A particle which indicates the topic of a sentence or shows contrast in the universe of discourse.
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289 views
AはB emphasizing B, rather than A
There are quite a few comments on another
question discussing the sentence 彼が持っているのは二百円です, in which the emphasis apparently falls on 二百円. I posted a comment asking if this could be explained as the ...
4
votes
1answer
96 views
What's the difference between ことがある or ことはある?
In Tae Kim's guide, he wrote a few example sentences:
徹夜して、宿題することはある。
一人で行くことはありません。
パリに行ったことはありますか。
お寿司を食べたことがある。
そういうのを見たことがなかった。
In these examples, I don't really understand why some sentences ...
20
votes
4answers
984 views
What is the difference between “に” and “には”?
The title should be pretty self-explanatory. What meanings does each convey? And in what kinds of circumstances would one be used instead of the other?
For example, what are the differences between ...
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votes
5answers
288 views
A は／が difference [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
What’s the difference between wa (は) and ga (が)?
I've been trying to wrap my head around the は/が differences, and I'm trying to figure out the differences between the ...
5
votes
1answer
255 views
I have no idea what this is saying. Can you have two topics in a sentence?
白い箱はカウチの上に緑のランプは机の上にあります。
This sentence looks like it has two topics in it. But when I try to translate it, it doesn't make sense (to me obviously). My direct translation is: A white box on top of ...
3
votes
3answers
126 views
Does the lack of は change the sentence?
So I saw this sentence: きのう初めておすしをたべました。 And wondered if the は is just being left out. Does the sentence change any if は is added in? Like so: きのうは初めておすしをたべました。
3
votes
2answers
180 views
How does は apply itself to によっては?
From the question: "How does the use of いかんによっては in this question determine one answer over another?", it is observed that:
The use of によって means to change state or behaviour depending on, or ...
6
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2answers
133 views
What purpose does は serve after へ in this sentence?
ところで、今週末のゴルフ大会へは行くんですか。
I feel I have a decent understanding of both of those particles, but I'm wondering how the meaning of the sentence changes with and without the は after へ.
Thanks in advance.
8
votes
1answer
173 views
What is じゃ in じゃない?
Since there is possibility of "じゃありません" instead of "じゃないです" (which is logical, given "ありません" is polite "ない"), and it also seemed that I have seen "じゃ" used without "ない", I'd like to ask, what "じゃ" ...
13
votes
2answers
492 views
When asking 'What is your name?' or 'What is your job?', why is it 'は' not 'か'?
As per the title, when asking 'What is your name?' or 'What is your job?', why is it 'は' not 'か'? For example, we are taught this:
おしごとは。
'What is your job?'
But I don't understand why it ...
10
votes
3answers
700 views
When women use わ at the end of a sentence, is it different from よ?
My understanding of using わ at the end of a sentence is that it's essentially just for emphasis, just like using よ, and that only women can use it.
However, as far as I know, women can, and often do, ...
7
votes
2answers
260 views
Is the “wa-particle” in katakana ワ or ハ？
Is the "wa-particle" in katakana ワ or ハ？
(Just a quick question - I think I have seen both used, but if ワ is correct then I have just seen the results of a computer o/p automatically using ハ)
2
votes
1answer
88 views
“scope” of は particle
In the sentence below, does 外からは apply only to the part of the sentence up to 見られずに, or does it apply to the entire sentence?
あれなら外からは姿を見られずにテレビ局内に入れますね。
In other words, which one of these is ...
6
votes
2answers
259 views
Can we have two thematic は particles in a sentence?
Good afternoon all,
From what I understand, there are two types of は-particle:
The thematic-は (topic-marker) which is used to introduce things into the universe of discourse.
The contrastive-は.
...
6
votes
4answers
294 views
Analyzing sentences like 日本がピンチだ and 明日は雨だ
How are sentences like 日本がピンチだ (Japan is in a pinch) and 明日は雨だ (tomorrow it will rain) analyzed?
Translating them trivially, as
日本がピンチだ Japan is a pinch
明日は雨だ Tomorrow is rain
doesn't make ...
8
votes
3answers
313 views
Problems with は and が
Consider:
[A] 猫が好きだ
To me this means [A']"I like cats."
Contrast this to:
[B] 猫は好きだ
To me this means [B']"I like cats (among other animals)"
I based my understanding of [B] from Derek ...
5
votes
3answers
792 views
How do I say “I am the best” ? の,は or が and 私 or 俺?
I'm making a shirt for a (rather egotistical) friend of mine and so am trying to do something with the slogan "I am the best" for fun. I need something with four characters only, and would like to ask ...
4
votes
4answers
207 views
Shouldn't there be a のは in this sentence?
This is a an example sentence from a JLPT textbook to explain the use of たらしめる:
想像力{そうぞうりょく}こそ作品{さくひん}を芸術{げいじゅつ}たらしめる要素{ようそ}である。
I understand the meaning, which is something like, "The key ...
4
votes
2answers
246 views
は can mean “at least?”
Can は mean "at least" in some situations?
For example, 10回は＝"at least 10 times?"
How does this work?
This is an example:
...
10
votes
1answer
225 views
What is the implication when a gruff old man ends a sentence with わ?
In this question, it seems to me it was clearly established that わ, at the end of a sentence, is decidedly feminine. There was talk of a kansai-ben わ with slightly different implications, but still ...
2
votes
1answer
107 views
Extracting from, and introducing to Universe of Discourse using は and が with こそあど-demonstratives
Consider the following:
このりんご（ は / が ）食べないでください。
Person A: どちらが東ですか。
Person B： こちら（ は / が ）東です。
Workbook answers are は for 1. and が for 2.
In 1., I would expect the person to ...
41
votes
4answers
1k views
What's the difference between wa (は) and ga (が)?
When is it correct to use は but not が, and when is it correct to use が but not は? Are there any times when you can use either without changing the meaning of the sentence? In other cases, how does ...
6
votes
5answers
514 views
What is the difference between は and のは?
The following sentence means "seeing all the different foreign people was interesting."
This, according to my Japanese friends is incorrect:
色々な外国人を見ているは面白かった。
... and this is correct:
...
11
votes
1answer
224 views
Why is the topic marker often used in negative statements (ではない, ～とは思わない)?
What function does は provide in statements such as 本ではない or 本だとは思わない? I notice the は after と is often left out, at least if a Google search for 思わない is any indication, but there still seems to be a ...
