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Lesson 1:
Essential Expressions
- Vocabulary 1
- Sentence Builder: Greetings
- Go Further: Japanese Writing
- Grammar: Greetings, 'desu' (to be), and the particle 'wa'
- Fill In: How are you?
- Vocabulary 2
- Go Further: Hiragana A-line
- Grammar: Asking How are you?
- Conversation: Konnichi wa!
- Conversation: Konban wa.
- Matching Bubbles: Introducing yourself
- Go Further: Omitting the Subject
- Matching Bubbles: Hiragana
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Omitting the Subject
Did you notice in the first dialogue that I’m Smith in Japanese was just スミスです Sumisu desu instead of わたしはスミスです Watashi wa Sumisu desu? In Japanese, the subject of a sentence, especially a pronoun, can be omitted when the subject is understood from the context. So when you introduce yourself, it is fine to simply say your name plus です desu.