第 2課 | Chapter 2 43

第二課だ い に か

| CHAPTER 2

毎日まいにち

の生活せいかつ

: Our Daily Lives

Objectives

In this chapter, students will learn frequently used verbs, adjectives and adverbs to

describe our daily lives using present and past tenses.

After successfully completing this chapter, you will be able to talk about your daily

activities typical to college student life.

The chapter begins with a dialogue where a student runs into another student and they

talk about activities in the past, present and future.

Part A: 会話かいわ

と単語たんご

: Conversation and Vocabulary

I. 会話かいわ

(Conversation)

II. 単語たんご

(Vocabulary)

Part B: Grammar and Practice

I. Action Verbs

II. Particles に 、で and を

III. Adjective Types in Japanese

~な and ~い adjectives

IV. Telling time

V. Frequency Adverbs

VI. Numbers 11-99

Part C: 漢字 Kanji

大 学 校 先 生 人 小 日 本 川 山 月 男 女 子

第 2課 | Chapter 2 44

Part A: 会話と単語 (Conversation and Vocabulary)

I. 会話かいわ

Dialogue 2A-Dialogue

Reiko Yoshida runs into her friend Steven Miller and begin talking about a concert Steve

attended the previous week.

吉田よしだ

あ、スティす て ぃ

ーブンぶ ん

さん、ひさしぶりですね。元気げんき

ですか。

ミラみ ら

ー はい、おかげさまで。

吉田よしだ

あれ？ スティす て ぃ

ーブンぶ ん

さん、それは何なん

ですか。

ミラみ ら

ー ああ、これですか？ 先 週せんしゅう

の金曜日きんようび

にマンハッタンま ん は っ た ん

でジャズじ ゃ ず

の

コンサこ ん さ

ートと

がありました。そのポスタぽ す た

ーです。

吉田よしだ

そうですか。コンサこ ん さ

ートと

はどうでしたか。

ミラみ ら

ー とてもよかったです。そして、ピアノぴ あ の

はとてもすばらしかったですよ。

礼子れいこ

さんはジャズじ ゃ ず

を聞き

きますか。

吉田よしだ

はい、時 々ときどき

、ジャズじ ゃ ず

を聞き

きます。好す

きです。

ミラみ ら

ー そうですか。…あのう、明日あした

もロングアイランドろ ん ぐ あ い ら ん ど

でコンサこ ん さ

ートと

が

あります。…いっしょに行い

きませんか。*

吉田よしだ

ええ、いいですよ。コンサこ ん さ

ートと

は何時なんじ

に始はじ

まりますか。

ミラみ ら

ー 午後八時ごごはちじ

に始はじ

まります。あのう…じゃあ、その前まえ

に僕ぼく

といっしょに

晩ばん

ごはんを食た

べませんか。*

吉田よしだ

それはいいアイデアあ い で あ

ですね。(Reiko notices the time) あっ！

スティす て ぃ

ーブンぶ ん

さん、ごめんなさい。もう十二時じゅうにじ

です。クイく い

ーンズホん ず ほ

ールる

で十二時五分じゅうにじごふん

から心理学しんりがく

の 授 業じゅぎょう

があります。

ミラみ ら

ー あ、わかりました。じゃあ、礼子れいこ

さん、後あと

でメめ

ールる

をしますね。

第 2課 | Chapter 2 45

吉田よしだ

はい、ありがとう。またね。

ミラみ ら

ー 礼子れいこ

さん、じゃあ、明日あした

は僕ぼく

とデで

ートと

ですね！

吉田よしだ

ええっ！ …デで

ートと

ですか？！

* Dialogue note

A negative question form is commonly used to indicate the speaker’s intention to invite

the listener to do something (“Would you like to ~”). For example, 行きませんか (Lit.:

“Won’t you go?”) is a negative question form of 行きます and in discourse means “Would

you like to go?”

II. 単語たんご

Vocabulary

Nouns 2A-Vocab 1

僕ぼく

I (used by male)

授 業じゅぎょう

Lecture

勉 強べんきょう

Study

アイデアあ い で あ

Idea

テレビて れ び

TV

カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

Cafeteria

朝あさ

ごはん Breakfast

昼ひる

ごはん Lunch

晩ばん

ごはん Dinner

メめ

ールる

Email

図書館としょかん

Library

教 室きょうしつ

Classroom

寮りょう

Dormitory

体 育 館たいいくかん

Gymnasium

アルバイトあ る ば い と

or バイトば い と

Part-time job

第 2課 | Chapter 2 46

仕事しごと

Job (in general but often it a full-time job)

Calendar Expressions 2A-Vocab 2

今日きょう

Today

明日あした

Tomorrow

あさって Day after tomorrow

昨日きのう

Yesterday

今 週こんしゅう

This week

来 週らいしゅう

Next week

先 週せんしゅう

Last week

毎 週まいしゅう

Every week

毎 日まいにち

Every day

毎 晩まいばん

Every evening

月曜日げつようび

Monday

火曜日かようび

Tuesday

水曜日すいようび

Wednesday

木曜日もくようび

Thursday

金曜日きんようび

Friday

土曜日どようび

Saturday

日曜日にちようび

Sunday

Time Expressions

午前ごぜん

/ 午後ご ご

AM / PM

Suffixes

～時じ

~ o’clock

～ 分ふん・ぷん

~ minute

～料 理りょうり

Cuisine of ~ （for example, フランスふ ら ん す

料 理りょうり

“French food”, 中 華 料 理ちゅうかりょうり

“Chinese food”,

日本料理にほんりょうり

“Japanese food”）

第 2課 | Chapter 2 47

Wh-word~

どう How

いつ When

どんな What kind

Particles

を Object marker

に Location marker

に Time expression maker

と With

で At / in

Adverbs 2A-Vocab 3

よく Frequently

たいてい Often

時 々ときどき

Sometimes

あまり Not very / often (Negative polarity item)

毎 日まいにち

Everyday

毎 週まいしゅう

Every week

Adjectives

＜い Adjectives＞

大おお

きい Big

小ちい

さい Small

安やす

い Cheap, inexpensive

高たか

い Expensive

新あたら

しい New

古ふる

い Old

すばらいしい Extraordinary

いい（よい） Good (よい is also “good” but a more formal form)

たのしい Fun

かわいい Cute

こわい Scary

＜な Adjectives＞

元気げんき

（な） Lively, healthy

第 2課 | Chapter 2 48

立派りっぱ

（な） Splendid

有 名ゆうめい

（な） Famous

好す

き（な） Likable, desirable

ハンサムは ん さ む

（な） Handsome

ひさしぶり（な） After a long time

Verbs 2A-Vocab 4

(We will discuss Japanese verb classes [~る, ~う verbs and irregular verbs] in Chapter 5)

<Irregular verb>

します（する） (to) do

来き

ます（来く

る） (to) come

<る verb>

食た

べます（食た

べる） (to) eat

見み

ます（見み

る） (to) see / watch

起お

きます（起お

きる） (to) get up

寝ね

ます （寝ね

る） (to) sleep, go to bed

<う verb>

飲の

みます（飲の

む） (to) drink

読よ

みます（読よ

む） (to) read

行い

きます（行い

く） (to) go

帰かえ

ります（帰かえ

る） (to) return

入はい

ります（入はい

る） (to) enter

あります（ある） (to) have, (to) be held, (to) exist

始はじ

まります（始はじ

まる） (to) start, begin

終お

わります（終お

わる） (to) end

Conjunctions

そして And

それから And then (indicating sequence of events)

でも But

第 2課 | Chapter 2 49

Expressions

ごめんなさい Pardon me, I’m sorry

Ritualistic expressions

お元気げんき

ですか/おかげさまで How are you? / I’m fine thank you. (お元気ですか or

元気？is usually used only when you have not seen

some one for a while.

（お）ひさしぶり（です） (Greeting expression)It’s been a while

Useful conversational expressions

あのう Well… (Hesitation)

じゃあ Well, then

じゃあ、また See you later.

後あと

で Later

前まえ

に Before

Supplemental Vocabularies 2A-Vocab 5

Locations

コンサこ ん さ

ートと

Concert

学 食がくしょく

（ 学 生 食 堂がくせいしょくどう

) Student cafeteria

マンハッタンま ん は っ た ん

Manhattan

ロングアイランドろ ん ぐ あ い ら ん ど

Long Island

ニュに ゅ

ーヨよ

ークく

New York

家うち・いえ

Home, house

トイレと い れ

（お手洗てあら

い） Toilet (traditional: wash room)

リビングり び ん ぐ

（ルる

ームむ

） Living room

キッチンき っ ち ん

（ 台 所だいどころ

） Kitchen (traditional: kitchen)

学 校がっこう

School

公 園こうえん

Park

スす

ーパぱ

ー Supermarket

コンビニこ ん び に

Convenience store

デパで ぱ

ートと

Department store, shopping mall

第 2課 | Chapter 2 50

Food

シリアルし り あ る

Cereal

果 物くだもの

Fruit

ごはん Cooked rice

魚さかな

Fish

肉にく

Meat

卵たまご

Egg

野菜やさい

Vegetable

パスタぱ す た

Pasta

そば Buckwheat noodle

うどん Udon noodle

ピザぴ ざ

Pizza

ハンバは ん ば

ーグぐ

Salisbury steak

ハンバは ん ば

ーガが

ー Hamburger

サンドイッチさ ん ど い っ ち

Sandwich

Drink

水みず

Water

コこ

ーヒひ

ー Coffee

牛 乳ぎゅうにゅう

/ ミルクみ る く

Milk

ジュじ ゅ

ースす

Juice

ビび

ールる

Beer

ワインわ い ん

Wine

酒さけ

Sake / rice wine

Activities

さんぽ Walking

運 動うんどう

Exercise

テニスて に す

Tennis

バスケットボば す け っ と ぼ

ールる

Basketball

第 2課 | Chapter 2 51

水 泳すいえい

Swimming

バレば れ

ーボぼ

ールる

Volleyball

卓 球たっきゅう

Table tennis

ジョギングじ ょ ぎ ん ぐ

Jogging

ヨガよ が

Yoga

ブログぶ ろ ぐ

Blog

買か

い物もの

Shopping

第 2課 | Chapter 2 52

Part B: 文法ぶんぽう

と練 習れんしゅう

Grammar and Practice

I. Action Verbs

Basics

In this chapter, we will first talk about a type of predicate that features action verbs. We

will discuss predicates with adjectives later in this chapter. In contrast with predicates

using N+です ( copula verb predicates) which link the subject to the complement,

predicates using action verbs express what someone/something does, such as (to) go,

(to) see and (to) eat. They are the words we use frequently in our daily lives.

