Hello! Minasan! Welcome to "Dictation for Every Day" (D4E: version 5) a.k.a. Mainichi no Kikitori
Workbook
PDF Workbook (volume 1 and 2) is available from
[here]!
It includes the notes of words, phrases and grammars.
News and Story
A.E.A.D. (A Expression A Day)
2024.05.08 Wed: I'm sorry to keep you waiting.
お待たせしました。
Omatase shimashita.
I'm sorry to have kept you waiting.
"Omatase shimashita" can be decomposed with a polite prefix "o," a verb "matsu" which means "to wait," a causative auxiliary verb "seru/saseru," a polite auxiliary verb "masu," and a past auxiliary verb "ta." If you say this phrase, it is not difficult, but if you analyze it, you will find that it is a very difficult connection. From this, you can see that it is not a good idea to analyze and think about words. Only understand that "omatase shimashita" is an expression to apologize for making someone wait.
2024.05.07 Tue: Good night
お休みなさい。
Oyasumi nasai.
Good night.
The word "oyasumi" is a noun made of a verb "yasumu" which means "to rest" or "to take a break." The word "nasai" is a polite suffix used to make a request or a command. The word "oyasumi nasai" is used to say good night to someone before they go to bed. Also, it is used when you part with someone at night.
2024.05.06 Mon: A pray before meal
いただきます。
Itadakimasu.
I will receive.
This is a phrase that is used before eating a meal in Japan. It is a polite way to express gratitude for the food that was once a living thing and is about to be eaten. The word "itadakimasu" is the humble form of the verb "itadaku." Saying "itadakimasu" means "I will receive your life."
2024.05.05 Sun: I'm sorry.
すみません。
Sumimasen.
I'm sorry.
"Sumimasen" is a versatile word that can be used in many situations. It can be used to apologize, to ask for help, to get someone's attention, or to ask for a favor. It is a polite and formal way to get someone's attention. It is also used to apologize for a mistake or to ask for help.
2024.05.04 Sat: Japanese style pizza
お好み焼きを作る
okonomiyaki wo tsukuru
to make Japanese style pizza
The word "okonomiyaki" is a popular Japanese food that is similar to pizza. The word "okonomi" means "what you like" or "what you want." The word "yaki" means "grilled" or "cooked." The word "tsukuru" means "to make." The word "okonomiyaki" is made by mixing flour, eggs, cabbage, and other ingredients together and grilling them on a hot plate. There are several regional variations of okonomiyaki in Japan. The most famous ones are Hiroshima style and Osaka style. When I was a child, I loved eating okonomiyaki. Okonomiyaki back then was not as glamorous as it is today. It was a simple thin pancake of flour with a pinch of cabbage and a slice of pork. When yakisoba was included, only a few well-to-do children could afford it. Okonomiyaki was cooked by housewives in a temporary garage.
Let's practice every day!
Let's learn Japanese through dictation practice!
PDF Workbook (volume 1 and 2) is available from
[here]!
It includes the notes of words, phrases and grammars.
This is the dictation practice site operated by Japanese Language Teaching Section, Tokyo Institute of Technology.
This practice involves a variety of natural expressions in daily conversation.
You can practice 10 sentences a day depending on your language ability.
It's a very simple exercise. You just follow the audio you hear and type in Roman letters.
Your comments and bug reports are very welcome. Please submit from here.
Zen and the Art of Dictation
Let's learn Japanese through drill and practice!
You will practice 10 sentences in an episode.
It's a very simple exercise.
You just follow the audio you hear and type in roman letters.
The first objective is to learn the basic Japanese sounds
and hiragana/katakana combinations.
You can practice as many times as possible.
The more you practice, the better you will get.
Please regularly contribute your time to this practice.
It is important to practice every day rather than to practice a lot at once.
The following is the psychological evidence of the importance of regular practice:
Figure 1: The forgetting curve described by Hermann Ebbinghaus.
Here, b represents 'Savings' expressed as a percentage, and t represents time in minutes, counting from one minute before end of learning. The constants c and k are 1.25 and 1.84 respectively. Savings is defined as the relative amount of time saved on the second learning trial as a result of having had the first. A savings of 100% would indicate that all items were still known from the first trial. A 75% savings would mean that relearning missed items required 25% as long as the original learning session (to learn all items). 'Savings' is thus, analogous to retention rate.