タグ: Second language

Japanese Learning (A1 S44) (1): Did Something too much; [Masu form without ‘masu’] + sugi mashita.

If you drank alcohol too much, and hang over in the following day, what would you say in Japanese?

1. Kinou, Osake o Takusan Nomi mashita. (Yesterday I drank Sake a lot.)

But this sentence 1 says just it was a lot. Some people don’t get affected much by alcohol, but ordinary people get hang-over if the alcohol exceeds a proper amount. In order to express that you drank too much yesterday, and the amount of alcohol exceeded your proper level, you would say;

2. Kinou, Osake o Nomi sugi mashita. (Yesterday I drank too much.)

Comparing the sentences 1 and 2, you will find in the sentence 2, “sugi” came in between “Nomi” and “mashita”.

“sugi” is a verb (Sugiru/Sugimasu), which can be used on its own as below;

3. Yakusoku no Jikan wa Mou Sugi mashita. (The appointment time has already pasted.)

But in the sentence 2, “sugiru/sigimasu” is attached to “Masu-form without ‘masu’” of the verb “Nomu/Nomimasu” as if it was a kind of supplemental verb.

– [Verb in Masu-form without ‘masu’] + sugi mashita.

When it comes to “supplemental verbs”, we have already learned some of them that are combinations of Te-form of a verb and a supplemental verb like;

– [V-te] + iru, [V-te] + aru, [V-te] + oku, [V-te] + shimau, and so on

This time, we are learning combination words that consist of “Masu-form without ‘masu’” and a verb. There are some expressions of this kind of combination words as below;

– Tabe-masu + sugi mashita => Tabe sugi mashita. (ate too much)

– Tabe-masu + hajime mashita => Tabe hajime mashita. (started eating)

– Tabe-masu + owari mashita => Tabe owari mashita. (finished eating)

– Tabe-masu + tsuzuke mashita => Tabe tsuzuke mashita. (kept eating)

– Kagi i Kake-masu + wasure mashita => Kagi o Kake wasure mashita. (forgot to lock)

– Denwa o Kake-masu + naoshi mashita => Denwa o Kake naoshi mashita. (called again)

Learning six types at one time is too much. Let us concentrate on the first one “V+sugimashita” today. Here are some example sentences;

4. Kinou Renshuu de Hashiri sugi mashita. (I ran too much for practicing yesterday.)

5. Netto-ge’emo o Yari sugi mashita. (I played on-line games too much.)

6. Ko’ohi’i ni Satou o Ire sugi mashita. (I poured too much sugar into coffee.)

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A1 of Section44 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A3 S43): Doing Something and then Coming; “[V-te]+kimasu” for Physical Movement, not for Change over Time

There are two types of expressions that use “[V-te]+kuru/kimasu”, although it is usually “kimashita” for the second one;

(1) [V-te] + kimasu(来ます)

　“kuru/kimasu” in this one means a physical movement, and usually the kanji(来) is used. The speaker takes an action described by [V-te], and then will come here.

1. Chotto Toire ni Itte Ki masu. (I am going to the restroom a while, and then coming back.)

(2) [V-te] + kimashita(きました)

“Kimashita” in this one means a change over time, usually change from past to present. And “Kimashita” is written in Hiragana.

2. Chichi no Kami ga Shiroku Natte Ki mashita. (My dad’s hair has come to be white.)

Since this is an expression of intermediate level, this post doesn’t deal with it much.

The exercise A3 of the section 43 in Minna no Nihongo is about (1). The following is example sentences of (1).

3. Chotto Ryou de Sato-san no Yousu o Mite Kimasu. (I am going to see how Sato-san is in the dormitory (and then coming back).)

4. Chotto Ie no Tojimari o Kakunin-shite Kimasu. (I am going for checking whether or not the doors are locked in my house (and then coming back).)

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A3 of Section43 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A2 S43): Expressing your Impression that you got from the Appearance of it; [Stem of I-adjective/Na-adjective]+ sou desu.

