Particles, conjugations and endings for verbs and adjectives, and general sentence structure.
7
votes
2answers
159 views
What does 「のいう」 mean in this sentence?
I'm familiar with 「という」 and was somewhat confused why I saw 「のいう」 in the following sentence:
人間対応能力は、ドラッカーのいう「他の人間とともに働く能力」のことです。
What is the role of 「のいう」 in this sentence? Is it incorrect to ...
3
votes
1answer
173 views
What is よ doing as a connector before a comma?
I saw this as a comment someone posted on Google+ in response to NHK announcing a show:
本気{ほんき}なら地上波{ちじょうは}でやれよ、受信料{じゅしんりょう}返{かえ}せ
I think it's saying "If this is really what you intend to ...
6
votes
2answers
251 views
Are times after noon expressed in military time?
How are times after noon expressed when speaking?
I assume that if it's obvious from context that it's after noon, then people will just say ５時.
But what if it's not obvious from context? My ...
16
votes
1answer
260 views
What are the differences between 〜ので and 〜から?
When I was studying this, my 先生 kind of brushed over the point, and then years later, I realize that they are different, but I don't know exactly how.
The only thing I understand is that ので is more ...
6
votes
4answers
336 views
Is this って equivalent to 「と」？
Is the って in the following sentence equivalent to 「と」as in ＡはBと変わる／違う？
昔から好きな曲って変わらないみたい。
My favourite songs have not changed for many years.
Does this mean it is equivalent to the と used ...
3
votes
2answers
153 views
More fun with the present progressive
I found this example sentence in grammar book:
門の前に車が止まっています。
A car is parked in front of the gate.
I was told that instead of 止まる, 停まる would be a more accurate fit for "parked".
Does that ...
7
votes
1answer
181 views
思っている/言っている with third person subject?
So i was reading A dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar, and in the part where it explains the uses of いる as an auxiliary verb after て、 it says something like that: "(...) Also, verbs like 言う and 思う ...
18
votes
3answers
749 views
When is Vている the continuation of action and when is it the continuation of state?
Last night, when I asked my wife to send an email to me, she said もう送っている which I took to mean that she was "sending the message". (The message had a big attachment so I imagined that it could take a ...
3
votes
1answer
264 views
How do I interpret this question that ends with よ?
In the 7th book of the awesome High School of the Dead, there's this page:
The situation is that the main characters, a group of mostly teenagers who are surviving a zombie apocalypse, are walking ...
11
votes
2answers
384 views
What is the proper use of だろう, is it “masculine”, and how is it different from と思 【おも】う?
Like a lot of foreign guys, some Japanese I picked up from imitating the women I spoke to. Certain affectations made me sound unwittingly effeminate in the early days when I had less grasp on the ...
6
votes
1answer
348 views
When trying to convey 'apparently', when do you use, だそう, and when do you use そう?
I have seen both だそう and そう written at the end of a sentence to convey "apparently". Do you use だそう when trying to convey "according to" (によると)?
8
votes
1answer
231 views
得意とするところ explanation?
As far as I'm aware this expression means "(a persons) strong points', but I'm not sure how とする is being used in this context.
My best guess would be something like "the thing (a person) tries to do ...
10
votes
3answers
285 views
How do I say “He already went to do X for me”, implying he is still in the process of X, not finished?
The other day at some festival a few japanese friends asked me something to the effect of
アイスを買ってくるけど、行く？
But I had already asked a friend, who had not yet returned, to get some for me. So I said
...
3
votes
1answer
113 views
How is あっての used to define something?
I've previously asked about あっての, but now it seems to me that I've run into an additional usage of it (or perhaps the same usage I just can't wrap my head around it...).
When the sentence is simply ...
11
votes
3answers
515 views
Is there a difference between んがため and ために?
My JLPT textbook has a section about the use of んがため, which they define as "making an effort in order to realize the intended purpose."
Which to me sounds like plain ol' ために.
For example, they have ...
10
votes
2answers
277 views
Why is it that ～かねる can refer to oneself, yet ～かねない must refer to another person?
When I tried to use ～かねない to express my own feeling about a situation, I was told by a native that it sounds incorrect and strange. However, ～かねる is appropriate and fine. For example, this is the ...
9
votes
1answer
248 views
Is it true that にしたって is the colloquial form of にしたところで?
I've been thinking if it is true that にしたって is the colloquial form of にしたところで. In other words, are the bottom two sentences identical in meaning and nuance?
1) ...
7
votes
2answers
195 views
Does くりかえし mean a single iteration or multiple ones?
