June 2016

Survival Russian

Classroom - Russian, Learn Russian / By Vaikundamoni

Russian an Introduction Russian is the largest native language in Europe, with 144 million native speakers in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Russian is the eighth most spoken language in the world by number of native speakers and the seventh by total number of speakers. The language is one of the six official languages of the United Nations. I. Russian formulas of politeness

Здравствуйте!	Hello! (formal greeting)
До свидания!	Goodbye! (formal and informal)
Привет!	Hi! (informal greeting)
Покa !	Bye-bye! (informal farewell)
Спасибо	Thank you (formal and informal)
Извините	Excuse me/Sorry (formal)
Извини	Excuse me/Sorry (informal)

Polite and familiar forms of address in Russian

The Russian language has respectful and familiar forms of address to other people. The polite form is used in formal situations or if you are you talking to someone you don’t know very well. Russian familiar form is generally used among friends and relatives.

In this course, we mainly use polite phrases for formal situations. However, in some cases, we will introduce familiar expressions which will be marked as “informal” in brackets. Notice also that certain formulas of politeness (e.g. до свидания ‘goodbye’ and спасибо ‘thank you’) can be used both for formal and informal situations.

II. Greetings and farewells

Здравствуйте!	Hello!
Привет!	Hi! (informal)
Доброе утро!	Good morning! (formal and informal)
Добрый день!	Good afternoon! (formal and informal)
Добрый вечер!	Good evening! (formal and informal)
Всего хорошего!	All the best!
Удачи!	Good luck! (formal and informal)
До свидания!	Goodbye! (formal and informal)
Пока!	Bye-bye!

Russian Family Words

Here are the words Russians commonly use to refer to members of their family:

Мать – mother
Отец – father
Мама – mum
Папа – dad
Сестра – sister
Брат – brother
Дочь – daughter
Сын – son
бабушка – grandmother
Дедушка – grandfather
Жена – wife
Муж – husband
Тётя – auntie
Дядя – uncle
Родители – parents
Дети – children
Внучка – granddaughter
Внук – grandson
Семья – family

Just like English, in Russian there are two ways to refer to your mother and father. For example we use the words mum and dad. Most commonly Russians use the words Mama and Papa to refer to their parents.

Basic Russian phrases

Quite often you want to tell people how many brothers and sisters you have. Here are some Russian phrases you could use.

У меня есть сестра – I have a sister.
У меня есть брат – I have a brother.

У тебя есть дети? – Do you have children?.
У меня есть сын и дочь – I have a son and a daughter.
У меня нет детей – I don’t have any children.

Possessive Pronouns: In order to talk about your family you normally need to use possessive pronouns. You should always choose the possessive pronoun that matches the gender of the item it owns.

Мой (m), Моя (f), Моё (n), Мои (pl) – my
Твой (m), Твоя (f), Твоё (n), Твои (pl) – your
Его (m n) (“yevo”), Её (f) – his, her
Наш (m), Наша (f), Наше (n), Наши (pl) – our
Ваш (m), Ваша (f), Ваше (n), Ваши (pl) – your
Их – their

Now you will be able to combine Russian words and phrases that your learnt in earlier lessons to talk about your family. Here are some Russian phrases and sentences you could say with words you already know.

Моя мама любит музыку – My mother loves music
Моя сестра читает газету – My sister is reading a newspaper
Мой брат любит спорт – My brother loves sport
Твой брат любит спорт – Your brother loves sport
Наш брат любит спорт – Our brother loves sport

Меня зовут Анна – my name is Anna
Её зовут Анна – her name is Anna
Его зовут Иван – his name is Ivan.

This is…

The Russian word Это means ‘this is’. Here is how you can use it with some possessive pronouns.

Это мой дом – This is my house
Это моя квартира – This is my apartment
Это твоя квартира? – Is this your apartment?

Common greetings

Let us have a look at some of the most common greetings in Russian.

Доброе утро – good morning
Добрый день – good afternoon
Добрый вечер – good evening
Спокойной ночи – goodnight (when going to bed)

Russian Personal Pronouns

Singular personal pronouns.

	1st person	2nd person	3rd person (masc.)	3rd person (fem.)	3rd person (neut.).
English	I, Me	You	He, Him	She, Her	It
Nominative Case	Я	Ты	Он	Она	Оно
Accusative Case	Меня	Тебя	Его	Её	Его
Genitive Case	Меня	Тебя	Его	Её	Его
Dative Case	Мне	Тебе	Ему	Ей	Ему
Instrumental Case	Мной	Тобой	Им	Ей	Им
Prepositional Case	Мне	Тебе	Нём	Ней	Нём

Plural personal pronouns.

	1st person	2nd person	3rd person
English	We, Us	You	They, Them
Nominative Case	Мы	Вы	Они
Accusative Case	Нас	Вас	Их
Genitive Case	Нас	Вас	Их
Dative Case	Нам	Вам	Им
Instrumental Case	Нами	Вами	Ими
Prepositional Case	Нас	Вас	Них

Note 1: Pronouns that start with vowels may be proceeded by the letter “н” when used with prepositions. Note 2: Его is pronounced “yevo”.

Russian Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns indicate who something belongs to. They may replace a person’s name in the sentence, “Ivan’s Book”. Words like “My, Your, Our, His, Her” in English. Please note that the genders indicated in the following tables refer to the gender of the noun that these pronouns modify. (ie the noun owned). For example in the phrase “My book”, you would use the 1st person (my) and feminise gender (book is feminine) (Моя). Don’t confuse this with the pronouns “his” and “her” (Его and Её).

Please and Thank-You.

The two most important words you will learn in Russian are please and thank-you. You can just add these to any sentence to make it more polite.

Спасибо (“spa-see-ba”) – Thank-You

Пожалуйста (“pa-zhal-sta”) – Please (and You’re Welcome)

The word Пожалуйста is also used to mean “You’re Welcome”, after somebody says thank-you. You should always say this after someone thanks you. Пожалуйста is pronounced a little different than it is written, you can basically forget the “уй”.

Yes and No.

Two other very important Russian words are “Yes” and “No”.

Да (“da”) – Yes

Нет (“nyet”) – No

Saying Hello.

When you are in Russia and you meet somebody, the first thing you will want to do is to say “hello”. There are two forms of this word.

Здравствуйте (“zdra-stvooy-tye”) – Hello (Formal)

Привет (“pree-vyet”) – Hi (Informal)

Здравствуйте may be a little difficult for you to pronounce at first, but it is the most common Russian greeting so you should try to practice it. Привет is also commonly used with friends. However, keep in mind that Привет is informal (much like “hi” in English), and should only be used with friends. If somebody says Привет to you, then it is normally safe to proceed in the friendly tone.

Introducing Yourself.

In order to introduce yourself, you may need the following phrases.

Меня зовут … (“men-ya za-voot”) – My name is …
Как вас зовут? (“kak vas za-voot”) – What is your name?
Очень приятно (“och-en pree-yat-na”) – Pleased to meet you.

Note: The above 3 phrases are grammatically unusual. You should just learn the whole phrase, not the individual words.

How are you?

The most natural way to ask someone how they are in Russian is to ask: “how are things?”

Как дела? – How are things?

Хорошо спасибо – Good/Well thank-you

Плохо – Bad

Saying Good-Bye.

There are also two words for saying good-bye.

До свидания (“da-svee-da-nee-ye”) – Good-bye. (The до is pronounced as if it is part of the next word)

Пока (“pa-ka”) – Bye (Informal, slang)

You should generally use до свидания, which is appropriate in formal or informal situations. You may also hear people say Пока, but we suggest you only use it with friends.

Asking about languages

When you are speaking Russian you should ask questions in a different tone. The tone of your voice should rise if you are asking a question. If you are making a statement your tone will naturally fall.

Вы говорите по-английски? – Do you (formal) speak English?
Вы говорите по-русски? – Do you (formal) speak Russian?
Я говорю по-английски – I speak English
Я говорю по-русски – I speak Russian
Я понимаю – I understand
Я не понимаю – I don’t understand

The ending of the verb говорю (speak) changes depending on who the subject is.

English			Russian
Hello			Привет – Privet
Good evening			Добрый вечер – Dobryj večer
Goodbye			пока – poka
See you later			До скорого – Do skorogo
Yes			Да – Da
No			Нет – Net
Excuse me!			Пожалуйста – Požalujsta
Thanks			Спасибо – Spasibo
Thanks a lot			Большое спасибо ! – Bolšoe spasibo !
Thank you for your help			Спасибо за вашу помощь – Spasibo za vašu pomoŝ
Don’t mention it			Прошу вас – Prošu vas
Ok			Ладно – Ladno
How much is it?			Скажите пожалуйста, сколько это стоит? – Skažite požalujsta, skolko èto stoit?
Sorry!			Извините – Izvinite
I don’t understand			Я не понимаю – Ja ne ponimaju
I get it			Понятно – Ponjatno
I don’t know			Я не знаю – Ja ne znaju
Forbidden			Запрещено – Zapreŝeno
Excuse me, where are the toilets?			Скажите пожалуйста где туалет? – Skažite požalujsta gde tualet?
Happy New Year!			С новым годом! – S novym godom!
Happy birthday!			С днём рождения! – S dnëm roždenija!
Happy holiday!			С праздником! – S prazdnikom!
Congratulations!			Поздравляю! – Pozdravljaju!

