AniDex Forums
Discussion Forums => Anime => Topic started by: Chadwicke on October 04, 2011, 06:56:23 am
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Being exposed to the Japanese language every day, we learn bit by bit of it through the frequency of use of some words in anime. I have learned quite a number of words already, so I'm interested to know if the anime lovers out there, including the translators, has noticed some frequently used Japanese words in anime (also quite possibly in visual novels), and for non-translators, learned it that way.
I don't know if any quick learners out there agree, but in my case if you teach me some words that I don't encounter often, it'll be hard for me to remember. So, this thread might also serve as compilation of the frequently used Japanese words in anime.
So, I request you guys to teach me more Japanese! Yoroshuku negai shimasu! ;D
Oh yeah, the words I learned from my years of anime. I'm gonna be going by quick memory recall here, so I'm gonna have to post again later when I remember more. Please correct anything I got wrong:
Otoko - Boy/Man/Male
Onna - Girl/Woman/Female
Otouto - Younger brother
Imouto - Younger sister
Kyodai - Brothers (not sure!)
Aniki/Onii-san - Older brother
Aneki/Onee-san - Older sister
Haha/Okaa-san - Mother
Chichi/Otou-san - Father
Oji-san - Uncle
Oba-san - Aunt
Ojii-san - Grandfather
Obaa-san - Grandmother
Itoko - Cousin
Nakama - Comrade/Peer
Tomodachi - Friend
Koibito - Lover
Tensai - Genius/Prodigy
Megami - Goddess
Kami - God
Tenshi - Angel
Akuma - Demon
Kazoku - Family
Sensei - Teacher/Doctor/Any expert on a field
Uso - Lie/Not A Fact
Joudan - Joke
Motto - More
Majutsu - Magic
Kagaku - Science
Renkinjutsu - Alchemy
Hana - Flower
Seishun - Youth/Young
Sekai - World
Sora - Sky
Umi - Sea
Kaze - Wind
Suki - Moon/Like/Love
Kirai - Dislike/Hate
Ai - Love
Koi - Love (what's the difference with Ai?)
Kokoro - Heart / Feelings (Emotions)
Kimochi - Feelings (Physical)
Mega - Eyes
...tried to think about other words I know pertaining to body parts... nope, don't know any other. ^_^
...wait, oppai? Nah, that doesn't count.
Megane - Eyeglasses
...also tried to think about other clothes and accessories... nada.
...wait, pantsu? Nah.
Shiro - White
Kuro - Black
Ao - Blue
Akai - Red
Midori - Green
Ichi, Ni, San, Shi, Go, Roku, ...forgot the other 2 here... Kyu, Ju,
Ju Ichi, Ju Ni, so on...
Ni Ju Ichi, Ni Ju Ni, so on...
and so on...
(How do I use Hyaku?)
(Err, what about the thousands?)
(Millions?)
I'm also quite confused how to use Ika, Nana and Yon, and any other alternative to the numbers.
Tadaima - said when arriving home
Okaeri - said to the one arriving home (Welcome Home)
Itekimasu - said when leaving home
Iterashai - said to the one leaving home
Ohayou gozaimasu - Good Morning
Konbanwa - Greeting for the rest of the day and evening, I think
Oyasumi - Good Night
Kudasai - guessing here, rough word for please?
Onegai - Please
Negai - Wish/Desire
Warui - Bad/Horrible
Hidoi - Cruel (not really sure)
Sukoshi - A Bit
Yasashi - Kind
Ureshi - Happy
Oishi - Delicious - I also heard something that sounds like "umai", what's the difference?
The verbs... are my greatest challenge as of now. I haven't researched or studied anything about the Japanese language, so maybe that's why. I frequently hear some of the verbs but the usage and suffixes confuse me. I'm not sure if these are the root words. I've heard:
Kaeru - to go home
Mamoru - to protect
Tatakau - to fight
Nigeru - to run away
Hanase - to let go
Butei - to shoot/to fire
I've also heard characters say "-yoni" by the end of their sentences when they wish for something in a temple or during an occasion like New Year.
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Oookay... First of all, it's "Yoroshiku onegai shimasu". ::)
It'd help if you started by listing some of those commonly used words that you've learned.
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Pronunciation and Basics
Pronunciation
Japanese words (obviously) have a different pronunciation as compared to English. However, if you know any Spanish, the vowels are pronounced almost exactly the same.
Basics
Japanese words are not made up of letters. They are made up of syllables. Take the following example.
O Ha Yo U Go Za I Ma Su
Good Morning.
(Typing from a computer without ability to type in Hiragana. I only know Hiragana.)
I'll teach you some greetings and goodbyes. Practice pronouncing the words slowly.
O Ha Yo U Go Za I Ma Su ~~ Good Morning.
Ko N Ni Chi Wa ~~ Hello / Good Afternoon.
Ko N Ba N Wa ~~ Good Evening.
Sa Yo U Na Ra ~~ Goodbye.
Ja , Ma Ta ~~ Well then, See you later. (In-Formal)
De Wa, Ma Ta ~~ Well then, See you later. (Formal)
Ja, Ma Ta A Shi Ta ~~ Well Then, See you tomorrow.
Ja, Ma Ta Ra I Shuu ~~ Well then, See You next week.
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Ko N Ba Wa ~~ Good Evening.
You forgot the other "n". "Konbanwa".
Ja , Ma Ta ~~ Well then, See you later.
De Wa, Ma Ta ~~ Well then, See you later.
The difference between "ja" and "dewa" is that the latter is more formal.
Ja, Ma Ta Ra I Shi Yuu ~~ Well then, See You next week.
Actually, next week is "raishuu". らいしゅう <See the smaller "yu", it means it merges into the "shi", forming a "shuu".
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I'm going by how it was written in my notebook. xD
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I only guess how to write it because I always go by how they sound, so the sometimes-silent i and u I kinda mess up most of the time. Saying that though, even if I always go by how they sound, I still miss a lot of things, like when o goes after u or vice versa.
