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Trang Le Trang Le
1
votes
Inaccurate English translation?
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2016/05/17
Hi guys, so there is this sentence:

誰かに聞いてみてください。
Which was translated to "Please ask someone"However, I suppose "- te mite" should be translated as "please try V-ing" so I think the English translation changed to "Please try asking someone"Is my understanding correct? Thanks for your explanation!
toeicoo toeicoo
1
votes
As you mentioned, "te mite" is usually translated as "try V-ing".
However, in this case, I think "Please ask someone" is not so bad.

誰かに聞いてみてください is often used when someone ask you a question and you're not sure of the answer. In the sentence, 誰か means 'someone else'. You can't be included in the 'someone' because you don't know the answer. It means 'I'm not sure. Could you ask someone else?'.

When you say, "田中さんに聞いてみてください", it would be taranslated as "Please try asking Mr Tanaka". In this case, 'you' think Mr Tanaka knows about the question better than you, and you recommend the 'someone' to try asking him (Mr Tanaka). You're advising the 'someone' to try asking him.
Trang Le Trang Le
0
votes
Thank you for the explanation!
So "田中さんに聞いてみてください" would mean "Please try asking Mr. Tanaka", right?
toeicoo toeicoo
1
votes
Yes, you're right.
"田中さんに聞いてみて下さい" is a specific advice. The speaker tells the listener to 'try' asking.

While, when you say, "誰かに聞いてみて下さい", you just imply that you're not sure of the question. It means "I'm not the right person to answer the question because I don't know about it."
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KatieM459 KatieM459
1
votes
Puzzling over grammar in example sentence
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2016/03/31

So, I've been puzzling for several weeks now over the grammar in one of the example sentences in this course:
質問のある方はどうぞ。
This is translated as, "Please feel free to ask any questions."

Could somebody please explain how one gets to that translation? No matter how hard I look at the sentence, the best translation I can come to on my own is, "Questions any way, please." Which isn't really what...

In particular, what is the purpose of 方 in that sentence? Doesn't it mean "way" or "direction?"

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トニー トニー
3
votes
Have you studied the relative clause yet? The short answer is that you should do that as soon as possible, it will make understanding longer Japanese sentences much easier. If you can understand simple verb sentences then you shouldn't have too many problems learning it. This sentence and others like it are unlikely to make much sense until you have.

Your translation of 方（ほう） is basically correct, but in this case we are talking about 方（かた）, which is a fairly polite word we can use to talk about a person. Once you have studied the relative clause, you can see that the speaker refers directly to people who have questions.
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トニー トニー
3
votes
Have you studied the relative clause yet? The short answer is that you should do that as soon as possible, it will make understanding longer Japanese sentences much easier. If you can understand simple verb sentences then you shouldn't have too many problems learning it. This sentence and others like it are unlikely to make much sense until you have.

Your translation of 方（ほう） is basically correct, but in this case we are talking about 方（かた）, which is a fairly polite word we can use to talk about a person. Once you have studied the relative clause, you can see that the speaker refers directly to people who have questions.
KatieM459 KatieM459
0
votes
Many thanks, トニー ! I appreciate it, and will take your advice as soon as I can. :)
Gregory Strachan Gregory Strachan
0
votes
Grammer is explained very well using the Human Japanese app (I don't work for them).
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Hasanuddin Djamil Hasanuddin Djamil
1
votes
Is there any way to learn kanji faster?
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2015/12/14
I think hiragana is not really hard, but I'm really sucks when it comes to kanji.

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David T David T
9
votes
I know you're probably going to want an easy answer to this, but there really isn't one.  Kanji takes time, anything really takes time, to learn.  There's not really a super quick way of attaining it either.  There are optimal ways of learning, of course, such as multiple ways of exposure to a language....but, faster, easier?  No, not really.  Some feel that something like 'Remember the Kanji' is worth using, since it helps you to kinda get the meaning of a kanji character without studying how to say it, or how it's used.  Personally, I'm not a huge fan of this method.  There are other books that claim to help learn Kanji faster, too.

