Japanese Grammar Fun Again

4 Ways to Negate Anything in Japanese
Beginning Japanese Grammar Lesson
How to say “but…” in Japanese.

It is never a wise idea to refute the ideas of others. However, in the normal processes of direct communication between two individuals or any number of individuals or groups of people involved in a discussion, it becomes necessary to use the preposition but. In modern Japanese, the preposition but can be expressed in at least four different ways. By learning these four ways of saying but, you'll be able to negate (In Japanese) anything or anybody you want.

These words are very powerful, so use with caution, especially when talking to someone like say . . . your boss! You wouldn't want to negate your boss no matter how much you wanted to impress him with your Japanese skills. Below I present four ways the preposition but is used in Japanese. After that comes the plug and play Japanese grammar construction samples and the G.A.B. (Ghetto After Blast). So have fun and enjoy the rest of the lesson.

Words for the preposition but

but – ga が

but - shikashi しかし(however)

but - kedoけど, keredoけれど, keredomo けれども

but – demo でも





Example 1 - I want to kiss her; but, she won't let me!

Kanojo ni kissu sasete moraitiai n'da keredomo, sasete moraenai n'da!
かのじょに キッス させてもらいたいの だけれどもさせてもらえないのだ


Example 2. Her English skills are not very good, but she sure can cook though!

Kanojo no eigo wa ammari yokunai da kedo, ryo^ri wa umai n'da!
かのじょの 英語はあまりよくないのだけど料理が甘いのだ


Example 3. He said he was a doctor, however to tell you the real truth, he is just an ordinary dentist!



Kare wa isha da to iutta tai, shikashi honto wa kare. . . tada no haishasan!

re-yaku - Ex. 3. Kare wa isha da tte! Demo honki wa taishita mon ja nai.



Ex. 4. The president has completely died, but his spirit lives on.



Daito^ryo^san wa shinde shimaimashita ga, kare no rei wa mada ikitsuzuite iru no desu.

.

(See ghetto grammar lesson #97 for the plug and play learning system to master the Japanese grammar Base TE shimau- to verb completely)




Example 5. But . . . I wanted the pink one!

Demo, pinku no yatsu ga hoshikatta no da!
でも,ピンクの奴が欲しかったのだ



Ex. 6. I like her, but don't you think she is kind of short?

Ore wa kanojo ga suki nanya kedo, chotto se ga hikui to omouwanai to desu ka?

It is usually easy to tell on hearing the Japanese syllable ga whether it is the participle ga, or the preposition ga. The preposition ga when it is meant to mean but, is usually accompanied by a small pause and its use is more formal than any of the keredemo or demo variations. It is better to remeber shikashi as however and the keredemo variations as but.

Ghetto after blast - GAB 2 point advice. Since the Japanese words shikashi, kedo, keredemo, demo, and ga, all basically mean the same thing, you won't have to remember as much, so beginners might find it helpful to pick just one. Just remember that shikashi and ga sound more formal than the kedo, and keremo. Oh yeah... I almost forgot to mention that the word for ribbit in Japanese is kero, so make sure your pronunciation of kedo doesn't make you sound like you are making love to a frog, unless of course you are a princess!

As always, Ganbatte Ne!
Do your best!
Makurasuki sensei
http://www.saketalkie.blogspot.com or http://japanetics.blogspot.com
http://squidoo.com/ghettogrammar/ or http://squidoo.com/phonesearch

http://spanishjapanese.blogspot.com

How to use Japanese to pronounce difficult English Terms like Habukkuk

When I hear badly pronounced Japanese, it’s like hearing fingernails scraping against a chalkboard. I have been known to turn red in embarrassment for the person committing the foul pronunciation. Why is pronunciation such a big deal? There are many reasons why language learners should practice pronouncing their words correctly. In this article I I’ll touch on a few topics I feel are important concerning learning, studying and practicing pronunciation in Japanese.

In speaking another language, the main goal is to try to get your message across, unless you are looking for some chit chat. You need to understand how important it is to be understood quickly, and, clearly. When your pronunciation isn’t very good, then that means it isn’t very legible, audible, excusable nor is it understandable. The time wasted correcting badly pronounced communication doesn’t outweigh the benefits of learning first to pronounce correctly before ever learning any of the tango (vocabulary). Even if the sentences had perfect grammar and style. What are the words by beginners who feel the topic of ‘pronunciation’ shouldn’t be treated as a ritual. If we are to be understood, we must use correct pronunciation. There is no way other way for communication to take place efficiently with more words understood per /1000 than can otherwise be had.

If you want to be a well liked and a well respected speaker of Japanese then put pronunciation practice at the top of your priority list for things you need to study. Bad pronunciation is not cool. It is simply irresponsible for a beginning Japanese language learner to continue learning Japanese without making attempts to improve upon their own particular pronunciation situation. A good steward of SLA makes sure that he/she is pronouncing the words they use in conversation correctly. A learner of the Japanese language must never neglect pronunciation in their studies. The art or skill of the lips the teeth and the tip of the tongue can spell the difference between effective communication, or, utter confusion.

A tongue defines the soul and character from which tribes are made. How words are communicated amongst individuals also shows clearly to foreign outsiders trying to take a peek through the Japanese window, to find themselves in an onsen at Unzen. And it defines the type of people they represent; The Japanese have a very long heritage and lineage of traditions, festivals, and ceremonies that have been passed down through the generations. I mean Santa Claus is one thing but, carrying the big Butsudan all through town in a thong, at those types of butsuri, matsuri.

Giving a little extra effort in your practice of correct pronunciation displays a sincere desire to understand the people and culture through the words of their mouth. Words of a language were not just some accident. Or were they?
Japanese pronunciation is probably one of the easier aspects of the language to learn yet it is often put aside due to the seemingly lack of similarities between the two languages.

Japanese vs. English.

I use to think that if I just copied the way native speakers spoke then I should be ok, right? Well, in retrospect I do believe it is a good thing to copy speak when it comes to simple pronunciation of words, but be careful not to copy speak grammar or sentence structure because that can turn out to give you trouble later on. Mimicking native speakers is good as long as you aren’t copying their bad habits also. Men should never copy the speech of women.

It is a good thing to sound like a Japanese native when speaking, so on is allowed to copy native’s pronunciation, but stay very far from women’s nuances, sentence endings, and their use of certain words if you are male Japanese language learner. If a male Japanese language learner pronounces words or copies the speech, expressions in a like manner to the words and sentence endings he hears because he has copied a Japanese females nuances, this could prove disastrous and could portray an overzealous Japanese SL male learner as an okama (homosexual). If you don't want to be considered an OKAMA, you must pay attention to the way men use the words for you and I as well as sentence ending particles and other nuances. Careful attention should thus be given to sentence ending particles like na no (なの), no da (のだ), or sa (さ), or za (ざ), or ze (ぜ), zo (ぞ) or soi (そい), zoi (ぞい), kusa (くさ).

Unaccompanied particles can be quite rude in the mouth of a gaijin. That’s harsh and if you don't know what an okamaオカマ is, look it up in the Sanseido Wa-Ei and if you don't have one go to my lens http://squidoo.com/japponics wherein is a link to the Sanseido publishing company. It is so important to have a dictionary as an aid for studying Japanese it goes without saying. So get one if you don't already have one.

If you are going to learn to speak Japanese please try to speak with correct pronunciation. It shows bad manners, and lack of commitment. It also sends a message of disgrace for your native country. It is important also while in Japan to show that you love your country. They are quite accepting of many gaijins (foreigner in Japanese) in this respect. Especially since you'll usually be the only gaijin within a couple of hundred miles so make your pronunciation count.

One cool thing about Japanese pronunciation is that vowels do not vary as they do in English. They stay straight, and you are never fooled as to their pronunciation. English combines and distorts the mouth and fashions its shape by using the 5 letters a e i o u to make around 20 vowel sounds. In Japanese 5 vowels sounds make 5 vowel sounds. In English the vowels vary in shades of pronunciation. The wider or thinner the lips are stretched or cheeks are pulled apart, how open the throat is, how nasal you want to get etc. all make for quite a lot of different vowel sounds. That is why if you ask an Englishman from England to pronounce for you , “apple” you will hear it differently than if you were to ask an American to pronounce “apple”.
In English you find words that elide. The same is true in the Japanese language (and do other crazy things). A careful study of dipthongs of a language should be beneficial to its study. In general pronunciation and diction should rank high on your list of things to study habits.

There are many sounds in English that Japanese just doesn't have, and vice versa. In Japanese there are no v type sounds so in order to say the v sound a Japanese person will substitute b in its stead. There really isn’t an L sound in Japanese so they replace it with their r or d sound. There has yet to be a native Japaenese speaker that I could ask to pronounce for me the words world or squirrel or even url. It is impossibly difficult for the Japanese to prounounce these 3 words correctly. Now on the other hand try to get a gaijin to say for you in correct pronouciation words like tan’i or gen’in and you have a similar situation.

I like to cross reference both languages to find the true pronounciation of words that are difficult to pronounce. It is for this reason I find it easier to locate the pronunciation of any foreign word that is difficult to pronounce (i.e. Books or names in the Bible for example Habukkuk or Nebuchanedzar etc.) If you read those foreign names which are difficult to pronounce in English in Japanese, the pronunciation is straight forward and clear and there is no variance. It reads as it reads as to how it is pronounced. In Japanese it comes out closer than attempts I have made in English because the vowels never change when saying a word. Using both your native tongue (whether it be English or otherwise) and Japanese together to help you can come up with a closer approximation as to the true and correct pronunciation of any difficult biblical term.

Let me give you one example: In the book of Numbers in the Old Testament, chapter 13 there is a lot of names that who knows how to pronounce correctly. What I do is cross reference what I see in English with the Japanese pronunciation of each. So in Numbers 13:15 is written “Of the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.” How does one pronounce the word Geuel? That is 3 vowels in a row in English but I really have no idea of how to pronounce it. So I look in my Japanese Bible at Numbers 13:15 and see what it says. “ガドの部族ではマキの子ギウエル”

To find out how to pronounce the word Geuel then, I just dive into the pronunciation by saying everything ver batim. So we will have in the above Japanese quote, “Gado no buzoku dewa maki no ko Giueru”. Now when a word in Japanese ends in the eru (エル) that is the same as saying the English “el”, so that part is easy. The rest of that word is simply glottal gee ooh then add el. So Geuel’s pronunciation is English can be derived from the Japanese katakana or romaji pronunciation to get at the closer, more true pronunciation of it.

In Japanese, there are five vowels, and five vowel sounds. This makes learning Japanese easier than other languages. The order of the vowels is a little different so that might be the first thing to look at in your study of Japanese. The first five syllables in the Japanese syllabary are a i u e and o. It has to be said that if you were to gather a group of Japanese people and make a choir out of them, oh how satisfied the director would be because of the purity of their vowels. International phonetics could straightway use Japanese for these vowels written in Romaji as a i u e o. Or Hiragana as あ,い,う,えand お. The benefits of knowing another language are limitless. In this instance we found the pronunciation of difficult words easier by using Japanese + English...cool.

As always,
Ganbatte Ne!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki
If you want a list of vocabulary to start your study of the Japanese language then go to http://squidoo.com/japanesevocabularyindex

The Desu Boxes - Japanese Grammar

Knowing the way verbs can be fashioned to derive more meanings is crucial to your fluency. .Don’t begin your conquest of the Japanese language without learning basic strategy. Basic strategy says always speak in the most polite level of language that can be afforded. . Verbs manipulation is a good course of action for the SL2 learner who is in high gear on short on time.. The boxes are the most basic way verbs are formed. Become familiar with them by using the plug and play grammar boxes below.

This morning I was per chance perusing an old French school book that claims that I can “learn by yourself”. Inside I saw the never ending struggle with verb conjugations. But, unlike French, English, Spanish, or Italian, Japanese doesn’t have a multitude of conjugations that must be memorized for any given verb. In Japanese learn the four basic ordinal points in language learning. .l To help you start speaking Japanese quicker, learn how to put verbs into the most common polite level and plain form structures. Always practice saying out loud all sentences in both standard politeness levels and plain forms.

