Questions tagged [syntax]
統語論. Rules governing construction of phrases and sentences in a language.
532
questions
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1answer
67 views
Does anybody know anything about astrology to figure out what 優先度 has to do with the following sentence?
https://cocoloni.jp/fortune/1362383/
英国占星術で占う「あの人の今、あなたに対する優先度」【無料占い】
I think its trying to ask, "How important is this persons whereabouts in regards to your priority" or
"His priority ...
3
votes
1answer
50 views
The order of verbs and their complement/adjunct
次の日そのスカートを学校にはいていったら、友達によく似合うと言われた。（〇）
次の日そのスカートをはいて学校にいったら、友達によく似合うと言われた。（〇）
何枚ものお札を窓口につかんでいく（✕）
何枚ものお札をつかんで窓口にいく（〇）
I saw the first sentence in a book (留学生のためのここが大切文章表現のルール) and asked a Japanese ...
1
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1answer
94 views
a question about としては問われず
日本の国政は議院内閣制であり、内閣は衆議院に信任されていれば存立し、国民の支持・不支持は直接的な制度としては問われず、4年以内に行われる衆議院議員総選挙や衆議院議員補欠選挙を通じて間接的に反映されるだけである（地方政治ではリコール制度がある）。
the political body of japan is that of a parliamentary system of government ...
2
votes
3answers
103 views
Use of など after a counter
I was reading this and came across a use of など where I wasn't confident in my interpretation:
アメリカから来た人が５０人、中国とインドが３０人、韓国とフランスが２０人などでした。
My interpretation of this sentence is "50 people came (...
1
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1answer
151 views
What does 戯んでいた mean?
I'm a little confused, I was reading a book an this turned up; at first I thought it would be a verb ending in ぶ or む, but it turns out it's not really a verb, I guess it's a noun. I found out that ...
1
vote
1answer
50 views
What is the proper form of a short question with an i-adjective vs. a na-adjective?
I have read that great answer about i-adjectives being predicates. How does it reflect in questions?
Say, I have a dialogue:
— Is your city a beautiful one?
— Yes, it is.
— Is it big?
...
0
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1answer
104 views
Confusion over the use of particle in this verb form 時を…鳴らせ…
This is a prologue to a Nintendo DS japan-exclusive videogame. It was never released overseas but received a fan-translation.
I'm very confused as to how the Japanese part is even grammatically ...
1
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1answer
92 views
How to tell the function of と at a glance?
国{くに}が今年{ことし}の３[月]{がつ}に調{しら}べると、「[特定]{とくてい}[技能]{ぎのう}」で[働]{はたら}いている人{ひと}は３９８７[人]{にん}で、考{かんが}えていたよりずっと少{すく}ないことがわかりました。
I’m having difficulty figuring out how と is used here. From past experience it ...
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1answer
69 views
ことが as an infinitive?
若い時にいい友達『を』作ることはとても大事だ。
“It is very important to make friends when one is young.”
“To make” is not a noun, it's an infinitive. It should be “making friends” no? I understand that it turns the verb ...
4
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1answer
92 views
Can one noun be modified by both a clause and a の marked noun?
I have tried to create a sentence wherein a noun is modified by both a clause and の marked noun, but found it to be difficult with my current understanding:
Intended sentence: I stole the king’s ...
0
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2answers
97 views
なく after a verb, what are the uses?
夕暮れで 二人 少しずつ見えなくなっていって
In this case I suppose it 見えなく(invisible) + 成っていって（becoming）.
But in this case below how would it work?
サヨナラ 会えなくなったって 僕らは続きがあるから
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2answers
112 views
Why do these sentences end differently?
This clip is taken from the Genki 1 CD (page 145, practice B)
https://clyp.it/0hidoxpi?token=a6a5bcee7235ba7a1de2723699d145c4
I am confused about why some sentences end differently:
かったです
でした
...
1
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1answer
64 views
Does this mean anything? 私たちはしておりません
This is an interview with Hiroshi Yamauchi. I can never understand even 1 sentence he says in any interviews he ever does.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcrvjSjWmPM&t=0m56s
32ビットを意識して、...
1
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1answer
58 views
A question about 思っての愛のある
あくまでその子のためを思っての愛のある行為でなくてはならず
This should mean something like: "it should be an an act of love putting the kid's interest in mind."
How does this 思っての愛のある行為 grammatically parse? Why is it ある行為 and ...
0
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1answer
51 views
A question regarding お迎え入れること適わず and 身の上にて陽の下
見れば他にも大勢のお客人がいらっしゃるご様子。貧相な住まいにございましては到底お迎え入れること適わず、本来なればわたくしが門前にてお迎えするが礼儀存じますが、なにぶんひ弱な 身の上にて陽の下はご容赦頂きたく
First is お迎え入れること適わず more or less the same as 迎え入れて適わない?
Second does ...
