Useful Japanese Adjectives

Below are some common Japanese adjectives that I have found most useful.

可愛 kawai かわい - cute
恐い kowai こわい - scary
近い chikai ちかい - close
鋭い surudoi するどい sharp
賢い kashikoi かしこい - smart

堅い katai かたい - hard
短い mijikai みじかい - short
細い hosoi ほそい - narrow
長い nagai ながい - long
明るい akarui あかるい - bright

太い futoi ふとい - fat
厚い atsui あつい - thick
熱い atsui あつい - hot
寒い samui さむい – cold
涼しい suzushii すずしい – cool

激しい hageshii はげしい - violent
難し muzukashii むつ"かしい - difficult
簡単 kantan かんたん – easy
眠い nemui ねむい - sleepy
眠たい nemutai ねむたい - sleepy

低い hikui ひくい - low
高い takai たかい - tall
珍しい mezurashii めずらしい - rare
大きい ookii おおきいい - big
小さい chiisai ちいさい – small

古い furui ふるい - old
若い wakai わかい - young
広い hiroi ひろい - wide
安い yasui やすい - cheap, easy
目覚しい mezamashii めざましい - alert

凄い tsumetai つめたい - chilly
強い tsuyoi つよい - strong
弱い yowai よわい - weak
柔らかい yawarakai  やわらかい - soft
早い hayai  はやい - fast

遅いosoi - slow
重い omoi - heavy
暗い kurai くらい - dark
重たい omotai おもたい - heavy
軽い karui かるい - light (opposite of heavy)

恥ずかしい hazukashii はずかしい - embarassing
喧しいyakamashii やかましい – loud, obnoxious
静か shizuka しずか - quiet
素晴らしい subarashii すばらしい - wonderful
美味しい oishii おいしい – delicious

酸っぱいsuppai すっぱい - sour
甘い amai あまい - sweet
狭い semai せまい – narrow
悔しい kuyashii くやしい - vexing, mortifying
怪しいayashii あやしい - doubtful, suspicious

辛い tsurai つらい – hard, difficult
美しい utsukushi うつくし - beautiful
面白い omoshiroi おもしろい - interesting
力強い chikarazuyoi ちからずよい - powerful
かっこいい kakkoii – stylish, handsome

惜しい oshii おしい – regretful*

*Oshii is a neat little word - We can say oshii in situations where we might say darnit in English. For example, I would hear oshii a lot at the bowling alley when my bowling friends would miss a pin. They would say,"oshii", or "Darn I missed".

A So^ desu ka?

When I was a kid, I can remember trying to make fun of oriental people by pulling back on my eyes so they appeared slanted and saying," Ah so desu ka". It wasn't until I lived in Japan that I realized that Japanese kids also make fun of westerners by pointing out that we have big noses and round eyes. It turns out that that there really is a phrase, "A so^ desu ka?". It means, "Is that so?" In this instance so seems to mean the same thing in both English and Japanese.

あ そう です か？a so^ desu ka? - Is that so?

so^ = so

So^, is a cool little word because it seems we can use it the same way in both Japanese and English.

Japanese Grammar Practice for fun

Japanese Grammar Plug and Play
Japanese Lesson #89– Verb (Base I) + ZU NI IRARENAI (Verb + ず に いられない)
(I can’t help but verb)

Today’s Japanese grammar lesson makes use of verbs in Base I. Verbs put into base I always end with the syllable, A (あ) (Pronounced aw as in awful, or awesome). We could think of verbs in Base I as links to negative states or conditions in verbs. Verbs in Base I are usually followed by the word NAI ( ない)- Nai is comparable to the English word not. For example, in English, we say that we can do something or we can not do something, or we say that we will do something, or, will not do something.

- As verbs in Base III tend toward affirmative, verb in Base I tend toward the negative -

The verb to be able to, or, DEKIRU (できる) in base III is positive affirmative, while DEKINAI, which is DEKIRU in Base I + nai is not positive nor affirmative, but negative. Base I forms are like linkage for putting words in their not positive, not affirmative conditions.

DEKINAI (できない) is to CAN’T as
DEKIRU (できる) is to CAN.

SHINAI (しない) is to WON’T DO as
SURU (する) is to WILL DO.

