Any question that does not deal specifically with grammar or pronunciation. Includes questions about prefixes, suffixes, compound words, loanwords, dialectal differences, pragmatic usage, etc. In other words, phenomena that occurs at the level of the word.
5
votes
1answer
96 views
The meaning of kakemawaru 駆け回る
I have been encountering this word kakemawaru 駆け回る a few times. It means running around, If I understand well.
Does it mean only physically running around?
For example: kids are running around in the ...
4
votes
1answer
227 views
How do I express “to survive” in a more metaphorical sense?
My friend published a multi-part video on Facebook. I wanted to comment "I survived for only one episode", as in "It was so bad I couldn't keep watching after just one episode", but I wasn't sure ...
3
votes
2answers
151 views
Questions on イケてる
イケてる is defined by tangorin as such:
noun, or verb acting prenominally:
cool; with-it; turn-on; sexy
As a noun I can see it as "the state of being cool," as perhaps shown in the following ...
6
votes
2answers
129 views
Questions on the word シクシク
I understand that the word シクシク is 擬声語/giseigo/onomatopoeia equivalent to the English "boo-hoo/boo-hoo-hoo."
恐怖でシクシク泣く To whimper in fear
彼女はボーイフレンドに捨てられた時、あまりの惨めさにシクシクと泣いた。
She wailed in misery ...
1
vote
0answers
247 views
Lingualift review? [closed]
I am Japanese by blood but grew up in the U.S. and never learned the language. The most I have ever learned, actually, are hiragana, katakana and a few kanji. Which was something I forced myself to ...
6
votes
2answers
242 views
“Tourist trap” in Japanese
Assuming such a concept exists in Japanese, how do you say "tourist trap"?
Wikipedia describes it as:
A tourist trap is an establishment, or group of establishments, that
has been created with ...
7
votes
2answers
233 views
Differences between the many words for dinner
According to my dictionary, the following words all mean the same thing: "Dinner":
[夜]{よる}ご[飯]{はん}, [晩]{ばん}ご[飯]{はん}, [晩飯]{ばんめし}, [晩食]{ばんしょく}, [夕]{ゆう}ご[飯]{はん}, [夕飯]{ゆうはん(ゆうめし)}, [夕食]{ゆうしょく}
A similar ...
15
votes
2answers
558 views
Why does 今度【こんど】 mean “next time”?
The word 今度【こんど】, though its literal meaning is "this time" is in my experience used pretty heavily to refer to tbe next time or some unspecified point in the future. For example:
...
4
votes
2answers
231 views
What does ～と見てよい/～と見ていい mean? How did it have its meaning?
I found these sentences using SPACEALC:
The content in parentheses and bolding are my own:
まず勝ち試合と見ていいが、成り行き任せでは駄目です。
You'll probably win the game, but that's not automatic.
...
3
votes
2answers
246 views
Why does 皮肉 mean “irony”?
I gather that 皮肉 can literally mean "skin-meat." I also see that one definition for 皮 is "mask (hiding one's true nature); seeming." So perhaps 皮肉 can be understood as "hiding the real meat," which ...
4
votes
1answer
86 views
Saying northeast, northwest, north-north-east, etc
What would the correct way to write and say northeast, northwest, north-north-east, etc?
In Chinese, we put east and west first and then put north or south at the end, for example, 東北 for northeast.
...
8
votes
3answers
223 views
Is しまった an appropriate translation for “Oops”?
In the course of localising an app for the Japanese language I have been tasked with translating the Google-style error string "Oops", which will presumably be used as in
Oops
Please check ...
5
votes
1answer
153 views
inter- and intra- prefix
What would one use for the equivalent of the "inter-" and "intra-" prefixes in English?
e.g. intercity, intracity, inter-server etc
I did a fair amount of looking around. 間 looks like it might be ...
2
votes
1answer
314 views
What is the longest word in Japanese?
What is the longest (based on their representation in romaji) word in Japanese? Are there any longer than リュウグウノオトヒメノモトユイノキリハズシ? If it depends on criteria for a word, then list them by their criteria.
...
10
votes
1answer
212 views
Difference between さよなら and さようなら
I just saw the word "goodbye" spelt as さよなら. Having clearly heard the long o sound before, I thought the word was misspelled. However, a quick online search shows both さよなら and さようなら being used. Is ...