Last time we had learned a sentence construction to express a prediction that an incident is about to happen right in the next moment. Since that sentence is to say something is happening, a verb is used. And it was in the form of “Masu-form without ‘masu’”. In today’s sentence construction, not verbs but I- and Na-adjectives are used to express your impression. It is an impression in most of the time obtained from the appearance of what you are talking about. So, it is not a definitive statement, but a kind of a speculation. For example, if you say a definitive statement, it would be like;

1. Ano Jisho wa Iidesu. (That dictionary is good.)

But when you are not one-hundred percent sure, but you think the dictionary seems to be a good one;

2. Ano Jisho wa Yosa soudesu. (That dictionary seems to be good.)

Actually, the sentence 2 is a special one. As the title of this post reads, it would have been “[Stem of I-adjective]+ sou desu.”. But the I-adjective “Ii (good)” turns to be “Yosa soudesu” in today’s sentence construction. We have already learned the special conjugation of the I-adjective “Ii”;

– (WRONG) Ikunai => (RIGHT) Yokunai

– (WRONG) Ikatta => (RIGHT) Yokatta

– (WRONG) Ikereba => (RIGHT) Yokereba

So “I” of “Ii”turns to be “Yo” in several conjugation patterns. But “Yo soudesu” is still not good. It must be “Yosa soudesu”. Likewise, when you use a negative form of an I-adjective for a sentence of “-soudesu.”,

3. Sono Ryouri wa Oishikunasa soudesu. (That food doesn’t look so good.)

The negative form of the I-adjective “Oishii(tasty)” is “Oishikunai”. But “Oishikuna soudesu” isn’t good, it must be “Oishikunasa soudesu.”

<Some other example sentences need to be added, for example a sentence using a Na-adjective>

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A2 of Section43 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A1 S43): Expressing your Prediction; Something is about to happen / Your Speculation about Future.; [Verb : Masu-form without “masu”]+ sou desu.

First of all, “Souda/Soudesu” we are learning in this post is a “future-bound” expression when you talk about your speculation. From the perspective of grammatical structure with verb forms;

<1> [Masu-form without “masu”] + sou desu. — Speculation for future — today (A1 S43)

<2> [Dictionary form] + sou desu. — Hearsay — A1 S47

<3> [Ta-form] + sou desu. — Hearsay — A1 S47

So, we are learning <1> today. Before looking at example sentences, let’s check the connections between verbs in “Masu-form without ‘masu’” and “sou desu”.

Group2 Verbs:

– Ochiru/Ochimasu : intransitive verb : fall down => Ochi+sou desu.

– Kieru/Kiemasu : intransitive verb : (The fire) goes out, disappear, vanish => Kie+sou desu.

Group3 Verbs:

– Kuru/Kimasu : intransitive verb : come => Ki+sou desu.

– Suru/Shimasu : transitive verb (occasionally intransitive verb) : do => Shi+sou desu.

Group1 Verbs:

Gr1-W

– Iu/Iimasu : transitive verb : say, tell => Ii+sou desu.

Gr1-K

– Naku/Nakimasu : intransitive verb : cry, weep => Naki+sou desu.

Gr1-G

– Nugu/Nugimasu : transitive verb : take off cloths => Nugi+sou desu.

Gr1-S

– Hanasu/Hanashimasu : transitive verb : speak, tell => Hanashi+sou desu.

Gr1-T

– Katsu/Kachimasu : intransitive verb : win, overcome => Kachi+sou desu.

Gr1-M

– Yamu/Yamimasu : intransitive verb : stop doing sth => Yame+sou desu.

Gr1-B

– Tobu/Tobimasu : intransitive verb : fly => Tobi+sou desu.

Gr1-R

– Naru/Narimasu : intransitive verb : become, turn to be => Nari+sou desu.

There are two types of sentences for the speculation using verbs in “Masu-form without ‘masu’” and “sou desu” as shown in (1) and (2).

(1) The speaker feel that something is about to happen immediately.

1. Jitensha ga Taore sou desu. (The bicycle is almost falling over.)

2. Imanimo Ame ga Furi sou desu. (It seems like to start raining right now.)

where, Imanimo is an adverb meaning “At any moment”

(2) The speaker expresses his/her speculation about things in future.

