The differences between two or more words or phrases and how to select the best one for a given situation.
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1answer
151 views
Is 花見 “cherry blossom” viewing only?
Hi all I was wondering is there such a thing that 花見/お花見 must be specifically referring to "cherry blossom" viewing.
Or is it true that 花見 is "flower viewing" in general ?
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votes
1answer
209 views
Difference between 重い and 重たい
In some situations everybody around me uses 重い, and when I went to the bicycle shop everyone was only using 重たい.
Both mean heavy, but what is the difference in meaning or context between them?
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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 ...
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votes
2answers
227 views
Difference and nuance between することはない and する必要はない/する可能性はない
I understand the grammar point "Verb (Dictionary Form) + ことはない" can mean either "There is no need" or "There is no possibility" depending on context.
However, what are the differences? Are there any ...
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votes
1answer
196 views
What exactly is ありき?
I think from looking up ありき that it means "based on", but it's usage is unclear to me.
I've come across it in these two examples:
まずは結論{けつろん}ありき
Which I think means "the conclusion is based on ...
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votes
2answers
450 views
What is the difference between “〜がる” and “〜がっている”
I want to know the difference between 〜がる and 〜がっている, and in what situations I can use them.
My friend said 〜がる is used for a regular activity that someone does every day or every week, and the ...
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votes
1answer
271 views
What's the proper way to use 先 versus 前に or 以前?
I'm trying to understand why 先 is not the best choice to use in these sentences. Also, is it wrong to use it in this way?
× 先、学校で何かが起こった。
○ 以前、学校で何かが起こった。
× 先の書いた本から十年間が過ぎました。
○ 前に書いた本から十年間が過ぎました。
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1answer
226 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 ...
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votes
3answers
167 views
What is the sense of 気配がする (けはいがする) versus 気がする?
I'm (trying) to read a Japanese spy novel at the moment. It could just be the author's style, but I see lots of sentences end in 〜気配がする。
The more I read, the more I wonder - is there any difference ...
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votes
2answers
506 views
What do you say when giving something to somebody?
In English when you hold out something to someone, sometimes a vocal prompt like "here" or "there" is said to indicate that you are giving it to the person.
In Chinese (or at least in Singapore) we ...
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1answer
307 views
歩く {aruku} vs 歩む {ayumu}
I always know that 歩く is the verb to use when talking about walking. But I'm aware the kanji 歩 has another verb 歩む. In WWWJDIC, the example sentence given is:
ビルはあの会社の社長になるまで成功への道を歩み続けた。 Bill ...
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4answers
213 views
Are there differences in nuance and usage of [内]{ない}[緒]{しょ}, [秘]{ひ}[密]{みつ}, [隠]{かく}し[事]{ごと} and [秘]{ひ}め[事]{ごと}?
They all carry the meaning of "secret" in English, but are there differences in nuance and usage of each of them:
[内]{ない}[緒]{しょ}
[秘]{ひ}[密]{みつ}
[隠]{かく}し[事]{ごと}
[秘]{ひ}め[事]{ごと}
...
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7answers
287 views
IT system renewal: Can I say 更新 for “renewal”?
I am starting a new project and have to come up with a name for it so that everybody knows what we are talking about.
The project is the renewal of an IT application that I will call エックスワイゼッド. ...
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votes
2answers
179 views
What's the difference between 迷う and 紕う?
I was looking in a dictionary and both were listed as being defined as "to lose one's way, to hesitate, or to waver," but I don't understand why there are two different kanji for the word.
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4answers
425 views
What is the Japanese word or phrase for “to post on the internet”?
How do you say "to post something on the internet"? Are there different words for different kinds of posts, for example:
a blog entry
a comment
a piece of information, like a translation or a ...
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votes
2answers
353 views
Is there a difference between すみません (sumimasen) and すいません (suimasen?)
I'm at the proverbial izakaya and my friend tells me one is more polite. I think theyre the same. Who's right? When can I use one or the other?
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2answers
313 views
do people actually respect the nuances of 探す vs 捜す?
Part 1
I understand 探す to be to search for something (general)
and 捜す to be to search for something lost
But do people actually care about the difference in nuance when they use it?
I mean do ...
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votes
3answers
269 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 ...
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votes
2answers
815 views
differences of kuremasu, moraimasu and itadakimasu
I have been taught that they are used when receiving something (or a favor) from someone. But how exactly do they differ? I've searched the web for an answer and.. One site suggests that kuremasu is ...
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votes
1answer
365 views
Aren't がる and たがる the same thing?
In my JLPT practise book, it has two different entries, one to explain がる and one to explaining たがる. It offeres these example sentences to differentiate them:
うちの子{こ}は新{あたら}しいものを見{み}ると、すぐほしがる。
...
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4answers
251 views
Trouble understanding this apology: 我々が…謝罪
An English website wrote an apology in Japanese after it took down an image of cracked hinomaru (日の丸) — the hinomaru linked to a donation page for the disasters following the March 11 earthquakes.
It ...
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2answers
217 views
Is there a difference between からすると and からして？
These two phrases seem to have very similar usage and I'm unable to determine the difference between them.
The examples I have are:
彼は服装からしてだらしない。きっと他の面も同じだろう。
kare ha fukusou karashite ...
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2answers
305 views
Is there a difference between ほんとう (hontō) and ほんとうに (hontō-ni) when used alone as interjection or question?
As the equivalent of Enlgish "Oh really?" / "Yes really." as lone utterances I seem to hear both "本当" (hontō) and "本当に" (hontō-ni) in Japanese - is there a difference?
It seems that hontō is a noun ...
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votes
2answers
223 views
Difference between 丸い and 円い
Both come up with the same reading and definition in Jisho.org (round/circular), and both are listed as common words. Is there any preference between the two or should I simply learn both as ...
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votes
1answer
248 views
What's the difference between 一応 and とりあえず?
What's the difference between 一応{いちおう} and とりあえず?
While I think they can both mean "tentatively" or "for the time being", there seems to be a difference in their usage. How do the two translate ...
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1answer
167 views
what's the difference between 返事 and 答え？
both have the similar English of "answer," but when do you use one over the other?
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3answers
339 views
When to use “もっと” vs “より”
Giving examples if possible, what's the difference between e.g. もっと大きい and より大きい to mean "more (than)"/"bigger (than)"? In what situations would you use もっと over より and vice versa?
For instance, why ...
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1answer
180 views
伸{の}びる versus 延{の}びる in a JLPT question
In my JLPT workbook, it gives these examples to explain the difference between 延{の}びる and 伸{の}びる:
髪{かみ}は１か月{いっかげつ}に１センチぐらう伸{の}びる。
会議{かいぎ}はいつも30分{ぷん}ぐらい延{の}びる。
They both mean "stretch", more ...
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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 ...
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1answer
230 views
When and to whom should I use the expression ご苦労様 (gokurousama)?
In what context and relationship wise to who can I safely say ご苦労様 (gokurousama)?
I often defer to using otsukaresama since I'm not sure if I'm talking down to someone by saying gokurousama. Please ...
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1answer
343 views
Comparing 気にする vs. 気になる
Consider this example sentence from SPACEALC:
あなたがどうしているか気になっていた。
"I was concerned about how you were."
What is the difference when 気にする is used instead? I.e.,
あなたがどうしているか気にしていた。
～なる ...
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votes
2answers
457 views
What are slang terms for Japanese money?
This question about alternate terms for coins focused on the use of ワンコイン, but it got me thinking about slang terms for money in general.
In all the years I've been in Japan, I don't think I've ...
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votes
1answer
409 views
Does タメ語{ご} mean “casual speech”?
A debate came up on the use of タメ語{ご} in this question, and I thought it was worth its own analysis.
The question is, does タメ語{ご} simply mean "casual speech", or does it mean "speech between equals". ...
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votes
1answer
220 views
Why did オレンジ replace 橙【だいだい】?
This question about colours got me thinking:
Why, and how, did オレンジ come to replace 橙【だいだい】 to refer to the colour orange?
