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- "Nice to meet you, my name is…
"Nice to meet you, my name is John."
Translation:はじめまして、ジョンと言います。
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ジョンです is "I'm John". ジョンといいます Is "people call me John" or "call me John". Something like that.
Could you use this to tell someone your nickname? Something like クリスです、キドクマといいます. Make any sense at all?
One possibility: クリスです. キドクマとよんでください。(Chris desu. KidKuma to yonde kudasai.) Translates as "I am Chris. Please call me KidKuma.
I just wanted to clarify for @kidkuma that the typical usage of ～といいます is different from your suggestion, which is very natural.
Typically, one would use either ～です OR ～といいます, but not both. Which one you choose ultimately comes down to personal preference, but as @Cecil164832 pointed out in another comment, the meaning of いいます is "saying", so an example situation where it might be natural to use it instead of です is if you write your name on the board before introducing yourself, i.e. "I'm your new English teacher {writes "Chris" on the board} "Chris"といいます."
Yes, と is a particle here. It's taking on the role of (what I call) "the quotation particle".
I believe it's an accent thing, but yeah I've heard people not say the u
It's definitely an accent thing, but the standard Japanese accent does not pronounce the "u"at the end of です or ます.
(I just wanted to make it clear, because your comment makes it sound like "not say[ing] the u" is uncommon, when it's precisely the opposite.)
It's not so much that it's not pronounced...it's just barely pronounced, like a tiny puff of air from the back of the throat that's really not audible...but it's there.
Yes... といいます literally just means "[noun] is said." いう (to say) put into BII is turned into いい which then has ますput on the end, だから、「といいます」です。
Can you help me to understand, why I can't say in this lesson ”お名前はジョンです but ジョンといいます?
There are a couple of reasons. The first major one is that お名前 is used to refer to someone else's name. This is because お is an honorific prefix which indicates that you are showing respect to the name and it's considered poor social etiquette to indicate respect for yourself. On the other hand, ～といいます is a relatively polite way to introduce yourself because it's somewhat humble (it means "I am called ～" with the connotation that you didn't choose to be called this, but accept it anyway).
The other, less important reason is because, even if you had tried a correct way to introduce yourself 「私の名前はジョンです」, Duolingo is trying to teach you a set course with preset sentences. By necessity, they have to assume that you know only what they've explicitly taught you up to this point in the course, and 名前 has not been. I think they should still accept it, but these exceptions have to be manually added for each sentence.
です can be used, but ジョンです means "I am John" whereas ジョンといいます is closer to "I am called John".
I have no clue what I'm doing... I keep guessing the sentence structures... I feel so discouraged
Essentially topic + extra stuff + verb. Names I don't quite understand because it appears we can jusy say name + verb(name is), which I don't get, but the general sturcture is pretty uniform.
Later on, things can change depending on how you word stuff, but for now just keep in mind topic+stuff+verb
That's a pretty good way to think about it.
Names work because the topic is omitted, and "name" becomes part of the extra stuff. The full sentence in this exercise would be 私はジョンといいます. 私 ("I/me") is marked as the topic by は, ジョン ("John") is marked as the quoted thing by と, and the verb is いいます ("to be called/named"). Similarly, ジョンです in full is 私はジョンです.
I highly agree. But if I spend too much time on it, my Japanese becomes OVERLY rigid. I am finding as I get further in Lingodeer, I'm starting to appreciate Duolingo's informal lessons. I feel like I need both to study literary and practical Japanese. Both have gaps filled by the other.
What is the difference between といいます and ともいいます? I am called and I am also called?
Essentially, yeah. There are other more common ways to say things along the lines of "I'm also known as", but I can't see anything grammatically wrong with your translation.
も used in this example means "also" and can be applied like that to a lot of situations. So, 「ジョンといいます、かれもジョンといいます。」 Would be, "I'm John. He is also called John."
ますis what is ending the sentence. As you continue to learn, です doesnt always end a sentence. You could end it with です but they wanted to let you know that といいます is "my name is / i am called".
