Section 1: Greetings, Partings, and General Meeting Ettiquette
This section refers to standard vocabulary and cultural propriety relative to conc epts of meeting with native Japanese speakers beyond the most most common greetings noted in textbooks. textbooks. In addition, it includes a number of related grammar points p oints that might be necessary in order to form a complete statement of the speaker or his partner's actions or feelings as would be relevant at a point of meeting. For instance, conditions of “starting” and “stopping” may be important when a speaker is inclined or encouraged to talk about the state of the weather or his partner's work ethic.
1a. Greetings: I. ただいま I have just returned (lit. “just now”) –
かえ
お帰り
–
Welcome back (lit. “returning” in observance of the other's action)
II.どちらへ。 “Where are you going?” This is a way to greet one's neighbor and is not to evoke a detailed reply. reply. In Japan it is less nosy to ask one's direction than to ask one's business, as would be more common in American English (cf. “what's up?”). げんき
III. お元気ですか。 “Are you you healthy?” General greeting. Contrast:
いかがですか。 Closer to “how is your condition?” This question includes the air of concern for one's well-being, and is thus used only when one has shown signs of sickness, such as obvious knowledge of illness on the speaker's part, or an extended absence from one's occupation. It is, however, however, more common among friends. Caution is advised among coworkers. IV. IV. おはようございます。 Though it usually means “good morning” it really means “it is early” and refers to earliness in reference to the time frame that the speaker would spend with the recipient. Therefore it might be used even late in the evening even ing if that is the first time the speaker sees the other pe rson that day. day. Additionally, Additionally, it is a safe expression between almost any two people. Contrast:
こんにちは こんにちは こんばんは こんばんは These expressions would be used more for one's o ne's out-group, not so much coworkers or o r family. family. ・
おそ
おそ
もう
わけ
V. 遅くなってすみません (casual) 遅くなりまして、 申し訳ありません(formal) “I am late but I have no excuse.” It is not literally intended intended that the speaker has no excuse; he should, of course, have a valid va lid reason, but to give it immediately both is a rude expenditure of someone else's time and shows that he disregards his own rudeness because he thinks it is justified. justified. He should then wait until a more opportune time to discuss d iscuss the reasons behind his rudeness. ・
1b. Partings:
おこな
き
I. 行 って来ます - I will be back later (lit. “I am going and coming”) い
行っていらっしゃい さき
–
Please return (lit. “Go and come back”)
さき
しつれい
II. お先に(casual)
お先に失礼します(formal) – Excuse my going first (lit. “Before you/Before you I perform a rudeness”) ・
III. じゃ
–
じゃまた
So long
–
See you soon (lit. “Then, again)
IV. さよなら This shows the anticipation of the passage of a great distance of time before the two will meet again. It should not be used for day-to-day partings. V. おつかれさまでした or ごくろうさん Either of these is used to appreciate the hard work someone has done. The second however is used for a superior talking down to an inferior. かえ
VI. 帰る
–
to return to one's home or place of permanent or extended belonging
もど
戻る to return to a place distinguished in context, including a place one is visiting, i.e. another person's home –
1c. Introduction: During introduction, be cautious of the relations between two or more individuals. Consider two charts indicating closeness.
1) Speaker---introduced>>>recipient 2) Speaker<<
individual to his 仲間, or individuals associated with him. It is important to note that gratitude can be observed as the greatest of compliments, because it shows the good character of someone. Therefore, case 1 should include gratitude for something someone has done. きたむら
わたし
やさ
北村さんはいつも 私 に優しいです。 Case 2 however should avoid compliments in general because to compliment one of your in-group is to imply “I acknowledge that I carry around the best of men...how about you?” Instead, familiarity should be increased by talking about the manner in which a person is related to you. きたむら
はたら
北村さんと 働 きます。
1d. Meeting Again: It is common to refer back to the events of the last meeting between the speaker and another person. Care should be taken here to show appropriate gratitude or apology for the last occurrence, for instance, thanking one for dinner or apologizing for leaving early, even if the speaker has already done so on the last meeting.
ごちそうさまでした あいだ
–
Thank you for the meal.
せんじつ
この 間 は(casual)
先日は(formal) – As for the other day...
