Class notes · Lesson 4 · Japanese for beginners

What are your opening hours? · Everyday verbsそちらはなんじからなんじまでですか。

Instructor: NoomenClass of October 17, 2026

Calling to ask for opening hours, greetings through the day, your first verbs in 〜ます form (present, past and negative), the time marker に, the tag ね, and でした for the past. Explore each verb across the day, then take the quiz.

Calling the museum

かいわ

First a call to 104, Japan's directory enquiries, for the Yamato Art Museum's number, then a call to the museum itself. Here そちら means “your place”: the polite way to say “you” on the phone.

Two panels: a woman phones from home with a notebook ready; a museum receptionist answers beside a clock showing nine.

Directory enquiries

いしだ

はい、104 のいしだです。Hai, ichi-maru-yon no Ishida desu.Hello, this is Ishida at 104.

やまとびじゅつかんのでんわばんごうをおねがいします。Yamato Bijutsukan no denwa bangō o onegai shimasu.The phone number of the Yamato Art Museum, please.

いしだ

やまとびじゅつかんですね。かしこまりました。Yamato Bijutsukan desu ne. Kashikomarimashita.The Yamato Art Museum, right? Certainly.

いしだ

おといあわせのばんごうは 0797-38-5432 です。O-toiawase no bangō wa zero-nana-kyū-nana no san-hachi no go-yon-san-ni desu.The number you asked for is 0797-38-5432.

Phone numbers are read digit by digit, and each hyphen is read の.

What are your opening hours?

びじゅつかん

はい、やまとびじゅつかんです。Hai, Yamato Bijutsukan desu.Hello, Yamato Art Museum.

すみません。そちらはなんじからなんじまでですか。Sumimasen. Sochira wa nanji kara nanji made desu ka?Excuse me. What are your opening hours?

びじゅつかん

9じから 4じまでです。Ku-ji kara yo-ji made desu.From 9 to 4.

やすみはなんようびですか。Yasumi wa nan'yōbi desu ka?Which day are you closed?

びじゅつかん

げつようびです。Getsuyōbi desu.Monday.

どうもありがとうございました。Dōmo arigatō gozaimashita.Thank you very much.

A day in verbs

〜ます

Pick a verb. Polite verbs end in 〜ます; change the ending for the negative (〜ません), the past (〜ました) and the past negative (〜ませんでした). Japanese has no separate future: 〜ます also means “will”.

Morningあさ
Daytimeひる
Eveningばん
Nightよる

Present / future

おきます

okimasu

Negative

おきません

okimasen

Past

おきました

okimashita

Past negative

おきませんでした

okimasen deshita

Example

わたしはあさ 6じにおきます。Watashi wa asa roku-ji ni okimasu.I get up at 6 in the morning.

Vocabulary

ことば

Tap a card to hear it and see what it means.

Through the day

Time words

On the phone

Grammar points

ぶんぽう

Reading the clock, から … まで and と are in the telling-time class notes.Telling Time & Daily Routine

V-ます

The polite verb ending, like です for nouns. It covers habits, facts and the future: “I eat”, “I'll eat”.

まいにちりんごをたべます。Mainichi ringo o tabemasu.I eat an apple every day.

わたしは 9じから 5じまではたらきます。Watashi wa ku-ji kara go-ji made hatarakimasu.I work from 9 to 5.

〜ます／〜ません／〜ました／〜ませんでした

The four polite forms: present, present negative, past, past negative. The slides show べんきょうしました (I studied); the other forms complete the pattern.

きのうべんきょうしました。Kinō benkyō shimashita.I studied yesterday.

あしたはたらきません。Ashita hatarakimasen.I won't work tomorrow.

N(time) に V

に marks the point in time when something happens: “at”, “on”. It goes after clock times and days of the week.

わたしはまいにち 6じにおきます。Watashi wa mainichi roku-ji ni okimasu.I get up at 6 every day.

どようびにはたらきます。Doyōbi ni hatarakimasu.I work on Saturdays.

〜ね

ね at the end checks that the listener agrees: “…, right?”.

さくらさんはがくせいですね。Sakura-san wa gakusei desu ne.Ms. Sakura is a student, right?

やまとびじゅつかんですね。Yamato Bijutsukan desu ne.The Yamato Art Museum, right?

でした／じゃありませんでした

The past of です and じゃありません. Japanese has only present and past: words like あした show the future.

さくらさんはいしゃでした。Sakura-san wa isha deshita.Ms. Sakura was a doctor.

さくらさんはいしゃじゃありませんでした。Sakura-san wa isha ja arimasen deshita.Ms. Sakura was not a doctor.

あしたさくらさんはいしゃです。Ashita Sakura-san wa isha desu.Tomorrow Ms. Sakura will be a doctor.

Quick quiz

10 もん

Ten questions drawn from everything above. Pick the correct meaning or reading.

Class notes from Noomen's Japanese lesson · words, sentences and grammar as presented on the slides, with readings and translations added.