Talking about a sore throat | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. 喉が少し痛いです。

   My throat feels a little sore.

   喉

   throat

   少し

   a little

   痛い

   sore; painful

   です

   polite sentence ending

   More detail

   喉 means “throat” here. It is a noun. The following が marks 喉 as the subject or focus of the condition being described. For example, 喉が渇いています。 means “My throat is dry.” The pronoun “my” is supplied by the fixed translation; Japanese does not require a separate possessive pronoun here. 少し means “a little” and softens the degree of the condition. It is an adverb, so it modifies 痛い, rather than naming a separate object. For example, 少し疲れています。 means “I am a little tired.” 痛い is the i-adjective meaning “sore” or “painful” in this sentence. Its base form is also 痛い; it can describe pain directly after a subject, as in 頭が痛いです。 (“I have a headache” / literally, “My head hurts”). The form 痛くない is the negative form, meaning “not painful,” while 痛かった is the past form, meaning “was painful.” Here, 痛い describes the throat’s present condition. です gives the sentence a polite ending. With an i-adjective such as 痛い, the adjective itself carries the descriptive meaning, while です adds politeness rather than changing “sore” into a separate action. In casual speech, 喉が少し痛い。 is possible; 喉が少し痛いです。 is the polite version. Together, 喉が identifies the throat as the thing affected, 少し limits the degree, and 痛いです politely states its present condition. The complete meaning is “My throat feels a little sore.”

2. 温かいものを飲んでみてください。

   Try drinking something warm.

   温かい

   warm

   もの

   thing; something

   飲んでみてください

   please try drinking

   More detail

   温かい means “warm” here and directly describes the noun もの: 温かいもの means “something warm.” Its base form is also 温かい; this adjective does not change for the noun’s number. A useful contrast is 冷たい “cold,” as in 冷たいもの “something cold.” もの means “thing.” After a description such as 温かい, it can refer generally to an item or something with that quality, rather than identifying a particular item: 温かいもの = “something warm.” The particle を marks this noun phrase as what is acted on. 飲んでみてください contains the verb 飲む “to drink.” Its form here is 飲んで, the て-form. Adding みる to a verb’s て-form expresses trying the action: 飲んでみる means “try drinking.” The polite request form 飲んでみてください asks someone to try it politely. For example, 食べてみてください。 means “Please try eating it.” Together, 温かいものを identifies something warm as the object, and 飲んでみてください politely asks the listener to try drinking it. The complete meaning is “Try drinking something warm.” The sentence does not state who the subject is; Japanese commonly leaves that participant unstated when it is understood from the situation.

3. お茶を入れてくれますか。

   Could you make me some tea?

   お茶

   tea

   入れて

   make; prepare

   くれますか

   could you do it for me?

   More detail

   お茶 means “tea.” The prefix お- is an honorific/polite element often used with everyday words; the noun itself is 茶 (“tea”). In this sentence, お茶 is the thing being prepared, marked by を. 入れて is the て-form of 入れる, “to put in” or, with tea and similar drinks, “to make/prepare.” Here it means preparing tea, not simply placing an object somewhere. The て-form connects this verb to くれる: Vてくれる describes someone doing V as a favor for the speaker or someone in the speaker’s circle. For example, 手伝ってくれますか。 means “Could you help me?” くれますか is the polite question form of くれる, “to do/give something for me.” After another verb’s て-form, it asks whether the listener will perform that action as a favor. The question ending か makes the request a question; it does not by itself specify a numeric quantity. Together, お茶を入れてくれますか。 has the pattern thing を Vてくれますか, asking politely whether the listener could do V for the speaker. Thus it means “Could you make me some tea?” The following context’s 今、作ります (“I’ll make some now”) is compatible with this request.

4. 今、作ります。

   I'll make some now.

   今

   now

   作ります

   will make; make

   More detail

   今 means “now” here. It is a time word and can be placed at the beginning to set the time of the action. Example: 今、行きます。 — “I’m going now.” 作ります is the polite non-past form of 作る, “to make” or “to prepare.” The non-past form can describe a present action or a future action; the fixed translation makes the future intention clear here: “I’ll make some now.” The polite pattern is 作る → 作ります. Example: 夕食を作ります。 — “I’ll make dinner.” The object is not stated in this sentence; the surrounding context identifies what is being made. Together, 今、作ります。 means “I’ll make some now.” 今 establishes the time, and 作ります expresses the speaker’s polite intention to make or prepare it. Japanese commonly omits the subject when it is understood; here, the fixed translation identifies the speaker as “I.”

5. 今日は声が少し変です。

   My voice sounds strange today.

