#jlpt studies

[onigiriforears]

Recommendation: Apps for Japanese Learning

Over the years, I've downloaded and tested many apps. Though my favorite app was discontinued (I miss you, mindsnacks Japanese), there are still others that I don't think I'll be removing from my phone any time soon. In light of duolingo's horrible update causing a large migration and search for other apps, I thought I'd share some of my favorites. Also, some of these apps have websites or discords for you to interact with other users or to ask support questions.

For those who cannot use/don't like the graphics, the written out version is below the break.

Lingo Legend

RPG-based language learning game that I was a beta tester for. It also offers Spanish, French, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, German, Italian, and Portuguese. Uses spaced repetition.

Offers beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels.

User can jump between lessons and difficulty levels.

Available on ios and android

Manabi Reader

Caters to all JLPT levels and offers reading options on an array of topics (including news, games, reddit). Can hilight words and look up in-app. User can also paste a link within the app to read.

Companion app available (Manabi Flashcards).

Available on ios

TODAI: EASY Japanese News

Aggregates news from various sources.

Offers practice JLPT exams in-app.

Offers grammar resources and in-app dictionary that can generate flashcards from words saved in notes.

Offers audio listening, as well as videos with transcriptions.

Available on ios and android. Also has a website.

Shirabe Jisho

Offline dictionary app.

User can favorite words, make lists, take notes, make flashcards, etc.

User can search for words in kana, romaji, drawing, or through radical (or radical building).

Available on ios

Renshuu

Think quizlet, but solely for Japanese. You can create your own lists, use others, play shiritori, earn prizes and interact on forums.

You can study grammar, kanji, vocab, flashcards, learn and submit mnemonics. You can also friend people.

Available on ios and android. Also has a website (of which I am an avid user).

Connect with me: Ko-fi Shop & Tips | Discord | Studygram | Ask Box

↳ psst! my ko-fi shop has learning resources on it. try to check back for new things bc im always working on something to add in there

[anza-langblr]

接続詞（せつぞくし）

conjunctions - words that are used to link phrases together

情報を加える // Adding information：

しかも　besides そのうえ　moreover, on top of that さらに　moreover, on top of that そればかりか　not only that, but also... そればかりでなく　not only that, but also...

情報を対比する // Putting into contrast：

それに対して　in contrast 一方　whereas

他の可能性・選択肢を言う // Giving alternatives：

あるいは　or perhaps (presenting another possibility) それとも　or (presenting another option within a question)

結論を出す// Drawing a conclusion：

そのため　for that reason したがって　therefore そこで　for that reason (I went ahead and did...) すると　thereupon (having done that triggered sth. to happen) このように　with this (adjusting a conclusion to the arguments given beforehand) こうして　in this way

理由を言う // Giving a reason：

なぜなら...からだ　the reason is というのは...からだ　the reason is

逆説を表現する // Expressing a contradiction：

だが　however, yet, nevertheless (contradicting what one would have expected) ところが　even so (spilling a surprising truth) それなのに　despite this, still それでも　but still (despite a certain fact, nothing changes)

説明を補う // Amending one's explanation：

つまり　that is, in other words (saying the same thing using different words) いわば　so to speak (making a comparison) 要するに　to sum up, in short

説明を修正する // Revising one's explanation：

ただし　however (adding an exception to the information stated beforehand) ただ　only, however もっとも　however (obviating any expectations that might arise through the previous statement) なお　in addition, note that (adding supplementary information)

話題を変える // Changing the subject：

さて　well, now, then (common in business letters after the introductory sentence; is often ignored in tranlations) ところで　by the way

[nihongo-enthusiast]

The 6 Differences Between は and が

DIFFERENCE 1

The important fact is AFTER は

• この犬は私のベットです。This dog is my pet.

You want to emphasize that this is not a stray dog. It is not someone else's pet dog. It is MY PET. So anything comes after は is the main part you want the listener to pay attention to.

The important fact is BEFORE が

• この犬が私のベットです。This dog is my pet.

You want to emphasize that THIS IS THE DOG that is my pet. Not other dogs. Imagine you're at a park and there are 3, 4 other dogs playing together with your dog and you want to tell your friend that THIS DOG is the one that is your pet dog, other dogs are not yours. So, what comes before が is the main part you want to tell the listener.

More examples:

• このケーキはおいしいです。This cake is DELICIOUS! (You want to tell your friend that this cake is indeed very good. Your emphasis falls on おいしい, so you use は, because the important fact is AFTER は.

