Japanese

Japan letters and word.
This is widely viewed as Duolingo's worst course to date. However, after the updated course was released in 2019, it has vastly improved as is as good as any other Duolingo course, if not better. We do recommend supplementing your studies with the following free resources if you like:

Lingodeer

Tae Kim's free online Japanese textbook, also available in PDF format and as an iOS and Android app.

Welcome to the Japanese course!
While many consider Japanese to be very difficult to learn for native English speakers, this is only partially true. Many aspects of the Japanese language are quite simple, such as the sound system, and yes, even most of the grammar.

Writing Systems
Japanese uses three different writing systems, hiragana, katakana, and kanji.
 * Hiragana is the most basic Japanese syllabary. It's like an alphabet that uses syllables instead of individual sounds.
 * Katakana is the syllabary used to write foreign words and some noises. Although it's different from hiragana, it represents the exact same syllables.
 * Kanji are Chinese characters used in the Japanese language to write individual nouns, verbs, and adjectives. Kanji are not phonetic, meaning you need to memorize each pronunciation individually. In this course, we introduce kanji gradually and methodically.

Hiragana Pronunciation
Below are the most basic forms of Japanese hiragana. We'll be introducing some more later as well. As the only solitary consonant in hiragana,  ん  is especially notable because it is only found at the end of another syllable. In other words, you will never read a Japanese word that begins with  ん.

You can also practice Hiragana on Tinycards.

Enjoy the course!

Hiragana Pronunciation
Below are the most basic forms of Japanese hiragana. We'll be introducing some more later as well.

As the only solitary consonant in hiragana,  ん  is especially notable because it is only found at the end of another syllable. In other words, you will never read a Japanese word that begins with  ん.

You can also practice Hiragana on Tinycards

Hiragana Pronunciation
Below are the most basic forms of Japanese hiragana. We'll be introducing some more later as well. As the only solitary consonant in hiragana,  ん  is especially notable because it is only found at the end of another syllable. In other words, you will never read a Japanese word that begins with  ん.

You can also practice Hiragana on Tinycards

Hiragana 4
In the following skill, we introduce a few more elements to basic hiragana.

Hiragana Part II: Dakuten
Putting two little dots or dakuten at the upper right corner of a hiragana syllable voices the consonant. It changes the pronunciation of the hiagana the following way:

Putting a little circle or handakuten at the upper right corner changes the pronunciation of the は-ひ-ふ-へ-ほ hiragana in the following way:

Hiragana Part III: Small っ
Putting っ (small tsu) between two Hiraganas doubles the letter right after っ and introduces a short pause between two sounds. See some examples below:

Hiragana Part IV: Big and Small Characters
Lastly, this skill introduces the big and small versions of three sounds in hiragana. A small や、ゆ、or よ changes the pronunciation of a word in the following way:

The small character changes the two-syllable construction into a one-syllable construction. Sometimes, the difference can lead to a real change in meaning, as shown below:

Saying Thank You
The phrase "thank you" in Japanese is dependent on the situation. Below is a table of the most common forms, from least to most formal. Note that the formality increases with the length of the phrase.

Saying Thank You for a Past Action
If you'd like to thank someone for something they did in the past, you change the ございます ending to ございました.

Katakana
This lesson will begin introducing katakana. Like hiragana, katakana is a Japanese phonetic writing system. It's used for several things, but one of the most common uses is for foreign words.

Katakana with Dakuten
If you sound out the words below using the katakana alphabet, you might find some familiar words! Some of the pronunciation is a little different than its English equivalent, though.

Just be careful - not all words written in katakana were taken from English!

Not all foreign loan words in Japanese are directly equivalent to their English counterparts! For instance, in Japanese アメリカ (Amerika) isn't commonly used to refer to all of North America or to both North and South America - it's used almost exclusively to mean "The United States." However, イギリス (Igirisu) can be used to refer to both "England" and "The UK."

Introduction to Kanji
This lesson introduces the non-phonetic writing system of Japanese, kanji. Kanji  literally means "Chinese characters," and they're used to build content words like nouns, verbs, and adjectives.

Kanji Readings
So how do you read kanji? Most kanji have at least two possible readings. Typically, one reading is derived from a native Japanese word, and one reading is derived from a Chinese loanword. These are called "kunyomi" ("meaning reading") and "onyomi" ("sound reading") respectively.

Let's take the kanji for "country,"  国. On its own, we use the Japanese "kunyomi" reading, くに. In Japanese, くに means "country." However, in compounds, we use the "onyomi" reading of こく. Therefore, China,  中国  or "middle country," is read as ちゅうごく.

Rendaku
So why isn't it ちゅうこく？This is due to a phenomenon known as "rendaku" or "sequential voicing." Syllables that come later in a word are sometimes voiced and marked with a dakuten. This is often rather unpredictable, so rendaku words should be memorized individually.

Example Kanji
Below is a table of the six kanji that are introduced in this lesson, complete with possible readings.

You may have noticed that the word Japan, or  日本  is composed of the kanji meaning "sun" and "origin." This word was first adopted by the Chinese, and to them, Japan was off to the east, the place where the sun rose or "originated."

Katakana Pronunciation
This lesson also introduces katakana, the phonetic Japanese writing system used for foreign words. See their pronunciation below.

Basic Grammar
One thing that makes Japanese very different from English is the Japanese tendency to  drop the subject of the sentence  when the meaning is clear from context. Statements usually refer to oneself, while questions usually address the person you're speaking with.

