Questions tagged [pronunciation]
発音. How the Japanese language is pronounced. For questions about which readings to use for particular kanji, use the "readings" tag instead.
453
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Is there a difference between the English flap t and the Japanese R?
When I first learned the Japanese R, I thought it kinda sounded like an L, although not exactly. I was able to replicate that unique sound with a mindset that the Japanese R sounds like a “flicked L.”
...
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3answers
753 views
Japanese 'え' sound - [ɛ] or [e]?
OK, this has been driving me nuts. My friend and I have been learning Japanese off and on for many years, though neither of us are fluent. We got into an argument about the pronunciation of 'え'.
My ...
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2answers
65 views
How do you pronounce 電報船? Is is でんぽうふね、でんぽうぶね or でんぽうせん?
I recently started to read 'Made in Abyss' and unfortunately is doesn't contain any furigana, which sometimes makes it hard for me to understand. So I came across the word 電報船, which refers to a mail ...
2
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2answers
145 views
Correct pronunciation of voiceless bilabial fricative [ɸ]
I found that there are two different pronunciations for the [ɸ] phone. For example, in Japanese compare those two pronunciations for same word 冬 (for which I believe will has [ɸɯjɯ] as phonetic ...
2
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0answers
137 views
ジ in Asia (アジア) sounds different to ジ in John (ジョン)
Why is ジ a soft "ji" in Asia (アジア), but in John (ジョン) - ジ is a hard "ji"?
Is it just pronunciation or is there an actual discernable/readable difference?
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1answer
79 views
テープでいいです vs テープでいいです - how to use the correct tone to differentiate them?
I've heard native speakers use テープでいいです in stores when they don't want a bag (e.g. they're just buying one item) and prefer that the staff use tape instead. Using it myself has not proved fruitful.
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2
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1answer
129 views
Why do some numbers have two readings?
Generally, when we read or count, 4, 7 and 9 are read only as "よん", "なな", "きゅう", seperately. However, in some cases, 4 is read as "よ" rather than "よん", 7 is read as "しち" rather than "なな", and 9 is ...
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2answers
83 views
Is the kana for ''Oh!'' ''あっ!''? [duplicate]
My textbook gives the expression ''Oh!'' as ''あっ!'''.
I find this strange as little tsu makes the following consonant a double consonant.
What is it doing ''phonetically'' here?
If it is supposed ...
3
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1answer
91 views
Why does 全員 sound like zein but is written zenin (ぜんいん)?
Is the middle "n" silent? Am I just not used to hearing it and can't identify it?
The duolingo pronunciation sounds like "zein" https://www.duolingo.com/dictionary/Japanese/%E5%85%A8%E5%93%A1/...
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1answer
850 views
Why did Japanese evolve to have a ''she'' mora instead of a ''see'' mora in さしすせそ?
In the さしすせそ series, し is an exceptions to the pattern.
Is ''she'' easier to pronounce than ''see'' or why does Japanese have this feature?
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1answer
105 views
What is the function of 一 in バスルーム and コンピュータ?
Is 一 in バスルーム and コンピュータ meant to indicate a drawn out vowel? Like ba-su-ruuu-mu and kon-pi-yuuu-ta? Or is it a counter somehow? And it's the line radical (http://www.kanjidamage.com/kanji/1-one-line-...
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0answers
69 views
Why can “39” be pronounced as 「ミク」？ [duplicate]
I was recently listening to someone talk about a game called “初音ミク Project DIVA MEGA39’s”. The English localization is changed to “MEGAMIX”.
They actually noted that 3 and 9 can be pronounced as ミ ...
3
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1answer
755 views
Pronunciation of りゆう：Riyū or Ryū
I found that there're two ways to pronounce the transcription of りゆう, that are:
Riyū. For example: Riyū in 理由 (reason)
Ryū. For example: Ryūgakusei in 留学生 (International student)
So in certain ...
3
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1answer
103 views
What does 空 mean in this sentence?
Sentence:
空{そら}の海をゆくの
Initially I imagined that the translation would be something like:
A: Going through the sea made of sky.
I imagined this because this phrase is from a song and thinking about ...
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1answer
91 views
How do you say numbers/letters in a skipped sequence or connected by a dash?
I keep running into things like 1-3 or a-d in my workbook but i can't figure out how to read them aloud. Is it 1から3 sort of like in english? is it a literal aダッシュd? something completely different? A ...
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0answers
56 views
Is すか a shorthand for ですか? [duplicate]
I was watching the video below and noticed that it sounds like the lizard on the left was leaving out the で in ですか?