For example, in this sentence:
彼は、失敗をものともせず、 何度もくりかえし 挑戦し続けた。
くりかえし is modified by 何度も, implicitly stating that the action was repeated multiple times.
My question is that if the sentence was ...
6
votes
1answer
168 views
What does the word ゆける signify?
I have the sentence:
この国に生まれ老い、良かったと死んでゆける高齢化社会。
This is the first time I've seen 「死んでゆける」 or 「ゆける」. What does it mean? Is this a grammatical form? I also tried looking up more examples with ...
6
votes
1answer
139 views
Other uses of “imperative prohibition” form eg わかるな ・すわんな
I saw a film where in two separate scenes the characters seemed to use the "imperative-prohibition" to invite the opposite action:
1.In one scene a father after explaining something to his son ...
8
votes
1answer
122 views
What is the difference between あっての and とあって?
From what I can tell they both mean "Because of", and the only differences in meaning I can see seem to be very subtle.
あっての:
Because of A (strong emphasis), B
Thanks to (various ...
10
votes
1answer
132 views
Word order: what does 迷惑きわまりない modify?
In my JLPT practice book, there is a question that asks you to put words in the correct order:
朝の満員電車の中で、大きな音で ____ ____ ____ ____ 若者がいる。
What I put down was:
朝の満員電車の中で、大きな音で ...
8
votes
1answer
220 views
Use of を and に with 頼る (to depend on)
Why is the direct object taking を in (1) and に in (2)? What are basic rules that drive these two sentence constructions?
(1) 叔母は父を頼っている
'My aunt is counting on my father's help.'
(2) ...
2
votes
1answer
192 views
connecting phrases with the stem of masu-form
When is it possible to connect sentences using the stem of masu-form? Are there restrictions on the use of this form?
Thanks in advance.
2
votes
2answers
173 views
What is the ったい / -ttai suffix called?
In response to my question about くすぐったい, I was told of the specific suffix in use, the "ったい." What is this ったい / -ttai suffix called in English and in Japanese (or what would one call it if it does ...
4
votes
2answers
216 views
ii na to omoimasu
I read that ... to ii na to omoimasu means "I hope that ...". Is the na here a final particle that adds the first person's subjective feeling to the proposition as in sawa’s answer to using ...
5
votes
2answers
147 views
When is it appropriate to choose にわたって or を通じて in regard to time?
I seem to have a hard time recognizing when to choose either にわたって or を通じて in the following question:
この地方は一年（ ）暖かく、とても過ごしやすい。
The correct answer is を通じて. My idea is that を通じて would make this ...
17
votes
2answers
553 views
The difference between が and を with the potential form of a verb.
When using the potential form of a verb, I was taught that the particle を becomes が. However, in real life this seems to not always be the case. I've even heard Japanese people use を instead of が ...
7
votes
3answers
275 views
Help with the particle も
If you look at my translation of the sentence below from a text book (soumatome N3 dokkai), I think you will agree that I have guessed the meaning correctly but can anyone explain the grammar to the ...
4
votes
3answers
229 views
The meaning of and difference between ～を中心に and ～をめぐって
What is the meaning of and difference between ～を中心に and ～をめぐって?
Space ALC defines ～を中心に as "with a focus on" and ～をめぐって as "centering on", but I'm having trouble figuring out the meaning and ...
4
votes
1answer
111 views
Is 名詞 or な形容詞 + ながら a general case?
Not sure if this is a noun or a na-adjective but is something like 好きながら, 貧乏ながら, 親切ながら, 貧弱ながら, et cetera, a general grammar pattern of noun or na-adjective + ながら?
What I mean is, do all these work, ...
5
votes
2answers
188 views
Are the grammatical forms ものか and だろうか questions?
For some reason, I have had the impression that か at the end of a sentence marks some kind of question that is being asked. However, in these examples from 日本語総まとめ 文法:
うれしいもんですか。困っているんです。
...
11
votes
1answer
462 views
So-called の-adjectives - how does の *really* work?
Ok, so there seems to be some controversy over whether we can really say that there are 'の-adjectives', or whether we simply use a noun in an "attributive" way (a term which I don't actually really ...
4
votes
2answers
120 views
Are the grammatical forms きっかけに and 契機に interchangeable?
One of my grammar books 日本語総まとめN2 文法 lists both of the grammar forms 「きっかけに」 and 「契機に」 in the same definition.
However, in the example question a choice is given between them:
その事件（a. の契機に b. ...
5
votes
1answer
220 views
What is this extra と in the sentence?
