More Japanese = More Brain

Learning a new language makes you smarter (in some specific ways). While these benefits are not exclusive to learning Japanese, because Japanese grammar is almost perfectly inverted to English grammar it’s likely that the benefits of second language acquisition are maximized. Resist the onset of dementia entirely [1] Solve whole classes of puzzles more swiftlyContinue reading “More Japanese = More Brain”

Hiragana Listening Challenge

Subscribers to Japanese Complete can now play with the infinite Hiragana Listening Challenge and Identification Quiz. A nice bonus for this quiz is that each of the wrong answers will also create the sound, much like a “pull-and-say” toy. The cow goes む。 We’ve decided to provide this excellent Hiragana learning tool for free! YouContinue reading “Hiragana Listening Challenge”

The Four Types of Kanji

象形・指事・会意・形声 Kanji, ideograms that constitute a bulk of the Japanese written language, come in four rough types. Pictographs, Indicators, Combographs, and Meaning-and-Sound Borrowers. The first type is pictographs which stand in for the actual thing they represent. Some researchers claim fewer than 4% are actually pictographs. 1 象形文字 しょうけいもじ 人 biped (human)女 woman手 hand田 ricefield子Continue reading “The Four Types of Kanji”

What does 「すみません」 actually mean?

The definitions of 「すみません」「すみません」の定義 「すみません」 is the standard polite form of 「すまない」 and is used when, with your present company you wish to express: 謝罪 an apology 感謝 a sense of gratitude 依頼 when you wish to request something Often translated as “Excuse me,” the word 「すみません」 has three subtle senses that may help explainContinue reading “What does 「すみません」 actually mean?”