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Hello everyone!

In this article we would like to share with you the characteristics of the Japanese language as seen by our foreign learners.

It is sometimes said that “Japanese is one of the most difficult languages in the world.” What kind of impression do foreigners have of the Japanese language?

It is surprisingly difficult to notice what characteristics Japanese has compared to other foreign languages when we use it unconsciously in our daily lives.

In this article, we will introduce some of the unique characteristics of the Japanese language, focusing in particular on areas that foreigners find strange or difficult to learn, including impressions obtained from actual foreign learners of Japanese.

1. speak in as short sentences as possible

The first point is to speak in as short sentences as possible.

For example, let's look at the following conversation at a pub.

Waiter A:

Yesterday, a customer who ordered the tempura platter complained that the mushrooms in the tempura were too small, which didn't make any sense, around 8 p.m. when the restaurant was extremely busy.

If you speak about an event, your thoughts about it, and the reason for it all at once in one sentence, it will be difficult for foreigners to instantly determine who did what and when.

When speaking with a foreigner, try to keep the following points in mind, and speak in simple sentences.

How to make sentences simple
Use one subject and one predicate per sentence.

Do not use adjectives or adverbs that are not necessary.

Avoid unnecessary modifiers.

Let's simplify the previous sentence by following these rules.

Clerk A:

I received a complaint from a customer who ordered the tempura platter yesterday.

The complaint was that the size of the tempura mushrooms was too small.

And it was around 8 p.m., a busy time of the day.

The manager was on vacation, and not many people were at work.

So it was very difficult.

In this way, you can break up each event and have them understand it before explaining the next one.

Also, the end of the sentence, for example, “I was very sorry to hear that.

Not a good example.

(1) Isn't Mr. Tanaka off today?

(2) I think that was something to put in the refrigerator.

(3) Today I will explain to you how we do our stocking.

It is quite common for such expressions to be conveyed incorrectly.

Japanese often indicates one's attitude or stance at the end of a sentence, but it becomes a barrier if the main idea is to convey the “content” before that to a foreigner, so it is better to avoid it and keep it simple so that it will be understood.

(Examples of improvements)

(1) Mr. Tanaka, I'm off today.

(2) Please put that in the refrigerator.

(3) I will explain how to stock up today.

2. emphasize the conjunction
If you have simplified the content of each sentence using the previous method, make sure to emphasize the conjunctions so that the other person can easily understand the relationship between the sentences.

Examples of conjunctions that foreigners living in Japan are familiar with

But...

So

And then...

And...

These conjunctions are learned in the elementary level of Japanese language study and used frequently in daily life, so most foreigners living in Japan are familiar with them.

By using them in the form of a short sentence + conjunction + short sentence..., it becomes easier to see the development of the story.

On the other hand, if you do not follow the rule of shortening sentences and make sentences longer and longer, such as “...from, ...to, ...but,” the subject-object relationship and the clause-clause relationship will become complicated, making it difficult for foreigners to understand the meaning correctly, Be careful. 3.

3.  Speak as directly and concretely as possible
(1) Be as direct as possible.
In Japanese communication, there is a concept of conveying what you want to say in a vague manner, leaving the part for the other person to think about or decide.

This way of speaking is troublesome for many foreigners, and it is sometimes difficult to get the true meaning of the person speaking.

So it is better to be as direct as possible in what you want to say, so misunderstandings during communication are less likely to occur.

To give an example.

(Not a good example)

A: Will you come to the drinking party tomorrow?

B: I'd like to go, but I have some errands to run tomorrow, so I'm not sure if I can make it. I'd like to go if I can, but it might be difficult.

↓↓.

Improvement example

A: Do you want to come to the party tomorrow?

B: I have something to do tomorrow!

It is easier for foreigners to understand if it is as simple as this.

Some may think it is too direct,

However, in my experience of working with foreigners from various countries for more than 10 years, I have found that almost no one is hurt by this.

(2) Be as specific as possible.
In order to convey the message accurately, it is important to be specific so that there is no gap between the speaker's and listener's perceptions. This is true even between Japanese people.

(Example.)
Communicate with someone → talk, email, call.

I'll call you later → I'll call you at x time, or I'll call you when my part-time job is over.

Don't say “____” to customers.

In this way, you can make the ambiguous part of the conversation more concrete.

By giving details such as “when/where/what,” you can make it easier for foreigners to understand and prevent unnecessary misunderstandings.

MEMO
Avoid using words that have different meanings to different people.

Avoid adjectives and adverbs as much as possible.

If you speak with these two things in mind, you will naturally become more specific in your speech.

Try to be aware of them when speaking with foreigners.


How was your experience?

In this article, we have introduced five characteristics of Japanese that foreigners find difficult.

However, there are many more characteristics of Japanese that foreigners have trouble learning, so we will introduce the rest next week.

We hope you will continue reading this article next week.

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