Japanese · Intermediate (B1) · Chapter 9 of 12
Health and lifestyle
健康と生活習慣Kenkō to seikatsu shūkan
Talk about health and habits in Japanese: the causative (食べさせる), ～ようにする, ～ようだ／みたい, ～ないといけない and ～ことにする.
In this chapter you'll learn to
- Say who makes or lets someone do something with the causative
- Give and follow advice with ～ようにする and ～ないといけない
- Say what seems to be the case with ～ようだ and ～みたい
- Announce a decision with ～ことにする
Listen
At a clinic in Niigata, Dr Mori Emiko goes through the results of a health check with Takeuchi Osamu, 55. Listen to the whole dialogue first, then line by line.
Dr Mori
竹内さん、先月の健康診断の結果ですが、血圧が少し高めですね。
Takeuchi-san, sengetsu no kenkō shindan no kekka desu ga, ketsuatsu ga sukoshi takame desu ne.
Mr Takeuchi, about the results of last month's health check: your blood pressure is a little on the high side.
Takeuchi
そうですか。最近、よく頭が痛くなるんです。
Sō desu ka. Saikin, yoku atama ga itaku naru n desu.
I see. I've been getting a lot of headaches lately.
Dr Mori
少し生活習慣を変えたほうがいいですね。毎日どのくらい歩いていますか。
Sukoshi seikatsu shūkan o kaeta hō ga ii desu ne. Mainichi dono kurai aruite imasu ka.
It would be good to change your habits a little. How much do you walk every day?
Takeuchi
会社まで車なので、あまり歩いていません。
Kaisha made kuruma na node, amari aruite imasen.
I drive to work, so I don't walk much.
Dr Mori
運動不足のようですね。できるだけ階段を使うようにしてください。週末に散歩をするのもいいですよ。食事はどうですか。
Undō busoku no yō desu ne. Dekiru dake kaidan o tsukau yō ni shite kudasai. Shūmatsu ni sanpo o suru no mo ii desu yo. Shokuji wa dō desu ka.
It seems you don't get enough exercise. Try to take the stairs as much as you can. Going for a walk at the weekend is good too. What about your diet?
Takeuchi
妻が私の血圧を心配しているみたいで、毎日野菜をたくさん食べさせるんです。ただ、昼はよくラーメンを食べます。
Tsuma ga watashi no ketsuatsu o shinpai shite iru mitai de, mainichi yasai o takusan tabesaseru n desu. Tada, hiru wa yoku rāmen o tabemasu.
My wife seems to be worried about my blood pressure, so she makes me eat lots of vegetables every day. But I often have ramen for lunch.
Dr Mori
ラーメンのスープは塩分が多いので、控えたほうがいいですね。スープは残すようにしましょう。それから、たばこは吸いますか。
Rāmen no sūpu wa enbun ga ōi node, hikaeta hō ga ii desu ne. Sūpu wa nokosu yō ni shimashō. Sorekara, tabako wa suimasu ka.
Ramen soup has a lot of salt, so it's best to cut down. Make a habit of leaving the soup. And do you smoke?
Takeuchi
一日十本ぐらい吸います。やめないといけないとは思っているんですが…
Ichinichi juppon gurai suimasu. Yamenai to ikenai to wa omotte iru n desu ga…
About ten cigarettes a day. I do know I have to stop, but…
Dr Mori
血圧のためにも、ぜひ禁煙してください。睡眠は毎日何時間ぐらいですか。
Ketsuatsu no tame ni mo, zehi kin'en shite kudasai. Suimin wa mainichi nanjikan gurai desu ka.
For your blood pressure too, please do give up smoking. How many hours do you sleep a night?
Takeuchi
六時間ぐらいです。…わかりました。今日から、たばこをやめることにします。
Rokujikan gurai desu. … Wakarimashita. Kyō kara, tabako o yameru koto ni shimasu.
About six hours. … All right. I've decided: I'll stop smoking from today.
Dr Mori
いいですね。睡眠も七時間はとるようにしましょう。無理をしないで、続けることが大事です。一か月後に、もう一度血圧を測らせてください。
Ii desu ne. Suimin mo nanajikan wa toru yō ni shimashō. Muri o shinaide, tsuzukeru koto ga daiji desu. Ikkagetsu go ni, mō ichido ketsuatsu o hakarasete kudasai.
Good. Try to get at least seven hours' sleep, too. Don't overdo it: what matters is keeping it up. In a month, let me take your blood pressure again.
Takeuchi
わかりました。妻も喜ぶと思います。ありがとうございました。
Wakarimashita. Tsuma mo yorokobu to omoimasu. Arigatō gozaimashita.
All right. I think my wife will be pleased too. Thank you very much.
Understand
Making and letting: the causative
The causative says that someone makes or lets another person do something. Ru-verbs add (saseru) to the stem: (tabesaseru). U-verbs change the last sound to the a-row and add (seru): → (yasumaseru), → (iwaseru). Irregular: (saseru), (kosaseru). The causative is a ru-verb itself.
