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p1atdev

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japanese-stackexchange

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[ { "body": "Technically, that is called サイトトランスレーション, which is how \"sight translation\" is\nkatakanized. If you were expecting a kanji word, I do not believe there exists\none, and if one existed, it would not be a common word. (Even サイトトランスレーション\nitself is not such a common word yet like 翻訳 and 通訳)\n\nIn case you absolutely had to choose between 翻訳 and 通訳 for some reason, you\nwould choose 翻訳 because 通訳 always involves three parties --- two in need of\ncommunicating with each other and the interpreter.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-03T02:40:13.577", "id": "13579", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-03T02:40:13.577", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13577", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "Since the establishment of the new JLPT levels, there are [no official test\nspecifications](http://www.jlpt.jp/e/faq/index.html) - that means no official\nlist of \"N5 kanji\" exists. Many sites use the old test specifications to\nestimate what is required for the new tests (except for N3, which was an\nentirely new level).\n\nThe entirety of the test is in Japanese, including instructions for the\nquestions. At N5 you will be required to recognise the readings of kanji words\nin the appropriate context (i.e. you see a sentence with 自転車 in it, and can\nchoose the right reading for it). There is little kanji used in the grammar\nand reading questions, and what there is is supplied with furigana.\n\nIt may be that there are vocabulary words on your list shown in kanji, when\nthat kanji would not be used in the actual test.\n\nSample questions can be seen at the [official\nsite](http://www.jlpt.jp/e/samples/forlearners.html).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-03T19:03:31.207", "id": "13583", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-03T21:03:33.220", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-03T21:03:33.220", "last_editor_user_id": "571", "owner_user_id": "571", "parent_id": "13582", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "As a JLPT L3 (now N4) myself, there used to be a specific number of Kanjis to\nfocus on.\n\nBut now, it seems that there is no official list anymore.\n\nHowever, focusing on the JLPT L4 kanji list of the old, would probably be the\nbest set you should study.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T08:46:12.573", "id": "13588", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-04T08:46:12.573", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4262", "parent_id": "13582", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "Very simply, 業績 is used to refer to the company's results (企業の実績）. 実績 refers\njust to the actual result (実際の成績). It is not necessarily a company, eg\nacademic accomplishment =学問上の実績.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-03T22:29:27.797", "id": "13585", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-03T22:29:27.797", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1556", "parent_id": "13584", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "From a native speaker's perspective, 業績 is a bigger word than 実績. It is more\ndifficult to achieve 業績 than to achieve 実績 both quantitatively and\nqualitatively.\n\nUnlike what the other person stated, 業績 is also used to refer to the\nachievements of an individual, not only of an organization. It can be in the\nfield of business or academics and it usually takes decades of hard work to\nachieve what others might refer to as 業績. A Nobel Prize. for instance, is\nawarded to a person for his 業績, not really for his 実績. 実績 is too light a word\nto use in that case.\n\n実績 is word that describes someone's past achievements. Again, it is used to\nspeak of both an individual and an organization. 実績 is used mostly to describe\nwhat one has achieved SO FAR. It may or may not be much. For example, if you\nhave spent three months trying to sell X cases of beer and you have succeeded.\nThat certainly is your 実績 but it will not be called your 業績. You need to\naccumulate 実績 to achieve 業績.\n\nSometimes, it does not take any kind of serious \"effort\" to achieve 実績. I am\ngiving a couple of examples from my own life. I have a membership card with a\nnearby drugstore where I accumulate \"points\" everytime I buy something there.\nI get a 500-yen discount for every 10,000-yen worth of purchase. The store\ncalls it my ご購入実績. Likewise, my airline uses the term 飛行実績 for my mileage.\nPoint is that they will never, ever use 業績 for those.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T00:42:12.440", "id": "13587", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-04T00:42:12.440", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13584", "post_type": "answer", "score": 10 } ]

[ { "body": "Unless I've missed something, it is because it sounds as odd in Japanese as it\ndoes in English. \"新幹線の速さは何ですか？\" - what is the speed of the bullet train?\n\"新幹線の遅さは何ですか？\" - what is the slowness of the bullet train?\n\nSimilarly, 広い is more like 'spacious' or 'extent'. 狭い is 'narrow'. If you\nattempt the higher JLPT levels (well, 3 & above) choosing the specific word is\nvital.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T14:04:35.100", "id": "13590", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-04T14:04:35.100", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4071", "parent_id": "13589", "post_type": "answer", "score": -1 }, { "body": "As you say, it is a convention to use the more \"positive\" word in Japanese.\nHowever, there are situations where we native speakers opt to use the \"other\"\nword. I could think of two conditions that make using the other word sound\nnatural or even better.\n\n1 Common knowledge:\n\nThis is when a thing's slowness, smallness, lightness, etc. is commonly known\nto the general public and the speaker decides that it can be used as a premise\nof a conversation. The slow speed of a snail （遅さ） is a prime example of this.\n\n2 Contextual/Situational:\n\nIf you have to talk about the slow speed of a snail to someone who has never\nseen or heard of a snail, you would need to first explain how slow it moves.\nAfter explaining it, you can logically use 遅さ instead of 速さ.\n\nAnother example would be how \"slowly\" a Shinkansen train which is well-known\nfor its high speed could run on a snowy day. It can actually run more slowly\nthan a bicycle in certain places on a snowy day. In this case, you first\nexplain the weather condition and you can use 遅さ with no problems or\nunnaturalness to the native ears.\n\nFinally, allow me to correct your Japanese. You cannot say 新幹線の速さは何ですか as that\nclearly is a direct translation from English. You would say\n新幹線の速さはどれぐらいですか、新幹線のスピードは何キロくらいですか, etc. Since we are discussing 速さ/遅さ, I\nprobably should not be using the word スピード even though it is the more natural\nword choice for us.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T23:07:17.963", "id": "13595", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-04T23:49:50.080", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-04T23:49:50.080", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13589", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "Be careful regarding nouns vs. adjectives.\n\nIn your case, `速さ` = `speed` is a noun, while `速い` = `fast` and `遅い` = `slow`\nare adjectives.\n\n 1. This is basically same as in English.\n\nIn English, you do not say `What is fast of 新幹線?` or `What is slow of 新幹線?`.\nInstead, you say `What is the speed of 新幹線?` = `新幹線の速さはなんですか?`\n\nThis is correct sentence, but not perfect. (It sounds weird.)\n\n 2. The speed of a 新幹線 is not stable (while, e.g., the maximum speed of a 新幹線 is stable), so it is more common to ask about the speed using an adjective: `How fast is 新幹線?`, `How slow is 新幹線?`\n\nBut 新幹線 is obviously a fast vehicle, and you want to ask about fastness. So\nthe best sentence is `How fast is 新幹線?` = `新幹線はどれくらい速いですか?`\n\nYou can apply this same strategy to the snail sentence:\n\n`snailの速さは何ですか?` is not wrong, but not perfect. You want to ask slowness of a\nsnail because it is a slow animal, so the best sentence is\n\n> \"How slow is a snail?\" \n> snailはどれくらい遅いですか?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T23:52:02.513", "id": "13596", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-05T00:53:02.383", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-05T00:53:02.383", "last_editor_user_id": "3097", "owner_user_id": "4264", "parent_id": "13589", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "Personally I'd avoid trying to do some deep grammatical analysis of this.\nPerhaps someone else can chime in on the historical and etymological aspects.\n\nWe simply say やめなさい or おすわりなさい. It was one of the first grammatical forms I\nlearned after getting married to a Japanese woman. :-) These can be viewed as\ninformal variants of やめてください or すわってください or おすわりください. It's simply the\ngrammatical rule that the なさい is preceded by the 体言止め form such as やめ or すわり,\nwhich in the case of する is し. So yes, it's お掃除しなさい, for example.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T21:20:49.897", "id": "13593", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-04T21:20:49.897", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13591", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "The suffix なさい does not function like the verb なさる (\"to do\").\n\nSyntactically:\n\n * the suffix なさい attaches to the 連用形 of verbs\n * the verb なさる behaves essentially exactly like する: it is either is on its own, or attaches to the root of any suru-verb.\n\nSemantically:\n\n * the suffix なさい makes the verb into an imperative and provides no honorification (it almost provides the opposite by indicating the addressee is in a position lower than the speaker)\n * the verb なさる means \"to do\" and provides subject honorification.\n\nSo to me, the なさい in しなさい is unrelated to \"to do\", it simply converts する into\nan imperative. (If you don't buy that a form of なさる can perform as a purely\ngrammatical element, consider what function the \"do\" in \"I do not know\" is\nperforming.)\n\nRegarding the construction 漢語名詞＋なさい (e.g., 結婚なさい), [it is\nproductive](http://home.alc.co.jp/db/owa/jpn_npa?sn=184), and according to\n@TokyoNagoyaさん, it seems to have a different, slightly softer connotation than\nthe 〜しなさい construction. I am not sure where exactly it falls on politeness\nspectrum of the various different imperatives\n(〜しろ、〜して、〜してくれ、〜してください、〜しなさい、〜なさい, etc.）.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-04T21:27:28.703", "id": "13594", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-05T06:40:51.677", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-05T06:40:51.677", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13591", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "I think it's less a question than it is a way to show surprise or confusion.\nAlso I don't think it's contracted from anything, [this\ndictionary](http://www.japandict.com/lists/int) defines it as a [感動詞]{かんどうし}\nor interjection which would hint that it's not a contraction of a larger\nsentence.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-05T02:03:42.183", "id": "13597", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-05T02:09:14.567", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-05T02:09:14.567", "last_editor_user_id": "3916", "owner_user_id": "3916", "parent_id": "13592", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "1) three times ten to the eight = 3[掛]{か}ける10の8[乗]{じょう}\n\nFor negative, insert マイナス before the (number)乗, after the の.\n\n2) ms^-1 = メートル[毎秒]{まいびょう}\n\nkg m^2 s^-2 K^-1 = ジュール[毎]{まい}ケルビン", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-05T23:54:48.420", "id": "13604", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T11:58:59.830", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-06T11:58:59.830", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13598", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "To supplement Tokyo Nagoya's answer, I found several Japanese references with\nlong lists of examples that may be useful: how to read [SI derived\nunits](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/SI%E7%B5%84%E7%AB%8B%E5%8D%98%E4%BD%8D),\n[measurement units](http://hiramatu-hifuka.com/onyak/tani-iti.html), and\n[mathematical notation](http://izumi-math.jp/sanae/report/suusiki/suusiki.htm)\n(including operators).\n\nI would not claim to be an expert on this matter, but as for linking together\nmultiple units, according to the lists I have linked, the approach seems to be\nsimilar to that in English. For example:\n\n> cal/h・m・deg = カロリー毎時毎メートル毎度 (calories per hour per metre per degree)\n\nOne small difference could be the way s^-2 is more commonly read as 毎秒毎秒 (per\nsecond per second) instead of 毎平方秒 (per square second), in contrast to m^-2 =\n毎平方メートル and m^-3 = 毎立方メートル.\n\n> N = mkg/s^2 = メートルキログラム毎秒毎秒 (metres kilogram per second per second)\n\nA literal reading of kg m^2 s^-2 K^-1 would probably then be\nキログラム平方メートル毎秒毎秒毎ケルビン.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T12:35:14.107", "id": "13644", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-08T12:35:14.107", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1791", "parent_id": "13598", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "~号 appears to be used in cases where the animal's name is formally registered\nin some way, like with [show dogs](http://www.nihonken-\nhozonkai.or.jp/page011.html), and also with working animals such as police\ndogs. This name may not be the normal name of the animal, just as in English\nwith show dogs that have a registered name and a day to day name (\"call\nname\").\n\nThe 警察犬 article on Wikipedia gives a link to [this\nexample](http://www.asahi.com/eco/OSK201001180092.html) (linked for the\nadorableness. There is a photo.)\n\n> 登録名は「クリーク号」、元の名前は「くぅ」\n\nIn most of the article he's called 「くぅ」, so that would be the usual name\nalthough 「クリーク号」 is the registered name.\n\nI don't think there's a direct translation as there's not anything added onto\nregistered names in English - although as with the example the two names are\noften related - the call name being a shortening of or reference to the\nregistered name.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-05T15:52:55.393", "id": "13601", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-05T15:52:55.393", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "571", "parent_id": "13599", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "As a Japanese-speaker, I myself say 「ま、いいか。」 or 「ま、いっか。」 most often in less\nserious situatons. IMHO, those expressions would carry the feeling of \"Oh\nwell.\" the best. That ま is a colloquial form of まあ. However, one should avoid\nsaying those in response to very sad or serious news because one could sound\nlike one was saying \"Whatever.\"\n\nI do not often say 「しかたない」 or 「しょうがない」 myself. Those sound too \"textbook\" to\nme depending on when and how one says them but it is also true that there are\nsituations that call for \"textbook\" comments, so it is しょうがない that I end up\nsaying those phrases once in a while.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T00:37:42.783", "id": "13605", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T00:37:42.783", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13600", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "In this case the tense of the verb will be taken from あげた.\n\nあげた also tells you who did for whom. In a conversation where someone uses\n教えてあげた with an implied 私は, the speaker \"I told/taught\" someone.\n\nAdditionally, the common counter part for あげた would be もらった. In a conversation\nwhere someone said 教えてもらった with an implied 私は, the speaker was saying \"I was\ntaught/told ...\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T01:19:15.603", "id": "13607", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T01:19:15.603", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3452", "parent_id": "13602", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "The tenses in `V1て+V2` depend on what V1 and V2 are.\n\n**General conjunction**\n\nWhen V1 and V2 are both just normal verbs, such as:\n\n> ジョンは走って食べた。 \n> John-TOP run-TE ate-PAST \n> \"John ran and ate.\"\n\nthe tense of V2 applies to V1 as well.\n\n**V2 modifying V1**\n\nThere are some V2s, such as いる、おく、しまう、もらう、くれる、あげる、ほしい which simply modify V1.\n(You can detect that you are working with one of these because you cannot\ninsert adverbs after V1て.) These cases require more care.\n\n> 電話番号を教えてほしかった。 \n> phone-number-OBJ teach-TE want-PAST \n> \"I wanted you to tell me the phone number.\"\n\nHere, 教えて has no tense (and neither does \"tell\" in English).\n\nFor your specific example:\n\n> 生徒に数学を教えてあげた。 \n> students-IOBJ math-OBJ teach-TE give-PAST \n> \"I taught the students math for their benefit.\"\n\nAs you can see in the English, changing the tense of `V1てあげる` (\"doing V1 for\nsomeone's benefit\"), clearly changes the tense of V1.\n\nYou can basically intuitively tell how tense markings affect V1 once you learn\nthe meanings of the various V2s which fall into this category.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T02:54:35.570", "id": "13609", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T03:01:30.683", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-06T03:01:30.683", "last_editor_user_id": "3097", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13602", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "It is exactly as you suspect. It is totally illogical to consider 固い・堅い・硬い,\nfor example, to be three different words and here is why.\n\nWhenever you are dealing with a kun-reading word, you need to remind yourself\nthat it existed when Japanese was merely a spoken language. We had no way of\nwriting 固い・堅い・硬い or even かたい. All we had was the sounds \"katai\". Then we\nencountered the Chinese and the rest is history.\n\nThe vast majority of homonyms in Japanese are found in words of Chinese\norigin.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T12:12:10.023", "id": "13613", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T12:29:58.140", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-06T12:29:58.140", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13612", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "To summarise / add to the discussion:\n\nThe difference between -い and -く is not one of part of speech, it's of\ngrammatical form. Adjectives that end in -い do one of two things:\n\n-Come at the end of a sentence, as the main verb: 車が速い。\n\n-Modify an immediately-following noun: 速い車（が～、を～）\n\nAdjectives that end in -く also do one of two things:\n\n-Indicate a transition between two main clauses in the same sentence (often like English 'and'): 車が速く、自転車が遅い。\n\n-Act as an adverb, modifying a verb: 車が速く走る。\n\nThough, if you think about it, these are effectively the same thing - it\nbecomes a bit more apparent if you vary the conjunction in English (using\nthings like 'while' and so on as well as 'and'). So X無く can indeed be used to\nmean 'without X', but it means more 'while X is not present / does not exist'.\n(English fairly distinctly separates adverbs and adjectives, but on a very low\nlevel, Japanese treats adverbs as separate clauses containing an adjective -\nyou could in theory translate 車が速く走る as 'the car is fast and goes' or 'the car\ngoes and is fast'.)\n\nTo answer your main question directly, the difference between 間違いない and 間違いなく\nis one of whether or not they can stand as a sentence on their own. 間違いない can,\nand means something like 'there is no mistake'. 間違いなく can't really (outside of\nincomplete sentences), and means more 'without a mistake'.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T18:30:10.793", "id": "13615", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T18:30:10.793", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3639", "parent_id": "13614", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "If you need to express your gratitude in one sentence, that is a very good one\n--- except, it is ありがとう, not ありかとう.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-06T21:21:23.203", "id": "13617", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-06T21:21:23.203", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13616", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "It's clear at least that the 能 portion literally represents a bear.\n[ChineseEtymology.org](http://www.chineseetymology.org/CharacterEtymology.aspx?submitButton1=Etymology&characterInput=%E8%83%BD)\ndescribes it this way:\n\n> Primitive pictograph 能. A bear which is strong with mouth 厶 with meat 月肉 and\n> feet 匕匕. Meaning able.\n\nHenshall describes it similarly, giving 厶 instead as nose, 肉 as flesh/of the\nbody, and 匕匕 as representing claws. It came to represent ability later, either\nas a borrowed meaning or in reference to some attributes of a bear (strength,\nagility, etc.). But details aside, I think everyone agrees on what 能 literally\nrepresents.\n\nSo 熊 contains 能 because it represents a bear.\n\n* * *\n\nAs for 灬, those four dots are typically taken as a form of 火 fire, but the\nreason for its presence in 熊 is less clear. Every source I've checked explains\nit differently. [Zhongwen](http://zhongwen.com/cgi-bin/zipux2.cgi?b5=%BA%B5)\ngives it as an abbreviated phonetic (from 炎), while\n[ChineseEtymology.org](http://www.chineseetymology.org/CharacterEtymology.aspx?characterInput=%E7%86%8A)\nsays it comes from a representation of the four feet of the bear. Henshall has\nthis to say:\n\n> Bear is now conveyed in practice by the [...] character 熊, that adds fire 灬,\n> but it should be noted that 熊 technically means raging fire (literally a\n> fire as strong and fierce as a bear), a meaning still found by association\n> in the lesser meaning of bright/glare that 熊 has in Chinese.\n\nSo there you have three different explanations for 灬.", "comment_count": 7, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T01:13:05.380", "id": "13619", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T03:50:25.963", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-07T03:50:25.963", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13618", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "It sounds like another form of はくしょん, onomatopoeia for sneezing.\n\nSearching on Google for things like \"ぶえっくしょん\" \"くしゃみ\" seems to confirm that\nthis is the case, although I'm not too familiar with the word myself. I found\n[this page](http://www.geocities.co.jp/HeartLand-Keyaki/6064/on1004.htm), for\nexample, where it's specifically labeled as a sneeze:\n\n> 大野「ぶえっくしょん！（←くしゃみ）」\n\nIf I had to guess, I'd say it sounds like a bit of a louder / less subtle\nsneeze. That's what it sounds like to me, anyway.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T01:55:55.673", "id": "13622", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T02:04:13.650", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-07T02:04:13.650", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13621", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "Some native speakers do use しゃべる as a transitive verb in certain cases.\nHowever, you would want to be informed that it is acceptable only in very\ninformal conversations. Many people still prefer using しゃべる only as an\nintransitive verb even in casual conversations.\n\nMore careful speakers would surely not say 英語をしゃべる; They would say 英語でしゃべる.\n\n[Here](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%8B%B1%E8%AA%9E%E3%81%A7%E3%81%97%E3%82%83%E3%81%B9%E3%82%89%E3%83%8A%E3%82%A4%E3%83%88)\nis the title of a popular Japanese TV show.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T06:11:18.520", "id": "13626", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T16:00:00.127", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-07T16:00:00.127", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13623", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "While more females might use it than males, it is certainly NOT a female-only\nexpression by any means. I am a male native speaker and I say あら and あらっ all\nthe time and so do many other males around me.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T05:22:21.260", "id": "13625", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T05:22:21.260", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13624", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "We do say アップル[税]{ぜい} if that is what you are looking for.\n\nFor \"wedding tax\", I doubt that we have an exact counterpart but a somewhat-\nrelated, more generic word would be ご[祝儀価格]{しゅうぎかかく}, which literally means\n\"celebratory price\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T08:08:59.500", "id": "13628", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T09:29:17.107", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-07T09:29:17.107", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13627", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "I would say that the polite version of 調子はどうだい would be\n\n> ご機嫌はいかがですか?\n\nbut is usually reserved for written correspondence. Inquiring about someone's\nhealth (e.g. \"How are you?\") is not really used as a formal greeting in\nJapanese. Unless you know someone is recovering from an illness, in which case\none could ask\n\n> お加減はいかがですか?\n\nP.S. ご調子はいかがですか? does sound weird, not just different.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T15:41:03.170", "id": "13630", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T15:47:48.143", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-07T15:47:48.143", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "1628", "parent_id": "13629", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "The best way is to look each of these terms up individually in Japanese\nlanguage dictionaries and check examples of usage, but here's a translated\nsynopsis. Many of these meanings overlap.\n\nでも: \"though that may be the case\" / (though the prior statement may be true)\n\nしかし: \"in contrast to the previous statement\" / (lit. \"unlike\" the prior\nstatement)\n\nただし: is used when providing a condition to the previous statement. (A、ただしB = A\nis true (but only) given B)\n\nただ: similar to ただし, what follows provides additional information about the\nprevious statement. (another word that does this is もっとも)\n\nところが: \"in contrast to expectations\" / (what would not be expected given the\nprevious statement) / While A is true, contrarily B is true. / Roughly\nequivalent to そうであるのに/しかるに.\n\nしかるに: しかる roughly means そうである and the に translates into のに.\n\nけれども・けれど・けども・けど all come from an adjective conjugation. ど/ども is a particle\nthat attaches to the 已然形 of adjectives to form ～けれども (though A is true B is\nalso true), which was then isolated and became a word itself. Thus all of the\nwords have the same basic meaning of \"although\", with the longer ones being\nmore formal.\n\nが has the \"although\" meaning as one of several meanings, including \"casual\nconnection\", so it's use is more broad. It can be used in both casual and\npolite situations. When が comes at the beginning of a sentence it is almost\nalways ですが or だが, unless the context is very informal.\n\nのに comes from the conjunctive particle に, which is often translated as\n\"despite\"/\"even though\" (the のに/なのに comes from an old requirement to satisfy\ncondition that the previous word must be in the 連体形, the の being used to\ndistinguish 連体形 from 終止形). However, there is usually an emotional\nconnection/feeling of lacking/disappointment when のに is used, especially if it\nends the phrase. However, it is also occasionally used like が to make a casual\nconnection.\n\nHope that helps.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-09T04:08:03.393", "id": "13649", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-09T04:08:03.393", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "433", "parent_id": "13631", "post_type": "answer", "score": 13 } ]

