Japanese course

Lesson 154 of 240

New here? This is lesson 154 of a free 240-lesson Japanese course.

It got taken in Japanese

Leo pushes into Kissa Hotaru dripping, his own clear umbrella gone. Masako looks up from the siphon. Kenta is at the counter, out of the rain.

The old black umbrella still waits in the stand. Nobody is lending that one.

You will say what happened to you, even when you did not choose it: rain, a stolen bike, a meeting you got pulled into.

These lines put the trouble on you, not on the person who caused it.

By the end of this lesson

Say what happened to you, using the passive.

  • 雨(あめ)に降(ふ)られました。I got caught in the rain.
  • 自転車(じてんしゃ)を盗(ぬす)まれました。My bicycle was stolen.
  • 財布(さいふ)を取(と)られました。My wallet was taken.
  • 会議(かいぎ)に呼(よ)ばれました。I was called into a meeting.
  • 名前(なまえ)を間違(まちが)えられました。Someone got my name wrong.
  • 風(かぜ)で傘(かさ)を飛(と)ばされました。The wind blew my umbrella away.

Scene — dripping at the door

Yanaka is wet again. Leo opens the kissa door without his clear umbrella. Water drips from his navy jacket onto the mat.

Masako looks up from the counter. Kenta leans in from the lane. In the stand, the old black umbrella has not moved. Goro's blend coffee sits untouched.

Leo enters the rainy kissa without an umbrella as Masako looks up and Goro sits beside untouched coffee.

Learn — it happened to you

Six lines say what happened to you. Rain, a thief, a meeting, a wrong name, and the wind.

The little words before the verb show what hit you. You are the one who felt it.

  1. Rainwater falls from Leo's empty hands onto the kissa entrance mat.

    雨(あめ)に降(ふ)られました。

    I got caught in the rain.

    When to use it: Use this when rain caught you while you were outside.

    に marks the rain that happened to you.

    Say it: Rain 雨 starts low and rises; candy 飴 starts high and falls.

  2. Goro pauses beside an empty bicycle hoop in a quiet Yanaka lane.

    自転車(じてんしゃ)を盗(ぬす)まれました。

    My bicycle was stolen.

    When to use it: Use this when someone stole your bicycle.

    を marks the bicycle taken from you; the thief stays unnamed.

  3. Haruka discovers an empty wallet compartment inside an open bag on a station platform.

    財布(さいふ)を取(と)られました。

    My wallet was taken.

    When to use it: Use this when someone took your wallet.

    を marks the wallet; you are the one who suffered the loss.

  4. Dr. Ishida begins rising from a desk as Mori-san beckons from a meeting-room doorway.

    会議(かいぎ)に呼(よ)ばれました。

    I was called into a meeting.

    When to use it: Use this when someone pulled you into a meeting.

    に marks the meeting Leo was called to. The passive form presents it as something that happened to him.

  5. Leo reacts with mild puzzlement when Ono-san addresses Leo at the clinic reception window.

    名前(なまえ)を間違(まちが)えられました。

    Someone got my name wrong.

    When to use it: Use this when someone got your name wrong.

    They got the name wrong, and you are the one affected.

  6. Leo reaches toward a clear umbrella carried out of reach by the wind above the wet Yuyake Dandan steps.

    風(かぜ)で傘(かさ)を飛(と)ばされました。

    The wind blew my umbrella away.

    When to use it: Use this when the wind carried your umbrella off.

    で marks the wind that did it; を marks your umbrella.

Story — the stand stays shut

Leo comes in soaked. His own umbrella is gone, not the old one in the stand.

Highlighted phrases are the new lines. Turn on Show English if you want a gloss.

