Preparing for a Sunny Walk | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 外は晴れています。

   It's sunny outside.

   外

   outside; outdoors

   晴れています

   is sunny

   More detail

   外 means “outside” or “outdoors.” It is a noun that can identify the outside area in expressions such as 外は…, “as for outside…” or “outside is…”. Example: 外に出ます。 — “I go outside.” 晴れています expresses the current state “is sunny” here. Its base verb is 晴れる, “to become clear/sunny.” The form 晴れています is the polite ている form: 晴れて + います. With a weather verb such as 晴れる, ている presents the resulting state as continuing now, so it describes the present weather rather than simply announcing a change to clear weather. The ending ます makes the statement polite. Example: 今日は晴れています。 — “It is sunny today.” Together, 外は sets outside as the topic, and 晴れています says that it is currently sunny there. The whole utterance therefore means “It’s sunny outside.”

2. サングラスを持ってきてください。

   Bring your sunglasses.

   サングラス

   sunglasses

   持ってきてください

   please bring

   More detail

   サングラス means “sunglasses.” It is a borrowed noun, and Japanese nouns do not change form to mark singular or plural. Here, the following を marks it as the object of the action—the item being brought. 持ってきてください is the polite request “please bring.” The underlying compound verb is 持ってくる, “bring” literally combining carrying something with coming. In this form, 持つ becomes 持って (the -て form), and 来る becomes きて (also a -て form; 来る has the irregular form きて). 持ってきて therefore means “bring,” not merely “hold” or “come.” Adding ください makes the request polite. Example: 本を持ってきてください。 means “Please bring the book.” The sentence combines サングラスを (“sunglasses” marked as the object) with 持ってきてください (“please bring”). Together, using the intended meaning supplied by the translation, it means “Bring your sunglasses.” Japanese does not express the possessor in this sentence itself; “your” is supplied by the intended English translation.

3. 散歩には暑すぎますか。

   Is it too hot for a walk?

   散歩

   walk

   には

   for; as the context for

   暑すぎます

   be too hot

   か

   question marker

   More detail

   散歩 means “a walk” or “strolling.” It is a noun that can be used with に to mark the purpose or situation being considered. Example: 散歩に行きます。— “I go for a walk.” には combines に with は. Here, に marks 散歩 as the purpose or context, while は gives that context topic-like or contrastive focus: “for a walk” or “as far as going for a walk is concerned.” The は does not add a separate English word in every translation. Example: 散歩にはいい天気です。— “It is good weather for a walk.” 暑すぎます means “is too hot.” The relevant base adjective is 暑い, “hot” in terms of weather or temperature. The suffix すぎる means “to be excessively...” or “too...”; with the polite ending, it becomes すぎます. Thus 暑い → 暑すぎる → 暑すぎます. Example: この部屋は暑すぎます。— “This room is too hot.” The form 暑すぎます describes excessive heat; it is not simply the neutral statement “it is hot.” か is placed at the end to form a question. In this sentence, the subject is not stated because the intended meaning makes the weather or temperature understood; Japanese commonly leaves such recoverable information unspoken. The polite form 暑すぎます followed by か asks whether the condition is excessive for the stated purpose. Together, 散歩には sets “going for a walk” as the relevant purpose or context, 暑すぎます says that the temperature is excessive, and か turns the result into a question: “Is it too hot for a walk?”

4. 暖かいですが、それでも行けます。

   It's warm, but we can still go.

   暖かい

   is warm

   ですが

   but

   それでも

   still; nevertheless

   行けます

   can go

   More detail

   暖かい means “warm” here. It is the nonpast form of the い-adjective 暖かい, whose final い is part of the adjective. In polite speech, it can be followed by です: 暖かいです = “It is warm.” Do not confuse it with 暑い, “hot,” which is the adjective used in the preceding question. ですが connects the warm-weather statement to what follows with a contrast: “but.” Here it is the polite connective form used after 暖かい: 暖かいですが、… = “It is warm, but …” The が in this construction marks contrast; it is not the subject marker in this sentence. それでも means “still” or “nevertheless.” It signals that the next situation holds despite the preceding condition. A reusable pattern is A。それでもB。 = “A. Even so, B.” It reinforces the contrast already introduced by ですが, rather than naming a new participant. 行けます means “can go” here. It is the polite nonpast potential form of 行く (“to go”): 行く → 行ける (“can go”) → 行けます (“can go,” polite). The ordinary polite form 行きます means “go” or “will go,” while the negative potential form 行けません means “cannot go.” Japanese does not state the subject in this utterance; the fixed translation identifies the intended subject as “we.” Together, 暖かいですが presents the condition “It is warm, but,” それでも adds “nevertheless,” and 行けます says “we can go.” The complete meaning is: “It’s warm, but we can still go.”

5. 日陰にいられます。

   We can stay in the shade.

