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Can 低い be used to describe "salary"?
I was under the impression that is used for anything related to "cost", whereas is used to mean low for all things general.
However, a simple Google search shows ~99k records for , contrasted to ~273k records for .
Is it _proper_ to use to mean "low salary"?
Or is it simply an example of usage corruption? | I agree that both and are acceptable, but the latter is far more common. On the other hand is common and is borderline acceptable. I make sense of this as follows.
talks about money directly (containing the kanji , cf. ), and the way to talk about money is to use . Think of as _salary_. can be , because it is a fixed amount of money for a fixed of time. appears on a single pay-check.
on the other hand is a more abstract way to talk about someone's _income_ and in that sense is only indirectly about money. A is , because it is an average amount of money for a standard amount of time (usually a year). has to be calculated over several pay-checks, possibly from different sources.
In English, of course we say "low salary" and "low income", but from the difference of "salary" and "income" I don't think it's too far a stretch of one's imagination that "salary" (a one-off payment for a one-off job) could described to be "cheap" in Japanese. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "words, usage"
} |
Meaning of さて after て
Hello everyone I cannot grasp the meaning of in the following sentence, as far as I can understand it's same as this, however I'm not confident about it. "...for young man it was like throwing the dice, whose number will definitly show up, sooner or later."(I translated only the part with )
> ****
Also there is a part that makes me wonder, why the author put before ? The narration is in 3rd person, but with it translates like "my body" which sounds strange in this sentence, or maybe I'm misunderstanding something? | Your understanding as to the meaning of is correct. The young man is wondering which number will show up as his destiny.
The narration is indeed in 3rd person. However, two lines are understood as the young man's thought (or monologues).
and
The author is omitting square brackets. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
What does this character (禅) mean?
I would very much appreciate if someone could tell me what this means!
!Unknown | It means "zen" and I hope I do not have to explain what zen is in just a few sentences. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 1,
"question_score": -1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Does the たり in Modern Japanese come from the Classical たり?
For example, in the sentence ``. Does this have anything to do with the `-(i)tari` ending in Classical Japanese that meant the present progressive (and later semantically shifted to past, and then even later truncated to `-ta`)? As in ` = `?
It seems quite similar, attaching to the (albeit with ), and with the same form. The meaning is very, very different though. Are they related? | Yes, it does.
In Classical Japanese, was an auxiliary verb but in Modern Japanese, it is a particle. The meaning and usage changed somewhat over time in that presently, it is used only in colloquial speech.
Regarding your example phrase , I need to mention the fact that is a modern verb; therefore, you should not combine it with the Classical auxiliary verb . The Classical versions of are and . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "etymology, classical japanese"
} |
Ordering a drink, conversational Japanese
**Disclaimer** : _This relates to prose, I would never consider being intentionally rude in real life._
I'm currently writing a short-story, and in it there's a scene in a Japanese restaurant. It calls for one of the characters (female) to call the waiter over and request a bottle of Sake (nihonshu?), as per the chef's recommendation.
My own—slow but ongoing—study of Japanese, is of little help, because text-books has an awful tendency to mangle the politeness in these matters. From what I understand of the politeness customs in Japan, a customer would probably **not** be more polite toward the staff, than the staff toward the customer.
So, how would one, as a woman, in conversational Japanese, bordering on being downright rude, order a bottle of the house's recommended rice-wine?
My own best guess would be " _Oi, nihonshu kudasai!_ ", but that doesn't sound right to me… | As @dainichi has suggested in his comment I think you could use
> /or
> /or
> /
>
etc. in a Japanese restaurant. If in []{} you would say
> []{}
>
> []{}[]{}
>
etc., depending on what (type/brand) you want / how (hot/iced/warm/room temperature) you want it. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "orthography"
} |
What word is used for an enemy in a Video Game?
What is the most common Japanese word to use when referring to any kind of enemy in a video game. I know the word is common for non-human enemies, but is there just a general term for any kind of enemy? Thank you | Native speaker here. {} might be what you are looking for. You could use if you wanted to but that word is so general that it is used in a war in real life as well. just does not give off the fun feeling that and do for the player. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "words, video games"
} |
Understanding the の in ～ものの
I thought that always had to modify a noun... so how come a sentence like the following is possible despite there being no nominalization of what follows ?
> ****
Is this a different type of ? or does work differently to how I imagined it? I there any elision??? If the construction has no such explanation then I am ok with that, but if there is one I'd like to hear it. | As Tokyo Nagoya stated in his answer, in modern Japanese, is considered one word, a (conjunctive particle).
However, it does in fact consist of the noun and the genitive case-marking particle . There is no elision occurring. Generally speaking, your thoughts on how this particle works are correct: it takes two nouns (or noun-forms) and makes on larger noun-form.
However, the genitive case in Japanese can also mark the subject of an adnominal clause, for example:
*
*
These may look like they are connecting ()() and ()(), but what is actually happening is () and () -- the is marking the subject of those adnominal clauses. This form of subject marking has existed since before Old Japanese.
is attested from the Heian Period onward, and though I was unable to find any explanation of this construction in particular, I would hypothesize that it is related to the noun-marking function. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "grammar, particles"
} |
How come the よう in ~ようものなら can modify a noun?
I have the sentence in my book:
I was wondering if this means that it is possible to modify nouns with the volitional form. I have so far heard that it isn't, which makes this grammar point confusing. Could someone give me an explanation as to how to understand ~ in the above sentence? Is it like, "If women WISHED to go out with men..."? Or does the volitional have some other interpretation here? | Again, is one word. It is a conjunctive particle that has the same meaning as = "if one were to try ~~ing".
"In the old days, if a young woman were to try going out with a man just the two of them, it would be the talk of the town."
SVP DO NOT take my English TL too literally; English is my worst language. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
Is there a different meaning for ごちそうさま!
I have posted a "status" on Facebook:
> Dear santa, I would like for you to bring him for christmas
My boyfriend commented:
> Your Wish is my command!
And my Japanese manager (from our office) commented:
> !!
In this case, what does `!!` mean? I think it is definitely not the meaning "Thanks for the meal".
So, are there any other meanings of `!!` | Yes, there is! Primary use is the one you are already aware of. is also used after hearing something lovey-dovey like your boyfriend's "your wish is my command". | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 11,
"question_score": 12,
"tags": "meaning"
} |
Are the same terms for husbands and wives used for same-sex relationships?
When talking about same-sex relationships in modern Japanese (not Edo-era), are the same words used for husbands and wives as you'd use for opposite-sex relationships?
For example, can you use to describe (politely) a man's husband, and to describe (politely) a woman's wife? Or do Japanese speakers regard "a man's wife" and "a woman's wife" as different concepts best described with different words? | When I was in college I had a Japanese professor who was also a lesbian. She referred to her SO as , and other teachers referred to that professor's SO as . It's possible that this choice of words was because it was most familiar to us as American students, but I feel that in Japan as well this would be the safest, most 'PC' way to address someone's SO. If I were to ask her about her SO I'd say . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 11,
"tags": "words"
} |
The の noun... does it have any intrinsic meaning?
I am having a bit of trouble separating and when they serve the purpose of turning a verb phrase into a noun.
The noun seems to satisfy a few purposes... It seems to be like "one"... like when you say "the red one is mine" "" And it also seems to be work like "~ing" "It is hard to swim" "”
At least in the first example, I can give "one" meaning and explain it... The second one is kind of like the "to" in "to swim" isn't it?
I want to know if you can give a meaning, or have some way to visualize it in order to distinguish it from ? | There are two separate things to pick apart here.
In your two examples, as you suspect is really performing two different functions in your two examples. It's only in that it's really turning the verb phrase into a noun; in it's acting as a placeholder noun, which is modified by the adjective.
You can't use to nominalise a verb phrase - will always mean "swimmer" or "the one that swims", not "swimming". (as an aside, you can also use to mean "swimming")
Now, as to your question about the difference between and when used as a placeholder noun, there is a difference in nuance.
- the thing I bought last week - the one that I bought last week
implies that there are many things under consideration, but the one I'm interested in is the one I bought last week. With you're just talking about a singular object, but the implication with is that it's a specific object out of many. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 9,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
Adding っぷり to a word: Does this have some easily defined meaning?
I came across the following sentence in a Manga:
and I looked the sentence up in the translated Manga, where I found something like (translation was into German):
And she's also really funny. (Hach, und urkomisch ist sie auch noch)
I found in a dictionary meaning "fool", so my first try would have been something like:
She's a bit foolish, but sweet.
But the is the missing element which I couldn't find anywhere. Does this modify the meaning of in a specific way? Can it be used to modify other words as well? (According to google, it can, it seems to work even for nouns and verbs)
I also found this: < during my research, but couldn't make too much sense of it.
So, my question is: What does do? What kind of language/situation can it be used in (more informal, formal, ..)? How does it help me arrive at the translation suggested by the translator? | The biggest mistake you have made is in trusting that translation, which is not even close to the original.
does not mean "fool"; It is not even a noun. It is from the verb , which means "to trip over", "to fall down", etc.
comes from , which means "the manner / way in which one performs an action".
