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🌸 日本語 Greetings

こんにちは konnichiwa – Hello formal

もしもし moshimoshi– Hello formal

Used when answering the phone.

やあ yā – Hey informal

ヤッホー ya hō – Hello informal

Used to greet children or close friends.

よぉ yō – Yo informal (“masc”)

おす/おっす osu/ossu – Hey informal

Used to get someones attention.

おーい ōi – Hey informal (“masc”)

Used to get someones attention.

ただいま tadaima – I’m home informal

ようこそ yōkoso - Welcome informal

A common phrase to say after someone arrives after traveling.

いらっしゃいませ irasshai mase– Welcome formal

This is a common phrase you’ll hear when entering convenience stores or restaurants.

(毎度)いらっしゃいませ (maido) irasshaimase – Welcome formal

This version means “Every time, welcome” and is used by many businesses, especially hotels and spas.

おはよう(ございます)  ohayo (gozaimasu) – Good morning in(formal)

こんばんわ konbanwa – Good evening formal

はじめまして hajime mashite – It’s nice to meet you formal

おあいできて こうえいです o ai dekite kōeidesu – It’s an honor to meet you very formal

Used when first meeting a superior, like a professor or employer.

だいじょうぶ (ですか) daijōbu (desuka) – Are you alright? in(formal)

お(元気)ですか o (genki) desuka- Are you okay? (in)formal

This is often translated as “How are you?” but that’s not quite right. You would typically ask this if it’s to someone you haven’t seen in a long time or if someone seems upset, concerned or pensive.

げんき だった genki data – What’s good? informal

だった is a past tense marker for nouns and な-adjectives. It tells us that the word it’s attached to is relevant to the past, similar to “was” in English.

なんか あった nani ka atta – What’s happening? What’s up? informal

どうよ dōyo – How’s it going? informal

Although informal, it’s appropriate for most social situations when following another greeting.

最近どう saikin dō – What’s up? informal

Also implies the phrase “How have you been?”

お(久しぶり)です o (hisashi) buridesu– Long time no see (in)formal

This phrase is the equivalent of “Long time no see” or “It’s been a while” in English.

(大丈夫)ですか (daijōbu) desuka – Are you alright? (in)formal

Usually asked after someones been hurt or embarrassed.

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|| Ways to ask "Seriously?" In Japanese ||

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◇ 「 Seriously? 」

♡ 『 マジか？ 』

♤ 『 まじか？ 』

♧ 「 Majika? 」

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◇ 「 You’re kidding me. 」

♡ 『 マジですか。』

♤ 『 まじですか。』

♧ 「 Majidesuka 」

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◇ 「 You’re joking! 」

♡ 『 冗談だろう！ 』

♤ 『 じょだんだろう！ 』

♧ 「 Jōdandarou! 」

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Constructive criticism is always welcome! Tysm for reading!! If there's any more I missed lmk and I'll make a longer updated version!!

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|| 4 Random Japanese Phrases ||

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◇ 「 This song is lame. 」

♡ 『 この曲ダサいな。 』

♤ 『 このきょくださいな。 』

♧ 「 Kono kyoku dasaina. 」

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◇ 「 Give me a break. 」

♡ 『 勘弁してくれ。』

♤ 『 かんべんしでくれ。』

♧ 「 Kanben shidekure. 」

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◇ 「 You have a point. 」

♡ 『 一理ある。 』

♤ 『 いちりある。』

♧ 「 Ichiriaru. 」

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◇ 「 I ate too much... 」

♡ 『 食べすぎちゃった。。 。』

♤ 『 たべすぎちゃった。。。』

♧ 「 Tabesugi chatta... 」

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Constructive criticism is always

appreciated! Ty for reading this far!