In order to put verbs into bases, it’s necessary to understand the difference between Ichidan 一段verbs ( vowel stemmed verbs) and Yo^dan ようだん or Godan verbs (consonant stemmed verbs). I was taught that there exists three types of verbs but these types are unrelated to the three types of English verbs. In English, the three types of verbs are passive, active and forms of the copula- to be. In Japanese you have kami ichidan katsuyo verbs, godan katsuyo verbs and irregular verbs.


Examples:

1. KANASHIKATTA NODE NAKAZU NI IRARENAI -
悲しかったので泣かずにいられない
I was so sad, I couldn’t help but cry.

NAKU ( 泣く)– v. to cry
in Base I – NAKA ( 泣か)
NAKA + ZU + NI IRARENAI 泣かずにいられない

2. GAMAN DEKINAKUNATTA NODE KAERAZU NI IRARENAI –
我慢できなくなったので帰らずにいられない
Things got so bad, I couldn’t take it anymore. I couldn’t help but go back home.

KAERU ( 帰る)– v. to return home, to go back
in Base I, KAERA ( 帰ら)
KAERA + ZU NI IRARENAI 帰らずにいられない

3. TAIHEN BYO^KI NI NATTA NODE, HAKIDASAZU NI IRARENAI –
大変病気になったので吐き出さずにいられない
I got so sick I couldn’t help but throw-up.

HAKIDASU (吐き出す) – v. to throw up, vomit, spit out
in Base I, HAKIDASA (吐き出さ)
HAKIDASA+ ZU NI IRARENAI 吐き出さずにいられない

4. KIITE ITA ONGAKU WA SUGOKU OMOSHIROKATTA NODE, ODORAZU NI IRARENAI –
聞いていた音楽は凄く面白かったので躍らずにいられない
The music was we were listening to was so good, I couldn’t help but dance.

ODORU ( 躍る)– v. To dance
in Base I, ODORA (躍ら)
ODORA + ZU NI IRARENAI 躍らずにいられない


These examples are extreme to show that you can make up any type of sentence you want using the grammar practice constructions and it will benefit your Japanese language skills immensely useful. There you have it! Another plug and play grammar principle you can use to add to your arsenal of Japanese language weaponry, which, depending on you, can take you yet another step towards better Japanese.

As Always,
Ganbatte Ne! 頑張ってね!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki マクラスキー


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learn to count in Japanese

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some quick Japanese grammar

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Reverse English learning for Japanese Speakers

http://saketalkie.blogspot.com candid discussions on all sorts of Japanese topics especially how to speak Japanese

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study Japanese with the help of you- Super Japanese accelerated language learning 3 cubed

for other language speakers that want to learn Japanese, try the following

http://italianjapanese.blogspot.com
or
http://spanishjapanese.blogspot.com

or
http://russianjapanese.blogspot.com



Towards Better Japanese
Ganbatte ne!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki

kiroku

kiroku -n. record(s)
-ki record(s)
Re-biki - Leviticus or the record of re-bi (Levites)

Towards Better Japanese
Ganbatte ne!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki

How to count people in Japanese

How to count people in Japanese.
Hito 人 the Japanese counter for people.

When counting people in Japanese we use the counter for person or hito 人 (ひと). Hito also has the reading of nin or にん. The first two counters or words for 1 person and 2 persons are exceptions and are irregular. The word for 1 person is hitori, and the word for 2 people is futari.

When at a fine gourmet restaurant in Japan, the first thing the maitre d will ask is, “ how many people in your group,” to which you could reply any of the following. If two people then say futari. You will most likely hear the maitre d saying “ O- futari san desu ka?”, which means, “Table for two?” to which you could reply, “Hai so^ desu”, “Yes that is correct, 2.”

Nin 人 is the counter for people or persons so that we will have from 1-10 people the following:

hitori - 一人, 1 person
futari - 二人, 2 people
sannin - 三人, 3 people
yonnin - 四人, 4 people
gonin - 五人, 5 people
rokunin - 六人, 6 people
shichinin - 七人, 7 people
hachinin - 八人, 8 people
kyu^nin - 九人, 9 people
ju^nin - 十人, 10 people

If you can count to 100 in Japanese, then just add nin 人 to say how many people you are talking about. The same for any number up to infinity. The word for everyone or everybody is minna and depending on how polite you wish to address everyone by, you either add the polite san さん or sama 様 to minna 皆making it minnasan 皆さん or minnasama 皆様.

More advanced examples:
hachiju^hachinin - 八十八人, 88 people
sennin - 千人,1000 people etc.