, for instance, means that someone eats a lot. means "The way you sing really resembles your father's."
Thus, means "The way (someone) trips over is also cute." This phrase is very informal but certainly not slanguish at all. The part is in katakana because is a fairly informal verb and it looks and feels lighter and more animated written in katakana. The "regular" version is . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 13,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "suffixes"
} |
Meaning of 空港から空港へ
A sentence from JapanesePod101, with the official translation.
>
> Sandals are convenient for traveling through airports.
To me sounds like "moving from one airport to another", but does this particular phrase simply mean walking through an airport as the translation suggests? | You are correct, but there is a lot that is omitted due to implication here. It's saying that when you travel, going from airport to airport, the implication is that you frequently remove your shoes, so sandals are convenient for doing so. Without that assumption, there's no other real benefit that sandals provide over shoes.
20+, 30+, 40+ years ago, this sentence would not have carried the same meaning when airport security was not as strict, and people would not have been taking their shoes on and off as much.
* * *
**EDIT** : From the comments, it seems that Japanese people frequently remove their shoes during a flight just as they do in their homes. So the implication of often removing shoes is likely more related to this than to airport security measures. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "particles"
} |
What is the し particle and how do you use it?
I understand that obviously every Japanese textbook will go into this topic briefly... but I can never really come to grips with what it means in Japanese. If anyone could link me to a good Japanese dictionary entry about it that would be great (I can't find a good one that explains it)
I am interested in the particle as used below...
I was wondering if the particle had anything to do with //.
Here, it seems like seems to turn the reasons into some sort of noun phrase because the author has stated you can use with them.
Knowing the essential underlying meanings behind and helps me to unconsciously decide between them... I kinda have no idea how to do the same with so... Can anyone enlighten me or link me to somewhere where I could be enlightened on the matter? | is used here to create a list, and I'd translate your example sentence as "My tooth hurts, I don't want to go to the dentist... it sucks." (lit: "I'm troubled")
It's _sort of_ like in that it creates a list, but as I'm thinking about it, is used more for a list of reasons that culminate in a conclusion stated later in the sentence. I might describe my girlfriend as follows:
Here, I'm listing out various reasons I like her. In your example, you're listing out reasons that you're troubled. Hope that helps! | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
をも.... what on earth is this particle combination?
In my book I found this sentence...
> ****
I understand the sentence, but I had no idea such a particle combination was possible... could someone please explain it to me? Is this common? | I am surprised that you appear to find the combination unusual. gets attached to another particle very often. It is more than common.
The sentence is saying that undermines two things -- and . It undermines not only A's mental health but also the whole family's. This is to emphasize the last item on the list.
Other examples of "Particle + "
> ****
>
> ****
>
> **** | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "grammar, particles"
} |
Replying to お帰りなさいませ in a hotel setting
Recently I was in Japan and stayed at a certain hotel for a few days. I was surprised to see the level of customer service that I received. There were many cultural differences that surprised me, but the one thing I wasn't sure how to react was to all the I received when I got back to the hotel.
I was born in Japan, but living in America for the majority of my life, I'm used to replying when someone says something to me. My mom told me that it's very uncommon for people to reply in such situations but I could not stop my habits. I thought about what would be a good thing to say since would be strange, as the hotel is not my home. So I came up with as my reply.
Does that sound strange and if so are there better phrases I could've used in that situation? Or should I have just kept my mouth shut and said nothing at all? | You do not need to say anything nor are you even expected to in that kind of situation. Many, if not all, Japanese indeed do not. I myself usually just nod or bow lightly at the clerk without a word or nod while saying without enunciating it.
Saying sounds strange to me unless you reside in the hotel and you know the clerk very well. may be said by some if not by me, and I cannot actively recommend that you say it. Again, you can say it with no problem if you already know the clerk personally.
In a ryokan, however, a whole different set of customs are followed, in that a far greater amount of conversation takes place between the staff and guests than in a hotel. I will not get into that here, though. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 8,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "word choice"
} |
ても "even if/though" doesn't seem right
I've been thinking of the pattern as "even though" or "even if". But this sentence from steins;gate uses it in a way that surprised me...
>
Is this being used in the common way (if so, I may have been thinking of it wrong)? Or is this a different way of using it, with a different meaning?
EDIT: If I took my normal approach here, I'd end up with something like, "even if you rush me, I will fall", which, I think people will agree, doesn't really make sense in english (it implies that the person speaking will fall whether or not they're rushed, and that the person rushing him is doing so with the intention of preventing him from falling). Maybe the interpretation should be something like, "even if you rush me, (I won't get there any faster, and) I (may even) fall." | This means "though/although" if I have to translate it by itself. It is used when you want to say that a negative result will follow if you obeyed/agreed to/took seriously what the other person is saying.
means:
"Wait a sec! Though you want me to go faster, I'll only fall down (if I did)."
Obviously, I did not employ direct TL. The original is in the passive voice = "if I am forced to go faster".
With this in mind, you may watch this and actually laugh at the very first exchange between the two men in this comedy. <
Guy A:
Guy B:
This is the we are discussing. The negative result is unmentioned here but it would be something like . I will not try to make it sound more natural since the comedy is in Osaka dialect.
Point is the usual greeting is without a as you probably know, but Guy A says it with as if it were a question. This puts Guy B in a situation where he would not know what to say, so he goes I wouldn't know how to respond/react. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
Dropping から when modifying a noun
I'm having trouble with as a modifier...
I have heard people say or something like that in order to say like, "where are you living?"... but what if someone wanted to say in this manner? Like... "The country I came from is called Australia".
I can't say because you can't have just sitting there like that... and you can't say because you can't tell whether I'm saying I came from there or came to here (isolated from context).
Is there a way to fit in there? | If you want to say "the country I came from" you're stuck saying . Grammatically it feels odd that you can't use how you want to in noun modification, but it's just... not said that way. I think that's why we have the word in regular use to begin with: it means "where someone comes from." Since the construction can't be made using , the question will always use as well, so there's not _really_ any conflict.
>
>
Unfortunately there's no good way to make the country the subject, so we have to use in its place:
> ()
>
Semantically I think this has the same meaning as the "" idea you were trying to go for. You could also say or something like that but you're still using a noun to replace that awkward grammar. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
How does ダンスとかあったら全然だったと思う work/mean?
> A:
> B:…… ****
I don't get what the part is saying. is an adverb but there's no verb after it but , but that's separated by a quoting particle, so I assume it doesn't modify it. If that's the case, it's to be assumed that the verb after is dropped, right? Or should and go together. Please help me understand the meaning here. | In colloquial speech, . You can treat this as a (I just do not like the word "na-adjective" because it does not exist in Japanese.). So, it is quite natural to say in informal speech.
, therefore means:
"I think I would have been a total failure if I had had to dance or something." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 9,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "grammar, usage, translation, meaning"
} |
Difference between ちょっと待って and ちょっと待った
I understand that means "please wait a while".
But I did hear some people using for the same meaning (maybe).
So what is the difference between these two and when should we use or | Needless to say, both have the same meaning and both are informal.
**** is more versatile in that basically anyone, regardless of age, gender and other general characteristics of the speaker, can use it in nearly all informal situations where one wants to ask another person to wait a second.
**** fairly strictly chooses the speakers and situations. Male speakers use it much more often than female speakers. The phrase sounds a little more curt / urgent / dramatic, etc. to our native ears, which is probably why it is used in fiction often. If I may say this, I DO NOT recommend that a Japanese-learner use this phrase actively unless he is nearly fluent and capable of keeping the other parts of his speech at the same informal and/or lively level.
In comparison, the phrase **** , mentioned above in the comments by @Snailboat, sounds more like a serious order than a request. With the small , it sounds more like a request. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "verbs, colloquial language, imperatives, modality"
} |
Scope of negation with 〜したくない
In English, we can distinguish between **not wanting** to do something, and **wanting to not** do something. It's not a distinction that we usually make, but it is possible:
P = "do anything"
A. "I want to **not** do anything." WANT(NOT(P))
B. "I **don't** want to do anything." NOT(WANT(P))
The first sentence means `WANT(NOT(P))` _"I want to do nothing"_.
The second sentence literally means `NOT(WANT(P))` _"I lack the desire to do anything"_ , but by implication it usually also means `WANT(NOT(P))` _"I want to do nothing"_. Since this is just an implication, it's possible for it to be cancelled in certain contexts.
* * *
I was wondering if something similar is true of ``. Take a look at this sentence:
>
I think this usually means `WANT(NOT(P))` _"I want to do nothing"_. But is it possible for it to mean `NOT(WANT(P))` _"I lack the desire to do anything"_ as well?
Can have either meaning? | The negative form … means “WANT(NOT(…)).” For example, means the speaker wants to avoid climbing a mountain.
To express “NOT(WANT(…)),” we have to use other constructs such as .
Compare the following examples.