Wouldn't the closest thing be "私の名前はジョンです"? Since thag means My name is John? Or isn't it common to phrasd it like that in Japan?
Just as you can say the same thing in different ways in your own language, the same applies to Japanese. I am John, my name is John, call me John, the name's John.
私の名前は〜です, 私は〜です, 〜です, 〜といいます are all valid as well, you just need to have context in mind when using them
Not sure if this is right but you could probably drop the 'Watashi no' because that's implied in the context?
Yes, in conversational Japanese the 私の is dropped when it's clear you're talking about yourself. In fact, the subject is usually omitted when the context is clear. It sounds blunt in English, but it's normal informal in Japanese.
No, 名前はジョンです is not normal, even in informal Japanese. If the subject was to be dropped, it would be the entire phrase, 私の名前, along with its associated particle, は, so you'd be left with ジョンです.
However, dropping the subject doesn't automatically make it informal Japanese. For this sentence, the verb has an informal form too, です -> だ
I think you could, but it's hardly done as that would sound very blunt, a la "Name's John."
Here, とis behaving as a quotation particle. It indicates that John (=ジョン) is the thing that (=と) I am called (=いいます).
It is commonly used this way with verbs like いいます ("to say"), 思います (おもいます, "to think/feel"), and 考えます (かんがえます, "to think/consider"), among others.
which of "to ii masu" or "toiimasu" is the correct wording? Why japanese doesn't use space?
If you're talking about how Duo has set up separate buttons for と, いい, and ます, as well as といいます, there's no difference; it's just an exercise if you want to practice spelling out the words.
If you're talking about transliteration (writing it out using English letters), there's no real prescribed "correct way", but I prefer to write it as to iimasu, to help me remember that to is the particle and iimasu is the verb.
Japanese doesn't use spaces because they don't need to. They use hiragana, katakana, and kanji in specific grammatical roles to make spaces largely unnecessary.
The topic can often be omitted from a sentence if it is already known from context. In this case, the topic of the sentence is "I" since you are introducing yourself. If you were to include the topic the sentence would read as:
はじめまして、私はジョンといいます
Since the listener knows that you're referring to yourself though, it isn't necessary to tell them that it is specifically you who is John so the topic can be dropped.
The pattern I'm at the moment is that in Japanese, you put the thing that's being talked about (in this case John/ジョン) before the thing that subject is or is doing (in this case, the subject, John, is your name)
I'm not a native speaker so I don't know if this is accurate or not. Can someone confirm?
Be careful about patterns. Duolingo is more informal but practical Japanese. If you want to understand the guidelines and concepts, you need to use something with pro grammer like Genki 1 or Lingodeer so you don't form the wrong connections.
That is if you're wanting to read and write and not just speak. Ignore me in that case
は when used as a topic particle is pronounced "wa" but in every other instance it is "ha"
The sounds of many kana changed when the language was reformed and solidified, but since particles were in such common use, rather than change them all and have to completely re-teach the population to read and write they just allowed the old readings to stay as well, giving the kana used for particles multiple reading.
へ is "he" normally but "e" as a direction particle, and を is "wo" but pronounced "o" as an object marker.
@Swisidniak can i ask smthing tho
Why is that が is used as topic particle sometimes? Are they used differently ?
が is the subject particle and marks the subject of a sentence. It marks new important information and stresses the word that comes before it. Sometimes the subject and the topic are the same thing, but not always.
Often は and が can be interchangeable, with each adding slightly different nuance to the sentence. は is used for the broader topic of conversation and if understood from context can be dropped. (The unspoken topic of this question's sentence would be "me" as in "my name is John") は carries some other functions such as showing contrast between things and is more often used in negative sentences for this reason.
Some examples:
Both of these sentences translate to "This is a pen" but different parts are stressed.
これはペンです - kore ha pen desu - (this) (topic) (pen) (is)
"On the topic of this thing - it is a pen" - "this" is already known, it being a pen is new information and is stressed. Could be in response to "what is this thing?"
