Teach Yourself Beginner's Japanese Script - Helen Gilhooly

an introduction to
reading and writing

Japanese
.....
150&
.1011
F1
BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
Helen Gilhooly
Do you want to leam the basics of reading and writing Japane ..
and understand how the script works? Are you planning a trip to
Japan or thinking about learning the language? If so, Teach
Your 1f Seglnne,'. Japan Script I. for youl
In this book, Helen Gilhooly has written a step-by-step introduction to
reading and writing simple Japanese. She guides you through the basic
techniques and teaches you how to build your skills, with tips and
practice suggestions to help you memorize what you are learning and
make it enjoyable along the way.
Teach Yourself Beginner's Japanese Script features:
the origins of the language
a systematic approach to mastering the script
lots of -hands on" exercises and activities
practical examples from real-life situations
Other titles from Teach Yourself by Helen Gilhooly
Beginner's Japsnese (book)
Beginner's Japsnese (book/cassette pack)
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II "'IIIC; FI
Helen Gilhooly
TEACH YOURSELF BOOKS
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2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999
CONTENTS
Introduction v
Unit 1
1
Linking kanji to pictures (I) 2
How to read the days of the week 5
Writing Practice ( 1) 7
Unit 2

11
Linking kanj i to pictures (2) 12
Reading dates and calendars 16
Writing Practice (2) 23
Test ( I) 27
Unit 3

28
Numbers 1- 10 28
Numbers 11- 99 31
Numbers 100- 10,000+ 32
Japanese moncy amounts 34
Writi ng Practice (3) 38
Unit 4
42
Action word kanji (verbs) 42
Reading sentences
49
Test (2)
57
Unit 5
58
Reading and writi ng hiragana 60
Simple hiragana rules 66, 67,69
Reading sentences in Japanese 71
I
,.
Unit 6
i1l*_
73
Remembering kanji through stories 76
Building up kanj i 78
Test (3) 85
Unit 7
_-t;.
87
Locating the radical 92
Linking components wi th readings 94
Using kanji dictionari es 96
Unit 8
_A.
103
Recognisi ng shop and place signs 105
Everyday signs and information II I
Map of Japan 11 5
Reading authent ic signs 11 8
Unit 9
_11..
125
Reading and writing katakana 127
Simple kalakana rules 130, 135
Extra katakana sounds 136
Reading authentic katakana information 143
Unit 10
-+.
148
Simple grammar rules for reading 149
Readi ng and writing letters 164
Japanese haiku (short poems) 171
Key to the exercises 175
Index (1) Japanese-English 180
Index (2) English-Japanese 191
INTRODUCTION
The Japanese language presented such difficulties to sixteent h century
European missionaries that they called it the Devif's tongue. In actual
fact. there arc many features of the Japanese language which make it
relatively strai ghtforward to learn. The grammar, for example, follows
logical rules and is very regular. It is the reading and writing of Japanese
which offers the greatest challenge to the learner.
This book will make the reading and writ ing of Japanese accessible to
you through a step-by-step approach which will help you to gradually
build up your knowledge of Japanese script. The aim of this book is to
show you that written Japanese can be interesting, challenging and also
fun to learn.
In the Japanese education system, the learni ng of Japanese script is spread
throughout the nine years of compulsory education. By the end of this
period, the Japanese student will have ' learnt 1942 kanji (Chinese
characters). This is the basic number prescribed by the Japanese Ministry
of Education as essential for reading texts such as newspapers thoroughly.
There are many more kanji (over 5000 in many kanji di ctionaries) which
are used for more specialised vocabulary and texts. Although 1942 kanji
sounds like a large amount, it is worth making the comparison with
English where, although we learn the alphabet relatively qui ckly, learning
and understanding the meaning of vocabulary and different types of texts
takes a very long ti me.
A brief history
The Japanese writing system was introduced into Japan by the Chinese
around the middle of the 6th century AD. The Chinese language is very
different to Japanese in structure and so the writing system was gradually
adapted to fit the structure of the Japanese language. There are now three
scripts which make up the Japanese writing system (four if you include
roma]; or roman script, ie. alphabet). Let 's look at each of these in turn.
Kanji 1I*
Kan is an ancient word meaning 'Chinese' and] i means ' letter' or 'character',
hence kanji is translated as 'Chinese characters' . This was the script
which was invented by the Chinesc and introduced to Japan. Kanji are
ideographs; this means that the whole character conveys a meaning or
idea (whereas in the roman alphabet system, letters are grouped together to
make words). For example a is the kanji for sun. Kanji were originally
drawn from pictures of nature and gradually developed into the standardised
kanji used today. For example a sun developed like this:
- , ~ ~ ) : ~

You will learn more about this in unit I.
There is usually more than one pronunciation for a kanji character. There
are two types of pronunciation known as onyomi (Chinese reading) and
kunyomi (Japanese reading). You wi ll learn morc about this in unit 2.
Kana fJ,t.;,
The two other scripts in the Japanese writing system are called hiragana
and katakana and are known collectively as kana. They are phonetic
alphabets or syllabaries which means that each symbol represents one
sound only. This differs from the roman alphabet system where letters are
grouped into sounds and where the same letter can be pronounced in
differcnt ways depending on its grouping (eg: a in rat, rate, far and fare).
The difference between the Japanese phonetic system and the alphabet
system can be shown through an example:
In English the word house is made up of five letters: H-O- U-S-E.
In Japanese the word for house (uchi) is made up of two sounds
U-CHI. These sounds are represented by two hiragana symbols: .; I?
The hiragana and katakana scripts represent the same set of 46 basic
sounds but the symbols are written differently and the two scripts are
used for different purposes as described in the foll owing section.
INTRODUGION
Hiragana D G tJVJ.
The word hiragana means rounded/easy to use and indicates both the
shape and the relative simplicity of the script. Each symbol was developed
from simplified kanji with the same pronunciation. For ex.ample, the
hiragana symbol tJ\ ( ka) is a simp,lifi ed version of the kanji 1m
(pronounced ka). The left side remains very similar in the hiragana symbol,
the right side ' box' has been reduced to a slanting line.
Hiragana is used to write the grammatical parts of words and sentences
and to write Japanese words which don' t have a kanji. For example, when
writing verbs (action words) the kanji is used to express the main idea or
meani ng and hiragana is used to indicate the function of the verb:
I listen is written: Pfl ~ i t
The kanji IIH conveys the meaning listen; ~ i -t are three hiragana
which show that the action is present tense I listen.
I listened is written: M ~ i l- t.;
The same kanji lit) conveys the meaning listen. The four hiragana show
that it is a past action: I listened. You will learn more about this in units
5 and 10.
Japanese children learn hiragana first and then gradually replace words
and parts of words with kanji as they progress. Hiragana is also used to
indicate how to pronounce a kanji when it is first learnt or if it is unusual.
When used in this way, it is called furigana and is written beside or above
the kanji .
Katakana :b 'Y :b 'T
The kata of katakana means partial and this is because each katakana
symbol was developed from part of a kanji with the same pronunciation.
For example, the katakana symbol I.J (ka), comes from 1he left side of
the kanji :bn (pronounced 'ka') . (In this example, the same kanji is the
root of both the hiragana and katakana symbol; this isn't always the case.)
The katakana script represents the same set of sounds as hiragana but the
symbols are written differently and are used for different purposes. In
overall appearance, hiragana symbols are rounded in shape and katakana
symbols are more angular. This wi ll become more apparent once you
have worked through units 5 and 9.
viii BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
Katakana has a number of uses. Firstly, it is used for writing non-Japanese
words which have been introduced into the language. These fall inlo two
categories:
1) Loan words For example, ?;:t - 'I "?' Y (wokuman) means
walkman;
T v 1::' (terebi) means teievi!,ion.
2) Foreign names For example, countries, cities and personal names:
7 ;J. ~ :IJ (amerika) = America; ... ~ ~ (pan) = Paris;
;t.. ~ ;t.. (sumisu) = Smith.
There are also two categori es in whi ch katakana is used for writing
Japanese words:
3) To make words stand out Katakana makes words stand out in a si milar
way to writing a word in bold, ital ics or capitals. II is used increasingly
in advert ising (to make the product stand out), for slang words and
exclamations, for pop group names and in headlines. Examples incl ude:
,.. :3 7 (Toyota) and r ~ 1- Y ::z (Pachinko - the Japanese pinball game).
4) The classification of plants and animals
About this book
The 10 units which make up this book wil l graduall y increase your
knowledge of written Japanese. Units 1 to 4 introduce mai nly kanji which
developed from pictures of nature. About 3% of kanji fall into this
category but, as you will learn, they are also used as components of more
complex kanji . Units 4 and 6 to 8 will teach you how to decipher these
more complex kanj i giving you the tools to take your study further on
completion of this book. There are plenty of hints to aid your learning
and you will learn to build stories to remember the meanings of the kanji.
Units 8 and 10 give you the chance to put your learning into practice.
Unit 8 introduces you to a number of practical kanji words such as signs,
notices and warni ngs of the ki nd you would see all around you in Japan.
Unit 10 introduces a number of reading passages and helps you to decipher
them and extract their meaning. You will also encounter different styles
of printed and handwritten text.
Two of the units are devoted to teaching the two phonetic scri pts; hiragana
(unit 5) and katakana (unit 9). There are lots of practice acti vities and
INTRODUCTION
ideas to help you learn and remember these two scripts . You can leave
these units out and come back to them later if you wish to concentrate
only on kanji , but if you take your study of Japanese further, then a
knowledge of these scripts is essential.
There are sections throughout the book which concentrate on the teaching
of written Japanese. Again, you may wish to leave these out and concentrate
on reading only.
Pacing yourself
Remember that it is YOU who sets the pace - keep enjoyment of,
learning at the top of your agenda!
Find a balance between moving through the book and revi sing what
you have learnt. Don't expect to remember everything (even Japanese
people forget kanji!) and use the indexes at the back where possible to
find words you have forgotten.
Build up a set of small flashcards with kanji on one side and English
on the other to test yourself from time to time, Start your own dictionary
too; use a notebook to write down new words.
Acknowledgements
Thank you to everyone who has advised me on the writing of this book,
In particular, to Masae Sugahara and Miyuki Nagai of the School of East
Asian Studies, Sheffield University - Masae for the calligraphy and for
reading and commenting on the text, Miyuki for the artwork and ideas for
mnemonics; to Niamh Kelly of the Japanese Department, Dublin City
University for reading the text and makingJots of useful suggestions;
Mavis Pilbeam of the Japanese Department of the British Museum for
her thorough and very helpful proof-reading; Robert Gilhooly for provid-
ing the photographs; my students ( incl uding Margaret Teasdale) for being
'gui nea pigs' ; Sue Hart and Carolyn Taylor at Hodder and Stoughton; and
John Rogers for doing all the' cooking!
The publishers and author would like to thank the following for the use of
material in this book: Kyoto Newspaper Company and Nobuko Kogawa
(29/ 10/98) and Kinako Matsumoto, Seikyo Newspaper (14/9192).
x BEGINNER' S WANESE SCRIPT
About the author
Helen Gilhooly has lived and worked in Japan and has extensive experi ence
of teaching Japanese and writing teaching materials at secondary school
and adult level. She has an MA and a PGCE in Japanese and has been the
Co-ordinator of Japanese for Derbyshire County and Derby City Council s.
She is also a teacher trainer of Japanese at Nottingham University. Previous
publications include Teach Yourself Beginner's Japanese (Hodder and
Stoughton).
1
. - ill Dai ikka
UNIT 1
Ii V 3b1: (hajime nil Introduction
In the introduction to this book you learnt about the history and
development of the Japanese writing system and about the three different
scripts or writi ng forms: () f.; tJ{ 1" (hiragana), 11 7 iJ t- (katakana),
and (kanji). The focus of Units 1- 4 is going to be on (kanji)
and by the end of these four units you will have learnt to recognise 58
(kanji) characters and also to understand the meanings of words
made up from combinations of these.
il*" (knnji) characters are ideographs. This means that each character
represents a whole object or idea. For example:
a is the il.* (kanji) symbol for sun
JJ is the il"'i= (knnji) symbol for moon
As you learnt in the introduction, (kanji) were written originally as
pictures of the world which the ancient Chinese saw around them. These
pictures were gradually, over time, standardised into regul ar shapes with
rules about how to write them correctly. However, the pictures which
each (kanji) developed from can be very useful in helping you to
remember the meanings. Look at these developments:
a (sun) developed somet hing like this:

, , '
As well as sun it also has the meaning day. These two concepts are
connected because the rising and setting of the sun defines a day.
J.I (moon) developed something like this:
E
2 BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
As well as moon it also has the meaning month. These two concepts are
connected because the lengt h of a month (28 days) is measured by the
progress of each new moon.
You can see from these two examples that Ii*" (kanji) do not necessarily
have only one meaning but can represent a number of associated ideas.
l,., J;? (yonde mimasho)
Let's have a go at reading!
The aim of this section is to give you the opportunity to work out
for yourself the meanings (kanjI) by linking them to pictures of
the objects they represent. The (kanji) you will start with all have
meanings linked to nature and the world which surrounded the ancient
Chinese. To carry oul this activity, look at pictures 1- 12 below and then see
if you can link them to the l1l'i*" (kanji) a- I at the top of the opposite page.
Try to match the shape of the pictures to the (kanji) characters.
111{ A-li'"? -C (ganbatte) - good luck!
1) 2)
gold tree wood forest
5) 6) 7) 8)

)

/ '
"-
/'

"-

mountain stone
6,.
water
9) 10) 12)
bamboo ground nver ri ce field
UNIT 1
il* (kanj')
.) III b) )II
g) ;+; h) "*
d) EO
j) *
e)tt
k)
f) 1<
I) 15
3
Check your answers at the back of the book then look again at the
pictures and see if you can envisage how the pictures became the
standardised il (kanji) which are used today.
JWJIIt- (kaisetsu - ichi) Explanation 1
Look at the following artist's impression of the sequence of progressive
changes, from standardised (kanjI) character back to original picture.
ifi* (kanji) (e) (eigo)
Character Picture English
u.,
...

.... rfh
mountain
.,
)II
' 'I
....
"I -+ /,Ij
nver

gold/money
EO ffi ->
ffi
ri ce field
'r'r ....
1t
->
11 .... it
bamboo
1< :k.
....
'k

*'
fire
*
....
:t- .... W
tree
;1:1 .... 14-

wood
4

forest
71<- -I' '-j' ...,. /..... -"J' .; '.

.--
.- .... ..:L .... T
water
ground

BEGINNER' S JAPANESE SCRIPT
ilYi<J< (kanji) fit (e)
Character Picture
:.G -. JO Jb,
Jl

8 G ... 9 --'> '8:

English
stone
moon
sun
Did you notice how two trccs are used to represent a wood and three trees
a forest? You will learn more about this type of (kanji) in Unit 2.
MtW- (renshu - ichi) Activity 1
How well can you remember the il* (ku.'1i.i) and meanings you have
learnt so far? Test yourself by linking each (kanji) with its English
meaning. The fi rst one is done for you.
I) ill
2) 1i
3) 1<.
4) 'it
5) lIl:
6) *
7) m
8) ;U<
9) )11
IO)
II ) '*
12)
13) 13
14) Jl
a) water ( )
b) moon ( )
c) earth ( )
d) ri ver ( )
e) tree ( )
f) forest ( )
g) fire ( )
h) stone ( )
i) sun( )
j) mountain ( I )
k) rice field ( )
I) bamboo ( )
m) wood ( )
n) gold ( )
Ml&= (kaisetsu - ni) Explanation 2
Look at the il* (kanjI) that follow and remind yourself of their meanings:
a. jJ. j( *. *-. i'z. sun, moon, fire, water, tree, gold, earth
UNIT 1

These ~ * " (kanji) are also used to represent the first part of the words
for the days of the week. a is the first part of Sunday, JJ is the fi rst part
of Monday and so forth. Here are some tips to help you remember which
~ * - (kanji) represents which day of the week. The first two are easy!
a Sun --+ SUNday.
j.J Moon --+ MOONday or Monday as it has become in English.
*- Fire also represents Tuesday. In English, Tuesday derives from the
word Tiw who was the Norse god of war. If you connect the ideas of
war and fi re in your mind then you will remember that FIREday is
Tuesday!
71< Water also represents Wednesday - easy to remember because both
start with 'W'!
*- Tree also represents Thursday - both start with ' T' (but do not
confuse with Tuesday).
~ Gold/money also represents Friday - Friday is often payday!
Earth/soil and Saturday. This is the beginning of the weekend and a
good day for worki ng in the garden!
~ .-W= (renshu - ni) Activity 2
Link the ~ * - (kanji) in the left column with the corresponding day of
the week in the right.
I) 1<- a) Monday ( )
2) a b) Tuesday ( )
3) c) Wednesday ( )
4) 71< d) Thun;day ( )
5) fl e) Friday ( )
6) ~ f) Saturday ( )
7) *
g) Sunday ( )
iilM:r.-W (yomu renshu) Reading practice
Throughout the book, this section wi ll give you opportuni ties to put into
practice and furt her develop your reading of il*- you have learnt.
The if*- (kanji) in Activity 2 represent the fi rst part of the words for
the days of the week. In fact, the days of the week are written using three
i#i*- (kanji) characters. The other two are III a and they represent day.
Vou already know a and have learnt that it can mean day. !Ill represents
the concept of weekday but simply remember them as together representing
the day part of Monday, Tuesday, etc.
This is what the complete words for the days of the week look like in
i1I!'l' (!wnj<):
IHIH!
flllIH!
!kIlIH!
JJ<ilIH!
*iIfI!l'l

iII!l'l
t Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
When two or morc (kanji) are combined in this way to produce
new words and meanings, they are called (jukugo) or compound
words. You will learn more about these in Unit 2.
the way, you will often see the days of the week written with the first
(kanji) only, for example, on calendars and diary sheets. This is like
writing 'Mon, Tues, in English.
.W':::: (renshu - san) Activity 3
The following is part of a music events column from a teenage magazine.
Notice that the groups and events are written partly in English script. It is
highly fashionable in the Japanese music world (and not only there) for
group names and song titles to be written in English. The effect of the
script is often far more important than the meaning of the words. (Rancid
Japan Tour and Michelle Gun Elephant from the extract are just two
examples of this!)
The day of the week 00 which each of the events will take place is
written in brackets next to the date (13th- 30th). Notice that only the first
7l* (knnjl) for each of the days of the week is written. Now have a go
at answering the questions that follow the text.
131*'
151.'
UNIT I
THE MICHEllE GUN ELEPHANT rWORLD PCHYCO BLUES
17
TOUR 'ALL STANDINGf MAXIMUMl ' *J ""/a'IiJ"'} ; .1'*1
( B) I H,2OCI '",,-t>711-""

2,SOO(7" .f 2. 2
ot*ItJI/DJ KENB/l KOVA. ATSUSHt!IlJI<IJHIP
On which day of the week do the following events take place?
I) Rotten Orange Tour
2) Down Beat
3) The Michelle Gun Elephant ... Tour
4) Rancid Japan Tour
5) World Connection ' Kool' .
How many events are taking place on:
6) a Friday
7) a Saturday
8) a Thursday?
9) Which day of the week is not represented in the events extract'!
1!}<""'!1l - (kaku renshu - ichi)
Writing practice 1
7
This section will introduce you to some si mple rules for writing
(kanjI). You will learn some further rules in Unit 2 and will then practi se
writing some of the rl (kanji) you have learnt.
The rules for writing il* (kanji) arc very precise and Japanese children
spend many hours of their school life learni ng and practising the correct
order for writing each I!* (kanji). (In a similar way, we learn how to
write the letters of the alphabet correctly at school). Each s ingle part of a
(kanji) is caJl ed a stroke and the order in which if.*, (kanji) are
written is called 1!.F Mi (kakijun) or stroke order.

The Japanese use squared paper when they arc learning how to write
because it hel ps to ensure that (kanj i) are all the same size and are
balanced correctly. If you can, use large squared graph paper which is
subdivided into four smaller squares during the init ial stages of learning
to write. This wi ll help you to balance left and ri ght, and top and bottom
of each il* (kanj I). Alternatively you could use graph paper and have
four smaller squares making up one larger square. The il (kanji)
taught in the earlier units will also have an example written in this type of
square so that you can copy exactly from the book. Once you feel confident,
you can use clear squares or use smaller squared paper/graph paper for
practising and perfecting your technique.
Here are some simple rul es to get you started and examples to copy.
Rule I : Horizontal (kanji) strokes are written from left to right.
i9IJ (rei) Example: three

-
-
-
-
-

-
. .
-
-

-

-

Rule 2: Vertical (kanji) strokes are written from top to bottom.
fJlJ (rei) Example: river

) ,
1
t-,---t
)
) ,
) I 1
Rule 3: Where the (kanji) character has an intersecting horizontal
and vertical stroke, the start ing stroke is usually the horizontal one (but
there are some exceptions).
i?lJ (rei) Example: earth
--.
-
t
..t-

Noti ce you work downwards; the final stroke is the bottom horizontal one.
UNIT 1 9
Rul e 4: A lefthand diagonal line is written before a right band di agonal
line.
(rei) Example: Iree
*
-Jf
-
t
;t

Rul e 5: Here is a ll* (kanji).
,
c1
0
,
l
0
,
--_ .. _-
,
,
,
Rule 6: When the square contains other strokes within it, you fi ll in this
part before writing the bottom line of the square.
#1J (rei) Example: sun
,
8
-8 -
\
(1
R
3
,
You can combine these rules you have learnt to write ;0 (sl one):
,
;fj
jfu-
,

T
r- kl D
Using these six rules, you have learnt to write the foll owing (kanjI)
in this section:
=_JII _.*.a.15
(three, river, earth, tree, sun, stone)
Now see if you can write them on square paper in the correct order from
memory (refer back to the rules to check when you have fi nished).
As a fi nal note in this section, although it is important to understand and
apply the basic rules for writing jl*" (kanji), there arc some aspects of
stroke order which do not fall easi ly into rules and so you also need to
learn and practise the stroke order for each ~ * (kanji) character. Do
not be daunted by this, however, because ' practice makes perfect' and i f
you write iJ.* (kanji) over and over again and concentrate on the
correct stroke order you will begin to develop a feel for the order in
which they are writt en. You will also begin to develop your own way of
rememberi ng and to apply this to wri ting more complicated ~ ~ (kanji).
In the meantime, you will be given lots of help and advice in the wri ting
sections of this book, and the uni t summaries at the back of the book give
the stroke order for the mai n il.*" (kanjI) taught in each uni t.
j ~ ~ I: (owari ni) Conclusion
This section in each unit will summarise the main aspects of the unit. In
addition, Uni ts 2, 4, 6 and 8 contai n a test so that you can eval uate how
well you have remembered the il* (kanji) you have learnl up to that
point. In this unit you have learnt 14 i l ~ (kanji), seven compound
words (days of the week) and six basic rules for writing if*- (kanji).
The followi ng terms and sub-headings have been used in this unit :
m- 1/.I! dai ikka . Uni t I
(! 1.-' ~ ( ~
hajime ni Introduction
il'1' kanji Kanji (Chinese characters)
liit,t,-C"".1I.-J:; yonde mimasho Let's have a go at reading
1W1& kaisetsu Explanat ion
l!I! '&' renshu Act ivity/practice
liit trl!l!'&' yomu renshii Reading practice
{i}( l!I!'&' kaku renshii Writi ng practice
jj1J
m Example
11 ~ ( ~ owanm Conclusion
The Engli sh meanings of these words and phrases wi ll not be given again in
future units in order to help you to build up your 11* (kanjI) recognition
skills but you can refer back to this list if you need to jog your memory!
However, any key words or tenns will be given at the begi nni ng of the unit.
2
. =ilI Dai nika
UNIT 2
In thi s unit you will
add some new to the 14 you have learnt al ready
learn the Japanese pronunciati on of these
apply your learning to real reading situations
learn more about writing Japanese script
Key word:
jM* Kanji
Hajime ni
I) Can you remember the meanings of the you were introduced to
in Unit 11 You can see them in the following list, so test yourself and
check back to Unit I if there are any you are unsure about.
2) Can you remember which represents which day of the week?
They arc li sted below in their full form. Remember it is the first
which tells you which day of the week it is.

Again, check back to Unit I if you are unsure of any them.
Yonde mimasho
In this section, as with Unit 1, you will be introduced to some new I!=
the pictures of natural objects that they are derived from. Most of
the ill!*" introduced in thi s unit are associated with the human body. Try
matching the pictures with the il*" (a- 1) that foll ow them. In two cases
.2 BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
(eye and car/vehicle) you may need to imagine the pictures turned on
their side to identity them.
' )
3) 4)
-
/\ ')

gate horse ea, child
6) 7) 8)
" ,

0
--- woman mouth eye foot
9)
10) 11 ) 12)
\.Li7J-

-
hand power car/vehicle person
a) 1=1
b) JE c) 1'1 d) Y: e) T f) A
g) 1+ h) 'f i) j]
n1!l
k) 1)
Kaisetsu 1
An artist's impression of the changes from standardised iI back to
picture follows. Check your answers to the previous activity with thi s
sequence.

Picture
A-+k-.x-->J;:.

+-+}--'-j--->.y
*m (eigo)
English
person
woman
child
UNIT 2
o
I"J

Picture

1'-->f -+ %-+tJ:
-
JL -> /i:.... -> b!!l
:h iJ ... iJJ .... "f!1):.
.w" --> ,1'0 -> h, ->
l -+ ! --. ,d:,. --.. "
r, .... - fEI ... I=Et
(eigo)
English
eye
car
mouth
hand
foot
13
power/strength
horse
cart/vehicle/car
gate
In thi s set of new Ii: there is an example of an abstract noun, 11
(power/strength), being portrayed in picture form through the image of
the muscles in the ann. Anot her point of interest is that 111 originally
developed from the picture of a cart which would have been the type of
transport or vehi cle used when were first developed. In modern
times it has taken on the meaning of car.
_* build up
This section in this unit and throughout the book will introduce you to
new and new words based on the you have learnt so far.
Complex ll'
The pictorial tl* that you have been introduced to so far not only have
meanings in themselves but are also used as parts or components of Ii:
that are more complex. You actuall y learnt two of these morc complex
in Unit 1. They were ** (wood) and. (forest) . Both are created
from *- (tree) two trees represent a wood, three trees a forest. Here are
four more _* built from simpler ones which you have learnt already.
The meanings of the components arc incorporated into these complex
fonns. Notice that the simpler when used as components of
more complex 14 may change their shape slightly or appear ' squashed' .
.9j (man). Thi s is made from the components fB (rice field) and j]
(power). In other words, the man uses his power to work in the rice fields.
tf (like, love). This is a combinati on of -J;r: (woman) and T (child). The
abstract idea of love is expressed through the love between women and
children.
ijJJ (bright). This is a combinati on of a (sun) and 1) (moon) . The sun
and moon shining together would create a very bright light.
*' (root. origin). ;.+;:. (tree) with a horizontal line through the " runk'
indicates the root of the tree.
Uni t 4 will look at these complex il* in more detail but you can see
from these examples that a knowledge ofthc simplcr il* can also hclp
you to decipher the more complex ones .
iIi (Jukugo) ll'i' Compounds
The four il* you have just been introduced to are created by combining
simpler to fonn one complex Another way in which
are used to create new meanings is by forming words from two or more
separate iI*. You have al ready been introduced to this idea through the
days of the week. Three separate i1l are used to make up each day. For
example, JJ III a means Monday. Here are some more examples:
A 0 means population ('people' s mouths' = number of mouths to feed)
iJ means horse power
];r:=f means girl ('woman child' )
(Notice that these are two separate unlike M- (complex il)
which means lovell ike.)
a *' means Japan ('sun's root' describes Japan as the place east of
China whe}e the sun ri ses. This is where the term ' land of the
rising sun' comes from.)
To summarise the two points in this section: can join together and
form one (for example, or they can form compounds of two or
more (for example. A D).
UNIT 2 15
t!J IlkW- Renshu 1
Some compound words made up of two or three il* follow. Can you
work out their meanings? (You may want to look back at the il you
have learnt so far in Units I and 2 and refresh your memory before trying
this activity.)
b) ~ T
g) 7l< Bl
e) At)
j ) A I'l
Once you have thought about the possi ble meanings of these words, look
at the list of English meanings that follows and decide which best fi ts
each ~ * before you check the answers at the back of the book.
I) volcano 2) boy 3) Japanese person
4) carnage 5) in the publ ic eye 6) water power
7) gateway 8) manpower
9) a rickshaw (man-pulled carriage)
10) a paddy fi eld (a field fl ooded with water for wet ri ce growi ng)
Kaisetsu 2
You will have not iced that somet imes the meanings are a direct
'translation' of the separate ~ into their new meaning. For example,
*- LlI ('fire mountain' or volcano). In other' cases you need to think more
laterally or abstractl y. For example, A ~ (i n the public eye). However,
once you know what the meanings are they are easy to remember because
the pictorial ~ act as a visual jog to the memory. And words are
created in a very logical fashion. For example, An:$ means literally
' human-powered vehicle' and that is what a rickshaw is as the following
ill ustration shows.
In fact, the word ' rickshaw' is a corruption of the Japanese word l in-riki-
sho' . In English, ' jin' (person) has been dropped and the other two words
(power, vehicle) have had their pronunciation ' angli ciscd' , Try sayi ng the
Japanese ' rikisha' and you' l! see what I mean!
fj[fI (Fukushii) Review
Before continuing any further, here is an activity to help you review the
single iM* learnt so far in this unit.
Match the followi ng il with their English meanings from the selection
in the box. Then try the activity in reverse by taking the English meanings
from the bo;Jl first.
A. ~ .. ~ . * . 00 . Q . ~ . ... ~ . . r ~ .
;.is:.iE
vehicle
cae
mouth
man
fool
like
.
eye
woman
hor.;e
' 001
gate
power
pc""n
hand
bright
chi ld
I r there are any of these characters that yOll are not sure about, look back
through the unit and check your answers.
Yomu renshii
The way in which dates are written in Japanese is interesting. You were
introduced to the il* for moon 11 and sun a in Unit 1 and you also
learnt that these ~ * have the connected meanings of day a and month
~ - so let us look at how this works in practice. This is how a typical
Japanese calendar looks for the month of January:
IJ'l '
1'1 J'l 9<
*
;.is:
~ '
11'1 21'1 31'1 41'1 51'1 61'1 71'1'
81'1 91'1 101'1 I I 1'1 I 2 1'1 13 1'1 141'1
151'1 161'1 171'1 181'1 191'1 201'1 211'1
221'1 231'1 241'1 25 1'1 261'1 27 1'1 281'1
291'1 301'1 311'1
UNIT 2
17
a) is the month written in numerals and i l ~ . Japanese months do
not have a name as such, so they arc assigned a number from I to 12.
Therefore, 6 JJ is June (the sixth month), 1 JJ is January (the first month)
and 12 JJ is December.
b) are the i l ~ for the days of the week (as you learnt in Unit I). They
are shortened in this case to just the first ~ ~ of the three which you
learnt (for exampl e, *l1li a = Wednesday) because this is all that is
needed to identify each day of the week. (Thi s is rather li ke writing Tues,
Wed, etc. in English.)
c) are the days of the month. Each number is followed by a (si milarly
in English we foll ow the dates with st, nd, rd or Ih. For example, ISI,7th).
l!J I!I!fl =: Renshu 2
Using the calendar and information just given, try answering the following
questions.
I) On which day of the week is a) 1st b) 4th c) 9th d) 14th?
2) How many days in the month fall on a Wednesday and what are
they?
3) On which day of the week will IJJ 1 a fall ?
(Note that Japanese dates are written in the order: month t hen date.)
l!J I!I!fl ::::: Renshu 3
On the next page is a calendar from a Japanese travel brochure. Look at
it and answer questions 1-4.
I) What are the starting and fini shing months on this calendar?
2) In which months do the following happen:
a) the 2nd is a Tuesday
c) the 6th is a Friday?
b) the 24th is a Monday
3) On what day of the week is:
a) May 5th b) October 26th c) February 18th
d) August 21 st e) December 25th?
I. BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
4) On what days of the week do these Japanese festivals fall :
a) Girls' Day (March 3rd)
b) New Year's Day
c) Tanabata (Star Festival, July 7th)
d) Golden Week (29th April-5th May)
e) Emperor's Birthday (December 23rd)?
l!J Ilkfll!!l Renshu 4
Convert the foll owing random dates into English as in the examples.
Remember the Japanese order: month. date, day.
WI] Rei ( I) 8ft3 a (!J() = Tuesday 3rd August (order: August 3rd
Tuesday)
/II] Rei (2) 101126 a ( ~ ) = Friday 26th October
a) 211141'1 ()
d) 911101'1 (Ell
b) 1111201'1 Ot.:)
e) 1211251'1 (7l<)
c) 51151'1 (JI)
f) 41JI a ( ~ )
UNIT 2
_* Readings
(Kanji no yomikata)
,.
This section wil l teach you about reading nYi* in Japanese. As suggested
in the introduction, if you wish to focus on just understanding the meaning
of M$ then you can miss these sections out throughout the book or
come back to them later.
1) (kunyomi) and (onyomi)
In the int roduct ion you learnt t hat there are two ways of reading
in Japanese, the kunyomi or Japanese reading and the
onyomi or Chinese reading. The onyomi has developed from the,
original Chinese pronunciation but over the centuries it has been adapted
to and become part of the Japanese language. The kunyomi is the nat ive
Japanese word.
For example, )II (river) can be pronounced SEN (onyomi) and kawa
(kunyomi) . Kawa was the Japanese word for rivcr and so when il were
introduced from China this word was linked to the ll$ character )11 .
By the way, notice that kawa (the kunyomi) when written in romaji
(romanised script or alphabet) is written in lower case and SEN (the
onyomE) in upper case. This system is used in many Ii$: workbooks and
dictionaries and is also followed in this book.
2) Rules for using kunyomi and onyomi
As a general rule, the kunyomi is used for single il* words whereas the
onyomi is used for compound words of two or more il$. Here is
an ill ustrati on of this.
a) Single _* words
A (person) is pronounced hilo (kunyomE)
1=1 (mouth) is pronounced kuchi (kunyomE)
b) Compound _* words
The above if$: make up the compound word A D (popul ation)
whi ch is pronounced JINKO.
lIN and KO are-the onyomi of A and 0 respectively.
There will be further examples and the opportuni ty to practise new
infonnation and rules as you progress through the book so do not worry
if you have understood only some of the details so far. There are exceptions
20 BeGINNER' S JAPANESE SCRIPT
to the rul es about when to use kunyomi and onyomi but these will be
pointed out to you when necessary and explained, and there wi ll be lots
of reinforcement activities too.
~ .fHi Renshu 5
In this unit you are going to concentrate on the kunyomi (Japanese readi ng)
only. In the following li st are the ll* you learnt in Unit I with thei r
kunyomi and a guide to how to pronounce th,?sc readings. Look over these
and practise saying them. Then see how well you can remember them by
covering up the kunyomi column, looking al the 1 l ~ and saying them
from memory.
ll'j<
Meaning Kunyomi Pronunciation
LlJ mountain yama yama (a of mat)
Jif
nvcr tama ka-wa (a of mat)
~ gold/ money kane ka-ne (a of mat, e of end)
m ri ce field ta ta (a of mat)
17 bamboo take ta-kc (a of mat, e of end)
1<.
fire hi (i of hit)
*
tree ki (i of hit )
*"
wood hayashi ha-ya-shi (a of mat, i of hit)
~ forest mori mo-ri (0 of hot, i of hit)
'*
water mlZU mi-zu (i of hit, u of blue)
ground, earth tsuchj tsu-chi (tsu is one syllable,
chi of chin)
1i slone ish; i-shi (i of hit)
}J
moon tsuki l<>U-ki (l<>U is one syllable, i of hit)
a sun hi (i of hit)
(hinto) Hints: Pronunciation
There are five vowel sounds in Japanese. These are D, i, u, e and o.
They are always pronounced in the same way. A general guide to their
pronunciation can be seen in the li st just given and can be summarised as
follows:
a as in mat i as in hit u as in blue e as in end 0 as in hot
UNIT 2 21
These vowels are attached to consonants to make new sounds but remember.
the pronunciation of each vowel remains constant. The sound tsu is an
unfamiliar one in English - it is one beat or syllable. ' squash' the I and s
together as you say it.
You may have noti ced that the readings of 9<. fire and a day are the
same - they are both pronounced hi. There are many examples of
Japanese words which have the same pronunciation but are written with
different il. The difference in meaning can be understood from reading
the il*- or from the context. There are many examples in English, too,
of words whi ch are pronounced in the same way but which have different
meanings. These differences in meaning are indicated by the spelling or
the context or both.
~ .fI:t\ Renshii 6
How well can you remember the kunyomi reading and pronunciation of
each jl!:J!:? You may want to look back at the readings on the previous
list and practise saying them oul aloud - looking at the iI* as you do
so - before trying the following activity.
i) Tick the correct il*:
1 ) ta 0) 'It b) Ell
2) mon 0) b) ~
3) ish; 0) ~ b) 15
4)
ka""
0) )II b) W
5)
k;
0) a b) !k
ii) This time ti ck the correct kunyomi:
I) ~ 0) kane b) kawa
2) 'It a) ta b) hayashi
3) fl 0) Isuchi b) Isuki
4) ~ 0) hayashi b) ki
5) 71< 0) mori b) kawa
0) )II
0) l!it
0)
0) 71<
0) *
c) k;
c) lake
c) ishi
c) mor;
c) mizu
iii) Now you are going to test your understanding of the three aspects
of il* you have learnt - the i l ~ itself, the kunyomi and the meaning
in Engl ish. You will link these three aspects by choosi ng one from each
of two categories (a- c and i- iii) to match the first item as in the examples:
{JIJ Rei t la a) JI b) i3
i) ri ce field..J ii) moon
b) Isuch;
ii) moon..J
c) Ell ,
iii) gold
c) hi
iii) earth
WIt Rei}
I) fi ..
3) yama
4) gold
5) it
6) miz,u
7) stone
8)
9) ka""
10) ""
a) 71<
i) ki
a) tsukN
;) day
a) mOrl
i) wood
a) )If
i) mountain
a) '"
i) kawa
a) wood
i) take
a) water
;) !k
a) Ell
i) ish;
a} sun
i) 'such;
a) )If
i) bamboo
a) wood
i) mori
l!J tU'l-t Renshu 7
b) '"
ii) hi
b) hayashi
ii) trce
b) it
ii) river
b) ~
ii) kane
b) bamboo
ii) tsuk;
b) moon
ii) *
b) ;r;
ii) Isuchi
b) moon
ii) Isuki
b) 71<
ii) gold
b) forest
ii) hayashi
c)
ii i)
c)
!k
mlzu
ishi
iii) forest
c) IlJ
iii} wood
c) !k
iii) mori
c) nver
iii) tsuch;
c) forest
ii i) *
c) i3
iii} ki
c) earth
iii) ish;
c) it
iii) river
c) tree
iii) ki
The following acti vity gives you the opportunity to use the kunyomi for
~ * learnt so far in a rcal rcading situation. Japanese surnames are made
up of either single ~ ~ or two or three compounded together. The . ~
used in surnames are often fairly simple ones including some of those
you have learnt in Units I and 2. Although 1l* used in surnames have
literal meanings (for example, the surname 11"LlJ (Takeyama) literally
means ' bamboo mountain '), the Japanese do not think of them in this way.
Many English surnames also have literal meanings (for example, Rivers,
Hill, Robinson) but agai n, they are known as names not meanings.
When saying Japanese surnames you use the kunyomi. You learnt at the
beginning of this section that in general the onyomi is used for com]X>und
_* words. However, names are an exception to this rule.
UNIT 2
Can you say these common surnames in Japanese:
a) :Ij;
0) ttlll
b)
f)
c)
g) :>!elll
d) IllJII
h) 'liJII
23
For the following surnames (i- m), III is pronounced ' da' instead of ' ta'
How do you say these names'!
i) III j) tt III k) 'lilll I) Illlll m) JIIIll
In Uni t I you learnt some basic rul es for jM*. Now you are
going to revise these rul es wit h some new you have learnt
in this unit. Vou wi ll learn some further rules and, once you are familiar
with these, you will have a go at writing in the correct order.
Rules 1- 3: You learnt in Unit I that you write from left to ri ght and from
top to bottom. Usually, where two lines intersect, the highest horizontal
line is written before the verti cal line, and then you work downwards.
For example, ' hand'. Note: the short top stroke is written from right to
left.
4-
/
/ /
4-
--"'.
-
-
---
- ,
oj
Rule 4: Diagonal lines follow the same rule of writing the left diagonal
before the right. For example, 'person' .
Rule 5: Vou also learnt in Uni t I how to write a square. Thi s is how
'mouth' is written (notice that the shape is different from the square).
,
,
0
-\3-
\ Cl
a ,
Rule 6: When there is a middle part to the square, you write the bottom
line last. For ex.ample, 'eye'.
,
-til-
l
II
A
Fl