In Japanese it is easy to fall in a plain form rut because usually that is what is being spoken around us. People are of course going to be shitashii. But we must be careful not to get into a habit which may degrade our high and lofty goals to speak an eloquent Japanese. One that is pure, natural, free from vulgarity and as honorable sounding as we can make it. If we are to be dining with greatness we should speak the part.. This lesson shows the boxes of verb of all we need to be able to say and politely I might add is:

1. a verb in the affirmative present or future
2. a verb in the negative future or present.
3. a verb in the affirmative past, and
4. a verb in its negative past.

Plain form may be used in embedded questions but always practice putting verbs into the polite ending of -masu, because when you speak politely to others, others treat you with more respect and even speak it back to you but usually even more humbly and you feel so good when spoken to in this way. and such but never when addressing people in formal or even semi-formal and some non-formal situations. For those interested in learning to speak Japanese isn’t it somewhat of a bonus feature and even a motivational factor that instead of a plethora of different conjugations that we must study and memorize, in Japanese all we have to do is be able to manipulate 4 conjugations.

I like that fact that Japanese can be understood with only 4 tenses of a verb because in that old French school book which I perchance was perusing I saw these scary looking words. In that French book there was 5 pages of conjugations for one verb. If you can’t get my drift in this part of the lesson, what I am saying is that Japanese is easier to speak perhaps than anyone has ever thought or cared to discuss. So spread the word don’t let Japanese intimidate anyone and look at all the benefits of Japanese over our traditional romance grammar translation guru pound cake.





B.
DESU
(polite; state of being.) + -

Present DESU. (is , am)
DEWA ARIMASEN.
(isn’t , am not)


Past DESHITA. (was)

DEWA ARIMASEN DESHITA. (wasn’t)




C.
MASU
(Polite form verb endings.)
+ -

Present MASU
(Will, do, shall)
MASEN
(will not, do not, shall not)


Past

MASHITA
(did, would) MASEN DESHITA
(did not, would not)

The above box is your model for polite speech. When in doubt, use this when conjugating your verbs. It is adequate to almost all formal situations, where everyone except the Emperor will be attending.


Plain Form
(Use with those close to your social circle, never to a boss or an Emperor!) + -

Present
Base III
(will verb, do verb) Base I + nai
(won’t verb, don’t verb)

Past

Base TA
(did verb) Base I + nakatta
(didn’t verb)
Degrading from the polite form



Plain form - to be + -
Present de aru, da.
(is, am) dewa nai
(isn’t, am not)
Past de atta, datta
(was) dewa nakatta
(wasn’t)



D.V. Plain Form + -
Present stem + i
(is)
stem + kunai
(is not)

Past
stem + katta
(was)
stem + kunakatta
(was not)


Just as sushi connotes a certain image for many Americans so does the thought of studying Japanese. and came upon these lovely terms about verbs: indicative mood, present, imperfect, past definite, perfect, pluperfect, past anterior, future anterior, conditional present, conditional past, imperative mood, subjunctive mood, Infinitive mood present, and on, and on.

Our culture almost automatically assumes if it isn’t one of the traditional romance languages then it must be hard to master, or would serve no good or useful purpose.. But they are wrong!. Let there be no doubt about it, Japanese is a just as hard as any language to master. You must learn Japanese in small steps, just let the accumulating of vocabulary be a good part of your goals for Japanese acquisition method. Of course we must have our milk before meat. But we do eventually we do want to get to the meat… eventually.

Ganbatte ne! Makurasuki

Learn Japanese Now! by Makurasuki Sensei

#17 in a 25 part series aimed at overcoming second language acquisition
obstacles and barriers by using effective memorization. Click Here!

