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This guide is especially intended for Japanese learners who watch anime, but practically anyone can learn from this advice, as well.
Start with Names
The most basic thing you can do to improve your comprehension is to listen to characters’ names being spoken in Japanese. It may seem odd to you, but names will actually sound very different from how they’re spoken in English (or other languages).
For example, Edward Elric becomes EDOWA-DO ERURIKU. Think that’ll sound the same in Japanese as in English? You’re probably in for a surprise!
Also, watch out for Japanese words that were originally English. For example, AISU KURI-MU.
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Passion is above all the most important factor in learning any language – or achieving any goal in life, for that matter.
If you want to learn a language, it isn’t always a smooth ride. You have to have some serious, personally compelling reasons for wanting to do it – reasons that will sustain you through months or even years of study, research and practice.
What do I mean by compelling reasons? Here are some actual reasons I’ve heard from real people (they’re just examples, though!):
you love some specific person who speaks the language and want to impress them or get closer
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First, we should probably dispel a few myths.
What you can’t learn from watching anime
I know that using anime to learn Japanese is a very controversial topic.
Obviously, you cannot learn everything about a language by doing one thing alone. Of course, if you watch anime, you won’t learn to read or write Japanese characters, and your speaking ability won’t improve at all.
Watching anime will boost your listening comprehension, but imperfectly, too. There are several reasons for this:
Anime characters tend to have certain ways of talking… not necessarily the most realistic
Their speech is slower and clearer than in real life (try watching
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There are far too many ways to apologize in Japanese. Even I, with my fascination both for the language and for apologies, find the sheer volume of apologies rather unnecessary. But of course, this is why we learn Japanese! It’s strange and interesting! ^o^
The apologies listed here are not just slight variations of the same phrase, such as “I’m sorry” and “I’m really very sorry.” Actually, every apology listed here has a totally different meaning and origin, and often can be used only in certain situations or by certain people.
Common Apologies
sumimasen すみません
Most common apology. Means both “excuse me” and “I’m
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Today’s theme is… FIGHTING related words!
Fights, battles and conflicts in general are a very central part of most anime, manga and video games. I’m sure you’ll be able to hear at least one of these words in just about every episode you watch, especially if it’s some kind of shounen genre or action, fantasy, sci-fi, etc.
Sorry I haven’t written in a while, by the way. Just too many life-related things bothering me at the moment. And laziness. Laziness is always a big problem for me. But right now, I’m back in business! I think you should be able to expect
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Today’s theme is… again INSULTS! For today, the focus will be on insulting words or phrases that are a little more “sophisticated.” Some of them are less insulting than merely very harsh or critical. Thus, they are somewhat more rare than the first list of insults. Nevertheless, you will definitely come across all these words sooner or later if you watch enough anime.
I actually wrote most of this yesterday. There were just too many harsh and demeaning words floating around in my head – the evidence of years of avid anime-watching….
1. MEZAWARI = eyesore
Example: When someone or something is viewed
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I’m actually totally addicted to playing Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon for DS right now, so… looks like it’ll be another quick-post today!
Today’s theme is… INSULTS (slangy ones)! Or other bad, rude, or otherwise harmful and offensive words you might commonly hear in anime! This post is a little silly and is meant to be taken in a light-hearted fashion. Please don’t try to use these words.
1. BAKA = stupid
Example: “baka domo me!” = “You damn idiots!” (domo gives you plural, me can be attached to almost any word that refers to a person/people to show contempt for them)
Variations: baka yarou
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Yep, making these is strangely addictive. Hope they’re not too boring ^^; I’ll be getting back to more regular sound clipping sooner or later.
Today’s theme is… VERBS! To be more precise, verb expressions (those commonly found in anime). Because they’re commonly found in anime, most of these phrases are used very casually only. Use in “real life” at your own risk.
1. YATTA! = I/we did it!
Example: Shouted out loud when a character wins a game, race, defeats an enemy, etc.
2. SHIMATTA! = damn it!
Example: Often said out loud in the heat of the moment when someone makes a serious
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I’m finding making these list type posts kinda fun and easy to make when I’m short on time. (Cutting clips from anime is actually more time/labour-intensive than one would think! ^^;) It’s also kind of a challenge for me to think of 10 words relating to a theme.
Today’s theme is… TIME related words!
1. ITSUMO/ITSUDEMO = always
Example: “itsudemo anata no soba ni iru yo” = “I’ll always be by your side” (classic cheesy romantic phrase)
2. JIKAN = time (more related to the hour)
Example: “mou sono jikan ka?” = “It’s already ‘that’ time already, eh?”
3. TOKI = time (more related to occasions)
Example:
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Today’s theme is… i adjectives!
There are two types of adjectives in Japanese. i and na. What’s the difference between i and na adjectives? Well, i adjectives all end in i and are used in basically the same way as adjectives in English: that is, if used to describe a noun, they don’t require anything else to precede the noun being described. You just put the adjective and the noun together one after the other.
na adjectives on the other hand require na to be inserted between the adjective and the noun being described. For example, ookii na inu means “big dog.”
Also,
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