And ' rice field' (but noti ce this is an exception to Rule 3 because
the vertical intersecting line inside the square is written before the
hori zontal).
,
ill
-$I
\ Cl III
ffi
EEl
Here are two further rules.
Rule 7: Where a ~ ~ has a distinct left and right part, the left secti on is
written before the ri ght and where it has a distinct top and bottom part,
the top section is written first. For example, ' wood' .
;f}
f?f
-
t
;f
;f r ~
Note that the left section is smaller than the right.
UNIT 2 25
And 'forest' is similar.
A
~
-
-r
*
;f-.
""-
~
.if
You combi ne Rules 5, 6 and 7 to write 'gate' .

FE] F-ri
I
r
r
r
F' r1 F1
p ~
Rul e 8: Where a Wi: is symmetrical with a central 'axis' , you wri te the
'axjs' first followed by the left side and then the right side. For example,
' water' .
7K
j/
j
71
7Y 7K
/ ' ~
And 'mountain' is another similar instance .

~
d:i-
I Ll
J-J
26 BEGINNER' S JAPANESE SCRIPT
l!J .W A Renshu 8
Can you write the following iil* applying the rules you have been
introduced to so far? Remember to usc squared paper to achieve the right
balance and proportions.
Rules 1- 4:
)II (ri ver) = (three) 11 (power) A (person)
Rules 5 and 6:
a (sun)
Rule 7:
(moon) m (rice fi eld - exception to Rule 3)
# (wood)
Rule 8:
it (bamboo)
tl' (small - Unit 6) :.1<. (water) III (mountain)
You can check your answers by looking back through the writing sections
of units I and 2. For 1;, J) , it look up their stroke order in the unit-by-
unit il- charts at the back of this book. Then use the wriling sections
and charts for Units I. and 2 to practise writ ing al l the you have
learnt so far. The rules given in these two units will give you general
guidance in most cases but they are not exhaustive so pay attention to the
stroke order for individual il and remember that there are exceptions
to rules.
Owari ni
In this unit you have been tntroduced to 16 new single il* as well as 14
compound il* words and 13 Japanese surnames. You have also learnt
to read dates and have been introduced to the readings of some il*.
And you have reviewed writing rules and learnt two new ones.
The following new terms and sub-headings have been used in this unit:
jukugo Compound Kanji words
W. '8/ fukushii Review

1iJ lililt ""
i}'lilt""

kanji no yomikata
kunyomi
onyomJ
hinto
Kanji readings
Japanese reading
Chinese reading
Hint, tip
UNIT 2 27
'j- A J-. (tesuto) Test
This section is designed to test how well you have remembered what you
have learnt in Units I and 2.
I) The _* below are grouped by theme. Which is the odd one out?
a) Parts of the body: ~ . ~ . !J! .=f-. 1+
b) Days of the week: Jl. . !k. *. fl. ;It<
c) People and animals: . ~ . :::r-. fJ . .Jj. f;(
d) Abstrnct ideas: }J. jji;. 1JIl . 7J
2) What do these compound . ~ words mean? f) is a new word) :
b) fI*
3) Match these dates to the festivals and holi days on the right :
a) 12Jl25f1
b) l Jl lfi
c) 7Jl4f1
d) 3Jl2 1fl
e) 4Jllfl
f) loJl31fl
g) 5Jl l fl
i) April Fool ' s Day
ii) Christmas Day
iii) Hallowe'en (October 31 sl)
iv) May Day (May lsI)
v) Spring Equinox (March 21st)
vi) New Year's Day
vii) American Independcnce Day (July 4th)
f) !1J3(
4) Can you say these Japanese surnames? (. indi cates a change in
pronunciation from fa to da):
a) llJEEI- b) ttllJ c) ~ E E I d) ~ e) :OEEl-
5) Can you write the following nl* in thc correct stroke order?
. fl . i'l.'f-.*.*. llJ . EEl
3
.=:" Dai sanka
UNIT 3
In this unit you will
learn to read numbers in Japanese
use these numbers in real reading situations
practise writing ~ *
Hajime ni
In Unit 2 you learnt how to read dates. You are now going to review this
by reading the following dates . Choose the Engl ish equivalent from the
selection below the dates. (Remember that the order in Japanese is
month, date, day.)
a) 4J1211'l Uk) b) 1I}'l51'l () c) 9}jIOI'l Cd<)
i) Wednesday 21 April iii) Tuesday 21 April
Ii) Wednesday 10 September IV) Saturday 5 November
If you are still unsure about reading dates then look back at the section on
dates in Unit 2 to refresh your memory.
Yonde mimasho
Two systems of numbering have already been used in t his book. One
of these is the Arabic number system ( 1,2,3 ... ). This system is
internationally recognised and is used widely in Japan. However, every
language has its own words when counting (English: one, two, three . . . ;
French: un, deux, trois . .. etc.). In Japanese there are ~ * which represent
the words for numbers. They have been used alongside Arabic numbers
in this book to number act ivities and explanations. These are the ili=-
numbers \-10:
UNIT 3 29
The following section gives some tips for memori sing thesc and
you may already have thought of some. First, though, a word on how
they developed. These represent abstract concepts and so instead of
developing from pictures, they are made up ofa series of poi nts and lines.
You have learnt one other abstract ftl= so far - j) ( power/strength).
Thi s looks similar to the nl* for ' nine' jL so look carefull y at the
difference. There is also a picture to help you remember the difference:
you bend your ann inwards to flex your muscle en); 1L has a Q-shape.
Now look at the
MllI!.- Kaisetsu 1
Here are some tips for remembering the jl for numbers:
-. =. = ( I, 2, 3) are easy as you have probably noticed - 'one line,
two lines, three lines'
1m is a four-sided square and so is easy to relate to the number 4.
1i When you look at Ihis ., you can trace the arabic number 5 in it.
Try it!

/'\ The number 6 in Japanese is pronunced 'roku' - nol unlike the Engli sh
word ' rocket'! With a little imagination, you should sec a rocket laking
off in this
ft
'I'

-t If you tum this jl upside-down, a continental number 7 emerges.
" 't"" rt t
}\.. The Arabic number 8 turned on its side is also the mathematical
symbol for infinity. Imagine that the _* is a road leadi ng inlo the
distance and on into infinity!
:tL With a lot of imagination this looks like a combination of the
for 8 and for 1, and of course 8 + I = 9.
+ The Roman numeral for 10 is X. This looks like the tilted to
one side.
You may find your own ways of remembering these and other
I find that it really helps to try to associate a new with an idea
or picture in your mind (and you will be learning more about this in
future units). Once you have begun to remember new you will
probably not need to refer to these ideas again but they can really hel p
at first.
.fl- Renshu 1
1) Match the sequence numbers on the left with thei r equi valent
sequences on the right:
a) - I!!l i) 3, 6, 9 , - , - ,
b) +,
:Jt"
1\.,
-I:;
Ii) 2, 4, 6, 8
c) -
:Ji,
-I:;
iii) 8, 9, 10 , - ,
d)

1L IV) 1, 2,3, 4 -, h,
e)
I!!l,

I\. v) 1,3,5, 7 - , /\ ,
f) 1\. ,
:Jt" +
vi) 10,9,8,7
2) The following sequence of numbers \-\ 0 is out of order. Point at each
of these numbers in sequence then look back to the section above
to check that you are correct:

3) The odd one out. The following sequences of numbers all have
one number missing when matched with the Arabic numbers on the ri ght.
Which number is it?
a) - I!!l, :Ji 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 , - , -,
b) +, J\ ,

10,8, 6,4,2 /\,
c)
I!!l ,

-1:;,
J\ 4,5,6,7,8 /\,
d) =,
I!!l,

+
2, 4,6,8, )0 /\ ,
UNIT 3 31
_* build up (1); Numbe rs 11-99
These are easy to read because Ihey are logicall y made from combinations
of the il* numbers 1- 10. It is nOI neccessary to write them all oul for
you, but here are the numbers 11- 21 (in sequence) to give you an idea of
how it works.
+- . +=. +=. +I!!I. +li. +1\. +1::. +JI.. +1L.
=+. =+-
Can you see the pattern? The numbers 1 1- 19 are made up of 10 plus the
relevant unil:
+ -= 10+1= 11; i-= = 10+2 = 12
20 is made up of a 2 in front of a 10: .=:. ,... Remcmber the order like this:
2 x 10 (:::: 20). You then add the relevant unit to make 21 , 22, 23, and so on:
'=:' '''- = 2 x 10+1 =2 1
= + '=:'= 2 x 10+2=22
'=:' + == 2x 10 +3 = 23
~ . WI .:::: Renshu 2
I) The numbers 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 follow in sequence. Look
at them and make sure you can recognise them before moving on to the
next activity.
=+. =+.I!!I+.li+.1\+.1::+./I.+.1L+
2) Now the same sequence has been jumbled up. Return the numbers to
the original sequence by pointing at each in turn. Then check with the
above sequence to see jf you are right.
1\+. 1L-t-. =+.I!!I+.1::+.li+. ::::: +.!I.-t-
3) How are you getting on so far? Remember you can always look back
to earlier sections if you need to refresh your memory. Next you are going
to practise reading the sequence of numbers from 21- 30. This lime they
have already been jumbled up. Can you put them in the correct sequence?
a) =+1L b) =+= c) =+1\ d) =+-t c) =+I!!I
f) =+/1. g) =+= h) =+- i) =+li j) :::::+
Now check your answers at the back of the book.
4) Finally, in Ihis section you are going to pull together everything you
have learnt so far about numbers and have a go at reading a random
selecti on of numbers between 1 and 99! Try writing down your answers
in arabic numbers and then checking them at the back of the book. Ii It."
It'? "C (ganbatte) Good Luck!
a) 1L b) '* c) 1;
f) += g) =+ h) n+
k) =+= I) I!!! += m) n+1!!!
p) J\. i --1; q) J\. + J\. ,) :IL +:lL
0) +-1;
j) =+-
0) -1;+1;
How did you get on? You might fi nd that this is a good place to lake a
break and digest what you have learnt so far before moving on to the next
secti on.
_* build up (2); Five new _*
B 100 =f 1000 n 10,000 P1 yen (Japanese currency) ~ year
Here are some visual cl ues and ideas to help you associate each ~ ~
with its meaning:
a ( 100) Turned on its side the il* looks li ke this: lJIl -=,. ~
You can trace the numerals 100 in this.
T (1000) This looks li ke the ~ ~ for ten (+) but wi th an extra part
on the top in the same way that 1000 looks like 10 but with
2 extra zeros!
n ( 10,000) In the Western counting system we count in thousands until
we reach one million. The Japanese system of counting
is slightly different. Instead of saying ten thousand, there is
an extra word to represent this amount. Hence the ~ ~
symbol n. If you look carefully at this, you can see a leaning
' T' on the left and, ignoring the line at the top, you can also
make out the shape of an ' h'. Using a little twisted logic (!)
you can let the T represent ' ten' and the Th represent
'thousand' - ten thousand!
To work out larger amounts of this uni t, mult iply the number by 10,000.
For example:
+n = 10 x 10,000 = 100,000
an = 100 x 10,000 = 1.000,000
UNIT 3 33
fq The Japanese currency is the yen, represented by this and by the
international symbol . All currencies can be written in words or numerals.
For exampl e: six pounds or 6, six dollars or $6, and in Japanese:
Words: -}) P) Numerals: 6
The character Pl , because it is a suffi x to money amounts, is easy to
recognise and remember.
Here is a visual image for remembering this
Can you make out the left half of the for bamboo (ft) at the front
and a house shape behind? In Japan, bamboo decorations are put out side
the front of houses at New Year, hence the visual clue leads you to the
meaning 'year'.
Look back over this section and remind yourself of the visual clues to the
meanings; then try the next section.
L!J Renshu 3
1) Put these multiples of 100 into the correct order ( 100- 900). Which
one is missing?
a) :lL a
e) a
b) = 13
f) = 13
c) lia
g) /\13
d) Illia
h) -ta
2) How do you write these number amounts in Arabic nUf!lbers?
a) /\ 'f- b) li 'f- c) -t'f- d) 1\'f-
e) ='f- f) 'f- (0'
3) Match these multiples of 10,000 with their Arabic number equivalent
below them:
a) = JJ b) :lLJJ c) :IL+JJ d) aJJ
(;) 90,000
(;v) 900,000
(ii ) 1000,000
(v) 10,000,000
4) Combinations of a, T, JJ
(iii) 20,000
e) 'f-JJ
34
Put these amounts in order from the smallest to the largest:
a) = 11 b) = 9'-= 11 c) = 1171 d) = + 71
e) = 9'- f) = 9'-71 g) = 71
Now write out these amounts (in the new order) in Arabic numbers.
5) Match the 1M money amounts on the left with thei r equi valent on
the right:
a) = 1IPl
b) Ji9'-Pl
c) 1IJi+Pl
d) 1L411Ji -t- ty
e) {:;71Pl
f) {:;9'-Ji1l Pl
g) ="9'- Pl
i)
i i)
ii i)
iv)
v)
vi)
vii)
7500
300
3000
70,OOO
5000
450
150
WlllIt= Kaisetsu 2 More about dates
There arc a numberofways)n which the year can be written in Japanese.
Let us look at these usi ng the year 1999 as the model. Notice that the
iro* for year is written after the numbers.
I) 1-:11. 1:f1L This is 1999 written out in full usi ng il numbers
2) Here 1999 is written as it looks. \- 9- 9-9
3) Theycar is written in arabic numbers, norice that
99 &F is still used.
The first example is rarely used and the most commonly used is the third.
Zero is usuall y written as O.
.fll!!! Renshu 4
I) In this activity you are goi ng to match the years wri tten in with
those in Arabic numerals:
a) 2000 4-
b) 19634-
c) 1960 4-
d) 16164-
e) 1863 4-
2) Now match the dates written in with those written in Arabic:
UNIT 3
I) + - fl+- a
2) t<;fl + J\. a
3) +fl = a
4) J\.fl = + - a
5) = fl = + - a
6) t<;fl=+1!!l a
a) 6fl24a
b) 3fl31 a
c) 6fllsa
d) llfllla
e)Sfl2 1a
f) lofl2a
Dates are most often written with Arabic numeral s but not always.
3) Now write out the dates 1- 6 (in (2 in English.
3.
MliIt::::. Kaisetsu 3 The Japanese calendar
Used alongside the Western calendar in Japan is the Japanese system of
(nengO) or era names. An era is defined by the length of rule of each
Emperor. The present Emperor, AkihilO, began his reign (t he Emperor in
modern Japan has a symbolic role with no political power) in 1989 and the
new era is called.3fJ& (Heisel) which means ' Attainment of Peace'. The
previous era was called 1Il);fn (ShOwa) which means 'Enlightened Peace'.
Once an Emperor has died, he is referred to by the name of his era.
Akihito's father, Hirohito who died in 1989 is, therefore, now referred to as
Emperor Showa. The PBfU (ShOwa) era lasted for 63 years from 1926- 89.
When the year is written accordi ng to the (nengO) system, it follows
this pattern:
Heisei 11th year
To match this to the Western calendar, you count up from and including
1989 which was Heisei 1st Year. Therefore:
-'i' JiI1;+- 4' 1999
Arabic numbers can also be used: 3f,li!(; 11
IIBfU (ShOwa) years are counted from and including 1926. A good way
of calculating these is to have an ' anchor' year, for example, your year of
birth, then count from here:
1I!U1I= +J\.4' 1963
Alternatively, add 25 years to the Shi)wa year to get the Western year, or
take 25 years away from the Western year to arrive at the Showa year:
1IlI'!II = +4' (ShOwa 20th year) 20 + 25 (19)45
1985 = 85 - 25 = (Showa 60th year)
~ .flJi Renshii 5
I) Match the followi ng -'fJ& (Heisel) years with their Western calendar
equivalents:
i) 1994
ii) 1990
iii) 1997
iv) 1992
v) 1998
vi) 1995
The fi rst year of an era is written not wi th - (one) but wit h 7G which
means ' beginning':
-'fJ&J'"G:tp = Heisei l Si year (1 989)
2) Match the following 1IU:fu (Showa) years with their Western calendar
equivalents:
i) 1939
ii) 1926
iii) 1973
iv) 1988
v) 1950
vi) 1968
lbliu.fI omu renshu
This section will pull together everything you have learnt in this unit and
give you the opportunity to read numbers and dates in authentic contexts.
~ .WA Renshii 6
I) iM* numbers are most often used when the text is written vert ically
(see question 3, p. 37). Japanese business cards are often produced wi th
Ihe Japanese script written vertically on one side and the Romanised
script (for the benefit of non-Japanese clients) written hori zontally on the
other. The following phone numbers are written horizontally. Notice that
the area code is in brackets and a horizontal line separates the two parts
of the phone number. Do not confuse this with the number ~ (one). Can
you convert them into Arabi c numerals?
UNIT 3
(a) ( 0 = ) = Ii}\ --=-t:-t:
(b) ( 0 :IL-t: ) Ii:IL= -1!lI =--
(c) (0 1:;= 0 ) ' - =JI..:**
(d) (0 = ) = Ii:IL= - = -t: 0 I!lI
(e) (0 = -t::IL) ==- - =-Iil!ll
. 37
2) The following is part of a newspaper advertisement for a seri es
of three conferences. When will the conference be held (give the full date)
m:
a) London (tJ ~ r ~ ~ )
b) Tokyo ( i\[)j()
c) Dusseldorf ( r ~ .;J.... 'Y -Clv r ~ Iv -:7)
o /' t: /' ' 9 8 ~ 12F.1 58 ()
** ' 9 8 ~ 12F.1 68 (8)
T.:I. '!I-t!)11 t: )117 ' 9 8 ~ 12F.1128 ()
3) The advertisement reproduced
here is for a Japanese theatre
production. Give the year, month,
date and day of the performance
in the Western calendar.
38
Readings
(kanji no yomikata)
In thi s section you are going to focus on saying the numbers 1- 10 in
Japanese. I f you have worked through Teo'ch Yourself Beginner 's Japanese,
Ihis is on page 31. Otherwise, turn to the chart for Unit 3 at the
back of the book and learn to say the onyomi reading for the numbers
1- 10. Turn back to this section in Unit 2 (pp. 20- 1) if you need to re
check the pronunciation rules.
Hinto Hints for remembering
the numbers
Try memorising how to say the numbers in Japanese by relating them to
English-sounding words. For example, - (ichi) and = (ni) sound like
' itchy knee' !
-1:; Renshu 7
Align the numbers that follow with their tt* and onyomi reading. Check
your answers against the Unit 3 i!*" chart at the back of the book.
(eigo) English (onyomi)
one SH1CH
Ji two KYU
-
}\
;iL
three
four
five
so,
seven
eight
mne
ten
NI
SHI
ICHI
HACHI
.ID
ROKU
GO
SAN
i!I' < .fi Kaku re nshu 3
In Units I and 2 you learnt eight basie rules for writing nYi*" and you
practised writing all the !! you had learnt in those units. Next you are
going to learn three si mple rules for improving the shape of your strokes by
looking at stroke endings. The Japanese learn calligraphy in order to petfcet
UNIT 3 39
the shape of ~ ~ using brushes but if you pay attention to these three
rules, you will be able to improve the way in which you write j f ~ even
with a pcn or penciL The three main types of stroke ending are as follows:
I) STOP ending. .
Your pen/pencil stops
and lifts off the page.
2) GRADUAL STOP.
You pull the pen gradually off
the page with a sweeping motion.
3) FLICK.
The stroke flicks up at the end.
- - ~ t l
,
-
-
d \
Now you are goi ng to try writing the numbers 1- 10 on squared paper (do
not look at the stroke order that follows yet). Employ the eight rul es you
have learnt, the only exception is the number nine where the vertical
(iefthand) line is written first. Think about the stroke endings too from
the previous examples.
-
-
-
~
-

-
-

,
t
tL +
-
J'\..
-
J '\
How did you get on? The numbers 1- 10 foll ow, written out for you. Look
at the stroke order and the shapes and proportions of the strokes (for
example, the left side of eight is a different shape to the right side, and
the same for four and six; the strokes of two and three are not all the
same length) then try 10 copy them as closely as possible.
40
-
-

-
-
- -

,
,

-

->-
"
-
. ~ - - - -

-

-t-"

"....-

,

-
--
-
\z:9 \Z9

3l :k

...
-
"
. :0 ____
J '\
J
:'\

-t it-

-
-
-

-
-
-
- -
- -
-
T 17
,
\
,
...
-
- - -
J J
'\
t
UNIT 3 41
,
,
)
\..

J
J"-.
,
,
,
,
1L
-1t-t
,
tL
,
,
+ +
+
,
Owari ni
In this unit you have been introduced to numbers up to 10,000 through 13
You have also learnt the for yen and for year. You have put
this learning into practice to read number and money amounts, dates
and telephone numbers. You have also learnt about the Japanese calendar
and have been introduced to two compound words for the present and
previous eras. Altogether, you have learnt 15 single (plus related
compounds) and three new compound words IIlIln. If..q-). You
have learnt to count in Japanese from 1- 10 and have applied the writing
rules you learnt previously to writing numbers.
.I!!t. Da; yonka
UNIT 4
learn to recognise 121i* used in action words (verbs)
be introduced to words made up of combi nations of these and other
learn more about pronounci ng and writing
Hajime ni
In Unit 2 you learnt that some il*". as well as meanings in
themselves, afC used as components of more complex (see pp. 13-
14). The il* you will be introduced to in this lesson are created from
simpler iM*. some of which you have learnt already. In the following
activity you are going to review some key il* to refresh your memory
before moving on to learning the new il*" in thi s unit.
I) Can you remember the meanings of the iI: that follow?
a) Q b) l'j: c) A d) l'I e) tlJ
f) g) '" h) a ;) =r
2) Now look at the new in the foll owi ng li st. They each contain
as part of their structure. Can you spot them'! (You do not need to
know the meaning of the whole at thi s stage.)
a) Pft b) J!, c) l!l' d)
e)?F f) t:l g) i* h) til
Check the answers to these two activities in the back berore moving on to
the next section.
MiIIt- Kaisetsu 1
The new nt*" introduced in the second acti vity you have just completed
can all be used as verbs (that is, action or doing words). So far, you have
UNIT 4 43
not learnt the meani ng of any of them but you have identified simpler
within them. These can be a clue to thei r meanings and you are
goi ng to use these cl ues to work out the meanings for yourself. Before
you can do this, here are three extra pieces of information.
I) This shape JL (i) when used as a component has
the meaning ' human legs'. You can see it in 2 (b).
2) This shape } \. has the meaning ' animal legs'. You
can see it in 2 (f) .
3) The for person (A) takes this form 1 when used as pari of a
more complex 1M*-. You can see an example of this in acti vity 2 (g).
Renshu 1
The foll owing seven (a- g) all represent verbs. The story clues
( 1- 7) link the different components of each into a story which
indicates the il* meaning. (The component meanings are in bold.)
This technique should help you to remember that meaning. Now can you
work out which f!Xi=- has which meaning?
O.
Story clues
I) A penon resting by a tree duri ng thei r work break. Meaning: 10 resl;
holiday.
2) An eye runni ng around on human legs. Meaning: 10 look, watch or
see.
3) Mountains upon mountains but somewhere there is a way out .
Meaning: to go out.
4) A neighbour is pressing an ear between the gates of the house to hear
the goss ip. Meaning: to hear or listen.
S) An eye with animal legs is a shell fish. A sideways eye above it is a
human inspecting it before buying. Meaning: to buy.
6) At school the child is expected to wear a special hat when studying.
Meaning: 10 study.
7) The mouth spoke words which rose up in lines. Meaning: to say;
words.
How did you get on? The same this time with their meanings and a
picture representation as well can be seen in the foll owing list.
e'r 11>0
11ft to listen.
to hear