• このケーキがおいしいです。THIS CAKE is delicious. (You want to tell your friend that among all the cakes on the buffet table, this particular cake you are pointing to is the most delicious one. Others are not good.) Your emphasis falls on このケーキ (THIS CAKE), so you use が, because the important fact is BEFORE が.

DIFFERENCE 2

New information and things that you mention for the first time, use が. Old information or topics that have been mentioned earlier but is now repeated again, use は.

• 学校にマイクという男がいます。There is boy named Mike in my school.

You started the conversation with your friend by saying there's a new student named Mike in the school. That is the first time you mentioned Mike. It is new information, therefore use が.

• マイクはアメリカ出身です。Mike is from America.

You mention Mike the 2nd time now and it is no longer a new information. It is considered old information, therefore use は.

DIFFERENCE 3

Stating facts without adding your personal opinion or judgment use が. By adding your own opinion or judgment, use は.

• 外に猫がいます。There is a cat outside.

You are just merely stating a fact that there is a cat outside. This sentence doesn't include your description about the cat. No personal opinion or judgment about the cat.

• あの猫は白いです。The cat is white in colour.

You are putting your description, your judgment into the sentence about the cat. When you are adding your own thoughts, opinion, description about something, use は.

• 日本の料理はおいしいです。Japanese food is tasty.

You are putting your opinion/judgment about Japanese food in your sentence, therefore, use は.

DIFFERENCE 4

When you make comparison, use は. When you eliminate other options, use が.

• お茶は好きですが、コーヒーは好きじゃありません。I like tea but I don't like coffee.

DIFFERENCE 5

If two actions are done by the same person, use は. If two actions are done by two different persons, use が first, then use は for the second action.

• 私はごはんを食べるとき、テレビを見ます。I have my meal and I am watching TV.

• 私がごはんを食べるとき、父はテレビを見ます。When I have my meal, my father watches TV.

DIFFERENCE 6

To modify a phrase into a noun, use が.

• これは彼女が作ってくれたケーキです。

What cake is this? This is the cake that is baked by my girlfriend. The phrase 「彼女が作ってくれた」 is to modify the cake, to describe about the cake.

Quiz Time

• 部屋は広いです。

• 部屋が広いです。

In English, both sentences mean "The room is spacious." But what is the difference?

In 部屋は広いです, it shows a comparison contrast nuance (read DIFFERENCE 4). If you say this, the listener will believe that you are making a comparison of this room with all the other rooms in the house. You want to say this room is spacious, whereas the other rooms are smaller in size.

In 部屋が広いです, you are merely stating a general fact about this room being spacious (read DIFFERENCE 3). You are not making any comparison. Your sentence has no added personal judgement or opinion. You are stating a fact about the room being spacious.

[inkichan]

YouTube Channels for Kids by JLPT Levels

(⁠｡⁠•̀⁠ᴗ⁠-⁠)⁠✧ resources

こんにちは, Japanese learners! Learning a language is an exciting adventure, isn't it? To add a spark of joy to your Japanese learning journey, here's a collection of YouTube channels tailored for kids. Organized by JLPT levels, these channels offer a blend of education and entertainment for learners at different stages. Keep in mind, though, that JLPT levels aren't an exact science like math – language learning can be subjective in terms of difficulty. However, these resources provide a fantastic starting point and a fun way to explore the world of Japanese language and culture. Let's hop into this delightful world of animated learning and playful discoveries!

Friendly reminder to adjust your way of learning in order to make the most of what you're studying to reach the goal you truly want! read my post about it (ᵔ◡ᵔ)

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴N 5 ╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

— Curious George (N5 level)

— Japanese folk tales/anime series (Japanese audio/Japanese subtitles) from BomBom Academy (N5 level)

— Peppa Pig (N5-4 level)

— Anpanman (N5-4 level)

— NHK education (N5-4 level)

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴N4 ╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

— Cinnamon Roll, Sanrio (N4 level)

— [Anime] Atashin'chi (N4-3 level)

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴N3 ╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

— Sesame Street Japan (N3 level)

— Chibi Maruko Chan (N3-2 level)

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴N2 ╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

— Precure (N2 level)

またね～@inkichan

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴﹕꒰ ᐢ｡- ༝ -｡ᐢ ꒱﹕╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

[senchastudying]

I learned it's easier to learn verbs in their ない form first, vs. their dictionary form first. Makes recognizing the difference between Godan and Ichidan verbs 100% easier and removes the need to "remember" the "hidden/fake/lying" verbs that parade as the other verb type. The trick to doing it is far easier and I hate how Genki teaches it in the book. Leaving me with only having to learn the conjugation patterns for Ichidan, Godan, and Irregular verbs. Far, far easier.

