What can you do at your current level?

WaniKani
#19

If your grammar resources are using kanji that you don’t know, I’d suggest trying some other resources. There are plenty that don’t use kanji in the beginning, or that use furigana on the kanji (Genki, for example). Japanese grammar is so different from English, so I think it’s really important to start studying it early on. Otherwise, you’ll just look at a sentence and think, “ok, I know most of these words, but I have no idea what this is trying to say.”

As for where I am (not much further that you were before), I studied Japanese in high school and college, and then took a long break from Japanese. If I look up words then I can get the gist of most NHK Easy News articles.

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#20

At level 35, half of N2 grammar studied and some about 5,200 words memorized I can understand most daily conversations. I also understand most simple explanations and sentences you find in blogs and dictionaries (though I accidentally skim words unconsciously. Need to get used to reading more). However I still have trouble with more sophisticated somewhat uncommon daily words like 愚弄 or 紛らわしい. Also, when talking about a specific topic in depth I get completely lost. I remember in a story hearing about someone’s sleep patterns and I felt like I was hearing jibberish at some point. Same with when they were talking about basic science stuff like gravity and efficiency.

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#21

Confirmed I’m smarter than buster. I know the word 物理 so clearly Im more well versed in science speak since everything revolves around physics.

BOW DOWN

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#22

A recurring trend I’m seeing in this thread is that those who have studied grammar seem to have a huge advantage over those who haven’t, even if their WK levels are widely spaced. On that note, recently I picked up book 1 of Doraemon (ドラえもん) and was absolutely amazed at how much of it I could understand right off the bat. Probably around 75% comprehension, which is honestly enough for me to keep reading and looking up words from time to time.

That said, I also finished Genki 1 and a Memrise deck with all the vocab from it, so ymmv.

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#23

Yeah, the best thing to do after the essentials is to just hit your head against Japanese texts repeatedly. Eventually the most common words stick and you get used to how Japanese sentences are configured. You won’t understand nuance or a lot of the words, but you will get closer to that point than if you don’t at all.

Trust me, I’ve made plenty of mistakes, some of which were pretty basic. Like just a couple weeks ago, it finally hit me that が could mean the same as けど. Literally after reading for what seems like 50+ hours of Japanese through NHK easy and visual novels I just put together that they weren’t using the が subject particle but the が “but” meaning. Made me feel pretty silly.

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#24

Ah yes, but do you know 終端速度, 稼働率, and 双極子? That is were the real challenge begins young Padawan.

(Also, fun fact. Gravity in the physics term just means heavy-power 重力. Surprisingly self explanatory when you think about it)

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#25

I was able to figure out 終端速度 for obvious reasons, but the other two were beyond me.

You win this time shakes fist

@xyzbuster the next round shall consist of sex terms, words related to telescopes, and different types of japanese school activities.

#26

hehe, I looked up the first and last word and he has yet to realize

#27

Argh, there is something that you wrote but it is blurred so I can’t read it.

I feel like I am being bamboozled somehow, but I can’t put my finger on why I feel this way.

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#28

Bring your telescope personified into a Japanese school girl taking part in their annual 文化祭 on!

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#29

I studied Japanese for 2 years before starting wanikani with less focus on kanji compared to speaking, then I took a break of a few months break when I studied abroad in Japan (the review pileup was pretty brutal) so my speaking ability and understanding of grammar is a bit higher than my kanji level.

I usually can talk to Japanese speakers fluidly as long as it’s not something too specific because then I would struggle with vocabulary. So I guess 日常会話 + a bit more, like vocabulary surrounding school and education systems that I learned during my courses abroad.

Listening to a Japanese TV show or anime that is realistic I can get about 85% and I’ll pause often to try to get the other 15%. If it’s an anime that is in space or something less ordinary my comprehension drops quite a bit haha

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#30

I’m currently reading light novels and understand most of what I read. I find that having reached level 60, I can usually work out what a word means by the kanji alone. When I come across unknown words/kanji, I input them into anki (and use mnemonics if needed). I’ve studied grammar at the same time too, so that’s no problem.

I’m currently reading the Suzumiya Haruhi light novel series, which is mostly slice of life, mixed with some sci-fi. I come across some science vocab but has furigana, and scientific concepts (since I’m really into sci-fi, it’s not much trouble). My tutor says the main character talks like an ojiisan for some reason, but it’s not over the top. He’s supposed to be a high school student, but uses some old vocabulary and phrases.

I used to read manga, but I’m glad I switched to light novels. It’s really improved my Japanese.

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#31

Updooted for light novels.

Do you usually opt to read them on a digital copy for ease of looking up words or do you use physical copies?

#32

I’m halfway through Genki 1 and two levels above you on Wanikani and I flicked through Yotsubato the other day. I’m not remotely anywhere near ready to read it yet. How on earth are you able to? I can grasp some words and phrases but that’s about it.

#33

I prefer digital copies. It’s much easier that way not having to carry around books. They are in pdf format, so not sure if I can look up through the device itself. It’s easy enough to use my smart phone dictionary though.

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#34

Reading in and of itself is a skill. Yotsuba also uses quite a bit of hiragana so he may be better at recognizing those words right now. Also just because you “know” grammar doesn’t mean you will recognize it. You should read so you get to see the words and grammar you learn in context. This plays into reading being an actual skill.

Also level != skill. Some level 10s are probably better than me at reading lmao.

#35

At lvl 14 with > 1000 hours of anime watching (I counted it O.O), after finishing Genki 1+2 and starting the Intermediate Japanese book, I can say pretty much anything I want to (but sometimes in a round-about way) and understand over 50% of what a native speaker says to me at normal pace. It would be a small stretch for me to say I’d pass the N3 exam right now.

When I was in Japan recently, I managed to keep up a few conversations 1+ hours long.

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#36

I’ve been playing Persona 5 over the last few days, and reaching level 60 here doesn’t mean it’s easy going. Just in the last 15 minutes I saw these kanji not taught here.

揃
筈
馳
潰

That’s obviously just a small sample, and doesn’t even touch on the vocab or grammar used in the game.

#37

I consider the point where I started WK the beginning of my proper Japanese studies. Before that I only knew Hiragana, a handful of Kanji and what the の particle does.
I don’t remember exactly when I decided to learn grammar for real, but it must have been around level 15. I started working through Tae Kim’s guide for a while and then used Genki (fairly recently) to solidify the basics. For some grammar points I consulted YouTube or Imabi. All in all I think that I have a strong foundation in grammar now.
For a long time I thought WK would teach me all the vocabulary I needed, but eventually I had to start looking around for other resources. Right now I’m using a 10k Anki deck from the forums.
Im not doing a lot of WK atm, just reviews once a day and fighting leeches.

What I can do: I’m regularly (once a week) speaking Japanese. My partner is very considerate and speaks slowly using simple words, which is helpful. My reading is still better than my listening though. If I don’t understand one word, sometimes it’s enough if my partner just writes it down. My most recent feat was translating a trailer from Japanese to English. I used a dictionary and online transcripts and still made some mistakes, but I think I did well.

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#38

At my level I can groom and I can purr. Next ability to master is gravity defiance!

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