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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23811", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I can understand \"島\" being used in 硫黄島 (Iwo Jima/Iwo To, literally \"Sulphur\nisland\"), because it is an island, but why is it used in 福島市 (Fukushima city,\nliterally \"Good fortune island\") and 広島市 (Hiroshima city, literally \"Wide\nisland\")?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T13:32:13.373", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23810", "last_activity_date": "2019-10-28T02:17:13.570", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "91", "post_type": "question", "score": 17, "tags": [ "words", "etymology" ], "title": "Why is 島 used in the name of some cities?", "view_count": 1732 }
[ { "body": "In short, that is because \"island\" is not the only meaning of 「島/しま/シマ」.\n\nBesides \"island\", it can mean \"settlement\", \"arable land by a river\",\n\"isolated area\", \"territory\", \"turf\", \"sandbank\", etc. Even each section of a\nsupermarket or any sizable store is called 「シマ」. So, **it does not have to be\nsea water that surrounds a 「島/しま/シマ」**.\n\n「[福島]{ふくしま}」 was largely lakes and marshes at least as late as the 16th\ncentury according to [chimei-allguide](http://chimei-\nallguide.com/07/000.html). So it was a kind of an island surrounded by fresh\nwater.\n\n「[広島]{ひろしま}」 is said to have started from a delta according to the [same\nsource as above](http://chimei-allguide.com/34/000.html). So, like Fukushima,\nit was like an island in a river if not the ocean.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T14:45:18.397", "id": "23811", "last_activity_date": "2019-10-28T02:17:13.570", "last_edit_date": "2019-10-28T02:17:13.570", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23810", "post_type": "answer", "score": 29 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "I found the following sentences on a website teaching people the order of\nusing the 助動詞.\n\n> * 彼は人に笑われる。\n> * 彼を人に笑われさせる。\n> * 彼を人に笑われさせたい。\n> * 彼を人に笑われさせたくない。\n> * 彼を人に笑われさせたくなかった。\n> * 彼を人に笑われさせたくなかっただろう。\n>\n\nI am wondering about the meaning of the second last sentence 彼を人に笑われさせたくなかった.\n\nShould it be:\n\n> I never wanted him to be laughed at by people.\n\nWhich might imply I still think so.\n\nOr should it be:\n\n> I used not to want him to be laughed at by people.\n\nWhich might imply I no longer think so.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T15:30:54.217", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23812", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T06:24:47.303", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-17T06:24:47.303", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9634", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "meaning", "auxiliaries" ], "title": "Could a verb or adjective in the past tense 〜た refer to something no longer true?", "view_count": 141 }
[ { "body": "Without additional context, Japanese is ambiguous on the distinction between\npreterite and imperfect (which is what you're asking about, even if you don't\nknow the terminology).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T00:14:41.963", "id": "23818", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T00:14:41.963", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6580", "parent_id": "23812", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23816", "answer_count": 1, "body": "From a newspaper:\n\n> 16日の発表 **によると** 、ドイツ経済の今年の成長率は2.1%、来年が1.8%の見込み。\n\nI think that means:\n\n> According to the report of April 16th, it is expected that the growth of the\n> German economy will be 2.1% this year and it will be 1.8% next year.\n\nSo, I am interested in to what degree, if any, the meaning of 〜によると overlaps\nwith the meaning of 〜によれば.\n\n 1. 田中氏の発表 **によると** 、ドイツ経済の今年の成長率は2.1%、来年が1.8%の見込み。\n 2. 田中氏の発表 **によれば** 、ドイツ経済の今年の成長率は2.1%、来年が1.8%の見込み。\n\nHere is what I think the difference is:\n\n 1. According to Tanaka's presentation, ... \n 2. If Tanaka's presentation were to be correct, ...\n\nWhat I would like to know is:\n\n * Do 〜によると and 〜によれば have similar meanings at all?\n * Does Xによると create the feeling of `X` being (assumed) true?\n * Xによれば creates the feeling of subjunctive mood, ie. a feeling of possible doubt about `X`? It is not assumed to be true?\n\nDoes this sound natural and what a newspaper might write?\n\n> 田中氏の発表 **によれば** 、ドイツ経済の今年の成長率は **2.1%** 、来年が1.8%の見込み。でも、松原氏の発表 **によれば**\n> 、ドイツ経済の今年の成長率は **55.3%** の見込み。", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T15:38:26.553", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23813", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-16T20:17:31.760", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-16T16:19:58.730", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9509", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar", "word-choice" ], "title": "Do 〜によれば and 〜によると differ regarding the speaker's opinion of the following statement being true?", "view_count": 2687 }
[ { "body": "> Do 〜によると and 〜によれば have similar meanings at all?\n\nYes, very much so. In fact, in informal speech between two individuals, the\ntwo are largely, if not completely, interchangeable. We just do not hold each\nother responsible for word choices like these.\n\nIn the media, however, the distinction is made more often and more strictly\nthan in people's daily life for obvious reasons.\n\n> Does Xによると create the feeling of X being (assumed) true?\n\nYes, it does. It carries a little more of a resultative nuance than 「Xによれば」\ndoes. \"According to X, A would be B.\"\n\n> Xによれば creates the feeling of subjunctive mood, ie. a feeling of possible\n> doubt about X? It is not assumed to be true?\n\nYes, it carries a bit more of a hypothetical nuance than 「Xによると」 does.\n\"According to X, it seems possible that A might actually be B.\"\n\nIt seems to me that in the media, this distinction is made even more\n\"actively\" in writing than in speaking.\n\n> Does this sound natural and what a newspaper might write?\n\nLooks good except for the use of 「でも」, which is way too conversational to use\nin a newspaper. They would use 「しかし」.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T20:08:15.897", "id": "23816", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-16T20:17:31.760", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-16T20:17:31.760", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23813", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23864", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I can't completely understand the meaning of くれる in the following dialogues.\nIn the first example, if I'm understanding, it is something like this:\n\n> せっかく **ミストリアはエルドに** こう言ってくれているんだし\n\nSo the one who gains something is エルド and the subject is ミストリア.\n\nIn the second dialogue my loose translation is - \"I would be satisfied if by\nusing this barter shop, you would gain even more than you expect\".\n\nHowever I can't completely understand; does 主人公 gain even more profit\n(想定の上をいって), but thankful (くれた) for it will be 店長?\n\n1st dialogue\n\n> ミストリア「私が決めていいのならば・・・・・・」\n>\n> ミストリア「エルド、お前の好きに指示を出して見てはどうだ」\n>\n> エルド「えぇ!?」\n>\n> ラヴィリエ「へえ、それは面白そうね」\n>\n> エルド「ラヴィリエまで」\n>\n> ラヴィリエ「せっかくこう **言ってくれている** んだし、お言葉に甘えてみたら?いざという時にわたしたちでどうにかするから」\n\n2nd dialogue\n\n> 店長「ここを預かる者としては、お前のような存在にこそこの地を活用して欲しいと思っているのも事実」\n>\n> 店長「どこぞの勇者と呼ばれるような奴には、ここなど何の価値もない場所かもしれんしな」\n>\n> 店長「この交換所を利用することで想定の上を **いってくれた** なら本望だ」\n>\n> 主人公「頑張ります。」", "comment_count": 7, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-16T16:57:55.310", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23815", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T21:37:43.853", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3183", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "grammar", "giving-and-receiving" ], "title": "Subject and beneficiary of 〜くれる", "view_count": 373 }
[ { "body": "くれる, as an auxiliary verb, indicates that the main verb action is done for the\nspeaker or that the speaker is grateful.\n\n> せっかくミストリアが君(のため)にこう言ってくれているんだし\n\nI'd say the best explanation here is that the speaker ラヴィリエ takes the point of\nview of エルド, or that she(?) emphasizes with him. ミストリア is saying it for the\ngood of エルド.\n\n> この交換所を利用することで想定の上をいってくれたなら本望だ\n\n想定の上を行く does not have the 主人公 as the subject, but it will (hopefully) be\ncaused by him (or her).\n\nIt benefits the speaker (店長) in some way, tangible (physically) or intangible\n(emotionally).\n\nHe says he would be glad if the weaker 主人公 were to use the 交換所, and not some\nどこぞの勇者, who is already strong enough and couldn't make good use of it anyways.\nHe lets him use the shop, which he hopes will allow the 主人公 to claim a rank in\nthe tournament to be proud of.\n\nHe might get part of the price money if the 主人公 does well. But money probably\nisn't the only thing that interests him and he's also proud of his shop and\nglad he found somebody who can make good use of his shop and services. If the\n主人公 gets a good rank, the 店長 will be proud too. And it might get him some free\nPR.\n\nAt any rate it benefits the 店長 as he clearly says he wants it for some reason.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T17:53:49.227", "id": "23864", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T21:37:43.853", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-19T21:37:43.853", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "3275", "parent_id": "23815", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23820", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I've been having a hard time understanding how to construct a sentence. If I\nwere going to say something along the lines of: \"Learning Japanese on your own\nis difficult.\" Would this be grammatically correct: 自分で日本語を学ぶのは難しい。", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T00:01:19.880", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23817", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T01:40:22.647", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-17T01:40:22.647", "last_editor_user_id": "1797", "owner_user_id": "9868", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "grammar", "words" ], "title": "Trouble with sentence structure and particles", "view_count": 132 }
[ { "body": "「[自分]{じぶん}で[日本語]{にほんご}を[学]{まな}ぶのは[難]{むずか}しい。」 is nice and grammatical.\n\nYou could make it sound even more natural by changing 「自分」 to 「ひとり」 or\n「自分ひとり」.\n\nFurthermore, adult native speakers would use the word 「[独学]{どくがく}」 to mean \"to\nstudy by oneself\". If you were a beginner, though, you would not need to know\nthis word yet; **It can wait**. One would say:\n\n「独学で日本語を[勉強]{べんきょう}するのは難しい。」 or\n\n「日本語を独学するのは難しい。」", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T00:44:26.257", "id": "23820", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T00:44:26.257", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23817", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23823", "answer_count": 1, "body": "姉 is pronounced _ane_ , but お姉さん is pronounced _oneesan_. What happened to the\ninitial _a_?\n\nLikewise, 兄 is pronounced _ani_ , but お兄さん is pronounced _oniisan_.\n\nWhat is the rule governing the change in the pronunciation for the same kanji\nin these compound words? Or are these just exceptions one simply needs to\nremember?", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T06:05:29.613", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23821", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T10:54:02.570", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-17T10:54:02.570", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9871", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "words", "pronunciation", "readings" ], "title": "Why are 兄(あに) and 姉(あね) pronounced differently in お兄さん and お姉さん?", "view_count": 1117 }
[ { "body": "# There is no simple rule\n\nFirst of all, let us take a look whether variant pronunciations exist.\n\nThere are some instances of 兄様【あにさま】, 兄【あに】さん, 姉様【あねさま】, 姉【あね】さん found in\nseveral writings accessible on the free digital library 青空文庫, all from authors\naround 1900.\n\n> **おみの** (あたりを窺ひて。)子之介【ねのすけ】は厩にゐると御門で教へられたが、はて何處へ行つたことであらう。\n>\n> (奧より子之介出づ。)\n>\n> **おみの** おゝ、弟……。\n>\n> **子之介** 姉樣【あねさま】か。(なつかしげに寄る。)ようたづねて來てくだされた。\n>\n> ――岡本綺堂【おかもときどう】(1914) 『佐々木高綱【さゝきたかつな】』\n\nAlso, in the movie もののけ姫, _Kaya_ apparently calls _Ashitaka_ , who is not her\nbrother, あにさま, as an expression of her affection or reverence.\n\nIn fact, 姉様 is even listed in some dictionaries:\n\n> あね‐さま【姉様】\n>\n> ① 姉を敬っていう語。\n>\n> ② 若い女性を親しんでいう語。\n>\n> ③「姉様人形」の略。\n>\n> ――大辞林\n\nThe same dictionaries lists 姉【あね】さん and 兄さんas well, including sense ①, ie.\n`(姉・兄) 姉を親しみ敬っていう語`.\n\nNote that there are also some compound words where あに and あね do not get\nshortened:\n\n> 姉上【あねうえ】, 兄上, 姉貴【あねき】, 兄貴\n\nToday the versions without the initial mora are more common. Considering that\nthe longer versions did exist, it is simply a shortening of the compound\nwords, perhaps because おねえさん sounds smoother or is more easily pronounced, or\nperhaps to parallel お母【かあ】さん, お父【とう】さん, おば(あ)さん, おじ(い)さん.\n\nThere do exists some regular phonetic changes such as あう→おう, but they don't\nseem to apply here.\n\nTo put it in a perspective, shortening words in compounds is not a new\nphenomenon:\n\n * 風の音【と】\n * 淡海【あふみ】 (←淡【あは】海【うみ】)\n * かわら (←河原【かわはら】)\n * 盥【たらい】 (←手洗い)\n * はとり(←機織り【はたおり】)\n * 鍛冶【かぬち】 (←金打ち【かねうち】)\n * 八咫【やた】 (←八【や】-咫【あた】)\n\nAnd it's still being done:\n\n * アー写 (←アーティスト写真)\n * キー坊【ぼう】 (←キーア)\n * ゆーたん (eg. ←ゆきの)\n * テレくん (←テレフンケン)\n * パネェ (←半端ない)\n * ラノベ (←ライトノベル)\n * テレコ (←カセット **テ** ープ **レコ** ーダー)\n * ネカフェ (←インターネットカフェ)", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T10:30:14.200", "id": "23823", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-17T10:46:46.043", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3275", "parent_id": "23821", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23825", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Trying to make sense of this sentence:\n\n> 自分は死ぬ前に一目{ひとめ}思う女に逢{あ}いたいと云った。\n\n~~Daijirin lists 一目 as a noun. However, it doesn't connect with 思う according\nto normal rules (there is no particle).~~ To connect with 思う or 逢う, it must be\nan adverb. As it came before 思う, I thought the whole sentence to mean:\n\n> I explained that before I died, I'd like to see to see a woman **with whom I\n> fell in love at first sight.** // **who I knew only through a glance** etc\n\nHowever, the actual translation goes:\n\n> I explained that before I died, **if only for a moment, I wanted to see**\n> the woman I loved.\n\nClearly, this interprets 一目 as an adverb that applies to 逢う (tai).\n\nIn other words, I have 2 questions:\n\n1) is 一目 really an adverb?\n\n2) how does it work in this sentence, grammar-wise?\n\n3) if it's a set phrase I'm fine with no explanation other than \"it just\nworks\", I'd just like to make sure what's happening here", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T11:55:30.510", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23824", "last_activity_date": "2020-01-04T03:11:44.000", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-17T12:38:27.990", "last_editor_user_id": "9771", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "grammar", "adverbs", "nouns" ], "title": "How does 一目 work in this sentence?", "view_count": 621 }
[ { "body": "> 「[自分]{じぶん}は[死]{し}ぬ[前]{まえ}に[一目思]{ひとめおもう}う[女]{おんな}に[逢]{あ}いたいと[云]{い}った。」\n\nThe part that you are misreading is 「一目思う女に逢いたい」, which can be rephrased as\n「思う女に一目逢いたい」.\n\n「一目」 modifies「逢いたい」, and not 「思う」. In fact, it is impossible to \"一目思う a\nperson\" in the first place; It just makes no sense.\n\n「一目会いたい/逢いたい」 is a common set phrase meaning \"to want to see someone even for\none second\".\n\nThus, the translation \" **I explained that before I died, if only for a\nmoment, I wanted to see the woman I loved**.\" is a very accurate one.\n\n> is 一目 really an adverb?\n\nNo, it is a noun, strictly speaking, but it can function adverbially because\nit expresses a frequency. 「一目会いたい」 is as correct as\n「2[回見]{かいみ}た」、「3[度行]{どい}った」, etc.\n\n> how does it work in this sentence, grammar-wise?\n\nAs I said above, 「一目」 just modifies 「逢いたい」. The fact it had another verb (思う)\nin between seems to have confused you.\n\n> if it's a set phrase I'm fine with no explanation other than \"it just\n> works\", I'd just like to make sure what's happening here\n\nIt is a set phrase but it would take a lot of experience to spot it. I assume.\nYour careful approach to comprehension is pretty impressive.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T12:36:54.997", "id": "23825", "last_activity_date": "2020-01-04T03:11:44.000", "last_edit_date": "2020-01-04T03:11:44.000", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23824", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "The sentence is found in a monologue about a persons working habits,\nparticularly how they don't have time to sleep, and are constantly working at\ntheir 3 jobs.\n\nThe paragraph goes:\n\n> ほとんど寝てなかったね。朝帰ってきて、ちょっとベッド入って、また家庭教師行って。で、スーパー、その次の日はないようにしてたりです。\n\nThe part I don't understand is the\n\n> 次の日はないようにしてたりです。\n\nI understand ようにする is to do habitually, but the 日は is throwing me off. Could\nit mean \"working in a way so there there is no next day\"?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-17T23:33:23.790", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23828", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T01:37:16.967", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T00:10:03.550", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9766", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation", "words" ], "title": "Meaning of 次の日はないようにする", "view_count": 319 }
[ { "body": ">\n> 「ほとんど[寝]{ね}てなかったね。[朝帰]{あさかえ}ってきて、ちょっとベッド[入]{はい}って、また[家庭教師]{かていきょうし}[行]{い}って。で、スーパー、その[次]{つぎ}の[日]{ひ}はないようにしてたりです。」\n\nThis is written so informally that it almost sounds like it was casually\nspoken. The 「~~してたりです」 ending is sort of \"new\" and definitely \"in\".\n\n「次の日はないようにしてたりです」\n\n≒「次の日は[仕事]{しごと}がないようにしていたりします」\n\n≒ \"then, I would (occasionally) try not to do any work the next day\"\n\n\"Next day\" refers to the day after this person had to work all day long. This\nphrase suggests that s/he has a good amount of control as to which days (of\nthe week) s/he has to go to any of his/her three jobs.\n\n> I understand ようにする is to do habitually\n\nNot in this case. Here it means \"to do something so that ~~\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T00:14:48.103", "id": "23829", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T01:37:16.967", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T01:37:16.967", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23828", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23853", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I was wondering if there is a difference if you add that ん. Is the first one\ncorrect and the second one not?\n\n> 男じゃ **ないん** ですか?\n>\n> 男じゃ **ない** ですか?", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T03:59:12.293", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23830", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T12:30:53.743", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T19:11:30.090", "last_editor_user_id": "7387", "owner_user_id": "7387", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "questions", "phrase-requests" ], "title": "Difference between the questions 「男じゃないんですか?」 and 「男じゃないですか?」", "view_count": 475 }
[ { "body": "I think the difference is how long you assumed that the person is a man.\n「男じゃない **ん** ですか?」 implies that you've been assuming that the person is a man\nfor some time. On the other hand, 「男じゃないですか?」 implies that you have just\nrealized that the person is a man (though, it depends on the emphasis. You\nwould put the emphasis on the word 「ない」 in this case).", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T12:30:53.743", "id": "23853", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T12:30:53.743", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5212", "parent_id": "23830", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23834", "answer_count": 2, "body": "In the NHK program \"Meet and Speak\", the phrases they use have a mixture of\nhiragana and romaji. Not as in hiragana on one line, and romaji underneath,\nbut individual words being composed of the two, such as \"すmimaせn\".\n\n![Example image](https://i.stack.imgur.com/z10ly.png)\n\nWhat is the purpose of this mixture? Is is supposed to indicate pitch accent?\nAlternatively, is romaji used for hiragana that the program has not yet\ntaught?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T04:10:15.310", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23831", "last_activity_date": "2020-10-14T00:00:24.863", "last_edit_date": "2019-10-12T16:45:13.820", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "91", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "orthography", "kana", "rōmaji" ], "title": "Mixture of romaji and hiragana in NHK \"Meet and Speak\"", "view_count": 602 }
[ { "body": "Your alternate hunch is correct I expect, as I've seen it\n[elsewhere](http://www.tofugu.com/reviews/japanese-from-zero-1-progressive-\nedition/) (referred to as 'progressive', there, but I'm not sure if that's a\nuniversal term).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T07:06:34.667", "id": "23834", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T07:06:34.667", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3409", "parent_id": "23831", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 }, { "body": "Yes. Here's an example of only showing the kana being learnt.\n\nIn this screenshot, all the hiragana has presumably been learnt, and the \"k\"\nline of katakana is being learnt, hence \"カ\" appearing as katakana, and \"ta\"\nand \"na\" appearing as romaji.\n\n[![enter image description\nhere](https://i.stack.imgur.com/9exIh.png)](https://i.stack.imgur.com/9exIh.png)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-01-09T09:03:00.520", "id": "30317", "last_activity_date": "2016-01-09T09:03:00.520", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "91", "parent_id": "23831", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23833", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Here's the context: a loan shark has asked a yakuza to help him collect a\nloan. The yakuza came back with the money. The loan shark paid for the\nyakuza's trouble and then tried to give the yakuza a little extra but the\nyakuza was reluctant. Then the loan shark said:\n\n> 本職のきみが金もないんじゃサマんなんねぇだろ\n>\n> source: 龍が如く0 誓いの場所 第一話, can be seen [here on\n> youtube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fV-G1_O0A8o#t=4m45s) at around 4:45\n> min.\n\nI have no idea what サマ means. Could be slang or something since I can't find\nit in dictionaries. What is it and how does it work here?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T04:33:12.740", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23832", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T07:00:16.820", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T06:54:56.843", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "4295", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words", "slang" ], "title": "Meaning of サマんなんない?", "view_count": 295 }
[ { "body": "That is no slang. It should be in any dictionary.\n\n[大辞林第三版・デジタル大辞泉\n「さまになる」](https://kotobank.jp/word/%E6%A7%98%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AA%E3%82%8B-511905#E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.9E.97.20.E7.AC.AC.E4.B8.89.E7.89.88)\n\n「サマ **ん** なんねぇだろ」=\n\n「[様]{さま} **に** ならないだろう」← \"dictionary\" form\n\n「ん」 is the colloquial contraction for 「に」 here.\n\n「なんねえ」 is the mostly-Kanto colloquial way of saying 「ならない」.\n\n「様になる」 means \"to look good\", \"to look proper\", etc.\n\n> 「様になんねぇだろ」 = \"You wouldn't look good.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T06:42:33.677", "id": "23833", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T07:00:16.820", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T07:00:16.820", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23832", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23838", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I would like to clarify my understanding of the following sentence.\n\n> 気【き】が合【あ】わない人【ひと】といっしょに生活【せいかつ】するぐらいなら、このまま独身【どくしん】でいたい。\n\nI believe it means something along the lines of, \"if I am going to be living\nwith someone I don't get along with, I would rather be single.\"\n\nIn addition to the translation, are the following assertions accurate?\n\n 1. いたい is conjugated from いる (to exist) to mean \"to want to be\".\n 2. From the 〜たい suffix, the subject of the sentence can be inferred to be the speaker.\n 3. 〜と生活する means not just to physically live together (roommates), but more like to spend the rest of one's life with someone.\n\nAlso, could the sentence also have been expressed with 〜ほしい? I haven't ever\ncome across the たい form of いる before, so I suppose that confuses me somewhat.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T07:43:36.850", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23835", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T08:58:14.420", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T07:49:56.120", "last_editor_user_id": "9838", "owner_user_id": "9838", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "grammar", "meaning", "questions" ], "title": "The meaning of 「気が合わない人といっしょに生活するぐらいなら、このまま独身でいたい。」", "view_count": 368 }
[ { "body": "You have clearly got the gist of the sentence.\n\n> 1.いたい is conjugated from いる (to exist) to mean \"to want to be\".\n\nGrammatically, yes, but the actual meaning and nuance of 「~~でいたい」 is \"to stay\n(a certain way)\". In this case, \"to stay single\" rather than \"to be single\".\n\n> 2.From the 〜たい suffix, the subject of the sentence can be inferred to be the\n> speaker.\n\nDefinitely. I mentioned this in another thread a few days ago, but in\nJapanese, one cannot express another person's desire with 「たい」 alone. We use\n「~~たがっている」.\n\n> 3.〜と生活する means not just to physically live together (roommates), but more\n> like to spend the rest of one's life with someone.\n\nPrecisely. It means \"to be married to ~~\" most of the time.\n\n> Also, could the sentence also have beenxpressed with 〜ほしい? I haven't ever\n> come across the たい form of いる before, so I suppose that confuses me\n> somewhat.\n\nNo, that would be impossible because only nouns can precede 「ほしい」. You cannot\ncombine a verb with 「ほしい」.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T08:58:14.420", "id": "23838", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T08:58:14.420", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23835", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23844", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I'm trying to say, that if there is a natural disaster, the whole of Japan\nwill suffer. However, I'm finding it quite difficult to translate this into\nJapanese. Do either of these make sense?\n\n> 天災があれば、日本は苦しみを被ることになるだろう。\n\nor would it make sense to use ~困る in this context?\n\n> 天災があれば、日本は困ることになるだろう。\n\nThanks!", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T11:50:35.200", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23839", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T00:37:05.047", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9766", "post_type": "question", "score": 5, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation" ], "title": "How to say 'they will suffer'?", "view_count": 378 }
[ { "body": "> 1)「[天災]{てんさい}があれば、[日本]{にほん}は[苦]{くる}しみを[被]{こうむ}ることになるだろう。」\n>\n> 2)「天災があれば、日本は[困]{こま}ることになるだろう。」\n\nBoth sentences are grammatical and both make sense. The use of 「ことになる」 is very\ngood and natural. If I may speak on the native level, however, each has a\nlittle problem.\n\n1) One would need to use a phrase or at least an adjective to modify 「苦しみ」 to\ndescribe what sort of 「苦しみ」 it would be. Just saying 「苦しみを被る」 is too broad\nbecause everyone knows as common sense that people will suffer when there is a\nnatural disaster.\n\nYou could easily improve it by inserting 「大きな」、「[相当]{そうとう}な」、「とてつもない」, etc. in\nfront of 「苦しみ」.\n\n2) The use of 「困る」 is making the sentence sound pretty \"unadultlike\". You\ncould replace it with a phrase like 「[困難]{こんなん}な[状況]{じょうきょう}に[陥]{おちい}る」.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T00:37:05.047", "id": "23844", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T00:37:05.047", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23839", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "From the first day I started to learn Japanese, I saw people use _hiragana_ to\nhelp read _kanji_ , they are usually written on the top of those _kanji_ s.\n\nBut recently I also saw some Japanese use _katakana_ , to not only spell and\nmimic the sound of the foreign words, but also write them on the top of\n_kanji_ to aid in their reading, instead of _hiragana_.\n\nIs this also okay or common practice? Are there any differences, or does it\nnot matter?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T15:34:42.233", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23840", "last_activity_date": "2017-05-24T15:44:23.677", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-18T16:15:44.937", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9883", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "katakana", "handwriting", "furigana" ], "title": "For furigana, can katakana be used instead of hiragana?", "view_count": 3420 }
[ { "body": "What you're talking about is called furigana (振り仮名). It's normally written in\nhiragana script, except maybe in dictionaries sometimes when katakana is used\nto indicate the Chinese reading. Another case for using katakana as furigana\nis when you want to write a foreign pronunciation for a word written in kanji.\nThe [Wikipedia page](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Furigana) for furigana gives\nthe example of 一角獣 (one horn beast) with furigana \"ユニコーン\" (unicorn). But those\nare exceptions, in most cases, for difficult kanji, hiragana is used.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T16:15:43.060", "id": "23841", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T16:15:43.060", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7148", "parent_id": "23840", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "From my experience, furigana can be written in either but it is usually\nwritten in hiragana. There are a few exceptions that will almost always be\nwritten in katakana, but I've only seen one or two words so far that do that.\n\nIn other circumstance (not articles, books, papers, etc) katakana may be used.\nFor example, when filling out paperwork in Japan, I've been asked to write out\nthe furigana for my name and address. They requested that the furigana for my\nname be written in hiragana and my address in katakana (Depending on whether\nthe box said ふりがな or フリガナ). Another situation was in my textbooks or kanji\nbooks. When listing The different readings for a kanji, the on-reading is\nalways written in katakana and the kun-reading is always in hiragana.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-18T21:17:49.020", "id": "23843", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-18T21:17:49.020", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9635", "parent_id": "23840", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "Using two somewhat different uses of the te form as examples.\n\n> 彼女はいつになくはしゃいでよくしゃべった\n\nDoes the adverb \"unusually\" describe both \"being in high spirits\" and \"being\ntalkative\"?\n\n> 船はすこしの絶間{たえま}なく黒い煙{けぶり}を吐いて浪{なみ}を切って進んで行く。\n\nDoes the \"without pause\" adverb describe the way the ship belched black smoke,\nits movement, the whole \"movement while splitting waves and belching black\nsmoke\"?", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T01:17:14.327", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23845", "last_activity_date": "2016-03-24T02:15:35.557", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 8, "tags": [ "adverbs" ], "title": "How do adverbs work with multiple clauses in a sentence?", "view_count": 372 }
