|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Starry Starry Fright Captain
|
 Posted: Wed May 18, 2011 5:29 pm
 |
|
|
 |
Hello again students! Welcome to Lesson #21!
To recap, in Lesson 16 we went over the vocabulary for "I like ____." In this lesson, I will be teaching you the grammar for comparing two objects and stating which one you like best. Let's get started!
To start, we're going to learn a nifty little word - ほう. (hou) This word translates as "side" or "direction", and we'll learn one application of it in this lesson.
The other word we're going to learn today is どちら (dochira), which means "which". This is a common question word in Japanese, just as it is in English.
Suppose you want to ask somebody which item they prefer out of two possibilities. You would use the following format:
ＡとＢとどちらのほうがすきですか。
"A" to "B" to dochira no hou ga suki desu ka?
Which means "Which do you like better, A or B?"
Notice that we have that word "hou" in there. You might be wondering how the word "side" fits into that sentence. If that sentence were to be litereally translated into English, it would look something like "Of A and B, which side does your liking belong to?". It looks weird, but you can see how that word "hou" works.
Let's look at an example.
ねこといぬとどちらのほうがすきですか。
neko to inu to dochira no hou ga suki desu ka?
Which do you like better, cats or dogs?
Once you've been asked for your opinion on something, you really have three ways you can answer.
1. Express a preference for one or the other.
いぬのほうが（ねこより）すきです。
inu no hou ga (neko yori) suki desu.
I prefer dogs (over cats). (Literally, the Dog side over the cats is to my liking.)
Now, look at that bit in brackets up there. "Neko Yori". When you are answering this style of question, you can actually leave that part out. It doesn't change the meaning of the sentence; it is implied that you have chosen ITEM A over ITEM B without this phrase. It's totally fine if you just reply with "inu no hou ga suki desu".
(FUN FACT: Incidentally, the word "yori" should look familiar to many of you - that's right. You've seen it in the title of Starry Starry Fright's favorite Japanese drama - Hana Yori Dango (Boys Over Flowers)! The expression Hana Yori Dango literally means "Dumplings Over Flowers", with "hana" meaning "flower" and "dango" being a type of dumpling. The expression refers to people who prefer practical things like food over beautiful, useless things likes flowers. The title of the drama series is actually a pun, substituting the kanji for "boy" in place of the kanji for "dumpling. The title should be read "Hana Yori Danshi" (danshi meaning boy) but the furigana on the title ("furigana" are tiny hiragana characters written over top of a kanji to indicate the pronunciation. They are beautiful, wonderful things.) indicates that the kanji for "danshi" should be instead read as "dango".)
2. You like both of the options equally.
In order to properly say this, we're going to have to learn about a particle we haven't really looked at yet - も (mo). "Mo" means "also", and can be used in many different contexts. If a friend of yours says to you "Watashi wa isu ga suki desu", meaning "I like chairs" (What an odd friend you have razz ), you could reply with "Watashi mo isu ga suki desu", or "I also like chairs" or simply "Watashi mo." "Me too". It's a fairly simple particle to use, so getting the hang of it shouldn't be too taxing.
Back to our example! What do you say if you like cats and dogs equally?
ねこもいぬもすきです。
neko mo inu mo suki desu.
I like both cats and dogs equally. (Note that the word "equally" does not appear in this sentence, but with this phrase, it is implied that you have no preference.)
3. You hate both things.
Well, aren't you fussy? If you don't like either of the items listed, you can use that "mo" particle again.
ねこもいぬもすきじゃありません。
neko mo inu mo suki jya arimasen.
or, in informal conversation:
ねこもいぬもすきじゃない。
neko mo inu mo suki jya nai.
Both of these mean "I don't like cats or dogs."
Just as quick culture note, if someone is using this "do you prefer _____ or ______" grammar in the context of offering you two foods you dislike, you should always use the polite form, even if it is a very close friend. Being informal in any situation where someone is directly or indirectly offering you something is seen as rude.
Well, now you know how to ask for preference and provide your own preferences! Yay! Any questions or comments? You know where to leave them.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sun May 22, 2011 6:38 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon May 30, 2011 1:21 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 9:36 pm
|
Starry Starry Fright Captain
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:14 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:23 pm
|
Starry Starry Fright Captain
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:24 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:58 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Sep 16, 2011 7:01 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Sep 17, 2011 5:51 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Oct 10, 2011 10:25 am
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Oct 18, 2011 11:26 am
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Nov 10, 2011 3:46 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Thu Dec 01, 2011 12:41 pm
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Dec 02, 2011 12:16 am
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