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|| 4 Random Japanese Phrases ||

◇ 「 Where were we? 」 / 「 What were we talking about? 」

♡ 『 何の話してたっけ？』

♤ 『 なにのはなしてたっけ？』

♧ 「 Nani no hanashi tetattake? 」

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◇ 「 It's no big deal. 」

♡ 『 大したことないよ。』

♤ 『 たいしたこよないよ。』

♧ 「 Taishitakoyonaiyo 」

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◇ 「 I don't feel like it 」

♡ 『 やる気出ないなー 』

♤ 『 やるきでないなあ 』

♧ 「 Yaruki denai naa 」

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◇ 「 I'm on my way ! 」

♡ 『 今向かってる ! 』

♤ 『 いまむかってる ! 』

♧ 「 Ima mukatteru ! 」

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Constructive criticism is always welcome!! Tysm for reading this far ^^

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“Drawing is hard”

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Study some Useful Expressions for a Presentation in Japanese! 🎦 PS: Learn Japanese with the best FREE online resources, just click here: https://www.japanesepod101.com/?src=facebook_special_infographic_presentation_image_082520

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My favorite YouTube Channels to learn Japanese:

Japanese Ammo with Misa

I love learning with her videos, she has grammar videos, kanji and vocabulary videos and also song lyric videos and much more for all levels of Japanese learners. She includes lots of detail in her videos and is very easy to understand and listen to. All her videos have subtitles in kanji, furigana and English.

2. Miku Real Japanese

Miku has lots of videos that include grammar, quizzes, culture and listening practice. She organizes her videos into 3 parts: dialogue/skit, explanation and practice questions. I also like that she makes videos to practice listening to Japanese without any English except for subtitles.

3. Popo Kids

This channel has lots of children's books to listen to and read. It is great to learn simple but useful, everyday phrases. I learn lots of vocabulary for events, foods, animals, colors, and places.

4. Watercolor by Shibasaki

This is a more hobby related way to learn Japanese. Since I like to do watercolor painting, I wanted to learn vocabulary related to my favorite hobby. He speaks in Japanese and has English subtitles to go along in his video. I use his videos for listening practice and also take notes on vocabulary.

5. Life Where I'm From

This channel is not to learn the Japanese language but to learn about Japanese culture. He makes videos about various Japanese events, places and traditions including learning about rural Japan, Japanese school lunches, various Japanese foods and religion in Japan. There is a great variety of topics to learn about and understand the various situations Japanese people encounter.

I hope this list helps you to find a new resource to learn Japanese from😉

If you have any questions, ask me anything~

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Transitivity in Japanese

A transitive verb is when a subject acts on an object, whereas an intransitive verb is when a subject acts on its own with no object

I run a company. (Transitive)

The company runs efficiently. (Intransitive)

They arrived late. (Intransitive)

She opened the book. (Transitive)

Since since intransitive verbs don’t act on an object they aren’t used with the direct object marker を

・However since Japanese often omits things, the lack of an を doesn’t inherently mean that the verb is intransitive. To check if a verb is being used as a transitive in English you can ask yourself ask ‘what?’ for Japanese the answer may not always be clear.

I run a company. → what do I run? → a company = transitive.

The company runs efficiently. → what does the company run? → no object = intransitive

私が遊んだ　→ What did I play? The sentence doesn’t say because the verb is intransitive and can’t take the an object.

私が買った → what did I buy? The sentence doesn’t specify even though the verb is transitive and can have an object.

・Although there are no hard and fast rules there are some ways to guess at if a Japanese verb is transitive or not as long as you know it’s dictionary form.

Verbs that have dictionary forms ending in an ある sound are mostly intransitive (if you change the ある to an える you will often get their transitive counterpart)

止まる　→ 止める

変わる　→ 変える

始まる　→ 始める

Dictionary forms that end in れる are often intransitive

流れる

壊れる

A common exception to this one is いれる

Dictionary forms that end in す are usually transitive

流す

壊す

Some verbs can be used as both

風が吹く　(intransitive)

笛を吹く　(transitive)

閉じる

運ぶ

触れる

増やす

巻く

持つ

結ぶ

・While intransitive verbs can’t use the object marker を sometimes the particle を marks an area that is being traversed and in such cases an intransitive verbs can appear with an を

空を飛ぶ ‘fly through the sky’

道を歩く ‘wall along the path’

In these cases を isn’t marking 空 or 道 as direct objects but rather it’s marking them as the area though which the verb is taking place.

