WACE Japanese: Second Language ATAR cheat sheet

Register rule: plain form (だ/する/だった) for friends and family; です・ます form for teachers, strangers and formal settings; 敬語 (尊敬語/謙譲語) when addressing customers or superiors.

Question-forming rule: add か to the polite clause (行きますか); in casual speech drop か and use rising intonation (行く？); use どうして/なぜ for reasons and どのくらい for degree or duration.

Opinion frame: 〜と思います (I think), 〜と感じます (I feel), 〜かもしれません (might be), 〜のではないでしょうか (isn't it the case that) - the final verb determines politeness, so keep it in です・ます in formal talk.

Agreement/disagreement set: そうですね (agreement), たしかに〜ですが (concede then counter), 私はそうは思いません (disagree), 〜という意見もありますね (acknowledge another view).

Experience pattern: past experience = plain past + ことがあります (行ったことがあります); never use です after こと; negative experience = 〜たことがありません.

Intent/plan pattern: 〜つもりです (intention), 〜予定です (schedule), 〜ようと思っています (ongoing intention); volitional 〜ましょう/〜ましょうか for suggestions and offers.

Comparison/contrast in exchange: AよりBのほうが〜 (B is more ~ than A), AはBほど〜くない (A is not as ~ as B), AとBとどちらが〜ですか for preference questions.

Turn-taking markers: あのう (hesitation), そういえば (by the way), つまり (in other words), それはそうと (changing topic), なるほど (I see) - signals comprehension without ending the exchange.

Paragraph architecture in Japanese essays: 序論 (problem statement) → 本論 (reasons plus examples) → 結論 (restated position); each paragraph opens with a topic sentence ending in です/ます in formal writing.

Conjunction ladder for written argument: まず (first), 次に (next), さらに (moreover), しかし (however), したがって (therefore), つまり (that is), たとえば (for example) - these carry logical weight and are scored.

Cause/reason set: 〜から (subjective reason), 〜ので (softer, objective), 〜ため (formal written cause), 〜によって (due to/by means of); ために + noun/verb expresses purpose.

Concession pattern for balanced opinion: たしかに〜。しかし、〜 (admittedly X; however Y); alternative = 〜一方で (on the other hand); avoid stacking でも in formal prose.

Kanji/register control: keep 漢字 use consistent, avoid casual contractions (じゃ、ちゃう、〜っけ) in formal letters, and use 敬具/拝啓 only in formal letters with matching 時候の挨拶.

Hedging and emphasis: 〜かもしれません/〜でしょう soften claims; 必ず/絶対に/とても strengthen; あまり〜ない and ほとんど〜ない are the standard negative-degree adverbs.

Emotion vocabulary: うれしい, さびしい, くやしい, 安心する, 感動する, 心配する - pair feeling adjectives with a 〜ので/〜から clause explaining the cause, since markers alone score low.

Punctuation and length rules: use 。 for sentence end and 、 for clause breaks; 〜たり〜たり lists representative actions; keep です・ます consistent to the final sentence of the piece.

Identify the speech act first: request (〜てください/〜ていただけませんか), invitation (〜ませんか/〜ましょう), permission (〜てもいいですか), prohibition (〜てはいけません) - the ending decides the task answer.

Numbers and counters are frequent distractors: 一つ/一人/一枚/一本/一杯; listen for 〜目 (ordinal), 〜回 (times), 〜倍 (multiples), and 半 (half) attached to time and price.

Time/date traps: 来週の金曜日, 再来週, 翌日, 前日, 〜までに (deadline) versus 〜まで (until) are commonly contrasted in dialogues.

Politeness shift signals a speaker change or social relationship: 敬語 from staff to customer, plain form between friends; use this to infer who is speaking and their role.

Discourse markers carry the logic: でも/しかし (contrast), だから/ですから (result), それで (so), ところで (topic shift), 実は (revealing a real reason) - answers often sit right after 実は or でも.

Request-and-response pattern: listen for 〜ていただけませんか followed by かしこまりました/申し訳ございませんが〜; the refusal usually gives a reason (〜ので) that the question tests.

Intonation marks meaning: rising か-less questions, falling 〜ね for confirmation, and stress on とても/すごく/あまり signal degree; あまり + negative = not very.

Transcription discipline: note who, what, when, where, why in a grid while listening; the correct option usually paraphrases rather than repeats the exact audio wording.

Scan for the text type first: メール/手紙 (greeting, body, closing), お知らせ (headline plus date plus conditions), 意見文 (claim plus reasons), 物語 (time flow plus feelings) - text type predicts where answers sit.

Reference tracking: こ/そ/あ series (これ, それ, あれ, この, その) and 彼/彼女 point to previously mentioned nouns; resolve them to the nearest compatible noun before answering.

Connective logic in reading: しかし/ところが (contrast), つまり/すなわち (restatement), たとえば (example), したがって (conclusion) - the sentence after つまり usually holds the author's main point.

Condition markers: 〜たら (if/when), 〜ば (if), 〜と (natural consequence), 〜なら (if that's the case), 〜ても (even if); 〜なければなりません = must, 〜なくてもいい = need not.

Keigo decoding: いらっしゃる = 行く/来る/いる, おっしゃる = 言う, 召し上がる = 食べる, 伺う = 行く/聞く, いただく = もらう/食べる - convert to plain form to understand meaning.

Kanji compounds with shared readings: 情報/表情/心情 share 情 (じょう); 経験/経済 share 経 (けい); use okurigana and context to choose between on-yomi and kun-yomi readings.

Inference from stated reasons: 〜ので/〜ために/〜から clauses explain why; questions asking どうして are answered by that clause, not by the main clause.

Numbers in notices: 〜以上 (at least), 〜以下 (at most), 〜以内 (within), 〜以降/以前 (after/before) - misreading these reverses the answer; check whether the limit is inclusive.