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Things That English Speakers Get Wrong (Feedback)

Thanks for all your comments. I’m glad you found the topic interesting. Actually, this entry has had more views than any of the others I have done so far on this blog, so I guess it must have been an interesting discussion. Speaking of “katakana” words, I always have problems with the word for “milkshake.” Is it シェーク、シェーキ, or something else?

Of course, it is very difficult with both English and Japanese to say what is “right” and what is “wrong” because languages are constantly evolving. Actually, a student asked me yesterday whether it should be “He is taller than I” or “He is taller than me.” Apparently, he had written “He is taller than I” in a report, and a teacher who is a native-speaker of English had corrected him. Strictly speaking, the grammatical rule is that “than I” is correct, but hardly any native speakers would actually say that anymore, so it seems strange to teach it to learners of the language. Anyway, here is some feedback on your comments.

Actually, it was my first “hiniku”(I’m not sure whether it was “irony” or “sarcasm.”)
Actually, it was my first attempt at “hinkiku.”
I’m not sure of the difference between “irony” and “sarcasm” either. They are basically very close in meaning, but according to the Sarcasm Society (yes, there is such a thing!) “sarcasm is considered a form of wit, whereas irony can found in any situation.” This basically means that sentences with people as their subjects normally use “sarcasm”: I / He / She was being sarcastic. Sentences with a situation as the subject tend to use “irony”: It was ironic that…. Some other definitions say that sarcasm is the use of irony to make a negative remark about someone. In your example, I would say that “sarcasm” would be more appropriate because you were deliberately using it as a form of humour.

Reading David’s entry, the term “姑息(な)” came to my mind first.
Reading David’s entry, the first thing that came to mind was…

Having said that, as you say, language changes sometimes when slang(incorrect usage) becomes more common than the original.
Nice sentence.

I guess a lot more people have become to use “「ら」抜き言葉
I guess a lot more people have started using… (A-Z: become)

I wonder whether children who learned it from TV or their big brothers/sisters know the original meaning.
Nice sentence.

Good evening,David and everyone.
I am Kotomi.
This is Kotomi. (A-Z: name)

One of my friends said おケーキ、which had made me shudder.
Nice sentence.

My son has been trying to learn the correct usage of 『れる/られる』. Like Tomo, I sometimes use 『ら』抜き言葉 myself unconsciously, but I must stop it for my son!!
I think the reason this is changing is that the original is both clumsy and unnecessary. I guess it will probably have disappeared from Japanese in 20 or 30 years.

This sounds really ugly to me.
Too many 丁寧語 in the same sentence is ヘン!!
That reminds me; another word I hate is おられる, as in 私の隣におられる方. That is a mixture of different forms of polite Japanese, and two 国語 teachers have told me that it is wrong, but I still hear it a lot.

I assume they say that just because it’s written so in their 業務マニュアル, but I want to know who on earth writes such an “interesting” manual !! (LOL)
I presume that all the women in my local supermarket fancy me because they always say that they want me to come again! Mind you, the men say it too…

I would use “Nice to see you” when I meet people who I’ve previously known and “Nice to meet you” when I meet someone for the first time.
That is correct, but you can’t use “Nice to meet you” before you know each other’s names.

As you know there is an expression “話を脚色する” which means that “dramatize a story” or “make a story exaggeratedly “.
… which means to “dramatise or exaggerate a story.”

I think I pronounce it truly.
I think I pronounce it correctly.

Although I make a mistake often in my own language but I can’t think of those words and phrases right now.
You can’t use “although” and “but” in the same sentence like that. Remove either of them, and it will be okay. I have noticed recently that this is a mistake that even very advanced learners of English make.

Last night my son asked me that what is the difference “will”, “be going to ” and ” be ing”. I
My son asked me to explain the difference between…

I know it’s not correct, but I pronounce it as “ふいんき” because it’s easier to say and sounds more natural to me. I still remember that I was very surprised when I learned the correct version.
Me too! I have never heard anyone pronounce it ふんいき.

I correct my husband’s wrong Japanese without reserve, though…
I never hesitate to correct my husband’s Japanese mistakes, though…

I’ll pass on your message.
Nice sentence.

Languages come and go, just like people come and go.
Very true.

