Mother West Wind "Why" Stories — Page 45

Vocabulary

が

ga — Subject marker particle in Japanese grammar.

なぜ

naze — Why; asking for a reason or cause.

水

mizu — Water; a basic liquid essential for life.

の

no — Possessive or linking particle connecting nouns.

中

naka — Inside; the interior or middle of something.

に

ni — Particle indicating location, direction, or time.

家

ie — House; a building used as a home.

を

wo — Object marker particle indicating the direct object.

建てる

tateru — To build or construct a structure.

か

ka — Question particle placed at end of sentence.

聞き

kiki — Listening or asking; stem form of 聞く.

行こう

ikō — Let's go; volitional form of 行く.

カエル

kaeru — Frog; a small amphibian living near water.

おじいさん

ojīsan — Old man; grandfather or elderly male figure.

は

wa — Topic marker particle highlighting the sentence topic.

彼ら

karera — They; third-person plural pronoun referring to people.

来る

kuru — To come; to move toward the speaker.

見て

mite — Seeing; te-form of 見る meaning to look.

すぐ

sugu — Immediately; right away without delay.

話

hanashi — Story or conversation; spoken words exchanged.

来た

kita — Came; past tense of 来る (to come).

だ

da — Casual copula meaning 'is' or 'are'.

と

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

察した

sassita — Guessed or perceived; past tense of 察する.

彼

kare — He; third-person singular masculine pronoun.

ひとり

hitori — One person; alone by oneself.

で

de — Particle indicating location of action or means.

にやり

niyari — Smirking; grinning slyly without speaking.

笑い

warai — Laughter or smile; the act of laughing.

眠った

nemutta — Slept; past tense of 眠る (to sleep).

ふり

furi — Pretense; acting as if something is true.

した

shita — Did; past tense of する (to do).

おはよう

ohayō — Good morning; casual morning greeting.

ございます

gozaimasu — Polite form of 'to be'; used in formal speech.

言った

itta — Said; past tense of 言う (to say).

答え

kotae — Answer or response to a question.

なかった

nakatta — Did not exist; past negative of ない.

もう

mō — Already; anymore; used with time expressions.

一度

ichido — Once; one time; a single attempt.

試みた

kokoromita — Tried; past tense of 試みる (to attempt).

やはり

yahari — As expected; still; just as thought.

返事

henji — Reply; a response to a question or call.

眠って

nemutte — Sleeping; te-form of 眠る (to sleep).

いる

iru — To be; existence verb for animate beings.

ん

n — Informal contraction of の; seeking confirmation.

ひどく

hidoku — Terribly; extremely; to a severe degree.

がっかり

gakkari — Disappointed; feeling let down or discouraged.

様子

yōsu — Appearance or state; how something seems.

起こさ

okosa — Wake (someone); stem of 起こす (to wake up).

ない

nai — Not; negative auxiliary adjective in Japanese.

方

hō — Direction; alternative; better option among choices.

いい

ii — Good; fine; expressing approval or preference.

思う

omou — To think or feel; expressing opinion or belief.

機嫌

kigen — Mood; temper; emotional state of a person.

悪く

waruku — Badly; adverbial form of 悪い (bad).

目覚める

mezameru — To wake up; to become conscious from sleep.

かも

kamo — Might; perhaps; expressing uncertainty or possibility.

しれ

shire — Potential stem of 知れる; used in かもしれない.

し

shi — Conjunction listing reasons or actions sequentially.

そう

sō — So; like that; indicating appearance or likelihood.

なっ

natte (contracted) — Became; contracted te-form of なる (to become).

たら

tara — Conditional form meaning 'if' or 'when'.

聞かせ

kikase — Let (me) hear; causative stem of 聞く.

て

te — Te-form particle connecting sequential or related actions.

もらえ

morae — Receive a favor; potential stem of もらう.

よ

yo — Sentence-final particle asserting or informing listener.

じっと

jitto — Fixedly; staying still without moving or looking away.

見つめた

mitsumeta — Stared at; past tense of 見つめる (to gaze).

それ

sore — That; pronoun referring to something near listener.

