All Questions
26,096
questions
26
votes
6
answers
4k
views
Why are some lyrics' words written in kanji whose usual reading is not how it is sung?
Some song lyrics in the official lyric book that accompanies the CD is sung as another word. Usually, the way it is sung is given as a furigana on the kanji:
Written: 君が希望に変わってゆく
(pardon the ...
- 19.2k
9
votes
6
answers
6k
views
Meaning and level of 死ねばいいのに
I have been hearing 死ねばいいのに twice last week, including once in a context where a bit of formality was required.
What does it mean? Is it as violent as it sounds to me?
I am not looking for a word-by-...
- 8,560
41
votes
6
answers
26k
views
Pronouncing が as 'nga'
I'm a beginner and am learning from CD (Pimsleur). There are two native speakers going through the dialogue. One, the man, pronounces が as I would expect - 'ga'. The other (female) pronounces it as '...
- 513
6
votes
3
answers
404
views
Does 前提に mean "to require"?
I recently came across the expression 前提に:
feature1はfeature2と同じく各コンテンツに分類用の識別子を埋め込む機能ですが、統制を重視したユースケースを前提に設計されているため柔軟さに欠けます。
'feature1, just like feature2, is a way to embed classification into ...
- 8,560
16
votes
1
answer
661
views
About ご[馳走]{ちそう}: two “runs” would give you “a feast”?
ご[馳走様]{ちそうさま}でした is the greeting that people say after being offered a meal while ご馳走 by itself means “a feast”.
I looked up this word in the dictionary to learn more about the kanji characters. It ...
- 19.2k
23
votes
6
answers
8k
views
What is the difference between 「はずがない」 and 「わけがない」?
I know the following two sentences give implication that "not expecting me to understand (it)" but I have a feeling that they give different nuances that I just can't put my finger on:
それは分{...
- 19.2k
11
votes
2
answers
2k
views
Which part of speech is the 「ぞ」 in 「神のみぞ知るセカイ」?
「神{かみ}のみぞ知{し}るセカイ」 is the title of a manga/anime series but I'm not asking about the anime. I'm just curious about the 「ぞ」 part in the title.
I know there is a ぞ particle that is similar to よ, such ...
- 19.2k
13
votes
3
answers
1k
views
Are there any situations where かしら is considered appropriate/normal for males to use?
かしら is generally considered to be a question particle for use by females; are there any situations or dialects in which it is usable by males? I'm aware that historically, it was used by both male and ...
- 3,179
5
votes
3
answers
204
views
Does "させ" comes from the verb 刺す or just する ?
Recently I came across this sentence in a computing-related technical document:
some software と連携させ、 some feature のカスタマイズを作成します。
I get the meaning (after having integrated some product, we will ...
- 8,560
31
votes
5
answers
53k
views
What is the meaning of all those "w"s in email and SNSs?
You see a lot of w and ww and even www in Twitter and casual chat. What does it mean? I've always thought it was わいわい but never found out. How is it pronounced?
Here's an example from Twitter
...
- 6,958
19
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Where does なう on Twitter come from?
If you follow any Japanese speakers on Twitter, you'll almost certainly see them use なう at the end of a sentence, to say "I am in this place/doing this thing now". Where does this use come from? Who ...
- 6,958
20
votes
6
answers
50k
views
Which is correct: こんばんわ or こんばんは?
I've seen both こんばんわ and こんばんは used; which is correct here? If we interpret the は as the topic particle, は would seem correct, but it seems that わ is used quite frequently anyway...
- 3,179
7
votes
5
answers
416
views
Is there a general rule for deriving xasu→xaseru intransitives such as 死なせる from 死なす?
There are a number of verbs where there is a 〜xasu → xaseru transformation to produce an transitive verb from an intransitive, eg:
死なす→死なせる
生かす→生かせる
飲ます→飲ませる
Is this some kind of generalized rule? (...
- 3,179
19
votes
5
answers
28k
views
What is the correct usage of 承知しました, 了解です and かしこまりました, the more formal forms of 分かる?
At work, it is wrong to simply say 分かる to say that you understand something. In what situation should I opt to use one of the previously mentioned forms?
- 2,794
14
votes
4
answers
2k
views
外来語 (gairaigo) replaced by Japanese word?
