪に気をつけてね！ = Kaze ni ki wo tsukete ne. or 風邪を引かない様に気をつけてね。= Kaze wo hikanai you ni ki wo tsukete ne.)
Hey Maggie + Yukari sorry i haven’t been on in a while! I have been busy but tonight i thought i would look at the newish lesson and say hi and i hope you guys have a great great year. Matane! ^>^
@Itsumaru
Hi, Itsumaru! We missed you! Stop by here again whenever you feel like it. またね！
初売りセール = hatsuuri siru
hatsuuri se-ru ではないでしょうか。
@Authist
Thank you!!! I fixed it!
また素晴しいレッソンを教えてくれて有り難うございます。
もちろんこんなステキなブログを何度でも来ます。
@aaninoue8
毎日いろいろなレッスンをチェックしてくれてありがとう！
You had a (really funny bilingual) typo: 売(り) you listed as having the readings uri/buy instead of uri/bai :)
@KG
Haha! Thank you! I fixed it.
売 means “to sell” but its on reading is bai = “buy”. I didn’t realized it until now.
It’s a bit hard to understand in the 1st read.. ugh..
「という」が好きじゃない。。 (T_T)
じゃ、もういちど、初めから読んでおく。。
みんなさん！「がんばって」ってください。。 (>_<)
@u.kyou
Haha I know it’s difficult, huh? Don’t try to understand the whole thing at one time. Little by little, OK?
そうですか。
添削してくれて有り難うございます。
昨日、ゲームのせいで遅く寝ました。
十時に起きるつもりけど友達が遊びに来たのでにぎやかになって起こされました。
どうですか？
相変わらず有り難う!
@aaninoue8
起こされました→Great! It’s correct!
(But change 十時に起きるつもりけど→ 十時につもりだったけど)
ゲーム楽しそうですね。
Thanks Maggi Sensei. As always, your lessons are very valuable and practical.
明けましておめでとうございます！
@Gav
明けましておめでとうございます。今年も宜しくお願いします！！
Gavさんの新年の抱負は何ですか？
わ～ぉ、ただのＣＭからこんなに勉強になれるなんて思わなかった！ありがとうございました！
マギー先生からいろいろ勉強になりました☆
また日本に帰ったらみんなにびっくりする（＾－＾）へへ
@polyphone
今日は！今度日本に来たら温泉（おんせん）で卓球（たっきゅう）してみて下さいね。
( A little correction : こんなに勉強になれるなんて→こんなに勉強できるなんて 勉強になりました☆→in this case you used まギー先生から so 教わりました。is better. みんなにびっくりする→??You mean you are going to surprise everyone or you will be surprised with many things?)
また来てね！
男子よりダンス the comparative in Japanese always drives me nuts LOL. Does it mean we love dance more than boys as in girls like dancing more than boys do, or girls like dance more than they like boys?
@ Gianluigi
The later!
Those girls are interested in dancing more than boys. (→Their priority is dancing right now)
Or this is their new year’s resolution so they will work on dancing (forgetting about boys.)
Thanks for the lesson. I watched gokusen!! Great drama. If im not mistaken i didn’t watch the gokusen 1 but i watched the other 2 (kamenashi kazuya’s and haruma miura’s). I love gouksen 3 more :)
Haven’t have the chance to watch gokusen the movie yet.
@アリナ
There are a lot of school related TV dramas but gokusen is one of most popular dramas. It is fun to learn Japanese through TV dramas!
大坂の名物はたこ焼きで、去年の夏休みに大坂で沢山たこ焼きを食べました。
初めてたこ焼きを食べて美味しすぎて、食べて終わったらもう8個を買いました!!
大坂で毎日たこ焼きを食べました!!☆*:.｡. o(≧▽≦)o .｡.:*☆
There might be some mistakes here and there. ごめんなさい。でも分かりますか。
How to say 1 box in japanese? 日本語で「1box」は何ですか。
@アリナ
もちろん、上手な日本語だから全部わかりましたよ。大阪のタコ焼きは特に美味しいですよね。
1 box = 一箱 = hitoohako
aikawarazu arigatoo.
omoshiroi koto wo takusan naraimashita.
watashino daisuki na iro ha akadesu.
resson no naka de ichiban suki na bubun ha kouhaku no setsumei deshita.
@aaninoue8
Thank you for checking lots of lessons! Keep studying!
Thank you so much for this great lesson!
I learned a lot ^^Y
I hope you’re having a wonderful time!
Happy new year Y^0^Y
@Kabo
This is the first comment of the year!! Thank you!!
Happy New Year!!!!
The video commercial was good but it was too fast. If I get to Japan I will learn it. I your lessons
@renato
Yes, the video might be too fast. (It simply because I’ve tried to include information for all different levels in one lesson. )
So you are planning to come to Japan? You will learn a lot then.
I have learned some Japanese introduction lesson. It was interactive and user friendly. Keep up the good work.
@renato
Thank you for visiting this site! I will post more basic lesson next year so please come back!
unrelated to lesson but i got it from your comment:
So, arasa means around thirty(araundo sa-tii?)? Now I understand why Arashi members said Arasa to Rida when he turns 30 that day.
Thanks for the lesson. I love Ueto Aya and watched lots of her dramas. Maybe I should try Konkatsu as well :)
*im using my friend’s laptop so no japanese characters. so lazy to change the setting.
@aaninoue8
That’s right. アラサー means around thirty アラフォー means around forty. Ueto Aya is cute!
婚活がんばってね！
Just finish watching Konkatsu and I like it. :)
Thanks for the lesson.
I remember one episode from Hammer Session where the teachers call one of their student’s mother a Monster Parent.
Now it makes sense to me. :)
@aaninoue8
Thank you for your (first!?) comment! I always enjoy reading comments! モンスターペアレンツ do exist. They are scary….
相葉ちゃんは絶対にKY人だ。(^^)
沢山「気-expression」を習いました!!
@アリナ
あら？アリナは嵐ファンかな？
気を使った表現はまだまだ一杯あります。是非使ってみて下さい。
はい。嵐のファンです。:)
**Sometime I leave comment with username アリナ because i read your blog anywhere and using any kind of gadget in my hand (laptop/ipod/bb etc).
リストの中で1番好きのはホッチキスです。
Its sound nice for me.
今日から「stapler」の変わりにホッチキスを使います。
@アリナ
Funny to hear your favorite word is ホッチキス (or ホチキス）
FYI staples are called ホッチキス（ホチキス）の針(shin)
Im excited when i saw that momiji manjyuu!
I had those snacks during my visit to Miyajima
みやじまはすごくきれいだ!!いつかもう一度行くつもりです〜。
私のうちにいつでも「遠慮のかたまり」が絶対にあります。
皆遠慮のかたまりが食べないので大変です。
Even though there is one there to see us eating the last piece.
おかしいですね。
@アリナ
Oh you visited Miyajima! (I haven’t…But I’d love to go there sometime.)
遠慮のかたまり is universal, huh?
Im not sure if it is universal or not but there is such attitude in my country usually young people.
So to encourage our friends eat the last piece we usually said:
”Who want the last piece? People said that whoever eats the last piece will get VERY kind husband (for girls) and VERY kind wife (for man)” haha
But there is a joke following that. Usually after the person ate the last piece people will add:
”But poor that VERY kind wife/husband because she/he we get fat husband/wife (because you ate the last piece = you ate more than others)” haha
@aaninoue8
Haha! It is always nice to have that kind of nice people around you!
Hi, thanks for the lesson.
Can you tell me how to use おく？ I saw that word in games or comic but i usually don’t use it because I don’t know when or where can I use that word.
「おく」の言葉の使い方を教えてくれませんか？
@アリナ
おく is very useful but it has a lot of ways to use.
Please check 〜ておく(~teoku lesson)
Thanks for this as well.
So basically only なadj can end with だ？
知らなかった。新しいことを習いました。^^,)
@アリナ
That’s right. na-ajective can end with だ
きれいな→きれいだ
しずかな→しずかだ
にぎやか→にぎやかだ
げんき→げんきだ
私と友達は、今旅行中で、猫の額ほどのベッドに寝ます。
We sleep at our friend’s house to save budget so that we can buy lots of things. We love boxing day :)
勉強を習いました。ありがとう。
@アリナ
今、旅行中なのですね。いいな〜楽しんで下さいね。
(A little correction :
猫の額ほど is usually used to describe a size of a land, (Ex. yard,garden) so we usually don’t use it for the size of your bed.
勉強を習いました= 勉強する 習う both mean to learn so it sounds redundant. Just 勉強しました is fine.)
What a big strap you have.. :D
Im planning to buy gantz strap this month.
Wish me luck!!
@アリナ
I have changed my cell phone to iphone. So I can’t have a keitai strap anymore.
Hope you can get GANTZ’s strap!!!
はじめまして。
Now I know when to use 「初」 and 「始」.
Thanks for the lesson.
宜しくね ^^,
説明が分かりやすくて本当に助かりましたっ！
Please keep up with this site and continue to post up new things for us to learn!
これからも応援しますっ！
ありがとうございました！（´▽｀*）
@ひめか
(^0^ゞ 了解！
来年もがんばっていっぱいレッスンを作りますね。
よいお年を、そして来年もヨロシクお願いします！！
Thank you so much, sensei, for creating this web site. I haven’t been here for a while. Happy New Year and hope you get a ton of subscribers in the new year.
よいお年を。。。^^
oh..just wondering in this case, how come we don’t say 迎えてください??
@Top
Thank you, Top-san!! Haha more than having a tons of subscribers, I hope you keep coming to this site! :)
お迎え下さい is more polite but you can say よいお年を迎えて下さい。too.
Same to you, よいお年を
Thank you for everything you have done for all actioneers this year!
Thank you in advance for all your support for this coming year!
I haven’t done a general house cleaning and cooked “Osechi” yet but I have an end of year party with my friends tomorrow night!
Anyway, HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
@Tamago,
Heeey, Tama-chan! Thank YOU for your support,too!! I finished “oosouji”. Feel very clean now!
Have fun tomorrow and Happy New Year,2U2!!!
So guys shouldn’t use ちゃう Or ちゃった Tto much because it will make them seem shallow? So then do they use てしまう And てしまった Instead? Or juts try not to use the whole expression all together too much？
Thank you
@Vanli
Don’t worry too much. Many guys use it and it is natural. But don’t overused it. チャラ男 = charao (slang for a shallow guy) has image to use this too much so..
It also depends on how you deliver it,too.
Holy crap – that’s a detailed analysis of a Japanese commercial! I’m just letting you know how much I appreciate all the effort that went into this. I’m in the ‘upper-intermediate’ phase where I’m trying to transition into native material, and this is super helpful.
Keep up the great work!
@Jaunty
Thank you for the nice comment. It is one of my favorites CM series. So I am glad to hear you like it! :)
日本語の勉強がんばって下さいね。
Hi Maggie Sensei. Just to make sure I understood, you can mark the object both with を and は (as usual). But in the case I am talking about 2 third persons? 英語はＸさんがＹさんに任せた方がいいんです and 英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいんです are both correct right? And if instead of んです I want to use I think? I end up with 3 は? 私は英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいと思います…it seems to me too many topic markers :O
@Gianluigi
Hi! Wow! You made complicated sentences. They both mean the same but nuance is a bit different. When you use “Xさんが” we can assume you are comparing X with other people and more than anybody you think X should take care of it.
私は英語はＸさんはＹさんに任せた方がいいと思います is grammatically correct.
But you are right. It has too many topic markers so you can omit the subject.(私は）
はい、全部分かりました。どうもありがとう！^^
大丈夫です。レッスンを楽しみに待っています！
@Harin
よかった！！
)
それではまた”出来たら”*(!!)お知らせしますね。
(**when I made it….
はい〜！
マギーの秘密が知りたいんだけど。^^
@K
ダメダメ！！誰にも教えません！ :)
Woww your gochisou’s picture is awesome!!
お腹すいた。
@アリナ
I bet you will eat a lot of ごちそう in Christmas holidays,too! Bon appetite!!
久しぶりです！
ヤフるという言葉もありますね！でも、ヤフーをもう使う人が少ないでしょうね。というか、ググルに比べると。＾＾；
質問があるんですが、「～たら」と「～ば」の違いを説明するレッスンを作りましたか？見つけませんでした><;
いつ「when…」という意味として「～たら」を使ってもいいのか分からないんです。
ほかの質問は日本語じゃうまく説明できませんので、英語で聞きます。
Is できる almost always interchangeable with 作る to mean "to make"?
Like 友達を作る = 友達ができる (make friends)?
@Harin
本当にお久しぶりです！お元気でしたか？
“ヤフる” もありますよ。（「ググる」のレッスンでも紹介しています。）でもおっしゃる通り、ググるの方がよく使われます。
”〜たら”のレッスンはまだ作っていません。でも他にも聞いてきた人がいるので近いうちにレッスンを作りますね。今、いろいろなリクエストが来ているのでちょっとお時間下さい。
As for the last question, できる and 作る are not always interchangeable.
友達を作る and 友達ができる are both translated as “to make friends” but できた has more feeling of achievement like “I got a friend”, “I could make a friend!”.
Ex. 小学校に入ったら友達が出来るかなあ。
You can’t replace 出来る with 作る here.
When you made a cake, you will say 出来た！or 作った！and both are translated as I made it but
but again when you say “出来た！” you show more feelings of achievement.
Hum.. I wonder if I answered your question…
Hi, Maggie. Im ella from tokyo. I saw your site on Google, ur blog is interesting and i want to improved my Nihongo.
@Ella
Hi, Ella! Thank you for visiting this site! Hope you come back here to learn more Japanese.
When you say final stage you mean it leaves no more room for improvement? So if I say 先生になる I am simply stating the fact that I am becoming a teacher. After that who knows, I might get a better job if I find it or I might keep this one. Just saying I am gonna be a teacher. 先生となる implies that a teacher is what I want to be. I aim to no further improvement for my job and I am gonna stay in this position because I like it?
@Giaunluigi
There could be more room for improvement, but if the speaker feels that person (including themselves) has achieved something we use となる。
As I wrote in the other comment, it is a bit dramatic expression and used mainly in a written form. (When we talk about weather, we do hear that on the weather report, Ex. 明日は雨となるでしょう。But still not for a daily conversation.)
So if you become a teacher and tell your friend, you will say 先生になりました。
It would sound strange if you say 先生となりました。
But if someone has been working so hard to become a teacher and many things happened in their life, and when finally they have become a teacher,you would write his life saying Ex. “~年**は遂に先生となりました。”
Sorry if my explanation isn’t still clear and makes you more confused. :-P
Another great lesson マギー先生：）But about うっかりミス、it says in my dictionary that it can also mean “an honest mistake” so couldn’t the above caption also b. “Yukari, you’ve made another honest mistake”, but that doesn’t make much sense:/
Anyway, it was a great lesson：）がんばってや！！！
@ゾモチ
We usually use うっかりミス as careless mistakes.
“honest mistake”means “unintentional” mistake, right?
So either way, Yukari has to pay attention more and shouldn’t make any careless mistakes. Because she always does. :)
Thank you for visiting the site again!
There were some new ones on here I didn’t know before! I’ve also heard these but I don’t know how often they’re used:
マクる: to go to mcdonalds
オケる: to go to karaoke
ハゲる: to go to ハーゲンダッツ(I can’t spell it in English 笑)
マギー先生は聞いたことありますか?
@polyphone
Haha! I have never heard them actually used but ハゲよう！ sounds funny! You can create your own word as well!
Ex. マギる = magiru! = to go visit Maggie Sensei’s site!
Thank you for teaching me new words!
This is really interesting Maggie! Thank you :)
@Amanda
Hi Amanda! Thank you for checking the lesson! Hope you can use some of these verbs from now.
Ah excellent ! Thank you very much for explaining this.
@Gav
どういたしましてgautam_n@yahoo.com(*^^*)ノ
Another great blog 「マッギー」先生 (LOL, you see what I did there:p). You didn’t give any examples on ヮ though:/
@ゾモチ
Ughhhh!! (｀ε´) (Yes! You are learning!!)
ヮ ：Not that common but you can use it when you write クヮ or グヮ to express some sound instead of クワ or グワ
Ex. シークヮーサー (=Shii kuwaa saa) : A citrus drink in Okinawa
Ex. グヮ〜！= Guaa! (instead of グアー or ガー) to express loud sound.
You can use them when you write some foreign word which has kwa or gwa sound.
Yay! You guys made it!! :) I only have one question as weird as that sounds. Which would you guys prefer to learn first hiragan or katakana? I feel like learning Kata first is better but i already know a lot of hiragana cause i see it so much. Should i just continue finishing hiragana first? Thanks so much for this lesson as always. -Itsu
@Itsumaru
Hi, Itsu! Yes! We made it!
I would definitely finish hiranaga and then go for katakana. Hope you get here soon!!
Thank you, Maggie Sensei! You’re too nice and generous! Will share this on Facebook. :)
@Andini
My pleasure! Hope it helps for many people.
フワー！
やっぱり、「うそこメーカー」からですね？^^
＠u.kyou
そうです！やっぱりわかりましたか？www
これは本当にマギーの名前を脳内メーカーに入れたら出た結果なんですよ〜
Hi Maggie Sensei! (^-^)/ This is an awesome lesson for beginners. ほんとうにありがとうございました。 I am looking forward to your Katakana lesson. ；）
@WhiteCherry5
どういたしまして。I will post katakana chart soon. Please check it as well. よろしくね！
Oooh… thank you, Maggie Sensei. My Facebook students will love this!
@Andini
Thank you for your comment!!! You must be my Twitter follower, Andini-san! Am I right?
Oh, you have Facebook students? I am working on Katakana chart now. Hope that helps them,too.
BTW your blog is awesome! Everybody, go check her site!!
Maggie-sensei, thank you for the nice words. My blog is in Indonesian, I bet the crowd you sent there got confused. But with so many bells and whistles, it does look good at a glance, doesn’t it?
To me you’re a daily reminder that I still have so much to learn. Thank you for sharing so generously. Big hug from Indonesia.
@Andini
I will definitely use your site when I want to learn Indonesian language. Learning languages seems like a long long endless journey, huh?
I am still learning a lot,too.
Big hugs for you,too!!
へえ、そうだったんですか。ありがとうございました。たいへん勉強になりました。
By any chance, Maggie-sensei, have you ever explained about the difference between 空が暗い and 空は暗い? Thanking you in advance.
@Andini
Thank you for checking the lesson.
No I haven’t made a lesson about the difference between が and は. Will work on it sometime. Please wait.
Thank you for this post, I learned alot about warau. I like any comedy by Ken Shimura, yeah, sometimes its really corny but it really is life in Japan
http://www.japansugoi.com/wordpress/ken-shimura-1980s-comedy-skits/
I didn’t quite get the difference between 母になる and 母となる. Is it that the former is just a plain and simple “I will become a mother” as in she may be pregnant and is expecting a baby. And the second is more like “I will become a mother” as in she’s decided on that’s what she wants to become and that’s what she’s working toward that goal?
Sorry if that was a bit gibberish:p
@ゾモチ
Your interpretation is right.
The translations are the same but if you compare the two sentences,
母になる = natural change.
母となる = ”finally”, We can assume there have been some hardships or she has waited to be a mother for a long time and finally becomes a mother.
So 母となる sounds more dramatic and has feelings that someone has achieved something finally.
In daily conversation we use に more often.
マギー、お母さんになったんだ。
Not X お母さんとなったんだ。(Unless you want it sound very dramatic.)
But if you read my biography, you will see
2010年、マギーは母となった。
すげぇ レッソン Maggie先生! The strange thing is that about a day ago I had visited a thread on a forum I frequent, and the thread maker asked the same exact thing: When to use 〜になる over 〜となる. He got answers but they weren’t definitive and I wondered the same thing. Then I found this. Looks like I got my answer:)
このブログ、そう愛してるぜ
@寝ちゃま
Really? Then there are other people who have been wondering the difference between になる and となる, huh?
We love you,too!
Maggie-sensei what is 「がんばれねば」？ I’ve never seen that expression before…
@寝ちゃま
がんばらねば = がんばらなければいけない = I have to do my best!, I have to try hard.
It is a form ~ねば（ならない）which comes from なくてはならない = have to do something.
Ex.
やらなくてはいけない→やらねば（いけない）= I have to do (something.)
勉強しなくてはいけない→勉強せねば（いけない）= I have to study.
Oh no Yukari i just noticed that the top audio file is different than the first one you had also.おかしい!
@Itsumaru
Ooops!! Sorry and thank you!!! I fixed it. ありがとう！！
こんばんは＼(^o^)／
This is my first time reading Maggie Sensei’s blog and i really like it. The post is full of knowledge and people will not have chance to learn this in class i guess (im not attending any japanese class though. Hehe).
I think there is お稽古事 in my country but its not that popular that your neighbour/friends will ask you about your children’s お稽古事…
My final exam starts this saturday! Reading your blog in between my studies is fun! Keep me awake. Thanks!! Okay i better go now Brain Tumours note is ‘glaring’ at me nowε=ε=ε=ε=ε=ε=┌(;￣◇￣)┘
＠アリナ
Hi, thank you for visiting this site. I am glad to hear you like it.
Good luck for your final exam! Please come back between your studies. :)
Wow Maggie/Yukari love this lesson this will really help me memorize hiragana. I have been learning Kata kana first but i already know a lot of hiragana cause i see it a lot. Have you thought about doing a kata kana lesson also? [*^_^*]
@Itsumaru
Hahaha!! I KNEW you would ask me so I am working on Katakana now! :)
*hugs* Thank you so much guys. Today i noticed that Victor/gimmeabreakman liked a video of a girl that was talking about her online resources BUT she didn’t mention this site!!
So i made sure and left a comment about your site of course. She also mentioned a book called “Remembering the Kana” by James W. Heisig. I guess in under three hours with the book you can memorize it all? Anyway study hard guys and i hope that helps!
@Itsumaru
Thank you, Itsumaru!!! You are soooo nice!! They are lots of great learning resources out there. (To be honest, I rarely check them..but..) Hope you all find the right one! がんばって！ A big hug 4U2!
すごい すげえ Blog Maggie先生. Was wondering if you could do more slang. Stuff like very informal grammar contractions/abbreviations things like that. I’ve heard native speakers love to make their speech fluid and easier to say (of course in more casual relaxed speech). Is there a comprehensive list of such grammar?
I would also like to see more advanced grammar lessons overall.
じゃまたね:)
@ 寝ちゃま
Thank you for your feedback. Many people seem to be interested in slangy expressions. I have made lesson on wakamonokotoba, tameguchi, causual contractions/abbreviations (~ ん+なきゃ／なくちゃ+, ちゃう＋ちゃった,etc. ) in past lesson. Please check those and meanwhile I will work on new lessons, OK? Will try to include more advanced grammar as well. Ohhh I will be busier…がんばらねば…
Sorry about the dates at the start, I accidentily copy/pasted them-_-‘ Disregard those please^_^’
こんにちは、Maggie-sensei, I’ve been lurking your blog for quite some time now>_> And have finally decided to post and say ありがとう for such a すてきな Blog. It has been very helpful and it’s fun too! I was wondering could you try to post more lessons on slang？
More specifically things like slangy grammar contractions (ex. 〜えば becoming 〜や、 見ればー＞みりゃ)?
I also liked the lesson where you used that song “There’s a Goddess in the Toilet”(?) to learn and explain grammar points. You should really do more of those:) Of course, when time permits…
Anyway, keep up the awesome work on the blog;) がんばってよ！
@ゾモチ
Thank you for visiting this site! Also thank you for your first comment! :h: I have posted a couple of lessons of casual contractions ~ ん+なきゃ／なくちゃ+, ちゃう＋ちゃった,etc. But there are more. I will make more lessons in future.
Will find another interesting song to study with,too! Thank you for your feedback and please feel free to leave comments anytime!
(I erased the dates. )
マギー先生は批評すれたら、構わないで。
このサイトと先生は・・・最高です。本当、本当です！
だから心配しないで下さい！
@Rafael.
ほんと？うれし〜い！Rafaも最高だよ！ありがとう！
(correction : 批評されたら気にしないで）
とんでもない～
最高じゃないよーーぉ！ｗ
でも・・
ｍ（．＿．）ｍアリガト
@Rafael,
こちらこそ、ありがと〜！！
一緒に歌いましょう！
「いいえ」って言いません、すねてちゃうから。ｗｗ
@Rafael,
はい！一緒に歌って下さい！♪
(correction : すねてちゃうから→すねちゃうから）
いつもコメントありがとう！
マギー先生、いろいろ教えてくれて本当にありがとうございます！
but when it comes to “なら”, I’m actually more confused with “なら”, “と”, “ば”, “たら”… I’m always struggling with when to use which.. Could you talk about that when you are free?
Many Thanks ^^”
@カラー
どういたしまして。
ば、たら、たら…Oh my! Those are very confusing as well.
時間があったら、もし出来たら、その気になったら、暇があれば….I will make a lesson! :)
先生 I was wondering one thing.
from the line それなら私も連れていって I take it that
連れて is the te form of 連れる but i am wondering what いって is from, i am guessing te form of 入る or am i wrong on both and if not I thought te forms were only used to make compound sentences? I am a bit confused since I am barely starting to learn hope you can help me Thanks.
P.S. I really love your site thanks so much for the lessons. どもありがとうございます (^o^)/
@ゴンザレス
Hello! Thank you for coming to this site!
OK, we also write 連れていって as 連れて行って (not 入って） The basic form is 連れる+行く→連れて行く
→When we ask someone to take somewhere we say, 連れて行って (We often write 行く with hiragana)
Let me show you other examples,
Asking someone
*to go somewhere running →走る＋行く→走って行くく→走っていって
Ex. 急いでいるから走っていって！= Isoside iru kara hashitte itte. = I am in hurry so please go (somewhere) running.
*to go buy something → 買（か）う + 行く→買いに行く→買いにいって
Ex. お弁当を買いにいって！= Obentou wo kaini itte = Go buy my lunch!
There are other cases of ~teiku.
Please go check my tekuru +teiku lesson
Ahhh OK thank you so much and thanks for the Link for the tekuru lesson ill study that lesson next.
ありがとうございます. \(^o^)/
@ゴンザレス
は〜い、どういたしまして。またわからなかったらいつでも聞(き）いて下（くだ）さいね。
「酷評」の読み方 = kokuhyou ではありませんか。脱字ですね。
ところで、Maggie先生の授業をきわめて感謝しています！
@vomitscream
あっ！本当だ！kが抜けていましたね。教えてくれてありがとう！！
こちらこそこのサイトに来てくれて感謝しています！
These suffixes are so difficult to conjugate.
Having many problems to translate to japanese what i’m thinking to write.
But here we go!
毎日、マギー先生に日本語で書かさせられります。
大変ですけど、頑張りますよ～！
出来ますかな？
そして・・・
最近、早く起きています。
勉強にやらせていました。
正解ですか？先生にこれをやらせた。
オーケー？ｗ
@Rafael.
毎日、マギー先生に日本語で書かさせられります。
Hahaha!! Good one!
Almost! →書かされます。
It is difficult. But I can correct you here or on twitter anytime.
勉強にやらせていました。→ If you made someone study 勉強をやらせていました。
If someone made you study →勉強をやらされていました。
so
先生にこれをやらせた。will be 先生にこれをやらされた。
がんばって！
I’m just a little confused. He wrote mainichi, Magii-sensei ni nihongo de kakasaserarerimasu. But you corrected him and said it should be, kakasaremasu? In your lesson didn’t you state they are the same, with kakasaserareru being the colloquial version of kakasareru?
@Dcox3
Hello! Oh, you have been checking the comment section? Aren’t all the people who come here great?
Anyway I corrected 日本語で書かさせられ”り”ます。because of “り”. It must be typo, though.
those are really helpfull thank you!
I saw a lot of “8” on niko niko too, do you know what it means?
@Lillie Joe
You’re welcome!
88888 on Niconico doga meas “applause” The clapping sound in Japanese is パチパチ=pachipachi and 8 is read hachi or sometimes “pachi” so they “applause” by typing lots of 8.
aah! thank you ♥
@Lillie Joe
よかった！Yay! 8888
欲しいよ～先生！危なくないと思います。
待ってて！早く行かなくちゃ～ｗ
どこへ行きますか？
名古屋県とか？富山県とか？広島とか？
決めてください。それとも僕が決める、ゴーイングマイウェイからｗｗ
大丈夫ですか？マギー先生？
@Rafael
Yaaay! Rafa! 初めてコメントくれましたね！ありがとう！
ドライブ一緒に行ってくれる？早くおいで！
行き先？もちろんブラジルです！www
(a little correction 欲しいよ→行きたいよ
ゴーイングマイウェイから→~だから)
そうそう～ｗｗついに初めてコメントを書いたよ！
毎レッスンにやります。約束です！これを信じていますか？ｗｗ
先生！ちょっと待って！もう来ていますよ～
ブラジルではありません。。。お願いします！
ブラジルの方はいい人ですけど、もうここに住ます。ｗｗ
だから・・・
フランスですか？それとも南アフリカですか？何を思いますか？
コレクションにありがとうございました～
@Rafael
日本にもう住んでいるのね〜だからこんなに日本語が上手なんですね。マギーもいつかマイカーでブラジル行きたいです！！
ほんと？じゃあ毎日レッスンに来てね！信じま〜す！
(Correction : レッスンにやります。→レッスンやります。もうここに住ます。→住んでいます。I only correct you because I want you to improve. :) )
ブラジルへ来て、そしてあなたのガイドになります。
この国は広いのです。
だからどの場所へ行きたいですか？
ん・・・ 大丈夫です～
You can correct me when you want.
