Talking on the Phone in Japanese

Talking on the Phone in Japanese Even when you start to understand a language better, it is still difficult to use when talking on the phone. You cant use gestures, which can be helpful at times. Also, you cant see the other persons facial expressions or reactions to what you are saying. All of your efforts must be spent listening very carefully to what the other person is saying. Talking on the phone in Japanese might actually be harder than in other languages; since there are some formal phrases used specifically for phone conversations. The Japanese normally talk very politely on the phone unless speaking casually with a friend. Lets learn some common expressions used on the phone. Dont be intimidated by phone calls. Practice makes perfect! Phone Calls in Japan Most public phones (koushuu denwa) take coins (at least a 10 yen coin) and telephone cards. Only specially designated pay phones allow international calls (kokusai denwa). All calls are charged by the minute. Telephone cards can be purchased in almost all convenience stores, kiosks at train stations and vending machines. The cards are sold in 500 yen and 1000 yen units. Telephone cards can be customized. Occasionally companies even them as marketing tools. Some cards are very valuable and cost a fortune. Many people collect telephone cards in the same way postage stamps are collected. Telephone Number A telephone number consists of three parts. For example: (03) 2815-1311. The first part is the area code (03 is Tokyos), and the second and last part are the users number. Each number is usually read separately and the parts are linked with the particle, no. To reduce confusion in telephone numbers, 0 is often pronounced as zero, 4 as yon, 7 as nana and 9 as kyuu. This is because 0, 4, 7 and 9 each have two different pronunciations.The number for directory enquiries (bangou annai) is 104. The most essential telephone phrase is, moshi moshi. It is used when you receive a call and pick up the phone. It is also used when one cant hear the other person well, or to confirm if the other person is still on the line. Although some people say, moshi moshi to answer the phone, hai is used more often in business. If the other person speaks too fast, or you couldnt catch what he/she said, say, Yukkuri onegaishimasu (Please speak slowly) or Mou ichido onegaishimasu (Please say it again). Onegaishimasu is a useful phrase to use when making a request. At the Office Business phone conversations are extremely polite. Yamada-san (o) onegaishimasu. Ã¥ ± ±Ã§â€ °Ã£ â€¢Ã£â€šâ€œÃ£â€šâ€™Ã£ Å Ã© ¡ËœÃ£ â€žÃ£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Could I speak to Mr. Yamada?Moushiwake arimasen ga, tadaima gaishutsu shiteorimasu. ç” ³Ã£ â€"è ¨ ³Ã£ â€šÃ£â€šÅ Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€ºÃ£â€šâ€œÃ£ Å'㠁Ÿã   Ã£ â€žÃ£  ¾Ã¥ ¤â€"å‡ ºÃ£ â€"㠁 ¦Ã£ Å Ã£â€šÅ Ã£  ¾Ã£ â„¢Im sorry, but hes not here at the moment.Shou shou omachi kudasai. Ã¥ °â€˜Ã£â‚¬â€¦Ã£ Å Ã¥ ¾â€¦Ã£  ¡Ã£  Ã£   Ã£ â€¢Ã£ â€žJust a moment, please.Shitsurei desu ga, dochira sama desu ka. Ã¥ ¤ ±Ã§ ¤ ¼Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ Å'㠁 ©Ã£  ¡Ã£â€šâ€°Ã£ â€¢Ã£  ¾Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Whos calling, please?Nanji goro omodori desu ka. ä ½â€¢Ã¦â„¢â€šÃ£ â€Ã£â€š Ã£ Å Ã¦Ë† »Ã£â€šÅ Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Do you know what time he/she will be back?Chotto wakarimasen.  Ã£  ¡Ã£â€šâ€¡Ã£  £Ã£  ¨Ã¥Ë†â€ Ã£ â€¹Ã£â€šÅ Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€ºÃ£â€šâ€œIm not sure.Mousugu modoru to omoimasu. も㠁†ã â„¢Ã£  Ã¦Ë† »Ã£â€šâ€¹Ã£  ¨Ã¦â‚¬ Ã£ â€žÃ£  ¾Ã£ â„¢He/she should be back soon.Yuug ata made modorimasen. Ã¥ ¤â€¢Ã¦â€" ¹Ã£  ¾Ã£  §Ã¦Ë† »Ã£â€šÅ Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€ºÃ£â€šâ€œHe/she wont be back till this evening.Nanika otsutae shimashou ka. ä ½â€¢Ã£ â€¹Ã£ Å Ã¤ ¼ Ã£ Ë†Ã£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â€"ょ㠁†ã â€¹Can I take a message?Onegaishimasu. 㠁Šé ¡ËœÃ£ â€žÃ£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Yes, please.Iie, kekkou desu. 㠁„㠁„㠁ˆç µ Ã¦ §â€¹Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢No, its O.K.O-denwa kudasai to otsutae negaemasu ka. 㠁Šé› »Ã¨ © ±Ã£  Ã£   Ã£ â€¢Ã£ â€žÃ£  ¨Ã£ Å Ã¤ ¼ Ã£ Ë†Ã© ¡ËœÃ£ Ë†Ã£  ¾Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Could you please ask him/her to call me?Mata denwa shimasu to otsutae kudasai. 㠁 ¾Ã£ Å¸Ã©â€º »Ã¨ © ±Ã£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Ã£  ¨Ã£ Å Ã¤ ¼ Ã£ Ë†Ã£  Ã£   Ã£ â€¢Ã£ â€žCould you please tell him/her Ill call back later? To Somebodys Home Tanaka-san no otaku desu ka. ç” °Ã¤ ¸ ­Ã£ â€¢Ã£â€šâ€œÃ£  ®Ã£ Å Ã¥ ®â€¦Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Is that Mrs. Tanakas residence?Hai, sou desu. 㠁 ¯Ã£ â€žÃ£  Ã£ â€ Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Yes, it is.Ono desu ga, Yuki-san (wa) irasshaimasu ka. Ã¥ ° Ã©â€¡Å½Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ Å'ゆ㠁 Ã£ â€¢Ã£â€šâ€œÃ£  ¯Ã£ â€žÃ£â€šâ€°Ã£  £Ã£ â€"ã‚Æ'㠁„㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹This is Ono. Is Yuki there?Yabun osokuni sumimasen. Ã¥ ¤Å"分é â€¦Ã£  Ã£  «Ã£ â„¢Ã£  ¿Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€ºÃ£â€šâ€œIm sorry for calling so late.Dengon o onegaishimasu. ä ¼ Ã¨ ¨â‚¬Ã£â€šâ€™Ã£ Å Ã© ¡ËœÃ£ â€žÃ£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Can I leave a message?Mata atode denwa shimasu. 㠁 ¾Ã£ Å¸Ã¥ ¾Å'㠁 §Ã©â€º »Ã¨ © ±Ã£ â€"㠁 ¾Ã£ â„¢Ill call back later. How to Deal With a Misdial Iie chigaimasu. 㠁„㠁„㠁ˆé â€¢Ã£ â€žÃ£  ¾Ã£ â„¢No, you have called the wrong number.Sumimasen. Machigaemashita. 㠁™ã  ¿Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€ºÃ£â€šâ€œ éâ€"“é â€¢Ã£ Ë†Ã£  ¾Ã£ â€"㠁ŸIm sorry. I have misdialed.

Vindicate, Avenge and Revenge

Vindicate, Avenge and Revenge Vindicate, Avenge and Revenge Vindicate, Avenge and Revenge By Maeve Maddox The verbs avenge and revenge mean basically the same thing, but avenge is widely perceived as having nobler connotations than revenge. Both words, like the English word vindicate, derive from the Latin verb vindicare/vendicare: â€Å"to claim, to set free, to punish.† In early usage, all three words, vindicate, avenge, and revenge meant, â€Å"to punish† or â€Å"to exact retribution.† In modern usage, the most common meaning of vindicate is â€Å"to clear from censure, criticism, suspicion, or doubt† or â€Å"to justify.† People and things may be vindicated: Mubarak’s Wife Says Husband Has Been Vindicated Bayliss insists the decision made before his appointment to retain England’s leading Test run-scorer as captain has been vindicated. A year after his shock resignation, Pope Emeritus Benedict has no regrets and believes history will vindicate his tumultuous and much-criticized papacy. Avenge and revenge, however, retain the ideas of punishment and retaliation. Note: The word revenge functions as both noun and verb. Avenge is always a verb. Its noun form is vengeance. Although there is no authoritative rule to distinguish avenge and vengeance from revenge, a perception exists that there is a difference. For example, The Chicago Manual of Style offers this note: Avenge connotes an exaction for a wrong. The corresponding noun is vengeance. Revenge connotes the infliction of harm on another out of anger or resentment. Revenge is much more commonly a noun. Likewise, Paul Brians (Common Errors in English Usage), promotes the distinction: When you try to get vengeance for people who’ve been wronged, you want to avenge them. You can also avenge a wrong itself: â€Å"He avenged the murder by taking vengeance on the killer.† Substituting â€Å"revenge† for â€Å"avenge† in such contexts is very common, but frowned on by some people. They feel that if you seek revenge in the pursuit of justice you want to avenge wrongs, not revenge them. Two examples from literature illustrate the difference. In The Princess Bride, Inigo Montoya seeks vengeance for the murder of his father, whereas in Moby Dick, Captain Ahab seeks revenge for an injury inflicted by an animal. Montoya has justice on his side, but Ahab acts from wounded pride, irrationally attributing vindictive intentions to a nonhuman creature. Considering how mean-spirited cyber culture has become, the distinction between revenge and avenge is probably a useful one to observe. Here, for example, are the titles of just a few of the distressingly large number of how-to articles on the topic of punishing people for perceived affronts: How to Get Revenge on Anyone The Ten Commandments of Revenge 50 Random Ways To Get Revenge How to take revenge on your Boss 10 Outrageous Ways to Get Revenge On An Ex How to Get Subtle Revenge on Your Enemies How to take revenge on Your Parents How to Get the Sweetest Revenge Ever Note: Until recently, the phrase â€Å"take revenge† was more common than â€Å"get revenge.† â€Å"Take revenge† is still more common than â€Å"get revenge† in the Ngram database of printed books, but a Google search shows â€Å"get revenge† ahead of â€Å"take revenge† on the Web. Perhaps we should reserve vengeance and avenge for retribution motivated by a wrong that any reasonable person would regard as appalling and use revenge to denote the desire to hurt someone for no better motive than anger or hurt pride. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:The Royal Order of Adjectives Broadcast vs Broadcasted as Past FormThe "Pied" in The Pied Piper