Learn the words for “big city” and “countryside” in Japanese!
Continue ReadingStill Delicious! / まだまだ美味しい
A three-year old expresses his impression on good food he first encounters. How does he do it?
Updated: March 9, 2021
The Mini Pocket (3) or The Nasal Sound and Modern Japanese /ミニポケットの話 (下) 鼻濁音と現代の日本語
Learn more about the Japanese nasal sound and learn which of the Japanese language you are learning! Why not dialect of Osaka, Kyoto, Aomori or Kagoshima?
Continue ReadingThe Rules in the Use of the Nasal Sound for Announcers / アナウンサーのための鼻濁音使用のルール
There is a set of rules on when to use the nasal ga, gi, gu, ge, go that the Japanese announcers learn and speak with. We will go over them!
Continue ReadingThe Various Meanings of “Yoku (often, etc.)” / 「よく」のいろいろな意味
“Yoku” has a couple more meanings than “often”. Learn what those are and when they mean which.
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Chinese Character “蘇” and A Fish at Lunch /「蘇」の字と昼食の魚
This is a story from the Edo Era, about an interesting kanji explained over lunch.
面白い漢字について、江戸時代のお昼時のお話です。
“One Who Travels a Hundred Miles Must Consider the Last Ten Miles as His/Her Second Half” / 「百里を行く者は九十をもって半ばとす」
“Based on a true story”, we will explain some very popular proverbs and adages: If you travel a hundred miles, etc.
Continue ReadingFAQ on the “X wa A ga B” Sentence Pattern / 文型「XはAがB」について、よくある質問
We will answer two very common questions on “A wa X ga Y”: (1) Difference between “Zoo no hana wa nagai” and “Zoo wa hana ga nagai” (2) “Subject” and “Topic”
Continue ReadingAn Approach to the “X wa A ga B” Sentence Pattern / 「XはAがB」の文型のとらえかた試論
“Watashi wa eiga ga suki desu” and a lot of other things can be said with this “A wa Y ga Z” sentence pattern. We will explain it with an image.
Continue Reading“Parents’ Teachings and Eggplant Flowers Never Fail to be Valuable” / 「親の教えとナスビの花は、千にひとつも仇がない」
We will introduce a Japanese proverb:”Your parents’ advice and eggplant flowers are always valuable.”
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