1. ****
2. ****
In the first example, the speaker wants to avoid fighting against the dragon. In the second example, the speaker is just saying that it is not that he/she wants to fight against the dragon.
Your notation related to P = “do anything” is ambiguous because it does not specify how the negation interacts with the quantifier implicit in word _anything_. To avoid this, we should make the quantifier explicit. Then means ∀x. WANT(NOT(do x)), that is, the speaker wants to be free from all actions. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 7,
"tags": "meaning, ambiguity, scope"
} |
Meaning of last "te" of saki ni itte te (先に行ってて)
I always hear people saying
which means 'go ahead'
But I don't really understand the meaning of the last . I know it's the abbreviation of but if I translate it to English, I always think like this.
- Going ahead
So anyone can explain the latter 'te' of this sentence? | As you said, **** is the colloquial contraction of **** and we almost always use the contracted form in informal speech.
There is, however, a fairly big difference in meaning between **** and **** .
simply means "You go first."
means "You go first and wait for me/us." or "You go first and I/We will follow you." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "nuances, colloquial language"
} |
逃げられた (full sentence)
A girl ties up a cat and puts it in the corner. She's not paying attention and it escapes. When she looks in the corner she sees the ropes, and she sees that the cat is gone, and she says "".
Is that = , or is it ?
EDIT: Just to clarify, the first one is meant to be the potential form, and the second one is meant to be the passive form. | The latter, passive.
cf. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "potential form, passive voice"
} |
Volitional + と in ひとまず心を落ち着けようと、[...]
>
Please help. I came across this line and I don't really understand use of here. How exactly does work here? | You may be reading too much into this; It is pretty simple.
Verb A + + Verb B = "do B" so as to / in order to / for the purpose of "do A".
A is your goal / purpose. B is the method you are taking to achieve A.
means:
"I extend my arm to the unfinished (glass of) orange juice so as to relax myself for now." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar, particles, particle と"
} |
why do some kanji have multiple stroke counts?
A few years ago, I came across the issue of one kanji having multiple stroke counts. Now, I need to review this:
= (4 or 5 strokes)
= (5 or 6 strokes)
= (6 or 7 strokes)
....
If native speakers don't know about this ambiguity, then I'll just ignore it. But, if it is something to be aware of, can someone please check these assertions?
(1) Depending on the era, some kanji's stroke counts changed. One stroke count is considered correct in modern Japan, while the other is just a historical footnote.
(2) Counter to the trend of simplifying kanji, the modern writings have the greater number of strokes.
Any more information would be welcomed. thanks. | There are currently 1,006 kanji that are taught in elementary schools and those are named . It is only these 1,006 kanji that are given "official" stroke counts by , Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.
Strange as it may seem, the other kanji simply do not have official stroke counts. What that means is that it is left to the discretion of the individual publisher and dictionary author.
The 1,006 kanji are listed here on Wikipedia. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 7,
"tags": "kanji"
} |
なくてもいいです and なければなりません
1. My grammar book says:
> Verb/Adjective/Na-Adjective+
Is it OK to use
> Noun+,
like:
>
2. My grammar book also says:
> Verb/Noun+
Is it OK to use
> Adjective/Na-Adjective+,
like:
>
>
> | 1. Yes, it is ok, but as you did in your example, one needs to insert between the noun and .
= It does not have to be tomorrow.
2. If your book just says "It is ok to use Verb/Noun + ", it is misleading. With nouns, you need to insert or or depending on what you want to say, for the phrase to make sense and be grammatical.
The two sentences below have totally different meanings:
= Wine is definitely needed (in life). = We cannot live without wine.
= It has to be wine (for a certain occasion or to go with a certain dish).
And yes, it is ok to use Adjective/Na-Adjective + and your examples are both correct. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
The use of でも and ででも in this sentence
> A: …………
>
> B:
Pretty much in general and don't sit well in my mind. There have been a lot of times I see them in a context in which they don't make sense to me as "even" or "even if/though" or in the case of as and individually. In this case the manner of speech is colloquial so maybe that's why it seems so odd. What really confuses me is . Can someone explain the use and here?
As a bonus, is just with a a different emphasis? | This `` means " or something similar". So `` means "eat some rice or something". The `` in question is just the action-location-marker `` plus the previous ``. So `` means "wait/behave quietly in the (or somewhere)".
(Not sure of the best translation for `` \-- literally the "wings of the stage", but maybe something like "off-stage" or "off to the side of the stage" might be better).
Bonus: Yes, your intuition is correct. `` often becomes `` in very casual speech. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 13,
"question_score": 9,
"tags": "grammar, particle で, particle も"
} |
「なん」as a formal, spoken, suffix for questions?
I sense that using "" in questions probably makes the question sound more formal:
""
"" // maybe more formal?
""
"" // maybe more formal?
"?"
"" // maybe more formal?
....
Am I right about this? Maybe this is very similar to the function of []{}?
But, I don't remember ever seeing this in written Japanese. I suspect that this is just because using fewer characters trumps whatever formality "" may, or may not, inject into questions? | I don't think is particularly formal. It's short for . If I understand the traditional grammar right, here is analyzed as , a form which appears chiefly before the in constructions such as and so on.
I think it's like this:
**** ****
So the difference in meaning is the same you get from adding to a sentence.
* * *
If you take the above and change to and add , then you've almost got your original example. You just need to change to :
**** → ****
I think that this can change to before forms of the copula and before the question particle , but like most reduced forms it's less formal than the full version. It can even be reduced to at the end of a sentence in certain dialects, but you should be aware that this is not considered standard Japanese. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "keigo"
} |
さようならだの意味, difference from さようなら
What the difference between saying and ? If it had to guess I would be what seems to be obvious, one is declaring it to be goodbye-but is this the case? I've never heard used before. | You guessed correctly. However, we say much more often than . The latter sounds pretty dull. (Vowel lengths are of utmost importance to us.)
With , the speaker is declaring a parting. The speaker would be male almost 100% of the time. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "slang, greetings"
} |
What do you call the small wooden plates that people write wishes in and hang on some stand in a shrine?
What do you call the small pieces of wood(?) where people write wishes on and hang them on some stand close to where you tie folded o-mikuji ()? Or are they also called ?
Related question: Also, in some temples, there's also this little cabinet where you can put a lighted candle (I remember seeing one in a temple near Ueno Park). What do you call that? | 1 I think it's [[]{}](
!
2 Maybe []{}?
! | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "words, culture, religion"
} |
Difference between 軟らかい and 柔らかい
I'm currently doing a study on Japanese homophones and came across and . Most other homophones seem to have noticeable differences in usage (or have explanations online), but I can't seem to find any English explanation for this pair.
Jisho gives the same definition for each:
> soft; tender; limp
so I'm not completely sure what's going on.
Examples would be appreciated, too! | I think there is no difference between them. Actually, I couldn't come up with it.
But, strictly speaking, it seems that there's **a little** difference.
I googled it and found its explanation. Here(Japanese)
In the above page, a japanese asked its difference. haha
To sum up its best answer, using or is better. In some cases, might be inappropriate, but its reason is very difficult to explain. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 1,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "word choice"
} |
ending sentences with ように
I know that can be used like 'as' or 'like' and can also be used like ''. But I was watching this TV show where they show and I noticed that almost all the wishes end with , which I couldn't understand at first. A web search turned up this which says:
> if it's at the end of a sentence (or just after a verb, but that's usually at the end), it can mean you want something to happen, or like... "may x happen" or "let x happen"
My question is, could you use this in every day conversation? Like for example, if I hope our team wins, could I say: ``? My extremely limited experience says it sounds weird, but is it? I remember hearing used like this before () but that was in a game (and spoken by a little child) so I'm not sure if that counts. | It is extremely common to end wish-making phrases with . In fact, I (a native speaker) do not know of another way of making a wish.
Everyone regardless of age or gender uses this ending. We often add for emphasis at the beginning of the phrase as well.
| stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 14,
"question_score": 11,
"tags": "particles"
} |
What is this な between a noun and the particle の？
What is the role of the in bold in this sentence? Is it a nominalized ?
**** | Let's start with this part of the sentence:
>
We'd like to add , which includes the nominalizer . When we do this, changes to , as you suggest:
> **** ****
Here's what our sentence looks like so far:
> ****
Since this has a question word, it's a question clause even without . But we can add anyway, and in this case it's required because of the following verb:
> ****
If this were a complete sentence, we'd want to delete before :
> **** ← **** , not ****
But since the question clause is used as a complement for the following verb, deleting is optional:
> [ **** ]
> [ **** ]
The last one is your sentence, so hopefully you can see how it's put together now. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
How do the pronunciation of Japanese characters and words differ
I have been trying to teach myself Japanese. I learned the basic hiragana (,,,), but I am confused on how to pronounce words like . I was trying to combine the sounds and , but when I checked with Google Translate, I found the pronunciation was different (see link).
How did Google come up with that pronunciation? Are the sounds just run together? | Just pronounce and then . Google Translate does that. If you think that the pronunciation is different, then probably your pronunciations of and are incorrect. None of these two sounds have exact equivalents in English, and in particular is very difficult to get correct.
