Moving the story along
Conversation phrases, Stage 1chunk 51 of 68Telling what happened
Lets you carry a story forward and signal a twist is coming.
- sore de saand so...; so then...
- soshitara saand then, guess what...
- sore ga sawell, here's the thing... (a twist is coming)
- ki ga tsuitarabefore I knew it; next thing I knew
Mix-ups sore de sa just moves on, while sore ga sa warns that a twist is coming.
sore de sa
and so...; so then...
Keeps your story rolling and holds the floor between events; also brings the talk back to your point.
Sa is a casual filler like 'you know' and can follow almost any phrase; 'de sa' is the short version.
sore de sa, kare ga kyuu ni nakidashita n da yo.
And so, he suddenly burst into tears.
それでさ、彼が急に泣き出したんだよ。
Written それでさWho you say itHeard 11× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
soshitara sa
and then, guess what...
Used mid-story to lead into the surprising next event; the sa holds the listener's attention.
Soshitara also means 'in that case': soshitara, ashita ni shiyou.
soshitara sa, kyuu ni ame ga futte kita no.
And then, out of nowhere, it started pouring.
そしたらさ、急に雨が降ってきたの。
Written そしたらさWho you say it and hear itHeard 635× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
sore ga sa
polite sore ga desu ne
well, here's the thing... (a twist is coming)
Signals that things didn't go as expected; often the answer to 'dou datta?' (how did it go?).
Don't confuse it with 'sore de sa', which just moves on; 'sore ga' warns of a surprise.
shiken? sore ga sa, zenzen dame datta.
The exam? Well, here's the thing: it went terribly.
試験？それがさ、全然ダメだった。
sore ga desu ne, mada henji ga nai n desu.
Well, the thing is, there's still no reply.
それがですね、まだ返事がないんです。
Written それがさ · それがですねWho you say itHeard 14× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles
ki ga tsuitara
before I knew it; next thing I knew
In a story, jumps to a result you didn't notice happening, like falling asleep or time flying.
Also said as 'ki ga tsuku to'. 'Ki ga tsuku' on its own means 'to notice'.
ki ga tsuitara, mou asa datta.
Next thing I knew, it was already morning.
気がついたら、もう朝だった。
ki ga tsuitara, sanjikan mo tatte imashita.
Before I knew it, three hours had gone by.
気がついたら、3時間も経っていました。
Written 気がついたら · きがついたらWho you say itHeard 65× in 3.17 million lines of film and TV subtitles