The Question Marker
Adding question marker  か  at the end will make the affirmative (positive) sentence into question. If the sentences end in ～です, it’s easy to formulate questions by using ～ですか.

Pronouns
Pronouns are relatively rare in Japanese, but they are sometimes used to explicitly specify the subject or topic of a sentence. Below are some of the most common ones.

Kanji from this Skill
Below is a table of the eight kanji that are introduced in this lesson, complete with possible readings.

Object Particle
The marker を is attached to things or people, and means that they are the target of the verb. Subjects are often omitted in Japanese sentences. Unlike English, the location of the verbs are usually at the end of the sentence. を was once pronounced wo, but now it’s the [o] sound.

General Pronouns
This lesson also introduces the general pronouns これ、それ、あれ、and どれ、which translate to "this," "that," "that (over there)," and "which (one)," respectively.

Kanji from this Skill
Below is a table of the two kanji that are introduced in this skill, complete with possible readings.

Kanji from this Skill
Below is a table of the six kanji that are introduced in this skill, complete with possible readings.

Directional Particle
The particle へ indicates a direction towards which something or someone moves. This movement is the direction away from the current location. When used as a particle, へ is pronounced as [e].

Location and Time Particle
The particle に with a time expression indicates a specific point in time. に can also express times on a clock, days of the week, or years.

Kanji from this Skill
Below is a table of the four kanji that are introduced in this skill, complete with possible readings.

The Verbs あります and います
あります and います are very special verbs in Japanese that refer to something's existence. They're often translated into English as "there is" or "there are." Even though they're often translated identically, they describe different objects:
 * あります is used for  inanimate objects, like books, rooms, televisions, and apples.
 * います is used for  animate objects, like people, cats, dogs, and other animals.

Japanese Counting Words
The Japanese language uses special  counting words  to count things, actions, and events. You use these words when you want to mention a specific number of a certain noun. Below is how they are typically formed.

In Japanese, you also have the option of placing the number and counter before the noun, but this is less common and typically involves an additional particle.
 * 鳥が二羽います means "there are two birds."


 * 二羽の鳥がいます also means "there are two birds."

Below is a table for 羽、the counting word introduced in this lesson. 羽 is a counter used just for birds and rabbits.

Kanji from this Skill
Below you will find the kanji for all of the vocabulary words in this skill.

Sentence-Ending Particles
This lesson introduces two of the most common sentence-ending particles, ね and よ. Used exclusively in conversation, they communicate intention rather than concrete meaning, and as such, they are difficult to translate directly.

ね  is used to seek passive agreement from the person being spoken to, much like "... right?" or "... correct?" in English.


 * いい天気 (てんき) ですね means "nice weather,  isn't it ?" and is a common expression on mild, sunny days.

よ  is used to express certainty in a matter of uncertainty, as if to emphasize the truth of the words that come before it. This sense of emphasis mirrors the use of the word "does" in the English sentence "She (actually) does enjoy tennis."


 * お元気 (げんき) ですか？means "are you doing well?" and a valid response would be as follows.


 * 元気 (げんき) ですよ means "I  am  doing well (you know)" and communicates that perhaps the answerer's health was actually poor recently and they intend to underline their present healthiness.

Japanese Counting Words
The Japanese language uses special  counting words  to count things, actions, and events. Below is a table for つ and 個、the counting words introduced in this lesson. つ is a counter that can be used for anything, while 個 is restricted to physical objects that are relatively small and round.

Familial Terms
Japanese uses a number of terms for family members. Some use the honorific form, which is typically reserved for someone else's family members, while others use a shorter, more casual form, reserved for your own family members.

Still, these rules are not hard and fast. You will still hear children use the honorific form to address their own mother or father.

Determiners
Just like in English, determiners in Japanese come before a noun and signify both its location and relationship with the speaker. Japanese also has two words for "that" depending on whether or not the listener is close to the noun or not.


 * この 本 (ほん) は高い (たかい) です means "this book is expensive" when the book in question is close to you but farther from the person you're speaking to.
 * その 本 (ほん) は高い (たかい) です means "that book is expensive" when the book in question is far from you but near the person you're speaking to.
 * あの 本 (ほん) は高い (たかい) です means "that book is expensive" when the book in question is far away from both you and the person you're speaking to.
 * どの 本 (ほん) は高い (たかい) ですか？ means "which book is expensive?" no matter where the book in question happens to be.

Place Marker
The particle  で  usually shows the location of action or event, such as "at" "in" or "on" in English. で also indicates "with" "by" or "using" to show a language or tools being used.

Adjectives
This lesson also introduces Japanese adjectives, which are divided into い-adjectives and な-adjectives.

い-Adjectives
い-adjectives are  true adjectives  that have been in the Japanese language since the very beginning. All of them end in い、although not all adjectives that end in い are in fact い-adjectives. See how they operate using the example い-adjective おいしい、meaning "delicious."

Note that all い-adjectives can drop the です ending in casual speech. This is grammatical as well.

When placed before a noun, there's no change to the spelling of an い-adjective.

We will be introducing the other major category of Japanese adjectives later in the course.

Large Numbers
Japanese has certain conventions for writing large numbers. Below are the kanji and readings for a few of them that will be introduced in this lesson.

百 and 千 can be used in isolation to mean 100 and 1,000.

