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LANGUAGES JAPANESE JAPANESE FOR DUMMIES CHEAT SHEET

CHEAT SHEET

JAPANESE FOR DUMMIES CHEAT SHEET

From Japanese For Dummies, 2nd Edition
By Eriko Sato
If youre learning Japanese, you need the basics numbers, questions, and phrasesfor meeting, greeting, and
being polite. In Japanese, verbs change according to whether theyre negative or a rmative but not according to
the person whos the subject of the action. Japanese also has particles rather than the articles and prepositions
of English all of which adds up to a fascinating learning experience.

NUMBERS IN JAPANESE

One of the most basic skills in picking up any new language, including Japanese, is learning to count. The
following table shows Japanese numbers from 1 to 20 and selected higher numbers along with the
pronunciations in parentheses.

POLITE PHRASES IN JAPANESE

The Japanese place a premium on politeness, so the Japanese language includes key phrases to keep
conversation on a polite footing. The following list sets out common courteous Japanese phrases and questions:

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JAPANESE PHRASES FOR MEETING AND GREETING

The whole point of learning Japanese is to be able to converse, right? Knowing Japanese phrases for meeting,
greeting, and saying good-bye are important parts of conversation. Here are some phrases youll need when
youre meeting and greeting in Japanese:

HOW TO ASK QUESTIONS IN JAPANESE

As you travel in Japan and speak Japanese to everyone you meet, you need to ask questions. The standard who,
what, when, where, and why are in the following list, along with a few other useful questions.

JAPANESE GRAMMAR: PARTICLES

English grammar has articles and prepositions, but Japanese grammar has particles that follow a noun to show
the nouns function. Japanese particles denote such things as the topic of the sentence; the start point, end
point, and direction of the action; the tools and means of the action; and even the subject and direct object of
the sentence. The following table shows the Japanese particles with pronunciations in parentheses, their English
equivalents (if one exists), and their roles.

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JAPANESE VERB FORMS

To understand any language, including Japanese, you need to know verbs the words that convey action. Like
English verbs, Japanese verbs have a few eccentricities, so you need to keep a few facts in mind when youre
dealing with Japanese verbs:

Habitual actions and future actions use the same verb form, so taberu means I eat and I will eat. (You can
think of it as the Japanese equivalent of present tense.)

You dont conjugate according to person. It doesnt matter whos eating you use taberu for I eat, you eat,
he/she/it eats, We eat, and they eat.

Use the stem form if youre adding a su x to show politeness or another condition.

Use the te-form if youre adding another verb or an auxiliary verb to the main verb.

In Japanese, you dont conjugate verbs according to person; rather, you use di erent forms for present and past
tenses, for a rmative and negative statements, for polite and informal speech, and to convey respect. The
following table shows the various forms of taberu (to eat).

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LANGUAGES JAPANESE STAYING AT A JAPANESE HOTEL

STAYING AT A JAPANESE HOTEL

Choosing the right hoteru (hoh-teh-roo; hotel) can make any trip you take more enjoyable. Each day of your adventure
starts and ends at the hotel.

In the morning, a good hotel o ers you a refreshing breakfast, and at night, it o ers you a comfortable bed. Hopefully,
the clerks at the furonto (foo-rohn-toh; front desk) are kind and helpful. Having a great experience at a hoteru can
help make your trip a success.

CHECKING INTO A HOTEL

As soon as you tsuku (tsoo-koo; arrive) at a Japanese hotel, a bi-san (bohh-ee-sahn; bell hop) helps you with your
baggage. (If youre in Japan, theres no need to tip him. Isnt that amazing?)

Conjugate the verb tsuku (tsoo-koo; to arrive). Its a u-verb.

Form Pronunciation

tsuku tsoo-koo

tsukanai tsoo-kah-nah-ee

tsuki tsoo-kee

tsuite tsoo-ee-teh

Go to the furonto (foo-rohn-toh; front desk). If you dont have a reservation, ask them whether they have an akibeya
(ah-kee-beh-yah; vacancy). You can say Akibeya wa arimasu ka (ah-kee-beh-yah wah ah-ree-mah-soo kah; Any
vacancies?).

If you have a reservation or they have a vacancy, chekku-in suru (chehk-koo-een soo-roo; check in). Hotel clerks are
trained to speak very politely. If youre in Japan, a hotel clerk will address you with your name and -sama (sah-mah;
Mr./Ms.), which is the super-polite, business-like version of -san (sahn).

The clerk will probably give you a yshi (yohh-shee; form). Write your namae (nah-mah-eh; name), jsho (jooo-shoh;
address), and denwa-bang (dehn-wah-bahn-gohh; telephone number) on it. If the clerk asks, show him or her your
pasupto (pah-soo-pohh-toh; passport). Finally, get a kagi (kah-gee; key) for your heya (heh-yah; room).

