Top 10 mistakes to avoid when learning Japanese : In today’s online Japanese lesson we are going to look at the top 10 mistakes to avoid when learning Japanese. Getting wise to these 10 mistakes now will definitely ensure your future learning Japanese journey will be much smoother and more efficient.
Contents
- 1 Top 10 mistakes to avoid when learning Japanese
- 2 1: Make sure you have the right resources.
- 3 2: Thinking you are going to become a master by watching only anime.
- 4 3: Not actually using Japanese
- 5 4: Copying the wrong gender
- 6 5: Overusing Pronouns
- 7 6: Speaking with the wrong level of formality
- 8 7: Using “san” in your introduction
- 9 8: Learning too quickly and getting stressed.
- 10 9: Not making mistakes
- 11 10: Too much talking and not enough doing
- 12 Learn Japanese Online with BondLingo
- 13 Study in Japan?
- 14 Recommend
Top 10 mistakes to avoid when learning Japanese
From questionable methods, to poor resources we are going to be looking at what you need to avoid to not fall into certain Japanese language learning traps. If you find yourself already making some of these mistakes don’t worry. We are also going to tell you how to stop making them.
Let’s have a quick summary of the mistakes and how to avoid them.
| Have the right learning resources | Use Genki or Minna no nihongo |
| Learning through anime | Use dramas and beginner based media (for beginners) |
| Not actually using Japanese | Use it |
| Copying the wrong gender | Diversify your mentors and friends |
| Overusing Pronouns | Practice shortening sentences |
| Speaking with the wrong level of formality | Practice the same sentence with different levels |
| Using “san” in your introduction | Practice your self introductions |
| Learning too quickly | Slow it down and focus on more quality study |
| Not making mistakes | Make them |
| Too much talking and not enough doing | Be accountable |
1: Make sure you have the right resources.
One of the biggest mistakes when it comes to learning Japanese is not using the right resources. If you are starting with a textbook that’s purely Romaji for example you are not going to be able to get used to the hiragana, katakana and kanji from early in your journey. You will become complacent and rely on the Romaji. Start with books like Minna no Nihongo and Genki that use Japanese characters straightaway.
2: Thinking you are going to become a master by watching only anime.
Some people think they can just sit back and learn all of their Japanese through anime, but this is not the case. Not only will you learn a super informal and strange way to speak Japanese you will also not really learn much apart from a few odd vocabulary words. If you really want to learn through consuming anime you need to watch it through raw first without subtitles and then watch it again with the subtitles, that is a much more effective technique. Even then, you shouldn’t really be trying this technique until the intermediate stages.
Please don’t let this put you off anime, just don’t use it as your only source of study.
3: Not actually using Japanese
This may sound a bit strange but most people who learn Japanese ever hardly put it into practice. The most important thing you can do is take what you’ve learnt and put it into practice straight away through talking to friends or using communication-based apps like hello talk.
4: Copying the wrong gender
Let’s say you’re a guy, but you only hang around and learn Japanese from female influences. Undoubtedly you will end up copying there mannerisms and develop a feminine style of Japanese speech. This goes the same for the girls out there too. Try and involve yourself with a wide range of influences of all ages and genders so you can develop a better understanding of how all those different demographics speak
5: Overusing Pronouns
If you are constantly using pronouns like “Watashi” “anata” etc for every sentence you are going to sound really strange in Japanese. Once you have established context in Japanese, the shorter the sentence, the better. To avoid this, you should constantly practice consciously to first establish the context with a pronoun and then try not to use it again until you change the subject.
6: Speaking with the wrong level of formality
Japanese has various levels of formality for speaking to people of different status in different situations. A big mistake for some Japanese learners is either being to polite or too informal. You need to practice saying the same thing with different levels of formality to get used to this.
7: Using “san” in your introduction
One of the big no no’s in Japanese is using “san” to introduce yourself. This is seen as highly strange and should be avoided at all costs. The only thing to do to stop making this mistake is to practice your self introductions.
8: Learning too quickly and getting stressed.
Some people tend to learn too much too fast and end up forgetting it all. This will really stress you out. Quality not quantity with this, when you learn something make sure you internalise it and know it inside out.
9: Not making mistakes
Ironically one of the biggest mistakes is not making mistakes. This is something you need to get comfortable with if you are wanting to improve your Japanese efficiently.
10: Too much talking and not enough doing
We’ve all been there. Promising ourselves that we are going to get serious and really study this time but always end up putting it off. Procrastination is the biggest mistake you can make. You need to hold yourself accountable to your promises it will only be yourself that you are letting down in the end.
So guys hopefully now you will be able to avoid some of the top mistakes made when learning Japanese and be able to carry on with your studies with a new outlook and battle plan. Thanks for reading guys, all the best.