Mother West Wind "Why" Stories — Page 8

Vocabulary

は

wa — Topic marker particle indicating the subject.

子供たち

kodomotachi — Children; plural form of child.

と

to — Particle meaning 'with' or 'and'.

遊んで

asonde — Playing; te-form of the verb 'to play'.

い

i — Auxiliary verb stem indicating ongoing action.

まし

mashi — Polite past tense auxiliary verb stem.

た

ta — Past tense sentence-ending particle.

彼

kare — He; third-person masculine pronoun.

隣人

rinjin — Neighbor; person living nearby.

の

no — Possessive or descriptive linking particle.

小さな

chiisana — Small; little; tiny in size.

君

kimi — You; informal second-person pronoun.

が

ga — Subject marker particle in a sentence.

自分

jibun — Oneself; refers to the speaker or subject.

ため

tame — For the sake of; benefit or purpose.

に

ni — Particle indicating direction, location, or purpose.

し

shi — Stem form of verb 'to do'.

て

te — Te-form connective particle joining verb phrases.

くれ

kure — To give (to me); receiving a favor.

こと

koto — Thing; fact; nominalizer for verb phrases.

を

wo — Object marker particle in a sentence.

何

nani — What; nothing; used in negative contexts.

も

mo — Also; even; used for emphasis or inclusion.

知り

shiri — Knowing; stem form of 'to know'.

ませ

mase — Polite negative auxiliary verb component.

ん

n — Contraction of negative auxiliary 'ない'.

でし

deshi — Polite copula past tense stem form.

なぜなら

nazenara — Because; introduces a reason or explanation.

ご存知

gozonji — Knowing; honorific form of 'to know'.

よう

you — As you know; appearance or manner.

まったく

mattaku — Completely; entirely; not at all (negatives).

見

mi — Seeing; stem form of verb 'to see'.

なかっ

nakatt — Negative past auxiliary verb stem form.

から

kara — Because; from; indicates reason or origin.

です

desu — Polite copula meaning 'is' or 'are'.

痛み

itami — Pain; ache; physical or emotional suffering.

こらえ

korae — Enduring; bearing; suppressing pain or emotion.

ながら

nagara — While doing; simultaneous action conjunction.

できる

dekiru — To be able to; can do something.

だけ

dake — Only; just; as much as possible.

にっこり

nikkori — Smiling broadly; beaming with a smile.

笑い

warai — Laughter; smile; act of laughing.

やって

yatte — Doing; te-form of 'to do' or 'try'.

よかっ

yokatt — Was good; past stem of 'to be good'.

つぶやき

tsubuyaki — Murmur; whisper; muttering to oneself quietly.

そう

sou — So; that way; expressing agreement or manner.

そし

soshi — And then; stem of connective conjunction 'soshite'.

その

sono — That; the; demonstrative adjective for nearby things.

知ら

shira — Not knowing; negative stem of 'to know'.

ない

nai — Not; negative auxiliary or adjective ending.

誰

dare — Who; refers to an unspecified person.

親切

shinsetsu — Kindness; being kind and considerate to others.

な

na — Adjectival linking particle for na-adjectives.

行い

okonai — Action; deed; conduct or behavior performed.

られ

rare — Passive or potential auxiliary verb suffix.

ず

zu — Without doing; classical negative verb form.

秘密

himitsu — Secret; something kept hidden from others.

うち

uchi — Within; inside; among; one's home.

なさ

nasa — Being done; stem of honorific verb 'nasaru'.

れる

reru — Passive voice verb ending suffix.

とき

toki — Time; moment; when something happens.

最も

mottomo — Most; the greatest degree of something.

で

de — Particle indicating location, means, or reason.

ある

aru — To be; to exist (for inanimate things).

だから

dakara — Therefore; so; that is why something follows.

さて

sate — Well; now then; transitional conversation starter.

どれ

dore — Which one; how much; interrogative pronoun.

ほど

hodo — How much; to the extent of; degree.