[ { "body": "It is ambiguous.\n\nHowever, in the first sentence you can imagine that SHE was very high and\ntalked a lot. It is ambiguous to know without context but I can see here\nlaughing and talking more compare to usual day.\n\nFor the second sentence, you know SHIP does go without pause; it doesn't stop\nand go. So, it is the black smoke the adverb is describing. I doesn't matter\nif the adverb also describe the ship itself. It does move without pause\nregardless.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-02-21T10:11:56.513", "id": "32333", "last_activity_date": "2016-02-21T10:11:56.513", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1607", "parent_id": "23845", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "Given the both quoted lines, I think it’s difficult to declare whether “いつになく”\nrefers to both “はしゃぐ” and “喋る,” or either of them, and “絶え間なく” refers to both\n“煙を吐く” and “進む,” or either of them. But logically speaking, I think it’s more\nappropriate to interpret “she was very talkative because she was unusually in\nhigh spirit at that time,” and “the ship makes its way, belching black smoke\nincessantly.”\n\nWell, she can be unusually in high spirit and unusually talkative, but isn’t\nit funny to say a ship that should make its way, unless lying at anchor,\nadvances “without pause.”", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-03-23T04:15:31.013", "id": "33072", "last_activity_date": "2016-03-24T02:15:35.557", "last_edit_date": "2016-03-24T02:15:35.557", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "12056", "parent_id": "23845", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23848", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I'm confused about how to use two words おかず and 食べ物, which all defined \"food\"\nas I search. What's the differences about them? Really thank you if you give\nme some examples.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T11:33:03.100", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23847", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T11:58:07.633", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9824", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words", "meaning", "food" ], "title": "What's the differences between おかず and 食べ物", "view_count": 132 }
[ { "body": "There is a **clear** difference between the two. (I feel for you because I\nhave seen 「おかず」 defined wrongly in smaller bilingual dictionaries.)\n\n「[食]{た}べ[物]{もの}」 refers to any and all kinds of food; It just includes\n**_everything people eat_**. Anything edible is called 「食べ物」.\n\n「おかず」 is different. It is what you eat **_with_** rice (or bread) in a meal.\nIt refers to the entree and all of the side dishes. Rice, bread, snacks and\ndesserts are **_not_** called 「おかず」 among Japanese-speakers.\n\nThis should give you a good idea of what おかず is:\n\n[http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=&p=%E3%81%8A%E3%81%8B%E3%81%9A](http://image.search.yahoo.co.jp/search?ei=UTF-8&fr=&p=%E3%81%8A%E3%81%8B%E3%81%9A)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T11:53:51.950", "id": "23848", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T11:57:18.113", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-19T11:57:18.113", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23847", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "I think おかず refers to side dishes accompanied with rice, while 食べ物 refers to\n'food' in general.\n\nWhen Japanese or Chinese eat meals at home, there's usually a bowl of rice per\nperson and several dishes (e.g. fish, meat, vegetable) in the middle. Those\ndishes are called おかず.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T11:58:07.633", "id": "23849", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T11:58:07.633", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7802", "parent_id": "23847", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23854", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I'm trying to understand the lyrics of [the song\n細氷【さいひょう】](http://www.project-imas.com/wiki/Saihyou). Here's the part of the\nlyrics I don't understand:\n\n> さって行くあなたの背中に\n>\n> 「さよなら」\n\nI see it as:\n\n> \"your leaving figure (back)\" + \"ni\" + \"farewell\".\n\nI can't understand where this _ni_ points to. I mean, who says _sayounara_ to\nwhom? I understand it can indicate both the source of passive verb and\ndestination for active. Yet the verb seems omitted here. Or is it really\nomitted?\n\nAlso, does it mean\n\n 1. \"You leave and say farewell to me.\"; or\n 2. \"You leave and I say farewell to you.\"\n\nAccording to the songs flow I'd go with the first option but the second one\nseems correct according to my maybe lacking grammatical knowledge.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T12:05:29.437", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23850", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T13:11:42.083", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-19T13:11:42.083", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9890", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "grammar", "meaning", "particle-に" ], "title": "Understanding particle-ni when there is no verb", "view_count": 247 }
[ { "body": "A verb is surely omitted here. What verb is it, then?\n\nThink about what you could do with a 「さよなら」 in quotation marks. You could\neither _**say**_ it or _**hear it said**_ to someone and that is about all you\ncould do with a 「さよなら」, isn't it?\n\n(Of course, you could **write** it but writing 「さよなら」 on someone's back would\nnot be too romantic, would it?)\n\nSo, the omitted verb must be a form of 「[言]{い}う」 together with a quotative\nparticle 「と」.\n\nNormally, you say 「さよなら」 to someone face-to-face, but this is a song so, the\nauthor wants to say \"saying 「さよなら」 to your back\". The guy/girl (あなた)is already\nleaving. All you (the speaker) can see is his/her back now.\n\n> さって[行]{い}くあなたの[背中]{せなか}に 「さよなら」≒\n>\n> さって行くあなたの背中に 「さよなら」と言う/言った\n\nThe 「に」 is needed because you are saying good-bye \" _ **to**_ \" a person's\nback.\n\n「さって行くあなた」= \"you, who is leaving\"\n\n> Is it (1)\"You leave and say farewell to me\" or (2)\"You leave and i say\n> farewell to you\"?\n\n(2), of course.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T12:39:19.297", "id": "23854", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T12:39:19.297", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23850", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23852", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Staying at a ryokan recently, I received some postcards with the following\nlittle poem:\n\n![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/gnAxF.jpg)\n\nWhat are the characters that I have highlighted in red? They look a bit like\n[侍]{さむらい}, but based on the context clearly aren't.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T12:24:58.737", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23851", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T12:24:58.737", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1790", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "kanji", "abbreviations" ], "title": "What is this strange kanji that looks a bit like 侍, but isn't?", "view_count": 266 }
[ { "body": "Turns out this character is a fairly common\n_[ryakuji](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryakuji)_ (abbreviated character) of\nthe common honorific [御]{ご} _go-_ , as in [御飯]{ごはん} _gohan_ , so the full word\nis [御夢想]{ごむそう} _go-musou_ , the name of [the hot spring where the ryokan was\nlocated](http://musouen.co.jp/about/index.html). Another example\n[here](http://nihongodekiru.blog62.fc2.com/blog-date-201003-2.html).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T12:24:58.737", "id": "23852", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T12:24:58.737", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1790", "parent_id": "23851", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23865", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Hello I was wondering if I could use a 自動詞 with the 受身形 for example:\n\n> ここから、月が見える : from here, the moon is visible (I can see the moon)\n>\n> ここから、月が見えられる : from here, the moon is visible\n\nI don't understand much the difference between except that in the second one,\nI feel like it is supposed that there is someone looking at the sky, and the\nmoon is visible by him I think...\n\nI know it could also mean \"the moon can be visible\" but my question is about\nthe passive voice\n\nAnother example:\n\n> 猿が落ちる\n>\n> 猿が落ちられる\n\nThe second sentence doesn't make much sense to me, I would like to know if I'm\nwrong and how you understand these sentences, thanks!", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T14:24:58.767", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23856", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T18:11:38.747", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9539", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "passive-voice" ], "title": "Is it possible to use the 受身形 on a 自動詞", "view_count": 223 }
[ { "body": "Yes, it is very possible to use the passive with an intransitive verb in\nJapanese. It just has a different meaning than what you normally think of when\nyou use passive.\n\nJapanese actually has two types of passives. The first is the one you already\nknow- an action is done to the subject by the agent. The subject is marked\nwith は/が and the agent is marked with に. This can only be used with transitive\nverbs.\n\n> 彼は車に押し倒された。 He was knocked over by a car.\n\nThe second one is often called a \"suffering passive\". It means something\nhappened, and inflicted misfortune onto someone else. Unlike the first\npassive, this one doesn't have a direct English equivalent. The subject is the\none who \"suffers\" and is marked with は/が, the agent is marked with に, and the\ndirect object (if the verb is transitive) is marked with を.\n\n> 私は蛇に脚をかまれた。A snake bit me in the leg. (Transitive)\n>\n> 私は妻に死なれた。My wife died. (Intransitive)\n\n(Native speakers would probably omit the 私は, but I added it for completeness.)\n\nIn these examples, the subject/topic is suffering from the action. You should\nalso note that the it is almost always animate. To have an inanimate object\nsuffer wouldn't make much sense.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T18:11:38.747", "id": "23865", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T18:11:38.747", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9749", "parent_id": "23856", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23873", "answer_count": 1, "body": "The dictionary definition of\n[おやつ](http://jisho.org/search/%E3%81%8A%E3%82%84%E3%81%A4) is _an afternoon\nsnack_ . However, that is not what I remember about its usage.\n\n * White-collar workers never do \"おやつ\"? They _might_ use it as euphemism for briefly standing and stretching in mid-afternoon?\n * Do blue-collar workers do a real \"おやつ\" and rest / eat in mid-afternoon?\n * Etymologically speaking, a farmer's お弁当 was his おやつ in 大和 Japan?\n\nThe recent thread about \"おかず\" made me remember \"おやつ\". But, my memory is a\nlittle fuzzy.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T14:34:35.890", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23857", "last_activity_date": "2019-06-02T14:21:15.217", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9509", "post_type": "question", "score": 5, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "modern meaning of \"おやつ\"?", "view_count": 411 }
[ { "body": "One thing I would need to mention is that the significance of 「おやつ」 as a\ncustom has decreased dramatically since Edo period. Japan had largely been a\n**_two-meal-a-day_** nation until around the middle of Edo. There was no such\nthing as lunch for many people.\n\nNaturally, you would become hungry by around 2 o'clock in the afternoon, which\nwas called 「やつ/やつどき」 by our old system of telling time. So, you would take a\nbreak from work for a snack and tea. It was named 「おやつ」 and it was more of a\nnecessity than leisure back then. It was, in a way, more like a tiny meal.\n\nIn our time, there is lunch and therefore 「おやつ」 is much more optional among\nmany. (Or at least we could wait till 3 o'clock instead of 2 like we used to,\nthanks to lunch.)\n\n> * White-collar workers never do \"おやつ\"? They might use it as euphemism for\n> briefly standing and stretching in mid-afternoon?\n>\n\nMany do, but they do not do it together at a designated time. White-collar\nworkers often keep snacks in their desk drawers and nibble on them at\ndifferent times of the day.\n\n> * Do blue-collar workers do a real \"おやつ\" and rest / eat in mid-afternoon?\n>\n\nYes, they tend to do so together and at a designated time (usually 3:00 pm),\nwhich is the huge difference between the two collar colors.\n\n> * Etymologically speaking, a farmer's お弁当 was his おやつ in 大和 Japan?\n>\n\nI do not know the real answer to this, but I suppose one could say that.\nTraditionally, farmers have had more food available to them than other types\nof workers. If the content of their おやつ had been more meal-like than that of\nothers, that would not surprise one.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T01:57:20.753", "id": "23873", "last_activity_date": "2019-06-02T14:21:15.217", "last_edit_date": "2019-06-02T14:21:15.217", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23857", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23863", "answer_count": 3, "body": "Consider the following two sentences:\n\n> うちへ **帰って来ます** 。\n>\n> うちへ **帰ります** 。\n\nWhat's the difference between these two sentences? How does the bolded part\naffect the meaning?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T15:01:10.587", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23858", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T20:35:07.903", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-19T15:22:36.817", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9824", "post_type": "question", "score": 10, "tags": [ "word-choice", "meaning", "verbs", "subsidiary-verbs" ], "title": "Difference between 帰って来る and 帰る", "view_count": 6171 }
[ { "body": "うちへ帰ります。 \"( I ) will return home\"\n\nうちへ帰って来ます。 \"( I ) will go home and come (back)\"\n\nTE form verb + verb == do X and Y\n\nSubject assumed to be speaker", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T17:08:22.947", "id": "23862", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T17:08:22.947", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6932", "parent_id": "23858", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "In this context, 帰る can mean either \"to come home\" or \"to go home\".\nEssentially, it means \"to return home\", which can imply either direction\n(coming or going). So, we use the ~てくる construction (movement toward the\nspeaker) to make it clear that the person is _coming_ home.\n\nWe can also use the ~ていく construction (movement away from the speaker), but I\nthink it's far less common with 帰る.\n\nBasically:\n\n> (Xは)うちへ帰ってきます。 \n> = X will come home.\n\n> (Xは)うちへ帰っていきます。 \n> = X will go home.\n\n> (Xは)うちへ帰ります。 \n> = X will return home.\n\n* * *\n\nSo, if you were out and about, you could say something like,\n\n> 6時に(うちへ)帰ります。 \n> = I'll go home at 6.\n\nOr, someone might say to you,\n\n> 6時に(うちへ)帰っていきますか。 \n> = Are you going home at 6?\n\nBut, if you were already at home,\n\n> 6時に(うちへ)帰ってきました。 \n> = I came home at 6.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T17:29:13.660", "id": "23863", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T17:29:13.660", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3035", "parent_id": "23858", "post_type": "answer", "score": 12 }, { "body": "I tried to explain this as best as I could, and how I generally think of this\nconstruction.\n\n行く is used when you say someone is 'going somewhere' and 来る is used when you\nsay someone is 'coming'. The verb you use is dependent on YOUR POSITION.\n\nIf I was in America right now and I wanted to say \"my friend is going to go to\nJapan\", I would translate it as 友達は日本に行きます。This is because she is \"going away\"\nrelative to my position.\n\nOn the other hand, if I were in Japan and my friend, who lives in America, was\ncoming to Japan, I would translate it as 友達は日本に来ます。He is \"coming to me\".\n\nYou can think of 〜ていく and 〜てくる in the same way.\n\n* * *\n\nLet's assume A-さん is the subject of your sentence.\n\nA-さんはうちへ帰ります。 A-san will return home. (Awkward translation but necessary to\nhighlight the difference)\n\nA-さんはうちへ帰ってきます。 A-san is going to **come** home.\n\nUsing the logic explained with 行く and 来る, you are already at the destination\n(that is, A-san's home) and A-san is returning home, which is also towards\nyou.\n\nUsing 〜ていく with this sentence, 「A-さんはうちへ帰っていきます」, you are assuming the\nposition of someone not at A-san's destination, so when A-san is 'returning\nhome', he is not 'coming to you'. He is 'going away from you' and so the\nsentence would be interpreted as \"A-san is going to **go** home\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T20:29:32.647", "id": "23866", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-19T20:35:07.903", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-19T20:35:07.903", "last_editor_user_id": "7802", "owner_user_id": "7802", "parent_id": "23858", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23880", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I read [in that thread](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/23824) :\n\n> 「自分{じぶん}は死{し}ぬ前{まえ}に一目{ひとめ}思{おも}う女{おんな}に逢{あ}いたいと云{い}った。」\n>\n> _in_ [夢十夜](http://www.aozora.gr.jp/cards/000148/files/799_14972.html), 第五夜 :\n>\n> \"I explained that before I died, if only for a moment, I wanted to see the\n> woman I loved.\"\n\nMy question is about「一目{ひとめ}」 : it's a noun functioning adverbially \"because\nit expresses a frequency\" [as l'électeur\nexplained](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/23824).\n\nBut what about its **place** ? Since 「一目」 just modifies 「逢いたい」 and since\n「一目会いたい」 is a common set phrase, I assume the normal way to write down the\nsentence would be :\n\n> 「自分は死ぬ前に思う女に一目逢いたいと云った。」\n\nIs there any semantical difference between Sōseki Natsume's version and the\none I invented ? Is it something related to the rhythm of the sentence ?", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T16:15:34.300", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23859", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T15:46:57.823", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.260", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "4550", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "grammar", "syntax", "adverbs" ], "title": "sense of a displaced \"adverb\" in a sentence written by Sōseki Natsume", "view_count": 208 }
[ { "body": "> 自分は死ぬ前に一目思う女に逢いたいと云った。 \n> 自分は死ぬ前に思う女に一目逢いたいと云った。\n\nThere is no difference in meaning and both are just as fine, since the two\nwords 死ぬ前に and 一目 are just as strongly related as 一目 and 逢いたい, though the\nformer sounds more dramatic and the latter sounds a little too plain to me. I\nthink 一目 is more emphasized when placed right after 死ぬ前に.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T08:06:35.897", "id": "23880", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T08:06:35.897", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23859", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23879", "answer_count": 2, "body": "> もし生まれ変わっても **見たい映画** は あなたにありますか?\n\nWhen I saw the the above sentence, I started to wonder. Is it an over\nsimplification to say that たい can only be used for your own desires? However\nthe sentence above might be explained, it seems to me it is clearly not about\nthe speaker's own wish, but about which movie(s) the reader would want to\nwatch.\n\nUnder what circumstances or conditions is it permissible to use たい with a\ndesire other than your own? Can たがる be used with one's own desire?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T16:57:59.407", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23860", "last_activity_date": "2018-11-28T04:05:42.597", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-30T15:15:46.170", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "3275", "post_type": "question", "score": 6, "tags": [ "word-choice", "auxiliaries" ], "title": "Can たい and たがる be used for a 1st/2nd/3rd person's desire?", "view_count": 2423 }
[ { "body": "# Yes, たい can be used for another's, and たがる for your own desires\n\n> * あなたは行きたくて、佐藤さんは行きたくないんですね。\n> * 私がフランスに行きたがるのは、理由があります。\n>\n\nPart of this are my own thoughts, part of this is taken from [this\npaper](https://teapot.lib.ocha.ac.jp/?active_action=repository_view_main_item_detail&item_id=39106&item_no=1&page_id=64&block_id=115):\n中里 理子, 1992, `従属節における「たい」と「たがる」`.\n\n# Overview\n\nOften it is said that たい can be used to talk about your own desires only.\nWhile this is not wrong, it is not completely accurate either and needs some\nelaboration and clarification.\n\nたい expresses a desire. た-がる literally expresses giving off the impression of\nhaving a desire. たい can be used if one does not need to assume that they know\nabout a specific desire of a specific person, and たがる can be used if one is\nmaking assumptions on another person's wishes.\n\nFurthermore, たい can sometimes be used for another person's desire when no\nstrong statement is made that that person desires that object or action\nindeed; for example when asking a question.\n\nOr to put it another way, it depends on the point of view. たい tends to be\nabout a direct report of somebody's desires, たがる tends to view it from an\nobjective or outside point of view.\n\n# たい, situations that do not involve making assumptions about a person's\ndesires:\n\n * stating your own desires:\n\n「アンパン、食べたいよ」「聞きたいことがある」\n\n * asking another person about their desires\n\n「アンパン、食べたいの?」「何が言いたいんですか?」\n\n * you want somebody to have that desire\n\n「アンパン最高!世界の皆にこの絶妙な味を解ってもらいたい!キライだなんていう人、絶対にない筈!あるとしたら……お仕置きが…… ね〜、花子、君も食べたい\n食べたいよね?!」\n\n * reported speech\n\n「で、アンパン食べたいってどーゆーこと?」「奥さんが探洲さんのことを守りたいとおっしゃるのはよく判ります」「あなたが(田中さんが)行きたいのは、聞いています/知っています」\n\n * it turned to be a fact that another person did desire it\n\n「アンパン食べたかったのは本当みたい」「あなたは行きたかったけれども、佐藤さんは行きたくなかったんですね」\n\n * it is already expressed by other words that one does not know about the person's true wishes\n\n「アンパンしか食べたくないようだか…」「友人が離婚したけど復縁したいらしい」「姉は海外留学したいそうです」「真紅はお嬢様呼ばわりされたくないようです」「もしあなたも出会いたいって気持ちが強いなら使ってみたら?」\n\n * person desiring something not mentioned explicitly\n\n「アンパン食べたい人、ある?」「使いたい人はいつでも自由にお使いください」(=you decide yourself if you are such a\nperson who wants to use it)「働きたい人を募集しています」(=you decide yourself if you are\nsuch a person who wants to work)\n\n * object desired not mentioned explicitly\n\n「食べたいものある?アンパンとかあんぱんとか餡パンとか?」「見たいところがあったら、いつでもご案内しますよ」(=you decide yourself\nwhat or which place that is, or if there is such a\nplace)「あなたの読みたい本を貸してあげます」(=you tell me which book you desire)\n\nRegarding the last two situations, note that it can sound unnatural if both\nthe object desired and the person desiring it are explicit:\n\n> ? あなたの読みたい『日本沈没』を貸してあげます。\n>\n> ○ あなたが読みたいと言っていた『日本沈没』を貸してあげます。\n>\n> ○ あなたの読みたがっていた『日本沈没』を貸してあげます。\n\n# たがる, situations that involve making assumptions about a person's desires:\n\n * stating your impression of another person's desires\n\n「あいつ、アンパン食べたがりそうな顔してる」「兄が結婚したがっています」\n\n * assuming another person's point of view who makes assumptions about me\n\n「妾がアンパンを食べたがっているのが一目瞭然。何ゆえ買ってくれんのじゃ?」「私が行きたがれば、田中さんはきっと行かせてくれるだろう」\n\n * asking someone about a third party's desires\n\n「お姉さん以外、そんなにアンパンを食べたがる人、見たことある?」「子供はなんで荒らしたがるんですか?」「意思決定者はリスクを避けたがっているのでしょうか?」\n\n * analyzing or reflection about yourself or your mental condition\n\n「いろんなことができなくなってしまって、怠けてる自分やできない自分、逃げたがっている自分を責めていました」「ただ、最近の自分の生き方を見ていると、まるで『死にたがっている』ように見えることがある。」\n\n# Comparing sentences with たい and たがる\n\nFinally, consider some situations where たい and たがる are used.\n\nThis sentence contains both たい and たがる in a similar sub clause.\n\n> 皆さん、『船に乗りたい人』はいませんか。他のクラスで『乗りたがっている人』を知っていたら、先生に教えてください。\n\nThe former one, たい, is explained by `asking another person about their\ndesires` and `person desiring something not mentioned explicitly`. The latter\none, たがる, is explained by `asking someone about a third party's desires` (the\npupil of the class about the desires of another class).\n\nThe pupils addressed know about their own desires, thus the speaker may ask\nthem who it is that possesses such a desire. However, the pupils addressed do\nnot know about the desires of the pupils of another class, thus the speaker\nmay only ask them if they know somebody who _appears_ to possess such a\ndesire.\n\n* * *\n\nIn the following sentence, both たい and たがる can be used.\n\n> 私がずっと行きたがっていた遊園地へやっと連れていってくれた。\n>\n> 私がずっと行きたかった遊園地へやっと連れていってくれた。\n\nThe former sentence is about the point of view of the person who noticed that\nthe speaker wanted to visit the amusement park and took him there. The\nspeaker's desire has affected the surrounding.\n\nThe latter sentence, on the other hand, focuses on the speaker's desire. The\nspeaker always wanted to visit the amusement park, and finally, somebody took\nor agreed to take him there.\n\n* * *\n\nHere both are possible too.\n\n> あなたが(田中さんが)行きたければ、行かせてあげますよ」\n>\n> あなたが(田中さんが)行きたがれば、行かせてあげますよ」\n\nIn the former sentence, the speaker directly reacts to _Tanaka_ 's wish --\n_Tanaka_ has already made it clear that he wants to go. It could also be\nrephrased as 行きたいというならば, `if you say you want to go`.\n\nIn the latter sentence, _Tanaka_ might as well not have said it directly. That\nhe wants is based upon the observation of the speaker, who thus takes an\nobservational point of view and makes an assumption about _Tanaka_ 's wishes.\n\n* * *\n\nIn the following sentence, both たい and たがる can be used.\n\n> 山田君は北海道に行きたい人を知っている。\n>\n> 山田君は北海道に行きたがっている人を知っている。\n\nIn the latter sentence, _Yamada_ knows somebody of whom he (or the speaker)\nthinks that he wants to go to _Hokkaidō_. It puts more emphasis on the\nobservational point of view, it appears that that person wants to go.\n\nIn the former sentence, there is no such emphasis, _Yamada_ simply knows\nsomebody who wants to go to _Hokkaidō_. The speaker does not pretend to know\nanything about that 3rd person's desires, it is not the speaker who made that\njudgement and merely reports that _Yamada_ is aware of such as person who\nmight have said so.\n\n# Summary\n\n * たい=your own wishes\n * たがる=somebody else's wishes\n\nThis is definitely an over simplification, but it might be a start when one\nbegins to learn Japanese. The usage of たい vs. たがる is rather complex and unless\nyou are a linguist there is no need to know about all the gory details, but I\nbelieve it is helpful to think about this once and keep in mind it isn't as\nsimple as the rule above.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T16:57:59.407", "id": "23861", "last_activity_date": "2018-11-28T04:05:42.597", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3275", "parent_id": "23860", "post_type": "answer", "score": 21 }, { "body": "I'd recommend a beginner not to use たがる at all (but ~しようとする or ~したいと思う\ninstead) because it tends to convey a contemptuous nuance and depending on\ncases, the meaning is slightly different from \"to want\", which highly matches\n~したいと思っている.\n\nExpressing other person's inner thought **in indicative** is avoided, in other\nwords, it's ok if it's not indicative.\n\nFor examples, 誰か行きたい人 and あなたが行きたければ are interrogative and conditional\nrespectively, hence, no problem in the first place. のだ forms are another way\nto dodge the restriction.\n\nOn the other hand, there are some exceptions.\n\n 1. In narrative, the auther can express a character's feel directly.\n 2. In commentary, \"it's desirable for X to do something\" is rephrased as \"Xは◯◯したい(ですね)\".\n 3. When you really sympathized with someone, you could express it directly. However, this usage is almost limited to うれしい and つらい.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T07:16:38.613", "id": "23879", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T07:16:38.613", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4092", "parent_id": "23860", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23868", "answer_count": 1, "body": "In other words, are there kanji, which can **only** be used as a part of a\nkanji compound and/or with okurigana?\n\nFor example:\n\n 1. **見 - standalone kanji** , a word which means \"view\", \"outlook\"\n 2. 見物 - kanji compound: \"sightseeing\", \"watching\", etc.\n 3. 見る - kanji + okurigana: \"to see\", \"to look\", etc.\n\nIs there a kanji where (1) is not an option?\n\nIf there are such kanji, do they have some special name?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T20:30:25.473", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23867", "last_activity_date": "2017-03-19T12:52:20.850", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9222", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "words", "kanji", "compounds", "okurigana" ], "title": "Are there kanji which are NOT words by themselves (written standalone)?", "view_count": 1478 }
[ { "body": "Yes there are, but it is a grey area if you include rare, uncommon, creative\nor archaic readings.\n\nPeople can be creative especially when it comes to _kun_ -readings. Even for a\n_kanji_ usually used only in compounds you might find a stand-alone usage if\nyou're looking hard enough. Some of these need _okurigana_ , eg. 隷う【したがう】 or\n悠か【はるか】, but some don't, eg. 英【はやぶさ】.\n\nAdditionally, there are some _on_ readings that are rarely used as a word, eg.\n感 or 奏 or 了, although it could be argued sometimes only as part of some (more\nor less) fixed expressions. The same applies to 見 as well, 見【けん】 is not a\ncommon \"word\", but you can find it in expressions such as:\n\n> それは皮相【ひそう】の見【けん】である\n>\n> That's a rather superficial view of things.\n\nA Japanese name could be [非単漢字](http://kindaigo.org/youshi00.html), but that's\nmore like a description, _and not exactly common_.\n\nIf you're looking for a technical term, it is called `word`. I know it sounds\nsimple, but effectively you are asking whether there is a _kanji_ that cannot\nbe used as a word by itself without further glyphs ( _kanji_ or _kana_ ).\n\n> A word is a unit which is a constituent at the phrase level and above. It is\n> sometimes identifiable according to such criteria as\n>\n> * being the minimal possible unit in a reply\n> * having features such as\n> * a regular stress pattern, and\n> * phonological changes conditioned by or blocked at word boundaries\n> * being the largest unit resistant to insertion of new constituents within\n> its boundaries, or\n> * being the smallest constituent that can be moved within a sentence\n> without making the sentence ungrammatical.\n>\n\n>\n> A word is sometimes placed, in a hierarchy of grammatical constituents,\n> above the morpheme level and below the phrase level. source: [SIL\n> Linguistics](http://www-01.sil.org/linguistics/GlossaryOfLinguisticTerms/WhatIsAWord.htm)\n\n見【けん】 is not a word as in that you can just say or answer 見【けん】です (\"it is a\nview\") and expect people to understand.\n\nSome _kanji_ I can think of, mostly used only in one compound, with no _kun_\n-readings by themselves:\n\n> 蝙蝠 (bat, the animal), 蟷螂 (mantis), 髑髏 (skull), 躊躇 (hesitate)\n\nBut rarely: 蝠【まむし】, 躇む【ふむ】, 躊う【ためらう】\n\nSome more _kanji_ if we don't count _okurigana_ :\n\n> 乖 (eg. 乖離), 擁 (eg. 抱擁), 倣 (eg. 模倣), 避 (eg. 回避), 喚 (eg. 叫喚)", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-19T23:36:02.363", "id": "23868", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T13:42:13.133", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-20T13:42:13.133", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "3275", "parent_id": "23867", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 3, "body": "I've been trying to grasp how ん sounds when placed after a vowel. Apparently\nthe vowel becomes nasalized (and extended?) but does it get rid of the `n`\nsound completely then?\n\nIf so wouldn't ほん have its `n` sound taken off as well? But from what\nrecordings I've been listening to I swear the ん is making a `n` sound.", "comment_count": 8, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T00:37:28.107", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23869", "last_activity_date": "2020-11-02T13:01:10.110", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-22T07:21:54.717", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "10247", "post_type": "question", "score": 5, "tags": [ "pronunciation" ], "title": "Pronunciation of the Japanese ん and nasalized vowels", "view_count": 3461 }
