Japanese from zero · N4 Lesson 27
In the middle of it
〜て いる ところ ・ 〜る ところ ・ 〜と 思う ・ 〜て／〜で (because)
In this lesson, you will learn to say that you are in the middle of something or just about to do it, to say what you think in plain speech, and to give the cause of a feeling with a て-form, the way Lisa does when Minju calls her in tears.
By the end you will be able to say
今 仕事に 出かける ところ。I'm just about to leave for work.
今 晩ご飯を 作って いる ところです。I'm in the middle of making dinner.
電話では 話せないと 思う。I don't think I can talk about it on the phone.
心配で、仕事に 行けないよ。I'm too worried to go to work.
電話が 鳴って、びっくりしました。The phone rang, and it startled me.
The grammar in this lesson
- 〜て いる ところ — in the middle of doing — て いる + ところ says you are right in the middle of an action.
- 〜る ところ — just about to — The dictionary form + ところ says you are just about to do something.
- 〜と 思う — I think (plain form) — A plain form + と 思う says what you think; nouns and な-adjectives add だ.
- 〜て／〜で — because (a cause and its result) — A て-form can give the cause of a feeling or of something that happened.