I could be mishearing it of course, but I was wondering if that's a valid ...
2
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1answer
154 views
三分 (3 minutes) pronunciation is sanpun or sampun?
My question is not whether the reading of 三分 (3 minutes) is さんぷん.
I've learned that if ん is followed by an m, p or b sound - then ん is pronounced as m.
However, I always hear sanpun and not sampun ...
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0answers
58 views
東北弁 Pronunciation Question about J's
I'm interested in Tohokuben and recently found this website https://konnok3.sakura.ne.jp/dialect.html. I know pronunciation can vary all over the Northeast, but in one section it covers numbers and ...
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0answers
59 views
東北弁 Pronunciation Question about Ch's
I've been trying to learn Tohokuben and I have a question.
I'm interested in Tohokuben and recently found this website https://konnok3.sakura.ne.jp/dialect.html. I know pronunciation can vary all ...
2
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1answer
108 views
I've seen 待つ in the te-form as both 待て and 待って; the latter should be correct. Does meaning/pronunciation change and why it would be written this way
My example, as like many of my recent ones is from {{JP:灰と幻想のグリムガル}}, and is as follows:
{{JP:「・・・・俺も行こっかな」と誰かが。男の声だ。「ま、ま、待てってじゃあオレも！」}}.
The text itself seems simple enough to understand, I ...
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2answers
141 views
Why are some Japanese foreign words spelled with different sounds?
Please consider the following:
Warrior is ウォリアー： this vowel sound "a" changes to ”オ"
Work is ワーク:this vowel sound "o" changes to "ア"
Chariot is チャリオット:this vowel sound "a" stays "ア"
Corridor is コリドー:...
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102 views
あかさたなはまやらわ mnemonics
What mnemonic phrase / jingle, if any, is used by Japanese children to memorize the あかさたなはまやらわ sequence?
Or could you come up with some?
To help myself memorize this, I could possibly fashion an ...
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1answer
330 views
Are there any rules to the intonations they are discussing in this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpbOoSbnp5k
I rarely if ever see anything like this covered in Japanese textbooks or courses besides the hashi (bridge) vs hashi (chopstick) discussion.
Is there no ...
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1answer
191 views
Does「ペーペー」and the “PayPay” digital wallet sound like a ダジャレ? Isn't that weird for marketing?
"PayPay" is a smartphone digital wallet used in Japan. Yet, 「ペーペー」is also a slang term for the 肩書き of 新入社員。I always said my 肩書き was either 「ペーペー」or 「カバン持ち」。
I am so confused.
(1) Is "ペーペー" really, in ...
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2answers
363 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 ...
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1answer
191 views
What does しゅごい mean?
I'm reading a manga and I can't for the life of me figure out what this phrase is supposed to mean; I've never seen it before.
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1answer
109 views
Pronunciation question for consonants k/g and t/d
I was wondering if someone could help me clear up some confusion
Sometimes when I hear people speaking Japanese in videos, I hear them swap the k/g consonants, as well as the d/t consonants.. Like ...
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0answers
87 views
Pronouncing Kanji when combined with other kanji [duplicate]
I have only just started learning Kanji, I know that 中国 means China and is pronounced Chūgoku . However 中 is pronounced differently (naka instead of chū).国 is also pronounced kuni on its own instead ...
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29 views
How to say っ by itself [duplicate]
I have seen some interjections and phrases with words such as [えっ] or [あっ]. My question is how you would pronounce this, or if it's just a pause.
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1answer
188 views
ありがとう pronounced with heibangata pitch pattern?
I've always heard a lot of Japanese people pronounce ありがとう as ありがとう{LHHHH}, but I've never actually seen anyone talk about it on the Internet.
People always say ありがとう should be pronounced ありがとう{...
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1answer
146 views
How are 'nasalized vowels' pronounced?
I've noticed when listening to some recordings of ん before a vowel, such as 万{まん}円{えん}, that the ん sound tends to be assimulated and almost vanish into the vowel's sound (sounding almost like まーえん). ...
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3answers
213 views
how to pronounce name in japanese
Would appreciate some help here. The picture shows a nametag that's meant to spell Reina in hiragana, but does the last character look off? Specifically the top right bar.
Additionally, do Japanese ...
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1answer
144 views
「実父」's pronunciation
I have always pronounced the word [実父]{じっぷ}, and it seems the dictionaries agree. (jisho.org. Also WWWJDIC, I would put a link here, but it seems the link I get on WWWJDIC is dynamic and the content ...
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1answer
158 views
What is the right pronunciation of 「何にみえますか」
What is the right pronunciation of 「何にみえますか」? Is pronounced 「なんにみえますか」or 「なににみえますか」? Why?