Any tips? :D
And... I'm Asian, so I more or less know how to pronounce when I see some romaji. Thinking about it, my country, the Philippines, is probably one of the most flexible towards English -and- Japanese because we write using the Roman alphabet and our own language's pronunciation is very much like the Japanese (though we have separate R and L).
Oh yeah, the words I learned from my years of anime. I'm gonna be going by quick memory recall here, so I'm gonna have to post again later when I remember more. Please correct anything I got wrong:
Otoko - Boy/Man/Male
Onna - Girl/Woman/Female
Otouto - Younger brother
Imouto - Younger sister
Kyodai - Brothers (not sure!)
Aniki/Onii-san - Older brother
Aneki/Onee-san - Older sister
Haha/Okaa-san - Mother
Chichi/Otou-san - Father
Oji-san - Uncle
Oba-san - Aunt
Ojii-san - Grandfather
Obaa-san - Grandmother
Itoko - Cousin
Nakama - Comrade/Peer
Tomodachi - Friend
Koibito - Lover
Tensai - Genius/Prodigy
Megami - Goddess
Kami - God
Tenshi - Angel
Akuma - Demon
Kazoku - Family
Sensei - Teacher/Doctor/Any expert on a field
Uso - Lie/Not A Fact
Joudan - Joke
Motto - More
Majutsu - Magic
Kagaku - Science
Renkinjutsu - Alchemy
Hana - Flower
Seishun - Youth/Young
Sekai - World
Sora - Sky
Umi - Sea
Kaze - Wind
Suki - Moon/Like/Love
Kirai - Dislike/Hate
Ai - Love
Koi - Love (what's the difference with Ai?)
Kokoro - Heart / Feelings (Emotions)
Kimochi - Feelings (Physical)
Mega - Eyes
...tried to think about other words I know pertaining to body parts... nope, don't know any other. ^_^
...wait, oppai? Nah, that doesn't count.
Megane - Eyeglasses
...also tried to think about other clothes and accessories... nada.
...wait, pantsu? Nah.
Shiro - White
Kuro - Black
Ao - Blue
Akai - Red
Midori - Green
Ichi, Ni, San, Shi, Go, Roku, ...forgot the other 2 here... Kyu, Ju,
Ju Ichi, Ju Ni, so on...
Ni Ju Ichi, Ni Ju Ni, so on...
and so on...
(How do I use Hyaku?)
(Err, what about the thousands?)
(Millions?)
I'm also quite confused how to use Ika, Nana and Yon, and any other alternative to the numbers.
Tadaima - said when arriving home
Okaeri - said to the one arriving home (Welcome Home)
Itekimasu - said when leaving home
Iterashai - said to the one leaving home
Ohayou gozaimasu - Good Morning
Konbanwa - Greeting for the rest of the day and evening, I think
Oyasumi - Good Night
Kudasai - guessing here, rough word for please?
Onegai - Please
Negai - Wish/Desire
Warui - Bad/Horrible
Hidoi - Cruel (not really sure)
Sukoshi - A Bit
Yasashi - Kind
Ureshi - Happy
Oishi - Delicious - I also heard something that sounds like "umai", what's the difference?
The verbs... are my greatest challenge as of now. I haven't researched or studied anything about the Japanese language, so maybe that's why. I frequently hear some of the verbs but the usage and suffixes confuse me. I'm not sure if these are the root words. I've heard:
Kaeru - to go home
Mamoru - to protect
Tatakau - to fight
Nigeru - to run away
Hanase - to let go
Butei - to shoot/to fire
I've also heard characters say "-yoni" by the end of their sentences when they wish for something in a temple or during an occasion like New Year.
Argh! My head aches after that. Brain typhoon imminent. I missed a lot of what I've already encountered. I know I missed a lot. My guess is this is around 20-25% of the words I've somehow figured out - right spelling or not, I just know the pronunciation obviously because I learned it from anime.
Gonna post again later. So, care to teach me more?
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I don't have much time, so I'll just correct whatever mistakes I notice with a quick glance...
Kyoudai - siblings
About the family words in general, when you're talking about your own family you use words like chichi, haha, ani, ane, otouto, imouto, sofu (grandfather), sobo (grandmother), shujin/otto (husband), tsuma (wife), musuko (son), musume (daughter)... When you're talking about someone else's family, you use more respectful words: otou-san, okaa-san, onii-san, onee-san, otouto-san, imouta-san, ojii-san, obaa-san, go-shujin, oku-san, musuko-san, musume-san...
Sensei is more of an honourific, like -san, than a word meaning the professions and such that it's connected with. For example, the word that actually means teacher is kyoushi.
The word for moon is tsuki, not suki. Also, a matter of technicality, suki/kirai are actually adjectives describing something you find likeable or hateable. I never knew this until last week's lesson. :P
Eye - me
All the colours are i-adjectives: shiroi, kuroi, aoi...
Numbers: ichi, ni, san, shi/yon, go, roku, shichi/nana, hachi, kyuu, juu
juu-ichi, juu-ni, juu-san... ni-juu
ni-juu-ichi, ni-juu-ni, ni-juu-san...
hyaku (100), sen/issen (1000), man (10000) (yes, 10000 is its own unit)
Gotta go now, more later...
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Thanks for the corrections, man. Short lesson but I learned a lot. I hope to learn more!
Oh, so that's why I found it weird when they use Kyoudai even when they mean sisters... I encountered Kyoudai mostly in FMA Brotherhood (Edo & Aru) so I thought it meant brothers.
I've also encountered Sensei as an honorific, but many times they also say the word independent of any names. How come? Is that considered impolite?
I don't mean to put you through so much work but it seems no one other than you is really interested in teaching me with the "kind of" advanced stuff. And I had to list this somewhere so I don't forget. ;)
Himitsu - Secret
Yakusoku - Promise
Tegami - Letter
Akari - Light
Hoshi - Star
Tameni - Sake (Christ no Tameni = For Christ's Sake)
Ashita - Tomorrow
Mahou - Magic/Magical
Denpa - Cell Signal
Ou - King (err... I don't know the one for Queen, they just say Queen like Freezing's "Burger Queen"...)
Hime - Princess (err... don't know the one for Prince either)
Ojou - Female Master/Lady
Goshijin - Male Master/Lord
Waka - Young Master
Musume - Daughter
Musuko - Son
Kaichou - President
Taichou - Captain
Shoi - Lieutenant
Shosa - Major
(Forgot the one for Colonel when my one of my fave characters Roy Mustang is a Colonel. Argh...)
Ningen - Human
Usotsuki - Liar
Kyouketsuki - Vampire
Shitsuji - Butler (that's hard to pronounce even for me)
Bakemono - Monster
Yokai - Monster/Demon
Ayakashi - Demon (way too many terms for Demons... what's the difference of Yokai, Ayakashi and Akuma?)
Yume - Dream
Yome - Wife
Itsumo - Always
Mizu - Water
Mizugi - Swimsuit!
Tanoshi - Fun
Yakimochi - Jealousy/Jealous
Seitokai - Student Council
Mimi - Ears (how can I forget this, it's another body part that I know aside from mega and oppai...)
Ringo - Apple
Ichigo - Strawberry
...thought hard about other fruits... and gave up.
Inu - Dog
Neko - Cat
Usagi - Rabbit
Tora - Tiger
Ryuu - Dragon
Ookami - Wolf
Kuma - Bear
...thought really hard about other animals... and gave up again.
Deka/Oki - Big
Kawaii - Cute
Kire - Beautiful/Pretty
Hajime - First
Saigo - Last/Final
Saikou - Best
Saitei - Worst
Samui - Cold
Atsui - Hot
Muda - Useless (not sure about this but it's pretty frequent in Bleach)
Baka - Idiot
Mata - to meet
Shinjiru - to believe
Taberu - to eat
Yurusu - to forgive
Wasureru - to forget
Miteru - to look/to see
Matteru - to wait
Yameru - to stop
Nani - What
Nande/Doushite - Why
Ore/Boku - I (male)
Watashi/Atashi - I (female)
Kimi/Anta - You
Anata - Dear
Tachi - suffix that pertains to a group (Kimi-tachi = You and your group/You and the people with you)
Hai! - Yes
Ie/Ia - No (Oookay, someone explain when to use which)
Ii - Okay/Fine (Gluttony's "Tabete ii?" - Is it okay to eat this?)
Itadakimasu! - No direct translation, I think. Said just before digging in to food.
Gokushousama deshita or something - said after eating
Gomenasai/Gomen - Sorry
Hajime mashite - Nice to Meet You
Yoroshiku Onegai Shimasu - No direct translation, I think. Something like "take care of me" or "I'll be in your care from now on"...
Sayonara - Good bye
Ja - So/Well Then (can be said when saying goodbye or when concluding something)
Dakara - That's Why
Wakata - I Understand
Youkai - Roger!
Chigau/Chigai - That's Wrong
Mada - There's More/That's Not All
Yamete - Stop! (one of the first expressions I learned... from hentai)
Urusai/Urusei - Urusai seems to be "shut up" (Shana) while Urusei seems to be something like "you're so noisy"
I'm now having trouble remembering other words. I think that's around 80% including the first ones I posted. The remaining 20%, most of those I probably won't remember 'til I encounter them again in anime. Once again, Yoroshiku Onegai Shimasu!
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More fruits for you:
Anzu - Apricot
Kiichigo - Raspberry
Mikan - Tangerine/Mandarin Orange
Momo - Peach
Nashi - Pear (also Seiyounashi)
Orenji - Orange
Sakuranbou - Cherry (the fruit: Sakura is for the different species cherry blossom tree and for cherry blossoms)
Suika - Watermelon
Ume - Plum (also Puramu)
Umeboshi - Pickled Plum
Yuzu - Bitter Orange
Zakuro - Pomegranate
(I started listing ones I remembered from character names, then got to googling and discovered the Sakura/Sakuranbou difference. Some of this was shamelessly copied from the fruits category of jonsay.co.uk (http://www.jonsay.co.uk/dictionary.php?langa=English&langb=Japanese&category=fruits) which looks very useful with some good categories.)
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Thanks. I wonder why I didn't notice Suika (Watermelon) in anime even though watermelon smashing events happen a lot.
Regarding fruits though, I didn't include Melon and Banana because what I hear is when characters actually say it in English. Melon becomes Meron and Banana is said as it is. Hmm... never encountered grapes anywhere...
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I've also encountered Sensei as an honorific, but many times they also say the word independent of any names. How come? Is that considered impolite?
Nah, it's not impolite. Just like in English you can use "the general" to refer to a person who's a general and everyone knows who you're talking about, you can use "sensei" to refer to a person whose profession or position compared to you warrants the respectful title, and whom everyone knows you're talking about. The Japanese language leaves a lot to the context, they don't for example differentiate between singular and plural in their substantives.
To continue from yesterday...
Okaeri is a shortened form, Okaerinasai is the complete, and somewhat less intimate word.
Ittekimasu, itterasshai
Concerning the difference between konnichiwa and konbanwa, as a basic principle the latter is said after the sun goes down, rather than being tied to the clock.
Oyasumi is an intimate form of Oyasuminasai.
Kudasai - yes, translates roughly to "please". "Koohii to appurupai o kudasai" = "Coffee and (a slice of) apple pie, please"
Negai - wish, not so much a desire, as in a strong, selfish desire. "Motome" would be the word for "desire" (something I learned from Eien no Aselia ;D)
Yasashii - means "kind", yes, but also "easy"
Ureshii
Oishii
Kaeru, kaerimasu - to return, not just to home, but for example to your home country. The "masu" form is a more respectful form, used in normal conversation between people who're not very close. Safer to learn that instead of the basic form.