blo.h it to say
V bl.h ...
I -II ", ... 111:5
-
.
'&, to buy

tl1 to go out
Lt.t',S '0 Stt. !
..) J! to see,
wal ch, look
tosrudy
to rest
Now read through the stories again. Do you see how the components of
these hel p to indicatc their meani ngs?
This is a quick activity designed to help you review the learnt so
far in this lesson. Simply match the ll* on the left wi th the meanings
on the right.
I ) n: a) to listcn
2) 1* b) to look
3) tfl c) to say
4) PI! d) to study
5) "t e) to go out
6) J!. f) to buy
7) g) to rest
UNIT 4 45
~ . f 1 ~ Renshu 3
Here are seven more il* which you are goi ng to learn in this lesson:
nilltillilll'ftllXA
Some ofthe components which make up these ~ * are contained in the
following list. Can you locate and ring the appropriate part on the ~ *
you have just seen. The number in brackets indicates the number of times
the component appears.
t) JL human legs (x 2)
2) ~ to say (x 2)
3) IJ mouth (x 3)
4) e,rth (x 2)
5) a sun (x I)
6) 'f 1000 (x 1)
How did you get on? You can find the answers in the explanations that
follow.
WIliIt= Kaisetsu 2
The handwritten iM* which follow have had their component parts
numbered. These numbers are referred to in the explanations. A story is
given to help you remember the meaning.
t1f,. th;,_
I) This upper part looks like (earth) exc.:pt that the top horizontal
line is longer, like this: . In fact this ~ ~ means 'samurai' but
when used as part of a more complex il we are going 10 take its
meaning as 'earth'.
2) In between the legs and the earth is a table.
3) ' Human legs'.
Story: People walked over to the tabletop sale to see a samurai selling
clods of earth.
Meaning: to se/J n.
1) You should have identified 10 sayAmrds ( p) at the left of this
2) Can yOli see that this is the same as the i.* you have just learnt? (10
se/l, n).
Story: Notice outside a bookstore: ' Words fOI" sale. Buy a book and read
the words'.
Meaning: 10 read
I) Once again, the left side is (0 say/words.
2) 1000 ( f) .
3) mouth ( IJ) . Together 2) and 3) make up the _* for tongue ('IS).
Story: Thousands of words were spoken by the tongue.
Meaning: 10 talk.
I) This comes from a you have not learnt yet, brush (m). Before
pens were invented, writing was done with calligraphy brushes. Here
is a picture to help you li nk the meaning to the character:
UNI T A . 47
2) You will have recognised this as sun. An alternative meaning
is mouth (1=1) with a line in it (1=1). You could think of this as a
condensed version oeW (to say) with the words about to come out of
the mouth.
Story: Written words are created by a calligraphy brush.
Meaning: to write t!t.
I) Think of this as a roof, in this case, the roof of a house.
2) This means white and represents the sun with a ray coming off it. In
ancient China the rays of the sun were seen as white.
3) This lower part is actually a truncated version of *- (fire) which you
learnt in Unit I .
Story: White rice boiled over a fire in a Japanese home.
Meaning: to eat;/ood tt.
0 ' ~ ' ' -
I) You have just been introduced to the left side of this ~ . It is
slightly truncated but indicates the same meaning, food.
2) A more detailed picture of the right side wi ll help you with the meaning.
Story: The left side gives the general meaning (food) . The right side is a
person taking a drink.
Meaning: to drink; a drink tx.
Notice the difference between the handwritten and printed versions
CAl of this ~ * . And do not confuse it with person (printed = A;
handwritten = A.). '
In this new ia'! the person appears to be walking back across the pagc.
The printed version shows this person clearly indicating their directi on
(flick at the top points to the left) .
Story: People going in walk to the left.
Meaning: enter, go in 7\..
l!J .WI!!! Renshii 4
This is a review activity for you to test yourself on the second set ofil* you
have just learnt. Match the I!- on the left with the meanings on the right.
I) 'I" a) drink
2) ]I. b) eat
3) n c) read
4) l!l' d) talk
5) ~ e) enter
6) llli f) sell
7) ~ g) write
How did you get on? If you arc still uncertain about some of these, read
through the stories and look at the composition of each ll again, until
you are sure.
Yomu renshu
You now know the first ~ * - of the instructi on in this heading - it means
read. Before you try this next secti on, let us summarise the m*- you
have learnt in this unit. First look at the tl*- and see if you can remember
the meaning before looking at the English beneath them.
I) IIIl 2) J!. 3) ill' 4) .. 5) "'F-
6) Jl 7) < 8) Ifl 9) n 10) ill
II) llli 12) 'I" 13) ft!: 14) ]I.
I) listen 2) look 3) write
6) buy 7) rest 8) go out
II ) speak 12) eat 13) drink
4) say
9) sell
14) enter
5)
10)
study
read
UNIT.4 49
L!J .. fBi Renshu 5
Here are some sentences in Japanese followed by some in English. At this
stage you will not be able to read the whole sentence because you have
not learnt hiragana yet (Unit 5). There is also one (im) which you
have not seen yet. However, you will be able to understand the key words
of the sentence from your knowledge of By matching these with
the full English sentences you will be able to get the meaning of the
whole sentence. For example:
JJ Q) A tt $: Ii: l ' '* l t:. 0 The man (male person) bought a car.
2 2 2 4
The il* you have already learnt have numbers below them. These refer
to the lesson in which the was first introduced so that you can
check back if you need to. Did you notice that the verb comes at the end
of the sentence? The order would sound like this: the man a car bought.
In the sentences. this will appear in brackets (marked as lit.). Now have a
go yourself. ganbatte! (Good luck).
1) 3r;Il)Ali a*iilti' "fa" .'-' to.
22 1 27 4
2) 3r;ll)rli 1111 a -'" '-' t" .
2 2 I 4
3) !II Il) A Ii !'l i' .lU '-' t".
2 2 I 4
4) ilH c '".
2 1 2 4
5) !II Il) r Ii )!f; "" -C -t
2 2 2 2
6)3r;Il)Ali ttll)ri' J:t"'cto..
2 2 1 2
7) ill III Iv Ii 1\l i'
2 1 2 4
Match each one to its Japanese partner in Ihe previous list (not in
order).
a) The woman (female person) ate some bamboo shoots (bamboo
children). (lit. The woman some bamboo shoots ate.)
b) The girl (female child) rested on Saturday. (lit. The girl on Saturday
rested.)
c) Mr Yamada (Mountain-rice field) sold his car. (lit. Mr Yamada his car
w Id.)
d) The boy (male child) likes horses. (lit. The boy horses likes.)
e) The woman (female person) studied Japanese. (lit. The woman Japanese
studied.)
f) Mr Hayashi (Wood) talked to Mrs Morita (Forest-ri ce field) . (lit.
Mr Hayashi to Mrs Morita talked.)
g) The man (male person) looked at the moon. (lit. The man at the moon
looked.)
How did you gct on? Check your answers at the back of the hoolc
_* build up
In this secti on yOll wi ll be introduced to some new compound rJ!*
words. First you need to learn a new l!$:
thing
This ii4$ is used to make verbs inlo nouns. This is best explained with
an example:
it ('to buy' ) + 4'tI (thing) == = shopping (/it. buying things)
The that foll ow have been made nouns by adding :1m (thing) to
them. Can you work out what their meanings would be in English? There
is a list of English words in random order beneath the I.!* words which
you can refer to if you need to.
I) f!I:'Im 2) tt'lm
(a) wntmg
(d) sightseeing
(b) food
(e) book
l!J I!ItW-t Renshu 7
4) JI.'Im
(c) items for sale
(f) drinks
Here are some more compound words using you have been
introduced to in this unit. See if you can work out their meanings by
matching them wi th their English equivalents on the ri ght.
UNIT .4 51
I ) 3'Crl a) a study visit
2) 1Il0 b) start school
3) A,* c) eating and drinki ng
4) lil A d) absence from school (long teon)
5) e) reading
6) JI.,* f) buying and selling
7) 1*'*
g) goi ng in and out
Renshu 8
This activity introduces compound words which use 114* from the
first four units of this book. Think about the li teral meaning and then see
if you can work out what you would say in Engli sh. The box of English
words (in random order) will act as a check list once you think you have
worked oul the meaning of a word. Here are some amusing ex.amples to
get you started!
iI1J Rei 1
iI1J Rei 2
iI1J Rei 3
I ) 3'CA
5) ,*1J
buyer
ex.it
lit. go oul eye gold = a pop eyed goldfish
li t. resting fire mountain = a dormant 1JQlcano
lit. two feet = two pairs (of footwear)
2) AP
6) Jl 'f
3) til P
7) 1* a
dealer (seller)
drinking water
entrance
holiday
Japanese person
academic ability
Kanji no yomikata
You were first introduced to how il*" are pronounced in Unit 2 and you
can refer back to that unit for guidance on pronunciation (pp. 20- 21).
In thi s section in Unit 3 you used the unit chart at the back of the book
to learn the onyomi (Chinese readings) of the numbers 1- 10. Now turn
to chart 4 at the back of the book which contains all the single
introduced in this unit. Focus on the onyomi readings and try to memorise
them. Here are some hints to help you.
Hinto Hints for memorising
1I' readings
1) Look back at the simple pronunciation rules you were given in Unit 2
(pp. 2()"'21).
2) Say the readings out loud.
3) Sec if you can match each reading to an English word and make a
little story to help you remember. For example, the onyomi of ft (eal)
is SHOKU. So how about: ' It was a SHOCK how much food he CQu id
eat !' And the onyomi of J! (look) is KEN so: ' KEN looked out of the
window. ' Do you gct the idea?
4) Test yourself by covering up the reading, looki ng at the and
saying the reading out loud.
Now try Activity 9.
.W:IL Renshu 9
1) This is a simple linking activity. Link the on the left with their
correct reading:
I) }1
a) DOKU
2) f* b) SHOKU
3) tfj c) NYU
4) 11ft d) BAI (usc twice)
5) "l- e) KYO
6) JI. r) SHUTSU
7) tr g) WA
8) h) BUN
9) "
i) KEN
10) j) IN
II ) fj!( k) GAKU
12) il5 I) SHO
13) Jlf m} GEN
14)
2) Now try saying these compound words in Japanese:
a) nTI (buying and selling) b) (reading)
c) A?!f. (start school) d) iliA (going in and out)
e) fiXit (eating and drinking) f) (study visit)
g) (absence from school) h) JtPfJ (knowledge; experience)
UNIT 4 53
3 < .W I!!l Kaku renshu 4
You should now recognise the first il in this heading ~ it means
write'. In this section you are going to learn to write the 14 il which
have been introduced in this unit. Remember: stroke order is important
for writing accurately, for helping you to remember the il and for
counting the number of strokes. And there are sometimes,sli$ht differences
between handwritten and printed versions of the same nl.
Hinto
One way to remember how to write more complex _ is to visual ise
the components they are made up of. For example, in preparing yourself
to write lIf:I (li sten) from memory, say to yourself 'gate and ear'. Look
carefully at the proportions and overall balance of eaeh lM. For example,
where a il! has a distinct left and right side, the left side is narrower
(the proportions are approximately left side ;::; 1/3; right side ;::; 213).
\.' I I c'1' I
~
- - ~ - -
\
\ ~
,
,1"/
\1 J ,
\J'
I
tfD
~
~ - * ' A*
/
1
~ * '

tt,
--dj-
I
y-
f
~ ~
54 8EGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
F/\
r ~ '
rj
r--i
f,'
rr-i
r ~ i fl\
r ~ 9
" "'
,,: 7
,
,... 1
r '
-'-,," ' -
+
_r.
,
-'
-' , " ,
\
" ,
",
~
)).L,
C
I
\-'"7 "J
\.-,.
\+
)
~ - - ~ - ~
l
~
~
-
:>j
-
--
-
... ~ - . -
-
to Q
, , ,
,
-
- - - -
- -
-
-
-
a
UNIT .:1
55

p."

J /"-. A
14

k--.

f/ 11t

A

/
A
---
-,1:
YL
-
-r-
-::t:'
-:;-
-::t-
1",
::r-
\
\.... ,
7L

I
lI'
Ii'

r
k
l
-7
J!.

::;JA:.:
> 1
-.
. ',--

..... .
-aD
\ \
,
,
, ,
/
-:;
-
-
-
-
-
-
0 0
,
I

,
/
--
gE -
-
tl
0

r:t:-
a
..,
--,
..:;::3
...g
-
.
..... 3
-:i:
-:Ii
-
-

\

"::--::r ..;:--z-
_.
p?
-:s. ... r
-
-
:::y--?
6
-
-
ph ..
0
CI 0
Owari ni
In this unit you have been introduced to 14 which represent action
words and have learnt to pronounce their onyomi (Chinese reading) and
to write them. You have also learnt the meanings of 26 compound
words and have identified the key words in a set of Japanese sentences.
Now try the test to see how well you have remembered the il* you
have learnt in the first four units!
UNIT.4 . 57
TA" Tesuto
The i f J ! ~ ( including some compound words) you have learnt so far are
grouped in themes. Can you remember their English meanings? (Some
i l ~ appear more than once if they cover more than one category.)
I) People and animals
,) ,!iO b) A c) J,:
e) r f) J,:r g) 'llr
2) Elements of nature
,) tli b) 1<tli c) JII
f) * g) "* h) ~
3) Numbers and money
,) - b) 'Ii
e) I1lI 'f Pl f) = li
4) Dates
,) :h.fl +- a ()
c) - :IL ;!tr &f'
5) Verbs (action words)
,) IlIJ b) tt c) ill:
f) i1t
-
g) n: h) .It
6) Parts of the body
,) ;q:
b) 0 c) IE
d) 71<
i) Ell
d) 11
i) IT
d) 1'1
e) 1<.
e) ~
j) lI<
e) 'f
.lift Dai goka
UNIT 5
In this unit you will :
learn to read the 46 t.J ~ h; ~ (hiragana) symbols which make up the
phonetic 'alphabet'
learn some rules for making exIra sounds from the 46 mai n symbol s
be introduced to picture-sound associations to make learning easier
learn how to write V ~ IJt ~ (hiragana)
have a go at reading some words and phrases
Key word:
V ; Ii .>j:" Hiragana
Hajime ni
Look back to page vi of the Introduction which deals with an overview
of the different types of Japanese script and in particular the section on
{J ~ I J ~ l' (hiragana). Then answer the following questions based on the
information you have just read.
I) What are the two main uses of (J ~ / J ~ 1' ?
2) Which script (t4*, () ~ tJ{ 1' . IJ, IJ T (katakana is learnt
firs t by Japanese children in primary schools?
3) What did V G IJ{ ~ develop from?
4) How many basic symbols make up the modem (J ~ IJ{ ~ syllabary?
Yonde mimasho
You have not learnt to read any (J ~ I J ~ ~ yet (apart from these four
symbols) but try this simple matching activity. There are six U t;, I J ~ ~
words (a- f ) in the left column which are repeated in a different order in
UNIT 5 s.
the right column. Match up the same words and write the correct letter in
the brackets on the right. The first one is done for you.
(a) t ~
-:>( ..
( )
(b) I, !
-It('1:
( )
(c) .:.t t ~ (a)
(d) -:> ( ..
-.
~ ; < . ( )
(c) ~ I: ? I,! ( )
(f) -It ( I:
~ I: ? ( )
MllI!.- Kaisetsu 1
Let us begin by looking anhe first four lines of the {) ~ / ) t ~ syllabary'
with the romanised pronunciation and learn how to read it.
Notice that the chart is written in the traditional way, from top to bottom
and from right to left. Therefore, you read in columns rather than rows.
And you begin to read from the top righthand corner. Can you now
answer these two questions:
ta t.:. sa ~
Iw ~ .
chi I:> shi I.., ki !
tsu "? su t ku <
te -C se -It ke It
to I: so 't ko ..:
I) What is the first () ~ 11: 1j: symbol?
2) Which column do you read firs t and in what order?
To save you looking in the back, the answers are 1) 1, (a)
2) I, (a). ( . (i). :> (u) ... (c). :I> (0) .
01,
it
u -;

e;<.
0:1>
The next point to notice is that the first five sounds are what we call vowel
sounds. In Unit 2 (pp. 20- 21) you were introduced to the pronunciation
of Japanese sounds. A quiek check list follows to help you remember the
pronunciation.
I, a as in mat ;\. e as in end
,.

as in hit :I> 0 as in hot
-;
u as in blue
And, as you also learnt in Unit 2, consonants are attached to each of these
vowels to create new sounds. And each of these sounds is represented by
a (J ~ n{.Jj: symbol. This is why the Japanese syllabary is called 'a
phoneti c alphabet' . (The Roman alphabet consists of 26 letters which are
used in various combinations to creale a range of sounds.)
~ .nw- Renshu 1
In the ttlv L" Jj. j L.. ~ -; (yonde min/asM) activit y earlier in this unit
you matched six U ~ o{ 1" words. This time you are going to try to read
these words. Use the chart of the fi rst 20 symbols on p. 59 and see if you
can say the words. Thei r English meanings are written in brackets.
(a) t I., (sushi )
(d) ') ( ;t (desk)
(b) ;, ~ (autumn)
(e) ~ C ? (sugar)
MliIt::: Kaisetsu 2
(c) .:: ;t (voice)
(f) -It ~ C (school pupil )
You are now goi ng to be introduced to the whole () t;, I J ~ ~ chart,
including the correct order to write each symbol. To help you understand
the layout of the chart. an explanation is now given usiog the first
symbol 1, .
printed _
versIon
;,
-
0,
f--...... ~
()( ) -
t ;h
_romaji
- symbol
- stroke order
The printed version of each symbol is also incl uded (top lefthand comer)
because this sometimes differs slightly from the handwritten version.
Have a go at writing the (J ~ I J ~ ~ because thi s will help you to remember
how to read them. The basic rules you learnt for ~ ~ also apply here -
you write hori zontal strokes from left to right, and vertical/diagonal strokes
from top to bottom. As you write each one (using graph paper if possible),
say its sound to yourself.
UNIT 5 61
I t "m -\' ,. kJ
,- fJ'\
J-. '- '-
;In -.;
- [,
1- It r- 10

7
-

fE -;;;
I ., ":!i- t- ,h'
I
;
.! "\
,
1
-
L
\
\,

'-
-
It, l
- " -
,
ffil

""
-t

( '"
11
u
<
-
n
1
, In
Ii
-
I.:, -,
-
]
"
'( I ..

-e.-"
f '
I t _
n l
l
"-

1
-
ItC'So
. Ii

-;;;
7f
';;;
Ito h"O
0)
t

'--
IIll I
\
-
>(
-
-
-
II->
t
-
l!J flkf!1 = Renshii 2
The activities in this lesson will keep referring you back to the different
charts, so do not worry about learning all the symbols at once! There is
also a section later 10 hel p you explore ways to remember the 46 basic
V t;, symbols but first here is an activity to get you reading.
Each sequence of V symbols in the activit y is taken from a
column, row or diagonal of the chart . Try 10 read (out loud) each of the
(J t:> , then refer back to the relevant part of the chart to refresh
your memory. Then try again to read the sequence from memory. Continue
like this until you can read the sequence confidently, then move on to the
next one.
tol
~
'"
ffi
~ I
,.
1 ~
111 ""
,
1
h ~ ~ 11
, ,
- -
1 I h '-,
->
to
I 1-
I ~
t2
N
1J.
m;
V
"
f)
1+ U
,
'I J.- Ii- v-
{> I a
7.>
~
'WI 'u tr
mu
J- f"
~ is v:b
L'
,
-J
'\
-
~
t ?
>:I>
L
,
, , ,
'"
-
1..: )
,) ) ,
t1.
~
If)
m.
~
'"
M
n
/"-...."
I
l
\ II> ~
",I
n
'5
"
J: 1
1
,.
{,
rna
11
ho
IG
7-:;
t ~ J
A. l,
-
J: L
t t
I I'
I'
11
The fi rst part of this activity refers to the first page of the chart (p. 61).
1) The third colwnn (always count from the right): ~ , L., -t, -l:t .:c
2) The third row (reading from right to left): -j, <., -t , ""? tJ.
3) The diagonal from top left to bottom right: ~ , f;,: 1". (t. :B
4) The diagonal from top right to bottom left: J" 1!, -;. -C. f/)
5) The second column: /)'. ~ , <., (t, .::
6) The fourth row: it, (t . 'it. L. tl
Have you not iced that the syll ables in the row sequences always end with
the same vowel sound?
UN1T 5 63
Now look at the sequences 1- 6 again and answer these questions:
7) How many times do these symbols a) l" b) ~ c) -C appear?
8) Which symbol appears three times?
9) Which symbol appears the most times?
(Answers to 7- 9 are at the back of the book.)
The second part of this activity refers to the second page of the chart
(p. 62).
10) The first column: Ii, V . .,)... -. Ii
II) The fourth column: ~ . t), 9. tt. 0
12) The fifth <ow, 11, (" J;, '3, A-
13) The diagonal from top left to bottom ri ght: h, t), ~ . 1/). "t
14) The diagonal from top right to bottom left: Ii, .lj.., ~ , tt. A-
Now look at the sequences 10- 14 again and answer these questions:
15) How often does the symbol a) tt and b) A- appear?
16) How many symbols only appear once?
17) Which symbol appears the most times?
(Answers to 15- 17 are at the back of the book.)
l : : ~ J-. - Hinto 1 Remembering '01;'Ii\'/6.
This section will introduce you to a way of remembering () ~ tJ: 'd:
through visual and sound association (mnemonics). The basic idea is that
you find a way to make the shape of each symbol suggest a picture or
story which connects it to its sound. For example. here are some ideas
for the first five () ~ tJ: 1" . Concentrate on the sounds (for example.
aim = 'e') rather than the letters or spellings.
,
1 (a) 2 (i) 3 (u) 4 (e) 5 (0)
Stories
I $, (a) is an opera si nger singing an lria (Japanese pronunciation has
a short 'a' sound)
2 ~ . (i) is an American Indian
3 '1 (u) !!<lb, my back hurts!
4 i. (e) .lim for the target
5 1:1 (0) is an .2strich
Do you get the idea? Here are another 10 to get you started. then, if you
find this method hel ps you, try to think of your own. You might not have
inspiration fOT all of them at first , but try a few at a time and write down
your ideas in a notebook.
1 2
3 .
6 .,!,
7 8
Stories
() (hi) is someone laughing,
mhee
2 h (wa) is a baby crying, waaaa
3 ( (ku) for cuckoo
4 C (to) is the toe of a shoe
5 tl (De) is the Loch ~ s s monster
l!J Ilk. =: Renshu 3
4 5
G
9 10
6 t:, (chi) is a t.Ilerl eader
7 tl (nu) looks like a bowl of
JmDCIl cs
8 l, (shi) ill's got long hair
9 (t (ke) for KO (knocked out)
10 ..: ( ko) is a ~ x apple
Now that you have been introduced to the 46 0 t, I J ~ ~ symbols. it is time
to put your learning into practice and try reading some words . .To make it
easier for you, the words are in three sets. Set I cons ists of U t, I J ~ ~
from the first page of the chart and Set 2 consists of those from the second
page. The fmal challenge is Set 3 which comprises words usi ng 0 t, IJt ~
from the whole chart. Sec how many symbols/words you can read from
UNIT 5 65
memory then use the chart to search for those you cannot remember. Keep
coming back to this activity. Try keeping a score of how many words you
can read each time and chall enge yourself to improve it! Where you have
already learnt the ~ ~ for a word this is also given in brackets. However,
the purpose of this activity is to practise reading (J ~ /.1: 1" .
Set 1
a) ~ ~ (morning)
d) I: It ~ . (clock)
g) !#l 0) (cloth)
Set 2
a) ,t G (evening)
d) . igJ (Winter)
g) t ry (fo,est l!i;)
Set 3
b) -C (hand 'f-)
e) ~ t3 (salt)
b) "'''' (ea,l'j:)
e) tr ~ (village)
h) b", (bowl)
c) 1""'? (summer)
f) 1" I.:: (what)
c) Ii.., (Spring)
f) ~ . t (mountain ili)
a) 15 tt J: '1 (Good morning)
c) t.I ~ (cat)
b) ~ J: ? l' " (Goodbye)
d) it /v-tt l' (teacher)
e) It.l(dog) f) /1) ( eye )
g) ~ t (navel) h) () I: (petSon A)
i) IU'(exampleillJ)
j) Ie (1 '" (lopan a *)
1:: /' J- -= Hinto 2 Similar D f, i J ~ t ~
You have probably confused some of the simiiar \ooking (J G Il ~
already. Thi s section will line these up and point out the differences to
help you keep them separate in your mind. Notice the punctuation, by the
way - a comma, and a full stop 0 - not all that different from English.
~ , ~ .
~ , to.
I , -
~ .
I , ry
~ (Id) has two horizontal lines, ~ (sa) has one.
~ (sa) leans to the left, ~ (chi) looks like the number 5
(the top has slipped!)
l' (i) is more or less vertical, .: (ko) is horizontal.
l' (i) - the left stroke is slightly longer than the right,
I) (ri) - the right stroke is longer than the left.
66 SEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
It, U:, It.. It (Ire) has no loop at the end, {;l: (ha) has only one
horizontal line, (,1 (ho) has two horizontal li nes.
It, .t 0 The top hori zontal line in (,1 (ho) si ts on top of
the vertical line whereas in .t (ma) both horizontal lines
cut through the vertical.
-t, tr.. -t (su) curves to the lcft, tr (mu) curves to the right
and has an extra strokc.
tJ.. Ii). t.l o tJ. (nu) has two stroke ends at the top and a loop at the
bottom whereas I/) (me) has the same stroke ends but no
loop, and t.l. (ne) has only one verti cal stroke.
Q. -00 7.;, (ru) has a loop, .is (ro) looks a bit like a number 3.
MliIt:=:. Kaisetsu 3 (Yoon)
Contracted sounds
You have now been introduced to the 46 basic (J Il.Jj;- symbols. As
well as these 46, there are other sounds whi ch are made by combining
some ofthe basic symbols. This is done by combining the symbols which
end in the ' i ' sound L-. (.:, V, Jj.., with a small version
of Ig). or J:" Each sound is pronounced as a single syll able or ' beat'.
Look at the following chart:
(k.) -> <' (kya)
L- (sht) ---t L- (sha)
(chI) ---t (cha)
{.:. (ni) ---t (nya)
V (hi) -> V'<' (hya)
Jj.. (mi) ---t Jj..'<;> (mya)
9 (ri) -> 9'<' (rya)
(kyu)
l (shu)
(chu)
(nyu)
(hyu)
(myu)
9 $ (ryu)
.!'o!'ll!!! Renshu 4
(kyo)
l (sho)
., (cho)
(nyo)
V (hyo)
(myo)
9 (ryo)
This activity is going to utilise some of the wide range of ' onomatopoeic'
words which the Japanese have in their language. These are words which
sound like the action or sound word they name. In Japanese, such words
usually repeat a sound twice. The nearest English equivalents are phrases
such as 'woof woof' for a dog's bark; ' plip plop' for the sound of rain;
and 'gobble gobble' for the sound of a turkey but words like this in
Japanese are not limited to children's words.
UNIT 5 . 67
One point to note before you start thi s activity - many of the words
that follow are lengthened by the addi tion of a vowel sound, normally
? (u), at the end (but J5 (a) is also used in these examples). For instance,
t:> +1> '7 (a mouse's squeak) is pronounced 'chuu chuu' (usuall y
wri tten 'chu chu'). Let one sound run into the other smoothly - do not
separate t:> tfI (chu) and '7 (u).
Now practise reading and saying the foll owing onomatopoeic words. Refer
back to the earlier chart to help you as necessary. TWo symbols you have
learnt previously, Iv (n) and (ro) are also used here.
a) ! iJ ! iJ (scream wit h laughter)
b) L. +1> Iv L. +1> Iv (fizzi ng sound)
c) L. '7 L. '7 (fizzi ng sound)
d) t:> '7 t:> '7 (mouse' s squeak)
e) ." ;, (m;aow)
f) V .; V tfI .; (whistling sound)
g) () J: '5 () J: '5 (sway;ng; lanky)
h) J: 1! J: -? (looking around)
Mll!I.l!!I Kaisetsu 4
D G that change their sound
You have learnt nearly all the extra rules for V t:J tJt.>j: so you can relax,
they are not endless! And also, if you think you have taken in enough at
any stage, leave this unit, carry on with the units and come back to
this later. You are not expected to remember everything in this unit in one
go and no one is setting the pace except you!
Some of the V t; symbols change their sound with the addition of
two small strokes" at the top right of the symbol. Let us look al these:
I) ' k' sounds become ' g' sounds (hard ' g' as in ' get'):
<. (t. .:: --> j)<. elf. ::::
(ka, ki, leu, Ire, ko) ga gl gu ge go
2) ' 5' sounds --+ 'z' sounds:
(sa, shi, SU, se, so)
L: is pronounced 'ji' .
za

l'
zu ze zo
3) 't' sounds become ' d' sounds:
(ta, chi, tsu, Ie, 10) da (ji ZIt) de do
the sounds t; (ji) and ""). (ZII) are not normally used because they
create the same sound as t: (ji) and 1" (zu) . See (2).
4) ' h' sounds become 'b' sounds:
U, ,"" Il -->
(ha, hi, fu, he, ho)
U',
ba bi
.;:,
bu be
5) In addition, 'h' sounds become ' p' sounds when a small circle is
added:
U -->
(ha, hi, ju, he, ho) pa pi pll pe po
These fi ve sets of rules cover all the sound changes for single lJ tJ:
symbols. Look over these rules, cover up the romaji and try readi ng
them, then try the simple activity that follows.
.flJi Renshu 5
Say the sounds out loud or write them down. Refer to the rules given
earlier for the answers.
a) 1:, U', U
c) tJ:, If, I.f. If
e) :::, 'I:', c', Il'. Ij'
b) if, -If, ,(" "-',
d) C 1', .;:, .;:
Finally in this section, do you remember the contractcd sounds you Icarnt
in kaiselSu 37 Well, the rules just given also apply to these. The chart that
follows groups these sounds on the left. The romaji is also given on the
right but cover this up and see if you can work out how 10 read the ()
IJ: before you refer to the romaji.
"',
t-' .., ,
U' .., ,
U.., ,
gya,gyu,gyo
. . .
ja,ju,)o
bya, bYII , byo
pya, pyu, pyo
UNIT 5 69
IfIf&Ji Kaisetsu 5 The small J (tsu)
The final rule you need to know in order to read V' f..:J 1J:" properly
is the usc of the small "'J in a word. When you see this, you do not
pronounce it but pause slightly (a glottal stop) before saying the next sound.
This is shown in riimaji by doubling the next consonant. The length of
this pause is the same as in these English examples: ' headdress' (pause
after ' hea', not ' head dress' ); and 'bookcase' (pause after ' boo'). Here
are some Japanese examples with the riimaji and a pronunciation guide
beneath:
a) : "? '"C (wait!)
matte
b) -? "C (stamp)
kitle
c) ! "? J: (ticket)
kippu
rna (pause) te ki (pause) te ki (pause) pu
l!)'Cu.f1- Yomu renshii 1 Reading words
Take a deep breath! You are now goi ng to put into practice everything
you have learnt in this unit. These initial activities will keep referring you
back to the different sections and remember - you can keep revisit ing
these activities to see if you can improve your score. You do not need to
be perfect fi rst time round! Most of these words are usually written with
but the purpose of the activities that follow is to practise reading

This acti vity will use (j tJ{ 1J:" from the initial chart (p. 61) and
contracted sounds (pp. 66, 68).
See how many of these words you can read.
a) 1! < (customer)
c) ! ' 19> 1 (0 19> 1 (m;lk)
e) t: t.l (See you!)
g) to 19> 1 " < (lunch)
;) U"" 1 (. It.. (hosp;tal)
b) " 1 (today)
d) " It.. (photogmph)
f) to " ? " < (b,eakfast)
h) U''' < ( 100)
j) 9"': 1 (travel)
l!J en? 1; Renshu 7
This activity will use () IJ: from the initial chart ( p. 61) plus {)
-/): which change Iheir sound (p. 67). Once again, see how many of
these words you can read.
a) Jj<.-r (water) b) (keys)
c) L-."'C A., (dictionary) d) ""C" A.-h (telephone)
e) t.; A.,tftf (dandelion) f) c ! c ! (sound of heart beating fast)
g) J.!lJt J.! (gulping sound - when dri nking)
l!J en? A Renshu 8
This acti vity gives you practice at reading words with the small "?
( p. 69).
a) I?.t ""? C (a little) b) .t ""? "'C (wait)
c) -'?>""? tr IJ (as expected) d) -b: ""? ':: -; (school)
e) ii' h..li' '? -C (Good luok! ) f) ! ""? , C (siraight ahead)
Yomu renshu 2

and
You will already have noticed from the instruction words used throughoul
this book (and in the lasl activity) that Japanese is wrilten as a mixlure of
() -/): and (and :IJ 7 :IJ T - kalakana, introduced in Unit 9).
The '{) -# parts of the words have a grammatical funcli on. As
mentioned in the Introduction, Japanese children first learn to read and
wri te using only '{) /){ . As Ihey learn they make their writing
more sophisti cated by replacing words and parts of words written in
U- f:J -b: with i#!*. Although it may seem to be a simpler task 10 read
using U- /): (rather than having 10 learn 2000 il*!) in fact, once
you know I!*. texts become easier to read and scan because 11* offer
visual cl ues to the meaning.
l!J .'l'l:h. Renshu 9
You have learnt that U /): has a grammatical functi on. Now you are
goi ng to put this to practice. Below are five of the verbs (action words)
you learnt in Unit 4. The '{) /): symbols aft er each serve to
UNIT 5 71
show the tense of the verb. J: t endings indicate the present or fut ure
(for instance, 1 cat /wi ll cat) and J: L.. t:. indicates the past ( I ate). (For
those of you who have Teach Your:"elf Beginner s Japanese, verbs are
introduced in Unit 8.) The kunyomi (Japancse reading) is used for single
il* verbs with V ~ lit 1" endings. I.n Japanese texts, unfamiliar read-
ings are indicated in J.. ~ tJ: 1" (furigana) which is V ~ tJ: 'j: written
above, below or beside ~ * to show the pronunciation.
Now sec if you can read these verbs:
t.: t.:
a) 1:t -< T (I eat) 1:t -< ~ f.; (I ate)
Q) Q)
b) 111:", T ( I drink) 111:", ~ tc (I drank)
'" '" c) JI. T (I look) JI..t ~ tc (I looked)
'11' 'II'
d) I'} ~ .t T (I write) I'} ~ .t ~ tc (I wrote)
Ii", Ii(;
e) illi ~ .t T (I talk) illi ~ ~ f.; (I talked)
L!J _Wi" Renshu 10
In Unit 4 ( p. 49) you worked out the meanings of a set of Japancse
sentences by identifying the key _* words. The same sentences now
follow again, but this time you are goi ng to practise reading the whole
sentence in Japanese. You can do this now because you have learnt to
read CJ ~ tJ{ 'j: . The readings for the ~ * words or parts of words are
given in J.. ~ tJ{ 1" (furigana). Check the English meanings of the sen-
tences by referring back to Unit 4. Read out aloud!
G ... ammar note: t t , .z , (.: and tJ: have grammar functions whi ch
you will learn more about in Unit 10. When {i has thi s functi on it is
pronounced 'wa' (and when it is used as part ofa word it is pronounced
in the usual way as ' hat).
n A . ~ V t t: (j A-.::' 1. ~
I ) 3J: (1) A !i a *ilIl i' "'I- I)' ~ tc.
n A. ~ .: t' ,t .; v' "(:> "t
2) 3J: (1)'1' Ii 1IlII a IZ. f* '" ~ tc.
nt.: Vt -?l!
3) '1.\ (1) A Ii fl
72
(i L.
4) '*
.Be..:
5) !J!