[ { "body": "This site has voice recordings of all the kana: <http://www.saiga-\njp.com/pronunciation_voice.html>\n\nTrying to learn kana pronunciation from English is a bad idea.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T17:38:55.773", "id": "13633", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T17:38:55.773", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13632", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 }, { "body": "Why not use the [International Phonetic\nAlphabet](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA)? According to that they would\nbe `/kɑ/` for `か` and `/kɛ/` or `/ke/` for `け`.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2014-07-14T15:06:02.030", "id": "17798", "last_activity_date": "2014-07-14T18:47:18.180", "last_edit_date": "2014-07-14T18:47:18.180", "last_editor_user_id": "78", "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13632", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "Unless you are looking for some deep meaning I cannot think of, I would say it\nis applicable because the song is played by 6 guys --- 4 from Monkey Majik and\n2 from the Yoshida Brothers. That is 12 arms all together instead of saying\n\"the 6 of us\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T20:56:04.613", "id": "13637", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-07T20:56:04.613", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13634", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "This usage of いる is unrelated to its usual function as a grammar element.\n\n**〜ている**\n\n> 食事を食べている \n> \"I am eating my meal\" (progressive) \n> \"I eat meals\" (habitual) \n> ?? \"I eat my meal and I am here (/I exist)\" (conjunction)\n\nReading #3 is never used because no one would ever need to say that. I\nincluded it only to show that the て-form does normally perform a conjunction\nfunction, it's just very marginal here.\n\n**〜ていない**\n\n> 食事を食べていない \n> \"I am not eating my meal\" (progressive) \n> \"I do not eat meals\" (habitual) \n> ?? \"I eat my meal and I am not here (/I don't exist)\" (conjunction)\n\nAgain, reading #3 is a terrible way to read this sentence and is essentially\nwrong.\n\n**〜なくている**\n\n> 食事を食べなくている \n> ?? \"I do not eat my meal and I am here (/I exist)\" (conjunction)\n\nThis form is never used because there's never a need to say this.\n\n**〜ないでいる**\n\n> 食事を食べないでいる \n> \"I am here (/I exist) without eating my meal.\" (state adjunct) \n> \"I am here (/I exist) by not eating my meal.\" (instrumental adjunct)\n\nReading #1 is `Lit. \"I am here, in the state of not eating my meal.\"` (It's\nreminiscent of the stative function 〜ている often performs, but it's slightly\ndifferent — here, `いる` is actually still a full-fledged verb and you can't\ndrop the \"exist\" meaning.)\n\n* * *\n\nIn the case of your sentence, context suggests that it's a state adjunct, not\nan instrumental adjunct; another way to write this form is できずにいる.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-07T19:20:32.500", "id": "13636", "last_activity_date": "2023-07-16T15:13:18.313", "last_edit_date": "2023-07-16T15:13:18.313", "last_editor_user_id": "56734", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13635", "post_type": "answer", "score": 11 }, { "body": "A concise answer as per OP's request.\n\nxxx でいる = \"to stay xxx\", \"to stay in the xxx situation\", etc.\n\nThe xxx part can be a whole mini-sentence as in OP's example, a noun, a 形容動詞\n(as I dislike the word \"na-adjective\"), etc.\n\nどっちが本当の自分か判断できないでいる = I have remained unable to judge which one is the real\nme.\n\nFinally, this form has very little to do with \"Verb + ている\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T00:14:57.093", "id": "13638", "last_activity_date": "2014-12-31T03:33:13.867", "last_edit_date": "2014-12-31T03:33:13.867", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13635", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "I have _a solution_ , albeit not a good one.\n\nI only know of one way of doing this, and it isn't free. On my iPhone I have\nan app called \"Japanese\" - a Japanese dictionary. This app is not free, but\nI'm sure **there are other free (web)apps that can do the same things this app\ndoes**. I just don't have any experience with those apps. The feature I'm\ntalking about is allowing you to select single kanji, and see compound words\nor phrases containing this kanji. Just by looking up 文 and scrolling to the あや\nreading I can give you the following examples:\n\n文を付ける(to make a false accusation)、文目(pattern, design)、美しい文(beautiful design).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T18:08:28.683", "id": "13647", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-08T18:08:28.683", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4157", "parent_id": "13639", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "Searching Japanese language dictionaries/dictionary aggregate sites like\nweblio.jp / kotobank.jp will usually will give you most of those readings.\n\nOn Kotobank, 文 gives separate entries for あや, ぶん, もん and ふみ. かざる shows up in\nthe KANJIDIC2 but not for 文's entry. However, Kotobank's [飾(かざ)る\nentry](http://kotobank.jp/word/%E9%A3%BE%E3%82%8B?dic=daijisen&oid=03182900)\nlists examples using 文(かざ)る under 下接句. (It seems to be limited to the phrase\n過ちを文る - the ateji related to usage in the Analects of Confucius).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-09T03:12:22.783", "id": "13648", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-09T04:10:46.153", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-09T04:10:46.153", "last_editor_user_id": "433", "owner_user_id": "433", "parent_id": "13639", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "何でイブニングがあるか？sounds to me like \"Why are there evenings?\". \n\"What kind of~\" would be \"どんな~\", and \"What kind of X do you have?\" literally\ntranslates to どんなXを持っていますか. e.g.\n\n> どんなドレスを持っていますか? What kind of dress do you have?\n\nWhen you ask how one's spending their time I think you could say\n\n> どんな～を過ごしていますか。 \n> どんな～をお過ごしですか。(formal) \n> ～を、いかがお過ごしですか。(formal)\n\n...normally in writing.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T04:22:10.990", "id": "13641", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-08T04:22:10.990", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13640", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 }, { "body": "If it is already the evening (\"How is your evening? Having fun?\"), you can\nsay:\n\n> 今日楽しんでる？\n\n(inspired by ちょこれーと's comment)\n\nIf it is not the evening already (\"What are your plans for this evening?\"):\n\n> 今晩何してる？", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-09T06:49:43.863", "id": "13651", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-10T12:08:25.790", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-10T12:08:25.790", "last_editor_user_id": "107", "owner_user_id": "107", "parent_id": "13640", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "\"Part-time work\" is a valid translation of バイト/アルバイト but it certainly is not\nthe ONLY definition of the words. For instance, if a college student took a\nyear off from school and worked 12 hours a day, 6 days a week to save money,\nthat would still be called バイト/アルバイト even though he worked 72 hours a week for\na year. Point is he was not a permanent employee.\n\nThe same goes for \"casual work\" that you mentioned. If one is not officially\nhired as a \"regular employee = [正社員]{せいしゃいん}\" or \"contract employee =\n[契約社員]{けいやくしゃいん}\", one is considered バイト/アルバイト. However, we have a very common\nnew word that describes this type of worker, フリーター. Unlike パート/バイト/アルバイト, the\nnew word expresses or at least implies a laid-back lifestyle with time for\nhobbies.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T10:55:46.597", "id": "13643", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-08T10:55:46.597", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13642", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 }, { "body": "\"Casual work\" would be a more accurate translation into Australian English\nthan \"Part-time work\". However, \"Casual work\" doesn't exist in American\nEnglish, which is what Japanese speakers learn and use. Casual work is\nsometimes called \"Part-time work\" in American English, as can be seen in [this\nanswer on English Language &\nUsage](https://english.stackexchange.com/a/343820/1420)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-08-21T00:04:54.043", "id": "38604", "last_activity_date": "2016-08-21T00:04:54.043", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:38:10.367", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "91", "parent_id": "13642", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "立派 is a 形容動詞 or adjectival noun. As 立派 alone, it is a noun essentially meaning\n\"fineness\". It needs the な after it to let it modify other nouns such as 大人 to\nturn it into \"fine adult\".\n\nIf you're using Tae Kim's guide, I would suggest you go back a couple sections\nand check out this page:\n<http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar/adjectives>", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-08T16:41:27.677", "id": "13646", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-08T16:41:27.677", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3629", "parent_id": "13645", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "1. [働きすぎ](http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/%E5%83%8D%E3%81%8D%E3%81%99%E3%81%8E) is a 名詞 which comes from verb 働き過ぎる(働く+過ぎる). \neg 食べすぎ / 飲みすぎ / 太りすぎ (+ だ/です) [デジタル大辞泉\nverb+過ぎ](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/117536/m0u/%E9%81%8E%E3%81%8E/)\n\n 2. The でも is used to give examples. [デジタル大辞泉](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/152508/m0u/%E3%81%A7%E3%82%82/)(See meaning #2-3)\n\n 3. The subject for 庭の花や木に水でもやって is 父. \n\n父は、少し、働きすぎなので、My father is a little overworked, so \n庭の花や木に水でもやって (I think he should spend time doing things like) watering trees\nor flowers in his garden \nリラックスした方がいいとおもいます。I think he should relax", "comment_count": 8, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-09T08:19:32.990", "id": "13652", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-29T07:48:23.577", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-29T07:48:23.577", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13650", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "This [分]{ぶん} expresses \"one's intended or hypothetical partial involvement\nwith something\" in my own words.\n\n見てる分にはいいけれど = (something) is good to look at but ~~\n\n見てる分にはかわいいけど = (something) looks cute and all that but ~~\n\nWhat these phrases imply is that the speaker is not willing to take further\nactions other than just watching the object. A must word for natural Japanese,\nreally.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-10T11:06:06.990", "id": "13661", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-10T11:32:47.170", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-10T11:32:47.170", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13653", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "Here's a [small list](http://keigo.livedoor.biz/archives/787951.html) that I\nfound through a quick search online--I'm sure there's more.\n\nIn the box on this\n[website](http://www.levelup99.net/businessmanner/cate3post25.html) there is\nanother list and it also mentions that when using 美化語{びかご} you should be\ncareful of sounding unnatural or 'not-good' if you try to add the お or ご to\nwords that do not require it.\n\nIn my experience, I have been told that it's just a memorization thing, and\nyou shouldn't try to just put it on any word that you think should have it.\nI've also been told that it sounds 'less beautiful' if you use it on the wrong\nwords.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T01:30:34.220", "id": "13665", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T01:30:34.220", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3916", "parent_id": "13654", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "Why in the world Denshi Jisho has both of those options, I don't know. If it\nwas anywhere else, I'd just say that the katakana version is someone writing\n男の子 somewhat creatively. In any case, they mean the same thing. However, の\nhere is -not- possessive, it's a kind of adnominal thing (though it is a\nparticle) - the phrase means 'male child' or 'boy'. You can use の both for\npossession and for description - for description, の is often interchangeable\nwith である.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-09T20:54:02.470", "id": "13657", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-09T20:54:02.470", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3639", "parent_id": "13655", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "The も is for emphasis. It does NOT mean \"also\". In this context, the も implies\nthat the speaker feels that the training has been hard and/or long and it is\nfinally ending.\n\nこれで simply means \"with this\". It is referring to the last part of the\ntraining.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-10T10:43:09.063", "id": "13659", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-10T10:43:09.063", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13658", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Paragraph #2\n\nふだんから気軽に利用していると、だいたいの勝手もわかるので、いざ調べものや研究でもしようというときにあわてずに済む。\n\nLet us make use of the commas for the purpose of parsing. \"A, B, C.\" is the\nstructure. Throughout the long sentence, the hidden subject is \"one\" or the\ngeneric \"you\".\n\nA = Reason, B = Primary Result, and C = More Specific Result.\n\nIn A, と means \"if\". \"If you use (the library) casually and regularly ----\"\n\nB = \"you will get to know generally how things work (in the library)\"\n\nC = \"and (as a result of B), you will save yourself from panicking when you\nneed to do a research or study.\"\n\nParagraph #4\n\n現実の問題としては、日常においては近所にある地域図書館を、少し専門的な問題については都心や県立の図書館を利用するという二段構えの作戦をとるのが能率的だろう。\n\nSummary: Use two different libraries for two different purposes. The author\ncalls this strategy 二段構えの作戦.\n\nUse 地域図書館 for 日常 matters.\n\nUse 都心や県立の図書館 for 少し専門的な問題.\n\n\"As a practical issue, it would be efficient to employ the two-step strategy\nof using a nearby community-type library for everyday matters and using a\n(larger) midtown or prefectural library for the more technical matters.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T22:20:52.037", "id": "13682", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T22:20:52.037", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13660", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "aというのは here defines a term/phrase(A as B; the meaning of A is B), for example\n動物というのは人の友達だ。- Animal is a man's friend.\n\nWe can also use とは instead of というのは. It is more casual form.\n\nAlso, as far as I can understand 自分 in your sentence(last one) means not\n\"yourself\", but \"me\".\n\nSome sort of translation:\n\n> It feels pleasant to have someone who understands you. Being alone was\n> lonely, right? Once I didn't have a person who understands me and was\n> tormented by loneliness.\n\nUnfortunately I'm not 100% sure with my answer, so you better wait for\nsomeone's else answer too.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-10T21:36:34.380", "id": "13664", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-10T21:55:23.443", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-10T21:55:23.443", "last_editor_user_id": "3183", "owner_user_id": "3183", "parent_id": "13663", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "自分を理解してくれる者がいる is an idea (\"There is someone who understands you\"). 者 just\nmeans \"person(s)\" and even though it is rarely used in real life these days,\nlet us leave it as is since OP says this is a line from a comic.\n\nIn order to use an idea as a topic in Japanese, we need to nominalize it. The\neasiest way to do so INFORMALLY is to add a の, which is done here. Since we\nnow have a \"virtual noun\", we can add the topic-marker は. The author could\nhave said:\n\n自分を理解してくれる者がいるのは～～ but he wanted to make it sound more formal and emphatic, so\nhe used という and said:\n\n自分を理解してくれる者がいるというのは～～ In essence, he expressed the formality and emphasis that\nhe desired by \"quoting\" the idea --- by treating it as a written saying from\nsomewhere.\n\nOne sees the same process in the phrase 一人というのは. One may wonder how 一人 could\nbe an idea but here it is the same as 一人でいる or 理解してくれる人がいない.\n\nOP was not successful in reading the structure of the last sentence. It does\nnot say \"I did not understand myself.\" Rather it says, \"I used to be 苛まれた by\nthe 孤独 that came from the fact that 自分を理解する者がいない.\"\n\n\"That there is someone who understands you is a pleasant thing. Being alone\nmust have felt lonely, I presume? I, too, used to be tormented by the\nsolitariness of not having anyone to understand me.\"", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T01:45:14.233", "id": "13666", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T01:45:14.233", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13663", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "No, it can't.\n\nへ as a particle in Japanese maintains the meaning of direction and is\nunrelated to any meaning of \"and.\" Furthermore, the pronunciation of \"he\" i\nChinese is quite different from the pronunciation of へ in Japanese, so even\nthat much is a but of a stretch. They're alike in romanization only. This is\neven more irrelevant because when Japanese uses the character 和 with its\nChinese-derived pronunciation, it becomes \"wa.\"\n\n和 in Japanese refers to peace/harmony, like in 平和, or to Japan itself as in\n大和{やまと} or 和風{わふう}.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T03:12:06.613", "id": "13668", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T03:12:06.613", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13667", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "Absolutely not. 和 doesn't even mean \"and\" in Chinese generally – only in\nMandarin. Moreover the on-yomi for 和 are わ and か, as expected – at the time\nChinese words were borrowed, the /h/ phoneme was pronounced with the lips\n(most likely [p] or [ɸ]).\n\nThe etymology of the particle へ itself is well-understood: it derives from a\n(now extinct) noun meaning something like \"neighbourhood\" or \"surroundings\".", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T03:13:37.287", "id": "13669", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T03:13:37.287", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "578", "parent_id": "13667", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "* あー\n * うーむ\n * うーん\n * うーんと\n * えー\n * えーっと\n * えーと\n * そのう\n * ふうむ\n * んー\n\nI am sure there are more.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T12:50:37.403", "id": "13672", "last_activity_date": "2015-01-07T10:06:48.150", "last_edit_date": "2015-01-07T10:06:48.150", "last_editor_user_id": "4272", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13671", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 }, { "body": "A few more:\n\n * そうですねぇ〜\n * そっかぁ〜\n * まー\n\nNote that the first two do not necessarily imply the listener's agreement with\nwhat the speaker actually said.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-01-08T17:13:37.483", "id": "21208", "last_activity_date": "2015-01-08T17:13:37.483", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13671", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "It's 嘘\n(うそ).​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T15:50:30.250", "id": "13675", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T15:50:30.250", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13674", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "\"You think you can kill me?\"\n\nFirstly you should note (since it's not in your translations) that 殺せる is \"\n**can** kill\" / \"to be **able** to kill\" (this is the ～える [godan potential\nform](http://grammar.nihongoresources.com/doku.php?id=more_verb_grammar#idxenglishinflections_short_potential_%E9%80%A3%E7%94%A8%E5%BD%A2_idxenglish%E5%BE%97_%E3%81%88_%E3%82%8B)).\n\nWith potential constructions and certain verbs like 見える and 分かる, the thing\nthat we would think of as the object in English is often marked by が instead\nin Japanese. What would be the subject is then marked with に.\n\n> 私にはもう高い周波数の音が聞こえない。 \n> I can't hear high frequencies any more. \n> _( --[space alc -\n> 英辞郎](http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=%E7%A7%81%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AF%E3%82%82%E3%81%86%E9%AB%98%E3%81%84%E5%91%A8%E6%B3%A2%E6%95%B0%E3%81%AE%E9%9F%B3%E3%81%8C%E8%81%9E%E3%81%93%E3%81%88%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84%E3%80%82))_\n\n(I think \"High-frequency sounds do not render (themselves) audible **to** me.\"\nmight be somewhat close to the grammar of the Japanese...?)\n\nPotentials work the same way, so the に in\n\n> お前に私が殺せると思ってるのか？\n\nis referring to the person who is able / not able to do 殺す.\n\nThe subject of 思ってる is also \"you\", but that is not explicitly mentioned in the\nsentence (i.e. this お前 noun is not the explicit subject of 思ってる).\n\nIn general it'd be a bit unusual for 私 to be the subject of 「思ってるのか？」 unless\nyou're talking to yourself...\n\n* * *\n\nThis isn't the only way to use particles with these verbs... the normal form\nof が and を is also possible as far as I know... that's probably best kept for\nanother question (or perhaps it has already been covered).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T17:56:01.213", "id": "13677", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T17:56:01.213", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "315", "parent_id": "13676", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "Context.\n\nIn theory, you can usually tell the difference based on minor details such as\ntheir size. But there's considerable variation in fonts and handwriting, and\nbecause both ロ and 口 have the same stroke order they can look pretty similar,\nso in practice this can be difficult.\n\nLuckily, you generally don't have to distinguish between them visually because\nyou can almost always tell from context. For example, words like 出口 and 入り口\ncontain the kanji, and words like ゲロゲロ and ローマ contain the kana.\n\nYou can learn to read Japanese fairly well without necessarily being able to\ndistinguish the two characters as written in your question title. (At least in\nthe font I'm using, they're pretty hard to tell apart.)\n\nIn my opinion, the similar-looking ones you should learn to tell apart\nconsistently are ones where the stroke order or position is different, like ン\nversus ソ, シ versus ツ, 人 versus 入, or 天 versus 夭, or the ones where the stroke\nlengths are different, like 土 versus 士, or 未 versus 末.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T19:25:56.670", "id": "13679", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T20:54:47.707", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-11T20:54:47.707", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13678", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "Consider it analogous to the characters for capital \"o\" and zero. You just\nhave to use context. Without context, such as randomly generated passwords,\nyou're out of luck.\n\nkanji = 才; kana = オ; \nkanji = 力: kana = カ; \nkanji = 夕: kana = タ; \nkanji = 二; kana = ニ; \nkanji = 工; kana = エ;", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T19:43:53.713", "id": "13680", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T19:50:40.870", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-11T19:50:40.870", "last_editor_user_id": "3962", "owner_user_id": "3962", "parent_id": "13678", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "Nevermind the space; It will not be used in \"normal\" writing. In manga, games,\nlogos, etc., punctuations are often ignored.\n\nEither ignore that space or replace it with a comma. A comma is not necessary\nbut it is not wrong to place one in there, either.\n\nMore importantly:\n\n1) In understanding the sentence, you may need to add an imaginary 言うのか or\n思うのか after the とでも. It is left unsaid. Since you did not know this, your\ntranslation ended up sounding strange.\n\n2) You probably read the 避ける incorrectly, which is why you had \"avoid\" in your\nTL. It is read よける, not さける in this context.\n\n\"Are you saying / Do you think that I cannot duck your attacks, which have\nbecome simplistic because of your anger?\"", "comment_count": 10, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-11T23:59:09.860", "id": "13684", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-11T23:59:09.860", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13683", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Both mean to \"wrap\" but つつむ is the one that has the more general meaning of\n\"wrap\" that we think of. くるむ is usually written in hiragana and has a nuance\nof _rolling something up_ in order to wrap it, or generally enclose it, for\nexample with 風呂敷{ふろしき}, or even 毛布 like in\n[毛布にくるまれた女の遺体](http://okwave.jp/qa/q4898813.html) (a girl's corpse wrapped in\na blanket). A little gross, sure, but a poignant image to drive the point\nhome.\n\nSo 包む is basically always going to be つつむ. It refers to \"wrapping.\"\n\nくるむ is going to be hiragana. It refers to \"rolling.\"", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T06:35:43.443", "id": "13690", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-12T06:47:21.413", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-12T06:47:21.413", "last_editor_user_id": "1797", "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13688", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]