The failure rate for people learning Japanese is pretty high, and a lot quit within the first year because of this difficulty they get to.  My suggestion is to really determine if you can handle it for the long term, and what you're trying to get out of the language (as in, what and why you're learning).  I've been working on this now for awhile now, and there's still so much to really learn. It's a long process, but I enjoy it and enjoy the idea of learning this language. 

Looking at your profile, you have about 1.5 hours into this.  That's not a lot.  I really suggest you sit with the process, and not rush it.  If you do, if you try to take shortcuts, I can almost promise you that you'll end up quitting because you'll hit a wall that these shortcuts will hurt you at.  Sit with the process a bit, and really analyze why you're studying the language and what your expectations really are.
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jutendoji jutendoji
7
votes
If you want a great site with the best efficient way to really learn
kanji (I'm learning incredibly quickly), try Wanikani. Plus, they have
an amazing community to help you with anything and even create programs,
decks, methods, etc...The first 3 levels are for free so you can try!
Malik Malik
0
votes
It depends on your learning style.
I have volume 1 of Remembering the Kanji, but I never use it. I tend to try to gamify everything. I've been using Kanji apps to learn. My pace is VEEERY slow though....

you could have a look at these for android:
This is the one I use most frequently:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mindtwisted.kanjistudy&hl=en

I've had a bit of fun with this one:
http://www.maizure.org/kanji/

This one is simple and effective:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.micarisoft.easykanji&hl=en

There are tons more, I've not found one that'll get me to study all day every day though. 

I might be slow, but I'm no quitter :P

?
1
votes
I have been using wanikani.com and I love it. It is a subscription-based website that teaches the meaning and readings together, in a coherent order that builds radicals => kanji => vocabulary. It's a built-in SRS (spaced repetition system) with a coherent system of mnemonics. I want to be able to both speak and read for meaning, so WK is a better choice for me than RTK. 
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Zac Zac
0
votes
Keyboard Learning
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2015/11/25
I'm having trouble with figuring out how to use my keyboard the course, is there a course i need to take before i go onto this course? 
Johan Kromhout Johan Kromhout
0
votes
You just type the words/sounds in the roman alphabet.
There is a guide for typing:
https://support.iknow.jp/entries/20329136-How-can-I-type-special-kana-letters-
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Harry Harry
4
votes
どう　vs　どれ
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2014/12/30
I'm having a bit of trouble knowing when to use どう or どれ. I understand that they can both mean what, but when should I use どう or どれ?

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jinbou jinbou
5
votes
The usage of these words in English and Japanese is a little different. They can be translated as "what" in some sentences, but their literal meaning is a little different.

let me say どの before them. どの is used before nouns, and it means "which". どれ is the pronoun version of that.

どの本がいい？
is "which book is good?"
while どれがいい？
is "which is good?"

どう doesn't translate to English very well, but it's used to ask "how/in what way" something is. It's an adverb so you usually see it before verbs, like 「どうですか」 (how is it)、「どう思う」 (what do you think)、「どういうこと」、「どういう意味」、「どうする」 etc.

This is probably not enough to explain them (especially どう), but I think it becomes clear after seeing more sentences with them anyway.
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jinbou jinbou
5
votes
The usage of these words in English and Japanese is a little different. They can be translated as "what" in some sentences, but their literal meaning is a little different.

let me say どの before them. どの is used before nouns, and it means "which". どれ is the pronoun version of that.

どの本がいい？
is "which book is good?"
while どれがいい？
is "which is good?"

どう doesn't translate to English very well, but it's used to ask "how/in what way" something is. It's an adverb so you usually see it before verbs, like 「どうですか」 (how is it)、「どう思う」 (what do you think)、「どういうこと」、「どういう意味」、「どうする」 etc.

