Marking a tool and language with で
Open chapter 1 and use the word support directly below. Then read the tool example aloud and point to the tool, object, and action.
1. Tool + で, object + を
In はさみで紙を切ります, the scissors are the means and take で. Paper is what is cut and takes を. The two roles remain distinct.
Match a tool with a logical action: eat with chopsticks, write a composition with a computer, and take a photo with a phone.
はさみで紙を切ります。
2. Language + で specifies the language of the answer
日本語で can indicate the language in which something is said or named. これは日本語で何ですか asks what this is called in Japanese; the answer gives the Japanese word.
In this question, read 何 as なん before です. 日本語 takes で, not に, because the language functions here as the medium or language choice.
これは日本語で何ですか。
ホッチキスです。
3. Four functions of the same form
You now know location, transport, tool, and language with で. Look at the noun before で and the following verb: 学校で勉強します gives a location; 電車で行きます transport; はさみで切ります a tool; 日本語で話します a language.
何で means ‘with what?’ in a clear tool context. Elsewhere, なんで can also mean ‘why’, so keep the action concrete.
4. Choose new means
Make one new sentence with a tool and one question asking for the Japanese name of an object. Check that the tool or language takes で and the object acted on takes を.
Use only logical, concrete combinations. ホッチキス is the stapler, not the staple.