Basic grammar/基本的な文法

Hello! 



This is the first of my grammar pages. I will add more as I go along, so keep checking this page for more. 

Using a, an or the/aantheを使う


How do you use aan, and the? I'll show you here!

We use a or an with any noun. (aとかanは何でも名詞を使う。

Using 'a' or 'an'

1.  'a'
例えば:Here is a textbook
textbook     textbook     textbook
textbook     textbook     textbook
(何でもテキスト。)

I like to study in a coffee shop.
coffee shop     coffee shop
coffee shop     coffee shop
(なんでもコーヒーショップ。)

Mark is a boy in our class.
Keiko         Takeshi        Mark                   
Maria          Taro           Anne
Maria is a girl in our class.

She writes in yellow notebook in English class.
We eat our lunch in large cafeteria.

2. 'an'
*We use an with nouns that begin with vowel sounds, and nouns with silent “h.” (anは名詞の母音とサイレント「hが始める 。)

例えば:I eat an apple every day with lunch.
(何でもリンゴ。
I like to have an egg on toast with coffee for breakfast.
(何でも卵 。)
He has an idea about what to cook for dinner.
(…)

She’s wearing an orange dress today.
There’s an umbrella on the floor next to Keiko’s bag.
Our first class will start in an hour.

Using 'the'
We use the with specific or particular nouns. (theは特定の名詞を使う。)

例えば:Here is the English textbook.
history textbook     Japanese textbook    
English textbook    science textbook

Starbucks is the coffee shop I like.
Doutor   St. Marc     
Tully’s   Starbucks

Keiko is the girl in the first row.     
                     1st row: 
Keiko         Takeshi        Mark     
                    2nd row:  
Maria           Taro            Anne
Taro is the boy in the second row.

Russia is the largest country in the world.
Russia: 17,098,242 km2
Canada: 9,984,670 km2
U.S.: 9,826,675 km2
China: 9,596,961 km2
(…)

Mr. Suzuki is the teacher for our history class. 
Keiko, Maria and Anne are the girls in our Japanese class. 
The English class is down the hall next to the computer room

I hope this will help you to remember how to use a, an, and the in speaking and writing! 



Image: untitled personal photo/all rights reserved

Using many and much/manymuchを使う
How do we use many and much? Sometimes these words are difficult to know how to use. Here are some hints on how you can use these words. 

1. Many
Look at the picture at the top. This shows many blocks. 

a. Many is used with countable nouns (
可算名詞).

例えば:
I have many books.
He has many CDs at home. 
She'll take many classes at university from April.
The students had to write many essays for their class last year. 

b. We can use it with too+ to show something big in a negative way, so we can use too many with countable nouns:


例えば:
I have too many books on my desk!
The boy has too many blocks in his toy box.
Hiroshi drank too many glasses of beer and wine last night.
Tomoko carries too many cosmetics like lipstick and foundation in her bag. 

Click here for more/ここにクリックしてください:

2. Much



a. Much is used with uncountable nouns (不可算名詞), and is often used with “do not.”

例えば:
I don’t have much money.
David doesn’t need much time to get to school.
Keiko doesn’t get much homework in her history class.

b. We can also use it with too+ to show something big in a negative way, so we can use too much with uncountable nouns:

例えば:
I have too much homework to do.
He said that you get too much email in your inbox.
Drinking too much coffee is not good for you.
Some people think baseball players make too much money.

c. We can also use much with verbs, sometimes with “do not”:

例えば:
I don't have much to do today.
You didn’t have much to say at the meeting.
Anne didn’t have much to eat for lunch.

Hiroshi didn’t say much in the discussion this morning.
Akiko didn’t drink much at the party last night.

d. We can also use much with a verb in other ways: 

I have much to tell you about my trip!

I have much to do before the class, so I'm sorry I can’t go to lunch with you.


Tomoko and her friends always talk much on the train on their way to school. 

The president said much about his trip to Russia in last night’s speech.

I hope this helps you in knowing how to use many and much in speaking and writing!


Images: Building blocks - "Plastic Building Blocks" (courtesy of nenovbrothers)/Iced coffee - "Ice Coffee" (courtesy of rakratchada torsap)/Images from FreeDigitalPhotos.net


Using a lot of/a lot ofを使う



How do you use a lot ofHere I'll show you! 


A lot of is another way to show many things, or much of something. It is used with countable and uncountable nouns (
どちでも可算、不加算名詞を使う). 

It can mean "very many" or "very much." We usually use it to mean something positive, but we can sometimes also use it to show something negative.  

a. With countable nouns


例えば:

She saw a lot of balloons in the park.
He read a lot of books over the holiday. 
The school had to order a lot of lunch boxes for their students on the trip. 
Some countries have a lot of problems in their societies. 

b. With uncountable nouns:




例えば:
I drink a lot of water every day.
He'll buy a lot of furniture for his new apartment. 
Steve Jobs made a lot of money at Apple. 
David will need a lot of help with his math homework this weekend. 

I hope this will help you in knowing how to use a lot of. It's a very useful expression in speaking and writing!

More grammar points to come soon! Keep checking this page!



Images: Balloons - "Palloni Nel Cielo" (courtesy of Idea go)/Water - "Pure Water" (courtesy of winnond)/Images from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

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