Questions tagged [nuances]
ニュアンス. Subtle differences between two seemingly interchangeable expressions.
1,134
questions
3
votes
1answer
42 views
XもVba YもV pattern
A girl is on a date with a hot guy in a flashy sports car
とにかくザックは注目を集める。
車も目立てば、本人も目立つ。信号待ちで止まろうものなら道行く女性は皆振り返るし、中にはスマホのカメラを向ける人すらいる。
Why is も used twice here and not, for example, a は in ...
2
votes
1answer
59 views
Meaning and nuance of 詰む
I have some difficulties to understand the meaning of 詰む in the context
あなたとは違{ちが}ってね」
冷静{れいせい}に返{かえ}されオレは言葉{ことば}を詰{つ}まらせた。
I am different from you. She returned my words calmly and "I was
...
0
votes
1answer
104 views
Lexicon for the word “pedophile”
I would like a list of words commonly used by Japanese to refer to pedophiles. Please indicate how common the word is (maybe sort your list this way), how derogatory it is, and in what context it is ...
-3
votes
0answers
76 views
Trying to make a coherent translation of this page, running into some grammar difficulties. and in-coherency between sentences [closed]
Trying to make a coherent translation of this page, running into some grammar difficulties. and in-coherency between sentences.
The entirety of the text is below but i break into piece and transcribe ...
4
votes
1answer
158 views
Meaning of っつーかなんつーか
I have difficulty to understand っつーか in the following context
身体に良くないと思うけど」
「好きっつーかなんつーか」
オレはカップ形状のものを手に取って、それから値札を見る。
I don’t think it’s really good for the body though.”
“Eh, I was ...
2
votes
1answer
67 views
Meaning and nuance of 作戦
I have found a sentence with 作戦 (tactics; strategy; (2) {mil} military operation;)
ここはウィットなジョークでも飛ばして、堀北の内部ポイントを貯める作戦に出よう。
Now I could finally score some points with Horikita by telling some
...
2
votes
1answer
191 views
Sign says or reads
Firstly, just to double check, when we are talking about a sign, like an information sign or a warning sign, is the correct word: ひょうしき【標識】?
I’m constructing a sentence using quotation:
ひょうしきは「女性専用車」...
0
votes
1answer
68 views
Meaning and nuance of 身を包む
I found the sentence
バスから降りた、制服に身を包んだ少年少女たちは全員この門をくぐり抜けていく。
translated as:
All the boys and girls in uniform got off the bus and passed through
the gate.
What would be the difference with ...
0
votes
1answer
72 views
Meaning and nuances and of 一通り
I would like to know the meaning of 一通り ( translations found: briefly, generally) in the sentence
オレたちは一通り敷地内の説明を受けた後、解散となった。
It has been translated as:
After we got an explanation of all ...
2
votes
1answer
87 views
Conditions of use of ようでは as “if”
ようでは is translated is "if", but I would like to know the conditions of use of ようでは (ie when it is appropriated to use it).
I have some sentences:
こんな簡単な問題が解決できないようでは、困る。
We’ll be in big trouble ...
3
votes
1answer
194 views
Diffeence between てばかり(は/も)いられない and てはいられない
I would like to know the difference and usage (frequency, oral/written) for てばかりはいられない with regards to てはいられない
Both seem to be pretty close:
人生そんなに長くないのだから待ってばかりはいられない。 Life is short so I can’t ...
1
vote
1answer
103 views
“Wishing for your continued success…” — a subtlety
A simple way to wish people well is to write:
成功【せいこう】を祈【いの】ります。
Praying on success.
Wishing for your success.
However, in English at least, it has an implication that someone is not successful ...
0
votes
1answer
77 views
Meaning of 付いてくる and 付いていく
While it may appear as possible duplicate
The difference between "follow" using についていく、「あと？」をつける、「あと？」をついていく
, the specificity here is a school/training context which was not discussed ...
1
vote
2answers
110 views
Nuance of questions like '兄弟は何人ですか’
In this question (the title question), the speaker would be asking 'how many siblings' the listener has - the answers given would need to include the listener. As opposed to '兄弟が何人いますか' where the ...
1
vote
2answers
109 views
3割引 ＝3 %? 33.3 % ? 30 %?
The sentence is:
あの店は今、3割引のセールをしています。
I suspect it means 30% , but maybe it means 33.3% which is 1/3?
In any case I don’t understand the logic behind this.
How would you say if the discount rate ...
1
vote
1answer
64 views
Nuance of 「～なくても仕方ない」
I came across the following sentence:
「私の技が未熟なうちは伝わらなくても仕方ないと思っています」
I understood 「伝わらなくても仕方ない」 more or less as the need to carry out the action determined by the relevant verb (伝わる); however, I ...
4
votes
2answers
213 views
What is the difference between the words 状態 and 状況?