[ { "body": "EDITED to add pronunciation clarification.\n\nThe ん sounds makes a heavy nn sound, so ほん would definitely sound like honn.\nAny time a ん appears the nn sound is emphasised.\n\nFor example.\n\n * お盆{おぼん} - obo **NN** - Japanese Buddhist custom to honour the spirits of one's ancestors\n * そんなに - so **N** nani - so much, like that, so, etc.\n * どんな - do **N** na - what, what kind of etc.\n * 変{へん} - hen - Strange, odd, weird \n * not as strongly pronounced \"n\", pronounced similar to the female chicken.\n * うん - u **NN** - yes\n * うんん - u **NNNN** - no *The difference here can be ambiguous when spoken by some people but is generally pronounced by an elongated nn sound somewhat similar to a long `hmmm` sound in English.\n\n**EDIT**\n\nん is pronounced by sticking your tongue on the bridge between your teeth and\nthe roof of your mouth similar to the way you pronounce the English `n`.\n\nIt doesn't usually get an ng sound (of which is usually transcribed to a ngu\nsound - something which ん would not produce without a following ぐ). Although I\nhave described it in some instances as a double n (as one would normally input\nit into a computer) it makes a sound similar to two English n sounds together.\n\nAs you asked in your question, an ん after a vowel does not remove the n\n\"noise\" and the recordings you are listening to, probably are making a\npronounced \"nn\" sound.", "comment_count": 10, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T01:20:43.007", "id": "23872", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T07:28:18.690", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-20T07:28:18.690", "last_editor_user_id": "9241", "owner_user_id": "9241", "parent_id": "23869", "post_type": "answer", "score": -4 }, { "body": "It depends on what comes after the ん, as well as the speaker, their gender,\nand the regional dialect.\n\nIn many cases it is like a straight English \"n\" sound, such as in そんな, パンダ,\nパンですよ, etc. (As well as \"ng\" before が, ぎ, ぐ, げ, or ご, just as in English: シンガー\nfor instance)\n\nIn the case of ん ending a sentence or utterance, it will often take on the so-\ncalled nasalized \"n\" sound where your tongue reaches toward the spot behind\nyour upper teeth but doesn't make firm contact (especially in Tokyo dialect)\nor sometimes just the English \"n\" sound (and some female speakers will even\ngive it an \"m\"-like sound).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-12-18T19:40:29.127", "id": "41783", "last_activity_date": "2016-12-18T19:40:29.127", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "19118", "parent_id": "23869", "post_type": "answer", "score": -1 }, { "body": "The situation you describe (nasalization + lengthening + ん deletion, [Ṽː])\nonly really happens when ん is followed by another vowel, to distinguish it\nfrom [V.nV] situations. Otherwise, your intuition/ears are correct, and ん does\nnot disappear.\n\nSome examples:\n\n範囲(はんい) → /hɑ̃ːi/\n\nハニー → /ha.niː/\n\n雰囲気(ふんいき) → /fũːiki/\n\n国(くに)→ /ku.ni/\n\n本意(ほんい)→ /hõːi/\n\n本人(ほんにん)→ /hon.nin/", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2017-02-03T06:28:19.363", "id": "43158", "last_activity_date": "2017-02-03T06:28:19.363", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4229", "parent_id": "23869", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23871", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I'm having trouble figuring out what characters these are:\n\n![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/nJcgk.png)\n\nI guess the two on the right are \"まだ\", but what's the one on the left?\n\nThanks for your help.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T01:01:42.770", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23870", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T18:35:55.387", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9893", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "handwriting" ], "title": "What's this handwritten character?", "view_count": 233 }
[ { "body": "Assuming there is not anything preceding these letters that would alter its\nmeaning, that would appear to say:\n\n> `好きだ`\n>\n> I (Like / Love) (You / It)\n\n\"き\" is often handwritten without the bowed bottom.\n\n![](https://i.stack.imgur.com/00Fu7m.png)", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T01:06:35.023", "id": "23871", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T18:35:55.387", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9241", "parent_id": "23870", "post_type": "answer", "score": 10 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "If I were to say \"Mr. Li is cheerful, healthy, and interesting.\" It would be\nリさんはあかるくて、げんきで、おもしろいです。\n\nWhat I don't understand is how to connect negative adjectives, like if I want\nto say \"Mr. Li is cheerful, not healthy, and not interesting.\"\n\nI also don't understand how to connect past tense adjectives and negative past\ntense adjectives.\n\nLike how would I say \"Mr.Li was fat, wasn't healthy, and wasn't cheerful.\" Or\n\"Mr. Li wasn't fat, was healthy, and was cheerful.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T05:01:24.090", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23874", "last_activity_date": "2016-02-07T08:22:15.220", "last_edit_date": "2016-02-07T08:22:15.220", "last_editor_user_id": "11849", "owner_user_id": "9894", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar", "usage", "adjectives", "i-adjectives", "na-adjectives" ], "title": "Connecting adjectives in a sentence", "view_count": 5547 }
[ { "body": "> Mr. Li is cheerful, healthy, and interesting.\" It would be\n> リさんはあかるくて、げんきで、おもしろいです。\n\nYes, you're right.\n\n> What I don't understand is how to connect negative adjective sentences, like\n> if I wanna say \"Mr. Li is cheerful, not healthy, and not interesting.\"\n\nIt would be リさんはあかるくて、げんきではなくて、おもしろくありません, word for word, but it would be more\nnatural to say リさんはあかるいけど、げんきではなくて、おもしろくありません, connecting あかるい and the other\ntwo adjectives with a contradictory particle けど.\n\n> I also don't understand how to connect past tense adjective sentences and\n> negative past tense adjective sentences.\n\nFor [positive+positive+negative]: \n(na-adj.)で、(na-adj.)で、(na-adj.)ではありませんでした。 \n(i-adj.)くて、(i-adj.)くて、(i-adj.)くありませんでした。 \nand [negative+negative+positive/negative]: \n(na-adj.)ではなくて、(na-adj.)ではなくて、(na-adj.)でした・ではありませんでした。 \n(i-adj.)くなくて、(i-adj.)くなくて、(i-adj.)かったです・くありませんでした。\n\n> Like how would I say \"Mr.Li was fat, wasn't healthy, and wasn't cheerful.\"\n\nリさんはふとっていて、げんきではなくて、あかるくありませんでした。 \n(Compare with the present tense: \nリさんはふとっていて、げんきではなくて、あかるくありません。 \n= Mr.Li is fat, isn't healthy, and isn't cheerful. \nYou should just change the tense at the end of the sentence.)\n\n> Or \"Mr. Li wasn't fat, was healthy, and was cheerful.\"\n\nリさんはふとっていなくて、げんきで、あかるかったです。 \n(Compare: リさんはふとっていなくて、げんきで、あかるいです。 \n= Mr. Li isn't fat, is healthy, and is cheerful.)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T06:13:00.213", "id": "23876", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T06:19:58.163", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-20T06:19:58.163", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23874", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23878", "answer_count": 3, "body": "It is highlighted in the bold part of the below sentence.\n\n> さいきんじゃドヤ街【がい】のがきらをぞろぞろひきつれてそのへん **ばあ** ねり歩【ある】いてよ。", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T06:12:56.027", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23875", "last_activity_date": "2021-10-16T00:36:49.793", "last_edit_date": "2021-10-16T00:36:49.793", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "words", "contractions", "role-language" ], "title": "What does the word 「ばあ」mean?", "view_count": 1058 }
[ { "body": "They use ば for the objective particle を in Kyushu dialect.\n\nそのへんばあねり歩いて= そんへんばねり歩いて = そのへんをねり歩あるいて", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T06:29:50.777", "id": "23877", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T06:29:50.777", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23875", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "「ばあ」 is a colloquial contraction for 「をば」. It is occasionally used in fiction,\nchildren's stories, etc. to show that the speaker is an older person from the\ncountry side.\n\nIn meaning and nuance, 「ばあ」=「をば」= an emphatic 「を」\n\n<https://kotobank.jp/word/%E3%82%92%E3%81%B0-666115#E5.A4.A7.E8.BE.9E.E6.9E.97.20.E7.AC.AC.E4.B8.89.E7.89.88>\n\n「そのへん **ばあ** ねり歩いてよ」= \"(someone) often walks around there\"", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T06:30:45.963", "id": "23878", "last_activity_date": "2021-10-16T00:12:02.330", "last_edit_date": "2021-10-16T00:12:02.330", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23875", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 }, { "body": "The use of “ば” and “ば(あ)” like:\n\n> その[辺]{へん}ば(あ)[練]{ね}り歩く - strut around over there \n> 冗談ば(あ)[止]{や}めちょくれ。 - Stop joking. \n> そげんこつば(あ)言いよって。[拳骨]{げんこつ}ば(あ)食らわすぞ。 - How can you dare to say that to me?\n> I’ll give you a punch.\n\nis often observed in the north-western part (Fukuoka, Saga, and Nagasaki\nPrefectures) of Kyushu. It depends on the person and the situation whether you\npronounce it \"ば,” or drawl like \"ばあ”.\n\nIt substitutes for “…は” or “…を”. Therefore “そげんこつば(あ)言いよってからに” means\n“そのようなことを言うなんて,” “冗談ば(あ)止めちょくれ” means “冗談を言わないでください.”\n\nI’m from Oita Prefecture, Kyushu. We don’t use “ば” in such a way in Ohita. I\ndon’t think people in the middle and southern part of Kyushu have such a\ncolloquial idiosyncrasy, I mean, the use of “ば(あ)” in such a way.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-03-20T08:15:59.917", "id": "32997", "last_activity_date": "2016-03-20T11:12:29.223", "last_edit_date": "2016-03-20T11:12:29.223", "last_editor_user_id": "12056", "owner_user_id": "12056", "parent_id": "23875", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23888", "answer_count": 3, "body": "I am looking for a pure fruit juice without sugar added for daily consumption\nin Japan. The box only says 100% bla bla bla but I am not sure whether or not\nthere is sugar added.\n\nSo my question is:\n\n> What is the most commonly used Japanese phrase to convey \"No sugar added\"?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T11:01:04.950", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23881", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T20:24:30.430", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9896", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "word-choice", "meaning", "phrase-requests" ], "title": "What is the phrase used as a label on the food container to convey \"No sugar added\"?", "view_count": 781 }
[ { "body": "I think it is 砂糖が入っていない or 無糖.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T11:29:13.063", "id": "23882", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T11:29:13.063", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "542", "parent_id": "23881", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "ノンシュガー and\n[シュガーレス](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B7%E3%83%A5%E3%82%AC%E3%83%BC%E3%83%AC%E3%82%B9)\nare also common.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T12:50:10.160", "id": "23885", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T12:50:10.160", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23881", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "In general you will want to the already suggested phrases but if you are\ntalking about _juice_ specifically, you will want to use 「果汁100%」as it doesn't\nmake sense to talk about added sugars in juices. If that were the case, then\nyou would just indicate the percentage of real fruit juice e.g. 果汁30%, which\nmeans that the rest of the drink consists of sugar water, etc.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T20:24:30.430", "id": "23888", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T20:24:30.430", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6823", "parent_id": "23881", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23884", "answer_count": 1, "body": "It is bold in the below sentence.\n\nまあ そんなのはまだまだかわいげが **あるほうで** よ", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T12:27:45.657", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23883", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T12:38:25.493", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "What does the word「あるほうで」 mean?", "view_count": 259 }
[ { "body": "That is actually three words.\n\n「あるほうで」=「ある方で」\n\n「~~[方]{ほう}」 means \"on the ~~ side\", \"relatively ~~\", etc.\n\n「かわいげがある」 means \"charming in an innocent way\".\n\n\"That is still pretty charming (compared to something else).\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T12:38:25.493", "id": "23884", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T12:38:25.493", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23883", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "When I see a _kanji_ or a word consisting of multiple _kanji_ somewhere, I\nwant to enter them into a computer so that I can search for it and translate\nit.\n\nAre there any methods or \"systems\" that allow faster input and search of a\n_kanji_? I'm asking about methodology, not any specific tool.\n\nSome sort of auto-complete search, that allows searching for _kanji_ by\nsplitting them into parts or radicals, or something like the SKIP system,\nwhich I am currently learning how to use.", "comment_count": 7, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T17:20:59.110", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23886", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T09:08:48.157", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-20T18:47:48.980", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "1126", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "writing-identification" ], "title": "What methods/systems for finding kanji or entering them on a PC tend to be faster than others?", "view_count": 954 }
[ { "body": "The easiest way is for you as a non-native to learn how to use SKIP codes and\nthen use a dictionary that is sorted by SKIP code. <http://www.basic-\njapanese.com/Hilfsdateien/skipCode.html>\n\nEven when I went to university in Japan, this was the method they taught non-\nnatives to use. I do not know if that's how the Japanese learn (I don't think\nso), but that's definitely how they taught us non-Japanese.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T17:53:53.070", "id": "23887", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T17:53:53.070", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6580", "parent_id": "23886", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "There are a few methods you could try, but none with universally perfect\nresults. I'm also not fully sure what you are looking for, so i'll sort my\nanswer to try make it easy to find something that suits you.\n\n**Improving accuracy of selection using existing IMEs**\n\nFor regular Japanese IMEs, quite a few allow you to sort by radical, which are\nin turn sorted by number of strokes. Mac's IME offers this, as do a few\nothers, though I don't remember if Windows' does (?). This is perhaps the\nfastest way to _search_ for 漢字 individually. Quite often, though, for finding\nindividual kanji, there is usually a 訓読み{くんよみ} reading that is unique (or\nmostly unique). Even if it's not correct for the sentence, i sometimes find\nmyself doing this.\n\nTake the example reading \"I was thinking of going to Guangzhou\":\n\n> 広州{こうしゅう}へ行こうと思っている\n\nこうしゅう has quite a lot of readings, so you could instead write as 広{ひろ}い州{しゅう}\nthen delete the い. It's a lot faster to type that needing to scour the entire\nlist of kanji compounds read as こうしゅう. It's just a suggestion, but albeit not\nnecessarily the best.\n\n**Better keyboards and IMEs**\n\nI'm not sure if your complaint applies only to kanji, or to Japanese typing\nbeing slow generally. If you're upset about speed of type overall, you could\nchange keyboard altogether. Romaji input works OK, and has a lot of users, but\nyou end up needing to type at least 2 keystrokes for every one Japanese kana,\nand quite a few more for 漢字, too. The input method I use is the JIS (Japanese\nIndustrial Standard), which assigns each keyboard key to a different kana. It\nmeans that the strokes you need to input generally will about _halve_.\n\nKanji prediction may not be a whole lot better, but you'll be typing less, and\neven with the time spent dishing out Kanji, you can still always list by\nradical as stated in the above section, and cut down your time quite a lot.\n\n**Separate Kanji input by Shape**\n\nProbably the least popular of all of these methods. Chinese has a few methods\nof inputting Hanzi (kanji for Chinese) by shape, some of which, including\nCangjie and Wubi, will produce virtually no overlap, so that any one key combo\napplies to only one character. Usually they're not designed for Japanese, but\nin the case of Cangjie and wubi, they both still store Japanese Shinjitai, so\nit's possible to use it for Japanese too. These are also the closest thing to\nthe SKIP system, except designed for real input by real users of Chinese\ncharacters, so work quite a bit better on the whole.\n\nI sometimes use this, too, because I know Chinese, and took the time to learn\nCangjie, and later Wubi too, to input that. For Japanese, they work equally as\nwell, with the only major disappointments being that\n\n 1. You have to switch keyboards everytime to use this (usually only one keystroke, but nonetheless a pain if typing a long paragraph)\n 2. Wubi maps every hanzi / kanji to (at most) 4 keystrokes and never anymore, and Cangjie does with 5 keystrokes. It's faster than typing romaji like \"maboroshi\", but not faster when you consider that you could be doing this in 4 keystrokes anyway when you type in kana (まぼろし). Plus you need 0.1s to adapt to using a new keyboard.\n 3. They all have relatively steep learning curves, so if you're not using it everyday, it's unlikely to pay-off\n\nIt's probably not overall worth using either of these, and the Japanese\npredictions may be faster just to flip through if you were considering this.\n\n**Handwriting**\n\nNot the fastest method, but certainly an accurate one. On the mac, the\ntrackpad is the perfect environment to use this type of method for because the\ntrackpad is generally excellent for this type of thing. Windows needs you to\nuse your mouse, and click to put the pen down. A lot less natural, slower, and\ngives you worse handwriting, but still a possibility. If you're using a mac\nspecifically, I'd recommend this one quite a lot, but otherwise I'd ignore it\nas a possibility (especially with a mouse, it's a struggle to input characters\nproperly).\n\n**Which is fastest?**\n\nMy experience is that the fastest is using kana input (JIS) if you don't\nalready, and stick it out trying to interpret lists by radical. It cuts down\ntyping time dramatically even for hiragana / katakana, and you can use this as\nwell as kanji lists by radical to try cut down your typing time even more.\n\nIf you can't stand switching from romaji, or really just don't like reading\nlists, you can try download an IME online with better prediction software so\nthat you're less likely to need to scroll through lists in the first place. I\nsadly haven't found any for Japanese so far, but if you do, please tell me.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T09:00:39.683", "id": "23955", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T09:08:48.157", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T09:08:48.157", "last_editor_user_id": "9185", "owner_user_id": "9185", "parent_id": "23886", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "In sentences such as: `Jana will pay for the drinks.` or `Will the kids have\nto pay?`. Why is it `okane o haraimasu` instead of `... o haraimasu`?\n\n[Correct] Examples: `Jana san wa nomimono no okane o haraimasu.` or `Komodo wa\nokane o haraimasu ka?`\n\nAre [seemingly incorrect examples] `Jana san wa nomimono o haraimasu.` or\n`Komodo wa haraimasu ka?` [gramatically] wrong or \"odd\"? When I see `okane o\nharaimasu`, I want to ask, \"well what else is he/she going to pay with?\nBarrels?\".", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T21:21:19.503", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23889", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T22:00:42.030", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "769", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "word-choice", "etymology", "set-phrases" ], "title": "Why 'okane o haraimasu'?", "view_count": 4053 }
[ { "body": "The short answer is \"because Japanese speakers will it to be that way.\"\n\nThe pedagogical answer is that 払う operates on お金, not the thing you're paying\nfor. This is _exactly_ the same as in English. You don't \"pay drinks.\" You pay\n_for_ drinks. Drinks are not the direct object in English or Japanese.\n\nThe money is the direct object, so you follow it with を.\n\nIf you want to say \"to pay for X\" in Japanese you can say Xの代金を払う for example.\nThis is literally \"to pay the bill/price for X.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T21:49:15.127", "id": "23891", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T21:49:15.127", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6580", "parent_id": "23889", "post_type": "answer", "score": 10 }, { "body": "You can't\n\n> ✗ \"pay the drinks\" \n> ✗ 飲み物を払う\n\nin English either, even though you can\n\n> ○ \"pay the bill\" \n> ○ 勘定を払う\n>\n> ○ \"pay the rent\" \n> ○ 家賃を払う\n>\n> ○ \"pay attention\" \n> ○ 注意を払う\n\nIn other words, 「〜を払う」 corresponds more closely to \"to pay ~\" than \"to pay for\n~\", which should not be surprising considering that is the syntactic\nequivalent.\n\n* * *\n\nAs to why Japanese uses 「〜のお金を払う」 instead of 「〜に払う」 (i.e., an indirect object)\nto express \"paying for\" something...\n\nIn English there are a _ton_ of uses for \"for\": [32 according to the Random\nHouse Dictionary](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/for?s=t). The\nrelevant one here is categorized as\n\n> 8. in consideration or payment of; in return for: _three for a dollar_ ; _to\n> be thanked for one's efforts_.\n\nWhile some of the uses in that dictionary entry are accomplished by 「〜に」 in\nJapanese, certainly not all of them are, including this one. You often need\nmore complex expressions like 「〜を目的として」、「〜のための」、「〜に関して」, etc., and this is one\nof those cases. Prepositions/postpositions are often extremely overloaded in\nlanguages, and they evolve over time by people using them for related-but-\nslightly-different purposes, naturally allowing for extremely branched\nmeanings in different languages.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-20T22:00:42.030", "id": "23892", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-20T22:00:42.030", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "23889", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23918", "answer_count": 2, "body": "ている verbs can indicate either the result of something (死んでいる) or that you are\nin the process of doing something (食べている). However, I am having trouble\ndifferentiating between the two with certain verbs such as 言っている. For example,\nin the following dialogue\n\n『もっと触れてもいい?』 『それって、髪だけのことを言ってるの?』\n\nI am not quite sure if it would be \"saying\" or \"what you said.\"", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T00:46:03.063", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23894", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T16:05:51.320", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7712", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "grammar" ], "title": "How do you tell when 言っている is progressive or resultive?", "view_count": 233 }
[ { "body": "In the specific instance you list, I read that as \"by that, do you mean only\nthe hair?\" or, more literally, \"are you just _talking_ about the hair?\" So\npresent progressive.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T03:02:58.877", "id": "23895", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T03:02:58.877", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "6580", "parent_id": "23894", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "I think an easy rule like this could apply:\n\n * If you can insert 「もう」 in the sentence without any problem, then it is resultive (彼には言ってる → 彼にはもう言ってる) \"I already told him\"\n\n * If you can insert 「今」 in the sentence without any problem, then it is progressive (それって、髪のことを言ってるの? → それって、髪のことを今言ってるの?) (It does get slightly weird, but it remains logically correct)\n\nSo I would think for the sentence in your example, 「言ってる」 is progressive.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T16:05:51.320", "id": "23918", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T16:05:51.320", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9913", "parent_id": "23894", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23898", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Which is grammatically correct? matcha or maccha?\n\nIn my opinion, according to its hiragana representation, it should be written\nas maccha rather than matcha.\n\nIs there any rule about romaji writing convention I missed here?", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T05:13:03.853", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23896", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T14:56:44.900", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-21T07:37:39.817", "last_editor_user_id": "542", "owner_user_id": "9896", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "word-choice", "words", "rōmaji" ], "title": "matcha versus maccha", "view_count": 1174 }
[ { "body": "Short answer: `matcha` is correct. I don't know about `maccha` being\nrepresented by any official romanization system, though this is actually the\nway that the word would be entered in most Japanese input systems, a so-called\nWāpuro rōmaji or kana spelling.\n\nLong answer: There are different romanization systems, for instance Hepburn\nromanization, which would lead to `matcha`, or the Kunrei-shiki system or the\nNihon-shiki system, which both lead to `mattya`. It really depends on which\nromanization system you want to follow. Also be aware that there are variants\nof the romanization systems that make additions to the romanization styles.\n\nThe way romanization of the\n[geminate](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geminate#Japanese \"Gemination in\nJapanese\") consonants following the sokuon っ is the rule that you have to look\nout for in the romanization system of your choice.\n\nFor a good list of romanization systems, see [this wikipedia\npage](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanization_of_Japanese \"Romanization of\nJapanese\"). Note that there are standardizations for the Wāpuro rōmaji, such\nas JIS X 4063:2000, but these are by definition methods of input and\nexplicitly not methods of romanization.", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T07:08:27.927", "id": "23898", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T14:56:44.900", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-21T14:56:44.900", "last_editor_user_id": "9901", "owner_user_id": "9901", "parent_id": "23896", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23900", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Context: This old man, one of the candidates to become the new pope, had one\nof his subordinates secretly check how the various churches had voted for who\nthey want to be pope, and he noticed that the large majority voted for another\nperson(who has been in the church for a much shorter time than him but not\nthat short). He then complains to this person as follows:\n\n> 儂が何年司教を続けたと思っている! ひゃ、100年! 100年だ! それを昨日、今日、司教になったようなのが!\n\nMy question is about what he means in the second part. Is he complaining that\nthey are treating his 100 years of dedication to the church as if he had only\nbecame a bishop very recently?\n\nEdit: From l'électeur's answer I now understand the end part of the sentence,\nbut the first part where he says それを is confusing me as I, in gist, can't\ndetermine what he means by it as the accompanying verb isn't said.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T08:40:09.073", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23899", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T10:51:51.043", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-21T10:51:51.043", "last_editor_user_id": "9840", "owner_user_id": "9840", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "grammar", "meaning" ], "title": "The meaning of それを昨日、今日、司教になったようなのが!", "view_count": 262 }
[ { "body": "No, that is not what it means. This is a fairly advanced question.\n\n> 「それを[昨日]{きのう}、[今日]{きょう}、[司教]{しきょう}になったような **の** が!」\n\nThis phrase is about the other person with less experience, not about the\nspeaker.\n\n**Two things that I think you are missing** :\n\n1) This is not a sentence; The entire predicate is being left unsaid. It is\nonly implied. (This is why it ends with 「が」)\n\n2) 「の」 is a nominalizer, and it refers to a \" ** _person_** \" here.\nSpecifically, it is the other person with less experience than the speaker.\n\n「昨日今日」 is a common set phrase meaning \"just recently\".\n\nSo what is being left unsaid?\n\nIt would be along the lines of 「[儂]{わし}より[先]{さき}に[法王]{ほうおう}になりやがって!」 = \"has\nbecome the Pope before I have!\"\n\nPut it altogether, you have:\n\n**_\"A guy who became a bishop just recently has now become the Pope before I\nhave!\"_**", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T09:13:50.123", "id": "23900", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-21T09:13:50.123", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23899", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23904", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I'm trying to do some picture descriptions to practice my Japanese (which is\nquite at a beginner level), just to avoid to focus only on grammar and 漢字\nmemorization, which can become really boring sometimes.\n\nSo my question is, how could I express something like `This picture is about\nxxx` or `In this picture, (you can see/there is) xxx` in Japanese?\n\nMy attempt at this is\n\n> このしゃしんの中に、xxxいます。\n>\n> (xxx = the main object in the photo)\n\nAny comment or suggestion about this?\n\nI was looking for easy sentence patterns. I don't aim at building complex\ndiscourses, I'm just trying to keep the level slightly higher with respect to\nwhat I can achieve without consulting a dictionary or grammar.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T10:17:51.493", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23902", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T16:32:17.657", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-21T10:50:49.480", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9904", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "syntax" ], "title": "Sentence patterns for starting a picture description", "view_count": 2395 }
[ { "body": "> This picture is about xxx.\n\nYou would say 「この[写真]{しゃしん}はxxxです。」 Alternatively you could say it\n「これは、xxxの[写真]{しゃしん}です。」 (Literally 'This is a photo of xxx').\n\n> In this picture, (you can see/there is) xxx.\n\n「この写真には、xxxが[写]{うつ}っています。」", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T16:21:30.667", "id": "23904", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T16:32:17.657", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T16:32:17.657", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23902", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23908", "answer_count": 2, "body": "> せめて親でも生きていてくれたら、 **こんなに苦労しなくても済んだ** だろう\n>\n> I wouldn't have so many difficulties, if only my parents were still alive.\n> _[Example sentence from Japanese Postpositions: Theory and Practice ISBN-13:\n> 978-3895861116]_\n\nAs I understand it, the bolded part works like this:\n\n * 苦労する: to be having trouble\n * 苦労しない: to not be having trouble\n * 苦労しなくて: connective form of the above\n * 苦労しなくても: も added to emphasize `not having trouble`\n * 済んだ: past form of 済む added to mean \"manage\", \"make do\" (?)\n\nWith that in mind, to me the whole thing, 苦労しなくても済んだ, now means\n\"managing/making do and **not** having trouble\"? Considering the translation\ngiven by the book, how is it implied that the speaker **is** having\ndifficulty?\n\nPlease note I do not actually understand how 済む is used here, grammar-wise.\nThe above is just guesswork. I would appreciate some help on that as well.\n\nThe main question is, following the chain of logic above, possibly linked in\nme misunderstanding the use of も and/or 済む:\n\nWhy is the negative form 苦労しない used here (but implying the speaker actually\ndoes 苦労) instead of the positive form?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T13:11:07.613", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23903", "last_activity_date": "2021-09-08T01:27:28.543", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar" ], "title": "How does 〜しなくても済んだだろう work?", "view_count": 1107 }