  1. Rain on the glass. Leo has no clear umbrella in his hand.
  2. Masako大丈夫(だいじょうぶ)ですか。Are you okay?
  3. Leo雨(あめ)に降(ふ)られました。I got caught in the rain.
  4. Masakoどうしたんですか。What happened?
  5. Leo風(かぜ)で傘(かさ)を飛(と)ばされました。The wind blew my umbrella away.
  6. Kenta leans on the counter, still in his shop apron.
  7. Kenta仕事(しごと)はどうだった?How was work?
  8. Leo会議(かいぎ)に呼(よ)ばれました。I was called into a meeting.
  9. Kentaそれで?And then?
  10. Leo名前(なまえ)を間違(まちが)えられました。Someone got my name wrong.
  11. Goroそれは大変(たいへん)でしたね。I'm sorry that happened.
  12. Goro looks at his toast, then at Leo.
  13. Goro以前(いぜん)、自転車(じてんしゃ)を盗(ぬす)まれました。A while back, my bicycle was stolen.
  14. Masako先週(せんしゅう)、お客(きゃく)さんが財布(さいふ)を取(と)られました。Last week a customer had their wallet taken.
  15. Leo傘(かさ)を貸(か)してもらえますか。Could you lend me an umbrella?
  16. Masakoその傘(かさ)は貸(か)せません。I can't lend that umbrella.
  17. Kenta次(つぎ)の雨(あめ)で、誰(だれ)か来(く)るよ。Someone will come for it next rain.
  18. Goroそれは札(さつ)に書(か)いてありませんでした。That wasn't on the tag.
  19. The old black umbrella stays in the stand. Goro does not touch his coffee.

Practice — pick what happened

Eleven short tasks wait in this round. You will listen, fill a gap, and build a line.

Each one is small, so you move on quickly.

0 of 11 done

  1. What did you hear?

    What did you hear?

  2. What do you say?

    What do you say?

    A gust sent your clear umbrella down the lane. Tell Masako what the wind did.

  3. Fill the gap

    Fill the gap

    My bicycle was stolen.

    自転車(じてんしゃ)____盗(ぬす)まれました。

  4. Pick the reply

    Kenta says:

    Pick the reply

    財布(さいふ)は大丈夫(だいじょうぶ)ですか。

    Is your wallet all right?

    And you reply with:

  5. Build the line

    Build the line

    I was called into a meeting.

    。

    Tap the words in order.

  6. What does it mean?

    What does it mean?

    名前(なまえ)を間違(まちが)えられました。

  7. Swap the word

    Swap the word

    Rain caught you outside. Fix the first word.

    ____に降(ふ)られました。

  8. What do you say?

    What do you say?

    Your own umbrella is gone. Ask Masako to lend you one.

  9. Find the mistake

    Find the mistake

  10. True or false?

    True or false?

    You ask this when someone looks unwell or soaked.

  11. What do you say?

    What do you say?

    Leo is dripping in the doorway. Ask what happened.

Say it — your turn to speak

You are Leo, soaked, at the kissa counter. When the cue is yours, tap the microphone and say the line.

Tap play first if you want to hear it. The recording stays on this device.

  1. Masako大丈夫(だいじょうぶ)ですか。Are you okay?
  2. Leo (you)Tell her the rain caught you.

    Tell her the rain caught you.

    雨(あめ)に降(ふ)られました。

    I got caught in the rain.

0 of 5 said

Recap — what you can say now

Every line from this lesson
JapaneseEnglishPlay
雨(あめ)に降(ふ)られました。I got caught in the rain.
自転車(じてんしゃ)を盗(ぬす)まれました。My bicycle was stolen.
財布(さいふ)を取(と)られました。My wallet was taken.
会議(かいぎ)に呼(よ)ばれました。I was called into a meeting.
名前(なまえ)を間違(まちが)えられました。Someone got my name wrong.
風(かぜ)で傘(かさ)を飛(と)ばされました。The wind blew my umbrella away.
Next: lesson 155Understood, found, finished

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Keep practicing with Yak Cards

Keep these lines in your pocket. Open the Yak Cards for this lesson and run them on the train.

A short Yak Cards round after rain keeps these lines ready.

Open Yak Cards