The person who is made to act takes (ni) when the verb has an object: (tsuma ga watashi ni yasai o tabesaseru), my wife makes me eat vegetables. Without an object, the person usually takes (o): (kodomo o asobaseru), to let the children play. Whether it means “make” or “let” depends on the situation.
The causative te-form + (kudasai) asks for permission to do something yourself: (ketsuatsu o hakarasete kudasai), let me take your blood pressure. ～させていただけますか (-sasete itadakemasu ka) is the most polite version.
| Verb | Causative | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (taberu) | (tabesaseru) | (Kodomo ni yasai o tabesaseru.) I make my child eat vegetables. |
| (yasumu) | (yasumaseru) | (Netsu ga aru shain o yasumaseta.) We let the employee with a fever take time off. |
| (hakaru) | (hakaraseru) | (Ketsuatsu o hakarasete kudasai.) Let me take your blood pressure. |
| (suru) | (saseru) | (Musuko ni sōji o saseru.) I make my son do the cleaning. |
Habits and decisions: ～ようにする, ～ないといけない, ～ことにする
～ようにする (yō ni suru) after a plain form means “make a point of”, “try to”: (kaidan o tsukau yō ni shite iru), I make a point of taking the stairs. Doctors use ～ようにしてください (yō ni shite kudasai) for advice about habits; after a negative it means “try not to”: (tabesuginai yō ni shite kudasai), try not to overeat.
～ないといけない (-nai to ikenai) after the ない-form is the everyday spoken “must”, less formal than ～なければなりません: (yamenai to ikenai), I have to stop.
～ことにする (koto ni suru) after the dictionary form means “decide to”: (tabako o yameru koto ni shimasu), I've decided to stop smoking. ～ことにした (koto ni shita) reports a decision already made.
- 毎朝三十分歩くようにしています。Maiasa sanjuppun aruku yō ni shite imasu.I make a point of walking for thirty minutes every morning.
- 明日は早く起きないといけない。Ashita wa hayaku okinai to ikenai.I have to get up early tomorrow.
- 来月からジムに通うことにしました。Raigetsu kara jimu ni kayou koto ni shimashita.I've decided to start going to the gym next month.
It seems: ～ようだ and ～みたい
(yō da) and (mitai) mean “it seems”, “it looks as if”, when you draw a conclusion from what you have seen or noticed: (undō busoku no yō desu ne), it seems you don't get enough exercise. is a little more formal; is everyday speech.
Both follow a plain form. After a noun, use before but nothing before ; after a な-adjective, before and nothing before . Compare the three “seem” forms you now know: ～そうだ after a plain form is hearsay (I hear), ～そう after a stem is how something looks, and or is your own conclusion from evidence.
| Before | ||
|---|---|---|
| verb | (shinpai shite iru yō da) | (shinpai shite iru mitai) |
| い-adjective | (takai yō da) | (takai mitai) |
| な-adjective | (genki na yō da) | (genki mitai) |
| noun | (undō busoku no yō da) | (undō busoku mitai) |
More in the grammar: Advice and obligation · Seems and hearsay: ～そう, ～よう, ～らしい · The causative and causative-passive · Turning verbs into nouns: の and こと
New words
- 健康診断kenkō shindanhealth check, medical check-up · けんこうしんだん
- 血圧ketsuatsublood pressure · けつあつ; (ketsuatsu o hakaru), to take someone's blood pressure
- 高めtakameon the high side · たかめ; -め added to an adjective stem: (hayame), a bit early
- 生活習慣seikatsu shūkanlifestyle, daily habits · せいかつしゅうかん; (seikatsu shūkan o kaeru), to change your habits
- 運動不足undō busokulack of exercise · うんどうぶそく
- 階段kaidanstairs · かいだん
- 散歩sanpowalk, stroll · さんぽ; (sanpo o suru), to go for a walk
- 妻tsuma(my) wife · つま; someone else's wife is (okusan)
- 塩分enbunsalt (in food) · えんぶん
- 控えるhikaeruto cut down on · ひかえる; (osake o hikaeru), to drink less
- 禁煙kin'engiving up smoking; no smoking · きんえん; (kin'en suru), to give up smoking; (tabako o suu), to smoke; (yameru), to stop, to give up
- 睡眠suiminsleep · すいみん; (suimin o toru), to get sleep
- 無理murioverdoing it; impossible · むり; (muri o shinaide), don't overdo it
- 続けるtsuzukeruto continue, to keep up · つづける
Practise
1.What is the causative of (taberu), “make someone eat”?
2.The doctor gives advice. Put the words in order.
Tap the words below in the right order.Try to take the stairs as much as you can.
3.Match the Japanese with the English.
Pick a word on the left, then its meaning on the right.
4.You don't feel well and want to ask your manager to let you go home early. What do you say?
5.What does (kyō kara, tabako o yameru koto ni shimasu) mean?
6.A friend has been ill, but you saw her laughing today. How do you say “She seems fine now” in casual speech?
0 of 6 exercises done.
Say it out loud
毎日歩くようにしています。
Mainichi aruku yō ni shite imasu.
I make a point of walking every day.
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.