Town, Region and Country

Is it alive?

Every language you have met so far has one way of saying there is. English has one. So do French, Spanish and Italian. Japanese has two, and before you can choose between them you have to answer a question no European language asks: is the thing alive? A park and a cat need different verbs, and no amount of vocabulary will save you if you pick the wrong one.

Where you live

Six words for the places this topic is about. None of them is a borrowed word, so none can be guessed from English:

Match each word to its meaning

Two verbs, one question

あります (arimasu) is for things that cannot move by themselves: a park, a shop, a station, a mountain. います (imasu) is for people and animals: a teacher, a friend, a cat. まちに こうえんが あります - in the town there is a park. むらに ねこが います - in the village there is a cat. Look at what the sentence is made of. The place takes に, which you already know from the particle work. The thing itself takes が, and that is the only new piece here. The rest is a choice between two verbs. And the test is animacy, not size or importance. A mountain is enormous and takes あります; a mouse is tiny and takes います.

Which verb?

You want to say "there is a cat in the village". Which verb do you need?

• います, because a cat is an animal
• あります, because a cat is small
• です, because it is a simple statement
• Either, since both mean "there is"

The rule

Japanese has two verbs for "there is". Use _____ for things that cannot move by themselves, and _____ for people and animals. The place takes the particle _____, which you already know, and the thing itself takes _____. And the test is not size or importance: it is whether the thing is _____.

Which verb says it is alive?

Here are two short sentences. Tap the verb that was chosen because the thing is a living creature.

• まちに
• こうえんが
• あります
• 。むらに
• ねこが
• います
• 。

Order them by size

Put these four places in order, smallest first.

• 村 むら (mura) - village
• 町 まち (machi) - town
• 都市 とし (toshi) - city
• 国 くに (kuni) - country

Which use the right verb?

Select the TWO sentences that use the correct verb.

• まちに こうえんが あります, for "there is a park in the town"
• みせに ひとが います, for "there is a person in the shop"
• くにに やまが います, for "there is a mountain in the country"
• むらに ねこが あります, for "there is a cat in the village"

Describe your area

Three moments while describing where you live.

• You want to say there is a shop in your town. Which verb?
• You want to say there are many dogs in the park. Which verb, and why?
• You are unsure whether a word is alive: it is a plant. What do you do?

Two verbs, side by side

The same sentence shape both times. Only the nature of the thing changes.

Town, village and country in Japanese

A town is _____ and a village is _____. A country is _____ and a shop is _____. And before you say something is there, ask whether it is _____: あります for things, います for people and animals.

Where you live, and the Japanese rule

Write in English about where you live, and then explain the Japanese rule you have met in this module.

• Say whether you live in a village, a town or a city, and give the Japanese word for it
• Name two things in your area that would take あります, and say why
• Name two that would take います, and say why
• Explain what the test actually is, and give the example that shows size has nothing to do with it