learning japanese

Hiragana -

Hiragana -

The first step to learning the Japanese language is to learn the Japanese alphabet. Or, at least, to learn the sounds that exist in the Japanese language. There are absolutely no "tones" in Japanese like in many other asian languages and there are only 2 exceptions within the Japanese alphabet which will be explained later. The Japanese alphabet does not contain letters but, instead, contains characters and, technically, they are not alphabets but character sets. The characters in the chart below are called Hiragana. It is the main alphabet or character set for Japanese. The Japanese language also consists of two other character sets - Kanji (Chinese characters), which we will get into later, and another alphabet/character set, Katakana, which is mainly used for foreign words. Katakana will be covered in Lesson 2.

There are 5 vowels in the Japanese language. (a), pronounced "ahh", (i), pronounced like "e" in "eat", (u), pronounced like "oo" in "soon", (e), pronounced like "e" in "elk", and (o), pronounced "oh". All Hiragana characters end with one of these vowels, with the exception of (n). The only "consonant" that does not resemble that of English is the Japanese "r". It is slightly "rolled" as if it were a combination of a "d", "r", and "l".

a i u e o

ka ki ku ke ko

ga gi gu ge go

sa shi su se so

za ji zu ze zo

ta chi tsu te to

da ji zu de do

na ni nu ne no

ha hi fu he ho

ba bi bu be bo

pa pi pu pe po

ma mi mu me mo

ya yu yo

ra ri ru re ro

wa wo n/m

Combinations kya kyu kyo gya gyu gyo sha shu sho ja ju jo cha chu cho nya nyu nyo hya hyu hyo bya byu byo pya pyu pyo mya myu myo rya ryu ryo

Exceptions:1. The Hiragana (ha) is pronounced "wa" when it immediately follows the topic of the sentence. This Hiragana character is usually only pronounced "ha" when it is part of a word. 2. The Hiragana (he) is pronounced "e" when it immediately follows a place or direction. Both of these are very simple to detect.

Note: You probably noticed in the chart above that there are 2 Hiragana characters pronounced "zu" and 2 Hiragana characters pronounced "ji". The Hiragana characters (zu) and (ji) are very rarely used. (zu) only occurs when there is a (tsu) in front of it like in (tsuzuku - to continue) or when a Kanji (Chinese character) that has a reading which starts with (tsu) is paired at the end with another character changing the (tsu) to a (zu). The same applies for the Hiragana (ji). Since they are used so rarely I wouldn't worry about them too much. I will let you know whenever we come upon a word in which they are used.

Katakana -

As mentioned in Lesson 1, Katakana (as seen in the chart below) is mainly used for foreign words such as foreign names and words that have been borrowed from other languages such as (kompyu-ta- = computer). Katakana is the least frequently used of the three character sets in Japanese. The Japanese language does not have as many sounds as the English language so, when creating a name in Katakana for instance, the name must be sound out to the closest Japanese equivalent. Katakana, Hiragana, and Furigana (when Hiragana is written small next to a Kanji character to show how that character is read) are collectively known as Kana.

There are some special Katakana characters that exist only for foreign names (such as (she) or (ti)). These special Katakana characters are not in the chart below (which contains only the standard set of Katakana characters) but can be seen in our Names in Japanese lesson.

a i u e o

ka ki ku ke ko

ga gi gu ge go

sa shi su se so

za ji zu ze zo

ta chi tsu te to

da ji zu de do

na ni nu ne no

ha hi fu he ho

ba bi bu be bo

pa pi pu pe po

ma mi mu me mo

ya yu yo

ra ri ru re ro

wa wo n/m

Combinations kya kyu kyo gya gyu gyo sha shu sho ja ju jo cha chu cho nya nyu nyo hya hyu hyo bya byu byo pya pyu pyo mya myu myo rya ryu ryo

Vocabulary -

Now that you've got the Japanese alphabets down, let's learn some basic Japanese vocabulary words and simple Japanese phrases. I will list the Kanji, Hiragana, Romaji (the word sounded out using English letters), and the English meaning for each Japanese word or phrase. Most Japanese words have Kanji for them but I will only include the Kanji if that word is typically written that way.

Keep in mind that the Japanese language has different levels of politeness that change based on who you are talking to. I will refer to these as "ultra-formal", "formal" (or "polite form"), "normal" (or "plain form"), "informal", and "rude" (we won't be covering too much of the rude form, however).