I don’t correct other Japanese people’s mistakes, but I’ve been correcting my children’s language like other parents. In
This happens in English, too, and it is actually the cause of a very common mistake. Kids always say “Me and Peter are going to play football,” at which point mothers generally correct them and tell them to say “Peter and I.” The result is that many children grow up thinking that “I” is the more formal version of “me,” so they say things like “He gave some advice to Peter and I.” I even heard Bill Clinton make this mistake in a speech once!

He was not interested in it at all, but other volunteer teachers strongly recommended him to participate the contest.
“Strongly encouraged” would be more natural.

I can’t forget his confused face…
We usually say “I will never forget the look on his face.” This is a useful expression to learn.

I hope(wish) David will write school textbooks.
“I wish David would write school textbooks” if you think that I am not going to, or
“I hope David will write school textbooks in the future” if you think that I might.
Actually, I would love to, but it’s almost impossible because all books have to be approved my the Ministry of Education.

I must have misheard those phrases in TV.
I must have misheard those phrases on TV.

Can I ask you why you want to know such things?
Can I ask why you want to know things like that? (A-Z: such)

“重複”. It should be pronounced “ちょうふく” but many people pronounce it “じゅうふく”.
“役不足”. It originally means that a role is poor for an actor. He/she can do more. But nowadays, it is used as an actor doesn’t have enough skill to play a role. Although I’ve known this fact, I sometimes say it in wrong way. It’s difficult to kick my habit.
Thanks. I didn’t know that.

Some people mentioned about “全然+肯定文”. I
Some people mentioned… (No need for “about” after “mention” or “discuss.”)

David, did you have any experience where you feel that the words are difficult to write in katakana?
Yes. Katakana was one of the most difficult things to learn because I already know the English pronunciation of the words. It is very strange to have to learn to pronounce them “wrongly.”
The day before yesterday, when I was wondering which lotion I should buy at a cosmetic corner in a supermarket, a baby girl around 2 in a bay buggy suddenly pointed at me and said,”スカート!” Yes, I was wearing the skirt that day. Her mother looked embarrassed, but that baby girl kept saying when she saw women wearing skirt.
My nephew Max was in a supermarket with his mother one day, and he picked up a bar of chocolate. His mother got angry and said, “Put the chocolate down” in a very stern voice. As they got near the checkout, Max saw a very fat lady picking up some chocolate, so he ran over to her and shouted, “Put the chocolate down!”

When I tried to post my comment, I failed and mine was disappeared! So sad…
Sorry about that. I have no idea why that would happen. As YU suggested, I recommend that you copy your comment before you post it. I will try to find out what the problem is.

I have been too busy this week , so I could not translate since Wednesday.
I have been really busy this week, so I didn’t have time to start on the translation until Wednesday. (Thanks.)

MacDonald’s has three syllables, on the other hand, マクドナルド has six syllables. If one asks native speakers of English, “Where is マクドナルド?”, they will scratch their heads. So, when you are visiting English speaking countries, pronounce McDonald’s correctly!
Very true!

Were you already a language expert as now you are when you were a police officer?
No, I wasn’t. I learnt all this stuff after I became a teacher because I was embarrassed that I didn’t know it.

Did you always manage to write and tell the “correct” English words or phrases mentioned above when you lived in the UK?
No. I was always good at spelling, but I was very iffy on apostrophes!

That’s all the feedback for today, but I wanted to share a couple of other things with you.

The other day, I heard a song on the radio by a group that I have never heard of, and I just fell in love with their music. Have you ever heard of Fleet Foxes? If not, have a listen to this.

After I watched this video, I found a cover of the same song by a singer called Kina Grannis? Have you heard of her? She is half-American half-Japanese. I think she is going to be a big name in the future. She has more than 99 million views of her videos on YouTube! Click on this video, and then follow the links to listen to her other stuff.

Have a great weekend.

30 Comments

  1. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 15:43

    Hi David,

    Thank you for your feedback!

    >I presume that all the women in my local supermarket fancy me because they always say that they want me to come again! Mind you, the men say it too…

    Please forgive me if I’m wrong.
    Is that perhaps your erotic jokes?? 
    下ネタですか、ひょっとして!?

    >I can’t forget his confused face…
    We usually say “I will never forget the look on his face.” This is a useful expression to learn.

    I see. Maybe “the look on his face” means “彼の表情”?
    I actually wanted to say, “彼の困惑した表情”.
    What would you say in that case??

    >Were you already a language expert as now you are when you were a police officer?
    >No, I wasn’t. I learnt all this stuff after I became a teacher because I was embarrassed that I didn’t know it.