6) *

7) tlJ IB
'(J C: t.: It
iT) A it
(i
Iv I: 1lIi
t
"('To
Owari ni
In this unit you have learnt the 46 basic 0 tJ{ Ij: symbols plus related
sounds and rules. Vou have had the chance to write them and to read
words and phrases in 0 G tJ{ . You have learnt the two main uses of

to write words not normally written in Ii*
to indicate grammar functions and word endings.
You will come across () ?y tJ{ Jj:' again in Unit 10 and you can refer back
to this unit whenever you need to, so do not worry if you have not taken
everything in with the first attempt!
6
Jb',lI Dai rokka
UNIT 6
In this unit you wi ll
learn to decode the meanings of 39 new ~ *
learn to read morc compound 1Jt*" words
try some activities to review all the tl* you have learnt so far
learn to read and write II adjectives (descri bi ng words)
Hajime ni
In Units I and 2 you looked at ~ ~ whi ch derive from pictures of
nature. Here is a selection of them. Can you remember their meanings?
a)
e) Q
c) ~
g) a
d) :u
h) 11
Yonde mimasho
As you did in Units I and 2, see if you can match the following pictures
wi th the correct ~ * (a- j).
I) tall / high
2) old
3) big
II
I
B; -j'
4) small
5) bird
6) rice

74
7) thread
8) cow
a) :Sf.
f) JT
b) /IIi
g) lj=
c) ~
h) '"
9) axe
10) stand
e) *
j) Ij,
I \
How did you get on? Check your answers at the back and then look at the
development sequence from picture to modern kanji that follows.
I ) iWi
tall/ high
2) '"
old
3)
4)
5)
6)
*
big
'J'
small
.Il!;
bird
*
flee

.. -
~
"
I
So -.'I'
,
~
,j,
"
~ ~ / 5 ~ , ~

~
)K' -7 * ~ ~
UNIT 6
7) '*
thread
8) 'F
cow
9) fT
axe
10) 1L
stand
I \
\

75
.w- Renshu 1
Match the in the left column with the Engli sh meanings in the right
column. Look back at the pictures if you need to remind yourself
of the meanings.
a) 'F
b) fT
c) i\'!
d) 1L
c) '*
f) ...
g) IJ'
h)
Q ;Ie
j) *
I) small .
2) big
3) old
4) tall/ high (also means 'expensive')
5) bird
6) cow
7) rice
8) thread
9) axe
10) stand (up)
Kaisetsu 1
About 2- 3% of derive from simple pictorial representations. As
you have already learnt, many of these simple pictorial are also used
as components in more complex You wi ll be looking at this in more
detail in Unit 7 but one of the purposes of Ihis unit is to introduce you to
some more simple whi ch will help you in this unit, and later, to
decode the meaning and make-up of other more complex
Lei us start with four new and look al how their components can be
brought together into a story to give the meaning.
I) iJJ: (mother). You can see the outline oCtt: (woman) in this
4 The two short strokes within the m* indicate breasts, hence
mother.
2) (cheap, safe). Again, you can see the for woman. The
component above is like a hat or covering. So the 1l$- looks like
a woman wearing a cheap hat!
3) 1Z. (wide, spacious). The left side of Ibis should remind you of
a cliff or cave.
Within it is a triangular shape with a wide base <it also looks like
a wide nose!).
4) tT (new). You have learnt two of these components in this unit. The
top left is :iL (stand (up)), the rightside is fi (axe) . The remaining
component (bottom left) is * (tree).
The story: cut down a standing tree and get new wood.
l!J .W =: Renshu 2
Now you are going to try to link new with stories to establish their
meanings. Three of the foll owing represent colours (blue, white,
black) and the other two mean 'father' and 'min'. Which is which? Look
at the il*, read the stori es and link them up.
aJ bJ S cJ l'f d) 5i: eJ jIj
i) Rain. This fi* looks like drops of rain against a window.
2) White. The components, 'sun' (S) and 'my' (short stroke) depict the
white rays of the sun.
3) Father. He has a long moustache and dimples in his cheeks!
4) Biack. The components, rice field, earth and fire (four short ' flamelike'
strokes) depict the deep black colour whi ch the earth turns when the
rice stubble is burnt after the harvest.
5) Blue. il' also means 'green' (for example, the colour of traffic
lights and apples). Its components are 'earth' with an extra horizontal
UNIT 6
. 77
line which means plants growing out of the ground and 'moon'. Young
plants are green and we speak of a blue moon .

IlkW Renshii 3
As in Renshii I you are going to see how we ll you can remember the
you have been introduced to in thi s secti on (nine in total). Link the
to the English meaning.
a) I) father
b) ]iIj 2) mother
c) l'i 3) white
d) ;!Ii 4) black
e) J4 5) bluc, green
f ) Jlt 6) cheap, safe
g) E 7) wide, spacious
h) Ilh 8) new
i) :l<: 9) cam
MJlIt=
Kaisetsu 2
In Unit 3 you learnt the for numbers (- . =. _. etc.). These
are from a small group of which depict abstract ideas using shapes
and lines. The for the words above, below and inside are formed in
a similar way. Look at these
I) ..t (above, on top) has a baseline with a ' I' shape above it.
2) r (below, under) has a baseline with a ' t ' shape below it.
3) if! (i nside, middle) is a box with a Hnc through the middle.
You can also imagine ..t and r to look li ke the top and roots of a plant.
You have now learnt 22 new in thi s unit. Let us revi ew them,
grouping them together by theme.
Colours
l'f (bl ue) i3 (white) JA\ (black)
Adjectives (describing words)
* (big) Ij , (small ) ;'; (old) >lIT (now)
jtfj (tall, expensive) :1< (cheap, safe) 14 (wide)
People, animals
Jg, (moth.,) :li: (father) 4 (cow) J\lo (bird)
Nature, basic items
iifii (min) * (rice) IT (axe) ~ (thread)
Position
J: (above) ""f (below) '1' (inside) rr (stand up)
_* build up 1
In Units 2 and 4 you learnt that more complex 11* are made from
combinations of simpler i l ~ . These simpler _ ~ become components
of the more complex ones. Examples you have learnt include :9} (man),
*1- (like) and fJtJ (li sten). Now let us look at _* you have learnt in this
unit which are also used as components in more complex 11*.
Nij Rain is used as a component of more complex _ to indicate types
of weather (with rain as their basis), such as:
W Cloud. The lower components are two and triangle shape - think of
them as ' two cloud shapes'!
:II: Cloudy weather. The lower part is doud and the upper component is
a (sun). Cloudy weather blocks out the sun!
'Jf Snow ('frozen rain ' ). The lower component (E) looks like ll.J
(mountain) on its side. Think of snow-covered mountains!
ill Thunder. The lower component is rice field, a place where farmers
would be very aware of thunderstorms.
m Electric is an interesting progression from thunder. This time you
can see a fl ash of light ning through the rice field - and lightning
creates electricity!
Renshii 4
You are going to try identifying more complex il* by looking at the
components and linking them into a meaning. Here are the ~ * :
UNIT 6
,) :Jt
e) 01>
b) Ii1J
f) MI
Story meanings
c) if
g) if
d) $
h) '"
79
I) Meaning: island. Japan is made up of many, many small islands, often
just rocky hills in the sea with only birds living on them. This il*,
therefore, is a depiction of a bird sitting (you can' t see its tail feathers) on
a mountain.
2) Meaning: dove, pigeon. The components bird and nine represent a dove.
3) Meaning: hot/biller (taste). The components stand up and ten combine
to give an image of strong flavours which make the taste buds stand up to
the power of 10! .
4) Meaning: dog. The components big + short stroke depict a large dog
with its tongue hanging out!
5) Meaning: sound, noise. Components: stand up and sun. Stand in the
sun and li sten to the sounds.
6) Meaning: pointed, tapered. Components big and small. Put simply,
tapering to a point involves something becoming smaller.
7) Meaning:few. a lillie. Components: small and a diagonal stroke.
8) Meaning: frost. Components: rain, tree and eye. Frost (made from
rain) on trees looks like millions of sparkling eyes.
Finall y. the for fat is :;te. This looks very similar to 7t (dog) . You
can distinguish them by thinking of the short stroke in dog as the tongue
and of the short stroke infat as a marker indicating the widest or fattest
p,rt of the iliI'1'.
In this section of il Build up you have been introduced to 14 new
They are listed here. Can you remember their meanings? Check
back through the section if there are any you are unsure about.
m. m ..
build uJ? 2 (jukugo)
Compound. words
Remember that (jukugo) are words created from two or more il!f:.
You have come across examples of these in Units 1- 4. Words such as A Q
(P.,Opulation). a III a (Sunday) and (food) are some of the or
compounds you have learnt so far.
10
The next two activities are designed to get you thinking about the meanings
of some new il* words usi ng the il* you have been introduced to in
this unit plus others you have learnt in earlier units.
~ .flJi Renshu 5
This activi ty uses combinations of il you have learnt in this unit only.
Match the two ~ * words in the box wi th the Engli sh meanings from
the li st beneath it.
Meanings
c) :li:J!F
g) 1Z.:k
I) vast 2) swan 3) calf 4) puppy, small dog 5) poli shed (white)
rice 6) parents 7) pale; blue-white 8) heavy rain.
~ .fl1\ Renshu 6
This activity combines il* from this unit with some you have learnt
from previous units. Those from previous units arc:
<r (year). ~ (st udy). :9: (woman). 1lI (vehicle) . 'f (hand).
A (person), 0 (mouth), ~ (eye), 11a (listen). im (talk), '1:
1
(middle)
Again. choose the appropri ate ~ * word from the box to match its
English meaning. The bracketed infonnati on gives the literal meaning in
cases where the meaning may not be immedi ately obvious.
I ) university (big study)
3) good at (upper hand)
5) youth (blue years =
innocence)
c) &4'
h) AHl
m) ~ 1 l I
d) &:9:
i) 4'L
n) ~ 1 I I l
e) :k?'l
j) 1'1 L
0) .. 1lI
2) trai n (electric vehicle)
4) bad al (lower hand )
6) your superi ors (their eye level is
above you)
UNIT 6 81
7) child (small person) 8) adult (big person)
10) telephone (electric talk) 9) clue (the thread mouth!)
II) new year
13) boy (few years)
15) new car
12) older {than you} (years above)
14) girl (aJewla little bit a woman)
17) newspaper (newly heard)
16) second-hand car (in the middle
of being old)
Check your answers before moving on to the next activity.
Finally in this secti on, you are going to extend your knowledge of il*
compounds a little further by learni!l.1 3 new il* and looking at how
these are used in combination wit h you have learnt in this unit to
make new words.
I) m means country and is the depiction ofa ki ng (3i. lit.jewel) withi n
the boundari es (D) of his kingdom. Examples of its usage are:
* 00 rice country is the Japanese WQrd for America. (The rice grown in
America is short -grained like Japanese rice and often packaged
and sold as Japanese rice.)
tp * middle rice is the Japanese word for Central America.
4
1
00 middle country means China (the central country of Asia).
ffl:OO Mother country means exactly that., the country you originate from.
!bOO Island country (such as Japan, Britain and Australia).
2) f4 means meat orflesh. You can see two people (A ) hanging from a
frame!
If: f4 cow meat means beef.
f4 bird meat means chicken.
3) ;Ii means school. The left side, tree (*) indicates a wooden building
(Japanese schools were traditionally made of wood) and the right side is
father (:1<:) weari ng a hat. Think of this as a teacher.
study school means school .
small school elementary or primary school.
means middle school or junior high school .
means high school (abbreviated version of
Renshu 7
In this section you have been introduced to 36 new il* compounds. You
can see them all in the foll owing list and your task is to test your memory
.2 BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
by writing the meanings in the brackets after each word. Then check your
answers by looking back through the previous sections.
s.fl,(
) ::klfi( ) x:llJ ( ) 'i'ls ( )
Ij"" ( )
Ij,'F (
) 1L.::k ( )
1"1*
( )
>Iii"l'-( ) W"I'-( )
1>"1'-
( )
1>:k
( )
::k"l" ( ) Ij'A ( ) ::kA ( ) h\1::t ( )
"1'-.1:( ) 1'1.1:( ) .1:'f- ( ) r'f- ( )
>liiJ!i( ) >Iii!lll ( )
*00
( )
'1'*
( )
'1'00 ( ) llJOO ( ) &.\00 ( ) 'Fill ( )
X.H\I( ) "1<;I; ) Ij'''1<;1;( ( ) 'I' ''l'';1; )
illi;l; ) 'iliJ!i( )
iffi
( )
(
)
(Kanji no yomikata)
Readings
In this section you are going 10 learn to say 11 adjectives (describing
words), learnt in this unit, in Japanese. Look up the kunyomi (Japanese
reading) for the following in the unit chart at the back of the book.
f.li. '$<. Jj' . ::k. >Iii. :;!C. IL.. 1"1
P- has two kunyomi - sukuna(i) means few; suko(shi) means a littfe.
Notice that part of the reading is writt en in brackets. This is the part
which is written in (J G Ij:. For example: taka(i) is written ?Ji
meaning: tall , expensive.
Memorise the whole reading including the part in brackets then try the
activity that follows.
l!.I MlW A Renshu 8
You are now going to practise reading the II adjectives as complete
words including the () /)t endings. Even if you have not yet worked
through Uni t 5, you can still do this because the whole word is given in
the unit chart. And the answers are given at the back of the book.
a) f.li\.
c) 1>\'
i) :;!c\.
b)
f) 1> I.-
j) IL.\'
UNIT 6 83
< .UBi Kaku renshii 5
In Units 1 and 2 you learnt some general rules for writing You put
these into practice in Unit 3 to write numbers and in Unit 4 to write
verbs. Now you are going to learn to write the ten il* from Activity
8 in this unit. US,e squared paper and focus on the proportions and overall
balance of each Once you feci confident, see if you can write them
from memory. Keep saying the meani ng (and the readings) to yourself as
you wri te them to help fix all the different elements into your memory.
)
y
Q
c::>
II:

,
)
0 b
--'-
,
-
'"
""
1
(J
10)
)
"
\- ,
T

,
,
\.J-,
,
, ,
I
,- )
III
,...-"?
l.....
A
-/k
-
t
Jz.

J
j ,
-,+"
1
d J\
,
I};'
.I.J.;-:, J d
d,
J};
6
-0--
-
1-
6
Yr
~
,
>
-?- .0-
:it
-
tf./
~
, /
~
j
~

~
-....
-
t
;K
is--
-j .. ,

~
/t-
,
,
"
~
"
- -
;;.
} )1-

8
-ffi-

.
I
I
I
A 8 \
"
UNIT 6 85
Owari ni
In this unit you have been introduced to a total of39 si ngle il* through
picture association and through analysing their component parts. You
have also learnt 36 new compounds and have practised reading
and writing the il*" words for II adjectives. Units have altogether
introduced you to 97 single il:, 100 compounds (including 13
surnames) and the whole V &.;, -'j:" syllabary! 1:; lIJ""L C -1 (omedetiJ)
Congratulations! Of course, you might not remember all or even most of
these but the purpose of this book is to help you understand more about
Japanese script, about how it is made up and to find ways for you to
break the 11* code and to build on your learning. Even Japanese people
forget il* from time to time; it takes time and practice to build up your
knowledge of them. But remember - Japanese script can be fun to learn
tool
Tesuto
A) The test at the end of Unit 4 contained a summary of all the single
nl* you had learnt up to that point. This activity pulls together all the
single you have learnt in this unit. Can you identify them all ? They
are in ascending order of stroke number. The answers are at the back but
do not worry if you can not do them all on the first attempt - you can
keep coming back to this activity!
I) J: 2) r
3) Ij ,
4) *-
S) <P
6) *-
7) '"
8) Y 9) IT 10) Jt Il)'t 12) 3r
13) ... 14) Jlt IS) IZ. 16) S
17) *
18) 'ti:
19) *'
20) 'k 21) iIiJ 22) 'i" 23) III 24) ft
2S) 00 26) tr 27) Iili 28) &;, 29) :fi< 30)
31)
32) *
33) 34) !'Ii 3S) W 36) lit
37) JI(j 38) it 39) m
B) This actIvIty is des igned to test how well you remember the
compound words you have learnt so far. The surnames are not included,
you can review these by turning to Activity 7 of Unit 2. The words below
are grouped by theme (loosely in some cases!). What do they mean in
English?
86
Days of the week
I) 1'11111'1
2) IIII (:I
3) *l1li (:I
4) 1<.l1li a
School and study
5) "'* 6) Ij''*t!< 7) <I' '*t!<
8) loOt!< 9) #:"l'
10) JI.,*
Countries
II ) 13 '"
12) <1'00
13) *00
14) <1'*
15) Jltoo 16) Qoo
Food and drink
17) 'fill I 8) .t:l. III I 9) tI" 'IIiJ
20) tiI:'IIiJ 21) S* 22) tiI:*
Transport
23) lllllr 24) 1ii$ 25) <I'!!ill!
26) ~ $ 27) A:IJ$
Animals
28) Ij,* 29) Ij,'f 30) sl,
People
31) :ltJlt 32) Ij'A 33) :kA
34) &"1'- 35) &:9: 36) :9:r
Shopping and travel
37) fl'IIiJ 38) JI.'IIiJ
39) "p
40) til P 41) #: (:I
7
.-t. Dai nanaka
UNIT 7
learn about the different types of ~ *
learn morc about ~ * radicals and components
identify i.l* meanings from their radical
learn to write ~ * in the correct proportions
Ii t; 3<'>1: Hajime ni
In Units 2. 4 and 6 you looked at how si mpler im* are used as components
of more complex ones. Look back over these units if you find now or later
that you need to refresh your memory. In this unit you arc goi ng to look
in morc depth at ways you can crack the code for more complex ~ * .
First of all you are going to lest your memory of some of the complex
~ * you have learnt so far.
I) What are the meanings of the i?l that follow?
a) *"
g) Jt
m) ~ 1
b) lil:
h) I'f
n) f*
c) Jg
.) ~
I ~
0) :lJ
d) !if
j) 7f.
p) "l!
0) IJIJ
k) ~
f) Jill
I) 1m
2) What arc the meanings of the left sides of the il* in this li st? (You
wilt not know the whole meaning at this stage.) Refer to Uni t 4 if you
need more infonnation about (a).
a) f*
h) #
b) P/l
i) jill
c) l!l
ill[
d) !I*
k) D ~
f) *
m) i t
MliIt- Kaisetsu 1 Types of tl*,
There are a number of ways in whi ch ~ * have been developed. You are
already familiar with the first three of these categories:
1) Pictorial ll'i'
These fairly simple derive from pictures of nature. Examples are
L1J (mountain), )II (river) and A ( person). They make up about 2- 3% of
all 1l'1'.
2) Simple abstract ll'i'
These il* convey abstract ideas through symbols, for example, the
numbers (Unit 3). There are only a very few oflhis kind.
3) Complex pictorial ll'i'
These are made up of two or more basic pictorial which together
convey a new meaning. Examples are '** (wood), J1 (man) and f!ij (bright)
but Activity 2 in the introduction to this unit has more examples which
you will be learni ng. Again, this type of Ii: makes up about 2- 3% of
aull'1'.
4) Sound and meaning ll'i'
Part of the at*- conveys the general meaning and part conveys the
pronunciation (onyomi or Chinese reading). By identifying the component
parts you have a clue to the meaning and how to say it. Examples (from
Activity 2) incl ude 1ft; (time) and :fi; (turn). About 90% of belong
to this group.
This unit is going to focus on categories 3) and 4) and you are going to
learn ways of cracking the code!
Mit:: Kaisetsu 2 _* components
As you have already learnt, more complex are made up of simpler
ones which we have called components. One of these components, known
as the radical, often gives a clue to the general meani ng of the whole
Many radicals are themselves usually of the simple pictorial
kind. In dictionaries, are grouped by their radical (same radical,
same group). You will learn more about this later in the unit.
In Activity 2 in the introduction to this unit, you identified the left part of
each You were, in fact , identifying the radical in this activity - the
most common location of a radical is on the left side of a Th;re are
UNIT 7 89
in total 214 radi cals accordi ng to the tradi ti onal Chinese classification.
The purpose of this unit is 10 introduce you to a few of the more common
radi cals and to make you familiar wi lh the idea of radicals so that you
have a solid foundati on to build on.
.w- Renshu 1
In this activit y you will have a go at new which are
formed by combining two or morc pi ctorial m* 3 from
earli er). You have already come across some ofthesc new in Activity
2 in the introduction to this unit. Beneath these are a number of stories
and meanings. See if you can match each with a story and meaning '
by looking at the components that make up the .
a) m
g) 'im
b) IlOl
h) i1i.
c) iIII
i)
Stories and meanings
d) It!I1
j) Jm
e) l'l\
k) g
f) ij()
I)
I) Th ... ee women together are very wicked! Meaning: wickedness.
2) Heaping fire upon fi ... c creates a bl aze. Meaning: blaze. flame.
3) A fire burning wood (two trees). Meani ng: burn, kindle.
4) A field burnt by fire is ready for culti vation. Meani ng: cullivaled
field.
5) The mouth of the bird creates birdsong. Meani ng: cry. chirp (of
birds, animal s).
6) A penon's words are to be believed. Meaning: believe.
7) The three mouths (the lines in two look like tongues) chanted in
unison. Meaning: chant, recite.
8) They dug up the rice field and buried the treasure in the euth
beneath. Meaning: be buried.
9) The visual image is ' speaking fiery words' . Meaning: discussion,
conversation.
10) ' Speaking five mouths '. In other words, five languages. Meaning:
langllage(s).
I I) The sun ri sing'above the hol"izon. Meaning: dawn .
12) The child is attached to its ancestors by a genetic thread (there is a
sho ... t line above the thread whi ch is attached to the chi ld). Meaning:
grandchild.
90
MilIt:: Kaisetsu 3 More about radicals
and components
In the last acti vi ty you got to the meaning of the by linking the
components into a story. You can do this wit h many and even
though sometimes the story or link may seem far-fetched, if the meanings
of the components are kepi consistent , this method can be a very useful
code-breaker and memory 'jog' when learning new
You have already learnt in this unit that the radi cal of a r!4* usually
conveys its general meaning. Let us look at "this in more detail using the
radical tl (say). Some il* follow which contain this radical (on the left
side):
ia (narrat ive, history)
iU (proof, certificate)
(conversation)
mt (language)
(translation)
.. (tune)
lI;f (poem)
II (lesson)
These examples show that the radical indicates a general li nk with the
meaning of speech or words (including musical 'words' or notes in the
case - tune). Now let us look at some of the more common radicals.
Remember there are 214 altogether but the aim of this uni t is to introduce
you to the idea of radicals and to show you ways in which they can be
hel pful in learni ng
Here arc the lefthand radi cals which you ident ified in Activity 2
(introduction). You learnt the meanings in earlier uni ts.
A (pcn;on) r:t (mouth) (earth)
-j;:: (woman) a (sun, day) T (chi ld)
jJ (moon) ;;+;: (tree) !k (fire)
fl1 (rice field) (eye) (say; words)
(gold. metal - as a radical it nonnally means ' meta l' )
1fI (car, vehi c le also wheel)
You have already learnt that a may change shape slightly when
used as a radical. Here are some examples (the radical is on the left):
I) Radi cals may appear ' squashed'
2) Radicals may have some shorter strokes
3) Radicals may change their shape
:.l.t (radical = earth)
(radical = tree)
-f* (radical = person)
UNIT 7 91
Here are two more useful radicals whose shape di tTers from the ~ * you
have met already:
71< (water) as a lefthand radical ----7 jEJ (looks like three splashes of water)
.=f (hand) as a lefthand radical ----7 :fJi (squashed and the top line has gone)
One more point to notc before you begin the next activity is that two of
the radicals already mentioned have two meanings. They are:
11 (moon) but this has the second meaning ' fl esh' (from a 'squashed'
version of ~ - flesh/meat) .
a (sun) but can also take the meaning 'speak' (from S ' to speak' . A
tongue in a mouth - although thi s is rare!)
~ .W = Renshu 2
In this activity you will look at a number of ~ * with the radical missing.
The meaning of the full ~ * is given (plus a story where appropriate)
and you have to decide which radical (from the list given in Explanation 3)
will complete the ~ ~ . Here is an example to help you:
l- Components: tongue and mouth. Story: you must drink water to
live. M.eaning: to live. Answer: m (radical = water).
a)
*
Components: root (of tree). Story: the root /origin of a person is
their body. Meaning: body.
b) T
Component : a marker or post. Story: ri ce field s mark a town's
boundaries. Meaning: town.
c) >t
Component: measurement. Story: the vi llagers measured and
cut wood to make thei r homes. Meaning: village.
d)
*'
Components: tree and short top branches = not yet (that is, not
yet a full y grown tree) Stor y: someone who is not yet a woman.
Meaning: younger sisler.
e) T Component: a marker or post. Story: fire on a post makes a
lamp to mark your way. Meaning: lamp.
f)
JT
Component: axe. Story: with his hand he wielded the axe to
break the object. Meaning: break, snap, fold.
g) til
Component: people, nation. Story: the people closed their eyes
and slept. Meaning: sleep.
h) ;Ii: Component : dog. Story: dogs bark with their mouths. Meaning:
bark.
i) -t Compone nt : measurement. Story: part of the body (flesh)
used as an old measurement, from elbow to fingerti p. Meaning:
elbow.
j) B Component : white. Stor y: the hotel wc stayed at had water and
clean white towels. Meaning: slayal .
k) + Component ten, but imagine it to be a needle with thread coming
out of it (horizontal line). Story: needles are made of metal.
Meaning: needle.
I) = + b. Components: two (+ a shape which looks like a nose! In the
the two is above the nose). Story: the car's two wheels
rotat c. Meaning: 10 rotale, t urn.
m) Components: earth and measurement:: temple (t hink of the
Buddhist priests plott ing out the area of land before building the
temple). St or y: the temple bell struck each hour all through
the day. Mea ning: lime, hOllr.
How did you get on'! Here are the you have identified, complete
with thei r radical and meaning. Think about how the radical gives a cl ue
to the general meaning and how you can fit the components together into
a story.
, ) f* (body)
d) .u: (younger sister)
g) (sleep)
j) lI'l ("'y al)
m) P# (nme)
b) lIlT (Iown)
e) n (lamp)
h) Ilk (b.,k)
k) it (needle)
Renshii 3
c) # (village)
f ) tIT (fold, sn,p)
i) !It (.11>0.,)
I) f;; (!urn)
In Act ivity 2 in the introducti on to this unit you identified the lefthand
radicals of iOO.!::f.: but not the full meaning. You have now come across all
these meanings so turn back to Activity 2 on page 87, and see if you can
identify all the nx!:. The answers are in Renshii I and 2.
Kaisetsu 4 Locating the radical
So far you have identified radicals on the left side of Thi s is the
most common position of a radical but not the only one. Here are the
other locations with examples (the radical is in brackets).
UNIT 7 .3
~ /. 4Rl It
Right side w shape ( ~ ) ill' capila/ ( I" )
Above * tea C .... ") 11: cheap ( ~ )
Below ~ enjoyable (;;te) ~ emergency (,eo,)
Surround - complete 00 country (D)
Surround - partial m shop (I) m mad, way (L) ~ listen ( r ~ )
Some radi cals are located in more than one position. For example, *
(tree) is found:
I) left side (*f\ woods)
3) below ( ~ enjoy)
2) above ( ~ investigate)
And in different positions, some radicals change their shape. For example,
1< (ft"' ):
I) left side t:Pl (field)
,
And ' L' (heart):
I) left side 111 (feeling)
2) below 1t (boil) Here it looks like four
small flames
2) below ~ (emergency)
Renshii 4
The box contains some common radicals found in the righthand position,
or above, below or surround. Their names/meanings are given in brackets.
;,-
(vegetation) 'J:... (yawn)
'-'\.
(vapour)
F
(village) ...L (lid) n (hat !)
,.., (cover)
'J. or ~ , .. (fire)
NT
(bambao)
o (enclosure) r77 (hole)
iiF.,
(rain)
1\' or J\..:: (heart)
Look at the ll*- a-m and decide I) which is its radical (from the box)
and 2) its location. Here is an example to help you. Think as well how the
radical may indicate the general meaning.
9f Rei: ~ (potato) I) vegetation radical
2) above (link: a potato is a vegetable)
94
a) :Ii (cheap)
~
c) )1, (capital city)
e) ~ (picture. diagram)
g) m (writing brush)
i) !l; (ai, sky)
k) it (spirit)
m) ~ (snow)
b) 16 (floW.,)
d) j\JI (/o.ge dlY)
f) 111: (song)
h) m (black)
j) '" (army)
I) 'i!! (think)
M\lIUi Kaisetsu 5 _* readings
It has already been mentioned earli er on in this unit that as well as the
radical often giving the general meaning of il*. the other component(s)
sometimes indicate the reading (anyomi). Below are six ~ * whose
right sides (or in the case of lemple tile whole ll*) are all the same and
are read either JI or SHI.
~ (temple) JI B; (lime) JI
* (samurai) JI ~ (Io\o\-'er; soar) JI
f,'j (hold) Jl
'JIi (poem) SHI
Notice how the left side (the radical) gives a clue to the meaning. We
have discussed some already, for example, J;j (poem) has the radical if
(say, words). ~ (hold) has the radical .=f (hand-remember it changes its
shape slight ly). Look at the radicals of the others and think about how
these give a pointer to their meaning. (The radical for temple is ' earth').
l!J _flJi Renshu 5
This act ivi ty gets you to look at ~ * whose right sides and onyomi
reading are the same. You wi ll fi rst be given the right side (this can stand
alone as a ~ * too) and then will choose from a selection of radicals
(the full m* is also given in brackets) which radical gives the full ~ * '
its particular meaning. Refer to pp. 90-1 , 93 if you can not remember the
meaning of a radical. The firs t one has been done for you.
Right side: -B (SHO) Meaning: call, send for, summon
Radicals (lJ.*) Meanings
a) =f (UI) i) beckon, invite ()
b) a (1I!1) ii} inherit ( )
c) 71< (m) iii) imperial edict, decree ( )
d) *' (J!!) iv) elm. bright ( )
e) 1=1 (iRI) v) swamp, marsh ()
UNIT 7
Answers
i) == a == m (link: beckon with your hand)
ii) = d = Mf (l ink: inheritance 'thread' to relatives)
iii) = e = 1m (link: spoken 'summons' = decree)
iv) = b = Iffl (link: sun and bright)
v) = c = m (link: swamps are watery)
t/ i' - Hinto 1
95
Sometimes the right side meaning can be clearly included in the link ( ~ s
in i- iii) and sometimes it is not quite so clear (as in iv and v).
t/ i' =: Hinto 2
The radicals are given in their full ~ * form but they may change shape
when used as part of a I!* as you have already learnt (as in i and v).
1) Right side: 'R' (SEI) Meaning: blue
Radicals ( ~ * ) Meanings
a) IL' (heart) (M) i) purify, cleanse ()
b) S (uri) ii) request, ask ( )
c) *" (Wi) iii) spi ri t /white ri ce/purity ( )
d) ~ (im) iv) fine weather, clear up ( )
e) * (rice) (rt) v) feeling, emotion ()
2) Right side: 'I' (SAKU) No meaning
Radicals
a) a
b) A
( ~ " ' )
(lit)
(m
Meanings
i) yesterday, previous ( )
ii) make, create ()
c) 9< (:1$) ii i) vinegar ( )
d) ]!!j (liqu;d, , ' coho') (i!I') iv) explosion ( )
3) Right side: 'f (KAN)
( ~ " ' )
Radicals Meanings
Meaning: get dry, parch
a) 'f elf)
i) wickedness, mischief ( )
b) 1r: (lif) ii) liver ( )
c) 71< (if) iii) perspire ( )
d) }j (fl esh) (Iff)
e) 9J. (nose) (M)
f) tt ()
iv) snore ( )
v) pole, rod ( )
vi) restrain ( )
g) a l''''-)
vii) drought, dry weather ( )
fllI!t:t\ Kaisetsu 6 Using ijt*
dictionaries
How did you get on in the last acti vity? It is important to restate at
this stage that although many ~ ~ have a part whi ch gives a clue to
the reading (of the onyomi) and that the radical oft en gives a clue
to the general meaning, they do not all fall into these categori es.
However, remember, you can reall y begin to make inroads into your
learning of ~ * when you have some rules and clues like this. to
help you.
Knowing about radicals does become essential when you start to use a
il.* dictionary. As you learnt in the introduction, the Japanese Ministry
of Education made a list of 1942 ~ * which are essential to know in
everyday communication. However, there are many more i l ~ than this
which are used in specialist, academic and pre-war writings and documents.
(Compare this situation with the many more words in an English di ctionary
than most people know or use in everyday life.) A .. * dictionary,
therefore, may have 5000 or more entries but many of these are not in
common usage. .
The most commonly used ~ * dictionary for non-Japanese people is
the Japanese-English Character Dictionary by Andrew Nelson (but
often referred to si mply as 'Nelson'). ~ * are traditionall y looked up
in a dictionary by first identifyi ng the radi cal and then locating the
section where all $ l ~ with this radical are grouped. Radi cals are
ordered by their number of strokes from those of one stroke through
to those of 16/ 17 (i n Nelson) . The number and type of radi cal does
vary slightl y from di cti onary to dictionary. In Nelson each radi cal is
numbered (from 1- 214) and its number is clearly printed al the top of
every page so that it is easy to turn to the section you are looking for.
There is a list of all the radicals wit h their number in the inside front
cover.
Once you have identified the radical and turned to the relevant section,
you next count the number of remaining strokes in the i l ~ you are
looking up, excluding the radical stroke number. All i l ~ with the same
radi cal are grouped according to the number of remaining strokes, from
I through to the highest number (this can be up to 24 or more in the case
of very complicated i l ~ ) . As an extra guide, on the side of every page,
the radi cal on that page is given in square brackets wi th the number
UNIT 7 97
of remaining strokes grouped on the same page printed next to it. For
example:
St-4
\ I
tells you that on this page are ~ * with the radical *- and
four remaining strokes.
Here are the steps for looking up a ~ * (using Nelson). You want to find
the meaning of tt:
I) You identify the radical (*-).
2) Count the number of its strokes (four).
3) Turn to the radical list in the inside cover, find *- in the 4-stroke
group and make a note of its number (75).
4) Turn to section 75 (radical numbers are labelled at the top of each
page).
5) Count the number of remaining strokes in tt (four).
- -t-
J
-t-
J.-.
6) Find the sub-section containing all ~ * with four remai ning strokes
(quick reference at the side of each page) .
7) Run your eye down the ~ * listed until you find {t. Meaning:
branch.
If you know the pronunciation of the i!.t! you can look it up in the
index at the back. Look through all i!.t! of the same reading until you
see the one you want. There is a number next to it (every ii* is given
its own number). Find this number by looking at the bottom edge of
each page.
These steps are to hel p you get started if you want to use a ~ * dict ionary.
Identifying the radical is not always easy (Nelson lists a seri es of steps at
the beginning of the dictionary to assist you) and at the begjnning you are
bound 10 make mistakes in counting the number of strokes. But practice
makes perfect (!) and with time and experience you will be able to master
9'
looking up even very complicated r.!. You can now see onc reason
why writing iM. correctly is so important - so that you can COllnt how
many strokes there are!
If you have access to a Ii dictionary, 5;tart by looking up the ~ * " you
have been introduced to in this unit because the radical has already been
identified for you.
This is the last formal teaching section tor writing in this book (although
in Unit 10 you will be taught techniques for letter writing). This writing
section is goi ng to focus on the balance between the components of il*
(this has already been mentioned in Units 4 and 6). The _* that follow
have left sides which you are already familiar with as separate _* but
which change their shape slightly when used as radicals. Copy the models
carefully and notice changes in size, proportion and orientation of the
radical. Look carefully at the way the whole ~ * is written and do not let
the different components divide and look like separate iJ!*. As a rule of
thumb, where there is a left and right side, the left side takes up one-third
and the right side two-thirds.
The ~ ~ you are going to learn to writ e are: ~ (time), t:lII (cultivated
field) , # (village), lEI (stay), tt (needle), ~ (turn), U (younger sister),
l!I! (bury) and", (spirit) .