Polite form vs. plain form basics

Every Japanese verb has a polite form and a plain form. The polite form is spoken with

strangers, different age groups, acquaintances and TV / radio news broadcasting to

express formality and politeness. All polite form verbs end with eitherます orです.

Since you are likely to begin speaking Japanese with strangers and different age groups,

we will practice the polite form first.

The plain form (or dictionary form) is typically used with family members, very close

friends, young children and among people of the same age group to express closeness,

friendliness and informality.

Let’s look at the disctinction between the polite form and plain form. You would say the

following (using the polite form) to a person you have just met:

お茶ちゃ

を飲の

みますか ? tea drink Question

Will you drink some tea?” /Lit: “Won’t you drink some tea?

On the other hand, you would probably say the following (using the plain form) to a close

friend:

お茶ちゃ

(を) 飲の

む (か) ?

Wanna have some tea?”/”You want tea?

In the plain form some grammatical elements may be omitted, since the conversation is

taking place in an informal setting. These include such things as the copula verb, case

markers, and the SFP か .

Newspaper articles and essay writing commonly employ the plain form since it is shorter,

more direct and the foundation of complex compounded verb expression. We will return

to the plain form in Chapter 5, when we discuss discuss verb classes (る verb, う verb

and irregular verbs) more fully. For now, we will work with the polite forms of verb

predicates, the ~ます form.

Conjugating action verb ending with ます

Verbs that end with ~ます are in the affirmative. To make the verb negative, simply

第 2課 | Chapter 2 53

change the verb ending ます into ません1 . This is the pattern. The verb does not

change for person or number.

Declarative Negative

食た

べます (to eat) 食た

べません

飲の

みます (to

drink)

飲の

みません

見み

ます (to see) 見み

ません

行い

きます (to go) 行い

きません

来き

ます (to come) 来き

ません

Verb tense

Grammatically speaking, Japanese verbs have only present and past tenses. When we

say “grammatically,” we mean in terms of actual verb conjugations. That is, Japanese

verbs only conjugate in present and past tense, whereas English has many tenses,

including progressive and perfect tenses, in addition to the present and past tenses.

Semantically, similar distinctions exist in Japanese, and may be understood either

through context, or other means. For example, the sentence below can be translated as

either the present or future tense, depending on the context: “I go to university” or “I will

go to university”

私は大学に行きます。 I -topic university go

It is very easy to make the past tense of verbs in Japanese. Simply change the ます

verb ending to ~ました to form past tense affirmative and~ませんでした in the past

tense negation. Thus, 食た

べました means “I/someone ate.”

Past tense declarative

Past tense negation

食た

べます (to eat) 食た

べました 食た

べませんでした

飲の

みます (to

drink)

飲の

みました 飲の

みませんでした

見み

ます (to see) 見み

ました 見み

ませんでした

行い

きます (to go) 行い

きました 行い

きませんでした

1 There is a second, less formal negation pattern ending in ないです. We will return to this at a later chapter.

第 2課 | Chapter 2 54

来き

ます (to come) 来き

ません 来き

ませんでした

Different types of action verbs

Verbs are categorized into different types according to what the it grammatically requires

in the sentence. Read the examples below:

(1) I slept.

(2) I saw a teacher.

(3) *I gave.

Do all of these examples sound fine or complete to you? Sentences (1) and (2) are fine

but Example (3) probably sounded a bit odd when you read it. You probably found

yourself thinking that the sentence was incomplete. “Hmmm? You gave what to whom?”

This is because the verb “give” in English requires a direct object and indirect object to

complete the sentence, in other words, the verb that is used determines some required

elements in a sentence.

Example (2), (“I saw a teacher”) contains a transitive verbs. Transitive verbs are kinds of

action verbs that require an object to receive that action. While most transitive verbs

only require one object, some transitive verbs (such as “gave” in (3) and (To) tell, (to)

show and (to) lend), are called di-transitive verbs because they require two objects

(direct object and indirect object) to complete the sentence.

Example (1) (I slept”) contains an intransitive verb. Intransitive verbs do not require an

object. The sentence is grammatically complete without an object. Here are some more

examples of intransitive verbs in English: “rained” in “It rained” and “sing” in “Birds sing.”

II. Particles に, で andを

Transitive verbs and the particle を (object marker)

Transitive verbs such as します (to do), 食べます (to eat), 飲みます (to drink), 見ます (to

see/watch) and読みます require an object. As we discussed in Chapter 1, a noun or NP

must be followed by a case marker to indicate abstract grammatical relations. When we

use a transitive verb, the direct object must be followed by the object marker を.

Hiragana を, though in the w-line in the Hiragana chart, is pronounced [o] in modern

Japanese.

Topic Topic marker

Direct object Object marker

Verb

大 川 先 生おおかわせんせい

は

お茶ちゃ

を

飲の

みます As for Prof. Ookawa, (she) drinks green tea.