本当

hontō — True; real; genuinely the case.

居眠り

inemuri — Dozing; falling asleep while sitting or waiting.

どうか

dōka — Whether or not; somehow; please (pleading).

確信

kakushin — Conviction; firm belief or certainty about something.

持て

mote — Can hold; potential form of 持つ (to hold).

大きな

ōkina — Large; big; prenominal adjective form.

口

kuchi — Mouth; the opening used for eating and speaking.

端

hashi — Edge or corner; the tip or end of something.

かすか

kasuka — Faint; slight; barely perceptible trace of something.

な

na — Adjectival particle linking na-adjectives to nouns.

微笑み

hohoemi — Smile; a gentle, quiet facial expression of warmth.

気配

kehai — Sign or presence; subtle hint of something nearby.

ある

aru — To exist; there is; for inanimate things.

よう

yō — Seems like; appears as if; expressing resemblance.

思えた

omoeta — Seemed; past potential of 思える (to seem to think).

ちょっと

chotto — A little; just a moment; slightly.

ここ

koko — Here; this place near the speaker.

座っ

suwatte (contracted) — Sitting; contracted te-form of 座る (to sit).

いて

ite — Being; te-form of いる used to request staying.

耳

mimi — Ear; the organ used for hearing sounds.

ささやい

sasayai — Whispered; stem of ささやく (to whisper).

た

ta — Past tense auxiliary indicating completed action.

そこ

soko — There; that place near the listener.

その場

sonoba — That spot; the very place being referred to.

座った

suwatta — Sat down; past tense of 座る (to sit).

その

sono — That; demonstrative modifier for nearby noun.

場所

basho — Place; location; a specific spot or area.

まぶた

mabuta — Eyelid; the skin covering and protecting the eye.

ほんの

honnno — Just a; merely; only a tiny amount.

少し

sukoshi — A little; a small amount or degree.

持ち上げる

mochiageru — To lift up; to raise something higher.

だけ

dake — Only; just; limiting to that amount or thing.

見える

mieru — To be visible; to appear; can be seen.

位置

ichi — Position; location; where something is placed.

だった

datta — Was; past tense of copula だ.

岸辺

kishibe — Shoreline; the edge where land meets water.

跳ね

hane — Jumping; stem of 跳ねる (to jump or splash).

ちょうど

chōdo — Exactly; just right; precisely at that point.

真後ろ

mashiro — Directly behind; straight to the rear of something.

回り込んだ

mawarikonda — Went around; circled to the other side.

キノコ

kinoko — Mushroom; a fungus with cap and stem.

生えて

haete — Growing; te-form of 生える (to grow/sprout).

いた

ita — Was existing; past of いる (to be/exist).

ウィンク

winku — Wink; closing one eye as a signal.

から

kara — From; because; after; indicating cause or starting point.

振り返り

furikaeri — Looking back; turning around to see behind.

長い

nagai — Long; lengthy in size or duration.

後ろ足

ushiroashi — Hind leg; the rear leg of an animal.

一本

ippon — One long object; counter for sticks or legs.

力

chikara — Strength; power; physical or mental force.

いっぱい

ippai — Full; with all one's might; a lot.

蹴った

ketta — Kicked; past tense of 蹴る (to kick).

みなさん

minasan — Everyone; all of you; polite address to group.

も

mo — Also; too; even; inclusive particle.

ご存知

gozonji — Honorific for knowing; 'as you may know'.

通り

tōri — As; in the same way; just as stated.

根元

nemoto — Root; base; the bottom part of a plant.

あまり

amari — Not very; too much; used with negatives.

しっかり

shikkari — Firmly; solidly; in a secure, reliable manner.

固定

kotei — Fixing; securing something so it does not move.

さ

sa — Casual sentence-ending particle or nominalizer suffix.

れて

rete — Passive te-form suffix indicating receiving an action.

い

i — Stem of いる; used in progressive/passive constructions.

もの

mono — Thing; object; used for explanatory nuance.

この

kono — This; demonstrative modifier for nearby noun.

他

hoka — Other; another; the rest; besides this one.

変わら

kawara — Does not change; stem of 変わる (to change).