日本語の勉強について話そう！

In this blog I talk about studying the Japanese language. このブログには、日本語の勉強という話題などを投稿します。

[webbinghaus]

https://soundcloud.com/ven-wede/air-conditioning

[grapefruitcake]

I started work as a server for a newly opened Japanese restaurant in my city and they use some alternate words for water and green tea ( おひる and あがり ) as opposed to the commonly known お水 and お茶, and I want to know where these terms came from and where I can find a list of these words so I know what's going on when the staff is yelling out Japanese restaurant lingo?

お冷 - おひや - cold waterAccording to here, it’s shortened from お冷やし which was 女房言葉 for 水.

あがり - hot green teaAccording to here, it’s shortened from 上がり花 which was 遊郭の言葉 for お茶.

These words are used by staff and you shouldn’t generally hear customers using them.

You can find quite a lot of lists of vocabulary if you google 飲食業界用語. Here are a couple (one, two).

[webbinghaus]

I work in a restaurant and can vouch for お冷 as being used for water. When customers refer to it though they use お水. 

Never heard あがり before though. Everyone just says お茶。

あがり usually means either a meal has been cooked and is ready to be carried to the table, or it’s used when someone has finished their shift and are going home depending on the context. Like:

“チキンがあがりです” - the chicken is ready

“さあ、私あがりね” - Well, I’m off!

[webbinghaus]

Hey! Do you have some tricky to remember the passive & causative form? Also is there some way to know which one is (without the help of the context)? Thanks~

Well both forms are made by taking the る、む or す etc. and replacing it with ら、ま or さ etc. 

Passive form: add れる

Causitive form: add せる

For example:

「作る」

Passive: 作られる

Causitive: 作らせる

「返す」

Passive: 返される

Causitive: 返させる

[webbinghaus]

Yesterday I made a comment on someone’s post about what they should call a hairdresser and I said that I’d never heard 美容師 before and that I would advise against using it. Well I had it confirmed today that that is the correct term to use, so I’m sorry for that!

[webbinghaus]

Half-Assed Japanese Episode 09

[webbinghaus]

Half-Assed Japanese

Taking requests for today’s lessons. I have no idea what to talk about so I really want to just make lessons centered around what people want to know. I also want to incorporate some Japanese talking into the video as well, so I dunno if I should teach in Japanese or if I should use English and keep separate videos for talking in Japanese. I basically have no ideas for the direction of this series and would really like to just open it up for the audience to dictate where it goes.

よろしくお願いします

[webbinghaus]

Doesn't に対して have a strong connotation of "towards", as in "showing towards"? Like, it *can* mean compared to, but not always?

I guess that’s also a possibility!

[webbinghaus]

anon again with another grammar question, after my textbook managed to thoroughly confuse me: differences in usage between にとって and に対して? I feel like there's some overlap between them but not sure what.

As fas as I can say,

にとって means 「for」

に対して means 「compared to」

For example,

私にとって日本語が難しいです 「Japanese is hard for me」

英語に対して日本語が難しいです「Compared to English, Japanese is hard」

This is how I would use them though someone smarter than me may have a better explanation!

[webbinghaus]

Hi, I am thinking about study Japanese the next year and I am pretty excited about it. Do you think it is a good idea? I mean, will I survive? I think it is a beautiful language, am I right? Sorry for my English, it isn't my mother tongue :')

I too at first thought it was a ‘beautiful’ language, but the way people speak it here is anything but. It’s like showing someone Shakespeare and saying “English is such a beautiful language!”. It’s all about context, you know?

You’ll definitely survive, it’s just a matter of how ‘in tune’ with the language you are and how much time you’re willing to devote to it. If you don’t study every day and use your skills every day, you will lose them very quickly. 

Just know that with Japanese, the start is the hardest part!! Once you get over the initial horrors it’s actually quite easy and fun.

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 9.7.16

着陸「ちゃくりく」- landing

制作「せいさく」- work/production

話し合う「はなしあう」- to discuss

口論「こうろん」- to argue

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 8.7.16

辛抱「しんぼう」- patience/endurance

浮かぶ「うかぶ」- to float/to rise/to come to mind

改善「かいぜん」- improvement

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 7.6.16

裂く「さく」- to tear

余る「あまる」- to be in excess/to remain

支える「ささえる」- to support

故障「こしょう」- breakdown/failure

呼吸「こきゅう」- breath/respiration

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 5.7 - 6.7.16

認める「みとめる」- to recognise/to appreciate

民主主義「みんしゅしゅぎ」- democracy

絶望「ぜつぼう」- hopelessness/despair

権利「けんり」- right/privilege

使命「しめい」- mission/errand

[webbinghaus]

Vocab - 4.7.16

吸収「きゅうしゅう」- absorption

純粋「じゅんすい」- pure/genuine

不当「ふとう」- undeserved/unfair

次々「つぎつぎ」- one by one

例外「れいがい」- exception

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 2.7 - 3.7.16

ようやく - finally/at last

故郷「ふるさと」- hometown/birthplace

誓う「ちかう」- to swear/to vow

方角「ほうがく」- direction/compass point

優秀「ゆうしゅう」- superiority/excellence

発明品「はつめいひん」- invention

商売「しょうばい」- business/trade

[webbinghaus]

Vocab 1.7.16

I figured I might post yesterday’s new vocabulary that I learned, and if I can keep this up every day it might serve as a decent review. And, because I want to share the joy of studying Japanese, I’ll post my new words here for you guys as well!

気味「きみ」sensation/feeling

等しい「ひとしい」like/similar/equivalent

欠点「けってん」fault/defect/flaw

Let’s study together :D

[atejapan]

[webbinghaus]

Whether it’s strictly correct or not I don’t know but I do see し used with polite form verbs every now and again but usually only when using one し in a sentence. Due to this it is often used as a response to a question. For example, listed above is the sentence,

よく買い物に行くし、家賃は高いし、お金が要ります

If someone were to ask this person なんでお金が要りますか？

then you might see them respond with よく買い物に行きますし or 家賃は高いですし.

As I said it may not be correct but I do see and hear it from time to time.