Mother West Wind "Why" Stories — Page 16

Vocabulary

理由

riyuu — Reason, cause, or grounds for something.

が

ga — Subject marker particle in Japanese grammar.

ある

aru — To exist or be present (inanimate things).

はず

hazu — Expected to be; supposed to be the case.

だ

da — Plain form copula meaning 'is' or 'are'.

と

to — Quotation particle; also means 'and' or 'with'.

は

wa — Topic marker particle highlighting the sentence topic.

長い

nagai — Long in length or duration.

耳

mimi — Ear; the organ of hearing.

の

no — Possessive or linking particle between nouns.

一つ

hitotsu — One; the number one for counting objects.

を

wo — Object marker particle indicating direct object.

じっくり

jikkuri — Carefully and deliberately, taking one's time.

引っ張り

hippari — Pulling or tugging on something firmly.

ながら

nagara — While doing; simultaneously performing two actions.

真剣

shinken — Serious, earnest; with genuine intensity or focus.

な

na — Adjectival linking particle for na-adjectives.

顔

kao — Face; one's facial expression or appearance.

で

de — Particle indicating means, location of action, or cause.

言い

ii — Stem form of 'to say' or 'to speak'.

まし

mashi — Polite verb auxiliary stem used before た.

た

ta — Past tense verb ending in Japanese.

もちろん

mochiron — Of course; naturally; without a doubt.

さ

sa — Sentence-ending particle expressing assertion or familiarity.

草

kusa — Grass; plants growing low on the ground.

葉

ha — Leaf of a plant or tree.

先

saki — Tip, end, or point of something; ahead.

噛み

kami — Biting or chewing on something.

断言

dangen — Asserting or declaring something with certainty.

し

shi — Verb conjunctive form; connects actions or reasons.

何

nani — What; used in questions about things.

に

ni — Directional, time, or indirect object particle.

でも

demo — Even; but; however; or any/whatever.

もの

mono — Thing; object; used for emphasis at sentence end.

よ

yo — Sentence-ending particle asserting or informing the listener.

シマリス

shimarisu — Chipmunk; small striped rodent of the squirrel family.

自分

jibun — Oneself; referring to one's own self.

おかしな

okashina — Strange, funny, or peculiar in appearance or behavior.

小さな

chiisana — Small, little, tiny in size.

しっぽ

shippo — Tail of an animal.

毛

ke — Hair or fur on an animal or person.

とかし

tokashi — Combing or smoothing out hair or fur.

付け加え

tsuke kuwae — Adding on or appending something further.

それ

sore — That; referring to something near the listener.

なら

nara — If that is the case; conditional particle.

カエル

kaeru — Frog; an amphibian animal.

じいさん

jiisan — Old man; grandfather; elderly male person.

知っ

shit- — Stem of 'to know'; having knowledge of something.

て

te — Conjunctive particle connecting verbs in sequence.

いる

iru — To exist or be present (animate beings).

そう

sou — That's right; so; in that way.

なぜ

naze — Why; for what reason.

もっと

motto — More; to a greater degree or extent.

早く

hayaku — Quickly, early; sooner than expected.

思いつか

omoitsuka — Stem of 'to come up with an idea'.

なかっ

nakatt- — Negative past auxiliary stem; did not.

ん

n — Colloquial contraction of の; explanatory or casual tone.

だろう

darou — Probably; expressing conjecture or wondering.

他

hoka — Other; another; the rest of something.

みんな

minna — Everyone; all people together.

叫び

sakebi — Shouting, crying out loudly.

プール

puuru — Swimming pool; a body of water for swimming.

まで

made — Until; up to; as far as a point.

競争

kyousou — Competition, race; competing against others.

勝ち

kachi — Victory, win; the act of winning.

脚

ashi — Leg; the limb used for walking or running.

長く

nagaku — Long; in a long manner; lengthily.

走る

hashiru — To run; to move quickly on foot.

向い

mukai — Facing; opposite direction; toward something.

から

kara — From; because; starting point particle.

です

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

も

mo — Also, too; inclusive particle adding items.

ほど

hodo — About; to the extent of; as much as.

遅れ

okure — Being late or delayed; falling behind.

い

i — Stem of the verb 'to be' (iru).

ませ

mase — Polite imperative auxiliary; used in formal requests.

でし

deshi — Polite copula stem used before た (past).

ゆっくり

yukkuri — Slowly, leisurely; taking time without hurrying.

進み

susumi — Advancing, moving forward, progressing.

追いつけ

oitsuke — Catching up to someone or something ahead.

ない

nai — Negative auxiliary; does not or is not.

わかっ

wakatt- — Understanding or knowing; stem of wakaru.

あまり

amari — Too much; not very (with negative); excess.

太っ

futott- — Having become fat; overweight condition.

ぜいぜい

zeizei — Wheezing or panting with labored breathing.

息

iki — Breath; the act of breathing.

切らし

kirashi — Running out of breath; becoming breathless.

しまう

shimau — To end up doing; to complete an action.

いつも

itsumo — Always, usually; at all times.

よう

you — Appearing like; seeming; in the manner of.

大きな

ookina — Big, large in size or scale.

緑

midori — Green; the color green.

蓮

hasu — Lotus; an aquatic flowering plant.

上

ue — Above, on top of, upper surface.

座っ

suwatt- — Sitting down; being in a seated position.

おり

ori — Formal version of 'いる'; being or existing.

訪ね

tazune — Visiting or calling on someone.

き

ki — Conjunctive stem of 'to come' (kuru).

誰

dare — Who; asking about a person's identity.

か

ka — Question particle at end of sentence.

見て

mite — Looking at; seeing; te-form of miru.

にやり

niyari — Grinning smugly or slyly; a smirk.

笑い

warai — Laughing; a laugh or smile.

来

ki — Coming; stem of the verb 'to come'.

すぐ

sugu — Right away, immediately, soon after.

見当

kentou — Guess, estimate; having an idea about something.

つい

tsui — Unintentionally; before one realizes; accidentally.

ゲロゲロ

gerogero — Sound a frog makes; croaking onomatopoeia.

今度

kondo — This time; next time; the coming occasion.

知り

shiri — Knowing; stem form of the verb 'shiru'.

たい

tai — Want to do; expresses desire to do action.

だい

dai — Casual question-ending particle; informal 'ka'.

まだ

mada — Still, not yet; continuing state.

整える

totonoeru — To arrange, prepare, or put in order.

間

ma — Interval, gap, pause between things or time.

なく

naku — Without; negative conjunctive form of nai.

問いかけ

toikake — Posing a question; addressing someone with inquiry.

お願い

onegai — Please; a request or favor asked politely.

ます

masu — Polite verb ending for present or future tense.

どう

dou — How; in what way or manner.

死ん

shin- — Dying; stem of 'shinu' (to die).

ふり

furi — Pretending; acting as if something is true.

する

suru — To do; general-purpose action verb.

できる

dekiru — To be able to; to be possible.

だけ

dake — Only, just; limiting to one thing.

丁寧

teinei — Polite, courteous, careful in manner.

答え

kotae — Answer, reply, response to a question.

くすくす

kusukusu — Giggling softly; quiet laughter onomatopoeia.

人

hito — Person, human being, people.

だます

damasu — To deceive, trick, or fool someone.

ため

tame — For the purpose of; for the sake of.

この

kono — This; referring to something close to the speaker.

馬鹿

baka — Fool, idiot; an insult meaning stupid person.

め

me — Derogatory suffix attached to nouns as an insult.