Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Natsuko: おはよう、ガテマラシティ。ナツコです。(Ohayō, Gatemara Shitī. Natsuko desu.)
Take: おはよう、ガテマラシティ。タケです。(Ohayō, Gatemara Shitī. Take desu.)
Peter: Peter here. Beginner lesson #107. The giving and receiving verb series moves on. Today we are going to go into lesson #5 of 6. Now up-to-date, we’ve covered the verb to give which is
Natsuko: あげる (ageru)
Peter: And associated with this, we have
Natsuko: てあげる (te ageru)
Peter: To do for someone. Next we have the verb to receive.
Natsuko: もらう (morau)
Peter: And to have something done for one.
Natsuko: てもらう (te morau)
Peter: Today we are going to be covering which word, Natsuko-san?
Natsuko: くれる (kureru)
Peter: Now with today’s lesson and tomorrow’s lesson, we are going to bring it all together by giving and receiving verbs. There are still some more polite forms we have to go over but this is going to build you an excellent base.
Peter: Now regarding today’s lesson, today we are making the switch. We feel that you are ready to get more and more into real conversations and what we mean by this is, in the past, sometimes we have had to twist the conversation to make it polite but we feel now you are at a point where we’ve given you the informal, we’ve given you the formal and now we are going to introduce you to conversations and explain the background so that you can understand why formal or informal Japanese is being used. Now in today’s conversation, it’s a conversation between a married couple. So it’s a very intimate relationship. In today’s case, the wife speaks in a very polite manner. Right, Natsuko-san?
Natsuko: Yes.
Peter: And this is the case in some families.
Natsuko: Yes, usually older people.
Peter: Yeah, younger married couples will speak informally with each other but…
Natsuko: Yeah right, like friends.
Peter: Yeah, but in today’s conversation, it’s a bit of an older married couple.
Natsuko: Yes, undoubtedly.
Peter: They are a bit up there. So the wife speaks polite but please notice and please listen to the way the husband is speaking because he is using informal Japanese and this is completely normal and what you’d find in normal conversation between a married couple. Right, Natsuko-san?
Natsuko: Yes. Please get used to them.
Peter: Now with the informal track, we are going to give you the young version.
Natsuko: I see!
Peter: Just married. Young couples. So please notice the difference. All right, and be sure to stop by japanesepod101.com. With that said, Take-san, are you ready?
Take: はい、大丈夫ですよ。(Hai, daijōbu desu yo.)
Peter: Natsuko-san?
Natsuko: はい、行きます。(Hai, ikimasu.)
Peter: Here we go.
DIALOGUE
奥さん (okusan) : 暑中見舞いの返事を書きましょう。(Shochū mimai no henji o kakimashō.)
旦那 (danna) : 面倒くさいな〜。(Mendōkusai nā.)
奥さん (okusan) : さっさと書きましょう!(Sassa to kakimashō!)
旦那 (danna) : はいはい。今年は何枚来てる?(Hai hai. Kotoshi wa nan-mai kite ru?)
奥さん (okusan) : 100枚も来ました。(Hyaku-mai mo kimashita.)
旦那 (danna) : 100枚も?私達は人気者だね。でも、私は100枚も書きたくないな〜。(Hyaku-mai mo? Watashi-tachi wa ninkimono da ne. Demo, watashi wa hyaku-mai mo kakitakunai nā.)
奥さん (okusan) : 大丈夫よ。99枚は私宛、あなたにはたった1枚です。あら、これお母さんからよ。(Daijōbu yo. Kyū-jū kyū-mai wa watashi ate, anata ni wa tatta ichi-mai desu. Ara, kore o-kā-san kara yo.)
旦那 (danna) : やった!さすがお母さん!お母さんは毎年暑中見舞いをくれます。(Yatta! Sasuga o-kā-san! O-kā-san wa maitoshi shochū mimai o kuremasu.)
