Using a Computer and Printer in a Quiet Library | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. このパソコンを使ってもいいですか。

   Can I use this computer?

   この

   this

   パソコン

   computer

   使って

   use

   もいいですか

   is it okay?

   More detail

   この means “this” before a noun. It is an attributive demonstrative: use この + noun for something relatively near the speaker or treated as the speaker’s “this.” Japanese also has その + noun for “that” near the listener or already salient; the supplied context uses そのパソコン for “that computer.” パソコン is a noun meaning “computer,” specifically a personal computer in ordinary Japanese. The compact pattern この + noun is reusable: この本 means “this book.” Example: この本を読みます。 — “I read this book.” 使って is the て-form of the verb 使う (“to use”). The て-form connects the verb to following expressions, including the permission pattern 〜てもいいですか. Example: ここでスマートフォンを使ってもいいですか。 — “May I use a smartphone here?” もいいですか completes 〜てもいいですか, literally asking whether doing the action is acceptable. In this pattern, も follows the て-form, and いいですか asks “is it okay?” The pattern V-て + もいいですか means “May I / Is it okay if I …?” It asks for permission rather than simply asking whether an action is possible. Together, このパソコン identifies “this computer,” and 使ってもいいですか asks whether using it is permitted. The whole utterance therefore means “Can I use this computer?”

2. そのパソコンは空いています。

   That computer is free.

   その

   that

   パソコン

   computer

   空いています

   is free

   More detail

   その points to a noun understood as “that …” and comes before the noun it identifies. Demonstratives are selected according to the speaker’s relation to the referent: この means “this …,” その means “that …,” and あの means “that … over there.” The form その itself does not change for number or gender. Example: その本 means “that book.” パソコン is the noun “computer,” commonly used for a personal computer. Japanese nouns do not generally change form for singular and plural, so パソコン can refer to one computer or more than one when the context supports it. Here, the demonstrative and the translation identify one particular computer. 空いています comes from 空く, meaning that a place or resource becomes or is available/unoccupied. The ending 〜ています is the polite form of 〜ている; with this verb, it presents the current resulting state, so the computer is currently available for use. It is not the adjective “empty” in every possible context: 空く can also describe a seat, room, or schedule becoming available. Example: 席が空いています。 — “The seat is free.” The polite non-past ending ます presents the statement respectfully and can describe a present state here. It does not itself specify a future time. Together, そのパソコン means “that computer,” and 空いています says that it is currently available. The complete utterance therefore means “That computer is free.”

3. 画面がとても明るいです。

   The screen is very bright.

   画面

   screen

   とても

   very

   明るい

   bright

   です

   polite sentence ending

   More detail

   画面 means “screen” here. It is a noun and can refer to a physical display or an on-screen view, depending on context. Example: 画面を見る。 — “I look at the screen.” とても is an adverb meaning “very.” It intensifies the description that follows it. Pattern: とても + adjective. Example: とても大きいです。 — “It is very large.” 明るい means “bright” here. It is an い-adjective. Its basic form is 明るい, and its negative form is 明るくない (“not bright”). The related noun 明るさ means “brightness”; the next context uses it in 明るさを下げられます。 — “You can lower the brightness here.” です is a polite sentence ending here. After an い-adjective, it does not change the adjective into another form and does not independently add the lexical meaning “is”; 明るい already describes the screen. The less polite version can end with 明るい alone. Together, 画面が marks “the screen” as what is being described, とても明るい says that it is very bright, and です makes the statement polite. The whole utterance means: “The screen is very bright.”

4. ここで明るさを下げられます。

   You can lower the brightness here.

   ここで

   here

   明るさ

   brightness

   下げられます

   can lower

   More detail

   ここで means “here,” marking the place where the action can be carried out. で marks the location of an activity or action, rather than simply the location where something exists. Example: ここで食べます。 — “I eat here.” 明るさ means “brightness” here. It is formed from the adjective 明るい (“bright”) with -さ, which turns a quality into a noun: 明るい → 明るさ. This pattern is reusable with many adjectives, such as 高さ (“height”) from 高い (“high/tall”). The adjective describes something as bright; the noun names the degree or quality of brightness. 下げられます means “can lower” in this sentence. Its base verb is transitive 下げる (“to lower” or “to turn down”), and 下げられる is its potential form, expressing ability or possibility. ます gives the polite non-past form: 下げられます. This differs from 下がる, which is intransitive and means “go down” or “become lower.” Example: 音量を下げられます。 — “You can lower the volume.” Together, ここで identifies the place, 明るさを marks brightness as what is acted on, and 下げられます says that it can be lowered. The whole utterance therefore means, “You can lower the brightness here.”

5. プリンターも使ってもいいですか。

   Can I use the printer too?

   プリンター

   printer

   も

   also; too

   使ってもいいですか

   May I use ...?

