Learn Japanese Conversation

Building Up Japanese - Lesson 6

I'm going to a bank today - Going & Coming

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Romaji
Romaji
Satoo:Greg-san wa itsu Nihon ni kimashita ka?
Greg:Sengetsu kimashita.
Satoo:Uchi wa doko desu ka?
Greg:Hiroo desu.
Satoo:Dooyatte kaisha ni ikimasu ka?
Greg:Chikatetsu de ikimasu.
Satoo:Uchi kara kaisha made donogurai kakarimasu ka?
Greg:30-pun gurai desu.
Satoo:Ashita doko ni ikimasu ka?
Greg:Ashita wa tomodachi to kaimono ni ikimasu.
Satoo-san wa?
Satoo:Watashi wa kaisha no hito to gorufu ni ikimasu.
Greg:Soo desu ka.
Satoo:When did you come to Japan?
Greg:I came to Japana last month.
Satoo:Where is your house?
Greg:In Hiroo.
Satoo:How do you go to your office?
Greg:I go to my office by subway.
Satoo:How long does it take from your house to your office?
Greg:It takes about 30 minutes.
Satoo:Where will you go tomorrow?
Greg:I will go shopping with my friend tomorrow. How about you?
Satoo:I'm going to (play) golf with my colleagues.
Greg:I see.

Key Sentences

1.Watashi wa kyoo ginkoo ni ikimasu.
I will go to the bank today.
2.Kodomo wa 3-ji goro uchi ni kaerimasu.
My child comes back home around 3 o'clock.
3.Watashi wa sen-getsu Nihon ni kimashita.
I came to Japan last month.
4.Q:Nichi-yoobi doko ni ikimasu ka?
A:Umi ni ikimasu.
Q:Where will you go on Sunday?
A:I will go to the beach. (lit. go to the sea)
5.Katoo-san wa natsu-yasumi kazoku to Bari ni ikimashita.
Katoo went to Bali with his family for the summer holidays.
6.Q:Dare to Kyuushuu ni ikimasu ka?
A:Kaisha no hito to ikimasu.
Q:Whom will you go to Kyushu With?
A:I will go with a person from my office.
7.Watashi wa densha de kaisha ni ikimasu.
I go to my office by train.
8.Q:Dooyatte kaisha ni ikimasu ka?
A:Chikatetsu de ikimasu.
Q:How do you go to your office?
A:I go by subway.

Grammar Notes

Ikimasu, kimasu, kaerimasu "to go", "to come", "to return"

Ikimasu, "to go", kimasu, "to come" and kaerimasu, "to return" are verbs.
These verbs come at the end of the sentence and conjugate to show present or past tenses as well as affirmative and negative.
In Japanese, there are two tenses, past and non-past. Since there is no future tense the non-past is used for both habitual action and future tense.

  Affirmative Negative
non-past iki-masu iki-masen
Past iki-mashita iki-masendeshita
  Non-Past
Affirmative
Non-Past
Negative
Past
Affirmative
Past
Negative
go ikimasu ikimasen ikimashita ikimasendeshita
come kimasu kimasen kimashita kimasendeshita
return kaerimasu kaerimasen kaerimashita kaerimasendeshita

(place) ni ikimasu

The place you are going or coming to is indicated by the particle ni or e, which means "to".
Our materials use ni. The particle ni is an indirect object marker.
This particle follows an indirect object such as direction of an action or a purpose of going or coming.
The subject is often omitted if it is understood; "time" or "place" can be also omitted if they are understood. When you omit "place" you must also omit the particle ni.

1.Watashi wa ashita Osaka ni ikimasu.
I will go (I'm going) to Osaka tomorrow.
2.Smith-san wa sengetsu Nihon ni kimashita.
Smith came to Japan last month.
3.Watashi wa konban 8-ji goro uchi ni kaerimasu.
I will return home around 8:00 tonight.
4.A:Kinoo doko ni ikimashita ka?
B:Sukii ni ikimashita.
A:Where did you go yesterday?
B:I went skiing.

Densha de "by train"

The particle de expresses a means or a way, for example, densha de "by train", kuruma de "by car". When asking "how", dooyatte is commonly used.
There is an exception: "by foot" is aruite, or aruite ikimasu meaning "go by foot".

densha de by train jitensha de by bicycle
chikatetsu de by subway hikooki de by plane
kuruma de by car aruite by foot, on foot
1.Watashi wa densha de kaisha ni ikimasu.
I go to my office by train.
2.Susan-san wa aruite kaimono ni ikimasu.
Susan goes shopping by foot.
3.A:Dooyatte kaisha ni ikimasu ka?
B:Kuruma de ikimasu.
A:How do you go to your office?
B:I go by car.

