New to Japanese

I. Formation of the -te form of -i adjective and desu

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:38:00 +0000

These kinds of the -te forms are different from those which are made with verbs.
They never precede kudasai.

A. -I adjective
The -te form of an -i adjective can be obtained by changing the final -i to -kute. For example, the -te form of atarashii is atarashikute, furui is furukute, etc., but the te form of ii "good" is yokute.

* Table of the -te form of -i adjectives *
Non-polite forms of -i adjective -Te form
muzukashii
yasashii muzukashikute
yasashikute

B. Desu
The -te form of desu is de, and this form occurs when either the base of a –na adjective or a noun precedes desu. For example, the -te form or shizuka desu is shizuka de, and that of gakusee desu is gakusee de, etc.

* Table of the -te form of desu *
Desu with -na adjective and noun -Te form
genki desu
hima desu
hon desu
kaze desu genki de
hima de
hon de
kaze de

III. Set phrase : Sumimasen

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:35:00 +0000

Sumimasen used to be used as a word of apology, but recently the range of usage of this phrase has become wider and is now used :
l. to attract attention as in the first line of Dialogue 7-1 ; and
2. to thank someone for his help as in the 13th line, Dialogue 7-3.

Example
A : Sumimasen.
"Excuse me."
B : Hai.
"Yes."
A : Kono basu wa Yagoto o toorimasu ka.
"Does this bus go through Yagoto?"
B : Hai, toorimasu.
"Yes, it does."
A : Soo desu ka. Doomo sumimasen deshita.
"I see. Thank you very much."

II. Adverbs : Mazu, sore kara and saigo ni

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:27:00 +0000

When one describes or explains some actions which are supposed to be done in order in a certain period of time, these words are used in the order shown in the following example. Read Dialogue 7-3 carefully.
Example
A : Mazu hatsuon o benkyoo shimasu.
"First you'll study pronunciation."
B : Hai.
"Yes."
A : Sore kara kaiwa o benkyoo shimasu.
"Secondly you'll study conversation."
B : Hai.
"Yes."
A : Saigo ni dokkai o benkyoo shimasu.
"At the end, you'll study reading comprehension."

I. Set phrase : Onegaishimasu

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:27:00 +0000

A. 0negaishimasu is used to ask someone to do something, without stating clearly what he/she is asked to do, if the action to be taken is clear from the context or the situation.

Examples
1. Sakae made onegaishimasu. (to a taxi driver)
"Please take me to Sakae."
2. Denwabangoo o onegaishimasu. (to a person filling in a form)
"Please write your telephone number."
3. Clerk : lrasshaimase.
"Welcome!"
4. Customer : Onegaishimasu.
(handing the clerk money and a deposit bankbook)
"Please take care of this."

B. 0negaishimasu is also used to attract attention of clerks, cashiers,etc., before asking them to do something.

Example
A : Onegaishimasu.
"Excuse me."
B : Hai.
"Yes."
A : Kore o onegaishimasu.
"I'll take this one."
B : Hai,200 en desu.
"200 yen, please."

V. Particle : Ni

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:25:00 +0000

Two of the usages of ni are introduced here.

A. Ni in "Kore ni otokoro to onamae o kaite kudasai." in the fourth line, Dialogue 7-1 indicates the place where something is to be written or filled in. It belongs to Group 1 particles.
Examples
1. Kono kanji o nooto ni kakimashoo.
"Let's white this kanji in the notebook.
2. Kokuban ni namae o kaite kudasai.
"Please write your name on the blackboard."

B. Ni in "Raishunu tori ni kimasu." in the eighth line, Dialogue 7-2, shows purpose. This ni follows a verb base. A verb following ni must be the verb showing motion like going, coming, etc.

Examples
1. Kinoo wa eega o mi ni ikimashita.
"I went to see a movie yesterday."
2. Sensee ni ai ni kimashita.
"I came here to meet my teacher."
3. Gohan o tabe ni shokudoo e ikimasu.
"I'll go to the cafeteria to eat a meal."(Lit.)

IV. Verb modifiers : Koo, soo, aa and doo

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:24:00 +0000

Koo means "this way," soo "that way" and aa "that way." Doo means "how." These words are similar to kore, sore, are and dore. They modify the verb they precede.
Examples
1. Kono kanji wa doo kakimasu ka.
"How do you write this kanji?"
2. Koo kakimasu.
"We write it this way."
3. Kono kikai wa doo tsukaimasu ka.
"How do you use this machine?"
4. Koo tsukaimasu.
"We use it this way.

III. Expression of the speakers and the heare's desire

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:23:00 +0000

A. When you want to say "I want something." say "Nani ka ga hoshii desu."
Examples
1. Kyasshukaado ga hoshii desu.
"I want a cash card."
2. Ii kutsu ga hoshii desu.
"I want a good pair of shoes."
3. Kusuri ga hoshii desu.
"I want some medicine."
4. Kono hon wa hoshiku arimasen.
"I don't want this book."
5. Kinoo kore ga hoshikatta n desu.
"I wanted this yesterday."
In "X ga hoshii desu.," X indicates what the speaker wants. The particle ga does not indicate the subject but the direct object of hoshii, an adjective.

B. When you want to say "I want to do something." say "Nani ka ga shitai desu."
Examples
1. Kono kikai ga tsukaitai desu.
"I want to use this machine."
2. Kono kutsu ga kaitai desu.
"I want to buy this pair of shoes."
3. Sakana ga tabetai desu.
"I want to eat fish."
What are common in these three examples above are :
1. all sentences end with desu, so they are polite ;
2. desu follows a word ending in -tai ; and
3. the particle ga precedes a word ending in -tai.

A word ending in -tai comes from a verb base { -tai. The suffix -tai indicates the speaker's and the hearer's desire and changes a verb into an -I adjective.
The sentence pattern for "I want to do something." is :

X ga verb base -tai desu.

In this sentence pattern also, ga indicates the direct object, but it sometimes changes to the particle o.
Examples
1. Nihongo no hon ga/o yomitai desu.
"I want to read a Japanese book."
2. Sakana wa tabetaku arimasen.
"I don't want to eat fish."
3. Kinoo depaato de kaimono ga shitakatta desu.
"I wanted to do some shopping at a department store yesterday."

C. In Japanese culture, it is not good manners to ask one's superior's desire directly.
Instead, you should say "X wa doo/ikaga desu ka." As explained in Lesson 3,
Example
A : Sensee, koohii wa ikaga desuka.
"Would you like some coffee, professor?"
B : Ee, itadakimasu yo.
"Yes, please."

I. Expressions of request or polite command

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:23:00 +0000

C. If you replace kudasai with kudasaimasen ka, you will sound more polite.
Cashing a check, making a cash card, etc. are usual services for a bank to offer. However, teaching how to use a machine is an extra one, so Lwin says, "Kono kikai ga tsukaitai n desu ga, oshiete kudasaimasen ka." "I'd like to use this machine. Would you please tell me how to use it?" in the third line, Dialogue 7-3.

D. When you ask your customer to push the button, "Kono botan o oshite kudasai." is not appropriate, because this sentence sounds a little rude. Instead, you should say :
Kono botan o ooshi kudasai.
This sentence sounds more formal than "Oshite kudasai." or "Oshite kudasaimasen ka." Ooshi in the above sentence is obtained by dropping –masu from oshimasu(the polite form of osu "push") and adding o- to it. When the masu part is taken out of a verb ending in -masu, the remaining part will be called the verb base in this textbook.

* Table of the form of the verbs *
Non-polite form -Masu form Verb base O-verb base
ireru
yameru
toru
yomu iremasu
yamemasu
torimasu
yomimasu ire
yame
tori
yomi oire
oyame
otori
oyomi

Examples
1. Rajio o okiki kudasai.
"Will you listen to the radio?"
2. Motto yukkuri ohanashi kudasai.
"Could you speak more slowly?"
3. Kore o omochi kudasai.
"Will you take this one with you?"
O { verb base { kudasai is often used by clerks, salesmen, etc. in situations such as in a bank, a department store or a ceremony. Note that there are some verbs which don't have o { verb base { kudasai : miru, kuru, suru, etc.

I. Expressions of request or polite command

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:21:00 +0000

A. In this lesson you will learn three ways of expressing your requests or polite commands. In I-A and B you will learn sentences ending in a verb in the –te form { kudasai.
Examples
1. Namae o kaite kudasai.
"Please write your name."
2. Ashita daigaku e kite kudasai.
"Please come to the university tomorrow."
3. Kono kusuri o nonde kudasai.
"Please take this medicine.