Hanase - no idea about this, really. If it's a verb, it's not in its basic form. I've heard it many times, I understand where your conception of its meaning comes from, but... Hanasu/hanashimasu means "to talk"... O.o
Butei - no idea about this either, where did you get this?
Akari - thins might be correct, but the most common word for light is "hikari"
Denpa - electromagnetic waves
Jo-ou - queen
Ouji - prince
Ojou - young lady/miss
Remember, in the three above, it's a norm to add the -sama, although in Ojou's case less respectful honourifics are used in some cases.
Goshujin - "go-" prefix, as well as the more common "o-" prefix basically means "honourable". Shujin means husband, but also lord. That's where "goshujin-sama" comes from. Goes to show how male-dominant the japanese culture was, and still is, even their language elevates the husband into the position of the lord and master. ::)
-chou - there are several possible prefixes to this, with minor tone differences. Basically they all mean "captain" or another leadership position.
Ningen - human as in a member of the human race in fantasy settings. Other words for man/person etc. are hito, jin, nin and some less common words...
Kyuuketsuki
Shitsuji - yes, butler... don't confuse this with "hitsuji", "sheep". :P
Youkai - technically, writing "yokai" isn't wrong, but it's a long vowel.
Ayakashi - quite synonymous to youkai, but in my understanding ayakashi is usually used on a spirit-like monster that normal humans can't see.
Akuma - "devil" is a translation I see more often than "demon", though of course it doesn't refer to the Devil. I connect "demon" with "youkai" or "oni" usually. "Oni" is also often translated "ogre"...
Tanoshii
Ookii
Kirei
Hajime - this is often part of words and extressions that translate to "first" something, for example "hajimete", "first time", but I think the actual translation for this word alone is "beginning" or something...
Mata - I think it means "again" or something...
Miru/mimasu - to look
Matsu/machimasu - to wait (matte is another form of this word, the -te form, used when asking or commanding)
Question words:
Nani/nan - what
Dare - who
Doko - where
Itsu - when
A question sentence always ends with a "ka"... and there's no question mark. Sometimes question marks are used in titles and such for enhanced effect, but technically they're unnecessary.
Watashi - I (gender neutral, safe in all situations)
Boku - I (male, but soft, sometimes used by females)
Ore - I (male, strong, masculine, rough, assertive)
Atashi - I (female, very "cute" and soft)
Atai - I (the female version of "ore", very rough)
Anata - you (but they try to avoid using it, as it's considered somewhat rude - they prefer to call a person with their name instead, or leave it to the context), also a word with which a wife sometimes calls her husband, usually translated to "honey" or "dear".
Kimi - you (but like "anata", rarely used)
Kare/kanojo - he/she, also often used in situations where they're best translated to man/woman/girl
Watashi-tachi - us (yes, -tachi is a suffix often used to denote a group)
Anata-gata - you (plural)
Karera/kanojora - they (male/female - but it's "karera" if there's even one male in the group you're referring to)
Minna - everyone, everybody (often used with "-san", for example when speaking to a group of not very familiar people)
That's enough for now, more later...
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Learned a lot. Honto arigatou!
Hmm... it also puzzles me why they say coffee as koohii even though they have "f" in pronunciation.
"Motome" from Eien no Aselia wouldn't come from sexual "desire", would it? :D
Butei - I heard this in Aria (not the name of the school though, different usage), and then I heard it again in AoEx when Rin and Yukio had a fight in... episode 2, I think. Rin was telling Yukio, his gunslinger brother, to shoot.
Hanase - I also heard this used as Hanasanaide, so maybe the root word is hanasaru? Guessing again.
Wait... so all root word for verbs end with -ru?
Akari is actually a brand of light bulbs here in my country. And I think I remember from Sekirei about Hikari and Hibiki being Lightning and Thunder so I was convinced it was that. So, when to use which? Or is it really that Akari is rarely ever used?
Encountered Kimi as rough translation for "Hey You" in KamiMemo when the nurse was telling Narumi that visiting hours is over. The nurse kept repeating Kimi until Narumi finally notices her.
So, Anata-tachi and Kimi-tachi as You (plural) is incorrect or just never used? I never noticed -gata anywhere...
I've also encountered numerous times Kanojo being used as Girlfriend. Can Kare then also mean Boyfriend?
Ugh, the other words I'd need accuracy confirmation would come out slow now. I've pretty much almost drained what I know. Also, my PC seems to refuse to work, so no anime-reviewing allowed for me.
Namae - Name
Tamashi - Soul
Doki - holy crap how can I forget? Hehehe. Don't know the translation anyway, I just encounter it when a character means "my heart stopped" or "my heart skipped a beat", saying Doki-doki something.
Tasukeru - to save
Asoko - used to point to somewhere
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Hmm... it also puzzles me why they say coffee as koohii even though they have "f" in pronunciation.
Yeah, their loan words are often quite strangely twisted... -.-' They're very carefree about that.
"Motome" from Eien no Aselia wouldn't come from sexual "desire", would it?
Um, no. More like a desire to acquire something, like power.
According to an internet dictionary hanaseru means "to be understanding, to be sensible", so I suppose it could come from that, though it's a big leap... :-\
Wait... so all root word for verbs end with -ru?
No, but many do. There are two (well, technically three, but the third only contains two words) different groups of verbs, and in one of them all end with -ru. In the other one there are various endings, but they as well seem to end with -u.
Akari is actually a brand of light bulbs here in my country. And I think I remember from Sekirei about Hikari and Hibiki being Lightning and Thunder so I was convinced it was that. So, when to use which? Or is it really that Akari is rarely ever used?
Can't really help with that, akari is a new word to me so I don't know how it's used. According to an online dictionary, "akari" means "a light", while "hikari" is simply "light"...
