Upper Intermediate Lesson S2 #18 – Japanese Superstitions: Fact or Fiction? Every culture has interesting superstitions. For example, what do you do when you spill salt? What about if you accidentally break a mirror? People do an array of interesting things to keep bad luck from coming their way. Have you ever heard of Feng Shui? If not, you might want to read this lesson before you redecorate your home!
This upper intermediate Japanese lesson introduces you to some fascinating Japanese superstitions, and more are to come in this three-part series. In this lesson, learn to use kanenai to talk about the possibility of something bad happening. Discuss the consequences of people’s poor decisions using the Japanese vocabulary words and sentence structures you will master in this JapanesePod101.com lesson.

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Learn Japanese with JapanesePod101.com! In the last lesson, you mastered the basics of speaking in the passive voice. This skill is critical to speaking natural-sounding Japanese, so this lesson delves a bit deeper. Often, Japanese sentences are formed so that the person receiving an action is the subject of the sentence. One example is, “I was sent an email from Kanoko.” You’ll find that many Japanese sentences sound more natural in the passive voice. So, to speak Japanese well, you must be a master of the passive voice.
In this lower intermediate Japanese lesson, learn even more about speaking Japanese in the passive voice. Discover how watashi (receiver of action) becomes the subject in Japanese passive sentences. And, learn when to use the passive voice along with vocabulary words to make your passive Japanese sound like second nature. This is one awesome JapanesePod101.com lesson!

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There are a whole lot of English expressions that use the word “hand.” Japanese is no different. You might want to say, “You won’t get your hands on her money!” Or, you might want to say something subtle like, “I haven’t started my paper yet.” Believe it or not, both of these statements utilize the Japanese expression that means “to put your hand on something.” The possibilities for using this expression are endless.
Use this upper intermediate Japanese lesson to master tsukeru (to put your hand on something). Learn popular phrases such as 手を引こうかな。(to withdraw one’s hand, give up). And, discover how to ask for someone to give you a hand (favor) in Japanese. Finally, get your hands on the helpful Japanese vocabulary words in the JapanesePod101.com lesson.

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Learn Japanese with JapanesePod101.com! Without even realizing it, you speak in the passive voice all the time. Instead of saying, “My mother yelled at me,” you might say, “I was yelled at by my mother.” The passive voice is even more common in Japanese. So, it’s a necessary part of speaking Japanese like a natural.
In this lower intermediate Japanese lesson, learn to form Japanese sentences in the passive voice by simply making the direct object the subject. Using simple charts, this Japanese lesson shows you how to switch word orders in common sentence patterns to form the passive voice. You’ll also discover the right times to speak this way and how the Japanese word reru fits in. The passive voice is an easy way to speak politely in Japanese, so this JapanesePod101.com lesson is one you don’t want to miss!

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Learn Japanese with JapanesePod101.com. You’re about to master an important phrase. You’re ready to talk about what used to be. You might want to say, “I used to work there,” or “She used to be my girlfriend.” Statements like these are just as common in Japanese as they are in English. Imagine trying to have a conversation without being able to talk about the past. It would be pretty awkward.
Use this upper intermediate Japanese lesson to learn to talk about the past. Mono da is the Japanese phrase that allows you to be nostalgic. You need to know its two uses and the subtle differences between them. It’s time for you to confidently incorporate this phrase into your Japanese.

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