More precisely, the is "mumbled" because it is unstressed and pronounced with low tone ( has pitch /au/, and because the Japanese really does sound like mumbling ( often meaning mumbling). is also more to the front of your mouth than fAther but not as much as bAd. Think of the sound you make when you are screaming. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "pronunciation"
} |
一番下のむす子 Translation
I have the following sentence that I have to translate for my homework.
> ****
I am having trouble with the `` part. I think might mean "youngest son" (number 1 low's son), but I am not sure.
> Right now ... is just in the midst of taking a nap.
Can anyone help me understand this sequence? Thank you.
**Also** , out of curiosity, what is the romaji for the ? hirone or chuune? | Like you suspect, means youngest son. ( would be oldest child.) You also seem to understand the rest of the sentence just fine.
is , as any dictionary look-up would confirm. Mixed and readings are quite rare, so your first guess should be or . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "translation, meaning"
} |
What does できる mean in this context?
Even though the song is called , I don't know what the title means.
Japanese, English - whatever is cool. | This means " **to come into existence** ".
{}{} therefore means "I've got a girlfriend now." since it would not be natural to say in English the literal translation version "A girlfriend has come into existence for me."
Note that the subject of that Japanese sentence is and not . Please do not be fooled by the translation: "I've got a girlfriend now.", in which the subject is "I".
More examples:
= "I hear there will be a ramen shop here soon."
OMG, = "I/She got pregnant!" I am sure some of you have heard the word {} or {} (" **shotgun marriage** "). It comes from this . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 11,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "song lyrics"
} |
What loan words have a Hepburn romanization that matches the spelling of the original language?
For example, the word is "soccer" in English, but the romanization "sakkā" bears little resemblance to the original word. Are there any loan words in Japanese that preserve the spelling of the original language when Hepburn romanization is applied? | Maybe you mean something like this:
> → banana
> → pen
The pronunciation is never going to be exactly the same in both languages, but I bet these could be understood pronounced with Japanese or English pronunciation. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "katakana, rōmaji"
} |
What's the meaning and the reading of 通行人?
I have the following translation I need to do for my introductory Japanese class.
>
So far I have the following.
> Recently there have been a lot of traffic accidents so when you turn left, you have to watch out for bicycles and _____ and things like that (I'm telling you).
I am not sure what `` means. I think `` means traffic (though how is that different than ``?) And `` means person. So, traffic person. I can imagine this meaning either a pedestrian or a car driver. Or maybe even a traffic directing cop.
Also, how would you pronounce this word? That is, what is the hiragana? Is it just the combination of the two parts? ``? | As a dictionary would tell you, it's . As kanji represent the meaning of a word, one way to understand kanji compounds is by changing each into its own word. In this case, becomes -- a person who goes by crossing.
Which is to say, a pedestrian. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "translation, kanji, readings"
} |
Do adverbs necessarily modify the first verb after it?
Specifically in a case like this:
>
Does modify or ? I thought that maybe is considered as one unit and thus modifies . Is that impossible? | Yes, modifies in that sentence, nothing else.
One cannot say in the first place anyway because "going to school = " is not something one can do "little by little = ". , however, is a natural-sounding phrase because the number of something (students in this case) CAN decrease little by little.
You are also correct in considering as one unit because it is one noun phrase. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar, syntax, adverbs"
} |
"火の玉" = "falling star"?
I was sure about translating "" as "fireball", but Google Translate suggests another meaning - "falling star".
Can it really be translated like that? If it's true, then in what contexts? | I hope it is no sin to post an anwer without using a dictionary.
, when it is used by us native speakers, refers to only one thing 90% of the time --- the small light/fire that people claim to see flying around a graveyard at night as a sign of the spirit of the dead.
Sometimes we use the word to refer to other things ---- a fireball, falling star, bolide, you name it. , as far as its literal meaning goes, only means "ball of fire", therefore, one could use it to refer to something that looks like a ball of fire. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
What does 勉強にレジャーに忙しい毎日 mean?
I was doing some reading practice in a Japanese intro book of mine and I can't translate the second part of this sentence-
****
I'm a bit confused b/c of a few reasons. I've never seen an adjective used prenominally to describe frequency/time expressions like . I don't regard them as normal nouns cuz they don't really require a following particle so I thought they were more like adverbs really. What does mean here? Everyday, which is busy? Can you use adj. for other time words like ? Does that even make any sense?
Also I don't really get how the particles inare being used here. Are they making the preceding nouns into adverbs, a reason for doing something, etc.
EDIT: I added more of the passage to put the sentence in better context. | >
could be rephrased to
>
My English is not very good but let me try.
> I'm living a busy life working and playing.
"playing" here may not be a right word. Anyway the speaker is saying s/he is spending life full of activities. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 0,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation, meaning"
} |
Are there rules of thumb for counter sound changes?
I'm wondering if there are consistent (or at least fairly reliable) rules for how to read numbers next to irregular counters, i.e. counters where you can't just put together the number and counter word in every situation. For example, the counter , the first number is not but . This is as opposed to counters like , where all you need to do to form the counter is add the number (e.g. ) and the counter, e.g. . | The changes you're talking about are actually pretty regular. There _are_ some irregular ones (), but what you're looking for is pretty straight-forward.
Wikipedia has a pretty good summary of the sound changes. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "pronunciation, counters"
} |
What is this kanji? 「兵」
I am having difficulty locating this kanji. My guess is the radical is cliff "" with 7 strokes. However, my dictionary fails me. The closest I got is .
!enter image description here | It's as in . Its radical is (() and apparently _not_ () or (). 7 strokes.
< | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "kanji, writing identification"
} |
Reading of 組 as a Counter Word With Numbers
I'm confused about how to pronounce a word such as . Are Japanese or Chinese numbers used when using as a counter, and if the former how does it change phonetically?
For example, jisho.org lists both and for . My IME accepts both of those as and also takes , , and . Which if any of these is the correct or at least most common pronunciation? | is pronounced in two ways in Japanese for two different meanings.
: a pair of ~~, a set of ~~
Examples:
: Group #1 (among multiple groups)
Example: Name of class in school (, etc.)
is never officially read , or in real life. However, you will once in a while hear people say to mean Group 1 in very informal conversations. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 9,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "pronunciation, readings, numbers, counters"
} |
What is this character that looks like 人? Is it some kind of quote?
I want to convert this text to kanji. A translation is optional, I really want to just figure out what the kanji is electronically.
****
I'm really not sure about the first character "hito" or the last character which looks like a 2 stroke something, but my dictionary has no such kanji. Maybe these characters are some kind of enclosure similar to quotes?
!enter image description here | That's not a kanji. That's a vertical angle-bracket, i.e. ``. And yes, sometimes they can act as quotes, but as far as I know, there aren't any set-in-stone rules about their usage. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "kanji"
} |
complex sentence ending in a noun breakdown
>
A couple things confuse me: How can we end a sentence in a noun? Whats the ? I thought something deru, but it doesn't use . | It's read as
> Douse chishiki dake atama ni tsume konderu heiki (otaku)
> ()
How can we end a sentence in a noun?
\-- I think it's because this is not a sentence but a relative noun clause.
Whats the ?
\-- It's []{}[]{}(), \+ .
cf. in Weblio | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation, kanji"
} |
The difference between 幸 and 運 as "luck" or "fortune"
I've come across these two kanji in a few cases for "good/bad fortune" and even in combination with eachother. I'd really like to understand if there's a subtle difference that I'm missing so that I know when to use each. Up to this point I've seen: Good luck/fortune: / Bad luck/fortune: /
I've also seen mentioned as "miserable" and as "happy"
Some insight would be awesome... Thanks! | To the best of my knowledge, is 'happiness' and is 'luck' (good or bad). English confuses the matter by using the words for 'luck' and 'fortune' with both neutral and good meanings, but the kanji's meanings are quite separate from each other. has very little to do with luck, actually, and pretty much just means 'happiness' (c.f. 'happy, happiness'). more primarily means 'movement' (c.f. 'motion, movement, exercise', 'drive (a car)', etc), and the 'luck, fortune' meaning is secondary. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 9,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "word choice, kanji"
} |
Why is 対馬 pronounced つしま?
The island of Tsushima is written {}. Why? No reading of and can produce , and clearly has something to do with {}. There seems to also be no gikun-type motivation in meaning to write , which honestly is a weird name for an island ("against a horse"?).
The Korean and Chinese names do use the characters and Chinese-based readings though ( _daema_ and _duima_ ). However, it seems unlikely that the Chinese/Korean name came first, as the island is Japanese throughout history. In any case, even if came from Chinese, why keep the name? | According to the Japanese wikipedia page, in {}, it is recorded as - this fits the reading and may indicate the original meaning of the name. The slightly later {} recordsand.
So we probably have as the original name, pre-dating kanji, a possible way of writing it in kanji, , and another, adopted from the Chinese/Korean. The fact that eventually won out is just an accident of history - it probably suggests that was not an established way of writing the name.
