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THE USE OF EACH ITEM  1.MAS[ affirmative ];MASEN[ negative ] - GENERAL STATEMENT; FUTURE TENSE For polite speech,we suffix "mas" to verbs in the affirmative cases and "masen"in the negative cases.Any verb suffixed "mas" or "masen" refers to general statement or the future. Such a verb suffixed with "mas" is of the same meaning as itsinfinitive form;that is,"ka-u(=buy)"and "ka-i-mas(=buy)"are exactly the same.But when you close a sentence with the infinitive form,it is impolite. EX. Chichi-wa mai-asa koohii-o no-mu. -IMPOLITE Chichi-wa mai-asa koohii-o no-mi-mas. - POLITE (=My father drinks coffee every morning.) (1) Used for general statement Generally speaking,when the same thing happens through the past and the future,we must use the expression of general statement.In other words,general statement covers both the past and the future. The original right type of verbs which express general statement should be their infinitive form and the form suffixed with "mas" as "a-u(=meet)" and "a-i-mas(=meet)" respectively. In the following examples,we mean "Mr.Hara has done something so far" and "he will do the same thing in the future,too" respectively. EX. Hara-san-wa mai-nichi kono computer-o tsuka-i-mas. (=Mr.Hara uses this computer every day.) Hara-san-wa itsumo shokudoo de chuushoku-o tabe-mas. (=Mr.Hara always eats lunch at the cafeteria.) (2)Used for the future EX.Kyoo-no gogo Aoki-san-ni a-i-mas. (=I will meet Ms.Aoki this afternoon.) Okada-san-wa kon-ya concert ni i-ki-mas. (=Mr.Okada is going to a concert tonight.) (3) General statement and the future There is no difference in Japanese between general statement and the future. Therefore,such independent sentences can be translated in two days as follows in English. EX. Yano-san-wa bus de kaisha ni i-ki-mas. (=Ms.Yano goes to the office by bus.) - GENERAL STATEMENT (=Ms.Yano will go to the office by bus.) - THE FUTURE Chichi-wa shichi-ji-no news-o mi-mas. (=Father watches the seven o'clock news.) - GENERAL STATEMENT (=Father will watch the seven o'clock news.) - THE FUTURE (4) With an adverb which refers to the future When a sentence has an adverb which refers to the future,it must be translated as follows in English;that is,in the future. EX. Sore ni-tsu-ite ato-de hana-shi-mas. (=I will tell you about it later on.) Yano-san-wa rai-getsu Yokohama e ko-shi-mas. (=Ms.Yano will move to Yokohama next month.) (5) With an adverb which refers to a custom,habit,etc. When there is an adverb,which refers to a custom,habit,etc.,in a sentence,we must translate it in general statement. EX. Ueda-san-wa tokidoki golf-ni i-ki-mas. - HABIT (=Mr.Ueda sometimes goes golfing.) Arai-san-wa itsumo roku-ji ni oki-mas. - HABIT (=Mr.Arai always gets up at six.) Nihon-jin-wa yoku o-cha-o no-mi-mas. - CUSTOM (=The Japanese often drink green tea.) Sakana-wa natsu ni naga-ku mo-chi-masen. - QUALITY (=Fish don't keep long in summer.) (6) Used for the present tense "Mas" and "masen" are used for the present as well as the future. EX. Haha-wa daidokoro ni i-mas. (=Mother is in the kitchen.) Fujita-san-wa kono mise de keshoohin-o ka-imas. (=Ms.Fujita buys cosmetics at this shop.) ー TO THE TOP  2. MASHTA[affermative];MASEN-DESHTA[negative] - THE PASTWe can translate a verb suffixed with "mashta" or "masen-deshta" in two ways in English as the following examples.This is because we have no definite expression to distinguish between past tense and present perfect tense in Japanese.It depends on the circumstances or the precedence of a sentence whether we should translate such a verb into the past or the present perfect. EX. Oda-san-wa yubiwa-o credit de ka-i-mashta. (=Ms.Oda bought the ring on credit.) (=Ms.Oda has bought the ring on credit.) Terebi-no shichi-ji-no news-o