The form of a verb ending in -te or- de is called the -te form of a verb. As shown in the above examples, a verb which follows a sentence ending in –te or -de adds some extra meanings such as request, command, etc. to the original sentence. Verbs of this type other than kudasai will be introduced later.

B. The following show how to make the -te form of a verb.

1. Group 1 verbs, or verbs ending in -eru or -iru

Change the final -ru to -te.

* Table of the -te form of Group 1 verbs *

Dicdonary form -Te form masu form
deru
norikaeru
iru
oriru dete
norikaete
ite
orite demasu
norikaemasu
imasu
orimasu

2. Group 2 verbs, or verbs ending in -u

(1) Change -u, -tsu or -ru to -tte.

* Table of the -te form of Group 2 verbs(1) *

Dictionary -Te form masu form
kau
matsu
noru
tooru katte
matte
notte
tootte kaimasu
machimasu
norimasu
toorimasu

(2) Change -bu, -mu or -nu to -nde.

* Table of the -te form of Group 2 verbs(2) *

yobu (call)
yomu
nomu
shinu (die) yonde
yonde
nonde
shinde yobimasu
yomimasu
nomimasu
shinimasu

(3) Change -su to -shite.

* Table of the -te form of Group 2 verbs(3) *
hanasu (speak)
osu hanashite
oshite hanashimasu
oshimasu

(4) Change -ku or -gu to -ite or -ide, respectively.

* Table of the -te form of Group 2 verbs(4) *
oku
kiku
oyogu (swim)
iku oite
kiite
oyoide
itte* okimasu
kikimasu
oyogimasu
ikimasu

Note that the verb with * is an exception to this rule.

3. Irregular verbs
The -te form of kuru is kite.
The -te form of suru is shite.

Examples
1. Otokoro o kaite kudasai.
"Please write your address."
2. Tsuuchoo o tsukutte kudasai.
"Please make my bankbook."(Lit.)
3. Kono kami ni kinyuu shite kudasai.
"Fill in this form, please."
4. Kyasshukaado o irete kudasai.
"Please put in your cash card."
5. Kono botan o oshite kudasai.
"Please push this button."

IV. Interjection : Mmmm

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:20:00 +0000

Mmmm shows the speaker's negative feeling.

Example
Clerk : Kore wa ikaga desu ka.
"How about this?"
Customer : Mmmm.... Amari yoku arimasen.
"Well, this isn't so good."
Clerk : De wa kore wa ikaga desu ka.
"Then, how about this one?"
Customer : Aa, kore wa ii desu ne.
"Oh, this is fine."

III. Full form of ja : De wa

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:19:00 +0000

In this text book, ja has used instead of de wa. However, ja is the contracted form of de wa. De wa is used in a more formal situation than the one in which ja is used. De wa used in the fifth line from the top, Dialogue 6-2 means "then." Ja on the seventh line in the same dialogue also means "then."

Example
A : Kore wa watashi no de wa arimasen.
"This is not mine."
B : De wa kore wa.
"Then, how about this?"
A : Aa. Sore wa watashi no desu.
"Oh, that's mine."

I. 0mission of a particle

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:15:00 +0000

When speaking informally, the particles wa, ga, o and ni are often omitted.
0mission of these particles results in a subtle change of meaning. You are advised not to omit any particles while you are trying to learn to speak Japanese.

Examples
1. Kore (wa) ikura desu ka.
"How much is this?"
2. Sono shatsu (wa) momen desu ka.
"Is that shirt cotton?"
3. Watashi (ga) ikimasu yo.
"I will go."
4. Kore (o) kaimashita.
"I bought this."

IX. Humble forms of desu and arimasu : De gozaimasu and gozaimasu

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:14:00 +0000

Those forms are called a humble form. They are used when it is necessary for the speaker to humble himself in order to show a respect, or a deference, etc. to the hearer. They are also used when the speaker realizes the need to be humble talking about the group to which the speaker belongs, or things belonging to the speaker or his group.

A. De gozaimasu means the same as desu.
The information girl in Dialogue 6-1 uses this form twice, in lines six and ten. They are :

(Kutsu'uriba wa) Kono kai de gozaimasu.
"The shoe department is on this floor."
Kutsu'uriba wa sono oku de gozaimau.
"The shoe department is beyond that."

Because kutsu'uriba is owned by the department store and the informahon girl is working for the store, she uses de gozaimasu instead of desu when she speaks to their customers.

Examples
1. Ruin de gozaimasu.
"I'm Mr. Lwin."
2. Kanai de gozaimasu. (Kanai: my wife)
"This is my wife."
3. Kono hon wa watashi no ja gozaimasen.
"This book isn't mine.

B. Gozaimasu is used in the same way as arimasu, but is different from de gozaimasu.

Examples
1. a. Koko ni watashi no ga gozaimasu.
"Here is mine."
b. Kore wa watashi no de gozaimasu.
"This is mine."
2. a. Esukareetaa no tonari ni kaban'uriba ga gozaimasu.
"There is the bag department next to the escalator." (Lit.)
b. Esukareetaa no tonari ga kaban'uriba de gozaimasu.
"The department next to the escalator is the bag department."

VIII. Volitional form,or -oo form of desu : Deshoo

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:13:00 +0000

Deshoo replaces desu in a question and makes it sound more polite.

Examples
1. Donna no ga yoroshii deshoo ka.
"What kind (of thing) would you like?"
2. Kore wa ikaga deshoo ka.
"How would you like this one?"
Deshoo also indicates the speaker's supposition.

Examples
1. Kono kusuri ga ii deshoo.
"This medicine may be good."
2. Are wa koogakubu no tatemono deshoo.
"I guess that is a building of the Faculty of Engineering."
3. Ruinsan wa genki deshoo.
"Mr. Lwin may be fine."

VII. Volitional form, or -oo form of -masu : - Mashoo

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:12:00 +0000

The volitional form indicates the speaker's will to do something.
Examples
1. lkimasu.
"Someone* goes." or " Someone* will go."
2. Ikimashoo.
"Let's go." or "I will go."
3. lkimashoo ka.
"Shall we go?" or "Shall I go?"
(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)

In the example above, ikimasu shows a habitual action or a future action of an actor. Ikimashoo shows the will of more than two persons including the speaker's
willingness to do something for other persons in the group.

VI. Adverbs

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:12:00 +0000

Adverbs modify a vervb, an adjective or an adverb which they precede.

Examples
1. Atama ga sukoshi itai desu.
"I have a slight headache."
2. Yukkuri hanashimashita.
"Someone* spoke slowly."
3. Kono kanji wa chotto muzukashii desu.
"This kanji is a little difficult."
(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)

The preceding examples show that adverbs like sukoshi "a little," yukkuri "slowly" and chotto "a little" precede the verb or the adjective they modify.
An adverb can also modify another adverb. Moo "more," for example, can modify sukoshi, chotto, ichido, etc.

Examples
1. Moo sukoshi nomimasen ka.
"Won't you drink a little more?"
2. Moo chotto kaimasu.
"I'll buy a little more."

Some adverbs are always followed by a negative predicate. Amari used on the sixth line of Dialogue 6-2 is one of them. Amari ... arimasen means "not very" or "not so."

Examples
1. Kore wa amari yoku arimasen.
"This is not very good."
2. Kono sandaru wa amari kiree ja arimasen.
"This pair of sandals isn't so pretty."

V. Numerals, counters and numbers

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:10:00 +0000

C. Compounds that consist of a numeral and a counter are called numbers.
Numbers are considered nouns in Japanese but often act like adverbs.

Examples
1. Kyoo wa goji ni okimashita.
"Someone* got up at five o'clock today."
2. ichidoru wa nihyakunijuuhachi en desu.
"One dollar is 228 yen."
3. Kono kaban wa happyaku guramu desu.
"This bag weighs 800 grams."
4. Sono eega o sando mimashita.
"Someone* saw the film three times."
5. Gakusee ga sannin kimashita.
"Three students came."
6. Kami ga sanmai arimasu.
"There are three sheets of paper."
7. Niku o sanbyaku guramu kaimashita.
"I bought 300 grams of meat."
8. Kitte o juumai kaimashita.
"I bought ten stamps."
(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)

V. Numerals, counters and numbers

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:09:00 +0000

A. Numerals of Type A from 0 to 10,000 and several counters like -ji for the hour of the day, -en for money, etc., were introduced in either Lesson 1 or 2. As shown there, counters are always preceded by the numerals and never occur as independent words. Japanese has many counters which will be introduced a few at a time.