Actually, I want to write an email to a person asking about her current situation in life, understanding by "situation" if she got married, if she changed companies, if she's happy, etc. I remember ...
2
votes
1answer
94 views
Difference between 足しになる and 役に立つ
Both seem to mean "to be helpful, to be useful" but I cannot distinguish what is their difference.
Here are some examples:
昨日の帰りに少し摘んどいたんだ 具材の足しになるかな？
I gathered these on our way back yesterday....
3
votes
1answer
72 views
を-, と- and に-particle usage with 合わせる
Recently, I found out that 合わせる can go with many particles.
Jisho gives here (https://jisho.org/search/%E5%90%88%E3%82%8F%E3%81%9B%E3%82%8B) some examples on this:
あなたの計画{けいかく} を 私{わたし} に 合わせなさい。...
3
votes
0answers
187 views
What's the ちゃうform doing in this sentence?
Basically, it's an actress talking about how she has kept in touch with one of her costars from a play they did together
... 終わってからも,
実は定期的に会っちゃったりして
What is the chau form doing in 会っちゃった? I know ...
3
votes
2answers
86 views
Which order sounds the more natural between「私は最近…」 and 「最近私は…」?
When giving news to Japanese friends, I always wonder if I should write「私は[最近]{さいきん}こういう仕事をしています」 or 「[最近]{さいきん}、私はこういう仕事をしています」.
Is there a recommended order for temporal markers like [現在]{げんざい} or [...
4
votes
2answers
353 views
Pronouncing sumimasen (すみません), implications of extending the -se(せ) and eliding the n(ん)
When pronouncing "sumimasen" (すみません), sometimes native speakers will elide the "-n"(ん) and elongate it, sort of like "sumimaseee~". This is the same and not a conjugation I would assume?
Might anyone ...
4
votes
2answers
180 views
What is the difference between 振る and 揺る?
Both of these words seem to mean "to shake". From what I got:
振る is "higher frequency" shaking.
揺る is more like a swaying or rocking motion, "lower frequency".
Is this correct? An explanation would ...
1
vote
2answers
162 views
Can we use やばいぞ instead of やばいよ?
Does "ぞ" make it more masculine-sounding or is it a different dialect?
14
votes
4answers
2k views
How can I say “to be tired of verbING” in Japanese?
How can I say "I'm tired of waiting", "I'm tired/bored of staying home all day"?
Can I use て form + 疲れる?
What is the difference among 疲れる、飽きる and うんざりする?
7
votes
1answer
670 views
Absence of て in お気をつけください
I’m uncertain about the phrase お気をつけください, which I found where I would have expected お気をつけてください. Assuming it’s not a typo is it 尊敬語？ Should I understand the honorific お as qualifying 気 only or the ...
0
votes
0answers
85 views
Is 情けねえ the negative form of 情け? [duplicate]
And if so, how is this negative (情けねえ) different from 情けない?
1
vote
1answer
87 views
の to prevent repetition of が
In the following sentence
東京は冬になると、北風の強い日が多いです。
is it correct that 北風の強い replaces the more obvious option 北風が強い in order to avoid close repetition of が？
So if the following が in 日が多い had not been ...
3
votes
3answers
194 views
What is a good way to translate ではある?
I came across the following sentence at one point.
もともとおかしな話ではあった。
I did some research on ではある, because I wanted to understand this term better. This is what I found.
The difference between “ではある”...
1
vote
1answer
85 views
Difference in nuance regarding AはＢがＣ and ＡのＢはＣ
For instance,
Ａの髪は黒い (1)
vs
Ａは髪が黒い (2)
(and possibly also)
Ａの髪が黒い (3)
My understanding is that they all mean the same thing, except that (1) and (3) differ by which part of the sentence ...
3
votes
2answers
187 views
When is その used to mean “you”?
I was watching this video and noticed the title. I would have thought that it would be something like 自分の目で確かめよう to mean "see for yourself". But instead it is
その目で確かめよう
which would have the ...
1
vote
0answers
75 views
の replacing が in subordinate clauses
I've read in this article that の can replace が when used in a subordinate clause.
For example, 耳が長いエルフ is the same as 耳の長いエルフ, evidently. However, this article doesn't describe any difference in ...
3
votes
1answer
140 views
Better to say 床屋 or 散髪屋?
Every time I walk by a barbershop (not a 美容院), I think of the words 散髪屋 and 床屋. Which word is correct, or sounds better, more interesting, for a non-native speaker to use in a conversation?
And, ...
1
vote
1answer
117 views
Is there a diffrence between saying “盗み聞き” and “盗み聞きとは?”
I know that "盗み聞き" would be "Eavesdrop" or "Eavesdropping," but I wasn't sure if the addition of "とは" modified the word in some way or if it perhaps just indicated something about the wording.