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Inspirational Quotes in #Japanese 🎀 P.S. Download your free Kanji ebook to learn 1500 Kanji fast, just click here: https://www.japanesepod101.com/kanji?src=tumblr_special_infographic_inspiration_quotes_v2_051920

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Animal Crossing Vocab 「１」

化石（かせき）- fossil

構う（かまう）- to mind/care about

預かる（あずかる）- to look after/to hold on to

鑑定（かんてい）- judgement/appraisal

寄贈（きぞう）- donation

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「魔法使いの嫁」の単語：第９

穏やか （おだやか） calm, quiet, gentle, peaceful 敷地 （しきち） site, plot, grounds 認める （みとめる） to admit, accept, confess (to a change) お小遣い （おこづかい） personal expenses, spending money, allowance 遠慮 （えんりょ） restraint. hesitation, holding back 踏み外す （ふみはずす） to miss one’s footing; to be off the right track. on the wrong path 隣人 （りんじん） neighbor 血の気 （ちのけ） blood (as in hot-blooded, ruddy complexion, etc.) いたわる to tend to (e.g. an injury), to care for, nurse, soothe 努力 （どりょく） effort, endeavor, hard work 依存 （いぞん） dependence, reliance 新入り （しんいり） newcomer, rookie 自分勝手 （じぶんかって） selfishness, being self-centered 抑える （おさえる） to hold back, curb, suppress 強情 （ごうじょう） stubborn, obstinate 吸血鬼 （きゅうけつき） vampire, bloodsucker 不得意 （ふとくい） one’s weak point ずぼら sloppy, slovenly 痩せっぽち （やせっぽち） skinny/scrawny person, scarecrow, bag of bones のめり込む （のめりこむ） to be completely absorbed in 題材 （だいざい） subject, theme 白昼夢 （はくちゅうむ） daydream 黄昏 （たそがれ） twilight, dusk 成り行き （なりゆき） course (of events) 崩れる （くずれる） to break down, be thrown into disarray 養い後 （やしないご） foster child 用件 （ようけん） business, thing to be done 至急 （しきゅう） urgent, pressing, immediate

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Phrases for Phone Call in Japanese 📞 PS: Learn Japanese with the best FREE online resources, just click here: https://www.japanesepod101.com/?src=tumblr_special_infographic_calls_040920

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Talk about Your Plans in Japanese! 📆 PS: Learn Japanese with the best FREE online resources, just click here: https://www.japanesepod101.com/?src=tumblr_special_infographic_plans_033120

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「魔法使いの嫁」の単語：第７

回収 （かいしゅう） collection, retrieval 山査子 （さんざし） Japanese hawthorn 不眠 （ふみん） insomnia 避ける （さける） to ward off, avert 眠り薬 （ねむりぐすり） sleeping potion, sleeping powder 調整 （ちょうせい） adjustment, regulation, tuning 影響する （えいきょうする） to influence, affect 習わし （ならわし） custom, habit, customary practice 毒 （どく） poison 優秀な （ゆうしゅうな） superior, excellent 番犬 （ばんけん） watchdog 無害 （むがい） harmless およそ generally, usually お使い （おつかい） errand, mission 厄介 （やっかい） trouble, burden, nuisance 出来上がる （できあがる） to be completed, finished 短命 （たんめい） short life, short-lived 生産 （せいさん） production, manufacture 限度 （げんど） limit, bounds なるべく as much as possible 冷静 （れいせい） calmness, composure より良い （よりよい） superior, better 導き （みちびき） guidance 追伸 （ついしん） ps, postscript 使い魔 （つかいま） familiar, familiar spirit 裏切る （うらぎる） to betray, turn traitor to ぴったり perfectly (suited) 寛容 （かんよう） tolerance, open-mindedness さっさ promptly, quickly 焚く （たく） to burn, heat 夕暮れ （ゆうぐれ） evening, dusk, twilight 逸れる （はぐれる） to lose sight of (one’s companions), stray from 何だか （なんだか） (a) little, somewhat 効き目 （ききめ） effect, efficacy 掛け合わせる （かけあわせる） to crossbreed, hybridize 断る （ことわる） to refuse, reject ちっと a little bit 放り出す （ほうりだす） to throw out 事情 （じじょう） circumstances, situation 検分 （けんぶん） inspection, survey 構わない （かまわない） no problem, it doesn’t matter モルモット guinea pig (usu. animal but here as test subject) 執着 （しゅうちゃく） attachment, fixation 牙を剥く （きばをむく） to bare one’s fangs