1
vote
1answer
63 views
meaning of 蠢{うごめ}き[伸]{の}ばして?
It's taken from ひぐらしのなく頃に OP (lyrics can be found here
)
I know the meaning of each individual word, but I can't really understand how it works in this context:
鏡の中で蠢き伸ばしてくる無数の手で
3
votes
4answers
122 views
What is the difference between 楽しい and 面白い?
Google translates both of them to be interesting. And which can be used for a funny guy?
8
votes
4answers
158 views
What is the difference in usage between 準備 用意 and 覚悟
The dictionaries translate these three words roughly as preparation/preparedness or ready/readiness.
I don't think I undersand the subtleties of their usage.
Not to mention できる also has another ...
3
votes
1answer
118 views
Difference between ともあれ and とかく
According to ALC ともあれ とかく they look pretty similar and express "anyway, anyhow". I came across the following excercise where you need to choose between those two:
...
9
votes
1answer
261 views
Describing my exact height
How do I describe my height in centimetres?
I think you can say "私は背が高いです" to say that you're tall, but how about your exact height? Would "私は背が１９０cmです" sound like broken Japanese?
I came across ...
3
votes
1answer
118 views
Help with a usage of 自慢
私は彼が自慢だ。
I'm Proud of Him
彼は私が自慢だ。
He is proud of me.
I am confused by this pattern with 自慢. It kind of looks like 自慢 is being used as an adjective (?), but the definition in ...
4
votes
1answer
107 views
What is the meaning and etymology of the (slang?) word まめ?
私はあまりまめに書きませんが、ことばを学ぶのは大好きです。
I don't write that well, but I love learning the language.
What is the etymology of the word まめ here and what specifically does it mean?
My friend gave me this ...
7
votes
1answer
103 views
Usage of 腱 vs 筋
What is the difference between the following characters: 腱 vs 筋 （すじ）
Both translate to tendon (as in the connective tissue between muscles and bones)
5
votes
1answer
156 views
の要領で as “in the same way as”/“in the manner of” vs. のように
Full text is over here.
This is part of the description of how 茄子餃子{なすぎょうざ} is prepared at a particular restaurant:
天ぷらの要領で水で溶いた小麦粉をつけて中火の油で揚げる。
If の要領で was replaced by のように, would there be any ...
5
votes
1answer
123 views
What is the difference between 口元 and 口?
When talking about the body part (not, for example, entrances/exits), what is the difference between these two words. Based on looking at these two pages (for 口 and 口元) I'm guessing that the ...
3
votes
1answer
105 views
「のれん代」(Goodwill) and 「のれん」 of 居酒屋
Is there any relation between 「のれん代」(Goodwill) and 「のれん」 of 居酒屋?
And how about those kanji, are they using same kanji for both?
If there are the same kanji, I would like to know their etymology, ...
3
votes
1answer
110 views
Is the term 舞妓 used in all of Japan, or only in certain dialects?
The English language article on geisha says
Apprentice geisha are called maiko (舞子 or 舞妓), literally "dance
child") or hangyoku (半玉), "half-jewel" (meaning that they are paid
half of the wage ...
8
votes
1answer
100 views
Etymology of the term お局 and how it is used in slang
Can someone explain the etymology of the word お局 as well as how it is used in modern slang? I took an educated guess as to the colloquial meaning but am unsure of its nuances, be they comedic, ...
8
votes
1answer
162 views
かかったためしない - how can this be translated?
I encountered the following sentence in a comic book which I could not make sense of.
The comic strip depicts a character using a simple bird trap and saying:
「長年やってるけどかかったためしないなあ」
The first part, ...
3
votes
3answers
204 views
2
votes
2answers
173 views
前 as a counter word?
お客：寿司を五人前届けてもらいたいんですが。
寿司屋：かしこまりました。
Is 前 being used as a counter word here? If so, what meaning of 前 is being assumed as a counter--perhaps the serving placed "before" a person?
5
votes
3answers
177 views
Why use 数年 in あれから１０数年?
My question is on 「あれから１０数年」. My understanding is that this translates to roughly, "It's been 10 years since then."
The dictionary says「数年」 means "several years" or "a number of years". How does ...
3
votes
2answers
154 views
What does 血のしょんべん mean?
I'm trying to figure out what 血のションベン means. I understand the individual words and literal meaning. So assuming it doesn't mean "bloods urine", what does this mean?