@Rafael
ありがとう！リオに行ってみたいです！ガイドしてね〜！
(No need to correct so much. You wrote well! If anything…since you are already here in Japan 行く is better than 来る →ブラジルに行って下さい。そうしたら）
Great lesson マギー先生！面白かったですよ～
もうノートに書き終わりました。
本当にありがとうございます～
もう行かなきゃｗｗ
@Rafael
こちらこそありがとう！！
もう完璧（かんぺき）に使えるね！
Great lesson.
どうぞ宜しく。
おねがいします。
@jayefes65
はじめまして！！
こちらこそ宜しくお願いします。
また来て下さいね。
I would like to take some time now to tell you how much I LOVE YOU!!!! XD
This has indeed been an absolutely wonderful lesson and I will deffinetly take time to read your entire blog! Thank you so much! XD
@Amaya
Thank you for your nice comment!! There are lots of lessons here so please come visit here again! また来てね！
thanks very much sensei,, its really helpful definitely it was the best explanation of shite ageru/morau/kureru, now i have no doubt to say that i have no more doubts regarding these phrases.
thanks very much
@anjul
Hi Anjul!
I am very happy to hear that! ありがとう！ !happyface!
thank you very much! this is very helpful!
(^___^)v
@maruko
Thank you for your comment, maru-chan! !ochame!
Really interesting! For even Jananese, your lessons are quite useful.
Thanks to Maggie & Yukari!
I am into your lesson!
@Tama-chan,
OMG!! Thank you so much for visiting this site!
Your comment made my day! Please come back!
Hope you pardon me for deviating from the intended purpose of these comments, but I could not come up with another way to draw your attention to a what seems like a problem in the contact page.
http://142.93.68.150/a-new-page/
Page doesn’t seem to host the usual comment section, which I assume, is how you would prefer to handle generic contacts.
Much appliged. ^^
P.S. Also, using kanji in username field causes an internal error, while trying to post comments. Not that it’s a major concern, I’m sure…
@Jani
Ohhhh I didn’t realized that problem. Thank you so much for letting us know. We have been doing some maintenance. Will try to fix it asap.
Thank you!!!
I just spent the last 15 minutes bursting out in laughter thanks to you. Great video. It’s great to see proper, slang Japanese, which is so damn difficult to find.
Gav
Sydney, Australia
@Gav
Thank you for visiting this site! I love the video as well! Did you check my other lesson 若者言葉 ? If not, please check it. I taught the same series.
Also Maggie/Yukari i was wondering if i could say this and be correct. Kore watashi wa no mai”noun”
Can i enter any noun after “mai”? Like for example/Rei no<hehe Kore watashi wa no maikawa! Would that be acceptable?
@itsumaru
Yes, you can say “これ、私のマイ+ noun!”
But as I explained in the lesson, usually the noun should be something “special for you” to bring somewhere or personalized. So it will be odd to use some ordinary words.
For example, you can have public slippers but you don’t want to use them and bring your own, they will be マイスリッパ
But everybody supposes to bring their own notebook to the class so it will be strange to say マイノートブック
This is kind of like “My Computer” and “My Documents” in Windows OS.
Fun lesson. Thanks Maggie sensei!
@k
That’s right. Also “My Space”!!
I love this lesson. I love the kind of japanese that sounds a lot like english those kinds of lessons are a lot of fun and easy to remember. I taught the kids i help watch the first sentence. “Kore watashi no maikaa!” :) They like to say “sonna bakana” also. Thanks for another great lesson guys!
-Itsumaru
@Istumaru
I’m happy to hear you like this lesson! Also thank you so much for always checking the site.
So, ～なきゃ and ～なくちゃ can be used interchangeably? Or, is there some difference in usage?
@Danielle:Canada
Hi, Danielle! ~なきゃ and ~なくちゃ can be used interchangeably in most cases. Some says they have exactly the same meaning but to be precise, there is a slight difference.
~なきゃ is a bit stronger than ~なくちゃ. If we feel something has to be done urgently or we really feel obliged to do something we tend to use ~なきゃ.
ありがとうございます! That helps
Hey Yukari! So glad you guys are back and i just wanted to say hi to you and maggie! *hugs*
@Itsumaru
Thank you for your message! I am glad we can make lessons here again!!
A big hug for you,too!
I see..thank you much sensei^^
@Top
どういたしまして。もしこれは使うかどうかわからない表現があればいつでも聞いて下さいね。
(≧∇≦)ﾉ ﾊｰｲ♪
@Top
お待たせしました！
There sooo many!
I would avoid using expressions or words which are too dramatic, extreme or comical
I am sure you all know this but don’t use any of ninja anime expressions.
拙者 = sessha
~でござる = ~ de gozaru, etc.
The way old people or villain speak is too extreme.
*~しておろうが = ~ shite orouga
*貴様 = kisama
*汝 = nanji
*お遊びはこれまでだ・・・= Oasobi wa koremade da
*あばよっ！ = Abayo
*さらばじゃ = Sarabaja!
*わし = washi
We don’t use these comical expressions in our everyday conversation:
*ぎゃふん！ =Gyafun
*ヘヘッ、そうこなくっちゃ！！= Hehe soukonakuccha!
*てへっ = Tehe
*でへっ = Deha
*ちィッ！ = Chii
There are too dramatic.
*す…すまん = Su…suman
*ご…ごめん= Go…gomen
You might see a cool character says
*フッ… = Fu…
when he reflects something. We never say that.
The way rich women talk is unrealistic too.
*～ですわ = desuwa..
*〜ざます = zamasu
オカエリ^^ please list a couple of examples in which we shouldn’t talk like a manga character, sensei?
A really beautiful song and a great lesson. Thank you Maggie
@randomguy
Thank you for checking the lesson. I am glad to hear you like it! Please come back.
uhmm tnx i’ve learn a lot.i wanna learn more to speak nihongo..pllssss post more
@kristel
Thank you for your comment. Many new lessons are ready to release. Please wait!
マギー先生からたくさんのことを学びましたよ！本当にありがとうございました！
@コエヨさん
こちらこそこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！！！
あああっっっ！マギー先生可愛いね！
this is so cool sensei..thank you so much for doing this^^
@Top
You’re welcome! I enjoyed making the lesson,too! :)
Please feel free to ask any questions.
Hello, Maggie!
このすごく役に立つウェブサイトはユーチューブのビデオを通して見つかったばかりなんだ。日本語の口語や俗語に興味津々、さっそく全部を読んでみたいと思う。今GTOの漫画を読んでるけど、時々あまり分からない（汗）「見逃してほしけりゃ」とか。この漫画の場合は、チンピラの表現がよく使われていると思う。
あと、「劇うま」の劇について質問があります。ゲキの漢字は「激」じゃないですか。
お疲れ様です！
@Cygunus
Welcome to Maggie’s site and thank you so much for your comment. Some people write 劇ウマ (meaning 劇的に=gekiteki ni = dramatically delicious) instead of 激.
But you are right. 激 is more common so I have changed it. Thank you!
GTO!!! なつかしい！また来てね。
Hello Ms. Maggie Sensei!
I was able to listen to your twitaudio for listening practice.
it’s just that there were some sentences/words I’m not familiar with.
I was wondering if you could provide the transcript
to the link:http://twaud.io/xgR.
hoping for your reply.
@roulette225
OK, I will do that! BTW, if you are my follower on twitter, you can tweet me directly. That will be faster.
In a business e-mail to an outside company, can I say,
もしご質問があれば、ご遠慮なく連絡してください。
Or is that too informal?
Thanks!
@mongoose
It is possible. Or you can say いつでも御連絡下さい。 instead of ご遠慮なく.
The most common way to say that in business situation is,
もしなにかご不明な点がありましたらお気軽にお問い合わせ下さい。
ありがとうMaggie先生！
@gkstr
どういたしまして！いっぱい練習してね。
どんな旬のやさいと果物かあまり知らないで、ほとんどすべてがglasshouseで育てことができるできるから。。。^-^;
@gkstr
そうですね、それに今は年中いろいろな野菜や果物がスーパーで買えるから何が旬なのかわかりにくくなりましたね。
(A little correction for you. ほとんどすべての野菜や果物が温室(=onshitsu = greenhouse) で育てることができるからどんな野菜や果物が旬なのかあまりわかりません。）
Thank you for replying to my comment Ms. Maggie Sensei!I have a question though, these “anime slangs” are slangs of what region?
E.G. kansai ben, kyushu ben.. etc?? just curious.
@roulette225
Some of them are from Kansai area. Ex. chauchau, doaho, etc. But anybody from other area should know those words so I would say they are pretty general slang.
今はパンプキンが旬だよ！
@domidit
パンプキン（かぼちゃ）おいしいですよね！domiditの国ではどうやって食べるの？
Thanks for the info Ms. Maggie sensei!(^_^)
by the way, I found a site that explains anime slang:
http://www.angelfire.com/anime4/jslang/jibiki.htm
In reality, Do Japanese people use these words in their everyday conversations?
or its just limited to “anime” only?? o.o
hoping for your reply.
@roulett225
I took a look at the site. They are not just for anime. A lot of them are very useful and we do use the in daily life.
Slang expressions are changing everyday. Some of them have already become old fashioned. Like nobody says choberiba, choberigu anymore.
But I think you found a good site!
カリフォルニア州では今、林檎と梨が旬だ。 It’s always sad to see all the summer vegetables go. =(
@bradjpe
アメリカの梨もおいしいですね〜★
Ms. Maggie Sensei, thank you for replying to my comment. I have one question though, you mentioned that 僕=boku is for male talk. but recently, I’ve heard girls used “僕”.. is it alright for girls to use “僕” ??
hoping for your reply.
@roulette225
You might have seen that in manga or lyrics. In reality, here are some young girls who prefer to use boku in their group.
But it is still rare to hear women using boku refering to themselves.
“–そしてマスターが危険な場所とか危険な人間がいるとか色々な危ない時にマスターを知らせなければ-いけません。” ーなりません？
＠Maggie先生
大部分の犬を飼っている人たちは“いじわるな犬”の方が良いと私は思っています。
それは如何してと言えばですね、りこうな犬は、もちろん、自分のマスターを守ることは一番大切。そしてマスターが危険な場所とか危険な人間がいるとか色々な危ない時にマスターを知らせなければいけません。そういう犬は、いじわるとか、易しいとかを悩んでいないで、自分の仕事をきちんと遣るっと自然な犬性だと思います。でも、このlessonの“いじわる”と言う意味は違う事でしょうね。この“いじわる”と言う意味は“悪い犬”とか“馬鹿な犬”と言う事ですね。もちろん、そういう“いじわるな犬”は一番嫌い。
ワン、ワン
@apple407
飼い主に忠実でどろぼうに意地の悪い犬ならいいですよね。
でも、マギーは犬だからやはり一緒に住む時には私に意地の悪い犬はいやかも…
A little correction
マスターを知らせ..→マスターに
知らせなければいけません、なりません →両方 OK!
自分の仕事をきちんと遣るっと→自分の仕事をきちんとするのが
apple407の日本語は本当に上手！
易しい= easy 優しい =nice, sweet
^^Thank you much, sensei. I always forget this word when it comes up.
@Top
No problem. Ask me again if you forget it!
BTW what is your favorite manga?
Ms. Maggie sensei,
I saw your tweet about “Homework (Oct 21) model answers”. I was wondering if you can provide English translations to the phrases below:
*二度と君とは話さない！
*二度とお前と話さない！
*俺は君ともうぜったいに話さない！
*オレはお前と絶対話さないよ。
*もう君とは二度と口をききたくない。
*もう君と話したくない
*お前ともう二度と話したくない！
*もうお前なんかと喋りたくないわ！
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。
*俺に電話をするのをやめろ。
*もう俺に電話をするな！（or かけるな！）
********************************************
*僕にもうこれ以上電話するな！
*二度と僕に電話するな！
*もう僕に連絡するな!
*二度と電話するな！
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。
*絶対にもう僕に電話をしないで。
*もう電話しないで!
I have a hard time translating from Japanese to English @@” hope you don’t mind. ( I’m still new to Japanese… hope you understand)
hoping for your reply to my comment.
@roulette225
OK, these are the answers from Twitter followers and I post them on twitter after having corrected them. They are so many so you might have confused but the translation is all the same.
I’ll never talk to you again!
↓
*二度と君とは話さない！= Nidoto kimito wa hanasanai.
*二度とお前と話さない！= Nidoto omae to hanasanai (strong)
*俺は君ともうぜったいに話さない！=Ore wa kimito mou zettai ni hanasanai.
*オレはお前と絶対話さないよ。= Ore wa omae to zettai hanasanai yo.
*もう君とは二度と口をききたくない。= Mou kimi towa nido to kuchi wo kikitaku nai.
*もう君と話したくない = Mou kimi to hanashitaku nai.
*お前ともう二度と話したくない！= Omae to mou nido to hanashitakunai. (strong)
*もうお前なんかと喋りたくないわ！= Mou omae nanka to shaberitaku naiwa. (strong)
Don’t ever call me again!
↓
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。= Mou nido to denwa wo kakete konaide.
*俺に電話をするのをやめろ。= Oreni denwa wo suru nowo yamero. (strong)
*もう俺に電話をするな！（or かけるな！）= Mou ore ni denwa wo suruna! (strong)
*僕にもうこれ以上電話するな！= Ore ni mou kore ijyou denwa suruna! (strong)
*二度と僕に電話するな！= Nidoto boku ni denwa suruna! (strong)
*もう僕に連絡するな! = Mou boku ni renraku suruna! (strong)
*二度と電話するな！= Nidoto denwa suruna. (rough)
*もう二度と電話をかけてこないで。= Mou nidoto denwa wo kakete konaide.
*絶対にもう僕に電話をしないで。= Zettai ni mou boku ni denwa wo shinaide.
*もう電話しないで! =Mou denwa shinaide.
So there are so many ways of saying one phrase.
FYI
僕=boku and 俺=ore are for male talk. 俺=ore is more rough.
君=kimi is not rough. It usually refers to a woman.
What does バレ really mean, sensei? I see a lot in manga.
@Top
You mean バレバレ!? Then it means “too obvious”
ばれる= bareru =some secret is out,
ばれたか! = Now you know (the secret). You caught me.
バレバレのうそ= Obvious lie
はい、ではその森の中で泥棒が私の首に剃刀を付けて、『命か、お金か？』と聞いたら、どっちを選びましょうか？これはね、そんな簡単な質問ではないんです。その森の中では、もう警察も誰もいないんですから、『お金。』と言っても私の命も無くなるでしょうから。その時に究極のなぞなぞをその泥棒に言ったらどうでしょう。『今、早速答えて下さい！』と言えば、彼も考えなければいけないでしょう。じゃー、ここで私は３０分ぐらい眠らなければいけません。
@apple407
そうですね、「お前の命かお金かどちらかをよこせ！」って言われたら、どちらにしても命が危ないですね。
お休みなさい！
Thank you much, sensei^^
Yes, sensei^^ It seems like they talk a lot more in the current clip^^
@Top
OK, I will make another lesson using a new clip sometime. :maggie-small:
@Maggie
あぁ、わかった。ありがとう。マギー先生は最高だぜ。
@225asap
よかった！ :h: 一杯練習してね! Practice with me on Twitter! I have been giving translation assignment almost everyday!
もし、木が一本、森の中で倒れて誰も聞く人がいなかったら、倒れた音が有りましたでしょうか？それとも、そんな音は無かったでしょうか？ これは究極の究極選択ですね。お答えはA、それともB、それともAとB。分らないよ、私は。
@apple407
う〜ん..難しいね。それは究極の”なぞなぞ”みたい。
もし自分がしなければいけないとしたらどちらを選ぶ？という質問を考えてみて。
@maggie
I wanted to say “That child is always speaking to me casually so he’ll probably get too used to talking to me causally.” If that even makes sense. I just noticed this sounds confusing
@225asap
OK, if you want to use タメ口 , I would translate that sentence,
“あの子はいつも私にタメ口で話してくるから、これからもずっとタメ口で話す様になるだろう。”
But it is not natural…
How about,
あの子は、子供のくせにタメ口で話してくるから、大人になってもずっと私にタメ口で話してくるんだろうな。
くせに= even though
こんばんは、マーギーせんせい！さいきん、わたしはこのサイトがよくちゅういしないで、ほんとにごめんなさい！でも、にこんごをいしょうけんめいにべんきょうしますよが！
にこんテレビもまいにちでみる、にこんおんがくもまいにちできく！
マーギーのふくは、すごくかわいいですね！Dudley is jealous!
@Tiffany
ひさしぶり！！げんきでしたか？ Dudleyもげんきですか？
Wow you must have been studying hard. I can tell!
(Note for you : にこん→にほん、まいにちで→まいにち べんきょうしますよが→べんきょうしてますよ。)
If you want, follow me on twitter. We have been practicing writing almost everyday!
Would you mind including some of their interesting expressions sometimes in the future? I think they’re funny and very interesting^^
@Top
You mean expressions from Kamiusagi’s other video clip?
Thanks for the info
@zerodtkjoe
Thank you for visiting this site! Please come back!
Without your explanation of the clip, I wouldn’t be able to understand what they’re saying. Even the new uploaded clip, I still have a hard time understanding.
@Top
The way they talk is very natural. They don’t talk clearly with full of colloquial expressions so I bet many of older Japanese people wouldn’t understand them either. However this series is very popular and many people go to the theater looking forward to seeing the clip.
マギー先生、この文章いいですか？
“あの子は私にタメ口で話してきたからタメ口で話すように慣れすぎていくでしょう”
Sorry i posted this comment on a another lesson by accident.
@225asap
I will reply to your message in TAMAGUCHI lesson!
マギー先生、この文章いいですか？
“あの子は私にタメ口で話してきたからタメ口で話すように慣れすぎていくでしょう”
@225asap
“あの子は私にタメ口で話してきたからタメ口で話すように慣れすぎていくでしょう”
Um…the first sentence “あの子は私にタメ口で話してきたから” is grammatically correct if you want to give a reason.
The following sentence needs to be corrected. But I need to know what exactly you want to say. Could you write in English first so that I can correct you.
@Maggie Sensei: Thank you for the info! The link you gave was useful too. thank you very much Ms. Maggi Sensei!
more power to your site!
@roulette225
Thank you! また来てね。
=Please visit here again!
Wonderful ..thanks a lot for posting a good informitive blog
@tsanko
Thank you for visiting,too!
Hello Maggie sensei! thank you for replying to my comment! actually, I first saw it on ameba PIGG. (virtual game) there was someone typing complicated kanjis (I couldn’t read N1 kanji yet) and then there were a lot of people typing out random numbers.. like 3649 and so on.. I don’t remember the others but perhaps you know some.. I hope you cans share your knowledge on this.
@roulette225
Hum… then they could be some kind of codes for that particular game. Maybe??? Like I said, sorry but I have no idea because 3649 is not common word play.
If I ever find out the meaning, I will let you know.
FYI I found this site for other GOROAWASE =wordplay with numbers
Maggie先生、ちちんぷいぷい
@apple407 www (^O^) Where did you hear that? I am not in pain!
ちちんぶいぶい is a cute magic word for kids who got injured to make the pain go. Like 痛いの痛いの飛んでけ〜！ =Itaino itai no tondekee!!
cool! thanks! maggie sensei! but what about “3469??”
do you have any idea what it means?
maggie sensei! I hope that you can teach more about kaomoji! I seriously encounter it almost everyday! example:
ヾ(▼ﾍ▼；)( ￣っ￣)(?_?) unfortunately I have no idea what it means…
thank you and more power to your site!
@roulette225
Sorry! I couldn’t get the meaning of 3469. I did some research but couldn’t find it. Maybe it is not that common. Do you remember when they use it?
Kaomoji are fun.
ヾ(▼ﾍ▼；) → : We use this when someone says something stupid or dangerous, we try to warn or stop them ちょっと、or オイオイ… =”Hey, hey!”
( ￣っ￣) →could be someone sulking (It could be other thing. You can chose depending on your feelings)
(?_?) →When you see ? mark that means confusion. Or when you don’t understand something you can use this facemark.
There are couple of sites where you can see many of them categorized by emotion. Example 1, Example 2
Check them out!
@Basil Farrow
ｷﾀ ━━Basil━━━(ﾟ∀ﾟ)━Farrow━━ !!!!!
Hope many people ググる you! !Vsain!
Wahhhh! Sugoi da!! Arigatou, Maggie-sensei!
ああ、まっぎー先生
この授業は私に役に立ちます
客室乗務員の仕事を勉強していますから。
ほんとうにありがとうございます。
@ダン
わ〜空のお仕事のお勉強をしているんですね。素敵！！
今回は、機内のことは紹介しませんでしたが質問があったらいつでも聞いてね。
yay maggies back. cant wait to learn the new lesson
@domdit
お待たせしました！！=Omatase shimashita!! :)
Hi Maggie!
Thanks for your great article.
I have a question regarding 半端じゃないっすよ。
I have recently come across this sentence watching Gokusen.
THey are talking about Class 3D and that they are delinquents.
“でも あの３Ｄの連中は 半端じゃないっすよ。”
What is the meaning of 半端じゃないっすよ in this sentence, because it has negative connotations as opposed to positive ones, as your article states :)
Thanks.
@tarkonis
Sorry I just read your comment. (I was out of town.)
半端ない can be used both negatively and positively. So if you just hear just one line, you don’t know in which way they are extreme. It could be good or bad.
So you have to pay attention to the previous or following context.
So “でも あの３Ｄの連中は 半端じゃないっすよ。” can be “They are extremely wild” or “out of control”
It is fun to learn Japanese from TV dramas like “Gokusen” !
t-h-a-n-k-s!!! マーギ先生！！
@kharol
ど-う-い-た-し-ま-し-て！！kharol!!
どや顔をすみません。
http://www.friendsoffenwaystudios.org/portfolio.php?index=29
Oh…very clear now^^Thank you much, sensei^^
I’ve seen it before in Manga…no wonder I have trouble understanding Manga.
@Top
Good!! You’re welcome!! We use it very often. :h:
Oh yesss…I’ll put that on my twitter^^ lol
Thank you much^^
Oh…and one more question, please?
Your example …しちゃおっと。 Why is it おっと?
@Top
Good question!!!
~（し）ちゃおっと！ is another casual expression to show your intention to finish doing something.
First, have you ever heard these expressions?
Ex. 食べる→食べよっと I am gonna eat!
Ex. 寝る→寝よっと I am gonna sleep!
Ex. 勉強する→勉強しよっと! I am gonna study!
We say this when we talk to ourselves (in front of others)
When you imply finishing the action, you say ちゃおっと = I’m going to have finished + verb
→これ食べちゃおっと! I am going to finish eating this.
→もう寝ちゃおっと! I am going to sleep now.
→勉強しちゃおっと！ I am going to have finished studying!
It requires your will to do something or finish something so your previous phrase 疲れちゃう won’t work here.
X 疲れちゃおっと I am willing to get tired.
Can I say, 『疲れちゃった！」?
@Top
Yes!! you can say “疲れちゃった” !!
探偵が密偵を内偵する探偵小説が好きなんです。
ジャパニーズ カンジ フラッシュカーズ ３
ーどや顔でー ハハハ！
@apple407
確かに！複雑過ぎる探偵小説！！
apple407の”どや顔”(￣^￣) みてみたい…
maggie senseiif we want to tell someone,
I have said to (someone)”…..”
(gives information for someone that he/she said to somebody that…)
what the japanese means? how about ~と言われた?
@マリアさん
Ex. I said Maria “You should study Japanese more!”
→私はマリアに「もっと勉強しなさい！」と言った。
Ex. I told Maria to study more.
→私はマリアにもっと勉強しなさいと言った。
Ex. Maria said to me, “Maggie, you have to be nice to me!”
→マリアは私に”マギー、もっと私に優しくして！”と言った。
Ex. Maria told me to be nice to her.
→1) マリアは私にもっと優しくしてと言った。
→2) 私はマリアにもっと優しくしてと言われた。(If you have “I” as a subject, you should translated it in a passive form. So you can use 言われた）
So if the subject is a person who says something, ~と言った
If you are told something and make yourself as a subject you can say と言われた。
Can you translate these?
He said I was too strict.
Answers :
彼は私が厳し過ぎると言った。or
（私は）彼に厳し過ぎると言われた。
はい、元気です＝）お蔭様で
誕生日には熱があったけど、今はもう大丈夫です。
最初はすごい風邪でした、次は熱になって、体温は39Celsiusも至った、ちょっと心配かけました。最近Dengueは流行るから。、ひどい病気ですよ、蚊の刺しから受けます。幸いに、病気はDengueではありません。でも、まだ気をつけなければなりません。最近毎日雨だから、周りに蚊はもっと多くなって気がします。蚊は大嫌い
@LadySapphire
39度は高熱でしたね。ご家族の人も皆心配したと思います。でももう治ったんですね。よかった。
デング熱って蚊から移るんですね。恐いですね。
久しぶりですが、また日本語が上手になりましたね。
(添削 : 蚊の刺しから受けます→蚊に刺されたらかかります。蚊はもっと多くなって気がします。→蚊がもっと多くなった気がします。）
残念ですけど、あのときここでは雨でした。
月の美しさは見えませんでした。そして、あのとき、病気もありました
泣きそうでした..
@LadySapphire
お月様見えなかったのですね。残念。かわいそうにそれに病気だったんですね。
(A little correction; 病気もありました→病気にもかかっていました。）
Hi Maggie先生!お久しぶり！
先生のお誕生日はただ今知りました、もう過ぎました..
Belated Happy Birthday は日本語でどう言いますか？
私の誕生日は先生のと近く日ですよ、私のは９月２２日です ＝）
@LadySapphire
ありがとう！！！
本当にお久しぶりです！！！元気でしたか？
LasySapphireさんも「遅くなりましたがお誕生日おめでとう！」= Happy Belated Birthday!
人が言うには、僕は『イもロも』無いって。でも、僕はそう言う事を考えている人たちは『興味のきょうの字もない』と思います。
@apple407
ハハ〜！「イ」だけではなく「イ」も「ロ」もないとはうまい！
Thanks for the lesson!!
The commercial is awesome, gonna learn all vocab by heart!
@DraNKa
Thank you for the comment! I think if you memorize them, you can impress many Japanese people!
タイプミスが～！
でも、ありがとう！
takkyでござる。
ありがとう！そごっく助かります。
@takky
Thank you for checking!!! So 「 色気のイの字もない」人って誰？ :)
（A little correction for you : そごっく→すごく or すっごく(→more casual)）
はいはい、先生。どもすみません！
Thank you so much for the correction and clarification, sensei^^
I love it when you include a CM at the end. It’s a nice way to remember new words too^^
@Top-san
どういたしまして！I’ve started to work on a lesson for you. ちょっとお待ち下さいね。
@Top-san
Thank you for the comment!
All the words with 的 in this lesson are pretty common. So we use all of them. And there are lots more.. As I wrote in the lesson, you can’t just add 的 to all the nouns. So it will be faster to memorize the words with 的. For example we always use 積極的、消極的 and we don’t usually use just 積極 or 消極 without 的.
”Can you use 好き in this case too?”
魔法好き→It may work for a person who looooves magic like Harry Potter!
~好き=~ zuki is another word which works for certain nouns.
(things you like) + 好き(=zuki)
Ex.子供好き=kodomo zuki = a person who likes children
コーヒー好き=koohii zuki = coffee lover
（ a little katakana correction : レッスン, マギー）
素敵なレッソン、マッギー先生！
Can I say that?
How do we know which one to use? I guess we have to remember it right? If I didn’t know, I would probably use 魔法的. Can you use 好き in this case too?
あ、すみませんでした。 I open up pages in browser tabs and don’t always read them right away. Guess I should have refreshed!
いつもレッスン作ってくれてありがとうございます。
@k
こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがとう！！
I tend to upload the lessons in hurry so there must be many typos and mistakes for the first few days. I always appreciate your help!
Thank you so much Maggie-sensei for adding my blog in your Maggie Recommends links! That’s an honor, and for the wrong pronunciations on smart fm goal i will check and fix all the items, i didn’t do that till now cause yesterday i was tired a lil bit after adding these 59 items, that gave me an idea about efforts you make to write and explain all these lessons for us, so Big Thanks for your amazing work! and please don’t forget to say hello to Gimmeabreakman :p
@yahiala14
No problem! Otsukaresama for all your work as well!
Oh, you know Victor (Gimmeabreakman)? I work with him so I will tell him you said hello! A bientot !
OMG..thank you so much Maggie-sensei^^
Sure whenever you have time. In the mean time, I’ll try to catch up with your great lessons^^
I know that usually CMS like to play with words and such.
