For Daniel Morales's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
The verb forms in polite speech more distinctly refer to people in a way that makes it nearly impossible to confuse the actors in a sentence .
Training your ears to catch the sounds of certain Japanese words might make listening to people talk about politics a little more comprehensible.
Website Omocoro conducted a survey of 365 Japanese people asking them what words in the language sound the funniest. Body parts, "p" sounds and croutons all made the comedic cut.
The phrase "ii toshi shite" can make someone chuckle or could cause offense. Make sure you use it carefully.
From creators who put together anime shorts to the daily trials of a para-swimmer, Japanese TikTok is a fascinating place to get lost in the language.
Once you get an idea of what kinds of verbs come at the end of Japanese sentences, particularly in news reports, your brain can concentrate on deciphering the rest in more detail.
If you're looking at investing in your Japanese ability, check out some terms that center around the stock market.
Valentine's Day is coming up, and knowing what to say to make things official with your crush is half the battle. The good news is the steps to a kokuhaku (confession) are straightforward.
A yearly contest asks Japanese speakers to come up with new kanji to reflect modern times, providing a fun way to learn and understand the characters.
When news of a virus began to surface we took the opportunity to review the Japanese for things like "symptoms" and "cough." Now we're learning terms like "pandemic" and "state of emergency."
