Learn Japanese Pod

In today's lesson we study the word せっかく sekkaku. This refers to an action that took great pains however it was all for nothing. For example: せっかく来たのにパーティやってない sekkaku kita no ni paati yattenai Even though I took the trouble to come, the party was cancelled (not happening) Check out the podcast to hear more natural examples in the podcast.

Today's show focuses on しか...ない shika ...nai which means "only" or "just". For example: 千円しかないよ senen shika nai yo I only have 1000 yen This is a really natural phrase used very commonly in Japanese conversation. Check out the podcast for more examples. Enjoy!

After a while, Beb is back to teach us some Japanese. In this week's show Beb teaches us the phrase 情けない nasakenai which means pathetic, wretched or generally in a bad state. Check out the podcast to hear some examples of how it is naturally used in daily conversation and even a song by Beb and Alex!

Asuka teaches us how to use the phrase 滅多に無い metta ni nai which means "rarely". For example: 滅多に図書館に行かない mettani toshokan ni ikanai I hardly ever go to the library. Check out the podcast for more examples of how to use this word.

Here is the January/February edition of the Learn Japanese Pod Magazine. Enjoy!

Here's the November and December Learn Japanese Pod Magazine.

Learn Japanese Pod Magazine September 2011