Questions tagged [word-usage]
語法. The usage of the words.
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重要ないくつか what is this word ending?
重要ないくつか
I came across this and was wondering what it meant. One can parse it this way:
重要ない ___くつか
Or
重要な ___ いくつか
Which does makes more sense? And can you give example sentences?
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2answers
79 views
What exactly does the song title 「恋するカレン」 mean?
「恋するカレン」is a song by 大滝詠一 from his 1981 album A Long Vacation. Lyrics for reference.
The part I am confused about is, who exactly is the actor i.e., person doing 恋する and who is it directed towards?
...
9
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1answer
275 views
What does 「生き残る目」 mean in this sentence?
I came across this sentence while reading 下町ロケット.
「ウチで密かに調べてみましたが、佃製作所はいま、資金調達すらままならない苦境にあるそうです。どう転んだところで、佃製作所に生き残る目はありませんよ。それにですねーーー」
The most obvious interpretation for me was,
We searched from ...
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1answer
81 views
I need help with the translations of the word Seido 精度
I am planning to start a small business in the art industry in the UK. I was brainstorming ideas for business names some time ago and I started typing in translations of English words I found relevant ...
3
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1answer
60 views
How should I understand 何回目か in this sentence?
One assignment for my Japanese class is this Japanese elementary reader, which contains the story of Kenta and his dog, Koro. They are playing catch with a ball, and the previous sentence I translated ...
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0answers
26 views
How is いただけ or いただけに working here? [duplicate]
I came across these two paragraphs about the future resignation of Prime Minister Abe:
Various ministers were being asked their opinions and I came across いただけに:
1st paragraph:
梶山経済産業大臣は、...
3
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1answer
85 views
What is the meaning of キリ in this paragraph?
Reading in NHk I came across this paragraph, and I cannot make out the meaning of キリ：
さらに堀埜社長は、7月、異例の値上げに踏み切りました。といってもほとんどは1円から数円の値上げ、中には値下げした商品もあります。看板メニューの「ミラノ風ドリア」は299円から、300円に。
値上げのねらいは、「釣り銭を減らす」...
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1answer
47 views
Word meaning and grammar help
I encountered this in something I read:
彼らの頭髪は金髪や白髪、茶髪を始めとして緑髪から青髪まで様々で、さらに格好は鎧やら踊子風の衣装やら黒一色のローブやら『それ』らしすぎる。
1. Do the quotations around それ means that it is emphasized? If so, how does it work in ...
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1answer
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「に対し 」と「に対して」の違い？
While many parents are putting money aside for college tuition, some are taking on another big expense: buying cars for their teenagers.
(大学の授業料のためにお金をためている親は多いのに対し、...
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2answers
108 views
Sandals vs. geta
Are all sandals called geta? Or are geta a subset of sandals. How about flip-flops? How are these types of footware distinguished in Japanese?
My dictionary says sandal is just せんだる.
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1answer
85 views
What does the work “Kitaku” mean?
I understand this to mean "return home". I am thinking about starting a new company and I would like something to mean, "return back to my roots, back to a safe place". Would "...
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1answer
109 views
Leaving the Office for the Day（お先に vs お疲れ様vs ありがとう）
My workplace has guards that work at our main door checking IDs and the like. In the morning we exchange cheerful おはようございますs. But I'm not sure what evening parting to use.
お先に失礼します seems out of place ...
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2answers
112 views
Difference between 試みる and 試す
何度か試みたが、失敗した.
何度か試したが、失敗した.
Is there a difference between those sentences? I have the feeling that the second one is more about trying smothing out like for the first time and see what happens and ...
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2answers
142 views
クビにします to mean “destroy”?
I'm translating a song and there's a certain part that's confusing me.
もしあたしが日本の
一番偉い人になれたら
即座にヤツをクビにします
(The singer is female, hence あたし)
So far, I can gleam the meaning of the first two lines to ...
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2answers
104 views
What does こなしてみせます mean?
次こそは... 完璧にこなしてみせます。
This is a speech from Shikamaru, a character from Naruto manga.
The nuance is, his very first mission as a leader ended in a giant failure with the rest of his team severely hurt ...
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2answers
115 views
How acceptable is it to use 持たす instead of 持たせる?
The following is an extract from 窓際のトットちゃん.
..ひいては、劣等意識を持たさないのに役立つのではないか..