This is probably not enough to explain them (especially どう), but I think it becomes clear after seeing more sentences with them anyway.
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Harry Harry
3
votes
How do I say "I have a question"
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2014/12/23
Is it just simply "私 は 質問 を もつ" or is there some other way I should say it?

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jinbou jinbou
5
votes
hey Vernon.
I think the most common way to say it is
質問があります。
alternatively you could say
「聞きたいことがあります」 (there's something I want to hear/learn about.)
or veery politely:
ちょっとお聞きしてもよろしいでしょうか？

I usually hear 'motsu' when talking about owning/holding physical things, I don't know if it can be used for something like 'a question'. (If anyone knows more I'd be glad if they shared.)

Also, in Japanese words and phrases obvious to the listener are usually omitted. Unlike English 'I' (watashi) and 'You' (anata) are not used that often in japanese, because they are usually obvious from the context. It'll sound more natural if you don't use 私 too much.
It's obvious that you are the one who has a question here, so you can omit "私は".
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jinbou jinbou
5
votes
hey Vernon.
I think the most common way to say it is
質問があります。
alternatively you could say
「聞きたいことがあります」 (there's something I want to hear/learn about.)
or veery politely:
ちょっとお聞きしてもよろしいでしょうか？

I usually hear 'motsu' when talking about owning/holding physical things, I don't know if it can be used for something like 'a question'. (If anyone knows more I'd be glad if they shared.)

Also, in Japanese words and phrases obvious to the listener are usually omitted. Unlike English 'I' (watashi) and 'You' (anata) are not used that often in japanese, because they are usually obvious from the context. It'll sound more natural if you don't use 私 too much.
It's obvious that you are the one who has a question here, so you can omit "私は".
Harry Harry
1
votes
Thanks!
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renlok renlok
6
votes
Why i to do, する, written した and して
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2013/04/14
I am slowly getting to grips with verb endings but this just makes no sense to me

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Trevor Trevor
10
votes
Suru is something you do (I play video games)
Shita is something you did (I played baseball)
Shite is something you are doing (I am cleaning)

Shita is the mashita version of suru (an action completed in the past)

Shite is the Te form of suru (Since the Te form is used to add another word, you cannot end with "shite" alone. For example, you would have to say "Shiteimasu" (polite way of saying "doing")

*Sorry for not using kana, for some reason I cannot type the characters on my laptop. But I hope this helps, goodluck with your studies :)
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Trevor Trevor
10
votes
Suru is something you do (I play video games)
Shita is something you did (I played baseball)
Shite is something you are doing (I am cleaning)

Shita is the mashita version of suru (an action completed in the past)

Shite is the Te form of suru (Since the Te form is used to add another word, you cannot end with "shite" alone. For example, you would have to say "Shiteimasu" (polite way of saying "doing")

*Sorry for not using kana, for some reason I cannot type the characters on my laptop. But I hope this helps, goodluck with your studies :)
sachipon sachipon
6
votes

するis like prsent form.

するchanges　like this   し、する、すれ、しろ、せよ

It is dificult.


して　can be precisely　devided into しand て ,
した can be　devided  into　し and た  as well.

しis verb and　conects with other words  like  ている、ていた、います、ない、ます、た　and so on.

て　has the role of  conecting other words.
た　has the meaning of past or some kind of present perfect.

But sometime we use して　
at the end . It means  instruction form　してください
But して　is not polite . してくださいis polite.

I  say my son　at　dinner time.
学校の話をして!　 It means :Tell  me  how are you doing  at  school .

学校　school
話をして　tell me











 


Kichijen Kichijen
1
votes
する and くる　(do and come) are the only irregular verbs you'll need to deal with in Japanese, that is why they seem odd to you. More than half of English verbs are irregular (buy/bought instead of buy/buyed etc), so you've got it easy with Japanese :D
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Piotr Piotr
4
votes
House
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2013/02/16
The pronunciation of word 家 is sometimes いえ and sometimes うち. Why?

