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Kyun
Lesson 35 · means and tools

How you do something: で

can mark the means of an action: transport, a tool, or a language.

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Learn

Use で after the means or tool: 電車でんしゃ で 行いきます means “I go by train,” and 箸はし で 食たべます means “I eat with chopsticks.”

English changes its preposition: by train, with chopsticks, in Japanese. These uses can all take で. Do not confuse “with a tool” with “with a companion”: a companion uses と.

  1. Transport

    I go by bus.

  2. Tool

    I eat with chopsticks.

  3. Language

    I speak in Japanese.

Examples

  • Ken goes to school by bicycle.

  • I write with a pencil.

  • I speak in Japanese.

  • How are you getting home?