The meaning of words or phrases within certain contexts, especially when it does not seem to match the standard definition.
3
votes
2answers
430 views
What does やい mean?
Someone ended their sentence with やいな. What dialect is this? What does やい mean? I assume that な means the same thing as in standard Japanese?
Update: the original sentence was 「もう出来あがり？仕事はやいな～」.
3
votes
1answer
191 views
What does なきや mean?
I assume this is some sort of idiom or verbal tic, but i'm not 100% sure. Anybody care to help me out?
If you need context, this is the phrase:
まだピチピチなんだからかんばらなきや
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 ...
8
votes
2answers
550 views
How do I “understand” kaomoji? (Japanese smilies)
When I see something like this:
ﾍ(´∀｀ﾍ)ﾍ(´∀｀ﾍ)ﾖｲﾖｲ(ﾉ´∀｀)ﾉ(ﾉ´∀｀)ﾉﾖｲﾖｲ♪
I think some voodoo demon wants to say something to me. o_O
My Japanese friends often use kaomoji. But, when they add (´▽｀) ...
1
vote
1answer
118 views
Do you use 投入 to mean any input for a thin paper?
I usually see the 投入{とうにゅう} on labels on ATM or train station gate. Is this kanji applicable to all flat input devices, or does it also include coin slot? I can only infer this means some sort of ...
1
vote
1answer
128 views
How to translate standalone noun + a ます verb (in a heading)
I would like to know how to translate something like this:
ドロボー、つかまえます
where there is a noun followed by a verb in masu from without any other details.
Is it something like "Burglar, I('ll) ...
4
votes
1answer
153 views
What does 身の縮む思い mean?
I found a phrase in one vocabulary book about the usage of 縮む.
I am not clear on the meaning of this phrase:
身の縮む思い
I think it can be the same meaning as 恥ずかしい. Is that right?
8
votes
2answers
424 views
What does using という add to a sentence?
This sentence is from a grammar website:
主人公が犯人だったというのが一番面白かった。
Why is という necessary?
What does it add?
And what meaning is lost in writing the sentence without it? For example, as in:
...
6
votes
1answer
432 views
What is the meaning of あるある?
I saw it used on Twitter several times, but googling around I couldn't figure it out.
Here are some examples.
"@mao_sid: 24あるある。シーズン2ぐらいから、あのちょいちょい入ってくるデジタル時計いらないなぁって思いだす。"
"@mao_sid: ...
9
votes
1answer
270 views
Qualitative intensifiers e.g. とても, とっても, 超, etc. How are they different?
How are とても/とっても, でかい/でっかい, 超 (and others that I have yet to encounter) used differently? I figured that for とても/とっても-type difference is that the double-consonant(geminated) version is stronger i.e. a ...
11
votes
2answers
396 views
Pronunciation and meaning of
I just received an email ending like this:
是非是非また誘って
How to read the ?
Zero results on Google.
As for the meaning, is it equivalent to よ ?
7
votes
1answer
129 views
ところ vs どころ: Interchangeable or different meanings altogether?
I have two questions.
A) Why do they use どころ instead of ところ in this sentence? Is it possible to use ところ without changing the meaning?
...
15
votes
2answers
327 views
What does the nakaguro (・) between these two words mean?
The first sentence on the Mac OS X article on the Japanese version of Wikipedia reads:
Mac OS X（マック オーエス テン）は、アップルが[開発]{かいはつ}・[販売]{はんばい}する、Macintoshコンピュータ[用]{よう}の[現行]{げんこう}オペレーティングシステム (OS) である。
...
1
vote
3answers
175 views
Translation of 出証意 and 長官殿
These are from a patent related document and I can't understand very well.
They are used like these：
1) 特許庁長官殿
2) 出証意2012
Can anyone help me?
2
votes
1answer
204 views
Why does 古希 / こき mean 70 years old?
I found out that 古希 / こき can mean a 70 year old person, or the occasion of turning 70 years old. Apparently its etymology derives from an ancient song where this line occurs:七十古希 【しちじゅうこき】 which means ...
6
votes
1answer
142 views
Which つける do I use?
