Sorry for the long time without a lesson minna-san~ Both cheri and myself have been super busy lately. ^_^;; Here's a quick lesson... with help from Yahoo!answers
Question: What is the difference between Anata, Kimi, and Omae?
First of all, in most casual conversation, personal pronouns are dropped. Also, if you know the person's name it's generally better to use that rather than a personal pronoun. However, if you must use a personal pronoun for "you", which one you use really depends on who you are speaking to and how polite you want to sound. ^_^
"Anata" is for all around situations. If you don't know the person well, if the person has authority over you, or if you just want to be polite or nice, this is the term you would want to use. "Anata" is often also used by wives to refer to their husbands. You should think of "Anata" as the default in situations... if you're not sure which one to use, or you're not sure what your relationship is with the other person, to be on the safe side I would recommend using "Anata".
"Kimi" is for friends, or someone close as a friend. It can also be used to address one's boyfriend/girlfriend. It's not rude per se, but if you call someone with authority "kimi", it will sound disrespectful. Also, if you don't know the person very well, using "Kimi" is like going up to someone you just met and calling them by a nickname.
"Omae" is a little more disrespectful. This is usually used for people who have less authority than you and want to sound imposing to. (Think of a police officer speaking to someone breaking the law) "Omae" used against a person with authority is highly offensive. Use this only if you are good friends with someone because it gives you an authoritative air.
There's also another way that the Japanese say "you", but I wouldn't
recommend it unless you're around your best friends...
"Anta" is VERY disrespectful. Used against authorities, it is greatly offensive. Among very close friends
it's fine, but you will still sound a little bit rude. A contextual example of when "Anta" would be used
would be when a mother scolds a child. If she yells, "It's your fault!", the "you" she uses
will most likely be "Anta".
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There's no actual Practice (Renshuu) for this lesson, it's more of an informational lesson. ^_^ Please continue to ask questions or give ideas on what you'd like to learn!