[ { "body": "Rather than emphasis, the も here gives to しなくても the meaning of without.\n\n * _something_ しなくて : Not doing _something_\n * _something_ しなくても : Without doing _something_\n\nAnd the meaning of 済んだ is also more \"(would) have ended up\".\n\nSo the sentence is \"it would probably (だろう) have ended up (済んだ) without such\nhardship (こんなに苦労しなくても)\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-21T18:10:03.720", "id": "23906", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-24T10:33:55.027", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-24T10:33:55.027", "last_editor_user_id": "254", "owner_user_id": "254", "parent_id": "23903", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "> 「せめて[親]{おや}でも[生]{い}きていてくれ **たら** 、こんなに[苦労]{くろう}し **なくて** も[済]{す}んだだろう。」\n\nFirst, this sentence is 100% natural, grammatical, etc.; It is perfect. As a\nJapanese-speaker, I know that _**without**_ even thinking. (考え **なくて** もわかる) ←\nHint #1: \"Without\" ≒「なくて」\n\nI am thinking to myself: 「もし、user9771さんも[日本語話者]{にほんごわしゃ}だっ **たら**\n、この[文]{ぶん}を[理解]{りかい}するのに **苦労しなくて済む** のに・・・」← Hint #2\n\n> 「Verb phrase + なくて/ないで + (も) + [済]{す}む」\n>\n> = \"can manage/survive/do/get through, etc. _**without**_ (verb phrase)\"\n\nTo express the \"without\" part, the verb phrase in Japanese _**MUST**_ be in\nthe negative form because you are essentially saying that you would make it if\nit were _**not**_ for (something).\n\nThere is just no exception; The verb needs to be in the negative form.\n\n> \"What will happen if I use the _**affirmative**_ form by mistake?\" asks my\n> imaginary Japanese-learner.\n\nThat will change the meaning of the sentence _**completely**_!\n\nSuppose you did not like eating raw fish but you were served sashimi as part\nof a course dinner.\n\nYou:「ボクのサシミ、[食]{た}べてくれない?そしたら、ボク **食べなくて** 済むから。」\n\nGuy:「[自分]{じぶん}で[食]{く}えよ。たった3-4[切]{き}れだろ?ささっと **食えば** 済むんだから。」\n\nYou: \"Could you eat my sashimi for me? So that I'll get through without eating\nit myself? (And it'll save me from looking impolite)\"\n\nGuy: \"Eat it yourself, man! It's only a coupla tiny pieces, ain't it? Just\nswallow it down quickly and dinner _**will be over**_.\"\n\nAs you have seen above, I hope, if you used the affirmative verb form in front\nof 「済む」, the phrase would mean \"(something) gets finished\". \"To end\ncompletely\" is one meaning of 「済む」.\n\n> With that in mind, to me the whole thing, 苦労しなくても済んだ, now means\n> \"managing/making do and not having trouble\"?\n\nExactly.\n\n> Considering the translation given by the book, how is it implied that the\n> speaker is having difficulty?\n\nIt is actually \"stated clearly\", and not \"merely implied\". 「こんなに~~ない」 means\n\"not this much\". That would indicate there is an amount of (something) if not\na whole lot, would it not?\n\n> Why is the negative form 苦労しない used here (but implying the speaker actually\n> does 苦労) instead of the positive form?\n\nI hope I have already answered this, but you just have no choice but to use\nthe negative verb form to express \"to get by _**without**_ ~~ing\". \"Without\"\nhas a negative meaning, does it not? It just is not a verb in English.\n\n_**In meaning**_ , would you not agree that \"Without (verb)ing\" = \"With not\n(verb)ing\" even though the latter may not be used in real life?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T01:11:52.220", "id": "23908", "last_activity_date": "2021-09-08T01:27:28.543", "last_edit_date": "2021-09-08T01:27:28.543", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23903", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23910", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I always use this in English to excuse myself from a planned meeting/meet up\n(professional or personal). Basically, I don't want to bother the interlocutor\nwith the details and notify them I am busy.\n\nI am not happy with what I can currently produce:\n\n * 新しい予定があります\n * いけなくなりました\n\nCould you suggest more natural ways and idiomatic ways to express the same\nidea?", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T00:25:19.603", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23907", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T11:09:30.417", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "664", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "translation", "idioms" ], "title": "\"Something came up\" in Japanese", "view_count": 2710 }
[ { "body": "More natural expressions would include:\n\n「ちょっと[用事]{ようじ}(or 用)ができてしまって。」\n\n「[急]{きゅう}に[予定]{よてい}が[入]{はい}ってしまって。」\n\nIt would be nice to say 「すみません(が)」 or 「ごめんなさい」 at the beginning.\n\nInformally, one could replace 「てしまって」 with 「ちゃって」. In business settings, I\nrecommend the former.\n\nThe ambiguous 「って/て」 ending is very common with these little expressions.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T01:31:22.743", "id": "23910", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T01:31:22.743", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23907", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "You can also be a bit more vague with the\n\n> いろいろあって、参加できなくなってしまいました。\n\nand add the appropriate amount of apologies.\n\nいろいろ tends to imply something that you don't really want to talk about so you\nalmost certainly won't be asked.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T07:19:43.897", "id": "23927", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T11:09:30.417", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T11:09:30.417", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "1805", "parent_id": "23907", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23926", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I would like to know about these two 収入, 給料 (there may be even others I am not\naware of). Can they be interchanged as one pleases, or does it very much\ndepend on the context?\n\nWhich is more colloquial, which is more formal?", "comment_count": 7, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T01:31:06.007", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23909", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T14:09:52.650", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T14:09:52.650", "last_editor_user_id": "29", "owner_user_id": "9908", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "words", "synonyms" ], "title": "収入 or 給料? What should be used when talking about salary or income?", "view_count": 2303 }
[ { "body": "As someone else pointed out in the comment, this explains the differences:\n<http://kakeibot.doorblog.jp/archives/37164111.html>.\n\nBasically, 「収入」is the amount of money you receive from your company before you\nsubtract taxes and health assurance fees. 「給与」(not 「給料」) on the other hand, is\nthat same amount of money that is given to you by the company (as 与 suggests),\nso only the point of view changes.\n\n「給料」is one part (the basic fixed income) of the total 「給与」, as 「給与」 contains\nextras and bonuses.", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T15:38:46.940", "id": "23917", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T15:38:46.940", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9913", "parent_id": "23909", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "As one of the commenters said 給料 means salary, 収入 means income. In terms of\nremuneration for a job performed at work these are equivalent. Typically\npeople use 給料 to refer to salary (though also 年収 to refer to yearly salary)\n\n収入 can also refer to income (gross) of a company (one certainly wouldn't use\n給料 to refer to sales figures)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T06:00:10.143", "id": "23926", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T06:00:10.143", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1805", "parent_id": "23909", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "I was looking up the definition for [舐]{な}める and \"underestimate\" was one of\nthem. However, \"underestimate\" can be both stative or dynamic, so I looked up\nthe Japanese definition and got this:\n\n> 人を馬鹿にして無礼な態度をとる。あなどる。\n\nWhile とる is certainly a dynamic verb, I am not quite certain if [侮]{あなど}る is\none as well. Looking up the Japanese definition for 侮る leads me to an endless\ncycle of the following words.\n\n * 見くびる\n * [軽蔑]{けいべつ}する\n * [見]{み}[下]{くだ}す\n * [見]{み}[下]{お}ろす\n * 見なす\n * 甘く見る \n * ばかにする\n\nWhile the Japanese definitions of 軽蔑する and 見なす make them seem dynamic, example\nsentences make them seem stative.\n\n> 私達は、その計画を価値あるものと見なす。\n>\n> We think of the plan as of value.\n>\n> ([on\n> jisho.org](http://classic.jisho.org/sentences?jap=%E8%A6%8B%E3%81%AA%E3%81%99))\n\nand\n\n> 彼は社会的地位の低い人を軽蔑する。\n>\n> He despises people of a lower social class.\n>\n> ([on\n> jisho.org](http://classic.jisho.org/sentences?jap=%E8%BB%BD%E8%94%91%E3%81%99%E3%82%8B))\n\nThis is further complicated by how I am not sure of what 馬鹿にする means anymore.\nAt first I thought it merely meant \"to make fun of someone\" but on further\ninspection, にする can mean \"to feel A about B\" and makes expressions such as\n大切にする stative. For example:\n\n> 一郎は利益よりも友情を大切にする\n\n[jisho.org](http://classic.jisho.org/sentences?jap=%E5%A4%A7%E5%88%87%E3%81%ABsuru)\nhas got this translation:\n\n> Ichiro puts friendship above profit.\n\nNow I wonder if 馬鹿にする can mean to merely regard someone as stupid and not that\nyou actively go to make fun of them.", "comment_count": 9, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T08:14:17.567", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23911", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T22:27:38.593", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-22T23:06:10.450", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "7712", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "Is [舐]{な}める a stative verb?", "view_count": 993 }
[ { "body": "Aspects in Japanese are complicated. I think there are some concepts at play\nhere which haven't been mentioned. (The below grammaticality assessments are\nmine.)\n\n 1. The tendency to (ability to) use dictionary forms for 1st person, where ている/でいる must be used for 3rd person for some thought/speech verbs, e.g. 私は思う but 彼は思っている. I think the same thing is going on for みなす here.\n\n * 私達は、その計画を価値あるものと見なす。 \n * 私達は、その計画を価値あるものと見なしている。 \n * ?? 彼は、その計画を価値あるものと見なす。 \n * 彼は、その計画を価値あるものと見なしている。\n\n 2. The habitual use of the dictionary form. Here it works because 会的地位の低い人 is plural and can be viewed as a stream of people which \"he\" habitually looks down upon.\n * 彼は社会的地位の低い人を軽蔑する。 \n\n * 彼は社会的地位の低い人を軽蔑している。 \n * ?? 彼は母を軽蔑する。 \n * 彼は母を軽蔑している。", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T05:20:38.273", "id": "23925", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T05:20:38.273", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1073", "parent_id": "23911", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "# Meaning-wise\n\nConsidering only what a verb means to determine whether it is stative can be\nsomewhat subjective. If we go purely by the semantics, we find as you\nmentioned the following explanation for the relevant sense:\n\n> 馬鹿にする。甘くみる。みくびる。あなどる。\n\nAs this suggests, `underestimate` does not convey the nuance of the verb very\nwell. Think of it like this:\n\n> 彼をなめる ( _dynamic_ -like): to view/take him lightly, to treat him like a\n> fool, to disparage him, to make light of him, to look down on him\n>\n> AはBをなめている ( _stative_ -like): A is taking B lightly, A underestimates be\n\nAnd its more dynamic nature becomes easier to see. In the 〜ている form, it is\nmore stative-like. The [zokugo](http://zokugo-dict.com/21na/nameru.htm)\ndictionary contains the following explanation\n\n> なめるとは相手やある物事を馬鹿にしたり、みくびったり、軽んじる、蔑むといった **行為** で、戦国時代には既にこうした意味で使われている。\n\nHere we see that the verb usually involves people doing something that could\nbe regarded as them taking something lightly. This makes sense if we consider\nthis an extended meaning of `to lick`.\n\nNow if we use it in an actual sentences such as\n\n> 敗戦国民として、われわれは彼らに嘗められているんです\n\nThe plain form is not used here as a predicate for a sentence expressing a\ncurrent action. This is as close to a state as you can get, but (a) it still\ncarries a nuance of them doing something (that makes it seem to us they are\ntaking us lightly); and (b) it needs the passive and 〜ている form for it. As\nillustrated above, it does not express a state in its plain form.\n\nHe we see it is helpful to take a look at the differences in how stative and\ndynamic verbs are used.\n\n# Aspect-wise, classification by 金田一春彦\n\nIn (some) analyses of English stative verbs, stative verbs do not take the\ncontinous aspect (xJohn is knowing the answer.)\n\nParalleling this distinction based upon aspect, there is a classification by\n金田一春彦【きんだいちはるひこ】 from his article 国語動詞の一分類 (1950) in [the journal\n言語研究第15号](https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/browse/gengo1939/1950/15/_contents)\n([link to\npdf](https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/gengo1939/1950/15/1950_48/_pdf)),\nwhich is explained for example here: [金田一の日本語動詞分類\n1](http://amigo.hum.fukuoka-u.ac.jp/koga/index.php?blog/2009_11_27) and\n[金田一の日本語動詞分類\n2](http://amigo.hum.fukuoka-u.ac.jp/koga/index.php?blog/2010_04_05). Note that\ndynamic (動作動詞) verbs include punctual and durative verbs.\n\n * durative (継続): 〜ている is used for a current action or completed action: 遊んでいる, x子供は今公園で遊ぶ\n * punctual (瞬間): 〜ている can only mean that the action is completed: (もう・すでに)死んでいる\n * static/stative (状態): continous form 〜ている often not possible, plain form is used for a current action: 猫がいる, x居ている\n * 4th type (第四種): current action expressed by 〜ている, attributive form uses 〜た without expressing a past sense: 話はありふれている, ありふれた話 (this does not imply everybody already forgot about it)\n\nNote that the plain form of durative verbs is used as well, of course. Try to\ncompare a present situation, however, when the action/state is taking place\npresently.\n\n> * 子供は今公園にいる\n> * 子供は今公園で遊んでいる\n>\n\nInstantaneous:\n\n> * 俺さまをなめてんのか? → This means that he underestimates (=currently is\n> underestimating) the speaker, not that he's done with it. → not\n> instantaneous verb\n> * (もう・すでに)なめている → This could be `is already underestimating`, but not a\n> finished action such as もう死んでいる. → not instantaneous verb\n>\n\nStative:\n\n> * (お前は)(今)俺をなめる。 → This would not be used by somebody currently facing\n> another person. → not stative verb\n> * 俺をなめている。 → The _-te-iru_ form is possible. → probably not stative verb\n>\n\n4th type:\n\n> * あんたをなめた俺 → At most this would refer to the past. → not of 4th type\n>\n\n[Another test involves](https://books.google.de/books?id=l-C4H2sBJlEC&pg=PA60)\ntesting whether we add the auxilaries -はじめる, expressing the start of an\naction. In 金田一春彦's article we find\n\n> 「終る」という語と「始める」という語は継続動詞のみにつく。\n\nCompare dynamic/stative verbs:\n\n> * 話はじめるの\n> * 飴を舐めはじめる\n> * x(運転)ができはじめる\n> * x値しはじめる\n>\n\nHow about 舐める is the sense of `underestimate`? Usages are rare and need some\ncontext, but we can find some:\n\n> **敵をなめはじめていた搭乗員たち** も、本気で取り組まざるをえなかつた。\n>\n> 田中光二, シドニー攻略, ISBN-13:9784059006077\n\nor\n\n> 最近 **運転をなめはじめていた気がする** から、初心を思い出せました。\n\nor\n\n> まさかの鬼畜ステージ登場!回復ばかりのゆとり使用かと思いきや…。凶悪配置地獄、スノボー面が姿を現しました。正直、\n> **このゲームを舐めはじめていたところです** 。怖い怖い。\n\nIn English, you can use the plain form as in `I think that guy there\nunderestimates me.` and consider it a stative verb in this case. But in\nJapanese that becomes 俺をなめている.\n\n# Summary\n\nTherefore I'd classify なめる as a dynamic verb. But perhaps its usage with\ndifferent forms such as 〜ている is a remnant of its original meaning, and\nmeaning-wise it is now often closer to a state.\n\nAs an exception, it could be regarded as being of `4th type` in なめたことを言う or\nなめた真似をする.", "comment_count": 10, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T07:45:48.180", "id": "23928", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T22:27:38.593", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3275", "parent_id": "23911", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23914", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I was trying to describe a list of objects from a more generic point of view\nto a more specific one. While at the generic level I feel quite sure, using\nfor example.\n\n> みなりのポケットの中には、ボールペンを二本あります。 \n> There are two pens in the dress' pocket.\n\nWhen trying to be more specific describing those pens I feel like I'm missing\nsomething (probably grammar). I would say something like:\n\n> 一本は赤いです、一方は青いです。 \n> One is red and the other is blue.\n\nIs that correct/natural? Are there other (better) ways to express the same\nconcept?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T08:25:01.430", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23912", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T09:13:52.193", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9904", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "syntax" ], "title": "Sentence pattern for describing a list of objects", "view_count": 265 }
[ { "body": "> みなりのポケットの中には、ボールペンを二本あります。 \n> There are two pens in the dress' pocket.\n\n[身]{み}なり refers to how you are dressed, your appearance, etc. Use ドレス for\ndress as in long dress or wedding dress, 服 or 洋服 for general clothes. を is\nused to indicate an object; use the subject particle が since the ボールペン is the\nsubject of あります. あります would be fine but 入っています would be more natural. I would\ngo with:\n\n> ドレス/[服]{ふく}のポケットには、ボールペンが二本[入]{はい}っています。\n\n* * *\n\n> 一本は赤いです、一方は青いです。 \n> One is red and the other is blue.\n\nYour translation makes sense but to be grammatically correct, you would say\n\n> 一本は赤で、もう一本は青です。 \n> or 一本は赤色で、もう一本は青色です。\n\n「赤で」「青です」「赤色で」「青色です」 are like saying \"(pens) of red/blue colour\", rather than\ndescribing how the pens look.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T09:07:02.717", "id": "23914", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T09:13:52.193", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-22T09:13:52.193", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23912", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23916", "answer_count": 1, "body": "> I am in college because of work.\n\nWhat I mean by that is that I want to say that I am in college due to some\nwork, like as a guest for a lecture. I attended college for some work I had\nwith the teachers.\n\nI was communicating with a Japanese online and I made the following sentence\nwhich was corrected by her:\n\n> 大学に入っていたから私が働くのを待っています\n\nI thought it sounded strange, so here is my own attempt:\n\n> しごとがあるので大学にいます\n\nAre these sentences correct? What's the best way to say it in Japanese?", "comment_count": 9, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T09:15:53.363", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23915", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T15:10:58.083", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-22T13:36:09.757", "last_editor_user_id": "3275", "owner_user_id": "9912", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "translation", "business-japanese", "english-to-japanese" ], "title": "Translation of \"I am in college because of work\"", "view_count": 335 }
[ { "body": "仕事があるので大学にいます is grammatical but misleading. Without any further context, it\nsounds as if you were regularly employed by that college, and you had to be at\nthe office of the college because you haven't finished the task for the day.\n\nIf you are a visitor, and want to say \"I was at a university today due to a\njob,\" some better ways to say it are:\n\n * とある仕事の関係で、○○大学にいます。\n * とある仕事で、大学に来ています。\n\nとある (≒certain, some) is not mandatory, but by using it you can clearly tell\nit's not your regular job.\n\n大学に入っていたから私が働くのを待っています does not make sense at all to me.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T15:10:58.083", "id": "23916", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T15:10:58.083", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23915", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23920", "answer_count": 1, "body": "If て form is used alone what can it mean? from what I've found on my own it\ncan be a request similar to てください as well as a direct command, but are there\nother ways to use it alone besides to link two verbs together? The reason I\nask this is I saw the phrase \"おそくなって すみません\". I know It says sorry I'm late due\nto the fact that おそくなって is the て form of to be late but I'm confused as to why\nthe て form was used here.\n\nSorry if the answer is obvious here and thank you for any assistance", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T17:47:24.403", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23919", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T17:55:30.657", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "10247", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "verbs" ], "title": "Te form standing alone", "view_count": 714 }
[ { "body": "In this case, the 〜て form is just acting as \"and\" to connect separate clauses.\n\n> * 昨日、買い物にいって、たこ焼きを食べて、[阪神]{はん・しん}タイガースの試合をみました。 → Yesterday I went\n> shopping, (and) ate takoyaki, and watched the Tigers game.\n> * おそくなってすみません。 → I was late (and) I'm sorry.\n>", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T17:55:30.657", "id": "23920", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T17:55:30.657", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "23919", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23922", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I am having trouble understanding the following sentence:\n\n> クレジットカードによるお支払【しはら】いを希望【きぼう】される方【かた】は、次【つぎ】の注意【ちゅうい】をお読【よ】みください。\n\nIn particular, I am having trouble comprehending the first clause:\n\n> クレジットカードによるお支払【しはら】いを希望【きぼう】される\n\nFrom what I do understand, クレジットカードによるお支払いを希望される modifies 方.\n\nFrom this, it seems to mean something like:\n\n> Regarding a way to [\"be hoped\" / \"be desired\"] for credit card payments,\n> please read the next warning.\n\n\"be hoped\" / \"be desired\" comes from 希望される, the passive conjugation of 希望する.\n\nQuestions:\n\n 1. To confirm, クレジットカードによる modifies お支払い, and the resulting phrase means \"credit card payment\", right?\n\n 2. お支払いを希望する seems to mean \"to hope for payment\", but \"to be hoped for payment\" and \"way to be hoped for payment\" sound somewhat bizarre. How can this phrase be broken down and translated? Also, can I infer the listener/reader to be the entity doing the hoping?\n\n 3. Ultimately, what does the sentence mean? How much of my translation is accurate? Even my resulting English translation doesn't make much sense.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T22:45:04.113", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23921", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T08:49:43.890", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T08:49:43.890", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "9838", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation", "questions" ], "title": "Meaning of お支払いを希望される方", "view_count": 650 }
[ { "body": "クレジットカードによる modifies お支払い and クレジットカードによるお支払いを希望される modifies 方. [方]{かた} means\n人, someone or a person, or in this case, 'you', customers. The される in 希望される is\nnot passive but honorific.\n\n> To those who wish to / If you wish to pay by credit card, please read..", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-22T22:54:40.837", "id": "23922", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-22T23:01:21.233", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-22T23:01:21.233", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23921", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "I came across this sentence in a grammar book ( _Japanese Postpositions:\nTheory and Practice_ by Noriko Katsuki-Pestemer):\n\n> 生き **ん** が為に働く。\n>\n> In order to live, I work.\n\nIt is then briefly explained that \"ん is an auxiliary verb in the volitional\nfunction\".\n\nHowever, I've already seen this kind of structure (masu stem followed by ん)\ncome up in fiction quite a few times without really knowing what it means.\nSince I could not find any other grammar references on it, I'd like to ask if\nanyone could explain some more general grammar rules or web links to elucidate\nthis \"ん is an auxiliary verb\".\n\nDoes seeing ん after masu stem always imply it being used this way, with\nvolition?", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T02:49:44.693", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23924", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-14T16:43:54.160", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "classical-japanese", "auxiliaries" ], "title": "Auxiliary verb ん", "view_count": 497 }
[ { "body": "生きる → 未然形 → 生き + む(=ん) where む is a classical auxiliary verb often expressing\nvolition or speculation. Here it isn't so different than simply saying\n生きるために働く.\n\n生きんが為に働く \nAssuming a generic subject: \n\n * We work that we may live.\n * We work so that we might live.\n * We work so as to live.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-09-15T12:22:43.840", "id": "28029", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-15T15:14:02.877", "last_edit_date": "2015-09-15T15:14:02.877", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "6841", "parent_id": "23924", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "When using frequency adverbs like `ぜんぜん,あまり,よく` and so forth. Where is the\ncorrect location in the sentence to structure it?\n\nIn my Genki I textbook it says the sentence structure is **Topic Frequency\nTime Goal Verb** such as\n\n> 私は よく しちじに うちに かえります\n\nBut I've also seen in my book:\n\n> スーさんは、 しゃしんを ぜんぜん とりませんでした。 \n> わたしは、こどものとき よくハンバーガーを たべました。\n\nWhere the frequency adverb is not following that structure and is sometimes\nbefore or after the particle. It's looking like I can stick it almost\nanywhere. Thanks.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T11:02:51.517", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23929", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T16:37:22.970", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-23T15:14:14.890", "last_editor_user_id": "5010", "owner_user_id": "9920", "post_type": "question", "score": 5, "tags": [ "grammar", "adverbs" ], "title": "Frequency adverb locations", "view_count": 991 }
[ { "body": "> 私は よく しちじに うちに かえります\n\nIt is safe to place the frequency adverb before what it directly modifies. In\nthis sentence what happens よく is しちじにうちにかえる not just うちにかえる (\"Going home\"\nwould happen oftener than よく.) so placing よく before しちじにうちにかえります would sound\nmore natural.\n\n> スーさんは、 しゃしんを ぜんぜん とりませんでした。\n\n「スーさんは、 ぜんぜん しゃしんを とりませんでした。」 would also be fine. ぜんぜん modifies しゃしんをとりませんでした\nor とりませんでした (What Sue didn't do at all was しゃしんをとる or とる)\n\n> わたしは、こどものとき よくハンバーガーを たべました。\n\nHere what happened よく is ハンバーガーをたべた not こどものときハンバーガーをたべた. よくハンバーガーをたべた\nhappened in こどものとき. わたしは、こどものとき ハンバーガーを よくたべました would also be acceptable (but\nよく might sound like '(eat) a lot', not 'often', when placed before たべました). You\ncould also say こどものとき、わたしはよくハンバーガーをたべました.\n\nBut when you talk casually you could place it almost anywhere.\n\n> ぜんぜん、スーさん(は)、しゃしん(を)とりませんでしたよ。 \n> スーさん(は)、ぜんぜん、しゃしん(を)とりませんでしたよ。 \n> スーさん(は)、しゃしん(を)ぜんぜんとりませんでしたよ。 \n> スーさん(は)、しゃしん(を)とりませんでしたよ、ぜんぜん。 \n> しゃしん(を)、ぜんぜんとりませんでしたよ、スーさん(は)。 \n> スーさん(は)、ぜんぜんとりませんでしたよ、しゃしん(を)。 etc.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T05:22:44.567", "id": "23940", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T16:37:22.970", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T16:37:22.970", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23929", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23932", "answer_count": 1, "body": "They are bold in the following sentence:\n\nまあまあ 出【で】るの **出【で】ないのって** ビヤ **だる** 一ぱいほどの玉【たま】を出【だ】しちまってな。", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T11:27:32.683", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23930", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T12:20:08.383", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words", "particles" ], "title": "What do the words 「出ないのって」 and 「だる」mean?", "view_count": 263 }
[ { "body": "> 「Verb or adjective + の + **Same** verb or adjective in **negative** form + の\n> + って」\n\nmakes an idiomatic expression meaning:\n\n> \"Is it ever ~~?\" or \"Does it ever ~~?\"\n\nIn other words, this structure emphasizes the meaning of the verb or\nadjective.\n\nI would be inclined to believe that the sentence is about pachinko. **_You\nwould need to use more words to write your quetions than you have been using,\nexplaining the context and showing us what you yourself have found out so\nfar_**. People here are too nice to say something like that so I just did\nbecause it is the truth.\n\nTrust me, you will get better answers and do so more quickly.\n\nIf it were actually about pachinko, 「出るの出ないのって」 would mean \"Did it ever let\nout balls?\", which in turn means \"Did I ever win?\"\n\n「ビアだる」=「ビア樽」= \"beer barrel\"\n\nThe speaker won enough balls to fill a beer barrel; It is figurative speech.\nOnce again, if the context were about playing pachinko.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T12:20:08.383", "id": "23932", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T12:20:08.383", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23930", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23951", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I was amazed to read the following haiku in \"小林 一茶\" ([a\nbook](http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E5%B0%8F%E6%9E%97%E4%B8%80%E8%8C%B6-%E9%9B%86%E8%8B%B1%E7%A4%BE%E6%96%B0%E6%9B%B8-%E5%AE%97-%E5%B7%A6%E8%BF%91/dp/4087200221/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&qid=1429818397&sr=8-22&keywords=%E5%B0%8F%E6%9E%97%20%E4%B8%80%E8%8C%B6%20%E5%B0%8F%E6%9E%97%20%E4%B8%80%E8%8C%B6)\nwritten by [宗左近/Sō\nSakon](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%AE%97%E5%B7%A6%E8%BF%91) about the\nfamous poet) :\n\n> 我と来てあそぶ親のない雀\n\n![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/UEcsH.png)\n\nAt first sight, the text given by 宗左近 doesn't seem regular : 5+6+5 morae ?.\n\nI knew [the following\nversion](http://haikuguy.com/issa/search.php?japanese=&romaji=&year=1814) with\na 'や' after あそぶ :\n\n> 我{われ}と来{き}てあそぶ **や** 親{おや}のない雀{すずめ}\n\nI thought the haiku given by 宗左近 was misprinted but it seems incredible such\nan error occured at the very beginning of the book, in the first haiku given\nby the author, page 1 !\n\nThere's obviously something I'm missing... Any idea to help me ?", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T20:21:32.717", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23934", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T08:47:26.837", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T08:47:26.837", "last_editor_user_id": "4550", "owner_user_id": "4550", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "poetry", "haiku" ], "title": "Why does this haiku have a 5-6-5 pattern?", "view_count": 1472 }
[ { "body": "This is a **_complete_** guess, but I upon searching my dictionary in OSX, I\nfind the entry `親し` with readings of したし and ちかし. So maybe it is either of\nthose written without the okurigana to \"haiku-ify\" it? Like [親]{したし}. Plus,\nthe し ending gives it a more classical feel.\n\n> われときて・あそぶしたしの・ないすずめ", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-23T20:51:24.207", "id": "23935", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-23T20:51:24.207", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "23934", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "Some haiku do not strictly follow the 5-7-5 pattern. Irregular haiku with one\nmore or less morae than usual are called [字余り or\n字足らず](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BF%B3%E5%8F%A5#.E9.9F.BB.E5.BE.8B),\nrespectively. Some haiku even ignore the 5-7-5 rule completely (See\n[自由律俳句](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%87%AA%E7%94%B1%E5%BE%8B%E4%BF%B3%E5%8F%A5)).\n\nWikipedia says\n[一茶](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B0%8F%E6%9E%97%E4%B8%80%E8%8C%B6)'s\nhaiku do have many variations:\n\n> 最も多くの俳句を残したのは、正岡子規で約24,000句であるが、 **一茶の句は類似句や異形句が多い**\n> ため、数え方によっては、子規の句数を上回るかもしれない。よく知られている「我と来て遊べや親のない雀」にも、「我と来て遊ぶや親のない雀」と「我と来て遊ぶ親のない雀」の類似句があり、これを1句とするか3句とするかは議論の分かれるところである。\n\nAccording to [一茶の俳句データベース](http://ohh.sisos.co.jp/cgi-\nbin/openhh/jsearch.cgi?group=hirarajp), the sources of these three variations\nare as follows:\n\n * 我と来てあそぶ親のない雀 is from 七番日記\n * 我と来て遊ぶや親のない雀 is from 句稿消息/etc\n * 我と来て遊べや親のない雀 is from おらが春/etc\n\nI think the third one is best-known, but it seems that the first one is the\noriginal version, although being 字足らず. 七番日記 is his personal diary, which he\ndid not intend to publish.\n\nAccording to the article of\n[おらが春](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%81%8A%E3%82%89%E3%81%8C%E6%98%A5), 一茶\nwanted to publish his poetry book, but he died before he could do that. おらが春\nwas compiled and published by another person, 25 years after 一茶's death.\n\n> 『おらが春』は、まったくの時系列に沿って書き記された日記ではなく、刊行を意図して構成されたものである。さらに\n> **一茶自身、改訂や推敲を重ねたが、未刊のままに留まっていた**\n> ものである。内容的には、一部脚色や時系列を事実とは若干ずらした箇所なども指摘する研究者もあり、作品として意識されたものという性格が強い。\n\nSo I think the well-known third version was the revised version either by 一茶\nhimself or by the editor.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T04:09:26.960", "id": "23951", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T07:05:30.540", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T07:05:30.540", "last_editor_user_id": "5010", "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23934", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23937", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I was listening to a playlist of songs today and I heard the line\n\n> 「…目を開け弱さをかき消すんだ」\n\nWhat exactly is 〜んだ and when/how is it used?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T00:35:13.567", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23936", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-24T01:28:24.370", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9915", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "conjugations" ], "title": "What is 〜んだ and how is it used?", "view_count": 229 }
