【雨（あめ）】”AME”
Meaning:
rain
Usage:
「雨が降りそうだから傘を持っていこう」
（あめがふりそうだからかさをもっていこう）
(Ame ga furisou dakara kasa wo motteikou.)
”I’m going to bring an umbrella because it seems to be raining.”
- The collocation for “雨 (あめ / rain)” is “降る (ふる / fall)”. It can be used not only for rain, but also for things that fall from the skies, such as snow (雪 / ゆき) and hare (あられ).
- When you use “because” in English, you can state the reason before or after the result, but in Japanese, the reason comes first and the result comes later. (“The reason” だから “the result”.)
- The translated sentence uses “I’m going to”, but it can also be interpreted as “Let’s bring an umbrella”. In Japanese, the subject is often omitted, so it is necessary to get it from the context.
Glossary:
雨（あめ）: rain
降る（ふる）: to fall (you use it for something from the skies such as rain, snow, hare, ash.)
～そう: seeming like, looking like
～だから: (…,) so, (…,) that is why
傘（かさ）: umbrella
持っていく（もっていく）: to bring, to carry, to take something with you
For onomatopoeias related to rain, please refer to the article below!
Onomatopoeia for Expressing How It Rains in Japanese
【大雨（おおあめ）】”ŌAME”
Meaning:
heavy rain
Usage:
「大雨でお店が閉まっていた。」
（おおあめでおみせがしまっていた。）
(Ōame de omise ga shimatteita.)
“The store was closed due to heavy rain.”
- “で” is an abbreviation for “せいで”. The word “せい” indicates a reason and is used when you are blaming the reason.
- It’s okay to say “お店「は」閉まっていた”. In this sentence, there is not much difference in meaning, so I used “The store” in the translated text.
When “が (ga)” is used, it usually does not refer to a specific store. On the other hand, “は (ha)” is often used when the speaker and listener are talking about a specific store, or to express contrast, such as “The library was open, but the store was closed.
E.g.
「が」：A store was closed. / Stores were closed.
「は」：The store was closed. / The store was closed, but other facilities were open.
Glossary:
大雨（おおあめ）: heavy rain
お店（おみせ）: store
閉まる（しまる）: to close, to be closed, to shut, to be locked
【傘（かさ）】”KASA”
Meaning:
umbrella
Usage:
「この傘はコンビニ（エンスストア）で買ったよ。」
（このかさはこんびに（えんすすとあ）でかったよ。）
(Kono kasa wa konbini (ensusutoa) de kattayo.)
“I bought this umbrella at a convenience store.”
- In Japan, convenience stores are called “konbini” for short. In urban areas, it is not hard to find a convenience store. Many of them are open 24/7/365, so you can buy medicines, sanitary napkins, and other urgently needed items even at night.
Glossary:
この: this (pre-noun adjectival)
傘: umbrella
コンビニ（エンスストア）：convenience store, CVS
買う（かう）：to buy
【長靴（ながぐつ）】”NAGAGUTSU”
Meaning:
rain boots, rubber boots
Usage:
「最近オシャレな長靴が流行っている。」
（さいきんおしゃれなながぐつがはやっている。）
(Saikin osharena nagagutsu ga hayatteiru.)
“Fashionable rain boots are in style these days.”
- “長靴（ながぐつ / rainboots)” are sometimes called “レインブーツ (れいんぶーつ / rain boots)”, too. However, many people tend to imagine “レインブーツ(rain boots)” as fashionable rainy-day footwear, like water-repellent short boots or sneakers. If you would like to talk about the typical rain boots that children wear, use “長靴 (ながぐつ)” 😉
Glossary:
最近（さいきん）: recently, these days, lately, nowadays
オシャレ: fashionable, stylish,
長靴（ながぐつ）: rain boots, rubber boots
流行る（はやる）: to become popular, to come into fashion
【かっぱ】”KAPPA”
Meaning:
raincoat
Usage:
「雨の日に自転車に乗るなら、かっぱを着なさい。」
（あめのひにじてんしゃにのるなら、かっぱをきなさい。）
(Ame no hi ni jitensha ni norunara, kappa wo kinasai.)
“If you ride a bicycle on a rainy day, wear a raincoat.”
- “なさい” is used when you make polite commands or directions. Although it is a polite word, it is not used to talk to superiors. It is a word that bosses use for their employees, or parents use for their children.
Glossary:
雨の日（あめのひ）: rainy day
自転車（じてんしゃ）: bicycle
乗る（のる）: to ride
～なら: in case (…,), if (…,)
かっぱ: raincoat
着る（きる）: to wear
～なさい: Do (…) (polite commands or directions)
【水たまり（みずたまり）】”MIZUTAMARI”
Meaning:
puddle
Usage:
「子供たちは水たまりに入るのが好きだ。」
（こどもたちはみずたまりにはいるのがすきだ。）
(Kodomotachi wa mizutamari ni hairuno ga sukida.)
“Kids love to get in puddles.”
- “のが好きだ (のがすきだ)” means “to like/love to do”. In this case, the original form of the verb comes before it. If the noun comes first, it is an abbreviated form of “の方が好きだ（のほうがすきだ）” which means “I like something better.” as a comparison.
Glossary:
子供（こども）: kid, child
子供たち（こどもたち）: kids, children
水たまり（みずたまり）: puddle
入る（はいる）: to enter, to go in, to get in
～のが好きだ（のがすきだ）: to like/love to do
【びしょ濡れ（びしょぬれ）】”BISHONURE”
Meaning:
soaking wet
Usage:
「駅から100メートル歩いただけでびしょ濡れになった。」
（えきからひゃくめーとるあるいただけでびしょぬれになった。）
(Eki kara hyaku mētoru aruita dakede bishonure ni natta.)
“I got soaked just walking 100 meters from the station.”
- In addition to “びしょ濡れ (bishonure)”, you can also say “ずぶ濡れ (zubunure)” and “びしょびしょ (bishobisho)”.
- Japan uses the metric system. (For example, one meter is about 3.3 feet.)
There is also the Japanese unit system. It is still used in construction, traditional crafts, and when expressing the length of a kimono, but it is not used in everyday life. Many people, especially younger people, are not familiar with the Japanese system. (I also can’t convert from the Japanese system to the metric system…)
Glossary:
駅（えき）: station
～から: from (…)
メートル: meter
歩く: to walk
だけ: only, just
びしょ濡れになる: to get soaked
