Japanese Lesson 5

[Verse 1] You’ve climbed the mountain—now we add the final seams Expressing what you think, what you’ve heard, and what it seems Certainty: はずだ (hazu da) for what should be true 雨が降るはず (ame ga furu hazu) “it should rain”—you knew Stronger still: に違いない (ni chigai nai) “no doubt” 彼は来るに違いない (kare wa kuru ni chigai nai)—no way out And for “must be” based on what you see ようだ (yō da) or みたいだ (mitai da)—let them be [Chorus 1] はず for expectation, に違いない for sure ようだ for resemblance, judgment pure These modals shape what you believe Show your mind, and you’ll achieve Guess, conclude, assert with grace Certainty finds its rightful place [Verse 2] Now わけだ (wake da)—the logical result “No wonder,” “that’s why,” it’s not difficult 彼は日本に10年—日本語が上手なわけだ (kare wa nihon ni jū nen—nihongo ga jōzu na wake da) “He lived in Japan ten years—no wonder his Japanese is great,” you see And というわけだ (to iu wake da) sums it all “That means…” or “in other words”—you stand tall For “it’s not that…” use わけではない (wake de wa nai) Negative nuance—give it a try [Bridge] Concession: のに (noni) means “although” or “despite” With plain form before—bring it to light 忙しいのに遊びに行く (isogashii noni asobi ni iku) “Even though I’m busy, I go out”—that’s the hook For “even if,” add ても (temo) to the て-form 頑張っても勝てない (ganbatte mo katenai) “Even if I try hard, I can’t win”—it’s stormy, but warm [Chorus 2] のに for contrast, ても for “even if” These show the gaps, the “what ifs” Add them to your toolkit now Express the “though” and “anyhow” Your sentences get depth and shade Every nuance, well-played [Verse 3] To state an opinion: と思う (to omou) at the end Plain form before—it’s your friend 日本は美しいと思う (nihon wa utsukushii to omou) “I think Japan is beautiful”—simple and true For “it is said,” use と言われている (to iwarete iru) Or とされる (to sareru)—more formal, you’ll do この寺は800年前に建てられたとされる (kono tera wa happyaku nen mae ni taterareta to sareru) “It’s said this temple was built 800 years ago”—perfect for you [Verse 4] Advanced particles add focus and extremes さえ (sae) means “even”—it gleams 子供さえできる (kodomo sae dekiru) “even a child can do it”—strong すら (sura) is similar, a bit more literary along こそ (koso) is emphasis—“precisely this” 今こそ (ima koso) “now is the moment”—bliss だけ (dake) is “only,” しか (shika) with negative means “nothing but” 一つしかない (hitotsu shika nai) “there’s only one”—cut [Verse 5] Hearsay and rumor: そうだ (sō da) after plain 明日雨が降るそうだ (ashita ame ga furu sō da) “I hear it’ll rain”—plain らしい (rashii) for “seems like” based on hearsay or sign 彼は結婚したらしい (kare wa kekkon shita rashii) “he seems to have married”—align And for formal written reports: とのことだ (to no koto da) 会議は中止とのことだ (kaigi wa chūshi to no koto da) “It’s been announced the meeting’s canceled”—learned, applaud [Chorus 3] そうだ for hearsay, らしい for guess とのことだ in formal address Every way to pass along What you’ve heard in speech or song Now your Japanese can tell Not just your words, but others as well [Verse 6] Let’s wrap with ばかり (bakari)—“just did” or “full of” たばかり (ta bakari) “just finished”—a shove 食べたばかり (tabeta bakari) “I just ate”—fresh And ばかりで (bakari de) “full of” nothing less 問題ばかり (mondai bakari) “nothing but problems”—true Add てばかりいる (te bakari iru) for “keeps doing” anew 遊んでばかりいる (asonde bakari iru) “keeps playing all day” These final touches pave the way [Chorus 4] From basics to keigo, from conditionals to these Every particle, form—you’ve learned with ease はず, わけ, のに, そう Now your expression can freely flow This is the fifth and final song But language learning is lifelong [Outro] 五つの歌 (itsutsu no uta) built the frame Now you can say almost anything you aim From は and です to はず and こそ The path was long, but you let it grow Keep singing, keep listening, keep your heart wide 日本語の旅 (nihongo no tabi) has you inside これで レッスンは 終わり です (kore de ressun wa owari desu) でも 続けて (demo tsuzukete)—always yours to live