I put it up on the Japanese Resources page around a week ago (and it’s been on TextFugu a bit before that), but thought I should share it all with you here, since I think it will help a lot of you out. Being able to conjugate nouns, adjectives, and verbs isn’t terribly difficult, but it does require some nasty memorization for beginners … and I’ve never been a fan of memorization when I can help it (much better to memorize things other ways, I think. Stuffing your brain with repetition doesn’t do the trick for most people, even when they think it does). In order to help with this I came up with a Japanese Conjugation Cheatsheet. There was some thinking behind it, too, if you want to know why the cheatsheet is set up the way it is.

Simple And Not A Crutch

The whole goal was to make something that wouldn’t be too much of a crutch. The thing I worry about the most with cheatsheets is that people are using them instead of actually learning things. I’ve made sure the cheatsheet was set up in a way that won’t actually teach you about conjugating nouns, adjectives, and verbs. This cheatsheet is for people who have already learned it, but don’t know everything off the top of their head. Still, if you’re using this cheatsheet, it’s a good idea to be able to do all this (for the most part) on your own.

Really, the minimal amount of information is present. There’s information on:

• Neutral/Formal Nouns
• Neutral/Formal Adjectives
• Neutral/Formal Verbs
• A small reminder on how to convert from ます form to Dictionary Form
• Casual Nouns
• Casual Adjectives
• Casual Verbs

It will tell you how to do present/future, past, negative, and past negative tenses. Beyond that, there’s nothing else. It doesn’t cover the billion other things it could cover, because I wanted to keep things simple. Besides, if you don’t know the things on the cheatsheet, it’s really hard to learn anything else, so think of this cheatsheet as a cheatsheet for the foundations you need to learn to be awesome.

Formal vs. Informal

Another thing I wanted to do is make sure there was a way for people to visually see the difference between formal and informal, since I think the difference between the two are really important when learning Japanese. Both of them are good to know, so I’ve put them both on the cheatsheet. I didn’t include any of the super informal stuff, or the super formal stuff – only the stuff that’s going to be useful 90%+ of the time.

The cheatsheet positions the formal / informal conjugations in a vertical fashion, where formal is on top, and as you go down it gets more informal. Anyways, it’s pretty obvious when you actually look at the conjugation cheatsheet :)

Download It!

You can download it for free right here – Definitely share it with your Japanese-learning friends, classmates, teachers, etc. Might be helpful. If you use it and like it, please “recommend” it on the Japanese Resources page. Really appreciate it!

Download Page

Also, if you’re into this kind of thing, there’s the somewhat similar and possibly even more useful “Japanese Particles Cheatsheet.” Enjoy!

[Header Image]

Jerry Seinfeld’s Secret To Productivity

Jerry Seinfeld is a master at being funny. That’s pretty much what he’s done for a living most of his life. That being said, it’s not like he became funny overnight. Despite what you might think, being funny (or being anything, for that matter) takes a lot of practice. His secret to productivity / being funny? Write jokes every day.

That’s not the cool part, though.

Doing something every day is hard. The thought of, say, learning a new kanji every day can feel daunting. It becomes a chore, just like “washing the dishes every day” or “vacuuming every day.” If you think about repetitive, small tasks like this, they get repetitive and you won’t want to do them as much, which is unfortunate, since learning a little bit every day really adds up. Think about it:

If you learn one kanji per day, that’s 365 kanji per year (doesn’t seem like much, but it’s probably more than most people learn in most classes).

If you learn a mere two kanji per day, that’s 730 kanji per year.

If you learn three (just three!) kanji per day, that’s 1095 kanji per year and half of all the kanji you really need to know (around 2000). Plus, this is way faster than the speed at which Japanese kids learn kanji.

If you learn five kanji per day, you’ll know a cool 1825 kanji by the end of the year. Depending on how you filter things, this is pretty much all you need to know (I know joyo kanji have a bit over 2000 kanji to learn now, but this is pretty close).

Five kanji per day is definitely doable… but most people never do this. Why? Because it’s hard… it’s hard to do something every single day. Really, it’s as simple as that, I think.

