Japanese with Manga

Yui's grandmother's place with 〜んち

Grammar Explanation: One's house with 〜んち

Manga panel from 三ツ星カラーズ showing example of Yui's grandmother's place with 〜んち.
三ツ星カラーズ » Volume 5 » Page 127

As the end of the year approaches, Yui and her friends discuss which New Year foods they like and dislike.

結衣(ゆい):
「おばあちゃんち行(い)くと微妙(びみょう)なご飯(はん)たくさん出(で)てくるよね」
“When I go to my grandma 's house, a lot of not-so-good food is served.”
Literal: “When you go to grandma's place, a lot of iffy food comes out, doesn't it?”
さっちゃん:
「なかなかひどいな結衣(ゆい)」
“That's pretty bad, Yui.”
琴葉(ことは):
「結衣(ゆい)はおばあちゃんち行(い)くのか？」
“Are you going to your grandma 's house, Yui?”

「おばあちゃんのうち」 is contracted into 「おばあちゃんち」.

Key Points

1おばあちゃんち means “grandma’s house”
  • The んち attaches to おばあちゃん, making the place belong to or be associated with Grandma.
2The first line describes what happens there
  • 行(い)くと means “when I go”, setting up the usual result at Grandma’s house.
  • 微妙(びみょう)なご飯(はん) is food that is iffy or not very appealing.
3Omitted particle に
  • The particle に is omitted before 行(い)く, which is common in casual speech.
  • ご飯(はん) means “cooked rice”, but it also broadly means “meal”.

Vocabulary

(Subtle)

微妙(びみょう) means subtle, delicate, or hard to judge clearly. In everyday speech it can also imply something is awkward or not quite good.

See Also

三ツ星カラーズ © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.