Choosing a Light Snack | Learn Japanese in English

Sentence explanations

1. おやつが欲しいです。

   I want a snack.

   おやつ

   snack

   欲しい

   want

   です

   polite ending

   More detail

   おやつ is a noun meaning “snack” or “snack-time food.” In this sentence it is marked by が, which identifies what is wanted. Example: おやつを食べます。 — “I eat a snack.” The particle を marks the thing directly acted on, so it is different from が in the fixed pattern おやつが欲しいです. 欲しい means “want” here. It is anい-adjective, not a verb: its dictionary form is 欲しい, and its negative form is 欲しくない (“do not want”). The pattern Nが欲しい expresses wanting a thing: 水が欲しいです。 — “I want water.” Japanese commonly uses this adjective pattern for a speaker’s desire for an object. です adds polite sentence style. With anい-adjective such as 欲しい, it follows the adjective: 欲しいです. The adjective itself carries the meaning “want”; です makes the statement polite rather than adding a separate object or quantity. Together, おやつが欲しいです。 means “I want a snack.” The structure is おやつ (snack) + が (marks the desired thing) + 欲しい (want) + です (polite style).

2. あまりおなかがすいていません。

   I am not very hungry.

   あまり

   not very; not much

   おなか

   stomach; appetite

   すいていません

   am not hungry

   More detail

   あまり modifies the following predicate and, with a negative form, means “not very” or “not much.” This is a useful pattern: あまり + negative predicate = “not very ….” For example, あまり食べません。 means “I do not eat much.” おなか means “stomach,” but in the construction おなかがすく, it refers to feeling hungry rather than to the physical organ alone. The particle が marks おなか as the subject of this state. The expression is reusable with other predicates, such as おなかがいっぱいです。 (“I am full.”). すいていません is the polite negative form of the state expression おなかがすいています (“I am hungry”). The underlying verb is すく (often written 空く), “become empty”; with おなか, it describes hunger. The -ている form presents the resulting current state, and -ていません makes that state negative. Thus, this form means “am not hungry” here; it is not simply a general-purpose negative of every meaning of すく. Together, おなかがすいていません means “I am not hungry,” and placing あまり before it weakens the statement to “I am not very hungry.” The whole utterance is therefore: “I am not very hungry.”

3. では、ヨーグルトのような軽いものを選びましょう。

   Then choose something light, like yogurt.

   では

   then

   ヨーグルト

   yogurt

   のような

   like; such as

   軽い

   light

   もの

   thing

   選びましょう

   let’s choose

   More detail

   では sets up the next step from the situation already established. Here it means “then,” rather than naming an object. It is a useful transition for moving from a condition or discussion to a proposal. ヨーグルト is the noun “yogurt.” It is a loanword written in katakana. In this sentence it provides the concrete comparison point for the following pattern. のような means “like” or “such as” and comes before the noun it describes. The pattern A のような B means “a B like A” or “a B such as A.” Example: 春のような暖かい日 — “a warm day like spring.” The form のような is attributive; のように is used when the comparison modifies an action or description in another way. 軽い is the i-adjective “light.” Its base form is already 軽い, and it describes もの here. With food, “light” can describe something that is not heavy or burdensome as food; the fixed translation gives that intended sense. The negative form is 軽くない (“not light”), and the adverbial form is 軽く (“lightly” or “in a light way”), depending on context. Example: 軽い食事を食べます。 — “I eat a light meal.” もの is a noun meaning “thing” or “item.” In 軽いもの, it makes the adjective into the description of an unspecified thing: “something light.” The noun remains general; the sentence does not identify one particular item. Example: 温かいものをください。 — “Please give me something warm.” 選びましょう comes from the verb 選ぶ (“choose; select”). The ending -ましょう is the polite volitional form, commonly used for a suggestion such as “let’s …” or “shall we …?” Here the speaker proposes choosing, and ものを marks the thing chosen. Example: この色を選びましょう。 — “Let’s choose this color.” Putting the parts together, ヨーグルトのような軽いもの means “something light like yogurt”: yogurt is the comparison example, while 軽いもの is the broader item description. では then connects this proposal to the preceding situation, and 選びましょう makes it a polite suggestion: “Then let’s choose something light, like yogurt.”

