Questions tagged [word-choice]
使い分け. The differences between two or more words or phrases and how to select the best one for a given situation.
2,408
questions
2
votes
1answer
84 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 ...
3
votes
1answer
86 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 ...
6
votes
2answers
134 views
Differences Between 興味深い & 面白い?
面白い has the meaning of fun or interesting, whereas 興味深い appears to represent a similar state of "interesting".
What are the differences between these two adjectives, and when should 興味深い be employed?
4
votes
1answer
169 views
What's the difference between 繁盛 and 隆盛?
According to Jisho they both mean "prosperity; flourishing; thriving", but unfortunately it doesn't give any example for 隆盛 and a Google search isn't helpful, I wasn't able to find any discussion ...
2
votes
0answers
107 views
What are the differences between うちに、間に、同時に, ながら & ついでに
These all generally mean whilst & during but I still (after ages of trying) make mistakes on where to use which one.
For anyone who knows the ins-and-outs of these grammar points, please explain ...
-1
votes
0answers
80 views
What’s the difference between 苦手 and 苦い?
I’ve read the words 苦手 and 苦い, but I just don’t understand the difference between them. As far as I know they mean bitter.
So what’s the difference between them?
1
vote
0answers
78 views
Interpretation of にはな in this sentence
I know that based on the title it might sound a bit odd, but thing is, there's a video game I like and it only has an English dub and Japanese subtitles.
There's a line (which is spoken by a guy), ...
1
vote
1answer
153 views
how much use of カタカナis good or bad in Japanese?
While learning Japanese we students have a secrete weapon called カタカナ。We use katakana words even though there are perfectly fitting Japanese words which we obviously don't know. Just because we ...
13
votes
1answer
1k views
Is 忍者/忍び also used for women?
I was discussing with a friend, who asked me if 忍者 is also used for women, or if くノ一 is used/preferred. I know 者 means "person", so it seems to be neutral; and Weblio defines the word using 者, which ...
1
vote
1answer
89 views
Which verb can I use with the word “散文”?
So basically, what I want to say is something along the lines of, "He begins his story with a rhyme" or, "He tells a poem and begins his story". What's the word for "tell" here? Is there a verb phrase ...
3
votes
3answers
139 views
Is there a rule for deciding if we should write こんばんは or 今晩は?
I always have problems deciding if I must write a word in hiragana or in kanji.
For example, should I write こんばんは or 今晩は ?
I know children would rather write in hiragana but what about for adults ?
...
6
votes
2answers
237 views
Should I include my step-siblings as 兄弟?
If I'm asked, "兄弟がいますか。" and my only siblings are a younger step brother and younger step sister, should/can I respond "はい、いもうととおとうとがいます。"? Do I need to specify but still answer in the affirmative? Or ...
9
votes
1answer
219 views
分{わ}かる vs. 分{わ}かっている
What's the difference between 分かる and 分かっている?
Based on my experience and this answer on HiNative, I assume 分かっている means something more like "I already know that (so you don't have to tell me)" and ...
3
votes
1answer
75 views
くせに when the subject is the first person?
I'm quite baffled by what a character in a manga says. I'll try to explain the context as best as I can so you can get the picture:There are 2 characters, A previously said (in the last chapter of the ...
2
votes
1answer
432 views
Native Japanese vocabulary, pure Wago/Yamato Kotoba
Can you still speak Japanese while avoiding to use most Chinese loan words? The native portion of the Japanese language is called Yamato Kotoba or Wago, but how fluent could you still be without the ...
3
votes
2answers
150 views
Please illustrate the differences between 数 and 量. Also 番号？
数 refers to something's corresponding number. For example, a reading on a monitor.
量 refers to an amount, something that can be measured.
However, if you wanted to say that the number of something ...
4
votes
1answer
172 views
湿度 as “humidity” in general
I'm using materials I found on the Internet to learn grammar points.
This source includes examples, which is really nice, but I reckon there are many mistakes - mostly typos, but sometimes worse.
What ...
5
votes
1answer
125 views
Confusion between 誰でも and 誰か
I was practicing and tried to write the following sentence in Japanese: Anyone playing games on PS4 or Switch?
誰でもPS4でゲームをやっていますか。スイッチでゲームをやっていますか。
A few minutes later my sentence was corrected to
...