3. Okome no Nedan ga Agari sou desu. (It seems that the price of rice is going to go up.)

4. Kotoshi wa Natsu ga Atsuku Nari sou desu. (I guess that summer is going to be hot in this year.)

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A1 of Section43 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A3 S42): It takes some Amount of Time or Money in order to Do Something; [V-dic] no+ni/ [N]ni [Amount] Kakari masu.

Since the exercises A2 and A3 are similar in terms of use of the combination of nominalizer “no” and particle “ni”. In A2, “-no+ni” phrase expresses a purpose of action of the predicate verb. In A3, the predicate expresses how much money or how long time it takes for accomplishing the “no+ni” phrase.

<1> An example of A2 sentence

1. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu.

(I use this personal computer in order to browse the internet.)

<2> An example of A3 sentence

2. Kuruma o Kau no ni Nihyaku Man – en Kakari masu.

(Buying a car costs 2 million yen.)

where, Kakaru/Kakarimasu is an intransitive verb which means to take

When we look at A2 sentences and A3 sentences in macro perspective like;

[“no+ni” phrase] + [Predicate].

Saying [“no+ni” phrase] is important in the A2 sentences, while saying [Predicate] is slightly more important than [“no+ni” phrase] in the A3 sentences.

Other example sentences for A3are as below;

(1) How much money it costs;

1) [V-dic]+no+ni

3. Ryuugaku-Biza o Koushin-suru no ni Yon-man Hassen – en Kakari masu.

(In order to renew the international student visa, it costs 48,000 JPY.)

where, “Koushin-suru/Koushin-shimasu” is a transitive verb which means to “renew”.

2) [N] ni

4. Ryuugaku-Biza no Koushin ni Yon-man Hassen – en Kakari masu.

(For renewing the international student visa, it costs 48,000 JPY.)

“Koushin-suru” is a verb, but “Koushin” is a noun. Note that “Ryuugaku-Biza no Koushin” is in the form of “N1 no N2”.

(2) How long time it takes;

1) [V-dic]+no+ni

5. Kaisha e Iku no ni Ichi-jikan Kakari masu.

(In order for me to go to the office, it takes one hour.)

2) [N] ni

6. Tsuukin ni Ichi-jikan Kakari masu.

(It takes one hour for the commute.)

“Tsuukin” can be a verb in the form of “Tsuukin-suru”, but just “Tsuukin” is a noun.

Take a look at the sentences 2 and 6 again;

2. Kuruma o Kau no ni Nihyaku Man – en Kakari masu.

6. Tsuukin ni Ichi-jikan Kakari masu.

Do you find subjects in these sentences? Yesterday we learned that the subject and the predicate must be consistent in a sentence. The subject markers are particle “-wa” or “-ga”. Is there any word with “wa” or “ga”? Perhaps some people want to put “-ga” as shown below, but I don’t think it’s good.

2’. Kuruma o Kau no ni <Nihyaku Man – en ga> Kakari masu.

6’. Tsuukin ni <Ichi-jikan ga> Kakari masu.

The reason why I don’t think this is a good way to show the subject is that a number with quantifier is usually used without a particle because it works as an adverbial.

Let alone, words and phrases with the particle “ni” cannot be a subject because they are also adverbials that modify a verb behind. Therefore, if the subject should be stated in the sentences, it would be like the follows;

2’’. Kuruma o Kau no ni <Okane ga> Nihyaku Man – en Kakari masu.

6’’. Tsuukin ni <Jikan ga> Ichi-jikan Kakari masu.

Let us check the consistency between the subject and the predicate for these 2’’ and 6’’.

2’’=> [Okane ga]+[Kakari masu] => good

6’’=> [Jikan ga]+[Kakari masu] => good

But in most cases, when the predicate is “Kakari masu”, the listener can easily tell it costed some money or it takes some period of time. These [Okane ga] and [Jikan ga] can be omitted.

Anyway, it is good to look for a subject and a predicate in a sentence, and then once you have found them, to check the consistency between the subject and predicate. This procedure can improve your understanding about that particular sentence.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A3 of Section42 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A2 S42) (2): Consistency between the Subject and the Predicate of a Sentence; Making an Object (-o) the Topic (-wa).

The last post showed the followings as alternatives for sentences of A2 S42 in Minna no Nihongo.

1. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu.

(This is the personal computer that I use to browse the internet.)

2. Kono Pasokon wa Shigoto ni Tsukai masu.

(This is the personal computer that I use for work.)

3. Kono Pasokon wa Ge’emu o Suru no ni Ii desu.

(This personal computer is good for playing games.)

4. Kono Pasokon wa Shucchou ni Ii desu.

(This personal computer is good for business trips.)

The sentences 1 and 2 are expressing purposes of the action of predicate verbs. The sentence 3 and 4 are expressing what kind of nature the subject has for a certain purpose. Also it is important to pay attention to nominalization of verbs (Miru, Suru) using the nominalizer “no” (Muru-no, Suru-no), and to a function of the particle “ni” which is to indicate the purpose of action.

But what today’s post is going to tell you is probably not the main purpose of the exercise A2 of the section 42 in Minna no Nihongo. It is about consistency between the subject and the predicate of a sentence and changes of particles from “-o” to “-wa” when an object becomes the topic.

The difference between the sentences “1 and 2” and “3 and 4” is the predicates. The sentences 1 and 2 have verb predicates, and 3 and 4 have adjective predicates. Is it the only difference?

There is a very important thing when you make a sentence. It is that the subject and the predicate must be consistent each other. Let’s look at the sentence 3 and 4. Extracting the subject and the predicate, we can get the following (3 and 4 are the same)

3/4. {Kono Pasokon wa} {Ii desu}. — This personal computer is good.

There is no problem at all as to the consistency between the subject and the predicate. Then through the same procedure, what will we get from the sentence 1 and 2?

1/2. {Kono Pasokon wa} {Tsukai masu}. — This personal computer uses.

The problem is whether or not a personal computer can be an operator. I am not sure for English, but saying like “This PC uses a lot of electricity” may not be a problem. But it sounds funny in Japanese language*. It should be “A human kind uses a computer.” like;

5. Satou-san wa Pasokon o Tsukai masu. (Sato-san uses a personal computer.)

Therefore, the subject and the predicate are inconsistent in the sentence “{Kono Pasoko wa} {Tsukai masu}.” If the sentences 1 and 2 are right, something had happened. Let me show you a correct sentence with fixing the inconsistency between the subject and the predicate.

6. Watashi wa Kono Pasokon o Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu**.

(I use this personal computer for browsing the internet.)

There is no subject written in the original sentence, but it is most likely that the missing subject is “Watashi (I)”. Extracting the subject and the predicate, we can get “Watashi wa Tsukai masu.” which is no problem in respect of consistency between the subject and the predicate.

Every time you make a sentence, you need to check the consistency between the subject and the predicate. A predicate is usually placed at the end of a sentence in Japanese. And the subject is indicated by particle “-ga”. When the subject and the topic are identical in a sentence, then “-wa” can be the Subject marker.

Then we need to think how the sentence 6 can turn to be the sentence 1. Think about a situation in which saying “Watashi wa” is not so important in the conversation.

6’. Kono Pasokon o Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu.

And you come to think you want to emphasize the “this personal computer” like “This is the PC that I use for browsing the internet”. Then a change would happen to the object indicator “-o” in order to make the PC the topic of the sentence. The topic marker is “-wa”.

1. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu.

(This is the personal computer that I use to browse the internet.)

So the conclusion is; as to “-wa” of “Kono Pasokon wa” in the sentence 1 through 4;

– “-wa” in the sentence 1 and 2 are the topic marker, not the subject marker for the predicate “Tsukai masu”.

– “-wa” in the sentence 3 and 4 are the topic marker, at the same time the subject marker for the predicate “Ii desu.”

* It is better to avoid using inanimate objects as subjects for sentences in Japanese.

** Don’t complain about using “-o” twice. It is good to use one particle once in one sentence if it’s a short and simple sentence, but in a complicated sentence, it is likely the same particle are used more than once. The second “-o” is inside a phrase of “-ni”.

6. Watashi wa Kono Pasokon o {Inta’anetto o Miru no ni} Tsukai masu**.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A2 of Section42 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A2 S42) (1): Expressing a Purpose using Combination of Nominalizer “no” and Particle “ni” ; [V-dic] + no + ni [Verb Predivate].

We are going to learn the following sentence constructions in the exercise A2 of the section 42 in Miina no Nihongo. In order to avoid copyright issues, the following sentences are not the same as the sentences in Minna no Nihongo (as usual).

1. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru no ni Tsukai masu.

(This is the personal computer that I use to browse the internet.)

2. Kono Pasokon wa Shigoto ni Tsukai masu.

(This is the personal computer that I use for work.)

3. Kono Pasokon wa Ge’emu o Suru no ni Ii desu.

(This personal computer is good for playing games.)

4. Kono Pasokon wa Shucchou ni Ii desu.

(This personal computer is good for business trips.)

We need to think a lot of things about these sentences. Therefore, the explanation of A2S42 is divided in two for today and tomorrow as shown below;

(1) Expressing a Purpose using Combination of nominalizer “no” and particle “ni”

(2) Explanation exclusively about the four sentences above, focusing on differences between verb predicates and adjective predicate.

This post is about (1), therefore mainly explains the sentence 1 and 3 that have the following structure;

– [V-dic] + no + ni [Predicate].

Note that today’s “no+ni” is different from the conjunctive particle “-noni,” which will be explained at the exercise A2 of the section 45. The conjunctive particle “-noni” is used in the following construction;

[Subordinate Clause]+noni, [Main Clause].

In this sentence, the main clause expresses an unexpected thing which is contrary to the content of the subordinate clause. Today’s “no + ni” doesn’t bring up contrast. “[V-dic] + no + ni” expresses the purpose of the predicate. In the sentence 1, “Inta’anetto o Miru (to browse the interenet)” is the purpose of the predicate “Tsukai masu (use)”. And it is important that using a personal computer is neither “unexpected” nor “contrary” with browsing the internet. So, we can conclude that today’s “no+ni” is a different kind from the conjunctive particle “-noni,”.

The nominalizer “-no” had been explained in the posts about the section 38. In very fundamental perspective, a Japanese sentence consists of components of

{ [word for meaning] + [word for function]}.

When a noun is used for a component, it becomes {[Noun]+[particle]}

When a verb is used for a component, it becomes {[Verb]+[auxiliary verb]}

And most of the time, it cannot be (WRONG){[Verb]+[particle]}. When you want to say something like {[Verb]+[particle]}, you need to make it {[Verb + nominalizer] + [particle]} because [Verb + nominalizer] is a kind of “noun-equivalent”. Other than the nominalizer “no”, some formal nouns can be used for making a verb a noun-equivalent. It is an interesting issue whether or not the nominalizer “no” is interchangeable with a formal noun “koto”.

1’. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru koto ni Tsukai masu.

I can’t say this is wrong, but I feel “Miru no ni Tsukai masu” is better. Examining a sentence by replacing the nominalizer “no” to another noun can be a good practice.

1’’. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru toki ni Tsukai masu.

(This personal computer is used when I browse the internet.)

Now the sentence1’’ is a good one.

1’’’. Kono Pasokon wa Inta’anetto o Miru tame ni Tsukai masu.

“tame” is introduced in A1, and this 1’’’ is also okay.

There are a lot of functions on the particle “ni”. What is the function of “ni” when it is used in the form of “[V-dic] + no + ni [Predicate]”? It is the purpose of the action.

5. Kaimono ni Ikimasu. (I am going shopping.)

“Kaimono(shopping)” is the purpose of the action “Ikimasu(am going)”

We are learning today how to use “no+ni” which is the combination of nominalizer “no” and particle “ni”. If the purpose can be described by a noun like the sentence 5, the nominalizer “no” is not necessary.

Some examples are shown below;

<1> [V-dic] + no + ni [Verb Predicate].

Kono Fukuro wa Gomi o Suteru no ni Tsukai masu.

(This bag is used for disposing trashes.)

<2> [Noun] + ni [Verb Predicate].

Kono Naifu wa Ryouri ni Tsukaimasu.

(This knife is used for cooking.)

<3> [V-dic] + no + ni [Adjective Predicate].

Kono Basu wa Machi ni Dekakeru no ni Benri desu.

