Author: Michael
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Summer Solstice – 夏至
Interesting little word today that you’re only likely to hear once a year. 夏至 (げし) is the summer solstice – the longest day in the entire calendar year.
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The Te Form Song
The Te-Form Song. What now?? A good question. This is a handy little mnemonic taught to me by my own teacher way back when I was still a beginning student of Japanese. It helped me immensely, so now I’m passing it on to you!
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Curious Katakana Words 3
In the previous lessons (1, 2) we looked at foreign words, as well as onomatopoeic and mimetic expressions. This time, we’ll be examining some really interesting terms that splice two or more words together!
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Curious Katakana Words 2
Last time we looked at foreign expressions that make up a portion of Curious Katakana Words. Today we explore some useful onomatopoeic words you can use to really express yourself!
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Curious Katakana Words 1
The Japanese language has a smattering of quirky expressions. At first glance, their meanings can often elude us. This is especially so with Katakana words, as they often contain elements from foreign languages, as well as mixtures of slang and even current, trending terms.
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Overview of the Japanese Alphabets
I figured it was probably a good idea to have an outline of the Japanese alphabets here on Gakuu for easy access. There are loads of good resources out there that talk about the basics, so this post will be brief, with a sprinkling of advice on how to learn the alphabets.
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The Course of Events – 成り行き
Nariyuki (成り行き) generally means something like ‘the natural scheme of things’, but it can be a bit of a surprise the first time you come across it in a given situation. This post looks at a few examples of its usage.
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Mixed Bathing in Japan 2 – 混浴
Continuing with the mixed bathing theme, this time we’re taking a look at some light-hearted surveys into couples who visited an onsen together. Read what they had to say!
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Mixed Bathing in Japan 1 – 混浴
Ahh Konyoku, the delicate topic of mixed bathing. While not widespread around Japan, it’s certainly not uncommon to find onsen that allow both men and women to bathe together, and increasingly it would seem, young couples are enjoying breaks together to share a private bath at a relaxing ryokan.
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Hanpa Nai – 半端ない
Here’s a curious expression I came across a while ago on Twitter. 半端ない. You might recognise it from 中途半端, but this slang version has quite a different meaning!