Taking a Short Break | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 疲れました。

   I feel tired.

   疲れました

   feel tired

   More detail

   疲れました means “I feel tired” here. It is the polite past form of 疲れる (“to become tired” or “to get tired”). The form 疲れました can describe a recently reached state, so the English present “feel tired” is a natural translation in this utterance; it does not necessarily refer to a remote past event. 疲れる is an intransitive verb: the person who becomes tired is expressed as the subject, rather than as a direct object. Its polite non-past form is 疲れます, while 疲れました is the polite past form. For example: 仕事のあとで疲れました。 — “I got tired after work.” The subject is not stated in the Japanese sentence. The fixed translation identifies that subject as “I,” so the utterance means that the speaker feels tired. The polite ending makes the statement suitable for a polite conversation. Together, 疲れました expresses the speaker’s current tired state in a polite way: “I feel tired.”

2. 短い休憩を取りましょう。

   Let's take a short break.

   短い

   short

   休憩

   break

   取りましょう

   let’s take

   More detail

   短い means “short” here and modifies the following noun: 短い休憩 means “a short break.” It is the attributive form of 短い, an i-adjective; the final い remains before a noun. Example: 短い映画 means “a short film.” 休憩 means “break” or “rest.” In 休憩を取る, it forms a useful expression meaning “to take a break.” を marks 休憩 as the object of the verb, so the phrase is literally organized around taking a break rather than simply being a break. 取りましょう is the polite volitional form of 取る, “to take.” The ending -ましょう presents a proposal involving the speaker: “let’s …” or “shall we …?” Thus, 取る becomes 取りましょう in this polite proposal form. Example: 始めましょう means “Let’s begin.” Together, 短い + 休憩 gives “a short break,” and 休憩を取る gives “take a break.” The polite proposal 取りましょう makes the whole utterance mean “Let’s take a short break.”

3. この椅子は空いていますか。

   Is this chair free?

   この

   this

   椅子

   chair

   空いていますか

   is free?

   More detail

   この points to an item identified as “this” in the situation and comes directly before the noun it modifies. Here it identifies the chair as “this chair.” Japanese also has その for “that” associated with the listener or context, and あの for “that over there.” These demonstratives do not themselves mark grammatical number. 椅子 means “chair.” It is a noun, and この椅子 is the reusable pattern “this + noun.” Example: この本 means “this book.” 空いていますか asks whether the chair is free or available. The underlying verb is 空く, “to become vacant” or “to become available”; here, 空いている describes the resulting state, “be vacant/free.” います is the polite form of いる within this ている construction, and final か marks the sentence as a question. 空く and 開く (“to open”) are different verbs, although their pronunciation is the same in these forms; the written characters and context distinguish them. Example: 席が空いています means “A seat is available.” Together, この椅子 (“this chair”) and 空いていますか (“is free?”) produce the complete meaning: “Is this chair free?” The question asks about the chair’s availability for sitting; it does not assert that anyone has already sat there.

4. ここに座ってもいいです。

   You can sit here.

   ここ

   here

   座って

   sit

   もいいです

   is okay / is permitted

   More detail

   ここ means “here,” referring to a place. Japanese place words include ここ “here,” そこ “there near the listener,” and あそこ “over there”; the choice depends on the spatial context, not on the noun that may be nearby. 座って is the て-form of the verb 座る “to sit.” The て-form is used here to connect the action with the permission pattern that follows. For example, ここに座ってください。 means “Please sit here.” もいいです completes the pattern Vて + もいいです, meaning that doing the action is acceptable or permitted. Thus 座ってもいいです means “it is okay to sit” or “you may sit.” The も belongs to this permission pattern; it is not being used here to mean “also” in the English translation. A useful contrast is ここに座ってはいけません。 — “You must not sit here.” ここに marks the place where the action occurs: に points to the location associated with sitting. Combining the parts in order, ここに座ってもいいです。 says that sitting in this place is permitted: “You can sit here.”

5. 休憩用に小さなおやつを持ってきました。

   I brought a small snack for the break.