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English MeaningwatashiI (formal for males, normal for females)bokuI (normal for males)karehekanojosheanatayou (singular/normal)korethis (the object itself)kokoherekonothis (ex. this pen)sorethat (the object itself)sokotheresonothat (ex. that pen)hitopersoninudognekocatiehousearigatouThank you. (normal)arigatou gozaimasuThank you. (formal)douitashimashiteYou're welcome. (normal)ohayou(sounds like "Ohio")Good morning. (informal)ohayou gozaimasuGood morning.(normal and formal)konnichiwaHello. (normal)konbanwaGood evening. (normal)sayonaraGoodbye. (normal)

Basic Japanese Grammar -

Japanese grammar is quite simple and straight forward but very different from English grammar so most English speakers find it rather confusing. For instance, in Japanese the verb always comes at the end. The best thing you can do when learning Japanese grammar is to learn it from the bottom up and not compare it to English grammar.

Japanese grammar uses what we will refer to as particles to mark the various parts of the sentence. The main Japanese particles are: (These particles will be described in more detail below)

wa(as mentioned in Lesson 1, the Hiragana "ha" is pronounced "wa" when it immediately follows the topic)topic marker

gasubject marker

wo(pronounced "o")direct object marker

nidirection marker, time marker, indirect object marker

e(as mentioned in Lesson 1, the Hiragana "he" is pronounced "e" when it immediately follows a place or direction)direction marker

The particles "wa" () and "ga" (): The particle "wa" marks the topic of the sentence and the particle "ga" marks the subject of the sentence. In the example, "I know where you live" (watashi wa anata ga doko ni sunde iru ka shitte iru), "I" would be the topic while "you" would be the subject.

Not all sentences have both a topic and subject and, in many cases, the topic is implied in Japanese (for example, the "I" (watashi wa) would be left out of this sentence because it is implied that since I am talking I am the one that knows where you live). Many Japanese books and teachers teach that "wa" and "ga" are the same thing and it doesn't matter which you use when. This is not the case but I wouldn't worry too much about keeping them straight at first.

The particle "wo" (): The particle "wo" (or "o") marks the direct object of the sentence. In the example, "I'm going to take her home" (watashi wa kanojo wo ie ni okuru), "her" would be the direct object.

The particle "ni" (): The particle "ni" can be used to mark the direction, time, or the indirect object of a sentence.

An example of a direction marker can be seen in the previous example "I'm going to take her home" (watashi wa kanojo wo ie ni okuru). In this case, the "ni" acts like a "to" - "I'm going to take her 'to' home". The particle "e" () can be used in this way as well but usually implies more of a general direction as opposed to a specific place.

The particle "ni" is also used to mark time in a sentence. For example, "I'm leaving at 3 o'clock" (watashi wa sanji ni hanareru).

The final use for the particle "ni" is that of indirect object marker. In the example, "I was taken home by him" (watashi wa kare ni ie made okurareta), "him" is the indirect object.

Note: The "watashi wa" in all of the example sentenced used above would normally be left out as it is implied.

Numbers, Time, and Days of the Week

Before we get too much further into grammar and verb conjugation, I thought it would be a good idea to teach numbers, time, days of the week, etc.

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaning

ichione

nitwo

santhree

shi (yon after 10)four

gofive

rokusix

shichi (nana after 10)seven

hachieight

kyuunine

juuten

hyakuhundred

Numbers after 10 are a piece of cake once you know 1 through 10. 11 is simply ten with a one after it, (, juuichi), 12 - juuni, 13 - juusan, 14 - juuyon, etc. 20 is simply (, nijuu), 21 - nijuuichi, and so forth.

Put these numbers in front of the character for time and you've got the time of the day.


ichijione o'clock

nijitwo o'clock

nijihantwo thirty ( means half)

nijiyonjuugofun2:45 ( means minute)

...etc.

Now just put the character for moon after a number and you've got a month.


ichigatsuJanuary

nigatsuFebruary

sangatsuMarch

shigatsuApril

...etc.