84j-
aft,.
11
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UNIT 7
99
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100 BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPl
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UNIT 7 101
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Owari ni
In this unit you have covered more than 70 il*- and 38 of the 214
radicals. However, the purpose of this unit was to introduce you to a
technique of breaking down 1 I ~ into their component parts in order
to extract meaning. Therefore, you are not expected to remember all the
i l ~ which you have analysed during this unit. More important is the
method you have been introduced to for de-coding i I ~ . The unit chart
at the back, therefore, will not include all the iI*- from this unit, but
those learnt in Renshu I and 2 will be included for reference purposes.
Units 8, 9 and 10 wi ll build on the knowledge and techniques that you
have acquired from the first seven units of this book. Unit 8 covers general
signs and infonnati on notices that you woul d see if you went to Japan;
Unit 9 teaches :IJ 7 :IJ r (katakana) the script for non-Japanese words;
and Unit 10 offers you the chance to read a variety of Japanese texts. You
could take these units in any order - Unit 8, for example, teac;hes a large
number of signs and so you might wi sh to 'dip into' that unit and then
move on and return to it at a later date. It is up 10 you - you take control
of your learning and if you find that something is difficult, or you j ust
want a change, then move on to another unit.
8
. AIl Dai hachika
UMT8
learn to read everyday signs and writt en infonnalion
fi nd clues and stories to help you remember new ~ ~ words
learn to recognise different writing styles
look at authentic everyday street signs and information
About this unit
You will be introduced to a large number of ~ ~ signs in this unit with
lots of clues to help you remember them. You are certainly not expected
to remember them all but to help you progress through thi s unit, the
il* Build up sections conlai n additional m* words whi ch you can
leave out or come back to later if you find there is already enough new
information to take in.
Hajime ni
When we travel around places, even withjn our own local area, we arc
constantly being informed by written signs and notices all around us. We
pick out the infonnation of use or interest ('sale', ' no entry', ' closed',
' danger') and scan over the information we do not require. Visi tors to Japan
wi th no knowledge of written Japanese arc struck almost immediately by
the lack of information they arc able to get from the signs and notices
around them. There is some infonnal ion in English, parti cularly in larger
cities such as Tokyo, but your experience of Japan can be so much richer
if you can understand some of the information that is written in Japanese.
When children firs t learn to read they will obsessively read out all the
shop names and road signs they see. In the same way, once you can
recognise some oflhe common signs in Japanese, your eyes will feast on
the new source of information open to you. Neon signs, advertisements,
shop notices, tourist places, signs al stations - you find yoursel r able to
operate much morc cfficiendy and with more confidence because you can
pick out the infonnation you need and get to the places you want to go to.
This and the next unit will introduce you to some of the more common signs
you may sec around you in Japan. And not only in Japan - television
programmes and films often show neon lights and other signs written in
Japanese which, once you have completed this book, yOll can have a go at
reading. And in Japanese department stores, restaurants and other speciality
shops in large cities outside Japan you see many signs and information
written in Japanese. So there are plenty of opportunities to practise what
you are going to learn in thi s unit.
I) First of all you are going to try reading some common signs which
you have already learnt in previous .units. The fl*" words that follow
have a box of English meanings beneath them (with clues and stories in
brackets where necessary). Can you match them up?
b) til 0
g) m.
I) l\1l!I
c) Y:
h) *A
m) tIlll!l
I ) immigration (enter a country)
2) train (electric vehicle)
3) chi ld (small person)
4) entrance
5) up
6) 1000 yen
7) men
8) holiday
e) J: 9
j) t o ~
0) - i3
9) emigration (exit a country)
10) adult (big person)
11 ) school
12) exit
13) down
14) women
15) temple
The answers in the back also have in brackets the number of the unit where
the word was first introduced so that you can look it up again if you need to.
IVts;I:'::H\'"( (Nihon ni tsuite)
About Japan
A qui ck note about L ~ (up) and r IJ (down): these signs are used
specifically on trains. 'Up' trains are travelling to Tokyo (from any
direction) and ' down' trains are travell ing away from Tokyo.
UNIT 8 105
iWliIt- Kaisetsu 1
iI* for places
There are a number of t l ~ which are used to indicate different types of
places such as shops, rooms, public institutions and offices. Let us look at
seven key ones. They are:
I) m (,hop)
4) P!i (place)
7) IllI (garden)
2) m ("0,.. roof)
5) J&} (place)
Now let us look at each one in more detail .
3) ~ (bureau, office)
6) If (hall, large building)
I) r.s (shop). The radical for this is r- whi ch means ' dolted cliff'
(r means 'clitr). Both these radicals indicate some type of enclosure.
Think of it in this case as the roof and back wall of the shop. The front
wall is, of course, a window and so is open. Inside the shop is t'- (fortune)
and t=J (mout h), together meaning &" (fortune telling). To run a shop you
have to be good at divining the customer's needs!
2) it (store, roof). The radical is F meaning ' flag'. Within it is 3i
(meaning ' arrive') which has within it (earth). The flag is a banner
advertising a newly built store (earth connection! ), waiting for the
customers to arrive!
3) f.l} (bureau, office). The radical again is F (flag) and within it is a
mouth or opening enclosed on two sides. This 1 I ~ is used in words
such as 'post office' so think of it as the glass counter behind which the
office clerk sits. The ' flag ' is the board calling the next customer!
4 and 5) pfr and :1M (place). jiJf is generally used to indicate an office
or 'over-the-counter' type of place (tourist information office, foreign
exchange bureau) whereas :Ji,} has the general meaning 'grounds' (hence
- earth - as the radical). The radical for jiJf is P (flag with ' one' above
it) and this by itself means ' door'. You came across the right side in the
previous unit, ff meaning 'axe'. (Use the axe on the door to mark the
spot or place!)
6) I1'i1r (hall, large building). Thi s . ~ is often used in public or
government buildings. You should recognise the left side. It is the radical
version of 1t (food) . The right side -g has the general meaning of
' government'. Put together, large halls (such as concert halls, art galleries)
are often funded by local government and you can usually buy refreshments
too!
7) iii (garden). This is very easy to remember! First, there is the
radical which you have already come across in the previous unit - D
which means 'enclosure' or, in thi s case, the walls around a garden.
Within the walls there is (earth - think of flower beds !), IJ (mouth -
but think of this as a pond!) and off the 'pond' are a number of garden
paths. Can you see it now?
l!J .fl- Renshu 1
Now let us put what you have learnt so far into practice. Some iI:*
which you have already learnt follow. The meaning is in brackets
and, remember, if you want to review a at any time, look up the
English word in the index and it will refer you back to the page where
you first learnt it. There are also some new _* with some tips on how
to remember them. Here are the
3\j (sell) !'f (wr;te) '* (book) J\. B (800) iii (meat) (dr;nk)
III (vehicle) =f (hand)
art (the first if* looks like an artist' s easel!).
city, market (woman in hat holding shopping bags).
construction (looks like scaffolding or tower!).
public (J\. eight + 1:.. looks like a nose! Eight nosey people = the
public!).
drawing, map (D is the picture frame, the inside is modern art).
fi sh (components: hook, rice field, fire. The fish is hooked, cooked
on fire, eaten with rice).
rice wine, alcohol (water radical indicates liquid. Ri ght side looks
li ke a decanter).
lea (vegetation radical indicates tea leaves + umbrella shape for
drinking tea under).
medicine (vegetation and tree indicate herbal medicine. B white +
four short strokes = aspi rin dissolving!).
wash (water radical on left).
Now you are going to match some common signs and shop names wi th
their English equi valents.
UNIT 8 107
I) 0m1 ()
2) lliJiU ()
a) bookshop (two answers)
b) a newsstand, a kiosk

c) pharmacy (two answers) 3) iIl.lj;j ()
d) butcher's 4) ( )
e) toilet (hand washing) 5) iiUI ()
f) art gall ery 6) IIJ! ,\\;r,!i ( )
g) greengrocer's (800 varieties! ) (focus on 2nd + 3rd nxa;*)
h) park
i) fishmonger's
j) market (place)
k) library
I) tea/coffee shop
m) wine shop, liquor store
n) drinking place, bar
0) factory
7) 'if.m ()
8) lliJ ()
9) >'1m ()
10) iJlJ ()
II ) f!l:iI'im ( )
12) ( )
13) I.Ij;j ()
14) JUfJ ( )
IS) Jt.;J ()
16) f.llIi! ()
17) 1o''frA;l' ( )
fWlllt= Kaisetsu 2 More about places
How did you get on wi th this activity? Some of the words need further
explananlion. J\. a m (greengrocer's) literally means '800 shop' so thi nk
of 800 types of fruit and vegetables! You should have worked out
the meaning of (coffee/tea shop) from the second and third
The first one has a general meaning of 'cat, drink, smoke' and
its radical tl (moulh) indicates this general meaning. It is not widely
used and focusing on the second two gives you the meaning. IJj}
(factory) and Iti:ij,} (market) are both places which have grounds and so
use for place'.
a ;/lq;::J n -C (Nihon ni tsuite)
About Japan
:t:ifiitl> (toilet) has hiragana 10' (0) at the beginning which is used in
fTont of some words to make them sound more (X) li te and genteel. This is
sometimes translated as ' honourable', so in this case ' the honourable hand
washing (place)' alt hough its real meaning is toil et! The end hiragllna l>
is somet imes left off (see this book cover for an example of this sign).
il* build up 1 More place names
As explained in the introduction, these sections will leach additional
~ * words which you can leave out or come back to later if you feel
you have taken in enough at this stage . .
The following nl* are key to the additional place names introduced
further on:
1) . (master) 2) ~ (station)
4) fr (go) 3) ~ (convenience: mail)
Now let's look at them in detail.
1) . looks like a candlestick with a Harne on lOp so you can remember
it as 'candle' (its real meaning is ' master' ). It is a component of the
foll owing two il*:
Sf (reside, stop-over) tl: (reside. dwell)
It The radical is ~ (horse). In old times, stop-over places or inns were
a place to rest horses on a long journey. A welcoming candle in the
window would light your way.
it The radical is A (person) . A person is master (real meaning of .:1:.) in
their own residence.
Car park (stop-over place for vehicles)
Address (place of residence)
2) ~ The radical is 'horse', the right side R is the measurement ' foot' .
Think of it in this case as being R for railway. Meaning: Railway station
(before trains, transport was by horse!).
3) fI. (convenience; mail) The left side is person, the right is - (one)
and ~ (tug). Here are two words it is used in - you supply the story!
Places
fJ!P!T
Toilet, urinal (A place for your convenience, perhaps? The
first il might conjure up a strong image here!)
Post office (fi rst two ~ * " both mean 'mail' plus NU -
'bureau')
UNIT 8 109
4) fi (to go) The radical 1 means ' going person'.
Places
ilHj (bank) means ' silver' (radical is metal). Story:
go to the bank to get silver (money)
i6ili!iUi (shopping area) You should recognise m (shop), iRi
means ' trade' , {!j cons ists of double earth ()
between fi and means 'street ' or 'quarters' (earth
piled up to make a road)
(travel information).&afT means ' travel'. '* has the
left side radical 7i which means ' direction' , the
side comes from;t{. meaning 'clothes' . Story: go (ft)
in the direction of a holiday with a suitcaSe of clothes!
means ' information (place)', Quick story for
tourists would certainly want more information
about a woman wearing a large hat in a tree! (r.q is
introduced laler in this unit)
5) More places containing jiJT (place) :
N"M'pJi (Money exchange place) . means ' both', You can see ilJ
(mountain) within this with a small mountain on both sides of the large
one! The upper part of 1f: (exchange) looks like two people who are
exchanging. Both gain from the exchange!
MffjiJi (Fare adjustment office). You learnt the first in Unit 7: it
means ' purity' or ' white rice' . The radical means ' rice' , Focus on this
meaning to give you a story for the whole word. In ancient times, riee
rather than money was used as payment including fares!
(Nihon ni tsuite)
About Japan
If you travel by underground in Japan and do not know the fare to your
destination, buy the cheapest ticket and pay the difference when you
arrive, at the tt,nm -fare adj ustment office.
6) More places containing Jj;} (place) :
m:f.fni&} (Ticket office). literally means 'sclling placc' , -m means
'cut' (7J means 'sword'). means ' token' and has 17 (bamboo) at the
top and M (attach) below. Maybe in ancient limes a ticket was a token
cut from bamboo!
filii" (theatre) . fII means drama. If you look hard enough you can make
out the outline of the arch and curtains around a stage with a kabuki actor
standing in the middle!
7) More places containing til (hall):
i!:*:iiIDi'il (cinema). Focus on m which means ' picture' but you can
also see within it four squares representing the screens of a multi-screen
cinema!
.&am (Japanese inn). Mi means ' travel' . A place to stay when travelling.
t t ~ m (museum). You learnt ~ in Unit 4 - it means ' things', Focus on
'It: meaning PhD or esteem. Esteemed items afC kept in museums. Also,
think of the left side of 1t: as an ancient Japanese sword!
~ MlW-= Renshu 2
In the previous __ * Build up section you were introduced to 15 more
place names. The following activity gives you the chance to see how
many you can now recognise. If you do not get them al l on the first try.
simply go back over the ex.planations - then try again!
Match the Engli sh words (t here are clues in brackets) to the il!f: words
in the box.
a) Travel information (woman in tree)
b) Japanese inn (travel place)
c) Museum (Japanese sword)
d) Theatre (proscenium arch)
e) Car park (stop-overs/or horses! )
f) Address (mOSIer o/residence)
g) Fare adjustment office (pay wilh rice)
h) Money exchange (rwo people exchange)
i) Shopping area (double earth/or road)
j) Railway station (horse + R for railway)
k) Ticket office (CUI bamboo selling place!)
I) Bank (go 10 bank for silver money)
m) Cinema (four squares = four screens)
n) Post office (mail bureau)
0) Toilet (conveniencelyour own SIOry)
UNIT 8 11\
1) St!lI41 ( ) 2) itpJi ( ) 3) ( )
4) fJl[pJi ( ) 5) ill fJI[ Ilil ( ) 6) ilifi ( )
7) illir.sllI ( ) 8) lKfill'iPlPJi ( ) 9) jijtl'PJi ( )
10) fIljJpJi (
) 11) tlm3'f41 ( ) 12) /IlJ.Ij;j ( )
13) i!I! ii!ii tI'! ( ) 14) lKtI'! ( ) 15) ( )
MliIt.::: Kaisetsu 3 _* Signs
You have so far been exposed to a total of 47 place names (or 32 if you
missed out the _* Build up section). Next you are goi ng to learn to
recognise more common signs and written information containing if*
or components that you are already familiar with. These are:
1) !lI (vehicle) 2) 1il: (room) 3) Jl!I (country)
4) Jf/i (seat) 5) (tMng) 6) .. (fte)
Now let us look at these in detail.
1) nr (vehicle). Here are fi ve il* words containing Jti: :
unoccupied taxi occupied taxi JlJ1fi long-distance train
sleeper train bicycle
and n,qIfi . These signs are displayed on the windscreens of taxi
cabs and at car parks. means 'sky' or 'empty' and, if you look carefully,
looks like an aeropl ane taking off into the ai r from a runway! It is also
used in (airport).
n,q means 'full ' or 'enough '. The radical is water and it contains a
component you have already learnt in this unit, FIi (both). Above this is
the component 'vegetation'. Story: water and vegetation together are
enough to live on!
Jll1lr. You have already learnt m.. (electric train). This is used generically
but also for local lrajns, whereas 7l $ denotes long-distance trains. The
ri ghthand component looks like a long rail track!
4l tt Itt . tt means 'J(Cdestal' but can you see a person with a large nose
b. lying on a bed! means '10 sleep' and has the radical ""'" (l id), in
thi s case ' roof'. On the left is a component which looks like a bed
standing upright - the type you pull down from the wall on a trai n.
You met:fi; (turn, rotate) in Unit 7. means ' automati c' or
'sclf'. You can see (eye) with an extra short stroke. Think of this as a
small nose (between the eyes!). The Japanese poi nt to thei r nose
(rather than their chest) when they refer to ' mc'. Altogether we have
sclfrotating vehicle', in ot her words, a bicycle!
2) 3! (room). This is si mi lar to m (shop) whi ch you learnt earlier in this
unit (Kaisetsu I ). The radical is different. Here it is r4 (li d, roof). The
lower part is (arrive) but focus on its difference 'from 'shop' because it
has a roof - ' rooms have roofs'. Here are two words
Western-style room Japanese-style room
and arc words used in hotels and estate age nts. ;fn1i!
(Japanese-style rooms) have tatami mats on the floor, futon matt resses to
sleep on and Japanese baths whereas W* (Western-style rooms) have
carpets on the floor and in hotels have Western beds and bathrooms.
i$ means ' ocean ' (t he West is across the ocean!) and the radical is
water'. The ri ght side $: means 'sheep' (can you see Ihe horns of the
ram?), an animal associated with the West.
;fO is the old Chi nese word for Japan. You learnt it as ' peace' in Unit 3
(as part of the Showa era). The left side represents the ears of rice as
it grows in the fields, and ri ce is Japan's staple food.
3) (country). Here are fi ve words containing this
p:] domestic 9HE abroad, foreign t1= foreign
internati onal phone AOOiiJm passport control
P:] means inside (i nside the country). You can sce a person A inside a
frame. (Do nol confuse with fl csh - two persons in a frame).
;'-1- means outside (outsidc the country). The radical !Y means 'evening'
(i magine it as a crescent moon shape) and imagine a person f' standing
outside looki ng at the moon. means 'foreigner' (outsi der).
;'-I- OOZ1 tf contai ns 1} meaning (p. 109).
IEllf k'iUim. You learnt mim (telephone) in Uni t 6. is used to indicate
' international' and consists of the radical ' vi lI age' (think of the global
vi llage) and meani ng ' fes ti val' . (Think of the upper part being a
marquee and the lower part a trestle table, set up for a retc or restival. )
AOOifll. First you have enter the country (to enter a country you have
to show your passport). Focus then on if. You learnt in Kaisetsu I that
the component 1r means ' government' and passport control is a government
or civil service organisation.
I
UNIT 8 113
4) ffC (seal). The radi cal is r- (dotted cliff) but for this imagine it
is the roof and side of a train carriage (with electri c cable on the roof).
Thc component within looks like a computer game character! He has a
square head, stick body and arms. You cannot see his legs because he is
sitting down! Here are two signs containing $ :
mlrf. unreserved seat reserved seat
You have already learnt that means 'self' . m means ' freedom'-
the freedom to make your own (self) decisions. With $ it means ' free!
unrescrved seat'.
m means ' finger/ indicate'. The meani ng is indi cated by the
lefthand radical ' hand' (from means ' fixed'. The general meaning
( putting a li mit on something) is indicated by the radical .->-. (a crown or
in this case a lid). Therefore the seats indicated are limited/reserved.
Note: means 'set meal' <in other words. the menu is fixed).
5) ft (thing). You first learnt thi s in Unit 4 ( p. 50).
:r.:Jft luggage, parcel :@ttft left behind by mistakel10st luggage
Look at as a picture of a suitcase ( []) coming through the conveyor belt
at the airport! ;,; means' forgotten'. Remember that the radical (heart)
is used for emotions and thoughts. "C means ' deceased' or ' lost'.
6) (fee). Focus on the radical * (rice) which you know can represent
payment:

A.II.)*'I
1I!1*'I
means fee (lit ' fee money')
mcans entrance fee (lit 'cnter place fee')
means admission free (lit ' no fee'). 11 means ' nothing' and
looks like a prison window with no prisoner inside!
I!I!W'::::' Renshu 3
In the last secti on you were introduced to 22 new information words and
three new general il* M. *4). Test yoursel f by seeing how
many you can recognise (write the English meanings in the brackets). If
you cannot remember all of them at first, check your answers by looking
back through the section.
) (
) (
) JlHEA (
) }lJIIl ( ) iii! 1'1 III ( )
) fUllO ( ) OOJll ( )
) JlHE 1;j 'If ( ) 00 lliHllllli ( )
"4
) 13 illJ.II (
) '" tL 1IiJ (
)
build up 2
) llilEJI/i (
) ( )
)
As with the last build up section, you can leave this one out and
come back to it laler if you wi sh to.
I) Here are three compound words containing (room):
bathroom powder room, toilet t.\iit3?: waiting room
m means bathe and has the water radical on the left. The righthand
component looks like a house, as in 'bath house'!
Note: The word for a Japanese-style bath is !ia g . Thi s type of bath is
deeper and shorter than Western ball1s, and you sil with your knees bent
and only your head above water. g means backbone (can you see the
vertebrae?) - you sit in the bath with back straight.
{l:.m means cosmetics (think of the ri ce radi cal * as a powder
pum). Powder room is a euphemism for ladies' toilet or bathroom.
t#f.J3!. Focus on #i which means wait. The lefthand radical is ' going
person' and the righthand radical is (temple).
2) In the previous section (Kaiselsu 3) you learnt (Japanese) and if
(Western). Here are four more words containing these:
:fntt Japanese cuisine ittt Western cuisine
Japanese-style Western-style
Renshii 4
In the last secti on you were introduced 10 eight new compound words.
Can you match them up wi th their English meanings?
1) a) Western-style
2) lti:Jt b) Japanese-style
3) c) Western cuisine
4) d) Japanese cuisine
5) B!l S e) bathroom
6) f) (Japanc,c) bath
7) tf tt g) waiting room
8) tf:Jt h) powder room (ladies' toilet)
UNIT 8
IWliI!.l!!I Kaisetsu 4
In thi s secti on you will learn to
recognise the main islands and cities
of Japan. First, you are goi ng to leam
the four compass directions:
A map of Japan
~ t
And here are quick clues to help you remember them:
115
~ I : : North (looks li ke two people sitting back to back to keep warm (cold
in the North
m South (yen symbol (more money in the South of Japan!
* Ea!J't (components: sun and tree. Sun ri sing in the East from behind
the tree)
R!i West (looks like (!!I four - do not confuse them - and it is the fourth
compass direction)
Now look at the map of Japan with the main islands and cities labell ed in
~ * and ramaji . How many _* do you recognise? There is a list of
clues on the next page to help you learn the names. You have not learnt
any of the ~ ! : f : for 3, 6 and 12. They are included for interest only.
Nagasaki
II"
0 NIHON (Japan)
S'*'
HOKKAIOO
jt:il!
Sapporo
1\,11
HONSHO ,*,ffl
{TOk'yO. Jl!
, Y Oikoh,.ma lUi
' SHIK:DKU I!!IIII
116
Place
I) 1'1*
2) ~ t i l i l 1 1
3) lUI!
4) *#1
5) :110](
6) ~ ~
7) *11&
8) J]('M\
9) 1M:;
10) P.!@
II) 1L#I
12)1>l:.
8(! Meanings
sun, root
North, sea, way
paper mOlley. hood
root /main, province
East, capilal
side, seacoast
big, slope
capital, city
wide, island
four. CQutJIry
. .
mne, province
long, promontory
Kaisetsu 5
Story clue
' Land of the ri sing sun'
' North island across the sea'
Winter Olympics held here - brought
in money!
Main (biggest) island of Japan
(Which it is!)
' City on the seacoast to the side of
Tokyo'
Osaka is built on a hillside
Kyoto used to be the capital of Japan
Hiroshima stands in a wide bay
dotted with small islands
Shikoku is the fourth of the main
islands of Japan
KYlIshu is divided into nine provinces
(admini strative)
Describes Nagasaki harbour
Warning signs
It is very useful and often essential to be able to read this type of sign.
A friend of mine drove up a closed road and got stuck in a snow drift
because she could not read the sign at the head of the road. After that she
learnt to recognise ~ (forbidden) as ' two Harry Worths (the entertainer
who used to stand hal f behind mirrors li fting his leg and arm up and
down) dancing on a picnic table'! That ll! alone would have prevented
her going up that road.
We start by learni ng some general warning iM then look at how they
are used.
~ forbidden Uust mentioned) ~ J l : no, not aJ/owed (ll: means 'stop' )
J i t ~ strictly forbidden f:I to smoke (fi re radical)
[Jl middle. In signs means during or under
L!J IIkW Ji Renshu 5
Here are some common warning signs using the 11* we have just met
plus ones you know already.
UNIT 8 117
Match each word to its English meaning.
a) Outdoor shoes stri ctly forbidden ( )
b) No smoking ( )
c) No parking ( )
d) Under construction ( )
e) No admittance ( )
Finall y in this sect ion, three more useful warning signs wit h clues to
remember:
0 Emergency exit (# looks like a path cleared of clutter for easy
access)
ttt! Caution ('i story: 'pour water on a candle to caution against
firc'!)
Danger (iB looks like a snake in a box - dangerous if it
escapes!)
fllIIt* Kaisetsu 6 Signs of opposition
This is the final kaisetsu section! Ten follow which can be paired as
opposites in meaning.
ti. left
ti right
jtp 1" push
51 < pull
M open
M close
JlJt( arrival
ili.g departure
open/or business
closed
Use of I for I (am/am not left handed)
o ('Tick the right box')
Hand radical is pushing the doorbell
looks like an archery bow which you
pull
Gates (elevator doors). Two people holding
one door each open
One person cannot hold the doors and they
close
Remember that 3: means arrive or 'the nose
of the plane touching ground'
ili means go out
11t is a backbone with a hat on - a shop
assistant!
means holiday
a build up 3
And finally, some miscell aneous signs. Once more, you can miss thi s
section out if you need to consolidate what you have learnt so far.
Mi means grilled (fi re radical plus component looking like a barbcque).
Look at these words:
mill

yakiniku - grilled meat
yakitori - barbequed chicken on bamlxto skewers
okollQmiyaki - a type of thick pancake cooked on an iron
griddle at your table.
sukiyaki - beef gri lled then cooked with vegetables in a
cast iron pot.
shinlwnsen or bullet train. $i (new) helps you to remember
this.
undergrollfld(train). Lit: 'ground under iron'. Iron indicates
the rail track.
express (train). Lit 'hurry go'.
special express. Lit: ' special hurry'
Renshu 6
Look at t he pictures of various Japanese signs. There is a range of
written styles, both vertical and horizontal left to right. How many can
you You may need to come back to this acti vit y aftcr you have
worked through the conclusion (which includes a review of all the
signs learnt in this unit) but keep a score and see if you can improve
on it !
UNIT 8 119
2)
AO
3) 4)
The name of a temple entrance
5) 6)
7) 8)
9) 10)
II ) r-.,..--".-------
12)
13)
~
~
/.
SHIMOKITAZAWA
What is Shimokitazawa the name of? (Focus on the last kanji)
The fi rst two kanji mean 'Fuji ', What is this building called?
UNIT 8 121
14) IEiiill 15) J EI3
16) Toy
17) tJD it

Owari ni
t:J li)"('" C '7 (omedeto) Congratulations! You have worked through a
mini mum of 76 signs in thi s unit. This does not include the \ 2
island and city names, and the 31 signs in the Bui ld up sections.
Thi s makes an overall total of 119 signs, whi ch is a huge amount and
obvi ously you are not going to remember them all in one go. To help you
review and consolidate your learning. all the signs are grouped below by
theme. How many do you remember? The Engli sh is also given at the end
of the unit so test yourself, then check and then use these pages as a
check list. (Signs taught in the Bui ld up sections are marked wit h
an asterisk. )
Hinto Remembering. words
Try writing out the words on small squares of card. Put the il* on
one side and the English on the other. Use these mini flashcards to test
yourself by looking at the side, giving your answer then turning the
card over to see if you are ri ght. Try doing 10 in the morning, 10 in the
evening and gradually build up the number you can remember.
.22
General
1) til
5) *A
9)
13) if.>I:.-
Shopping and places in town
1) rn
2) II;! 101
5) if<\m 6) ilfm
9) lIfrn 10) rtrn
13) 111lj! 14) i}im
17) 18) iliff-
21) j\jtl'jl)f-
22) Itl\!l&!-
25) IlIJ 26) M
29) Xl&! 30) "l":Il<
Sightseeing and entertainment
3) Ai'fm
7) I!li!*rn
11) ll!fiii
15) OlIl1fill
19) lI1ilfiii-
23) JIll t
27) 1!tl'l< <P
4) !ll
8) ili')f-
12) flJ>I:.-
4) *lOl.
8) il:ilfrn
12) ll!m
16) iIIlrnm-
20)
24) I <
28) l*l'I<<P
1) 2) t,<C/j 3) l* a 4) !R 5) J!/! I!ii ill-
6)
7) Jllll&!- 8)
Travel and transport
1)
4) l!!i
7) tII-g
10)
13) r ry
16) <litilli
19)
22)
25) 41\'*'1;-
28) mIl!
2) JIij
5)
8) AOOWllI!
11) \IlJ!!
14) ?lJl\!
17) lli)i!m;
20) fIIJJi')f-
23)
26) it!!rllJ<-
29) <I fi<J!!
9) A.lIM
3) JI!
6) ilJ:II'
9) 00 P3
12) ..try
15) li!itl\!
18)
10) 1II\M
21) Wf.H'tljj-
24) ;(;:ff-
27)
30)
UNIT 8
Accommodation
I ) M<ftI'!-
4) 1If",-
2) 1$",
5) !i!./S-
3) 1'11",
6) tti'Ji-
Warnings
I)
5) I$'/'
Food and drink
I) fu11t'
4)
2)
6) ill'lit r:1
2) 1$11t-
5)
English meanings
General
3)
7) ttX!
3) li>iIl-
4)
8)
6)
I) exit
4) man
7) toi let
I 0) left
2) entrance
5) adult
3) woman
6) ehild
13) Western-style
8) toilet
I I) right
Shopping and places in town
I) shop
3) greengrocer
5) fish shop
7) coffee shop
9) bookstore
I I and 12) pharmacy/chemist
14) park
16) shopping area
18) bank
20) foreign exchange
22) car park
24) pull
26) close
28) closed
30) school
9) toil ct/powder room
12) Japancse-style
2) butcher
4) book shop
6) liquor store
8) bar
10) kiosk
13) market
15) library
17) international telephone
19) post office
21) exchange bureau
23) push
25) open
27) open (for business)
29) factory
123
Sightseeing and entertainment
I ) art gall ery
5) cinema
2) temple
6) museum
3) holiday
7) theatre
9) entrance fce 10) admission free
Travel and transport
1) North
3) East
5) foreigner
7) departure
9) domestic
11) train
13) down
15) sleeper
17) reserved scat
19) lost property
21) ti cket office
23) bullet train
25) special express
27) unoccupied
29) bicycl e
Accommodation
1) Japanese inn
3) Japanese-style room
5) (Japanese) bath
Warnings
2) South
4) West
6) arrival
8) passport control
10) station
12) up
14) long-distance train
16) unreserved seat
18) luggage
20) fare adjustment office
22) travel infannati on
24) express
26) underground/subway
28) occupi ed
30) waiting room
2) Western-style room
4) bathroom
6) address
2) no admittance
4) festival
8) fee
I) no parking
3) no smoking
5) under constructi on
7) caution
4) outdoor shoes stri ctly forbidden
6) emergency exit
8) danger
Food and drink
1) Japanese cuisine
3) yakiniku - grilled meat
5) okonomiyaki - grilled pancake
2) Western cui sine
4) yakitori - grilled chicken
6) sukiyaki - beef ' hot pot '
9
fflLiI Da; kyuka
UNIT 9
learn to read the 46 11 f; IJ r (katalcana) symbols whi ch make up the
phonetic 'alphabet'
learn some rules for making extra sounds from the 46 main symbols
be introduced to picture- sound associations to make learning easier
learn how to write tJ f; IJ T (lwtakana)
have a go at reading some words and phrases
Key words:
fJ !J fJ T (kalakaaa)
Ii t; 3D I: Hajime ni
11 11 iJ r is the script used to represent foreign words which have heen
adopted into the Japanese language (loanwords) and foreign names
(personal names, countries etc.). Most of the loanwords are derived from
English words and this means that once you can read the script you can
normall y work out what a word means. This makes h 7 h T a fun
script to learn and working out the meanings can be an enjoyable challenge!
In Unit 5 you learnt to read the 0 t, t J ~ ~ . scri pt . You may have dt.:cidcd
to work through the il units first and then to work on Units 5 and 9.
And you could work through this unit wit hout learning V t, nt ~ first
but as most of the rul es are the same for both scripts you will be referred
back to the appropriate page in Uni t 5 to read through the explanations
there.
Begin by looking back to the section of the introduction which deals wi th
an overview of the different types of Japanese scri pt (pp. vi- viii) and
the section on h !J 1J ..,.. Can you answer these questi ons based on the
information you have j ust read?
12. BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
I) What is 11 7 11 -r used for? (name four uses)
2) What do iJ !I tJ r symbols originate from?
3) How many basic symbols make up the" 7 IJ t syllabary?
Yonde mimasho
You have not learnt to read any /J !I IJ r yet (apart from these three
symbols) but as you did in Uni t 5 you arc goi ng to pair up !J !J JJ T
words which are the same. There are six words (a- f) in the left column
which are repeated in a different order in the right column. Match up the
same words and write the correct letter in the brackets on the left. The
first one is done for you.
(a) 7-"'<
(b) 7 -1 :1.
(e) ~ -:1. ~
(d):1. 7'- "'<
(e) :1. 11 - ~
(f) :1. - '/
: 1 . 1 1 - ~ ( )
:1.7'-"'< ( )
7-'< (a)
:1.-'/ ()
7-1:1. ()
~ - : 1 . ~ ( )
MiiIt- Kaisetsu 1
Let us begin by looking al the first four lines of the 11 7 11 r syllabary
with the romanised pronunciation and learn how to read them. The order
and pronunciation is exactly the same as U ~ ,;t ~ (see p. 59 to refresh
your memory). Only the symbols are different. The chart is writtcn in
the traditional way from top to bottom right to left. This is to give you
practice at reading vertically. Remember that you read in columns not
rows and begin to read from the top right symbol.
ta :9 sa -+f
chi 1- shi ~
tsu'Y sU A
te 7' se -t:.
to ,.. so ;J
l!J .W- Renshu 1
ko 11
ki ~
ku ,
ke 7
ko ;2
07
; -1
u7
In the ronde mimashii activity you matched six fJ :9 fJ t- words. Now
you are going to try to read those words. Use the chart of the first 20
symbols and say the words out loud then see if you can match them 10
UNIT 9 127
their English meanings in the box that follows. Remember that fJ , fJ j-
is used to wri te foreign (mainl y English) words. The pronunciation is
adapted to suit Japanese' pronunciation rules (every consonant is followed
by a vowel) but you can usually recognise the word once you have read it
correctly. A dash - after a symbol means that you lengthen the sound of
that symbol (., [u] performs this function in U ~ t J ~ ~ . See p. 67).
a) 7-'< b) r-;<r c) ;1."}--'<
d) 7 -( ;< e);1. h - r f);1. - '/
skirt ( )
cake ( )
suit ( )
ice ( )
steak ( )
toast ( )
1:: /' J- - Hinto 1 Remembering jJ 9 jJ T
In Unit 5 you were introduced to the idea of remembering U ~ Ii ~
through visual and sound association (p. 63). Here are a few ideas for
fJ , fJ j- symbols to get you started. Try to think of your own and write
them down. Some symbols are easier than others but just do a few at a time.
T (a ) looks like an antelope ~
-1 (i) is a leaning T which rhymes with i
? (u ) looks like a uisukii (whisky) flask 0
:r.. (e i looks like elevator doors I + \@l
'< (ki l looks like a dooc key ~
MlIIt= Kaisetsu 2
You arc now goi ng to be introduced to the whole jJ' fJ j- chart,
including the correct order in which to write each symbol. This follows
exactly the same format as for U ~ I;t ~ in Unit 5 (p. 60).
As with () t;, tJt ~ try to learn to write IJ 7 jJ t because this will help
you to remember how to read them too. Look carefully at the stroke order
and remember that in general you write horizontal strokes from left to
right and vertical /diagonal strokes from top to bottom (variations to the
direction are marked with an arrow on the individual symbol).
12. BEGINNER'S JAPANESE SCRIPT
rl -t
3' 1
~
-lt l ..
nlf;
,.
7 1

