I66: Uta mo umai

[andycarmenjapanese8100]

だって、四次元ポケット持ってるじゃん。ドラミちゃん歌もうまいし。楽しいって。
Datte, Yojigen Poketto motte ru jan. Dorami-chan uta mo umai shi, Tanoshii tte.
Because she has the four-dimensional pocket. Dorami-chan is also good at singing. She's fun, I'm telling you!

Uta - song
umai - skillful

How can a song be skillful? I'd understand "utau koto ga jouzu da shi" because "utau" is a verb, "uta" is not.

[mmmason8967]

I think you have to take uta ga umai as a set noun-ga-adjective phrase, like atama ga ii or se ga takai. I suppose you can translate it as "songs are done well" or something like that, in the same way you could translate sakana ga suki as "fish is likeable". Searching for 歌が上手い (uta ga umai) on YouTube leaves you in little doubt that "great singer" is going to be a better translation.

マイケル

[andycarmenjapanese8100]

I don't know how this structure would be used. If "uta" can be used in "good at singing" I wonder if...

"hon ga umai"

...could be used for "good at reading"? Or would it be "good at writing"?

[community.japanese]

マイケルさん、
どうもありがとうございます。

andycarmenjapanese8100 san,

konnichiwa.
As マイケルさんsaid you have to add a particle.
The actual sentence is ドラミちゃんはorが歌もうまい which means Domami is good at singing.
As you know umai here indicates skilful so the subject must be a person or living thing who can sing.

Unfortunately we don’t say 本が上手い　or 読書が上手い.
However, 書くことが上手い is ok.　


Yuki 　由紀。
Team JapanesePod101.com

[andycarmenjapanese8100]

Is there any other sentence where the "<something> ga umai" structure is used other than "uta ga umai"? Can you give some examples, please?

Thanks Yuki.

[community.japanese]

andycarmenjapanese8100 san,

Examples are

ドラみちゃんは料理が上手い Dorami is good at cooking.
ドラみちゃんはピアノが上手い Dorami is good at playing the piano
ドラみちゃんは書道が上手い Dorami is good at calligraphy.

Yuki 　由紀。
Team JapanesePod101.com

[andycarmenjapanese8100]

Those are very clear. Thanks!

[mmmason8967]

An interesting variant I came across on Google is 口が上手い, kuchi ga umai, which means smooth-talking, glib or silver-tongued.

マイケル

[team.relationships]

andycarmenjapanese8100 san,

I'm glad you found Yuki-sensei's examples helpful!
Please let us know if you have any more questions!

Engla
Team JapanesePod101.com

[eloquentyttop_503553]

hose are very clear. Thanks!












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Fifa coins

[community.japanese]

Eloquentyttop　さん、
Konnichiwa.
Thank you for the comment.
Yuki 由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com