-= Japanese Made Easy =-

-= By : Tazuko Ajiro Monane =-

Typist Notes: I just felt some people wanted to learn Japanese but never had a way to learn it... so I'm taking my time to type what is exactly in a book that is helping me learn Japanese... I hope you enjoy this and a give very speacil thanks to the author of this book and my teacher.

- = - Lesson 1 - = -


Many words borrowed from other languages (mostly English) are used frequently in Japanese. Several of these will be introduced in this lesson to give you an immediate working vocabulary that you can easily retain and use with confidence in many situations. These borrowed words will also give you practice in Japanese pronunciation.
It is absolutely essential to practice in Japanese borrowed words with the correct Japanese pronunciation. As Jack Seward* points out, the average citisen of Japan, upon hearing a Westerner (who is usually presumed to be an American) having difficulty speaking Japanese, often attempts to give that foreigner a helping hand by injecting as many borrowed words as he can into his own speech. The result is generally disastrous. This kindness would be beneficial if borrowed words were used and pronounced in Japanese as they are used and pronounced in the language from which they were borrowed. Unfortunately, they seldom are, and the Westerner is more confused than ever.
Let's look at some situations in which these borrowed words are frequently used.

Situation 1: Ordering at a coffee shop

Coffee shops or tea rooms, called kissaten, are numerous in Japan and are very popular place to meet friends and relax. You can order all kinds of soft drinks, desserts, and even light-lunch item such as sandwhiches there.

VOCABULARY
aisu kôhii ice coffee
aisukuriimu ice cream
aisukuriimu sôda ice cream soda
appuru pai apple pie
chokorêto sêki chocolate shake
hamu sandoitchi (hamu sando)* ham sandwich
jûsu juice
kêki cake
Kokakôra Coca-Cola
kokoa cocoa
mikkusu sandoitchi (mikkusu sando) combination sandwich (usually, ham, cheese, egg, and tomato)
miruku milk
orenji jûsu orange juice
pai pie
pan (from Portuguese pão) bread
remonêdo lemonade
sandoitchi (sando) sandwich
sôda soda
tomato jûsu tomato juice


The first sentence pattern shows you the simplest way to ask for something in Japanese. It consists of the item (a noun) you want, a particle, and a word meaning "please." Look carefully at the sentence pattern that follows.

- Sentence Pattern 1 -
NOUN o/ kudasai. | Please give me NOUN.


Kôhii o kudasai.
Please give me coffee.

Jûsu o kudasai.
Please give me juice.

Kêki o kadasai.
Please give me cake.

Aisukuriimu o kudasai.
Please give me ice cream.

Kokoa o kudasai.
Please give me cocoa.

Chokorêto sêki o kudasai.
Please give me (a) chocolate shake.

In any situation that involves buying or shopping, kudasai can mean "Please bring (me)," "Please sell (me)," or "Please give (me)." The o in Kôhii o kudasai is called a particle. It has no meaning in itself but indicates that the word preceding is the direct object in the sentence. Other particles will be introduced later.
There are no articles like "a" or "the" in Japanese. Although in English you tend to say, "Please give me some ice cream," Japanese usually just say, "Please give me ice cream."

PRACTICE

1. Practice the following dialogue. What the waitress says is included primarily for your recognition, since you will hear it often in coffee shops and other places serving the public.
WAITRESS:
Nani ni shimashô ka? [or]
Nani ni nasaimasu ka? 		What shall I bring you? [or]
What are you going to have?
CUSTOMER:
Kôhii o kudasai. [or]
Appuru pai o kudasai. 		Please give me (some) coffee. [or]
Please give me (a piece of) apple pie.
Aisukuriimu o kudasai.
Kokakôra o kudasai. 		Please give me (some) ice cream.
Please give me (a) Coca-Cola.
Miruku o kudasai.
Orenji jûsu o kudasai. 		Please give me (some) milk.
Please give me (some) orange juice.


2. See if you can order the following items.
(a) coffee (d) ice cream soda
(b) sandwhich (e) Coca-Cola
(c) lemonade


ANSWERS: (a) Kôhii o kudasai. | (b) Sandoitchi o kudasai. | (c) Remonêdo o kudasai. | (d) Aisukuriimu sôda o kudasai. | (e) Koka-kôra o kudasai.

