Lesson 52: 前より 読める！

N4 · Lesson 52 · 18 min — Say "I can ..." and "I can see / I can hear"

You already learned 「Vことが できます」 (can do ...), and you learned the three verb groups. In this lesson, we make that pattern shorter: 読よむ ことが できます → 読よめます. Japanese also has special verbs for "can see" and "can hear" when things simply reach your eyes or ears. Let's start with the comic!

After this lesson, you can:

• Change a verb to the potential form to say "can ...": 日本語にほんごが 話はなせます。(I can speak Japanese.)
• Use 見みえる・聞きこえる to say "can see / can hear": 窓まどから 木きが 見みえます。(I can see a tree from the window.)
• When you can't hear well while traveling, politely ask the person to say it again: すみません、よく 聞きこえません。(Here よく = clearly.)

Rooftop Clue

Mr. Kuma hears "Hana" and drops his ladle... In the evening, Rin opens Grandpa's letter again on the dorm roof. (屋上おくじょう=rooftop; 店みせ=shop; 窓まど=window; 鐘かね=bell; 音おと=sound)

Change a verb to the potential form to say "can ...". When things reach your eyes or ears by themselves, use 見みえる・聞きこえる. Next lesson: everyone looks for the big tree in Yanaka!

Words for this lesson: can read, can see, can hear

• 読よめる (yomeru): can read (potential of 読よむ)
• できる (dekiru): can do (potential of する)
• 見みえる (mieru): can see (comes into view)
• 聞きこえる (kikoeru): can hear (sound reaches your ears)
• よく (yoku): clearly, well (a new meaning in this lesson)
• 前まえより (mae yori): than before
• 手紙てがみ (tegami): letter
• 屋上おくじょう (okujō): rooftop (the flat top of a building)
• 窓まど (mado): window
• 木き (ki): tree
• 桜さくら (sakura): cherry blossom; cherry tree
• お寺てら (otera): temple (Buddhist)
• 鐘かね (kane): bell (of a temple)
• 声こえ (koe): voice (of a person or animal)
• 音おと (oto): sound (made by things)
• 富士山ふじさん (Fujisan): Mt. Fuji
• めがね (megane): glasses
• 泳およぐ (oyogu): to swim
• なっとう (nattō): natto (fermented soybeans)

Grammar 1 / 2: Potential

Potential form: change a verb to mean "can ..." (ability, or when the situation allows it)

• What is the potential form?: Potential form = "can ...". It can show ability: 日本語にほんごが 話はなせます (I can speak Japanese). It can also show that the situation allows something: この 部屋へやで 勉強べんきょうできます (You can study in this room). The meaning is the same as 「読よむ ことが できます」 from Lesson 35, only shorter. People use it more in daily life and in writing (ことが できる sounds more formal and stiff).
• Group 1: う-row → え-row + る: Move the last sound of the dictionary form to the え-row, then add る: 読よむ→読よめる, 話はなす→話はなせる, 泳およぐ→泳およげる. Be careful: 帰かえる is Group 1 (Lesson 34): 帰かえる→帰かえれる.
• Group 2: る → られる; Group 3: memorize: For Group 2, drop る and add られる: 食たべる→食たべられる, 見みる→見みられる, 起おきる→起おきられる, 寝ねる→寝ねられる. Group 3: する→できる (勉強べんきょうする→勉強べんきょうできる), 来くる→来こられる (read it こられる, not くられる).
• After the change, it acts like a Group 2 verb: Every potential form ends in る and changes like a Group 2 verb: 読よめる→読よめます・読よめません・読よめない・読よめた. The object usually changes from を to が: 漢字かんじを 読よむ → 漢字かんじが 読よめる. (Japanese people sometimes say を too, but が is the safest choice for beginners.)

• 日本語にほんごが すこし 話はなせます。 — I can speak a little Japanese.
• 漢字かんじは 読よめますが、書かけません。 — I can read kanji, but I can't write them. (〜が、〜: Lesson 28)
• なっとうが 食たべられますか。 — Can you eat natto? (People often ask foreigners this.)
• この 部屋へやで 勉強べんきょうできます。 — You can study in this room. (する→できる)
• あしたは 7時じに 来こられますか。 — Can you come at 7 tomorrow? (来くる→来こられる)

Grammar 2 / 2: 見みえる・聞きこえる

見みえる・聞きこえる: things reach your eyes or sounds reach your ears by themselves, so "can see, can hear"

• 見みえる = can see: You don't try to look. The view just comes into your eyes: 屋上おくじょうから 富士山ふじさんが 見みえます. You can also talk about how well your eyes work: めがねが ないから、よく 見みえません (I don't have my glasses, so I can't see well; here よく = clearly, not "often"). To say where you look from, から (starting point) is the most natural: 窓まどから、屋上おくじょうから.
• 聞きこえる = can hear: Sound just reaches your ears: お寺てらの 鐘かねが 聞きこえます. When a phone or video call has a bad signal, say: すみません、よく 聞きこえません。もういちど おねがいします。Note: よく + 見みえません／聞きこえません = I can't see / hear clearly (here よく means "clearly, well," not "often").
• 見みえる vs 見みられる: 見みられる is the potential form of 見みる: you have a chance or a condition to watch something you want to see. この 部屋へやで テレビが 見みられます = You can watch TV in this room (it is allowed or possible). 見みえる means the thing comes into your sight, or your eyes can see it clearly. So "I can't see well without glasses" is 見みえません, not 見みられません.
• 聞きこえる vs 聞きける: 聞きける is the potential form of 聞きく: you have a chance to listen, for example "You can listen to music here." If a sound is too quiet or unclear, always use 聞きこえません. Also, 聞きく can mean "to ask," but 聞きこえる cannot.

• 屋上おくじょうから 富士山ふじさんが 見みえます。 — You can see Mt. Fuji from the rooftop.
• めがねが ないから、よく 見みえません。 — I don't have my glasses, so I can't see well. (よく = clearly)
• となりの 部屋へやから 声こえが 聞きこえます。 — I can hear voices from the next room.
• すみません、よく 聞きこえません。もういちど おねがいします。 — Excuse me, I can't hear you well. Please say it again. (よく = clearly)
• この 部屋へやで テレビが 見みられます。 — You can watch TV in this room. (condition allows: 見みられる)