Smith: Sumimasen, gakusei shou wa uketsuke de morau koto ga deki masu ka?
すみません、学生証(がくせいしょう)は受付(うけつけ)でもらうことができますか。Staff: Hai, dekimasu. Anata wa ryuugakusei desu ka?
はい、できます。あなたは留学生(りゅうがくせい)ですか。Smith: Hai, Amerika kara kimashita. Kyou ga saisho no hi desu.
はい、アメリカから来(き)ました。今日(きょう)が最初(さいしょ)の日(ひ)です。Staff: Wakarimashita. Gakusei shou wa ano biru no uketsuke ni arimasu. Massugu itte, migigawa ni arimasu.
わかりました。学生証はあのビルの受付にあります。まっすぐいって、右側(みぎがわ)にあります。Smith: Shitsumon desu ga, raishuu no jugyou wa itsu kara hajimarimasu ka?
質問(しつもん)ですが、来週(らいしゅう)の授業(じゅぎょう)はいつからはじまりますか。Staff: Jugyou wa getsuyoubi no gogo juu-ji kara hajimarimasu. Kurasu wa jikan doori ni okonawareru yotei desu.
授業は月曜日(げつようび)の午後10時から始まります。クラスは時間通(じかんどお)りにおこなわれる予定(よてい)です。Smith: Wakarimashita. Arigatou gozaimasu.
わかりました。ありがとうございます。
Smith: Excuse me, can I get my student ID at the reception?
Staff: Yes, you can. Are you an exchange student?
Smith: Yes, I’m from the US. Today is my first day.
Staff: I see. The student ID is at the reception in that building. Go straight and it’s on the right.
Smith: I have a question, when do next week’s classes start?
Staff: Classes start at 10 a.m. on Monday. The classes will be held according to the schedule.
Smith: Got it. Thank you very much.
In Japanese, you can express ability or possibility by using the structure 〜ことができます. It means "can do something" or "it is possible to do something." This is formed by taking the dictionary form of a verb, adding こと (koto) to nominalize it, and then attaching ができます (ga dekimasu).
Example:
The particle で (de) is used to indicate the location of an action or the means by which something is done. When indicating location, で follows the place where the action happens. When indicating means, で follows the tool or method used.
Examples:
The particle が (ga) can be used as a soft connector in polite speech, often to transition to a question or request. When used after ですが (desu ga), it softens the tone of the question, making it more polite and less direct.
Example: