Lesson L1N4N4 Vocabulary — Thematic Sets⏱ 20 min

Nature and Weather Vocabulary

This lesson introduces core N4-level words and phrases related to nature (e.g., mountain, river, sky), seasons (spring, summer, fall, winter), and weather (sunny, rainy, windy, snowy). Practice using these terms in simple sentences to describe daily conditions and natural features.

🎯 Goal: Learn core N4 vocabulary describing nature, seasons, and weather.

Lesson Content

Learning Goal

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to recognize and use 15 core N4 vocabulary words related to nature, weather, and daily life. You'll understand how to talk about giving, existence, time references, and common objects in Japanese.

Concept

N4 vocabulary builds on basic N5 knowledge. These words appear frequently in conversations about everyday life, nature, and weather. Many of them are time expressions (like "these days" or "a little while ago") or verbs for giving (which have special rules in Japanese). Learning them together helps you sound more natural.

Step-by-Step Breakdown

1. Time Expressions (for talking about weather & nature)

Japanese	Romaji	English	Use
このあいだ	kono aida	the other day, recently	Past event, near past
このごろ	kono goro	these days, nowadays	Ongoing trend
これから	kore kara	after this, from now	Future
さっき	sakki	a little while ago	Very recent past
しばらく	shibaraku	a little while (duration)	For a short time

Tip: このごろ is great for weather: このごろ、あついですね (kono goro, atsui desu ne = "It's hot these days, isn't it?")

2. Giving Verbs (important for nature/weather contexts)

Japanese	Romaji	English	Direction
あげる	ageru	to give (from me to someone else)	Speaker → Other
くれる	kureru	to give (to me or my group)	Other → Speaker
くださる	kudasaru	to give (to me) respectful	Other → Speaker (polite)

Nature example: 花がきれいな色をくれる (hana ga kirei na iro o kureru = "Flowers give us beautiful colors")

3. Existence & Action Verbs

Japanese	Romaji	English	Notes
ある	aru	to have, to exist (inanimate)	For things, not people
おきる	okiru	to put	Place something somewhere
しろ	shiro	Do it! (command of する)	Very direct; use carefully

Nature example: 山に雪がある (yama ni yuki ga aru = "There is snow on the mountain")

4. Other Key Words

Japanese	Romaji	English	Example
あ	a	Ah!, Oh!	あ、雨だ！ (a, ame da! = "Oh, rain!")
お菓子	okashi	confectionary, cake	雨の日はお菓子を食べる (ame no hi wa okashi o taberu = "On rainy days, I eat sweets")
きっと	kitto	surely	きっと晴れる (kitto hareru = "It will surely clear up")
けれど/けれども	keredo/keredomo	however	雨だけど、きっと晴れる (ame da kedo, kitto hareru = "It's raining, but it will surely clear up")
こう	kou	this way	こうやって雨がふる (kou yatte ame ga furu = "Rain falls this way")
こと	koto	thing, matter	天気のこと (tenki no koto = "weather matters")
ごちそう	gochisou	a feast	ごちそうを食べる (gochisou o taberu = "eat a feast")
ごみ	gomi	rubbish	ごみをすてる (gomi o suteru = "throw away rubbish")
ご存知	gozonji	knowing, acquaintance	ご存知ですか？ (gozonji desu ka? = "Do you know?")

Mini Examples

このあいだ、山で雪を見ました。
Kono aida, yama de yuki o mimashita.
"The other day, I saw snow on the mountain."
このごろ、天気がいいですね。
Kono goro, tenki ga ii desu ne.
"The weather is nice these days, isn't it?"
花がきれいな色をくれます。
Hana ga kirei na iro o kuremasu.
"Flowers give us beautiful colors."
雨だけど、きっと晴れる。
Ame da kedo, kitto hareru.
"It's raining, but it will surely clear up."