    I see.
    I think teaching English is your true calling.

    >Did you always manage to write and tell the “correct” English words or phrases mentioned above when you lived in the UK?
    >No. I was always good at spelling, but I was very iffy on apostrophes!

    “Beig good at spelling” in English language corresponds to “漢字に強い” in Japanese language!?
    Anyway, I know you are a good writer.
    I think that is your natural talent.
    褒めすぎ!?(笑)

    By the way, I like your book もしも英語ができたなら『脱・ペーパースピーカーの秘訣』. It’s not because I’m a
    paper speaker of English, but because I know someone who can’t express herself almost at all while she has been studying English very hard more than 30 years. Actually, she is a friend from my English language club. She’s 52. She is a nice person, but she is very proud….
    She can write English sentences and read them, but she can’t speak English without preparing in advance. She speaks so fast and so softly that no one in our club can understand what she says, no one can comment on her remarks. And no one can give her advice, because she’s the oldest member in our club and above all, she is very proud.
    Some months ago I asked her politely, “Could you read it again?”, but she got very angry with me and read it even faster than the first time. I couldn’t say anything but “Thank you”.
    When I read もしも英語ができたなら for the first time, I felt you were talking(writing) about her. I actually want to recommend your book to her, but I can’t. If she saw the title “脱・ペーパースピーカーの秘訣”, I might been stabbed!! (笑)



  2. David Barker on 2012年07月06日 at 15:48

    Hi YU,

    It’s not an erotic joke – just a joke. I meant that they always say to me またお越し下さいませ. I feel like saying, “Really? Do you really want me to come again? That’s nice. Thank you.”

    >I actually wanted to say, “彼の困惑した表情”.
    I would just use the expression I wrote. The meaning is obvious from the context. There would be no need to say “confused.”



  3. rinko on 2012年07月06日 at 16:49

    Hi David.
    Thank you for your feedback!

    >I always have problems with the word for “milkshake.” Is it シェーク、シェーキ, or something else?

    I usually say ”シェイク”, I’m not sure which is correct though….

    >Have you ever heard of Fleet Foxes? If not, have a listen to this.

    I’d never heard of them but after watching the video,I fell in love with their music,too! Their music is simple, but the sound of acoustic instruments is very beautiful and their voice and harmony are marvelous!
    I love Kina Grannis as well.
    Does their music belong to country or else?
    I’ll check them more on internet. Thank you for letting us know them anyway.

    Have a great weekend everyone!

    rinko



  4. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 16:49

    Hi David,

    > It’s not an erotic joke – just a joke. I meant that they always say to me またお越し下さいませ. I feel like saying, “Really? Do you really want me to come again? That’s nice. Thank you.”

    Oh, is it just a joke? I’m sorry !
    I thought you meant something special by the verb “come”…but it seems that it was just my misunderstanding!! Finally, it was only me who imagined someting indecent!!
    I still don’t understand what you meant by “Mind you, the men say it too…”, though…

    >I actually wanted to say, “彼の困惑した表情”.
    >I would just use the expression I wrote. The meaning is obvious from the context. There would be no need to say “confused.”

    I got it. Thanks.

    Have a great weekend, all!



  5. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 17:07

    Hi rinko,

    >I always have problems with the word for “milkshake.” Is it シェーク、シェーキ, or something else?

    I usually say ”シェイク”, I’m not sure which is correct though….

    I’ve never drunk “milkshake” in my life…
    I also say “シェイク”. I think it’s because of the well-known “マックシェイク”.
    FYI, 広辞苑 has シェイク, but it doesn’t have シェーキ.
    However, we pronounce “cake” ケーキ, not ケーク, so I finally don’t understand the rules.



  6. David Barker on 2012年07月06日 at 17:22

    I may be wrong about this, but I seem to remember that MacDonald’s say it one way, and Mos Burger say it another. Am I imagining that?



  7. rinko on 2012年07月06日 at 17:23

    Hi YU

    >I think it’s because of the well-known “マックシェイク”.

    Me,too!
    I use this word only at McDonald…

    By the way we have a word ”ミルクセーキ” in Japan.
    It came from “milkshake” ??

    >However, we pronounce “cake” ケーキ, not ケーク, so I finally don’t understand the rules

    Very true!
    There might be no rule in Katakana English…

    rinko



  8. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 17:47

    Hi rinko,

    > By the way we have a word ”ミルクセーキ” in Japan.

