What are these kanji, and what do they mean?

[Imaginative]

Hi, I've been emailing a girl in Japan, who is coming to NZ next year. We have been emailing in Japanese and english, but some there are some kanji that I do not know or understand, and the english translation is written in less detail than the Japanese, so I would like to be able to understand these:

得意, 歳, 芸能人, 歌手, 色々 (this was put before おしえて, if it makes a difference), 無.

Thanks in advance! ^^

[MMM]

Originally Posted by Imaginative

Hi, I've been emailing a girl in Japan, who is coming to NZ next year. We have been emailing in Japanese and english, but some there are some kanji that I do not know or understand, and the english translation is written in less detail than the Japanese, so I would like to be able to understand these:

得意, 歳, 芸能人, 歌手, 色々 (this was put before おしえて, if it makes a difference), 無.

Thanks in advance! ^^

Without context some of those words could mean several things.

歳 = years old
芸能人 = famous person (actor, comedian, etc.)
歌手 = singer
色々おしえて = explain to me all kinds of different things

[Nagoyankee]

Originally Posted by Imaginative

Hi, I've been emailing a girl in Japan, who is coming to NZ next year. We have been emailing in Japanese and english, but some there are some kanji that I do not know or understand, and the english translation is written in less detail than the Japanese, so I would like to be able to understand these:

得意, 歳, 芸能人, 歌手, 色々 (this was put before おしえて, if it makes a difference), 無.

Thanks in advance! ^^

For the best answers, you should have included the words in kana around these.

得意 favorite, to be good at
歳 ~years old, one's age
芸能人 entertainers,
歌手 singer
色々おしえて tell me everything. tell me all the varieties
無 none, nothingness

[Imaginative]

Oh sorry, I guess it would have helped if I posted the kana. But thanks so much for your replies, they really helped! She said "私と同じ歳ですね" which I know means that she's the same age as me, but how do you pronounce "歳" in that context? Also, could someone please explain this to me?
"わたしは、ホームステイは、やったことが無いので今� �らどきどきです。"
She hasn't stayed as a homestay before, so now she is excited? But what is the pronunciation of "無"?

[Nagoyankee]

Originally Posted by Imaginative

Oh sorry, I guess it would have helped if I posted the kana. But thanks so much for your replies, they really helped! She said "私と同じ歳ですね" which I know means that she's the same age as me, but how do you pronounce "歳" in that context? Also, could someone please explain this to me?
"わたしは、ホームステイは、やったことが無いので今� �らどきどきです。"
She hasn't stayed as a homestay before, so now she is excited? But what is the pronunciation of "無"?

歳＝とし

無い＝ない. Careful writers would write this in kana.

わたしは、ホームステイは、やったことが無いので今か らどきどきです = I've never "homestayed" before so, my heart is already pounding (in excitement).

どきどき is the onomatopoeia for "heart beat".

[Imaginative]

Originally Posted by Nagoyankee

歳＝とし

無い＝ない. Careful writers would write this in kana.

わたしは、ホームステイは、やったことが無いので今か らどきどきです = I've never "homestayed" before so, my heart is already pounding (in excitement).

どきどき is the onomatopoeia for "heart beat".

Thanks so much! Lol I wasn't sure about "歳" because I thought if the pronunciation was とし, it would have been written as 年. Thanks for clearing that up.

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by Nagoyankee

どきどき is the onomatopoeia for "heart beat".

And there's another onomatopoeia for "heart beat" as well: ワクワク. However, in this case, ドキドキ is more negative excitement, while ワクワク is more positive (as in the difference between ドキドキ about a speech you're giving, while ワクワク because your sister is having a baby).

At least, that's what I think the difference is. And maybe technically ワクワク isn't an onomatopoeia for a heart beat, but I've always lumped the two words together as the "same sound" even though they're maybe not.

[Imaginative]

Originally Posted by KyleGoetz

And there's another onomatopoeia for "heart beat" as well: ワクワク. However, in this case, ドキドキ is more negative excitement, while ワクワク is more positive (as in the difference between ドキドキ about a speech you're giving, while ワクワク because your sister is having a baby).

At least, that's what I think the difference is. And maybe technically ワクワク isn't an onomatopoeia for a heart beat, but I've always lumped the two words together as the "same sound" even though they're maybe not.

I've always thought どきどき was just a word, to describe how you're feeling, and to say that your heart is beating fast... I never knew it was actually onomatopoeia. I believe you're right about the difference between どきどき and ワクワク, although I'm not sure.

[yuriyuri]

There is a google spreadsheet with a lot of onomatopoeic words in it but since it is from the book 日本語擬態語辞典 by 五味太郎 and other various sources, so I'm not sure if it is OK to post.

From the spreadsheet:

どきどき
nervous, pounding heart
面接の時に、ドキドキしちゃって、自分で何を話してい るのか全然分からなかったよ。

わくわく
excited
子供の頃、遠足の前の日には、胸がワクワクして眠れな かった。

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by yuriyuri

There is a google spreadsheet with a lot of onomatopoeic words in it but since it is from the book 日本語擬態語辞典 by 五味太郎 and other various sources, so I'm not sure if it is OK to post.

From the spreadsheet:

どきどき
nervous, pounding heart
面接の時に、ドキドキしちゃって、自分で何を話してい るのか全然分からなかったよ。

わくわく
excited
子供の頃、遠足の前の日には、胸がワクワクして眠れな かった。

Thanks, that confirms what I said. I'm glad I have been using them correctly.