Mother West Wind "Why" Stories — Page 75

Vocabulary

年老いた

toshi oita — Aged, old; describing an elderly person or animal.

も

mo — Also, too; inclusive particle adding to a list.

同じ

onaji — Same, identical; indicating two things are alike.

でした

deshita — Was, were; polite past tense copula.

彼

kare — He, him; third-person masculine pronoun.

は

wa — Topic marker particle; indicates the sentence topic.

不正直

fushōjiki — Dishonest, deceitful; lacking honesty or integrity.

で

de — Copula or particle indicating means, location, or state.

クマ

kuma — Bear; large wild mammal of the family Ursidae.

の

no — Possessive/linking particle; connects nouns together.

王様

ō-sama — King; a royal male ruler, used respectfully.

から

kara — From; indicates starting point or reason/cause.

盗み

nusumi — Theft, stealing; the act of taking dishonestly.

を

wo — Object marker particle; marks the direct object.

働いて

hataraite — Committing, working; te-form of 働く here meaning 'to commit'.

い

i — Stem of いる; used in progressive verb constructions.

まし

mashi — Polite past auxiliary; part of ました verb ending.

た

ta — Past tense marker; indicates completed action.

母なる

haha naru — Mother (adjective form); as in 'Mother Nature'.

自然

shizen — Nature; the natural world, environment, wilderness.

食べ物

tabemono — Food; something eaten for nutrition or pleasure.

に

ni — Particle indicating direction, location, time, or target.

マスタード

masutādo — Mustard; a condiment made from mustard seeds.

入れる

ireru — To put in, insert; to place something inside something.

こと

koto — Thing, fact, act; nominalizer turning verbs into nouns.

罰し

Punishing; stem form of 罰する, to punish.

する

suru — To do; the most basic action verb in Japanese.

と

to — And/with/that; quoting or connecting particle.

さん

san — Mr./Ms./Mrs.; a common Japanese honorific suffix.

食べる

taberu — To eat; to consume food through the mouth.

前

mae — Before, in front; indicating prior time or position.

すべて

subete — All, everything; the entirety of something.

洗えば

araeba — If one washes; conditional form of 洗う.

出し抜ける

dashinukeru — To outwit, outmaneuver; to get the better of someone.

思い

omoi — Thought, feeling; a deep sense or belief about something.

自分

jibun — Oneself, myself; reflexive pronoun referring to self.

なんて

nante — How, what a; expresses surprise or self-deprecation.

賢い

kashikoi — Clever, wise, smart; having good judgment or intelligence.

だろう

darō — Probably, I suppose; expresses conjecture or mild assertion.

得意

tokui — Proud, good at something; feeling of satisfaction or skill.

なり

nari — Became; literary/classical form of なる (to become).

何

nani — What; interrogative pronoun asking about a thing.

言わ

iwa — Say (stem); base of 言う, to say or speak.

ず

zu — Without doing; classical negative te-form of a verb.

ただ

tada — Just, merely, only; limiting what is being said.

見守り

mimamori — Watching over, observing; keeping a careful eye on something.

ながら

nagara — While doing; indicates two simultaneous actions.

心

kokoro — Heart, mind, spirit; the inner emotional/mental self.

中

naka — Inside, within; the interior or middle of something.

ほほ笑み

hohoemі — Smile; a gentle, warm facial expression of happiness.

という

to iu — Called, known as; used to name or quote something.

彼女

kanojo — She, her; third-person feminine pronoun.

が

ga — Subject marker particle; marks the grammatical subject.

良い

yoi / ii — Good, fine; a positive quality or state.

習慣

shūkan — Habit, custom; a regularly repeated behavior or practice.

まさに

masa ni — Exactly, precisely; emphasizing something is truly the case.

非常

hijō — Extremely, very; exceptional degree of something.

清潔

seiketsu — Clean, hygienic; free from dirt or contamination.

さ

sa — Suffix nominalizing adjectives; turns adjective into noun.