4
votes
1answer
456 views
Should I use 無料 (muryou) or 只 (tada) for a free chatsite?
I have a free chatsite, and people ask me if there is a charge. Should I use muryou or tada? I want to indicate that my site is free. I see the term muryou written on free weekly magazines. Is the ...
3
votes
2answers
298 views
鶏肉【とりにく】? 鶏肉【けいにく】? 鶏肉【ちょうにく】? チキン? for chicken meat
Others have asked about "chicken meat" in general, but I do not see any answer to this question: what is the usage difference between:
鶏肉【とりにく】,
鶏肉【けいにく】,
鶏肉【ちょうにく】,
and
チキン?
Thanks.
1
vote
1answer
71 views
What's the difference between 身寄り, 親類 and 親戚?
Jisho gives "relative, relation" for both; I found this answer saying that 身寄り it's like a place where you belong and can stay, but it's not clear by the examples provided if it's something more broad ...
5
votes
1answer
111 views
DIfferences between 限定 and 制限
I was trying to understand the differences between 限定 and 制限, but I don't really get it: I found that the former is generally a business term seen as positive and special, yet as example sentences I ...
0
votes
1answer
65 views
オレンジ色のズボンを履きます vs オレンジ色ズボンを履きます
I came across this simple definition in my lesson, and I was wondering what the difference between these statements is. Both of them have the same meaning, "I wear orange pants". Is it a difference in ...
3
votes
0answers
42 views
Why is 今年 written in hiragana in this NHK news article? [duplicate]
Article in question
(Note that it's not NHK easy news, but the regular nhk news)
ことしのノーベル賞の受賞者の発表が７日から始まり、日本人としては去年、医学・生理学賞を受賞した京都大学特別教授の本庶佑さんに続き、アメリカ国籍を取得した人を含め27人目の受賞者がでるか注目されます。
I thought at ...
1
vote
3answers
233 views
What is the right translation and saying for ”Paper World”
I would like to know the right translation and saying "紙界"(Paper World) in Japanese. Should it be "pepa kai", "kami kai" or something else?
Google translate "紙" as "Kami", and "Kami" as "神" when ...
3
votes
1answer
111 views
事に感ず and Shigin vocabulary
I recently heard of the poem named Koto ni Kanzu, and I came across this page that provides the poem's text, along with a pretty convincing interpretation.
The poems reads as follows (I only added the ...
4
votes
1answer
112 views
そのものだ how is it translated?
So, I recently was reading something and I found the structure そのものだ, which at first glance it is not quite mean "that thing" as I thought, and the best explanation of it that I could find was in the "...
2
votes
1answer
75 views
Differences between 場所 and どこの場所
In a short story the protagonist says this sentence:
そして僕は突然、自分が知っている誰からも、自分が知っているどこの場所からも、信じられないくらい遠く隔てられ、引き離されているんだと感じる
I was wondering: why 自分が知っている**どこの場所** instead of just 自分が知っている**場所**.
4
votes
2answers
142 views
Are 「ないで」(when used adverbially) and 「ずに」 absolutely interchangeable?
I have been browsing the related questions in this site that deal with ず, ない, ずに and ないで and they are very informative. However, I couldn't find a post dealing with ずに and ないで (adverbially) ...
4
votes
1answer
92 views
What is the suitable phrase/word to say “break time”
I currently use "休憩時間" to refer to break time, however not sure whether it is correct.
"break time" here is interval for rest/food etc. for employees, students etc.
2
votes
2answers
338 views
Difference between 「移行」and 「移動」
「移行」
「移動」
What is usage difference between these two words.
Many times not able to judge why one of those used and not the other one?
3
votes
1answer
82 views
What is the difference between 編修 and 編集?
According to the translator, 編修 and 編集 are pronounced as "Henshū" and given the same meaning of "Edit". Also, both can be used as a noun.
So are there any specific situations to use these words?
...
6
votes
1answer
148 views
How best to respond to 「ご無沙汰しています」
I just received an email from a good friend in Japan, who has notably over the past few months been instrumental in connecting me to various people, for some research interviews I've been conducting.
...
1
vote
1answer
131 views
What is the difference between 売女 vs 街娼?
After reading, What's the difference between 変態 and 痴女 (or 痴漢)?, I did a few word searches.