Natsuko: もう一度、お願いします。ゆっくり、お願いします。(Mō ichi-do, onegai shimasu. Yukkuri, onegai shimasu.)
奥さん (okusan) : 暑中見舞いの返事を書きましょう。(Shochū mimai no henji o kakimashō.)
旦那 (danna) : 面倒くさいな〜。(Mendōkusai nā.)
奥さん (okusan) : さっさと書きましょう!(Sassa to kakimashō!)
旦那 (danna) : はいはい。今年は何枚来てる?(Hai hai. Kotoshi wa nan-mai kite ru?)
奥さん (okusan) : 100枚も来ました。(Hyaku-mai mo kimashita.)
旦那 (danna) : 100枚も?私達は人気者だね。でも、私は100枚も書きたくないな〜。(Hyaku-mai mo? Watashi-tachi wa ninkimono da ne. Demo, watashi wa hyaku-mai mo kakitakunai nā.)
奥さん (okusan) : 大丈夫よ。99枚は私宛、あなたにはたった1枚です。あら、これお母さんからよ。(Daijōbu yo. Kyū-jū kyū-mai wa watashi ate, anata ni wa tatta ichi-mai desu. Ara, kore o-kā-san kara yo.)
旦那 (danna) : やった!さすがお母さん!お母さんは毎年暑中見舞いをくれます。(Yatta! Sasuga o-kā-san! O-kā-san wa maitoshi shochū mimai o kuremasu.)
Take: 次は、ピーターさんの英語が入ります。(Tsugi wa, Pītā-san no Eigo ga hairimasu.)
奥さん (okusan) : 暑中見舞いの返事を書きましょう。(Shochū mimai no henji o kakimashō.)
WIFE: Let's respond to summer greeting cards.
旦那 (danna) : 面倒くさいな〜。(Mendōkusai nā.)
HUSBAND: How troublesome.
奥さん (okusan) : さっさと書きましょう!(Sassa to kakimashō!)
WIFE: Let's write them now!
旦那 (danna) : はいはい。(Hai hai.)
HUSBAND: Okay, okay.
旦那 (danna) : 今年は何枚来てる?(Kotoshi wa nan-mai kite ru?)
HUSBAND: How many came this year?
奥さん (okusan) : 100枚も来ました。(Hyaku-mai mo kimashita.)
WIFE: A hundred!
旦那 (danna) : 100枚も?(Hyaku mai mo?)
HUSBAND: A hundred!?
旦那 (danna) : 私達は人気者だね。(Watashi-tachi wa ninkimono da ne.)
HUSBAND: We're popular, right?
旦那 (danna) : でも、私は100枚も書きたくないな〜。(Demo, watashi wa hyaku-mai mo kakitakunai nā.)
HUSBAND: But I don't want to write a hundred.
奥さん (okusan) : 大丈夫よ。(Daijōbu yo.)
WIFE: It's okay.
奥さん (okusan) : 99枚は私宛、(Kyū-jū kyū-mai wa watashi ate,)
WIFE: 99 were addressed to me.
奥さん (okusan) : あなたにはたった1枚です。(anata ni wa tatta ichi-mai desu.)
WIFE: Only this one is for you.
奥さん (okusan) : あら、これお母さんからよ。(Ara, kore o-kā-san kara yo.)
WIFE: Ah, this one is from your mother.
旦那 (danna) : やった!(Yatta!)
HUSBAND: Yes!
旦那 (danna) : さすがお母さん!(Sasuga o-kā-san!)
HUSBAND: Good old mom.
旦那 (danna) : お母さんは毎年暑中見舞いをくれます。(O-kā-san wa maitoshi shochū mimai o kuremasu.)
HUSBAND: Mom sends me a summer greeting card every year.
POST CONVERSATION BANTER
Peter: Oh ho! Natsuko-san, let’s get Take-san's opinion on today’s lesson.