は as contrast / emphatic marker

Let’s see how a transitive verb and the object marker を work in conversation. The

第 2課 | Chapter 2 55

sentences below are yes/no questions and responses. Note 野村先生のむらせんせい

は is optional in

the reply since a phrase marked with the topic marker は does not need to be repeated.

Topic Topic marker Direct object

Object marker

Verb SFP

野村先生のむらせんせい

は

コこ

ーヒひ

ー を

飲の

みます か。

Does Prof. Nomura drink coffee?

Direct object Object marker

Verb

はい コこ

ーヒひ

ー を

飲の

みます。 Yes, (he) drinks coffee.

Direct object Contrast marker

Verb

いいえ コこ

ーヒひ

ー は

飲の

みません。 No, (he) doesn’t drink coffee.

Now, notice that in the negation, the object is marked with は instead ofを in the answer.

Grammatically speaking, marking the object with を is possible; here, however, は is

more natural conversationally. Suppose Prof. Nomura does drink other beverages, such

as tea and water, and the one thing he does not drink is coffee. Typically, the use of は

in this context makes a contrast between what Prof. Okawa drinks and what he does

not drink in the mind of a Japanese native speaker. The following sentence describe this

situation more fully.

野村先生のむらせんせい

は茶ちゃ

を飲の

みますがコこ

ーヒひ

ーは飲の

みません。

As for Prof. Nomura, (he) drinks tea but he does not drink coffee.

So, here’s some new information that we need know about particle は. It has two

functions: 1) It is a topic marker indicating the topic of the conversation. In this usage, it

typically appears in the initial position of the sentence. 2) Particle は is a contrast marker

indicating contrast or emphasis. In this usage it appears in a non-initial position in the

sentence where the contrast is made. This may confuse you a bit right now, but don’t

worry. You’ll get the hang of it once we start practicing.

Exercise 6

A. Identify the types of verbs (intransitive, transitive or di-transitive verb) in the sentences

below.

1. I asked my friend a question.

2. I kicked the ball..

第 2課 | Chapter 2 56

3. The girl laughed.

4. He purchased a gift.

5. My friend drank some sake.

6. I read the New York Times every day.

B. Using the same sentences 1 to 6 above, identify the sentences that are required to

have a object marker を when they are translated into Japanese.

C. Negate the following verbs

1. 読よ

みます 2. 食た

べます 3. 帰かえ

ります 4. 見み

ます 5. します 6. 起お

きます

Transitive verb with the particle で

When used in conjunction with transitive verbs, the particle で indicates the place where

an action takes places. The particle で is translated as at, in or on in English. Also,

when used with an existential verb, the particle で indicates the place where an event

takes place. In English, existential verbs are “there is” in “there is a concert” or “have” in

“I have classes.” The Japanese equivalent is あります.

Topic Topic marker

Location of action (noun)

Particle Direct object Object marker

Verb

大 川 先 生おおかわせんせい

は

カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

で

コこ

ーヒひ

ー を

飲の

みます。 As for Prof. Ookawa, (she) drinks coffee at the cafeteria.

Let’s see how the particle で works in conversation. The following sentences respond to

the yes/no question: 大 川 先 生おおかわせんせい

はカフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

でコこ

ーヒひ

ーを飲の

みますか。

Location of action (noun)

Particle Direct object

Object marker

Verb

はい カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

で

コこ

ーヒひ

ー を

飲の

みます。 Yes, (she) drinks coffee at the cafeteria.

Location of action (noun)

Particle Direct object

Object marker

Verb

いいえ カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

では

コこ

ーヒひ

ー を

飲の

みません。 No, (she) doesn’t drink coffee at the cafeteria.

Now, notice that the particle で changed to では when the answer is “no.”

Again, grammatically speaking, marking the location with で (not では) is possible here

but では is more natural in conversation. Suppose Prof. Ookawa drinks coffee but not at

the cafeteria. The contrastive は kicks in where the contrast or emphasis is expressed.

Contrastive は realized in two patterns

You may be wondering why the object marker を was entirely replaced by the

第 2課 | Chapter 2 57

contrastiveは whereas the location marker で became the double particleでは in

negation. These differences derive from two different types of particles, case marker

and post-position, as defined in Chapter 1. Recall that case markers are particles that

are abstract (pointing out grammatical function) and do not have an English equivalent.

By contrast, post-positions have English equivalents which resembling prepositions.

This distinction determines how the contrastive は is used. The contrastiveは

completely replaces case markers such as が andを while the contrastiveは is stacked

onto the post-positions such as で and に. The following chart summarizes those two

patterns.

Case markers

In contrast

が

を

に

は

は

は

Post-positions

In contrast

で

に

へ

では

には

へは

Hence, the following conversation sounds very natural to the native Japanese speakers.

あのう、すみません。今日きょう

は図書館としょかん

で 勉 強べんきょう

しますか。

Ah, pardon me. Are (you) going to study at the library today?

いいえ、図書館としょかん

ではしませんがカフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

で 勉 強べんきょう

しますよ。

No. (I) am not going to study at the cafeteria (today) but (I will) study at the cafeteria.

Exercise 7

Answer the following questions.