Interestingly, jisho.org doesn't seem to have an entry for 持たす but other dictionaries like goo, do.
「持たせる」に同じ, 「もたせる」の文語形
...
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What does 誰も do in this sentence, and is it needed?
「日本語で話し相手が誰もいませんでした。」
"I didn't have anyone to speak Japanese with."
I feel like 誰も is unnecessary. As far as I can tell, 「日本語で話し相手がいませんでした。」 has every element needed to express the English above. ...
0
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1answer
61 views
What is the meaning of「もう」in this sentence?
もう一軒{いっけん}と参{まい}りましょう
I understand 「もう」to mainly mean "already" or "soon" but its usage in this sentence confuses me. Could anyone explain to me why it's natural here?
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2answers
86 views
When do i use は for きのう,きょう,あした? [duplicate]
Example from Minna No Nihongo:
Lesson 4 :
あした 6 時に起きます。
Lesson 9 :
きょう は 早く 帰ります。
Why is は sometimes used with such a time words and sometimes not?
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1answer
110 views
use of だって after 私
I was making some sentence cards and was wondering what だって in this case meant.
I got sth like "Even I am of use as splendid maid for Kobayashi."
for context: Lucoa was summoned by Shota but doesn't ...
2
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3answers
686 views
Can 変身 be used instead of 変化 in this case?
From this post, I gather that the difference between 変身 and 変化 is a matter of the transformation’s distinctness. However, I came across 変化 being used in the following sentence:
カメレオンは、環境が変わったとき、...
0
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1answer
68 views
What is the difference between 'ぼくたち' and 'ぼくら'?
What is the difference between 'ぼくたち' and 'ぼくら'? Both are written in kanji as 僕達 and mean 'we'. Are they equal in using?
3
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1answer
167 views
Why is 料理 used?
On page 158 of Genki 1, it has the sentence
ロバートさんは料理を作るのが上手です
Robert is good at cooking meals.
If I take the definitions of a couple of the words:
料理 = cooking
作る = making/preparing (food)
Then the ...
2
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0answers
113 views
How to break down the nuances of each Japanese word translating to “somehow” or “anyhow”?
There seems to be an endless supply of Japanese words and phrases that translate to "somehow" or "anyhow" in English. It's difficult, at least with J-E dictionaries, to understand the nuances of each ...
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1answer
110 views
what does いて mean in ここにいても [duplicate]
hi im doing subs2srs decks and im going through the cards looking at grammer and i found this card that says ここにいてもでくることはなさそうだな and i dont understand how いて works.
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ほか usage clarification [duplicate]
I was reading this article at NHK, and in it there is a sentence that reads:
感染者の中には、今月２日ではなく別の日にこのナイトクラブを訪れた人がいたほか、ソウル以外の地方から訪れた人もいたということです。
Which I think I understand the main point of to mean:
...
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1answer
59 views
Difference between 怒鳴る and 怒鳴りつける
Jisho says 怒鳴る is an intransitive verb and that 怒鳴りつける is transitive. But I have come across the following phrases:
止めようとしても母親は自分を怒鳴りつけるだけでした。
彼女は私を怒鳴った。
If Jisho is really right, why "私を怒鳴った” and ...
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0answers
146 views
What's the point of adding とした here in this sentence? [duplicate]
Here is the sentence of my question.
希望に満ち溢れていたはずの"あなた"がなぜあんなに荒凉とした場所にうずくまっていたの。
I can understand what it's trying to say to some degree yet it confuses me why とした is used in the sentence.
With the ...
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3answers
673 views
What is the difference between 盲目 and 目の不自由な？
Both words mean blind. I tried doing some research but I couldn't find the difference.
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2answers
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what is the difference between 肝臓 and 肝 • 胆?
I saw that both can mean liver.
Is there a specific context for each of these words? Some situation where it would be more correct to use one and not the other.
And i read that 肝 is also used as a ...
1
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1answer
92 views
Why should one use the dictionary form instead of the potential form in this case?
The question:
映画が好きなので、時間とお金が ＿ 限り見に行っている。
Both "許す" and "許せる" are offered as choices, and the answer is "許す".
Is it because "時間とお金" are impersonal, so the potential form "許せる" would not be ...
0
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1answer
83 views
What is the difference in usage between 港 and 港湾?
According to my dictionary, 港湾{こうわん} and 港{みなと} both means harbour. What is the difference between the usage of these two words ?
