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| INTRODUCTION |
| Sachiko : Bad cold. |
| Natsuko : 夏子です。 (Natsuko desu.) |
| Sachiko : Sachiko here and it’s that time of year again where people are getting bad colds. |
| Natsuko : Umm. Recently there was a very cold day in Tokyo. |
| Sachiko : Yeah. |
| Natsuko : And I almost got a bad cold. |
| Sachiko : Yeah it’s been crazy. There was one Sunday that was really, really bright and sunny and I was walking out in a T-Shirt but the day before and after that, it was freezing cold. |
| Natsuko : Yes, right. |
| Sachiko : It even snowed. |
| Natsuko : Yeah it snowed the other day and this is like early April. |
| Sachiko : Yeah the cherry blossoms are blooming but it’s snowing. |
| Natsuko : It’s crazy. I don’t know what is happening here. Really, really scary to be honest with you. |
| Sachiko : But – anyways but we can always learn from this. Let’s listen to the conversation in which one of the characters has a bad cold. |
| Natsuko : Oh too bad. |
| Sachiko : Yeah 可哀想に (kawaisōni). |
| DIALOGUE |
| 坂本: (坂本さんと山下さんが道で偶然出会う 。)(弱々しく)あら、山下さんこんにちは。 ([Sakamoto-san to Yamashita-san ga michi de gūzen deau.] [Yowayowashiku)] Ara, Yamashita-san konnichiwa.) |
| 山下: あー!坂本さんこんにちは。元気ですか。 (Ā! Sakamoto-san konnichiwa. Genki desu ka.) |
| 坂本: それが....クシュンクシュン(くしゃみ)、コンコンコン(咳)昨日から風邪をひいていて....コン!コン!.....元気じゃありません。 (Sore ga.... Kushunkushun(kusyami), Konkonkon (seki) kinō kara |
| kaze o hiite ite.... Kon! Kon!..... Genki ja arimasen.) |
| 山下: まあ、それは大変ですね。大丈夫ですか。 (Mā, sore wa taihen desu ne. Daijōbu desu ka.) |
| 坂本: あんまり大丈夫じゃないです。これから薬屋さんへよって、家に帰ります。お粥を食べて、そして寝ます。おやすみなさい。 (Anmari daijōbu ja nai desu. Korekara kusuriya-san e yotte, ie ni kaerimasu. O-kayu o tabete, soshite nemasu. Oyasuminasai.) |
| 山下: おやすみなさい?まだ午後なんだけど。本当に大丈夫かな? (Oyasuminasai? Mada gogo nanda kedo. Hontō ni daijōbu ka na?) |
| もう一度、お願いします。ゆっくり、お願いします。 (Mōichido, onegaishimasu. Yukkuri, onegaishimasu) |
| 坂本: (坂本さんと山下さんが道で偶然出会う 。)(弱々しく)あら、山下さんこんにちは。 ([Sakamoto-san to Yamashita-san ga michi de gūzen deau.] [Yowayowashiku)] Ara, Yamashita-san konnichiwa.) |
| 山下: あー!坂本さんこんにちは。元気ですか。 (Ā! Sakamoto-san konnichiwa. Genki desu ka.) |
| 坂本: それが....クシュンクシュン(くしゃみ)、コンコンコン(咳)昨日から風邪をひいていて....コン!コン!.....元気じゃありません。 (Sore ga.... Kushunkushun(kusyami), Konkonkon (seki) kinō kara |
| kaze o hiite ite.... Kon! Kon!..... Genki ja arimasen.) |
| 山下: まあ、それは大変ですね。大丈夫ですか。 (Mā, sore wa taihen desu ne. Daijōbu desu ka.) |
| 坂本: あんまり大丈夫じゃないです。これから薬屋さんへよって、家に帰ります。お粥を食べて、そして寝ます。おやすみなさい。 (Anmari daijōbu ja nai desu. Korekara kusuriya-san e yotte, ie ni kaerimasu. O-kayu o tabete, soshite nemasu. Oyasuminasai.) |
| 山下: おやすみなさい?まだ午後なんだけど。本当に大丈夫かな? (Oyasuminasai? Mada gogo nanda kedo. Hontō ni daijōbu ka na?) |
| 次は英語が入ります。 (Tsugi wa eigo ga hairimasu.) |
| 坂本: (坂本さんと山下さんが道で偶然出会う 。)(弱々しく)あら、山下さんこんにちは。 ([Sakamoto-san to Yamashita-san ga michi de gūzen deau.] [Yowayowashiku] ara, Yamashita-san kon'nichiwa.) |
| (Sakamoto-san and Yamashita-san meet up with each other on the street.)(lamely) Hey, Yamashita-san. |
| 山下: あー!坂本さんこんにちは。元気ですか。 (A ̄ ! Sakamoto-san kon'nichiwa. Genki desu ka.) |
| Hey! Sakamoto-san, how are you doing? |
| 坂本: それが....クシュンクシュン(くしゃみ)、コンコンコン(咳)昨日から風邪をひいていて....コン!コン!.....元気じゃありません。 () |
| Well... Achoo! Cough! I got a cold yesterday. Cough! Cough! I'm actually not fine. |
| 山下: まあ、それは大変ですね。 (Mā, sore wa taihen desu ne.) |
| That's too bad. |
| 大丈夫ですか。 (Daijōbu desuka.) |
| Are you OK? |
| 坂本: あんまり大丈夫じゃないです。これから薬屋さんへよって、家に帰ります。 (Anmari daijōbu janai desu. Korekara kusuriyasan e yotte,-ka ni kaerimasu.) |
| Actually I'm not really fine. I'm gonna go to the pharmacy and then head home. |
| お粥を食べて、そして寝ます。 (O kayu o tabete, soshite nemasu.) |
| I'll eat some rice porridge and then just go to bed. |
| おやすみなさい。 (Oyasuminasai.) |
| Good night. |
| 山下: おやすみなさい? (Oyasuminasai?) |
| Good night? |
| まだ午後なんだけど。 (Mada gogona ndakedo.) |
| It's still the afternoon. |
| 本当に大丈夫かな? (Hontōni daijōbukana?) |
| I wonder if she is really OK. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Natsuko: 夏子さん、この会話について、どう思いましたか。 (Natsukosan, kono kaiwa ni tsuite, dō omoimashita ka.) |
| Natsuko : 可哀想な坂本さん。 (Kawaisōna Sakamoto-san.) |
| Sachiko :Yeah poor Sakamoto-san, she is sick. She sounded really sick. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Sachiko :Well let’s look at the vocabulary for today. What’s our first word? |
| Natsuko : 元気 (genki) |
| Sachiko : Healthy, robust. |
| Natsuko : (slow)げんき (genki) (natural speed)元気 (genki) |
| Sachiko : And this is the word we use to ask how are you as well. |
| Natsuko : Right. |
| Sachiko : And how would you say that? |
| Natsuko: 元気 (genki) or 元気ですか (genki desu ka). So the first one 元気 (genki) is the casual form. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: And 元気ですか (genki desu ka) is more polite form. |
| Sachiko: Yes and if you want to be much politer, お元気ですか (ogenki desu ka). |
| Natsuko: Right. |
| Sachiko: Putting an お (o) in front of a noun always makes it really bit more polite. |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: Great. Next word please. |
| Natsuko: 昨日 (kinō) |
| Sachiko: Yesterday. |
| Natsuko: (slow)きのう (kinō) (natural speed) 昨日 (kinō) |
| Sachiko: How would you say yesterday I was in bed with the cold? |
| Natsuko: 昨日は風邪で寝ていました。 (Kinō wa kaze de nete imashita.) |
| Sachiko: So literally it’s yesterday cold with I was in bed. 昨日は風邪で寝ていました。 (Kinō wa kaze de nete imashita.) Next word please. |
| Natsuko: 風邪 (kaze) |
| Sachiko: Cold, illness. |
| Natsuko: (slow)かぜ (kaze) (natural speed) 風邪 (kaze) |
| Sachiko: Now Natsuko-san, this sounds like the word for wind as well. |
| Natsuko: Yes it’s the same pronunciation and the first kanji used for this cold is the same with the wind. So it’s the same character. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: But… |
| Sachiko: Same character is used but the second one is something else and combined, you read it 風邪 (kaze) |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: So don’t get confused but you can usually tell from the context right. |
| Natsuko: Exactly. |
| Sachiko: Because you would never say you are in bed with a wind. That would be a little bit weird. Okay next word please. |
| Natsuko: 大変 (taihen) |
| Sachiko: Serious, terrible. |
| Natsuko: (slow)たいへん (taihen) (natural speed) 大変 (taihen) |
| Sachiko: So if I were caught in an emergency, could I just scream 大変 (taihen)！ |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: Would that make any sense? |
| Natsuko: Yes, survival phrase. |
| Sachiko: Uhh so if something happens to you, if you are mugged, if you are, I don’t know, if someone takes your wallet, you just say 大変 (taihen)！ |
| Natsuko: Yes. So someone else knows that something terrible happened to you. |
| Sachiko: Right, so it’s a serious situation that commands attention. Next word please. |
| Natsuko: 大丈夫 (daijōbu) |