これがぺんです - kore ga pen desu - (this) (subject) (pen) (is)
"This thing (is the thing that is) a pen" - "this" is new information and stressed. Could be an answer to "What is a pen?"
"I am John" :
私はジョンです - watashi wa John desu - (I) (topic) (John) (am)
"On the topic of me - I am John" - can be shortened to a simple ジョンです John desu, because it can already understood you're talking about yourself.
私がジョンです - Watashi ga John desu - (I) (subject) (John) (am)
"I (am the one who is) John" - "I" is being stressed. You are John. Not that other person.
A sentence that uses both:
私はお茶が欲しいです - Watashi wa ocha ga hoshii desu - (I) (topic) (tea) (subject) (wanted/desired) (is)
"On the topic of me, tea is wanted" or simply "I want tea".
Can be shortened to お茶が欲しいです - ocha ga hoshii desu - because it is assumed you are talking about yourself.
Sorry that got a bit long, particles are complex things and I'm only really scratching the surface here. They'll become much easier to understand as you're learning and start actively using them.
It's perfectly fine ! Thank you very much for taking your time to make in depth explanations ☺️☺️
Why does it sometimes show "いいます" as the right answer and "言います" at other times ? Is there a difference? Is one more accurate than the other ?
Don't worry, they're the same thing. いいます is simply the hiragana spelling/pronunciation of the kanji version 言います.
The kanji would technically be more accurate since it is how it would normally be written and removes any ambiguity to its meaning, but either are acceptable.
I live in Japan, and I've never heard this version of "my name is..." Usually people say, 私はジョンです, or simply ジョンです。
Because it’s not well explained, 言います (いいます) is more like “I am called” but it can also be used for say/said.
You want to think if it more as “People say I am” only because the と Particle in this situation is used to mark a quote.
So literally it’s more like: Nice to meet you, I am called “John”.
Weird, I know.
Why is it wrong at the opposite order? I thought it must be translated starting from the end??? PLEASE HELP
Generally, a good way to start getting your head around Japanese grammar, especially as a beginner, is to start translating from the end, but if you hold on to that crutch too tightly, you very quickly get sentences that make no sense in English.
In this case, the comma separates the phrases はじめまして and ジョンといいます. By answering with "My name is John, nice to meet you", Duo thinks you think はじめまして = "my name is John" and ジョンといいます = "nice to meet you", which are both clearly incorrect.
Because the name "John" isn't the topic of this sentence. Also, using the particle は with this verb いいます would make it sound like John, the person, is the subject as well as the topic, and the sentence would mean something like ""Nice to meet you," John says".
In english. Namely american. when say a man demands respect he would say my name is mr john. Is it understood in the culture and in the language that an elder/respected figure would go by john san?
You don't use san (or any other honorific) for yourself or when referring to your family; it makes you sound too proud.
For example you wouldn't talk to someone else about your mother using okaasan you'd use mama/haha, though in some families when talking directly to your mother you might use okaasan as a way of showing her respect.
So in other words would it be weird to say hajimemashite john san toiiumasu
Yes, it would be weird. In Japanese culture, to my non-native understanding, the use of honorific name suffixes like さん is a lot more nuanced than "is X an elder/respected figure?" The same person could go by さん to some people, さま to others, せんせい to others still, etc. The same person could refer to the same someone by さん in certain situations, せんぱい in others, etc.
Furthermore, one does not generally demand respect in Japanese culture; it's usually implied and/or expected. To that end, a person typically doesn't choose what name suffix they want to be addressed by.
Thst being said, I can imagine a scenario where someone is being disrespectful to John, who has a higher social status, and John feels the need to address such disrespect, but there are a couple of things weird about your suggested sentence. One, this typically wouldn't happen on a first meeting (as implied by the はじめまして), especially being the first thing you say to someone. They probably haven't had the chance to disrespect John yet. Their relative social status hasn't been established enough yet to be disrespected.
Secondly, and more importantly, if John was incensed enough to correct someone, he wouldn't use the polite verb conjugation of いいます. It would probably be more like お前(おまえ)にはジョンさんだぞ, where お前 is a rude and condescending version of "you", だ is the plain (non-polite) form of です, and ぞ is a strongly masculine emphasizer (similar to よ).
さん is a default title but Mr. Is not. In English we would ADD Mr. Out of respect. In Japanese, you REMOVE さん out of familiarity.
I've never liked "Mr, Miss, & Ms" as the translation。Titles like -どの (dono) or -さま (sama) are closer. Consider it doesn't have a direct translation so -さん means -さん.
This happens with most languages so instead focus on context . -さん is the default unless you have a personal relationship but its not like you MUST drop/change it.
Example, most common name for mother is "おかさん" but I've never heard anyone say おか. Likewise, they use "まま" but not "ままさん" so in this instance, the best translation is:
おかさま = Most respected mother (okasama) おかさん = Mother (okasan) まま = Mom/Mommy (mama)
はじめまして、私の名前はジョンです Hajimemashite, watashi no namae ha John. Most Japanese translations of, "My name is....", is, "Watashi no namae wa....."
i was previously taught to say "watashi wa ____ desu" to say my name whats different when using toiimasu
watashi wa (name) desu is like
I am (name)
whereas (name) to iimasu is
I am called (name)
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Is it not possible to use the small "tsu" in "to-i-i-ma-su" since its used for doubling of the following first character? Instead of two "i"s?
The small tsu is for gemination, doubling consonant sounds specifically, and can not be used for vowels.
Not in the same way, but small っ can be used to shorten vowel sounds for dramatic effect, e.g. えっ！？is an abrupt "Eh!?"
Well, now you have, and hopefully next time you'll remember some of them and what they say/mean. That's how you learn things.
Duo makes things a little easier for you by providing a "Tips and Notes" section at the start of every tree (the little light bulb icon, which unfortunately isn't available in the Android app) and hints for every word (if you click or tap the characters, the hints will appear).
I used "John-san" but apart from that my structure was identical but i got it wrong. Is it considered rude to refer to oneself as [own name]-san or would it not make sense?
Yes, "-san" is used to show respect to someone. It'd be very rude to add an honorific to your own name.
I think this exercise has been updated recently. The kanji 言 is what is generally used for this verb; I believe the initial launch of this course tried to avoid throwing too much kanji at you at once, so they opted to use the hiragana い which is valid because that is the pronunciation of the kanji.
いいます and 言います mean exactly the same thing. The kanji 言 is what is generally used for this verb; I believe the initial launch of this course tried to avoid throwing too much kanji at you at once, so they opted to use the hiragana い which is valid because that is the pronunciation of the kanji.
My textbook Genki 1 says that Hajimemashite is "How do you do?" while Yoroshiku onegaishimasu is "Nice to meet you" but dual lingo says that Hajimemashite is "Nice to meet you." Im so confused
Hey, I am using a japanese keyboard and when I type と言い the first い converts to a different kanji character that looks about the same but doesnt have the little nick on the top. it only doesnt type 言 in the questionair and I dont know if this is a fault with the keyboard and duolingo questionnaire cause I can type the exact same thing into anything else and it shows up with the right kanji character. Does anyone have any suggestions or knows if im just stupid and doing wrong? I dont want to use the select box method for every question that involves と言い but I cant figure out how to type the 言 character XO
How similar is the kanji that you get instead? Could it just be a difference in the font?
See this example:
These are Chinese characters, but the same principle applies to Japanese kanji. The each row shows different styles for writing a given character (top to bottom, 立, 言, 耀). The "little nick at the top" might just be a font difference.
You don't refer to yourself or your family members with honorifics like san (well, you can refer to a family member with an honorific, but only if you are talking directly to them, not when talking about them to someone else)
Edit: Ninja'd by a mod
nameと言います means "i am called" (literally the quote particle と + 言います the polite form of "to say") 私の名前 means "my name is " there's no difference in meaning just two different ways to say it, like in English.