(This bus is convenient for going to the town.)

“Benri(na)” is a Na-adjective.

<4> [Noun] + ni [Adjective Predicate].

Kono Denshi-jisho wa Nihongo no Benkyou ni Ii desu.

(This electric dictionary is good for studying Japanese.)

“Ii” is an I-adjective.

This post focuses on mainly “[V-dic] +no+ni”, and also introduces “[Noun]+ni”. In addition to an explanation about “no+ni”, I think there should be an explanation about difference coming from the predicates. The sentence 1 and 2 have verb predicates, while the sentence 3 and 4 have adjective predicates. It will be dealt with in tomorrow’s post.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A2 of Section42 in “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A1 S42): Mentioning the Purpose and What you are Doing for that Purpose ; [V-dic] tameni, [Main Clause]./ [Noun] no tameni, [Main Clause]

It is important for Japanese learners to master the following sentence constructions at the midpoint between beginners and intermediate levels.

<1> [Subordinate Clause] + [Conjunctive Particle], [Main Clause].

Today’s expression does not use a “conjunctive particle”, but use a formal noun “tame”.

<2> [Subordinate Clause] + tame + ni, [Main Clause].

“-tame+ni,” is not a conjunctive particle, but in a macro perspective, “-tame+ni,” works like a conjunctive particle to connect a subordinate clause and a main clause. And there is a relation that a subordinate clause mentions a purpose, and the main clause mentions what the speaker is doing or going to do for that purpose.

When the subordinate clause can be expressed with a noun, the following sentence is also used.

<3> [Noun] + no +tame + ni, [Main Clause].

(1) [V-dic] + tame + ni, [Main Clause].

1. Kuruma o Kau tame ni, Okane o Tamete imasu.

(In order to buy a car, I am saving money.)

Tameru/Tamemasu : transitive verb, Group2 ; save, keep something to accumulate to make it a certain amount

If it is “Tamemasu”, it would be a will for the future. “Tamete imasu” is “[V-te]+iru” that indicates the action “save” is ongoing and continuous.

2. Nihon de Kaisha o Tsukuru tame ni, Keiei-Biza o Tori masu.

(In order to start a company, I am going to obtain a business management visa.)

You see the connections “Kau+tame” and “Tsukuru+tame” in the above 1 and 2. Since the formal noun “tame” is a noun, a verb in dictionary form can be placed in front of “tame”. The exercise A1 of the section 42 in Minna no Nihongo doesn’t show other connections between a verb and “tame”. If such connections were there,

3. Kaze o Hikanai tame ni, Yobou-Chuusha o Uke masu.

(In order not to catch a cold, I am going to get a flu shot.)

This is an example of a connection between a verb in Nai-form and “tame”.

4. Sensei no Hon o Nakushita tame ni, Atarashii hon o Kai masu.

(Since I lost my teacher’s book, I am going to buy a new one.)

This is an example of a connection between a verb in Ta-form and “tame”.

5. Benkyou-shinakatta tame ni, Shiken ni Ochi mashita.

(Since I hadn’t studied well, I failed the exam.)

This is an example of a connection between “V-nakatta” and “tame”.

Taking a look at 4 and 5, we could see a combination of verbs in past tense and “tameni” doesn’t explain a purpose, but rather, it expresses a cause of the action in the main clause. Therefore, “[V-ta]tameni” and “[V-nakatta]tameni” are thought to be a little different kind.

As for a combination of a Nai-form and “tameni” like the sentence 3, it might have been good to be introduced in A1, but probably it doesn’t have much necessity comparing to “[V-dic]+tameni”. Learning “[V-dic]+tameni” well is the major purpose of the exercise A1 of the section 42.

(2) [Noun] + no + tame + ni, [Main Clause].

Sometimes a verb phrase in a subordinate clause with “-tameni,” can be expressed by a noun. It can be a shortened and concise sentence as below;

6. Sotsugyou-go no tame ni, Isshoukemmei Benkyou Shi masu.

(For the after-the-graduation, I study hard.)