1. テレビて れ び

を見み

ますか。はい、______________________________________。

いいえ、__________________________________________。

2. 本ほん

を読よ

みますか。はい、___________________________________________。

いいえ、__________________________________________。

3. 寮りょう

で食た

べますか。はい、___________________________________________。

いいえ、__________________________________________。

第 2課 | Chapter 2 58

Directional verbs with the particle に

There are certain verbs that express movement with directionality. In English these

verbs are intransitive verbs, but they always co-occur with prepositional phrases,

containing a a preposition and a N or NP designating a location. (Example: “Go to

Japan” and “Go into the woods.”) We will call these verbs directional verbs in this

textbook. In Japanese, verbs such as 行きます “(to) go”, 来ます “(to) come”, 帰ります

“(to) return”, and 入ります “(to) enter” are directional verbs. When you use directional

verbs in Japanese, post-position に or (location marker に) follows the N or NP in

Japanese.

Location Location marker

に

Directional verb

日本にほん

に

帰かえ

ります。 (I will) return to Japan.

Contrastive は with the particle に

We talked about how contrastive は is realized in the sentence in the previous section.

How do you think contrastive は is used with post-positionに? Let’s think about how to

answer the following yes/no question.

Topic Topic marker

Location of action (noun)

Post-position

に

Directional verb

SFP

大 川 先 生おおかわせんせい

は

カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

に

行い

きます か。

As for Prof. Ookawa, does (she) go to the cafeteria?

As you probably predicted, since the particle に is a post-position, it will be realized as

the double particle には in the negation.

Location of action (noun)

Post-position に Directional verb

はい カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

に

行い

きます。 Yes, (she) goes to the cafeteria.

Location of action (noun)

Post-position に Directional verb

いいえ カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

には

行い

きません。 No, (she) doesn’t go to the cafeteria.

Particle に vs. へ

As we have seen, the particle に attaches on to an N or NP that indicates a destination

or a goal. Similarly, the particle へ is used with the directional verbs but it has a slightly

different nuance; it indicates a direction towards something or someone. For example,

“大 川 先 生おおかわせんせい

へ (Dear Prof. Ookawa)”, is a conventional way to address a receiver in

第 2課 | Chapter 2 59

the opening line of a letter. Although へ is normally pronounced [he] as in “hexagon”, it

is pronounced as [e] when it is used as a particle. You will learn the contrast between に

and へ in detail in intermediate Japanese class but for now you can use に and へ

interchangeably with directional verbs. Do note that へ occurs less frequently in both

speaking and writing.

Location of action (noun)

Post-position Directional verb

カフェテリアか ふ ぇ て り あ

に / へ

行い

きます。

Existential verb, あります with subject marker が

あります and います (we will discuss this verb in Chapter 3) are verbs that express the

existence of things and animate objects (living things such as people and animals). This

is why they are referred to as existential verbs. In English, the most commonly used

existential verb used is be verb led by there (i.e., there is a God). The simplest sentence

expressing existence in Japanese will be Noun-が (subject marker) +あります and it can

be translated as “there is ~“ and “I have~”.

Noun Subject marker

Existential verb

本ほん

が あります

There is (are) book (s).

Noun Subject marker

Existential verb

授 業じゅぎょう

が あります

I have a class.

Since the subject marker is a case marker, in the negation が will replaced by は to

sound natural.

Noun Subject marker

Existential verb SFP

授 業じゅぎょう

が あります か

Do you have a class?

Noun Contrast Existential verb

いいえ 授 業じゅぎょう

は ありません

No, I don’t have a class.

Exercise 8

Translate the following English in Japanese.

1. Prof. Ookawa has a class at class.

第 2課 | Chapter 2 60

2. There is a dormitory.

3. Prof. Ookawa has a class at the university at 4PM.

Notes

Conceptualzing 行い

きます and 来き

ます: Japanese directional verbs indicate

movement that is relevant to the speakers’ locations. 行い

きます means the

speaker goes or moves to a point X and 来き

ます means something/someone

comes towards the speaker. We should remember this since the English equivalents are used slightly differently. For example, when a Japanese person

says 家いえ

に来き

ますか “Are you coming to my house?”, you may want to answer は

い、来き

ます to mean “Yes, I’m coming over,” yet in Japanese, this utterance it

sounds unnatural. Since you (the speaker) would be going to your friend’s

house, you should respond はい、行い

きます to sound more natural.

Conceptualizing 帰かえ

ります: This verb indicates the motion of the speaker

returning to an origin. The action of “going home” is returning to your home so

let’s use as 家いえ

に帰かえ

ります. If you say 家いえ

に行い

きます, it sounds like you are

going to someone else’s (not your own) home or house.

Clarifying the particle で andに: Frequently the difference between the particle

で and に bewilders many students because they both indicate a location. So,

here’s a recap. The particle に typically co-occurs with the directional verbs to

indicate the location that the speaker moves toward to. On the other hand, the

particle で co-occurs with intransitive and transitive verbs to indicate the location

where something happens. Since particles are strongly tied to grammatical functions, identifying the main verb of the sentence provides a clue to which particle to use appropriately.

III. Adjectives

Basics

In English, you probably know that adjectives are words that that can be used to

describe or modify other things in a sentence. For example, in the phrase, “a red book,”

the word red describes some quality or aspect of the book. Similarly, the phrase “an

expensive car” also describes some quality of the car as ‘expensive.”