| Sachiko: All right, okay. |
| Natsuko: (slow)だいじょうぶ (daijōbu) (natural speed) 大丈夫 (daijōbu) |
| Sachiko: So can you use this word to say are you okay to a friend who is sick? Yes you can use this word as is to ask the condition. |
| Natsuko: 大丈夫？ (Daijōbu?) |
| Sachiko: Wow so it’s just the word but the intonation goes up a little bit because you are asking the question. |
| Natsuko: Right again if you want to be polite, you add ですか (desu ka) the copula です (desu) and か (ka) which turns a sentence into an interrogative. |
| Sachiko: Right making it 大丈夫ですか (daijōbu desu ka) are you okay in the polite form. |
| Natsuko: Yes. Today’s words are so useful. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: I love this lesson. |
| Sachiko: Okay next word please. |
| Natsuko: 薬屋 (kusuriya) |
| Sachiko: Pharmacy. |
| Natsuko: (slow)くすりや (kusuriya) (natural speed) 薬屋 (kusuriya) |
| Sachiko: Now this is made up of two words I guess. |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: So the first word 薬 (kusuri) means |
| Natsuko: Medicine. 屋 (ya) is |
| Sachiko: It’s originally a word for building or a house. |
| Natsuko: Okay. |
| Sachiko: So the medicine house where you buy your medicine. Pharmacy, drugstore. |
| Natsuko: Yes. Can this be applied for other businesses as well? |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: What about a store that sells rice? |
| Sachiko: 米屋 (yoneya) Rice house or a rice store. |
| Natsuko: Yes. Pretty simple. How about 魚屋 (sakanaya) |
| Sachiko: A store that sells fish. So it can be combined with almost any kind of noun. |
| Natsuko: I think so. Yes in the conversation, 坂本さん (sakamoto-san) mentioned 薬屋さん (kusuriyasan). So she is calling the drugstore by San which is usually used for a person’s name. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: Why is she doing that? |
| Sachiko: This is a custom often used by female speakers. |
| Natsuko: And are they trying to be polite or...? |
| Sachiko: Yes, it is polite. |
| Natsuko: Great. |
| Sachiko: And also I think it has a kind of intimate nuance. |
| Natsuko: Right. |
| Sachiko: Calling the store like someone you know. |
| Natsuko: So it’s like oh dear little pharmacy. Oh dear little fish store. |
| Sachiko: Well it may be not quite like that but it sounds you know, it suggests that the person is familiar with that store. |
| Natsuko: So it’s really like saying the local drugstore |
| Sachiko: Yeah. |
| Natsuko: Or the drugstore that I go to usually. |
| Sachiko: Yes exactly. It does sound kind of nice. |
| Natsuko: It does. |
| Sachiko: Now would it be terribly awkward if a man used that? |
| Natsuko: Not really. |
| Sachiko: Okay. |
| Natsuko: But it’s frequently used by females. |
| Sachiko: Great, keep that in mind. Okay next word please. |
| Natsuko: 帰る (kaeru) |
| Sachiko: To go back. |
| Natsuko: (slow)かえる (kaeru) (natural speed) 帰る (kaeru) |
| Sachiko: Now this sounds awfully like the word for frog. |
| Natsuko: Umm I don’t like frogs. |
| Sachiko: Oh sorry. Oh yeah I can see you shaking but can you tell us the difference in intonation between those two words? |
| Natsuko: Okay 帰る (kaeru) |
| Sachiko: To return, to go back. |
| Natsuko: 蛙 (kaeru) |
| Sachiko: Frog. So when you say frog, the intonation goes up in the second letter 蛙 (kaeru) |
| Natsuko: Yes 蛙 (kaeru) |
| Sachiko: So 帰る途中に蛙に会った (kaeru tochū ni kaeru ni atta)。 I met a frog on my way home. That’s like Natsuko’s biggest nightmare. Yes. Let’s hope that never happens. Next word please. |
| Natsuko: 寝る (neru) |
| Sachiko: To go to bed. |
| Natsuko: (slow)ねる (neru) (natural speed) 寝る (neru) |
| Sachiko: Next word please. |
| Natsuko: お粥 (o kayu) |
| Sachiko: Rice porridge. |
| Natsuko: (slow)おかゆ (okayu) (natural speed) お粥 (o kayu) |
| Sachiko: So the お (o) at the beginning of the word, is that the honorific form お (o). |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: So the real word is 粥 (kayu) |
| Natsuko: Uhoo.. |
| Sachiko: Does anybody say that 粥 (kayu)？ |
| Natsuko: Hardly. Some words they just sound more natural with a お (o) stuck on it. It’s just – it happened to be like that. |
| Sachiko: Right. |
| Natsuko: It just kind of evolved into a word in and of itself. |
| Sachiko: Yes I see. So when you are in bed with a cold |
| Natsuko: 風邪で寝てる時はお粥を食べます。 (Kaze de ne teru toki wa o kayu o tabemasu.) |
| Sachiko: Yes, so if you wanted to say, I am in bed with a cold and I am eating rice porridge, what would you say? |
| Natsuko: 風邪で寝ていてお粥を食べます。 (Kaze de nete ite o kayu o tabemasu.) |
| Sachiko: Now is rice porridge something that Japanese people eat when they are sick? |
| Natsuko: Yes I think so. |
| Sachiko: Why not pizza? Why not cheese burgers? That’s what I feel like eating. |
| Natsuko: Oh really? I prefer お粥 (o kayu). |
| Sachiko: Now what exactly is this? It’s rice with some water – in hot water. |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: Do we add any condiments to it like… |
| Natsuko: Usually salt or maybe 梅干 (umeboshi). |
| Sachiko: Ah those sort of tickled plums. |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: Nice. Is that supposed to be good for your digestion? |
| Natsuko: I think so. That’s why you eat it when you are sick. |
| Sachiko: Ah okay well your お粥 (o kayu) is my pizza. So Fuu! |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Sachiko: Let’s check out today’s grammar point. Natsuko-san, take it away. |
| Natsuko: I think it’s called onomatopoeia or something like that? |
| Sachiko: I have never heard of that before. What is that? |
| Natsuko: Well it’s a word that describes the sound. |
| Sachiko: Okay. |
| Natsuko: It describes the condition using the sound that it makes. |
| Sachiko: Right. |
| Natsuko: There are so many of these in Japanese. |
| Sachiko: Right. |
| Natsuko: And there are many, many ways of describing one thing. For example, the way you cry |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: Depending on how you cry, it can sound totally different. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: For example, えーんえーん (e ̄ n e ̄ n) Is that sort of like a child crying? It’s the image I get. |
| Sachiko: Yeah okay. Or シクシク (shikushiku). |
| Sachiko: That sounds like a woman crying quietly. Sort of maybe she is trying to keep it to herself but she can’t help the tears pouring out. |
| Natsuko: Yes, right. |
| Sachiko: So it sounds soft. シクシク。 (Shikushiku.) |
| Natsuko: Okay what else? |
| Sachiko: Or ワーワー (wāwā). |
| Natsuko: That sounds like someone bawling, just screaming in out of control sort of ワーワー (wāwā). |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: Okay I hope I never do that in public. |
| Sachiko: Better not. |
| Natsuko: What about laughter? What kind of ways can we laugh? |
| Sachiko: Oh how about クスクス (kusukusu). |