身につけ

mi ni tsuke — To acquire, learn; developing a skill or habit for oneself.

始めて

hajimete — Beginning to, starting; initiating an action for the first time.

いる

iru — To be, to exist; indicates ongoing state or action.

知って

shitte — Knowing; te-form of 知る, to know or learn.

です

desu — Is, am, are; polite copula linking subject and predicate.

だから

dakara — Therefore, so; indicates a logical conclusion or result.

出し抜こう

dashinukō — Let's outwit; volitional form of 出し抜く.

して

shite — Doing, and then; te-form of する connecting actions.

だけ

dake — Only, just; limits the scope to a single thing.

だ

da — Is, am; plain form copula asserting a state or fact.

よく

yoku — Well, often; adverb indicating quality or frequency.

分かって

wakatte — Understanding; te-form of 分かる, to understand.

て

te — Te-form particle; connects verbs or shows ongoing action.

喜び

yorokobi — Joy, delight, gladness; a feeling of great happiness.

なぜなら

nazenara — Because, the reason is; introduces an explanation or reason.

身につけて

mi ni tsukete — Having acquired; te-form of 身につける, to take on a habit.

しまった

shimatta — Ended up doing; indicates a completed, often regrettable action.

悪い

warui — Bad, wrong, poor; a negative quality or moral failing.

かかわら

kakawara — Regardless of; part of にもかかわらず, despite.

好き

suki — Like, fond of; feeling of preference or affection.

し

shi — And (listing reasons); conjunctive particle listing factors.

よう

yō — Let's, it seems; volitional or similarity expression.

一度

ichido — Once, one time; a single occurrence of something.

始まる

hajimaru — To begin, start; an action or event commences.

どんどん

dondon — Rapidly, one after another; progressing at increasing speed.

成長

seichō — Growth, development; becoming larger or more mature.

さらに

sara ni — Furthermore, even more; adding to what was already said.

多く

ōku — Many, much; a large number or quantity of things.

へ

e — To, toward; directional particle indicating movement.

つながって

tsunagatte — Being connected, linked; te-form of つながる.

いく

iku — To go, to continue on; movement away or progression.

そう

sō — So, that way; indicates agreement or acknowledgment.

とても

totemo — Very, extremely; intensifying adverb for adjectives.

ある

aru — There is, to exist; existence of inanimate things.

ほど

hodo — The more…; indicates degree, extent, or comparison.

味

aji — Taste, flavor; the sensory quality of food or drink.

良く

yoku — Well, better; adverb form of 良い (good).

なる

naru — To become; indicates a change of state or condition.

気づき

kizuki — Realization, awareness; the act of noticing something.

もの

mono — Thing, something; refers to objects or abstract matters.

について

ni tsuite — About, regarding; concerning a topic or subject.

几帳面

kichōmen — Meticulous, neat, methodical; being very precise and tidy.

どこ

doko — Where; interrogative asking about a place or location.

見つけよう

mitsukeyō — Let's find; volitional form of 見つける, to find.

どれほど

dorehodo — How much, to what extent; interrogative of degree.

美味し

oishi — Delicious (stem); base of 美味しい, tasty or yummy.

見えよう

mieyō — May appear, seem; volitional/conjectural form of 見える.

一番

ichiban — The most, number one; superlative indicating the best.

近い

chikai — Near, close; a short distance away from something.

水辺

mizube — Waterside, water's edge; the area beside a body of water.

まで

made — Until, up to; indicates a limit in time or space.

持って

motte — Holding, carrying; te-form of 持つ, to hold or carry.

いって

itte — Going; te-form of 行く, to go somewhere.

洗う

arau — To wash; to clean with water and usually soap.

決して

kesshite — Never, by no means; absolute negation of an action.

食べ

tabe — Eat (stem); base form of 食べる used in conjugations.

ませ

mase — Polite imperative suffix; used in negative commands.

ん

n — Negative contraction; casual form of ない (not).