Are there cases where gairaigo used in every day speech (パン, アイスクリーム, etc...) have been ousted by native Japanese words?
- 792
12
votes
5
answers
6k
views
Chinese words in Japanese
I have heard that Japanese has the largest number of words of any language because every Chinese word can also be a Japanese word. Is there any truth to this statement?
- 792
39
votes
5
answers
7k
views
When do you use 下さい as opposed to ください
I've noticed that there seems to be different usage for 下さい and ください. Is this purely a personal preferences or is there an actual difference their usage?
This was actually a question the Japanese ...
- 6,861
56
votes
7
answers
17k
views
What is the difference between 〜となる and 〜になる?
Is it a nuance difference? Is it formality?
EDIT
For example:
請求書のお支払いは現金のみとなりますので、ご了承くださいませ。
請求書のお支払いは現金のみになりますので、ご了承くださいませ。
I just made that example up, but for some reason, my gut tells me it's ...
- 3,955
-1
votes
3
answers
971
views
Do machine transliteration websites exist? [closed]
Are there web sites that transliterate Japanese text (katakana, hiragana and kanji) into romaji characters without translating the words into the English language?
(Note to moderators: I'm merely ...
- 16k
35
votes
4
answers
6k
views
What differences should I look out for between male vs female speech?
I was told a story where a male westerner learnt Japanese from his girlfriend and ended up speaking more like a female. The storyteller thought this was hilarious.
What important differences should I ...
- 461
9
votes
3
answers
2k
views
How rude is it to say 寝ぼけてるんじゃねぇよ！
I've heard this used (also as 寝ぼけんじゃねぇよ！) in informal situations with nothing but smiles all around. But when I tried to use it in an informal situation with a colleague, I got the distinct feeling I'...
- 1,218
29
votes
2
answers
5k
views
What's the difference between the kanji forms for わかる?
The verb わかる can be written using either 分かる, 判る, or 解る - what's the semantic difference between these forms, if any?
- 3,179
64
votes
1
answer
5k
views
Why were ゐ and ゑ eliminated?
Sometime in the early 20th century, usage of the now-historical kana ゐ and ゑ (and their katakana equivalents) dropped off, being replaced with い and え in modern Japanese. What exactly happened here ...
- 3,179
20
votes
3
answers
26k
views
What does よろしくおねがいします mean when departing?
When on business in Japan last year, a Japanese colleague said よろしくおねがいします to me as the group were leaving after dinner.
I'm aware of its usage in initial greetings, as is usually taught in textbooks,...
- 1,486
14
votes
1
answer
2k
views
At work, when is it not ok to finish an email with どうぞよろしくお願いします?
Whenever I communicate with my Japanese coworkers, I always finish my emails with どうぞよろしくお願いします。I guess in the context of an email in English it could be akin to saying "Cheers" "Regards", so I unless ...
- 2,794
65
votes
8
answers
26k
views
When going somewhere, is there any difference between e (へ) and ni (に)?
Can you use へ and に interchangeably, as in:
北海道へ行く
and
北海道に行く ?
Are there any subtle differences in the use of these two?
- 6,958
28
votes
6
answers
7k
views
How should I select what first-person pronoun to use?
I've always had trouble choosing which first person pronoun to use - 私 (watashi), 僕 (boku), or 俺 (おれ). What kind of factors should I keep in mind when choosing between these? Is it common to vary one'...
- 3,179
16
votes
2
answers
5k
views
What is the difference in nuance and usage of the two kanji forms for なおす (naosu), 直す and 治す?
Stolen directly from Grigory M's question in the definition phase:
http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/7526?phase=definition
- 632
37
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Why is 二十歳 pronounced はたち?
二十歳 is a (to me) bizarre exception to the usual number+さい rule for discussing age. Is this rooted in 20 being the Japanese age of majority?
Added: To be more specific: why isn't it pronounced にじゅうさい ...
- 2,074
24
votes
4
answers
5k
views
Questions with ~か or without: how to choose?
Studying Japanese on my own, I've learned that in order to make a question, you usually add the particle "~か", like this:
今何時ですか。
It's also true that a question can be asked without it, using the ...
- 3,039
61
votes
8
answers
28k
views
Particles: に vs. で
I have progressed pretty far in Japanese, but when I construct Japanese sentences, I still get these two particles mixed up. For example, when talking about being inside something, I don't know when ...
- 4,995
11
votes
5
answers
2k
views
Can 何で mean "how"?
Looking at this, it seems that when the word 何 is used with the で particle, it roughly translates into "by means of what" or "in what context." Personally, that sounds like asking "how". Is this ...
- 2,378
16
votes
7
answers
3k
views
When should one add さん at the end of a name?
I've heard some names pronounced with 〜さん added to them (such as 佐々木さん) and some without it. I believe it is related to respect or the age of the person named. What would be the guidelines or general ...
- 313
42
votes
4
answers
14k
views
What does -komu (～込む) at the end of a word mean?
There are loads of words in Japanese which end in 込{こ}む, like 吸{す}い込む, 読{よ}み込む, 入{はい}り込む, 打{う}ち込む, 売{う}り込む, 送{おく}り込む, 押{お}し込む. How does adding ～込む change the meaning? What is the meaning that links ...
- 6,958
19
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What's the proper way to use 先 versus 前に or 以前?
I'm trying to understand why 先 is not the best choice to use in these sentences. Is it wrong to use it in this way?
× 先、学校で何かが起こった。
○ 以前、学校で何かが起こった。
× 先の書いた本から十年間が過ぎました。
○ 前に書いた本から十年間が過ぎました。
- 5,125
50
votes
6
answers
15k
views
What does っす at the end of a sentence mean?
I saw a sentence like:
「それ使{つか}ってるっす。」
and none of my dictionaries have an entry for just "っす". Is it a verb form, gobi, or something else?
- 2,074
9
votes
4
answers
839
views
What should I look for in a dictionary to help me study? [closed]
As per the title, what should I look for in a dictionary to help me study Japanese? Are there certain things that I should look for in the dictionary or are they all pretty much the same?
To ...
user51
5
votes
2
answers
2k
views
List of Japanese counter words [closed]
What are the essential Japanese counter words?
For example -dai for machines, -mai for papers and stuff like that.
What else to expect/know?
Thank you
- 407
29
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Origin of the circle in ぬ, ね, and る
When looking at the hiragana ぬ (nu), ね (ne), and る (ru) one notices a small circle in the symbols. In fact that circle is the only difference when comparing them with the hiragana め (me), れ (re) and ろ ...
- 481
191
votes
5
answers
40k
views
What's the difference between wa (は) and ga (が)?
When is it correct to use は but not が, and when is it correct to use が but not は? Are there any times when you can use either without changing the meaning of the sentence? How does switching change ...
- 6,958
13
votes
1
answer
961
views
Japanese/Chinese numbers usage timeline
Japanese uses both native and Chinese numbering numbering systems, the Sino-Japanese pronunciations being いち, に, さん, etc. and the native being ひと, ふた, み, etc. For the most part they are used for ...
- 3,979
24
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Is there an easily accessible list of terms in the Japanese grammar written both in Japanese and English?
I am a native Japanese speaker with a casual interest in languages. I sometimes have trouble explaining the Japanese grammar in English because I do not know the established English translation of ...
- 28.3k
5
votes
4
answers
5k
views
What's the best utility for identifying kanji? [closed]
I often run into kanji that I don't recognize and need some way to translate them into kana, so that I'm able to look up the meaning.
What's the most useful utility (in any form, web-based, ...
- 167
16
votes
9
answers
4k
views
What are other language equivalents to Japanese particles?
When a person is learning は and が in terms of particles, what are the best way to relate them to English equivalents?
The closest I can come to explaining them to others is "the" and "a" but I'm not ...
- 461
22
votes
4
answers
4k
views
Commonness of casual phrases like "あたし" and "ちっちゃい"
I came across a Japanese girl in Germany who talked using words like あたし instead of わたし, or ちっちゃい instead of ちいさい. When I asked her, she said that these words or usages of words are more common in ...
- 407
15
votes
2
answers
6k
views
What are good sources for streaming Japanese language television? [closed]
While learning Japanese I'd like to watch some Japanese television, whether it is children's programming, drama, or news.
I've found a few places online that allowed me to stream snippets, but ...
- 289