Family and pets at home | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 家族と暮らしていますか。

   Do you live with family?

   家族

   family

   と

   with

   暮らしています

   live

   か

   question marker

   More detail

   家族 means “family” here. It is a noun and does not itself state a particular number of people. Example: 家族と旅行します。 means “I travel with my family.” と follows 家族 and marks the companion someone lives with. The reusable pattern is Xと暮らす, “live with X.” Here, と is not part of the noun; it is a particle connecting the companion to the verb. 暮らしています is the polite form used here for “live.” Its base form is 暮らす (“to live” or “to lead one’s life”). The form is built from 暮らして plus います; in this sentence, ています presents living with family as an ongoing or current life situation. Example: 友だちと暮らしています。 means “I live with a friend.” か at the end turns the statement into a question. With the polite form, 暮らしていますか asks whether the listener currently lives with someone. Japanese leaves the subject unstated here; the fixed translation identifies the intended subject as “you.” Together, 家族と means “with family,” and 暮らしていますか asks “do you live?” The complete utterance therefore means “Do you live with family?”

2. 子どもと暮らしています。

   I live with my child.

   子ども

   child

   と

   with; together with

   暮らしています

   live; reside

   More detail

   子ども means “child” here. Japanese does not mark this noun for singular versus plural, so the fixed translation identifies one child in this sentence; the form itself can also refer to children when context supports that reading. A useful related form is 大人 (“adult”), but it is not interchangeable with 子ども. と marks the person who accompanies the subject in this use: “with.” The reusable pattern is Xと暮らす (“live with X”). This と is different from the と used to connect nouns in some sentences or to mark quoted content; its role here comes from its combination with living together. 暮らしています comes from 暮らす (“to live; lead one’s life”). The ending -ています is the polite form of -ている, presenting an ongoing state or situation, so 暮らしています means “live” in the sense of currently living. The plain form is 暮らしている, and the dictionary form is 暮らす. For example, 東京で暮らしています。 means “I live in Tokyo.” Together, 子どもと (“with my child”) and 暮らしています (“live”) produce the polite utterance “I live with my child.” The Japanese sentence does not separately state “my”; that possessive relationship is supplied by the fixed translation and intended context.

3. 家にペットもいますか。

   Is there a pet at home too?

   家に

   at home

   ペット

   pet

   も

   too; also

   いますか

   is there?

   More detail

   家に means “at home” here. 家 is “home/house,” and に marks the place where someone or something exists. A reusable pattern is 場所に + いる: 家にいます。 means “I am at home.” ペット is the noun “pet.” It is a loanword written in katakana and does not itself show whether the pet is a dog, cat, or another animal. Example: ペットがいます。 — “There is a pet.” も adds the meaning “too” or “also” to the word or phrase before it. Here, ペットも means “a pet too,” adding a pet to the set of things being considered. Example: 猫もいます。 — “There is also a cat.” いますか is the polite nonpast question form of いる, used for the existence or presence of an animate being. います is the polite nonpast form, and final か turns the statement into a question. For an inanimate thing, Japanese generally uses ありますか instead. Example: 先生はいますか。 — “Is the teacher here?” Together, 家に identifies the location, ペット identifies what is being asked about, も adds “too,” and いますか asks whether that animate being is present. The whole utterance therefore means “Is there a pet at home too?”

4. 小さい犬を飼っています。

   We have a small dog.

   小さい

   small

   犬

   dog

   飼っています

   have; keep as a pet

   More detail

   小さい means “small” here and directly describes 犬 before the noun. It is an i-adjective: the form before a noun is 小さい犬, while a polite predicate is 犬は小さいです (“The dog is small”). Its opposite is 大きい (“big”): 大きい犬 means “a big dog.” 犬 means “dog.” It is the noun being kept as a pet in this sentence. A useful related pattern is 猫を飼っています (“We have a cat as a pet”), where the noun before を is the object of 飼っています. 飼っています comes from 飼う, “to keep or raise an animal.” The form 飼っています is polite and uses 〜ています; with this verb, it describes an ongoing situation or current state of keeping the animal. It is not the ordinary general possession verb for every kind of object. For example, 犬を飼っています means “I/We have a dog as a pet,” while 車を持っています means “I/We have a car.” Japanese does not mark the subject in this sentence, so the fixed translation supplies “we” as the intended subject. Together, 小さい犬 means “a small dog.” The particle を marks that noun phrase as the object of 飼っています, and 飼っています states the ongoing fact of keeping it as a pet. The whole utterance therefore means “We have a small dog.”

5. 子どもと犬は仲がいいですか。

   How do they get along?

   子ども

   child; children

   犬

   dog

   仲がいい

   get along well

   ですか

   polite question ending

   More detail

   子ども means “child” here. Its plural is not marked by a separate ending, so context can determine whether it refers to one child or more than one. Example: 子どもが遊びます。—“A child/Children play.” 犬 means “dog.” Example: 犬がいます。—“There is a dog.” In this sentence, 子どもと犬 is a coordinated noun phrase: と means “and,” while は marks the combined phrase as the topic. The supplied translation presents them together as “they.” 仲がいい literally describes a good relationship and is used for people or other beings that get along well. 仲 means “relationship” or “rapport,” and いい is the word “good” in its common form. The pattern AとBは仲がいい means “A and B get along well.” Example: 兄弟は仲がいいです。—“The siblings get along well.” ですか makes the preceding statement into a polite question. です is the polite copular form, and か marks a question. The ending does not itself specify a number; it simply asks politely. Example: 犬ですか。—“Is it a dog?” Together, 子どもと犬は sets “the child/children and the dog” as the topic, and 仲がいいですか asks whether their relationship is good. Thus the utterance asks how well the child/children and the dog get along, matching the fixed translation “How do they get along?”

6. 子どもと犬は毎日一緒に遊びます。

   They play together every day.

   子ども

   child; children

   犬

   dog

   毎日

   every day

   一緒に

   together

   遊びます

   play

   More detail

   子ども means “child” here. Japanese nouns usually do not mark singular versus plural by changing form, so this can mean “child” or “children” when the context supports it. Example: 子どもが遊びます。— “A child plays.” 犬 means “dog.” It is also an unchanged noun for singular or plural unless another expression or the context makes the number clear. Together with 子どもと, it forms the coordinated topic “the child/children and the dog.” The particle と connects nouns in an “A and B” relationship. 毎日 means “every day” and places the action on a daily schedule. It can be used directly before the predicate: 毎日歩きます。— “I walk every day.” 一緒に means “together.” The noun 一緒 (“togetherness; being together”) takes the particle に to form an adverbial expression describing doing something together. Example: 一緒に食べます。— “We eat together.” 遊びます is the polite nonpast form of 遊ぶ, “to play.” The ending ます makes the statement polite; in this sentence, the fixed translation and context give it the present/habitual meaning “play,” rather than a future meaning. Example: 子どもが公園で遊びます。— “The child plays in the park.” The topic 子どもと犬は presents the child/children and the dog as the participants being discussed. 毎日 says when the action occurs, and 一緒に遊びます says that they play together. Thus the whole utterance means “They play together every day,” with the participants understood from the topic as the child/children and the dog.