    I have heard of “ミルクセーキ”.
    I’m not sure, but older generations couldn’t pronounce 外来語 very well??
    I know some older people pronouce Disneyland “デズニーランド”, not ディズニーランド, and tissue paper “テイッシュペーパー, not ティッシュペーパー.
    It seems that they can’t pronounce small “イ” or “エ” very well…, but it sounds cute, isn’t it??

    Hi David,

    I’m not really familiar with menus in fast food restaurants, so I had a look at the sites of some fast food restaurants.

    Huuummm, 残念~!!
    Mos Burger says it “シェーク” too, but “Lotteria” says it “シェーキ” !!



  9. Tomo on 2012年07月06日 at 18:18

    Hi David,

    Thank you for your feedback! Yes, it was another very interesting discussion. 74 comments on one entry, it’s a new record, isn’t it?

    >Actually, it was my first attempt at “hinkiku.”

    “My first attempt at something”, I see. That’s what I wanted to say. And thanks for your explanation about “irony” and “sarcasm.” It’s still difficult for me to understand the difference, but I’ll wait until I get a feel for it.(in the distant future!) Until then, I’ll stick to the basic rule you game me.

    >I even heard Bill Clinton make this mistake in a speech once!

    That cheers me up, too!

    > Max saw a very fat lady picking up some chocolate, so he ran over to her and shouted, “Put the chocolate down!”

    LOL! I liked this story. Children are so innocent, aren’t they?(ときに罪ですが…笑) And I liked the videos too! I love both versions. Their voices are beautiful. Thanks for sharing!

    Hi amo, YU, and Anne,

    The stories about the lovely babies made me smile, and they reminded me that my children made the same mistake and repeated the word they had just learned when they were very small. As you know, small children make mistakes in their language every day, and parents correct them, but I loved to hear those innocent mistakes, so I sometimes left them alone for a while. For example, my son couldn’t say, “蚊に食われた.” Instead, he added an extra “ni” and said, “かににくわれた.” I liked this mistake, so I didn’t correct him and enjoyed that until he started kindergarten. When he said that, I said, “カニに食われちゃったの? それは大変だ~.” I’m a bad mother…(LOL)

    YU, せっかくご指名をいただいたのだけど、付け足すところは何もないし、「正しくはTomoに聞いてください~!」←これはやめて~(汗) I do make a lot of mistakes, and there are lots and lots of things I’m not sure about.

    Hi trmr,

    To tell the truth, I believed that 役不足 meant 力不足 until quite recently!

    >But I was surprised when I find that Soseki Natsume used “全然+肯定文”. Other literary figures in Meiji era also used it. Did you know that usage of “全然~ない” is determined after the war?

    I didn’t know that!! それは驚きの発見です!

    Hi Jyoji,

    え~と、前回は「YUのコメントに付け足すところはほとんどないです」と書きましたが、今回は「全くないです」なので、書いても同じになってしまうと思いますが…。

    Here are my suggestions for the parts you wrote in italic.

    >because someone mishears someone else (often a parent), and then starts using the expression wrongly.
    なぜなら誰かが他の誰か(時々それが元になる)の(言った)ことを聞き間違えます、すると間違った表現が使われはじめるのです。

    ここの a parent は私も「親」のことだと思います(parents = 両親、a parent = 親)。 often は「時々」よりももう少し頻度の高い、「よく、たびたび、しばしば」という意味なので、かっこの中は、(しばしば親である→親であることが多い)という感じかな、と思います。後半のstarts の主語は最初の someone なので、そのまま「使い始める」でもいいんじゃないでしょうか。

    >One good example of this is the expression “I couldn’t care less.” The meaning of this phrase is “I don’t care at all. In fact, it would not be possible for me to care any less than I do, because that amount is zero.”
    make any sense : 意味を成さない
    一つのいい例として「I couldn’t care less」という表現があります。このフレーズの意味は「私は少しも心配していません。事実私ができることよりもより少なくしか心配することができないでしょう。なぜならその合計はゼロだからです」

    YUが言ったとおり、In fact の後が難しいですね~ そのまま訳して、「実際、私が気にするよりも少なく気にすることはできないでしょう。 なぜならその量は(すでに・もともと)ゼロだからです」という感じに受け止めましたが、ポイントはYUが言っている、「ゼロより下はない=全く気にしないより気にしないことは不可能」ではないでしょうか。

