Essential Japanese Vocabulary. Akira Miura
(3a) Konogoro shakai ga bōryoku-teki ni natte-kita (or bōryoku-ka shite-kita).
このごろ社会が暴力的になってきた。（暴力化してきた。）
(3b) Watashi wa bōryoku-eiga wa suki ja nai.
私は暴力映画は好きじゃない。
Ha
Words for “mother” function in parallel to those for “father.” The basic rules are: haha 母 corresponds to chichi 父, okā-san お母さん to otō-san お父さん, and ofukuro お袋 to oyaji 親父 (see CHICHI).
Ha
Hai はい is used in response to questions (also requests, demands, and suggestions) to signal agreement or assent. Although hai is often equated with “yes,” it is not the same as “yes”; it is more like “That’s right.” In fact, it corresponds to “yes” only when used as a response to affirmative questions. In response to negative questions, it corresponds to “no.”
EXAMPLES:
(1) A: Wakarimasu ka. (affirmative question)
分かりますか。
Do you understand?
B: Hai, wakarimasu.
はい、分かります。
Yes, I do. (lit., That’s right. I understand.)
(2) A: Wakarimasen ka. (negative question)
分かりませんか。
Don’t you understand?
B: Hai, wakarimasen.
はい、分かりません。
No, I don’t. (lit., That’s right. I don’t understand.)
From the above examples, the following becomes clear. In English, what determines the choice between “yes” and “no” is what follows; i.e., if what follows is in the affirmative (e.g., “I do”), you use “yes,” whereas if what follows is in the negative (e.g., “I don’t”), you use “no.” In Japanese, on the other hand, what determines the choice of hai はい or iie いいえ (see IIE) is whether you wish to indicate agreement or disagreement with the question. If you agree, you use hai はい, and if you disagree, you use iie いいえ; whether what follows is in the affirmative (e.g., wakarimasu 分かります) or in the negative (e.g., wakarimasen 分かりません) is immaterial.
Hai はい, when used in response to negative questions, usually corresponds to “no,” as explained above. There are some cases, however, where hai はい used as a response to negative questions corresponds to “yes” instead.
EXAMPLE:
(3) A: Genki-sō ni natta ja arimasen ka.
元気そうになったじゃありませんか。
Aren’t you looking perfectly well!
B: Hai, okage-sama de, kono goro wa sukkari genki ni narimashita.
はい、おかげさまで、このごろはすっかり元気になりました。
Yes, I’m perfectly well now, thank you.
The above question, though negative in form, is actually affirmative in spirit. What the question really means is “You’re looking perfectly well, and that’s great!” Speaker B therefore says hai はい to show agreement with the spirit of the question. Consider two more examples.
EXAMPLES:
(4) A: Ashita mo kite-kuremasen ka.
あしたも来てくれませんか。
Will you come again tomorrow? (lit., Won’t you come again tomorrow?)
B: Hai, ukagaimasu.
はい、伺います。
Yes, I’ll be glad to.
(5) A: Tenki ga ii kara, yakyū de mo shimasen ka.
天気がいいから、野球でもしませんか。
Since the weather is so nice, how about playing baseball or something (lit., shall we not play baseball or something)?
B: Hai (or Ee), shimashō.
はい（ええ）、しましょう。
Yes, let’s!
Although the A sentences above are negative in form, (4A) is actually a request with the meaning of “Please come again tomorrow,” and (5A) is a suggestion meaning “How about doing such-and-such?” This use of hai はい is, therefore, not really an exception; it still follows the basic rule: If you are in agreement, use hai.
Hai はい is a formal expression. In less formal speech, hai is often replaced by ee ええ. In even more informal speech (especially by men, youngsters, and little children), un うん, or simply n ん, is used.
In addition to the main use explained above, hai はい has other functions, some of which are described below. With the exception of (6), neither ee ええ nor un うん can be used in place of hai in these examples.
Hai sometimes indicates “I’m listening” instead of “That’s right.”
EXAMPLE:
| (6) Boss: | Kinō hanami ni ittara ne. きのう花見に行ったらね。 Yesterday we went to see the cherry blossoms. |
| Employee: | Hai. はい。 Yes? |
| Boss: | Yuki ga futte-ki-chatta n da yo. 雪が降ってきちゃったんだよ。 It started snowing, of all things. |
Hai はい, when used in response to the calling of one’s name, signals “Here!” or “Present!” In (7) below, a teacher is taking attendance in class.
EXAMPLE:
| (7) Teacher: | Tanaka-san. 田中さん。 Miss Tanaka! |
| Miss Tanaka: | Hai. はい。 Here! |
Hai はい serves to draw the addressee’s attention, for example, when one hands something to someone (e.g., when a salesclerk gives change back to a customer), as in (8), or when a student raises his hand to draw the teacher’s attention, as in sentence (9).
EXAMPLES:
| (8) Salesclerk: | Hai. Go-hyaku-en no otsuri desu. はい。五百円のおつりです。 Here you are. Five hundred yen. |
| (9) Student: | Hai! (raising his hand) はい！ Sir? |
| Teacher: | Nan desu ka. なんですか。 What is it? |
| Student: | Chotto shitsumon ga aru n desu ga. ちょっと質問があるんですか。 May I ask you a question? |
Ha
Hairu