Perhaps the full sentance is ...
6
votes
1answer
135 views
What's the difference between 平行 and 並行?
They both seem to mean "parallel". In my プログレッシブ dictionary, it seems to point to the former being the more mathematical sense of the definition (two co-planar, non-intersecting lines), while the ...
0
votes
1answer
103 views
How to say “It's not a lie if you believe in it” in Japanese [closed]
Eijiro doesn't have the definition so I thought I'd ask here
8
votes
2answers
231 views
What しかりだ does mean?
I need to know what しかりだ does mean. I couldn't find over internet a satisfactory meaning.
It is from a manga called Saint Seiya. Here is the whole text:
黄金聖闘士 十二人とはいえ まだ幼い者が かなり多い シルバーセイント ...
3
votes
2answers
218 views
Is ruby text essential?
I am trying to understand whether the ruby text in ancient scripture is essential to the meaning of a verse, or if the scripture can be understood without it. For instance, can this verse:
be ...
5
votes
1answer
115 views
What's the difference between いつだって and いつでも?
Pretty simple, like the title says, what's the difference between いつだって and いつでも? I can tell there's a little difference, but it's so very difficult for me to pin down.
7
votes
1answer
75 views
How is 発行 different from 刊行?
Also, how does 発刊 fit into all of this?
Is it that 発行 can be used for magazines, newspapers and books while 刊行 can't be used for newspapers?
11
votes
3answers
228 views
神様がある vs. 神様がいる
I was wondering if there's a difference in usage between 神様がいる and 神様がある. In both cases, I mean specifically the meaning "There is a God", either as a statement of the kind "God exists", or as in ...
8
votes
1answer
115 views
question about kanji sports names 蹴球, 籠球, 庭球, and 野球
A few questions about these words. The words [蹴球]{しゅうきゅう}, [籠球]{ろうきゅう}, and [庭球]{ていきゅう} mean football, basketball, and tennis, respectively. But I have only seen them in a dictionary, and in practice ...
7
votes
1answer
175 views
To take responsibility: 責任を 取る・負う・持つ
What are the nuances between these three verbs when paired with 責任? I understand they all mean "to take responsibility", but are they interchangeable, etc?
責任を取る
責任を負う
責任を持つ
負う's definition says ...
8
votes
2answers
215 views
Questions on the (underlying) meaning of the word お化け
If ばけもの / ばけもん / お化け can, in general, be understood to mean ghost/apparition/monster, what is the connection to the meaning of 化け, meaning "transform?" (or "transforming one's appearance")
Is it ...
20
votes
1answer
218 views
How is the wind related to illness?
I've seen the kanji 風 appear in several different illnesses: 風邪 (a cold), 中風 (paralysis), and 痛風 (gout). Conceivably there may be others, but I haven't seen them.
What does the wind have to do with ...
5
votes
1answer
150 views
パソコンが 得意だ/わかる/上手だ
So I was studying through this book called 日本語生中継 and there was this question where you're supposed to choose the inappropriate word among others. And I got stuck at this sentence:
...
6
votes
1answer
110 views
What's the difference between 創始者、創業者、創設者 and 創立者?
I have seen 創始者 been used in the following contexts:
仏教の創始者、プログラムの創始者、儒教の創始者
創業者 probably refers to founders of businesses:
店の創業者、紀伊国屋の創業者
However, I only have a vague idea about how these are used.
...
8
votes
2answers
160 views
“Arigatō” and “gozaimasu” combined into a single word?
In Japan for three years, and I've noticed that the locals often sound like they're combining the two words "arigatō" and "gozaimasu" into a single word, "arigatōzaimasu".
Am I hearing things ...
3
votes
3answers
224 views
“Opposite” of `和製英語`
Is there an "opposite" of 和製英語 (meaning Japanese words/phrases invented by English speakers)? Maybe like {英・米・欧?}製日本語? Because I always see/hear Japanese words in English and they drive me nuts!
...
5
votes
1answer
304 views
How to say “Little did I/he/she/they know”?
I found a few examples at ALC, but still not sure about the best way to say it.
12
votes
2answers
323 views
Different conventions for animal meat
After reading this awesome question, I got to thinking about different animal meat. Upon researching a little, there seems to be different conventions in referring to different meats.
Using 訓読み
...
