Understanding Japanese Particles from the Image

イメージでわかる！日本語の助詞

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"Particles are often omitted in conversation and some people might feel they are not very important. However, for example, if you say "電車に寝る" instead of "電車で寝る," just changing one particle can completely change the meaning and you might not be able to convey your message properly. By learning the images that particles carry through this book, I hope everyone will be able to express what they want to say appropriately! Learning particles has these kinds of benefits."

Understanding Japanese Particles from their Image Cover
Level: JLPT Level: N5Language Style: Polite & CasualCompanion App: No
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What does Understanding Japanese Particles from the Image cover?

  • ☆ 自分の想おもいや考えを適切に伝えられるようになる
    To be able to convey one’s thoughts and ideas in an appropriate manner
  • ☆ 文や会話のニュアンスを理解できるようになる
    Better understand the nuances of sentences and conversations
  1. Easy to understand because you learn through animations and illustrations.
  2. You can learn the "images that particles carry."
  3. You can firmly understand the differences by comparing similar particles as you learn.
  4. You can check what you have learned with practice exercises.
  5. Self-study is also possible because translations are provided in English, Chinese, and Vietnamese.

 Student Review

Particles in Japanese can be pretty tricky for a lot of learners because they don’t really have a direct equivalent in European languages. Getting the hang of differences like に vs. で or が vs. は is super important as using the wrong one can sometimes lead to funny or unexpected meanings! The book opens with an amusing comic detailing, just what you might mean by saying いつも電車に寝て来るんだけど instead of いつも電車で寝て来るんだけど.

Japanese Particles

Understanding Japanese Particles from their Image does a great job showing when to use each particle. They even include pictures to explain sentences and sometimes show what happens if you mix them up, which helps make the differences clearer.

Take the particle で, for example. It can mean "by means of," mark the place where an action happens, show what something is made from, or set the scope of a statement. This book breaks down all these uses with helpful examples, so learners can see exactly how で works in different situations.

This book is an ideal supplement for those that have just started studying Japanese and need extra help nailing down the use of particles. If you’re someone that has already passed N4, chances are you have this down already, but the visualisations here can really help beginners.

In addition to the illustrations, there are QR codes that you can scan to see animated explanations for each of the grammar points.

After a section describing the difference between に from で for example, the book provides extra questions to test the understanding further. This is then followed quickly by the answers.

It is important that you have a vague understanding of particles already however as this book does not contain much in the way of English. There is some English (and Vietnamese) of course, but the questions themselves are in Japanese, with only a small description of each point here. If you’re not very confident with kanji, that’s ok however as furigana is also provided.

This book really is aimed at those who frequently mix up corresponding particles such as に and で and は and が. As a result the first section provides many examples of the difference between the two. The second section following goes more in depth about each particle on its own merits. The last section is a test so learners can really test if they’ve solidified their understanding of particles.

Teacher Review

Before using Understanding Japanese Particles from the Image:

As mentioned above, it is important to already have a vague understanding of particles because this book does not contain much English. You're better off reading about the particles from Genki, and if you need extra help or want extra revision should pick up this book.

You should be very aware of this before buying, as there are some reviews on Amazon from Japanese learners who found this book too difficult.

What to read next?

In the same series is イメージでわかる！日本語の副詞, (Understand Japanese Adverbs Through Images), though we have not personally read this book yet.

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