📖 Study Guide
Learn Japanese through stories.
These stories include Japanese culture,
daily life, travel experiences,
and conversations between people.
1. Read the English text.
2. Read the Japanese text.
3. Use Romaji if needed.
4. Review the vocabulary.
🌸 Story
while looking at an autumn snack.
さくらが首をかしげている。
Sakura ga kubi o kashigete iru.
What’s “kuri”
in English again?
栗って、
英語でなんだっけ？
Kuri tte,
eigo de nandakke?
That’s right!
そうだった！
Sō datta!
I knew it,
but the word just wouldn’t come out. 💦
知ってるのに、
出てこなかったの💦
Shitteru noni,
dete konakatta no. 💦
what forgetting means? 🤣
忘れてるって言わない？🤣
wasureteru tte iwanai? 🤣
It was
in my head.
頭の中には
いたのよ。
Atama no naka ni wa
ita no yo.
But it didn’t
make it to my mouth.
でも、
口まで来なかった。
Demo,
kuchi made konakatta.
sometimes get lost on the way.
たまに途中で迷子になるよね。
tama ni tochū de maigo ni naru yo ne.
And the moment
I hear “chestnut,”
I’m like,
“Oh, right!
That’s the word!”
で、
chestnutって聞いた瞬間に、
「あー、それそれ！」
ってなるの。
De,
chestnut tte kiita shunkan ni,
“Ā, sore sore!”
tte naru no.
got it now.
ちゃんと覚えたね。
chanto oboeta ne.
For today.
今日はね。
Kyō wa ne.
💭 Story Note
In Japan,
chestnuts are strongly associated
with autumn.
When autumn arrives,
chestnut-flavored sweets
and seasonal foods
often begin to appear in shops.
The Japanese word for chestnut is
「栗」(kuri).
So seeing 栗
can make people think of
the changing season,
cooler weather,
and autumn treats.
In this story,
a simple chestnut becomes
a small reminder of an English word
that Sakura already knew,
but could not remember right away.
📚 Vocabulary
| English | Japanese | Romaji |
|---|---|---|
| chestnut | 栗 | kuri |
| to forget | 忘れる | wasureru |
| not come to mind / not come out | 出てこない | dete konai |
| to get lost | 迷子になる | maigo ni naru |
「出てこない」(dete konai)
literally means
“does not come out.”
But in everyday Japanese,
it is also often used
when a word, name, answer,
or memory does not come to mind.
For example:
「名前が出てこない。」
Namae ga dete konai.
“I can’t remember the name.”
or
“The name won’t come to mind.”
「英語が出てこない。」
Eigo ga dete konai.
“The English won’t come to mind.”
In this story,
Sakura knows the English word
for 「栗」,
but she cannot remember it
at that moment.
That is exactly the kind of situation
where Japanese speakers may say
「出てこない」.
🔰 Mix Words and Feel Their Meaning｜ことばを混ぜて、感覚をつかもう
Today’s expression is 「出てこない」.
Try mixing it into English:
“I know the word,
but 出てこない.”
“I remember her face,
but her nameが出てこない.”
“I know how to say it,
but 英語が出てこない.”
「出てこない」 literally means
that something “does not come out.”
But in everyday conversation,
it is also often used
when a word, name, or answer
does not come to mind.
In this story,
Sakura knows the word “chestnut.”
She simply cannot
bring the word out
at that moment.
That familiar feeling of
“I know it, but 出てこない!”
is exactly what happens to her.
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