Looking for Someone:

English	Russian
Excuse me, is Sarah here?	Вы не скажете, Сара здесь? – Vy ne skažete, Sara zdes?
Yes, she’s here	Да, она здесь – Da, ona zdes
She’s out	Она ушла – Ona ušla
You can call her on her mobile phone	Не смогли бы вы позвонить ей по сотовому? – Ne smogli by vy pozvonit ej po sotovomu?
Do you know where I could find her?	Вы не скажете где я могу её найти? – Vy ne skažete gde ja mogu eë najti?
She is at work	Она на работе – Ona na rabote
She is at home	Она у себя – Ona u sebja
Excuse me, is Julien here?	Вы не скажете Жюльен здесь? – Vy ne skažete Žjulen zdes?
Yes, he’s here	Да, он здесь – Da, on zdes
He’s out	Он ушёл – On ušël
Do you know where I could find him?	Вы не скажете где я могу его найти? – Vy ne skažete gde ja mogu ego najti?
You can call him on his mobile phone	Не могли бы вы позвонить ему по сотовому? – Ne mogli by vy pozvonit emu po sotovomu?
He is at work	Он на работе – On na rabote
He is at home	Он у себя – On u sebja

Restoraunt:

English	Russian
The restaurant	Ресторан – Restoran
Would you like to eat?	Ты хочешь есть? – Ty hočeš est?
Yes, with pleasure	Да, хочу – Da, hoču
To eat	Есть – Est
Where can we eat?	Где мы можем поесть? – Gde my možem poest?
Where can we have lunch?	Где мы можем пообедать? – Gde my možem poobedat?
Dinner	Поужинать – Použinat
Breakfast	Позавтракать – Pozavtrakat
Excuse me!	Пожалуйста – Požalujsta
The menu, please	Меню, пожалуйста – Menju, požalujsta
Here is the menu	Пожалуйста, меню – Požalujsta, menju
What do you prefer to eat? Meat or fish?	Что ты предпочитаешь: мясо или рыбу? – Čto ty predpočitaeš: mjaso ili rybu?
With rice	С рисом – S risom
With pasta	С макаронами – S makaronami
Potatoes	Картошка – Kartoška
Vegetables	Овощи – Ovoŝi
Scrambled eggs – fried eggs – or a boiled egg	Яичница болтунья; глазунья; яйцо в смятку – Jaičnica boltunja; glazunja; jajco v smjatku
Bread	Хлеб – Hleb
Butter	Сливочное масло – Slivočnoe maslo
Salad	Салат – Salat
Dessert	Десерт – Desert
Fruit	Фрукты – Frukty
Can I have a knife, please?	Извините, у вас есть нож? – Izvinite, u vas est nož?
Yes, I’ll bring it to you right away	Да, я вам его сейчас принесу – Da, ja vam ego sejčas prinesu
a knife	Нож – Nož
a fork	Вилка – Vilka
a spoon	Ложка – Ložka
Is it a warm dish?	Это горячее блюдо? – Èto gorjačee bljudo?
Yes, very hot also!	Да, и очень острое – Da, i očen ostroe
Warm	Горячее – Gorjačee
Cold	Холодное – Holodnoe
Hot	Острое – Ostroe
I’ll have fish	Я хочу взять рыбу – Ja hoču vzjat rybu
Me too	Я тоже – Ja tože

Hotel Reservation:

Я хочу забронировать номер. [yah khah-CHOO zah-brah-NEE-rah-vaht’ NOH-myehr]	I want to make a reservation for the room.
Сколько стоит номер? [SKOHL’-kah STOH-eet NOH-myehr]	How much is the room?
Можно посмотреть номер? [MOHZH-nah pahs-mah-TRYEHT’ NOH-myehr]	May I see the room?
Я хочу подняться в номер. [yah kha-CHOO pahd-NYAH-tsah VNOH-myehr]	I want to go up to the room.
Я хочу поменять номер. [yah khah-CHOO pah-mee-NYAHT’ NOH-myehr]	I’d like to change the room.

When making your arrangements, the hotel management may be using the following phrases to greet you and make sure that everything is the way you want it.

Я слушаю вас. [yah SLOO-sha-yoo vahs]	May I help you? (lit: I listen to you.)
Одну минуту. [ahd-NOO mee-NOO-too]	One moment.
Какой номер вы хотите? [kah-KOI NOH-myehr vi khah-TEE-tyeh]	What room would you like?
Вас устраивает такой номер? [vahs oo-STRAH-ee-vah-eht tah-KOI NOH-myehr]	Does this room suit you?

Now that you’ve chosen your room and it’s time to do the paperwork, the hotel management might ask:

Заполните бланк. [zah-POHL-nee-tyeh blahnk]	Fill in the blank.
Повторите, пожалуйста, своё имя. [pahf-tah-REE-tyhe pah-ZHAH-loos-tah svah-YO EE-myah]	Could you repeat your name, please?

Once the reservations are complete, you may expect the following closing phrases from the front desk.

Мы будем рады видеть вас. [mi BOO-dyehm RAH-di VEE-dyeht’ vahs]	We’re looking forward to seeing you.
Всего доброго! [vsee-VOH DOHB-rah-vah]	Good luck!

Asking Whose:

1. – Чей это карандаш? – Это мой карандаш.	1.
– Whose pencil is this? – This is my pencil.
2. – Чья это книга? – Это моя книга.	2.
– Whose book is this? – This is my book.
3. – Чьё это письмо? – Это моё письмо.	3.
– Whose letter is this? – This is my letter.
4. – Чьи это книги? – Это мои книги.	4.
– Whose books are these? – These are my books.

The Possessive Pronouns его, её, их.

1. – Чей это карандаш? – Это его карандаш.
– Whose pencil is this? – This is his pencil.
2. – Чья это книга? – Это его книга.
– Whose book is this? – This is his book.
3. – Чьё это письмо? – Это его письмо.
– Whose letter is this? – This is his letter.
4. – Чьи это книги? – Это его книги.	Note the pronunciation of его* – [йиво]!
– Whose books are these? – These are his books.

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Classroom Hindi-Learn Hindi

Classroom - Hindi, Learn Hindi / By Vaikundamoni

The best training for Spoken Hindi Courses in Coimbatore Hindi (हिन्दी) Hindi is an Indo-Aryan language with about 545 million speakers, 425 million of whom are native speakers. It is one of the official languages of India and is the main language used in the northern states of India. In other parts of India, as well as in Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan, Hindi is understood, Hindi is closely related to Urdu, the main language of Pakistan, which is written with the Arabic script, and linguists consider Standard Hindi and Standard Urdu to be different formal registers both derived from the Khari Boli dialect, which is also known as Hindustani. Apart from the difference in writing systems, the other main difference between Hindi and Urdu is that Hindi contains more vocabulary from Sanskrit, while Urdu contains more vocabulary from Persian. Hindi Alphabet

Some Everyday Expressions in Hindi

English	Hindi
Hello	नमस्ते – *Namastē*
Good evening	नमस्ते – *Namastē*
See you again	फिर मिलेंगे – *Phir milēṅgē*
See you later	फिर मिलेंगे – *Phir milēṅgē*
Yes	हाँ – *Hām̐*
No	नहीं – *Nahīṁ*
Please Listen!	सुनिए – *Suni’ē*
Excuse me	माफ़ कीजिए – *Māfa kīji’ē*
Thanks	शुक्रिया – *Śhukriyā*
Thanks a lot	शुक्रिया – *Śhukriyā*
Thank you for your help	मदद के लिए शुक्रिया – *Madad kē li’ē śhukriyā*
Please	कृपया – *Krḁpayā*
Ok	ठीक है – *Ṭhīk hai*
How much is it?	इसकी कीमत क्या है? – *Iskī kīmat kyā hai?*
Sorry!	माफ़ कीजिए – *Māf kīji’ē*
I don’t understand	मेरी समझ में नहीं आ रहा है – *Mērī samajh mēṁ nahīṁ ā rahā hai*
I understand it	मैं समझ गयी – *Maiṁ samajh gayī*
I don’t know	मुझे नहीं पता – *Mujhē nahīṁ patā*
Forbidden	मना है – *Manā hai*
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	शौचालय कहाँ है – *Śaucālay kahām̐ hai*
Happy New Year!	नए वर्ष की शुभकामनाएँ – *Na’ē varṣ kī śubhkāmnā’ēm̐*
Happy birthday!	सालगिरह मुबारक – *Sālgirah mubārak*
Congratulations!	मुबारक हो – *Mubārak hō*