Japanese Grammar - Ka do ka - iffy statements

P.F. + Ka do^ ka - Whether or not...
Basic Japanese grammar plug and play for "Whether or not...p.f."

In Japan, I always would hear Do^ ka na when I questioned someone about something for which they were uncertain of... Like I might ask, "Do you think the Hanshin Tigers will win? A simple not too complicated question to which may be replied, "I'm not sure really", or "Heck if I know, I wonder who will win too." etc. So that we would have

Hanshin ga katsu to omou? - Do you think Hanshin will win?
Do^ ka na. - "Heck if I know" or "I wonder...who..." or "Ummm, thats a tough one."

So in our Japanese grammar construction for today we have P.F. + ka do^ ka Whether or not A, B. Where A and B could be verbs or adjectives in plain form. It is in plain form because it is actually two questions nested nearby one another. Do^ ka is a question in itself meaning, "How is it?" In Japan you will hear Do^ by itself when someone wants to know the state or condition of somebody or something. If I say do^ with a certain inquisitive inflection you would be saying, "How are you" etc.

P.F. + ka do^ ka - Whether or not

Plain form verbs -

iku ka do^ ka shirimasen - I don't know whether he is coming or not.

Whether or not you know something or do something ka do^ ka is the question doubled Japanese grammar. This Japanese grammar

The Japanese verbs Iru & Aru - to be

In Japanese, the verb aru is used to signify the existence of something, while the verb iru is used to signify the existence of someone. They shouldn’t be used interchangeably, even though they both mean, "to be", or "exist".

You would do well to get acquainted with these two Japanese verbs because they are used so frequently. Aru is for inanimate subjects or objects, while iru, is for animate subjects or objects. Iru is used when speaking of the existence of living things but more particularly, people;  Aru is used when speaking of the existence of things (inanimate objects, books, pens, lakes, trees.) Aru has other honorific forms. Its' most common polite form is arimasu. Iru can take other honorific or polite forms too, like imasu, irrashaimasu, or orimasu.

If it breathes use iru if not, use aru. Here is a summary and examples:

IRU (v. to be) - People, Animals.

ARU (v. to be) - Place, Things.

Examples:

1. There is a book on the table. - テーブル の上に本があります Teburu no ue ni hon ga arimasu.

2. There is a red car placed there. - 赤い車がすそこにおいてありますAkai kuruma ga soko ni oite arimasu.

3. How many marbles do you have? - B 玉はいくつありますか? B-dama wa ikutsu arimasu ka?

When dealing with live, breathing creatures (i.e animals, humans, and usually even some insects like the kabutomushi兜虫, use iru.

Examples:

1. Is Mr. Tanaka Home? -

Tanakasan irrashaimasu ka? 田中さんいっらしゃいますか?

or

Tanakasan imasu ka?
田中さんいますか?

Or simply

Tanakasan iru?
田中さんいる

To which one could reply, “Hai, orimasu.” はいおります “Yes, he is home.”


2. I have 6 cats. – 猫ろっぴきがいます Neko ga roppiki imasu.

3. How many brothers do you have? - 兄第は何人いますか Kyo^dai wa nannin imasu ka?

4. How many are there? なんこある nanko aru?

Using word association to master Japanese

How To Use Word Association To Master Japanese

A good goal when learning another language is to try to remember words so that you won’t ever forget them. That is a lofty goal. You make absurd associations that are meaningful to you and in this way by making absurd associations between something that reminds you of the meaning of the word in Japanese but sounds like that in English. The more absurd the associations, the less likely you are to forget them, unless you forget the association related to the words you are memorizing. For example tanjo^bi = birthday, anchovies have birthdays too or tan Jo be chilling cuz its her birthday yo wassup! Mentally picture a tan person named Jo talking ghetto cuz she be this and be that! You know what I’m saying. Get down and ghetto you can speak Japanese fluently only if you try. So this tan girl or guy named Jo be hunh? She be what? Who cares! As long as you can relate meaning to sound in a way that helps you remember the word until you reach the plateau of usefulness. Once a word that is new to you in another language is used, from the very first time to the 50th time, you get better with each use of the word.

Another good method I have found that when you are practicing your conversation skills, replace during the day any word that you would want and set aside 2 hours where you speak only in the target language at all costs. No matter what you can always get your meaning across. If you can’t practice this way and act normally in this type of situation then you won’t be able to last long in the land of the rising sun. So how do you do it? Simple! Let’s say you learned the word for paper that day, or you learned the phrase ha o migaku, to brush your teeth. Do you tell your mom or your roommates or whoever you live with that you are going to brush your teeth? NO! You say to them in Japanese and to all who will listen and put up with your intense desire to speak fluently the Japanese language, IIE HA O MIGAKIMASU or something to that effect.