“Sotsugyou-go” is a compound word with “卒業(graduation)” and “後(after)”, which is a noun. Since “tame” is a formal noun, the connection between “Sotsugyou-go” and “tame” uses “no” as you learned “N1 no N2”. When you want to say your thinking as the sentence 6, would you say like follows?

7. Sotsugyou-shita ato mo Yoi Seikatsu o Okuru tame ni, Isshoukenmei Benkyou Shi masu.

(In order to live a good life even after my graduation, I study hard.)

Probably you would choose the sentence 6 rather than 7 because the 6 is short with less words.

8. Jiko no tame ni, Densha ga Tomatte imasu.

(For the accident, trains are stopped.)

As you saw in the examples of “[V-ta]+tameni” and “[V-nakatta]+tameni”, “tameni” has a function not only to express a purpose, but also a cause. In this sentence, “Jiko no tameni” expresses a cause of halting operation of trains. The sentences 1, 2, and 6 are expressing positive purposes. And basically, it is better to learn a second language through sentences having positive meanings. But “Jiko” is an accident which is usually implying a bad thing had happened. I think it is also necessary to learn a sentence having a negative meaning. There are a lot of things that I don’t know, I can’t do, and I don’t want in this world.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A1 on Section42 of “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A7 S41): Asking a Person Superior to You to Do a Favor ; [V-te] kudasai masenka.

We have been learning the section 41 which introduce some giving/receiving sentences in respect of treatment expressions. The sentences so far from A1 through A6 are so-called declarative sentences in which a speaker say only what had really happened. But the sentences in the exercise A7 are not declarative sentences. The sentences have a function to exert an influence to a listener in conversation. Think about how to say you want to ask someone to do something. You may use “[V-te]+kudasai” which was introduced in the exercise A2, the section 14. Today’s sentence construction is to raise “[V-te]+kudasai” to be more polite to the level of honorific expressions as below;

– [V-te] + kudasai masenka.

And some examples;

1. Toukyou madeno Iki kata o Oshiete kudasai masenka.

(Would you please tell me how to get to Tokyo?)

2. Gohan o Sukunaku Shite kudasai masenka.

(Would you please make my rice a small portion?)

Sukunai : I-adjective ; few, a little amount

Since it is an I-adjective, when “Sukunai” modifies the verb “Suru/Shimasu”, it should be “Sukunaku”. Don’t say “Sukunaini”.

3. Koko de Oshaberi suru no wa Yamete kudasai masenka.

(Would you please stop chatting here?)

Oshaberi-suru/Oshaberi-shimasu : Verb : chat, talk

Refer to A1 S38 about “no wa”

When it comes to making a sentence for asking an honorific expression, we have already learned in the exercise A5 of the section 26. That was;

[V-te]+itadake masenka.

4. Shashin ga Hoshii n desuga, Dejitaru De’eta o Okutte itadake masenka.

(I need photographs, so could you please send me the digital data?)

In most of the cases, you can also say with today’s expression;

5. Shashin ga Hoshii n desuga, Dejitaru De’eta o Okutte kudasai masenka.

Then, what is the difference between “[V-te] itadake masenka” and “[V-te] kudasai masenka”? “[V-te] itadake masenka” is introduced much earlier, in the section 26, while “[V-te] kudasai masenka” in the section 41. Note that more basic, more important, and more widely used expressions are introduced earlier in Miina no Nihongo (“[V-te] kudasai” is in the section 14). So, when you find an expression that looks to have similar function to the expression you have already learned, check which section it was introduced. The earlier introduction means the more importance.

It is just my impression, though, “[V-te] itadake masenka” is slightly more often used than “[V-te] kudasai masenka”. Let me write a little about these two expressions;

-“[V-te] itadake masenka”

“itadake” is “Masu-form without ‘masu’” of potential form “Itadakeru/Itadakemasu” that comes from the verb “Itadaku/Itadakimasu”. And the verb “Itadaku/Itadakimasu” is the humble word of “Morau/Moraimasu”. Since it’s a humble word, the subject is usually “Watashi (I)”. In the context of “giving/receiving”, “Watashi” is the receiver. Therefore, “Itadaku” is the word when “Watashi” becomes humble for the receiving act. Plus, “Itadaku” has become the potential form “Itadakeru”. This adds a nuance of whether it’s possible or not.

