Lesson 4 - Who are you?

Now that we know how to ask and say what something is, now it's time to learn how to ask someone who they are. The first word you need to know is dare. Dare means "who". So basically, if you were going to ask someone who they were, you would say Dare desu ka. Before we get into a sample conversation, let's introduce two more words. Minasan means "everyone" or "everybody". Seito means "student" or "pupil".
Let's pretend we're at a party. At this party are Jiro, Toshiya, and Shinya. Now here's a sample conversation: (we'll incorporate some other things into it too)

Toshiya: Konban wa, Shinya san! Ogenki desu ka.
Shinya: Okage sama de, genki desu. Anata wa.
Toshiya: Genki desu.
Jiro: Konban wa, minasan!
Shinya: Konban wa.
Toshiya: Dare desu ka.
Jiro: Jiro desu.
Toshiya: Sensei desu ka.
Jiro: Iie, seito desu.
Shinya: Hai.
Jiro: Dare desu ka.
Toshiya: Toshiya desu.
Jiro: Seito desu ka.
Toshiya: Hai, seito desu.

Since the conversation begins with just Toshiya and Shinya, Toshiya says, "Good evening, Shinya, how are you?" Shinya replies he is fine, thanks for asking, and asks how he is in return. Toshiya replies he is fine as well when Jiro comes in and says, "Good evening everyone!" Shinya replies a good evening before Toshiya asks Jiro, "Who are you?" Jiro replies that he is Jiro, and Toshiya asks if he is a teacher. Jiro replies, "No, I am a student," and Shinya agrees with a hai. Jiro then asks Toshiya who he is, and Toshiya replies. Jiro asks if he is a student and Toshiya replies, "Yes, I am a student."

Vocabulary Review