Practical Japanese Phrases for Traveling : How to Ask "Do You Speak English?" in Japanese

[wasteinyourandmytime]

Ah. Source, I'm a Japanese teacher in New York in the public school setting.

[wasteinyourandmytime]

Personally, I think it's better to ask, "英語ができますか？”　Rather than, "英語を話しますか”。　I mean. Japanese people are prone to asking "日本語ができますか？”　So, do as the locals do.

[bubbleclaire67]

i wnt to learn japanese so that i can watch animes without sub

[zonk09]

wow can u be my Japanese lang tutor here?

coz ur english is good !

[cheesem0]

its' not eigo hanashi masuka. it's eigoga wakarimaska? or nijongoga wakarimaska?

[AaronCarranza1]

@cheesem0Don't you mean: "Eigo ga Wakarimasu ka" and also "Nihongo ga Wakarimasu ka". But you can say "Eigo wo Hanashimasu ka" its more polite whereas using the verb "Wakarimasu" implies that the person you are speaking to doesn't understand english, and by using "Hanashimasu" just means they can't speak it.

[TheCrazyStudent]

"Anata no osusume wa nani desu ka?"

I have no clue why she is teaching this sentence. First of all, "nan desu ka?" is the natural way. Noone says "nani desu ka" in standard Japanese.

Secondly, you don't need to say "anata". It is actually prefered not to say "you" to people too much in Japanese. Pronouns like "you" and "me" are used much more often in English than in Japanese. Saying "anata" to strangers might even be a bit rude.

Natural sentence: "Osusume wa nan desu ka?"　お勧めは何ですか？

[kentarojapan]

@TheCrazyStudent

I agree with you. :) I'm a Japanese working for voice-over.

[GenerationDarkness]

@TheCrazyStudent

i guess english learners wants to learn the word for "you" and "i" too even when you dont have to say it :)

[GenerationDarkness]

btw, if you like to learn at least the japanese sentence structure, you can check out the japanese lesson videos faved in my channel, currently there is 28 of them.

[GenerationDarkness]

well im learning the japanese sentence structure from romanji and stuff, not hiragana or katakana..

i believe that, you can ask "do you speak english" by saying "anata ga eigo o hanasi no desu ka/i masu/masu ka?"

[TheCrazyStudent]

@GenerationDarkness

"eigo o hanashi" - This won't work, because "hanashi" is a noun, not a verb. In "eigo o", "eigo" is the object and "o" is the object-marking particle. You need to have a transitive verb in order to use an object.

It's just like in English. Verb + Object; "To speak English".

You can not say Noun + Object; "(a) story English"

The root-form of the verb "to speak" is "hanasu" in Japanese; "eigo o hanasu"

[kentarojapan]

@TheCrazyStudent

"hanashimasu" is the politer style of "hanasu" which is a verb.

So, the sentence is not wrong...

[TheCrazyStudent]

@kentarojapan

I never said that using hanashimasu as a verb is wrong. I just said that using "hanashi" as a verb is wrong, since (as you know) it's a noun and not a verb. :)

When you say "voice-over", do you mean that you are a voice actor? That's cool, what kind of voice acting do you do?

[metalsacro]

why are these videos so short??? you have to make it a little bit larger... thanks. in by the way good lessons!

[numnumnum08]

kooooool shirt!!u r the best japanese teacher EVER!!

[yalmuallim]

then how about (watashi wa jone desu dozo yoroshiku)

[yay4randomness]

arigato, theres one question you need to know. den wa bango wa nan ban desuka. haha in english its whats your number? love that sentence

[SUMHELLER]

"omae nani shiten nen!"

what the fxxk are you doin'!?

[Luzmarvids]

Supeingo o Hanashi masu ka?

[marcxb]

How about: Eigo ga dekimasu ka...

[theotheronefull]

@marcxb, watashi wa "dekimasu" wakarimasen.

what does it mean lol, watashi skoshi nehongo wakarimas :)

[marcxb]

@theotheronefull

''dekimasu'' is simply the ''masu'' form of the verb ''dekiru'' wich mean ''can do''.

''eigo ga dekimasu ka'' would litterally mean '' can you do english'' or somthing like that. Although I'm not japanese so I might be wrong, but I seen ''dekimasu'' use in this kind of meaning.

[GenerationDarkness]

i believe, it means "i do not understand" although i think the dekimasu is not needed. im not japanese so i could be wrong.

[ruki221]

arigato!!!! :o

[Rockyourassed]

Hay O genki desu ka .? arigato gozaimasu :) for that! it's very nice of u to help us!

[NoNasaraNorafida]

Please help me

how can I can say " I love Japanese language" ?

[LinkND82]

"Nihongo ga suki"

日本語が好き

[giugnhgbvinierngvb89]

nihongo ga kirai desu

[ImObsessedWithSocks]

It's

Aishteru

and if your a girl Sukiyo means I like you..