Ex: 0:33 どち？something…I know they use twins to sell products, 2:02 I have no idea what they’re selling メトロが心をつないでいく。？？, 2:33, 2:46, 3:31 I understand what they’re talking most of it, but is that a cell phone CM?, 7:02 they talk really fast, 7:17…
Actually I would love to understand all of them, but I don’t want to bother you too much. You don’t have to explain everything because it might be time consuming.
Generally I find Japanese CM very very interesting in terms of ideas, language, and style^^
So whenever you have time..Maggie-sensei^^
@Top-san
OK! I will make a lesson for you using the video. Please give me some time, OK?
I’ve been excellent, Maggie sensei^^ Just a little bit busy. Now I’m back^^ Thank you for asking.
I have a proposal though. Today I was checking out Japanese commercials, which are all wonderful by the way^^.
There are quite interesting expressions in these CMS that many times I couldn’t quite catch what they say, like this youtube link here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPB55fLQbsM
I don’t know if you’ll be interested in teaching us some of these interesting expressions^^
Ahhh..back to study your lessons now^^
thank you much Maggie-sensei.
@Top-san
I think using Japanese commercials is a very good way to learn Japanese. I have used Boss’ commercials in this blog as well.
As for the link you gave me, is there any specific expression that you want to learn or you didn’t get ? (Give me with the time, Ex. 2:05, etc.)
i am trying to do that :p, it too hard to find place for new Japanese words in my head these days, can i ask you to put my blog in your featured sites ?
@yahiala14
Sorry, I can’t touch this month’s featured sites now but I added your website in our Maggie’s recommendation link and mentioned your smart fm and blog in the lesson.
BTW, I have checked some of the pronunciation of the list you made and found some mistakes.
Ex. 泡立て器→should be “awadateki”. It reads “awadate utsuwa”
and 缶切り→should be “kankiri” but it reads “kansetsu
台所→should be ”daidokoro”It reads kichen etc.
I assume computer reads romaji automatically. It’s fun!
Hi Maggie-sensei^^
I was confused about what you say that you can put を after 結婚 but you don’t include it in this example.
And is this 練習 or 勉強？Can you use any verb to make it a noun?
Note : The same as 勉強 (=benkyou). You can put “を” after 練習 (=benkyou) as an object.
結婚する (=kekkon suru) to get marry
→結婚させる (=kekkon saseru) to make someone marry
→結婚させられる (=kekkon saserareru) to be forced to marry
＊もう３０歳になったので彼女に結婚させられるかもしれない。
(=Mou sanjussai ninatta node kanojo ni kekkon saserareru kamo shirenai.)
Since she is 30 years old now, I might be forced to marry my girlfriend.
Top-san
お久しぶりです！！How have you been?
Oh, I see your confusion. I should have added the same note to 結婚! 結婚 also can be a noun so we say 結婚をさせる。
I will fix that right now.
Thank you for pointing out!
I always appreciate it!
thank you for all your amazing lessons,that help me a lot to improve my Japanese, i made a goal on smart if someone like to memorize all these words the easy way :p
http://smart.fm/goals/535670
@yahiala14
Hello! You made the nice list there with pronunciation. So did you memorize the whole thing now?
Maggie-sensei, 鍋つかみ should be “potholder”. A panhandler is someone who begs!
＠k
Thank you for spotting it. I always appreciate it. But how strange… I noticed it right after I released the lesson and changed it to oven mitt. It is fixed a week ago. Can you still see that????
Anyway, thank you for the comment.
«Maybe it was a bad idea to mention here but I thought I wanted to introduce all types of Japanese you might hear in Japan.»
Not at all! I found your site when I was looking exactly for this! I was constantly puzzled by the extra «sa», thinking it meant something else.
Thanks.
@Marcus
Thank you for your comment. I am glad you found our site like that! Please come back here again!
十五夜 > similar to the Mid-Autumn Festival with China!
Yet they have different stories behind~
今外には満月を掛ける、先生、いい夢を！
(Am I correct????)
@saki
Hi, Saki!!
十五夜 is originally from China! Do you eat 月餅?
(満月を掛ける→満月が出ています。満月が見えます。)
I enjoyed the moon last night,too.
Omg! I want to give a big thanks to Yukari and Maggie! I will cherish this lesson forever! Thank you so much for doing this everyday guys it means a lot to me! Take care. :)
@Itsumaru
You are welcome! どういたしまして！！We are glad to hear you like this lesson!!!
Very nice!! I found this page today, very informative and in easy way . I learned a lot by reading this page, and I haven’t finished yet. I never thought of the actual meaning of arigatou , I never even know there is a kanji for it. thanks!
@Lazy Ninja
Thank you for visiting our site! Hope you come back here again and again.
ありがとう！！
毎度Maggie先生の行き届いた教授で感謝しております。
『大売り出しでトイレットペーパーとペーパータオルを大人買いをしちゃった。』
この場合で［大人買しちゃった］、［まとめ買いしちゃった］、［いっぱい買っちゃった］、［幾らも買っちゃった］、［たくさん買っちゃった］から、どちらでもいいんでしょうか。
@apple407
トイレットペーパーやペーパータオルは日常雑貨品なのでちょっと夢がないのであまり大人買いとはいいません。
［まとめ買いしちゃった］、［いっぱい買っちゃった］、［たくさん買っちゃった］の方がいいです。
あと箱やケースに入っているものをまとめて買う時は、”箱買い”、”ケース買い”という言い方もありますよ！
こちらこそ、いつも来てくれてありがとう！！ :)
Hey!
What a great lesson! Simple yet very informative and explanatory. I was kind of busy recently and couldn’t keep up with all of Maggie’s lessons but I’m slowly catching up. I was wathcing all the YT videos though. ^_^
Keep up & Thanks!
@kad3t_uk
今日は！前にtweetしてくれた人かな？YTはgimmeaflakemanがやっているのですが….でもありがとう！
Are you the one who tweeted me before? Many people have got confused but I am not Victor (gimmeaflakeman) but thank you for visiting this site anyway! :)
I’ve been so stressed lately because of my poor japanese. I can’t talk well. どうすればいいかな。
this site really helps me!! 分かりやすいね。。。
ありがとうございます。
@Anna
Thank you for visiting this site! Oh…Please don’t be stressed out. Language is fun to learn and it is only a tool for communication.
You can ask me anything here or follow my twitter. We will practice Japanese together! がんばって！
うまくわかっちゃうはずです。
@apple407
いっぱい練習（れんしゅう）しましたね。
ひさしぶり！日本語のオアシスってなんか素敵（ステキ）♥ ふふ…
(A little correction for you: わかいっちゃいます→わかっちゃいます。 わかいっちゃいました→わかっちゃいました。うまく→よく 本当な→本当の）
また来てね！Visit me here again!
うまくわかいっちゃいました。うまくわかっちゃった。うまくわかっちゃたよ。
日本語の本当なオアシスですね。うまくわかいっちゃいます。
Thanks so much for the great explanation. This has always confused me.
@Bill
どういたしまして！ Hope it helps you!
Just one more question; Is it grammatically wrong to use the shorter causative, and causative-passive, versions of Godan verbs? Or is it only Ichidan verbs?
＠Sebastian
Let’s take 書く here again.
書く→書かす&書かせる They are both grammatically correct.
書く→書かせられる is grammatically correct. 書かさせられる=kakasaserareru is grammatically wrong (さ入れ言葉）But again many people use it without knowing it is wrong. So I would avoid using it for the exam or in front of a strict Japanese teacher.
Maybe it was a bad idea to mention here but I thought I wanted to introduce all types of Japanese you might hear in Japan.
Thank you Maggie! ^_^
“Also we say 書かされる(=kakasareru) instead of 書かせられる（=kakaserareru) as
a shorter form.
(Cf. There is also a colloquial form for this. →書かさせられる(=Kakasaserareru) * See the remark below!)”
Is it possible to use this form when conjugating Ichidan verbs. such as 食べる? I was reading “The Handbook of Japanese verns”, but I’m not sure if I can use that form with Ichidan verbs.
Thanks
Sebastian
Sweden
@Sebastian
Hello! 一段活用 「食べる」の使役の形は、 The causative form of 食べる will be
食べる→食べさせる→食べさせられる
And these are grammatically wrong
×食べさす
×食べさされる
So avoid using them in a class or exams. However, “some” people do use them in a daily conversation.
Maggie sensei,
Yes that’s for sure! Thanks for your advice~~ :)
I will work super hard on your lessons too, please keep teaching us!
Maggie sensei,
I see…actually I am coming to Japan too, with my working holiday visa! I am quite nervous now!!!!
@saki
Oh you are coming to Japan. How exciting! Hope you get a perfect job for you!! Good luck!
Don’t forget your smile when you have an interview, OK?
Maggie sensei, 質問です！
Does the above situation and information the same as アルバイト/バイト?
Is it impossible to find a job for knowing little Japanese?
@saki
You still need to submit a resume to apply for a part time job. If you are a student or under 20 years old, your parents needs to sign the resume to approve. The procedure will be more simple (Ex. no paper test and group interview), and they don’t require much qualification or experiences as full time job.
But still they would hire a person with better attitude, nice manner and personality, etc.
It would be definitely plus to know some Japanese unless you work for a foreign company or language school who don’t expect you to speak Japanese.
Thank you soooo much Maggie sensei!!
Nobody could explain to me as clear as you do, never!
“simple one letter ん lesson turned into this epic monster lesson!” > I cannot agree more!
I think it takes time for me to fully understand this form but I will definitely practice more!
お疲れさまでした！^^
@saki
よかった〜〜 :h:
I made this lesson for you so hope you come visit this lesson again and again. And please feel free to ask me any questions,OK?
It was much deeper than I thought it would be but actually many people seem to be interested in this subject. So I am glad I made this. :)
Sugoi Maggie sensei. Arigatou gozaimasu.
@Laura
Thank YOU for always visiting my site! Hope you can use some of the information. :)
ゴーヤを食べたことがありますよ。苦かったです（泣）
マギー先生、
このレッソンの焦点から外れる質問ですみませんが、出して下さった例文に関してお聞きしたいことがあります。
＞損害を被る
被るの読みには二つがあると思います。かぶるとこうむる。帽子や桂の場合は、明らかにかぶると読みますが、上記の例文のように損害、汚名、冤罪などの言葉が目的語になっている場合はこうむるとも読めるでしょうか。どうやって正しい読みを選べばいいか教えて頂けませんか。
宜しくお願いします。
@Shimewaza
ああ、気がつきませんでした。Romaji読みの方の間違いでした。混乱しましたよね。ごめんなさい！！m( )m 前回に引き続き、ご指摘有り難うございます。訂正しておきます。
日常会話では損害をかぶったと言う人も多いのですが、本来、正しくは、(損害を)被る=こうむると読む方が正しいです。
読み方の区別ですが、人の他の人が負うべき借金や罪を負う場合は、かぶる (Ex. 人の罪をかぶる）
自分自身に悪いこと、結果がもたらされるときは、こうむると読みます。（ex.被害をこうむる）
@ダン
圧倒的にゴーヤの方をよく使います！ 食べたことありますか？
こんにちは！まっぎーせんせい～
ゴーヤと苦瓜はどちらがよく会話で使いますか。
Ahhh, I wish I could edit my comment.
性→正
変換ミスしちゃいました。Ｓｕｂｍｉｔボタンを押す前に文章に目を通しておくべきだったね。すみません。
Very 分かり易い＆包括的な breakdown of という・ということ。
I think I might have found a small typo(the romaji sentence is also off)
誤：４月というと別れた彼のことを考えてします。
性：４月というと別れた彼のことを考えてしまいます。
or
４月というと別れた彼のことを考えたりします。
I suppose the former is more likely though.
@Shimewaza
Typoみつけてくれて有り難う！！コメント読んでいるだけでかなりの日本語の達人！！と分かります。
Maggie Sensei~
Yes please! 期待します！
@saki,
Hello saki!!
I have just uploaded a new lesson about ん for you.
I really hope it helps you to understand when and how to use it.
If you have any questions, ask me anytime.
@saki,
Hi Saki!
OK, I can make a lesson for you about ん! You mean like
やるんですか。
食べるんです。
that kind of ん right?
Thank you so much Maggie sensei! This is very informative!
These という(=toiu) ということ（=toiukoto) are very complicated but the always appear in daily conversation, I am very confused too, お陰さまで now I get a clearer picture on them…
Yet I have another question too:
Apart from という and ということ, “ん” is another topic which I have no way to understand and make use to it, would you mind making a lesson on this topic too?
Many many many thanks, 大感激！
マギー先生！！
このレッスンはとても便利です！！本当にありがとうございます～～～！心から感謝しています！
明日、日本語の試験があるので、復習しなければなりません！
私は明日一生懸命頑張ります！！＾＾
いつも応援していますので、これからも頑張ってください！
@Fujiko-san
コメントありがとう！！明日、試験なんですね、こちらこそ、応援していますよ。がんばってね〜！！ !Vsain!
thank you maggie :)
I had noticed that different counters were used for different things, but i could not work out why. I thought “is there one for fruit? one for non-living things? one for moving things?” now I know, it is shape! wow, I would not have guessed that easily. but now i know ^_^/
@tremault
Thank you for checking the lesson! Actually there are a lot more…It could depend on the shape, the size, where you use them, for what you use them, how they are made, if it is alive or not, etc.
(I will add these to the lesson later…)
Basically you can count fruits or vegetables with 個 = ko or hitotsu, futatsu . . .
To be more specific, if it is something “round” like a ball, you can use “玉”=tama (grapefruit, orange, cabbage, onion, etc.), you use 房=fusa for a bunch of grapes or bananas, but if it is one piece of small fruit or a vegetable such as a strawberry, grape, pea, or cherry, you use 粒=tsubu. You use 束=taba for cauliflower or broccoli. Or bunch of spinach etc.
Non-living things:
Depending on what it is…
•articles, dishes, 品→hin, shina,
•a dish of food→皿=sara,
•a slice of pie, cake→切れ(=kire)
•chopsticks→If you use them to eat 膳=zen, cooking chopsticks→組=kumi,
•Tofu→丁,
•にぎり寿司=nigiri sushi=hand made hand, two pieces of sushi (or sometimes one piece)→貫(=kan),
•swimming pool→面=men,
•accidents, inquiries, phone calls→件=ken.
•For live fish we use 匹=hiki, biki, piki as I mentioned above but if it is for food, 匹 or 尾=o
Moving things : vehicles: Depends on where they are used….
•on the road (cars, motorcycles, trucks ) →台 (dai),
•on the railroad (trains, subways) →両 (ryou),
•fixed on the ground (slides or elevator )→基 (ki)、
•(in the ocean or river) ships→隻 (seki)
Oh my… it looks very complicated! Hope I didn’t scare you here!
my blood type is B all info r wrong about me!!!!!
i am easy going
luv 2 have fun
smiles alot
u cant make me mad easily because i am calm person
get along with everybody i am everyones friend
attractive
organised cant stand aplace which is not organised
confident
yeah thats me :)
@sam
Of course they are wrong and it is impossible to categorize everybody in just 4 types. Sounds like you are a lovely person like me! :D
thank you for todays lesson!
when i first read 今、ご飯食べてるから邪魔しないでね！
I thought it means, “I am going to eat now so I’ll stop bothering you.”
but then i read it “I am eating now so don’t bother me!”,
so how would you say “I am going to eat now so I’ll stop bothering you.” ?
is it 今、ご飯食べてるからお邪魔しました。
@tremault
You mean I am going to eat now so I will not bothering you (→I won’t visit you)?
then it will be
今から、御飯食べるから （お）邪魔するのやめます。(お)邪魔しません。or（casual) 邪魔するのやめとくよ。(man) ~やめとくわ(women)
Did I answer your question?
I love your website Maggie! Ai Shiteru! Saranghae yo!
@Deth_Kittens
Arigatou!!! Daaaaisuki♥
Hi! Great lesson–also useful for teachers of Japanese people who are looking for jobs in the US, so we can understand their perspectives. :)
I think one reason Americans (in particular) attach such unsuitable photos is that in the US, it’s totally against the rules to request photos for jobs (other than acting, etc.). It’s so far out of our experience that I guess people just don’t stop to think. I would expect common sense would tell them to use a professional photo, but…I guess not! Things like including your sex (male/female), age, and marital status are illegal, too, so it can lead to some real confusion for both Japanese applicants in the US and American applicants in Japan. It’s good to educate yourself before you apply!
Thanks for your detailed article. Great site!
@Clarissa
Thank you for your comment. Very interesting! Asking your sex, age or marital status should be illegal. In that sense, the format of Japanese resume is still way behind.
There are selling many books about how to have a proper job interview. Japanese people depend on this kind of manual too much. It is a part of our culture “We have to follow the way other people do.”
I have also checked your site. Very nice!
It is so nice to get to communicate with a real teacher. You teach Japanese students there. How are they adopting American culture?
はい！先生！ありがとうございます。
これから練習しますね＾＿＾
@Top-san
Thank you for spotting the mistake. I fixed it.
“neteru hame ni natta” is correct. I must have thought “Um…this sentence is too difficult. I should change it to 寝ていた=neteita. ” and just forgot about fixing the text.
Thank you so much for your nice comment and letting me know your interests. It is very important for me to know what you are interested in. I think studying Japanese from many different sources is a good idea. We don’t always talk formal Japanese which you learn in a textbook (we skip particles, we don’t finish the sentence properly,etc.) and at the same time we don’t always talk like manga characters either. Kansaiben is so much fun to learn. If there is a chance, I would like to make a lesson,too.
As for forming sentences, you have to keep practicing and make lots of mistakes. I can always help you here. Use any comment section. ね！
Maggie sensei, I have a question about this sentence.
Ex. 風邪をひいたお陰で一日寝てるはめになった。
=Kaze wo hiita okage de ichinichi nete ita.
I notice the difference between the romanji and the actual sentence. Which one should I follow?
-寝てるはめになった or
-nete ita
Hi Maggie sensei^^
thank you for all your wonderful lessons. I have no idea what level I’m in, but I can read all hiragana and katakana and a couple hundreds of Kanji. Not a lot though. My problems are forming sentences especially complex sentences and having no clue which words to use in a sentence. I would also love to be able to read comics with ease, but the problem is when I study Japanese in regular books, they don’t tell me what real Japanese speak. So your website is truly a gem for me because you make it so fun to learn Japanese.
My goal is to learn a lot of Kanji, to know a lot of useful expressions and slangs (especially in maga^^), to be able to understand complex sentences, to learn Kansai-ben too because a lot of entertainment people on TV shows seem to speak that way.
Sorry for going on and on, but thank you and thank God for your website^^
O.O I am so glad that I found this web site! I’ve been wanting to learn Japanese for 10 years, (And to think, I’m only 17 xD) but there aren’t any places around my home to learn it, or any people who speak it… I have a feeling your site will help me out while I wait for college~
If you don’t mind, I do have one question Maggie sensei. How would a teacher say “listen!”? You know, like if some kid was trying to ask a question and kept rambling on (like me xD) and the sensei finally snapped and said “listen!” or “listen to me!”. I don’t know any command tense xD
@Angie,
I am so glad that you found this site,too!
As for your questions, the verb “to listen” is 聞く=kiku. So the command form is 聞いて！=kiite or 聞いて下さい。(=kiite kudasai) (polite) and if it is very strong command 聞け=kike! (mainly used by male teachers)
So “Listen to me!” is “先生(or 私）の言うことを聞きなさい！or 聞け!”(=Sensei (or watashi) no iu koto wo kikinasai or kike!) : Some Japanese teachers call themselves, “sensei” .
we usually say 静かに(して）！(=Shizukani(shite))! or 静かにしなさい!(=Shizuka ni shinasai!)=Be quiet!/Shut up!= instead of saying Listen!.
FYI here are some rules how to make command form.
*to do : する=suru→して!=shite→して下さい。=shite kudasai →(stronger command for men) しろ!=shiro!
*to talk : 話す=hanasu→話して!=hanashite→話して下さい。=Hanashite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 話せ!=hanase!
*to look : 見る=miru→見て!=mite→見て下さい。=mite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 見ろ!=miro!
*to write : 書く=kaku→書いて!=kaite→書いて下さい。=kaite kudasai →(stronger command for men) 書け!=kake!
and so on.
Please feel free to ask questions.
Matane!
ありがとうございます先生！
心から感謝しています＾＾
自己紹介します
私はサウジアラビア人です２４歳です、英語と日本語とアラビア語が話せます。よろしくおねがいします
”針のような私の正確な推理によれば”って＾＾探偵のドラマから習いました＾＾
毎日アニメとドラマと喜劇番組から便利な表現を習っています
Maggie先生のレッスン最高！！！！！
すみません！先生！私は本当に話しすぎ＞、＜実は先生と話すことが面白いので自分が抑えられない！笑！！
先生のために出来ることはほんの少しだけど先生の優しさを忘れません
時間とりすぎちゃってすみません。
失礼します＋返事ありがとうございます、大変嬉しく思います
@この時代の侍さん
自己紹介有り難うございます。いつもレッスンを作る時にどんな方々が読んでくれるのかなって考えるんですが、サウジアラビアからもこのサイトに来てくれているんですね。嬉しいです。ドラマやアニメ、お笑い番組など好きなものから勉強するって一番ですよね。
なるほど！探偵なら”針のような正確な推理力”もあるでしょうね（笑）これからも日本語楽しみながら続けて下さい。そしてこれからもちょくちょくこのサイトに来て下さいね。いつでもコメント大歓迎（だいかんげい）です！
Maggie先生へ
言葉にならない程嬉しい時に
いつも先生の学生に嬉しくしてくれてありがとう。
＾＾
質問があります
この文は正しいですか？
”タメ口で話した、すみません！私は先生を尊敬しています！許してください”
五年間自分で日本語を勉強していますでも私の日本語がまだまだです。
やっぱり猿も木から落ちる！笑！
先生の努力とレッスンありがとう！先生のレッスンはいつも楽しいです
針のような私の正確な推理によれば！先生はいい人と思います
失礼します
@この時代の侍さんへ
５年間独学（どくがく）で日本語をそこまでよく出来る様になりましたね。感心（かんしん）しました。
それでは添削（てんさく）しますね。ほとんど完璧（かんぺき）です！
”タメ口で話した、すみません！私は先生を尊敬しています！許してください”
→タメ口で話してすみません。
今でも十分、上手なのですが、もっと上手くなってもらいたいから、ついでに他の文章もチェックしますね。
言葉にならない程嬉しい時に
→言葉にならない程嬉しいです。
いつも先生の学生に嬉しくしてくれてありがとう。
→いつも先生の生徒に優しくしてくれてありがとう。
私の日本語がまだまだです。
→私の日本語はまだまだです。
”針のような私の正確な推理”
→「針のように」でもあまり使わない表現ですよね。意味はわかりますが…どこで覚えましたか？
いい人？うふふ…ちょっと照れちゃいますね。 !nemui! それはここに来てくれる人達がみんないい人だからかな？
タメ口で全然構いませんよ。でも本当に綺麗な（きれいな）日本語が書けるからそのままがんばって下さいね。
せんせい！
I have a question about the word 友達!
友はfriendです、達は more than one personです. だから、友達はfriends？なんが、彼は私の友達ですで言うが？
それから、わたし達や生徒達や、たちで読みます。友達がともたちじゃない、ともだちで読みますなんですが？？
Just in case you don’t understand me… 友達 should mean friends, right? why I read something like he’s friends in Japanese(彼は私の友達です)? Isn’t that wrong? Why is 友達 tomodachi when all the other words are written as tachi with same kanji?
To answer your previous question, I don’t have a favourite snack, all snacks are good:] I am sure Maggie will agree!
@Tiffany
You are right! We use 達=tachi for plural. 君達、私達、若者達…etc.
友達 originally meant “friends”, a plural form, long time ago and but it has lost the meaning as plural friends and we use it for both singular or plural friends in modern Japanese.
We occasionally hear 友達たち=tomodachi tachi as a plural form but it is not that common yet.
So if we hear,
彼らは私の友達です。 (They are my friends. )
We know there are more than one friend because of the subject, 彼ら=they.
But if we hear,
明日友達が来ます。
we have no idea how many friends this person would bring.
So you’d better say,
明日、”２、３人”友達が来ます。→a couple of friends
or
明日、”たくさん”友達が来ます。→many friends
Great question, Tiffany. I have never thought about this but it is confusing, huh?
Please wait for the previous question. There are lots of guest teachers but I do remember. :D
WOW. This is a great long lesson. So all I need to do is walk dogs and I can get a job in Japan.
@JLPT
Only if you work for me!
Dear Yukari san, my favorite sansei online:
Tiffany desu! I won’t be asking questions in Japanese, coz the amount of mistakes I make is embarrassing!:]
My question today is, you wrote おやつ here, and I saw it somewhere in Kanji: 御八つ. Is there a reason why they are written differently? Does that change the context of the sentence?? Can you also write this word in Katakana? And if you do, does it change the meaning?
Lastly, thank you for being so patient with me, answering every of my question in depth, and correcting all my mistake Japanese:]
@Tiffany
Good question! We used to write oyatsu as 御(お)八つ. Because we had snack at 八つ時=yatsudoki= at 14:00 in old days. (The common snack time in modern day is around 15:00.)
The meaning is the same but we rarely use kanji now. We also write in katakana, オヤツ=oyatsu and it means the same thing.
Writing words in Katakana makes them look more colloquial.
What kind of おやつ do you like?
I still make tons of English mistakes as you can see. :D I believe we can learn a lot from our mistakes.
I only correct mistakes here for LOVE boucingheart! and I think you have been doing great! !Japanese smile!
Thanks Maggie and aloha from Hawaii!
@japandish
Love Hawaii!!
Mahalo!
Great lesson! The only point card I have from Japan is for Tower Records. Maybe one day I’ll reach the reward!
@japandish
Thank you!! You should check its 有効期限=yukou kigen=expiration date!
BTW You have great pictures on your site!
sumimasen..
hanpanai/hanpanee wa, nanno kotoba kara naritate imasuka?? soshite donna toki shiyou suru ka??
arigatou….
@krisna
It is originally from 中途半端ではない=chuuto hanpa de wa nai／半端ではない=hanpa dewa nai
“Hanpanai” no lesson de kuwashiku setsumei shitearu node mazu check shitene. Sokoni nannno koto ba kara kitta kotoba ka setsumei shitearimasu. (Click here→ハンパないレッスン）
Kono lesson wo mita ato ni mada shitsumon ga attara itsudemo kiite kudasaine.
Arigatou :maggie-small:
Thank you so very much Maggie sensei^^
I’m speechless…
Yes..I will keep studying these.
I also have many more questions, but I’ll ask you again next time.
Much love and respect^^
@Top-san
You are very welcome! どういたしまして！ Anytime!
Maggie sensei^^
Thank you so so much for this. I appreciate it^^
@Top
My pleasure! I just added the sound files now.
As for your last question, いいじゃん、now I think of it, there is one more usage that I forgot to write.
We say 〜(れ)ばいいじゃん=~(re)ba iijan when we suggest something.
Ex. 行けばいいじゃん=ikeba iijan=Why don’t you go? I thin you should go!
Ex. 日本語が出来ないならもっと勉強すればいいじゃん=Nihongo ga dekinai nara benkyou sureba iijan=If you are not good at Japanese, why don’t you study more?/I think you should study more.
Either way, they are very casual.
Thank you so much, Maggie sensei^^ It really helps a lot. What if they don’t ask you first and you want to sign up? Could I say, ” すみません、メンバッズカッドをサインしたいんですが…。
If you have time, please make a couple of sound files too. Only if you have time though…お願いします。
Oh one more question. What’s the meaning of いいじゃん！at the end of a sentence? What’s the purpose of using this?
Sorry to bother you with many questions.ごめんなさい。
Thank you so so much again, Maggie sensei..
@Top,
Oh, I sorry! I should have included that information,
If you want to have a member’s card or “point card” you say,
「すみません。メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）を作りたいんですが。」
=Sumimasen. Menbaazu kaado (or pointo caado) wo tsukuritain desuga.”
Excuse me. I would like to make a member’s card (or point card.)
or
「すみません。メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）を作るにはどうしたらいいですか？」
=Sumimasen. Manbaazu kaado (or pointo caado) wo tsukuru niwa doushitara iidesuka?
=Excuse me. How can I get a member’s card (or point card.)
or
「メンバーズカード(or ポイントカード）をまだ持っていないのですが、すぐ、作れますか？」
=Menbaazu kaado (or pointo kaado) wo mada motte inaino desu ga sugu tsukurenasuka?
=I still don’t have a member’s card (or point card). Is it possible for you to make one for me now?
* じゃん(jan) is a very casual ending. ~ではないですか。~ではありませんか。
そうではないですか。Oh that’s right. →そうじゃん。
おいしいですね。It’s delicious, isn’t it?→おいしいじゃん。
いいですね。It’s good, isn’t it? →いいじゃん。
Ex. この車買ったの。(=Kono kuruma katta no) I bought this car.
へえ、いいじゃん。(=Hee iijan!) Oh it looks nice, isn’t it?
So instead of saying いいではないですか！young people (or even older people) say いいじゃん. It sounds light and still emphasizes the quote. in their way.