It seems weird to me that a 外来語【がいらいご】(word taken from a foreign language) ...
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votes
2answers
227 views
To uncomment in Japanese?
In the context of computer programming, how to say to uncomment?
For instance, here I uncomment a line:
// Before
// myvar = 3;
// After
myvar = 3;
I would use コメントアウトする, but I also see ...
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votes
1answer
415 views
How to use ～に同意する to agree or disagree with a person?
A couple of times I've tried to say "I agree with..." or "he agrees with..." but I don't know whether I'm using 同意{どうい}する correctly.
In what ways should に同意{どうい}している be used? Also, which particles ...
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0answers
226 views
Thoughts about event frequencies and “often enough”
I'm having trouble expressing the concept of "not often enough". The most basic way to say "often" is よく, but I think there's a problem in putting qualifiers on this word. For instance, expressing ...
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2answers
274 views
Do people use まい？
I see the ending まい all over the place in the JLPT books and in example phrases but I can't actually think of an example of somebody saying it or writing in an email (from SMS style messages to work ...
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3answers
361 views
Difference between 気をつけて, お大事に and お元気で
What is the difference between 気をつけて, お大事に and お元気で. How and in which context are they used?
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3answers
386 views
What exacty does ゆえ mean, and how does it fit this JLPT question?
I have this question in my JLPT textbook:
男女{だんじょ}平等{びょうどう}といっても、女性{じょせい}＿＿＿の差別{さべつ}はまだ残{のこ}っている。
A ゆえ B たる C なり D こそ
The book says the answer is A, which is weird to me because I thought ...
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2answers
282 views
What is the difference between 記憶【きおく】 and 思【おも】い出【で】?
Is there any difference between the meanings or connotations of 記憶 and 思い出?
I started thinking about this after listening to the song 「タイムマシーン」 or "Time Machine" by 少女時代, where these two lines occur ...
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3answers
840 views
How do you ask for “the bill” at a restaurant?
This is probably a bit of a silly question, but what do you say in Japanese when you're asking for the bill in a restaurant? Or is it unusual to say anything at all?
When I was in Japan I could never ...
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3answers
307 views
Why is it お[腹]{なか}が[空]{す}いた but [腹]{はら}[減]{へ}った?
Is there any particular reason why the noun おなか goes with verb すく while the noun はら goes with the verb へる? Would it be weird if I use おなかへった or はらすいた?
While on the same topic, does the 'starving' ...
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2answers
196 views
「悪気があっての答え」 vs 「悪気がある答え」
Hi all I was wondering what is the difference between these two sentences:
「決して悪気があっての回答ではないです。」
「決して悪気がある回答ではないです。」
I can't really make out the gist of the meaning of 「あっての」.
WWWJDIC's ...
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3answers
240 views
Difference between （遊び）方 and （遊ぶ）方法
I'm struggling to understand the difference between the verb suffix ～方【かた】 and the noun 方法【ほうほう】. As an example, the difference between 遊び方 (which seems to mean something like "manner in which someone ...
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votes
2answers
279 views
How do these 3 ways of saying “It can't be helped” differ?
So I have heard:
仕方がない
しょうがない
仕方あるまい
And the translation I've seen for all 3 is: "It can't be helped." Is there a particular difference among the 3?
Edit: Secondary question. Why isn't 仕方あるまい, ...
8
votes
2answers
222 views
What's the difference in usage and nuance between やはり and やっぱり?
I know that we say にっぽん instead of にほん when we want to inject a little national pride into the word, but I've never had a good understanding of the difference in meaning/nuance/usage between やはり and ...
8
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2answers
315 views
Would I have 牛乳 or ミルク with my cereal?
I've just found out that there's a couple of words for milk, and that they have slightly different meanings. Which one would I have with my Weetbix in a "viking style" breakfast in Niseko?
Based on ...
8
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2answers
200 views
what's the difference between 余地 and よゆう?
I have been informed that よゆう is to do with temporal or physical room, while 余地 has to do with emotional room, but I might have misunderstood the explanation.
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2answers
676 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 ...