Hindi Numbers

The days of the week in Hindi

Monday	सोमवार
Tuesday	मंगलवार
Wednesday	बुधवार
Thursday	बृहस्पतिवार
Friday	शुक्रवार
Saturday	शनिवार
Sunday	रविवार
Spring	वसंत
Summer	गर्मी
Autumn	पतझड़
Winter	ठंड

Words and phrases in this unit:

My name is …	मेरा नाम … है
What is your name?	आपका नाम क्या है?
Pleased to meet you	आपसे मिलकर खुशी हुई
How much does this cost?	ये कितने का है?
Can you help me please?	क्या आप मेरी सहायता कर सकते हैं?
I am trying to learn Hindi	मैं हिंदी सीखने की कोशिश कर रहा हूँ
Sorry	क्षमा करें

Hindi phrases. Shopping

I’d like to buy …	मुझे … खरीदना है
I’m just looking	मैं बस देख रहा हूँ
What time does it open?	यह किस समय खुलता है?
What time does it close?	यह कब बंद होता है?
How much is it this?	यह कितने का है?
It’s too expensive	यह बहुत महँगा है
It’s very expensive!	यह बहुत ही महँगा है!
Do you accept credit cards?	क्या आप क्रेडिट कार्ड स्वीकार करते हैं?
That’s all, thanks	बस इतना ही, धन्यवाद
It is faulty	यह खराब है
Will you change it?	क्या आप इसे बदल देंगे?
I would like to try this on (clothing)	मैं इसे पहन कर देखना चाहूँगा
I don’t like it	मुझे यह पसंद नहीं है
Do you have a larger size?	क्या आपके पास बड़ा साइज़ है?
Do you have a smaller size?	क्या आपके पास छोटा साइज़ है?
Do you have another colour?	क्या आपके पास कोई दूसरा रंग है?

Hindi phrases. Small talk. 1

Have you visited my country?	आप कभी मेरे देश गए हैं?
I like your country a lot	मुझे आपका देश बहुत पसंद है
This is my first visit	यहाँ मैं पहली बार आया हूँ
I’m here with a group	मैं यहाँ एक ग्रुप के साथ हूँ
I’m here with friends	मैं यहाँ दोस्तों के साथ आया हूँ
I’m single	मैं अकेला हूँ
I’m married	मैं विवाहित हूँ

Hindi phrases. Small talk. 2

Do you have children?	आपके बच्चे हैं?
I don’t have children	मेरे बच्चे नहीं हैं
I have a son	मेरा एक बेटा है
I have a daughter	मेरी एक बेटी है
I’m retired	मैं सेवानिवृत हो चुका हूँ
I’m a student	मैं एक छात्र हूँ
I’m travelling	मैं यात्रा कर रहा हूँ
I’m here on holiday	मैं यहाँ छुट्टियाँ मनाने आया हूँ
I’m here on business	मैं यहाँ व्यापार के सिलसिले में आया

Hindi numbers. 1 to 10

one	एक
two	दो
three	तीन
four	चार
five	पाँच
six	छह
seven	सात
eight	आठ
nine	नौ
ten	दस

Hindi phrases. Travel

Do you have a map of ..?	क्या आपके पास .. का नक्शा है?
Is this seat taken?	क्या इस सीट पर कोई है?
Do I need to change?	क्या मुझे बदलना होगा?
A return ticket	एक वापसी टिकट
A single ticket	एक टिकट
Two tickets please	कृपया दो टिकट दीजिए
Is there a discount for children?	क्या बच्चों के लिए कोई छूट है?
Is there a discount for pensioners?	क्या पेंशन पाने वालों के लिए कोई छूट है?
A ticket to …	. .. के लिए एक टिकट
I’d like to go to the centre of city	मैं शहर के मुख्य भाग में जाना चाहता हूँ
Do you have a timetable?	क्या आपके पास समयसारिणी है?

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Everyday Finnish

Classroom - Finnish, Learn Finnish / By Vaikundamoni

Everyday Finnish

Everyday Greetings in Finnish

Tervehdykset <> Greetings

Moi!

Hei! Terve! Päivää! Hyvää päivää! Huomenta! Hyvää iltaa! Hyvää yötä! Moi moi!/Hei hei! Näkemiin! Nähdään! Nähdään myöhemmin! Nähdään pian! Nähdään huomenna! Tervetuloa Kiitos Ole hyvä Ei se mitään Mitä kuuluu? Hyvää kiitos Miten menee? Hyvin/hyvin menee Hauska tutustua Hauska tavata Kiitos samoinHyvää syntymäpäivää! Hyvää Joulua! Onnea! Onneksi olkoon! Paljon onnea!

Hi! Hi! Hello! Good day! Good day! Good morning Good evening! Good night! Bye! Goodbye! See you! See you later! See you soon! See you tomorrow!Welcome Thank you You’re welcome/There you go No problem How are you? Fine thanks How’s it going? Fine / going well Nice to meet you Nice to meet you Thanks, the sameHappy Birthday! Happy Christmas Congratulations / good luck Congratulations Lot’s of luck / many congratulations

Adjektiivit <> Adjectives

An adjective is a word that describes a noun. Here is a list of basic useful adjectives:

Iso / Suuri PieniPitkä LyhytLeveä KapeaPaksu OhutHyvä Huono Hyvä Paha Nopea Hidas Lihava Laiha

Big SmallLong / Tall ShortWide NarrowThick ThinGood Bad Good Evil Fast Slow Fat Skinny

Kova PehmeäKuiva MärkäTerävä TylsäHauska TylsäUusi Vanha Nuori Vanha Täysi Tyhjä Painava Kevyt

Hard SoftDry WetSharp BluntFun BoringNew Old Young Old Full Empty Heavy Light

Kallis HalpaRikas KöyhäKaunis RumaVaikea HelppoKorkea Matala Valoisa Pimeä Kuuma Kylmä Lämmin Viileä

Expensive CheapRich PoorBeautiful UglyDifficult EasyHigh Low Light Dark Hot Cold Warm Cool

And here are some useful adjectives for describing what kind of person someone is.

Ystävällinen Rehellinen Mukava Luotettava Kiltti Fiksu Älykäs Antelias Avulias

Friendly Honest Nice Trustworthy / Reliable Kind Smart Intelligent Generous Helpful

Puhelias Sosiaalinen Ujo Rohkea Huolehtiva Ahkera Laiska Täsmällinen Aktiivinen

Talkative Social Shy Brave Caring Hard working Lazy Precise / Punctual Active

Remember that colours are also adjectives. Here are the most basic colours.

Musta Valkoinen Harmaa Ruskea Punainen Sininen

Black White Grey Brown Red Blue

Keltainen Vihreä Oranssi Violetti Liila Vaaleanpunainen

Yellow Green Orange Purple Lilac Pink

To have

1. Having something

Finnish doesn’t have a separate verb for “to have”. Instead it uses a different sentence construction, centered around the verb “olla”, “to be”.

Person + lla	Verb	Object
Minulla	on	yksi lapsi.
Sinulla	on	oma huone.
Hänellä	on	vanha talo.
Meillä	on	auto.
Teillä	on	kaksi lasta.
Heillä	on	kissa.
Jaanalla	on	koira.

It’s interesting to note that the “minulla on” literally means“on me there is”. Furthermore, you can see from the sentences above that the “olla” verb doesn’t get conjugated! It is always written in the third person singular “on”.

2. Not having something

Not having something follows the same pattern:

Person + lla	Verb	Object
Minulla	ei ole	poikaystävää.
Sinulla	ei ole	omaa huonetta.
Hänellä	ei ole	parveketta.
Meillä	ei ole	perhettä.
Teillä	ei ole	autoa.
Heillä	ei ole	kissaa.
Tiinalla	ei ole	koiraa.

The object of a “minulla ei ole” sentence will be written in the partitive.

There are five exceptions to this rule:

Affirmative	Translation	Negative	Translation
Minulla on kiire.	I’m in a hurry	Minulla ei ole kiire.	I’m not in a hurry.
Sinulla on nälkä.	You’re hungry.	Sinulla ei ole nälkä.	You’re not hungry.
Hänellä on jano.	He’s thirsty.	Hänellä ei ole jano.	He’s not thirsty.
Meillä on kuuma.	We’re hot.	Meillä ei ole kuuma.	We’re not hot.
Heillä on kylmä.	They’re cold.	Heillä ei ole kylmä.	They’re not cold.

For the examples above, the object is written in the nominative even in a negative sentence! Notice also that these are phrases that are very different from English: in English you say “”I am hungry, not “I have hunger” for example.

3. Things that have something

Important to notice is also that this rule only counts for living things. If a room has 2 windows, in Finnish you will say “In the room there are two windows.“

Interrogatives

Interrogatives are words formed to make a question. They’re, simply put, questionwords.

Finnish	English
Kuka?	Who?
Kuka soittaa?	Who is calling?
Kuka hän on?	Who is he?
Kuka tulee huomenna?	Who is coming tomorrow?

Mikä?	What?
Mikä tämä on?	What is this?
Mikä on sinun puhelinnumerosi?	What is your telephone number?
Mikä on sinun osoitteesi?	What is your address?

Mitä?	What?
Mitä kieltä sinä puhut?	What language do you speak?
Mitä kuuluu?	How are you?
Mitä kello on?	What time is it?

The difference between mikä and mitä

Missä?	Where? In what?
Missä sinä asut?	Where do you live?
Missä sinä olet työssä?	Where do you work?
Missä hotellissa sinä asut?	In what hotel do you live?

Mistä?	From where? From what?
Mistä sinä tulet?	Where do you come from?
Mistä kaupungista sinä olet kotoisin?	From what city are you originally?
Mistä he puhuvat?	What are they talking about?

Mihin?	To where? Into what?
Mihin sinä menet?	Where are you going?
Mihin laitan ostokset?	Into what do I put the shoppings?
Mihin hiiri juoksi?	Into what did the mouse run?

Miksi?	Why?
Miksi hän ei tule?	Why doesn’t he come?
Miksi hän ei soita?	Why doesn’t he call?
Miksi olet surullinen?	Why are you sad?

Kuinka? Miten?	How?
Kuinka vanha sinä olet?	How old are you?
Kuinka paljon?	How much?
Kuinka usein?	How often?
Kuinka monta?	How many?
Miten hyvin puhut suomea?	How well do you speak Finnish?
Miten sinä menet sinne?	How do you go there?

Milloin?	When?
Milloin sinä tulet?	When do you come?
Milloin hän herää?	When does he wake up?
Milloin Tampere on perustettu?	When was Tampere established?

Millainen?	What kind?
Millainen ilma tänään on?	What kind of weather is it today?
Millainen ihminen sinä olet?	What kind of person are you?
Millainen höyhen on?	What is a feather like?

Minkämaalainen?	What nationality?
Minkämaalainen sinä olet?	What nationality are you?

Affirmative	Translation	Negative	Translation
Asunnossa on ikkuna.	In the apartment there is a window.	Asunnossa ei ole ikkunaa.	In the apartment there isn’t a window.
Pihalla on kori.	In the yard there is a basket.	Pihalla ei ole koria.	In the yard there isn’t a basket.

The difference between mikä and mitä

Both mikä and mitä mean “what?”

1. Mikä

When using mikä, you are referring to a defined, concrete thing, something countable. You use it when you want to know what something is, mostly with the verb olla.

Finnish	English
Mikä tämä on?	What is this?
Tämä on pöytä.	This is a table.

Mikä tuo on?	What is that?
Tuo on tuoli.	That is a chair.

Mikä tämä on?	What is this?
Tämä on jauheliha.	This is minced meat.

2. Mitä

Mitä is the partitive form of “mikä”. When using mitä, you are referring to something abstract, something undefined.

You mostly use mitä with more active verbs than “olla”. If you do use “olla”, it’s usually to find out what something is made of (pork, lamb) rather than what exactly it is (minced meat). When the verb in your sentence is a partitive verb, it makes sense that the question word is partitive as well.

Finnish	English
Mitä tämä on?	What is this?
Tämä on naudanlihaa.	This is beef.

Mitä kuuluu?	How are you?
Hyvää, kiitos.	I’m well, thanks.

Mitä kello on?	What time it is?
Kello on viisi yli viisi.	It’s five past five.

Finnish Lessons for Busy People

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Norwegian Classroom:Survival Norwegian

Classroom - Norwegian, Learn Norwegian / By Vaikundamoni

Survival Norwegian (norsk)

Norwegian is a North Germanic language with around 5 million speakers mainly in Norway. There are also some speakers of Norwegian in Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the UK, Spain, Canada and the US.

Greetings in Norwegian

English	Norwegian
Hello	Hei!
Good evening	God kveld
Goodbye	Ha det
See you later	Vi ses senere
Yes	Ja
No	Nei
Excuse me!	Unnskyld meg!
Thanks	Takk!
Thanks a lot	Tusen takk!
Thank you for your help	Takk for hjelpen
Don’t mention it	Vær så god
Ok	OK
How much is it?	Hva koster det?
Sorry!	Unnskyld!
I don’t understand	Jeg forstår ikke
I get it	Jeg har forstått
I don’t know	Jeg vet ikke
Forbidden	Forbudt
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Unnskyld, hvor er toalettet?
Happy New Year!	Godt nyttår!
Happy birthday!	Gratulerer med dagen!
Happy holiday!	God Jul – God påske
Congratulations!	Gratulerer!

Norwegian Greetings This is a list of greetings in Norwegian. Helpful when trying to check how others are doing or feeling during different times of the day.

Hi! Hei!	Good morning! God morgen!
Good afternoon! God ettermiddag!	Good evening! God kveld!
Welcome! Velkommen!	How are you? (friendly) Hvordan har du det?
How are you? (polite) Hvordan har du det?	What’s up? (colloquial) Hva skjer?
I’m fine, thank you! Jeg har det bra, takk!	And you? (friendly) Og du?
And you? (polite) Hva med deg?	Good Bra
Bad Dårlig	Happy glad / lykkelig
Sad trist	Thank you! Takk!
Thank you very much! Tusen takk!	You’re welcome! Ingen årsak / bare hyggelig
Have a nice day! Ha en fin dag!	Good night! God natt!
See you later! Ser deg senere!	Have a good trip! God tur!
It was nice talking to you! Det var hyggelig å snakke med deg!

Some more Greetings in Norwegian

English	Norwegian
Hello	Hei!
Good evening	God kveld
Goodbye	Ha det
See you later	Vi ses senere
Yes	Ja
No	Nei
Excuse me!	Unnskyld meg!
Thanks	Takk!
Thanks a lot	Tusen takk!
Thank you for your help	Takk for hjelpen
Don’t mention it	Vær så god
Ok	OK
How much is it?	Hva koster det?
Sorry!	Unnskyld!
I don’t understand	Jeg forstår ikke
I get it	Jeg har forstått
I don’t know	Jeg vet ikke
Forbidden	Forbudt
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Unnskyld, hvor er toalettet?
Happy New Year!	Godt nyttår!
Happy birthday!	Gratulerer med dagen!
Happy holiday!	God Jul – God påske
Congratulations!	Gratulerer!

Norwegian Colors

This is a list of colors in Norwegian. This will help you find ways to describe the colors of clothes, objects and much more.

Black svart	Blue blå	Brown brun	Gray grå
Green grønn	Orange oransje	Red rød	White hvit
Yellow gul	Dark color mørk farge	Light color lys farge	Colors farger

These examples show how colors are used in Norwegian. This is a good way to demonstrate how adjectives (colors) are used with nouns and verbs.

The sky is blue himmelen er blå	Your cat is white katten din er hvit
Black is his favorite color svart er favorittfargen hans	Red is not his favorite color rødt er ikke favorittfargen hans
She drives a yellow car hun kjører en gul bil	I have black hair jeg har svart hår

Norwegian Family

This is a list of words about family in Norwegian. You can name people such as your relatives as well as extended family this way.

Daughter datter	Son sønn	Sister søster	Brother bror
Baby baby	Child (m) barn (gutt)	Child (f) barn (jente)	Father far
Mother mor	Husband ektemann	Wife kone	Cousin (m) fetter
Cousin (f) kusine	Aunt tante	Uncle onkel	Grandfather bestefar
Grandmother bestemor	Nephew nevø	Niece niese	Man mann
Woman kvinne	Boy gutt	Girl jente	People folk

These examples show how family words are used in a Norwegian sentence. Very useful when socializing with other people. This can also show you how to ask questions.

What’s your brother called? hva heter broren din?	How old is your sister? hvor gammel er din søster?
Where does your father work? hvor jobber din far?	Your daughter is very cute din datter er veldig søt
I love my husband jeg elsker min mann	This is my wife dette er min kone

Norwegian Body Parts

This is a list of body parts in Norwegian. This can enable you describe parts of the human body with ease. We focused on the main used ones.

Mouth munn	Nose nese	Tongue tunge	Teeth tenner
Ear øre	Eye øye	Face ansikt	Head hode
Neck nakke	Arm arm	Shoulder skulder	Chest brystkasse / bryst
Back rygg	Fingers fingre	Feet føtter	Hair hår
Hand hånd	Heart hjerte	Leg bein / fot	Stomach mage

These samples show how body parts are used in Norwegian. You will learn how to use nouns (parts of the body) with adjectives and prepositions (such as the preposition “with”).

