What does “soshite” mean in Japanese?
Probably, many Japanese learners know “soshite” as it is quite often used in Japanese conversations. Native speakers use it mainly in two different ways: to mean ‘then’; to mean ‘and’. In this blog post, I will explain these two types of “soshite” with example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “soshite” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
“Soshite” to make a chronological order
Let me start with “soshite” used to make a chronological order in a sentence or between sentences.
- soshite – そして : a conjunction used to make a chronological order in a sentence or between sentences. This is often translated into English as ‘and’, ‘then’, or such.
Native speakers use this type of “soshite” to make a chronological order in a sentence or between sentences: they state something in the first sentence or phrase, and use this conjunction to continuously say something else supposed to happen after the first. So, its usage is very similar to those of the English words like “then” and “and”. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #1: how to make a chronological order
haru ga ki ta. soshite sakura ga saki hajime ta – 春が来た。そして桜が咲き始めた (はるがきた。そしてさくらがさきはじめた)
Spring has come. Then, cherry blossoms started to bloom.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- haru – 春 (はる) : a noun meaning ‘spring’ in Japanese.
- ga – が : a case particle used to make the subject word or the object word in a sentence. In the example, the first one is used after “haru” to make the subject in the first sentence. The second one is used after “sakura” to make the subject in the second sentence.
- ki – 来 (き) : one conjugation of the verb, “kuru”, which means ‘to come’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. In the example, the first one is used after “ki” to make its past tense form, “ki ta”. The second one is used after “hajime” to make its past tense form, “hajime ta”.
- sakura – 桜 (さくら) : a noun meaning ‘cherry blossoms’ in Japanese.
- saki – 咲き (さき) : one conjugation of the verb, “saku”, which means ‘to bloom’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
- hajime – 始め (はじめ) : one conjugation of the verb, “hajimeru”, which means ‘to start’ or ‘to begin’ in Japanese.
This is a typical usage of “soshite”. In this example, it works at the beginning of the second sentence to make the chronological order between the two sentences. It has been reflected as “then” in translation. When we want to make a chronological order between two sentences, we should use it at the beginning of the second sentence.
“Soshite” to join two words or phrases
Next, let me explain “soshite” used to join two words or phrases.
- soshite – そして : a conjunction used to join two words or phrases to make a parallel expression. This is often translated into English as “and”.
Native speakers use this type of “soshite” to join two words or phrases which have similar or related meanings. So, its usage is very similar to that of the English conjunction, “and”. Let me explain this usage through the example sentence below.
Example #2: how to join two nouns with “soshite”
boku wa ringo soshite mikan ga suki desu – 僕はりんごそしてみかんが好きです (ぼくはりんごそしてみかんがすきです)
I like apples and satsuma oranges.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is mainly used by boys and young males.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “boku” to make the subject in the sentence.
- ringo – りんご : a noun meaning ‘apple’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
- mikan – みかん : a noun meaning ‘satsuma orange’ or ‘mandarin orange’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural.
- suki – 好き (すき) : one conjugation of the na-adjective, “sukina”, which means ‘favorite’ in Japanese. Native speakers, however, often use this as an individual word to mean ‘to like’ or ‘to love’. In the example, actually, it is used to mean ‘to like’.
- desu – です : an auxiliary verb used after a noun or adjective to make it polite. Probably, this is well known as a part of Japanese desu form. In the example, this is used after “suki” to make it sound polite.
This is a typical usage of this type of “soshite”. In this example, it is used to join the two nouns, “ringo” and “mikan”. When we want to join two words or phrases which have similar or related meanings, we can use “soshite” between them.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the two different types of “soshite”. And also, I’ve explained how to use them through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- soshite – そして : a conjunction used to make a chronological order in a sentence or between sentences. This is often translated into English as ‘and’, ‘then’, or such. Native speakers state something in the first sentence or phrase, and use this conjunction to continuously say something else supposed to happen after the first. So, the usage of this conjunction is very similar to those of the English words like “then” and “and”.
- soshite – そして : a conjunction used to join two words or phrases to make a parallel expression. This is often translated into English as “and”. Native speakers use this to join two words or phrases which have similar or related meanings. So, its usage is very similar to that of the English conjunction, “and”.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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