Learn Japanese with JapanesePod101.com! You’ve heard this jibe so many times before, but never in Japanese. Your friend taunts in Japanese, “Why do you call it ‘football’ when everyone handles the ball with his hands?” No matter, it’s always the same effort to get your goat, regardless if it’s in Japanese or not. So you give the standard answer in Japanese, “Not true, actually. The kickers kick the ball on punts, kickoffs, field goals, and points after. And there are ways to kick the ball you’ve never even heard of. Besides, why do you call it football when players can touch the ball with their legs, backs, butts, chests, even their heads, and the goalie grabs the ball with his hands almost every time?” Said in Japanese or not, that generally slows them down for a while as they take it all in. Then you continue the onslaught, and to their surprise, in Japanese, “And don’t get me started on difficulty. How hard can it be to kick a round ball. You know exactly where it’s going to go, exactly how it will roll. The only thing you can do is put some spin on it. Try kicking a prolate spheroid and see if you can tell where it’s going to go, but guys in college can kick an American football for fifty meters and put it within vertical poles only four meters apart and three meters off the ground. I haven’t even mentioned the brutal tackling that’s a normal part of every play. Where is that in soccer?” Your Japanese friends look at you in wonder. How could you get all that out in Japanese? They admit defeat, sort of, with their rebuttal in Japanese, “Let’s talk baseball.”
Learning Japanese with JapanesePod101.com is the most fun and effective way to learn Japanese! This Japanese Particle lesson is about wa, one of the most common Japanese particles, and its various uses. Learn how its use conveys a subtle interest in something other than the subject at hand. Visit us at JapanesePod101.com where you will find many more fantastic Japanese lessons and learning resources! Leave us a message while you are there!

Review
|
Play
|
Popup
Dialog
|
Play
|
Popup
Premium Learning Center
Premium Lesson Checklist
Audio
|
Play
|
Popup
Lesson Notes
Kanji Close-Up
Lesson Notes Lite
Basic Lesson Checklist
|
8 Comments » |
Learn Japanese with JapanesePod101.com! Isn’t it great to talk about things you like? We love to talk about everything from our favorite foods to people we are fond of. When you visit Japan, it’s crucial that you can express your likes.
This newbie Japanese lesson makes learning to talk about what you like fun. You’ll use watashi wa to talk about what you like, from food to snowbarding! This Japanese lesson is chock full of examples that make adding this phrase to your language easy.

Review
|
Play
|
Popup
Dialog
|
Play
|
Popup
Grammar
|
Play
|
Popup
Video Vocab | Watch
Premium Learning Center
Premium Lesson Checklist
Audio
|
Play
|
Popup
Lesson Notes
Kanji Close-Up
Lesson Notes Lite
Basic Lesson Checklist
Learn Japanese at JapanesePod101.com! Now for the exciting conclusion of our K-1 Grand Prix match! In the first the commentators were doing a little pre-game discussion about the impending fight to the end. Today the bell will ring and the fighters will go at it! Who will win? Well, of course, you WILL! With grammar like the passive voice (ukemi) how can you not win? Of particular interest is the idiomatic use of the passive voice to express an undesirable or unfortunate turn of events. You don’t want to miss this one, folks. And, of course, after listening, stop by JapanesePod101.com and be sure to leave us a post!
Review
|
Play
|
Popup
Dialog
|
Play
|
Popup
Premium Learning Center
Premium Lesson Checklist
Learn Japanese at JapanesePod101.com! It’s Thursday night at the fight! K-1 is one of the most popular sports on TV in Japan. And tonight we’re sitting front row to watch 2 of the biggest prize fighters fight to the death! That’s right, Ernenesto Hoost and Peter Aertz — well, our versions of them… and actually, it’s not a fight to the death. But still, you don’t wanna miss this one! After listening, stop by JapanesePod101.com and be sure to leave us a post!
Review
|
Play
|
Popup
Dialog
|
Play
|
Popup
Premium Learning Center
Premium Lesson Checklist
Learn Japanese at JapanesePod101.com! Sports Day is popular in Japan and every years schools across the country celebrate health and exercise. Of course, Miki and her friends had to participate. Today she’ll tell us some of her memories of sports day. After listening, stop by JapanesePod101.com and be sure to leave her a post!