In English, an adjective can come directly before the noun, as in the example above, or it

can come in the predicate position, as in the sentence: “The book is red.” You will see a

similar distinction in Japanese: adjectives can modify nouns directly, or they can be

found in the predicate position. One major difference is that in Japanese, there are two

第 2課 | Chapter 2 61

types of adjectives, which behave differently according to the type. Most Japanese

language textbooks identify the two types as い adjectives and the な adjectives,

respectively. Some linguists consider only い adjective as true adjectives, and な

adjective as “nominal adjectives” because grammatically they behave almost like nouns

(with some important distinctions). When you are first introduced to an adjective, pay

attention to the type; most textbooks and dictionaries will indicate this in some way.

Using adjectives before the noun to modify it

Both い adjectives and な adjectives can directly modify nouns. However, note the

following distinction. い adjectives appear directly before the noun unchanged; when

you use a な adjective before the noun, you must add な between the adjective and the

noun. See the following examples:

い adjectives

大おお

きいテレビですね It’s a big television, isn’t it.

いいアイデアですね That’s a good idea, isn’t it.

高たか

い車です。 It’s an expensive car.

な adjectives

元気げんき

な子供こども

ですね。 That’s a peppy/healthy child, isn’t it.

立派りっぱ

な大 学だいがく

に行きました。 He/She went to a splendid/fine university

有 名ゆうめい

な寺てら

です。 It’s a famous temple.

Notice that the い adjectives appear directly before the nouns they modify and that な

adjectives have a な inserted between the end of the basic adjective form and the

nouns they modify. Look at the list of adjectives at the beginning of the chapter. Try

making phrases with these adjectives. Remember to insert な before the noun when the

adjective is a な adjective.

Using adjectives in the predicate position

Now let’s look a little more closely at using adjectives in the predicate position. The first

thing to note is that, just as in English, the predicate doesn’t have to be in the present

tense: it could be in the past tense. Similarly, it could be in the negative form. For

example, I could say, “The movie was expensive,” to refer to a movie that I went to last

weekend. I could also say “The movie wasn’t good” if you didn’t enjoy it.

な adjectives in predicate position

な adjectives, or nominal adjectives are very easy to use in the predicate position

because grammatically they behave just like nouns in the N+ です pattern. Notice that

you don’t use the な ending in the predicate position.

田中さんは元気です。 Mr. Tanaka is peppy.

第 2課 | Chapter 2 62

田中さんは元気じゃありません。/（じゃないです）Mr. Tanaka isn’t peppy.

田中さんは元気でした。 Mr. Tanaka was peppy.

田中さんは元気じゃありませんでした。 Mr. Tanaka wasn’t peppy.

Present past

Affirmative ゆうめいです ゆうめいでした

Negative ゆうめいじゃありません。

（ゆうめいじゃないです。

）

ゆうめいじゃありませんでした

。

（ゆうめいじゃなかったです。

）

In the chart above, the ~じゃありません versions are a little more formal.

い adjectives in predicate position

Look at the examples below, which show い adjectives used in the predicate position.

やすいです。 It’s cheap.

やすくありません。／（やすくないです。） It isn’t cheap.

やすかったです。 It was cheap.

やすくありませんでした。／（やすくなかったです。） It wasn’t cheap.

Notice that when い adjectives are used in the predicate position, the ending of the

adjective changes depending upon whether it is in the present, past, negative present or

negative past forms. Study the charts below to see how these forms are created. .

Since we are practicing the plain form ending this semester, the conjugation pattern

involves the plain form is in parentheses.

Present past

Affirmative やすいです やすかったです

Negative やすくありません

（やすくないです。）

やすくありませんでした

（やすくなかったです）

To form the negative form of an adjective, you must first take off the final い, and add く,

then add the negative ending ありません (or ないです).

たかい＋く ありません。（ないです。）

It isn’t expensive.

A note on the difference between い adjectives and な adjectives

How can you determine which categories adjectives belong to? It’s easier than you think

if you keep the following in mind:

第 2課 | Chapter 2 63

Most adjectives are い adjectives. In their dictionary form, they will always end in

hiragana い.

Some common adjective, like ゆうめい (famous) and きれい (pretty/clean) are な

adjectives ending in い. Keep in mind what category adjectives are when you

learn them, and remember that the most adjectives are い adjectives.

You may notice some common adjectives, like おおきい (big) and ちいさい

(small) act like な adjectives in some dialects. Don’t worry too much about that.

IV. Telling Time

In Chapter 1, you began to learn numbers and some counters, including -じ, the counter

for hours, which is used in telling time. In this section you will learn how to tell time.

Q: 今いま

、何時なんじ

ですか。

A: 八時はちじ

です。

Q: “What time is it now?”/A: ”It’s 8 o’clock.”

Notice the use of the noun + です pattern above. The word なんじ is a compound word

consisting of the question word “what” plus the counter for “hour/o’clock.” The question

ends with the question particle か. In the response, replace the question word with the

correct time word. Use numbers 1-12, followed by じ, the counter for hours. “4 o’clock”

is pronounced よじ。There are two ways to say “seven” but in telling time, しちじ is

used, except in some dialects. 今いま

, “now” is optional, but is commonly used. You can

build on this basic sentence pattern when asking and telling about time. For example, if

you wanted to know what time it was in Osaka, you would ask, 大 阪おおさか

は、いま何時なんじ

です

か, indicating the topic of the sentence with the case particle は. You could specify

further whether it was a.m. or p.m. These words come before the time word, as follows.