(Person) to "with person"

"With person" is indicated by the particle to, Katoo-san to, "with Katoo".
"Alone" is hitori de: hitori de ikimasu "I'll go alone".
Dare means "who" and dare to means "with whom".

Smith-san to with Smith kaisha no hito to with my colleague
tomodachi to with my friend hitori de alone, by myself
kazoku to with my family    
1.Watashi wa ashita Katoo-san to Ginza ni ikimasu.
I will go to Ginza with Katoo tomorrow.
2.Watashi wa hitori de kaimono ni ikimashita.
I went shopping alone.
3.A:Dare to umi ni ikimashita ka?
B:Tomodachi to ikimashita.
A:Who did you go to the beach with?
B:I went with my friend(s).

Wa "Topic marker"

The particle wa follows a subject or a topic of a sentence.
The topic often refers to the same thing as the subject, but not necessarily.

a.Watashi wa ashita kaimono ni ikimasu.
I will go shopping tomorrow.
b.Satoo:Greg-san wa ashita doko ni ikimasu ka?
Greg:(Watashi wa) Ashita wa kaimono ni ikimasu.
Satoo:Where are you going tomorrow?
Greg:As for tomorrow, I'm going shopping.

In a), Watashi is a subject of a sentence. In b), the subject is Watashi and ashita is a topic of a sentence.
Satoo asked Greg about tomorrow's schedule and Greg presented ashita as a topic of a statement with the particle wa. A topic can be an object, time, place, etc.

(time) ni "Specific time marker"

The particle ni also follows specific time and expresses an accurate time.
You cannot put the time marker ni to the relative time words.

Specific time

time 1-ji, 2-ji, 3-ji, ... 1:00, 2:00, 3:00
days of the week getsu-yoobi, ka-yoobi, ... Monday, Tuesday
dates of the month tsuitachi, futsuka, mikka, ... 1st., 2nd., 3rd.
months 1-gatsu, 2-gatsu, 3-gatsu, ... January, February, March
years 2004-nen, 2005-nen, ... 2004, 2005

Relative time

days kinoo, kyoo, ashita yesterday, today, tomorrow
weeks senshuu, konshuu, raishuu last week, this week, next week
months sengetsu, kongetsu, raigetsu last mont, this month, next month
years kyonen, kotoshi, rainen last year, this year, next year
morning, night asa, hiru, ban morning, noon, night
Watashi wa do-yoobi ni Osaka ni ikimasu.Specific time
Watashi wa ashita ni Osaka ni ikimasu.Relative time

You can omit the time marker ni.

Watashi wa getsu-yoobi ni Kyoto ni ikimasu.
Watashi wa getsu-yoobi Kyoto ni ikimasu.
I will go to Kyoto on Monday.

Vocabulary

aruite

by foot, by walking

ashita

tomorrow

Bari

Bali island

chikatetsu

subway

chikatetsu de

by subway

dare

who

dare to

with whom

de

particle indicating a means, way or method, "by"

densha

train

densha de

by train

desu

is, are, am

doko

where

donogurai

how long, how far, how much, how big

dooyatte

how (asking a means)

do-yoobi

Saturday

getsu-yoobi

Monday

ginkoo

bank

goro

around (time)

gorufu

golf

gurai

about, approximately

Hiroo

place name

hito

person, people

hitori

one person

hitori de

alone, by oneself

ikimasu

to go

itsu

when

ji (-ji)

o'clock, time

ka?

question marker

kaerimasu

to return, go home

kaimono

shopping

kaisha

company, office

kaisha no hito

co-worker, colleague, person from one's office

kakarimasu

to take time, to cost

kara

from

kazoku

family

kazoku to

with family

kimasu

to come

kinoo

yesterday

kodomo

child, children, kid

konban

tonight

kuruma

car

kyoo

today

Kyuushuu

place name

made

till, until, to

natsu-yasumi

summer holidays, summer vacation

ni

particle indicating an indirect object or a direction of an action

ni

particle indicating a specific time

nichi-yoobi

Sunday

Osaka

place name

pun (-pun)

minutes

sengetsu

last month

sen-getsu

last month

soo desu ka

I see

sukii

ski, skiing

to

and / with (person)

tomodachi

friend

tomodachi to

with friend

uchi

house, home

umi

sea, ocean, beach

wa

particle indicating a topic or a subject

watashi

I

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