Intro

For background/how to use this series, see the first post.

Here's a semi-short thing from a kids' website. I'm trying to find some more beginner-friendly reading selections, since new learners usually get stuck with really boring materials. I marked this one as "intermediate" because it has some low-frequency vocab and a couple of more advanced grammar points, but I encourage beginners to jump right in and engage even if this one seems a bit out of reach. It has a lot of juicy grammar in such a small excerpt!

Text Link

どうして目やにがでるの

Vocabulary List

Kanji Reading English Gloss Frequency Notes
もの item, object, thing 2321.65
できる to be able to 1949.53
とき time, instance 1339.66
人 ひと person, people 1171.96
見る みる to look at 1163.23
考える かんがえる to think 819.71
お家 おうち the house, the home 648.01
ところ place 591.14
出る でる to come out 553.51
目 め eye 472.81
よぶ to call (something by a certain name) 300.46
出す だす to put out, to express 268.08
少しずつ すこしずつ a little bit (at a time) 250.04 compound, frequency for 少し is 250.04
含む ふくむ to contain, to include 199.89
いつも always 137.87
あまり not very much 130.65
かなり quite a bit 130.65
専門 せんもん specialty 124.27
健康な けんこうな healthy 99.59
動く うごく to move 93.35
病気 びょうき illness, disease 78.01
広がる ひろがる to expand 71.87
機械 きかい machinery 65.8
たくさん a lot 64.3
涙 なみだ tears 51.31
裏 うら back, behind (something) 48.72
流す ながす to pour, to let flow 47.7
医者 いしゃ doctor 36.41
一度 いちど one time 36
洗う あらう to wash 34.67
塗る ぬる to coat, to paint 29.18
ごみ dust, garbage 25.64
油 あぶら oil 25.3
おすすめする to recommend 18.14 compound, おすすめ is 18.14
役目 やくめ role 14.22
液体 えきたい liquid 14.15
清潔 せいけつ clean 13.81
方 かた person (polite) 12.21
なめらか smooth 11.28
まぶた eyelid 10.06
溜まる たまる to build up, to accumulate 4.43
反る そる to bend, to curve 4.13
瞬き またたき blinking 4.06
目元 めもと eye 3.2
挿す さす to put into, to insert 2.18
押し流す おしながす to wash away, to carry away 1.06
つまり in other words 0.89
結膜 けつまく conjunctiva 0.61
粘り気 ねばりけ stickiness 0.48
目やに めやに eye mucus 0.2
涙腺 るいせん lachrymal gland 0.17
など and such, etc. 0 not in corpus, but pretty frequent

Grammar List

Translation

Why Does Eye Mucus Exist?

Image upper left: Always clean
Image upper right: lachrymal gland
Person cleaning: Let's wash out all that dust and other stuff!
Image bottom left: Eye mucus (dust)

Where your eye curves inward, there's an area that expresses an oily, sticky kind of liquid.

This liquid is always coming out a little bit at a time. Behind your eyelids expands what's called the "conjunctiva." When the back of your eyelid is coated with this liquid and then you blink, it makes it so your eyelid can move smoothly. In other words, it's much like the oil used to lubricate machinery. This sticky liquid that builds up in your eye and gets washed away by tears is called eye mucus.

To Household Members:

Healthy people do not produce much eye mucus. If you have quite a bit of eye mucus coming out, it could be a sign of infection, so we recommend that you see an eye doctor.