ambiguity. It is a deeply embedded Japanese cultural and linguistic trait to prefer saying and explaining as little as possible. Proficiency in Japanese requires substantial patience and intuition for the unsaid. Think of Japanese as a minimalist language, in company with traditional Japanese design and aesthetics.
| this | kore | これ |
| that | sore | それ |
| that | are | あれ |
| this ~ | kono ~ | この～ |
| that ~ | sono ~ | その～ |
| that ~ | ano ~ | あの～ |
| I | watashi | 私 |
| we | watashitachi | 私たち |
| you | (sng.) anata | あなた |
| you | (plural) anatagata | あなたがた |
| HE | kare | 彼 |
| she | kanojo | 彼女 |
Japanese people often prefer to avoid direct and explicit requests. Instead, requests are understood from context and intonation.
Indirectness is a social tool to maintain harmony and avoid direct confrontation. Regardless of the realities of a situation, a request is best phrased and spoken in a way that enables the listener to appear to grant the favor through his own will. Westerners may think it’s like a game, this diplomatic finessing of words and meaning—but it works for the Japanese.
As is the case with many languages, perfect and complete sentences are often not normal in conversational Japanese. When offering a cold beer in English, one needn’t say, “Please have this cold beer.” Rather, one might hold out the beer and simply say, “Please.” And so in Japanese, too, one can offer something by simply saying dōzo. A complete sentence, in fact, would sound stuffy and artificial.
A request usually ends with kudasai, roughly translated as “Please.” For instance:
| Please be quiet. | A beer, please. |
| Shizuka ni shite kudasai. | Biiru o kudasai. |
On the other hand, if someone offers you something, then you should reply onegai shimasu, which can be thought of as “Yes, please.”
| Would you like some coffee? | Yes, please. |
| Kōhii wa ikaga desu ka? | Hai, onegai shimasu. |
To make things simple, stick to these guidelines: (1) When offering something, say dōzo ; (2) When requesting something, use kudasai ; and (3) When accepting an offer, use onegai shimasu.
VERBS
While this book isn’t a grammar text, it will be worth your while to understand the basic verb forms used here. Besides, Japanese verbs conjugate consistently and straightforwardly; they’re a piece of cake.
The infinitive (basic) form of all verbs ends with an u sound. Aside from being the “main” form of verbs (the one, for instance, that you’d look for in a dictionary), this is also the informal form, the one used with family and friends. In more polite language, such as that used with strangers on the street or casual acquaintances, the infinitive verb is changed so that it ends in -masu. Verbs that end with u or -masu can be used to indicate either the present or the future tense.
Verbs are classified based on their endings and are conjugated into their -masu form and other forms accordingly. A simple overview of endings and their conjugations appears on page 15.
Let’s look at a couple of verbs in use. Aru means “to exist,” and is used only for inanimate objects.
| There is a book. | There was a book. |
| Hon ga aru. (informal) | Hon ga atta. (informal) |
| Hon ga arimasu. (polite) | Hon ga arimashita. (polite) |
For animate objects like animals and people, iru is used.
| There is a person. | There was a person. |
| Hito ga iru. (informal) | Hito ga ita. (informal) |
| Hito ga imasu. (polite) | Hito ga imashita. (polite) |
The common word desu, which loosely translates as “is,” is like a verb, but is technically considered a different animal, The polite past tense of desu is deshita. Desu is used with both animate and inanimate things, and is remarkably useful.
| I am Mary. (My name is Mary) | It’s a desk. |
| Mearii desu. | Tsukue desu. |
| I am an American. | He was a teacher. |
| Amerikajin desu. | Sensei deshita. |
ESSENTIAL VERBS
| to be able to hear | to ask a question | to talk, speak |
| 聞こえる | 質問する | 話す |
| kikoeru | shitsumon suru | hanasu |
| to hear, ask | to pronounce | to read |
| 聞く | 発音する | 読む |
| kiku | hatsuon suru | yomu |
| to listen | to say, tell | to write |
| 聴く | 言う | 書く |
| kiku | iu | kaku |
QUESTIONS
An important difference distinguishing declarative sentences from questions is a marker often nailed onto the end of the latter: ka? Listen