Intermediate Japanese 305 - Basic information about Japan

Practice Each Sentence

1.

Nihon wa ookiku 4-tsu no chihoo ni kubun saremasu.

ookiku ku form of ookii; roughly, in a big way [adv], ookii big, large [adj]
yottsu four, chihoo local, region
kubun [sv] divide, classify, saremasu passive form of suru

2.

Hokkaidoo, Honshuu, Shikoku, soreni, Kyuushuu desu.

soreni and also, besides

3.

Sarani, Honshuu wa 7-tsu no chihoo ni kubun saremasu.

sarani moreover, furthermore, nanatsu seven
chihoo local, region, kubun [sv] divide, classify

4.

Sorezore no chihoo ni yotte, kikoo mo tenki mo kotonarimasu.

sorezore each, chihoo local, region
kikoo climate, tenki weather, A-mo, B-mo both A and B
-ni yotte kotonarimasu differ depending on, vary depending on, change depending on, it depends on
-ni yotte according to, depending on, kotonaru to be different, differ, vary

5.

Mata, tabemono ya shuukan mo chigaimasu.

mata also, tabemono food, -ya A, B, etc.
shuukan custom, habit, chigaimasu to be different, differ, vary

chigaimasu / chigau has two meanings "be different" and "be wrong".
kotonarimasu / kotonaru (line 4) does not have the meaning as "be wrong".
kotonaru is formal and chigau is normally used to mean "be different" in daily conversation.

6.

Hokkaidoo no kikoo wa, fuyu wa samukute, natsu wa suzushii desu.

kikoo climate, fuyu winter, samukute te form of samui used as a conjunction; cold
natsu summer, suzushii cool

7.

Toohoku-chihoo to Hokuriku-chihoo mo fuyu wa oo-yuki ga furimasu.

-mo also, too, fuyu winter, oo-yuki heavy snow
yuki ga furimasu to snow, furimasu to fall (rain, snow)

8.

Ippoo, Kantoo-chihoo ya Tookai-chihoo no kikoo wa ondan desu.

ippoo on the other hand, -ya A, B, etc.
kikoo climate, ondan warm, mild (climate)

9.

Fuyu wa yuki ga furimasu ga, Hokkaidoo ya Hokuriku hodo janai desu.

fuyu winter, yuki ga furimasu to snow, -ga a conjunction meaning "but"
-hodo janai not as much as, not that much

10.

Kyuushuu to Shikoku wa mai-toshi Taifuu no higai o ukemasu.

mai-toshi every year, taifuu typhoon, higai o ukemasu have damege, be damaged
higai damage, harm, ukemasu to receive, be given, have

11.

Toohoku-chihoo ya Hokkaidoo mo Taifuu no higai o ukemasu ga, Kyuushuu ya Shikoku hodo janai desu.

-ga a conjunction meaning "but", -hodo janai not as much as, not that much

12.

Tokyo o chuushin to shita Kantoo ni taishi, Osaka o chuushin to shita chiiki o "Kansai" to yobimasu.

-o chuushin to shita centering on, based, mainly, chuushin center, core
-ni taishi to, against, while, compared with, chiiki region, area, zone
-to yobimasu we call it ..., -to quotation marker

13.

Kantoo to Kansai de wa ryoori no aji ga chigaimasu.

ryoori cooking, food, dish, cuisine, aji taste, flavor
chigaimasu to be different, differ, vary

14.

Shoo-shuukan mo chigaimasu.

shoo-shuukan business custom, business practice, -mo also, too
shoo- comes from shoo-gyoo "commerce, business", shuukan custom, habit

15.

Kantoo to Kansai de wa hito no Kishitsu mo daibu chigaimasu.

hito person, people, kishitsu nature, temperament
daibu quite, rather, chigaimasu to be different, differ, vary

16.

Kantoo no hito ni kurabete, Kansai no hito wa yoku Shaberimasu.

-ni kurabete compared to/with, kurabete te form of kuraberu; compare
yoku frequently, always, a lot, shaberimasu to talk, chat

17.

Kono tame ka, Kantoo no hito wa Kansai no hito o "Urusai" to kanji, Kansai no hito wa Kantoo no hito o "Tsumetai" to kanjiru yoo desu.

kono tame ka Perhaps as a result of this, Perhaps because of this
urusai noisy, -to quotation marker; that, which, as, kanji stem of kanjiru; feel
tsumetai cold / unfriendly, kanjiru to feel, -yoo desu it seems, it looks

The verb stem such as kanji is often used as a conjunction "and" in written language.
The verb te form is normally used as the conjunction in spoken language.

18.

Genzai, terebi de katsuyaku suru Owarai-Geinin wa Kansai-jin o chuushin to shita hito-tachi desu.

genzai present, current, now, terebi de on TV
katsuyaku [sv] play actively, performing well, good showing
owarai-geinin comedian, o-warai comes from waraimasu "to laugh", geinin entertainer
Kansai-jin Kansai people, -o chuushin to shita centering on, based, mainly
hito-tachi people, hito person, people, -tachi making plural for people

19.

Mata, Nihon no dai-kigyoo no Sooritsu-sha ni wa Kansai-jin ga ooi desu.

mata also, dai-kigyoo large company, dai- big, large, great, kigyoo company, corporation
sooritsu-sha founder, -sha person, people, -ga ooi there are many, has many

20.

Nihon wa chiisana Tan'itsu-Minzoku Kokka desu ga, yoku miru to, kekkoo tayoo na kuni desu.

chiisana small, tan'itsu-minzoku single race, homogeneous race, minzoku race, ethnic group, nation
kokka nation, state, country (formal), -desu ga a conjunction meaning "but"
yoku carefully, well, miru to watch, see, look, -to when, if
kekkoo quite, pretty, very, tayoo [na] various, diverse
kuni nation, state, country (general)

Vocabulary & Pick Up