9
+)
7
-
t
I
'7
'7
-
..-
-If J fJ
~
?
-
n'
1-
<.h;
'"
"';
"
"
1
,
-
:\
+
-
~
-
-

-.//
- -
, ,
+
.
-
-
- -
'I
/
-1
-
- -/
-
-
"
-
'7
, ~
"
~
~
m
?
"
J
");
7.-
I}
\
I)
I
,
-
,
7
:;z
,
" "/
7 A
'7
,
'7
*
~
7
..
t
~
'f
..
:z.
-
-
}T
- 1 ~
T
t?
l
, ,
-
-
-
7
;r ;f-
-
-
I J-
'J
-
T
~
t
T
I
J
~
I-
'0
:J
~
"
' 0
;;t 0
)
r
\ ) ,1
:J
;t
J I I-
,
, I -,
:J
-
t 1"
1:: ;..t l- =- Hinto 2 Organise your learning
Don' t worry ahout learning all the symbols in one go - keep referring
back to the charts.
You might find it useful to make a j; ? j; r vocabulary book for this
unit. You could either organise the words by theme (food, drink, clothes.
electri cal gadgets etc.) or alphabetically using the 46 basic symbols (onc
per page) and cnter all words beginning with a particular symbol on the
same page. Whichever way you choose, write out each 11 , :IJ r word
with its romaji pronunciation (optional) and its English meaning next to
it. You can then test yourself by covering up the Englj sh and seeing if you
can read the IJ ? IJ -r word. And it wi ll form a useful di ctionary too!
UNIT 9 129
'7T
-
:iT
~
~ T
,.
.,.T
-
" I
'"
)
-
-V
-;
--:;
}
\
,
'7
-
-
-\' 7
-
~
-Z
,
"
I
"
,
,
~
~
~
1
)
-...
t
""
-----
,
, 1 - -
,
-
t - - ,
1 Iv
' "
.:<-1
,..
J.
-
7
,-
) ~ .-l
[:,.,
.
-;
,
, ~
,
~ L- A 7
V
..
.>
~
~ ...
l-
) /'-......
t..
/ f
"-
.:'T
"
0
"
3T
~ .
-c
-
;t.
...
,
0 :3 -E
It,
.//'
,
- -
.f:
-
t .t
,t ,
- I
n
0
,
'I 3
/
l!'J .W = Renshu 2
Now that you have been introduced to the 46 :IJ :7 :IJ t- symbols, it is
time to put your learning into practice and have a go at reading some
words. As in Unit 5, the words are in three sets. Set I refers to the first
part of the chart, set 2 refers to the second and set 3 to the whole chart.
You also have to select the correct English meanings so say the words out
aloud. You may be 'able to do this even if you cannot read all the Ir Jj:
(kana) symbols. See how many symbols/words you can read from memory
before using the chart to search for those you cannot remember. Keep
coming back to this activity and try to improve your score each time!
l:: / l- Hinto 3 Pronunciation
Japanese pronunciation does not distinguish between ' r' and 'I' sounds.
Try replacing ' r' sounds with'!' sounds if you cannot work out the
meaning. For exampl e '7 ;,- .:f (ranchi) means lunch.
Set 1
a)
e) -c - 3' -
I) skating ( )
5) cake ( )
Set 2
a) 7-;l./
1) memo ( )
4) ham ( )
Set 3
a) /
e)
I) restaurant (
4) chicken ( )
7) camera ( )
b):z:z-r
f)
2) ski ing ( )
6) sweater ( )
c) 3' 'J ,,-
g)
3) cqcoa ( )
7) coat ( )
d) ;7 -
4) taxi ( )
b) "J" c) -" -lO d) -"" /
e) L.- -c ./
2) lemon () 3) melon ( )
5) ramen (Chinese noodles) ( )
b) 7 1 A 'J - J"

d) 71"
h) !J -" 7
) 2) tennis ( )
5) curry ( )
8) tomato ( )
3) rice ( )
6) ice cream ( )
Hinto 4 Similar:JJ 51:JJ-r
You have probably already confused some of the s imilar-looking
IJ !J " r. This section will line these up so that you can look at the
differences and keep them separate in your mind.
7, "7 (a, rna) '!t , t (sa, se)
-7 , 7, )t (ku, la, nu) ?, 7. '7 (u,Ju, wa)
T . ;(na,me) )it. v (ru,re)
:..-, 'Y (shi, tsu) * The long stroke in is written upwards
and the short strokes are almost at right angles to the long stroke.
The long stroke in '/ is written downwards and is at a steeper angle. The
short strokes stand side by side.
'".J, ;.; (so, n) * '.I has the same feat ures as '/ (but only
one short stroke). Y has the same features as (but only one short
stroke).
UNIT 9 131
l::;,- J- Ji Hinto 5 Similar D;; 'lJV;I. and

The good news is that some 11 1111 r symbols are very similar to their
(J equivalents (in many cases they ori ginated from the same
i.l*). This can make them easier to remember. They are listed here,
(J >? IJt first then 11 1111 T :
1.
., (u)
II' :IJ (ka) . '< (k;)
It. 7 (ke)
-
;2 (ka) -It. -e (se)

I.: , .::. (ni)

....... (he)
t. (rna)

'(>.
'" (ya)
9 . (ri)
MliIt.=:. Kaisetsu 3 n7n'J- that
change their sound
Again, the rules are exactly the same as for (J IJt , onl y the script is
different. Read over the () IJ{ section again (p. 67) then fill in the
gaps in the following activity. And remember, just as with all the units in
this book, you set the pace!
.W'=:' Renshu 3
When you add ' to certai n symbols you get a change in sound.
I) ' k' sounds become 'g' sounds (hard 'g' as in 'get '):
:IJ. '<. 'l. 7. ;2
(ka) (Id) (ku) (ke) (ko)
--. :If. '<. '1.7'. ;2'
()()()()()
2) ' s' sounds ' z' sounds:
"\1". :-. ::<. -C. Y
(sa) (shi) (Sll) (se) (so)
-? X, -C, -:/
()().()()( )
3) 't' sounds become ' d' sounds:
". '7".
(ta) (te) (to)
--. "'. '7"'.
( )( )( )
4) 'h' sounds become ' b' sounds:
r., t, 7, ........ , ;j;
. '7' , ,y,' , / .... _ t
---r , , ",
(ha) (h;j (fu) (he) (ho) ()()()()()
5) In addition, ' h' sounds become ' p' sounds when a small circle ' is
added:
(ha)(hi) (fu) (he) (ha) ()()()()()
Check whether you have filled in the bmckcts correctly by referring back
to this section in Unit 5 (pp. 67- 8).
This activity is designed to help you build up your confidence in
readi ng IJ, tJ r and to ease you away from referring back to the
charts (bul lhey arc always there if you need them!). This will be done by
fe-introducing a few IJ !J jJ t symbol s at a time and getti ng you to
read words which contain them. Section by section you will build up the
number of symbols unt il you are reading words contai ni ng them all.
For each section look over the tJ , IJ t- symbols then match up the
words and meanings beneath them. When a symbol has linked sounds
(for example, IJ (ka). tl (ga they are given toget her but not all are
necessarily used in that section.
I)
<t (sa) . <to (za). :;- (sh'). :: (j0. A (su). '" (zu). '1- (chi).
'j" (<e). 'j"" (de). r (w). V (do). / (n)
a) r - A r
d) ~ - / ; (
i) jeans ( )
b) 'j""f- r
e) ~ - /
c) '1--'"
iii) toast ( )
iv) (movie) scene ( )
ii) cheese ( )
v) dessert ( )
2) .----------------------------------,
:iJ (ka). :If (ga). -c (,,). -t: (ze). Y (so). :/ (za).
'/ (ISU) .I'" (ha). r./; (ba) .I{ (pa)
a)
-c ."
"'/- -:,.-
b)
.I'" /' .1.1;- tl -
c)
/ ~ / ' ' /
d)
.I{ A
e) A:iJ-r
i) pants, trousers ( ) ii) skirt ( ) iii) sausage ( )
iv) bus or bath ( ) v) hamburger ( )
UNIT 9 133
3)
"(ko), ,," (go), 7 (to), '/ (do), t (hi), '" (bi), ,," (pi),
7 (Ju), 7" (bu), 7 (pu)
a) At;-7 b) r-7
e) "-7- f) 7'<"
i) tobacco (cigarettes) ( )
iii) healer ( )
v) scarf ( )
vii ) dance ( )
c) ,," j!'
g) ,//70
ii) (cassette) tape ( )
iv) pub ( )
vi) pizza ( )
4) ,-------------------------------,
It (ki), "< (gi ), 7 (ke), 7' (ge) , (he), '" (be),
'" (pe), ;j; (ho), ;(, (bo), ;1"; (po)
a) 1- It /
e) 70 - '/7-70
i) passport ( )
iv) pen ( )
vii) button ( )
b) "<7-
f) ;(,7 /
ii) suitcase ( )
v) bench ( )
c) ... I-
g) '" / 1-
iii) chicken ( )
vi) guitar ( )
d) .-..: y

'7 (ra), Y (n), 11.-* (rn), v (re), a (ro) (' }' or 'r' sound
can be used for these)
* Iv is often used as the final '\, sound, for example, *' 7" 1(., (hotel),
7 -I" (pool).
a) ..,. 7 '/

g) r-7","
j) 1:" -I"
i) tabl e ( )
b) tJ v-
e) 7" /
h) '/ 'J" I"
k) -t - I"
c) "/7tJ-

i) ;1' / (.,"7
I) .....:.-
ii) curry ( ) iii) golf ( )
iv) front (reception) ( )
vii) sale ( )
v) beer ( )
vii i) double ( )
xi) rental car ( )
vi) salad ( )
ix) ice rink ( )
xii) restaurant ( ) x) baseball ( )
6)
7 (ku) , 'T (gu), .,. (ma), , (mi), 1. (mu), ;I. (me),
"" (mo)
b) ' J ~ 7
e) 'T 71.
c} " .... J..
f) "" 'I;
a) ~ . , . ~
d) '1;;1. 7
i) tomato (
IV) camera (
) ii) ham
) v) mocha (coffee) ( )
iii) gram ( )
vi) milk ( )
7) I r (no), =- (ni), ;( (nil), i (ne), ./ (no)
a) " j- j- b) 7=-A c) -f77 1
d) J- ~ c)
'I;;l.-
i) tennis ( ) ii) canoe ( ) ii i) banana (
iv) necktie ( ) v) notc(book) ( )
8) I 7 (a), 1 (i), "J (u), :z. (e), ;t (0), 'J (wa)
a) 71 A 7 ~ - 1 .
d)A;rL-;t
i) ice cream ( )
iv) stereo ( )
b) 7'7 "J A
c) 'J 1 /
i i) escalator ( )
v) blouse ( )
iii) wine ( )
MliItl1!l Kaisetsu 4 . ~ (Yoon)
Contracted sounds
)
The only three symbols you did not use in the last activi ty were
~ , ::1-, 3 (ya, yu, yo). These are used as normal symbol s but also are
used to form contracted sounds. You learnt about these for () ~ n: Jj: in
Unit 5. The rules arc the same for 11 !J IJ t. Read back over this section
(p. 66) to remind or familiarise yourself with the rules before trying the
next activi ty.
~ .Wli Renshu 5
Write the pronunc iation of the contracted 11 !I 11.,. sounds in the
brackets. The first line has been done for you:
UNIT 9 13.
" (k.)
-> " '< (kya) " "- (kyu) " (kyo)
>< (gO -> >< '< (
) ><"-( ) ><. ( )
;;... (skI), '( (
)
;;"'.:1.(
) ( )
:; (ji) , :; '( (
) :1.:1.( )
..
'" .
( )
1- (chi) -> 1- '< ( ) 1-"-( ) 1- ( )
..=:. (ni)
, ..=:. '(
( )
"=:'.:1.(
)
:..
( )
t (hi)
->
t '< ( ) t "- ( )
t
( )
t " (hi)
->
"" '<
( )
.:1. (
)
to.
( )
t.' (pi) , t " '<
( )
t.' .:1. (
)
t "
( )
(ml) , ( )
.:L (
)
, .
"
( )
(ri)
, Y '( (
) "- ( )
.
( )
Now check your answers wi th the equivalent chart in Unit 5 (p. 66).
Now let us put into practice what you have learnt above. Match the
jJ ? jJ r words in the left col umn to their Engli sh meanings on the right.
a) -\ )/ -f I ) computer ( )
b) ? - 2) communi cati on ( )
c) :; .t.. 3) camp(ing) ( )
d) :;.:1.-;A 4) jam ( )
e) :;:3 y 'J' 5) musical ( )
f) 1-:3 ;:J V - t- 6) menu ( )
g) .J..:::..:L - 7) shower ( )
h) ;:J)/ t ' .:L - ? 8) jogging ( )
i} -:; jJ Jv 9) chocolate ( )
j) ;:J Y 10) juice ( )
Mll!tli Kaisetsu 5 The small 'Y (tsu)
This was introduced for (I in Uni t 5 ( p. 69). When you see a
small 'Y (tsu) in a word. you do not pronounce it but pause sli ghtl y (a
glottal stop) before saying the next sound. In 11 ? 11 r words this has
the effect of ' holding back' the next sound so that it becomes closer in
pronunciation to the ori ginal word or at least easier for the Japanese to
pronounce. An example wi ll make this clearer:
;f; 'Y I- 'Y (hotdog) is pronounced hot(to)dog(gu)
The pronunciation of ' to' and 'gu' is ' held back' (and written here in
bmckets).
t!J .fl-t; Renshii 7
Match the jJ , jJ r words with their English meanings:
a) jJ 'Y 7" I) toilet paper ( )
b) -'t '" '" -1 " r 2) eo;n locke' ( )
c) ~ -;I 'J 7- 3) jacket ( )
d) -'t ,, ;/]- 4) cup ( )
e) >1> " 7- 5) hockey ( )
f) ... " r 6) soce" (football) ( )
g) ':2 -1 /' r:r '7 jJ - 7) sandwich ( )
h) .... { 7- '7 'Y to ;f. -)1.... 8) mix ( )
i) r -1 v 'Y r .....:-.... ~ - 9) match ( )
j) :;" 7 " riO) basketball ( )
MiiIt* Kaisetsu 6 Extra tJ!if'J:rr sounds
You learnt in the introduction that there are a number of uses of jJ !J 1; r
but this unit focuses on the two main uses of 11'11 r: I) to represent
forei gn words adopted into the Japanese language (loanwords) and 2) to
represent foreign names (cities, countries, personal names, designer and
brand names). However, not every sound in a foreign language has an
equivalent sound in Japanese and, as you will have noticed already, this
leads to changes in pronunciation when the word is adapted to Japanese.
Some of these changes have already been pointed out. This section deals
with the rest.
1) th sounds. This sound does not exist in Japanese and so is replaced by
5 sounds:
-? '7 ;J /' rna ra so n (marathon)
7- ~ ;t. su mi su (Smith)
-!t '7 1- ~ - sa r chd (Thatcher)
- :;.- .1- ma shu (Matthew)
si also does not exist and is replaced with :;.- (shi) or :: (ji):
:;.- r'=' - shi do nl (Sydney) t." ;; .:t ;t. hi j i ne Sll (business)
2) er sounds. This is replaced by a lengthened a sound (using -):
.... ' /' .... {- 1 1 ~ - ha n bii gii- (hamburger) to_, -pi tii (Peter)
3) Some f sounds arc replaced with h sounds:
7' v ;f; /' 11 - r" te re ho n kii do (telephone card)
':2 - t - kO hi (coffee)
UNIT 9
'37
4) v sounds. This sound does not eKist naturall y in Japanese, the nearest
equi valent being a b sound:
..%. v"""': - !J - ere bi tii (eleva/or)
.... \ v - ;f. - /1., ba ri bO ru (voJJeybaJl)
t '7' ;t bi de 0 (video)
7 -:/;f; T JI,., ra bu ho te ru (Love HOle/)
There also exists a group of sounds which have been designed to represent
v sounds:
"f 7 (va) "f 1 (vi) "f (vu) "f 3- (,,) "f" (vo)
The rule is that these are used in foreign names and countries but rules
are often broken! Foreign names and countries are also written using the
b sounds; other loanwords are sometimes written using the v sounds:
"f -1 'J t- ~ 7 vi ku (0 ri a (Victoria) or t' 'J t- ~ 7 hi 1m to r; a
"f 7 -1 ;t ~ /' va i 0 ri n (viol in) or .... ~ -1 ;t ~ /' ha i 0 r; n
5) w sounds. These are fonned in two ways:
;) ? 1 (ui). ?;L. (ue). ?;t (uo)
ii) ? -1 (wI), ?:r. (we), ?;t (wo) (the second symbol is small)
Traditionall y, (i) arc used for loanwords and (ii ) are used for foreign
names and countries. However, as with (4), in practi ce this is not a ' hard
and fast' rule. It has become very fashionable to use the small symbol s
and young people in particular are tending to use them.
(i) ? -1 ;r. :\ - u i su kl (whisky) ? ..%.!J - u e tii (waiter)
(i i) .I J(...." :r. - no ru wi (Norway) ?;t - 'J '7 Y wo ku ma n
(walkman)
6) Combination sounds using small .,. (a), 1" (i), ? (u), 3- (c), ;t (0):
In (4) and (5) these arc used in forming v and w sounds. They are also
used to make a number of other sounds which do not eKist in Japanese
but are needed for foreign words. They are easy to read if you remember
that the vowel part of the first symbol is replaced with the vowel sound of
the small symbol. For eKampie:
"7 l' (fa) the u sound of "7 (fu) is replaced with l' (a)
Now you work out these sounds:
) 7 3- (
) "/7(
) 7 .. (
) "/3-(
)
)
There are a few other sounds such as 'J -, (kwa) , -, (gwa) and
'J ;:t (kwo) but these are not used very often. Here are the sounds you
should have written/worked out in the previous paragraph:
7 -1 (ft)
1- "- (che)
7 "- (fe)
'Y -, (lsa)
7 ot (fo)
'/ (/se)
v (she)
T -1 (ti)
:; .x. (je)
7' -1 (dJ)*
Sometimes this sound is represented by :; (ji) '7 ;;:t raji 0 (radio).
l!J IllW A Renshu 8
This activity is designed so that you can practise reading words which
contain the extra sounds you have just learnt (rules 1- 6). Match the words:
a) -y 7"-1
b) 1- "- 7 -1 y
c) 7 '" "- -1 7
d)
e) ?;L- v;<
f) 7 -1

h) 7" 7 ;<
i) 7 ot-7
j)
. , . . ,
:,..- ;v"" - ;r - j '
k)
I)
7-?.x.-:Y'y
7' l' .A :;r
I) earphone(s) ( )
2) check- in (counter) ( )
3) fax ( )
4) spaghetti ( )
S) disco ( )
6) Sweden ( )
7) fork ( )
8) waitress ( )
9) milk shake ( )
10) milk tea ( )
II ) (camem) film ( )
12) silver seat (seats for elderly/disabled)
MlR--t Kaisetsu 7 Contracted words
Thi s the final explanation section - you will then be ready to put
your learning into real practice! Loanwords adopted into any language
often change pronunciation either to fit that language or because that is
the way the word is 'heard', Take the word ' Japan' , for example, which
actually is sounded ' Nihon ' or ' Nippon' in Japanese but was heard as
' Japan' by earl y European travellers, You have already seen the ways that
loanwords are adapted to fit Japanese pronunciation rules. One final way
in which loanwords are adapted is by shortening or contracting them. You
have already met some examples of shortened words:
) - r (noto) notebook (the book part is no longer part of the word)
UNIT 9
Other examples of shortened words are:
-r v t' (terebi) television (sian is missing; vi is pronounced bi)
They can sometimes take on new or specific meanings:
139
~ /' ~ . (sando) toasted sandwich (from ~ /' ~ . l' "7 r (sandoitchi)
meaning sandwich)
~ /' ~ . 1 "7.:r (small 1) is used increasingly (see Kaisetsu 6:5)
/' h 4f /' ~ . (hamu sando) toasted ham sandwich
Examples of contracted words are:
:; :J 1J.e (rajikase) means radi(o)casse(tte) (missing parts in brackets)
"'7 ;t. ::1 ~ (masukomi) means mass comm(unicatiQn) or' mass media
These types of words can cause (he most confusion when you are trying
to work out meanings but practice makes perfect! So try the matching
activity that follows.
~ Ilkfl:h. Renshu 9
Match the IJ 7 IJ r words in the left column 10 their riimaji and Engli sh
equivalents and write thc appropriate letters in the brackets.
I ) ;t - ~ ,< -1 ( )
a) toire a) supermarket
2) ~ -1 " ()
b) waishatsu b) word processor
3) '7O'tO-7.( )
c) wanp'isu c) personal computer
4) '7-70 () d) hiimu d) department store
5) '<:/ ;2 0' () e) ii/ohai e) one piece (= dress)
6)77i ;2 O'() f ) siipii f) white shirt
7) ;j;-t. () g) wiipuro g) ( plat)form
8) 7"0 , <- ~ ()
h) /amikon h) aulobike (= motor bike)
9) 7.-,<- ( )
i) pasokon i) toi let
10) '7 -1 :;, " ';/ ( ) j ) depato. j) fa mily computer
Yomu renshu
Congratulations! You have worked through the whole of IJ 7 IJ rand
you ean now put your learning into practice. There foHows a series of
activi tes which use tJ 7 tJ T words in a range of contexts which you
might encounter if you vi sit Japan or if you watch TV programmes or
videos about Japan.
I.!J .-fit- Renshii 10
We will begin wi th a coffee shop menu. These popular places sell an
assortment of drinks and light Western-style meals which means the menus
are written in tJ , 11 r. Once you can read the menu, you can order
your food!
;1;71'-:1-1:.-

<'''771-
L--l:Yj" 1'-
::1 - ::1 -7
;;:tV Y V'$!.1-A
"" 7
500 Pl
600 Pl
400 Pl
500 Pl
600 Pl
400 Pl
350 Pl

-1/>' ,,1-/ -1/>' r
1--;( 600 Pl
,,", 700 Pl
<,,7;< 700Pl
-f

;-r':l-A

-If';?'
700 Pl
800 Pl
600 Pl
500 Pl
700 Pl
700 Pl
500 - 800 Pl
UNIT 9 141
I) What is the name of this coffee shop? (clue: there is a link with the moon!)
2) What two types of coffee can you buy?
3) What two types of tea can you buy?
4) How much (PJ 0:::: yen) is
5) How much does an orange juice cost?
6) What types of sandwich filling can you order?
7) How much would you pay for a meat sauce spaghetti dish?
8) How much would a drink of milk, pizza toast and apple pie cost in total?
9) You have a maximum of 1000 yen to spend. What drink and main
meal would you choose?
10) Which two desserts cost 700 yen?
IlIlfl-t- Renshu 11
You learnt in the introduction to this book and to this unit that tJ 7 IJ t-
is used a lot nowadays in advertising. Thi s is because it has the effect
of making words stand out (as we use capital letters or italics). Native
Japanese words written in IJ 7 tJ r require a knowl edge of Japanese
vocabul ary to work out their meanings. In this activity you should recognise
all the words because they are the names of Japanese
companies. Different fonts have been chosen for this activity so that you
can get used to reading different styles. These styles are used frequently,
for example; on neon signs. A check list of Japanese compani es written
in riimaji is also given - but not all appear in the activity! So now work
out which companies are advertising in the signs.
2) Y "" =,
Checklist
Sony, Toyota, Sanyo, National, Mitsubishi, Honda, Casio, Seiko, Yamaha,
Nikon, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Matsui, Subaru.
t!J j!l(w-t= Renshu 12
Electrical stores housing the latest gadgets can be found all over Japan.
Most electrical gadgets are given forei gn names and so are wri tten in
11 !I :IJ t . Look at the floor plan, and answer the questions.
Floor 6 77/ , t -!l-, :L. 7 :2 /, -{I,...-
Floor 5 r v", t"r";t, v --I;I'-r" 1 A 7
Floor 4 7'" 9 7 A , ?-7' o, 1 v
Floor 3 :2 / t :J--!l, 7"1} / !I-, -;/7
Floor 2 11 7, v /;(, 7 1 I V.t. , 1 v
Basement '7:; 11 -C , 7" - 7" I,...- ::r - !f -, '7:J *
I) On whi ch floors are the toilets?
2) Which floor do you think specialises in computer ware?
3) Besides computers, what else is sold on this floor?
4) Which fl oor sell s air conditioners?
5) What is being sold on the fifth floor?
6) Where could you buy a camera lens?
7) Where could you buy a stereo?
8) How many floors sell audio equipment?
9) As well as word processors, what else can you buy on the fourth floor?
10) Which fl oor would you go to for a tape recorder?
t!J Renshu 13
Match the currencies in the left col umn with the countries on the right
(some may require a little guesswork! ):
I )
;f, / ,..
a) 1 :Y ( )
2) .,. Iv 7
b) 7 :fJ ( )
3) 7
c) 1 '" A (
)
4) d)77/A( )
5) 7'7 / e) 1 / ( )
6) I V t " -
f)
)
UNIT 9 143
Here is an extract from a real Japanese financial li sting. Can you identify
which countries and currencies from Renshu 13 are included here?
Have a go at identifying the rest! For example, the second one down is:
11 r ,. t-' II..- (kanada doru) = Canada dollar. Two countries have
these are * (you learnt this in Unit 6, the currency should tell you which
country) and which is the _* for England. The European Union is
written in _* in brackets but 'ECU' makes this easy to identify (Many
countries can be written in il* or tJ, 1J r).
*' I' )v 119 .25
:tJ T 57" I' )v 78.29
E C U 143.22
". / 1'202.20
I' -1" ";/ <' )v 7 72 .23
::<: -1" ::<: 7 "7 / 88.80
7 7 / ::<: 7 "7 / 21.73
;t "7 / 57" )v 57" 64.02
-1" 5' 'J Y 1 0 0 'J 7 7.53
;t-::<:r'JY:'-'J/Y 10.32
::<:""-1" /100 ""t5' 86.11
;t -::<: r"7 'J Y I')v 74.90
=:. "'- - -7/ I' I')v 63.90
:.- / t:I - )v I' )v 73.60

5' -1" ";/ 3.25
I!IPHt+1!!I Renshii 14
Finally, there is a sel of tJ , tJ r signs from photographs taken in
Tokyo. Can you read them and work out the English meaning? lJe fl., tr
., "( (ganbatte) good luck!
I )
Which famous restaurant is this?
144
2)
What act ivity can you do here?
4)
" .....
t:T
3)
5)
What is happening at this shop?
The two kanji mean environment.
What are people being asked to
do?
UNIT 9
What is CoCo?
7)
8) 9)
1
10)
12)
145
E
~
I
,.,
146
13)
16)
14)
7
15) ~
7
1) 1)
~
J
A
A
What type of tree is this?
What type of whisky is this?
What is the ti tle of the film? (bouom line)
What are the actors' names? (above picture)
Kaku renshu
This short activity is designed to help you write your name in IJ!J IJ T.
A short list of popular fi rst names follows. Try saying your name oul loud
and matching the appropriate tJ !J h r symbol to each syllable. You
wi ll need to refer back to the various rules given in this unit. For example,
the name Laura has the sounds 10 ra. The nearest to these sounds are:
UNIT 9 147
1:1-:7 (rura)
And CHRISTOPHER sounds out as k ri s to phaa. In Japanese this
becomes:
, ~ ;:t. ~ "7 7 - (J.:urisutojii)
If you know a Japanese person, work out your name and get them to
check it. Here is a list of 20 names to help you.
ANNA 7t- (ana) ANDREW 7 Y ~ ~ ~ .;r.- (andoryu)
CATHY
"IJ;,-
(kashi-) BILL t' /1.- (biru)
CLARE 71.-7 (kurea) BRAD -1''7 '' ~ - (buraddo)
DIANA ';f 1 7 t- (do'ona) GREGG 7"1.- ~ " 7 " (gureggu) "
HILARY l: :7 ~ - (hirari-) JOHN
-- :r3Y
(jon)
JANE ;; ;L. -1 Y (jein) MIKE "-17 (maiku)
MARY j. 7 ~ - (meari-) PAUL
;t:-/v
(po-ru)
MICHELLE ; ;, :L}I.- (misheru)
ROBERT
1:1 ... '- ~
(mba-to)
SARA -t.-'7 (se-ra) STEVE
"'7"1-7
(suti-bu)
SUE
"'-
(su- ) TOM ~ J . (tomu)
Owari ni
You have covered the whole of the 11!J:IJ r syllabary in this unit
including the various rules and adaptations of non-Japanese words. You
have had opportunities to read a wide range of words and to identify typical
street signs. Hopefully you have discovered that because :IJ !J :IJ r is
used to write non-Japanese (and often English words) it can be fun and
very accessible. There is a lot to take in so treat this unit as one you can
keep re-visiting and that you can enjoy! And look for opportunities to
read 11 !J 11 r around you (TV programmes, newspapers, magazines,
visits to Japan) so that you can impress your friends and family!
10
fJ+a Da; jukka
UNIT 10
learn to read different types of text including:
- cooking instructions
- cartoons
- weather forecast
- song lyrics
- haiku (short poems)
learn the basics for reading and writing Ictters
Key phrase
~ * m f l (kanjifukushi;) Kanji review
Hajime ni
The aim of this unit is to pull together everything you have learnt throughout
this book and apply it to reading Japanese texts. There are many types of
text which use different styles of writing and have different levels of
difficulty. This unit will gct you started on reading and will introduce you
to some techniques for accessing text which you can then build on.
Some tips on grammar functions and particles are given first and you can
refer back to these as necessary. Where _* appear in a text which have
been introduced in earli er units, there is a short pre-activity for you to see
how many you can remember. However, do not worry if you cannot
remember them all, the activit y is simply a device to get you thinki ng
about what you have learnt and making connecti ons. Check the answers
10 these pre-activities in the back before proceedi ng and if you want to
look back to where the ll* was first introduced, remember that you can
look up the English meaning in the index and this wiU refer you back to
that unit.
UNIT 10 149
You will be asked to mark parts of the texts as a way of ident ifying and
separating different words and features. This is especially helpful because
Japanese writing does not nonnally have gaps between words (as you will
notice in the texts that follow). You could use different coloured highlighter
pens or use different types of markings (circle, underline, overline). Or
you could copy the relevant parts of the text onto paper and mark them.
lWilIt Kaisetsu Grammar functions
Read through the information that follows but do not worry if you are not
clear about all of it because the texts will have practical examples and
you can then refer back tothe summaries beneath the text to consoli date
your learning.
Particles and sentence order
1) Every noun in a Japanese sentence is usually followed by a particle. A
particle is a grammar marker which tells you the function of the noun it
marks. Let us look at some examples to help you understand this. In
English. the sentence order tells you the function of the main sentence parts:
I ate Japanese food
' I' is the subject of the sentence (who ate) and comes at the beginning of
the sentence
'ate' is the verb
'Japanese food ' is the object of the sentence (what I ate) and comes after
the verb
This order is called SVO (subject, verb, object).
We also use particle-type words (called prepositions) such as 'with', ' by'
and 'at' :
I ate Japanese food at home with chopsticks
at marks 'home' and with marks 'chopsticks'. They are placed before
( pre-position) the noun they mark.
2) This is what happens in Japanese:
fl,. (i ;fait a- tt.....: i L. k. 1 Japanese cuisine ate
fl,. (I) is followed by the particle lot. It marks the subject of the sentence
~ - t t (Japanese food) is followed by the particle a-. It marks the object
of the sentence.
The order in Japanese is SOY (subject, object, verb).
There arc other particles with different functions such as -r: (with):
lItit -1' it '" * l- t" I chopsticks with Japanese food ate
However, the order of the Japanese sentence is morc fl exible than the
English order because the particles, not the order, tell you the functi ons
of the different parts. So you could say:
:fUit-1' it"'*l-t" I Japanese food chopsticks with ate
But the verb always comes al the end of the sentence.
3) Particles arc always placed after the noun or ti me expression they
mark. Look at the diagram showing the key particles:
GhO eats they cat V
they eatoy EAT they cat V
With what they eat -r:
4) Part icle descri ptions
(,1 (pronounced 'wa' as a particle not ' ha') topic or subj ect marker of
sentence
IJI{. (ga) subject marker of verb
(0) object marker ofscntcnce
-c" (tie) I. wi th, by: '1 t, -c" (with chopsticks); (by train)
2. place where action happens: V.A r"7 /-c" (at / in the restaurant)
t: (ni) I. to (direction): JJDj( {.: (to Tokyo) (also can use" pronounced
e')
2. at, on (after time): rJ PIlI. a {.: (on Monday); - at I.: (at one
o'clock)
3. at, in, on (place/position): J.f.rJiu.: { A .. :L" l' .t l' (I live in
Tokyo)
0) (no) I. of, 's: a *0)* (Japan's ri ce or Japanese ri ce)
2. links a noun with its positio"n: LI.I t7) J: (mountain's top or on
top of the mountain)
t (to) I. and (between nouns): a:;$: t *m (Japan and America)
2. wi th (accompanied by): a *A t (with a Japanesc person)
UNIT 10 151
Quick translation tips
You will be given lots of pointers throughout thi s unit so this is a summary
list for you to refer back to as necessary.
I ) Fi nd the topic/subject of the sentence by looki ng for Ii:
fLli *-., lI\t"" -t (I book , cad) subje" is fL (I)
2) Then translate ' backwards' from the end of the sentence:
(fLli) *-., ~ " " -t
,
book read
3) Describing words arc generally placed in the same order as Engl ish:
fLu o'i ~ *-., llit"" L. t ~ (I old book read)
4) In the texts that follow, both literal (lit.) and natural English are given
to help you understand the phrases and structuring.
5) Where relevant or helpful the meaning of the ~ * " radical is given in
brackets. Assume it is a lefthand radical unless stated otherwise.
l!J j!l(fI- Renshu 1 H Mango Cartoon
r t=ltJ'l= Q)1c*-i-MC.;;.t":;:'PJ
c(i= 1 t=ljc
itii and 7::.. .J. (anime) or animation are very popular in Japan and are
known around the world. Cartoon books fill bookshops and kiosk shelves
and Japanese people of all ages can be seen reading them on trains, in
bookshops and at home. The one frame cartoon here is taken from the
Kyoto News, a Japanese newspaper. It is from the education section and is
a joke about ttlf '"7 ""7 (kyijjku mama) or 'education mothers' who go to
great lengths to ensure their children study hard and get into the best
schools. Now work through the series of activities starting with a review.
1) ."'1!!f'I Kanji lukushu
There are three iI.* in the cartoon and yOll have learnt them all! Do you
remember them? They are:
a) * b) m c)
2) Find and mark these '0 a; 'bitt. words:
a) L- tJ' (.:: (tashikrJ ni) certainly, indeed
b) t"'J C (motto) more
c) It C (kedo) but
3) Mark these particles and grammar functions:
a) (0) object marker
b) ... l' l' (nasai) verb ending indicating a command, in this case
' read! '
c} ... c tt (to wa) used in reported speech (I said that ... ). (;;1 adds
emphasis (l did say ... )
d} r indicates open quote mark (close quote mark is J). r J means
quote within a quote.
4) .1{ Honyaku Translation
... clHhtc
r {, -:> C '" Hlt<l> ,., J
It C ...
' lndeed I did say ...
"Read more books!"
but ...
The ' but' trails off, the reader fills in the rest from the picture ('but this is
ridiculous!').
Notice the technique of translating the information outside the double
quotes first then adding the part in double quotes. This would be the order
in which we would say it in English whereas in Japanese the ' I said' part
comes at the end. Emphasis on t::. l,.. Ir (,: (indeed) is achieved by placing
it at the beginni ng.
UNIT 10 153
Henshu 2 Cookery instructions
".

