Questions tagged [spoken-language]
音声言語（話し言葉）. Language that is more typical of speech than writing, including contractions, omissions, and other verbal mechanisms characteristic of speech.
152
questions
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104 views
How to pronounce words with sui in them?
Do you pronounce like swee or like soo-ee? sorry I’m a bit confused.
5
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1answer
412 views
The meaning of という in 言うことを聞かないというのなら
Here's a few examples of the point in question:
言う事を聞かないというのなら
どうしてもというのなら
もし、君が例外だというのなら
In these examples the words in "quotes" were never directly said. Is it correct to view these ...
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2answers
90 views
About addressing people by -San, -Chan and -Kun
I understand that -San is a formal way to address somebody. A unisex way of both Mr. and Mrs. Kun is a way to address males, but it's used with friends? I'm wondering about that. Now, Chan is very ...
2
votes
1answer
133 views
Spoken Japanese, words ending with わ used as the topic
So consider a noun in Japanese such as 毛皮 that ends in a わ mora. If you were to construct a sentence with such a word as the topic it would have some structure like 毛皮は which when spoken out loud, ...
5
votes
3answers
1k views
Does “Tekken” sound like “iron sword” to someone unfamiliar with the franchise?
The word “ken” has at least 2 meanings: Ken (拳) means fist, while ken (剣) means sword.
If a Japanese speaker hears about the video game Tekken (鉄拳, “iron fist”) for the first time, without seeing the ...
6
votes
1answer
145 views
Are there placeholders in spoken Japanese?
I've seen discussions of placeholders in Japanese which seem to centre on how to pronounce written placeholders like ＯＯ, XX, etc. See below for reference:
How do you pronounce "☓☓" as a ...
2
votes
1answer
133 views
Why do people say “食べる” instead of “食べましょう” or “食べよう”
From what I understand, "食べましょう" and "食べよう" both imply, more or less, the same meaning, which is 'to invite someone to eat with them', the latter being a verb conjugation of the ...
2
votes
1answer
144 views
What's the difference between じゃあね and またね?
My teacher told me years ago about またね, but recently I've heard じゃあね used similarly. What's the difference between じゃあね and またね? Which one is preferable?
Is there other phrases, that can be used to ...
6
votes
2answers
568 views
What is this て-form at the end of a sentence: 「まったく可愛くねー起こし方しやがって！」
That comes from Ranma 1/2. Ranma asked Akane to wake up him up, and she did that by throwing water on him.
He then said:
何しやがるんだ！
What the hell are ya doing!
When she left, he then thought out ...
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0answers
60 views
Leaving out endings to sentences
A lot of times, endings to sentences are omitted for some reason. For example, "konna ni ooki na tatemono no naka ni ita to wa" may be completed by something like "omowanakatta". I ...
10
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1answer
277 views
Small あ after は?
I’m trying to read a book but I came across a sentence where there are small あs after はs and I’m not sure why. Do you know why that is and what it means?
その時【とき】、子供【こども】たちの声【こえ】が聞こえました【きこえました】。
「...
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 ...
5
votes
1answer
179 views
How can I differentiate if a word is (either fully or preferentially) used for spoken or written language?
Sorry if this has been answered before, but I couldn't find it.
I understand that when the on'yomi reading is used, this is associated with words with a more "literary" feeling or with written usage. ...
6
votes
1answer
380 views
Help me understand 言わんこっちゃない
I don't understand this whatsoever:
やれやれ
だから言わんこっちゃない
especially the bolded part. What real words does that come from?
Context is that the main character got a cold from staying outside all night; ...
2
votes
1answer
313 views
How to say 2000 people attend X High School
I was wondering how I would say 2000 people go to (Name) High School in Japanese. It might be easier to say 毎日、二千の生徒はX高校に通ういます。but it would like to know how to phrase it more like X高校は二千の生徒が（verb)。...
6
votes
1answer
220 views
Nominal connectors in embedded sentences: 名詞・形容動詞 ＋「である」「だという」「な」等 (+ こと) の使い分けについて
This is a general question about what to place after nominals when connecting them to constructs like こと.
