The short syntactic words or affixes in Japanese that are used to modify words or entire sentences.
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484 views
In what situation can I use ~かい (for interrogative question)?
One day, I asked my japanese friend how I could invite some friends to eat.
He said
"一緒に食べに行くかい？"
I know that we could also say:
行きましょうか（行こうか）？
行きませんか（行かない）？
行きますか（行くの）？
but I got interested ...
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votes
4answers
375 views
How do you emphasize a word similar to using “The” in English
I know that there is no "The" particle in Japanese. But I am curious if there is a proper way to emphasize a topic the same way you do with "The" in English.
For example:
He's "the man".
...
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2answers
147 views
How to break down who did what in AにBをCさせる
I'm trying to understand the following:
後輩にサイフを開かせることはないよ
I guess this could be generalized as AにBをCさせる.
It's confusing. Maybe if someone can break down how to understand this and then I can ...
8
votes
2answers
673 views
When to use ～ので vs ～から
I was looking in A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar when I saw something on page 329 which truly shocked me:
"node cannot be used and kara must be used [... when ...] the main clause is a ...
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2answers
252 views
why is it that some 形容動詞 accepts の after it while some only accepts な after it?
why is it that some 形容動詞 accepts の after it while some only accepts な after it?
Examples:
の only: 普通、大勢
な or の: 初心、特別、特殊
Is there a way for us to tell if a 形容動詞 needs a の or な particle after ...
8
votes
1answer
182 views
Relation between -ますよ and -ましょう
They sound alike. Are they cognate historically?
Morphologically, is よ in both cases a particle or part of the morpheme in -ましょう?
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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" ...
8
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1answer
309 views
Is 感じる {かんじる} transitive or intransitive? Which particle to use?
Please consider 一段 {いちだん} verb 感じる {かんじる}. Sometimes I see particle に applied and sometimes particole を. In the Jisho.org vocabulary it is not specified if this verb is 他動詞 {たどうし} (transitive) or 自動詞 ...
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1answer
156 views
Can けれども be analysed further?
Consider the conjunction ども, e.g.:
行けども
言えども
Formation rule:
Verb Hypothetical form (仮定形) + ども
This leads me to hypothesise that the conjunction けれども (meaning "but; however; although") is ...
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2answers
175 views
Which particle to use with 出会う {であう} : と, に or が?
From Google searches, I can see that all three particles と, に and が are used with 出会う, but are there differences when using each of the particles or are they interchangeable?
For ease of explanation, ...
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1answer
547 views
Are there various ways to use ~し?
The many ways to say “and” in Japanese thread showed me that ～し, ～し can be used give reasons for something.
この部屋は綺麗だし広いし間取りもいいから人気がある。This room is clean, wide and also good partition, so most of ...
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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 ...
8
votes
2answers
252 views
What dialects use だべ？
I feel like I hear だべ all the time (through TV and on the streets of Yokohama where I live), but I'm wondering about it's origins and modern usage.
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votes
1answer
230 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 ...
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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 ...
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votes
1answer
255 views
When to use 他【ほか】の or 他【ほか】に
I always thought only 他の existed, but my teacher uses 他に a lot. Are there differences between when each can be used?
Here are two examples of each from my online dictionary:
だれかほかの人に聞いてごらん (Ask ...
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votes
1answer
284 views
Ending sentence with ～だもの or ～ですもの
I've been listening songs and anime dialogues that end sentences with ～もの or even cuter version ～もん for so long that I am able to see how the word denotes reasons or excuses like:
おなか空いたもん (when ...
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votes
2answers
216 views
“Grammatically-correct” particle-less phrases/sayings
I know that within an informal/familiar setting, people often leave out particles. Whether or not this is grammatically correct I'm not positive, but for the sake of this question, I'll say that it's ...
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2answers
202 views
What is the difference between あるまい and ありません？
From what I understand, they both mean "is not". But from what I've been able to gather from the few times I've heard it, it seems that あるまい may not be as strong or definitive as ありません. Am I on the ...
7
votes
2answers
188 views
How should I view でより and でのより?
My basic understanding of より to compare things or ending letters, is failing me when there's a で or での in front of it.
As I write this, I'm wondering, can read でより as "with, more", "in, more"?
...
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2answers
200 views
Why まで and not に?
So I'm reading Chapter 12 (of Minna no Nihongo I) and ran across this sentence:
空港までバスと電車とどちらが速いですか。
It's translated as:
Which is the faster way to get to the airport, by bus or by train?
...
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4answers
637 views
When to use だ before と思います。
If you want to state what you think you can put と思います at the end of a sentence. However I noticed that sometimes you're supposed to put だ before と思います so that it becomes だと思います, and sometimes you're ...
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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 ...
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2answers
235 views
へ or に particle for 曲がる?
i was wondering what may be the difference in nuance between 右へ曲がる and 右に曲がる ?
Example: Take a right turn and you'll see the library.
1) 右へ曲がると、図書館がある。
2) 右に曲がると、図書館がある。
As for [noun-location] ...
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votes
2answers
265 views
Can placements of adverbs be altered freely?
I'm curious if there is any difference in nuance between these two sentences:
彼は少なくとも週に一度車を洗う。
彼は週に少なくとも一度車を洗う。
I'm aware that grammatically speaking both are 100% right, but this question is not ...
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1answer
142 views
Explain Noun + へ particle?
I have a sentence 来年にはテレフォニカが製品投入へ. This is translated by google: "Telefonica is to rollout next year." Where is the verb in this sentence as 製品投入 looks like "noun" + "noun"? And what is へ doing after ...
