分かる and 知る: understanding and knowing
Choose between understanding something and knowing a person or fact, with natural forms, particles and explained exercises.
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Easily confused Japanese expressions
Distinguish similar Japanese expressions such as “go” and “come” with examples in context.
Adventure journal
Easily confused Japanese expressions
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行く and 来る: going, coming and perspective
Choose a movement verb from the speaker’s viewpoint and practise talking about destinations and arrivals.
Read and practiseある and いる: choosing an existence verb
Learn when to use ある or いる for things, plants, people and animals, and practise describing where they are.
Read and practiseこれ and この: this alone or before a noun
Choose between これ and この when pointing to something near you, and practise using each in a natural sentence.
Read and practiseどこ and どちら: where or which?
Distinguish the ordinary question word for where from the polite or choice-based uses of どちら, with natural examples.
Read and practise好き and 愛する: liking and loving in Japanese
Learn how everyday 好き and the stronger verb 愛する differ in grammar, tone and natural contexts.
Read and practise大きい and 高い: big, tall or expensive?
Distinguish overall size from height and price in Japanese with 大きい and 高い, using examples and practice.
Read and practise見る and 聞く: watching, listening and asking
Choose between the Japanese verbs for seeing and hearing, and discover how 聞く also means asking someone.
Read and practise開ける and 開く: opening something or opening
Learn the transitive and intransitive opening verbs, their particles and the resulting open state in Japanese.
Read and practise閉める and 閉まる: closing something or closing
Learn the transitive and intransitive closing verbs, their particles and how to describe a closed state.
Read and practiseやる and する: doing things and register
Compare everyday やる with the neutral verb する, and learn natural combinations, polite choices and the giving sense of やる.
Read and practise使う and 用いる: using things and formal wording
Choose between everyday 使う and the more written-sounding 用いる, with examples of tools, methods and fixed expressions.
Read and practise聞く and 尋ねる: asking a question
Compare two ways to ask for information in Japanese, learn their particles and distinguish asking from visiting.
Read and practise話す and 言う: talking and saying
Learn how Japanese distinguishes talking with someone from saying particular words, using particles and quoted speech.
Read and practise見る and 見える: looking and being visible
Distinguish looking at something from being able to see it, and practise the particles and potential form in natural Japanese.
Read and practise聞く and 聞こえる: listening and being audible
Learn when Japanese describes listening to a sound or its audibility, and compare 聞こえる with the potential form 聞ける.
Read and practise会う and 見る: meeting someone or seeing them
Distinguish meeting a person from seeing someone or watching a film, and practise the particles に and を in Japanese.
Read and practise持つ and 取る: holding, carrying and taking
Distinguish holding or carrying from taking something, and learn common Japanese expressions such as taking time off.
Read and practise勉強する and 学ぶ: studying and learning
Compare the effort of studying with learning from teachers or experience, and practise natural uses of both Japanese verbs.
Read and practise高い and 安い: price, height and opposites
Compare expensive and inexpensive prices in Japanese, then learn why the opposite of a high mountain is not 安い.
Read and practise早い and 遅い: early, late and slow
Learn to describe early and late times or fast and slow movement in Japanese, including the spelling 速い for speed.
Read and practise早い and 速い: early or fast
Learn when to write 早い for an early time and 速い for speed, with Japanese examples and practice.
Read and practiseWarmth and heat: 暖かい, 温かい and 熱い
Learn when Japanese uses 暖かい for warm weather, 温かい for warm things, and 熱い for heat you can feel.
Read and practise変える and 変わる: change something or change
Learn when to use 変える to change something and 変わる for something that changes, with particles and examples.
Read and practise食べる and 召し上がる: eating with respect
Learn when to use neutral 食べる and respectful 召し上がる for eating or drinking, with examples and practice.
Read and practise持つ and 持っている: carrying and having
Learn when Japanese 持つ describes taking or carrying something and when 持っている expresses holding or possession, with examples and practice.
Read and practiseあげる and 差し上げる: giving politely
Learn when to use あげる or the humble 差し上げる for giving, and avoid suggesting a favor to a superior.
Read and practiseもらう and いただく: receiving politely
Learn how もらう and humble いただく describe receiving things and favours, and choose the right form for the relationship.
Read and practise言う and おっしゃる: saying respectfully
Choose between 言う and おっしゃる when reporting speech, and practise respectful forms for teachers and customers.
Read and practise行く and 参る: going humbly
Learn when to use ordinary 行く and humble 参る, how to speak about a customer’s visit, and how 参る can also mean coming.
Read and practise怒る and 叱る: anger and reprimand
Learn when 怒る expresses anger and when 叱る means reprimanding someone, with examples and practice.
Read and practise思う and 考える: opinion or consideration?
Learn how Japanese 思う expresses an opinion or feeling while 考える focuses on considering a question or solution.
Read and practise探す and 見つける: looking for and finding
Learn how 探す describes searching and 見つける expresses finding, with examples of lost objects, jobs and discoveries.
Read and practise直す and 直る: fixing and being fixed
Learn how 直す and 直る describe fixing something and its return to working order, with particles and practical examples.
Read and practise伝える and 知らせる: convey or inform
Learn when Japanese uses 伝える to convey a message or feeling and 知らせる to make a fact known, with examples and practice.
Read and practise大切 and 大事: important or precious
Learn how 大切 and 大事 overlap, how they express importance and care, and how to use their common fixed phrases.
Read and practiseちょっと and 少し: quantity and softening
Compare ちょっと and 少し for small amounts, polite requests and indirect refusals, with practical Japanese examples.
Read and practiseまだ and もう: still, yet and already
Learn how まだ and もう express continuing states, unfinished or completed actions, and changes in Japanese.
Read and practiseとき and 場合: time and case
Learn to distinguish Japanese とき for a time from 場合 for a conditional case, and choose the right form before each.
Read and practiseけれど and のに: two kinds of contrast
Compare けれど and のに in Japanese, from neutral contrast to an outcome that defies expectations, with forms and practice.
Read and practiseよう and らしい: inference and hearsay
Compare Japanese よう and らしい to express inference from evidence or information heard from others, with examples and practice.
Read and practiseによって and にとって: means and viewpoint
Distinguish Japanese によって for means or variation from にとって for a person’s viewpoint, with examples and practice.
Read and practise本当 and 実は: truth and disclosure
Learn how 本当 states or emphasizes truth while 実は introduces a disclosure, with Japanese examples and practice.
Read and practiseよう, みたい and らしい: evidence and register
Distinguish Japanese よう, みたい and らしい by evidence and register, and practise choosing a natural form in context.
Read and practiseしかし and ただし: contrast and qualification
Learn when しかし introduces an unexpected contrast and when ただし adds a condition or exception to a Japanese statement.
Read and practise必ず and きっと: certainty and expectation
Learn when 必ず expresses a promise, requirement or regular result, and when きっと conveys a confident expectation.
Read and practiseわずか and 少し: a small amount
Compare わずか and 少し to express small amounts in Japanese, and learn how register and grammar shape your choice.
Read and practiseRelation and perspective: に対して and にとって
Learn how に対して marks a target or contrast, while にとって frames a judgment from someone’s perspective.
Read and practise反面 and 一方: contrasting aspects
Learn how 反面 and 一方 connect contrasting aspects, compare different subjects, and express simultaneous roles in Japanese.
Read and practiseうるさい and やかましい: noise and tone
Compare うるさい and やかましい for annoying noise, learn their overlap and tone, and practise choosing context-sensitive expressions.
Read and practise謝る and 詫びる: choosing an apology verb
Learn how 謝る and 詫びる differ in register, and choose natural apology expressions for friends and formal situations.
Read and practise現れる and 表れる: ways of appearing
Learn how 現れる and 表れる differ when something comes into view or an inner quality becomes visible in Japanese.
Read and practise生じる and 発生する: arising in formal contexts
Learn how 生じる and 発生する describe arising problems and events, and choose a natural expression in formal Japanese.
Read and practise適当 and ふさわしい: suitability and ambiguity
Learn when 適当 means appropriate or careless and how ふさわしい expresses a fitting match in Japanese.
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