She has beautiful eyes hun har vakre øyne	You hear with your ears du hører med ørene
We see with our eyes vi ser med øynene	I smell with my nose jeg lukter med nesen
He feels with his hand han føler med hånden	She tastes with her tongue hun smaker med tungen

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Swedish is easy

Classroom - Swedish, Learn Swedish / By Vaikundamoni

Swedish is easy to learn Swedish is a North Germanic language with around 9 million speakers mainly in Sweden and Finland, and also in Estonia, Norway, Canada and the USA. It is closely related to Norwegian and Danish and is mutually intelligible with them to a large extent, particularly in its written form. Swedish alphabet (svenska alfabetet)

A a	B b	C c	D d	E e	F f	G g	H h	I i	J j
a	be	se	de	e	eff	ge	hå	i	ji
K k	L l	M m	N n	O o	P p	Q q	R r	S s	T t
kå	ell	em	en	o	pe	ku	ärr	ess	te
U u	V v	W w	X x	Y y	Z z	Å å	Ä ä	Ö ö
u	ve	dubbel-ve	eks	y	säta	å	ä	ö

Note Z only appears in foreign loanwords. Some Swedish Vocabulary

Hej [hej]	Hi
Hej då [hej då:]	Good bye
God morgon [go:d *mårån]	Good morning
Tack [tak]	Thank you/Please
Tack så mycket [tak så: *myket]	Thank you very much
Varsågod [vaså:’go:d]	You’re welcome / Here you are
Ja [ja:]	Yes
Nej [nej]	No
Ursäkta [u:’säkta]	Excuse me / Pardon
Förlåt [fö:r’lå:t]	I’m sorry
Bra [bra:]	Good / Well
Jag [ja:g]	I
Du [du:]	You (sing.)
Han [han]	He
Hon [hon]	She
Den [den]	It (common gender)
Det [de:t]	It (neuter)
Vi [vi:]	We
Ni** [ni:]	You (plur.), formal you sing. and plur.
De [de:] / most common [dåm]	They

**Nowadays, ni isn’t used very much as formal sing. We usually address everybody with du. There is a Swedish pronoun man which is used in common aspects such as Man kan inte göra allt = One can’t do everything. Regular verbs, infinitive and present tense All polysyllabic Swedish verbs end with an a in the infinitive. (Others, those of one syllable end with any vowel.) There are two conjugations of regular verbs – group 1 adding an r to the stem in the present tense and group two adding er to the stem. The Swedish word corresponding to the English to in to go for example is att. Example:

Group 1:	Verb:	Tala (to speak)	Group 2:	Verb:	Köpa (to buy)
	Stem:	Tala-		Stem:	Köp-
	Present tense:	Talar		Present tense:	Köper
Group 1:	Verb:	Älska (to love)	Group 2:	Verb:	Hjälpa (to help)
	Stem:	Älska-		Stem:	Hjälp-
	Present tense:	Älskar		Present tense:	Hjälper

And as I said before, the verbs conjugate in the same way in all persons. Almost all irregular verbs form their present tense as does groupe 2. Example: skriva (to write) skriv- + er = skriver han skriver = He writes

The verb vara (to be) and ha (to have) are irregular and have the forms är and har in the present tense. (Jag är = I am, Jag har = I have)

Monosyllabic verbs are almost always irregular and form the present tense by adding an r.

Example: se (to see) se + r = ser hon ser = she sees Pronunciation

Two-syllabic verbs all have the grave accent in the infinitive. Verbs with three or more syllables often have the accute accent on the second last syllable.

In the present tense, group 1 verbs with two syllables all have the grave accent and all others of two syllabels have the accute accent on the first syllable. Almost all verbs of more than two syllables stress the second-last syllable with an accute accent.

Example: Tala (1) = [*ta:la], Talar = [*ta:lar] Köpa (2) = [*kö:pa], Köper = [‘kö:per] Skriva (i) = [*skri:va], Skriver = [‘skri:ver] Diskutera (1) = [disku:’te:ra], Diskuterar = [disku:’te:rar] (diskutera = discuss) Some Swedish verbs:

Tala (1) [*ta:la]	to speak
Prata (1) [*pra:ta]	to talk
Studera (1) [stu:’de:ra]	to study
Älska (1) [*älska]	to love
Köpa (2) [*kö:pa]	to buy
Hjälpa (2) [*hjälpa]	to help
Skriva (i) [*skri:va]	to write
Äta (i) [ä:ta]	to eat
Vara (i) [*va:ra] Present tense = är [ä:r]	to be
Heta (2) [*he:ta]	like “to have the name”
Ringa (2) [*riga]	to call
Se (i) [se:]	to see

Now that you know some verbs and nouns, you could construct more advanced sentences such as Jag heter Björn Engdahl = My name is Björn Engdahl Han köper en boll = He buys a ball Some Swedish Everyday Expressions

English	Swedish
Hello	Hej
Good evening	Hej
Goodbye	Hejdå
See you later	Vi ses
Yes	Ja
No	Nej
Excuse me!	Skulle du kunna
Thanks	Tack!
Thanks a lot	Tack så mycket!
Thank you for your help	Tack för hjälpen
Don’t mention it	Varsågod
Ok	Okej
How much is it?	Hur mycket kostar det?
Sorry!	Förlåt!
I don’t understand	Jag förstår inte
I get it	Jag förstår
I don’t know	Jag vet inte
Forbidden	Förbjudet
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Ursäkta mig, var finns det en toalett?
Happy New Year!	Gott Nytt År!
Happy birthday!	Grattis på födelsedagen!
Happy holiday!	Trevliga helgdagar
Congratulations!	Gratulerar!

Some Swedish nouns

ett barn [et ba:rn]	child
en flicka [en *flika]	girl
en pojke [*pojke]	boy
ett fönster [‘fönster]	window
ett bord [bo:d]	table
en man [man]	man
en kvinna [*kvina]	woman
en bok [bo:k]	book
en telefon [tele’få:n]	telephone
en stol [sto:l]	chair
en dörr [dör]	door
ett vykort [*vy:kot]	postcard
en penna [*pena]	pen(cil)
ett rum [rum]	room
ett badrum [*ba:drum]	bathroom
ett hotell [ho’tel]	hotel
ett frimärke [*fri:märke]	stamp

In Swedish, a verb employs the same form in all persons, whereas English for example uses different forms for different persons. Thus, the verb varaconjugates as follows in the present tense:

Jag	är (compared to English>	I	am
Du	är	You	are
Han	är	He	is
Hon	är	She	is
Den	är	It	is
Det	är	It	is
Vi	är	We	are
Ni	är	You	are
De	är	They	are

As you can see, this is very easy. Therefore you only have to learn one form for every verb in each tense. Most Swedish verbs are regular, but the most frequently used are irregular. Regular verbs, infinitive and present tense All polysyllabic Swedish verbs end with an a in the infinitive. (Others, those of one syllable end with any vowel.) There are two conjugations of regular verbs – group 1 adding an r to the stem in the present tense and group two adding er to the stem. The Swedish word corresponding to the English to in to go for example is att. Example:

Group 1:	Verb:	Tala (to speak)	Group 2:	Verb:	Köpa (to buy)
	Stem:	Tala-		Stem:	Köp-
	Present tense:	Talar		Present tense:	Köper
Group 1:	Verb:	Älska (to love)	Group 2:	Verb:	Hjälpa (to help)
	Stem:	Älska-		Stem:	Hjälp-
	Present tense:	Älskar		Present tense:	Hjälper

The verb vara (to be) and ha (to have) are irregular and have the forms är and har in the present tense. (Jag är = I am, Jag har = I have)

Monosyllabic verbs are almost always irregular and form the present tense by adding an r.

Example: se (to see) se + r = ser hon ser = she sees Some verbs:

Tala (1) [*ta:la]	to speak
Prata (1) [*pra:ta]	to talk
Studera (1) [stu:’de:ra]	to study
Älska (1) [*älska]	to love
Köpa (2) [*kö:pa]	to buy
Hjälpa (2) [*hjälpa]	to help
Skriva (i) [*skri:va]	to write
Äta (i) [ä:ta]	to eat
Vara (i) [*va:ra] Present tense = är [ä:r]	to be
Heta (2) [*he:ta]	like “to have the name”
Ringa (2) [*riga]	to call
Se (i) [se:]	to see

Now that you know some verbs and nouns, you could construct more advanced sentences such as Jag heter Björn Engdahl = My name is Björn Engdahl Han köper en boll = He buys a ball ]]>

Portuguese Lessons

Classroom - Portuguese, Learn Portuguese / By Vaikundamoni

Portuguese Lessons

Portuguese (Português)

Portuguese is a Romance language spoken by about 220 million people mainly in Portugal and Brazil (Brasil), and also in Angola, Mozambique (Moçambique), Cape Verde (Cabo Verde), Guinea-Bissau (Guiné-Bissau), São Tomé e Principe, East Timor (Timor-Leste), Equatorial Guinea and Macau. There are also communities of Portuguese speakers in Goa, Daman and Diu in India, and in Malacca in Malaysia. Portuguese Subject Pronoun

singular (one person)		plural (more than one person)
eu	I	nós	we
tu	you (informal – not used in most of Brazil)	vós	you (informal – also not used in Brazil)
ele ela você o senhor a senhora	he / it (masculine) she / it (feminine) you (informal) you (formal masculine) you (formal feminine)	eles elas vocês os senhores as senhoras	they (masculine) they (feminine) you (informal) you (formal masculine) you (formal feminine)

The word tu is only used in the region of southern Brazil, where they normally don’t use você, and vós is not used at all. We use the word você when talking to family or friends. If you’re talking to one person that you don’t know, you must use o senhor or a senhora (Mr or Mrs.) with the same verb conjugations as ele / ela / você. For the plural, use os senhores or as senhoras with the same verb conjugations as eles / elas /vocês. In Portugal, o senhor and a senhora are very formal ways to say you. Você is considered semiformal and tu is considered informal. Note that ele and ela are also used to mean it, depending on if the noun is masculine or feminine.