Regarding the origin of , can also mean "a couple/pair". This interesting discussion of the origins suggests it may have previously been - referring to the shape (even before it was split in two in 1671 it could have been taken as two halves), or related to an old placename on the Korean peninsula - - making it "the island facing ()".
There are, apparently, no horses on the island. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "etymology, names"
} |
でも followed by が?
One of my friends sent me this picture of a Pokemon game:
!Picture from Pokemon game
It says:
>
>
Although the meaning seems fairly obvious, I can't figure out how the grammar works.
I'm under the impression that _typically_ can't follow . (I can't remember where I learned this rule, but I can find references online that agree. For example, see the chart here on page 60 which says that can't follow .)
So why can follow here?
1. Is it possible that something is omitted before ? (This idea seems strange to me...)
2. Is it something like , where each of those three is treated as though it's a noun?
How does the grammar work? | I think that the whole phrase " " is being treated as a noun phrase, (or rather list) as if there was an invisible (//) before the .
You wouldn't normally see after , and I don't think it's anything particularly special - if someone said it they might have a dramatic pause or something after what they're using as a block phrase. I have a feeling I've experienced some examples of similar omissions before, but there was a fairly clear break between the thing being treated as a phrase and the .
At the very least, Google comes up with a few examples of:
- marking the phrase with | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 7,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
Should I use 通訳 or 翻訳?
Correct me if I'm wrong, but is used for translating conversations(interpreting) whereas is used more for translating documents, right? I have a document that I had a Japanese friend translate verbally. Would that be or Or maybe another word I haven't heard of? | Technically, that is called , which is how "sight translation" is katakanized. If you were expecting a kanji word, I do not believe there exists one, and if one existed, it would not be a common word. (Even itself is not such a common word yet like and )
In case you absolutely had to choose between and for some reason, you would choose because always involves three parties --- two in need of communicating with each other and the interpreter. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "translation, definitions"
} |
What should I expect to see in JLPT 5?
I am using various programs to study Japanese: audio CD's, Ja Sensei and TenguGo Japanese. Kanji are grouped by JLPT levels. Often kanji bleed across various levels. For example
:
An example word for JLPT 5:
The example also includes two characters from JLPT 4. Ive seen examples of Kanji from JLPT 2 and I think even 1 in there too!
What should I expect to see in JLPT 5? Do I need to know all meanings for a kanji and even all combinations including kanji from levels far and above my skill level? What about grammar? | Since the establishment of the new JLPT levels, there are no official test specifications \- that means no official list of "N5 kanji" exists. Many sites use the old test specifications to estimate what is required for the new tests (except for N3, which was an entirely new level).
The entirety of the test is in Japanese, including instructions for the questions. At N5 you will be required to recognise the readings of kanji words in the appropriate context (i.e. you see a sentence with in it, and can choose the right reading for it). There is little kanji used in the grammar and reading questions, and what there is is supplied with furigana.
It may be that there are vocabulary words on your list shown in kanji, when that kanji would not be used in the actual test.
Sample questions can be seen at the official site. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "kanji, jlpt"
} |
What does the suffix 号 mean when it's attached to animal names?
One of the definitions for the suffix in looks like this:
>
> ―
I'm somewhat familiar with this suffix from fiction. For example, I remember it from the anime series , which had a submarine called the . And I've seen it used for other forms of transportation in fiction, too, like airships, and even a race car.
But I haven't seen it used for animal names, and the definition above says it can attach to the names of as well. Wikipedia's disambiguation page for says something similar:
>
But it doesn't say when it would be used, and I can't remember having seen any pet or animal names ending in . So I'm curious: do people still use the suffix this way? If so, when would it be used? | ~ appears to be used in cases where the animal's name is formally registered in some way, like with show dogs, and also with working animals such as police dogs. This name may not be the normal name of the animal, just as in English with show dogs that have a registered name and a day to day name ("call name").
The article on Wikipedia gives a link to this example (linked for the adorableness. There is a photo.)
>
In most of the article he's called , so that would be the usual name although is the registered name.
I don't think there's a direct translation as there's not anything added onto registered names in English - although as with the example the two names are often related - the call name being a shortening of or reference to the registered name. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "suffixes"
} |
Do native speakers think of 固い・堅い・硬い as homophones, or as the same word?
Japanese dictionaries often give distinguish among meanings for homophonous words with related meanings that have different kanji representations, such as:
* (see, for example, the entry for these words)
*
*
*
My intuition is that all three forms of are really "the same word" in a native speaker's mental lexicon, and that a native speaker will choose a given representation from in writing so as to provide added meaning. Is my sense correct here, or do native speakers actually regard as three different words? | It is exactly as you suspect. It is totally illogical to consider , for example, to be three different words and here is why.
Whenever you are dealing with a kun-reading word, you need to remind yourself that it existed when Japanese was merely a spoken language. We had no way of writing or even . All we had was the sounds "katai". Then we encountered the Chinese and the rest is history.
The vast majority of homonyms in Japanese are found in words of Chinese origin. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "nuances"
} |
Meaning of "ぶえっくしょ"
I came across this word () recently and tried looking it up on every site I knew. I assume it's slang. The line in which I first saw it is:
> ……….
As I was researching it, I saw it in two other forms: and (sometimes or ). Does anyone know what this means and what it is? Also, does it belong to a certain dialect? | It sounds like another form of , onomatopoeia for sneezing.
Searching on Google for things like "" "" seems to confirm that this is the case, although I'm not too familiar with the word myself. I found this page, for example, where it's specifically labeled as a sneeze:
> ←
If I had to guess, I'd say it sounds like a bit of a louder / less subtle sneeze. That's what it sounds like to me, anyway. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "meaning, slang"
} |
Is "あら” a feminine expression? Can I use it as a guy?
as in the expression of surprise like "oh my". | While more females might use it than males, it is certainly NOT a female-only expression by any means. I am a male native speaker and I say and all the time and so do many other males around me. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "expressions"
} |
"Apple tax" in Japanese
Wiktionary more or less defines "Apple tax" as
> The price premium paid by consumers of Apple consumer products over comparable devices from competitors.
Is there an equivalent term in Japanese for "Apple tax" (or other mock taxes, such as a wedding tax for increased costs of items when they're associated with a wedding)? If so, what is it?
I tried Wiktionary and jisho.org without any luck. | We do say []{} if that is what you are looking for.
For "wedding tax", I doubt that we have an exact counterpart but a somewhat-related, more generic word would be []{}, which literally means "celebratory price". | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "words, translation"
} |
formality issues regarding the 「調子はどうだい？」 greeting
(1) ”?” and "" are pretty much equivalent in _meaning_ and _formality_ , right? The ”?” being a little feminine because of the ""? And, "" is rarely / never used by native speakers? I don't think I've ever heard it used.
(2) "" is just an informal way to say "", right?
(3) Can I up the formality of ? Perhaps:
""
"" // <\--- best?
""
""
(4) When I am greeting someone in a business setting, can I pop-off a:
""
and not have the native speaker think that I sound weird? Rather, I'd want him/her to think I sound _different_ , but not _weird_.
thanks. | I would say that the polite version of would be
> ?
but is usually reserved for written correspondence. Inquiring about someone's health (e.g. "How are you?") is not really used as a formal greeting in Japanese. Unless you know someone is recovering from an illness, in which case one could ask
> ?
P.S. ? does sound weird, not just different. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 0,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "set phrases, keigo"
} |
Pronunciation of the hiragana け and か
I have just started learning hiragana, and am confused about the pronunciation of some of them. I have heard some pronunciation guides for which say it should sound like kay, and some which say it should just be ke (with an e sound like the one found at the start of the English word edge), and some for say it should be kar, while others are telling me it should be ka (like the a sound at the beginning of apple). Can I have some verification as to which of these is correct, apologies if the question is deemed too basic.
EDIT: Apparently both sets of guides are incorrect, as they try and put the sounds into terms of English pronunciation. This being the case, can someone link me to a guide that explains how to properly pronounce them? | This site has voice recordings of all the kana: <
Trying to learn kana pronunciation from English is a bad idea. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "pronunciation, hiragana"
} |
Any Ideas What 十二本の腕 Means?
In Monkey Majik's song "Change" they say "Time to Party ", what does means? Isn't it just 12, counter for long objects, arms? Why would this be applicable? | Unless you are looking for some deep meaning I cannot think of, I would say it is applicable because the song is played by 6 guys --- 4 from Monkey Majik and 2 from the Yoshida Brothers. That is 12 arms all together instead of saying "the 6 of us". | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "counters, song lyrics"
} |
How can I ask what kind of evening one is having?
I want to say "what kind of evening are you having?". I think can be used, but I dont know how to fit evening into the sentence structure. I have:
Is this right? Would the sentence structure be similar in general?
"What kind of X do you have?" | sounds to me like "Why are there evenings?".
"What kind of~" would be "~", and "What kind of X do you have?" literally translates to X. e.g.