[ { "body": "「んだ」 is a colloquial pronunciation of 「のだ」.\n\nIn this context, 「んだ」, together with the preceding verb, expresses a firm\nrequest or even a demand or imperative.\n\n**\"Open up your eyes and get rid of your weakness!\"**\n\nWe do not use 「んだ」 this way on a daily basis; At least many of do not. It is\nmost often used by the teacher or leader types who need to give advice and\ncheer people on.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T01:21:29.310", "id": "23937", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-24T01:28:24.370", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-24T01:28:24.370", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23936", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23949", "answer_count": 2, "body": "When 「」 is used to quote, are the words contained always literally what they\nsay, or are they paraphrasing? For example, in a sentence such as\n「助けて」と叫びながら走っていた人が多かった, does it exclude people from saying variations such as\n「誰か助けて」 and imply that 「助けて」 is the only thing that they said, or are they\njust giving the general idea of what was saying? Another example sentence I'm\nhaving trouble with is 「これって何」と思いながらプレゼントを開封した. The time it takes to think a\nphrase is short compared to the time it takes to open something, so is 「これって何」\nthe only thing they think or is it just given as a general idea of what is\nbeing thought?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T02:51:38.023", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23938", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-25T06:00:36.000", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-24T20:52:10.900", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7712", "post_type": "question", "score": 6, "tags": [ "grammar" ], "title": "Are the words in Japanese quotes 「」 always literally what is being said?", "view_count": 339 }
[ { "body": "The simple answer is yes.\n\nOf course, it can sometimes depend on the situation being described, or the\nauthor's intent, or on the reader's imagination. But consider the「」quotes as\nbeing analogous to the \"\" quotes in English.\n\n> There were lots of people running and shouting, \"Help!\"\n\nRead the passage in English and ask yourself the same question. Does \"Help!\"\njust mean everyone was saying \"Help\" or could it mean that maybe some people\nsaid \"Help me\"? That could be up to the reader's imagination, and surely we\ncan imagine that some people might have shouted \"Help me\" or some similar\nvariation.\n\nSame with your other example. We know that the person opening the present\ncertainly thought 「これって何」because the sentence explicitly told us to. But as\nreaders, we can imagine that there may also be other thoughts running through\nthe person's head. Maybe they are guessing what the present might be even as\nthey open it.\n\nSo just like in English, we have to assume that things in quotes are literally\nwhat is being said. Sure, we can imagine that the character might be also\nthinking something else. Or that in a crowd of people shouting 「助けて」some of\nthem may be shouting 「誰か助けて」or「逃げろ」or something similar. As readers, we are\nusually free to guess or imagine whatever we want. But if you have to look at\nthings in terms of black-and-white, then in that situation we **can't** allow\nourselves to imagine anything other than what is written. And so we must\nconclude that what is being thought or said is only what is literally written\nin the 「」quotes.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-25T00:26:04.620", "id": "23946", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-25T00:26:04.620", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "23938", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "**_No, they are not._** The content inside 「 」 is often **_not_** the exact\nsame as what was actually said. There exist a few patterns when it is not.\n\n> 1) **Summarized statement** :\n\nWhen the author thinks that the actual statement is too long and/or it\ncontains unnecessary parts for the reader, the author may trim it a little\nwithout changing the meaning or nuance of the original statement.\n\n> 2) **Translated dialectal statement** :\n\nWhen the original statement was made in a dialect and the author feels it\nwould be better to \"translate\" it to standard Japanese for easier\ncomprehension for the readers, the author would sometimes make the\nalterations.\n\nI would not include translating from another language in this category because\nthat is a totally different phenomenon.\n\n> 3) **Emphasis** :\n\nNative speakers quite often place words and phrases in 「 」 for the simple\npurpose of emphasizing them or making them stand out \"physically\" to catch the\nreader's attention (even if no one actually said those words).\n\nTechnically speaking, this use of 「 」 is rather questionable, but many people\ndo it including myself.\n\nFinally, I did not mention placing titles in 「 」 because that is only \"legal\"\nofficially.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-25T06:00:36.000", "id": "23949", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-25T06:00:36.000", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23938", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23950", "answer_count": 1, "body": "What is the difference between 発展、発達、and 開発?\n\nAccording to my textbook, they all mean development. I know that they cannot\nbe used interchangeably, but I don't know when to use each of them.\n\nI know the kanji 開 means to open, so I'd assume 開発 is used when something new\nis developed. Is that correct?\n\nHowever, I don't know the meanings of the other kanji to distinguish the\ndifference.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T02:59:27.873", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23939", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T03:51:34.113", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-24T13:19:04.770", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": "9635", "post_type": "question", "score": 7, "tags": [ "word-choice", "words" ], "title": "Difference between 発展、発達、and 開発", "view_count": 3155 }
[ { "body": "開発 is clearly different from the other two. 開発 means creation, engineering,\netc., and 開発する is transitive. コンピュータを開発する means to create/build/engineer\ncomputers. As you pointed out, 開発(する) can be used when something new is\ncreated.\n\n発展 and 発達 share the similar meaning to a certain extent. コンピュータの発展 and\nコンピュータの発達 both refer to the advancement of the computer technology in general.\nBoth of these are intransitive when followed by する (i.e. コンピュータが発達する, not\n*コンピュータを発達する)\n\nThe difference of 発展 and 発達 are:\n\n * 発達 is more like sophistication, reaching maturity, increasing complexity, etc., while 発展 is closer to prosperity. For example, 都市の発達 tend to refer to a maturation of infrastructure, economy, or the system of politics, while 都市の発展 tend to refer to an expansion of the territory, increase of the population, etc.\n * The development of a body/organ/tumor/etc is almost always 発達. 「子どもの成長と発達」「精神の発達」「イルカの脳は発達している」\n * Additionally, 発展 sometimes means \"to change\", \"to evolve.\" 「事件に発展する (develop into an incident)」「発展問題 (non-straightforward/advanced problem in a textbook)」", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T03:51:34.113", "id": "23950", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T03:51:34.113", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23939", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23942", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I have found it in a manga. It is a dialogue discussing to the third person\ngoing into a Pachinko shop.\n\nHere is the full sentence.\n\n> **ばかこくでねえ へえるはずさ** あとで パチンコ屋【や】の店【てん】員【いん】がしらべたらよ。\n\nWhat do the words ばかこくでねえ and へえるはずさ mean?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T08:46:18.787", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23941", "last_activity_date": "2015-06-02T10:01:14.400", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-02T10:01:14.400", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words", "manga" ], "title": "What do the words 「ばかこくでねえ」 and 「へえるはずさ」 mean?", "view_count": 407 }
[ { "body": "ばかこくでねえ is a dialectal way of saying ばかこくんじゃない, ばかをいうな 'Don't be silly.'\nばか(を)こく means [馬鹿]{ばか}(なこと)を言う, 'say a stupid thing' 'be stupid'.\n\nへえる is a dialectal or collapsed way of saying [入]{はい}る. へえるはずさ, 入るはずさ\nliterally means 'should go in', so probably 'He should go in' 'I'm sure he\nwill go into the Pachiko shop'.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T09:41:39.680", "id": "23942", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-24T09:53:06.910", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-24T09:53:06.910", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23941", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23944", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I came across the following sentence:\n\n> 駅の近くで食事をした。\n\nDoes it sound unnatural if I were to use the following (or rather, is it\nincorrect)?\n\n> 駅の近くで食事を食べました。", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T12:51:39.653", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23943", "last_activity_date": "2021-11-15T23:31:26.597", "last_edit_date": "2021-11-15T23:31:16.410", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9915", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "Difference between 食事をする and 食事を食べる", "view_count": 531 }
[ { "body": "> 「[駅]{えき}の[近]{ちか}くで[食事]{しょくじ}を[食]{た}べました。」\n\nis grammatical but the 「食事を食べる」 part is redundant and unnatural because 「食事」\nalready means \"eating a meal\" all by itself. It is not something that more\ncareful speakers would say.\n\n「食事をした/しました」 or 「食事を[取]{と}った/取りました」 would sound far \"better\".\n\nIt is like saying 「ロペスさんが[日本]{にほん}に[来日]{らいにち}した。」. It says \"Japan\" twice in\nsuch a short sentence when 「来日」, all by itself, means \"coming to Japan\".\n\nA more proper way to say it is: 「ロペスさんが来日した。」 or 「ロペスさんが日本に[来]{き}た。」", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-24T13:10:43.057", "id": "23944", "last_activity_date": "2021-11-15T23:31:26.597", "last_edit_date": "2021-11-15T23:31:26.597", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23943", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23948", "answer_count": 1, "body": "In the light novel that I'm reading, the narrator sometimes starts his\nnarration with \"と、\" like the following example:\n\n> 「ふん」\n>\n> **と** 、彼女は鼻を鳴らし、中学の制服であるワンピース型のセーラー服をひるがえす。\n\nI've been curious about why と is appearing at the start of the second\nsentence. Searches for a definition or colloquial abbreviation fail to be\nmeaningful because there are too many sites which detail と as a particle.\n\nI'm not sure of its purpose, but I figure that it could be one of these\npossibilities:\n\n * An abbreviation of という,\n * the particle と connecting it to 「ふん」,\n * an onomatopoeic sound,\n * a hesitant pause,\n * or some other reason.\n\nThe question that I have is, which one?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-25T04:42:23.283", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23947", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-25T05:16:18.080", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9764", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "meaning", "syntax", "particle-と", "abbreviations", "ambiguity" ], "title": "When would と appear at the start of a sentence?", "view_count": 896 }
[ { "body": "「と」 here is a quotative particle used to quote 「ふん」; It is not an abbreviation\nof anything. 「と」, all by itself, is in its full form.\n\nIt may look like 「と」 is at the beginning of the sentence, but in essence, it\nis the same as:\n\n「ふん」と、彼女は鼻を鳴らし、中学の制服である・・・・\n\nA direct quote, no matter how short it is, is often treated as a full line in\nstories, which is what you are seeing in 「ふん」 in this case.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-25T05:16:18.080", "id": "23948", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-25T05:16:18.080", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "23947", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23954", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I have found them in a manga. It is a dialogue discussing to the third person\ngoing into a Pachinko shop.\n\nHere is the full sentence.\n\n> ジョーがやった台【だい】はガラスがはずしてあっただと\n\nWhat do the words やった台 and はずしてあった mean?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T07:01:46.223", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23952", "last_activity_date": "2015-06-02T10:00:19.510", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-02T10:00:19.510", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "words", "manga" ], "title": "What do the words 「やった台」 and 「はずしてあった」 mean?", "view_count": 180 }
[ { "body": "* やった \nIt's the past (or perfect) form of a verb やる. This word doesn't contain more\nmeaning than \"do\" does, but compared with する, it slightly emphasizes that the\naction involves physical movement. According to your context, it'd mean\n\"played\" here.\n\n * 台【だい】 \nThat's the way we casually call _machine_ like in \"slot machine\".\n\n * はずしてあった \nYou can refer\n[here](http://www.guidetojapanese.org/learn/grammar/teform#part4) for this\ngrammatical construction. One point is: the `V + てある` pattern always requires\na transitive verb's active form in V's position, but V is not necessarily what\nthe subject of the sentence has done.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T08:36:48.613", "id": "23953", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T10:19:55.780", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T10:19:55.780", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "23952", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "台 in this context is a short for パチンコ台, a Pachinko machine. やった is the past\ntense of やる, a verb \"to play\" in this context. Thus the topic of the sentense\nis \"The Machine which Joe played\". ガラス is a glass panel which is placed on the\nfront of a machine. はずしてあった is the past [~てある\nform](http://www.imabi.net/l30tearu.htm) of a verb 外す, to remove. Thus the\nmain sentence is \"the front glass had been removed (at that time)\". だと is a\nshort for だと言うのか?, which is a rhetorical question \"Are you saying that...?\".", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T08:46:00.473", "id": "23954", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:09:42.560", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T05:09:42.560", "last_editor_user_id": "3506", "owner_user_id": "3506", "parent_id": "23952", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23960", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Japanese verbs can take the suffix -tai, which attaches to the ren'youkei form\nand turns the verb into an -i adjective, expressing desire to do what the verb\nsays. I have recently wondered where this suffix comes from. Is it known? I\nmean, do we know where the -tai suffix in question comes from? Someone\nproposed it might be from -te + ai, love, as a comparison with how \"oi\", to\nlove, means also to want in Hakka. Could that be?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T11:09:24.730", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23956", "last_activity_date": "2019-06-11T22:44:55.520", "last_edit_date": "2019-06-11T22:44:55.520", "last_editor_user_id": "5229", "owner_user_id": "5324", "post_type": "question", "score": 5, "tags": [ "etymology", "suffixes", "auxiliaries" ], "title": "Origin of -tai desiderative suffix", "view_count": 2428 }
[ { "body": "According to [this\narticle](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B8%8C%E6%9C%9B_%28%E8%A8%80%E8%AA%9E%E5%AD%A6%29)\nin Japanese WP, -たい is the descendant of Middle Japanese -たし (-tasi), which\nultimately traces back to Old Japanese (or Proto-Japonic) いたし (itasi; \"sore,\nacute\").\n\n[A paper referred by that page](http://ci.nii.ac.jp/naid/40019009531) argues\nthat this form has changed its meaning taking the path of \"painful\" → \"sorely\nfelt\" → \"of physiological necessity\" → \"of emotional necessity\" → \"desire\".\n\n> _Someone proposed it might be from -te + ai, love_...\n\nIt's unlikely to be true considering the oldest attested form of this word\nended in -asi, not -ai. Additionally, if Japanese speakers want to incorporate\nChinese words in such a way, they never use _te_ -form but append them\ndirectly to word stem or 連用形. For instance, -そう in 「雨{あめ}が降{ふ}りそう」 is said to\noriginate from 相{そう} (\"appearance\").", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T15:00:10.583", "id": "23960", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:31:32.777", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T05:31:32.777", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "23956", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23958", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Coming across these kind of constructs:\n\nカニでもわかる+名詞句\n\nカニでもできる...\n\nカニでも使える...\n\netc.\n\nWhat does it mean? How is it used?\n\nIn general, what main associations would a \"crab\" create from a Japanese\ncultural perspective? E.g. lion - brave; tanuki - sly; crab - ???", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T13:19:36.150", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23957", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T14:13:17.450", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T13:31:50.027", "last_editor_user_id": "9771", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "expressions" ], "title": "\"Even a crab\" - Japanese proverbs (?)", "view_count": 167 }
[ { "body": "I personally didn't know the very exact expression, but I can make a\nreasonable guess that it's a variant of サルでも…… (\"Even monkeys do...\"). The\nimplication is quite similar to \"for dummies\" in English, which is to state\nits easiness in exaggerated manner.\n\n[One of web pages](http://jovivi.seesaa.net/article/18412361.html) using the\nphrase declares:\n\n> 昔、サルでもわかるナントカってのがありましたが、その上をいきます。 **カニでも分かる** 簿記!ホ乳類じゃなくても大丈夫!\n>\n> _There were some (books?) like \"~~ For Monkeys\" quite some time ago, but\n> we'll go much farther. Bookkeeping **For Crabs**! You don't even need to be\n> a mammal!_\n\nBy the way I'd like to add that my favorite one is\n[ヤドンでもできるポケモン乱数調整](http://blog.livedoor.jp/rurou_raori/) (\"Pokémon RNG\nManipulation for Slowpokes\").", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T14:07:39.837", "id": "23958", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T14:13:17.450", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "23957", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23962", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I am practicing expressing \"to try to do something\", using the participle of\nverbs plus 見る.\n\nIf I understand correctly, a sentence like:\n\n> このビールを飲んでみました。\n\nmeans something like:\n\n> I tried to drink this beer.\"\n\nNow, using the same grammatical structure, I am trying to say:\n\n> I will try to talk to my parents and decide whether I will buy it or not.\n\nThe first part would be: 私の両親と話してみます and the second: これを買うかどうか決めて見ます。(not sure\nif that is right, this is just my best shot at it right now)\n\nNow I try to combine them in one sentence, but the following sounds quite\nwrong in my beginner's ears:\n\n> 私の両親と話して、これを買うかどうか決めて見ます。\n\nWhat is the right way to say this?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T15:15:11.717", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23961", "last_activity_date": "2016-08-25T02:29:06.363", "last_edit_date": "2016-08-25T02:29:06.363", "last_editor_user_id": "11104", "owner_user_id": "7958", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "grammar", "usage", "verbs" ], "title": "combining several participle of verb + miru", "view_count": 506 }
[ { "body": "> このビールを飲んでみました。\n\nI think it means 'I tried drinking this beer' (You drank it). \n'I tried to drink this beer' would be 「このビールを飲もうとしました」(You may or may not have\ndrunk it).\n\nIf I understand correctly, \n'try doing' 「~してみる」 \n'try to do' 「~しようとする」 \n'will try to do' 「~しようと思う」「~したいと思う」(Literally 'I think I will ~' 'I think I\nwant to ~')\n\n> I will try to talk to my parents and decide whether I will buy it or not.\n\nI think it will be 「両親と話して、これを買うかどうか決めようと思います or 決めたいと思います。」\n\n「私の両親と話して、これを買うかどうか決めてみます。」 doesn't sound natural to me.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T16:09:42.770", "id": "23962", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T16:44:42.343", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-26T16:44:42.343", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "23961", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23965", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I am currently slightly confused about the exact usage of the word \"watashi\".\nI know that the word means I, but it's usage seems unclear to me. Some sources\nsay that it is simply for [polite use](http://www.jref.com/japanese/personal-\npossessive-pronouns/), while other sources state that it is only for [feminine\nuse](https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20130329212943AAuM18q).\n\nCan someone clarify this pronouns usage for me?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T21:29:54.710", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23964", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T09:06:44.997", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T09:06:44.997", "last_editor_user_id": "1065", "owner_user_id": "9794", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "translation", "usage", "definitions" ], "title": "Question about the usage of \"watashi\"", "view_count": 1010 }
[ { "body": "It's for polite use by both genders, and the most generally used first-person\npronoun. While it used to be more for women, this is no longer the case.\n\nIt is true that women tend to use わたし ( _watashi_ ) more than other pronouns,\nbut it is not a feminine pronoun†, and it is frequently used by men. It is\nmore polite than others and also used more generally. Typically, it is thought\nof as the first-person pronoun \"safest\" to use as a learner.\n\nA useful quote from the Japanese Wikipedia article (linked below):\n\n> 現在では男女ともに使用する。 \n> Nowadays men and women both use it.\n\nMore gender-locked (but not exclusively so) personal pronouns would be ぼく (\n_boku_ ) and おれ ( _ore_ ) for men, and あたし ( _atashi_ ) for women. **I would\ncaution against using these, however** , until you are more comfortable with\nthe language, since they are a bit less flexible with the situations in which\nthey can be used.\n\nThe answer given by that _Yahoo! Answers_ post has four downvotes for a\nreason—its writer is a junior Japanese learner and does not seem to clearly\nknow the difference. There's honestly [lots of\nresources](https://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=usage+of+watashi) out there\nthat talk about first-person pronouns in Japanese; avoid _Yahoo! Answers_\nwhenever possible.\n\n* * *\n\nHere are a few resources on personal pronouns that are pretty accurate:\n\n * [How to call yourself in Japanese?](http://cotoacademy.com/blog/japanese-study/how-to-call-yourself-in-japanese-boku-ore-watashi/)\n * [Japanese pronouns - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_pronouns#List_of_Japanese_personal_pronouns) ([日本語](https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E8%AA%9E%E3%81%AE%E4%B8%80%E4%BA%BA%E7%A7%B0%E4%BB%A3%E5%90%8D%E8%A9%9E#.E4.B8.80.E4.BA.BA.E7.A7.B0.E5.8D.98.E6.95.B0.E4.BB.A3.E5.90.8D.E8.A9.9E.E3.81.AE.E4.B8.80.E8.A6.A7))\n * [Should I use ORE, BOKU, WATASHI or something else when referring to myself?](http://www.yesjapan.com/YJ6/question/4023/should-i-use-ore_boku_watashi-or-something-else-when-referring-to-myself) (George is a very knowledgeable member of this site)\n\n† It _can_ be perceived as feminine if used in casual contexts.\n\n* * *\n\nJust a note: When saying something like \"thanks in advance\", it's better to\nsay よろしくおねがいします ( _yoroshiku onegaishimasu_ ) than ありがとう.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T21:51:15.410", "id": "23965", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:41:01.340", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T05:41:01.340", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "3035", "parent_id": "23964", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "What is the difference between ~ru and ~masu? For example: taberu and\ntabemasu. Don't they mean the same thing? Are there certain instances when one\nis acceptable and the other isn't?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T22:10:33.083", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23966", "last_activity_date": "2018-10-16T14:40:15.543", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9946", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "word-choice", "usage" ], "title": "What is the difference between ~ru and ~masu?", "view_count": 12681 }
[ { "body": "〜る is used in **_informal_** situations (e.g. in daily conversation with your\nfriends)\n\n〜ます is used in **_formal_** situations (e.g. in public, or when you speak to a\nstranger, to people older than you, and to your senior)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T00:49:41.577", "id": "23972", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T00:49:41.577", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9950", "parent_id": "23966", "post_type": "answer", "score": -1 }, { "body": "A couple of things the other answers didn't address:\n\n 1. The ~る form is also referred to as the \"dictionary form\" ([辞書形]{じ・しょ・けい}). This is how you look up verbs in the dictionary. So if you need to look up \"to eat\" in a Japanese dictionary, you search for [食]{た}べる, not [食]{た}べます. Likewise, if you see the verb [会]{あ}う in the dictionary, you know this is the correct entry corresponding to the verb [会]{あ}います.\n\n 2. The ~ます form is usually referred to as \"Polite form/speech\" ([丁寧語]{てい・ねい・ご}). It is sometimes used in formal situations, but not necessarily. It's one thing to speak politely; it's another to speak formally. @BrandonAzer's examples at the top are not quite correct. It is more like:\n\n> * ケーキを **食べる** → Informal/Familiar\n> * ケーキを **食べます** → Polite, neutral\n> * ケーキを **いただきます** → Formal, humble\n>\n\nFormal speech/situations are most often accompanied by special _words_ called\n[敬語]{けい・ご}, not different _forms_ of informal words.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T03:21:43.900", "id": "23975", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T03:21:43.900", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "23966", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23978", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I am not asking about genre, meaning or anything other subjective issues. I am\ntalking about the following type of things in english:\n\n 1. English prose (no rhyme, no rhythm). May also have literal devices (e.g. metaphor, simile).\n 2. English poetry (has rhyme and/or rhythm e.g. iambic pentameter). May also have literal devices.\n\nAs we can see, putting genre, meaning and other subjective issues aside, in\nEnglish due to the physical sound features of rhyme and rhythm, we can easily\ndistinguish it from prose.\n\nNormal prose can also be said to have prose with literal devise as in a novel.\nSometimes we may alternative between the two i.e. a book may contain both\npoetic sentences as well as prose. However the point is that there are some\ndefining physical features e.g. rhythm, rhyme, literal devices which can be\nphysically detected.\n\nThus I want to know, what physical features are there to distinguish between\nstyles in Japanese. For example I heard poetry is done on the basis of\nsyllable number e.g. tanka (5-7-5). However what is the point of this? Rhyme\nand rhythm have a sound effect in English which is why they are distinct.\n\nHowever what is so special about having a 5-7-5 syllable pattern? We can do\nthat in English too, but it would still be prose, albeit maybe an artistic one\ne.g. it will perhaps contain literal devices. Although admittedly the flat,\nshort words of Japanese are perhaps suited more for this type of syllable\npattern.\n\nSo what does Japanese have? Or is poetry and prose pretty much the same thing?\nWhy did they make tanka being 5-7-5 a big deal? What's wrong with having\nlonger syllabic sentences?\n\nAlso do Japanese novels use literary devices throughout e.g. simile, hyperbole\nand so on? Are these literary techniques in the Japanese language or not? How\nimportant is rhyme in Japanese language; is it not as important as it is in\nEnglish, and why?\n\nWhat physical things does Japanese have, how is it measured? Or is it just a\nsweet, nice and cute sounding language without much room for entertaining\nlanguage or measurable sounds? Btw I'm not criticising it, saying less is part\nof the beauty of Japanese culture, however I just want to know the difference\ni.e. if anything can be measured.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T22:34:25.983", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23967", "last_activity_date": "2016-02-11T09:35:58.857", "last_edit_date": "2016-02-11T09:35:58.857", "last_editor_user_id": "11849", "owner_user_id": "9948", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "poetry", "rhetoric" ], "title": "What are the basic physical differences between japanese poetry and prose?", "view_count": 1222 }
[ { "body": "The 5-7-5 pattern is musically perceived as 5 quavers, 3 eighth rests, 7\nquavers, one eighth rest and 5 quavers, making the 4/4 rhythm.\n\nexample: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lps7EaIPEAA>", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T01:56:26.697", "id": "23974", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T02:11:37.613", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T02:11:37.613", "last_editor_user_id": "4092", "owner_user_id": "4092", "parent_id": "23967", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "Rhyme hasn't had much presence through the history of Japanese poetry, so you\ncan say that Japanese poetry is virtually built on blank verses.\n\nThe underlying meter of traditional Japanese poetry style, or 和歌 ( _waka_ )\nis, as @user4092 has pointed out, the repetition of 5-7 cycles based on\nquadruple measures. The word 短歌 ( _tanka_ ; 5-7-5-7-7) literally means \"short\nverse\", that is, they also have (or _had_ ) \"long verse\" 長歌 ( _choka_ ), whose\nlength is unlimited: 5-7-5-7-...-5-7-7 (cf. 貧窮問答歌 ([\"Dialogue on\nPoverty\"](http://home.earthlink.net/~khaitani1/mysx5.htm#5-892)) from\n_Man'yoshu_ ). The last 7-syllable part acts as coda.\n\nThe shortened version, _tanka_ , was mainly serving for \"poetic gatherings\"\nwhere people recited their (in many cases improvised) _tankas_ in turn. In\nother words, a single unit of _tanka_ was not originally meant to be a _poem_\n, but a _stanza_. The 俳句 ( _haiku_ ; 5-7-5) arised later from a slightly\nmodified kind of activities, where they linked alternately the upper (5-7-5)\nand lower (7-7) parts of a _tanka_ unit.\n\nAs today's _tankas_ and _haikus_ have become mostly being appreciated\nindependently by each single unit of them, your doubt on how much prosodic\nvalue are left for those forms, is indeed not unreasonable. Especially for\n_haiku_ , there are some movements pursuing the \"essence\" of _haiku_ without\nits form, generally called as 自由律俳句 (\"free verse haiku\"), which in my opinion\nshares something in common with, say, [six-word\nmemoirs](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six-Word_Memoirs) in US.\n\nBut remember the prosodic power of 5-7 (or 7-5) repetition is by no means\ndiminished and still serving as the most primitive rhythmical unit that\narouses Japanese speakers' sense of verse.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T05:22:15.230", "id": "23978", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:22:15.230", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "23967", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23976", "answer_count": 1, "body": "```\n\n これも全て先生のおかげですね。感謝するんですよ?\n \n は、はい 本当に、感謝しています\n \n 突っ込むべき時に突っ込むべき場所にきちんと突っ込めない男はもてませんよ?\n \n まあ、今日の所は良いでしょう。皆にも伝えないといけませんからね。仲間たちにも順番に顔を出すように伝えて下さいませ\n \n```\n\nIn this I'm not sure what she would be referring to. Would someone say\nsomething like the above in the situation where they are saying \"that's enough\nchitchat/etc for today(as we can do it tomorrow or whenever)\" to bring the\nconversation to an end, or is it referring directly to what was said in the\nprevious line?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T23:09:18.840", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23968", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T03:34:14.717", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9840", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words", "meaning", "usage" ], "title": "What does 今日の所は良いでしょう mean here?", "view_count": 258 }