I love you pronounced

Ah - Ish - Tae- Rew.

and I like is pronounced

Sue - Kie - Yo.

[TheShad0w3735]

Omfg, she speaks amazing english! ^^

Most Japanese people speak Engrish, but she speaks English. Good job!

[darkskyBAO]

most likely she is japanese-american OR she enjoyed staying in the US for a long time.

[SangoSama08]

@darkskyBAO It says in the description that she was born and raised in Japan until she graduated from college and then came to America.

[bestjpop]

is there a playlist for this? I cant find it.

[NJMIgnatio]

I DON"T SPEAK ENGLISH VERY WELL

[klebehss]

who are U ?

[MiyaKipp2945]

@ klebehss

If you wanna know how to say who are you in japanese its

anata wa dare desu ka

[RHCPpwns]

japanese is really confusing :P

[Darkproducer]

But sounds awesome if you can perfect it :D

[agapsurise]

ok, i can't watch all the day youtube so...

any dvd or something?

what's her name?

[Darkproducer]

It says in the description.

[agapsurise]

lol  oops!

thanks ;D

[kuwaithiba]

when i use

anata no osusume wa nani desu ka?

in restorant or for plases?

[sixcstring92]

i love tonkatsu and udon. do you know which region of Japan has the best udon?

[magicoflego]

I went to kyoto. It was so good. :p

[greekmadnessss]

whats the difference between "eigo o hanashimasu ka" and "eigo ga hanashimasu ka"?

[SamiraAncara]

if you say "ga" you really pronounce the "english".

THe other way round: there's no real difference. You can use both as a beginner. The grammatically correct one is "eigo o hanishimasu ka"

[stuart1983]

Hmm... "Anata no osusume wa 'nan' desu ka?" would be more natural than "Anata no osusume wa 'nani' desu ka?"

[midnite1233]

I was speaking Japanese in about a week.Thanks expertvillage!

[BaeRli991]

I love her videos!!!

Bin ich eigentlich die einzige die Deutsch kann?

[Sagiscan9999]

Der zweite ist schon auch da,obschon kein Muttersprachler.Ich find die auch toll..)))LG!

[nikozua]

Ich spreche auch deutsch...

So sind wir schon zu dritt... XD

Gruss aus der Schweiz...

[rakimwong]

wadashiwa kimochi

[Cirafantoday]

GONO GA KANSHI MASKA

[99Leo]

Ms. Yuu Asakura will you marry me?

[babbabdingding]

mr 99leo would u sod of spamming and get a life

[sonicxoxo1998]

you know what? i might even run away to japan when im older

[Sunsetmello]

@sonicxoxo1998 Ha, Good luck with that...

[kialop]

@sonicxoxo1998 my dad say's i can't learn japanese and he say's i should learn something more practical

[OPH2001]

@kialop well i think that you can learn whatever language you want. it's your life, not your dad's. 

[kialop]

@OPH2001 yeah that's ture

[OPH2001]

@kialop you bet it is!

[OPH2001]

@OPH2001 >:3

[JuangaPro]

did she die?

[nmkemble]

she did =`[

[nmkemble]

i meant to put it as a question

"she did? ='( "

that was what i meant

[PrincessMissey]

this girl is japanese....why question her? I mean some japanese is difrent from what I hear cuz I learn it off of sites and stuff but she is japanese so...

[uglyengineer]

It depends on where you're from too, just like anywhere else. Asakura-san has taught Japanese in Los Angeles for years so by definition she's an expert I think. But there are minor regional differences in Japanese like between Tokyo and Kyoto (in Kyoto they used to speak a much older form of Japanese and a few words still reflect this.)

[fossettenobuta]

Anata no osusume wa NAN desuka? is much better I thnk....

[mrjeekkyoo]

英語を話せますか。　いいえ。

[partist2009]

Whats your name?

Ill call you sensei ^_^

[Dais15]

Why are these videos so short????????

[kiwikarateguy]

cause they are going out of their way to help the public, just appreciate what they are offering you, and stop being greedy!

[Dais15]

It's a better comment than just saying she's hot. What is wrong about wanting to learn more? I like being greedy 4 knowledge.

[kiwikarateguy]

haha fair enough!

[kobebryant0824]

She's hot!! I like her!!

[a23673910]

shes hot....

[NagualElias]

another way to ask if do you understand english is " eigo ga wakari masu ka?" the masu is pronounced Mas

[Simpsin16]

i like how she said "sounds good" at the end.. i was like ..I know right? =P

[paexou]

Anata wa osusume wa nani desu ka?

Watashi suki sushi otsukatte mizu.

[SpongebobL0VER]

Eigo O Hahashi Masuka?

Yes! I do speak english. I am trying very hard to learn Japenese though.

[RocketRodder]

This is quite fascinating! I want to learn many languages. And unlike some people, it's not so I can understand a japanese cartoon. Since I was a little child I've always liked Japan, China and surrounding communities. er.... countries.

[bestchance5]

no offense or anything... but why would you need to know how to say "do you speak english?" in japanese if they do speak english... couldn't you just ask it in english??

[Karateckie]

You could, however it's polite because if they do not speak English than they'll have no idea what you're saying and you'll look rude. Learning at least a few phrases is polite and you'll find people are much more welcoming to you in a new country if you just try.

[smexiibeastii]

ok so if u've never been to japan...that explains y ur asking this question. i went to japan last fall on break and i went to mcdonals. i asked for ranch...the lady kept asking me "ranch?" and then i was doing hand motions to represent it...she gave me napkins in the end! and i ordered ONE platter of sushi, she gave my family, TWO...so explained?

[1984isnow]

i appreciate your lessons, arigato gozaimasu. I like you in the kimono, so pretty =)

[pyachang]

her voice sounds so familiar. is she the voice behind the bilingual NHK news?

[anakin1357]

it's sure that she is beautiful...but, in my view, 貴方の　お勧めは　なにてすか　より

あなたのおすすめはなんてすかがいいじゃないかな。。。。。bu­t, she is beautiful....so i don't care.

[lurdezmel]

THXS!!!

arigato!!!

i want to learn jappannese .. why? haha i really like the animes from japan! the are awsome!...:p

[EdyElricrox123]

Konichiwa!! Arigatou gozaimasu!! These videos have helped me very much! I'm loving being able to learn Japanese, it's such a pretty language.

[ming678]

konichiwa! genki desk ka? thankyou for the lesson. my japanese heritage comes in the family and this is helping my daughter. and arigatou!

[geoff0419]

eigo wo hanahsimasuka?sounds a little strange for me,as a japanese.umm...but that makes sence.

it's more better 'eigo ga dekimasuka?'

[kurisutaru529]

cant you also say for "eigo ga wakarimas ka" for do you understand english..?

[kend102]

"eigo o hanashimasu ka" - do you speak english?

"eigo ga wakarimasu ka" - do you understand english?

[KuroiiTenshii]

jep. pure japanese beauty, and a veri nice outfit!! thank you for the lesson.

[LeTotz]

jibun tachi ni watashi de denshi ga nihongo de kudasai

[magpie1862]

Where is her Japanese accent from?

[graveplott47]

yokohama or okinawa

[unansweredQUESTI0NS]

i learned japanese fluently in three months after i took the course from iqrenaissance. com you all should check that out

[scarfacegurl09]

thanks!

[stuart1983]

わー！ こんなに たくさんの ひとが にほんご を べんきょう してるんだ！

It's my pleasure to know that more people are learning Japanese than I'd bargained for!

みなさん、がんばって！

[chocolatechipele]

konichiwa!!!i am not that good in japanese and i am trying very hard to learn it but with your help i can do it !!!!arigatou gozaimasu!!!!;D

[wtom04]

Thanks for posting these clips! Is it true that people from different parts of Japan speak Japanese with a different accent? I remember seeing the movie "Black Rain"in which there was a Japanese actor by the name of Tomisaburo Wakayama whose Japanese sounded very different and unique from the other Japanese actors when they spoke.

[Hendrixicecream]

im learning jappanese and i am getting pretty good so far i can have a very very very small conversation like hi do you speak english i am not very good at japappanese how are you i am good good night goodmorning i dont feel well and so on

[Biochips1]

A real Japanese beauty. And you taught me a lot so far. THX!

[Ronstars]

I LOVE UR SHIRT!!!!

[darkangel01121992]

kyoukun ga hontouni arigatou... watashi wa nihongo ga sukoshi hanasemasen.. ^-^ nihongo o benkyou shimasu!! yappari.. -_-

aishiteru sensei.. anata no kawaii desu...

will u marry me??!! HAHAh~

[ie9rws]

nanidesuka should be nandesuka? it's more natural in oral conversation!!!!!!!!!

[DarkHonour]

I agree too.

"Nani desuka" sounds very weird. Nani and desuka don't agree with each other.

[Duckly]

It sounds funny, but it's correct. You just don't use it very often. Although, it would be better to say "nandesuka".

[mountaincritter]

These ladies all have really nice clothes....I love the pattern and the sleeves.

[drannard123]

You are a great teacher and interpreter yuo have explain it very well, thank you very much.

[clover266]

wow im taking notes and theres so many pf them i think my note books aare gonna pop

[sooperdon]

Many restaurants in Japan actually have plastic models of the dishes they serve. You just point out what you want. I've heard that if you learn a few phrases and at least try to speak Japanese, they greatly appreciate it.