It would sound unnatural in Japanese to write 一百 or 一千 when you have 100 or 1,000 of something. However, 万 functions with the opposite convention; when you have 10,000 of something, it is customary to put 一 in front of it.

Past Tense
This lesson introduces the past tense of verbs. In Japanese, there are other varieties of tense, but we will cover those in later lessons. Changing a verb from the present/future tense to the past tense is rather simple. Instead of changing the negative ending 〜ません to make a negative past tense verb ("did not eat"), we simply add the word でした to the end.
 * パンを食 (た) べ ます  means either "I will eat bread" or "I eat bread."
 * パンを食 (た) べ ました  means "I ate bread."
 * パンを食 (た) べません means either "I will not eat bread" or "I do not eat bread."
 * パンを食 (た) べませんでした means "I did not eat bread."

The endings above apply to all verbs that end with 〜ます.

Expressing Position
As noted in an earlier lesson, Japanese has two special verbs that mean "be" or "exist" depending on the animateness of the subject. います  is used for living things, while  あります  is used for inanimate objects. We use these verbs to describe someone or something's position relative to something else.


 * 猫は机の上にいます means "the cat is on the desk."

Notice how the verb changes depending on whether or not the topic is animate.
 * 本は机の上にあります means "the book is on the desk."

Counting People
Counting people in Japanese is relatively easy, but there are a couple irregular forms. Please reference the following table to learn how to count people.

You will also see another counter,  枚 (まい), which is used to count flat things. Thankfully, 枚 has no irregular forms, and so it's read the same way regardless of the number that comes before it.

Not Much
あまり  is a word you can use with negative sentences to express ideas like “not much,” “not often” or “not many.” Below are a few examples of its usage.

Counting People
Counting people in Japanese is relatively easy, but there are a couple irregular forms. Please reference the following table to learn how to count people.

You will also see another counter,  枚 (まい), which is used to count flat things. Thankfully, 枚 has no irregular forms, and so it's read the same way regardless of the number that comes before it.

Not Much
あまり  is a word you can use with negative sentences to express ideas like “not much,” “not often” or “not many.” Below are a few examples of its usage.

Negative い-Adjectives
When い-adjectives are switched from positive to negative, they undergo a spelling change. The characteristic い-ending switches to a く、and the phrase meaning "not" is added to the end. The final result is an ending such as くないです. See the example below.

Just like with positive い-adjectives, all negative い-adjectives can drop the です ending in casual speech.

To make the speech more formal, one can change the ending from くないです to くありません.

Wearing Clothing
Japanese has many translations for the English words "to wear" or "to put on," depending on where on the body the clothes are worn. Below are some examples taught in this lesson.

Together!
In Japanese, there are different ways to ask someone to do something with you. Your verb ending can subtly change the nature of your request or suggestion.

Weeks and Months
Japanese has specific words for ideas like "last week," "next week" and "this week." There is even a word for "the week after next"! Maybe you'll notice a pattern with how these words are formed!

Playing an Instrument
Japanese uses different verbs to talk about playing different kinds of musical instruments. In this skill, you will encounter the verb used for playing a string instrument -  弾きます  (ひきます). Don't forget that the piano is included as a string instrument!

Isn't it?
In Japanese, it is common to ask a question in the negative form in order to solicit agreement. These sentences are commonly translated as "Isn't it...?" in English.

Did you notice the difference? When the question is asked with a regular adjective form, the English meaning is " Is it...? " When it is asked with an adjective in the negative form, the English translation changes to " Isn't it...? "

Adverbs
In Japanese, you can change an -い adjective to an adverb by dropping the  -い  and replacing it with  -く. Adverbs are usually words that end in  -ly  in English and describe  how  something happens.

Here are some examples of how these different forms are used.

Very, quite, or not at all!
In this skill, you will encounter words that can modify the severity of your sentences.

全然 (ぜんぜん)  and   全く (まったく)  can both be used with negative sentences to mean "not at all."

とても  and   大変 (たいへん)  can both be used in affirmative sentences to mean "very."

結構 (けっこう)  can be used in affirmative sentences to mean "quite."

A Small Amount
少ない (すくない)  is an adjective that means “few” or “not much.” Be careful – although the word ends in -ない, it isn’t the negative form of the adjective! The negative form of 少ない is actually 少なくない (すくなくない). That’s a mouthful!

Big and Small
There a few adjectives that have both an -い and a -な adjective form. With these adjectives, it is common to use the -な adjective form when the adjective comes  before  the noun it is modifying. "Big" and "small" are two such adjectives.

Big or Wide?
The word  広い (ひろい)  means "wide" and  狭い (せまい)  means "narrow," but these words are often used in Japanese in situations in which we'd use the words "big" or "small" in English. For instance, when you're describing the internal area of a room as "large," you usually use the word 広い rather than 大きい. 広い is sometimes also translated as "spacious."

Where?
Japanese has different levels of formality, and sometimes there are different words with the same meaning that differ by formality level. You'll encounter some of them in this skill.

An Empty Stomach
In Japanese, when you ask someone if they are hungry, the expression is  お腹がすきましたか？  (おなかがすきましたか？)

Although the Japanese expression is written in past tense, its understood meaning would be equivalent to the English expression “Are you hungry?” It literally translates to something like, “Has your stomach been emptied?” – because if your stomach has become empty, that means that you’re hungry now!