> ? What kind of dress do you have?
When you ask how one's spending their time I think you could say
>
> (formal)
> (formal)
...normally in writing. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "english to japanese"
} |
Is "part-time work" an accurate translation of バイト?
The most common translation I see of I see is "part-time work". However, the contexts I see it used in seem to refer to casual work, as opposed to people having a permanent job, merely with reduced hours, such as women with young children (does this scenario not occur in Japan?).
Is "part-time work" a more accurate translation of than "casual work"? | "Part-time work" is a valid translation of / but it certainly is not the ONLY definition of the words. For instance, if a college student took a year off from school and worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to save money, that would still be called / even though he worked 72 hours a week for a year. Point is he was not a permanent employee.
The same goes for "casual work" that you mentioned. If one is not officially hired as a "regular employee = []{}" or "contract employee = []{}", one is considered /. However, we have a very common new word that describes this type of worker, . Unlike //, the new word expresses or at least implies a laid-back lifestyle with time for hobbies. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "translation"
} |
What role does な play in the sentence
This is an example from an iPhone app called Tae Kim's learning Japanese:
\- The Alice that was a child became a fine adult.
The part "fine adult" or "" confuses me. The "" between and , what is it? A particle, part of the word or what? | is a or adjectival noun. As alone, it is a noun essentially meaning "fineness". It needs the after it to let it modify other nouns such as to turn it into "fine adult".
If you're using Tae Kim's guide, I would suggest you go back a couple sections and check out this page: < | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "english to japanese"
} |
Grammatical purpose of changing 〜る to 〜な, and expressing "even"
I have to translate the following for my intro Japanese class.
> **** ****
I understand parts of the sentence, but not the sentence as a whole.
I think `` is `My father works a little too much so`. But, I don't understand why it's `` and not ``.
I think `` is `Someone gives water even to the garden flower and the tree (etc)`. I am not sure how the "even" should be though.
Finally, I think `` is `I think it is better if he relaxes`.
So my questions are
1. Why the `` instead of a `` on the first part?
2. How is the `even` placed in the second part?
3. How do all three parts form a logical sentence?
My best guess is `My father works a little too hard so, since someone even gives water to the garden flower and the tree (etc), I think it is better if he relaxes.` | 1. is a which comes from verb (+).
eg / / (+ /) verb+
2. The is used to give examples. (See meaning #2-3)
3. The subject for is .
My father is a little overworked, so
(I think he should spend time doing things like) watering trees or flowers in his garden
I think he should relax | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar, translation, particle でも"
} |
The meaning of "ぶん" in "見ているぶんには..."
The line I first saw it in is:
>
A few other examples I've found:
> ""
>
> "…"
>
> "Paris Photo [caption on photo of antiques on display]: "
What does this construction () mean exactly? In a dictionary I've read, has as one of its meanings "just as much as" and "in proportion to". So would mean "as much as (I'm) seeing" or something along those lines? Would "" mean "It's interesting as much as I'm seeing it,so..."? That doesn't make much sense, though. Can someone enlighten me? [Edit:On second thought, maybe it's more something like: "To the degree that I'm watching, because it's interesting, I don't go so far as to pay attention" or "I don't at all pay attention to the degree that I'm watching because it's amusing."] | This []{} expresses "one's intended or hypothetical partial involvement with something" in my own words.
= (something) is good to look at but ~~
= (something) looks cute and all that but ~~
What these phrases imply is that the speaker is not willing to take further actions other than just watching the object. A must word for natural Japanese, really. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 6,
"tags": "grammar, translation, meaning"
} |
Which nouns can use 美化語{びかご}?
* Whether a noun is []{}, or not, is an attribute that is specified in the dictionary definition of nouns.
* "Possible to use {}" surely should be an attribute of a noun? But, I do not see this attribute specified in dictionary definitions.
Is there a list of the nouns that can possibly use ?
If not, you just have to use "feel" for where to use ?
Is it grammatically wrong to place where it should not be? | Here's a small list that I found through a quick search online--I'm sure there's more.
In the box on this website there is another list and it also mentions that when using {} you should be careful of sounding unnatural or 'not-good' if you try to add the or to words that do not require it.
In my experience, I have been told that it's just a memorization thing, and you shouldn't try to just put it on any word that you think should have it. I've also been told that it sounds 'less beautiful' if you use it on the wrong words. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "nouns, honorifics, bikago"
} |
男の子 vs 男のコ are they the same?
On Denshi Jisho looking up "" brings up two results:
and
Edit: (child not boy)
I read the first one literally as "Male [possesive] child" or "Male's child" (or maybe here is not a particle, just part of the word). The second one is strange. They have the same definition. Why do we have a Katakana here? | Why in the world Denshi Jisho has both of those options, I don't know. If it was anywhere else, I'd just say that the katakana version is someone writing somewhat creatively. In any case, they mean the same thing. However, here is -not- possessive, it's a kind of adnominal thing (though it is a particle) - the phrase means 'male child' or 'boy'. You can use both for possession and for description - for description, is often interchangeable with . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "homonyms"
} |
How would you express "pausing to think" in Japanese?
I was wondering how would you express pausing to think in Japanese. So for example in English it would be said as "hmmmm...".
I believe can be used but are there any more ways to do so?
I hope my question is clear. | *
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
I am sure there are more. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 8,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "words, nuances, colloquial language"
} |
口ロ Those are supposed to be different characters. How can you tell?
The first is supposed to be the kanji for mouth, "" and the sencond is supposed to be katakana. When I typed them in google translate, the sizes were different so I could differentiate them that way, but now just like in the title, they look exactly the same. How do people tell the diffence when reading? | Context.
In theory, you can usually tell the difference based on minor details such as their size. But there's considerable variation in fonts and handwriting, and because both and have the same stroke order they can look pretty similar, so in practice this can be difficult.
Luckily, you generally don't have to distinguish between them visually because you can almost always tell from context. For example, words like and contain the kanji, and words like and contain the kana.
You can learn to read Japanese fairly well without necessarily being able to distinguish the two characters as written in your question title. (At least in the font I'm using, they're pretty hard to tell apart.)
In my opinion, the similar-looking ones you should learn to tell apart consistently are ones where the stroke order or position is different, like versus , versus , versus , or versus , or the ones where the stroke lengths are different, like versus , or versus . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "kanji, orthography, kana"
} |
What is the difference between 包む（つつむ）and 包む（くるむ）?
The verbs and and both written , and according to my English-to-Japanese dictionary both have the meaning "to wrap". is glossed "", while is glossed "", but I am having difficulty distinguishing the two from these definitions and from the example sentences provided. Is there a difference in usage between the two words, or can they be treated as synonyms? | Both mean to "wrap" but is the one that has the more general meaning of "wrap" that we think of. is usually written in hiragana and has a nuance of _rolling something up_ in order to wrap it, or generally enclose it, for example with {}, or even like in (a girl's corpse wrapped in a blanket). A little gross, sure, but a poignant image to drive the point home.
So is basically always going to be . It refers to "wrapping."
is going to be hiragana. It refers to "rolling." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 8,
"question_score": 8,
"tags": "word choice, usage, verbs"
} |
"It's sweet, for sake"
so, consider the following conversation:
>
>
> ...
> it's sweet, for sake
Essentially I'm trying to say that something is not sweet in absolute terms, but is sweet relative to other members of the indicated category. Other examples might be "It's slow for a motorbike" or "It's gentle, for a roller coaster."
The best I could come up with was which gets the meaning across, but feels a bit clunky to me. | Going off a space alc search, < I came up with these:
> It's hot for this time of year.
>
> It's cold for April. 4
So maybe this would work:
>
But this is just a guess, as I am not familiar with this pattern. The two examples I found are time specific so maybe it only works in that context.
Edit:
As per the indefatigable Chocolate sensei's valued suggestion, here is perhaps the most natural answer readily available:
> // | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 7,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
Doubling "Moving" Verbs （行く and 来る)
I sometimes see moving or directional verbs doubled up, with the first verb in form. I think my professor mentioned that this just sometimes happens but means the same as if you didn't have the second verb. So essentially the following 2 sentences are the same (both meaning `I went traveling`).
But is there any nuance difference between the 2?
I might also be wrong. Something tells me this might mean `I went traveling and was still there`. | The first is simply "I went on a trip". The second emphasizes the fact that you went an on trip and are (somewhat) recently back now. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "translation, verbs, て form"
} |
"With" Usage of と and で
I have seen used in the following manner.
> - I went to the park with Tanaka-san
And I have seen used as follows.
> - I went to the part with 1 other person (2 people including me)
But now I have the following sentence.
> - I went traveling with my family
Would it have been appropriate to use either or in this situation? Or is there a reason was used?
I am thinking maybe the use of indicates you are in the group you're going with and indicates you are not a part of the group. Is that what's going on? | I think your intuition is correct. When speaking of family though, it's kind of tricky. `` just means "as a family" - like the whole family unit. `` indicates to me that you went "with your family", but implies that you are no longer part of the family unit, i.e., probably living on your own.