[ { "body": "Apparently the correct term and kanji is 焦った (to lose one's mind).\n\nThanks to ssb for the tip!", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T06:57:23.697", "id": "13691", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-12T06:57:23.697", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "107", "parent_id": "13689", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "The generic word for \"shop\" or \"store\" is most definitely [店]{みせ}, often said\nwith お in front, or more formally, [商店]{しょうてん}. For instance, when we say\n\"There are about 200 stores (in this area).\", we will say\n「200[軒]{けん}くらいお店がある」. No one in his right mind will say 「200軒くらいショップがある。」.\nThis I can tell you for sure but the rest of my post will be all about\n\"tendencies\" and personal observations. It is a world of cultural and\nlinguistic idiosyncrasies.\n\nWe use the word ショップ most often in compound words in which it is combined with\nanother English-origin words such as\nメンズショップ、レディースショップ、フラワーショップ、アクセサリーショップ、フルーツショップ、etc. However, even though these\nkatakana compounds are used as part of the actual shop names (proper nouns)\nsuch as 「メンズショップタカハシ」 and「フルーツショップみかど」, the generic name for all these stores\nwill still be お店 or 商店. Pointing your finger at one of these shops, you\ngenerally would not say 「あそこはいいショップだ。」.\n\nI said \"generally not\" instead of \"never\" above because in recent years, quite\na few people use ショップ in this kind of conversation IF the store is fashion-\nrelated. For this particular usage, the pitch accent is placed on the プ\ninstead of the ショ, which is where the \"normal\" pitch accent is placed in the\nword. Then again, the majority of people would still use お店 to refer to a\nfashion-related store.\n\nIt is just impossible to come up with a rule that works all the time. We use\n「ショップ」 where we think it sounds or looks cool but nearly no one would\nunderstand you if you said 「ショップクラーク」, which is why we have a strange Sino-\nAnglo compound 「ショップ[店員]{てんいん}」 as I mentioned in the comment above. It is\nweird because 「店員」 means the exact same and it is shorter but as long as there\nare people who would rather have a katakana part, if not the whole name, in\ntheir occupation names, we will continue to create these words. Trust me, it\nwas even worse in the Bubble Period. Back then, some people wrote everything\nfrom prose to catch copies in English-origin katakana loan words except for\nthe particles!", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T12:47:12.157", "id": "13705", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T14:37:03.957", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-13T14:37:03.957", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13692", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "This `に` is the one meaning \"for\" or \"(un)to\". (Related: [が and に\ninterchangeability and difference in\nmeaning](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/4440/78)).\n\n> * 体にいいです。 → Good for your body = \"healthy/healthful\"\n> * 健康にわるいです。 → Bad for your health\n> * 酒によわいです。 → Weak (un)to alcohol = can't hold your liquor\n> * 電車に詳しいです。 → Detailed/familiar with trains = knows a lot about trains\n> * その場にふさわしかった。 → Was appropriate to/for that place\n>\n\nI don't know why `子供に怖い` would be unacceptable if you're talking about\nsomething that is \"scary for/to children\". Unless you were trying to say\n\"(I'm) afraid of children\", then that's not correct. If `子供に怖い` is indeed\nunacceptable, I'll let someone else chime in on that because it sounds fine to\nme.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T16:02:43.423", "id": "13695", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-12T16:02:43.423", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.740", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13693", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "Because 体にいい is 体に(対して)いい, while 子供に怖い is 子供に(とって)怖い. It's a completely\ndifferent grammatical form, with a different \"subject\". In one case, the\nsubject is the-thing-that-is-defined-by-the-context-but-isn't-in-the-examples,\nand in the last case, the subject is the kids.\n\n```\n\n その野菜は体にいい。\n \n```\n\nThese vegetables are good for the body.\n\n```\n\n 子供にはその映画が怖い。\n \n```\n\nWhen you are a kid, this movie scares you. ( _Not_ \"this movie is scary for\nkids\", that's the point).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T18:41:47.480", "id": "13696", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-12T18:41:47.480", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "356", "parent_id": "13693", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "These are my thoughts.\n\n> 友達のジョン → My friend John \n> 先生の山田さん → A/My teacher Ms. Yamada \n> 勝利者の亀さん → The winner: the turtle (as opposed to the hare)\n\nThese are all adnominal copulas historically coming from the defective Old\nJapanese copula, に (infinitive), にて (continuative), にあり (conclusive), の\n(adnominal).\n\nIt can be replaced with である, but である has a slightly more literary/formal\nfeeling. That is the only difference in my (non-native) opinion.\n\n> 父なる神様 → God the/our Father; Father God\n\nThis is the adnominal form of one of the Classical Japanese copula, なり (coming\nfrom に + あり). It has a more historical/old feel to it than である.\n\n> 教師たる者、忍耐力がなくてはならない → All teachers must have patience\n\nThis is the adnominal form of the other Classical Japanese copula, たり (coming\nfrom と + あり). My feeling is that it has an even more archaic feel to it than\nなり. Historically, the difference between it and なり was that it expressed\nsomething temporary and なり expressed something permanent, but I do not think\nthat distinction exists in Modern Japanese.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T23:25:05.547", "id": "13699", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T21:46:44.197", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-13T21:46:44.197", "last_editor_user_id": "78", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13697", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Here's how I understand them\n\n`変える`: You didn't include it, but most generic. \"Change\", \"alter\"\n\n`代える`: Substitute (one thing for another)\n\n> * バターをマーガリンに代えてみたらどうですか → Why [don't you / not] substitute margarine for\n> butter?\n>\n\n`換える`: exchange\n\n> * 円をドルに換える → Exchange yen for dollars / Change yen into dollars\n> * 乗客に席を換えてもらう → Get another passenger to switch seats with me\n> * オイル交換 → Oil change\n> * 換気扇 → A ventilation fan\n>\n\nThe idea here is that there is some kind of reciprocation. Agent A gives\nsomething to agent B, and agent B gives something back to agent A.\n\n`替える`: Replace (something with a newer something)\n\n> * 古い機械を新しいのに替える必要がある → The old machines need to be replaced by [with] new\n> ones.\n> * 畳を替える → Have the tatami mats re-covered\n> * 替え芯【しん】 → (pencil) lead refills; (pen) ballpoint pen refill\n>\n\nThe truth is, there is a lot of overlap, so it's not always so easy to decide\nwhich is most correct.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-12T23:41:18.667", "id": "13700", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T16:41:55.253", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-13T16:41:55.253", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13698", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Two things:\n\n 1. The genitive marker is not just for possession.\n 2. の is not just the genitive marker.\n\nHere are all the のs (with their subjects pulled in closer):\n\n * `［名古屋市内の］家`: this is a descriptive genitive, like \"children's clothes\" -- more to describe than to show possession\n * `［庭つきの］家`: this is not a genitive at all (IMO), it is an adnominal form of the copula; (try replacing it with である)\n * `［三階建ての］家`: again, adnominal copula; (try replacing it with である)\n * `［窓の大きい］家`: this の is a が which has undergone GA-NO conversion which is possible due to it being a relative clause; (try replacing it with が)", "comment_count": 15, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T03:51:16.033", "id": "13702", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T04:06:12.517", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-13T04:06:12.517", "last_editor_user_id": "3097", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13701", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "I'll try to offer a little less technical explanation.\n\nDon't think of these の particles as being possession. Think of them as one\nnoun modifying another. We take the first and mix its flavor with the second\none, if you will. So for example:\n\n> 名古屋市内の静かな所にある庭つきの三階建ての窓の大きい住みやすい家を買いました。\n\nIt seems a little fuzzy but this is essentially packing a whole bunch of\ndescriptions of 家 into one sentence. It's awkwardly long and that's kind of\nthe point, just like the English translation being a long list of\ncharacteristics is also long and unwieldy. Let's take another approach from\nthe inside out looking at how these の are working.\n\nAt the core, we have 住みやすい家. No particle trickery here. A house that's 'easy\nto live in.' Adding on to that we have [窓の大きい]住みやすい家. This is referring to a\nlivable house _with big windows_. If we mix the meanings together the meaning\nis clear. In this particular situation the の functions like the particle が.\nThis is a slightly older pattern that still shows up in some places, like\n髪の長い女の子, or a girl with long hair.\n\nMoving out from the original nucleus of 住みやすい家 and adding on more and more of\nthe ～の phrases adds on more of that style of modification. So next you'd add\n三階建ての. This is what Darius is talking about with the である stuff. You would\nnormally want to say 三階建てです, but you can't use だ/です to connect to another\nword. So we use である to allow the copula to connect to other things, and the の\nin this place has the same role as that である.\n\nSo from there we can continue adding extra characteristics. Lump all the\nprevious ones together and let's just call it 家. So now we have just added the\nidea of 3 floors to it. Then to our new 家 language blob we add 庭付き to talk\nabout its yard/garden in a fashion similar to the 三階建て.\n\nNote that the 静かなところにある uses に and not の. This is because の does not refer to\na location. If we were to say 静かな所のある then we would say that the house (or\npossibly the 庭, it's a little ambiguous) _has_ a quiet place within it, as in\nthe の/が pattern I mentioned above.\n\nI would also suggest that 名古屋市内の静かな所 should be interpreted separately as its\nown unit. This livable house with big windows and three floors and a garden is\n_in a quiet place in Nagoya_. Perhaps you can call this a genitive の, or what\nyou have been associating it with as the _possessive_ の.\n\nThis is a very basic explanation and I am not striving for technical precision\ndown to the most minute detail. Nevertheless, if you think of の as a general\nidea of noun modification rather than just possession it will start to make\nmore sense.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T05:16:18.337", "id": "13703", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T05:16:18.337", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13701", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "See if this helps.\n\nWhat the person bought was a house. And it's described with a lot of\nmodifiers.\n\nOriginal: 私は、去年、名古屋市内の静かな所にある庭つきの三階建ての窓の大きい住みやすい家を買いました。\n\nchop out most of the modifiers:\n\n私は、去年、住みやすい家を買いました。Last year I bought a comfortable house.(住みやすい is certainly\n'easy to live in', but we don't usually say that in English. I prefer\n'comfortable')\n\nHere's the part I chopped out:\n\n名古屋市内の静かな所にある庭つきの三階建ての窓の大きい\n\nLet's add line-breaks\n\n 1. 名古屋市内の静かな所にある\n 2. 庭つきの\n 3. 三階建ての\n 4. 窓の大きい\n\nIf it helps to understand, add 'house to each of the modifiers.\n\n 1. 名古屋市内の静かな所にある(家）...a house in a quiet area of Nagoya\n 2. 庭つきの(家）...a house with a garden\n 3. 三階建ての(家）...a three-story house\n 4. 窓の大きい(家）...a house with big windows.\n\nOf course since they all modify the same noun, we can just recompile them into\none sentence. I prefer to put it in a natural English order than strict order\nof the Japanese sentence, so long as all the info is contained it shouldn't\nmatter.\n\n\"Last year I bought a three-story house in a quiet area of Nagoya with big\nwindows and a garden.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T05:35:46.263", "id": "13704", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T05:35:46.263", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4075", "parent_id": "13701", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "SSB has given you a comprehensive answer and you have some translations but I\nwould like to add an alternative way to compare to English grammar.\n\nDo you know the poem \"This is the house that Jack built\"? Its starts off with\nthat simple sentence, and then modifies it umpteen times. The grammar you are\nlooking at works in a similar way:\n\n> This is the malt that lay in the house that Jack built.\n>\n> This is the rat that ate the malt That lay in the house that Jack built.\n>\n> This is the cat that killed the rat That ate the malt that lay in the house\n> that Jack built.\n\nFor the full story go to:\n\n<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_the_House_That_Jack_Built>\n\nQuote:\n\n[This narrative technique] is a cumulative tale that does not tell the story\nof Jack's house, or even of Jack who built the house, but instead shows how\nthe house is indirectly linked to other things and people, and through this\nmethod tells the story of \"The man all tattered and torn\", and the \"Maiden all\nforlorn\", as well as other smaller events, showing how these are interlinked.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T15:23:26.887", "id": "13706", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T15:36:17.190", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "1556", "parent_id": "13701", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "Going off a space alc search, <http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=it%27s+for> I\ncame up with these:\n\n> It's hot for this time of year. この時季にしては暑い。\n>\n> It's cold for April. 4月にしては寒い。\n\nSo maybe this would work:\n\n> 酒にしては甘い。\n\nBut this is just a guess, as I am not familiar with this pattern. The two\nexamples I found are time specific so maybe it only works in that context.\n\nEdit:\n\nAs per the indefatigable Chocolate sensei's valued suggestion, here is perhaps\nthe most natural answer readily available:\n\n> まあ、お酒/日本酒に/としては甘いほうなんだけどね", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T17:36:44.810", "id": "13708", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T16:57:13.297", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-14T16:57:13.297", "last_editor_user_id": "706", "owner_user_id": "706", "parent_id": "13707", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "The first is simply \"I went on a trip\". The second emphasizes the fact that\nyou went an on trip and are (somewhat) recently back now.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T19:53:58.040", "id": "13712", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T19:53:58.040", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13710", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "I think your intuition is correct. When speaking of family though, it's kind\nof tricky. `家族で` just means \"as a family\" - like the whole family unit. `家族と`\nindicates to me that you went \"with your family\", but implies that you are no\nlonger part of the family unit, i.e., probably living on your own.\n\nRelated - [What is the difference between 一緒に and\n二人で?](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/4401/78)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T20:00:07.150", "id": "13713", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T20:00:07.150", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.397", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13711", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Without further context, 「彼女は僕の彼女だったりする。」 can mean one of two different\nthings. However, \"She is sometimes my girlfriend (and sometimes not)\" is NOT\none of them.\n\nThe two possible meanings are:\n\n 1. \"She happens to be my girlfriend (in reality).\" and\n\n 2. \"She happens to be my girlfriend (in my wild imagination).\"\n\nUnless the larger context was something very unusual, I really could not think\nof another meaning as a Japanese speaker. In either of the two meanings above,\nだったりする is being used for its new informal usage/meaning \"to happen to be\";\ntherefore, I do not think Japanese-as-a-foreign-language textbooks would cover\nit. In real life in Japan, it has been in fairly heavy use among the younger\ngenerations for the last 15-20 years.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T23:32:40.347", "id": "13717", "last_activity_date": "2022-03-31T06:58:35.187", "last_edit_date": "2022-03-31T06:58:35.187", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13714", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 } ]

