In this booster
Sooner or later every trip needs a drugstore: a headache after the flight, a blister from the temple stairs, a cold on day six. The good news is you already own the hard half — Lesson 8 taught Atama ga itai desu and Onaka ga itai desu, Lesson 10 added Netsu ga arimasu — and this booster adds the other half: the shelf words, the counter questions, and what the pharmacist says back. It runs almost entirely on Lesson 3’s arimasu ka / kudasai and Lesson 4’s doko desu ka — no new grammar: every sentence here is a frame you already own, wearing new nouns. Boosters assume the finished core (Lessons 1–9).
One thing to know before you need it: the konbini can’t sell you painkillers. Japan keeps even basic medicine in drugstores and pharmacies, so the konbini run that solves everything else stops at bandages and energy drinks. The big drugstore signs — ドラッグストア (doraggu sutoa) — are where this booster happens.
Tap each sentence and listen first, repeat it aloud, then check yourself against the text and meaning that appear. Tap again to listen as often as you like.
Finding the medicine
Doraggusutoa wa doko desu ka.
doraggusutoa — the drugstore: self-serve shelves of medicine, cosmetics, and snacks, open late, in every shopping street.
Itami-dome wa arimasu ka.
itami-dome — painkiller, literally “pain-stopper.” The word for headaches, sore feet, and everything itai.
Kaze desu. Kaze-gusuri wa arimasu ka.
kaze-gusuri — cold medicine. Spoken kaze is also the weather word for wind (the Outdoors booster taught that one) — context sorts it out, exactly like hashi the chopsticks and hashi the bridge, and inside a drugstore nobody thinks you mean the weather.
Geri-dome, onegaishimasu.
geri-dome — anti-diarrheal, the same “-stopper” shape as itami-dome. The traveler medicine most worth knowing before the day it’s urgent.
Ichouyaku wa doko desu ka.
ichouyaku — stomach medicine, for the milder aftermath of an ambitious izakaya night.
Megusuri mo kudasai.
megusuri — eye drops, literally “eye medicine.” Lesson 3’s mo stacking a second item onto the basket.
The small kit
Nodo ga itai desu.
nodo — throat. This completes the set Lesson 8 started: atama (head), onaka (stomach), and now the third place trips actually hurt.
Nodo-ame, kudasai.
nodo-ame — throat drops, literally “throat candy.” Sold everywhere, including the konbini — the one exception to the no-medicine rule, because it’s candy.
Bansoukou wa arimasu ka.
bansoukou — band-aid / adhesive bandage. The blister word; new shoes plus temple stairs make it inevitable.
Masuku wa doko desu ka.
masuku — mask. Wearing one when you’re sniffly is ordinary courtesy in Japan — doubly so on a packed train — and a box costs pocket change.
Kayumi-dome wa arimasu ka.
kayumi-dome — anti-itch cream, the third “-stopper” — summer mosquitoes will introduce you.
Taionkei wa takai desu ka.
taionkei — thermometer, the answer to “is this netsu worth a clinic visit.”
At the counter
Shohousen wa arimasen.
shohousen — prescription. The white-coat counter inside bigger stores is the yakkyoku — the pharmacy proper, where prescriptions are filled; everything on the open shelves needs none.
Yakkyoku wa nan-ji made desu ka.
The drugstore shelves often run to 10 p.m. or later, but the prescription counter keeps office hours — worth asking if you’ll need it.
Dialog
At the drugstore counter with a cold. Listen cold first — no peeking — then check yourself line by line.
Sumimasen. Kaze-gusuri wa arimasu ka. Hai, gozaimasu. Asoko desu. Dore ga ii desu ka. Kore ga ii desu yo. Ja, sore o kudasai. Hai. Happyaku-en desu. Arigatou gozaimasu.Dore ga ii desu ka is the whole shelf-overwhelm problem in four words — you hand the choosing to the person who knows, then point-confirm with sore. (Happyaku is one of the Prices at Speed sound changes, live in the wild.)