.-
(
j

"e. . 'a7rt1:
;t, t:: t ::.!JIJ
GJ
{
"-
,
@.a:'ill:: .k t. -,r'tt
77';: ". ;; t:.;J.t 1".
+-i"tr :::.30 ..... 1:'1 +Sl

The sequence is from the children's educational section of a newspaper.
There arc two sets of si mple cooking instructions.
1) _*Utff Kanjifukushii
Write down the English meanings of these I!* and :IJ !I 1) r words:
a) * (mizu) b) 3i (tama) c) !k (h') d) m (yubi)
e) r A f) 7' -1 ;J.. g) 7=] -1 /'
Now mark them in the text. Remember to eheck your answers in the back
before proceeding.
2) Title: Jlf:O,g (top three pictures)
a) Find and mark these il*:
Jtt (tamago) egg iII (kado) comer, edge -C (ate) hit
mta (oya yubi) thumb (li t: parent finger)
b) Find and mark these (j IJ{ words:
h G (waru) break Ir t;; l' (kataj) hard httll) (wareme) a crack
I> "C "'C (ate/e) put i.t (= ftr mae) front
? L- -? (= tl;:, ushiro) back tl t: (nejiru) twist
c) Find and mark these tJ 7 11 t- words:
::t Y ::t Y (konkon) tap tap (sound) Y (polon) with a plop (sound)
d) Mark these particles. Remember that particles are positioned after the
word they mark:
i' (0) positioned after the object of the sentence - the object marker
(appears two times)
(.: {nil to, in, on (appears three times)
,
C. (to) with (placed after the word); and (placed between two nouns)
e) lIIiR Honyaku Translation
Title fII h '"

httlllC

LU: ? '3CI:lt: '"
Breaking an egg
on a hard edge
hit with a tap tap
in the crack
put (your) thumb
twist to the front and back (forwards and
backwards)
3) Title::deli. 'T A t- (lower three pictures-exduding thought bubble)
a) Find and mark these il*:
jJij (abura) oil *3i (mizutama) water ball /drop
1ti;t (yubisakt) fingertip ft i!: (okt) place
1& C 1" (otosu) drop +7} (jiibun) enough
b) Find and mark these () /JI{ and j; , 11 r words:
t::. t::. A... t:! t t7) (tatanda mono) folded (thing) 0) tr1' (nobasu) spread
"'? It -r (tsukete) switch on, apply (appears twice) .
$, t::. t::. d) (lid) Q = alatameru) warm up (also appears as $, t:. t:.

.: .75 /J
t
"? t::. (korogauara) if (it) rolls L. Q L. (shirushi) sign
t: $ "? (ju) ping :z Y a (konro) hob
UNIT 10
c) Mark these particles and grammar functions:
?: (0) object marker (appears five times)
-(' (de) with, by means of
t.: (ni) on, into (three times)
'"C (te) verb ending meaning and
IJt (ga) subject marker
t.:. ~ (fara) verb endi ng meaning if. when
d ) . ~ Honyaku Translation
Title *3i 7* 7.. f-
7" 1 " "- ., to to ,,-t! t ",-c"
ill!?? '" 1.1' 1"
Water drop test
with a folded tissue
spread the oil
155
7 7 1 ,'Y ., ;7 Y 0 C l'l ~
9<.., -:> It -c l, to to ~ 7,
lll%I:*.,-:>lt-c
771 "Yc1Ii1: 1"
*;tin' .: '5 n' ., to "
place the frying pan on the hob
switch on the heat (fire) and warm up
appl y water to the fingertip and
drop into the frying pan
if (when) the water drop rolls
-Hi l, to to j. ., -c ~ . 7, ~ 7, ~ (it's) a sign that it is warmed up
enough.
I.!:II!I!W=: Renshu 3 How to make
green tea
The sequence of four instructions on the tea packet show you how to
make perfect Japanese green tea. Once you can read them, you can try
making green tea for yourself!
I ) ilUtff Kllnjifukushii
Write down the English meanings of thesc 100:* words. Then mark them
in the tcxt and write down how many times each appears.
a) 1lX
f){ol!
b) A
g) "*
2) General points
cJ 1'1
h) :Il
d) J\
i) IIIj
e) 1>*
Here are some general words used throughout the text which are useful to
look at first. They will be referred to again in the translations so use this
list as a reference list.
156
A I\: (J) il!{f"" :>.rill"
I'IIl!' A/1.
MI (J)ilI.it i'J80"C
iII{f"''' ill!' 01 (J) /I:
fi 1Il-t6HJ! flJ -r-t.
UNIT 10 157
-* (- bun) means share, part , per. Three A* means three people 's
'worth or three helpings (food)
- (- me) means -th, -rd, -nd as in 4 "J (fourth). 1 rut means
first infusion

#' (fun) also means minute. 251 means two minutes.
The vocabulary and translation is now introduced section by section.
Once introduced, vocabulary is not repeated in later sections so you will
need to refer back as nccessary.
Picture 1
3a) Find and mark these if*:
(llomikata) how to drink Ali (nillzii) number of people
* (bun) part, per m (yu) hot water tlWJJ. (alternative:
1:QfiXJJ. = yu noml) teacup - # (bunme) parts
lfAJJt (ondo) temperature j{J (yaku) approximately
! L. (yuzamashi) hot water cooler
it I,: (kawan) in place of, instead of
ftJfl t- 9 (shiyo suru) use f51!fJJ (benrr) convenient, handy
b) Find and mark these {) t; tJt Jj:' words:
t:>' L. t (ohhii) delicious ttl::: (hOOo) about
Atl. L ! L. ! l' (irele samashimasu) put in and cool
c) Mark these particles and grammar functions:
U) (no) between two nouns indicates that the second noun belongs to the
fi .. , (x 3)
t.: (m) into, in (x 2)
.t-3 (0) before a noun makes the word sound more honorifi c . .t-31M (x 2)
a- (0) object marker (x 2)
I: (to) ir(x I)
d) 8j{J Honyaku Translation
Match the Japanese on the left with the translation on the right. The first
is done for you:
,.8
I ) !H' l.- ('/il:o/I>:IJ (I;lle)
2) AII'I5t (1) UHf 0/1> 10
3) tllIH> 8 5t i'I I1/:' l\ tt -c

4) t111.l (1) 80 C
5) 0/1> ... f1! III T '" I:
6) J l.- (1) fI: ry 10
7) iUJ"C'T
Picture 2
4a) Fi nd and mark these
i) If you use teacups ... ( )
ii) it is handy ( )
iii) instead of a water cooler ( )
iv) the temperature of the hoi water
"is about 80 C ( )
v) a delicious drinking method ( I )
vi) put in ahout e ight paris hot
water and cool ( )
vii) into drinking cups per number
of people ( )
(ha) leaves (kyUsu) tcapot 3 Aft (sanninbun) 3 helpings
*- t: (osa)1) tablespoon f.J (see a (haibun) cupful /spoonful
b) Circle the particle -r: (de) meaning ' for'; t7) x 1; x 1; (.: x 1
c) Honyaku Translati on
1 T .
3 A5t"C' 6-8g
t:I'J 1 5 U5t )
Picture 3
5a) Find and mark these
Put the tea leaves in the teapot
for three hcl pings(people) (it is) 6-8
grams
(in tablespoons (it's) approximately
1.5 spoonfuls)
lim t .Q (shinto suru) brew, penneate tt l t (machimasu) wait
ifili (shinshuIsu) brewing Iff rdl (jikan) time 1 7t (ippun) I minute
m > (koO strong, dark M-! 1j: A (sukina hito) people who li ke
*d.> I: (nagame) lengthen 1 mt (ichimaeme) the first infusion
lOt;- (jilbyo) to seconds lWH' (atsUI) hot
b) Mark these particles and grammar functions:
:8 (honorific) x 4; Q) x 3; (: x 3; a- x 3; t} x 2; Ii x 2
J= (yori) than (placed after)
UNIT 10 159
Honyaku Translation
Match the Japanese on the left with the correct translati on on the right:
I) lQ-lf JJ.. C1) 1:J & -t i) the hot water on the tea leaves ( )
2) ;(,);iJic i :,It"C ii) lengthen (thctime) ( )
3) L.: 1:J1l nt iii) put in the teapot ( )
4) 1" Q Q) -t t, 1. 1" iv) wait for it (the hot water ... ) to brew
( )
v) people who like strong tea ( )
vi) the hot water in the teacups ( )
vi i) brewing ti me (is) about I minute
( )
Asterisked part: the brewing time for the second infusion (refill) is
about 10 seconds
2nd Bracketed part: use hot water that is hotter than for the first infusion
Picture 4
6a) Find and mark these
it <. (sosogu) pour into #"A: (bumy5) quantity
(kinto ni) uniformly fi::ff. (saigo) final
- nlj (irtekl) one drop t) (shibort) squeeze, extract
b) Grammar points:
1. -r: (made) up 10 - IJ 1. L- .t oj (kirimashii) let's finish .. .
c) lfiUR Honyaku Translation
1; ;\\: HI: <. j)-lI! 1;1 10
1;;\\:1;1 , , Il( 9 ! 9 1. l J; ,
/fl:iJ!Q) - illiJ."C'
L!J antI!!! Renshii 4
pour the quantity of tea uniformly
(let' s) squeeze out the tea
to the final drop
*1&7* Tenki yoho The weather forecast
The weat her forecast shown here is taken from the Kyoto newspaper. Its
title (top left hand corner) is:
.t oj (kyo no tenia) Today's weather
I) .=Utf.'l Kanjifukushu
Decode the place names that follow (refer to map of Japan in Unit 8, p. I 15):
0) ::kJl!i b) lID- c) *l.tl d) )l\tiI

29 8 lro.EEO)t):O)tt:::
. -C, It:=
0?o
1'3ptl"'Ci:;t ltc. t
!<\tctJ:'-'>w'h. B<I'O)!<\
i!! <: 0l , * -C Jot,).
I), lItrBciolL:<:0l 'O)B!!
IJ ..:e 3 0
: 1l*I* IT:r.rn:
-
* i ...
...... ... Il.;t\.

* "
*
*
. '"
: , ..
- ... '
, t..
" t

28
B
21
'"

U
*
b
I)
5

!II
It
tJ;:(1B
-
IS

z

);
)i
Iii
i<l
Q
:!i
UNIT 10 161
Now fi nd them on the weather report (look at the left side of the text) and
mark them (Ji( :tJS appears four limes).
2) Key
Below the written text (begi nning 29 a ... ) there is a key consisti ng
of two boxes. Can you see them?
The box with the straight line in the middl e indicates (/) I? (nochi) which
means later. For example: ' means 'sunny later cloudy'.
The box with the slanti ng line indicates Ifi (tokodoki iehiji)
meaning sometimes/for a lime. For example: 'sometimes sunny, for
a time cloudy'.
J) Look al the lefthand column .l. "3
a) Find these place names:
tlHf Fukui Fukuoka JIII p Kobe Nara
0'1 I<! Nagoya 1II\%&t. Kagoshima
Now answer these questions from the information given in the lefthand
column.
b) What is the weather going to be like in:
i) Tokyo . ii) Osaka iii ) Fukui IV) Kagoshima?
c) Name two other cities where it will be:
i) cloudy then sunny ii) sunny then cloudy
4) Middle and lower picture-symbol columns
a) (Kanjifukushii ). Write down the meanings of these _*:
ii) iii ) iv) v) fJ vi) 1<.
vii) *
iii- vii also represent the days of the week. Which days do they represent?
(see Unit I, p. 5). Check your answers in the back then find them in the
text.
b) You should have identified (Kyoto) four ti mes in these col umns.
The other place name (also mentioned four times) is (Shi ga). After
both these place names are these (hokubu) and m$ (nanbll).
$ means part, therefore 'North part ' and 'South part'. The middle column
162 BEGINNER'S WANESE SCRIPT
is today's weather, the lower column is the forecast for the 30th-4th. Now
answer these questions.
e) What is loday's weather like in:
i) the North part of Kyoto
iii) the South part of Kyoto?
ii) the South part of Shiga
d) What is the weather forecast for:
i) South Kyoto on Friday
iii) North Kyoto on Sunday
v) South Shiga on Wednesday
Ii) South Kyoto on Tuesday
IV) North Shiga on Saturday
vi) North Kyoto on Monday?
e) On which day and where might you need an umbrella? (Two answers)
5) rughtside pictures (top and bottom)
a) a preceded by a number indicates a dale. 3 a means 3rt! (day).
by a number indicates o'clock' . 31J.--j means 3 o'clock.
Look at the top satellite picture. When was it taken? (time and dat e)
b) The lower picture has a number of circular symbols to the right followed
by iM. You learnt most of these in Units 6 and 7. Can you identify
them now? They are quit e small, the size of a real newspaper:
i) RU i i) (also look up iii) ilJij
iv) HI v)
Look back to the previous units if you need to, then cheek your answers
in the back and mark the terms in the text (some are quite small).
c) There are four other circular symbols with weather terms. Find and
mark them:
tkPi' good weather :lI mist, fog liI. (IiJ .1J wind directi on/strength
lj. t tl.. sleet
6) The text
A short text is located above the symbol columns. Go through steps 1- 4
thai follow then try your own translation before looking at step 5 (the
translation).
i) Find and hi ghli ght the following i1ti:* words and phrases. What do
they mean?
a) 29 a b) W c) Iili d) Iii'i tL
e)
f) 1:
UNlT 10 163
ii) Find and highli ght the foll owing il words and phrases:
a) (yoww) weak b)
c) 1 (lam) vall ey (trough) d) (eikyiJ) influence, effect
e) WI (asa) morning f) (ooi) many
g) t q:)1t (sono go) after that h) (kokiatsu) high pressure
i) (mikomi) expectation j) I3I:J:t (nitchu) all day
k) 1t\ifi (hon) temperature I) nl (do) degrees
m) ry (agari) to ri se n) nO a (zen)itsu) previous day
0) FnJ t: (ona)i) same p) IIlh' (atatakasa) warmth
iii) Find and mark these V t, h t words:
a) ? t;, (uchi) during
b) f!. ? (daro) wi ll probably
c) ... I.: 1::1 1::1 h tt -C (n; oowarete) be covered by (literal translation)
d) t.; l' t:. L' (daitai) generally
e) ... (.: -rt Q (ni naru) become ...
f) (' t, L' (gumi) about (x 2)
g) 1. -c" (made) up to
h} ... (.: -rt ry t ? (n; nariso) it looks like it will be (come) ... (t ? -
seem, look like)
iv) Find and mark these particles and grammar functions:
t1 (wa) topic marker (x 3) (J) (no) of, 's (x 7)
-c" (de) through, by means of (x I) ht (ga) subj ect marker (x I)
C (to) as (x 1)
t ;/ r Hinto: Try to translate the text yourself before working through
step 5. Remember: find the topic or subject then work through the sentence/
phrase from the end.
v) IJHlR Honyaku Translation
29 13 Ii
ilil L ' 1<\ EE "l "l Jilj\.-e
Wl"l 1t,
mil'$L't':,? 1
t "l fi! Ii . . . Jl.jz, '"
The 29th
(start from the end of this senl ence
and work backwards): through the
influence (because of the effect) of a
trough of low (weak) pressure
during the morning
the clouds will probably be many
(there will be a lot of cloud)
after that ... it is expected (that)
164
i\1j 11.\E 10 10 to It L
t! ( ( . aI/it Q) ;JC 11.\ (0 '"
a '" Q) 11.\ iliW:
24 Ill:< t, ( .t -C J:i>' ?
...
lli! a I: foil L: (' t, ( Q) 1IIli>'
I!I!Wli Renshu 5
Tegami Letters
high pressure will spread and
generally it will be (come) fine weat her
the dayt ime temperature
wi ll ri se up to about 24 degrees
it looks like it wil l be
about the same warmth as the previous
day (yesterday)
This section will get you fi rst to read a letter which is handwritten, and
then will giye you some tips for wri ting a letter yourself!
This letter is written downwards and you start reading at the top ri ght,
down the column. This is the tradi ti onal way of writing letters but many
Japanese people nowadays write in Western style, horizontally from left to
right. Writing downwards can give a lettcr a morc fonnal or traditional tonc.
This is a New Year' s greetings card and as this is a traditional custom, such
cards are often (but not always) wri tten in the traditional downwards style.
New Year cards, like Christmas cards in the West, are sent by al I Japanese
people to a wide range of fri ends, acquai ntances, colleagues and clients.
They normall y have a short greeting but this card has been sent by a
Japanese friend to a friend in England and is a combi ned New Year's
greeting card and letter.
t) Start by identifying and marking i'OO.* you have already been introduced
to. As before, see how many you can remember then check the answers in
the back before proceeding further.
a) itIi&f b) IJIj 0) 'f
g) 13 h) ffil' ;) IT
m) 11.\ n) &f: 0) !!
d) 1m
j) ,1M,
p) lipi"
e) 111'
k)
q) 'f
f) 1'1*
I)
2) Find and mark these set phrases and read the explanations:
a) 1'3 (,=. tr Ir tt "C (o- me ni kakarete) li t. I was able to set eycs on
you. This is a respectful way of saying ' I was able to see/\TI eel you'.
b) ... !$ t., lj. (,=. (tanoshimi ni) I am looking forward to ... This phrase
ends with (,=.. The full sentence would end with t., "C l ' ;t. -t
(shiteimasu) but this is often omitted.
c) (o-genki de) Take care!
UNIT 10
-
-
K ...
165
1;: '
B)1 !f
I r -'t
i
L
-C
h
II)
"'C
t
7
l '
1
1
3) Now mark these il* words and phrases.
a) lI)J't.t L- '"C (akemashite) 10 dawn ( from I!IJ (t .9 (akeru
b) .tI.f-JIl; (o-legami) letter c) 7X. (otto) husband
d) (sakunen) last year e) :EJ1J;. (shashin) photograph
f) t) .1 "t (okurimasu) send g) (rainen) next year
h) H (natsu) summer i) .J( (mata) again
j) 7Gil (ganlan) New Year's Day k) :ffi T Hanako (girl 's name.
means ' flower')
4) Next mark these () 0 tJ{ words and phrases:
a) 1:) -r: C 1 t i 1'" (omedet6 gozaimasu) congratulations
b) $, IJ C ., t, .i l., t.::.. (arigatii gQzaimashita) Thank you (for
what you have done)
c) '7 tt L, ( (ureshiku) happily ., tL l., Ir ..., t.; (ureshikatta) was/were
happy
d) l ' t.::.. t! ,; L. t.::.. (itadakimashita) received (see 6c this secti on)
e) -L Q (dekiru) be able to
f) "t tt -C (,1 (sore dewa) and so, we ll, finall y (used at end of letter)
5) Mark these two iJ!I tJ r words:
a) v Y (heren) Helen b) -1 !lit 7- (lgirisu) England
6) Find and mark these particles and grammar functi ons:
a) t:; (0) adds tone of respect Lo nouns (put before the word) (x 2; also
see 2a and c above).
b) C (to) and, wit h (see also (k.
c) 11:t"( (yomasete) (you) let me read + t::. t.! ! 1 t... t.:. (I
received). li t . " received you letting me read'. It is a polite way of
acknowledging something which someone has done for you. Another
example is: 1* it -t! -C t > t.:. t! ! 1 t... t.:. (yal'umasete itadakimashita)
'(You) let me take a break',
d) tt (wa) topic marker (x 2),
e) '"C" (de) in, at (particle used 10 mark the place (where somet hing
happens),
f ) (:. (ni) with, to (x 2; also see 2a this section),
g) t try (sono) that.
h) try (no) see notes at beginning of unit (x 2),
i) (0) object marker (x 2).
j) fi 1! t.:. t > (ikitai) I want to go (t;; t, = want to).
UNIT 10 167
k) C ,w."") "'C l' .t l' ( .. . to omotleimasu) I think that . _ . (l: here
m'eans ' that').
I) .:: l: (koto) placed after a verb this can be translated as ... ing' .
Therefore: -(' ! 9 .:: t. J dekiru /coto) being able to.
7) .1{ Honyaku Translation
This time you are going to do some of the work! The translation foll ows,
phrase by phrase. It is not in order, however, and your task is to work out
the correct order. Some of it may be obvious from the English (!) but
keep referring back to the text and points (1- 6) of this section so that you
get a good understanding of how the letter is structured.
a) IiI. Next year's summer I think that 1 would like to go to England =
Next summer 1 hope to .. J would like to ...
b) With my husband (my husband and I) read your Ictter happil y (wi th
pleasure).
c) I look forward to being able to meet again.
d) Thank you for your letter
e) 1 am sendi ng (you) the photographs of (lfrom) that timc.
f) Well, take care.
g) lit. the new year has dawned, congl"'dtulations = Happy New Year!
h) New Year's Day, 1999. (From) Hanako Yamamoto (in Japanese,
surname precedes first name)
i) I was happy that last year 1 was able to meet with Helen in Japan.
(The Japanese often use your name instead of saying you').
1!f < MI. Kaku renshjj Writing letters
I ) Let's start by looking at some of the features of the letter you have just
read.
a) Did you notice that the date is written at the end of the letter, and is
followed by the name of the writer? This is standard practice.
b) Hanako (the writer) begins with a greeting, in this case ' Happy New
Year'. You will learn some more seasonal greetings in the next section.
c) Hanako then says thank you for the letter she recei ved. You can use
this structure to thank someone for something they have sent you such as:
-:I v -t! y t- present; t1 postcard; h - (kiidQ) card
Just add I> IJ t. ., ::: .t l, (thank you) after the item.
d) Hanaka bri ngs the lctter to a close with it. "('" tt, .t17G3{\ '"C" (Well,
lake care).
2) Now let us look at useful phrases and techniques you can use to write
a letter to a Japanese friend.
a) Begin with their name followed by ft., (san) if you know the person
well or :! .t (sarna) for a very formal letter. In this case you might use
the surname. For example:
;rET It,., (Hanako san) Ll.p$:. .t (Yamamoto-sarna) (or Jffir i
Honako-sama)
b) Rather than beginning with an enquiry about a person's health ('How
arc you?' ) the Japanese lend to comment on the weather first and then
maybe a comment about the person's health. Here are some useful phrases
for different times of the year:
&. -to (yo; a-Ioshi 0) Have a good year (normally used before
New Year's day).
IYJlt .t l,; Ltd IJ)"C (: ., Happy New Year (used during New Year) .
.f. y - 'J y ;t.""? ;t. (merl kurisumasu) Merry Christmas .
.t t! .t t!!.@! liJ)tl' "'( l' .t 1" (mada mado samusa ga tsuzuileimasu)
The cold weather continues .
.t -1 {> < ! .t L., t.; (yayaku haru ga kimashita) At last Spring
has come.
I! U L., l '. l' .t 1" (kibishii atsusa ga tsuzuiteimasu)
The unrelenting heal continues.
1f'!t ..0' (: {> ., "'( ! "'( l' .t 1" (shizuka ni aki ga yalte kileimasu)
Autumn has crept up on us quietly.
c) Enquiries about health: ..0' (o-genki desu ka) How are
you? (i nformal) L., L" L., J: -1 /J' (o-genki de o-sugoshi
desha ka) How are you? (formal)
d) Closing phrases:
Either:
Or:
-t tt. L" {.t, 1-3:7GX(L" (see I d this section) Well, take care.
L" tL ! :d*t: X\ i> ':Ht '"'( (dewa, o-karada ni ki 0 tsukete)
Well, take care ofyourself(altemative to (a .
1-3J6.lJ1-3M'= i;, L., "'( l' .t 1" (o-henj i o-mach; shiteimasu) I wait
for your reply
J: -1 t;, (sayOnara) Goodbye.
Ir l.- .: (kashiko) sincerely (used by women; formal) .
UNIT 10 169
e) You don't need to use an equi valent of ' Dear' or 'from' when writing
a letter. The person' s name plus A- I ;t (see 2a thi s section) and
you own name at the end (after the date) is enough.
I f you are writing a brief note or postcard, you can miss out the seasonal
greeti ngs and closing phrases and use this pair of phrases instead: "trill
(zenryaku) Greetings! (used at the beginning); .!f!. (s5 so) Excuse Ihe
rosh (used at the end)
l!J jjfHW:t\ Renshu 6
<.; (Sakura) The cherry blossom song
This is perhaps the most well-known Japanese song: The music is
reproduced as well, so that you can try singi ng it once you have studied
its meaning! Notice that the lyrics are written in () b{ so that it is
clear which sound fits which note.
Here are the words of the song, this time with as weil. The romaji
is written to the side, You could write the romaji below the () G b{ on
the music but try instead to read the () G Ii 1" because this will be very
good reading practice! Here is the text:
Sakura, Sakura
Jf LlJ t t noyarna rno salo mo
ttl 'J miwatasu kagiri
kasumi ka kuma ka
:@J a I: -tJ "1 asahi ni niou
Ri . Ri Sakum, Sakum
'J hanazakari
i) What are the meanings of the following _*:
aj tlJ bj J!. cH!
d) \'OJ (Unit 10, Renshii 4) e) a f) lE (Unit 10, Renshii 5)
2) Find and mark these 11* words:
a) (sakura) cherry blossom (x 4)
b) JfLlJ (noyama) fields and hills
c) (salo) home' town
d) J!Mt t (miwatasu) survey the scene, look out over
e) tI 'J (kagiri) endless, everywhere; as far as
f) W (kasumi) mist (notice the rain radical)
170
UNIT 10 171
g) ~ a (axahl) morning sun
h) ~ ; (niou) be fragrant
i) :fE. IJ (hanazakan) (Bowers) in full bloom
3) Find and mark these particles and grammar functions:
a) t ... t (rna ... mol both ... and
b) I)' ... I)' (ka ... ka) either ... or
c) t.: (ni) in
.lIR Honyaku Translation
This lime you are going to try the translation completely by yourself!
Song lyrics and poems often use very minimal language, and use words
to evoke a sense of what is being described rather than spelling it all out.
Whcn translating into English, there are a number of stages to follow:
i) Translate individual words and phrases (here done for you).
ii) Put toget her in ' literal ' English.
iii) Consider what meanings are being conveyed and change into a more
natural English structure.
IV} AI this stage, translators need to decide whether it is more important
to keep closely to the original Japanese or to ' interpret ' the text and
put their: own individual mark on it. This may depend on the text or
on the purpose of the translation. Certainly with poems and songs it
may be necessary to change words in order to make the song fit the
tune or for the poem to retain its structure, rhythm or rhyme.
In the case of this song, however, you will be singing it in Japanese so
focus on conveying the sense of the Japanese words in more natural
Engl ish (but why not have a go at getting the English to fit the tune
too!). There is a sample translation at the back so that you can check for
meaning but as long as the meaning is correct, other versions are equally
acceptable.
L!l .f!l-l:; Renshu 7 fW.fu Haiku
Haiku were developed in Japan but nowadays are known and written all
over the world. They are a style of poetic writing using a small number of
words to convey a much deeper feeling or emotion. Traditionally the
poems were observations of nature which would evoke a strong sense of
the scene described or of the emotions underlying it. Modern haiku explore
many themes and continue to be popular both in Japan and internati onally.
A haiku traditionally is a poem of three lines: 5-7-5 (5
syllables, 7 syllables, 5 syllables) . The four great masters of Japanese
haiku were BasM (1644- 94), Buson (1 716- 84), Issa (1762- 1826) and
Shiki ( 1867- 1902). A few haiku by these great masters follow - you are
going to have a go at translating them 1 A choice of English translations
of a word wi ll often be given so that you can ' experiment ' with your
translation. There arc sample translations at the back so that you can
check on meanings. Most translators try to capture the sense of the poem
in English without retaining the 5- 7- 5 form but once you have the meaning
you could try to reduce it to 17 syllables!
I

i'f III Q) '1' I::
- :JtI;
suzushisa ya
aola no naka n;
hi/olsu matsu
Shiki
I) You have met these in thi s book. What do they mean?
a) 'j!f b) Ell c) '1'
2) The new words are:
a) Th< L- (suzushisa) coolness (water radical)
b) (matsu) pine tree (tree radical)
3) Particles and grammar functions
a) "'(:l (ya) A poetic convention, for emphasis translated as ' the' or ' a'
(l ike I:t wa) Some translators use ... after the word to set the scene.
For example: Th< L- "'(:l The coolness ...
b) Il) (no) of
e) (.: (ni) in
d) -") (hitotsu) one (item); a single (thing)
II