Jisho lists multiple words when searching for the term Whore:
売女 - prostitute; whore
街娼 - prostitute; ...
2
votes
1answer
71 views
Word choice between 並々ならぬ and 並外れた
When I asked a Japanese about the difference between 並々ならぬ and 並外れた, he gave me a couple of examples how he uses the words:
並々ならぬ身体能力（✕） 並はずれた身体能力（〇）
並々ならぬお世話 （〇） 並はずれたお世話 （✕）
I also consulted the ...
-3
votes
1answer
188 views
Can 参加 be used to invite someone to a chat?
Context: I invited a person to participate in a chat. チャットに参加してください was my original sentence. Is my sentence and word choice correct? I was considering the word 関与.
1
vote
1answer
94 views
What is the difference between 動画 and 映画？
My research indicates that both terms refer to movies, 動画 and 映画. Is there a difference in usage? Does 映画 refer to film/videotape based movies and 動画 refer to everything else?
0
votes
0answers
32 views
Difference of お送りください and 送ってください。 [duplicate]
Seems that both phrase can be used when you are saying about sending mail, doc etc.
What is difference?
1
vote
1answer
72 views
What is しきれてない in 理解しきれてない?
I got the following sentence from manga 五等分の花嫁 (chapter 43 I believe), 俺はまだニ乃を理解しきれてないのかもしれない.
理解 is to understand and I'm thinking it's used with する here. It's verb stem is followed by きれてない. The ...
2
votes
1answer
98 views
Is 「食品」 a shorter synonym of「食料品」or there is a difference in meaning between both words?
I found an excellent Q&A addressing the differences between 食料 and 食品. However, I don't know how the word 食料品 relates to 食料 and 食料品. I guess that 食品 is just a short form for 食料品, just as 警官 is a ...
8
votes
1answer
272 views
What is the difference between 「変更」 and 「変化」?
I came across the word 「変化」 meaning "change, alteration". I already know the word 「変更」 that means "change" as well. What is the difference between both terms?
I found a related question where they ...
0
votes
1answer
71 views
JLPT N1 practice question: Usage of この辺で
Taken from https://japanesetest4you.com/japanese-language-proficiency-test-jlpt-n1-listening-exercise-6/, question 4. Select the most appropriate response:
では、そろそろ新年会もこの辺でお開きにしましょうか。
ああ、この場所がいいですね。
...
6
votes
2answers
201 views
Does ようやく mean “gradually”?
ようやく has the following definitions in romajidesu:
(adv) finally; at last
「そっか」ウィリーはようやく納得した。
"Well, OK," Willie finally agreed.
barely; narrowly; hardly; only just
９時２０分の電車にようやく間に合った。
...
2
votes
1answer
89 views
What is the difference between these sentences?
I was trying to write "Half of the population will die" in Google Translate. I wrote：
「人口の半分は死にます。」
But Google decided this was better:
「人口の半分が死亡します。」
Are these just different ways to write the ...
9
votes
1answer
2k views
How would a native speaker correct themselves when they misspeak?
Once, a long time ago, someone asked me to tell me how I thought something went in Japanese. I replied
うまくいったと言います。
Quickly realizing my mistake, I corrected myself like this:
言います…思います。...
3
votes
1answer
180 views
What is なく doing in the following sentence?
I have a sentence that I read in a manga that has caused some confusion for me. It is an unsaid sentence by a girl who was surprised by an accidental encounter she had with a boy. She was in a robe ...
3
votes
1answer
141 views
What is よって doing in the following sentence?
I have a sentence that I came across in a manga I am reading. The male speaker is speaking to five girls (one of whom he met 5 years ago but doesn't know which one) and says, この中で昔俺に会ったことがあるよって人ー?
I ...
2
votes
1answer
249 views
Can さくじつ and きのう be used the same way?
Can さくじつ and きのう be used the same way? I know the terms mean yesterday. Thank you!
5
votes
1answer
218 views
How to say monologue?
What’s the difference between 「[独]{ひと}り[言]{ごと}」 and 「[独白]{どくはく}」? They both mean ‘monologue’?
3
votes
3answers
152 views
Difference between 絶滅, 消滅 and 滅ぶ
My vocabulary textbook lists the three following words:
滅び行く種族
Endangered species
種族の絶滅
The extinction of species
消滅した種族
Extinguished species
(Hope the English ...