Japanese Counting Words
The Japanese language uses special  counting words  to count things, actions, and events. Below is a table for 日、the counting word introduced in this lesson. 日 is the counter for days.

な-Adjectives
This lesson teaches the first な-adjective in the course, きれい、meaning "pretty" or "clean." Although it looks like an い-adjective, it belongs to the な-adjective category.

な-adjectives are  nominal adjectives  that have been imported from other countries over centuries, mainly from China. There is no pattern as to what they look like, aside from the fact they're not likely to end in an い. Remember that きれい is an exception. See how they operate using the example of きれい below.

Note that な-adjectives typically do not drop the です ending in a construction like the one above.

When placed before a noun, a な-adjective adds a characteristic な between the adjective and the noun that follows.

女 and 男
In this skill, you’ll encounter words about men and women and boys and girls, and you’ll see some different expressions you might use to talk about them. The word for woman is 女 (おんな) and the word for man is 男 (おとこ), but it is more polite to use the expressions 女の人 (おんなのひと) and 男の人 (おとこのひと) instead. There are also the expressions 女の子 (おんなのこ) and 男の子 (おとこのこ) which mean “girl” and “boy” respectively. Did you notice that the polite expressions for “man” and “woman” use the character for "person" -  人  (ひと) – while the expressions for “boy” and “girl” use the character for “child” -  子  (こ)?

Death
Much like English, Japanese has more than one way to talk about death. The different words have different connotations, similar to the English language expressions “died” and “passed away.”

て-Form
The て-form or で-form of a verb is a very important grammatical construct in Japanese that is used in several contexts.

Requests
～て / 〜で + ください is used for requests. It means "please + [verb]"


 * よんで ください means "please read."

You can also attach nouns to these requests to get more specific.


 * 本を よんで ください means "please read the book."

What was happening?
～て / 〜で + います can be used to describe continuing action in the present, but did you know that you can use the -て form of the verb to describe continuing action in the past, too? Instead of  〜います, you would use  〜いました  after the -て form of a verb to describe an ongoing action that occurred in the past. Look at how the verb endings can change the meaning of a sentence.

Counting Small Animals
Japanese has a lot of counter words that change depending on the object or creature being counted. Sometimes, the counter word even depends on the  size  of the thing being counted! For instance, the counter word 〜匹 (ひき) is used to count  small  animals. However, the reading of the word 〜匹 changes depending on the number that comes before it.

The Water Radical
Kanji characters are made up of different component parts called  radicals. Did you know that a kanji's radicals can sometimes give you a hint about the kanji's meaning? For instance, kanji containing the radical 氵often have something to do with water. If you look at the words below, you can see that they all contain the radical 氵 on the left side of the kanji character, and all of them involve water. You might have noticed this radical in other kanji you've already seen, too!

て-Form
We will now take a look at three more purposes for the て-form of verbs.

Ongoing Actions
～て / 〜で + います is used for actions in progress.


 * よんでいます means "I am reading."

We also use this construction for ongoing actions that would ordinarily use the present perfect construction in English.


 * 映画ははじまっています means "The movie has begun."

～て / 〜で + いません is the corresponding negative construction.


 * よんでいません means "I am not reading."

Prohibitions
～て + は + いけません is used when telling someone that they must not or should not do something.


 * よんではいけません means "you must not read."


 * あの本をよんではいけません means "you must not read that book."

Linking Sentences
We already learned the words と and や that mean "and" when combining nouns. Instead of those words, we use the て-form to link verbs together in Japanese sentences.


 * ドアを 閉めて 窓を開きます means " I will close the door  and  open the window."


 * りんごを 食べて 水を飲みました means "I ate the apple  and  drank the water."

For the examples above, notice how the て-form is used for the first verb regardless of the tense of the overall sentence. Only the final verb indicates the tense in this construction.

て form: -ing
～て + います is used for action in progress (-ing). ～て + いません is the negative form.

て form: disallow

～て + は + いけません is used for things you should not do.

Konbini/Convenience Store
No tips and notes as of 30th March 2020

He said, she said!
When you are quoting what someone said or telling someone what something is called, you would use the particle  〜と. You can think of 〜と kind of like quotation marks in English, with the phrase coming before 〜と being the phrase that would be in quotes. Since there's no opening quotation mark like there would be with a quote in English, though, you sometimes have to figure out from context which words are being quoted.

Be careful, because using the wrong particle can sometimes greatly change the meaning of your sentence.

Counting Long Things
〜本  (ほん) is another Japanese counter word, and it is used to count long, cylindrical things like pens and pencils. Be careful, because the pronunciation of 〜本 also changes depending on the number before it!

Feeling
Note: Old notes before updated tree in Februry 2020

Describing past
Basic form of Adjective ends in い, as in あつい (hot). To make it past tense you can delete い and replace with かった. Adding です at the end will make it polite form.

Past-Tense い-Adjectives
To turn an い-adjective from the present to the past tense, you remove the い-ending and replace with かった. Adding a です at the end will turn it into the polite form. See the example below.

Just like with the other forms of the い-adjectives, you're allowed to drop the です ending in casual conversation.

Direct. 2
This skill introduces three important suffixes in the Japanese language. The words that use them are called indefinite, negative, and inclusive word ranges. See how they work below.

Keep in mind that for most of the words in the  negative word range, Japanese uses a  double negative  for full sentences.


 * ここには だれも い ません.