Situation 2: Ordering at a bar

VOCABULARY
biiru beer
burandê brandy
jin fuizu gin fizz
kakuteru cocktail
ramu rum
Sukotchi uisukii Scotch whiskey
uisukii whiskey
uisukii sawâ whiskey sour
uokka vodka
Useful Expressions:
mizuwari de with water and ice
sutorêto de straight


Vocabulary Note: Mizuwari is a native Japanese word. The de in mizuwari de and sutorêto de is a particle that indicates the style of the drink, or how it is to be made. These phrases can be inserted into Sentence Pattern 1.

Sukotchi uisukii o kudasai. Please give me Scotch.
Sukotchi uisukii o mizu wari de kudasai. Please give me a Scotch with water and ice.


A sentence like the one immediately above has two particles. One, the particle o, shows what you wish to recieve. The other, the particle de, here shows "how" you want to recieve it. The particle de has other uses, some which will be covered later in the tutorials.
PRACTICE

1. Practice using Sentence Pattern 1. Note that the bartender's question below is the same as the waitress earlier but the translation is different. What is important to learn is the intention of the speaker, and this is something that is often not clearly shown in a literal translation. Note these differences as you work through these tutorials.

BARTENDER:
Nani ni shimashô ka? What shall I make you?
CUSTOMER:
Uisukii sawâ o kudasai. Please give me a whiskey sour.
Biiru o kudasai.
 Please give me a beer.
Sukotchi uisukii o mizuwari de kudasai. Please give me a Scotch with water and ice.
Uisukii o sutorêto kudasai. Please give me a straight Scotch.


2. See if you can order the following items in a bar.
(a) beer (c) brandy
(b) Scotch with water and ice (d) Scotch straight


ANSWERS: (a) Biiru o kudasai. | (b) Sukotchi uisukii o kudasai. | (c) Burandê o kudasai. | (d) Sukotchi uisukii o sutorêto de kudasai.

Situation 3: Ordering at a restaurant

VOCABULARY
yôshoku Western-style food
Main Dishes:
bifuteki (biifusutêki) beefsteak
biifu karê beef curry
biifu shichû beef stew
chikin karê chicken curry
hambâgâ hamburger
karê raisu curry rice
katsuretsu cutlet
korokke croquette
rôsuto biifu roast beef
rôsuto pôku roast pork
sarada salad
shurimpu karê shrimp kare
sûpu soup
Breakfast Items:
bêkon bacon
hamu ham
omuretsu omelet
sôsêji sausage


To order two or more items, you need to know the Japanese expression that is equivalent to the English word "and". Though in English you say, "Give me A, B, C, and D," in Japanese you say, "Give me A and B and C and D."
"And" in Japanese is expressed by the particle to. The function of to in Japanese is to connect words or phrases, but not clauses or sentences.

- Sentence Pattern 1A -
NOUN to NOUN o/ kudasai. Please give me NOUN and NOUN.
NOUN to NOUN to NOUN o/ kudasai. | Please give me NOUN, NOUN, and NOUN.


Hambâgâ to kôhii o kudasai.
Please give me a hamburger and coffee.

Omuretsu to jûsu to kôhii o kudasai.
Please give me an omelet, juice, and coffee.

PRACTICE

1. Practice the following dialouge.
WAITRESS:
Nani ni shimashô ka? What shall I bring you?
CUSTOMER:
Biifu karê to sarada o kudasai. Please bring me beef curry and salad.
Hambâgâ to biiru o kudasai.
 Please bring me a hamburger and a beer.
Sarada to miruku o kudasai. Please bring me a salad and some milk.


2. See if you can order the following items in a coffee shop or a bar.
(a) coffee and cake (d) lemonade and a piece of apple pie
(b)milk and ham sandwhich (e) gin fizz and beer
(c) coffee and salad


ANSWERS: (a) Kôhii to kêki o kudasai. | (b) Miruku to hamu sando o kudasai. | (c) Kôhii to sarada o kudasai. | (d) Remonêdo to appuru pai o kudasai. | (e) Jin fuizu to biiru o kudasai.