   More detail

   プリンター means “printer” here. It is a noun written in katakana. In a reusable sentence, it can be followed by particles that show its role, such as プリンターを使う (“use the printer”). も adds the meaning “also” or “too” to the item or situation it follows. Here, プリンターも means “the printer too,” indicating that the printer is included in what the speaker is asking permission to use. 使ってもいいですか is a polite way to ask permission: “May I use it?” The verb is 使う (“to use”). Its relevant て-form is 使って; the pattern verb-て + もいいですか asks whether doing the action is allowed. For example, ここで写真を撮ってもいいですか。 means “May I take a photo here?” The negative permission pattern is verb-てはいけません (“must not / may not do ...”), which is a different construction. Together, プリンターも plus 使ってもいいですか produces “Can I use the printer too?” The polite question asks for permission to use the printer and marks the printer as an additional item with も.

6. 机の近くのプリンターを使えます。

   You can use the printer near the desk.

   机

   desk

   の近くの

   near [a noun]

   プリンター

   printer

   使えます

   can use

   More detail

   机 means “desk.” It is a noun and can be used as the reference point in a location phrase. Example: 机の上 means “on the desk.” の近くの means “near [a noun].” Here, の links 机 to 近く, and the second の lets the whole location phrase modify the noun that follows: 机の近くのプリンター = “the printer near the desk.” The pattern Aの近くのB is reusable for “B near A.” プリンター means “printer.” It is the noun being identified by the preceding location phrase. Example: 駅の近くの店 means “a shop near the station.” 使えます means “can use” here. It is the polite form of the potential form 使える, from 使う (“to use”): 使う → 使える → 使えます. The potential form presents using something as possible or available; the polite ending makes the statement suitable for polite conversation. Example: このペンを使えます。 means “You can use this pen.” Putting the parts together, 机の近くの identifies which プリンター is meant, and 使えます says that using it is possible: “You can use the printer near the desk.”

7. 私は音を流すとき、ヘッドホンを使います。

   I'll use headphones if I play any audio.

   私は

   I; as for me

   音

   sound; audio

   流す

   play; let flow

   とき

   when; at the time

   ヘッドホン

   headphones

   使います

   use; will use

   More detail

   私は means “I” with は marking the topic: “as for me.” 私 is the pronoun’s observed form, and は does not itself mean “I.” A reusable pattern is 私は + statement for a neutral statement about yourself. Example: 私は学生です。— “I am a student.” 音 means “sound” or “audio” here. It is a noun, and the following を marks it as the thing acted on. In this sentence, 音 is understood as audio being played, not as a particular named sound. 流す is the dictionary form meaning “to play” audio in this context; its more literal uses include “to let something flow.” The form is followed by を in 音を流す, so 音 is what is played. Example: 音楽を流す。— “I play music.” とき means “time” in the pattern 〜とき, “when/while ….” Here 音を流すとき means “when I play audio” or “if I play audio.” The clause before とき describes the situation in which the main action occurs. Because 流す is in its dictionary form, this pattern presents the playing as a general or prospective situation; it does not by itself assert that the action has already happened. ヘッドホン is the loanword “headphones.” It is a noun written in katakana. Japanese does not require this form to show whether the headphones are one set or more than one set; the context determines that. 使います means “use” here. Its dictionary form is 使う; 使います is the polite nonpast form. Japanese nonpast can refer to a future action, so in this sentence it can naturally be translated as “I’ll use,” while it can also describe a regular practice in another context. Example: このアプリを使います。— “I’ll use this app.” Together, 私は音を流すとき sets up the speaker and the situation: “when I play audio.” ヘッドホンを使います states the action taken in that situation: “I’ll use headphones.” The complete meaning is: “I’ll use headphones if I play any audio.”

8. それで、部屋を静かにできます。

   That will keep the room quiet.

   それで

   that way; so

   部屋

   room

   静かに

   quiet

   できます

   can make or keep

   More detail

   それで means “that way” or “so” here. In the supplied context, it links using headphones with the resulting quiet room. 部屋 means “room.” With を in 部屋を, the room is the thing affected by the following change-of-state expression. 静かに is the adverbial form of the な-adjective 静か (“quiet”). In Nを静かにする or Nを静かにできる, it describes the state that the noun is made or kept in. The に form is used here before the verb. できます is the polite nonpast form of できる. In this pattern, Nを A-に できる means “can make N A” or “can keep N A,” rather than simply “can do” an unspecified action. The polite form is appropriate in a neutral, courteous statement. Here, the fixed translation presents the resulting assurance as “will keep,” not as a separate English claim about ability. Reusable pattern: Nを A-に できます — “can make/keep N A.” Example: 音を小さくできます。 — “You can make the sound quieter.” This is a new practice example, not a fact from the supplied conversation. Together, それで introduces the means or situation, 部屋を marks the affected room, and 静かにできます describes making or maintaining it quiet. The whole utterance means: “That will keep the room quiet.”