The Japanese Ko-So-A-Do

 The Japanese Ko-So-A-Do

 

Today’s lesson is about the Ko-So-A-Do set of Japanese grammar. This set will focus on the speaker and the listener.

Ko or こ is a set that refers to things/objects near the speaker.
So or そ is a set that refers to things/objects near the listener but far from the speaker.
A or あ refers to objects that are far from both speaker and listener.
Do or ど is the interrogative or the question marker in this set.

Let’s check the first Ko-So-A-Do set:

これ, それ, あれ, どれ

Sometimes it is called ‘Re-series’.

これ (Kore) refers to things that are close to the speaker, and means ‘this’. While それ (Sore) refers to things that are near to the listener but far from the speaker, means ‘that’. あれ (Are) refers to things far from both the speaker and listener, which means ‘that over there’. どれ (Dore) is ‘which’ in English.

これ, それ, あれ and どれ always stand alone. It can be used as it is, or it can be followed by particles or be verb.

Sample:

これはペンです。
(Kore ha pen desu.)
This is a pen.

それはなんですか？
(Sore ha nan desu ka?)
What is that?

あれはわたしのペンです。
(Are ha watashi no pen desu.)
That is my pen.

どれですか？
(Dore desu ka?)
Which one is it?

この, その, あの, どの

Or the ‘No-series’.

The difference between this series and the Re-series is the No-series is always followed by a noun.

の-series + Noun

Though, the English equivalent of the No-series is the same as the Re-series. この (Kono) is ‘this’ in English. その (Sono) is ‘that’ while あの (Ano) is ‘that over there’. どの (Dono) is ‘which’ in English.

Sample:

このペンはわたしのです。
(Kono pen ha watashi no desu.)
This pen is mine.

そのペンはあなたのですか？
(Sono pen ha anata no desu ka?)
Is that pen yours?

あのいえはわたしのかぞくのいえです。
(Ano ie ha watashi no Kazoku no ie desu.)
That house is my family’s house.

どのくるまがあなたのですか？
(Dono kuruma ga anata no desu ka?)
Which car is yours?

ここ, そこ, あそこ, どこ

or the Ko-series. This series refers to places.

ここ (Koko) means ‘here’ or if you are the speaker, near the speaker. そこ (Soko) means ‘there’ or ‘that’, near the listener. あそこ (Asoko) means ‘over there’ or far from both the speaker and the listener. どこ (Doko) means ‘where’.

Sample:

ここはわたしのいえです。
(Koko ha watashi no ie desu.)
Here is my house.

そこはわたしのかれしのいえです。
(Soko ha watashi no kareshi no ie desu.)
That is my boyfriend’s house.

あそこはかれのかいしゃです。
(Asoko ha kare no kaisha desu.)
Over there is his company.

どこがかれしのいえですか？
(Doko ga kareshi no ie desu ka?)
Where is your boyfriend’s house?

 

こちら, そちら, あちら, どちら

This series is the polite way of ここ, そこ, あそこ and どこ. If you want to refer to a person in any direction, it is better to use this series. こちら (Kochira) means ‘this’ (or ‘this place’). そちら (Sochira) means ‘that’ (or ‘that place’). あそこ (Asoko) means ‘that over there’. どちら (Dochira) means ‘where’.  

Sample:

こちらへどうぞ。
(Kochira he douzo.)
This way, please.

そちらはくすりやです。
(Sochira ha kusuriya desu.)
That is the drugstore.

あちらはとうきょうたわーです。
(Achira ha Toukyou Tawa- desu.)
That over there is the Tokyo Tower.

どちらがすきのみせですか？
(Dochira ga suki no mise desu ka?)
Which store do you like better?

--------------------------------------

If you want to check my previous post, you can check it through the link below:

>> Fruits in Japanese

For Hiragana and Katakana page, please check the link below:

>> The Hiragana Character
>> The Katakana Character

For Word of the Week page, please check the link below: 

>> Word of the Week 9

For YouTube Videos:

>> Japanese Words| Hiragana | I-adjectives PART 5

For Monthly Grammar: 

>> Monthly Grammar: Part 1

For my Spanish lessons that I am still not fluent and need more effort to study, you can check the link below:

>> 【SPANISH LESSON #5】Numbers

You can also my personal website where I write stories and blog about things I like:

>> Write and Sleep

--------------------------------------