We hear this ending, じゃん all the time on the street.
*Sure I will make sound files soon. Please wait!
Wow, I wish this lesson existed when I first arrived in Japan! So much useful information.
But what should I do to cancel a point card? ^_^;
@starsandsea
Hello!! Thank you for your comment. How to cancel a point card? Usually we don’t cancel it because unlike regular credit card they don’t charge anything and it expires in a year. I just throw them away if I don’t need them anymore. But if you want, say
すみません。これキャンセルしたいんですが..
=Sumimasen kore kyanseru shitain desuga…
=Excuse me but I would like to cancel this.
このカードキャンセルして頂けますか？
=Kono kaado kyanseru shite itadakemasu ka?
=Could you cancel this card, please?
And show the card to the clerk.
Does it help?
Thank you Maggie-sensei:
this is going to be very useful for me in the future.
@Laura,
Are you going to make lots of store cards when you are here?
Arigatou gozaimasu for all the information.
@Laura-san
Hello!! Konnichiwa! Thank you for visiting again! Mata kite ne!
@Harin-san,
必ず”内定”出します！！美味しければ、即、”本採用”です！！(*^▽^*)
履歴書を提出しないで、dog treatsを送ってもいいでしょうか？笑
必ず採用されると思います！
Your 履歴書 advice is fantastic! I filled out a 履歴書 form once a couple of years ago but didn’t understand how to do it properly and it must have looked very strange. I later learnt the correct way of doing it at night school. I’m sure your examples and explanation are going to be really really helpful to people applying for jobs with Japanese companies.
The interview tips are really interesting too! Thank you. :)
@Amanda
今日は！いつもありがとう♥ I will be very happy if this lesson is useful for people who are actually looking for a job in Japan and I hope it won’t scare them away.
OMG. So much useful information. Got my 2 kids in school and I never know what’s going on. This will help me so much to translate their monthly schedules. 3 years in the dark. Cannot wait until August comes to put these words int use.
ありがとう。
Laura T
@Hello, Laura!
Thank you for visiting! I am glad to hear you can use this lesson! Please do not to hesitate to ask me any questions.
また来てね！
maggie san, keigo no resson wa subarashii desu. nihongo no benkyo shiteru hitotachi no tameni yakuni tachimasu. kono sito o skutte kurete arigatou gozaimashta.
@kanthimathiさん
うれしいコメントをありがとう！！そして日本語を勉強してくれてありがとう！
また来てね。
(Note: nihongo no benkyou shieru →nihon go wo benkyou shiteiru)
I am omnivore:]
そねは、消極的じゃない、積極的じゃない
I am pretty sure I make a mistake saying this…
雑食(=zasshoku)!!! wwww それが一番！=Sorega ichiban dane!=That’s the best!
(Note : そねは、→??? “それは”のことかなあ？
消極的じゃない、積極的じゃない→消極的じゃないし積極的じゃない。or 消極的ではないし積極的でもない。）
These kind of corrections are useful! :)
マギーのことすごくすきだよ！Can I say that to a dog…?
わたしもいぬをかう。かれはほんとうにかわいいです！But I secretly wish he’s a french bulldog like maggie…
わたしはよいの所有者じゃない。。
@Tiffany
Thank you for your comment!
マギーのことすごくすきだよ！Can I say that to a dog…?→Sure you can! It is perfect and I am very happy to hear that!
(Note ; わたしもいぬをかう。→わたしもいぬをかっています。(私も犬を飼っています。）
わたしはよいの所有者じゃない。。→わたしはよい飼い主（かいぬし）じゃない。)
I would looove to see your doggie! Send me a picture if you can! (action@k3.dion.ne.jp) Sometimes I make a guest teacher lesson using my other friends!
I love this blog so much! Sincerely, thank you Maggie! いろいろ有り難うございます。}:I
@Reubajamさん
こちらこそ、来てくれて有り難う！！！これからもよろしくね！
Maggie先生 ちわっ！
又久しぶりっす！
私Slangを使うとやっぱりなんかきまりが悪いです…
（I feel kinda awkward ?)
とにかく、いいレッスンでした。 有り難う ＝）
@LadySapphire-san
ほんと、久しぶり！！元気でしたか？
うまく若者言葉使ってるし〜！そうですね。使う日本語は自分のスタイルに合わせて選んでみて下さいね。
This is truly awesome^^
@Top-san
Thank you! You are awesome,too!
Oh, and I almost forget … Arigatou Maggie Sensei! n.n
aLexia-san
Thank you for your comment. You can get the song through iTune. You can always use Youtube!
This song made me cry (; _ ;)
Nee, Maggie sensei could you tell me where can I download it?
Hello!
I got here because I was searching the difference between “saseru” and “kureru”. I’m afraid I don’t understand the usage of both that well so could you explain the difference please? When would I use each of them?
Thank you!
@Jan
Sorry! I was out of town and just saw your question. “saseru” is to make someone do something. 勉強させる=benkou saseru =to make someone study
くれる=kureru=is to do something for someone. これやってくれる？=Can you do it for me? I made あげる+くれる lesson so please go to that lesson and if you have a question, let me know, OK?
初めて聞いたのは、youtubeのビデオで、すぐgoogleで調べて、先生のブロッグに届いた。
面白い言葉でこれから、必ず使用と思う。先生はハンパねぇ！
@ルトフィ
旅行に行ってたので返事が遅れてごめんね。私、ハンパない？
(面白い言葉でこれから必ず使用と思う。→面白い言葉なのでこれから必ず使うと思う。）
また来てね！
Arigatou Maggie-sensei :)
I thought that might be the case. I was confused by the phrase – ‘to be sucked’, which suggests something else entirely. It’s probably better to say ‘to be in a situation that sucked’
@Leee
Yes, in this case ‘to be in a situation that sucked’ would work!
Nice site you have here, very informative and useful for Japanese newbies like myself! Btw, this statement has a slight mistake:
3)私は、マギーといいます。(=Watashi wa Maggie to iu.)
Thanks for spotting that mistake! I fixed it!
@blue
Thank you for visiting this site and also thank you for spotting the mistake.
@gimmeabreakman
Thank you for fixing it!
本当に ありがとうございます。お疲れさま マッギイー先生。
yammy様
こちらこそ、有り難うございます。どうか、またいらして下さいね。（しっかり敬語でした〜！）
@Leee
Hi,Leee! アウト＝ダメ＝ヤバイ
In this case, the situation that they might be eaten by sharks sucks. Also physically they will be in trouble, so it is アウト!
We usually use it when there is no way to escape from the trouble or situation.
Also アウト can be used as “out of question”
I’m wondering about:
(7)アウト(=auto) to be in trouble, to be sucked
When you say ‘to be sucked’ is that like as in “this situation sucks” or the physical action?
And thanks for this lesson. It’s a treasure trove :)
正確すぎ吹いたｗ
私ってこーゆーサイト、好きじゃないですか～みたな～ｗｗ
とりま、リア充はもうblog wordじゃなくて実生活でも多くの人が使ってるみたいな～つーかリア充爆発しろ！
@Nobody
ってか、若者言葉リアルにうまいんだけど…
はじめまして、鳥は日本語をべんきょうするフランス人です。
ここ、面白そう！
タメ口はまだ知っていませんがマギー先生のじゅぎょうに入ってもいいですか。
@鳥
今日は！Mais oui!! 大歓迎ですよ！よかったらTwitterでも質問とかあったらまた聞いてね。
Hey Yukari, sorry about the confusion.
ごめんね。
I love your guys’ work!
@Tackner
Don’t worry. Many people get confused as well and I still love you!
How about terms of endearment? Are there any and if so, what kind?
Great Lesson btw, thank you very much!
@LovelyDray
Good question but I am afraid to say we don’t have many terms of endearment. Instead, for example you call a girl with “chan”, ex. マギーちゃん when you get closer to the girl or when you text, you use ♥ marks more. Some women call their husband with あなた（=anata) with certain intonation.
I guess everything is so subtle in Japan.
Great lesson!
Thanks so much for all your hard work, it’s really appreciated.
@markshmily
Hello again!!
Thank YOU for visiting this site! And I appreciate it,too!!
Hey Victor, is the voice for maggie your wife?
Hi Teckner,
Sorry! I am NOT Victor’s wife. I(Yukari) make this blog with Maggie. Victor is promoting this site!
I think this sentence:
あなたが信用できない
should be understood better as: “You can not (do) trust”. Someone who can not be confident or faithful or handle trust is someone who cannot be trusted. But in English this is best rendered “I cannot trust you”. So, “anata/you” is the subject in Japanese, but “I” in English.
joels341
We often omit subjects in Japanese so it might be confusing.
あなたが信用できない＝(私は）あなたが信用できない (You can also say あなたを信用できない。)
So it means I can’t trust you.
This が comes before the object.
(あなたが好きです。is the same thing. I like/love you.)
If you want to say
Can’t you trust me?
私が(or を)信用できないの？
You can’t trust me.
私が(or を)信用できない
Is it clear?
Man 1 hour of in depth learning. I read about a joke about a school kid who tells a girl:
あなたが好き。。。でわない。 （Or something to that effect)To mess with her. Is there a way to say love-negatively like that?
Bbvoncrumbさん
Hum..let me think…
We say あなたのこと嫌いじゃない=Anata no koto kiraijanai=I don’t dislike you. Which means “I like you.”
How’s that?
Maggieが大好きです！
Thanks Victor! :)
Chloe
Sorry I am not Victor..but
ありがとう！私も大好きだよ！
こんにちは。
初めまして。インドネシアの方です。このレッスン見ると、とっても分かりやすい。素敵！！！！
刺身loverさん
わ〜！インドネシアの方なんですね。
今日は！このサイトに来てくれてありがとう！！また来て下さいね。
If you have any questions, please leave them in any comment section and I will correct your Japanese.
(このブログのコメントは日本語でいれてくれたら出来るだけサービスで添削します。
インドネシアの”方”です→”方”は自称敬語(honorific expression for yourself) になるので”者”の方がいいですよ。）
実は私はTwitterのことについてあまり知りません。
FacebookのAccountがありますけど、それもあまり使いません。
それでも、このレッスンは私にとってまだ面白かったんです。
突然にJEJEMONを思い出した。
それはフィリピンで新しい生じたSubcultureです。
時間があれば、ぜひこのLinkを読んで下さい
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jejemon
LadySaphhire-san
Jejemon初めて聞きました。教えてくれて有り難う。ちゃんと読みましたよ。日本ではMixiとかありますが、今は手軽だからtwitterの方が人気あるみたい。私も毎日 Twitterでミニレッスンしてるからまたよかったらチェックしてね。http://twitpic.com/photos/MaggieSensei
(Note : 突然に→突然）
またフィリピンのこと教えてね。
Hi Maggie先生
私の場合は、一ヶ月に、二、三回ここに来ます。
ごめんなさい ｍ（T-T)m
毎日来ることができません…
最近仕事では忙しいんですから
まるで、レッスンの書かれてある例文章と同じに、「後から後から新しい事件が生じます」
でもできるだけ、ちゃんとMaggie先生のレッスンを読んでいます。
今のレッスン、有り難う ＝）
LadySapphireさん
お久しぶりです！！元気でしたか？忙しい中、またブログに来てくれて有り難う！
(Note : 忙しいんですから→忙しくて。
今のレッスン→このレッスン のことかな？）
お仕事がんばってね！
Thank you this helped a lot!
I always have problems with the causative so now I hope to understand it better thanks to you! ^^
Doci-san,
Thank you for your comment! I am glad to hear it helped! Try to make sentences! I can help you anytime! がんばってね！
うん、前、ビデオを観て、すごく驚いてしまった！ありがとう！！
そうそう、coworkerのgimmeaflakemanって、同じ会社で働いているということ？
chokochoko
もうVideo見たんですね〜！そうそう、同僚という意味です！
どういたしまして〜！マギー先生もありがとうございま〜す！いつもすごく便利で、豊富なレッスンを教えてくれてア•リ•ガ•ト•ウ〜！
chokochoko!!! こちらこそ、いつもありがとう！！私もchokochokoのサイト大好きだから、coworkerのgimmeaflakemanを通してビデオでchokochokoのサイトお勧めしてもらったよ。http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OC4uuFEaoTI (7:32)
Topさん
Thank you for visiting this site!
また来てね。
Wow..I just discovered this website…
Really amazing^^
I know of 嘘つき + [something] like 嘘つきあなた but can 嘘つき be used alone? Say, like:
「マギーがミスユニバースで優勝したよ！」
「うそつき！」
Also, since for this situation I quite often heard うそつけ instead, I’d like to know if it is true that it’s a bit more colloquial than うそつき ? I heard it several times said by a MC in Harajuku, so I guess it may not be a form to avoid, but I’d prefer to be sure it’s not kind of vulgar. (some colloquial and slang terms can be used quite carelessly but there are words that should really be avoided, this is why I ask)
ありがとうございます！Maggie先生は劇可愛っ！
めっちゃマットさん
Yes! 嘘つき！can be used alone.
Your example sentences are perfect. (Except the fact I did win the contest, ehen!) But if you say 嘘つき！It means “You are a liar”.
嘘！(嘘っ！ウソッ！) is like a reaction word which is used when you are very surprised.
嘘つけ！means “You are lying!” but is sounds stronger like “No shit!”
嘘つけ！or 嘘だろ！are not that colloquial expressions but mainly used by men. As long as you know it is a bit rough but comfortable to use it with your close friends, it is OK to use.
Maggie先生は劇可愛っ！→ウソ！！
マギー先生, ありがとう!
Recently I’ve learned this at school, but I didn’t get it at all; now I understand this ていく – てくるbetter.
Kronekodowさん
こちらこそ、来てくれてありがとう！！
何か質問あったらいつでも聞いてね。ていく – てくるの文章作ったら直します！
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask me. I can correct your sentence using ていく – てくる!
Ho, I’ve seen the 「一番好きな言葉は何ですか？」 video on Youtube a while ago, but I didn’t know you at the time! Yeah! There’s Maggie先生 in it！かわいっ！散歩に行きたい！（それは私にテレビ朝日の「ちい散歩」っていう番組を思い出させるよ！この番組は面白いなんですよねぇ！）
One of my favorite words is cited in it and is 木洩れ日… Such a beautiful picture comes in my mind whenever I think of it… ha, that’s nice ＾＾
〜 By the way, since I use a lot more my 携帯 than my パソコン, that’s why I used to talk to you on Twitter instead of here. It’s true there’s a limit about how many characters you can use… and you may prefer your blog to speak with visitors, I understand. But if I have a question about a topic in particular, it’s a bit hard for me to search the entire blog with my 携帯 to see if there’s an entry about my problem, ね？
I mean, if I have trouble saying something, where would it be best to write ? Is there a page on your site where we can ask a question without the need for the comment to be relevant to the article? I’m not sure if what I’ve just said is clear (^_^’)
Maybe a mini-forum could help? Or at least a kind of “question wall”、それはどうですか？ Sorry to ask this here, but since I was commenting, I felt like asking at the same time.
とにかく、Maggie先生最高！
めっちゃマットさん
Thank you for your comment!
Yes! I love the word,木漏れ日 as well. It is a beautiful word!
Great idea to have a Forum or Q&A page!! We will work on it eventually.
But until then, you can ask me questions anytime either on Twitter, Twitter mail, this blog (if you have a random question, just post a question in ANY column. I will read it anyway. And many people do so.) I don’t have any preference either this blog or Twitter.I love to help you all anyway.
If you prefer to use your mobile, please just use Twitter at the moment.
(Note : 面白いなんですよねぇ！→面白いですよねぇ！）
お散歩つれていって！ :maggie-small:
Is there a Japanese superstition that says you cannot celebrate a birthday or Mother’s Day earlier than the day it falls on or it is bad luck?
Hello, russ-san!
No there isn’t. Very interesting! Where are you from?
そうっすね！Great lesson! I was familiar with 微妙 but this made it clearer for me! Thank you very much 先生！
めっちゃマット♪
Happy to hear that!!
Salut!
Wow, I’m amazed to see how you can clearly put this m(_ _)m
I mean, ガチで、I don’t know how I can have lived without your site!
I understand it is a deep topic and it might need an entire lesson about it, but you already helped me a lot right here!
I don’t know how to say thank you as these two words seem not enough! ぜひ一所懸命勉強やりますよ！
めっちゃマットさん
ほんと？よかった〜！！じゃあ”ガチで”勉強してね。
Thank you very much! This was as always a clear and Nice explanation!
May I ask one more thing on this subject?
Since you say they’re used the same way, I’d like to know if there’s a difference between する and やる, ( like usage, meaning, even the slightest difference would help me grasp the true nature of these two verbs. I’ve always had a problem with words meaning the same thing, as I always like to know why there’s two, when there could be one.)
Talking about your site, it is really neat, and the concept of image lesson is a funny idea! Keep it up!
Your help is really appreciated! d(^_^o)
めっちゃマット♪
Good question but this theme is very deep. I will just explain a part of it here today OK?
Some says やる is a colloquial version of する
Ex.勉強をする
Ex.勉強をやる sounds a bit more casual than する
but I would say in many cases, people use it without distinguish them.
However if you compare the following examples,
何もする気がしない。
何もやる気がしない。
I don’t feel like doing anything
さあ勉強しようか。
さあ勉強やろうか。
Shall we study now?
私がします。
私がやります。
I will do it!
明日は、何をしますか？
明日は、何をやりますか？
What are you going to do tomorrow?
あなたがするべきこと。
あなたがやるべきこと。
The things you should do.
The translation is the same but やる shows stronger will.
(a) 何をしようか？
(b) 何をやろうか？
They both mean “What are we going to do?” But (b) implies to do something more special involving your action.
And the we tend to use やる for something special and する for normal stuff.
Also there are cases that you can’t use one of them.
For example something physiological that you can’t control,
to sneeze
○ くしゃみをする
x くしゃみをやる
to yawn
○ あくびをする
x あくびをやる
When you achieve something, we use やる
I made it! / I did it!
○ やった！
x した！
In some compound verb, noun+verb, you can’t use やる
○昼寝をする
X昼寝をやる
to take a nap
○失敗をする
X失敗をやる
to make a mistake
But there are more…I should make a lesson someday, huh?
今日はこの辺で！！
I’m happy to hear you have been using this site!
You answered it perfectly!
I am now aware that it won’t sound weird of I use the あげる form! That’s a good thing!
Concerning the last paragraph, is it because it is やる used on its own, as a verb, not as a “form coming after a 〜て verb”?
Well, even on its own, やる is still a bit rough, though. But then again, there is this use I hear quite often, ex:
「さあ、やってみよう！」
and many times it is said by young girls. Then I guess this use is ok because of their youth, and accepted between friends as we grow up…
By the way, I’ll take some time to read your entire site, from begginer lessons (we can never learn too much, even the basics), up to the higher levels (I really appreciated some if the colloquial and very polite posts).
As a matter of fact I have created an IRC channel to exchange interesting links, talk about Japanese, and help each other when needed, but it is still a bit young, and I come accross my limits quite often. So be sure the address of your site will be given each time!
Thank you for your time, this kind of site is what makes Internet a great place to discover!
めっちゃマットさん
Actually やる has different meanings.
花に水をやる to water flowers
犬にえさをやる to feed a dog
These やる means “to give” and 「さあ、やってみよう！」’s やる means “to do”.
Ex. 1) 何をしているの？=何をやっているの？ What are you doing?
Ex. 2) 宿題をしないといけない＝宿題をやらないといけない。 I have to do my homework.
Ex. 3) これしてくれる？=これやってくれる？=Can you do it for me?
They are all used commonly both by boys and girls.
So only やる that you have to be careful when you use is the one which has a meaning of “to give something to someone” and “to do something for someone”
Those are only for inferiors, people who are younger than you, or someone who is very close to you, like your kids or younger brothers or sisters.
This site is relatively new. I am still doing lots of experiments. But I always try to include information for any levels both colloquial and formal.
I really appreciate your feedback!
Hello マギー先生！
I have a question about “〜て やる”. First, is it really less formal than “〜て あげる” ?
I mean, it has always seemed to me that やる was more of a male speech usage and あげる a female one. If it is true, is a boy saying 〜てあげる really sounding “female” or is it just like sentences ending with 〜くださいね。(where it tends to be more used by female, but can be used by male as well) ?
In the end, I’m always puzzled about this case. I never know if using やる won’t make me sound too familiar, while using あげる, too close to a female speech and as a result, weird…
If you could give me a clue, it would be really appreciated!
Thank you very much for your time!
本当にありがとうございます！マギー先生のおかげで、日本語がもっと早くできるよ！
あっ！めっちゃマットの”初”質問だ！！
When I made this lesson, I thought I would make a different lesson about やる(=yaru) because this lesson got too long as usual and it completely slipped my mind. Sorry! !gomenchai!
First of all, あげる is a polite form of やる. As you said women should avoid using やる because it sounds very blunt.
On the other hand あげる is just a politer form of やる and it doesn’t sound effeminate at all. So you (boys) can use it anytime.
(But of course, if you want to show yourself tough and macho, you can use やる。）
Let’s compare these together OK?
“I will give it to you”
1)これあげるよ。
2) これやるよ。
They both means the same thing but 1) sounds much nicer.
Men can use 1) & 2) but women shouldn’t use 2)
“I will make it for you!”
3)作ってあげる。
4)作ってやる。
Again, 3) sounds nicer and men can both 3)&4) but women should avoid using 4)
But there is other やる which is not rough.
If you deal with animals or plants, you can use やる anytime and both men and women can use.
花に水をやる to water flowers
犬にえさをやる to feed a dog
Did I answer your question?
敬語って、あたしにとって本当に複雑で紛らわしい（Confusing?)ですね。
そして、私の場合には普通の日本語さえもうよく使えません、
敬語のほうはもっと使えません、だから覚えにくいです…
（I can’t even use the usual Nihongo often、What more with Keigo…)
でもまだ習いたいです。
このサイトがあって、本当によかったです。
先生はすごい。 ＝）
LadySapphireさん
もう自然に丁寧な日本語使っていますよ！自信持って続けて下さいね。 !Vsain!
もう分かりました、説明してくれて有り難う！ ＾＿＾
“はず”は名詞だと思わなかったんでした、はは
それはもう知っていることはずのに…
なんか、自分にちょっとがっかりです…
ま、いいんですけど、もう忘れられませんから
先生に説明してくれて、又有り難う
LadySapphireさん
名詞というか名詞的な用法ですよね。
それはもう知っていることはずのに→（これも惜しい！） 知っているはずなのに or 知っていることなのに。 or 両方使う場合は 知っていることのはずなのに
Maggieもこのサイトで日本語を教え始めてから日本語の奥深さにびっくりです！ :shock:
（Note: 先生に説明してくれて→先生、説明してくれて （先生に説明はexplain to the teacherという意味になります。）
１） 添削をノートしました
２） （何をやめないのかな？気になる）
それは料理です。へへへ
３） ちょっと質問があります。
「ものだ」の前にどうして「の」が入っていますか？
先生のレッスンの例文章には「の」が入っていませんから…
It made me think （どう言いますか？）
その「の」はEmphasisにしていますか？
又添削してくれてあろがとう ＾＿＾
LadySapphireさん
実は、”〜はずだ” と”〜ものだ”は同じ様な意味になるので１つだけでも意味は十分伝わります。
Ex. わかるはずだ。(He should tell/We expect him to tell) or Ex. わかるものだ。(He supposes to tell) or わからなければいけないものだ。(He should tell)
でもLasySapphireさんが書いてくれた様に”はず＋ものだ”を一緒に使うことももちろん、可能です。
その場合、”はずもの”だとは言わずに”はずのものだ”と”はず”と”もの”の間に”の”を入れます。これは”もの”を名詞として考え
“はず”が名詞を形容するから、”の”がいります。
はず+名詞
Ex. 明日、来るはずの荷物
Ex. わかるはずのこと
はず＋動詞
Ex.調べればわかるはずのものだ。
Ex.ここにあるはずのものだ。
”ものだ”の前が形容詞、動詞がくれば”の”はいりません。
Ex. 食べれるものだ
Ex.出来るものだ
Ex. 可愛いものだ
Ex. きれいなものだ
はい、皆正解でした！
Maggie先生はこのレッスンがよく教えられましたから。
では、文章を自分で作ってみます。 間違いがあったら、先生の添削にお任せお願いします。
１）今日はキレイなドレスも着ていてなんて、デートなんかある？
２）やめるもんか、こんなちっちゃいきずで止められるもんか？？
３）彼氏は彼女の気持ちをわかれるはずものだ。
LadySapphireさん
全問正解！？すご〜い！！パチパチ””ﾊ(^▽^*) ﾊ
はい、じゃあ添削します！
１）今日はキレイなドレスも着ていてなんて、デートなんかある？
→そんなきれいなドレスを着て（い）るなんて今日デートかなんかある？：キレイなの前に”そんな” とか入れると自然になりますよ。”着ていて”は”着ている”
「なんて」の前に動詞を入れる時は一般的には基本形でいいです。（する＋なんて／食べる＋なんて。命令形や引用文は別。Ex. 宿題をやれなんてひどい！）
２）○ 合ってます！！（何をやめないのかな？気になる）
３）彼氏は彼女の気持ちをわかれるはずものだ。→「彼氏は彼女の気持ちがわかるはずのものだ。」
(Note : Maggie先生はこのレッスンがよく教えられましたから。→Maggie先生を主語にする場合は、Maggie先生”が”このレッスン”を”よく”教えてくれ”ましたから。先生の添削にお任せお願いします。→先生に添削をお任せします。）
「のろけ」の意味はもう本当に理解なってきました。
ありがとう ＾＿＾
Twitter lessonを見たところです。
Maggie先生もう彼氏がいるのは知らなかったんですよ
Sweetな彼氏みたいですね
LadySapphireさん
このTwitter LessonはLadySapphireさんのために作りました。そうなの、ラブラブなの！♥
(Note : 理解なってきました→理解してきました。）
あ、そうですか、先生の説明のおかげで、「のろけ」の意味はもうわかったと思います。つまり、親しい人と自分のことのSweet Talkですね？
で、そういうなら、のろけって、恋人のことだけに使えますか？
それとも、親友とか家族のことに使ってもいいんですか？
もっと理解したいから、いろいろ質問があって、すみません。
いつも先生のご説明を感謝しています。
LasySapphireさん
質問、いつでもいいですよ〜！のろけは恋人や夫婦などロマンティックな関係のみで使います。家族や親友には使いません。
自分がどれだけ恋人のことを愛しているか、恋人がどれだけ自分のことを愛しているか、そして二人がどれだけ愛し合っているかなどを第３者に話す時に使います。
Twitter Lessonで取り上げてみました。見てね！
http://twitpic.com/1kfx8k
このレッスン、美味しかった。。。
jeremyさん
“美味しい”レッスンでお腹一杯になったかな？
Hi Maggie先生
訳してくれてありがとう
今は漫画を読んでいるところですが、
このせりふを見た”おノロケはいいから”
ノロケってなんですか？
LadySapphireさん
いつも恋人がどれだけ自分に優しいか、どれだけ自分達が仲がいいか、そいういう話をすることを”のろける”といいます。名詞は(お）のろけ／（お）ノロケです。
Ex. 彼また私のこといつも可愛いねとかきれいだねって言ってくれるの。
Ex. このアクセサリーも彼が買ってくれたの。 本当に彼って優しくて素敵！！
Ex. 彼は私のことが一番大切なんだって！
Ex.私達って本当にいつも仲がいいの！！
これ、み〜んなのろけです。
もし周りにこういう話をしてのろける人がいたら
”おノロケはいいから”って言いたくなるかも！面白い言葉だからいつか、レッスンもしくはTwitter lesson で紹介しますね！
はは ＝D
I was almost tricked （どうやっていいますか？）, でもこのBlogよりもっと最近のレッスンのLinkはもう見ましたから、これはきっと冗談だと思いました。
面白いレッスンのトピックでした ＾＿＾ 有り難う
LadySapphireさん
I was almost tricked
は、「もう少しでだまされるところでした。」と言います。
だまされなくて残念！
今日はMaggie先生
又いろいろを習いました ＾＿＾
あのう、ちょっと質問がありますが、下の例文章について：
11)「息子さん、本当に立派になられましたね。」
”～になられました”の部分を、”～になりました”に使ってもいいかな？。。
あ、まず、どうして”～になられました”になりますか
（私の質問はちゃんと書けなかったかも。。ーI may not have worded my question properly..ごめんなさい）
又いいレッスンを教えてくれてあろがとう
LadySapphireさん
今日は！！！
”～になられましたね”の部分を、”～になりましたね”にしても大丈夫です。＜なられる＞の方が丁寧です。
「立派になられる」の基本形=「立派になる」
“なる”の敬語は受け身形の作り方と一緒の”なられる” また”おなりになる”という言い方もあります。
ただ”ご立派におなりになる”は二重敬語です。でもよく耳にします。
敬語は二重敬語とか”さ”入れ言葉や”れ”足す言葉などだんだん変化してきていますね。このサイトでは日常的によく使う表現を敢えていろいろ取り入れて紹介していきますね！
Hi Maggie先生
先生はこのレッスンを詳しく作られて本当に素晴らしいでした。
又たくさん習いました。曖昧表現は全てまだそんなに把握できなかったが、もう一度読んで見るとさらに分かれます。
このようなレッスンは教室に詳しく説明しないと思います、だからこれはすごくいいレッスンです。
有り難うございました。 ＾＿＾
LadySapphireさん
こちらこそいつもコメントありがとう！！LadySapphireさんは、”把握”とか難しい単語をよく知っていますね！
(Note : 先生はこのレッスンを詳しく作られて本当に素晴らしいでした。→先生は、こんな詳しいレッスンを作られて本当に素晴らしいです。（→ホント？”ちょっと”うれしいかも…！！）
できなかったが→できなかったけれど（or できませんでしたが） ＊”できなかったが”はちょっと堅いです。written formなら大丈夫！）
さらに分かれます。→わかりました。
教室に→教室では）
今日はMaggie先生
そうですね、私の間違いが沢山ありました。。いろいろ添削くれて有り難う。
一杯文章を書いて、そして周りに誰か直してくれる人がいるといいですね。
～それはいいんですけど、問題は周りに誰か直せる人はいません。。
家には日本語ができるのは私しかいませんから。。昨年日本語センターで中級日本語に卒業したから、自分で勉強続けていましたけど、日本語を指導の先生はいなかったら、やっぱり難しいです。
だからMaggie先生のWebsiteを見つけた時、本当に嬉しいです。
本当に大変助かりました （今度は正しく書けましたかな）
どうやって分かれますか？→?? 「どう違いますか？」 かな？
～How do you differentiateと言いたいですが。。
よかったらもう一回、”~してくれる、あげる”のレッスン勉強してみてね
～はい、そうします
LadySapphireさん
周りに日本語を話す人がいないのにLasySapphireさんの日本語は本当に上手ですね。このブログは日本語が上手になる為の応援サイトなので時間がある限り出来るだけ添削しますのでまたいつでもコメント下さいね。
今日の文章もうまく書けてますよ〜！その調子！
(Note : 書けましたかな→書けたかな？
日本語を指導の先生は→日本語を指導してくれる先生は
本当に嬉しいです→（past tense)嬉しかったです。）
は～い 頑張ります ＾＿＾
応援してくれてありがとう
今年の１級試験を取るのはまだ決めていないけど。。合格できるかどうかまだ自信が低いだから。
でも勉強を続けます。 合格したらもちろん先生に教えます。
そうです、先生のいう通り、コメント欄をよく使うつもりです。
最近はいろいろなアニメを見ています。鋼の錬金術士ってのアニメは知りますか？いいアニメです、ストリーは面白い。
LadySapphireさん
鋼の錬金術士？ 面白い？今度チェックしてみますね。１級合格の通知を今から楽しみにしていますよ！！
(Note : 自信が低いだから→低いから ／でも自信が低いとはあまり言わないかな…「まだ自信があまりないから」の方がいいです。
アニメは知りますか？→知っていますか？）
Hi Maggie先生
お返事くれてありがとう
そうですね。どこかで聞いた、日本には今春だけど、少し雪も降っていたことがある。今までですか？
ここのフィリピンでは今暑いです、いや、とても暑いです。 暑さのせいで怠ける気がします。。 なんかなにもしたくない気がして、すこし動きさえすればすぐ汗をかくようです。
最近の電気Bill（Electric bill?)高くなってきてまずいです。
エアコンをほとんどいつも使ってるから、その上、Meralcoは（ここのElectric distributor)電気使いの費を高くされた。なんかBad Timingでしょ
又先生の添削してくれてありがとう。
助詞についてまだある時ちょっとConfusedしています（Confusedはどういいますか？）
例えば私のそのコメントの間違い。
花粉症に心配されます。→花粉症が心配されます。
上の二つの文章は、私にとってなんか意味が同じみたい。
正しい助詞と間違い助詞はどうやって分かれますか？
そして動詞についても、日本語では複雑だとおもう。でも同時に面白いとおもいます。
なんの適当な助詞を使うのはどう分かれますか？
いい方法があったら是非教えてくれておねがいします。
LadySapphireさん
そうですか、フィリピン、暑そうですね。
助詞は本当にちょっとのことだけれども別のものを使うと意味が変わってくるものもあって複雑ですね。また今度機会があったら助詞のレッスンを作りますが、まずはLadySapphireさんの様に一杯文章を書いて、そして周りに誰か直してくれる人がいるといいですね。直されないと間違っていると気がつかずにずっと使ってしまうから癖（くせ）になってしまうかもしれません。ここで直したことはメモとかとって覚えてね。
助詞だけ勉強するよりも動詞や他の品詞と一緒に文章で覚えるといいですよ！ ex. 勉強をする あなたに会いたい 学校に行く..etc.
