Even though we don’t normally think of it this way, ‘there is/are’ is functionally a different verb than ‘to be.’ It uses the same words, but it’s meaning is totally different. Our familiarity with English can make it hard to understand why the copula ‘です’ and the verbs ‘あります/います’ are separate words, but as your textbook suggests, it is the best strategy to remember that ‘あります/います’ refer to location, possession (‘I have/you have’ and so forth), and events that will take place. Conversely, ‘です’ is used to liken two or more things to one another or to state that something simply exists. These words are extremely common in Japanese, so mastering their particulars is an important step toward proficiency in the language.
Much has been written on the difference between ‘は’ and ‘が,’ so for now, it is best to simply memorize that the subject of ‘あります/います’ always takes ‘が.’ (There are exceptions to this rule, but it is correct enough of the time to be useful to memorize as if there were not.)
Many early students of Japanese are taught to think of the particle ‘で’ as a correlate to the English preposition ‘at.’ Thus, learning that the verbs ‘あります/います’ use the particle ‘に’ can be confusing. This is because ‘で’ means ‘at’ only when referring to a verb of action (like drinking, eating, dancing, etc.), not a verb of existence or being. ‘に’ is the particle we use with such verbs. As you continue your study of Japanese, you will learn that ‘に’ in particular has many different applications, one of which is to refer to where something exists, resides, or generally is. Later in your studies, you will learn more verbs that prefer ‘に’ instead of ‘で.’
The question is asking us if we have a part time job to do tomorrow. This construction is slightly awkward in English, but completely acceptable in Japanese. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. Omitting the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate it and mark it with the particle ‘が.’ Because we are talking about an inanimate subject, we use ‘ある.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、あした、アルバイトがあります。

The question is asking us if we have a part time job to do tomorrow. This construction is slightly awkward in English, but completely acceptable in Japanese. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. Omitting the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate it and mark it with the particle ‘が.’ Because we are talking about an inanimate subject, we use ‘ある.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、あした、アルバイトがあります。

Even though we don’t normally think of it this way, ‘there is/are’ is functionally a different verb than ‘to be.’ It uses the same words, but it’s meaning is totally different. Our familiarity with English can make it hard to understand why the copula ‘です’ and the verbs ‘あります/います’ are separate words, but as your textbook suggests, it is the best strategy to remember that ‘あります/います’ refer to location, possession (‘I have/you have’ and so forth), and events that will take place. Conversely, ‘です’ is used to liken two or more things to one another or to state that something simply exists. These words are extremely common in Japanese, so mastering their particulars is an important step toward proficiency in the language.
Much has been written on the difference between ‘は’ and ‘が,’ so for now, it is best to simply memorize that the subject of ‘あります/います’ always takes ‘が.’ (There are exceptions to this rule, but it is correct enough of the time to be useful to memorize as if there were not.)
Many early students of Japanese are taught to think of the particle ‘で’ as a correlate to the English preposition ‘at.’ Thus, learning that the verbs ‘あります/います’ use the particle ‘に’ can be confusing. This is because ‘で’ means ‘at’ only when referring to a verb of action (like drinking, eating, dancing, etc.), not a verb of existence or being. ‘に’ is the particle we use with such verbs. As you continue your study of Japanese, you will learn that ‘に’ in particular has many different applications, one of which is to refer to where something exists, resides, or generally is. Later in your studies, you will learn more verbs that prefer ‘に’ instead of ‘で.’
The question is asking us when we will have Japanese class. We begin by stating the time that we will have class. Here, we’ll make use of the ‘と’ grammar point we learned in this chapter to express that we have Japanese class on several days of the week. Omitting the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate it and mark it with the particle ‘が.’ Because we are talking about an inanimate subject, we use ‘ある.’ We arrive at this answer:
月曜日と水曜日と金曜日に日本語のクラスがあります。
げつようびとすいようびときんようびににほんごのクラスがあります。

The question is asking us when we will have Japanese class. We begin by stating the time that we will have class. Here, we’ll make use of the ‘と’ grammar point we learned in this chapter to express that we have Japanese class on several days of the week. Omitting the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate it and mark it with the particle ‘が.’ Because we are talking about an inanimate subject, we use ‘ある.’ We arrive at this answer:
月曜日と水曜日と金曜日に日本語のクラスがあります。
げつようびとすいようびときんようびににほんごのクラスがあります。

Even though we don’t normally think of it this way, ‘there is/are’ is functionally a different verb than ‘to be.’ It uses the same words, but it’s meaning is totally different. Our familiarity with English can make it hard to understand why the copula ‘です’ and the verbs ‘あります/います’ are separate words, but as your textbook suggests, it is the best strategy to remember that ‘あります/います’ refer to location, possession (‘I have/you have’ and so forth), and events that will take place. Conversely, ‘です’ is used to liken two or more things to one another or to state that something simply exists. These words are extremely common in Japanese, so mastering their particulars is an important step toward proficiency in the language.
Much has been written on the difference between ‘は’ and ‘が,’ so for now, it is best to simply memorize that the subject of ‘あります/います’ always takes ‘が.’ (There are exceptions to this rule, but it is correct enough of the time to be useful to memorize as if there were not.)
Many early students of Japanese are taught to think of the particle ‘で’ as a correlate to the English preposition ‘at.’ Thus, learning that the verbs ‘あります/います’ use the particle ‘に’ can be confusing. This is because ‘で’ means ‘at’ only when referring to a verb of action (like drinking, eating, dancing, etc.), not a verb of existence or being. ‘に’ is the particle we use with such verbs. As you continue your study of Japanese, you will learn that ‘に’ in particular has many different applications, one of which is to refer to where something exists, resides, or generally is. Later in your studies, you will learn more verbs that prefer ‘に’ instead of ‘で.’
The question is asking us if we have friends in Japan. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. Omitting the location and the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate them and mark them with the particles ‘に’ and ‘が,’ respectively. Because we are talking about an animate subject, we use ‘いる.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、日本に友達がいます。
はい、にほんにともだちがいます。

The question is asking us if we have friends in Japan. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. Omitting the location and the subject in our response would be appropriate, and perhaps even most natural, but to practice using the correct particle, we will reiterate them and mark them with the particles ‘に’ and ‘が,’ respectively. Because we are talking about an animate subject, we use ‘いる.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、日本に友達がいます。
はい、にほんにともだちがいます。

Even though we don’t normally think of it this way, ‘there is/are’ is functionally a different verb than ‘to be.’ It uses the same words, but it’s meaning is totally different. Our familiarity with English can make it hard to understand why the copula ‘です’ and the verbs ‘あります/います’ are separate words, but as your textbook suggests, it is the best strategy to remember that ‘あります/います’ refer to location, possession (‘I have/you have’ and so forth), and events that will take place. Conversely, ‘です’ is used to liken two or more things to one another or to state that something simply exists. These words are extremely common in Japanese, so mastering their particulars is an important step toward proficiency in the language.
Much has been written on the difference between ‘は’ and ‘が,’ so for now, it is best to simply memorize that the subject of ‘あります/います’ always takes ‘が.’ (There are exceptions to this rule, but it is correct enough of the time to be useful to memorize as if there were not.)
Many early students of Japanese are taught to think of the particle ‘で’ as a correlate to the English preposition ‘at.’ Thus, learning that the verbs ‘あります/います’ use the particle ‘に’ can be confusing. This is because ‘で’ means ‘at’ only when referring to a verb of action (like drinking, eating, dancing, etc.), not a verb of existence or being. ‘に’ is the particle we use with such verbs. As you continue your study of Japanese, you will learn that ‘に’ in particular has many different applications, one of which is to refer to where something exists, resides, or generally is. Later in your studies, you will learn more verbs that prefer ‘に’ instead of ‘で.’
The workbook offers us a few different words to use to talk about older siblings, but they are all in the formal register. When referring to your own older brother or sister, it is much more natural to say ‘あに’ or ‘あね,’ respectively. We typically use ‘おにいさん’ and ‘おねえさん’ when referring to someone else’s older siblings and ‘おとうとさん’ and ‘いもうとさん’ when referring to their younger siblings. (‘おとうと’ and ‘いもうと’ are appropriate to use when referring to your own younger siblings.)
The question is asking us if we have siblings. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. If we are answering in the affirmative, we want to specify which siblings we have, who will be marked with the particle ‘が.’ Note that if you have more than one older or younger sibling, you would need to use specific counter words to refer to specific numbers of people. Because we are talking about an animate subject, we use ‘いる.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、兄がいます。
はい、あにがいます。

The question is asking us if we have siblings. Since this is a direct question, we first answer with yes or no. If we are answering in the affirmative, we want to specify which siblings we have, who will be marked with the particle ‘が.’ Note that if you have more than one older or younger sibling, you would need to use specific counter words to refer to specific numbers of people. Because we are talking about an animate subject, we use ‘いる.’ We arrive at this answer:
はい、兄がいます。
はい、あにがいます。