Days of the week don't follow such an easy pattern but here they are anyway along with some other time-related words.


nichiyoubiSunday ( - sun/day)

getsuyoubiMonday ( - moon)

kayoubiTuesday ( - fire)

suiyoubiWednesday ( - water)

mokuyoubiThursday ( - tree/wood)

kinyoubiFriday ( - gold)

doyoubiSaturday ( - dirt)

kyouToday

ashitaTomorrow

kinouYesterday

ototoithe day before yesterday

asattethe day after tomorrow (a small "tsu" () makes a double consonant)

kesathis morning

konbanthis evening

imanow

Godan Verbs -

Now, before you can start making up sentences of your own, you need to learn how to conjugate verbs. Verbs are the most important part of the Japanese sentence. Often times Japanese people will leave out everything but the verb.

They are very big on leaving out the obvious and sometimes not so obvious which can get confusing at times. There are only 3 types of verbs in the Japanese language and they each follow a pattern that is very simple and very rarely has any exceptions. Most Japanese verbs fall into the first group, the Godan () verbs. These verbs always conjugate the same way with only one exception. These verbs have five changes that follow the order of the Japanese vowels, hence the name Godan (meaning 5 levels or steps), and then the "te" and "ta" forms that are common to all verbs. Here's an example:

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)Verb Basehanasu (to speak)hanasaBase 1hanashiBase 2hanasuBase 3hanaseBase 4hanasouBase 5hanashiteBase "te"hanashitaBase "ta"Base 1: Base 1 can not be used by itself but becomes the plain form negative simply by adding -nai. (ex. hanasanai - I won't say anything.) If the verb ends in (u) then the end for Base 1 becomes (wa). (ex. au (Base 1) -> awa)(Plain form is what people use when talking to a friend. It would not be proper to use in a business environment. We will go over the polite form in lesson 8.)

Base 2: Base 2 is, in most cases, a noun when used by itself but is primarily used with the polite form of the verb.

Base 3: Base 3 is the main form (the one that would be found in the dictionary) and is also the plain form present/future tense.

Base 4: Base 4 is most often used as "if verb" by adding -ba. (ex. hanaseba - If he'd just say something.) It can also be used by itself as a command form but it is extremely rude and I recommend not using it at all.

Base 5: Base 5 is used by itself as the "let's" form. (ex. hanasou - Let's talk.) We will get into other ways it's used in later lessons.

Base "te": Base "te" can be used by itself as a plain form command. It is not rude but should only be used with close friends and children. By adding kudasai it becomes the polite form command. Base "te" can also be used in other ways that we will get into in later lessons.

Base "ta": Base "ta" is merely Base "te" with an "a" sound on the end instead of an "e" sound. It is mainly used by itself as the plain form past tense. (ex. hanashita - I talked.) We will get into other ways it's used in later lessons.

Notice: There is one thing that you'll need to learn in order to conjugate the "te" and "ta" forms correctly. Basically, for all Godan verbs ending in (u), (tsu), or (ru); the (u), (tsu), or (ru) becomes (tte) in the "te" form and (tta) in the "ta" form. (ex. katsu (to win) -> katte (Win!), katta (We won!))

For all Godan verbs ending in (bu), (mu), or (nu); the (bu), (mu), or (nu) becomes (nde) in the "te" form and (nda) in the "ta" form. (ex. yomu (to read -> yonde (Read it.), yonda (I read it.))

For all Godan verbs ending in (ku), the (ku) becomes (ite) in the "te" form and (ita) in the "ta" form. (ex. aruku (to walk) -> aruite (Walk!), aruita (I walked here.)) The only exception to this rule is for the verb iku (to go) which becomes , (itte/itta).

For all Godan verbs ending in (gu), the (gu) becomes (ide) in the "te" form and (ida) in the "ta" form. (ex. oyogu (to swim) -> oyoide (Swim!), oyoida (I swam.))

For all Godan verbs ending in (su), the (su) becomes (shite) in the "te" form and (shita) in the "ta" form. (ex. hanasu (to talk) -> hanashite (Say something!), hanashita (I talked (to him).))

Here are some Godan verbs. Try conjugating them on a piece of paper using what you have just learned. Click here for the answers.

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaningauto meetkatsuto winuruto sellasobuto playnomuto drinkshinuto diearukuto walkoyoguto swimkesuto erase, turn offikuto go(Remember the exception for Bases "te"and "ta")

Ichidan Verbs -

The second group of verbs are called Ichidan () verbs. It is usually an Ichidan verb if it ends with the sound "iru" or "eru". Some well used verbs which appear to be Ichidan but are really Godan are listed here. Ichidan verbs also follow a simple conjugation pattern that is somewhat similar to that of the Godan verbs. Here's an example:

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)Verb Base

taberu (to eat)tabeBase 1

tabeBase 2

taberuBase 3

tabereBase 4

tabeyouBase 5

tabeteBase "te"

tabetaBase "ta"

Base 1 and Base 2: As you can see, Base 1 and 2 are the same. Just like with the Godan verbs, a negative can be made by adding -nai (ex. tabenai - I will not eat.) and this base, or root form, is also used for the formal form of the verb.

