Words English took from Japanese

1. 1
   sushi/ˈsuːʃi/

   noun

   Cold rice with raw fish or vegetables, often rolled in seaweed.
2. 2
   tofu/ˈtoʊfuː/

   noun

   A soft white food made from soybean milk and sold in blocks.
3. 3
   karaoke/ˌkeriˈoʊki/

   noun

   Singing along to recorded backing music, usually in a bar.
4. 4
   karate/kərˈɑːti/

   noun

   A fighting sport that uses sharp punches and kicks, with no weapons.
5. 5
   origami/ˌɔːriːˈɡɑːˌmiː/

   noun

   The art of folding paper into shapes such as birds and flowers.
6. 6
   futon/ˈfuːtɑːn/

   noun

   A thin padded mattress for sleeping on the floor or on a low frame.
7. 7
   kimono/kəˈmoʊnə/

   noun

   A long loose robe with wide sleeves, tied at the waist.
8. 8
   tsunami/tsuːˈnɑːmi/iAlso said suːˈnɑːmi.

   noun

   A huge, destructive sea wave set off by an earthquake or volcano.
9. 9
   tycoon/taɪˈkuːn/

   noun

   A very rich and powerful person in business.
10. 10
    haiku/ˈhaɪkuː/

    noun

    A very short poem of three lines.

The sentences

1. Should we get sushi again or try something else?

2. This tofu tastes much better than it looks.

3. Do you want to do karaoke after dinner?

4. My brother took karate classes for about three years.

5. He makes origami birds out of the napkins.

6. You can sleep on the futon in the living room.

7. Her grandmother gave her a silk kimono years ago.

8. That earthquake set off a tsunami along the coast.

9. Apparently the owner is some kind of tech tycoon.

10. He wrote a haiku about dinner on his napkin.

Pronunciation

• karaoke/ˌkeriˈoʊki/

  Four syllables, with the stress on the third: keh-ree-OH-kee.

• karate/kərˈɑːti/

  The first syllable is a quick 'kuh'; the stress lands on the middle syllable.

• origami/ˌɔːriːˈɡɑːˌmiː/

  Stress the third syllable: or-ee-GAH-mee.

• kimono/kəˈmoʊnə/

  The last syllable is a weak 'uh', not 'oh': kuh-MOH-nuh.

• tsunami/tsuːˈnɑːmi/

  The t at the start is said, hooked onto the s: tsoo-NAH-mee.

• tycoon/taɪˈkuːn/

  Stress the second syllable: ty-COON.

• haiku/ˈhaɪkuː/

  Two syllables only: HIGH-koo.

Questions

What does tycoon mean?

A very rich and powerful person in business.

How do you say karaoke?

Four syllables, with the stress on the third: keh-ree-OH-kee.

What is a haiku?

A very short poem of three lines.