4. ナッツもありますか。

   Do we have nuts too?

   ナッツ

   nuts

   も

   also; too

   あります

   be available; exist

   More detail

   ナッツ means “nuts” here. It is a noun written in katakana, and Japanese commonly uses the same form without a separate plural ending; the context determines whether it means nuts generally or some nuts. Example: ナッツを食べます。 — “I eat nuts.” も is placed after the word or phrase being added and means “also” or “too.” Here it adds nuts to the things already under discussion. Example: 果物もあります。 — “There is fruit too.” あります is the polite nonpast form of ある, used for the existence or availability of inanimate things. In this context, it asks whether nuts are available. The nonpast form can refer to a present situation; it does not by itself assert a future meaning. Example: 戸棚にパンがあります。 — “There is bread in the cupboard.” Together, ナッツもあります means “there are nuts too” or “we have nuts too.” The final か turns this polite statement into a question: ナッツもありますか。 — “Do we have nuts too?” The following context confirms that some are in the cupboard, but the question itself asks only whether they are available; it does not specify a quantity.

5. 戸棚にいくつかあります。

   There are some in the cupboard.

   戸棚

   cupboard

   に

   in; at

   いくつか

   some; several

   あります

   there are; exist

   More detail

   戸棚 means “cupboard” here. It is a noun and can be used for a storage cupboard or cabinet. Example: 戸棚を開けます。 — “I open the cupboard.” に marks the location where something exists in this sentence. In the reusable pattern [場所]に[もの]があります, it can be understood as “in/at [place] there is/are [thing].” いくつか means “some” or “several.” It indicates an unspecified small number of items without stating an exact count. Example: いくつか買いました。 — “I bought some.” あります is the polite nonpast form of ある, used for the existence or presence of inanimate things. The relevant pattern is [場所]にあります — “it is/they are in [place]” or, when the item is omitted, “there is/are [something] in [place].” ある is the base form; あります is its polite form. For people and many animals, Japanese generally uses いる instead, not ある. Together, 戸棚に sets the location as “in the cupboard,” いくつか says that an unspecified number of items are present, and あります states their existence politely. The item is omitted because it is understood from the context: the preceding question is about nuts, so the intended meaning is “There are some [nuts] in the cupboard.”

6. ヨーグルトにナッツを入れるとよさそうです。

   Yogurt with nuts sounds good.

   ヨーグルト

   yogurt

   ナッツ

   nuts

   入れる

   put in; add

   とよさそうです

   seems good when…

   More detail

   ヨーグルト means “yogurt.” It is a noun and can be used as the destination or medium in a pattern such as ヨーグルトに…を入れる, “put … into yogurt.” The particle に marks the place or substance receiving something here. ナッツ means “nuts.” It is a noun; in this sentence, を marks it as the thing being added. The sentence does not specify the number or type of nuts. 入れる means “to put in” or “to add.” This is the dictionary form, and it is also the form used after と in this conditional pattern. A useful contrast is 入る, “go in” or “fit,” which describes something entering or being inside rather than someone putting it in. For example: 砂糖をコーヒーに入れる。 — “I put sugar in coffee.” とよさそうです expresses “if/when [someone] does that, it seems good.” Here, と follows the plain-form verb 入れる and introduces a condition or result: 入れると, “if/when [you] put [them] in.” よさそうです means “seems good” or “looks like a good idea.” よい is the underlying form of いい; before そう, it appears as よさそう, not いいそう when the meaning is “seems good.” The そうです here is an appearance or inference pattern, not a report meaning “I heard that.” Together, ヨーグルトにナッツを入れるとよさそうです。 means “Yogurt with nuts sounds good.” More literally, it presents adding nuts to yogurt as something that seems good. The preceding context mentions that some items are in the cupboard, but it does not change the grammatical structure or specify a number of nuts. This is a polite, tentative way to give a suggestion or assessment.

7. 小さいボウルを取ってください。

   Take a small bowl.

