Archive for 'Grammar'
Describing People Posted by Ginny on Apr 29, 2010
You can describe people with this formula : name + は + body part + が + adjective. Here’s an example : 井上さんは耳が小さいです = Inoue has small ears (いおうえ/井上 = Inoue. さん = polite suffix. は = particle. みみ/耳 = ear. が = particle. ちいさい/小さい = small. です = is) Now look at this sentence…
Interrogative + も Posted by Ginny on Apr 23, 2010
The use of an interrogative + も is interesting in that it has different meanings based on whether it’s used in affirmative sentences or negative sentences : いつ (when) + も = always, all the time (1) 真弓の母はいつも忙しい = Mayumi’s mother is always busy (まゆみ/真弓 = Mayumi. の = possessive particle. はは/母 = mother. は =…
Interrogative + か・でも Posted by Ginny on Apr 20, 2010
The use of the interrogative なに (what) + か can mean “something” or “anything” : 何か飲みませんか = Would you like to drink anything/something? (なにか/何か = anything/something. のみませんす/飲みませんます = would you like to drink. か = question marking particle) だれ (who) + か can mean “someone” : 誰かをお待ちですか = Are you waiting for someone? (だれか/誰か = someone. を = particle…
Disjunctive Sentences Posted by Ginny on Apr 14, 2010
We’ve learned how to add clauses, phrases and sentences together, but how do we form disjunctive sentences like “but” and “however”? One way to do it is to use でも : 私はイギリス人です。でも、英語を話しません = I am a British person, but I don’t speak English (わたし/私 = I. は = particle. イギリス = England/Britain. じん/人 = person…
Making Comparisons Posted by Ginny on Apr 11, 2010
Take a look at this comparison : (1) このけいたいのほうがそのけいたいより安いです = This cell phone is cheaper than that cell phone (この = this. けいたい = cell phone. のほうが = more. その = that. けいたい = cell phone. より = than. やすい/安い = cheap.です = is) Here, the grammatical pattern was : noun1 + のほうが + noun2…
Combining Words, Clauses, and Sentences Posted by Ginny on Apr 2, 2010
One of the uses of the や particle is to connect two nouns. More specifically, the や particle is used to list two items among other items. 野菜や果物を買いました = I bought vegetables and fruit among other things (やさい/野菜 = vegetables. や = among other things. くだもの/果物 = fruit. を = direct object particle. かいました/買いました =…
～でいる Posted by Ginny on Mar 28, 2010
In English, the present continuous is formed by adding -ing to the verb. In Japanese, the present continuous is formed by adding ~でいる. To form the present affirmative polite, use the ending ~でいます/ています 彼女は公園で歩いています = She is walking in the park (かのじょ/彼女 = she. は = subject marking particle. こうえん/公園 = park. で = in…