Questions tagged [transitivity]
他動性・自他対応. Whether or not verbs take a direct object as a complement. In Japanese, these objects are typically marked with the accusative case marker を.
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About the difference in these sentences with のを and のが
I've been struggling to find the difference between those two structures, is one of them wrong or they are both right and have a difference in meaning/emphasis
俺が走るのが見た
俺が走るのを見た
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Differences between 栽培する, 作る, and 育てる for "grow"?
I'm trying to find the best word for "grow" something in a garden. This includes the transitive: "grow potatoes", "grow my own tea leaves" - and also the intransitive, &...
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Using passive voice with transitive and intransitive verbs
What's the difference between using the passive voice with a transitive and an intransitive verb?
Take the examples:
パソコンがこわれられた ｖｓ パソコンをこわされた
(PS: I don't know if the particles I used in the ...
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Choice of 入れた in 缶に入れた蚊取り線香
A passage from the second chapter of 夜は短し歩けよ乙女 by 森見登美彦:
先ほどまで、ご主人は奥さんと一緒に本棚に囲まれた内側にいて、レジを打っていました。私と樋口さんが姿を見せると、あとを大学生のアルバイトに任せて出てきてくれました。そして案内されたのは店舗の背後にある木立の奥です。そこには缶に入れた蚊取り線香の煙がふんわり漂い、...
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を/に・通る particle help
In the sentence,
毎日、この道を通ります。
why is を used? Wouldn't it be に?
Also,
試験に通る
I thought the verb was intransitive, so I thought it would be が maybe. "the test was passed" ?
Any helpful ...
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Use of を with seemingly intransitive verbs describing emotions
何を悩んでいるの
What is troubling you?
何をそんなに興奮しているんだ
What are you so excited about?
I keep seeing sentences like the above where verbs, which seem to me to be intransitive, are taking 何 as an object. Are ...
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Can 続けて be used intransitively?
From a definition of 降り続く：
雨や雪などが、何日も続けて降る。「—・く長雨にうんざりする」
If you boil this down to 雨が続けて降る it appears to make no sense if you consider 続ける as a transitive verb. What's going on?
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Why are もらう、習う、教わる、借りる and 聞くthe only transitive verbs that behave like they are in passive conjugation? Is there a name for this category of verb?
もらう、習う、教わる、借りる and 聞く (in its "to hear from" meaning) and their honorifics I'm pretty sure are the only verbs where に and から are somewhat interchangeable in their active form, in that に ...
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葉が四枚になったところで、大きい植木鉢に植え替えた。
葉が四枚になったところで、大きい植木鉢に植え替えた。毎日どんどん(a)ーーーーー、とても楽しみだった。
そのうち、蔓が伸びてきた。棒を立てて、この蔓を巻いてやった。折れないように注意しながら、伸びた部分をなるべく横に(b)ーーーーーといいそうだ。
For selection b there are 2 choices:
1 - 広げる
2 - 広がっていく
I chose the 2 which ...
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Are verbal nouns or suru verbs transitive, intransitive, both, or either depending on the verbal noun or suru verb?
Are verbal nouns or suru verb transitive, intransitive, both, or either depending on the verbal noun or suru verb? For example: if you had the suru verb 勉強する (study), could it have a direct object and ...
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Is there any pattern to tell which verb of the two is transitive and which is intransitive?
Let me first explain what I mean. Take these two pairs for example:
付く、付ける (the first one is intransitive, the second one is
transitive)
抜く、抜ける (the first one is transitive, the second on is
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How does the transitive and intransitive verbs work when modifying a noun?
How do they work in relation with the particles? Like for example わたしの知らないこと vs 私に分からないこと. I notice that the 知らない doesn’t really go with the particle に like in the other one. Why is that and do ...
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に versus を with 会いました verb
I casually used を in the sentence クマを会いました。I was corrected with クマに会いました。Checking references and sample sentences I found no を examples. I think there is something fundamental about を and に that I do ...
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The verb [手伝]{てつだ}う, does it use the particle に?
For example, if I want to say "I helped my uncle yesterday", how would I say it?
昨日私のおじさんにてつだいました。
Or, I would just use the particle を.
昨日私のおじさんをてつだいました。
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公園で母に… vs 公園で母を…
Let me preface by saying that I am new to learning Japanese (about one month).
I came across this sentence and I’m confused about the particle に.