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1answer
383 views
Criteria for reading 物{もつ} or 物{ぶつ}
One of the pronunciation I struggle most is 「物」: more ofthen than not, I misread it in words like 「作物」 and 「薬物」. I know what they mean, but it's likely I misread them by reading 「もつ」 instead of 「ぶつ」 ...
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1answer
173 views
Pitch accent pattern for verb stem + な
I've only ever heard this form be used in the command "待ちな!" (Wait!), but just out of curiosity, I'd like to know what pitch accent rule(s) apply here. I thought I'd heard the above-mentioned phrase ...
3
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1answer
191 views
Pitch accent for ないで and なくて
When I listen to Japanese people speak, I usually hear them say ないで{HLL} and なくて{HLL}, with the pitch drop always placed on な, no matter the verb. But I might just be hearing things wrong.
However, I ...
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2answers
535 views
Do native speakers learn consonant and vowel length easily, or is it difficult?
Just want to ask if this is normal or I am just fighting the wrong way.
かっこいい say this word has the final 2 い which shall take 2 length of the i sound.
I am struggling to keep trying to speak with 2 ...
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2answers
277 views
Why was on'yomi (音読み) created?
As far as I understand it the Japanese Kanjis are derived from the Chinese ones. This was to introduce a writing system in Japan. But for the on‘yomi reading, the Japanese also took the spoken word ...
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1answer
183 views
pronunciation of 拗音
I have difficulty to pronounce (あ段, お段) 拗音, e.g., きゃ, きょ, ひゃ, ひょ correctly.
My Japanese language teacher is a native Japanese. What she taught me is the same that I can find on the Internet. For ...
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1answer
141 views
７色 vs 七色 for rainbow (7 colors vs 7 prismatic colors)
虹は7色だ。
Rainbow has 7 colors.
There are 7 colors in rainbow.
Question:
how to pronounce 7色 to make meaning [7 colors]?
Problem:
七色 is not [7 colors].
It is a special scientific term, meaning [7-...
3
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2answers
233 views
What is the reading of 台北(タイペイ)?
台北 (or 臺北) is the name of Taiwanese city, Taibei, read [tʰaɪ̯³⁵ peɪ̯²¹⁴⁻²¹⁽⁴⁾] in Mandarin. In Japanese, it is normally rendered with the sequence タイペイ. But what is the reading of this sequence? ペイ is ...
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1answer
151 views
Why カザフスタン for Kazakhstan?
Why not カザクスタン ? The Cyrillic word does have a k (but I am not sure whether is is actually pronounced).
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2answers
416 views
Why is テ pronounced as “ti” in パーティ?
If we take the word パーティ, why is テ pronounced as "ti" when in the katakana alphabet it is pronounced "te." Also, why is ィ small? If it was normal sized, wouldn't the pronunciation of the word be the ...
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2answers
226 views
/h/ sound changing in some Japanese counters
I just noticed that the quantifying words that have an initial sound as /h/ such as 本、匹、分
For example: 本 hon
/h/ becomes /p/ : 1,6,8,10
/h/ becomes /b/ : 3,?? and ん sound before /b/ becomes /m/ (is ...
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1answer
71 views
Pronunciation of [ 男爵 / だんしゃく ]
I was watching JoJo's Bizarre Adventure where Baron Zepelli introduces himself, and it sounds like he says ”私はZepelliだんしゃんだ”. Here's a link to the scene https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWaAct40xZ0&...
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0answers
70 views
Are words with the combinations of ia io and ea eo pronounced the same as iya iyo and eya eyo
I see some words ending with eo or io and I try to pronounce as eyo or iyo but I do not know if that is correct.
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0answers
93 views
Why do Latin letters have English pronunciations in Japanese?
The Latin letters A–Z are used in Japan today and they each have a name just like in English. Take the first five Latin letters, A–E. Source: https://jisho.org
A 【エイ】【エー】
B 【ベー】【ビー】
C 【シー】
Ｄ【ディ】【ディー】
...
3
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2answers
138 views
Which is the more common reading of 仏陀 - ぶつだ or ブッダ?
I realize that 仏陀 is probably more common in writing where the reading is ambiguous anyway, but I am curious to know: do people tend to read it as ぶつだ or ブッダ? For what it's worth, my IME recognizes ...
2
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3answers
741 views
Why Can't A Name Be Written Literally In Japanese?
My Japanese knowledge is very limited, so I am not good in Japanese alphabet.
With the help of an online Japanese name converter, I tried writing a name in Japanese, but the resulting name does not ...
