Quote:
Originally Posted by Xuande
Well, my book says that it means either an action in progress or that it connects a past event to the present which is the part I don't understand. I know that something like benkyoushiteimasu means studying right now but when you add imasu to the end of certain te-form verbs it kind of changes how they are used. I guess an example might be something like "yaseru," which is to lost weight, but when you use it like "yaseteimasu," it means to be thin. Its kind of hard to explain but I hope that explanation helps.
|
Ok, I think I'm beginning to understand what could be bothering you here. I feel that it's the difference in the ways verbs are treated between Japanese and your native language, which I assume to be English. And as MMM explained, this has
nothing to do with iru and imasu at all.
Certain Japanese verbs take the teiru form whereas the English counterpart verbs don't.
Example: to die
The English sentence "Mr. ABC is dying." means that he is in the process of dying. He is NOT dead yet.
But the Japanese sentence "ABC-san wa shinde imasu (or iru)" means he is already dead. He may have been dead for 50 years or maybe only 2 days.
Example: to be slim
You will often hear something like "Tanaka-san wa yasete iru (or imasu)". Even though there is the 'te iru' in the sentence, it doesn't describe a progressive action. The sentence simply means that the person is slim. He may have been slim all of his life. He may have been slim only the past few months.
Example: to have
You will hear "Kuruma o motte imasuka?" This means "Do you have (or own) a car?" In English, you would not say "Are you owning a car?", but in Japanese you have to use the te iru form to say "Do you have (something)" or "I have (something)."
Therefore, the often made mistake in Japanese by English spekers is saying "Kuruma o mochimasuka?". That would the direct translation of "Do you own a car?". But the native Japanese speaker would NEVER say that. You need to put it in the 'te iru' form.
Does this help at all?