Memory techniques applying tried and true techniques that are
effective in mastering an SL and in particular improving Our Ural Altaic progeny ~
Learn Japanese Now!A useful Grammar, Vocabulary, and Conversation e-course
With emphasis on long term retention through effective memorization.
The best language acquisition e-course on the net!
Japanese Edition. http://jappermon.com 2007

Lesson #17 – Putting verbs into the TA –form た-form

The abilitiy to put Japanese verbs into the various bases quickly without pause is a pre-requisite for speaking fluently and being perceived as being a capable conversationalist. Of all the verbs Bases (I, II, III, IV , V, TA, and TE) the TA form ranks high in usage as one of the top three most used bases for verbs only after TE-てand Base-III or root form. I am focusing on it now in order to prepare you for the quick powerful grammar secrets that employ Base TA verbs which will catapult your Japanese speaking ability through the roof. I’ll be discussing many grammar rules that use the verb in Base TA. One of the main things you should know about the TA form of a verb is that it is used to put verbs into past tense plain form. A verb in base TA form is equivalent to English’s have done or past tense perfect. The TA form of a verb has evolved from the classical form tari and it still has many uses (see lesson #23 and #19)
Tip #17 How to put a verb in Base TA

Vowel Stemmed verbs (i.e. those ending in either eru or iru)
to put a verb into the TA form when the verb has a vowel stem simply add ta
Base III
Dictionary form
Stem
Base Ta
Meaning
kanjiru
oboeru
kangaeru
deru
iru

kanji
oboe
kangae
de
i
kanjita
oboeta
kangaeta
deta
ita
To feel becomes to have felt.
To remember becomes to have remembered.
To think becomes to have thought.
To leave becomes to have left.
To be becomes to have been. (was, were)

Try putting your favorite verb ending in iru or eru into the TA form today and get your Nihongo more Jozu!
And remember…
MORE WORDS MEMORIZED = HIGHER RATE of FLUENCY.
Want more information on how you can use your memory and the laws of attraction to master any language you so choose!
Memorizer

Until next time. Ganbatte ne! Do your best!
Makurasuki Sensei
Looking for more ways to be successful in all that you do including mastering a language?
Japanese Language Advancement

Japanese Plug and Play Ghetto Grammar 109
JPPGG #109
Three Ways of Saying “After Verb’ing” in Japanese.

After, After, and After - 3 ways to say, “after verb’ing” in Japanese –
There are 3 easy ways to say to “after verb’ing” in Japanese

1. verb (base TE) + KARA
2. verb (base TA) + ATO DE
3. verb (base TA) + NOCHI NI

By themselves KARA, ATO DE, NOCHI NI all mean, after similar equivalent expressions for the English terms following or later.

To say that you will do something after doing something else in Japanese, use the following grammar constructions:

1. Verb (Base TE) + KARA – after verb’ing

Take verbs and put them into base TE.

Verbs ending in KU become ITE  ~ITE
Verbs ending in GU become IDE  ~IDE
Verbs ending in U, TSU, or RU  ~ TTE
Verbs ending in BU, MU or NU  ~NDE
The verb suru or verbs ending in SU become SHITE  ~SHITE

Then add + KARA (after)

HANASU (v. to speak)  HANASHITE

CHOTTO HANASHITE KARA IKIMASHO^ -
Let’s go after we talk a little.

YOMU (v. to speak) YONDE

HON O YONDE KARA NERU TO OMOIMASU.
I think I’ll sleep after reading a book.

TABERU (v. to eat)  TABETE

TABETE KARA SHUKUDAI O SURU. –
After I eat, I’m going to do homework.

UNDO WO SHITE KARA SHAWA O SURU KOTO GA SUKI DESU.
I like to take a shower after I do my exercise.

2. verb (base TA) + ATO DE - after verb’ing

Take verbs and put them into base TA

NOMU (v. to drink)  NONDA

NOMU (base TA) NONDA
Verb ending in either BU, MU or NU
ta  nda
NOMU in base TA is NONDA

SAKE O NONDA ATO DE NEMUKUNATTA –
I got sleepy after drinking some* sake.

*NOCHI NI = ATO DE, NOCHI DE

3. verb ( base TA) + NOCHI NI - after verb’ing

SAKE O NONDA NOCHI NI IE NI KAETTA –
I went home after drinking some sake.

SAKE O NONDA NOCHI NI INU O SAMPO SHI NI ITTA –
(After I drank some sake I took the dog for a walk.)

As you can see from these examples, there are two sides with two verbs comprising this construction. (Predicates and the like.)

Verb 1 in base TE +KARA and Verb 2

Verb 2 can be past, present, negative or positive, but Verb 1 must be in base TE.

As Always,
Ganbatte Ne!
Do Your Best!
Makurasuki Sensei







































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