Page 173 - Easy Japanese - Learn to Speak Japanese Quickly! (TUTTLE)

GRAMMAR NOTE Counting Hours

You saw the classifier -ji for telling time in Lesson 3, as in ichi-ji “one o’clock”
and ichi-ji han “1:30”. This classifier refers to a specific time. On the other

hand, the classifier -jikan counts hours, e.g., ichi-jikan “one hour” and ichi-
jikan han “one and a half hours”. The classifiers -ji and jikan both attach to
Chinese numbers. The question word for “how many hours” is nan-jikan, while
the question word for “what time” is nan-ji. Note that for the numbers four,
seven, and nine, the alternative of yo, shichi, and ku are used with these

classifiers. Also note that jikan alone means time in general.
Jikan ga arimasen. There is no time.
Jikan ga kakarimasu. It takes time.

There are three expressions for approximation: -goro for an approximate point in
time and -gurai and yaku- are for an approximate length of time or amount of
things. Therefore, -jikan is used with -gurai or yaku while -ji is used with -goro.
sanji-goro around 3:00

san-jikan gurai about three hours
yaku san-jikan about three hours

CULTURAL NOTE Taking Trains

Japan’s rail system is one of the most extensive in the world. It takes you almost
anywhere in the country—on time! In big cities, many train and subway lines
intertwine to make a complex network. Larger stations have multiple

entrances/exits and transfers located blocks apart. All of the exits are named or
numbered. Travel guides tell you which exit to take for local spots. You can
follow the signs in most stations to the correct exit.
Determining your train fare from the fare maps and buying tickets at the
ticket vending machines can be confusing. But you can bypass this altogether by
purchasing a SUICA or PASMO Card. Just hold your card to the reader at the

fare gates upon entry and exit and the correct fare will be deducted from your
balance.
Using a smartphone while walking (aruki-sumaho 歩きスマホ) is
particularly dangerous on the station platforms. Avoid this by all means. When
the train arrives, do not stand in front of the door. Stand to one side to allow
passengers to exit the car. Most passengers on Japanese trains are either reading,