Japanese · Beginner (A1) · Chapter 6 of 12
My home
私の家Watashi no ie
Describe your home in Japanese: rooms and furniture, the two kinds of adjectives and their negatives, colours, and where things are.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Describe a room with `い`-adjectives and `な`-adjectives
- Say what something is not like
- Say where things are: on, under, in, next to
- Name colours and furniture
Listen
Hayashi Mao shows her new flat in Fukuoka to her colleague Ogawa Ren. Her cat is hiding somewhere. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Hayashi
小川さん、どうぞ。
Ogawa-san, dōzo.
Come in, Mr Ogawa.
Ogawa
お邪魔します。きれいな部屋ですね。
Ojama shimasu. Kirei na heya desu ne.
Thank you for having me. What a nice flat.
Hayashi
ありがとうございます。新しいアパートです。
Arigatō gozaimasu. Atarashii apāto desu.
Thank you. It's a new building.
Ogawa
広いですね。
Hiroi desu ne.
It's spacious.
Hayashi
いいえ、広くないです。台所も狭いです。
Iie, hirokunai desu. Daidokoro mo semai desu.
No, it isn't big. The kitchen is small too.
Ogawa
とても明るいですね。
Totemo akarui desu ne.
It's very bright, though.
Hayashi
はい。窓の前に机といすがあります。
Hai. Mado no mae ni tsukue to isu ga arimasu.
Yes. My desk and chair are by the window.
Ogawa
猫はどこにいますか？
Neko wa doko ni imasu ka?
Where's your cat?
Hayashi
ベッドの下にいます。
Beddo no shita ni imasu.
It's under the bed.
Ogawa
あ、白い猫ですね。かわいいですね。
A, shiroi neko desu ne. Kawaii desu ne.
Oh, a white cat. It's sweet.
Understand
Two kinds of adjectives
Japanese has two kinds of adjectives. い-adjectives end in い and go straight before a noun: (hiroi heya), a spacious room. な-adjectives add (na) before a noun: (kirei na heya), a nice room. Before (desu), both are simple: (heya wa hiroi desu), (heya wa kirei desu). Careful: (kirei) ends in い but is a な-adjective.
The negatives are different. An い-adjective changes its last い to くない: (hirokunai desu), it isn't spacious. A な-adjective adds (ja nai desu): (kirei ja nai desu). That's the same as for nouns in chapter 1: (neko ja nai desu), it isn't a cat. One adjective is irregular: (ii), good, becomes (yokunai desu). Never put (ja nai desu) after an い-adjective. The past of adjectives comes in A2.
| Kind | Before a noun | It is | It isn't |
|---|---|---|---|
| い-adjective | (hiroi heya), a spacious room | (hiroi desu) | (hirokunai desu) |
| い-adjective | (akarui heya), a bright room | (akarui desu) | (akarukunai desu) |
| irregular | (ii heya), a good room | (ii desu) | (yokunai desu) |
| な-adjective | (kirei na heya), a nice room | (kirei desu) | (kirei ja nai desu) |
| noun | (neko no heya), the cat's room | (neko desu) | (neko ja nai desu) |
Colours
The basic colours are い-adjectives: (akai), red; (aoi), blue; (shiroi), white; (kuroi), black. They work like (hiroi): (shiroi neko), a white cat.
Most other colours are nouns, so they take (no) before another noun: (midori no isu), a green chair; (chairo no tsukue), a brown desk.
- 赤いベッドです。Akai beddo desu.It's a red bed.
- 猫は黒くないです。白いです。Neko wa kurokunai desu. Shiroi desu.The cat isn't black. It's white.
- 緑のいすがあります。Midori no isu ga arimasu.There's a green chair.
Where things are
You already know (eki no mae ni arimasu) from chapter 4. Other position words work the same way: the thing + (no) + position word + (ni) + (arimasu) for things or (imasu) for people and animals: (neko wa beddo no shita ni imasu), the cat is under the bed.
To list things, (to) gives the complete list: (tsukue to isu), a desk and a chair, and that's all. (ya) gives examples from a longer list: (hondana ya beddo), a bookshelf, a bed and other things.
| Position | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 上 (ue), on, above | (tsukue no ue) | on the desk |
| 下 (shita), under | (beddo no shita) | under the bed |
| 中 (naka), in, inside | (hondana no naka) | in the bookshelf |
| (yoko), next to, beside | (mado no yoko) | next to the window |
More in the grammar: The particles と, も, の, や, から and まで · あります and います · い-adjectives and な-adjectives · です and basic sentences
New words
- どうぞdōzoplease (come in, go ahead, have one) · When you invite someone in or offer something.
- きれいkireiclean, pretty, nice · A な-adjective, though it ends in い: (kirei na heya)
- 部屋heyaroom; flat · へや
- 新しいatarashiinew · あたらしい
- 広いhiroispacious, big (room, space) · ひろい
- 狭いsemaismall, cramped (room, space) · せまい
- 台所daidokorokitchen · だいどころ
- 明るいakaruibright, light · あかるい
- 窓madowindow · まど
- 机tsukuedesk · つくえ
- いすisuchair · Also written (isu), but usually in kana.
- 猫nekocat · ねこ
- ベッドbeddobed
- 本棚hondanabookshelf · ほんだな
Practise
1.How do you say “a nice room”?
2.Put the words in order: say the cat is under the bed.
Tap the words below in the right order.The cat is under the bed.
3.Match the Japanese with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.Make this negative: (hiroi desu), it's spacious.
5.Which colour takes (no) before a noun?
6.Put the words in order: say there's a desk and a chair in front of the window.
Tap the words below in the right order.There's a desk and a chair in front of the window.
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
きれいな部屋ですね。
Kirei na heya desu ne.
What a nice room.
Listen, then say it out loud, as close to the recording as you can.
Check
Five questions on this chapter. Then mark it as finished to add its words to your review deck.
0 of 5 answered.