Learn how to talk about current actions using the -te iru / -te imasu construction
Get a breakdown of the dialogue and translations instantly with the Premium line-by-line Audio. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Get this lesson’s key vocab, their translations and pronunciations. Sign up for your Free Lifetime Account Now and get 7 Days of Premium Access including this feature.
Unlock Lesson Notes and Transcripts for every single lesson. Sign Up for a Free Lifetime Account and Get 7 Days of Premium Access.
| Welcome to learn Japanese grammar absolute beginner. In this video series, you learn basic Japanese grammar patterns and phrases through easy to follow audio and visual cues. Here is what we will cover in this lesson. Ready? Let’s get started. |
| 僕は仕事をしています。 (Boku wa shigoto o shite imasu.) |
| Naomi: We will be focusing on the usage of te-form of a verb plus いる (iru) or います (imasu) |
| Peter: It’s like the ing in doing in English. To make this construction, we put the verb in the te-form and add, |
| Naomi: いる (iru) |
| Peter: Or |
| Naomi: います (imasu). |
| Peter: The polite form. For now, we will stick to formal speech. So let’s use います (imasu) for this lesson. |
| Naomi: 僕は仕事をしています。 (Boku wa shigoto o shite imasu.) |
| Peter: Literally I am doing work. It means I am working or I am doing my job. |
| Naomi: The original phrase is 僕は仕事をする (Boku wa shigoto o suru). I work. |
| Peter: To form the present progressive, the ing, change the verb する (suru) to its te-form. |
| Naomi: So する (suru) becomes して (shite) . |
| Peter: Then we add います (imasu). |
| Naomi: しています (shite imasu) |
| Peter: Doing. So, |
| Naomi: 僕は仕事をする。 (Boku wa shigoto o suru.) |
| Peter: “I work” becomes |
| Naomi: 僕は仕事をしています。 (Boku wa shigoto o shite imasu.) |
| Peter: I am working. |
| Naomi: How about this sentence? 私は朝ご飯を食べる。 (Watashi wa asa gohan o taberu.) |
| Peter: I eat breakfast. So let’s change the verb to eat which is |
| Naomi: 食べる (taberu) |
| Peter: The te-form is? |
| Naomi: 食べて (tabete) |
| Peter: So add います (imasu), |
| Naomi: 食べています (tabete imasu) |
| Peter: Eating. |
| Naomi: So 私は朝食を食べています。 (Watashi wa chōshoku o tabete imasu.) |
| Peter: I am eating breakfast. And in this sentence, the person is actually in the middle of doing the act. Let’s try with another verb. How do you say to take a picture? |
| Naomi: Picture is 写真 (shashin). To take is 撮る (toru). So, 写真を撮る (shashin o toru) |
| Peter: To take a picture. |
| Okay let’s change the verb 撮る (toru) to take to the te-form. |
| Naomi: 撮って (totte) |
| Peter: Add います (imasu) |
| Naomi: 撮っています (totte imasu) |
| Peter: Taking. |
| Naomi: 写真を撮っています。 (Shashin o totte imasu.) |
| Peter: Taking a picture. |
| Naomi: 一郎さんは写真を撮っています。 (Ichirō-san wa shashin o totte imasu.) |
| Peter: Ichiro is taking pictures. Now let’s form a question sentence. How do you say, what are you doing? |
| Naomi: Isn’t that a big jump? |
| Peter: Not for Japanese. |
| Naomi: Okay let’s start with 私は仕事をしています。 (Watashi wa shigoto o shite imasu.) |
| Peter: I am working. |
| Naomi: The yes/no question would be 仕事をしていますか。 (Shigoto o shite imasu ka.) |
| Peter: Are you working? |
| Naomi: Then replace 仕事 (shigoto) |
| Peter: Work |
| Naomi: With 何 (nani) |
| Peter: What. |
| Naomi: So, 何をしていますか。 (Nani o shite imasu ka?) |
| Peter: Literally what doing? Of course, it means what are you doing? |
| Naomi: 僕は仕事をしています。 (Boku wa shigoto o shite imasu.) |
| Want more Japanese lessons like this one? Visit us at japanesepod101.com to get your free lifetime account today. Join now at japanesepod101.com |
Comments
Hide