mi-masen-deshta. (=I didn't watch the seven o'clock news on TV.) (=I haven't watched the seven o'clock news on TV.) ー TO THE TOP  3. DESHOO( I think that..... )"I" and "you" are involved in "deshoo",and its negative form "nai deshoo(=I don't think)" and interrogative form "deshoo ka(=Do you think.....?)" need not mention them as well. (1) Used for uncertain statement Suppose that Ms.Suzuki asks you if "Mr.Mori has already had beer",there will be the following two possible ansers: (a) In case you saw him drinking beer in the dining room: ”Hai,no-mi-mashta." (=Yes,he has.) (b) When you did not go to the dining room,though Mr.Mori,who said he was thirsty, was there,you should say in the following way.This is because you are not sure if he had beer: "No-nda deshoo." (=I think he has.) (2) "Deshoo" suffixed "mas","mashta","masen" and "masen-deshta" As to the use of "deshoo" for "mas","masen",etc.,it makes no difference whether it is suffixed to a verb or to an auxiliary verb as you see in the following: EX. Naomi-wa piano-o hi-ki-mas(or hi-ku) deshoo. - VERB (=I think Naomi plays the piano.) Naomi-wa piano-o hi-ku koto deki-mas(or koto deki-ru) deshoo. - AUXILIARY (=I think Naomi can play the piano.) VERB "Deshoo" has no negative form.That's why its objective clause must be changed into a negative form in Japanese as follows: EX. Abe-san-wa kuruma-o ka-i-masen(or ka-wa nai) deshoo. (=I don't think Mr.Abe will buy a car.) Akira-wa sakana-o tabe-masen-deshta(or tabe nakatta) deshoo. (=I didn't think Akira ate fish.) (3) "Deshoo" can not be used together with "des" "Des" and "deshoo" correspond to "will" and "would" of English.This means that we can not use these two words together.But "deshoo" can be suffixed to "datta" or "deshta",which is the past form of "des",as follows: EX. Sono hito-wa america-jin datta deshoo. (=I hink the man was an American.) Shooten-gai-wa nigiyaka datta(=deshta) deshoo. (=I think the shopping mall was prosperous.) A verb "des" and any auxiliary verb which ends in "des" can be replaced with "deshoo" as follows: EX. Soo des. (=It is so.;That is right.) Soo deshoo. (=I think so.:I think that is right.) Kuruma-o tsuka-tte mo-ii-des. (=You may use the car.) Kuruma-o tsuka-tte mo-ii-deshoo. (=I think you may use the car.) Ken-wa juice-o no-mi tai-des. (=Ken wishes to drink juice.) Ken-wa juice-o no-mi tai-deshoo. (=I think Ken wishes to drink juice.) (4) Interrogative form The proper translation of "deshoo ka?" is "Do you think that...?".As stated below, we do not mention "you" which is assumed. EX. Oil-no nedan-wa saga-ri-mas(or saga-ru) deshoo ka. (=Do you think that oil prices will go down?) Mori-san-wa moo kae-ri-mashta(or kae-tta) deshoo ka. (=Do you think Mr.Mori went back yet?) The interrogative form used for polite speech corresponds to "May I.....?" of English polite expression.As you see in the following first example,this phrase can be translated in two ways acccording to the circumstance. EX. Wada-san-wa Fukuoka e i-ki-mashta(or i-tta) deshoo ka. (=Do you think Mr.Wada has gone to Fukuoka?) (=May I ask you if Mr.Wada has gone to Fukuoka?) Denwa-o kari-te mo-ii-deshoo ka (=May I use the telephone?) (5) Abbreviation of "deshoo ka" By emphasizing "deshoo"in pronunciation,we can use it for the following meanings. EX. Aoki-san-wa ashta ki-mas(or kuru) deshoo. (=Ms.Aoki will come tomorrow.Do you think so?) Kono keeki-wa oishi-katta deshoo. (=Don't you think this cake was delicious?) ー TO THE TOP 4. MASHOO( LET US; I WILL )It is advisable for beginners not to use "mashoo" in the meaning of "One will" because it may be easily misunderstood as "Let us".For the meaning of "One will",it would be better to use "mas" which means the future. EX. Konya eega ni i-ki mashoo. (=Let us go to the movies tonight.) Koohii-o ire mashoo. （=Let