   休憩用に

   for the break

   小さな

   small

   おやつ

   snack

   持ってきました

   brought

   More detail

   休憩用に means “for the break.” 休憩 is a noun meaning a rest or break, and 用 marks something intended for a particular use or purpose. The particle に marks that purpose here. A reusable pattern is N用に + item/action: 旅行用にバッグを買いました。 — “I bought a bag for travel.” 小さな means “small” here and directly modifies the following noun. It is a prenominal descriptive form used before nouns; it is related in meaning to 小さい (“small”), but it is not simply the ordinary inflected form of 小さい. 小さい can also modify a noun, as in 小さい家 (“a small house”), and can function predicatively, as in 家は小さいです (“The house is small”). 小さな is not normally used as a standalone predicate with です. For example, 小さな家 means “a small house.” おやつ is a noun for a snack or light food eaten between meals. The initial お is part of this commonly used word as it appears here; do not treat it as a separate article. For example, おやつを食べます。 means “I eat a snack.” 持ってきました means “brought” in this sentence. It is the polite past form of 持ってくる, “to bring”: 持つ means “hold or carry,” and 来る means “come,” while the combined expression describes carrying something to the relevant place or person. The て connection in 持ってきました links the carrying with coming, and ました makes the expression polite and past. For example, 本を持ってきました。 means “I brought a book.” Together, 休憩用に identifies the purpose, 小さな describes おやつ, and 持ってきました states the completed polite action of bringing it. The whole utterance therefore means “I brought a small snack for the break.”

6. 水を取ってきます。

   I'll get some water.

   水

   water

   取ってきます

   will go and get; will bring back

   More detail

   水 means “water” here. Japanese nouns do not normally mark an indefinite article, so 水 can correspond to “some water” in English without itself stating a measured amount. Example: 水を飲みます。 — “I drink water.” 取ってきます is a polite, nonpast form used here for an immediate intention: “I’ll go and get it” or “I’ll bring it back.” Its useful pattern is V-てくる: perform an action and then come back toward the relevant place or person. In this form, 取って is the て-form of 取る (“take” or “get”), and きます is the polite nonpast form of 来る (“come”). The two parts together are not just “take” plus an unrelated “come”; they present getting something and returning with it as one movement. Example: 買ってきます。 — “I’ll go buy it and bring it back.” Together, 水を取ってきます。 means “I’ll go get some water,” with 水を marking water as what is obtained and 取ってきます expressing the speaker’s polite intention to get it and return. Japanese ます forms are polite; the nonpast form can refer to a near-future action when the context is an intention or announcement.

7. ここは静かですね。

   This place feels quiet.

   ここ

   here; this place

   静か

   quiet

   ですね

   is, I agree / isn't it

   More detail

   ここ means “here” or “this place.” It is a demonstrative for a location near the speaker or understood as the current place. In this utterance, the translation identifies the intended meaning as “this place,” and the following context also uses ここ for resting here. A useful contrast is そこ “there/that place” near the listener or away from the speaker, though the exact choice depends on the situation. 静か means “quiet.” It is a な-adjective: before a noun, use 静かな, as in 静かな場所 (“a quiet place”); at the end of a polite sentence, 静かです means “is quiet.” The form 静か itself does not show the noun’s number or gender. ですね combines polite です with sentence-final ね. Here, です presents the description politely, while ね invites shared acknowledgment of the observation, giving the natural effect “is quiet, isn’t it?” or “feels quiet.” This is not a question asking for information in the same way as a neutral information question. Together, ここは静かですね。 uses ここは to set “this place” as the topic, 静か to describe it, and ですね to present the observation politely while seeking agreement. The whole utterance therefore means “This place feels quiet.”

8. では、ここで少し休めます。

   Then we can rest here for a bit.

   では

   then

   ここで

   here

   少し

   a little; for a bit

   休めます

   can rest

   More detail

   では marks a transition from what has just been said: “then” or “in that case.” It is useful for moving to a next action or conclusion. In this sentence, it introduces the suggestion or conclusion that resting is possible here. ここで means “here,” with で marking the place or situation where an action takes place. ここ is the demonstrative for a place near the relevant viewpoint; the word itself does not identify a more specific location. Compare ここで休みます (“I rest here”) with ここにあります (“It is here”): で marks where an action occurs, while に can mark where something exists or where something is directed. 少し means “a little” or “for a short while” here. It modifies the amount or duration of resting, so 少し休む means “rest a little” or “rest for a bit.” Example: 少し待ちます。 — “I’ll wait a little.” 休めます is the polite nonpast form of the potential form 休める, “can rest.” The basic verb is 休む, “to rest”; its potential form is 休める, and the polite form is 休めます. The potential form presents resting as possible or available, rather than simply stating that someone rests. Japanese does not mark the subject as “we” in this verb form, so the translation’s “we” comes from the intended context, not from an explicit subject in the sentence. Example: ここで休めます。 — “We can rest here.” Together, では (“then”), ここで (“here”), 少し (“for a bit”), and 休めます (“can rest”) produce: “Then we can rest here for a bit.”