Hiragana 1

Nan desu ka?

Nan desu ka? What is it?

enpitsu pencil
kii key
pen pen
hako box
hon book
kami paper

Sore wa enpitsu desu ka? Is that the pencil?
Hai, sore wa enpitsu desu. Yes, that is the pencil.

Sore wa kii desu ka? Is that the key?
Iie, sore wa kii dewa arimasen, sore wa enpitsu desu. No, that is not the key, that is the pencil.

Isu chair
Tëburu table
ranpu lamp
doa door
mado window
e picture
furoā floor
tenjō ceiling
kabe wall

Sore wa isu to tëburu ranpu desu.
That is the chair, table and lamp.

Note: to=and note the placement after the first object, as oppose to before the last object.

Nan desu ka ?'s 1

Answer all qusetion in complete Japanese sentences

Sore wa teeburu desu ka?

Sore wa isu desu ka?

Sore wa doa desu ka?

Nan desu ka?

Nan desu ka ?'s 2

Sore wa enpitsu desu ka?

Sore wa hako desu ka?

Sore wa kii desu ka?

Nan desu ka?

Nan desu ka ?'s 3

Sore wa kii desu ka?

Sore wa isu desu ka?

Sore wa ranpu desu ka?

Nan desu ka?

Nan desu ka ?'s 4

Sore wa hako desu ka?

Sore wa mado desu ka?

Sore wa doa desu ka?

Nan desu ka?

Nan desu ka ?'s 5

Sore wa hon desu ka?

Sore wa enpitsu desu ka?

Sore wa teeburu desu ka?

Nan desu ka?

Gakki

gakki musical instrument

piano piano
baiorin violin
sakusuhon saxophone
chero cello
horun horn
orugan organ
furūto flute
gitā guitar
erekii-gitā electric guitar
kurarinetto clarinet
toranpetto trumpet
doramu drum

ensō suru to play a musical instrument

Ongaku

Ongaku music

rokku rock
kurasshikku ongaku classical
min-yō folk
jazu jazz
gendai ongaku modern
poppu mūjikku pop
nihon no dentō ongaku Traditional Japanese

kasetto cassette tape
konpakuto disuku CD
rekōdo record
rajio radio
sutereo stereo
bando band
konsāto concert

utau to sing
kashu singer
uta song

dansu suru to dance
dansu dance
pātii party
kurabu club

Don'na ongaku ga suki desu ka What kind of music do you like?
______ ga suki desu. I like _____.

Verb-Desu

Desu to be; is; equals

..................................Affirmative...................Negative
Present....plain...............da...........................dewa nai
................polite..........desu.........................dewa arimasen
.
Past........plain...........datta.............................dewa nakatta
...............polite..........deshita..........dewa arimasen deshita

Kore wa hon desu. This is a book.
Akiyama-san wa sensei desu. Mr. Akiyama is a teacher.
Otenki ga ii desu. The weather is good.
Ano hito wa, kinô byôki deshita. He was sick yesterday.

Uses of WA

1. To show contrast: Sono hon wa yomimashita. I read that book (a specific book in contrast to any book) Note that hon (book) is not the subject the sentence, and the subject "I" is left out. Book is the topic of the sentence.
2.Unchanging facts. Akito-kun wa nihonjin desu. Akito is Japanese. The fact that Akito is Japanese does not change.
3.Place of specific person or thing. Okaasan wa amerika ni imasu. Mother is in America. Okaasan (mother) is a specific person.
4. Negative sentences. Okaasan wa nippon ni imasu. Mother is not in Japan.
5. Partial negative sentences Zenbu wa tabemasen deshita. I didn't eat them all.
6. "At least" or "At most" Ichi-jikan wa machimasen. I waited for at least one hour.
Hyaku en wa shimasen deshita. It didn't cost ¥100 at most.
7. Repeating action Sono ko wa "mama"-to itte wa nakijakurimashita. The child sobbed Mama over and over.

Particle GA

ga-subject marker Links subject directly to following verb or adjective, or emphasis on a subject.
Ga is probably the most difficult particle to explain , so these are just basic usages.
ex. Dore ga shimashita ka. Who did it? emphasis on "who"
Shinohara-san ga Tōkyō ni ikimashita. Shinohara went to Tokyo. emphasis on Shinohara.
Anime ga suki desu. I like anime. Anime linked to the verb "to like"