Japanese Language Questions? Ask Here.

SpookeyDonkey wrote::( I don't want to offensive or anything but if someone REALLY wants to learn conversational Japanese than why don't they get a book or attend a class (like at a comm. college). I tried learning without a class but it was so worthless (relatively) when I entered my first class. I not only know how to use grammer correctly but I know the little nuances of the language as well. Also I think there is no excuse to not learn Kata/Hirogana since it really is easy to learn both systems quickly. Then again I realize not everybody has time to put into it like a student does. So what I'm saying here is that "we" (and I mean the people that are helping others with their "translations", not that I have helped much since I'm relatively new to the boards) aren't really helping at all. All that we're doing is creating a dependancy for the others to come here and have us help them out when all they really need is a solid foundation of elemantery japanese (reading AND writing...but I suppose that if they're not that serious they can get away with knowing the rules to romanji). so that they can look up whatever it is they need. Of course I'm not against helping out anyone that just needs an answer to a question or a quick translation (like in the above posts about ending a letter).

P.S. I understand sometimes I come off harsh and mean but after lurking for a bit that's just what I see. I really hope I'm not missing the point of this forum entirely.

(IMO) A very good analysis you have there. And I do have to agree that you can't learn Japanese from just a website.
But, every now and then, people do come up with questions about the Japanese language. And it's totally fine to post whatever questions they may have here. But I do not promote this forum to be "the way to learn Japanese". And in no way do I encourage people to use this forum as their primary learning tool for learning the Japanese language.
To learn such a complex language (as any other language is), one must take formal training to properly learn the language.
Furthermore, I really hope that people do not create a dependancy from others here. Flat out, they'll just be wasting their time. Many users here help if they have the time and answer. Nothing more.
In conclusion, posting questions here and there are fine. But to become totally dependant on this website to learn Japanese is just a waste of time. There are many good programs out there that have the ability to teach the Japanese language to a higher proficiency than this website can ever do. I am in no way discouraging anyone from learning Japanese. As a true believer in the traditional way(s) of learning, I am just siimply saying that this website could serve as a reference, but not as one's primary tool for learning the Japanese language.

IkematsuSosuke wrote:How do you say, "Hello I can't pick up the phone right now, please leave a message, thanks"

"Denwa deru koto dekimasen. Message o nokoshite kudasai"

Arigatou

What does it mean when "kya" is put on the end of a sentence in plain form such as in these examples:

Chanto tsutae tokanakya.
Nottetara nantoka tasukenakya.

I've just seen this form many times in my manga and it's been bugging me.

Arigato ne. :D

Soriyu wrote:What does it mean when "kya" is put on the end of a sentence in plain form such as in these examples:

Chanto tsutae tokanakya.
Nottetara nantoka tasukenakya.

I've just seen this form many times in my manga and it's been bugging me.

Arigato ne. :D

"Kya" could be used to say that "you have to do _____".

Like,: "benjyo shinakya yabai toka". (I have to use the bathroom, or it'll be bad)

Another example: "Shigoto ikanakya" (I have to go to work)

Another one: "Banana tabenakya". (I have to eat a banana)

Keep in mind that this is not "keigo", thus shouldn't be used to elders and whatnot.



Hope you understand.

ok uhmmm i have a Q ...
uhmmmm when do u use gomen nasai
and when do ya use sumimasen ? :crazy: ( i dun remeber and i'm 2 lazy to go look it up in my book :P )

lovelessemotion wrote:ok uhmmm i have a Q ...
uhmmmm when do u use gomen nasai
and when do ya use sumimasen ? :crazy: ( i dun remeber and i'm 2 lazy to go look it up in my book :P )

Gomen nasai is strictly I'm sorry (edited for typo :sweat:). Sumimasen can be excuse me, I'm sorry, and thank you :google: If you use sumimasen for I'm sorry and stuff, I'd more likely use it to be polite with strangers. I don't know if there's a rule or anything, but that's how I use it.

