If I wanna say, Check out this jacket I bought today. It's cool, yeah?

Then I might say...

Well, I wouldn't know what to say.

Because I get so confused about different words for "jacket" in Japanese.

Especially because they all use English words!

Let's take a look...

This is a ジャケット, a "jacket"：

So it's like a "suit jacket."

But people aren't always wearing it with suits, so I asked Rei if I could call it a "blazer."

She said, No, blazers are usually for school uniform jackets...

This is a ブレザー, a "blazer"：

I guess that makes sense...?

Because you learn about trailblazers in school. ^_^

This is a コート, a "coat"：

So it's like a big (often long), warm coat or jacket.

That sounds about right.

What does not sound right to me is...

This is a パーカー, a "parka"：

That does not look like a "parka" to me.

Looks just like a "sweatshirt" to me.

The best word, though, is probably "hoodie," because if I'm not mistaken, パーカー always have hoods.

Like the "hoodie" being worn in this picture of Peter "Parker:"

(Note: Photo is from Fun.com.)

On a side note, google tells me that this is a "parka" (in English):

Google and I are good friends.

This is a ジャンパー, a "jumper"：

Rei told me that her image of a ジャンパー is that it's puffy (i.e. has down feathers in it) and warm.

I guess the picture explains best?

Or we can remember that all that padding in "jumpers" is good for when you "jump" from high places.

This is a トレーナー, a "trainer"：

So a "trainer" is a sweatshirt with no hood... apparently.

Because you can't "train" when there's a hood in your way.

This is a セーター, a "sweater"：

OK. That one at least looks like a "sweater" to me.

So teach me the Japanese phrase already!

Oh yeah, sorry.

I got a little sidetracked there.

The thing is, I have spent years being confused about what to call my clothes in Japanese.

So how would I say...

Check out this hoodie I bought today. It's cool, yeah?

このパーカー、今日買ったんだ。かっこいいでしょ。
この　パーカー、　きょう　かった　んだ。　かっこいい　でしょ。
I bought this hoodie [sweatshirt] today. It's cool, yeah?
Literally: "this + hoodie + today + bought. + cool + isn't it? / don't you think?"

So this でしょ is actually a shortened version of でしょう, but you wouldn't hear someone say the full でしょう for a casual, assertive sentence like this one.

If you're in school, they'll tell you to say the full でしょう for this sentence. But no one will actually say it! Japanese people might write でしょう in a sentence like this one, but I never hear them say it.

Even when they draw out the last "o" sound, Rei told me that they're saying でしょー, not でしょう (even though these are pronounced the same way).

That's all rather confusing, so let's just not worry about it ^_^.

By the way, we can shorten this sentence even further to get:

このパーカー、今日買ったんだ。かっこいいっしょ。
この　パーカー、　きょう　かった　んだ。　かっこいい　っしょ。
I bought this hoodie [sweatshirt] today. It's cool, yeah?
Literally: "this + hoodie + today + bought. + cool + isn't it? / don't you think?"

でしょう　→　でしょ　→　っしょ

You may also notice that the Japanese has no question mark, but the English does. The reason is that the meaning of an assertive question is included in でしょ, like saying "isn't it?" or "don't you think?" However, the intonation is not rising like a question, which would cause the Japanese to lose it's assertive tone.

If you're feeling overwhelmed by all of this でしょう madness, worry not!

We're going to look at it more tomorrow.

Oh also, girls may wish to switch out かっこいい for 可愛い（かわいい // cute; kawaii）for the sentences above sometimes.

Bonus Phrases

そのジャケットかっこいいね。
その　ジャケット　かっこいい　ね。
That's a cool jacket.

高校の制服ブレザーだった？
セーラー？ こうこう　の　せいふく　ブレザー　だった？　セーラー？
Did your high school uniform have a blazer? Or was it sailor-style?

このコート５万円もしたんだ。
この　コート　ごまんえん　も　した　んだ。
This coat cost 50,000 yen.

ジャンパー取って。
ジャンパー　とって。
Will you hand me my jumper?

トレーナー貸してくれない？
トレーナー　かして　くれない？
Could you lend me your trainer?

寒いからセーター着て行こう。
さむい　から　セーター　きて　いこう。
It's cold, so I think I'll wear a sweater.

このコート可愛くない？
この　コート　かわいくない？
Isn't this coat cute?