Questions tagged [colloquial-language]
口語表現（話し言葉）. Words, forms and expressions used only in non-formal spoken language.
293
questions
3
votes
1answer
85 views
Meaning of からはよ in this sentence
A character is trying to cross a checkpoint, but an official is asking for a pass.
The character answers:
知らん！ 急いでるからはよ通せ。
Using this this StackExchange question I came up with this translation:
&...
0
votes
0answers
16 views
1
vote
0answers
54 views
Is my understanding of あんの here correct? [duplicate]
In the first speech bubble, I'm not sure about「あんの」. Is it a contraction of 「あるの」?
So the sentence translates to "Do you have awareness as a member of the cultural festival action committee?"
0
votes
1answer
51 views
What does “言っとかんとなあ” mean?
I'm confused about the meaning of「言っとかんとなあ」from the second panel:
This is my attempt at understanding this:
言っとかんと = 言っておかない と(いけない）
なあ = 「な」emotive sentence ending particle
"I need to say (...
1
vote
1answer
87 views
What do しよう and しよっ mean in this page?
These are the sentences I am confused about. For better context, this is the whole page:
しよう in 「じゃあ今日は普通においしいものにしよう」
しよっ in 「…なににしよっかなぁー…」
2
votes
1answer
88 views
What does the word 「おめっち」mean in this sentence?
It is said by one of supporter in a boxing match between Numata and Aoyama. The supporter said it after Numata had been down.
しっかりしろい！ おめっちからかわれているんだぜ青山によ
I searched and found that おめっち means ...
1
vote
1answer
51 views
How is たる being used here? [duplicate]
I got this sentence from My hero academia anime and I am confused on the usage of したる. The line is said in season 3 episode 9 at the 4 minute 45 second mark.
こいつらの方針が変わんねえうちに２～３人ぶっ殺して脱出したる！
The ...
0
votes
1answer
72 views
What does the verbal contraction/suffix -kkya or -kya at the end of a clause mean? [duplicate]
I seem to hear and read this construction often, but can't seem to find any information about it on Google (or other search engines), as well as other sites I've checked. I've tried several different ...
7
votes
1answer
163 views
What's the story behind 小間物屋を開く = to vomit?
jisho.org defines [小]{こ}[間]{ま}[物]{もの}[屋]{や}を[開]{ひら}く as "to vomit", "to spew". What's the story behind this funny term? How would you express it in English?
1
vote
3answers
173 views
こぇのか instead of こわいのか
I have two questions regarding this.
1) Since, modern Japanese doesn't have a "we" character, they use "ぇ", right? I've heard many shows where they say "suge! yabe!" but is "koe" used often? I said I ...
4
votes
2answers
195 views
あまり when used to answer a negative question
When answering a negative question with あまり, it will normally be the positive (by japanese rules). For example:
person A: 彼に来ないで欲しいですか？
person B: あまり
By literal translation, person A is asking ...
3
votes
3answers
4k views
What is the meaning of バカにはええじゃないか?
I don't know how to interpret ばかにはええじゃねえか in the manga here. I believe ばかにはええじゃねえか = ばかにはいいじゃないか but I still can't make sense of this. As the picture suggests, the father says this as some sort of a ...
3
votes
1answer
209 views
で at the beginning of a sentence
I hear native speakers using で or was it でー when speaking a lot at the beginning of a sentence. Judging by context, I think it translates to either "and" or "therefore" or "so" or "because of that", ...
6
votes
2answers
649 views
The meaning of 住んでる星が違う
The sentence is "諸星先生は元々住んでる星が違うし". This looks to me an idiomatic expression, but I cannot find this in dictionary.
Another interpretation I was thinking about is that the teacher in the above ...
5
votes
1answer
195 views
What are simple “No” responses?
I've learned from textbooks and online sites like Duolingo that "no" is いいえ, but I've rarely heard native speakers say that. I learned さあ today as sort of an "I don't know" response. I saw a ...
1
vote
2answers
172 views
appropriate sarcastic “almost died”
Would "死んでいたそう(ね)" be an appropriate translation for "looks like you almost died (there)"?
Imagine you throw your scarf around your neck and almost hit a person. Except a scarf hardly hurts and ...
1
vote
1answer
169 views
What is the most casual way to ask ''What do you reckon ?'' in Japanese?
I want to know a colloquial way to ask: What do you reckon/think ?
For example:
I just cooked a meal and I turn to my Japanese friend and say: What do you reckon ? (I'm seeking approval whilst ...
