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Learning Japanese in romaji (for members w/o Japanese-enabled PCs)

AJBryant: thanks for that!! Yep that was a mistake...

Toritoribe: Pronouns / attributive... I'll admit that doesn't really mean much to me!! But thank you for the examples, I think i've got it... so kore / sore is for when you're stating that something is a noun, whereas kono / sono is used for referring to an object when it is already apparent what that object is. Okay i think that I just made sense in that...

It's strange, when I first started learning these words this online lesson said that sone/kono was the possessive version, when an object belongs to somebody. But I haven't heard any reference to that since.
 
No, it's far more simple. "Kore/Sore" is the pronoun/demonstrative pronoun, a sort of nouns. So it can be used as the subject/object in a sentence with the particle like "wa", "ga", "wo".

Kore wa akai ringo desu.
This is a red apple.
kore: the subject of this sentence

Watashi wa kore wo tabemashita.
I ate this.
kore: the object of this sentence


On the other hand, kono/sono is the attributive, ALWAYS followed by a noun/noun prase/noun clause.

Sono kabe wa atsui desu.
That wall is thick.
"Sono" is modifying the noun "kabe".

Watashi wa sono atsui kabe wo warimashita.
I broke that thick wall.
"Sono" is modifying the noun phrase "atsui kabe; the thick wall".

hope this make more sense
 
Sentence translation...

I'm working on a speech I'm given in Japanese (3 to 4 minutes, which is going to be a struggle with my level of Japanese!!) and I've just translated this sentence, but I'm trying to figure out if it makes sense.

I'm trying to say "you may not know me very well" -

anata wa shiriai de arinai deshou.

Now, this is the first time I've used both 'shiriai' and that verb form, so it's quite likely that I've totally butchered it...

I'm going to follow with providing information about myself, so using the 'know about' bit in an information sense (rather than acquaintance sense) would be fine, if that would be better...

Also, does anyone know where i can get some hiragana keyboard software for mac?!! this romaji thing feels like a bit of a backward step now

Thanks for any help!
 
Tabun, watashi no koto o yoku gozonji ja nai kamo shiremasen ga would be closer, but it feels almost self-important and arrogant to have yoku in there.

If you have a Mac with OS X just go to "System Settings" -> "Language Settings" -> "Input Menu," and then check off the Japanese inputs that you want. I may have the titles wrong, though -- my system is set to Japanese, so I'm translating.
 
Upon reflection, I think tabun, watashi no koto o yoku gozonji ja nai ka to omou'n desu ga would be better, but the other one probably works too. I'm not sure what the most natural way to say it is.
 
Thanks glenn, I'll have a look at it. That 'tabun' i think is going to prove to be useful!

Many thanks
 
Minasama, nihon go ha totemo muzukashi desu.
Donna gambatte bengkyou shitemo, jyozu ni narimasen.
takusan nihon go wo bengkyou shitai to muzukashi kotoba ga fuitte dettekimasu.
Toki doki benkyou shinai ho ga ii to omoimasu.

じゃ。。がんばってください。
 

yokudekimashita :3 a few mistakes but still very good!

ishoukenmei benkyousureba mousugu jouzu ni naru ne
akiramenai!!!!!
 
arigatou mas...arigatou mas..(thank you, sir....thank you, sir)
 
I find most Japanese Americans who are very fluent native speakers will help and correct you in what you are saying. I'm lucky that my girlfriend is also my tutor. Ganbare!
 
boku chotto kono bunshou wo nihongo ni yaku shite moraitainoseuga, doudeshouka?

1)The current economic downturn has caused many multinational corporations to become insolvent.

inanejason8 said:
I find most Japanese Americans who are very fluent native speakers will help and correct you in what you are saying. I'm lucky that my girlfriend is also my tutor. Ganbare!
Click to expand...

boku mo nihongo ga hetananode, nikkei canadajintachi ya nihonjin no ryugakusei to issho ni nihongo no benkyou wo suru kikai ga attara hijouni arigatai to omoimasu. Soshite, bokuno ikken ni tottara, moshi, nihongo ga zennbu roumaji dattahouga, takusan no hito ga nihongo wo narawoto omouto omoimasu. Nihongo no bunnpou ya tanngo wa hijouni muzukashiishi, gengo hyougenn nannka kannpekini manabukotowa bokuniha fukanou dato omotte, jibunnno jishin wo touji ushinatte imasu. Ima boku wa koreijou nihongo no gengoryoku wo shinpo saseru no niwa taihen dato omoimasu. Itsuka, kawaii nihonjin no kanojo wo itometainodesu.
 
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that is donna ni gambatte benkyou shitemo, jyouzu ni narimasen.

I know, it is a struggle for me too. Bokuni totte mo nihongo no gengoryoku no kabe ni butsukatte kore iyou shinpo dekinai kimochi ga shite imasu. Boku ha mada JLPT level 3 wa torete imasen.
 
Can somebody check my sentences?

-Aitsu wa sonna koto wo kesshite yurushite wasurenai.(He will never forgive and forget that)

-Kono katana wa ore no jibun no te ni tsukurareta.(This katana was made by my own hands)
 
Tsurugi said:
Can somebody check my sentences?
-Aitsu wa sonna koto wo kesshite yurushite wasurenai.(He will never forgive and forget that)
-Kono katana wa ore no jibun no te ni tsukurareta.(This katana was made by my own hands)
Click to expand...

the first sentence is correct.

the second sentence has both a tautology and a fractured idiom. Kono katakana no moji wa jibun no te de kakimashita.

I know it is hard. I am also not 100% certain whether or not you can say made by my own hands jibun no te de tsukurareta. The verb, to make is tsukuru. But the writing out the katakana word uses the verb kakeru.

By the way, are you in second year Japanese?
 
sumimasen, mouhitotsu yakuwo shite ittadaite moraitai bunshou ga aruno desuga, dareka onegai itashimasu. Kono bunsho wo goran shite kudasaimase:

Because China owns many credit default swaps (CDS) on many of the major multinational corporations, President Barack Obama had little choice but to provide various stimulus packages using taxpayer's money to bailout private companies to save the nation.
 

No, I am not student. I just learn Japanese in internet and I watch movies.
 
mobile1 said:
the first sentence is correct.
Click to expand...
I've actually never heard "yurushite wasurenai" to mean won't forgive or forget.


Shouldn't it be more like Sono/Sonna... "koto ha zettai yurusanai shi, wasurenai." ...

or an idiomatic rendering. I'm just reshaping the core sentence.
 
ATTENTION MEMBERS:

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All of those who are accessing the forum with Japanese-capable PCs or other devices, please move to other threads or create new threads.

THANK YOU!
 
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