[ { "body": "今日の所は良いでしょう。 is roughly equivalent to \"That's it for today.\" The sentence is\nused by a teacher or a boss and that means the speaker has finished speaking,\nlesson or anything else he/she want, and the listener(s) can leave now.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T03:34:14.717", "id": "23976", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T03:34:14.717", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "23968", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23992", "answer_count": 4, "body": "# English\n\nOne thing that I still don't exactly understand is when to use は when talking\nabout doing things on a certain day.\n\nFor example,\n\n> 明日 **は** 学校に行く。\n\nor\n\n> 明後日 **は** 映画館に行く。\n\nShould the は be included or excluded from these sentences? Is there a specific\nsituation where it should be included (besides emitting particles in a casual\nsituation)?\n\n# 日本語\n\n文に特定の日を表す語がある場合、日に「は」をつけたほうが良いかどうかがまだよくわかりません。\n\n例として、\n\n> 明日 **は** 学校に行く。\n\nと\n\n> 明後日 **は** 映画館に行く。\n\nという文に「は」はあるほうが良いですか?ないほうが良いですか?\n\n「は」をつけないといけない場合はありますか?(タメ口で話している場合以外)「は」をつけるべきでない場合は?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T23:45:34.307", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23970", "last_activity_date": "2021-03-20T03:41:34.427", "last_edit_date": "2021-03-20T03:39:40.593", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9915", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "particles", "particle-は" ], "title": "Use of は particle when talking about doing things on a certain day", "view_count": 379 }
[ { "body": "`wa` is often used to state a difference between 2 cases. \nExample sakana ga suki desu. niku ha amari suki ja arimasen.\n\nhere you don't use niku ga , because you're stating a difference.\n\nin your question, when you say kyou ha, you implicity compare to a different\ntime period , let's say kinou.\n\nso it's implicitly : Kinou , nanika wo shimashita. kyou wa ... It's like : But\ntoday I ... \nI hope this clears this up to you. Cheers.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-26T23:57:22.107", "id": "23971", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-26T23:57:22.107", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9949", "parent_id": "23970", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 }, { "body": "It depends when you are speaking about something with someone. When you often\nintroduce a new topic or a base to speak about, you use は else you don't use\nit.\n\nWhen you use は, you don't have to use it again as the listener already knows\nabout the topic. You can speak about something related to the topic. When you\nchange the subject, the subject marker が is used.\n\nOne thing to keep in mind about は, is to assume it as the English equivalent\nof 'as for' so when you say 明日は学校に行く, it translates to 'As for school, I will\ngo tomorrow' or easily 'I will go to school tomorrow'. As you are talking\nabout tomorrow, you can talk about meeting friends, or having lunch somewhere\nor anything which you will be doing tomorrow with the one you are speaking to,\nthe listener knows you are talking about tomorrow, so you don't have to use は\nagain.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T09:46:36.953", "id": "23984", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T09:46:36.953", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9912", "parent_id": "23970", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "Student who skip classes often uses 明日は学校に行く...\n\n * 明日学校に行きます I will go to school tomorrow.\n * 明日 **も** 学校に行きます I will go to school tomorrow **too**.\n * 明日 **は** 学校に行きます I will go to school **at least** tomorrow.\n\nI think は in that sentence implies something.\n\n * (少なくとも)明日は\n * (今日はできなかったけど)明日は\n * (気が変わったので)明日は\n * ...\n\nAlso, it is often used to compare with other day (e.g. today).\n\n> 「 **今日は** 映画館に行ったから、 **明日は** 美術館に行こう」\n>\n> We went to the movie theater **today** , so let's go the museum\n> **tomorrow**.\n\nYou can omit は if you don't need other nuance or emphasis.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T04:53:10.183", "id": "23992", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T04:53:10.183", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9388", "parent_id": "23970", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "It's not different from general wa/ga problems.\n\n 1. If you simply swear an idea of going to school tomorrow, it's (私は)明日学校へ行く.\n 2. When you reply to the question \"What will you do tomorrow?\", then 明日は….\n 3. When you want to limit the scope you are referring to, 明日は…\n 4. You can't add は to a noun or an adverb in a conditional clause except adverbs that represent amount or number. So, \"If you go tomorrow\" should be 明日行けば.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T10:13:27.657", "id": "23998", "last_activity_date": "2021-03-20T03:41:34.427", "last_edit_date": "2021-03-20T03:41:34.427", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "4092", "parent_id": "23970", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23977", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I came across this sentence in\n[jisho.org](http://jisho.org/search/%E6%95%B0%20%23sentences)'s example\nsentences:\n\n> 彼等{かれら}の数{かず}は多い。\n\nAnd I'm wondering if the 数 is really necessary. I thought 多い already implied a\nlarge 数, so saying that the 数が多い would be redundant.\n\nWould it be grammatically correct to remove 数? If it is, does it change the\nmeaning or make it sound unnatural?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T01:39:54.593", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23973", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:51:25.487", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T01:46:09.957", "last_editor_user_id": "4091", "owner_user_id": "9749", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "Is the 数 necessary?", "view_count": 118 }
[ { "body": "You could omit 数;「[彼等]{かれら}は多い。」. It is grammatically correct, but it is\nambiguous on what you are talking about, unless it is clear because of the\ncontext.\n\nIn sentence 「[彼等]{かれら}の[数]{かず}は多い。」, it is somewhat clear you are talking\nabout \"number of people\" (though still have a little room the sentence can be\ninterpreted differently.) but the meaning of the sentence 「[彼等]{かれら}は多い。」\nisn't limited to \"number of people\", it might mean \"number of prize they have\ngotten\" or \"the number of TV appearance they have experienced\".\n\nIf you are already talking about \"number of people\", then\n「[彼等]{かれら}の[数]{かず}は多い。」 and 「[彼等]{かれら}は多い。」 means the same. But without\ncontext, 「[彼等]{かれら}は多い。」 is ambiguous on what you are talking about.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T04:50:48.340", "id": "23977", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T05:51:25.487", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T05:51:25.487", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "23973", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "Can someone tell me why there is て in between 休ませ and ください?\n\nThe sentence is: _今日は仕事を休ませてください。_\n\nI know I have conjugated the verb 休む in the causative form but didn't get why\nthe て is used after it. Is it the **te** form? Or some other grammatical\nelement? Thank you.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T06:11:11.757", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23979", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T06:25:48.310", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9912", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "business-japanese" ], "title": "Japanese Verbs: Causative form", "view_count": 159 }
[ { "body": "Yes, this is just the causative form + ~てください.\n\n休む → 休ませる → 休ませて → 休ませてください\n\n> 今日は仕事を休ませてください → Please allow me to stay home (and rest) from work today.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T06:25:43.413", "id": "23980", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T06:25:43.413", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "78", "parent_id": "23979", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "Polite requests are made in the form of ~てください. 手紙を書いて下さい。りんごを食べて下さい。 Take 休む,\nmake it 休ませる, and then just follow the rules for polite requests and make it\n休ませてください.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T06:25:48.310", "id": "23981", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T06:25:48.310", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1797", "parent_id": "23979", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24001", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Over at Travel.SE, there's [a bit of a\ndebate](https://travel.stackexchange.com/questions/46734/curfew-is-walking-on-\nthe-street-in-tokyo-legal-after-11-00-pm-if-youre-under) on how to parse [this\npiece of Tokyo\nlegislation](http://www.reiki.metro.tokyo.jp/reiki_honbun/g1012150001.html):\n\n> (深夜外出の制限)\n>\n> 第十五条の四\n>\n> **保護者は** 、通勤又は通学その他正当な理由がある場合を除き、深夜(午後十一時から翌日午前四時までの時間をいう。以下同じ。)に\n> **青少年を外出させないように努めなければならない** 。\n\nI glossed the bolded part as \"guardians... must endeavour to not let youth go\nout\" late at night, which seems clear enough. Now the question is, does this\nrefer only to youth going out _by themselves_ (alone)? Or is it also illegal\nfor the youth to go out together with their guardian if there is no \"good\nreason\" (正当な理由) for them to be out?\n\nSpecifically, the original question was asking whether it would be illegal for\na visiting tourist to take their 15-year-old son out shopping or sightseeing\nlate at night.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T06:36:08.390", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23982", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T15:50:22.170", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:52:15.060", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "1790", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "meaning" ], "title": "Does 青少年を外出させないように refer to to letting a youth out alone, or in any circumstances?", "view_count": 292 }
[ { "body": "東京都青少年の健全な育成に関する条例:\n\n> 第十五条の四\n> 保護者は、通勤又は通学その他正当な理由がある場合を除き、深夜(午後十一時から翌日午前四時までの時間をいう。以下同じ。)に青少年を外出させないように努めなければならない。 \n> 2 何人も、保護者の委託を受け、又は同意を得た場合その他正当な理由がある場合を除き、深夜に青少年を連れ出し、同伴し、又はとどめてはならない。\n\n[One lawyer explains this](http://lmedia.jp/2014/12/31/59614/) like this:\n\n> 禁止されているのは、保護者の許可なく、 **あるいは、** 正当な理由なく青少年を深夜に連れ出す行為です。\n\n[Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department\nsays](http://www.keishicho.metro.tokyo.jp/seian/ken_iku/ken_iku.htm):\n\n> 何人も、保護者の同意なく、 **又は** 正当な理由なく、深夜に青少年を連れ出し、同伴し、とどめてはいけません。\n\nIn other words, a 15-year-old boy needs **BOTH** 保護者の許可/同意 **AND** 正当な理由 in\norder to go out late at night, regardless of whether they're alone or with\ntheir parents.\n\nWhen a children is accompanied by their parents, obviously there is a 保護者の同意\nindicated by the second clause. But it does not necessarily mean there is also\na 通勤又は通学その他正当な理由 indicated by the first clause. Importantly, the first clause\nis independent of the second clause, and 正当な理由 _in the first clause_ does not\ninclude 保護者の同意 itself. (Otherwise, 保護者の同意 would be the only requirement, and\nthe first clause would be totally meaningless!)\n\nAs far as I could find, there are no official sites which states that the sole\nexistence of 保護者の同意 serves as the 正当な理由 for a youth to go out late at night.\nThus, even when a children is accompanied by their parents, it can be illegal\ndepending on the situation. The lawyer I mentioned says:\n\n> 保護者同伴だったとしても、例えば、深夜遅くまで歓楽街や風俗街を連れて回るなどの行為に及んでいる場合には、やはり規制対象となることでしょう。\n\nIn reality, basically you don't have to worry at all if you want to climb Mt.\nFuji overnight with an underage child. But you will certainly be questioned by\npolice officers when you are hanging around Roppongi with a youth late at\nnight. Also note that many leisure facilities (such as theaters) absolutely\ndeny entrance of underage people after 11PM even when they're with their\nparents.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T14:54:58.530", "id": "24001", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T15:50:22.170", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-28T15:50:22.170", "last_editor_user_id": "5010", "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23982", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "> A: 凄いな 僕にはそこまで先のことを考える余裕はないよ\n>\n> B: お前さんだって十分に凄い奴だよ。何の後ろ盾もなくここにいるってのは、そういうことだと思うがね\n>\n> A: そうか。君にそう言ってもらえると僕ももっと頑張る気になるよ\n>\n> B: ま、そういうことだから、お互いに頑張ろうぜ。今はともかく、いつかは決着を付けなくちゃならねぇんだからよ\n\nTo what exactly does the そういうこと in the final part refer? Does it refer to the\nprevious utterance as a \"whole\" (which then links into the 互いに頑張ろう as the\nother character also said he was 凄い). If not, what does it refer to and how is\nit used?\n\nEdit: My question could also be phrased as: what are the things that そういうこと\ncan refer to in a conversation and how does one know which one the speaker is\nreferring to. Plenty of times I've seen someone say something then use\nそういうことだから or そういうわけだから etc. to refer to what they just said before they\ncontinue, or it could be used to refer to what the other person in the\nconversation said. How does one know which one it is?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T08:10:50.083", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23983", "last_activity_date": "2021-12-07T01:06:13.407", "last_edit_date": "2021-12-07T01:02:34.210", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": "9840", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "meaning", "usage" ], "title": "The scope of そういうこと", "view_count": 2571 }
[ { "body": "> 僕ももっと頑張る気になるよ\n\n「そういうことだから」 means: \"since you will try harder.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T13:05:56.910", "id": "23985", "last_activity_date": "2021-12-07T01:06:13.407", "last_edit_date": "2021-12-07T01:06:13.407", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": "9949", "parent_id": "23983", "post_type": "answer", "score": -3 }, { "body": "The second そういうこと vaguely refers to the previous discussion as a whole, like\n\"that\" in \"So, that's it for today\". (Of course the first そういうこと refers to\n\"お前さんだって凄い奴だ\".)\n\nそういうことで/そういうことだから/そんな訳【わけ】だから is a set phrase used when the speaker wants to\nwrap up the topic and finish the discussion, sometimes even without the\nconclusion. It's more true when this is preceded by まあ/じゃあ (≒So). The person\nwho said 「ま、そういうことだから、お互いに頑張ろうぜ」 did not want to talk about that topic longer.\n\nReference:\n\n * [Phrase of the Day - じゃ、そういうことで](http://lint.co.jp/e+/PoD/PoD.php?num=169)\n * [会議で「じゃあ、そういうことで……」と言ってないか?](http://www.itmedia.co.jp/bizid/articles/0611/27/news052.html) (Describes how this phrase sounds irresponsible in business settings)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T04:20:28.130", "id": "23991", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T04:20:28.130", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23983", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23999", "answer_count": 2, "body": "My understanding of ばかり so far:\n\nAfter TE form, the meaning is unambiguous as it applies to the verb, e.g.:\n\n> 本を読んでばかりいる。Do nothing but read books.\n\nHowever, placed after the noun\n\n> 本ばかりを読む\n\nThe meaning is left ambiguous as it could mean\n\n 1. read books only (i.e. nothing else, not magazines, not brochures etc., no implication on how much time the person spends actually reading.)\n\nAlternatively, same as before\n\n 2. ONLY read books (i.e. do nothing else BUT read, no implication on the actual material).\n\nHowever, in another example from a grammar book:\n\n> ジョンはビールばかり飲んでいる\n\nIt's listed as \"John is drinking beer the whole time (he doesn't do anything\nelse).\"\n\nI'm not sure whether the meaning is left ambiguous here with this particular\ntranslation picked arbitrarily (which would confirm my previous understanding)\nor one-way only (which would oppose it, to some degree).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T14:55:09.507", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23986", "last_activity_date": "2021-11-25T19:42:30.247", "last_edit_date": "2021-11-25T19:42:30.247", "last_editor_user_id": "30454", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar", "particle-ばかり" ], "title": "noun + ばかり [exclusivity sense] ambiguity", "view_count": 356 }
[ { "body": "本ばかり読む is basically \"read books only\", but it actually means \"only read books\"\ntoo, as you said. ジョンはビールばかり飲んでいる is the same, it can also mean he may do\nsomething besides drinking beer. It's ambiguous in that sense.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T10:28:23.143", "id": "23999", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T10:28:23.143", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4092", "parent_id": "23986", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "Try looking at it this way:\n\n> [thing/action] + ばかり\n\nThis typically means \"[thing/action] only\".\n\nYou can add more structure to that sentence. But if you fill in the blank with\na thing or action of your choice, it typically means that you are doing \"that\nthing/action only\".\n\nTake your example with John and the beer:\n\n> ジョンは **[ビール] ばかり** 飲んでいる。 John is drinking **only [beer]**.\n\nThis could describe a 飲み放題 situation where John has a wide variety of drinks\nto choose from, but he chooses to only drink beer.\n\nCompare with a related situation using the other sentence structure you\nmentioned:\n\n> ジョンは **[ビールを飲んで] ばかり** いる。 John is **only [drinking beer]**.\n\nThis situation could describe a party at an 居酒屋 where there are a lot of\npeople hanging out, talking, eating, drinking. But John spends the whole night\ndrinking beer and refrains from eating or talking to anyone.\n\nThe translation I gave in the second example is not the best, but it remains\nconsistent with the formula used in the first example. A better translation\nwould be, \"John is just drinking beer,\" or, \"John spends the whole night just\ndrinking beer.\"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T23:48:09.340", "id": "24027", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T23:48:09.340", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "23986", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23989", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I have found them in a manga. It is a dialogue discussing to the third person\ngoing into a Pachinko shop.\n\nHere is the full sentence\n\n> なんせ ここいらの商人【しょうにん】どもは あのジョーがくると おちおち商売【しょうばい】 **しとられん ちゅうて おびえとるん** じゃから\n\nWhat do the words しとられん, ちゅうて and おびえとるん mean?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T17:03:15.200", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23987", "last_activity_date": "2017-08-19T14:17:21.060", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-02T09:59:39.917", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "words", "manga" ], "title": "What do the words 「しとられん」, 「ちゅうて」 and 「おびえとるん」 mean?", "view_count": 404 }
[ { "body": "しとられん means you can't do something or can't focus on something, because there\nis something more important. In this sentence, it says when ジョー comes, you\ncan't do businesses anymore. Probably, ジョー is a person who interrupt the\nbusinesses.\n\n~ ちゅうて means \"(someone) says ~\". ちゅうて comes right after the content of what\nthey speak. In this context, 商人 said \"あのジョーがくるとおちおち商売しとられん\".\n\nおびえとる mean fear/be afraid of. In this context, 商人 is afraid of ジョー.\n\nBy the way, they all are dialect spoken by west part of Japanese people. In\nstandard Japanese しとられん is equivalent to してられない, ちゅうて is equivalent to と言って,\nおびえとるん is equivalent to おびえている.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T18:35:02.637", "id": "23989", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T00:51:57.533", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-28T00:51:57.533", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "23987", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23990", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I started learning japanese recently, and I looked back at the kanji I've\nlearned, and I simply can't think of any kanji with an onyomi longer than 2\nmorae.\n\nIs there really no kanji with an onyomi longer than 2 morae, and if so, why?", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T17:40:57.210", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23988", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T23:02:50.000", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-27T20:10:39.647", "last_editor_user_id": "9953", "owner_user_id": "9953", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "kanji" ], "title": "Can the onyomi be longer than 2 morae?", "view_count": 327 }
[ { "body": "Recall that on-yomi are derived from the Chinese pronunciation of characters,\nwhich are (with [few\nexceptions](http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=3330)) monosyllabic. The\nbasic structure of a syllable in [Middle\nChinese](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Chinese#Phonology) is as follows:\n\n * An initial consonant\n * A glide\n * A vowel\n * A final – either another glide or a consonant, but not both\n\nFor instance, 關 (resp. 怪, 脚) is _kwæn_ (resp. _kwai_ , _kjak_ ) in Middle\nChinese and has the kan-on クヮン (resp. クヮイ, キャク), but there are no syllables\nlike _kwain_. Thus there is no way a trimoraic on-yomi would arise.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-27T23:02:50.000", "id": "23990", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-27T23:02:50.000", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "578", "parent_id": "23988", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "By \"砂糖ダイエット\" I mean diet based on heavy consumption of sweets.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T07:32:36.463", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23993", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T13:25:29.147", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9958", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "food" ], "title": "Can I say \"砂糖ダイエット\" ?", "view_count": 77 }
[ { "body": "Yes it is perfectly grammatical, but I haven't heard of such a method. Please\nmake sure you really want to say 砂糖 (sugar) but not 糖質/炭水化物 (carbohydrate),\nbecause a few people actually seem to be talking about \"(高)炭水化物ダイエット\" (high-\ncarb diets).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T13:25:29.147", "id": "24000", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T13:25:29.147", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "23993", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "23995", "answer_count": 1, "body": "In this clip [at 19:50](https://youtu.be/ZgE387KDVpU?t=19m50s), it sounds like\nhe is saying, \"Nante na! Kore _dokka_ no kiza na yatsu ga itteta serifu\"\n(\"This is just something a ____ pretentious guy said\"). Is it indeed 「どっか」 ?\nWhat does that mean?\n\nI tried looking up 「どっか」in 2 online dictionaries but I did not find a clear\ndefinition. Is it at all related to phrases like 「どっか行け」 or 「椅子にどっかり座る」? Since\nit is followed by the particle 「の」, I would imagine not...", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T07:48:51.873", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23994", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T07:55:14.647", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4547", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "meaning", "particle-の", "listening" ], "title": "What does 「どっか」 mean?", "view_count": 2481 }
[ { "body": "どっか is the short spoken form of どこか which means `somewhere`.\n\nThere is also an entry here:\n<http://jisho.org/word/%E4%BD%95%E5%87%A6%E3%81%8B>", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T07:55:14.647", "id": "23995", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T07:55:14.647", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1065", "parent_id": "23994", "post_type": "answer", "score": 9 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24004", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I am learning Japanese from a book. The excerpt of a dialogue is given as\nfollows.\n\n> Q: 夏休みに国へ帰りますか。\n>\n> A: いいえ、夏休みには帰りません。冬休みに帰ります。\n\nMy question is how do we know what the questioner wants us to answer? In my\nmind, I will answer as follows.\n\n> Q: 夏休みに国へ帰りますか。\n>\n> A: いいえ、夏休に国へは帰りません。論文を書きます。\n\nMore precisely, in the first answer, \"夏休み\" is followed by \"は\". But in the\nsecond answer (my answer in mind), \"国\" is followed by \"へは\". I think it is\nrelated to emphasizing but I don't know what the questioner what to emphasize.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T08:38:35.043", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "23996", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T20:30:03.957", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9896", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "grammar" ], "title": "How do I know what the questioner wants me to answer?", "view_count": 161 }
[ { "body": "it's the tone of the last KA. \nIf the tone is rising, he wants you to answer. If it's down , he's just\ntalking to himself like \"So, you're going back to your country hmmmm..\"", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T08:45:56.827", "id": "23997", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T08:45:56.827", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9949", "parent_id": "23996", "post_type": "answer", "score": -1 }, { "body": "It's not clear based off the context which the person asking the question\nmeans, due to simple ambiguity. By the rest of the conversation, it may be\nmore clear, but it's not inherently obvious if, say, they tried starting a\nconversation with \"夏休みに国へ帰りますか\", if they are talking about when you want to\nreturn to your country, or were asking what you're doing over your summer.\n\nTo make this clear, you could simply add は in the appropriate place.\n\n> 夏休みには国へ帰りますか。\n\nIt's obvious here that they're asking \"are you going back to your country _in\nsummer specifically_ \", therefore making the more likely conversation:\n\n> Q: 夏休みに国へ帰りますか。\n>\n> A: いいえ、夏休みには帰りません。冬休みに帰ります。\n\nI feel that this is actually the more natural of the two conversations. The\nfact that the questioner mentioned going back to your country, it just seems\nless likely that they're asking what you're doing over summer, which would\nprobably have just been better asked by a 夏休みに何をする/どう過ごしますか etc.\n\nOverall, you can't be certain without knowing the tone or ammending the\ngrammar for clarity, but it seems much more likely that they're asking when\nyou're going home rather than what you're doing over the summer, based off\ncontext, and the way in which the questioner is asking.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T20:30:03.957", "id": "24004", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T20:30:03.957", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9185", "parent_id": "23996", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24003", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Probably a silly question, but in this sentence:\n\n> 仕事ができなかったら **十日と待たずに** 解雇されるだろうと思う。\n\nWhat does the と in 十日と待たずに mean? Is it the \"if\" と, e.g. \"when/if 10 days pass,\nI'd get fired without hesitation?\". Shouldn't it say 十日だと (with the だ added)?\n\nThanks for the answers.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T16:52:56.987", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24002", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T18:09:36.517", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-28T17:45:45.917", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9960", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation", "particle-と" ], "title": "In 十日と待たずに what does the と mean?", "view_count": 197 }
[ { "body": "This sentence says \"(I) will be fired _in no more than 10 days_.\"\n`(time)と待たずに` is a common set phrase which literally means \"without waiting\nfor (time)\".\n\nThis と is not \"if\" nor \"then\". The role of と here corresponds to the sixth\nentry of [デジタル大辞泉's\ndefinition](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/154670/m0u/%E3%81%A8/).\n\n> 6 (数量を表す語に付き、打消しの表現を伴って)その範囲以上には出ない意を表す。…までも。「全部で一〇〇円―かからない」「一〇〇キロ―走らなかった」", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T18:09:36.517", "id": "24003", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-28T18:09:36.517", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "24002", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24028", "answer_count": 3, "body": "Some of you may be familiar with the San-X line of characters called\n[すみっコぐらし](http://www.san-x.co.jp/sumikko/). The shtick is that they're timid\nand like \"living (ぐらし) in the corner (すみっこ)\"\n\nI know katakana is frequently used for emphasis, but what is the wordplay\nintended by writing just the single syllable コ in すみっこ in katakana?\n\n![enter image description here](https://i.stack.imgur.com/G4HTK.png)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-28T22:46:45.180", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24005", "last_activity_date": "2015-12-06T21:25:04.357", "last_edit_date": "2015-10-15T22:05:53.733", "last_editor_user_id": "11104", "owner_user_id": "9961", "post_type": "question", "score": 6, "tags": [ "katakana", "puns", "copywriting" ], "title": "Why the random katakana in 「すみっコぐらし」?", "view_count": 963 }
[ { "body": "First of all, saying 隅っこ versus just 隅 is something of a colloquialism to\nbegin with. And writing it with a コ instead of こ seems like a stylistic choice\nby a marketing team who is trying to be as cute as possible.\n\nLook at how katakana is used in advertising and you will find many examples of\nhow something normally written in hiragana/kanji has been switched out for\nkatakana. This is often a marketing strategy used to make the text more eye-\ncatching.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T09:57:08.220", "id": "24018", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T09:57:08.220", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "24005", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "What is a \"corner\" shaped like? ;)\n\nIn addition to drawing your attention by being unusual, it's visually\nappropriate for the meaning. I'd suggest it's as much/more a graphic design\nchoice than any linguistic emphasis.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T23:59:59.753", "id": "24028", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T00:08:49.510", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-30T00:08:49.510", "last_editor_user_id": "6621", "owner_user_id": "6621", "parent_id": "24005", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 }, { "body": "To me, すみっコ looks cuter and tinier than すみっこ.\n\nSimilarly, はしっコ、ちびっコ、ひよっコ、いたずらっコ look a bit cuter, more casual/friendly, less\nserious and/or more playful than 端っこ/はしっこ、ちびっ子/ちびっこ、ひよっ子/ひよっこ、いたずらっ子/いたずらっこ,\ndon't you think?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-12-06T13:18:47.277", "id": "29709", "last_activity_date": "2015-12-06T21:25:04.357", "last_edit_date": "2015-12-06T21:25:04.357", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9831", "parent_id": "24005", "post_type": "answer", "score": 7 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24010", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I am trying to figure out the particle and order of words in a sentence to\nthat says \"Someday I will go to Japan\". Would you say:\n\n> 私は日本がいつかに行きます。\n\nor would I say:\n\n> 日本は私がいつかに行きます。\n\nI really want to learn the grammar and structure. if you could help me that\nwould be great!", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T00:47:32.433", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24007", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T17:44:28.257", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9379", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "particles", "syntax" ], "title": "How would you structure a sentence to say \"someday I will go to Japan\"?", "view_count": 13005 }
