How do I translate “Please select either A or B.”
Can the “or” be translated directly, or would I have to work around it like
AもBは, ひとつを選ぶください。
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Question for linguistics stackexchange, maybe: in what languages (other than formal logic) is an "OR" choice between two items or alternatives understood as inclusive?– KazSep 30, 2020 at 18:40
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1@Kaz In Finnish, if the or in a question is tai (e.g: ‘Maitoa tai sokeria?’, ‘milk or sugar?’), it is an inclusive or but if it is vai (e.g: ‘autolla vai junalla?’, ‘by car or by train?’) it is exclusive or. I’m not sure about statements that aren’t questions though; I believe vai is not used in those.– JanOct 1, 2020 at 9:55
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@Kaz See here– user40476Oct 26, 2020 at 16:13
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2 Answers
または and どちらか (いずれか is more the formal version, どっちか is more casual) can only be exclusive.
AまたはB、一つだけ選んでください。
This a pretty strong way to say only choose one.
In cases where you don't have to be so emphatic,
AかBのどっちかを選んで。
is a normal way to say it.
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You could also use いずれか instead of どちらか for a more formal situation.– istrasciSep 30, 2020 at 5:21
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@FelipeOliveira それか is just それ + か so it's not actually it's own word meaning "or", that meaning just comes from the か. それとも doesn't work in the OP's example either so I left it out.– By137Sep 30, 2020 at 7:01
The most standard way to say it is:
ＡとＢのどちらかを選んでください。
Although there's plenty of ways you can spin it:
ＡとＢのいずれかを選んでください。
Choose between A and B.ＡとＢの中から一つ選んでください。
Pick one from A and B.ＡかＢか一つ選んでください。
Choose one, A or B.ＡかＢを選んでください。
Choose A or B.Ａ、またはＢを選んでください。
Choose A, or choose B.Ａ、あるいはＢを選んでください。
Choose A, or choose B.
... and so on.
This is without taking into consideration formality or honorifics. If you take those into consideration as well, you have even more combinations to work with. You can use the -て form on its own (選んで), polite imperative form (選びなさい), 選んで頂戴, etc. etc.