So, Anata-tachi and Kimi-tachi as You (plural) is incorrect or just never used? I never noticed -gata anywhere...
Likely not incorrect... -gata is how it's in my book, but I think I've heard -tachi being used with at least anata.
I've also encountered numerous times Kanojo being used as Girlfriend. Can Kare then also mean Boyfriend?
Oh, yeah, "kanojo" is used that way a lot, too. Boyfriend is usually "kareshi".
Doki - holy crap how can I forget? Hehehe. Don't know the translation anyway, I just encounter it when a character means "my heart stopped" or "my heart skipped a beat", saying Doki-doki something.
They have a lot of onomatopoetic words, "doki" is the sound heart supposedly makes when it beats, and thus it has come to mean heartbeat. "Dokidoki" means basically fast heartbeat, being excited, such things.
Tamashii
Asoko - there (not near you or the one you're talking to)
Ie/Ia - No (Oookay, someone explain when to use which)
This caused me some headache as well, until I finally figured it out. "Iie" is the usual word for "no". In spoken language, however, it's common to say "Iya". Don't confuse with "ie", which means "a house", sometimes "home".
Ii/yoi - good (the latter is more formal, and also used in inflections, for example "yokatta", the past tense, which you also often hear in anime)
Gochisousama deshita - basically "thanks for the food"
Hajimemashite (written without a space)
Wakatte - the -te form of "wakaru/wakarimasu", "to understand". The -te form is still something I've only seen in my book, we haven't actually covered it yet in class, so I'm not sure about all the ways how it can be used. At its most basic, it seems to be the equivalent of -ing in English, but it's also used when asking or even commanding someone to do something.
Chigau/chigaimasu - it means roughly that something is "different", used to reply negatively, to indicate that "it's not as you say".
Yamete - probably the -te form of "yameru/yamemasu", "to stop"
Urusai - yep, that's the rude word usually translated "shut up", means technically "noisy, loud". I believe it can be said in a softer way that sounds like they're saying "urusei", but it's probably the same word. No idea what it means in the manga title "Urusei Yatsura", though...
That's it for today...
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A little bit of basic grammar today.
Example sentence: わたしのなまえはジョン・スミスです。
= Watashi no namae wa Jon Sumisu desu.
= My name is John Smith.
Every character until the name (the first 8) are in hiragana, as well as the last two. Hiragana is the first writing system you usually learn for Japanese, you can express every sound in the language with these 46 characters and their variations. In normal use, particles, verb inflection suffixes and such are always written in hiragana. Notice the は, it's usually romanised "ha", but as an exception, the particle "wa" is written with that character. In the words "konnichiwa" and "konbanwa", as well as "dewa", it's also written with は.
The name is written in katakana. Katakana system has its own character for every sound in the hiragana system. Katakana is used mainly for loan words and foreign names. Western names are written in the western order, first name first, and ・ is used to separate the names.
The sentence ends with 。 - the equivalent of a full stop. There are no kanji characters in this sentence, that'd be advanced, and I dont know many kanji anyway.
There are a lot of particles in Japanese, and they all have multiple uses, so they're an extremely important part of the language. This sentence contains two of the three most common particles, "wa" and "no". "No", in this case, is a genitive, effectively changing "I" into "my". "Wa" indicates the "theme" of the sentence, in this case "watashi no namae", "my name".
In Japanese, it's not technically necessary to have a verb in a sentence. This one doesn't have one. Instead, there's "desu", which works together with "wa" and substitutes the verb (which is always the last word in the sentence). In practise, it usually acts like the verb "to be". In anime, you sometimes hear "de gozaru", the old formal form of desu, or something really weird, instead of desu. I haven't seen Ika Musume, but her famous "de geso" is probably an example of this. The negative form of "desu" is "ja arimasen", the less formal "ja nai" or the more formal "dewa arimasen".
In practise, when introducing yourself, it's usually enough to just say your name and "desu", you can leave the first part out completely. Or you can say "Watashi wa .... desu", "I am ...." Also, the family name is much more important than the first name, so it's prefectly fine to introduce yourself with just the surname.
Also, fixed a silly little mistake in an earlier post: the other word for "seven" besides "shichi" is of course "nana", not "yon", which I already listed as the other word for "four"...
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Bunch of online flashcards may help.
Hiragana :
http://quizlet.com/1055/hiragana-flash-cards/
Katakana :
http://quizlet.com/1056/katakana-flash-cards/
And some basic vocabulary:
http://quizlet.com/3294635/jlpt-5-flash-cards/
With kanji:
http://quizlet.com/3214512/jlpt-5-kanji-eng-flash-cards/
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Deka/Oki - Big
大き = Ooki
Watashi/Atashi - I (female)
Watashi (私) is neutral. Anyone can use it.
Kimi/Anta - You
Anata - Dear
Anta (あんた) is slang. The actual term is anata (あなた), which also means "Dear" or "Honey". I don't know how that came to be but...
Youkai - Roger!
It's actually ryoukai (了解). It just sounds like "youkai" to native English speakers.
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After a bit of preview of some of the recently started anime, I remembered some questions I wanted to ask and also came up with some new ones:
Aho = it seems to be a more cruel version of Baka (Idiot) but I'm not sure; it might even mean a totally different thing
Wakaranai being shortened to Wakaran - it seems some others that also end with -nai can be shortened to end with just -n. Is this applicable to all that end with -nai (Not)?
Nai = seems to also mean "Not Here". Encountered when someone stole Edward Elric's Alchemist Badge/Watch, he just said "Nai"
Elements:
Water = Mizu
Wind = Kaze
Fire = ?
Earth = ?
Ice = ?
Wood = ?
Metal = Hagareno?
- I could look for it in Zero no Tsukaima but I wouldn't know where to even start...
