Opposites...

Hey everyone, sorry I haven't updated my blog so often this month but I had a fever recently and so have been resting for the last week. I am feeling better now so I decided to post this months list of opposites before the month ended~! Today, we will look at a list of words you can use to describe people...

fat 太い (ふとい) < ------- > thin 細い (ほそい)

Now both of these adjectives are NEGATIVE and not very nice. If you want to be more gentle and less direct you should use:

chubby < -------- > slim

Chubby sounds very cute and we usually say something like "He's a little chubby", whereas slim sounds healthy with no excess fat like a swimmer, thin sounds like you weigh TOO little.
Or you could use:

heavy < ------ > slender

These words sound even more formal and polite, I rarely hear people use them in casual conversations between friends. You are more likely to hear them used between people who don't know each other well. Now onto some words to describe someones personality~!

shy 恥ずかしい (はずかしい) < ------ > outgoing 外向的 (がいこうてき)

Now these are pretty casual adjectives, if you want to use something of a higher level try these:

introverted < ------- > extroverted

Introverted means that your mind focuses inward and so you are a bit shy, extroverted means your mind focuses outward and so you are outgoing. These are psychological terms that entered the general language in the 1970s or 1980s. Remember, these are adjectives so:

He's introverted so he has a hard time making friends.

She's really extroverted so she always joins activities at school.

You don't need to use an! If you want to use a noun try:

introvert < ------- > extrovert

He's an introvert.

She's an extrovert.

Ok that is all for this month, time to rest and I hope to post something again soon~!

Phil

僕は悠々自適に過ごしている。

Hey everyone, this Friday I was studying some Japanese yojijukugo(四字熟語) or 4-kanji idiomatic phrases through Japanesepod101.com and came accross an expression I really liked so I decided to share it with you. I have used that site to study Japanese for awhile and if you want you can check out their sister site, for Japanese learners of English, Englishpod101.com or sign up for their free podcasts via iTunes.

Anyways, I learned the cool phrase:

僕は悠々自適に過ごしている。

Boku wa yuuyuujiteki ni sugoshite iru.

Where 悠々自適 means living a life of leisure. In Japanese, it has the added connotation of having the financial means (i.e. the money) to do what you want. Because of this, it is most often used by retirees...

The whole sentence would translate as:

I'm living a life of leisure.

This is the most formal sounding translation but probably also the closest in meaning to the Japanese. This says you are living a life where you relax and do what you want with total freedom.

I'm living a leisurely life.

This still sounds kind of formal in English and has the similar (well maybe it has a bit stronger connotation of having lots of free time) meaning as:

I'm living a relaxing life.

This is much more casual and natural sounding in North American English.

I'm living a carefree life.

This means you are living a life free of worries. ^_^ In which case you are pretty lucky~!

I really like all the nuances of the Japanese expression and that's how I feel about my life these days so I will finish this post by saying:

僕は悠々自適に過ごしている。

Phil

Have you ever been abroad?

Hey everyone, today we will be talking about the word abroad. This word simply means out of your own country or in a foreign country. Now, many Japanese English speakers often say:

I went to abroad.

BUT this is INCORRECT~! We used to when talking about a SPECIFIC PLACE. Abroad is anywhere outside your own country, it is NOT a specific place.

I went to (a specific place).

I went to Tokyo.

I went to Isetan.

I went to the post office.

BUT

I went abroad.

Without to~! Also because abroad is not a specific place you CAN'T use it with the adverb THERE.

A: Have you lived in Korea?
B: Yeah, I have.
A: When did you live there?
B: I lived there 3 years ago.

Here the adverb there specifies the action(to live) took place in Korea. There is used to show an action took place in/at a specific place or, to/towards a specific place.

A: Have you been abroad?
B: Yeah, I have.
A: When did you go abroad?
B: I went abroad last month.

So because abroad is NOT a specific place it is VERY strange to use it with to or there.

Have a nice week,

Phil

The L sound...

Hey everyone, it has been quite awhile since I did a pronunciation lesson so today I will give you a sentence to help you practice the L sound:



Now to make the L sound you put the tip of the tongue touching the top of your mouth behind your teeth and then move the tongue downwards.




This graphic came from the site Upgrade English: http://upgradeenglish.blogspot.com/2009/10/lr.html

As you can see with R the tongue is raised but NOT TOUCHING the top of your mouth behind your teeth.

A good site explaining how to pronounce the L sound is: http://www.learnenglish.de/pronunciation/lvsr.htm

Now let's practice the L sound~!

easy:

Lex likes lemons.

medium:

Laura laughs like a lunatic. (lunatic = crazy person)

difficult:

Little Lucy Loon likes to lick lime lollipops a lot.

More difficult:

Larry, Lois, Len and Linda left London to liquidate their lemon-lime soda business.

Ok that's all for today, have a good week!

Phil

I was framed~!

Sorry guys, I caught a cold and this means I don't have the energy to write a big post... so instead I will continue the crime theme with a new verb: to frame (someone).

You will often hear this word in crime dramas and movies. It means that you didn't do the crime but someone is making it LOOK like you did. The verb comes from the noun a picture frame, which is the (usually wooden) picture holder that you put a picture in. In Japanese a picture frame is 額縁 (がくぶち).

Basically, someone is making a frame (situation where you look guilty) to go around someone. So they frame you by making you look guilty.

For example:

Police: So you killed her, right?
Suspect: No, no, it wasn't me! I loved her!!
Police: We have evidence which puts you at the scene of the crime...
Suspect: It must have been planted(put there on purpose), I was framed!!

Ok, I will throw in a few more useful crime words:

a witness: someone who sees something happen, usually a crime,
参考人 (さんこうにん)

an alibi: proof that it was impossible for you to commit the crime,
アリバイ or 不在証明 (ふざいしょうめい)

I think that is it for now, let's hope I get better soon. Have a nice week,

Phil

That's his M.O.

Hey everyone, I hope you all had a wonderful Halloween! Today, we will have a quick vocabulary lesson which will help you understand crime dramas and movies.

What's his M.O.?

M.O. stands for Modus Operandi which is Latin for way to work or in Japanese, 仕方 (しかた). It is usually used by the police when talking about criminals and what their patterns are. For example:

The arsonists M.O. is to burn warehouses late Friday nights.

Meaning that the person who likes to start fires and burn buildings down(arsonist) always sets warehouses on fire late at night and always on Fridays. It is his pattern, the way he works, hi modus operandi, his M.O.

Well, I hope you enjoyed today's mini-lesson and I hope to post something longer soon, have a fun week!

Phil