Learning from the Dialogues
GETTING SOMEONE’S ATTENTION—WITH ANŌ
Anō is used to turn someone’s attention toward the speaker. It is normally used in formal situations and spoken somewhat hesitatingly.
| Anō, sumimasen ga, ... | Excuse me, but ... |
| Anō, Tanaka-san. | Say, Mr. Tanaka. |
GETTING SOMEONE’S ATTENTION—WITH NĒ/OI
Nē or Oi is used to get one’s attention but unlike Anō it is used among friends, family members or couples. Nē is used mostly by women and Oi is used only by men because the sound is a little coarse.
| Nē, Miyagi-san. | Say, Mrs. Miyagi. |
| Nē, anata kaerō! | Hey, let’s go home! |
| Oi, kimi. Ⓜ | Hey you! |
HOW TO USE SĀ
Sā is an address word used to urge or encourage someone to do something.
| Sā, ikō! | Okay, let’s go! |
| Sā, ganbatte! | Go for it! You can do it. |
It is also used when the speaker cannot respond clearly with confidence to a question or cannot think of anything to do or say immediately. (This interjection can come in handy for beginners!)
| Sā, wakaranai ne. | Well, I have no idea. |
| Sā, dō shiyō? | Now, what shall we do? |
Using Hai
The Japanese word Hai has various usages, and so it can come in handy to you in several different ways according to the situation or intonation. Hai is generally used as a positive answer to yes or no questions, like Ē which also means “yes.” Depending on the situations, Hai also can express agreement, in the sense of “okay” or “certainly.”
Further, Hai is used to get someone’s attention. For instance, when your name is called by someone, your answer is Hai, never Ē. Another example: when you visit someone’s house or when you enter a store, suppose you said Gomen kudasai “Hello, anybody here?” to attract someone’s attention when you cannot see anyone. If someone is there, the reply you get will be Hai. Similarly, when someone knocks at the door of a toilet, it is possible to use only Hai to make it clear that it is occupied.
When handing over or serving something to someone, you should say only Hai or Hai, dōzo which means “Here you are” as shown in the example below.
A : May I see it?
B : Hai, dōzo. (Here you are.)
Practice
Now that you know some interjections, why not practice a little?
Choose the proper interjection for each item from the box below, and write it in the parentheses. Answers may be used more than once!
Correct answers are given at the back of the book, so that you can check your work.
| Ē | Oi | Mā | Ō | Moshi-moshi | Iie | Ǎ |
| Are | Ara | Sā | Hai | Nē | Wā | Un |
| Anō | Ě | Hora | Uun |
| 1. Surprise/Admiration | _________________________________ |
| 2. Address | _________________________________ |
| 3. Answer | _________________________________ |
| 4. Feminine | _________________________________ |
| 5.Masculine | _________________________________ |
Chapter 4
How Do You Do?
Dialogue: Hajimemashite (How Do You Do?)
| Oshiro (Mrs. O) | : | Kyō wa ii tenki ne. (It’s a nice day today, isn’t it?) |
| Miyagi (Mrs. M) | : | Sō nē. (Yes, it is.) Totemo kirei na aozora da ne. (The sky is such a beautiful blue color.) |
| Oshiro | : | Ara, asoko kara kuru no wa Buraun-san kashira? (I wonder if that person coming over here is Mr. Brown?) |
| Miyagi | : | Shitteru no? (Do you know him?) |
| Oshiro | : | Shujin to onaji kaisha na no. (He works for the same company as my husband.) |
| Buraun (Mr. B) | : | Yā! Oshiro-san. (Oh, hi! Mrs. Oshiro.) Hisashiburi desu nē. (It’s been a long time since I last saw you.) |
| Oshiro | : | Konnichiwa. Gokazoku desu ka? (Ah, hello. Is this your family?) |
| Buraun | : | Ē. Kanai desu. Kore wa musuko no Kurisu desu. (Yes. This is my wife and my son, Chris.) |
| Naomi (Mrs. B) | : | Naomi desu. Hajimemashite. (I’m Naomi. How do you do?) |
| Oshiro | : | Oshiro Kazuko desu. Hajimemashite. (I’m Kazuko Oshiro. How do you do?) Kochira wa otomodachi no Miyagi-san desu. (This is my friend, Mrs. Miyagi.) |
| Miyagi | : | Hajimemashite. Dōzo yoroshiku. (How do you do? Nice to meet you.) |
| Buraun | : | Kochira koso, yoroshiku onegai shimasu. (Nice to meet you, too.) |
| Oshiro | : | Mā, kawaii okosan desu nē! (Isn’t he a cute child!) Oikutsu desu ka? (How old is he?) |
| Naomi | : | Mittsu desu. (He’s three (years old).) |
| Miyagi | : | Ōkii desu nē! (My, he’s so big!) |
| Oshiro | : | Kore kara okaimono desu ka? (Are you going shopping now?) |
| Buraun | : | Ē. (Yes, we are.) |
| Oshiro | : | Jā, watashitachi wa kore de shitsurei shimasu. (Well, we should be going now.) |
Shaded items: Check the “Learning from the Dialogue” section in this chapter to learn more about these.
Vocabulary