# Japanese/Lessons/Introduction/Konnichiwa/Noun predicates

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In this unit, you will learn how to make sentences using noun predicates.

## Try It

Duration: 2 minutes
Say the following sentences in Japanese by simply adding desu です to each word in parentheses. Then do the same in informal Japanese by adding da だ to each word.
* I am Japanese. (日本人(にほんじん) nihon-jin)
* That is a box. (箱(はこ) hako)
* This is a book. (本(ほん) hon)
* You are a genius. (天才(てんさい) tensai)
* He is a friend. (友達(ともだち) tomodachi)
* We are students. (学生(がくせい) gakusei)
* They are doctors. (医者(いしゃ) isha)
* Those are donuts. (ドーナツ doonatsu)
* These are chestnuts. (栗(くり) kuri)
* She is a police officer. (警察官(けいさつかん) keisatsukan)
* It is Monday. (月曜日(げつようび) getsuyoubi)
* I'll have coffee. (コーヒー koohii)
* There's a car. (車(くるま) kuruma)
Note: Using da だ to end your sentences can convey a somewhat masculine tone. Often women will drop the da だ entirely in informal speech, so that the noun itself becomes the predicate.

## Watch and Listen

Duration: 2 minutes
Listen to the following conversation while reading along and see how much you understand.

### Japanese with Furigana

* 幸一(こういち): はじめまして。松井(まつい)幸一(こういち)です。
* 智子(ともこ): 野口(のぐち)智子(ともこ)です。よろしくお願(ねが)いします。
* 幸一(こういち): よろしくお願(ねが)いします。学生(がくせい)さんですか？
* 智子(ともこ): はい、そうです。四(よ)年生(ねんせい)です。幸一(こういち)さんは？
* 幸一(こういち): 三(さん)年生(ねんせい)です。

### English Translation

* Kouichi: Pleased to meet you. I'm Kouichi Matsui.
* Tomoko: I'm Tomoko Noguchi. I hope everything goes well.
* Kouichi: I hope everything goes well. Are you a student?
* Tomoko: Yes, I am. I'm Grade 4. And you, Kouichi?
* Kouichi: I'm Grade 3.

## Explain

Duration: 5 minutes

### Predicates
#### English Predicates

In English, we learn that a sentence consists of a subject and a predicate. The predicate of a sentence indicates what the subject is, what the subject does, or what happens to the subject. For example, in the English sentence:
    John is a baseball player.
The subject is "John", and the predicate is "is a baseball player". The sentence is about John, but it states that John is something, namely he "is a baseball player." In English, the predicate of a simple sentence starts with the verb and continues to the end of the sentence.

#### Japanese Predicates

In Japanese, a complete sentence must have a predicate, but the subject can be implied rather than stated, which is exactly the case more often than not. The Japanese equivalent of the above sentence would be (informal/formal ending):
    ジョンは野球(やきゅう)選手(せんしゅ)だ/です。
    Jon wa yakyuu senshu da / desu.
However, if you were already talking about John, his name would not be mentioned again and the sentence would be shortened to:
    野球(やきゅう)選手(せんしゅ)だ/です。
    Yakyuu senshu da / desu.
In Japanese, when you want to form a predicate with a noun, the structure to use is:

### Vocabulary

The following lists contain nouns which may be useful in your study.
* Japanese/Vocabulary/Vocations
* Japanese/Vocabulary/Country names
* Japanese/Vocabulary/Classroom objects

## Practice

* Practice: Using formal speech, do the following exercises. Follow the links provided or ask the teacher for any necessary vocabulary.
** State your name.
** State your vocation.
** State your nationality by adding 人(じん) -jin to the name of your country.
** Point at three different objects, and state what they are.
    Example:
*   * スーです。
       Suu desu.
       I am Sue.
*   * 大学生(だいがくせい)です。
       Daigakusei desu.
       I am a university student.
*   * イギリス人(じん)です。
       Igirisu-jin desu.
       I'm from the U.K. (lit. I'm a British)
*   * いすです。　えんぴつです。　テレビです。
       Isu desu. Enpitsu desu. Terebi desu.
       That is a chair. That is a pencil. That is a TV.
* Practice: Repeat the previous exercise, this time using informal speech.
    Example:
*   * トムだ。
       Tomu da.
       I am Tom.
*   * 弁護士(べんごし)だ。
       Bengoshi da.
       I am a lawyer.
*   * アメリカ人(じん)だ。
       Amerikajin da.
       I'm an American.
*   * 窓(まど)だ。　机(つくえ)だ。　木(き)だ。
       Mado da. Tsukue da. Ki da.
       That is a window. That is a desk. That is a tree.
* Conversation: Have a conversation similar to the one in the Watch and Listen section with a neighbor, only substitute your own words in.

## Discuss

Duration: 2 minutes
Please post any questions you may have here, and a contributor will answer them.