iUWIH1
*Q)'i\'
furuike ya
kawaz" tobikomu
mhu no 0(0
BashO
I) You have met in this book. What do they mean?
a) 1; c) 'i\'
UNIT 10
a) 1& (ike) pond (water radical)
b) !t (kawazu)/rog (insect radi cal)
c) (tobikomu) leap/plunge/diveljump into
3) Particles and grammar functions:
,) '(> (ya) see 3. (p. 172)
III
!if" yiikot.e yo
*WBO) mhu aosagi no
hag; 0 ulSU
b) 0) (110) of
lilHt Buson
1) You have met these if* in this book. What do they mean?
a) 8\ (Unit 10, Renshii 4) b) *' c) W
2) The new _* words arc:
a) fY (yu) evening
b) II (sagi) heron (bird radical . below)
c) .1m (hag/) leg. shin (flesh radical)
d) n"") (utsu) hit. knockllap against (hand radical)
3) The particles and grammar functions arc:
a) (ya) see 3a b) (J) (no) of c) t (0) object marker
IV
.. lIki no yo yo
iiO)JjO) tabi no otoko no
Itf:l::$ har; shigoto
Issa
1) You have met these in this book. What do they mean?
.) M( b) 9J c) it-
173
a) '* (aki) autumn b) (yo) night c) i$ (shigolo) work
3) The particles and grammar functions arc:
a) (ya) see 3a b) (J) (no) of. connects linked words
Owari ni
~ ~ - r : c. .; ; : : ~ . t 11" (omedet6 gozaimasu) Congratulations! You
have completed Teach Yourself Beginner 's Japanese Script. I hope that
you now feel you have a good grounding in Japanese reading and writing
and are ready to take your study further and tackle new challenges! Look
for every opportunity to use your learning so that you can consolidate it,
and re-visi t the units in this book to refresh your learning. If you have not
yet tackled the spoken language or only have the basics, then how about
trying Teach Yourself Beginner 's Japanese next! And please write to me
(c/o Hodder and Stoughton) to let me know how you got on with this
book.
'tln:"I: , ~ J: -) "' ''!
KEV TO THE EXERCISES
UNIT 1
Yonde mimasho: Ie, 2g, 3h, 4i , Sa, 61, 7f, 8j, ge, 10k, lib, 12d. Renshu I:
a6, b14. clO, d9, e ll , fl2, g3, h2, il3, jl , k7, 14, m8, 05. Renshii 2: a5,
bl , c4, d7. e6, f3, g2. Renshii 3: I) Wed 2) Tues 3) Sun 4) Fri 5) Sat
6) 2 7) I 8) 2 9) Mon.
UNIT 2
Yonde mimashO: II , 2k. 3g, 4e, 5<1, 6a, 7c, 8b, 9h, lOi, Ilj , 12f. Renshu I:
a6, h2, c3, d4, e8, f9, glO, h i , i7. j5. Renshii 2: ( 1) a) Sun b) Wed
c) Mon d) Sat. (2) 4 (4th, 11th, 18th, 25th). (3) Sun. Rcnshii 3: ( I ) April,
March (2) a) April, Jul y b) June, Feb, March c) Sept, Dec (3) a) Sun
b) Sat c) Tues d) Wed e) Wed (4) a) Mon b) Wed c) Sun d) Mon- Sun
e) Mon. Renshii 4: a) Sat 14th Feb b) Thl:lrs 20th Nov c) Mon 5th May
d) Sun 10th Sept e) Wed 25th Dec f) Fri 1st ApriL Renshii 6: (i) Ib, 2e.
3b, 4a, 5c (ii) la, 2e, 3b, 4a, Sc; (iii) I ) c,ii 2) a,iii 3) c,i 4) b,ii 5) b,i
6) a,iii 7) b,i 8) c, i 9) a,iii 10) a,ii. Renshii 7: a) Hayashi b) Morit a
c) Moriyama d) Yamakawa e) Takeyama f) Mori g) Kita h) Ishikawa
i) Kaneda j) Takeda k) Ishida I) Yamada m) Kawada. Test: ( I) a) man
b) wood c) power d)gold. (2) a) population b) Japan c) girl d) gateway
e) volcano f) men and women. (3) a) ii b) vi c) vii d) v e) i f) ii i g) iv.
(4) a) Yamada b) Takeyama c) Morita d) Mori e) Ishida. (5) check writing
sections/charts.
UNIT 3
Hajime ni: a) iii b) iv c) ii. Renshu I: ( 1) a) iv b) vi c) v d) i e) ii f) iii.
(3) a6, b4, c5, d8. R,n,h. 2: (3) h, g, b, e, i, c, d, f, a, j . (4) a) 9 b) 6
c) 7 d) 19 e) 17 f) 13 g) 20 h) 50 i) 70j) 21 k) 32 I) 43 m) 54 n) 65
0) 76 p) 87 q) 88 , ) 99. Ren,h. 3: I) e, f , b, d, c, h, g, a; 600 (2) a) 8000
b) 5000 c) 7000 d) 6000 e) 2000 f) 1000. (3) a) iii b) i c) iv d) ii e) v
(4) a, e, b, g, d, c, f. 200; 2000; 2200; 20,000; 200,000; 2,000,000;
20,000,000. (5) a) ii b) v c) vii d) vi e) iv f) i g) iii. Renshu 4: ( I) lb. 2e
t
3a, 4d, Se. (2) Jd, 2e
t
3f, 4c, 5b. 6a. (3) I) 11th Nov 2) 18th June 3) 2nd
Oct 4) 21s1 Aug 5) 3 1s1 Mar 6) 24th June. Renshu 5: ( I ) a) iv b) v c) vi
d) i e) i ii f) ii . (2) a) iii b) v c) iv d) i e) vi f) ii Renshii 6: ( I) a) (03)
358- 1377 b) (097) 592- 4211 c) (0720) 2 1- 3866 d) (03) 3593- 2704
c) (0279) 22 1- 3154. (2) a) Sat 5th Dec 1998 b) Sun 6th Dec 1998 c) Sat
12th Dec 1998 (3) Sal2 l s! Oct 1995.
UNIT 4
Hajime ni: ( I) a) mouth b) car c) person d) eye e) mountain f} gate
g) tree h) SUIl i) child. (2) a) gate and car b) eye c) sun d) mouth c) child
f) eye g) tree h) mountain. Renshii I: a4, h2, c7, d6, e5, n. g3. Renshu 2:
If, 2g, 3e, 4a, Sd, 6b, 7e. Renshii 4: 1 b, 2e, 3r, 4g, Sa, 6d, 7e. Renshii 5:
\) e 2) b 3) g 4) r 5) d 6) a 7} c. Renshii 6: I f, 2b, 3c, 4d, 5a, 6c.
Renshii 7: 1 f, 2e, 3b, 4g, 5c, 6a, 7d. Renshii 8: I) dealer 2) entrance
3) exit 4) drinking water 5) academic abi li ty 6) buyer 7) holiday
8) Japanese person. Renshii 9: (I) Id, 2e, 3f, 4h, 5k, 6i, 7m, 8b, 9c, 10<1.
11 j , 12g, 13 I . 14a. (2) a) baibai b) dokusho c) nyiigaku d) shutsunyu
e) inshoku f) kengaku g) kyugaku h} kenbun.
TEST
( I) a) horse b) person c) woman d) man e) child f) gi rl g) boy h} Japanese
person. (2) a) mountain b) volcano c) river d) water e} f ire f) tree
g) wood h) forest i) ri ce field. (3) a) 1 b) 5 c) 60 yen d) 100 e) 4000 yen
f) 20,000 g) gold, money h) 3700. (4) a) Sat 11th Sept b) 20th August
c) 1991 (yea r) d) Heisei 12th year = Year 2000. (5) a) li sten b) cat
c) drink d) say e) talk f) read g) sell h) look i) buy j) rest (6) a) car
b) mouth c) foot d) eye e) hand.
UNIT 5
Hajime ni: I) to write grammar and n o n - ~ ~ Japanese words 2) '() t;,
IJt'j: 3) simplified i l ~ with the same pronunciat ion 4) 46. Vonde
mimasho: (Reading down): d, f , a, c, b, e. Renshii I: a) sushi b) aki
c) koe d) tsukue e) sato f) seito. Renshii 2: (7) a) I b) 2 c) 2. (8) (t
(9) . ( 15) a) 2 b) 2 ( 16) 10 (1 7) 11 Renshii 3, Sella) asa b) Ie
c) natsu d) toke i e) shio f) nani g) nuno. $et 2 a) yoru b) mimi c) haru
d) fuyu e) mura f) yama g) mori b) wan. Set 3 a) ohayo b) sayonara
c) neko d) sensei e) inu f) me g) hew h) hito i) rei j) nihon. Renshii 4:
KEY TO THE EXERCISES 177
a) kyaa kyaa b) shun shun c) shu shu d) chu chii e) nyaa nyaa f) hyii hyii
g) hyoro hyoro h) kyoro kyoro. Renshii 6: a) kyaku b) kyo c) gyunyii
d) shashin e) ja ne f) choshoku g) chushoku h) hyaku i) byoin j ) ryoko.
Renshu 7: a) mizu b) kagi, c) j iten d) denwa e) tanpopo f) doki doki
g) gabu gabu Renshu 8: a) cholto b) mane c) yappari d) gakko e) ganbatte
f) massugu. Renshii 9: a) tabcmasu, tabernash ita b) nomimasu,
nomi mashita c) mimasu, mimashita d) kakimasu, kakimashita
e) hanashimasu, hanashimashita.
UNIT 6
"sjime ni: a) earth b) tree c) woman d) stone e) mouth f) horse g) sun h)
moon Yonde mimasho: al0, bl , cS, d6, e3, f9, g8, h2, i7, j4. Renshii I:
a6, b9, c4, d I 0, e8, f3, g I, hS, 12, j 7. Renshii 2: a4, b2, cS, d3, el.
Renshli 3: a6, b9,cS, d8, e7, f2, g3, h4, i l. Renshli 4: a4, b l, cS, d3, e7,
f2, g8, h6. Renshii 5: a2, b8, c6, d7, e4, n. g l , hS. Renshli 6: a) II
b) 5 c) 13 d) 14 e) I f )7 g) g h) 9 ;) 12 j) 6 k)3 I) 4 m) 15 n) 17 0) 2
p) 10 q) 16. Renshli 8: a) takai b) yasui c) chiisai d) okii e) sukunai
f) sukoshi g) furui h) atarashii i) futoi j) hiroi k) shiroi.
TEST
(A) I) above 2) below 3) small 4) big S) middle (also inside) 6) dog 7) fat
8) a li ttl e 9) axe 10) father I I) cow 12) stand 13) old 14) mother
IS) wide 16) white 17) ri ce 18) cheap, safe 19) thread 20) pointed
21) meat 22) hotlbitter 23) rain 24) blue 2S) country 26) sound 27) tall,
expensive 28) island 29) school 30) black 31) bird 32) snow 33) cloud
34) new 3S) thunder 36) electric 37) dove 38) cloudy 39) frost.
( B) 1) Sunday 2) Saturday 3) Wednesday 4) Tuesday 5) start school
6) primary school 7) middle school 8) high school 9) absent from school
10) study visit 11) Japan 12) China 13) Ameri ca 14) Central America
I S) mother country 16) island country 17) beef 18) chicken 19) food
20) drink 21) white rice ~ 2 ) drinking water 23) trai n 24) new car
2S) secondhand car 26) carriage 27) ri ckshaw 28) puppy 29) cal f
30) swan 31) parents 32) child 33) adult 34) boy 35) girl 36) girl
37) shopping 38) sightseeing 39) entrance 40) exit 41 ) holiday.
UNIT 7
Hajime ni: ( I) a) wood b) forest c) man d) li ke e) bri ght f) listen g) see
h) write i) say/words j) sell k) read I) speak m) buy n) rest 0) go out
p) study. (2) a) person b) mouth c) earth d) woman e) chi ld f) sun
g) moon h) tree i) fire j) rice fi eld k) eye I) say/words m) gold n) car.
R,n,hii l :a)6b)7c)4d)ge) 12 f) Sg) IOh)2 ;) 3j)8 k) III) I.
Renshii 4: a) I. hat radical 2. above b) 1. vegetation 2. above c) I. lid 2.
above d) I. village 2. right side e) 1. enclosure 2. surround f) 1. yawn 2.
right side g) 1. bamboo 2. above h) I . fire 2. below i) I . hole
2. above j) I. cover 2. above k) 1. vapour 2. partial surround \) I. heart
2. below m) 1. rain 2. above. Renshii 5: (I) i) c ii) d iii) e iv) b v) a
(2) i) a ii) b i ii) d iv) c (3) i) b ii) d iii) c iv) e v) f vi) a vii) g.
UNIT 8
Hajim, ni: a) 4(4) b) 12(4) c) 14(2) d) 7(2) e) S(6) Q 13(6) g) 2(6) h) 10(6)
;) 3(6)j) IS(7) k) 11 (6) I) 1(4/6) m) 9(4/6) n) 6(3) 0) 8(4). R,n,hii I :
I) h 2) c 3) j 4) k S) m 6) I 7) b 8) c 9) a 10) d II) n 12) f 13) 0 14) g
IS) a 16) i 17) c. Renshii 2: I) c 2) f 3)j 4) 0 5) n 6) I 7) i 8) a 9) h
10) gil) k 12) d 13) m 14) b IS) c. R,n,hii 4: Id, 2b, 3g, 4e, Sf, 6h, 7c,
8a. Renshii 5: Ie, 2e, 3b, 4a, Sd. Renshii 6: \) toilet 2) entrance 3) toi let
4) ' Thundcrgatc' 5) push 6) pull 7) south gate 8) north gate 9) Hiroshima,
Osaka 10) gri lled (food) II ) railway station 12) Fuji Bank 13) opening
times 14) inte rnat ional phone 15) unreserved 16) unoccupied taxi
17) Japanese-style room 18) no admittance 19) no smoking.
UNIT 9
Hajime oi: I) loanwords; foreign names; to make words stand out; plant!
animal classificati on. 2) part of ~ ~ 3) 46. Yonde mimasho: ( in order
from top) e, d, a, f. b, c. Renshii 1: skirt(e) suit(f) steak(c) cake(a) ice(d)
toasl(b). Renshii 2: SCI (I) Ig, 2f, 3b, 4c, 5a, 6e, 7d. Set (2) Ie, 2e, 3d,
4b, 5a. Set (3) I f, 2g, 3d, 4a, 5c, 6b, 7h, 8e. Renshii 4: (I ) i) d ii ) c
iii) a iv) e v) h. (2) i) c Ii) e iii) a iv) d v) b. (3) i) f i i) b iii) c iv) d v) a
vi) c vi i) g. (4) i) c ii ) e iii) a iv) d v) g vi) b vii) r. (5) i) g ii) b iii) i
IV) e v) j vi) a vii) k viii) h IX) f x) I xi) c xii) d 6) i) a ii) c iii) e IV) d
v) f vi) b. (7) i) b ii ) e iii) a IV) c v) d. (8) i) a ii) c iii) e iv) d v) b.
Renshii 6: I h, 2j , 3a, 4c, 5i, 6g, 7b, 8e, 9f, 10d. Renshii 7: Ii, 2g, 3j , 4a,
5e, 6d, 7b, 8c, 9f, IOh. Renshii 8: Ig, 2b, 3h, 4a, 51, 6k, 7i, 8e, 9c, IOd,
Ilf, 12j. Renshii 9: I) eh 2) ai 3) ce 4) gb 5) ic 6) hj 7) dg 8)jd 9) fa
10) bf. Renshii 10: I) Luna 2) hot, iced 3) milk, lemon 4) 600 yen 5) 400
yen 6) cheese, ham, mi xed 7) 800 yen 8) 350 + 600 + 700 = 1650 yen
9) your choice 10) parfait , apple pie. Renshii 11: I) Toyota 2) Sony
KEY TO THE EXERCISES 179
3) Casio 4) National 5) Sanyo 6) Mitsubishi . Renshii 12: (1) 2, 4. 6 (2) 3
(3) printers. software (4) 6 (5) TV. video, laserdiscs (6) 2 (7) I (8) 2:
basement, fl oor I (9) fax machines (10) basement. Renshii 13: a2. b4,
cl , d5. e6. fJ . Renshii 14: I) McDonald' s 2) karaoke 3) opening sale
4) videos and books 5) recycle 6) a curry house 7) Valentine's Day 8) beer
9) dessert 10) E-mail I I) piano 12) Toyota 13) single malt 14) wine
15) Christmas tree 16) City of Angels, Nicholas Cage, Meg Ryan.
UNIT 10
Renshii 1: ( I) a) book b) read c) say. Renshii 2: (I) a) water b) jewel
(ball ) c) fire d) finger e) test f) tissue g) frying pan. Renshii 3: (I) a)
drinkll b) person/ 3 c) eye/3 d) enterl2 e) tealS f) convenience/mailll
g) big/ I h) go out12 i) timel2. (3d) I l v, 21vii, 3/vi, 4/iv, 51;, 61i ii, 7/ii. (Sc)
IIvi. 2liii, 31i, 4/ iv, Slvii, 61v, 7/ ii . Renshii 4: (I) a) Osaka b) Tokyo
c) Sapporo d) Kyoto. (3b) i) cloudy later sunny ii) sunny later cloudy
iii) sunny sometimes cloudy iv) rainy later cloudy. (3c) i) two of: Nagoya,
Fukuoka, Sapporo ii) Kobe, Nara. (4a) i) north ii) south ii i) gold/ Friday
iv) earth/Saturday v) moon/ Monday vi) firelTuesday vii) water/ Wednesday.
(4c) All are cloudy later sunny. (4d) i) cloudy sometimes sunny ii) sunny
sometimes cloudy iii) cloudy sometimes rainy iv) cloudy sometimes sunny
v) sunny sometimes cloudy vi) cloudy. (4e) Sunday: North Kyoto and
North Shiga. (Sa) 28th, 21:00 or 9 o'clock. (5b) i) sunnylfine ii ) cloudy
(cloud) iii) rain iv) thunder v) snow. (6i) a) 29th b) cloud c) tall (high)
d) fine e) weather f) above. Renshii S: a) New Year b) bright c) hand
d) read e) previous f) Japan g) eye h) time i) go j) think k) meet I) enjoy
m) spirit n) year 0) dawn p) Yamamoto q) child. (7) order = g, d, b, i, e,
a, c, f, h. Renshii 6: (I) a) mountain b) look c) cloud d) morning e) sun
f ) fl ower. Sample translation: Cherry blossom, cherry blossom, over fields
and hill s. I survey the endless scene (or: as far as the eye can see; or: an
endless scene). (like) mist or cloud, fragranrin the morning sun, cherry
blossom, cherry blossom, in full bloom. Renshii 7: (I) la) blue/green
b) ri ce field c) middle d) one. Sample translation: The coolness, In the
middle of a green rice field, one pine tree. (II) 1a) old b) water c) sound.
Translation: An old pond, A frog dives in, The sound of water. (111) I a)
wind b) water c) blue. Translation: The evening breeze ... , water laps
against the legs of a blue heron. (IV) la) travel b) man c) needle.
Translation: An autumn night ... , A travelling man's, Needlework.
INDEX (1) JAPANESE-
ENGUSH: UNIT CHARTS
A unit-by-unit summary of mai n iiX!* includi ng: number of strokes (i n
brackets), on and kun readings, Engli sh meani ngs and jukugo (compound
word) examples .
For stroke order of main il* refer to the wri ting sections of each unit.
The stroke order for those ~ * in units 1 and 2 which don' t appear in
the writing sections is given in these charts .
On readings are given in capital s, kun readings in lower casc. The
bracketed parI of a kun rcading indicates the part written in hiragana
(dictionary form is given for verbs).
UNIT 1
LlJ
(3)
}II
(3)
a
(4)
fJ
(4)

(3)
11
(6)
'*
SAN, yama;
mounla;n
SEN, kawa, gawa;
river
NICHI , JITSU. hi, bi, ka;
day, sun
GETSU, GATSU, tsuki;
month, moon
DO, TO, tsuchi;
earth, ground
CI-IIKU, take;
bamboo
MOKU, BOKU, ki;
(4) tree. wood
# RI N, hayashi, bayashi ;
(8) woods
.. SHIN, mori;
( 12) forest
[pic In. I ]
[pic In.2]
INDEX II)
'*
(4)
SUI, mizuj
water
DEN, ta /da;
ricejieJd
KIN, KON, kane;
gold. money
KA, hi, bi ;
IU
(5)
;1i
(8)
9<
(4)
1i
(5)
ji,.
In. 1
In.2
In.3
In.4
SEKI, SHAKU, ishi, koku;
stone
UNIT 2
J:l
(3)
,Ii'.
(7)
'"
(5)
Y::
'f
(3)
KO, KU, kuchi, guchi;
mouth
SOKU (ZOKU), 3shi. ta (riru);
foot (leg)
MOKU, me;
eye
JO, NYO, onn3j
woman
SHI , SU, ko;
child
181
[pic In.3]
[pic In.4]
[pic In.5]
[pic In.6]
[pic In.7}
182
A
NIN. HN, hito;
(2) person
lj:
11, mimi;
(6) ear [pic In.81
~ SHU, te;
(4) hand
;h RYOKU, RIKI , chikara;
(2) POYl-'r, strength [pic 10.9]
$ SHA, kUl'"uma;
(1) vehicle. car [pic 10. 10)
,\ll BA, urn. ;
( 10) horse [Pic In. 11]
r'J
MON, kado;
(8) gate
'1.1
DAN, NAN, otoko;
(7) man [pic In.12]
jJ
KO, kono(mu);
(6) like. love [pic In.13]
IJl
MEl, MYO, aka(rui), aki(raka);
(8) bright, light [pic 10. 14]
'*
HON, moto;
(5) root, origin. main. book [pic In. 15]
In.5
10.6
1+1'f1 ~ 131+1
In.7
I! IiI - I' If I f I . f - - I ~ I
In.8

INDEX III 183
Ih!iDIJI1J1
In.9
In.IO
In. 11
[n. 12
In.13
In. 14
1Jj - 1 t 1,,1 1;K1i1
In.15
UNIT 3
- ICHI, hito(tsu);
( I) one
NI. futa(tsu);
(2) two
SAN, mit(tsu);
(3) three
1m SHI, yon, yo, yot(tsu);
(5) four
'14
"Ii GO. itsu(tsu};
(4) five
~
ROKU, mut(Lsu};
"
(4) six
1:;
SHICHI, nana(tsu};
(2) s ... n
J\ HACHI. yat(tsu};
(2) eight
:II.
KYO. KU; kokono (Lsu);
(2) nine
+
JO, t o;
(2) ten
a HYAKU;
(6) hundred
T
SEN, chi ;
(3) thousand
li MAN, BAN;
W
ten thousand, all
EN;
(4) yen, circle
4'
NEN, toshi;
(6) year, age
UNIT 4
PIl
BUN, Id(ku);
( 14) hear, listen
~
KEN, mi(ru};
(7) look, see, watch

SHO, ka(ku};
(1 0) write
tf GEN, (GON), i(u), kot o;
(7) say
'If.
GAKU, mana(bu};
(8) study, learn
n
BAI, ka(u);
( 12) buy
-
KYO, yasu(mu);
(6) rest
INDEX [11
185
III SHUTSU. de(ru).
(5) go/come 0 111
'lC
BAI , u( ru);
(7) sell
III DOKU. yo(mu);
( 14) read
lt8
WA, hanashi, hana(su);
(13) talle
1l"
SHOKU, ta(heru);
W
eat
IN, no(mu);
( 12) drink
A
NYU, i(ru), hai(ru);
(2) enter, put in
til
BUTSU, MOTSU, mono;
(8) thing
UNIT 6
:Jr. RITSU, t.a(lsu), tachi;
(5) stand (up)
0:; KO. 'aka(I);
( 10) high. expensive
CHO, tori;
( II ) bird
*
BEl , MAl, kome;
(6) rice
*
DAI, TAl . o(kii);
(3) big. great
fi-
KIN, ORO;
(4) axe
tf
GVU. ushi ;
(4) cow, callie
-,!i
KO. furu(i);
(5) old

SHI , ito;
(6) thread
IJ'
SHOo chii(sai), ko, OJ
(3) small
i!t 80, haha, (o)ka(san);
(5) mother
*
AN, yasu(i);
(6) cheap, safe
JZ. KO, hiro(i);
(5) wide, spacious
kif
SHIN, atara(shii);
(13) new
J!\ KOKU. kuro(i);
(11) black
S HAKU, BYAKU, shi..-o(i), jiro;
(5) white
1f
SEI, SHO, 30(1);
(8) blue, green, inexperienced
:l<: FU, chichi, to, (0)tO(580);
(4) father
jij
V, arne;
(8) rom
1: JO, ue, nobo (ru), a(garu);
(3) above. on, top
l' KA, GE, shita, moto, kuda(ru);
(3) below, under. go down
<P CHU, oaka;
(4) inside, middle, within
~ UN, kumo;
( 12) cloud;

DON, kumo(ri);
(16) cloudy weather
1If RAI, kaminari;
(13) thunder
1!t SETSU, yuki;
(II) snow
lit
DEN-
,
(13) electric
:k KEN, inu;
(4) dog
&l, TO, shima, jima;
(10) island
'Ii ON, IN, oto, ne;
(9) sound
INDEX III
'it'
(7)
ill
( 17)

(4)
:;Ie
(4)
00
(8)
rJj
(6)
:tlt
( 10)
SHIN, kara(i);
hot, bitter, spicy;
SO, shimo;
frost
SHOo suku(nai),
few. a (jtlle
TAl, TA, ruto(i);
fat, deep (voice)
KOKU, kuni, guni;
country
NIKU;
meal. flesh
KO' ,
school
UNIT 7
(fl
(9)
P/1

(9)
III<
(l 5)
l'i
( 10)
P.f.l
(14)

(8)
jt
(12)
iIIi
( 14)
l1I!
(10)
J!
(5)
SHlN, shin(jiru);
believe, trust;
SHO, tona(eru);
chant, recite;
hata, hatake;
cultivated field
DAN' ,
talk. discussion
SON, mago;
grandchild
MEl. na(ku);
cry, chirp
EN, hono;
blaze. flame
FUN. t a( ku), ya( ku);
burn. kindle
GO; kata(ru);
language. word. tell
MAl , u(meru);
bury/be buried
TAN;
dawn
187
;{f;
KAN'

(9) wicked. noisy
!Ii KATSU;
W
live. energy
TAl , TEl , karada;
(7) body
NT CHOt machij
(7) lown
ff SON, muraj
(7) village
~ MAJ , imoto;
(8) younger sister
!:T T6, hi ;
W
lamp. light
SETSU, o(ru)j
(7) f old, snap. bend
iii'. MIN, nemu(i)j
(10) sleep(y)
~
HAl, ho(eru);
(7) bark
Ilt
CHO, hiji
(7) elbow
Ia
HAKU, to(maru)j
(8) stay at, put up
tI' SHIN, hari;
(10) needle
fi(
TEN, koro(garu);
( 11 ) lurn, change
~
)1, toki, dokij
( 10) lime
UNIT 8
m TEN, mise;
(8) shop. store
S OKU, yaj
(9) shop
JGl KYOKU;
(7) bureau, office
INDEX II) 189
PIi SHOt JO. tokoroj
(8) place
.11.1 JO, bat
(12) place
111 KAN;
(16) hall. large building
Ill!
EN, sono;
( 13) garden
Tti SHI , ichi ;
(5) city. market
I KQ, KU;
(3) construction
1}
KD, oyake;
(4) public
Ill! TO, ZU. haka(ru);
(1) drawing. map
f.(l OVO, !akana, 00;
( 11 ) fish
ill
SHU, sake, saka;
( 10) rice wine, alcohol
'lit CHA;
(9) l eu
if! YAKU. kusuri j
( 16) medicine
~ SEN, ara(u);
(9) wosh
:E SHU, nushi;
(5) master. owner
II' CHU;
( 15) reside. stO{H:Jl'er
{
JO, ! u(mu);
(1) reside, live
~
EKI ;
( 14) station
fl
BEN, BIN;
(9) convenience. mail
ff
KO, OYO, AN, i(ku). yu(ku), okona(u);
(6) go, hold
~ SHITSU;
(9) room
p;j
NAI, OAI , uchi;
(4) inside, home
jlf GAl , GE, solo, hoka;
(5) outside. foreign
If/i
SEKI ;
(10) seat, place
*'I RYO' ,
(10) charge, materials
~ t HOKU, BOKU, kita;
(5) north
Jl!
NAN, minami;
(9) south
JI[
TO, higashi;
(8) east
1l!i
SEI, SAl, nishi;
(6) west
~
KIN' ,
(13) forbidden
;t;
U, yO, migi j
(5) right
ti SA, hidarij
(5) left
IlIl
KAI, a (keru), hira, (ku);
( 12) open
!ill HEI , shi (meru), to (jiru);
(II ) close
INDEX (2) ENGUSH-
JAPANESE: WORD INDEX
The number in brackets indicates the page where the wordfirst appears.
A
above (77) abroad (112) absence from school (51) academic ability
(51) address (108) admission free (113) adult (81) alcohol ( 106)
a IiUie (79) America (81) arrival (117) art (106) art gallery (\07)
ask (95) axe (75)
B
bad al (80) bamboo (3) bamboo shoots (49) bank ( 109) bar (107)
bark (91) bathroom (114) beckon (94) beef (8 1) believe (89)
below (77) bicycle (111) big (74) bird (74) bitler (79) black (76)
blaze (89) blue (76) blue-white (80) body (91) book (50)
bookshop (107) boy (15,81) branch (97) break (91) bright (14,
94) brush (46) bullellrain ( 11 8) bureau (105) bum (89) bury (89)
be buried (89) buy (43) buyer (5 1) buying and selling (51)
c
calf (80) car (13) car park (108) carriage (15) cart (13) Central
America (8\) certificate (90) chant (89) cheap (76) chicken (81)
child (12, 81) China (81) chirp (89) cinema (1 10) city (l06)
cleanse (95) clear (94) clear up (95) close (117) closed (117)
cloud (78) cloudy weat her (78) clue (81) coffee shop (107)
construction ( 106) convenience (108) conversation (89) cosmetics
(114) country (8 1) cow (75) create (95) cry (animal - 89)
cultivated field (89)
o
dawn (89) day (I) dealer (51) decree (94) departure (1 17)
discussion (89) dog (79) domesti c ( 11 2) donnant volcano (5 1) dove
(79) down ( 104) drawing (\06) drink (47) drinking place (107)
drinking water (51) drinks (50) drought (95) dry weather (95) dwell
( 108)
E
car (13) earth (3) east (1 15) cat (47) eating and drinking (5 1) eight
(29) elbow (92) electri c (78) elementary school (81) emolion (95)
enler (48) entrance (5 1) entrance fee ( 11 3) exit (51) explosion (95)
express (118) eye ( 13)
F
factory (107) fare adjustment office ( 109) fat (79) father (76) fee
(III, \13) feeling (95) few (79) fine weather (95) fire (3) fish
(106) fi shmonger ( 107) five (29) fl ame (89) flesh (81) fold (91)
food (47, 50) foot (13) forbidden ( 11 6) foreign (1 12) foreign
exchange ( 11 2) forest (3) four (29) Friday (5) frost (79)
G
garden ( 105) gate (13) gateway ( 15) girl ( 14, 81) go ( 108) go
in (48) going in and out (5 1) gold (3) good at (80) go out (43)
grandchild (89) greengrocer (107) grilled (1 18) ground (3)
H
hall (105) hand ( 13) hear (43) heavy rain (80) ~ i g h (74) high
school (8 1) hi story (90) hold (94) holiday (43, 5 1) horse (13)
horse power (14) hot (79) hour (92) hundred (32)
I
imperial edict (94) information (109) inherit (94) inn, Japanese ( 110)
inside (77) international phone (112) invite (94) island (79) island
country (81) items for sale (50)
INDEX (2)
,.3
J
Japan ( 14) Japanese: bath ( 114), cuisine (1 14), inn ( 11 0), person ( 15),
room ( 11 2), style (114) j uni or hi gh school (81)
K
kindle (89) kiosk (107)
L
lamp (9 1) language (89) large bui lding (105) left ( 11 7) left
luggage (113) lesson (90) library ( 107) like ( 14) listen (43) liquor
store (107) live (91) liver (95) long-distance train ( II I) look (43)
love (14) luggage ( 113)
M
make (95) mail (108) man ( 14) manpower (IS) map (106) market
(106, 107) marsh (94) master (108) meat (81) medicine (106)
middle (77) middle school (81) mischief (95) Monday (5) money
(3) money exchange (109) month (2) mother (76) mother country
(8 1) mountain (3) moon (I) mouth (13) museum ( 110)
N
narrative (90) needle (92) new (76) new car (81) newspaper (81)
new year (81) nine (29) noise (79) north (1 15) not allowed ( 11 6)
o
occupied taxi ( III ) office ( 105) old (74) older (81) one (29) on
top (77) open (1 17) open for business (117) origin ( 14)
p
paddy field (15) pair (5 1) pale (80) parcel (Ill) parents (80) pari<
(107) passport control ( 11 2) person (12) perspire (95) pharmacy
( 107) pigeon (79) place (105) poem (90) pointed (79) pole (95)
, ..
polished rice (80) population ( 14) post office (I 08) powder room
( 114) power (13) previous (95) primary school (8 1) proof (90)
public (106) public eye, in the (15) pull ( 11 7) puppy (80) purify
(96) purity (95) push ( 11 7)
R
rain (76) read (46) reading (51) recite (89) request (95) reserved
seat ( 113) reside (108) rest (43) restrai n (95) ri ce (74, 106) ri ce
field (3) ri ckshaw ( 15) right( I 17) rive< (3) rod (95) roof (105)
room ( 11 1) root ( 14) rotate (92)
s
safe (76) samwai (94) Saturday (5) say (43) school (81) sea'(III)
secondhand car (81) sell (46) seller (5 1) set meal ( 113) seven (29)
shop (105) shopping (50) shopping area ( 109) sightseeing (50) six
(29) sleep (91) sleeper train (111) small (74) small dog (SO)
smoke ( 11 6) snap (91) snore (95) snow (78) soar (94) sound (79)
soulh ( 11 5) spacious (76) speak (46) special express ( li S) spirit
(95) Siand ( news) ( 107) stand (up) (75) start school (5 1)
station (108) stay at (92) stone (4) store ( 105) strength ( 13) strictly
forbidden ( 116) study (43) study visi t (5 1) Sunday (5) superiors
(80) swamp (94) swan (80)
T
talk (46) tall (74) tapered (79) tea (106) tcashop (107) telephone
(81) temple (92) tcn (29) ten thousand (32) theatre (I [0) thing
(50) thousand (32) thread (75) three (29) thunder (78) Thursday
(5) ticket office (109) time (92) toilet (107, 108, 114) tower (94)
town (9 1) train (80) transl ation (90) travel (109) tree (3)
Tuesday (5) tune (90) tum (92) two (29)
u
under (77) underground (1 18) uni versity (80) unoccupied taxi (I II )
unreserved seat (113) up ( 104)
INDEX (2) 195
v
vast (80) vehi cle ( 13) village (9 1) vinegar (95) volcano (1 5)
w
wai t ( 114) waiting room ( 114) wash (106) watch (43) water (3)
water power (15) Wednesday (5) west ( 11 5) western-style (114) +
cuisine ( 114), room (1 12) white (76) white ri ce (80, 95) wickedness
(89, 95) wide (76) wine ( 106) wi ne shop ( 107) woman (12)
woodIs (3) words (43) wri te (47) writing (50)
y
yen (32) year (32) yesterday (95) younger sister (91 ) youth (80)
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Teach Yourself Beginner's Japanese Script - Helen Gilhooly