#peistudies

[peistudies]

段々(だんだん) - Gradually, Little by little, Step by step

Can be thought of as meaning ‘step by step’, ‘stepwise’, or even ‘steadily’. だんだん is similar to ほとんど, in that it can modify the meaning of entire phrases, rather than just single words.

だんだん + （と） + Phrase

To use だんだん, simply put it before the phrase that you want to express as ‘(A) that is increasing steadily’.

*While だんだん can take the particle と, it is not required. In fact, と is very often omitted from adverbs/onomatopoeic words (words that represent a sound or motion) in Japanese.

*Don't mix it up with どんどん, which is essentially the antonym of だんだん. どんどん is an onomatopoeic word that represents loud banging (like on a drum), and is used to express fast changes/progression. 

だんだん雨が降ってきた。It is starting to rain. (Slow progression, does not imply great speed or severity)

どんどん雨が降ってきた。It is starting to rain. (Rapid progression, may imply great speed and/or severity)

友達が話している：「だんだんとあのやつの事が嫌いになってきていて、今は避けるようにしている。」 Chat between friends: "I gradually came to dislike that guy, and now I do my best to avoid him."

近所の人が話している：「来週からだんだん暖かくなるってニュースで言っていましたよ。」 Neighbors talking: "The news said that it will gradually get warmer from next week."

[peistudies]

There is/are

Different from です because it establishes existence and/or possession. Uses particle が because there is emphasis on the fact that it is in existence.

There is room for ambiguity because there isn’t a need for specification on whether the object is plural or singular.

ある・ありますNonliving thing

Xがあります　

there is/are X (nonliving)

Example: 本があります I have a book (Lit. There is a book)

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いる・いますLiving thing

Xがいます

there is/are X (living)

Example: 猫がいます I have a cat/there is a cat

Note: plants use ある for some reason, but bacteria/microorganisms actually use いる!

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Location description:

Place に thing が ある

“at <place> there is <thing>” ie. “there’s a student over there”

• It calls for particle に rather than で for the place description. に can specify locations of existence like it specifies times and dates (kind of like on/at/to)

• The place description usually comes at the beginning of sentence.

• The thing description is usually followed by the particle が rather than は (more on that later)

1. There is/are X (が)

あそこにマクドナルドがあります。(There is a McDonalds over there.)

2. You have X

(は is often used for added clarification)

私はテレビがありません。(I don’t have a TV OR I am the one without a TV)

私の先生はこどもがいます。(My sensei has children.)

ロバートさんはおねえさんがいます。(Robert has an older sister.)

[peistudies]

かもしれない - Might, maybe, probably (Colloquial: かも or かもしらん)

Plain Verb + かもしれない ［い］Adjective + かもしれない ［な］Adjective + かもしれない Noun + かもしれない

*To make polite, change ない to ません (かもしれません)

This one is sooo easy. SCORE! You plop it on the end of any sentence to express uncertainty. No fancy conjugating or funny business. Just make sure you’re adding it to plain forms (not です or ます). Amazing. Here's a couple example sentences.

このいい服を買えば、人気になるかもしれない。If I buy these nice clothes, then I might become popular.

彼は何にも調べないで、日本に行くかもしれない。He might go to Japan without researching anything.

[peistudies]

ということ (と言う事) - phrase nominalization ( ~ing, The ~ that ~ )

Phrase + ということ Regularly shortened to ってこと in conversation, manga, etc. Usually written using hiragana alone.

To use ということ, attach it to the end of any phrase (without です or ます). The word preceding ということ must be plain: Verb (casual) い Adj. Noun + だ な Adj. + だ

The expression ということ is one of the many ways to turn that phrase into a noun (nominalization).

Examples from JLPT Sensei

あなたが私の声が好きだということがとても嬉しいです。I'm so glad you like my voice.

あなたが会社をやめるということは本当ですか。Is it true you're quitting the company?

彼は怖いということを知らない。 He doesn't know what fear is.

つまり、あなたは同じ本をまた読みたいということ？ Do you mean you want to read the same book again?

彼は友だちができるかということを心配している。I'm worried about if he will be able to make friends.

私は彼が信用できない人だということが分かった。I realized he was an unreliable person.

私は今日が結婚記念日だということを忘れていました。I'd forgotten today was my wedding anniversary.

[peistudies]

Minutes

Note: slight difference in pronunciation occurs in the case of 1, 3, 6, 8, and 10. The kanji forms are just the number + 分 (ex. １分)

1 minute ippun いっぷん

2 minutes nifun にふん

3 minutes sanbun さんぶん

4 minutes yonfun よんふん

5 minutes gofun ごふん

6 minutes roppun ろっぷん

7 minutes nanafun ななふん

8 minutes happun はっぷん

9 minutes kyuufun きゅうふん

10 minutes juppun じゅっぷん

[peistudies]

いつのまにか

(何時の間にか) - before one knows, before one becomes aware of, unnoticed, unaware

いつの間にか夜になりました。It became night before I knew it.

いつの間にか冬休みが終わってしまった。Winter vacation unfortunately ended before I knew it.

来月子供の結婚式があると聞き、いつの間にか小さかった赤ん坊が一人前の大人になったのだと実感しました。When I heard that my child will be married next month, I realized that before I knew it, my once small baby had become a full-fledged adult.

[peistudies]

Number + も - Emphasis, expressing an excessive amount of something (As much as, Not even)

Number + Counter + も

When the particle も is used like this, it indicates that the amount was excessively too much (or too little). This is really part of a larger group of grammar points: Expressing amounts. Here's a guide.

For those who made it back from that rabbit hole of an article, here are some example sentences.

この家にはお箸一膳も置いてないの？This house doesn't even have as much as one pair of chopsticks lying around?

このビルは出口が何箇所もあるので、とても安全です。This building has exits in many places, so it is very safe.

ティムは日本に5回も行ったことがあると思う。I think that Tim has been to Japan as many as 5 times.

「掃除をして」って何回も言ったでしょう。I told you to clean many times, right?

学校で鉛筆を100本も売った。I sold as many as 100 pencils at school!

[peistudies]

(Number) + しか〜ない no more than, not exceeding, as few as・as little as, only

Number + しか + Verb［ない］ To make it polite, change ない to ません.

The 副助詞  (ふくじょし) (adverbial particle) しか is often compared to だけ, in that it also expresses ‘only’. However, unlike だけ, しか can only be used in 否定表現 (ひていひょうげん) (negative statements). It may be used to express numbers or nouns.

To use this construction, the number that you want to express as being ‘all that exists’ will go before しか, then しか will be followed by a verb in its ない, or ありません form.

彼女にはまだ1回しか会っていない。I have met her no more than once.

うちの研究室には本が10冊しかない。I have no more than 10 books in my office.

髪の毛が3本しか生えていない。(He) has no more than three hairs (on his head).

Saving あげる・くれる・もらう for a different post. Stay tuned friends! <3