Join Our Newsletter
  • Visit Our Store
  • Come Write for J-List!
J-List Blog
Visit J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
No Result
View All Result

Thoughts on Learning Japanese

Peter Payne by Peter Payne
12 years ago
in Your Friend in Japan

One reason I like studying a foreign language like Japanese is the way it teaches you about your own brain, and whenever I’d undertake the (always difficult) process of internalizing some new bit of vocabulary or grammar — which all too often requires that I “trick” my own brain in devious ways — I could feel the synapses stretching to accept the new information. One thing I learned is that the brain doesn’t want to process what it isn’t already familiar with, and sometimes a Japanese person would ask me a question but my brain refused to react, treating the strange words as static rather than as something that required a response. During college I had a Japanese girlfriend (these come in rather handy, let me tell you), and once she told me to wait for her by the 自動販売機 jido hanbai-ki, the “automatic selling machine” e.g. a vending machine. I didn’t know this word, so my brain substituted the nearest thing it was familiar with, 自転車 jitensha or bicycle, which is why I found myself waiting in vain for her by the bicycle racks instead.

Ami is waiting for me by the vending machine.

Tags: Japanese languageLearning Japanesevending machines

More Posts Like This

When The Subtitles Substitute Name For Onii Chan
Your Friend in Japan

Onii-chan, No! When Translators Don’t Follow Japanese Naming Conventions

by Peter Payne
8 months ago

How do you feel when you're watching anime and a character uses an honorific like "Onii-chan," but the subtitles use...

Japanese Is Similar To Spanish Blog
Your Friend in Japan

Why Is Japanese So Similar to Spanish? Let’s Compare Both Languages!

by Peter Payne
10 months ago

Everyone knows that Japanese is a hard language to learn, right? But I found it surprisingly easy, partly because it...

What Does Bitch Mean In Japanese

Bitch Means What in Japanese?? Nine Times Japan Changed the Meaning of Words

12 months ago
Watashi No Shiawase No Kekkon

‘My Happy Marriage’ is a Serotonin Boost For Your Brain

2 years ago
Learn Japanese Through Anime! Otonari No Tenshi

Learn Japanese With Anime! Otonari no Tenshi-sama Edition

2 years ago
Does Sarcasm Exist In Japan?

Does Sarcasm Exist in the Japanese Language? Let’s Find Out!

3 years ago
Next Post
Screen Shot 2019 04 08 At 0.54.11

J-List 100,000 Likes Facebook Celebration

Trending Today

The Top 11 Anime Sex Scenes Blog
Your Friend in Japan

Happy Sex Day! Let’s Rank the 11 Most Surprising Ecchi Scenes in Anime

1 month ago
Spring 2025 Ecchi Anime Web Cover
News

Spring 2025 Ecchi Anime and Where to Watch Them

4 months ago
Yandere Dark Elf Episode 1 Featured Image
Featured

Yandere Dark Elf, Episode 1 — Love Heavier than Chocolate Melons!

3 months ago
Haite Kudasai, Takamine San Episode 9 Featured Image
Featured

Haite Kudasai, Takamine-san, Episode 9 — Slippery When Wet!

2 weeks ago
Dengeki Moeoh August 2025 Cover
Anime Magazine

What’s Inside Dengeki Moeoh August 2025? Ecchi Illustrations, Posters, Art, and More!

1 week ago
Get the Newest Figures from J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
Screenshot
News

They’re Back: Announcing the Return of J-List Tissues!

by Peter Payne
July 19, 2025

They’re Back: Announcing the Return of J-List Tissues!

3 Horny and Hungry Reasons to Watch Clevatess

Dandadan S2 Pulls No Punches (and the Fight Scenes Hit Hard, Too)

Cultural Exchange with a Game Center Girl — A Kawaii Romance

Tojima Wants to Be a Kamen Rider and Fight Shocker

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Discord
  • YouTube

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.