English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
The verbal construction in Japanese to ask how much something costs works slightly different than in English. Instead of combining the question word ‘how’ with the quantifier ‘much,’ Japanese has its own word, ‘いくら,’ with the same meaning.
The customer is holding watch #1. Because it is nearest to him, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘こ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
このとけいはいくらですか。
kono tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

The customer is holding watch #1. Because it is nearest to him, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘こ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
このとけいはいくらですか。
kono tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
The verbal construction in Japanese to ask how much something costs works slightly different than in English. Instead of combining the question word ‘how’ with the quantifier ‘much,’ Japanese has its own word, ‘いくら,’ with the same meaning.
Watch #2 is closer to the attendant. Because it is near the listener, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘そ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
そのとけいはいくらですか。
sono tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

Watch #2 is closer to the attendant. Because it is near the listener, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘そ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
そのとけいはいくらですか。
sono tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
The verbal construction in Japanese to ask how much something costs works slightly different than in English. Instead of combining the question word ‘how’ with the quantifier ‘much,’ Japanese has its own word, ‘いくら,’ with the same meaning.
The attendant responds with the price of watch #2. Because it is nearest to the speaker, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘こ’ series. The price is listed in the picture. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, and remembering to make changes to the pronunciation of words as needed, we can assemble the question as follows:
このとけいはにせんはっぴゃくえんです
kono tokei ha (wa) nisen happyaku en desu.

The attendant responds with the price of watch #2. Because it is nearest to the speaker, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘こ’ series. The price is listed in the picture. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, and remembering to make changes to the pronunciation of words as needed, we can assemble the question as follows:
このとけいはにせんはっぴゃくえんです
kono tokei ha (wa) nisen happyaku en desu.

English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
The verbal construction in Japanese to ask how much something costs works slightly different than in English. Instead of combining the question word ‘how’ with the quantifier ‘much,’ Japanese has its own word, ‘いくら,’ with the same meaning.
Watch #3 is far from both the customer and the attendant. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
あのとけいはいくらですか。
ano tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

Watch #3 is far from both the customer and the attendant. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
あのとけいはいくらですか。
ano tokei ha (wa) ikura desu ka.

English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
The verbal construction in Japanese to ask how much something costs works slightly different than in English. Instead of combining the question word ‘how’ with the quantifier ‘much,’ Japanese has its own word, ‘いくら,’ with the same meaning.
The attendant responds with the price of watch #3. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. The price is listed in the picture. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
あのとけいはせんごひゃくえんです。
ano tokei ha (wa) sen gohyaku en desu.

The attendant responds with the price of watch #3. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. The price is listed in the picture. Using the verbal constructions that we’ve already learned, we can assemble the question as follows:
あのとけいはせんごひゃくえんです。
ano tokei ha (wa) sen gohyaku en desu.

English only has two kinds of demonstrative pronouns (the linguistic term for words like ‘this/these’ or ‘that/those’), which also double as demonstrative adjectives (the linguistic term for the ‘this’ in ‘this bag’ and so on). English uses the word ‘that/these’ to refer to anything that is far from the speaker, but Japanese has a third class of demonstrative pronouns for things that are neither near the speaker nor the listener. Much later in our studies, we will learn more uses for these words, but for now just remember to use ‘あれ /あの/あそこ’ when talking about something that is far away from you and the person with whom you are speaking.
‘じゃあ’ is a contraction of the phrase ‘では’ (pronounced ‘dewa’ and roughly meaning ‘so then’) that is slightly casual in tone. It is not inappropriate to use ‘じゃあ’ around strangers or in less casual situations, but if you want to sound even more polite, ‘では’ is preferred.
The customer decides he’ll take watch #3. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. Using the verbal construction that we learned in Expression Notes 3 (pg. 67 of Genki I) , we can assemble the question as follows:
あのとけいをください。
jaa, ano tokei wo (o) kudasai.

The customer decides he’ll take watch #3. Because it is neither near the customer nor the attendant, and because we are talking about a specific item, we will use the adjectival word from the ‘あ’ series. Using the verbal construction that we learned in Expression Notes 3 (pg. 67 of Genki I) , we can assemble the question as follows:
じゃあ、あのとけいをください。
jaa, ano tokei wo (o) kudasai.