Japanese grammar questions

[Akairyuu]

Hello. I recently started to learn Japanese and know of the basic "Main subject->direct subject->verb" structure but now I have a few questions about grammar that I have to ask.

Ok. My first question is regarding this sentence:
私は日本語に興味があります。
Watashi wa Nihongo ni Kyoumi ga arimasu

Ok. Assuming the above it the correct way of saying that "I am interested in Japanese", how would I make it say that "I am interested in learning Japanese?" I know that the verb "to learn" is narau and I think the present positive form in naraimasu (correct me if I'm wrong) but I'm unsure how to insert it into the sentence, if I'm even going about this the right, that is.

My second question is regarding this sentence:
私はこのトピックを書きました。
Watashi wa kono topikku o kakimashita

This sentence should say "I wrote this topic". If the sentence is correct, how would I make it say that "I wrote this topic to practise Japanese" as I am not sure how to manipulate the grammar to get this effect.

ありがとうございます！

 

[Toritoribe]

Haven't you learned "nominalizer"? Similar to a gerund "learning" is used in the English sentence, 習う needs to be changed to a noun clause 習うこと.

私は日本語を習うことに興味があります。


習います is a polite form of 習う. 習います and 習う are both the present tense.
ために is used for "for a purpose".

日本語を練習するために書きました。

 

[Akairyuu]

This was very useful, Thank you

I'm still in very early stages of Japanese and there's a lot about the grammar that I don't know yet; I wouldn't have had a clue if I hadn't asked

Anyway, I used what you suggested, rewrote my second sentence and combined them like this:
私は日本語を練習するために欲しますので、このトピックを作りました。

If I'm right, this should say that I made this topic because I want to practice Japanese.

 

[Angel Valis]

I don't think ために fits very well in that sentence. However, it may be correct (I've learned stranger things about Japanese grammar, and I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong). ために is something that you've done something for or for the benefit of and I can't say that I've seen it connect a verb to its direct object.

Another way of writing that sentence would be 私は日本語を練習したいから、このトピックを作りました。

Verb stem + たい is "I want to [do] <action>"

 

[Mike Cash]

This was very useful, Thank you

I'm still in very early stages of Japanese and there's a lot about the grammar that I don't know yet; I wouldn't have had a clue if I hadn't asked

Anyway, I used what you suggested, rewrote my second sentence and combined them like this:
私は日本語を練習するために欲しますので、このトピックを作りました。

If I'm right, this should say that I made this topic because I want to practice Japanese.

Are you learning from a textbook? If not, please consider it.

I've never seen 欲します before and am doubtful that it is a real word.

Retry your sentence with a simple したい instead.

 

[Angel Valis]

I've never seen 欲します before and am doubtful that it is a real word.

It's a real word according to the dictionaries (either ほりす [archaic] or ほっする both meaning "to want, to desire"), but like you, I've not seen it before so I feel better in my ~たい suggestion.

 

[Toritoribe]

ほり in ほりす is a noun form of an old Japanese(上代日本語) verb 欲る[ほる], す is a classical form of する, and ほっす is the 促音便[そくおんびん] of ほりす. It's similar to 恋する, which is from 恋ふ/恋う[こう].

こふ/こう --> こい --> こいす --> こいする
ほる --> ほり --> ほりす --> ほっす --> ほっする

ます, which is considered to be from まいらす, is relatively new comparing to ほりす. The eras those words were used in are different. I don't believe 欲します can be read ほりします. Anyway, in the clause 日本語を練習するために欲します, 日本語 is interpreted as the direct object of 欲します, i.e., it means "I want Japanese (texts/audio) for practicing". Or, when 日本語 is interpreted as the object of 練習する, "the topic I(= the speaker) made" is the object of 欲します. In this case, 欲します is more close to "to need" , and the sentence means that the speaker made a textbook/learning material or something. These meanings are not what the OP wanted to say, and they sound rather awkward in the first place.

 

[Akairyuu]

Ok. I think I may understand what you are getting at now.

So what you're saying is that 欲します is more used for if I wanted a object and it made my sentence look as though I was looking for a textbook to practice Japanese from, yeah I can see how it would sound really awkward...

Anyway so rewriting my sentence as 私は日本語を練習したいから、このトピックを作りました this is now saying "Because I want to practice Japanese, I made this topic" like how I wanted?


Ok. Using this rule and what I've learned so far, I had a go at make up a new set of sentences for practice. Would it be ok if anyone could please check to see if these are grammatically correct?

(I'm still not sure whether to use を or が before some verbs)

私は書くことを練習したいから、話 を書きました。
私は退屈したから、この絵 を描きました。
私はお腹が空きましたから、ケーキを食べました。

These should say:
"Because I want to practice writing, I wrote a story"
"Because I was bored, I drew this picture"
"Because I was hungry, I ate cake"

Edit: just one question, to say that I "wanted to" do I just take away the い and put かった in it's place (I have heard of this but I need an opinion), so that 練習したかった would mean "wanted to practice"?

Thanks for your help

 

[LewiiG]

私は日本語を練習したいから、このトピックを作りました this is now saying "Because I want to practice Japanese, I made this topic"

I believe it means what you said.

私は書くことを練習したいから、話 を書きました。
私は退屈したから、この絵 を描きました。
私はお腹が空きましたから、ケーキを食べました。

These should say:
"Because I want to practice writing, I wrote a story"
"Because I was bored, I drew this picture"
"Because I was hungry, I ate cake"

I believe they are okay...
One thing I can say for almost sure, is not to overuse "私は" or rather, don't use it unless you really need to . This is because it is taken that you are the subject by default, unless otherwise stated. "私は" is not used much in Japanese, unless it's for emphasis, or if it's not obvious, I believe.

