{"id":5969,"date":"2022-09-03T19:41:15","date_gmt":"2022-09-03T19:41:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=5969"},"modified":"2022-09-03T19:41:15","modified_gmt":"2022-09-03T19:41:15","slug":"watashi-wa-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/watashi-wa-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Watashi Wa \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Are you watching a manga movie? You might notice that some of the characters say <strong><em>'Watashi Wa'<\/em><\/strong> when speaking to others. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this Japanese expression.<\/p>\n<h2>Meaning<\/h2>\n<p>The Japanese expression <em>'Watashi Wa'<\/em> (\u79c1\u306f\u3001\u308f\u305f\u3057\u306f) translates to <em>'me'<\/em> or <em>'I'<\/em> in English. The proper translation is <em>'as for me.'<\/em> So, if we unpack each element of the phrase, it translates to '<em>Watash<\/em>i' (<em>I<\/em>) and '<em>Wa<\/em>' (f<em>or<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p>Japanese people generally don't use subjects like '<em>me<\/em>' or '<em>I<\/em>' in conversations. So, they use <em>Watashi Wa<\/em> as an introduction when it's unclear that they are the subject of discussion. However, the English language doesn't require the speaker to use <em>'for'<\/em> after they use the subject <em>'I.'<\/em> Instead, the sentence's word order lets you know who the speaker is referring to in the conversation, namely themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Japanese conversations can be vague when defining the subject of discussion. The use of particles such as '<em>wa<\/em>' assists with clarifying things in the conversation. It's important to note that the '<em>wa<\/em>' in the expression appears as \u306f) in hiragana, and people pronounce it as '<em>ha<\/em>.' This exception only applies to the '<em>wa<\/em>' in the phrase.<\/p>\n<h2>Example Usage<\/h2>\n<p>\u201cWatashi Wa, I\u2019m telling you it\u2019s the real deal, and you don\u2019t have to worry. Have I ever steered you wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWatashi Wa can\u2019t handle the way this is turning out. It\u2019s giving me horrible anxiety, and I need to take a minute to calm down.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWatashi Wa, I\u2019m the person you\u2019re looking for, and I\u2019m right in front of you now. What are you going to do about it? There\u2019s nothing you can say or do that I haven\u2019t heard or seen before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-5970\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa-300x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa-150x150.png 150w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa-120x120.png 120w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa.png 367w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-5971\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa2-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa2-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa2-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa2-120x120.jpg 120w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/watashi-wa2.jpg 367w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Origin<\/h2>\n<p>Language experts are at a loss to explain when \u2018Watashi Wa\u2019 appeared in English. They also have no idea when the phrase originated or which areas of the world it spread to before it became a popular saying. It\u2019s a common phrase in Japanese, and all generations use it.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Ask a Japanese Teacher! How often should I use WATASHI WA?\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/qNk7XqYvVtc?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>Phrases Similar to Watashi Wa<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Me.<\/li>\n<li>Myself.<\/li>\n<li>I.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Phrases Opposite to Watashi Wa<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>You.<\/li>\n<li>Yours.<\/li>\n<li>Them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Watashi Wa.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ways People May Say Watashi Wa Incorrectly<\/h2>\n<p>The phrase 'Watashi Wa' is a Japanese expression referring to the self. It's not commonly used outside of Japanese conversations and has no real use in English. However, you might notice the phrase when watching Japanese anime or Manga shows and movies.<\/p>\n<h2>Acceptable Ways to Phrase Watashi Wa<\/h2>\n<p>You can use the expression 'Watashi Wa' when referring to yourself. It translates from Japanese to 'I' or 'me.' The Japanese language rarely uses the subjects I, you, and it. However, you'll use 'Watashi Wa' at the beginning of a sentence when speaking about yourself. The phrase doesn't have any use outside of Japanese, but it's one of the most common phrases westerners learn when introducing themselves to the Japanese language.<\/p>\n<p>It's common for Japanese people to have entire conversations without ever referring to themselves. It's a respectful culture that places more emphasis on the community rather than the self. So, Japanese speakers may use 'Watashi Wa' when the context of the conversation isn't clear, and the speaker is referring to themselves.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-2\">Are you watching a manga movie? You might notice that some of the characters say 'Watashi Wa' when speaking to others. This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this Japanese expression. Meaning The Japanese expression 'Watashi Wa' (\u79c1\u306f\u3001\u308f\u305f\u3057\u306f) translates to 'me' or 'I' in English. The proper translation is 'as for me.' So, if [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5969"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5969"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5969\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8301,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5969\/revisions\/8301"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5969"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5969"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5969"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}