Mother West Wind "Why" Stories — Page 3

Vocabulary

が

ga — Subject marker particle in Japanese grammar

最初

saisho — The very first; the beginning of something

に

ni — Particle indicating direction, time, or target

確かめ

tashikame — To confirm or verify something carefully

よう

yō — Expresses intention or resemblance; 'let's' or 'like'

と

to — Particle meaning 'and', 'with', or quotation marker

し

shi — Verb stem of 'suru'; to do

た

ta — Past tense auxiliary verb suffix

の

no — Possessive or nominalizing particle in Japanese

は

wa — Topic marker particle highlighting the sentence subject

どんな

donna — What kind of; what sort of thing

しっぽ

shippo — An animal's tail

を

wo — Object marker particle indicating the direct object

持っ

mot(te) — To have or hold something (stem form)

て

te — Connective verb form linking actions or states

いる

iru — To exist; indicates ongoing state or action

か

ka — Question particle added at the end of sentences

という

to iu — Called; known as; the fact that

こと

koto — Thing; fact; nominalizes a verb or clause

でし

deshi — Polite copula stem (part of 'deshita', past polite)

一

ichi / hito — The number one; first

しまりす

shimarisu — A chipmunk; small striped rodent

じぶん

jibun — Oneself; myself; yourself (reflexive pronoun)

しま

shima — Stripes; striped pattern on an animal or fabric

もよう

moyō — Pattern or design on a surface

じまん

jiman — Boasting; being proud of something

おもう

omou — To think; to feel; to believe something

わけ

wake — Reason; meaning; the way things are

おかあさん

okāsan — Mother; a polite word for one's mom

西風

nishikaze — The west wind blowing from the west

たのしい

tanoshii — Fun; enjoyable; pleasant experience

小さな

chīsana — Small; little; tiny in size

そよ風

soyokaze — A gentle breeze; soft light wind

たち

tachi — Plural suffix for people or animate beings

大

dai / ō — Big; great; large (prefix or standalone)

仲良し

nakayoshi — Good friends; being on friendly terms

です

desu — Polite copula meaning 'is', 'am', or 'are'

彼ら

karera — They; them (third-person plural pronoun)

紫

murasaki — Purple; violet color

丘

oka — A hill; a small elevated landform

から

kara — From; because; starting point particle

連れ

tsure — To bring along; to accompany someone

き

ki — Stem of 'kuru' (to come); came (classical)

あと

ato — After; later; behind; remainder

毎朝

maiasa — Every morning; each morning without exception

いちばん

ichiban — The most; number one; first place

急い

isoi — Hurrying; rushing (stem of 'isogu')

で

de — Particle indicating location, means, or cause

ところ

tokoro — Place; location; point in time or situation

へ

e — Direction particle meaning 'toward' or 'to'

会い

ai — Meeting; to meet someone (stem of 'au')

行く

iku — To go; to move toward a destination

いつも

itsumo — Always; all the time; habitually

仕事

shigoto — Work; job; occupation; one's duties

やめ

yame — To stop; to quit; to cease doing something

一緒

issho — Together; at the same time with others

遊ん

ason(de) — Playing; having fun (stem of 'asobu')

ほしい

hoshii — Wanting something; desiring; wishing for

たのみ

tanomi — A request; asking a favor of someone

ます

masu — Polite verb ending for present or future tense

よく

yoku — Often; well; frequently; skillfully

断り

kotowari — A refusal; declining a request politely

でも

demo — But; however; even so; nevertheless

とても

totemo — Very; extremely; quite a lot

陽気

yōki — Cheerful; merry; in high spirits

目

me — Eye; eyes of a person or creature

きらきら

kirakira — Sparkling; glittering; twinkling with light

さ

sa — Casual sentence-ending particle; makes nouns

せ

se — Causative verb stem; to make or let someone do

ながら

nagara — While doing; simultaneously performing two actions

断る

kotowaru — To refuse; to decline an offer or request

もらえ

morae — Potential form of 'morau'; to be able to receive

なく

naku — Without; not having; negating a verb or adjective

も

mo — Also; too; even; 'as well' particle

けっして

kesshite — Never; by no means (used with negatives)