    >In everyday English, however, it is common to hear people say “I could care less,” which doesn’t make any sense at all.
    しかしながら、日常的な英語のなかで、人々からそれからは全く何も感じることができない「I could care less」などという言葉を聞くのはめずらしくありません。

    この前の文のところに「make any sense : 意味を成さない」と入っていたので、ここは勘違いかな?と思ったのですが…。
    Jyojiさんが調べたとおり、doesn’t make any sense at all は「全く意味を成さない」という意味で、common は「珍しくない」よりも「よくある」という感じかな、と思います。 which 以下は付け足し部分なので、どこに入れるかが難しいですね。 Jyojiさんのように文章の中に入れて、「しかしながら、日常英語の中では全く意味を成さない「I could care less」などという言葉をよく聞きます。」でもOKだと思いますが、YU のように訳すと、後から補足した(ちょっと皮肉な?)感じがよく出ているんじゃないかな~と思います。 以上です!

    Hi everyone,

    シェイクの話で盛り上がっていますが。。 モスバーガーも好きですが、マックを利用する方が多いので、私は「シェイク」に一票です。

    Have a great weekend, everyone!

    Tomo



  10. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 18:46

    Hi Tomo,

    >YU, せっかくご指名をいただいたのだけど、付け足すところは何もないし、「正しくはTomoに聞いてください~!」←これはやめて~(汗) 

    I’m sorry, I won’t say it again.
    To tell the truth, I would be happy, if other members help us.

    > small children make mistakes in their language every day,

    The daughter of a friend of mine from the mother class sang ABC song the other day. She sang, “♪A-B-C-D-いーですか~♪” instead of “E-F-G”. My friend nearly fell off her chair!! 🙂



  11. Tomo on 2012年07月06日 at 19:28

    Hi YU,

    Oh no, please don’t apologize. そんな風に言ってもらえるのはとっても光栄だし、嬉しいです! それに、”To tell the truth, I would be happy, if other members help us.” ← これもよ~く分かります。 I feel the say way. きっとみんなシャイなんですね、私と同じで(笑)

    >“♪A-B-C-D-いーですか~♪”

    楽しそうでいいですね! 😉

    Tomo



  12. ashmoleanmuse on 2012年07月06日 at 20:36

    Hi David,

    Thanks for the feedback!

    > I presume that all the women in my local supermarket fancy me because they always say that they want me to come again! Mind you, the men say it too…
    > It’s not an erotic joke – just a joke. I meant that they always say to me またお越し下さいませ. I feel like saying, “Really? Do you really want me to come again? That’s nice. Thank you.”

    But David, to fancy someone is to be attracted to them sexually…

    Ash



  13. Tomo on 2012年07月06日 at 21:10

    Hi YU,

    >I still don’t understand what you meant by “Mind you, the men say it too…”, though…

    ええと、英語の意味は分かっていると思うので、全体を通してみるとDavidのジョークが分かるのではないでしょうか・・?

    I presume that all the women in my local supermarket fancy me because they always say that they want me to come again! Mind you, the men say it too…

    『僕の地元のスーパーの女性はみんな僕に気があるんじゃないかな。いつもみんな僕にまた来てほしいって言うから。 でも男も(そのスーパーの)言うんだよねぇ…。』

    Davidはよく、日本のマニュアル通りの対応(みんな同じことを言う)は人間同士のコミュニケーションじゃなく、ロボットみたいで好きじゃないと言っていたので、それに引っかけたジョークだと思います。 それに対して私はいつも「マニュアル通りでもサービスがいい方がいい」と反論してます(笑)

    Tomo



  14. Kotomi on 2012年07月06日 at 21:27

    Hi, David!
    Thanks for the feedback.

    I felt using English is very difficult for me.
    It take me a lot of time to express what I think,but I decide to do that as well as possible.
    The more I use English, the easier I express what I think,don’t I?

    Well, I remember that ストライク Which is used in baseball game and ストライキ Which is used when workers stop working come from the same word,“strike.”



  15. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 22:03

    Hi Tomo,

    Thank you for your explanation.
    “the men”がスーパーの男性従業員とは思わなかった!
    突然、どこの男?と思いました。

    それにしてもジョークを解説するほどジョークを言った人にとって悲しいことはないですね!分かりにくいジョークを言った芸人がスベっちゃう感覚と似てるかな!?
    ま~今回のは私の勘が鈍いだけだったんだけど・・・
    因みに私が勘違いしたバージョンは卑猥すぎてここでは解説できませんけど!!(笑)

    Hi everyone,

    My son is watching “千と千尋の神隠し” on TV.
    It’s one of the best works of Studio Ghibli, isn’t it??
    I went to Taiwan several years ago with my father. As you know, the hotspring in the film is based on an actual hotspring in Taiwan. Now I really regret that I didn’t go there!!
    Has any of you been there??



  16. taco on 2012年07月06日 at 22:07

    Hello. Kina Grannis is one of my favorites. I have some of her songs in my iPod, I’m happy to share something I like with you. I think she came to Japan a few months ago.
    Have a nice weekend,
    taco



  17. Anne on 2012年07月06日 at 23:08

    Hi David,
    Thank you for your feedback.
    >It is very strange to have to learn to pronounce them “wrongly.”
    —Yes, indeed. That’s why I wrote about it. By the way, I also think learning to speak English can never make sense by using Katakana.

    > he ran over to her and shouted, “Put the chocolate down!”
    –Wow! I can easily visualize the scene and it made me laugh.

    >I recommend that you copy your comment before you post it.—-Thank you David and YU.
    Actually I always do that, so I’m able to avoid such a mishap. Last night , my computer freezed and I was trying to fix it, and then my comment disappeared suddenly….

    >I guess a lot more people have started using… (A-Z: become)
    —I checked it in the book. I got it. Thank you.

    >I presume that all the women in my local supermarket fancy me because they always say that they want me to come again! Mind you, the men say it too… —-Hmmm, you are so British,aren’t you?

    Hi Kotomi,
    Nice to have you with us.

    Have a lovely weekend,everyone!

    Anne



  18. amo on 2012年07月06日 at 23:13

    Hi David,

    Thanks for your feedback.
    >Yes. Katakana was one of the most difficult things to learn because I already know the English pronunciation of the words. It is very strange to have to learn to pronounce them “wrongly.”
    Sorry for that, but as I said, once an English word turn into katakana, it no longer English. so you have to deal with it:)
    By the way, I am a bit hesitate to pronounce カラオケ(きゃりおき?) and 酒(さき?) in English.

    Hi YU,
    I was going to explain about David’s joke, but Tomo already did. So now you know, what he was talking.

    I forgot to mention my job in last entry. Yes I work for a bank, but it’s not Japanese bank. I don’t think Japanese banks open on weekends but our bank open on Sundays.

    Funny you should mention Taiwan, but I am going to visit there this Oct as a company trip. Only two nights and three days though, we are thinking of going to that hot spring.

    Hi taco,
    I haven’t heard of Kina Grannis before. I just took a look the video that David mentioned, and I like her voice. So cute:)

    Have a nice weekend,
    amo



  19. taco on 2012年07月06日 at 23:34

    Hello amo,
    Oh, yes. Her music is soothing. I first saw her on YouTube in 2007 or 2008. Since then she has become more sophisticated. I don’t post my comment on this blog very often, so I know you always comment on my me. Thanks!
    See you,
    taco



  20. YU on 2012年07月06日 at 23:52

    Hi amo,

    > I am a bit hesitate to pronounce カラオケ(きゃりおき?) and 酒(さき?) in English.

    I know exactly what you mean!
    It is very strange to have to learn to pronounce them “wrongly”, because I already know the Japanese pronunciation of the words. (そっくりそのままお返し!)

    > I was going to explain about David’s joke, but Tomo already did. So now you know, what he was talking.

    It seems that everyone except me understood what he meant…

    > but it’s not Japanese bank. I don’t think Japanese banks open on weekends but our bank open on Sundays.

    I see.
    In Germany, banks are closed on weekends, and almost all shops(excl. restaurants or theaters)are closed on Sunday. I found it very strange at first, but it has a lot to do with the religion.

    > Funny you should mention Taiwan, but I am going to visit there this Oct as a company trip. Only two nights and three days though, we are thinking of going to that hot spring.

    Lucky you!!
    Apart from that hot spring, I strongly recommend you to visit night markets(夜市)!! They open every night until late at night. You can find a variety of local food and fashion goods there.



  21. Fumie on 2012年07月07日 at 05:29

    Hi David and everyone,

    Thank you for your feedback.
    >You can’t use “although” and “but” in the same sentence like that.
    OK. I’ll keep that in mind.

    >Actually, I would love to, but it’s almost impossible because all books have to be approved my the Ministry of Education.
    That’s too bad. It’s not an easy process to be approved as school textbooks.

    >I recommend that you copy your comment before you post it.
    I do that but I write my comment here and I read through it to check my mistakes then I copy and paste it on Word. But last time my comment disappeared when I was checking my mistakes because I push the Esc button mistakenly. Esc button is 半角/全角 ボタンの上。長いコメントの時は途中でも、コピーしとけばいいのですが、、、

    >As they got near the checkout, Max saw a very fat lady picking up some chocolate, so he ran over to her and shouted, “Put the chocolate down!”
    That’s so funny. Well, it may not a laughing matter for Max’s mother. Children are so innocent they talk as they feel. 感じたままを言葉にする。

    I didn’t know both singers: Fleet Foxes and Kina Grannis. Now I’m writing this while listening Kina’s songs. All her songs are so pleasant.

    Hi YU and Tomo,
    >To tell the truth, I would be happy, if other members help us.
    I wish I could translate David’s entry. Your and Jyoji’s translations are helpful because I can know the meanings of the sentences which I don’t understand. But I will try translate when I understand David’s entry.
    Why don’t you enter some translation contests? If you win in those contests, you can get some prizes or you can have a chance, like 訳してみる機会を与えられる。
    >The daughter of a friend of mine from the mother class sang ABC song the other day. She sang, “♪A-B-C-D-いーですか~♪” instead of “E-F-G”.
    That’s so funny and cute!

    How is the weather where you are. It thundered and lightened heavily in here.
    Have a nice weekend!

    Fumie



  22. Zim on 2012年07月07日 at 13:54

    Hi David & everyone.

    Long time no see . actually, one of Fleet Foxes’s song “He doesn’t know why ” is my song to remember . this song is one of my favorite song and reminds me of my honeymoon. We went to Grand Canyon and Yosemite valley for our honeymoon. At that time, We had been listening to their songs . That trip was really amazing , but also some troubles happened like my wife lost her marriage ring into water drain or we quarreled at center of San Francisco . After that , it was very hard to return to our hotel since I got lost . Actually, my wife could speak English in everyday conversation ,so she could go anywhere she wanted to go, but I couldn’t speak English at all , although I still can’t do that so much . Fortunately , I was rescued by a kind woman who was tour guide from Norway . she took me to the road near our hotel. I talked with her a little in English ( that English I used was super broken English ) while we were walking on the street and it was my first time to speak to non japanese . This experience gave me confidence to speak to people from other countries , so I proudly said I could speak English to my wife after we made up . I was stupid because I thought I could speak English for so small a matter .next day or few days later, we boarded a plane headed for Las Vegas . but the aircraft had a little trouble so we had to wait for a long time until it was solved. Since I waited for a long time , I was in a daze . then one of crew of the airplane who was close to me suddenly said ” how are you” to me . As I didn’t prepare for it, I couldn’t reply anything , but I just said “how are you” the same as crew. I was really embarrassed that I repeated like parrot . of course my wife laughed a lot ! Anyway those troubles I said also turned out to be good memories .
    Thanks for reading.

    Bye for now !

    Zim



  23. Zim on 2012年07月07日 at 14:11

    edit
    We quarreled ,so we looked around the city separately after that. That’s why it was difficult to return to my hotel without my wife .
    see you!

    Zim



  24. YU on 2012年07月07日 at 16:41

    Hi Zim,

    How have you been?
    Nice to hear from you again !! 🙂

    Thank you for sharing your bittersweet memories with us.
    So, you came into contact with the kind Norwegian woman and had an opportunity to talk with a foreigner in English first in your life by a strange coincidence!
    That’s very interesting!
    That means, if you had not quarrel with your wife then, you might not have started learning English!?
    Though it’s not very nice to quarrel with your partner during the honeymoon, but it turned into a great opportunity to get interested in English after all.

    Hi Fumie,

    > But I will try translate when I understand David’s entry.

    Thank you for your consideration. 🙂

    > Why don’t you enter some translation contests? If you win in those contests, you can get some prizes or you can have a chance, like 訳してみる機会を与えられる

    Thank you, but I’m not really interested in translating. Of course, I like to translate David’s entries into Japanese for my English learning, though.
    Actually, last year, a friend of mine went to a translation school for half a year, but she couldn’t get even a single translation work finally.

    Do you know why?

    Reason 1. Because she has never studied or lived in English speaking country.
    (I’ve never lived in English speaking country, either !)
    Reason 2. Because she has never worked as a translator.
    (I’ve never worked as a translator in my life so far, either!)

    I found both of them strange, especially reason 2!
    If it’s always so, I wonder how can you start the career as a translator!?
    And also for reason 1, I think there are lots of people who speak and write good English. Some of them are even much better than those who have studied or lived in English speaking countries !!

    とにかく翻訳の世界って想像以上にシビアみたいですよ。
    翻訳の仕事の経験がないと仕事をさせてもらえないって、じゃあどうやったらその最初の翻訳の仕事にありつけるんでしょうね!?
    英語留学したことがある人より英語の上手な日本人はごまんといる、と私は思います。だからreason1. は理不尽だな~って思います。
    私の英語サークルの友達が育児の傍ら産業翻訳の仕事をたま~にやってます。
    彼女は英検1級、アメリカ、イギリス留学経験アリ(イギリスは大学です)。それでもやっと旦那さんのコネをつかって仕事をもらっている状態です。一体翻訳のプロってどんな人たちなんでしょうね!?Tomoが前にコメントしてましたが直訳を自然な日本語に直せる一握りの人だけがなれる職業なんでしょうね。



  25. ashmoleanmuse on 2012年07月07日 at 20:42

    Hi David,

    How do you make your text bold?

    I’m trying…

    bold



  26. ashmoleanmuse on 2012年07月07日 at 20:50

    Hurray,it worked!

    Ash



  27. Fumie on 2012年07月07日 at 21:32

    Hi YU,

    You are right. I think professional translating is a hard job. It’s time-consuming and requires studying very hard thus people who really like that job can do that, I think.
    英語、日本語両方の新しい言葉、あらゆるジャンルの知識、それを調べる地道な努力を求められる仕事だと思います。本当に好きでないとなれませんよね。私は賞金やプレゼント欲しさに、簡単なコンテストには時々参加します。

    Fumie



  28. Jyoji on 2012年07月08日 at 00:56

    Hi YU & Tomo,

    いつもありがとうございます。まさにYUさんの意見に「I can’t agree with you more」ですねぇ(笑)

    でちょっと後学のために「I can’t agree with you more」という言葉も調べてみました。
    というかネットで解説している方がおられたのでその受け売りですが。。。

    couldn’t + 比較級
    (優勢比較級と)こんなに…なことがあろうか。
    (劣勢比較級と)まったく…でない。

    という解説がジーニアス英和辞典に載っているらしいです。

    なので「I couldn’t care less」は「全く心配してしてない」になるし
    「I can’t agree with you more」はこんなに「全くもって同意見です」
    となるんですね、、、パッと聴いただけじゃ絶対間違えちゃいます。。。

    Jyoji



  29. David Barker on 2012年07月09日 at 12:11

    Hi Zim,

    Nice to hear from you again. The story about your honeymoon was very funny.

    Hi Ash,

    Yes, you can use HTML in the comments on this blog. Have fun!



  30. Tomo on 2012年07月09日 at 12:35

    Hi taco and Zim,

    Nice to hear from you again! And thanks, Zim, for sharing your honeymoon story. I enjoyed reading it very much! 🙂

    Hi Fumie and YU,

    昔は翻訳の仕事は、いち早く映画や本の続きを見ることができていいな~!と単純に思っていましたが、その裏にある地道な努力を思うと、そんな風には言えなくなりましたね。 自分の興味があるジャンルだけ、というわけにもいかないでしょうし、まず道を開くのが大変そうですよね。 運を引き寄せるくらいの強い意志、時間を惜しまない努力、二つの言語に橋をかける言葉のセンスがないとだめなんだろうな~と思います。それにしてもFumieはいろんなことに挑戦していますね! 私も見習わないと~って思いました。

    Hi Jyoji,

    「couldn’t + 比較級」の表現は、知らないと本当に誤解してしまいますよね。 実は前にcan’t agree more と couldn’t agree more についてDavidに質問したことがあるんです。 この表現に can’t はダメだという解説をどこかで読んだのですが、can’t の例も見たことがあったので。。 それでDavidに聞いてみたのですが、現在の話でも couldn’t が正しいとのことでした。「もし、しようとしたとしてもできない」という意味だからだそうです。 一種の仮定法なのかな、というのが私の理解ですが、難しいのでこれ以上は考えないことにしました(笑)

    See you soon,

    Tomo



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