So I looked up つける and saw it can be written as:
付ける
着ける
附ける
And they all seem to have the exact same definition: to attach, to join, to add, to append, etc. So are these "spellings" ...
2
votes
2answers
145 views
What is って doing in this sentence?
From Noir, Episode 2 (anime).
I don't get what the って is doing in this sentence. For context, the father came home early from work. He quickly answers his wife in the first sentence then in the ...
9
votes
3answers
268 views
What is the difference between ～すぎ and ～すぎる?
When I was playing a video game a few months ago, I noticed that some of the characters (mostly young teen females, in case it matters) kept saying ～すぎ instead of ～すぎる.
For example, when one of the ...
7
votes
2answers
185 views
What is the meaning of 〜たりして?
I've just come across "〜していたりして" at the end of a sentence in a post on Facebook, so it's probably very casual. Does anyone know the correct meaning and typical usage?
-3
votes
1answer
290 views
What does さちゅえい mean?
I can't find this in any dictionary, but it seems to mean something like picture. Is that right?
I don't have an example sentence, because that word was the whole sentence.
6
votes
3answers
362 views
What does ちがいます。 mean?
I saw this translated in the first episode of FLCL as "It's wrong.", but checking the translation, I get "Different." Can someone clear this up? Thanks.
4
votes
1answer
471 views
What does 氏 mean after a name, how is it different from さん or 様?
If you look in the dictionary for the definition of 氏 you'll find it defined as: family name; lineage; birth.
However I have seen it used in such a way that it is doubtful that it means any of those ...
10
votes
1answer
164 views
What is the significance of a large く character in literary texts?
I am currently reading an early story by Tanizaki Junichiro in Japanese. I have come across both the hiragana く and ぐ written twice the size they usually are, taking up the same amount of space on the ...
5
votes
1answer
94 views
Meaning of 掛ける after ご面倒?
ご面倒をお掛けして申し訳ございません。 means "We are sorry for the inconvenience." but what is the meaning of 掛ける in this context?
2
votes
2answers
288 views
Meaning of ~きて~ and ~しまいました in sentence
"あなたの本を車の中に置いてきてしまいました。" means "I left your book in the car." but what is the meaning of "きて" and "しまいました" in context?
9
votes
3answers
305 views
How can you figure out whether 鍵【かぎ】 means “lock” or “key”?
Recently, I forgot whether 鍵【かぎ】 meant lock or key, so I looked it up quickly on my phone's dictionary... And then I found out that it actually means both.
What are the best ways to figure out if ...
0
votes
0answers
251 views
What is Boruto Tekusuchaa? [closed]
What is Boruto Tekusuchaa? It is kind of a dress. That is all I know. can someone help with identifying it? I think it has some sort of tibetian influence.
3
votes
2answers
116 views
Understanding 〜たら良いか〜
The sentence 何と言ったら良いか分かりません means "I don't know what I should say."
But what is the literal translation of this sentence? What is the purpose of the か in 良いか?
5
votes
2answers
295 views
How can 「うん」 be used to mean both “yes” and “no?”
I was told by my Japanese teacher that 「うん」 can be used as a casual way to say "yes" as well as "no." If this is true, how can you tell the difference, absent any additional information?
6
votes
4answers
193 views
Problem understanding a sentence
The sentence トムは私より身長が高いです。 means "Tom is taller than I me." but I'm trying to find the meaning of each word in order to understand the japanese sentence better. Here is what I have so far:
トムは(Tom ...
4
votes
2answers
220 views
What does あらいだす mean?
What does あらいだす mean? I have been hearing it from my colleague and based on his explanation it means to identify. For example identify the problem. I tried to search the net and it only results to ...
4
votes
1answer
179 views
Help with this sentence fragment containing “思想統制”
I came across this example sentence for the grammar point ~にあって, which indicates that something is under a particular circumstance.
彼女は戦争中、思想統制下にあってなお、自由な精神を持ち続けた。
I understand the first and the ...
5
votes
1answer
145 views
しゅうと／シュート - The great equalizer
I was watching the movie Mr. Baseball the other day. Several times during the movie they talk about しゅうと which they describe as "the great equalizer". (Could possibly be しゅうとう, but their dialog does ...
