The Japanese word for hobby is shumi. There are many, many different hobbies we could list here, but for now, we'll just list the basics. Some typical Japanese hobbies could be karate, judou, kendou, akidou, kyuudou, and yabusame, which are all martial arts, shodou (calligraphy), ikebana (flower arranging), bonsai
(caring for small trees), KARAOKE (singing), origami (paper folding), and card games such as irohaKARUTA, hanafuda, and hyakunin isshu.
Since we're just trying to learn a lot of new vocabulary here, let's launch into a conversation and go from there. Here we will talk to Hisashi and Jiro about their hobbies.
Hisashi: Jiro-san no shumi wa nan desu ka?
Jiro: PURAMODERU o tsukurimasu. Ryouri o shimasu. Hisashi-san wa?
Hisashi: Mushi to kitte o atsumemasu. KONPYUUTA GEEMU o shimasu.
Jiro: Donna mushi o atsumemasu ka?
Hisashi: Chouchou o atsumemasu. Donna PURAMODERU o tsukurimasu ka?
Jiro: Hikouki ya densha ya kuruma ya fune nado o tsukurimasu.
Omoshiroi desu. PURAMODERU o rokunenkan tsukutte imasu.
Hisashi: Sou desu ka? Manga o yomimasu ka?
Jiro: Manga wa anmari yomimasen. Demo dokusho ga suki desu.
Hon dake yomimasu.
Hisashi: Boku wa manga ga daisuki desu. Jiro-san no hon o motte ikimasu ka?
Jiro: Hai. Misemasu.
Hisashi: Hima na hi ni nani o shimasu ka?
Jiro: Boku wa inu to issho ni sanpo ni ikimasu.
Hisashi: PETTO o katte imasu ka?
Jiro: Hai. Inu no namae wa PUUKI desu.
Hisashi: Kawaii desu ne. Inu ga hoshii desu.
Jiro: Tokidoki kaimono o sukoshi shimasu.
Hisashi: Boku mo. Hima na hi ni SUTEREO o kikimasu.
Jiro: Ongaku ga suki desu ka?
Hisashi: Hai! Senshuu KONSAATO ni ikimashita. Subarashikatta
desu.
Jiro: Sou desu ka? Omoshiroi desu!
Hisashi: Raigetsu KONSAATO ga arimasu. Issho ni ikimashou ka?
Jiro: Hai! Ikimashou!
Alright, let's see what these two boys said. Hisashi begins by asking,
"What is your hobby?" Jiro replies, "I make plastic models. I cook.
You?" PURAMODERU is plastic models and tsukurimasu is to make.
Hisashi says, "I collect insects and stamps. I play video games." Mushi is insects, kitte is stamps, atsumemasu is to collect, and
KONPYUUTA GEEMU is computer games. Jiro asks what kind of
insects he collects. Hisashi replies he collects butterflies and asks what kind of plastic models Jiro makes. Chouchou is butterfly. Jiro replies,
"I make airplanes, trains, cars, boats, as well as other things. It is interesting. I've been making plastic models for six years." Nado is sort of like saying et cetera, and nenkan is the counter for how many years you do something.
Just for interest, the counter for years is nen, the counter for months is kagetsu, and the counter for weeks is shuukan. Hisashi then asks if he reads comic books. Jiro replies, "I don't read many comics. But I like reading. I only read books." Anmari is not many or not much (only used with a negative verb), dokusho is reading, and dake is only. (Note that it replaces a particle, while nado doesn't) Hisashi replies, "I like comic books a lot. Will you bring your books?"
Mochimasu means to have or hold, but when used with ikimasu, it becomes to bring. Jiro replies that he will show him. Hisashi then asks,
"What do you do on free days?" Hima is free time, and is a qualitative noun. Jiro replies that he takes a walk with his dog. Sanpo is walk.
Hisashi then asks, "You have a pet?" Katte imasu means to have, as in a pet. Jiro replies, "Yes. My dog's name is Pookie." Hisashi replies that is cute and he wants a dog. Jiro then says, "Sometimes I do a little shopping." Sukoshi means a little or a bit. Hisashi replies, "Me too. On free days, I listen to my stereo." Jiro asks if he likes music and Hisashi replies, "Yes! Last week I went to a concert. It was wonderful."