Examples

-ji - hour of the day
-fun/-pun - minute
-en - money
-guramu - weight
-nin - person
-mai - things like papers
-kai/-gai - floor of a building
-shuukan - week

B. Numerals of Type B, which are of Japanese origin, are introduced here.

1 hitotsu 2 futatsu
3 mittsu 4 yottsu
5 itsutsu 6 muttsu
7 nanatsu 8 yattsu
9 kokonotsu 10 to, too

Numerals of Type B go only as far as 10; beyond 10, Type A numerals are used.

The following are some Japanese numbers.

1. day of the month

1st tsuitachi 2nd futsuka
3rd mikka 4th yokka
5th itsuka 6th muika
7th nanoka 8th yooka
9th kokonoka 10th tooka
llth juuichinichi l2th juuninichi
13th juusannichi 14th juuyokka
15th juugonichi 20th hatsuka
24th nijuuyokka 30th sanjuunichi

2. month of the year

January ichigatsu February nigatsu
March sangatsu April shigatsu
May gogatsu June rokugatsu
July shichigatsu August hachigatsu
September kugatsu October juugatsu
November juuichigatsu December juunigatsu

3. minute in the hour

1 ippun 2 nifun
3 sanpun 4 yonpun
5 gofun 6 roppun
7 nanafun 8 happun/hachifun
9 kyuufun 10 jippun
15 juugofun 20 nijippun
30 sanjippun,han 40 yonjippun
50 gojippun 60 rokujippun

4. floor of a building

1 ikkai 2 nikai
3 sankai 4 yonkai
5 gokai 6 rokkai
7 nanakai 8 hachikai
9 kyuukai 10 jikkai

5. person(s)

1 hitori 2 futari
3 sannin 4 yonin
5 gonin 6 rokunin
7 shichinin/nananin 8 hachinin
9 kyuunin/kunin 10 juunin

III. Normal order of noun phrases

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:08:00 +0000

E. how a thing or a person is, use doo or ikaga (the polite counterpart of doo);

Examples
1. Konogoro doo desu ka.
"How have you been, these days?"
2. Nihongo no benkyoo wa ikaga desu ka.
"How is your study of Japanese?"

F. a way of doing something, use doo yatte ;

Examples
1.Sakae e wa doo yatte ikimasu ka.
"How can l get to Sakae?"
2. Kore wa doo yatte tabemasu ka.
"How can l eat this?"

G. time, use itsu ;

Examples
1. Itsu Nihon e kimashita ka.
"When did you come to Japan?"
2.A : Daigaku e wa itsu ikimasu ka.
"When will you go to the university?"
B : Ashita ikimasu.
"I'll go there tomorrow."

H. place, use doko or dochira (the polite counterpart of doko);

Examples
1. Nagoya daigaku wa doko ni arimasu ka.
"Where is Nagoya University?"
2. Sensee, dochira e.
"Where are you going, professor?"

I. number of things, size or age, use ikutsu ;

Examples
1. Kasettoteepu wa ikutsu kaimashita ka.
"How many cassette tapes did you buy?"
2. Ruin san wa ikutsu desu ka.
"How old is Mr. Lwin?"

J. money, use ikura ;

Examples
1. Kono hon wa ikura desu ka.
"How much is this book?"
2. Kore wa ikura no kaban desu ka.
"How much is this bag?"

K. approximate number or quantity, use 'dono kurai'/'dono gurai' or 'dore kurai'/ 'dore gurai';

Examples
1. Kono daigaku ni gakusee ga dono kurai imasu ka.
"About how many students are there in this university?"
2. A : Nihon ni dore gurai imasu ka.
"How long will you stay in Japan?"
B : Ninen gurai imasu.
"I'll be here for about two years."

L. the name of a person you don't know, use dare ;

Example
Ano gakusee wa dare desu ka.
"Who is that student?"

M. a thing which is someone's possession, use dare no.

Example
Are wa dare no hon desu ka.
"Whose book is that?"