・
さき
先ほどは
–
A while ago
ゆう
さくや
夕べは(more common)
昨夜は(more literary) – Last night
・
1e. Progress: I. ～て＋いない incomplete progress The ～ていない form of verbs is used to show that an action has been started but not finished.
Ex. ほん
よ
A: 本を読んでいますか？ Are you reading the book? よ
B: はい。でも、 読んでいません。 Yes, but I have not finished it.
II. い stem+ おわる complete progress The ～おわる form of verbs is used to show that an action previously started has been finished.
Ex. の
もの
A: どこに飲み物がありますか？ Where is your drink? の
B: 飲みおわりました。 I finished drinking it.
III. Temporal initiation of actions: い stem+はじめる vs. だす The ～はじめる form of verbs is used to show the general initiation of an action. ～だす, however, is used to show the sudden occurrence of an action relative to the frame of time in which it is mentioned.
Ex. しゅくだい
宿題 をしはじめています。
I am starting my homework (starting to do my homework). あめ
ふ
雨が降りだしました。 It started to rain [just then]. In this case, the roots of each auxiliary verb may be noted : 始める is to begin something (trans.) while 出す is to put something out, the latter implying the “breaking ou t” of an action rather than its gradual, premeditated, or otherwise anticipated occurrence.
Section 2: Current Events
This section refers to common colloquial and plain expressions significant for describing events and matters relevant to the current state of the speaker or his partner's life. This includes a number of textbook expressions as well as several abbreviations or colloquial forms of conversational p hrases.
2a. Phrases of Relevance: A number of phrases can be used to show the relation between a noun or phrase and a noun or verb. The form changes based on whether the related word is a noun or verb.
Ex. てんき
はし
天気によって 走る - “Going running depending on the weather” しゅうにゅう
せいかつ
収入 による生活 - “Lifestyle based on income” Table 2a
+ verb
+ noun
Concerning ~ (lit.)
～にかんして
～にかんする
Concerning ~ (col.)
～について
～につく
Depending on ~
～によって
～による
At/in ~
～において
～における
To/for ~
～にとって
～にとっての
To/against ~
～にたいして
～にたいする
2b. Colloquial Expressions: I.というか – used to rephrase a previous idea, followed by the rephrasing; “or, in other words...” or in response to someone else “isn't that to say...” Also なんというか: when following a thought: “...or something like that” preceding a thought: “what am I saying/what are you saying” usually to be followed by the speaker's opinionated idea of what should be stated instead, sometimes to humorous effect •
•
Ex. いま か
もの
い
A:今買い物しに行く。 I'm going shopping now じゅぎょう
い
B:というか、 授業 に行かないの？ You mean, you're not going to class? じゅぎょう
A:なんというか、くそっ！ 授業 ある？ What do you mean? Oh crap, do I have class?
II.じゃん – used to confirm the previous statement with a negative question, comes from ～んじゃ ないか; like “isn't that so?”; it can be attached directly to any part of speech
Ex. いいじゃん - “That's good, right?” き
聞いてるじゃん - “You're listening, aren't you?” III. こう
そう
・
あのう
・
どう＋いう – in the manner of something
・
Ex. そういう - “like that” ひょうげん
こういう 表現 - “expressions like these” IV. の or なの - used as a replacement for んですか; it can also be used as a response to a question asked the same way い
き
V. って – shorthand of と+ informational verb (言う,聞く, etc.); used to bring a topic into reference
Ex. えいが
み
映画って、見えるの？- “Speaking of that movie, can we see it?”
2c. Command Form I. い stem + なさい formal imperative
Ex. はな
話しやめなさい。 - “Stop talking.” II. Casual affirmative imperative る verbs: base+ろ う verbs: え stem Exceptions: する->しろ くる->こい •
•
Ex. あそこゆけ。 - “Go over there!” た
食べろ。- “Eat!” III. Plain form + な casual imperative
Ex. き
聞くな。- “Don't ask that!”
2d. Supplemental Vocabulary ほら - “look!” もっとまし（な） - better (than something) ～よりまし（な） - better than ~ ダメダメ – excessively bad, lame, not good at all, etc しょうかい
紹介 する – to introduce しかた
仕方 – way, method しかた
仕方がない(for.)