[studyjapanesewithme]

N4 文法: はずがない

はずがない= cannot be (its impossible)

How to use:

verb stays in dictionary form + はずがない

For な-adjective you な before the はずがない, for nouns you add の before.

Examples:

彼はそなことを言うはずがない- he would never say that

そんなはずがない。- That cannot be true

彼女の話は本当のはずがない- her story cannot be true

そな大きな量を全部食べられるはずがない- there's no way you can eat that whole portion

[sheeeshvangi]

My kanji is terrible and I recently learned about the book by Andrew Scott Conning.

The Kanji Learner Course is an amazing book for learning kanji, the best thing about it which made me buy it was the fact that it explains how to remember every single kanji like a teacher.

I have only done till the first 100 kanjis for now but it's definitely a wonderful book!

I highly recommend buying it if you want a comprehensive kanji book.

[expiationist]

when am i not studying ☕️🏹🏛️

[haku2naomi420]

• 披露宴 「ひろうえん」 - reception (e.g. wedding), banquet, celebration, party

• 露呈 「ろてい」 - exposure, disclosure

• 露見, 露顕 「ろけん」 - discovery (of a plot, misdeed, etc.), detection, exposure, disclosure

• 露骨 「ろこつ」 - 1. open, unconcealed, undisguised, blatant, plain, frank 2. broad, lewd, indecent, crude

• 暴露 「ばくろ」 - disclosure, exposure, revelation

• 露 「つゆ」 - 1. dew2. tears

• 披露 「ひろう」 - announcement, presentation, demonstration, displaying, showing, introducing, exhibiting, unveiling, revealing, showcasing, performing, giving a rendition

• 露店 「ろてん」 - street stall, stand, booth

• 露出 「ろしゅつ」 - exposure, laying bare, baring (e.g. skin)

[helenstudies]

3/100 Days of Productivity!

I'm still sick but I'm doing good academically! at least I think!

Done with my pali assignment! (on day 4 morning btw)

Also done with my HSKK class!

I'm still studying Japanese at N3 level because I'm not ready for N2 yet... Hyouka is helping me along.

A new semester for HGU UNITWIN starts tomorrow! Worldview studies and Health Psychology here I come!!!

I finished "The Con Job" which is a Leverage novel and it was honestly disappointing since I'm rewatching the show. But I'm still gonna pick up "The Zoo Job"

On this week's HAIYUU book club activity: We're reading the little prince! Last week my friend chose that book and I was astounded by the amount of people who thought it was a children's book(??!??) Anyway, we're gonna discuss translations too since we decided to let the readers pick the language of the book they wanted. Personally, I'm reading it in Chinese.

My tonsilitis still persists. Now I have body aches. Idk when I'll get better but god, it better be soon.

[efurutravel]

米ワーナー・ブラザース メッセージを削除し謝罪

You can check out the article above. Apparently Warner Bros. Japanese branch had to make a complaint about its American branch for insensitive memes over Barbenheimer. I think that's pretty sad they even had to do that.

[onigiriforears]

Pitch, Please Pt. 1 [new series alert]

This was launched on the Seitokai IG (seitokaisnihongo). Keep reading this post to get information that is written on the graphics (and the IG caption).

This is a new series that I've been working on for a bit! It'll be discussing pitch accent, dialects, listening comprehension, and anything else that may fall within that category.

If there's a particular dialect that you'd like for us to cover in this series, feel free to stick it in the reblogs, my inbox, my asks, on the Seitokai instagram, or the Seitokai discord server!

Without further ado, here is what the posts say above!

Pitch, Please! Let's talk about pitch accent.

What is it?

Pitch accent, known as 高低アクセント(kōtei akusento) in Japanese, refers to when a language uses pitch to distinguish between homonyms rather than stress/volume. For example: あめ, meaning rain (high pitch to low) vs あめ, meaning candy (low pitch to high pitch).

Pitch accent can vary by region and dialect. The previous example was based on standard/Tokyo dialect. However, the pitch accent is swapped with the Kansai dialect. あめ, meaning rain goes from low pitch to high and あめ, meaning candy goes from high pitch to low.

There are four (4) pitch accent patterns: 平板 (へいばん), 頭高 (あたまだか), 中高 (なかだか), and 尾高 (おだか). These will be discussed in further detail in a later post within this series.

How to work on it?

Listen to native speakers (podcasts, news channels, videos, etc.)

