Japanese Flashcards
Fighting! Hang in there!
Ganbare 頑張れ
Gambatte! (You can do this!)
I am Thuy.
Watashi wa Tsui desu. / わたしは ツイです。
(Wa ta shi wa Tui des)
Nice to meet you. (at the beginning of an introduction)
Hajimemashite / はじめまして
(ha ji me mas te)
- Hajimemashite. Watashi wa Tsui desu.
Pleased to meet you.
Casual: Douzo yoroshiku. / どうぞよろしく。
To be more polite : “Yoroshiku onegai shimasu.”
- Konnichiwa. Hajimemashite. Watashi wa Tsui desu. Douzo yoroshiku.
Good morning. (informal)
Ohayou / おはよう
Good evening
konbanwa / こんばんは
Hello
konnichiwa. / こんにちは
Goodbye (before a long separation)
Sayounara / さようなら
Tanaka-san, arigatougozaimasu! Sayounara! / 田中さん、ありがとうございます！さようなら！
See you later!
Jaa mata! / じゃあまた！
Thank you. (informal)
Arigatou! / ありがとう！
Thank you. (formal)
Arigatou gozaimasu. / ありがとうございます。
(a ri ga to go zai i mas)
- Exp: Tanaka-sensei, arigatou gozaimasu : Thank you, Professor Tanaka.
- “gozaimasu” to express politeness
=> Good morning (formal): ohayou gozaimasu / おはようございます
san” and “sensei”
We add “san” after a name to be polite, regardless of gender.
- “Sensei” means teacher or some one with a professional qualification (medical doctors and lawyers).
Not at all; no.
iie. / いいえ
(i ye)
Exp: Arigatou! -> iie.
here you go; please
Douzo / どうぞ
Exp: a man gives a girl a gift & says: Douzo. (here you go)
-> the girl says: Arigato! (thanks)
-> the man says: iie. (not at all)
Sorry; excuse me.
Sumimasen. / すみません。
(sư mi ma sen)
“sumimasen” : when we want to apologise or to attract someone’s attention.
sliced fresh raw fish
sashimi / さしみ
battered and deep fried dish
tenpura / てんぷら
savoury pancake
okonomiyaki / おこのみやき
hotpot dish of thinly sliced meat
shabushabu / しゃぶしゃぶ
Please give me tempura.
Tenpura o kudasai. / てんぷらをください。
hiragana, katakana, kanji, Romaji
- Japanese has 2 alphabets: hiragana & katakana. Each alphabet has 46 letters.
- We use hiragana to write words of Japanese origin, katakana to write borrowed vocabulary and foreign names.
- There are also around 2000 frequently used characters (kanji).
- hiragana and katakana represent sounds, kanji represent meanings.
- Romaji: a, i, u, e, o
あ
a
(What does this hiragana look like? To me, it looks like a person who is skating.)
い
i
(This looks like two ears or two drops of water.)
う
u
(Try thinking about a man who is pulling something very heavy.)
え
e
(Imagine a running man or a creature with a tail.)
お
O
(It looks like a sleeping cat)
house
Romaji: ie
hiragana: いえ
ookii ie (big house)
love
Romaji: ai
hiragana: あい
blue
Romaji: aoi
hiragana: あおい
gakusei / がくせい
(gak xê)
student (in general)
Watashi wa gakusei desu. / わたしはがくせいです。
I am a student.
daigakusei / だいがくせい
(dai gak xê).
“u” bị câm
university student
Ken-san wa daigakusei desu. / けんさんはだいがくせいです。
Ken is a university student.
koukousei / こうこうせい
(kô kô xê)
“u” bị câm
a high school student
Keiko-san wa koukousei desu. / けいこさんは、こうこうせいです。
Keiko is a high school student.
sensei / せんせい/ 先生
teacher; professor
Suzuki-san wa sensei desu.
Mr Suzuki is a teacher.
kaishain / かいしゃいん / 会社員
(kai sa in)
company employee
Yuriko-san wa kaishain desu. / ゆりこさんはかいしゃいんです。
Yuriko is a company employee.
Ohayo gozaimasu. Hajimemashite. Watashi wa Thi desu. Kaishain desuden. Dozo yoroshiku.
isha / いしゃ / 医者
( i sa)
doctor
Yoshiko-san wa isha desu. / よしこさんはいしゃです。
Yoshiko is a doctor.
When you have introduced yourself, you do not have to use “watashi wa” if you continue to talk about yourself.
Exp: Watashi wa Anna desu. (Watashi wa) Daigakusei desu.
I am Anna. (I am) a university student.
“Desu” at the end of the sentence makes it polite
Watashi wa kaishain desu.
I am a company employee.
To make a question, we add “ka” (a question marker) at the end of the sentence.
Watanabe-san wa gakusei desu ka.
(Is Watanabe-san a student?)
Naruto wa ninja desu ka.
(Is Naruto a ninja?)
Tokomo-san wa daigakusei desu ka.
Is Tomoko a university student?
Eriko-san wa kaishain desu ka.
Is Eriko is a company employee?
When addressing somebody in Japanese, we try to use their name with “san” instead of the word “you” (anata).
So, it is important to know how to ask someone’s name politely. How to ask their name?
O-namae wa? お名前は？ / おなまえは？
(ô na ma e wa)
What is your name? (Literal: Your name is…?)
Anata / あなた
You
Yes
No
hai / はい
iie / いいえ
Yuriko-san wa gakusei desu ka. (Yuriko, are you a student?)
- Hai, (watashi wa) gakusei desu. (Yes, I am a student.)
- Iie, sensei desu. (No, I am a teacher.)
Sou desu. / そうです。
(xô des)
We can say “Sou desu” (that’s right) to confirm something.
Naruto wa ninja desu ka. (Is Naruto a ninja?)
Hai, sou desu. (Yes, that’s right.)
“janai desu”
(ja nai des)
To form a negative sentence, we replace “desu” with “janai desu”.
Watashi wa gakusei desu. (I am a student.)
Watashi wa gakusei janai desu. (I am not a student.)
Nihon / にほん
(ni hôn)
Japan
Tokyo wa Nihon desu.
Tokyo is in Japan.
-> Nihonjin / にほんじん: Japanese person
Yoshi-san wa nihonjin desu. / よしさんはにほんじんです。
Yoshi is Japanese.
Chuugoku / ちゅうごく
(chư go cư)
China
-> Chuugokujin / ちゅうごくじん: Chinese person
Shuai-san wa chuugokujin desu. / シュアイさんは、ちゅうごくじんです。
Shuai is Chinese.
Amerika / アメリカ
(a me di ka)
USA
Bosuton wa Amerika desu.
Boston is in America.
-> Amerikajin / アメリカじん: American person
Igirisu / イギリス
(I gi li su) or (I gi di su)
UK; England
-> Igirisujin / イギリスじん: English person
Pooru-san wa igirisujin desu ka. / ポールさんはイギリスじんですか。
Is Paul British?
Mekishiko / メキシコ
(mê kis ko)
Mexico
-> Mekishikojin / メキシコじん: Mexican person
“doko”
(đô cô)
“doko” (where).
- The structure for the question: Subject + wa doko desu ka.
Kyouto wa doko desu ka. / きょうとはどこですか。(Where is Kyoto?)
Rondon wa Mekishiko desu ka.
iie, Rondon wa Mekishiko janai des. Igirisu desu.
か
ka
(It looks like a great karate kick!)
き
ki
(It looks like a big key.)
く
ku
(Think of a bird’s beak. A bird says “coo-coo”.)
け
ke
(It looks like two clothes pegs.)
こ
ko
(It reminds me of the round edges of a coin.)
ka ki ku ke ko
か き く け こ
hiragana: かき
romaji: kaki
persimmon
quả hồng kaki
hiragana: きく
romaji: kiku
to listen
hiragana: こけ
romaji: koke
moss
rêu phong
こい
romaji: koi
carp
cá koi
hiragana: かく
romaji: kaku
to write
hiragana: あかい
romaji: akai
red
Doitsu / ドイツ
(đôi xự)
Germany
-> Doitsujin / ドイツじん: German person
Burajiru / ブラジル
(Bu ra ji ru)
Brazil-> Burajirujin / ブラジルじん: Brazilian person
Furansu / フランス
(Fu ran xụ)
France
Pari wa Furansu desu.
Paris is (in) France.
-> Furansujin / フランスじん: French person
Emma-san wa furansujin desu. / エマさんはフランスじんです。
Emma is French.
さ
sa
(It looks like a person sitting on his knees.)
In handwriting, we don’t connect the “tail” of さ to its “main body”, although it looks like it is connected when we type it.
し
shi
す
su
(It looks a hanging Christmas stocking.)
せ
se
(It looks like person holding a baby on their lap)
そ
so
(This looks so zigzaggy.)