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世間話 ― small talk 〔せけんばなし〕

•いい天気ですね？― Nice weather isn't it? 〔天気：てんき〕

•酷い雨ですね？― It's raining hard, isn't it? 〔酷い：ひどい、雨：あめ〕

•ちょっと冷えますね？― A bit chilly, isn't it？〔冷え：ひえ〕

•むしむししますね？― So humid, isn't it?

×××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

•おはようございます ― Good morning

•こんにちは ― Hello／Good afternoon

•こんばんは ― Good evening

•おやすみなさい ― Good night

×××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

•行って来ます ― I'm off/See you later 〔いってきます〕

•いってらっしゃい ― Take care

•ただいま ― I'm home

•お帰り ― Welcome home 〔おかえり〕

×××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

•久しぶり ― Long time no see 〔ひさしぶり〕

•元気？― How's it going? 〔げんき〕

•最近どう？― How have you been? 〔最近：さいきん〕

•元気そうだね ― You look well 〔元気：げんき〕

×××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××××

•じゃあね ― see you

•またね ― see you later

•バイバイ ― byebye

•さようなら ― farewell

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Do you have any advice for Japanese learners who struggle to overcome the intermediate plateau? You are so knowledgeable about Japanese, I'd love to hear your experiences on how you learn and keep improving! Thank you ^_^

Aww man you’re just too sweet. I’m still in the process of learning too. 💗

That intermediate plateau is the hardest thing to overcome. It’s something that was talked a lot about in some of the second language acquisition courses I took back in uni. Let’s delve further into it, because this is something that all language learners will struggle with, regardless of what language you’re learning.

What is the Intermediate Plateau?

👆 a visual representation of the plateau lol

When you first start learning a new language, most learners experience quick and satisfying progress. “Oh man, learning the “te” form was way easier than I thought it’d be!” or “Okay, I got this list of verbs down right away!” “Alright, I got this hiragana down!” 

But then you move on to the kanji. The whole kudasaru, yaru, kureru, ageru, sashiageru, morau, itadaku mess, and you start to struggle a bit. But you can still do it! You’re still learning the words and the grammar and it’s challenging, but you can feel your progress and success. 

But then you finish your textbooks (Probably Genki I, Genki II, and An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese), and suddenly those bursts of success become less and less, until you can no longer feel any progress. 

You read manga and you see lots of words you know, but lots more words that you don’t know. You watch anime and you can catch some sentences, but there are still a lot that you wouldn’t have understood without the English subtitles to help you out. 

This feeling of a lack of progress, of a stagnation, is called the “intermediate plateau.”

My Experiences with the Intermediate Plateau

I tackled the Intermediate Plateau twice: with spoken Japanese and written Japanese. 

I’ve been lucky to have very good listening comprehension and an ability to “fill in the gaps.” After finishing Genki I, II, and An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese, I could basically follow most spoken conversations. There were words I didn’t know, but through context I was able to make educated guesses at what they meant. However, I was stuck using simpler words when I spoke, and it was so frustrating to be able to understand the words, yet be unable to recall them and use them when I wanted to. 