Which oor is your room on? Is it on the nana-kai (nah-nah-kah-ee; seventh oor) or on the 37-kai (sahn-jooo-nah-
nah-kah-ee; 37th oor)? Specify your oor using a numeral plus the counter -kai.

Which room is yours? Refer to your room using a numeral plus the counter-gshitsu (gohh-shee-tsoo).Is it 502-
gshitsu (goh-hyah-koo-nee-gohh-shee-tsoo; room #502) or 2502-gshitsu (nee-sehn-goh-hyah-koo-nee-gohh-shee-
tsoo; room #2502)?

As you check in, you may want to ask where the parking garage is, whether the hotel has room service, and how to get a
wake-up call. You may want to request kurningu sbisu (koo-reee-neen-goo sahh-bee-soo; laundry service) or use
the hotel kinko (keen-koh; safe) to store your valuables. Ask all of your questions when you check in so that you can
neru (neh-roo; sleep) well. Some or all of the following phrases may come in handy:

Chekku-auto wa nan-ji desu ka. (chehk-koo-ah-oo-toh wah nahn-jee deh-soo kah; When is checkout time?)

Chshoku wa tsuite imasu ka. (chohh-shoh-koo wah tsoo-ee-teh ee-mah-soo kah; Is breakfast included?)

Chshaj wa doko desu ka. (chooo-shah-johh wah doh-koh deh-soo kah; Where is the parking garage?)

Watashi ni dengon wa arimasen ka. (wah-tah-shee nee dehn-gohn wah ah-ree-mah-sehn kah; Are there any

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messages for me?)

Rmu sbisu wa arimasu ka. (rooo-moo sahh-bee-soo wah ah-ree-mah-soo kah; Do you o er room service?)

Ashita no roku-ji ni mningu kru o onegaishimasu. (ah-shee-tah noh roh-koo-jee nee mohh-neen-goo kohh-
roo oh oh-neh-gah-ee-shee-mah-soo; Give me a morning wake-up call at six oclock tomorrow, please.)

Conjugate the verb neru (neh-roo; to sleep). Its a ru-verb.

Form Pronunciation

neru neh-roo

nenai neh-nah-ee

ne neh

nete neh-teh

Words to Know

chekku-in chehk-koo-een check-in

-gshitsu gohh-shee-tsoo room number [counter]

kagi kah-gee key

mningu kru mohh-neen-goo kohh-roo wake-up call

neru [ru] neh-roo to sleep

rmu sbisu rooo-moo sahh-bee-soo room service

tsuku [u] tsoo-koo to arrive

CHECKING OUT OF A HOTEL

Its chekku-auto (chehk-koo-ah-oo-toh; checkout) time! Pack up your stu and dont wasureru (wah-soo-reh-roo;
forget) anything in your room. Go to the furonto (foo-rohn-toh; front desk) to chekku-auto and pay your bill. You may
see some additional charges on your bill:

denwary (dehn-wah-ryohh; telephone usage charge)

inshokury (een-shoh-koo-ryohh; food and drink charge)

kurningudai (koo-reee-neen-goo-dah-ee; laundry charge)

zkin (zehh-keen; tax)

If you need further assistance from the hotel sta after checking out, just ask them.

Go-ji made nimotsu o azukatte kudasai. (goh-jee mah-deh nee-moh-tsoo oh ah-zoo-kaht-teh koo-dah-sah-ee;
Please keep my baggage here until ve oclock.)

Ryshsho o kudasai. (ryohh-shooo-shoh oh koo-dah-sah-ee; Please give me the receipt.)

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Takush o yonde kudasai. (tah-koo-sheee oh yohn-deh koo-dah-sah-ee; Please call a taxi.)

If the clerks can accommodate your request, theyll say kekk desu (kehk-kohh deh-soo; its good). Kekk desu is the
polite version of ii desu (eee deh-soo; its good).

Just be careful. Both kekk desu and ii desu can mean either thats ne or no thank you,
depending on the situation. If a clerk says kekk desu as a reply to one of your requests, it means
thats ne. But if someone says kekk desu right after you o er him or her a drink, it means no
thank you.

By adding masen ka (mah-sehn kah)at the end of a request like tabete kudasai (tah-beh-teh
koo-dah-sah-ee; eat please), you can make the request sound a bit softer and more polite. For
example, tabete kudasai masen ka sounds much more polite than tabete kudasai. Masen is
just a polite su x in the negative form and ka is the question particle. It means something like
Wouldnt you? or Would you mind? Use masenka when you ask a favor of a hotel clerk.

Words to Know

chekku-auto chehk-koo-ah-oo-toh checkout

denwary dehn-wah-ryohh telephone usage charge

harau [u] hah-rah-oo to pay

inshokury een-shoh-koo-ryohh food and drink charge

kurningudai koo-reee-neen-goo-dah-ee laundry charge

nimotsu nee-moh-tsoo luggage/baggage

ryshsho ryohh-shooo-shoh receipt

skysho sehh-kyooo-shoh bill

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