ＨＥＬＬＯ！ Ｉ　ＡＭ　ＱＵＩＺＢＯ™！I warmly welcome you to Word of the Week Wednesday! However, if you are reading this on any other day of the week, you will still be able to enjoy it. Perhaps, it should be renamed Word of the Week Whenever as not to discourage anyone from participate the rest of the week if they missed it or are only just joining us. At any rate, I am here to present to you this week’s segment. But, two pertainent questions may be: who are you, and what is this? Again, I am QUIZBO™, but you may recognise me as the quiz creator and helper alongside Kiki and Koko on Kiki+Koko: Let’s NihonGO!! Online. I also assist in reading words for you and pronouncing them, which results in an apropos position to lead this weekly segment.

Before the creation of Word of the Week Wednesday, there was a gap betwixt Monday and Friday’s lessons and articles devoid of learning or activities. And thus, this corner was created. When learning a new language or simply trying to maintain a healthy mental lifestyle, it’s useful to keep your mind active whether it is learning something new or refreshing your memory. This also serves as a great reminder every week to go back and revise / review previous lessons. Humans are not always like computers in that sometimes there are skills you must practise many times before being able to enact it without delay. During this corner, I present you a brand new word or phrase to you in Japanese, and you can use this at its basest level if you would rather use this time to practise previous lessons. However, there is much more usage available to you from what is seemingly a simple vocabulary segment.

During Word of the Week Wednesday, I attempt to match these lessons to any level of learner, as I introduce a new vocabulary word, pronouncing it for you slowly as as as at normal speed. With that, you can repeat after me in order to properly programme the word into your vocabulary. It will take many exposures, but I will repeat the word for you as many times as you wish without hesitation. From there, I provide the parts of speech and important other definition related knowledge. Kiki and Koko usually join me at this point to provide a helpful hint that will assist you in using the word. But, we do not simply leave you with this.

If you would like to learn how to apply these words to your own basic sentences, feel free to take a look at a few of Kiki and Koko’s articles on this subject in Kiki+Koko: Let’s NihonGO!! Japanese Language Essentials.

After this, we work together to create a sentence or two which illustrates the word as it could be encountered, or in a fun way that expresses its usage. These are written in their original Japanese, then hiragana, romaji, and in an English translation. I read them aloud to you at normal speed to add to the immersion as well as to give you a hint of how you can pick the vocabulary word out of a sentence if you are a beginner. Beginners can use this as practise for reading, whilst intermediate and advanced users can see grammar in action along with ideas for their own sentences to create.

So, you can make an entire activity for learning: using them in a sentence yourself, practising your writing, practising grammar from previous lessons, as well as pronouncing them aloud to practise speaking. Or, you can simply enjoy it at its base value of a fun segment. Either way, we are here for you and wish you enjoyment.

Enter and reveal a world hidden in plain sight with our Japanese language and culture lessons and articles.

Also, the following words are perfect for practising writing hiragana. Learning how to read and write is very important when learning any language, and we continue to provide more tools to allow you to achieve this skill. Feel free to have a look at the selection of resources provided on our main page such as Let’s Read HIRAGANA!! | with Kiki+Koko &QUIZBO™ and Let’s Write HIRAGANA!! | with Kiki+Koko &QUIZBO™.On behalf of Kiki and Koko, as well as myself, we hope you enjoy these lessons.

Speaking of enjoyment, we are also joined by Kiki and Koko with their Helpful Hints segment which should help you with the following Word of the Week, which happens to be coupled with a bonus antonym.

Without further ado, let us NihonGO!!

Word(s) of the Week:

楽しい【たのしい】※
tanoshii
i-adjective　(イ形容詞けいようし )
1. fun; enjoyable; happy; pleasant; etc

Bonus Word(s) of the Week:

詰まらない【つまらない】※
tsumaranai
i-adjective (イ形容詞けいようし )
1. boring; tedious; dull
2. insigificant; worthless
3. absurd; foolish
4. pointless; useless

(usu. つまらない)

※Helpful Hints with Kiki+Koko

Photo via @kikikokoNihonGO on Twitter

Hello, there!

We’re Kiki and Koko of Kiki+Koko: Let’s NihonGO!! Online, the Blog, and any other endeavours hitherto. We’re here to give you a few helpful hints to go along with these Japanese vocabulary words that will extend the flavour and allow you to use them in even more scenarios as soon as you’re comfortable! Firstly, it would be wise to take a quick little inspection of the previous lessons regarding Japanese adjectives. In future, we’ll have more, of course, but this is a great opportunity to become more familiar or to give your mind a refresher.

The first lesson on the basics of Japanese adjectives should assist you with placement, types of adjectives, and more that will really set you off on the right path. From there, we have how to make negative adjectives and how to list adjectives in Japanese. These are all concepts that are quite different to English. That’s why it’s so important to have a trusted guide to Japanese language, as there are concepts in learning on your own that you may not have even thought to learn about. It’s equally surprising when learning another language when this concept doesn’t exist. But, the trade-off includes some other concepts that are much simpler in Japanese. But, if you’re looking to ever use Japanese adjectives, you’ll certainly find these lessons to be a useful addition to your Japanese Language Survival Kit that you may not have been able to live without!