 * Here,  no one  is  not . (There is no one here.)

Thin and Thick
Just like counter words, different adjectives are sometimes used depending on the objects being described. When you are talking about something being "thin," you would use a different adjective depending on the shape of the object being described.

There are also multiple words meaning "thick," and their usage differs based on the shape of the object being described, too.

Is it thick or is it hot?
Remember, kanji matters! Although the three words below have the same reading, the meaning completely changes if you select the wrong kanji!

Shopping 2
This lesson introduces the very fundamentals of 敬語・けいご、also known as "respect language," as applied to verbs. Believe it or not, you've already learned some respect language, such as in the phrases "お元気ですか？" or "おねがいします！" Just like those phrases, the extra-polite constructions we introduce in this chapter also begin with お.

We learned from earlier lessons that the most common way of asking someone to do something is with the て-form, often followed by ください.

To make the request extremely humble and polite, we take the stem of the verb from its 〜ます form and add an お〜 prefix. It's as simple as that. Although you are unlikely to use this form on a brief trip to Japan, you are certain to hear it from shopkeepers and restaurant employees.

Counting Words for Clothing
Below is a table for 足、組 and 着、the counting words introduced in this lesson. 足 is a counter that counts pairs of things you put on your feet, while 組 counts other kinds of pairs, such as pairs of gloves. 着 is a counter for suits, jackets, and kimono.

The Plain Form
We use the "plain," "short" or "dictionary" form first and foremost to express the present or future tense in a casual conversation, such as between friends. We also use it to express these tenses in certain other situations before the end of a sentence.

Without exception, all plain form verbs end in a [u] sound. In the examples below, see how the plain form endings correlate with the construction of the て-form.

Nominalizing Verbs with the Plain Form + の
You can use the construction ～のがすきです to talk about things you like doing. In the example below, およぐ (swim) is the plain form of verb およぎます. When you add の to the plain form, the translation becomes either “to swim” or “swimming”. The sentence ends with ～がすきです、which means "I like."


 * Therefore,  およぐの が好きです means "I like swimming" or "I like to swim."

Remember that you can add additional information to any sentence to provide more context.


 * For example, うみで およぐの が好きです means "I like swimming in the ocean."

Below is a table of sample sentences that model this construction.


 * はしるのがはやいです means "My running is fast" or "I run fast."


 * およぐのが上手です means "Your swimming is skilled" or "you are good at swimming."


 * テニスをするのが下手です means "My tennis playing is poor" or "I am bad at playing tennis."


 * アニメを見るのが好きです means "I like watching anime" or "I like to watch anime."

Hobby 3 - Old tips from around 2019
～のがすきです talks about things you like doing. In the example below, およぐ takes the basic (plain) form of verb and の is added, which become either “to swim” or “swimming”. The sentence is ～がすき（I like something.) as a whole. In this case, what do you like doing? I like swimming in the ocean.

うみ で およぐ の が 好き です.

Class. 3 / Classroom 3
て form: Negative Request

～ないでください is a negative request with the て-form (て becomes で). The first two types are called Godan (u-verbs), which you change the /u/ sound ending into /a/ sound + nai to make the negative form.

u-verbs: ならぶ (-u) → ならばない (-anai)

ru-verbs: みる (ru) → みない (nai)

Health - Old Notes
Short past form きのうは学校をやすんだ.

Short past form is made by taking て-form of the verb and replacing with た or だ.

The Plain Past Form
We use the "plain past" form or "short past" form first and foremost to express the past tense in a casual conversation, such as between friends. We also use it to express the past tense in certain other situations.

This form is constructed by taking the て-form of a verb and replacing with た (if it ends in て) or だ (if it ends in で).

Just like when we create the て-form, verbs that end in くor ぐ in the plain form have irregular endings.

Vacation 2
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I would like...
NOUN+が欲しい and VERB STEM+〜たい are two ways to express that you want something. However, Japanese speakers often desire to be less direct, which is considered more polite. You can do that by adding  〜のですが  or  〜んですが  to the end of a request to make it less blunt. In English, you can translate sentences containing this ending as "I would like..."

Games
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Maid Cafes?
There are many things you can find in Japan that aren't common in other countries. Want to dress up as your favorite anime character and get your photo taken on the street? Visit a cafe where the waitresses all dress like maids? You can find all that and more in Japan!

Ride the Yamanote Line!
There are a lot of interesting and trendy areas in Tokyo, so it can be helpful to know their names if you ever choose to visit.

Harajuku and Shibuya are both known for their fashion - Harajuku for street fashion and Shibuya for having many large department stores for shopping! Harajuku is a great place to go if you like to cosplay. Akihabara and Ikebukuro are interesting places for an otaku - you can buy video games, anime and manga, computer parts, and all kinds of other things! And Shinjuku is well-known for its exciting nightlife.

The 山手線 (やまのてせん) or "Yamanote Line" is a train line in Tokyo that goes in a circle, and it makes stops in all the areas listed above. It might be better to avoid riding the train at rush hour, though - otherwise you might run into lots of サラリーマン (office workers) going to and from work, and the train might be too packed for you to get on!

The Olympics!
Are you looking forward to the Olympics? If you are, you can tell people that you are looking forward to something by using the phrase  楽しみにしている  - or  楽しみにしています  if you want to be more polite. What Olympic sport are you looking forward to the most? Who do you hope will win the 金メダル (gold medal)?

