Lesson #4 -- Lesson Survival Phrase #1: "How do you say...?"
To close this short conversation guide, I'm going to give you a few phrases that can be lifesavers when talking to a teacher. These are particularly useful if you decide to take Japanese lessons with a teacher who doesn't speak very good English.
Xは何と言いますか。
X wa nan to iimasuka?
How do you say X?
You're probably best off just memorizing this flat out. 何, which is sometimes pronounced なん (nan) and sometimes pronounced なに (nani), means “what.” (Bonus Hint: Before と (to), 何 will always be pronounced なん (nan).)
言う (iu) means “to say.” And here we have the –masu form, which is 言います (iimasu).
と (to) is a particle that is used to mark stuff sometimes. I could explain it in confusing detail, but suffice it to say that sometimes when you stick it after a noun, it's like putting quotation marks around that word. So in this example, it would be like putting quotes around “何.” Confusing? Yeah, then don't worry about. That's a topic for a much later lesson.
Check this video for pronunciation. In it, she slips in 日本語で (nihongo de), which means “in Japanese:”
Xは日本語で何と言いますか。
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasuka?
How do you say X in Japanese?
Originally I left out “in Japanese,” because it should be obvious. But maybe a little clarity is a good thing, so let's memorize this with 日本語で / nihongo de included.
To prepare, just practice saying this sentence 28,000 times, inserting new things for X every time:
|
X |
Xは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say X in Japanese? |
|
cat |
Catは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say cat in Japanese? |
|
scissors |
Scissorsは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say scissors in Japanese? |
|
unemployment |
Unemploymentは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say unemployment in Japanese? |
|
painful |
Painfulは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say painful in Japanese? |
|
green tea |
Green teaは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say green tea in Japanese? |
|
tissue |
Tissueは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say tissue in Japanese? |
|
idiot |
Idiotは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say idiot in Japanese? |
|
friend |
Friendは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say friend in Japanese? |
|
snow |
Snowは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say snow in Japanese? |
|
weird |
Weirdは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say weird in Japanese? |
|
forget |
Forgetは日本語で何と言いますか |
X wa nihongo de nan to iimasu ka |
How do you say forget in Japanese? |
By the way, here are the answers:
|
cat |
猫 |
neko |
|
scissors |
はさみ |
hasami |
|
unemployment |
失業 |
shitsugyou |
|
painful |
痛い |
itai |
|
green tea |
緑茶 |
ryokucha |
|
tissue |
ティッシュ |
tisshu |
|
idiot |
バカ |
baka |
|
friend |
友達 |
tomodachi |
|
snow |
雪 |
yuki |
|
weird |
変 |
hen |
|
forget |
忘れる |
wasureru |
If you get a teacher who understands English well, you can now ask them what pretty much anything means. For example…
「I was hungover」は日本語で何と言いますか
How do you say “I was hungover” in Japanese?
Hangover / Hungover is 二日酔い (futsuka yoi), by the way. Add です (desu) or だ (da) to make it present tense. Or you can add でした (deshita) (formal) or だった (datta) (common; casual) to make it past tense:
|
二日酔いだ I'm hungover. |
二日酔いです I'm hungover. |
二日酔いでした I was hungover. |
二日酔いだった I was hungover. |
Most of you probably won't need that for your first lesson, I'm hoping. You never know, though…