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Travis King Travis King
19
votes
Typically うちis used to refer to your own home while いえ is for a house in general. うち has more of a family sense and いえ is more like saying "a house" in English. 
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Eric Ohtake Eric Ohtake
0
votes
Its supposed to train your listening too.
RawToast RawToast
1
votes
Ryan, I hated that too. Sadly there is no official grammar course (might be a custom one around). I blocked listening tests for a while and read some grammar (Tae Kim, imabi, both free sites), then enabled them.
midori midori
1
votes
Hmmm, I think most of the cases "家" can be read as both of "いえ" and "うち" when it's used alone. I feel "うち" sounds more casual and also has broader meanings.

I guess "うち" is originally written as "内(inside)" and later used to describe home and family, too. "うち" is more like "my" or "our" in some contexts.
ex. うちの庭はあまり大きくない。(My yard isn't really big.)
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クルーズ クルーズ
0
votes
ます in the first sentence, いる in the second.. Why?
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2013/01/07

              1. 今、朝ご飯を作っています。
               
2. 母がコーンスープを作っている。

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Cedric Cedric
4
votes
The "iru" form is the plain form of the verb, the "masu" form is a bit more polite.
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Cedric Cedric
4
votes
The "iru" form is the plain form of the verb, the "masu" form is a bit more polite.
RawToast RawToast
2
votes
I advise picking up some basic grammar from Tae Kim for this (just the basic pages). It will really help you get to grip with the sentences.
クルーズ クルーズ
0
votes
@RawToast thx, I´ll try it.. the site seems to be for free
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クルーズ クルーズ
3
votes
Should I review the kanji(s) I mastered after a while, to be sure I don´t forget them?
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2013/01/01
Let´s say I mastered the "Japanese Core 1000: Step 1" and I remove it from the "focus". But after I while I forget some kanji from that course. What should I do then? Put it back to "focus" and review them again? I´m sure I won´t forget the most of the kanji if I keep on learning, but maybe I will have to review some of them although I mastered them weeks or months ago.
RawToast RawToast
0
votes
You just suspend words in Anki that you haven't covered. The ordering is the old iknow core ordering, you can usually get away with just turning them in sets of 100.
Malik Malik
0
votes
yeah, i could always edit a shared deck, rihgt?
RawToast RawToast
1
votes
That's what I do, even has the same sentences and pictures :)
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Brett Williams Brett Williams
0
votes
Why よめない　not よまない？
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2012/11/14
Why in one of the sentences for こう does it say

"こう ちいさい じ は よめない"
shouldn't it be
"こう　ちいさい　じは　よまない”

I thought む became まない for negative short form. Am I flat out wrong? Or is there some special rule that changes it from よまない to よめない?

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Rainer Konowski Rainer Konowski
12
votes
The grammatical form is called potential ("capability to perform the action"). Here it is the negative potential:
 "こう ちいさい じ は よめない"
I can't read small characters like that.
With よまない it would mean:
I don't read small characters like that.
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Rainer Konowski Rainer Konowski
12
votes
The grammatical form is called potential ("capability to perform the action"). Here it is the negative potential:
 "こう ちいさい じ は よめない"
I can't read small characters like that.
With よまない it would mean:
I don't read small characters like that.
Dan Dan
2
votes
The previous poster is spot on. Here's a great article on Tae Kim's grammar guide about the potential form:
http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar/potential
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Malik Malik
2
votes
Difference between しごと and   はたらく？
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2012/10/29
Hi,
Could someone please explain the difference between しごと and   はたらく？ I'm having trouble catching the context and i'm getting answers wrong all of the time while studying because of this.
Thanks

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thomasbrotherhood thomasbrotherhood
13
votes
I'm sure somebody can clarify in more detail, but Shigoto is a noun,
meaning "job, employment", whereas Hataraku is the verb, "to work". Grammar tip: Verbs in the infinitive will always end in a syllable ending with "u", usually "ru", "ku", "tsu", "su", etc.
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こてつ こてつ
5
votes
私は仕事 for answer is wrong. If I am asked "What did you do yesterday?" I can say
私は仕事をしていた(I was working)
仕事してたよ(a little more casual)
仕事をしていました(very formal)
or simply 仕事(not friendly)

I am a Japanese speaker but am not English speaker, so probably I don't fully understand what you are explaining, so I appologise if I am misunderstanding your point, and tell me what's wrong.