Ability
There are several ways of expressing one's ability to do something in Japanese.

Potential Form
The first and most basic way is the potential form of the verb, which transforms the usual verb ending into a form of 〜える or 〜えます. Notice how the potential form ending changes in accordance with the original ending.

When using this form, you may notice that the particle が plays an outsized role in describing what would normally be the object of a sentence marked with を. This is because the potential form often translates better to "is able to be" than "can." This takes some getting used to, and it's a phenomenon that typically only applies to certain verbs.

Using できる
The second and in some ways easier way to express ability is with the verb できる、sometimes spelled 出来る. Ordinarily, the short form of a verb attaches to the word ことができる to signify someone's ability to do something. This can be done with almost all verbs, especially less common ones.

For verbs that end in 〜する or 〜します、however, one has no choice but to express ability with できる.

Favors
Expressing favors in Japanese makes frequent use of the て-form in coordination with a set of special verbs for giving and receiving.

あげる
We use あげる when we ourselves do a favor for someone else. We also use it when the interaction involves only other people.

やる
We use やる when we ourselves do a favor for someone of a lower social status, such as a child or a pet. This also applies when the interaction involves only other people.

くれる
We use くれる when someone else does a favor for us.

もらう
We use もらう when the topic of the sentence is the one to receive the favor, as "もらう" literally means "receive." This is often translated as "had (someone) do (something)."

いただく
You may recognize the verb いただく from the phrase いただきます、which is said before eating. いただく is a polite form of もらう、usually used when asking for a favor. In addition to いただく、one can use the verb くれる for a more casual tone.

Onomatopoeia
The Japanese language features many words that are known as  onomatopoeia  - a word that is named by a vocal imitation of the sound associated with it. One of these words is  きらきら, which means "sparkling." It is meant to mimic the sound one might imagine a glittering diamond or star might make. きらきら can be used as a -する verb (きらきらする) or paired with the verb 光る (きらきら光る) to further emphasize the sparkle.

In Japanese, onomatopoeia can be commonly written in either hiragana (きらきら) or (キラキラ), depending on what you prefer stylistically.

Restaurant 2
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Counting Large Animals
Remember, the counter word 〜匹 (ひき) is used to count small animals. Have you wondered how you would count large animals? You would use the counter word  〜頭 (とう)  instead! Thankfully, the kanji is read the same way (とう) regardless of the number of large animals you are counting!

Hardly Any
ほとんど  is a word that can be used in a negative sentence to mean “hardly any” or “hardly (at all)” or “almost no…” Below are a few examples of its usage.

Appearance
When expressing appearance in Japanese, one can choose from several grammatical expressions.

よう
Using the noun よう is the most basic way of expressing something's outward appearance.

みたい
The noun みたい is used almost exactly like よう、only it has a more casual tone. Be careful not to treat it as a verb or an adjective, although it might look like one.

そう
The noun そう is used to express how something seems or appears to be based on one's observation. It's more of an educated guess and less of a certainty than よう or みたい.

そう is also used to describe hearsay gathered from other people. In this instance, the grammar of the word changes slightly. Verbs, for example, change from the stem form for appearance to the short form for hearsay.

らしい
With respect to hearsay, らしい is used in similar contexts as そう、only it acts like any other い-adjective would.

Degree
This lesson also introduces the concept of nouns formed from adjectives, much like how "sweet" becomes "sweetness" in English with an additional ending. The ability or inability to measure such nouns in Japanese plays an important role in how they are formed.

〜さ
If a quality can be measured objectively, its nominal form will end in さ. This is also the case for all な-adjectives, regardless of one's ability to measure them.

〜み
If, however, a quality cannot be measured objectively, its nominal form will almost always end in み、especially if it is a feeling or flavor.

Possibil. / Possibilities
In Japanese, there are  four different expressions  that translate to the English word "if."

と  - Natural Consequence
We use the word と when something is a natural, inevitable, and predictable consequence of something else. This cannot be a personal intention. It is often used when describing facts and operations, instructions, and habitual actions.

なら  - Future Speculation
We use なら when expressing that something will take effect in a certain context. This is often a personal intention about the future based on a given assumption about what will happen.

ば  - Conditional Focus
We can use the ば form of a verb to express a conditional sentence in almost any context. However, it is  ungrammatical  to use this construction when the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence  and  the sentence expresses a desire or prohibition. It places a special focus on what comes  before  it, and the outcome is usually  good. The ば form sounds rather  formal, so it's often used for  writing  and  polite speech.

たら・だら  - Consequence Focus
The use of たら or だら to end a past-tense verb presents the fewest restrictions and greatest freedom for expressing a conditional sentence in Japanese. It is often used for hypotheticals and speculations that have yet to be proven, much like the construction "if ... would ..." in English. It places a special focus on what comes  after  it. This is the only construction that is grammatical for a past event, or when the subject is the same in both parts of the sentence and the sentence expresses a desire or prohibition. Please refer to the example sentences below.

When in doubt about which form of "if" to use,  たら  or  だら  is usually a safe bet.

もし  - Conditional Warning

The word もし cannot express "if" by itself. Rather, it is a supplemental word generally used at the beginning of a sentence to express that a conditional is coming. It generates a backdrop of uncertainty about the information ahead.