Edit: just one question, to say that I "wanted to" do I just take away the い and put かった in it's place (I have heard of this but I need an opinion), so that 練習したかった would mean "wanted to practice"?

Yeah. ~たい works just like conjugating い adjectives. Like ~たくない do not want to... and ~たくなかった did not want to...

I believe.

 

[Toritoribe]

I'm still not sure whether to use を or が before some verbs

形容詞 | Japan Forum

練習したい is the -tai form of 練習する, so が is used in this case. However, を is also correct. を is preferred when が could be misinterpreted as the subject marker. For instance, in a phrase of a song lyrics 君を好きでよかった "I'm happy to love you", 君が好きでよかった can mean "I'm happy you like it/ love me", so を is used here.


欲する is basically a stiff written expression, so it's rarely used in real conversation, as already pointed out.

 

[Akairyuu]

Hi. Forgive me for not posting in a while, I have been super busy lately. I just want to say thank you, I think I now have a better understanding of when to use the particles を and が .

Anyway, I've gone away and looked more into grammer and learned how to use the -te form to combine sentences, put のに between two sentences to say a sentence like "Although I can't do that, I can do this" and I also list object by using the complete lister と and incomplete lister や. I also learned about the present progressive form of verbs to describe something that you are currently doing

With this, I had a go at making a little introduction about myself and I was wondering if you would be so kind as to please check to see if my grammar is ok ?


始めまして。

名前は赤い竜で、スコットランドから来まして、日本語を習っています。一番好きな日本語の食べ物は牛肉の 照り焼きですのに、もお握りや団子やラーメンや鮨が大好きです。鮨を作ることができませんのに、みたなし団子とお握りを作ることができます。

よろしくお願いします。


It should say "How do you do. My name is Akairyuu, I am from Scotland and I am learning Japanese. Although my favourite Japanese food is Beef Teriyaki, I also love Onigiri Dango, Ramen and Sushi. Although I can't make sushi, I can make Mitarashi Dango and Onigiri. (I think よろしくお願いします translates to something like 'please be kind to me')"

Thanks for all your help and advice

 

[Foocha]

始めまして。

名前は赤い竜で、スコットランドから来まして、日本語を習っています。一番好きな日本語の食べ物は牛肉の 照り焼きですのに、もお握りや団子やラーメンや鮨が大好きです。鮨を作ることができませんのに、みたなし団子とお握りを作ることができます。

よろしくお願いします。

Hello, Akairyuu. Sorry I'm using my first post to make a couple of suggestions! I will keep it short and sweet since I'm writing from my phone.
日本語 is a language, you shouldn't use it to describe something that is Japanese. And I don't think のに is what you would want to use in those two sentences, because I believe they share a feeling more of dissaticefaction. Since I'm not a native speaker, I'm not positive what you should use instead, but I would consider a form of the word けれども. Hope that helps!

 

[Akairyuu]

Oh. Thanks for that, that was a bit silly of me about 日本語.

I think I understand what you mean by the noni. I just read you can use でも at the beginning of the second sentence give contrasting information. Perhaps that's what I'm looking for?

So, if I rewrite the entire thing to this, it would look better?

始めまして。

名前は赤い竜で、スコットランドから来まして、日本語 を習っています。一番好きな日本の食べ物は牛肉の 照り焼きです、もお握りや団子やラーメンや鮨が大好きです。鮨を作ることができません、でもみたなし団子とお握りを作ることができます。

よろしくお願いします。

 

[Foocha]

Oh and one thing I forgot to mention. The particle も is placed after the thing its referring to. So it should be something like お握りもラーメンも instead of "mo [food] ya [food]." や is also more vague than と and may mean that you might be implying that there are other things that you are not listing. That may be the case, just another helpful reminder. と is more specific, but in this case you will still want to replace them with も since they are things that you "also like."

 

[Akairyuu]

Thanks again . I didn't know you had to replace with やor と with も. And about やand と, I knew the difference between them it's just I actually love a lot of other Japanese food but just decided to list a couple and in the sentence about me making dango and onigiri, I now think that や would actually be more appropriate since they're not the only food I can make.

Anyway, so with the paragraph rewritten the listing particles, would this now be correct?

始めまして。

名前は赤い竜で、スコットランドから来まして、日本語 を習っています。一番好きな日本の食べ物は牛肉の 照り焼きです、お握りも団子もラーメンも鮨もが大好きです。鮨を作ることができません、でもみたなし団子や お握りを作ることができます。

よろしくお願いします。

 

[Toritoribe]

名前は赤い竜で、スコットランドから来まして、日本語 を習っています。
You need to make clear whose name it is in this case. ～と言います/申します is another option.
It could sound childish to connect clauses only with the -te forms.
来まして is not incorrect, but sounds unnecessarily super-polite.

お握りも団子もラーメンも鮨もが大好きです。
お握りや団子やラーメンや鮨も and お握りも団子もラーメンも鮨も are both fine, but が is not needed.
おにぎり is more common.

鮨を作ることができません、でもみたなし団子やお握りを作ることができます。
Haven't you learned potential form?
When comparing two things, は can work as a contrastive marker.


始めまして。

私の名前は赤い竜です。/赤い竜と申します。
スコットランドから来て、日本語を習っています。
一番好きな日本の食べ物は牛肉の照り焼きです。
おにぎりも団子もラーメンも鮨も大好きです。/おにぎりや団子やラーメンや鮨も大好きです。
鮨は作れませんが、みたらし団子やおにぎりは作れます。/鮨を作ることはできませんが、みたらし団子やおにぎりは作れます。