KouSeiya315 wrote:Gomen nasai is strictly thank you. Sumimasen can be excuse me, I'm sorry, and thank you :google: If you use sumimasen for thank you, I'd more likely use it to be polite with strangers. I don't know if there's a rule or anything, but that's how I use it.

I agree with what you say about sumimasen, but I thought that "gomen nasai" is more like "I beg your pardon/excuse me/I'm sorry". Doumo (arigatou) would be "thank you", although there are lots of ways to say thank you for specific things.

vibius wrote:

I agree with what you say about sumimasen, but I thought that "gomen nasai" is more like "I beg your pardon/excuse me/I'm sorry". Doumo (arigatou) would be "thank you", although there are lots of ways to say thank you for specific things.

That was my typo! GYAH!! I need more sleep....I swear I'm not that retarded on a normal basis (goes to edit post) :sweat: :sweat: :sweat:

KouSeiya315 wrote:I'm not that retarded on a normal basis ...

You better not be! That's my job! :nut:
:nut: :nut: :nut:

vibius wrote:

You better not be! That's my job! :nut:
:nut: :nut: :nut:

I try not to be :beaten:

hello, my question is...how would you ask the question, "what is the "X" called?" (X is whatever, like movie, book, etc). and...how would u ask like..."how long are you staying in hawaii for?" "where are you staying in hawaii?"....THANKS.

kazuichikun wrote:hello, my question is...how would you ask the question, "what is the "X" called?" (X is whatever, like movie, book, etc). and...how would u ask like..."how long are you staying in hawaii for?" "where are you staying in hawaii?"....THANKS.

One thing I learned when learning Japanese is to think simple.

For your first question, you could just ask "Kore/Sore/Are ha Nandesu ka?"
Simple, yet effective. You won't know what the item is called anyway, so the easiest way is to point at it and ask the question posted above.
If you want to get into explaining what the object looks like, then that's a whole different thing.

For your second question, you can ask "Dono gurai Hawaii ni imasu ka?"
and part 2 of your question would be "Doko ni tomatemasu ka?"

These are how I would ask those questions. Others may/will ask differently. I just try to keep it simple and to the point! :mrgreen:

Hope you understand.

Well, it looks pretty samishii around here with jdorama's DNS busted.

So ... I wondered which is the preferred pronounciation: samishii or sabishii? And which is the preferred spelling: Žâ‚µ‚¢ or —Ò‚µ‚¢. Or are they about equally used?

I wish dictionaries had information on frequency of usage, but they don't!

:wave:
ive seen the first kanji combo more often than the other.

Hi, Amrayu! Thanks!

I'm glad you replied, now I'm not so Žâ‚µ‚¢ :)
Seems like most people still can't get to the site though :(

KouSeiya315 wrote:

That was my typo! GYAH!! I need more sleep....I swear I'm not that retarded on a normal basis (goes to edit post) :sweat: :sweat: :sweat:

and ur a mod huh?.... well its good to see that jdorama is in capable hands.... lol JK i'm JK ok i knew what ya mean to say... but when i read it i was like "thank you? WTH?!?" =p

lovelessemotion wrote: and ur a mod huh?.... well its good to see that jdorama is in capable hands.... lol JK i'm JK ok i knew what ya mean to say... but when i read it i was like "thank you? WTH?!?" =p

Uh....ouch! :hehe: Actually I pasted part of an email from a Japanese language mailing list. It asked a similar question, but obviously it wasn't the same. So when I pasted part of the email in with part of my message, uh....it was totally wrong. :sweat: Retardo-me, didn't check it before hitting "submit" :beaten: So...I ROCK! LOL

amrayu wrote::wave:
ive seen the first kanji combo more often than the other.

Ditto!

-Smart and hot!!! What more can a guy ask for?! :beaten:

noobi3 question time!

how do you say "what happens happens" in japanese?
spike spiegel always says this. i find it cool.
:rolleyes2: