14
votes
Accepted
Difference between どこですか and どこにいますか/どこにありますか?
The verb ある is translated "be located", so there's usually little semantic difference between どこですか？ and どこにありますか？ This rule can be further extended to XはYにあります = XはYです for a thing X and ...
- 52.3k
11
votes
Accepted
Can you use 誰(だれ) with animals?
Not really. It would be a rather odd way of asking. この犬の名前は何？ is the natural way of asking.
- 16.6k
10
votes
What is the most commonly used way to apologize in Japanese?
There is no most commonly used way, it depends on the situation.
Informal
わりい (←sounds like you aren't really showing remorse, male)
悪い (male-ish)
すまん (male-ish)
ごめん
(If you say any ...
- 16.3k
10
votes
"nan" in "kore wa nan desu ka"
First of all, the writing system you are refering to is hiragana. Not kanji. And no, it would not be これわなんですか。
The correct way to write it would be this:
これはなんですか。
The only real difference here is ...
- 201
10
votes
Accepted
Are possessive particles implied in a conversation?
To answer your question, let's forget about も for a while. も is a particle that can replace は, and this question is actually more about the usage of は.
Consider the following conversations:
A: ...
- 331k
9
votes
Accepted
Can なし be used in response to a binary question?
The pair はい/なし is highly strange to me. はい/いいえ is better.
The possible way to use なし as an answer is where the question is of ～ありますか？ ("do you have ...") form. In this case, あり/なし is also fine.
For ...
- 5,378
8
votes
What's the connection between a spoon (匕) and the old age (⺹)? (Kanji: 老)
It appears that the 匕 component that we see in 老 did not start out as the same character as 匕 "spoon", but instead as a stylization of long hair and a cane. This is more apparent if you compare the ...
- 38.1k
7
votes
What exactly is "なの" (nano)?
I stumbled across this question looking for something else, and I realize it's pretty old by the time I'm writing this, but while some of the answers did adequately cover the meaning/interpretation, ...
- 2,084
7
votes
Why do people say 'Iru?' alone?
いる？ is a colloquial way of asking "Want some?" (or "You there?"). Of course colloquial speech is free to break the usual grammar rules, but even in standard Japanese grammar both object and subject ...
- 48.3k
7
votes
Ending Questions with だ
Interrogative phrases ending in だ (with the exception of dialects) are used to demand information.
As in the following:
誰だ！・何者だ！ - "Who!", "Who goes there!"
どこだ！ - "Where!", "Where is it!"
いつだ！ -...
- 7,431
6
votes
How to ask where I can buy something
You can also say
Xはどこで売っていますか。 → Where do they sell X?
The implication (obviously) is that if something is being sold, then you are able to buy it. That being said, you wouldn't use this form if ...
- 44.5k
6
votes
Accepted
んです for asking for permission
の/ん in a question sentence is for asking for a clarification. See: Question Markers: か and の
The connotation that the の has is to seek clarification based on background contexts, while the か doesn’...
- 331k
5
votes
Can なし be used in response to a binary question?
"Is X equal to Y" can be replied with はい and いいえ
"Does A exist for B" can be replied with はい or いいえ, or あり or なし.
あり・なし deals with existence, they can be roughly translated as:
あり - there is
なし - ...
Flaw♦
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5
votes
パンの作り方は何ですか。 OK?
I don't think it's acceptable, though one can see its meaning.
パンの作り方は何ですか is grammatically correct, saying "what is the way to make bread?"
But asking a way (やり方) by 何 is not natural. I feel 何 is ...
- 5,378
5
votes
Accepted
Can a question directly modify a noun?
No, this 桜の花が今年いつごろ咲くか doesn't modify 発表 but the predicate.
か-ending clause has not only function as nominal clause, but as adverbial too. Thus,
桜の花が今年いつごろ咲くか発表がありました。
An announcement was made ...
- 52.3k
5
votes
Accepted
hontou nano ka , is "na" here part of the question marker or is it something else?
な is not part of the question marker because the same な can appear in non-question sentences. This な is an attributive form of the copula だ. (Chart: Conjugations of the Japanese Copula)
の here is a ...
- 331k
5
votes
Accepted
How do I write out a multiple choice question in Japanese?
(A)(B)(C) and (1)(2)(3) are perfect choices in most modern Japanese workplaces, especially when you send something via the Internet. ①②③ is the next safest. Some traditional documents still prefer (ア)(...
- 331k
5
votes
Adjective-No in a Question format?
の in this case is a pronoun that can be translated to English as "one".
(More precisely, it's a "dependent indefinite pronoun")
Therefore:
大きい = "big" (adjective)
大きいの = ...
- 1,968
5
votes
How to ask someone if it is okay to do something?
A very standard and polite way of asking permission for something in Japanese is to use the construction VERBてもいいですか.
See these answers for reference:
Why でも is used rather than も in this sentence?
...
- 11.6k
5
votes
Can you use 誰(だれ) with animals?
No, and if you say that way people probably assume that you try to say "Whose is this dog?". (この犬は誰のですか?)
We don't use 誰 for something that is not human.
- 51
5
votes
Using i-adjectives at the end of (Or really anywhere in...) a sentence?
Let's look at each of your sample sentences in turn.
食べ物が美味しさですか?
Breaking this down word for word:
[食]{た}べ[物]{もの}
eating-thing → food
が
[subject particle]
[美味しさ]{おいしさ}
deliciousness (as a degree or ...
- 38.1k
5
votes
Accepted
What does verb + 損 mean?
Verb (+「(さ)せる」「(ら)れる」 ) in masu-form + 損 generally forms a compound noun that means "the situation of doing something and it ending up in vain (or at least by far not effective enough.)" ...
- 1,558
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