Everyday Expressions

English	Portuguese
Hello	Bom dia
Good evening	Boa tarde
Goodbye	Adeus
See you later	Até Logo
Yes	Sim
No	Não
Excuse me!	Por favor!
Excuse me	Se faz favor
Thanks	Obrigada
Thanks a lot	Muito obrigado!
Thank you for your help	Obrigada pela sua ajuda
Don’t mention it	De nada
Ok	De acordo !
How much is it?	Quanto custa por favor?
Sorry!	Desculpe !
I don’t understand	Não compreendo
I get it	Compreendi
I don’t know	Não sei
Forbidden	Proibido
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Onde é a casa de banho por favor?
Happy New Year!	Feliz ano novo!
Happy birthday!	Feliz aniversario!
Happy holiday!	Boas festas!
Congratulations!	Parabéns

Portuguese alphabet (alfabeto português)

A a	B b	C c	D d	E e	F f	G g	H h	I i
á	bê	cê	dê	é	efe	gê	agá	i
J j	K k	L l	M m	N n	O o	P p	Q q	R r
jota	cá/capa	ele	eme	ene	ó	pê	quê	erre
S s	T t	U u	V v	W w	X x	Y y	Z z
esse	tê	u	vê	dábliu, dáblio, duplo-vê	xis	ípsilon, ipsilão, i grego	zê

The letters K, W and Y are used only in foreign loanwords.

Portuguese Conversation

English	Portuguese
Hello. How are you?	Bom dia. Tudo bem?
Hello. I’m fine, thank you	Bom dia Vou bem, obrigado
Do you speak Portuguese?	Tu falas português?
No, I don’t speak Portuguese	Não, não falo português
Only a little bit	Só um pouco
Where do you come from?	De onde és ?
What is your nationality?	És de que nacionalidade?
I am English	Eu sou inglesa
And you, do you live here?	E tu, vives aqui?
Yes, I live here	Sim, moro aqui
My name is Sarah, what’s your name?	O meu nome é Sarah. E o teu?
Julian	Juliano
What are you doing here?	O que é que fazes por aqui?
I am on holiday	Estou de férias
We are on holiday	Nós estamos de férias
I am on a business trip	Ando em viagem de negócios
I work here	Trabalho aqui
We work here	Nós trabalhamos aqui
Where are the good places to go out and eat?	Quais são os bons lugares para comer?
Is there a museum in the neighbourhood?	Hà algum museu aqui perto?
Where could I get an internet connection?	Onde tenho acesso à internet?

Portuguese Phrases for Shopping

I’m just looking	Estou à procura
I’m just looking (informal)	Procuro
I’m looking for a …	Estou à procura de …
I’m looking for a (informal) …	Procuro …
How much does this cost?	Quanto é que isto custa?
How much does this cost (informal)?	Quanto custa?
It’s too expensive	É demasiado caro
It’s too expensive (informal)	É muito caro
Do you accept credit cards?	Aceita cartões de crédito?
That’s all, thanks	É tudo, obrigado
I would like to try this on	Gostaria de provar este
Is there a larger size?	Existe um tamanho maior?
Is there a larger size (informal)?	Tem maior?
Is there a smaller size?	Existe um tamanho mais pequeno?
Is there a smaller size (informal)?	Tem mais pequeno?
Is there another colour?	Existe noutra cor?
Is there another colour (informal)?	Tem outra cor?
I don’t like it	Não gosto
I’ll take it	Vou levar

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Survival Japanese

Classroom - Japanese, Learn Japanese / By Vaikundamoni

Japanese Language Basics

Shall we learn Japanese?

Let’s start to learn Japanese. You can make various sentences just using basic vocabulary. We introduced basic sentence structures of Japanese language as your first step. You can also learn basic Japanese grammar through making simple sentences.

Kore

wa

keitai

desu

Kore wa keitai desu.

This is a mobile phone.

Watashi

wa

Susan

desu

Watashi wa Susan desu.

I’m Susan.

Greg-san

wa

Kanada-jin

desu

Greg-san wa Kanada-jin desu.

Mr Greg is a Canadian.

Grammar Notes

This structure is called Wa-Desu structure. This simply means [Noun A] is [Noun B].

Kore means “this”.

Keitai means “mobile phone”.

Watashi means “I”.

-san is a honorific title like “Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms.” This can be added to either a family name or a first name, of a male or a female. When we talk with another person face to face, we do not use Anata “You”. We omit the subject “You” or we call his/her name with -san.

Kanada means “Canada”. One’s nationality such as a Japanese or an American is made by adding -jin to a country name. Kanada-jin means “a Canadian person”.

Wa is a particle and follows the subject of a sentence. The particle wa has various rolls in a sentence. You should learn it step by step.

Put simply, Desu corresponds to the English, “is/are/am.”

Although some words have plural form, Japanese nouns generally do not have plural form. Kore wa keitai desu can be “This is a mobile phone” or “These are mobile phones”.

Practice 1

Let’s practice the following words.

	keitai	mobile phone
	jisho	dictionary
	chizu	map
	koohii	(a cup of) coffee
	gakusei	(school) student

Practice 2

Nihon	Japan	Nihon-jin	a Japanese
Amerika	America, USA	Amerika-jin	an American
Kanada	Canada	Kanada-jin	a Canadian
Furansu	France	Furansu-jin	a French

Practice 3

Let’s make sentences and speak it.

	Kore wa jisho desu.
	This is a dictionary.
	Kore wa chizu desu.
	This is a map.

Everyday Greetings

Learn Japanese greeting phrases which are used in everyday life.

In Japanese language, there are various greeting phrases according to the situation or season.

But, the daily greetings are simple. Here are common phrases in everyday situation. Let’s learn them and use them today.

ohayoo gozaimasu–Good morning

Hajimemashite--How do you do, Pleased to see you; To the person whom you meet for the first time

konnichiwa–Good afternoon

konbanwa–Good evening

oyasumi nasai–Good night

ja mata–See you, Bye

mata ashita–See you tomorrow

sayonara–Good-by

hisashiburi–Long time, no see

o-genki desu ka?–Are you fine?; It is often translated into “how are you”, but it’s not used to the people whom you meet every day like English “how are you?”, but to the people whom you meet after a long time. Ohayoo, konnichiwa and atsui desu ne etc. are used to the people whom you meet every day.

atsui desu ne–It’s hot, isn’t it?.

These expressions on weather are used as daily greetings, like English “How are you?”.

samui desu ne–It’s cold, isn’t it?

ii tenki desu ne–It is a fine day, isn’t it?

Gomennasai–I’m sorry; Casual expression of apology

Sumimasen–Excuse me, Sorry; In daily conversation, suimasen is often used and it is also used as a light apology. The polite form is Sumimasen.

itte kimasu–Said when you go out. (lit. Go and come back)

itterasshai–Reply to itte kimasu

tadaima–When you return to your home or office.

Okaerinasai–Reply to tadaima

o-saki ni shitsurei shimasu–When you leave office earlier than others.

otsukaresama deshita–1) Reply to o-saki ni shitsurei shimasu

2) When you finished something which you did with others such as a meeting.

o-saki ni doozo–Go ahead

ki o tsukete--lit. “be careful”, To the person who will go to travel like “Have a nice trip” in English

omedetoo gozaimasu—Congratulations

ki ni shinaide–Don’t mention it

doozo o-hairi kudasai--Please come in

doozo o-kake kudasai–Please have a seat

doozo o-suwari kudasai--Please sit down, Please have a seat

Ganbatte!--Good Luck!, do your best, try hard

Foods and Drinks.

Learn Japanese words related to foods and drinks. Here, we have introduced many vocabulary such as lunch, dinner, beef, pepper, etc. The adjectives such as tasty, sweet, spicy, are also presented.

Essentials

English	Japanese
Hello	おはよう – ohayō
Good evening	こんばんは – konbanwa
Goodbye	またね – mata ne
See you later	また後でね – mata ato de ne
Yes	うん – un
No	ううん – uun
Excuse me!	すみません – sumimasen
Thanks	ありがとう – arigatō
Thanks a lot	どうもありがとう！ – dōmo arigatō!
Thank you for your help	助かった、ありがとう – tasukatta, arigatō
Don’t mention it	どういたしまして – dōitashimashite
Ok	オーケー – ōkē
How much is it?	すみません、値段は　いくらですか？ – sumimasen, nedan wa ikura desu ka ?
Sorry!	ごめん！ – gomen !
I don’t understand	わからない – wakaranai
I get it	わかった – wakatta
I don’t know	知らない – shiranai
Forbidden	禁止 – kinshi
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	すみません、トイレはどこですか？ – sumimasen, toire wa doko desu ka ?
Happy New Year!	明けまして　おめでとう！ – akemashite omedetō !
Happy birthday!	お誕生日　おめでとう！ – otanjōbi omedetō !
Happy holiday!	よいお年を！ – yoi otoshi wo !
Congratulations!	おめでとう！ – omedetō !

