Japanese Culture in New York - Chopsticks NY

“Nihongo o hanasou”

With its many characters and different grammatical structure, the Japanese language is complicated for non-native speakers, but learning Japanese definitely enhances your ability to enjoy Japanese culture. Here, we introduce three useful expressions that you can use in everyday situations. If you plan to stay in Japan, travel to Japan, or do business with Japanese people, try these expressions. They might be difficult for beginners, but you can always go to our website and review the Japanese lessons in earlier issues of Chopsticks NY. Have fun speaking Japanese!

Lesson 1: -te imasu / -te mo ii desu ka

[Conversation: at the movie theater]
A: Sumimasen. Sono seki wa aite imasu ka. (Excuse me. Is that seat free?)
B: Hai, aite imasu. (Yes, it’s free.)
A: Suwatte mo ii desu ka. (May I have a seat?)
B: Hai douzo. (Yes. Please.)

Here, you see two basic expressions that require one of the most important verb forms, the “-te form.” This form is used in many expressions. In other words, you cannot converse in Japanese without knowing this form. The first expression uses the -te form of a verb + “imasu” to describe the state of a condition or an ongoing situation. The other expression uses the -te form of a verb + “mo ii desu ka” to ask permission.

In the conversation above, “aite imasu” is used. “Aite” is the -te form of the verb “akimasu,” meaning “to open.” In order to suggest that the seat is open (free), you have to use “aite imasu” instead of using “akimasu,” which implies merely the action of opening. If you would like to say “I am eating,” you should say “tabete imasu” instead of just saying “tabemasu.”

“Suwatte,” as in “suwatte mo ii desu ka,” is the -te form of “suwarimasu.” When you ask “May I...?” this expression is used. So “May I ask a question?” would be “Kiite mo ii desu ka” (-te form of “kikimasu” + “mo ii desu ka”) or “Shitsumonshite mo ii desu ka” (-te form of shitsumonshimasu + mo ii desu ka). The rules for making the te-forms of verbs are very complicated. See them on page 9.

[Grammar]
-te form of verb + imasu: expressing the state of a condition or an ongoing situation
-te form of verb + mo ii desu ka: asking permission

[Vocabulary]
seki: seat, space akimasu: open
suwarimasu: sit, have a seat

Lesson 2: -te moraemasu ka, -te itadakemasu ka

[Conversation: at a souvenir shop] A: Irasshaimase. (Welcome.)
B: Furoshiki o sagashite imasu. Osusume o misete moraemasu ka.
(I’m looking for furoshiki. Would you show me something you recommend?)
A: Kashikomarimashita. (Certainly.)

Although there are some unfamiliar phrases in this conversation, the key expression you should learn is the -te form of a verb + “moraemasu ka.” This is used for asking somebody to do something. Some examples are: “Kiite moraemasu ka” (Would you listen?); “Sore o totte moraemasu ka” (Would you get it?); and “Setsumeishite moraemasu ka” (Would you explain?). “Kiite” comes from the -te form of “kikimasu,” “totte” comes from “torimasu,” and “setsumeishite” comes from “setsumeishimasu.”

You learned the expression “misete kudasai,” which asks somebody to show you something, in the previous lesson; its meaning is almost the same as “misete moraemasu ka.” The expression you are learning now is slightly more polite than the one you learned before. If you would like to be even more polite, you’d better use “misete itadakemasu ka.” Just change “moraemasu ka” to “itadakemasu ka.”

[Grammar]
-te form of verb + moraemasu ka: asking somebody to do something
-te form of verb + itadakemasu ka: polite expression meaning the same as above

[Vocabulary]
irasshaimase: common and polite phrase meaning “welcome” (comes from the honorific form of a verb meaning “to come”)
furoshiki: Japanese wrapping cloth
sagashimasu: look for, explore
osusume: recommendation
moraimasu: receive
kashikomarimashita: common and polite phrase meaning “I accept your order”

Lesson 3: -to omoimasu, -to kangaemasu

[Conversation: at a souvenir shop]
A: Kono jouken dewa muzukashii desu ka.
(Is this difficult under this condition?)
B: Nittei shidai dewa dekiru to omoimasu. Buchou ni soudanshimasu.
(I think it would be possible depending on the schedule. I’ll consult with the director.)

