The short syntactic words or affixes in Japanese that are used to modify words or entire sentences.
25
votes
5answers
908 views
What is the difference between 〜となる and 〜になる?
Is it a nuance difference? Is it formality?
EDIT
For example:
請求書のお支払いは現金のみとなりますので、ご了承くださいませ。
請求書のお支払いは現金のみになりますので、ご了承くださいませ。
I just made that example up, but for some reason, my gut ...
8
votes
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, ...
17
votes
2answers
464 views
Why is は pronounced as わ when used as a topic particle?
The particle は is pronounced similarly to わ (unlike the rest of the ハ行 kana) when used as a particle; why is this? What historical shifts went on to cause this irregularity?
10
votes
2answers
305 views
Ending a sentence with さ
When is it appropriate to put さ at the end of a sentence? Do women say this also? I think I remember seeing a female character say it in an anime.
9
votes
2answers
159 views
How does one use the “[V ます stem] に [Vタ]” pattern (as in 待ちに待った)?
Every now and then I hear 待ちに待った, as in:
待ちに待ったライブ a long-awaited concert
I started wondering if this pattern can apply to other verbs, and it certainly seems to, if Google is any indication. I ...
10
votes
2answers
250 views
Usage of ～やら～やら vs ～や～や
What is the conceptual difference, or difference in nuance between these two constructions when used to mean 'and'? I realize there are some syntactic differences, such as や not appearing after the ...
5
votes
2answers
283 views
why are we allowed to use を particle with na-adjectives?
Can someone explain the usage of a na-adjective with the を particle?
Like I cannot understand why we can say ほうれん草を嫌いな人もいる,
because I'd thought that it had to be a が or の particle instead of an を ?
...
12
votes
3answers
805 views
Usage of なんて and なんか as emphasis.
When are なんて and なんか used as emphasis in casual speech? Are they used when you're surprised, angry or can it be both? What sort of feeling does it convey to the listener compared to a normal sentence ...
16
votes
4answers
473 views
Are there cases when two or more particles will occur next to each other without intervening lexical words?
Most particles seem to be postpositions but I'm sure I've seen say a noun followed by a location particle followed by "wa" or "ga" or possibly "wo" but when I've tried to use it I've only confused my ...
13
votes
2answers
447 views
The reason for using 何も+negative, but 何でも+positive
In one of the Japanese classes I attended, I've been taught that while we use 「何も出来ない」to say "He cannot do anything", to say "He can do anything" we use 「何でも出来る」 instead of 「何も出来る」.
Why is there a ...
12
votes
1answer
448 views
Using な particle after common nouns (non na-adjectives)
Is な particle allowed to be used after common nouns (i.e non na-adjectives) for whatever reasons, e.g. cuteness, trendy, humor etc?
Dictionary@goo website seems to use (normal noun)+な in a couple of ...
11
votes
2answers
662 views
How does ほど work in the 〜すれば〜するほど construction?
I understand that 〜すれば〜するほど is used to mean "the more you do ~ the more ~".
However, I don't see how this meaning is derived from this sentence pattern. I assume the ば is from the conditional form ...
5
votes
1answer
65 views
Difference between で and の when referring to “usage”
Simplest example would be when you are getting a coffee and ask for a paper cup. It seems that both 紙の and 紙で are acceptable. What are the differences?
8
votes
1answer
549 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 ...
30
votes
7answers
879 views
When going somewhere, is there any difference between e (へ) and ni (に)?
Can you use へ and に interchangeably, as in 北海道へ行く and 北海道に行く? Are there any subtle differences in the use of these two?
8
votes
2answers
255 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 ...
6
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 ...
6
votes
2answers
267 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?
13
votes
2answers
664 views
What's the difference between に and で when speaking of time of an action?
What's the difference between に and で when speaking of the time of an action? I know に is very specific about time, but I'm not sure when, or how to use で. Can で only be used in certain instances?
...
11
votes
2answers
892 views
How to use へ (-e), に (-ni), まで (made) and の方 (no-hō) with destination and direction?
It is common to ask the difference between just "へ" (-e) and "に" (-ni) but it seems to get even more complicated when you also mix in "まで" (made) and even "の方" (no-hō).
When Japanese people ask me ...
10
votes
4answers
320 views
What is the significance of [の] (no)?
I've seen it used on many places, and sometimes it feels like a connection between words.
For example "鳥の詩" (tori no uta), it looks as if the の is connecting 鳥 (tori) and 詩 (uta), and I would like to ...
18
votes
2answers
899 views
Why are the particles “は” (ha⇒wa), “へ” (he⇒e), and “を” (wo⇒o) not spelled phonetically?
As far as I know only three words (or particles) have irregular, non-phonetic spelling in Japanese:
"は" - The topic particle is pronounced "wa" but the kana is otherwise pronounced "ha"
"へ" - The ...
11
votes
3answers
334 views
What is the difference between 「ほど」 {hodo} and 「ぐらい」 {gurai}?
As in the question title, what is the difference between the two sentences below?
一時間ほどかかります。
ichijikan hodo kakarimasu.
一時間ぐらいかかります。
ichijikan gurai kakarimasu.
How do we choose to ...