Tsubasa - Wings (I don't know if this serves only as organic wings as I've never encountered the term for airplane's wings)
Chiisai/Chibi - Small
Osoi = Slow/Late
Hayai = Quick/Fast - is this also Early, as Osoi is also Late?
Ikeru = to go
Gorosu = to kill
Ojamashimasu or something - said when entering another person's home
Err... I kinda have an idea but I can't explain it in words: What's the difference between Itsumo, Zutto and Zettai?
As for the particles, I guess "Wa" is a rough equivalent to am/is/are, while "No" as far as my encounters go, is almost an exact equivalent for -'s- (aphostrophe and S) -- this way we don't need to transpose nouns (Chado no Tsubasa = Chad's Wings). Of course sometimes particle "Of" is necessary, so that's where it sometimes becomes confusing for me during the transposition of nouns, especially when the nouns are stuck with adjectives. Argh, those are cause for my brain chaos. Also, is "To" always used as "And"?
Statements ending with Yo = are these impolite? I often see these statements when the speakers are close but sometimes I also see this in a conversation between strangers, though a bit more seldom.
Oh yeah, that last question also applies to statements ending with Da. I think this is a substitute to Desu but whether Da or Desu was used, it seems Yo can still be used in the end, so I don't know what Yo is a substitute for. Wild guess: Yo becomes Rou when used with Da (Da Rou = Desu Yo/Deshou)?
Argh. Another one is when a statement ends with "Janai No" frequently used by Kyouraku of Bleach. I guess it is roughly the equivalent of "Isn't It?" used in the end of English sentences. Confirmed?
Naze = Another alternative to Nande/Doushite (Why)?
Mo = Too/Also? Encountered Watashi Mo/Atashi Mo as "Me Too" quite a few times.
Mentioned only a few words and I'm alredy experiencing a brain earthquake. I won't give up though. More tomorrow. For now I gotta go do some relaxing stuff...
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Aho - pretty much synonymous to "baka".
Wakaranai being shortened to Wakaran - it seems some others that also end with -nai can be shortened to end with just -n. Is this applicable to all that end with -nai (Not)?
I'm afraid I don't know the answer to this. :-\ I'm not very knowledgeable about the spoken language.
Nai = seems to also mean "Not Here". Encountered when someone stole Edward Elric's Alchemist Badge/Watch, he just said "Nai"
As far as I know, "nai" is simply a word indicating negative, so if you're looking for something and see that it's not where it should be, it's a simple way of stating that it's not there.
Water - mizu, sui
Wind - kaze, fuu
Fire - ka, hi, ho
Earth - do, tsuchi
Ice - koori, hyou, hi
Wood - moku, ki
Metal - kin
An interesting thing relating to the elements is that five of the seven days of the week are named after them.
Getsuyoubi - Monday, "Moon day"
Kayoubi - Tuesday, "Fire day"
Suiyoubi - Wednesday, "Water day"
Mokuyoubi - Thursday, "Wood day"
Kinyoubi - Friday, "Metal day"
Doyoubi - Saturday, "Earth day"
Nichiyoubi - Sunday, "Sun day"
BTW, "kin" also means "gold". "Gin" means "silver".
Tsubasa - wings
Chiisai - small
Osoi - slow, late
Hayai - fast, early
You got these right.
Kuru/kimasu - to come
iku/ikimasu - to go
Note that in Japanese, these verbs are sometimes used differently from how they're used in English (or Finnish, my mothertongue). What is important is the speaker's point of view. You can only speak of "coming" into a place where you are already, anywhere else you speak of "going". When you are in a party and call someone to ask if they're coming to the party, you can use "kimasu", but the other person would have to use "ikimasu", because they speak from their own point of view about going to a place where they aren't yet. However, when you're going home or to your home country, you can only "return" (kaerimasu).
Korosu - to kill
Err... I kinda have an idea but I can't explain it in words: What's the difference between Itsumo, Zutto and Zettai?
"Itsumo" means "always". "Zutto", I'm not entirely sure, but it seems to mean something pretty close to that, too. Zettai means "absolute".
As for the particles, I guess "Wa" is a rough equivalent to am/is/are, while "No" as far as my encounters go, is almost an exact equivalent for -'s- (aphostrophe and S) -- this way we don't need to transpose nouns (Chado no Tsubasa = Chad's Wings). Of course sometimes particle "Of" is necessary, so that's where it sometimes becomes confusing for me during the transposition of nouns, especially when the nouns are stuck with adjectives. Argh, those are cause for my brain chaos. Also, is "To" always used as "And"?
"Wa", as I said, marks the "theme", usually the subject, of the sentence. "Watashi wa --" would translate directly into something like "concerning me" or "speaking of me". In practise, the wa-desu copula often translates into "to be", as I said earlier. "No" is usually the possessive case, either "'s" or "of", but its got a few other uses as well, I may write more about those later. "To" is something that often gets translated "and", but it can also mean "with". "Haha to issho ni" = "Together with (my) mother" ("issho ni" = "together").
"Yo" is a rough equivalent of an exclamation mark, used in spoken language. It's not particularly rude or anything, it's just something you can add to the end of the sentence when you raise your voice to, for example, catch someone's attention from a distance.
"Darou" and "deshou", in my experience, hold a meaning similar to "right?" or "don't you agree?"
Argh. Another one is when a statement ends with "Janai No" frequently used by Kyouraku of Bleach. I guess it is roughly the equivalent of "Isn't It?" used in the end of English sentences. Confirmed?
Another one I can't answer with my limited knowledge.
Naze - why
Mo - a particle with the meaning of "too/also/as well"
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:/ minna-san kusai
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Aho is used mainly by people in the kansai area.
wakaran, shiran, and the like are just colloquial forms of wakaranai (or the more polite wakarimasen)
I suggest learning the common conjugations in japanese first or at the same time as vocabulary. A structured approach will give better results than asking yourself, "what does this mean?" every time you encounter a new "word"
Recommended site for beginner to advanced learners:
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar
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Meh, we're just having fun here. Plus it's actually fun having someone teach you. So if I was that serious about learning Japanese, I'd definitely go for a classroom setting. I'm so bad at studying by myself.