Related - What is the difference between and ? | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "particles"
} |
Etymology of ずっこけ
Where does come from? It doesn't have kanji, but it also isn't repetitive like onomatopoeia-so does it just not use the kanji anymore, or does it have strange roots? | Looks to be a combination of `` (old form of `` \- to slip/slide down) and `` (to fall down / fail). | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "etymology"
} |
Where does the kanji for 凄い find it's roots?
Where does the kanji for come from? I don't know what any of the component strokes mean, and it just looks really strange to me. Can I get an etymology of the word? In Chinese I think it means something completely different... | = +
The radical is named and it means "ice".
means "wife".
means "ice-cold", "bleak", "mournful", "frigid", etc., so it is a kanji with highly negative meanings.
You stated that the kanji meant something completely different in Chinese but it DOES NOT. Your statement appears to be based on a comparison between the positive modern colloquial meaning of []{} in Japanese and the negative original Chinese meaning of , does it not? If so, it is not a fair comparison.
in Japanese was originally a very negative word, too. It meant "dreadful", "unearthly", "grim", etc. You probably had the modern meaning "fantastic" in mind, did you not? | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "etymology"
} |
Translating Dante english to japanese
Translating Dante's divine Comedy " Follow your own path and let people talk"
I have distilled it to which I believe translates to " Follow your dreams and ignore the gossips" Is this correct?
How does the translation change if I write
I am inscribing this on a pendant so I need the fewest number of characters with out changing the meaning | a few options here: <
As to the firm of the main verb, I had a little trouble finding Japanese mottos per se, but corporate and advertising slogans tend to use the volitional, not the imperative. Or just leave the verb off entirely, for that matter (likeor ). Which, seeing as you wanted to save space, is what I'll do.
so, arbitrarily:
(you could swap the final for if you want to emphasise "choosing" your path over "following/walking" it)
I picked the old-fashioned ending to sound deliberately archaic/literary. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 1,
"question_score": -2,
"tags": "translation, particles"
} |
Help tranlating sentence with mo
Given
I have
Soko de wa nani mo kamo ga aimai ni nare.
What does this mean? The mo is hard to understand. I think its something like
"Here we may be a sitting duck." | is basically a word on its own. It means something along the lines of 'absolutely everything' - it's in effect an intensified version of . Adding that in, the whole sentence becomes something like 'that's a place where absolutely everything becomes ambiguous'. (Though you might want to be careful translating , as 'ambiguous' isn't always the best translation for it.) | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "particles, english to japanese"
} |
Why was は removed from this sentence?
So here is the sentence:
Why didn't we say:
Isn't the topic of the sentence? Why did we remove it? Why did we leave it in a sentence like:
| Particles, especially and , are often omitted in colloquial Japanese. Formal Japanese would require the to mark the topic, as you suggested. Compare
> ? | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "grammar"
} |
How to say "in general" in Japanese?
I want to say, "I like history in general." How would I word that in Japanese? I can say, (Watashi wa) rekishi ga sukidesu, but I'm not sure how to say "in general." | So by "in general" in this case you mean: you like all parts of history more or less equally, not just one specific part or era? (There are other meanings of "in general" such as "in most cases", so... just making sure)
In that case you can use the suffix ( _zenpan_ ) to indicate the entirety of something including all its parts:
> _watashi wa rekishi(gaku) zenpan ga suki desu_
(my first thought was that you would need to indicate liking the study of history instead of liking "everything that happened in the past", but Google searches appear to indicate otherwise...) | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "usage"
} |
How are こと and こんな being used in this sentence?
I have to translate the following.
For the first sentence, I am not sure what the note says.
In the note, "Every day, you give ... to me, thank you" had been written.
Maybe `house things`? I have never seen `` except as a nominalizer. But `` is already a noun.
For the second sentence, have more issues.
Do you think that ... easy/lenient romantic Japanese man exists?
I am not sure what the `` means (na-adjective? variation of ``?). And I am also not sure of the translation as a whole. Is `` just acting as ``? Or maybe they're talking about Japanese **men** exist who are romantic?
Thanks for any help. | I would translate it approximately as follows:
> In a note, he has written "Every day, thank you for the things you do around the house."
> Do you think such a kind and romantic Japanese man exists?
In your translations, there are a couple of mistakes. (1) Here, most definitely means kind -- not lenient or easy. (2) I would no translate "" as "had been written" here. Instead, given the second sentence, I would infer the subject is "he" i.e., a guy who would write such a note.
In terms of what you are asking about vs . and are the verb of existence for living things and things respectively in Japanese. does not serve that function. Inside of a clause, it would not be (polite form), it would be but if it's , there needs to be a predicate, like this:
> | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 4,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar, translation, nouns, demonstratives, kosoado"
} |
Translation of 泳ぎたがっている
I have the following sentence to translate.
So far I have the following.
My wife
in the Sea of Japan
... so
she was saying that she needs to buy a new swimsuit.
My problem is the ``. I think it means she is `wanting to swim`, but I would expect that to be written as follows.
- I swim
- I want to swim
- I am wanting to swim
So I don't understand why it's `` instead of ``. I thought the `` form was considered an i-adjective. And I can't think of any way to get the `` form used in the sentence. | You can't directly use if you are talking about other people's state of mind. You need to attach (which attaches to the root of any i-adj).
> - (I/he/she) swim(s)
> - I want to swim
> - He/she (shows signs that he/she) wants to swim
> - He/she (is showing signs that he/she) wants to swim
For the most part and are pretty similar, just a difference in nuance as to how "current"/"right now" the signs are.
As in your sentence, often the fact that something is happening _now_ is the relevant part, requiring you to use . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation, て form"
} |
なかなか Translation
I have the following to translate.
Here is what I have so far.
In a conversation with my friend who has been to Tokyo
in the inside of the Tokyo metropolitan area
I hear that a foreigner stopping a taxi is very difficult and
I hear that ... won't stop.
My questions are
1. Why is the `` structure used twice (last 2 lines)?
2. What is ``? | 1. = I hear that Usage: plain form: Vadjadj In Japanese is 2 using. Other, meaning is It looks It seems indicates the speaker’s conjecture or judgement based on what he/she sees or feels>
2. = very, considerably, by no means (with negative verb) | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 1,
"question_score": -1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Katakana Combination for Song Titles - Where is the の?
I have the following translation. The speaker just got done saying they were going to sing a certain song first in a karaoke bar.
So far I have the following.
As for the second song,
America's Spirit
John Denver's Country Road might be good huh?
I looked up John Denver. He had an album called Spirit and a song called Country Road. But it doesn't look like the song was on that album.
I do not know why there isn't any particle between the second and third lines of this sentence. Nor do I know how the whole sentence comes together. | has nothing to do with the album title "Spirit" here. The speaker is just calling John Denver "".
There is no particle needed between and because if you look closely, there is a comma.
One could say, if one wanted to as far as grammar but it does not sound very refined so the speaker did not say it that way.
The fact that the sentence is written in three lines instead of one may be part of the reason that you find it dificult to understand, too.
"For our/your/the second song, 'Country Road' by America's Spirit, John Denver, might be good, huh?" | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Translation of 曲がりたくても
I have the following translation.
The following is what I have so far.
When I arrived inside the City of Nagoya
it was under construction and
there was a lot of 1 way traffic and
... I had to go straight.
I think `` is the te-form of `` (I want to turn). But I am not sure how the following `` connects it to the second part of the sentence. The only te-form + structure we've learned is permission (followed by `` or something similar). | means something like "even if".
>
> "Even if I wanted to turn, I had no choice but to go straight." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Is 君 (きみ) obsolete as a way to call your romantic partner?
In many love songs, the singer calls their partner ().
But is this used by couples in real life, as of 2013? Should this word be considered obsolete, or is it still seeing some use outside of the pop world?
Note: I have heard used in conversations between junior/senior, but here I am referring specifically to couples. | In real life in 2013, not many people address their partners as . It is certainly not obsolete but only a small minority of us use the pronoun. You will hear it much more often in fiction such as song lyrics, manga, dramas, films, etc.
Most of us use first names or nicknames instead of pronouns. Some use pronouns like []{} (men to women) and (more by women), and even fewer people would use .
Pronouns in general are NOT used by us native speakers nearly as often as Japanese learners may be led to believe. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 9,
"tags": "words, usage"
} |
What does りょう mean in かいしゃのりょう?
I have this line in my book:
> ****
I understand the whole sentence except for . When I googled it, it says it mean "Ryo". So I googled and I got "Ryo Company". What does mean? | []{} means "dormitory".
