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Category Archives: Languages
Fun with Japanese Particles, with Audio
Because It’s Normally NOT Fun This is the audio for a Japanese lesson I put together as a free sample for someone. It’s meant to show off what I can do while providing some basic assistance that will benefit most … Continue reading
“I’ll Be Back”
Here’s a phrase I randomly saw in a video game: “Kanarazu modotte kuru!!” This roughly means, “I’ll be back!” (though not with the same delivery as the Governator, above.)
Posted in Japanese, Languages
Tagged Arnold, certainty, governator, Japanese, kanarazu, language
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Defragmenting the Human Mind
More Efficient Thinking and Learning Language education, and many other kinds, fill the mind with all manner of trivia, from which the word trivial is derived. This information is like specs of information on a hard drive, fragmented and difficult … Continue reading
Posted in Japanese, Languages
Tagged defragmenting, efficient, English, human, Japanese, learning, mind
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Abstract vs. Tangible Learning in Japanese
There’s More Than One “Learning” One of the largest annoyances in trying to teach Japanese is that many words have differences that dictionaries will not tell you about. Some differences ought to only matter to ex-translators, like me; but not … Continue reading
Japanese: Making Things Clear (Hakkiri)
はっきり So you want to spell things out in simple terms? To say it straight? To make things crystal clear? In Japanese, this is being hakkiri (はっきり) about it. There is no kanji for “hakkiri”; it is a native Japanese-ism … Continue reading
On Excuses and Apologies
A Culture of Politeness One of my formative lessons in Japanese culture was an old National Geographic article about the cranked up, high stress, high velocity fresh fish business during the mid-80’s, when Japan was booming. It explained how no-fault … Continue reading
Japanese Idioms: O-tsukaresama desu
Thank You For Your Hard Work Usually, when お疲れ様です (o-tsukaresama desu) rolls off the Japanese tongue, it can be safely understood as “Thank you for your hard work.” The “o” part means that this applies to someone else. The “tsukare” part … Continue reading
Hitotsu! Japanese in Karate
一つ The easiest reading of 一つ (ひとつ、hitotsu) is one. So how can we explain something like this? Behold:
Japanese Cultural Principles: Gaman
Gaman (我慢、がまん) I saw this word being used as a cultural principle over at the Japan Times in an article about a modern production of the Tale of the Forty-Seven Ronin (known natively as the Chuushingura – “chuushin” (中心) means … Continue reading
Japanese Culture: Duties, Roles and Parts to Play
Yakuwari (役割、やくわり) A yakuwari can be a duty, a role, or a part to play. The first kanji can be read as “of use,” which is a concept used in service (for if you are of use to the Emperor, … Continue reading