Monday, November 10, 2008

II. Particles : Ne and yo

Ne and yo belong to Group 3 particles and always come at the end of a sentence.
Ne is used to show your own agreement with what was said previously or your expectation that the hearer will agree with you.The intonation of ne is falling in the first case, and rising in the second case.
On the other hand, yo is used to state your own judgement emphatically, regardless of what the hearer might think. It is used to tell someone information he should
know or to tell him what he should do.



Examples
1. A : Doko kara kimashita ka.
"Where are you from?"
B : Biruma kara kimashita.
"I'm from Burma."
2. A : Jaa, Birumago o hanashimasu ne.
"Then you speak Burmese, don't you?"
B : Hai.
"Yes."
3. A : Kono hon o yomimashita ka.
"Did you read this book?"
B : Hai. Omoshiroi desu ne.
"Yes. It's interesting, isn't it?"
4. A : Kono hon o yomimashita ka.
"Did you read this book?"
B : Iie.
"No."
5. A : Omoshiroi desu yo.
"It's really interesting, you know."
B : Soo desu ka.
"Is that so?"

You have to be careful not to overuse yo ; otherwise you might impress others as being an aggressive speaker.

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