| Natsuko: That sounds like you are trying to hold it in like it’s kind of leaking out. クスクスクス (kusukusukusu). And your shoulders are a bit shaky… |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: And you are smiling and you are breaking out. |
| Sachiko: Okay what else? |
| Natsuko: ケラケラ。 (Kerakera.) That sounds a little bit more loud and active. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: And it’s yes, it’s kind of joyous. It’s a happy occasion. |
| Sachiko: Yes umm maybe. |
| Natsuko: Or this one ワッハッハ (wahhahha). I am picturing someone opening their mouths really wide and holding their stomach because they are in such pain from laughing too much and is that correct? Is that? |
| Sachiko: Yes it’s kind of like that. Very party kind of laugh. |
| Natsuko: Ah that’s right. |
| Sachiko: Yeah ワッハッハ。 (Wahhahha.) |
| Natsuko: The person is making no effort to hold it in. They are just letting it all out. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: Sounds like the Japanese podcast? |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: We always laugh ワッハッハ (wahhahha). |
| Sachiko: Yes we do. We have no manners whatsoever. |
| Natsuko: Excuse me. Great so Japanese has a lot of these and in Japanese we call them 擬音語 (gion-go) |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: And the word 音 (oto) means sound. |
| Sachiko: Right. |
| Natsuko: So it’s a word describing a condition using the sound it makes. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: The kanji 擬 (gi) means to imitate. |
| Sachiko: Ah I see, I see. |
| Natsuko: You are kind of imitating the sound and it’s the word that imitates sound. |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: You will definitely have to go into the PDF to check out the character for this. It’s really, really useful. Even though it looks a little bit complicated, it’s a useful kanji, the first kanji. |
| Sachiko: Uhoo… |
| Natsuko: So now that we got the happy sounds out of the way, let’s look at the sounds you make when you are sick. |
| Sachiko: Oh yes, used in this conversation. |
| Natsuko: Yes. |
| Sachiko: What were they? |
| Natsuko: くしゅんくしゅん。 (Kushunkushun.) |
| Sachiko: That sounds like a sneeze. Am I right? |
| Natsuko: Yes you are right. |
| Sachiko: So usually in English we say, achoo which is kind of ahh, gross but in Japanese we say クシュンクシュン (kushunkushun). |
| Natsuko: Kind of cute. |
| Sachiko: But sounds similar, doesn’t it? |
| Natsuko: I guess it does. What else came up in the conversation? |
| Sachiko: コンコン (konkon) |
| Natsuko: Is that a cough? |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: Is that what it is? |
| Sachiko: Yes. |
| Natsuko: コンコン。 (Konkon.) In Japanese, you describe coughs コンコン (konkon) because that’s what it sounds like I guess. |
| Sachiko: Uhoo. |
| Natsuko: It does but maybe you know someone outside Japan, it may not sound that way. Did you know, this is sort of going off topic! Did you know animals make different sounds in different cultures? |
| Sachiko: Exactly. |
| Natsuko: It’s completely different. |
| Sachiko: That’s one of the very good example for 擬音語 (gion-go) right? |
| Natsuko: Right definitely. Amazing it’s the same bodily functions and yet in a different culture, it sounds different but we all agree they are gross yeah. |
Outro |
| Sachiko: Yes, the universe. We are all brothers in the end. |
| Natsuko: それじゃあ、またね。 (Sore jā, mata ne.) |
| Sachiko: See you soon. |
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