Cooking 1
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How to measure?
In Japanese, similar words often use different kanji characters in order to express different nuance. For instance, the character for “to measure” differs depending on the thing you’re measuring! All the words below are read  はかる  and all of them mean “to measure,” but the situations in which you would use each are different.

〜さ
If a quality can be measured objectively, its nominal form will end in さ. This is also the case for all な-adjectives, regardless of one's ability to measure them.

Transitive and Intransitive Verb Pairs
Remember,  transitive verbs  are verbs that take a direct object, while  intransitive verbs  are verbs that do not take a direct object. Transitive and intransitive verbs often occur in pairs, and their meaning and usage differs.

Remember that the particle  を  is used to mark the direct object of a sentence, so you would always use it with a transitive verb.

As….as possible
できるだけ  is a phrase meaning “as much as possible” or “as much as one can.” Depending on the subject of the sentence, the exact translation of the phrase can change, however.

Only
There are two ways to express the idea of “only” or “just” in Japanese. One of them is with the word  だけ, which is used with affirmative sentences.

Another way you can express this idea is with the word  しか, which has the same meaning but is used with  negative  sentences in Japanese, although the meaning of the sentence is not translated in the negative.

Several
数〜 (すう〜)  is a prefix that can be added to some words to mean “several….” or “a few…” Some examples are below.

Transitive and Intransitive Verb Pairs
The English language has certain sets of verbs that are related to each other but behave differently in a sentence. Transitive verbs  like "raise" or "lay" always take a grammatical object. However,  intransitive verbs  like "rise" or "lie" never do. The same principle works in Japanese, with the examples below.

Intransitive Verbs (no object)
So how do you know if and when a verb is  transitive  or  intransitive  in Japanese? Aside from noticing which verbs do and do not take grammatical objects, there are a few spelling patterns that can act as clues.


 * Transitive  verbs often end in え-sounds or す、like the verbs 始める (はじめる)、決める (きめる)、or 出す (だす).


 * Their  intransitive  pairings often end in あ-sounds, like the verbs 始まる (はじまる) or 決まる (きまる).

Greetings at Work
Greetings and set phrases are an extremely important part of Japanese work culture. Below is a sampling of some of the most important points.

Only
There are two ways to express the idea of “only” or “just” in Japanese. One of them is with the word  だけ, which is used with affirmative sentences.

Another way you can express this idea is with the word  しか, which has the same meaning but is used with  negative  sentences in Japanese, although the meaning of the sentence is not translated in the negative.\

Several
数〜 (すう〜)  is a prefix that can be added to some words to mean “several….” or “a few…” Some examples are below.

In order to…
The phrase  のに  has many different uses in Japanese. One of the meanings is “in order to (perform an action).” In this construction “AのにB” would be “I did B in order to A,” in which のに follows a verb in the short form. Some examples are listed below.

Obligations
Two grammatical elements in Japanese are especially important when describing responsibility and expectation.

〜はず
The noun はず describes the way something is expected to be.

〜べき
The noun べき、however, describes responsibilities and obligations with a more moralistic bent.

Because べき can come across as harsh, it is most often used to describe one's own obligations. For talking about other people, "ほうがいい" is often used instead.

Causative Form
The causative form is used to express the fact when someone lets or forces someone to do something. It is created by adding a form of 〜あせる or 〜あせます to the end of a verb stem. When the person who is requested to perform the action is followed by に、this usually translates to "let someone do something."

When this person is followed by を、however, this usually implies that the person had no choice in the matter.

This distinction is not a hard-and-fast rule, however, and the context of the sentence is usually enough to determine the difference. Either English translation is possible for either of the Japanese sentences above.

Sentence-Ending Particles な and なあ
Oftentimes when you want to express your positive emotions in Japanese, you end the sentence with either な or なあ、with the latter expressing an even deeper sense of longing for something. This particle does not translate directly into English, but it often acts similarly to the previously-introduced particle ね、which establishes a "harmony of understanding" between the speaker and listener.

Volitional Form
This course introduced the polite phrase 〜ましょう relatively early on. This usually translates to "let's ... " but not always. If the speaker is referring to an action that is intended to be done alone, it translates better as "I will," a kind of definitive affirmation of one's desire to do something.

This lesson introduces the casual form of 〜ましょう, which is some iteration of 〜おう or 〜よう depending on the ending of the verb in question.

Talking and Thinking About Something
N+について  is a phrase used in Japanese to discuss a topic being talked or thought about. It can be translated as “regarding....” or “about...”

As Expected
〜通り (とおり)  is a phrase used in Japanese to express that something is “as expected.” It can be used following a verb (usually in the short form past tense) or a noun. Directly following a noun, the pronunciation sometimes changes to どおり, such as in the phrase 約束通り (やくそく どおり ), which means “as promised.”

Cities and Prefectures
Japan is divided into different areas, which are known as “prefectures.” Most of these areas will be identified by adding the character  県 (けん)  to the end of the area’s name. For instance, if you lived in Yamaguchi prefecture, you would tell people you live in 山口 県  (やまぐち けん ).

If you’re talking about a city, you would usually add the character  市 (し)  to the end of the place name. So if you lived in Chiba City, you would tell people you live in 千葉 市  (ちば し ).

Did you know that sometimes a prefecture will contain a city of the same name? So if you live in Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, you would live in both 千葉県(ちばけん) and 千葉市 (ちばし)!

As a….
When discussing someone’s role, you can use the word として in Japanese. The word として comes after the noun or “role” that is being discussed. In English, it’s often translated to the word “as.”

