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Class Session 8a Chapter 5. Stating Your Age Counters Using a Number Phrase in a Sentence Using takusan and sukoshi to Express Quantity Question Words with Counters. Stating Your Age. To ask someone’s age: nan-sai desu ka. (nan-sai , what age? How old? )
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Class Session 8a Chapter 5 • Stating Your Age • Counters • Using a Number Phrase in a Sentence • Using takusan and sukoshi to Express Quantity • Question Words with Counters Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Stating Your Age • To ask someone’s age: • nan-sai desu ka. (nan-sai , what age? How old?) • o-ikutsu desu ka. (more polite) (ikutsu, how many? how old?) • To say your age, add the counter sai after the number: • ni-jū-sai desu. (二十歳, hatachi) • (I am) 20. • ni-jū-go-sai desu. • (I am) 25. Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Counters • The Japanese use a complicated counter system for enumerating things (similar to • the use of counters in English: a herd of cows, a flock of sheep, a gaggle of geese) • The counter system was borrowed from Chinese, along with the numbers • There is a different counter that varies according to the size, shape and type of • item being counted • There are about 240 different counters for things • Some of the counters cause minor sound changes or exceptional pronunciations • This lesson introduces several common counters • mai – for counting flat things (sheets of paper, tickets, towels, etc. • hon – for long cylindrical things (pens, bananas, cigarettes, bottles of beer, etc.) • nin – for people • tsu – for medium-size items1 • ----------------------------------------------- • 1This is an unusual treatment of native Japanese numbers Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Counters - Form and Pronunciation (p81 of textbook) Number Flat Item Cylindrical Item People Medium-size Items1 1 ichi-mai ip-ponhito-ri hito-tsu 2 ni-mai ni-hon futa-rifuta-tsu 3 san-mai san-bon san-nin mit-tsu 4 yon-mai yon-hon yon-nin yot-tsu 5 go-mai go-hon go-nin itsu-tsu 6 roku-mai rop-pon roku-nin mut-tsu 7 shichi-mai nana-hon shichi-nin nana-tsu 8 hachi-mai hap-pon hachi-nin yat-tsu 9 kyū-mai kyū-hon kyū-nin kokono-tsu 10 jū-mai jup-pon jū-nin tō ------------------------------------------- 1 These are really the native Japanese words for the numbers 1-10. Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Using a Number Phrase in a Sentence • When using a number phrase in a sentence, place it after the item (and particle) • the number refers to: • watashi wa ane ga futa-ri imasu. • I have two older sisters. • watashi wa ane ga futari to, ani ga hito-ri to, otōto ga hito-ri imasu. • I have two older sisters, one older brother, and one younger brother. • When using the –tsu counters (native Japanese numbers), there are two ways to express the number of things : • enpitsu ga futatsu arimasu. There are two pencils. • futatsu no enpitsu ga arimasu. There are two pencils. • You can always use this method if you do not know the counter word Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Using takusan and sukoshi to Express Quantity (pp82-83) • Instead of using a number phrase there are two words you can use to express both • amount and quantity for both countable and uncountable items: • takusan (a large amount, a large quantity) • sukoshi (a small amount, small quantity) • Place the word where you would normally see the number • Examples: • kukkii ga takusan arimasu. kēki mo sukoshi arimasu. • There are a lot of cookies. There are some cakes too. • watashi wa chūgoku-jin no tomodachi ga takusan imasu. • I have many Chinese friends. • kankoku-jin no tomodachi mo sukoshi imasu. • I also have some Korean friends. • sūgaku no shukudai ga takusan arimasu. eigo no shukudai mo sukoshi arimasu. • I have a lot of math homework. I also have some English homework. Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012
Question Words with Counters • To ask the quantity or amount of some items, you can use the question word • nan (from nani) with the appropriate counter: • nan-mai how many (flat items)? • nan-bon how many (cylindrical items)? • nan-nin how many (people)? • iku-tsu how many? • Examples: • kono hako no naka ni origami ga nan-mai arimasu ka. • How many sheets of orgiami paper are there in this box? • gakusei ga nan-ni imasu ka. • How many students are there? • kyō wa kurasu ga ikutsu arimasu ka. • How many classes do you have today? Japanese 1100-L08a-07-08-2012