So, the question isn’t “how do I force myself to do something every day?” The question should be “how do I change my way of looking at kanji learning to motivate myself to want to learn?”

Luckily, Seinfeld has that part down too (otherwise, how would he write all those jokes?). Here’s his real secret:

Seinfeld has a big year calendar, showing all the days of the year. Every day that he writes jokes, be puts an X through that day. After a few days, you’ll have yourself a little streak. Then, you’ll find that you’ll start to enjoy the chain. You’ll want to see the chain continue. Then, your only job is to do what it takes to keep that chain going. As he emphasizes in the article: “Don’t break the chain.”

This is great, because it moves the pressure and motivation around. Your focus isn’t “what kanji do I need to learn today?” Instead, it’s “what action do I need to do to take to keep my streak going?”

The longer the streak, the more important it becomes. The more important it becomes, the more likely you are to do it. Instead of doing less and less over time, you’re doing more and more. All these little, daily sessions add up to something big – and that’s not even taking into account how you’ll get better at learning kanji, which means you’ll learn more in less time the more your practice.

The Tools You Need To Get Started

Now, you could buy a big year wall calendar (they are pretty nice if you have the wall for one), but I whipped up an alternative you can download and print out right now if you’d like to get started asap.

[ilink style="download" url="http://www.tofugu.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/365days.pdf"]365 Days “Keep The Streak”[/ilink]

The above download is a PDF that can be used in a couple of different ways, depending on your preference. The sheet itself is pretty simple. It consists of 365 boxes (plus one extra for leap year), each with a number (between 1-365). You could either…

1. Try to keep your streak going for 365 days (and then if you miss a day, print out a new sheet and start over). Or…
2. Just keep going with the same sheet even if you miss a day, or two, or three. The goal in this version is to make the longest streak possible within these 365 days, which means if you miss a day or two, those boxes would be blank, and you’d re-start your streak after the blank tiles.

I don’t know which one is better, but the second one is a little closer to Seinfeld’s version if you want to stay true to that. Then again, you can also get yourself a big year wall calendar, but hopefully this is a good enough alternative for some of you.

Oh, And This Doesn’t Have To Be Used With Kanji…

I was just thinking something like this fit really well with kanji when I was writing this article. Of course, you can use this strategy (and PDF) to to motivate yourself to do all kinds of things. Here are some additional ideas:

• Getting through all your Anki reviews / other flashcard reviews
• Learning X number of new vocab words
• Reading/translating a Japanese newspaper article, blog post, tweet, etc., every day
• Writing a Japanese journal entry every day on Lang-8
• …not to mention all the non-Japanese language related self-improvement things you could be doing!

…and let me know what you’d use it for in the comments below!

Remember, it’s about the streak, not about the kanji. Give it a shot, see if you can get something going for a good week or two, and let me know how it’s going for you!

P.S. “What’s the deal with Twitter? What’s that bird doing there? Is he…” (Follow Tofugu on Twitter)

P.P.S. “No Facebook for you!!!” (Like Tofugu on Facebook)

Having trouble pronouncing these “crazy” Japanese words? Try out some of the free lessons on TextFugu to become a Japanese pronunciation master.

Emergency

If you’re traveling to Japan, you’re going to want to know words that have to do with “emergency” situations. You don’t want to be caught off guard in a foreign country. If you’re in trouble, you need to be able to ask for some help, whether that help is finding a bathroom or getting someone who speaks English.

トイレ (toire) = Toilet. Everyone has to use the toilet at some point, so if you need help finding it, this is the word for you.

手洗い (tearai) = Bathroom. Just like toilet, but a little more all-inclusive. You can feel free to use either of these in a pinch, though.

助けて (tasukete) = HELP. Just yell this out and (maybe) someone will come to your aid… if you’re lucky.

わかりません (wakarimasen) = I don’t understand. If someone is speaking to you in Japanese and you don’t understand them (if you’re using this list, then maybe you don’t) then you can just tell them you don’t understand what they’re saying. Follow that up with “eigo, eigo” (which you’ll learn in a minute) and you’ll be golden.

やめて！ (yamete!) = Stop it! Maybe somebody is messing with you and you want them to stop (yakuza? probably not). This is what you’d want to say.

英語 (eigo) = English. Sometimes you just need someone who speaks some English. Everyone in Japan is supposed to be able to speak English, though you might have trouble finding the right person depending on where you are.

服 (fuku) = Clothes. Don’t ask… I just thought it would be terrible to lose your clothes, and with all the hot springs and perverts, you never know.

死にそう (shini sou) = Seems Like I’m Going To Die. When things get really serious, you may need to pull out all the stops.

警察 (keisatsu) = Police. If something really bad happens, these are the guys you’re going to want to ask for.

危ない (abunai) = Dangerous. You’ll see this on signs and stuff too. If someone says “abunai” to you, you should probably watch your step.

危険 (kiken) = Peril, Hazard. Basically, this is a fancier abunai. You’ll see this on signs as well.

[hr]

Asking

Asking broad general questions, then using body language to tell people the rest is a really fun way to get by in a country where you don’t speak the language!

どうした？ (doushita?) = What Happened? Then again, you probably won’t understand what the person responds with, but it’s always nice to ask.

どうして？ (doushite?) = Why? You never know…

なに？ (nani) = What? Unbelievable!

時間 (jikan) = Time. Just ask this with an quizzical tone and people will get the drift.

質問 (shitsumon) = Question. Have a question? Let someone know. Couple this with “eigo! eigo!” and maybe someone who can speak some English will come to answer your shitsumon.

だれ (dare) = Who. Great in case you need to find someone.

いつ (itsu) = When. Pretty important if you’re trying to time something.

[hr]

People

Sometimes you need something that has to do with a someone. You can get by without too much here.

先生 (sensei) = Teacher. If you’re a student in Japan, this one comes in handy.

会社員 (kaishain) = Employee. Good if you’re looking for an organization’s employee to ask a question, perhaps.

人 (hito) = Person. For when you need to point out a person in general.

[hr]

Locations

Finding your way around can be pretty important. Here are some words that will help you do that and keep you from getting lost.

ホテル (hoteru) = Hotel. You’ll need to be able to find this if you’re traveling in Japan.

どこ (doko) = Where. Don’t know where something is? Ask where it is with this word.

空港 (kuukou) = Airport. Don’t miss your flight!

駅 (eki) = Station. Gotta catch that train!

日本 (nihon) = Japan. Good to know where you are.

大学 (daigaku) = College. Great for college students studying in Japan, or people who like colleges in general.

本屋 (honya) = Bookstore. Some bookstores are pretty sketchy, be careful!

タクシー (takushi) = Taxi. Expensive, but you can find them everywhere.

家 (uchi/ie) = Home. There’s no place like it.

[hr]

Food

Oh food, how I love thee. Can’t live without it, either.

おなかすいた (onaka suita) / はらへった (hara hetta) = Hungry. Two ways to say this one. First one is more neutral, second is more casual.

食べます (tabemasu) = To Eat. Do you eat this? Yes I eat this.

食べません (tabemasen) = To Not Eat. Do you eat this? No I don’t.

飲みます (nomimasu) = To Drink. Glug Glug.

飲みません (nomimasen) = To Not Drink. I don’t drink beer, sorry.

水 (mizu) = Water. I drink water, instead, because that’s how I roll.

飲み物 (nomimono) = Drink. Not the verb, but the noun. Please get me a drink.

食べ物 (tabemono) = Food. Need food? Any food?

美味しい (oishii) = Good Tasting. If something tastes nice (or if you want to be nice), you’d say this.

不味い (mazui) = Bad Tasting. I probably wouldn’t ever say this, but just in case you need to let someone know…

レストラン (resutoran) = Restaurant. Now you need to figure out which one.

コンビニ (konbini) = Convenience Store. Great place to buy small things and food. Convenience Store food in Japan is pretty awesome.

スーパー (suupaa) = Super Market. If you need something a convenience store can’t give you.