花粉症に心配されます。→「〜に心配される」を訳すとto be worried by “花粉症”という意味になってしまいます。「心配する」という動詞は目的語がいるので（目的語）を心配するで”to worry about something”という文章になります。
(Note : どこかで聞いた、日本には今春だけど、少し雪も降っていたことがある。→(word order) 日本は今、春だけど、少し雪も降っていたことがあるとどこかで聞きました。
今までですか？→You mean “until now?” ？ 今も（ずっと）そうですか？
ここのフィリピンは→ここフィリピンは
怠ける気がします→feel lazy? 「だらだらしてしまいます。」ではどうかな？
すこし動きさえすれば→少し動くだけで
電気Bill／電気使いの費→電気代 （または”光熱費”）
その上、Mは”電気代”を高くされた→”された”は受け身です。もし受け身にしたければMに電気代を値上げされました。
Bad Timing→タイミング悪いでしょ。
又先生の添削してくれてありがとう。→又先生、添削してくれてありがとう。（”の”はいらないですよ。）
どうやって分かれますか？→?? 「どう違いますか？」 かな？
なんの適当な助詞を使うのはどう分かれますか？→適切な助詞をどう使えばいいですか？
是非教えてくれておねがいします。→是非教えて下さい。）
一杯、直しちゃいましたがそれだけLadySapphireさんの日本語のレベルが高いってことですよ。
よかったらもう一回、”~してくれる、あげる”のレッスン勉強してみてね。
Hi Maggie先生
その鼻セレブっていいティッシュみたいですね。
私もティッシュが手放せないひとです。よく風邪をひくんだから。
今は日本で春でしょう？春の時に日本へ行きたいけど、私のように風邪をひきやすい人にとって、花粉症に心配されます。
Maggie先生はどう思いますか？花粉症に当てられる可能性は高いかな。。
（もし文章になにか間違いがあったら又先生に添削してくれてお願いします、どうも）
LadySapphireさん
今日は！日本はまだまだ花粉症の季節です！周りの人も皆、ぐすぐすしています。風邪と花粉症はちょっと違うから、心配しないで是非、桜の季節の春に日本に来て下さい。
今春は気候がおかしくてとっても寒い春になりましたが…フィリピンはいつも暑いのかな？
(Note : よく風邪をひくんだから。→よく風邪をくから…
花粉症に心配されます。→花粉症が心配されます。
花粉症に当てられる→花粉症にかかる
又先生に添削してくれてお願いしますどうも）→また、先生、添削して下さい。お願いします。）
今日もよく出来ました〜！！
Maggie 先生 今日は ＝）
いろいろ添削してくれてありがとう
”仕事を休まなければいけませんでした”－＞はい、そう言いたいです
そうですね、留守は家にいない場合に使うのは忘れてしまいました。。
覚えさせてくれてありがとう （Thanks for letting me remember)
日本語に上手になるために、本当にいつも使えらなければなりませんね。。私は最近日本語の練習時間はあまりないんです、なんか残念だとおもいます。。
でもMaggie先生のwebsiteを見つけました、それは良かった、big help for me.（日本語で？ 大助かる？）
今JLPT１級の合格を狙いますけど。。いまの日本語はなんか下手になってきた。。特に聴解のほう。。いいLearning materialとかListening practiceのWebsiteが知ったら私に教えてくれてお願いします m（－－）m
Maggie先生のレッスンと指導をいつも感謝しています
LadySapphire-san,
いいえ、こちらこそ！いつも来てくれてありがとう。リスニングは好きなJ-dramaとか映画を集中して見てみるのもいいかと思いますよ。
big help for me.->大変助かりました。ではどうでしょうか？
Note from today’s comment : 覚えさせてくれて=>”覚える” はto memorizeだからremind meは、”思い出させてくれて”
使えらなければ->使わなければ
できるだけコメント欄使って練習してね。１級合格したら是非教えてね。応援してますよ！p(^^)q がんばって〜！！
Ah! ありがとうございます！
I’m so sorry for not replying back sooner ^_^; I just realized that I spelt the name of the game wrong, so that might be why you aren’t able to find information on it (すみません）. It’s お姫さまデビュー (Princess Debut).
To sum it up, it’s about a girl who switches places with a princess who looks exactly like her. The girl then has to dance with all these other princes and socialize with them…so it’s partially a dating sim for girls, too.
I’ve come across a lot of the vocabulary you’ve mentioned already, and that is quite awesome! The only thing I keep tripping on is place names. I know for things such as lake 「湖」 that there’s two ways to pronounce the kanji. When it’s by itself, and when it follows the name of the place. It’s hard, but I think I’ll eventually get the hang of it.
Thank you so much for your help! ^__^
Jackiさん
どういたしまして！The name of the places are sometimes confusing. I checked the game. Looks very cute. I added two more words on the previous vocabulary. If you don’t understand the certain word, please let me know.
Good luck on the games!
私は1時に100度来ます！
事実です。決して嘘はつきません！
Harinさん、
ほんとうですね！じゃあ約束！毎日１時に１００回来て下さいね！ :D
お久しぶりです
Hi Maggie 先生 ＾＿＾
私はひどい風邪を引いたんです。
二日も仕事に留守させられてしまった。
でも今はもう元気になってきた。
風邪と咳がまだありますけど。。。
すぐ直されるといいなあ。。
とにかく、これはいいレスンでした。
It refreshed my memory on ~te iku / ~te kuru
（上の文章は日本語でどうやって言いますか？）
レスンはいつも役に立ってありがとう ＝）
LadySapphireさん
お久しぶりです！！風邪引いていたんですか？大丈夫？早く治して下さいね。
まず質問ですが、It refreshed my memory on ~te iku / ~te kuru
refresh one’s memory on ~~は日本語で「〜の記憶を新たにする」ですが、かなり堅い表現になります。
ちょっとニュアンスは違ってきますが、
（前に勉強した）「〜ていく」「〜てくる」のいい復習になりました。
位の方が、伝わるかと思いますが、どうでしょうか？
せっかくだから他の文章も下に添削しておきますね〜！早く風邪を治して、また来て下さい！
(Note :
仕事に留守させられてしまった。->仕事を休まなければいけませんでした。
absentって言いたかったのかな？留守は家にいないことを言います。仕事は「休む」、学校は「欠席する。」を使いましょう。
すぐ直されるといいなあ。。->早く治るといいなあ…: 病気、風邪は”治る”の方の漢字を使います。それから〜されるは＜使役＞になりますのでここでは使いません。
レスン->レッスン
いつも役に立ってありがとう->いつも役に立つレッスンをありがとう！）
これからも一杯日本語書いてね！お手伝いします！！
では、約束通り、答えで〜す！！(=Dewa yakusoku doori kotae deeesu!) Here are the answers as I promised.
Answers :
1) なんて(=nante)
2) もんか(=monka) or ものか(=monoka）
3)もんだ(=monda) or ものだ(=monoda）
4)なんて(=nante)
5)もんだ(=monda) or ものだ(=monoda）
6)なんて(=nante)
皆、正解だった？(=Mina seikai datta?)
You got all right?
全部正しくてよかったね、マギー先生のためはありがとうございました！
学ぶなんてうれしいんだ （＾＿＾）
はい．I got it..thx^^
Im gonna wait another lesson..
maggie san ,I’m not sure how to use ~なんて sometimes .Someone said we can using -nante if someone just kidding.本当ですか？.my BF often said on the final sentence, “~~~なんてねぇ..（笑）”
Does it mean “I’m kidding/just kidding”?
Can u explain me more..ありがとう．＾＾
マリアさん
ああ、そういう「なんて」ね！
You are right! It means, “I’m just kidding” “Just joking!”
We say something and finish with なんて(ね） to show the listeners that we are just kidding.
We also say なんちゃって(=nanchatte) which is more colloquial.
For example you say something a bit shocking as a joke and then you follow it up by saying なんちゃって!
Maggie :「私、近所の猫と付き合うことにしたの。」(Watashi kinjo no neko to tsukiau koto ni shitano) I am going to date a cat in the neighborhood..
You : 「えっ！？」
Maggie : 「なんてね。／なんちゃって！」(I got you! /I am just kidding. /It’s a joke!)
Sometimes we use it to cover up the embarrassment of what you have just said trying to make it sound like a joke even if it’s true.
あなたが好きになったかも…なんて。（なんちゃって）
I think I am falling for you..No, I am just kidding!
Did I answer your question?
It’s funny to think of Maggie is such dramatic conversations where this is used, “僕は君を一生守るよ(だ）なんて言わなければよかった” lol
Another great lesson,
Thanks!
Hi jeremy-san!
Thank you for visiting me again!
My life is full of dramas! Jeremyさんは、こんな台詞を言ってことはない？
Aww Maggie先生 thank you so much for making me your video thumbnail!! \^___^/
It’s actually Gimmeaflakeman’s vid, but we both know who’s the head of the family.
Love,
Fina
Fina-chan,
あっ！ほんとだ！GimmeaflakemanもやっぱりFinaponのスマイルが最高にカワイイからサムネールにしたのかも。
Of course, I am his boss! !Vsain!
@Bridget Nazis did quite a lot of absurd “research”, this blood type thing would fit into it.
Nevertheless I thought the japanese came up with this, as an equivalent to the western astrology ^__^”
Thank you for this great article and cute pic Maggie先生 !!
Love,
Fina
Fina-chan,
Finaponのコメントありがと〜〜う！！I think I have learned a lot since I wrote this article reading through the comments as well. Ahhh…so many things to learn in this world besides where to dig a hole to hide my bone!
そうですね！
残念ですがそれ全く知らないです＾＾；
OMG MAGGIE!! You got me, I really thought you quit! >___< How could I be learning japanese without your SUPER LOVELY CUTE pics??!
Kisu~
Fina
Hi Fina-chan!!
Thank you for visiting this site! I have seen you on youtube as well. Finaちゃんも”私と同じ位”かわいいよ〜！ ;-)
また来てね！ :maggie-small:
Maybe just continue making lessons, once in a while when you feel like it?
@play150
Right…I will try to continue this blog until next April Fool’s Day! :D
i was just thinking a while ago….i will be missing you, maggie sensei!!!’coz you are a big help to me…and the most saddest thing is leaving us this early….then after reading these comments….it was just for “April fool’s day..hahaha….jozou desu ne.. Anyway just want to say “thank you so much”!!!more power
@sheila
Haha! Actually I made this lesson two years ago. See how long I have been making lessons since then?
It is not that easy to get rid of me! :)
Love you !CHECKHEART!
びっくりしちゃった！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！！
なんでそのようのひどいことをしてたと思った。
1Aprilだった！ほっとした！マギー先生のブログ本当に大好きだから！
Chokochoko!!
フフフ〜〜！！チョコチョコはだまされたのね。びっくりさせてごめんね。
私もチョコチョコのサイト大好きだよ〜！
(Note* そんなひどいことをしたかと思った。）
Yes, thanks!
マッギー先生がいつもよりちょくちょくレッスンを作って嬉しいですよ！^^
It is difficult to absorb all of the informationけれど、努力しています！
私は騙されませんでした!笑
Harinさん
あら？だまされなかった？
いつもありがとう！！そういう嬉しいコメントをもらうからまたがんばってレッスンを作る気になります！！
It is difficult to absorb all of the information but
の部分は、
「レッスンの全て(の情報)を自分のものにする（or 習得する）のは難しいですが、」
ではどうかな？
In this sentence:
お前んとこの妹って可愛いな
What does んとこ mean? I don’t think I’ve seen that before.
jeremy-san
It is very very colloquial.
お前”んとこ”(=Omae n toko) is an abbreviation form of お前の”ところの” （ところ=所=tokoro=place) referring one’s family, place, home, company where ever you belong to.
あなたのところ(=Anata no tokoro)->more casual あんたのところ(=anna no tokoro) -> あんたんとこ(=antan toko) the place or group you belong to
あいつのところ(=aitsu no tokoro) -> あいつんとこ(=aitsuntoko) the place or group he belongs to
Also we use お前んちの(=Omaenchi) and it came from お前のうちの(=Omae no uchi no) うち=uchi=home and it refers your family or home.
Ex. お前んちのお父さんってどこで働いていたっけ？(=Omaenchi no otousan tet doko de hataraite itakke?) Where does your father work again?
Did I answer your question?
こんにちはマギー先生！
Just wanted to say ありがとう for this post. I’ve been looking over it a few times the past few days, and it’s been very useful for learning new 漢字。I don’t know how you manage to post so many chokfull lesson each day!
If it’s alright, I have a request. I recently imported a game called お姫さまデーブ, and although it’s for children (specifically girls), there’s a good amount of royalty vocabulary that I’m not familiar with. Could you make a lesson that involves something with お姫や王子や王女？ If not, I understand, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt (much) to ask ^^;
こんにちは！Jacki!! Thank you for visiting my site!
Yes, I don’t know how I manage to make these lessons, either! ;-) I mean I am a busy dog. I have to play, hide a bone, eat…etc.
I am not familiar with the game and I couldn’t find any information on the web but I can give you some of the basic vocabulary for today, OK?
お姫様(=ohimesama) /姫(=hime)princess
王子様(=oujisama) / 王子(=ouji)prince
王女様(=oujo sama)/ 王女(=oujo) princess
王様(=ousama )/王(=ou) king
女王様(=jouou sama) /女王(=jouou) queen
お城(=oshiro) a castle/ 城(=shiro)
家来(=kerai)a retainer, servant
騎士(=kishi)a knight
王国(=oukoku) kingdom
舞踏会(=butoukai) dance party, ball
If you have a specific question about certain vocabulary, please do not hesitate to leave a comment and ask me a question.
返事ありがとうございました．では、質問があったらここで入りますね．＜３
マリアさん
コメントはどのレッスンのコメントのところでもいいですよ。またコメントに入れてくれた日本語はできるだけ直します！
こんにちは．マリアです．インドネシアからきました．
このブログはやばかったです．このブログに来てよかったです．＾＾
もっともっと教えて下さい，マギー先生．あの、私は質問があれば、チャットでもしてもいいですか？
今日は、マリアさん！！
このブログに来てくれてありがとう！！
チャット？いいアイデアですね！これから皆とチャットする機能も何か考えますね。
それまでは、質問があったらコメント入れてね。できるだけお答えします。
WOW! You have put in a lot of work in your posts. Those aimai expressions alway come up in the JLPT. I wonder how difficult the new level 3 will be???
JLPT5-san
”絶対一発合格！”がんばって下さい！
マギー先生、
また大変役に立つレッスンを、ありがとうございました。
いつものように日本の文化の洞察を見せていただき、楽しい学習方法ですね。
マギー先生のレッスンといえば、全く初心者でも上級でも、だれでも勉強になるものですね。
私的には特に、断り方の部分から新しい表現をたくさん習得できました。
話題が変わりますが、日本語が言語としては曖昧というよりも、多くの日本人が状況をうまく読んで、相手のことを考えながらどんな行為や言葉などがいいかってよく考えるようだと私は個人的に思います。
まあ、英語でも似ている曖昧な表現といったのがもちろんあるのですが、以前よりも次第に使われなくなってきたみたいですね。というか、友達と英語を喋ることは日本語の会話と比べると、ちょっと違う空気ですかね。
だから古い映画などで聞こえる昔に使われた英語のように、私は日本語を勉強すると、とても清涼な気持ちですね。楽しんで勉強しています！
では、次のレッスンを大変楽しみにしております。
RW
roosterswildさん
いつも来てくれて有り難うございます！！その通りです！他の方のコメントのお返事にも書いた通り日本語が曖昧というよりも相手とのコミュニケーションを円滑にする為に曖昧な言葉が使われていると私も思います。言葉はその背景の文化も映し出すので私も話す言葉によって性格が変わる様な気がします。
私のレッスンが初級者の方から上級の方まで勉強になると聞いてとっても嬉しいです。いつもレッスンを作る時にどのレベルの人が読んでくれるかわからないのでいろいろな情報を詰め込み過ぎてついつい長くなってしまいます。
それにしてもroosterswildさんの日本語はとっても綺麗な日本語ですね。また来て下さいね！！
キューケンホフに花いっぱいあったね。そうだね、自分の間違いからいっぱい習えるということですね。
上級って、僕はまだまだです。ハハハ
ところで、今年は日本語能力試験を受けるつもりです。２級だけど。大丈夫かな〜
chokochoko-san
2級受けるのね。合格する様に祈っていますね。がんばれ〜！チョコチョコ〜！！！ｐ(*^-^*)ｑ
オランダへ行ったことありますか。へぇ〜、オランダのどこ？
うん、そうだね、日本人はみんないつも優しくて、ときどき優しすぎると感じます。特に知らない人と会うとき、日本人の方がすごく丁寧と思います。やっぱり日本人はみんな子供の頃からいい育ちを受けましたね。すごい！
添削してもらってありがとう！僕がそんなに多い間違いをしたのはハ ズ カ シ イ〜。ごめんね。
chokochoko-san
オランダは、アムステルダムに行ったよ。もちろん、世界で最も美しいと言われるキューケンホフも！
添削は、このブログに日本語でコメントしてくれた人には時間がある限りサービスでします。周りに日本人がいてもなかなか直さないでしょ。一杯間違いをした方が覚えるよ。だから直しても恥ずかしいって思わないでね。特に、chokochokoはもう上級だからね。そう、日本人はそんなに優しい？例外も一杯いるけど、私ももっと優しくなろっと！
(Note : いい育ちを受けましたね。->「育ちを受ける」とは言いません。教育は「受ける」っていいます。「育つ」を使うなら「いい育ち方をしましたね。」でもOK! 添削してもらって->くれて)
そうですか！
でも鍵がテーブル直接触ってないなら大丈夫ですよ☆
たとえば、鍵はテーブルの上の本に置いてもいいですよ（＾～＾）ｂ
Tutleさん
面白いですね。その迷信のルーツは何なのかしら…
前向きに is extremely helpful. I didn’t know there was a positive form. I always thought it was more 微妙 (negative).
ありがとうね！
Yammy-san
前向き is usually positive. Ex.彼女はとても前向きな人だ。（＝Kanojo wa tototemo maemuki na hito da.) She is very positive person.
So just saying 考えておきます。or ちょっと考えておきます。may not to have much chance but if someone tells you 前向きに考えておきます。, you can expect more chance.
If someone says「それでは考えておきます。」, we sometimes add「是非、前向きに御検討下さい。」(=zehi maemuki ni gokentou kudasai.) to encourage them to think more seriously to give us more chance.
Comment 有り難う！
ところで、TheDutchGaijinもオランダ人ですね。
また素敵なレッスン！！！マッギー先生は外国人が何分からないとか、常にどんなようなことに迷っているとか、よく知っていると思います！前の日本語の先生は日本語はすごく曖昧の言語と言われていた。確かにね。オランダ人としての僕は、オランダの習慣のように何か言いたら、はっきりで直接の方がいいです。でも、日本語は逆に曖昧だと思います。それは可笑しいだね。
chokochoko-san
オランダの人だったのですね。(TheDutch Gaijinさんも）一度行ったことありますが、オランダの人は英語もぺらぺらだしいろいろな言葉ができる人が多いですよね。羨ましい…
日本語が曖昧というよりも日本人が円滑な人間関係を保つために曖昧な言葉を使ってきているのだと思います。でも日本人でも話していて「どっちやねん！！」とイラっとすることあります。
だから国際社会ではよけいに誤解されるよね。
（Note : 何分からないとか->何が ／どんなようなことに->どんなことに (or どのようなことに）／何か言いたら->何かを言いたかったら ／はっきりで->はっきりと ／可笑しいだね。->可笑しいね。or 可笑しいですね。可笑しい=funny. もしinterestingと言いたかったら＜面白い＞を使ってね。）
Very detailed.
I like :)
TheDutchGaijin-san
Arigatou!! chotto “detaliled” sugitakamo…
Great lesson. Helped me alot and tought me afew things along the way. Thank you.
Jay-san,
Thank you !!! Hope you come back here!!!
相変わらず、すごいレッスンですね。
お疲れ様でした。
jeremy-san
早っ！！さっそくチェックしてくれてありがとう！
「ちょっと」大変でしたが、来てくれて嬉しいです。
kawaiiii!! you really got my attention maggie-sensei. ^_^ レーソーンを聞きながら、「maggie先生は非常にかわいい」と思いました。犬が大好きですから。
hoshigo-san
私、そんなにかわいい？ありがとう！！！
(NOTE : レーソーン->レッスン カタカナはむずかしいよね！）
Hi Maggie ^_^
This was a great lesson. I couldn’t understand all of the passage the first time but then I went through it bit by bit and it all made sense! This lesson really helped my confidence, so thank you. :) I also like how it is so practical and about every day things.
I have a cold right now… I wish I had some 鼻セレブ tissues. I tried them when I was in Japan and they were heaven for my sore nose!
Hello Amanda!!
久しぶり！Great to hear from you again!
Now you are an expert of “鼻セレブ!!!
風邪、早く治してね！
ありがとう！僕もブログにマギー先生のリンクを加えた。うん、これからこそよろしくお願い！
おっ！新しいレッスンができていたね、ちょっと見に行きます〜。
マギー先生からの説明は分かりやすい！うん、はっきりです！マギー先生とリンクを交換してもらってもいいですか？
chokochokoさん
スッキリしたかな？よかった！
さっそくMaggie’s recommendationにリンクしておいたよ〜！ :maggie-small:
これからもヨロシクね！
３）あっ、違います、ごめん。「移動を表す動詞」って、「走る」とか「乗る」とか「飛ぶ」などということ。
これを「〜ていく/〜てくる」と合わせて、「motionを示す」という意味になることです。でしょう？
サンキュー！
chokochokoさん
そうです！
移動や動きを表す動詞に「〜ていく/〜てくる」を付けると「〜して行く／来る（〜しながら行く／来る）」または「〜という手段で行く／来る」という意味が出せます。
走っていく+走ってくる／歩いていく+歩いてくる／飛んでいく+飛んでくる ／電車に乗ってくる+車に乗っていく／（橋を）渡っていく+渡ってくる
などはどの様な動きをして、またはどの様な手段で行ったり来たりするか表現できますよね。
速い！文章を直してもらってありがとう。
１）そうそう、上司の所で叱られて、という意味。
２）「生活していって」、「〜いって」の部分は「time flow」で「これから」という意味を示しているでしょう？
３）「〜ていく/〜てくる」の「motionを示す」の意味はやっぱり一般に移動を表す動詞と使うんでしょう？
はい、合掌ということです。やっぱりマギー先生は頭がものすごくいいです！
ごめんね、質問がこんなにたくさんあります。
chokoochokooさん
２）その通り！ 「生活していく」は「これから」のことです。
３）動詞と使うんでしょう？->「動詞として使うでしょうか？」ってことかな？
だったら、そうですね 「〜ていく/〜てくる」にはレッスンにある様に移動を表す動詞として使うことも多いし（Ex.1 （マギーが）チョコチョコのブログに遊びに行く Ex. 2 チョコチョコがマギーのブログに遊びに来た。）時間や変化を表す時にもよく使いますよ。(Ex. 3 チョコチョコの日本語はどんどんうまくなっていく Ex.4 チョコチョコ、日本語がどんどんうまくなってきたね）
なるほど、合掌ですか！！すごい言葉知ってますねえ。
（Note : 直してもらって->直してくれて）
マギー先生が作った例文が豊富で分かりやすいと思う！ありがとう！
えっと〜文章を作ってって：
「昨日仕事で、上司に叱れてきて首になったから、今月の家賃はどうすればいいかな。あ〜、生活は悩んでいく。」
「友達に良いニュースを伝えて行く。」
最後の文章は正しいかどうかちょっと迷っているけれど、伝えたい意味は「I will (go and) tell my friend the good news」ということ。
＊手を合わせている＊
よろしくお願いします！
Chokochokoさん
また来てくれてありがとう！！
じゃあ今日は直すよ〜！
作ってって->作っていて
１）「叱られてきて首になった」というとまず 上司の所に行って (You went to your boss)->叱られて(He reprmimanded you)->（帰って You returned to your place）->首になる (And he fired you) という順序になります。
もし上司の所に行ってそこで首になったのならば 「叱られて首になってしまったから」の方が自然です。
２）生活は悩んでいく->”悩む”(worry)のは”人”で”生活”ではないので 「どうやって（これから）生活していっていいのか悩むなあ。」
３）「友達に良いニュースを伝えて行く。」->惜しい！(Almost!) 「伝えに行く」にしてみて。
＊手を合わせている＊-> なに？合掌(=gasshou)？お願いしてくれてるの？
またいつでも文章つくってみてね。直すから！
Maggie Sensei,
Thank you so much for tackling my request. This detailed lesson makes me understand it much better now.
T.
Tiffany-san,
Yokatta!!!
I am glad it helped you! Gambatte tsukatte ne!
スウェーデンには鍵をテーブルの上に乗せると縁起が悪いです。
Turtleさん
なるほど！！面白いですね。たまに鍵をテーブルの上に置いてしまうので気をつけます！
スウェーデンの方も読んでくれているのですね。嬉しいなあ….
ぱなしのはなしって最高です！
こんなビデオを見ると、ポイントが忘れられないですよね。
メディアの力！
紹介してもらってありがとうございます＾＾
笑いは止まりませんｗ
roosterswildさん
このビデオ可愛いですよね！また使えるビデオがあれば紹介しますね。
(Note : 笑いは止まりません->笑いが止まりません。)
hi Ms. Maggie!
me again! i just wanna to say im enjoying studying/reading your lessons!
i am literally writing them down on my notes!
とても助かります！
maple-san,
Thank you for your comment! Hope you can use this lesson when you go shopping!
hi Ms. Maggie,
i hope you can make more keigo and formal japanese lessons :)
i want learn and be able to speak more keigo and formal japanese..
Godbless and More power to your blogsite :D
ありがとうございます
よろしくお願いします
maple-san,
かしこまりました！
I will try to make both formal and casual Japanese for everyone!
そう、覚えたばかり、->You mean you have just remembered that you had an old planner ( with rokuyou)? If so,今、思い出しましたが、家に六曜の書いてある古い手帳がありました。
>> はい、そう言いたいです。
日本での数か->「数字の意味」のことかな？
＞＞I wanted to say “A number of Japanese supertitions are also present in Chinese superstition.
また添削くれて有り難う ＾＿＾
私の日本語はまだそんなに高くないレベルと思いますけど。。。
今まで一杯の語彙や単語はまだ知っていませんから。 漢字はすごく多いなんですし、すべてを私にとって覚えにくいです （－＿－）；
でも難しくても勉強をまだ続けています。
先生のレッスンのおかげで勉強には大援助です。 ＝）
敬語についてのノートを今復習しています。。。
ちょっと頭が痛くなって来ました ＠＠
敬語は難しいけれどもLadySapphireさんは丁寧な日本語を上手に使えますね。
添削はこのサイトに来てくれた人には上手くなってもらいたいから感謝の気持を込めて時間がある限りしますよ〜！
(Note :今まで一杯の語彙や単語はまだ知っていませんから＝＞まだそんなに一杯の語彙や単語を知りませんし。
漢字はすごく多いなんですし->漢字はすごく多いし
すべてを私にとってー＞私にとってはすべて覚えにくいです。
先生のレッスンのおかげで勉強には大援助です。ー＞先生のレッスンは私の勉強に大変役立っています。
（援助はもう少し大きなものに使います。Ex物資の援助、金銭的な援助）
敬語は大変ですね。あまり頭を痛めないでね。
hi Ms. Maggie, i just discover your blog today, and i really love it! i will be visiting here on a daily basis. ive been living in japan with my family for 3 years now but my japanese is not that fluent..
this site will be very helpful for me,even just now that i stated reading, i found words i didnt know the meaning and how to use before.. thank you making this..
mapleさん
Youkoso! Welcome to our site! I am glad to hear you found this site useful. Nihongo ganbatte kudasaine!!
マギー先生、チョコチョコのSquire Starsquidです、よろしくお願いします！マギー先生のレッスンがすべて本当に詳しいですね。素敵〜！茶柱が立っているのことが知っていますよ。友達から教えてもらって茶柱が立っているといいことが起こると言われているでしょうね。茶碗にお茶をいっぱい入れると茶柱が立っている機会がもっと広げてぜひラッキーになるよ。:D
わ〜〜い！！チョコチョコ来てくれてありがとう！！！皆もチョコチョコのサイトに遊びに行ってあげてね！とっても素敵で可愛いよ！
今日、早速、日本茶飲んでみてね！茶柱が立っています様に！
Maggie先生と言った通り、このレッスンは長かったですね、
でも面白かったです。
日本には迷信が多いですね。日本での数か迷信は中国にもあって、たぶんそれは仏教に影響されました。
例えば、その”箸をご飯にささない”とか”北枕”のこと。
フィリピンにはきっと迷信もありますが、あまり詳しく知りません。
そう、覚えたばかり、家に古いPlannerを見つけました。なかになんか日本語で書かれている占い言葉があって、最初は”これはなに。。。”と見て考えていました。
先生のレッスンのおかげでいまもう少し分かれます。その占い言葉ってやっぱり”六曜”だったんですね。
あとで帰宅するに又その古いPlannerを読むつもり。
よければ、質問があったら又先生に尋ねてもいいんですか？
（Please correct me again if I have wrong grammar)
いつも有り難う ＾o＾
良い一日になりますように
LadySapphireさん
こちらにもコメント有り難うございます。日本人でも六曜って言葉を知っている人はあまり多くはありません。六曜の中でも大安や仏滅は知っていても赤口や先負、先勝は知らない人が一杯います。でも手帳やカレンダーにはまだよく書かれていますね。お葬式の儀式は仏教から来ているので中国の影響も多いかもしれません。
もちろん、質問あればいつでもどうぞ！
(Note : そう、覚えたばかり、->You mean you have just remembered that you had an old planner ( with rokuyou)? If so,今、思い出しましたが、家に六曜の書いてある古い手帳がありました。
いまもう少し分かれます。->今は、もう少しわかります。または、わかる様になりました。
帰宅するにー＞帰宅したら
読むつもり。->読んでみます。（調べてみます。）
日本での数か->「数字の意味」のことかな？
よければ、質問があったら又先生に尋ねてもいいんですか？->「よければ」と「あったら」は二つ条件になるので「また質問があったら(わからないことがあったら)また先生に聞いてもいいですか？」で大丈夫！！
ここのブログにコメントを日本語で書いてくれる人は皆、レベル高いですね〜！すごい！すごい！！
Hi again Maggie先生
ご説明して頂いて有り難う ＝）
私の文章と文法も添削してくれて感謝しています。
今最近のレッスンをみているところです。 迷信と縁起の。
質問やコメントがあったら又そこでメセッジします。
日本語の勉強に頑張り続けます！
LadySaphhinereさん
どういたしまして！
新しいレッスン、長いですが、がんばって読んで下さいね。
（Note メッセジ->メッセージ カタカナのスペルは「ッ」と「ー」が分かりにくいですよね。
の勉強に->勉強を）
Hi Maggie 先生
こんにちは、初めまして。新しい来た生徒です。どうぞよろしく ＾＿＾
先生のレスンにはいろいろ習ってもらって感謝します。
このヴァレンタインのレスンについてちょっと問題がありますが
その３月１４日のWhite Dayって、どうしてWhite Dayと呼ばれているのですか？
若しかしてMaggie先生が知ることなら、ご説明して頂けませんか？
どうも有り難う
LadySapphireさん
今日は！初めまして！こちらこそ、どうぞよろしく！！
一説によるとホワイトデーは最初、バレンタインでチョコをもらったお返しに男性が女性にキャンディーやマシュマロを贈る様にする為、あるお菓子屋さんがこの日を「キャンディーの日」か「マシュマロデー」と名付けようとしました。その後、全国お菓子協会がこの日をホワイトデーと名付けたんですって。白にはマシュマロやお砂糖の色そして純粋な愛のイメージがあるからです。
(Note : 添削のお手伝い〜！：先生のレスンにはいろいろ習ってもらって感謝します。->先生のレッスンではいろいろ習わせてもらって感謝しています。
レスンについてちょっと問題がありますが->レッスンについてちょっと質問があります。
若しかしてMaggie先生が知ることなら->（もし）Maggie先生が知っていたら or ご存知でしたら(more polite)
あとは、本当によく書けてます！！がんばってね〜！ )
先生の説明は わかりやすくて、すばらしい。先生はハンパないわ！:)
pekee chenさん
有り難う！！ほんと？私、ほめられると図にのっちゃうよ（笑）
Maggie Sensei,
I have just found your blog and I must say your work is impressive !
I have been self learning Japanese for a while now but has been having difficulty linking the formal Japanese that I am learning as compared to spoken Japanese in the drama/movie.
度もありがとうございました！
こちらこそ おねがいします。
Ivan-san,
Japanese you have learned with a text book is very formal. But we don’t always talk like that.
I will try to make lessons mixing both formal and colloquial Japanese.
And please feel free to practice writing in Japanese and I will correct you!
(Note : I think it is typo but ….度もー＞どうも）
Mata kitene!
マギー先生がいつも私の文章を添削してくれて、ありがとうございます！
Harin-san
いえいえ、こちらこそ、いつもこのサイトに来てくれてありがとう！！
(Note : 他の人に言うときは、「マギー先生がいつも私の文章を添削してくれる。」って言いますけど、「マギー先生」に話しかける時は、
「マギー先生が」の「が」はこの場合、いりません。->「マギー先生、いつも私の文章を添削してくれて、ありがとうございます！」
日本語でコメントもらうのとっても嬉しいです！がんばってね！）
Hi Maggie sensei,
I am a beginner in learning Japanese and I have just discovered your blog.
Thank you very much for your effort.
I will be following your blog from now on diligently.
Ivan-san
Youkoso! Welcome to our blog!! I hope you can learn something here. I will make more lessons for beginners as well. Please feel free to leave questions or request anytime.
Please come back here again! Mata kitene!
こんにちはマギー先生！
おかげさまで色々な語彙を把握できた気がします！
ちょっと質問がありますが、本命は試合や大会などでも使われていますか？
例えば、「本年のジャパンオープンの本命は伊達公子選手です。一回戦から決勝戦まで傍観者の支援をいただけるでしょうか。来週の正式な開始を、お楽しみに。」
お返事をお待ちしております。
ではまた！
・RW
今日は！roosterwildさん
本命はスポーツの試合や大会でも使います。
本年のジャパンオープンの本命は伊達公子選手です。->完璧です！！
Note :
傍観者の支援ー＞これはもとは何を言いたかったのかな？（「観客」のことかな？？もしそうだったら実際にその人達に対して言う時は、「観客の皆さん」ってした方がいいと思います。）「傍観者」というのは外から出来事や事件を客観的に見ている人達になります。当事者にならず何もせずにただ見ているだけの人（bystanders)のことをさすのでスポーツにはあまり使いません。Ex.〜で交通事故があったが周りにいた人達はただ傍観していた。）
また「支援」（support）は、例えば困った人達や国への支援、政治家への支援などに使います。スポーツの場合は、「応援」ではどうかな？また実際にスポーツ観戦をしていて声を出して応援することは
「声援」って言いますよ。
来週の正式な開始ー＞これもスポーツの場合は、開始よりも開幕の方がいいですね。
それにしてもroosterswildさんのレベル高い！！！
マギー先生はパネエだ。
apple407さん
ありがとう！！私、ハンパないでしょ！
（Note ：「パネエだ」の「だ」はいりません。「パネえ！」or 「ハンパない！」）
Harinさん
お久しぶりです！
Harinさんもチョコレート好きですか？人間は美味しそうなもの食べられていいですね。
フフフ〜〜♥ 本命にしてくれる？
Note : 彼女にあげた前に…->彼女にあげる前に
お久しぶりですね！
先日、「義理チョコ」と「友チョコ」についての記事を読みました。バースデイプレゼントとして友達に友チョコをあげました。しかし、その友達はチョコレートが大好きです。大好物だと思います！実は、彼女にあげた前に食べるところでした！ハハ。もちろん、遠慮して、食べなかったです。
Maggieさん、私のバレンタインになってください！ハハ ^-^
I loved the video, and would love to win one of the masks.
very interesting stuff, thanks for all the great info. Another brilliant lesson.
鬼は外 福は内 interesting tradition. i actually had to translate an article talking about that in my Japanese class the other day
What fun! This lesson was extremely helpful!
Also, I’ll have to teach the Pugs to have a taste for Sushi too! Hehe!
I thought I’d add my youtube address for the drawing. Sorry for the multiple comments, well if that could help I’d comment more too lol.
In the following sentence has demons missing an n:
“You can see that the packages say 鬼は外、福は内 (=Oniwa soto, fuku wa uchi) Demos out, Good luck in.”
It should read:
“You can see that the packages say 鬼は外、福は内 (=Oniwa soto, fuku wa uchi) Demons out, Good luck in.”
I wonder what the next lesson will be （^ω^）
Ido-san
Thank you for the correction!
I fixed it. Arigatou!!
This is something I’d wish I didn’t miss, well thanks for sharing though with this awesome lesson as ever~
Thank you for all your nice comments! 有り難うございます！
Hope you come visit me more often here!
If you have a request or questions, please feel free to ask me!
Next year I’m going to share a sushi roll with my dog Loki in honor of this video!
Thank you for the lesson!
鬼は外、福は内!
Gimmeaflakemanさんの節分についた動画を見てこのサイトに来ました。
本当にいいサイトですね～
よかったらちょっと質問がありますが。
方向音痴はわかりますが、他には音痴がついた言葉がありませんか？ファッション音痴とか？(笑）
よろしくお願いします！
roosterswild-san,
コメント有り難うございます！
ファッション音痴も使えます！あと、よく使うのは、
*メカ音痴＝機械音痴 (a person who is not good at machines.)
*味音痴(Who can’t taste)
とかです。
自分たちでいろいろな言葉を作ることもありますよ。
Ex.芸能音痴(a person who is not familiar with entertainment world.)
Thanks for this lesson. This is a really interesting tradition.
I saw the video you made on gimmeaflakeman channel! Maggie stole your ehomaki! More luck for Maggie ahhaha! ^_^ Please enter me in the random draw for the setsubun prizes. Thanks!
-Maki-
Sugoi!
Totemo suki desu.
Doumo arigatou.
:) :) : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) : ) wwwww
Maggie really wanted your food. I could see the greed in her eyes. She ate it so fast I doubt she even tasted it. But I guess that’s not important.lol
What happens if there’s not enough beans left on the floor to equal your age? Do you end up with bad luck for the year?
Thanks for the lesson and making me hungry.
Squash-san,
Usually we throw loooots of beans so there we don’t need to worry about that.
But if there are not enough…just throw more beans!
Nice one really like to learn more about the Japanese culture, and of courses learning new words is always excelent, so thank you maggie, my favorite sensei. ありがとうご座います
Thank you for the great lesson Maggie-sensei!!
Haha, this is actually a really great way of learning. It is not designed towards beginners however it does break down the sentences and information very well for studdy. After finding this page after your youtube advertisment, im sure i will keep poping back to try and educate myself alittle bit more. ^^ – Jay.
Great video on Setsubun! Please send me the Setsubun pack! Onegaishimasu!
Maggie-sensei,
Wow, such a long reply again, you are so helpful! And yes, that definetely answers both my questions! Some great examples too.
Thanks again!
ロブタさん
どういたしまして！本当に長くなっちゃいましたよね！（Another “chau”!!)
I think it is very important to learn from example sentences.
Mata kitene!
Maggie-sensei,
Thank you so much for the very detailed reply! And I’m glad I had not just made a mistake with the grammar – so this ‘さ入れ言葉’ is a well-known phenomenon? I had never heard of this before! It doesn’t really make sense to me though – new speech patterns among young people tend to remove things rather than make the words longer right?! Although I suppose by adding ‘さ’ you don’t have to differentiate between words and only have to worry about conjugating ‘させる’ added to the stem.
And I’m very sorry to make you think so hard in your break between lessons. I have two more very annoying questions through, but they are in no way urgent, so only answer them when you feel like it!
First, I noticed in your ‘いる/ある’ lesson something again that has bothered me for a long time. Why is it sometimes ‘には’ rather than just ‘は’ in a sentence such as ‘マギーには才能が有ります’?
Second, I have been watching Japanese drama for language practice recently, and some of the characters have the annoying habit of adding ‘ちゃった’ to phrases that are not ‘unfortunate’ as I had been lead to believe. Is this common?
I promise, no more questions for a month!
ロブタさん
You’re right. We may not know the name as “saire kotoba” but it is a well-known phenomenon.
Many Japanese people use this “sa”ire kotoba without thinking. I said especially among young people but even older people use it as well.
Ex. 読む(=yomu)
“Let me read it!” should be 「読ませて下さい。」(=yomasete kudasai.) But I bet many people say 「読まさせて下さい。」(=yomasasete kudasai.)
Somehow the later sounds even more politer. Anyway, I think it is good to know.
OK!! New questions!
Let’s compare the following two sentences.
1)マギーは才能があります。
2)マギーには才能があります。
Using “には” focuses on “Maggie” more.
In this case, we can think “ni” as a location.
1) Maggie has a talent.
2) “There is a talent IN Maggie.” (Focusing on “the location” which is Maggie.)
Other examples :
3) 九州は温泉が一杯あります。(=Kyuushu wa onsen ga ippai arimasu.)
4) 九州には温泉が一杯あります。(=Kyushuu niwa onsen ga ippai arimasu.)
Both of them mean “There are lots of hot springs in Kyushuu.” and indicate the location, Kyushu, but the 4) emphasizes the location more while 3) could be just a statement or fact. 4) implies slightly more emotional attachment to Kyushuu, I think.
Also compare “ni” and “niwa”
5) 彼に言いたくありません。(=Kare ni iitaku arijmasen.) I don’t want to tell him.
6) 彼には言いたくありません。(=Kare niwa iitaku arimasen.) I don’t want to tell HIM! (because I have a problem with him.)
Again, 6) focuses on 彼 more.
You can try to make sentences using “ni” and “niwa”. I can check them for you.
The second question about “ちゃった”
Yes! “ちゃった” is VERY common in a daily conversation.
It is a colloquial way of saying 〜(し）てしまう。
You’re right. There is a “unfortunate” meaning as follows.
1.このカップを割ってしまいました。I accidentally broke this cup. (Oops! feeling)->colloquial : 割っちゃった。
2.そんなことをやったら死んでしまいますよ。 If you do such a thing you are going to die.-> colloquial : 死んじゃうよ！
3.困ってしまいます。 I will be in trouble ->colloquial :困っちゃう。(Komacchau)
4.困ってしまいました。I am in trouble ->colloquial :困っちゃった。(Komacchatta)
5. ちょっと太ってしまいました。I gained a bit of weight. -> colloquial : ちょっと太っちゃった。（Oh no!)
It also means “some action has completed, done, finished”
6.一人で仕事やっちゃいました。 I have finished work by myself.
7.もう宿題終わっちゃったの？Did you already finish your homework?
8. 簡単に試験に受かっちゃった！I passed the exam easily. (See this is not “unfortunate”!)
Try to change the following sentences using ちゃう
9.これを食べてしまったの（ですか）？ “Did you eat it? (Accusing)
10.これを食べてしまっていい（ですか）？ ”Can I eat it?” (Can I finish eating it?)
11.これを食べてしまいましょうか？ ”Shall we eat this?” (=eat this up? finish it?)
Answers :
9-A) これ食べちゃったの？
10-A)これ食べちゃっていい？
11-A) これ食べちゃおうか？
It is kind of a cute ending but if you overuse it, you may sound a bit 軽い！
Hope I answered your questions.
You can ask me questions anytime! Matane!
Maggie-sensei,
I was just wondering – I know that for normal passive forms of verbs, you change the ending of ~る verbs to られる, so shouldn’t it be the same for passive causative? For example, why does 書く become かかさせられる rather than かかせられる?
Also, in what situation is it OK to use the abbreviated form of the passive causative?
先生のお返事をお待ちしています！
ロブタさん
The normal passive form of 書く is 書かれる (written)
Ex. この手紙は１９００年に書かれました。(This letter was written in 1900.)
And its passive causative form is 書かせられる. But we say 書か”さ”せられる in modern Japanese. Grammatically it is wrong but we use it anyway. It is called さ入れ言葉. Maybe my explanation was not good enough so I added that information in the lesson.
It has been annoyed many Japanese intellectuals as “ranuki kotoba” but I think it will be accepted as formal Japanese sooner or later.
せられる or させられる…Which one do we use more frequently?? It depends on the verbs or people who use it. I would say we still use せられる more…
As for your last question, abbreviated form is more colloquial. Again, it is grammatically wrong but people use it anyway.
You can use the abbreviate form anytime in Japan. But avoid using it in a formal situation or Japanese exam.
Did I answer your questions?
Your questions made me think a lot!
今回の質問で非常に頭を使わされました。Now I have to go play with a new toy!
But thank you so much for your questions! :maggie-small:
マギー先生、
そうなんですか。偉い日本かぶれになりたいんです！しかし、一度は納豆を食べてみて、とても嫌いでした！どうしよう…
（Thank you for the corrections, they really help!)
ロブタさん、
私も納豆食べると口の周りがかゆくなりますよ。練習！練習！！
I mean Maggie-sensei! また馴れ馴れしくしてしまいました。ごめんなさい！
ここではタメでいいから許してあげるワン！ :maggie-small:
I didn’t expect a reply to my stupid comment, but thank you anyway!
Looking back, I can’t believe I was so 馴れ馴れしい to Maggie! I guess slang is just too easy to slip into… Must stop bad habits now
レッスンって、マジやべっぞ！ため口がすげっ～な！
ロブタちゃん、
ほんと、タメで話してるよねえ〜…
マギ先生は、フランス語も話せる？さすが！やっぱり、世界の一番頭がいい犬だな！
質問が一つあるけど。日本にいるなら、もし「私が日本かぶれだ」と言ったら、可笑しいなの？
ロブタさん
へへへ…… 褒められると照れるなあ。 ^ ^ ゞ
まあ日本にいても「私は日本かぶれだ。」って言えます。その場合、お部屋に日本のものが一杯あったりとか朝から納豆食べたり（！！）日本の生活にどっぷり浸かっていたらね。
（「私が」より「私は」にしてね。それから「可笑しいなの」->「可笑しい？」）
こんにちは！
私はダンといいます。
ベトナム人です。
二回生です。
現在日本語と英語を勉強しています。
ため口でよろしいですか。
じゃ（’ェ‘）ﾖﾛｼｸ
ダンさん
ど〜ぞ、ど〜ぞ！ここではタメ口でも大丈夫ですよ！
ベトナムの人も読んでくれると知ってとっても嬉しいです。また来てね。
:*:･｡,☆ﾟ’･:*:･｡,ヽ(・∀・)人(・∀・)ﾉ ,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆,｡･:*:
あけましておめでとうございます。
いつもおもしろい記事を書いてくださって感謝いたします。
今年もよろしくお願い申し上げます。
sakuragaOkaさん
明けましておめでとうございます！！
いつも読んでくれてありがとう！！！とっても嬉しいです！！ :maggie-small:
今年も宜しくお願いします。
ユカリ先生、明けましておめでとうございます。 ＾＿＾
Jeremyさん
明けましておめでとうございます！
今年もマギー先生を宜しくね！
面白い、ありがとう！ぼくは草食系と思います。
ダニエルさん、
ダニエルさんは草食系なの？じゃあ私に食べられない様に気をつけてね。
Dear Yukari-sensei and Maggie-sensei,
Your lessons are so great! I have learnt a lot of colloquial Japanese from them already, and best of all they are fun to read! You are doing a great service to the Japanese-learning community. Please keep up the good work, and I look forward to your next lesson!
(p.s. I just donated, please make sure Maggie gets a nice new toy for Christmas from me!)
Robuta-san,
Thank you so much for your nice comment and your donation! We really appreciate your support and yes! I will get a new bone for sure!
Yukari and I are now making a new lesson. Please visit here again!
Arigatou!!!
This, along with all the other lessons posted, are great. Thank for you for posting them!
ありがとう ございます。
Leo-san,
こちらこそ、ありがとうございます！
This site is pure genius! Please keep it up :)
Delenir-san,
Arigatou!!!! Ganbarimasu!
Maggie-sensei,
You don’t have to settle! You’re super cuute!
mountaincritter-san,
Hontoni sou omou? Really you think so?
Arigatoooo!!!
well.. it’s like I thought!
私は今軽い風邪を引いてしまいました。風邪を引きかけてすぐ薬を飲んでいるから、だんだん治っています。^^;
Maggieさん、風邪を引かないでください！
あっ、質問があります。
「風邪を引く人は馬鹿だ」という諺がありますね？よく覚えっていませんが、面白いと思いました。＾＾；
Harin-san,
いつも日本語でコメントしてくれてありがとう！
Harinさんの日本語もう上級ですが、も〜っと上手くなって欲しいのでまたちょっとだけ、直しますね。
私は今軽い風邪を引いてしまいました。
->”今”を入れる時は 「私は今軽い風邪を引いています。」の方が自然です。
それか
”今”をいれないで「私は軽い風邪を引いてしまいました。」だったらOK!!
覚えっていませんがー＞覚えていませんが
さて、御質問に答えます！
正しくは、「馬鹿は風邪を引かない。」です。
だから、私は風邪ひかないかも… :D
Harinさんも早く風邪を治してね！
This explains so much! I was always so confused on how a lot of Japanese profiles and such have the blood type yet I don’t even know my own. Thanks for the help! I’m really liking this website!
Panda-san,
Thank you for your comment! Glad to hear this lesson was helpful!
Please visit here again!
Before & during the second world war, the Nazis were also obsessed with this “blood type + personality” nonsense, and supposedly did quite a bit of “research” on it.
It’s always important to remember whose side Japan was on during the second world war.
I know that in Japan, people treat it like a horoscope, you know, like, just for fun, but if they knew where most of this “information” on blood types came from, I’m sure they’d be pretty surprised.
Anyway, I refuse to take part in any of their little customs to keep from placing me into any kind of stereotype, be it from my blood type, nationality, or whatever. It’s annoying.
Joe-san,
Yes! Please visit here again!
Jane!
Actually, fureto-san isn’t massively off the mark with his Nazis comment. I heard that the original Japanese blood-type research was a response to a western study which claimed that Asian people were closer to animals because type B is more common in both animals and in Asian people.
It’s obviously nonsense, mind.
The blood-type obsession in Japan is one of my pet hates. It drives me up the wall.
This is the first time I’ve seen your blog, Maggie, and I think I’ll be back. Nice to see lots of Kanji and example sentences and stuff.
I’ll be following on twitter too.
great site you got here. thanks for the blood type lesson (-:
locohama-san
Thank you for your comment!
Mata kitene!
ありがとう先生
クリスティアンさん、
こちらこそ、コメントありがとう！！
It’s so crazy, I’ve seen people get along great at first but then when they learn each others blood types stop liking each other. PS- Maggiesensei.com is the bomb!
guesa-san,
Thank you for your comment.
Really? Just like that? It is one of the extreme cases, huh?
@furetosan
Wow, the ignorance in that comment is so extreme that it doesn’t even warrant a response beyond what I have now written. Also, I ask that you please not pro-create and perpetuate the cycle of ignorance any further than you’ve already taken it.
@Victor
Thanks for this great post man. I’ve been reading a book called “The Japanese have a word for it, but they don’t think you’ll understand.” Kind of a long title I know, but it said that some Japanese take blood type very seriously like you said. I hope they don’t read into my blood type too closely because it won’t be very accurate. I’m type A but completely unorganized in many ways. lol
Anyway, thanks for this insightful language lesson. I’ve still got a ways to go in learning the language, but your work puts me one step closer each time. Thanks. :)
マギ先生がすきよ！ ww レソンありがとう！ wあたしの日本語は本当わるいです。
Krista-san,
わ〜い！！好きって言われちゃった＼(＾▽＾)／
I love you,too!! 日本語がんばってね！
thanks a lot for the slang part , Maggie-chan!
Parano-san,
Slang suki? Will make more slang lessons! Jane!
Your website is awesome! Arigatou gozaimasu! :D
Tokoro de atashi no suki na onigiri wa konbu desu yo! (or suki na= ichiban? lol i’m in Japanese 101 in college ;])
Krista-san,
Thank you for your comment! Arigatou!
Krisuta san no (ichiban=most) sukina(favorite) onigiri wa konbu? Watashi wa 焼たらこ（Yaki tarako) desu.
Nihongo no benkyou ganbatte ne!
Sounds like something a Nazi would have developed… Just saying!
furetosan,
最初にコメントにNaziって書いてあるのを見て正直ちょっとびっくりしました。いろいろ調べたらそんな驚きの歴史もあったのですね。血液型で差別をすることがあるとしたら本当に馬鹿げていると思います。
Great lesson!
Arigatou, Maggie-chan!
Parano-san,
Kochirakoso arigatou!
Mata kitene!
Maggie sensei, you are doing such an amazing job. I’ve just started my beginner 2 Japanese lessons. Can’t say that I can really understand completely your lessons (cose they are really advanced stuff) but seriously, your site is the most useful one I’ve found so far.
Thank you, Maggie sensei!
Harch-san,
Thank you for your nice comment! I have tried to cover all different levels in one lesson. Hope you can use some of the stuff for your study.
If you have any question or request, please do not hesitate to leave a comment.
Please visit me again here!
Matane!
I always watch & love Japanese comedy, and don’t really get everything they say demo it’s still funny :)
This has been really helpful, i always get confused on how to use a word in a sentence so i appreciate all the examples…thanx a lot for the hard work!
nadewさん
“Doumo Arigatou” for your comment!