かさ
romaji: kasa
umbrella
しか
romaji: shika
deer
おかし
romaji : okashi
sweets
đồ ngọt
すき
romaji: suki
to like
すし
romaji: sushi
おさけ
romaji: osake
rượu sa kê
こうこうせい
romaji: koukousei
high school student
くさい
romaji: kusai
smelly
すいか
suika
dưa hấu
Amazing!
Subarashii!
Tanoshii ne!
How fun!
Shitsurei shimasu. / しつれいします。
(s tư rêy xi mas)
(Goodbye, sorry - formal)
- to say “bye” in formal contexts or to someone who is older or higher in status than us (bosses or teachers).
Kawabata-san, shitsurei shimasu. / かわばたさん、失礼します。
Goodbye, Kawabata-san.
“I” is “watashi”.
In formal contexts vs. In informal contexts
In formal contexts, men and women both use “watashi” when referring to themselves.
In informal contexts, usually only women use “watashi”, men use “boku” or “ore”.
- women: Watashi wa Anna desu. / わたしは、あんなです。 (both formal and informal contexts)
- men: Watashi wa Akira desu. / わたしは、あきらです。 (predominantly formal contexts)
In informal contexts, when men use “boku” or “ore” to refer to themselves?
“Boku” conveys that the speaker has a soft masculine personality
“ore” conveys a strong masculine personality.
- Watashi wa Akira desu. / わたしは、あきらです。(at a company meeting)
- Boku wa Akira desu. / ぼくは、あきらです。 (meeting new friends, in classroom)
- Ore wa Akira desu. / おれは、あきらです。 (on a date, in a pub)
“kun” vs. “chan”
When talking to our friends or someone younger than us, instead of using “san”, we can add “kun” to male names and “chan” to female names.
Akira-kun, jaa, mata! / あきらくん、じゃあ、また！ (Akira-kun, bye!)
Yuri-chan, jaa mata! / ゆりちゃん、じゃあ、また！ (Yuri-chan, bye!)
た
ta
たこ : tako (octopus)
ち
chi
さ(sa) # ち(chi)
つ
tsu
(tchự)
て
te
(It looks like a table top.)
と
to
tsukau
つかう
(to use)
tsukaikata
(tch(ự) kai ka ta)
つかいかた (usage: Cách sử dụng, Tập quán)
expensive
たかい
takai
In Japan sind die Getränke teuer
Nihon ha nomimono takai desu.
a clock: đồng hồ treo tường
とけい
tokei
tsuchi
(tchự chi)
つち (earth)
subway; underground
ちかてつ
chikatetsu
subway; underground
chikatetsu
ちかてつ
lovely
suteki (stê ki)
すてき
big city
とかい
tokai
katei
かてい
(household)
chikaku
ちかく
(near)
seikatsu
せいかつ (life)
(Well done!)
Yoku dekimashita!
な
na
(It looks like a child sitting under a tree.)
に
ni (It looks like a fork and a plate.)
Did you notice that に (ni) is similar to こ (ko) and た (ta)?
ぬ
nu
(nư)
(It looks like eating noodles with chopsticks.)
ね
ne
(It looks like a “neko” - a cat in Japanese.)
の
no
(It looks like a no-entry sign.)
cat
neko
ねこ
koneko: こねこ (small cat)
a boy
otokonoko
おとこのこ
sea urchin (Nhím Biển)
うに
uni
fish
sakana
さかな
racoon
たぬき
tanuki
dog
inu
いぬ
koinu : こいぬ (small dog)
mushrooms
きのこ
kinoko
eggplant) xoa di
なす
eggplant (cà tím)
なす
nasu
older sister and older brother (anh, chị)
ane to ani
あね と あに
Tokyo district
nakano
なかの
summer
natsu
なつ
autumn
aki
あき
Sugoi!
Great job!
airport
kuukou
(kư ko)
くうこう
thin
うすい
usui
to stand
tatsu
たつ
household
katei
かてい
far
とおい
tooi
なに
nani?
(what?)
cloth
ぬの
nuno
fuku (clothes)
ふく
(this cat)
このねこ
kono neko
kono: this
neko: cat
(nostalgic)
natsukashii
なつかしい
This fish is tasty!
この さかな は(wa) おいしい です!
kono sakana wa oishii desu!
(I am hungry).
onaka suita
おなかすいた。
Anou, onaka suita ne.
Um, I’m hungry.
あのう、おなかすいたね！
は
ha
(It looks like a person is holding a hiking stick.)
ひ
hi
(It looks like a penguin.)
ふ
fu
(It looks like Mount Fuji.)
へ
he
(It looks like a hammer.)
ほ
ho
(It looks like a person with a hiking stick is wearing a hat.)
(skin)
hifu
ひふ
(to pull)
hiku
ひく
hakase
doctor, PhD
はかせ
slim
ほそい
hosoi
a deep conversation
fukai hanashi
ふかいはなし
anou
あのう (um)
- to politely attract people’s attention when we want to say or ask something.
Anou, sumimasen. Shibuya wa doko desu ka. / あのう、すみません。しぶやはどこですか。
Um, excuse me. Where is Shibuya?
Sou desu ka.
そうですか。
(Is that so?)
“Watashi wa Tanaka desu.” (I am Tanaka),
“a, sou desu ka” (oh really?)
hee
へえ
Oh! (strong surprise and interest)
- we often say “hee” whilst nodding to show interest in what another person is saying.
Hee! Naruto wa ninja desu ka! / へえ！ナルトはにんじゃですか！
Oh! Naruto is a ninja?!
Sou desu ne.
そうですね。
(That’s right, isn’t it?; Let me think.)
- We use “sou desu ne” to agree with someone or to give ourselves time to think before answering a question.
Sou desu ne…Hai, Murakami wa nihonjin desu. / そうですね… はい、むらかみはにほんじんです。
Let me think…Yes, Murakami is Japanese.
I am a student. How about you, Tanaka-san?
To ask the question “How about you?” we use the construction: Name + san + wa?
Watashi wa gakusei desu. Tanaka-san wa?
わたしはがくせいです。たなかさんは？
I am a student. How about you, Tanaka-san?
yukata vs kimono
kimono: more details, more formal?
yukata ゆかた : (light cotton summer kimono)
Let’s eat! Guten Appetit!
いただきます
Itadakimasu
(Danke für das Essen)
ま
ma
(It looks like a person is hula hooping.)
There are three hiragana letters that look similar: は (ha), ほ (ho) and ま (ma).
み
mi
(It looks like the number 21.)
む
mu
(It looks like a cow is saying “moo”.)
め
me (It looks like a rabbit with long ears.)
め (me) and ぬ (nu) are very similar.
も
mo
(It looks like a fish hook.)
まめ
mame
(beans)
てまき
temaki (hand roll sushi)
かめ
kame
a turtle, con rùa
つなみ
tsunami
sóng thần
monaka
もなか
(wafer cake filled with bean jam)
すなはま に いきます。
I’ll go to the beach.
Sunahama ni ikimasu.
ii
いい
(good)
ii desu ne.
いいですね。
That’s good, isn’t it? / Sounds good.
oishii
おいしい
(tasty)
Udon wa oishii desu.
うどんはおいしいです。
Udon is tasty.
“sushi wa oishii desu ka”
“Hai, oishii desu.
(How about udon?)
Udon wa dou desu ka.
うどんはどうですか。
chotto
ちょっと
(a little)
Sumimasen, chotto. / すみません、ちょっと。
Sorry, it is a little (inconvenient for me).
ね (ne) vs. か (ka) at the end of a sentence
ね (ne) : to show or ask for agreement.
- Sushi wa oishii desu ne. / すしはおいしいですね。 (Sushi is tasty, isn’t it?)
か (ka) : to ask a question.
- Sushi wa oishii desu ka. / すしはおいしいですか。 (Is sushi tasty?)
ocha
おちゃ
お茶
tea
“Ocha wa oishii desu ne.” / おちゃはおいしいですね。
Tea is tasty, isn’t it?
“Sou desu ne.” / そうですね。
That’s right
dou
どう
how
“Ocha wa dou desu ka.” / お茶はどうですか。
How about tea? (want to offer)
“ii desu ne.” / いいですね。
Sounds good!
we say “ii desu ne” (sounds good) to accept a proposal .
we say “chotto“ to politely decline
“Ocha wa dou desu ka.”/ お茶はどうですか。
(How about tea?)
“ii desu ne.” / いいですね。
(Sounds good!)
“A, sumimasen, chotto…” / あ、すみません、ちょっと…
(Oh, sorry, it’s a little…)
“natto”
(fermented beans)
đậu tương lên men
totemo / とても
very
Udon wa oishii desu ka.
Hai, totemo oishii desu. (very tasty)
jaa
じゃあ
in that case; so
Jaa, udon wa dou desu ka. (So how about udon?)
ら
ra (It looks like the number 5.)
There are hiragana letters that look similar: ら (ra), う (u)
り
ri
(It looks like a slingshot.). súng cao su
nori
のり
seaweed
る
ru (It looks like the number 3 with a circle)
なると (Naruto)
れ
re (It looks like a camel.)
れ (re) and ね (ne) are very similar.
ろ
ro (It looks like the number 3.)
chirashi
(rice with a variety of toppings)
ちらし
しろい
shiroi
white
むらさき、
murasaki
purple,
くろい。
kuroi
black
あかるい
akarui
bright
きれいな ひと
kireina hito
beautiful person
kareshi
かれし
boyfriend
や
ya
(It looks like a horse’s head.)
やね
yane (roof)
ゆ
yu
(It looks like a fish.)
ゆか
yuka (floor)
よ
yo
(It looks a crossing guard is stretching their hand to the right.)
よる : yoru (evening)
わ
wa (It looks like a pregnant woman’s belly.)
わ (wa), れ (re) and ね (ne) are quite similar.
を
o
(It looks a person riding a unicycle.)
お: used in all words that contain “o”
を: used only as the object marker “o”
ん
n
(It looks like the English letter “h”.)
hon o yomu
ほん を よむ
(to read a book)
yomu よむ : to read
onsen
おんせん
hot springs
(What will you drink?)
Nani o nomimasu ka
なにをのみますか。
かわいい
cute
kawaii
はつこい
hatsukoi
(first love)
Yamanashi
(a prefecture with beautiful views of Mount Fuji)
một tỉnh có cảnh đẹp của núi Phú Sĩ)
Wakarimasen”.
わ か りま せん
I don’t understand.
omoshiroi
おもしろい
interesting
おもしろいね！
omoshiroi ne
(Interesting, isn’t it?!)
kankoku
かんこく
Hàn Quốc, Korea
Otsukaresama!
おつかれさま！
Great job!
special marks (dakuten) with hiragana “k”
か [ka]
き [ki]
く [ku]
け [ke]
こ [ko]
が [ga]
ぎ [gi]
ぐ [gu]
げ [ge]
ご [go]
special marks (dakuten) with hiragana “s”
さ sa
し shi
す su
せ se
そ so
ざ za. (dà)
じ ji. (ji) - ぢ ji
ず zu (tsư) - づ zu
ぜ ze (dề)
ぞ zo. (dô)
かざん
kazan
volcano
special marks (dakuten) with hiragana “t”
た ta
ち chi
つ tsu
て te
と to
だ da
ぢ ji じ ji
づ zu ず zu
で de
ど do
ぢ ji vs じ ji
づ zu vs ず zu (tsư)
They are pronounced exactly the same
most common they use words じ for “ji”
and use ず for “zu”.
Only very few words use ぢ and づ.
dashi
だし
(Japanese soup base)
special marks (dakuten) & (handakuten) with hiragana “h”
は ha
ひ hi
ふ fu
へ he
ほ ho
(h->b)
ば ba
び bi
ぶ bu
べ be
ぼ bo
(h->p)
ぱ pa
ぴ pi
ぷ pu
ぺ pe
ぽ po
(pig)
ぶた
buta
pakupaku
ぱくぱく
(heartily eating)
ăn uống nhiệt tình
ばか (baka) -
a fool
かぎ (kagi) -
a key
(here)
ここ
koko
(in the afternoon)
ごご
gogo
だんなさん
dannasan
husband
(I love the Japanese language!)
にほんご が だいすき です！
Nihongo ga daisuki desu!
long vs. short vowels
おばさん (obasan) - middle-aged woman; aunt
おばあさん (obaasan) - grandmother
あ makes any hiragana ending in “a” become long (e.g. かあ - kaa)
おかあさん (okaasan) - mother
- い makes any hiragana ending in “i” become long (e.g. にい - nii)
- い makes any hiragana ending in “e” become long.
- おにいさん (oniisan) - older brother
- がくせい (gakusei) - studentせんせい (sensei) - teacher; professor
- う makes any hiragana ending in “u” become long (e.g. くう - kuu)
- う (u) makes any hiragana ending in “o” become long.
- くうき (kuuki) - air
- ここ (koko) - hereこうこう (koukou) - high school
maths, toán
すうがく
suugaku
This is the only time when we write は (ha) and pronounce it as “wa”.
(subject particle “wa” - は)
mạo từ chủ ngữ “wa”
わたし は がくせい です。
(Watashi wa gakusei desu.)
- I am a student.
fridge
れいぞうこ
reizouko
