Colloquial Japanese

This third edition of the popular Japanese course for beginners has been completely rewritten to make learning the language easier and more enjoyable than ever before.

Colloquial Japanese provides a step-by-step course in Japanese as it is written and spoken today. This new edition has been completely rewritten by experienced teachers; it combines an accessible approach with a thorough treatment of the language, equipping learners with the essential skills needed to communicate confidently and effectively in Japanese in a broad range of situations. No prior knowledge of the language is required.

Key features include:

• progressive coverage of speaking, listening, reading and writing skills
• jargon-free explanations of grammar, with key structures presented through user-friendly diagrams
• Coverage of the different writing systems of Japanese: hiragana, katakana and kanji
• an extensive range of focused and stimulating exercises
• realistic and entertaining dialogues covering a broad variety of scenarios
• useful vocabulary lists throughout the text
• additional resources available at the back of the book, including a full answer key, a grammar summary, a verb/adjective list with conjugation aid, bilingual glossaries and English translations of dialogues

Balanced, comprehensive and rewarding, Colloquial Japanese will be an indispensable resource both for independent learners and for students taking courses in Japanese.

Audio material to accompany the course is available to download free in MP3 format from www. routledge. com/cw/colloquials. Recorded by native speakers, the audio material features the dialogues and texts from the book and will help develop your listening and pronunciation skills. Supplementary exercise sheets for hiragana, katakana and kanji and two additional units can also be found here. These additonal units cover more advanced features of Japanese and incorporate a wide assortment of supporting exercises.

By the end of this course, you will be at Level B1 of the Common European Framework for Languages and at the Intermediate-Mid on the ACTFL proficiency scales.

Introduction 1. Watashi wa Nihon-jin desu. I am Japanese 2. Tanj bi wa itsu desu ka? When is your birthday? 3. Otearai wa doko desu ka? Where is the toilet? 4. Ano kamera wa ikura desu ka? How much is that camera over there? 5. Donna ongaku ga suki desu ka? What kind of music do you like? 6. Watashi wa rainen Nihon e ikimasu. I will go to Japan next year 7. Watashi wa yoku s p de hiru-gohan o kaimasu I often buy lunch at the supermarket 8. saka ni y m na (o)shiro ga arimasu There is a famous castle in Osaka 9. Nichi-y bi issho ni ga o mimasen ka? Won't you watch film with me on Sunday? 10. D shite atarash pasokon ga hosh desu ka? Why do you want to have a new PC? 11. Shinjuku Gyoen wa hirokute kir na k en desu. Shinjuku Gyoen is a spacious and beautiful park. 12. Musuko san wa se ga takai desu ne. Your son is tall, isn't he? 13. Koko ni suwatte mo desu ka? May I sit down here? 14. Kin no yoru 8-ji goro ga o mite imashita I was watching a film at around 8pm yesterday 15. P ru de oyoidari, toshokan de hon o karitari shimasu I do various things such as swimming in the pool and borrowing books at the library 16. Sukoshi dake supeingo o hanasu koto ga dekimasu I can speak Spanish a little bit English translation of dialogues from unit 9 to unit 16 Grammar summary Appendix Key to exercises Japanese - English glossary English - Japanese glossary Index of Language Points