Passive Voice
The passive voice in Japanese is a verb form that is unique to each verb ending, yet it is always some iteration of 〜あれる or 〜あれます.

Remember that the topic or subject of a passive sentence is the recipient of the given action, and as such, it takes the は or が particle instead of を.

When the passive sentence includes a causative agent, this person or thing is marked with に.

Stating sources
When you’re giving information from another source, you can use the phrase  〜によると  to state your source. It’s used when telling others information that you learned from the news or from another person. We commonly translate the phrase as “according to…”

It just happened!
When you are describing an event that  just  occurred, you can use the phrase  〜ところ. The phrase follows directly after a verb in the short form. If the verb is in the non-past tense, it describes an action that is just about to happen. If the verb is in the past tense, it describes an event that just happened.

Formal Language
This lesson showcases some of the most common instances of formal language for use in business situations.

Nouns
To make a noun extra formal, one places an お〜 prefix before a word of Japanese origin (typically a word with a single kanji) and a ご〜 prefix before a word of Chinese origin (typically a word with two kanji). We already learned a few examples earlier in the course.

Sometimes a noun will change completely in the transition from ordinary to formal language, often reflecting a parallel change in another part of speech, such as a verb.

Adjectives
Adjectives typically do not change grammatical form in formal speech, but they are replaced with more formal varieties.

Verbs
For verbs, there is a mixed system. As introduced in an earlier lesson, some verbs adopt an お〜 prefix and may adopt the use of the copula です.

Meanwhile, some verbs are replaced with more formal variants.

Remember that formal language uses the polite 〜ます form at the end of each sentence. Ending a formal sentence with the plain form, だ or だろう sounds odd and incongruous with the context.

An Overnight Stay
When you’re staying overnight somewhere, you would use the counter word  泊 (はく)  to count the number of nights you stay somewhere. Please take note that some of the readings are irregular!

Below are some example sentences.

In a certain place…
You can use the word  ある  before a noun to specify that you’re talking about a  certain  thing without going into specifics about it.

Stop!
Don’t forget about transitive and intransitive verbs! Transitive verbs  are verbs that take a direct object, while  intransitive verbs  are verbs that do not take a direct object. Transitive and intransitive verbs often occur in pairs, and even though the dictionary definition for both words is sometimes the same, their usage differs.

Remember that the particle  を  is used to mark the direct object of a sentence, so you would use it with a transitive verb.

Casual Language
Welcome to the casual language in the Japanese course! The reason that colloquial language is listed late in the tree is that we wanted you to understand the importance of politeness when speaking with strangers or coworkers.

When you speak with friends in casual settings or watch anime, you may hear a lot of expressions that you have yet to be introduced to.

Pronouns
There are two male pronouns reserved for casual settings, 俺 (おれ), meaning "I" or "me," and お前 (おまえ) meaning "you." In formal settings, use of these pronouns is considered confrontational and impolite. Both 俺 and お前 sound extremely rough and masculine, which is why typically they are reserved for boys or men who are teenagers or older.

In addition, you may hear women and girls use the pronoun あたし (sometimes written 私) to refer to themselves. This is not considered as polite as わたし、but considerably more so than 俺.

Particle Dropping
In polite and written Japanese, grammatical particles that mark parts of speech, such as は and が、see heavy use. However, in more casual settings, they are often dropped when the meaning is clear without them. In Japanese just as in English, formality and sentence length go hand-in-hand.

I didn’t mean to!
When you’ve done something unintentionally, you can use the word  つい  to emphasize the fact that it was an accident. It’s often paired with the V+てしまう form, and it’s generally used to express regret over having done something you know you shouldn’t have done.

This sentence has a connotation of something like, “I wind up looking at my smartphone (even though I know that I shouldn’t).”

You can also use the word  うっかり  to express that you’ve done something carelessly or accidentally.

Did you know that Japan has four seasons?
Many who have visited Japan have been asked this question, and for good reason. Unlike in many parts of the world, the four seasons in Japan are quite distinct and a core part of Japanese culture. The cyclical nature of the year has been celebrated on the archipelago for millennia with festivals, rituals, and seasonal food.

Spring  is the traditional start of the year, a time of new beginnings, a new school year, and a new year on the business calendar. Cherry blossoms bloom throughout Japan to mark the transition into spring. Families and friends gather underneath the blossoming trees and have picnics with rice dumplings (団子・だんご) and various beverages.

Summer  is remarkably hot and humid throughout Japan, especially in areas away from the mountains or the sea. Summer festivals offer a respite from the heat with flavored shaved ice (かき氷・かきごおり) and cool drinks. Near the end of summer, many in Japan return to their hometowns to celebrate the Bon Festival, a holiday to commemorate the spirits of one's ancestors.

Autumn  is the season when the maple leaves turn a colorful spectrum of red, orange, and gold. The weather cools down, and the true bounty of the harvest takes the form of the many delicacies available at this time, including baked sweet potato and a warming, broth-based stew (おでん).

Winter  is the season for heavy snow in the mountains of central Japan and throughout the north and northwest of the country. On New Years, Japanese people traditionally eat long buckwheat noodles (そば) as a wish for future health and longevity. Department stores celebrate the new year with mystery grab bags. Sapporo holds its annual snow festival in February, complete with enormous sculptures that attract visitors from around the world.