10
votes
4answers
445 views
What's the difference between いいえ and English's “no”?
In "Japanese for Busy People I" page 2 (kana or romaji edition) it says that いいえ is 'virtually the same as "no"'.
It sounds like there are some differences, but they want to omit mentioning them for ...
6
votes
2answers
274 views
What does “さ” means in 探偵さ?
I watch an animation called Detective Conan, which is about a detective. I read translations, but try to listen in Japanese. Sometimes, when he is asked "who are you?", the main character answers by ...
3
votes
1answer
139 views
Buddhist facilities
I am working on Japanese texts describing Buddhist temples in South-East Asia and there is quite a number of words I can't really translate in English. Here is a list with my tentative translations (I ...
5
votes
3answers
228 views
Does さえ mean “even” in the following sentence?
I encountered the following on our daily reading.
どのような企業{きぎょう}も、創業期{そうぎょうき}には全社員が昼食をとること さえ 忘れてしまうほど、忙しくフル回転していたものです。
In a business, a person was so busy that he forgot to eat lunch even ...
3
votes
1answer
104 views
Does 諸元{しょげん} mean “Specification” or “Various”?
I am trying to name a library on a group of forms. The specification names the group 諸元管理画面.
I tried to search and the dictionary says it means "various factors or elements".
But on other examples ...
1
vote
2answers
687 views
the meaning of word 'yoko'
I really like how the word "yoko" is pronounced, and I'll like to use it in my bussiness. I think that my bussiness will be named "yoko garage".
Do you know what yoko means? Does it have any bad or ...
3
votes
2answers
224 views
What is さすが when referring to oneself?
It means "as one would expect" when referring to others, and it's sort of a compliment.
But you're not supposed to compliment yourself in Japanese.
So does さすが have a different meaning when ...
5
votes
1answer
133 views
Can a cathedral be referred to as a 寺?
I was listening to a song Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame in Japanese (the intro, The Bells of Notre Dame or ノートルダムの鐘), and I noticed that they referred to the cathedral as a 「てら」. I thought that was ...
2
votes
1answer
137 views
Explain what はめになる is and give some examples
I heard that it means something like "to get stuck with something."
Can you explain what this means and give some examples?
3
votes
1answer
185 views
The gender of 子
Is 子 ever used to refer to a boy, or is it always used for girls? Is 悪い子 used only for girls?
4
votes
2answers
217 views
Does がち mean “in excess”?
I have been reading a daily article during 朝礼.
One of the sentence used the word がち. The sample sentence is:
長所{ちょうしょ}は見逃{みのが}してしまいがちです。
Abundant of misses.
I tried to ask my colleague ...
9
votes
1answer
344 views
Did standalone noun “好き” mean a person in classical Japanese?
In classical Japanese, did standalone noun “好き” mean a person who likes something? I do not think that it does in modern Japanese, although it sometimes means a person when used as a suffix (e.g. ...
7
votes
5answers
407 views
Who scolded whom in Aに怒られる?
I can see that someone got mad or someone made someone else mad. The things that make it difficult are に and the られる form of 怒る. What does this mean? How do you figure out who did what in these types ...
3
votes
1answer
143 views
Is -はない just another way of saying -じゃありません?
In the sentence:
彼の論文には大した価値はない
Is the -はない another way of saying -じゃありません or -ではない? And is it read as wanai or hanai?
4
votes
1answer
92 views
Can 国体 refer to “prefectural” as well as “national”?
If 国体 is used in conjunction with a prefecture name like 山口国体, does that mean "The National Athletic Meet that is being held in Yamaguchi", or the "The Yamaguchi Prefectural Athletic Meet"?
The only ...
6
votes
1answer
162 views
What does 台 mean when proceeded by a number (of yen)
I came across this phrase in a news article about a budget reduction:
．．．．６千億円台になる．．．．
I was wondering what this use of 台 means. I did a Google search of 円台 and the amount of yen doesn't seem to ...
4
votes
1answer
138 views
Understanding the grammar of 当て
I'm trying to understand the grammar behind 当て, and after a bit of investigation I still don't quite understand a could of points.
The definition that I found for it is (n) depend on, expectations, ...