Some others that I could squeeze off my head:
Kane - money
Is Katana the only word for sword? Even those English broadswords or those jeweled one-handed swords, they call katana.
Is Shoganai and Shikatanai the same?
Oh yeah, uh, this one still needs confirmation; I'd repeat this because it might come in handy someday.
Ojamashimasu or something - said when entering another person's home
Still need to organize all these productive conversations into the top post but it's peak season at work, so I barely and will barely have time 'til the middle of November.
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Katana refers to any single-bladed sword, and Japanese swords in general are called nihonto. IIRC, the word for a sword in general would be ken.
Then again, katana is also a separate type of nihonto - moderately curved (in contrast to tachi), with a 60-70cm long blade.
Digging deeper info Japanese swords, it becomes slightly complicated. Different categories, measurements, usages... If you'd like, I could break it down here in several lists, as it would make it a little bit clear, I'm not sure whether it'll be useful though.
I'd also like to ask a question here, or maybe even two. What's with the 'o-' put before some nouns? I know that in some contexts it can be translated as 'great', but sometimes this translation clearly doesn't make sense and would be the last thing I'd think about.
And another one: I know there's a difference between harakiri and seppuku. I even know that one of them is about severing the head of the one committing suicide after the person in question takes a good look at his intestines. I don't know one thing though: which one is which?
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"Kane" means "money", yes, but it's customary to add the respectful "o-" prefix, making it "o-kane" in normal, respectful language.
Ojamashimasu is right. Carries the meaning "Sorry for bothering you". Another very similar idiom is "shitsurei shimasu", which translates directly into something like "I'm being rude", but carries the meaning "I apologize for my rudeness". Although, it's not used when entering another's home, it's often used for example when entering or leaving a room occupied by someone.
Can't answer the shouganai/shikatanai question with anything definite. In my experience, they seem to be quite synonymous.
The "o-" prefix has no other meaning, it simply means "honourable" and it's customarily added to many words, such as "o-kane", "o-sake", "o-miyage" (souvenir)... There's also another prefix with a similar meaning and purpose: "go-", used in words like "go-han" (cooked rice), "go-shujin" etc. The difference is that "o-" is for the Japanese readings and "go-" is for the Chinese readings. Many kanji have more than one reading, a Japanese one, a Chinese one and possibly more of each. Usually one or the other has established itself as the commonly used reading, but in some cases they're both used commonly.
Harakiri and Seppuku mean exactly the same thing. They're even written with the same kanji. It seems seppuku is a more formal (and Chinese) reading, while harakiri is more of a spoken language thing. Seriously, why not just Google things like this?
I might write more later today, if I find the time.
Edit: By the way, I checked the "hanashite" thing with my teacher. It does indeed mean "let go" as well as "speak". Different kanji, but same phonetic form.
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Nai = seems to also mean "Not Here". Encountered when someone stole Edward Elric's Alchemist Badge/Watch, he just said "Nai"
As far as I know, "nai" is simply a word indicating negative, so if you're looking for something and see that it's not where it should be, it's a simple way of stating that it's not there.
I have a new theory on this. I heard this again somewhere, and I think they said "inai". I suspect that's a spoken language negative form of "iru/imasu", "to be/to exist". The thing is, this is supposed to be only used when speaking of living things, people and animals. The equivalent for non-living things would be... "arienai", I think.
Now, a little more about grammar: "Kore", "sore" and "are"
"Kore" translates to "this/these", it's used to refer to things that are close to you.
"Sore" and "are" both translate to "that/those/it" in most cases, but "sore" refers to things close to the person you're talking to and "are" refers to things not close to either of you.
Examples from my book (translated, since the book's in Finnish):
"Kore wa watashi no pasupooto desu." = This is my passport.
"Sore wa omiyage desu." = They/Those are souvenirs.
"Are wa watashi no baggu desu." = Those are my bags.
As I've said before, they don't often make a difference between singular and plural in Japanese, and so it is with these words as well.
If the thing they're referring to is named right after, the words change form: "kono", "sono" and "ano"
"Kono kamera o kudasai." = I'll take this camera. (In a purchasing situation.)
"Kono kasa wa watashi no desu." = That umbrella is mine.
"Ano kudamono wa nashi desu." = That fruit is a Japanese pear (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrus_pyrifolia).
Now, I was thinking of listing some words for a change. Is there something in particular you're interested in? Verbs? Adjectives? A particular subject?
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I would definitely appreciate a bit of introduction with the verb suffixes. Nouns and adjectives seem to have a few suffixes I usually encounter, like the -mono in nouns and -i of adjectives, but by far the suffixes of verbs seem so many I can't even keep track of them all. I've encountered -te (you gave me pointers for this), -ta, -shite, -shiteru and some others that I probably didn't notice. I think they have different suffixes for tenses, but that's just a guess -- based on my observations, of course -- but nonetheless still just a guess.
Along with that, I'd like to know normal, everyday verbs. I mean, look at what I know -- tatakau, mamoru, nigeru, taberu (definitely anime knowledge, right?) -- aside from taberu they're not normally used in a normal, modern-day conversation. Well, a few things that you can easily squeeze off your knowledge would be nice.
Thanks man!
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Right, let's see, I'll start with listing some verbs. I'll bold the ones I consider really important, you might want to start with them and ignore the others at first, in order to avoid overwhelming your brain, lol.