しょうがない(col.) - “it can't be helped”
・
Section 3: Comparisons, Similarities, Relations
This section covers grammar and expressions dealing primarily with different plain and colloquial auxiliaries for likeness, with expressions dealing with the likelihood of hearsay and vo cabulary dealing with dating and relationships.
3a. Likeness Auxiliaries: I. ～よう - the most formal term for likeness. With just a noun, adjective, or verb attached to the front, it functions as “like...” or “such as...” based o n the context.
Ex. いぬ
犬のようだ - “to be like a dog” およ
泳ぐようなの - “an action like running” うんてん しゃ
ひと
運転者のような人 - “people such as drivers” ひつよう
必要なようだ - “to be as though necessary” ～よう may also be used for hearsay, or personal conjecture based on prior interpreted information, and ～ように may be used with informational verbs. かん
II. ～感じ - an auxiliary noun used to mean “in the style of ~” or “~esque.” けい
～系 is used for the type of something. Ex. かん
ピカッソ感じ - “Picassoesque” けい
Ｒ系 - “R-type” III. ～らしい has two functions. First, it can be used like ～ような for personal conjecture. It can be attached directly to a noun, adjective, or verb in plain form. This form is more plain.
Ex. かれ
びょうき
彼が病気らしいね。- “He seems to be sick, doesn't he.” Second, it can be used to show that something of a certain class has the typical likeness of that class. This form is common in literary form or plain speech. Cf. きょう
はる
ひ
今日は春のような日だ。- “Today is like a spring day.” きょう
はる
ひ
今日は春らしい日だ。- “Today is a spring sort of day.” or “Today is a typical spring day”
らしい also appears as parts of common adjectives, not unlike “-like” or “-ly” in English. Ex. おとこ
男 らしい - “manly” IV. ～みたい - a colloquial suffix used to show personal interpretation of likeness based on something's appearance. It attaches directly to any word and conjugates as a noun.
Ex. かれ
彼がアスリートみたいな。 - “He looks like an athlete, huh?” ふとし
太 いみたいだった
- “to have looked fat”
V. ～っぽい - an extremely colloquial suffix that functions grammatically like ～みたい. It can be used in place of any other word of similarity based on context. ～ふうに is extremely literary and used to describe something's atmosphere or aesthetic quality, such as the inside of a temple.
3b. Conversational Expressions: ほんとう
I. マジ - a colloquial form of 本当に, literally “really?”; can be a question as well, confirmed with “マジで” II. ～なんか - “some ~” or “something like ~”; has roughly the same colloquial function as the interjection “like” in English; さ may be added to any adjectival noun or replace the い of an adjective for roughly the same function III. っけ - replaces か as a sentence-final particle and is used to consult information that has previously been provided; usually appears as だっけ
Ex. なんさい
何歳だっけ。- “How old did you say you were, again?” ぎゃく
ぎゃく
IV. 逆 に - used for something contrary to someone's expectations; 逆 ギレ is one who turns an accusation against himself towards his accuser
Ex. あめ
ふ
A: やばい。雨が降りだしてる。わるいな。 Shit, it's starting to rain. This sucks. ぎゃく
おそ
B: 逆 に、遅くなってもいいじゃん。 On the other hand, you can be late now, right? た
い
A:マジよ。食べに行く。
Hell yeah! I'm gonna go get some food. V. こっち
そっち
・
あっち
・
・
どっち - some way, direction, or place; shorthand of これ or こちら
3c. Supplementary Vocabulary やばい(col.) - lit. dangerous, “oh shit!” ただ - but てきとう
適当 - lit. without thought, “as you like” いっぱい - a lot じゅうぶん
十分 - enough やっと - at last ひょう
評 して - “by any chance,” “perhaps” (does not require a probability copula) へいき
平気 - okay, without concern, calm いがい
意外と - unexpectedly あんまり - col. あまり ぜったい - definitely (to argue a point) ぜひ - definitely (to show agreement) つ
あ
付き合い - dating カップル - couple (dating) ちょうし
調子 - present state, health あんしん
安心する - to be relieved
Section 4: Kansai-ben
Kansai-ben, the dialect of West Honshū, is a popular deviation from the standardized dialect of textbook Japanese. Its nearest equivalent in Eng lish would be Southern American English compared with Standard American, as it is often identified as more rustic or lower-class, often the butt of jokes of speakers of Tokyo Japanese who consider the dialect more vernacular. Kansai-ben is broken into several regional vernaculars, but the most common p roliferation is of the Osaka variant, which often appears in manzai or other comedic acts, as Osaka is regarded as the comedy capital, and its vernacular often appears in literature as the de facto standard of Kansai-ben. Much debate lingers about where boundary lines may be drawn to determine what Kansai-ben truly is and where it is spoken, but this section will cover grammar and expressions common through the literary and media-centric representations of Kansai-ben, drawing most heavily from the recognizable metropolitan standard of Osaka-ben. This section is not exhaustive; there are a number of additional expressions used in various areas of Kansai, including Kyoto and Osaka, and several alterations to even these grammar rules appear from place to place. It is suggested that the learner of Kansai-ben facilitate by talking with native speakers of the dialect, but use this section in preparation for alterations to standard speech patterns adopted with standard dialect.