[ { "body": "「いつか日本に行きます。」 sounds the most natural. You could insert a comma if you like to\nput in a pause:「いつか、日本に行きます。」 and it will be equally correct grammar.\n\nJapanese does not usually need or use a pronoun; rather, the pronoun is, in\nmost cases, implied. If you do not include 「私は」, it is clear to the listener\nthat you must be talking about yourself since you did not refer the sentence\nto any other subject (if you were talking about someone else, you would\nclearly indicate that either by gesturing toward the person in question or by\ninserting their name or a pronoun to refer to him/her. Without such a context,\nthe listener will easily understand you are talking about yourself). If you\ninclude 「私は」, it is not grammatically incorrect, but it sounds unnatural and\nthe listener will know at once that you are a beginner language learner of\nJapanese.\n\n「いつか」 should come first in the sentence because it is not the main point\n(which is 「行きます」); like in your English sentence, you are tacking it on to the\nfront of the sentence, which would be a complete sentence without it.「日本に」\ncomes next to 「行きます」 because it is directly modifying the verb 「行きます」. In\ncasual speech, it is possible to switch the sentence order and say\n「日本に、いつか、行きます。」or 「いつか行きます、日本に。」, but this shows that you did not completely\nform the sentence in your mind before speaking (off-the-top-of-your-head, on-\nthe-fly style of talking). Japanese can be grammatically correct in a fair\nnumber of sentence orders, but there is the most standard and formal structure\nversus ones which are only for talking with your peers.\n\n「に」 is the correct particle because you are going _to_ Japan, and _to/toward_\nis a major meaning of 「に」.「が」 is not the correct particle because that would\nmean that Japan is doing something (in this case, going).\n\nBasically, 「日本は」 and 「日本が」 would tell the listener than Japan is doing\nsomething or that something about Japan itself is going to be said. Your\nsentence intends to be about what you are going to do, not about what Japan is\ngoing to do, so 「が」 is not applicable.「日本は私がいつかに行きます。」 is not grammatical. If\nit instead said, 「日本が行きます。」or 「日本は、いつか、行きます。」, this would mean, \"Japan is\ngoing\" or \"Someday Japan will go\", respectively, because the 「が」 or 「は」would\nshow that Japan is doing something. If it said,「日本は私にいつか行きます。」, this would\nmean \"Japan is someday going (coming) to me\" --- which makes no sense, but\ngrammatically it would be conveying something, since the 「に」 would indicate\ngoing toward.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T05:34:24.833", "id": "24010", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T05:34:24.833", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4547", "parent_id": "24007", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 }, { "body": "## Part 1\n\nLet's start with the verb \"to go\", 行く.\n\nHere is a perfectly valid sentence:\n\n> 行く。\n\nWhat does it mean?\n\nWell, this verb can take some arguments, such as\n\n * **the actor** : who is going; (required)\n * **the destination** : where they are going; (optional)\n\nYou may have noticed that no actor was listed in the sentence, despite me\nclaiming it is \"required\".\n\nIt turns out that the actor _is_ still \"in the sentence\", it's just omitted\nfrom the sentence's surface form. But the key point is that it's impossible to\ninterpret the sentence without an actor in mind -- usually it defaults to \"I\"\nif there's nothing in context to suggest who the actor is.\n\nSo, a reasonable gloss for this sentence is\n\n> 行く。 \n> \" (I) will go.\"\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 2\n\nTo explicitly state the actor, you mark him/her with が and then put it at the\nstart of the sentence:\n\n> **ジョンが** 行く。 \n> \" **John** will go.\"\n\nHowever, in Japanese, if John (in this example) was already the topic of\ndiscussion, you need to replace が with は:\n\n> **ジョンは** 行く。 \n> \" **John** will go.\"\n\n(An example dialogue where John is already the topic of discussion:\n「ジョンは行く?」\"Will John go?\" 「ジョンは行く。」 \"John will go.\")\n\n(An example dialogue where John is not already the topic of discussion:\n「誰が行く?」\"Who will go?\" 「ジョンが行く。」 \"John will go.\")\n\nThe は↔が stuff is complicated and hard to cover in full detail so I'll leave it\nthere.\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 3\n\nTo specify the destination, you mark it with に and add it to the left of the\nverb.\n\n> 日本に{LLL}行く。 \n> \"(I) will go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL}.\"\n\nWe can of course combine this with the actor.\n\n> **ジョンは** 日本に{LLL}行く。 \n> \" **John** will go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL}.\"\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 4\n\nIn addition to arguments to the verb, there are other things you can add which\naffect the verb -- these are called \"adjuncts\".\n\nいつか is an example of an adjunct, which means \"someday\".\n\nThe natural place for this particular adjunct is between the actor and the\ndestination:\n\n> **ジョンは** いつか日本に{LLL}行く。 \n> \" **John** will go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL} someday.\"\n\nThat spot is also the location for many other adjuncts...\n\n> **ジョンは** お父さんと日本に{LLL}行く。 \n> \" **John** will go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL} with his father.\"\n>\n> **ジョンは** 絶対に日本に{LLL}行く。 \n> \" **John** will definitely go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL}.\"\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 5\n\nTo make the sentence polite, you turn the verb into its continuative form and\nthen add ます.\n\n> **ジョンは** いつか日本に{LLL}行きます。 \n> \" **John** will go [to Japan]{LLLLLLLL} someday.\"\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 6\n\nA note on 「私は」: since you can omit the subject of verbs in Japanese and have\nit inferred, often that is done. Having 「私は」 doesn't sound _terrible_ in this\nparticular sentence when it's standing by itself, but if you're already\ntalking about yourself in a previous sentence it'd probably be best to drop\nit.\n\n> (私は)いつか日本に行きます。\n\n* * *\n\n## Part 7\n\nThere are more ways to arrange this sentence, such as\n\n> 日本には(私が)いつか行きます。\n\nBasically, the important arrangements to understand are the ones which change\nwhat element is being marked with は (in this arrangement, the destination\ninstead of the actor), because marking the right thing is important for having\nthe sentence flow properly in the discourse.\n\nThere are other sorts of things you can do, like move elements in the sentence\naround without changing whether they are marked by は or not (for example, you\ncan say 「日本にいつか行きます」 but it's meaning is honestly not so different from the\nstandard version). This is called \"scrambling\".\n\nUnfortunately covering this all is a book.\n\n* * *\n\n## Summary\n\nSince that was a little unordered, let me give you a model to think about this\nmore structurally.\n\nThe underlying sentence is\n\n> 私がいつか日本に行きます。\n\nThen you mark the right element of the sentence with は based on what is the\ntopic of the discourse. Then you possibly drop that topic element if it feels\ninferrable enough. Then you possibly reorder elements around depending on\nscoping concerns or for pragmatic reasons (like adding on something for\nclarification when you notice what you said was ambiguous).\n\n* * *\n\n## Bonus 1\n\nNot what you were asking about, but 「いつか日本に行きます。」 sounds a little to definite\nto me compared to the English sentence (which is softened by \"someday\" more\nthan the Japanese sentence is softened by 「いつか」).\n\nI think I'd opt for\n\n> いつか日本に行きたいです。 \n> or \n> いつか日本に行きたいと思っています。 \n> \"I'd like to go to Japan someday.\"\n\n* * *\n\n## Bonus 2\n\nEven more not what you were asking about, but this sentence would flow much\nbetter if it wasn't such a standalone statement... like\n\n> 日本語が好きで、いつか日本に行きたいと思っています。 \n> \"I really like Japanese and would love to visit Japan someday.\"\n\nor something like that. Series of short statements sounds even less natural in\nJapanese than in English, I think.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T17:44:28.257", "id": "24024", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T17:44:28.257", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "24007", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24017", "answer_count": 2, "body": "Is the word 「奴」/「やつ」 ( _yatsu_ ) ever used to refer to another female, or to\nrefer to oneself if one is female? Or is it only used to refer to a male?\n\nAnswers to this\n[question](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/4062/can-%E5%BD%BC-be-\nused-as-an-indefinite-pronoun-like-%E3%82%84%E3%81%A4-or-%E7%94%B7) touched on\nthe word 「奴」, but I'm wondering if a girl can refer to herself like 「嫌なやつ、あたし」\nor 「生意気なやつだもん」 or something along those lines.\n\n(I'm not referring to cases in which a young Japanese woman refers to herself\nas 「僕」 or 「俺」 as an unusual, intentional style, but rather to the case of the\naverage woman or girl in casual speech or inner monologue.)", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T01:27:17.440", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24008", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T12:07:54.040", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.207", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "4547", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "word-choice", "words", "slang", "first-person-pronouns", "gender" ], "title": "Can 「奴」 be used to refer to a female?", "view_count": 978 }
[ { "body": "Yes, I've heard 奴 used to refer to females before. Of course, it is more\nfrequently used to refer to males. But remember that the rules of grammar and\nconvention are not so strict in casual, colloquial conversation (which is\ntypically where 奴 is used to refer to anyone).\n\nAlthough I've never heard a female refer to herself as 奴 before, I've heard\ncollege-age guys call girls 奴 on several occasions. I've also heard it used to\nrefer to animals and inanimate objects.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T09:40:28.160", "id": "24017", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T09:40:28.160", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "24008", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "If somebody calls other one ~~奴, I'll assume the referent is the speaker's\nclose (often the same-sex) friend, or someone has frictions with him/her, or\ns/he is casually mentioning an unspecified person. There's no gender\nrestrictions anyway.\n\nAs an aside, 奴 can colloquially refer _things_ whose names are unclear to the\nspeaker or hearer, in this case it's even not considered pejorative.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T11:35:10.473", "id": "24020", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T12:07:54.040", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-29T12:07:54.040", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "24008", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24019", "answer_count": 1, "body": "If you need to indicate more sections in a report than five (beginning each\nsection with\n[「まず」、「つぎに」、「さらに」、「そして」、「最後に」](http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/question_detail/q14100149)\nrespectively), what word(s) should you use to indicate the start of the\nadditional sections?\n\nDo you insert them after 「そして」 but before 「最後に」?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T05:11:48.900", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24009", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-08T18:30:17.537", "last_edit_date": "2015-09-05T00:30:50.327", "last_editor_user_id": "4547", "owner_user_id": "4547", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "word-choice", "syntax", "set-phrases", "counters", "academic-japanese" ], "title": "How do you indicate sections in a report if there are more than 5? (まず、つぎに、さらに、そして、最後に)", "view_count": 311 }
[ { "body": "There's no implicit order which word you should use for stacking sections. You\ncan (basically) freely choose linking words for your additional sections.\n\nA non-exhaustive list is:\n\n> 次{つぎ}に, 更{さら}に(は), そして, それから, その上{うえ}(に), この上{うえ}(に), 加{くわ}えて, それに加{くわ}え(て),\n> 他{ほか}に(も), また, 並{なら}びに, および, それだけでなく, のみならず etc. etc.\n\nVariations for \"firstly\" and \"finally\" are:\n\n> まず, 初{はじ}めに, 最初{さいしょ}に, 第一{だいいち}に, etc.\n\nand\n\n> 終{お}わりに, 最後{さいご}に, おしまいに, etc.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T11:14:17.003", "id": "24019", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-08T18:30:17.537", "last_edit_date": "2015-09-08T18:30:17.537", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "24009", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24014", "answer_count": 1, "body": "Here is the full sentence. An old man talking himself with this one about a\nboy who should have been staying at home but he should not.\n\nかえってきやがったら ただでは **すまさんぞ** 。\n\nI'm not sure if it is conjugated from 済ます in a specific spoken dialect.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T06:15:50.453", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24011", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T08:27:29.023", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "What does the word 「すまさんぞ」mean?", "view_count": 260 }
[ { "body": "済ませる= ”I will let the matter pass” 済まさない= ”I will not let the matter pass”\n\nすまさんぞ (済まさんぞ)= ”I will NEVER let the matter pass”", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T08:27:29.023", "id": "24014", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T08:27:29.023", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9966", "parent_id": "24011", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24015", "answer_count": 2, "body": "What is the difference between 確かに and 誠に? I found that: \n確かに means: certainly, indeed, surely, sure, definitely; \n誠に means: indeed, truly, really, surely. \nLooks like the meanings are almost the same. When each of those words should\nbe used?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T07:57:48.493", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24013", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T09:20:44.440", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7045", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "meaning", "usage" ], "title": "Difference between 確{たし}かに and 誠{まこと}に", "view_count": 1861 }
[ { "body": "確かに and 誠に have very similar meanings. The difference between them is that 確かに\nis often used in everyday conversation, but 誠に. 誠に usually used in very formal\nsituation or some historical period drama, because it sounds very formal and\nsomewhat old. So I recommend you to use 確かに.\n\nHere are some examples:\n\n * 確かにそう思う。 (I surely think so; good usage)\n * 誠にそう思う。 (I surely think so; somewhat sounds like an old people)\n\n誠に is often used when a company or an organization made a serious mistake or\nhave a serious problem and want to make apologise. They sometimes use \"誠に遺憾\"\nwhich means \"truly shameful\", to accept the problem is really serious. You\ncould replace 誠に with 確かに, like \"確かに遺憾\", but it isn't formal enough for the\nsituation.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T09:07:47.177", "id": "24015", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T09:07:47.177", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "24013", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 }, { "body": "Like in English, you can find a dozen words to mean the same thing. Maybe half\nof those could be considered in common use. And half again are the few words\nthat you hear the most often to express that meaning. The best way to learn\nwhich word should be used in which situation is to listen to native speakers\nand see what word they use, when they use it, and how.\n\nDuring my time studying in Japan, I heard 確かに used so much that I developed a\nhabit to use it myself quite often. But I can't remember hearing 誠に used at\nall, at least not in colloquial conversation settings which is where I focused\nmost of my study.\n\nTo give you a comparison with English, I would use 確かに to mean \"of course\" or\n\"certainly\" in a situation like the following:\n\nI show my gun collection to some Japanese friends who visit me in America.\nThey like shooting them, so I suggest they might look into getting a gun of\ntheir own in Japan. They reply that people in Japan don't own guns. Now, I\nknow that it's uncommon for people in Japan to have guns, but it's not unheard\nof. So I reply, 「確かに、普通じゃないけど、田舎の人は時々ある。」 \"Certainly, it's not normal, but\ncountry folk sometimes have them.\"\n\nIn contrast, 誠に sounds more formal and antiquated. I might use it to mean\n\"truly\", \"earnestly\", or \"with certainty\" only if I'm trying to sound poetic,\nor maybe to be funny or ironic. I might tell someone I love them truly\n「誠に愛している」or that I trust them completely「誠に信じている」. Again, this is not a phrase\nthat is used in casual conversation by normal, modern speakers.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T09:20:44.440", "id": "24016", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T09:20:44.440", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "24013", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "I was talking with a Japanese girl by message and she asked me how to read my\nname, which is Andrea (Spanish female name). I told her it's アンドレア but that\nsome friends call me あんちゃん because it's shorter.\n\nHer answer was: あんちゃんおん\n\nI didn't understand the meaning of this おん and after searching in dictionaries\nand so on I have no clue of how to interpret this as something you would add\nto a name.\n\nThank you in advance.", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T12:48:18.013", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24021", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-06T02:49:11.483", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9968", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "meaning" ], "title": "Meaning of おん after a name", "view_count": 1077 }
[ { "body": "I never heard this before, but if she is an idol perhaps it is some sort of\n\"cute\" sound she adds at the end? I hope someone else has the answer. It is\nvery interesting.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-08-07T01:01:31.310", "id": "26234", "last_activity_date": "2015-08-07T01:01:31.310", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "10801", "parent_id": "24021", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 3, "body": "First, regarding 行こうか - is it masculine speech, like か in informal speech\nusually is? Also, does it sound agressive, again like normal with か in\ninformal speech?\n\nSecond, is やめてよ feminine speech (as a command, if it can be used any other\nway)? I know that やめて and やめてね aren't feminine speech as commands, but some\nresearch indicates that やめてよ is. Please help.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T16:24:50.473", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24023", "last_activity_date": "2019-08-23T10:04:55.117", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9971", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "particle-か", "feminine-speech" ], "title": "Masculine and Feminine Speech - 行こうか and やめてよ", "view_count": 634 }
[ { "body": "In casual speech, asking about what sounds more feminine or more masculine can\nbe tricky. There are some things which are decidedly more manly or more\nfeminine-sounding. Others are more ambiguous or are pretty much gender-\nneutral. You really have to hang around native speakers for a while and listen\nto how they talk in order to learn which phrases seem more masculine/feminine.\n\nIn my experience, I've heard male and female native Japanese use both 行こうか and\nやめてね.\n\nThat said, 行こうか seems pretty gender-neutral. As a male, I use it myself a lot,\nbut it's perfectly normal to hear a female say it.\n\nI'd say that やめてね is something that a girl is much more likely to say than a\nguy. I've heard mostly females use it. Although a couple times I have heard my\ncollege-age male friends use it, but in sort of a joking, whiny way.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T22:47:40.243", "id": "24026", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-29T22:47:40.243", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "24023", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 }, { "body": "None of them are neither masculine speech nor feminine speech.", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T00:07:35.350", "id": "24029", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T00:07:35.350", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1065", "parent_id": "24023", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "Some words indeed have strong association with gender, but those are less and\nless heard from real, especially younger, people.\n\n * 行こうか\n\nIt doesn't sound particularly male or female, but do sound drier or more\nunemotional than other possible expressions, thus I can imagine male and\nfemale speaker would use this phrase in different situations. (If I were\ntalking with my friends, I'd use 行こう or 行こっか.)\n\n * やめてよ\n\nThis one is gender-neutral too. But if you emphasize the て (which the accent\ncore lies) with extra high pitch, you can easily make it sound exclusively\nfemale. (It's almost universal phenomenon that male(-like) speech is more\nintoned than female(-like) speech.)\n\nSince やめて is less straightforward than the other choice, namely やめろ, I can\nlikewise imagine that average male and female speaker might choose different\nones depending on who and when they're talking.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 4.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T02:04:25.313", "id": "24055", "last_activity_date": "2019-08-23T10:04:55.117", "last_edit_date": "2019-08-23T10:04:55.117", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "24023", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "In the short story 「悪魔」by 星新一 , a man walks onto a frozen lake to go ice\nfishing, carves out a small hole in the ice, and throws in the line. But after\nthrowing in the line, there's a 文型 I've never encountered, and I can't find an\nexplanation for it online or in any of my many grammar and 文型 dictionaries.\nThe sentence goes 「そこから糸をたらして、 **魚を釣ろうというのだった** 。」Could somebody please help\nme understand the meaning of volitional + というのだった or volitional + というのだ? When\nI search for examples of this online, most often the expression goes 「xx を\n**もらおう** というのだ。」\n\nThank you for your help.", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-29T20:17:28.493", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24025", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T14:57:33.963", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9972", "post_type": "question", "score": 4, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation", "meaning", "syntax", "volitional-form" ], "title": "Volitional + というのだった?", "view_count": 505 }
[ { "body": "It means \"he meant to dip the string through that hole and fish\".\n\nWhen the subject is 2nd or 3rd person, という **の** だ or ということだ work. Otherwise,\nit has to be という **こと** だ only, i.e. you can't use というのだ for \"I mean\"(*) or\n\"it means\".\n\n(* Accurately, というのだ for \"I mean\" still works when you express your own action\nthrough other person's perspective.)", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T14:57:33.963", "id": "24040", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T14:57:33.963", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4092", "parent_id": "24025", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24031", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I wrote:\n\n>\n> 14、15歳だった時、僕は飛ぶことができる車を作ってみたくなったので、いろいろな自動車メーカーに興味を持った。フォルクスワーゲンとかHONDAとかビュイックとかBMWとか。「どこのメーカーのために飛べる車を作ればいいかな」と思って、僕の父に「好きな自動車メーカーは?」と聞いた。父の答えは「もちろん、TOYOTA。このメーカーの車はとても頑丈で長持ちするからね」。それで、僕はTOYOTAを選んだ。1ヶ月後、僕は科学の先生と僕の将来について話していた。\n>\n>\n> 「TOYOTA!面白い!その自動車メーカーの本社は日本にありますね。じゃ、日本語を習ってみたらどうですか?」と先生が言った。それで、僕は日本語を習い始めた。\n>\n>\n> アメリカがダメだから別の国に行きたいというわけではありません。日本語を習い始めたからです。日本語ではなくて、別の言語を習い始めていたら、たぶん、その言語の国に行きたくなる。(^-^)\n\nAnd a user responded:\n\n> 日本語が堪能ですね。驚きました。トヨタの車は確かに高品質だと思います。日本人の気質を表しているのかもしれません。\n> **日本に来られたらより理解できると思います** 。\n\nI am totally stumped on the last sentence. The best guess I have is:\n\n> 日本に来られたらより理解できると思います \n> Rather than coming to Japan, I think it would better if you could\n> understand it.\n\nWhat is your translation and why?", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T00:48:11.633", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24030", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-18T21:41:54.990", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-18T19:47:49.077", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "7872", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "translation", "comparative-constructions" ], "title": "Meaning of 日本に来られたらより理解できる", "view_count": 359 }
[ { "body": "I would say\n\n> If you were to come to Japan, you would be able to understand it better.\n\nThe より attaches to 理解できる not to the V-たら construction.\n\nSee:\n\n[http://www.amazon.co.jp/より理解を深める-体液電解質異常と輸液-柴垣-\n有吾/dp/4498123123](http://www.amazon.co.jp/%E3%82%88%E3%82%8A%E7%90%86%E8%A7%A3%E3%82%92%E6%B7%B1%E3%82%81%E3%82%8B-%E4%BD%93%E6%B6%B2%E9%9B%BB%E8%A7%A3%E8%B3%AA%E7%95%B0%E5%B8%B8%E3%81%A8%E8%BC%B8%E6%B6%B2-%E6%9F%B4%E5%9E%A3-%E6%9C%89%E5%90%BE/dp/4498123123)\n\n<http://www.univcoop.or.jp/about/book/known.html>", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T00:54:48.340", "id": "24031", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-18T21:41:54.990", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-18T21:41:54.990", "last_editor_user_id": "9981", "owner_user_id": "4091", "parent_id": "24030", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "27882", "answer_count": 1, "body": "If possible could someone explain this to me? I have the Genki I book that\nexplains it pretty well but I guess I'm still having difficulty grasping it.\nI'll leave a example sentence in case my question is unclear.\n\nEx.\n\n> あそこ で ほん を よんでいる がくせい は みちこさん です\n\nI get that あそこ で ほん を よんでいる is qualifying がくせい but what is that part of the\nsentence and when would I use it?\n\nI think what may be confusing me is the different sentence structure then what\nI've been use to seeing thus far in what I've studied although I know Japanese\nsentence structure does tend to be a little more \"loose\" than English.\n\nApologies for the unclear question yet again. It seems I'm terrible at asking\nquestions", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T01:07:21.143", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24032", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-07T17:49:01.643", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-30T10:12:57.207", "last_editor_user_id": "10247", "owner_user_id": "10247", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "grammar", "verbs", "adjectives", "nouns" ], "title": "Qualifying Nouns With verbs and adjectives in japanese", "view_count": 4360 }
[ { "body": "That's a relative clause. We have them in English, too:\n\n> 〔あそこで ほんを よんでいる〕 **がくせい** は みちこさんです。\n>\n> The **student** [ _who_ is reading the book over there] is Michiko.\n\nIn Japanese, you don't have words like _who_ in relative clauses, but apart\nfrom that, it's pretty similar. In both languages, the relative clause\ncorresponds to a main clause:\n\n> **がくせい** は あそこで ほんを よんでいる。\n>\n> The **student** is reading the book over there.\n\nIn each case, the subject is pulled out (\"relativized\") and moved outside the\nclause.\n\nI wrote a longer explanation comparing relative clauses in English and\nJapanese [in another\nanswer](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/14541/relative-clauses-\ndistinguishing-whom-with-which-that/14550#14550). It's not perfect, but if\nyou'd like to read more, you can see what I wrote there.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-09-07T17:49:01.643", "id": "27882", "last_activity_date": "2015-09-07T17:49:01.643", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "24032", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24035", "answer_count": 2, "body": "I'm looking for the Japanese name of the specific verbal form used before -て,\n-たり, -た, -たら:\n\n```\n\n verb → 連用形 ren.yōkei → XXXX → + -て, -たり, -た, -たら\n 書く → 書き → 書い → 書いて, 書いたり, 書いた, 書いたら\n \n```\n\nI assume this verbal form is derived from the 連用形{れんようけい}, with specific\nphonetic modifications for _godan_ verbs. (see Shimamori Reiko, Grammaire\njaponaise systématique.1.48 (my translation): _\"-て, -たり, -た, -たら are preceded\nby the connective base of the verb, [...] yodan verbs [...] being deeply\nmodified [by the suffix]\"_ )\n\nSo, what's the name standing for \"XXXX\"? Something like \"-t\" form?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T09:30:48.533", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24033", "last_activity_date": "2015-06-08T06:54:08.583", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-08T06:54:08.583", "last_editor_user_id": "4550", "owner_user_id": "4550", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar", "morphology" ], "title": "Grammatical name of the form used before -て, -たり, -た, -たら?", "view_count": 432 }
[ { "body": "They are also treated as 連用形. More specifically i-type are called 連用形のイ音便.\nSometimes 音便形 is used, but there are no official name.\n\nReferences\n\n 1. [音便形 in デジタル大辞泉](http://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/leaf/jn2/34722/m0u/)\n 2. [動詞の音便(おんびん) イ音便・撥音便(はつおんびん)・促音便(そくおんびん)](http://blog.livedoor.jp/aritouch/archives/2862843.html)\n 3. [音便 - Wikipedia](http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%9F%B3%E4%BE%BF#.E5.8B.95.E8.A9.9E.E3.81.AE.E9.80.A3.E7.94.A8.E5.BD.A2.EF.BC.8B.E3.80.8C.E3.81.A6.E3.80.8D.E3.80.8C.E3.81.9F.E3.80.8D.E3.81.AA.E3.81.A9) (Note: This article uses 動詞のテ・タ形 for conveniece sake.)", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T09:51:48.643", "id": "24035", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T10:14:19.487", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-30T10:14:19.487", "last_editor_user_id": "3506", "owner_user_id": "3506", "parent_id": "24033", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "The way I like to explain euphonic changes (音便) is by modeling it in terms of\n\"repairs\":\n\n> /kakite/ \n> ⇓ {devoice of /i/} \n> × /ka[kt]{LL}e/ \n> ⇓ {/k/+C sequence repaired to /i/+C} \n> /kaite/\n\nNamely, a vowel devoices, and then some sort of repair needs to happen due to\nwhat sounds like a consonant-consonant sequence (which are illegal). Depending\non what consonants are involved, C₁C₂ repairs as follows:\n\n * イ音便: C₁ ∈ {/k/} ⇒ /i/+C₂\n * イ音便: C₁ ∈ {/g/} ⇒ /i/+voiced C₂\n * 撥音便: C₁ ∈ {/m/, /b/, /n/} ⇒ /N/+voiced C₂\n * 促音便: C₁ ∈ {/w/, /t/, /h/, /r/} ⇒ /Q/+C₂.\n\nThe only exception to these rules I'm aware of is 行く, which unexpectedly turns\ninto 行って (i.e., following 促音便) instead of 行いて. It's probably just due to イイテ\nbeing weird to pronounce. I also discuss this [in this\nanswer](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/11686/3097).\n\nI don't think there is a real point in giving a name to the repaired stem\nalone, since it does not actually exist outside of the appropriate context.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T19:06:17.397", "id": "24044", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T19:27:38.047", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.207", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "3097", "parent_id": "24033", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24038", "answer_count": 1, "body": "From which language did it come to Japanese? And why does it have its own\nkanji?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T10:52:04.277", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24036", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T14:19:42.320", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-30T11:22:00.267", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9976", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "etymology", "katakana", "loanwords" ], "title": "Why is イチゴ written in katakana?", "view_count": 1572 }
[ { "body": "いちご is a native Japanese word, which is almost as old as the written records\nof Japanese itself. ([Apparently](http://gogen-allguide.com/i/ichigo.html) it\nfirst appears as イチビコ in the\n[日本書記{にほんしょき}](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nihon_Shoki) (8th century) and as\nイチゴ two centuries later in the\n[倭名類聚抄{わみょうるいじゅしょう}](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wamy%C5%8D_Ruijush%C5%8D).)\n\nAs practically all native Japanese words (like 雨{あめ} _rain_ , 村{むら} _village_\n, etc.), いちご, too, was assigned a corresponding kanji from Chinese, in this\ncase 苺.\n\nFruits (and more generally, plants and animals) are often written in katakana,\nso you shouldn't be surprised to see it written as イチゴ. (See for example [this\nquestion](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/20840/1628).)", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T11:21:14.243", "id": "24038", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T14:19:42.320", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.863", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "1628", "parent_id": "24036", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24042", "answer_count": 2, "body": "It is a situation which a salesperson announces to a group of people to\nattract them to buy his goods.\n\nHere is the full sentence.\n\nこんなお買【か】いどくはどこの世【せ】界【かい】へいったって **ありゃしねえ** よ", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T10:53:07.913", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24037", "last_activity_date": "2017-03-27T08:37:10.967", "last_edit_date": "2015-07-16T02:13:11.997", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 12, "tags": [ "expressions", "particle-は", "negation", "contractions", "renyōkei" ], "title": "What does the word 「ありゃしねえ」mean?", "view_count": 1905 }