KONSAATO means concert and subarashii means wonderful or
marvelous. Jiro then says, "Is that so? Interesting!" Hisashi says, "Next month there is a concert. Shall we go together?" Jiro replies, "Yea!
Let's go!"
Vocabulary Review 趣味 Shumi- hobby
空手、受動、剣道、あきどう、弓道、流鏑馬 Karate, judou, kendou, akidou, kyuudou, yabusame- martial arts
書道 Shodou- calligraphy
生け花 Ikebana- flower arranging 盆栽 Bonsai- caring for small trees カラオケ KARAOKE- singing with music 折り紙 Origami- paper folding
伊呂波カルタ、花札、百人一首 irohaKARUTA, hanafuda, hyakunin isshu- card games
プラモデル PURAMODERU- plastic models 作ります Tsukurimasu- to make
虫 Mushi- insects 切手 Kitte- stamps
集めます Atsumemasu- to collect
コンピュータゲーム KONPYUUTA GEEMU- computer games 町長 Chouchou- butterfly
など Nado- et cetera
年間 -Nenkan- counter for how many years 年 -Nen- counter for years
ヶ月 -Kagetsu- counter for months 週間 -Shuukan- counter for weeks あんまり Anmari- not many/not much 読書 Dokusho- reading
だけ Dake- only
持ちます Mochimasu- to have/hold 持って来ます Motte kimasu- to bring 持って行きます Motte ikimasu- to take 暇 Hima- free time
散歩 Sanpo- a walk
飼っています Katte imasu- to have a pet 少し Sukoshi- a little/a bit
コンサート KONSAATO- concert
すばらしい Subarashii- wonderful/marvelous LESSON 64- I want to go
Get ready to learn another verb ending! The tai ending turns the verb into a wanting verb. For example, ikimasu would turn into ikitai, meaning "want to go". To change a verb into its tai ending, simply take off the masu and replace it with tai. Simple, no? However, to be formal, you'd always add desu on the end, though with more informal speaking, it's alright to use it alone. Also, to change tenses, you would use the same form as adjectives. For example, ikitakatta would be
"wanted to go", ikitakunai would be "do not want to go" and ikitakunakatta would be "did not want to go".
Now that we know this, let's hop into another conversation to see how it works and also to learn some new vocabulary. Let's see what Takuro
and Teru have to say.
Teru: Ashita gakkou ni ikitakunai desu.
Takuro: Boku mo. Naratakunai desu.
Teru: Boku mo! Naraimasen.
Takuro: SUPOOTSU ga motto suki desu.
Teru: Donna SUPOOTSU ga dekimasu ka?
Takuro: Eeto ... SAKKAA ya yakyuu nado ga dekimasu.
Teru: SUPOOTSU ga dekimasen. Naratai desu. Oshiete kudasai.
Takuro: Ii kangae desu. Nani o shimasu ka?
Teru: Uta o utaimasu. POPPU to ROKKU ongaku ga suki desu.
Takuro: Sou desu ka? KURASHIKKU ongaku ga suki desu.
BAIORIN o hikimasu.
Teru: BAIORIN ga dekimasen.
Takuro: Yasashii desu.
Teru: Hontou ni?
Takuro: Hontou! Aa, atama ga ii desu.
Teru: Dou shimashita ka?
Takuro: Kaze o hikimasu.
Teru: Sore wa ikemasen ne! Yasumimasu ka?
Takuro: Sugu yasumimasu.
Teru begins by saying, "I don't want to go to school tomorrow." Takuro replies, "Me too. I don't want to learn." Naraimasu mean to learn.
Teru replies, "Me too! I don't learn." Takuro says, "I like sports more."
Teru asks, "What kind of sports can you play?" Dekimasu means "to be able to do". Takuro replies, "Um... I can play soccer and baseball, as well as other things." Teru says, "I can't do sports. I want to learn.
Please teach me." Oshiemasu is to teach. Takuro says, "Good idea.
What do you do?" Kangae is idea or thought. Teru replies, "I sing songs. I like pop and rock music." Uta is song, utaimasu is to sing, POPPU is pop music, and ROKKU is rock music. Takuro says, "Is that so? I like classical music. I play the violin." KURASHIKKU is classical and hikimasu means to pluck or to play a stringed instrument. (Piano counts too!) Teru says he can't play the violin, and Takuro replies that it is easy. Teru asks, "Really?" and Takuro replies, "Really! Oh, my head hurts." Teru asks, "What happened?" Takuro replies, "I caught a cold." Though his phrase literally I means, "I plucked a wind", that is how the Japanese say they caught a cold. Teru says that is unfor tunate and asks if he will rest. Takuro replies he will rest soon.
Vocabulary Review
習います Naraimasu- to learn
できます Dekimasu- to be able to do 教えます Oshiemasu- to teach
考え Kangae- idea/thought
歌 Uta- song
歌います Utaimasu- to sing ポップ POPPU- pop music ロック ROKKU- rock music
クラシック KURASHIKKU- classical music
引きます Hikimasu- to pluck/play a stringed instrument LESSON 65- Did you already see the movie?
You already learned in past lessons that mada means "still/not yet"
and is used with a negative verb. To say the opposite, you would use a positive verb and say mou, which means "already". It is generally used after the subject. For example, to ask "Did you already see the
movie?", you would say Mou eiga o mimashita ka? In response, you would either say Mou mimashita or Mada desu.
Since this concept is fairly simple, let's hop right into a conversat ion between Susumu and Yuki.
Yuki: Susumu-kun! Mou Michiru-chan o denwa shimashita ka?
Susumu: Aa, gomen nasai. Mada desu. Denwa bangou o shirimasen.
Yuki: Hontou ni? Watashi wa shitte imasu. Chotto matte kudasai ... aa, denwa bangou wa ichi kyuu ichi no go go roku hachi
desu.
Susumu: Arigatou. Wasuremashita.
Yuki: Sou desu ka? Watashi wa itsumo oboemasu.
Susumu: Sou desu ne. Michiru-chan wa konshuu no shuumatsu ni nani o shimasu ka?
Yuki: Shirimasen. Susumu-kun wa?
Susumu: Boku wa? Yama ni nobori ni ikimasu.
Yuki: Abunai deshou ne! Yamanobori ga suki janai desu.
Susumu: Naze desu ka? Yuki-chan wa tanoshikunai desu. In this conversation, Yuki says, "Susumu! Did you call Michiru already?"
Susumu replies, "Oh, sorry. Not yet. I don't know her phone number."
Shirimasu means "to know". But note, if you currently know
something, say Shitte imasu, because knowing is an ongoing activity.
Yuki replies, "Really? I know it. Hold on ... oh, the phone number is 191-5568." Susumu says, "Thanks. I forgot." Wasuremasu is "to forget". Yuki replies that she always remembers. Oboemasu is "to remember". Susumu then asks, "What will Michiru do this weekend?"
Yuki replies, "I don't know. What about you?" Susumu replies, "Me? I will go to the mountain to climb." Noborimasu is "to climb". Yuki
replies, "That sounds dangerous! I don't like mountain climbing."
Abunai is "dangerous" and yamanobori is "mountain climbing".
Susumu replies, "Why? You're not fun."
Please take note of the sentence Yama ni nobori ni ikimasu. This is a new sentence pattern for you to learn. Let's look at another
sentence: Tomodachi no uchi ni atarashii kuruma o mi ni
ikimasu. This means "I will go to my friend's house to see the new car." Mi ni ikimasu is "go to see". In order to say what you are going for, you merely drop the -masu ending off a verb and put it before the ni ikimasu. Another example is RESUTORAN ni bangohan o tabe ni ikimasu, or "I will go to the restuarant to eat dinner". Remember this sentence pattern for future lessons! It becomes very handy.
Vocabulary Review もう Mou- already
知ります Shirimasu- to know 忘れます Wasuremasu- to forget 覚えます Oboemasu- to remember 登ります Noborimasu- to climb 危ない Abunai- dangerous
山登り Yamanobori- mountain climbing LESSON 66- What will you wear?
Now you will learn how to talk about clothing and wearing things.
Unlike English, where everything is mostly "wear", there are two main verbs you use in Japanese: kimasu, hakimasu. Kimasu is used with any clothing that hangs from the shoulders, while hakimasu is used with anything on from the waist down, including shoes. There is also kaburimasu, which is used with hats. Shimasu is used with
accessories, minus earrings, which is used with kakemasu, or "to hang" if you remember from previous lessons.
Most words for clothing are Japlish, with the exception of kimono (a traditional Japanese outfit) and seifuku (school uniform). A few kimasu words would be BURAUSU (blouse), TII SHATSU (T-shirt), SEETAA (sweater), SHATSU (shirt), WAISHATSU (white collared shirt), KOOTO (coat), JAKETTO (jacket), and DORESU (dress).
Meanwhile, some hakimasu words would be SUKAATO (skirt),
ZUBON (trousers), PANTSU (pants), JIINZU (jeans), and SHOOTSU (shorts). Lastly, boushi (hat) would be used with kaburimasu and accessories like NEKUTAI (necktie), BERUTO (belt), NEKKURESU (necklace), BURESURETTO (bracelet), and IYARINGU (earrings), to name a few.
Since this topic is mostly new vocabulary, let's just hop into a
conversation between Sumiko and Kimi.
Sumiko: Aa, Kimi-chan no NEKKURESU wa kirei desu! Doko de kaimashita ka?
Kimi: DEPAATO de kaimashita. Shitai desu ka?
Sumiko: Arigatou!
Kimi: Itsumo NEKKURESU o shimasu. BURESURETTO mo shite, IYARINGU mo kakemasu.
Sumiko: Sou desu ka? Watashi wa itsumo boushi o kaburimasu.
Kimi: Sou desu ne. Ashita boushi o kaburimasu ka? Ame deshou ne.
Sumiko: Hontou ni? Samui deshou ka?
Kimi: Shirimasen. TEREBI de otenki no NYUUSU o mimashou ka?
Sumiko: Hai. [turns on TV] Aa! Ame desu.
Kimi: Sorekara samui desu. PANTSU o hakimasu.
Sumiko: Watashi mo. SUKAATO o hakimasen.
Kimi: SEETAA o kimasu ka BURAUSU o kimasu ka?
Sumiko: Eeto ... SEETAA o mochimasen. BURASU o kimasu.
Kimi: Sou desu ka? Watashi no SEETAA o kitai desu ka?
Sumiko: Kimi-chan no SEETAA o kite mo ii desu ka?
Kimi: Mochiron!
Sumiko: Arigatou! Kimi-chan wa ichiban suki na tomodachi desu.
Demo, nani o kimasu ka?
Kimi: Watashi no aoi BURAUSU o kimasu.
Let's look at this friendly conversation. Sumiko starts by saying, "Ah, your necklace is pretty! Where did you buy it?" Kimi replies that she bought it in the department store and asks if she wants to wear it.
Sumiko says thank you and Kimi continues, "I always wear a necklace.
I also wear a bracelet and earrings." Sumiko replise, "Is that so? I always wear a hat." Kimi replies, "You do. Will you wear a hat
tomorrow? It will probably rain." Sumiko asks if it mi ght be cold. Kimi replies, "I don't know. Shall we watch the weather report on the television?" Sumiko replies, "Yes. Oh! It will rain." Kimi adds in, "And then it will be cold. I will wear pants." Sumiko replies that she will too and won't wear a skirt. Kimi asks, "Will you wear a sweater or will you wear a blouse?" Sumiko replies, "Um ... I don't have a sweater. I will wear a blouse." Kimi replies, "Is that so? Do you want to wear my sweater?" Sumiko asks, "Is it all right to wear your sweater?" Kimi replies of course and Sumiko continued, "Thank you! You are my favorite friend. But, what will you wear?" Kimi says she will wear her blue blouse.
Vocabulary Review
着ます Kimasu- to wear (upper body) 履きます Hakimasu- to wear (lower body)
被ります Kaburimasu- to wear (head) 着物 Kimono- traditional Japanese dress 制服 Seifuku- school uniform
ブラウス BURAUSU- blouse ティーシャツ TII SHATSU- T-shirt シャツ SHATSU- shirt
ワイシャツ WAISHATSU- white collared shirt セーター SEETAA- sweater
コート KOOTO- coat
ジャケット JAKETTO- jacket ドレス DORESU- dress スカート SUKAATO- skirt ズボン ZUBON- trousers パンツ PANTSU- pants ジーンズ JIINZU- jeans ショーツ SHOOTSU- shorts 帽子 Boushi- hat
ネクタイ NEKUTAI- necktie ベルト BERUTO- belt
ネックレス NEKKURESU- necklace ブレスレット BURESURETTO- bracelet イヤリング IYARINGU- earrings