All Questions
741
questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
16
votes
0
answers
1k
views
Iterative / repetitive る evolving from classical 連体形【れんたいけい】
This is somewhat related to the discussion of classical auxiliary verb ふ, mentioned in the answer to snailboat's question, What is the わ in 忌まわしい and 嘆かわしい?.
Another apparent iterative / repetitive ...
- 35.5k
8
votes
0
answers
283
views
Do loanwords have quasi-phonemic vowel reduction?
I've started to notice this, and I'm not sure whether my eyes are deceiving me or not, but it seems as if several, but not all loans have a high statistical probability of vowels being reduced/...
- 453
7
votes
2
answers
547
views
What is the difference between といったところです and というところです?
銀行に変化を促しているのがタイの中央銀行です。 日本で言えば、日銀が腰を上げて、変革の旗振り役をしているといったところです。(source)
Could we replace といったところです by というところです here? If yes, what would be the difference? If not, why?
- 2,227
6
votes
1
answer
380
views
Is there a name for kanji which look very similar?
For example, 未 and 末.
I tried looking for 同じ見える漢字 and 同見漢字 but they didn't seem to be correct or to refer to what I'm looking for.
- 265
6
votes
1
answer
744
views
～ば vs ～ていれば in counterfactual conditionals
In l'électeur's answer here, he claims (with such confidence that he bolds the belief) that the correct way to say the English sentence
"If I had turned right back then, I wonder what would have ...
- 8,343
6
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What is the difference between に伴って and と共に？
Can somebody explain to me the difference between と共{とも}に and に伴{ともな}って？ I believe that sometimes they can be used interchangeably, but not always. Moreover, their basic meanings also seem to differ. ...
- 1,365
6
votes
2
answers
780
views
あなたがこの文のおかしいと思うところは？
The structure strikes me because the underlying transformation seems to be like this:
[ あなたが ] [ この文の ～ところを ] [ おかしいと ] 思う
[ あなたが ] [ この文の ＿＿＿＿＿ ] [ おかしいと ] 思う ところは～
Another similar example is:
[ ...
- 2,955
6
votes
1
answer
809
views
Casual Speech Particles in Classical Japanese
I'm writing a simple Japanese skit for my class and there is a place where an ancient samurai needs to speak a few sentences of Classical Japanese.
I can mostly make the sentences, but it seems weird ...
- 3,025
5
votes
1
answer
201
views
Why do you put 名詞 plus の before ようだ, but you put 名詞 plus な before わけだ?
I looked up the dictionary, and found "よう" and "わけ" are both grammatical nouns (形式体言). But why is the 接続 different?
Moreover, I found many sentence patterns have their own rules. ...
- 167
5
votes
1
answer
272
views
Cases where として and にとって are overused/ cannot be used
I've been reading through Imabi, and one of the notes on the site was about inappropriate use of として and にとって in contexts of contrast and although phrases. These three were listed as examples of ...
- 3,644
5
votes
0
answers
728
views
Is ばかり a noun or a な-adjective in ばかりなので?
According to this answer and taking into account the following rules (source) to use ので:
[い-adjective]+ので
[verb]+ので
[な-adjective]+なので
[noun]+なので
I wonder whether ばかり is a な-adjective or not in ...
- 351
5
votes
1
answer
260
views
Negative and past forms of ようだ and らしい
When using the structures ようだ and らしい, when do you conjugate the verb or adjective before ようだ and らしい in negative or in past or both, and when do you conjugate NOT that verb or adjective, but instead ...
- 1,049
5
votes
1
answer
248
views
Concensus on やりもらい動詞
In this post, I insisted that AはBにしてもらう is synonymous to BはAにしてくれる but not necessarily to BはAにしてやる / あげる. However, there was a counterargument that says you can't use くれる unless the speaker is ...
- 16.3k
4
votes
0
answers
184
views
Can the か particle change the pitch accent of verbs?
Consider the Heiban verb やる. According to a video on Japanese verb pitch accent rules, Heiban verbs with no downsteps remain Heiban when conjugated to their negative form. Prosody confirms this rule ...
- 2,177
4
votes
0
answers
144
views
What are the "Ueda" codes found in CIA documents from the 1940s?
CIA documents from the 1940s, such as this declassified biography of Kim Il Sung, annotate the Chinese characters used in Korean names with numeric "Ueda" codes, like this:
Kim Sung-ju is ...
- 626
4
votes
0
answers
174
views
Can the は particle be a topic and contrast marker at same time?
I know the は particle can function as a topic marker or contrast marker. But can it be topic and contrast marker at the same time?
Here are a few examples:
A) ビールは飲{の}まない。
B) 肉{にく}は食{た}べないけど魚{さかな}は食{...
- 349
4
votes
1
answer
267
views
Why is there a の in this sentence (ほうのにする)?
じゃあ、最初に見たほうのにします.
This is a relatively easy sentence yet I can't seem to understand the purpose of the の here. This is said after choosing a product.
- 969
4
votes
1
answer
227
views
Usage of に、とき, ときに
Are these sentences correct?