[ { "body": "ありゃしない in the context means \"doesn't exist\". So the whole sentence means \"This\ngood price doesn't exist anywhere else in this world.\"\n\nBy the way, ありゃしない is a spoken form of ありはしない. It consists of ある(exists) +\nしない(deny).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T12:24:59.907", "id": "24039", "last_activity_date": "2017-03-27T08:37:10.967", "last_edit_date": "2017-03-27T08:37:10.967", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "24037", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "You can add focus particles like は or も to verbs, but in order to do so, you\nhave to split the verb into two parts so that the particle has some place to\ngo. We'll split the verb into its continuative stem (called 連用形 in Japanese)\nand the verb する.\n\nFor example:\n\n```\n\n   忘れる   → 忘れ+する\n   忘れる+ **も** = 忘れ **も** する\n```\n\nOr:\n\n```\n\n   忘れない   → 忘れ+しない\n   忘れない+ **は** = 忘れ **は** しない\n```\n\nYour example is a little more complicated for a couple reasons. First of all,\nある has a suppletive negative form. Instead of saying あらない, people just say ない,\nalmost like the ~~あら~~ has been deleted:\n\n```\n\n   ~~あら~~ ない   → あり+しない\n   ~~あら~~ ない+ **は** = あり **は** しない\n```\n\nYour example also contains a contraction. The /w/ has dropped from /ri wa/,\nwhich turns it into /ri (y)a/, and this in turn can contract to /rya(a)/:\n\n```\n\n   ~~あら~~ ない   → あり+しない\n   ~~あら~~ ない+ **は** = あり **は** しない → あ **りゃ** しない\n```\n\nAnd the final /ai/ has been replaced with the colloquial pronunciation /ee/:\n\n```\n\n   ~~あら~~ ない   → あり+しない\n   ~~あら~~ ない+ **は** = あり **は** しない → あ **りゃ** しない → ありゃし **ねえ**\n```\n\nThis is a colloquial and emphatic negative form of ある.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T17:24:30.340", "id": "24042", "last_activity_date": "2017-03-27T08:35:21.140", "last_edit_date": "2017-03-27T08:35:21.140", "last_editor_user_id": "9831", "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "24037", "post_type": "answer", "score": 14 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24046", "answer_count": 1, "body": "From the newspaper article titles\n[北アルプス・涸沢岳で2人滑落、1人行方不明](http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/national/20150430-OYT1T50157.html),\nthe second paragraph reads:\n\n> 男性1人が行方不明となり、岐阜県警がヘリコプターで捜索したが見つからず、同日夕、日没のため打ち切った。1日午前から捜索を再開する。\n\nmy guess of a translation:\n\n> Being that there is one man whose location is unknown, (security / police)\n> from Gifu prefecture searched in a helicopter for him, and without his being\n> found, they called-off the search due to sundown. From the morning of the\n> first of May, the search will resume.\"\n\nat the least, what I don't understand is the following: \n\"... _捜索したが見つからず_ 、... \"\n\ncould I segment the sentence as follows: \n\"男性1人が行方不明となり、岐阜県警がヘリコプターで捜索した **ん** が、 **行方不明な人が** 見つからず、....\"\n\nEven if the explanation is \"that is just how newspapers write (in order to\nsave space)\", would not it read more easily and sound more natural to add just\na single comma as such: \n\"... _岐阜県警が捜索したが、見つからず_ 、... \"", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T16:55:20.717", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24041", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T16:45:12.053", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T16:45:12.053", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9509", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "grammar", "translation", "particles", "syntax", "particle-が" ], "title": "why is there a double \"が\" here: \"... 岐阜県警が捜索したが見つからず、...\"?", "view_count": 140 }
[ { "body": "The second が in the snippet 岐阜県警が捜索したが見つからず is not the subject marker, but the\nconjunction particle が (which you could replace by け(れ)ど(も)) translating to\n\"but\":\n\n> 岐阜県警が捜索した **が** 見つからず \n> Gifu Police searched [for the missing person], **but** not finding [him,\n> had to call off the search the same evening...]\n\nI don't understand your \"sentence segment\", so I can't comment on it, but in\nany case I agree that the sentence might be a tad easier to parse with a comma\nafter the が. That said, the commas in the sentence are standard newspaper\nstyle: commas after the omitted conjunction (after なり) and after the ず; and\nafter 同日夕 for easy reading.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T19:55:04.410", "id": "24046", "last_activity_date": "2015-04-30T19:55:04.410", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "1628", "parent_id": "24041", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24060", "answer_count": 2, "body": "The sentence is\n\n二人間がしっくり行かない\n\ni'm confused when to use ににん and when to use ふたり", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T17:34:05.303", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24043", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T07:57:35.467", "last_edit_date": "2015-04-30T18:06:21.390", "last_editor_user_id": "78", "owner_user_id": "9639", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "kanji" ], "title": "What's the reading of 二人 in this sentence?", "view_count": 804 }
[ { "body": "It's ふたり. You always use ふたり when indicating a group of two people or their\nrelation. Note that you can use both ふたり and ににん when just counting people. \nOne can tell 二人 in this sentence is not for counting number because of 間. It\nreads かん and means relation.\n\n> 二人間: relation between those two \n> 日米間: Japan-America relation \n> 先生と学生間: between a teach and a student \n> 夫婦間: between a married couple", "comment_count": 4, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T21:19:10.683", "id": "24050", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T03:20:32.320", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T03:20:32.320", "last_editor_user_id": "9980", "owner_user_id": "9980", "parent_id": "24043", "post_type": "answer", "score": 3 }, { "body": "First, your example is likely a mistake for\n\n```\n\n 二人の間がしっくり行かない\n \n```\n\nThe original is substandard, if not wrong. And yes, 「二人」is pronounced「ふたり」in\nthis case.\n\nSo, when is「二人」pronounced「ににん」? I don't think it's easy to come up with a\nsimple set of rules, but at least if the sequence . . . 五人、四人、三人、二人 works down\nto 2, then it's pronounced「ににん」. For example, 「二人前」(two persons' portion).\nWhy? Because in today's Japanese, the Chinese-based pronunciation (に、さん、し、ご、.\n. . ) is used for the number when the word is regarded as number + units, so\n\"three persons\", \"five kilometers\", etc. are pronounced さんにん、ごキロメートル, etc. On\nthe other hand, 「ふたり」is no longer regarded as number plus units. (It\nhistorically is, so there used to be みたり、よたり、いつたり、むたり、after ひとり and ふたり.)\n\n「ひとり」is a bit different. There still is a strong tendency to prefer ひとり to\nいちにん. So, 「一人前」can be pronounced ひとりまえ.\n\nFinally, what's wrong with「二人間」? Isn't it like「日米間」? Well, I don't have a\nlogical answer to it, but we simply don't say 「二人間」. Perhaps that's because\nthat would require the Chinese-based pronunciation ににん in order for it to\nprecede 間, but when talking about two persons we almost always refer to ふたり,\nnot ににん.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T07:57:35.467", "id": "24060", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T07:57:35.467", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9983", "parent_id": "24043", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 2, "body": "I self study Japanese and among the things I do is reading easy NHK news\narticles.\n\n[Here is one article I\nread.](http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/k10010062131000/k10010062131000.html)\nIn the article appears the word 首都 _capital city_. Hovering over it would give\nthe following sentence:\n\n> その国の議会や中心になる役所のある都市\n\nIf I am not mistaken this sentence should mean something along the lines of:\n\n> City with a public office becomes the capital and the center of the country.\n\nNow, whether the above translation is correct or not, I have not idea how this\nsentence works, I can't wrap my head around it. I understand each part (word,\nparticle, verb, etc.) separately (to a certain degree for I can't understand\nthis sentence) but, I can't understand how those individual parts integrate\nand form this sentence.\n\nWith that said I would like to receive your help with translating this\nsentence and helping me understand it, the sentence structure, word order,\ngrammar and any other thing that would help me understand the sentence and how\nit was created.\n\nUnless you have to please refrain from using rōmaji in your answers.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T19:24:50.500", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24045", "last_activity_date": "2015-11-17T05:13:34.777", "last_edit_date": "2015-11-17T05:13:34.777", "last_editor_user_id": "542", "owner_user_id": null, "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "grammar", "syntax", "relative-clauses", "parsing" ], "title": "Relative clauses with になる and のなる", "view_count": 404 }
[ { "body": "You should read the sentence in this way:\n\n```\n\n NP{ \n NP(その国) POSS(の) NP[ NP(議会) \n AND(や) \n NP(中心になる役所) ] } \n SUBJ(の) \n V(ある) \n NP(都市)\n \n```\n\n, where NP{} is the subject of the sentence modifying 'city'. It's not a full\nparse, but I hope you understand the point here.\n\nOP seems to have a problem reading NP[], which is a simple conjunction of two\nnoun phrases: 'parliament' and '中心になる役所'. You should note that (に)なる here does\nnot mean 'becoming', it's more like 'playing a role of'. So 中心になる役所 translates\ninto 'government offices playing central roles' or more naturally 'important\npublic offices'.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T21:09:04.043", "id": "24049", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T13:15:58.100", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T13:15:58.100", "last_editor_user_id": "9980", "owner_user_id": "9980", "parent_id": "24045", "post_type": "answer", "score": 5 }, { "body": "役所のある都市 \nA city that has government offices. Due to が -> の conversion, this is the\nequivalent to 役所がある都市. Credit to @snailboat\n\n議会や中心になる \nBecomes (things like) central and congress. In this case, this is not a one\ntime thing, or a future occurrence - it is in the present. This basically\nmeans it is being/doing. Another example of なる meaning \"to be/to do\" is ご覧になる,\nwhich is simply defined as \"to look\" despite literally meaning \"to become\nlooking.\" The common definition \"to become\" is really closer to the future\ntense of this verb, which is why it is much more flexible in Japanese than in\nEnglish.\n\nその国の \nOf that country\n\nその国の議会や中心になる役所のある都市 \nA city with government offices that are currently the congress and center of\nthat country.\n\nI tried to make it make sense in English while sticking as close to the\nliteral translation as possible. I read NHK Easy frequently, and I always read\nthose hover definitions as well. I hope this helps!", "comment_count": 6, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T00:17:13.157", "id": "24052", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T19:33:25.693", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T19:33:25.693", "last_editor_user_id": "9981", "owner_user_id": "9981", "parent_id": "24045", "post_type": "answer", "score": 0 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24051", "answer_count": 1, "body": "> 悲鳴と銃声と爆音の狂想曲は絶え間なく、かつ容赦なく鳴り響き、 **街を人を**\n> 根こそぎ壊し、鏖殺{おうさつ}していく。「[ディエス・イレ](https://vndb.org/v548)」\n\nBasic structure to me seems to be X狂想曲はA鳴り響き、B根こそぎ壊し、鏖殺していく, a subject 狂想曲\nwith three verbals (X and A, B being their respective pre-noun and pre-verbal\nelements). 根こそぎ壊し、鏖殺していく seem to share the same pre-verbal as their object -\n\"the people of the city\"(?)).\n\nWhat I don't understand is the bolded pre-verbal B. **Why is it the\npostposition を used here instead of の?**\n\nNB**one could argue how far the adverbial 絶え間なく、かつ容赦なく applies but that seems\nto be ambiguous [(?)](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/23845/how-\ndo-adverbs-work-with-multiple-clauses-in-a-sentence).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T20:28:53.980", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24047", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T02:08:56.520", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.863", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "particle-を" ], "title": "Why is it the postposition を used here instead of の?", "view_count": 112 }
[ { "body": "The part 街を人を simply isn't \"the people of the city\", but two parallel objects:\n\"the city, the people (accusative)\".\n\nIn English you have to put a comma between them but Japanese orthography\ndoesn't require it. Japanese commas are not for indicating grammatical\nstructure; they basically just mark where to pause. Thus, you can't place too\nmuch confidence in them while parsing sentences.\n\nYou can't decide how far 絶え間なく、かつ容赦なく could reach by pure grammar. But my what\nlittle esthetic sense tells that it can't go over the next heavy adverbial\nchunk 街を人を根こそぎ, so its effect must be limited to 鳴り響き right after it.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-04-30T22:05:23.013", "id": "24051", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T02:08:56.520", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T02:08:56.520", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "24047", "post_type": "answer", "score": 6 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24054", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I have an idea about the basics, but I'm fuzzy on the details, and it's been\nawhile since I've studied the subject in depth. Anyone have some answers?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T01:45:49.460", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24053", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T13:32:20.707", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3172", "post_type": "question", "score": 3, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "What distinguishes 恩, 義務, 義理 and 人情 from each other?", "view_count": 431 }
[ { "body": "恩 - favor or kindness from others that one should be feeling a sense of\ngratitude toward\n\n義務 - duty rooted in social systems, usually associated with legal senses, such\nas liability or military service\n\n義理 - duty rooted in personal relations usually friendship. family relations\nnever or rarely come in this category.\n\n人情 - pity or sympathy one feels when facing someone else's undeserved\naccident/accusation\n\n**Note**\n\n義理がある/ない - describes a person or people or their relation's being or not being\nobserving such duties\n\n> かれは義理がある He is a faithful person. \n> かれは義理がない He is a unreliable person.\n\n人情がある/ない - similar to 義理, describing subject's property.\n\n> かれは人情がある He is easily moved by compassion. \n> かれは人情がない He is cold-hearted.\n\n義務がある/ない - describes such duties' being put on or waived from someone or a\ngroup\n\n> かれは兵役の義務がある He has to serve his country. \n> かれは兵役の義務がない He is exempted from military service.\n\n恩がある/ない - ~~not a valid expression~~ see comments", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T01:59:00.680", "id": "24054", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T13:32:20.707", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T13:32:20.707", "last_editor_user_id": "9980", "owner_user_id": "9980", "parent_id": "24053", "post_type": "answer", "score": 8 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "What would be the Japanese slang version of the sarcastic English phrase\n\"sounds legit\" (meaning \"yeah sure... I believe you\")?\n\nI have come up with seitounaoto. But yeah, not very happy with direct\ntranslation.", "comment_count": 5, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T03:32:19.007", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24057", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T17:36:17.447", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T04:14:53.510", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9982", "post_type": "question", "score": 2, "tags": [ "slang" ], "title": "Could you tell me how to say 'sounds legit' please? My Japanese is poor", "view_count": 1399 }
[ { "body": "I assume what you need is a joking expression which looks affirmative, but\nactually works as a sign of disbelief.\n\nI couldn't think of an exact equivalent, but there are several ways to express\nsarcasm in a similar situation. Please note that the followings are kind of\nnet-slang-y or nerdy rather than simply slangy. I honestly recommend\nrefraining from using these if you really are a beginner in Japanese.\n\n 1. [な、なんだってー!?](http://dic.pixiv.net/a/%E3%81%AA%E3%80%81%E3%81%AA%E3%82%93%E3%81%A0%E3%81%A3%E3%81%A6%E3%83%BC!%3F) (lit: Y...you say whaaat!?)\n\nThis is a famous phrase from _MMR_ , a SF-like mystery manga which always\nfeatured many preposterous rumors. This became an internet meme maybe more\nthan 10 years ago, but this is still popular. Today, although \"な、なんだってー\" can\nbe used for something genuinely astonishing, it is typically sarcastically\nused in reply to something grandiose and suspicious.\n\n![なんだってー](https://i.stack.imgur.com/gjKSY.jpg)\n\n 2. ワー、スゴーイ (lit: Wow great) / ソウデスネー (lit: That's right) / etc\n\nAmong the [many usages of\nkatakana](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/q/1930/5010), one role of\nkatakana is to simulate a toneless, robot-like voice. Using katakana instead\nof hiragana for these words implies that the speaker are not really\naffirmative nor interested.\n\n 3. (棒)\n\nAdding `(棒)` (from 棒【ぼう】読【よ】み; monotonous voice) after a phrase/sentence\nimplies the speaker is not saying it honestly.\n\nExamples (B is being sarcastic):\n\n> * A 「クレオパトラは宇宙人だった!」 B「な、なんだってー(棒)」\n> * A「クレオパトラは宇宙人だった!」\n> B「ソウデスネー[www](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/9941/5010)」\n>", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T17:36:17.447", "id": "24072", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T17:36:17.447", "last_edit_date": "2017-04-13T12:43:44.397", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "5010", "parent_id": "24057", "post_type": "answer", "score": 4 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24059", "answer_count": 2, "body": "Recently I learned what the days of the week are and noticed \"kinyobi\" 金曜日.\nI'd like to know where the term \"gold\" relates to. Were people in ancient\nJapan paid at Friday each week?", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T07:13:16.727", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24058", "last_activity_date": "2016-08-27T22:35:01.287", "last_edit_date": "2015-06-07T15:14:29.273", "last_editor_user_id": "1628", "owner_user_id": "9754", "post_type": "question", "score": 8, "tags": [ "kanji", "etymology", "history" ], "title": "Where does \"gold day\" originate from?", "view_count": 1520 }
[ { "body": "金 in 金曜日 refers to Venus (金星). In fact, \"Fri\" in \"Friday\" also refers to\nVenus, also known as Frige's star. Both are almost certainly derived from the\n[Roman\nnames](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_the_days_of_the_week#Greco-\nRoman_tradition) for the days of the week.", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T07:30:41.357", "id": "24059", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T07:30:41.357", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "578", "parent_id": "24058", "post_type": "answer", "score": 13 }, { "body": "In addition to Zhen Lin's point, it is also worth noting that the Japanese\nnames for the days of the week come from Chinese, and classical concepts of\nthe five elements: **fire** (火), **water** (水), **wood** (木), **metal** (金),\nand **earth** (土), plus the two primary celestial bodies, the **sun** (日) and\nthe **moon** (月).\n\nRead more about the classical Chinese five elements [in the Wu Xing article on\nWikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_Xing).", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2016-08-27T22:35:01.287", "id": "38775", "last_activity_date": "2016-08-27T22:35:01.287", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "5229", "parent_id": "24058", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24062", "answer_count": 1, "body": "It is a situation which a salesperson announces to a group of people to\nattract them to buy his goods\n\nHere is the full sentence.\n\n> 品{しな}数{かず}すくないけど 種{しゅ}類{るい}に **おいちゃあ** そのへんのデパートなみだ!\n\nWhat does おいちゃあ mean?", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T08:08:33.727", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24061", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T17:04:03.870", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T17:04:03.870", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9559", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "words" ], "title": "What does 「おいちゃあ」 mean?", "view_count": 138 }
[ { "body": "This sentence is frank expression. \nI think only veteran seller tends to use it.\n\nIn politely,\n\n> 品数{しなかず}は少ないですが、種類{しゅるい}に **おいては** その辺{あたり}りのデパート並{な}みです。\n\nSo 「 **おいちゃあ** 」menas「 **おいては** 」. \nAnd 「おいては」 is like 「ついては」. \nI think it can be translated \"about\" in english.\n\n> There are few stuffs, but we can competitive with near department stores\n> about a kind of stuffs.\n\nIf my explanation is bad, someone may correct it :)", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T08:54:18.867", "id": "24062", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T08:54:18.867", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "3666", "parent_id": "24061", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": null, "answer_count": 1, "body": "I am learning Japanese and I'm always mixing these two. Can someone explain\nwhat's the difference between them and how are they used?\n\nMy only understanding is the first is `verb+tte+ita` which is kinda like \"it\nwas like that\" but the other one I have no idea and it's used in all the same\ncases.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T09:13:43.350", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24063", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T15:27:47.527", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T15:27:47.527", "last_editor_user_id": "3437", "owner_user_id": "9984", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "past" ], "title": "atteita vs atteimashita", "view_count": 90 }
[ { "body": "atteita(あっていた) and atteimashita(あっていました) both mean the same, and they mean \"it\nwas right\". The difference between them are politeness. atteita is a casual\nexpression and atteimashita is a formal one. So if you talk to your friends\nyou can say atteita, and if you want to talk to your teacher or your boss, you\ncan say atteimashita.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T10:38:13.220", "id": "24064", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T10:38:13.220", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9608", "parent_id": "24063", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24080", "answer_count": 1, "body": ">\n> 下人は、頸{くび}をちぢめながら、山吹{やまぶき}の汗袗{かざみ}に重ねた、紺の襖{あお}の肩を高くして門のまわりを見まわした。雨風の患{うれえ}のない、人目にかかる惧{おそれ}のない、一晩楽にねられそうな所があれば、そこでともかくも、夜を明かそうと思った\n> **からである** 。「[羅生門、\n> 芥川龍之介](http://www.aozora.gr.jp/cards/000879/files/127_15260.html)」\n\nSecond sentence (from 雨風の...) looks like {下人は}Xと思った, where X describes 下人's\nthought process (\"If there were ... he'd spend the night there\").\n\nThe sentences with からである that I've seen roughly involve a cause/reason,\nsomething like AはBからである - the reason for A is B. However, I can't see anything\nexplicit (no A, so to speak) here to suggest the thing that could have spurred\n下人's train of thought.\n\nQuestion: **how is からである used here? Why didn't the sentence end at 思った?**", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T12:18:34.997", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24065", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-02T01:00:18.557", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T12:24:42.130", "last_editor_user_id": "9771", "owner_user_id": "9771", "post_type": "question", "score": 0, "tags": [ "conjunctions" ], "title": "How is からである used here?", "view_count": 720 }
[ { "body": "You must be either reading too much into this or seeing something that is just\nnot there, both of which could easily occur in foreign language study.\n\nWhen a sentence ends with 「~~からである」, it can only express a reason or cause for\nan event/situation that is described in the previous sentence(s) -- most\noften, in the sentence **_immediately_** before the one ending with 「~~からである」.\n\n> how is からである used here?\n\nIn this passage, the first sentence describes an action and the second, the\nreason for that action.\n\n> \"(He) looked hard around the gate (in such and such manners). That is\n> **_because_** he wanted to spend the night (at the safest place possible).\"\n\nBoth A and B (in your words) are explicit. In prose writing, both would be\nexplicit nearly 100% of the time.\n\n> Why didn't the sentence end at 思った?\n\nBecause that would sound too abrupt and would not show the relationship\nbetween the two sentences.\n\n「思ったのである」 would be better than 「思った」 and even \"acceptable\" to an extent, but\n「思ったからである」 would no doubt be the best. 「思った」 is not a possibility here as it\nlacks any kind of nuance.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-02T01:00:18.557", "id": "24080", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-02T01:00:18.557", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": null, "parent_id": "24065", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24069", "answer_count": 1, "body": "I'm not confident that the English grammatical words I'm using are okay; feel\nfree to correct me.\n\nLet's start with the phrase 読{よ}む本{ほん} meaning, among other acceptable\ntranslations _\"the book I do read\"_. The auxiliary _do_ I used to translate is\nnothing but a convenient way to mark the tense (present) and the aspect (not\nprogressive).\n\nThat's what I call \"a noun determined by a verb\" structure since 本{ほん} is\ndetermined by 読{よ}む.\n\nMy question deals with the other forms of 読{よ}む which may be used to determine\n本{ほん}:\n\n * 読{よ}む本{ほん} : the book I do read\n * 読{よ}まない本{ほん} : the book I don't read\n * 読{よ}んで本{ほん} : the book I'm reading\n * 読{よ}まないで本{ほん} : the book I'm not reading\n * 読{よ}んだ本{ほん} : the book I did read\n * 読{よ}まなかった本{ほん} : the book I didn't read\n * ... ?\n\n**My questions :**\n\n 1. Are the above forms grammatically correct?\n 2. Leaving aside passive and causative, did I forget some forms? I'm particularly curious to know if imperative/volitional forms may have some sense here.\n\nAny help would be appreciated!", "comment_count": 3, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T12:41:28.370", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24066", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T17:11:00.033", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T17:11:00.033", "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "4550", "post_type": "question", "score": 1, "tags": [ "grammar", "conjugations", "syntax" ], "title": "Verbal forms allowed to determine a noun", "view_count": 152 }
[ { "body": "First, it sounds strange to me to put \"I\" as default subject of the\ndetermining sentence. I'd rather explicitly mark a subject, unless it's very\nclear from its context. \nAnyway,\n\n * わたしが読む本 : the book I do read (O)\n * わたしが読まない本 : the book I don't read (O)\n * わたしが読んで本 : the book I'm reading (X)\n * わたしが読まないで本 : the book I'm not reading (X)\n * わたしが読んだ本 : the book I did read (O)\n * わたしが読まなかった本 : the book I didn't read (O)\n\nTo express progressive aspect, we need an auxiliary verb いる. \nAnd, when combining two verbs (読む + いる), we use て, \nthus it will be 読む + て + いる = 読んでいる. \nSo 'the book I'm reading' is わたしが読んでいる本. \nNote that 読んでいる is in a perfectly legit ru-verb form(一段動詞). You can then\ntransform it into whatever you want.\n\n```\n\n negative 読んでいる + ない = 読んでいない (book that) I'm not reading.\n past 読んでいる + た = 読んでいた I was reading.\n neg + past 読んでいる + ない + た = 読んでいなかった I was not reading.\n ... \n \n```\n\nOne more thing one should keep in mind when using progressive is that, in\nmodern Japanese, it's very common to drop い from aux (い)る. So it's fine to say\nわたしが(読んでる/読んでない/読んでた/読んでなかった)本.\n\nImperative/volitional forms in general do not modify following nouns.", "comment_count": 1, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T14:21:07.227", "id": "24069", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T14:42:10.457", "last_edit_date": "2015-05-01T14:42:10.457", "last_editor_user_id": "7810", "owner_user_id": "9980", "parent_id": "24066", "post_type": "answer", "score": 1 } ]
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{ "accepted_answer_id": "24088", "answer_count": 2, "body": "Sometimes it seems like a lot of basic Japanese words are typically written in\nhiragana rather than kanji.\n\nBy \"basic\", I mean pleasantries that are probably the first thing non-native\nspeakers learn in Japanese: \"おはようございます\", \"こんにちは\", \"ください\", \"ありがとう\". Some of\nthese can be written in kanji, for example \"ください\" can be written as \"下さい\". One\npleasantry that isn't typically written in hiragana is \"お願いします\".\n\nAre a disproportionate amount of such words typically written in hiragana, and\nif so, why?", "comment_count": 2, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T13:22:10.077", "favorite_count": 0, "id": "24068", "last_activity_date": "2017-12-16T06:27:06.640", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "91", "post_type": "question", "score": 7, "tags": [ "hiragana" ], "title": "Why are a high proportion of basic Japanese words written in hiragana?", "view_count": 2685 }
[ { "body": "A lot of those basic words are related to old expressions. See the kanji that\nsnailboat mentioned in a comment. For example, 御座る (ござる) in おはようおざいます and 有難い\n(ありがたい) in ありがとう.\n\nIt's hard to speak to what is a disproportionate amount. But as to why,\nconsider that basic words like ありがとう and おはよう are learned by Japanese children\nat a very young age. Children learn hiragana first and when they start\nlearning kanji, they start with simple and basic kanji like 日本 (にほん) rather\nthan those used in 御座る or 有難い.\n\nOf course, these other kanji are learned as Japanese grow older. But you can\nsee why these basic phrases are often written with the more accessible\nhiragana when you consider that they are some of the earliest words learned by\nchildren.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-01T20:01:33.773", "id": "24077", "last_activity_date": "2015-05-01T20:01:33.773", "last_edit_date": null, "last_editor_user_id": null, "owner_user_id": "9851", "parent_id": "24068", "post_type": "answer", "score": 2 }, { "body": "Although it's difficult to show a formal reasoning, it could be said that\n**reducing pointless kanji usage** is undeniably an orthographic trend of\npost-WWII era. \"Pointless\" roughly means a word no longer preserves the\nmeaning the kanji which assigned to it suggests, or in today's linguistic\njargon \"[semantically\nbleached](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grammaticalization#Semantic_bleaching)\".\n\nThings like 補助動詞, including ~てください, are typical examples of semantically\nbleached words. They're very similar to some English words such as _be going\nto_ , which now simply indicates time progress without actually going\nanywhere, and accordingly lost its original spelling becoming _gonna_. There\nwas [a government\ndirective](http://warp.da.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/9287048/www.bunka.go.jp/kokugo_nihongo/pdf/kunreibesshi_h221130.pdf)\nissued in 1981 (and updated in 2010) explicitly named ください and a lot of other\nwords need to be written in kana in official documents.\n\nGreeting clichés are also used without thinking of the original meanings. In\nEnglish we can say _goodbye_ without fancying how a bad _bye_ would be like\n(well, etymologically it's from \"[god be with\nyou](https://english.stackexchange.com/questions/1505/what-is-the-origin-of-\nthe-word-goodbye)\"...). Your examples おはようございます, こんにちは, ありがとう _seem_ to be\nretaining their full form, which in fact not, because:\n\n> Expected pronunciations: おはよう{LHHL}ございます{LHHHL}, こんにちは{HLLLL}, ありがとう{LHHHL}\n>\n> Actual pronunciations: おはようございます{LHHHHHHHL}, こんにちは{LHHHH}, ありがとう{LHLLL}\n\nSo it's clear that people no longer take them as a meaningful words they look\nlike. The fact many people spell こんにち **わ** and こんばん **わ** instead of は also\nproves the origin of them has totally forgotten.\n\nOf course these are merely \"guideline\" and not rigid \"rule\" so you have no\nobligation to follow, but it's also true that those conventions are steadily\nmaintained across official, media and pedagogical writings.", "comment_count": 0, "content_license": "CC BY-SA 3.0", "creation_date": "2015-05-02T15:40:54.023", "id": "24088", "last_activity_date": "2017-12-16T06:27:06.640", "last_edit_date": "2020-06-17T08:18:27.500", "last_editor_user_id": "-1", "owner_user_id": "7810", "parent_id": "24068", "post_type": "answer", "score": 14 } ]
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