Family

English	Japanese
Do you have family here?	家族もここに住んでいるの？ – kazoku mo koko ni sunde iru no ?
My father	僕のお父さん – boku no otōsan
My mother	僕のお母さん – boku no okāsan
My son	僕の息子 – boku no musuko
My daughter	僕の娘 – boku no musume
A brother	弟 – otōto
a sister	妹 – imōto
a friend	女友達 – on’na tomodachi
My boyfriend	私の彼氏 – watashi no kareshi
My girlfriend	僕の彼女 – boku no kanojo
My husband	私の夫 – watashi no otto
My wife	僕の妻 – boku no tsuma

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Italian for Survival

Learn Italian / By Vaikundamoni

Survival Italian (Italiano) Italian is considered one of the easiest languages to learn. Many students have been able to master it in a short period of time! Italian is often described both as the language of art and music and as the language best suited for singing. Italian is easy to learn. Italian Greetings Knowing Italian greetings can make a good impression, whether you’re speaking Italian for business or while traveling. Offer polite greetings to friends and associates or as a way to break the ice when meeting new people. These are some common greetings in Italian:

Buongiorno! (bwohn-johr-noh) (Hello! and Good morning!)
Arrivederci! (ahr-ree-veh-dehr-chee) (Goodbye!) (Formal)
Ciao! (chou) (Hello! and Good-bye!) (Informal)
Salve! (sahl-veh) (Hello! and Good-bye!) (Neutral)
Buonasera! (bwoh-nah-seh-rah) (Good afternoon! Good evening!) (Formal)
Buonanotte! (bwoh-nah-noht-teh) (Good night!) (Informal)
Come si chiama? (koh-meh see kyah-mah) (What is your name?) (Formal)
Come ti chiami? (koh-meh tee kyah-mee) (What is your name?) (Informal)
Mi chiamo…(mee kyah-moh) (My name is. . .)
Come sta? (koh-meh stah) (How are you?) (Formal)
Come stai? (koh-meh stahy) (How are you?) (Informal)
Bene, grazie. (beh-neh grah-tsee-eh) (Fine, thank you.)

Italian Courtesy Phrases Courtesy is important no matter what country you’re in. Use these courtesy phrases when speaking in Italian so you can be considerate and polite; they’ll also help you communicate easily:

Per favore(pehr fah-voh-reh) (Please.)
Per piacere (pehr pyah-cheh-reh) (Please.)
Grazie(grah-tsee-eh) (Thank you.)
Prego!(preh-goh) (You’re welcome!; By all means, after you.)
Non c’è di che.(nohn cheh dee keh) (You’re welcome.)
Mi dispiace.(mee dees-pyah-cheh) (I’m sorry.)
Mi scusi.(mee skooh-zee) (Excuse me, formal.)
Scusi, un informazione, per favore.(skooh-zee oohn-een-fohr-mats-yoh-neh pehr fah-voh-reh) (Excuse me, I need some information, please.)
(skooh-zah) (Excuse me, I’m sorry, informal)
Permesso?(pehr-mehs-soh) (Excuse me — when walking through a crowded train compartment; also, “May I come in?” when crossing the threshold of someone’s house.)
Sì.(see) (Yes.)
(noh) (No.)

Basic Question Words in Italian To communicate in Italian and to travel with ease, there are practical questions in Italian (or any language for that matter) that you’ll use daily and have to know:

Parla inglese?(pahr-lah een-gleh-zeh) (Do you speak English?)
Chi?(kee) (Who?)
Cosa?(koh-sah) (What?)
Quando?(kwahn-doh) (When?)
Dove?(doh-veh) (Where?)
Perché?(pehr-keh) (Why?)
Come?(koh-meh) (How?)
Quanto?(kwanh-toh) (How much?)

Try these helpful phrases:

Dov’è la stazione?(doh-veh lah stah-tsyoh-neh) (Where is the station?)
Scusi, dov’è il bagno?(skooh-zee doh-veh eel bahn-yoh) (Where is the bathroom?)
Quanto dista il Colosseo?(kwahn-toh dees-tah eel koh-lohs-seh-oh) (How far is the Coloseum?)
Dove si mangia il miglior gelato?(doh-veh see mahn-jah eel meel-yohrgeh-lah-toh) (Where can you get the best ice cream?)

Come si arriva in Piazza della Repubblica? (koh-meh see ahr-ree-vah een pyahts-sah dehl-lah reh-pooh-blee-kah) (How do you get to Piazza della Repubblica?) Days of the Week in Italian In Italian, the days of the week aren’t capitalized. Eyeball this table of the days of the week in Italian (along with pronunciations and abbreviations) to ensure you get your days straight while in Italy.

Italian/Abbreviation	Pronunciation	Translation
domenica/do.	doh-meh-nee-kah	Sunday
lunedì/lun.	looh-neh-dee	Monday
martedì/mar.	mahr-teh-dee	Tuesday
mercoledì/mer.	mehr-koh-leh-dee	Wednesday
giovedì/gio.	joh-veh-dee	Thursday
venerdì/ven.	veh-nehr-dee	Friday
sabato/sab.	sah-bah-toh	Saturday

You might also need to know how to say the following:

Oggi (ohj-jee)(today)
Domani (doh-mah-nee)(tomorrow)
Dopodomani (doh-poh-doh-mah-nee) (day after tomorrow)
Ieri (yeh-ree) (yesterday)

Some Essential Phrases in Italian

English	Italian
Hello	Buongiorno
Good evening	Buonasera
Goodbye	Arriverderci
See you later	A dopo
Yes	Sì
No	No
Excuse me!	Per favore!
Thanks	Grazie
Thanks a lot	Grazie mille
Thank you for your help	Grazie per il suo aiuto
Don’t mention it	Prego
Ok	Va bene
How much is it?	Quanto costa, per favore?
Sorry!	Mi scusi !
I don’t understand	Non ho capito
I get it	Ho capito
I don’t know	Non so
Forbidden	Vietato
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Dov’è il bagno per favore ?
Happy New Year!	Buon anno!
Happy birthday!	Buon compleanno!
Happy holiday!	Buone feste!
Congratulations!	Congratulazioni!

Italian/Vocabulary/Household

la camera = the room
la camera da letto = the bedroom
il caminetto = the fireplace
il camino = the chimney
la cantina = the cellar
la casa = the house
la credenza = the cupboard/closet
la cucina = the kitchen
il divano = the sofa
la entrata = the hall
la finestra = the window
il forno = the oven
il frigorifero = the fridge
il fuoco = the fire
il gabinetto = the lavatory
il giardino = the garden
il guardaroba = the wardrobe
l’isolato = the block of flats
la lavabiancheria = the washing machine
il lavabo = the washbasin
il lavello = the sink
il letto = the bed
la parete = the wall
la pattumiera = the dustbin
il pavimento = the floor
il pendolo = the clock
la poltrona = the armchair
la porta = the door
il portone = the front door
il riscaldamento centrale = the central heating
il rubinetto = the tap
la sala da bagno = the bathroom
la sala da pranzo = the dining room
la scala = the stairs
la sedia = the chair
il soffitto = the ceiling
lo specchio = the mirror
il tappeto = the carpet/rug
la tavola = the table
il televisore = the television set
la tenda = the curtain
il tetto = the roof

Italian/Vocabulary/Family

Mia Sorella My sister

Mio Fratello My brother

Mia Madre My mother

Mio Padre My father

Mia Zia My aunt

Mio Zio My uncle

Miei Genitori My parents

Mio Nonno My grandfather

Mia Nonna My grandmother

Miei Parenti My relatives

Mio Cugino My cousin (male)

Mia Cugina My cousin (female)

Mio Nipote My grandson/nephew

Mia Nipote My granddaughter/niece

Mio Patrigno My step father

Mia Matrigna My step mother

Mio Suocero My father-in-law

Mia Suocera My mother-in-law

Mio Genero My son-in-law

Mia Nuora My daughter-in-law

Mio Cognato My brother-in-law

Mia Cognata My sister-in-law

Italian/Vocabulary/Household Chores

I lavori di casa

To sweep the floor = Spazzare il pavimento
The broom = la scopa
The dustpan = la paletta per la spazzatura
To mop the floor = Passare lo straccio sul pavimento
The mop = lo spazzolone per il pavimento
To dust = spolverare
Change the lightbulb = Cambiare/sostituire la lampadina