1
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0answers
40 views
Japanese Past Progressive? [duplicate]
《アパート『へ』帰る『と』ハガキ『が』一枚届いていた…》
In that sentence, why is the verb using the past progressive form?
届いていた=〜て+いた right? Does it mean that the letter was being delivered when he got to this apartment?
...
4
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1answer
87 views
ございます after adjective (with ウ音便)
If I understand this correctly, ありがとうございます is formed as follows. First, the adjective ありがたい is turned into the adverb ありがたく. Then, in ありがたく+ございます, ウ音便 takes place and ありがたく becomes ありがとう.
But in ...
1
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1answer
53 views
What is the meaning of どうかは here?
一般的にどうかは置いといて、私の場合は遠のいているかもですね(笑) 実際してないですし
So the person (female CEO) is asked about if marriage and birth hinder ones job, so she answer with this. Does どうかは置いといて mean "not to mind it"?
...
4
votes
1answer
91 views
How would I translate “someone who likes (something)” into Japanese?
The specific sentence that came up when I was practicing with my study buddy today was, "Do you know anyone who likes sports?"
My best guess was:
だれかスポーツが好きな人を知っていますか？
But since 好き is an ...
1
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3answers
154 views
How does this phrase mean “it is better if”?
A Busuu example dialogue suggests that this phrase ギターが弾けると良いのですが means "It's better if you can play the guitar".
I understand that ギターが弾けると means "if you can play the guitar". Is this the ...
2
votes
1answer
74 views
How to say “make it sound like〜”?
For example,
"Don't make it sound/seem like I am doing something wrong"
Or
"My teacher makes it sound like tomorrow's test will be difficult"
I tried,
"私は悪いことをするように言わないで"
Or
"私は悪いことをすると言わないで"
...
2
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1answer
100 views
Sentence structure. 学生は、工場で何を作っているときに、見学をしますか。
I'm currently doing some N4 sample papers to prepare myself for the exams and I came across this questions;
教室で先生が学生に話しています。学生は、工場で何を作っているときに、見学をしますか。
It's the second sentence which gets me. I ...
3
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0answers
52 views
Are human-like robots animate or inanimate? [duplicate]
There are constructions for existence that depend on animated object or not.
鳥がいます - There is a bird (animate).
椅子があります - There is a chair (inanimate).
How do you treat human-like robots? Are they ...
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1answer
154 views
How does ことはあっても connect this otherwise 2 part sentence into one?
獄長：「な～に、馴れればここでの生活も満更ではないぞ。どうせシャバにいたところで他人様の迷惑になることはあっても役には立たないボンクラどもなんだからよ」
Warden: Once you're used to it, life here isn't too bad. Here you trouble only useless fools....
I would like to know a ...
1
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1answer
87 views
In a complex sentence, what does the second part of the sentence refer to?
Taking a sentence for example:
普段はスプーンで食べるがないから箸で - I normally use spoon to eat but because there is no (spoon), I use chopsticks
I made that sentence up so it might be wrong
In the sentence above, ...
0
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1answer
126 views
Sentence structure for “I have been ~ for X days”
I'm trying to say something along the lines of "I have been studying Japanese for 12 days". So far my research has led me to this attempt:
わたしはじゅうににちにほんごをべんきょうしています。
watashi wa juuni nichi ...
1
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1answer
155 views
Meaning of 君の知らない物語
When I saw the title
君の知らない物語
my mind translated it as
Your unknown story (Translation A)
However, by searching a little, most sources seemed to translate with the meaning
The story you ...
0
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0answers
74 views
What is the grammar of ご機嫌【きげん】よう? [duplicate]
What is the grammar of ご機嫌【きげん】よう? It is made of three or, we might say, two parts:
ご
機嫌【きげん】
Good spiritswith honorific
よう
What is よう? Is it 様【よう】 in the sense of "form, style"? Per jisho.org ...
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4answers
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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?
2
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2answers
199 views
しれーっといてられるなと思います
「まぁ、よくも、こんな重大{じゅうだい}な事件{じけん}を視聴者{しちょうしゃ}に説明{せつめい}もせず、しれーっといてられるなと思{おも}います。」
How could they do that without explaining?
To me, this might also mean:
Well, how could they dare do that without ...
1
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1answer
88 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 ...
1
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1answer
85 views
What is the proper form of “In the beginning” for this sentence?
Okay, so I fixed my first problem. Now, I have to find the proper form of "in the beginning." Should it be はじめに、すなおだった (hajime ni, sunaodatta,) or はじめは、すなおだった (hajime wa, sunaodatta?)
1
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1answer
203 views
Does 暗闇へ make sense?
I'm wondering if it translates to "into darkness" directly as a response to something like "Where are we going?" Or possibly as a title for a poem?
I found one example. 暗闇へのワルツ Waltz into Darkness as ...