us make you a cup of coffee.) Ashta Sendai e i-ki-mas. (=I will go to Sendai tomorrow.) ー TO THE TOP  5. MASHOO KA( SHALL WE; SHALL I )In practice,there is not much difference between this form and "mashoo(=Let us)".This similarity is also true in English as the following third example. EX. Kono shatsu-o ara-i mashoo ka. (=Shall I wash this shirt?) Koohii-o no-mi mashoo ka. (=Shall we have a cup of coffee?) Konya concert ni i-ki mashoo ka. (=Let's go to the concert tonight,shall we?) We can say that "mashoo ka" is more polite than "mashoo" because the latter is something like a command while the former asks the intention of a person. ー TO THE TOP 6. MASU-MAI( I WILL NOT; LET US NOT )"Masu-mai" is an auxiliary verb.But it is rarely that we use this word. EX. Watashi-wa moo Arai-san-ni a-i mas-mai. (=I will not meet Mr.Arai yet.) ー TO THE TOP 7. NAGARA.....( WHILE..... ) - ConjunctionWhen the subject of both the principal and subordinate clauses are the same and actions of these two clauses run at the same time,we generally use a conjunction "nagara". EX. Harumi-wa ongaku-o ki-ki nagara yuushoku-o tsuku-tte i-mas. (=Harumi is preparing dinner while (she is) listening to music.) Abe-san-wa kagami-o mi nagara kami-o toka-shte i-mas. (=Ms. Abe is combing her hair while (she is) looking in the mirror.) Though the verb of past tense is conjugated in section 1,its tense is shown by the main verb as following examples: EX. Harumi-wa ongaku-o ki-ki nagara yuushoku-o tsuku-tte i-mashta. (=Harumi was preparing dinner while (she was) listening to music.) Abe-san-wa kagami-o mi nagara kami-o toka-shte i-mashta. (=Ms.Abe was combing her hair while (she was) looking in the mirror.) ー TO THE TOP 8. NASAI( DO.....! ) - IMPERATIVE(1) How was "nasai" derived? There are four Japanese words for "do" as follows: "suru" - used for an ending of a verb "ya-ru" - used for "try(=ya-tte mi-ru)" "ita-su" - HUMBLE "nasa-ru" - POLITE Among them, "nasa-ru" is used as an auxiliary verb in order to express imperative.The following example shows how "nasa-i" came. "nasa-ru" (=do) - Infinitive form "Nasa-re!" (=Do it!) - Old type - SECTION 6 "Nasa-e!" (=Do it!) - "r" of the ending "-re" was left out. "Nasa-i!" (=Do it!) - Pronunciation changed from "e" into "i". EX.. Te-o ara-i nasai! (=Wash your hands!) Sugu-ni heya-o sooji-shi nasai! (=Clean the room at once!) (2) Why can "o" be prefixed? An imperative sentence made up of "nasai" is pretty strong.Therefore,by prefixing "o" to the verb,we make it milder or more polite. When a verb passes through the WINDOW of SECTION 2,it becomes a "noun type".This is the reason why we can prefix "o",which can be used only for a noun,to the verb conjugated in SECTION 2.Only when a verb is suffixed with "nasai",we can prefix it with "o" as follows: EX. O-yasu-mi nasai. (=Please take a rest. or Good night.) O-no-mi nasai. (=Please drink it.) O-yo-shi nasai. (=Please stop it.) O-kae-ri nasai. (=Hello! or Welcome back!) ー TO THE TOP 9. NI( IN ORDER TO.....) - POSTPOSITIONWhen we use verbs "go","come" and "return" as main verbs,postposition "ni" in SECTION 2 is usually used for "in order to". EX. Hiroshi-wa digital-camera-o ka-i ni Akihabara e i-ki-mas. (=Hiroshi will go to Akihabara to buy a digital camera.) We can analyze this sentence as follows: Hiroshi to Akihabara → go + will to buy a digital camera Except for the verb "go" and the auxiliary verb "will" on the right side of the above table,this sentence consists of three units as you can see on the left side,namely"Hiroshi","to Akihabara" and " to buy a digital camera".Of course,there is no definite order among three in Japanese. Although "to buy a digital camera" consists of five words,the whole makes a unit,and no other word can come in this phrase. Grammartically,we can interpret "to buy a digital camera"as "for buying a digital camera".This is Japanese way of thinking.Namely,in this phrase,"a digital camera" must precede a verb "buy",which is changed into "buying",while the preposition "for" must come after the verb noun "buying" because it is a postposition in Japanese as follows: digital-camera-o ka-i ni (a digital camera) (buying) (for) ↑ ↑ [VERB NOUN] [POSTPOSITION] EX. Oda-san-wa toki-doki eega-o mi ni i-ki-mas. (=Mr.Oda sometimes goes to see the movies.) Daiku-ga yuka-o nao-shi ni ki-mashta. (=A carpenter came to repair the floor.) ー TO THE TOP 10. TAI-DES( WISH TO;WANT TO;WOULD LIKE TO )The word "ta-i(=desirous)" is a true adjective,and its conjugation is the same as that of other true adjectives;that is,ending "-i" doesn't change before "des(=be)". We can not use this independently. In other words,it is used only in combination with a verb as is often the case with the other Japanese auxiliary verbs. EX. Yumiko-wa France-go-o nara-i tai-des. (=Yumiko wants to learn French.) Yuu-shoku ni steeki-o tabe tai-des. (=I would like to eat steak for dinner.) ー TO THE TOP 11. KATA( HOW TO;A MANNER;WAY;METHOD )In Japanese,this use of "kata" makes a noun,such as "tsku-ri kata(=how to make)", "yo-mi kata(=how to read)",etc.Therefore,we should suffix "no" to the noun,which comes before it,to combine two nouns. EX. Seeto-ni computer-no tsuka-i kata-o oshie-te i-mas. (=I instruct the students how to use the computer.) Chichi-wa yasai-no tsukuri kata no hon-o ka-i-mashta. (=My father bought a book on how to grow vegetables.) Shi kata-ga ari-masen. or Shi kata-ga nai des. (=Ther is no way of doing. or It can't be helped.) The above third example sounds more emphatic when you say as follows: Shi yoo-ga nai des. (=It's hopeless.) ー TO THE TOP 12. SOO-DES( LIKELY TO DO;LOOK;SEEM;APPEAR )(1) Verbs + "soo-des" "Soo-des" in this section requires any verb to take noun form.This is why we use SECTION 2 through the window of which a verb changes into a noun form. EX. Oil no nedan-ga rai-getsu aga-ri soo-des. (=The price of oil is likely to rise next month.) Ashta ame-ga fu-ri soo-des. (=It is likely to rain tomorrow.) (2) True adjective + "soo-des" In this combination,a true adjective must eliminate its ending "-i" to become a noun form. EX. Kono niku-wa kata soo-des. [ kata-i = tough ] (=This meat looks tough.) Soto-wa atsu soo-deshta. [ atsu-i = hot ] (=It looked hot outside.) Both "yo-i(=good)" and "na-i(=not)" are true adjectives.But unlike other true adjectives,these two take such noun forms as shown in the following examples in combination with "soo-des". EX. Sono eega-wa yo-sa soo-des. [ yo-i = good ] (=That movie looks good.) Noda-san-wa isogashi-ku na-sa soo-deshta. (=Mr.Noda did not look busy.) (3) Quasi-adjectives + "soo-des" A quasi-adjective consists of "noun + of",for example, "yukai-na(=enjoyment + of(=na)","hontoo-no(=truth + of(=no)",etc.Naturally,when we leave out "of(=no or na)",it becomes a noun. EX. Shooten-gai-wa itsumo nigiyaka soo-des. [ nigiyaka-na = busy ] (=The shopping mall looks busy all the time.) Kono hotel-wa kankoo ni benri soo-des. [ benri-na = convenient ] (=This hotel looks convenient for sightseeing.) ー TO THE TOP 13. NIKUI( DIFFICULT TO DO );YASUI( EASY TO DO )Both "niku-i(=difficult)" and "yasu-i(=easy)" are true adjectives.As shown in the following examples,they make the same conjugation as the other true adjectives. EX. Kono doa-wa shime niku-i des. (=This door is hard to close.) Kono mondai-wa watashi ni-wa to-ki niku-katta des. (=This problem was difficult for me to solve.) Kono pasokon-wa tsuka-i yasu-i des. (=This personal computer is easy to handle. Sono text-wa waka-ri yasu-katta des. (=That text was easy to understand.) ー TO THE TOP |
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