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.
4
votes
1answer
115 views
How can I express “and/or”?
When stating two things e.g. A and B , and not counting the possibility of "neither", there exists A, B and A and B. To express all of them at once, "and/or" is commonly used. What are the ways to ...
3
votes
1answer
114 views
What's the difference between 両方 and 双方?
What's the difference between 両方 and 双方? I am definitely more acquainted with 両方, so I guess it is used for a wider variety of things, but could anyone tell me the specifics of what they can or cannot ...
4
votes
3answers
218 views
What role does よかった play in this exchange?
It's from twitter.
hetusa: 福岡県筑後、羽犬塚から行方不明になっていた叔母(73才)が発見された、と知らせがありました。
itoi_shigesato: よかった。
hetusa: ありがとうございました
My feeling is that it says something like 'just so'.
Also, it common to respond ...
6
votes
1answer
151 views
苦手 in describing dislike of people
率直に言って彼女が苦手なのは、彼女はまず最初に他人の助けを求めるからです。
Frankly speaking, I dislike her, because the first thing she does is to ask other people for help.
I would like to better understand the quality of ...
3
votes
2answers
199 views
Slang definitions of ハゲ
私に命令するな。何様だこのハゲ。
Don't tell me what to do! Who the fuck does this idiot think he is?
Besides meaning bald, or a bald/balding person, when cursing, does ハゲ also just become a generic curse ...
3
votes
1answer
210 views
Appropriateness of the word 膣外射精 in average adult conversations?
In discussing the marriage of Jin Akanishi and Meisa Kuroki, and why many young celebrities in Japan seem to fall into shotgun marriages, I wanted to use an equivalent for the term "withdrawal ...
6
votes
4answers
335 views
word search: voluntary pause between desire and action
Some years ago, I read that Japanese has a word (or idiomatic expression) that means roughly:
The action of voluntary interposing a pause between the
moment you desire something and the moment you ...
7
votes
2answers
128 views
Dismissing an expectation
What can be said when I need to dismiss an expectation?
Here are some examples of what I mean by "expectation":
I ask someone what time it is, then I remembered that I'm actually wearing a watch. ...
6
votes
3answers
309 views
Evil twins and other tropes
I was trying to talk about films and (marvel) comics the other day, and stumbled upon "evil twin". Sure, I can translate it verbatim, but that usually works badly for such fixed expressions.
And then ...
5
votes
2answers
137 views
Is その always or only occasionally a demonstrative adjective?
The following Japanese sentence was translated with その as "the":
その 仕事の一部を誰かにやってもらったほうがいい。
You should get someone else to do some of the work for you.
while I translated it with その as "that":
...
1
vote
2answers
145 views
Defining a particular 系
http://mainichi.jp/life/kimochi/archive/news/2012/20120205ddn013070029000c.html
The article above, about how a girl wants to be loved, is entitled
愛され系
I am wondering which definition of 系 ...
5
votes
1answer
90 views
Help with an expression that uses お笑い vocabulary
突っ込みどころ満載
I just have to butt in here. / I'd love to put my two cents in.
I am having a hard time figuring out this expression. I see it uses vocabulary particular to お笑い, but I would ...
3
votes
3answers
146 views
What are the particular words for the first iteration of things?
Does anyone know the sorts of items for whose first iteration Japanese people have special names? The only example I can remember at the moment is for the first leader or, to be precise, (and reveal ...
4
votes
2answers
151 views
Expressing neighborhood in Japanese
Something I have often stumbled on is the expression of "neighborhood" in Japanese.
For most uses I find that 近所 works well.
However, this usually seems to refer to a closer proximity than one would ...
-2
votes
1answer
106 views
attending court clerk in Japanese [closed]
What does 'attending court clerk' mean in Japanese? I can't find it.
3
votes
2answers
1k views
How can I improve my Japanese vocabulary, grammar, and listening skills? [closed]
I consider myself at a lower intermediate level. I want to improve my Japanese vocabulary and grammar in order to expand my reading and speaking skills. I know enough Japanese to get around and have a ...