Anyway 私はしごとis definately unusual  in any situation.

Sid Lee Sid Lee
1
votes
A native speaker told me that. One example would be
アリス：今日は試験だ。Alice: Today is exam.
ボブ：ジョンは？Bob: What about John?
アリス：ジョンは明日。Alice: John is tomorrow. (As for John, the exam is tomorrow.)
Malik Malik
1
votes
こてつ： thanks for the explanation. It's exactly what i what i was looking for. Thanks for your input as well, Sid.
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Daniel Megumi Daniel Megumi
0
votes
Confusing definitions
question in Japanese Core 1000: Step 1 on 2012/10/18
Does anyone else find the definition "please" for どうぞ to be confusing.  The first thing I think when I hear "please" is おねがい.  I would prefer it to say "go ahead, please"  I also find "what, which" for どれ to be confusing too.  The first thing I think when I read the definition is どちら and どち.  Since どち fits into the same space I will type without thinking twice and get it marked wrong.  I would prefer it to say "which (of 3 or more things)".

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HiroTanaka HiroTanaka
6
votes
I think "please" has the both of meaning "どうぞ","おねがい" though, どうぞ would be more natural in practical sentences. おねがい might not be a practical expression but a meaning of it, as asking someone to do something.
Then if you say "go ahead, please", it would be "どうぞ前へ" or "どうぞ進んでください". But it depends on the context.

And about the latter question, we usually say "どれ" instead of "どちら"”どっち” when we'd like to say "which of 3 or more".
And I use "どっち" when you'd like to say "which of TWO" though it sounds informal. どちら is more formal and sometimes used when a clerk ask a customer which of any numbers (including 2) of goods s/he'd like to have.

wow...confusing..isn't it?
I hope my poor explanation won't get you more confused...X(
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HiroTanaka HiroTanaka
6
votes
I think "please" has the both of meaning "どうぞ","おねがい" though, どうぞ would be more natural in practical sentences. おねがい might not be a practical expression but a meaning of it, as asking someone to do something.
Then if you say "go ahead, please", it would be "どうぞ前へ" or "どうぞ進んでください". But it depends on the context.

And about the latter question, we usually say "どれ" instead of "どちら"”どっち” when we'd like to say "which of 3 or more".
And I use "どっち" when you'd like to say "which of TWO" though it sounds informal. どちら is more formal and sometimes used when a clerk ask a customer which of any numbers (including 2) of goods s/he'd like to have.

wow...confusing..isn't it?
I hope my poor explanation won't get you more confused...X(
John John
5
votes
There is a difference between どうぞ and お願い。

"Douzo" is used predominantly as a courtesy or form of deference, and you'll hear it a lot by service personnel.  eg. こっちにどうぞ。
"Onegai" is used when making requests and is a more self-humbling term. eg. お願いします。　- which is akin to "I ask this favor of you"

"Dochira" is used most often when given a choice or asking another person to pick amongst a selection of items already on hand or in sight.　eg. どちらが好きですか？

"Dore" is a tad ambiguous, and so is its use. eg. どれの本が要りますか？　- which implies that the person asking the question doesn't know of any specific books that the other person requires.
こてつ こてつ
2
votes
Your Japanese skill is absolutely impresive, but just one thing I would like to say,
Native Japanese never say どれの本,Dore no Hon(which book). It make sense but sounds unusual. どの本が要りますか？sounds perfect.


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