Specificity of Japanese Verbs 'to Wear' and 'to Play'

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Useful Japanese Verbs

By Namiko Abe

Some Japanese verbs are more specific when describing actions than English verbs. While there is only one verb used for a certain action in English, there might be several different verbs in Japanese. One of the examples is the verb "to wear." In English, it can be used as, "I wear a hat," "I wear gloves," "I wear glasses" and so on. However, Japanese has different verbs depending on which part of the body it will be worn on. Let's take a look at how the Japanese describe "to wear" and "to play."

• Boushi o kaburu. 帽子をかぶる｡ --- I wear a hat. ("Kaburu" is used for putting on the head.)
• Megane o kakeru. めがねをかける｡ --- I wear glasses. ("Kakeru" also means, "to hang.")
• Iyaringu o tsukeru. イヤリングをつける｡ --- I wear earrings. ("Tsukeru" also means, "to attach.")
• Nekutai o shimeru. ネクタイを締める｡ --- I wear a tie. ("Shimeru" also means, "to tie.")
• Sukaafu o maku. スカーフを巻く｡ --- I wear a scarf. ("Maku" also means, "to wrap around.")
• Tebukuro o hameru. 手袋をはめる｡ --- I wear gloves. ("Hameru" also means, "to insert.")
• Yubiwa o hameru. 指輪をはめる｡ --- I wear rings.
• Tokei o suru. 時計をする｡ --- I wear a watch.
• Shatsu o kiru. シャツを着る｡ --- I wear shirts. ("Kiru" is used for putting on the body.)
• Zubon o haku. ズボンをはく｡ --- I wear pants. ("Haku" is used for putting on the legs.)
• Kutsu o haku. 靴を履く｡ --- I wear shoes. ("Haku" is also used for putting on footwear.)
• Omocha de asobu. おもちゃで遊ぶ｡ --- I play with toys. ("Asobu" originally means, "to amuse oneself.")
• Piano o hiku. ピアノを弾く｡ --- I play the piano. ("Hiku" is used to play the musical instrument that requires the manipulation of fingers.)
• Fue o fuku. 笛を吹く｡ --- I play the flute. ("Fuku" is used to play the musical instrument that requires blowing.)
• Taiko o tataku. 太鼓をたたく｡ --- I play the drum. ("Tataku" is used to play the musical instrument that requires beating.)
• Rekoodo o kakeru. レコードをかける｡ --- I am playing a record.
• Toranpu o suru. トランプをする｡ --- I play cards.
• Yakyuu o suru. 野球をする｡ --- I play baseball. ("Suru" can be used for most sports.)
• Romio o enjiru. ロミオを演じる｡ --- I play the role of Romeo.