36
votes
Accepted
What is the 中 in ダウンロード中？
Yes, you are correct that 中 (ちゅう) in this case means "in the middle of ～ ". For your sentence, the simple translation "downloading" is probably the most natural.
It is fairly ...
- 11.3k
15
votes
Why is 一日 used instead of 日 to ask how your day is?
In this case, it would be read as [一日]{いち・にち} which just means "(one) day" as opposed to [一日]{≪ついたち≫} which means first of the month.
My gut says that in this case 一日 is acting like "your day" in ...
- 42.7k
14
votes
Accepted
when do I have to use naru hodo, and when do I have to use wakarimashita?
Both "naru hodo" and "wakarimashita" mean "I understand," but there is a difference in the usages and nuances between those two words.
"Naru hodo" means "...
14
votes
Accepted
What is the difference between ayumu, sanpo and aruku?
Difference between ayumu, sanpo and aruku
aruku (歩｛ある｝く) is a general term for to walk.
ayumu (歩｛あゆ｝む) is a little old-fashioned expression for to walk, especially to walk step by step, and it ...
- 15.1k
12
votes
Accepted
Differences between the various readings of 描く and 画く
I think this is actually a place where the Chinese-imported kanji obscure the usage of native Japanese words.
Etymology
The etymology of all these words (and 書く) is the same 和語 of かく, which has the ...
12
votes
So I understand 人外 is an anagram of 外人, but does 外人人外 mean evil foreigner?
人外【じんがい】 is an uncommon and old-fashioned word. In fictional works, it typically refers to evil monsters, undeads, Japanese yokai, etc. You won't see this term often unless you're a fan of fantasy. ...
- 274k
12
votes
What is the 中 in ダウンロード中？
I think you answered your own question. 中{ちゅう} is a suffix that means "in the middle of". e.g.
道路は工事中だ
The road is in the middle of construction.
- 27.5k
12
votes
Book error: パパは銀行に出かけていていないよ
Grammatically, there are two predicates in this sentence, (銀行に)出かけている and いない.
銀行に出かけている: "has gone to the bank", "is out at the bank"
いない: "is not here", "is away&...
- 274k
11
votes
How is こちらこそ used?
It's being used here as B being humble and saying that the pleasure of this meeting is all theirs.
You know how sometimes, especially in cliched movies, there will be an exchange like this?
X: ...
- 1,346
11
votes
知っているはずです is over complicated?
The correction does not have the same meaning as the question in English, so I think your friend misunderstood what you wanted to ask (which is another reason to avoid はず here).
Even though はず can be ...
- 6,513
11
votes
Accepted
Existence verbs in the Kansai Dialect
That statement basically only applies for おる as a simple existence verb. Non-humble おる is very common in Kansai. As a subsidiary verb, various forms including とる/ちょる/よる are commonly used instead of ...
- 274k
11
votes
Accepted
Could 家族 be used for really close friends?
We may not use 家族 to refer to friends as much as in other cultures, but calling someone with whom you have a family-to-family relationship as you describe in your post 日本の家族 is totally acceptable, and ...
- 14k
11
votes
Accepted
Is there any significant difference between 駆け回る and 駆け巡る?
Both mean mostly the same but are not very interchangeable.
A general distinction would be
駆け回る is casual, means literally something is running about. Sometimes it has negative connotation of "...
- 17.2k
10
votes
Accepted
Difference between 者{もの} and 人{ひと}
Not necessarily old-fashioned, but standalone 者 does sound stiff.
It's commonly found in military settings or in legal documents, where everything is written in an objective manner:
違反した者は、...
- 274k
10
votes
Accepted
What's the difference between 上手い, 美味い, 旨い, and 巧い?
These can be divided into two large categories.
上手い ≒ 巧い ≒ good at something, skillful
彼女は料理がうまい。 She is good at cooking.
美味い ≒ 旨い ≒ delicious, yummy
この料理はうまい。 This dish is delicious.
The ...
- 274k
10
votes
Accepted
知っているはずです is over complicated?
I feel 何字知っているはずですか? is unnatural. I feel a question form of はずだ like はずですか? is unnatural, and the native Japanese speaker also would feel so. The reason why I feel it is unnatural is because はずだ ...
- 23.9k
10
votes
Accepted
Why is ば in this sentence?
ば is the accusative particle used in wide area of (northern, as I remember) Kyushu as much as を in Standard Japanese. Etymologically it's from を + は contracted but no longer has share the は sense in ...
- 49.1k
10
votes
Accepted
Is there any difference between 速さand 速度?
I would say there is no difference, at least in everyday language. Maybe 速さ has a slightly more casual feel to it... at least I see more myself using 速さ than 速度 in a daily conversation.
Now, 速度 is ...
- 436
10
votes
Accepted
Why is "language" represented by 言葉【ことば】 instead of 言語【げんご】 in this book for learning Japanese?
言語 is more of an academic term, while ことば is more colloquial and accessible. 言語 is normally used with longer compound words. Functionally, though, they mean the same thing.
Although the example that ...
- 7,120
10
votes
Accepted
Meaning of「〜てみたいと思います」
You've gotten the みたい part wrong. What you are seeing is a subsidiary verb (～て)みる, which means "to try doing something (and see what happens)". See: What is the difference between "verb＋て＋みる"...
- 274k
10
votes
Accepted
What is the meaning of 「ほう」in the following sentence?
If I were translating these sentences naturally but relatively 'faithfully' into English, I'd probably go for the following:
日本の労働時間は世界でも長いほうだ。
Working hours in Japan are on the long(er) side, even ...
- 3,672
9
votes
What's the difference between そうです and そうでしょう?
～だろう/でしょう in this context does not represent the uncertainty or guessing of the father. This actually is a strong affirmation of the Yotsuba's observation. I would translate this そうだろう as "Indeed," "...
- 274k
9
votes
Accepted
ならでは vs. ぐらいのもの
～ならではの + noun is a set phrase meaning "(noun) only seen in ～", "(noun) unique to ～", "(noun) that can be done only by ～", etc. For example, you can say 渡辺先生ならではの手術, which means "surgery that can only ...
- 274k
9
votes
Accepted
Can ところで be ambiguous (time vs. location)?
駅の近くでケーキを買ったところで彼女に偶然会った。
The sentence doesn't sound ambiguous to me. It means "I met her by chance right when I bought a cake near the station."
According to 明鏡国語辞典:
ところ【所(処)】〘名詞〙
⑥-㋒《「・・・(ようと)...
- 61.4k
9
votes
Accepted
What's the most common way to say you are bad at something?
You have several ways to say "I'm bad at Japanese". The most common (and direct) ways to say it would be:
私は日本語が[下手]{へた}です。(lit. As for me, Japanese is poor.)
私の日本語は下手です。(lit. My Japanese is ...
- 61.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible