謎です。 This is all you need to get a laugh in Japanese, given the right situation. Listen to learn more about how to use this funny phrase, and to dig into the career of comedian Katagiri Jin who acted in a comedy short that went viral on the internet outside of Japan in the late 2000s. See more on the newsletter and blog.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on the newsletter, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

Re-orient yourself in receiver-oriented expressions of thanks! If that sounds complicated, it's not, I promise. Essentially, I show you how to replace your くださって with an いただき and take a look at some interesting language trends that I hope actual linguists are looking into. I've also got a beer recommendation and a way for you to get rid of stuff for free in Japan. See more on the newsletter and the blog.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on the newsletter, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I wrote about one of the very first topics I ever covered on the blog: How do you convey reported information in Japanese? And how does it differ from conveying information in English? ということです is a super convenient way to do so, as long as you do the work of setting up clear context. Take a look on the blog or on the newsletter, which is now at newsletter.howtojapanese.com.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on the newsletter, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I'm taking a look at another set of "impossible pairs." Except this time, they aren't homophones. I've also got soup recommendations, details on the Osaka Expo, and some rambling about 商店街 (shōtengai) shopping arcades. Head to the newsletter and blog for more.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

なんです！ What is it? What does it mean? How do I use it? Listen in to learn a couple simple patterns that will make your spoken Japanese more natural by adding in this small little piece of language at the end of your clauses. Check out the newsletter and blog as well.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I wrote about the word 五月雨式 which has a really interesting history. Unless you already know the word, I bet you don't know how it's pronounced. It's a very useful word in business situations, so add these example sentences into your list of sentences to review regularly. I've also got tourist recs, and there are still spots open in the USJETAA Japanese Coaching sessions I'm helping with. Check out the newsletter and blog as well.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I wrote about how to authenticate new Japanese phrases/words that you've never encountered before by doing a search for 例文 (reibun, example sentences). Stick around for Kyoto recommendations this month, and I also talk about the volunteering I'm doing for USJETAA: We're offering Japanese coaching sessions four times a year for anyone who needs advice on how to proceed with their studies. Check out the newsletter and blog as well.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I wrote about the word 筋 (suji), which has a huge range of literal and figurative meanings. One of these is closely related to Osaka geography. Stay to the end to hear me give Osaka travel recs and tell a funny story about my wedding this month. Full Osaka recs on the blog, and more about 筋 on the newsletter.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month is all about acquisition. Specifically the appraisal and acquisition of new Japanese. I argue that a "collector's mindset" can help benefit students. It's how I recently acquired the new phrase あとになってわかったこと. Listen in to learn about what it means. And check out the blog here, and the newsletter here this month.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Bluesky, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.

This month I introduce another "Impossible Pair," which I first wrote about back in September 2024. The pair I introduce: the words 状態 (jōtai) and 状況 (jōkyō). One way to differentiate these is size, but the other is a time element. I think I've hit on an interesting way to think about these. Check out the newsletter for more, and the blog for how 状態 gets used with Pokemon.

Feel free to reach out with any questions or 悩み事 to [email protected].

You can also follow How to Japanese on Substack, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.