Is katakana used for foreign words?
In modern Japanese, katakana is most often used for transcription of words from foreign languages or loanwords (other than words historically imported from Chinese), called gairaigo.
Can I not learn katakana?
Katakana is used widely for loan words, stylistic purposes, brand names, and to break up sentence text. Not learning it is to not learn one of the foundations of the language. Finally, katakana is also (relatively) easy to learn; there are only 46 characters, and most them have just 2 or 3 strokes.
Why do Japanese speakers use katakana?
Japanese speakers use the same concept to add foreign words to their own vocabulary. Like English speakers use rōmaji, Japanese speakers use katakana. Katakana is syllable-based, which means that each character in its “alphabet” represents a particular syllable or sound.
Why is karaoke written in katakana?
Note: “Karaoke” is written in katakana because it actually isn’t an entirely Japanese word, but rather a combination of 空 (から) — empty and the loanword オーケストラ (おーけすとら) — orchestra. Note: Outside of Japan the word “anime” is used for a particular form of Japanese animation, but in Japan the word is used describe all forms of animation.
What are some examples of katakana words that are shortened?
It’s also worth noting that some katakana words are shortened, like スーパーマーケット (すーぱー まーけっと) — sūpāmāketto (supermarket), which is often shortened to スーパー (すーぱー) — sūpā. Japanese has its own slang just like English does.
How do you make f sound in katakana?
Note: Fu is the only f sound in Japanese. Syllables like fa, fi or fo don’t exist, so when you need to make a word like “family” with katakana, you need to use additional vowel characters: ファミリー (Family) becomes, essentially, fu-ah-mi-ri. Adding a small yu, ya or yo to a katakana syllable can significantly change the way it sounds.