驚い

odoroi — Surprised; astonished; te-form of 'to be surprised'.

か

ka — Question marker particle at sentence end.

想像

souzou — Imagination; imagining something in one's mind.

みて

mite — Try doing; te-form of 'to see or try'.

ください

kudasai — Please; polite request for an action.

秋

aki — Autumn; fall season of the year.

なっ

natt — Became; past stem of verb 'to become'.

新しい

atarashii — New; brand new; recently made or acquired.

上着

uwagi — Jacket; outer garment worn over clothing.

着る

kiru — To wear; to put on clothing.

時期

jiki — Season; time period; appropriate timing.

大自然

daishizen — Great nature; the natural world around us.

お母さん

okaasan — Mother; polite term for one's mother.

期待

kitai — Expectation; anticipation; hoping for something.

地味

jimi — Plain; dull; modest and unassuming in appearance.

茶色

chairo — Brown color; tea-colored brownish hue.

代わり

kawari — Instead; in place of; a substitute.

美しい

utsukushii — Beautiful; lovely; aesthetically pleasing appearance.

縞模様

shima moyou — Striped pattern; design with stripe markings.

手渡し

tewatashi — Handing over directly; giving by hand personally.

目

me — Eye; eyes; one's gaze or vision.

輝かせ

kagayakase — Making shine; causing eyes to sparkle brightly.

言い

ii — Saying; stem form of verb 'to say'.

救っ

sukutt — Saved; rescued; past stem of 'to save'.

日

hi — Day; sun; a specific day in time.

爪

tsume — Claw; nail; sharp pointed tip on animal.

古い

furui — Old; aged; not new; from long ago.

引き裂い

hikisarai — Tore apart; ripped; split something forcefully open.

傷

kizu — Wound; scratch; injury on the body.

数

kazu — Number; count; quantity of something.

縞

shima — Stripe; band of color on surface.

あり

ari — There is; existing; stem of 'aru'.

ます

masu — Polite verb ending for present or future.

これ

kore — This; referring to something nearby the speaker.

ら

ra — Plural suffix indicating a group of things.

名誉

meiyo — Honor; glory; a mark of distinction.

あなた

anata — You; polite second-person pronoun in Japanese.

また

mata — Again; also; furthermore; in addition.

常

tsune — Always; constantly; at all times.

身

mi — Body; one's self; one's person.

つける

tsukeru — To wear; to attach; to put on.

でしょ

desho — Probably; right?; seeking confirmation or agreement.

う

u — Volitional verb ending expressing intention or conjecture.

それ

sore — That; referring to something near the listener.

持つ

motsu — To hold; to have; to carry something.

理由

riyuu — Reason; cause; explanation for something happening.

なぜ

naze — Why; for what reason; questioning cause.

とても

totemo — Very; extremely; quite a lot indeed.

誇り

hokori — Pride; dignity; a sense of self-respect.

思い

omoi — Thought; feeling; emotion one has inside.

大切

taisetsu — Important; precious; something to be cherished.

いる

iru — To be; to exist (for animate beings).

カエル

kaeru — Frog; a small amphibian animal character.

おじいさん

ojiisan — Grandfather; elderly man; respectful term for elder.

締めくくり

shimekukuri — Conclusion; wrap-up; closing summary of something.

二

ni — Two; the number two.

手

te — Hand; arm; body part used for grasping.

組む

kumu — To fold; to cross; to join together.

でき

deki — Being able to; stem of 'to be able'.

ハッピー

Happii — Happy; feeling joy and contentment.

リス

risu — Squirrel; small tree-climbing rodent animal.

白い

shiroi — White; the color white; pale in color.

チョッキ

chokki — Vest; waistcoat; sleeveless upper body garment.

上

ue — On top; above; upper position or surface.

組ん

kun — Folding; crossing; conjunctive stem of 'to cross'.

座っ

suwatt — Sitting; sat down; past stem of 'to sit'.