Public transportation is important in Japan. You will probably need to take a bus at some point. So you’ll want to ask questions like “is this bus headed to Tokyo?” You should also probably tell people things like, “I need to get off the train at Nagano Station.” Phrases and questions like these are the key to moving in Japan. This Japanese article for beginners is here to help! You will learn to ask and answer questions about where you want to go. Ask, kono basu wa Tokyo-iki desu, (“Is this bus heading to Tokyo?”) and similar questions in Japanese. This Japanese for Beginners article is the key to getting where you’re going in Japan!
Vocabulary: In this article, you will learn the following words and phrases:
chizu – “map”
jikan – “time”
Ogenki desu ka – “How are you?”
koe – “voice”
yuki – “intended for”
noru – “get on (a train), take (a train)” (class 1 verb)
oriru – “to get off” (class 2 verb)
Kawanakajima – “the name of a place”
basu – “bus”
Grammar: In this article, you will learn the following words and phrases:
Vocabulary and useful phrases
Chizu ga arimasu ka?
The pattern of prayer [person] wow [noun] ga arimasu corresponds to “[person] has [noun]” in French.
award pattern
Affirmative sentences:
- Chizu ga arimasu.
- *Jikan ga arimasu.
- *Okane ga arimasu.
- * Yotei ga arimasu.
Definitions:
- *jikan – “time”
- *okane – “money”
- *yotei – “schedule”
Negative sentences:
- Chizu ga arimasen.
- Jikan ga arimasen.
- Okane ga arimasen.
- Yotei ga arimasen.
Question Prizes:
- Chizu ga arimasuka?
- Jikan ga arimasuka?
- Okane ga arimasuka?
- Yotei ga arimasuka?
*We can replace the particle ga with the particle wa in negative sentences or yes/no questions.
Nagano-iki or Nagano-yuki
When -iki or -yuki follow a place name, -iki or -yuki function as suffixes, and we use [place]+ iki o [place] + yuki to express the final destination.
Example:
- Tokyo-iki or Tokyo-yuki “Tokyo-bound”
- Tokyo-yuki no densha. “a train bound for Tokyo”
- Kono basu wa Tokyo-iki desu? “This bus is headed for Tokyo?”
- That is, Nagano-eki yuki desu. “No, it’s heading to Nagano Station.”
Today’s target phrases:
Nagano-iki (not basu) nor noru. / “Take the bus bound for Nagano.”
Kawanakajima of (basu o)oriru. / “Get off (from the bus) at Kawanakajima.”
Please review the following vocabulary and usage:
- Nagano-iki – “bound for Nagano”
- no – “possessive particle”
- ni – “particle indicating direction or motion”
- noru – “ride, take”
- Kawanakajima – “the name of a place”
- de – “particle indicating the place of an action” (“in” or “in”)
- oriru – “to go down, to go out”
Noru and Oriru
Noru means “to ride”. We mark the transport that is carried out with the particle ni. The masu (polite form) form of the verb is orimasu.
Award pattern:
Subject /Washington/ Transportation /nor/Walk
Watashi/wa/basu/ni/norimasu.
Shizuka-san/wa/densha/ni/norimasu.
Rorii-san/wa/takushii/ni/noru.
Mizuki-san/wa/chika-tetsu/ni/noru.
Oriru means “to get off.” We mark transport with the particle o. The masu form of the verb is orimasu.
Award pattern:
Subject/Wa/Transportation/O/Go Down, Go Out
Watashi/wa/asu o/orimasu.
Shizuka-san/wa/densha/o/norimasu.
Rorii-san/wa/takushii/o/oriru.
Mizuki-san/wa/chika-tetsu/o/oriru.
Examples:
- (Watashi wa) basu ni norimasu. “I’m going to take the bus.” or “I take the bus.”
- (Watashi wa) basu or orimasu. “I’m going to get off the bus.” or “I’m getting off the bus.”
- Tokyo-eki from Shinkan-sen ni norimasu. “I’m going to take a bullet train at Tokyo station.” or “I’m getting on a bullet train at Tokyo station.”
- Nagano-eki from Shinkan-sen orimasu. “I’m going to get off the bullet train at Nagano Station.” or “I’m getting off the bullet train at Nagano Station.”