That class of words which describe events and states and can be inflected or conjugated to indicate relative time, as well as many other nuances.
25
votes
1answer
1k views
What is the difference between the nominalizers こと and の?
As Derek mentioned in his postscript, both こと and の are nominalizers that can turn a verb into a noun.
ピアノを弾【ひ】く。 I play the piano.
ピアノを弾{ひ}くのが好{す}きです。 I like playing the piano.
...
11
votes
3answers
421 views
Would the plain form of a verb usually be translated as future tense?
In a recent question I asked, this example sentence was offered:
映画を見る。 (I will watch a movie.)
What struck me about this was that the translated version was the future tense.
However, I always ...
10
votes
2answers
634 views
If Vて+いる isn't a gerund, then what is it?
I always thought that a verb ending in the て form along with the いる suffix was the English equivelent of the "ing" form of a verb.
Thus:
see = 見{み}る, seeing = 見{み}ている
do = する, doing = している
...
6
votes
3answers
254 views
Verb classifications by japanese learners
As a studies of Japanese I've come across two distinct ways to group verbs for purposes of remembering how to conjugate them.
う動詞 / る動詞
Group1 / Group 2
Pacerier mentioned a verb1 and verb5, can ...
5
votes
2answers
331 views
Correct usage of [verb stem] + に + [another verb]
I'm a little unclear on the use a verb stem, followed by に and another verb.
Take these two examples:
特別なビザをもらって行った
特別なビザをもらいに行った
I think the first means "I went with a special visa", but ...
9
votes
1answer
201 views
自～／他～ペア：逆の形 — Transitive/Intransitive pairs: opposite forms
I've noticed (through much frustration) that many 自～／他～ pairs have "opposite" forms; particularly with the ~u and ~eru types. For example, 焼く・焼ける are opposite from 開く・開ける.
焼く （他） － パンを焼く ("Bake ...
9
votes
1answer
175 views
How should I use 始める (はじめる) and 始まる (はじまる) as a suffix to intransitive verbs?
When describing intransitive actions that are commencing, I often end up saying dumb things like 沸き始まる (わきはじまる) instead of 沸き始める (わきはじめる) - starting to boil. Perhaps it's some meta pattern I am ...
10
votes
4answers
413 views
Am I coming or going? 戻ってくる vs 戻っていく
A little while ago I was in a shop, and about 5 minutes after I left, they phoned me to tell me I had left my USB stick there. I said I would head back and pick it up.
I used 戻って行く to mean "I'll go ...
3
votes
1answer
110 views
Can 差す be an intransitive verb?
WWWJDIC lists 差す as an intransitive verb, but in all of the example sentences I've seen it looks more like a transitive verb.
So my question is, is 差す a transitive or intransitive verb?
7
votes
2answers
268 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 ...
8
votes
3answers
1k views
“to make a telephone call”
In some older learning material I came across, they use 「電話をかける」 for "to make a telephone call". When/why did this come to be replaced by 「電話する」 in popular usage?
8
votes
3answers
189 views
What is the difference between 交ざる / 混ざる {まざる} and 交じる / 混じる {まじる}?
Both {まじる} and {まざる} with both initial kanji characters 交 and 混 are intransitive verbs that are translated into this by rikaichan:
to be mixed; to be blended with; to associate with; to mingle ...
8
votes
2answers
557 views
How to differentiate ～られる conjugation between passive form and potential form?
For verbs of group 2, whose ～ます form is formed by dropping the ending ～る from the plain form, both the passive and potential forms have the same conjugation: ～られる. Example:
食べられる
1. to be eaten
...
10
votes
2answers
229 views
About -eru and -aru verb pairs that are not transitive/intransitive counterpart of each other
Most -eru and -aru pairs of verbs that I know are transitive/intransitive counterparts of each others. For example, 見つかる is the intransitive counterpart for the transitive 見つける, and 変わる is the ...
2
votes
1answer
313 views
The differences and similarities between ーたら and ーば [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Differences among -たら、なら、-んだったら、-えば, etc.
There are different ways to say "if" in Japanese. I want to concentrate on these two verb endings which mean "if": たら and ば. ...
15
votes
4answers
3k views
What exactly is “なの” (nano)?
I asked a female Japanese friend to translate a sentence for me and it ends in "nano" which I took to be either an alternative question particle to -ne or -ka; or possibly two particles I don't know ...
17
votes
5answers
772 views
Does -ou / -you / -mashou conjugation have a negative form?
Does the -ou / -you / -mashou (the "let's X") form have a negative counterpart? For example, how do I say "let's not X" for the following?:
行こう
食べよう
寝ましょう
As far as I can remember, the Japanese ...
10
votes
2answers
202 views
Which verbs have 辞書形 (dictionary forms) that look like ~ます conjugations?
I recently confused 励ます (hagemasu) for the ~ます form of 禿げる (hageru).
Although this actually lead to a rather amusing conversation, I'm wondering if there are other examples of this to watch out for?
13
votes
2answers
770 views
Passive-transitive-verb vs. Intransitive-verb （他動詞の受け身 vs. 自動詞)
Here's another question for you experts out there. I think I know the answer to this as well, but it still creeps up in my mind all the time; something I'd like to research more. I want to know ...
11
votes
1answer
197 views
What is the difference between these four forms of “to do”?
There are at least four verbs that mean "to do" in Japanese: する, なさる, いたす, and やる. What is the purpose of each, and when is it appropriate to use them?
6
votes
3answers
268 views
When learning new verbs, is it best to memorize both the transitive and intransitive versions up front?
How do you handle learning new verbs that have both transitive and intransitive forms? Is it best to immediately memorize both forms?
7
votes
5answers
185 views
Is there a general rule for deriving xasu→xaseru intransitives such as 死なせる from 死なす?
There are a number of verbs where there is a 〜xasu → xaseru transformation to produce an transitive verb from an intransitive, eg:
死なす→死なせる
生かす→生かせる
飲ます→飲ませる
Is this some kind of generalized rule? ...
13
votes
2answers
267 views
What is the difference in nuance and usage of the two kanji forms for なおす (naosu), 直す and 治す?
Stolen directly from Grigory M's question in the definition phase:
http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/7526?phase=definition