– “[V-te] kudasai masenka”.

“kudasai” is “Masu-form without ‘masu’” of “Kudasaru/Kudasaimasu”, although a little bit caution is needed that “kudasai” is the euphonic form of “kudasari”. Anyway, the verb “Kudasaru/Kudasaimasu” is an honorific of “Kureru/Kuremasu”. Since it’s an honorific, the subject is a person who is superior to the speaker. In the context of “giving/receiving”, the subject of “Kudasaru” is the giver. Therefore, the word “Kudasaru” is to pay respect to the act of giving by the superior person

In the situation of asking to do something for you, and you are going to ask a person who is superior to you, which is better to use?

– itadake masenka : your act of receiving

– kudasai masenka : superior person’s act of giving

Probably many Japanese tend to steer clear of mention a superior person’s act. Rather, Japanese may think it is better to be humble about his/her own act. This is the reason I think people prefer “itadake masenka” to “kudasai masenka”.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A7 on Section41 of “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”

Japanese Learning (A6 S41): I did Something for Person of Lower Status than I ; Watashi wa [Person of Lower Status] ni/o/no [V-te] Yari mashita.

The exercise A4, A5, and A6 introduce the sentence constructions in which a giving/receiving verb is used as a supplementary verb and attached to the behind of a verb in Te-form.

– [V-te]+[Giving/Receiving Verb].

“Itadaki mashita” in A4 is the humble language of “Morai mashita”, and “Kudasai mashita” in A5 is the honorific of “Kure mashita”. Both A4 and A5 are introducing a type of treatment expressions that are to be used in conjunction with a person who is superior to “Watashi”. In contrast, A6 introduces a treatment expression that has to do with a person who is inferior to “Watashi”.

1. Watashi wa Mago ni Kutsuhimo no Musubi kata o Oshiete Yari mashita.

(I taught my grandchild how to tie shoelaces.)

Mago : Noun ; grandchild

Kutsu-himo : Noun ; shoelaces

Musubu/Musubimasu : Verb (Group1-B) : tie

kata ; how to, the way to do something; [Masu-form without “masu”] + kata

Note that the verb “Oshieru/Oshiemasu” is a transitive verb which usually use two particles “-ni” and “-o” in the form of “[person]ni [something]o Oshieru”.

2. Watashi wa Mago o Umi ni Tsurete itte Yari mashita.

(I took my grandchild to the sea.)

3. Watashi wa Mago no Shukdai o Tetsudatte Yari mashita.

(I helped my grandchild’s homework.)

Tetsudau/Tetsudaimasu : Verb (Group1-W) : help, assit

The particles after “Mago” is “-ni” in the sentence 1, “-o” in the 2, and “-no” in the 3. “Mago(grandchild)” is a receiver in those three sentences. But the particle attached to “Mago” is not always “-ni”. When it comes to sentences of giving/receiving, many sentences have particles as below;

-[Person] ni [Thing] o [Giving/Receiving Verb].

For example,

– Satou-san ga Watashi<ni> Chokore’eto<o> Kure mashita. (Sato-san gave me a chocolate.)

Also, in the sentence of a treatment expression that is using giving/receiving verb as a supplementary verb behind a verb in Te-form,

– Watashi wa Suzuki-san<ni> Nihongo<o> Oshiete Morai mashita. (I was taught by Suzuki-san Japanese.)  

But it is not always “[person]+ni” as shown in the sentence 2 and 3 above. When you need to choose particles for sentences of giving/receiving and/or treatment expressions, it is good to think that the particles in the core verb phrase are maintained. The core verb phrase of the sentence 2 is;

– Mago o Umi ni Tsurete iku (To take my grandchild to the sea)

Substituting this into “Watashi wa — Yari mashita.” then we get the sentence 2.

Likewise, the core verb phrase of the sentence 3 is;

– Mago no Shukudai o Tetsudau (To assist my grandchild’s homework)

Substituting this into “Watashi wa — Yari mashita.” then we get the sentence 3.

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This post was written with reference to the exercise A6 on Section41 of “Minna no Nihongo (2nd Edition)” published by “3A Corporation”