Breakdown of watasi mo tomodati ni nihongo wo osiete mimasu.
私watasi
I
をwo
direct object particle
友達tomodati
friend
日本語nihongo
Japanese (language)
にni
indirect object particle
もmo
also
教えて みるosiete miru
to try to teach
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have hundreds of Japanese lessons and thousands of exercises.
Questions & Answers about watasi mo tomodati ni nihongo wo osiete mimasu.
What does the particle も in 私も indicate? How is it different from は?
も means “also” or “too,” showing inclusion. In 私も, you’re saying “I, too, will try teaching…” whereas は alone would just mark the topic (“as for me”). You can’t use は and も together here; も replaces は when you want the “also” nuance.
Why is 友達 marked with に instead of を?
With the verb 教える, the person being taught (the recipient) takes に, and the thing taught takes を. So 友達に means “to/for (my) friend.”
Why is 日本語 marked with を?
日本語 is the direct object (the thing you’re teaching), so it takes the object marker を.
What does the construction ～てみます mean? How is it different from just 教えます?
The pattern ～てみる means “to try doing something.” So 教えてみます means “I’ll try teaching,” implying you’re giving it a shot. 教えます would simply state “I will teach” without the nuance of trying or experimenting.
Why is the verb in its て‐form before みます? Why not 教えみます?
By grammar, you always attach みる/みます to the て‐form of a verb. So you convert 教える to 教えて, then add みます to get 教えてみます.
Could we omit 私も and just say 友達に日本語を教えてみます?
Yes. Japanese often drops pronouns when context is clear. Without 私も, it’s still grammatical and natural if it’s obvious you’re talking about yourself.
What nuance would 友達と convey if we used that instead of 友達に?
友達と means “together with a friend.” So 友達と日本語を教えてみます would mean “I’ll try teaching Japanese together with a friend,” not “to (my) friend.”
What level of politeness is 教えてみます? How would you say it informally?
教えてみます is polite (the “‐ます” form). Informally you’d use the plain form 教えてみる, e.g. 友達に日本語を教えてみる.