午前ごぜん

一時いちじ

です。 It’s 1 a.m.

午後ご ご

一時いちじ

です。 It’s 1 p.m.

The number of minutes and はん “thirty” or “half-past” follows the time word to indicate

times more precisely. For now, however, we will only practice telling times on the hour

and the half hour. We will expand on telling time in the next chapter. (In the second

example below, ふん is a counter for minutes.)

午前ごぜん

九時半くじはん

です。 It’s 9:30 in the morning.

第 2課 | Chapter 2 64

午後ご ご

一時いちじ

三 十 分さんじゅっぷん

です。 It’s one thirty in the afternoon.

Exercise 9

A. Look at the digital clock faces below and practice the following conversation.

ex. 9:00 A: 今いま

、何時何 じ

ですか。 B: 9時くじ

です．

1. 1:00 2. 5:00 3. 8:00 4. 11:00

5. 7:00 6. 12:00 7: 2:00 8. 4:00

B. Now tell time using はん to indicate the half hour. If the clock face indicates a.m. or

p.m, incorporate that into your response. Remember, it comes before the hour.

1. 3:30 2. 6:30 p.m. 3. 8:30 4. 9:30 a.m.

5. 10:30 a.m. 6. 12:30 7: 4:30 p.m. 8. 1:30

V. Frequency Adverbs

In this chapter, you have already learned to conjugate verbs in the non-past and past

tense. In this section, we will build on this by adding some common frequency adverbs,

in order to talk about how often (or infrequently) someone does something. First study

the list of common frequency adverbs below.

毎 日まいにち

Every day

いつも Always

よく Often

たいてい Usually

時 々ときどき

Sometimes

あまり Not often (to indicate “negative” frequency; used with negative

predicates)

ぜんぜん Never (to indicate “negative” frequency; used with negative

predicates)

Now study the example sentences. The frequency adverbs have been underlined.

Notice the location of the frequency adverbs. While it is true that sentence order in

Japanese is less restricted than in English, frequency adverbs often come directly before

the predicate phrase. Notice also that the frequency adverbs あまり and ぜんぜん must

be used exclusively with verbs in the negative form. Therefore they are sometimes

referred as Negative Polarity Items. An example you would find in English is the

第 2課 | Chapter 2 65

expression at all. The sentence “I drink coffee at all” sounds awful because the

expression at all can only be used with negation.

毎 日まいにち

がっこうにきます。 (I) come to school everyday.

わたしはよくテニスをします I often play tennis.

しゅうまつたいてい えいがをみます I usually watch movies on weekends.

時 々ときどき

コンサートこ ん さ ー と

にいきます。 Sometimes I go to concerts.

スミスす み す

さんはあまりコーヒーこ ー ひ ー

をのみません。Mr. Smith rarely drinks coffee.

田中たなか

さんはぜんぜんスポーツす ぽ ー つ

をしません。 Mr. Tanaka never plays sports.

Exercise 10

How often do they…? Look at the chart. Now answer the questions according to the

information on the chart.

Name Eat breakfast Study at the library

Play tennis

田中たなか

Yes, every day usually sometimes

吉田よしだ

usually Not very often never

ミラみ ら

ー Not very often often often

キムき む

No, never sometimes Yes, every day

スミスす み す

sometimes never Not very often

Ex. 田中たなか

は よく あさごはんを たべますか。

はい、毎 日まいにち

あさごはんを たべます。

1. 吉田よしだ

さんは よく 図書館としょかん

で べんきょうしますか。

2. スミスさんはよくテニスをしますか。

3. 吉田よしだ

さんはよく朝あさ

ごはんをたべますか。

4. キムき む

さんはよく図書館としょかん

でべんきょうしますか。

5. ミラみ ら

さんは、よくテニスて に す

をしますか。

第 2課 | Chapter 2 66

VI. Numbers from 11 to 99

Counting numbers in Japanese is pretty straight forward. Let us review 1 to 10 before

we move on to bigger numbers.

1 いち 6 ろく

2 に 7 しち・なな

3 さん 8 はち

4 よん・し 9 きゅう

5 ご 10 じゅう

Now, how would you say 58 in Japanese? Think of it this way: there are five 10s and an

8 in this number. Five is ご, ten isじゅう and eight isはち. Therefore, ごじゅうはち is

the answer.

Notes

Number between 11 to 19

Numbers between 11 to 19 are pronounced with じゅう(for ten) and a digit 1-9.

Do not say いちじゅういち for 11, rather pronounce it as じゅういち.

Numbers between 20 and 99

To express numbers like 20, 30, 40, etc. attach a number 2-9 before じゅう. For

example: にじゅう, さんじゅう, よんじゅう. Then add a number 1-9 after じゅ

う for any single digits. Thus: 22= にじゅうに, 35= さんじゅうご, 49= よんじ

ゅうきゅう. Summary: (2-9) じゅう(1-9)

Numbers with alternate pronunciations

Numbers 4 and 7 have two possible pronunciations. This text will indicates when

variants are used, or when both options are possible. Note, that the number 40

is always pronounced よんじゅう. The number 70 can be pronounced either し

ちじゅう or ななじゅう though there are generational and dialectal preferences.

