The Japanese suffix ーがる is one of those things you aren’t too likely to learn about in a beginner Japanese course. You may have seen it in a advanced textbook if at all. I understand the reason for not introducing this expression until a student has more experience with the language’s fundamentals. After all you… Read More »
When first learning Japanese numerals, you probably have learned that the numbers 4 and 7 have two different ways to express them in Japanese: 4 ＝＞ し / よん 7 ＝＞しち/なな In some references and textbooks, they may leave it at that, which can leave you wondering which number to use when. To begin with,… Read More »
I’ve been dancing between a few different topics on this blog, and looking for direction for what types of posts you are all craving for. Please take a moment to answer this poll. The answers will help drive what sorts of articles I write.
This is my first post in a series containing Japanese vocabulary lists on different topics. If you enjoy it, please like it and comment if you have any suggested topic your want me to write up vocabulary lists for. A great many people have gotten into Japanese via anime or manga. Another way is through… Read More »
The effectiveness of foreign language practice depends on part on how pressing of a need there is to communicate and understand correctly. When speaking with a native or fluent speaker of that language, there are all sorts of emotions that get engaged and one usually tries his or her hardest to comprehend and speak in… Read More »
One thing you’re unlikely to come across in most Japanese learning resources is tongue twisters, which are the Japanese versions of phrases like “She sells sea shells by the shore”. These are called 早口言葉 (はやくちことば), a word which might seem like a tongue-twister in itself (: Though these phrases themselves don’t have much practical use (you’re not… Read More »
The Japanese little tsu, written “っ” (for example in the word “行った”), represents a pause in the flow of sound when speaking. I’ve heard this mispronounced by beginners, and even by those with several months of experience under their belt, so I thought I would clarify any confusion about how it should be pronounced. The brief description… Read More »
I’m extremely happy to say that Self Taught Japanese has reached it’s 100th post! A big thanks to everyone who has liked, followed, commented, or re-blogged my posts. First, I’ll give in to my penchant of analyzing blog statistics and talk about how they have changed for this blog between it’s 50th post and now. My first… Read More »
“っぽい” is a very useful expression that has three main usages. Expressing the tendency to do something っぽい can be used to express the tendency or high chance of doing something, and is generally added to the end of a verb in the pre-masu form. Though you can try using it with any verb, initially you should… Read More »
In the internet age, one of the biggest challenges when studying a foreign language is picking the right study reference out of thousands and thousands of competing sites, books, and videos. Of course finding accurate and error-free material is a concern, but a bigger problem is whether the source is providing you with relevant information… Read More »