公園で母に会いました。
Why is に used here? If I use が or を, are ...
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Using 〜ています with intransitive and transitive verbs
I am currently learning that 〜ています can be used to express a state that resulted from a previous action, e.g.
でんきがついています。
All examples in my textbook (Minna No Nihongo - Lesson 29) use intransitive ...
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Does 泣いている describe a continuous action or a state after a change has taken place?
Intransitive verbs describe a change that people/things undergo from my understanding and do not take a direct object. I've also read that the te-form of intransitive verbs with いる describe a state ...
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Can the particle を work as から in certain situations?
I found the next sentence:
村を飛び出した
Because of 飛び出す being an intransitive verb, then that を is not working as a direct object marker, right? Then can を work as a "substitute" for から in this ...
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Where does the -a stem come from with auxiliary-constructed transitive/intransitive verb pairs if the base verb is a 二段活用 (or カ行変格活用)?
It seems to be generally understood that transitive/intransitive verb pairs, when they are not a 四段活用 and a 二段活用 that share the same 終止形, were created by taking a base verb, whether transitive or ...
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Particle Use with 注射する
(1) 人に薬を注射する。
(2) 人を薬で注射する。
(3) 人に薬で注射する。
A survey of sentences tells me that (1) is certainly grammatical, but (2) & (3) do not occur (At least in the ones I looked at). Both in English and ...
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休む usage with を？
I'm a beginner to Japanese, and I just learned about transivity. I read that the verb 休む is intransitive, and it means "to take a break from." I also read that intransitive verbs cannot take ...
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「が分かるようにできる」についての質問
日本語
32変数のd次方程式って32個があったら大抵変数を分かるようにできます。
この文を書いてたんですけど、間違えてたと思います。「何々が分かるようになる」を使えるのは分かりますが、「何々を分かるようにする」ってあってますか？僕の原因でそのことが分かるようになったみたいなことを言いたいです。
英語
First, for accurate context, a mathematically ...
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Intransitive verb that becomes passive?
What are the nuances when an intransitive verbs becomes a passive verb. Is not it just duplication:
Example
窓が開いた
And
窓が開かれた
Isnt 開かれる and 開く both mean "to be opened".
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Can intransitive verbs be used in a transitive way with abstract objects?
Nearly all Japanese verbs are classified as either transitive or intransitive. However, I am wondering if there are cases where one can use an intransitive verb in a transitive way, especially in a ...
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Please help me understand the tadoushi/jidoushi distinction
I’m trying to understand the tadoushi/jidoushi distinction. I read an article in wikionary.org
Here
which seemed to make sense. In particular it stated that the tadoushi/jidoushi distinction is a ...
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Understanding 他動詞vs自動詞 more clearly
I have been trying to grasp the concepts of transitive vs intransitive as I learn Japanese and had some questions on the following
窓を開けている... OK
窓を開けてある..... OK
窓が開いている.... OK
now I have an issue with ...
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Transitive, Intransitive and Potential Verbs
Do all tadoshi verbs have a jidoushi verb to pair with?
How do you differentiate volitional and non-volitional form verbs? Do we categorise them like we do for jidoshi (intransitive form) eg. Action ...
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Can you add a "cause" to an intransitive verb with に
I was wondering if when you have the transitive statement
誰が窓を[開]{あ}けた？
You can make an intransitive version like
窓は誰に[開]{あ}いた？
I can't find any sources that tell if you can add the "actual&...
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Transitivity of the verb 逃げる and 逃れる
Until I looked it up recently, I'd never really noticed that the verb 逃げる is intransitive, but it makes sense now that I think of it. But there's still something that bothers me, and that's that this ...
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How do you say this? (Warning NSFW)
How would you say: "I want a girl to sit on my face" in Japanese?
Would it be something like this: "俺の顔の上に女の子を座りたいだ"?
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What is difference between 熱を出す and 熱が出る
I know that 熱が出る (netsu ga deru) means to have a fever.
Example:
風邪を引いたら、39℃の熱が出た。
Kaze wo hiitara, 39C no netsu ga deta
When I caught a cold, I had a fever of 39C.
What does 熱を出す (netsu wo dasu) ...
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Does/Can the "standalone" 来る have a passive form in Japanese? [duplicate]
Due to my dictionary 来られる would be the passive as well as potential form.
Potential form is clear: 来られる? -> Can you come?