In addition, + nan { a counter (-ji for hour of the day, -en for money, -nichi for date, etc.)is used.

Examples
1. lma nanji desu ka.
"What time is it now?"
2. Kore wa 'nan en'/ikura desu ka.
"How much is this?"
3. Kyoo wa nannichi desu ka.
"What's the date today?"

Nani { a noun is also used to ask about nationality, language, color, etc.; nanujin "what nationality," nanigo "what language," nani'iro "what color," etc.

Examples
1. A : Arisu san wa nanijin desu ka.
"What's Alice san's nationality?"
B : Ejiputojin desu.
"She's an Egyptian."
2. A : Arisu san wa nanigo o hanashimasu ka.
"What language does Alice san speak?"
B : Arabiago desu.
"She speaks Arabic."

III. Normal order of noun phrases

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:07:00 +0000

When more than two noun phrases precede a verb, they are normally arranged in the following order.

SUBJECT + TlME { PLACE { OBJECT { VERB
noun GA + noun (NI) { noun (DE) { noun O { verb

Examples
1. Arisu san wa rokuji ni kissaten de koohii o nomimashita.
"Alice san drank a cup of coffee at the coffee shop at six o'clock."
2. Kaarin san wa kinoo daigaku de Hasegawa sensee ni aimashita.
"Karin san met Prof. Hasegawa at the university yesterday."

IV. Question words
You have already learned 17 question words which are summarized below here.
If you want to ask about :

A. things or events which you don't know, use nani or nan ;

Examples
1. Eki no tonari ni nani ga arimasu ka.
"What is there next to the station?"
2. Are wa nan desu ka.
"What is that?"

B. the hearer's choice between the two things, use dochira ;

Examples
1. Hon to kyookasho no dochira o yomimasu ka.
"Which will you read, a book or a textbook?"
2. Wada sensee wa dochira desu ka.
"Which is Prof. Wada?"

C. the hearer's choice among more than two, use dore or dono berore a noun ;

Examples
1. A. Dore o kaimasu ka.
"Which one will you buy?"
B. Kono akai no o kaimasu.
"I'll buy this red one."
2. A. Dono hito ga sensee desu ka.
"Which person is the teacher?"
B. Ano shizuka na hito desu.
"That quiet person is."

D. condition of things, persons, etc., in reference to "what kind of," use donna before a noun ;

Examples
1. Donna eega o mimashita ka.
"What kind of movie did you see?"
2. Wada san wa donna hito desu ka.
"What kind of person is Mr. Wada?"
3. Taihen shizuka na hito desu.
"He is a very quiet man."

II. Four types of desu

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:06:00 +0000

Desu is classified into four types according to its usage.

A. Desu shows the equality of the two nouns.

Examples
1. Arisu san wa Ejiputojin desu.
"Alice san is an Egyptian."
2. Ano otoko no hito wa Ruin san desu.
"That man is Mr. Lwin."

B. Desu used with a -na adjective

Examples
1. Kyoo wa genki desu.
"Someone* is fine today."
(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)
2. Ano tatemono wa kiree ja arimasen.
"That building isn't beautiful."

C. Desu makes the polite form of an -i adjective.

Examples
1. Migi no me ga akai desu yo.
"Your right eye is red."
2. Mainichi isogashii desu.
"Someone* is busy everyday."(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)

D. Desu used as a substitute for a verb mentioned previously

Examples
1. A : Shokudoo wa doko ni arimasu ka.
"Where is the cafeteria?"
B : Koogakubu no mae desu.
"It's in front of the Faculty of Enginnerring."
2. A : Kinoo dare ni aimashita ka.
"Who did you meet yesterday?"
B : Kaarin san desu.
"I met Karin san."

I. Classification of Japanese sentences

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:04:00 +0000

Japanese sentences are classified into four and only four types according to the part of speech of the predicate.

A. Sentences ending in a verb

Examples
1. Ja,kore o kudasai.
"Then,I'll take this."
2. Esukareetaa no tonari ni kaban'uriba ga arimasu.
"There is a bag department next to the escalator."
3. Aoi no wa gozaimasen.
"We don't have a blue one."
4. Asoko no annaigakari de kikimashoo ka.
"Shall we ask at the information desk over there?"
5. Saizu o machigaemashita.
"I bought the wrong size."