Natsuko: たけさん、今日の会話はどう思いましたか。(Take-san, kyō no kaiwa wa dō omoimashita ka.)
Take: いやあ、僕って人気者なんだなあって思いました。(Iyā, boku tte ninkimono nan da nā tte omoimashita.)
Natsuko: え?え?え?たけさんがですか。(E? E? E? Take-san ga desu ka.)
Take: はい。そうですけど、なにか?(Hai. Sō desu kedo, nani ka?)
Natsuko: ピーターさんはどう思いましたか。(Pītā-san wa dō omoimashita ka.)
Peter: Well let’s just recap what he said so everyone else can follow.
Natsuko: Okay.
Peter: What did he say, Natsuko-san?
Natsuko: Oh he said, he didn’t expect he was so popular.
Peter: He should know. He is a really popular guy. Good voice, help me out here, Natsuko-san.
Natsuko: あ?あ?あ、あ、あ?いい声だし、たけさんは人気者ですよ。(A? A? A, a, a? Ii koe da shi, Take-san wa ninkimono desu yo.)
Take: そうですよね。(Sō desu yo ne.)
Peter: But what comes after a good voice? Good voice and….
Natsuko: And…Let’s move on to vocabulary.
VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE
Peter: All right. Let’s get into vocab. Here we go. Joining us today for vocabulary is
Chigusa: ちぐさです。(Chigusa desu.)
Peter: Hello, Chigusa-san.
Chigusa: Hi Peter.
Peter: It is great to have you here today.
Chigusa: It’s always good to be here.
Peter: Okay now, you are going to help us go over today’s vocabulary and there is a lot in there. You know actually some of this gets back to the culture class we did and what was something we talked about in that culture class?
Chigusa: 暑中見舞い (shochū mimai)
Peter: That’s it. Can you give it to us one more time, please?
Chigusa: 暑中見舞い (shochū mimai)
Peter: Mid-summer greeting card. Can you break it down for us?
Chigusa: (slow)しょちゅうみまい (shochū mimai) (natural speed) 暑中見舞い (shochū mimai)
Peter: Now these are postcards asking after one’s health in the summer from – when was that, Chigusa-san?
Chigusa: July 15th to August 08th.
Peter: So this actually ended yesterday, right?
Chigusa: Yeah.
Peter: Now since it ended yesterday, you can still write the cards, correct?
Chigusa: Correct.
Peter: But doesn’t the name change?
Chigusa: Yes, it does.
Peter: Well what does it become?
Chigusa: 残暑見舞い (zansho mimai)
Peter: Now these are postcards asking after one’s health in the lingering summer. So if you are late, this is what it is going to come to or if you are responding, maybe you get one and then you are going to respond, that’s what happens. Right, Chigusa-san?
Chigusa: Right.
Peter: Now this is the same thing. It is just sent after the 8th. That’s it. Now Chigusa-san, why do you think they send these cards?
Chigusa: Because summer in Japan is quite brutal.
Peter: Quite, you have been too nice. Come on, you’ve been biased here. Be honest, Chigusa-san.
Chigusa: Okay, horrible.
Peter: Yeah, it is pretty, pretty bad.
Chigusa: Yes.
Peter: Just a wall of humidity. It’s hot and then recently everybody has a cold. Why are they sick, Chigusa-san?
Chigusa: 夏バテ (natsubate)
Peter: What was that? One more time.
Chigusa: 夏バテ (natsubate)
Peter: And what does this mean?
Chigusa: I think it’s short for 夏にバテる (natsu ni bateru). バテる (bateru) means to be tired out or to be worn out and 夏 (natsu) is summer. So 夏バテ (natsubate).
Peter: Worn out by the summer.
Chigusa: Yes.
Peter: I can relate to that.
Chigusa: Right, and people get 夏風邪 (natsukaze) from 夏バテ (natsubate), too.
Peter: And what was that you just gave us.
Chigusa: 夏風邪 (natsukaze)
Peter: Summer cold.
Chigusa: Yes.
Peter: And I think this has to do with
Chigusa: Air conditioning?
Peter: That’s it. Yeah, because you are so hot. Then you get home and it’s so cold and you turn the air conditioner so low and then all of a sudden you wake up and…
Chigusa: You have a cold.
Peter: So yes, to understand these cards, spend a few summers in Japan and you can relate to these cards. Really these postcards become 120% understandable.
Chigusa: Yes.
Peter: Now the Japanese actually have a secret for getting through the summer. What food is supposedly really good for keeping up your strength in the summer? Either it’s really good marketing or this truth to the story. Chigusa-san, what are we talking about?
Chigusa: うなぎ (unagi)
Peter: This is
Chigusa: Eel.
Peter: Chigusa-san, do you believe this? Do you think that this helps keep your strength up in the summer?
Chigusa: Yeah. It’s sort of like a mental thing too for me because it’s like when I eat it, I feel like I have strength.
Peter: Really?
Chigusa: Yeah, never mind the reality.
Peter: Now how often do you eat this?
Chigusa: Ah, not that often because it’s supposed to be pretty expensive here.
Peter: Yeah, I actually don’t eat it that often but my wife does and my wife is always healthy.
Chigusa: Oh!
Peter: So maybe there is some truth to the story. We’d love to hear what you think. Please, if you have the time, post a comment on the site japanesepod101.com. Now Chigusa-san, let’s just take a quick look at the characters inside this word. How many kanji, Chinese characters are in this word?
Chigusa: Four.
Peter: What’s the first character mean?
Chigusa: 暑 (sho) is also read as 暑い (atsui) which means hot as in weather or temperature.
Peter: Next we have
Chigusa: 中 (chū), also read as なか (naka) which means middle.
Peter: So hot middle. Then we have
Chigusa: 見舞い (mimai)
Peter: There is two characters in here but it’s this word that we are going to take and use in contact which means
Chigusa: To visit.
Peter: A visit in the middle of the heat, a summer visit. Kind of checking up on one to see how they are doing because as we said, the summer here is brutal. All right, next we have
Chigusa: 返事 (henji)
Peter: Reply.
Chigusa: (slow)へんじ (henji) (natural speed) 返事 (henji)
Peter: Can you give us an example sentence?
Chigusa: 友達からメールが来たけど、まだ返事してない。(Tomodachi kara mēru ga kita kedo, mada henji shite nai.)
Peter: Wow that was fast, Chigusa-san, a little bit slow.
Chigusa: 友達からメールが来たけど、まだ返事してない。(Tomodachi kara mēru ga kita kedo, mada henji shite nai.)
Peter: This is the informal way of speaking. So talking among friends. Obviously this sentence is based on two people who have an intimate relationship. I got an email or I got a text message from a friend but I still haven’t replied. Yes, I can relate very well with this.
Chigusa: Me too.
Peter: Next we have
Chigusa: 面倒くさい (mendōkusai)
Peter: Bothersome, troublesome. Break it down.
Chigusa: (slow)めんどうくさい (mendōkusai) (natural speed) 面倒くさい (mendōkusai)
Peter: Now there are two words in here. Why don’t we separate them and take a closer look? First word we have
Chigusa: 面倒 (mendō)
Peter: Troublesome. Second we have
Chigusa: くさい (kusai)
Peter: Strong odor. Now if this helps you out, what you can do here is put them together. It reeks of trouble. It’s a real hassle if you put these two together and when you put them together, we have
Chigusa: 面倒くさい (mendōkusai)
Peter: Now Chigusa-san, is there another phrase out there that ends with くさい (kusai) that we can kind of compare to this?
Chigusa: 貧乏くさい (binbōkusai)
Peter: Screaming poverty. So the くさい (kusai) stresses the fact that it’s truly troublesome. Can we have an example sentence?