[ { "body": "Looks to be a combination of `ずる` (old form of `ずれる` - to slip/slide down) and\n`転ける【こける】` (to fall down / fail).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-13T23:24:15.120", "id": "13716", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-13T23:24:15.120", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13715", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "I don't see anything wrong with your translation (except 外国人 = foreign people)\n\n 1. When the action is directed towards someone from your in-group ([内]{うち}/ウチ). \n[Uchi-soto](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uchi-soto) \n\n 2. そのお[礼]{れい}に means そのお礼として, in return (for~). [参考:お礼として in Weblio ](http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%8A%E7%A4%BC%E3%81%A8%E3%81%97%E3%81%A6) \nbreakdown: \nその its \nお礼(≒[返礼]{へんれい}, お[返]{かえ}し) reward, return(favor, gift...) \nに/として as", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T07:14:19.710", "id": "13724", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T07:14:19.710", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13718", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "凄 = 冫 + 妻\n\nThe radical 冫 is named にすい and it means \"ice\".\n\n妻 means \"wife\".\n\n凄 means \"ice-cold\", \"bleak\", \"mournful\", \"frigid\", etc., so it is a kanji with\nhighly negative meanings.\n\nYou stated that the kanji meant something completely different in Chinese but\nit DOES NOT. Your statement appears to be based on a comparison between the\npositive modern colloquial meaning of 「[凄]{すご}い」 in Japanese and the negative\noriginal Chinese meaning of 「凄」, does it not? If so, it is not a fair\ncomparison.\n\n凄い in Japanese was originally a very negative word, too. It meant \"dreadful\",\n\"unearthly\", \"grim\", etc. You probably had the modern meaning \"fantastic\" in\nmind, did you not?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T13:27:33.730", "id": "13727", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T21:11:39.577", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-14T21:11:39.577", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13720", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "a few options here: <http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=own+path>\n\nAs to the firm of the main verb, I had a little trouble finding Japanese\nmottos per se, but corporate and advertising slogans tend to use the\nvolitional, not the imperative. Or just leave the verb off entirely, for that\nmatter (like「未来へ」or 「ステキに」). Which, seeing as you wanted to save space, is\nwhat I'll do.\n\nso, arbitrarily: 噂を聞かず、自分の道を\n\n(you could swap the final を for に if you want to emphasise \"choosing\" your\npath over \"following/walking\" it)\n\nI picked the old-fashioned ず ending to sound deliberately archaic/literary.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T12:05:04.357", "id": "13725", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T12:05:04.357", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4164", "parent_id": "13722", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "How about [人]{ひと}に[流]{なが}されるな, [他人]{たにん}に流されるな or [周]{まわ}りに流されるな for \"Let\npeople talk\"?\n\n> [我]{わ}が[道]{みち}を[行]{い}け。(他)人/周りに流されるな。 (我が道=one's own path, 行け=imperative\n> \"go\") \n>\n\nor \n\n> [自]{みずか}らの[夢]{ゆめ}を[追]{お}え。(他)人/周りに流されるな。 (自ら=oneself, 夢=dream(s),\n> 追え=imperative \"pursue\") \n>\n\n...maybe??", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T13:09:49.087", "id": "13726", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-15T04:59:17.783", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-15T04:59:17.783", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13722", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "何もかも is basically a word on its own. It means something along the lines of\n'absolutely everything' - it's in effect an intensified version of 何も. Adding\nthat in, the whole sentence becomes something like 'that's a place where\nabsolutely everything becomes ambiguous'. (Though you might want to be careful\ntranslating 曖昧, as 'ambiguous' isn't always the best translation for it.)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T22:43:30.980", "id": "13732", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T22:43:30.980", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3639", "parent_id": "13728", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Particles, especially は and を, are often omitted in colloquial Japanese.\nFormal Japanese would require the は to mark the topic, as you suggested.\nCompare\n\n> ご飯食べる?", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T20:30:14.267", "id": "13730", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T21:03:12.120", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-14T21:03:12.120", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "1628", "parent_id": "13729", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "Well it certainly functions the same as an adverb. Just as in English, it tell\nthe extent or how much of something.", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-14T23:17:53.863", "id": "13734", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-14T23:17:53.863", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4324", "parent_id": "13731", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "If you wish to know what part of speech 本当に is according to \"school grammar\"\nin Japan, then it is a [副詞]{ふくし}. Every kid in Japan is being taught that it\nis a 副詞 as I type this. I want to stress that using English grammar terms such\nas \"adverb\" and \"adjective\" will only slow down your Japanese study in the\nlong run, trust me.\n\nThere are a handful of people who claim otherwise regarding 本当に, I admit. So\nthe choice is yours. You could either join the main school of thought or go\nindependent. After all, words never come with tags telling what parts of\nspeech they belong to. You will need to decide which theory makes more sense\nor seems more persuasive.\n\nI learned English in Japan by using whatever books that happened to be around\nme (and there were only a few). Years later, do I look like I know nothing\nabout English grammar? Do you have difficulty in reading my English?\n\nYou will surely need to know what types of words 本当に can modify in order to\nuse it correctly, but whether you believe the word is a 副詞 or not will not\nmake a cool topic at the party. Cheers!", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-19T11:00:12.493", "id": "13785", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-19T11:00:12.493", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13731", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "I'm not sure how textbooks classify に(は), but the important point is the\nstructure Aに(は)Bがある, which broadly means \"A has B\". So, translating little by\nlittle:\n\n> Yet, [こういったAの対応] had [少なからず救われている部分]\n\nSo it should be obvious now that 部分 is part of the childish behavior, at least\nif you assume that the childish behavior is the same as [こういったAの対応]\n\n> Yet, this kind of reaction from A had a part which [少なからず救われている].\n\nThe subject of [少なからず救われている] isn't stated explicitly, but from context one\nwould assume that it's \"I\" or \"we\" or something like that. So:\n\n> Yet, this kind of reaction from A had a side which we were saved by quite a\n> bit.\n\nNote that 部分 is the agent (not the subject) of the passive phrase (i.e.\n部分に救われている), but Japanese relative clauses do not capture this relationship.\nThe passive construction isn't really necessary in English, but is idiomatic\nin Japanese which tends to prefer animate subjects.\n\nThe translation 救う→save here isn't very good, the next line hints that the\ninterpretation of this is that A's behavior, annoying as it is, somehow proves\nto have some benefit to the speaker.\n\nMy total translation, very free, but hopefully idiomatic, would be something\nlike\n\n> Yet there was something quite relieving about this kind of reaction from A.\n\nEdit:\n\nFirstly there seems to be some discussion about whether 少なからず modifies 救われている\nor あった, and I admit that my choice was maybe less likely than the alternative,\nbut it doesn't really change the high-level structure of the sentence, so\nremoving IMO irrelevant parts, we get down to\n\n> Aの対応には救われている部分があった.\n\nFrom here, if I understand correctly, the discussion goes on whether に is the\npassive-agent に or (my claim) に as part of a whole-part relationship\nconstruction. This, to me, seems to be the same question as identifying\nwhether the sentence is parsed\n\n> [Aの対応には救われている]部分があった. (passive-agent)\n\nor\n\n> [Aの対応]には[救われている部分]があった. (whole-part relationship)\n\nFor the first parse, I think it is fairly well established that relative\nclauses cannot have topics.\n\n<http://www.sf.airnet.ne.jp/~ts/japanese/relativeclause.html> 'First, you\ncannot use the topic marker (ha) \"wa\" in relative clauses, because topics and\nfocuses are defined in a sentence, not a clause.'\n\nEven if you argue that this is a contrastive は, you would get the approximate\nmeaning \"There was a part (where we) were saved by A's reaction (but not by\nother things)\", which is very unlikely.\n\nThe second parse is the only one possible to me. Of course, 部分 should not be\nread literally as a \"part\", it's more like a \"side\" or an \"aspect\" of A's\nreaction.", "comment_count": 7, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T00:54:12.807", "id": "13751", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-18T02:28:15.330", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-18T02:28:15.330", "last_editor_user_id": "1073", "owner_user_id": "1073", "parent_id": "13735", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "So by \"in general\" in this case you mean: you like all parts of history more\nor less equally, not just one specific part or era? (There are other meanings\nof \"in general\" such as \"in most cases\", so... just making sure)\n\nIn that case you can use the suffix ～全般 ( _zenpan_ ) to indicate the entirety\nof something including all its parts:\n\n> 私は歴史（学）全般が好きです。 _watashi wa rekishi(gaku) zenpan ga suki desu_\n\n(my first thought was that you would need 学 to indicate liking the study of\nhistory instead of liking \"everything that happened in the past\", but Google\nsearches appear to indicate otherwise...)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T20:06:18.823", "id": "13739", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-15T20:06:18.823", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "315", "parent_id": "13738", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "I would translate it approximately as follows:\n\n> In a note, he has written \"Every day, thank you for the things you do around\n> the house.\" \n> Do you think such a kind and romantic Japanese man exists?\n\nIn your translations, there are a couple of mistakes. (1) Here, やさしい most\ndefinitely means kind -- not lenient or easy. (2) I would no translate\n\"書いてありました\" as \"had been written\" here. Instead, given the second sentence, I\nwould infer the subject is \"he\" i.e., a guy who would write such a note.\n\nIn terms of what you are asking about です vs いる. いる and ある are the verb of\nexistence for living things and things respectively in Japanese. です does not\nserve that function. Inside of a と思う clause, it would not be です (polite form),\nit would be だ but if it's だ, there needs to be a predicate, like this:\n\n> マークはロマンチックな日本人の男の人だと思いますか。", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T22:41:04.910", "id": "13746", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-29T01:52:35.403", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-29T01:52:35.403", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4091", "parent_id": "13740", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "You can't directly use 〜たい if you are talking about other people's state of\nmind. You need to attach 〜がる (which attaches to the root of any i-adj).\n\n> 泳ぐ - (I/he/she) swim(s) \n> 泳ぎたい - I want to swim \n> 泳ぎたがる - He/she (shows signs that he/she) wants to swim \n> 泳ぎたがっている - He/she (is showing signs that he/she) wants to swim\n\nFor the most part 〜たがる and 〜たがっている are pretty similar, just a difference in\nnuance as to how \"current\"/\"right now\" the signs are.\n\nAs in your sentence, often the fact that something is happening _now_ is the\nrelevant part, requiring you to use 〜ている.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T22:39:57.993", "id": "13745", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-16T02:04:09.967", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-16T02:04:09.967", "last_editor_user_id": "3097", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13741", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "```\n\n 泳ぎたい I want to swim\n \n```\n\nThe above can also be used for others in questions (with friends).\n\n```\n\n 泳ぎたがる - she wants to swim (present tense)\n 泳ぎたがっている she is wanting to swim. (progressive tense)\n \n```\n\nIn many contexts, these two translate to the same English. The latter is the\npresent progressive; the former is the present indicative. In Japanese, the\npresent progressive is often used to indicate a state rather than an activity\nin progress. (English does the same).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T22:45:43.380", "id": "13748", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-15T22:45:43.380", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4091", "parent_id": "13741", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "1. そう = I hear that～ Usage: plain form: V、い－adj、な－adj、Ｎ＋そうだ In Japanese そう is 2 using. Other, meaning is It looks ～，It seems ～ くindicates the speaker’s conjecture or judgement based on what he/she sees or feels>\n\n 2. なかなか = very, considerably, by no means (with negative verb)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T01:46:54.293", "id": "13752", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-16T01:46:54.293", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4331", "parent_id": "13742", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "スピリット has nothing to do with the album title \"Spirit\" here. The speaker is\njust calling John Denver \"アメリカのスピリット\".\n\nThere is no particle needed between アメリカのスピリット and ジョンデンバー because if you look\nclosely, there is a comma.\n\n「アメリカのスピリット、ジョンデンバー」＝「アメリカのスピリットであるジョンデンバー」\n\nOne could say, if one wanted to 「アメリカのスピリットのジョンデンバー」 as far as grammar but it\ndoes not sound very refined so the speaker did not say it that way.\n\nThe fact that the sentence is written in three lines instead of one may be\npart of the reason that you find it dificult to understand, too.\n\n\"For our/your/the second song, 'Country Road' by America's Spirit, John\nDenver, might be good, huh?\"", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T22:52:56.997", "id": "13749", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-15T22:52:56.997", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13743", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "\"stopped closing properly\"\n\nPlease disregard if we are done with this question.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T08:18:32.150", "id": "13765", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-17T08:18:32.150", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13744", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "Typo aside, I still found the sentence to be rather long and unwieldy.\n\nI wonder if this is just my bias as a native English speaker or was the\noriginal sentence eloquent and efficient in Japanese?\n\nI know that many on this site dislike posing questions in an answer so perhaps\nI will remove this later to placate the ire of other users here, but I am\ninterested in understanding the seeming discrepancy between my understanding\nof this sentence and how it might be working.\n\nBut maybe there was a period after ヘッドライトが消えなくなったりして and the OP did not post\nit?\n\nAnyways, here is my loose translation attempt.\n\nI believe i smudged the meaning a little in my attempt to make it sound like\nnatural English.\n\n> My car is so old that I have this problem where sometimes the power windows\n> don't close properly and the headlights don't turn off so I have to ask my\n> husband to fix it for me soon.\n\nThere is so much information in one sentence that I found it to be more\nnatural when divided in two:\n\n> My car is so old that I have this problem where sometimes the power windows\n> don't close properly and the headlights don't turn off. So I have to ask my\n> husband to fix it for me soon.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T19:46:54.653", "id": "13772", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-17T19:46:54.653", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "706", "parent_id": "13744", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "〜ても means something like \"even if\".\n\n> 曲がりたくてもまっすぐ行かなければなりませんでした。 \n> \"Even if I wanted to turn, I had no choice but to go straight.\"", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-15T23:01:57.603", "id": "13750", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-15T23:01:57.603", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13747", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "Your understanding is correct except for the part where you said \"kind of\nbreaks the rule\". I know what you mean by that, though. There is no written\nrule as to what word order is \"correct\". There only are the most or more\ncommon and the less and least common word orders.\n\n「そして全くその通りで **私は** あったのだ。」 is indeed NOT written in the most common word\norder, which would be 「そして **私は** 全くその通りであったのだ。」. As many of you would know,\nhowever, **_Japanese word order can be incredibly flexible on one condition\n--- that the correct particles are attached at the right places_**.\n\nGrammatically, である can be treated as one word, which is probably why you feel\nit weird being spliced, but native speakers know instinctively that it\nconsists of two parts で and ある and that the subject for ある could be squeezed\nin between --- \"in (= で) a certain state + subject + ある(exists)\"\n\nBy placing the 全くその通り part up front, it was emphasized for an aesthetic\npurpose. As you said, the author could have used は or も instead of 私は or even\nsaid just その通りであった（のだ）. However, **_by placing a 私は in a sentence in a\nlanguage in which \"I\" or \"me\" is not used often, it was also successfully\nemphasized in a natural way_**.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T03:52:08.560", "id": "13754", "last_activity_date": "2019-02-27T00:28:22.797", "last_edit_date": "2019-02-27T00:28:22.797", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13753", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 } ]

