Beginner Question

[Javizy]

Hi, I've got a problem with the word 'dou', it keeps coming up everywhere, and I don't understand how to use it. I've gone through 50 or so beginner lessons and I'm pretty sure it hasn't been covered yet. Could anyone point me to some materials that cover this in some comprehensive detail, possibly along with nan, nani, nanze, etc? I'm having a bit of trouble with how, what, and why constructions. Or are these things covered later in the beginner section? I've tried Google but have had no luck.

Btw, I only recently joined up and I'd like to say what a great site this is. It's a really down-to-earth, fun approach to teaching that is quite inspiring. I'd tried learning Japanese before with other online resources but found it hard to maintain interest. I've wanted to learn a second language for years, I just wish I found JPod sooner

[Psy]

Hmm... could you be a little more specific where you're getting confused? Interrogatives are pretty simple in Japanese:

dare = who
nani = what
itsu = when
doko = where
naze/doushite = why
dou = how; in what way

Questions like itsu/naze tend to come either at the beginning of the sentence or where you'd put a time word. dou right before the verb or the end of the clause. In all other cases, they just replace the noun where the answer would be:

nani o nomimasu ka? (what will you drink?)
mizu o nomimasu. (I'll drink water)

And so on...

[Javizy]

Thanks for the reply. I had an idea of the meaning but didn't know how to use some of the words, which made me feel a bit lost listening to lesson 60-62. I managed to find some stuff by adding doushite to my google query. Bit of a stupid problem but it was starting to get frustrating, thanks for the help.

[Psy]

There's no need to feel stupid. There are lots of walls to overcome when learning a language, especially if this is your first foreign language. I haven't done very many of the J-pod beginner lessons, but now that I know where you'd been getting confused, I'll listen to 60-62 and try to explain their usages of 'dou.' I'll reply again later assuming no one else has beaten me to it.

[Psy]

I skipped through the lessons, and the only usage I found was "dou omoimasu ka?" Which is literally "how do you think?" But is used in the same sense as the English "what do you think?"

[Javizy]

Thanks again. I think I'm getting a little ahead of myself, I guess. The lessons are pretty entertaining in themselves so I have to stop myself from listening to new ones before I've absorbed all the vocab

Since we're here though, maybe you could help me with a kanji related question. So far, I've learnt the various meanings of about 40 Grade 1 kanji and a few others that've popped up. How useful is it to just know the meanings? I've been trying to learn words along with them in order to remember the readings, but they don't always seem to correspond with the words they represent, e.g. today - Now (kon, kin, ima) and Sun (hi, bi, ka), how does this form kyou?

Are there any rules, or is it best to learn on a word-by-word basis?

[Jason]

While it's good to know the general meanings of individual kanji, IMHO kanji is best learned in context on a word-by-word basis. In addition to being more useful practically, I think you'll find it easier to remember them when studying them in context as opposed to having just a long list of individual kanji. I've picked up a lot of kanji just by being exposed to them multiple times. I'll probably have to look it up the first few times I run into it, but after a while they start to sink in.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying you should completely stop studying the kanji individually. I'm just saying your main focus should be learning them in context.