Chigusa: 学校までは家から1時間もかかります。面倒くさいです。(Gakkō made wa ie kara ichi-ji-kan mo kakarimasu. Mendōkusai desu.)
Peter: It takes an hour from my home to school. It’s really a pain. Now Chigusa-san, this word, does it have a negative meaning as a kind of a lower class word or is it okay for any kind of situation?
Chigusa: It’s pretty informal.
Peter: So it’s okay to use among your friends but what about in a business meeting?
Chigusa: Never.
Peter: Okay, yeah we have her answer there. Yeah, you kind of want to steer clear of formal situations with this word. Now a little bit on the – as Chigusa said, the casual side.
Chigusa: Yes.
Peter: Great for when you are with friends, intimate people but you want to kind of watch out for informal situations. All right, next we have.
Chigusa: さっさと (sassa to)
Peter: Quickly.
Chigusa: (slow)さっさと (sassa to) (natural speed) さっさと (sassa to)
Peter: Now can we have an example sentence?
Chigusa: さっさと部屋を片付けなさい。(Sassa to heya o katazukenasai.)
Peter: Yes, ma’am, hurry up and clean your room.
Chigusa: Right.
Peter: Next we have
Chigusa: 枚 (mai)
Peter: A counter used for thin flat objects.
Chigusa: (slow)まい (mai) (natural speed) 枚 (mai)
Peter: Example sentence, please.
Chigusa: 旅行中に写真を200枚も撮りました。(Ryokōchū ni shashin o ni-hyaku-mai mo torimashita.)
Peter: During my vacation, I took up to 200 pictures. Next.
Chigusa: 宛て (ate)
Peter: For, addressed to.
Chigusa: (slow)あて (ate) (natural speed) 宛て (ate)
Peter: Example sentence, please.
Chigusa: ピーター宛てに手紙を書きます。(Pītā ate ni tegami o kakimasu.)
Peter: I will write a letter addressed to Peter. Next.
Chigusa: 人気者 (ninkimono)
Peter: Popular, popular person.
Chigusa: (slow)にんきもの (ninkimono) (natural speed) 人気者 (ninkimono)
Peter: Example sentence, please.
Chigusa: 彼女は学校の人気者だ。(Kanojo wa gakkō no ninkimono da.)
Peter: She is a popular person at the school.

Lesson focus

Peter: All right, with that said, let’s move on to today’s grammar point. Chigusa-san, what’s today’s grammar point?
Chigusa: くれる (kureru)
Peter: くれる (kureru) is a class 2 verb used to express that someone who has the same or lower status than the speaker gives something to the speaker or someone in the speaker’s group. The meaning is close to the English to give and the general sentence structure is as follows. The giver is marked by
Chigusa: は (wa)
Peter: And of course, there are cases.
Chigusa: が (ga)
Peter: The receiver. Usually I is marked by
Chigusa: に (ni)
Peter: The thing is marked by
Chigusa: を (o)
Peter: And finally we have
Chigusa: くれる (kureru)
Peter: Now くれる (kureru) should be used when the receiver is the first person meaning me or we, someone in your group or yourself. The polite form of this verb is
Chigusa: くださる (kudasaru)
Peter: And again this will be covered in a later lesson when we go over the extremely polite ways to talk about the giving and receiving verbs. Now what we are going to do is give you a few example sentences. ちぐささん、お願いします。(Chigusa-san, onegai shimasu.)
Chigusa: 友達は私にお土産をくれた。(Tomodachi wa watashi ni o-miyage o kureta.)
Peter: My friend gave me a souvenir. Now, many times when you hear this in context, the receiver will actually be dropped. Chigusa-san, how would that sound?
Chigusa: 友達はお土産をくれた。(Tomodachi wa o-miyage o kureta.)
Peter: My friend gave and the me is inferred. My friend gave me a souvenir.

Outro

Peter: All right, so that’s going to cover for today.
Chigusa: またね。(Mata ne.)

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