Japanese Word Association Examples

SURU – Suru was the guy who would take over the ship in Star Trek if Captain Kirk couldn’t be there, and he was a busy guy. Suru was the guy who always was doing something. Make an association between the verb to do, and the guy named Suru on Star Trek. You’ll never forget words if they are associated in a meaningful way to you. SURU in Japanese is the verb to do.

NEKO – imagine Cleopatra with a long neck and her long neck cat called necko etc.

MIMI – the little girl whose ears were so cute you would always grab her by the ears O-mimi with the honorific prefix means the honorable ears, the ones affixed to your head.

DENKI – the electric light is so very tiny & dinky in Japan image etc.

Tofu can fly = TOBU means to fly, jump etc.

MUHO^SHU^ moo + hoe +shoe = free service

Young children often KURAI in the dark, I mean cry in the dark!

To sneeze is easy, in Japanese it sounds more like what we actually do than the English word to sneeze. In Japanese to sneeze is KURAKUSHON SURU.

One of the first Japanese I learned was the Don’t touch my mustache or Do Itashimashite

Now don’t go overboard with the associations. There must be a point at which you can enter back into real study mode to pull out the real words and not just what they sound like.

As Always, Ganbatte Ne! Do Your Best!
Makurasuki Sensei

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More on Hodo in Japanese grammar

Hodo – to the extent that

Ex. 1 sureba suru hodo shiyasukunaru – The more I do it the easier it gets.

Ex. 2 Aeba au hodo suki ni natte shimau – the more I meet you the more I begin to like you.

Ex. 3 Stephen wa toshi or toreba toru hodo se wa takakunaru - The more Stephen ages, the taller he gets.

Making Wishes in Japanese

Japanese Grammar Lesson #98
How to Make Wishes in Japanese
or How to say , "If I could only verb" in Japanese.

Base IV + ba ii no ni or
A verb in its conditional state + ii no ni + ば いい の に
To wish (something), (I wish I could verb, despite it being cool)

To make sentences that will express your wishes or longing for something put a Japanese verb into its conditional state and add ii noni. The noni part I always took as meaning in spite of or despite something. Ii is the word for good, so that yoi could be used or even other adjectives of different shapes and sizes.

For this construction, any Japanese verb in its condtional form conditional will suffice for this lesson’s construction. The use of nara is also acceptable. So that you could have
-noun nara ii noni etc.

The Japanese conditional being either a verb in base IV as in iku -->? ik(e) (baseIV) + ba = ikeba or if (I) go or verb in base TA + RA, so that iku --> itta + ra or ittara

The verb iku 行く in base IV is 行け
- add the conditional extendor ば to the base so that 行け + ば = 行けば

ikeba ii no ni 行けば いい のに -
It would have been cool if I could have went, or I wish I could have gone.
literally this phrase means something more like Despite it being good, if I go.

In the same way you may say it this way, iku in base TA is itta
- add ra to form the conditional. So that
itta + ra = ittara
- than add ii no ni to complete the phrase that you wish would happen.
行った + ら = 行ったら

I have always Below are some examples to get you going. Make your own interesting sentences. Make questions out of them. Use them in Japan on real Japanese people to test them out and make sure they work. You never know what you might be able to say with your new grammar construction for making wishes in Japanese.

Examples

1. Yasukattara ii noni 安かったら いいのに
- I sure hope it is cheap, (lit. if it were cheap it would be good despite the fact that its probably not.)

2. Ittara ii noni or ikeba ii noni 行ったらいいのに or 行けば いい のに
- I wish I could go

3. Kirei dattara or kirei nara ii noni きれい だったら いいのに or きれいなら
- If she were cute that would be cool, or I hope she is pretty. (lit. Despite it being good if (she) is pretty.)

4. Shicchan ga ittara ii noni しっちゃん が いったら いい のに
- it would be cool if shi chan (a girl whose name starts with Shi)

5. Mite mireba ii noni. 見て 見れば
- I wish you would go check it out. or It would be cool if you could go look at it.

6. okane mochi nara ii noni – I wish I were rich, or if only I had a lot of money how cool would that be…etc.

As always,
Ganbatte ne!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki