Japanese writing is not that easy, …right? Actually, Japanese writing is difficult even for Japanese children. In elementary school, they learn to write naturally through composing practices over and over again.
In this article, we introduce a writing checklist that elementary schoolers actually use. You can use this list to check your Japanese writing, too!
(The checklist is at the bottom!)
All the letters were spelled correctly
Check whether you’ve written similar words by mistake.
昨日は友達といっしょうにショッピングしました。
I went shopping together with my friend.
↓
昨日は友達といっしょ（一緒）にショッピングしました。
Check whether you have written small letters that should be small.
きようはさつかーをみるよ。
I will watch a soccer game.
↓
きょうはさっかーをみるよ。
I chose the right verbs (Kanji, meaning, and collocation)
Check whether you chose the right verbs for what you would like to say. Verbs may be different from ones in English or your native language.
私は3時に約束を持ちます。
I have an appointment at 3 pm.
↓
私は3時に約束があります。
私はこの薬を取らなければいけません。
I need to take this medicine.
↓
私はこの薬を飲まなければいけません。
To check Japanese collocation, use this website!
Jisho.org
*Type the subject in Japanese or English, and click “show collocation” on the result page.
I chose the right kanjis
It is very important to choose the right kanjis. If you choose the wrong one, it can change the meaning of the whole sentence. (But, don’t stress yourself out. We, Japanese people, sometimes make mistakes too!)
(To reply, “Are you free on Christmas day?”)
相手います。
“I have a partner (to spend Christmas with).”
↓
空いています。
“I am free.”
I used punctuation (、or 。) properly
Comma 「、」is used to separate elements within a sentence.
Full stop 「。」is placed in the same position as periods in English.
ありがとうございました、勉強になりました、
Thank you. I’ve learned a lot from you.
↓
ありがとうございました。勉強になりました。
*What I often see on social media are sentences like the one below. When you use an emoji, full-stop punctuation is not used. (You can use an emoji with exclamation marks, though.)
今日お花をもらった。:)
I received flowers today.
↓
今日お花をもらった 🙂
I used the same sentence ending style throughout my writing
(「～です。」「～ます。」or 「～だ。」「～である。」)
Be careful not to mix polite and casual sentences in a single paragraph.
昨日友達とカフェに行った。コーヒーはおいしかった。だけど、ケーキはあまりおいしくありませんでした。
I went to a cafe with my friend yesterday. The coffee was good. But the cake was not so good.
↓
昨日友達とカフェに行った。コーヒーはおいしかった。だけど、ケーキはあまりおいしくなかった。
or
昨日友達とカフェに行きました。コーヒーはおいしかったです。だけど、ケーキはあまりおいしくありませんでした。
*This rule does not apply to a phrase between Japanese quotation marks, whether it is polite or casual because it is directly spoken.
昨日学校に行きました。その時に先生から「よくがんばったね！」と言ってもらいました。
I went to school yesterday. My teacher told me, “Good job!” then.
*Sometimes, even in the middle of polite writing on social media, casual sentences can be included when you are talking to yourself about your feelings.
おいしそう！とてもお腹が空きました。
Yum! I’m very hungry.
２つの会社からとても良いオファーをもらいました。やったー！もう少しがんばります。
I got very good offers from two companies. Yay! I’ll try a little more.
I used Japanese quotation marks (「」) properly
To quote directly from a person’s speech, use the Japanese quotation marks (「」).
友達に髪切った？と聞かれた。
↓[direct speech]
友達に「髪切った？」と聞かれた。
A friend asked me, “did you get a haircut?”.
↓[indirect speech]
友達に髪を切ったか（どうか）聞かれた。
A friend asked me if I got a haircut.
*When you need to use a quotation within a quotation, we use 『』just like English single (or double) quotations.
朝、弟は私に「お母さんが『帰りに卵買うの忘れないで』って言ってたよ。」と言いました。
My brother said to me, “Mom said, ‘don’t forget to buy eggs on your way home’.” in the morning.
*We sometimes use it to emphasize words as well.
もう一回確認するよ。金曜の「午後9時」に待ち合わせだよね？
Let me check again. We’re meeting at “9 pm” on Friday, right?
There was no space between words
In Japanese, there is no space between words. When practicing your Japanese writing on your phone or computer, it’s okay to separate words to make it easier to understand. Just be sure to delete the spaces before finishing it.
猫 が 欲しい ので ペットショップ に 行きます。
I will go to a pet store because I want to have a cat.
↓
猫が欲しいのでペットショップに行きます。
Use Google Docs
Autocorrect and spelling and grammar suggestions are available on Google Docs.
Correct your spelling & grammar in Google Docs
*You need to change your typing language setting first.
Change your typing language (Translate documents or write in a different language)
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