This is more than likely due to my lack of reading enough Japanese; however, in this sentence the particles と and に are placed together which I haven't seen before.
Sentence:
...
4
votes
1answer
271 views
When should I use あそこで / そこで?
I have the sentence from 合格できる、日本語能力試験N２:
私は外国旅行をするたび、「 」専門の勉強をしている日本人の若い学者に会うと、思いがけない収穫をえる。
The choices for the blank are A）あそこで B）そこで C）ここで D）どこかで
I narrowed it down to either A or B, but ...
6
votes
1answer
164 views
Grammatically correct, yet improper?
Yesterday, I mentioned the fact that I was grateful for having someone play music for me, and letting me play music as well. I first said something like:
ピアノを弾いてもらったり、弾かせてもらったりして、嬉しいです。
Then, I ...
5
votes
2answers
166 views
What is the grammar form with “にした” in this sentence?
I have another sentence from 合格できる、日本語能力試験N２:
そこで私はいつも考えるのだが、各国にある日本大使館は日本人旅行者のため、こういう留学生、研究家を講師にした講座を現地で開いてくれないだろうか。
The part in the sentence where it says 「講師にした講座」 is hard for me to ...
2
votes
1answer
126 views
Can anyone explain 涼しげで?
In reference to Japanese sweets (わらび餅), I found this sentence:
見た目も透明感があり、涼しげで夏にピッタリです。
Its clear and cool appearance makes it perfect for summer.
Is 涼しげで two words?
涼しい ＋ で？
Could I also ...
5
votes
1answer
125 views
Is “V Vないにかかわらず” grammatical?
In my textbook, they list the example sentence:
来る来ないにかかわらず、連絡をください。
This「来る来ない」part looks strange to me. Is it incorrect? If so, then how should it be fixed? Would it need to be 「来る？来ないにかかわらず」?
...
4
votes
1answer
131 views
When does こいつ refer to a situation?
I've always heard こいつ refer to a person. (That guy!) However, in my JLPT Reading workbook there is a line where it refers to a situation. The explanation says:
｢こいつ｣が状況を表し．．．．ことに気づくこと。
It goes ...
2
votes
2answers
114 views
Specify who is fond of something
Is it possible to use 好き, and specify who is fond of it?
風呂は好きです。
Would be interpreted as "[I am] fond of baths.", and
風呂は好きですか
Would be interpreted as "Are [you] fond of baths?".
How ...
3
votes
3answers
269 views
How to resolve two indirect objects? (Prohibition of two に in a sentence?)
Based off sawa's comment from this question:
"you cannot have two ...に phrases. Remove either."
And using the same verb "同意する", I looked up the dictionary and found:
1.（人）に同意する - to agree ...
17
votes
3answers
491 views
ことができる versus V~える form
Way back in the day when I was first learning Japanese, I learned that you could add ことができる to a verb to indicate potential. Like so:
食{た}べることができる
(I) can eat (something)
It became my ...
4
votes
1answer
170 views
Differences between listing particles と, や and に
Consider the following:
A, B and C came:
AとBとCが来た
AやBやCが来た
AにBにCが来た
What do I need to consider when deciding which of the three (と, や, に) to use?
I think a large portion is determined by the ...
10
votes
3answers
798 views
Can totemo be used with daisuki or daikirai
totemo means "very"
suki means "like"
daisuki means "like very much"
If I really like something can I use totemo totemo daisuki desu?
7
votes
2answers
288 views
Come to ～: ～てくる vs. ～ようになる
Can someone please explain the fine nuances of these two? Things such as:
Are there conditions/restrictions of when you can use one or the other?
What are the "approximate" time periods that each ...
4
votes
1answer
375 views
Stative verbs: ～ている vs ～てある vs ～（ら）れる
I'm not sure if I'm wording this properly, but I want to know the nuances of these "stative" type verb forms that act kind of like adjectives.
For example, you could describe an open window with any ...
3
votes
1answer
167 views
Can ごとに be replaced by それぞれ in this question?
正月は家ごとに門松を立てる。
For example, could I say
正月はそれぞれの家に門松をたてる。
If so, the meaning remains the same, or are there any subtle nuances that comes with each word? It seems to me, whenever i see sentences ...
6
votes
2answers
214 views
So what is the difference between の and こと in this sentence?
So Sawa in another thread says that こと cannot be used in the example below. Even though it performs the same function as の (as far as I can see).
料理が(前より(もっと)) {上手だ/上手い/上手になった/上手くなった}
...