4a. Conjugations I. ～へん plain present negative For any conjugation otherwise ending ～ない, the same verb ends in ～へん in Kansai-ben; in Osaka, it is also common to use the え stem instead of the あ stem, while Kyoto-ben is more likely to emphasize い-sounds
Ex. た
食べへん - “to not eat” か
か
買わへん
おお
買えへん(大) - “to not buy”
・
Exceptions: きょう •
おお
する->しいへん( 京 )
せえへん(大)
・
きょう •
•
•
おお
くる->きいへん( 京 ) ある->あらへん いる->おらへん
けえへん(大)
・
きょう •
こおへん
・
おお
みる->みいへん( 京 )
めえへん(大)
・
There is also an additional form common mostly to う verbs: へん or ない may be replaced with simply ん Ex. わ
分からん - “to not know/understand”
II. ～へんかった plain past negative The plain past negative form can be conjugated by taking the plain present negative form and appending ～かった
Ex. すわ
座らへんかった - “to have not sit” III. Formal conjugation It is said that Kansai-ben involves softening S-sounds to H-sounds, especially せ to へ. This rule applies to ～ません and ～ませんでした , probably the origin of using へん in lieu of ない
Ex. き
決めまへん - “to not decide” なら
習いまへんでした - “to have not learned” IV. Imperatives Rather than the command form ～ろ, Kansai-ben uses the い stem with a falling intonation, sometimes with a long vowel
Ex. お
起き - “wake up!” べんきょう
勉強 しい - “study!” V. Copulas だ is replaced casually with や, or sometimes with the rough じゃ; these may also function as a replacement for the sentence-final よ. おる is used in place of いる, and ～ておる contracts to ～と る as in honorific speech VI. Miscellaneous alterations Rather than ending in く, adjectives simply drop the い •
Ex. はや い
早行きや - “go quickly!” •
し-sounds often change to せ-sounds; ～しない becomes ～せん and ～して becomes ～せ て Ex. だ
出せて - “please exit” •
～なきゃなんない becomes ～なきゃあかん
Ex. で
出かけなきゃあかん - “must go out” あかん is also used as a replacement for だめ
4b. Kansai Vocabulary Equivalents Table 4b かんとう
かんさい
関東
関西
ありがとう
おおきに
ちが
ちゃう
違う まえ
おまはん
お前 ごちそうさまでした
ごつぉっさん
つか
しんどい
疲れたいる めんどくさい
めんどい
ほんとう
ほんま
本当
本間
わら
わらかす
笑わせる もの
もん
物 ちい
ちいこい
小さい し
しまった かまいません
・
すみません
すまん
いい
すみまへん
・
・
ええ
・
くすぐたい
こそばい
とても
めっちゃ
おお
でかい
大きい
ちっちゃい
かまん とこ
良い
・
しもった
ところ
よ
ちんまい
しゃない
知らない
かまわない
・
でけい
・
すいまへん
ばか
あほ
すごい
ごつい
まあまあ
ぼちぼち