I will keep adding more words or phrases. There are tons of fun expressions from お笑い!
Japanese comedy could be difficult because of they talk very fast and many of them use Kansaiben.
If you have any questions, please ask me!
Matane!
Thank you!! I really learnt a lot from this lesson. Also, I’d been hearing ウケる a lot recently and didn’t really understand how to use it, but now I do! :)
お笑いは柳原加奈子さんが好きです。日本のコメディアンはすごく面白いと思います。でも、時々話すのが速すぎます。もっと分かるようになりたい！
yumyumsesame-san
お久しぶりです！お元気でしたか？Since your Japanese’s comment is just perfect, I will write to you in Japanese.
柳原加奈子さん、私も大好きです！彼女のブティックやコンビニの店員さんのギャクは本当にウケますよね！
お笑いがわかる様になればもう日本語検定１級よりもすごいかも…
Youtubeにもいろいろお笑いの動画がアップされていますね。私の好きな番組は「しゃべくり00７」ですが、見たことあるかな？
お笑い見ていてわからないことあったらいつでも聞いて下さいね。（Also if you don’t understand this comment, please let me know!)
Matane!
That helps a lot, and it confirms that the way I was trying to understand your example sentence is in fact the right one, and not in the extra example I provided.
The trick was in the word ドン引き, then, and not necessarily the “に”.
Thanks for the help, much appreciated. I’m enjoying hearing more about these words that I hear from (for example) my students a ton that I’m not quite 100% on. 微妙 was another one, and I was happy to see it a few posts below.
phinehas-san,
Sorry! I went out without finishing my last reply …I wrote it in hurry so it may not make sense but I am glad to hear it helped you somehow.
You are right. The trick was in the word DONBIKI. And it complicates more with ~saseru+~ sareru.
In a way, it is funny that I have never imagined myself thinking about this word this seriously before.
But anyway, it is a fun word to remeber. Older generation won’t understand the meaning though.. Matane!
Hello, this is my first time to your site and I’m really appreciating this great information! I will certainly be visiting quite often.
I have a question – reading through some of your examples on how to use this word, I stopped at this one: “彼は皆にドン引きされていた。(=Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita.) He turned everyone off.”
Right now the passive voice is something I’m working at, and I am a little confused as to who is being turned off in this statement. Particularly, I’m having trouble with the “に” particle.
If you had given me the English sentence and asked me to translate it, I probably would have nearly the same example sentence, except I would have switched 皆 and 彼, (皆は彼にドン引きされていた).
Your example sentence sounds to me like “They turned themselves off on him” – of course, I’m not saying that’s wrong, I’m just wondering if my understanding of the word is off. Please help, thanks!
phinehas-san,
Hi! Nice to hear from a new person!! Great question!
As I mentioned in my saseru+saserareru lesson,it is not so common to use a passive form in English so I translated some sentences in this donbiki lesson not using passive form to make things easy to understand.
“彼は皆にドン引きされていた。(=Kare wa mina ni donbiki sarete ita.) is very hard to translate. If I have to translate the sentence, “He turned everyone off.” into Japanese, it would literally be 彼は皆をドン引きさせた。(He caused everyone’s “donbiki” reaction.)
Situation-wise, it is the same thing as 彼は皆にドン引きされていた. While the first sentence focuses on his action, the second one describes the situation.
If you say 皆は彼にドン引きされていた, that means, “He got turned off by everyone”.
If you think ドン引きされた as “Donbiki reaction wo sareta”, it may be easier to understand.
Hope this helps…
The dog’s promise shouldn’t be ‘inu no yakusuko’, instead of ‘yakusoku no inu’? ‘Yakusoku no inu’ sounds like ‘the dog of promise’.
blkobsさん
Thank you for your question. I took the both titles from the real movie but you are right. When I posted it, I thought the translation was a bit odd. 約束の犬 itself sounds strange even in Japanese but it should be translated “the dog of promise.” as you said.
And 犬の約束 should be “The dog’s promise.” I think they have change the title just because there is a similar title. 犬と私の１０の約束
質問がありますが、「ドン引き」に関わりません。
かえって、「ABCレッスン」で何ヶ月前に日記を書いたことに関してです。構ったら、本当に申し訳ございません。＾＾；見かけたばかりなので、聞いても結構だと思いました。
～～
”He’s totally my type! And I could use a boyfriend!”
「彼、もろタイプ！それに私、彼氏募集中だし！！」
この分に、「もろ」はどういう意味を持ちますか？英語では面白くて私はよく使うのですが、日本語ではあまり分かりません。＾＾；
Harin-san,
Thank you for visiting ABC lesson as well!
We use もろ to emphasize words. It means “very” “entirely” “totally” or “completely”. But it is a bit different from 超、激。
もろ（or モロ）タイプ is the most common word to use MORO.
Recently I posted a lesson about DONBIKI and you can also say もろ＋引く(HIKU)
Ex. あんなことを言うなんてもろ引いちゃう！ (He really turned me off by saying that.)
Ex. もろわかり =obvious あなたが彼のこと好きってもろわかりだよ。(It is obvious you like him.)
Ex. もろ嘘だってわかるよ。(Moro uso datte wakaru yo) = obviously lie, We can tell it is a lie obviously.
Ex. もろそのもの
When you see a really good copy, you can say “もろ、そのものだね！”（That is exactly the same.)
Ex. もろ＋人の名前
(彼ら）もろジャニーズだ！They look exactly like Janiizu (->Japanese idol singers.)
Ex. もろ見え (to expose something)
ABC lesson might have more colloquial expressions than my Japanese learning site. But if you feel like it, please visit there again.
One last thing,
関わりません。->関係ありません。
構ったら ->？ You mean “if you don’t mind?”
You can ask me from any of my sites!
Matane!
It is not a proper example for this site(!?) but you might see モロ見え (to show or expose something entirely) in the explanation of “adult videos”
私は本当のｍoronですよね。(^_^;)（笑）
そうですね、金縛りはHalloweenじゃありますよね。（￣□￣；）
なんだか、私は、私の返事を書いたら、ハロウィンが金縛りだと思いました。分からなくなったでしょう。(#^.^#)
ところで、私は以前、Victorのビデオを見た前に、「金縛り」を聞いていました。 But I still confused it with Halloween LOL
銀魂のマンガを知っています？
一つのアニメのエピソードで主人公は、銀さんは、金縛りにあった・襲われた。
彼が動かなかったから、何も起きないでけど、声優の声をまだ聞けます。本当に面白かった!
見たかったら、それはリンクです：
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w34mLXpzbpc
意外なことを起きたら、ドン引きを使います？
又頑張ります：
雨が降っている。私は傘を持って来なかった。
「傘を忘れてしまった！ドン引きだよ！」と言ったでしょう。
分からなかったことは「あったらいつでも」と「金縛りにあって起きられなかった。」です。
Does 起きられなかった mean “not being able to get up”? And what means あったらいつでも?
Mikaさん、
銀魂の金縛りのエピソードは見たことありますよ。超笑えますね！！
雨が降って傘を持ってこないのはよくある話なのでドン引きの例はまだまだびっくりとかショックを受ける例の方がいいかと思います。
例えば、かっこいい男の子が雨の日にいつも使っている傘を貸してくれてその傘がピンクのハローキティー柄だったらドン引きでしょ！(For example if some cool guy lends you his umbrella in a rainy day and you find it is a pink Hello Kitty umbrella, you will feel DONBIKI, right?)
As for your questions,
「あったらいつでも」:
あったら ： If there is
いつでも ：anytime
Means if there is anything you don’t understand, please ask me anytime.
「金縛りにあって起きられなかった。」
okirarenakatta : You are right. It means not be able to get up.
I couldn’t get up because of Kanashibari.
Matane!
今日は！
私は、外で寒いときに、バスが来るのを待たなきゃいけないのをドン引きですよ。
ところで、マーギ先生は、あなたの助手に、ユカリさんに、働きすぎてさせないでくださいね。 (ーー;)
金縛りにパーティーをさせてください！ (#^.^#)
Ｈappy halloween！
Mika-san,
そうですね、ドン引きは、「寒い時に外でバスが来るのを待たなきゃいけないの時」よりも〜〜〜〜っと驚く時に使います。特に意外な人が意外な時に意外なことをなんか言ったり、やったりする時によく使いますよ。（igai = unexpected)
金縛り(Kanashibari) ？すごい単語を知っていますねえ。（笑）なるほど！Victorの動画を観たんですね。
金縛りは動きが取れない時、特に朝寝ている時、動けない時に使います。霊に取り憑かれて金縛りにあうと考える人もいます。(We use the word Kanashibari when we can’t move at all. It usually happens in the morning while you are sleeping. Some consider it happens when you are possessed. 動詞は”あう” とか”襲われる”(=osowareru) です。
Ex. 朝、金縛りにあって起きられなかった。(asa kanashibari ni atte okirarenak natta.）
Ex.朝、金縛りに襲われた。（=asa kanashibari ni osowareta.)
Anyway Happy Halloween! 是非、Partyに来て下さい！
返事を日本語で書きましたが、わからないことあったらいつでも聞いてね。（I wrote this comment in Japanese but if there is anything you don’t understand, please don’t hesitate to ask me anytime!)
これからも助手のYukariにはしっかり働いてもらわないと！Yukari! Yukari!! Where are you??????
Thanks for the lesson about “Donbiki” !
Ha ha, the picture of Maggie sensei is too cute, her expressions are always priceless ! XD
Oooh by the way… Happy Halloween ! :D
Laetitia-san,
いつもコメント有り難う！
Happy Halloween to you,too!!
Tom-san wrote :
Great lesson!
I often feel ドン引き ｗｗｗ
I think what Larry meant is “how can you type if you are a dog?” Because dog’s don’t have fingers.
Larry, don’t be too serious about the dog thing xD
******************
Tom-san,
ん？最初に書いてくれたコメントが消えちゃったかな？ I wonder why but your first comment has disappeared…
Thank you for your comments!
(Now I see what Larry-san meant!) 有り難う！！
また来てね！
dogs*
Maggie how do you type you are a dog
Larry-san,
例え私は犬でもどうやって人間を使うか知っています。助手のYukariが全てタイプしています。(=Tatoe watashi wa inu demo douyatte ningen wo tsukauka shitte imasu. Joshu no Yukari ga subete taipu shiteimasu.)
Even if I am a dog, I know how to use people. I have my assistant, Yukari and she types all the lessons for me.
Matane!
Maggie, can you explain why you write the ‘don’ in ‘donbiki’ using katakana or hiragana seemingly arbitrarily? At jisho.org, katakana is used.
zeptimius-san,
We use them both!
Actually I typed them in both ways on purpose so that people can learn them both.
I think I mentioned in other lesson but we tend to use KATAKANA for slang. Also young people mix up with Katakana , Hiragana and Kanji freely. There are no rules for slang or new fun words.
For example, まじで？ マジで？ ->We use them both.
Here are other examples :
ヤバい！ヤバイ！ やばい！（=yabai) (It is another slang. I will make a lesson sometime. It means dangerous, bad or great!)
超美味しい！ チョー美味しい！ (=chou oishii!) Very delicious
微妙！ ビミョ〜！ (=bimyou) (check my bimyou lesson)
Not just slang or new words, sometimes we write regular words in Katakana to make it look more hip!
彼は普通の男の子だよ！(=Kare wa futsuu no otokono ko dayo!)
彼はフツーの男の子だよ！
This must be very confusing for nihongo learners but I think you should know this trend just for your information.
Mata kitene!
ユカリさん、こんにちは！
「日本の写真を見るのは私に日本に行くことを夢させます。」
「夢させる」はあります？
私はもっと時間があるときに、もっと文を書いて見ます。
またね！
Mikaさん、
今日は！
この場合の「夢」の動詞 は、「見る」です。(=Kono baai no “yume” no doushi wa “miru” desu.)
In this case the verb for yume is “miru”
->夢を見る (=yume wo miru.)
Also there are a lot of verbs for yume, such as 叶える(=kanaeru) to make it come true, 持つ(=motsu) to have,壊す(=kowasu) to ruin,etc. Maybe I will make a lesson someday.
to make (or let) someone dream＝「夢を見させる」(=yume wo misaseru)
通常、夢をみるのはいいことなので、（＝Tsuujyou Yume wo miru no wa iikoto nanode)
させてくれる、させてもらうという形を取ることが多いです。(=”sasete kureru” “sasete morau” toiu katachi wo toru koto ga ooi desu.)
（Usually to dream something is positive so, we use, ”sasete kureru” or “sasete morau” forms.)
*~させてくれる(=~sasete kureru.) to let me dream of something
*〜させてもらう (=~sasete morau.) get to dream of something.
夢を見せてくれた相手にはこう言います。(=Yume wo misete kureta aite niwa, kou iimasu.)
To someone who gives you a chance to dream about something, you say:
Ex. いい夢を見させてくれてありがとう！(=Ii yume wo misasete kurete arigatou)
Ex. いい夢を見させてもらいました。ありがとう！(=Ii yume wo misasete moraimashita. Arigatou.)
「して（来て）くれる」のレッスンをチェックしてみて下さい。(=”~” no ressun wo chekku shitemite kudasai.)
Please check “shitekite kureru lesson”
** makes (or let ) ~ dream は、**は〜に夢を見させてくれる。(= ~ wa 〜 ni yume wo misasete kureru.)
「日本の写真を見るのは私に日本に行くことを夢させます。(Your sentence)
->日本の写真を見ることは私に日本に行く夢を見させてくれます。(=Nihon no shashin wo miru kotowa watashi ni nihon ni iku yume wo misasete kuremasu.)
->(more natural) 日本の写真は私に日本に行く夢を見させてくれます。(=Nihon no shashin wa watashi ni nihon ni iku yume wo misasete kuremasu.)
また挑戦してね！(=Mata chousen shitene!) Try again sometime!
Thank you for the answer, it’s very clear ! :)
I’m confused… in the romaji is it supposed to say ‘konshuu’?
今週の宿題は何ですか？」(=Kyou no shukudai wa nan desu ka?) “What is this week homework?”
thanks for posting these i really enjoy them, esp. when they supplement what i am learning in class, we just learned some of these words so its like extra review for me ^_^
kagami7-san
Sorry! That was a “うっかり” (=ukkari : careless) typo. (I must have changed the original sentence as always! ) I have fixed it now. Arigatou!
I am thrilled to hear that you use this site for your additional study.
学校の勉強もがんばって下さいね！(=Gakkou no benkyou mo ganbatte kudasaine.) Good luck on your study at school as well!
ユカリさん、
うまく説明してくれてありがとう！
私は、たとえすべての、ユカリさんが使う言葉を知らないしても、いつもほとんどが分かっている。
本当にすばらしい先生ですよ！
正しくて自然の言葉にするのはとても難しいです。
だから、もっと頑張りますよ！
Mikaさん、
ほとんどが分かっている。->ほとんど分かります。is more natural.
自然の->自然な
後は完璧！(=Ato wa kanpeki!!) Peeeeerfect!!!すご〜〜〜い！！Mikaさん、やった〜！！
Mikaさんも素晴らしいですよ！このブログではどんなに日本語が上手い人の日本語も間違いがあると直しちゃいますが、また時間がある時にいろいろな表現を使って文章を作ってみて下さいね！またね〜！
Oh this was interesting :o
Is it the same to answer “chotto…” or to answer “bimyou….” ? Like, for exemple :
– Ashita aiteru ?
– Anoo… ashita ha chotto… / – Anoo… bimyou desu…
Is it the same ?
Thank you, Maggie sensei !
Mata ne :D
Laetitia-san,
Hello! It is always nice to hear from you!
– Ashita aiteru ?
– 1) Anoo… ashita ha chotto…
– 2) Anoo… bimyou desu…
They are both very similar and subtle ways to decline but there is a slight difference.
If I ask you out and you say
1) -> I think you have declined for sure. And I wouldn’t ask you why because obviously you don’t want to give me a specific reason.
2) -> I would also take it as “No!” but it gives me an impression that you might be able make it and you are not sure about that yet.
But you are right. If I ask my friends out and they say 1) or 2) , I wouldn’t push you anymore.
You can also use “chotto” and “bimyou” together.
– Ashita aiteru ?
– Chotto bimyou (desu.)
Hope my answer is not so bimyou….
薔薇 most people wouldn’t use that right its very hard to read i like it though!! 憂鬱 ahh that one is hard to read can you read it that small ゆかり先生 people wouldn’t write this right? or do they?? if i saw this i think my head would explode…
drewbingen-san,
Don’t worry! We can read them but if we have to write them, our heads would explode as well!
The more we use a computer or a word processor, the more we forget kanjis.
So that is why Maggie-sensei is GREAT!
There are a couple of popular quiz shows where people compete to read or write kanjis in Japan.
「ヘキサゴン」（=Hexagon) is one of them. You will be surprised to see many of おバカタレント (=Obaka tarento) (a kind of cute way to call “stupid TV personalities” can’t read even easy kanjis. And it is a fun program!
Wakkatta, sensei!!!
Muchas gracias
Hola Alejandro!
Gracias por tu comentario!
Me alegro que lo hayas comprendido.
Ahora hay que hacer la frase, eh!
Ciao!
私はマッギー先生に褒めさせられましたから、仕方がありませんね。さすがのマッギー先生だよね！
Harin-san,
あら、褒めさせちゃった？（笑）(=Oh, Did I make you praise me?)
ちょっとだけ直しますね。
褒めさせられましたから->褒めさせられたので or 褒めさせられたから
さすがのマッギー先生だよね-> さすがマギー先生だよね。
You put “の” after “さすが” only in a negative sentence.
さすがの〜も出来ない。〜しない＝even ~ can’t
Ex. さすがのマギー先生もわからない。(Even Maggie-sensei doesn’t understand.)
ね！さすがでしょ！私！
遅くなくて答えて、すみません！
ただ、最近私は時間がありません。
またたくさん教えてくれて、ありがとう！
私はたくさん会得したと思います。
Maggie-senseiの次の授業を見て考えなければなりませんね。
使役動詞と受身動詞は難しいそうです。
いや、私も、本当に難しいことだと思います。
このテーマについてー冊本をよく読みましたが、まだ本当に会得しませんね。
またあいましょう！
Mikaさん、
お返事ありがとう！使役や受け身は難しいですよね。よかったらまた文章を書いてみて下さい。いつでも直します！
今回は気になるところはちょっとだけでしたよ。
遅くなくて答えて、すみません！->返事が遅くなってごめんなさい。
あと、「会得」はかなり難しい言葉ですよね。
「たくさんのことを学びました」。or 「習いました。」の方が自然かもしれません。
それから「習得する」(=shuutoku suru）という言葉もありますよ。
長い文章が上手にかけますね。これからもがんばって下さい！
ゆかりさんは偉い先生ですねぇ。
loafyi-san
いえいえ…マギー先生にこき使われていますから…（=Maggie-sensei ni koki tsukawarete imasukara… ) =”It’s just because Maggie-sensei makes me work hard..”
また遊びに来て下さいね。
生きていくために仕事を持ってやらせます???????
i know its probably wrong but how would you say in order to survive you must have a job or in this case is forced to have a job???
derwbningen-san,
Nice try!!
In this case, I would say 「生きていくためには(何か）仕事を持たなければいけません。」
I have to have a job in order to survive. It sounds more natural. But good point! させる、させられる needs a cause and it usually should be someone else besides some exceptions.
Keep writing!
Great lesson!
I saw this on Gimmeaflakeman and followed the link here.
Thank you for your hard work.
markshmily-san,
Thank you for your comment! Arigatou!!
このレッスンは役に立ちましたね。さすが、マッギー先生なのよ！
Harinさん
フフフ…まかせてよ！
Maggie sensei ^__^ Hello ! Thank you for this lesson. I’ve always found interesting the omiyage system. I remember a comic where someone offers a bottle of wine to a co-worker as an omiyage, then the man forget the bottle in the subway, someone find it and offer it to another person as an omiyage, this person offers it to another person, etc… And at the end the bottle of wine is offered to a last person, who is the man that originally forgot it in the subway XD
I don’t remember exactly but isn’t there a way to say “this is a just a little thing, please accept it” or something like that ?
The story about the Obama city is funny ^^ Were the Obama rolls good ?
Have a nice day, mata ne !
Salut! Latitia-san!
The comic story is funny! It was a story of “re-gifters”, huh?
That’ right. When we give a gift, we have to give it in a humble way like
これはつまらないものですが、どうぞ！(=Kore wa tsumaranai mono desuga, douzo!) This is a boring stuff but please take it.
大したものではありませんが、どうぞ！(=Taishita mono dewa arimasen ga douzo!) It’s not anything fancy but…
ちょっとしたものですが、どうぞ！(=Chotto shita mono desuga, douzo!) This is a little something but..
ささやかですが、どうぞ！(=Sasayaka desu ga douzo!) This is a small something but..
Even between friends we say,
つまらないものだけど、大したものじゃないけど、ちょっとしたものだけど、ささやかだけど、〜
おばまロールはとっても 美味しかったです！Yum!!
また来てね！
たくさん教えしてくれて、ありがとうございます！
彼が出ていた後で
Hm, I wanted to say “after he’d left the school” but actually, that’s not very accurate, because after his suicide attempt he just didn’t go back there.
彼は、自殺を図った後で、学校に返りませんでした。
それから、皆は彼の自殺のことを忘れようとしていました。
新しく来た先生は。。。 sounds good, I mean, I wanted to say “substitute teacher” but I didn’t know the right word, but 新しく来た “who newly came” is really very close to it, but it’s also a better translation for “new teacher”.
。。。生徒達に忘れて欲しくありません。
Yes, that’s what I meant!
始めのドラマに、ビューアーが、彼をいじめていた生徒達を知りませんね。
終わりに、ドラマを見ていった後で、知ることにあります。
また、あの先生はいろいろ、おかしいことをするね。
だから、見ることは本当に楽しいです。
そうして、ワクワクさせます。
ところで、インターネットでは「青い鳥」を見ることができるのです。
はい、頑張り通します！
After all, one day I want to be fluent in Japanese \(^_^)/
Mikaさん
いえいえ、どういたしまして。コメントの返事も読んでくれてありがとう。
a new teacher is also 新任の先生(=shinnin no sensei)
ついでだからこちらも勉強しましょう！
始めのドラマに、ビューアーが、彼をいじめていた生徒達を知りませんね。
->ドラマの始めに視聴者(or 見ている人は）はどの生徒達が彼をいじめていたか知りません。
終わりに、ドラマを見ていった後で、知ることにあります。
->ドラマを見ていくと最後に（誰がいじめたか）知ることになります。
また、あの先生はいろいろ、おかしいことをするね。
->またその先生はいろいろ（な）おかしいことをします。
だから、見ることは本当に楽しいです。
->だから、見ていて本当に楽しいです。
そうして、ワクワクさせます。->そしてワクワクします。
ところで、インターネットでは「青い鳥」を見ることができるのです。->〜見ることができます。
もうfluentだと思いますよ〜！
教えてくれて、ありがとう！
そう、私は、法学部の学生です
「青い鳥」は学校のいじめのドラマです。
一人学生が自殺を図りました。
彼が出ていた後で、学校にみんなさんは忘れようします。
しかし、新しい先生は忘れて欲しくないです。
I don’t know how to sum it up better, it’s a very recent drama movie with Abe Hiroshi and Hongo Kanata.
It was very interesting so I enjoyed watching it ^^
分かりましたの？^^;
My Japanese is still kinda bad
まだまだね…
Mika-san
こちらこそ！青い鳥のストーリを教えてくれて有り難う！せっかくコメントしてくれたからちょっと一緒に勉強しましょうか！
一人学生が自殺を図りました。
->一人”の”学生が…or 学生が一人”
彼が出ていた後で、
->彼が出てい”っ”た後
You mean after “he has gone”? Then you can also say “彼が去った後”(=Kare ga satta ato )
If you meant “to graduate” ”彼が卒業した後”=Kare ga sotsugyou shita ato ”彼が卒業した後” or “彼の卒業後”(=Kare no sotsugyou go)
みんなさんは忘れようします。：
みんなさん->みなさん=皆さん(=Minasan) But we don’t say 皆さん when we describe a story. We say 皆(=mina) without “san”. (Minasan is when you talk to or address a group of people.) I would say 皆は（その or 彼の 自殺のことを）忘れようとしていました。(=Mina wa (sono or kare no jisatsu no kotowo ) wasure you to shite imashita.)
新しい先生は忘れて欲しくないです。:
-> 新しい（or 新しく来た）先生は生徒達に(彼の自殺のことを)忘れて欲しくありません。（でした。）(=”Atarashii (or Atarashiku kita) sennsei wa seitotachi ni (kare no jisatu no koto wo) wasurete hoshiku arimasen.)
分かりましたの？
->分かりましたか？
まだまだね…
->そんなことないですよ！！すごく上手です！私もストーリをもっと知っていたらいろいろ直せるんだけど。これからもがんばってね！！
私の一番好きな日本語の言葉は救急車。 It reminds me of world of warcraft, where when a person whines about something bad that happened, someone else will say QQ, or QQ more, or less QQ more pewpew. Because QQ is supposed to look like two eyes crying. When someone says QQ it kind of means, get over it.
cloudstrife543-san
救急 sounds like QQ, huh? なるほど！I see..Tashika ni QQ looks like someone is crying..
But I don’t like a sound of QQ車！
How would you say for example “I’m studying medicine.” or “I’m a medicine student.” in Japanese?
A lot of new vocabulary in this lesson, but highly useful and interesting!
I saw the ritual of bowing before the beginning of the class in the drama 青い鳥 and I’ve wondered what the 日直 (also didn’t know that word ^^) was saying, so thanks for this cutural information!
Hello Mika-san
Sorry! I was out of town and I couldn’t answer you back right away.
OK, let me answer your questions:
*to study medicine = 医学を勉強する (=igaku wo benkyo suru.)
*I am studying medicine =私は、医学を勉強しています。(=Watashi wa igaku wo benkyou shiteimaus.)
And I am a medicine student is,
私は、医学部の学生です。(Watashi wa igakubu no gakusei desu.)
ついでに….
*department of pharmacy is 薬学部(=Yakugakubu)
*department of science and engineering is 理工学部（rikou gakubu)
*department of literature is 文学部(=Bungakubu)
青い鳥ってどんなドラマだったかなあ…
Mikaさんの専攻は何？ I am very happy to hear this lesson is useful!
hey don’t you also not refer to yourself as 先生 a profession i forgot what you refer to yourself as if you’re talking about what you do for a living…
Hello, drewbningen-san,
Good point! I didn’t write about this information but if your profession is a teacher, you don’t usually refer yourself as 先生。You address yourself 教師(=kyoushi) becuase “先生” expresses respect and we don’t use honorific expressions to ourselves.
-ご職業は何ですか？(=Goshokugyou wa nan desu ka?) “What is your occupation?”
-教師です。(=kyoushi desu.) “A teacher”
However we do hear people say “学校の先生です。”(=Gakkou no sensei desu.) in our daily conversation.
I will add this information in the lesson.
Arigatou!!
Konnichiha Maggie sensei ! Arigatou as always for this lesson ^^ I remember I saw a drama about school in Japan, I remember this very severe teacher, I think her name was Maya sensei but I’m not sure… Well, it reminds me about it ^^;
Thanks for the vocabulary & useful phrases :)
Laetitita-san,
今日は！！いつも有り難う！！
The TV drama you saw could be “女王の教室”(=Jouou no kyoushitsu) starring an actress, Miki Maya?
There are a lot of TV-dramas about school life and those are called “学園ドラマ”(=gakuen dorama). For example, the long run series, 「３年B組金八先生」(=Sannen biigumi kinpachi sensei). Have you seen “ごくせん”(=Gokusen) ? While “女王の教室” was very serious, “ごくせん” is fun!
If you have a chance, please watch it!
I’m sorry, it didn’t finish before I submitted. For the last one I meant:
今は午後10時5分前です。 It is 5 minutes to 10.
Hello again Maggie!
I have another question.
Is it correct to say this:
今は午後10時5分過ぎです。 It is 5 past 10.
今は午後10時
Harin-san,
The both sentences are perfect!
どちらの文章も完璧です！
よく出来ました〜！！
此のブログが大好きだ。何時もとても面白いし、便利な情報が沢山有るんだ。
問題が有る： 動詞の後に書く時に、「事」と「物」の間の差は何ですか。
Hopefully, I phrased it correctly, but if I did not, here is my question in English: When writing after a verb, what is the difference between “koto” and “mono”?
Thank you, and your blog is extremely helpful! Excellent work, Yukari, Victor, and Maggie sensei!
pcktbol-san
Commentありがとう！
動詞の後に来る「こと」と「もの」の違いについて(=doushi no ato ni kuru “koto” to “mono” no chigai ni tsuite.)
Usually
1) verb+ koto = action
2) verb+mono = things/stuff
食べること(=taberu koto) eating
Ex. 寝る前に食べることはダイエットによくない。(=Neru mae ni taberu koto wa daietto ni yokunai.) Eating before you sleep is not good for your diet.
食べるもの(=taberu mono) things/stuff to eat (food)
Ex. うちには今、何も食べるものがない。(=Uchi niwa ima, nanimo taberu mono ga nai.) There is nothing to eat (no food) in my house right now.
歌うことが好きです。(=Utau koto ga suki desu.) I like to sing/singing. (action)
いじめることはよくない。(=Ijimeru koto wa yokunai.) It is bad to bully someone. (action)
何か、書くものない？(=Nannka kaku mono nai?) Do you have anything to write with? (things)
これは子供が見るものではありません。(=Kore wa kodomo ga miru mono de wa arimasen.) This is not a thing for kids to watch.
How’s that?
pcktbolさんの日本語もちょっと直しますね。
問題が有る If you meant “a question” use 質問 (=shitsumon) . -> 一つ質問があります。(Hitotsu shitumon ga arimasu.) I have a question.
問題(=mondai) means a problem or question for exams or tests.
また、来てね！
How can I say (to my 先生) that I enjoyed class (or that I learned a lot today)?
Obviously I’d never say to her お疲れ様でした or anything (since 先生 needs addressed honorifically…)
and I feel like a simple ありがとうござました is a bit… lame. >.<
Hello, Qristina-san!
Thank you for visiting this site!
では、質問に答えますね。(dewa shitsumon ni kotaemasu ne.) Now let me see your questions,
You can say to your teacher,for example,
今日のクラス、とても楽しかったです。(=Kyou no kurasu, totemo tanoshikatta desu.)
有難うございました。(=Arigatou gozaimashita.)
That means you really enjoyed today’s class. Thank you very much.
By adding “mo” after “kyou”
今日のクラスも (=Kyou no kurasu mo)…….
It implies the teacher ALWAYS gives you good lessons and you enjoyed today’s class “AGAIN”.)
今日は一杯、学びました。（勉強しました。）(=Kyou wa ippai manabi mashita or benkyou shimashita.)
有難うございました。(=Arigatou gozaimashita.) “I have learned a lot today. Thank you so much!”
Again, if you add “mo” after “kyou” 今日も(=kyou mo)
今日も一杯、学びました。（勉強しました。）(=Kyou mo ippai manabi mashita or benkyou shimashita.)
It implies ,”again” or “today also! “I have learned a lot today,too. Thank you so much!”
Or if the teacher constantly give you fun lessons, you can say
先生のクラスはいつも本当に楽しいです。(=Sensei no kurasu wa itsumo hontou ni tanoshii desu.)
Your classes are always enjoyable (fun).
You can say “otsukare sama deshita.” to your teacher when she/he leaves or after class,
先生、どうもお疲れ様でした。(=Sensei doumo otsukare sama deshita.)
Thank you so much for all our hard work, (teacher)
(“doumo”(=very) gives more politeness.)
It is very polite and considerate.
お疲れ様です。（でした）(=Otsukare sama desu (deshita)) deshita : past tense.
ご苦労様です。（でした）(=Gokurou sama desu (deshita))
Both mean “Thank you for your hard work!” but the later, Gokurousama, is for when you address someone who work for you, like subordinates, assistants, handy man, delivery man, etc.
お疲れ様です。(=Otsukare sama desu ) is more polite and it is used for someone superior to you.
If you are not sure which to use, just stick to “otsukare sama desu” as many Japanese people do.
Note: But there is a very casual way, ”お疲れさん”(=Otsukare san). You should avoid using it to your teacher.
Chiisa na bangumi (00:30″) desu kedo, sonna ni takusan atarashii kotoba to bunpou… masaka XD
Itsumodoori, totemo omoshirokatta.
When someone says “osakini” to me, do I have to answer back something ?
I guess Maggie sensei would be an excellent グルメレポーター ! Watashi mo, sono shigoto, yaritai ! :D
Koko ni mo, onsen ga arimasu, furui kazan no soba ni. Demo, koko ha sukunai desu.
Itta koto ga mada nai ^^;
Kyou no lesson arigatou, Maggie sensei & Yukari san ! Ganbatte ne !
Laetitia-san,
いつもコメント有り難う！（Itsumo comment arigatou！）
As for your question, when someone leaves saying “Osaki ni”, you say 「お疲れ様でした。」”Otsukare sama deshita.”
疲れる(=tsukareru) “= to get tired”.
It implies “Thank you for your hard work today.”
グルメレポーターやりたいです！！！ヨーロッパの温泉は水着を着るって本当？(Youroppa no onsen wa mizugi wo kirutte hontou?) Is it true they wear swimsuit in Europe?
なんかお洒落ですね。(=nanka oshare desu ne.)
Aha! That makes a lot of sense. Thanks! I always learn a lot from these lessons.
Xeric-san,
Dou itashimashite! Anytime!
あぁ！凄いだね！私はたくさん日本語の文法に習いました。ありがとうございましたマギー先生。
goldenzephyr-san,
こちらこそ、ありがとう！
せっかく来てくれたからコメントの文法直してあげるね。
凄いだね ー＞凄いね
日本語に習いました。ー＞日本語を習いました。
あとは完璧！！goldenzephyrさんの日本語は凄いよ！
がんばってね！
This was a great lesson! Thanks for all your hard work, I really appreciate it.
Please excuse my ignorance, I’m just beginning with Japanese and I can’t read kanji yet. I have a small question; When one says “Tadaima omochi itashimasu” is this the same “tadaima” that one would say upon returning home? Do they have the same literal meaning?
Hajimemashite (=Nice to meet you!), Xeric-san,
Tadaima “只今” means “(right) now”. When we come back home, we say “Tadaima” to our family that means “只今、帰りました。”(Tadaima kaerimashita.) 帰る(=to return)-> I just came back home “now”. A lot of Japanese say just the first part (=tadaima) without saying ( “kaerimashita.”).
So it is the same meaning of “只今、お持ちします。”(=Tadaima omochi shimashita.)-> I will bring it to you right now.
Dou?
Watashi no bokokugo ha furansugo desu.
Yours is english or japanese ? :o
Saikin, Maggie sensei no video “okinasai” o mimashita. Sugoi kawai ne ^^
Laetitia-san,
Furansu go mo Furansu mo daaaaisuki! Maggie no bokokugo wa inu-go desu! Yukari (Maggie no assistant) no bokokugo wa nihongo desu.
Okinasai no video mite kurete arigatou! Ibiki ga sugoi desho!
Thank you for the correction ^^ As I wrote this sentence I knew there was something wrong but couldn’t correct it myself ^^;;
By the way, sorry if my english sounds wrong too, I hope it’s still comprehensible.
Arigatou :O
Have a nice day !
Laetina-san,
No problem! Your English is better than mine! What is your mother language? (あなたの母国語は何ですか？）
Watashi ha futsuka goto ni gurai Maggie sensei no blog o yomimasu. Lesson ha nagai no ni, totemo omoshiroi desu ! Demo, oboeranakya ikenai koto ga takusan aru no de, raishuu, watashi ha benkyouu o sureba ii ! (<– Machigai ga attara, sumimasen ; ; )
Kyou no lesson, arigatou ^^
Mata ne !
Laetina-san,
Kinou lesson wo keshite shimatta node comment mo kiechatte gomennasai!
(I deleted the lesson yesterday and your comment was gone. I am sorry!)
You made a great sentence. May I correct just a bit?
“Watashi wa futsuka goto ni gurai Maggie sensei…..” -> “Daitai futsuka goto ni”
(Or if you really want to use “gurai” you could say “futsuka gurai goto ni”)
Itsumo kono blog ni kite kurete hontou ni arigatou!! Tottemo ureshii desu!
Hello again Maggie-sensei!
I have a question regarding ～おきに and ～ごとに
If you say 二日おきに、does it have the same meaning as 一日ごとに?
二日おきにコンピューター授業を受けています。
I take computer lessons every two days.
一日ごとにコンピューター授業を受けています。
I take computer lessons every two days.
違いは不明ですね ＾＾；
Harrin-san
前のコメント消えちゃってごめんなさい！説明のところ書き直しました。m(_ _)m
As I wrote you in my previous comment, even many many Japanese people get confused with the difference between “gotoni” and “okini”
If you have to do something, (“o” means the day you do and “x” means the day you don’t do, OK?)
futsuka gotoni= xo xo
mikka gotoni = oxx oxx oxx oxx
yokka gotoni =oxxx oxxx oxxx oxxx
And
futsuka oki ni = oxx oxx
mikka oki ni = oxxx oxxx oxxx
yoykka okini = oxxxx oxxxx oxxxx
So technically “mikka goto ni” has the same pace as “futsuka oki” ni.
And “二日おきに” has the same pace as “三日毎に”
“goto” is one unit that the number indicates. Oki’s kanji is 置き. (置く= to place, to put) So you leave the number of the time unit in between.
一日毎に （日毎：higoto) means every day. (But there is a slight nuance difference between 毎日. And some Japanese think it means every other day)
Thank you! Your questions always make me think. I will talk to other Japanese doggies about it.
Arigato!! :maggie-small:
Dear Maggie-Sensei,
This is very useful information! Might I request you add the word for “weekend” (週末) into the lesson?
~Draquoir
Dear Draquoir-san,
そ〜でした！それを忘れたなんて信じられない！。早速追加しました。(=soudeshita. Sore wo wasureta nante shinjirarenai! Sassoku tsuika shimashita.)
That’s riiiight! I can’t believe I missed that one. I have just added it now.
助かりました。ありがとう！(=Tasukarimashita. Arigatou) Thank you for your help!
you should make a lesson with riceballs! (oniguri) :D <3 I love all the videos~ you have taught me very much~
super riceball-san,
Onigiri suki? Watashi mo daaaai suki! (=Do you like riceballs? I love them,too!)
Super riceball-san wa onigiri no naka de nani ga ichiban suki? What is your favorite onigiri?
I love you maggie! <3 maggie sensei Kawaii ne~~~
Super riceball-san,
I love you,too! Datte watashi no koto kawaii tte itte kuretashi…(’cause you told me I am cute!)
I understand it now!
私は分からなかったって。でも、マギー先生は説明してくれたので、今分かります。 I said I didn’t understand. But because Maggie-sensei explained it to me, I understand now.
ありがとうございます！
Harin-san,
Thank you! If you allow me to correct your sentence,
私は分からなかったって。でも、マギー先生は説明してくれたので、今分かります。
分からないって言ったけれども、マギー先生が説明してくれたので、もう分かりました。will be natural!
Ganbatte!
Goodsite I have Learned much you make my hard expedition of wanting to learn japanese fluently much easiar 有賀と
asc2011-san
Thank you so much for your comment. I am glad to hear you have learned a lot. All your positive comments encouraged me to make more new lessons.
I like this list a lot!
I have a question.
Is 激～ used in the same way as 超～? Like, 超安い or 超辛い?
Hello, Harin-san!
激 and 超 are both use to add the meaning of “super”.
Usually “激” comes before a noun form and “超” comes before adjetive form.
1) Super cheap
People do *激安 (geki yasu) あのカメラは激安だった。(Ano kamera wa gekiyasu datta) That camera was very cheap.
*超安い (chou yasui) あのカメラは超安かった。(Ano kamera wa chou yasukatta.) The same meaning.
2) Super hot/spicy
*激辛(gekikara) このカレーは激辛だ。（Kono karei wa gekikara da.) This curry is super hot.
*超辛い(chou karai) このカレーは超辛い。(Kono karei wa chou karai.) The same meaning.
3) Super crowded
＊激混み(Gekikomi) 今朝の電車は激混みだった。(Kesa no densha wa gekikomi datta.) The train was super crowded this morning.
＊超混んでいる(Chou konde iru.) 今朝の電車は超混んでいた。(Kesa no densha wa chou konde ita.) The same meaning.
HOWEVER, they are both slangs so basically there is no rule. People do say
1-1) 激安い(gekiyasui) 超安 (Chouyasu)
２-1）激辛い (gekikarai) 超辛(choukara)
3-1) 激混んでいる(gekikonde iru) 超混む(choukomu)
If we google “超美味しい” (chouoishii) & “激美味しい” (gekioishii), means “super delicious”,”超美味しい” will get more hits.
Some adjetives and nouns never take 激 or 超, though. So please search the word you want to use with 激 or 超 on Google and check if they use it or not.
Oh, one more thing! Sometimes we use them both,
超激レア (Chou geki rea!) means it is super rare!
超激安 （Chou geki yasu) Super cheap!
超激辛 (Chou geki kara) Super hot
They are kind of fun words, huh?
Hello Maggie! I have a question.
In the sentence, “誰が「遠慮のかたまり」を食べたって？”, why does it end in って？
I got a lot from this lesson!
私は、いつも「遠慮のかたまり」を食べてしまいます。—> Is this correct?
Hello Harin-san!
The line comes from 1)
1)誰が〜を食べたかですって？ (formal-basic)
2)誰が〜を食べたかだって？ (casual)
3)誰が〜を食べたって？ (very casual)
You end the quote with 「って」(The original form is 「と」. 「って」is a casual form.)
Ex. 彼、私のこと好きだって（言ったの。）Kare, watashi no koto sukidatte (ittano.) He said he loves me. (The quote part is “he loves me”)
（「と」is more formal. 彼は私のことを好きだと言いました。(Kare wa watashi no koto wo sukida to iimashita.)
Also
Ex. 彼の名字は”中村さん”って言うみたい。（Kare no myouji wa nakamura san tte iu mitai.) They said his last name is Nakamura. (more polite : 中村さんと言うそうです。(Nakamura san to iu sou desu.))
Can you translate the following sentences using 「って」(casual) or 「と」?
1) Maggie said hello to you.
2) Harin said Maggie is cute.
3) Who said I am fat?
Answers:
1) マギーがあなたによろしくって(言ってました）。（Maggie ga anata ni yoroshikutte) or あなたによろしくと言っていました。(Anata ni yoroshiku to itte imashita.)
２）Harin はマギーのことが可愛いって(言っていました）。（Harin wa Maggie no koto ga kawaiitte!) or 可愛いと言っていました。(Kawaii to itte imashita.)
３）誰が私のことでぶって言ったって？(Dare ga watashi no koto debutte ittatte?) 誰が私のことでぶと言ったの？(Dare ga watashi no koto debu to itta no?)
See you don’t need to finish the sentence when you use 「って」but usually it is natural to finish the sentence when you use 「と」after the quote.
OK, the next question.
私は、いつも「遠慮のかたまり」を食べてしまいます。 : It is correct and as a joke, it is a very cute sentence.
How’s that? Doudeshouka?
That was so comprehensive! It’s going to take me a couple of days to absorb it I think. ^^ Thank you very much. レッソンは日常／自然な日本語ですから、すごい便利ですよ。☆
yumyumsesame-san,
便利？よかった〜！！長くなっちゃったけど１つのレッスンでいろいろなレベル＋目的の友達みんなが勉強できたらなって願っています。
(Benri? Yokatta~! Nagaku nacchatta kedo hitotsu no ressun de iroirona reberu + mokuteki no tomodachi minna ga benkyou dekinatara natte negatte imasu.)
I’m very happy to hear it is useful. It ended up a long lesson but hope all my friends with different levels + purposes of learning Japanese can use my blog to study.
Thank you! Arigatou!! :maggie-small:
Eeeto… Nihon no depaato de ha “本売場” ga arimasu ka ? Watashi ha hon ga suki dakara ^^;
Laetitia-san e
Depaato ni mo 本売場 arimasuyo. 書籍売場（=shoseki uriba) tomo iimasu.
Mata kite ne! :maggie-small:
Maggie sensei ha nani ga ichiban suki desu ka, shokuryouhin to ka, iryouhin desu ka ? ;D
Arigatou for today’s lesson,
mata ne ! :)
Hi Laetitia-san!
Watashi no sukina uriba wa 「お肉売場」”oniku uriba” (=meat section) to 「ペット用品」”petto youhin uriba” desu.
Laetitia-san wa?
面白い！
あんがとう、マギー先生。
Henryfreemanさん
恐れ入ります！こちらこそ有り難うございます！また来てね！
These lessons are amazing! They cover so much material! I will be spending many hours on this website. Domo arigatou gozaimasu.
usaverageguy-san,
こちらこそ、このサイトに来てくれて有り難う！(=Kochirakoso kono saito ni kite kurete arigatou!) Thank you for visiting this site,too!
これらのレッスンが役に立てば嬉しいです。（=Korera no ressun ga yaku ni tateba ureshii desu.) Hope these lesson are useful for you!
There’s a typo here:
“•緑っぽい (=moidorippoi ) greenish”
“moidorippoi” should read midorippoi.
By the way this is really extensive, very interesting and informative, in all, AWESOME! Thanks for this cool lesson!
Ido-san,
“Typo” wo mitsukete kurete arigatou! Sassoku naoshimashita! Thank you for finding the typo. I fixed it right away.
I am very happy to hear you liked the lesson! Please come back again!
Hey, Maggie Sensei,
One of the examples above was: “昨日、ビクターみたいな人を見たよ。” I was wondering if “昨日、ビクターの様な人を見たよ。” can also be used. Or would the latter be translated as that he/she seemed, as in actions, like Victor an’ not in that he/she actually looked physically like Victor. Or how about “昨日、ビクターの様に見える人を見たよ。” Would this be “grammatically correct” Japanese? Finally, what about ビクターっぽそう, would this be fine as well? As in he seemed Victor-ish.
Thank you, Maggie Sensei. These lessons are really useful! Your master’s videos are extremely helpful as well! Keep up the great work!
Hello pcktbolさん
わ〜難しい質問が一杯ありますね。少しずつ答えますね。（Waa muzukashii shitumon ga ippai arimasune. Sukoshi zutsu kotaemasu ne.)
*If you say
「彼はVictorみたいな人だ。」or
「彼はVictorの様な人だ。」
I would think that that person has a similar personality or behaves very similar to Victor. But it could be just a physical resemblance in some cases. It is hard to tell by just that sentence.
“昨日、ビクターみたいな人を見たよ。」or “昨日、ビクターの様な人を見たよ。 They mean almost the same thing. Both sentences use the verb “見た” so we can assume that person physically looked like Victor.
If you say 昨日、ビクターみたいな人に会ったよ。then we don’t know if that person physically looked like Victor or personality-wise similar to Victor (or acted like Victor).
*“昨日、ビクターの様に見える人を見たよ。
Um… Maybe it is grammatically correct but it doesn’t sound natural because you use a person and the verb “見る” .
Ex. 「一見、マギーの様に見える犬を見たよ。」（Ikken Maggie no you ni mieru inu wo mitayo.) 「could be possible
but I would say
「一見、マギーの様な（マギーみたいな）犬を見たよ。」(Ikken Maggie no youna (or maggie mitaina) inu wo mitayo. ) .(一見= Ikken = at a glance.)
様に見える (you ni mieru) itself may sound redundant but it is possible to use. 彼は勉強をしている様に見える。(kare wa benkyou wo shiteiru you ni mieru. ) He looks like he is studying.
As for your last question,
ビクターっぽそう : Sorry, but it is not natural especially after a person’s name.
〜そう is usually used with adjective ( 忙しそう、暑そう）& verb (雨がふりそう、彼がやりそうなこと。)
I would say
(subject) はビクターっぽい。
However, as I mentioned in the lesson, young people might say
これ、無理っぽそう。（Kore murippo sou.) This seems to be impossible. (Grammatically incorrect.)
pcktbolさんは日本語をよく知っていますね。がんばって下さいね。（pcktbol-san wa nihongo wo yoku shitte imasu ne. Ganbatte kudasaine.) :grin:
Wow.. another awesome lesson.. my Japanese is coming along slowly but surely.. thanks so much for your lessons.. they are very much appreciated them. I’ve started started learning Hiragana and I found this great site: http://www.umich.edu/~umichjlp/Hiraganapro/index.html I left a comment in youtube but it didn’t post. Hope that link helps someone who’s also learning hiragana
Markshmily-san
Thank YOU for your comment! The site looks very useful! きっと、みなさんのやくにたつとおもいます。Kitto minasan no yaku ni tatsu to omoimasu! (I bet it is very useful for everyone!)
ありがとう！
Is there anything different (like a vowel insertion) if the ppoi ending is attached to a word that ends in a consonant? For instance, if I want to say bishounen-like/bishounen-ish?
CuriouserNcuriouserさん
なるほど、いい質問ですよね。(naru hodo, ii shitumon desu yone. ) I see, it is a good question! 「ん」などの子音で終わっても語末は「っぽい」になります”N” nadono shiin de owatte mo gomatsu wa “ppoi” ni narimasu. chotto matte, ima, rei wo kangaeru kara.)。
だから「美少年っぽい」って言います。（Dakara “bishounen-ppoi” tte iimasu. ) Even if it ends with a consonant such as “n”, it ends with “ppoi” , so we say “bisshounen-ppoi”.
ちょっと待って、今、他の例を考えるから。(chotto matte, ima hoka no rei wo kangaeru kara.) Let me see, I will think of other examples..
Ex. うどん(udon) noodle :うどんっぽい （udon ppoi) noodlish.
新聞（shinbun = newspapaer) : 新聞っぽい（shinnbun ppoi) newspaper-like
マイケルジャクソン（maikeru jakuson) : マイケルジャクソンっぽい （maikeru jakuson-ppoi) Michael Jackson-like
How’s that?
Just recently (last season) a quite funny j-dorama with ueto aya finished, called “konkatsu”.
it’s a comedy/unrequited love drama with was actually quite fun to watch.
so if you wanna know more about “konkatsu”, that’s a good dorama to watch
Yes! You saw that drama? Ueto Aya-chan and Nakai-kun were in it. So if there are people who want to know more about “Konkatsu”, please watch that show.
There is a tendency to make a TV drama using a new word lately.
「アラフォー」(Ara fou) ＊is another example. （＊「アラフォー」(Ara fou)=Around 40’s. It is about a drama about women who are around 40’s (=40代 yonjyuudai) . We also say アラサー(Ara saa) referring people who are around 30’s =３０代(sanjyuu dai) )
tass san, Thank for your information! Arigato!
I never realized アラフォー meant around 40 since I always saw the drama’s name in english. That one was interesting. Amami Yuki-san played the role.
Also I remember seeing a drama about woman who wanted to get married but she was 28 or something and everyone was like if you hit 28 then it’s almost hopeless to think to get married. So she didn’t want to reveal her age. I think it was in the late 90s or early 2000s.
@Sarusaru
Yes, we have expressions like アラフォー (around forty) or アラサー(around thirty). And there used to be a trend which compared women with “Christmas cake” in old days.
(You can’t sell Christmas cakes after December 25th. That means if your age gets the age 26, less people would be interested in you. That is awful isn’t it? But yes, things have changed since then.
Thank you very much Maggie sensei for all these usefull lessons ^__^ I really enjoyed browsing through your blog today and especially liked the last lessons (“ppoi”, “keigo”, “konkatsu”, and the “restaurant” one with the adorable Nina san). Thanks again for all this work, sensei.
Ganbatte ne ! :3
Hello, Laetitiaさん！
Your nice comment made my day. I really appreciate it. Arigato~~~!!!! Korekara mo ganbaru node ouen shitene.
Your lessons are very helpful! Thank you very much!
アリスさん
Thank you for your comment! Please come back! また来てね！
今日のレッソンをありがとうございました☆
あのサラリー犬、かわいいよ。デートしてみない？
yumyumsesameさん
こちらこそ、ブログに遊びに来てくれて有り難う！
そうね、あのサラリー犬、長男っていうのが気になっていたけど会ってみようかな…
thank you
Enjoyable ,Thanks.
besmasun-san,
Arigatou for your commnets,too!
Listening test dekimashitaka?
Hey Maggie-sensei, thanks for the post!
Now, if I’m writing a small piece, for my composition class at the uni, about a bad company not responding to complaints, should I use 苦情 or クレーム?
Konbanwa, furetosan!
It depends on the context of the complaints.
The precise difference between 苦情 and クレーム is…
-苦情 : It is more emotional. You simply complain about something to improve the situation. And by doing that you want to express your feelings.
-クレーム : You usually require or expect some compensation.
But in a business situation, we tend to use クレーム more.
So in your case, the composition is for クレームに応じて（oujite)くれない ／クレームに対処(taisho)してくれない会社.
Hope this helps…
また来てね！
“Watashi ni uso wo tsukanai de kudasai” is a great sentense that I would like to learn… but do you pronounce it like: “Watashi ni uso o tsukanai de kudasai or Watashi ni usoo tsukanai de kudasai? love to see a audio file to the sentense!
and Maji is spelled with katakana is it imported from a other country or just a really fresh word?
MVHH
Harrihaffi-san
Konnichiwa! Upon your request, I have just added a new audio file so please check it. Although we write “uso wo tsukanai de” in romaji to distinguish “を” and “お”, the pronunciation is the same. So as you said “usoo tsukanaide” would be more natural Japanese sound.
マジ is not a word from other country. It is a slang.
It came from 真面目に？（＝majime ni? seriously?) We tend to abbreviate the word.
Young people love to use it. I will introduce you some other expressions using MAJI
マジに〜する（majini ~ suru) to do something seriously
マジ本気（maji honki) Seriously
マジギレ(する）majigire suru. =To be snapped (seriously)
超マジ （chou maji) = Very seriously.
They are not bad words but please be careful not to use these term in business situation!
「もっと気を使ったら？」 motto kiwo tukai nasai!
エット、ちょっと違いますね。。。
vitoreijiさん
おっと、いけない！直そうと思っていて忘れていました。有り難う！ ついでだからもう１文増やしておきました。
感謝です！
That’s just silly and confusing. Atleast I get it now.
ありがとうございます
Arigatou gozaimasu~ Maggie-sensei!
TheDutchGaijin-san,
Kochirakoso arigatou! Itsudemo kiitene!
Matane!
Sweet, I see that all the favorite Japanese words are here!
I have a question though, “zenbu” or “zennbu” (the second n to make the ん character) is written as “zembu” in a Japanese dictionary.
How come? There is no “m” character. And it’s still written as ぜんぶ . I’ve seen this with other words as well, like “kampai” Do you have any idea why?
Thanks Maggie-sensei!
http://jisho.org/words?jap=ぜんぶ&eng=&dict=edict&common=on&romaji=on
http://jisho.org/words?jap=かんぱい&eng=&dict=edict&romaji=on
Hello, TheDutchGaijin-san! Comment arigatou! As for your question,
全部 ぜんぶ 1) zenbu, or 2) zembu
乾杯 かんぱい 1) kanpai or 2) kampai
太田さん おおたさん 1) Outa-san or 2) Ohta-san
1) form is “Romaji” which Japanese people use. 2) form is for non-native people to pronounce Japanese words.
2) form could be easier to read Japanese words with.
See…
Ex. Memphis is “Menfisu” in Romaji. (It’s how Japanese people try to read English words)
Ex. Combat is “Konbatto” in Romaji.
But orthographically they use “m”instead of “n” before “b” or “p” when they spell in English.
So I think you can write in both ways.
How’s that?
また来てね！ Mata kitene! Please visit me again!
あ。。そうですね。
Lennyさん
Super dooper ありがとう！,too!
super dooper helpful domo arigatou!
すみませんが、ちょっと間違いを見つけました。例５のローマ字はkyoushukuでしょう？
授業をありがとうございました。恐縮です！
amandaparks様
恐れ入ります。早速、間違いを直しました。前足でタイプするのは大変です。
What about 「マギーは意地が悪いだ」、 is this possible?
Hi vitoreiji-san!
Sorry! But you can’t say 意地が悪いだ。But you can say 意地が悪いです。
意地悪です(ijiwaru desu)／意地悪だ。(ijiwaru da)->They are both OK!
１）きれいです。
２）きたないです。
３）うつくしいです。
４）かわいいです。
５）しずかです。
Can you tell which one can end with “da”?
Answer : 1) きれいだ kireida. 5) しずかだ shizukada. They are ナ(na)ーadjetive.
And the rest are イ（i)ーadjective
ijiga warui / Kitanai / Utsukushii / Kawaii : i adjective
ijiwaruna / kireina / shizukana : na adjective
Good question! I will make a test sometime!
有り難う！
From Maggie
I couldn’t help myself since nobody seems to have made a comment on your blog yet so I feel honored to deflower your virgin blog with this disturbing yet slightly amusing message.
I anxiously await for more of your lessons as they are already helpful! Admittedly, I am having trouble with the insane amount of Kanji, and perhaps some furi injections even for the basic stuff would be great?
Kudos on the site, and I’ll see you later!
– Hedgie
Hey maggie-sensei,
I kinda got confused while checking the “previous” lessons: sometimes you put an underlined Kanji, and that kind of makes it hard to distinguish visually. Anyhooo, I like the fact that you’ve given some thought to us 中級！
Hi, ffbittencourt-san! Thank you for your comment! I didn’t think the underlined Kanji might confuse you. I will take it in consideration. Please visit again soon!
コメント有り難う！わかりました。これからはアンダーラインには気をつけますね。また来てね！
Komento arigatou! Wakarimashita! korekawra underline wa kiwotsukemasu! Mata kitene!
Hey, Hedgie-san!! Japanese people also have difficulties remembering all the kanjis. Good luck!
漢字は日本人にとってもたくさんあって大変です。がんばってね！ Kanji wa nihonjin ni tottemo takusan atte taihen desu. Ganbattene!