Situation 4: Shopping at a department store

doresu dress
fuirumu roll of film
hankachi handkerchief
kâdegan cardigan
kamera camera
karâ terebi color television
kôto coat
nekutai necktie
rajio radio
reinkôto (renkôto) raincoat
sêtâ sweater
shatsu undershirt
sukâfu scarf
sukâto skirt
surakkusu slacks
sutereo stereo set
sûtsu suit
tabako pack of cigarettes
têpu rekôdâ tape recorder
terebi television
waishastu dress shirt


Vocabulary Note: The word shatsu usually only refers to an undershirt. If you refer to a long-sleeved dress shirt of the sort worn with a suit, use the word waishatsu. Depending on the type of shirt, there are also such words as supôtsu shatsu, "sport shirt", aroha shatsu, "aloha shirt," and so on.
If you use the word pantsu to indicate a pair of slacks, you may produce giggles from a Japanese person. Pantsu generally means "underwear." The Japanese words for men's "pants" is zubon.

When shopping in Japan, you may not always know the correct word for the item you wish to buy. In such cases, of course, you can just point to the item and use words for "this" or "that." Sometimes, though, you will know the Japanese word for the item but will specify wich among several is the particular one you want.
In English, the sentences "Please give me this" and "Please give me this camera" both use the same word, "this," to specify the item you want. In Japanese, however, the noun and adjective forms of "this" (and "that") are different. Look at the following sentence pattern.

- Sentence Pattern 1B -
Kore o / kudasai. Please give this to me.
Sore o it
Are o that
Kono NOUN o / kudasai. Please give me this NOUN.
Sono NOUN o the
Ano o NOUN that


Kore o kudasai.
Please give this (these) to me.

Kono kamera o kudasai.
Please give me this (these) camera(s) (close to me).

Sono kemera o kudasai.
Please give me that (the, those) camera(s) (close to you).

Ano kamera o kudasai.
Please give me that (those) camera(s) (some distance from you and me).

Kore, sore, and are take place of the noun, just as an English pronoun does. But they are unlike English pronouns in that they have the same form whether the meaning you intend is singular or plural.
Kono, sono, and ano cannot be used without the following noun. Note, too, that they are unlike most English nouns in that they normally take the same form wheather singular or plural.
Use kore and kono to indicate an object closer to you, the speaker.
Use sore and sono to indicate an object closer to your listener.
Use are and ano to indicate an object some distance from both you and listener.
PRACTICE

1. Practice the following dialogue. What the waitress says is included primarily for your recognition, since you will hear it often in coffee shops and other places serving the public.
1. Practice the following dialouge.
CLERK:
Nani ni sashigemashô ka? [or]
Nani ni shimashô ka? 		What shall I bring you? [or]
What are can I do for you?
CUSTOMER:
Sono reinkôto o kudasai. Please sell me the raincoat (which is close to you).
Kono sukâfu o kudasai. Please sell me thiis scarf.
Ano sêtâ o kudasai. Please sell me that sweater.
Kore o kudasai. Please sell me this.
Sore o kudasai. Please sell me that (which is close to you.


2. See if you can shop in a department store by specifying which among several is the particular one you want.
(a) this necklace (d) the camera that is close to the clerk
(b) that scarf (e) that sweater
(c) this roll of film


ANSWERS: (a) Kono nekutie o kudasai. | (b) Ano sukâfu o kudasai. | (c) Kono fuirumu o kudasai. | (d) Sono kamera o kudasai. | (e) Ano sêtâ o kudasai.

- Sentence Patterns Covered in This Lesson -
1. NOUN o / kudasai.
1A. NOUN to NOUN o / kudasai.
NOUN to NOUN to NOUN o kudasai.
1B. Kore o / kudasai.
Sore o
Are o
Kono NOUN o / kudasai.
Sono NOUN o
Ano NOUN o


Typist notes: Remember earlier in the lesson you saw a * beside some of the words? Well, at the bottom of each lesson, I will have what or why the star is beside the word or phrase.

*Jack Seward, Japanese in Action (New York: Walker/Weatherhill, 1969), check Lesson 5.
*A Japanese word in parentheses after the main entry is an alternate form or a word of the same meaning but less frequent occurrence.