   日陰

   shade

   いられます

   can stay

   More detail

   日陰 means “shade,” specifically a place protected from direct sunlight. It is a noun and can be used with the location particle に to mark where someone is or remains. Example: 日陰で休みます。 — “I rest in the shade.” Here で marks the place where the activity happens, while the fixed sentence uses に with a verb of remaining. いられます expresses the ability or possibility of remaining/staying. Its base form is the respectfully neutral verb いる “to be/stay” for a living being. The potential form いられる means “can stay/can remain,” and the polite form いられます is used in the fixed utterance. The form itself does not mark who can stay; the fixed translation identifies the understood subject as “we.” Example: ここにいられます。 — “We can stay here.” Together, 日陰に means “in the shade” as the place of staying, and いられます means “can stay.” The complete utterance therefore means “We can stay in the shade.” The polite ending makes the statement suitable for ordinary polite conversation.

6. 木が私たちを涼しくしてくれるはずです。

   The trees should keep us cool.

   木

   tree(s)

   私たち

   us; we

   涼しく

   cool

   してくれる

   do something for us

   はずです

   should; be expected to

   More detail

   木 means “tree” here. In Japanese, this noun does not by itself specify singular or plural, so 木 can refer to one tree or more than one; the translation identifies the intended reading as “the trees.” 木が marks the trees as the subject of what follows. 私たち means “we/us.” The form itself is unchanged here; を marks this group as the object affected by the action. Japanese pronouns do not always need to be stated, but this utterance explicitly states the affected group. 涼しく is the adverbial form of the i-adjective 涼しい, “cool.” With する, the pattern Xを涼しくする means “make or keep X cool.” The adjective changes from 涼しい to 涼しく because it modifies する in this pattern. Example: 部屋を涼しくする。 — “I make the room cool.” してくれる is する in its て-form, して, plus くれる. する means “do” or “make,” and くれる presents the action as something done for the speaker or the speaker’s side. Here, 涼しくしてくれる means “keep us cool for our benefit.” The useful pattern is XがYを…してくれる: “X does … to Y for us.” はずです expresses an expectation that the speaker considers well-founded: “should” or “is expected to.” はず is followed by the polite copula です; it is not a past-tense form. In this sentence, it applies to the complete preceding action, not only to してくれる. Together, 木が identifies the trees as the subject, 私たちを identifies us as the people affected, and 涼しくしてくれる says that the trees keep us cool for our benefit. Adding はずです makes the complete meaning: “The trees should keep us cool.”

7. 水を一本持っていきます。

   I'll bring a bottle of water.

   水

   water

   一本

   one bottle

   持っていきます

   will bring

   More detail

   水 means “water” here. It is a mass noun, so Japanese does not normally count it directly as one individual item. In a reusable pattern, 水をください。 means “Please give me water.” 一本 is the counter expression used here for one long, cylindrical item, including a bottle or other container of that shape. With the fixed translation, 水を一本 means “one bottle of water”; the sentence does not mean that water itself is inherently a single cylindrical object. The counter 本 is pronounced いっぽん in 一本. 持っていきます is the polite nonpast form of 持っていく. 持つ means “to hold” or “to carry,” and 持っていく combines carrying with いく (“go”) to mean taking or carrying something away from the current reference point. With the fixed translation, the intended meaning is “bring.” The ending ます makes the utterance polite and nonpast; in this context, it describes a future action: “I’ll bring it.” A useful contrast is 持ってきます, which means “bring [it] here,” emphasizing movement toward the relevant place. Together, 水を一本 identifies one bottle of water as the object, and 持っていきます says that the speaker will carry it along. Thus the whole utterance means: “I’ll bring a bottle of water.”

8. 散歩中に役に立ちます。

   It'll come in handy during the walk.

   散歩

   walk

   中に

   during

   役に立ちます

   will come in handy

   More detail

   散歩 means “a walk” here. It is a noun; the related expression 散歩する means “to take a walk.” In 散歩中, it identifies the activity whose duration is being discussed. Example: 毎朝散歩します。 — “I take a walk every morning.” 中に presents a time or situation as the setting for something. 中 can mean “inside” or “in the middle of,” and に marks the relevant time or setting here, so 散歩中に means “during the walk.” This pattern is reusable with other activities, such as 仕事中に — “during work.” 役に立ちます is the polite nonpast form of 役に立つ, a set expression meaning “to be useful” or “to come in handy.” The 立ち part is the stem of 立つ in this expression; the whole expression, rather than just 立つ, carries the meaning “be useful.” The nonpast form can describe a future situation, as in the translation, but it can also describe a present or habitual fact. Example: この地図は旅行で役に立ちます。 — “This map is useful on a trip.” Japanese leaves the subject unspoken here. The sentence says that something will be useful during the walk; the surrounding context supplies what that “something” is. The polite ending ます makes the statement polite, while the nonpast form fits the intended future usefulness. Together, 散歩中に sets the time or situation—“during the walk”—and 役に立ちます says that the contextually understood item will be useful. Thus the complete utterance means, “It’ll come in handy during the walk.”