Lesson Dialogues
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Situation 1
Yamamoto-san and Kawaguchi-san are talking at the office.
山本:あー。明日、長男の受験なんだよね。うまくいくか、心配だなあ。
Yamamoto: Oh. My oldest son is taking his entrance examination tomorrow. I'm worried about whether he'll do well.
- 長男 eldest son
- 受験 taking an examination (esp. school and university entrance); 受験する to take an examination
川口:え?山本さんの長男って、もうそんな年齢でしたっけ?
Kawaguchi: Huh? Is your oldest son really that old already, Yamamoto-san?
- 年齢 age
山本:まだ三つなんだけどさ。幼稚園の受験なんだよ。
Yamamoto: He's only three years old, actually. It's an examination to get into kindergarten.
- 幼稚園 preschool; kindergarten
川口:えー!幼稚園で、もう受験ですか?すごいですねえ。
Kawaguchi: What!? He's already taking an entrance examination at the age of a kindergartner? That's amazing.
山本:いやー。うちの奥さんが必死でさ。俺はあんまり興味ないんだけど…。
Yamamoto: Well, my wife is desperate. I'm not really interested...
- 奥さん wife
- 必死 desperate
川口:あれ、そうなんですか。幼稚園の受験って、何をするんですか?
Kawaguchi: Oh? Is that so? What does a kindergarten entrance examination consist of? (What does a child do at the entrance examination for kindergartners?)
山本:まず挨拶だね。それから、自分の名前と年齢を言うとかかな。
Yamamoto: First, the examinee will greet the examiners. After that, they'll probably say their name and age.
- 挨拶 greeting; 挨拶する to greet
川口:へー。それぐらいなら、頑張ればできそうですね。
Kawaguchi: I see. If that's all there is to it, he'll probably be able to do it if he tries hard.
山本:うちで奥さんが必死になって覚えさせてるよ。まあうちの子、挨拶は元々できるんだけどね。
Yamamoto: My wife is desperately making him memorize them. Well, our kid has always been able to say greetings anyway.
川口:なるほど。じゃあ、そんなに心配いらないじゃないですか。
Kawaguchi: I see. If that's the case, you don't have to worry that much, do you?
山本:いや、親に対する面接もあるんだよ。それが心配なんだよなあ。
Yamamoto: Well, they interview the parents as well. That's what I'm worried about.
- ~に対する to, towards; for; against: 日本はアメリカに対する攻撃をした。Japan attacked against the US.
- 面接 interview; 面接する to interview
川口:え、山本さんも面接されるんですか?それは頑張らないと!
Kawaguchi: What? You'll be interviewed as well, Yamamoto-san? You'll have to do your best!
山本:あー。心配で、今日は寝れなさそうだよ…。
Yamamoto: Gosh. I'm so worried I don't think I'll be able to sleep today...
Situation 2
Kohei and Keisuke are talking at university.
コウヘイ:はー。そろそろ就職のこと、ちゃんと考えないといけないね。
Kohei: Ah... It's about time that we have to think properly about getting a job, isn't it?
- そろそろ soon; slowly
- 就職 finding employment, getting a job; 就職する to find employment, to get a job
ケイスケ:そっかー。そろそろそんな時期かー。コウヘイはどうするの?
Keisuke: Oh, is it? It's about time we do that, huh? What are you going to do, Kohei?
コウヘイ:まだはっきり決まってないんだよね。とりあえず、資格の勉強はしてるけどさ。
Kohei: I haven't made up my mind clearly. For now, I'm just studying for a qualification.
- 資格 qualification; capacity
ケイスケ:そうなんだ。何の資格?
Keisuke: I see. What qualification is that?
コウヘイ:経営に関する資格。就職するとしても、持ってて困ることはないからさ。
Kohei: A qualification related to management. After all, even if I get a job, it won't hurt me to have it.
- 経営 management 経営する to manage, to run
- ~としても assuming; even if
ケイスケ:すごいなあ。しっかりしてるなあ。
Keisuke: That's amazing. You've really got it together.
コウヘイ:ケイスケは?結局、父親の会社を継ぐの?
Kohei: What about you, Keisuke? Are you going to inherit your father's company after all?
- 継ぐ to succeed; to take over
ケイスケ:うーん。俺もまだ決めてないんだよね。父親は継いでほしいみたいだけど。
Keisuke: Hmm. I haven't decided either, but it seems like my father wants me to inherit the company.
コウヘイ:あれ。っていうか、兄弟はいるの?
Kohei: Huh? Come to think of it, do you have any siblings?
- 兄弟 brother; sister; sibling
ケイスケ:いや、いないんだよ。兄弟がいたら、また話は違ってたと思うんだけどな。
Keisuke: No, I don't. If I had a sibling, things would probably have been different.
コウヘイ:そっかー。それなら父親も、ケイスケに期待してると思うな。
Kohei: I see. If that's the case, I guess your father has high expectations of you, Keisuke.
ケイスケ:まあ継ぐとしても、最初は普通に就職しようと思ってる。
Keisuke: Well, even if I were to inherit the company, I'm thinking of getting a job to start with normally (as many people do).
コウヘイ:けどさ、会社を継ぐってことは、いつかは経営するってことじゃん!
Kohei: But, you know, inheriting the company means that you'll manage it someday, right?
ケイスケ:まあ、そうだね。俺も資格の勉強すべきかなあ。
Keisuke: Well, that's right. Maybe I should study for a qualification too.
- ~べし、べき must; should (it could be a mild form of command in spoken Japanese): 日本に行くべし。You should go to Japan; 日本に行くべきだと思う。I think I should go to Japan.
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Situation 3, line 3, why did he say 三つ and not 三歳?
Situation 2, 10th line, what purpose do また and 話し serve?
つ is a very handy counterword.
It basically works as a “piece of …”, but nowadays it can be used more widely.
But we only use it for ages when we talk about the age of a child from 1 to 9 years old.
また here works as “perhaps” or “otherwise”
話は違う here means “a different story”, so I think literal translation works here.
“Perhaps it would be a different story.”
Aaah, 話し meant story. I see now. Thank you!
Yes, but it’s 話, not 話し.
話し is a conjugation of 話す (verb).