Now, today, we have the benefit of having a pair of antonyms, so if you want to express the opposite of one, you’ll have the option of making them negative or simply using the other.

楽しくないです。（๑•̀ᆺ•́๑)
tanoshikunai desu.
(It) is not fun.

つまらなくないです。 (´・ω・`)
tsumaranakunai desu.
(It) is not boring.

Or on a higher level of politeness:

楽しくなくありません。（๑•̀ᆺ•́๑)
tanoshikuarimasen.
(It) is not fun.

つまらなくありません。 (´・ω・`)
tsumaranakuarimasen.
(It) is not boring.

Maybe you could use this if you’re refuting an argument that something you may think is enjoyable or boring is stated to be the opposite. These have many different meanings based on contexts, as well. This brings us to a very quick, but useful phrase you may use when giving a gift. We’ve mentioned in the past that Japanese manners are a bit similar to British manners. You don’t exalt yourself or your work, only others, keeping yourself humble if only in speech; and this even applies to something you’re presenting to someone else as a gift.

つまらないものですが・・・ (´・ω・`)
tsumaranai mono desu ga…
It’s not much, but… (Lit. it’s insignificant, but…)

This can be for a gift, as well as many other scenarios. It implies what you’ve given just isn’t enough, like 取るに足りないものですが… Giving this isn’t enough… Even if you put your heart and soul into it, it still implies that it’s still not good enough for them, which is obviously just a courtesy to say. We mention this because it’s important to culture, but it sounds a little discouraging from the outside.

Our saying here around SpeRaToBo HQ is ‘All you can do is all that you can do’ which is to say that your best is good enough because your best is the best you can do! And, we’re here to encourage you to think the same way. it’s polite to be sure to speak this way in Japanese because it shows you care, but just be sure to know you are always good enough and anything you give is good enough. Learning new things is just a way to take care of yourself and nurture your interests, but anything you do is extraordinary.

We hope that helps!! Until the next lesson!
♡Kiki+Koko

Thank you, Kiki and Koko! Cross-cultural communication can definitely be a bit of a steep step in some cases, but it is very important as communication is more than words, but the choices you use. And, even with my computer exterior, it is important to express care when interfacing. I do hope that you feel that you are held in high regard as we continue to the sentence portion of the corner.

Example Sentences:

The first row is in Japanese with Kanji. The Next row is in hiragana, then romanised using rōmaji with the final row translated into English.
(Japanese→Hiragana→Rōmaji→English)

Example #1:

[basic polite speech]

新しいことをして新しい場所に行くのは楽しいだと思いますが、家にいて本を読んだり絵を描いたり勉強したりするも楽しいですね。
あたらしいことを　して　あたらしい　ばしょに　いくのは　たのしいだと　おもいますが、　いえに　いて　ほんを　よんだり　えを　かいたり　べんきょうしたりするも　たのしいですね。
atarashii koto wo shite atarashii basho ni iku no wa tanoshii da to omoimasuga, ie ni ite hon wo yondari e wo kaitari benkyou shitari suru mo tanoshii desu ne.
I think it’s fun to do new things and go new places, but it’s also enjoyable doing things like reading books, drawing pictures, and studying at home, yeah?

Example #2:

[casual speech]
いやだ。このパーティーに行くわけないよ。誰か知らなくていつまらないわ。
いやだ。このぱーてぃーに　いくわけないよ。だれかしらなくてつまらないわ。
iya da. kono paatii ni iku wake nai yo. dareka shiranakute tsumaranai wa.
No way! There’s no way I’m going to this party. I don’t know anyone and it’s boring.

Example #3:

[casual speech]
当地は　寒いから　沖縄に行ったらしい。旅行は　楽しかったの？
とうちは　さむいから　おきなわに　いったらしい。りょこうは　たのしかったの？
touchi wa samui kara okinawa ni itta rashii. ryokou wa tanoshikatta no?
I heard you went to Okinawa because this place is cold. Did you enjoy your trip?

Example #3½:

[casual speech]
うん、旅行は暖かくて楽しかった。海に行って家族を訪ねた。おっ！つまらないものですが、お土産をどうぞ。
うん、りょこうは　あたたかくて　たのしかった。　うみにいって　かぞくを　たずねた。おっ！つまらないものですが、おみやげをどうぞ。
un, ryokou wa atatakakute  tanoshikatta. umi ni itte kazoku wo tazuneta. o! tsumaranai mono desuga, omiyage wo douzo.
Yeah, the trip was warm and pleasant. I went to the beach and visited my family. Oh! It’s not much, but here’s a souvenir.

🔊Japanese Word(s) of the Week w/ QUIZBO™ | 【教える】+ Bonus:【覚える】(+Helpful Hint with Kiki+Koko)

That is all for today, but you can always have a look at any of our other lessons. Maybe you are interested in another Word of the Week? Perhaps this will be to your liking: 🔊Japanese Word(s) of the Week w/ QUIZBO™ | 【教える】+ Bonus:【覚える】(+Helpful Hint with Kiki+Koko). This includes some useful verbs, and Kiki and Koko provide their helpful hints for 覚える and 教える. We hope to see you there!

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♡QUIZBO™