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1answer
113 views
Why choose 見てからでないと in this question?
I came across the following question when preparing for the N2 exam:
マンションを買うときは実際に＿、心配だ。
a 見た上で b 見て以来 c 見てからでないと
I thought the answer is a but it's given as c.
That doesn't seem to be right since ...
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0answers
49 views
Meaning of “おめーさん” in “ところでおめーさん” if it's not someone's name [duplicate]
What does "おめーさん" mean if it's used to address a man but it's not his name? Google Translate says it means "mother" or "old lady" but I have my doubts.
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Why does one have to use ながら instead of つつ in this sentence?
I'm going through an exercise book to prepare for the N2 exam, and I got confused by this question:
＿たばこを吸わないでよ
There are choices for 歩きつつ and 歩きながら, and the answer is 歩きながら.
What's the difference ...
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2answers
99 views
Just by: だけで vs ばかりに
I've been using Bunpro to review grammar and came across the following example sentence:
外国人だけど、着物を着る______、日本人みたいになった。
The site is looking for だけで (just by) as the answer, which I understand in ...
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0answers
35 views
Meaning of “大” in “軍部の大暴走”? [duplicate]
This is from an action novel I'm currently reading that involves an armed group and a hostage situation. In the earlier chapters, the expression used was "軍部の暴走", which to my understanding, is ...
4
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1answer
101 views
The difference between ありきたり and 平凡?
Both of them are Na-adjectives and both mean "ordinary, common". Are there any differences?
I saw a sentence:
そんな平凡でありきたりなことじゃないのかも
Why "平凡" and "ありきたり" are both used here?
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1answer
97 views
What's the difference between 「軽い」and 「身軽」?
Hellow everyone!
I would like to know what's the difference between 「軽い」and 「身軽」? When is good to use each one? Could you give me an example?
Thank you!
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1answer
74 views
Specific meaning of 屋上
Coming from a place that gets lots of snow, I think of roofs as being slanted and inaccessible. For me, the word 'roof' does not conjure an image of usable space. However, from the looks of it, the ...
3
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1answer
80 views
Use of その 結果 as "as a result'
I would like to know the use of その結果 "as a result"
Is it formal ?
Use in written language ?
Could it be replaced with some other expressions like "それで” ?
三ヶ月ダイエットを続けた。その結果、５キロやせた。 I continued my ...
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1answer
62 views
Use of かと思ったら / かと思うと (in the context of as soon as, just when)
かと思ったら / かと思うと mean "just when; no sooner than" but what is their use
(oral/written, formal/normal) ?
Do native use that construction naturally or is it replaced by another one ?
And I am also ...
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0answers
38 views
Difference between はもとより and はもちろん and their respective usage
I would like to know if there is some difference between はもとより and はもちろん in the sense of "let alone" , "not only ... but also".
On a side note, I would like also to know their respective usage (oral/...
0
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1answer
89 views
Meaning of 付いてくる and 付いていく
While it may appear as possible duplicate
The difference between "follow" using についていく、「あと？」をつける、「あと？」をついていく
, the specificity here is a school/training context which was not discussed ...
0
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1answer
81 views
What is the meaning of 地道 in this context? [closed]
it usually means "steady; honest; sober; straightforward" but it appears to have a different meaning in the following sentence:
地道な勉学にはあまり向かなかった、性格が明るく、多くの人に好かれた。
Source: it is a novel from Mr ...
1
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1answer
67 views
Meaning of 抱える other than “hold or carry in the arms”
I found some sentence and I am a bit perplexed by the 抱える, whose first meaning is “hold or carry in the arms”
I found it also meant : to have problems but how did it acquire its second meaning ?
...
0
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1answer
46 views
Meaning of 扱う in a context of 'deal with someone'
I know that 扱う means "to handle,to deal with".
But I cannot understand it in the following context
story: a new recruit arrives to the police department and is embarked on a case as soon as she ...
3
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2answers
120 views
How is 所載 used?
WaniKani taught me 所載, for which it offers the meaning "published".
On jisho I see: 1. printed; published; noted or mentioned (in a publication), but it is listed as a noun. And it definitely looks ...
4
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2answers
236 views
What is the difference between 振る and 揺る?
Both of these words seem to mean "to shake". From what I got:
振る is "higher frequency" shaking.
揺る is more like a swaying or rocking motion, "lower frequency".
Is this correct? An explanation would ...