[hr]

Being Polite

You don’t want to piss people off when you’re in their country. Bad things happen if you do…

ありがとうございます (arigatougozaimasu) = Thank You. Do I even need to tell you why you should learn this? I hope not.

すみません (sumimasen) = Excuse Me. The streets can be busy, it’s nice to say excuse me when you walk through people.

ごめんなさい (gomennasai) = Sorry. If you bump into a Yakuza gang member, you might want to whip this one out.

[hr]

Greetings

Hopefully you meet some nice people in your travels. Say hello (and then goodbye!) to them.

おはようございます (ohayougozaimasu) = Good Morning. A greeting for morning.

こんにちは (konnichiwa) = Good Afternoon. You can use this around noonish on to the evening.

こんばんは (konbanwa) = Good Evening. Like the other ones, but for evenings.

ではまた (dewamata) = See You Later.

また明日 (mata ashita) = See You Tomorrow.

さようなら (sayounara) = Good bye. Probably won’t see them for a while :(

おやすみなさい (oyasuminasai) = Good Night. Time for sleepy time.

[hr]

Basic Verbs

Verbs will get you a long ways. You don’t have to know much else as long as you know verbs, because verbs help you to get things done.

行きます (ikimasu) = To Go.

帰ります (kaerimasu) = To Return (home).

食べます (tabemasu) = To Eat. Nom nom nom.

します (shimasu) = To Do. This is the best verb ever.

見ます (mimasu) = To See. What is it you want to see?

買います (kaimasu) = To Buy. For all of you who like shopping.

待ちます (machimasu) = To Wait.

書きます (kakimasu) = To Write. Have people write the directions down!

止まります (tomarimasu) = To Stop.

教えます (oshiemasu) = To Teach. If you’re a teacher in Japan.

話します (hanashimasu) To Speak.

[hr]

Basic Adjectives

Adjectives, while not as awesome as verbs, are also very useful. They help you describe things.

新しい (atarashii) = New.

嬉しい (ureshii) = Happy.

大丈夫 (daijoubu) = Okay. As in “I’m okay!”

すごい (sugoi) = Amazing. For the sight seeing.

高い (takai) = Expensive / Tall. Just depends on the context.

大きい (ookii) = Big, Large.

小さい (chiisai) = Small.

近い (chikai) = Near. How close is it?

遠い (tooi) = Far. How far is it?

悪い (warui) = Bad.

いい (ii) = Good.

面白い (Omoshiroi) = Interesting.

楽しい (tanoshii) = Fun.

熱い (atsui) = Hot.

寒い (samui) = Cold.

上手 (jouzu) = Good At.

下手 (heta) = Bad At.

赤 (aka) = Red.

青 (ao) = Blue.

黒 (kuro) = Black.

緑 (midori) = Green.

黄色 (kiiro) = Yellow.

白 (shiro) = White.

馬鹿 (baka) = Stupid! I bet you knew this one already.

[hr]

Numbers

一 (ichi) = One.

二 (ni) = Two.

三 (san) = Three.

四 (shi/yon) = Four. Such an unlucky number!

五 (go) = Five. Good way to remember the first five numbers: “Itchy knee! Son, She go!” Imagine that playing out…

六 (roku) = Six.

七 (shichi) = Seven. Also kinda unlucky.

八 (hachi) = Eight.

九 (ku) = Nine.

十 (juu) = Ten.

百 (hyaku) = 100.

千 (sen) = 1,000.

万 (man) = 10,000.

円 (en) = Yen. Not really a number, but goes nicely with the numbers, I think.

[hr]

What’s Missing?

Okay, okay. Hold your space horse space cowboy. I know that this list isn’t every important word. That would be impossible, and really depend on the person. But, now’s your chance to let me know what you would have added to this list as a “most important” word. List the word and the meaning down in the comments to help other people out too! That way your comment does some good, not evil.

Although the hiragana and katakana charts were designed to use with TextFugu, there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t use it with any other Japanese learning resource out there. Share it with friends, family, teachers, students, colleagues, classmates, online communities, torrent sites, whatever. You can take these charts and do what you will with them, as long as it doesn’t get weird (I know you love how curvaceous the hiragana is, Gakuranman). Anyways, just click on the images to go to the download page.