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2answers
253 views
Which particle is better に or から?
〇〇さんにプレゼントをもらいました。 〇〇さんからプレゼントをもらいました。
I feel it is more natural to use particle に, but I'm not a native speaker. Can someone please help me out on this? Both these options are listed in the current ...
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2answers
335 views
Expressing the “after [verb]-ing”, using 後で, -てから, 後に, 後から?
It's my understanding that when telling what you did after an action can be said using:
た後で
てから
た後に
For instance,
さおとめさんが泳いでから私たちはお祭りで会いました。
さおとめさんが泳いだ後{あと}で私たちはお祭りで会いました。
...
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1answer
176 views
Can the word まだしも be broken up into distinct meanings?
I'm studying grammar, and one of the new forms that I'm learning uses the word まだしも. I looked it up and I found:
類語：
まだいいが / まだ何とかなるが
Based on how the word is used in the following ...
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votes
1answer
92 views
“10倍もの” vs “10倍の”
Good afternoon all,
I understand that "X倍の" means "X times of", however sometimes I see the phrase "X倍もの" and I was wondering what it means.
For example, in the sentence:
...
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votes
2answers
214 views
Use of the particle を to mean where something is going?
A little while back I was working my way through the Book "Japanese Sentence Patterns for Effective Communication" When I got to page 156 it explains the topic of the section which is "The te form of ...
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2answers
117 views
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3answers
161 views
Why is it that the っけ suffix can only be attached to a question-sentence
Why is it that the っけ suffix / け particle (indicating that the speaker is trying to recall some information) can only be attached to a sentence when the sentence itself is a question-sentence?
...
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votes
4answers
335 views
does anyone know of any o-words or go-words which are absolutely neutral?
Does anyone know of any o-words or go-words which are absolutely neutral (have no nuances of being polite / courteous / respectful / womanly / cute etc etc)?
The only ones I'm aware of currently is ...
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3answers
163 views
When do you use は/に for どようびは/に?
There is a sentence in a worksheet that goes: どようびは ほんを よみます。Why is it not どようびに? When do I know which one to use and what is the difference?
Spoke to my sensei and she said you can use something ...
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2answers
416 views
のか - Particle “lamenting reflections on the preceding statement”. What?
I've come across this sentence in my manga.
そ そうか そういう疑いを持っているのか
It's actually fairly easy, but the particle at the end has confused me. I thought it was the two particles の and か, but then I ...
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votes
2answers
266 views
～にしては vs. ～としては
I know one implies the thing I'm comparing actually is the thing I'm comparing it to, and the other doesn't.
Can someone suggest an easy example or trick for remembering which is which?
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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.
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2answers
287 views
What's the purpose of な in なのに?
I don't understand the role of "な" when used before "のに" as in these two sentences (with given translations):
朝目がさめて初めて、外が雪なのに気がついた。
He noticed that there was snow outside only after he woke up ...
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2answers
177 views
Questions with some usages of で
From my understanding, "で" have many different usages in Japanese. I have some questions regarding the following particular uses of で. It would be very helpful if someone could also come up with other ...
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votes
1answer
133 views
How to express “with (x) as well” and “even with (x)”
I am trying to express something akin to these sentences:
Even with a spoon, he digs well (でも?)
Even without a shovel, he digs well
I would also like to express this:
With a shovel ...
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2answers
211 views
Logic behind “が” preferrence when using a “-たい” form
I have learned that when using a "-たい" form, when the sentence would normally require "を", you can use either "を" or "が", but "が" was actually preferred, "を" sounding unnatural.
I searched about the ...
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1answer
230 views
When the agent takes を in the causative form
I've seen a few sets of terminology when referring to the causative form, so for the basic case, I will use the following:
instigator が agent に 〇〇 を ｖ－させる。
In its most basic, text-book form, we have ...
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votes
1answer
172 views
How is たら used as a particle?
The other day I came across どうたら and while looking it up I noticed that たら is classified as a particle. どうたら is apparently an abbreviation of どうたらこうたら, so I see that it should work for ああ and そう (by ...
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1answer
219 views
Differences in meaning of using へ, に, or で in marking locations.
in "明日、姉とデパート＿買い物に行きます。"
why is へ favoured over で in my workbook?
If i ask myself the question "明日は、何をする" Can i answer it with "買い物に行く" and make ”デパート” an incidental location? That was how i justified ...
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4answers
758 views
How to say, “things like”
If you want to say "things like" you can use とか、など、and し。
What if you don't want to list out several things. You want to say, "things like A." Then what do you do?
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2answers
240 views
What is the って in 連れてってくれる?
ALC can give several examples of this, not only in 連れてって:
いつ私たちを湖に連れてってくれるの？ When are you going to take us to the lake?
これ、帰りに叔母さんとこ、持ってってちょうだい。Will you take this to your aunt on your way home ...
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2answers
374 views
This use より baffles me
From the anime Noir, Episode 2.
Context: The husband comes home and his wife and son greet him outside.
Wife: おかえりなさい。今日は早いのね？
Husband: ああ、思ったより早く仕事が終わってね。
The wife's line, I get. The ...
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3answers
507 views
Can you use multiple を in one sentence?
I was listening to lastfm.jp the other day, and happened across this line in an artist bio:
14歳の頃にギターを、17歳で作曲を始める。
I've often read here on JLU that a phrase particle should only appear once per ...
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3answers
181 views
What is くん doing in these sentences?
I have come across two sentences in a manga that is using くん in a way that I can't seem to find any information on, in both my books and online. I am guessing this may be some sort of slang, odd ...
