Kanji Flashcards
日本語
にほんご
nihongo
Japanese language
鮭
さけ
sake
or
しゃけ
Shake
Salmon
語
A word. Speech. Language. A term. Readings Goon: ご (go) Kan’on: ぎょ (gyo) Kun: かたる (語る, kataru), かたり (語り, katari), かたらう (語らう, katarau), かたらい (語らい, katarai) Compounds [show ▼]Compounds starting with 語 [show ▼]Compounds containing 語 Usage notes Add the suffix -語 to the name of a country to derive the word for that country's language. For example, 日本 (Nihon, "Japan") + 語 = 日本語 (Nihongo, "Japanese"); スペイン (Supein, "Spain") + 語 = スペイン語 (Supeingo, "Spanish"). Note that there are some exceptions to this, such as イギリス (Igirisu, "England") and 英語 (Eigo, "English").
私
Watashi watakushi(see below) Also see below for washi
Watashi (私) is the standard, gender-free way to say “I” and is the first one learners are introduced to. If you don’t know which I-word to use, this is your best bet.
The only trap I know of is that in Japanese saying “watashi mo” (meaning: “me too”) can come off as very effeminate if you use it in an informal situation. Men should take care to say “boku mo” or use some other I-word instead.
The only trap I know of is that in Japanese saying “watashi mo” (meaning: “me too”) can come off as very effeminate if you use it in an informal situation. Men should take care to say “boku mo” or use some other I-word instead.
Watakushi
Yes, the kanji is the same as for watashi (私) (watashi is actually just a shortened form of watakushi).
This word is a highly formal “I.” You might hear politicians, CEOs, or other public-relations figures use it when making official announcements, but generally you should avoid this word as it can come across as arrogant or condescending.
If you watch anime or read manga, you’ll notice that this is the I-word of choice for rich characters.
My impression of this word is it has a kind of wise, sage-like feeling to it. It’s almost always used in a short, declarative statement of some kind.
Washi
This is yet a further shortening of the word watashi. It is reserved for use by old men or men who for some reason have acquired a very slurred speech style. Perhaps they dropped the ta to keep themselves from spitting on people when they talked.
In the Kansai region, this I-word can be further shortened to just wai.
も
私も
僕も
too or also
私は犬が好きです。
watashi wa inu ga suki desu.
I like dogs.
★ You like dogs too, so you say:
私も犬が好きです。
watashi mo inu ga suki desu.
I like dogs too.
★ By replacing the particle は (wa) from the first sentence with the particle も (mo), it gives the
僕
Boku (僕) is what you could think of as the “soft-masculine” I-word. It literally means “manservant” so when you use it there is a sense that you are humbling yourself before the speaker.
It has a more informal feeling than watashi, however, so you may want to be careful when using it with strangers, authority figures and colleagues.
Boku is used primarily by men, but very young and/or boyish girls sometimes use it too. I’ve also heard women use boku in song lyrics.
俺
ore
If boku is the “soft-masculine” I-word then ore (俺) is the “hard-masculine.” This is the word tough guys use, and as such you would almost never hear it used with a polite verb form.
It’s not polite by any stretch of the imagination, but to say it’s a “rude” word would be a mistake as well. Ore can actually convey a sense of intimacy (we’re close friends, so I don’t need to worry about being polite with you). This is probably the most common I-word among groups of men (except in business or other formal settings).
内
Uchi (内) is one word for “I” that I didn’t learn until well after I came to Japan, but once I did I was surprised at how commonly used it was. It literally means “inside.”
Saying uchi for “I” is informal and has no gender connotation. This is a good word for women to use if they want to be informal, but avoid the cuteness of atashi.
我
Ware
Used more commonly in it’s “we” form (我々/wareware), ware (我) by itself and meaning just “I” is pretty uncommon, but not unheard of.
It’s also probably the the most difficult I-word in this post because depending on how you use it it can come out not only as “I” but either as “one’s self” (not necessarily the speaker), or even “you” (although usage as “you” is very dated).
My impression of this word is it has a kind of wise, sage-like feeling to it. It’s almost always used in a short, declarative statement of some kind.
Kochira/kocchi
Kochira/Kocchi
This is another popular and versatile way to say “I.” It literally means “this way.”
While kochira and kocchi are the same word (kocchi is an abbreviated version), they differ pretty dramatically in how formal they are. Kochira is highly polite and is often used in business situations, especially one the phone. Because of it’s root meaning of “this way” it is ambiguous in number, it can be used to mean “we” without any changes to the word.
Kocchi is much more informal and frequently used among friends. It’s also handy for its neutrality, meaning that when you use it you’re not making a statement about your social position relative to the listener (you are–however–still making a statement about social distance).
Note: similarly, you can use sochira/socchi to mean “you.”
犬
いぬ
Dog
inu
猫
ねこ
ネコ
Cat
Neko
月
moon a month (on the lunar calendar) every month menstruation abbreviation for 月曜日 (Monday) Readings Kan’on: げつ (getsu) Kan’yōon: がつ (gatsu) (getsu/gatsu is interchangeable for month) Kun: つき (tsuki), つく (tsuku) Nanori: おと (oto), がっ (ga), す (su), ずき (zuki), もり (mori)
足
あし
Ashi is the word for “foot” or “leg.” (Note that the character used is different depending on the
meaning. The character used here, 足, refers to “foot”).
図書館
Library
Pronunciation
としょかん toshokan
ずしょかん zushokan
図書館 [としょかん] {noun}
Kanji in this word
図: map, drawing, plan, unexpected, accidentally
書: write
館: building, mansion, large building, palace