怒り

ikari — Anger; rage; feeling of being furious

ませ

mase — Polite imperative ending; formal request suffix

ん

n — Negative or explanatory sentence-final particle

そう

sō — That way; like that; I see; so it is

怒ら

okora — Stem of 'okoru'; to get angry or upset

ない

nai — Negative form; does not; is not present

それ

sore — That; that thing (mid-distance demonstrative)

どころ

dokoro — Far from it; let alone; not even close

こそ

koso — Emphatic particle meaning 'precisely' or 'exactly'

ほんの

hon no — Just a little; merely; only a small amount

少し

sukoshi — A little; a small amount; slightly

よけい

yokei — Extra; all the more; even more so

大切

taisetsu — Important; precious; valuable to someone

思う

omou — To think; to feel; to consider something

ね

ne — Sentence-final particle seeking agreement or confirmation

遊ば

asoba — Stem/conditional of 'asobu'; to play or have fun

やる

yaru — To do; to give (casual); to carry out

べき

beki — Should; ought to; expressing obligation or duty

ある

aru — To exist; to have (for inanimate objects)

だ

da — Plain form copula meaning 'is' or 'am'

知っ

shit(te) — Knowing; aware of (stem of 'shiru')

そして

soshite — And then; and so; furthermore

こう

kō — Like this; in this way; thus

信じ

shinji — To believe; to trust (stem of 'shinjiru')

言い

ii — To say; to speak (stem of 'iu')

なら

nara — If; in that case; conditional particle

早く

hayaku — Quickly; early; as soon as possible

始めれ

hajimere — Conditional form of 'hajimeru'; if you start

ば

ba — Conditional particle meaning 'if' or 'when'

終わる

owaru — To end; to finish; to be completed

だから

dakara — Therefore; so; that is why

遊ぼう

asobō — Let's play; volitional form of 'asobu'

さそい

sasoi — An invitation; enticing someone to join

やること

yaru koto — Things to do; tasks that need doing

多

ō / ta — Many; much; a large number of things

すぎる

sugiru — Too much; to exceed; excessively

言う

iu — To say; to speak; to tell someone

たびに

tabi ni — Each time; whenever something happens

笑う

warau — To laugh; to smile; to chuckle

毛

ke — Hair; fur; feathers on an animal or person

くしゃくしゃ

kushakusha — Messy; disheveled; crumpled or ruffled

ひげ

hige — Whiskers; beard; mustache; facial hair

引っ張っ

hippat(te) — To pull; to tug; to drag (stem form)

最後

saigo — The last; the final; the very end

タッチ

tacchi — A touch; tag (from English 'touch')

ほほえみ

hohoemi — A smile; a gentle warm facial expression

池

ike — A pond; a small body of still water

駆け

kake — Running; dashing; rushing fast (stem of 'kakeru')

下り

kudari / ori — Going down; descending a slope or path

かえる

kaeru — To return; to go back home

じいさん

jīsan — Old man; grandfather; elderly gentleman

会っ

at(te) — Met; encountered (stem of 'au', to meet)

話

hanashi — A story; a talk; a conversation

せがむ

segamu — To pester; to beg; to persistently ask for

さて

sate — Well; now then; used to shift topic

たいそう

taisō — Very; greatly; exceedingly (somewhat formal)

年

toshi / nen — Year; age; years of one's life

とっ

tot(te) — Taking; getting (stem of 'toru'); also 'totte'

いて

ite — Being; existing (te-form of 'iru')

賢く

kashikoku — Wisely; cleverly; in an intelligent manner

世界

sekai — The world; the entire globe or realm

まだ

mada — Still; not yet; continuing up to now

若かっ

wakakat(ta) — Was young; past form of 'wakai' (young)

ころ

koro — Around the time; about that period when

なんでも

nandemo — Anything; everything; no matter what