Monday, September 14, 2009

Japanese Lesson 3: Comparing Objects

During Japanese summer classes, I was absent during the week we learned about comparing objects. This was something I always regretted not learning and wished I didn't miss out on. Today, these anxieties will end as you and I learn the concepts involved in comparing objects and ideas. For this lesson you will need to know:

  • Hiragana
  • Katakana
  • Basic Kanji

A is more than B

Unlike the English language, adjectives are not changed when comparing two objects. (ie: A is faster than B, A is better than B). Instead, certain endings are added to the nouns to indicate this. The format is as follows:

Object A のほうが Object B より adjective.

To better understand this, let us create some examples.

ハンバーガーのほうがとんかつよりおいしいです。
Hamburgers are more tasty than pork cutlet.

山田さんのほうが京子さんより面白いです。
Yamada san is more interesting than Kyoko san.

Asking which is better

When asking another person's opinion between two objects. The form is as follows:

Object A Object B とどうちのほうが adjective.

Here are some examples:

東のエイデンデスノートとどうちのほうが新しいですか。
Is Eden of the East newer than Death Note?

カナダスウェーデンとどうちのほうが寒いですか。
Is Canada colder than Sweden?

For those who couldn't read Japanese but decided to look anyways, the basis for the 'A is more ___ than B' is A no houga B adjective. For 'Is A more ___ than B' the structure is A to B to douchi no houga adjective. There are a few ways to do this structure so please do not look at this as a be all and end all. Use it as a starting point in learning comparisons. This is definitely something you hear a lot in manga in anime (especially in shoujo when guys are being compared!).


Related Posts
Japanese Lesson 2: Let's translate it - よつばと!
Japanese Lesson 1: Translate the blog title

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