早くも元気に日本語を爆走しているミニジョー。
いつものようにアニメ動画を見ていたら、背後からひとこと。
「あなたがあにめすきですか？」
・・・なんだろうこの謎の敬語と語順。
わたしがアニメみてる時点で答え出てると思うけど？笑
でもミニジョー、きっと本人はバッチリ決まったつもりなんです。
言い切ったあとのドヤ顔がそれを物語ってました。
次はどんな日本語を生み出してくれるのか、楽しみでなりません。
Meet Mini Joe — a fearless Japanese learner who dives into anime like a pro, but sometimes surfaces with sentences that make native speakers giggle.
Today’s “Oops” Moment:
As usual, we were watching anime when suddenly, from behind me, came a question:
“Anata ga anime suki desu ka?”
…I don’t know what to make of that mysterious mix of polite language and strange word order.
What Mini Joe Said:
“Anata ga anime suki desu ka?”
Literal breakdown:
-
Anata ga (You + subject marker)
-
Anime (anime)
-
Suki (like)
-
desuka？ (question)
What’s Wrong?
The biggest problem is “ga”.
In Japanese, “ga” marks the subject of a sentence — the person or thing doing or being something. But in this case, “anata ga” makes it sound like we’re focusing on you as the subject, which is unnecessary and sounds overly pointed, even awkward.
Also, the word order feels clunky. It’s understandable, but it doesn’t sound natural.
How to Say It Naturally:
The natural, everyday way to ask this is:
Anime suki desuka ? アニメ好きですか？
(Do you like anime?)
Or, if you want to be slightly more formal:
Anime wa suki desuka ? アニメは好きですか？
“wa は” here marks the topic (anime), and we’re politely asking if the person likes it. It’s smooth, natural, and not overly stiff.
Why Not Use “Anata”?
In Japanese, people rarely say “Anata” to mean “you” — especially when talking face-to-face. Instead, they’ll just skip it, use the person’s name, or rely on context.
So saying “あなたが” can sound strange, or even confrontational in the wrong context.
Japanese Often Drops the Subject
“Who is doing it?” — It’s understood from context!
Key Point:
In English, we must say the subject:
I eat. / She went to school.
But in Japanese, if the subject is obvious, it’s usually left out.
Example 1:
| English | Japanese | Romaji |
|---|---|---|
| I eat sushi. | (わたしは) すしを たべます。 | (watashi wa) sushi wo tabemasu. |
️ In conversation, just say:
すしを たべます。 (sushi wo tabemasu.)
→ “I eat sushi.” (It’s clear from context.)
Example 2:
| English | Japanese | Romaji |
|---|---|---|
| She went to school. | (かのじょが) がっこうに いきました。 | (kanojo ga) gakkou ni ikimashita. |
️ If you already know you’re talking about her:
がっこうに いきました。 (gakkou ni ikimashita.)
→ “She went to school.”
✅ Why?
Japanese is a context-heavy language.
If it’s already clear who you’re talking about, you don’t need to say it again.
This makes conversation:
-
Natural
-
Short
-
Flexible
But Be Careful!
If the subject isn’t clear, you must say it to avoid confusion.
Practice Tip:
Try removing “I,” “you,” or “he/she” in your Japanese sentences —
only if the meaning is still clear.