[ { "body": "In real life in 2013, not many people address their partners as 君. It is\ncertainly not obsolete but only a small minority of us use the pronoun. You\nwill hear it much more often in fiction such as song lyrics, manga, dramas,\nfilms, etc.\n\nMost of us use first names or nicknames instead of pronouns. Some use pronouns\nlike お[前]{まえ} (men to women) and あなた (more by women), and even fewer people\nwould use 君.\n\nPronouns in general are NOT used by us native speakers nearly as often as\nJapanese learners may be led to believe.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T22:25:44.730", "id": "13760", "last_activity_date": "2022-04-12T05:26:01.717", "last_edit_date": "2022-04-12T05:26:01.717", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13755", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 }, { "body": "My boyfriend is Japanese and he's called me 君 twice now, both times in written\ncommunication. Each time it was kind of to emphasize that I'd said something\nkind of outrageous/surprising (that's how I interpreted it, anyway). Usually\nthough, he calls me by my name.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2014-01-09T11:30:55.410", "id": "14114", "last_activity_date": "2014-01-09T11:30:55.410", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4188", "parent_id": "13755", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "[寮]{りょう} means \"dormitory\".\n\n[会社]{かいしゃ}の寮 = company-provided housing facility", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T13:19:16.453", "id": "13757", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-16T13:19:16.453", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13756", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "I believe it would be more correct to say `飲みにでも[行かない]{LLLH}？`.\n\n 1. `にでも` sounds more natural/correct to me than `でもに` for reasons I can't explain.\n 2. Since the whole clause is new information to your friend, you need the \"suggestiveness\" of the `いかない・いきませんか` instead of the more \"decisive\" `行こう`.\n 3. `よかったら` sounds a little too stiff for a close friend. I'd go with something like `ひまなら` or `時間あったら`.\n 4. I think the `数日間` is unnecessary.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-16T15:23:40.693", "id": "13759", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-16T15:23:40.693", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "13758", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "It's an information structure and presentation question. The first constituent\nis typically topic, and the second one is focus:\n\n子供が学校にいる。 (The) kids are at school. (as opposed to somewhere else)\n\n学校に子供がいる。 There are kids at school. (as opposed to, say, adults, or no one at\nall)\n\nLike Darius has said, with questions, they become the following:\n\n子供が学校にいるのか？ Are the kids at school? (as opposed to somewhere else)\n\n学校に子供がいるのか？ Are there kids at school? (as opposed to someone else)\n\nIt's a bit confusing, as the は/が distinction also has to do with the same\ninformation structure stuff. Certainly the first one needs は instead of が to\nreally work right. However, since は is a topic particle, it almost always goes\nin the topic slot - it can only go in the focus slot if you're comparing\nthings:\n\n学校に子供はいるけど大人はいない。 The kids are at school, but the adults aren't.\n\n*学校に子供はいる。 is ungrammatical outside of this context, as far as I know.\n\nBasically, the topic slot is for old information (things that are already\nbeing talked about) and the focus slot is for new and/or contrastive\ninformation (things that are just being mentioned, or things that are being\ncompared). With questions, this works out to the second (focus) slot being\nfilled with what's directly being questioned - so, in the first example, it's\nwhere the kids are that's in question; and in the second, it's who is at\nschool that's in question.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T00:23:43.410", "id": "13763", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-17T00:39:56.230", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-17T00:39:56.230", "last_editor_user_id": "3639", "owner_user_id": "3639", "parent_id": "13761", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "Perhaps a simple answer is best?\n\nAs I think you know, the two sentences literally mean the same thing and in\nJapanese it is grammatically correct to change the order.\n\nThe key concept is context and the good news is that it works much the same\nway in English. The order depends on what you want to communicate in a given\nsituation.\n\nFor example:\n\n子供が学校にいる。might be used to say \"The kids are at school.\" (as opposed to\nsomewhere else)\n\n学校に子供がいる。 might be used to say \"There are kids at school.\" (as opposed to,\nsay, adults, or no one at all)\n\nBut, these are only examples and there will be other alternative ways to say\nthe same thing.\n\n_Notes_ :\n\n 1. This is one of those things that becomes clearer with practice. \n\n 2. I have deliberately avoided mentioning the use が／は because there other very good answers to questions on this topic which is much wider (and more confusing) than your original question.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T15:10:15.080", "id": "13768", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-17T15:10:15.080", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1556", "parent_id": "13761", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]