0
votes
2answers
125 views
3
votes
2answers
368 views
How do I convey “As you all know”?
Having been trying to write a "sakubun", I must say that I had some trouble to find a reliable translation for the phrase "as you all know" such as:
As you all know, the education system in our ...
3
votes
1answer
275 views
Why is 自分 used instead of 私?
For example:
自分の名前が呼ばれたとき、私は自分の耳を疑った。I couldn't believe my ears when I heard my name called.
Would it be appropriate if I said 私? When is it appropriate to use 自分? What is the difference?
4
votes
1answer
150 views
Meaning and spelling of１対１で対応
In a recent email conversation, an acquaintance used the expression:
１対１で対応するそれは、大変だね。
Although I can vaguely infer the meaning of the expression １対１で対応する (いちたいでたいおう), I am having a hard time ...
6
votes
2answers
184 views
Any books or websites dedicated to Japanese tech/IT language?
I work in IT in Tokyo, so most of what I do doesn't require interaction with our Japanese customers, but every so often we get that one phone call where someone wants something explained, and I can ...
8
votes
1answer
541 views
How to define 羨ましい?
羨【うらや】ましい!
You're so lucky!/ I envy you!/ I'm jealous of you!
As I learned it, 羨ましい as an exclamation does not carry much of a negative context, so perhaps a combination of these three ...
4
votes
1answer
128 views
“Dive” = “fly into”?
The words 飛ぶ and 跳ぶ are both read as とぶ, the former meaning "to fly" and the latter meaning "to jump" (generally; don't know if they are interchangeable at all).
The compound-verb suffix 〜込【こ】む means ...
8
votes
1answer
195 views
What's the difference between 電光石火【でんこうせっか】 and 疾風迅雷【しっぷうじんらい】
They both seem to mean "quick as lightning". What are the nuances between them? In what sort of context would they be used? Are they interchangeable? etc.
10
votes
1answer
2k views
Getting your haircut in Japan
I have been living in Japan now for the last 3 months and my hair is starting to look like it needs a cut.
But I have never been to a Japanese barbers before so as you can imagine I am a little ...
3
votes
1answer
150 views
Is メリー mainly used in the set phrase メリークリスマス?
Is the gairaigo メリー mainly used in the set phrase メリークリスマス (Merry Christmas!) or can it be used without the クリスマス to mean "merry", such as 私はメリーです to say "I am feeling merry"?
There's also メリーゴーランド ...
3
votes
1answer
110 views
How difficult is it for Japanese to distinguish between [五]{いつ}[日]{か} and [何時]{いつ}か in spoken contexts?
There are times when both 五日 (5th day of the month) and 何時か (someday) could be used I think. Does this become a minor problem for Japanese when speaking (no kanji to guide), or do they speak in some ...
4
votes
2answers
302 views
How to use とりあえず in sentences
I am struggling to understand the word "とりあえず". It seems to mean 'as it stands'.
Here is an example sentence as I understand it:
とりあえず計画がありません
'as it stands we have no plans'
Is this correct? ...
4
votes
2answers
141 views
入社 equivalent for a research internship
When writing in some formal Japanese CV (学歴/職歴), it is common to be asked to put each job/university/etc. on a single dated line, with a second line to indicate when one ...
2
votes
1answer
128 views
What is 野菜ソムリエ?
I have trouble understanding the concept of 野菜ソムリエ.
I have searched Wikipedia and others but I can't understand if it is the name of a media job, or the name of a restaurant job.
I feel it might be ...
3
votes
2answers
132 views
Defining 控える and 控えている
控える as far as I can tell behaves more predictably than 控えている in that it generally seems to mean "to refrain" and "to make notes" (as in 電話番号を控える.)
However, 控えている seems to mean many more things ...
10
votes
1answer
303 views
Names for strokes
What do we call the different types of strokes of kanji/kana in Japanese?
For example, in Chinese the left-downward stroke is called 撇[piě] and the right-downward stroke is called 捺[nà]. And if I ...
4
votes
1answer
359 views
Difference between 自分 and 自分自身 and how to reflect their difference in English
Consider:
自分について書きたいことがあります。 = There are times that I want to write about myself (lit: things concerning me)
自分自身について書きたいことがあります。
What is their difference?
I think the second sentence ...
5
votes
2answers
282 views
Art: What is オブジェ and what is not?
Here is how Wiktionary defines オブジェ in the context of art:
表現の対象となるもの、前衛美術では，幻想的効果のために取り入れられる物体。
My very hesitant attempt at a translation:
It depends on the represented target, but in ...
3
votes
1answer
91 views
9
votes
1answer
339 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 ...
5
votes
1answer
148 views
Usage of the word 心配
Sorry if this is really simple and I'm overlooking the obvious, but I'm not sure how the following sentence should be translated as I've noticed on previous occasions that the word 「心配{しんぱい}」 might be ...
7
votes
2answers
253 views
Earnest and serious: when should each be used?
I've noticed there's a lot of overlap between the following words meaning "earnest" or "serious" when talking about a person:
まじ
真面目{まじめ}
真剣{しんけん}
本気{ほんき}
正気{しょうき}: (This word really means "sane" I ...
18
votes
1answer
370 views
What is the difference between いえ and うち?
I am trying to understand the difference between using いえ and うち. I originally drew the conclusion that うち is used for your own house and いえ for others' houses, but my Japanese teacher said that this ...
1
vote
1answer
131 views
u and Senryu placement
I am in the process of publishing a book on verse, more particularly, "American Haiku and Senryu -- 1008 Pauses Along the Path" and I need to ascertain whether or not the title is appropriate, i.e. is ...
3
votes
2answers
213 views
How and when to use 「そうですね」？
I only know the 2 meanings of it as follow:
Use when thinking - no meaning
Use to agree with others - the meaning is like "yes, I think so"
What else and what situation can it be used?
If someone ...
5
votes
1answer
203 views
Meaning of -化 in context
I don't understand what the -化 suffix in the following sentence means for a word like カリスマ, or why fearing it can lead to early retirement. Can anyone shine some light?
...
8
votes
2answers
274 views
“Should” in Japanese
The word "should" in English has these uses when not used as a question:
To express the expectation of the speaker (Probabilistic reasoning).
The train should arrive in 10 minutes.
To express a ...
-2
votes
1answer
436 views
What does “jukai” mean? [closed]
Does anyone know what "jukai" means? Does it exist in the Japanese language? Some said it means 'birth or emergence'. Some said it is not "jukai" but maybe "jetai" 'fertilization, conception ...
6
votes
1answer
178 views
What does 意外と mean?
I heard the expression [意]{い}[外]{がい}といい in a video. I know that 意外に expresses something you didn't expect:
意外においしいよ。
It's delicous! (and I didn't expect that)
Why did I hear 意外と instead of ...
3
votes
2answers
136 views
How does 話{はなし}が噛{か}み合{あ}わない work?
I saw this phrase discussed on esaura.cc
話が噛み合わない
'There's a gap in their conversation.'
'They can't meet on common ground.'
'They have been at odds with each other.'
'They have not been ...
5
votes
1answer
540 views
Heaven in Japanese
I have found that there are a number of words in Japanese that correspond to "heaven" in English. By heaven I mean the concept of a paradisiacal afterlife. The two most frequent in my limited and ...
4
votes
1answer
143 views
Does 被【かぶ】る have any relation to “cover”?
Topic. I've heard/seen somewhere that 被【かぶ】る was "gairaigo-fied" (?) from the English word "cover" (similar to ダブる or デモる), and then presumably given ateji from 被【おお】う since the meanings overlap so ...
9
votes
1answer
413 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 ...
7
votes
1answer
153 views
The difference between 皮膚【ひふ】 and 皮【かわ】
What's the difference? I got told that 皮膚【ひふ】 only works for mammals (and humans), and 皮【かわ】 for other animals too.
