NCEA Level 3 Japanese flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

しかし

Contrast conjunction meaning 'however/but'; in extended listening, the clause after it often contains the speaker's corrected position or main claim.

つまり

Rephrasing marker meaning 'in other words'; it introduces a restatement or summary, so the following phrase often clarifies the preceding idea rather than adding a new one.

〜はずです

Sentence-ending pattern expressing confident expectation based on evidence; it sits between 〜かもしれません (possibility) and 〜に違いない (strong conviction) on a certainty scale.

〜わけではない

Pattern meaning 'it is not that...'; it denies an inference rather than a fact, so a statement containing it should not be treated as a complete negation.

あげる・もらう・くれる

Benefactive verbs: あげる = giver gives outward, くれる = giver gives to me/in-group, もらう = receiver receives; 〜て forms show who benefits from an action.

〜ておく

Auxiliary meaning 'do in advance' or 'leave as is'; in next-action listening items it often marks a preparatory step rather than the main event.

〜させられる

Causative-passive form meaning 'be made to do'; the causer is marked by に and the forced actor is usually the subject, so identify both roles.

こ・そ・あ

Demonstratives marking discourse distance: こ- near the speaker/current topic, そ- near the listener/just mentioned, あ- distant or shared knowledge; resolve each to a compatible noun.

万・億

Japanese large numbers group by four digits: 万 = 10,000 and 億 = 100,000,000; convert immediately, for example 1億2000万 becomes 120,000,000.

〜ぶり

Suffix after a time expression meaning 'after an interval of'; 三年ぶり means 'for the first time in three years', not 'for three years'.

ええと・あのう

Hesitation fillers that signal planning, softening, or self-repair; they carry little lexical content but can warn that a correction or delicate request follows.

前者・後者

Words meaning 'the former' and 'the latter'; they refer to the two most recently mentioned items in order, so identify both before interpreting the sentence.

〜とは限らない

Pattern meaning 'not necessarily'; it rejects a universal claim, so an answer option containing 'always' or 'all' is usually incompatible with the sentence.

〜ざるを得ない

Formal pattern meaning 'have no choice but to'; it expresses compulsion or unavoidable circumstances, not willingness, and often appears in editorials and opinion pieces.

〜こと・の

Nominalizers that turn clauses into nouns; こと tends to mark abstract facts, while の often marks perceptible actions or events and can replace こと in many object positions.

拝啓・敬具

Formal letter opening and closing: 拝啓 begins the body and 敬具 ends it, with seasonal and health greetings between; together they signal a formal written register.

割・倍

割 means a tenth (一割 = 10%), while 倍 means times or double; charts therefore distinguish 2倍 (twice as much) from 2割増 (a 20% increase).

〜たところ

Conjunction meaning 'when/upon doing'; it introduces a result discovered after an action, not a simple sequence of past events.

〜次第

Suffix meaning 'as soon as' after a verb stem (分かり次第), or 'depending on' after a noun; the two uses change the timeline or condition.

〜というわけではない

Double-negative pattern meaning 'it does not mean that'; it limits or softens a claim, so the main point is narrower than a literal full negation.

たとえば

Marker meaning 'for example'; it introduces supporting evidence for a general claim, so the example should not be mistaken for the main thesis.

だ・である調

Plain formal register using だ/である; it is typical of reports, essays, and editorials, while です・ます marks polite speech or letters.

主張→理由→例→再主張

Argument structure that states the claim, gives reasons, supports them with a concrete example, and restates the claim; each paragraph should perform one function.

なぜなら〜からだ

Explicit justification formula: なぜなら introduces the reason and からだ closes it; it makes the causal link between claim and evidence unambiguous.

したがって

Formal connective meaning 'therefore'; it signals a conclusion drawn from preceding evidence and suits opinion essays better than casual narration.

その一方で

Contrastive connective meaning 'on the other hand'; it introduces a competing perspective and helps a writer justify a balanced argument.

〜べきだ

Pattern expressing strong normative obligation ('should'); it is used for recommendations, and 〜べきではないか can soften it into an invitation for debate.

〜と考えられる

Impersonal opinion pattern meaning 'it is considered that'; it distances the writer and suits formal essays better than repeated 私は〜と思う.

です・ます調

Polite register ending verbs in ます and the copula in です; it is kept consistent in formal letters or speeches and is not mixed with だ/である in one paragraph.

第一に・第二に

Ordinal paragraph markers meaning 'firstly' and 'secondly'; they make the structure of a justification visible and are commonly closed by 最後に.

〜点で

Pattern meaning 'in the respect that' or 'at the point of'; it introduces the specific criterion on which a comparison or evaluation is based.

させていただく

Humble pattern meaning 'I will humbly do'; it suits formal requests or announcements, but overuse makes writing sound formulaic and less direct.