Proverbs carry timeless wisdom, and 井の中の蛙、大海を知らず (A frog in a well does not know the great ocean) is one of Japan’s most cherished. This saying has long encouraged us to broaden our horizons and seek greater knowledge beyond our immediate surroundings. It speaks to the dangers of limited perspectives and calls for exploration. However, what […]
If you’re an advanced Japanese learner, you’ve likely come across the unique, gruff way yakuza characters speak in movies, dramas, or even anime. The yakuza way of speaking is a stylized version of Japanese that emphasizes masculinity, toughness, and dominance. It’s fascinating and rich in linguistic nuance, making it a great exercise for advanced learners. […]
The grammar point “〜てみる” (te miru) is a useful construction for intermediate Japanese learners. It combines the て-form of a verb with the verb “みる” (to see/look) to express the idea of “trying to do something” or “doing something to see what happens.” What is てみる? The grammar point 〜てみる combines the て-form of a […]
In Japanese grammar, “〜たところで” (ta tokorode) is a phrase that means “even if an action or a state were realized” or often (to put it even more simply) just “even if”. It suggests that even if the action were to occur, the result would not change. Here’s how to use “〜たところで” in a sentence: Note: […]
Ask Japanese learners what the hardest part of the language is, and one of the most common answers will be ‘kanji’ (sometimes accompanied by a thousand-yard stare). Anyone who’s attempted to master it will know that while it’s fascinating and beautiful, it’s also very challenging — why is there more than one pronunciation? Why do these […]
Wondering whether or not JapanesePod101 is the right platform to advance (or even begin) your Japanese language skills? In this post I’ll be reviewing (and assessing) everything JapanesePod101 has to offer. Focusing on its Premium plan, I’ll be taking an in-depth look at how the courses are structured, the methods it uses to teach, what you […]
In Japanese, the grammar pattern “〜てみせる” (te miseru) is used to express a strong determination or intention to perform an action and show the result or outcome to someone. It is formed by combining the te-form of a verb with “みせる” (miseru), which means “to show” or “to display,” as explained in the previous answer. […]
In Japanese grammar, “〜んとする” (n to suru) is a phrase that means for “someone to try to do” or for “something to be about to occur.” It is very often used to describe an action that someone is attempting to do or is in the process of doing. Here’s a few examples of 〜んとする in […]
In Japanese grammar, “〜そうになる” (sou ni naru) is a phrase that means “for something to almost happen” or “to be about to happen.” It is very often used to describe a situation in which something looks like it’s about to happen. Here’s a few examples of 〜そうになる in action: Bonus: The phrase “そうになる” is often […]
For anyone interested in studying jinmeiyō kanji and wondering where to start, here’s a list of all of the jinmeiyō kanji found in one of the all-time classic Japanese novels: Botchan (坊っちゃん) by Natsume Sōseki (夏目 漱石). How many jinmeiyō kanji are these in Botchan? Good question! There are approximately 135 of them! And here […]
For quite a while now I’ve been trying to come up with an effective way to study non-jōyō kanji (technically known as jōyōgai kanji [常用外漢字] i.e. the kanji that are NOT within the 2,136 jōyō kanji), and although I’m still nowhere near achieving this goal, I recently had an interesting idea: obtain a book written […]
Wondering how to write furigana (those little hiragana characters you sometimes see above Japanese kanji) in WordPress? Here’s how: Step 1. Step 1 – You’re going to need to use the ‘Custom HTML’ WordPress Block (note: not sure what WordPress Blocks are? – here’s a quick YouTube video). Here’s how to find it: click the […]
Okurigana (送り仮名 – literally: “accompanying characters”) are characters that appear after a kanji character in a Japanese word. They are used to indicate the inflection or pronunciation of the kanji, and are typically written in hiragana. For example, in the word “読よめる” (yomu, meaning “can read”), the kanji is “読” and the okurigana are “め” […]
Come across the word Furigana in the context of Japanese kanji and wondering what it means? Furigana (振り仮名 – literally: “assigned characters”), also known as ruby text or ruby characters, are small kana characters that are written above or to the side of a kanji character in a Japanese word. They are used to indicate […]
To write furigana (振り仮名) in HTML, you can use the <ruby> element, which is a part of the HTML Ruby Extension. The <ruby> element is used to mark up ruby text, which is a type of small, annotated text that is used to provide pronunciation or other information about a character or word. Here’s an […]
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The Japanese Kanji for Crab (蟹)
The kanji 蟹 (かに(kani))is a logographic character that is used in the Japanese writing system. It is composed of four parts: the radical 虫 (くも), which means “insect” or “bug,” and the radical 角 (かど), which means “angle” or “corner”, the radical 刀 (とう), which means sword, and the radical 牛 (うし), which means cow. […]
In Japanese, the particle は is used to indicate the topic of a sentence, while the particle が is used to indicate the subject of a sentence. The topic of a sentence is the general subject being discussed, while the subject is the specific thing performing the action of the verb in the sentence. For […]
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A Japanese Haiku for Christmas
Here’s a lovely little Japanese haiku poem for Christmas. Enjoy: 赤い靴下が Red socks turning 振り向いて笑う A joyous start クリスマスの朝 Smiling on Christmas morning.
There are several words for snow in Japanese, depending on the context and the type of snow being referred to. Some common words for snow include: In addition to these words, there are also many other words and expressions that can be used to describe snow in Japanese. The above are just a few of […]