What they’ll say to you
Four lines for your ears — the counter’s questions, the dosage, and the goodbye. You never say these.
Shohousen wa omochi desu ka. Ichinichi san-kai, shokugo ni nonde kudasai. Nemuku narimasu kara, unten wa shinaide kudasai. Odaiji ni.Odaiji ni is the health-trade’s *irasshaimase-*in-reverse — clinics, pharmacies, and kind hotel clerks all send you off with it. It asks nothing back.
How to behave: the drugstore run
- Skip the konbini, find the ドラッグストア (doraggu sutoa). Japan sells real medicine only in drugstores and pharmacies — and inside a big drugstore there are two stores: open shelves for everything in this booster, and the white-coat yakkyoku counter for prescriptions. The [R] question above (Shohousen wa omochi desu ka) is staff sorting out which one you need.
- Point and show. The symptom sentences you already own plus a hand on the offending body part does most of the diagnostic work — staff will walk you to the right shelf. For anything complicated, the phone-translator move beats vocabulary.
- Don’t tax-free the medicine you need. Big drugstores love the tax-free counter, but medicine counts as a consumable — it goes into the sealed bag you must not open in Japan. Tax-free the souvenir cosmetics; pay tax on the itami-dome you’re taking tonight.
- Bringing medicine INTO Japan is its own topic. Some common Western ingredients (pseudoephedrine cold medicine among them) are restricted at the border — check the current rules before you fly. This booster exists so you can simply buy the local equivalent instead.
Checkpoint
Your exit exam, out loud. Each line below sets a scene from this booster — say the Japanese before you tap; the tap plays the answer. Check yourself, repeat after the audio matching its pronunciation, rhythm, and speed, and if one won’t come, replay its section. These are this deck’s speaking cards — in Anki they queue up after the listening cards, so you’ll always have heard a line before you’re asked to produce it.
Vocabulary reference
| # | Romaji | English | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | doraggusutoa | drugstore | Doraggusutoa wa doko desu ka. |
| 2 | yakkyoku | pharmacy (prescription counter) | Yakkyoku wa nan-ji made desu ka. |
| 3 | kaze-gusuri | cold medicine | Kaze-gusuri wa arimasu ka. |
| 4 | itami-dome | painkiller | Itami-dome wa arimasu ka. |
| 5 | geri-dome | anti-diarrheal | Geri-dome, onegaishimasu. |
| 6 | ichouyaku | stomach medicine | Ichouyaku wa doko desu ka. |
| 7 | megusuri | eye drops | Megusuri mo kudasai. |
| 8 | nodo | throat | Nodo ga itai desu. |
| 9 | nodo-ame | throat drops | Nodo-ame, kudasai. |
| 10 | bansoukou | band-aid | Bansoukou wa arimasu ka. |
| 11 | masuku | mask | Masuku wa doko desu ka. |
| 12 | kayumi-dome | anti-itch cream | Kayumi-dome wa arimasu ka. |
| 13 | taionkei | thermometer | Taionkei wa takai desu ka. |
| 14 | shohousen | prescription | Shohousen wa arimasen. |
Recognize only — never say these:
| Script line | It means | You do |
|---|---|---|
| Shohousen wa omochi desu ka. | prescription? | Answer iie — the shelves are the no-prescription side; the white-coat counter is for prescriptions |
| Ichinichi san-kai, shokugo ni nonde kudasai. | dosage instructions | check the box sticker — it says the same; kaite kudasai gets it in writing |
| Nemuku narimasu kara, unten wa shinaide kudasai. | drowsiness warning | no driving — and that includes the rental bicycle |
| Odaiji ni. | get well soon | a nod or doumo is all it needs |
Anki deck
Download the booster deck — sentence cards are the course; suspend the vocab cards unless a word won’t stick.