The Blue White Shirt
Steve is a 16-year-old high school student/from America. He lives with a host family. He came to Japan/to study Japanese. It hasn’t been easy. Here he talks about a few of his confusing experiences.
I was really surprised when I discovered/that many Japanese words come from English. For example,/“spoon” is スプーン/and “table” is テーブル. Since these words are written in katakana,/it is easy for me/to recognize them. “Learning Japanese is a piece of cake,”/I thought.
But I soon discovered/that the situation was much more complicated.
Last Sunday,/I went out for a walk. I stepped into a coffee shop/and ordered a caffè latte. I was asked,/“Would you like a マグカップ?” I thought it was a choice,/since a cup and a mug are quite different. But that was not the case. I learned a little later/that a マグカップ simply means a mug.
Another time,/I ordered a glass of サイダー. In America,/cider means apple juice. I really got confused/when the waiter brought me soda pop.
Ryo, a friend of mine,/invited me to visit. He told me/he lived in a mansion. To me,/a mansion is a very large house,/almost like a palace,/so I knew that Ryo was rich. I thought I should dress up.
I asked my host mother,/“Where should I go to buy a dress shirt?” She said I should go to a デパート. I found a department store/and went to the men’s fashion floor. I said to the clerk,/“I’m looking for a dress shirt.” She said,/“Oh, you are looking for a ワイシャツ.” “No, I don’t want a white shirt. I want a blue shirt.” “Oh yes. Right over here.” Finally,/I bought a blue ワイシャツ.
I met Ryo at the station/and we walked to an ordinary condominium. “Where is the mansion, Ryo?”/I asked. “This is it,”/he said. I learned that a マンション means a condominium.
My host family always has a Japanese-style breakfast/—nori, natto, miso soup, and rice. That’s fine with me. But yesterday they took me to a ファミレス. They wanted to give me a chance/to enjoy some Western food. They ordered ホットケーキ, フライドポテト, and ブレンド. Once again,/I was confused,/but I ordered the same. The waiter brought pancakes,/French fries,/and coffee. I noticed some strange and interesting desserts on the menu:/チョコバナナパフェ, ソフトクリーム, シュークリーム.
After breakfast,/my host father suggested/that one of these days/he would invite me to a Viking dinner. I didn’t understand Viking,/but I’m curious.
So far,/I have learned lots of these words. My teacher calls them wasei-eigo. These words can be deceptive;/they look like real English,/and yet they are not. I find them confusing. However,/confusion is not a bad thing. It’s a first step/in learning something new.
Finally,/my advice to you:/Don’t be surprised/if native speakers look puzzled/when you use wasei-eigo.
Steve is a 16-year-old high school student/from America. He lives with a host family. He came to Japan/to study Japanese. It hasn’t been easy. Here he talks about a few of his confusing experiences.
I was really surprised when I discovered/that many Japanese words come from English. For example,/“spoon” is スプーン/and “table” is テーブル. Since these words are written in katakana,/it is easy for me/to recognize them. “Learning Japanese is a piece of cake,”/I thought.
But I soon discovered/that the situation was much more complicated.
Last Sunday,/I went out for a walk. I stepped into a coffee shop/and ordered a caffè latte. I was asked,/“Would you like a マグカップ?” I thought it was a choice,/since a cup and a mug are quite different. But that was not the case. I learned a little later/that a マグカップ simply means a mug.
Another time,/I ordered a glass of サイダー. In America,/cider means apple juice. I really got confused/when the waiter brought me soda pop.
Ryo, a friend of mine,/invited me to visit. He told me/he lived in a mansion. To me,/a mansion is a very large house,/almost like a palace,/so I knew that Ryo was rich. I thought I should dress up.
I asked my host mother,/“Where should I go to buy a dress shirt?” She said I should go to a デパート. I found a department store/and went to the men’s fashion floor. I said to the clerk,/“I’m looking for a dress shirt.” She said,/“Oh, you are looking for a ワイシャツ.” “No, I don’t want a white shirt. I want a blue shirt.” “Oh yes. Right over here.” Finally,/I bought a blue ワイシャツ.
I met Ryo at the station/and we walked to an ordinary condominium. “Where is the mansion, Ryo?”/I asked. “This is it,”/he said. I learned that a マンション means a condominium.
My host family always has a Japanese-style breakfast/—nori, natto, miso soup, and rice. That’s fine with me. But yesterday they took me to a ファミレス. They wanted to give me a chance/to enjoy some Western food. They ordered ホットケーキ, フライドポテト, and ブレンド. Once again,/I was confused,/but I ordered the same. The waiter brought pancakes,/French fries,/and coffee. I noticed some strange and interesting desserts on the menu:/チョコバナナパフェ, ソフトクリーム, シュークリーム.
After breakfast,/my host father suggested/that one of these days/he would invite me to a Viking dinner. I didn’t understand Viking,/but I’m curious.
So far,/I have learned lots of these words. My teacher calls them wasei-eigo. These words can be deceptive;/they look like real English,/and yet they are not. I find them confusing. However,/confusion is not a bad thing. It’s a first step/in learning something new.
Finally,/my advice to you:/Don’t be surprised/if native speakers look puzzled/when you use wasei-eigo.