Base 3: Base 3 is the same as with Godan verbs.

Base 4: Base 4, however, can not be used by itself like with Godan verbs. It is only used for "if verb" by adding -ba. (ex. tabereba - If I eat it...) It is not the low command form for Ichidan verbs. The low command form for Ichidan verbs is Base 1 + (ro).

Base 5: Base 5 is the same as with Godan verbs.

Base "te" and Base "ta": The Base "te" and "ta" forms for Ichidan verbs are a lot easier than with Godan verbs. Simply take off the "ru" and add a "te" for Base "te" and a "ta" for Base "ta". These have the same functions as with Godan verbs.

Here are some Ichidan verbs. Try conjugating them on a piece of paper using what you have just learned. Click here for the answers.


iruto exist (animate), to be somewhere

miruto see

neruto sleep

kiruto wear, put on

dekirucan do

oboeruto remember

Irregular Verbs

The last type of verbs are the Irregular verbs but there are only 2 of them in the entire language so just memorize their charts below. The first one is suru (to do something). Many nouns can be used as a verb simply by putting "suru" right after them. It is probably the most used of all Japanese verbs. The second Irregular verb is kuru (to come).


suru (to do)shiBase 1

shiBase 2

suruBase 3

sureBase 4

shiyouBase 5

shiteBase "te"

shitaBase "ta"

The functions for these bases are the same as for the Godan verbs except that Base 4 can only be used as the "if verb".The rude command form is "Shiro".


kuru (to come)koBase 1

kiBase 2

kuruBase 3

kureBase 4

koyouBase 5

kiteBase "te"

kitaBase "ta"

The functions for these bases are the same as for the Godan verbs except that Base 4 can only be used as the "if verb".The rude command form is "Koi" and really should only be used on animals.

Using Verb Bases

Now that you know about 30 verbs and can conjugate them, I'll show you what you can do with those bases. You may want to regularly refer to Lesson 6 and Lesson 7 while learning these. The following chart applies to all verbs unless otherwise noted.

- HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaning

Base 1 + Base 1 + naiplain form negative (will not verb)

Base 1 + Base 1 + nakattaplain form past negative (did not verb)

Base 2 + Base 2 + masupolite form present/future tense

Base 2 + Base 2 + mashitapolite form past tense

Base 2 + Base 2 + masenpolite form negative (will not verb)

Base 2 + Base 2 + masen deshitapolite form past negative (did not verb)

Base 2 + Base 2 + taiwant to verb (add (desu) to make it polite)

Base 3Base 3plain form present/future tense

Base 4 + Base 4 + baif verb

Base 4 + Base 4 + ruplain form can verb (Godan verbs only)(verb now becomes an Ichidan verb)

Base 4 + Base 4 + masupolite form can verb (can be changed like above)

Base 5 + Base 5 + to surutry to verb(this suru is the same verb learned in lesson 7 (to do something))

Base "te" + Base "te" + hoshiiwant someone else to verb(hoshii is an adjective which will be covered in the next lesson)

Base "te"Base "te"plain form command

Base "te" + Base "te" + kudasaipolite form command

Base "te" + Base "te" + iruplain form presently verbing(this iru is the same verb learned in lesson 7 (to exist (animate))

Base "te" + Base "te" + imasupolite form presently verbing (can be changed like above)

Base "ta"Base "ta"plain form past tense

Base "ta" + Base "ta" + raif and when I verb (similar to Base 4 + ba)

Base "ta" + Base "ta" + ri surudo such things as...(this suru is also the same verb learned in lesson 7 (to do something))

Adjectives and Adverbs

There are two different types of words that can be used to modify nouns and verbs. One group is much like what we would call an adjective but they can also modify verbs as well. We will refer to these as "dv". The other group can, in most cases, stand alone like a noun but can also be used to modify nouns and verbs. We will refer to these as "dn". All words in the "dv" group always end with (i). No exceptions. This is placed in front of a noun in order to modify it. For example:

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaningakai kurumared carThese words can be conjugated to form different tenses, modify verbs, etc. Here is how that is done:

- HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaningdrop the and add drop the "i" and add "ku"modifies a verb (akaku natta -> became red)(naru is the verb "to become")drop the and add drop the "i" and add "kunai"present tense negative (akakunai -> is not red)drop the and add drop the "i" and add "katta"past tense (akakatta -> was red)drop the and add drop the "i" and add "kunakatta"past tense negative (akakunakatta -> was not red)(This one might take a little practice saying.)It's not as easy to recognize a "dn" but I will point them out in the vocabulary lists. Sometimes you'll even find a "dn" that ends in (i) (ex. kirei - pretty). As mentioned before, these words can, in most cases, be used by themselves like a noun (ex. shizen - nature). By adding a (na) to the end of these words they can be used to modify a noun (ex. shizen na kankyou -> a natural environment). And by adding a (ni) to the end of these words they can be used to modify a verb as an adverb (ex. shizen ni aruku -> to walk naturally).

Here's a list of some commonly used "dv" and "dn":

- Kanji - HiraganaRomaji(English Letters)English Meaningakai (dv)redkiiroi (dv)yellowaoi (dv)bluekuroi (dv)blackshiroi (dv)whiteomoshiroi (dv)interesting, funnyatsui (dv)hotsamui (dv)coldookii (dv)bigchiisai (dv)smallshizen (dn)naturekirei (dn)pretty, cleanshitsurei (dn)rudeshizuka (dn)quiettokubetsu (dn)specialgenki (dn)in good spiritshen (dn)weird, strangejouzu (dn)skillfulshinsetsu (dn)kind, nicesuteki (dn)"cool", good looking

Meeting Someone New

We are often asked by our students learning Japanese how to introduce oneself to someone new. The interaction is normally very formal and filled with a few bows. Below is a typical Japanese conversation between two people meeting for the first time:

Japanese(In Kanji, Hiragana, and Romaji)English Meaning

Person 1:

Konnichi wa. Hajimemashite.

Hello. Nice to meet you.

Person 2:

Hajimemashite. O-genki desu ka?

Nice to meet you.How are you?

Person 1:

Hai, genki desu.

I am fine.

Person 1:

______ ______ Watashi wa ______ to moushimasu. Anata no o-namae wa?

My name is ______.What is your name?

Person 2:

______ ______ Watashi wa ______ to iimasu. Yoroshiku o-negai shimasu.

My name is ______.Pleased to make youracquaintance.

Person 1:

Yoroshiku o-negai shimasu.

Pleased to make youracquaintance.

Explanation: "Hajimemashite" literally means "it is a beginning" but would be the equivalent of "Nice to meet you" in English. It would only be used the first time meeting someone. As learned in Lesson 9, "genki" means "in good spirits". "O-genki desu ka" is literally asking "Are you in good spirits?". This is the most common way of asking "How are you?" in Japanese. The other person responds "Yes, I am in good spirits". "Mousu" is the ultra polite form of the verb "iu" (to say). Both people are literally saying "I am said/called _____". "Namae" is the word for "name". An "o" is added in front of it (and other words throughout this exchange) to show respect. This is not done when talking about yourself. "Yoroshii" means "good/fine" and "negai" is a wish or request. "Yoroshiku o-negai shimasu" literally means "I request/wish kindly of you". It is basically like saying "Please treat me well". It can be used in other situations as well - such as when asking for a favor.

Other Common Phrases

We are often asked how to say "I love you" in Japanese. This would be "Anata o ai shite imasu" BUT be advised that the Japanese typically don't use the word for love( - - ai) when talking about their feelings for someone else (not even a boyfriend, girlfriend, spouse, child, parent, etc.). They would typically say "Anata no koto ga suki desu" or "Anata ga daisuki desu". "Suki" means "like" and "daisuki" means "favorite". This may seem strange but this is just what they say for "I love you".


tanjoubi omedetou gozaimasuHappy Birthday!

akemashite omedetou gozaimasuHappy New Year!

omedetou gozaimasuCongratulations!

oyasuminasaiGood night.(used when someone is going to bed)

gomennasaiI'm sorry.

sumimasenExcuse me.

toire wa doko desu kaWhere is the bathroom?

onaka ga suite imasuI am hungry.("My stomach is empty.")

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