There are three groups of verbs in Japanese. Group III:
Kuru - to come
Suru - to do
That's right, those are the only two members in the group. Now, members of group II all end with either -iru or -eru. Some examples:
Akeru - to open
Iru - to be/to exist (living things)
Kotaeru - to answer
Kureru - to give (familiar)
Miru - to look
Mitsukeru - to find
Neru - to sleep
Okiru - to awaken
Oshieru - to advise, to teach
Shimeru - to close
Taberu - to eat
Wasureru - to forget
Group I is more difficult, there are more words and there's a variety of endings. Some of them also end -eru or -iru, so they can be confused with group II verbs. Examples:
Au - to meet
Aru - to be, to exist (non-living)
Asobu - to play (as a child plays, none of the other meanings the verb has in English)
Chigau - to differ
Furu - to rain
Hairu - to enter
Hakobu - to carry
Hanasu - to speak
Iku - to go
Kaeru - to return
Kau - to buy
Kaku - to write
Kiku - to listen, to ask
Matsu - to wait
Narau - to learn
Noboru - to climb
Nomu - to drink
Oku - to put
Okuru - to send
Oyogu - to swim
Shinu - to die
Shiru - to know someone
Sumu - to live somewhere, to dwell
Tetsudau - to help
Tobu - to fly
Todoku - to arrive, to reach a destination
Toru - to take
Tsukau - to use
Tsuku - to arrive (not sure what's the difference to Todoku)
Uru - to sell
Wakaru - to understand
Yobu - to invite, to call out (I think it means both, not sure, the Finnish word for this is the same...)
Yomu - to read
Now, I've already told you that the -masu form is more respectful than the basic form. It's what's usually used in well-mannered conversation between adults who don't know each other very well. Group III is irregular, so just memorize their inflections.
Kuru - kimasu
Suru - shimasu
Group II, just change the -ru into -masu:
Iru - imasu
Miru - mimasu
etc.
Group I is, as usual, more difficult. Usually, when the basic form ends with a consonant and u, the consonant remains but the u changes to i. If the letter before the u is a vowel, it usually doesn't change. Then, the -masu is added. But there are exceptions, because the Japanese system is different from ours. Examples:
Aru - arimasu (this is an example of what usually happens when there's a consonant before the u)
Chigau - chigaimasu (this is an example of what usually happens when there's a vowel before the u)
Hanasu - hanashimasu (there's no "si" in the hiragana, there's only "shi")
Matsu - machimasu (no "tu" or "ti" in hiragana, but "tsu" and "chi")
The negative form of -masu is -masen. The past tense is -mashita. The negative form of the past tense is -masen deshita.
Ikimasen - does/will not go
Nomimashita - drank
Mimasen deshita - did not look
One more thing: the verb suru/shimasu, "to do", is often used to make a substantive into a verb. For example:
"Benkyou o shimasu" = to study (lit. "to do studying")
"Denwa o shimasu" = to call (with a phone)
"Tenisu o shimasu" = to play tennis
Enough for today. I think I overdid this. -.-' Oh well, I'm doing this in part for myself as well, this is a fun way to practise the basics... More verb inflections next time.
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Another important verb inflection form is the -te form. It has several purposes, but at its very basic it's equivalent of the -ing suffix in English.
"Ima, nani o shite imasu ka." = What are you doing right now?
Together with "kudasai", it makes for a courteous request or command.
"Mado o akete kudasai." = Open the window, please.
In sentences with more than one verb, only the last one shows the tense, while the others are in the -te form:
"Kinou, shigoto no ato de, tomodachi ni aite, eiga ni ikimashita." = Yesterday, after work, I met with a friend and we went to the movies. (Notice the lack of an equivalent for "and" in the Japanese sentence, such a thing is often unnecessary.)
The -te form is easy enough for the groups II and III, just replace the -masu with -te:
Kuru - kimasu - kite
Suru - shimasu - shite
Iru - imasu - ite
Miru - mimasu - mite
etc.
Group I is - as usual - more complicated.
If the verb's basic form ends with -u, -tsu or -ru, it changes to -tte:
Kau - katte
Matsu - matte (everyone's familiar with the phrase "matte kudasai", right?)
Aru - atte
-bu, -mu, -nu --> -nde
Tobu - tonde
Yomu - yonde
Shinu - shinde
-su --> -shite
Hanasu - hanashite
-ku --> -ite
Kaku - kaite
Exception: iku - itte
-gu --> -ide
Oyogu - oyoide
Now, further than this, I don't have detailed information, but I know generally what some other inflections do:
-tai expresses desire. It conjugates like i-adjectives.
"Yuki ga mitai desu." = I'd like to see snow.
"Benkyou shitakunai desu." = I don't want to study.
"Soto ni ikitakatta desu." = I wanted to go out.
"Karaoke-baa de utaitakunakatta desu." = I didn't want to sing in the karaoke-bar.
-mashou is for suggestions.
"Nani o shimashou ka." = What shall we do?
"Eiga ni ikimashou." = Let's go to movies.
"Tetsudaimashou ka." = Shall I help?
"Shoppingu wa dou deshou ka." = How about shopping? (Meaning "would you like to go shopping with me?")
Next time, I was thinking of writing more about particles. It's high time I explain the o (wo) particle. Perhaps also some phrases useful when shopping or eating out...
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Thank you for overdoing it. Hehehe. Informative as always. The advantage of your lessons to me is when I learn some new things, I'll start to look/listen for them in anime. Hence, I learn and be more familiar with them quickly because of the encounters. And now with the verbs, I'll start pausing and skipping back to those verbs I heard. Please keep it up.
...wait, no future tense? Or is it unnecessary? I remember anime characters using present tense while the translation said it on future tense.
If so, then let's move on to particles. I only seem to hear o (wo) and ga and I thought ha (wa) was considered one of those, before you told me what actually it was. It's another topic I have no idea about.
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Now that I've regained my motivation to actively study Japanese, I might start contributing to this thread again. Anyone got any questions or requests, or should I just continue with my boring lectures on the basic grammar?
Edit: As a side note, now that I've started learning about kanji, I might be able to answer some basic questions regarding them...
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I'm in my second semester of online Japanese.
Thus, I can help or contact someone who knows the exact answer.