New Phrases
New Phrases
D-1. Daily Greetings
Try to use the new phrases below every day with your friends and family.
1. Ohayou gozaimasu. / Ohayou.
Good morning.
The short version of ohayou gozaimasu is ohayou and is normally only used with friends, family and people you have a casual relationship with.
2. Konnichiwa.
Good afternoon.
The sound of the double consonant ‘nn’ in konnichiwa is held longer than just one “n”.
3. Konbanwa.
Good evening.This is only used when you first meet with someone in the evening. It cannot be used at the end of an evening.
4. Oyasuminasai. / Oyasumi.
Good night.
The short version, oyasumi, should only be used with friends, family and people you have a casual relationship with.
5. Arigatou gozaimasu. / Arigatou.
Thank you.
Arigatou is very common as a short way to say “Thank you”. In real life, you will rarely hear the oftentaught version Doumo arigatou gozaimasu.
Leaving and returning home
The following phrases are said everyday by millions of Japanese people as they leave and arrive home:
1. itte kimasu.
I will go and come back. / I'll be back.
This phrase is said when you leave your home. It can also be said when you are leaving any place to which you plan to return.
2. itterasshai.
Have a good day. / Take care. / See you.
This is the response to itte kimasu. This phrase is said to someone who is leaving and will be back. itterasshai is normally only used in situations when the person leaving will return in a relatively short time.
3. Tadaima.
I’m home. / I’m back.
This phrase is commonly used when arriving home. It can also be used when returning to a place you recently left.
4. Okaerinasai.
Welcome back home.
This is the response to tadaima. It can also be said to someone who has just returned to a place they have been before.
Speaking Naturally
Dropping the topic of a sentence
It's very common in Japanese to drop the topic of a conversation once it has been introduced. In English, we constantly restate the topic directly or use "he", "she", "they" as a substitute. Spoken Japanese is much more like a match of tennis.
In Japanese, a topic is served and then discussed back and forth. Normally a topic is not mentioned again until a new topic is served.
To illustrate this, look at the following statements about my friend Michiko
1. My friend is Michiko.
2. She lives in Japan.
3. She is 18 years old.
4. She is a college student.
In English, the topic "My friend" is introduced in the first sentence. Then in each following sentence, "she" is used to continually restate the topic. In Japanese, it's more natural to not say "she" over and over again. Instead, what would be considered incomplete sentences in English are used. This makes for much more natural conversation. The English equivalent if spoken in Japanese would look like this:
1. My friend is Michiko. / Watashi no tomodachi wa Michiko san desu.
2. Lives in Japan. / Nihon ni sundeいmasu.
3. Is 18 years old. / Juうhassaい desu.
4. Is a college student. / Daいgakuseい desu.
Here is a third category of adjectives that some linguists call no-type adjectives. In this book, however, such an adjective is treated as a noun followed by の no, as in 病気の人 byōki no hito (sick person).
Try to use the new phrases below every day with your friends and family.
1. Ohayou gozaimasu. / Ohayou.
Good morning.
The short version of ohayou gozaimasu is ohayou and is normally only used with friends, family and people you have a casual relationship with.
2. Konnichiwa.
Good afternoon.
The sound of the double consonant ‘nn’ in konnichiwa is held longer than just one “n”.
3. Konbanwa.
Good evening.This is only used when you first meet with someone in the evening. It cannot be used at the end of an evening.
4. Oyasuminasai. / Oyasumi.
Good night.
The short version, oyasumi, should only be used with friends, family and people you have a casual relationship with.
5. Arigatou gozaimasu. / Arigatou.
Thank you.
Arigatou is very common as a short way to say “Thank you”. In real life, you will rarely hear the oftentaught version Doumo arigatou gozaimasu.
Leaving and returning home
The following phrases are said everyday by millions of Japanese people as they leave and arrive home:
1. itte kimasu.
I will go and come back. / I'll be back.
This phrase is said when you leave your home. It can also be said when you are leaving any place to which you plan to return.
2. itterasshai.
Have a good day. / Take care. / See you.
This is the response to itte kimasu. This phrase is said to someone who is leaving and will be back. itterasshai is normally only used in situations when the person leaving will return in a relatively short time.
3. Tadaima.
I’m home. / I’m back.
This phrase is commonly used when arriving home. It can also be used when returning to a place you recently left.
4. Okaerinasai.
Welcome back home.
This is the response to tadaima. It can also be said to someone who has just returned to a place they have been before.
Speaking Naturally
Dropping the topic of a sentence
It's very common in Japanese to drop the topic of a conversation once it has been introduced. In English, we constantly restate the topic directly or use "he", "she", "they" as a substitute. Spoken Japanese is much more like a match of tennis.
In Japanese, a topic is served and then discussed back and forth. Normally a topic is not mentioned again until a new topic is served.
To illustrate this, look at the following statements about my friend Michiko
1. My friend is Michiko.
2. She lives in Japan.
3. She is 18 years old.
4. She is a college student.
In English, the topic "My friend" is introduced in the first sentence. Then in each following sentence, "she" is used to continually restate the topic. In Japanese, it's more natural to not say "she" over and over again. Instead, what would be considered incomplete sentences in English are used. This makes for much more natural conversation. The English equivalent if spoken in Japanese would look like this:
1. My friend is Michiko. / Watashi no tomodachi wa Michiko san desu.
2. Lives in Japan. / Nihon ni sundeいmasu.
3. Is 18 years old. / Juうhassaい desu.
4. Is a college student. / Daいgakuseい desu.
Here is a third category of adjectives that some linguists call no-type adjectives. In this book, however, such an adjective is treated as a noun followed by の no, as in 病気の人 byōki no hito (sick person).