Hello, I am a beginner Japanese language learner as well as a TMNT fan. Since I am still in the early stages of learning Japanese I am not very good yet (and likely will not be for several years to come). I was wondering if anyone who is a better Japanese speaker, native or otherwise, would be able to answer my somewhat silly question.
I was wondering what “The Shredder” would translate to in Japanese? The closest I’ve gotten so far is either “Kizoku no Hikisaku” or “Nōburu no Hikisaku”
I don’t think it would be “shureddā” because that implies (to my knowledge) a household appliance, whereas “The Shredder” implies ripping and tearing into others.
Also, I am uncertain if I have put “hikisaku” into the right order. Would it go before the “no Kizoku” / “no Nōburu” ? Is what I written even grammatically correct? I am uncertain and can not ask my language teacher due to both the pandemic and because I don’t want her to know what a huge nerd I am.
I am aware that various TMNT cartoons have been translated into Japanese but I can not find any clips of it that would help. What was The Shredder called in the Japanese dub? I know his “civilian name” is changed to Oroku Sawaki due to Saki being typically a feminine name.
These are some of the ways you can study a language that come to my mind. Some will work better than others for you, and you should try them all to find which ones fit you best.
“Good old” group classes/courses.
A private tutor.
Language books divided in CEFR levels, or beginner, intermediate, etc.
Grammar books.
Vocabulary books.
Having a language learning notebook.
Using flashcards for vocab or grammar rules.
Interactive courses like Pimsleur, Rosetta Stone, etc.
Free online courses, this can be something you download or websites, for example.
MOOCs (massive open online courses), they are online courses, yes, but I consider them as another category.
Paid online courses.
Bilingual books.
Listening to the radio.
Watching TV.
Watching movies and series with or without subtitles in your target language.
YouTube videos, gold.
Podcasts, about learning that language or in that language about any topic.
Websites like italki.
Chatting with native speakers you met on the internet.
Writing in a diary or journal in your target language.
Reading newspapers, online or printed.
Re-reading your favourite books.
Reading children’s books if you’re a beginner, or for fun.
Reading manga or comics.
Reading novels from native authors.
Reading books about a topic that interests you in your target language instead of your native language.
Reading magazines, specially if you live in the country.
Buying cookbooks in your target language.
Searching for recipes in your target language.
Writing the name of things in your target language on post-its and laying them around the house.
Change the language in your phone, PC, tablet, Facebook, etc. to your target language.
Using Tumblr and following the #langblr community (lol).
(I decided to post this outside my reblog from @language-princess to keep better track of it)
First, you need to be reading something you can follow without looking up words. Meaning, if I want to read a book, I need to be able to read the whole thing understanding what’s going on, even if some verbs, adjectives or whatever are missing. That makes it 10000 times more enjoyable and you are more likely to continue doing it. And hell, it will just be more engaging haha.
Following up on that, if you can’t seem to find a book that you can read and reasonably understand, maybe because you are in a A2-B1 sort of level, you could benefit from reading books that:
- You have already read in your native language, so you know the story and what is going on. Almost all of us have read books like Harry Potter, for example.
- Also, short books, in pocket size, are great motivators since you finish them faster and that will feel like a huge accomplishment, finishing a whole book. A good example is L’homme qui voulait être hereux, by Laurent Gounelle. Engaging story (for me anyway), not overly complicated at all, and short. So short you could read it in an afternoon if you wanted.
- Books for teenagers or young people, could be more simple, and have less complicated vocab. Le Petit Prince (for French) is kind of for children, but not really, I would put it more in this category. Plus it’s super beautiful even for an adult.
- Manga, if you like it, has shorter texts, but isn’t overly easy or anything (some can be rather complicated). For an example of an easier type, I recommend Chi’s Sweet Home, available in multiple languages and extremely cute and beautiful.
- Books for children, if you really aren’t in that stage yet, and need something really simple. This are books that have maybe a sentence or two in each page, with drawing to help understand; they are made to help children when learning to read.
Then, if you really want to learn vocabulary (just reading the book is already REALLY great), I’d do as others have said, and as I think is the less distracting way. You read, and underline with pencil (or whatever you prefer) all the words you don’t know. And maybe after a chapter, or two, or really whenever you want (but if the book is long, after a chapter is safer haha) you look them up, and you write down their definition IN YOUR TARGET LANGUAGE.
And if, and only if, you think it’s really valuable and will help you, to have the equivalent/translation in your native language, you write that down too. I’m doing this for the words I encounter in my B2 book and honestly, it helps you learn to understand the word, instead of memorizing the translation.
You then just mostly read the definition, imagine in your head what it is, wheter it’s an object or a context, and if it’s something like a connector (for example puisque), try putting it in a sentence. Honestly, do that with any type of word, it’s always really useful.
You can use different colors for the word, the definition and the translation.
I’d use a language notebook to do this, with all your other stuff for that language. You can create an entry with the name of the book, and the chapter, in the index.
I was wondering if any of you guys would help me learn italian by being my language learning partner? I really want to get better at the language, and I know since I'm not there anymore I'm just going to lose it if I don't keep practicing. I would really appreciate it! drop me an ask if you're interested.
Are there any good resources to learn/study Korean online? Or any recommendations for books or software I can buy? Like, at least the basics so I can have a base-knowledge before I really delve into it in the future? I want to eventually speak German, Korean, Spanish, and Russian and have several resources for German and Spanish, a few on Russian, but none on Korean.