クリスマスにパソコンを買った。
クリスマスのときパソコンを買った。
クリスマスのときにパソコンを買った。
What is the difference when using に、とき, ときに?
- 41
4
votes
4
answers
702
views
What is the difference between ~たい and ~ことを望む?
I have been trying to translate some English sentences into Japanese. I have been asking people on OKWAVE to translate these sentences. I am happy to say that the results have been mostly satisfactory....
- 1,369
4
votes
3
answers
550
views
Understanding the use of "を貫き通せる"
I have a very brief question, how is を貫き通せる meant to be interpreted in the following line?
[…]我が道を貫き通せるほど拳が硬いわけでもない。
Dictionary definitions of "貫き通す" includes the following:
to go through; ...
- 41
4
votes
1
answer
862
views
Is this a pre-noun adjectival?
Does ような work as a pre-noun adjectival in this two sentences?
これに匹敵するような車は日本ではずっと高いでしょう。
各大会で多くの方があなたのグッズを身にまとい一大ブームとなっており、かつてのnWoに匹敵するような状態となってます。
Because when I look for sentences ...
- 1,420
4
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Is there any difference between じゃあない and じゃない?
これっ！ 石を投げるんじゃあないっ！
すいちゃったものはしかたがないじゃあないのっ！
I've been reading a light novel called Slayers, and I noticed something interesting: the author usually writes じゃあない and not じゃない. I'm curious if there ...
user1478
4
votes
1
answer
197
views
Usage of 焚き付ける in this sentence
The topic is Gilgamesh here.
「英霊の座」スレ住民。タンクトップにジャージのズボン、バンダナに指抜きグローブ姿の立派な引きこもりニートで、その上セイバーのストーカーでもある。遠坂邸に居候しており、カソックにフリルのエプロン姿の家政婦のおじさんが生活全般の面倒を見ている。
いつも自信満々に全く説得力皆無のアドバイスを戦車男に焚き付けては、...
- 3,039
4
votes
2
answers
407
views
What is the difference between 限る and 限定する?
I'm pretty sure that there's a lot more you can do with 限る than there is with 限定する, (When I looked up 限る, I saw a lot of different usages, such as it meaning "is the best," or "nothing is better than,"...
- 41
4
votes
1
answer
119
views
What's the difference between ないわけにはいかない and ずにすまない？?
I think they both mean that you have to do something because there is a social pression like なければならい、but I'm not certain that I can use them interchangeably. Could somebody confirm it?
- 1,365
4
votes
3
answers
2k
views
What is the difference between びっくりした and びっくりするじゃないの
What is the difference between びっくりした and びっくりするじゃないの?
The only thing I can think of is that one is just a general way of saying that something scared you, whilst the other is a way of "blaming" the ...
- 41
3
votes
0
answers
84
views
Phenomenon of omitting the head noun of a relative clause
Take this dialogue for example, where A and B talk about a certain 田中さん:
A: ところで田中さんって覚えてる？
B: あ、このあいだパーティーにいた？
I made it up, so please excuse any unnatural aspects. The important part is B's answer. ...
- 1,419
3
votes
0
answers
61
views
Can そうにする be placed after all adjectives to form the meaning: (to pretend to be sth)
For example:
I saw 偉そうにする (to act important) in my textbook.
Could every adjective or 連用形 fit in this structure?
ex.
きれいそうにする (to act pretty)
ばかそうにする (to act like a fool)
見られなそうにする (to act as one can ...
- 127
3
votes
0
answers
118
views
How would you interpret this sentence "見える人にだけ見える光だ"?
It was excerpted from the lyrics of amazarashi's song called "未来になれなかったあの夜に."
I tried to interpret "見える人" as the subject and "見える人にだけ見える" wholly as an adjectival clause; ...
- 73
3
votes
2
answers
341
views
How to use ワクワクする properly
All examples are example sentences from a dictionary.
I read that ワクワクする expresses an instant reaction rather than a state, as in:
彼はその美しい光景を見てわくわくした。
彼女はその有名な歌手に会えると思うとわくわくした。
But here in this ...
- 31
3
votes
0
answers
333
views
Is there a Japanese term that conveys the meaning of "attention whore"?
Just to clarify, an "attention whore" is a noun that can be used to describe a person (usually a woman, in fact, but the term can be used for men as well) that seeks attention, and would do ...
- 63
3
votes
0
answers
156
views
Is 「何もしないで暖かくする」 ambiguous?
I was reading this answer and I came across this:
(A) 何もしないで暖かくする (ambiguous)
(B) 何もしなくて暖かくする (unambiguous)
I'm not sure why A is ambiguous, but here's my understanding: unlike なくて, ないで doesn't ...
- 1,500
3
votes
0
answers
64
views
Understanding 可能形+もの
「……折紙さんはもう除隊しやがってますし、真那は裏切り同然の形でDEMを出奔していやがります。正面から行って入れてもらえるものですかね？」
The speaker (真那) and her friend (折紙) wanted to enter a military base that they used to belong to. The speaker was asking 折紙 ...
- 4,081
3
votes
1
answer
232
views
What is the purpose of 「で」 in the following sentence?
I came accross the following passage in my textbook:
ゆとり教育で学校で教える内容が減らされたため、その教育を受けた子供達は常識的に誰でも知っているはずのことでさえ知らないという現象も出てきた。
I can understand the meaning of the sentence, as "Due to the decrease ...
- 5,058
3
votes
0
answers
460
views
Official descriptions of kanji forms
How are the essential graphical identities of kanji defined? The length of the first stroke in 土, for example, is essential, because if it's longer than the third stroke, you have 士 instead. If you ...
- 221
3
votes
0
answers
129
views
一時はどうなることかと思った vs 一時はどうなるかと思った
「一時はどうなることかと思ったけど、怪我の功名ってやつね。」
I also found the expression 一時はどうなるかと思った(「At one point [For a while] I was really worried.) in a dictionary. Are both 一時はどうなることかと思った and 一時はどうなるかと思った the same?
If not, ...
- 4,081
3
votes
0
answers
103
views
What would be the function or meaning of わけですし?
『それにしても、随分と思い切りましたわね、士道さん』
狂三が、面白がるような口調で言ってくる。士道は一瞬口ごもってから返した。
「……仕方ねえだろ。それに、狂三だって賛成したじゃねえかよ」
『まあ、それはそれですけれど。ーー確かに、折紙さんが現れる前に<ファントム>を追い払うことができたのなら、折紙さんはそもそも攻撃する目標を失うわけですし』
The context is that ...
- 4,081
3
votes
2
answers
286
views
ていく (auxiliary verb) - Clarification on nuance
I was revising the grammar for ていく and got this sentence from the Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar.
これからは寒くなっていく
The meaning the book gave was that "It will get colder (and continue to be ...
- 331
3
votes
0
answers
209
views
Semantic classification of verbs
Lately, I've been spending a lot of focus in how to translate certain verbs in the form ～ている. Mostly comes from the fact that, depending on the verb, it can have a meaning of prolonged action (e.g. ...
- 907
3
votes
2
answers
234
views
Can this sentence be interpreted in more than one way?
I read a sentence
彼女はわかっていた。あるいは、わかっていると思っていた。
It was translated as "She knew, or she thought she knew/knows."
Prior to seeing this translation, in my head, I interpreted it as "I knew her, or ...
- 2,362
3
votes
0
answers
107
views
What is the suffix らっしせる?
A Japanese friend, a woman in her seventies who comes from Sapporo and has long resided in Tokyo, and who does not speak in a strong Hokkaido dialect, writes several times in a letter to me the -て ...
- 31
3
votes
2
answers
390
views
What's the proper form (formal/informal) to use when speaking to others online?
I should preface this by saying that I myself am fairly young (a teenager) and speak primarily to other young people (while I may not know their exact age, it's safe to assume the other people I speak ...
3
votes
0
answers
232
views
Is using the particle は twice here natural?
I've come across the sentence
父は休みの日はずっとテレビを見ている。(My father spends his days off watching television all the time.)
where it doubles in using the は particle. From another post, it seems that this ...
- 609
3
votes
0
answers
223
views
Suffixes: らしき versus っぽい
I came across the following sentence recently:
バイトらしき女の子に優しく教えてくれた。
Strangely, it was my first time encountering this form of らしい and I understood the meaning immediately, but it brought to mind ...
- 792
3
votes
2
answers
388
views
What's the difference between 調整する and 整える?
Both meanings are about adjust or fix, but I can't manage to understand why
温度を調整した ( right )
温度を整えた ( wrong )
If 整える usually means fix something to the right condition/state the second ...
3
votes
0
answers
127
views
Does 逆さまにする ever mean rotation on the Y-axis? a twist?
I've thought さかさま to mean to rotate 180" over the X-axis. In dictionaries, I see the definition "to invert, upside down; to flip" ok.
But "to reverse, back to front" is also included in some ...
- 2,900
3
votes
0
answers
86
views
Nuances and context of linking without 〜て / dropped 「て」in linked constructions
(Taken from ジョジョの奇妙な冒険６部: When Jotaro talks to Jolyne about who got her into prison.../ for those who do not know the series: The persons speaking to each other are father and daughter but have a ...
- 1,145
3
votes
1
answer
361
views
Appropriate polite language when referencing yourself in a letter written on behalf of others?
Maybe this is a bit too hypothetical, but I thought it was an interesting question nonetheless.
I was writing a business email in Japanese, using pretty formal language, on behalf of someone who ...
- 470
3
votes
1
answer
237
views
How to politely phrase "what problem are you trying to solve?"
I'm struggling to find a way to phrase:
"Could you let me know what problem you are trying to solve with ${COMPANY_PRODUCT}?"
in a business email. The context is that we're offering a ...
- 470
3
votes
0
answers
135
views
Comparing nouns
Good day,
I would like some clarification with regards to comparing nouns. In some references like Minna no Nihongo, the sentence formula would be something like
A と B と + どちら のほうが/が + Adjectiveですか。
...
- 389