Here are 9 Short Japanese Stories 🇯🇵

Happy Sunday Japanophiles, Herewith the 19th issue of the Hai Japan Newsletter — your Weekly Dose of Japan!

Hey, ya’ll :)

In this issue of Hai Japan, you’ll be studying 9 stories (again).

Nine really short stories.

It’s simple.

Here’s how it works:

• Below are 9 stories. Each of these stories include romaji and an English translation.

• When you click on this link, you’ll find 3 files.

• The 1st file is called 9 Audio clips #2. This is the audio file of all 9 stories in Japanese

• The 2nd file is called Bonus Audio #2. This is the audio file for a bonus text at the end this issue that uses similar vocabulary from the 9 stories. You can listen to this to test how much you’ve retained.

• The 3rd file is called Grammar Explanation #2. This is a PDF that provides grammar explanations for each of the 9 texts. You may refer to it anytime.

And that’s it!

• Japanese: 彼はバナナの皮で滑って転んだ。でも、彼は「新しいダンスのステップだ！」と言って笑った。

• Romaji: Kare wa banana no kawa de subette koronda. Demo, kare wa "atarashii dansu no suteppu da!" to itte waratta.

• English: He slipped on a banana peel and fell. But he laughed and said, "It's a new dance move!"

• Japanese: 猫は魚を盗んで逃げた。でも、犬がその猫を追いかけて一緒に走り回った。

• Romaji: Neko wa sakana o nusunde nigeta. Demo, inu ga sono neko o oikakete issho ni hashirimawatta.

• English: The cat stole a fish and ran away. But the dog chased the cat, and they ran around together.

• Japanese: 彼は帽子をかぶったつもりだった。でも、それは実はお鍋だった。

• Romaji: Kare wa boushi o kabutta tsumori datta. Demo, sore wa jitsu wa onabe datta.

• English: He thought he was wearing a hat. But it was actually a pot.

• Japanese: 女の子はシャボン玉を吹いた。でも、そのシャボン玉は彼女の顔にくっついた。

• Romaji: Onna no ko wa shabondama o fuita. Demo, sono shabondama wa kanojo no kao ni kuttsuita.

• English: The girl blew a bubble. But the bubble stuck to her face.

• Japanese: 男の子は靴を探していた。でも、靴は冷蔵庫の中にあった。

• Romaji: Otoko no ko wa kutsu o sagashite ita. Demo, kutsu wa reizoko no naka ni atta.

• English: The boy was looking for his shoes. But the shoes were in the refrigerator.

• Japanese: 彼女はリモコンを見つけられなかった。でも、リモコンは彼女の手の中にあった。

• Romaji: Kanojo wa rimokon o mitsukerarenakatta. Demo, rimokon wa kanojo no te no naka ni atta.

• English: She couldn't find the remote control. But the remote control was in her hand.

• Japanese: 彼はカレーに砂糖を入れたつもりだった。でも、それは塩だった。

• Romaji: Kare wa karee ni satou o ireta tsumori datta. Demo, sore wa shio datta.

• English: He thought he put sugar in the curry. But it was salt.

• Japanese: 彼女はスプーンでスープを飲んでいた。でも、スプーンは穴が空いていた。

• Romaji: Kanojo wa supuun de suupu o nonde ita. Demo, supuun wa ana ga aite ita.

• English: She was drinking soup with a spoon. But the spoon had a hole in it.

• Japanese: 彼は電話で話していた。でも、電話は逆さまだった。

• Romaji: Kare wa denwa de hanashite ita. Demo, denwa wa sakasama datta.

• English: He was talking on the phone. But the phone was upside down.

Bonus text:

Can you understand some of this?

Japanese:

彼はバナナの皮で滑って転んだ。それから、猫が魚を盗んで逃げるのを見た。彼は笑って、「新しいダンスのステップだ！」と言った。その後、靴を探したが、冷蔵庫の中にあった。帽子をかぶったつもりだったが、それは実はお鍋だった。彼はカレーに砂糖を入れたが、それは塩だった。そして、スープを飲もうとしたが、スプーンには穴が空いていた。最後に、電話で話していたが、電話は逆さまだった。全てがうまくいかない日でも、彼は笑い続けた。

Romaji:

Kare wa banana no kawa de subette koronda. Sorekara, neko ga sakana o nusunde nigeru no o mita. Kare wa waratte, "atarashii dansu no suteppu da!" to itta. Sono ato, kutsu o sagashitaga, reizoko no naka ni atta. Boushi o kabutta tsumori datta ga, sore wa jitsu wa onabe datta. Kare wa karee ni satou o ireta ga, sore wa shio datta. Soshite, suupu o nomou to shita ga, supuun ni wa ana ga aite ita. Saigo ni, denwa de hanashite ita ga, denwa wa sakasama datta. Subete ga umaku ikanai hi demo, kare wa warai tsuzuketa.

English:

He slipped on a banana peel and fell. Then, he saw a cat steal a fish and run away. He laughed and said, "It's a new dance move!" After that, he looked for his shoes, but they were in the refrigerator. He thought he was wearing a hat, but it was actually a pot. He put sugar in the curry, but it was salt. And when he tried to drink soup, the spoon had a hole in it. Finally, he was talking on the phone, but the phone was upside down. Even on a day when everything went wrong, he kept laughing.

That’s all folks!

Let me know if you enjoyed these 9 stories🙂 

Have a great Sunday!