1.8 Questions and Expressions List #1
Completion requirements
Here is the first list of Questions and Expressions from this course.
Click here to download the list.
As the course continues, the questions and expressions will be delivered in Hiragana. This is another reason why you must master Hiragana.
You will be expected to understand the meanings of these questions and expressions, be able to ask and answer the questions and use proper pronunciation.
Click here to download the list.
As the course continues, the questions and expressions will be delivered in Hiragana. This is another reason why you must master Hiragana.
You will be expected to understand the meanings of these questions and expressions, be able to ask and answer the questions and use proper pronunciation.
Romaji
English 1. Onamae wa nan desu* ka.
What is your name? 2. Watashi no** namae wa _______ desu.
My name is ________________. 3. Nan sai desu ka.
How old are you? 4. Watashi wa _________ sai desu.
I am _______ years old. 5. Nan nensei desu ka.
What grade are you in? 6. Koukou ni nensei desu.
I am in grade eleven. 7. Ogenki*** desu ka.
How are you? (Literally: Are you well/energetic/spirited?) 8. Hai, genki desu.
Yes, I am well. 9. Tsukarete imasu.
I am tired. 10. Maa maa**** desu.
I'm so-so. 11. "___" wa nihongo de nan desu ka.
What is "_____" in Japanese? 12. "____" wa eigo de nan desu ka.
What is "______" in English? 13. Hai
Yes.
14. Iie****
No.
15. Minasan, kiite kudasai.
Everyone, please listen.
16. Minasan, kaite kudasai.
Everyone, please write.
17. Ii****desu ka.
Is it/this alright/good?
18. Daijoubu desu.
It is/This is ok.
19. Wakarimasu ka.
Do you understand?
20. Hai, wakarimasu.
Yes, I understand.
21. Iie, wakarimasen.
No, I don't understand.
22. Shitsumon ga arimasu ka.
Do you have a/any question(s)?
23. Hai, shitsumon ga arimasu.
Yes, I have a/any question(s).
24. Iie, shitsumon ga arimasen.
No, I do not have a/any question(s).
**Japanese speakers, when speaking naturally, usually do not pronounce the full Hiragana sound 'u' at the end of 'desu.' You will notice that 'desu' often sounds like 'des' with a very soft Hiragana 'u' sound as opposed to the strong 'u' sound
if you just saw the character on its own.
The particle "no" is a particle used to show possession.
If we literally translate "Watashi no namae" into English, we have: I (watashi) belonging to (no) name (namae).
The noun that comes after "no" is what belongs to the person or thing that goes before "no."
In this case, "namae" comes after "no." Therefore the "namae" belongs to "watashi."
"Belonging to I" in regular English would be said as "My"!
If we literally translate "Watashi no namae" into English, we have: I (watashi) belonging to (no) name (namae).
The noun that comes after "no" is what belongs to the person or thing that goes before "no."
In this case, "namae" comes after "no." Therefore the "namae" belongs to "watashi."
"Belonging to I" in regular English would be said as "My"!
Remember when we talked about the honorific "O" in the Reading Conversation between Kiyono-san and Megumi-san?
This is the same situation.
We put an honorific "o" in front of "genki" when asking someone else how they are doing. This shows that you are being respectful to that person. However, when someone asks you how you are doing, you should be humble and use "genki." If you say that you are "ogenki," that sounds like you think very highly of yourself.
At first it may seem strange if someone asks you, "How are you?" and you answer with "Yes, I am well."
The use of "Hai" (yes) is due to the fact that the question is literally asking, "Are you energetic/lively/spirited?"
You may sometimes hear "Okagaesama de" in response. You don't need to remember this expression for Japanese 10 but its origins are very interesting!
The meaning of "Okagesama de" is still along the lines of "I'm well, thank you" but the actual original meaning comes from "I am well thanks to the Gods, to you and to others around me."
Traditionally, Japanese people believed in both Shinto and Buddhist religions and in Shinto religion, there are gods for things in nature like the Sun God and the Rain God who would provide sunshine and rain to grow food. So "thanks to the gods I can eat food and therefore I am well. I am also doing well because of other people who farmed the fields to provide this food to me."
Do you see the running theme here of how much importance is placed on being polite to other people in Japanese society and culture?
This is the same situation.
We put an honorific "o" in front of "genki" when asking someone else how they are doing. This shows that you are being respectful to that person. However, when someone asks you how you are doing, you should be humble and use "genki." If you say that you are "ogenki," that sounds like you think very highly of yourself.
At first it may seem strange if someone asks you, "How are you?" and you answer with "Yes, I am well."
The use of "Hai" (yes) is due to the fact that the question is literally asking, "Are you energetic/lively/spirited?"
You may sometimes hear "Okagaesama de" in response. You don't need to remember this expression for Japanese 10 but its origins are very interesting!
The meaning of "Okagesama de" is still along the lines of "I'm well, thank you" but the actual original meaning comes from "I am well thanks to the Gods, to you and to others around me."
Traditionally, Japanese people believed in both Shinto and Buddhist religions and in Shinto religion, there are gods for things in nature like the Sun God and the Rain God who would provide sunshine and rain to grow food. So "thanks to the gods I can eat food and therefore I am well. I am also doing well because of other people who farmed the fields to provide this food to me."
Do you see the running theme here of how much importance is placed on being polite to other people in Japanese society and culture?
If you see the same vowel one after another, that means that when you pronounce the first sound, you make it long.
Maa maa will have the long "a" sound. Don't break it up into two "a" sounds. Blend those two "a"s into one sound.
Iie will have a long "i" sound. Pronounce the two "i"s as one long "i" sound.
Ii is two "i"s put together. Literally it means "good", but it can be used in this situation as "alright," too.
Another way to elongate an initial vowel sound is by putting a second DIFFERENT vowel after it. For example: OTOUTO (younger brother).
Here we have the Hiragana characters O, TO, U, TO.
The "u" comes after the "o" sound of "to." This means that we will take that initial "o" sound (from "to" and make it longer. We will NOT pronounce the "u" sound at all even though it's written in Hiragana.
Maa maa will have the long "a" sound. Don't break it up into two "a" sounds. Blend those two "a"s into one sound.
Iie will have a long "i" sound. Pronounce the two "i"s as one long "i" sound.
Ii is two "i"s put together. Literally it means "good", but it can be used in this situation as "alright," too.
Another way to elongate an initial vowel sound is by putting a second DIFFERENT vowel after it. For example: OTOUTO (younger brother).
Here we have the Hiragana characters O, TO, U, TO.
The "u" comes after the "o" sound of "to." This means that we will take that initial "o" sound (from "to" and make it longer. We will NOT pronounce the "u" sound at all even though it's written in Hiragana.