November 23, 2008

Japanese adjectives

Japanese Adjectives
Grammar construction for It seems like adjective What is known as descriptive noun gives some detail as to the noun in question.
D.N. + SO^ DESU = seems like adjective

Kawaiso^ ni = pitifully, shamefully.

Shiawase so^ na = happily, seemingly happy

Seems to have this form adjective + So^ na
Isogashiiso^ na furi o shite
忙しいそうな振りをして...– faking like he is busy

Kawai可愛いis the d.n. for cute. Intesified with the so marker and it becomes a different word.

Intesifiers in Japanese

Intesifiers in Japanese
Japanese intensifiers

Put a Japanese verb into its extensor form Base II, then add + any of these:

1. Yasui – easy; simple
2. Tsurai – hard to deal with, handle; hardship; difficult.
3. Nikui – difficult;hard

Yariyasui やりやすい – easy to play, do
Shiyasui しやすい – easy to do
Nomiyasui – easy to drink
Tabeyasui食べやすい – easy to eat
Noriyasui乗りやすい– easy to ride

Shitsurai or shizurai – hard to do*
Yarizurai – hard to do, difficult to play
Hikinikui引きにくい– hikitsurai – not easy to play or pull
Hanashinikui話しにくい– hard to speak
Minikui見にくい– hard to look at;ugly
Mizurai みづらい– can’t bear to look


• tsu becomes dzu or zu when compounded
o しづらい not しつらい
dzu not tsu after the shi in shidzurai (shizurai)



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November 19, 2008

Words of Color in Japanese

Japanese Colors
Aoi 青い
Midori みどり
Kiiroi黄色
Chairo 茶色
Kuroi 黒い
Haiiro 灰色
Nezumiiro
Murasaki むらさき- (紫)
Akai 赤い
Pinku ピンク
Shiroi白い
Orenjiオレーンジ

November 10, 2008

A different kind of question mark, TO^ in Hakataben

The following pertains to the Japanese as spoken in the Hakata dialect of Fukuoka, Japan.

TO^ or tou is used as the ? or question mark sometimes in Japanese. Observe the way TO^ is used in the following sentences,

"DOKO NI IKIYORU TO^?" どこに往きよるとう - "Where are you going?(Where do you think you're going?)

also heard "DOKO NI IKIYO^ TO^" どこに往きようとう - same meaning, but in this example the verb iku is in Base II then adds + yoru to^

Doko kara kiyo^ to^?
どこから来ようとう - "Where does he come from?" or "Where do you come from?".

another variety of this construction that will mask the true traditional Japanese language, but there is a way to make these type of constructions polite. I've heard it covered up this way -

DOKO KARA KIYO^ TO^ DESU KA?
どこから来ようとうですか? - Where do you come from.

This way of phrasing the question, " Where do you come from?", appears and sounds polite so that it passes for polite Japanese. This is definitely not a good way to speak polite Japanese. The best way to speak it politely is to use honorific forms of the verb. Yes I know it is cumbersome to not only remember the rules for honorific verb forms but it is quite something also to pronounce them well. Especially for verbs with au ending such as arawareru. That there will be a tongue tie if ever there was one, for a gaijin that is.

Conclusion: Add DESU KA to anything makes to make your Japanese language more polite. Or at least it will sound that way.

This is not a short "TO". This is a TO with a "^" attached so it is long "o". Granted this is probably not at all a polite way to speak in Japanese, but is very congenial speech.

November 4, 2008

Difference between Ichidan and Yo^dan Japanese verbs baby steps toward mastery


In order to put verbs into bases, it’s necessary to understand the difference between Ichidan verbs and Yo^dan verbs. I was taught that there exists three types of verbs but these types are unrelated to the three types of English verbs. In English, the three types of verbs are passive, active and forms of the copula- to be.

With the exception of irregular verbs,
Ichidan verbs are any Japanese verb that end in eru or iru.

Examples of ichidan verbs

Iru
Eru
Obieru
Oshieru


Yo^dan verbs are any that do not end in eru or iru.

Examples of yo^dan verbs

Yaru
Utsu
Komu
Oyogu


The ^ carat symbol = the long vowel, or, double vowel sound, sometimes indicated with a ‘u’.

November 2, 2008

Japanese vowels as relating to Japanese verb bases

The 5 pure vowels a, i ,u, e, o in Japanese correspond to the 5 verb bases. The verb nomu - to drink, in the 5 verb bases would be.

Base I - noma, (a. ah as in stick out your tongue and say...)

Base II - nomi, (i, pronounced ee as in meet),

Base III nomu, (u, pronouned ooh as in moo moo here and a moo moo...)

Base IV nome, (e, pronounced eh as in bed),

Base V nomo (o even the Hideo kind).

Japanese adjectives

Kantan the Japanese adjective which by itself means easy or simple and the shiyasui simpletons. (Or things which are easy to do simple-folk).

In Japanese if you want to express that something is easy to do,  use the following contsruction.

Verb (Base II)  yasui.

Easy to dosuru in base II = shi, shi yasui = shiyasui

Easy to say  -iu in base II = ii, ii yasui = iiyasui.

Easy to read - yomu (to read)  in base II = yomi, yomi yasui = yomiyasui.

Easy to overcome - kokufuku suru (to overcome) *same as the above case with suru, or any verb that includes suru and that is a lot of verbs.

Easy to win katsu (to win) in base II = kachi, kachi yasui = kachiyasui

Easy to drink - nomu (to drink) in base II = nomi, nomi yasui = nomiyasui

* The 5 pure vowels a, i ,u, e, o in Japanese correspond to the 5 verb bases. The verb nomu - to drink, in the 5 verb bases would be.

Base I - noma, (a. ah as in stick out your tongue and say...)

Base II - nomi, (i, pronounced ee as in meet),

Base III nomu, (u, pronouned ooh as in moo moo here and a moo moo...)

Base IV nome, (e, pronounced eh as in bed),

Base V nomo (o even the Hideo kind).

 

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