1
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1answer
147 views
What I'm getting wrong on this sentence? あそこに立っているのが、あなたのみらいの子どもです
I translated the following sentence
あそこに立っているのが、あなたのみらいの子どもです
Into:
"Your future child will be standing there."
But the correct translation according to Wanikani would be:
The person ...
6
votes
1answer
715 views
What does どおし mean in this song?
In the song Chercher by Kotoko there's the line
心配性｛しんぱいしょう｝と言｛い｝われても ハラハラのしどおしよ
And in a subtitled video it gets translated to: "Even if you say I'm a worrier, you're anxious with me"
It all ...
2
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1answer
172 views
How can this sentence be understood?
I'm reading 仮面の告白 by Mishima Yukio, and I came across this sentence:
そのほか に縄目は見えず、青年の裸体を覆うものとては、腰のまわりにゆるやか に巻きつけられた 白い粗布があるばかりだった。
I would like to understand how is this sentence made by the ...
3
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1answer
83 views
The grammar/syntax of 前進あるのみ
今はもう過去を振り返るな。ただ前進あるのみだ。
入学試験に合格するにはただ練習あるのみだ。
I would like to ask if I can replace the bold part with "練習のみ" or "練習するのみ" / "前進のみ" or "前進するのみ" (and if the substitution changes the meaning), and a ...
3
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1answer
77 views
How is this sentence/saying structured?
I have problems understanding the correct grammatical structure of this saying:
金は取れる時に取れるところから取れるだけ取っておくものだ
I kind of understand what it is saying. I think its something like "At a time where ...
1
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1answer
223 views
Can you say“ 何が貴方のお名前はですか”？Or does 何 have to come before です？
I’ve read that what’s your name is “貴方のお名前は何ですか“ but can you also put 何 to the beginning or is that incorrect? So can it be: 何が貴方のおなまえはですか。
1
vote
1answer
195 views
What does 私はお願いしたいんですけど mean in this context?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4WlniHylrU&t=143s
This is a part of a legendary speech made by the former president of Nintendo at SpaceWorld. From my understanding, he is talking about the ...
4
votes
2answers
204 views
The exquisite depths of 和菓子's mind
Consider the following quote from this article:
和菓子は季節とともに変化するもの。パッと見て何を模したかわかる形もあれば、どんな意味が込められているのか考えるものもあり……。
As I understand it, the last clause is supposed to mean "there are ones (ie. certain ...
2
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1answer
88 views
What is the sentence structure in Japanese and how do you know the correct order?
Let’s say we have “この建物にいいレストランがあります”。Why does “建物に“come before “レストランが”？How do you know in what order the words are to be said and does it matter?
0
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1answer
161 views
I can't quite parse this sentence about not remembering something
そうか
そういや
[ペッパー]{おまえ}は
昔のユトを
なにひとつ
思い出せねえん
だったっけ。
So the first part, そうかそういや is preamble, "Is that so? come to think of it..."
ペッパー is the name of the protagonist who's being addressed.
But ...
5
votes
1answer
347 views
How to ask if a connection/relationship exists between two things
I would like to ask if there is a connection or relationship between two different parts.
For example, would this be an appropriate way of asking "Is there any connection between the two compilations/...
2
votes
1answer
160 views
“I don't mind paying/watching/going”
I've seen a lot of posts with conditionals "if you don't mind... then" and such. But I was wondering how you would make a sentence with 'mind + gerundio'. I've seen the verb 'かまう' and 'きにする' ...
2
votes
1answer
93 views
'Who got it right?' '3 people got it right'
みなさん、こんばんは！
I was just wondering how you would say the phrase or phrases:
"Who got it right?" or "who is correct/right"
"'Tom got it right" or "3 people got it right"
To give some extra context, ...
3
votes
1answer
191 views
Need help with economics headline that contains 還元
Since I do not hold a degree in business, this headline has me stumped. Please note all of these are my sad attempts at translation since the article is only in Japanese.
支払い時に還元、実質値引きへ
"Return at ...
1
vote
1answer
97 views
Need help with the famous 11 second intercom audio from Mega Man Legends 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dJxBnRth-A&t=1m40s
Need 日本語字幕 subtitles for this short 11 second announcement heard in the background. I've listened to this for over a decade, and could never ...
1
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1answer
90 views
～め ending, apparently not imperative?
Context is the song 「その血の記憶」：
空白のラストページに… Into [dative of motion towards] a blank LAST PAGE,
そのこぶしを叩き込めーッ！ [Star Platinum] will throw that fist (???)
End of THE WORLD！その血の記憶！ End of THE ...
0
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1answer
89 views
Please help with a headline for today's news article about consumption tax
This morning (at least where I live) the top headline when I got up to look at the TBS news was as follows (source). Please correct my attempt if there is an error.
【現場から、】１０％の暮らし、駄菓子の“おまけ”で苦肉の策
[...
