Tag - language

 
 

LANGUAGE

Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jun 29, 2015
Sitting on the fence in Japanese depends on these sentence patterns
Sore-wa ashita-no tenki-ni yorimasu-ne (It depends on tomorrow's weather.)
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 26, 2015
Picking the right words to ban from campus
American universities have been trying to reduce use of words or behavior that might stigmatize or humiliate people, but they are overshooting the mark.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 23, 2015
American-Okinawan working to keep Ryukyu language alive
Byron Fija, who knows nothing about his American father and little about his Okinawan mother, now works to preserve Uchinaguchi, a native language in Okinawa, after having overcome an identity crisis.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 22, 2015
When too much is not enough, just dial up the 'sugiru'
When something is in excess, English commonly uses the adverb 'too.' Japanese expresses similar things with the verb 'sugiru.'
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jun 22, 2015
Let your green-eyed monster loose with 'urayamashii'
Today we introduce the proper use of the adjective u3046u3089u3084u307eu3057u3044, meaning 'jealous' or 'envious.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Jun 22, 2015
Let's discuss Japanese sake in the news
To differentiate it from foreign-brewed fare, the National Tax Agency is considering defining 'Japanese sake' as a home-brewed alcoholic drink made from Japanese-grown rice.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 15, 2015
Keep pounding away and eventually Japanese will reveal its secrets
If some patterns in Japanese don't make sense yet, just keep pounding the rock. With enough time and repetition, they'll click.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jun 15, 2015
Use -tara to herald the expected and the unexpected
Today we introduce the proper use of 'X (verb in ta form) u3089u3001Y (= phrase).
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Jun 15, 2015
Ireland's 'yes' to gay marriage
Ireland recently became the first country in the world to legalize gay marriage by referendum.
LIFE / Language / MORNING ENGLISH
Jun 15, 2015
Let's discuss voting age limits in the news
The move to lower the voting age will give an estimated 2.4 million people aged 18 and 19 suffrage.
JAPAN
Jun 10, 2015
Higher Japanese proficiency urged for foreign nursing care interns
The Society for Teaching Japanese as a Foreign Language asked the government Monday to toughen a Japanese-language proficiency requirement for foreign nursing care interns.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 8, 2015
Too much 'ganbaru' could push anyone over the edge
For those trying their hardest or already at the end of their rope, 'ganbaru' can seem like a slap in the face rather than a gesture of encouragement.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jun 8, 2015
Though you may think you don't need to know mono-no, you do
Today we will introduce the proper use of 'Xu3082u306eu306eY,' which is used to connect contrasting phrases.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 1, 2015
To know bamboo is to know Asia — and a whole lot of Japanese
This fast-growing plant has found its way into much of the language of Japan, revealing a great deal about the history and culture of East Asia.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / WELL SAID
Jun 1, 2015
Zuibun is more useful than you could have possibly imagined
Today we will introduce some uses of the adverb 'zuibun,' which is used when the speaker wants to say that the degree of something is higher than they were expecting.
LIFE / Language / COMMUNICATION CUES
Jun 1, 2015
New York comes out tops in youth survey
New York has been ranked as the most popular city for young people aged 15 to 29 years old, according to a survey.
JAPAN
May 29, 2015
More locals dropping accents when speaking with outsiders: survey
More Japanese switch between using standard Japanese and various dialects according to who they are speaking with, a National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics survey has showed.
JAPAN
May 25, 2015
Advanced Eiken levels elude almost half of high school English teachers
Only a little more than half of English teachers at public high schools are certified with advanced levels of English proficiency tests, and the rate is less than 30 percent for those at junior high schools.
EDITORIALS
May 23, 2015
Rakuten forges ahead in English
E-commerce giant Rakuten has managed to do what the educational system apparently can't — get Japanese people to speak English competently.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 18, 2015
With yoji jukugo, four little characters can say so much
Saying it in four characters seems to be a pervasive stylistic device permeating all areas of life in Japan, from the pedestrian to the profound.

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan