Topics related to differences in meaning between two words.
6
votes
2answers
178 views
When is the correct situation to use 案外 or 意外?
I think this is a question I should have asked a long time ago.. What is the difference between 案外 and 意外? What does the correct situation look like when using either?
Example with 案外:
...
9
votes
3answers
184 views
Is there any difference for compounds with/without okurigana?
What is the difference for word compounds that can exist with 送り仮名 and without and still retain the same pronunciation?
As an example:
巻き貝 と 巻貝
取り引き と 取引
If I'm correct, both of these are ...
2
votes
3answers
305 views
Is the difference between On and Kun readings greater than just the pronunciation of the character?
Here is my present state of understanding:
A kanji's meaning is the same regardless of reading.
A reading is a way of speaking the kanji out loud.
Kun readings are always used when the kanji appears ...
2
votes
2answers
163 views
Is there a difference between these words for “hero”?
I've learned that hero could be translated as:
ヒーロー
えいゆう
ゆうしゃ
けっし
Aside from ヒーロー (which seems just to be roumaji version of hero), is there any usage difference among them?
3
votes
2answers
145 views
What is the difference between 「余計に」and 「余分に」?
In my textbook 「日本語総まとめN２」, they list the two vocabulary words 「余計に」 and 「余分に」. I am almost unable to differentiate between their appropriate usage.
Here are the example sentences from the book:
...
6
votes
1answer
140 views
What is the difference between キャリアウーマン, OL, and ビジネスウーマン
When I come across the titles キャリアウーマン, OL, and ビジネスウーマン, I seem to have a difficult time picturing what their position is or what they do. I'm wondering if anyone can elaborate on how they are ...
5
votes
1answer
114 views
What may be the difference between the usage of 自尊心 ,誇りand 自慢?
I read a paragraph and the paragraph contains the word 自尊心.
I want to know meaning of 自尊心.
Dictionary says 自尊心 = pride.
Is it same with 誇り? or 自慢?
What may be the difference between the usage of ...
3
votes
1answer
183 views
What is the difference in terms of grammar between ～かける and ～っぱなし?
Spawned from What is the difference in terms of grammar between きり and っぱなし?; I started thinking about ～かける. Don't these essentially mean the same thing? I'm failing to see any difference except ...
6
votes
2answers
221 views
What is the difference in terms of grammar between きり and っぱなし?
I'm pretty sure there is a difference between the use of these two words. I came across the example sentences:
息子は、自分の部屋に入ったきり出てこない。
母は入院している父をつきっきりで看病している。
電車が混んでいて、東京まで立ちっぱなしだった。
I ...
10
votes
2answers
268 views
What exactly is 我, and how is it used?
I was taught that [私]{わた(く)し}, [僕]{ぼく}, and 俺{おれ} are the most common first-person pronouns.
Recently, I stumbled upon the word [我]{われ}, which supposedly means the same thing. An online dictionary ...
6
votes
1answer
314 views
〜ものだから 〜もの What are the differences?
What is the connotation when using 〜ものだから and 〜もの in a sentence? In my text, they state these examples:
The first set is 〜ものだから：
上着を脱いでもいいですか。 暑いものですから。
Can I take my jacket off? I'm feeling ...
3
votes
1answer
83 views
混信 and 干渉 difference in terms of communications and computing?
I read an article that had the sentence
1.9GHz帯を使うため、ZigBeeやWi-Fiで使われている2.4GHz帯の機器と干渉しないことが特徴。
I previously learned that 混信 means "interference" or "jamming". I saw this word used often. I'm ...
2
votes
1answer
132 views
Difference between 十分 and 十二分
Is there a clear difference between the meanings of 十分 and 十二分? I rarely have ever seen the second one. When should the second one be used and in what context?
EDIT: To avoid confusion, I'm talking ...
4
votes
1answer
75 views
difference between 連載 and 順次
I usually see the word 連載 pertaining to articles or books in a series. However, when I read 順次 I was confused (I saw this is a technical article). They seem to both hold the meaning "serial" or ...
-3
votes
1answer
167 views
What is the difference between 希望（きぼう）and 気持ち（きもち）？
I am new to learning the Japanese language. I am a bit confused about the difference between 希望{きぼう} and 気持{きも}ち.
Can someone please explain the difference between them and show how to use them in a ...
4
votes
3answers
184 views
What differences, if any, are there between 婦 and 女?
I came across 婦 from this English-language Wikipedia article.
Jisho.org says that 婦 (which contains 女 in it) can mean married woman, but it can mean woman or lady, and it then lists words such as 婦警 ...
8
votes
2answers
185 views
What's the difference between differences? 差 and 違い
What's the difference between 差 and 違い? When would I use each?
Which (if either) would I use for describing the difference between something like sample data and the best fitting equation?
10
votes
1answer
306 views
How to differentiate friend level in Japanese?
I am sometimes having difficulty differentiating friends level when explaining it to a Japanese. For example, when I am telling a story about a friend, I want to specify the level of friendship we ...
4
votes
1answer
142 views
What's the difference between 世間{せけん} and 世界{せかい}?
Both 世間{せけん} and 世界{せかい} seem to mean "world" in the sense of "a sphere of human activity or interest", or "a particular way of life", and that sort of thing. (As opposed to 地球{ちきゅう}, the literal ...
5
votes
2answers
201 views
How do I differentiate all these terms for “illiterate”?
I looked up the word "illiteracy", and was offered many different possibilities. Here they are, with my personal take on the nuance behind their origins:
活字{かつじ}離{ばな}れ ("removed from printing"?)
...
4
votes
1answer
158 views
Difference between 「～のない～」 and 「～がない~」?
For example, plugging these into Google, I can find stuff like, 自信のない人 and 自信がない人. Or, 愛のない生活 and 愛がない生活. I found a movie called 顔のないスパイ. How is this any different from 顔がないスパイ?
I've asked ...
3
votes
1answer
165 views
When is 顧客{こきゃく} used for “customer”?
In daily life, I usually hear the words お客様{きゃくさま}, お客{きゃく}さん, and maybe other variants that use 客{きゃく}/客{かく} to refer to customers at a shop.
However, in the dictionary, the first word that comes up ...
2
votes
1answer
196 views
What is the difference between these words for “audience”?
What is the difference in usage between these three words for "audience"?
観客{かんきゃく} (audience, spectators)
聴衆{ちょうしゅう} (audience, attendees)
観衆{かんしゅう} (audience, onlookers)
The ...
7
votes
1answer
215 views
When to use 種別 and when to use 区分 when programming
I am having trouble when naming a variable, deciding if I should use ABC種別 or ABC区分. I have been reading a lot of software specifications and the Japanese description usually uses 種別 and 区分 to specify ...
7
votes
4answers
266 views
The difference between 超{こ}える, 越{こ}える and 過{す}ぎる
超{こ}える, 越{こ}える and 過{す}ぎる are said to mean "to pass through" in the "edict" dictionary, but I don't fully understand the difference between the three.
How does their usage differ please? Can anyone ...
4
votes
2answers
281 views
壱, 弐, 参 vs 一, 二, 三
Can you tell me the difference between 壱 and 一, 弐 and 二, 参 and 三?
Do these pairs have the same meaning? If yes, why do we use different Kanji? If no, what is the difference in their meanings?
Can ...
6
votes
1answer
210 views
Taking Class, Course, Lecture - Which verb is fit?
I would like to know how we say taking class or course or lecture in japanese.
I have heard about 「クラスを受ける」 and 「クラスを取る」.
Are there significant difference? And Is there any other verb we can use ...
7
votes
2answers
375 views
Non-distinguished animal pairs in Japanese
This is something I first noticed when I was at an aquarium in Japan (as evidenced in my examples) and continued to see ever since. There are certain pairs of animals, that while extremely similar, ...
23
votes
7answers
940 views
Difference between negative forms {-ず} and {-ぬ}
{-ず} and {-ぬ} are two alternatives to the negative form {-ない} / {-ません}. But I noticed that depending on the word, it's either {-ず} or {-ぬ}, although it seems like some words can take both suffixes. ...
