Episode 34
Review 7 — Likes & Wants
Build your own self-introduction in Japanese using 好き, 上手/苦手, ほしい, and ～たい. Your first real personal expression.
This is the episode where it gets personal. For the last four episodes — likes, skills, wanted things, wanted actions — we have been building the vocabulary of you. Today you assemble it into a four-line self-introduction in Japanese. Not a textbook one. Yours. The one you can use at a party, a language exchange, a coffee shop. By the end of this episode you will have said something real about yourself in another language. That is a milestone worth marking.
What You'll Review#
No new grammar today. Just four patterns you already own:
- 〜が好きです — I like ~
- 〜が上手です / 苦手です — I am good at ~ / I am not good at ~
- 〜がほしいです — I want ~ (a thing)
- 〜たいです — I want to ~ (do something)
The Self-Introduction Formula (自己紹介)#
Four lines. One template you carry with you forever.
| Line | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Something you like | 〜が好きです | 私は音楽が好きです。 |
| 2. Something you enjoy doing | 〜が好きです | 読書が好きです。 |
| 3. Something you want | 〜がほしいです | 新しいパソコンがほしいです。 |
| 4. Something you want to do | 〜たいです | 日本に行きたいです。 |
Notice line two. The humble move — when describing yourself, say 好きです instead of 上手です. Japanese speakers brag quietly. They say they like doing something and let you figure out the rest.
Lesson Transcript#
Warm-Up: Four Core Patterns#
I like coffee.
コーヒーが好きです。
コーヒーが好き。
I like cooking.
料理が好きです。
料理が好き。
I want a new book.
新しい本本ほしいです。
新しい本本ほしい。
I want to go to Japan.
日本に行きたいです。
日本に行きたい。
Building Your Four Lines#
I like music.
私は音楽が好きです。
私は音楽が好き。
I like reading.
読書が好きです。
読書が好き。
I want a new computer.
新しいパソコンがほしいです。
新しいパソコンがほしい。
Saying What You Don't Want#
Negatives follow all the rules you already know. 好き is a な-adjective, so it uses じゃないです. ほしい and たい both end in い, so they use くないです.
I don't like green tea very much.
緑茶はあまり好好じゃないです。
緑茶はあまり好好じゃない。
I'm not good at math.
数学は苦手です。
数学は苦手。
I don't want an expensive phone.
高い電話はほしくないです。
高い電話はほしくない。
I don't want to wake up early.
早く起起たくないです。
早く起起たくない。
Negative Forms at a Glance#
| Pattern | Word Type | Negative |
|---|---|---|
| 〜が好き | な-adjective | 〜が好きじゃないです |
| 〜が上手 / 苦手 | な-adjective | 〜じゃないです |
| 〜がほしい | い-adjective | 〜がほしくないです |
| 〜たい | い-adjective | 〜たくないです |
Every rule compounds. Nothing here is new — you already know how to negate い- and な-adjectives from episodes twenty-five and twenty-seven.
Key Takeaway
This is your first real self-expression in Japanese. Four lines, four patterns, one template. Carry it in your pocket. Use it the next time you meet someone who speaks Japanese. You have come further in thirty-four episodes than most learners do in a year.
Practice your self-introduction
Build Japanese sentences and get AI-powered feedback on your grammar.
Start Practicing Free