Hiragana Chart

Katakana Chart

Enjoy these charts – put them on your wall, write on them, lick them… whatever needs to be done. And, of course, if you have no idea what any of these wild and crazy symbols mean, you should check out TextFugu. In fact, the hiragana chapters are in the free zone, which means no excuses!

]]> http://www.tofugu.com/2010/01/07/hiragana-chart-katakana-chart-ready-for-download/feed/ 41 http://www.tofugu.com/2009/08/17/japanese-language-cheatsheet-for-travelers/ http://www.tofugu.com/2009/08/17/japanese-language-cheatsheet-for-travelers/#comments Mon, 17 Aug 2009 14:00:49 +0000 http://www.tofugu.com/?p=1851

My boss is heading to Japan for a few days next week (lucky!), so I’m helping him with some really last minute language study before he heads out. The goal isn’t to teach him any grammar, vocabulary, or anything like that, the goal is to make sure he’s able to get by as simply as possible. That’s why I made him a one-page cheatsheet, and then sharing it with all of you.

You can download it by clicking on the image of it up above, but let me offer some explanation on the pdf as well.

• This document was created for people with little to no Japanese language ability or experience. So, if you know a lot of Japanese then you should probably take a look at some other cheat sheet. It’s good if you’re traveling to Japan, don’t know any Japanese, and want to have the bare minimum to get by.
• I’ve included the “Japanese” version of most everything on there. This isn’t for the user of the sheet, it’s more for people who just can’t pronounce anything so that way they can just point to different things and native Japanese speakers will be able to read it.
• The “fill in the blank” section will probably require a dictionary (I’d recommend getting one on your phone if you can). I’ve included possible vocab words that you can put in the blanks right on the cheat sheet, but that won’t cover every possible situation. With a dictionary you’ll have a lot more flexibility.
• The Japanese language pronunciation guide might be a little confusing, but I couldn’t think of a better way to describe it. Most Japanese “letters” consist of both a consonant and a vowel (or just a vowel), and the sound of the vowel is pretty much always the same no matter what consonant is attached to it. Just do your best and point to things on the sheet all confused-kine if you have to. If you want to go more in depth on the pronunciation try learning some hiragana.
• Of course, I’d recommend you actually go learn some Japanese rather than relying on this cheatsheet if you are planning on going to Japan. It’ll make your life a lot easier, and a one-pager won’t get you very far. It’s one page, and covers only the bare minimum!

Hope you enjoy it and find it useful. Feel free to share it around, give it to a friend, etc etc. Once again, here’s the download link!

[box type="info"]Newer version of the Japanese Particles Cheatsheet[/box]

Japanese particles can be fun, if by fun you mean eye gouges and hair pulls. I haven’t come across too many people that enjoy Japanese particles. Tolerate? Sure, there are a few, but most people aren’t fans, and most teachers don’t make things too easy. Yesterday I taught a couple of courses on Japanese particles over at eduFire, and did everything I could to make particles easy and understandable. I figure if someone like me, who lacks a technical understanding of all grammar (in English, especially), can understand particles, then so should everyone else. I made things easy, cut out the fat, and simplified everything as much as possible, and I think for the most part it worked for people!In the process of doing that, I thought up the idea of making a Japanese Particles Cheatsheet. It’s a one page document that lays out all the main particles, explains their meaning, and shows some examples. It’s definitely not full of information, and I wouldn’t recommend using it to learn Japanese particles outright, but you can use it to help you tell one particle from another, especially if you’re just beginning Japanese (は and が particles can cause some problems, right!?), then that’s perfect.

So here it is, download this Japanese Particles Cheatsheet, use it in your class (teachers), share it with friends, Japanese learning colleagues, whatever. It’s all yours to enjoy. Definitely leave me some feedback though, if you have any, since I’ll probably be whipping together a 2.0 version at some point and I’m sure improvements can be made.

Download the [Japanese Particles Cheatsheet] Now!