Lately I've realized I've either forgotten or never knew when I should be using だということ over ...
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0answers
81 views
What does it mean についちゃ in this text? [duplicate]
こういうのも なんだが魚たちの ゴキゲンについちゃおれら 漁師が 専門家だ。
What does it mean についちゃ ? What grammar does it refer To ?
6
votes
1answer
187 views
Japanese N1 practice questions help
Taken from question 4 and 5 of this URL:
https://japanesetest4you.com/japanese-language-proficiency-test-jlpt-n1-listening-exercise-5/
QUESTION 4:
The audio starts with: あ～ぁ、やってらんないよなあ。 I usually ...
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vote
2answers
810 views
3
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1answer
328 views
How to address / refer to a specific kanji in speech
Original Question
When talking about kanjis or trying to explain a certain kanji, how do Japanese people usually refer to that specific kanji in speech without having to write anything or point to ...
6
votes
1answer
486 views
Saying い adjectives without pronouncing the い
As the title above, why do japanese locals remove theいfrom the いadjective when speaking. For example, I have heard words like 早、やば、高 being used when speaking. Is this only used amongst friends (very ...
13
votes
1answer
7k views
What to say at the cash register in the convenience store
I just came back from Japan, it is my first time, so I found myself in the situations, that I wasn't prepared for.
At the convenience store I noticed natives tend not to say much to the staff at all, ...
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vote
1answer
275 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 ...
5
votes
1answer
880 views
What does こういうの refer to in こういうのって天然が一番怖いのよ
どこまでドジっ娘なのよ、あの子
あはは…ま、まあ、わざとじゃないんだし
こういうのって天然が一番怖いのよ
context: あの子 forgot something back in her room that they need and is in the process of going to get it and the other two then begin to ...
2
votes
1answer
172 views
の and のです. What’s their semantic purpose and meaning?
So, I've reached a spoken language topic and encountered difficulties with understanding those particles that are used in spoken language. Particularly with の. My book says that, for example, の ...
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votes
5answers
5k views
How do Japanese speakers transition from polite to plain form amongst friends?
When you first meet somebody, polite language is, on the whole, the most commonly used form of Japanese. Children may differ, and I understand that not everyone will use plain form, but regardless a ...
8
votes
2answers
5k views
2
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2answers
1k views
わからない vs わかね in My Boss My Hero
I was watching My Boss My Hero, and I could have sworn he said わかね instead of わからない. Is this feasible? Is there some dialect that drops off ない for ね?
3
votes
1answer
6k views
The usage of いや in response to questions
My question is about the usage and meaning of いや in response to questions. Take, for example, the 2 examples below.
1)
「僕たちは、もっと親睦を深める必要があると思うのでござるよ」
「いきなりどうしたのよ、何か思うところでも？」
「いや、...
4
votes
2answers
197 views
Translating “you” as 君 when giving a definition
I am trying to define the word "deceive". In English, I would say something like this (regardless of whether or not it is a good definition):
To deceive someone means that you lie to someone, and ...
2
votes
1answer
117 views
understanding what sounds like 「だけどお値段はもっていません。」
西友 CM 盛ってます編
懐中電灯盛り。 The flashlight style.
角ハンガー盛り。 The corner hanger style.
延長コード盛り。 The extension cord style.
ジャポニカ学習帳盛り。 ...
2
votes
3answers
129 views
Use of の + how to construct a phrase without it
First, this is my very first post here, and I am a complete newbie when it comes to the Japanese language. I have, however, been very interested in the Japanese language and culture: I have been doing ...
4
votes
0answers
319 views
Difference between “foot” and “leg” in spoken Japanese [duplicate]
After going on a long run, if you want to say, "My feet are sore", I would imagine that in Japanese you would say 「足が痛い」. If you want to say, "My legs are sore", I imagine that would be 「脚が痛い」.
How ...
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vote
2answers
117 views
Adverb Word Choice
I was writing the following message to an exchange friend and I struggled to find adverbs to pair with the verb 遊ぶ, and now I'm wondering a broader question about adverbs in general:
兄はカリフォるニアから来ました。...
2
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0answers
246 views
Thank you speech for schools and city officials [closed]
I have to give speeches for a group of 5th grade students and their parents that thanks the schools and cities for hosting us and showing us around. since i am the only parent that somewhat knows ...
12
votes
3answers
500 views
Do people actually ever say みょうにち?
I've heard people using あした (the common one) and あす (rather uncommon) to refer to "tomorrow".
I was wondering does anyone actually uses the reading みょうにち ?
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votes
4answers
16k views
How do I spell “So! So! So! So! So!”?
I've heard people say "So! So! So! So! So!" (or possibly "Sou! Sou! Sou!" or maybe using "z" instead of "s" - I'm bad at hearing) when laughing in agreement.
When middle-aged women speak Japanese ...
0
votes
1answer
220 views
手に入る how to know proper reading
I have noticed that 手に入る can be read in two ways: te ni hairu or te ni iru
Jisho accepts only the first option
But most (phonetic) keyboards allow to write it using the second form and I have an ...
6
votes
2answers
262 views
Distinguishing between んな/な, んの/の, etc
I'm learning Japanese, but I'm still very early on in my education (Rosetta Stone, some books and a Japanese-speaking friend). I'm pretty sure I'm grasping the basic concepts okay, but I'm having ...
2
votes
0answers
30 views
Reading/speaking of 「市場」, which one can I use kun'yomi or on'yomi? [duplicate]
I came across the word [市場], which means market. In google translate the reading is 'Ichiba' but when I played the sound it gave me the sound 'shinjyou'.
I am aware that there are two readings for a ...
2
votes
1answer
547 views
How do I address a young lady properly in person?
In real life, if I were to meet a stranger who is a young woman around my age in Japan, how would I--a man--call her without knowing her name? For instance, how should I say, "Excuse me, miss, you're ...
5
votes
2answers
171 views
Translation of ～てどうか
I recently had a major error on my translation for an agency, and am still confused.
The wider context is that this person doesn't like dealing (being seen) by staff when borrowing money, so prefers ...
0
votes
1answer
128 views
what is grammar pattern for やさしくった
I watched a series. There is a scene, while subtitle text is written as 優しく言ってあげた I heard something like やさしくったあげた。 so I did some search to check if this usage exist in real world. In google I found ...
4
votes
2answers
256 views
Meaning of 一度や二度じゃ、とうてい伝えきれないくらいに
その返事と、その笑顔が、一番たまらなかった。
一度や二度じゃ、とうてい伝えきれないくらいに。
My main confusion is with the 一度や二度じゃ part of the above. The character just confessed his feelings to someone and after hearing her response we ...
1
vote
1answer
159 views
“What about X?”, one more meaning
In English I can say "what about X?" to mean "why did you mention X?", "what were you going to say about X?", "what does it have to do with X?" and so on.
How can I ask the same thing in japanese? ...
3
votes
1answer
140 views
Using Japanese with my child
I have been learning/using Japanese for the past 16 years and now that I have become a mother to my 3 month old son, I would like to bring him up exposed to both English and Japanese. I haven't had ...
2
votes
1answer
409 views
What happened to original, pre-Kanji, Japanese words?
Some of the most common words in Japanese seem to have their origin in Chinese:
会議、日本、世界、先生、。。。
The evidence for this is, as far as I know, the fact that these words are written with characters, ...
3
votes
1answer
262 views
Why だからよ is considered “girly talk” and だからね is not?
So I was talking to a friend when he told me, as the title says, that:
だからよ is "girly talk" but だからね is correct
for instance:
昨日は楽しい、お酒を飲んだからね (according to him, totally ok and natural)
...
0
votes
1answer
163 views
Can't understand this spoken sentence
I can't quite tell what the person is trying to say here:
今日は酒____悪いなー！
Something about the sake is bad but what? It almost sounds like he is saying ぐせ悪い but I can't find a word that would match ...
2
votes
1answer
857 views
What's the difference between って and って言ってた
I'm guessing it's a matter of direct vs. indirect?
兄は「１分だけ、くださいね」って
My older brother said "Just a minute, please"
兄は１分だけと言ってた。
My older brother said just a minute.