1
vote
1answer
135 views
Meaning and etymology of phrase or interjection いよっしゃあ?
Lately I have been watching a lot of streams and videos of Persona 5 The Royal, which has only released in Japanese. One character in that game very frequently exclaims "いよっしゃあ{LLHHHH}", "iyosshaa", ...
2
votes
1answer
93 views
The difference between 今日 and 今日ですね [duplicate]
こんにちは。えっと、今日ですね、日本についてお聞きしてるんですけど。
今日ですね always sounds a bit funny to me because I keep thinking about it as "it's today, isn't it?" (and then the answer could be "well, yes, it's not yesterday or ...
3
votes
1answer
220 views
Please help me accurately figure out the kana or kanji for a colloquial phrase said in an anime?
(I can change the question if it's too vague. 😅)
I'm trying to practice my listening comprehension by listening to anime and not fully paying attention to subtitles. For the most part I can ...
0
votes
1answer
98 views
Casual ways to ask meaning?
I know 〜はどう言う意味ですか？ but how might you ask this question in a casual setting among friends?
-1
votes
1answer
259 views
でようか slang for で良いか? [closed]
This is the sentence I heard in an anime.
コーヒーでようか or コーヒーでよか.
I definitely did not mishear it for yoi 良い. Is this some slang for yoi? If so, which is the correct one? Stress or no vowel stress.
2
votes
1answer
332 views
Difference between ばかり, ところ, and 今?
I’ve gathered that these all can be used like “just” (right?) so I’m wondering what the difference in usage is between them.
今終わった。
終わったばかり。
終わったところ。
Are these all basically the same?
(also, in ...
6
votes
1answer
187 views
What does the word 「やめにしい」 mean?
Here is the dialogue containing the word.
A: かってな推測はやめろう おれは青山なんざ...
B: 自分をごまかすのはいいかげんでやめにしいな なんでもっときびしく現実をみつめようとはせんのや
4
votes
1answer
112 views
What does “とこの” mean here?
Sentence is:
うん俺の嫌いな杉木さんとこの一人息子な
Translation is:
Yup. The only son of the Sugiki I hate.
What does とこの do here?
3
votes
1answer
324 views
伝聞を表さない、文末に来る「という」の働き
最近あるホラーゲームの実況を見ている時、一人の実況者がある段階をクリアした後、笑ってこう言っていました。
しかも、結構やっぱ、懐中電灯なくても全然暗くないっていう
前にも、一緒にプレイしている相手が何回か「懐中電灯がなくても暗くない」と意外そうに言っていたので、そちらに関連があると思いますが、この「という」の働きはわからないのです。「ということ」「らしい」「と言われる」を意味する文末の「...
0
votes
0answers
37 views
Why and when do Japanese speakers switch between formal and informal language among friends? [duplicate]
So I’ve read and noticed that Japanese speakers regularly switch from using だ to です and using both plain and 〜ます forms very frequently throughout a conversation even with friends. Why is there such a ...
4
votes
0answers
137 views
How to express action (in plays, and online)
So in most languages we can either put text in italics or between asterisks to indicate what the speaker is doing. For instance:
Looking up
It will be raining soon
Or on the Internet:
*chewing your ...
1
vote
1answer
87 views
Meaning and use of 悪くないか
悪くないか
Scenario 1: a young boy comes home and says (to his sick mother)「母さん悪くないか」。
Scenario 2: two men are moving a tv and one thinks 「なんかバランス悪くないか？！」。
I’m not following the meaning of it
3
votes
2answers
226 views
How to say “photobomb” in Japanese
Is there a word for "photobomb" in Japanese?
In English, to photobomb someone is to spoil a photograph (of a person or thing) by unexpectedly appearing in the camera's field of view as the picture ...
1
vote
1answer
191 views
Asking informal questions with 何
how do you form informal questions with 何 and without ですか？
would 何 just go at the end?
「あなたの大好きな季節何？」
and is it appropriate to leave off です or だ with な adjectives and nouns? i’ve seen 〜なの？used, but ...
4
votes
2answers
900 views
Use of さ as a filler
how often is さ used as a filler like our “like”? is it very common?
for example, could i say 「私さスタバへさ行ったさ…」？
4
votes
1answer
381 views
What does the word 「こい」mean?
I'm not sure if it is an adjective meaning strong, a noun meaning intention or neither.
Here is the sentence I came across.