“I think” is one of the most frequently uttered phrases in conversation, and it’s easy to learn how to say it in Japanese. You simply add “to omoimasu” at the end of the clause you want to say that “you think.” For example, if you think “sushi wa oishii” (sushi is tasty), you can say “Sushi wa oishii to omoimasu.” Or if you want to say you think it’s cold today, the sentence would be “Kyou wa samui to omoimasu.”

One very important rule you should keep in mind when using the “to omoimasu” structure is that the clause before “to omoimasu” should always be in plain form or dictionary form (exhibited on the right). In the conversation above, person B says “dekiru to omoimasu.” “Dekiru” is the dictionary form of the verb “dekimasu.” The verbs you have learned in Chopsticks NY’s Japanese lessons are what are called “-masu form.” Now it’s time for you to learn the dictionary form. Here are some pairs of dictionary and -masu forms: iku-ikimasu (go), taberu-tabemasu (eat), miru-mimasu (see, watch), and nomu-nomimasu (drink).

The expression “to omoimasu” can be used with any clause, but it often comes after adjectives. In the previous example, “Sushi wa oishii to omoimasu,” “oishii” is an i-adjective and its plain form is “oishii,” so you can simply add “to omoimasu.” In the case of na-adjectives, however, things are not as simple. Take “taihen-na” (tough, hard, difficult), for example. Its plain form is “taihen-da,” and if you want to say, “I think it’s hard,” the Japanese phrase would be: “Taihen-da to omoimasu.”

Although it’s used less often, “to kangaemasu” has almost the same meaning as “to omoimasu.” Both share the same grammatical structure. The only difference is that “to omoimasu” sounds more casual.

[Grammar]
-to omoimasu. (I think / feel that...)
-to kangaemasu. (I think that...)

[Vocabulary]
jouken: condition, term
muzukashii: difficult, hard nittei: schedule
shidai: depend on-, up to-
dekiru: (dictionary form of verb “dekimasu”) can do, be possible, be able to
buchou: director

Verb Conjugation Patterns

Verbs in the Japanese language can be categorized into three groups depending on the pattern of conjugation: regular 1, regular 2, and irregular. Here, the three conjugation patterns of the -masu form, dictionary form, and -te form are presented. The -masu form is a basic affirmative pattern that is used in present and future tenses. The dictionary (or plain) form is convenient to know when looking up a word in a Japanese dictionary and is used in expressions with “to omoimasu.” As explained in the lessons here, the -te form is applied to various expressions. In order to make it easier to understand each conjugation pattern, we will hyphenate each verb (for example, “aruki-masu” instead of “arukimasu”).

Regular 1 Verbs: Five-Vowel Conjugation
Verbs in the regular 1 group have the most complicated conjugation patterns. To make the dictionary form from the -masu form, you must first find the verb’s stem. The last sound of the stem always ends with “i,” and when you change the “i” sound to a “u” sound, you get the dictionary form. For example, “hashirimasu” (run) can be divided into “hashiri” and “masu,”giving you the stem, “hashiri.” Change the last sound of “i” to “u,” and you get the dictionary form, “hashiru.” For the -te forms, each pattern is noted in parentheses.

Long Vowels and Doubled Consonants

One of the distinctive features of the Japanese language is its use of open syllables. Each sound consists of either one vowel out of five (a, i, u, e, and o) or a combination of one consonant and one vowel. In order to represent long vowels, we will use the following:

In order to pronounce a doubled consonant, you keep one syllable silent. For example, the word “nittei” has four syllables: “ni” + one silent syllable + “te” + “i”.

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