Italian/Vocabulary/Time

Che ore sono? = What time is it?
Sono le dodici in punto. = It’s twelve o’clock.
E’ l’una in punto. = It’s one o’clock.
Sono le due e cinque. = It’s five past two.
Sono le sette e mezzo. = It’s half past seven.
Sono le sette e trentacinque = It’s twenty five to eight.
Sono le nove meno venti. = It is twenty to nine.
Sono le dieci meno un quarto. = It’s quarter to ten.
mezzogiorno = midday
mezzanotte = midnight
la mattina = the morning
il pomeriggio = the afternoon
la notte = the night
oggi = today
ieri = yesterday
l’altro ieri = the day before yesterday
la notte scorsa = last night
domani = tomorrow
dopodomani = the day after tomorrow

Italian/Vocabulary/Professions

l’agricoltore/l’agricoltrice (more common “coltivatrice diretta”) = the farmer
l’architetto (m/f)/l’architetta (less common) = the architect
l’atleta (m/f) = the athlete
l’avvocato (m/f)/l’avvocatessa = the lawyer
il/la barista = the barman/barmaid
il bibliotecario/ la bibliotecaria = the librarian
il cacciatore/la cacciatrice = the hunter
il cameriere/la cameriera = the waiter/waitress
il/la camionista = the lorry driver
il chirurgo/la chirurga = the surgeon
il commesso/la commessa = the shop assistant
il/la conducente di autobus = the bus driver
il dottore/la dottoressa = the doctor
l’elettricista (m/f) = the electrician
il funzionario/la funzionaria = the official
il giocatore di calico/ la giocatrice di calcio = the footballer
il/la giornalista = the journalist
il/la guardia parco = the park warden
l’idraulico/l’idraulica = the plumber
l’impiegato/l’impiegata = the employee, office worker
l’infermiere/l’infermiera = the nurse
l’ingegnere (m/f) = the engineer
l’insegnante (m/f) = the teacher
il maestro/la maestra = the primary school teacher
il marinaio/la marinaia = the sailor
il meccanico/la meccanica = the mechanic
il muratore/la muratrice = the building worker
il/la musicista = the musician
il/la negoziante = the shopkeeper
l’operaio/l’operaia = the worker
l’operaio edile = the building worker
il parrucchiere/la parrucchiera = the hairdresser
il pescatore/la pescatrice = the fisherman/fisherwoman
il/la pilota = the pilot
il politico = the politician
il poliziotto/la poliziotta = the policeman/policewoman
il pompiere/la pompiera = the fireman/firewoman
il postino/la postina = the postman/postwoman
il prete = the priest
il soldato/la soldatessa = the soldier
lo sportivo/la sportiva = the sportsman/sportswoman
il tassista/ la tassista = the taxi driver
l’ uomo d’affari/la donna d’affari = the businessman/businesswoman

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Starting Danish

Classroom - Danish, Learn Danish / By Vaikundamoni

EVERYDAY DANISH Danish is one of the hardest languages to learn! Is it a fair statement? Is it true? Learning any new language can be difficult or easy? It depends upon how we learn and what kind of methods we apply to learn it ? Some Interesting Facts The Danish language is a northern Germanic language. The Danish alphabet has 29 letters and uses the basic 26-letter Latin alphabet plus the three additional letters Æ, Ø, Å. Danish is also known as a Scandinavian language. Danish has around 5.5 million speakers mainly in Denmark. Danish is also used by around 50,000 Danes in the northern part of Germany, where it enjoys the status of a minority language. Starting Danish lessons Let’s start with SOME EVERYDAY EXPRESSIONS IN DANISH

English	Danish
Hello	Goddag / Hej
Good evening	Godaften
Goodbye	Hej hej
See you later	Vi ses senere
Yes	Jo
No	Nej
Excuse me!	Undskyld ?
Thanks	Tak
Thanks a lot	Mange tak
Thank you for your help	Tak for hjœlpen
Don’t mention it	Det var så lidt
Ok	Okay, det er I orden
How much is it?	Hvor meget koster det ?
Sorry!	Undskyld
I don’t understand	Jeg forstår det ikke
I get it	Jeg har forstået
I don’t know	Det ved jeg ikke
Forbidden	Forbudt
Excuse me, where are the toilets?	Undskyld, hvor finder jeg toiletterne ?
Happy New Year!	Godt nytår!
Happy birthday!	Tillykke med fødselsdagen !
Happy holiday!	God højtid
Congratulations!	Tillykke!

Danish alphabet (dansk alfabet)

A a	B b	C c	D d	E e	F f	G g	H h	I i	J j
a	be	se	de	e	æf	ge	hå	i	jåd
K k	L l	M m	N n	O o	P p	Q q	R r	S s	T t
kå	æl	æm	æn	o	pe	ku	ær	æs	te
U u	V v	W w	X x	Y y	Z z	Æ æ	Ø ø	Å å
u	ve	dobbelt- ve	æks	y	sæt	æ	ø	å

The letters C, Q, W, X and Z are only used in foreign loanwords

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Tips for learning a foreign language quickly

General / By Vaikundamoni

Hi, My name is Vaikundamoni and I feel proud to be part of the Lingua World forum . This forum is to be devoted to discussing the ways and means of expanding our horizon of knowledge of languages. As a first step I want to talk about some of the ways of learning a foreiguage language. I will be very happy to receive the feedback and suggestions from interested people to make the effort as meaningful as possible. Tips for learning a foreign language quickly

Take risks and speak the language whenever you can.
Read children’s books and comic books in the foreign language.
Consume foreign language media.
Immerse yourself in the local culture and language.
Make use of foreign language podcasts and apps.
Don’t worry about making mistakes.

Method 1 Immersing Yourself in the Language

Connect with a native speaker.
Study the language every day.
Carry a dictionary everywhere.
Try to Watch, listen, read and write in your chosen language.
Visit a country where your language of study is spoken.

Method 2 Study the language every day.

Commit yourself to studying the language for a couple of hours per day.
Language learning is based on repetition — hammering something into your brain over and over again until you remember it.
If you have a long break between study sessions, you are prone to forget what you learned.
Cut down on this wasted time by studying every day.
There are no miraculous short cuts to learning any language.

Method 3 Watch, listens, read and write in your chosen language.

Immerse yourself in the language of your choice.
Watch television shows or movies in the language you are trying to learn
Try to read and write in your new language.
Download podcasts or tune in to radio stations in your new language.
Change your language settings on all your electronic devices to get better exposure.
Listen to songs in that language.
Try to learn the lyrics, and then check what they mean.

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II. Greetings and farewells

Russian Family Words

Basic Russian phrases

This is…

Common greetings

Singular personal pronouns.

Russian Possessive Pronouns

Please and Thank-You.

Yes and No.

Saying Hello.

Introducing Yourself.

How are you?

Saying Good-Bye.

Asking about languages

Some Everyday Expressions in Hindi

The days of the week in Hindi

Hindi phrases. Shopping

Hindi phrases. Small talk. 1

Hindi phrases. Small talk. 2

Hindi numbers. 1 to 10

Hindi phrases. Travel

Everyday Finnish

Everyday Greetings in Finnish

Tervehdykset <> Greetings

Adjektiivit <> Adjectives

To have

1. Having something

2. Not having something

3. Things that have something

Interrogatives

The difference between mikä and mitä

1. Mikä

2. Mitä

Survival Norwegian (norsk)

Norwegian is a North Germanic language with around 5 million speakers mainly in Norway. There are also some speakers of Norwegian in Denmark, Sweden, Germany, the UK, Spain, Canada and the US.

Norwegian Colors

Norwegian Family

Norwegian Body Parts

Portuguese Lessons

Portuguese (Português)

Everyday Expressions

Portuguese alphabet (alfabeto português)

Portuguese Conversation

Portuguese Phrases for Shopping

Japanese Language Basics

Shall we learn Japanese?

Kore

wa

keitai

desu

Kore wa keitai desu.

This is a mobile phone.

Watashi

wa

Susan

desu

Watashi wa Susan desu.

I’m Susan.

Greg-san

wa

Kanada-jin

desu

Greg-san wa Kanada-jin desu.

Mr Greg is a Canadian.

Grammar Notes

This structure is called Wa-Desu structure. This simply means [Noun A] is [Noun B].

Kore means “this”.

Keitai means “mobile phone”.

Watashi means “I”.

-san is a honorific title like “Mr., Mrs., Miss or Ms.” This can be added to either a family name or a first name, of a male or a female. When we talk with another person face to face, we do not use Anata “You”. We omit the subject “You” or we call his/her name with -san.

Kanada means “Canada”. One’s nationality such as a Japanese or an American is made by adding -jin to a country name. Kanada-jin means “a Canadian person”.

Wa is a particle and follows the subject of a sentence. The particle wa has various rolls in a sentence. You should learn it step by step.

Put simply, Desu corresponds to the English, “is/are/am.”

Although some words have plural form, Japanese nouns generally do not have plural form. Kore wa keitai desu can be “This is a mobile phone” or “These are mobile phones”.

Practice 1

Let’s practice the following words.

keitai

mobile phone

jisho