Lesson 62 - May I go?

You remember the te forms from the previous lesson, right? Well, now we are going to apply them to a different situation. If you add on the ending te mo ii desu ka, it's like asking for permission. For example, Eiga ni itte mo ii desu ka would be "May I go to the movies?" A reply to it would be Eiga ni itte mo ii desu, or "You may go to the movies". Alternatively, you can say, Eiga ni itte mo yokunai desu, which is "You may not go to the movies". Since this concept is relatively easy, let's hop into a conversation and get a lot of new vocabulary under our belts. Let's see this conversation between Natsuo and Yuki, his mother, and later his father, Kenji.

Natsuo: Okaasan, shukudai ga owarimashita. Eiga ni itte mo ii desu ka?
Yuki: Misete kudasai. Aa, yoku dekimashita. Eigakan wa dono gurai desu ka?
Natsuo: Juugofun gurai kakarimasu.
Yuki: Otousan ni kiite kudasai.
Natsuo: Naze desu ka?
Yuki: Watashi wa tsukaremasu. Atama ga itai desu.
Natsuo: Wakarimashita . . . nee, otousan! Eiga ni itte mo ii desu ka?
Kenji: Itte mo yokunai desu. Natsuo wa kinou ikimashita.
Natsuo: Nani?! Demo, kore wa taisetsu desu! Kenji: Gakkou to shukudai wa motto taisetsu desu. Motto benkyou shite kudasai. Ato de, eiga ni itte mo ii desu.
Natsuo: Itsu ikimasu ka?
Kenji: Sugu ikimasu. Ashita shiken ga arimasu kara benkyou shite kudasai.
Natsuo: Hontou ni? Demo, shukudai ga kirai desu.
Kenji: Hitsuyou desu! Rainen daigaku ni hairimasu. Soshite yasumimasu. Kotoshi benkyou shimasu.
Natsuo: Wakarimashita. Maitsuki benkyou shimasu.
Kenji: Ii desu ne.

Let's see what this little family said. Natsuo begins by saying, "Mother, I finished my homework. May I go to the movies?" Owarimasu is to finish. Yuki replies, "Show it to me. Oh, good job. About how far is the movie theater?" Natsuo replies it takes about fifteen minutes. Yuki says to ask his father. (A little note, when using o with kikimasu, it means to listen, but if you use ni, it means to ask) When Natsuo asks why, Yuki replies, "I am tired. My head hurts." Tsukaremasu means to be tired. Natsuo replies, "I understand... hey, father! May I go to the movies?" Kenji replies, "You may not go. You went yesterday." Natsuo replies, "What?! But this is important!" Taisetsu means important, and it is a qualitative noun (meaning you use it with na). Kenji replies, "School and homework is more important. Please study more. Afterwards, you may go to the movies." Ato means after. Natsuo asks when he will go. Kenji replies, "You will go soon. Because you have an exam tomorrow, please study." Sugu means soon and shiken means exam. Natuso replies, "Really? But I hate homework." Hontou means honestly or truthfully, and is usually used with a ni. Kenji replies, "It is necessary! Next year you will enter the university. Then you will rest. This year you will study." Hitsuyou is necessary and kotoshi is this year. Natuso replies, "I understand. I will study every month." Maitsuki is every month. Kenji replies that is good.

Vocabulary Review
終わります Owarimasu- to finish
疲れます Tsukaremasu- to be tired
大切 Taisetsu- important
後 Ato- after
すぐ Sugu- soon
試験 Shiken- examination
本当 Hontou- honestly/truthfully
必要 Hitsuyou- necessary
今年 Kotoshi- this year
毎月 Maitsuki- every month