[ { "body": "Yeah, に can have that \"as\" meaning like in sentence one there. In the second,\nhowever, it does not have that meaning. It might be a little confusing, but\nonly if you try to attach one meaning to each particle. に has many different\nuses. In fact, it has at least [15 distinct\ndefinitions](http://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%AB?dic=daijirin&oid=DJR_ni_-160).\nHere you're dealing with definitions 8 and 3 respectively (I'm pretty sure,\nanyway).\n\nThe fact that there are many ways to use に may seem confusing, but generally\ncontext and a more thorough familiarity with sentence patterns and how it is\nusually used will be more than enough to know the correct interpretation. Just\ntreat it like any other homophone.\n\nIf you really want to break に down to its purest _essence_ and not just take\nthe many meanings for granted, there are some general categories you can break\nit into that some of the definitions could be grouped into.\n\nFor example you have the に of location, which describes where something is.\nFor example, 本は机の上にある. You have the に of literal or perhaps metaphorical\ndirection, a category in which I would include sentences like スーパーに行った and\n友達にプレゼントを上げた. You have a に that represents the agent in passive constructions,\nlike in 男に殴られた. You have the に that determines something's role, what it _is_\nand the purpose it serves, as in your おみやげにチョコレートをもらった. You have the に that\nmarks the way something is done, as in with adverbs, like 嬉しそうにケーキを食べた. There\nare probably more, but I think this illustrates the point. These are all\n_distinct_ and have obvious applications and are easily understood within\ntheir respective contexts.\n\nSo does it get confusing? Actually, it doesn't really. Not usually, anyway. Of\ncourse you can always find examples of ambiguous sentences, but that doesn't\nmean communication in general is difficult, even in longer sentences. You'll\nhave enough hints based on the words in the immediate vicinity of the に to\nunderstand what's going on.\n\nLook, for example, at your sentences. You wonder if 先生に友達を紹介した could be\ninterpreted in such a way that the に in this sentence is saying what your\nfriend is, i.e. a teacher, like in the omiyage sentence. It is true that に\nused like this can mean the same thing as として, in which case it would be as\nyou thought. But when used _with people_ it does not have this meaning. As\nsuch it is unambiguous. I cannot think of a context in which someone could\npossibly interpret it the other way (any native speakers can chime in here if\nthey would like). 先生に友達を紹介した deals with humans, so its meaning is set.\n\nAs for the alternative ways to say it, I'm a little unsure at the moment with\nregard to the exact nuance that you're trying to convey in English, but here\nare some ways you can say it in Japanese.\n\nYou could say 先生である友達を紹介した. The nuance of this one is that you introduced (to\nsomeone) your friend, and incidentally that friend also is a teacher. The\nemphasis however is that you introduced your friend.\n\nNext, you could just say 先生の友達を紹介した, which has a similar meaning to the above.\n\nAnother way that I think gets more to the heart of what you want is to turn\nthe に overtly into a として and say 先生として友達を紹介した. In this case, you would be\nsaying \"I introduced my friend _as_ a teacher\" in the way I think you mean,\nwhere the person is your friend, but in this situation you emphasize the fact\nthat he is a teacher. You can switch it around as well to say 友達として先生を紹介した.", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T15:46:02.233", "id": "13770", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-18T13:09:10.107", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-18T13:09:10.107", "last_editor_user_id": "1797", "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13766", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "A plain form + か does sound a little more rough or direct, I think. Normally\nit would be said without the か or with の instead as it's a little softer.\nできますか, however, is not direct at all and is a totally acceptable way to ask\nsomething politely.\n\nIn polite _keigo_ type situations, you may in fact here できますでしょうか or\nいただけますでしょうか. Technically this is incorrect. You _might_ call it a form of 二重敬語\n(maybe, don't quote me on that). However despite it being \"wrong,\" you still\nmight hear it from time to time. Kind of like ら抜き言葉 (食べれる) or omitting the い\nin ている (～してます). So yeah, it's possible to use it this way, but be aware that\ndoing so is breaking with convention.\n\nThe standard way to say it in these situations is, of course, plain form +\nでしょう, so できるでしょうか and the like.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-17T15:10:37.443", "id": "13769", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-17T23:32:39.263", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-17T23:32:39.263", "last_editor_user_id": "1797", "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13767", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "The phrase 「ああそっか なんだかこういうのって」 would need to be translated in conjunction with\nthe hand-written 「てれっ = \"I feel bashful/flattered/awkward\"」, which is used\nalmost like a sound effect or onomatopoeia here though it is originally the\ncolloquial way of saying [照]{て}れる.\n\nThe little guy senses the satisfaction on the part of the big guy, which in\nreturn gives him a sense of achievement and positive awkwardness.\n\nAs in many other cases of J-to-E translations, one would have to use a few\nwords that are not in the original for it to make sense in the target\nlanguage. My own TL attempt might be something like:\n\n\"Never knew something like this would feel so awkward.\"", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-18T00:10:17.717", "id": "13774", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-18T00:10:17.717", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13773", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "There is no difference in the meaning but there is a huge difference in the\nformality and grandiosity of the words.\n\nIt is 100% natural-sounding to say 「お[土産]{みやげ}にチョコレートをもらった。」 because もらった is\nas light and informal as the に.\n\nBut not too many careful speakers would say お土産としてチョコレートをもらった。because the\nheavy として does not go too well with the informal verb もらった.\n\nWith として, you might want to use at least [頂]{いただ}きました if not a more formal\nverb.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-18T05:11:57.203", "id": "13776", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-18T05:17:34.153", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-18T05:17:34.153", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13775", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "女性 means female (*for humans). (lit. the female kind; Cf. 男性 male / 中性 neuter)\n\n女の人 means woman.\n\n女の子 means girl.\n\n女性 is a 漢語 (Chinese-origin word) which is often more formal. 女の人 is\n和語(Japanese original word).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-18T12:42:04.060", "id": "13779", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-18T13:11:18.113", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-18T13:11:18.113", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": "4091", "parent_id": "13777", "post_type": "answer", "score": 20 }, { "body": "There is no difference in **meaning** when the two words refer to\n\"woman/women\". There are, however, differences in how native speakers perceive\nthe two words and the nuance they carry.\n\nTo discuss the exception first, 「[女性]{じょせい}」, has an extra meaning \"feminine\"\nor \"female gender\" when used in grammar terms for certain languages such as\nRomance languages. For instance, \"la maison = 'the house'\" is a\n「[女性名詞]{じょせいめいし}」 = \"feminine noun\" in French. We never call it an 「女の人名詞」 or\n「女名詞」.\n\nAs with nearly all other pairs of Japanese-origin words and their Chinese-\norigin counterparts with the same or similar meanings, the main difference\nbetween the two groups is the formality of the words. On-reading, Sino-\nloanwords like 「女性」 are almost always used in more formal or technical\nsituations than their kun-reading, Japanese-origin counterparts like 「女の人」.\n\nJapanese children learn to use the word 「女の人」 **years before** they learn to\nactively use 「女性」. You would rarely meet a kid under 12 or so who uses 「女性」 on\na regular basis. Even teenagers would rarely use 「女性」 in their daily\nconversations, but they would in compositions and presentations in schools.\n\nSome adults use 「女性」 even in the most informal conversations, but using 「女の人」\nwould be far more common on those occasions. Only 「女性」 is used in newspapers,\nmagazines, academic papers, etc., and using 「女の人」 in those is utterly out of\nthe question.", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-18T23:58:13.373", "id": "13783", "last_activity_date": "2017-07-13T11:05:31.287", "last_edit_date": "2017-07-13T11:05:31.287", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13777", "post_type": "answer", "score": 67 }, { "body": "The **meaning** stays the same, but the **connotation** is that 女性 is the\n**more scientific** of the two. 女の人 is simple, everyday language. And while 女性\nis used a fairly high amount of times also, it’s more used as a comparison to\n男性.\n\nSo if you’re using 女の人 it’s just a description of what you perceive.\n\n> **女の人** は歌を歌うのが上手です。 \n> (that) Girl is good at singing.\n\n女性 is for comparison between the sexes.\n\n> **女性** は歌を歌うのが上手です。 \n> Girls (compared to boys) are good (/better) at singing.\n\nNote that I’m using ‘girls’ as a translation for simplicity’s sake. I could\nhave translated it to women or females also. It’s just to keep my examples\nneat and concise.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2018-05-05T04:46:13.987", "id": "58370", "last_activity_date": "2018-05-08T12:59:14.340", "last_edit_date": "2018-05-08T12:59:14.340", "last_editor_user_id": "29797", "owner_user_id": "29797", "parent_id": "13777", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "You're right that there is technically some ambiguity, although slightly wrong\nin your interpretation. In a sentence like ６時に起こしてください it's basically implied\nthat you mean _yourself_ , as in the provided translation (\"Please wake me\nup\"). Without context, though, there's no way to be 100% sure. It could be a\nrequest to wake up any other person (except the person to whom the request is\ndirected, as in \"please wake up at 6\").\n\n起こす is a transitive verb, so you're asking this person to wake _someone_ up.\nWake me up, wake Jim up, wake Mary up, anyone. In Japanese this would be more\nexplicitly stated with を, as in \"６時にジョンを起こしてください。\"\n\nIf you want _that person_ to get up at 6, you would use ６時に起きてください. 起きる is an\nintransitive verb, so it has a meaning closer to the simple \"wake up\" in\nEnglish, as in \"I woke up at 6.\" Notice the lack of a direct object. \"I woke\nup at 6\" does not imply that you woke someone else up -- it only refers to\nyou, the speaker.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-18T13:48:54.727", "id": "13781", "last_activity_date": "2014-05-07T15:23:47.070", "last_edit_date": "2014-05-07T15:23:47.070", "last_editor_user_id": "1797", "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13780", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "<http://gogen-allguide.com/ke/keri.html>\n\n-keri is a conjugational suffix in classical japanese for the past tense. \n<http://www.classical-japanese.net/Grammar/past.html>\n\nYour contextual intuition was correct for the meaning of the phrase.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-19T18:16:25.520", "id": "13787", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-19T18:16:25.520", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4351", "parent_id": "13784", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "I have a DVD but I think it's a different version because its subtitles are: \n\n> Smith: お帰り アンダーソン君 待ちわびたよ なかなか壮観だろ？ \n> Neo: 今夜 終わる \n>\n\nand its audio goes: \n\n> Smith: アンダーソン君 お帰り 君に会いたかった なかなか壮観なもんだろ？ \n> Neo: 今夜けりがつく \n>\n\n(not sure if this answers your question though...)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T06:26:33.620", "id": "13797", "last_activity_date": "2015-10-20T16:15:25.610", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-20T16:15:25.610", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13784", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "In classical Japanese, けり (from 来あり) had the basic meaning of \"came to think\nof/realize...\". Over time, people observed that this word frequently appeared\nat the end of lines in their writing, and combined with the conclusive nuance\nof the word itself, began to use it in the transferred figurative meaning of\n\"the ending\".\n\nReference\n[大辞泉](http://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%81%91%E3%82%8A%E3%81%8C%E4%BB%98%E3%81%8F-491130):\n\n> **けりが付・く**\n>\n> 物事の結末がつく。決着する。「喧嘩両成敗ということで―・いた」", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-10-20T15:52:48.010", "id": "28793", "last_activity_date": "2015-10-20T16:40:06.537", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-20T16:40:06.537", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "11489", "parent_id": "13784", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "The word 学習 is indeed very difficult to explain despite its rather simple look\nand what the bilingual dictionaries would probably say that it means.\n\nI am sure I knew the word as early as second grade but have rarely used it\nactively because it is a word that is much more often used by the\nschool/teacher/Ministry of Education side, not by the learner side. The word\nfor \"study\" or \"learn\" for the average student/parent/citizen is definitely\n勉強.\n\nYou will NOT hear Japanese-speakers say things like:\n\n「[昨日]{きのう}２[時間]{じかん}学習した。」= \"I studied 2 hours yesterday.\" or\n\n「[明日]{あした}はテストだから[今夜]{こんや}は学習しなきゃ。」= \"I gotta study tonight 'cause we have a\ntest tomorrow.\"\n\nQuestion #1:\n\n学習 indeed basically means 勉強 but as I have stated, the two words are seldom\ncontextually interchangeable. Honestly speaking, however, I have seen so many\nJapanese-learners make this mistake.\n\n練習 means \"practice\" or \"drill\". One could say it is part of 学習 but there is no\ninterchangeability between the two words. To us native speakers, they are not\neven similar with each other.\n\nSame thing with 研究 which means to study in depth or do so professionally. It\nmay be part of 学習 but there is absolutely no interchangeability between the\ntwo words.\n\nQuestion #2:\n\nNo, you cannot. That word would be [学問]{がくもん}, not 学習.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T12:56:59.600", "id": "13801", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T12:56:59.600", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13786", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "You are actually thinking the other way around. It is written in katakana\nBECAUSE the term is 100% Japanese.\n\nJapanese mythology existed way before we encountered the Chinese. It existed\nonly in the oral tradition because we did not have a writing system back then.\nIn other words, only the sounds \"yamatanoorochi\" existed, so even after we\nencountered the Chinese and learned Kanji and created kana, it just was not\nvery natural to write \"yamatanoorochi\" in kanji. With ヤマタノオロチ, we are just\nusing the katakana as the pronunciation symbols.\n\nThere are kanji versions （八岐大蛇、八俣遠呂智、八俣遠呂知） for this term but they are ALL\n[当て字]{あてじ}. You may use one of them if you love kanji but it will not\nnecessarily make you look more intelligent or educated. Contrary to what some\nJapanese-learners seem to blindly believe, writing in kanji the words that\nhave no Chinese roots is often regarded as not being in good taste.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T18:52:50.153", "id": "13804", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T18:52:50.153", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13788", "post_type": "answer", "score": 11 } ]

[ { "body": "You would need a better dictionary than that. I would recommend a good\nmonolingual one to anyone who is serious about his Japanese study.\n\nThe only possible answer would be that it is a dramatized pronunciation of the\ninterjection え/えっ = \"What?\", which would mean that Mishima is NOT really sick.\nIf Mishima were actually sick, this へ？ would make no sense.\n\nYou might also want to remember that we rarely, if ever, utter a particle all\nby itself like that.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T03:37:42.720", "id": "13793", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T03:59:33.520", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-20T03:59:33.520", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13789", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "> tori wo tsukamaeru \n> \"I catch birds.\" \n> \"I will catch the bird.\"\n\nThis is a full sentence, as you can see in the English meanings provided.\n\n* * *\n\n> tori wo tsukamaeru koto \n> \"catching birds\"\n\nWhen you add `koto` on the end, it becomes a noun.\n\nSince it is a noun, you can use as part of a larger sentence:\n\n> **tori wo tsukamaeru koto** ha kantan ja nai \n> \" **Catching birds** is not simple.\"", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T03:41:48.097", "id": "13794", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T03:41:48.097", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "13790", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 }, { "body": "Darius' example above is right. But, you can also use KOTO as follows. Anyone,\nplease correct me if the below translations are wrong.\n\nかのじょ たち は 日本 ご を べんきょう した こと が あり. - She (all) HAD DONE the thing of studying\nJapanese.\n\nかれ の かお は 見た こと が あり ます. - I HAD DONE the thing of looking at his face.\n\nMP 3 プレーヤー を つかった こと が あり ます か? - HAD you DONE (did you do) the thing of using\nthe MP3 player?\n\nPast tense + koto = HAD DONE THE ACTION OF something.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2014-12-14T05:15:36.070", "id": "20880", "last_activity_date": "2014-12-14T05:27:27.203", "last_edit_date": "2014-12-14T05:27:27.203", "last_editor_user_id": "7942", "owner_user_id": "7942", "parent_id": "13790", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "How about this:\n\n> 彼女たちは 日本語を 勉強したことが あります。 \n> _Kanojo-tachi wa nihon-go o benkyō shita koto ga arimasu._ \n> Them girls studied Japanese at least once.\n\n * \"koto\" turns every thing preceding it into a substantive (noun) clause.\n * \"ga arimasu\" indicates that the subject exists in at least one instance.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-03-06T03:41:43.387", "id": "23076", "last_activity_date": "2015-10-20T14:52:27.353", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-20T14:52:27.353", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9524", "parent_id": "13790", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "・［名詞a noun］が できます。 ga dekimasu. ・［動詞a verb辞書形dictionary-form］ことが できます。 koto ga\ndekimasu.\n\n能力ability・可能the possible\n\n例 スキーが できます / およぐことが できます。\n\n## Sukii ga dekimasu / Oyogu koto ga dekimasu\n\n・［しゅみ/しごと］は ［動詞a verb辞書形dictionary-form］ことです。 [Shumi/Shigoto] wa koto desu.\n・［動詞a verb辞書形dictionary-form］ことが すきです。 koto ga suki desu.\n\n［動詞a verb辞書形dictionary-form］こと ＝ ［名詞a noun］\n\n例 しゅみは えいがを みることです。\n\n## Shumi wa eiga o miru koto desu.\n\n・［動詞a verbた形ta-form］ことが あります。 koto ga arimasu.\n\n経験an experienceが あります\n\n例 アフリカへ いったことが あります。 Afurika e itta koto ga arimasu.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2017-04-07T06:48:26.177", "id": "45315", "last_activity_date": "2017-04-07T06:48:26.177", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "20620", "parent_id": "13790", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "I'll put something up from the book I'm reading, Teach Yourself Books C. J.\nDunn and S. Yanada Japanese (first printed 1958, impression 1973):\n\nIn lesson 7 (p. 29)\n\n\"A standardized adjectival clause is used as one of the ways of expressing the\nidea of \"being able\". Thus **yomu koto ga dekimasu** is equivalent to \"I can\nread\"; in other words, to add the idea of \"being able\" to any verb, put the\nplain form of the verb before the expression **kota ga dekimasu.** Thus, to\ngive another example, **Eigo o hanasu koto ga dekimasu** can be translated as\n\"Can you speak English?\" The expression **koto ga dekimasu** is best thought\nof as idiomatic; **koto** is \"an abstract thing\" and **dekimasu** , or\n**dekiru** , to use the dictionary form, as we shall henceforth when referring\nto a verb, is a word of wide meaning, including such as \"is made\", \"is\nproduced\", \"is possible\"; you may thus think of **yomu koto ga dekimasu** as\n\"a reading thing is possible\" or \"reading is possible\", but it is probably\nbetter not to analyse the meanings of the expressions such as this. However,\nthe construction composed of a verb followed by **koto** is a useful one, for\nit can be used to translate English verbal noun ending in \"-ing\". Thus **yomu\nkoto** is \"reading\", **oyogu koto** , \"swimming\", **hanasu koto** ,\n\"speaking\", e.g., **Nihongo o hanasu koto wa muzukashii desu.** Speaking\nJapanese is difficult. Or It is difficult to speak Japanese.\"\n\nI am here to further my understanding of this noun.\n\n(Glossary: **koto** _n_. (abstract) thing, fact)\n\nI recommend looking up the definition for idiomatic. This is probably why it\nis hard to translate because there is not a literal meaning that is\nnecessarily obvious. This book gave me some useful examples, but even so I\nneed more examples before I can truly understand **koto**.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2017-05-17T00:48:37.897", "id": "47494", "last_activity_date": "2017-05-17T00:48:37.897", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "22155", "parent_id": "13790", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "Transitive vs. Intransitive.\n\n[開]{あ}ける (akeru) vs. [開]{あ}く (aku)\n\nYou 開ける the door. vs. The door 開く by itself.\n\n開ける conjugates to 開けて (akete) and 開く conjugates to 開いて (aite).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T05:29:15.647", "id": "13796", "last_activity_date": "2014-08-16T14:53:06.400", "last_edit_date": "2014-08-16T14:53:06.400", "last_editor_user_id": "78", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13791", "post_type": "answer", "score": 11 }, { "body": "\"aite\" is a form of \"aku\" which is an intransitive verb that means \"open\".\n\n\"akete\" is a form of \"akeru\" which is a transitive verb \"open\".\n\nIt's a little confusing for English speakers because \"open\" can be used\ntransitively OR intransitively.\n\n> \"The door opened\" vs. \"I opened the door\"\n\nYou can also use \"open\" as an adjective in English!\n\n> The library is open.\n\nIn Japanese this can be expressed with the transitive verb \"aku\".\n\n> _Toshokan ga aiteiru._\n\nTo sum up, English is confusing.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2014-08-19T03:02:42.080", "id": "18288", "last_activity_date": "2015-10-20T14:49:47.613", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-20T14:49:47.613", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "7055", "parent_id": "13791", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "The document follows consistent rules, if you look at it more closely.\n\nFirstly, the document itself is actually highly cursive, both in its kanji and\nhiragana. After this time and up until 1945, it became standard for treaties\nand formal documents to be written exclusively in kanji and katakana. The fact\nthat this uses hiragana is a result of its cursive style.\n\nBut, as we can see, katakana is used to write the foreign name Matthew\nCalbraith Perry, as katakana is the only standard script for writing foreign\nnames, even in the otherwise cursive script of the document.\n\nSome of the characters that look like katakana, such as ハ, are actually\nhentaigana, as @marasai points out, referencing [this\nlist](http://www10.plala.or.jp/koin/koinhentaigana.html). In fact, if you\nreference all the documents\n[here](http://archive.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kosho/he05/he05_00917/he05_00917.html)\n(courtesy of @viven), all of which are cursive, all characters used are\nperfectly valid _hentaigana_. Some look like katakana, but are actually\nconsistently hiragana throughout the document, but are simply historical\nvariant hiragana that have since become nonstandard. Hiragana was only\nstandardized in 1900 (this document is from 1854), making these historical\nvariants understandable.\n\n* * *\n\n[](https://i.stack.imgur.com/JFn7U.jpg)\n\nNote that all the kana are hiragana/hentaigana. We see the hentaigana ハ appear\nagain on both pages\n\n* * *\n\nAs mentioned, the sole exception to this is when writing a foreigner's name,\nwhich has always been standard to write in katakana throughout history, even\nin cursive documents.\n\nThe document isn't haphazard persay, but rather uses a very cursive style,\nmeaning that all kanji are cursive, and all kana are hiragana (including\nvariant hentaigana) _except_ for foreign names. Its style is totally\nconsistent in this regard, just different to modern Japanese usage,\nparticularly of hiragana/hentaigana forms.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-11-28T21:25:05.297", "id": "29522", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-28T21:30:55.070", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-28T21:30:55.070", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9185", "parent_id": "13795", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "Using ハ for particle \"wa\" was a part of their proper style to write official\ndocuments or letters at that time.\n\nThe writing style of 日米和親条約 in your image is [候文]{そうろう・ぶん}, which was a formal\nwriting style during the Edo period. If you would read other 候文 documents or\nletters written in the Edo period, you would notice that ハ is almost always\nused for particle \"wa\" in them, and は is almost never used for it.\n\nFor example, the following web page shows a 候文 document which is\n[人相書]{にん・そう・がき}(a criminal's description) used in 1746\n([延享]{えん・きょう}[三年]{さん・ねん}).\n\n> [古文書解読講座 第１１回 江戸の人相書\n> 史料の解読と読み下し例](http://www.soumu.metro.tokyo.jp/01soumu/archives/0703kaidoku11_1.htm#m1)\n>\n> 【東京都公文書館 / Tokyo Metropolitan Archives】\n\nThe handwritten characters in black are of the actual document, and each of\nthe red characters represents the [楷書]{かい・しょ} of the black character alongside\nit. In the bottom part starting with (中略), there are a couple of ハ characters\nsuch as\n\n> [其身]{その・み} **ハ** ,\n>\n> [私領]{し・りょう} **ハ**.\n\nThey are all particle \"wa\".\n\nYou may find ハヽ in the document. ハヽ means ハバ in this case and is read \"waba\"\nwhich is composed of the okurigana \"wa\" of 候 and a particle \"ba\". This\ncombination is also almost always written ハヽ. はゝ is almost never used for this\nkind of \"waba\" in 候文.\n\nUsing ハ for particle \"wa\" was very common not only in formal documents or\nletters, but also in various kinds of writings during the Edo period.\n\nActually, using ハ for particle \"wa\" was already common in the [Heian\nperiod](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heian_period). So we can see them used\nin [Emakimono](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emakimono) such as [Genji\nMonogatari Emaki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genji_Monogatari_Emaki)\n([源氏物語絵巻](http://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/2590780)) etc. But this answer\nfocuses on the usage of ハ in the Edo period, because 日米和親条約 was concluded in\nthe Edo period.\n\n##\n\n## ハ or は of Preference\n\nUnder certain conditions, ハ was replaceable by は or other equivalent kana. The\nmain conditions were:\n\n * It's not the first character of a word.\n * It's not a particle.\n * It's not a part of a katakana word (such as a foreigner's name, some kind of exclamation, etc).\n\nThese are customary rules. So actually, particle \"wa\"s written with は exist,\nespecially in informal writings of the Edo period, but it's very rare.\n\nHere is an example of a replaceable kind of ハ.\n\nThe following web page shows the image of the first page of a book called\n[怪談御伽童]{かい・だん・お・とぎ・わらわ} published in 1772([明和]{めい・わ}[九年]{く・ねん}).\n\n> [『怪談御伽童 巻一』Image\n> 2](http://archive.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kosho/he13/he13_01458/he13_01458_0001/he13_01458_0001_p0002.jpg)\n>\n>\n> 【[書籍概要](http://www.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kotenseki/html/he13/he13_01458/index.html)\n> / 早稲田大学図書館 Waseda University Library】\n\nIn the right page, there is the title of the book like this.\n\n> [怪談御伽童]{くハひ・だん・を・とぎ・ワらハ}\n>\n> （I replaced some hentaigana with modern standard hiragana.）\n\nThe last character of the furigana([振]{ふ}り[仮名]{がな}) is ハ here. Then, please\nlook at the last page of the same book.\n\n> [『怪談御伽童 巻一』Image\n> 21](http://archive.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kosho/he13/he13_01458/he13_01458_0001/he13_01458_0001_p0021.jpg)\n\nIn the right page, the last line is like this.\n\n> 怪談御伽ワらは巻一終\n\n童 is written ワら **ハ** in the first page, but ワら **は** in the last page. (Both\nof them are read \"warawa.\") The ハ and the は are probably written according to\nthe author's preference. And it seems acceptable for Edo-period readers,\nbecause this kind of ハ／は is found in many books written in the Edo period.\n\nSo, replaceable kinds of ハ existed, but a particle wa was not one of them.\n\n##\n\n## Is the ハ Hiragana Or Katakana?\n\nDuring the Edo period, people commonly used katakana in hiragana writings or\nkanji-hiragana writings. They seemed to try to improve readability by using\nkatakana. Some Japanese words were almost always written in katakana even in\nhiragana writings or kanji-hiragana writings.\n\nSo it's possible that Edo-period people categorized ハ as katakana but still\nused it in hiragana contexts, although it's also possible that ハ used in the\nEdo period was thought hiragana and had a similar shape to katakana ハ like the\nmodern standard hiragana へ and katakana ヘ.\n\nThere are some textbooks for children, published in the Edo period, in which ハ\nis categorized as katakana. However I've not found reliable sources in which ハ\nwas categorized as hiragana during the Edo period. So I can't be sure about\nthis matter, yet.\n\nハ used in the Heian period seemed to be hiragana because Heian-period people\nseemed not to use katakana in hiragana contexts usually. But Edo-period people\ncommonly used katakana in hiragana contexts, so it's more difficult to discern\ntheir awareness of using katakana ハ or hiragana ハ. I think it's debatable\nwhether ハ used in the Edo period is katakana or hiragana.\n\nAnyway, the ハ is kana. And today, it's categorized as hentaigana.\n\nIf you are interested in how textbooks, published in the Edo period, are like,\nhere is an example.\n\n> [『大全童子往来百家通』Image\n> 20](http://archive.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kosho/bunko30/bunko30_g0254/bunko30_g0254_p0020.jpg)\n>\n>\n> 【[書籍概要](http://www.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kotenseki/html/bunko30/bunko30_g0254/index.html)\n> / 早稲田大学図書館 Waseda University Library】\n\nThis image shows a part of a textbook for children, published in\n1852([嘉永]{か・えい}[五年]{ご・ねん}). On the left page, there is a chart of katakana\nwhich contains ハ. Then, please look at the next page of it.\n\n> [『大全童子往来百家通』Image\n> 21](http://archive.wul.waseda.ac.jp/kosho/bunko30/bunko30_g0254/bunko30_g0254_p0021.jpg)\n\nOn the right page of the Image 21, there is the [iroha\npoem](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iroha) (いろは[歌]{うた}) written in hiragana,\nwhich contains は. (The iroha poem was commonly used to learn kana.) The first\ntwo lines are like this.\n\n> いろ **は** にほへと\n>\n> ちりぬるをわか\n\nThen, in the same page, please look at the inside of the box which contains a\nmountain landscape. The box also contains the iroha poem written in a proper\npractical style using kanji. The first line says\n\n> [色]{いろ} **ハ** [香]{にほ}へど[散]{ちり}ぬるを\n>\n> （I replaced some hentaigana with modern standard hiragana.）\n\nThis teaches that は of いろは should be replaced by ハ when written in a proper\nway. This ハ is a particle \"wa.\" I don't know if the author means the ハ is\nkatakana or a variant of hiragana は, but anyway, he teaches that ハ is the\nappropriate character to use for a particle wa.\n\nEdo-period children learned written Japanese with textbooks like this.\n\nHope that helps.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-12-10T04:16:45.457", "id": "29786", "last_activity_date": "2015-12-10T04:16:45.457", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "10484", "parent_id": "13795", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "「わたしははじめてやまださんにあいます。」 is fine.\n\n「わたしははじめてやまださんにおあいします。」 is more polite.\n\nIn either case, it would sound more natural if you omitted the わたしは part. This\njust just how we speak.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T08:34:55.500", "id": "13799", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T08:34:55.500", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13798", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "Another way: 「やまださんに お会いする / 会う のはこれが初めてです」", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T11:09:12.540", "id": "13800", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T11:09:12.540", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4223", "parent_id": "13798", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "Use the latter if you want to speak and write \"natural\" Japanese.\n「～～はどういう意味ですか。」 is how native speakers ask for a word's definition.\n\n「～～の意味はなんですか。」, while grammatical, sounds SO \"directly translated\" from \"What\nis the meaning of ~~?\". It is not very natural, if not incorrect.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T19:01:11.563", "id": "13805", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T19:01:11.563", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13802", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]

[ { "body": "「の」＝「もの」or「こと」.\n\n「[目指]{めざ}したの」＝「目指したもの」\n\n「の」 is a nominalizer; It nominalizes the preceding verb or adjective.\n\n「目指したの」= \"what I/we ran toward\" = \"my/our destination\"\n\nOther examples: 「[赤]{あか}いのがほしい。」= \"I want a red one.\"\n\n「[行]{い}きたいのは[京都]{きょうと}です。」= \"Where/The place I want to go to is Kyoto, (not\nanother town).\"", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T21:32:44.427", "id": "13806", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T21:43:22.997", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-20T21:43:22.997", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13803", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]

[ { "body": "Without any context, we could not say that is the correct translation but it\nis obviously one of the possible translations.\n\nWithout context, we just do not know who it is that has mastered something.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-20T21:51:53.273", "id": "13808", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-20T22:05:07.637", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-20T22:05:07.637", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13807", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]

[ { "body": "You're completely correct in the first 3 usages of ～ている. And while the 4th and\n5th ones are likely, and you can hear them from time to time in certain areas\nof Japan, for the most part, and for the sake of clearly expressing\nthemselves, Japanese people tend to use one of numerous versions of ~ことがある.\nVery rarely, depending on dialects, inflection of the person speaking it could\nraise those questions as well. Think along the lines of someone lazily saying\n\"you eat natto\" (there's a reason for the lack of punctuation). It can\ntechnically be construed in several fashions in English based off the context\nof the situation.\n\nSo various usages do exist for the grammatical device, but for the most part,\nyou'll only hear the structure of the first 3 examples.\n\nOn the 3rd example, it's much more commonly found to have a \"よく\" in the\nsentence somewhere, so as to provide the concept of \"continuously\" or \"often\",\nsince the inflection wouldn't really exist, nor would the statement be\nunambiguous enough to justify saying, again, unless context permits it.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-28T18:35:00.520", "id": "13929", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-28T18:35:00.520", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4403", "parent_id": "13809", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "I am going to say just a couple of things regarding your first list of 5\nmeanings. I have been hesitating to do this because what I want to say might\nconfuse the beginning students more than it could clarify things for them.\n「Verb + ている」 is that subtle.\n\nAfter mentioning it in the comment some days ago, I am still having difficulty\nunderstanding why you are using the word \"experience\". As a Japanese-speaker,\nI do know that 食べている, given the right context, COULD express one's experience\nof eating natto, but this usage is very rare in real life --- so rare that you\nwill seldom hear it to mean it. Without saying 食べたことがある, we just rarely\nexpress experience.\n\nThen again, it may be that it was your intention to include the rare usages in\nthe first place. If so, I would have included the \"future progressive\" and\n\"future perfective\" as well. \"I will be eating natto at (a certain time)\" and\n\"I will have eaten (the) natto by (a certain time)\" are possible meanings of\n食べている, too. In fact, I would say that those usages are a little more common\nthan the \"experience\" usage.\n\nIf the distinction between \"natto\" and \"the natto\" is important to you, which\nit seems it is, I would include the \"the natto\" version under your \"habitual\"\ncategory because it is possible for one to habitually eat a particular\nbrand/type of natto.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-29T12:14:09.217", "id": "13943", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-29T12:14:09.217", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13809", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "Sure, it's a pretty simple construction, but it's in informal language so it\nmight be a little tricky.\n\nIn its fullest form it would be 会えなくなってしまって, with 会える + ない + なる + てしまう + て,\nwith each of the components inflected accordingly.\n\n会えない is the negative potential, i.e. \"cannot meet\"\n\n会えなくなる, with the added なる, means that \"it became such that (someone) couldn't\nmeet\"\n\nてしまう is a construction that means something sort of unexpected or undesirable\nor unintentional happens, so the flavor here is that someone became unable to\nmeet through some unfortunate circumstance.\n\nThe final て is just there to connect it to the rest of the sentence.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-21T07:42:42.053", "id": "13811", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-21T07:42:42.053", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "13810", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]

[ { "body": "It's fine. 〜なくては and its contracted version 〜なくちゃ are commonly used to mean\nroughly \"must/should do\", with following verbs such as いけない or ならない omitted.\nIn your example, the omitted verb would go before the particle な:\n\n> お前はやはり私のような強いものの後ろに隠れてい **なくては(いけない)** な\n\nI think the speaker is telling the listener that they'd better hide behind\nsomeone strong, like the speaker. It sounds like the speaker is telling the\nlistener that they're weak.\n\nCompare 〜なければ and its contracted forms 〜なけりゃ／〜なきゃ, which can similarly be used\nwith the following ならない (or いけない, etc.) omitted. The following verb is\nliterally the consequence of not taking some action--in this case, hiding--and\nit's almost always something negative. It can be omitted because the listener\ncan imagine what it is.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-21T20:08:14.780", "id": "13813", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-21T20:22:18.383", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-21T20:22:18.383", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13812", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "It is not particularly bookish or formal to say ～～の後で or ～～した後で, but it is\ntrue that the で gets omitted quite often in conversations.\n\nIf one uses a で, one could emphasize the 後 part, stressing the fact that the\naction should be performed AFTER something, not before.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-21T22:24:49.923", "id": "13815", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-22T01:48:39.677", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-22T01:48:39.677", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13814", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "[解読不能]{かいどくふのう} would be the only word I could think of. It literally means\n\"indecipherable\" but it could also be used when the writing itself is in one's\nown language (and letters/characters) but is too difficult to read.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T00:08:17.297", "id": "13817", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-22T00:08:17.297", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13816", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "Another (more) common English idiom for this is _It's all Greek to me_ and\n[Eijiro offers](http://eow.alc.co.jp/search?q=all+greek+to+me) an interesting\nword which I haven't encountered before:\n\n> Don't ask me anything about computers. It's **all Greek to me**. \n> 私にコンピューターのことは聞かないで。 **ちんぷんかんぷん** なんだから。\n\n[The theory](http://gogen-allguide.com/ti/chinpunkanpun.html) seems to be that\nthe word appeared in the Edo era and made fun of Confucianists who liked to\nuse a lot of obscure words of Chinese origin, or possibly mimicked the\nunintelligible speech of foreigners.\n\nHowever, this word seems to be mostly about speech, or the ideas being\nexplained, and not the writing itself.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T00:49:59.437", "id": "13818", "last_activity_date": "2015-10-20T14:24:51.977", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-20T14:24:51.977", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "3295", "parent_id": "13816", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "Yes, I think you'd read it as: \n\n> ■■■■■□□□ \n> ■■■■■■■□ \n> ■■■■■□□□ \n>\n\nfor 5/7/5 like [かたつむり・・・](http://vocaroo.com/i/s1YJ9B4eoecl) where the middle\nline can be split into 4+3(e.g.: トウキョウ・ナゴヤ). \nAnd you'd read it as: \n\n> ■■■■■□□□ \n> □■■■■■■■ \n> ■■■■■□□□ \n>\n\nfor 5/7/5 like [静かさや・・・](http://vocaroo.com/i/s07exKb7uVUZ) where the middle\nline sounds better when split into 3+4(e.g.: カワズ・トビコム). \n\nAnd you'd probably read it as: \n\n> ■■■■■□□□ \n> ■■■■■■■■ \n> ■■■■■□□□ \n>\n\nfor 5/8/5, like [8/5/8/5/8/5...\n:D](http://vocaroo.com/i/s1cskQXEvEOg)([唱歌・カタツムリ](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%AB%E3%82%BF%E3%83%84%E3%83%A0%E3%83%AA#.E3.81.8B.E3.81.9F.E3.81.A4.E3.82.80.E3.82.8A.EF.BC.88.E5.94.B1.E6.AD.8C.EF.BC.89)、[童謡・鳩](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%B3%A9_%28%E7%AB%A5%E8%AC%A1%29#.E5.8E.9F.E5.85.B8.E3.81.AB.E3.82.88.E3.82.8B.E6.AD.8C.E8.A9.9E)より)", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T02:29:28.897", "id": "13822", "last_activity_date": "2014-05-22T07:49:49.070", "last_edit_date": "2014-05-22T07:49:49.070", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13819", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 } ]

[ { "body": "It's a vocative particle, like the English vocative _\"O\"_ in the following\nexample:\n\n> _O Rain! Please change into snow!_\n\nIt sounds poetic or literary.\n\nIt's defined as 係助詞「よ」 in 集英社国語辞典:\n\n> 係助詞。 **相手への呼びかけ** 。「泣くな妹 **よ** 、妹 **よ** 泣くな」「風 **よ** 伝えよ、かの人に」「モズ **よ**\n> 、寒いと鳴くでねえ」\n\nI bolded the meaning, which is basically vocative.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T03:27:36.833", "id": "13824", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-22T03:45:12.483", "last_edit_date": "2013-12-22T03:45:12.483", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13823", "post_type": "answer", "score": 14 } ]

[ { "body": "いな is an archaic form of 'no' (sometimes written with kanji as 否). You can\nstill hear it in modern Japanese in a few phrases, like ～か否か ('whether or not\n～').\n\nいいな is, of course, いい+な, i.e. 'that's good'.", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T06:08:25.997", "id": "13827", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-22T06:08:25.997", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3639", "parent_id": "13826", "post_type": "answer", "score": 11 }, { "body": "Yes, like Sjiveru, I wasn't sure if you meant ”良いな” or \"否”. I believe that \"否”\nis used rather infrequently. Of course, as Sjiveru mentioned, ”良いな” means,\n\"that's good.\" But, of course, it embodies multiple meanings. It can also mean\n\"That's good for you. And I'm envious.\" This is often used by women in a sort\nof whiney (and I mean that with all due respect :) voice that ends with\nfalling intonation. It can also be used at the end of an informal meeting\n(like a high school club meeting) to close the meeting and confirm that all\nattendees agree on what's been decided in the meaning. It can also be used\nsarcastically.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T18:43:21.287", "id": "13830", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-22T18:43:21.287", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4324", "parent_id": "13826", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "I think you can try:\n\n * ～とうまくいかない (not get along or have problems with ～)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-24T18:28:05.447", "id": "13864", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-24T18:28:05.447", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "542", "parent_id": "13831", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]

[ { "body": "This のに means \"to\" or \"in order to\".\n\nThe の nominalizes the verb 築き上げる.\n\n～～に means \"to do ~~\" or \"for doing ~~\".\n\nYou are right; The whole middle part modifies 難しい.\n\n\"There has never been a more difficult time than the present time for building\none's own identity and sense of values.\"", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-23T00:16:29.767", "id": "13838", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-23T00:16:29.767", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13834", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]

[ { "body": "Only the second sentence:\n\n> 「世界 **で** 一番ゆうめいです。」\n\nis correct and it means:\n\n> \"(Something/Someone) is the best-known in the world.\"\n\n「世界 **の** 一番ゆうめいです。」 makes no sense.\n\nOne could also say 「世界一ゆうめいです。」.", "comment_count": 10, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-22T23:52:11.803", "id": "13837", "last_activity_date": "2019-10-16T15:22:06.320", "last_edit_date": "2019-10-16T15:22:06.320", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "13836", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]

[ { "body": "火事にならないようにする = avoid fire accident", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-23T08:12:21.113", "id": "13840", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-23T08:12:21.113", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4374", "parent_id": "13839", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "roughly, \"make buildings so that they will not catch on fire\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-23T08:58:20.637", "id": "13841", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-23T08:58:20.637", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4091", "parent_id": "13839", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "Xようにする is, more generally, \"make it so that X\"/\"do something to (try to) make\nX happen\" (or not happen, in this case).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2013-12-23T13:47:23.037", "id": "13842", "last_activity_date": "2013-12-23T13:47:23.037", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "571", "parent_id": "13839", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]