Lesson Dialogues
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* Hover over or tap words to see definitions:
Situation 1
At home, Kaori is speaking to her younger brother Takeshi.
Comprehension Quiz (Skip if you don't understand the conversation yet)
そこに英語の本はありますか？
A はい
B いいえ
カオリ：ちょっと、そこの本取って。
タケシ：どの本？
カオリ：英語の本。
タケシ：どこ？
カオリ：え、そこに無い？
タケシ：あった、これか。はい。
カオリ：ありがとう。
Situation 2
At the office, Saito-san is speaking to his subordinate Yamada-san.
Comprehension Quiz (Skip if you don't understand the conversation yet)
山田さんの仕事は、____。
A もう終わった
B もう少しで終わる
C まだ全然終わらない
D 今日終わらない
斉藤：結構時間かかる？その仕事やるの。
山田：いえ。もう少しで終わります。
斉藤：え、ほんと？山田さん、仕事早いね。
Situation 3
At home, Ami spoke to her older brother Takeshi.
Comprehension Quiz (Skip if you don't understand the conversation yet)
タケシは今、やる事がありますか？
A はい
B いいえ
アミ：この問題教えて。
タケシ：ごめん、後でいい？
アミ：何かやる事あるの？
タケシ：今から友達とランニング。
アミ：そっか。じゃ、後で教えてね。
Situation 4
Matsui-san is talking with her neighbor Kojima-san.
Comprehension Quiz (Skip if you don't understand the conversation yet)
小島さんは、____映画に行く。
A 一人で
B 友達と
C 子供と
D 松井さんと
松井：今日、映画行くんです。子供と。
小島：え！僕も、今から映画です。
松井：ほんとですか？誰かと？
小島：いえ。一人で行ってきます。
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I’m a bit confused about 今から映画です. I would expect it to be 今から映画行きます or 今から映画行くんです. Why is the verb omitted in this case?
In Japanese, especially in spoken language, subjects and verbs are often omitted when the meaning is clear from context. This kind of expression relies on shared knowledge between the speaker and the listener.
The speaker could say 僕も、今から映画に行くんです。
However, since the other person just said 行く, it’s more natural to omit it rather than repeat it.
Thanks for the explanation. Is it possible, in this case, to omit the subject instead of the verb and reply 僕も、今から行くんです?
No problem!
You could say that, but that makes it sound like you’re going to the same place — like the same movie theater.
It can sound like: 僕も、今から（そこに）行くんです。 — “I’m going there too.”
(“そこに” is often omitted, but it’s implied.)
Is ランニング only used when someone is doing it for fun/sports or can はしる be used for the same?
Here, the speaker uses ランニング to mean “jogging.” Maybe they just like jogging, or they do it to stay in shape.
Strictly speaking, ランニング is a training that athletes would do for the purpose of competing in marathons.
The word 走る has a broader meaning.
It can refer to jogging, running at full speed, or hurrying somewhere on foot.