[]{} = company-provided housing facility | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 7,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Implication of a Japanese sentence
I was wondering if there is any context implied by a sentence like "6"
I have read it translated as "Please wake me up at 6." But is "me" implied? Could it also mean "Please (will you) wake up at 6."? | You're right that there is technically some ambiguity, although slightly wrong in your interpretation. In a sentence like it's basically implied that you mean _yourself_ , as in the provided translation ("Please wake me up"). Without context, though, there's no way to be 100% sure. It could be a request to wake up any other person (except the person to whom the request is directed, as in "please wake up at 6").
is a transitive verb, so you're asking this person to wake _someone_ up. Wake me up, wake Jim up, wake Mary up, anyone. In Japanese this would be more explicitly stated with , as in ""
If you want _that person_ to get up at 6, you would use . is an intransitive verb, so it has a meaning closer to the simple "wake up" in English, as in "I woke up at 6." Notice the lack of a direct object. "I woke up at 6" does not imply that you woke someone else up -- it only refers to you, the speaker. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "definitions"
} |
Why is "Yamata no Orochi" written in katakana?
In the game Okami, the demon Yamata no Orochi is written here, and also in a separate game here as , not . Even the particle is in katakana. I'm curious as to why this is. I know that it derives from a Japanese legend of Yamata no Orochi, so why is it written in katakana? | You are actually thinking the other way around. It is written in katakana BECAUSE the term is 100% Japanese.
Japanese mythology existed way before we encountered the Chinese. It existed only in the oral tradition because we did not have a writing system back then. In other words, only the sounds "yamatanoorochi" existed, so even after we encountered the Chinese and learned Kanji and created kana, it just was not very natural to write "yamatanoorochi" in kanji. With , we are just using the katakana as the pronunciation symbols.
There are kanji versions for this term but they are ALL []{}. You may use one of them if you love kanji but it will not necessarily make you look more intelligent or educated. Contrary to what some Japanese-learners seem to blindly believe, writing in kanji the words that have no Chinese roots is often regarded as not being in good taste. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 10,
"question_score": 8,
"tags": "katakana, orthography, hiragana"
} |
This is the first time we meet translation
"This is the first time we meet" what is it in Japanese? Is it something like:
? | is fine.
is more polite.
In either case, it would sound more natural if you omitted the part. This just just how we speak. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 1,
"tags": "translation"
} |
の意味は何 versus はどういう意味
What is the difference between and ? When asking for the definition of a word, I've been told to use the latter, but I don't know why the former is incorrect. | Use the latter if you want to speak and write "natural" Japanese. is how native speakers ask for a word's definition.
, while grammatical, sounds SO "directly translated" from "What is the meaning of ~~?". It is not very natural, if not incorrect. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 2,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "word choice, spoken language"
} |
Is の後で textbook-ish Japanese?
In the textbook "Japanese For Busy People I" (which uses only kana, not kanji), on page 161, there is the following sentence.
>
Using kanji, I think it would look like this:
>
However, a native Japanese speaker is suggesting I drop the "" after the "" from the following sentence (I think to make it more natural):
>
Is having a "" rather formal and textbook-ish Japanese? | It is not particularly bookish or formal to say or , but it is true that the gets omitted quite often in conversations.
If one uses a , one could emphasize the part, stressing the fact that the action should be performed AFTER something, not before. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "grammar, particle で, formality"
} |
Translation of metaphorical meaning of "hieroglyphic"
To literally translate "hieroglyphic", when referring to a largely logographic writing system used by Ancient Egyptians, I think or something similar would be used.
However, there's another, metaphorical, meaning in English to the term "hieroglyphic", which is writing that's hard to understand, possibly because it's too advanced for the person reading it as opposed to it being sloppily written. (Meaning 3 in English wiktionary)
Are there any terms in Japanese that use metaphor to convey this metaphorical meaning? | Another (more) common English idiom for this is _It's all Greek to me_ and Eijiro offers an interesting word which I haven't encountered before:
> Don't ask me anything about computers. It's **all Greek to me**.
> ****
The theory seems to be that the word appeared in the Edo era and made fun of Confucianists who liked to use a lot of obscure words of Chinese origin, or possibly mimicked the unintelligible speech of foreigners.
However, this word seems to be mostly about speech, or the ideas being explained, and not the writing itself. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 2,
"tags": "translation, metaphor"
} |
Are haiku typically "padded" when read aloud?
I was once told that haiku should be "padded" so that instead of 5/7/5, they fit an 8/8/8 meter:
> ← wait for 3 beats after this line
> ← wait for 1 beat after this line
> ← wait for 3 beats after this line
If I recall correctly, the explanation was that Japanese favors rhythms in groups of 4 or 8 beats (morae). I don't actually know if haiku are read this way, though--it's just something I was told once.
Are haiku actually read aloud with these pauses? Or is this something my friend made up? | Yes, I think you'd read it as:
>
>
>
>
for 5/7/5 like where the middle line can be split into 4+3(e.g.: ).
And you'd read it as:
>
>
>
>
for 5/7/5 like where the middle line sounds better when split into 3+4(e.g.: ).
And you'd probably read it as:
>
>
>
>
for 5/8/5, like 8/5/8/5/8/5... :D() | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 9,
"question_score": 13,
"tags": "poetry"
} |
What is the meaning of よ in the phrase 雨よ雪に変わってくれ
Read this phrase in a blog. I think the basic meaning of the phrase is "The rain is changing into snow." But I don't understand the usage of in this case. Is it a particle? Or is it a typo? | It's a vocative particle, like the English vocative _"O"_ in the following example:
> _O Rain! Please change into snow!_
It sounds poetic or literary.
It's defined as in :
> **** **** **** **** ****
I bolded the meaning, which is basically vocative. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 14,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "usage"
} |
What exactly does いな mean in Japanese?
I know it seems like means "that's good" but in anime like Akagi and Kaiji, the narrator says and the subtitles translate it as "that's wrong". Is some kind of old phrase for "that's wrong"? What does it mean? | is an archaic form of 'no' (sometimes written with kanji as ). You can still hear it in modern Japanese in a few phrases, like ('whether or not ').
is, of course, +, i.e. 'that's good'. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 11,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "word requests"
} |
"I have problems with someone" translation
How to translate this:
"I have problems with someone."
for example if am in basketball team and am talking with someone so i tell him :
I have problems with my basketball team | I think you can try:
* (not get along or have problems with ) | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 0,
"tags": "translation"
} |
Help with のに construction in a sentence
The sentence is
> ****
If I understand correctly, the sentence can be simplified to
> (There is no time period as difficult as now)
The entire sentence tells you that the difficult thing is building one's own independence and values, but I don't understand how the is supposed to fit grammatically in there. My best guess is that the middle part is somehow an adverb modifying . | This means "to" or "in order to".
The nominalizes the verb .
means "to do ~~" or "for doing ~~".
You are right; The whole middle part modifies .
"There has never been a more difficult time than the present time for building one's own identity and sense of values." | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 6,
"question_score": 5,
"tags": "grammar, particle に, particle の"
} |
Are 世界の一番 and 世界で一番 both correct?
Are both phrases grammatically correct and how do you translate both?
> ****
>
> **** | Only the second sentence:
> ****
is correct and it means:
> "(Something/Someone) is the best-known in the world."
**** makes no sense.
One could also say . | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "grammar, word choice, particle の, particle で"
} |
Can adjectives in Japanese "stack" like in English?
Are both sentences below grammatically correct, and are they both used equally in conversation?
Stacked adjective:
Non-stacked adjectives: | Can they stack? Yes.
But the more you stack, the heavier the sentence goes. Don't hesitate to break the sentence if you reach three. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 3,
"question_score": 3,
"tags": "grammar, adjectives"
} |
Can 買い食い be used for any kind of food?
Kenkyuusha defines as:
> spend one's pocket money on candy
and Daijirin defines it as:
>
Both of these identify as being related to candy/sweets. Is the term given this definition just because a child, left to its own devices, would be likely to go and buy sweet rather than other things? Or, would it actually be unnatural to say something like ( being neither a candy nor a sweet)? | No, it cannot be used for just any kind of food and the word can be used for adults, too.
, despite its pretty straightforward look "buy and eat", carries a fairly negative connotation for us native speakers. Moms hate it if kids do it often (because they do not get to know what the kids are eating). The word is never used to describe buying a "serious" or "full-size" meal. It is all about buying snacks to eat between meals. Takoyaki, mentioned by OP, is a prime example.
While it is true that mostly kids do the , it is absolutely Ok to use the word for adults when they buy and eat snacks. Adults may use the word in self-deprecation when they do the themselves and use it kiddingly when other adults do it.
Finally, the word is NOT used when you buy a snack and bring it home to eat it. You need to eat it near where you bought it to call it , which is why moms hate it. | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 5,
"question_score": 4,
"tags": "words, nuances"
} |
Difference between katakana so and n
I am having high confusion between katakana _n_ `` and katakana _so_ ``. They look very similar even with the different stroke directions, they look very similar. Could anyone suggest how to differentiate between them? | I think this image sums it up perfectly:
!enter image description here
Basically, it has to do with the angle you're draw it from and where it goes. You'll see variations on the bigger stroke on the right, especially in hand writing, but this clears up 99% of instances for me.
Edit: source=< | stackexchange-japanese | {
"answer_score": 51,
"question_score": 39,
"tags": "katakana"
} |
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