Beginning Japanese for Professionals: Book 3

38 10-3-2 Noun de mo We learned earlier that de mo placed before a sentence means ‘However’ or ‘But’. It comes from ‘ Soo de mo ,’ which literally means ‘even if it is so.’ This is the noun version of the /~ te mo / pattern, which is introduced in Dialogue 2 above. Now, the combination of / de mo / is attached to a noun as if it’s a particle and /X de mo / means ‘even X’ Kodomo de mo wakarimasu. Even children can understand it. Obentoo de mo ii desu yo. Even a bento is fine. When combined with a question word, it means ‘any X’ or ‘every X’. Nan de mo risaikuru-shimasu . We recycle anything (and everything.) Dare demo shitte imasu. Any person knows it. Itsu de mo ii desu yo. Any time is fine. This pattern contrasts with /Question word + ka /, which was introduced earlier and means ‘some X’. some X any and every X nani ka something nan de mo anything dare ka someone dare demo anyone doko ka somewhere doko dem o anywhere itsu ka sometime itsu demo anytime Nani ka tabe ni ikanai? Would you like to go and eat something? - Un, nan de mo ii yo. Sure. Anything is fine. Itsu ka denwa shimasu. I’ll call you sometime. - Itsu de mo shite kudasai. Please call me anytime. Drills and Exercises A. Cue: 捨ててもいいですか。 May I throw it away? Response: いえ、捨てては行けませんよ。 No, you must not. Cue: タバコ、吸ってもいいですか。 May I smoke? Response: いえ、吸ってはいけませんよ。 No, you must not. B. Cue: 何をリサイクルしますか。 What do you recycle? Response: 何でも、リサイクルしますよ。 We recycle anything. Cue: いつ会えますか。 When can we meet? Response: いつでも会えますよ。 We can meet anytime. C. Say it in Japanese Tell an intern the following: 1. It’s no good if you are late for the appointment. 2. It’s no good if you forget the name of the company president.