Converse with native speakers (if possible)

Mimic the correct pronunciation

Be willing to ask for help and accept correction

Resources

Online Japanese Accent Dictionary & Prosody Tutor Suzuki-kun

NHK Japanese Language Pronunciation and Accent Dictionary

Renshuu.org, Kanshudo.com, Forvo.com

Dogen's Japanese Phonetics Video Series

MIA add-on for Anki

MacOS dictionary

HelloTalk

If you're looking for fellow learners, there are over 500 of us in the Seitokai discord server (shameless plug) and we'd love to have you!

[anza-langblr]

身の回りにある金属

銀（ぎん）silver (Ag)

アルミニウム　aluminum (Al)

金（きん）gold (Au)

銅（どう）copper (Cu)

鉄（てつ）iron (Fe)

水銀（すいぎん）mercury (Hg)

ニッケル　nickel (Ni)

鉛（なまり）lead (Pb)

プラチナ・白金（はっきん）platinum (Pt)

錫（すず）tin (Sn)

チタン　titanium (Ti)

[nihongo-enthusiast]

The Difference Between に and へ

Most of the beginner textbooks will teach learners that に is used for destination and へ is used for direction but there are some explanation that are missing and that is what confusing to many learners.

• 公園に行きます。

• 公園へ行きます。

Both sentences are correct. Both means "I'm going to the park".

But... there is a slight nuance difference. When you use に, you put the destination (which is the park) as the main thing you want the listener to know that the place you want to go is the park. The final destination you will arrive at is the park.

On the other hand, if you use へ, you want the listener to feel that you are making a move, you are making a journey, a process, an effort to go to the park. In other words, へ somehow emphasize on your journey to a place.

Let's say you're flying from UK all the way to Australia, that will take at least 20-22 hours by flight. The journey is extremely long and you want the listener to feel that, so you could say by using the particle へ: 私はオーストラリアへ行きます。

Now, the following part is what most teachers or textbooks didn't tell you. A study shows that more and more Japanese people are using に, and へ has gone out of fashion. According to the survey, one of the reasons may be due to globalization and how easily people are connected around the world through the Internet that people don't feel the journey or the distance is long. Therefore, they don't see the need to use へ anymore.

WARNING!!!

There is a grammar point that you MUST use へ instead of に。The pattern is:

へ + の + Noun

Examples:

• 先生へのプレゼント。Gift for teacher.

• 帰宅への道。The way home.

Another situation which needs to use へ is when the news anchor announces this:

台風が北へ向かっています。

The typhoon is heading north.

If you use に and say 台風が北に向かっています, it means you are very sure that the typhoon will land in the north. No one can predict 100% where it will stop or land so it is incorrect to use に in this sentence.

---------------------------------------------------

Vocabulary used in this lesson:

公園 (こうえん) park, playground

プレゼント present, gift

帰宅 (きたく) home

道 (みち) way

台風 (たいふう) typhoon

北 (きた) north

[inkichan]

questions · positive and negative replies

(⁠｡⁠•̀⁠ᴗ⁠-⁠)⁠✧ N5 grammar

indicating a question with "か"

Questions in Japanese are easily expressed with the particle "か" and it is used the same way as the English question mark. A phrase ending with this particle is the Japanese equivalent to a question in English. In Japanese, there's no need to rearrange the sentence structure, simply add the question particle.

example: あなたは日本人です (you are japanese) will become → あなたは日本人ですか (are you japanese?)

note 1: in formal documents or written japanese, there should be a period (。) at the end of a question; in everyday Japanese, both periods and question marks work.

note 2: when asking a question the particle should be said with a rising tone.

affirmative replies with "そうです"

"そうです" is a compound phrase and means "right" or "that is so". It is usually used after "はい" (yes) and can also soften the tone when giving a positive answer.

example: はい、そうです。

translation: yes, that is so.

note: Japanese people tend to add another phrase following "そうです", expressing further confirmation

negative replies with "違います"

When denying something or telling someone something is not true, the compound phrase "違います" (ちがいます) is used. It is often used after "いいえ" (no).

example: いいえ、違います。

translation: no, that's not so.

note: 違います can be followed by other sentences clarifying the negation, similarly to そうです

またね～@inkichan

꒰ა ˚₊ ✧・┈・╴﹕꒰ ᐢ｡- ༝ -｡ᐢ ꒱﹕╴・┈・𐑺 ‧₊˚໒꒱

[orenjisupeesu]

私の字はあまり綺麗じゃないけど、しょうがない。