Edit: ...
1
vote
1answer
127 views
思い過ごせばいい - Actual meaning?
In the first opening of One Piece titled "We are", there's a section that goes 「個人的な嵐は誰かのバイオリズム乗っかって思い過ごせばいい！」. Upon some googling, I found following explanation:
個人的な悩みは誰かの生きていく上で繰り返す感情の変化、...
5
votes
2answers
513 views
Which is most critical? 警報 or 注意報?
A disaster warning app asks me whether I want notifications for 警報 or for 注意報 or both.
First I signed up for both, but it sends me notifications about inconsequential things such as air dryness. So I ...
0
votes
1answer
99 views
Nuance of ひどい as cruel?
いくらなんでも、あんまりひどい。ひかりがあんなチョコレートででも組みあげたやうな三角標になるなんて。
http://contest.japias.jp/tqj2002/50133/story-old_03.html
I don't quite get how to translate ひどい as cruel here, is there a nuance I'm not getting?
1
vote
0answers
20 views
What are the implications of 「～だこと」「～ですこと」？ [duplicate]
I have seen these constructions (「～だこと」「～ですこと」) in drama and anime several times now, though, as far as I remember exclusively used by female speakers. Here is one of the sentences I came across...
...
9
votes
1answer
392 views
Differences between ひ弱い and か弱い
How did the prefixes ひ and か come about and what are the differences in meaning between ひ弱い and か弱い?
Are either of the prefixes pejorative like how ド is in the examples in dainichi's answer to '...
2
votes
1answer
74 views
Meaning and translation of カット割り and difference with 絵コンテ
In video production what is the exact meaning of カット割り? I found these two definitions:
撮影（収録）前に、台本上で演出意図に合わせて区切りをつけ、画柄を決めること。(from here)
カット割りとは、各シーンの構図やカット、シーンとシーンのつなぎのことをいいます。(from here)
...
2
votes
2answers
228 views
~を出る vs. ~から出る: Grammar rule not consistent
In 初級を教える人のための日本語文法ハンドブック (pg. 24), an attempt is made to distinguish between ~を出る and ~から出る (also applied to 出発する or other "leaving" verbs), but the description seems inconsistent:
「を」vs.「から」
...
2
votes
1answer
99 views
What is the difference between 刹那主義 and 快楽主義?
The dictionary says that 刹那主義 means "principle of living only for the moment" and 快楽主義 means "hedonism/epicureanism", but I also found entries that say epicureanism for the former. I don't think they ...
2
votes
1answer
91 views
Nuances of「すらさえも」?
I came across this 「すらさえも」construction in the following sentence:
「子供を誘拐したロリコン野郎からすらさえもバカにされ続けた」
I've learned that they mean (mostly) the same, but haven't come across them in immediate succession;...
2
votes
1answer
188 views
Question about ほど in this sentence
I wasn't able to find any explanation of 「ほど」 in these constructions...
「そんなテメーに盾突かれるほど頭に来る事はない」
In any case I would like to ask whether I am getting the general meaning right. Besides that I ...
3
votes
1answer
103 views
A little help with the usage of 「……わけだよ」
I came across the following sentence in my dictionary :
下手なわけだよ，習い始めたばかりなんだから
Because of the absence of context, I imagined one by myself. Suppose I ‘m cooking unskillfully and a friend who sees ...
2
votes
0answers
65 views
Nuances and context of linking without 〜て / dropped 「て」in linked constructions
(Taken from ジョジョの奇妙な冒険６部: When Jotaro talks to Jolyne about who got her into prison.../ for those who do not know the series: The persons speaking to each other are father and daughter but have a ...
4
votes
3answers
255 views
How to translate わからない in the following sentence
Context: a boxer named Yanagi is fighting against an opponent named Hyodo. Although Hyodo is really young, he is considered a very talented boxer and is often called genius (天才). Yanagi is thinking ...
4
votes
1answer
126 views
Disambiguation of 大抵
I am having problems with when to understand 大抵 as:
a) 事柄のあらまし。だいたいのようす。また、全体のうちの大部分。おおよそ。おおかた。(https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/大抵/#jn-133918) (or as defined in Apple's dictionary) 全体の中の大部分のもの。...
6
votes
0answers
193 views
Difference between 「～てからでないと」and 「～ないことには」
Both of these grammar can be translated to English as
A～てからでないと/～ないことにはB = Unless A is done, cannot do B
From what I can find,
～てからでないと stresses the order or sequence of actions, that until A is ...
0
votes
2answers
149 views
What is the difference between these 2 expressions?
Whose car is it?
A: Kuruma wa dare no desu ka?
B: Dare no kuruma desu ka?
I'm just a beginner but I'm sure these two expressions mean the same thing.
viz. Whose car is it?
I feel that A is more ...
