– Vol.4 –
ARC teacher Mimi Sensei will answer your questions regarding Japanese language.
Ａ：
「～ta bakari」and「～ta tokoro」are both expressions used to indicate something that you’ve done or that has happened just a while ago. For example, if someone invites you to eat together, but you have just had lunch before, you can decline using both「tabeta bakari nandesu」and「tabeta tokoro nandesu」.
However, how to say when it comes to a bag bought 3 days ago?
The correct answer is「Katta bakari desu」. The expression「～ta tokoro」indicates something in the immediate past, so it cannot be used for something that you’ve done a few days ago.
「tokoro」’s time is very short, while「bakari」means “recently” in a more relative way and can be used also for something that happened a long time ago.
But how long then? To tell the truth, since it’s personal there’s no rule that defines that. If the speaker shares with you the same idea of「just a while ago」, it can be used to talk about 1 month ago or even 1 year ago.
Minna san no benkyou ha hajimatta bakari.
You’ve just started studying. So, if you have any questions…please ask Mimi Sensei!