   今日

   today

   声

   voice

   少し

   a little

   変です

   sounds strange

   More detail

   今日 means “today.” In 今日は, は marks today as the topic, giving the frame “as for today.” The form 今日 itself does not change for number or tense. Example: 今日は休みです。 — “Today is a day off.” 声 means “voice.” It is a noun; 声が marks the voice as the subject of the description. Example: 声が大きいです。 — “The voice is loud.” 少し means “a little” or “slightly.” Here it limits the degree of the following description: the voice is strange to a small extent. Example: 少し疲れています。 — “I am a little tired.” 変です describes something as strange or unusual in polite speech. Its useful base form is 変だ; 変です is the polite form. 変 is a な-adjective (often also called an adjectival noun), so it does not inflect like an -い adjective such as 大きい; です supplies the polite sentence ending here. In this sentence, 変です describes the voice’s condition. Example: この音は変です。 — “This sound is strange.” Together, 今日は sets “today” as the topic, 声が identifies the voice being described, 少し reduces the degree, and 変です says that it is strange. Thus the whole utterance means “My voice sounds strange today.” The Japanese wording describes the voice as strange; “sounds” is the natural English rendering of that description, not a separate Japanese verb in the sentence.

6. 今はあまり話さないでください。

   Try to speak less for now.

   今は

   for now

   あまり

   much; very much

   話さないでください

   please do not speak

   More detail

   今は combines 今 (“now”) with は, which marks the time as the topic: “as for now” or “for now.” 今 can refer to the present time, while 今は highlights the current period in contrast with other times. Example: 今は忙しいです。 — “I’m busy right now.” あまり means “much” or “very much” in this use, but with a negative expression it gives the meaning “not much” or “not very.” It commonly appears before a predicate in a negative form. Example: あまり食べません。 — “I don’t eat much.” 話さないでください is a polite request not to do something. The lexical verb is 話す, “to speak” or “to talk.” Its negative nonpast form is 話さない, and 話さないでください follows the reusable pattern [negative form] + でください, meaning “please do not …” or “please refrain from ….” The form does not mark the speaker’s or addressee’s person or number. Example: ここで写真を撮らないでください。 — “Please do not take photographs here.” Together, 今は sets the time, あまり limits the amount, and 話さないでください makes a polite request to refrain from speaking. The whole utterance means “Please don’t talk much for now,” matching the fixed translation “Try to speak less for now.”

7. それを飲んだら休みます。

   I'll rest after I drink it.

   それを

   it (as the object)

   飲んだら

   after drinking

   休みます

   will rest

   More detail

   それを combines それ, “that/it,” with を, the object marker. それ is a demonstrative pronoun in the それ-series; here the fixed translation identifies it as the thing being drunk. を marks that thing as the object of the following verb. Example: それを見ます。 — “I’ll look at it.” 飲んだら comes from the verb 飲む (“to drink”). Its form is 飲んだ, the plain past form, followed by ら; together, 飲んだら makes a conditional or time clause such as “when/after drinking.” In this utterance, the fixed translation selects the time meaning “after I drink it.” The たら clause is placed before the main clause. Example: 薬を飲んだら、寝ます。 — “After I take the medicine, I’ll go to bed.” 休みます comes from 休む (“to rest,” “to take a break”). 休みます is its polite non-past form. Japanese non-past forms can refer to a future action, so here it means “I’ll rest,” rather than necessarily expressing a current action. Example: 今日は早く休みます。 — “I’ll rest early today.” Together, それを飲んだら means “after I drink it,” and 休みます states what will happen afterward: “I’ll rest.” The omitted subject is understood from the fixed translation as “I,” giving the complete meaning: “I’ll rest after I drink it.”

8. それで喉が楽になるでしょう。

   That should help your throat.

   それで

   with that; as a result

   喉

   throat

   楽になる

   become easier; feel relieved

   でしょう

   should; probably

   More detail

   それで means “with that” or “as a result of that” here. In the supplied context, それ points to the thing just mentioned, and で marks it as the means or cause. A reusable pattern is Xで Yになる: “with/by X, Y becomes …”. 喉 means “throat.” It is the body-part noun in this sentence. The particle が marks 喉 as the subject of the change described next; it does not mean that the throat is performing an intentional action. 楽になる means “become more comfortable” or “feel relieved.” 楽 is a na-adjective meaning “comfortable,” “easy,” or “relieved” depending on context; になる means “become.” The pattern Nが楽になる describes a body part or situation becoming easier or less uncomfortable. Here, the throat is understood to feel better. Example: 仕事が楽になる。 — “The work becomes easier.” でしょう adds a polite, tentative prediction. It presents the result as likely rather than certain, so “should” is a natural translation here. It can also be used for a polite “probably,” depending on context; it is not a past-tense marker. Together, それで (“with that/as a result”), 喉が楽になる (“the throat becomes more comfortable”), and でしょう (“should/probably”) produce: “That should help your throat.”