A: "Even if you study hard, it's meaningless if you can't pass." B: "You don't know that if you don't try."
"Shita to shite mo" is a phrase used to express a hypothetical situation or condition. The word "shita" is the past tense of the verb "suru" (to do), "to" is a particle that indicates the condition, and "shite mo" is a phrase that means "even if." This phrase is used to express that something is possible, but unlikely to happen.
2025.02.22 Sat #321: I finally got used to it
ようやく慣れました。
Youyaku naremashita
I finally got used to it
A「日本の生活、慣れましたか？」B「うん、ようやく、慣れました」
A: "Have you gotten used to life in Japan?" B: "Yes, I finally got used to it."
"Youyaku naremashita" is a phrase used to express that someone has finally gotten used to something. The word "youyaku" is an adverb that means "it took a long time but finally..." and "naremashita" is the past tense of the verb "nareru" (to be accustomed to).
2025.02.21 Fri #320: This time, it's special/exceptional
今回、特別ね。
Konkai, tokubetsu ne.
This time, it's special/exceptional
A「ママ、もう一つ、食べてもいい？」B「今回、特別ね」
A: "Mom, can I have one more?" B: "This time, it's special."
"Konkai, tokubetsu ne" is a phrase used to indicate that something is special or exceptional this time. The word "konkai" means "this time," "tokubetsu" means "special" or "exceptional," and "ne" is a sentence-ending particle that seeks agreement or confirmation. This expression acknowledges that the current situation is an exceptional measure.
2025.02.20 Thu #319: Let me think about it.
ちょっと考えさせてください
Chotto kangae sasete kudasai
Let me think about it for a moment.
A「今、決めるのは早いですか？」B「ちょっと考えさせてください」
A: "Is it too early to decide now?" B: "Let me think about it for a moment."
"Chotto kangaesasete kudasai" is a phrase used to ask someone to give you a moment to think about something. The word "chotto" means "a little" or "a bit," "kangaesasete" is the causative form of the verb "kangaeru" (to think), and "kudasai" is a polite request form of the verb "kureru" (to give). When asking someone to give you time to think about something, use the causative form of the verb. This is similar to many languages.
2025.02.19 Wed #318: Listen carefully
耳を澄ませて
Mimi wo sumasete
Listen carefully
耳を澄ませて、鳥の声、聞こえる？
Can you hear the birds singing? Listen carefully.
"Mimi wo sumasete" is a phrase used to ask someone to listen carefully or to pay attention to a sound or voice. The word "mimi" means "ear," "wo" is a particle that indicates the object of the verb, "sumasete" is the te-form of the verb "sumasu" (to clear), and "te" is a particle that indicates a request or command.
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.
Drill for Every Day (D4E: V5)