   小さい

   small

   ボウル

   bowl

   取ってください

   please take

   More detail

   小さい means “small” here and describes the noun that follows it. It is an い-adjective: the dictionary form is 小さい, the negative is 小さくない, and the polite predicative form is 小さいです. Example: 小さい箱です。 — “It is a small box.” ボウル is the noun “bowl,” written in katakana because it is a borrowed word. Japanese does not mark singular or plural on this noun form, so ボウル by itself does not establish a numeric count. The fixed translation renders this phrase as “a small bowl.” 取ってください is a polite request meaning “please take.” It contains the te-form 取って of 取る (“take,” “get,” or “pick up” in suitable contexts) plus ください, a polite request expression. The te-form here connects the action to the request; it is not the dictionary form of the verb. Example: 見てください。 — “Please look.” Together, 小さい modifies ボウル, forming “small bowl,” and 取ってください politely asks the listener to take it. The whole utterance means “Take a small bowl.”

8. それほど多くありません。

   It is not too much.

   それほど

   that much; to that extent

   多く

   much; many

   ありません

   is not

   More detail

   それほど means “that much” or “to that extent.” With a negative predicate, それほど〜ない is a reusable pattern meaning “not so much” or “not that ….” Here it limits the amount being discussed; the exact thing being measured is not named in this utterance. 多く is the adverbial/continuative form of the adjective 多い, “many” or “much.” In 多くありません, it contributes the idea “much/many” before the polite negative ending. Compare 多い in a direct description and 多くない for the plain negative: “not many/not much.” ありません is the polite negative form used after 多く in the polite negative form of 多い: 多くありません. Although ありません can also be used independently as the negative of ある (“to exist/be present”), that existential meaning is not the relevant analysis here. The plain counterpart of this adjective form is 多くない, while 多くありません is polite. Together, それほど多くありません follows the reusable pattern それほど + adjective + negative, meaning “it is not that much” or “there is not so much.” The whole utterance therefore means “It is not too much.”

9. 今、作ります。

   I will make one now.

   今

   now

   作ります

   will make; make

   More detail

   今 means “now” and places the action at the present time. It is a time word and can be used with many predicates: 今、食べます。 means “I will eat now.” 作ります means “will make” here. Its base form is 作る (“to make”); 作ります is the polite non-past form. In Japanese, this form can describe a present habit or a planned/near-future action, so the fixed translation gives the intended future reading. The subject and the thing being made are omitted because they are understood from the situation. 何を作りますか。 means “What will you make?” Together, 今、作ります。 means “I will make one now.” 今 sets the time, while polite 作ります presents the making as the speaker’s action. The word “one” comes from the intended context and is not a separate word in the Japanese sentence.

10. 私のためにナッツを少し残してください。

    Leave some nuts for me, please.

    私のために

    for me

    ナッツ

    nuts

    少し

    some; a little

    残して

    leave; save

    ください

    please

    More detail

    私のために means “for me” here. 私 is the first-person pronoun “I/me”; its form does not change for subject versus object in Japanese, so the role is shown by the particle. のために marks the person or purpose that benefits from an action. Example: 家族のために料理します。 — “I cook for my family.” ナッツ is the noun “nuts,” written in katakana. Japanese nouns generally do not change form for singular or plural, so this form can refer to nuts as food without marking a specific number. 少し means “some” or “a little” in this sentence. It indicates a small or limited amount and is placed before the noun it quantifies: 水を少し飲みます。 — “I drink a little water.” Here it modifies ナッツ, not 残して. 残して is the て-form of the verb 残す, “to leave” or “save” something. The て-form connects this verb to ください to make a polite request. 残す is transitive: the thing being left or saved is marked with を, as in ケーキを残す — “leave some cake.” The form 残して itself does not mark past or present tense. ください is a polite request form meaning “please.” After a verb’s て-form, 〜てください asks someone to do that action politely. Thus 残してください means “please leave/save [it or some].” In this utterance, the requested action is leaving ナッツ. Together, 私のために identifies the beneficiary, ナッツを少し identifies a small amount of nuts as the object, and 残してください politely requests that the listener leave or save them. The whole utterance therefore means: “Leave some nuts for me, please.”