B. Sentences ending in a noun

Examples
1. Gosenmon wa nan desu ka.
"What is your major?"
2. Ano kutsu wa 9,800 en desu.
"That pair of shoes is 9,800 yen."
3. Saizu wa emu ja arimasen.
"The size is not medium."
4. Ruin san wa Birumajin desu.
"Mr. Lwin is a Burmese."
5. Kaarin san wa Nagoya daigaku no gakusee desu.
"Karin san is a student at Nagoya University."

C. Sentences ending in - i adjective

Examples
1. Watashi no wa akaku arimasen.
"Mine isn't red."
2. Sukoshi takai desu ne.
"It's a little too expensive, isn't it?"
3. Kono sandaru wa yoku arimasen.
"This pair of sandals isn't good."
4. Atama ga itakatta desu.
"I had a headache."
5. Mainichi isogashii desu.
"Someone* is busy everyday."
(*"Someone" may be the speaker.)

D. Sentences ending in -na adjective

Examples
1. Nihongo no koosu wa taihen desu.
"The Japanese Course is tough."
2. Sore wa shitsuree desu.
"That's rude."
3. Arisu san wa genki desu.
"Alice san is fine."
4. Hidari no me wa daijoobu desu.
"The left eye is all right."
5. Ogenki desu ka.
"How are you?"

Saa and Anoo

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:03:00 +0000

III. Phrase : Saa
Saa is used when someone asks about something and the person who is asked cannot find a proper answer.
Saa in Dialogue 5-2 was uttered because Lwin didn't know if No. 85 bus goes to Yagoto.

Example

A : Kore wa Tanaka san no hon desu ka.
"Is this Mr. Tanaka's book?"
B : Saa, wakarimasen.
"Well, I don't know."

IV. Phrase : Anoo
Anoo is used when the speaker hesitates to say something because what he wants to say may sound unpleasant to the hearer. Anoo in Dialogue 5-2 was uttered, because Alice felt too many questions might bother the man.

Example

A : Anoo, sumimasen.
"Excuse me."
B : Hai.
"Yes."
A : Kono densha wa Sakae ni ikimasu ka.
"Does this train go to Sakae?"

II. Particles : Wa...ga...construction

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:02:00 +0000

As mentioned before, wa indicates a topic, and a wa-noun phrase is followed by a comment. A comment may or may not have the subject. If the subject must be mentioned, the whole sentence will be X wa Y ga shimashita. X wa Y ga benri desu, etc.

Example
1. Arisu san wa, atama ga itai desu.
"Alice san has a headache."
2. Arisu san wa, kanji no shukudai ga taihen desu.
"Alice san has a lot of kanji homework."
3. Yagoto wa, basu ga benri desu.
"The bus is more convenient, if you go to Yagoto."

Mo "also" is quite similar to wa, and you will see X mo Y ga shimashita type sentences somewhere in this textbook.

Example
A : Yagoto wa, basu ga benri desu yo.
"The bus is more convenient, if you go to Yagoto."
B : Sakae wa.
"How about Sakae?"
A : Sakae mo, basu ga benri desu.
"The bus is also more convenient, if you go to Sakae."

I. Particle : Ga

noreply@blogger.com (Sigit Kurniawan) — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 09:01:00 +0000

Before you start the main part of a conversation on the phone, you may tell your name to the listener, "This is A speaking, but...." Before you ask a stranger for a direction on the street, you may say "Excuse me, but...."
"This is A speaking.," "Excuse me.," "etc. will be called introductory remarks. They are necessary to make a conversation go smoothly. Japanese tend to use introductory remarks fairly often.

Examples
1. Sumimasen ga.
"Excuse me, but...."
2. Chotto ukagaimasu ga.
"Excuse me, but may l ask a question?"
3. Moshimoshi. Kochira wa Ruin desu ga.
"Hello. This is Lwin speaking, but...."

As you have already noticed, all sentences above are followed by ga. Ga is added to the end of an introductory remark and the main part of a coversation follows it.
The function of ga can be said to combine an introductory remark and the main part. The particles which have a similar function as ga will be called Group 4 particles. The basic function of Group 4 particles is to combine two sentences.