Then I graduated and moved to Japan. Oh man, I thought I was such hot stuff. “I studied Japanese for 5 years, and I even studied Classical Japanese. I’m gonna have such an easy time of it here.”

…It took me about three days of living in Japan to realize that I was absolutely illiterate. I couldn’t understand any of the visa application forms or what they were telling me I needed to provide. Misunderstood the times I had to have the garbage put outside because I had never seen the kanji 迄（まで, “until, by”) before. Couldn’t read most billboards. 

Especially with that kanji for “made” 迄. That was what really made me realize that I was at the plateau kanji-wise. You learn the particle まで in your first year. It was something I could use perfectly. But I hadn’t even known that there was a kanji for it until I tried to take out my trash out and found out that I was supposed to have it in the bin BY 9:30, not AFTER 9:30, like I had guessed it meant. :(

To pour salt into the wound, I have been able to read in English since I was 3 years old. I literally cannot remember a time I could not read. It is one of my favorite pastimes and I also do creative writing. This made the fact that I couldn’t read all-the-more frustrating.

How I Overcame the Plateau

I took that frustration and I turned it into fuel. I vowed to learn ALL THE KANJI. I started using the website and app WaniKani obsessively. I’m here to tell you, that app is what made me literate. It is worth every single penny if you already have a good grasp on the language but your kanji is weak, like me. 

Basically, it teaches you 2,000 kanji and 6,000 reinforcing vocabulary across 60 levels. It doesn’t group the kanji necessarily by JLPT level. Rather, it groups them by radicals and frequency more or less. Each level will introduce 3-4 radicals, and then 10-15 kanji that use those radicals. It quizzes you on their on-yomi and kun-yomi, gives you mnemonics to remember them, and then once you’ve answered them all correctly enough times, it introduces vocabulary that uses those kanji, further reinforcing the readings and increasing your vocabulary. As a former language teacher and studier of second language acquisition, I am here to tell you that this method works. And it’s fun. It doesn’t feel like studying. 

I also started reading Rurouni Kenshin. Even today, it is a challenging read for me. Back then, it would take me days to read just one chapter. But I wrote down every new word in a notebook, and also saved them to my dictionary app, Akebi. 

To this day, this dictionary is my lifeline. You can make vocabulary lists in there, so I have a list for each book or series I’m reading, along with a list of words I find just everyday in conversation or news or something. It’s got a simple flashcard quiz feature for each list too! Seriously, if you’re an Android user, I highly recommend this app. It’s free!

Those were my two main study methods. The more kanji I learned how to read, obviously I was able to read better.

The really fascinating thing about kanji is that they’re like Legos. You can stick them together to make any word you want, really. So if you understand each kanji and remember its pronunciation, even if you see/hear a word for the first time, you can put together the meaning piece by piece.

Because I understood more kanji and could recall their readings, I could hear a new word in a conversation and think to myself, “Okay, we’re talking about how Hokkaido doesn’t get as much snow as it used to. This word ‘ondanka’ must be…温 (おん, heat) 暖 (だん, heat) 化 (か, change). Oh! ‘global warming!’” 

So when I overcame the kanji plateau, I simultaneously overcame the spoken plateau. Knowing the kanji gave me the power to hear a new word in a certain context and infer what kanji must be used for that word, and therefore what that word meant. 

My Advice to You

For me, the key to overcoming the plateau in Japanese was studying more kanji. So I recommend that you keep studying kanji and keep reading. But make sure that they are reading materials that you love!! If you’re not interested in what you’re reading, you’ll run out of steam. 

Another really important thing is to be cognizant of the progress you’ve made. For example, maybe you have a Japanese song you’ve been listening to for years, and for the first time today you picked out a new word–one that you just studied the other day. Pat yourself on the back at every victory, no matter how small it may seem! There’s proof of your progress.

Best of luck to you in your studies!