For standard Japanese, ななじゅう is more common.

Exercise 11

A. Read the following numbers aloud in Japanese.

1. 12 5. 71 8. 67

2. 59 6. 99 9. 28

3. 34 7. 35 10. 83

4. 40

B. Read the following phone numbers aloud in Japanese. The phone number is

always pronounced one digit at a time. The number 0 is pronounced ぜろ (れい

第 2課 | Chapter 2 67

or まる is used sometimes) and の is used for the pronunciation of dash.

1. 718-998-5501 3. 613-402-9132 5. 03-1345-9658

2. 215-890-3216 4. 06-8900-9137 6. 0120-192-862

Part C: 漢字 Kanji

(handwritten) (printed style)

大 Meaning: Big, large, great Strokes/Radical:

3 大

ダイ、タイ

おお（きい）

おおー

大学だいがく

university 大学生だいがくせい

university student

大きいおお

ペン big pen, 大人お と な

adult

ホフストラ大学は大きい大学です。

(handwritten) (printed style)

学 Meaning: To learn, study

Strokes/Radical:

8, 子

ガク

ガッー

まな（ぶ）

学校がっこう

school 大学だいがく

college, university 学者がくしゃ

scholar

クイーンズ大学だいがく

Queens College

京都大学きょうとだいがく

はどこにありますか。Where is Kyoto University?

(handwritten) (printed style)

校 Meaning: School, examine Strokes/Radical:

10, 木

コウ

学校がっこう

school 小学校しょうがっこう

elementary school

高校生こうこうせい

high school student

高校時代こうこうじだい

high school days

(handwrittn) (printed style)

先 Meaning: last, ahead, previous before, previous; In the first place Strokes/Radical 6, ⼉:

セン

さき、ま（ず

）

先生せんせい

teacher 先日せんじつ

the other day; 先ずま

in the first place

学生がくせい

student 留学生りゅうがくせい

international student

二年生にねんせい

second-year student 大学院生だいがくいんせい

graduate student

第 2課 | Chapter 2 68

(handwritten) (printed style)

生

Meaning: Life, to live, to be born, raw, pure Strokes/Radical:

5, 生

セイ、ショウ

いき（る）

う（まれる）

なまー

先生せんせい

teacher 学生がくせい

student

生きるい

to live, to be alive

生まれるう

to be born; 生むう

to give birth

生なま

ビール draft beer

(handwritten) (printed style)

人

Meaning: man, person, human being Strokes/Radical:

2, ひと

ジン、ニン

ひと

日本人にほんじん

Japanese (nationality) アメリカ人じん

American

あの人ひと

はフランス人じん

です。 That person is French.

(handwritten) (printed style)

小 Meaning: little, small Strokes/Radical:

3, 小

ショウ

小さいちい

Compounds and practice sentences

小さいちい

車くるま

small car 小説しょうせつ

novel 小学生しょうがくせい

elementary

school student

(handwritten) (printed style)

日

Meaning: Sun, day, time Strokes/Radical:

4, 日

ニチ、ジツ、

ニ、カ

ひ

日本に ほ ん

Japan、今日き ょ う

today、昨日き の う

yesterday、明日あ し た

tomorrow

、毎日まいにち

everyday

NOTE: The readings for today, yesterday and tomorrow are

irregular but common; 明日 also has an alternate reading: あす

(handwritten) (printed style)

本 Meaning: book, root, origin Strokes/Radical:

ホン、ポン、

ボン

もと

日本人にほんじん

Japanese (nationality)、

私わたし

の大きい本ほん

my big book、本屋ほ ん や

bookstore

川本かわもと

さん 藤本ふじもと

さん (Japanese surnames)

handwritten) (printed style)

川 Meaning: River, stream Strokes/Radical: 3/川 (⼮)

セン

かわ、がわ

小川お が わ

さん 大川おおかわ

さん 川本かわもと

さん (Japanese surnames)

フドソン川 Hudson river

第 2課 | Chapter 2 69

(handwritten) (printed style)

山 Meaning: mountain Strokes/Radical: 3/⼭

サン

やま

富士山ふ じ さ ん

Mt. Fuji 火山か ざ ん

volcano

山手線やまてせん

The Yamanote Line (a train line that circles Tokyo)

大きい山 big mountain

日本には山と川はきれいです。Mountains and rivers are

pretty in Japan.

(handwritten) (printed style)

月 Meaning: Moon, month Strokes/Radical: 4/⽉

ゲツ、ガツ

つき

月曜日げつようひ

Monday

今月こんげつ

this month

日本語に ほ ん ご

のクラスは月曜日げつようひ

と水曜日すいようひ

と金曜日きんようひ

にあります

。 Japanese class is on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

練習

Read the following words. Furigana is provided for kanji you don’t know.

大学、先生、小さい、月曜よう

日、山本さん、日本、日本人、川

日本の大学にいきます。 今日は日曜よう

日です。川や山が大きいです。

第 2課 | Chapter 2 70