僕なんとしても選手になりたかったので申しこむと沼田さんが腕ずくでこいというから...
Additional context:
The ...
1
vote
0answers
127 views
What are some Japanese euphemisms for death and dying? [closed]
Could you list some euphemisms on death and dying used by Japanese people in everyday speech? I'm writing a paper on Japanese language euphemisms and would like to know more about expressions used by ...
3
votes
1answer
134 views
When speaking informally, do native Japanese speakers always remove い after て in present continuous tense across all conjugations?
Some examples below:
言っている > 言ってる
欲しがっています > 欲しがってます
見ていた > 見てた
行っていました > 行ってました
I'm trying to sound as native as possible, so would like to know the more common way of speaking in the present ...
6
votes
1answer
161 views
What does ウン歳 mean?
I recently heard a woman describe herself as a 四十｛よんじゅう｝ウン歳｛さい｝. My guess is that it is the Japanese equivalent of "40-something", but I am not sure.
0
votes
1answer
65 views
Difference between 癒せ and 癒せる
From the Japanese tangled song ("Healing Incantation"), the lyrics go like
“傷を癒せ、運命の川”-Heal wounds, river of fate
I don't understand why 癒せ is used instead of a proper conjugation, is it a colloquial ...
5
votes
1answer
176 views
What is meant by 魔法が単なる数式みたくなって意味を見いだせなくなってしまう
I need some clarification on two sentences in the below.
My first question is that I am not sure what それ is referring to in それを自分で把握, which makes me unable to understand the next sentence.
A few ...
12
votes
1answer
1k views
Meaning of ちはース
Context: a boy shouts 「ちはース」 after seeing that a fan club for a boxer has only female members. He is happy to discover this since he is the kind of guy that always tries to flirt with pretty girls.
I ...
4
votes
2answers
426 views
0
votes
0answers
155 views
Problem with sentence ぶった！この子ぶった！ [duplicate]
What does ぶった mean in this context? I can't find the word in any dictionary.
12
votes
2answers
1k views
What does the letter 'P' at the end of an author's pseudonym mean?
There are many authors on YouTube and NicoNico whose names end with the letter 'P', for example: 鼻そうめんP, 無力P, etc. What does this 'P' stand for? Why do they all use it?
2
votes
1answer
92 views
か after short forms
In the Genki textbook, it is said that "In the casual conversational use of short forms, question sentences do not end with the question particle か, but with rising intonation alone."
Nonetheless, in ...
2
votes
0answers
60 views
け as a contraction of 来い [duplicate]
I’d like to confirm my theory that 来い at the end of a sentence can be colloquially contracted to け. I met this sentence in a comics:
置いてけ。
A meaning “Leave it here!” would be very appropriate ...
7
votes
2answers
3k views
Equivalent of saying Bruh, man, dude, etc. in Japanese?
In English a lot of people informally call their friends these terms in conversations.
Like "Dude, what are you doing?"
"Bro, what's up!"
My question is how do you informally speak to friends in ...
5
votes
1answer
190 views
Feminine speech: no だ before よ
Is it true that until recently women were expected to drop だ, ending a sentence with よ? For example:
今日、何曜日？
土曜日よ。
If it is true, was it thought to sound "gentler"? Why has this changed?
2
votes
0answers
47 views
What does the word 「しのう」 mean in this sentence? [duplicate]
It is said by an old man who looks like wanting to teach boxing to a young man.
青山くんよ ふたりきりの人目につかんところにいこう 折り入ってひみつに伝授したいこともあるしのう
I'm not sure if it is related to the word 死ぬ in volitional form ...
3
votes
1answer
102 views
What しとっても means here?
陸ではのらくらしとっても水の中ではそりゃあ素早い
I don't quite understand しとっても form here.
I guess the whole sentence will be
Even though they're slow on land, they're very quick in water.
Is しとっても another form of ...
1
vote
0answers
41 views
What does the word 「～さ…ねえっ」 mean? [duplicate]
It comes from a conversation a boy talked to a girl about an old man who ignored a story which the girl tried to tell him.
Girl:
ジョーが約束どおり片手ほりで金あみのところまでたがやしたってちゃんと報告したんよっ それなのにあたいの頭さえ見ようとしないんだ
...
1
vote
1answer
150 views
Generic Japanese greeting new people?
The most commonly cited one is Konnichiwa, but knowing that is time specific, can it be used generically in all hours of the day as a "hello" instead of a specific "good afternoon"? Ohayou and ...