But I have great trouble imagining a sentence of 来られる in the passive ...
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Does '頑張って' affect '仕事' using 'を' in 留学を決心した上は、**仕事を頑張って**留学の代金を貯金すべきだ。?
留学を決心した上は、仕事を頑張って留学の代金を貯金すべきだ。
頑張って is Intransitive verb so why would it be related to 仕事? I thought it had to be 仕事に not 仕事を.
If the verb of 仕事を is not 頑張って , then where is its verb in the sentence (...
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Is it possible to use を with any intransitive motion verb like 戻る in the same fashion as「駅を出る」?
Is it possible to use を with any intransitive motion verb like 戻る in the same fashion as「駅を出る」?
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Confusing usage of 写る
I am confused about a certain usage of 写る, that i have encountered in example sentences.
An Anki deck I use presented: このカメラはよく写りますよ。The given translation is "This camera takes good pictures.&...
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Difference between shimatte arimasu and shimete arimasu
In this link, it is explained that shimeru is a transitive verb and so it can take the -te aru ending but shimaru is an intransitive verb so it can take the -te imasu ending.
However, in some grammar ...
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思い出 - Ludens Song Lyrics を and が with intransitive verb (流れる), is this translation acceptable?
The song:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g4nT5-ouBEA
The lyrics:
https://earth-colors.dreamwidth.org/14442.html
This line 川面の上を雲が流れる is translated as "Clouds passing over a flowing river".
川面 is ...
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Why this Transitive Verb with が
while I was searching for と思う I came across a sentence, which is reproduced herewith:
さくらさんは松本さんが止めると思う (Sakura thinks Matsuoto will stop)
Here are my questions:
In this sentence I want to ask, ...
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Struggling with identifying the 'correct' verb here (+intransitivity)
This sentence is giving me a hard time ...
「下り坂を休まれちまった、残りは１０００と数百...」
(The sentence was uttered during a horse race when the speaker was passed by other competitors as he was saving his horse's ...
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Can one ever use an intransitive verb as a transitive verb?
Note from the OP: The original phrasing of the question was very unclear so, after thinking this over a few times, I decided to rewrite this completely.
Please see here for the new question
In other ...
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負かした俺: who beat whom in this relative clause?
Context: Riku is a boxer of Baba gym. Tokorozawa is a retired boxer of Baba gym. Ishigami is a retired boxer of an unmentioned gym. Tokorozawa beat Ishigami in the past. Recently, Tokorozawa asked a ...
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が vs は for intransitive verbs
In my textbook it says that to say:
There is a good restaurant in this building.
the translation is:
このたてものにいいレストランがあります。
However, why is が used and not は? Would は be indicating a contrast (...
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に vs. を in "to pass a test"
Every time I'm feeling confident about the correct usage of に, を, and で, I get thrown for a loop. Could someone please explain to me the use of に in this sentence:
I will study a lot and pass the ...
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transitive and intransitive verbs using を/が particle
Was studying Anki when i came across やっと難しい問題が解けった
Instead of using the が particle, would it also be plausible to use the を particle here? I know that transitive sentences normally uses を and ...
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Potential verb form and を [duplicate]
I saw “私は日本語を話せます。” in an online lesson. Is it grammatically correct?
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Padding of 好みの潰さで味ゎぅ [closed]
I'm trying to parse (put spaces between each word) the following sentence in the picture attached:
I've tried Recognizing the Characters using an app and got this :
好みの潰さで味ゎぅ
I recognize that there ...
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Why does 電池 take the を particle
The sentence
咲は電池{でんち}を時計｛とけい｝に入｛はい｝れました。
Translates as "Saki put the batteries in the watch" but would would 電池 take を in this case?
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How to interpret intransitives in non-past tense
I've been reading linguistics books lately and they've gotten me reexamining things I've learned in Japanese textbooks for foreign learners.
Susumu Kuno's book The Structure of the Japanese Language ...
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Transitive-intransitive pairs with different readings
Transitive-intransitive pairs are common in Japanese. But in general the reading of the kanji is the same. I know of two exceptions: 出す{だす}-出る{でる} and 入れる{いれる}-入る{はいる}. Are there more?
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Xに捕まる vs Xに捕まえられる
Xに捕まる was used when describing the speaker getting grabbed by X when trying to leave.
Why was the intransitive used over passive when it was Xに...?
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