Questions tagged [conversations]
The conversations tag has no usage guidance.
23
questions
1
vote
0answers
155 views
What are the various 'unuttered' phrases or sentences that Japanese omit in everyday conversation and/or narration?
While translating a book I come across the following sentence.
女の子の注意を逸{そ}らすことができれば.....
Research into the ba ending allowed me to discover that the above is a 'unfinished' sentence. This in turn ...
0
votes
2answers
464 views
What does “genki desu” mean in Japanese? [closed]
I know it is used to respond to someone or something, but i don't get the meaning of it?
2
votes
1answer
174 views
What would be the best way to respond to thank you and a compliment at the same time?
I helped someone online translate something from English into Japanese and they responded with:
ありがとうございます！
イラスト素敵です 👌😊" (<* i do illustrations)
I want to say "thank you very much!" but ...
22
votes
2answers
5k views
What is the Japanese equivalent of “mhm”?
In English conversations, when I listen to someone speak, I have a habit of intermittently uttering "mhm" just to let the other person know I'm listening to what he/she is saying. Is there a Japanese ...
2
votes
1answer
83 views
Something lost in translation regarding returning money in this conversation
I want to confirm a few things here
A「はいはい、わかったよ。ホントにいつでもいいから、気が向いたときに返してくれ」(B is insisting that she will definitely return the money ~50k yen)
B「今、その……気持ちだけでも！ 今はええっと……三千と、一円ならあるよ！」
A ...
4
votes
1answer
171 views
What's the response to あなたにもっと早くしてなんて言われる覚えはないですよ。?
I found this conversation from a JLPT listening section. Here goes the question.
あなたにもっと早くしてなんて言われる覚えはないですよ。
There are 3 choices. Pick one that is the proper response.
１ すみません。失言でした。
２ ...
0
votes
2answers
2k views
What does これからもよろしくね mean?
A Japanese person said that to me and I was utterly lost. I tried to dissect the sentence:
これ = this
から = from
も = also
よろしく = (Honestly, I don't know what this means)
ね = a suffix that women ...
1
vote
2answers
125 views
If someone says you're being silly and you don't know why, should you ask 何ですか？ or なぜですか？
I'm confused because in sites like this one.
They define 何ですか as what and なぜですか as why. But in other sides I saw 何ですか defined as why too.
So, what would be the best way to handle the question in the ...
0
votes
1answer
166 views
Usage of -san in English emails
Working in a Japanese based company I often see that in written English which is (directly or indirectly) addressed to Japanese the suffix -san is attached to names.
With some basic knowledge of ...
2
votes
1answer
162 views
Japanese concepts of formality and politeness (with a close passage)
Here is a test passage I came across that made me suspect that my perceptions of formality and politeness were wrong. In this passage, we are required to select the options we think are correct (...
2
votes
1answer
161 views
When is -の used for a question
When is -の used for a question and what is the exact meaning
Context:
(nj) = (Native Japanese speaker)
(njs): 学校に行くの?
(me): いいえ、学校は行きません。
(njs): 自分でやるの？
(me): 自分やります。
10
votes
2answers
312 views
Are possessive particles implied in a conversation?
Today, in my Japanese class, my sensei presented a conversation which went as the following:
Person A: Bさんのせんこうはなんですか。
Person B: コンピューターかがくです。
Person A: わたしもコンピューターかがくです。
My confusion comes on the ...
3
votes
1answer
218 views
Icebreakers to use with strangers
Let's say I am in a gym and had an eye contact with a person working out next to me, is it OK to say
今日は、如何ですか。
どうも、元気か。
What are the best simple expression to break the ice with complete ...
2
votes
1answer
2k views
いいことですね vs. いいですね
Is there a difference between these two responses?
いいことですね。 and
いいですね。
Examples:
A: 日本語のために、毎日日本語のラジオを聞いています。
B: 勉強のためですか。いいことですね。
A: 週末は大阪に行くんです。
B: そうですか。それはいいですね。
-1
votes
1answer
606 views
How to know the difference between two words with same pronounciation
I am new to japanese and I want to know how to find the differences between words that are pronounced the exact same way. So lets say there was a word in Hiragana and a word in Katakana, both ...
5
votes
1answer
3k views
What's the difference between shokumotsu (食物) and tabemono (食べ物),
They both convey the meaning of "meal" or "food", but I don't know which one I should use. Which ones would be used most of the time for everyday-conversations? Would these two sentences mean the same?...
2
votes
1answer
343 views
Pronunciation of こんばんは? [duplicate]
Konbanwa, spelled Konbanha, is a greeting used in the evening. It is pronounced ko-m-ba-n-wa.
I don't know if it's my hearing, but to me, the second n is silent. Sometimes I hear it as ko-m-báo-wa ...
1
vote
1answer
1k views
How to say please could I have my money back?
I paid for some lessons in advance but now it looks like I won't be able to do them all. So I want to tell the teacher to give me my money back (in a polite way).
My ideas are something like either ...
7
votes
2answers
2k views
How rude is it to speak to a Japanese stranger informally instead of using the polite form?
Are there any native Japanese here that could tell me how rude it is to speak informally to Japanese people I have never met instead of using the polite form? I'm assuming it's more rude the older the ...
3
votes
1answer
231 views
0
votes
1answer
1k views
Using the word “about”
It's probably easier to explain the situation because I know there are multiple ways in which "about" could be used.
I am speaking with a friend and I tell them I went to a meeting. The next thing I ...
3
votes
1answer
151 views
Keeping track of the speaker/subject in written conversation
This question may be a bit broad/vague but any advice would be much appreciated.
I'm struggling to follow the implied topic in the book I'm reading. The book is mostly just a conversation between ...
2
votes
1answer
436 views
My Japanese friend often says 中(なか) in our real life conversations - what does it mean?
She seems to use it as if it's a conversation filler, and I never really understood what it meant.
When I asked what she means by that, she says it's like "something between us". I just nodded and ...
