Introduction 3
Introduce yourself!
Where do you live? In English, we’d say I live in.... In Japanese, you end your sentence with the phrase ...住んでいます (sunde imasu)! Remember to use に (ni) after the location.
東京に住んでいます。
Tо̄kyо̄ ni sunde imasu.
(I) live in Tokyo.
Tо̄kyо̄ ni sunde imasu.
(I) live in Tokyo.
As for age, we’d say something like I am ten years old in English. In Japanese, you’d use 歳 (sai).
十三歳です。
Jūsan‑sai desu.
(I) am thirteen years old.
Jūsan‑sai desu.
(I) am thirteen years old.
In Japan, this is especially useful information. You often address people older than you with more politeness, even if they’re just a couple years older!
There are pronunciation changes with a couple of the smaller numbers. Take a look!
| 1 year old | 一歳 issai |
| 8 year old | 八歳 hassai |
| 10 year old | 十歳 jussai |
With feeling!
Some little words like を (o) and に (ni) show the role of a word in the sentence. But there are also little words at the end of a sentence that add feeling and attitude!
Putting よ (yo) at the end of a sentence adds a bit of emphasis, often when you’re saying new information to the listener!
そうですよ。
Sō desu yo.
(That) is right, you know.
Sō desu yo.
(That) is right, you know.
違いますよ。
Chigaimasu yo.
(That) is wrong, you know.
Chigaimasu yo.
(That) is wrong, you know.
You can also add ね (ne) when you expect the listener to agree or show approval. It’s kind of like adding ...right? to the end of a sentence when you’re not actually looking for an answer. You can even have よ (yo) and ね (ne) in the same sentence!
よろしくね。
Yoroshiku ne.
Nice to meet you.
Yoroshiku ne.
Nice to meet you.
そうですよね？
Sō desu yo ne?
(That) is right, isn't it?
Sō desu yo ne?
(That) is right, isn't it?
Student or Students?
Most nouns in Japanese look the same whether you’re talking about one thing or more than one. But for some nouns, usually people‑related ones, you can add ‑たち (tachi) to show that it’s definitely plural!
中学生たち
chūgakuseitachi
middle school students
chūgakuseitachi
middle school students